Desal cash for Council

SMH Spike column considers Council's decision yesterday to lease part of the former Woolworths building opposite Town Hall to one of the two bidders for Sydney's controversial desalination plant (see Malcolm Turnbull's speech on sustainability blogged here earlier). They ask - hypocrisy or acting economic responsibly? I voted for the later.

Fields of Clover
TALK about having your salted cake and eating it too.
The Lord Mayor, Clover Moore, and most of her merry band of City of Sydney councillors resolved in August that they were "strongly opposed" to Morris Dilemma's de-salting water factory.
Council minutes show the declaratory motion was put up by the Liberal councillor Shayne Mallard and supported by Moore's Village People and the Greens councillor, Chris Harris. The three Labor councillors opposed it. Cut to yesterday's extraordinary council meeting. The same council voted, with only Harris opposing, to lease part of its Woolworths building at Town Hall to a group bidding to build the desalination plant.
Freshwater Alliance got its new offices for a undisclosed, seven-figure sum. We guess that makes the council more economic realists than hypocrites.

spike@smh.com.au Spikeline: 9282 2080 Fax: 9282 3253