Blue Mountains City Council has done it again, this time preventing former and current staff from speaking at a council meeting yesterday.

The council met last night to discuss its submission in response to Local Government Minister Gabrielle Upton’s notice of intended suspension of elected Councillors.

Greens Councillor Kerry Brown moved a motion to allow members of the community to speak at the meeting, but Labor councillors voted against it.

Some of those not allowed to speak at the meeting were staff who worked at sites where they were potentially exposed to harmful asbestos.

Mark Levy is livid.

“So we’re virtually gagging people are we? Is that where we’ve got to at Blue Mountains City Council?

“This is ridiculous.”

But the blunders don’t end there.

Council has also claimed the relationship between Michael Tooma, the lawyer engaged to lead an independent investigation into asbestos issues at the council, and former senior staff member Mark Mulligan came “to an effective end in 2012”.

Ray Hadley has revealed Mr Tooma was listed as a referee on Mulligan’s resume as late as 2016.

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