THE member for Wallsend has responded to claims made by the lord mayor of Newcastle about the city's pools, saying she "will not be pressured" to advocate less for her community.
Sonia Hornery made a statement after the May 23 Newcastle council meeting, where Newcastle lord mayor Nuatali Nelmes and other Labor councillors recused themselves from a confidential debate to award a management contract for the city's five inland pools.
The move meant the four non-Labor councillors who remained could not form a quorum, and the full council voted to instead delegate responsibility to the council CEO Jeremy Bath.
Cr Nelmes said an un-named politician and former councillor had instructed her how to vote and created a conflict of interest in the matter.
Ms Hornery said this was "false and misleading".
"The lord mayor and elected councillors are trying to imply that any advocacy they receive is an instruction on how to vote," she said.
"The lord mayor and councillors frequently lobby me to advocate for projects and funding and yet I do not hide from my democratic responsibilities or shirk my duties as an elected official.
"It is imperative as leaders and representatives in our community that we embrace our democratic system and advocate for better outcomes in our community, indeed, where appropriate we should listen to the advocacy of others."
Ms Hornery has been vocal about the way the council manages its pools, and publicly called for council to take on the management of them. Four of the five pools are currently managed by a private operator, while Beresfield pool is run by council.
"I've always stood up for Newcastle pools and always will," she said.
"The privatisation of our pools is an issue that many people raise with me, and I share their concerns.
"Privatisation never leads to better outcomes for the community.
"I have always stood against privatisation across all levels of government. I have done so at great personal sacrifice to my career, having resigned as Parliamentary Secretary in 2009 in protest against an ongoing privatisation agenda.
"I will not be pressured to advocate any less for my community by anyone from any level of politics."
City of Newcastle chief executive Jeremy Bath on Thursday afternoon hit back at Ms Hornery's stance.
"Let me be very clear: the tender does not permit the sale of our pools, and therefore any claim that they are being privatised is incorrect," he said.
"Under the model that was proposed last year, a third party would continue to be responsible for the day-to-day operation of our pools. City of Newcastle would still own the pools, be responsible for upgrading the pools, and all the associated maintenance of the pools and buildings.
"Only the kiosk, cleaning, seasonal lifeguards, learn to swim classes and programs, and pool entry would be managed by a third party, as has been the case for the past nine years.
Mr Bath, who was delegated authority to decide on whether council or external staff should manage the pools, said he had already written to the six councillors "who do not have a conflict of interest on the matter", unions and other stakeholders offering them a chance to make the case for who should take on the task.
"I also extend that offer to meet to Sonia, but on the condition that she comes with evidence to support her position, rather than misleading claims of privatisation," he said.
"I will make my decision consistent with the sentiment of the NSW Premier. That is, City of Newcastle will only enter into a commercial arrangement for the operation of its pools if it delivers value for money for ratepayers, and improved customer service outcomes."
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