Halloran Confident She Can Work from Home as a Councillor

Despite staying overseas, Mosman deputy mayor Belinda Halloran said she is confident she can continue serving her term even if remotely. The deputy mayor’s husband Grant has been relocated to San Francisco, California with the entire family.

Mosman is located in Sydney’s north shore. Halloran has 30,000 constituents and manages a $40-million budget.

The Halloran couple, including their four children, moved last week to the United States. The deputy mayor requested a two-month leave from her post to allow her to settle in with her family. If she is allowed to take a leave of absence, she will work from home as a Councillor via the internet.

Halloran says that because of today’s digital advancements, geography doesn’t limit her from representing her community. According to reports, however, she hasn’t been responding to email and her Twitter account does not have any updates. The last posting was made in September 2011.

Before she left for the United States, Halloran said that she remains 100 percent committed to her function as deputy mayor. She has pledged to be back home in Mosman to attend the council meetings scheduled for July and August.

Her husband initially told the press that the deputy mayor is set to resign from her post. The law technically allows her to server as deputy mayor for as long as she is an Australian citizen, who is a resident or a ratepayer.

Mosman Mayor Anne Connon said that Halloran ought to resign as soon as possible, saying that the very idea of a “local government” is that its leaders must be based locally. The mayor is not aware if her deputy has any plans to run in the September local elections.

Tagged Anne Connon, Belinda Halloran