According to the August 21 agenda, mayor Greg Howard will ask council to pass a motion of “no confidence” against councillor Lawrence Archer. 

However, Cr Archer says the claims are baseless. 

“They’re making unfounded accusations and they’ve got no evidence, that I know of, to make the claim that I have released the information,” he said.

Cr Archer said no one had raised the issue with him and he had not expected to see a motion of no confidence in the council's agenda. 

“If they think that I have done wrong, I believe the mayor should have used the code of conduct, but to make open allegations like he has and to move [this], I think is the wrong way to go about it,” he said.

It is alleged Cr Archer released information discussed in a closed council meeting about the Aminya health care facility. 

Cr Howard said he had proof Cr Archer gave information to the paper. 

“(The paper) asked me for a comment based on the information he had provided to them,” Cr Howard said.

“He just needs to realise that he can’t breach the confidentiality of closed sessions. He’s a long-term councillor … and he is fully aware that anything that appears in closed session is not for release to the public,” he said. 

Cr Howard said the motion was not a personal attack, but suggested it was a criminal offence to release private information.

“If you read section 338a of the Local Government Act, it very clearly says what you can and cannot do in terms of information received in closed council,” he said. 

Cr Howard said the incident would be referred to the Local Government Association of Tasmania. 

“There are a number of paths that we will take on top of this,” he said.  

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Cr Archer said he had been pushing for more than a year for details of the Aminya facility to be discussed in public council. 

“I’ve been suggesting that they ought to be more open with what is going on with Aminya,” he said. 

It was announced in 2015 that May Shaw Health would take over the Scottsdale aged care facility, and run it in conjunction with the council and state government.

All matters relating to the financial arrangements of Aminya have been held in closed council.  

The council’s general manager, Tim Watson, said Cr Archer’s comments to the paper implied the council was not being transparent. 

Mr Watson said the council had taken “considerable” steps to inform the community of the progress of the aged care facility. 

“Specifically, the mayor and general manager made a presentation to the community on October 14, 2015 (and) stated that council would fund the purchase of the Aminya facility, equipment purchases and operational losses,” Mr Watson said in the agenda.

“It is difficult to understand how it could be argued that the community has not been adequately informed of council’s involvement in the aged care solution for the North East.”