Councillor vows to keep working despite suspension for misconduct

Melton councillor Ashleigh Vandenberg suspended after arbiter finds she insinuated corruption Wed 24 Jun 2026 at 5:13am In short: An internal arbiter's report found Melton councillor Ashleigh Vandenberg breached the councillor code of conduct on social media multiple times. Cr Vandenberg has been suspended for two months, but vowed to continue many of her council roles without receiving an allowance. What's next? Cr Vandenberg told the ABC she disagreed with the arbiter's findings, calling the report "false and defamatory". A councillor in Melbourne's outer-west plans to continue in her role, despite being handed a two-month suspension for misconduct. Melton Councillor Ashleigh Vandenberg has also announced she plans to run against the Labor party in the upcoming state election for the seat of Sydenham. It is the latest development in tensions between Labor-aligned Melton councillors, and Cr Vandenberg and her partner that involve multiple court hearings and intervention orders. A report by an independent arbiter tabled at this week's council meeting found Cr Vandenberg breached the councillor code of conduct on social media multiple times between February and August 2025, including using the hashtag "#BigBrother", and describing the outer suburban municipality as "fast becoming a 3rd world state". The arbiter found her posts were misleading, brought discredit on the council and undermined public trust. They also found she breached the code by failing to treat another councillor with respect, although Cr Vandenberg — a Wiradjuri and Nari Nari woman who was elected as Melton's first Indigenous councillor in 2020 — said it was her and her family who had been the victims of bullying and racial vilification. She told Monday's council meeting she respected the legal process, but strongly disagreed with many of the findings, and would continue to perform many of her council roles, without receiving a council allowance. "Throughout my time as a councillor I have never been afraid to speak up on behalf of residents, challenge process and advocate for transparency and accountability within local government," she told the meeting. Councillor disputes report findings The arbiter found, in March 2025, Cr Vandenberg insinuated corruption in the council, posting to Facebook, "[r]esidents don't know who the Mayor and Deputy Mayors meet with, why they're meeting or what's discussed', along with several hashtags including "#FightCorruption", "#Melton" and "#nothingtohidesoshareit". They also found she was misleading in a Facebook post from April 2025 where she described "a growing issue with business partners walking away from City of Melton". "Melton is fast becoming a 3rd world state and major investors walking away," Cr Vandenberg said in the post, which referred to "burdensome permit requirements", and cited childcare centres, supermarkets and petrol stations. "The benefits of political transparency can be discussed without unfounded accusations of corruption, bribery and game play," the arbiter found. The arbiter also found Cr Vandenberg undermined trust in the council in a post that asked residents how they would feel if the council implemented artificial intelligence (AI) tools to monitor residents, and included the hashtag "#bigbrother". Cr Vandenberg told the ABC she did not agree with the findings. "The City Of Melton conceded they were using AI and are negotiating settlement with an affected resident," she said. Cr Vandenberg's partner, Simon Vallone, has an application before VCAT claiming Melton Council breached his privacy, and used AI to track him online, due to be heard in August. A Melton council spokesperson said the council did not use AI to surveil residents, and that the allegation was based on its use of Brandwatch. "Brandwatch is a globally used social media monitoring software used to understand trends, track sentiment and engage meaningfully," the spokesperson said. "Council's collection, use and disclosure of personal information is carried out in accordance with the Privacy and Data Protection Act and Council's Privacy Policy." The arbiter's report also found Cr Vandenberg did not treat her fellow councillor, Phillip Zada, with dignity, courtesy and respect by continuing to tag and reference him on Facebook after he asked her not to. "For each issue Cr Vandenberg wished to share with residents via Facebook, this could have been achieved in a way that was not misleading, did not bring discredit upon the Council, did not undermine public trust and confidence, and did not fail to treat her follow Councillor with dignity and respect," the arbiter found. She was ordered to undertake training about the councillor code of conduct and social media policy. Cr Vandenberg told the ABC the report by arbiter Diana Price was "false and defamatory". "I will be initiating legal action and referring Diana Price to the law commission of Victoria for an investigation," she said. "The current action undertaken on me is based on councillors and council angry at my partner pursuing them in VCAT for continuing to breach his privacy and drag him into government affairs when he is not a councillor." Cr Zada declined to comment. Pattern of conflict in growth council Bitter infighting has plagued this term of the Melton Council. In September 2025, then-mayor Steve Abboushi referred Cr Vandenberg to the minister for local government and the Local Government Inspectorate, after what he said were unsubstantiated allegations of bullying, harassment and vilification. "I want to reassure you that, while these matters are upsetting for our Councillors, staff and community, they will not divert our attention from what truly matters — the people of the City of Melton," he said in a statement at the time. Melbourne's outer-west is facing a population boom, and infrastructure challenges, especially on roads and public transport. The area frequently features in lists of the fastest-growing parts of Australia. Australian Bureau of Statistics data from March 2026 shows the two areas with the largest growth in Australia in 2024-5 were in the city of Melton: Rockbank-Mount Cottrell grew by 4,600 people, and Fraser Rise-Plumpton grew by 4,100 people. At 20pc, the growth in Fraser Rise-Plumpton was 20 per cent — the third-highest rate in the country, compared to the average growth rate of 1.8 per cent across the capital cities.