Ipswich City Council CEO David Farmer has announced he will be leaving in April to take up a new role as CEO of Central Coast Council in New South Wales.

Mr Farmer joined Ipswich City Council in February 2019 while it was under administration and has overseen a range of governance improvements and the return of the elected council in April 2020.

He will be moving to a similar scenario at Central Coast Council, which is currently under administration with its councillors being suspended after the NSW Government was forced to step in late last year to ensure that it was able to pay its staff and creditors.

Mr Farmer has a history of taking councils from crisis through to stability and ultimately prosperity, having done this in Cairns, Wollongong and now Ipswich over the past 20 years.

“I’m looking forward to bringing my experience to this role, to help guide this organisation forward through a very difficult path,” he said.

His departure from Ipswich City Council comes at a time when the council has been embroiled in controversy with three councillors admitting to continuing to work in their previous jobs after being sworn in on a $156,000 full-time councillor role and one of those councillors Andrew Fechner accepting a $19,500 annual vehicle allowance without having a car.

Mr Farmer however said he was convinced Ipswich was on the right path. 

“Coming in during the administration period and having to deal with the legacy of the poor governance that preceded it was extremely difficult. However I would like to recognise the great team which has stepped up to the challenge and made numerous changes to improve the council’s performance,” Mr Farmer said.

“Change is difficult and has its ups and downs and I am convinced that the