As individuals naturally we each have our own pet issues, but to the best of our ability they must be put aside in favour of what’s best for the entire community. That can be testing.

Councillors have strict requirements for managing direct conflicts – such as issues involving personal financial interest, interests of clients and relatives, or executive membership of any organisation.

All such interests must be publicly declared so it is clear to any observer that there is a conflict and whether it needs to be managed and how, so as to leave no doubt that the potential for personal bias will not affect council decisions.  

But formal conflicts aside, there is also the problem of ensuring that one’s personal opinions don’t get in the way of making best possible decisions for the broader population.

That’s part of the reason why all large organisations now have program budgets, with an amount set aside for each sort of project so all necessary actions are attended to and none forgotten in the heat of the moment.

That rigidness can be both confusing and upsetting to the public eye – with people wondering why money is spent on parks and gardens, for instance, when some other job seems more immediately important.

Arising from council’s recent outreach to Bonny Hills, it was great to hear that people came away with a better sense of all council’s competing priorities – even within their own locality, let alone the entire council area.

For that reason it’s great that several local communities have been working to list their wants and set priorities, which makes it much easier to approach council or other governments for funding.

So please do contact council if you want something done.

But also be willing to understand if there are reasons it can’t be done right now.