Council Meeting Highlights – September 2025
The Torres Strait Island Regional Council (TSIRC) held its September Council meeting on Tuesday, 30 September 2025. A range of administrative and strategic initiatives were discussed, including the following key agenda items:
Annual Closedown
Council confirmed its shutdown schedule over the Christmas and New Year period. Council offices will close from 12 noon on Wednesday 24 December 2025 and will reopen on Friday 2 January 2026.
The closedown applies to departments that are capable of shutting down for an extended period. Departments that are essential to public needs will remain open, but with limited staffing during the holiday period.
“The closedown period is an important time for our employees to take a break and enjoy spending time with their families,” said Mayor Phillemon Mosby. “But to keep services running, skeleton crews will be arranged, in consultation with employees, to meet operational requirements.”
Community members are advised to get in touch with their local Council office if they have any questions about office closures or service limitations during this time. For TSIRC office hours and contact details visit: tsirc.qld.gov.au/locations/
Financial Dashboard
TSIRC reviewed its finances for the year to date at the end of August, noting a surplus of $14.4 million, which is $5.2 million better than budgeted at this time of the financial year. This is mainly due to most departments spending less than expected in the first two months of the year and the early receipt of the Indigenous Councils Funding Program (ICFP) grant, which was originally budgeted to be received in October 2025.
Mayor Mosby highlighted Council’s continued strong financial stewardship under difficult circumstances. He holds continuing concerns about labour shortages, supply chain constraints and inflationary pressures that are causing operational, logistic and economic impacts.
“The dashboard report reflects TSIRC’s commitment to financial transparency and responsible management of public funds,” he said.
Strategic Investment Plan
Council adopted its first Strategic Investment Plan (SIP) in 2024, which detailed the investment needed in Council’s assets over a five-year period to support continued service delivery to the community. The SIP is intended to be updated annually, with the 2025 review currently underway.
Council officers have completed work to support advocacy efforts in both prioritising and understanding the ‘So what’ factor if an infrastructure asset identified in the SIP was not managed or maintained.
Council elected members identified Essential Services as Council’s top service priority. The infrastructure required to support essential services in the Torres Strait includes road and transport networks, water and sewerage networks, wharves, piers, jetties, and pontoons, as well as channel dredging.
“The delivery of essential services is Council’s top priority,” said Mayor Mosby. “We look forward to understanding how our SIP can be used to understand the ‘So what’ factor to support our funding advocacy efforts.”
The results of the SIP annual review will be presented at the November Council workshop.
Tenders Update
Council advised tenders had been awarded for the following projects:
- The refurbishment of Council’s office premises in Portsmith was awarded to Commercial Property Services for $697,458
- The Detached Extension project was awarded to T.I. Concrete and Building for $2,996,781
- Works for the Masig Coastal Defences was awarded to T.I. Concrete Works Pty Ltd. for $1,079,350
The live stream from TSIRC’s September Council meeting can be accessed at https://www.youtube.com/@IslandCouncil/streams
The next Council meeting will be held 21-22 October 2025 on Dauan Island.
