Lalit Shastri

Melbourne: Melbourne lord mayor Robert Doyle has gone on leave for a month in the wake of allegations of sexual harassment by an elected Counscillor, who has resigned this past Friday after lodging a complaint of sexual harassment and indecent assault against the Mayor.

Melbourne Council’s chief executive, Ben Rimmer has said in a statement that the allegations by Tessa Sullivan, who has resigned from the Council, are very serious, and if proven, would be inconsistent with the values of the city and the organisation.

Rimmer announced that he had commissioned an independent external investigation of these matters..

Click here for Doyle’s statement

In a statement on Twitter, Cr Doyle said he was shocked by the allegations,. He has further said that he had not officially been informed of the specifics and would take a month's leave.

On December 11, Doyle  had announced that 14 tonnes of fireworks will light up the Melbourne sky during the most spectacular New Year’s Eve celebrations Melbourne has ever seen.

The Melbourne skyline will sparkle like neverbefore when 14 tonnes of pyrotechnics, half a tonne more than last year’s display, are launched from 22 rooftops across the city at the stroke of midnight," the Lord Mayor said.

---

As Lord Mayor, Robert Doyle has been chairing the Council portfolios for Major Projects and Major Events, Aboriginal City and Transport (interim).

He is also Deputy Chair (interim): International Engagement portfolio.

The Lord Mayor is Council representative on the following committees and bodies:

Chief Executive Officer Employment Matters Committee C40, Cities Climate Leadership Group, Council of Capital City, Lord Mayors Cancer Council of Victoria, Lord Mayor’s Charitable Foundation (Board Member), Shrine of Remembrance Trustees (Trustee), Melbourne Art Trust (Trustee), Metropolitan Transport Forum (interim).

As Councillor Tessa Sullivan has chaired the People City portfolio.

Tessa was born and raised in Thailand and attended a Singapore boarding school and undertook the Cambridge Examinations.

Tessa moved to Melbourne in 1999 to complete the International Baccalaureate and won the Marjorie Glasson Community Service Award and the Rubidge Award for Excellence. She has a Bachelor of Arts/Science and a Master of Laws (Juris Doctorate) from Monash University. Her main areas of study were molecular biology, environmentalism, literature and human rights.

Tessa has a Diploma of Legal Practice from the Australian National University. In 2012, she won a scholarship to study law in Italy under ex-Attorney General of Arizona, Grant Woods. In 2014, she won another scholarship to compete in the International Chamber of Commerce’s Mediation Competition in Paris.

Tessa is a lawyer and officer of the Supreme Court of Victoria and a qualified Mediator in Dispute Resolution. She is a married mother of three young children. She worked in the areas of commercial and family law and speaks four languages.

Tessa is passionate about making the city of Melbourne accessible to all, and has a particular interest in delivering improved accessibility in Melbourne to people with disabilities.