Wentworth Shire is a Local Government Area in the far south west of New South Wales

New South Wales

New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

, Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

, just over the river from Mildura

Mildura, Victoria

Mildura is a regional city in northwestern Victoria, Australia and seat of the Rural City of Mildura local government area. It is located in the Sunraysia region, and is on the banks of the Murray River. The current population is estimated at just over 30,000.Mildura is a major agricultural centre...

, on the Victorian side. Its major roads are the Sturt

Sturt Highway

The Sturt Highway is an Australian highway in New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia. It is part of the Auslink National network and is part of the main highway route between Sydney and Adelaide.-Route:...

 and the Silver City Highway

Silver City Highway

The Silver City Highway is a highway in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It runs from south to north close to the western border of New South Wales with South Australia...

s. The Shire includes the towns of Wentworth

Wentworth, New South Wales

Wentworth is a small border town in the far south west of the state of New South Wales, Australia. It lies at the confluence of Australia's two most important rivers, the Darling and the Murray, the latter forming the border with the state of Victoria to the south. The border with the state of...

, Buronga

Buronga, New South Wales

Buronga is a town in New South Wales, Australia on the Murray River. The George Chaffey Bridge connects Buronga with Mildura, Victoria. In 2006, the town had a population of 807 people.-Buronga Today:...

, Gol Gol

Gol Gol, New South Wales

Gol Gol is a small town in the far western region of New South Wales, Australia in Wentworth Shire. It is situated on the banks of the Murray River, which forms part of the New South Wales-Victoria state border, in the Sunraysia fruit-growing region of north-western Victoria...

, Dareton

Dareton, New South Wales

Dareton is a town in the far west of New South Wales, Australia. The town is located on the Silver City Highway, 1,025 kilometres west of the state capital, Sydney and 20 kilometres from the regional centre, Mildura, across the border in Victoria...

 and Pooncarie

Pooncarie, New South Wales

Pooncarie is a village in south-western New South Wales, Australia in Wentworth Shire. It is on the eastern side of the Darling River between Wentworth and Menindee...

.

History

The area of Wentworth was proclaimed a municipality on 23 January 1879. The first mayor was Mr. W. Gunn who held office from 1879 to 1880.

Council

Wentworth Shire Council is composed of nine councillors elected proportionally. The mayor is not directly elected. The current makeup of the council is as follows:

Party		Councillors
	Independents Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...  and Unaffiliated	9
	Total	9

The current council, elected in 2008, is:

Councillor		Party	Notes
	Don McKinnon	Unaffiliated
	Marg Thomson	Independent Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...	Mayor
	Brian Wakefield	Independent Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
	Ian Whitfield	Independent Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
	Melisa Hederics	Independent Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...	Elected on Brian Wakefield's ticket
	Bill Wheeldon	Independent Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
	Mark King	Independent Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...	Elected on Marg Thomson's ticket
	Brad Clarke	Independent Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...	Elected on 24 July 2010 to replace Peter Thompson
	Bill Brook	Independent Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...	Elected on 5 December 2009 to replace Susan Nichols Deputy Mayor

External links

• Wentworth Shire Council home page