Unlike what we have seen at ICAC, I lead a council that does not make decisions based on what is inside brown paper bags. Businesses already have greater rights to vote in the City of Sydney than anywhere else in NSW. Businesses only need to operate here for three months before they can enrol and vote, while everywhere else in NSW, businesses must operate for at least three years.

I support making it even easier for businesses to vote, but the Melbourne model is not suited to Sydney. We have different rating systems and their model leaves Sydney exposed to serious corruption.

The changes will give businesses two votes and residents just one. They will also allow people who have never lived in the City of Sydney or Australia the right to vote and will mean businesses who don’t vote will receive a fine.

Sydney MP Alex Greenwich has been talking to businesses. He is already working on a bill to make it easier for them to vote and to reduce the risk of voter fraud.

Some of his changes include the independent NSW Electoral Commission maintaining a permanent Business Register, to which businesses could be added at any time. This would be an improvement on present provisions, which give businesses a specific time to enrol. It is about making it easier for businesses to vote and ensuring the roll for every election is accurate. It will means businesses can choose whether or not they want to vote, a principle supported by the NSW Business Chamber, which has said compulsory voting is not necessary.