Panel spokesman and administrator Ian Tiley cautioned Dr Beyersdorf and other ex-councillors on Wednesday.

He accused Dr Beyersdorf of abusing his position on the committee to advance his political prospects.

“[I’m] concerned about giving a preferred passage to people on that committee in terms of their campaign,” Dr Tiley said.

He also threatened to abolish the committee if it happened again.

Dr Beyersdorf refuted the claim as “a nonsense”.

“I submitted an opinion piece [to The Express] … it was duly published … and nobody, including Dr Tiley, has so far raised any concerns about the article in question,” he said.

“The information about me at the bottom of the article was and remains a matter of public knowledge.”

The committee usually meets once every three weeks for about one hour to advise the administrator on local issues.

In October, The Express revealed ratepayers were forking out $1570 a month each to Armidale Regional Council committee members Dr Beyersdorf, Margaret O’Connor, Hans Hietbrink, Colin Gadd, Andrew Murat, Dot Vickery and Simon Murray.

Rob Richardson requested a lesser amount.

Local government minister Gabrielle Upton is also considering the future of the committee leading up to the September local government elections.

Ratepayers association chairwoman Maria Hitchcock said committee members had absolutely no shame about electioneering while being paid with ratepayers’ money.

“It all comes down to personal ethics,” she said.

“What people have to do is look at the past record.

“They might be on the advisory committee, but what do they do, and why are the meetings secret?”

The Express has filed a freedom of information request with Council to find out what is discussed on the committee.