‘Equally comfortable in gumboots as around a board table’

Age: 50 Occupation: small business owner Martial status: Married for 29 years

1. What sets you apart from the other mayoral candidates?

A wellrounded life story that makes me equally comfortable in gumboots as around a board table. I have a farming background. I’ve held managerial roles in large corporates so I understand how to navigate the pace and inflexibility of the machine, and I am now a small business owner, meaning I have experienced both the exhilaration of the entrepreneur and the fear of how to pay the next wage bill. I’ve interacted with, and told the stories of people from all walks of life, and I’ve been actively involved in my community in both governance roles and event organisation.

2. What are your personal views on the Three Waters reforms?

The Government has forced communities to accept a solution that lacks transparency around cost, accountability and responsibility. Its engagement with local councils has been disingenuous at best and downright deceptive at worst. The real tragedy is that the outraged backlash is also stifling reasoned conversations about how we can provide clean, healthy water and sustainable wastewater treatment. Much of our Three Waters infrastructure is no longer, or soon won’t be, fit for purpose. That means that regardless of the Government’s meddling, we still have some really tough decisions to make that won’t go away by simply saying “no”.

3. What is the biggest challenge facing Southland in the next five years and what impact would your leadership have on this?

We are entering a period of unprecedented change. I want to lead an adaptive and forwardthinking council that truly leads the way, championing local solutions to local problems. Effective communication will be key to ensuring we negotiate the best possible outcomes for our communities, and also ensure our residents are alongside us. My career has been built on strong communication and I’m experienced in interpreting local government jargon. I have the leadership skills necessary to help our district navigate the journey ahead, and the communication skills to ensure nobody is left behind.

4. What do you believe the problems are with the existing Local Government Act and how would you fix it?

The existing Act is over 20 years old and has been ‘tinkered’ with from time to time. The Government commenced a Review into the Future for Local Government in 2021. This review is to identify how our system of local democracy and governance needs to evolve over the next 30 years, to improve the wellbeing of New Zealand communities and the environment, and actively embody the Treaty partnership. We need to make sure our communities’ views are clearly communicated to make sure our children and grandchildren get the local Government that works for them.

5. What impact is the workforce having on council budgets?

Attracting and retaining qualified staff is and will continue to be a challenge. In turn, this will put pressure on the SDC finances as remuneration expectations will also increase, especially in times of relatively high inflation. We need to continue to expand the options for working closer with our neighbouring councils on shared services, as it does none of us any good to have our councils fighting costly wage wars over the same small pool of staff.