Shadbolt slams council for conference ‘horde’

Invercargill mayor Sir Tim Shadbolt has slammed his own council for the ‘‘ridiculous and unjustifiable’’ number of people it has at this week’s Local Government New Zealand conference in Palmerston North.

The Invercargill City Council has seven people at the conference for three days at a cost of more than $20,000 to ratepayers.

It would have been eight but councillor Darren Ludlow pulled out with Covid-19.

None of Southland’s other councils have sent more than four.

Shadbolt, who is one of the seven at the conference, said the city council had traditionally sent four people – the chief executive, mayor and two senior councillors.

‘‘It is only in the last three years it seems to have become a free-for-all.’’

Those attending are Shadbolt, councillors Lesley Soper, Ian Pottinger, Rebecca Amundsen and Alex Crackett, mana whenua representative Evelyn Cook and council chief executive Clare Hadley.

Hadley, before Shadbolt criticised the number of people going, said the total cost for the attendees to date was $19,215, but she expected extra expenses, such as taxi fares, during the week.

A report to a council committee meeting in April recommended that there was value in having councillors attend the conference this year with the future of local government set to be discussed.

At this meeting, elected members agreed to the list of attendees, Hadley said.

Shadbolt said he had not voted against the decision at that meeting. ‘‘I felt that voting against the resolution for the group to attend threatened what has always been a given, the mayor’s attendance.’’

Ludlow said the April meeting was the time to object and he wondered: ‘‘Why protest now?’’

The city councillors’ interest in attending reflected the issues going on, including the local government review and Three Waters reform, Ludlow said.

Deputy mayor Nobby Clark said he believed eight was two too many. ‘‘We have just pushed rates up ... To people struggling with rates, it doesn’t seem right.’’

Southland mayor Gary Tong said the district council was sending two councillors, Rob Scott and Christine Menzies, and chief executive Cameron McIntosh. Tong would have gone but contracted Covid-19.

Environment Southland was sending chairman Nicol Horrell, councillor Allan Baird and chief executive Wilma Falconer.

The Gore District Council was sending mayor Tracy Hicks, deputy mayor Bronwyn Reid and general manager of community lifestyle services Rex Capil. Chief executive Steve Parry has another commitment.

The three Southland councils were unable to confirm the costs of their trips at this stage.