Letter writer corrected

Mano Manoharan July 19) claims I recommended a rate increase of 9.5 per cent and the fast-tracking of capital value rating system as part of the council’s recent 10-year plan process.

That is false. The rates increase proposal was not driven by staff: under the Local Government Act, the mayor of any city or district leads the

10-year plan process. Both the rates increase proposal (actually 15.5 per cent) and the capital value fast-tracking were proposed by Mayor Andrew King as part of his draft budget. The council ultimately settled on a 9.7 per cent increase for the first year and then 3.8 per cent in subsequent years.

Regarding our financial position, I have been entirely transparent and open on this. We were performing well against the council’s previous

10-year plan, but due to the city’s growth and increasing compliance costs we needed to make significant adjustments to our financial approach and plan. I made this clear to the council as early as March 2017 and the information was widely reported by the and other media.

Lastly, Mr Manoharan also asserted dishonesty on my part. I acknowledge my role comes with a high level of public scrutiny, but Mr Manoharan should check his facts before he casts aspersions.

Mr Manoharan’s welcome to meet with me for a further discussion.

Richard Briggs, CEO, Hamilton City Council