Shadbolt rejects ‘inconvenient distraction’ criticism
Invercargill Mayor Sir Tim Shadbolt says a fresh review of the council is “predictably negative” about his performance and largely ignores some serious recent events.
At a closed-door meeting of councillors yesterday, Shadbolt voted against adopting a six-month review of council.
The follow-up to last year’s Thomson Report painted a positive picture of the council overall, but Shadbolt was seen as an “unavoidable and inconvenient distraction”, according to other councillors.
Shadbolt said he voted against adopting the review at yesterday’s risk and assurance committee meeting because allegations against him were wrongly presented as facts.
“The report was predictably negative as to my role and actions.
“Councillors . . . were disturbingly preoccupied with how the media could be controlled from here and the effects of the review on their reelection in 13 months.”
On August 10, an email sent by Shadbolt to media was intercepted and used against him at a closed meeting an hour later.
The action sparked a tumultuous week at the council, which included the mayor claiming he was being bullied and his deputy Nobby Clark suggesting a “vote of no confidence” was forthcoming.
In the follow-up report made public yesterday, Richard Thomson said the council had made “significant progress” in a short space of time.
But he acknowledged the public media events of the past few weeks following the completion of interviews “must provide some caution to this conclusion”.
“It is reasonable to also have a concern as to the potentially destabilising impact associated with recent media stories about the use, by the chief executive of an email sent by the mayor,” Thomson said.
An emergency meeting will be held today where the report and recommendations will be discussed.