Cooper into the CEO’s chair
Northland Inc’s general manager of investment and infrastructure, Vaughan Cooper, will take over as acting CEO next week, with Dr David Wilson’s departure tomorrow.
Dr Wilson, who was appointed CEO in 2013, will continue to work with the organisation in a consulting capacity, and will maintain national leadership roles in regional economic development, including as a Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) Independent Advisory Panel member, providing advice to the government about PGF investment and funding.
Northland Inc chair Sarah Petersen said one of Dr Wilson’s key achievements had been the 2015 release of the Tai Tokerau Northland Regional Growth Study, which identified significant opportunities to grow employment and incomes in Northland.
The study, and subsequent Action Plan, had enabled the region to secure significant funding through the PGF, the region having a number of projects under way and ready for funding.
Ms Petersen also praised Dr Wilson’s work in helping secure last year’s landing of the US$440-million Hawaiki international fibre cable at Mangawhai.
“Dr Wilson will continue to work with Northland Inc in a consultancy capacity on major economic development projects, where we can continue to get the benefit of his expertise and experience to ensure that economic initiatives get under way and our momentum continues,” she said. Mr Cooper would be the acting CEO until a permanent appointee was recruited.
“Vaughan has been in the organisation for over five years, and will be well known to many within local government and businesses,” Ms Petersen said, while Northland Inc would continue to deliver business as usual, and looked forward to welcoming new team member Tania Burt to lead the destination marketing team.
Recruitment for the new CEO was under way. The board aimed to appoint by mid-year. The Free Speech Coalition has blasted the Censor’s banning of the Christchurch terrorist attacker’s manifesto as wrong, unconstitutional and counterproductive.
“This is a completely improper use of the censorship powers,” spokesman and constitutional lawyer Stephen Franks said.
“Most New Zealanders will have no interest in reading the rants of an evil person. But there is a major debate going on right now on the causes of extremism. Kiwis should not be wrapped in cotton wool with their news and information censored.
“New Zealanders need to be able to understand the nature of evil and how it expresses itself.
“Our society has surmounted many more terrible threats than this by allowing each citizen to engage, hear, read, and reject evil for themselves. It is completely alien to our history and our strength of a selfruling citizenry to be told that only those in power may know and tell us what they want us to think an evil person has written.
“For the same reason we don’t ban the manifesto should not be driven underground.”