Cr chided over digs about mayor
The remarks come after Mayor Jules Radich suggested, in the wake of singer Ed Sheeran not coming to Dunedin, the city should launch a "Dunedin Sounds" festival.
Mr Radich suggested Dunedin Sounds could be an event Sheeran might one day headline along with other international artists, including Taylor Swift.
Cr Steve Walker took to social media to criticise Mr Radich's thinking.
"It's a reminder of what a complete buffoon this guy is, he's literally rambling on like a baby Trump.
"He did this pre the last local election and enough of you fell for it."
Cr Brent Weatherall said Cr Walker's "nasty style" on social media did him no favours.
"He would be better to invest in a pair of six-inch platforms if he wants to be noticed, and stick to issues important to himself if he wants to be taken seriously by voters opposed to disrespectful personal attacks on the mayor."
Cr Bill Acklin said Cr Walker's behaviour was unacceptable and he accused the Labour-endorsed councillor of being disruptive through the term.
"I find Cr Walker to be an embarrassment to the governance of this city," Cr Acklin said.
"I would like to think that the party who endorse him would also be ashamed of his unprofessional antics."
Southern Labour electorate committee chairwoman Ruth Chapman said the party continued to have confidence in Cr Walker as a candidate for a council seat.
Cr Walker stood by his position.
"In essence, [Mr Radich] can't just bleat out any nonsense about Taylor Swift et al, with no robust background work to understand how mechanically it would all work.
"There's never been a vision or masterplan under Radich, just plucked-out-of-the-air nonsense.
"Jules isn't a bad or nasty guy — he just isn't capable of the job voters picked him to do."
Mr Radich did not want to engage with Cr Walker's comments.
"Cr Walker persists in name calling and such behaviour says a lot more about him than his targets."
Mayoral candidate Andrew Simms said Cr Walker's comments crossed a line.
"I have seen this and many other similar comments from Cr Walker which communicate a deep disrespect for the current mayor and a deep-seated resentment of previous decisions made by Mayor Radich.
"While Cr Walker may not respect Mayor Radich as a person, he should have respect for the office of the mayor.
"It is entirely possible to express disapproval in the performance of the current mayor and uphold some dignity and respect at the same time.
"In my view, such exchanges only serve to further undermine the community's respect for this current council at every level."
Cr Carmen Houlahan, who is also running for mayor, said Cr Walker's comments were in the atmosphere of an election campaign.
"We are in an election. Have you seen some of the abuse we are getting?
"Sadly, 'buffoon' is kind compared to some of the unacceptable comments from some in the public."
Cr Houlahan said criticism of the council as dysfunctional was wide of the mark.
"This term we have worked hard with a huge workload, with government changes to legislation around Three Waters, the hospital campaign ... Most of the time we have all worked well together.
"We have differing views at times — that is democracy."
Cr David Benson-Pope said: "My view of the mayor appeared in your publication as the front-page lead when I stated 'he has none of the skills required for the job'."
— Additional reporting Grant Miller
matthew.littlewood@odt.co.nz
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
1News
2 hours ago
- 1News
Auckland mayoral race static as more than 350 vie for council positions
Few big surprises have emerged as more than 350 candidates file nominations for Auckland council positions ahead of tomorrow's deadline for local elections. Wayne Brown faces eight opponents for the mayoralty, but no strong challenge from the right, with his deputy, Desley Simpson, deciding against entering the race in June. Contesting him from the left, his strongest opponent appears to be councillor Kerrin Leoni, who was standing down from her Whau seat after one term to target the mayoralty. Leoni previously told 1News her campaign would ramp up closer to the time of the election. Others nominated include former New Conservatives leader Ted Johnston, the executive president of the Animal Justice Party, and multiple other independent candidates. ADVERTISEMENT Auckland mayor Wayne Brown speaks to 1News. (Source: 1News) This year's mayoral race contrasts starkly with the multi-way match-up voters encountered three years ago. As of 4pm, 358 nominations had been received for candidates running in the local elections from the local board level upwards. Among the hundreds of candidates is disgraced former National MP Jami-Lee Ross, making a foray into local government. Two councillor wards attracted only single candidates at the time of the update — incumbent Greg Sayers in Rodney and deputy mayor Simpson in Ōrākei. Voters in Howick and Whau would have new faces on council with long-time councillor Sharon Stewart retiring and Leoni running for the mayoralty. Auckland Council billboard near Dominion Road couraging people to stand as a candidate in the 2022 local elections. (Source: 1News) ADVERTISEMENT Running under his new political ticket, Fix Auckland, Brown earlier teased that additional candidates could join him around the council table. Brown-affiliated candidates now include Simpson and others in the Albany and Manukau wards. In Albany, Gary Brown and Victoria Short appeared to be angling against incumbents Wayne Walker and John Watson. Meanwhile, in Manukau, Vicky Hau and Luke Mealamu were registered to take on Labour-affiliated candidates Alf Filipaina and Lotu Fuli. The ACT Party was also mounting challenges at council with candidates nominated at both the councillor and local board level. Local board contests drew the bulk of the hundreds of candidates reported, with some featuring notable names, including former MP Jami-Lee Ross, who is standing for the Howick Local Board's Flat Bush subdivision. Ross and six others went on trial in late July on charges brought by the Serious Fraud Office. (Source: 1News) In 2018, Ross left the National Party in an explosive moment for then-leader Simon Bridges. He later started a short-lived political party, Advance NZ, which partnered with Billy Te Kahika's New Zealand Public Party at the 2020 general election. In 2022, Ross was found not guilty of electoral donations fraud after charges by the Serious Fraud Office. ADVERTISEMENT Nominations for local body elections close at noon tomorrow, with voting papers to be sent to households from September 9 ahead of the final day for votes on October 11.
Scoop
6 hours ago
- Scoop
ACT Attempts To Fix Broken Remuneration Disclosure Bill
'Last night ACT proposed a series of common-sense amendments to Labour MP Camilla Belich's broken Employment Relations (Employee Remuneration Disclosure) Amendment Bill, to make it more workable for businesses and employees entering into voluntary agreements with one another,' says ACT's Small Business spokesperson Laura McClure. 'The Bill, without clear rationale, inserts the Government into every employment agreement in the country – telling workers and employers that they are unable to freely come to mutually beneficial agreements that work for them. 'This raises serious privacy concerns, diminishes workplace flexibility, and poses a real risk to harmony in the workplace by encouraging resentment and comparison between colleagues. It also threatens commercially sensitive information and creates legal uncertainty for employers trying to do the right thing. 'ACT did not support the Bill, which undermines the freedom of consenting adults to form contracts, but my colleague Dr Parmjeet Parmar and I proposed practical amendments to minimise the harm it would cause.' The changes ACT proposed included: Restricting disclosure rights to within the same workplace – so employees could only disclose their own remuneration to colleagues who work for the same organisation, not to competitors, journalists, or the wider public. Protecting employee privacy – by prohibiting an employee from disclosing another employee's pay without that person's express consent. Preventing bad-faith disclosures – by ensuring only disclosures made in good faith are protected, so that attempts to weaponise pay information to harm employers or other staff aren't shielded by law. Excluding performance-based pay – such as bonuses and commissions from the definition of 'remuneration', recognising that these are often highly individualised, sensitive, and commercially confidential. Delaying the Bill's commencement by 12 months – to give businesses and industry bodies time to understand the law, adapt policies, and educate their members. 'These amendments would have preserved a worker's ability to disclose their own pay while protecting the privacy of others and the ability of businesses to operate fairly and competitively. Labour, National and the Greens refused to support any of them," says McClure. 'ACT believes in freedom of contract, the right to privacy, and the value of trusting people to make their own arrangements. This Bill tramples on all three. New Zealanders deserve better than another law that treats adults like children and businesses like villains.'
1News
7 hours ago
- 1News
Auckland mayor lashes out at councillors over no-shows at meetings
Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown has lashed out at councillors for not attending meetings in person. According to Auckland Council, two committee meetings in the past two months could not go ahead because they did not meet quorum. That is, they didn't have enough members attend. The Revenue, Expenditure and Value Committee on June 17 and the Performance and Appointments Committee on July 29 both had to be lapsed. Councillors were required to be in person to count towards a quorum. At the start of today's governing body meeting, the mayor pointed out that five of the city's 20 councillors were joining the meeting remotely. ADVERTISEMENT "I'm going to deal with them one by one. I want to make sure that people understand you have an obligation to be here unless you've got a good reason. "Some of the councillor committees haven't had enough people to have the meetings, and it's just not good enough." He noted Councillor Christine Fletcher was overseas, and Councillor Alf Filipaina was unwell. He said Councillor Maurice Williamson was recovering after surgery. "I've just seen a photo of him and he's definitely incapacitated." He said Councillor Julie Fairey was also recovering at home after a car hit her while she was biking. "I feel somewhat sorry for Councillor Fairey. She's had the misfortune to be run over by a car. "We wish her well in her recovery as someone who's particularly worried about bike safety." ADVERTISEMENT But he took a jab at one councillor, Wayne Walker. "Councillor Walker... he hasn't been run over by a car, I'm sure someone will provide one." Councillor Lotu Fuli raised a point of order, calling it unusual to review councillors' reasons for not attending a meeting in person. She said there had been attendance issues at committees and not the governing body meeting. Councillor and mayoral hopeful Kerrin Leoni called the mayor's comments inappropriate. "I think it's really inappropriate to make jokes about people. If we've got a reason why they're not here, we should just be sticking to that and not talking about people getting run over. "People have been run over," the mayor responded. ADVERTISEMENT Wayne Walker told RNZ he informed council staff he had the flu and would be joining the meeting via video link. He said the mayor had been "going after" him and his fellow Albany Ward Councillor John Watson during previous meetings, dubbing them "the Albanians". Walker said he had disagreed with the mayor on privatising the Port of Auckland and the future of North Harbour Stadium. "It's disappointing that he made those comments. "He's after power and control." It comes as the mayor has announced two candidates Victoria Short and Gary Brown will contest the Albany Ward on his Fix Auckland ticket. By Jessica Hopkins of
