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Robyn Edie / Stuff
Invercargill City Council Executive Director Clare Hadley. [File photo].
The Invercargill City Council has set aside $ 70,000 of taxpayer money to address conflict concerns at the Council table.
And two councilors have also asked that conflicts between CEO Clare Hadley and some councilors be included in the council’s investigation.
The council met Friday to work on the next steps in its response to the Department of Home Affairs concerns.
DIA representatives sent a letter to the council on August 18 asking for assurances of a clear plan to resolve the “significant conflict.”
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John Hawkins / Stuff
Invercargill Deputy Mayor Toni Biddle wants conflicts between councilors and CEO Clare Hadley to be included in an investigation into Invercargill City Council.
The trustees agreed to an estimated budget of $ 70,000 that covers the work of governance expert Bruce Robertson, an independent evaluator, and some initial training.
Last week, councilors provided Robertson with written comments on key issues at the council.
He provided a summary of those key issues to councilors at Friday’s meeting, but it took place in an excluded public session.
Before the public was asked to leave, Deputy Mayor Toni Biddle asked why the key issues could not be described in a public forum.
Robertson said they had provided “very honest and open feedback” and, out of respect for all members, his advice at this stage was to exclude the public.
“It is clearly a decision that can be re-evaluated after the independent evaluation is done.”
Biddle asked for clarification that the conflict between the elected members and Hadley will be addressed as part of the plan.
“I want to clarify if anywhere in this report there is really any progress, guidance or plan on how it will be resolved. I do not see it
“I hope you have an explanation for that, otherwise I feel like this is a little bit of smoke and mirrors on the real issues,” Biddle said.
Haldey filed a Code of Conduct complaint against Biddle last month.
Last month, another councilman filed a second Code of Conduct complaint against Cr Nobby Clark.
Stuff understands that it comes from a comment Clark made about Hadley at a council meeting.
At Friday’s meeting, Clark asked if Hadley had provided Robertson with comments as part of her information gathering.
Robertson confirmed that Hadley had provided comment.
He said Friday’s report was simply a “mechanical process” to get the ball rolling.
Now an independent evaluation will be carried out which was requested by the DIA.
James Crichton has been appointed to conduct the independent evaluation.
A report by Hadley and Robertson says the independent assessment will provide a useful benchmark to help the council resolve their differences.
It will also help provide insight into governance training requirements, the report says.
The final report on the matter is expected to be delivered to the council in mid-October.
The findings are expected to be presented to the full council on Oct. 20 or 22.
