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A scathing report on the hostility that exists among the councilors of the Tauranga City Council has just been released.
Tauranga City Council. Source: 1 NEWS
The report follows a decision by the council to appoint a review team and observers in response to a request from the Department of Internal Affairs.
It’s a forceful 19-page read, where the team observed a “significant breach of trust,” a tendency to address political differences and attack the people rather than the problem.
“The current set of behaviors and the apparent lack of collective responsibility to deal with them is a major impediment to restoring trust in the council and a major distraction from the very serious business of ruling Tauranga,” the report states.
“If so much effort was put into actual governance responsibilities and finding ways to work together as has been given to what has been described to the Team as scoring, code of conduct complaints and new litigation of issues through the media social and print, the council would be progressing much better.
“The team has little confidence in the council’s ability to change without help.”
He goes on to say that there is a “strong impression” that the mayoral race did not end, and “continues.”
It notes that the current council, in its first term, has dealt with two complaints related to the code of conduct, and one ongoing.
“Few boards would deal with a single complaint over a three-year period.
“Having three complaints in the first year of the current term is most unusual.
“This is even more remarkable when you consider that there are few practical sanctions available to the council if a code of conduct complaint is upheld.
“The fact that there have been three suggests that there is something wrong with the councilors’ behavior, but also something missing from normal interpersonal relationships and engagement that moderates the behavior and seeks constructive solutions to the bad behavior,” he says.
Additionally, the Finance and Risk Committee says there is a serious risk to the health, well-being and safety of staff.
The report adds that the current political environment for councilors is putting pressure on all staff, including the Executive Director.
He says that nearly 80 percent of executive leadership time is spent supporting the board, and he fears it might lead the “executive leadership team to reconsider its position.”
The report makes a number of recommendations, including behavior changes, training, revised protocol for elected members, a more efficient and better-resourced mayor’s office, and streamlining of meetings.
Possible solutions also include removing the council and appointing commissioners, continuing with the review team and observers, the council to continue on its own, or requesting a crown administrator.
The report strongly recommends that the council ask the local government minister to assist the council in addressing the behavior and “underlying growth and development issues.”
Click here to read the full report.
