In life and the law, seeing a debate in a broader context can help avoid misunderstandings, unproductive arguments, and speaking past each other in spiralling discourses of bile.
Cicero said we should avoid attempting to compel others to believe and live as we do. At this point in life, not many things surprise me. However, our Councillors’ 27 June decision genuinely surprised me. This decision left me disappointed and concerned.
Secrecy and Opaqueness
In recent years, my interest in and respect for local government have taken a nosedive, mirroring many others’ sentiments. Our Councillors’ decision to reject the Chief Ombudsman’s recommendation was a stark reminder our disinterest is not an option. We must actively engage in the decisions affecting us.
In a move that caught many off-guard, our Mercury Bay Councillors and Cr Morrissey carried the motion (4–3), deciding TCDC should go against the Chief Ombudsman’s recommendation for greater transparency, accountability, and openness. Instead, opting to adopt a cloak of secrecy and continue TCDC’s broad use of publicly excluded “workshops.”
Being elected to public office inherently comes with public scrutiny. This scrutiny is not a burden but a necessary part of democracy. Transparency, openness, and access are not just ideals. They are fundamental pillars of democracy. We must uphold them, as their erosion may further decrease public engagement and trust in local government.
Absent Political Courage
Instead of owning their political decision, they now attempt to defend the undefendable by hidingbehind a thinly disguised veil and ill-conceived argument that they are concerned about costs: “a consistent position and … being prudent in how ratepayers money is spent” (per Cr Grant’s piece in “The Informer” 23 July 2024) and Cr Connell’s statements that it [the Chief Ombudsman’srecommendation] “…. come[s] at an extra cost to ratepayer and… pressure on staff” (p8, “The Informer” 30 July 2024).
The Pot Calling the Kettle Black
Respectfully, proverbially, their cost-conscious defence of the undefendable contrasts with the political record.
In their brief time in office, TCDC has presided over and actively supported a 2023/24 peninsula-wide average 11.6% rate increase. On the same day, the council opted for secrecy, a 13.2% average 2024/25 rate increase. That is a 26.3% compounding increase in two years. For Mercury Bay, our rate increases average 15-16% in both years, a compounding +33% increase in two years.
Importantly, what have we got to show for this “cost-conscious” approach to spending our money?
They have supported budgets in which we :
• Spend a staggering +25.7% of rates income on an ever-increasing number of staff (2023/24 $24.4m staff cost, $94.4m rate income). Add $3.5m in 2024/25, increasing staff cost to $27.9m this year (LTP2024/34).
• Triple our debt (borrowings) from $79.4m (2023/24), ballooning to $225.8m (2031/32) thereby;
• Quadruple interest costs annually from $3.6m (2023/24) to $14.5m (2033/24).
Consider what we get for the close to $90 per week we pay in rates (average Mercury Bay residential property $4,610 p.a.). We also pay for our rubbish stickers, water usage, etc. The list of TCDC’s taxes is long and growing. Importantly, we have extraordinarily little to show for it.
Publicly Elected
Publicly elected representatives must accept the rigour of public scrutiny (comes with the job). They are there to interpret and interrogate material matters. Despite the horrendous rate increases and spending under their watch, if they indeed are cost-conscious, maybe our Councillors could consider focusing on material areas when administering their duty of care and the principle of “being prudent in how ratepayers’ money is spent.” Excluding the public from the process is not such an area!
Political Falsehood
It is a political falsehood “…no decisions, no issues; just some information sharing that is background…” occurs at these closed “workshops” (per Cr Grant, “The Informer” 23 July 2024). It is in “workshops”, the corridors, pre-council meetings, etc., that most politicking, negotiation, and testing of the other side’s opinion and the weight they give to a topic/issue occurs. Formal Council meetings/hearings are often theatre, giving effect and serving as procedural ratification for decisions made (in a.o. closed workshops) – hence the importance of the Chief Ombudsman’s strong recommendation of greater transparency, accountability, and openness.
Conclusion
The 4-3 motion deserves a full council hearing and vote. Cr Sinclair abstained, and Cr Gottlieb and Mayor Salt were absent. They should go on public record and tell us their stand on this fundamental issue.
To our Mercury Bay Councillors: Please reconsider your position.
We vote for the Councillors we get. It is up to us all to actively participate in our local democracy. It is not just our right but our obligation to engage and constructively hold our elected representatives to account. Our active participation is critical and integral in shaping the local council we want. We cannot afford to be passive observers.
Cicero observed, “It is not by muscle, speed, or physical dexterity that great things are achieved, but by reflection, force of character, and judgment.”
What do you think?
