How they Voted

How they voted

Over the last week, elected members have been hearing submissions in response to Council’s 10 year Draft Plan. Citizens and special interest groups have, paradoxically, requested both a further reduction and a significant increase in expenditure.

  Where both groups find common ground is a feeling that Council is in a financial mess and that Councillors en masse are responsible for the poor decision-making of the past, which has led to the need to put in place the austerity measures outlined in the draft plan.

An old marketing acquaintance once said to me, “the first victim in a good story is the truth.” The fact that New Zealand has, like the rest of the world, found itself in a significant economic downturn appears to have been ignored by both groups, along with the fact that central government has delegated more and more responsibility to local government but without passing on funding collected in the form of taxation. I acknowledge that a number of decisions made by Council have, at the very least, been poorly thought through. However, calls for all Councillors to go are misguided.

Democracy is about transparency. Those whom you elect should be individually accountable for their voting record and should not seek to hide in the herd. So today I have launched a blog which will highlight how individual Councillors have voted on six important issues over the last few years. The blog will be updated at regular intervals to provide easy access to how your Councillors, including me, have voted on particular issues.
Some of my colleagues will say fair enough - others will show signs of humourless irritation. From my point of view, I will not always get it right but I am happy to be judged by how I voted.

Record of Hamilton City Councillor’s voting history on 6 issues.

Motions

Julie Hardaker

Daphne Bell

Peter Bos

Gordon Chesterman

Margaret Forsyth

Marin Gallagher

John Gower

Roger Hennebry

Angela O’Leary

Dave Macpherson

Pippa Mahood

Maria Westphal

Ewan Wilson

Voted to proceed with Claudelands Event Centre funded by debt.*

N/A

Yes

Yes

Yes

N/A

N/A

Yes

NO

N/A

Yes

Yes

NO

NO

Voted not to pursue investigation of legal remedies against former CEO regarding the V8’s

Yes

N/A

Yes

NO

NO

NO

Yes

Yes

Yes

N/A

Yes

Yes

NO

Voted for a notice of motion for the introduction of a public register of councillor’s property and business interests.

No

YES

NO

NO

NO

YES

NO

YES

YES

NO

NO

NO

YES

Voted to exit the V8’s and sell assets for just $1.25 million

YES

No

YES

YES

N/A

NO

YES

YES

NO

N/A

YES

N/A

NO

Voted to give relief to Waikato rugby union

YES

N/A

YES

YES

N/A

YES

NO

N/A

NO

NO

YES

YES

NO

Voted for councillors to receive salary increase

YES

YES

YES

YES

YES

YES

YES

YES

YES

NO

YES

YES

NO

                                                 *The vote regarding Claudelands Event Centre occurred on the 18^th of Oct 2006. There were 14 members of Council at the time. The then Mayor Michael Redman, Cr Bell, Cr Bos, Cr Chesterman, Cr Gower, Cr Simcock, Cr Macpherson and Cr Mahood, voted to proceed. Cr Di Maio, Cr Hennerbry, Cr Saunders, Cr Thomas, Cr Westphal, Cr Wilson voted no.

A N/A means they were either not on Council at the time or absent.