Councillor attendance records defended: Engagement, contribution ‘better measure’ of effectiveness

Attendance is not the highest indicator of engagement, some councillors have said in response to recently released figures which show some councillors are only making it to two out of every three meetings.”

The council has released the most recent councillor attendance rates to Local Democracy Reporting — ranging from 66 to 100 percent. 

It comes after reaction to councillor Nick Tupara’s absence from a meeting last month.

Cr Larry Foster said he had a “bit of a problem” with Cr Tupara due to his absences from meetings and workshops.

Cr Tupara’s attendance rate has dropped from 87 percent in his first year to 55 percent in the last five months.

Statistics released to LDR show that since October 2022, Mayor Rehette Stoltz, Deputy Mayor Josh Wharehinga and councillors Colin Alder, Andy Cranston, Larry Foster, Debbie Gregory, Rawinia Parata, Rob Telfer and Daniel “Teddy” Thompson have an attendance rate of between 90 and 100 percent.

Councillors Aubrey Ria, Ani Pahuru- Huriwai, Tony Robinson, Rhonda Tibble and Mr Tupara have rates of 66 to 79 percent.

Cr Ria said managing work/life balance could be tricky at times for those with more than one job and still raising tamariki.

“You have to be able to plan (your calendar) well in advance . . . and even then life will throw you curveballs.”

She had Covid twice and two heart operations during her first year as a councillor.

Remuneration ‘a barrier’ to entering local politics

Due to the juggling of commitments for some councillors, it could be difficult for all demographics to be represented at any council table, Cr Ria said.

“But I am a firm believer that attendance is not the highest indicator of how well an elected member represents the community.

“It is better reflected in the engagement and contributions that members demonstrate when sitting at the table.”

Cr. Parata shared this belief, saying “perhaps engagement is a better measure”.

Cr Ria proved the point about effectiveness, Cr Parata said.

“Last year I wasn’t even aware that she’d missed so many meetings because I always felt her presence in chambers when she was there. She’s vocal, well-informed and connected. She proves that every time she speaks.”

In a letter to The Gisborne Herald last month, Cr Andy Cranston said the role of a councillor “is often enabled through an age-and-stage reality.”

He had noticed younger councillors tended to leave prematurely as the remuneration, although generous, could not suffice as a primary income. Some had to juggle being a councillor with other work commitments and this could lead to the “danger of internal resentment”.

“There is the frustration of everyone being at different levels of understanding through non-attendance, which then handicaps the flow of systems and workstreams,” he said.

The remuneration for councillors is a baseline of $49,822 for an average work week of 22.5 hours, which the remuneration authority estimated following a survey in 2012.

GDC democracy support services manager Heather Kohn said some elected members worked harder than others “so this was an average”.

Council documents show that between 1989 and 2022 there have been 62 councillors and 31 percent (19) have left within six years.

This does not include Cr Foster, who previously served as councillor from 1989 to 2004.

Cr Foster was a keen surfer and businessman who  became a councillor for environmental reasons.

By juggling the role of councillor he ended up putting too much pressure on his wife, business partner and other businesses, he said.

“I didn’t do another term of council until 12 years later. We sold most of our businesses and I was semi-retired, so I still had unfinished business in my councillor role as I loved contributing to the future of our great region.”

Cr Foster’s advice to any prospective councillor was to “think seriously before you put your name forward”.

“If you don’t commit you will not only let yourself down, but also the community who voted for you.”

Local Government NZ chief executive Susan Freeman-Greene said remuneration continued to be a major barrier for people entering and staying in local politics

“Particularly for those with specialist expertise or experience who can earn much more elsewhere. It can mean people need other jobs or sources of income to make ends meet. It also deters many people from standing for local government.”

Unlike central government, locally elected members were not eligible for KiwiSaver contributions, which LGNZ was advocating to change, she said.

“To have a quality and representative local government we must ensure we pay our elected members fairly.”

Cr Debbie Gregory said: “The local government reforms Labour started in 2022 identified several pathways to try to “fix” local government.

“If some of those changes were introduced, I believe it would improve the ability for people from all demographics to be represented.”