Mayoral and councillor candidates go toe-to-toe

It's all on for the Western Bay of Plenty this coming week ... it's time to meet the candidates.

It's nearly time to see your future councillors go toe-to-toe on topics important to you.

Next week Western Bay of Plenty District Council's aspiring mayoral and councillor candidates will get the chance to showcase who they are and what they stand for this election at the Meet the Candidate Debate series.

For four consecutive nights, Monday, August 29 to September 1, the public will get the chance to see Katikati-Waihī Beach, Kaimai, Maketu-Te Puke, and mayoral candidates answer quick-fire questions, challenging scenarios, and crowd-sourced queries at the following locations or online at generationchange.nz.

Meet the Candidate Debates all start at 6pm
August 29, Katikati-Waihī Beach Ward, Katikati Primary School
August 30, Kaimai Ward, Pahoia School
August 31, Te Puke-Maketu Ward, Te Puke High School
September 1, Mayor Debates, University of Waikato, Tauranga, Lecture Theatre, Level 2
People can tune in and take part via livestream on council's YouTube channel or generationchange.nz.

Western Bay of Plenty District Council CEO John Holyoake says with such a broad range of candidates in this year's election the debates play a key role in helping residents make an informed decision when voting opens on September 16.

"With candidates now confirmed, there is buzz beginning to grow around elections and so this is a chance for the candidates to showcase their passion and personality, as well as their priorities if elected to council," says John.

"This election we're focused on engaging all members of the community in a bid to help voters get to know who's standing in this year's elections.

"These are free and open to everyone to attend. They will be fast-paced and fun, so I encourage you to join in."

How the debates will run
The three ward debates (Katikati-Waihī Beach, Kaimai, Maketu-Te Puke) will have the following structure:
A round of quickfire questions drawn at random:
Ward and district relevant questions - topics include a Three Waters reform, experience with Te Tiriti o Waitangi and questions from the recent public campaign.
A scenario-based question voted by the audience (in person and online).
Quickfire round of yes/no answers on topical issues.
The mayoralty debate structure will be similar but will look to gain insights into candidate's skills and experience, leadership style, and ability to work with key partners and political relationships:

A round of quickfire questions:
Important questions relating to strategy and key political relationships - including a Three Waters reform and Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
A scenario-based question voted by the audience (in person and online)
Quickfire round of yes/no answers on topical issues.
Posing the questions to the ward candidates (August 29-31) will be former journalist and news presenter Lisa Glass, while the mayoralty candidates on September 1 will be kept in check by SKY Sport broadcaster Kirstie Stanway.

Lisa Glass: Lisa is a Civil Defence professional with Emergency Management Bay of Plenty and the national Emergency Management Assistance Team who is also a former journalist and news presenter.

Kirstie Stanway: Kirstie is a SKY Sport broadcaster, and former Western Bay of Plenty local. With vast experience in both television and radio Kirstie has covered several major events.

John also thanks the community for getting involved in helping shape the debates too by submitting the questions they want to pose to the candidates.

"We had a number of really well thought out questions from our community which is great to see and shows there is a real interest in both the candidates and this election.

"We heard from the community loud and clear on some important topics, and so we are now working on grouping all questions into themes to use a selection of questions at the debates to ensure a wide range of topics are covered."

The events will be livestreamed online at generationchange.nz so you can tune in from home or watch at a later date.

For election information and the debates go to www.generationchange.nz.