Editorial: Councillors - show us your emails

Andrew Austin, editor of Hawke's Bay Today.

This is a challenge to our regional councillors - let the public see your email correspondence.

Yesterday I wrote about my meeting with Ombudsman Leo Donnelly concerning his investigation into whether or not regional councillors' emails should be made public. We discussed an Official Information Act request by former Central Hawke's Bay mayor Peter Butler to regional councillor Tom Belford asking for correspondence he had with third parties about the Ruataniwha dam last year.

Mr Belford refused, so Mr Butler complained to the Ombudsman.
The second OIA request was made by our reporter Victoria White for correspondence between six anti-dam councillors on, among other things, the dam. We also complained to the Ombudsman because the Hawke's Bay Regional Council rejected our request.

The Ombudsman has yet to rule on this and I am hoping he will rule that the councillors must release the emails.

Council chair Rex Graham and Mr Belford don't believe they should have to hand over the correspondence because it would stop people coming forward to tell them things in confidence.

I reckon that is just an excuse. All we want to know is what the councillors discussed amongst themselves - there are no third parties involved. Given the enormous public interest in the dam, it is important we know what is going on behind the scenes.

I am seriously worried that a dangerous precedent will be set if these elected officials refuse to release the emails, even if the Ombudsman says they must.

What's to stop all councils and government agencies simply refusing to make all council information public?

This Act is a cornerstone of our democracy and they are making a mockery of it. The law is the law and they need to abide by it.

So, once again, I am calling on Mr Graham and Mr Belford, along with Rick Barker, Peter Beaven, Neil Kirton and Paul Bailey, to make public the emails we have requested.