Hawke's Bay Today Editorial: Tougher voting rules equal integrity

HDC (like many other district council) has introduced a 'sinking lid' for the district's poker machines.

OPINION

A few Hastings District Councillors have complained that being excluded from voting because of a conflict of interest is undemocratic.

Generally, withdrawing from a voting process because of a conflict gives the process integrity, and creates transparency rather than eroding democracy.

Seven Hastings councillors did not vote on a gambling policy that has seen the introduction of a 'sinking lid' for poker machines.

There are 283 poker machines in Hastings. As venues close, if licences have expired, the machines won't be replaced.

It's a long slow death - the HDC (like many other district councils have done) has essentially created a terminal illness for the district's poker machines.

For opponents of gambling and pokie machines, the end can't come soon enough.

The other side of the problem gambling coin, warn that the change will see a dwindling of money injected into our communities, particularly for sport.

It's true. Gambling and sport are slightly odd bedfellows - in the case of pokies, they justify their existence by taking with one hand then giving with the other.

To be fair, part of the disgruntled councillors' beef is what they see as inconsistency - last time, they could stand down from part of the decision process, but still vote.

This time, voting wasn't an option.

The obvious counter to that is that the rules are now tighter, and ultimately, that will help avoid councillors voting on something that they shouldn't be.

Ratepayers and voters expect transparency around their elected local and central government politicians.

And transparency equals integrity.

If the seven Hastings councillors had not stood down, and the vote had gone against the sinking lid policy, those councillors stood to be accused of bias.

A process that has integrity is more preferable than a politician having his or her integrity questioned, surely?