Will the real Stuart Mc please stand up?

Hawke's Bay chairman Stuart McLauchlan. Photo / File

A retired policeman's nomination for Napier council election has caused a bit of a stew - Stuart McLachlan, a second-time candidate, is not Stuart McLauchlan, a lawyer who considered standing for mayor, but isn't.

Their careers on different sides of the law and the spelling of their surnames are not the only things that set them apart. Candidate Stu McLachlan is 67, lawyer and Business Hawke's Bay chairman Stuart McLauchlan is 47.

And physically, there's little resemblance. At rugby, candidate Stu McLauchlan was a prop. Stuart McLachlan says: "I was always in the backs."

The two have never met, and barely knew each other existed, and neither did some voters in 2001 when Stu McLachlan made his first bid for council election.

Stuart McLauchlan recalls: "I do remember meeting a few people after the election who said good on you Stuart for standing - we voted for you."

In April, after he was touted as a potential candidate representing the interests of amalgamation lobby, he had confirmed to Hawke's Bay Today he was considering being a mayoral candidate. But he decided that while he might consider it in the future, his commitments as practice manager at Langley Twigg and as chairman of Business Hawke's Bay ruled him out at that stage.

He did a double-take when he saw the latest nominations, and says: "I felt a bit like Harry Potter when his name comes out of a cup, or something like that."

He hadn't signed any nomination form, but some others didn't know that, and yesterday he advertised in Hawke's Bay Today: "Not running for Napier Mayor or any Council."

Candidate Stu McLachlan, who lives in Havelock North, turned himself in at Hawke's Bay Today's Napier office late on Monday, reaffirming his name is among the 16 vying for the six Council-At-Large positions which make-up half of the Napier City Council.

He's one of three former policemen among the 34 candidates seeking At-Large or Ward seats in Napier, and says: "Having been retired for some years I feel I have the time and willingness to serve a city of which I am proud, and of which I have been a very loyal citizen for numerous years."

He believes the main function of a council is to concentrate on infrastructure, such as roading, footpaths, sewerage, lighting, and rubbish disposal. He has concerns for wear and tear on roads from increased trucking after the closure of the Napier-Gisborne railway.

But he's also still interested in views on Marineland - a "festering sore" he says needs to be "lanced".

He has worries about the future of Napier policing with the centralising of operational command what he says is some "unwarranted" council spending, citing the Art Deco bus service.