$100k banquet in Wellington for Chinese Mayoral Forum

Food and drink contributed to $26,000 of the banquet cost. Photo / Getty Images

A $98,000 banquet in Wellington for the Chinese Mayoral Forum topped the list for council's entertainment, catering and gifts spending last year.

The banquet, paid for out of the Wellington City Council's city growth fund, cost $98,195, which included $26,000 worth of food and drink, and $22,000 in theming and menu design.

In a statement, Mayor Justin Lester said the second New Zealand China Mayoral Forum was a "prime opportunity to showcase Wellington to the country and China as a business and visitor destination".

"It was a resounding success and generated national and international interest in China," he said.

Lester said tourism spend was hitting record levels in Wellington, with $2.5 billion spent in the past year.

"The fastest growing segment is Chinese visitors. It is investment in events like the New Zealand China Mayoral Forum and banquet that drives this economic benefit for our city," he said.

"We have a fantastic relationships with China that produce many benefits for our city, including increased tourism, strong business partnerships, more international students and demand for Wellingtonians knowledge and expertise in many areas."

Lester said the banquet was "not just a meal and drinks".

"We provided the attendees with a Wellington showcase, highlighting WoW [World of WearableArt], our craft beer and coffee industries, mountain biking, the film industry and some of our great performance artists and musicians. The meal provided was also a delicious sample of the food, beer and wine we produce in this region."

Acting council CEO Kane Patena said the spending was appropriate, given it was Wellington's turn to host the forum and it was a good opportunity to promote the city.

The forum weekend was financially supported by the likes of Local Government New Zealand, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and the Wellington Regional Economic Development Agency.

"In line with other forums, it is the host council's obligation to fund the banquet. The funding came from the council's city growth fund," he said.

"This fund supports projects, partnerships and programmes that contribute to the economic growth of the city and positively contribute to Wellington's GDP and global reputation. This event fits the criteria for this fund as it has direct benefits for the city and wider region."

There were 436 people at the forum from across New Zealand and China, including 10 Chinese mayors and deputy mayors and a 90-person delegation, a 7-member delegation from Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, 38 New Zealand mayors and deputy mayors, MPs and city councillors.

The event contributed to more than $60,000 of council's entertainment, catering and gifts expenditure for 2017.

The expenditure list, released this week by council, reaches a total of $336,126. It was about 0.07 per cent of council's total annual expenditure, and included payments for anything from staff's tea and coffee, to costs for a sound system at a waterfront event, or koha for blessings performed at a city housing unit after a tenant's death.

Patena said the council has sufficient checks and balances in place to provide assurances that the use of public money was prudent and reasonable.

Council hopes to release sensitive expenditure information, with high public interest, every six months.