Centre-left coalition to adopt shades of blue

The left's power base will shift from Auckland City towards Manukau and Waitakere. Photo / Martin Sykes

In the second of two articles on the run-up to the Super City elections, Bernard Orsman looks at how groups on the political left are gearing up

A broad community coalition of like-minded groups and people is how the centre-left is going about winning public favour for the Super City.

The strategy is the opposite to the centre-right, which is planning to run a single, regionwide ticket under the Citizens & Ratepayers banner.

Strategists for the centre-left are also reaching out to "light blue" community-minded independents who could work under mayoral candidate Len Brown to build a cohesive and constructive council.

There are two main reasons for the community approach. The first is a widespread fear that local democracy is under siege from the Super City and party politics will exacerbate that. Secondly, the left has no viable brand to roll out across the region, short of creating one.

The City Vision ticket in Auckland City has limped along from the disastrous, self-imploding term of the last council and while the Labour brand is used successfully in parts of the city, it would be ridiculous to use it regionwide.

Talks are still at the informal stage around a sub-regional committee. Key people include Robert Gallagher and Gwen Shaw (City Vision), Colleen Brown, Alf Filipaina and Efu Koka (Manukau), Penny Hulse and Paul Walbran (Waitakere), Joel Cayford, Ann Hartley and Grant Gillon (North Shore), and Mayor Brown's campaign manager, Conor Roberts.

Mr Roberts, a young Labour organiser who was involved in the successful Mt Albert byelection, said the community coalition would be based around a set of principles and policies, being public transport, planning and the environment, economic development and a spatial plan for Auckland.

Being the left, there is a lot of discussion taking place, involvement with interest groups and papers being developed to reach an over-arching policy position to complement a localised campaign.

Tony Mayow, who is chairman of the Community Waitakere trust and organised a large rally in April against the Super City reforms, is one such person taking part in discussions.

He can see a big place for community organisations in the Super City and while the trust will not take an active political role, "we will be asking prospective candidates to put community interests before their own".

Looking across the city, it is apparent the left's power base will shift from Auckland City towards Manukau and Waitakere.

City Vision chairman Robert Gallagher has serious concerns about the outcome of the draft wards.

He cannot understand how the Local Government Commission has put the "different world views" of Remuera and Otahuhu into an Orakei-Maungakiekie ward that is likely to end up with two C&R councillors from the eastern suburbs.

Or put another way, resanding Judges Bay rather than a swimming pool for Otahuhu.

The proposed ward could be the death knell for City Vision leader and Maungakiekie-Tamaki ward councillor Richard Northey.

The other four City Vision councillors will struggle to win a seat on the isthmus.

The best hope could be in the central city ward of Maungawhau-Hauraki Gulf where Auckland Regional Council chairman Mike Lee could yet stand.

Muddying the waters though are reports that former Auckland City mayor Dick Hubbard might stand to prevent a right-wing takeover of the Super City. He lives in Parnell and would logically contest the single member, central city ward.

Another potential problem for the centre-left are murmurings from former Green MP Sue Bradford, whose anti-smacking views could be an unnecessary distraction, particularly if she was to target a ward seat in her Manukau neighbourhood.

Right now, the picture is rosy in Manukau where the centre-left should dominate the Manukau and Papakura-Manurewa wards and could look to a "light blue" candidate to win a seat on the Howick-Pakuranga-Botany ward.

The North Shore could be a surprise package for the centre-left, despite being a National Party stronghold. Here, community-focused politicians shine and people like Mr Gillon, a former Alliance MP, and Dr Cayford, a Auckland Regional councillor, have strong connections.

A number of "light blue" independents, such as Deputy Mayor Julia Parfitt, could also do well.

Successful lobbying by West Aucklanders to retain Waitakere's strong eco-city identity is another encouraging sign for the centre-left - although Ms Hulse, the deputy mayor, has jumped the gun and announced she is standing without going through a selection process.

Mr Walbran and fellow Auckland regional councillor Sandra Coney have strong centre-left/liberal/environmental credentials. Ms Coney said she was in a wait-and-see mode while others were "leaping off". Mr Walbran said he was planning to stand for the Auckland Council.

Mr Lee, who has said the centre-left will unite around one mayoral candidate but is not making a decision about his own mayoral ambitions until next year, can see a "horses for courses" approach working.

For example, the Labour label working in parts of Auckland City and South Auckland, but voters putting a lot of store on independents in other places.

He also believes the regional council is an example of how politicians of different persuasions get recognised and work collaboratively but eschew the culture of fractiousness and acrimony that occurs in Parliament and at Auckland City Council.

Left-wing commentator Matt McCarten believes the community coalition is a mistake, saying the most successful tickets were those where there was no confusion about brand.

With so much of the vote going to waste in local body elections, he said there needed to be a clear regional brand with a mayoral candidate. National, Act and centre-right voters were clear what they were voting for with C&R.

"I think it is going to be a fight of two visions for the new Auckland. The corporate model versus the community model and it should be very clear. I mean this is grown-up politics. It is a third of the country," he said.

WHAT'S AT STAKE
* The most powerful political body outside Parliament.
* Control of the Super City, representing 1.4 million people.
* 20 seats in 12 wards on the Super City.
* 126 seats on 19 local boards.