Council to take hard look at travel

Vern Walsh

Auckland City will review its policy on overseas travel for councillors after harsh words around the council table last night about councillors Vern Walsh and Penny Sefuiva, who had a month-long global jaunt with two officers that cost of $85,000.

Citizens & Ratepayers Now councillor Doug Armstrong tore into the two City Vision councillors for organising and approving their own "tour of the capitals of the world to look at arts, culture and recreation".

"Boy, we would all like to do that," Mr Armstrong said.

Independent councillor Faye Storer said the tour was too much, silly, and had brought the council's travel policy into disrepute.

The tour has turned into a huge embarrassment for the council, especially because Mr Walsh, chairman of the finance committee, and Mrs Sefuiva returned home and voted to raise household rates by an average of 13.4 per cent.

The Herald also revealed that the two councillors travelled business class on long-haul flights while officers Cameron Parr and Mark Vinall sat back in economy class on all but one leg to save money.

An attempt by Mr Armstrong to get chief executive David Rankin to ensure that trips were "tightly focused", costed beforehand and received council authorisation when they were to cost more than $10,000 was defeated.

Instead, Mayor Dick Hubbard put forward a motion for a broader review by Mr Rankin.

Mr Hubbard said he believed it was appropriate to have some flexibility on the issue of business-class travel and the review should look at things such as the new premium economy class and airlines now allowing people to travel business class one way and economy the other.

Spending on overseas travel has ballooned to more than $105,000 in the first 18 months of this council, passing the record of $92,000 held by the previous council in the first two-and-a-bit years.

The spend-up on overseas travel is expected to climb towards $150,000 with upcoming trips by Mr Hubbard and Dr Bruce Hucker on a sister-city visit next month to Fukuoka in Japan and a separate sister-city trip by Mr Hubbard in October to Busan in Korea.

* In other business, the council voted to support the Government inquiry into rates after rejecting calls by C&R Now to get Auckland MPs and the ministers of finance and local government to agree on concrete measures to keep them down.

Councillors also voted to support Green MP Sue Bradford's "anti-smacking" bill on the grounds it supported its child and family policy.


Into the blue

* Councillors draw up overseas trips for themselves.
* Report goes to a council committee with no costings.
* No set budget for overseas travel.
* Councillors vote for their own trips.
* Ratepayers never given costings of overseas trips in City Scene or other council documents.