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Plans for the 2011 Rugby World Cup took a major hit last night as incoming Auckland Mayor John Banks promised to pull all ratepayer funding from the Eden Park upgrade - and received strong backing for his stance from a dominant right-wing council.
Banks is opposed to spending $50 million of city cash on improving Eden Park when the Government has just announced a huge budget surplus and opened the chequebook for $1 billion to build a waterfront stadium last year.
"The Prime Minister has an $8.6 billion surplus. $8.6 billion. And she wants the ratepayers of Auckland to stump up the cash? It's unfair," Banks said. He will, however, support spending $21 million on roading and public transport around the stadium.
Banks' withdrawal of funding was met with stony silence from the Government, which faces having to foot the bill. Rugby World Cup Minister Trevor Mallard refused to comment.
Banks also raised the possibility that outgoing mayor Dick Hubbard had signed a secret deal with the Government to guarantee funding for the Eden Park upgrade.
Hubbard, who suffered a huge defeat to Banks in yesterday's elections, denied a contract had been signed with the Government but said there had been a "moral obligation" to stump up the cash.
Hubbard said the council offered about $50m to the Government, subject to the Auckland Regional Council matching it dollar-for-dollar, but no contract had been signed. "Theoretically the council could get out of it but the question is the collateral damage from leaving the Government out to dry. You're cutting off your nose to spite your face," said Hubbard.
Banks has the numbers to block Eden Park spending as the right-wing Citizens and Ratepayers ticket (C&R) won 11 of the 19 council seats, giving leader David Hay the numbers to reunite with Banks as deputy mayor.
Hay confirmed C&R would reconsider its policy on Eden Park.
"The Government won the World Cup, they took all the glory for it and then produced a cheque for $1 billion for a stadium. I believe Eden Park should be a national stadium, I don't see why ratepayers should pay for it."
John Alexander, chief executive for the Eden Park Trust Board, and the New Zealand Rugby Union were unavailable to make a comment.
Banks was one of three new mayors elected in the Auckland region; lawyer Len Brown slipping into the large shoes of a retired Sir Barry Curtis in Manukau, and Andrew Williams had a shock win over incumbent George Wood on the North Shore.
Out West, Bob Harvey beat radio personality and former cabinet minister John Tamihere in Waitakere by 4000 votes for a record sixth term in office. However, left-leaning Mike Lee still has control of the Auckland Regional Council and will be key in deciding how a potential Auckland "supercity" would be created.
Ex-Auckland District Health Board chairman Wayne Brown is the new mayor of the Far North District, while Stan Semenoff won in Whangarei. Semenoff has previously served three terms as mayor in the 1980s. Stuart Crosby returns for a second stint in Tauranga while ex-MP Bob Simcock cruised into Hamilton's mayoralty, hanging on to the job he inherited when Michael Redman retired to become the city's chief executive.
Dancing with the Stars contestant Michael Laws is back in Wanganui with a comfortable majority - and voter turnout of 64 per cent - and New Zealand's first lesbian mayor was elected, with Jenny Rowan taking the helm in Kapiti.
New Plymouth and Napier mayors both return for a third time, Peter Tennent and Barbara Arnott respectively, with Arnott polling five times higher than her only opponent Clifford Church.
This is Your Life television personality Bob Parker swept to victory in Christchurch by 15,000 votes, while Tim Shadbolt returned for a fifth term in Invercargill by a landslide 12,500 votes.
