It pays to know the mayor

Len Brown. Photo / NZ Listener.

New Auckland mayor Len Brown is happy with jobs for the boys - as long as they are his boys.

Brown's mayoralty has been marred by allegations of cronyism after key members of his campaign team - and those who have helped him in the past - were appointed to jobs such as directors of council-controlled companies.

The latest issue involves Christmas cards sent from the mayor's office - the company in the last-minute scramble to design the cards, business cards and letterheads is led by Mike Hutcheson, who advised Brown in his Supercity campaign.

The total value of the work, covering four separate orders between October 22 and December 12, was $9623.10.

But Brown, when asked this week what he thought about hooking up his mates with jobs, was unrepentant.

"What I am doing is I have been asked to make choices and decisions around setting up my office and recruiting roles to people that I trust and I know can work well with me," said the mayor. "Of course I'm going to look to people that I know and trust and value their passion and their integrity and goodwill towards me and our communities.

"I have made no decisions that I'd regret, I'm very pleased with the progress thus far and I think overwhelmingly the community has been supportive of this start." Brown said the transition from eight councils to one had been seamless.

"In amongst that of course, with that change you're going to make decisions that people are going to disagree with, will cast aspersions at and will have their concerns with, but overwhelmingly I believe I've held the confidence and the trust of the people."

Brown also faced criticism this year for hiding the names of people who dined with him at Manukau restaurant Volare at ratepayers' expense, until former Manukau chief executive Leigh Auton - who attended the dinner - was forced to reveal the names by the Ombudsman.

"At the end of the day that was a decision on principle by me. The decision was challenged by the Ombudsman [who] made a decision, I respect that decision and that's that."

Hutcheson, whose company designed the Christmas cards, said there was no tendering process for the work because it needed to be done at short notice.

He said Image Centre Ltd was briefed on Thursday December 9 to have the Christmas, business cards and letterheads ready for the next Monday.

Hutcheson - who Brown calls "Hutch" - worked as an adviser on the campaign for the mayoralty.