Westfield not budging on vote stalls issue

Shopping mall owner Westfield is standing by its decision to charge for voting-enrolment stalls in its shopping centres.

The company, which has seven malls in Greater Auckland, wants an average of $2500 a week for each stall - a cost the enrolment centre's contractor Face-to-Face Communications said was unaffordable.

Westfield New Zealand director John Widdup said the company's mall space was similar to advertising space on television or in newspapers.

He said Face to Face was a commercial organisation.

"If commercial organisations want to use the shopping centre platform as a means to convey their message then Westfield is entitled to charge for it," said Mr Widdup.

"Westfield often provides the use of its malls to non-profit-making community groups, as Westfield sees itself as very much part of the community."

He cited free use of the Manukau City mall by the Maori Party, and the Glenfield mall by the Prime Minister.

The Electoral Enrolment Centre has been allocated $480,000 from the Government for 'outreach programmes', including visits to schools, rest homes, and prisons, and face-to-face enrolment drives in public places.

Enrolment centre manager Murray Wicks said contractors were paid on the number of valid enrolment forms they returned.

"The companies get no money if they don't sign up anyone."

He would not say how much each valid form was worth. Contractors met their own costs, he said.

Face-to-Face Communications had estimated that up to 25,000 more eligible voters would have been enrolled had it been able to set up in all seven malls until election day.

Its Auckland project manager Timikara Taurerewa said the malls would enable it to enrol Maori, Pacific Islanders and new migrants - traditionally the most under-represented in voter enrolment and the hardest to reach through mass media marketing.

These voters are also traditionally more likely to vote Labour.

Mr Taurerewa plans to approach Westfield again.

The minister responsible for electoral matters, Rick Barker, said through a spokesman that he was "a little disappointed" with Westfield's decision. Mr Barker would not intervene, but hoped Westfield would reconsider.

"It's not about voting for Labour or any other party, it's about people's democratic right," said the spokesman.