Rotorua Mayor Steve Chadwick at Thursday's meeting. Photo / Andrew Warner
Rotorua Mayor Steve Chadwick at Thursday's meeting. Photo / Andrew Warner
A discussion on Rotorua Lakes Council's "political view" on temporary housing was held behind closed doors on Thursday, but not without protest.
Rotorua Mayor Steve Chadwick raised the item as urgent business in a full council meeting, but said the discussion was to be held in the public-excluded part of the meeting.
Chadwick said she wanted to raise the topic of "temporary housing under investigation and legal matters".
"This isn't on the agenda due to the deadlines of the way we're working at the moment, the distribution.
"The reason why this discussion can't be delayed is to allow the chief executive [Geoff Williams] to understand [the] council's position on this matter so it can be clearly articulated to the minister."
In the meeting, Chadwick then called for a mover of a motion "that the matter of the temporary housing options under investigation be dealt with in [a] confidential section".
It was moved by councillor Trevor Maxwell and seconded by Deputy Mayor Dave Donaldson.
Councillor Reynold Macpherson asked if there was an opportunity for any discussion on the topic in public.
Chadwick said she'd just explained why but it was "so that we can instruct the chief executive on our view, our political view, before he gets into discussion with the minister. So that must be in confidential, in my view."
Macpherson said he understood matters discussed in a confidential session of the council was "to protect personal and or commercial interests".
"Political interests don't require protection, it's best they're dealt with in the public domain."
Rotorua councillor Reynold Macpherson at the meeting on Thursday. Photo / Andrew Warner
Chadwick disagreed.
"This is to protect information we're making available, that information would be likely otherwise to damage the public interest," she said.
"I think you have to trust us on this one to make sure we are protecting the commercial interests."
The council then agreed to discuss the issue in a public-excluded section of the meeting, with Macpherson and fellow councillor Peter Bentley opposed.
The public section of the meeting was about 10 minutes.
After the meeting, a council spokeswoman said the reason for the council going into a public-excluded session was to "protect information where making it available would be likely otherwise to damage the public interest" - a ground within the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act.
Local Democracy Reporting also asked for clarification on which "minister" Chadwick was referring to but the spokeswoman said "all details relating to the confidential item remain confidential at this time".
It follows a Local Democracy Reporting investigation on closed-door workshops in March this year that found over three years, 31 councils had 737 out of 937 workshops in secret.
At Thursday's meeting, the council also agreed to enter consultation on a proposal to change the classification of part of Rotorua Cemetery from a recreation reserve to a local purpose cemetery reserve.
It also agreed unanimously to support a proposed remit regarding fly tipping at the upcoming Local Government NZ annual general meeting in July.
That remit was that Local Government NZ advocates the Litter Act be amended to allow for cost recovering in instances where littering - fly tipping - was "more than minor" and the identity of the perpetrator is discoverable.
The council agreed to decline support of another remit at the same July meeting.
That proposed remit was "that Local Government NZ request the Valuer-General amend the relevant legislation to allow for local government to address the growing disparities between the rating valuation of forestry land and other land uses".
Both remits were put forward by Gisborne District Council.
