Whanganui Ratepayers Association to host Rotorua councillor Reynold Macpherson

Reynold Macpherson at a Rotorua Lakes Council meeting. Photo / Andrew Warner

Controversial Rotorua district councillor Dr Reynold Macpherson will speak at a public meeting in Whanganui next week.

The meeting is being hosted by the Whanganui Ratepayers Association, with Macpherson to talk about the importance of ratepayer participation in local government and his views on the future of district and regional councils, chairman Raymond Brightwell said.

"I have recently met with Dr Reynold personally and he is a very interesting and knowledgeable person to listen to," Brightwell said.

Since 2015 Macpherson has been chairman of the Rotorua District Ratepayers and Residents group which has about 740 active members. He is a founder of the Rotorua Pro Democracy Society.

Macpherson was elected to the Rotorua Lakes Council in 2019.

He is currently the subject of three council code of conduct complaints relating to three of his social media posts on the Rotorua Residents and Ratepayers Facebook page. Last year there were five code of conduct complaints against him.

Macpherson's background is in education and his previous roles include professor at Auckland University, chief executive of Waiariki Polytechnic, foundational chancellor and chief executive of Abu Dhabi University.

The public meeting is at Barracks Sports Bar, 170 St Hill St, at 6.30pm on Tuesday, May 18.