Having fun on Kiwiblog! Here you go Nookin, and other purported ‘lawyers’ – sink your wee Kiwiblogger gums into this? Who else has been trying to hold Auckland Council, and previously Auckland City Council, accountable to their LAWFUL statutory obligations under the Local Government (Rating) Act 2002, Local Government Act 2002, Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987, and Public Records Act 2005? legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2002/0006/latest/DLM132001.html Local Government (Rating) Act 2002 Purpose The purpose of this Act is to promote the purpose of local government set out in the Local Government Act 2002 by (b)ensuring that rates are set in accordance with decisions that are made in a transparent and consultative manner: (c)providing for processes and information to enable ratepayers to identify and understand their liability for rates. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2002/0084/latest/DLM170879.html Local Government Act 2002 3 Purpose The purpose of this Act is to provide for democratic and effective local government that recognises the diversity of New Zealand communities; and, to that end, this Act— (c)promotes the accountability of local authorities to their communities; and (d)provides for local authorities to play a broad role in meeting the current and future needs of their communities for good-quality local infrastructure, local public services, and performance of regulatory functions. legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2002/0084/latest/DLM171803.html 10 Purpose of local government (1)The purpose of local government is— (a)to enable democratic local decision-making and action by, and on behalf of, communities; and (b)to meet the current and future needs of communities for good-quality local infrastructure, local public services, and performance of regulatory functions in a way that is most cost-effective for households and businesses. (2)In this Act, good-quality, in relation to local infrastructure, local public services, and performance of regulatory functions, means infrastructure, services, and performance that are— (a)efficient; and (b)effective; and (c)appropriate to present and anticipated future circumstances. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2002/0084/latest/DLM171810.html 14 Principles relating to local authorities (1)In performing its role, a local authority must act in accordance with the following principles: (a)a local authority should— (i)conduct its business in an open, transparent, and democratically accountable manner; and (ii)give effect to its identified priorities and desired outcomes in an efficient and effective manner: (f) a local authority should undertake any commercial transactions in accordance with sound business practices; and (fa) a local authority should periodically— (i)assess the expected returns to the authority from investing in, or undertaking, a commercial activity; and (ii)satisfy itself that the expected returns are likely to outweigh the risks inherent in the investment or activity; and (g)a local authority should ensure prudent stewardship and the efficient and effective use of its resources in the interests of its district or region, including by planning effectively for the future management of its assets; and (2)If any of these principles conflict in any particular case, the local authority should resolve the conflict in accordance with the principle in subsection (1)(a)(i). ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1987/0174/latest/DLM122283.html Purposes The purposes of this Act are— (a)to provide for the availability to the public of official information held by local authorities, and to promote the open and public transaction of business at meetings of local authorities, in order— (i)to enable more effective participation by the public in the actions and decisions of local authorities; and (ii)to promote the accountability of local authority members and officials,— and thereby to enhance respect for the law and to promote good local government in New Zealand: ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ The Public Records Act 2005 legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2005/0040/latest/DLM345729.html 17Requirement to create and maintain records (1)Every public office and local authority must create and maintain full and accurate records of its affairs, in accordance with normal, prudent business practice, including the records of any matter that is contracted out to an independent contractor. (2)Every public office must maintain in an accessible form, so as to be able to be used for subsequent reference, all public records that are in its control, until their disposal is authorised by or under this Act or required by or under another Act. (3)Every local authority must maintain in an accessible form, so as to be able to be used for subsequent reference, all protected records that are in its control, until their disposal is authorised by or under this Act. __________________________________________________________________________________________________ NOTE THE STATUTORY DUTIES OF THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE : legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2002/0084/latest/DLM171859.html 42 Chief executive (1)A local authority must, in accordance with clauses 33 and 34 of Schedule 7, appoint a chief executive. (2)A chief executive appointed under subsection (1) is responsible to his or her local authority for— (a)implementing the decisions of the local authority; and (b)providing advice to members of the local authority and to its community boards, if any; and (c)ensuring that all responsibilities, duties, and powers delegated to him or her or to any person employed by the local authority, or imposed or conferred by an Act, regulation, or bylaw, are properly performed or exercised; and (d)ensuring the effective and efficient management of the activities of the local authority; and (e)maintaining systems to enable effective planning and accurate reporting of the financial and service performance of the local authority; and (f)providing leadership for the staff of the local authority; and (4)For the purposes of any other Act, a chief executive appointed under this section is the principal administrative officer of the local authority. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ Now, ask yourselves, Kiwibloggers, how come if the Mayor and ALL Auckland Councillors swore the following oath at the public ‘swearing in’ ceremony, held on 30 October 2013 at the Auckland Town Hall : “I declare that I will faithfully and impartially, and according to the best of my skill and judgement, execute and perform, in the best interests of (region, district, community) the powers, authorities and duties vested in or imposed upon, me as (mayor, chairperson or member) of the (local authority, local board, community board) by virtue of the Local Government Act 2002, the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 or any other Act.” – that they’re NOT doing their jobs, and their above-mentioned statutory duties to ensure ‘open, transparent and democratically-accountable’ local government are NOT being ‘executed and performed’? Got any other ideas about how to hold elected representatives (and Auckland Council CEO) accountable to the LAW? It appears that my one person ‘rates revolt’ for transparency in rates spending, is getting a lot more traction than anything else to date? Not a good look that I have ended up having to put my freehold home on the line, to fight for transparency in the biggest city in the supposedly ‘least corrupt country in the world’? transparency.org.nz/Corruption-Perceptions-Index “NEW ZEALAND TOPS 2013 GLOBAL ANTI-CORRUPTION PERCEPTIONS INDEX On 3 December 2013, The Transparency International Secretariat in Berlin released its annual Global Corruption Perceptions Index. The Index, which ranks the public sector of 177 countries across the world, has consistently shown New Zealand as a country with a strong reputation for clean government. For 2013 Denmark and New Zealand tie for first place in the index due to perceptions that their public sectors have the lowest levels of corruption.” Not to put too fine a point on it – but what a LOAD OF CRAP. Penny Bright PROVEN ‘Anti-corruption whistleblower’ pennybright4mayor.org.nz
Posted on: Mon, 27 Oct 2014 07:11:45 +0000
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