July 01, 2015
Sir Wira Gardiner to guide councils
Former Te Puni Kokiri head and National Party stalwart Sir Wira Gardiner has been appointed to chair the Local Government Commission.
Former Manukau City Council chief executive and Ngapuhi Asset Holding Company chair Leigh Auton was appointed a member, and former Timaru mayor Janie Annear was reappointed for a three-year term.
Local Government Minister Paula Bennett says the Government wants local government to focus on delivering sustainable infrastructure, making sensible spending decisions, and listening to its citizens.
She will ask the commission to be creative and think seriously about the different kind of local government structures that will help communities prosper.
She says for too long the argument has been on how many mayors there are, instead of looking at key infrastructure and economic growth.
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