In sport you occasionally hear of some poor coach whose job is under threat because he or she “…has lost control of the dressing room”. In my view Auckland Council has well and truly lost control of several of its ironically named...... Read More

In my 45 years of kicking around local government, I have never seen such high levels of community engagement in local affairs. Now, more than ever, local government is affecting the lives of middle New Zealand. Local government have their hands deep...... Read More

Recently I attended the premier screening of “Celia”, about the life and work of Celia Lashlie, which was filmed in part during the last year of her life. Celia was one of those wonderfully passionate women who married and had kids young,...... Read More

Doesn’t time fly? It’s almost been a year since I became a Member of Parliament and was soon in the thick of it as Government tackles some big problems. There is increasing homelessness in Rodney, which we are trying to address; I recently...... Read More

I hope everyone is getting through winter okay and I guess we are all looking forward to the first day of spring. I don’t know about you but the year seems to be moving very quickly. I am enjoying being part of a big, strong and well organised...... Read More

Last time I updated Mahurangi Matters readers, Council’s 10-year budget – the blueprint for how our city will grow and develop over the next 10 years – was out for public consultation. Thank you to everyone who contributed their views...... Read More

July heralded our new financial year and the first year of Auckland Council’s new Long-term Plan. Our local board’s advocacy supported by our usual high level of local public submissions has been highly effective, with many of our projects...... Read More

I hope everyone is getting through winter okay, and I guess we are all looking forward to the first day of spring. I don’t know about you, but to me the year seems to be moving very quickly. I am enjoying being part of a big, strong and well-organised...... Read More

Last month, nine Auckland councillors, including myself, signed a highly-publicised letter criticising the leadership style of Auckland Mayor Phil Goff – a style labelled secretive and non-inclusive. This was followed by further accusations of bullying...... Read More

The Hibiscus and Bays Local Board has adopted its Local Board Agreement for the 2018/19 year. It has been a busy time getting the agreement developed, consulted on and adopted. It is pleasing to see that many people got involved – via a formal...... Read More