Friday’s Flickering Fantics

3 October 2025

Councillor Duncan here with just eight more sleeps until ~~Christmas~~ Election day, and things certainly feel as if they are winding down. Even though only as of yesterday only 27% of eligible votes have been received, going from past years we are probably around halfway there already. I don’t believe there are any more official candidate events planned, but in the meantime you can still visit my Campaign page here to remind what I am standing for (probably I should from time to time also).

This week of Councilly happenings we have:

Candidate dropped for being Jewish: Takapuna local board candidate Karin Horin was dropped from her ticket after some of them were receiving unsavory messaging about her Israeli background (i.e. because she believes her country of origin has a right to exist). I think if that is the way her team members choose to behave then Karin is much better off without them, but it is a fairly sad indictment on her adopted land of New Zealand that Kiwis can be so easily intimidated.

Shaking more sense out of a baby: You know, I think this government isn’t doing so bad after all. Recall a fortnight ago I reported to you about its introduction of some commonsense solutions for rural water suppliers, and a few weeks earlier about the initiative to reduce road cones (with New Plymouth recently being commended by the Minister)? Now we have this recently announced government shakeup on earthquake-prone buildings, with the Ruapehu Mayor quite excited this will also include the Chateau. Anyway, it looks like smaller provincial Councils in particular won’t be having to kill their towns to save them quite as much as before.

Ratepayers Pledge signatories still lagging: I find myself repeating here, but signatories are still very few and far between for Taupo candidates as you can see for yourself here. Thus far for the capping rates to inflation issue we have only Zane Cozens, John Funnell, Ann Tweedie, Rebecca Stafford (update to web page pending) and myself. On the other side of the fence, Taupo ward candidate Rachel Shepherd managed to get some free publicity in the Taupo & Turangi News this week after someone stickered one of her billboards right outside her own house (who would be so bold?), and Mayoral candidate Kevin Taylor keeps portraying that capping rates to inflation are a pipe dream. So whatever happens then, it is looking like an uphill battle to keep our more vulnerable people in the community off the street in times to come.

Pot of gold in Rotorua? Rotorua Mayoral candidate Robert Lee gets harassed by Mayor Tania Tapsell and a one-sided audience for being just a little too conservative in a candidate debate last week. Current Councillor Lee was singled out as the only one voicing opposition to Rainbow Storytimes in libraries (Rotorua had an event cancelled March 2024 which was much publicised), and for doing so I suspect probably gained him kudos with a lot of constituents. That issue hasn’t been tested in Taupo, but I am sure will come up sooner or later.

Nobby’s parting words of wisdom: Departing Mayor of Invercargill Nobby Clark spends 12 minutes talking about Councils and the role of elected members, and he is someone I choose to listen very carefully. He mentions the very expensive and culturally pleasing wastewater land disposal projects to which he has given stern warnings to government ministers (i.e. just like the $20M project proposed for Turangi and also relevant to Rotorua as this informative 8 min snippet describes). In addition, he bemoans the absence of skillsets at the Council table such as governance, finance, infrastructure and legal, and goes so far to endorse the government appointment of experts in these fields in lieu of some elected members. This idea has occurred to me before and it would undoubtedly be an improvement to now, but I am wary of the political influence from afar that this could exert.

Maori wards to be or not to be? Local Traceylee Horton put on a table talk evening on Monday that was well attended by members of the public including a few candidates like myself, and although their arguments weren’t compelling enough for to me to tick the box (you can read my take on Maori wards here), at least there wasn’t any aggravation which can sometimes accompany this topic. Hopefully a recording will be posted soon on one of the Taupo Facebook group pages.

Showing who’s the boss: Rotorua Mayoral candidate Robert Lee recently had his campaign launch presentation removed from youtube after Council staff reported breach of copyright for using snippets of Council meeting recordings even though these are in the public domain. Rather than wait for the electoral officer to tardily respond after the election is all over, Councillor Lee is asserting electoral interference and instead uploaded the clips to a different platform with links from his website here. Good on ya Robert for giving it the stick, there’s some leadership qualities on display right there.

Aoteainertia? Interesting blog entitled Aoteainertia by John Mclean, who gives a compelling view as to why this country are seemingly stuck in the doldrums. Not everyone will agree with everything said by a long shot, but I for one am not convinced he is far wrong.

Ducks for Sale: We missed out on their paddleboat steamer, but I see now that Rotorua’s Duck Tours are up for sale. Anyone interested in scooping them up for Taupo? Our lake probably chops up a little more than theirs and we wouldn’t want any mishaps, but I reckon they would be an interesting addition.

Valedictory moments: The last full Council meeting of this term was held on Tuesday which I didn’t manage to attend and there was nothing much of importance discussed anyway, but a highlight was the approx. 25min of valedictory speeches by departing Councillors John Williamson, Kirsty Trueman and Karam Fletcher (you can listen to them from 3:50 min here). I managed to get un-named dishonorable mention in Councillor Williamson’s speech as a warning about peddlers of misinformation and disharmony, so I guess we won’t be missing each other too badly.

I reckon it is a bit rough that only those three got to say their official farewells, because who knows how many of the rest of us will be back after 11 October? Anyway, I delivered my own parting few words as per below:

It’s sometimes been a blast,

We haven’t always seen eye to eye,

But that’s the die been cast.

The next lot don’t know what they’re in for,

Perhaps it’s just as well,

I might not be here otherwise,

Giving you all…

Friday fact unfortunate: As I have been reflecting on these past three years in Council, the following quote passed my notice and just seems so appropriate.

Why I won’t be ticking ‘Yes’ to Māori Wards

1 October 2025

This is my brief take on Māori wards, and why I think they aren’t a healthy way forward. A lot of people have already made up their mind and some have even already voted, and that’s just fine. This is only one person’s point of view which you can take or leave – and either way, I don’t think it will be a train smash if Māori wards stay or go – least of all for Māori.

We could get into all sorts of questions like what was or wasn’t committed to in the Treaty of Waitangi, but Māori wards are really just about one thing: representation in a democracy. If that’s not happening as has been claimed, then it’s a problem that deserves to be fixed. But the issue with Māori wards as I see it, is that they cannot – and will not – do that.

Democracy only works if people show up to vote and understand why they’re voting. I worry that carving out separate electoral wards for any group not only doesn’t strengthen that process, it is actually a recipe to weaken it. It creates a space where voter engagement can wither even further, and where candidates can succeed not through broad support but because of low turnout and political alignment with specific vested interests. That will be a cost for all of us to bear.

We should also take a few lessons from history.

Māori seats in Parliament were introduced in the 19th century as a very practical way of giving Māori men without individual land titles the ability to vote. But what was originally intended as a temporary fix has now become a permanent feature, and one that arguably hasn’t delivered on its promise of better outcomes for Māori.

And remember when New Zealand went nuclear-free in 1987? Can anyone even recall the actual reasons why? For a refresher, you can read about it here. Ever since then, I believe we’ve been basking in a kind of self-righteous glow that often outweighs the practicalities. Māori wards risk heading down the same track — symbolic, entrenched, and ultimately ineffective at solving the real issues (if they even get remembered).

The reality is there is no such thing as a ‘temporary fix’ in politics. Once baked in, a thing can hang around long after its purpose is done.

Māori are not children, and yet Māori wards treat them as if they are – that’s demeaning to everyone. Life throws challenges at all of us in different ways, but the most important breakthroughs don’t come from handouts – they come from within.

There’s a well-known proverb:
“If you give a man a fish, he will be hungry tomorrow. If you teach a man to fish, he will be richer forever.”

Māori wards are like giving the fish, and I think we can do much better than that.

Friday’s Fantastic- It’s Snowtime!

5 September 2025

Councillor Duncan reporting in again on another Friday report, now just 36 sleeps until local body election day on October 11. And the snow has finally arrived! Yes the ski season has finally kicked off after a good dump earlier in the week and more is on the way. Wednesday was a truly bluebird day up on the slopes and I was one of those who downed tools and made the very most of it, so thankyou to the taxpayers of New Zealand who so generously donated $50M plus to keep it all going. Another $100M or so to get the Chateau up and running and we will be set for the future.

By the way, I have three campaign priorities for myself which next week I will start posting on: 1/ Restore Democracy 2/ Take Back Control of Council and 3/ Cap Rates to Inflation.

This week:

Cossie club was cosy alright: This week we had an especially interesting event put on by the Taupō Residents Group (TRG) on Tuesday night for Taupō ward candidates at the Cosmopolitan Club with a full house attendance I reckon of about 300 at least. Unless you are complete brick wall, I think most people in the room were hankering for change with the recording available here. We got to hear a little from both old and new Taupō ward candidates, and incidentally the 90 sec candidate interviews are available on the Council website here. Will I be one of those changed? We will just have to wait until October 11 to find out.

Another candidates meeting worth watching: This one hosted by Voices For Freedom (VFF) on 28th August and included Mayoral candidates John Funnell and Zane Cozens, along with the Let’s Go Taupo team of Ann Tweedie, Rebecca Stafford and Hope Woodward. So if you want to hear a little more about what these candidates are all about you can watch here.

Conflated or conflicted interests? In case you missed it, my mid-week article on this very grey area of elected members and Council business is to be found here.

Still banging on about Māori wards: Rotorua Mayor Tania Tapsell wasn’t too happy at having her own words thrown back at her from 2022 that the introduction of Māori wards had actually diminished Māori representation. Personally, I would like to see some of the positive outcomes more clearly put forth as to why they are a good idea, and especially from some of the current elected Councilor’s who decided to introduce them back in 2020 – because all I have heard so far from them is either deafening silence or rhetorical gesturing.

I wish to also remind that basically ALL of your current elected members endorsed this May 2024 submission from the Mayor opposing the government’s position to establish that the future of Māori wards be decided by public referendum. I wrote my own submission not because I necessarily disagreed with the presence of Māori Wards, but because I was uncomfortable with the assumptions being made on behalf of our community. The Council letter included this remarkable assertion:

“Through public consultation we have seen that opposition stems from a common misconception that proportionate representation can be achieved democratically through equal voting rights without a Māori ward”.

It then proceeded to ’empirically prove’ that a minority group (such as Māori) cannot be fairly represented unless a ward system is created for them. That’s quite a leap – it assumes people vote according to ethnic identity alone, and if Māori candidates don’t get elected in general wards then it’s because the majority voted them out. I don’t believe this is how most Taupō residents see democracy. I found the logic surprisingly simplistic and quite frankly, embarrassing.

I see that Tūwharetoa Māori Trust Board is encouraging voter participation, and I applaud that because it seems to me that Māori Wards are very much a band-aid solution to the much larger problem of voter apathy. Given that Māori apparently comprise about 30% of the districts population, if that issue can be properly dealt with then in a few year’s time we could get Māori voters wanting the two Māori wards scrapped simply because they are holding them back.

Shared Paths a battleground in Christchurch: Onto something lighter, and apparently those shared paths for cyclists and pedestrians are getting some bad press further south. I can’t say that I have pedaled into more than just a couple of pedestrians on our own lakeside path. It isn’t a big deal around here, is it?

Let’s go Nuclear – literally: I reckon we already have the look with some of those geothermal towers towards Reporoa, so why don’t we just go all the way to nuclear as Thomas Scrimgeour of the Maxim Insititute puts forth. It’s all very well to talk about going electric and saving the planet, but we have to make it happen somehow and just imagine all the local jobs it would generate. We only need to get Taupō locals on board, and the government. It costs around $10-15B to build a single nuclear power station, so if the government had only spent the $70B on covid relief on these instead I reckon we could have transformed all of our futures for the better.

Most awake or most awoke? Wellington is the first place in the country to adopt a rainbow action plan, with this article even including an interactive map to see where the rainbow communities are densest. Guess what – it’s in the cities.

Council having secret agendas, surely not! Marlborough District Council gets a wrap on the knuckles from the Ombudsman for keeping things to themselves more than they should and holding unjustified workshops outside public view. Taupō District Council more or less got a clean bill of health the last time they were investigated in 2022/23, but I reckon the Ombudsman was having an off day back then because I think transparency is certainly not this Council’s best attribute. Perhaps we are just better at covering our tracks, and as I said at the time: What about all the workshops which don’t happen?

Now that’s what I call a campaign launch! A couple of weeks ago I attended the campaign launch of Robert Lee mayoral candidate for Rotorua, and it included a slideshow presentation with some of the challenges Rotorua is facing like the emergency housing hangover from covid. They have some challenges that we haven’t had to face in Taupō, but we also have a lot of things in common. Well worth a watch for Taupōites too.

Are your other elected candidates taking the pledge from Taxpayer’s Union? If not, I think you should be asking them: Why not? I think it helps to pose the question if rates aren’t tagged to inflation, in 20 years time how do they think people on a fixed income (e.g. pensioners) will be able to afford to stay in their own homes? I say something has to be done, and it has to be done NOW.

Friday old school gets interesting: Australian politician Bob Katter after he takes offence at being called Lebanese but still walking with anti-immigration marches.

Friday Foibles: One size fits all?

29 August 2025

Okay Councillor Duncan reporting in again, and for at least another month and a bit I still get to use that title. Just one more Council meeting to go in September, and I will be so glad to see the backside of it. That’s not saying I don’t want to be re-elected, but we need some sweeping changes alright if I am even going to consider sticking around another three years.

There is not much happening on the Council front right now because it is the silly election season time, and because of that you can’t expect to get any sensible decisions in Council Chambers. I can tell one or two of them are nervous for their political futures, but as for myself – I can’t imagine why anybody would want to do this job without a very good reason. If my time is up then so be it, I gave it my best.

Okay so this week we have:

Free pass, or am I just being an ass? On Tuesday Council voted to approve the Notification of some District Plan changes, the most notable being the introduction of new Maori Purpose Zones (MPZ’s). I posted on Monday about my dissatisfaction with the way this seemingly race-based planning tool is being railroaded in almost unannounced and voiced this during the meeting (watch it here – please ignore any gaslighting by colleagues that this has all been well discussed before because it has not, and also note microphone management by the Chair).

I made the point that some other Councils have considered other planning tools to assist development for communally owned land which is hard for the owners to get finance, but it was portrayed that MPZ are a one size that fits all, and that we needn’t bother about legislative requirements of the Local Government Act which requires all practicable solutions be explored and presented. To illustrate, below is a snippet from ChatGPT after I asked it for alternatives:

This matter of elected members being presented with all practicable options before making a decision was a topic which I tabled a Notice of Motion in September 2024, when I wanted Councillors to simply acknowledge an important court case from Wellington so as to ensure this sort of thing always happens. Intriguingly not one of the other elected members were supportive at the time, and the pushback included that it seemingly always happens here anyway. I think this MPZ example clearly shows that it doesn’t.

That a precedent like this for the district gets such flippant attention, to me just shows how much elected members get led by the nose, and how much of a lubricant is anything around here with the label ‘Maori’ on it. I genuinely do support the intention, but we owe it to the public, and to tangata whenua, to consider all the available tools for the job and not just a one size fits all solution. Apart from all that, what if we were talking: Chinese Purpose Zones?

Mayoral summary spot on: I reckon this summary of the Mayoral race candidates by local Sophie M Smith is a fairly accurate one and very much worth a read.

Credit Card mania, or all just part of the job? Sophie M Smith’s second piece of investigative work this week was around asserted mischievous credit card use by our intrepid Mayor of Taupo David Trewavas. I cannot confirm or deny any of the details, but I can confirm elected members have not been formally briefed about it.

Worship your Mayor? The third of Sophie M Smith’s prodigious output this week was about picking a Mayor. In my time as Councillor this last term, I reckon it might just as well have been Mayor David Trewavas and his Deputy Kevin Taylor running the place, because on any matters of true importance they could invariably be relied upon to shut down any voices of dissent especially my own. As Chairpersons they have the discretion and authority to do this under the Standing Orders of meetings, and there is very little one can do about it. Restoring democracy in Council Chambers is my one of my first priorities if elected, but that will not happen unless the leadership does change. So I really do hope that voters use their brains and not just their heart, otherwise there’s not really much point in having elections, is there?

Maori Wards debate ramping up, or down? Chris Marshall writes an interesting take on the Maori Ward question, including a spiel by sitting Maori Ward Councillor Danny Loughlin (recall he is also the TMTB Director who didn’t declare any conflicted interest in the proposed JMA partnership deal between TMTB and Council ). I find it interesting that Ngati Tuwharetoa significant landholdings get mentioned in this article, implying it justifies greater democratic representation. So does that mean if Elon Musk bought up large around here, he would get his own ward too?

In the article Councillor Loughlin says: “What our community did get was a whole lot of skills, knowledge and experience that were sorely lacking at the council table. The network and connections that we bring is needed when dealing with complex issues like wastewater in Nukuhau and Tūrangi, expiring landfill consents and a second bridge crossing“. In the past three years I haven’t noticed a whole lot of that happening which couldn’t have happened anyway, but Danny is right in further saying that voters should be looking at the Council’s track record rather than just listening to what politicians say – if you are a ratepayer, I say that you only need to have a look at your skyrocketing rates bills to see that.

Better democracy happens when people actually turn up to vote, and care about who they vote for. I think Maori wards are a much second best to that.

Also of note, it looks like a Hobson’s Pledge campaign against Maori Wards has kicked off.

Mayor’s not talking tripe: Listen to this interview with Whanganui Mayor Andrew Tripe who entered politics straight into the top job. He shows it can be done if you have the appropriate skills and background – and in fact a lack of institutional experience may even be helpful. Whanganui managed the lowest rates increase in the country at around just 2%, and he managed it via things like reducing his executive team, restructuring to improve efficiency, and seeking alternative funding sources. Mention was also made of a previous Mayor demanding a CEO depart if they couldn’t deliver a zero rates increase, and apparently the resignation letter was received soon after. So Mayors are not just one voice at the table after all – they do have clout.

Our cowardly leaders: Following the refusal of our honoured Sir & Dame leaders to front up to the Royal Commission enquiry, the Voices for Freedom organisation have released a free copy of their report about how we were all duped during covid. Just in case anybody was thinking of it, please don’t nominate me for a knighthood because Hell will freeze over before I ever accept one of those.

Isn’t that what you call an Indian giver? Ngati Tuwharetoa paramount chief Ariki Tuma Te Heuheu Tukino VIII wants the mountain back

Mirror on the wall: Candidate Zoran Rakovic who is standing for Selwyn District is my kind of guy who blends an eloquent writing style with laced humour. I reckon we need more people like him in local government, and my advice is to get them while you can.

Student Fight back and wins: An Auckland University law student compiled over 680 pages of evidence to win a judicial review case against Auckland Transport (AT) for installed a series of speed humps and because did not properly justify why they would not ‘unduly impede vehicular traffic’. I think this just goes to show the extraordinary effort required to push back on a Council decision, and also that the law is no panacea for justice. This judicial review established that there was some predetermined thinking going on, but did not adjudicate on whether the decision to install these raised platforms was incorrect. The reality is that we need elected representatives who can think for themselves, who can push back on Council staff with the hard questions before the decision gets made and not after.

Conduct unbecoming? There was a recent code of conduct complaint against an elected member of Taupo District Council following an incident at a committee meeting which was not audio-visual recorded. A lawyer was apparently involved, but probably not a very independent one because as far as I can tell there was grounds for grievance. More than anything else though, this episode should highlight for the sake of everybody’s protection, the importance of audio-visual recording any formal Council meetings which include elected members. This is something which I advocated to happen last September in a tabled Notice of Motion but unfortunately could garner not even a seconder let alone vote of support. This needs to change, because to have accountability we also need to have visibility.

Pssst: There was a confidential item 6.2 on Tuesday Council meeting entitled Proposed Commercial Land Sale at 155 Napier Road (which didn’t seem to me to justify secrecy given it is public land at stake). But in case the interested party is listening: don’t expect to get a sensible answer in as silly an election season as this, so perhaps try again after October.

Duncandoestaupo insurance: It has occurred to me that fickle Facebook is capable of cancelling me at any moment and for no legitimate reason, so if you haven’t already please press the subscribe button at the bottom of this page to cover that eventuality and not risk missing out in the crucial weeks ahead.

Friday reality check: Your average government minister be like:

Friday Council Finale Finished Done

1 August 2025

Wow, what a past few weeks it has been in Council. Joint Management Agreement (JMA) antics have been happening all over the place (helpfully stirred up by yours truly), with candidate nominations for the October election closing midday today. A rule of thumb is apparently to never have major decisions like the JMA happening this close to an election, but I can see both sides to that argument – on the one hand it will be fresh in voters minds to hold existing Councillors directly accountable, but on the other you might see some distorted decision making for that very same reason. I believe we probably saw some of the later at play yesterday, and of the former we will just have to see. And I bet Mayor David Trewavas is now wishing he had emulated what Invercargill Mayor Nobby Clark did , and used his executive power to defer the decision well before it came to a head yesterday.

Anyway, let’s rattle through some of the week’s happenings:

JMA finally over…for now – I’ll be posting a fuller report next week, but for now can tell you that the JMA decision has been deferred for the next Council to grapple with after October. But it was a packed Chambers with members of the public spilling out the door even half an hour before proceedings, and it was a close decision indeed. I recommend watching the 17 min public forum of Topia Rameka (former CEO of TMTB) and Mayoral hopefuls Zane Cozens and John Funnell – with Zane’s message being right on point about this saga being 100% a problem of Councils own making. Full proceedings which lasted over 90 min are here.

Basketcase of Democracy – At yesterdays meeting the new Water Services Plan was also adopted by Council, myself being the only dissenting voice and substantially on a matter of principle:

“If these Council Chambers weren’t such a very much less than model of Democracy, I would have been given opportunity to express my own views in the so-called final debate on 24 June which lasted all of 20 minutes. Those were that a well-constructed Council Controlled Organisation (CCO) would probably have a better chance of being transparent and accountable to ratepayers, than the current very un-transparent and opaque in-house set-up that as far as I can tell is largely set to continue”.

Fewer road cones, or else – NZTA have developed a new guide to reduce the cost of traffic management and will start penalising Councils who don’t adhere . For those after a little more detail, see here.

Too late I’ve burnt my bridges already– Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden proposes a bill to raise the current maximum allowable value of business dealings between a Councillor and their own Council from $25K to $100K.

Lawfare? Erika Harvey of Lobby For Good argues in this 30 min interview that nowadays you need to be wealthy to be able to influence your local Council. I reckon that is absolutely relevant for here in Taupo, and people who can’t afford to get lawyered up can be at their mercy – including elected members.

Head to head in Rotorua – The Rotorua mayoral race will be an interesting one I think, and from my observations Mayoral candidate and existing Councillor Robert Lee stands a more than fair chance against current Mayor Tania Tapsell. Watch this recent 10min interview where he talks rates, Iwi partnerships and his mayoral bid.

Not for me, this time anyway – After much reflection – and encouragement both to run and not to – I’ve decided not to stand for Mayor. My priority isn’t the chain of office, it’s protecting the public interest and making sure the next council serves the people and not The Machine. I believe that goal is best served by returning as an elected councillor – free to speak plainly, collaborate strategically (possibly could try a little harder at that), and ensure the next Mayor, whoever they are, is held to account by someone with their eyes open and sleeves rolled up. If one of the current leadership gets voted in then I know my job will be that much harder, so I am hoping one of the other Mayoral candidates Zane Cozens or John Funnell is successful.

What’s my whakapapa? For those interested, my forefathers arrived in New Zealand in the 1850’s from Scotland following the Highland Clearances, and came in a large group led by a Reverend Norman Mcleod first to Nova Scotia then onto Waipu. My grandad Dick Campbell had a very illustrious career as a public servant, economist and diplomat with notable achievements including: saving the NZ economy during the Great Depression; negotiating trade deals with the Soviet Union; and roles as first chairman of the Public Service (1946) and acting High Commissioner to London (1958). He was also instrumental in the planning of the controversial New Zealand House building in Haymarket, London which opened in 1963. And he had a great sense of humour, just like me.

Friday funny: Getting information out of Council shouldn’t be like this but it sometimes unfortunately is:

JMA decision draws near with continued opacity

29 July 2025

This Thursday 31 July, Taupō District Council will vote on whether to adopt the new Joint Management Agreement (JMA) with the Tūwharetoa Māori Trust Board (TMTB). The full agenda is available here

Despite growing public concern, the staff recommendation remains to adopt the agreement in full. A fourth option – deferring the decision until after the election – has now been added, but without any commitment to public consultation or independent legal review. I say that’s not a compromise, it’s kicking the can without accountability.

The JMA embeds significant co-governance over planning, consenting, and environmental functions—many of which directly intersect with the Resource Management Act (RMA). Yet just two weeks ago, the Government froze RMA plan changes due to legal instability. Council’s own policy paper (Attachment 4) makes no mention of this. Instead, it repeats that the JMA is ‘not significant’ enough to require public consultation.

It also claims that co-governance concerns are irrelevant, calling this ‘co-management’ instead. Whether that distinction holds water legally is questionable – but politically, omitting national legislative context and public concern is indefensible.

Council staff offer no updated legal analysis, no plain-English summary, and no consultation plan. The public is still being sidelined. And the public deserves legal clarity that isn’t filtered by politics or internal convenience – if this agreement is so robust, let it stand up to independent scrutiny.

I’ve also raised potential conflicts of interest involving two elected members with close family or governance ties to TMTB. The CEO’s response: ‘Up to each councillor‘ – technically accurate, but politically negligent – and potentially damaging in the event of judicial review.

Meanwhile, staff say public feedback was ‘factually incorrect’ – referring to a Hobson’s Pledge newsletter – but offer no evidence. The referenced Attachment 5 isn’t a rebuttal, it’s an AI-generated summary that largely validates public concerns: lack of consultation, unclear governance shifts, and democratic erosion. If misinformation is being alleged, specifics so matter. Because without them, these claims look less like correction – and more like deflection. Also of note is that I circulated my JMA for Dummies to all councillors and senior staff explicitly asking for corrections – none were received.

This isn’t about obstruction – it’s about integrity, scrutiny, and public confidence. Council can and should pause this process, but only if it commits to doing the next part properly: with transparency, legal independence, and plain-English public consultation. Because anything less won’t just disappoint – it will fail the test of democracy.

And sometimes, good intentions just aren’t enough.