Government will monitor beleaguered Tauranga City Council 'with concern' - PM

WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND - OCTOBER 11: New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern speaks to reporters at a Labour Party Election rally at the Michael Fowler Centre on October 11, 2020 in Wellington, New Zealand. The 2020 New Zealand General Election was originally due to be held on Saturday 19 September but was delayed due to the re-emergence of COVID-19 in the community.  (Photo by Lynn Grieveson - Newsroom/Newsroom via Getty Images)

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has weighed in on the issues surrounding Tauranga City Council.

At her weekly post-Cabinet media run Jacinda Ardern says she won’t be making any public comment until proper advice has been sought.

But she says Government “will be looking to what’s happening in Tauranga with concern".

“This is a growing city who need to be providing critical infrastructure for their people.

“I know what’s happening there isn’t welcomed locally because they’re very concerned about what it will mean for their city,” she says.

Claps were heard as Tenby Powell announced he would step down as Tauranga mayor at a meeting in November.

This comes as Mayor Tenby Powell stood down from the role on Friday and called for commissioners to replace the beleaguered council.

A review and observer team found a number of failings, but instead of acknowledging the issues, some councillors decided to table the report and pointed out spelling and grammatical errors.

A spokesperson for Local Government Minister Nanaia Mahuta told 1 NEWS Cabinet was briefed today about the next steps for the council including Crown intervention.

"There are a range of interventions available” and officials are considering options at the higher end of the scale, “specifically whether to appoint a Crown observer, Crown manager, or Commissioners”, the latter would replace the council.

The Prime Minister says the Government will wait for Mahuta to receive some advice before making any “key decisions”.

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