'Entirely inappropriate': Acting Napier mayor rebukes councillors for speaking out about code of conduct trawl

Napier's acting mayor Faye White is asking councillors to refrain from commenting in the media, on what she believes is an employment issue between council and its CEO. Photo/ Supplied.

Napier's acting mayor Faye White has hit out at councillors speaking to media, as the Napier City Council's code of conduct saga sparks up further.

Emails released under the Official Information Act showed Napier City Council chief executive Wayne Jack ordered staff to go through the Facebook pages of six councillors who voted against the new $41 million aquatic centre, which he is in favour of.

Napier councillors whose Facebook pages were monitored for potential code of conduct breaches then spoke out against the action.

White said she will be meeting with councillors and council staff next week to discuss their allegations.

"It is entirely inappropriate for councillors to be using the media to air their opinions on what is, in point of fact, an employment issue between the council and its CEO."

She said she was "very concerned" about some of the statements appearing in media and would rather wait until I have all the relevant facts in front of her before deciding on next steps.

"Having said that, I can categorically assure our community that the Code of Conduct, which is agreed and adopted by councillors at the start of each three year term of office, is in no way intended to hinder the democratic process of our city's governance and it is unhelpful for outside commentators to suggest otherwise.

She said she won't be commenting further on the matter until she met with councillors and staff.