Aid for flustered Fletcher

By BERNARD ORSMAN

A desperate Auckland Mayor, Christine Fletcher, has been forced to revitalise her sagging re-election campaign.

Confronted on the right with a vigorous performance by John Banks and on the left by the streetwise Matt McCarten, the former National minister has turned to Labour minister and Auckland Central MP, Judith Tizard, for support.

The normally defensive Mrs Fletcher has called on Mr McCarten to pull out now to stop Mr Banks.

Her worry is an Alliance poll purporting to show her former National Party colleague Mr Banks well ahead and Mr McCarten biting at her heels.

A candidates' meeting at the Royal Akarana Yacht Club on Tamaki Drive on Thursday was the venue for Mrs Fletcher to abandon the moral high ground.

The mayor had been on the phone that day trying to glean information about the Alliance poll. Five sources fed her different figures but the picture was the same. She was trailing.

It was time to crow about an endorsement from Ms Tizard, who said in an electorate newsletter that she would vote for Mrs Fletcher.

This had a ring of irony for Mr McCarten, who was the Alliance's campaign manager during the Tamaki byelection in 1992, when Labour plotted with National to prevent an Alliance victory.

The Alliance president, who has adopted humour in a late run for the mayoralty, described Ms Tizard as the minister assisting the Prime Minister with her handbag".

He also flung a line about Mrs Fletcher "being this and that" on everything, saying her vote had collapsed and that the choice had come down to himself and Mr Banks.

Ms Tizard yesterday denied that her action was anti-Alliance or anti-Matt McCarten. Mrs Fletcher was the best candidate, she said.

As the third and final week of postal voting begins, the mayor could do with the help of a Labour MP such as Ms Tizard, who is well-connected with liberal voters in the western suburbs - the same people who helped Mrs Fletcher beat Les Mills in 1998.

The need for support was especially apparent in front of the 150 mostly elderly, Tory folk at the Royal Akarana Yacht Club where the mayor was on shaky ground.

Mr Banks drew the louder applause with a barrage of criticism about council excesses, support for completion of the Auckland motorway network, and a promise to make the city's streets safe.

Mr Banks, who claims to have knocked on 7700 doors and held 147 meetings during four months of campaigning, harked about the need for change.

"The days of wet, weak handwringing and lack of leadership are over for Auckland."

Mrs Fletcher's moderate, collaborative approach to politics hit turbulence at question time when she tried to explain her position on a range of policies, and Mr Banks and Mr McCarten gave definitive answers.

On the question of the eastern motorway, Mr McCarten said he opposed the controversial project and Mr Banks supported it.

In an anxious tone, Mrs Fletcher tried to explain that she was neither for nor against the motorway but had initiated a report to look at the effects on local communities and the environment.

She had more success on student radio station bFM yesterday morning, when she explained that she could work with people, and Mr Banks could not.

"Working with people is about persuasion, it is about reasonableness. A vote for Matt is a vote for Banks. If you want bigotry and you want racism then go for it.

"If you want Auckland to be an interesting, cosmopolitan city with functioning infrastructure and a decent public transport system, then vote for me."

A short time later, commentator Russell Brown came on air with a weekly wrap-up of political events and said Mrs Fletcher had run a useless campaign and had thrown the mayoralty away herself.

Feature: Local body elections 2001

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