Is a $4k sandcastle study trip appropriate for a city councillor?

Photo / Peter de Graaf

Opinion

A long-serving Christchurch city councillor says she will not stand at the next election after abusive phone calls to her family in the wake of a ratepayer-funded trip to study sandcastles in the US.

Councillor Gail Sheriff has returned from Imperial Beach, 24km south of San Diego, where she experienced first-hand the "US Open Sandcastle Competition" over two days.

The trip cost $3958 and was paid for out of a ratepayer-funded training pot. Each councillor is entitled to spend up to $4000 annually from the discretionary fund.

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