Mayor's ultimatum to chief executive

John Banks

Auckland City Mayor John Banks has issued an ultimatum to his chief executive, David Rankin, telling him to get to the bottom of new revelations about the council's footpath contracts or he will call in the Auditor-General.

Mr Banks said he wanted a timeline of events on his desk this morning and credible answers to all the issues raised by Herald inquiries by midnight tomorrow.

If he did not get both, he said, he would ask the Auditor-General to make an independent investigation.

At the heart of the issue is whether John Fillmore Contractors was overpaid for footpath renewal work.

The council concluded in January 2007 there had been no overpayment.

But questions have arisen over the process, including the fact that documents are missing from council files.

The council has released a report of a May 2007 review that found no anomalies in the contractor's claims and that the matter was concluded appropriately.

But the May report said there was an incomplete filing of important contract documents. Missing papers included minutes for 18 of 25 meetings, contract correspondence and a previous internal investigation.

The report said staff had to rely on discussions with council officers involved in resolving the matter and the material available in contract files.

But the Herald last week obtained a council document - not on the files - that said there were "fundamental mathematical errors and practical survey methodology flaws in JFC's measurement process".

Mr Banks was yesterday surprised to see new documents surface only six days after the council awarded two new footpath contracts worth nearly $20 million to John Fillmore Contractors.

Mr Rankin told councillors and the Herald before the contracts were awarded that "the public can have full confidence in the tender evaluation process, management and monitoring of the footpath contracts".

Last night, Mr Banks said all the events took place under Mayor Dick Hubbard's previous council.

But he pledged to take responsibility and get to the bottom of the matter.

"I'm sick and tired of confronting these matters by instalment.

"In the interest of fairness, I'm going to give the chief executive and relevant council officers one last opportunity to deliver publicly simple explanations to all of these matters.

"If they are not forthcoming and I don't have all the information by the end of the week, I propose to visit the offices of the Auditor-General."

Mr Rankin said last night that the papers obtained by the Herald appeared to be council documents.

Staff would look at the material to establish its significance and whether it affected previous judgments.

The missing council documents obtained by the Herald are a letter dated March 31, 2006, and four street-by-street, metre-by-metre measurements.

The measurements were made jointly by the council and JFC to validate overpayment stated in a letter from the council to JFC on March 17, 2006, amounting to $723,150.

As a result of the new measurements, the total overpayment figure was adjusted to $662,284.

The March 31 letter concluded by saying a letter "on how to proceed from this point forward" would follow.

Nothing in documentation provided by the council to the Herald shows what happened next.

The council has found only one set of measurement and calculation records for two streets, dated June 19, 2006.

Nearly six months later, on January 18, 2007, council contract manager Euan Ross wrote to John Fillmore closing the matter "after reviewing the site-specific audits undertaken by council, John Fillmore Contractors Ltd and an independent auditor".

Mr Fillmore could not be reached for comment last night.