Wellington City councillors Tamatha Paul and Diane Calvert have found common ground following a code of conduct complaint. Photo / Mark Mitchell.
Wellington City councillors Tamatha Paul and Diane Calvert have found common ground following a code of conduct complaint. Photo / Mark Mitchell.
Wellington City councillors Diane Calvert and Tamatha Paul have sorted out differences between themselves after one laid a formal complaint against the other over a "public attack" on Facebook.
But the pair say the resolution has come in the absence of mayor Andy Foster's involvement, a process they "expect and deserve", given he leads the council.
Foster told the Herald in matters such as this it was important to separate the roles of mediator from decision-maker.
Calvert levelled accusations against Paul in late April after a Facebook post she penned in response to concerns the council was divided.
In the post, Paul said some councillors had publicly exhibited bullying and lying.
"For example Cr Diane Calvert stating I shouldn't move a business-related amendment because I have never 'worked with' businesses before, and then smirking and snickering when I interject because this is simply not true …
"It's this kind of behaviour that undermines the public's belief in the Council, and makes us all look like idiots, meanwhile the City is in lockdown, being battered by five-metre high waves, families are losing their income, and businesses are folding," Paul said.
Calvert wrote directly to Foster asking for a code of conduct investigation and requested a written response setting out his considerations, conclusions and proposed response within the week.
Fast forward one month and new email correspondence seen by the Herald reveals the two councillors have resorted to sorting out the matter themselves.
Calvert wrote to Foster on June 2 acknowledging her complaint had been referred to council officers for a response.
"We appreciate as mayor you have a wide range of responsibilities and this why both Councillor Paul and I indicated early on that we wanted our concerns resolved simply and swiftly."
Mayor Andy Foster says it's important to separate the role of mediator from decision-maker. Photo / Mark Mitchell.
Calvert continued, saying they were hoping for a free and frank discussion with Foster on matters including media comments he himself made which "sparked this current situation".
The Stuff article she referred to was headlined: "Tensions boil over as Wellington mayor accuses councillors of putting personal ambitions before the city".
In her email, Calvert said having an early conversation between herself, Paul, and Foster would have led to a quick resolution rather than unnecessarily dragging out the matter.
"We are naturally disappointed that you are now unable to participate in any productive discussion having had sufficient time to 'work up' your views on the matter. It also seems to us unnecessary to involve a third party to engage with only me and councillor Paul.
"We therefore see little benefit for us to participate [in] the session as this really should have been a simple matter for you to investigate and resolve.
"In the absence of your involvement, a process we expected and deserve given you lead this council, Councillor Paul and I have instead worked to resolve the issue ourselves."
But Foster told the Herald in matters such as this it was important to separate the role of mediator from decision-maker.
"We are now working cohesively on a range of issues with energy and, the tools to resolve differences so that outcomes can be delivered to the benefit of our great city and the people who live here."
Meanwhile, Paul said if Foster had intervened early on in the situation, rather than letting it fester, it would have never eventuated to a formal complaint.
She said it was "common sense" to try and keep the team together.
"I feel like there has needed to be for a long time a sense of direction and purpose in our council.
"You have so many people clashing because you don't understand what people's game plans are and it's easy to misinterpret people, resulting in divisions."
Calvert said she has resolved the issue with Paul and neither of them ever let it impact their work or their focus on the city.
