Near the start of the livestream of the council meeting, Brown discusses absent councillors. Video / Auckland Council
Mayor Wayne Brown is “out of Auckland every chance he can get” and shouldn’t be criticising councillors about their attendance record, claims a rival hoping to take his job at October’s election.
Brown, who is standing for re-election as mayor, expressed his displeasure at yesterday’scouncil governing body meeting that five of the 20 elected members weren’t attending in person.
“I’m going to deal with them one by one,” Brown told the meeting.
“I want to make sure that people understand you have an obligation to be here unless you’ve got a good reason.
“Some of the councillor committees haven’t had enough people to have the meetings, and it’s just not good enough.”
Brown noted that Alf Filipaina was sick and Christine Fletcher out of the country, and that Maurice Williamson was “definitely incapacitated” after surgery.
“We wish her well in her recovery as someone who’s particularly worried about bike safety.
“Councillor [Wayne] Walker ... he hasn’t been run over by a car, I’m sure someone will provide one.”
Whau councillor Kerrin Leoni is running to be Auckland Mayor.
Kerrin Leoni, who is challenging Brown for the mayoral chains, said his comments at yesterday’s meeting were “pretty rich”.
“Brown is out of Auckland every chance he can get for his home in Northland. He was heavily criticised in 2023, for instance, when Cyclone Gabrielle hit, for being missing in action,” the Whau councillor said in a statement.
“... Here he is criticising other councillors and even making jokes about people being run over.
“It’s well known that, every chance he gets, he’s out of Auckland most weekends for his [property] in Northland.”
Brown lives in an apartment in central Auckland. A former Far North District mayor, he also owns a home at Mangōnui in Northland (as well as having commercial property interests).
The Herald has approached his office for comment over Leoni’s criticism.
Walker told RNZ yesterday that he informed council staff he had flu and would be joining the meeting via video link. He said Brown had been “going after” him and his fellow Albany ward councillor John Watson during previous meetings, dubbing them “the Albanians”.
