Written By: - Date published: 7:24 am, May 28th, 2016 - 172 comments
It’s naked panic now. In response to the crisis that isn’t a crisis Key is going to overrule the council that his government created and screw over Auckland democracy just like he screwed over Canterbury. What do you think of that Aucklanders?
Written By: - Date published: 7:02 am, March 2nd, 2016 - 70 comments
The real costs of the Auckland IT merger are at least six times higher than National’s original $200 million estimate. This significantly alters the economic case that was made for the “supercity”. Was National’s estimate deliberately wrong, or was it just incompetent?
Written By: - Date published: 1:52 pm, August 1st, 2012 - 37 comments
The bill for the Nats’ Auckland “supercity” is arriving in ratepayers’ letterboxes. Some are in for a nasty shock…
Written By: - Date published: 7:58 pm, June 1st, 2011 - 18 comments
Hide is trying to distance himself from his negligent costing of the Auckland merger, and the consequent $450 million blowout on IT systems alone. Aucklanders won’t have the satisfaction of kicking him out at the election. But they can still kick out the arrogant government that steamrollered all over the city, with no regard for good process or public opinion.
Written By: - Date published: 8:35 am, May 28th, 2011 - 73 comments
Auckland ratepayers are going to be stuck with a huge bill for the Nats’ failure to properly cost the merging of the old Councils’ IT systems. As Russell Brown puts it – “Someone has to be accountable for this”…
Written By: - Date published: 12:01 am, November 1st, 2010 - 8 comments
Happy Birthday Auckland! The new Supercity is now in effect, with Mayor Len Brown at the helm. How is the tension between a left wing mayor representing a third of the country, and a right wing central government, going to play out? The Nats can’t afford to let Auckland fail…
Written By: - Date published: 12:52 pm, October 4th, 2010 - 19 comments
The weekend headlines make it seem like Brown has the Auckland Mayoral election all but won. That’s an invitation to self-defeating complacency. Team Brown needs to keep up the hard work — it ain’t over ’till it’s over.
Written By: - Date published: 1:32 pm, October 2nd, 2010 - 27 comments
John Banks has made bashing South Auckland part of his campaign “strategy”. That didn’t work out so well for Melissa Lee, and it won’t work out so well for others that are now trying the same tactic…
Written By: - Date published: 7:10 am, October 1st, 2010 - 74 comments
John Banks has been slagging off South Auckland. Ooops. That’s the same mistake that Melissa Lee made in the Mt Albert by election. The same mistake deserves the same fate. Banks cannot credibly operate as mayor of the SuperCity.
Written By: - Date published: 11:22 am, May 16th, 2010 - 9 comments
Sam Cash writes it’s good news for Auckland with Len Brown opening up a strong lead over John Banks. Len Brown’s campaign seems to have been quietly gathering momentum since he launched his insurgency last year.
Written By: - Date published: 12:32 pm, May 13th, 2010 - 18 comments
Sam Cash has spotted a possible issue with Dodgy John “if I wear my policy on my sleeve, I won’t get elected†Banks’ most recent mayoral poll. Could it be Banks is just polling ratepayers to boost his numbers?
Written By: - Date published: 9:22 am, April 27th, 2010 - 11 comments
Sam Cash takes a look at John Banks’ latest poll and doesn’t find too much to crow about for the Mayor for Remuera – noting he has only managed to draw even with Len Brown in spite of the huge profile lead he has over his challenger.
Written By: - Date published: 1:45 pm, April 16th, 2010 - 19 comments
Voters of the Auckland region should be very concerned with the news that the Auckland City CBD-based Citrat political party looks set to run a single whipped slate of candidates at this year’s supercity election. The fear is that the C&R CBD old boys are gonna do in Waitakere, Manukau, Franklin, Rodney and the North Shore what they did in Otahuhu. Talk about crushing local voice.
Written By: - Date published: 9:42 am, March 22nd, 2010 - 13 comments
How much is the Huljich Kiwisaver figure-fudging scandal hurting John “the dodgy-director†Banks’ mayoral chances? Answer: a lot.O’Sullivan then explicitly writes off Banks – saying he’ll lose to Len Brown – and joins the long list of commentators criticizing the Huljich rip-off and noting it has damaged Banks’ chances. Think this story is only getting play in the business pages? It’s not.
Written By: - Date published: 3:57 pm, March 6th, 2010 - 11 comments
Come on Granny Herald. You’re almost there…
Written By: - Date published: 7:05 am, February 25th, 2010 - 5 comments
Auckland is being stolen from the people who live there. It will end up like a christmas turkey – “decapitated, plucked, gutted, stuffed, stitched up, roasted and carved up. And when the diners have eaten their fill, all you have left is a dead carcass.”
Written By: - Date published: 2:30 pm, February 23rd, 2010 - 21 comments
Recent polls highlight how important turnout will be at this year’s local body election.
Sam Cash takes a look at recent history and how attitudes to the supercity and the themes of this election could increase participation.
Written By: - Date published: 7:05 pm, February 2nd, 2010 - 31 comments
In a sure sign that the political phone is off the hook for John ‘Mayor for Remuera’ Banks, the deputy mayor of Rodney John Kirikiri has a scathing letter in yesterday’s Herald criticising the super-mayoral candidate’s cynical electioneering. After a couple of high-profile high-cost staff hires (he has ex 3 News political reporter Scott Campbell […]
Written By: - Date published: 12:01 pm, January 23rd, 2010 - 14 comments
Eddie has already covered the story of Hide giving the middle finger to the people of Franklin regarding the Supercity. Franklin is Tory heartland. However the current local National MP for Hunua, the underwhelming Dr Paul Hutchinson, has consistently been taken to pieces over his government’s decision to destroy the district. Locals are furious with […]
Written By: - Date published: 12:46 pm, January 16th, 2010 - 22 comments
There is a story in today’s Herald noting that current C&R Hobson councillor Aaron Bhatnagar is not going to stand for the new super-council. He is taking on the running of Banks’ faltering mayoral campaign and has been offered a job in the new mayoral office should they turn around Len Brown’s momentum. But the […]
Written By: - Date published: 4:20 pm, December 15th, 2009 - 29 comments
It’s interesting to look at the trend behind the headline 11 point poll lead Len Brown has opened up over John Banks as reported in today’s Herald. In April Brown was only rated as preferred mayor by 6% of Aucklanders verse 17% for Banks. A head-to-head poll in late July put him one point ahead […]
Written By: - Date published: 12:30 pm, November 30th, 2009 - 32 comments
There is a very revealing article in this month’s Metro magazine (not online) that takes a look at the strengths of the campaigns of the two declared candidates for the Auckland mayoralty. Interestingly the piece states that National and ACT are ready to dump John Banks if he doesn’t start to gain traction. It seems […]
Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, November 25th, 2009 - 2 comments
John ‘Mayor for Remuera’ Banks would’ve been gagging on his morning gruel after reading this headline on page two of Monday’s Herald: Jeers and boos greet Banks’ stand-in at debate. Ouch. Citrats councillor, and Don Brash/John Banks hagiographer, Paul Goldsmith turned up to a super-city conference to outline his party’s bleak view for services in […]
Written By: - Date published: 9:36 am, November 10th, 2009 - 4 comments
Lord Mayor of Remuera John ‘barking mad’ Banks has (mis)fired the first shots of his campaign by producing some strip advertisements outlining the planned expansion of his duchy he claims he’s Mayor of Takanini! – and taking out a full page ad promising he will build the Sydney Opera House on Auckland’s waterfront. Welcome to […]
Written By: - Date published: 2:40 pm, November 6th, 2009 - 6 comments
Fresh from pulling the pin (then blaming others) on a Queen’s Wharf redesign competition he himself conceived, led and championed, Remuera mayor John ‘in your guts you know he’s nuts’ Banks has again flip-flopped on a policy proposal from his council. Yesterday the Banks’ and C&R led proposal for after-hours car parking charges for Auckland’s […]
Written By: - Date published: 4:49 pm, November 3rd, 2009 - 3 comments
Yesterday the Auckland Transition Agency (ATA) released its draft structure for the new Auckland council. Fortunately for the staff, and service levels in the new Auckland council, the ATA has a ‘commitment to maintaining or enhancing council service delivery.’ This means: ‘A prudent approach will be taken to staff reduction where services are reorganised to […]
Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, October 28th, 2009 - 2 comments
John ‘in your guts you know he’s nuts’ Banks has isolated himself out to the right of Rodney Hide when it comes to the activities of local government. Yesterday Rodney Hide started to backtrack on his promise to restrict local government to providing ‘core services’ (although I’ll reserve judgement until I see his final policy), which […]
Written By: - Date published: 1:21 pm, October 23rd, 2009 - 9 comments
Last night C&R councillor and National Party MP Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga ended his double-dipping charade and quit the Auckland City Council. By way of background, Sam was elected as a councillor for Tamaki-Maungakiekie in the 2007 local body election. He used this position to leverage his way into parliament as a National MP at the […]
Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, October 23rd, 2009 - 8 comments
John ‘barking mad’ Banks’ cheerleader WhaleOil has called for Rodney Hide to introduce the power of recall into the legislation for the new Auckland super-city. I wonder if that is such a wise call. Remember Cameron Slater is the son of Citrat president John Slater, so he should be well aware of Banks’ infamous track […]
Written By: - Date published: 1:02 pm, October 18th, 2009 - 9 comments
Len Brown seems to have the Right in a bit of panic. Remuera Mayor John ‘in your guts you know he’s nuts’ Banks is speculating that Brown’s already toted up $150-$200k of campaign spending. Banks has always been screwy but he seems to have just made this up. That hasn’t stopped acolytes like Farrer from […]
Written By: - Date published: 3:00 pm, October 6th, 2009 - 23 comments
There is a very revealing quote from John Banks in the weekend’s Dominion Post where he talks about his campaign strategy: Uptown, Auckland Mayor John Banks, a former police minister and radio talkback host, is doing his best to soften his public image. “If I wear my policy on my sleeve, I won’t get elected. […]
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