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David Thornton - Latest News [Page 2]
Labour Earthquake Fund Proposal Outrageous
Wednesday, 2 November 2011, 5:02 pm | David Thornton
The proposal by the Labour Party that it would fund its Earthquake Fund from a charge on rateable value is totally outrageous as it compounds the effect on council ratepayers of a system which has been widely condemned as unfair. More >>
Auckland Plan is recipe for revolt
Wednesday, 21 September 2011, 10:18 am | David Thornton
The Auckland Plan should send shudders down the spines of Auckland ratepayers – it is a rainbow of dreams but without a pot of gold at the end. More >>
Changes put decision-making back to local councils
Friday, 19 November 2010, 9:44 am | David Thornton
The Local Government Amendment Bill has now been passed by Parliament and contains both potentially good news and potentially bad news for ratepayers and residents. More >>
Tough Job For Supercity Council To Hold Rates
Sunday, 10 October 2010, 7:12 pm | David Thornton
Now we know who will be running our local councils for the next three years, the big question is ‘How good will they be at running them?’ Especially in Auckland where big-spending plans for transport will place enormous pressure on rates. More >>
Postal Voting is Heading for Third World Status
Monday, 4 October 2010, 12:37 pm | David Thornton
The present system of postal voting in local elections has been shown to be wide open to attempts at fraud and manipulation. More >>
Transition Agency Asked To Intervene In Spending
Monday, 2 August 2010, 4:46 pm | David Thornton
I have today emailed Mark Ford, chief executive of the Auckland Transition Agency ,asking him to look closely at the decision by North Shore City Council to spend roading loan funds on a new building for a local Community Trust. More >>
North Shore City Council Deceiving Ratepayers
Sunday, 1 August 2010, 2:00 pm | David Thornton
By using ‘surplus’ loan funding to put up an unnecessary building, the council has shown utter contempt for ratepayers’ rights to be consulted about major expenditure More >>
Powers to recall the mayor
Sunday, 20 June 2010, 10:11 pm | David Thornton
With the imminent advent of a Super Mayor for the Auckland Super City it is an appropriate time to put in place powers for residents to sack a Mayor and/or councillors who fail to meet the community’s expectations. More >>
Changes to SuperCity Bill reassuring
Monday, 24 May 2010, 2:15 pm | David Thornton
First glance at the report of the Select Committee Committee on Auckland Governance should reassure most Aucklanders that many of the fears about SuperCity will prove unwarranted. More >>
SuperCity referendum ‘silly and biased’
Thursday, 6 May 2010, 1:20 pm | David Thornton
The launch of a so-called referendum by some community groups and ‘The Aucklander’ newspaper is an unnecessary diversion as the new Auckland Council moves ever-closer to becoming reality, More >>
Brazilian Love Motel Open Despite Licence Refusal
Monday, 26 April 2010, 4:55 pm | David Thornton
Although the Brazilian Love Motel in Glenfield was denied a Brothel Licence last Friday it can still operate as a ‘hire by the hour’ motel under a resource consent granted by council staff in February. More >>
Rejection of Brothel Application Sends Warning
Friday, 23 April 2010, 5:11 pm | David Thornton
As a submitter to today’s ByLaw hearing I am delighted that the North Shore City Council has rejected the application by the Brazilian Love Motel for a brothel licence. More >>
Bureaucrats Back Brothel
Wednesday, 7 April 2010, 9:48 am | David Thornton
The Resource Consent approval for a ‘Brazilian Love Hotel’ in Glenfield was made by non-elected North Shore City Council staff acting under delegated authority from the elected councillors. More >>
Support for Mayor’s resignation
Monday, 29 March 2010, 9:30 am | David Thornton
It is highly unusual, if not unique, for a Minister of local Government to call for the resignation of a Mayor. More >>
Ratepayers Should Not Be paying For Queens Wharf
Thursday, 14 January 2010, 4:57 pm | David Thornton
The current argument about a $47 million or a $100 million Queens Wharf seems to assume that the ratepayers of Auckland will have to stump up all the money – however much it might be. More >>
Recall for Super Mayor?
Monday, 14 December 2009, 1:49 pm | David Thornton
The controversy surrounding Mayor Andrew Williams has prompted questions as to the ability to remove a mayor from office – or remove any elected member from office. More >>
Call for councillors to censure Mayor Williams
Monday, 14 December 2009, 12:35 pm | David Thornton
During his term Mayor Andrew Williams has. by his actions, engendered widespread public condemnation on many occasions. He has also, in my view, shown considerable disrespect for some of his fellow members - and occasionally for some Community Board ... More >>
Representation Will Be Halved In Super City
Friday, 11 December 2009, 2:19 pm | David Thornton
I have today made a submission to the Local Government Commission asking it to improve its proposals for the new Local Boards so as to give adequate representation for citizens in the New Auckland Supercity. More >>
Proposed Structure World's Most Undemocratic
Tuesday, 24 November 2009, 9:09 am | David Thornton
By international standards Auckland citizens would have the least democratic representation of any civilised democracy in the world. More >>
17 years to complete District Plan has been waste
Friday, 23 October 2009, 11:54 am | David Thornton
North Shore City Council has just announced that, after 17 years of drafting, public consultation and legal actions, its first District Plan under the Resource Management Act has been finalised and is now ‘operative’. Millions of dollars of rates-funded ... More >>
