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Chris Milne: A Tale of Two Cities

Updated: Sep 18, 2022


With local body elections looming people ought to know what voting for a Labour candidate entails.


A great mystery of 2022 is how it came to be that the Upper Hutt and Lower Hutt Mayors formed polar opposite views on Three Waters.


The two cities share the same water collection and treatment system, the same water management (Wellington Water), occupy the same valley and share the same cost structures.


Three public opinion polls in the two cities have revealed strong resident opposition to the Labour Government’s centralisation of water management, including 50% iwi control through co-governance.


So how is it that, despite public opposition in both cities, Mayor Wayne Guppy of Upper Hutt is opposed but Mayor Campbell Barry is not?


The answer is pretty straight-forward. In 2019 Cr Campbell Barry campaigned for the Hutt City mayoralty under a Labour ticket. What the public were never told is that the Labour Party exacts a high price from candidates who use their trademark.


It will surprise most people to learn that the Labour Party requires that candidates using the Labour logo sign a pledge to support and implement Labour policy irrespective of the views of local residents. Further, all Labour candidates in a local body election pledge to block vote on issues of Labour policy.


The rewards for this abdication of local loyalty are political career opportunities and campaign assistance – databases, email systems, door knocking volunteers, billboard teams and social media support. One recent bauble was Mayor Barry’s appointment to the Labour Government’s Three Waters review taskforce, a body that reported back very recently with, you guessed it, no substantial changes to the policy opposed by the majority of Lower Hutt’s residents.


The Labour Party Constitution in force during the 2019 council elections contains Rule 95 (linked below):


R95: Any person accepting nomination as a Party candidate shall sign a pledge ….


R95(e): I will faithfully observe the Constitution and Policy of the Party and the policy of the party for the [Lower Hutt] district.


R95(f): If elected, I will vote … in accordance with the decisions [of the Labour ticket members].


And the following rule dictates that Labour candidates will support each other no matter what:


R95(c): I will wholeheartedly support the duly selected candidates of the Party in the [Lower Hutt] district.


And do note that the first Objective (R3) of the Labour Party is “to elect [candidates] for the purpose of giving effect to Party policy and principles”. Rule 152 says that “The Policy Platform is binding on … all Labour Party members elected to public office who describe their affiliation as “Labour” or “Labour Party” on the ballot.


Labour candidates are subject to a Disciplinary Process with multiple possible sanctions if they breach their pledge [R309]:


Rule 313: Disciplinary action shall be applied for and ruled upon on the grounds of:


(a): contravention of the Principles, Rules and Policies of the Party as contained in the current Constitution and policy documents of the Party, including under (c) – being automatically suspended for two years for publicly campaigning against another Labour candidate.


“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.”

- Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities (the first sentence of the book).


Notes:

1) Link to the 2013 Labour Party Constitution

2) Link to the 2020 Constitution (the relevant provisions are virtually unchanged – see Rule 12.4.1). This will apply to the 2022 Council elections.



Chris Milne is a lawyer, businessman and Hutt City Councillor

4,670 views63 comments

63 Comments


ilex
Sep 19, 2022

How many voters realise that Councilor votes on Council subjects are not recorded so if you wanted to know how your Councillor voted on any particular subject you would have to rely on your Councillors word - see anything wrong with that idea??

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ron
ron
Sep 16, 2022

As Promised, attached is a summary of responses from a simple e-mail enquiry asking all those standing for public office in Upper Hutt whether they are ".. a member of or otherwise affiliated to any political party that will be contesting the next (2023) general election?" Personally I will be using this to help cull the voting list. The number of no responses is disturbing for those claiming to be looking to represent local people. How is that possible if you don't communicate!

A pity that I did not have time to undertake the same for Lower Hutt.


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Pete Mussel
Pete Mussel
Sep 13, 2022

After the Sharma debacle , one now wonders if ANY candidate has a worthwhile trait that should be exposed to the electorate at large ? Especially if it is under the Labor banner . After all , what has been so thoroughly discussed is the issue of " caucus whip ". That disciplinary person whose sole intention (and responsibility ) is to keep ALL members in line with their very strict policies AND regulations . INDIVIDUALS NOT WELCOME ! We may as well elect candidates that have a large MT gap between their ears ! Just like Jackson , Mahuta , Davis and others in cabinet . As to having a conscious , not even the PM seems to…

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Unknown member
Sep 13, 2022

In Christchurch... the thinly disguised village of the labor party, the so called " people's choice " billboards are everywhere.

Thank christ I live in selwyn, yes Sam has a few problems to deal with, and he's young, but not woke.

Now it's in the table

An alliance into a super city.

Fuck off to the leeches I Christchurch that want this, the reason I moved here was to get away from you, and your stupid politics.

Here? Not perfect, but shit gets done. Like repairing roads, and upgrading water infrastructure.

Not painting smiley faces on roads. And creating traffic chaos.

I'm serious..I go to Ashburton now. For my shopping, and enjoyment, a far nicer place to visit.

Christchurch? It's…


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ilex
Sep 13, 2022

3 waters is a deliberate distraction.

The real prize is the earlier ongoing Seabed and Foreshore claims by the Maori tribes supported by the Labor Party and John Keys National Party (and probably Luxons - see the National Parties website). Further supported by the legal fraternity (there's a buck to be made here chaps!)

The rubber stampers on the Waitangi Tribunal will grant the rights of ownership of the sea and all fish within, tax's on all passage by boats and ships, all the minerals under the sea (the mining rights which they can then sell) and ownership of the air above.

Air ownership will include all waterways (creeks and rivers) leading to the sea thereby leading to tax's/rentals/leas…

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Lesley
Lesley
Sep 13, 2022
Replying to

And not forgetting any roads or property above piped water, sewerage and stormwater. Eventually rainwater and snow falling on private property will not escape levies

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