The meeting comes after an investigation into an alleged incident between former chairman Allan Birchfield (left) and Remuneration and Employment Committee chairman Frank Dooley (right) on 5 May. Photo: Supplied via LDR
An extraordinary meeting of the West Coast Regional Council next week to consider "councillor matters" will be held behind closed doors.
A public notice appearing in West Coast newspapers today advertises the 8 August meeting, an hour before the ordinary monthly meetings of the council.
The extraordinary meeting is notified as "public excluded confidential" to consider "councillor matters".
It follows at least two independent investigations at the council in the past few months. They include the alleged incident between former chairman Allan Birchfield and Remuneration and Employment Committee chairman Frank Dooley on 5 May at the panel to select the new chief executive appointment.
The other is an alleged leak of privileged information around former chief executive's Heather Mabin's employment. The leaked letter was subsequently the basis of a published news article.
Councillors contacted on Monday were caught by surprise as they had not yet been notified of the extraordinary meeting.
Councillor Birchfield agreed it might be to do with the alleged altercation on 5 May.
"To be honest I haven't had notification. I can't comment on the inquiry, it's still in the process. I haven't heard anything."
However Birchfield said if the meeting were about the 5 May incident, he presumed both he and councillor Dooley would be excluded "because we are part of that".
Birchfield showed up at the meeting of the employment panel, made up of the all-council Remuneration and Employment Committee on 5 May, after he was advised by deputy chairman Brett Cummings, a close ally.
But there was a scene when Dooley, as committee chairman, tried to get him to leave. In the end, Birchfield stayed and took part in the panel interview process which ultimately selected current chief executive Darryl Lew.
Former West Coast Regional Council CEO Heather Mabin in Greymouth as she prepared to depart the council in June. Photo: Greymouth Star / Brendon McMahon
Former CEO Heather Mabin subsequently ordered an independent inquiry after Birchfield complained that council chairman Peter Haddock did not control the situation on 5 May.
Birchfield also claimed he had been deliberately excluded from the panel, which was made up of the other six councillors, plus West Coast iwi representatives.
Current West Coast Regional Council chairman Peter Haddock. Photo: Supplied via LDR
He wrote that his exclusion was "not lawful" and endorsement of that by Haddock showed "poor judgement".
Dooley said today he assumed the extraordinary meeting was related to two code of conduct investigations under way at council.
"I'm not aware that there was a meeting," he said.
"If there's councillor matters to be discussed, I assume that it will be that."
He noted the procedure to run such meetings was under the council's code of conduct to proceed in an open meeting.
Whatever it was, "there is no reason it shouldn't be in open," Dooley said.
He confirmed that an investigation into the leaking of a confidential letter around Mabin's employment had been called for by him.
That letter allegedly used to form the basis of a media article was "a serious breach of her privacy," Dooley said.
"It was unbelievable. There has been an independent investigation and there has been a full report produced."
Chairman Peter Haddock confirmed today that the meeting was to do with a code of conduct matter but would not comment any further.
Local Democracy Reporting is Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air
