Howick Local Board deserves better than Lucy Schwaner offered.
PRESS RELEASE: Lucy Schwaner fails to understand local democracy.
Mark Johnson, the Labour candidate for the vacant local board seat in the Botany Sub-division, said he is concerned over Ms Schwaner’s evident lack of understanding of the nature of the Local Board structure, given her comments after her decision to resign from the Local Board immediately after losing the vote to Chair the Board.
On the Stuff website Friday, Schwaner claimed “The cost of a by-election could be avoided if other groups decided not to put a candidate forward and allowed [previous local board candidate Mike] Turinsky to fill the vacancy unchallenged.”
“Ms Schwaner is evidently unaware how local politics work, if she thinks fewer candidates is the financial solution to the scandal she has created in the Botany sub-division,” said Johnson. “This boondoggle will cost over twice the salary of a Howick Local Board member, regardless of how many parties contest the vacant seat.”
Ms Schwaner had ample time after her election to the board, to establish how many votes she was likely to get in the vote for chair. She could have avoided the situation by vacating her seat before being sworn in, and allowing the next highest-placing candidate, Mike Turinsky, to take her place. Instead, she chose to trigger an expensive by-election.
The by-election, possibly costing $150,000, will allow the ratepayers to discuss and debate the functioning of the present Board and to elect another, more conciliatory candidate.
Mr Johnson looks forward to the by-election and bringing the positive Labour values of transparency, approachability and accountability to the Howick Local Board.
Worst Xmas ever?
There's a a lot of planning that goes into Christmas day and sometimes things just don't go to plan. But it can be a good thing - a family mishap or hilarious memory that you can laugh about in Christmases to come.
Whether you burnt the dinner or were stranded at an airport...
Share your Christmas mishaps below!
⚠️ DOGS DIE IN HOT CARS. If you love them, don't leave them. ⚠️
It's a message we share time and time again, and this year, we're calling on you to help us spread that message further.
Did you know that calls to SPCA about dogs left inside hot cars made up a whopping 11% of all welfare calls last summer? This is a completely preventable issue, and one which is causing hundreds of dogs (often loved pets) to suffer.
Here are some quick facts to share with the dog owners in your life:
👉 The temperature inside a car can heat to over 50°C in less than 15 minutes.
👉 Parking in the shade and cracking windows does little to help on a warm day. Dogs rely on panting to keep cool, which they can't do in a hot car.
👉 This puts dogs at a high risk of heatstroke - a serious condition for dogs, with a mortality rate between 39%-50%.
👉 It is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act to leave a dog in a hot vehicle if they are showing signs of heat stress. You can be fined, and prosecuted.
SPCA has created downloadable resources to help you spread the message even further. Posters, a flyer, and a social media tile can be downloaded from our website here: www.spca.nz...
We encourage you to use these - and ask your local businesses to display the posters if they can. Flyers can be kept in your car and handed out as needed.
This is a community problem, and one we cannot solve alone. Help us to prevent more tragedies this summer by sharing this post.
On behalf of the animals - thank you ❤️
Poll: Would you rather: Christmas in summer forever or winter forever?
Just a bit of a fun poll to get you thinking.
If you had to live out your Christmas days, would you prefer it was a summer Christmas or a winter Christmas?
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61.6% Summer
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36.7% Winter
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1.6% Other - I'll share below
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