Cr Aaron Hawkins has developed a motion that would limit confidentiality agreements after council anger over the almost $1million payout to former Delta chief executive Grady Cameron, and the lack of information able to be gleaned from company directors.
Mr Cameron is leaving the company after being criticised for failing to ensure lines company Aurora’s electricity network was properly maintained.
Despite plenty of questions on the payout at a meeting last month, company directors said confidentiality agreements meant they could not say whether there was a performance clause in the payout or whether more payments were to come.
Cr Hawkins said yesterday he hoped to get support at the next full council meeting on October 31 for a motion that would at least allow elected members to view such details.
If successful, it would direct Dunedin City Holdings Ltd (DCHL) to ‘‘limit any confidentiality arrangements in employment situations within its subsidiary and associate companies, such that they don’t prohibit the flow of information back to the shareholder’’.
Cr Hawkins said if successful, it would allow councillors to ask ‘‘very valid questions’’ in the interests of the public, which ultimately owned the companies.
He said he put the motion together because of the ‘‘gravity-defying’’ salaries being paid, and growing public unease about that.
As well, the flow of information between DCHL and the council needed to be better.
‘‘The holdings company wouldn’t tell us the make-up of Mr Cameron’s exit package, let alone the figures, and were comfortable this was enough detail for elected members.
‘‘I don’t think that’s good enough, and I don’t think I’m alone in thinking that.’’
He said he knew of nothing to say that was done at the insistence of Mr Cameron, ‘‘in fact the opposite may very well be true’’.
It was hard for the council and Mr Cameron when councillors could not get straight answers.
Cr David Benson-Pope said he would discuss at the meeting asking the Office of the Auditor-general to investigate Mr Cameron’s departure deal.
‘‘I’m interested in having some comfort about the components of that payment, given that information has been refused us.’’
Cr Benson-Pope said the council was also ‘‘in the dark’’ about the conditions of Mr Cameron’s contract until he left the company — he is working in an interim capacity and is expected to leave the company this year — as that too was confidential.
‘‘I think there is a large majority of council who think it is not good enough.’’
