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The latest stunt from struggling Dunedin councillor Benedict Ong has been condemned by colleagues as “embarrassing’’.
Cr Ong drafted a notice of motion for the Dunedin City Council — calling for the government to investigate a “departure levy” for recent New Zealand citizens who move to Australia — and then reached out to the mayors of other cities in case they wanted to pick up on his idea.
The move followed Dunedin Mayor Sophie Barker routinely rejecting his notices of motion, he said.
Within a rambling email, Cr Ong suggested international students sometimes ended up gaining New Zealand citizenship and then moving to Australia.
A levy could raise $150 million annually for the government, he believed.
His email was sent to Dunedin councillors, news media and mayors of other university cities — Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Hamilton and Palmerston North, as well as Invercargill.
Cr Ong has been at the centre of a series of behaviour controversies and stunts since being elected last year.
One Dunedin city councillor who has had enough is Andrew Simms.
“The Dunedin City Council (the clue is in the name) has no jurisdiction over this and most of your other mindless notices of motion,” he told Cr Ong.
“You are utterly ineffective at anything other than wasting ratepayers’ money and resources.”
Emailing from his hospital bed after recent heart surgery, Cr Simms noted Cr Ong had turned up to meetings with tape over his mouth and he said Cr Ong had frequently contributed irrelevance to proceedings.
Cr Steve Walker said there had never been a busier or more important time in local government, “so these ongoing and poorly thought-out distractions from Cr Ong do nothing other than suck up precious time, energy and resource”.
“For sanity’s sake, let’s hope he doesn’t draw other councils into his already tangled web.”
The offices of the mayors for Auckland and Wellington said they had no comment.
The office for Christchurch Mayor Phil Mauger said he was out and about working.
“I think it would be safe to say he’d leave the matter for Dunedin City Council to handle,” a staff member said.
Dunedin city councillor Brent Weatherall said Cr Ong’s actions were quite rightly viewed as an embarrassment for the city.
He had concerns about Cr Ong’s state of mind and also made indirect reference to Cr Ong’s suspension from committees and subcommittees.
“I am far from comfortable having to endure his unprofessional, unproductive, and unsettling performances around his continual notices of motion in the meetings he can attend which in my view are far outside of our core business,” Cr Weatherall said.
He doubted initiatives such as training, counselling or some kind of intervention from Local Government Minister Simon Watts could rectify the situation.
The minister’s office said he had not seen Cr Ong’s proposal.
Ms Barker said Cr Ong was entitled to put forward proposals and express his views.
She would discuss his proposed notice of motion with the council’s chief executive to consider whether it fell within the responsibilities or powers of the council, she said.
“Decisions about taxation, citizenship and immigration settings are matters for central government,” Ms Barker said.
“While elected members are free to advocate for matters of personal interest, councillors also have a responsibility to focus their efforts on issues that are relevant to the council’s statutory role and the needs of our community.”
Cr Ong said he expected support from councils country-wide.
Asked if sending his notice to other mayors showed frustration about his lack of effectiveness as a councillor, Cr Ong said he was the country’s most prominent councillor.
Asked if he was taking the mickey, Cr Ong made reference to Cr Mickey Treadwell, saying “we already have a Mickey on our table”.
He reiterated he would not resign.