Rotorua Mayor Tania Tapsell denies having a conflict of interest involving an influential iwi trust, and says in her view a fellow councillor has damaged her reputation by suggesting otherwise.
Councillor Robert Lee has asked whether Tapsell is a beneficiary of the Pukeroa Oruawhata Trust and therefore conflicted on council decisions involving it.
Tapsell says she has no connections with the trust.
The dispute came to the fore after Rotorua Lakes Council’s decision last month to pass administration of Crown-owned reserve land occupied by the Rotorua Thermal Holiday Park to the trust, the post-settlement entity representing Ngāti Whakaue.
Lee argued the change, requested by the Department of Conservation, would deny the council more than $200,000 a year in lease revenue.
His questioning of potential conflicts involving councillors with Ngāti Whakaue whakapapa led to his ejection from a council meeting.
The dispute later spilled onto social media, with Lee and Tapsell publicly addressing the issue.
Speaking to Local Democracy Reporting, Tapsell maintained she had no requirement to declare a conflict of interest regarding the trust.
“I don’t have any connections with Pukeroa Oruawhata Trust and related entities,” she said.
“I have no direct personal involvement with the trust or its related entities, I don’t hold a governance role with them, and I don’t receive any personal benefit from their activities.”
Tapsell said she had been an elected member for nine years and had previously sought advice on the issue. She said it had been “made clear” to her that tribal affiliation did not constitute a conflict of interest.
She said she had never declared, or considered declaring, a conflict of interest in relation to matters involving the trust.
“Because I don’t have one,” she said.
Her uncle, David Tapsell, is the trust chairman.
Lee has commented on the relationship on social media but Tapsell rejected any suggestion the link met the threshold of a conflict.
“Sharing the same surname as others is not a conflict,” she said.
“Rotorua is a small community. If sharing a surname or having distant whakapapa connections was enough to create a conflict of interest, we’d struggle to find anyone who could participate in local decision-making.”
Tapsell said Lee had been told there was no conflict but has continued raising the issue.
In her view: “I’m deeply disappointed he has publicly lied and made defamatory accusations with no evidence to back it up.”
Lee denied defaming the mayor and said he “simply asked a question”.
“The public and I would like an explanation rather than just a denial.”
He said his concerns had “absolutely nothing to do with the mayor’s ethnicity”.
“Her tribal affiliation is only relevant insofar as that may entitle her to be a beneficiary of the Pukeroa Oruawhata Trust,” he said.
Lee said the relationship between the mayor and the trust chairman was one reason he believed questions about beneficiary status were legitimate.
He acknowledged he had not identified any direct financial, governance, employment or beneficiary interest held by the mayor.
“That’s why I asked the question,” he said.
Social media comments
Comments on Lee’s Facebook page have been critical of the mayor.
Lee said he supported freedom of expression but accepted there were “reasonable” limits.
“I don’t hold the public to the same high standard I expect of myself or of my colleagues,” Lee said, stating he had “blocked a small number of people” from his page for “repeated personal attacks”.
Lee said he generally wouldn’t remove comments from his page, although he had done so on occasion, including once at the mayor’s request.
“I do, however, think there is a widespread perception of a conflict of interest among the public and that the public would like an answer to my question,” he said.
David Tapsell told Local Democracy Reporting it was “not his place” to comment on councillor disputes.
Local Government New Zealand chief executive Scott Necklen said conflicts of interest must be assessed on a case-by-case basis.
“It is worth noting that whakapapa to iwi does not automatically mean a conflict of interest,” he said.
Necklen said conflicts generally fell into two categories: financial interests and non-financial interests relating to bias.
“Key considerations include any financial benefit, governance role or close relationship with someone affected by the decision.”
He noted financial interests shared broadly with the public would not necessarily prevent participation in decision-making.
Pukeroa Oruawhata Trust chief executive Mark Gibb was approached for comment.
LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
