David Close: serene image traversing political web

Press, 28 June 1989, Page 18

David Close: serene image traversing political web

CHRISTOPHER MOORE meets David Close, a long-time Labour city councillor and Christchurch Boys’ High School teacher who now works for the Schizophrenia Fellowship. He wanted to be Mayor but has accepted his party’s decision to opt out of the race. He looks forward to other community work.

David CLOSE is a rare species in the political jungle.

A man with decent humanitarian and liberal attitudes and principles: someone who sincerely maintains that he was elected to serve the community; a politician who places more importance on substance than style. A nice man, an idealist, an occasional crusader and a man of the people. Until recently, David Close was also considered a frontrunner in the race for nomination as the Labour Party’s candidate for the Christchurch mayoralty. The party’s regional executive then decided not to contest the mayoralty in 1989 — a decision which left Close high, dry and disappointed. In the circumstances, a hopeful contender might well have been excused a moment of pique, a twinge of anger and resentment, perhaps even a fight to an ultimate resignation. Whatever David Close may have felt, he publically stated that while he disagreed with the decision, he accepted it. It would allow him more time for his work with Schizophrenia Fellowship and the new Canterbury Area Health Board. Ends statement and Close’s hopes of breaking a seemingly unvincible Citizens hold on the mayoralty.

There were discreet comments that the decision not to field a candidate was politically realistic, given that David Close would never have won. But he had left the race with a certain style and grace. There would be other elections and certainly the role of elder Labour statesman and organiser on the city council to look forward to. It also showed something of the man’s character.

While the shoals of snappy political piranha slaver around his heels, he sails serenely onwards, apparently oblivious to the view that he is either too nice or politically naive to survive this jungle of conflicting loyalties and tangled ethics. “The trouble with David,” one political observer commented recently, “is that he is too often seen as being simply worthy but dull.”

Within the Labour Party, he has been a loyal, hard-working administrator with an intimate

working knowledge of the party structure and mechanisms. He is a former secretary of the New Brighton branch, and a Labour candidate for Fendalton in 1978 and 1981. He unsuccessfully sought selection as the party’s candidate for Lyttelton in the 1987 General Election. His experience has included organising the 1977 Labour Party Conference in Christchurch and work as party co-ordinator for the local authority elections in the same year.

Born and educated in Christchurch David Close attended Christchurch Boys’ High School and the University of Canterbury before enrolling at the Christchurch ‘ Teachers College. He later travelled to the University of Essex to obtain a master of arts degree in political behaviour.

Returning to New Zealand, he began a teaching career at Shirley Boys’ High School. From 1965-71 he worked as head of the English department at Kigoma Secondary School, Tanzania. In 1973 he was appointed to the English department at Christchurch Boys’ High School. David Close recently gave up a full-time teaching career to take up an appointment as the Christ-church-based organiser for the New Zealand Schizophrenia Fellowship. Close’s own political style and approach to local politics undoubtedly holds considerable appeal for many electors. During the 1986 local authority elections he polled a respectable 8044 votes in a traditional Labour ward. He was elected to the hospital board with the third highest vote, 29,492 votes. The hospital board has provided a different environment for David Close’s fight for the community. Even he admits that the board can become a tough playground for a new boy.

“The decision making process on the hospital board is different to the city council. It’s a great challenge to be on the board and while my influence is at this stage very marginal, I can raise issues for debate: issues which may not even get on the agenda ... and that’s important,” says Close.

David Close obviously raises some hackles through his constant questioning and examination of issues. New members, some other board members obviously believe, should be seen but not heard until they have served their apprenticeship.

Adherent of public service

"There are questions which are so important that one cannot afford to let them slip out of sight. I tend to worry at these again and again. They are issues which concern equality and justice. These may sound grandiose terms. They may be an impossible dream but unless we keep these ideals in front of us, I don’t think that we would achieve anything.” All projects and ideas should be measured by their fairness to ordinary people, Close adds. Access to health care systems and the treatment received are both vital issues. “The standards of care in Canterbury and the professional integrity of the medical staff is very high. But my concern is still with those individuals who still do not get into the health system.”

His definition of a local health authority, be it an area health board or hospital board, is summed up succinctly as “a coordinator.”

He admits that there have been frustrations ...” there are so many decisions made in Wellington. In cases where work involves more than $1 million there are five separate occasions which require approval from Wellington for the next stage to continue. The brief has to be approved, sketch plans, working plans, tenders all have to be approved. It’s an incredibly slow process.” On a wider basis, he believes that increased public knowledge of local body activities on an individual and collective basis can improve the accountability of local authority members to the voters who elect them to office.

“If the public know who you are they’ll be writing to you, or ringing you up. They’ll be continually giving you the message. If you are hidden away, you are not accountable. Accountability ultimately depends on accessibility.

“Over the years, city councillors have perhaps dealt with more drainage complaints than members of the drainage board who remain largely unknown to the community. Hospital board members are perhaps less accessible because they are elected at large and not for any particular ward.”

For many local body members, public service can become an absorbing way of life — a total commitment. Close warns that this can harbour dangers. “I personally believe that I’m a politician. Many of my colleagues steer away from using that term about themselves. A politician is a person in the middle who is listening to what the people are saying, relaying their concerns to the administrators, taking reasonable decisions which take into account the realities of the situation. The administrators will tell you what

is possible — the public will tell you what is desirable.” The elected representative should not defend the institution against the public (“which is what some of my colleagues tend to do”) but articulate public feelings, transferring community feelings into practical policies. “I’ve always had a good relationship with professional officers on the council although I sometimes appear critical of officers on the hospital board,” Close said. “There has to be mutual respect and understanding of each other’s roles. If the professionals do not take note of what elected representatives are saying they can become isolated. Of course, we must also take note of what the professionals say.” The potential exists, he suggests, to establish a “very creative” relationship between elected members and administrators. But again he sounds a note of warning — administrators must recognise the right of the elected representatives to set policy. “They have the right to make recommendations about policy, setting out options from which political representatives can make choices. My feeling is that some professional officers shy away from that ...” “I believe that we must look at what we are doing on a case by case basis. If the pesent system doesn’t work, then we fix it. In Christchurch City there are a number of operations which do work. There are other areas where change is clearly needed and I would press hard for this to happen.” He remains opposed to — there is a pause while he searches for the words — an “unthinking drive” to dismantle the public service and dismember public authority operations.

“I believe that without a lot of publicity, hype and media coverage, public authorities have provided a valuable service. A good example is the water authority which is there every morning when you turn on your tap, take a shower or drink a cup of tea. We have an excellent water supply in Christchurch available to everybody. I would oppose suggestions that simply because it is a monopoly, we should

privatise it. That move would be a public disaster.” He views Christchurch as a city constantly moving ahead but achieving goals gradually.

“We have a tradition here about having huge public debates on all proposals. We don’t go ahead unless it has general consent. We have had mayors who have tried to push projects ahead rapidly. They were voted out of office after one term and that’s a lesson for local body politicians. People in this city like to discuss issues and have their say ...”

the country with tremendous opportunity for living and working. We may not be as big, brassy and go-ahead as Auckland or contain as many six figure salaries as Wellington, but there are very special things here. It’s a good place to live.” Certainly a nice politician but somewhere beneath the quiet, tranquil exterior lurks a vein of impatience at the lack of progress on issues which interest him.

“I examine an issue and if it’s sound, I’ll go ahead without too much caution. Some hospital board members see me as reckless — the Tim Shadbolt of the board. I find this somewhat amusing. Financially I’m extremely cautious. There are lots of slack areas in the board’s management. I could be far tougher than some. If a hospital went over its budget by $lOO,OOO a month, I would be visiting that hospital with the director of finance to ask why and why again. At present there is not the degree of accountability when it comes to budgeting.” What of criticisms that he is over-cautious? “I see myself as politically prudent rather over-cautious. I’ve even made a resolution to retire from local politics 10 years before I become senile ...”

This concensus blocked one development supported by David Close — the Victoria Square tower. He believed that it was a project which would have encouraged tourism and employment opportunities to the city. A town planning hearing decided that the tower wasn’t justfied “and I accept that decision ...” he notes plegmatically.

The time taken to achieve other changes has not pleased him. He refers to the programme of urban renewal in inner city suburbs — “this is being done at a very slow pace and something which deserves more resources.” He remains a native son — a Cantabrian with an undiminished pride in his city and its potential ... “a marvellous place in which to live, the biggest single city in