Board chairman to head regional body

Press, 2 November 1989, Page 3

Board chairman to head regional body

By

SUZANNE KEEN

A Springfield farmer, Mr Richard Johnson, has been elected chairman of the new Canterbury- Regional Council. He was elected to the $83,000 position at the first meeting of the council yesterday. Mr Johnson received seven more votes than the only other nominee, Cr Trevor; Inch.

Mr Johnson’s local government experience includes 18 years on the North Canterbury Catchment Board, the last six years as chairman. He said the job was an awesome responsibility. The regional council was the most important local government unit in the Canterbury region. It was a completely new machine and faced the task of forming a lot of policy. “We have to put the wheels and the engine on it and fuel it up,” he said. Mr Johnson said he was pleased with the gender mix and the range of backgrounds of those on the regional council.

His own position would be that of a team leader. All the members of the council team would have an important part to play in its efficient running. There was some discussion before yesterday’s meeting on how the election should be conducted. Some councillors new to regional government believed there should be a chance for members to question candidates for the top position.

Cr Di Shand said councillors should discuss what the chairmanship entailed and what qualifications were needed. “We must leave behind the old procedures and the old orders because we are now a new council. What better way to start than to look at how we elect the chairperson,” she said. Cr Lucas said the election was particu-

larly difficult for new councillors who were unfamiliar with the candidates.

The chief executive, Mr Malcolm Douglass, ruled that the candidates should not be required to answer questions put verbally by other councillors. However, they could each make a short address and answer a set of written questions submitted by four council members, including Crs Shand and Lucas. During their addresses, both candidates said the main task of the regional council was resource management. Cr Johnson, who was nominated by Cr Bill Penno, said the chairmanship would take priority for him because he had no other local authority commitments. He said there was a great need to bring the urban and rural areas together and he believed he could help this process. Cr Inch, nominated by Cr Lucas, said that although he was Mayor of Waimakariri District he would still be able to give the time required to the job of regional council chairman. He agreed that more thought needed to be put into the process of electing the chairman and said he hoped something more constructive could be devised for the future. Cr Inch had the support of Crs Lucas, Shand, Hazel Tait, and Judy Waters. Cr Johnson’s support came from Crs Stephen Barker, Maurice Carter, Alex Clark, Peter Dunbar, Dick Harrington, Christine Kelland, Bill Penno, Roger Tasker, George Twentyman, Dave Walker, and Pansy Wong. The deputy chairman and the chairmen of the standing committees will be elected at the next meeting, on November 21.

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