Queenstown Lakes District (QLDC) mayor John Glover has designed a committee to allow community members to give advice to council.

The mayor is calling on suitably qualified members of the community to apply for a seat on the newly re-constituted risk and assurance committee.

“During the election campaign last year, we heard many suggestions about what council could do better, and spending, infrastructure and councillor oversight were often mentioned,” John said.

“I would love to think that there are locals who are able to help us improve and I look forward to seeing some applications come in from our community.”

QLDC mayor John Glover. PHOTO: QLDC

John told the Wānaka App there had previously been an audit, finance & risk committee [AFRC] with external appointees.

“As part of reviewing the council committee structure, I established a ‘smart spending’ committee to lead on the governance oversight of financial aspects of QLDC and re-cast the old AFRC committee as a risk & assurance committee,” he said.

“In the circumstances, the opportunity was taken to seek new external appointees to work alongside the three elected members on this new committee.”

Three independent members of the public will provide objective, expert advice to support the council’s governance of risk, assurance, compliance, and control environment. 

They will attend quarterly meetings, plus occasional workshops, briefings and training, for a fixed term of up to three years.

The roles strengthen public accountability by offering independent scrutiny, challenge, and insights that enhance decision-making and organisational performance, the job listing said.

“We are particularly interested in hearing from those who have expertise within a local government context of financial auditing and risk management, infrastructure procurement and project management or understanding and enabling effective governance,” John said.

Find more information here.

Applications close on February 1.