14th December 2008

statement from David Thornton

ARC chairman should apologise for insensitive remarks I was horrified at the reported comments of ARC chairman, Mike Lee, in a story in today's Herald on Sunday about the David Beckham financial fiasco - a fiasco which will turn into huge costs to ratepayers.

In that story Mike Lee, commenting on the revalations of losses incurred, is reported as saying 'It's like a plane crash.' Such a comment, made less than three weeeks after the tragic loss of life in the plane crash near Perplgnan, can at best be described as insensitive. But worse was to follow.

Mr Lee, referring to the ARCs failure to monitor problems during the planning of the Beckham game, reportedly went on to say '..there were no alarm signals until the plane was about to hit the mountain'.

Had Mr Lee forgotten that the Perpignan tragedy happened on the 29th Anniversary of the Erebus disaster? To top it off Mr Lee's next reported comment was 'We didn't have the radar switched on properly; we were getting false readings'. I hope that, upon reflection, Mike Lee, arguably Auckland's most senior community leader, will offer apologies for these insensitve remarks - or refute their accuracy.

If Mr Lee refutes the statements then the Herald on Sunday should apologise

ENDS

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