Hurunui Mayor Marie Black has today announced the resignation of Deputy Mayor Jason Fletcher.

Councillor Fletcher stood down as Deputy Mayor, Councillor for the West Ward and from the Hanmer Springs Community Board.

Mayor Marie Black asked him to stand down as Deputy Mayor and is disappointed that Mr Fletcher has made the decision to resign from council as a whole.

“There have been growing concerns in recent weeks as to his handling of an incident from July 2019 that FENZ investigated. The issue was becoming a distraction from council business and caused me and other councillors to question the Deputy Mayor’s suitability for that leadership role,” says Mayor Black.

“We have some major issues to focus on at present – most notably COVID-19 and its impact on our district. That’s where our attention needs to be rather than answering questions over the Deputy Mayor’s conduct.”

Mayor Black says councillors are likely to elect the next Deputy Mayor during a meeting on 26 March while a by-election will be held to fill the West Ward position.

“The West Ward includes Hanmer Springs which is being hit hard by COVID-19’s impact on tourism. We need to work swiftly to ensure they have strong representation and support during this time and I want to reassure the community that we will do so.”

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