Commenting on a recent $50,500 pay rise for the Kāpiti Coast District Council Chief Executive, Darren Edwards, Alex Murphy, Taxpayers' Union Researcher said:

"For a council that's ratepayers are already staring down the barrel of a 17% rates hike, a pay rise of over $50,000 for its Chief Executive is simply unacceptable, and it's just as ridiculous to justify this salary boost on the basis that the Chief Executive is not getting paid as much as his already overpaid counterparts.

"The Council only recently was exposed for spending $1 million on grants and loans to subsidise flights from Air Chatham, and just last year, a residents' survey showed 51% of respondents did not believe the council was demonstrating value for money.

"It's clear that Kāpiti's ratepayers have had enough of a council that continues to demonstrate little to no value for money. KCDC urgently needs to review its spending to strip out the waste to reduce the rates burden on its residents."
 

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