ACT Local has selected Maraetai resident and small business owner Dene Green as its candidate for the Franklin Ward in this year’s Auckland Council election. Dene will also stand for the Wairoa Subdivision of the Franklin Local Board.

Dene has over 30 years of experience in logistics, business ownership, and mentoring. He runs a service supporting small businesses and local development and holds an EMBA and a PostDoctorate in Global Business from the University of Oxford.

He has championed renewable energy projects such as offshore wind power, supported aquaculture ventures, and pushed for Free Trade Zones in New Zealand, including the proposed Marsden Point in Northland. He also advised the campaign to position Auckland as a strategic “Southern Link” transport hub between China and South America.

Now Dene is focused on Franklin. As a proud Franklin local of Ngāti Hine descent, he understands what matters to families and businesses here.

For too long Franklin has been treated as Auckland’s forgotten rural fringe. From Whitford and Beachlands to Pukekohe and Waiuku, fastgrowing communities have seen clogged roads, stalled infrastructure, and rising rates with little to show for it.

Auckland Council keeps adding climate levies and hiking business rates instead of delivering practical solutions. Franklin deserves better, investment that matches our growth, infrastructure that keeps up, and leadership that puts local priorities first.

“Franklin deserves better than being treated like a rural afterthought,” Dene says.

“Our communities need practical, people-first representation. I’ll focus on fixing roads, improving local facilities, and making housing easier, not endless bureaucracy and red tape.

"Council should make life easier, not harder. Ratepayers deserve value for money and a council that works for them.” – Dene Green

Earlier this year, ACT New Zealand announced it would be standing Common Sense Candidates for local government for the first time — after hearing from New Zealanders across the country who are sick of rising rates, ballooning budgets, and councils that ignore the basics while chasing ideological vanity projects.

When you vote ACT Local, you know what you're getting:

• Fixing the basics
• Ending the war on cars
• Cutting the waste
• Stopping race-based politics
• Restoring accountability
• Lower rates

ACT Local Government spokesperson Cameron Luxton says:

“ACT Local candidates are community-minded Kiwis who’ve had enough of wasteful councils treating ratepayers like ATMs. It’s time to take control on behalf of ratepayers — to restore accountability and deliver real value for money. ACT Local is about getting the basics right: maintaining roads, keeping streets clean, and respecting the people who pay the bills. Our candidates won’t divide people by race or get distracted by climate vanity projects. They’re here to serve, not lecture." – Cameron Luxton

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