3.6 Gifts and outside activities

Elected members may receive gifts in their political or personal capacity but need to be mindful of the perception that a gift may bring. Every gift received over NZ$100 (the current limit) must be declared unless it comes from a family member.  

The Code of Conduct states that elected members must not accept any gifts if they are involved in the decision-making process. This includes situations where the offer comes from parties tendering for contracts or taking part in a regulatory process. 

Elected members must consider these key principles before they accept a gift: 

• Their declaration on taking office to act in the best interests of Tāmaki Makaurau as a whole or their local board area. [1] 
• They need to consider that the public might see the gift as affecting their ability to make decisions fairly and without a conflict of interest. 
• Auckland Council needs to conduct its business in an open, transparent, and democratically accountable manner. [2] 

Maintaining public confidence 

Public confidence in elected members' ability to carry out their duties will increase if information about gifts, fees, endorsements, and outside activities is easily available.  

This is usually done by: 

• declaring an interest in a specific agenda item at a business meeting, withdrawing from the debating table or leaving the room and not taking part in the discussion or voting on an item 
• completing the Elected member declarations annually. [3] 

Check Declarations at start of term to find out what elected members must declare.   

Conflict of interest

The perception of a conflict of interest is as important as the reality when it comes to gifts, fees, endorsements and outside activities. A perceived conflict of interest can undermine the public’s confidence in elected members and their ability to make decisions lawfully and fairly for Aucklanders. 

The laws around bribes and inappropriate gifts or rewards are covered in the Secret Commissions Act 1910, the Crimes Act 1961 and the Code of Conduct. 

Footnotes

[1] Local Government Act Schedule 7, Clause 14. 

[2] Local Government Act 2002, Section 13(a)(1). 

[3] See above sub-section on Register of Declarations.