Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown forwarded councillors an email yesterday that called them “dip s***s”, after he publicly criticised some of them in a shambolic invite-only press conference.

Several councillors have responded in comments to the Herald today.

Councillor Alf Filipaina from Manukau said Brown’s action was “a sign of desperation”. He added, “I wouldn’t do that. It’s really unbecoming.”

Brown took aim at councillors who don’t support his proposal to sell Auckland Council shares in Auckland International Airport at a meeting at Auckland Transport’s headquarters on Thursday, calling them “financially illiterate”.

The Herald has seen an email sent by Brown to all councillors on Thursday afternoon, which says, “On behalf of Mayor Wayne Brown, please find attached – Emails received today – Feedback on Mayoral Proposal for Auckland Council’s Annual Budget 2023-24.”

Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown forwarded abusive emails to councillors after a shambolic invite-only press conference. Graphic / NZ Herald

Attached to the email is PDF of a collection of critical and insulting comments aimed at councillors who do not support Brown’s budget.

“Can l ask which of the dip s*** councillors are against the sale of the airport. Shame you can’t kick there [sic] ass as that’s where there [sic] brains are. Keep up your good work Mayor Brown. Regards Jim.”

“I have been watching your battle with the entrenched management of the Auckland council, and you seem to be winning. To get rid of the airport shares which are highly inflated, like everything in New Zealand, would be a coup for you, and a great part to take down the cities [sic] deficit,” said an email from Stephen.

“The next round of champagne & smoked salmon is on me!” said Roger. “Keep doing what you are doing ‐ Auckland needs you now more than ever!”

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“I only wish Wellington could have a right‐wing mayor instead of a lightweight greenie who loves handbags, and we’re stuck with Grant Robertson MP who squanders money wholesale.”

Albany councillor John Watson told the Herald he hadn’t read the mayor’s email or its attachments. “I’m engaged with other communications that are a little more relevant than what may or may not be coming out of the mayor’s office.”

Watson is one of four councillors singled out by Brown in his speech on Thursday for signing a pre-election pledge to hold rate increases at or below the rate of inflation. The others were Mike Lee, Christine Fletcher and Wayne Walker.

“Excellent, you stood for something,” Brown said, “but I’m expecting you to honour your pledge”.

The Herald asked several councillors how they felt about the mayor’s email to them. Most took a similar position to Watson.

Maungakiekie-Tāmaki councillor Josephine Bartley said, “I wondered what was the point. If it’s to make us do what he wants, then it doesn’t work. It’s not a good way to get your point across, or to make us look at it without all this noise. He’s just added noise. We’re supposed to make decisions on behalf of our city and this isn’t helping.”

Waitakere councillor Shane Henderson said, “I don’t think it [the mayor’s email] made much difference either way. It’s not news that some people support the mayor.”

North Shore councillor Chris Darby said, “I saw that [the mayor’s email]. I probably just filed it. I wouldn’t say I was getting used to the mayor’s modus operandi but I want to get on with the substantive issues of the budget.”

Deputy mayor Desley Simpson would not comment directly on the mayor’s email. She said, “I hope councillors will come to the table next week focused on the problem we have and the solutions the mayor has put up. We need to make a decision that is right for Aucklanders.”

One of the email attachments forwarded to councillors by the mayor said, “Keep up the good work and your attacks on the left‐wing media ‐ they are drongos,”

TVNZ, Newshub and Stuff journalists and camera crews were all prohibited from attending the mayor’s meeting on Thursday morning. The Herald and RNZ were not allowed to live-stream the event, supposedly for “not putting in a request beforehand”.

Auckland mayor Wayne Brown outlined his budget at AT HQ today. Photo / Michael Craig

The ruckus carried into Brown’s speech before the mayor’s chief of staff, Max Hardy, overruled the media team to allow live streaming and everyone from the media into the meeting.

Brown used the meeting to outline his final budget proposal that hangs on the sale of the council’s $2.2 billion shares in Auckland Airport and goes to a vote next Thursday.

“This has been a tough budget,” Brown said, pointing to the 4 per cent of the 40,000-plus submitters who do not want higher rates, and changes he has made to reinstate cuts to social services and the arts to get the budget over the line.

Brown is trying to convince councillors that the best way to hold household rates at 6.7 per cent (rate of inflation), not make big cuts to services and plug a $375 million budget hole is to sell the airport shares. But he is struggling to get the numbers around the council table.

He is also struggling to come to terms with councillors who do not support his reasons for the sale, which is to use the proceeds to lower debt, saving $100m a year in interest costs. That is considerably less than the expected dividends that the council will receive if it keeps the shares.

With his first budget teetering on the votes of a handful of councillors, Brown picked out Mike Lee, Christine Fletcher, John Watson and Wayne Walker for signing a pre-election pledge to hold rate increases at or below the rate of inflation.

Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown explaining his final budget proposal at Auckland Transport. Photo / Michael Craig

Excellent, you stood for something, Brown said, “but I’m expecting you to honour your pledge”.

“Having explored all the other options, there is only one way to keep rates within inflation and that involves selling the airport shares or cuts will come back and rates will rise,” he said.

Lee said it was petulant of the mayor to chastise councillors who support him and are doing their best to find a way out of the budget deficit while taking on widespread opposition to the sale.

“The mayor continues to dig himself a hole of his own making,” he said.

Two councillors who do support selling the shares and will be voting for the budget are Greg Sayers, who calls it a “bandaid fix budget” to get the council out of the current hole, and Maurice Williamson, who is disappointed some of the proposed budget cuts have been reinstated but said, “that’s the horse-trading that has to be done.

“I’m disappointed there isn’t commonsense in regard to the airport shares. It is eminently commonsense not to own an asset that is costing you a lot more than you are earning from it, even in the best of times,” Williamson said.

Auckland councillor Greg Sayers. Photo / Michael Craig

Auckland Business Chamber chief executive Simon Bridges also gave the budget the thumbs-up, even though it means the overall business rates increase of 9.8 per cent would lead to rates higher than inflation for his members.

He called it a strong proposal for the times and circumstances and Brown is right about the airport shares, saying it’s like a household investing in shares when they can’t pay the mortgage.

Borrowing a quote frequently used by Williamson, Brown said: “Everyone wants to go to heaven but no one wants to die,” referring to the difficult choices that needed to be made.

He said he has listened to people’s calls and has softened some of his spending cuts, saying arts and culture leaders were present in the room and had spoken well for their fields.

Auckland Business Chamber chief executive Simon Bridges. Photo / Jed Bradley

Arts and culture groups and local boards will “get their money back”, with their funding levels to be restored, the mayor said.

Citizens Advice Bureau funding is to be restored but they will have to start looking for other income.

In pitching his mission to “stop wasting money”, Brown took aim at Auckland Transport.

He said AT spent $76,000 on walking tours that only 52 people participated in, saying if $1000 was offered to everybody you might have got more than 50.

Brown complained that Heart of the City was not doing enough. Chief executive Viv Beck said “I’d like a right of reply” and Brown told his mayoral rival “you had your right of reply and no one believed you”.

Brown ended his press conference by saying: “To the last to leave, turn the lights off.” He did not allow questions.