Former National Party president Michelle Boag, an adviser to Auckland Mayor John Banks, is stepping aside from her role in helping recruit executives for the new Auckland super city council following conflict of interest claims.Ms Boag, who is a voluntary
Former National Party president Michelle Boag, an adviser to Auckland Mayor John Banks, is stepping aside from her role in helping recruit executives for the new Auckland super city council following conflict of interest claims.
Ms Boag, who is a voluntary adviser to the super city mayoral aspirant, is a senior consultant with recruitment company Momentum, which landed the contract for the recruitment of dozens of executives for the super city.
The connection was criticised by Labour MP Phil Twyford, who said the recruitment process would be politicised if Ms Boag was involved.
Ms Boag has played down her role in the mayoral campaign and said there was no conflict of interest.
The Auckland Transition Agency (ATA) said yesterday that, with the support of Momentum, it was agreed Ms Boag would withdraw from her role in the recruitment process.
"There has been recent political criticism of her involvement in the process," ATA chairman Mark Ford told media.
Mr Twyford said labelled the latest development as "damage control".
