MEDIA RELEASE
Councils elect President and Vice-President of Local Government New Zealand

Wednesday 30 July 2008

Lawrence Yule, Mayor of Hastings has been elected President and Kerry Prendergast, Mayor of Wellington, has been elected Vice-President of Local Government New Zealand  following an election by member councils at its Annual General Meeting in Rotorua today.

The elections for President and Vice-President of the organisation take place every three years following the triennial local government elections. 

President Yule won his election against the Mayor of Wellington, Kerry Prendergast.   Kerry Prendergast won her election after standing against John Forbes, Mayor of Opotiki in the election for Vice-President.

“I am delighted to be elected as President and I congratulate Kerry on her appointment as Vice-President.   I have enjoyed working with her on Local Government New Zealand’s National Council and I look forward to working closely with her to cover the range of interests and concerns across our diverse membership,” said Mr Yule.

Both the President and Vice-President have an important role to play in maintaining strong relationships with both the local government sector and Government.  They also play a pivotal role in the governance and effectiveness of Local Government New Zealand.   

Former President Basil Morrison retired from the role at completion of his two full terms as President.  Basil will continue in his international role of Chair of the Local Government Commonwealth Forum until March 2009.

President’s biography

Lawrence Yule

Lawrence Yule has been Mayor of the Hastings District since 2001.  Prior to this he was a councillor for six years, and Deputy Mayor from 1998 to 2001.

He holds an Honours degree in Agricultural and Civil Engineering from the University of Canterbury.   He has been actively farming since 1987 and from a young age has been increasingly involved in politics.

He currently sits on the boards of the Hawke’s Bay Cultural Trust and Hawke’s Bay Inc, the latter of which handles economic and tourism development in the region.   He is the present Chairman of the Regional Indoor Sports and Events Centre (Pettigrew Green Arena).

Lawrence’s leadership has been vital in a number of large-scale fundraising efforts.  He recently chaired the fundraising committee for the $12-million upgrade of the Hawke’s Bay Opera House.  He represented local government in the Thailand tsunami post-disaster efforts and is currently leading a significant sustainability initiative in Hawke’s Bay.

Lawrence is a provincial sector chair and member of the National Council of Local Government New Zealand, with special responsibility for the transport portfolio.

Vice-President’s biography

Kerry Prendergast

Kerry Prendergast is in her third term as Mayor of Wellington.  She was elected Mayor in 2001 after serving six years as Deputy Mayor.  This will be her second term as Vice-President of Local Government New Zealand.

She has had a long and distinguished career in local body politics having started her political life as a Tawa Borough Councillor in 1986.  In 1989 she was elected to Wellington City Council and has been successfully elected to council every three years since.

Her professional background is in the health sector as a registered nurse and, for 25 years, a midwife.  She continued her midwifery role alongside her local government work until 2001. She has also been a voluntary grief counsellor.

She holds a Master of Business Degree (MBA) from Victoria University of Wellington.

She is a trustee of the Joe Aspell Trust and the NZ International Festival of the Arts.  She is also an honorary life member of the Katherine Mansfield Birthplace Society and the Royal New Zealand Plunket Society.

Mayor Prendergast is Patron of a number of Wellington organisations and a director of Wellington International Airport Ltd.

ENDS

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