Companies linked to Peter Jackson dish out $30,000 on Andy Foster's mayoral campaign

Monday, 16 December 2019

Companies linked to Sir Peter Jackson gave $30,000 to now-Wellington mayor Andy Foster's campaign.

Electoral returns from Wellington City Council, released on Monday afternoon, show how much candidates had received in donations, and how much they spent on their campaigns.

Foster, who beat one term incumbent Justin Lester, received $59,938 from seven donors and spent $58,066.32.

Companies linked to Jackson contributed the lion's share of the cash: Weta Digital gave $15,000, Park Road Post Production donated $10,000 and Portsmouth Rentals $5,000.

* Lights, camera, action - Wellington's new mayor Andy Foster no stranger to star power

In August, Foster launched his campaign at Chocolate Fish Cafe in Shelly Bay, with Jackson in attendance.

* Weta Digital asked staff to support Wellington mayoral candidate Andy Foster

* Sir Peter Jackson backs Andy Foster for Wellington mayoralty**

He also received $10,000 from Maadi Trust and $10,000 from concert promoter Phil Sprey, who also spent more than $50,000 unsuccessfully chasing a seat on Hutt City Council.

Wellington mayor Andy Foster says his views on Shelly Bay were not swayed by donations from companies linked to Peter Jackson.

Foster was also given $4938 from Building Solutions and skincare company Antipodes donated $5000 to his campaign.

On Monday, Foster said he had no problems with his donations and expenses being released.

During his campaign, Foster did not disclose how much he had been donated by some contributors – including Jackson's companies – because when he asked, they had not given the green light.

In August, Foster launched his campaign at Chocolate Fish Cafe in Shelly Bay, with Jackson in attendance.

A $500m plan to develop Shelly Bay by The Wellington Company has been firmly opposed by Jackson.

Former mayor Justin Lester spent $16,284.38 on his campaign - less than a third of Foster's spend.

Whereas the previous Wellington council had voted for the sale, a majority of the new flock of councillors have stated they were opposed to the development as it currently stood. This included Foster.

Questions around Jackson backing Foster over Shelly Bay arose during his campaign, but on Monday he maintained that his views on the project had not been swayed by the donations.

'I made my views on Shelly Bay clear four and a half years ago and I've maintained it ever since. Very simply, they [Jackson's companies] have backed me because of my stance.'

In a tight race, Foster won the role of mayor by just 62 votes and ousted now-former mayor Justin Lester after one term.

Electoral returns showed union E tū gave Lester $5000 and he spent $16,284.38 on his campaign – less than a third of Foster's spend.

During the campaign, Lester attempted to raise funds at an auction and quiz night but sources told Stuff that the turn out did not meet expectations.

Lester said friends and family bought the art works on auction and 160 people attended.

'The largest amount raised from an individual piece of art was $1000. As you can see, it's not a big amount and, in any event, under the threshold for donations.'

Alongside receiving a donation from E tū, Lester was given $6000 in donations below $1500.

CONCERN OVER MAYORAL SUPPORT

At the time of Foster's campaign, Weta Digital staff raised concerns about being asked to support Foster's campaign launch.

Leaked emails showed staff questioning if it was ethical for the company to suggest staff support Foster.

'I'm not entirely sure it's good practice to 'encourage' workers to support any political candidate or to use a private company name for that purpose,' a staff member wrote.

'Forgive me but there could be a perception that it seems highly unethical for the head of HR to be pushing a political agenda in the workplace on behalf of the company owner,' another staff member wrote.