‘Untenable circumstances’: Unsent letter led to Steve Parry’s early exit from Gore council
Saturday, 25 May 2024
Frustrations over a letter not being sent led to Gore District Council interim chief executive Stephen Parry leaving the job earlier than he intended.
In an email to mayor Ben Bell, sent on April 5, Parry called time on his 22 years at the council after the letter he drafted had not been sent.
The letter, which was to be sent to Local Government Minister Simeon Brown about the council’s obligations to upgrade waste water processes, had been rewritten by Bell.
“I think the council and I deserve better,” Parry wrote to Bell.
“I do not wish to carry on under such untenable circumstances. I am therefore terminating my employment with effect from Friday, 10 May.”
Parry resigned last year but agreed to remain at the helm in an interim role while a permanent successor was found.
In response to Parry, Bell wrote: “I am sorry that I have upset you with my rewriting and delay of the letters. That was never my intention.”
Bell said it had been his intention to schedule a meeting and then send the letters to be “top of mind”.
“I apologise if this was not clear, and I can understand that this can be frustrating if you are not aware.”
He went on to write that it was “saddening” to hear Parry was going to terminate his employment, asked if there was anything the council could do to help him reconsider, and said he understood that support had been offered on behalf of the council.
Bell and Parry have not seen eye to eye since it was confirmed in November 2022 that Bell had narrowly won the mayoralty.
By December they had entered mediation, and in March the following year the council unanimously agreed to appoint a councillor to act as an intermediary between the pair for governance and relevant operational matters.
The initial email from Parry on April 5, 2024, which has recipients’ names redacted, said someone told Parry he was “wasting his time” when they typed the letter because Bell would seek “considerable amendments”.
“That of course is your prerogative. Although that stated, I do not like wasting my time when [redacted],” Parry wrote.
Another email sent seven minutes later by Parry to redacted recipients said “see below. All self-explanatory really, but I am no longer prepared to put up with this behaviour. I desperately need to exit.”
A further email sent at 6:31pm by Parry, again with the recipients redacted, said: “Hi everyone. I would like to let you know that today I have bought forward my resignation from the council. Due to personal priorities, I will be finishing up on Friday, 10 May.”
A response to that email from a colleague whose name was redacted said: “That is a shame, but understandable. The organisation is going to be seriously worse off … Enjoy the weekend knowing you only have a few weeks of stress left.”
Another colleague said “no surprise there”.
Another said, “I am absolutely horrified and gutted at how you have been treated,” and offered to meet Parry “for a chat”.
Parry replied: “Yes, it’s a shame it has come to this but I have simply had enough.”
The emails were released by the council under the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act after Stuff requested all correspondence relating to the the interim chief executive’s resignation as well as details of any pay increases Parry received when he accepted the interim position.
In the council’s response, interim chief executive Lornae Straith said the council had withheld correspondence with its lawyers to maintain legal privilege, and information relating to remuneration was an employment matter and withheld on legal advice.
Some information had been redacted to protect a person’s privacy, she said.
The council announced in February that Deborah Lascelles would begin as the new chief executive on June 3.