“Worse, these figures are just the tip of the iceberg as they exclude the likes of Auckland Transport and Watercare,” Williams said. Former Mayor Phil Goff spent $4110 over four years on consultants, compared to $2.5m by Wayne Brown over two years. Brown did not specifically comment on the spending in the mayoral office compared to Goff’s modest outlay. That year, the council spent $42.2m on consultants, including $423,000 from the mayoral office. The consultant costs were released to Josh Van Veen of the Auckland Ratepayers’ Alliance, who was Brown’s deputy chief of staff in the mayoral office before last October’s local body elections.

Source: New Zealand Herald February 03, 2026 23:34 UTC