QLDC's Tony Avery: his chequered past and our three questions for him

Like CEO Mike Theelen, QLDC infrastructure boss Tony Avery arrived at QLDC with a somewhat chequered past.

Theelen was criticised by a Christchurch judge for not knowing how to do his job properly following the earthquakes there, Tony Avery resigned from the Dunedin City Council in 2014 after admitting he was ultimately responsible, as a senior manager, for a fraud that affected 152 council vehicles and a "missing" $1.5 million.

The Citifleet scandal had been going on for years. Council staff were pocketing the proceeds from the sale of Council/ Citifleet cars.

Less than a year after his DCC resignation Mr Avery was working as a consultant for the QLDC. By February 2016 he had a fully time job as General Manager Planing and Development.

Mr Avery, who was born in Dunedin, joined the city council in 2000 after working in a senior role for the Otago Regional Council.

He was replaced at the Dunedin City Council by Ruth Stokes (later of ZQN7 fame).

It looks like the QLDC are going to try and keep protesters away from Mr Avery's media stand up at the Shotover plant tomorrow morning by requiring a special invitation and safety gear.

Crux has submitted these three written questions to Mr Avery in advance.

1. Does QLDC agree that action to resolve issues at the disposal field could have been better managed - faster and more strategically?

2. Why did you approve construction of the Shotover disposal field wall last year knowing there was no resource consent in place - and how much did the wall cost?

3. Do you agree that effluent chemical readings in the disposal field have exceeded consent limits on many occasions in the past year?