Mood of the Boardroom: Business leaders weigh in on Auckland mayoral candidates

Wayne Brown is, by far, the best candidate to become Auckland’s next mayor in the eyes of business.

When asked in the Herald’s Mood of the Boardroom survey which of the top polling candidates of New Zealand’s commercial city has the best attributes to become an effective Mayor of Auckland, 51 per cent plumped for businessman Brown.

“I have been on a board chaired by Wayne Brown,” says one professional director. “He is the kind of no-nonsense person who would cut through many of Auckland’s problems assuming he has at least some support around the council table.”

Brown is regarded as a disruptive player who will get things done.

He is a former mayor of the Far North District Council, serving two terms before being tossed out at the 2013 local elections.

He has chaired Auckland DHB and led a suite of other large organisations with a turnover of more than $1 billion, been a director or chair of various Crown-owned companies and recently led the North Island Supply Chain review for the Labour-NZ First Coalition Government, which recommended shifting Auckland’s port to Northland. A top chairperson suggests he is a “cantankerous man” and will bully his way to ensure things get done — noting that “three years will be enough!”