Nelson City councillor Tim Skinner breached of code of conduct

Nelson city councillor Tim Skinner breached the council's code of conduct when he pushed a protester that had blocked entry to Civic House in March.

Councillors voted unanimously to accept a recommendation from an independent investigation into Tim's actions on March 11.  Mayor Rachel Reese, who made the initial code of conduct complaint, and Tim did not participate in the debate or the vote.

The report by local government veteran Bruce Robertson found that Tim breached code of conduct by ignoring warnings from the mayor and council staff not to attend a meeting at Civic House as a protest from Extinction Rebellion was taking place. Regardless Tim went to Civic House and then tried to enter the building, pushing a 70-year-old woman who had chained herself to the door in the process. It also took into account social media posts made on the Nelson App Facebook page which distanced himself from his actions.

As part of the council decision, Tim was asked to provide “a genuine and fulsome public apology” to the protester, fellow elected members, and council staff. Tim made that apology at the same meeting.

He will also have to stand down from his role as Community and Recreation Committee chairman for six weeks.

Tim's apology is below:

I am sorry for what I have done.

I pushed a member of the public, Anne Smith.

In a private message on social media, later made public, I made negative comments about the Mayor’s reasons for initiating a Code of Conduct against me.

It was not alright for me to push Anne Smith, and I take responsibility for that action. That action was wrong, and I let myself, my family, the Council, the Council staff and the public down.

I hope Anne Smith is well and never wished her any humiliation or harm. And I still embrace the opportunity to meet with her again to genuinely and compassionately express my accountability.

I should not have criticised the Mayor’s reasons for initiating the Code of Conduct process. That was unfair and disrespectful.

What I did was not ok. I’m sorry that I did it and take responsibility for the consequence of my actions, and accept that I breached the Code.

I have learnt a lot about myself and others. It has made me reflect and reassess my approach to everyday situations and interactions, big and small.

I hope that councillors who are angry with me in this instance will find a place in their heart to forgive me, and we can reconcile our differences to build good working relationships with each other for the benefit of our community.

And lastly, as I continue to take learnings from actions, I hope to continue to build bridges, not barriers, to ensure the wellbeing of all who live in Nelson.