Alice Springs mayor sorry for writing letter of support for Singleton project without consulting council

The Alice Springs mayor has acknowledged he "made a mistake" in writing a letter on behalf of council supporting the controversial Singleton project without consulting other councillors first. Key points: Mr Paterson has apologised for the wording of the letter, which he says was a "simple error" The controversial project would extract 40,000 megalitres of groundwater a year from arid land south of Tennant Creek Several councillors say they do not share the mayor's support for the project In the letter to the NT Environmental Protection Authority, Mayor Matt Paterson said he was "writing on behalf" of the Alice Springs Town Council to "provide support" for the Singleton Horticulture Project. In the letter, Mr Paterson said he had reviewed extensive documentation around the project, and was convinced it would "have a positive effect on Alice Springs". Alice Springs Mayor Matt Paterson says the letter was a "simple error", which has since been rectified.