Councils must sign up to performance system, says Chamber

Wellington Chamber of Commerce
Media Statement
Wednesday 15th June 2016
Councils must sign up to performance system, says Chamber

Wellington’s two big councils should already be preparing to sign up to the new independent performance standards system announced by Local Government New Zealand, says Wellington Chamber of Commerce.

Chief Executive John Milford says the standards are a great way of showing exactly how effectively councils are spending ratepayer money and how they can improve accountability and transparency, and all councils should sign up.

"This looks like a great way of measuring key performance indicators, and I would be very disappointed - even concerned - if Wellington City Council and Greater Wellington Regional Council didn’t sign up.

"It’s a voluntary system, but I would be concerned if they didn’t join, and I’d like to know why. Why would they not want to improve their services and their transparency? That would be a concern.

"Anything that measures the quality of leadership, finance, service delivery and community engagement has got to be good, and councils of all sizes must recognise that.

"The results of the system’s assessments will give ratepayers a true picture of how councils are measuring up across their whole operation, and will give them something they can point to when they are demanding better performance and value for their rates. That’s what ratepayers need and deserve."

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