7 September 2006
Mega Councils In The Mix
New Zealand First says that a meeting between the four biggest city councils in Auckland signals that the conversation
about the number and functions of councils is being taken seriously by central and local government.
“The meeting is about the feasibility of restructuring Auckland into a super city, but the questions about local
government apply to all cities and regions,” said Local Government spokesperson Brian Donnelly.
“As with the debate over rates, the central issues in this discussion centre on the provision of quality service for
ratepayers and how best to achieve that, bearing in mind that there should be limits on non-core activities which add to
the rates burden.
“New Zealand First’s policy includes encouraging communities of interest to explore the viability of merging some local
body entities in the interests of getting better value for money for ratepayers, and reducing the layers of bureaucracy
which have increasingly been superimposed onto local government.
“It’s also important that all decisions on local government be based on the concept that local democracy means local
decisions made in consultation with ratepayers and citizens.
“It’s natural that councils will evolve, and it’s therefore sensible to plan how they will evolve,” said Mr Donnelly.
ENDS