Battle for Auckland

SUPERCITY ASPIRATIONS: Mayoral candidates say they have no intention of letting central government decide Auckland needs through its influence on council controlled organisations tasked with providing essential services.

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Greater Auckland residents have until this Friday to make a submission on the government's third and final supercity bill, which sets out the framework of the proposed new Auckland Council.

The first bill formally established the supercity. The second determined its boundaries and its governing structure.

Rodney district will be absorbed into the new Auckland Council from November 1.

The upcoming bill contains more details about the government's so-called council controlled organisations, CCO, for Auckland.

CCO are appointed organisations that will control Auckland's water and waste water, roads and transport systems, rating system, the process for elections and the new regional planning framework.

In the initial years of the supercity at least, critics say CCO could be more aptly defined as GCO - government controlled organisations.

Under the draft legislation, no elected sitting councillor of the Auckland Council may be appointed as a director of a substantive CCO, except to Auckland Transport which will have two council appointments on a board of directors of six to eight individuals.

The initial appointment of directors to Auckland Transport in 2010, presumably for a two or three year term, will be made by Local Government Minister Rodney Hide and Transport Minister Stephen Joyce, acting on the advice of the Auckland Transition Agency.

The Auckland Council's regional land transport strategy is not due until November 2016.

The bill reinforces the right of the powerful Auckland Transition Agency to create other CCO via the governor-general and based on the advice of Mr Hide.

Thereafter, appointments will be made by the Auckland Council but, even then, "the proposed new governance framework for Auckland Transport will be politically controlled by the Auckland Council," says Rodney mayor Penny Webster.

"A politically driven pro-cess has not served the interests of Rodney or the wider region well in the past, and these problems may continue under the new council.

Critics say the CCO sissify the newly elected council for years when it comes to decisions on key infrastructure projects - a prospect that does not sit well with supercity mayoral candidates Len Brown and John Banks.

Auckland city mayor Mr Banks says he has no intention of letting decisions about the direction and future of a supercity Auckland be "hijacked by Wellington".

Swords are already drawn over transitional agency plans for the development of Queens Wharf in time for the Rugby World Cup next year, with structures Mr Banks describes as inadequate. They go to the government for approval this week.

Mr Banks suggests a monthly meeting in the mayor's office of the CCO chairpersons to "ensure that they are helping drive the
vision for the whole of greater Auckland".

Manukau city mayor Mr Brown is no less forthright. He says he "intends to govern with the elected council from the day after the elections".

The government's final bill includes a provision that the new Auckland Council develop a spatial plan after public consultation, setting out how Auckland might develop in the future - broad objectives for land use, transport and other infrastructure and environmental management issues.

The plan would identify residential, business and industrial activities and sites for protection.

Mr Brown says he is doing "a lot of advance work" on a spatial plan which he will put before the elected council to get the process quickly under way. He expects Metropolitan Urban Limits to change.

Mrs Webster also raises the flag about the role of local boards.

"I continue to have concerns that local boards may not be listened to under the new governance structure.

"I would like to see a well-thought-out, long-term strategy set out in the spatial plan and, with a separate strategic direction document, influence everything the new council does."

Again, it is the Auckland Transition Agency that will make the initial allocation of decision making responsibility between the council and local boards, taking into account the legislation passed in the third bill.

However, there appears to be nothing in the proposed bill that precludes a newly elected Auckland Council from scrapping the transition agency directives and negotiating a mutually agreeable arrangement directly with an elected local board.

The Auckland Council, under the terms of the proposed bill, is required only to prepare an agreement with each local board and agree on a funding policy.

Rodney deputy mayor John Kirikiri says it is a concern that the new Auckland Council gets to decide what powers are delegated to boards.

"I want to know that local boards will have real powers in the third bill," he says.

"If the boards don’t have real powers, Rodney ratepayers especially will have extremely limited representation – and access to the Auckland Council."

The safeguard in terms of the proposed bill is that if a local board is dissatisfied with the decision of the elected Auckland Council regarding allocation of decision-making functions, or request on a local bylaw, it may apply to the Local Government Commission for a binding determination.

"The only way communities can have meaningful engagement is if local boards have the ability to communicate local wants, needs and priorities to the Auckland Council," says Mr Kirikiri.

Mr Banks sees benefit in having the chairpersons of the local boards meet on a monthly basis in the mayor’s office for an "information sharing meeting in order to avoid fractionalising the bigger picture of Auckland development".

Rodney’s Auckland Regional Council representative Christine Rose, who will be standing for Rodney in the upcoming council elections, raises her concern over what she sees as a "systematic stripping of Auckland’s assets", presumably based on the assets to be held by the CCO and their accountability, or lack of it, to the Auckland Council.

"Working in silos effectively removes meddling by politicians, apparently," says Mr Kirikiri, referring to the independence of CCO.

"Well, at a local level it will but central government may have a different view. Commentators will most probably ask why chief executive officers not elected by the people have control of CCO with more asset value than Fonterra and Telecom combined," he says.

At a meeting in Warkworth on February 2, North Shore List MP Darien Fenton told followers the campaign spending limits for the upcoming elections, enabling candidates to spend $580,000 in the last three months, favoured the wealthy and those with big business backing.

She called the whole process surrounding the introduction of the supercity bills "undemocratic", saying the government has bypassed the Local Government Act which calls for a referendum in the case of amalgamations.

For more information and how to make a submission visit http://www.rodney.govt.nz/YourCouncil/Pages/AucklandRegionalGovernance.aspx.

CCO or CGO? The big question for the supercity

The government-dubbed council-controlled organisations, CCO, are more likely to be GCO or government-controlled organisations, say critics of the proposed third and final bill establishing the Auckland supercity from November 1.

Under the proposed legislation, roads, public transport, parking and traffic management throughout the supercity will be controlled by a company over which the Auckland Council only has limited control.

This will also be the case for the delivery of water supply and sewage disposal service, which will be under the control of Watercare Services.

A company will be set up to manage the development of the Auckland central business district waterfront – a controversial issue which has already brought Auckland city mayor John Banks head to head with the Auckland Transition Agency.

Roads and transport:

Auckland Transport will replace the Auckland Regional Transport Authority and Auckland Regional Transport Network, and will be responsible for managing and controlling the Auckland transport system and preparing a regional land transport programme.

Auckland Transport will manage all of the region’s transport network except for state highways, railways, off-street parking facilities and airfields. Auckland Transport will also be responsible for functions traditionally performed by councils such as parking and traffic management, control of roads other than state highways and roading bylaws.

Water and wastewater:

From November, Watercare will assume responsibility for the delivery of water and wastewater services. The bill states that until June 2015, Watercare must remain in the ownership of the Auckland Council, and be the only provider of public water and wastewater services in the region. Until that time, Watercare must comply with the directions of the Auckland Council when setting prices for water and waste water services.

Rates:

For the year starting July 1, 2011, the Auckland Council must set a single percentage rate increase for all properties in the region. The new Auckland Council will then be required to adopt one rating policy from July 1, 2012, which must include the general rate component being calculated using a capital value rating system.

Rodney deputy mayor John Kirikiri says the unfairness of the 2007 valuations – one of the main drivers of Rodney’s rating policy – financially hurt many businesses and residents.

"These valuations were taken at the top of the market and many councils about to be assessed are now factoring in the recession."

In the three years after the adoption of a new policy, the legislation provides the new council with the ability to implement a rates transition management policy to help smooth the impact of the transition to the new rating system on individual ratepayers.

Elections:

The bill states that the first two elections of the Auckland Council in 2010 and 2013 must use the first past the post system.

Maori representation:

A Maori Board will be established "to promote issues of significance for mana whenua and Maori to assist the Auckland Council in making decisions, performing functions and exercising powers". The board will comprise nine members of mana whenua groups identified by the Maori affairs minister.

The board will appoint two of its members to sit on council committees that deal with management and stewardship of natural and physical resources. The Auckland Council must consult with the board on issues affecting tangata whenua and Maori and take into account its advice.

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