Mixed reaction from Court over new law changes

FAR NORTH DISTRICT COUNCILLOR: Ann Court

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Law changes aimed at reining in local authority spending have been panned and praised by one Far North politician.

Local Government Minister Rodney Hide plans to change the Local Government Act after a review of transparency, accountability and financial management in local government.

Changes proposed by Mr Hide include encouraging councils to focus on core services and requiring them to operate within financial parameters.

Far North district councillor Ann Court describes plans to limit councils' expenditure as laughable, given the compliance costs and statutory obligations central government has heaped on them.

"It is central government that keeps imposing tighter and more stringent outcomes regardless of the community's ability and willingness to pay."

The law requires water supplies to be upgraded to standards that councils struggle to meet, instead of allowing communities to decide what infrastructure they want and are prepared to pay for, she says.

"It is so expensive that it has the potential to virtually cripple small communities and leave nothing in the bucket for any other type of infrastructural improvements."

Requiring councils to consult communities about long-term plans, without setting limits on what is financially achievable, also adds to their costs and raises expectations they cannot meet.

"We are required to ask for a wish list and when that wish list is not delivered the ratepayers quite rightly feel aggrieved."

She anticipates with "great delight" any law changes that reduce pointless government-directed paperwork and frees up cash for projects that benefit communities.

"We are getting to the stage that compliance eats up the budget and there is nothing left to do any infrastructural type works."

She also welcomes any measures that divest councils of obligations they don't have the resources to meet.

"Council is now being asked to consider funding social outcomes such as food banks, rape crisis, youth unemployment, counselling and health services."

Annual audits to ensure the council is fulfilling these obligations also waste money.

"We are required to commit vast ratepayer resources to a paper trail that achieves no physical outcome or improvement to the lives of our residents and ratepayers."

Moves to get councils back to basics would be welcomed by communities, she says.

"We would see a massive shift in satisfaction levels from residents and ratepayers who see the function and funding of social services rightfully belonging to government-funded agencies that have been established and funded to provide these."

- © Fairfax NZ News