Amalgamation Misinformation

If you were the Chairman of a Council then it would be fair enough to believe that you would understand the reason for the Councils existence , its role therefore and may be a basic understanding of the legislation guiding the Council.

I found it extraordinary that a Regional Council Chair , in arguing for amalgamation doesn't understand why her Council exists.

May be there is an excuse because Regional Councils have been in existence since the 1989 Local Government reforms so time has passed.

Regional Councils were formed for a reason and in her argument she touches on a number of the issues that were relevant and critical in the formation but fails to see how diluting or diminishing these roles will impact ratepayers.

There is a statement that planning is done by various overlapping council entities.

How does this happen? Councils have different roles so there should not be an overlap. Is she confusing this with Councils staff who don't get their role or interfere without realising.

There is a reason consenting takes place through different councils. Strangely enough it is to do with their roles.

She states that each council spends money finding ways to interpret the Building Act which is a strange one but yes District Councils have to consult the Building Act which is obvious but the RC may have to do so as well because of a marine structure .That is not duplication. That is to do with different roles.

She advocates for the Port being owned by all ratepayers. It is. Through the Regional Council .This was because at the time of setting up the new LG structure Regional  Councils were given the Ports on purpose.

She advocates for keeping the Port as an asset for the region .It already is.

She correctly identifies pests and flood protection and huge catchments as critical to the region and that they need retain catchments in one council. They already are. That is why they were a critical aspect in setting up Regional Councils.  

The Chairman argues that her council can work for the whole region (that's what it is there for) and create efficiencies  in the areas it has control.

Blows away the argument for amalgamation somewhat. 

The whole idea that amalgamation will make things easier for consent applications and planning is pie in the sky.

Understanding what Councils roles are is fundamental to understanding why NZ has the current structure.

The future is looking bleak for ratepayers.

    

 Entities and Machinations

The Government is making changes to the Local Government Act that will deal with the undemocratic situation that currently sees unelected table dwellers able to vote.

It' a good move but overdue and only seems to be on the agenda because of considerable pressure from various quarters.

The Taxpayers Union has been exposing issues in the Local Government area and are hoping the Auckland Council structure will be amended at the same time.

Over the years Local Government has grown in to an entity , a creature , that acts in a bubble , pretending to  carry out activities in the interests of suffering ratepayers that have their wallets and purses pillaged every week to fund ever increasing demands for dubious projects and activities.

Following the 1989 reforms the new brand of Local Government bureaucrat entered bright eyed and bushy tailed and set about setting up new plans and direction. It worked well for some time

Once the new plans became embedded a new breed emerged from the universities. The RMA had been swallowed lock stock and barrel by environmental purists. Students that had no life experience, no dirty hands  , no institutional knowledge now sat at the pristine desks behind their computers and the 20030 Agenda.

They probably didn't even realise what path they were  on given the indoctrination encountered and the acceptance  of the new breed .These are the rules and this is how things are done.

So the machinations taking place within Local Government are flowing from the years of groundwork to implement  an agenda no one can see and yet it affects every one of us every day.

The efforts of the Taxpayers Union and others are really a symptom of a fight back occurring in response to the implementation of an agenda that does not fit democracy and should be expunged from our lives.

The move to force amalgamations or tackle the makeup of local authorities will not deal with the root cause of our problems.

Changing  legislation  to remove the aims of 2030 will be the best way forward.      

     .  

 Further on Amalgamations

 In 1989 the Local Government reforms foist on the country by the Labour Government , were spun on the issue of efficiency. It was not a case of councils not doing the job and I would suggest the large counties at the time were already functioning effectively and efficiently. 

25 years ago the push to amalgamate councils in Hawkes Bay was pushed on the idea of efficiency and economies of scale.

 The result was a shakeup that saw better sharing of resources but no change to the makeup as ratepayers could see the setup was working well for the people.

Once again the push to amalgamate is being led by Central Government who always think they can force things to be better .They listen to the parties that do not understand local government .Usually business people who try and apply business solutions to a governance situation.

One of the main proponents of amalgamation in this round mounted his high horse because councils were not beating to his drum. 

I get the problem but bigger is not better and there is a failure to recognise the source of the high rates being handed out across the country.

There has been a creep in legislation and a creep in numbers to deal with it.

More and more legislation has given rise to more and more staff and the strength of the unions has seen wages grow until they are at least 10% more than in the private sector.

We have a whole new bureaucracy that is distant from reality when it comes to practical aspects of life in the country .They have been fed a diet of RMA hysteria and Local Government power of general competence which has expanded the nice haves and hindered the should haves.

The last round of change has been a haven for busy bodies and lefties that see council as a way to etch out a decent wage and create a job for life. Councils are full of impractical people , special interest people and even many who don't pay rates.

It's the perfect match  for misfits and controllers.

Pre 1989 we had Pest Destruction Boards, Catchment Boards, Harbour Boards,  Drainage Boards and Electricity Supply Boards. It's interesting reflecting on what is happening in those areas now.

So Governance has changed but rates have continued to go up, legislation has become a minefield and now we have some clever monkeys that think they will make things better by emulating Auckland super city.

Well good luck with that. 

 

  

Representation 

Here we go again.

Reading a host of comments relating to the amalgamation game one can't help but notice the new round of Council inhabitants has no idea about history, no idea about roles of local authorities and no idea about local government legislation.

Even staff now are a new round of bureaucrats that  have largely not experienced the upheaval  caused by forced change.

I read a comment 'should have happened 25 years ago ' from someone I recognised and reflected on the battle that ensued at the time and the massive amount of money spent on consultants and experts and meetings that finally gave ratepayers no change.

All that effort is lost as no one wants to learn from history  and the know it all faction that think bigger is better and that local government will be saved by major change are going to win out. They will win out because the thinking people have left the room and everyone left is exhausted.

Rates increases are crushing all and sundry and the solution appears to be less councils.

One glaring example of why amalgamation will be wrong waa a suggestion that a new makeup would see Napier with 4 Councillors, Hastings with 4 Councillors and the rural area with 2.

It sounds so easy but the huge rural area with two representatives would be crushed by the urban sector.

There is absolutely no way this should be allowed .It shows the complete lack of understanding of  why Regional Councils were formed around catchments and their role centred around issues affecting a whole region. Across boundaries.

The existing system in Hawkes Bay has been working well and changes over the years have given us a setup that works.

I would bet that there are no Councillors sitting around the City or District Council tables that have any idea of the roles they are supposed to undertake or the role of the Regional Council .

Hawkes Bay is in for a major deterioration in the effectiveness of Local Government and a major headwind for those in the rural areas.

And I will add,  a big increase in rates if amalgamation occurs. 

  

 

  

Local Body Re-organisation

It is interesting reading the many columns and comments spraying about in the media over the politicians forced action on re organising Local Government.

The ' Battle of Hastings 1977'

The Mayor of Hastings JJ O'Connor , said in the war over Local Government proposals ."This was a death blow to Hastings hopes for a strong independent ,democratic, regional planning authority and two district councils on the plains"

"The United Council outraged his 'every instinct' for democracy .He did not object to rationilisation but to taxation without representation.

New Zealand has been constantly under attack over the makeup of Local Government .the arguments are nearly always the same and last for years while competing sides jostle for dominance.

The 1989 reforms were possibly a good move as the country developed but it was driven by a Labour Government that may not have had the rural sector front of mind in trying to reshape Districts and Regions.

Hawkes Bay was thrust in to the reorganising argument again 20 years ago when more  of the bigger is better proponents embarked on yet another attempt to scupper the power of the people.

With  the latest attack another bevy of the better people has emerged from the Beehive and rolled out the same arguments only this time they have some traction because public servants have become a law unto themselves and ratepayers have a bad taste in their mouth over continued rate rises and less recognition of economic realities.

It is interesting that the Ministers involved were only just out of nappies when the Hawkes Bay region  was embroiled in patriotic impasses and Chamber of Commerce conniptions  regurgitating motions of earlier Mayors and Councils over the best way to cut a pizza.

The latest attack on Local Government has come from politicians who lack an understanding of Local Government and how it works.

The worst part of the attack is that it has been precipitated in response to a situation of politicians own making.

The Resource Management Act started out as a new way, a permissive approach to manage our resources. 

Fiddling over the years and failing to address handbrake clauses , has created a situation where staff  that have come through the system with the latest environmental indoctrination , have then managed to create a monster.

There are major problems but the answer is not to crush the responsible body , but to remove the irritation from within. 

The issues that need to be dealt with are not going to go away but the approach can be altered or carefully steered in the right direction.

It is possible that the noises being made about new authorities show that misunderstanding the makeup of the  beast may lead to a devil of a creature arising in the night.        

        

    

 

 New Valuations

Prior to Gabrielle property valuations were increasing as fast as a nascar and people were overcome with excitement as dreams dominated.

The way to becoming rich and too bad if you missed out on the ladder millions here we come.

Post Gabrielle as furrowed brows perused the rates bill , the valuation didn't look so good.

Properties swamped. Properties demolished . Land smothered in sucking silt and the valuations stayed the same.

It was good and it was bad.

Let's play a game. How much is a property worth? Do the valuers know? They did on the way up but what about on the way down?

Council told the drowned populace they couldn't change the valuations so the rates had to stay the same.

With valuations being carried out every three years residents were caught between showers.

At least one council made a quick decision and allowed affected ratepayers two years rate free. The main   culprit however dug their heels in to the mud and would not budge. The council who bore the greatest responsibility for the community crushing event said look over there. We didn't see a thing and cough or else.

Come 2026 and the new valuations for the district arrive in the mail (remember letters, mail, postman) and with great trepidation envelopes are opened all over Hastings in anticipation of what??

Holy, moly.

Becoming rich really is a dream now. It appears valuations have taken a tumble and the implications will be significant for a host of ratepayers.

My own valuation is questionable given the restoration back to almost the same as before the flood. 

It's going to take a while to evaluate this one.     

     

Misunderstood Local Government

Applause from the expensive seats is reverberating around social media. Yeah. Do away with Regional Councils. Yeah, get rid of all Councils. Let's stop paying so many councillors fat salaries for doing nothing.

Maybe it's my nature but as an elected councillor  and a thinker I wanted to learn about the role and functions of a council and I took my role as a representative of my constituents seriously.

I was given a copy of the Local Government Act and the Resource Management Act from the start and must say it was a shock to the system. What do I do now?

On reflection it was a great move by the CE.I doubt many elected members these days even look at the legislation that dictates what they do.

Also being involved with many hearings involving aspects of the regions resources soon explained the value of a grasp of the law. Local Government is a creature of legislation.

So it was good to see one respected commentator write a column that in effect agreed with my assessment of the amalgamation question and also identify the root cause of the excessive rates problem.

Those who think Councils should disappear are shallow thinking, superficial, probably dominant types who lack depth in life.

Don't get me wrong about rates. I hate rates. Trouble is society has to operate and we need someone to collect the rubbish and fix potholes.

What has happened over a number of years is nothing to do with the number of councils or councillors it is more to do with the legislation and the expansion of local government into areas it should have nothing to do with. It is mainly the Territorial Authorities that have made use of the law to go on spending sprees and throw ratepayers money around like there is no tomorrow. It is mainly the TA's that have become the go to for all and sundry for funding of a plethora of projects.

Another massive impost has been (Central Government imposed and endorsed) climate departments that should never exist but model on forever and think they can change the temperature in Timbuktu. 

LG has grown into a monster and Central Government have been responsible for this happening.

I will tackle the role of Regional Councils separately because of their importance.

Changing the LG legislation to better prescribe the role of councils would be far better than creating a bigger monster that will eventuate from the proposed, forced shakeup.