Thank you for the invitation to speak to you today. I am particularly looking forward to answering your questions.

Experience has shown me that some of the most thoughtful people in the country, with some of the most challenging ideas are in Grey Power audiences.

And I want my ideas on Auckland to be challenged. This Auckland is our Auckland and it means a great deal to us emotionally.

You will hear a lot of talk from politicians yes, me too - about money, and planning, and efficiency, and core services, and the need for better governance.

All that is really about one simple thing "a better life, for ourselves and for our families."

What do I mean by a better life?
 
First of all, I am interested in freedom, and in democracy.  And I do not think the people of Auckland have the democratic freedoms they need to influence the course of local government.

Now I know that might seem to be a contradiction.

Some would say you are taking away seven councils and replacing them with one that has less democracy.

Here's my answer to that: democracy at the local level is about choices.

In the last local elections, and the ones before that, and the ones before that, no one was able to vote for an effective transport system because no councillor or council could deliver. It doesn't matter what the candidates said "once on the council they lacked the real power to do anything effective." So electors then didn't really have a choice on transport.

To have a choice, we need to be able to vote for a council able to make regional decisions that will fix regional problems. Then we'll have a choice.
 

When you vote, you vote for a form of representative government. You vote for a person to represent you. But that's not enough, at the local level. The law already provides for participative as well as representative government, especially through the councils planning process.

And with one council, participation will really mean something. But for me, that's not enough. I want citizens to have more power to participate in decision-making by direct
referendums on important issues. I want ratepayers to be able to actually participate in decisions about rating levels.

If the people of an area genuinely want to pay ratesto support local projects  and in many cases they do that's something I support.

And equally I think it is entirely reasonable and in line with good governance and good democracy that citizens, if they wish, should be able to limit rate rises.

Some say we can't trust the people to make the right decisions, that not enough people will vote, and that only councillors can make that sort of decision.

What I think is this:
Give the people real power, and they will use it. You don't strengthen democracy by having less of it. You strengthen it by having more of it.
 
That's the reason we have supported local boards in Auckland to work with the new Auckland council.

I see ward councillors having a strong relationship with their local boards alongside the ratepayer constituents.

And I am really encouraged by the suggestions coming up at the select committee about strengthening the role of local boards in local decisions and activity.
 
So under the various proposals I am advocating, the people in Auckland can vote for a Council that has real power to make their lives better, and can for the first time address the regional problems we need to solve, now.

They will also, through the local boards, have representatives linking in to the strong regional governance able to respond to their concerns and advocate and decide on local issues.

The people will also, if I get support for my proposals for more participation in democracy, be able to have a direct say about how big the council is, and how much of their money it spends.

So let me talk about exactly what is going on.

The Local Government (Tamaki Makaurau Reorganisation) Act 2009 was enacted in May 2009.  This Act establishes the Auckland Council and the Auckland Transition Agency.

The Local Government (Auckland Council) Bill provides for the high-level framework for the structure of the Auckland Council, including proposed20-30 local boards. 

The Local Government Commission will be empowered to determine the boundaries of the Council wards, and the number and membership, and boundaries of local boards, and provides for the integration of Auckland's water.

The Select Committee is concluding hearing submissions on the Bill today. The Select Committee reports back to Parliament on 4 September and I am hoping this Bill will be passed into law by mid September.

A third Bill will be introduced later this year to provide forthe ongoing governance structure, and the detailed legislative framework for governance arrangements. There will be a full Select Committee process for this Bill.

As Auckland is one region, the simple solution is to have one council, one Mayor and one plan. 

The Auckland Council, as a unitary authority governing the region, will represent the interests of the entire Auckland region and foster a common identity and purpose.  The proposed changes are expected to result in greaterefficiencies through less duplication and waste, as well as faster progress on issues which have gone unresolved for years, such as transport and infrastructure.

These new arrangements will do some good in themselves. There will be lower costs, because of efficiencies. It will be easier to know who the go-to person is to solve local problems.

But those improvements are not where the true benefits are.

The real benefit is that the new structures will allow good people to do a good job. As things stand, good people are frustrated and stymied in their efforts at every turn.

The reason is that Auckland is one city with many communities. The many communities, each onits own, cannot deal with regional problems. We need one city, and we need it now, so that Aucklanders elected to local government office, and those they employ can see real results from their efforts, and so rates will be well spent on things that matter to communities.
 
I have come today prepared to answer questions on anything to do with Auckland and there are many things I have not covered in this brief speech. These include:

• Central government engagement with local government


• Auckland Transition Agency


• Planning


• At large and at ward councillors


• Integration of Water Services


• How the rates system will work

 

One issue I would like to briefly allude to is about getting more transparency and accountability and improved financial management.  These issues are for the topic of a speech in themselves. But I can assure you serious work is underway to ensure we can better transparency around council decisions that will ultimately provide more ratepayer input into council spending decisions.

I would be delighted to listen to your views on all of these, and of course the responsibilities of my other portfolio - Regulatory Reform.

In conclusion, I want to recognise the criticism that I am moving too fast. I say we are moving at last.
 
You will know that after a time the Labour Party agreed that it, too, supports a single city. That came as no surprise to me because the Labour Party first supported a single city in 1919 when Michael Joseph Savage stood for Aucklandcity. It is fifty years since the New Zealand Herald ran a series of articles advocating local government reform along these lines in Auckland.

We have had moves towards a single city the ARA, and then the ARC. We have had a Royal Commission. I believe the time for action has arrived.

Thank you again for the opportunity to talk with you today. It is always good to visit Howick and talk to the members of your community.

ends

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thank you for the invitation to speak to you today. I am particularly looking forward to answering your questions.

Experience has shown me that some of the most thoughtful people in the country, with some of the most challenging ideas are in Grey Power audiences.

And I want my ideas on Auckland to be challenged. This Auckland is our Auckland and it means a great deal to us emotionally.

You will hear a lot of talk from politicians yes, me too - about money, and planning, and efficiency, and core services, and the need for better governance.

All that is really about one simple thing "a better life, for ourselves and for our families."

What do I mean by a better life?
 
First of all, I am interested in freedom, and in democracy.  And I do not think the people of Auckland have the democratic freedoms they need to influence the course of local government.

Now I know that might seem to be a contradiction.

Some would say you are taking away seven councils and replacing them with one that has less
democracy. 
Here's my answer to that: democracy at the local level is about choices.

In the last local elections, and the ones before that, and the ones before that, no one was able to vote for an effective transport system because no councillor or council could deliver. It doesn't matter what the candidates said "once on the council they lacked the real power to do anything effective." So electors then didn't really have a choice on transport.

To have a choice, we need to be able to vote for a council able to make regional decisions that will fix regional problems. Then we'll have a choice.

When you vote, you vote for a form of representative government. You vote for a person to represent you. But that's not enough, at the local level. The law already provides for participative as well as representative government, especially through the councils planning process.

And with one council, participation will really mean something. But for me, that's not enough. I want citizens to have more power to participate in decision-making by direct
referendums on important issues. I want ratepayers to be able to actually participate in decisions about rating levels.

If the people of an area genuinely want to pay ratesto support local projects  and in many cases they do that's something I support.

And equally I think it is entirely reasonable and in line with good governance and good democracy that citizens, if they wish, should be able to limit rate rises.

Some say we can't trust the people to make the right decisions, that not enough people will vote, and that only councillors can make that sort of decision.

What I think is this:
Give the people real power, and they will use it. You don't strengthen democracy by having less of it. You strengthen it by having more of it.
 
That's the reason we have supported local boards in Auckland to work with the new Auckland council.

I see ward councillors having a strong relationship with their local boards alongside the ratepayer constituents.

And I am really encouraged by the suggestions coming up at the select committee about strengthening the role of local boards in local decisions and activity.
 
So under the various proposals I am advocating, the people in Auckland can vote for a Council that has real power to make their lives better, and can for the first time address the regional problems we need to solve, now.

They will also, through the local boards, have representatives linking in to the strong regional governance able to respond to their concerns and advocate and decide on local issues.

The people will also, if I get support for my proposals for more participation in democracy, be able to have a direct say about how big the council is, and how much of their money it spends.

So let me talk about exactly what is going on.

The Local Government (Tamaki Makaurau Reorganisation) Act 2009 was enacted in May 2009.  This Act establishes the Auckland Council and the Auckland Transition Agency.

The Local Government (Auckland Council) Bill provides for the high-level framework for the structure of the Auckland Council, including proposed20-30 local boards. 

The Local Government Commission will be empowered to determine the boundaries of the Council wards, and the number and membership, and boundaries of local boards, and provides for the integration of Auckland's water.

The Select Committee is concluding hearing submissions on the Bill today. The Select Committee reports back to Parliament on 4 September and I am hoping this Bill will be passed into law by mid September.

A third Bill will be introduced later this year to provide forthe ongoing governance structure, and the detailed legislative framework for governance arrangements. There will be a full Select Committee process for this Bill.

As Auckland is one region, the simple solution is to have one council, one Mayor and one plan. 

The Auckland Council, as a unitary authority governing the region, will represent the interests of the entire Auckland region and foster a common identity and purpose.  The proposed changes are expected to result in greaterefficiencies through less duplication and waste, as well as faster progress on issues which have gone unresolved for years, such as transport and infrastructure.

These new arrangements will do some good in themselves. There will be lower costs, because of efficiencies. It will be easier to know who the go-to person is to solve local problems.

But those improvements are not where the true benefits are.

The real benefit is that the new structures will allow good people to do a good job. As things stand, good people are frustrated and stymied in their efforts at every turn.

The reason is that Auckland is one city with many communities. The many communities, each onits own, cannot deal with regional problems. We need one city, and we need it now, so that Aucklanders elected to local government office, and those they employ can see real results from their efforts, and so rates will be well spent on things that matter to communities.
 
I have come today prepared to answer questions on anything to do with Auckland and there are many things I have not covered in this brief speech. These include:

• Central government engagement with local government


• Auckland Transition Agency


• Planning


• At large and at ward councillors


• Integration of Water Services


• How the rates system will work

One issue I would like to briefly allude to is about getting more transparency and accountability and improved financial management.  These issues are for the topic of a speech in themselves. But I can assure you serious work is underway to ensure we can better transparency around council decisions that will ultimately provide more ratepayer input into council spending decisions.

I would be delighted to listen to your views on all of these, and of course the responsibilities of my other portfolio - Regulatory Reform.

In conclusion, I want to recognise the criticism that I am moving too fast. I say we are moving at last.
 
You will know that after a time the Labour Party agreed that it, too, supports a single city. That came as no surprise to me because the Labour Party first supported a single city in 1919 when Michael Joseph Savage stood for Aucklandcity. It is fifty years since the New Zealand Herald ran a series of articles advocating local government reform along these lines in Auckland.

We have had moves towards a single city the ARA, and then the ARC. We have had a Royal Commission. I believe the time for action has arrived.

Thank you again for the opportunity to talk with you today. It is always good to visit Howick and talk to the members of your community.

ends

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thank you for the invitation to speak to you today. I am particularly looking forward to answering your questions.

Experience has shown me that some of the most thoughtful people in the country, with some of the most challenging ideas are in Grey Power audiences.

And I want my ideas on Auckland to be challenged. This Auckland is our Auckland and it means a great deal to us emotionally.

You will hear a lot of talk from politicians yes, me too - about money, and planning, and efficiency, and core services, and the need for better governance.

All that is really about one simple thing "a better life, for ourselves and for our families."

What do I mean by a better life?
 
First of all, I am interested in freedom, and in democracy.  And I do not think the people of Auckland have the democratic freedoms they need to influence the course of local government.

Now I know that might seem to be a contradiction.

Some would say you are taking away seven councils and replacing them with one that has less
democracy. 
Here's my answer to that: democracy at the local level is about choices.

In the last local elections, and the ones before that, and the ones before that, no one was able to vote for an effective transport system because no councillor or council could deliver. It doesn't matter what the candidates said "once on the council they lacked the real power to do anything effective." So electors then didn't really have a choice on transport.

To have a choice, we need to be able to vote for a council able to make regional decisions that will fix regional problems. Then we'll have a choice.
 

When you vote, you vote for a form of representative government. You vote for a person to represent you. But that's not enough, at the local level. The law already provides for participative as well as representative government, especially through the councils planning process.

And with one council, participation will really mean something. But for me, that's not enough. I want citizens to have more power to participate in decision-making by direct
referendums on important issues. I want ratepayers to be able to actually participate in decisions about rating levels.

If the people of an area genuinely want to pay ratesto support local projects  and in many cases they do that's something I support.

And equally I think it is entirely reasonable and in line with good governance and good democracy that citizens, if they wish, should be able to limit rate rises.

Some say we can't trust the people to make the right decisions, that not enough people will vote, and that only councillors can make that sort of decision.

What I think is this:
Give the people real power, and they will use it. You don't strengthen democracy by having less of it. You strengthen it by having more of it.
 
That's the reason we have supported local boards in Auckland to work with the new Auckland council.

I see ward councillors having a strong relationship with their local boards alongside the ratepayer constituents.

And I am really encouraged by the suggestions coming up at the select committee about strengthening the role of local boards in local decisions and activity.
 
So under the various proposals I am advocating, the people in Auckland can vote for a Council that has real power to make their lives better, and can for the first time address the regional problems we need to solve, now.

They will also, through the local boards, have representatives linking in to the strong regional governance able to respond to their concerns and advocate and decide on local issues.

The people will also, if I get support for my proposals for more participation in democracy, be able to have a direct say about how big the council is, and how much of their
money it spends.

So let me talk about exactly what is going on.

The Local Government (Tamaki Makaurau Reorganisation) Act 2009 was enacted in May 2009.  This Act establishes the Auckland Council and the Auckland Transition Agency.

The Local Government (Auckland Council) Bill provides for the high-level framework for the structure of the Auckland Council, including proposed20-30 local boards. 

The Local Government Commission will be empowered to determine the boundaries of the Council wards, and the number and membership, and boundaries of local boards, and provides for the integration of Auckland's water.

The Select Committee is concluding hearing submissions on the Bill today. The Select Committee reports back to Parliament on 4 September and I am hoping this Bill will be passed into law by mid September.

A third Bill will be introduced later this year to provide forthe ongoing governance structure, and the detailed legislative framework for governance arrangements. There will be a full Select Committee process for this Bill.

As Auckland is one region, the simple solution is to have one council, one Mayor and one plan. 

The Auckland Council, as a unitary authority governing the region, will represent the interests of the entire Auckland region and foster a common identity and purpose.  The proposed changes are expected to result in greaterefficiencies through less duplication and waste, as well as faster progress on issues which have gone unresolved for years, such as transport and infrastructure.

These new arrangements will do some good in themselves. There will be lower costs, because of efficiencies. It will be easier to know who the go-to person is to solve local problems.

But those improvements are not where the true benefits are.

The real benefit is that the new structures will allow good people to do a good job. As things stand, good people are frustrated and stymied in their efforts at every turn.

The reason is that Auckland is one city with many communities. The many communities, each onits own, cannot deal with regional problems. We need one city, and we need it now, so that Aucklanders elected to local government office, and those they employ can see real results from their efforts, and so rates will be well spent on things that matter to communities.
 
I have come today prepared to answer questions on anything to do with Auckland and there are many things I have not covered in this brief speech. These
include:

• Central government engagement with local government


• Auckland Transition Agency


• Planning


• At large and at ward councillors


• Integration of Water Services


• How the rates system will work

One issue I would like to briefly allude to is about getting more transparency and accountability and improved financial management.  These issues are for the topic of a speech in themselves. But I can assure you serious work is underway to ensure we can better transparency around council decisions that will ultimately provide more ratepayer input into council spending decisions.

I would be delighted to listen to your views on all of these, and of course the responsibilities of my other portfolio - Regulatory Reform.

In conclusion, I want to recognise the criticism that I am moving too fast. I say we are moving at last.
 
You will know that after a time the Labour Party agreed that it, too, supports a single city. That came as no surprise to me because the Labour Party first supported a single city in 1919 when Michael Joseph Savage stood for Aucklandcity. It is fifty years since the New Zealand Herald ran a series of articles advocating local government reform along these lines in Auckland.

We have had moves towards a single city the ARA, and then the ARC. We have had a Royal Commission. I believe the time for action has arrived.

Thank you again for the opportunity to talk with you today. It is always good to visit Howick and talk to the members of your community.

ends