Address to SOLGM Annual Conference

Thank you for having me here today to address your annual conference. I would like to thank SOLGM for organising this event. It is great to be here in beautiful Queenstown.

Thank you to President Clare Hadley, Vice Presidents Ross McLeod and Athol Stephens, and Chief Executive David Smith for all the hard work you're doing in the sector on behalf of your constituents.

We had a lovely dinner last night, where I met the guest speakers, particularly Steve Winkles from Cambridge, in the UK. 

We have had a major disaster in Christchurch. I was speaking this morning to my Associate and the Minister and the Minister of Civil Defence, John Carter and he gave me the latest update. He said their big concern is of course, like with Local Government is, with the people, in particular the peoples health now in Christchurch.

With getting clean water, and clearing up the sewerage, also to the Government is very focused on maintaining moral as it sinks in, and as what has happened becomes more evident to the people. They are also struggling to get to grips with the enormity of the problem.

A large percent of the damage is in particular infrastructure and to buildings which will take some time. John Carter asked me to pass on to you all what an outstanding job Local Government has done in Christchurch and the Civil Defence. He said you could not have asked for a better response and more professional and more competent people to have on hand. Also that the people of Christchurch have been phenomenal, pulling together as a community.

The Prime Minister told me yesterday that he was very impressed by Local Government throughout New Zealand with their offers of help, with their expertise and he said they are assessing that and they will be calling on people as they see fit and as they need.

So again I believe that we often see the best of people in times of disaster and we certainly have seen the best of the people in Christchurch and the best of Local Government.

The theme of the conference is ‘Shaping the Future'. We are indeed going through a period of rapid change in New Zealand's Local Government, and I thank you all for your patience and support as we work through these measures I will be discussing with you today.

Public servants are a vitally important component of democracy.

In this regard SOLGM is invaluable in its support to its members through professional development, networking opportunities, and events such as this annual conference.

I encourage all those here today to make the most of these opportunities. The effectiveness and efficiency of staff drives the effectiveness and efficiency of Local Government as a whole.

Local authorities can help facilitate economic development at the municipal level by providing good infrastructure, cooperating with businesses where appropriate and applying less and better regulation when it comes to building and resource consents.

We also can't underestimate the importance of positive, forward-thinking leadership.

This annual conference also provides me with another chance to talk to you about my vision for local government and the work programme that I have planned, and to also hear what you have to say.

As you are all aware, this is an exciting time for local government as local authority elections are just around the corner.

Your role as chief executives and managers will be vitally important as you provide guidance and stability through the election period.

Immediately after the election you will have a hugely important role of showing newly elected members how local government works.

They will look to you for guidance and insight as they come to grips with their new roles.

Before I get started, I'd like to congratulate the winners of the Local Government Excellence Awards for this year.

So congratulations to Ruapehu District Council for taking out the Local Government category at the awards, they were also the overall winners.

Their work on the Te Kahui Tupua: Sacred Peaks project, a $2.8 million dollar tourism sector development is to be commended.

The judges commented that

"they were impressed by the scale and complexity of the undertaking and the challenges of working with such a large number, and such a diversity, of stakeholders. 

Clearly this had been a long running project for which things had not always gone smoothly and according to plan.  (We) were impressed at the persistence and tenacity shown turning the project around and bringing it to fruition."

I also commend the Auckland City Council for their win in the Improved Local Regulation Category. 

Their entry showcased a transformation change project to provide world-class customer service in all Council's regulatory interactions through customer-centric technology and customer-minded staff.

Their entry demonstrated the importance of customer service in all Council's regulatory interactions.  Putting the customer first should be essential as a council engages with its ratepayers.

This particular initiative is something I hope other councils take on board and bring back to their communities, no matter their location or size.

Congratulations also to Upper Hutt City Council, which won the Council-Community Relationships Category. 

Through partnership with Upper Hutt schools, Upper Hutt City Library has implemented a programme where each child within the city is offered the opportunity to join the Library and visit on a regular basis, regardless of their circumstances. 

The judges commented that the project demonstrated a practical and decisive response to a real issue of concern to the community.

The Taupo District Council, The Way We Work programme took out the Building Organisational Capability Category.  The Way We Work aims to embed a culture of continuous improvement both vertically and horizontally through a range of initiatives.

Well done to all of you, and I look forward to discussing these exciting projects with you at the conclusion of my speech.

But more especially on behalf of all New Zealanders may I thank each of you for your leadership and your service. Thank you.

I have enjoyed every job I have had, but I have never enjoyed a job as much as this one.  The best part has been getting to know your communities through your representation and advocacy. 

It's a great privilege to be the Minister of Local Government.

It's been a very steep learning curve for me.  I have very much appreciated your help, your support, your advice and your patience. 

Getting together to talk freely about issues is a great way to build trust and is an integral part of the policy development process.

For those who don't know, I recently met with SOLGM, LGNZ and the PSA in the first of our "roundtable discussions".  I want these to be a regular occurrence where we can share ideas and discuss the issues affecting the sector. 

Of course, we don't always agree.  But I always make time to talk and I don't doubt the sincerity and integrity of the views of SOLGM and its members.

A lot has happened since I spoke to you at your 2009 annual conference.  The new Auckland Council is a little under two months away from being a reality. 

The reforms of Auckland governance have been a unique and challenging experience.  In the 18 months since the Royal Commission announced its decisions, three pieces of new legislation have been enacted, and close to three thousand submissions were made. 

I have attended numerous meetings about the changes to local government in Auckland.  The end goal is to have one council for the Auckland region, and on 1 November this goal will be reached.

On 30 August I announced the directors of the seven council-controlled organisations (CCOs) of the new Auckland Council. 

The Government has been fortunate in being able to appoint men and women of such high calibre. In New Zealand, we have a small, but rich, pool of talent and these are people whose talents would be welcome anywhere in the world.

I was also very happy to announce last week that the efficiency gains earned by the new Watercare CCO will be felt right through the Auckland economy.

From the first of July next year everyone in metropolitan Auckland will pay less for water.

Due to the diverse range of charging regimes for waste water that currently exist across Auckland, we will require the new council to consider these complex pricing issues and consult with the community as it develops its first Long Term Plan in 2012.

But the important thing is water prices are tumbling, and this is just the start of the benefits for the region's residents.

The second job I have underway is the reforms contained in the Local Government Act 2002 Amendment Bill.  These are designed to improve local authorities' ability to set their direction and to improve the ability of ratepayers and residents to influence and assess their councils.

I believe we can and we must do better if we are to build prosperous places to live, work and play in.

I have discussed much of this with you all before, but needless to say I am very much looking forward to submissions and the work of the Select Committee.

The Parliamentary process now underway provides the opportunity to improve significantly the legislation within which local government operates.

My third job is the biggest and most significant.

With your input and assistance I want to produce next year a first-principles discussion document of the proper constitutional status of local government in New Zealand.

I want to consider how proper function and structure should be evaluated and assessed, and how central and local government can better mesh both their decision-making and their work programmes to improve the service we provide in the communities we represent.

The purpose of the discussion document is not to declare policy. 

The purpose is to establish what the issues are and to seek feedback on how we can better operate.  The purpose is to advance the debate and understanding so that the new government and new Parliament post the 2011 General Election are both better placed to work and interact with local government.

I have tentatively called this project "Smarter Government - Stronger Communities".

It's an exciting project because I believe central government can do much much better.  The project is an opportunity to explain how.

The project has bubbled and grown as I have travelled the country, listened to your concerns and those of ratepayers and residents, and as I have learnt on the job.

Local government is more responsive, more practical, and closer to people and communities than central government. We need to recognise that.

We need to build on that.

The problem is that central government and local government don't mesh well. The result:  unnecessary frustration and waste.

Many of you believe that central government treats local government like a government department.  It's easy to see why. 

Councils increasingly find they are being pushed towards becoming purely administrative bodies, forced to realise central government directives first, and following the will of ratepayers second.

To me local government is a distinct tier of government, focussed on a particular set of core services, but not a subservient level of government. 

The political difficulty is that central government sets the law in which local government must operate. It gains further influence through subsidies for operational and capital spending. 

But we surely must be able to improve the interaction between central and local government. 

What I have learned as Minister is that the problem starts with Central Government.  Virtually every government policy impacts on local government. 

It seems every Minister's new initiative means more costs for local government. New programmes, new initiatives, new rules just rain down on you from above.

It's too much.  It's overwhelming.  And it's costly.

It seems to me that the left hand of government doesn't always know what the right hand is doing.

And central government's policy making too often adds up to an impact on local government that lacks coherence and clear direction. 

We can do better. 

That's why we need the debate.

We need to discover mechanisms to better co-ordinate central government's policy making, so that for local government it has coherence, consistency and clarity.

For example, the new Auckland Council will spend $3 billion a year in Auckland.  Central Government spends $18 billion a year in Auckland. 

If Central Government works with the new Auckland Council to improve the effectiveness of it's spending by just five percent, that's almost a billion dollars of value. And that five per cent improvement shouldn't be hard.

As part of the Auckland governance reforms, the new Council will be required to produce an integrated spatial plan providing high level direction for infrastructure, transport and land use planning.

This will be the concrete expression of the Mayor's vision for Auckland.  

One of the central tenets of the spatial plan process is the idea of engagement and negotiation ‑ that strategic objectives are agreed and debated with all actors, including the private sector, central government, and communities.

It's about getting shared, mutually-beneficial outcomes.

The Government will be actively engaged in the development of the first Auckland spatial plan - and has a range of interests in the plan - including seeing Auckland live up to its potential, and getting better value from government infrastructure spending as a result of better spatial decisions. 

The Minister for the Environment is leading further work on this within the current phase of the resource management reform process, which is looking at the broader issue of how we plan towns and cities.

It recognises that local government is not solely responsible for delivering urban development;  there is also a role for central government and the private sector.

This work includes considering whether the Auckland spatial plan should have legislative links to plans under the Resource Management Act and Land Transport Management Act. 

Spatial planning is a development of existing practice, and there are real elements of spatial planning in work that has already been done around the country - from the Coromandel Peninsula Blueprint to the Greater Christchurch Urban Development Strategy. 

Developing the processes around central and local government engagement in the Auckland spatial plan is an immediate issue that must be resolved.

But my intention with the "Smarter Government -- Stronger Communities" work programme is to step back and take a more conceptual view of central-local government interactions, and take the time to grapple with fundamental issues. 

I would expect we would revisit basic questions, including:

• are we clear about why we have local government? Why and for whom does it exist?
• What principles should guide what functions and decision-making should rest with central government, and which should rest with local government, and, indeed, which ones should rest with individual citizens, and how should the costs be distributed?
• how should local government be constitutionally established and protected, and to what extent? 
• how do we ensure that we have stable, durable local government institutions while allowing communities genuine opportunities to change structural arrangements from below?
• should central government actively monitor and intervene in local government, or is it better to enhance the ability of local ratepayers and voters to hold their councils to account?
• what would the outcome be if local government was a fully respected partner of central government?  Would we need elaborate and formal cooperation mechanisms like those in larger jurisdictions,  or could we agree on some fundamental principles and just "get on with it" in a way that suits New Zealand? 
• How can we build council boundaries, powers and governance arrangements that reflect local communities and, as section 10 of the Local Government Act 2002 says: "enable democratic local decision making and action by, and on behalf of, local communities"?

The project "Smarter Government - Stronger Communities" will take two to three years. Once we've determined the parameters of the work a discussion document will be drawn up and the sector will be fully consulted. 

The review will be of value only if we get on the table all the issues that concern local government and confront them honestly and openly. 

I am going to need a lot of help and assistance. 

I believe our most important work is ahead of us.  With your help we can revitalise local government.  To do that with must sort out central government's interaction with your sector.

I am excited by that prospect.  I hope you are too.

I am looking forward to your questions and comments today.

ENDS