Media statement Tuesday, 17th July, 2007

Public response to One Auckland plan overwhelmingly in favour

The Fix Auckland campaign launched yesterday is attracting messages
overwhelmingly in support of the One Auckland plan.

After the first 24 hours of going live, 94 per cent of 350 voters on the
Fix Auckland website supported the plan to overhaul the region's
government in principle; other voters preferred a different solution or
want things to stay the same (see www.fixauckland.com
).

The campaign to open debate on Auckland's transformation proposes a
detailed plan to abolish the existing seven councils and one regional
council and replacing them with a single Auckland council and
administration, and 21 community councils.

The plan envisages savings to ratepayers in excess of $200 million a
year while strengthening the local in local government.

Some of the views on the Fix Auckland website are:

"The greater Auckland region is a multi billion dollar powerhouse for
NZ, not a play thing for elected representatives who are good at kissing
babies or government departments covering butt. None of these have the
urgency needed for progress and none would know one end of a balance
sheet from another.

"Congratulations. It's time we brought some common sense to this
situation. We need to be freed up from inconsistency, bureaucracy, patch
protection and this enormous waste of resources."

"It's outrageous that Auckland's eight councils have been working on a
report for the Government without any public consultation."

"A unified Auckland will mean does not look like a laughing stock, not
only to the rest of this great country, but also the rest of the world."

"Any bureaucrats' plan for Auckland will be a compromise at the very
least. All of them will be naturally reluctant to surrender power."

"The seemingly uncontrolled growth of local government is one of the big
threats NZ faces. Current issues include:
1. Attracting people with the necessary skills to stand for political
office. Elected positions should either be properly rewarded or
voluntary (as they traditionally were).
2. A lack of informed scrutiny of local governance decisions.

3. A lack of staff with skills to handle the proliferation of job
functions created by the multiplicity of councils.
4. Lack of accountability for cost effective delivery of functions.

"I like the proposed structure but to succeed it must:
1. Be positive in its attitude.
2. Recognise those things that work well and seek to modify them to fit
into the new structure.
3. Recognise the sincerity of most people in local government.

"Auckland is a fantastic city being strangled by dysfunctional local
government."

"This administration for too long has been trying to build the house and
insert the plumbing and wiring and other services after it's finished! A
costly process that never works."

ends

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