Manukau City Council submission to ‘Third Bill’

Local community interests should be reflected in the new governance structure, the Manukau City Council says in its submission on the Local Government (Auckland Law Reform) Bill.

Mayor Len Brown says it is the council’s overriding concern, and responsibility, to ensure that the each community’s unique nature and needs are understood and reflected in the new governance structure.

“It is vital that the local boards have meaningful powers, funding and support. We are not confident, as the legislation is currently framed, that local boards will be adequately empowered to respond to their communities,” Mr Brown says.

“The legislation should be strengthened to allocate powers and functions of local boards. The Auckland Council should then be able to work with the boards on how their responsibilities over and above the legislated requirements will reflect their distinctive local communities of interest.

“In Manukau, for instance, we have successful initiatives such as the City of Manukau Education Trust (COMET) and the John Walker Find Your Field of Dreams, which are distinctly Manukau. These need the space to continue their work, and other such initiatives should also be given the room to develop and grow.”

Manukau City Council is also concerned that the Bill provides for council-controlled organisations to be established or disestablished outside the normal democratic decision-making processes.

“It’s highly unusual that the Government should establish CCOs by legislation, rather than through consultation with the community under the provisions of the Local Government Act 2004.

“The people of Auckland are being treated differently to the rest of New Zealand, and are therefore not being given the opportunity to have the choice in whether they should have their services delivered through CCOs,” Mr Brown says.

“The establishment of CCOs should be left to the Auckland Council, to allow for public consultation and input.”

Mr Brown says that the council’s concern is that local democracy under the new governance structure is accountable and responsive to the needs of the community.

“While we know change is inevitable, it is still our responsibility to ensure that our collaborative approach to partnership with government and non-government agencies to contribute to the community’s well-being will continue at local board and council level.

“We need to know that under the legislation in its final form, the council, local boards, advisory boards, CCOs and other subsidiaries will be closely linked and be working towards the same goals.”

Other substantive issues in the council’s submission include:

Local Boards

o Ability to general additional revenue leading to inequalities in service delivery. The council notes that generating additional revenue sources should not impact on existing levels of service.
o Impractical timing for local board plans, with the adoption of Local Board Plans by 30 April following the triennial elections resulting in rushed consideration of board and community preferences. The council recommends a change to 30 September for adoption of plan, to allow the local board time to consult adequately with its local communities and other interested parties, and to assess if the existing local board plan needs amending.

Council controlled organisations

o CCO board appointments made by Ministers. The council proposes that the legislation should allow for the relevant Ministers to appoint interim boards for CCOs for set time period.
o No requirement for integration with the Auckland Council’s strategic goals. One of the reasons stated for establishing the Auckland Council is to have the region working towards one strategic direction. The council proposes that the legislation should require CCOs to give effect to the strategic direction of the Auckland Council and reference the four well-beings.

Spatial Plan

o There is no direct reference to sustainable development and the four well-beings in the Bill. The council proposes the Bill reflects the four well-beings of sustainable development.
The council’s submission is available on the council’s website, http://www.manukau.govt.nz.

ENDS

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