Reform of local government - relief and celebration

BusinessNZ congratulates the Government and Local Government Minister Simeon Brown on planned local government reform.

BusinessNZ Chief Executive Katherine Rich said the Government’s agreement to change the purpose of the Local Government Act, from the current ‘four well-beings’ purpose, to one focused on delivering basic infrastructure and services, has not come a moment too soon.

"The current description of local government’s purpose - ‘promoting social, economic, environmental, and cultural well-being’ - is incredibly broad in its reach. It has led to councils around the country getting involved in expensive, wasteful undertakings, causing rates to rise exponentially, while ignoring the real infrastructure needs of local communities," Katherine Rich said.

"Refocusing the Act on the basics is well overdue and will be greeted with relief and celebration by communities around New Zealand.

"The reform will be significant not only for households but businesses as well, since businesses pay the greatest share of rates while often receiving poor service delivery and inadequate infrastructure provision in return.

"Of course, repurposing local government does not mean ditching the idea of community well-being. Local government does have a role to play in advancing New Zealanders’ overall well-being, however, that role cannot be all-encompassing - it needs to be established on a principled basis and properly focused.

"This planned local government reform will help future councils stay in their lane," Mrs Rich said.