Viewpoint – Rodney to Mayor: No to five per cent rate rise

Auckland’s councillors are currently deciding whether to support a mayoral proposal to increase rates next year by an average of five per cent, or alternatively by 3.5 per cent. Importantly, that process included asking Aucklanders which option they supported.

Council provided written consultation material, online information sessions, face-to-face public meetings and social media videos to explain the different impacts between a five and a 3.5 per cent average rates increase.

Overwhelmingly, very well-informed Aucklanders rejected the Mayor’s budget. Public feedback also included a need to find revenue and savings, internal cost reductions rather than just efficiency gains. Many people commented about the financial hardship they were under and having to make cost reductions, so why wasn’t Council doing the same?

True cost reductions will be impossible without Council defining what its core business is. I will continue to push to ensure this happens.

Rejection of the five per cent rates increase was even more pronounced from Rodney’s residents, with a massive 70 per cent of people not supporting the Mayoral proposal. Most people’s feedback explained they supported the 3.5 per cent rates increase, with many wanting even lower rate increases.

Feedback from Rodney’s residents included wanting Council to get back to core business, stopping wastage and overspending, a reduction in regulations and compliance costs and a reduction in senior executive salaries.

Ratepayers disapproved of Council planning to spend more than ever, yet Rodney was being marginalised from that spending.

This has proven inconvenient for the Mayor, forcing him to promote a smaller Colmar Brunton poll, ahead of the official public feedback results, as the new source of truth. This poll cost ratepayers $110,000 and showed nine per cent more people supporting the Mayor’s budget than rejecting it.

I believe the poll was fundamentally flawed because it only had the five per cent option, and failed to mention the cumulative effect of seven per cent water rate increases, the

Rodney Local Board transport rate, or the regional fuel tax – all of which was outlined in the Council’s official consultation documentation. Regardless, the people have spoken and have sent a clear message. They want their elected Supercity representatives to uphold their democratic wishes. However, I am doubtful that this will happen.

Although the pros and cons around the rate increase options were clearly laid out in Council’s comprehensive consultation documents, many elected members have signalled they will support the Mayor’s proposal.

Increasing rates is an easy fix for Council. Digging deep and making cuts back to core business, as most businesses have to do in hard times, requires tougher calls to be made.

However, it will be with a clear sense of duty that I will be representing the people of Rodney when the rate increase decision must be made.

Another feeling that came through in the public feedback was a continued lack of trust in the Council. Well, maybe taxing by stealth and riding roughshod over the people paying the politicians wages is the exact conduct the public don’t trust.

My prediction is in future years Council will be seeking from you even greater rate increases because of its increasing spending, spiralling debt and failure to peel back to core services.

Greg Sayers, Rodney Councillor
greg.sayers@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz