Other councils are keen to be next to strike a water deal with govt

Buzz from the Beehive

Local Water Done Well – let’s be blunt – is a silly name, but the first big initiative to put it into practice has gone done well.

This success is reflected in the headline on an RNZ report:

District mayors welcome Auckland’s new water deal with govt

The report records reactions to a deal struck between the government and Auckland Council that – according to the data bandied in the press statement – will result in water rates rising by 7.2 percent rather than the 25.8 percent forecast.

Watercare will be able to borrow more money to invest in infrastructure under the scheme with the cost of borrowing spread over a longer period.

Other local body leaders are keen to be next to strike a deal.

According to a report on Scoop, councils from Horowhenua, Kāpiti, Wairarapa, the Hutt Valley, Porirua and Wellington City will meet on Friday to work together on a plan for a Greater Wellington region water deal.

The meeting of council representatives will be chaired by former Wellington Mayor Dame Kerry Prendergast.

Porirua Mayor Anita Baker says she wants their region to get its act together and be the next to get a deal. She said it would help councils in the Wellington region facing high rates.

Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau – she’s a Green Party politician, isn’t she? – said while the details around the Auckland deal are not clear, it sounded positive.

The Auckland deal was announced at a joint press conference at Watercare’s Central Interceptor construction site in Māngere by Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, Local Government Minister Simeon Brown, and Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown.

“Under the Local Water Done Well solution we have announced today, Aucklanders will avoid the 25.8 per cent water rate increases previously proposed by Watercare. We have worked closely with Mayor Brown and Auckland Council, and are thrilled to announce that Watercare’s more financially sustainable model will ensure water rates remain affordable both now and into the future,” Mr Brown says.

“The previous government wasted $1.2 billion over several years to deliver a water reform plan that was wasteful, took away local control, and was divisive. It was resoundingly rejected by voters.”

Brown delighted in joshing critics of Local Water Done Well who said it could not be done.

“But within the space of just six months, the Coalition Government has worked with Auckland Council on designing a new model for Watercare.”

The new model means Watercare will be able to borrow more money for long-term investment in water infrastructure and spread the borrowing over a longer period rather than front-loading the cost on to current ratepayers.

Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown says he has been working closely with central government to provide a simple, affordable water solution for Aucklanders, and that hard work paid off when the Council’s Governing Body unanimously voted for their preferred option at Thursday’s meeting.

“This outcome is exactly what we’ve been looking to achieve. The new government asked us to come up with a preferred model, and they’ve agreed to implement it, which is good. I want to thank the Minister and the Prime Minister for the way they have handled this,” Mayor Wayne Brown says.

International credit ratings agency S&P Global Ratings has determined the model would mean Watercare’s borrowing is considered separate from Auckland Council for credit rating purposes.

The only other new announcement on the government’s official website at time of writing comes from Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters.

It has been carefully crafted – presumably – to tell us of his discussions with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock without triggering threats of defamation litigation.

He discussed the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and enhanced cooperation in the Pacific, during Baerbock’s first official visit to New Zealand.

“New Zealand and Germany enjoy shared interests and values, including the rule of law, democracy, respect for the international system and human rights,” Mr Peters says.

“This was a great opportunity to share views on the inter-connected security threats in our regions, including Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, as well as on our steadfast efforts to secure an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

“We also discussed how best to strengthen cooperation in the Pacific and in Antarctica, where we can and should be doing much more together. In this context, we welcome the opening of the German Embassy in Suva.”

The Ministers witnessed the signing of a Memorandum of Arrangement between Antarctica New Zealand and the Alfred Wegener Institute.

Germany is New Zealand’s largest export market in Europe.  It is also New Zealand’s most important science and innovation partner and largest education market in Europe, and the source of significant numbers of tourists and young people on working holidays.

The Ministers also discussed Germany’s recent attribution of malicious cyber activity to agents of the Russian Government.

While in Auckland, Minister Baerbock was meeting Ministers Judith Collins and Simon Watts, enabling deeper discussions on space, science and climate change cooperation.

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