Parliamentary Debates (Hansard) - New Zealand Parliament

16 May 2009 Local Government (Tamaki Makaurau Reorganisation) Bill 3719
I would like to thank the royal commissioners for their work, and to congratulate all
those involved in coordinating the Government’s response. I also want to thank the
people of Auckland who contributed through their submissions to the royal commission
report, and who have continued to express their views. The level of interest and
continued debate gives me great confidence that the new Auckland mayor and council
will lead a vigorous and critical local democracy. I also thank my Associate Minister of
Local Government, Mr John Carter, with whom I have built up a great sense of
teamwork and friendship. He has done an outstanding job over the period in, first of all,
developing the policy, producing the legislation, and, indeed, making sure the
legislation has a speedy process through Parliament. I also thank Mr Brendan Boyle
from the Department of Internal Affairs and his team, who have done an outstanding job
for the people of Auckland, Parliament, and New Zealand. We should all be proud of
the calibre of the staff of the Department of Internal Affairs.
The Auckland Council, as a single unitary authority governing the region, will
provide leadership and deliver core services efficiently and effectively. The second tier
of governance, made up of 20 to 30 local boards, will ensure that Aucklanders are heard
on issues and make local decisions on local matters. The new system for Auckland
governance will be much simpler, be more coordinated, and provide for community
representation at the grassroots level. This bill is the foundation stone upon which we
will make Auckland a great place to live that drives New Zealand’s economic growth.
The new mayor and councillors will be the first leaders in Auckland’s history to be in a
position to balance local and regional issues. They will be able to speak with one voice
to central government, and this Government intends to listen. This bill provides for the
establishment of the Auckland Council on and from 1 November 2010, the
establishment of the Auckland Transition Agency to manage and facilitate the transition
to the new local governance arrangements, and requirements for the existing local
authorities and certain other entities to participate in the reorganisation, both by doing
specified things and by refraining from doing specified things.
This Government was elected to govern. There are those who believe that they have
more to say in addition to the decades of debate and the royal commission submissions
and report. There are those who believe that the Government should somehow make the
complex process simple, and put a single simple question to a referendum, which would
delay or possibly stop the renewal of Auckland governance. There are those who say
that we have waited 50 years and that we can wait longer. We cannot wait longer. The
royal commission considered the possibility of waiting and said no. It said we should
act now. It said it is essential that the transition work is under way quickly. It said that
the 18-month time frame for the establishment of the Auckland Council is ambitious but
achievable, and it said that it is most important that the deadline is met. It said that the
consultation by the royal commission had been extensive, and that there was “no need
to rehearse old arguments”.
The bill will enable work to get under way to make Auckland an internationally
competitive city and a place that encourages our children and grandchildren to build
their futures in New Zealand. This is a bill that Auckland needs, and a bill that New
Zealand needs. It is well-thought-out and, with the later bills, balances the need for
urgency with the need for democratic input. I commend this bill to the House.
Hon SHANE JONES (Labour): I begin by acknowledging the sterling service
provided by the Clerk’s Office—those officers of this esteemed institution who have
helped guide the parliamentarians through this tumultuous single day of sitting. I would
not like it to go unnoticed that they have shown a great deal of diligence and patience,
and they have had to sustain some attacks from the other side of the House, and, indeed,
the Leader of the House, who drove a stake driven by desperation, pettiness, and