Parliamentary Debates (Hansard) - New Zealand Parliament

16 May 2009 Local Government (Auckland Reorganisation) Bill 3653
fact, there will be a guarantee that those assets are kept in the ownership of the
ratepayers of Auckland.
That is what my Part 9 would ensure. It requires that the Auckland Transition
Agency should not sell or otherwise dispose of, or sell any equity securities, or
surrender any voting rights in, or relinquish any right to appoint trustees, directors, or
managers of any asset or organisation listed in schedule 2 during the transition period.
Obviously, because of the scope of the bill, the amendment deals only with the
transition period, but members on this side hope that no assets will ever be alienated in
Auckland as a result of this reform. The protected assets that are set out in schedule 2
are the parks of the people of Auckland, the swimming pools of the people of Auckland,
and the public libraries of the region, and the assets of the region such as those held by
the Auckland Regional Transport Authority.
Simon Bridges: Stop reading!
CHARLES CHAUVEL: That member might benefit from actually reading the
schedule, instead of interjecting, and deciding what his position is. It would be nice if
National were to commit once and for all to public ownership of these assets, rather
than using mealy-mouthed weasel words about whether it has any commitment to the
ownership of public assets. Make no mistake, members on this side of the Chamber
strongly believe in retaining these assets in public ownership. That is what my Part 9 is
about and that is what my schedule 2 will bring about. It will forbid this shadowy
appointed agency from selling these assets during the transition period without any
public scrutiny and without any ability for the public of Auckland to have a say on it. I
would like to hear the Minister in the chair, John Carter, take a call and commit that side
of the Chamber to the position that is set out in this part. It would be great to hear a
commitment not to sell Ports of Auckland Ltd, Metro Water, Auckland International
Airport Ltd, or Watercare Services. Those fantastic assets have delivered a great return
to the people of Auckland. They are strategic to the future of the region, and they must
be kept in public ownership, not alienated by the shadowy body of appointed cronies
who will be running Auckland for the time it takes to deal with the transition.
I would like to talk in particular about the assets in South Auckland, because they are
of real concern. Members on this side of the Chamber have been to meetings in South
Auckland and have heard from ordinary people in that part of the region that they are
worried that they might lose access to their free swimming pools as a result of this
reform. They might lose access to the fantastic services that are currently provided by
the excellent Manukau City Council, of which my colleague Su’a William Sio was
formerly the deputy mayor, and of which Len Brown is currently doing a fine job as
mayor. That city has made a real effort to reach out to its people and provide them with
excellent services, as have Waitakere City, Auckland City, and the other entities dealt
with by this legislation. But nowhere in this bill is there any interdiction against the
selling of those assets, and that is a major omission. It is just like the absence of any
decent personnel provisions, which was the deficit that my colleague Darien Fenton
sought to remedy earlier. This deficit must be remedied, because the people of
Auckland must be assured that there will not be any alienation of assets, either during
the transition period or afterwards.
I spoke about the quantum of the assets involved, and I said that the value of the
assets was $27.2 billion, with annual revenue of $2.3 billion. There must be an
assurance—we must hear it today from members on the opposite side—that the assets
will be kept in public ownership.
TODD McCLAY (National—Rotorua): I move, That the question be now put.
GRANT ROBERTSON (Labour—Wellington Central): Mr Chair—
Hon Member: Unbelievable!