Let’s get our act together Wellington

This is a website devoted to the promotion of discussion about the future of Wellington’s local government.

Charitable Trust to be formed

John Terris

Ken Douglas

A One Wellington Charitable Trust is in the process of being formed which will provide oversight of our plans for the next few months leading up to the October 2010 Local Body elections.

The members of the proposed Trust are DAVID MOLONEY, an important figure in Wellington business for many years; KEN DOUGLAS, prominent in Porirua local affairs and a former Union Leader; JOHN TERRIS a former Hutt Mayor and MP; and, PETER MORAHAN, a Hutt Lawyer.

The purpose of the Trust is to stimulate debate about the future of Local Government in the Wellington region.  This will include approaching all of the candidates for office in the Wellington area, asking them for their position on the rationalisation of services.

John Terris writes: The creation of a supercity in Auckland this year, means that as a capital, we will be left behind in terms of our capacity to lobby government effectively, unless we can demonstrate that there is significant opinion here in favour of a move to one Wellington.

What would it mean?

Well that’s what we need to talk about. The local authorities themselves don’t want any discussion because they are focussed not on our interests but their own self-preservation.

It would certainly mean substantial savings for ratepayers. If you employed the formula applied by the Royal Commission in Auckland we’re talking about $20 million, every year.

As far as hard-pressed ratepayers are concerned making savings by merging water and sewage management, transport and roading, housing and tourism, IT and libraries, across the region, makes sense.

Of course you would still want community councils, as in the Auckland model, to ensure the individual communities still have a voice.

Why not?

Most local mayors are agin it because they want you to think the sky is going to fall in if rationalisation of services happens. Yet the same people predicted the same outcome before the big changes in 1989 and what happened? Absolutely nothing. The sky is still intact.

We’re not talking about a supercity and we’re not talking about amalgamation – we’re talking about merging some big ticket functions to effect obvious savings.

Here’s what some others think.