Michael Laws

Mayor Michael Laws today publicly supported the calls of Local Government Minister Rodney Hide to set a cap on local government rates at the rate of inflation.

Minister Rodney Hide has released a Cabinet paper outlining plans for councils that depart from core business, or have above inflation rate increases, to seek referendum support from their constituents before doing so.

Under Mayor Laws, the Wanganui District Council has conducted annual referenda since 2005, including the option of local electors setting their rates increases.

This year the citizens of Wanganui were provided four different rate scenarios and chose a 3% rates increase. On Monday the Wanganui District Council trimmed its annual budget for 2009/10 and established a 3.2% average rate increase.

Over the past five years the Wanganui District Council has provided average rate increases of 2.5% per annum compared with the average rate of inflation of 3.2% per annum.

"There are many examples of councils straying from their core functions, from gambling with entertainment events to funding massive and expensive stadia. The prime requirement of any council is to ensure that adequate infrastructure is in place and that speculative and money losing ventures are shunned. Of course councils have social and economic responsibilities but, in many cases, they impose greater financial burdens than they relieve.

"Wanganui has proven over the past five years that you can have both direct democracy and lower than inflation rates increases without compromising infrastructure or community minded programmes. Local government is incredibly bureaucratic and inefficient and Wanganui has proven to the Minister that there is an alternative and more efficient path. Local government in New Zealand should be embarrassed at its profligacy and its refusal to heed the financial burdens that it places upon ordinary ratepayers."