The awkward 'make-up, break-up' relationship between the Government and the Christchurch City Council is putting unnecessary stress on Cantabrians, says Labour's Earthquake Recovery spokesperson Lianne Dalziel.

"At the end of last year Gerry Brownlee claimed to have great sympathy for the mayor, saying that he didn't know that he was all that well supported by the council. Now he has called him a clown and accused him of an outrageous abdication of his responsibilities.

"I am worried that these comments are designed as a sideshow to take scrutiny off the underlying issue, which is that there is a showdown behind the scenes with the government putting pressure on the council to raise rates further than they already have and to sell off its assets," Lianne Dalziel said.

"The Minister is clearly unhappy that the Mayor has made a statement to the media about the nature of the pressure being applied by Treasury. He is trying to link this issue to recent concerns about council performance, but that has nothing to do with it.

"The government wants Christchurch to pay for its own rebuild but is keeping residents in the dark," Lianne Dalziel said.

"The latest spat over whether or not CERA can direct the council to sell assets or put up rates to pay for the rebuild is another example of recovery on the hoof and the direct result of a striking lack of decisive, transparent leadership.

"Cantabrians have been through enough. What they don't need are backroom deals being done on the future of their city and their city's assets.

"The Government and council are on thin ice," Lianne Dalziel said.

"Gerry Brownlee has not ruled out partially privatising 100 per cent council-owned lines company Orion, leaving the door open for the Christchurch City Council to look at 'all the opportunities that are there'.

"What a disaster it would have been if Orion's top priority had been returns to shareholders, instead of the urgent restoration of power to the eastern suburbs of Christchurch," Lianne Dalziel said.