Concerns have been raised by the Auckland Ratepayers’ Alliance towards unknown expenditure by Auckland Council on the 2024 Matariki Festivals.

A request under the Local Government Official Information and Meeting Act last year revealed Auckland Council spent $717,941.95 on Matariki festivities – with more than $126,400 spent on just one of the 88 events, alone. The final bill however remains unknown as costs are not expected to be finalised until 30 June 2025.

“It’s concerning to see such huge amounts still unaccounted for” said Sam Warren, a spokesman for the Auckland Ratepayers’ Alliance.

“Every dollar spent by Council needs to be readily defendable. Proper scrutiny is next to impossible if it takes the Council more than 12 months to know what even they’ve spent.”

“Aucklanders deserve better transparency on how their money is being spent – and it’s troubling to see such huge sums of money are put towards festivals without a clear view on how big the pot might actually be.”

“In August last year the Prime Minister and then-Local Government Minister Simeon Brown made clear their expectations to councils to do away with ‘nice-to-haves’ and rein in spending. How on earth can councils do this when it takes over a year to find out how much they’ve actually spent?”

“Better reporting practices are desperately needed for Auckland to stay on top of ratepayer-funded expenditure.”

NOTES:

The Auckland Ratepayers' Alliance is a not-for-profit community group dedicated to championing prudent fiscal management of our Super City. Membership is free and open to all Aucklanders who sign up at www.ratepayers.nz.

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