Key’s plan for councils to help pay cycleway bill contradicts Hide’s ‘core services’

John Key’s plan to ask councils to pick up some of the tab for his cycleway project totally contradicts his Local Government Minister’s plans for councils to be restricted to core services, says Labour’s Auckland Issues spokesperson Phil Twyford.

“The irony will not have been lost on local government leaders, at whose annual conference Mr Key announced the latest cycleway details today.

“Local Government New Zealand, the organisation which represents local government, has strongly criticised Mr Hide’s plans to use a review of the Local Government Act to restrict councils to the delivery of core services. This has also significantly undermined public confidence in the reform of Auckland local government.

“Mr Key acknowledged the concern Mr Hide’s proposals have created within local government during his speech today,” Phil Twyford said.

“He appeared to open the door to yet another change of heart, although failed to put any stakes in the ground.
“In light of today’s cycleway and the recent Queens Wharf announcements by the Government, it would of course be somewhat rich of it to proceed with Mr Hide’s core services plans.

“Cycleways and a ‘party central’ pad for the Rugby World Cup would certainly not fit Mr Hide’s definition of core services. Yet the Government expects councils to come to the funding party when it wants its own initiatives, such as these, funded.

“Aside from the hypocrisy, Mr Hide’s plans would lead to increased privatisation of public assets and services, which will inevitably lead to a big increase in user-pays for ratepayers around the country – which the public doesn’t want.

Phil Twyford said it was heartening Mr Key had told the conference that he expected to see ‘beefed-up’ powers for the second tier bodies as part of the reform of Auckland’s local government.

“Labour has called for this all along.
“Mr Hide has badly mishandled the Auckland governance reforms, just as he has mishandled his proposed Local Government Act review and Mr Key should come clean and say whether he support Mr Hide’s core services plans or not. If he doesn’t, they should be ditched now,” Phil Twyford said.

ENDS

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