Act Chair of Auckland North Wrong...Again

I am not surprised that Act Chair of Auckland North and former ACT secretary Nick Kearney is confused. Either deliberately or otherwise he is mixing two pieces of legislation in his letter of 29th June. If the former Act Party secretary reads the Local Government Act 2002 Amendment Bill 142-1 currently before a select committee he will see that sections 126-129 of the substantive Act are up for repeal. These important sections require Councils to provide information including “the quality and adequacy of supply of drinking water”.  If this amendment is carried then Councils may not be required to report on the quality of their drinking water. When considered alongside the delay in introducing minimum water standards then we will not only be without mandatory minimum drinking water standards but we won’t even necessarily know the quality of the water we are drinking.


Also, the new Local Government (Auckland Transitional Provisions) Act 2010 (enacted 14 June) removed the clause in the Bill requiring Watercare to take into account and policies of and comply with any directions given by the Auckland Council.  Now it only has to consider comments so even the Statement of Corporate Intent (SCI ) is no comfort for Auckland ratepayers (Sec. 21). Despite Mr Kearney’s assertions, Watercare is apparently not required to follow but only consider the SCI and even then only until the end of 30 June 2012.

Seemingly in anticipation of the new Council’s policy, Rodney District have continued to have a Property Utility charge for wastewater but also introduced wastewater volumetric charges (previously known as pan charges) with their water accounts.  And the other Rodney (Hide) strongly advocated for volumetric charges in an April 6 2009 Cabinet Paper. So I am in under no illusion as to what the intent of the legislation is intended to achieve.

However, a press release was inadvertently released in my name saying that volumetric charging was required in the new law. I did not see or approve that release before it was issued. This was an acknowledged mistake but these things happen.  But, that does not take away the fact that the majority of the meeting, and apparently North Shore residents, opposed the introduction of volumetric charging and I am surprised that Mr Kearney and his friend George Wood seemed to support such an unfair pricing strategy for North Shore people.