For good or ill, the future of the Auckland region is now a fait accompli. There are no great surprises by the royal commission. Shrewdly, they covered all the political bases.

They effectively leave intact the current cities and districts, albeit they are now demoted to city wards. The commissioners have probably neutralised any serious mutterings by letting Waitakere and Manukau keep their names. Rodney, Papakura and Franklin get carved up. North Shore was always going to lose its name, but it does get to gobble up the Hibiscus Coast. I'm sure some in the leafy suburbs in the isthmus will be annoyed at having to pronounce their new name Tamaki Makau Rua. But they'll get used to it.

Interestingly, each of the wards maintains almost the same numbers of elected councillors that they currently have. When you take into account the regional councillors' roles reverting to city councillors, the only layer taken out is the community boards with a few mayors.

The only organised secessionist opposition that could have caused headaches was going to come from the Waiheke and Great Barrier Islands. They not only keep their community boards, but have had their powers and autonomy extended. It was a smart move to give self-rule to the islanders. That should shut them up.

One of the creative initiatives was to set up a City Centre and Wharf community board with direct feed into the new council. We'll never hear the end of Heart of the City's Alex Swney now. But the CBD is a disgrace and a focused entity for the inner city will at last give the region a real city centre.

The commissioners would have us believe the amalgamation will save the ratepayers millions of dollars a year. Of course, it's all nonsense. They said that the last time they amalgamated the Auckland region's boroughs into the present arrangements. Despite asking, I haven't yet been given one example in the world where services have been maintained and rates have dropped after a local government restructure.

I notice there was little reference to what will happen to the current council workers.

But even the harshest critics accept that streamlining the region for the sake of transport and public utilities was well overdue and will now happen. But this will cost a lot of money. And that's where an agenda by some of our corporate and right-wing idealogues is fermenting away below the radar.

There is no doubt in my mind that under this Government a privatisation strategy will be rammed through if they think they can get away with it. Rodney Hide as Act leader didn't take the Local Government Minister's role because he had nothing else to do.