Matt Cowley: There's a bigger issue to tackle before we get to Three Waters reform

Three Waters relates to water, stormwater and wastewater. Photo / Getty Images

COMMENT:

Many people in the business community want local government to change. It's broken, slow and not representative if only a third of eligible voters vote.

Change needs to happen, however, it needs to be in a logical order. That's why I am not surprised that the Government's Three Waters proposal is facing challenges from councils and some community groups.

The Three Waters issue came about because councils were individually asking for funding from the Government for local water infrastructure.

A few high-profile infrastructure failings persuaded the Government to look into it more seriously.

The Government knew if it gave funding to one council, then all councils will ask for help. A full review of the country's municipal water services was completed and the consultants suggested there was an approximately $30 billion deficit under the current inefficient system.

Locally, Tauranga City Council has reached its debt ceiling, so removing Three Waters would give the council debt headroom to focus on infrastructure for housing and transport.

Also, there is a nationwide shortage of skilled water engineers, modellers and operators. Spreading the nation's limited expertise thinly across 67 separate water entities is asking for poor outcomes.

Most businesses don't really care about who does what regarding local water services; they mainly want their water to be affordable and reliable. They also expect that the local community voices will influence better outcomes.

However, judging by the public confusion, the Government's Three Waters proposal is not clear on how local voices will influence local outcomes.

Representation is the core issue at the heart of the local government review. It seems extremely odd to ask councils to commit to the Three Waters proposal when Minister Nanaia Mahuta's wider review of local government is also underway.

Tauranga residents are quite staunch about their water services and they want their local voices to be heard. There is a long and rich history, which is difficult to detail in this column.

We need changes to New Zealand's local government sector but it is either a brave or foolish government that will push through changes to critical water services without first addressing how local voices will influence local outcomes.

Changes are needed as the current system is unsustainable. However, I support Local Government New Zealand's position asking for more time to consider the Three Waters proposal.

We first need to address the wider local governance representation issue.

- Matt Cowley is the chief executive of the Tauranga Chamber of Commerce.