Opinion: TECT cheque vote lacks fairness and transparency

Trustpower CEO Vince Hawksworth gives his view on TECT's move to be a charitable trust.

Trustpower CEO Vince Hawksworth gives hiis view on plans by TECT to become a charitable trust.

Our community's decision over the future of the TECT cheque will likely be one of the biggest decisions Tauranga and Western Bay of Plenty locals will face in many a year.

The TECT cheque is sent to Trustpower's customers' every year around Christmas time. Being a Trustpower consumer means you get to have a say about how much money should go to community groups and projects, and how much eligible households, you and your neighbours, receive.

Eligible Trustpower households are the actual beneficiaries of the Tauranga Energy Consumer Trust, which has the ability to increase the contribution to the community, while continuing to benefit Trustpower customers for the remaining 55 years the trust has to run.

Trustpower opposes the proposal because it's unfair to ask our customers to give up $20,000-$30,000 worth of TECT cheque payments over 55 years for only $4300.

TECT are only providing one alternate option to keeping the status quo and is offering a $2500 one-off payment and five years of reduced TECT cheques as an inducement to change. This is not a fair or transparent way to consult the community. We say our customers need more information, more time and other options to consider, particularly with such a controversial and irreversible decision.

For instance, our customers should be able to choose whether the community receives 20 per cent, 30 per cent or 40 per cent of the TECT distribution, with the remaining amount distributed to eligible households through the TECT cheque.

Since the trust announced its proposal to cancel the TECT cheque we've been consulting with our customers to listen to their views. Up until now most people believed Trustpower and the trust were one and the same. Thanks to the proposal many now understand we're separate entities: TECT distributes the money as a result of the dividends it receives due to the success of Trustpower.

People also understand that being a Trustpower customer allows TECT to make contributions to the community, through the TECT cheque. Families are making a deliberate choice to use their local energy and telecommunications company knowing they and their neighbours are getting the benefit.

The trust's proposal takes that choice away, including for those families who choose to donate their TECT cheque to a charity of their choice or to spend it with local businesses.
People are also telling us they don't understand why the trust is proposing such controversial change. Our customers say they're suspicious of the trust's motivations and would like a clear explanation and commitment to how this money will be used.
We don't understand why the trust is doing it either as the reasons given don't make any sense. We're still waiting for a proper explanation and we've been clear from the very beginning that our community deserves more information and fairer choices, which is why we are asking our customers to submit against the proposal.