Tauranga water service delivery options spark debate

Tauranga City Council will consult about its plans to manage water from March 28. Photo / Laura Smith

A Tauranga councillor has questioned how the council is presenting its water services options in a public document.

Glen Crowther took issue with wording in a consultation document approved in a Tauranga City Council meeting on Monday.

He claimed it suggested some options did not meet Government requirements, as opposed to not aligning with what “Cabinet ministers” want from Tauranga.

Councils have until September 3 to submit a plan for managing drinking, storm and wastewater services in the future under the Government’s Local Water Done Well programme.

Councils could keep delivering water services in-house or set up water organisations alone or with other councils.

Tauranga proposed a multi-council model potentially shared with the neighbouring Western Bay of Plenty District. A separate council-controlled organisation would be created to jointly manage water services.

It agreed to consult the community on this and two alternatives: keep services in-house or create its own CCO to manage water delivery services in Tauranga.

Tauranga Mayor Mahé Drysdale. Photo / David Hall

Mayor Mahé Drysdale said advice from consultants MartinJenkins and the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) recommended working with other councils to deliver water services.

“This is Government policy, and it’s been spelled out very clearly … that they want us to join with other councils.”

The consultation document said the proposed joint option aligned with the Government direction of Local Waters Done Well, the single-council CCO partially aligned and the in-house model did not align.

Tauranga City Council Matua-Ōtūmoetai Ward councillor Glen Crowther. Photo / David Hall

Crowther said those statements were incorrect because the council was meeting the statutory requirements for all three models.

“All of them, I believe align.

“If we’re saying we’re not aligning, we have to be 100% confident of that, and I think we’re 100% wrong.”

Tauranga City Council will consult about its plans to manage water from March 28. Photo / File

He said it would be better to say the in-house model would fully comply with the DIA’s Local Water Done Well model.

“However, at a political level, it will not align well with what the Cabinet ministers are wanting in the relationship with Tauranga City.”

Drysdale said that if the council did not opt for a multi-council CCO, it would not align with the direction of the Government.

“I can 100% say that that is correct because I’ve had multiple conversations, including one minister that will not meet me until we align with their direction.”

Crowther said he understood the council would not align because “a Minister, Ministers or the Government feel it wouldn’t align with what they want from a Regional Deal”.

But Local Government Minister Simon Watts had said publicly he was “happy for councils to choose”, Crowther said.

The Western Bay sub region hopes to secure a regional deal. Photo / Mead Norton

In February, Tauranga and Western Bay of Plenty submitted a Regional Deal proposal. The deals, between the Government and local authorities, create long-term agreements for funding and resources.

Drysdale said he was comfortable with the consultation wording because the Government’s direction was “very much we want you to work together”.

Councillor Steve Morris said Crowther raised a “significant issue” where the Government might be making public statements of one nature and ministers privately said something different.

“As we conduct transparent business here, I think the expectation of the community is that Government conducts transparent business as well.”

Local Democracy Reporting asked Drysdale which minister refused to meet with him, but he would not say.

Drysdale said the council was in regular contact with Government ministers to ensure its direction aligned with Government policy.

“It’s not appropriate to elaborate on those contacts at this time.”

The Government’s direction was for councils to work together to achieve benefits of scale, benefiting communities, he said.

“If we are going to work together on a Regional Deal it seems logical, we should also work together on water.”

Local Government Minister Simon Watts. Photo / Alex Burton

Watts said City and Regional Deals were partnerships built on trust and collaboration to increase economic growth, productivity, and jobs.

Councils had “flexibility” on structuring water services, provided they meet Local Water Done Well statutory requirements.

“Proposals for regional deals will be assessed on how well they align with government priorities, including Local Water Done Well.”

A spokesperson for the minister said he had engaged in informal discussions with Drysdale on a range of matters including Local Waters Done Well and the regional deals model.

“These have not been substantive discussions.”

Last week, the Western Bay of Plenty District Council’s consultation was criticised by one of its councillors as “tokenistic”.

Tauranga City Council’s Local Water Done Well consultation runs from March 28 to April 28.

- LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.

Correction

A previous version of this story incorrectly said Glen Crowther claimed the council was “lying” in the document. This quote was misheard; he said “align”. The story and headlines have been changed to reflect this.