KEY POINTS:
A team of 40 consultants reviewing Auckland City Council's mire of regulations has cost $18 million in the past year, says mayoral candidate Steve Crow.
"Staff tell me the place is awash with consultants," Mr Crow said yesterday.
He held a press conference outside the Methodist Mission Building
in Queen St, claiming the council had taken a three-year lease on three floors to provide offices for the consultants.
Many of them were graduate students charged out at $120 an hour by the giant accountancy firm Deloittes, he said.
"I've been told by staff the scope of work is so nebulous, so unclear that no one really knows what is going on."
Mr Crow said in addition to the 2000 official employees, the council had another 1000 temporary staff and outside contractors on the payroll.
Mr Hubbard, who has overseen a 70 per cent increase in spending on consultants at the same time householders have endured a 32.7 per cent rise in rates and 19.6 per cent rise in water bills, refused to comment on Mr Crow's claims.
Organisation performance general manager Trish Langridge said the council's regulatory improvement programme was budgeted to cost $19.6 million over 18 months. This included programme costs of $5.6 million, contractors and staff costs of $9.4 million, IT costs of $2.7 million and a $1.8 million contingency figure.
Deloittes was being paid $5 million over 18 months. She said graduate students were not being charged out at $120 an hour but did not say what the rate was.
Ms Langridge said the programme was an overhaul of the council's regulatory services, such as delivering building consents more efficiently.
It is the second regulatory review in five years. In 2002 a review panel came up with ways of ways of improving the resource consent processes.
The $19.6 million budget was approved behind closed doors due to the nature of commercial negotiations and consultant and staff contracts.
Ms Langridge said the council had leased 3927 sq m in Queen St from the Methodist Mission to cope with a shortage of office space from the growth in staff numbers. These have risen from 1685 to 1974 between June 2004 and June 2007.
Another mayoral candidate, Lisa Prager, has obtained figures under the Official Information Act showing the council spent $91 million on consultants in the past three financial years.
C&R election leader David Hay said the council's regulatory arm needed sorting but it was beyond comprehension to have so many consultants.
"Deloittes must be rubbing their hands with glee," he said.