Meet and greet for royal commissioners

North Shore Mayor Andrew Williams (second from left) meets commissioners David Shand (left), Peter Salmon, QC, and Dame Margaret Bazely during their visit to North Shore City. Photo / Dean Purcell

Members of the royal commission who will report on reform of Auckland local government met North Shore city councillors yesterday as part of a briefing tour of the region's eight councils.

The three commissioners, who were appointed by the Government on October 29, had preliminary discussions with newly elected North Shore Mayor Andrew Williams and 15 councillors.

The commissioners are chairman Peter Salmon, QC, retired public servant Dame Margaret Bazely, who was the commissioner on the Commission of Inquiry into Police Conduct, and David Shand, who chaired the Local Government Rates Inquiry.

Mr Salmon said the success of the inquiry depended on getting the widest feedback from all communities.

The process for public submissions was yet to be announced but submissions would be called for late next month or early in March.

"Our hearings will be very informal and people won't need to have lawyers, and that applies to individuals as well as organisations and councils," said Mr Salmon.

The aim was to report back to the Government by December 1 on a form of local government to serve Auckland well now and for the next 50 years.

"We have started reading through reports on work that has been done over the past few years to achieve a degree of co-operation between councils and to overcome some of the difficulties that have arisen in the past.

"We have started to read information from other countries and we are commissioning research both in New Zealand and overseas to inform us on the optimum types of governance for a city of Auckland's size and nature."

Auckland's last major local government reform was in 1989 when 30 of its local bodies were merged into seven local councils and the Auckland Regional Council.