Super City rethink urged to safeguard community projects

Social Development Minister Paula Bennett has taken the rare step of publicly voicing concern about the Government's plans for Auckland's Super City, saying there is a risk grassroots community projects will be lost under the new local boards.

Yesterday Prime Minister John Key also indicated he was willing to move on the controversial proposal for eight of the 20 councillors on the new council to be elected by the wider Auckland population rather than by local wards.

Ms Bennett said she believed the Government had its proposals for change "80 per cent right" and she fully supported the unitary Auckland Council and structure. However, "real grassroots" projects paid for by councils were at risk under the new local boards because there was as yet no provision for funding that could be used for that purpose.

"What we haven't got right is the link between that [Auckland] council and what happens at the grassroots community level. As Minister of Social Development, I'm hugely concerned about what's happening so successfully locally - whether in Manukau, North Shore or Waitakere - that we lose the essence of those social programmes, the social cohesion that is happening because we are devolving everything up."

Under the new structure, 20 to 30 "local boards" will be set up beneath the Auckland Council to replace local councils and community boards.

They would be charged with roles such as dog control and liquor licensing, but would be unable to raise revenue. Their main role will be an advocacy role to try to secure funding for spending in local areas.

Ms Bennett had raised the issue in Cabinet yesterday and intended to further it with Local Government Minister Rodney Hide and other ministers. She agreed with critics that the boards did not have enough "teeth".

"I think we've got a bit more thinking to do on how we keep that real local stuff there. It just seems from our first take on this we haven't given that sort of control to those boards and maybe we need to have a look at it."

A spokeswoman for Mr Key said he had known Ms Bennett would raise her concerns publicly.

"The minister was not criticising the Super City or the boards - she was expressing a view on the powers and responsibilities of the boards and that's a matter Cabinet has yet to decide on."

At his post-Cabinet press conference yesterday, Prime Minister John Key said the "scope" of the local boards and the issue of whether councillors should be elected at large were the main issues of concern among the public.

Yesterday, Waitakere Deputy Mayor Penny Hulse released a telephone survey commissioned from Phoenix Research which showed only 16 per cent of those surveyed favoured the Government's proposal of 20 to 30 local boards.

In the survey of 401 residents in Waitakere, two-thirds favoured the six local councils recommendation of the royal commission instead.