Ratepayers being cut out of loop

Unelected boards of businesspeople will control 75 per cent, if not 90 per cent, of council services under the Auckland Super City, says a veteran of local government, Suzanne Weld.

The Government's planned seven "council controlled organisations" will be funded by Auckland ratepayers but not accountable to them, says the Rodney District councillor with an extra 12 years' experience as a council officer.

Like many Aucklanders, she believes that the CCO model is a deliberate attempt to keep citizens at arm's lengths from most of the city's assets and services.

The accompanying graph supports her view about the level of control being handed to unelected directors, who are not obliged to delegate functions to elected politicians, listen to communities or hold public meetings.

By their nature, CCOs are designed to take control away from politicians and the public to get things done.

The transport CCO will control half of the $1.3 billion rates income of the Super City. Watercare Services will be responsible for a $5 billion portfolio of dams, wastewater plants, the Waikato pipeline and pipes. Publicly owned stakes in Auckland Airport and Ports of Auckland will be placed in the hands of a CCO to manage, as will cultural and events facilities from the Auckland Museum to North Harbour Stadium.

The CCO model has raised questions about what will be left for councillors and local board members to do.

Auckland City councillor Aaron Bhatnagar has cited the model as a reason for not standing for election.

"The new councillor role will be more about CCO oversight, rather than a more involved role in setting policy and achieving specific outcomes."

The graph shows the 20 Auckland councillors will have an odd mix of jobs. They will be responsible for drawing up a Spatial Plan, a kind of regional masterplan, and setting strategic policies and plans.

They will set the strategic direction for the CCOs and monitor their performance.

They will also be engaged in a tense relationship with local boards - telling them what they can and cannot do and allocating or withholding funding.

Super City mayoral candidate Manukau Mayor Len Brown says his number one priority will be transport, but wonders how he will be able to implement his policies "if transport is sitting in someone else's hands, not directly accountable".

The Auckland Transition Agency, which has proposed a list of non-regulatory functions for local boards, said they were intended to have a significant and wide-ranging role with a matching budget to deliver services.

But because most of their functions are also of a regional nature, the Auckland Council, CCOs and bureaucrats retain ultimate control.

For example, there is nothing to stop a repeat of Auckland City Council imposing a waste management system on Waiheke Island against the wishes of the community.

Western Bays community board chairman Bruce Kilmister said the local boards would have the responsibility for engaging with the public and would take all the flak, but no ability to affect decision-making other than the power to recommend at the whim of the Auckland Council or CCOs.