From the mayor's desk: Will the Three Waters reforms remain optional?

Stratford District mayor, Neil Volzke. Photo / supplied

You can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink, or can you?

That old proverb passed through my mind last week when I attended a day-long workshop/meeting of the 22 councils that will make up Entity B in the Government's Three Waters reforms.

Stratford District mayor, Neil Volzke. Photo / supplied

It was the first gathering of the grouping of councils making up Entity B and the purpose was to share views and identify common thoughts and concerns. There were lots of questions, but not so many answers. Commonality seemed rather sparse as smaller councils like Stratford and Opotiki tried to relate to the issues facing Hamilton and Tauranga city councils, and vice versa.

I guess this is to be expected, given this large grouping of councils is like an arranged marriage where the bride and groom are meeting for the first time. But in this instance it's made worse, because the wedding party is already standing at the altar.

However, there was general consensus that the existing model for the delivery of the three waters services does need to change. If we want to achieve overall improvements and increase the future investment in infrastructure that is currently lacking, something needs to happen. So the real questions are not so much about does it need to change, but more about how do we change and what do we change to?

At present there are two camps, one vigorously supporting the reform proposals and the other equally as vigorously opposing the proposals. There are valid reasons on both sides of the argument for opting in and for opting out.

Two significant issues have surfaced as the biggest concerns; the loss of "local voice" and governance arrangements.

For councils that opt in, the ownership of infrastructure assets will transfer to the new Entity B. The entity will own and operate three waters infrastructure on behalf of the territorial authorities. There will be a mix of protection mechanisms built into the management arrangements designed to ensure that consumers' needs and expectations are met. Councils will have some, quite-limited say in the way the entity operates, but the voice will be a collective view, not a local view as we know it now. Operating decisions will not be ours and the performance expectations will be shared with 21 other councils. The "local voice" component will take a hit for the councils opting in, there is no doubt about that.

The second issue was around governance arrangements, which include a step change for the way iwi/Māori rights and interests are recognised. These are woven throughout the new system through statutory recognition of the Treaty of Waitangi and Te Mana o te Wai. The reforms also create a mana whenua group in the oversight and strategic direction of each entity, with equal rights to local government. There is further concern about the minimal engagement with iwi to date, meaning the view of iwi is still unclear.

All councils are in an eight-week "feedback" period where we have been asked to examine the bundle of reports, facts and figures that apply to our individual council and then provide feedback on accuracy and any other concerns. Interestingly, councils are not required to consult with our respective communities at this stage, despite many having the gut feeling that we should be.

The public consultation phase will be later in the year and after that again, when the legislation is moving through the parliamentary process. Please forgive my cynicism, but I can't help feeling that the Government is keen to keep this debate out of the public arena as long as possible, instead keeping it largely within the more easily controlled council environment.

In closing, back to my opening statement, "you can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink, or can you?" Of course you can, because if enough councils choose to opt out of these reforms, the Government can and probably will legislate to make the reform proposals compulsory.