Tuesday, 27 March 2012 15:29

Reform will lift rural voice

Written by 

RURAL COMMUNITIES will be better represented on local councils as part of a major reform package announced last week by former Local Government Minister Nick Smith.

The Government intends to make councils focus on core business and less on peripherals. It wants them to be more fiscally responsible and to strengthen governance. A taskforce will drive efficiencies, aiming to reduce rates. A new system will monitor councils' financial performance and help sort out problems – in extreme cases appointing commissioners to run them.

Before his resignation, over an ACC letter he wrote for a friend, Smith told Dairy News that rural communities are poorly represented on councils because of rigid rules about the size of voting wards. These at present have to be virtually the same size, hindering fair representation.

"We intend to amend the Local Electoral Act to give councils and the Local Government Commission greater flexibility in determining the makeup of their councils and the rural boundaries to ensure rural areas get a fairer deal."

Flaws now bedevil the present legislation which sets the size of wards, Smith says.

"The present formula in rural areas... cuts across rural communities of interests and [those] communities have had a raw deal out of that. The changes... will make it easier for councils – in their representation review every five years – and the Local Government Commission to make ward boundaries in rural areas better match communities of interests and give rural communities a fairer voice."

Of particular interest to farmers is a law change making it easier to form Unitary Authorities (UAs) or combine existing regional councils and territorial local authorities into single entities. UAs already exist in Gisborne and Nelson/Marlborough; the new Auckland Council is also a UA.

"The government does not view bigger as better, but we view 'simpler as better'," Smith says. "Having two tiers of local government – regional councils and territorial local authorities (TLAs) – adds cost and complexity to local government. That's why we're making it easier to form unitary authorities."

But Smith acknowledges that with large river systems this can be difficult and he says while the Local Government Commission should lean towards the formation of UAs, it must satisfy itself that any new entity can manage water allocation and flood management.

The Government also plans to reform the RMA via a second parliamentary bill later this year. He says councils commonly complain central government forces them to make more regulations.

More like this

Farmer reflects on life-changing accident

Five years on, Levin farmer George Thompson reflects on his life-changing accident and says it's great to see more support for farmers to make the industry safer.

Featured

Editorial: Nitrate emergency?

OPINION: Environment Canterbury's (ECan) decision recently to declare a so-called “nitrate emergency” is laughable.

Federated Farmers slam Canterbury nitrate emergency

A shameless political stunt is how Federated Farmers is describing the Canterbury Regional Council decision to declare “a nitrate emergency” on the back of its latest annual groundwater quality survey.

National

Machinery & Products

New McHale terra drive axle option

Well-known for its Fusion baler wrapper combination, Irish manufacturer McHale has launched an interesting option at the recent Irish Ploughing…

Amazone unveils flagship spreader

With the price of fertiliser still significantly higher than 2024, there is an increased onus on ensuring its spread accurately at…

» Latest Print Issues Online

Milking It

Tough times

OPINION: Dairy industry players are also falling by the wayside as the economic downturn bites around the country.

MSA triumph

OPINION: Methane Science Accord, a farmer-led organisation advocating for zero tax on ruminant methane, will be quietly celebrating its first…

» Connect with Dairy News

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter