NIKKI KAYE (National—Auckland Central) : Today the fifth National Government, with the help of Rodney Hide, has finally achieved for Auckland what parliamentarians have been trying to do for generations. We simply do not believe that this is as good as it gets for the people of Auckland.
Tonight we have delivered one council that will enable Aucklanders to have better public services. As Aucklanders wake up tomorrow, they will realise that this is a watershed moment in Auckland. It is a watershed moment not just for Auckland but also for New Zealand: the moment that the tide turned from endless talkfests, strategies, and action plans to real progress for Auckland.
The people of the central business district and the people of Ponsonby, Grey Lynn, Herne Bay, St Marys Bay, Westmere, and Waiheke Island deserve to have better public transport. The people of Auckland deserve to have a transport system that enables them to spend less time in traffic and more time with their families. One council will enable that to be delivered. But, most of all, the people of Auckland deserve to have local democracy, and this bill will deliver that for Aucklanders. This bill is about giving local communities in Auckland, like those of Waiheke Island and Great Barrier Island, back their voice. For too long, the people of Waiheke Island and Great Barrier Island have been forced to constantly battle for people to understand their communities. The royal commission recognised that when it stated that community engagement was poor.
We have tremendous respect for the commission, but we believe that the option it offered did not give all local communities across Auckland the voice that they deserve. That is why we have given local democracy a real kick forward by offering local boards. The irony for members opposite is that those members have not yet confirmed whether they support the establishment of local boards. That is right! If they do not support that, they will have to go around the communities of Auckland—like those of Waiheke Island and Great Barrier Island—and be very clear about what they are doing to local democracy for Auckland. On this side of the House, our policy is very clear; the Opposition’s policy is not.
Where we agree with the commission, we are implementing its recommendations, as we have done with the provision for one council and one mayor. Where we do not agree with it, we are going back to the people. That is what we are doing. The royal commission went to the people of Auckland and consulted, in an 18-month process that Labour set up and that cost millions of dollars. We respect taxpayers, and we will not waste their money by, in the words of Gordon from Grey Lynn, having “stagnation by consultation” So where we differ from the royal commission, we are going back to the people of Auckland.
I am proud that the Auckland Governance Legislation Committee will enable Aucklanders to have their say on how to run their communities. I am proud that I am holding at least four public meetings, and I am proud that we are giving Aucklanders local boards that will enable them to have a real voice. Today the fifth National Government has delivered a basic system of local democracy to Auckland. Now it is time for Aucklanders to have their say.
