Posts by Sacha
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Ooh, and a nugget from the same speech revealing possible motivation for just one of the underhand dealings - this time by ARC Chairman Mike Lee:
The ARC is opposed to the provision in the Bill that repeals section 77 of the Local Government Amendment Act 1992, which required the ARC to continue to hold the Auckland Centennial Memorial Park, which is part of the Waitakere Ranges.
I know that Ministers have stated that this was a mere technical amendment that was made erroneously, but I find it interesting that this emerged at the same time that I received a letter from the Minister of Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations stating that he was looking to use the Centennial Memorial Park in Waitakere Ranges in Auckland Treaty settlements.
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ARC's CEO talking to the select committee today:
Auckland Transport will be preparing the Regional Land Transport Programme, and Auckland Council will be providing over 50% of its rates revenue for the implementation of that programme. However, the Council won’t even have decision rights on what is included in the Regional Land Transport Programme, because according to the Bill it will only be consulted if affected. The Bill also proposes that the Regional Land Transport Programme would not be required to give effect to the Regional Land Transport Strategy.
Our submission has provided a comparison of the accountability arrangements for Auckland Transport with those for crown agents. We note that the Government has significantly more control over NZTA than the Auckland Council will have over Auckland Transport, yet Auckland Transport will be around 70% of the size of NZTA. What is worrying is that the Auckland Council will have less control over Auckland Transport than the Government has over even very small crown agents such as the New Zealand Tourism Board or the Health Research Council of New Zealand.
The Government would not tolerate such weak accountability for its own crown agents, so why should the Auckland Council tolerate them? Especially for an agency that it will be expected to hand over more than half of its revenue to every year.
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Eh? I responded to Craig's comment that "at least Aucklanders will still get to vote for their regional representatives at the end of the year" - compared with Chch if commissioners are appointed.
It seems entirely relevant - if not widely known - that over half of the Auckland region's total spend will be controlled by appointed not elected representatives. Rodney Hide and Steven Joyce get to decide who they are, not Auckland voters.
And no, that's not the same situation as we have now.
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her Mum made a mistake once with Mr Holmes
marriage or somesuch :)
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Matthew, it's a sidestep when the passage quoted talks about % of spend and the response talks about voting for the current body.
Was I unclear that the elected representatives will have less control of the proposed new arrangements than they do now?
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Yes, what about *her* poor victims.
Oh wait. There aren't any...I recall previous charges about receiving stolen goods
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Nice sidestep - answer is 54% by the way.
ARTA is currently legally bound to follow the strategic direction that ARC's elected members decree. The lastest supercity Bill removes that obligation for the new Transport CCO. It is proposed that they will have no meaningful local democratic accountability and their meetings and decisions will be conducted in private.
Even those regarded as of the right are not amused. It barks.
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Lolnui
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Desserts definitely have half-lives - nobody wants to have the last bit, so it gets cut into smaller and smaller pieces but never quite disappears.
Gold
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I'm not certain if flawed historical conjecture equates to racism
So what do you think prompted that conjecture in the first place? Some noble desire for truthiness?