Part four of the Project Auckland series looks at 'Prosperity and Profile'
Whoever wins the Auckland mayoralty - John Banks or Len Brown - must have sufficient leadership smarts and a strong electoral mandate to push through an ambitious agenda for Auckland.
That's the view of international cities expert Greg Clark who says it will take concerted leadership for Auckland to establish itself as a Pacific hub, or, even play catch-up with Australia's booming regional cities. Proposals for Auckland to be a distinctive Pacific hub have floated about over the past decade. But it is only with the amalgamation of eight Auckland local bodies to create the new Auckland Council that such visions have any hope of becoming reality.
Clark says this provides the opportunity to "dock" the Government's moves on the macro-economic front with the local government arrangements in Auckland. "You are trying to create in Auckland an environment where companies are encouraged to grow, investors want to invest in business and your talented people want to work.
"So when they face those choices of whether to go to Sydney or Melbourne, Hong Kong or Singapore, or London or New York they have a real reason to choose Auckland. Not because they are ready to come home and have children."
Clark chairs OECD's Cities and Regions Forum and is a former chief executive of the London Enterprise Agency: "One London". He was also a leading participant in a pivotal symposium that set the foundations for the Auckland amalgamation. But he doesn't like the voguish term "Super City" which he describes as "unhelpful." "You're talking by international standards about a relatively small city and that relatively small city having one local government is a no-brainer from an international perspective .
"If we start to call it a Super City ... that is language that is designed to kind of frighten people."
Clark says it is natural for Aucklanders to feel a sense of "lamentation about the loss of their current cities", but it is important the new Mayor of Auckland wastes no time in moving forward. He cites a similar amalgamation in Toronto which lost ground because leaders did not unite behind the new structure. "It needs to be a process which is much more led, where people feel that there is a wagon to get on to - not that there is a wagon that they have just been pushed off."
The spatial planning process will be critical to Auckland's success - particularly moves to foster business clusters like the creative industries, the technology sector, medicine and higher education, but also business services so that Auckland can offer an attractive environment: the right tax, regulatory and entrepreneurial regime - a place "where companies really want to to dock."
Clark says if Auckland is to be an internationally competitive city it will need to make the most of its diverse population base. "That probably means different ways of investing in education and training, and probably incentives for the smaller local firms to think about how they can grow.
"It means you've got to have an Auckland where prosperity increases for people at the bottom end of the income spectrum and the middle end as well as at the top end.
"That's going to be very important in the long term. But to start doing that now is absolutely key because given the population dynamics around the world and southern part of Asia Pacific, Auckland is going to continue to attract population so it's got to be good at continuing to make sure people can contribute not just to the quality of life of their families but also the economic performance of the city overall."
At the centre of everything
The Cabinet has yet to give the green light to plans for New Zealand to become an international financial services hub for the Asia-Pacific.
In other countries - like Ireland - their financial hubs are centred in one city like Dublin instead of being spreadout across the whole nation.
Massey University's new Professor of Finance, David Ding, said recently that New Zealand has the expertise to support an international financial services hub for the Asia-Pacific - it just needs a strong regulatory environment."
Government reports indicate such a centre could create 5000 jobs and careers for graduates as financial analysts, investment managers, wealth advisers and hedge fund managers.
Doug McKay - interim chief executive for Auckland Council - has decided he will work "very closely" with the new Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development (Teed) on economic and business priorities. McKay says business clusters are emerging in the city, but they not optimised to deliver outcomes for Auckland yet - but a financial hub could be an important centre.
Ding believes if a hub is created, finance graduates will be keen to stay and the level of services offered will improve.
"If students in New Zealand see there are opportunities, then it will create jobs for talented people who want to work in financial services and will take services here to a higher level.
"Students are graduating with the relevant expertise and many take jobs in Hong Kong, London and New York."
In addition, he says, New Zealand universities are in a position to provide financial training across all service areas for Pasifika students.
"So, not only can we be a financial services hub, we should also strive to be a financial training hub.
"These could be the service areas that will fuel the country's growth in the future."
