Auckland’s council-controlled organisations oppose Mayor Wayne Brown’s bold plan for reform

Auckland Transport chief executive Dean Kimpton supports some change, but wants to keep politicians away from infrastructure delivery. Photo / Michael Craig

• Mayor Wayne Brown plans to make council-controlled organisations “democratically accountable”, sparking pushback from Auckland Transport and other agencies.
• Brown’s proposals aim to “dethrone” Auckland Transport and abolish Eke Panuku Auckland, citing long-standing issues.
• The reforms, effective from July 1 next year, could lead to job losses and increased workloads for council staff.

Auckland Transport and other council agencies pushed back over plans by Mayor Wayne Brown to bring many of their functions back under council control, official papers show.

The mayor revealed his hand yesterday to “dethrone” AT, carve up the city’s economic development and events agency Tataki Auckland Unlimited, and abolish Eke Panuku Auckland, which is responsible for urban regeneration.

The proposals are the biggest shake-up of the council-controlled organisations (CCOs) since the Super City was formed in 2010 to address what Brown says are long-standing issues.

Watercare, which supplies water and wastewater services, is the only CCO not impacted.

“I was clear when I ran for mayor that I would take back control of council organisations and make them democratically accountable. Aucklanders voted for CCO reform, and they expect us to get on with the job.

Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown wants to be in the driving seat for planning, strategy and policy decisions at Auckland Transport. Photo / Dean Purcell

“We need to make structural and cultural change to remove inefficiencies, poorly aligned strategies and strengthen democratic accountability,” Brown said.

One CCO manager told the Herald change was expected, but nevertheless there was a sense of shock at the timing before Christmas.

Hundreds of CCO staff will be impacted. There will be job losses, staff moving across to the council, and increased workloads at the council if the proposals proceed and come into effect on July 1 next year.

Council chief executive Phil Wilson, who will oversee the implementation of the reforms, said it would be premature to go into details until the political direction of the council group is decided.

Background documents on the mayor’s well-signalled CCO reform show AT, Tataki Auckland Unlimited (TAU), and Eke Panuku bosses argued for the status quo or limited change.

AT chief executive Dean Kimpton agreed there was room for change, but not along the “full reset” proposed by the mayor to bring all transport policy, strategy and planning functions back to the council.

The mayor also wants the council to take responsibility for AT’s back-office functions including communications, marketing, legal and finance; and reverse existing delegations from the council to AT, including rules around street trading and the Harbourmaster.

Auckland Art Gallery will remain under the control of Tataki Auckland Unlimited. Photo / Sylvie Whinray

Kimpton agreed the council should have a statutory role in long-term planning for transport in Auckland.

But he said AT was established as a statutory body to ensure long-term infrastructure investment strategies and plans were not disrupted by regular changes in the political landscape, including Auckland Council.

“Long-term infrastructure investment requires certainty beyond the political cycle, which is somewhat ‘protected’ by AT’s arm’s length status,” he said.

Short-to-medium strategy should remain with AT to avoid an “operational disconnect” between planning, funding and delivery, he said.

AT has no statutory protection from political tinkering at the Government level, as witnessed by the new National Government forcing it to overturn lower speed limits and stop what Transport Minister Simeon Brown called an “infestation” of speed bumps on the roads.

Simeon Brown has not said if he will repeal AT’s legal status or spare it from the mayor’s proposed reforms.

Eke Panuku chief executive David Rankin and board chairman David Kennedy argued for the status quo, saying the loss of a singular focus on urban regeneration carries several risks, including the lack of certainty for the private sector, loss of commercial expertise, and slower decision making and execution.

They said Eke Panuku has delivered financial and non-financial benefits. These may not be achieved if the functions of an experienced CCO, with a skilled and experienced board and staff, are moved to new entities or departments, with no institutional competence.

The proposal to take the functions of economic development, major events, and destination activities off TAU, and retaining its trust structure to manage regional facilities, including Auckland Zoo, the Auckland Art Gallery, theatres and stadiums, was disputed by TAU chief executive Nick Hill and board chairwoman Vicki Salmon.

Eke Panuku works on regeneration projects, like Northcote's town centre. Photo / Eke Panuku

The pair supported the status quo with changes to “sharpen the line between policy and delivery”.

They said more than half of TAU’s income comes from non-rates revenue, helped by being an arm’s-length and trust structure, and that bringing destination and major events into the council was out of step with comparable cities.

“Cities who have successfully used their visitor economies to drive vibrancy, regional and city benefits like Melbourne and Brisbane have pioneered stand-alone agency models.

“These models are preferred because the city needs to work with businesses operating commercially who want confidence in decision-making affecting investment and risk management over multi-year timeframes,” they said.

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