Cultural ties facing the chop

Getting bins emptied and roads repaired will be tough enough for Auckland's Supercity council.

Officials will also have their work cut out avoiding diplomatic incidents, as the region's extended family of sister cities gets the chop.

The eight councils making up the Supercity have 18 sister cities and partnerships with 12 other international destinations.

By convention, cities aren't paired with more than one location in the same country. But Auckland's councils have forged many overseas links - leaving the new authority with a cultural headache.

North Shore City Council economic development manager and director of the independent Sister City New Zealand organisation, Roger Matthews, said the changes had to be handled diplomatically.

"Causing people to lose face or offending people is not something we'd like to do," he said.

Japan will pose the biggest problem, with four sister cities and two friendship city alliances.

Los Angeles has been Auckland City's sister since 1971, but Waitakere also has a Californian link, with "Surf City", Huntington Beach.

The region has three alliances with China and two with Korea.

In Australia, Auckland City is paired with Brisbane, while the Rodney town of Warkworth has ties with its namesake in New South Wales.

The relationships won't need to be severed but some could be downgraded to friendship city or strategic alliance status.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade will help council officers manage the partnerships during the transition to the Supercity.

Officials are talking to embassies about how the partnerships are perceived overseas, and their value to New Zealand, Matthews said.

In the meantime, city leaders are continuing to build up links. Manukau Mayor Len Brown is leading a trade delegation to the Pacific Islands next month , at a cost to ratepayers of $40,000.

Auckland Mayor John Banks will attend a mayoral conference in Guangzhou in November, funded by the host city.

In the next year, ratepayers across the region will spend more than $600,000 on international relations.

Matthews said there was a perception the relationships were about "trips for councillors" but they produced real economic benefits.

A 2007 report for Auckland City Council by consultants Covec found its international partnerships brought in $55 million a year, as well as intangible cultural benefits. The financial spinoff came mostly from boosting tourism and encouraging international students.

Sister Cities New Zealand president Peter Tennent said he would support and encourage the new council to make the most of existing partnerships.