KEY POINTS:
A split has occurred in City Vision-Labour's new water policy after former leader Dr Bruce Hucker took a different line today.
Less than 24 hours after the centre-left ticket issued a new policy, promising to stop big rises in water bills, Dr Hucker reiterated his support for higher water bills.
He said the existing council policy of higher water bills to provide Auckland City Council with higher dividends from the Council-owned water company, Metrowater, was "extremely prudent and extremely sensible."
He said at a meeting of the Auckland City's finance committee today, that " (The policy) enables us to deal with investment in the stormwater area.
"This is a sensible way to pay for it because the impact on households is a very limited increase indeed."
The new City Vision policy, released on Wednesday for October's local body elections, promised to stop using Metrowater as a cash cow. It said the policy was not financially sustainable or fair for households.
City Vision co-leader, Richard Northey, yesterday said the new policy would stop profits from Metrowater being used to fund stormwater.
Dr Hucker has refused to say if he supports City Vision's new policy.
Mr Northey told the Herald yesterday that Dr Hucker "accepted the policy".
Dr Hucker was dumped as City Vision leader last week over his hand line on higher water bills.
