Brian Rudman: City super for rich, famous

Brian Rudman

Television celebrities like Paul Holmes and Blair Strang will be polishing up their CVs after the Royal Commission on Auckland Governance's recommendation that the mayor and councillors in the new super city be elected at large. So will the powerbrokers of Remuera.

If ever there was a recipe for ensuring the rich and the famous took over the running of the new super city, it is this. It greatly favours those with existing celebrity status - or those who can afford to promote themselves across the whole region.

The commissioners in their report say fears that such a system enabled the wealthy to "effectively buy their way into power as a result of greater resources" is addressed "in part" by the expenditure cap set down in law for candidates in local elections.

The existing cap for the super city would be $70,000. The commissioners say "genuine, viable candidates" will be able to raise that sort of cash.

That ignores the possibility the cap will be raised. It also ignores the likelihood of large amounts being spent on "party" promotion and the like.

Contradictorily, elsewhere in their report the commissioners say "it is highly desirable for the composition of councils to reflect the society they serve ... The composition of Auckland's local government does not reflect Auckland's society. There is, for example, a predominance of older men and people of European descent in local government." What they're proposing will perpetuate this.

In the late 1980s, a system of ward representation was introduced to local government to address just these concerns. What's being proposed for the all-powerful Auckland Council is a lurch back to the bad old system.

The commissioners want the politicians elected at large to ensure they focus on the big regional picture. But if that were a valid argument, we'd be electing all our MPs that way to ensure a focus on national issues.

It's not just the way democracy has been structured that's a concern.

There's also the concern of so much power being concentrated in the hands of a single body governing the lives of a third of New Zealanders. The lack of adequate checks and balances and worries over the adequacies of local representation were quickly raised by the Minister of Local Government, Rodney Hide, and Lawrence Yule, president of Local Government New Zealand.

The creation of one Auckland Council will be supported by many.

But we live in a democracy which values local representation and the right of every citizen to a fair say. It's up to the Government to ensure this is a super city for all Aucklanders - not just the few.