MP Mark slated over conduct

Commission chairman Basil Morrison reminded Mr Mark it was a commission of enquiry and asked him to respect the rules.

NZ First MP Ron Mark was warned not to "threaten" a Local Government commissioner during a testy exchange at the super-city hearings in Carterton on Tuesday.

The hearing, which began at the Carterton Events Centre and transferred to Masterton in the evening, was the first of two days of hearings in Wairarapa, following on from those held last month.

With submitters asked to keep to a time of 10 minutes, Mr Mark was repeatedly asked by the convenor to wrap up his submission.

Commission chairman Basil Morrison reminded Mr Mark it was a commission of enquiry and asked him to respect the rules.

Mr Mark, who is a member of the parliamentary local government and environment committee, said that would be noted for the future, to which Mr Morrison replied: "I'm not going to be threatened ... why can't you be respectful of the commission like the rest of the submitters?"

Mr Mark, one of the first submitters to speak yesterday, had begun his presentation by giving the commissioners a supplementary paper he said outlined the history of other amalgamations, saying "de-amalgamation seems to be on the agenda for a lot of councils these days".

The draft proposal was opposed by most of Wairarapa, he said.

"There's a strong viewpoint out there that your report lacks credible evidence. There are some people who describe it as lazy and out of date already."

The commissioners had come to a pre-determined conclusion, he said.

He questioned the report's data on infrastructure, saying there was an "emerging view that the report could be overestimated by as much as 30 per cent".

"And that's because data collection on the state of infrastructure is still quite infantile -- it's new, the science is not complete, the science is highly questioned now."

Wairarapa was perfectly capable of governing itself and there was no pressing evidence for amalgamation, Mr Mark said.

Also addressing the commissioners was Carterton mayor John Booth, speaking in his capacity as an individual.

He was concerned by the regional council's forecasted increase in rates and debt. "My question around this is, is that a template for the future for the greater Wellington council?"

He did not want to see the decision making process hijacked by a Wellington-centric council.

"We need rural-centred thinking and decision-making."

Wairarapa already had a socially-caring and cosmopolitan mix of people capable of shaping its future, he said.

The second day of hearings continued Wednesday at the Gateway Motor Inn in Masterton from 9am to 5pm.