Ratepayer rebellion: Review team appointed

Bruce Rogan and other ratepayers have put up strike signs, and want the Kaipara District Council declared insolvent. Photo / Northern Advocate

The Government has announced the team that will review Kaipara District Council after a public uprising over a massive rate rise.

Up to 2000 residents took to the streets last month to protest rates hikes of up to 31 per cent and $9.5 million the council admitted it collected wrongly.

Residents vowed they would not pay any increases and put signs on their homes in defiance of the council's proposed rates hikes.

Local Government Minister David Carter today announced the review team would be chaired by Northland businessman and farmer Greg Gent, and Leigh Auton and Peter Tennent.

The reviewers will look at issues at the council including setting rates levels for Kaipara ratepayers.

It will review the council's governance and financial management processes and systems and make recommendations for a way forward.

"Kaipara District Council is dealing with a number of serious issues. It sought help from the Government and the wider local government sector which has led to the appointment of this review team,'' said Mr Carter.

"I am confident the combined expertise of the team members will greatly assist the council in working through its issues,'' he said.

In the past year Kaipara District Council tumbled from 16th to 65th place on the local government league table rating the performance of New Zealand's 67 councils.

Kaipara had the biggest downgrade, dropping 49 places from last year to third from bottom on this year's league table, which uses financial and economic assessment ratios closely allied to the measures that by law will soon be introduced for all councils relating to their financial management performance and public reporting.

Mr Carter said the council had turned to Government for help in May asking for it to work alongside Local Government New Zealand to urgently set up a review team to address issues within the council.

The Mangawhai Ratepayers and Residents' Association wrote to Mr Carter last month, claiming the council had a "ruinous level of debt'' and urged him to take action after the council proposed 31 per cent average rate increase.

The council said the increase, for 2012-13, was to cover its $80.7 million debt, which includes about $60 million for the Mangawhai sewerage scheme.

The review team will report at the end of October.