Whanganui leaders disappointed by Auckland Council’s decision to exit LGNZ

Acting Whanganui Mayor Helen Craig says there is no mood for Whanganui to follow Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown's lead. Photo / Bevan Conley

Auckland Council’s decision to leave Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ) has been met with disappointment by its counterparts in Whanganui and the surrounding districts.

LGNZ is a representative group for local government and provides advocacy and support for councils across the country.

Acting Whanganui Mayor Helen Craig said the group had standing costs and employed “specialist people with specialist knowledge” on topics such as policy and law.

“If you don’t have a big player like Auckland in it, we are all going to have to share the cost burden,” she said.

“Otherwise, they are going to have to shed staff pretty quickly. That weakens the organisation, and it also weakens the influence of LGNZ, theoretically.

“The mayor and I have talked about being quite vocal with LGNZ about the services they offer and the value for money, but at the end of the day, as a whole lot of disparate councils, not having a national body representing us just weakens [us].”

South Taranaki Mayor Phil Nixon. Photo / Bevan Conley

Freeman-Greene said Auckland’s fees contributed to about 4 per cent of LGNZ’s overall revenue last year.

“Apart from Auckland, every single council in New Zealand is a member of LGNZ, and we are committed to delivering our full suite of services to them.”

The organisation had a set formula for its membership fees.

“On average, large metro councils pay $117,000 [per year], regional councils pay $54,000, provincial councils pay $51,000, while smaller rural councils pay about $31,000,” Freeman-Greene said.

“We are currently working through the budget for the next financial year.”

None of the mayors the Chronicle spoke to knew the exact amount their councils paid to LGNZ last year.

Freeman-Greene said there were currently fewer than 30 employees at the organisation.

South Taranaki Mayor Phil Nixon said he didn’t think there would be a “rush at the gate” to follow Auckland’s lead.

“I’m disappointed to hear it, but obviously it’s his [Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown’s] choice. I do say ‘his choice’, because I wouldn’t exactly call it a council choice,” he said.

“Overall, they [LGNZ] do a lot of good for us, and we just need groups like that to support us as local government.

“To me, if you’re not satisfied with organisations, there are other ways of protesting than actually pulling out and making it possibly more difficult for other members.”

Leaving LGNZ was a bit of a cheap shot from Brown, Craig said.

“We’ve had it happen here too. Michael Laws [then-Whanganui mayor] took us out of LGNZ [in 2008] for a couple of years as a protest, I believe. He didn’t see the value.”

Like Nixon, she didn’t believe other councils would follow suit.

“It’s easy to think about that [leaving] if you’re unhappy and you’re trying to save money, but I think most mayors and councils would understand that basic need for a national organisation.

“If you’re not happy, you make it clear to that organisation, as opposed to just throwing your toys out of the cot.

“I don’t think there would be any mood for us [Whanganui] to walk away from it.”

Ruapehu Mayor Weston Kirton says it's unfortunate Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown has gone out on a limb to look after his own interests.

Former Whanganui mayor and vice-president of LGNZ, Hamish McDouall, said membership to LGNZ meant ready access to Government ministers.

“LGNZ also has clear links and access to whichever party is in government,” he said.

“They are an advocacy board and they look after, educate and do pastoral care for elected officials all across New Zealand.”

While there would be a financial impact on LGNZ from Auckland leaving, the “overall picture” would take the biggest hit.

“It’s Auckland over there, being a bit special, and the rest of New Zealand is separated. It’s really isolationist, isn’t it?” McDouall said.

“The cross-pollination of ideas that comes from having that relationship is huge. I often talked to Phil Goff [former Auckland mayor] about relevant things.”

Ruapehu Mayor Weston Kirton said personally, he felt it was unfortunate Brown had gone out on a limb to look after his own interests.

It was also damaging that mayors and chairs wouldn’t be able to deal with central government reforms such as Three Waters collectively, he said.

“It’s always taken for granted that we join together with our views before we take it to central government.

“Now, it’s fragmented, and I guess we run the risk of other councils also parting company.”

Rangitīkei Mayor Andy Watson could not be reached for comment.