Council rate increases of up to 65% too much, Taxpayers' Union says
Jo Danilo / Supplied
Rates increases at levels double the scale of inflation over the past three years show local bodies' spending needs to be reined in, the Taxpayers' Union says.
The lobby group has released its rates dashboard which ranks local bodies across the country on how much they have increased rates.
It's been campaigning for the government to
bring in a cap on rates increases
.
Its survery found, on average, rates have increased 34.4 percent in total over the past three years - that's more than two-and-a-half times the rate of inflation during the same period.
"Over the last three years West Coast Regional Council had a rates increase of 65 percent. It's absolutely up there and it's driving the cost of living for a lot of people," Taxpayers Union local government campaigns manager Sam Warren said.
West Coast Regional Council has been approached for a response.
Other noticeable rates increases were seen in Wellington with the capital's city council increasing rates 47 percent while Wellington Regional Council was up 54 percent.
Taranaki, Queenstown, Hastings and Central Otago were also among the top 10.
"We'd like to see a return to focus on the basics particularly when families are doing it so tough," Warren said.
He said while each council had it's own needs and challenges, spending was increasing across councils in various areas.
"Employee costs were up 7 or 8 percent and finance costs up 16 percent off the top of my head.
"I make a career of finding a lot of council waste, so it's endless obviously, but really I think right now when it's so difficult they need to tighten their belts," he said.
Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter
curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
RNZ News
an hour ago
- RNZ News
Online casino bill: Greens vote with coalition govt to pass first reading
The bill introduces 15 licences for online casinos, which would require companies to provide a harm prevention strategy. File photo. Photo: 123RF The Greens have broken with their opposition party colleagues to vote in support of the coalition's online casino bill. The law change, which aims to protect online gamblers, has passed its first reading 83 to 39 in a conscience vote at Parliament, with the Green' support. The bill was introduced by Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden and would introduce 15 licences for online casinos, which would require companies to provide a harm prevention strategy and data showing past compliance. Online casinos would need an age verification system to ban under-18s, contribute 1.24 percent of profits to a levy, and abide by advertising restrictions. Companies breaking the rules would face fines of up to $5m. The minister has said New Zealand-based online casinos would get no preferential treatment in obtaining licences. Van Velden in a statement said the bill would seek to protect New Zealanders who gambled online, and the bill would impose regulations on the currently unregulated market. "The most important part of this bill is protecting New Zealanders who enjoy gambling online by introducing robust safety measures for licensed operators. The bill will now proceed to select committee, and I would encourage interested New Zealanders to have their say when public submissions open," van Velden said. In the first reading vote in Parliament on Tuesday, all MPs voted along party lines, with the coalition parties all in support. Labour and Te Pāti Māori voted against the bill, but all 14 Green MPs voted in support. The Greens' internal affairs spokesperson Benjamin Doyle told RNZ the party wanted to bring the issue to select committee with the aim of convincing the coalition parties to make significant changes. "We always want to support movements towards harm reduction. So with online gambling, it's totally unregulated at the moment, and we see this as a very small step in the right direction to enact harm reduction techniques," they said. "It's definitely not far enough, but we believe that going to select committee to hear from experts, community, people with lived experience of online gambling harm, and advocacy groups may be able to help us to inform changes and amendments and improvements to this legislation that will actually enact harm reduction." However, the Problem Gambling Foundation has raised concerns about the approach. Advocacy and public health director Andree Froude said she feared usage of online gambling would increase, rather than decrease. Froude called for changes including making requiring online gamblers to say how much money and time they would spend gambling before starting a session, and a ban on online gambling using credit cards which could leave them deep in debt. The funding from the levy would go into the problem gambling levy pot of funding. The independent Gambling Commission in a report this year highlighted the Ministry of Health had been unable to find evidence showing that $81m fund actually reduced harm. Doyle said the Greens wanted to ensure 100 percent of the funding recouped from the moves would go back to harm reduction. "There needs to be extremely high levels of transparency around where that funding is going, that revenue is going, and my ideal would be that 100 percent of the revenue goes towards community harm reduction... it shouldn't be going towards the back pockets." They also wanted a ban on advertising for online gambling, and possibly a reduction in the number of licences. The party had not yet approached the coalition parties to see what kind of support they could get for the changes, they said - and called for more consultation with Māori. "The value mai i te kākano 'from the very seed' is the best approach when engaging with Māori. We should be engaging right from the beginning of drafting this piece of legislation." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
2 hours ago
- RNZ News
Labour and Te Pāti Māori miss deadline for financial statements
Labour and Te Pāti Māori's statements were due at the end of the financial year on 30 June. File photo. Photo: RNZ / REECE BAKER Labour and Te Pāti Māori have both been late in filing audited financial statements to the Electoral Commission. It is another strike for Te Pāti Māori, although the Electoral Commission says the party has assured them this year's and last year's statements will be filed together soon. Labour has filed its financial statements - but not an audit. Their statements were due at the end of the financial year on 30 June. All other parties with that due date - including ACT and National - have filed their financial statements. Electoral Commission manager of legal, regulation and policy Kristina Temel said the commission was continuing to follow up with both parties. "Labour has not filed an audit report for its financial statements. The party contacted us before 30 June to advise that its audit report is taking longer than expected and at this stage we are satisfied with the reasons they and their auditor have given," Temel said. Labour general secretary Rob Salmond said the party was "continuing to work with our audit partners as we transition to a new set of accounting practices" and was "in the late stages of this process". Temel said Te Pāti Māori had not yet filed an audit report, or financial statements "but has told the commission they are being prepared and will be filed soon". "They have also informed us that the outstanding audit report for last year's financial statements will be filed at the same time." As incorporated societies, Labour and Te Pāti Māori are the only parties required to have their financial statements audited under changes to the Electoral Act passed in 2022. Several other parties - including the Greens and NZ First - have a reporting date at the end of September. Police previously issued a formal warning to Te Pāti Māori over the failure to file a complete and audited 2023 financial statement on time. The commission said no decisions had yet been made on whether to refer any of Te Pāti Māori's leadership to police over this year's statements but noted that "under section 210J of the Electoral Act, it is an offence for a party secretary to file a financial statement late or fail to file a financial statement without reasonable excuse". Te Pāti Māori president John Tamihere declined to comment. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
2 hours ago
- RNZ News
Work: What's in the Employment Relations Amendment Bill
Workers earning over $180k won't be able to pursue an 'unjustified dismissal' under the new legislation. Photo: 123RF Law commentator Charles McGuinness, of McGuinness Employment Law based in Wellington joins Kathryn to discuss what's in the Employment Relations Amendment Bill that's been introduced to Parliament. Charles McGuinness is an employment lawyer in Wellington
