Hellen Swales Announces Candidacy For Mayor In The 2025 Local Body Elections For Upper Hutt
As a passionate advocate for value-driven services, Hellen emphasises transparency and accountability within the council. "I will ensure our council focuses on value for money in the services it delivers, demonstrating this through clear communication with the community," Hellen stated.
Her goal is to secure the council's long-term financial sustainability by effectively managing debt, funding essential services, and limiting non-essential/vanity projects.
Aligned with the ongoing 'Local Water Done Well' initiative, Hellen is committed to advocating for affordable water solutions that truly benefit the community while ensuring transparency in the council's considerations. "It is crucial that we prioritise our communities' needs and work towards solutions that are both effective and sustainable," she added.
Hellen believes that listening to the community is vital for the council's success. By acting on Community Survey results and sharing improvement plans, she aims to respond effectively to community priorities and concerns. "Building trust with our community starts with understanding their needs and communicating our plans clearly," Hellen emphasised.
To foster engagement, Hellen plans to re-evaluate the council's communication strategies and channels. By establishing focus groups cantered on key areas like the economy, environment, and upcoming legislation, and enhancing community involvement in decision-making processes.
As an active member in our community for many years, Hellen sees a need and a desire for a stronger community voice and hence her goal is to establish a stronger community relationship which can be involved at the right time to drive community outcomes.
Furthermore, Hellen will establish Key Performance Indicators for Councillors and the Chief Executive, ensuring accountability through annual reviews and sharing the results with the community. 'It's essential that we hold ourselves accountable to the people we serve,' she remarked.
Hellen Swales invites all Upper Hutt residents to join her in this journey towards a more transparent, accountable, and community-focused council. Together, we can build a stronger future for Upper Hutt.
Hellen believes working together will provide Upper Hutt the change we need and the voice it deserves.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Otago Daily Times
10 minutes ago
- Otago Daily Times
‘Scary' 30% rates rise on cards
Councillors hear an update on Local Water Done Well proposals at a workshop this week. PHOTOS: ANDREW ASHTON Ratepayers could face a "scary" 30% rates rise in just two years if the Waitaki District Council's plans for an in-house water services unit are accepted. That was the stark reality laid out for councillors at a workshop this week to plan how to move forward from a decision two weeks ago to opt out of a joint water entity with three other Otago councils. Mayor Gary Kircher said he and the rest of the council were committed to making the best of that decision, which now involved sending a draft plan to the government by the end of July, before a full water services delivery plan (WSDP) was presented to the Department of Internal Affairs in September as required by the government's Local Water Done Well legislation. "We have to make sure that we do set up our in-house option as best as possible and I won't tolerate anyone undermining that." However, the size and cost of that was put into perspective by two Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) representatives at the workshop. They reiterated their points from a previous meeting that the in-house model would have to meet the government's financial stability rules for a period of 10 years, even if the plan involved a joint venture with other authorities before then. The in-house model would have to stand on its own merits for a 10-year period for assessment purposes. If those rules were not quite met, a facilitator could be appointed to work alongside the council to help the plan meet the targets. Department of Internal Affairs representatives Marlon Bridge (left) and Warren Ulusele at the workshop. The other, "more intrusive" option was to send in "the specialist", DIA representative Warren Ulusele said. "That person is appointed in the council, they make decisions on behalf of the council. They can look up across the council finances, potentially look to redirect funding from other purposes and redirect it back into Three Waters investment. "They can look at the revenue streams and determine that they need to go up. So I point that out, not in a threatening way, but just to be absolutely clear about this conversation around control and that's concern, again, not just this council, consultation across the country and it's understandable. "That person is appointed by the minister with one objective and that is to develop a financially sustainable plan. They will look to do that as quickly as possible and their focus is meeting growth. So they're not looking across the range of responsibilities you have, the range of considerations you have." WDC chief financial officer Amanda Nicholls then laid out the council's finances saying they would look "scary" at this stage of the process, pointing out external debt per rateable property would significantly exceed the benchmark of $4000, while debt continued to grow over the years. However, it would require a rate rise of about 25.61 % in the 2028 LTP year to fund the in-house unit, and then rate rises of about 4% for each of the following years. All those rises and the 2028 rise could also increase by a further 5% if the council, as was likely, was required to fund depreciation of water assets. When it came to council debt, the workshop heard the WDC would breach its debt cap in 2035 and every year thereafter, potentially requiring further rate rises to lower it. Two weeks ago, Waitaki district councillors voted to exit the Southern Water Done Well partnership with Clutha, Central Otago and Gore in favour of an in-house water services delivery unit. The joint arrangement was previously the council's preferred option before it was put to public consultation. Public consultation across the four councils drew in over 1000 submission with the in-house business unit model the preferred option in Waitaki (54%) and Clutha, while only 26.7% supported the joint entity, most popular in Gore and Central Otago. Prior to that the Department of Internal Affairs said joining a four-way, multi-district water company was the "only viable option" for the district. The DIA representatives this week said they had heard nothing to allay their "concerns" over the council's chosen path, saying they could not see a pathway for the council to develop a plan that was credible. "Hopefully, it'll come to light as you uncover more of what information discloses as you put more of the facts into the equation." The council intends to hold weekly public workshops, videos of which will be posted on its website, every Tuesday this month to keep people up to date with progress. A recording of this week's meeting, with chapter points for each section, the presentation given by the council's finance team, and the letter from the DIA are all available on the council website. "Council encourages the community to watch the videos, read the presentation and the letter from the DIA to be fully informed about the development of the WSDP," a council statement said.
Scoop
2 days ago
- Scoop
Ratepayers Win In Collaboration Over Local Water
Minister of Local Government Hamilton City and Waikato District Councils have delivered the first multi council water services delivery plan, an achievement that will be welcomed by all ratepayers, says Local Government Minister Simon Watts. 'We have been very clear that local government needs to focus on core business and I am delighted that these two councils are the first to embrace the benefits to ratepayers of collaboration under Local Water Done Well. 'Not only does this mean safe and reliable drinking and wastewater, it means cost increases necessary to fund vital infrastructure are more affordable for ratepayers. 'This collaboration means 280,000 New Zealanders served by the combined local organisation will be assured of the ongoing financial sustainability of their water services at affordable cost. 'Investing in infrastructure is critical for our communities' success and critical for growth. This plan significantly boosts investment in Hamilton and Waikato District's water services infrastructure over the next decade, supporting new housing, businesses and improved service quality. 'The cost of delivering water services has been a driver of higher rates across the country. By getting water services on a stable footing and making critical investment now, councils keep rate increases down.' This increased investment is supported by better access to finance from the Local Government Funding Agency. 'Mayors Paula Southgate of Hamilton and Jacqui Church of Waikato District have done a great job in getting this result and I congratulate them on working in the best interests of their respective ratepayers to establish this new joint water services organization,' Mr Watts says. 'I am also pleased that both councils are willing to consider forming a larger regional model with other Waikato councils over time. 'I look forward to other councils following the example of Waikato and Hamilton in delivering excellent locally-directed services that benefit their communities.'
NZ Herald
2 days ago
- NZ Herald
Northland's biggest water services changes kick off in Whangārei
Whangārei could end up subsidising Kaipara and Far North water users in a move described as historic for Northland. Whangārei District Council (WDC) yesterday voted to set up a Northland-wide council-controlled organisation (CCO) as part of the Government's Local Water Done Well change requirements. The decision was a major milestone,
