Latest news with #FutureDunedin
Otago Daily Times
18-07-2025
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Simms suspends call to cut voting rights
A Dunedin mayoral hopeful has suspended his call for unelected council committee representatives to lose their voting rights. The backdown from Andrew Simms came after input from members of his Future Dunedin team ticket in city council elections. He also clarified he believed mana whenua must have representation, but the past week had reinforced it was not up to him to dictate the shape of this — such as by introducing a Māori ward at the Dunedin City Council. "I remain very uneasy about all appointed council positions, not just those set aside for mana whenua, but I now fully accept that the usual norms of democracy should not be imposed,'' Mr Simms said in a Facebook post. The city council has several unelected appointees, including on its audit and risk subcommittee and mana whenua representatives on its infrastructure services committee, and strategy, planning and engagement committee. Mr Simms had taken issue with this just over a week ago, saying his preference was for specialists to participate in discussions, but not to have voting rights. Yesterday, he said if the preference of mana whenua was for appointed committee positions, "then I guess we have to live with tha". "My view is that they actually need more representation, not less representation, and that would be achieved with a full council seat as opposed to committee positions — but that's for them to determine. "The mistake I made was thinking that I knew what was best for them.'' The Otago Daily Times asked Mr Simms if he was retracting his call for removal of voting rights for mana whenua representatives and independent audit and risk subcommittee members. "I am until ... we can achieve greater representation for mana whenua,'' he said. "I firmly believe that mana whenua and tangata whenua are under-represented at the Dunedin City Council. "There are many ways that tangata whenua could gain much better representation.'' Mr Simms confirmed members of his team ticket had not agreed with his earlier stance. "I put my hand up and say that, absolutely, I made a mistake, and my team have helped me to understand that, and we deal with it, and we get on with it. "I'm prepared to take on board what my team say, and alter my position accordingly.'' Mr Simms said in his Facebook post team members had "helped me to understand this issue''. He had particular thanks for Luke Ranga — son of Future Dunedin candidate Bruce Ranga — "for his direct advice and assistance''. He said any criticism of him not being sufficiently informed before speaking out, or that he might have benefited from talking to his team first, was fair. "I'd fully accept that as valid criticism ... I think it shows the value of having a team around you, and a diverse team.'' He was also critical of the performance of the audit and risk subcommittee. Mr Simms was particularly unhappy independent subcommittee chairman Warren Allen had seen a report by Deloitte that looked into some council practices, but elected members had not. "That's a serious assault on democracy.''
Otago Daily Times
06-07-2025
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Letters to the Editor: water, pennies and crocodiles
Today's Letters to the Editor from readers cover topics including the future of water in Dunedin, pensioners pinching pennies, and continuing to feed the crocodile. Surrey St residents keen to understand issues Disbelief at the comments made by Dunedin City Council's general manager Three Waters and transition David Ward that our residents' claims contained "a spectacular amount of misinformation and falsehood" (ODT, 1.7.25). After demanding that he and his support act get up here to see the problems after the 2024 flood he didn't even know the full history of Surrey St flooding being new to the job! I'd like to know what falsehoods and misinformation. Some of us have probably read more engineering reports, cost analysis and expert engineering opinions spanning 20 or more years regarding the Surrey St issue and the South Dunedin-wide problem than he's had time to locate. And just so we ratepayers and residents know he's speaking the truth we'd like to see the detailed engineering plans for the piping network upgrades and pumping station improvements plus the complete costings of the engineering works he stated. Or are they still in the pipeline as usual? Surrey St Flood Action Group Response from David Ward: Thank you for the chance to clarify my comments. The Otago Daily Time s originally asked us to respond to a series of comments from residents that were worse than those eventually published. All the claims were false, which is why I responded as firmly as I did. The ODT then thankfully decided not to publish the worst of the comments, but I was not given the chance to modify my response, which was presented in full and out of context. For the record, the problems in Surrey Str are caused by a known bottleneck in our wastewater system, and we have never denied this. We feel for the residents there, and we have taken interim steps to protect their homes (such as the installation of non-return values, and pipe replacements elsewhere that ease pressure on the network including in Surrey St) while continuing to work hard to progress a permanent solution. The issues involved are complex and the potential solutions expensive, requiring changes that affect our wider network, but we expect to be in a position to provide more information later this year. Future Dunedin's full-page advertisement ( ODT , 11.6.25) includes in its "Policy Positioning" that "Future Dunedin will advocate for immediate action to protect $10b of assets at risk from flooding in South Dunedin." In simple terms, that's equivalent to 10,000 x $1 million assets. Given that 900 South Dunedin properties were flooded in the last severe flooding incident, is Future Dunedin able to share with the voting public how the figure of $10 billion was arrived at? Andrew Simms responds: Two options presented by the South Dunedin Futures Programme describe the widespread retreat from large tracts of land in South Dunedin including housing areas, industrial and retail areas. Homes, factories, supermarkets and car dealerships gone. Various reports estimate the value of this land and the assets upon it at between $7 billion and $10 billion. The social cost of displacing 15,000 people is perhaps far greater. South Dunedin is an essential part of Dunedin and much of the function of South Dunedin cannot be replaced. The effective defence of South Dunedin can be achieved for a fraction of its value. Pennies are only pinched because they have to be I noted the article on "penny pinching pensioners'' (ODT , 2.7.25) doing so because they have to, to ensure they can pay their power bills. I'm in my 70s and live in a small flat on the hill. Like most flats in Dunedin it can be "cool" in winter. My power bill is between $90- $100-plus every month. What! I hear you say, how lucky is he. But take into account there is no hot water charge in that and no heating charge in that (when I did use a heater I couldn't afford to pay that bill every month.) So basically I am being charged for light bulbs (have energy saving ones), cooking a meal and time on my laptop (no TV). The "small user" rate has gone and I am told by my power company to expect more rises in costs. Watching successive governments and their approaches to ever rising costs in everything we need to use to survive there appears to be little interest in actually doing anything. Big businesses like power companies seem to hold sway over all aspects of power generation, not the government. The tail has wagged the dog for too long. It is time for "open slather" to be applied to alternative power sources i.e. wind farms, solar farms, tide-generated energy, geothermal, biomass energy. We all see massive innovations in energy production overseas but here, well, let's wait and see. We have lost our innovative No 8 wire mentality that said "rip into it and get it done" and it's been replaced by apathy based on the fact no government and especially no power company is ever going to act in the best interests of their consumers. A sad indictment that we have allowed this to happen and I believe many pensioners will agree with me. Keeping on feeding the crocodile Gerrard Eckhoff (Letters, 3.7.25) is a regular letter writer and contributor to the ODT . Most of us know pretty much where he is coming from. His latest letter can probably be described as pushback against pushback against a recent tirade opposing capital gains tax, such as "stupid" left-wing "do-gooders" keep agitating for. In doing so he has, in my opinion, shot himself in the foot. It demonstrates how shallow this analysis really is. The astronomical increases in monetary asset values over five decades really bells the cat. Is he really suggesting that this mostly reflects increases in real wealth and productive capacity? Rather it is mostly asset inflation – unearned income (although not, apparently, according to our current prime minister). I would prefer to call it "fake wealth". I'm inclined to agree with Mr Eckhoff that capital gains tax (or a wealth tax) would probably not fix the problem. It is the result of too much easy money for non-productive purposes. For example, if I want to borrow for some relatively risky enterprise I would probably be hit for about 2 percentage points more, than if I was leveraging the (fake) equity in my house to buy a relatively riskless investment property. The deregulated financial system just keeps on feeding the crocodile. And by the way, we all know that the world is not particularly fair. Those camped on the Oval in tents or sleeping in cars certainly do. Whether it is meant to be is another matter. But at the very least we expect those who are handsomely rewarded to do something to justify it. Abridged — Ed. Address Letters to the Editor to: Otago Daily Times, PO Box 517, 52-56 Lower Stuart St, Dunedin. Email: editor@
Otago Daily Times
29-06-2025
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Unelected reps should not vote: Simms
A Dunedin mayoral hopeful says unelected representatives have no place voting in city council processes. Over the weekend, mayoral candidate Andrew Simms lodged his firm opposition to Māori wards and voting rights for unelected representatives. Following social media comments on the subject, Mr Simms told the Otago Daily Times he disagreed with any unelected representatives having voting rights during the council process, regardless of who they were representing. "From my point of view, the community choose the councillors ... to represent them," Mr Simms said. "I see the inclusion of unelected representatives at any level having a vote as being the thin end of the wedge a bit and I don't think that fits with democracy. "At that point, the community loses control of who they have to represent them." Several of the Dunedin City Council's committees or sub-committees have non-elected members. These included infrastructure services and strategy as well as planning and engagement, which each have two local rūnaka representatives with voting rights. Ms Simms said, if elected mayor in October, he would put the matter up for discussion in the council. His preference was for experts to participate in discussions, but not to have voting rights. "It's any unelected representation, it's not a Māori issue whatsoever at that point," he said. "There are numerous people that I could think of within the Dunedin community who are either mana whenua or mātāwaka [Māori from an iwi outside the area] who ... would absolutely waltz in as councillors if they put themselves forward purely on their own merits." Mr Simms said his position on Māori wards was based, in part, on an apparent lack of support for the wards from mana whenua. He said these were conscience issues and candidates on his ticket, Future Dunedin, were free to form their own opinions. Yesterday, other mayoral candidates spoke in favour of unelected representatives. Cr Mandy Mayhem said she had "no issue whatsoever" with mana whenua representatives having voting rights as it was important to have shared responsibility on decision making. Māori perspectives should be incorporated in local governance and steps like developing "culturally appropriate consultation processes" and supporting self-determination could ensure Māori participation. Fellow councillor and mayoral candidate Sophie Barker said she believed in Māori representation and input into council decision-making. "I realise people can be nervous about unelected representatives on committees. However, I think committee representation is useful to ensure we have mana whenua views." Cr Barker said people she had spoken to felt comfortable with the arrangement as committees did not have the same powers as council. "A Māori ward was raised recently by a member of mātāwaka. Some Māori, while respecting and honouring the rights of local iwi, feel that their voices are not being heard in decision making ... it's worth thinking about." Green Party nominee Mickey Treadwell said Māori had "long been under-represented in local government" and committee representation and Māori wards were an important part of addressing the inequity. "Both the DCC and the [regional council] have independent accountants on their audit and risk subcommittees, and this somehow escapes controversy." Other mayoral candidates Lee Vandervis and Jules Radich did not respond to questions.
Otago Daily Times
02-06-2025
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Real solutions before ‘saving the world'
Flooded streets in South Dunedin and Bathgate Park in June 2015. PHOTO: STEPHEN JAQUIERY South Dunedin stormwater issues should be sorted out "before we embark on saving the world", a mayoralty candidate says. However, a city councillor argues shaping a climate-resilient future need not get in the way of local solutions. The differing perspectives came from Cr Steve Walker and Future Dunedin political ticket leader and mayoralty hopeful Andrew Simms, while Crs Sophie Barker and Lee Vandervis — another mayoralty candidate — also weighed in. Mr Simms noted it had been 10 years since a large flood in South Dunedin, and he lamented lack of progress in implementing key recommendations from a 2017 report by Opus about stormwater. The South Dunedin Future programme was set up by the Dunedin City Council and the Otago Regional Council after the flooding and it is principally about responding to climate change and natural hazards through a long-term plan under development. Mr Simms characterised the programme as offering "a long-term, billion-dollar response to gradual sea-level rise and climate change". "But the Opus report focuses on what South Dunedin urgently needs right now: practical, immediate solutions to mitigate flooding caused by an overwhelmed drainage system." Future Dunedin would advocate for Opus to update its proposals for the council, "to ensure decisions are grounded in sound engineering, not just long-term vision", Mr Simms said. He and Future Dunedin council candidate Conrad Stedman had talked to stormwater engineers and South Dunedin residents and "listened to longtime Surrey St residents whose showers back up with sewage during heavy rain". "We acknowledge the challenges of climate change, but Dunedin ratepayers' money should be spent firstly on solving Dunedin's problems, before we embark on saving the world." Cr Walker took issue with the way Mr Simms had framed matters, describing some aspects as misleading. The city council had directed money to immediate issues faced by South Dunedin and there was no agenda to prioritise international climate goals at the expense of local resilience, he said. Cr Walker said work could be done to deal with immediate problems for low-lying communities and shaping a climate-resilient future — "one doesn't have to come at the expense of the other". "While short-term, temporary fixes may look politically attractive, we should caution against knee-jerk reactions if it puts at risk, financially impinges on, or delays the longer-term planning identified in the excellent [South Dunedin Future] programme." Cr Barker said Future Dunedin's position was not greatly at odds with the council's. "While we need to look at the long term and our climate adaptation work, we also need action now to stop people's homes flooding and minimise damage," she said. Dunedin Mayor Jules Radich particularly pushed for a multimillion-dollar package for immediate mitigation and the council voted this year in support of it. Cr Vandervis said sewage erupting in Surrey St without a fix was unforgivable. However, northern parts of the city should not be forgotten and flooding there had historically been more damaging, he said. "Flood events in Dunedin can never be entirely controlled, but having a historically informed overview of all Dunedin flood vulnerability should spread limited resources proportionately to protect the majority of Dunedin residents and businesses."
Otago Daily Times
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
Letters to the Editor: Campaign spend, pay equity, rabbits and rail
Today's Letters to the Editor from readers cover topics including campaign spending, pay equity, rabbits and KiwiRail. Meaningful ideas beat enormous ad budgets In response to Mr Bill Southworth's letter (ODT 26.6.25) suggesting that both I and Future Dunedin hold an unfair advantage in the upcoming Dunedin City Council local body elections due to our ability to run a campaign. While the current rules permit each candidate to spend up to $55,000 on campaigning, Future Dunedin's actual budget is well below that limit. What sets us apart is not the scale of our spending, but the strength of our vision - a vision grounded in genuine change, practical ambition, and a deep commitment to the future of our city. We look forward to sharing that vision with the people of Dunedin and inviting their support. Mr Southworth may find reassurance in the fact that, in 2022, the candidate who invested the most in their campaign was ultimately unsuccessful. This underscores a fundamental truth in local democracy: meaningful ideas resonate more deeply than advertising budgets. Future Dunedin has also made a principled decision not to accept any external donations. We are not aligned with any political party, nor are we funded by outside interests. Should we be elected, our councillors will answer only to the people of Dunedin. Andrew Simms Mayoral and council candidate for Future Dunedin Pearl clutching ''Hipkins said he had changed his position on the appropriateness of the column because of the distraction it was causing, which was 'taking away from what is a very fair issue'.'' (RNZ 15.5.25). This was the moment Chris Hipkins showed his complete inability to lead and be the next prime minister. Instead of recognising the juicy open goal presented by the most outrageous egregious pearl-clutching episode ever seen in Parliament and treating it with the kind of derision that Helen Clark would have revelled in, he bottled it, conceding weakly to the disingenuous framing of Brooke van Velden and certain media commentators, and threw Jan Tinetti under the bus. The late Bob Jones once called Bill Rowling the ''shiver in search of a spine'': Hipkins owns this now. Pay equity was and is the issue. Andrew Nichols Kew Freight hub What I consider very good news is the proposed freight hub is to be located at Milburn. This is an ideal location and must result in fewer heavy vehicles coming through Dunedin and using SH88 to and from Port Chalmers. The CEO of Port Otago, Kevin Winders, is very supportive and has indicated this hub will not be in competition with the one to be fully developed in Mosgiel. I suggest Calder Stewart start doing it immediately before all the naysayers get together and act against this plan. John Neilson Ravensbourne Oi. Shhh. Southland Hospital's ban on its staff chatting to each other for more than 5 minutes a day, and never in the afternoon, is brilliant. The management is well aware that talking about the performance of the All Blacks, the Kardashians or Meghan and Harry takes up far too many valuable minutes, and patients may die as a consequence. To have a taciturn but kindly and efficient staff is clearly the aim, and will surely save the taxpayer many millions. Mark Stocker Christchurch We are making rabbits run run run - KiwiRail I was surprised to read comments highlighting issues with feral rabbits in the rail corridor in Otago, and suggesting that land occupiers and Otago Regional Council staff have had limited success engaging with public agencies to enable effective control of rabbits (ODT 21.5.25). KiwiRail is committed to controlling rabbits on its land and has been carrying out targeted rabbit control annually since 2019 throughout sections of the rail corridor in Balclutha, Moeraki, Waihola, Milton and Henley. This has been undertaken in collaboration with both the ORC and the local community. Pests do not respect boundaries, so pest control is a responsibility of all landowners. KiwiRail is absolutely playing its part. Ruth Brittain National vegetation contract manager, KiwiRail Recognition sought Please could the current government at the very least acknowledge the economic cost that the Labour government had to bear with the four disasters it had to finance during its terms. Kay Hannan Weston Somehow not sighting the causal nexus If the Otago University Staff for Palestine group (Letters ODT 26.5.25) are so blinkered by their prejudice against Israel that they do not see the significant causal nexus between the Hamas attacks of October 7, 2023 and the present situation in Gaza, then there is little hope that the group's efforts can actually make any contribution towards their ostensible aims of improving the plight for Palestinians. Before October 2023, 18,000 Palestinians from Gaza held work permits allowing them to cross the controlled border between Gaza and Israel for work each day. After October 2023, all of these permits were revoked. Before October 2023, there were no settlers, settlements, or permanent Israeli forces within Gaza, although Israel still controlled the borders. After October 2023, the idea that Israel should not continue to control its borders is ridiculous. Malcolm Moncrief-SpittleDunedin [Abridged - editor.]
