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The latest Pre-election Report from Auckland Council encourages candidates and voters to focus on inequity, climate change and funding ahead of this year’s local government election.
A bleak picture of a council that is not on track to meet its emissions reduction targets, rising inequity across the region and costs that are rising quicker than council’s planned funding allows for, are found within the report.
Chief executive Jim Stabback said the issues council faces are not for the faint-hearted.
“Steering a path through these uncertain times is demanding and will be challenging for each and every one of the elected members,” Stabback said.
Stabback said there was an estimated $900 million revenue loss as a result of Covid-19.
“At the same time our costs have been rapidly rising with inflation at a three-decade high, fuel prices at record levels, interest rates rising and ongoing disruption to global supply chains,” Stabback said.
He said that while some of the pressures may ease over time, inflationary impacts are here to stay.
The scale of change required to address climate change in Tamaki Makaurau is ‘huge’, the report says, noting that Auckland’s net greenhouse gas emissions are expected to increase by around 19 percent by 2050. The expected rise is in spite of efforts to address emissions through the proposed Climate Action Targeted Rate or Transport Emissions Reduction plan.
The report said council was not on track to meet its 50 percent emissions reduction target by 2030 and that funding a climate change resilient city is among the financial pressures that council is experiencing. Others include keeping rates low, short term revenue losses, debt constraints and limited aid from central government.
Council has had comparatively low cumulative rate increases over the past 10 years at 34 percent while Wellington had a 54 percent increase and Christchurch had a 79 percent increase.
“Increasing council’s funding capacity often comes from unpopular decisions but is needed in order to tackle council’s challenges,” the report says.
In the wake of Covid-19, economic recovery has been led by those most insulated from the financial impacts of the pandemic while vulnerable people are struggling to financially recover, the report notes.
The report encourages voters and candidates alike to look at policies like the Three Waters Reform, The National Policy Statement on Urban Development and Maori Electoral Seats ahead of the October election.
The full 2022 Pre-election Report can be found on the Vote Auckland website.
Prosperity score lower than average
The Auckland Prosperity Index, 2020, which was included in the report, measures six aspects of ‘prosperity’ across Auckland and while the city averages 5.9 out of 10, the Hibiscus and Bays Local Board area has a prosperity score of 4.6. • The index notes that: the economy in Hibiscus & Bays is dominated by construction, retail and health. Collectively, these industries account for over a 40 percent of employment in the local board area. • Knowledge-intensive industries that tend to employ a sizeable proportion of highly skilled staff, account for only 28 percent of the economy in Hibiscus & Bays, below the level seen across the region. • Hibiscus & Bays has 23 jobs per 100 residents, which is fewer than the Auckland average.”
Election timeline Candidate nominations close on August 12, with the final list of candidates announced on August 17. The election will be on Saturday, October 8 – held by postal vote.
