Mayor Appalled with Governments Three Waters Decision

South Taranaki District Mayor, Phil Nixon is angry and appalled with the Government’s decision to mandate that Councils have to be part of the 3 waters reform.

"We're angry and appalled with the Government’s decision to mandate that councils have to be part of the Three Waters Reform. We were consistently told by the Government that there would be opportunity for full public consultation on this hugely important matter. But now, and after the majority of councils have asked the Government to pause and rethink, they have ignored us and taken any decision making completely out of our hands. It’s wrong and it's anti-democratic," he says.

"This Government seems determined to centralise everything. Let’s not forget that the assets we’re talking about have been paid for by our communities, not the Government. To say that our Council will retain ownership under the existing proposal is a joke. The claims the system is in crisis are highly inflated as are the benefits of reform. While we accepted that things needed some change, this move to force councils to participate without public consultation is totally unacceptable. Our Council will be letting the Government know our dissatisfaction in no uncertain terms, however I’d also encourage every resident to contact their local MP to let them know what they think about the Government’s decision.”