Councillor Russell Ellis has given a grave interpretation of Ashburton’s position in the local government reforms: “We are screwed."
By Jonathan Leask of Local Democracy Reporting
Ashburton District Council had a briefing from Department of Internal Affairs partnership director Sarah Polaschek on the simplifying local government reforms, which pushed councils to amalgamate, on Wednesday.
Ashburton was wedged between Canterbury councils, leaving it with the dilemma of which direction to look.
At the council meeting later on Wednesday afternoon, Deputy mayor Richard Wilson requested a report on the council’s options to consider at the June 10 meeting.
The presentation had third-term councillor Ellis feeling Ashburton was “piggy in the middle”.
“Change is coming whether we like it or not.
“There is so little time to work out something that has such a big impact for our region.
“We are sort of at the whim of what other people want to do.
“Either side of us are big enough to do their own thing and make up their own mind.
“To put it bluntly, we are screwed here in the middle.
“If the two down south [Timaru and McKenzie councils] get together and say, ‘we want Ashburton’, we don’t even actually get much choice in that, and the same happens above us.”
He said he thought taking the backstop route was the option, but has changed his mind.
If a council didn't submit a proposal, or an eligible proposal, it would move into the backstop process where the Government would mandate amalgamations.
“I don’t think any of us in this room have any idea of what the best outcome for us is at this stage.
“We have to work out what we think is best for our regions, be that a bespoke model, going north, south, or whichever way. That’s our challenge here.”
He was also concerned people didn't grasp the reforms weren't just removing regional councils but “this is probably the last [Ashburton District Council] as you know it and they haven’t comprehended that yet”.
Mayor Liz McMillan said it could also mean Ashburton “could potentially be in the driver’s seat”.
Ashburton council chief executive Hamish Riach warned there was no point being in the driver seat “if you’re heading to the cliff”, suggesting the council has to propose something that works for Ashburton.
McMillan was also in favour of working with the rest of Canterbury on proposal options, with the reform to be discussed at the Mayoral Forum on May 29.
Polaschek’s overview explained that headstart was voluntary for councils that were ready to go with amalgamation and there was the potential for bespoke arrangements.
“Head Start is local government led; backstop is central government led," she said.
It was also clarified that councils must present one proposal, not a range of options.
Ellis asked if a proposal could come from Timaru and Ashburton councils, supporting Ashburton to be a single unitary council.
Polaschek said it would be an eligible proposal, but it would still have to pass the assessment criteria.
There were “trade-offs” in assessing the proposals and there were no hard and fast requirements, she said.
“The criteria is ‘does it make sense for the region?' There isn’t a minimum population requirement.
“The is an understanding the five criteria work as a whole. You may meet some better than you meet others.”
Ashburton would consider an options report on June 10 and amalgamation proposals were due on August 9.
Wilson pushed for the report because “the clock is ticking”. “This is one time the councillors may have to make the decision irrespective of public consultation as the massive guide it normally is.”
McMillan said consultation would follow an outline proposal being submitted.
Councillor Tony Todd was the only one to indicate a preference, suggesting “we always tend to head north, against south”.
– LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ on Air.
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