Council tops up Toyota

Toyota New Zealand has been given almost $400,000 to help with expansion, courtesy of Palmerston North ratepayers.

The Palmerston North City Council gave Toyota an economic grant of $391,000 plus GST last year, which was revealed in a Local Government Meetings and Official Information Act request by the NZ Taxpayers’ Union.

Toyota New Zealand’s headquarters are in Palmerston North, so the council saw it as an investment in a large employer in the city. Toyota returned a profit of $21.9 million after tax from a revenue of $1.4 billion for the last financial year.

A council spokesperson said that in 2017 the council decided to pay a discretionary grant to Toyota as financial assistance for head office and distribution expansion in New Zealand.

‘‘Toyota NZ’S headquarters have been in Palmerston North for close to 50 years and it has been a significant employer in the city. This expansion demonstrates an ongoing commitment to Palmerston North, and provides further employment opportunities for locals. The council recognised this as an economic development opportunity and made the one-off grant.’’ The council did not say where information about the grant was available for the public.

A Toyota spokesperson said they were unable to comment and it was for the council to comment on how it distributed grants.

They would not confirm if Toyota had received funding from any other council.

Massey University local government commentator Andy Asquith said he applauded the council’s decision but questioned whether Toyota was the right sort of recipient.

The 11,000-square-metre expansion to Toyota’s parts warehouse took a year to build and was the first stage of a significant expansion. It was officially opened last month. It is the third expansion to the now 35,000sqm Kelvin Grove warehouse in 15 years, following work in 2003 and 2007.

Toyota logistics manager Dave Rhodes-robinson last month said the expansion was driven by a massive growth in parts sales and the larger warehouse was needed so Toyota had enough parts on the shelves to ensure overnight delivery for at least 95 per cent of orders.

New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union spokesman Patrick Corish said it was great to see a business investing in Palmerston North but the company should do so out of its own pocket.

‘‘Toyota is the world’s second largest car manufacturer, with posted profits of more than US$22 billion. Why on earth does the council think it a good use of local ratepayer money to fund corporate welfare to this giant?’’