Council’s fund to be reviewed

The New Plymouth District Council has voted to spend up to $20,000 on the first ever review of its multi-million dollar perpetual investment fund.

The fund, or PIF, was set up in 2004 following the sale of the council’s shares in Powerco and the income is currently used to offset general rates.

But while adopting the district’s Long-Term Plan 2018-28, some councillors sought a review on alternative options to use the PIF funds.

At Tuesday’s meeting councillors voted 8 to 5 to internally review how the money released from the fund is used, which would cost up to $20,000. The outcome could impact on general rates, said chief financial officer Alan Bird.

‘‘How large that impact would be would depend on how much of the release payment was used for something else and the time it took to make that transition.’’

Councillors spoke strongly both for and against the proposal, with several saying they would be wasting money to just end up back where they started.

Councillor Marie Pearce said the review was a waste of money and time. ‘‘I certainly do not agree with spending $20,000 on a review when the outcome is going to be the same.’’

Councillor Stacey Hitchcock said they would not be changing the amount of money released.

‘‘What we need to do is make sure this is strategic, which is what this report will do.’’

She said they currently did not have the availability or flexibility to respond to smaller community needs as they came up.

‘‘This gives us the opportunity to do that but we do it in a way that is financially viable and the way the community wants us to.’’

Councillor Alan Melody said it was not an attack on rates.

‘‘This conversation gives us the opportunity to talk about it, understand it a bit better. It may come back that the status quo remains but I think we need to have the conversation.’’

At the meeting, council also approved the Green Spaces Management Plan to go out to consultation, and an agility fund for the Taranaki Futures’ driver licence training programme. Legal updates to the New Plymouth PIF Guardians Ltd and Papa Rererangi I Puketapu Limited’s Statement of Intent were noted.