Mayor rejects water plan rejig
South Waikato mayor Gary Petley said the Government’s new look Three Waters legislation was ‘‘essentially the same as the initial proposal, under a different name’’.
Petley said he was unimpressed with the Government’s recent changes and believed it had failed to make meaningful change, continued to ignore community concerns over property rights, and increasing the numbers of entities did not guarantee a local voice at the decisionmaking table.
‘‘The South Waikato is a small district compared to some of our neighbours,’’ Petley said.
‘‘We may not be growing as fast as other areas around us, but we are growing, and our people and community need our three water infrastructure and services prioritised too.
‘‘This is vital for our future economic success.’’
He said high growth areas in the region had already expressed the need for more than one voice.
‘‘Even with one guaranteed voice at the level which appoints the governing body, on a smaller regional entity, South Waikato’s voice will once again be lost.’’
Petley said the South Waikato needed locally led, locally informed and locally accountable solutions, ‘‘not the one size fits none approach dictated by Wellington’’. ‘‘The issue of property has not been addressed. Billions of dollars of assets are still proposed to be transferred out of the hands of the people who paid for them.’’
According to Petley, it was a missed opportunity to meaningfully engage with local government to find a consensus approach.
‘‘Finally, I am very concerned the three waters infrastructure will continue to be used as a political football in the upcoming elections.
‘‘Three waters should be about the delivery of safe, reliable drinking water, better environmental outcomes, and an efficient, sustainable, resilient and affordable service for future generations.
‘‘This shouldn’t be an election issue.’’