Agenda of Manurewa Local Board - Thursday, 16 February 2023

No.	Title	Page
a ⇩	16 February 2023, Manurewa Local Board - Members' Update Heather Andrew	11

Manurewa Local Board

16 February 2023

Auckland Transport Report February 2023

File No.: CP2023/00474

Te take mō te pūrongo

Purpose of the report

1. To update the Manurewa Local Board about transport related matters.

Whakarāpopototanga matua

Executive summary

2. The report will provide an update on the following transport related items:

· Road safety perception survey

· Bus timetable changes

· Rail upgrade

· Local Board Transport Capital Fund.

Ngā tūtohunga

Recommendation/s

That the Manurewa Local Board:

a) receive the February 2023 report from Auckland Transport.

Horopaki

Context

3. Auckland Transport (AT) is responsible for all of Auckland’s transport services, excluding state highways. AT reports on a regular basis to local boards, as set out in the Local Board Engagement Plan. This reporting commitment acknowledges the important engagement role local boards play within and on behalf of their local communities.

Tātaritanga me ngā tohutohu

Analysis and advice

4. This section of the report contains information about relevant projects, issues and initiatives. It provides summaries of the detailed advice and analysis provided to the local board during workshops and briefings.

Road safety perception survey

5. AT conducted a road safety perception survey last year following the completion of the second residential speed management zone. The findings are summarised below:

· there was a 67 per cent net increase in perception of safety in the area

· 75 per cent of respondents reported feeling safer or much safer due to the speed-calming

· 28 per cent of respondents reported using at least one active mode of transport more often due to the safety improvements

· net increase of 19 per cent, 28 per cent and 25 per cent respectively in walking, cycling and scootering in the area due to the safety improvements

· an increase has also been recorded in use of active modes of transport for local shopping trips (from 11 per cent to 16 per cent)

· increased safety ratings around schools, for pedestrians and cyclists, and regarding driver behaviour

6. The report will be posted on the AT website. If the board wants a further briefing this can be arranged.

Bus timetable changes

7. There has been a significant impact from driver shortages on passenger transport services, particularly buses. AT, in consultation with service providers, has adjusted timetables to reflect the reality of service levels and to manage commuter expectations.

8. The vast majority of services removed from timetables are those which have not been operating for some months now, because they have been part of a series of recurring cancellations agreed between AT and our various operators.

9. When AT were working through the process with operators in determining which services could be proactively cancelled, we endeavoured to follow these agreed principles as much as possible:

· retain first trip of the day

· retain last trip of the day

· retain all school services

· retain as much as possible, trips which we know are used by large numbers of school students

· where a service operates at peak times only, try and retain last trip of morning peak and first trip of afternoon peak

· try not to cancel two trips in a row on the same route

· try and retain all trips on remote routes

· try and retain all trips on low frequency (hourly or less).

10. In most cases the timetable changes announced will be in keeping with these principles, but there will unfortunately still be occasions every day where driver illness across the network means there will be cancellations outside of these parameters.

11. Recruitment is progressing for drivers, but with school now started on 7 February, the demand on services will be at its peak. Replacement buses for rail replacement services will compound this.

Rail upgrade

12. The rail network rebuild will prepare our rail network for the opening of City Rail Link (CRL). The 150-year-old rail foundations need an upgrade so they can provide more frequent services and faster journeys. This vital upgrade will be done one section at a time over the next three years, so the rest of the train network can stay open during the works.

13. The rail network rebuild is not surface-level work. KiwiRail lifts the rails and sleepers, rebuilds the foundations, improves drainage, and reinstates the rails and sleepers.

14. KiwiRail investigated a range of options to limit the impact on train users. This included limiting this work to evenings, weekends, and the holiday maintenance period. However under that schedule the rail network rebuild would take nearly 20 years to complete.

15. KiwiRail and AT know our customers have dealt with a lot of rail closures lately, and we understand how difficult changing the way people get around Auckland can be. AT is working hard to support Aucklanders with alternative transport options and keeping them informed while KiwiRail completes this vital work.

16. When the rail network rebuild is complete and CRL opens, Auckland will have the modern and reliable rail network it deserves and more frequent services and faster journeys on all-electric trains.

17. The rebuild will be delivered by KiwiRail, who own and maintain Auckland’s rail network.

18. Our train service operator, Auckland One Rail (AOR) will provide rail replacement bus services. Customers who travel on rail experienced regular holiday maintenance from 26 December 2022 – 15 Jan 2023.

19. January to March 2023:

Rail Network Rebuild Stage 1, 16 January – 19 March 2023

Timeline

Description automatically generated

20. Six stations on the Southern and Onehunga Lines will be closed during this upgrade. AT are providing alternatives such as rail replacement buses and some express bus services.

21. Buses will replace trains at these stations:

· Remuera

· Greenlane

· Ellerslie

· Penrose

· Te Papapa

· Onehunga

22. Southern Line trains will continue to run between Papakura and Britomart using the Eastern Line (via Panmure).

23. On weekdays, from 5:15am until 9:15am and from 3:00pm until 8:00pm, Eastern Line trains will run between Manukau and Britomart every 20 minutes, instead of every 10 minutes as at present. At all other times, Eastern Line trains will run between Manukau and Ōtāhuhu only, every 20 – 30 minutes. Manukau customers will need to transfer between the Eastern and Southern Lines at Ōtāhuhu or Puhinui. 

24. Eastern and Western Lines remain open during Stage 1.

25. Members will be updated regularly in workshops.

Local Board Transport Capital Fund

26. The Local Board Transport Capital Fund (LBTCF) is a discretionary fund to enable the board to deliver transport projects that are not prioritised by Auckland Transport. The board were briefed on this at the forward works programme workshop with AT at the end of last year.

27. The board also discussed the LBTCF as part of the updated project cost for Te Mahia Station. This requires advancing some of the 2023 - 2025 funds to deliver this project. This will be updated at a board workshop on 2 March 2023.

28. At a workshop on 23 February 2023 the board will discuss potential projects. The generic timeline is below:

Workshop 1 - February 2023

· advice on the benefits of establishing a 3-year timeline

· present list of projects that AT have compiled

· present ideas on a ‘pick list’ and high-level costs (e.g. bus shelter - $40,000)

· gather further board suggestions and direction

· present criteria for prioritisation to the local board for input and edit

Post workshop

· work with local board members and advisors to refine scope on candidate projects

· engineers will then need time to go through the projects to assess feasibility and compile rough order of cost

Workshop 2 - April/May 2023

· discuss feasibility and costs with the local board

· prioritise a list of projects

Business Meeting - June/July 2023

· board report to resolve on and formalise projects

Tauākī whakaaweawe āhuarangi

Climate impact statement

29. AT engages closely with Auckland Council on developing strategy, actions and measures to support the outcomes sought by the Auckland Plan 2050, the Auckland Climate Action Plan and the council’s priorities.

30. AT’s core role is in providing attractive alternatives to private vehicle travel, reducing the carbon footprint of its own operations and, to the extent feasible, that of the contracted public transport network.

31. There is a growing global, national and local need to urgently address the threats posed by climate change through reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The scientific evidence is compelling. In New Zealand the Climate Change Response (Zero-Carbon) Act was enacted in 2019, which requires national GHG emissions to be net-zero by 2050. In June 2019 Auckland Council declared a climate emergency, followed by the endorsement in July 2020 of Te Tāruke-ā-Tāwhiri: Auckland’s Climate Plan.

32. Tackling climate change will require a very significant change to the way we travel around our region although the timing and the detail of how this change might unfold are still to become obvious. The Auckland Climate Plan has committed to a 50 per cent reduction in emissions by 2030, the amount required to keep the planet within 1.5°C of warming by 2100.

33. Roughly five percent of Auckland’s road and rail strategic networks are found in areas susceptible to coastal inundation, including parts of the state highway network which are crucial links for freight movements and access to key regional destinations. Over 1,000km (or about 13 per cent) of AT’s local road network has recently been identified as vulnerable to a 1-in-100-year flood event. AT is currently identifying and prioritising the risks of climate change to the transport system (assets, services, customers and staff) to permit a more strategic approach to designing and managing our assets in the future.

Ngā whakaaweawe me ngā tirohanga a te rōpū Kaunihera

Council group impacts and views

34. The impact of information (or decisions) in this report are confined to AT and do not impact on other parts of the council group.

Ngā whakaaweawe ā-rohe me ngā tirohanga a te poari ā-rohe

Local impacts and local board views

35. The purpose of this report is to inform the local board.

Tauākī whakaaweawe Māori

Māori impact statement

36. There are no impacts specific to Māori for this reporting period.

37. AT is committed to meeting its responsibilities under Te Tiriti o Waitangi-the Treaty of Waitangi-and its broader legal obligations in being more responsible or effective to Māori.

38. Our Māori Responsiveness Plan outlines the commitment to with 19 mana whenua tribes in delivering effective and well-designed transport policy and solutions for Auckland. We also recognise mataawaka and their representative bodies and our desire to foster a relationship with them.

39. This plan in full is available on the AT’s website:

https://at.govt.nz/about-us/transport-plans-strategies/maori-responsiveness-plan/#about

Ngā ritenga ā-pūtea

Financial implications

40. There are no direct financial implications as this is an information report.

Ngā raru tūpono me ngā whakamaurutanga

Risks and mitigations

41. Risks are managed as part of each AT project.

Ngā koringa ā-muri

Next steps

42. A report will be prepared for the April 2023 business meeting.

Ngā tāpirihanga

Attachments

There are no attachments for this report.

Ngā kaihaina

Signatories

Author

Bruce Thomas – Elected Members Relationship Manager, Auckland Transport

Authorisers

Ioane Afoa – Auckland Transport Southern Hub Manager

Carol McKenzie-Rex - Local Area Manager Franklin Manurewa Papakura

Manurewa Local Board

16 February 2023

Draft Contributions Policy 2022, Variation A

File No.: CP2023/00571

Te take mō te pūrongo

Purpose of the report

1. To seek feedback from local boards on the proposal (draft Contributions Policy 2022, Variation A) to add to the Contributions Policy 2022 projects planned to be delivered beyond 2031 to support growth in Drury.

Whakarāpopototanga matua

Executive summary

2. Development contributions (DCs) are charges that recover from new developments a fair share of the cost of the council’s investment in infrastructure. To date our contributions policy has only recovered a share of cost of our infrastructure investment planned in the next ten years.

3. The council has agreed to add projects beyond 2031 to the Contributions Policy for the Investment Priority Areas identified in the 10-year Budget 2021-2031 in stages starting with Drury. This will ensure early developers pay a fair share of the cost of the cumulative impact of growth on the council’s need to invest in infrastructure.

4. The Contributions Policy 2022 was adopted in December 2021 and provides for the recovery of $399 million of the investment planned to be delivered in Drury in the period to 2031. The contributions price in Drury under this policy, including regional and sub-regional charges, is $22,564 per household equivalent unit (HUE – a house between 100m² and 249m²). We are now proposing to vary this policy to add investments we plan to deliver beyond 2031 to support development in Drury.

5. The original proposal was consulted on in late 2021 as part of the consultation on the region-wide Contributions Policy 2022. At that time, the majority of local boards were in support of the changes proposed in the draft Contributions Policy 2021

6. The Finance and Performance Committee considered the report on the proposal, which included local board views, at its meeting on 9 December 2021. The committee agreed to defer a decision on adding investment beyond 2031 to the Drury area to allow for the provision of further information requested by developers and additional time to make submissions once that information was provided.

7. The original proposal consulted on was revised accordingly and more information produced. The updated proposal included $2,470 billion of investment in Drury beyond 2031 of which $1.142 billion was to be funded by DCs. This would raise the average DC price in Drury by $60,687 to $83,251. Public consultation opened on 13 September 2022 for eight weeks, instead of the usual four weeks, and closed on 8 November 2022.

8. Sixty submissions were received, 33 of which were from those in the development community. The proposal was supported by 35 per cent of all submitters with 50 percent not in support. A further 15 per cent did not clearly state their views on the proposal.

9. This report summarises the key points made in submissions and notes officers’ initial analysis of the issues raised.

10. Local board feedback is sought to inform the Governing Body’s consideration of the adoption of the proposal planned for April 2023. The report to the Governing Body will also be updated reflecting officers' final analysis of the responses to submissions, updates reflecting additional work that has been undertaken since consultation and in particular to incorporate the latest economic forecasts and recent government decisions on their investment in Drury.

Ngā tūtohunga

Recommendation/s

That the Manurewa Local Board:

a) whakaae / approve feedback from local boards on the draft Contributions Policy 2022, Variation A.

Horopaki

Context

Development contributions and infrastructure investment

11. Development contributions allow for an equitable and proportionate share of the total cost of growth-related capital expenditure to be recovered from the development community. The Contributions Policy sets out how the council will recover from new development an appropriate and fair share of the cost of infrastructure investment attributable to growth.

Growth and infrastructure investment

12. Auckland’s population is expected to continue to grow in the next ten years on top of the rapid population growth we have experienced in the last decade, bringing the projected population to 1.8 million early next decade. We are forecasting the construction of 145,800 new dwellings in the next ten years. To support the development enabled by the Auckland Unitary Plan, we are facing both immediate and longer-term demands for infrastructure in growth areas. If we do not adequately plan for the delivery and funding of this infrastructure, the cumulative effects of this development could lead to an unfair rates burden on future ratepayers or a risk of infrastructure shortfalls for future residents.

Drury

13. Drury-Opāheke is projected to grow by 22,000 new houses over the next thirty years. The proposal identified that an infrastructure investment of $2,869 billion will be required to support this growth. This investment will include a public and active transport led approach to transport infrastructure, parks and open spaces, and a new community facility that will include a local pool, leisure centre and library.

14. Investment in Drury will take around 30 years to deliver. The Contributions Policy 2022 only requires developers to contribute to the $399 million of investment we plan to make over the next 10 years. Without DC funding for a share of the $2.470 billion investment planned beyond 2031, there is a risk that those undertaking development will not contribute a fair, equitable, and proportionate portion of the capital expenditure necessary to service long-term growth. This risk could lead to shortfalls in the provision of infrastructure for the future residents of Drury and additional and/or additional demands on the city’s ratepayers.

Consultation 2021 and decisions

15. In 2021 the council consulted on a proposal to add investments planned to be delivered in Drury beyond 2031 to the 2022 policy and over the next year to the other Investment Priority Areas (IPAs) identified in the 10-year Budget 2021-2031. The IPAs are Inner Northwest, City Rail Link stations and Auckland Housing Programme (AHP) areas (Tāmaki, Mangere, Northcote, Oranga, and Mt Roskill). This would avoid an unfair rates burden on future ratepayers or the risk of infrastructure shortfalls for the future residents of new developments. The majority of local boards supported the original proposal.

a) The Finance and Performance Committee considered a report on the proposal at its meeting on 9 December 2021 (FIN/2021/119). The committee agreed in principle to add investments beyond 2031 to the Investment Priority Areas but deferred a decision on adding investment beyond 2031 to the Drury area. This was intended to allow the provision of more information to developers and other interested parties and allow more time for them to make further submissions with the benefit of this information.

Tātaritanga me ngā tohutohu

Analysis and advice

Updated proposal for consultation in 2022

16. In response to the council’s direction (resolution FIN/2021/119 b), staff undertook substantial additional work internally, commissioned five external expert reviews of our methodology and key economic issues, and sought expert transport planning and engineering advice on the proposed investments.

17. The original proposal consulted on was revised by updating our forecasts for the timing and location of growth within Drury and of construction costs, land price inflation, and interest rates.

18. External reviews were sought on our growth forecasting, cost estimation, and approach to calculating the share of costs to be recovered from developers. Recommendations from these reviews were applied to our calculations of the contributions charges for projects to be delivered beyond 2031 in Drury for inclusion in the proposal consulted on. These changes will also be considered for incorporation into the wider contributions policy as part of our future policy reviews.

19. Additional analysis of the distribution of the benefits of the proposed transport projects within Drury was also undertaken. The proposal consulted on allocated the transport costs to be recovered from development contributions to four new funding areas within Drury and to the relevant neighbouring areas. Adjustments were also made to neighbouring funding areas to reflect the benefits from community facilities investments, the regional transport funding area for wider transport benefits, and to the regional community facilities funding area for the library accordingly and more information produced.

20. Following completion of the work above the investments planned for beyond 2031 included in the consultation were:

a) $1.882 million in transport including arterial roads and key elements of the collector network to provide an integrated public and private transport network and active transport investment connecting Drury to the wider city (in addition to the $243 million council has already committed to invest before 2031)

b) $403 million for 43 new parks, with a total land requirement of 32.4 hectares (in addition to the $156 million council has already committed to invest before 2031)

c) $185 million for a single multi-purpose facility including a community facility, leisure centre, library, and local pool.

21. Stormwater requirements for Drury beyond 2031 will be identified and added to the contributions policy as more information becomes available on the location and form of development.

22. Of the $2.470 billion of projects, the proposal identified for delivery beyond 2031, $1.142 billion was proposed to be funded by developers through our contributions policy. This additional revenue requirement would raise the contributions price for Drury by an average of an additional $60,687, per household equivalent unit (HUE) to a total of on average $83,251 per HUE. Different charges would apply to different geographical areas based on the benefits accruing to each area.

Consultation

23. Public consultation opened on 13 September 2022 for eight weeks and closed on 8 November 2022. Additional information provided included 13 documents and two spreadsheets to allow submitters to better understand the proposal. These can be found on the council’s Have Your Say page.

24. During the consultation period, those from the development industry requested further information and in response the following additional materials were provided:

· Transport cost estimates for Drury. Further details on individual construction cost elements for transport projects

· Growth and HUE forecast. Spreadsheet outlining data used to forecast growth

25. Around 336 stakeholders were directly approached to advise them of the consultation. A media release was issued, and an article appeared in Our Auckland at the start of the consultation period. The consultation was also promoted through the council’s Engagement and People’s Panel newsletters. Forty-four people participated in the Have Your Say events held to support the consultation.

26. Two online and two face-to-face Have Your Say (HYS) events were held. Staff also attended a drop-in session in Drury organised by Waka Kotahi, two meetings organised by Drury developers, and a session organised by the Property Council of New Zealand. There were 44 attendees across all events representing 39 organisations. Officers also provided briefings to Waka Kotahi and the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development.

27. An opportunity for developers to present their submissions directly to the Governing Body at a Have Your Say event was provided on 14 December 2022. Developers were given a ten-minute slot with five minutes for their presentation followed by 5 minutes for questions from the decision-makers. The mayor and 16 councillors, heard presentations from 14 organisations at the session.

Feedback and Analysis

28. Sixty submissions were received. Overall, the proposal was supported by 35 per cent of submitters with 50 percent opposing it. A further 15 per cent did not clearly state their support or otherwise to the proposal. Key themes raised in the submissions are identified below. The submissions received in the consultation are available to elected members on the council’s meeting management system Nexus.

29. 26 individuals and one Māori organisation provided feedback. Of these, 69 per cent were in support of this proposal, 15 per cent did not support the proposal while the views of 15 per cent of submitters were not clearly stated.

30. Eleven of the individuals who supported the proposal commented that it was fair that developers should pay their fair share towards infrastructure. Those who did not state their support or otherwise thought that the council should support infrastructure development.

31. 33 responses were from those in the development industry. Responses from the industry show that 79 per cent opposed the proposal, six per cent supported it and 15 per cent did not state a clear view. Key themes from the developers’ feedback are outlined below.

Impact of higher development contributions

Feedback

32. Developers’ submissions noted the following concerns that higher DCs will:

· lead to higher house prices as developers seek to recover the increased costs. Developers who had already purchased land commented that they will be particularly disadvantaged as the increased DCs have not been included in the costs of their development

· lead to Drury being treated unfairly in relation to the rest of the city with much higher DCs

· discourage the construction of affordable housing as developers seek to recover higher costs with more expensive developments

· redirect development from Drury to other areas of the city with lower DC prices. Lower DCs are charged in wealthy established central parts of the city where infrastructure is already in place whereas incoming residents to Drury, where affordable housing can be built, are less able to afford higher DCs

· encourage land banking in Drury until house prices rise further or the policy changes.

Analysis

33. For developers who have purchased land recently higher DCs will put pressure on their margins. While staff acknowledge the impact a substantial increase in contributions charges is required if developers are to meet a fair share of cost of the investments required to support Drury’s development. The DCs charged in Drury will be higher than those in other parts of the city but this will reflect the council’s commitment to invest in infrastructure in Drury.

34. In feedback received from the original consultation, developers expressed concern about the equity of charging them now for investments that wouldn’t be delivered until the next decade. Our independent expert advice confirms the council’s previously presented analysis: that while the physical infrastructure wouldn’t be delivered until later, current landowners still benefit from the commitment to deliver in terms of higher land values. Furthermore, development occurring during the early years of this policy still contributes to the need for planned capital expenditure that will be incurred beyond 10 years’ time.

35. The independent economic consultants were asked for their views on the equity of our proposal to consider the likely impact of the proposal on house prices, and the viability of development in Drury. The consultants concluded that while the DC price will lower the price developers are willing to pay for land, this reduction is much lower than the increase in land value arising from the planning changes that enable housing development. There may be an indirect effect on the sequence of sites getting taken up for new housing across the city in the short term as development adjusts around a new equilibrium. However, this will be small relative to other market factors. Higher DCs may be an additional cost to development and could be argued to increase the return to holding land undeveloped however, earlier delivery of infrastructure funded by DCs is likely to accelerate development. The full report was included in the supporting documents pack released as part of the consultation process.

Complexity with a 30-year time frame

Feedback

36. Comments were provided on the accuracy of information on infrastructure requirements planned over a 30-year timeframe, including the assurance that revenue collected today will be used for future investment in infrastructure. Other comments from submitters include:

· possibility that infrastructure will not be needed resulting in over collection of DCs

· impact of inflation on delivery of projects over time adds complexity

· complexities arise around the accuracy of the price of infrastructure over a 30-year timeframe creating uncertainty. For example, when trying to estimate things such as inflation, delivery risks, costs of infrastructure, and future infrastructure demand over a 30-year period

· doubt that benefits will be received by early developers

· actions the council will have to take to ensure money collected today will be spent on delivery of the projects over 30-year period

· it is not clear what happens to the initially unspent portions of development contributions paid, but intended to fund works that are 1, 2 or 3 decades in the future.

Analysis

37. Forecasting capital expenditure over a 30-year horizon inevitably involves a higher degree of uncertainty than capex over the horizon of the 10-year Budget 2021-2031. However, the Local Government Act 2002 allows for development contributions to be recovered to fund capital expenditure to be incurred beyond the LTP period (10 years). The council may also vary the mix of projects for which development contributions will be used if there is a relevant change of circumstances relating to those projects, and the overall level of contribution does not increase.

38. Our contributions policy is reviewed every three years to ensure that our planned infrastructure investment continues to meet the need of the developing community and is appropriately costed using the latest available information. This enables us to respond to changing circumstances, while ensuring that our charges remain fair for developers.

Consideration of other sources of funding

Feedback

39. Several submitters considered the council should have given more consideration to alternative funding mechanisms before deciding to impose DCs. Submitters noted the council:

· has not demonstrated sufficient consideration of alternative funding methods such as Infrastructure Funding and Financing through the Crown Infrastructure Partners

· should consider the use of other funding and financing tools – such as targeted rates, congestion charging, Special Purpose Vehicles through the Funding and Financing Act and Specified Development Areas through the Urban Development Act – alongside DCs.

· should consider using targeted rates to cover the costs of infrastructure that cannot easily be identified with sufficient certainty, subject to these rates being ringfenced for sole use on infrastructure to facilitate growth in the specific area in which the targeted rate applies.

Analysis

40. The council’s Revenue and Financing Policy notes that at present DCs will be used to fund growth infrastructure. However, the Revenue and Financing Policy also makes provision for the use of other tools such as targeted rates and would also allow the use of levies under the Infrastructure Funding and Finance Act. All these tools have the same effective revenue for the council and cost for developers and landowners (the net present value is the same) but are triggered at different times.

41. These options remain open to the council and can be used in combination with development contributions. The first step under any of these options is to establish the investments required to support growth in the IPAs and the appropriate share to be recovered from developers or landowners. All tools need to be applied early in the process to ensure early developments pay their share. The potential application of these funding tools will be considered in the advice to council in April.

Accuracy and assumptions used in the model

Feedback

42. Comments were provided on the accuracy of information on infrastructure requirements planned over a 30-year timeframe, including the assurance that revenue collected today will be used for future investment in infrastructure. Submitters also noted:

· concern that the costings for the various projects incorporate excessive assumptions in respect of construction cost, contingency funding cost, and general inflation.

· the recent plan changes which have not been considered

· the model includes invalid assumptions concerning developer funded mitigation works and DC funded works, likely to lead to double dipping and over-recovery.

43. Comments on projects were also provided:

· the new policy encourages the council to design projects that are “gold plated” and have higher initial capital expenditure

· changes in transport patterns (e.g., mode share, e-bike subscriptions and sharing platforms) will influence future transport requirements.

· the full list of transportation projects arrived at by Supporting Growth Alliance has never been justified as being required to mitigate the effects of development in Drury East

· an independent audit of the proposed projects and their intended scale is requested to help ascertain how much of the increased cost relates to local rather than general factors

· the policy projects listed assumes that the council will purchase land from developers when in practice it is likely to require the land and infrastructure on it to be vested without charge or at a discount rate pursuant to the consent process will not incur these costs.

Analysis

44. A formal review was undertaken of the methodology the council uses to set DC charges. To do this, three external advisors were contracted to review our methods for growth forecasting, cost estimation, and how we assess the beneficiaries that underpin the DC charge calculations.

45. The feedback from our earlier consultation, the recommendations of these reviews, and our updated data models have allowed the DC calculation methodology to be refined to better suit the specific circumstances of Drury. The financial models were updated following a review conducted in November 2021. No errors in logic or in the functionality were identified in a review conducted in November 2022.

Updates to proposal

46. Further analysis of the feedback raised by developers will be presented to the Governing Body for decision making, planned for April 2023 and will include potential changes to the proposed amendment. Officers are in the process of updating the proposal to incorporate further work we have undertaken since consultation concluded to:

· respond as appropriate to issues raised in submissions including in the key areas noted below

· refine the projects and project costings in the proposal including

o estimates of developer mitigation - roading investments that developers will be required to provide as a condition of consent

o property costing

o investment decisions by the government

o community facilities funding areas

o transport funding areas

· update the forecasts of the following factors to reflect the latest economic conditions and predictions:

o growth in the Drury area – reflecting recent plan change decisions

o interest rates

o construction cost inflation

o land price inflation.

Compliance

47. Some submitters expressed a view that the proposal is not legally compliant and that there may be a case for a judicial review. Staff advice on the Contributions Policy is given in the context of highly prescriptive provisions of the Local Government Act 2002 (LGA) which cover the content of a contributions policy and the assessment of contributions. These provisions are the only source of the council’s power to require development contributions and must be strictly complied with.

48. Staff have reviewed the proposal and will consider the matters raised in submissions giving consideration to the legislative requirements in the LGA, including specific content requirements for development contributions policies, and the council’s Revenue and Financing Policy.

Tauākī whakaaweawe āhuarangi

Climate impact statement

49. Recommendations in this report have a neutral climate impact as they relate to the funding of capital investment rather than decisions on the activities to be undertaken.

Ngā whakaaweawe me ngā tirohanga a te rōpū Kaunihera

Council group impacts and views

50. The information presented on the projects included in the draft Contributions Policy 2022 Variation A was developed in conjunction with the following council-controlled organisations and council units:

· Auckland Transport

· Community Facilities

· Community and Social Policy

51. The Chief Economist Unit and Research Investigations and Monitoring Unit worked with us on growth and economic forecasts, the impact of higher development contributions on the pace of development, and on land and house prices.

Ngā whakaaweawe ā-rohe me ngā tirohanga a te poari ā-rohe

Local impacts and local board views

52. The Drury funding area in the proposal is within the Franklin and Papakura local board areas. The recommendations in this report support a higher level of infrastructure investment in the Drury area and sets a higher DC price in this area.

53. Local board feedback is sought to inform the Governing Body’s consideration of the adoption of the Contribution Policy 2022, Variation A in April 2023.

Tauākī whakaaweawe Māori

Māori impact statement

54. Development contributions are assessed against the demand that different types of development generate on council infrastructure. Māori developments are assessed under broader development types based on the demand they generate. For example, kaumātua housing is treated the same as retirement villages, and marae are considered under community facilities. As more Māori developments occur, evidence of demand generation can be used to reclassify developments or create new development types.

55. Eleven iwi authorities (with mana whenua interests) in the Drury area were contacted prior to the start of consultation to seek expressions of interest in discussing and providing feedback on the proposed changes. All iwi authorities were also notified when consultation opened, further advising of how they could have their say. Opportunities to present to the Mana Whenua forum, the Independent Māori Statutory Board and other council forums were explored, however, this topic was not seen as a priority area at the time. One response supporting this proposal was received from mana whenua who considered this was a fairer way to fund the required infrastructure.

Ngā ritenga ā-pūtea

Financial implications

56. There are no financial implications from requesting local boards views.

57. The proposal provides for additional investment by the council beyond 2031 to support growth in Drury of $2.470 billion. The draft Contributions Policy, Variation A provides for $1.142 billion of this investment to be funded by DCs.

Ngā raru tūpono me ngā whakamaurutanga

Risks and mitigations

58. The recommendation requesting local boards views does not present any risk. The risks associated with amending the contributions policy will be set out in the report to the Governing Body planned for April 2023.

Ngā koringa ā-muri

Next steps

59. Feedback from the public consultation will be reported to the Governing Body in February 2023.

60. Staff will provide advice, options and responses to the issues raised in the feedback to the Governing Body to assist in their decision making.

61. A decision-making report to the Governing Body is planned for April 2023 and will include potential changes to the draft policy and local board feedback.

62. All local board feedback is due on 3 March 2023.

Ngā tāpirihanga

Attachments

There are no attachments for this report.

Ngā kaihaina

Signatories

Author

Andrew Duncan - Manager Financial Policy

Authorisers

Carol Hayward - Team Leader Operations and Policy

Louise Mason - General Manager Local Board Services

Carol McKenzie-Rex - Local Area Manager Franklin Manurewa Papakura

Manurewa Local Board

16 February 2023

Resource management reform: Natural and Built Environment Bill and Spatial Planning Bill

File No.: CP2023/00160

Te take mō te pūrongo

Purpose of the report

1. To inform local board members of the Government’s proposals to reform the resource management system and invite local board input into Auckland Council’s submission.

Whakarāpopototanga matua

Executive summary

2. The Natural and Built Environment Bill (NBE Bill) and Spatial Planning Bill (SP Bill) were introduced to Parliament on 15 November 2022 and have been referred to the Environment Select Committee. Submissions on both bills close on 5 February 2023. However, Auckland Council has been granted a short extension to 10 February 2023.

3. The Government is undertaking a comprehensive reform of the resource management system. It will repeal the Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA) and replace it with:

· the Natural and Built Environment Bill (NBE Bill)

· the Spatial Planning Bill (SP Bill)

· Climate Adaptation Bill (CA Bill).

4. The NBE Bill will replace the RMA. The SP Bill replaces current requirements for a spatial plan for Auckland and will work in tandem with the NBE Bill. The scale of reform is substantial and will have significant impacts on Auckland Council.

5. This submission will build on Council’s previous submissions to the Resource Management Review Panel’s Issues and Options paper, the NBE Bill Exposure Draft and the Ministry for the Environment’s Discussion paper. Local boards provided input to these submissions.

6. The deadline for local board feedback to be incorporated into the council’s submission is 23 January 2023, whilst the deadline for feedback to be appended to the council’s final submission is 3 February 2023.

Ngā tūtohunga

Recommendation/s

That the Manurewa Local Board:

a) note the urgent decision on 18 January 2023 providing local board feedback on the Natural and Built Environment Bill and Spatial Planning Bill as follows:

That the Manurewa Local Board:

a) provide the following feedback on the Natural and Built Environment Bill and Spatial Planning Bill

National Māori Entity

i) the monitoring and reporting functions of the National Māori Entity should not duplicate, replace, or undermine the existing monitoring and reporting function of the Independent Māori Statutory Board in relation to Auckland Council.

National Planning Framework (NPF)

ii) the board supports, in principle, combining existing forms of national direction instruments into a single National Planning Framework.

iii) we support using a Board of Enquiry process through the Environmental Protection Authority to prepare and make amendments to the NPF. We hope that this process will result in greater consideration being given to submissions from local authorities and their communities. The current process for preparing national direction instruments has resulted in requirements being forced on local authorities that are not supported by, or beneficial to, their communities.

Regional Planning Committees (RPC)

iv) the board does not support giving all decision-making power over Regional Spatial Strategies and Natural and Built Environments Plans to Regional Planning Committees. This would reduce accountability to the community by removing decision-making from elected members. It would also create the risk that the RPC could make decisions committing council to projects that cannot be funded.

v) we do not support the funding of the RPC and its secretariat falling to Auckland Council. Central Government should provide any required additional funding to meet these costs they are imposing on local authorities.

vi) it is unclear whether Māori appointing bodies will have any requirement to include mataawaka representation. We question whether this is consistent with Local Government (Auckland Council) Act.

vii) the Māori appointing body for Auckland should not duplicate, replace, or undermine any existing functions of the Independent Māori Statutory Board in relation to Auckland Council.

Regional spatial strategies (RSS)

viii) Auckland Council’s shared governance model and the legislated role of local boards in ‘identifying and communicating the interests and preferences of the people in its local board area’ must be recognised in this new system.

ix) there should be specific legislative requirements for the Auckland RPC to seek and give regard to the views of local boards when preparing, reviewing, or amending the RSS.

x) as a unitary authority, Auckland Council has already developed and adopted plans that effectively perform the functions of an RSS and NBE Plan (The Auckland Plan 2050 and the Auckland Unitary Plan). These were developed through extensive consultation with residents. We do not support putting unnecessary costs onto ratepayers to replace these plans before the end of their cycles. We suggest that transitional provisions should allow for existing plans such as these to remain in place until they reach the point where they would normally have been reviewed. At that point, the process to replace them with an RSS or NBE Plan can be undertaken.

xi) the RSS must clearly identify infrastructure that is needed to support growth and intensification, and the Government infrastructure funding is guided by the needs identified.

xii) the RSS and NBE Plan must prevent development and intensification taking place out of sequence with delivery of the infrastructure needed to support that growth.

Natural & Built Environment Plans (NBE Plans)

xiii) there should be specific legislative requirements for the Auckland RPC to seek and give regard to the views of local boards when preparing, reviewing, or amending the NBE Plan (including, but not limited to, plan changes and notices of requirement).

xiv) the views of local authorities and communities on protecting areas of special character, historic heritage, Māori sites of significance, and significant ecological areas in the NBE Plan must be respected and not overridden by the RPC.

Consenting

xv) the board is concerned that this bill appears to reduce costs to resource consent applicants by imposing greater costs on local authorities to fund the preparation of an NBE Plan. This means effectively shifting the cost burden from developers to ratepayers.

xvi) we support, in principle, simplifying the consenting system. However, we do not believe that system efficiencies should come at the cost of reducing the ability for residents to be informed about, and express their views on, developments taking place in their neighbourhood. This Bill would reduce the requirements for residents to both be notified about, and be able to submit on, developments.

xvii) we are concerned that the reduction on consenting requirements will result in a reduced ability for local authorities to control and monitor the types of development that are taking place.

xviii) we support the increased ability for local authorities to recover costs for monitoring permitted activities, and investigating non-compliance of consents, enforcement actions and orders.

Other feedback

xix) the board would like stronger requirements and powers for the protection and enhancement of urban ngahere included in the Bill. Increasing canopy cover in urban areas is vital for climate change adaptation and for the health and wellbeing of residents. We have committed to do our part in this, but there is only so much that can be done on council-owned land. Legislative measures to assist with this could include:

· adding protection and enhancement of urban ngahere to environmental targets.

· making it easier for local authorities to protect trees on private land.

Horopaki

Context

Resource management system reform

7. Central Government is reforming the resource management system.

8. Cabinet largely modelled the reform on the Resource Management Review Panel’s recommendations. The objectives for reform adopted by Cabinet are shown in Appendix B.

9. In February 2021, Cabinet agreed to repeal and replace the RMA with the Natural and Built Environment Bill (NBE Bill), the Spatial Planning Bill (SP Bill), and the Climate Adaptation Bill (CA Bill).

10. An exposure draft of the NBE Bill was released in June 2021. While the council submitted on this exposure draft, there are many matters in the NBE Bill that were not included, and council has an opportunity to submit on these now.

11. These matters include the process to developing the National Planning Framework (NPF), consenting, compliance and enforcement, urban tree cover, subdivision, designations, and the functions and roles of Ministers and agencies, regional councils and territorial authorities, in the system.

12. An overview of the proposed system can be found here: Our future resource management system: Overview | Ministry for the Environment

13. The Planning, Environment and Parks Committee delegated approval of council’s formal submission to the Chair, Deputy Chair and an Independent Māori Statutory Board member on 8 December 2022.

Tātaritanga me ngā tohutohu

Analysis and advice

SP Bill and NBE Bill to work in tandem

14. The SP Bill and NBE Bill will work in tandem. The NBE Bill will require the development of a national planning framework (NPF) and an NBE plan. The SP Bill will require the development of regional spatial strategies (RSS). The RSS must be consistent with the NPF and both the NBE plan and RSS must give effect to it where directed. In addition, the NBE plan must be consistent with the RSS (Figure 1). In essence, the reformed system will create one NBE plan and one RSS for each region.

Diagram

Description automatically generated

Figure 1: Key components of the new resource management system

15. The national planning framework (NPF) will provide direction on the integrated management of the environment for matters of national significance or where consistency nationally or across parts of New Zealand would be desirable. It will consolidate all existing national direction instruments under the RMA, such as National Policy Statements, and include some new functions.

16. Both the NBE and SP Bills require those exercising powers and functions to give effect to the principles of te Tiriti o Waitangi. This is stronger than the current RMA equivalent, which requires the principles to be ‘taken into account’.

17. The RSS and NBE plans will be prepared and notified by regional planning committees (RPC). The RPC will be made up of local government representatives and Māori (and will include a central government representative for matters relating to the RSS). The RPC may establish sub-committees to focus on particular matters or for a sub-region. The RPC will be supported by a secretariat.

18. The council strongly opposed the RPC mechanism in previous submissions on the basis that the separation of plan-making from other decision-making, such as long-term plans or infrastructure strategies, will lose integration between planning, funding and financing.

19. Local boards had concerns regarding the potential for local voice to be weakened in the new system. They highlighted the importance of a strong voice for local communities and local boards in the development of strategies and plans to ensure consideration and recognition of local issues in shaping our unique places.

20. Overall, this new system increases costs to central government and Auckland Council while system users benefit from large cost savings. The largest cost increase falls on local government (Auckland Council).

Spatial Planning Bill

21. The SP Bill provides for Regional Spatial Strategies (RSS).

22. RSS are intended to coordinate and integrate the performance of functions across different legislation associated with the management of the natural and built environment, including the NBE Bill, the Land Transport Management Act 2003 and the Local Government Act 2002 (Figure 2).

23. RSS assist in achieving the purpose of the NBE Bill, including recognising and upholding te Oranga o te Taiao, and the system outcomes outlined in the NBE Bill.

Diagram

Description automatically generated

Figure 2: Regional spatial strategy integration across different legislation

24. The RPC will identify big issues and opportunities facing the region (including infrastructure, and infrastructure investment and funding) and develop an RSS and implementation plans to respond to them.

25. The RSS will set out a vision and objectives for a region’s development and change over a 30-year plus timeframe. It is reviewed every nine years. Implementation plans set out priority actions that delivery partners will take to implement the RSS and must be reviewed every three years.

26. Auckland Council is required to implement and administer the RSS while having a limited role in its preparation. When an RSS comes into effect (made operative), it will replace the Auckland Plan 2050.

27. The funding and financing of infrastructure to implement the RSS is an area of concern. The council previously submitted that all partners in the RSS deliver investment within local government funding constraints. It is therefore imperative that the cumulative effects of growth, and how to apportion the cost of meeting this growth, are addressed through implementation plans. A range of funding and financing mechanisms is required to support implementation. This is not currently addressed in the Bill.

28. For more detailed information on the SP Bill, see Appendix B.

Natural and Built Environment Bill

29. The NBE Bill provides an integrated framework for regulating both environmental management and land use planning. It enables the use and development of the environment within environmental limits and requires positive outcomes to be achieved and adverse effects to be managed.

30. The purpose of the bill is to:

(a) enable the use, development and protection of the environment in a way that:

· supports the well-being of present generations without compromising the well-being of future generations

· promotes outcomes for the benefit of the environment

· complies with environmental limits and their associated targets

· manages adverse effects

(b) recognise and uphold te Oranga o te Taiao.[1]

31. The NBE Bill will require the Auckland region to have a Natural and Built Environment plan (NBE plan) to provide for the integrated management of the natural and built environment. When an NBE plan comes into effect (made operative), it will replace the Auckland Unitary Plan.

32. The NBE plan will be prepared and developed by the RPC - Auckland Council is required to participate and collaborate in the process. The RPC will be funded by Auckland Council.

33. In the new system, Auckland Council will continue to be the consenting authority.

34. For more detailed information on the NBE Bill, see Appendix B.

Feedback timetable

35. The table below sets out the key timeframes for local board input on the Bills:

Milestone	Date
Bills released	15 November 2022
Briefing for local boards	2 December 2022
Deadline for incorporated feedback	23 January 2023
Deadline for appended feedback	3 February 2023
Submission deadline	10 February 2023

Further material

36. The council submitted on key components of both bills in March 2022 in its response to the Ministry for the Environment’s Our Future Resource Management System Discussion Document. This can be found here: Kotahi - Our future RM System - Materials for discussion.pdf - All Documents (sharepoint.com)

37. The council also submitted on the direction of the Climate Adaptation Bill in mid-2022, alongside consultation on the National Adaptation Plan under the Climate Change Response Act 2002. This can be found here: Kotahi - National Adaptation Plan.pdf - All Documents (sharepoint.com)

Tauākī whakaaweawe āhuarangi

Climate impact statement

38. For central government, a key objective for the new resource management programme is to better prepare for adapting to climate change and risks from natural hazards, as well as to better mitigate emissions.

39. The importance of climate change is recognised in the NBE Bill at the system outcome level (Part 1 of the Bill). This outcome states “in relation to climate change and natural hazards, achieve the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, removal of greenhouse gases from the atmosphere and reduction of risks arising from – and better resilience of the environment to – natural hazards and effects of climate change”.

40. Under the SP Bill, the RSS must identify areas that are vulnerable to significant risks from natural hazards and areas impacted by climate change. It must also identify measures for reducing those risks, addressing effects and increasing resilience.

41. Under Part 2 of the NBE Bill (Duties and restrictions), NBE plans can make rules that will affect existing rights and land use consents when there are risks associated with natural hazards and climate change.

42. The resource management reform programme also includes the Climate Adaptation Bill. This will be released in 2023 and will address issues associated with managed retreat.

Ngā whakaaweawe me ngā tirohanga a te rōpū Kaunihera

Council group impacts and views

43. The proposals will have significant impacts across the Auckland Council group.

44. A technical team, made up of experts from across the council group, will prepare a first draft of the council’s submission.

45. The Water Services Entity Act 2022, under the Three Waters Reform programme, establishes the Northern Water Services Entity for the Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland and Northland regions. It is important that council’s submission addresses the role of this new entity as a significant delivery partner in the legislation.

Ngā whakaaweawe ā-rohe me ngā tirohanga a te poari ā-rohe

Local impacts and local board views

46. Local board views are being sought on the draft submission and will be incorporated into the council’s final submission as appropriate.

47. Staff presented at the local board members’ briefing on 2 December 2022.

48. No specific role for local boards is identified in the NBE or SP Bills. The NBE Bill contains proposals for Statements of Community Outcomes (SCOs). These are voluntary instruments to provide local authorities with a mechanism to directly input local voice into RSS and NBE plans. SCOs will be prepared by territorial authorities and will express the views of a district or local communities.

49. It is critical that there is a strong voice for local communities and local boards, and consideration of local issues, in the development of strategies and plans. The council previously submitted that community input leads to better plans through the sharing of local knowledge, and identification of local priorities. The council also supported an approach where appropriate engagement outcomes are prescribed in legislation to ensure that this reflects local boards’ statutory functions. This is not currently addressed in the Bills.

50. As the deadline for the board to provide formal feedback fell outside of the board’s scheduled business meeting times, board feedback was approved using the urgent decision process. The Urgent Decision Memo can be found as Attachment C to this report.

Tauākī whakaaweawe Māori

Māori impact statement

51. A key Government objective for the new resource management system is to “give effect to the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and provide greater recognition of te ao Māori, including mātauranga Māori”. This has been provided for throughout the NBE and SP Bills starting with the purpose statement, which includes recognising and upholding te Oranga o te Taiao.

52. There are a number of positive outcomes or impacts for Māori that include:

· a new requirement to ‘give effect to’ the principles of te Tiriti o Waitangi

· three system outcomes that cover 1) the relationship of iwi and hapū (and their kawa, tikanga, and mātauranga) in relation to their ancestral lands, water, sites, wāhi tapu, wāhi tūpuna and other taonga, 2) protection of protected customary rights and recognition of statutory acknowledgement, and 3) the conservation of cultural heritage

· mana whenua representation on RPCs (a minimum of two persons)

· iwi and hapū can provide te Oranga o te Taiao statements to RPCs

· establishment of an independent National Māori Entity to provide independent monitoring of decisions and

· Mana Whakahono ā Rohe and engagement agreements.

53. The Supplementary Analysis Report also states central government will provide a funding contribution to local government to support areas such as iwi / hapū management plans, negotiation of Mana Whakahono ā Rohe agreements, Māori governance, and technical capability and capacity building.

54. Local government will fund Māori participation in the performance of local government functions and duties and powers under the NBE bill (e.g. consenting, compliance and monitoring etc).

55. A communication on the NBE and SP Bills has been sent to all iwi entities and their feedback sought. IMSB secretariat staff will work with the council’s technical team throughout the development of the submission.

Ngā ritenga ā-pūtea

Financial implications

56. The submission will be developed within existing resources.

57. The SAR report states that the costs of the new resource management system will increase for councils. These costs will be driven by the transition and establishment costs, development of new plans, strategies and instruments, and enhanced compliance and enforcement duties.

58. The estimated increase in total costs spread across all regional, territorial and unitary councils is $43 million per year. The estimated increased costs are not calculated on a per council basis.

59. The intent of the new system is for most costs to fall on central and local government which, in turn, delivers decreased costs for system users.

60. There is a lack of detail on central government funding to support local government with the transition and implementation of the new system.

61. Auckland Council will be required to fund the RPC and the associated secretariat. The council currently performs similar functions at a governance and operational level. However, the RPC will be made up of local government and mana whenua representatives.

62. The NBE Bill states that, in the case of a region with a unitary authority, that authority must determine the amount of funding to be provided to the RPC. The RPC must prepare and make publicly available a statement of intent each financial year that reflects the budget agreed for the RPC. If any disputes arise, the RPC or local authority may apply to the Minister for the Environment to resolve the dispute. Decisions are binding on the local authorities.

Ngā raru tūpono me ngā whakamaurutanga

Risks and mitigations

63. Financial and legal expertise will be sought in the development of the submission to identify possible financial, legal and reputational risks to the council associated with the new resource management system.

64. Risks identified to date include:

· the separation of the planning function from funding and financing decisions (such as the long-term plan process)

· insufficient coordination and alignment with the Three Waters Reform (the removal of water infrastructure from council control impacts planning and funding decisions)

· lack of detail on central government funding to support local government with the transition and implementation of the new system

· lack of opportunities or clear avenues for local democratic input in the system.

65. The new system has a long transition period of 10 years for the establishment, transformation, and consolidation phases. In that time, the NPF will be developed through a Board of Inquiry process to enable the development of the RSS and NBE Plan.

66. The NPF will be rolled out in stages after the Bills are enacted. The first version will integrate existing national direction to inform RSS development and future iterations will inform NBE plan development.

67. The details of the NPF are vitally important for the new system and remain unknown currently.

Ngā koringa ā-muri

Next steps

68. As this submission deadline falls outside the normal local board business meeting schedule, some local board feedback was provided using an urgent decision or through delegated feedback.

69. Key questions to help local boards structure their input is provided in Appendix A.

70. A technical team, made up of experts from across the council group, prepared a first draft of the council’s submission. This will be circulated to local board members on 25 January 2023.

71. Below are the key dates for input into the submission:

· 23 January 2023: final date for local board feedback to be incorporated into the council’s submission

· 25 January 2023: draft submissions shared with local board members.

· 2 February 2023: the final submission will be reported to the Planning, Environment and Parks Committee and circulated to elected members

· 3 February 2023: final date for any formal local board feedback to be appended to the council’s submission

· 10 February 2023: final submission will be lodged.

72. Once the select committee report is released on 22 May 2023, staff will provide local boards with a memo summarising the select committee conclusions.

73. Auckland Council will have an opportunity to submit on the Climate Adaptation Bill when it is introduced to Parliament in mid-2023.

Ngā tāpirihanga

Attachments

No.	Title	Page
a ⇩	Questions to help guide local board submissions	41
b ⇩	Detailed Analysis and Advice on the new Resource Management System - local boards	43
c ⇩	Urgent Decision Memo	57

Ngā kaihaina

Signatories

Authors

Karryn Kirk - Principal Strategic Adviser Auckland Plan Implementation

Amber Dunn - Principal Strategic Advisor

Authorisers

Carol Hayward - Team Leader Operations and Policy

Louise Mason - General Manager Local Board Services

Carol McKenzie-Rex - Local Area Manager Franklin Manurewa Papakura

Manurewa Local Board

16 February 2023

Auckland Council’s submission on the Inquiry into the 2022 Local Elections

File No.: CP2023/00408

Te take mō te pūrongo

Purpose of the report

1. To seek local board feedback on the Justice Committee’s Inquiry into the 2022 local elections.

Whakarāpopototanga matua

Executive summary

2. Parliament’s Justice Committee is conducting an inquiry into the 2022 local elections and is calling for submissions, which close on 14 February 2023. It is usual practice for the Justice Committee to conduct an inquiry following a parliamentary or local election in case there are issues that require a legislative response. For this inquiry, the committee will examine the law and administrative procedures for the conduct of the 2022 local elections, with particular reference to:

a) low voter turnout

b) the provision of election services by private organisations, with particular reference to:

· special voting

· provision of ballot papers

· complaint processes

· accountability for local elections

· postal voting (including security of ballots and whether postal voting is an effective method of receiving votes)

c) the age of eligible voters (with reference to lowering the age of eligible voters to 16 years).

3. The changes to legislation requested in the draft submission are:

(i) to allow overseas voters the ability to obtain and return a vote electronically as they do for parliamentary elections

(ii) to accept votes date-stamped by the postal provider on the day of elections (or earlier)

(iii) to increase the nomination deposit fee for mayoral candidates to reduce the risk of having to re-run an election if any candidate is found, prior to election day, to not be qualified to stand for election.

4. Staff will report a fuller evaluation of the 2022 Auckland elections to the Governing Body meeting on 23 March 2023. Due to the Justice Committee’s early submission deadline it was not possible to complete this within the timeframe.

5. The draft submission is attached as Attachment A and focusses on the issues the Justice Committee has identified. The body of this report provides an overview of the points made in the submission.

6. The draft submission does not take a position on the question of lowering the voting age but makes comments that are relevant to Auckland Council’s context. The local board might consider whether to resolve a position on voting age.

7. Due to the constrained timeframe most local boards have not been able to meet to provide feedback but have used their urgent decision-making processes. Feedback that is received prior to the Governing Body committee meeting will be circulated. As is practice, all local board comments will be appended to the Auckland Council submission.

Ngā tūtohunga

Recommendation/s

That the Manurewa Local Board:

a) note the urgent decision on 31 January 2023 providing local board feedback on the Justice Committee’s inquiry into the 2022 local elections as follows:

That the Manurewa Local Board:

a) provide the following feedback to the Inquiry into the 2022 Local Government Elections:

Low voter turnout

i) the board suggests the following ways to increase voter turnout and civic participation:

A) civics and citizenship education should be compulsory as a part of the social studies curriculum in schools. This should include components on local government, as well as central Government. This could include running mock elections. Age-appropriate civics education should be included in the primary curriculum.

B) the local government election voting process should be simplified and made between as similar as possible to central government elections

C) engagement with target communities to increase participation needs to be ongoing, not undertaken only in the lead-up to elections, as is often the case now.

D) working with community groups is an important method of increasing community understanding of local government.

E) engagement programmes need to be funded appropriately by central Government in order to be effective.

Provision of election services by private organisations

ii) the board does not support the ongoing provision of election services by private organisations. We prefer giving responsibility for overseeing the administration of local body elections to the Electoral Commission. They have a proven track record for competently running elections and it makes sense to use this expertise for local government elections.

This will also mean that the same body will be responsible for enrolling voters and overseeing the election, which will simplify matters for voters and allow for a ‘one-stop shop’ approach, where voters can enrol and vote at the same time.

iii) we feel that the postal voting system is no longer effective for most voters. There should be more effective options for in-person voting in addition to postal voting. Ways to make postal voting more secure should be explored if it is to be retained as an option. Options to offer secure online voting should also be explored.

iv) making the voter experience in local body elections as similar as possible to general elections would help to reduce confusion and encourage greater turnout. Offering in-person voting and having a strongly promoted voting period, including a final ‘election day’ should be part of this.

v) the Electoral Commission should be funded with a similar budget as for general elections to promote local body elections and undertake voter education campaigns.

Age of eligible voters

vi) the board does not support lowering the age of eligible voters to 16 years.

Horopaki

Context

8. Parliament’s Justice Committee is conducting an inquiry into the 2022 local elections and is calling for submissions, which close on 14 February 2023. For this inquiry, the Justice Committee will examine the law and administrative procedures for the conduct of the 2022 local elections, with particular reference to:

a) low voter turnout

b) the provision of election services by private organisations, with particular reference to:

· special voting

· provision of ballot papers

· complaint processes

· accountability for local elections

· postal voting (including security of ballots and whether postal voting is an effective method of receiving votes)

c) the age of eligible voters (with reference to lowering the age of eligible voters to 16 years).

9. The draft submission focusses on these issues and raises some additional matters for legislative change.

10. The Minister of Justice has separately established an Independent Electoral Review to review electoral law. In September 2022 the review panel released its consultation document and submissions closed in November 2022. The panel will publish a draft report in May 2023 for public comment on the panel’s recommendations and will provide its final recommendations to Government in November 2023^{^[2]}. This review deals with Parliamentary electoral law but is of relevance to local government in that matters such as the electoral term and voting age are within its scope.

11. The key steps in a local election by postal vote comprise:

· the Electoral Commission updates the Parliamentary electoral roll

· the council’s Electoral Officer updates the ratepayer roll

· the council’s Electoral Officer calls for and receives nominations for candidates

· the council’s Electoral Officer arranges for voting documents to be posted to those on the residential and ratepayer rolls

· voters have about three weeks to post their ballots

· the ballots are counted, and the council’s Electoral Officer declares the results.

Tātaritanga me ngā tohutohu

Analysis and advice

Low voter turnout

12. The submission compares turnout in Auckland with turnout in other New Zealand metropolitan councils and with some councils overseas.

13. The level of turnout in Auckland is in-line with these, though higher turnout is experienced in countries with compulsory voting and in a few standouts such as Denmark.

14. The submission conveys the results of the council’s most recent post-election survey where respondents were asked why they did not vote. The top reasons were:

· I don’t know anything about the candidates

· I forgot to vote

· I am not interested in politics or politicians.

15. Some common suggestions to improve turnout include online voting (which Auckland Council has supported in the past). This is on hold while the Government Communications Security Bureau has concerns about cyber-security. In Canada over 150 municipalities conduct online voting, but a researcher there advised turnout increased by only about 3 per cent.

16. The draft submission also comments on the possibility of providing booth voting as well as postal voting. For the 2022 elections there was a noticeable increase in those who wished to vote on election day itself. Booth voting on election day, in addition to postal voting in the weeks prior, would reduce barriers for some. Electors of councils in the United Kingdom have the option of both, but turnout is same as for Auckland Council, if not lower.

17. The submission also considers the argument for introducing political parties into local elections but, again, this is the case with councils in the United Kingdom, which have low turnouts.

18. Compulsory voting would be a major change and should be left to the Independent Electoral Review panel.

19. The draft submission notes there are no obvious easy solutions to increasing turnout (other than compulsory voting) however it notes options for reducing barriers and improving voter experience.

Provision of election services by private organisations

20. The draft submission notes that it is impossible for staff to run elections as well as undertaking their normal duties. The routine election services need to be contracted out for the sake of efficiency and effectiveness.

21. For the 2022 elections, Auckland Council utilised 25 staff (mostly on a part-time basis) from across the main organisation to undertake those activities that it had a responsibility for. Collaboration between this virtual team and Elections Services was important and worked well.

Special voting

22. The identification of special voting centres and their staffing is a collaborative undertaking between the Electoral Officer, Election Services and the council. Council facilities are used and council staff take part and are trained by the Electoral Officer to undertake the associated duties.

23. There have been issues experienced with running out of special voting papers due to electors attending special voting centres outside of their area. An option being investigated for 2025 is to provide the ability to print special voting documents at special voting centres if hard copies run out.

Provision of ballot papers

24. The draft submission notes the various reasons an elector might not receive a ballot paper, a frequent one being that electors forget to update their details on the electoral roll with the result their ballot paper is sent to their former address.

Complaint processes

25. The submission notes that there are three agencies involved in complaints about local elections, those being:

· the Electoral Commission in terms of matters relating to the electoral roll

· the Electoral Officer, who is responsible for the conduct of the election

· the council, which is responsible for regulations relating to election signs and for promoting the elections.

26. This can be confusing for electors who sometimes contact the wrong agency when making a query or wanting to make a complaint. Auckland Council has learnt that there needs to be excellent communication between the agencies to ensure that queries and complaints are dealt with appropriately.

27. Council advisory staff dealt with:

· 32 complaints / queries relating to election signs

· 54 complaints / queries relating to election protocols for staff and incumbent members

· 63 complaints / queries not categorised.

28. Council bylaw enforcement staff conducted 154 visits of election signs as a result of complaints.

29. The Electoral Officer referred three complaints of alleged offences to the Police.

Accountability for local elections

30. The submission notes that the council has previously expressed support in principle for the administration of local elections to be the responsibility of the Electoral Commission. Until that happens the council believes the current arrangements, with their respective accountabilities, work well.

Postal voting

31. The submission notes that postal services are now in decline and that Auckland Council provided vote boxes for voters to deposit their ballots at:

· Countdown supermarkets

· train stations

· libraries and other council facilities.

32. There were 136 vote boxes with 127,000 votes deposited into them (31 per cent of all votes).

33. The submission notes that postal voting does not serve overseas voters well. Staff are aware of one voter in Australia whose voting pack was posted on 16 September and who received it on 15 October, in the week following election day. This was subsequently found to be a problem with an overload in the local mail centre.

34. For Parliamentary elections, overseas voters may download their voting paper, fill it in and upload it back. This happens over the internet and regardless of GCSB concerns about online voting, staff believe this is a risk worth taking and the same option should be available for overseas voters in local elections. A recommendation is made for legislative change to allow this.

Age of eligible voters

35. The draft submission does not commit the council to a position on this topic but makes comments about some matters that are relevant to local elections and to the council:

(i) Local elections use the parliamentary electoral roll which is established under the Electoral Act 1993. Age eligibility is not set separately under the Local Electoral Act 2001, and this should continue to be the case

(ii) Local elections include electing licensing trust members. Young people cannot purchase alcohol until they are 18 years of age. This is due to greater vulnerability of younger people to alcohol harm. Vulnerability to alcohol is a separate issue to the competency to vote and should not disenfranchise a young person. Older people who are vulnerable to alcohol are not disenfranchised.

(iii) The council’s Youth Advisory Panel has a minimum age of 14 though the youngest to date has been 15 years old. Experience is that younger people contribute with well-considered opinions.

Candidate deposit to stand for mayor

36. If a candidate for mayor is found, between the close of nominations and election day, to be unqualified to stand for election the election for mayor is declared void and has to be held again. The cost of doing this is covered by insurance but it would be extremely inconvenient to electors and increase the risk of reputational damage. The election of a new mayor would not be finalised until the following year.

37. There are no other positions where this is required.

38. For the 2022 Auckland Council elections, there were 23 candidates for mayor. The higher the number of candidates, the greater the risk of an unqualified mayoral candidate, and invalidated election. If the threshold for standing for mayor was raised, it would reduce candidates to those who were serious about standing and the risk of having to hold the elections again would be reduced. The submission proposes raising the deposit for mayoral candidates from $200 to $500. A balance needs to be struck between mitigating this risk, and not limiting candidacy for mayor to those who are wealthy.

Tauākī whakaaweawe āhuarangi

Climate impact statement

39. Most of the issues discussed in the submission do not impact the climate except that it is likely online voting would reduce emissions if it meant that voting documents and booklets for over 1 million electors no longer needed to be printed and posted. This reduction would be ongoing.

Ngā whakaaweawe me ngā tirohanga a te rōpū Kaunihera

Council group impacts and views

40. There are no impacts on the council group.

Ngā whakaaweawe ā-rohe me ngā tirohanga a te poari ā-rohe

Local impacts and local board views

41. Local board views are being sought on the draft submission and will be incorporated into the council’s final submission as appropriate.

42. As the deadline for the board to provide formal feedback fell outside of the board’s scheduled business meeting times, board feedback was approved using the urgent decision process. The Urgent Decision Memo can be found as Attachment B to this report.

Tauākī whakaaweawe Māori

Māori impact statement

43. The impact of elections on representation of Māori on Auckland Council is an important matter and is being considered separately to this submission through an internal review of the Council’s election processes to be conducted in March.

Ngā ritenga ā-pūtea

Financial implications https://aklcouncil.sharepoint.com/sites/how-we-work/SitePages/report-writing-guidelines.aspx - financial-implications

44. There are financial implications associated with matters discussed in the submission, but these have not yet been quantified. For example, if the council introduces booth voting in additional to postal voting, then there will be an additional cost to running the election.

45. On the other hand, if the return of ballot papers is not through New Zealand Post but by voters depositing their ballots in council vote boxes, there could be a small reduction in cost due to the freepost reply not needing to be paid.

Ngā raru tūpono me ngā whakamaurutanga

Risks and mitigations

46. The risks associated with a mayoral candidate being unqualified to stand election with the result the election has to be run again is raised in the council’s submission. This is a significant risk for Auckland Council. Mitigation to this risk is described in paragraphs 43-45.

Ngā koringa ā-muri

Next steps

47. The Planning, Environment and Parks Committee will consider the submission on Thursday 2 February 2023.

48. Local board resolutions will be included in the Auckland Council submission on this matter.

Ngā tāpirihanga

Attachments

No.	Title	Page
a ⇩	Draft Submission to the Justice Committee Inquiry into the 2022 Local Elections.	75
b ⇩	Urgent Decision Memo	97

Ngā kaihaina

Signatories

Author

Warwick McNaughton - Principal Advisor

Authorisers

Carol Hayward - Team Leader Operations and Policy

Louise Mason - General Manager Local Board Services

Carol McKenzie-Rex - Local Area Manager Franklin Manurewa Papakura

Manurewa Local Board

16 February 2023

Local board feedback on the draft Future for Local Government report

File No.: CP2023/00159

Te take mō te pūrongo

Purpose of the report

1. To seek feedback from local boards on the Draft Report released by the Future for Local Government Review Panel.

Whakarāpopototanga matua

Executive summary

2. The Future for Local Government Review Panel released its Draft Report (the Report) for consultation on 28 October 2022.

3. Auckland Council is preparing a submission in response to the Report. Submissions close on 28 February 2023.

4. The Report makes 29 recommendations on a wide range of areas including: revitalising citizen-led democracy, achieving Tiriti-based partnership between Māori and local government, the approach to allocating roles and functions across different players, achieving genuine partnership between central and local government, more equitable funding, designing a local government system to enable the change we need, and putting in place effective system stewardship.

5. Auckland Council has previously reached positions on some of the Report’s recommendations through programmes of work or engagement with central government. These positions will be the starting point for preparing the submission but there will be an opportunity for this council to reconsider those positions.

Ngā tūtohunga

Recommendation/s

That the Manurewa Local Board:

a) note the urgent decision on 31 January 2023 providing local board feedback on The Future for Local Government Review draft report as follows:

That the Manurewa Local Board:

a) provide the following feedback on the Review into the Future for Local Government draft report dated October 2022:

Topic	Local Board Feedback
Revitalising citizen-lead democracy
Recommendations 1. That local government adopts greater use of deliberative and participatory democracy in local decision-making.	· The board supports increased use of participatory and deliberative democracy in local decision-making.
2. That local government, supported by central government, reviews the legislative provisions relating to engagement, consultation, and decision-making to ensure they provide a comprehensive, meaningful, and flexible platform for revitalising community participation and engagement.	· The board supports undertaking this review, on the basis that any additional costs to local government because of changes to legislated engagement and consultation requirements should come with increased funding from central Government.
3. That central government leads a comprehensive review of requirements for engaging with Māori across local government-related legislation, considering opportunities to streamline or align those requirements.	· It is important that this is a three-way conversation between central Government, local government and Māori to agree what works best. · Funding may be required to allow iwi to have time and capacity to contribute. · Different iwi groups have different levels of capacity to undertake engagement with local government. For this reason, a one-size-fits-all approach may not work. · Any legislative requirements will also need to take into account the differences between urban and rural iwi, and the overlapping interests of iwi in some areas. · The review should identify approaches that are already working and ensure that these are not undermined by any new legislative requirements. · Iwi are best placed to advise the best ways to engage that works for them.
4. That councils develop and invest in their internal systems for managing and promoting good quality engagement with Māori.	· The board supports councils developing and investing in their internal systems for managing and promoting quality engagement with Māori.
5. That central government provides a statutory obligation for councils to give due consideration to an agreed, local expression of tikanga whakahaere (rituals and practices) in their standing orders and engagement practices, and for chief executives to be required to promote the incorporation of tikanga in organisations systems.	· The board does not support taking a blanket approach to this, and is therefore not supportive of making this a statutory obligation. · Consideration should be given to the level of Māori representation and involvement in each area when deciding the appropriateness of incorporating tikanga whakahaere. For Auckland Council, this might need to be decided on the level of each local board. · If there is to be a statutory process to agree on appropriate tikanga whakahaere, it should include timeframes for iwi to respond, and for the parties to reach agreement. · There would also need to be processes for iwi to decide which iwi is/are consulted and how conflicts should be resolved where multiple iwi have an interest in an area.
Question a. What might we do more of to increase community understanding about the role of local government, and therefore lead to greater civic participation?	· Civics and citizenship education should be compulsory as a part of the social studies curriculum in schools. This should include components on local government, as well as central Government. This could include running mock elections. Age-appropriate civics education should be included in the primary curriculum. · Look at ways to simplify the voting process, and to make the voting process between central and local government elections as similar as possible. · A potential unintended consequence of increasing civic participation could be that if the number of candidates in local body elections increases, the cost of campaigning may also increase. · Engagement with target communities to increase participation needs to be ongoing, not undertaken only in the lead-up to elections. · Working with community groups is an important method of increasing community understanding of local government. · Engagement programmes needs to be funded appropriately by central Government in order to be effective.
Tiriti-based partnership between Māori and local government
Recommendations 6. That central government leads an inclusive process to develop a new legislative framework for Tiriti-related provisions in the Local Government Act that drives a genuine partnership in the exercise of kāwanatanga and rangatiratanga in a local context and explicitly recognises te ao Māori values and conceptions of wellbeing.	· If such a framework is to be developed, the board would prefer a co-design process with central Government, local government, Māori and community that includes local boards. · A framework that provides guidelines would be preferred to a prescriptive approach in legislation. · The framework should not duplicate, replace, or undermine the existing monitoring and reporting function of the Independent Māori Statutory Board in relation to Auckland Council
7. That councils develop with hapū/iwi and significant Māori organisations within a local authority area, a partnership framework that complements existing co-governance arrangements by ensuring all groups in a council area are involved in local governance in a meaningful way.	· The board supports this proposal, provided that existing processes and structures that are deemed to be working well are able to remain in place, such as Ara Kōtui (a joint mana whenua iwi and southern local boards initiative, established in 2015 to explore and support opportunities for improving iwi Māori involvement in local board decision-making). · Care needs to be taken not to place unrealistic expectations on iwi that lack the resources to be able to participate in a meaningful way.
8. That central government introduces a statutory requirement for local government chief executives to develop and maintain the capacity and capability of council staff to grow understanding and knowledge of Te Tiriti, the whakapapa of local government, and te ao Māori values.	· The board supports this proposal.
9. That central government explores a stronger statutory requirement on councils to foster Māori capacity to participate in local government.	· The board supports this proposal, provided that any funding needed to support increasing and maintaining Māori capacity is provided by central Government.
10. The local government leads the development of co-ordinated organisational and workforce development plans to enhance the capability of local government to partner and engage with Māori.	· The board supports this proposal, and notes that work of this nature is already underway at Auckland Council.
11. The central government provides a transitional fund to subsidise the cost of building both Māori and council capability and capacity for a Tiriti-based partnership in local governance.	· The board supports this proposal, provided that funding is not only transitional, but is available to maintain capacity as well as to build it. · Central government funding should meet the whole cost, of building and maintaining capacity, not just be a subsidy.
Allocating roles and functions in a way that enhances wellbeing
Recommendations 12. That central and local government note that the allocation of the roles and functions is not a binary decision between being delivered centrally or locally.	· The board agrees that allocation of these roles and functions is not binary. It is important that where the roles and functions overlap, there are good processes to ensure that the responsible organisations work together. · An example of this often not working well currently is Auckland Transport and Waka Kotahi, where there are frequently issues with the interface of local roads and state highways and deciding who is responsible for undertaking work.
13. That local and central government, in a Tiriti-consistent manner, review the future allocations of roles and functions by applying the proposed approach, which includes three core principles: · the concept of subsidiarity · local government’s capacity to influence the conditions for wellbeing is recognised and supported · te ao Māori values underpin decision-making.	· The board supports including the concept of subsidiarity as a core principle. · We support giving recognition and support to the role of local government in influencing the conditions for wellbeing, so long as it is also recognised that the is not solely or chiefly the responsibility of local government. Wellbeing needs to start with central Government providing education, healthcare and other basic needs. · We support the principle that te ao Māori values should underpin decision-making.
Questions b. What process would need to be created to support and agree on the allocation of roles and functions across central government, local government, and communities?	· Any proposal would need to be thoroughly discussed between central Government, local government, and communities. A co-design approach would be preferred to a prescriptive approach. · The capacity of local government to deliver a newly allocated function and lead-in times to prepare to be able to deliver it should be taken into consideration. · Devolution of roles or functions to local government needs to be accompanied by appropriate funding allocations.
c. What conditions will need to be in place to ensure the flexibility of the approach proposed does not create confusion or unnecessary uncertainty?	· A co-design approach is optimal – see above.
d. What additional principles, if any, need to be considered?	· Decision making should be devolved as close to the local level as possible, with appropriate funding to deliver.
Local government as champion and activator of wellbeing
Recommendation 14. That local government, in partnership with central government, explores funding and resources that enable and encourage councils to: a) lead, facilitate, and support innovation and experimentation in achieving greater social, economic, cultural, and environmental wellbeing outcomes b) build relational, partnering, innovation, and co-design capability and capacity across their whole organisation c) embed social/progressive procurement and supplier diversity as standard practice in local government with nationally supported organisational infrastructure and capability and capacity building d) review their levers and assets from an equity and wellbeing perspective and identify opportunities for strategic and transformational initiatives e) take on the anchor institution role, initially through demonstration initiatives with targeted resources and peer support f) share the learning and emerging practice from innovation and experimentation of their enhanced wellbeing role.	· Wellbeing needs to start with central Government providing education, healthcare and other basic needs. · If decision making responsibilities are devolved to the local level, then the budget needs to be devolved with it. · Local government would need to have significantly increased funding from central Government to achieve greater social, economic, cultural and environmental wellbeing outcomes.
Questions e. What feedback do you have on the roles councils can play to enhance intergenerational wellbeing?	· The role that councils can play is highly dependent on the funding available to resource that role. · Local boards try to ensure an intergenerational lens is applied across the delivery of their work programmes.
f. What changes would support councils to utilise their existing assets, enablers, and levers to generate more local wellbeing?	· The board has no formal view on this question.
A stronger relationship between central and local government
Questions As we work towards our final report, we want to consider the merits of the different examples. We are interested in your views as to how to rewire the system of central and local government relationships through developing an aligned and cohesive approach to co-investment in local outcomes. h. To create a collaborative relationship between central and local government that builds on current strengths and resources, what are: a) the conditions for success and the barriers that are preventing strong relationships? b) the factors in place now that support genuine partnership? c) the elements needed to build and support a new system? d) the best options to get there? e) potential pathways to move in that direction and where to start? f) the opportunities to trial and innovate now?	· Thorough consultation and a co-design approach is optimal – as above. · If decision making responsibilities are devolved to the local level, then the budget needs to be devolved with it. · Maintaining consistent relationships between central and local government when there is a change of Government is a significant barrier. Relationships with elected officials (i.e. ministers) and with public service officials (i.e. departmental or ministerial chief executives and officers) both need to be maintained. · There needs to be respect from both parties for the other’s role. Central Government needs to respect the capacity of local authorities to make decisions and carry them out.
i. How can central and local government explore options that empower and enable a role for hapū/iwi in local governance in partnership with local and central government? These options should recognise the contribution of hapū/iwi rangatiratanga, kaitiakitanga, and other roles?	· As discussed above, it is important that this is a three-way conversation between central Government, local government and Māori to explore these issues. Iwi are best placed to advise what would work best for them. · Funding for building and maintaining iwi capacity to take on these roles may be needed. The onus to provide this funding should not fall to local government.
Replenishing and building on representative democracy
Recommendations 15. That the Electoral Commission be responsible for overseeing the administration of local body elections.	· The board supports giving responsibility for overseeing the administration of local body elections to the Electoral Commission. They have a proven track record for competently running elections and it makes sense to use this expertise for local body elections. · It will also mean that the same body will be responsible for enrolling voters and overseeing the election, which will simplify matters for voters and allow for a ‘one-stop shop’ approach where voters can enrol and vote at the same time. · We feel that the postal voting system is no longer effective for most voters. There should be more effective options for in-person voting in addition to postal voting. Ways to make postal voting more secure should be explored if it is to be retained as an option. Options to offer secure online voting should also be explored. · Making the voter experience in local body elections as similar as possible to general elections would help to reduce confusion and encourage greater turnout. Offering in-person voting and having a strongly promoted voting period, including a final ‘election day’ should be part of this. · The Electoral Commission should be funded with a similar budget as for general elections to promote local body elections and undertake voter education campaigns.
16. That central government undertakes a review of the legislation to: a) adopt Single Transferrable Vote as the voting method for council elections b) lower the eligible voting age in local body elections to the age of 16 c) provide for a 4-year local electoral term d) amend the employment provisions of chief executives to match those in the wider public sector, and include mechanisms to assist in managing the employment relationship.	· The board does not support adopting the Single Transferrable Vote (STV) voting method for all local body elections. STV complicates the voter experience and will not encourage higher turnout. It requires voters to take more time to fill out their ballots, and to have a high level of knowledge of the candidate in order to be able to rank them. · If there is going to be a change to the voting system, a more comprehensive review of voting systems should be undertaken and options other than STV should be explored. · The board does not support lowering the voting age to 16. · The board supports a 4-year electoral term. If this was also implemented for central Government, it would allow for an electoral cycle where electors are voting every two years, using a similar voting process.
17. That central and local government, in conjunction with the Remuneration Authority, review the criteria for setting elected member remuneration to recognise the increasing complexity of the role and enable a more diverse range of people to consider standing for election.	· The board supports this proposal.
18. That local government develops a mandatory professional development and support programme for elected members; and local and central government develop a shared executive professional development and secondment programme to achieve greater integration across the two sectors.	· The board supports this proposal, and notes that Auckland Council’s Kura Kawana programme already fulfils some of this function.
19. That central and local government: c) support and enable councils to undertake regular health checks of their democratic performance b) develop guidance and mechanisms to support councils resolving complaints under their code of conduct and explore a specific option for local government to refer complaints to an independent investigation process, conducted and led by a national organisation c) subject to the findings of current relevant ombudsman’s investigations, assess whether the provisions of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987, and how it is being applied, support high standards of openness and transparency	· The board supports this proposal.
20. That central government retain the Māori wards and constituencies mechanism (subject to amendment in current policy processes), but consider additional options that provide for a Tiriti-based partnership at the council table.	· The board supports retaining the Māori wards and constituencies mechanism. · Partnership options should not duplicate, replace, or undermine the existing monitoring and reporting function of the Independent Māori Statutory Board in relation to Auckland Council.
Questions j. How can local government enhance its capability to undertake representation reviews and, in particular, should the Local Government Commission play a more proactive role in leading or advising councils about representation reviews?	· The board has no formal view on this proposal.
k. To support a differentiated liberal citizenship, what are the essential key steps, parameters, and considerations that would enable both Tiriti- and capability-based appointments to be made to supplement elected members?	· Auckland Council’s Independent Māori Statutory Board provides a good example of a body of this type.
Equitable funding and finance
Recommendations 21. That central government expands its regulatory impact statement assessments to include the impacts on local government; and that it undertakes an assessment of regulation currently in force that is likely to have significant future funding impacts for local government and makes funding provision to reflect the national public-good benefits that accrue from those regulations.	· The board supports including impacts on local government in regulatory impact statements. · Devolution of roles or functions to local government should always be accompanied by appropriate funding allocation from central Government.
22. That central and local government agree on arrangements and mechanisms for them to co-invest to meet community wellbeing priorities, and that central government makes funding provisions accordingly	· The board supports this proposal.
23. That central government develops an intergenerational fund for climate change, with the application of the fund requiring appropriate regional and local decision-making input.	· The board supports this proposal.
24. That central government reviews relevant legislation to: a) enable councils to introduce new funding mechanisms b) retain rating as the principal mechanism for funding local government, while redesigning long-term planning and rating provisions to allow a more simplified and streamlined process.	· The board supports enabling councils to introduce new funding mechanisms. · We question whether rating is still ‘the principal mechanism for funding local government’ in Auckland. Rates revenue only forms 40 per cent of Auckland Council’s funding streams. This indicates that there is an urgent need to consider what alternatives there are to fund larger local bodies. · Legislation does not currently prescribe funding levels for local boards. Auckland Council’s governance model is based on the concept of shared governance between the governing body and local boards. However, there cannot be true shared governance when one side controls the level of funding allocated to the other side. We would like to see the legislation reviewed with a view to including defined minimum funding levels for boards.
25. That central government agencies pay local government rates and charges on all properties.	· The board supports this proposal. · Some or all GST on paid on rates should be returned to local bodies as funding.
Question l. What is the most appropriate basis and process for allocating central government funding to meet community priorities?	· Local government is best placed to understand and deliver on community priorities. · In the Auckland context, local boards play a significant role in ascertaining and delivering on community priorities.
System design
Recommendations 26. That central and local government explore and agree to a new Tiriti-consistent structural and system design that will give effect to the design principles. · local · subsidiarity · resourced · partnership · economies of scope	· The board has no formal view on this proposal.
27. That local government, supported by central government, invests in a programme that identifies and implements the opportunities for greater shared services collaboration.	· The board supports this proposal.
28. That local government establishes a Local Government Digital Partnership to develop a digital transformation roadmap for local government.	· The board supports this proposal.
System stewardship and support
Recommendations 29. That central and local government considers the best model of stewardship and which entities are best placed to play system stewardship roles in a revised system of local government.	· As noted above, maintaining consistent relationships between central and local government when there is a change of Government is a significant challenge. Any model of stewardship should look to address this issue.

Horopaki

Context

6. The Minister for Local Government established the Future for Local Government Review (the Review) in April 2021 and established a Review Panel (the Panel). The purpose of the Review is to identify how our local democracy and governance system needs to evolve over the next 30 years, to improve the wellbeing of communities and the environment and to actively embody the Treaty partnership.

7. The Panel released its Interim Report in October 2021. The case for change described a local government under pressure without all the levers needed to deliver on community wellbeing. The sector therefore needs to work collaboratively with others including central government, iwi/Māori organisations, the business sector and community groups. It noted that trust had broken down and that there is a need for greater understanding between central government and local government.

8. The Panel released its Draft Report He mata whāriki, he matawhānui on 28 October 2022. The Report can be found at: https://www.futureforlocalgovernment.govt.nz/reports/

9. The Report makes 29 recommendations and asks a range of questions intended to inform the Final Report to the Minister.

10. The Panel states that we are in a period of change (climate change, pandemics, biodiversity loss, social and economic inequity). This is causing many of our communities to lose trust in democratic institutions and to disengage. Government reform is creating further uncertainty for the role of local government in communities.

11. The challenges facing Aotearoa New Zealand are too big for central government to address alone. Local government has a fundamental role to play in responding to these complex issues and improving the wellbeing of communities. This will require renewal and change (shifts) to many aspects of the local government system.

12. The Panel previously indicated five shifts are needed to make this change: strengthened local democracy, authentic relationships with hapū/iwi and Māori, a focus on wellbeing, genuine partnership between central and local government, and more equitable funding. Two additional shifts – system design and stewardship – will also need to be considered.

13. The Report sets out recommendations and asks questions in relation to: revitalising citizen-led democracy, Tiriti-based partnership between Māori and local government, allocating roles and functions, local government as champion and activator of wellbeing, replenishing and building on representative democracy, and equitable funding and finance.

14. Following the release of the Report, the Review Panel undertook a further round of engagement with the local government sector across New Zealand. This included three in-person sessions with local board members in Auckland on 5 and 6 December 2022.

15. The Governing Body has approved the preparation of an Auckland Council submission in response to the Report. Submissions are due by 28 February 2023.

16. The Panel’s Final Report is due with the Minister by June 2023. Any response to the Panel’s final recommendations will be a decision for the next government.

Tātaritanga me ngā tohutohu

Analysis and advice

17. The purpose of the Review is highly relevant to local government and Auckland Council.

18. Some recommendations in the Report are of a functional order (e.g. allocation of roles), some more foundational (e.g. Te Tiriti based partnerships) and some about the ‘system’ we work within. The Report does not necessarily set out all the relationships/interdependencies between the components.

19. It is proposed that the council’s submission draws these connections where possible to ensure there is a clear understanding of how all elements of the future system will work together and potential impacts and risks. Council should also seek further clarity on the future funding framework for local government and the pathway to build the required capability and capacity to carry out its future role.

20. The council has formed positions in previous terms on a number of recommendations contained in the Report. These will be the starting point for preparing the submission but there will be an opportunity for this council to reconsider those positions through the drafting process.

Tauākī whakaaweawe āhuarangi

Climate impact statement

21. The Report acknowledges that councils have a significant role in mitigating and adapting to climate impacts in their areas. It also notes that the future climate challenge for local government is likely to be greater than the challenge it has faced over the past 30 years to address the infrastructure deficit.

22. Current funding streams to manage the impacts of climate events are already being challenged, placing many communities at risk and requiring a long-term approach to addressing these issues. The sums involved to mitigate and respond to climate effects are likely to be significant.

23. Accordingly, the Report recommends (recommendation 23) that central government develops an intergenerational fund for climate change, with the application of the fund requiring appropriate regional and local decision-making input.

24. In its submission on the Draft National Adaptation Plan earlier this year, Auckland Council argued that central government funding is crucial and must have a long-term focus.

Ngā whakaaweawe me ngā tirohanga a te rōpū Kaunihera

Council group impacts and views

25. CCO chairs and chief executives have been provided with a summary and high-level analysis of the Report.

26. CCO staff are included in the experts across the council group who will develop the council’s submission for approval.

Ngā whakaaweawe ā-rohe me ngā tirohanga a te poari ā-rohe

Local impacts and local board views

27. The Report proposes that putting wellbeing at the core of council’s purpose and its roles and functions will unlock greater wellbeing outcomes for communities. Councils have an opportunity to strengthen and expand their role in three key ways: as anchor institutions, place-makers, and systems networkers and convenors.

28. The Report also proposes a framework to guide the allocation of roles and functions between different actors: central government, local government, hapū/iwi and community. The framework starts with a local-first approach (the subsidiarity principle) and is guided by te ao Māori values.

29. The Panel has engaged with local board members over the course of the Review in July 2021, March 2022 and most recently on 5 and 6 December 2022 through three separate in-person sessions held across Auckland.

30. Local board views on the Report are sought and will be incorporated into the council’s submission as appropriate. Formal local board feedback will be appended to council’s submission.

31. As the deadline for the board to provide formal feedback fell outside of the board’s scheduled business meeting times, board feedback was approved using the urgent decision process. The Urgent Decision Memo can be found as Attachment A to this report.

Tauākī whakaaweawe Māori

Māori impact statement

32. A finding of the Review is that the system needs to ensure a more meaningful expression of rangatiratanga and a more culturally specific exercise of kāwanatanga by councils, with te ao Māori values reflected at all levels of the system.

33. In response, the Report proposes fundamental changes to Te Tiriti o Waitangi provisions of the Local Government Act 2002, a strategic role for Māori in identifying and addressing priority outcomes that will lift community wellbeing, as well as strengthened specific mechanisms for partnership and engagement (including the incorporation of tikanga Māori).

34. It also proposes improvements to Māori representation at the council table, and a concerted investment in the capability and capacity of both local government and Māori to build and maintain a Tiriti-based partnership in local governance.

35. Staff have engaged with iwi on the system shifts proposed by the Panel at earlier stages in the Review process. Now that the Report has been released, iwi have been asked for their views to be considered for inclusion in council’s submission.

36. There has been ongoing engagement with IMSB staff on the Review and they will have an opportunity to review the council’s submission.

Ngā ritenga ā-pūtea

Financial implications

37. The submission will be developed within existing resources.

38. The recommendations of the Review Panel are multi-faceted and there is insufficient information to anticipate or quantify financial implications for the council.

Ngā raru tūpono me ngā whakamaurutanga

Risks and mitigations

39. No risks have been identified in relation to preparation of council’s submission.

Ngā koringa ā-muri

Next steps

40. Staff are drafting a submission for the Governing Body’s approval at its meeting on 23 February 2023.

41. There will be a briefing on the Draft Report for local board members on 23 January 2023.

42. Local board views to be considered for incorporation into council’s submission must be received by 2 February 2023.

43. Formal feedback to be appended to council submissions must be received by 23 February 2023.

Ngā tāpirihanga

Attachments

No.	Title	Page
a ⇩	Urgent Decision Memo	115

Ngā kaihaina

Signatories

Author

Denise O’Shaughnessy - Manager Strategic Advice

Authorisers

Carol Hayward - Team Leader Operations and Policy

Louise Mason - General Manager Local Board Services

Carol McKenzie-Rex - Local Area Manager Franklin Manurewa Papakura

No.	Title	Page
a ⇩	Te Pūrongo a Te Kaunihera o Tāmaki Makaurau Ngā Huanga Māori 2021/2022 - Auckland Council Group Māori Outcomes Report 2021-2022	129

Manurewa Local Board

16 February 2023

Auckland Council’s Performance Report: Manurewa Local Board for quarter two 2022/2023

File No.: CP2023/00522

Te take mō te pūrongo

Purpose of the report

1. To provide the Manurewa Local Board with an integrated performance report for quarter two, 1 October – 31 December 2022.

Whakarāpopototanga matua

Executive summary

2. This report includes financial performance, progress against work programmes, key challenges the board should be aware of and any risks to delivery against the 2022/2023 work programme.

3. The key activity updates from this period are:

· Continuing high levels of attendance and participation at facilities in the local board area.

· Delivery of 54 out of 92 scheduled Active Recreation activations for the year.

· Tōtara Park Pools opening for the summer season, with a total of 1,700 visitors in the first two weeks.

· Papakura Stream Restoration Programme volunteers undertaking 12 tree rescue events and collecting 300 kilograms of rubbish from Trimdon Reserve.

4. All operating departments with agreed work programmes have provided an update against their work programme delivery. Activities are reported with a status of green (on track), amber (some risk or issues, which are being managed) or grey (cancelled, deferred, or merged). There are no activities with a red status.

5. Auckland Council (Council) currently has a number of bonds quoted on the NZ Stock Exchange (NZX). As a result, the Council is subject to obligations under the NZX Main Board & Debt Market Listing Rules and the Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013 sections 97 and 461H. These obligations restrict the release of half-year financial reports and results until the Auckland Council Group results are released to the NZX on or about 28 February 2023.

Due to these obligations the financial performance attached to the quarterly report is excluded from the public.

6. The Customer and Community Services capex budget has been revised to incorporate delayed delivery or earlier commencement of individual projects or other changes that are of material value.

Ngā tūtohunga

Recommendation/s

That the Manurewa Local Board:

a) receive the performance report for quarter two, ending 31 December 2022

b) note the financial performance report in Attachment B of the agenda report will remain confidential until after the Auckland Council Group half-year results for 2022/2023 are released to the New Zealand Exchange (NZX), which are expected to be made public on 28 February 2023.

Horopaki

Context

7. The Manurewa Local Board has an approved 2022/2023 work programme for the following operating departments:

· Customer and Community Services

· Infrastructure and Environmental Services

· Auckland Emergency Management

· Tātaki Auckland Unlimited

8. The graph below shows how the work programme activities meet Local Board Plan outcomes. Activities that are not part of the approved work programme but contribute towards the local board outcomes, such as advocacy by the local board, are not captured in this graph.

Graph 1: Work programme activities by outcome

Chart, bar chart

Description automatically generated

Tātaritanga me ngā tohutohu

Analysis and advice

Local Board Work Programme Snapshot

9. The graph below identifies work programme activity by RAG status (red, amber, green and grey) which measures the performance of the activity. It shows the percentage of work programme activities that are on track (green), in progress but with issues that are being managed (amber), and activities that have significant issues (red) and activities that have been cancelled/deferred/merged (grey).

Graph 2: Work programme by RAG status

Chart, pie chart

Description automatically generated

10. The graph below shows the activity status of activities which shows the stage of the activity in each departments the work programmes. The number of activity lines differ by department as approved in the local board work programmes.

Graph 3: Work programme by activity status and department

Chart, waterfall chart

Description automatically generated

Key activity updates

11. The following are key activity updates from quarter two. These are aligned to outcomes in the Manurewa Local Board Plan.

Our communities are inclusive, vibrant, healthy and connected

· Programmes and activities delivered at Nathan Homestead in this quarter include:

o Te Pito exhibition by local artist Haley Lowe, which was featured on Māori TV and Te Reo channel, along with articles in NZ Herald and Stuff.

o The Repair Cafe continuing to operate, with locals taking over the running of the cafe and adding new services, such as photo scanning services for seniors.

o The Creative Markets event recommenced. The popularity of the event has resulted in further programming to hold it on a twice-yearly basis.

o Classes offered this quarter included new senior-focused offers, Yoga for Seniors, Technology for Seniors, as well as Mindfulness and community Yoga classes for the wider community.

o A successful pilot for the co-working relationship with the Botanic Gardens being delivered. Fifty-two year 2 and 3 students from Manurewa Central Primary School took part in a day-long schedule of activities. A further two co-delivered programmes are planned for the new year.

o A local Indian woman, newly immigrated from Nigeria, met artists-in-residence Lissy and Rudi Cole while visiting Nathan. She has since learnt to crochet with them and is now employed by them to help complete their work Whare Koa which will open at Te Papa in July.

· Participant numbers at community venues for quarter two increased by 78 per cent, and booking hours by 85 per cent, compared with the same period in the previous financial year. Ninety-four per cent of hirers indicated that they would recommend the facilities in this local board to others and 100 per cent were satisfied with the facilities.

· Highlights from programmes delivered at Te Pātaka Kōrero o Manurewa and Te Pātaka Kōrero o Waimāhia this quarter include:

o A Community Christmas morning tea being held at Te Pātaka Kōrero o Manurewa with strong representation from the Indian and Samoan communities. They learnt greetings from each other's cultures and shared their vision for further learning within the library.

o Diwali celebrations saw significant participation from the Indian community and others. Activities offered included food tasting, henna painting, Rangoli chalk patterns, Bollywood and Punjabi dancing, and making ceramic light holders.

o Hindi and Fijian Language weeks were celebrated with competitions and story times. Take home packs were also created for those who couldn't attend.

o Record high numbers participated in the October school holiday programme. Activities for tamariki and their whānau included making kaleidoscopes, making candy, science experiments and a karate session.

o A home delivery service has been established at Te Pātaka Kōrero o Waimāhia with fortnightly deliveries of tailored booklists. Delivery to otherwise isolated seniors has been welcomed.

o Smartphone Sessions for seniors were held at Te Pātaka Kōrero o Manurewa. They learnt how to download apps, digital banking, use of Google maps, as well as taking and sending photos. Participants requested for the sessions to be extended.

o A Pātaka Kai has been set up at Te Pātaka Kōrero o Manurewa, with items of non-perishable food donated by the community and staff.

· Manurewa Youth Council highlights for this quarter include:

o Continuing rangatahi advocacy in the community, connecting with young people across the Local Board area and encouraging civic participation.

o Gathering youth insights for Local Board consideration.

o Hosting the Future Fest in South Auckland, which was a great success with 987 young people from across South Auckland attending. Government departments, private sector companies, and career advisors were present to support rangatahi as they explored options for their future.

Our people enjoy a choice of quality community spaces and use them often

· Fifty-four out of 92 scheduled Active Recreation activations for the year have been delivered.

· Tōtara Park Pools opened for the summer season on Saturday 17 December. There was a total of 1,700 visitors in the first two weeks.

· Manurewa Leisure Centre continued to see consistently high programme enrolments this quarter. OSCAR before- and after-school attendance was steady, with approximately 60 children attending each day. The stadium was closed from 27 October to 2 December while the floor underwent refurbishment, which has now been completed.

· Te Matariki Clendon Community Centre continued to see programmes at or near full capacity. The PE programme operated every day for during term, activating up to 45 kids each session, for South Auckland Middle School.

· Manurewa Pool and Leisure Centre saw a 150 per cent increase in visitor numbers when measured against the same period last year. This is partly attributable to the centre being shut down for nine weeks over quarter two last year due to COVID-19 lockdowns. Although membership slightly decreased in this quarter, group fitness participation remained steady. Swim school had an increase in enrolments during this period, with most classes reaching capacity.

· Groups benefiting from the board subsidising pool entry fees during this time included 3,711 people aged 65 and over, 2,719 adults supervising children, and 87 people with disabilities. This represents a significant increase in usage from quarter one, with approximately twice the number of participants for all three groups.

· The board’s funding of increased access to Te Matariki Clendon Community Centre and Manurewa Leisure Centre enabled Manurewa community groups to deliver a range of free activities including karate in Te Reo, mau rakau, basketball and a variety of Saturday activities.

Our prosperous local economy supports local people

· As part of the board’s Pasifika Business Support and Engagement work programme line item, a network event was held on 27 October at Te Matariki Clendon Community Centre, with approximately 20 local Pasifika businesses and entrepreneurs attending. The Pasifika Business Trust and Ministry of Social Development provided an overview on business support and growth advice services available to Pasifika businesses.

· The Southern Initiative engaged the following providers to delivery programmes as part of the board’s Youth Connections work programme item:

o Brown Pride has been funded $25,000 to support 10 young people to get into sustainable employment or connect them to the economy as contractor or self-employed. This programme will be 10-weeks long and it will be split into smaller cohorts of three and be completed by May 2023.

o Three Bags Full (3BF) has been funded $22,500 to deliver a Tech Accelerator programme for three rangatahi and their whanau, focusing on completing tech related courses, staying engaged with school and pursuing a tech-related career. This was previously expected to be completed by December 2022, but has been extended to February 2023 to cover the school holiday period.

o Tukua Enterprise Nek Gen 2 programme, delivered by Ngahere Communities, has been funded $25,000 to support enterprise for ten rangatahi. This programme was completed as expected in quarter two, with all ten young people progressing in their entrepreneurial journey, including being set up to trade on Shopify.

Our natural environment is valued, protected and enhanced

· Ecological and environmental volunteers undertook 500 volunteer hours this quarter.

· Activities delivered through the Pest Free Urban South work programme line in this quarter include:

o The Beautification Trust performed community outreach for Pest Free Urban South at the Predator Free exhibition at the Botanic Gardens and the Manurewa Community Expo.

o The Trust hosted a working bee with the Tōtara Heights Bush Guardians to tackle weeds such as English ivy, tradescantia, tree privet, arum lily, and woolly nightshade. Attendees were taught how to manage phoenix palms, and traps were also given out at this event. Through this engagement, the Trust have found volunteers to manage traplines in the Tōtara Heights area.

o The local activator took part in the Te Ara Hīkoi online Pestival, and gave a talk on urban trapping. This helped spread the word about the Pest Free Urban South kaupapa.

· Visits commenced for the Wiri Industrial Pollution Prevention Programme. To date, 56 of 120 businesses have been visited and 17 of these have been sent recommendation reports detailing changes needing to be made to their current practices.

· As part of Papakura Stream Restoration Programme funded by the Manurewa, Papakura, and Franklin local boards, 170 volunteers took part in 12 tree rescue events and collected 300 kilograms of rubbish from Trimdon Reserve. Five more tree rescue events are scheduled in 2022. Site visits have identified planting sites across the Papakura Stream catchment for the target of 40,000 trees. One landowner upstream of the Papakura Esplanade Reserve has shown interest in turning 5,500m2 of their land into native bush.

· The following activities were delivered through the Manurewa Waste Minimisation work programme item:

o The Beautification Trust published a community engagement quiz, highlighting some of the main sources of waste produced in the festive season and how people can prevent creating waste. A second quiz is scheduled to be published in January, and will educate community members on what to do with their excess waste.

o A Waste Directory is being developed, which will provide information to the Manurewa community on how and where to easily get rid of unwanted items. Making this information easily accessible will encourage the diversion of waste from landfill and will discourage illegal dumping.

o The project manager is working with the Pride Project to deliver workshops to rangatahi and update illegal dumping signage around Manurewa. New signs have been ordered to install in the coming months.

Activities with significant issues

12. No work programme activities have been identified by operating departments as having significant issues.

Activities on hold

13. The following work programme activities have been identified by operating departments as on hold:

· Te Matariki Clendon Library - comprehensive renewal: This activity is on hold as funding is not available until 2024.

· Tington Reserve - Renew playspace: This activity is on hold pending completion of strategic assessment.

· Rowandale Reserve - Renew playspace: This activity is on hold pending completion of strategic assessment.

Changes to the local board work programme

Cancelled activities

14. These activities are cancelled:

· Tōtara Park Aquatic Centre - pool relining: This project has been cancelled because the work was completed in the previous financial year 2021/2022.

Tauākī whakaaweawe āhuarangi

Climate impact statement

15. Receiving performance monitoring reports will not result in any identifiable changes to greenhouse gas emissions.

16. Work programmes were approved in June 2022 and delivery is underway. Should significant changes to any projects be required, climate change impacts will be assessed as part of the relevant reporting requirements. Any changes to the timing of approved projects are unlikely to result in changes to emissions.

Ngā whakaaweawe me ngā tirohanga a te rōpū Kaunihera

Council group impacts and views

17. When developing the work programmes council group impacts and views are presented to the boards. As this is an information only report there are no further impacts identified.

Ngā whakaaweawe ā-rohe me ngā tirohanga a te poari ā-rohe

Local impacts and local board views

18. This report informs the Manurewa Local Board of the performance for ending 31 December 2022.

Tauākī whakaaweawe Māori

Māori impact statement

19. Three organisations have been confirmed to deliver Māori outcomes events in quarters three and four as part of the board’s work programme line item ‘Support Māori-led aspirations Manurewa’. These include Māori stories written by local children, a Matariki dawn ceremony, showcasing Māori kupu, tikanga, stories and Te Reo Māori events at the two libraries in Manurewa.

20. The tamariki Māori collection at Te Pātaka Kōrero o Manurewa was revamped with the oversight of a Māori Collections Specialist. It now has clearer signage and a more targeted collection to encourage greater use.

21. Customers are now greeted at Te Pātaka Kōrero o Waimāhia with a board showing the phase of the Maramataka and types of activities that are appropriate for the day.

22. Candidates are being sought for 2023 TUIA mentorship programme. An online application form has been set up. This has been promoted through local communication channels and Ara Kōtui and strategic broker networks. Chair Glenn Murphy has been confirmed as the elected member to act as mentor for the Manurewa board.

23. Ara Kōtui hui were paused during the election and local board induction periods. A hui scheduled for December 2023 was unable to proceed due to lack of availability of iwi representatives. The next hui is scheduled for February 2023.

24. Healthy Waters staff supported Te Pu-a-ngaa Maara in training two of their Waitiaki kaimahi at the Wiri pond as part of the board’s Awa restoration programme. The rōpū continue to hold 'give back' days along the Puhinui Stream, one of which was the ‘Eyes on the awa’ event. This was held on 21 October 2022 in collaboration with the Sustainable Business Network and the Empowered Communities initiative, and involved a litter clean-up, hand removal of weeds, education around the stream and pest control in the lower industrial area of the Puhinui catchment.

25. A rongoā Māori workshop was held at the Friends of Tōtara Park depot for volunteers involved in the ecological and environmental volunteers programme.

Ngā ritenga ā-pūtea

Financial implications

26. This report is provided to enable the Manurewa Local Board to monitor the organisation’s progress and performance in delivering the 2022/2023 work programmes. There are no financial implications associated with this report.

Financial Performance

27. Auckland Council (Council) currently has a number of bonds quoted on the NZ Stock Exchange (NZX). As a result, the Council is subject to obligations under the NZX Main Board & Debt Market Listing Rules and the Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013 sections 97 and 461H. These obligations restrict the release of half-year financial reports and results until the Auckland Council Group results are released to the NZX on 28 February 2023.

28. Due to these obligations the financial performance attached to the quarterly report is excluded from the public.

Ngā raru tūpono me ngā whakamaurutanga

Risks and mitigations

29. While the risk of non-delivery of the entire work programme is rare, the likelihood for risk relating to individual activities does vary. Capital projects for instance, are susceptible to more risk as on-time and on-budget delivery is dependent on weather conditions, approvals (e.g., building consents) and is susceptible to market conditions.

30. Information about any significant risks and how they are being managed and/or mitigated is addressed in the ‘Activities with significant issues’ section.

Ngā koringa ā-muri

Next steps

31. The local board will receive the next performance update following the end of quarter three, 31 March 2023.

Ngā tāpirihanga

Attachments

No.	Title	Page
a ⇩	Work programme update	187
b ⇩	Financial performance report - Confidential

Ngā kaihaina

Signatories

Author	Robert Boswell - Local Board Advisor
Authoriser	Carol McKenzie-Rex - Local Area Manager Franklin Manurewa Papakura

No.	Title	Page
a ⇩	Manurewa Local Board Governance Forward Work Calendar - February 2023	223

[1] Te Oranga o te Taiao means: the health of the natural environment, and the essential relationship between the health of the natural environment and its capacity to sustain life, and the interconnectedness of all parts of the environment, and the intrinsic relationship between iwi and hapū and te taiao

Chairperson	Glenn Murphy
Deputy Chairperson	Matt Winiata
Members	Joseph Allan
	Heather Andrew
	Anne Candy
	Angela Cunningham-Marino
	Andrew Lesa
	Rangi McLean

Author	Rohin Patel - Democracy Advisor
Authoriser	Carol McKenzie-Rex - Local Area Manager Franklin Manurewa Papakura

Exclusion of the Public: Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987