Rates capping was also raised under the 5th National Government. Examples of rates capping failures in the US at state and city level were pointed out.
Thanks for your insights Alicia. I was particularly struck by your point that despite the Minister's exhortations that their job is to drive economic growth in their communities, economic growth has never been part of the purpose of councils.
I was a bit surprised by this (I had assumed it must have been part of their statutory functions) and had a search myself for any reference to this as a function, without success. Especially as many regional councils have special entities (eg CCOs) set up to deliver advice on economic development and promote their regions. TAs often also have entities to promote district growth.
Economic wellbeing is one of the four areas Councils are required to promote in their community - alongside social, cultural and environmental wellbeing. The new Amendment Bill will remove those (again).
Local government is local democracy. In its purest form, it is tasked with leading and shaping the future of their area and community in accordance with the wishes of their residents.
For many Councils, this will include a community mandate, via the Long Term Plan, to support and promote economic activity that keeps their area vibrant, thriving and sustainable.
Thanks Alicia - yes I noted your point about the irony of economic wellbeing being removed from the purpose along with the other three "wellbeings". I had just assumed though that is was a function set out somewhere else in the act also, but no?
An I agree entirely with your concluding point: "The broader agenda of the current Government is consistent with the wave of short-term populism sweeping politics globally - a backlash to the emerging severity of our biggest, curliest problems we don’t know how to solve." Aligns very much with my direct experience: https://anuncommonland.substack.com/p/its-2025-and-wellbeing-is-a-dirty?r=2upzdz
Absolutely fantastic analysis and explanation! Many thanks Alicia!
Thank you for your insights in this article.
Rates capping was also raised under the 5th National Government. Examples of rates capping failures in the US at state and city level were pointed out.
Great insights here Alicia. Our kids will take the hit for this....
Such a great read Alicia. You might be interested in this resource I developed on Intergenerational Ambition. https://bit.ly/intergenerationalambition
Thanks for your insights Alicia. I was particularly struck by your point that despite the Minister's exhortations that their job is to drive economic growth in their communities, economic growth has never been part of the purpose of councils.
I was a bit surprised by this (I had assumed it must have been part of their statutory functions) and had a search myself for any reference to this as a function, without success. Especially as many regional councils have special entities (eg CCOs) set up to deliver advice on economic development and promote their regions. TAs often also have entities to promote district growth.
I am curious, given this isn't a statutory function, why have councils taken this on, often at considerable cost. There is also an inherent tension - especially for regional councils, which are also tasked with protecting the environment. I wrote a Substack on this very question recently https://open.substack.com/pub/anuncommonland/p/growth-is-like-grains-of-rice-on?r=2upzdz&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false - I would be interested to hear your thoughts.
Economic wellbeing is one of the four areas Councils are required to promote in their community - alongside social, cultural and environmental wellbeing. The new Amendment Bill will remove those (again).
Local government is local democracy. In its purest form, it is tasked with leading and shaping the future of their area and community in accordance with the wishes of their residents.
For many Councils, this will include a community mandate, via the Long Term Plan, to support and promote economic activity that keeps their area vibrant, thriving and sustainable.
Thanks Alicia - yes I noted your point about the irony of economic wellbeing being removed from the purpose along with the other three "wellbeings". I had just assumed though that is was a function set out somewhere else in the act also, but no?
An I agree entirely with your concluding point: "The broader agenda of the current Government is consistent with the wave of short-term populism sweeping politics globally - a backlash to the emerging severity of our biggest, curliest problems we don’t know how to solve." Aligns very much with my direct experience: https://anuncommonland.substack.com/p/its-2025-and-wellbeing-is-a-dirty?r=2upzdz