Letter to Residents

Kia ora Waimakariri

The Government has announced significant changes to how local government will be structured across New Zealand. To be clear Council is not driving this reform – it is being driven by the Government. We have been given three months to provide our preference which isn’t a lot of time. Council believes it is vital to hear ourcommunities views before coming to a position.

A key part of this reform is the move away from the current two-tier system of district and regional councils.

Regional councils, in their current form, are expected to be replaced, with their functions and responsibilities –such as environmental management, transport planning and water management – absorbed into new, larger council structures.

The Government is explicitly encouraging councils to form unitary authorities, bringing district and regional functions together into a single council, with proposals due in August and changes likely to take effect from the 2028 local elections.

Councils have been given a very short window to work with neighbouring councils to develop proposals for how councils might be reorganised (called Head Start). If councils don’t put forward a proposal, the government has said it will decide for them (called Backstop).

The purpose of this engagement is to hear your views

While early participation may offer a clearer pathway, the ‘back-stop’ pathway is unclear. Before forming a position, we consider it critical to understand the view of the community.

We are one of the largest councils in the South Island by population, with a community that has grown steadily for 30 years and is projected to reach 100,000 residents by 2050.

We are proud of our strong financial track record. We hold an AA rating with a Stable Outlook from Fitch and are the only council to receive two AA grades from CouncilMARK – a local govt excellence programme.

Waimakariri is widely regarded as one of the most effective councils in the country and we have built strong relationships across Canterbury.

What this could mean for Waimakariri

This exercise requires thinking outside of our boundaries.

We need to consider alternative structures and operating arrangements that provide the essential council services going forward, as well as functions previously undertaken by regional councils.

We will take the time to understand what options are in front of us and will work with neighbouring councils where it makes sense to do so.

It should be noted that we do already work effectively through the structure of the Greater Christchurch Partnership (comprising Christchurch, Selwyn, Environment Canterbury, mana whenua and other partners) and the Canterbury Mayoral Forum (representing all Councils from Waitaki to Kaikōura.)

What happens next

Please take the time to read through the engagement material and provide your views.

We’ll keep working through the options with neighbouring councils.

Your feedback will help inform our next steps. However, any proposal needs to be accepted by the Government.

If our options are declined by central Government, the Council will go into the ‘Backstop’ option.

The Backstop is the Government’s fallback option if councils don’t agree on a proposal. This means reform will still go ahead after 2028 but with less local control over the outcome.

We will make sure to keep the community well informed and updated with any formal position/ submission on reform.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely,