Len and Co – Could They Bankrupt Auckland to Build the City Rail Link?
Part of The City Rail Link Series
Debate on the City Rail Link continues with figures and all sorts coming out from both sides coin.
VOAKL will cut right down the middle and look at an interview with the Prime Minister in which he mentions The City Rail Link – and some strange theory
It is time for a discussion and VOAKL will provide one – for everyone with a VIEW
I was listening to the Prime Minister’s interview on Newstalk ZB just few moments ago. Things covered were: rates, the uniform annual charge, and the City Rail Link. I will cover the Uniform Annual Charge and how that could have saved a lot of ratepayers grief if the UAC was set at $450 rather than the current $350 once I trawl through a pile of paper to find those graphs. But what I will mention here is this little gem from the radio DJ who mentioned this little theory on how to build the City Rail Link NOW!
Listen to the radio interview HERE and see if you can pick up the “theory.”
Did you hear it?
The theory being that our resident Prude – Our Absentee Mayor and his cohorts decide to push on right ahead at flank speed and build the City Rail Link by themselves in order to get their precious construction start date on 2015 (rather than being patient and waiting for a 2018-2022 start date). By building the CRL ourselves with no Central Government or third-party backing, Auckland Council would virtually bankrupt the city thus forcing Central Government to intervene and most likely give a bail out to Auckland. Sound extreme? Well technically it is not if the Kaipara example was to be used. You see Kaipara District Council spent an inane amount of money to build a sewerage treatment system. The system came in way (and I mean way) over budget and blew a massive hole in Kaipara’s finances. Needless to say Kaipara is now the most indebted territorial authority in NZ with residents and businesses facing even more stiff rates rises than Auckland in order to get the debt back under control. Central Government has begun to intervene with Kaipara but no bailout just yet (still could happen if the Council was to collapse).
So the theory is not as extreme as it sounds in Auckland Council blowing our own finances to go build the CRL without Central Government and/or a third-party backer – if Kaipara were to show us anything as an example.
Would Auckland Council decide to go it alone and build the City Rail Link with no regards to our finances? I would give Council credit where it is due and say no they wouldn’t…
And that is one thing I DO NOT want to be proven wrong on either thank you very much Auckland Council.
Central government forced the Super City on Auckland.
So if Auckland now rated everything evenly and applied that same rate across the whole new city there had to be enormous differences.
The Super City came as a collation agreement allowing(Act) to push ahead with its proposals.
In essence, amalgamation is a good idea.
Central Government ofcourse can distance itself from the Act partnership and deny their support on amalgamation and simply point the finger saying that (Act) got it wrong.
Central government can also distance itself from the Auckland Council and hope it will fail. Politically that is to Central Government’s political advantage.
In Auckland we have a left Council, appointed by the people with a clear mandate on transport.
Central Government needs to accept the peoples decision. Central Government needs to find the way to finance the peoples decision. If it is to say NO it should not be on idealistic principals.
At a time of austerity we must tighten the belt, but surely in such times, that is when Major infrastructure works should be progressed, after all the rail proposal dates back to the early 1920′s.
As for the rating debacle, it seems clear Auckland Council could have eased the burden with a greater base fee. But as for the same rating system being fair and equal, that is the impossible dream.
CRD