How would you like to elect the Trustees to represent your needs with the New “Water Done Well” Company the 3 Taranaki Councils must ask you to do a submission about ? Why are you not being offered an option for Water Consumers to elect Trustees on the submission form ?
This is a story about the 5 options that can be used when Local Councils adopt the Government Water Done Well initiative.
Our Mayors and CEO’s across Taranaki are only presenting 3 options to us.
We would like all of you to get involved in the submission process and ask for the other 2 options to be explained and also put out for submissions.
The 2 options that are available, which you are not being told about, are 2 options where you, the consumers of water, have a lot more say about how these organisations are designed and how they operate.
This story also falls with an uncanny sense of timing. Our story was scheduled for 29th April - Submissions open on 30th April.
The following explains why we don’t want a Council Controlled Organisation (CCO) for Taranaki’s new water set up.
We included with the story about the Airport Lookout how the New Plymouth Airport is a Council Controlled Organisation (CCO). We explained how ratepayers and renters have NO say in how this is structured or run, and we ran the story about how most of New Plymouth were totally surprised about a Lookout Structure which had been built.
Hardly anyone knew that something not remotely related to “the operation of an airport” was going to be built by this Council Controlled Organisation (CCO).
NPDC, Stratford District Council and South Taranaki District Council have had meetings about how they could structure a regional Water Done Well arrangement. We have also met with the Mayors and CEO’s of all 3 of these Councils to talk about their discussions. (See our 3 previous stories).
We find it very interesting only 3 options have been discussed in possible regional arrangements.
- Stay as their own stand alone council water service – as they are now.
- Set up a new CCO for their own Council district.
- Combine as one new Regional CCO with the other 2 regions in Taranaki.
- There are 2 other options that are available under the legislation for Water Done Well but there have been no discussions we are aware of about these options where the “consumers” have a say.
These 3 Councils have to consult with their communities on the arrangements they are setting up and they must announce the model they will use by September 2025. The new set up does not have to be in place until 2028.
All of the ratepayers and renters in all 3 Taranaki Regions are being presented with either staying as it is now, or setting up some sort of CCO.
The reasons the Ratepayers Alliance doesn’t like CCO’s are:
- With a CCO it is much easier for you NOT to know what they are doing as a business, and you have no say in business operations, debt taken on, or how profits are spent.
- A yearly Statement of Intention is put out, but you can’t change that intention.
- You have no say in the structure of how the company is set up.
- If you’re not happy there doesn’t seem to be much you can do about.
- You the Ratepayers are responsible for any debt not paid, but you have no say.
As the Alliance
- We Say No to a Taranaki Water CCO
So what are the other 2 options that the Mayors and CEO’s could be talking about and what other options could be presented for ratepayers and renters to decide on with submissions ?
Dare we even try to suggest it – but there are Consumer Trusts – either totally owned as a water user consumer trust – or as a mix of council owned and consumer owned.
Guess who the consumers are ? That would be us – Ratepayers and Renters – who use the water in Taranaki.
With the Consumer Trust model we would have a say – how novel would that concept be ?
Consumer Trust Model:
“Households and businesses with a water connection elect the trustees of this trust and the trustees appoint the board who run it.”
“Water organisation governed by independent, professional board of directors – appointed by trustees”
“The shareholders (trustees) are accountable to the consumers”
(Several charts of all the options – including this one - are attached).
Trustees are elected by the water consumers – and if you are not happy you would be able to elect new people as Trustees at the next election.
This type of model is along the lines of the TET Trust – the old power supply companies in eastern Taranaki – when they were sold and a trust was set up to manage those funds for the community.
It’s not exactly the same as TET – but the crux of the consumer trust is the water consumers get a chance to change the trustees, who can change the board, if people are not happy with how they are being represented.
At the Alliance
-
We Say Yes to a Consumer Trust – the Consumers want to vote for Trustees for Local Water Done Well.
The Council is likely to tell you they can’t get funding (finance) easily for a Consumer Trust Model for water and a CCO company set up can – so they prefer a CCO.
We have a story coming soon about the funding (financing) the Council prefers to use - and we’re pretty sure most ratepayers and renters will NOT like how the funding arrangements work. We think most of the New Plymouth Community would prefer other lending options.
Please don’t let any suggestions from these Councils that you need to make sure you use their preferred funding model sway how you feel about CCO’s. We know ratepayers will not like the funding arrangements (but we can’t fit a full explanation about funding in with this story).
So we strongly prefer a model where the Consumers who are affected by the decisions being made about their water supply should have a big say in how this is run and they should get to choose who runs it.
We have attached a couple of charts from the NZ Department of Internal Affairs. These have the 5 options our Councils could choose – so you can see you have more choices than the 3 that you are being presented with.
Sorry to be a pain – but we have to ask you to do a submission. You can't change what these Councils are planning on doing unless you write and tell them you don't want what they are doing.
The standard forms on the Have Your Say link are not likely to count any comments you make if they are different to the topic of any boxes on that form.
The submission options do not say:
Option 1
Option2
Option 3
Or, Something else - you tell us what you prefer.
- So – we need thousands of you to write to/e-mail your Councils in your own words.
If you have (or are going to have) water meters at your place – and you want a chance of having any say about how they are managed – you have to tell your Council you want a Consumer Trust set up for the consumers of water in Taranaki.
This new Water Company will be able to borrow many millions in debt for water infrastructure. NPDC already owe $384 million - this company will be borowing significantly more. Do you want a say in how much debt is taken on on our your behalf ?
The submission page for Water done well is here: https://haveyoursay.npdc.govt.nz/local-water-done-well
Use this if you want more information - but send an e-mail or letter for your submission – don’t fill in the form on this page – as your opinions are unlikely to be counted if they differ to the questions on the form.
Tell you friends and family in Stratford and South Taranaki too.
- We Say No to a Taranaki Water CCO
- We Say Yes to a Consumer Trust – the Consumers want to vote for Trustees for Local Water Done Well.
In New Plymouth Send an e-mail to:
In Stratford send an e-mail to:
In South Taranaki send an e-mail to:
Or drop off a letter at the front desk at any of these 3 Council Offices.
You must put this title on the document:
Submission for Local Water Done Well
Your name must be on the Submission.
Things you might cover in a submission:
- Why aren’t all 5 options being explained for Local Water Done Well submissions.
- I want the Taranaki Councils to explain all 5 options for Local Water Done Well so I can consider which of the 5 possible options I prefer.
- I want to vote for Trustees to protect my needs with the management of future water infrastructure with Local Water Done Well.
- I do not want a Council Controlled Organisation (CCO) as a structure to manage future water infrastructure with Local Water Done Well.
- I do not want to submit on only the 3 options being offered for Local Water Done Well. I want an explanation of the Consumer Trust water company options, as I prefer an option where I vote for trustees to represent my needs.
- I do not want to combine the water infrastructure with the other Taranaki Regions. Our region doesn’t have much debt and I don’t want to take on the debt of 2 other regions with Local Water Done Well.
- And whatever else you agree, or disagree with.
We still have a couple of questions which are not being mentioned – which is why it is so important for you to send a submission:
- Who will run this CCO – the only option being considered – will it be jobs for the boys and someone who wants a bigger income in a CCO than they get now as a council employee ? We can think of a few who may fit that profile.
- If this was to go ahead how will a new CEO role be advertised ? Will it be openly advertised to make sure all experienced candidates are interviewed ? Or will the role be filled by someone already in the Council club ? We’ve heard whispers it’s a very big income for this CCO role.
- Are these 3 mayors discussing co-govenance of water but not telling the ratepayers and renters anything about that ? NPDC were discussing a co-governance model last year.
Tell all your friends and family in New Plymouth, Stratford and South Taranaki:
- We Say No to a Taranaki Water CCO
- We Say Yes to a Consumer Trust – the Consumers want to vote for Trustees for Local Water Done Well.
Democracy only works if the people actually say what they want, or don’t want. You have to send a reply to the Council for your opinion to be counted. Please don’t swear or they will throw out your feedback.
People are saying nothing so our central governments and local councils are deciding on the basis of a few hundred people agreeing with them.
Thousands of Taranaki Water Consumers need to tell our Councils what they really want with how their future water supply is managed and maintained.
- We Say Yes to a Consumer Trust – the Consumers want to vote for Trustees for Local Water Done Well.
Posted: Tue 29 Apr 2025