Hi Friend,

Sorry to email you in the evening, but this couldn’t wait.

Tonight, on Newstalk ZB’s Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive, it became obvious Labour is walking back its earlier opposition to our campaign calling on the Government to Cap Rates Now.

What’s happened is this: Labour MP Damien O'Connor has written to the Minister of Local Government, Simon Watts, asking him to intervene and prevent Waitaki District Council from hiking rates by an eye-watering 17.0%.

This year, only Clutha is higher (hiking rates by 20.5%).

So tonight, Heather put to Labour Party Leader Chris Hipkins the obvious question: will Damien O'Connor be supporting the proposal to cap rates?

Despite having earlier said publicly that Labour would vote against any rates cap proposal, tonight Chris Hipkins hedged his bets! 

Hipkins said:

Ah, I don’t think we’ve actually formed a final view on [capping rates] as a Labour Party in terms of what we’re doing actually. I’m not sure we’ve seen the details of what they’re proposing in terms of rates caps.

Given Labour's clear ruling out of rates caps last year, this is a very significant shift from Chris Hipkins.

He repeated the line that Labour “hasn’t made a final call” when Heather followed up.

Hipkins even described capping rates as “good retail politics”.

Friend, after decades of council rates going up two to three times the level of inflation, it’s not just “good retail politics”, it’s bloody good policy! 

Capping rates would finally force councils to cut waste, focus on core services, and live within their means.

Getting Labour over the line to support rates capping would almost certainly see National bring forward the implementation.

Right now, National have promised to cap rates, but have pushed out the implementation. Councils are running amok, hiking rates now to get ahead of a cap - as NZ First and ACT continue to sit on the fence.

Labour are usually in lockstep with LGNZ (the sock-puppet lobby group for council bosses) and have often played defence for even the most profligate councils. The fact Labour is now feeling the heat over runaway council rates speaks volumes.

2 minutes of your time please, Friend 🙏

Chris Hipkins is leaving the door open to a U-turn. It’s clear Labour are weighing up whether to support our campaign to Cap Rates Now.

So Friend, we need your voice to tell Chris Hipkins to go for it and get on board.

Click here to send Chris an email asking Labour to stand with ratepayers and Cap Rates Now. <[link removed]>

With your support, we can get Parliament to Cap Rates Now.

Friend, 12 months ago, when we launched our ‘Cap Rates Now’ campaign at National Fieldays, the establishment mocked us for being “unrealistic” and even “simplistic”.

Then – in front of our enormous “Cap Rates Now” truck in Christchurch – we got the National Party on board. Simon Watts announced National would adopt our policy to cap council rates to inflation.

And now it seems we are on the cusp of getting Labour on board too.

So let’s make it happen, Friend. <[link removed]>

Thank you for your support.

Jordan @ Taxpayers' Union.

Sent from my iPhone



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