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Dear John, It’s been a busy week hearing submissions on Three Waters throughout the country. The quality of submissions has been extremely high, and I’m concerned that many who asked to haven’t been allowed to speak to the Select Committee. The voices from councils, community groups and citizens from the deep south to the far north are clear; these reforms are unworkable. The Government should listen to the people, and I hope Labour is paying attention to what people have had to say. I’ll keep fighting so your voice can be heard on Three Waters.
SUBMITTERS OPPOSITION TO THREE WATERS IS RESOUNDING
The Select Committee received over 88,000 submissions from throughout the country, including 16,000 collected by National. This week, Committee members travelled the country to hear from some of those who submitted. We fought hard to get the Committee to travel because of the overwhelming number of submitters and the communities these reforms will affect. It just wouldn’t be right to sit in Wellington, denying people the right to have their voices heard. While Labour has used their majority on the Committee to prevent scrutiny at every step, we’ve been able to hear from councils, iwi, concerned citizens and industry experts. Most days, you could count on one hand the number of people who submitted in support of these reforms. The points raised against have been strong, such as the lack of community ownership and accountability, the convoluted and ineffective governance structure, and the unwillingness of the Government to listen to the people they represent at any step of this process. The Labour members of the Committee have had a huge wake-up call. People in our communities are the ones that know these problems best, and their insight has been invaluable. Labour’s four-entities model will hurt those local voices and take communities out of decision-making. I think that’s completely backwards. Here are just a few quotes from this week: “There has been, for us, an obvious lack of consultation” … “We have had no communication whatsoever” Roimata Minhinnick, Lead Negotiator for Ngati Te Ata. “There is nothing in the Bill that would give any rights of shareholding to our community, the Government has been deceptive in its messaging” Mayor Tania Gibson, Grey District Council. “Who’s going to answer the queries on a Sunday afternoon when the water goes out in the community? Who is going to be there to understand the pace of which they need to be connected? Who is going to be there to stand up and advocate for them? Local Government is being side-lined in the reform, but we will be the ones they look to” Mayor Alex Walker, Central Hawkes Bay District Council. “The value of the shares will be put in at zero” Mayor Neil Holdom, New Plymouth District Council (on the value of the government’s proposed share structure). “All this uncertainty is just leading good staff to bleed from councils like our own and go out to the private sector or government organisations. That’s not good for anyone” Mayor Dan Gordon, Waimakariri District Council. MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARDOf the over 16,000 who submitted on Three Waters through National, over 1400 asked to deliver a submission in person. It’s appalling that many didn’t get that right. Once again, this shows that Labour doesn’t care – they don’t want to keep it local and they don’t want to hear from locals. We want to show them just how wrong they are. Will you join us in our online protest? Send me a photo of you and the message you want to send Labour on a sign or piece of paper, and I will use it as part of our campaign to stop Three Waters.
Three Waters will be one of the most significant reforms in a generation, and the consequences for these broken reforms couldn’t be higher. National and I are committed to opposing these reforms and providing better solutions to existing problems without this government’s centralisation and control agenda. I appreciate your support, and I’m confident that we can make a real difference together. Please sign our petition to stop Three Waters, if you haven’t already. Regards, https://www.facebook.com/simonwattsmp |
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