Venkat Raman
October 30, 2022
Twelve years after its formation, the Auckland Super City Legislation is likely to be reviewed by the new leadership team led by Mayor Wayne Brown and Deputy Mayor Desley Simpson.
Ms Simpson commented on this issue soon after being inducted as the Deputy Mayor of Auckland on Friday, October 28, 2022.
Royal Commission Recommendations
The Royal Commission on Auckland Governance, established by the then Prime Minister Helen Clark in 2007, had recommended the integration of seven City and District Councils, namely Auckland, Manukau, Waitakere, North Shore, Papakura, Rodney and Franklin.
The Franklin territory was abolished on October 31, 2010 and divided between the Auckland Council and the Auckland region to the North and the Waikato and Hauraki districts in the Waikato region in the South and the East.
The Royal Commission had said that the Super City Legislation should be reviewed after ten years. Ms Simpson believes that since 12 years have lapsed, a review is now overdue.
Over the past nine years, as the Councillor representing the Orakei Ward, she has worked well with other Councillors in addressing the issues facing Auckland.
She said that she is keen to work with Mayor Wayne Brown and ensure the success of all his initiatives, backed by 181,810 Auckland voters.
Clear mandate on initiatives
“Mayor Brown has a clear mandate for his major initiatives, and I sought and accepted his offer to be his Deputy to make them happen. In particular, I am looking forward to working with the Mayor and Councillors in opposing the Three Waters Reforms in its current form,” she said.
Ms Simpson said that she will work with Auckland Transport and help the giant organisation to deliver better services to Auckland.
“We want to establish once and for all an Agreed Collective Programme to the port land to ensure its highest and best use while remaining in public ownership. We also want to take a ‘Team Auckland Approach to decision-making that includes delegation and allocation of budgets and decision-making to the Governing Body, Committees and Local Boards,” she said.
on working with Auckland Transport to take further steps to ensure it is focussed on delivering the services Aucklanders expect and demand; on once-and-for-all establishing an agreed collective programme for the port land to ensure its highest and best use while remaining in public ownership and delivering a strong Team Auckland approach to decision-making that includes delegation and allocation of budgets and decision-making to both Governing Body committees and Local Boards.
Ms Simpson said that she would work with Mayor Brown to present the Auckland Council’s 2023-2024 budget ‘keeping the rates as low as possible since Aucklanders face the looming economic storm.’ She also promised to trim unnecessary expenditures during the remainder of the current financial year.
Earlier, Mr Brown said that Ms Simpson is highly regarded as a regional leader with a broad Auckland-wide perspective, while providing support from her own community of any Councillor on the Governing Body, with nearly 25,000 personal votes.
