McAnulty KieranHon KIERAN McANULTY (Labour): Thank you very much Mr Speaker. It says a lot about this Government that they are rushing this bill through the House. The Minister who read the statement wasn't even prepared for it didn't even have the time to change the language. Right throughout that it was written for Simeon Brown. Where is Simeon Brown? It is a pattern from this Minister and it is I think quite appropriate that this bill—he is not able to read it. Because if this bill is the solution to the water issues this country is facing—this proves what we've been saying throughout that this Government is throwing local councils and ratepayers out in the cold anything that is proposed in this bill can already happen. It is just simply able to happen quicker.Ratepayers are facing astronomical rate rises across the country. If you talk to mayors they will tell you that for some of them up to 50 percent of those rate rises are down to the decisions of this Government. The decision to repeal water reform—advice received by the previous Government and the current Minister indicate would have saved ratepayers from unaffordable rate bills. That is exactly what they are going to face. Nothing in this bill will save councils from the reality that they are going to have to put rates up. You can tell that they know that that is the case when a Minister feels the need to try and pre-empt arguments in a first reading speech; you know that they don't actually believe that this is going to do the trick.Hon Matt Doocey: You can't say that.Hon KIERAN McANULTY: They don't. Deep down they know. They promised New Zealanders that they would help. They also promised councils that they would help pay for it. Matt Doocey was one of the prime leaders in that regard—stood in that seat right there and promised them just like the former spokesperson went around and told mayors that a future National Government would help councils pay for their water. They broke that promise. And now it doesn't matter how many councils join together under a council-controlled organisation; there's nothing in there that will save them from the reality. There are already council-controlled organisations in this country. Parliament sits in a city that has one and Wellington water is stuffed because they cannot do what National told them they can do. The only place that would benefit from this is the unique situation in Auckland. No other council is in that position. No other council would be able—doesn't matter how many they join with—to get the scale and the financial separation to be able to achieve the cost savings that are required. A $185 billion is what is required; the Government's advice says so. Councils cannot do it by themselves. The only way in which to do that is to achieve balance sheet separation and this bill does nothing to achieve that. So there will be small rural councils in particular that have been hanging out and waiting and actually quite reasonably taking Ministers at their word. Well they've been let down today. If this bill is supposed to save those councils then they have no future other than to put rates up at a level that many can't afford. I'm worried about those that live in rural areas and I'm worried about those on fixed incomes. Those people are already facing double-digit rate rises—in some cases beyond 20 percent and in some cases for the second and third year on the trot. It is inescapable unless the Government actually did something about it and they haven't. This is actually a shame because rates are one of the biggest issues facing this country at the moment. It is one of the largest drivers of inflation. The Government has a responsibility to help councils out but all they have done is pushed it back to them. If you listen to the language of the Minister and the Prime Minister they are setting up mayors and councils to take the blame. When asked about this in Whanganui the Prime Minister said all councils need to do is stop doing dumb things. When asked about it the Minister agreed with him. Everything they are doing is setting up councils to fail. I think it is a disgrace. They should do what they promised and actually help councils not this. This is not going to work.