Twyford Phil: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Twyford Phil: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:654;Page:2929] 
12.  
PHIL TWYFORD (Labour) 
 to the  
Minister of Local Government 
: Has he costed the Government’s super-city proposal outlined in  
Making Auckland Greater: The Government’s decisions on Auckland Governance 
; if not why not? 
Hon RODNEY HIDE (Minister of Local Government) 
: 
 Yes. 
Phil Twyford 
: Why will the Minister not follow his own advice that “it’s a good test for a planned spend-up to get the agreement of those who are paying for it.” and get the agreement of Aucklanders to pay for his super-city plans rather than just forcing these costs on them? 
Hon RODNEY HIDE 
: I struggle to get to the bottom of the member’s question. The Government is fully engaged with Auckland; that is why we had the previous Government’s royal commission. The Government has given its high-level response and through Parliament and the select committee process it will be engaged with Auckland. Aucklanders will be able to consider that cost. I think that the highest cost so far has been to that member with his questions. It has seen him drop from list place No. 26 to No. 42 in the Labour Party’s rankings and— 
Mr SPEAKER 
: That is not relevant to the answer. 
Phil Twyford 
: Can the Minister confirm that in 4 weeks he has spent $500000 on advertising and was this money spent to give the Government’s uncosted super-city plans “the sense of stature” that he told Cabinet the announcement needed? 
Hon RODNEY HIDE 
: The question of the advertising cost is correct. That was in response to people wanting to know what was going on with regard to the Government’s proposal. I hasten to add that that was done entirely within departmental baselines so it cost no extra money. The proposal from the previous Government for the royal commission cost $4 million. The previous Government did nothing for Auckland; this Government is acting. 
Phil Twyford 
: Given that the Government has spent $500000 on advertising its super-city plans in only 4 weeks how much has the Minister budgeted for the next 12 months to change the minds of the 71 percent of Aucklanders who believe the Government should pay for their reforms and of the 63 percent who believe there has been too little consultation? 
Hon RODNEY HIDE 
: The great news about this Government is that we do not believe in spending taxpayers’ money to change people’s minds unlike the previous Government. The previous Government developed that into an art form so much so that the Labour Party had to come up with $800000 to pay back taxpayers for money that was spent on trying to persuade taxpayers to vote for Labour. This Government is concerned about listening to the people of Auckland. That is why we are committed to the parliamentary process; that is why we are committed to the select committee process. I suggest to Mr Phil Twyford that he along with Mr Goff should listen to Aucklanders now and again. It is not a bad idea for a politician to do that. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: I ask Ministers when answering questions to please keep them a little briefer than that answer. It did go on for an excessive length of time. 
Phil Twyford 
: How does the Minister justify spending $500000 to increase his own stature when he is not prepared to pay one cent towards the $240 million transition cost which works out at $550 per ratepayer? 
Hon RODNEY HIDE 
: Easily. 
Hon John Carter 
: What reports if any has the Minister seen on the cost of not reforming Auckland governance? 
Hon RODNEY HIDE 
: The royal commission set up by the previous Government because it could not make up its own mind about Auckland in 9 years spent $4 million and had this to say: “It is important to recognise”— 
Hon David Cunliffe 
: And you ignored them! The little man is easily distracted. Carry on Rodney. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: If the member is quite finished. 
Hon RODNEY HIDE 
: —“that there are wider costs associated with not taking action. Failure to take action will result in citizens and businesses continuing to incur high transaction costs in dealing with councils in important decisions either not being made or made too late and in central government being unable to develop an effective partnership with Auckland local government.” 
Phil Twyford 
: I seek leave to table a document dated 4 May from the Government’s website detailing spending on advertising over 4 weeks to the tune of $533000. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: I just seek clarification: is the member seeking to table something from a website? 
Phil Twyford 
: Yes it is from the Government’s website. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: It is from the Government’s website. Is there any objection to that document being tabled? There is objection. 
Hon John Carter 
: Has the Minister of Local Government seen any reports of the previous Government being concerned about the cost of local government in Auckland? 
Hon RODNEY HIDE 
: Yes I have had a report. I was surprised by the fact that the previous Government was never concerned about the cost to ratepayers or Auckland of local councils. That cost went up from $1 billion when the Labour Government took office to $1.5 billion when it was booted out—an increase of 50 percent. I never saw one member of that Government have one ounce of concern for the people of Auckland or the ratepayers about the cost of that local government.