2009: The economic agenda
Welcome back! 2009 is shaping up to be a crucial year for local government as we tackle a number of pressing issues, both on a national scale and in our own Communities.
In December, we set the platform for strong engagement with the new Government. We're confident these early and collaborative meetings have forged a relationship where the two arms of government will work together to navigate the economic and governance challenges of the next year and beyond. I am confident that the new Government sees local government as part of the solution ahead. As the peak body for local government and the national voice of local government, we act in your collective interest to put solutions on the table and then to make them work.
We expect to see a lot of action coming from the Beehive in February, with a genuine focus on tangible solutions. The Government knows now is the time to set a forward-thinking agenda based on stimulatory activities like infrastructure investment that will directly impact on New Zealand's ability to recover from this recession with as little damage as possible. The Minister of Finance has said that the Government has set aside $1.45 billion for capital expenditure this year. We are already, and will continue to be, actively involved in discussion about how this money might best be invested for maximum benefit.
Several announcements are expected next month with the first being the Prime Minister's economic speech on 4 February. This will set out measures for small and medium-sized businesses and will outline how these enterprises can limit the number of job losses as we enter quarter two and three of this year.
These announcements will be followed by a jobs summit in Auckland on 27 February. I've been invited to be part of this summit, along with Local Government New Zealand's Vice President and our sector chairs. The Prime Minister has promised that this will be a "do-fest" intended to produce some real solutions and we will use this opportunity to represent our members' views.
As you well know, nobody is truly immune to the effects of an economic crisis. Councils have certainly been under intense scrutiny as the public looks to local government to cut costs, and ultimately reduce rates or keep them to the rate of inflation.
You have my confidence that our member councils are doing an exemplary job responding to these challenges. Councils are currently inviting submissions from the public on their Long Term Council Community Plans for 2009-2019. This is a complex and rigorous process which helps councils hear from communities what their key activities should be for the ten year life of the plan. Councils engage in a balancing act between maintaining levels of community services and the need to consider what ratepayers can afford.
The next two months will lay down the platform for how the Government, local government, large corporates, small businesses, farmers and households tackle these challenging times. There are opportunities and it's these that local government will focus on in upcoming meetings with central Government. If you have any feedback on the issues discussed in this column or indeed any issue, please email info@lgnz.co.nz.
