Local government reform needs to be Grounded in outcomes

The Partnership of New Zealand’s 16 Regional and Unitary Councils says the Government’s decision not to progress individual Head Start proposals provides an opportunity for local, regional and central government to work together on the future of regional service delivery.

The Government has advised councils it will not make decisions on individual Head Start proposals before the 2026 general election, after identifying unresolved issues including the transfer and delivery of regional functions. 

Te Uru Kahika Reform Sponsor and Canterbury Regional Council Chair Dr Deon Swiggs said pausing now gives Government an opportunity to consider the evidence. 

“Head Start has required a major effort across the country and has come at a significant cost in council time and resources, while we are already managing an extraordinary programme of change.

“That said, pressing ahead before the difficult questions around regional functions had been worked through would not have been the right thing for New Zealand.

“Regional council responsibilities include land, water and hazard management. This work is too important to our communities, environment and economy to get wrong,” said Chair Swiggs.

The regional sector was already advanced in thinking through the questions Government has identified.

“We are not coming to this with a blank sheet of paper. Regional and unitary councils have spent considerable time working through what good reform needs to look like, where our functions can best be delivered, and what capability needs to be protected.

“We have detailed evidence, practical experience, and analysis ready to support the next phase. What we need now is a genuine central-local government design process, working with the people who know and deliver these functions best.”

The Regional Government Partnership - Te Uru Kahika will bring the new independent report Grounded: Strengthening regional services at the right scale through local government reform, to the conversation. 

Grounded asserts that reform should start with the outcomes New Zealand needs and the scale at which functions work best, then design governance and structures around them. The analysis found most regional functions work best at regional or catchment scale and identified risks from fragmenting natural systems, weakening specialist capability or funding arrangements, and poorly sequencing structural and resource management reform.

“The Grounded report gives us a strong evidence base, and our councils have extensive practical knowledge to bring to the next stage. We are ready to work with MCERT and Ministers on it.”

Dr Swiggs said the transition was particularly important given councils are simultaneously implementing major resource management reform, which the Government has identified as a priority alongside future local government reorganisation. The new legislation that replaces the RMA passed its third reading on Tuesday and requires councils to think regionally through regional spatial planning.

“We need to protect the skilled people, knowledge, systems and relationships that will be essential to implementing the new planning system at the same time as decisions are being made about the future of regional government.

“We want to work constructively and quickly with Government from here. The priority should be certainty about the future of regional democracy and an orderly transition that protects essential services,” said Chair Swiggs.

ENDS

Media contact: Nicole Taber, Te Uru Kahika Communications Lead, 022 100 2422 

About Te Uru Kahika

Te Uru Kahika – Regional and Unitary Councils Aotearoa is the partnership of New Zealand's 16 regional and unitary councils. We work together to protect and enhance our environment, build resilient communities, and support a thriving economy.