This is edition 2025/216 of the Ten@10 newsletter.
Hi all,
This is the Ten@10, where I collate and summarise ten news items you generally won't see in the mainstream media.
Enjoy!
1. Government axes Regional Councils in historic overhaul
Ani O'Brien
- 🏛️ Major Overhaul Announced: The Government plans to abolish regional councils and replace them with Combined Territories Boards (CTBs) made up of mayors — the biggest local government shake-up since 1989.
- 💰 Waste and Duplication Tackled: Regional councils have long been seen as invisible, wasteful, and unaccountable; the reform aims to streamline and cut costs.
- 🧭 Simplification and Clarity: Ministers Simon Watts and Chris Bishop say the goal is fewer overlapping plans, less bureaucracy, and clearer accountability to voters.
- 👥 Democracy Concern: While the CTBs bring decisions closer to elected mayors, concerns remain that weighting votes to favour smaller districts could distort democratic fairness.
- 🏗️ Reorganisation Required: Each new CTB must produce a reorganisation plan within two years, potentially leading to council mergers or shared services to improve efficiency.
- 🌿 Tied to RMA Reforms: The changes align with wider resource-management reforms, redistributing environmental and planning powers previously held by regional councils.
- 🧹 Back to Basics: The Government is refocusing local government on “core services” — infrastructure, water, and regulation — removing vague “four well-beings” from the Act.
- 🚫 End of Mission Creep: Scrapping the “well-beings” curbs ideological spending and forces councils to deliver measurable outcomes ratepayers can see.
- ⚖️ Political Reactions Split: Labour’s Chris Hipkins hedges, warning against “fragmentation”; the Greens accuse the Government of weakening environmental and local democracy.
- 📰 Media Coverage Mixed: Some commentators, like Michael Laws, praise the change as overdue, while national outlets frame it as controversial and risky.
- 🗳️ Democratic Integrity Crucial: The success of the reforms depends on ensuring fair representation within CTBs and maintaining accountability to local communities.
- 🛠️ Philosophical Reset: The reforms mark a deliberate shift from social engineering to service delivery — a move many ratepayers are likely to welcome.
