August 16, 2022
Wellbeing response too much for council budget
Auckland Council’s Māori portfolio lead says a new plan for city events and activities will require input from the central government and close monitoring by Māori if it is to work.
Councillor Angela Dalton says the Parks, Arts, Community and Events Committee’s implementation plan for thriving communities highlights the need to understand the differing roles of central and local government.
Councils usually determine where people may live – although the government’s intensification plans can override that – and what their surroundings look like, such as parks and playgrounds.
“How we actually do that is the effect council can have because as soon as we go into trying to be part of all the Social service wellbeing responses, we just don’t have the budget, the money’s just not there, and that’s where we get ourselves into trouble,” Ms Dalton says.
There was strong scrutiny of the plan from Independent Māori Statutory Board members who said the measures by which Māori would measure success were different from the mainstream.