February 17, 2023
Brown plan would slice Maori programmes
A south Auckland councillor is warning Maori will lose services if Mayor Wayne Brown’s proposed annual plan is passed.
The plan will be released for public submissions on February 28.
Angela Dalton says councillors have been debating how the cost cutting story is being framed, as well as criticising specific elements.
“I don’t support all of the annual plan. I certainly do not support the $20 million cut in our operational cost that is going to have a direct impact on Maori, removing a lot of programmes we have in place that are supporting Maori in different ways,” she says.
Ms Dalton says programmes on the chopping block include support for marae to fill in funding applications, funding for community gardens which provide both kai and companionship, and the Southern and Western Initiatives which promote innovative approaches and economic transformation in the city’s poorer areas including social procurement, encouraging the growth of Māori and Pasifika entrepreneurship and upskilling workers.