April 15, 2024
State of Auckland review highlights lack of plan
Labour’s spokesperson for Tamaki Makaurau, Shanan Halbert, says Minister for Auckland Simeon Brown isn’t focused on the real needs of the super city.
The latest quarterly update for the State of the City benchmarking process run by the Committee for Auckland in partnership with Deloitte and Tātaki Auckland Unlimited report released last week ranked Auckland is in the top third of cities worldwide for cost of living, and 80th of 100 when it comes to prosperity.
It said the city needs to improve opportunities for Māori, and also highlighted deficits in infrastructure and public transport which need reliable funding, long-term planning and coordination with government to fix.
Mr Halbert says the report confirms things are getting tougher for Aucklanders.
“When we saw the announcement this week from Auckland Council and Watercare that water rates will go up 25 percent, under the transport plan that additional costs are piling on Aucklanders and we have got no plan for the cost of living,” he says.
Mr Halbert says Simeon Brown hasn’t taken any papers to Cabinet and Auckland wasn’t a priority during the Government’s first 100 days, nor is it on this quarter’s to-do list.
“At the rate he’s going I wouldn’t be surprised if he drops the portfolio altogether.” he says.
The State of the City – Benchmarking Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland’s international performance 2023 is the first of its kind for a New Zealand city. It’s a comprehensive report initiated by Committee for Auckland in partnership with Deloitte and Tātaki Auckland Unlimited to be undertaken annually.
Prepared by UK-based urban intelligence firm The Business of Cities, The State of the City benchmarks Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland’s performance against peer cities around the world and looks at Auckland as a region – the area governed by Auckland Council. The New Zealand Government’s Auckland Policy Office and Koi Tū: The Centre for Informed Futures at Auckland University are insight partners in the State of the City report.