Ratepayers to pay more for United Council services?

Press, 24 February 1987, Page 2

Ratepayers to pay more for United Council services?

Canterbury ratepayers can expect to pay an average of $1.64 more per ratepayer or a 14 per cent increase, towards the United Council this year if the council approves a proposed budget of $1,778,500.

The United Council committees have put forward their budget requirements and the council will consider the proposed budget figure tomorrow. The proposed budget will be considered by member councils before the final levy is fixed on April 15. Of the proposed average increase per ratepayer of $1.64, 48c will go towards the council’s basic services and $1.16 is the urban transport levy that the council has to collect for the first time. Until this year funds for urban transport were collected as part of the Christchurch Transport Board rate within the board’s district only. The United Council proposes a levy of $5.20 a head of population for the 12 inner councils and $4.04 for the six outer councils

to cover all aspects of its work.

This includes the urban transport levy, a contribution of $275,000 to the Canterbury Promotion Council and $25,000 towards the Mount Vernon project The chairman, Mrs Margaret Murray, said yesterday that the council’s committees had paid “rigorous attention” to containing any cost increases and ensuring the leanest possible operation for the council.

“Our levy is similar to that for the Canterbury Museum, less than that for the Christchurch Town Hall and only 3 per cent of the rates collected by the constituent councils for other local authorities,” . she said. “Criticism of the United Council’s budget seems to be an annual routine but its work is essential to the constituent councils, the region and in keeping Canterbury’s high profile with the Government”

Mrs Murray was critical of the Government’s reduction in grants and the increased charges to the

United Council amounting to $50,000 which she said would have to come from ratepayers. The reduced Government spending made a mockery of Government regional development policy.

.“The Government talks a* lot about regional development but has backed off from the regions. It behoves the local authorities to make sure that the budget is not cut back further than it has been to date."

The chief executive, Mr Malcolm Douglass, said that slow or no-growth regions of New Zealand were increasingly subsidising growth regions like Auckland in many ways. Under this year’s budget the council did not expect to increase any of its functions but would complete essential research and planning.

The council’s own activities are expected to cost about $1,111,000 which represents about 1.1 per cent of the $lOO million total local authority rates struck annually in Canterbury.