Ms Homan expresses concern at the lack of attendance at the recent meeting regarding possible amalgamation of the Wellington region councils. I imagine that the reason for lack of attendance at the meeting, is that the majority of people could not care less and a history of political ‘consultation’ suggests that a decision will be made regardless of the views of the local community. On the face of it there do appear to be some advantages to amalgamation:

1. Reduction in numbers of mayors, CEOs, councillors, etc leading to lower costs
2. Improvement in some local services; we might even get a library that does not close its doors at 3pm without notice

Disadvantages are:

1. Loss of local democracy, not that I had noticed much except the jostling at the ‘trough’ every three years.
2. Ratepayers bear the cost of grandiose projects in Wellington
3. Ms Homan regards Tiaki Wai as a disadvantage, but since this appears to be a replacement for Wellington Water, I am not sure why. It could not be worse surely?

The reality is that there will be a bloated bureaucracy and rates will continue to skyrocket. On a personal level I would just like my rate’s bill to come down, but I won’t be holding my breath. I am open to being convinced either way but so far have not found any of the arguments compelling. Ben Thomas

A “thank you” to Ben Thomas for sending this letter to The Upper Hutt Connection.

30/01/26