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04 April 2005
Lower rates petition successful
Howick Councillor Jami-Lee Ross is
welcoming the move by the Manukau City Council which will see it
adopt the lowest local body rates increase of 2.5 percent for the
2005/06 year. As the Council adopted its draft Annual Plan last
month, it voted to use $4.8million of an expected dividend from
the Auckland International Airport.
“This move by the Council will see
that more money will be left in the pockets of Manukau City
ratepayers and I’m pleased to see that happen” said Cr Ross.
“Ideally the best way to keep rates increases down is to reduce
wasteful expenditure, but unfortunately the majority of
Councillors are unwilling to do that. The next best option for the
benefit of ratepayers is to pass on the dividend received from our
city’s airport shareholding.”
Cr Ross last month launched The
Lower Rates Petition in protest to the previously proposed
increase of between 5 and 6 percent. During the month of March
over 2000 residents and ratepayers signed the petition and helped
Cr Ross to collect signatures in their community.
“The Lower Rates Petition was
launched to put pressure on the Council to do the right thing and
minimise the burden to ratepayers with any future rates increase.
After only 1 month of collecting signatures the petition has been
successful by forcing the Council to slice its proposed increase
by more than half.
“Before the 2004 Local Body Election
most candidates promised to keep rates increases no higher than
the rate of inflation. By flirting with increases greater than
inflation many Councillors were at risk of betraying the people
that voted for them in good faith. I had petition forms flooding
in everyday in protest to the Council’s prior actions and I’m now
happy that they have come to their senses.”
The 2.5 percent rates increase is
only a proposal in the Manukau City Council draft Annual Plan that
will soon be ready for public consultation. Cr Ross acknowledges
that nothing is set in stone until the final plan is adopted in
late July, but doesn’t believe the Council would be so foolish as
to recant on this new development.
“Now that the petition has proven
successful and ratepayers are in a better position for the next
rating year, myself and other volunteers won’t need to actively
collect signatures from now on. We have achieved our goal and
every person who has been involved in this process should be very
proud of their efforts.”
ENDS
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