Three Waters Reform

The Times Age asked for a statement about today’s Three Waters Reform announcement from Government. The following was provided, attributable to Mayor Gary Caffell:

“I am pleased to see Government beginning to listen to concerns raised by Councils about the Three Waters governance structure and local representation within the new water entities.

At face value, creating smaller entities should mean a stronger voice at the table for the people of the Masterton District, but I am interested to see how the relationship between the entity boards and the Regional Representative Groups will work – particularly around priority setting and its impact on decision making.

I am also interested to see the actual impact on ratepayers that the Minister has been discussing.

This amendment will mean more work for our water team here at council over the next three years and will extend the uncertainty for many in our water teams. I am sure there will be more questions to be answered as further details are worked through.

I look forward to receiving these details and can commit that our council will work hard to represent the interests of our community before the new entity stands up in 2026.”

In a follow-up question, the Times Age asked what impact today’s announcement will have on our involvement with Communities 4 Local Democracy. The following was provided, attributable to the Mayor:

“C4LD has been an effective voice for change in the Three Water Reform programme and we are keen to continue that conversation with them going forward.”