Antidote NZ

No political agenda here. Local councils like Nelson continue to increase non-essential staff to provide entertainment and other facilities that have nothing to do with sewerage or essential services. This is why my rates have grown 165% in 12 years, while there is still a sub-standard footpath outside my home.

Cull says you have to pay the money if you want talented people. I havent seen many talented people lately, but I have seen many Council screw ups. And I have seen rates grow to a figure higher than any mortgage I have ever had to pay.

Why do they say, the right-leaning Taxpayers Union? They dont say the left-leaning teachers association etc. Im getting pretty sick of articles trying to lead me into forming an opinion.

and they still struggle to make a competent decision. honestly, its a greedy joke.

Many of these local government employees could not gain employment in the private sector, they are petty bureaucrats and policy wonks. I find it scandalous that these men and women earn so much, yet teachers, nurses, police, social workers and probation staff have to fight for minimal salary increases year after year.

Remember the days of Robin Hood? Well I do I was there & now Im here! LGNZ better watch this space because its getting smaller, Oh so tight! The NZ public are about to revolt against the exorbitant costs of owning their freehold property which councils treat as cash cows. My prediction for what its worth is a major catastrophe for local councils throughout NZ because they will not show any initiative in changing this flawed system of rating and screwing people, particularly retired freehold people into the ground. Do the numbers - the Banks pay diddly squat, the councils rape & pillage & central Govt rapes & pillages through resident withholding taxes, petrol taxes, GST on Rates for Gods sake this is the biggest rort!

Ch Ch ratepayers, please take note of the CCs position on the Graph. Top position

Well said. Too many councillors waste rate payers money on their own ego projects, and dont get me started on the rort that is sister city trips.

Not sure I follow Mr Culls logic. Seems to me the more we fork out in rates and taxes the more dunderheads get employed. Well done TU...time people work up to this rort.

The burden on ratepayers is will to continue to increase into the future. Core council infrastructure has not been properly serviced or renewed so pet council projects could be built. The future cost of replacing water, sewage, roading etc will be huge. Councils have lost their way at the expence of their ratepayers.

Cull said the Taxpayers Unions league table figures gave no indication of the value for money ratepayers were getting.I dont need to read a league table to know that ratepayers up and down the country are getting VERY poor value for money. Enough with these pet projects and endless peripheral expenditure. Focus on the basics, no matter how boring they may be to legacy-driven elected officials.

In Christchurch we not only have the highest council staff costs per ratepayer, we also have the most expensive building consents in the country. Time for a shakeup.

This could explain why they rip us off so badly for resource / building consents, how else can they drum up the money to pay themselves so well ?

Councils not wasteful? Does David Cull live in a fantasy land? Look at the huge rate increases all around the country this year. If councils are not wasteful I suggest that the Dunedin council purchase the christmas lights purchased by Invercargill Council managers a couple of years ago that could not be used. And that was following a junket to China to purchase them.........

I was recently on a first aid course that was half full of council staff, all of them part of the events planning team. It was quite a large team, talking to one, they admitted most of their ideas just get tossed to the scrap heap. It would seem half of them could leave without any noticeable difference in our events. This seems typical of wider council staff in general, never mind the ratepayers mentality.

The bigger rippoff is Wellington Council charging for weekend parking. Justin Lester needs sacked.

I believe that all salaries paid by taxpayers and ratepayers (which after all is also a tax), should be transparent. The person paying the bill has a right to know what its spent on. If you want your salary to be private, dont take a taxpayer-funded job.

Has any official or councilor from local government ever been held accountable? Has any highly-paid employee of local government ever been held accountable for negligence? In Nelson we have had occasions when they should have been, but there is no accountability in local government. Good on the Taxpayers Union for trying to make these people accountable.

Cull is trying to defend the undefendable - financial mis-management by councils, they just cant keep to core business and a budget. They are generous with other peoples money to play with socialist pet projects and every rates increase is way above inflation making them unaffordable.

Its disingenuous of cull to say that councils money comes solely from rates.Most councils have an independent retail or tourism organisation. (COO)Ratepayer assets have been transferred to these entities to prevent public scrutiny.The income from these assets is then used to build legacy projects and loss making facilities.This is criminal in my opinion.