Auckland Mayor Phil Goff attacks under-investment, unveils 'deliver it' budget

Thursday, 29 November 2018

Auckland Mayor Phil Goff, here at his Albert St office, has unveiled his latest annual budget.

Phil Goff has unveiled his 'deliver it' budget on the back of what the Auckland mayor is calling decades of under-investment in the region.

A key feature of Goff's 2019-2020 budget, which will be mulled by councillors behind closed doors before sign off in early December, is a record $1.2 billion transport spend.

The annual budget represents year two of the council's 10-year plan, which, confirmed in June this year, pumps $26.2b into the city over the next decade.

Goff, who wants to 'end homelessness in Auckland', has also pitched a $5 million funding boost for the City Mission's $90m HomeGround project of 80 social housing units and the roll out of council's living wage policy from September 2019.

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Meanwhile, the average rates rise for the next financial year is set at 2.5 per cent.

'What we are doing this year, as part of the 10-year plan, is increasing considerably the investment that our council is making in transport, in housing and … for the environment,' Goff said on Thursday.

'The problems that the city faces resulted from decades of under-investment in each of those areas.

'After the rapid house price increases from 2012 to 2017 to a big problem in affordability of housing and shortage of housing, we've ended up with highly congested roads and we ended up … doing too little to tackle the challenges of the environment.'

The annual budget includes a total capital spend of $2.5b, a large sum of which – $1.2b – will be spent on Auckland's transport network.

Goff's budget also aimed to progress a water quality improvement programme, with the council taking credit for the re-opening of four Manukau beaches which had been closed long term – Armour Bay, Taumanu East, Clarks Beach and Weymouth Beach.

Environment Committee chairwoman Penny Hulse said work beginning next year on the Central Interceptor project would have a 'huge impact' on reducing waste water overflows at streams and beaches.

Watercare plans to start building the Central Interceptor, which will include a $1b, 13km underground tunnel that will deliver up to two million cubic metres of sewage and stormwater to the Mangere treatment plant every year.

Goff called his aim to end homelessness 'ambitious', but 'necessarily so'.

'We need to get people off the streets and out of cars and into proper accommodation with supporting services to deal with problems like mental health and addiction which contribute to their homelessness.'