Waikato business forum to examine council amalgamation options

Saturday, 25 July 2026

Craigs Investment Partners general manager Kelvyn Eglinton predicts business owners will ask questions about how different options will affect them.

The Waikato Chamber of Commerce will host four local council chief executives on a discussion panel next Tuesday at The Atrium to examine council amalgamation options and their potential impact on businesses and ratepayers across the region.

The discussion will be moderated by Craigs Investment Partners general manager Kelvyn Eglinton. The free event is open to chamber members and the public.

Chamber chief executive Don Good said the panel was assembled in response to a 'lack of information' about the local government reorganisation process.

He said inviting council chief executives would provide insight into 'the functions of councils rather than the politics'.

'Our members need to avoid the parochial politics councils seem to engineer quite naturally and understand what's in their best interest as ratepayers,' Good said.

The council CEO’s will bring a blend of political and business knowledge, Chamber of Commerce chief executive Don Good says.

'Everyone can get very emotional about where they come from and want to retain the status quo, but it's quite clear status quo is not going to continue. The other part… how courageous are our political leaders when they've got themselves a very nice wicket and is it going to be what we as ratepayers and citizens of Waikato need?'

The chamber has previously advocated for a Waikato-wide unitary authority. Good said rising rates were a key reason for supporting that option and encouraged businesses to attend the event to better understand how alternative models could affect them.

Eglinton says a residential rates cap would put the squeeze on businesses in the Waikato

'All business owners not only have the premises they pay rates on but they also have their own house as well… they're looking for financial efficiencies and that's in the best interest of everyone in today's cost of living crisis.'

He said a single Waikato authority would also strengthen the region's influence with central government.

It’s no secret the dairy industry is the breadwinner in Waikato.

'If we have 11 councils it's very easy for government departments to divide and conquer and ignore your ask… it doesn't have leverage.'

Good rejected suggestions rural communities would lose influence under a unitary authority, saying the Waikato's urban and rural economies were closely connected.

'One thing I think people forget is the Waikato is extraordinarily interrelated and the success of farming is tied up with a lot of the businesses that live in Te Awamutu, Cambridge, Matamata, Morrinsville and Hamilton.'

'I mean, where would Gallagher be without a dairy industry and how difficult would break feeding be without Gallagher's fencing?'

Eglinton said he favoured greater sharing of council services over large-scale amalgamation, arguing it could improve efficiency without creating larger bureaucracies.

'There's always been an availability for councils to look at shared planning services, shared building inspection services… some councils do around the country so more of that would be good. It's more productive[and] it's easier,' he said.

He pointed to Auckland Council as an example of how amalgamation may improve efficiency but can also increase costs.

The event starts at 5pm next Tuesday at The Atrium and is free to attend.