Amalgamation decision now five weeks away

December 21st, 2011

The decision by the Local Government Commission (LGC) whether or not to proceed to a vote on the amalgamation of Tasman and Nelson councils will be made on January 31st.

It is widely expected, given the range of opinions and research on the petition over the past year, that LGC will present a modified draft scheme to the voters of Nelson and Tasman, and the proposal will then be taken to a vote.

In a press statement released yesterday, Tasman Mayor Richard Kempthorne said he welcomed news. "If the decision [by LGC] is to proceed the matter will go to a vote around the end of April.

"Of course I would prefer that the matter not proceed for the reasons that have been well and truly canvassed, but at least we now know when the commission will respond to all the public submissions that have been made."

Mayor Kempthorne commented that the incredible way in which the two Council's have responded to the current civil defence emergency is testimony to the fact that there is already a high level of collaboration between the two Councils.

"We have shown we don't need a union of the two Councils to deal with things like natural disasters. Our response, along with the many shared services between the Councils, shows we already work together for the benefit of Tasman and Nelson communities, without having to forgo the effective representation of each of our own communities."

Comment by Joe Bell:
[Posted 30 December 2011]

Weather crisis, among many other reasons, clearly show why we need to have a cohesive region. The whole region is affected in a variety of ways by what happens in parts of it. (Eg, access to health services and communication; primary production; visitors to destinations; etc.)

It is logical that resources needed in both emergency response and recovery need to come from the region. A thoughtfully amalgamated region can provide regional and local responses and responsive, informed, regional and local representation.

We have a large Nelson/Tasman region and a small population with limited resources. It is up to us to ensure that all our resources are governed, managed and used in the most effective responsive way.

>> , to be added to the page. [If this link doesn't work, use this form instead]

[ Return ]
[ Other news articles ]

We wish to thank these local community-minded businesses who generously sponsor our site. They recognise the value of supporting this community asset, and in return Motueka Online is pleased to use and recommend their services whenever appropriate.

Ray White Motueka, Parkes Automotive, Motueka Floral Studio, Nelson Building Society, House of Travel