Selwyn District Mayor Lydia Gliddon has confirmed the council has cut its proposed rates increase to between 6 and 7%, down from the 13.3% previously signalled, after identifying $9.2 million in savings across the organisation.

Speaking with Chris Lynch, Gliddon said the revised figure remained a draft and further work was underway as the council continued refining its budget.

“The 6 to 7% is actually our first draft so we’re not actually finished there,” Gliddon said.

“What we’ve done is gone through our yearly budget and prioritised what are core functions of council and anything that is not a core function is effectively being parked or cut.”

Gliddon said every department had been reviewed as part of the savings process, with discretionary spending removed as the council shifted toward what she described as a back to basics approach.

“We’ve gone through every department that we have within the organisation and actually just prioritised and cut lots of budgets,” Gliddon said. “Some of the things are discretionary budgets and actually we don’t necessarily need them so scrap them put them in the bin.”

“My vision is that with the long term plan next year we actually start from zero budgets and build what do we need to keep,” Gliddon said.

The mayor also addressed concerns the lower rates increase could be offset by higher user pays charges, saying the approach involved a mix of both but aimed to reduce cross subsidisation from general rates.

“Some of our fees and charges are actually subsidised by general rates and actually it should really be a user pays,” Gliddon said. “I don’t think the general ratepayer should be offsetting fees and charges that other people use.”

She pointed to dog registration as an example, saying a modest increase could reduce reliance on general rates funding.

“Our dog department is offset by general rates and by making an increase of $6 per dog we can actually start to remove the general rate offset,” Gliddon said.

Inflation remained the largest driver of costs, particularly for construction materials and infrastructure work, which the mayor said did not track with general consumer inflation figures.

“Inflation is the real key thing that we talk about here,” Gliddon said. “The true cost of inflation for organisations purchasing materials to build construction is not what general inflation is and we still have to deliver on roading which is a core function.”

Gliddon said the draft budget would be shaped by community feedback, with a planned six week consultation period and the introduction of ward forums to encourage direct engagement with residents.

“Ultimately this is the community’s budget and we’re really keen to hear from people through consultation,” Gliddon said. “I want to go out to our communities with our key staff and say these are the things happening in your community what do you think about it.”

The mayor also raised concerns about the timeframe attached to central government reforms, particularly the requirement to produce a regional spatial plan within two years without additional funding.

“Time is not our friend in this,” Gliddon said. “It took us nine years to redo our district plan and $9 million and we are tasked with delivering a regional spatial plan within two years with no funding.”

Despite the challenges, Gliddon said closer collaboration with neighbouring councils could be a positive outcome of the reforms.

“Our benefit is our relationship with our neighbours,” Gliddon said. “We’re already in a really great space in Canterbury but we’re going to have to take that a step further and look at shared services.”

Looking ahead, Gliddon said her immediate focus remained finalising the council’s budget and providing clarity around Selwyn Water numbers, which would influence both the annual plan and household costs.

“The rest of this month is around our budgets and cleaning that up so we can approve a consultation document for our annual plan,” Gliddon said. “We also need Selwyn Water numbers out to our community because the annual plan and charges for water still impact households.”