Christchurch Mayor Lianne Dalziel has been accused of pushing the Government’s narrative on the highly contentious three waters reforms.

The Government plans to establish four publicly-owned entities to take responsibility for drinking water, wastewater and stormwater from local councils. 

It will force reforms on local councils after it was first pitched as voluntary.

Lianne Dalziel sits on a Government working group made up of local government and iwi representatives to ‘recommend strengthened governance and accountability arrangements for the Three Waters Reform Programme.’

In an opinion piece in the Christchurch Star, Lianne Dalziel said she was “frustrated by the debate on Three Waters” which “focused on the ownership of physical infrastructure – the pipes, pump stations and treatment plants, instead of what needs to be done, if we are to restore Te Mana o Te Wai.”

Te Mana o te Wai imposes a hierarchy of obligations. According to a Government website “this hierarchy means prioritising the health and well-being of water first. The second priority is the health needs of people (such as drinking water) and the third is the ability of people and communities to provide for their social, economic and cultural well-being.”

The mayor pointed to the Waste Water Treatment plant at Bromley which “sits on land taken from Ngai Tuahuriri under the Public Works Act, in spite of that land having been specifically reserved for them to restore access to mahinga kai.”

Christchurch City Council Sam MacDonald who’s been an outspoken critic of three waters reforms said “from the Council’s point of view, we should absolutely start at the pipes and infrastructure, as that is what ratepayers have paid for and entrust us to manage.”

MacDonald said “no one disagrees that the inclusion of Iwi is a good thing and enhances outcomes, it also provides a balanced perspective.”

“But to simply say we have done wrong, therefore we start at this point is not correct. We are all New Zealanders” he said.

“Ratepayers will not accept the notion that “because we have done wrong, our local Control and democracy will be removed.”

“I’m extremely concerned now about the outcomes of the Government working group, if this is the public narrative being pushed out already” MacDonald said.