It appears that the propaganda campaign from Rodney Hide to push his proposal of the super-city has cost $533,000 in PR costs in the last 4 weeks. Phil Twyford (Labour’s Auckland issues spokesperson) comment is that:-
It’s outrageous that the Government is prepared to spend an average of $133,000 a week on a publicity blitz, which has not even included the fundamental information Auckland ratepayers need to make an informed decision about the Super City that is how much will it cost?
Yeah – how much is this damn plan going to mean to my rates for the next 3 years while they sort it out?
Hyde‘s proposal is uncosted. The Royal Commission’s proposals were thrown out almost completely, with essentially the only common features with the Hyde’s plan being that there is a Auckland council (with a different composition), a lord mayor, and a unified rates(?) system. The vast majority of the plans are different. So all of the meticulous costings by the Royal Commission were thrown out as well. At present the Hyde is flying blind with no idea of the costs of his plan to the rate-payers.
So why in the hell is he spending my taxes to promote an un-costed proposal to me? Possibly because the cost is going to be crazy? Some of the figures floating about are for something like $550 each in the first year for the Royal Commission’s version. The restructuring costs alone look like they’re going to be a lot larger under Hyde’s useless plan.
Well my total rates bill including the ARC is about $1000 per year – does that mean I’m going to get a 50% increase?
There are 1.4 million people in Auckland, so Hyde has already spent close to five bucks of my money to tell me what his plan is, and I haven’t even got the damn pamphlet! Hyde (and Key) probably think that this is ‘consultation‘ – yeah right! Seems more like a finance company salesman telling me about a risk-free investment and hoping to get the commission before the company folds.
How much more will he boondoggle of my money to promote his wild scheme before I find out what kinds of costs that he is trying to sell me on?
update: Thanks for those telling me that Hyde should be spelt Hide – I think that you’re wrong. He has gone from a friendly gnome or the dancing of Grope the Stars to snakeoil salesman without drinking a potion.
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