Prime Minister Christopher Luxon makes a tourism funding boost announcement at Auckland Airport. Photo: Marika Khabazi
The Prime Minister says Auckland is suffering a "hangover" from the previous government after the release of a report finding it is at risk of losing its status as a "global city".
But Labour says Auckland's problems did not appear overnight and the government has had over a year in power to fix it.
The State of the City report compared Auckland to a number of cities including Vancouver, Dublin and Brisbane and found the city was more dependent on cars and had less dense housing than its peers.
Speaking to media, Christopher Luxon said while the city's prospects were looking up, it still had a hangover from a government that "didn't care" about it.
"That's the hangover of a Labour government that didn't care about Auckland, focused on Wellington [and] shut the joint down for two years," Luxon said.
"What you've seen subsequently with our government is that we've got Watercare restructured into a different way and got investments in core infrastructure happening there."
Luxon said there were lots of positive things for Auckland going forward and the mayor and council were "onto it".
"They're doing common sense stuff to make sure they actually get Auckland growing and being a dynamic city that it is," he said.
Labour fires back
But Labour leader Chris Hipkins said economic conditions had only got worse under Luxon's government and it was time for the Prime Minister to take responsibility.
"Ultimately, the economic conditions have been getting worse, not better, under his government, despite them saying confidently for the last year and a half that we're turning the corner and things are getting better, and then things continue to get worse for New Zealanders" Hipkins said.
Labour leader Chris Hipkins. Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii
Auckland's problems had not emerged overnight and would take many decades to repair, he said.
"They haven't emerged in the last five years. They haven't emerged the last 10 years. They've been a long time in the making.
"I think the solution right now is to focus on issues around housing, around jobs, around health and around the cost of living, because those are things that are really biting across the country, but particularly in Auckland," he said.
The Minister for Auckland, Simeon Brown, said more housing and better transport options were critically important.
"Recently, we announced unlocking a lot of land around train stations where we want to see more housing growth near those train stations, where people can have those transport options that come along with that." Brown said.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/565183/housing-makes-a-lot-of-sense-close-to-new-auckland-train-stations-chris-bishop
"We've invested significantly in the City Rail Link. We now need to unlock that capacity around those train stations so we can provide more housing choices for Auckland with those transport choices alongside it."
Brown said the government were working closely with council on an integrated transport plan.
'Fair assessment' - Auckland Mayor
Mayor Wayne Brown said the state of the city report for Auckland was a fair assessment.
"I think it's a really good report which is factual and unemotive, it points out the good and the bad.
"I spoke about the good things that are happening and where the progress is and where there's more needs to be made, and it does have an impact because last year when I came and read it in that little diagram about where we were going very well," he said.
Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown at the launch of the State of the City report. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi
Local government Minister Simon Watts said he gave Auckland a 'B' rating as a result of the report.
Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown said he agreed.
"We are doing quite well, but we can definitely do better. We have a plan to do better and we're talking to the right people to do better and I think that's quite good as well," Brown said.
The report said investment in high growth industries and innovation could provide a solution to Auckland's woes.
Auckland's mayor said he was taking steps to make sure innovation and start up companies could flourish.
"We were clearly going poorly in innovation. Now we've got an innovation council and we're going to make something happen.
"When we asked the people in that thing, they said that what it left missed most of all was leadership and coordination and I thought, well, I can do that. I'll step in and provide some leadership, government aren't going to."
In a speech during the report's release on Tuesday morning, he told attendees, including local government Minister Simon Watts that "if you fix Auckland, you fix New Zealand."
The City and Regions Deals (CDR) partnership between central government and local councils is seen an economic boost that could help Auckland address it's issues.
Mayor Brown said he was under no time pressure to find an agreement with central government, but believed it would be beneficial.
"I think a city deal, if it works out well, will be a good thing, but it wasn't my slogan.
"I think what I want is just that we have a good relationship with the government, we were treated as semi-equal partners. I think that's going to happen and I think the city deal is part of that.
"We might well be the first ones, I don't know who the other ones are yet, it's all secret."
"I want a good relationship with the government rather than a nice city deal and I think we're getting there with that one," Brown said.
Bed tax 'not on our agenda'
The Prime Minister said a potential visitor bed tax was "not on our agenda" and his government would focus on working with council on the "common sense stuff".
Auckland mayor Wayne Brown called on the government to reconsider a visitor bed tax earlier this year, and consultation on the city council's annual plan included a proposal for a bed night visitor levy.
Luxon said a bed tax would not help New Zealanders with the cost of living.
"We do the common sense stuff, as you saw us do with Watercare. That freed up a balance sheet at the Council in the tune of $800 million dollars.
"It meant that Aucklanders didn't get a 20 percent plus rate rise. They got a 6 percent rate rise, or similar to that, because they're just doing the common sense, basic good stuff," Luxon said.
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