Hamilton's Council spent $249M in three years on consultants - on top of significant staff costs - raising concerns about sustainability, transparency, and internal capability. Should the focus shift to empowering staff, reducing external reliance, and planning long-term to ensure ratepayer money builds a resilient, well-supported city workforce and future?
How much respect do our councillors have for ratepayers? Some of them don't seem to take us seriously at all.
Council-Controlled Organisations (CCOs) are publicly owned but operate independently, often without direct democratic oversight. Watercare in Auckland is a key example - council-owned yet self-funded, costly, and largely unaccountable. Hamilton’s plan to adopt a similar model for water services raises serious concerns about costs, transparency, and loss of local control.
Hamilton councillors accepted free event tickets under a hospitality policy, often without clear public benefit or reporting. Some attendance records, especially for rugby at FMG Stadium, remain withheld, raising concerns over transparency, accountability, and ratepayer-funded perks.
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Browse media coverage and reports illustrating the issues impacting Hamilton residents.
