43580 (2025). Tangi Utikere to the Minister of Local Government

43580 (2025). Tangi Utikere to the Minister of Local Government: What criteria is the Department of Internal Affairs applying to determine whether each council’s Water Service Delivery Plan is financially sustainable?

Hon Simon Watts: I am advised that the Department of Internal Affairs (the Department) is applying technical and financial expertise to assess different aspects of a plan and to identify any issues that impact the Secretary for Local Government’s ability to accept a plan. The core of this process is an assessment of the financial sustainability of a plan against three tests: • Revenue sufficiency – is there sufficient revenue to cover the costs (including servicing debt) of water services delivery? • Investment sufficiency – is the projected level of investment sufficient to meet regulatory requirements and provide for growth? • Financing sufficiency – are funding and finance arrangements sufficient to meet investment requirements? The Department has provided information to councils about the assessment process, available on its website: https://www.dia.govt.nz/diawebsite.nsf/Files/Water-Services-Policy/$file/WSDP-review-and-acceptance-overview.pdf.