Kei nga ihoiho o nga maunga whakahi, kei nga wai whakatere taniwha, nau mai, tahuti mai ki Te Hui. Ko Mihingarangi tenei e mihi atu nei ki a koutou katoa. Welcome to The Hui ` Maori current affairs for all New Zealanders. E taro ake nei... A community at breaking point. I'm in debt every time I pay my rates. It's just depressing looking at it. They've endured two droughts and COVID-19. Now the Waitomo District Council is demanding a rates rise. We believe it's the right decision. So you think that... having an annual average rates about $4000 ` you think that that's fair? That's what it does cost. We have challenges... within our district. So why are the residents of Waitomo paying some of the highest rates in New Zealand? I can have the same lifestyle 15 minutes away in another district council with half the rates cost. And new calls for Oranga Tamariki CEO Grainne Moss to resign along with her minister, Tracey Martin. We speak to Maori party co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. Captions were made with the support of NZ On Air. www.able.co.nz Copyright Able 2020 Karahuihui mai. With a downturn in tourism due to COVID-19 and farmers battling drought conditions, whanau living in the Waitomo region are doing it tough. And it's about to get even tougher. That's because their council wants to increase their annual rates bill. Now residents in the central North Island community are urging the Waitomo District Council to reconsider the rates hike and put the welfare of its people first. Anei te purongo a Ruwani Perera. (SUBDUED MUSIC) RUWANI PERERA: Waitomo District Council is $40 million in the red, its debt the highest of any rural council in Aotearoa. Is that incompetence? I do think it's incompetent, because you're elected for the benefit of us. You haven't done what you were put there to do. Te Kuiti ratepayers say they're already being fleeced, paying some of the most exorbitant rates in the country. And in August, Waitomo will put up their rates even further, despite the coronavirus wiping out jobs in the region. We believe it's the right decision. So you think that... having an annual average rates about $4000 ` you think that that's fair? That's what it does cost. We have challenges... within our district. But if there's no jobs, and the rates are still this high, it's tough for people. So tough, food banks now dot the main drag of Te Kuiti ` a sign of the times for this once thriving township. When you've got a runaway train, at some point, you've got to ask yourself, 'Why is it a runaway train?' and you have to put the brakes on. I'm in debt every time I pay my rates. It's just depressing looking at it. It really is. (RELAXED GUITAR MUSIC) This once neglected and overgrown section may not look like much, but to Michelle Wi, it's everything. Has this garden helped you in your healing? Yes, it has. I'll be honest. I was feeling depressed. I was feeling down. Michelle lost her cleaning job at Waitomo Caves in late May, a result of COVID-19. I loved being a cleaner. It's probably not the flashest job in the world, but it's something that I enjoy. And then the pandemic hit. And our world has changed. Michelle is now focusing her time and energy on creating a community garden. So, there'll be chickens in here. We'll put a herbal layer around the fruit trees. The fruits of her labour supplying kai to whanau doing it tough in Te Kuiti. Hey, we've got food banks. They need food. We can't rely on the government forever. Hey, let's do something, because, mental health-wise, it's something really good when you can make your own food. Three food banks have become a lifeline for the Waitomo District's 9000-strong population, around 44% of whom are Maori. And it's not just whanau feeling the financial strain. The Waitomo District Council is the fifth most indebted council in the country, behind Christchurch, Auckland, Dunedin and Queenstown. We've been in this debt for 20 years. But all we've done ever since is borrow, borrow, borrow. And the amount of money that we've had we could have paid a hell of a lot more back on our debt. Currently at $40 million, Michelle says ratepayers have been bearing the burden of that debt. The rates for her whare have steadily increased by about $100 a year. When I first bought my home 30 years ago, my rates were $500. They're now $3515 a year. And there's no relief in sight. On May 26, the Waitomo Council voted to increase residential rates by 1.54%. All in favour, please say aye. COUNCILLORS: Aye. Against? I'll vote against. Mayor John Robertson was elected last year after campaigning on a policy to freeze rates but was outvoted by all six other councillors. Found out we were gonna be redundant on the day of the rates meeting. So that was just like icing on the cake... to know that your rates were gonna go up as well. It doesn't make any sense to me whatsoever. There were definitely ways for the budget to be reduced without having to increase rates to cover further expenditure. Katrina Winn moved to Te Kuiti from Auckland last year and wasn't aware that rates here are some of the most expensive in the country. The annual average council rates for Te Kuiti is $4000. The cost of rates here was a shock to us, and they're more than double what we were paying in Auckland. Katrina organised a petition on behalf of ratepayers which she presented to Waitomo District Council. We're in a pretty dire position here. There's no shame at all in councillors rethinking their position in the light of the impact on this community. But the six councillors pushed for the rate rise, adamant that they have to pay down debt, disputing just how many people in the community were affected by the coronavirus. Look, I don't think anybody can justify increasing their budgets in a post-COVID environment. Take a trip to Waitomo Village on the outskirts of Te Kuiti. Once a destination for overseas visitors, the tourist attractions now have limited opening hours for a much smaller domestic market. The businesses around here that are involved in tourism have either closed, or they've laid off staff, or they're planning to lay off staff. Now they've got a rates increase as well. I mean, talk about a kick in the guts. I just don't get that. It doesn't make any sense to me at all. So, the jobs were there. What scares me now... is they aren't. The jobs aren't there. I would never have thought you could do without a cleaner. One of our mills downtown went bust. 80 jobs gone. You've got drought happening in this area. Drought for the farmers, which is why I'm really feeling for the farmers. They are gonna get hammered in this rate rise. They carry us. They are the backbone here. They really are. Charles Taituha manages two sheep and beef farms on Maori freehold land for 1700 shareholders. Is it a real kick in the guts for this rural community here? Yep. You don't like to speak doom and gloom, but for a lot of farmers, it's long, long hours. It's hard work for little gain, but you do it because you love it. It is a lifestyle. People are prepared to take a little bit less for the lifestyle they want. While Te Kuiti residents' rates might be going up by about 2%, it's farmers who are contributing to the bulk of the tax take, with rural rates rising by almost 5%. It's probably our second-largest bill, apart from fertiliser. We just about pay more on rates than we do pay on wages sometimes. Charles says for the whanau he works for, paying even more could see them have to sell up. When you ask them, 'What do you get for your land block?' 'Oh, the farmer just pays the rates.' That's it. Like, that's` that's not where I want to see our community or our people, cos it's not about producing anything. It's just about getting by. There's just so many more things that we could be doing here. A short drive north of Te Kuiti, it's not just the picturesque scenery that's drawing people to the Otorohanga District. Ratepayers are under a different district council here, and their rates on land ` be it rural or residential ` are the envy of Waitomo residents. If I was a farmer, I would not buy in Te Kuiti. I can have the same lifestyle 15 minutes away in another district council with half the rates cost. When you look at similar councils, you sort of start questioning, 'Why does no one change this? Like, why are we still carrying on in this sort of trajectory?' Michelle had the same questions. At a time when she should be looking forward to planning her retirement, she's trying to figure out how she'll service her soaring rates bill. I'm mortgage-free, and I should be able to retire. (LAUGHS) That's usually your biggest debt. But I can't. I pay $70 a week for rates. That is ridiculous. The calls from the community for Waitomo District Council to hold off a rates rise during these uncertain financial times have been ignored. Nothing can justify a rate increase that's going to impact farmers and businesses to the degree that it is just for an extra $317,000 next year. Your people that you're supposedly looking after have had to cut costs, tighten the belt. But it doesn't seem to apply to Waitomo District Council. It's not fair. Lead by example. Every little bit counts in farming. A return on asset is about 1.6%. Now, most people wouldn't bother doing anything for that sort of money. But we choose to do that, because it's our whenua. It will always be our whenua. It'll never be sold. And so we're trying to use it as best as we possibly can for the benefit of our people. After the break, Waitomo District Council's deputy mayor explains why they're pushing ahead with a rise in rates, some of the most expensive in Aotearoa. So will you take another look? At? The rates freeze. No, we're comfortable with our decision, and we believe it's the right decision. Auraki mai ano. During the COVID-19 pandemic, leading economists here said the last thing New Zealanders needed right now were extra costs and advised against increasing council rates. But the Waitomo District Council is going ahead with a rate increase which will collect an extra $300,000 to help reduce the council's large debt. Here's part two of our report. RUWANI PERERA: Around half of Waitomo District's population live in Te Kuiti, in the central North Island. On the same day Michelle Wi learned she was losing her cleaning job, the council voted to increase the region's rates. Yes, our rates are ridiculous. But it's a lovely place to live. And I'll be honest ` I don't really wanna go anywhere else. But after 20 years, you're sorta hoping that the debt would come down, not be going up. Deputy Mayor of Waitomo District Council Guy Whitaker was one of the six councillors who voted in favour of a rates increase, which is expected to collect an extra $316,000 in revenue. 1.54% we believe is realistic, and at the same time, it's not going to create any problems further down. So, we're not going to need to reduce any services, and we're not expecting to get massive increases in rates going forward. So, what kind of reduced services would you have done if there was a rates freeze? Well, that's what we didn't really want to have to look at, so... Does that mean people wouldn't have their rubbish collected, or...? Well, there's` Yeah. There can be some small levels of service that get reduced, but we didn't really look at what levels of service would need to be reduced. The decision to raise rates went against the proposed freeze Waitomo's mayor promised when he was elected last year. But this is a council that's heavily in debt. Over the past 10 years, upgrades to their water supply infrastructure and roads have cost them a massive $40 million, and councillors are determined to pay down debt. Are you proud of the fact that you sit on a council that carries more debt per capita than anywhere else in the country? I'm proud of our infrastructure that we have in this council. Um, I'm proud of the way that we are reducing that debt, and we will continue to do so. And I am proud of... to have been able to be on the Waitomo District Council. So you think that having annual average rates for Te Kuiti residents about $4000 ` you think that that's fair? That's what it does cost. We have, um,... challenges within our district. We have probably the highest... kilometres of roading per capita. How much does central government contribute to that? They do do 73%, but it's still a huge cost. As well as soaring rates, residents here also pay some of the highest prices for power in the country, forking out for not one but two energy bills every month. Add to that the COVID-19 crisis, and life here has become almost impossible. You don't accept that COVID-19 changed things for people in your community? Oh, absolutely. It's... It's certainly affected a number of people. We've got Waitomo Caves in the district, and THL... laid off a number of people. I still think there's probably more to come. So have you taken that into account, though, when you pressed on with the rates increase? Absolutely, because, again, we did not believe that we were targeting those people most in need... by giving a blanket 0%... rate increase. We are well aware that there is probably more ramifications coming from COVID-19. Unemployment is gonna be a big issue. Ratepayers want council to show leadership and look at other ways of cutting costs, starting with their own salaries. Have you taken a pay cut? Have you made any staff cuts there? Have you done anything there to improve efficiencies within the council? Well, as far as the council goes, that's actually set by the Remuneration Authority, and... the council can't reduce... the leadership costs. Have you actually looked at salary cuts and reductions yourself as a council, like, to take some leadership on the issue? Unfortunately, you can't do that, because it's actually... You can't do... You can't do salary cuts` Well, firstly, it's not... it's not council, the governance... job. It's management. If... we... which is` would have to do that. And the management can't do that, because they have employment contracts. Agriculture is still the main driver of Waitomo's economy. Charles Taituha represents Maori landowners whose farms have had to weather two droughts in the region and now the fallout from COVID-19. Everything's tough. Everyone's finding it hard. We're all cutting back costs. Everyone is cutting back costs. The government's having to hand out cash. Now, right at that time, it should be a reset and reflect on what wasn't working. And it's rural ratepayers who will be the hardest hit. Farmers are gonna be... They're the backbone of this region. Would you agree with that? Yep. And they're gonna wear... about 4.7% increase, is it? Around about that figure. What are the services that they rely on council for, Guy? Roading, um,... and there's... Yeah. They are shouldering much of this financial burden. Would you accept that? Um, this year, they are paying the... the majority of the increase, yes. So do you expect next year, as well, another rates rise? Uh, well, we're` It's not gonna be fixed with this, is it? We're working through the long-term plan, and that will fall out from the long-term plan... from that, yeah. So I have no idea at this stage. For Michelle Wi, the bleak outlook is being met with determination. At 56 years of age, she's rolling up her sleeves to help put kai on the table for herself and others. Gives me something to get up for, and I know it's gonna benefit the community. So that's why I wanna hurry up, get it done. It's helpful. It's really helpful. Na Ruwani Perera tera purongo. After the break ` fresh calls for the CEO and minister of Oranga Tamariki to be replaced. We speak to the co-leader of the Maori Party Debbie Ngarewa-Packer about the latest furore. An investigation into Oranga Tamariki by Newsroom has sparked fresh calls for its CEO, Grainne Moss, to be replaced. The investigation featured a range of allegations by anonymous sources. Among those allegations ` qualified social workers are being replaced with unqualified youth or care workers; social workers feeling targeted if they complain; children being misrepresented in documents before the courts; and only paying lip service to te ao Maori. A group of leading Maori women including Dame Tariana Turia, Lady Tureiti Moxon and Dame Naida Glavish are now calling for the resignations of both Ms Moss and her minister, New Zealand First MP Tracey Martin. It's a call backed by the Maori Party, and I'm joined now by co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. Tena koe. Tena koe. Why are you calling for the resignations of both those women? Look, it's been a long time coming. Most importantly, there has been review after review and failure after failure. There was an interview recently on bFM which was outrageous, and it showed the minister's lack of action and lack of focus. She's more focused on preserving her CEO than she is focusing on the solutions, and it's time to now elevate it. What do you make of some of those allegations ` anonymous, they are ` in the Newsroom piece? You know, misinformation being... misrepresentation before the courts on behalf of vulnerable children, people feeling too afraid to speak out? Well, it's... Part of the problem, really, is the systemic racism and the denial of the culture that is coming out of Oranga Tamariki is the problem that is making it harder for our whanau, making it harder to connect our tamariki into safe homes. So this... this is why we need to shake it up, and we need the Prime Minister to intervene and, you know, to show that... We can't keep ignoring the reviews and the call for immediate action. There's a sense of urgency. And the staff are saying that, and we have got great staff in there that just need to have better leadership. Why do you think those reviews are being ignored? Because I think that the minister suffers from racism. I think that she's` It's election year. I think that it's become too hard. And, you know, it started off that 'I will respect what's being said'. A lot of talk but not a lot of walk. This isn't new for you, because under this CEO, um, when you weren't running for the Maori Party, as an iwi leader, you raised some serious issues. Tell us what those were. So, we were one of those that first saw our tamariki, our mokopuna being advertised in Trade Me and looking for caregivers ` and, you know, like you would advertise a product, talking about their heritage, their iwi, and we had never once been contacted by this agency. And so that` it sparked us up and sparked up a huge reaction to force, now, a relationship where we will have contact. But that's not something that everyone can do. That's not something that every hapu and whanau and community can do. That is the model. That is what needs to happen. Puao-te-ata-tu talked about it in 1988, that we must remove the systemic racism and connect our mokopuna, our tamariki with their safe whanau. What does it look like? Because the Maori Party wants to disestablish Oranga Tamariki. Tell us ` what would be the first steps? We've got 6000 babies, tamariki in there. That's right. So, the first step is to be able to make sure that we have strong representation of Maori within Oranga Tamariki. We have 20% Maori and... 70-odd-plus of our tamariki. The second thing ` the most important thing as well as ` is to ensure that our whanau are able to be reconnected with our mokopuna and become part of that solution, as we were in matua whangai, as we were traditionally. So it is about bringing back the traditions that worked for us that were displaced because of Crown activities. And, you know, there are some out there doing it in small pockets, but that has to be the saturation and the only way led by Maori. And that's what we're proposing. Dame Tariana Turia's always said it's time to give the duty of care of babies back to those iwi or hapu who are able to look after them. Is that a poss`? You know, can you see that in the near future, that could happen? And what's stopping it? Yeah, I absolutely do, Mihingarangi. I can see it happening. I actually hear the desire to make it happen and the connect to have our mokopuna. We had a situation with Waipareira where we had two tamariki that were being uplifted, and they were 500m away from an organisation that could've helped, but they weren't contacted. So the critical part for us is being able to... make sure that... And I think the problem is that the agency isn't able to connect in scale or with... Maori. So that's the first thing that needs to happen. All the blocks are actually at the leadership level. The blocks are that we have a CEO and a minister who think that because they have a friend who works on the front line, someone that they know, that that's enough. It's not. It has to be led by Maori. I do wanna challenge the allegation you have that the minister is racist, because she has been working with iwi at the coalface ` Ngati Kahungunu, one. But, I mean, I guess she would say she's doing everything that she can under that legislation. So, most` and the same for us in Taranaki ` most of that engagement has happened in reaction to situations. So, iwi led that situation. Thank goodness for Des Ratima. He led that situation with the uplifting of that mokopuna in Kahungunu. Then the minister came in; it wasn't her front-footing it. And that's the problem. We can't keep reacting to worst-case scenarios, cos they will continue to escalate. We want to front-foot it, and we want to front-foot it as whanau, hapu, iwi and communities ` community Maori. Just wanna talk about your water policy that you've announced this week. So, what is that? Is it about a water royalty? Is it 'Maori ` we all own water', or is it just a fairer allocation model? So, what it is is about rights, and it is about the continued assertion of rights and coming in behind the fact that hapu and iwi need to be negotiating and having these discussions, and we're imploring that the Crown continues that approach. And then what we're saying is that is led in a rights and interests way and that is led in an allocation manner. We've got government saying that no one owns the water, or the Crown owns water. Actually, the wai is us; we are the wai. And we need to continue to lead that forward in a progressive way so we can restore the mana of our wai. So, in the Waikato River scenario that we're seeing at the moment with the Auckland Council ` is that... a Treaty framework working well, where you've got the iwi challenging the Auckland Council? I mean, everything we seem to have in a Treaty and a Tiriti framework is reactive. And, you know, they were able to get to the table, and the mana was able to be asserted through a Tainui-Waikato interrelationship. It still is reactive, and I think, again, if it was done in an equitable way, the discussions would be led first, and not having to go to heads with Goff and Goff assuming this is how it should be. So it needs to be asserted, and our Treaty frameworks aren't working as strong as they can be, and that's certainly how we believe the water should be asserted. Kia ora. Thanks for coming on the show this morning. Tena koe. Kia ora. And we hope to have the Minister for Oranga Tamariki, Tracey Martin, on in the near future and also the CEO, Grainne Moss. Kua hikina Te Hui mo tenei ra. Pai marire ki a tatou katoa. Captions were made with the support of NZ On Air. www.able.co.nz Copyright Able 2020 ALL: He mea tautoko na Te Mangai Paho. The Hui is made with support from NZ On Air.