Mayoral Candidates

Kirsten Wise 
I support exploring a rates cap model that allows us to fund essential services sustainably but gives our community confidence we’re not spending on ‘nice to haves’.

Nigel Simpson
Council rates should be capped by common sense and good strategic governance. For Councils that have very low per capita rates, like Napier, there are considerable risks associated with imposing capping legislation.

Richard McGrath
Rates capping is worth exploring and understanding exactly what the Government has in mind. It’s like all new ideas it’s about knowing what the fishhooks are and see if its suitable for our city. Rather than waiting for it to happen we should be looking at what we are currently prioritizing our spending on and make appropriate changes and savings.

Keith Price
I do not support legislating a rates cap.  While affordability matters, capping rates is a blunt tool with real downsides. International research — including in Australia and the UK — shows caps often undermine service delivery, reduce infrastructure investment, and compromise council financial sustainability. Local Government NZ notes that democratic decision-making and transparent budgeting are far more effective than imposed limits.  Napier already has the third-lowest residential rates in the country, while still delivering on major infrastructure investments — that shows strong financial stewardship. Our balance sheet is one of the strongest in the region, which allows us to borrow sensibly and plan long-term without unfair spikes on ratepayers. 

I support exploring other funding tools — as recommended by the Productivity Commission — like targeted user fees, better financing models, and partnerships with central government. Transparency and community involvement remain key.

Sally Crown
I believe we must consider every tool available to keep rates affordable while ensuring councils can operate efficiently and meet their legal obligations for essential services. 
Some of the best models overseas strike a balance. In Victoria, rates are capped to inflation, but councils can apply for a higher limit if there is a genuine need, such as major infrastructure or disaster recovery. In New South Wales, an independent body sets the cap, with a “special variation” process if councils make a strong case with community backing. These systems keep costs in check without preventing essential work. By contrast, the rigid caps introduced in the UK in the 1980s led to political stand-offs and service cuts, showing the risks of inflexible rules.

A one-size-fits-all rates cap from Wellington is not the answer. The right approach is clear limits with sensible flexibility, backed by transparency, planning, and efficiency.

Juliet Grieg
Hawke’s Bay councils are still paying for the costs associated with Cyclone Gabrielle, so I wouldn’t support rate-capping at this stage.

Ronda Chrystal
Rates capping has had some unintended consequences on community’s where it has been introduced. I agree that high rates rises are unstainable for rate payers and we need to look very hard for cost savings within council. I also support finding alternative income streams and funding tools for councils other than rates. This could include working with central government to return the GST on rates and on new builds. Also charging rates on government buildings which they currently don’t have to pay. I feel an important point has been missed in the whole rates capping discussion and comparing it to inflation. Inflation is measured on the CPI basket of goods that households spend money on. The majority of Councils capital spend is on building and maintaining infrastructure and much of these costs have risen over 50% since 2020.

Graeme Taylor
No. How would you establish the cap? Every council has different starting points. Different levels of indebtedness. CPI is not the appropriate measure, those indicators are not necessarily relevant to Council costs.

Greg Mawson
No. Blanket caps risk forcing councils to cut core services or delay vital infrastructure. Decisions are best made locally, not by one size fits-all legislation. Also a quick Google of : “Government tax revenue vs rates revenue nz” shows the picture why Central Government are cherry picking with their targeted campaign against Local government.

Whare Isaac-Sharland
No hard caps, they can cripple essential services. Instead, enforce transparency, independent budget review, and robust public consultation before any significant increases (OAG, 2021).

Lyndal Johansson
Over the last five years Napier rates have increased by more than 50% – more than double the rate of CPI. This cannot continue. But I have not read enough evidence to
say that capping is the answer.

Benjamin Newport
No, rigid caps can lead to underinvestment. Instead, councils should be required to justify increases publicly and meet efficiency benchmarks before raising rates.

Iain Bradley
The worry is that by capping rates through legislation, Councillors will just vote to take on more debt, which doesn’t solve the problem. Personally, though, I believe that rates on average should not increase more than the level of inflation.

Cappers

Te Kira Lawrence
Yes, I support capping council rates through legislation. I understand some councils are concerned that a cap could be limiting, but the public’s frustration with rising rates shows we need stronger safeguards particularly while times are tough. A cap would help ensure councils focus on core responsibilities and avoid unnecessary duplication of government services. While there will always be important local projects, ratepayers deserve assurance that their money is spent wisely and within clear limits particularly while times are tough.

Roger Brownlie
Yes. Rates should be carefully managed to ensure they don’t rise faster than inflation. This helps households plan their budgets and keeps local services affordable while still funding essential infrastructure.

Terry Cornish
Yes.

Louise Burnside
I do support a rates cap. I have been asking the question of constituents as I knock on doors “what is the greatest challenge facing Napier at the moment?” Virtually every person alludes to the cost of living crisis. We need to “cut our coat according to our cloth”,  ie budget appropriately. It is not fair to continually drive up rates far in excess of inflation. People can only take so much before their only option is to stop paying and where does that leave us in terms of balancing the books? Many people are losing their jobs or having their hours cut. I would be just as happy and just as effective as a councillor at a meeting in a prefab with a trestle table. I don’t need to be sitting in a state of the art fancy council chambers if it makes our rate payers lives difficult. I can also pay for my own Christmas breakfast.

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