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Speaker 1: Right now, is Wellington about to get another Crown observer?

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Speaker 1: How many sets of training wheels can you have for

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Speaker 1: a city? Simon Watts, who's the local government minister, is

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Speaker 1: considering all options on this. Apparently this is to do

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Speaker 1: with Wellington Water, not Wellington Council. Nick Leggett is the

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Speaker 1: Wellington Water chair. Of course, there's been the report that

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Speaker 1: found the troubled organizations being paying contract is much more

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Speaker 1: than the water authorities. The mayor and others have called

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Speaker 1: for Knick's resignation, but he's not going anywhere. He's with

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Speaker 1: me now, high Nick, what do you reckon about a

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Speaker 1: Crown observer?

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Speaker 2: Well, that would ultimately be the decision of the minister,

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Speaker 2: and I don't understand. I'm not aware of what he's

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Speaker 2: considering specifically or what would likely happen, but I do

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Speaker 2: remember that the current Crown Observer was put in place

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Speaker 2: due to concerns over water. I mean, I think that

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Speaker 2: that Wellington City Council is one of the shareholders of

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Speaker 2: Wellington Water. Water has made its views pretty clear in

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Speaker 2: the last few weeks, but there is a significant long

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Speaker 2: term under investment in wastewater, stormwater and of course our

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Speaker 2: fresh water pipes in Wellington and other services. And so

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Speaker 2: there was Andy Foster when he was Mayor of Wellington

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Speaker 2: did a report, a Mayoral Task Force report I think

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Speaker 2: at about twenty twenty, and that showed, you know, really

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Speaker 2: significant underspends. And the truth is that councils are pulled

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Speaker 2: in every you know, every other direction at the moment

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Speaker 2: and the many have chosen not to spend on water.

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Speaker 1: Well no, that that's true. The problem for if you're

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Speaker 1: a Wellington rate payer, you've got counsels who haven't been

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Speaker 1: investing in their water. But then also you guys have

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Speaker 1: been charging them too much when they do.

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Speaker 2: Yes, And that's exactly what we've come clean about. So

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Speaker 2: does it change?

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Speaker 1: Is Wellington so broken that everyone needs someone holding their hand?

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Speaker 1: I mean, does every organization in this last city need

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Speaker 1: has Crown observed?

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Speaker 2: Do you know? Do you know what I think Wellington needs?

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Speaker 2: Wellington needs a new water entity that owns its own assets,

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Speaker 2: can raise money off those assets and get good value

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Speaker 2: for the money it spends and get them replaced as

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Speaker 2: soon as possible. And that's what that's why getting Wellington

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Speaker 2: water sorted, that's why we've come come to people and said, look,

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Speaker 2: we've been charged too much in some areas over time.

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Speaker 2: It's not good enough. We've made changes, we fixed that,

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Speaker 2: but it's all in preparation for this new water entity

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Speaker 2: that will start sort of next year. And you know,

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Speaker 2: can I just give you an example.

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Speaker 1: We're running out of time, but will you? Will you

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Speaker 1: put your hand up to lead it?

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Speaker 2: No anywhere near it? Are you? My job is to

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Speaker 2: fix what we've what we've got and hand it over

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Speaker 2: as so it's as good. It's doing the best it

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Speaker 2: possibly can.

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Speaker 1: Right, Okay, Nick, we have to lave it there. I

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Speaker 1: appreciate your time. Nickally get Wellington Water chare not going anywhere.

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Speaker 1: For more from Heather Duplessy Allen Drive, listen live to

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