1
00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:03,040
Speaker 1: First though, the bills in for all that water infrastructure

2
00:00:03,040 --> 00:00:05,400
Speaker 1: that we need to build so desperately, and it's nine

3
00:00:05,480 --> 00:00:09,560
Speaker 1: billion dollars more expensive than previously thought. Councils have now

4
00:00:09,560 --> 00:00:12,160
Speaker 1: all submitted their local water Done Well plans to the government.

5
00:00:12,160 --> 00:00:15,200
Speaker 1: They're expected to spend forty eight billion dollars on water.

6
00:00:15,440 --> 00:00:18,200
Speaker 1: Simon Watt, says the local Government Minister and joins me tonight,

7
00:00:18,480 --> 00:00:19,239
Speaker 1: Good evening.

8
00:00:19,000 --> 00:00:22,000
Speaker 2: Minister Earning Ryan Seasons Gruden.

9
00:00:21,840 --> 00:00:25,680
Speaker 1: Season's greetings, So what's happening with this The extra nine

10
00:00:25,760 --> 00:00:29,520
Speaker 1: billion than we thought? Is that because something has changed

11
00:00:29,680 --> 00:00:32,480
Speaker 1: or is the estimated cost change?

12
00:00:33,560 --> 00:00:36,920
Speaker 3: No, it's basically the councils have done a review and

13
00:00:36,960 --> 00:00:39,520
Speaker 3: a forecast of what they believe they need to spend

14
00:00:39,600 --> 00:00:43,200
Speaker 3: over the next decade, and that is up on where

15
00:00:43,240 --> 00:00:45,400
Speaker 3: they before had their plans.

16
00:00:45,960 --> 00:00:48,080
Speaker 2: Only got to be clear this is what they believe

17
00:00:48,120 --> 00:00:48,640
Speaker 2: they need.

18
00:00:49,320 --> 00:00:51,640
Speaker 3: Then you've got to work out what their capacity is

19
00:00:51,680 --> 00:00:54,400
Speaker 3: to actually undertake the work and what they can spend

20
00:00:54,440 --> 00:00:58,200
Speaker 3: and invest. But the highlight is we've got an infrastructure deficit.

21
00:00:58,280 --> 00:01:00,960
Speaker 3: We all know that we need to get more money

22
00:01:00,960 --> 00:01:04,160
Speaker 3: going into pipes in the infrastructure, and we've now got

23
00:01:04,880 --> 00:01:07,160
Speaker 3: entities that can deliver that change and over the next

24
00:01:07,160 --> 00:01:09,120
Speaker 3: decade that means more jobs for kiwis.

25
00:01:09,319 --> 00:01:11,800
Speaker 1: So this is what they believe they will need. Can

26
00:01:11,840 --> 00:01:12,640
Speaker 1: they afford it?

27
00:01:13,880 --> 00:01:16,760
Speaker 3: They can based on the assessment that the independent regulated

28
00:01:16,840 --> 00:01:18,160
Speaker 3: the Commerce Commission have done.

29
00:01:18,480 --> 00:01:20,240
Speaker 2: That process is now complete.

30
00:01:20,280 --> 00:01:23,040
Speaker 3: They reviewed all sixty eight of councils and with the

31
00:01:23,080 --> 00:01:25,720
Speaker 3: exception of one which has got a facilitator in place,

32
00:01:25,959 --> 00:01:28,160
Speaker 3: the rest have been signed off. So we're in a

33
00:01:28,240 --> 00:01:30,600
Speaker 3: really good spot. And you know that's pretty good within

34
00:01:31,200 --> 00:01:33,840
Speaker 3: in effect, twelve months from when the legislation got passed.

35
00:01:34,319 --> 00:01:36,640
Speaker 1: Is it cheaper them under what three waters would have

36
00:01:36,680 --> 00:01:37,119
Speaker 1: cost us?

37
00:01:38,240 --> 00:01:40,960
Speaker 3: Well, Ryan, I mean, as you know, that's a hypothetical

38
00:01:40,959 --> 00:01:43,399
Speaker 3: because those guys got voted out and they never put

39
00:01:43,440 --> 00:01:47,360
Speaker 3: that policy into practice. We are of the view, compared

40
00:01:47,360 --> 00:01:49,880
Speaker 3: to the status quo, this is going.

41
00:01:49,800 --> 00:01:51,480
Speaker 2: To be a better deal for rate payers.

42
00:01:51,720 --> 00:01:53,960
Speaker 3: And why I say that is because you know, we've

43
00:01:53,960 --> 00:01:56,680
Speaker 3: got financially sustainable entities who are going to be undertaking

44
00:01:56,720 --> 00:01:59,800
Speaker 3: this infrastructure investment. It's a big pot of money, right,

45
00:02:00,240 --> 00:02:02,560
Speaker 3: No one's arguing about that, and I think we do

46
00:02:02,640 --> 00:02:05,480
Speaker 3: need to acknowledge the capacity of the system, but I

47
00:02:05,480 --> 00:02:09,760
Speaker 3: think what we need is consistent and stable investment over decades,

48
00:02:09,840 --> 00:02:12,560
Speaker 3: not that lumpiness. And you know that's something that we're

49
00:02:12,600 --> 00:02:14,079
Speaker 3: now set up to deliver.

50
00:02:14,320 --> 00:02:16,640
Speaker 1: Okay, so they can afford to do it. I mean's

51
00:02:16,639 --> 00:02:18,200
Speaker 1: a hell of a lot of money they can afford

52
00:02:18,240 --> 00:02:20,760
Speaker 1: to do it. That's been signed off. We're given them

53
00:02:21,000 --> 00:02:23,919
Speaker 1: the tick tick for that. When will people actually start

54
00:02:23,960 --> 00:02:27,360
Speaker 1: to see their pipes or not actually more to the point,

55
00:02:27,520 --> 00:02:28,560
Speaker 1: not see their pipes?

56
00:02:30,280 --> 00:02:31,760
Speaker 2: Well, that work's already started.

57
00:02:31,800 --> 00:02:34,440
Speaker 3: And if you're living in Auckland, for example, water care,

58
00:02:34,480 --> 00:02:38,320
Speaker 3: we're first out of the gates and are undertaking that work.

59
00:02:39,000 --> 00:02:41,040
Speaker 3: You know, at pace there's a lot of build up

60
00:02:41,080 --> 00:02:44,000
Speaker 3: of capability. We need more water engineers, we need more

61
00:02:44,320 --> 00:02:45,800
Speaker 3: people in that neck of the woods.

62
00:02:45,840 --> 00:02:48,079
Speaker 2: And that's good as well in terms of capability.

63
00:02:48,480 --> 00:02:50,720
Speaker 3: But this work has already started and you're really going

64
00:02:50,760 --> 00:02:53,200
Speaker 3: to see the industry build up to what I would

65
00:02:53,200 --> 00:02:56,880
Speaker 3: expect peak delivery over the next two to three years.

66
00:02:56,960 --> 00:02:59,200
Speaker 1: Two to three years. So like you know, Wellington, we

67
00:02:59,320 --> 00:03:02,520
Speaker 1: see those strays every second week of pipes bursting and

68
00:03:02,560 --> 00:03:06,040
Speaker 1: water going all over the street and stuff. When will

69
00:03:06,040 --> 00:03:06,880
Speaker 1: that not happen?

70
00:03:08,360 --> 00:03:10,919
Speaker 3: Well RN, you know, that's a challenging one because there's

71
00:03:10,919 --> 00:03:12,960
Speaker 3: a lot of pipes in Wellington. But what I can

72
00:03:13,560 --> 00:03:16,760
Speaker 3: be clear about is now they've got a stable entity

73
00:03:16,800 --> 00:03:20,080
Speaker 3: to deliver that infrastructure. It's been reviewed by the ComCom.

74
00:03:20,160 --> 00:03:22,040
Speaker 3: So we're getting out of the planning and these guys

75
00:03:22,040 --> 00:03:23,680
Speaker 3: can start doing the doing. And I think that's what

76
00:03:23,800 --> 00:03:26,640
Speaker 3: rate payers have been calling for. They want this stuff

77
00:03:26,680 --> 00:03:27,919
Speaker 3: to get on and be done. But you've got to

78
00:03:27,960 --> 00:03:30,720
Speaker 3: acknowledge when you build infrastructure, you've got to do that

79
00:03:30,800 --> 00:03:33,680
Speaker 3: over a long period of time, in consistent program to

80
00:03:33,720 --> 00:03:36,600
Speaker 3: do that. So that's underway now and that's going to

81
00:03:36,600 --> 00:03:37,640
Speaker 3: be good for our communities.

82
00:03:38,040 --> 00:03:39,680
Speaker 1: How were you in the House today? Apparently it was

83
00:03:39,680 --> 00:03:42,120
Speaker 1: all getting but instead of that end of year rightist

84
00:03:42,160 --> 00:03:45,000
Speaker 1: thing seems to be seems to be coming into play

85
00:03:45,000 --> 00:03:46,640
Speaker 1: in the house. What was it like there tonight.

86
00:03:47,520 --> 00:03:50,640
Speaker 3: Yeah, it's pretty pretty jovial and everyone's fired up. I

87
00:03:50,680 --> 00:03:53,520
Speaker 3: mean I'm in the chair too when Parliament goes to

88
00:03:53,600 --> 00:03:57,000
Speaker 3: midnight tonight, and I've got my bills going through all stages,

89
00:03:57,040 --> 00:03:59,320
Speaker 3: so I'll be don't worrying when you were awake at

90
00:03:59,320 --> 00:04:01,240
Speaker 3: midnight doing whatever you do you can think of me,

91
00:04:01,280 --> 00:04:03,840
Speaker 3: I'll be still sitting in the chair in Parliament doing

92
00:04:03,840 --> 00:04:04,280
Speaker 3: the good work.

93
00:04:04,320 --> 00:04:07,160
Speaker 1: For the public I'm doing on this drive show at

94
00:04:07,200 --> 00:04:09,720
Speaker 1: the moment, so I'm happily. I will be happily sleeping

95
00:04:09,760 --> 00:04:12,520
Speaker 1: tonight Simon, while you're working, which would be a nice chair.

96
00:04:13,280 --> 00:04:14,800
Speaker 2: I might give you a shout out at midnight.

97
00:04:14,800 --> 00:04:17,200
Speaker 1: There you go, Okay, all right, hey, appreciate your time.

98
00:04:17,240 --> 00:04:20,080
Speaker 1: That Simon Watt's local government minister. It is twenty one

99
00:04:20,080 --> 00:04:21,320
Speaker 1: minutes away from seven News.

100
00:04:21,200 --> 00:04:22,360
Speaker 2: Talk Ryan Bridge.

101
00:04:23,240 --> 00:04:25,960
Speaker 1: We'll get to get into Brady who's our UK correspondent, and.

102
00:04:25,920 --> 00:04:28,799
Speaker 2: Just for more from Heather Duplessy Allen Drive.

103
00:04:29,000 --> 00:04:32,400
Speaker 1: Listen live to News Talks it'd be from four pm weekdays,

104
00:04:32,520 --> 00:04:34,720
Speaker 1: or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio