1 00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:03,160 Speaker 1: Regional councils might be about to be killed. It's being 2 00:00:03,200 --> 00:00:06,400 Speaker 1: reported now by multiple different media outlets that the government 3 00:00:06,400 --> 00:00:10,240 Speaker 1: will announce this afternoon that they are scrapping regional councils. Now, 4 00:00:10,320 --> 00:00:12,559 Speaker 1: if this does and bearing in mind the afternoon is 5 00:00:12,640 --> 00:00:15,640 Speaker 1: running out fast, but if this does bear out, and 6 00:00:15,720 --> 00:00:18,680 Speaker 1: I do believe that it will, then you need to 7 00:00:18,680 --> 00:00:20,440 Speaker 1: put this on your list of some of the best 8 00:00:20,480 --> 00:00:22,680 Speaker 1: news that you have heard in a long time for 9 00:00:22,720 --> 00:00:26,200 Speaker 1: turning this country around. Regional councils have got to go. 10 00:00:26,880 --> 00:00:29,080 Speaker 1: It's not so much the elected councilors, right, I mean, 11 00:00:29,080 --> 00:00:31,360 Speaker 1: obviously they have to go as well. We simply don't 12 00:00:31,400 --> 00:00:34,839 Speaker 1: need that layer of bureaucracy regional councils when we already 13 00:00:34,840 --> 00:00:37,360 Speaker 1: have city and district councils, and we already have central government. 14 00:00:37,360 --> 00:00:40,200 Speaker 1: It's just far too much. But scrapping the elected guys, 15 00:00:41,240 --> 00:00:42,960 Speaker 1: that's only going to save a little bit of money. 16 00:00:43,159 --> 00:00:45,839 Speaker 1: We're talking peanuts here. The real money is going to 17 00:00:45,880 --> 00:00:47,720 Speaker 1: be saved in the stuff that happens in the back 18 00:00:47,760 --> 00:00:50,400 Speaker 1: office at the regional councils, the stuff that's done by 19 00:00:50,440 --> 00:00:52,800 Speaker 1: the unelected officials and the consultants that they bring in 20 00:00:52,840 --> 00:00:56,000 Speaker 1: and when What I'm talking about here is the plans. Now, 21 00:00:56,120 --> 00:00:58,960 Speaker 1: let me tell you about the plans. You probably don't 22 00:00:58,960 --> 00:01:01,639 Speaker 1: realize it because stuff is so boring it will put 23 00:01:01,640 --> 00:01:04,720 Speaker 1: you to sleep. But regional councils around this country are 24 00:01:04,760 --> 00:01:08,600 Speaker 1: blowing tens of millions of dollars and wasting years upon 25 00:01:08,760 --> 00:01:12,039 Speaker 1: years on planning new rules. The y Cuttle Regional Council's 26 00:01:12,080 --> 00:01:15,759 Speaker 1: Healthy Rivers Plan Change one, I know, let's just call 27 00:01:15,800 --> 00:01:18,800 Speaker 1: it PC one for short. PC one at last count 28 00:01:18,840 --> 00:01:22,800 Speaker 1: has cost twenty three million dollars. That was about three 29 00:01:22,920 --> 00:01:25,880 Speaker 1: years ago. The plan is not even fully implemented yet, 30 00:01:25,880 --> 00:01:29,000 Speaker 1: so you can add to that twenty three million dollars. Now, 31 00:01:29,040 --> 00:01:31,960 Speaker 1: that is just the plan for the rivers in the Wycuttle. 32 00:01:32,200 --> 00:01:34,720 Speaker 1: It's not the plan for rivers anywhere else in the country. 33 00:01:34,880 --> 00:01:37,000 Speaker 1: It's for nothing else in the y Cuttle. It is 34 00:01:37,240 --> 00:01:39,520 Speaker 1: just for the rivers in the y Cuttle, and it's 35 00:01:39,560 --> 00:01:42,880 Speaker 1: already cost twenty three million dollars. Bear in mind, every 36 00:01:42,959 --> 00:01:45,679 Speaker 1: single region, and there are eleven of them, makes its 37 00:01:45,680 --> 00:01:47,880 Speaker 1: own plans, So you could take that twenty three million 38 00:01:47,920 --> 00:01:50,360 Speaker 1: dollars you just add to it. Around this country, we're 39 00:01:50,400 --> 00:01:53,160 Speaker 1: just racking up the millions. This stuff as I said, 40 00:01:53,200 --> 00:01:56,560 Speaker 1: takes years. The Wycuttle River Plan PC one that was 41 00:01:56,640 --> 00:01:59,760 Speaker 1: notified in twenty sixteen, a decade on, it's still not 42 00:02:00,080 --> 00:02:03,040 Speaker 1: full operation because of appeals and all kinds of wrangles 43 00:02:03,080 --> 00:02:05,360 Speaker 1: around it. And this is where huge amounts of the 44 00:02:05,440 --> 00:02:08,320 Speaker 1: rates that you pay are wasted. Right, So scrapping the 45 00:02:08,360 --> 00:02:12,400 Speaker 1: regional councils is potentially a massive, massive saving for us 46 00:02:12,960 --> 00:02:15,080 Speaker 1: if the NATS then replace I mean, the question is 47 00:02:15,120 --> 00:02:17,080 Speaker 1: what do they replace it with. If they then replace 48 00:02:17,120 --> 00:02:19,760 Speaker 1: the regional councils with a system where maybe we have 49 00:02:19,880 --> 00:02:21,600 Speaker 1: just one set of rules or four sets of rules, 50 00:02:21,680 --> 00:02:24,519 Speaker 1: or ten sets of rules that regions can choose from 51 00:02:24,919 --> 00:02:26,880 Speaker 1: pre written rules that they can roll out that they 52 00:02:26,919 --> 00:02:29,560 Speaker 1: don't have to plan themselves, rather than designing their own. 53 00:02:29,760 --> 00:02:32,080 Speaker 1: That may in fact be a better system. Now the 54 00:02:32,120 --> 00:02:34,360 Speaker 1: devil is in the detail, which we are yet to 55 00:02:34,400 --> 00:02:36,520 Speaker 1: see and are apparently going to see later this afternoon. 56 00:02:36,520 --> 00:02:39,200 Speaker 1: But so far this has the potential to be some 57 00:02:39,400 --> 00:02:42,440 Speaker 1: of the best news for this country. For more from 58 00:02:42,560 --> 00:02:45,799 Speaker 1: Heather Duplicy Allen Drive, listen live to news talks it'd 59 00:02:45,840 --> 00:02:49,880 Speaker 1: be from four pm weekdays, or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.