Planning for the future  |  8 Jul 2019

Christchurch City Council has won local government support for two initiatives, one relating to short-term accommodation providers and the other to the health effects of nitrates in water.

At its Annual General Meeting in Wellington over the weekend, Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ) agreed to support a Christchurch City Council request for legislative change that would give councils the ability to require all short-term accommodation providers, including Airbnb operators, to register with their local council.

Bottle being filled from water tap

Local Government New Zealand has agreed to support the Christchurch City Council's bid for more Government funding to study the health effects of nitrates in drinking water.

It has also given the green light to a second Christchurch City Council remit seeking Government funding for additional research into the effects on people’s health of nitrates in drinking water.

Both remits were passed with at least 70 per cent support from the sector.

Deputy Mayor Andrew Turner says it is pleasing to see the remits becoming official policy to be actioned by LGNZ.

“I was pleased to see both of our remits strongly supported by the Local Government sector at the meeting, indicating the significance of these issues for other councils nationwide,” Cr Turner says.

“Now that the remits are official policy to be actioned by LGNZ, they will be campaigning at a central government level, including engaging with the respective ministers.

“It is great to have this support from LGNZ to further raise the profile of these important matters.”

A total of 24 remits from councils around New Zealand were voted on at the AGM with 21 made official LGNZ policy. A full list of the remits can be found on the LGNZ website.