Two Canterbury mayors say the Government's pause on merger proposals has left councils frustrated, with no clear indication of what comes next.

The five biggest Canterbury councils spent a combined $428,000 developing proposals during the three-month window and expected a decision this week.

Local Government Minister Simon Watts announced today [Thursday] the Government needed more time and the proposals would be considered after the election.

Ashburton mayor Liz McMillan said the Government’s decision to delay the process underlined the complexity of reform and the concerns councils had raised about the tight timeframe.

“This was why Ashburton District Council chose not to enter the Head Start process.

“We’ve always said that any reform needs to be carefully considered and reflect the best interests of our community.

“We support improvements to local government, but we were among many councils in New Zealand that felt this process was too fast."

By not submitting a Head Start proposal, the council kept the door open to working with both northern and southern neighbours, she said.

McMillan said the council would seek clarity on what the next stage of reform meant.

Selwyn Mayor Lydia Gliddon said she was disappointed that councils had been asked to move quickly to submit reform proposals, only for the decision to be deferred.

“Selwyn invested significant effort into this process, including consulting with our communities. We owe it to those who took the time to share their views to ensure their voices continue to be heard."

The council submitted a proposal for the district to become a standalone unitary authority.

“Through our consultation, people told us overwhelmingly that they wanted Selwyn to become a standalone unitary authority, and we will continue to support and advocate for that view going forward.”

Minister Watts said 18 proposals were submitted by the August deadline.

“After considering these proposals, more work is required before Cabinet can make final decisions on Head Start.”

Watts said the proposals were generally of a high quality, but none had unanimous regional support, and some required further analysis.

He said further work was needed on fair and effective representation, streamlined governance, and the transfer and delivery of regional functions.

"Rather than asking councils to commit further time and resources to finalise proposals now, the Government will now work to fill in these gaps over the next few months. Cabinet will consider these proposals in early-2027.”

RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop said the Government remained committed to local government reform.

“The Government continues to expect proposals endorsed by Cabinet to be developed in detail and considered for final approval in 2027, with Head Start changes intended to be in place ahead of the 2028 local government elections.

“Work is also continuing on the backstop process for areas that do not progress through Head Start."

Those decisions would be informed by lessons from the Head Start pathway, consultation and advice from officials, he said.

The Ministers said, in a letter to mayors, that changes to regional councils were still expected to go ahead.

"Regional councillors will not be elected at the 2028 local elections, and the backstop process for regional reorganisation will still commence following the elections".

Local Government NZ President Rehette Stoltz said councils are frustrated by the pause.
“Councils have invested significant effort in developing proposals and consulting their communities in what we’ve always said was an unrealistically tight time frame.
“The Head Start process has really heaped pressure on councils facing once-in-a-generation resource management reform and potentially rates capping alongside delivering all the basics for their communities
“What happens next is now very unclear."

LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.