Subscribe to RSSPPPs Favoured For Next Projects
If you believe yet another new survey, Aucklanders want Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) to fund faster infrastructure development.– provided they own the assets once they are paid for.-
A survey on funding infrastructure shows that is a favoured approach around the country but especially in Auckland where we want things like airport rail, the CBD rail loop and no doubt more motorways.
Some 65% of people expressed concern over funding new long term infrastructure.
The new nationwide ShapeNZ survey finds PPPs are preferred to fund projects faster by 47% of the 2,480 respondents.
The second most preferred way of raising capital is through council bonds (35%).
Imposing a national 10 cents per litre motor fuel surcharge, to be spent on local projects, is supported by 19%.
The least preferred way of paying for projects is through higher rates, with just 4% support.
The PPP method proposed involves a council deciding the project, the private partner building and operating it and transferring it back to the council when it has been paid for.
Some 53% in Auckland support this method, compared with 47% nationwide. PPPs have least support in Dunedin (33%).
Some 48% of people in Wellington support PPPs. The capital also most supports using council bonds (45%, compared with 34% for all of New Zealand).
The weighted ShapeNZ survey was commissioned by the New Zealand Business Council for Sustainable Development to help guide people elected to councils at the October 9 local body elections. It has a maximum margin of error of +/- 1.6%.
Preferences by main cities are:
PPPs Council bonds Fuel tax Higher Rates None of these Don’t know NZ 47 34 19 4 16 17 Auckland super city 53 36 18 3 18 18 Wellington 48 45 31 9 6 14 Christchurch 45 30 22 10 15 16 Dunedin 33 25 19 0 23 26
Using PPPs to advance projects has the support of 57% of National voters at the last election. Among other parties support is:
- ACT 77%
- United Future 53%
- New Zealand First 52%
- Green 47%,
- Labour 41%,
- Progressives 40%,
- Maori Party 33%
- Other parties 52%
Business Council Chief Executive Peter Neilson says the research shows New Zealanders want to speed up infrastructure projects and are willing to look at harnessing capital and expertise from the private sector to help make this happen.
“Several of the major infrastructure projects being discussed in the new Auckland super city, for example, will require new sources of capital if they are to be brought forward – to more quickly ease traffic congestion and stimulate economic growth.
“They can’t be funded under current Government and council programmes without increasing rates. Kiwis are saying let’s find and use new capital sources,” Mr Neilson says.
3 Comments
I wonder how many of them would support PPPs if they knew the horrendous costs associated with them overseas. Like the PPP in the UK to build hospital pharmacies that’s going to end up costing taxpayers about seven times as much as if the NHS just stumped up the money itself up-front. The difference is the heavy end of a billion pounds.
Another good example is London’s Tube Network… the PPP’s got into billions of pounds worth of debt and had no option but give long delayed, over budgeted, permanently unfinished work back to the London and British taxpayer at great expense…
With PPPs there is no incentive to bring the project in sooner and under budget. The cost is fixed on all these projects, so the taxpayer will not get the benefit if the project finishes sooner. Yes there are issues with the Public service, but NZ is too small for theses PPPs.
At the end of the day you will get “all” the existing people working in the Public sector move to the private sector and the company signing the contract with the government will get a massive profit.