ARA launches Ratepayer Protection Pledge

Today we launched our 2016 Ratepayer Protection Pledge, to identify those candidates standing for Auckland Council who are aligned to the Ratepayers’ Alliance vision of reasonable rates and sensible spending by the Super City.

The pledge reads:

“I [candidate’s name] pledge to all Aucklanders that I will not vote for any measures which increase the total average burden of rates, levies, and other compulsory Council charges, more than 2% per annum.”

We’re asking all Auckland Council candidates – no matter their political persuasion – to champion fiscal prudence and sign the pledge.

The pledge is designed to help Aucklanders identify who stands for more Council waste and empire building, and who stands for reasonable rates and sensible spending. We’ll be actively promoting those who sign the pledge with leaflet drops and campaign literature in the days up to voting.

Under Len Brown’s watch ratepayers have been hit with unaffordable rates increases year after year. Even worse, some of Len Brown’s rates enablers had stood for Council on platforms of rates restraint and restricted Council spending, only to abandon their election platform and vote with the Mayor once elected.

Our 16,500 members, and 600 volunteers will be working hard to ensure that the new Council is more fiscally responsible than those who allowed Len Brown to hike rates by 9.9% last year.

The policy victory concerning waste, and our distribution of 72,000 leaflets throughout Rodney and Albany is just the beginning.  We hope that those who talk the talk about rates will walk the walk and sign the pledge so that we can actively promote them as being on the side of ratepayers.