The Southland District mayor does not want a blanket rates relief policy but says staff investigating a policy are not wasting their time. Mayor Gary Tong said he did not want to make “a rod for our backs” in introducing a rate relief policy when there was already Government assistance available, but unreliable Census data meant council staff had to go away and canvass the district to see where the issues were. In May, Tong said applying criteria for a rate relief policy made people fit into a box. An extensive rates affordability assessment report was tabled at a council meeting on July 22. In June, Southland District Council approved a rates rise of 2.31 per cent for 2020/21.

Source: Stuff August 02, 2020 00:00 UTC