The South Wairarapa District Council’s engagement on the 2025/34 Long-Term Plan (LTP) was initially scheduled to begin on 28 February 2025. However, due to complexities in the audit process, this has been delayed.
Preparing for consultation on the key issues for the 2025/34 Long-Term Plan (LTP) has been a complex process. As part of this plan, we have included information on three waters infrastructure to ensure transparency about the investment required for South Wairarapa over the next nine years. This also aligns with the separate consultation on Local Water Done Well (LWDW), which will take place alongside this process.
As a result of this approach, the consultation document has been issued with an Adverse Audit Opinion. This reflects a difference in perspective between the auditors and Council regarding how financial information, particularly future debt levels, is presented. However, Council firmly believes that the consultation document and supporting information are appropriate, as the auditor’s concerns do not affect the first two years of the plan. Maintaining transparency with our community is a priority, and for this reason, we have chosen not to alter the information to avoid an adverse opinion.
At the Strategy Working Committee meeting on 26 February, elected members unanimously identified the LWDW legislation as the primary reason for the differing viewpoints between Council and the auditors. Council believes that the proposed plans for the first two years of the LTP are well-founded, transparent, and fully implementable and will lead Council towards the 2027/37 Long-Term Plan.
Council has committed to running engagement for both the LTP and LWDW consultation in parallel, ensuring transparency with the community. The LTP consultation document includes the full capital investment programme required over the next nine years to address significant funding needs for the district’s water network. It also outlines the implications for Council’s debt capacity.
To avoid an Adverse Opinion, Council was advised to consider one of the following adjustments:
- Removing water infrastructure investment projections from 2026/27 onwards
- Reducing the capital investment plan
- Increasing projected rates over the later years of the plan to demonstrate how Council would fund the necessary investments
After careful consideration, Council determined that implementing any of these changes would not provide an accurate or transparent representation of the district’s financial position. Instead, Council prioritised ensuring that the consultation document reflects a true and complete picture for the community.
“It is more important to provide the true picture to our community than to amend our data solely to secure an audit opinion on the consultation document,” shared Deputy Mayor Sadler-Futter.
Elected members also expressed the view that making the suggested changes would not allow the community to fully understand the financial challenges that the LWDW legislation seeks to address. They emphasised that long-term investment in water infrastructure is only sustainable if managed through a Council-Controlled Organisation (CCO) or a similar entity.
Under the current timeline, Council expects to conclude community consultation and make a decision on the LWDW framework by the end of May 2025. The final LTP, set for adoption in late June, will incorporate the transition of water services to a new entity, either a South Wairarapa District Council-owned CCO or a joint Wairarapa-Tararua CCO. Given this transition, the audit concerns regarding a potential future breach of the debt ceiling relate to circumstances that are unlikely to arise.
Councillor Alistair Plimmer said the situation is temporary and has been created by the convergence of legislative changes.
Importantly, the Adverse Opinion on the consultation document does not prevent Council from proceeding with public consultation, nor does it impact Council’s ability to borrow the funds required to continue delivering services.
Council remains committed to engaging with the community and plans to launch consultation on both the 2025/34 Long-Term Plan and Local Water Done Well on 7 March 2025.
