Infrastructure Blow Out, Northland Still Waits For Water

The New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union is calling out the failed $18 million aquifer project in Kaitaia as just the latest example of big budgets, poor planning, and even worse delivery. A pattern confirmed by the New Zealand Infrastructure Commission, which has found the country is spending more than comparable nations while achieving less.

Taxpayers’ Union Investigations Coordinator, Rhys Hurley, said:

“Whether it’s a billion-dollar tunnel or a rural water pipe, the story is always the same: we’re spending too much, and getting far too little.”

“In Kaitaia, locals were promised water resilience. What they got was a failed bore, blown budgets, and a council that never even checked if the plan would work before breaking ground.”

"The Infrastructure Commission’s findings back what taxpayers already know: it’s never been a funding problem, it’s a delivery problem."

“There’s no shortage of money. The shortage is in competence and accountability. Until councils and departments are forced to plan properly and deliver efficiently, we’re going to keep getting stitched up.”

"We need clear infrastructure records of what we own and its condition, enforced cost transparency, and consequences for councils and departments that fail to deliver value."