Local Government Minister Simon Watts says councils have three months to submit amalgamation plans or risk having central government do it for them.

The government announced late last year it would remove regional councils, meaning all 67 territorial authorities now need to work out how they will absorb regional council functions.

“We don’t want to wait for the slowest councils. We want to get on with it,” Watts says.

“We need to crystallise the action. We need to actually make this happen, and that’s why we’re providing a pathway.”

The window closes on the 9 of August this year. Watts says many councils have already done substantial groundwork, pointing to Southland, where an amalgamation process is already under way, and Northland, which has a draft plan with broad commitment.

“These guys have been thinking about this for a long time.

“Three months, on one hand, may not seem long, but the challenge is that this conversation’s been going on for decades.”

Parts of Wellington also voted on amalgamation at the last local body election.

Watts says the scale of what is being attempted is significant.

“This type of scale of reform only happens pretty much every 30 years. We’ve got one period to get this right.”

If a council or grouping does not submit a plan, the government will develop one for them. The shape of that process will be announced early next year.

“The ball is in councils’ courts now,” he says.

CountryWide CONNECT with Andy Thompson & Sarah Perriam-Lampp is our daily rural show livestreamed from 11am-1pm. Visit country-wide.co.nz on how to watch/listen or download the CountryWide CONNECT mobile app, available on Apple iOS and Android.