Paula Thompson BOP Regional Councillor www.envbop.govt.nz

The fallout from the Global Financial Crisis that hit in 2008 continues. You don't have to be an economist to get the gist that around the world there is financial and economic chaos, turmoil and uncertainty.

New Zealand is not immune. As our overseas markets react to inflationary pressures, we can probably expect our uncertainty, as an export-led economy, to continue for some time. And so the message for us all – and especially those responsible for the raising and expenditure of public monies – is to redouble our responsibilities around financial caution and prudence.
If the GFC wasn't bad enough, we have also had some home-grown issues that have added to the ‘perfect storm conditions'. Major flooding in the Bay causing significant damage in river catchment areas, the flow-on from the Christchurch earthquake in terms of insurance costs, the uncertainty with regards to kiwifruit and Psa management…the stormy conditions are unlikely to abate for some time.

The regional council is fortunate to have 25 per cent (approx) of its revenue derived from investment income. This means the requirement to rate for expenditure is offset. The uncertainty in the financial world, however, also means more uncertainty around return from investment income. Revenue sources must be robustly estimated and carefully applied.

What all of this means is that the annual and 10-year budgeting requirements that we are currently going through – and that will continue for some months – must be exercises in community governance prudence.

But all of that financial discipline doesn't mean we still can't have aspiration for our region. We have many projects that need to be progressed; continuing with the cleanup of the Rotorua Lakes and Rotorua Air Quality; dealing with massive flood damage in water catchments; getting the Tauranga Harbour protection and enhancement project underway; continuing to support economic prosperity initiatives in forestry, acquaculture and renewable energy (to name a few); pursuing the many projects contained in the Regional Land Transport Strategy; and many, many more. Key tools will be to prioritise spend and to locate and use opportunities.

Although there will be a significant proportion of council work that will require direct funding from council, there are also enormous opportunities to leverage innovation, creativity and ways of working-like partnerships. Councils can act as community facilitators, connecting ideas, people and resources, developing and nurturing constructive and productive relationships, being enthusiastic and brokering opportunities. Councils can do a heap for their communities without necessarily having to directly fund it. These are the times when communities expect prudence and need enthusiasm.

There's no doubt that the next few years will be full of challenge, but prudent aspiration is the navigation tool that can see the BOP, not only weather the storm, but come out of it stronger.