Tauranga City councillors have sanctioned proposals to skyrocket rates by at least 40 per cent over the next three years so current rates of $3000pa will hit $4500pa on a compounding basis by 2021. Councillors are moonstruck and fixated about the nice-to-have things, and their follies, such as smashing down a sound administration building, are coming home to roost. Councillors continue to ignore essential infrastructure work and Tauranga has major rubbish collection, sewage and traffic issues looming.

TCC staff numbers have gone through the roof, as has the staff wages bill, both reaching crisis levels. The polis and their bureaucracy are, to coin a phrase, ‘fiscal fools'. Be warned – lurking in the wings for the upcoming by-election are several ‘has-beens' who will embrace this profligate mind-set enthusiastically.

I have said since 2010 that a local government commissioner needs to be appointed to clean up Tauranga and face reality because, in my view, successive councils have lacked accountability, transparency, honesty and financial nous. Most are inept, not fit to govern and pose an extreme risk to TCC ratepayers' financial well-being.

You can hide many things in local government but you can't hide rate hikes and spiralling debt. The SunLive poll shows 94 per cent don't abide the rating aberration.

R Paterson, Matapihi.