Encroachments Episode Four (Final)

Councillors hearing submissions on the encroachment policy said that they hadn't realised the proposed changes would have on individual ratepayers. They dismissed suggestions by submitters that this was a money grabbing exercise. 'No', they said, "it was merely intended to have fairer results so people in the outer suburbs paid less that those with more prestigious properties.

But surely if fairness was your aim wouldn't you ask your policy advisers to crunch the numbers to find out just what the effects were? In fact whatever the aims good governance requires all public bodies - and private boards to have costs and other financial impacts at their finger tips before they make any decisions. A bit worrying really.