Wellingtonians will get independent scrutiny of how Tiaki Wai spends their money, with the Government imposing tougher regulation on the region's water services provider, Local Government Minister Simon Watts and Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Cameron Brewer say.
The Government has accepted a Commerce Commission recommendation to impose performance requirement regulation on Tiaki Wai for the next 10 years - the first time this tool has been used on a water services provider in New Zealand.
"Wellingtonians are being asked to pay a great deal, and they are entitled to know exactly what they are getting for it," Mr Watts says.
"Decades of local underinvestment have left this region with water networks that are not up to standard, and the cost of fixing them is now landing directly on households. Given the scale of investment required, strong accountability is essential.
"The Government will be watching Tiaki Wai very closely. I have a low threshold for considering further intervention if we do not see clear and sustained performance improvements," Mr Watts says.
"This is about restoring confidence that the money being collected is delivering the infrastructure and services people have been promised."
"Under Local Water Done Well, water charges are ring-fenced. For years the cost of water services was buried inside rates while networks were left to deteriorate – which is partly why Wellington ended up here," Mr Brewer says.
"Transparency on its own is not enough. The Commission – which is the sector’s independent regulator - needs to be able to do more than publish information, and that’s why we are giving it the power to set binding requirements on Tiaki Wai's performance.
"That means the Commission can specify what Tiaki Wai must deliver and by when, giving greater assurance that major investments are prioritised appropriately, delivered effectively, and are achieving the outcomes Wellingtonians are paying for.”
"The Commission has signalled its initial focus will be the critical, high-risk projects Tiaki Wai has already committed to,” Mr Brewer says.
"Tiaki Wai faces an estimated $25 billion of investment over the next 30 years. That is an enormous amount of other people's money, and Wellingtonians are entitled to expect it goes into pipes and treatment plants.
"This is hard accountability, enforced by an independent regulator with real teeth. It is part of this Government's plan to fix the basics and build the future, so the money Kiwis hand over buys them the services they were promised," Mr Brewer says.
Tiaki Wai is the council-owned water organisation responsible for delivering water services in the Wellington metropolitan area from 1 July 2026, serving around 155,000 homes and businesses.
The Commerce Commission has been the economic regulator for water services since August 2025, under Part 4 of the Commerce Act 1986.
Following the Commission's recommendation, the Government has agreed to impose performance requirement regulation on Tiaki Wai's water supply and wastewater services for 10 years. This regulates the performance of water services, other than prices. The Commission could, for example, require Tiaki Wai to meet requirements on asset condition, consult it on certain investment decisions, or make certain investments.
The Commission separately confirmed additional information disclosure obligations for Tiaki Wai on 12 August 2026.
As a next step the Government will seek an Order in Council to impose the regulation, after which the Commission will consult on the requirements it intends to set.