BRIEFING
Auckland East-West Motorway Link
Reason for this
To provide you with advice on giving effect to Government priorities for a
briefing
lower cost, better value Auckland East-West Motorway Link
Action required
Sign the attached letter to the New Zealand Transport Agency Board
Deadline
Reason for
deadline
Contact for telephone discussion (if required)
Telephone
First
Name
Position
Direct line
After hours
contact
Helen White
Manager, Investment
Bryn Gandy
Deputy Chief Executive
Strategy and
Investment
MINISTER’S COMMENTS:
Withheld under section 9(2)(a) of the Official Information Act 1982
Date:
1 November 2017
Briefing number:
OC05388
Attention:
Hon Phil Twyford
Security level:
In-confidence
Minister of Transport
Minister of Transport’s office actions
Noted
Seen
Approved
Needs change
Referred to
Withdrawn
Not seen by Minister
Overtaken by events
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Purpose of report
1.
This report provides you with information on how the Auckland East-West Motorway Link
(East-West Link) project may be reviewed. It attaches a letter to the NZ Transport Agency
Board (the Board) seeking its advice on how to achieve the Government’s priorities for a
lower cost, better value Auckland East-West link.
2.
The Government Policy Statement on land transport (GPS) sets out the Government’s
strategic priorities for land transport investment. It enables the Board to determine how it
puts together the National Land Transport Programme (the Programme), funded through the
National Land Transport Fund (the Fund). It may be helpful to read this East-West Link
report alongside our report on achieving your priorities through the GPS. The separate report
explains the GPS mechanism, and the associated funding regime in more depth.
Background
3.
The East-West Link is a proposed investment in the National Land Transport Programme
2015-2018, with construction proposed to start in 2018.
4.
The East-West Link has been identified as a transport project that the Government would not
want to proceed in its current form. The Government is seeking a project that would both
cost less and have a higher benefit cost ratio than the current East-West Link proposal.
Giving effect to Government priorities for a lower costs, more cost effective Auckland east-
west link
5.
You have asked how the Government’s intentions for the East-West Link might be given
effect.
6.
You would be able to achieve the outcome you seek through a letter from you, as the
Minister of Transport, to the Board. The letter would invite the Board to identify how it would
achieve Government priorities specifically those stated for the East-West Link. This letter
would also invite the Board to identify whether it requires any amendments to the GPS to
give effect to this advice.
7.
The letter may follow a discussion between the Minister and the Board about Government
priorities.
8.
If the Board identify that the GPS needs to be amended, then, depending on how quickly this
change is required, it may involve amending the current GPS 2015 or including provision in a
new GPS 2018.
9.
At a later point during the development of a new GPS, you may choose to confirm the
delivery of Government priorities through the Ministerial expectations in the GPS. In addition,
you may consider using the Letter of Expectations issued under the Crown Entities Act
2004).
10.
In any of these actions, it is important to ensure that the Board’s statutorily independent
functions (found in section 95 (2) of the Land Transport Management Act 2003 – the Act) are
respected and, as per section 70 of the Act, that the GPS is not used to direct the Board.
11.
The effect of these two sections of the Act mean that a GPS cannot be constructed in such a
way as to remove the Board’s ability to determine which projects proceed or do not proceed
under the Programme using funds from the National Land Transport Fund (the Fund). Nor
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can other instruments (e.g. Letters of Expectations) be used to direct the NZ Transport
Agency Board in the matters that it is statutorily independent.
12.
We have considered other options that could be available to you to give effect to the
Government’s priorities for the East-West Link. For example, we considered recasting the
strategic direction and associated funding ranges in the GPS as a first step (that is, before
inviting the Board to provide advice), amending legislation to delay and require restructuring
of the East-West Link, as well as using actions under the Crown Entities Act 2004.
13.
These options are not recommended as you are able to achieve what you seek under the
existing framework.
Allocation of savings
14.
The Government’s transport initiatives identify that $1.2 bil ion would be made available from
a lower cost, better value East-West Link.
15.
Any savings to the Fund from implementing lower cost and/or more cost effective land
transport investments become available for other land transport investments and are guided
by the GPS. Decisions on the use of Fund savings to fund other projects in the Programme
are made by the Board exercising its independent powers. For example, savings may be
used to accelerate existing projects in the Programme or to bring new projects into the
Programme. Savings may also be used to keep spending within GPS funding bands rather
than for specific projects.
16.
You could consider inviting the Board to identify what projects would progress if $1.2 billion
were achieved from savings in the Programme and were available for reallocation. However,
until a new GPS is issued and the Programme for 2018-2021 is developed, it may be difficult
for the Board to undertake this exercise in a meaningful way. You may wish to signal your
interest in a further report from the Board on how it has reprioritised projects within the
Programme given Government priorities signalled in the new GPS.
Recommendations
17.
The recommendations are that you:
(a)
Invite the NZ Transport Agency Board to advise you on how they would give
Yes/No
effect to the Government’s priority for a lower cost, better value Auckland
East-West link
(b)
Sign the attached letter to Chris Moller, Chair of the NZ Transport Agency
Yes/No
Board
(c)
Copy this briefing to the Associate Minister of Transport (Hon Julie Anne
Genter
Yes/No
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MINISTER’S SIGNATURE:
DATE:
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Chris Moller
Chair
New Zealand Transport Agency Board
Private Bag 6995
Wellington 6141
Dear Chris
Government priorities for land transport The Government has identified a number of areas where it is seeking change in the type of projects
and programmes that are given priority for land transport investment. One of the priorities that the
Government has identified is the Auckland East-West Motorway Link where it is seeking a lower
cost, better value option.
I am therefore writing to you to invite the Board to advise me on how it believes a lower cost, better
value Auckland East-West link could be achieved.
I would welcome the Board’s advice on this matter, alongside any comments the Board has on
adjustments that might need to be made to the Government Policy Statement for land transport
(GPS) to enable the Board to put its advice into effect.
I am looking to make decisions on the GPS over the next few weeks. I would appreciate your advice
in time for any amendments to the GPS to be considered as part of the GPS development process.
I would also welcome a report from you, once the National Land Transport Programme 2018-2021
has been developed, that identifies how the Board has prioritised and reprioritised projects within
the Programme given Government priorities signalled in the new GPS. For my information, I would
appreciate this report giving examples of the key projects affected.
Yours sincerely
Hon Phil Twyford
Minister of Transport
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