Responding to reports criticising Tiaki Wai’s water meter cost estimates, Wellington Ratepayers’ Alliance spokesman James Ross said:

“Roughly $4,000 per household for water meters is outrageous."

“Tiaki Wai says these were early indicative costs, but they were so clearly excessive they should never have been published. Infrastructure Commission Chair Raveen Jaduram is right to question them and point to better alternatives."

“If Watercare can roll out smart meters across Auckland at a fraction of the cost to households, and a private individual can price a basic meter and installation at under $300, why is Tiaki Wai starting with numbers as high as $4,000 per household?

“These inflated figures raise serious concerns that Tiaki Wai has inherited the same poor cost-control culture as its predecessor. Wellingtonians were promised efficiencies from merged water services, but these numbers suggest the same old waste in a bigger bureaucracy."