2026/27 Draft Annual Business Plan and Budget and Draft Long Term Financial Plan 2026/27 - 2035/36

UPDATE

On 16 June 2026 Council adopted the 2026/27 Draft Annual Business Plan and Budget and Draft Long Term Financial Plan 2026/27 - 2035/36.

The 2026/27 Draft Annual Business Plan and Budget forecasts a return to an operating surplus position that positions Council to begin reducing debt while maintaining the services and standards our community expects.

Our proposed 5.69 per cent rate increase continues our multi-year budget repair strategy, following last year’s 6.95 per cent rise. While we recognise the impact of cost-of-living pressures, this increase is necessary to ensure long-term financial sustainability.

Council will always need to find the balance between what residents expect Council to deliver and what is appropriate and affordable for Council to provide with the revenue available.

The key challenges facing Council in the 2026/27 year include, but are notlimited to:

• achieving financial sustainability.
• achieving an optimum balance between Council rates and services.
• balancing increasing costs versus ratepayer expectations.
• operating in an environment of increasing cost of living pressures in our community.
• debt reduction.
• continuing to focus on effectiveness and efficiency.
• maintaining assets to set standards.
• performance of subsidiaries.
• cost of the 2026 local government election and induction and training of the new council.
• increased cost of water.
• increased waste depot waste disposal.

All the detail on the budget and the long term financial plan, including a snapshot of the proposed new operational and capital projects can be found in the library to the right of this page.