Canterbury growth puts infrastructure under pressure as leaders seek more funding

Bill BennettNZ Herald·11 Sep, 2026 05:00 AM9 mins to read Waimakariri Mayor Dan Gordon wants central government to contribute more directly, including paying rates on the services it uses and sharing GST revenue with councils.Canterbury is growing because people want to work there. Businesses want to invest there. And the region offers something increasingly difficult to find elsewhere: economic opportunity.“People are looking at the opportunities here for employment,” says Canterbury Regional Council chairman Deon Swiggs. With Canterbury’s unemployment rate among the lowest