News

Business South has lodged a formal submission on the Queenstown Lakes District Council Draft Annual Plan 2026–2027. The submission draws on our Quarterly Business Survey and reflects the views of businesses of all sizes across the district. 

The context: a business community under pressure 

The vast majority of businesses report that rising costs are having a moderate to significant impact on their operations, and not one respondent expects those costs to ease over the next twelve months. Consumer confidence is the number-one barrier to growth. Against this backdrop, the Annual Plan's proposed rates increase, and for many commercial properties, considerably more than the district average, requires careful scrutiny. 

We congratulate Council on the significant work done to reduce the increase from its original trajectory, and we acknowledge that is a genuine achievement. But three consecutive years of above-inflation increases are taking a cumulative toll, and our submission makes clear that the business community is watching closely. 

What we are asking for 

Our submission covers seven key areas: 

Rates and affordability. Fiscal discipline must be a sustained commitment, not a one-year measure. Commercial ratepayers in some locations face increases well above the district average and deserve transparency on why. 

User fees and charges. Where fees increase consenting, planning, environmental health, alcohol licensing — service levels and turnaround times must improve in step. 

How Council engages with business. Only a small minority of businesses rate Council's engagement with business on decision-making as good or better unchanged since our 2024 submission. We are calling for a regular structured forum with the business community and for Business South and the local chambers to be active participants in the QLDC of the Future redesign process. 

Core infrastructure. Roads, parking, water, wastewater, and worker housing must come before discretionary spending. Frankton corridor congestion, Wānaka parking, and the worker housing crisis are constraining businesses across every sector. 

Upper Clutha. The needs of businesses in Wānaka, Hāwea, and Luggate facing some of the highest rates increases in the district, deserve equal attention alongside those in Queenstown. 

Long-Term Plan 2027–2037. We have provided input on all four emerging LTP themes and highlighted the Otago Central Lakes Regional Deal MOU, Invest Otago as a capital investment mechanism, and the strategic opportunity of the University of Otago growing presence in the district. 

Working alongside the chambers 

Our submission is broadly aligned with the priorities expressed by the Queenstown Business Chamber in their February 2026 LTP pre-engagement feedback, and we are equally supportive of the work of the Wānaka Business Chamber. We believe a unified business community voice carries more weight, and we are committed to working alongside both chambers and Council as constructive partners.