The Government has passed its major Three Waters reform bill into law, with Labour the only party supporting the controversial legislation.

Labour voted the Water Services Entities Bill through its third reading in the House on Thursday morning, laying the groundwork for four public water entities to be created by July 2024.

It comes after a torrid week in which the party reversed an 'entrenchment” clause it entered into the bill two weeks ago.

The bill was opposed by National and ACT, both of which have promised to repeal the reforms. It was also opposed for the first time by the Green Party, as the public ownership of water assets would not be entrenched in law as the party hoped, and by the Māori Party as it fell short of proper 'co-governance”.

The new law marked another step on a long road for the Three Waters reforms, which was spurred on by a report into an outbreak of campylobacter in Havelock North's water supply in 2016, which hospitalised 45 people and possibly contributed to the death of three people.

Though many agree the country's patchy and inadequate water services need reform, the Government's proposed creation of four public water entities to manage water has caused ire across the country, including from many councils who argued they would lose control of valuable water assets and claimed local democracy was being reduced.

Local Government Minister Nanaia Mahuta, speaking in the House, says the Government wanted to 'fix a problem that has been left to languish for the last two decades”.

'Just this morning we heard of the water contamination issues in Waimate. Just last week in the Matamata-Piako district we heard of a community on a boil water notice, and they are not isolated events.

"But, sadly, no one is outraged because it's a common experience and all communities want the problem to be fixed.”

The Water Services Entities Act would enact the substantive portion of the Government's reform of the country's Three Waters – drinking, waste, and storm water. Four new public water entities that span the country would take control of water assets from councils, and councils would receive a 'shareholding” of the new entities.

High-level representative groups that would oversee the water entities' professional boards would be split 50/50 between appointees from the various councils and mana whenua, under the principle of 'co-governance” – a particularly controversial aspect of the reform.

Standards for water services, including drinking water quality, will be regulated by a new authority already created, Taumata Arowai.

'We know that if we do nothing, the significant cost of fixing this mess of water infrastructure will fall on future ratepayers–our kids, your kids, and the next generation. We know that New Zealanders can't afford that. I want the burden to fall on our kids,” Mahuta says.

National Party local government spokesperson Simon Watts says he had a direct message to people working on water infrastructure in councils across the country.

'The next 12 months will be unsettling and challenging but be forewarned; National will repeal this bill, undo the other statutory amendments, and dissolve any obligations created by this bill in regards to employment funding and financing. National will work with you, not against you.”

Green Party local government spokesperson Eugenie Sage says public ownership of water assets was 'absolutely critical” to ensure good water services, so the party would not support the bill without its entrenchment clause.

The Greens two weeks ago put forward a supplementary order paper, supported by Labour, which 'entrenched” public ownership of water assets by requiring any future law change occur only with 60% or Parliament's support or a public referendum.

After outcry from constitutional law experts at the use of an entrenchment clause for a matter that was not part of New Zealand's constitution, Labour accepted this was a 'mistake” and reversed the clause on Tuesday afternoon.

Te Paati Māori co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer says the party supported aspects of the law, though believed it would not implement proper co-governance.

'The conservative race-baiting campaign run by right-wing extremists and misinformation has been successful so far in whipping up opposition to any increase of Māori decision-making on water rights, and people don't even understand what these reforms are proposing.

'They do not even guarantee Māori representation, let alone iwi representation, on the actual governance entities.”

The Government will also introduce a bill before the end of the year to create an economic regulator for water services, as part of the reforms.

- Thomas Manch/Stuff.