Representation review pānui 13 - Councils

Kia ora koutou,

Welcome to our latest pānui. This update covers:

• Summary of decisions on Māori wards and constituencies
• Progress around the motu
• What we need from you

Summary of decisions on Māori wards and constituencies

All councils required to have now made decisions regarding their Māori wards and constituencies.  The councils and their decisions are outlined below. 

Resolved to retain Māori wards/constituencies (Group 1)

• Far North District Council
• Gisborne District Council
• Hamilton City Council
• Hastings District Council
• Hawke’s Bay Regional Council
• Horizons Regional Council
• Horowhenua District Council
• Manawatu District Council
• Masterton District Council
• New Plymouth District Council
• Marlborough District Council
• Matamata-Piako District Council
• Nelson City Council
• Northland Regional Council
• Ōtorohanga District Council
• Porirua City Council
• Palmerston North City Council
• Rangitikei District Council
• Rotorua District Council
• Ruapehu District Council
• South Taranaki District Council
• South Wairarapa District Council
• Stratford District Council
• Taranaki Regional Council
• Tararua District Council
• Taupo District Council
• Waikato District Council
• Waipa District Council
• Wellington City Council
• Whakatane District Council
• Whangarei District Council

Resolved to disestablish Māori wards/constituencies (Group 1)

• Kaipara District Council (and carry out a shortened review)

Resolved to rescind decision to establish Māori wards/constituencies (Group 2)

• Upper Hutt City Council (and revert to the status quo)

Progress around the motu

All councils carrying out representation reviews are now well underway.  A snapshot of where various councils are up to in the process is as follows:

Councils who have completed their representation review with no appeals received (and no further action required by the Commission)

• Gore District Council
• Hauraki District Council
• Waikato Regional Council
• Waimate District Council
• Westland District Council

Completed with no submissions received (and no further action required by the Commission)

• Chatham Islands Council
• Grey District Council
• Kaikoura District Council
• West Coast Regional Council

Determination issued by Commission

• Central Otago District Council

Hearing completed (and a determination from the Commission pending)

• Hurunui District Council

Completed with no appeals received but non-compliant with the +/-10% rule (and a determination from the Commission required)

• Far North District Council
• Timaru District Council

Final proposals resolved and waiting for appeals

• Ashburton District Council
• Auckland Council
• Bay of Plenty Regional Council
• Carterton District Council
• Central Hawke’s Bay District Council
• Hutt City Council
• Kawerau District Council
• Napier City Council
• Ōpōtiki District Council
• Southland Regional Council
• Thames-Coromandel District Council
• Waitomo District Council
• Whanganui District Council

Submissions on initial proposal received but yet to resolve final proposal

• Buller District Council
• Clutha District Council
• Environment Canterbury
• Kapiti Coast District Council
• Otago Regional Council
• Selwyn District Council
• Southland District Council
• South Wairarapa District Council
• Tasman District Council
• Waipa District Council
• Wairoa District Council
• Waitaki District Council

Initial proposal resolved and waiting for submissions

• Greater Wellington Regional Council
• Kaipara District Council
• Western Bay of Plenty District Council

What we need from you

Thank you to the councils who are keeping us updated as they move through the representation review process and are uploading documents to CoLab. 

As a reminder, each council needs to keep the following organisations informed of its representation review’s progress:

• The Local Government Commission
• The Surveyor-General
• The Government Statistician, and
• The Remuneration Authority

Territorial authorities and regional councils also need to provide each other with copies of their initial and final proposals.

This is to help these organisations anticipate and plan the work required of them as result of representation reviews.

Local authorities are required to provide the above parties a copy of the:

• resolution on its initial proposals (section 19L)
• public notice of its final proposals, if submissions were received on the initial proposals (section 19N)
• public notice of its final proposals, if no submissions were received on the initial proposals, or if no appeals and/or objections were received (section 19Y)

In addition, GIS shapefiles for the initial and final proposals should be provided to the Commission in accordance with the guidelines on our website where a proposal changes boundaries of electoral areas.

Ngā mihi

The Local Government Commission Team

The information contained in these updates is intended to support well-informed council decisions and good practice throughout the representation review process.  Specific representation arrangements are decisions for each council.  The information is provided by Commission officials and does not reflect a particular view or preference of the Commission for any specific representation arrangement.  Where representation is determined by the Commission, each determination is considered on its own merits taking into account the information available to the Commission.