Steven Gaskell: The Backdoor to Co-Governance - How the Local Government Commission Is Quietly Re-Wiring Democracy

Most New Zealanders have never heard of Brendan Duffy, Bonita Bigham, or Dr Sue Bidrose. And that, dear reader, is exactly the problem.

While the rest of us are busy working, paying rates, and hoping the council might one day fill in a pothole, these three unelected mandarins sit on the Local Government Commission a body most people couldn’t describe if their lives depended on it. Yet this little-known trio has an oversized say in how your town, city, and ultimately your democracy are going to look in the very near future.

Point of Order: Buzz from the Beehive - 25/10/24

Yelps tell us Willie Jackson was stung by Beehive news about Richard Prebble sitting on the Waitangi Tribunal

An announcement from the Beehive yesterday had the distinct whiff of “jobs for the boys” about it – the appointment of Richard Prebble as a member of the Waitangi Tribunal.

Nevertheless it’s fair to suppose there will be significant support for the prospect – or hope – of Prebble tempering the tribunal’s zeal for censuring the Crown.

Point of Order: Local Govt Commission over-rides Rotorua’s undemocratic voting model – but what will Labour-majority Parliament do?

Kiwiblog today reports that the Local Government Commission has completed a determination for Rotorua which will result in three Māori Ward Councillors being elected, but without sacrificing equality of suffrage.

As Kiwiblog tells us, the commission favours –

* An urban general ward – 48,410 people elect six councillors – 8,068 population per councillor.

 

* A Māori ward – 21,700 people elect three councillors – 7,233 population per councillor

* A rural general ward – 7,200 people elect one councillor – 7,200 population per councillor.

This means the commission has rejected Rotorua Lakes Council’s model which comprised one Māori ward seat, one general ward seat and eight at-large seats.

To implement the council model, special legislation has been introduced to Parliament to over-ride requirements of the Local Elections Act.

Mike Butler: Maori representation complaint

A Local Government Commission flyer prompted a further complaint to the Auditor General yesterday, this time alleging misrepresentation of the role of the Maori Board and the Regional Planning Committee on the proposed Hawke’s Bay Council.

Napier ratepayer Sarah Taylor, who lodged the complaint, said a full-page diagram depicting the future composition of the amalgamated council on the flyer titled “Hawke’s Bay Councils – proposed changes” completely ignores the iwi appointed representatives on the Maori Board and Regional Planning Committee.

Mike Butler: 63 percent oppose amalgamation

A Consumerlink poll shows that Hawke’s Bay voters are 63 percent against amalgamating the five councils in the region. Over the past week Consumerlink asked 985 voters whether they would vote for or against a proposal for a Hawke's Bay Council to cover Napier city, Wairoa, Hastings, and Central Hawke's Bay, which would take over the responsibilities of the Hawke's Bay Regional Council, and have five local boards and a Maori board, with headquarters in Napier.

To reflect the proportion of voters in each district, 473 responses were sought from Hastings as 47.3 percent of the total population of the region, 426 from Napier, 58 from Wairoa and 42 from Central Hawke’s Bay.

Mike Butler: Co-governance shambles for HB

A two-pronged push is under way in Hawke’s Bay to create a race-based local government shambles that includes tribal appointees on both a Hawke’s Bay Regional Planning Committee and a Maori board. The Hawke’s Bay Regional Planning Committee, a co-governance body on the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council, has existed since April 10, 2012, although legislation to legitimise the panel is still going through Parliament. A Maori board is included in the Local Government Commission’s latest proposal to amalgamate five local bodies in Hawke’s Bay.

Bear in mind a democratic country, government, or political system, is governed by representatives who are elected by the people, and a democratic process is based on the idea that everyone should have equal rights and should be involved in making important decisions.

Mike Butler: Pushing amalgamation co-governance

While submitting against council amalgamation in Hawke’s Bay I argued against the creation of a Maori Board. A Local Government Commission member told me to re-read Article 2 of the Treaty of Waitangi that he asserted promised to Maori co-governance.

Proposals for council amalgamations are in progress in Northland and in Hawke’s Bay. The commission heard oral submissions in Napier and Hastings this week.

Frank Newman: Closed mind to public opposition

In December the Local Government Commission (LGC) issued a Draft Proposal for Reorganisation of Local Government in Northland. It recommended a unitary authority be created by merging the Far North District Council (FNDC), Whangarei District Council (WDC), Kaipara District Council (KDC) and Northland Regional Council (NRC). Since then the people of Northland have turned out to have their say. 1850 people made submissions, 165 (9%) were for and 1685 (91%) against.

Last week the Local Government Commission (LGC) held the last of their hearings about the proposed reform of local councils in Northland. In a democracy (where one assumes public opinion counts) one would expect 91% against to be the end of the matter. Not so, unfortunately. I have no doubt the three member panel will disregard the overwhelming opposition and continue with their amalgamation recommendation. Well, they are going to have a fight on their hands.