Susan Short
Susan @DEMOCRACYACTION
143sc
  • Apr 08, 2019

< April 2019 newsletter


Hastings District Council joins the Hall of Shame

A big thank you to those who contacted Hasting District councillors to encourage them to vote against the proposal to enable four members of the Maori Joint Committee to sit and vote on the council’s four standing committees. Unfortunately, enough councillors (10-4) felt able to turn their back on democracy by appointing unelected Maori to all committees. 

This is despite currently having five councillors who have identified as being of Maori descent, (according to the HDC website).

Mayoral hopeful Stuart Perry has already come out strongly against the move when he wrote in the Hawke’s Bay Today on Friday 29 March that “making decisions about the direction of our community is the responsibility of those councillors we elect”.

It is important to let those who vote against the undermining of our democracy know that we appreciate their stand. Please send messages of support to the four councillors who did so:

Cr Malcom Dixon [email protected]

Cr Rod Heaps [email protected]

Cr Simon Nixon [email protected]

Cr Kevin Watkins [email protected]

Media Coverage:

Radio NZ: Hastings councillors vote in favour of more Māori representation in committees

NZ Herald: Tears and singing as Hastings District Council votes to appoint tangata whenua representation

Point of Order: Another Battle of Hastings – and one in the eye for those bloody democrats


Go back to the April 2019 newsletter

RELATED ARTICLES


Local Government Review Call for Submissions

Feb 18, 2023
The juggernaut advancing major constitutional changes to the way our country is governed continues to roll on, much of it flying under the radar. The Government’s radical restructuring agenda includes a review of local government, the purpose of which is “to identify how our system of local democracy and governance needs to evolve over the next 30 years, to improve the wellbeing of New Zealand communities and the environment, and actively embody Te Tiriti partnership”. Continue reading

Future for Local Government review proposes radical change

Dec 14, 2022
As part of the Government’s wide-reaching reform agenda, (think education and health sectors, three waters, the conservation estate, the RMA replacement), a two-year ministerial review into the future for Local Government was launched in April 2021. The purpose of the review is “to identify how our system of local democracy and governance needs to evolve over the next 30 years, to improve the wellbeing of New Zealand communities and the environment, and actively embody Te Tiriti partnership”. Continue reading

LGNZ has lost the plot!

Nov 06, 2022
Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ), an organisation that purportedly represents the interests of local authorities (and by extension local communities), appears to have changed its prime allegiance from local authorities to central government. Continue reading

A recipe for ‘differentiated citizenship’

Nov 06, 2022
The Government’s radical plan to impose co-governance over all aspects of the New Zealand government came a step closer with the release of the Review into the Future for Local Government draft report. Read the report here. Continue reading

COUNCILS TO BE FORCED TO CONSIDER MĀORI WARDS EVERY SIX YEARS

Aug 01, 2022
Local Government Minister Nanaia Mahuta wants to make it mandatory for councils to consider Māori wards. “Under the proposed changes, when councils undertake their regular Representation Review every six years, the first step must be a decision about whether to establish Māori wards or constituencies. Currently there is no obligation to consider Māori wards at all”, said Ms Mahuta. Continue reading

GOVERNMENT SET TO ENDORSE RADICAL CHANGE TO ELECTORAL LAW

Aug 01, 2022
The Canterbury Regional Council (Ngāi Tahu) Bill, creating permanent Ngāi Tahu representation on Environment Canterbury (ECAN), undergoes its third reading this week. This legislation represents a significant shift away from two key principles of democracy: equal suffrage and accountability at the ballot box. Continue reading

Radical changes to local government afoot

Jun 07, 2022
A Ministerial review into the future for Local Government is underway “to consider how New Zealand’s system of local democracy and governance will need to evolve over the next 30 years, in order to improve the wellbeing of New Zealanders, and actively embody the Treaty partnership”. Ārewa ake te Kaupapa – Raising the platform Continue reading

ARE COUNCILLORS BEING SET UP TO FAIL?

Jun 07, 2022
As local body elections loom in September/October, concerns are being expressed that councillors are insufficiently resourced to effectively represent their constituents. Continue reading

Taupō District Council throws democracy under the bus!

May 06, 2022
Are the current murmurings of Mt Ruapehu a sign that the gods are not happy with the new Taupō Council agreement?  Taupō District Council recently signed a Mana Whakahono ā Rohe agreement with Ngāti Tūrangitukua that has taken a statutory obligation under the RMA much further than required under the legislation - to a whole new level of co-governance. This agreement includes of a range of policy, planning and operational areas outside of the RMA. Continue reading

Council Codes of Conduct - a tool for muzzling councillors?

Apr 06, 2022
Former Prime Minister Sir Bill English described Codes of Conduct as a threat to democracy a good 15 years ago, but we didn't heed his warning. Today they are being used by Councils as a tool to silence our elected representatives - blocking criticism by councillors. This is undermining the democratic process.  Codes of Conduct are designed to ensure the reputation of the Council is upheld within the community. They are not meant to be used as a means of preventing elected members from expressing their views. However, it appears this is happening to an alarming degree. Continue reading

Submission on the Canterbury Regional Council (Ngāi Tahu Representation) Bill

Feb 03, 2022
  WRITTEN SUBMISSION Democracy Action does not support the Bill.  We do not support establishing iwi-based power by appointment in our governance arrangements. Therefore, we oppose the purpose of the Act, that is, to enable Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu to appoint up to 2 members to the Canterbury Regional Council.  We urge the Government to reject the Bill in its entirety.  Continue reading

Future for Local Government Review signals Treaty-based local governance

Nov 04, 2021
Local government is facing a wave of radical changes - such as the overhaul of the three waters sector and the resource management system - that will significantly affect their traditional roles and functions.  Continue reading

Do your Council’s representation arrangements fail the equal rights test?

Sep 03, 2021
Councils owe a duty of fair representation to all the citizens they represent, yet this fundamental principle of democratic governance is being ignored by councils as they build “Treaty partnerships” with their Māori citizens. This is very apparent at Rotorua Lakes Council, where undemocratic arrangements have been introduced to “strengthen the voice of Māori in our decision making”.  Continue reading

Government plans to seize ratepayers’ assets - without compensation

Aug 02, 2021
Local Government Minister Hon Nanaia Mahuta has announced further details of the Government's regulatory and structural reform of water service delivery in New Zealand. The plan is for an unprecedented transfer of billions of dollars of ratepayer-funded assets from local bodies to four entities. Continue reading

Local Government update

Aug 02, 2021
Government plans a local government system that actively embodies the Treaty partnership. On 23 April 2021 the Minister of Local Government established a review into the future for Local Government:  “The overall purpose of the Review is, as a result of the cumulative changes being progressed as part of the Government’s reform agenda, to identify how our system of local democracy and governance needs to evolve over the next 30 years, to improve the wellbeing of New Zealand communities and the environment, and actively embody the Treaty partnership”. Continue reading

Tauranga citizens to be further disenfranchised

May 04, 2021
The anti-democratic madness continues apace in Tauranga. Following the Government-appointed Commissioners recent decision to establish a Māori ward, they have also agreed to a new committee – the Strategy, Finance and Risk Committee - which embodies the 'Treaty partnership', but goes further than that, effectively shutting out the wider community. Continue reading

Māori wards update - May

May 04, 2021
Even though time and time again referenda have shown that most New Zealanders are opposed to race-based voting systems, 24 local authorities have recently either made the decision to proceed with Māori wards or have indicated an intention to do so. In addition to those mentioned in the April edition of the Democracy Action newsletter, the following have voted to proceed down this path: Continue reading

The cost to ratepayers of implementing the partnership principle

May 04, 2021
Photo: Penny Smart, Chair of Northland Regional Council The partnership-with-iwi provisions are creating significant cost pressures for councils. This includes large and on-going costs associated with implementing and maintaining the variety of ways Iwi/Māori are involved in local government and contribute to council decision making. Continue reading

Further Councils Considering Establishing Māori Wards

Apr 09, 2021
Councils: Waipa, Hawke’s Bay, Horizons, Horowhenua, Hamilton As mentioned in last month’s newsletter, the new Local Electoral (Māori Wards and Māori Constituencies) Amendment Act 2021 extended the deadline for councils to consider Māori wards for the 2022 triennial local government elections to 21 May 2021. This has brought forward a flurry of proposals and votes.  Continue reading

Government legislates away a democratic right

Mar 16, 2021
“Labour will ensure that major decisions about local democracy involve full participation of the local population from the outset.”  So pledged the Labour Party during the 2020 election campaign. Just four months later they have broken this promise in spectacular fashion, passing under urgency the Local Electoral (Māori Wards and Māori Constituencies) Amendment Act - thereby abolishing the right of local communities to petition for a referendum on Maori wards or constituencies. Continue reading

Step by step, the undermining of democracy continues……….

Feb 05, 2021
Maori wards are not the only avenue for separate local government representation for Māori. Continue reading

No respect for democracy - Government to muzzle citizens

Feb 05, 2021
In a shock announcement, the Government reveals it intends to use the extraordinary powers reserved for use when the nation is under threat to get rid of legislation that enables referenda on Māori wards. Continue reading

We want a vote on Māori wards!

Nov 27, 2020
The Local Electoral Act’s binding poll system is a form of direct democracy that enables local electors to choose for themselves by simple majority vote whether or not they support race-based council representation. However, to trigger a poll 5 percent of electors must support a petition to hold the referendum. Campaigns to do so have already started in several regions. Please offer your support and encouragement to those who are standing up for the right to have a say on whether we support designated race-based seats at the council table. Continue reading

Mayors seek law change to thwart citizens’ right to have a say on Māori wards

Oct 16, 2020
Every six years local bodies are obliged to review the ward system. We have seen a flurry of such activity over the past few months, with both New Plymouth and Tauranga acting to establish Māori wards, and others considering whether to follow suit.  Continue reading

More councils adopt racially-selected appointees

Dec 12, 2019
Despite constituents strongly opposing separate race-based representation, as shown in referenda held in 2018, the number of councils across New Zealand which have appointed unelected members with voting rights to council committees has grown exponentially over the last couple of years. The following are examples (by no means the total number) of councils who have recently taken the obligation to consult with Māori to an undemocratic level: Continue reading

Yahoo! A double win for democracy

Dec 12, 2019
We end the year with the welcome news that the bill making it harder to remove the Māori seats from Parliament has been voted down at the second reading, with New Zealand First opposing the change. Only Labour and the Green Party supported the legislation. The bill cleared its first hurdle in Parliament last year with the unlikely support of New Zealand First, which opposes the Māori seats. The party wanted to use the bill as a vehicle to hold a two-part referendum on the seats, asking whether they should be entrenched or done away with altogether. But no referendum was added after the select committee stage. Continue reading

Local Body Elections 2019

Aug 03, 2019
The Democracy Action working group is preparing a set of questions to ask candidates. Please take the opportunity to call radio shows with guest candidates, and attend public meetings, to ask a question or two. Continue reading

The undermining of our democracy continues apace

Jul 01, 2019
Please see below some examples from around the country: Earlier this year the Minister of Conservation signed a partnership agreement between the ministry, DOC and Auckland iwi Ngai Tai ki Tamaki, to share in the management of natural resources, and cultural and historical heritage. Ngai Tai ki Tamaki’s role is that of guardians and stewards. They are seeking to establish an ‘iwi conservancy’ over land and taonga species. They are based at Umupuia, just south of Maraetai, on the shores of the Hauraki Gulf. Yet they claim an area of interest, and therefore influence, that stretches from north of Auckland, down to Tauranga, including the whole of the Coromandel Peninsula; much of the Manukau Harbour in the west, and out past Gt. Barrier Island in the east, as shown below. Continue reading

‘Partnership’ - a way of heading off costly litigation?

Apr 08, 2019
Last month we reported on the Horizons Regional Council vote to create a committee of councillors and iwi leaders to come up with strategies for managing Manawatū waterways. Continue reading

Auckland Plan 2050 Adopted – With The Anti-Democratic Provisions

Jun 06, 2018
The Auckland Plan 2050, the long-term strategy for Auckland’s growth and development, and which provides a framework to inform decisions, has been adopted by Auckland Council. Continue reading

Implementation of Treaty settlements creating significant cost pressures

Mar 04, 2019
The Waikato Regional Council’s draft submission to the Productivity Commission’s inquiry into Local Government Funding and Financing reveals that the implementation of Treaty of Waitangi settlements creates significant cost pressures for Council. The submission states that “the Council wishes to work with its iwi partners in partnership but notes that the costs to do so is significant to its ratepayers”. Continue reading

Good News - designated seats for Ngāi Tahu voted down

Apr 08, 2019
New Zealand First has scuppered Labour's bid to give Ngāi Tahu permanent seats on the Canterbury Regional Council, saying its special treatment for Māori. Shane Jones acknowledged the party's long-held position against separate seats for Māori on local body councils. Continue reading

Auckland Council’s ‘Our Water Future’ - Remember to have your say

Apr 08, 2019
Auckland Council recently released a discussion document on developing ‘a water strategy to ensure a secure, sustainable, and healthy future for water in Auckland’. We covered this issue in the March update, but to briefly recap, as to the advancement of a co-governance agenda, concerns centre on the following statements: Continue reading

The Waikato District Council Blueprint Project

Apr 08, 2019
It appears every act of special entitlement is simply used as a stepping stone to further power. We see an example of this in the Waikato District Council’s Blueprint project, with its pitch to build on the Joint Management Agreements and other agreements with iwi, and the proposal to appoint a ‘Maori Partnership Manager’ “to sit with the CE group, which will, appropriately, facilitate a “chief to chief” relationship” – with the assistance of an operational support person. There are only a few days left to have provide feedback. Go online to have your say by 5pm Monday 8 April. Continue reading

'Point of Order' goes into bat for democracy

May 05, 2019
Following the Hasting District Council’s decision to appoint Māori representatives with speaking and voting rights to its four standing committees, (thereby sparing them the need to campaign for election), Victoria University of Wellington published an article on its website headed Academics commend Hastings District Council for inclusive, effective decision-making. Continue reading

The welcome reinstatement of a democratic right

Jul 01, 2024
A more democratic approach to Māori wards is being proposed by the government, one which would allow voters to challenge any decision made by councils regarding Māori wards through a binding poll. This proposal is outlined in the Local Government (Electoral Legislation & Maori Wards & Maori Constituencies) Amendment Bill. Continue reading

Democracy Action oral submission to Auckland Council re: designated Māori seats

Oct 02, 2023
Oral submission to the Auckland Council Governing Body on 2 October 2023 Good morning your worship Mayor Brown and Councillors. Thank you for this opportunity to share our views on the council’s proposal to introduce designated Māori seats. I am here representing Democracy Action – a group of citizens advocating for the protection of democracy and equality of citizenship. Continue reading

Auckland Council rejects Māori seat proposal

Oct 28, 2023
After an impassioned debate, Auckland Council voted 11-9 against establishing Māori seats at the 2025 local body elections. Instead, they accepted a proposal put forward by Mayor Wayne Brown to look at Māori representation as part of a wider governance review to be undertaken by a working party made up of councillors and local board members. The working party has been asked to report back to the governing body by 31 December 2024, thereby missing the deadline to establish Māori seats for the 2025 election. Continue reading

Kāpiti Coast Council proposes Māori ward

Oct 01, 2023
Kāpiti Coast District Council is seeking the community’s views on whether to establish a Māori ward. A Māori ward councillor would represent citizens on the Maori roll. Feedback closes at 5pm Friday 13 October. See: https://haveyoursay.kapiticoast.govt.nz/MaoriWard Continue reading

Aucklanders' views to be sought on Māori wards

Aug 10, 2023
Following preliminary engagement with iwi and urban Māori in 2022, Auckland Council will shortly be asking Aucklanders for their feedback on whether they support - or do not support - the introduction of a dedicated Māori seat/s on Council. Public consultation will run from 21 August until 24 September. Continue reading

WDC joins the shameful councils debasing our democratic governance systems

Aug 03, 2019
Waikato District Council has unanimously given support for Māori representation on its principle Council Committees after the October 2019 local government elections. Mayor Allan Sanson said that the Waikato District Council – Waikato Tainui Joint Management Agreement (JMA) committee had made this a priority, saying the move has been "a long time coming". Continue reading

Electoral (Entrenchment of Māori Seats) Amendment Bill

May 05, 2019
On April 15, some of us attended the Maori Affairs Select Committee hearing in Auckland to support those presenting oral submissions in opposition to the Electoral (Entrenchment of Māori Seats) Amendment Bill. While more of the submitters at the hearing in Auckland spoke in favour of the bill than against, we were heartened to hear from Dan Bidois afterwards, (Dan is one of the National MPs on the committee), that the majority of the written submissions opposed entrenchment. Continue reading

National Party MPs support institutionalised racism

May 05, 2019
National List MP Jo Hayes, a member of the Maori Affairs Select Committee hearing submissions on the entrenchment of Maori seats, is pushing for National candidates to stand in the Māori seats. "Māori need special treatment because colonisation actually occurred for them, now we are seeing the results of that and it needs to be fixed," said Hayes. Continue reading

No to designated seats for Ngāi Tahu representatives on CRC

May 05, 2019
Last month we celebrated as the Canterbury Regional Council Ngai Tahu Representation Bill was voted down in parliament. Following this welcome news, hopefully many have written to Simon Bridges, Winston Peters and David Seymour to show appreciation for their stand, and to congratulate Shane Jones and Nick Smith for their speeches against the bill, as reported on RadioNZ, available HERE. If you have not done so, it’s not too late, we are sure they’d love to hear from you. Continue reading

NZ First vote yes to Bill seeking to entrench Maori Seats

Oct 05, 2018
A bill seeking to entrench the Māori seats into New Zealand electoral law – requiring a 75 per cent majority of Parliament to get rid of them - has passed its first reading in Parliament with the support of New Zealand First. See news report HERE. Continue reading

Have your say on the push to entrench Maori seats

Dec 03, 2018
Submissions close on December 14th. Te Tai Tonga MP Rino Tirikātene, the sponsor of the bill, wants to make it more difficult to abolish the Maori seats by ensuring any changes will need the support of 75 percent of MPs rather than the current simple majority. He is actively appealing to Maori through the Maori media to make their views known, see HERE and HERE (Radio Waatea). Continue reading

Have your say on the push to entrench Maori seats

Nov 06, 2018
Rino Tirikatene, who represents Labour in the Maori seat of Te Tai Tonga, is fighting to entrench the Maori seats, whereby a vote of 75 percent of MPs would be needed to get rid of them. Continue reading

Powered by people like you

Steve Ashley Tui Bellavi Allan Boucher Kerry Campbell Norrie Macleod John Boscawen Darcy Ungaro Roy McKone Karen Bridgman Laurie Matthews

Sign in with Facebook, Twitter or email.

Created with NationBuilder