Representation review coincides with Māori Ward decision

Tuesday, 15 June 2021

Now is your once-every-six-year chance to have your say on how Nelson City Council should work – how many councillors, how many wards, with community boards or without?

Nelsonians are being asked to have their say on how the council will be made up – including how many wards it might have and how many councillors there might be.

All local governments are required every six years to review how they represent their community, and this year it coincides with Nelson’s adoption of the Māori Ward system last month.

On Friday Nelson City Council opened its public consultation on its Shape Nelson page, in the form of an 11-question survey. A hardcopy of the survey is also available at Civic House and in public libraries.

Some questions are centred on the ward system, thanks to the changes that will follow the council’s resolution to adopt the Māori Ward system for its next election.

Nelson City Council’s decision to use the Māori Ward system means decisions must be made about the voting system for the city, like how many wards there might be, and whether people can stand for the city “at large” or just for their ward.

* Top of the south iwi back Māori Ward proposal

* Nelson Māori Ward not recommended to council due to expected public opposition

Having a Māori Ward means the Nelson City Council must also have at least one other ward. A decision needs to be made about how many wards the city will have, and how voting will work under the ward system.

In a statement the city council said the options include a ward-only system, a “mixed system … [with] some ward-based councillors and some ‘at large’ councillors voted for by the whole city”.

The survey is not covering whether Nelson should use the Māori Ward system – that decision has already been made.

There are also questions about whether Nelson should have community boards, how many there should be (if any) and their boundaries, and how many people should be on them.

The role of mayor will be voted for by the whole city, regardless of which system is settled on.

Other things that could change is the number of councillors representing the city. At the moment, Nelson is represented by 12 councillors and a mayor, for a total of 13 elected members sitting at the table.

Mayor Rachel Reese said she encouraged people to “take this opportunity to help shape the way our local democracy works”.

“This is a chance to influence how you are represented as a community, which is a key part of any democracy. In 2022 I will be encouraging everyone to get out and vote, but this year I want as many people as possible to give feedback to help shape the representation review.”

The consultation on representation closes on 11 July 2021.

(As the rules stand, only those on the national Māori electoral roll can vote for the Māori ward – but those who choose to vote on the Māori ward cannot vote for general ward candidates (and vice versa for those on the general roll).)