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Resolutions
That Hawke’s Bay Regional Council:
1. Receives and considers
the “Hawke’s Bay Regional Council Representation Arrangements
Review” staff report in conjunction with the written submissions
received and provided to Council, as well as verbal submissions heard on 13
October 2021.
2. Agrees that the
decisions to be made are significant, and acknowledges the
consultation procedures required for Representation Reviews under the Local
Electoral Act.
Kirton/van
Beek
CARRIED
3. Having considered the
submissions relating to constituency names, affirms the
inclusion of the Māori place names in the names of the General
constituencies and confirms the names as detailed in the Initial Proposal.
Kirton/Ormsby
CARRIED
4. Accepts the
arguments made in submissions for the retention of the Wairoa Constituency as
previously established and amends the Final Proposal to reflect that.
Williams/Lambert
For: Williams,
Barker, Taylor, Foley, Lambert
Against: Kirton,
Foss, Ormsby, van Beek
CARRIED
5. Having considered the
submissions relating to the total number of councillors confirms the
total number of councillors will be 11 as detailed in the Initial Proposal.
Foley/Foss
CARRIED
6. In accordance with sections 19H and 19J of
the Local Electoral Act 2001, adopts the following as its final proposal for
representation arrangements for the 2022 and 2025 local elections.
7. Hawke’s Bay
Regional Council comprising eleven councillors elected as
follows:
7.1 One (1)
member elected by the Māui ki te Raki
Constituency
7.2 One (1)
member elected by the Māui ki te Tonga Constituency
7.3 One (1)
member elected by the Tamatea-Central Hawke’s Bay Constituency
7.4 Three (3)
members elected by the Heretaunga-Hastings Constituency
7.5 Three (3)
members elected by the Ahuriri-Napier Constituency
7.6 One (1)
member elected by the Ngaruroro Constituency
7.7 One (1)
member elected by the Wairoa Constituency.
Williams/Lambert
CARRIED
8. Two Māori constituencies, as shown on
the attached “Māori Constituencies” map, the proposed
names and boundaries of each being:
8.1 Māui ki
te Raki - the constituency boundary being that area which encompasses
the Wairoa District Council and Napier City Council areas, parts of the
Hastings District Council area north of the Ngaruroro River, as well as
meshblocks within the Regional boundary belonging to Taupō District
council.
8.2 Māui ki
te Tonga - the constituency boundary being that area which encompasses
the Central Hawke’s Bay District Council area, parts of the Hastings
District Council area south of the Ngaruroro River, as well as meshblocks
within the Regional boundary belonging to Rangitikei District Council.
Table 1:
Proposed Māori Constituencies’ Populations
|
Constituency
|
Māorl
Electoral Population
|
Reps
|
Population
per Rep
|
Difference
from Average
|
%
Difference from Average
|
|
Māui ki te Raki
|
12,519
|
1
|
12,519
|
-1,494
|
-10.66%
|
|
Māui ki te Tonga
|
15,507
|
1
|
15,507
|
1,494
|
10.66%
|
|
Totals
|
28,026
|
2
|
Av = 14,013
|
|
|
Kirton/Foley
CARRIED
9. Notes that the proposal
for the Māori Constituencies does not fully comply with the Local
Electoral Act 2001 section 19V(2), but that the proposal is
considered the most appropriate solution for Hawke’s Bay, and applies
to the Local Government Commission, clearly identifying the grounds for the
proposed non-compliance as being:
9.1 the boundary
between the two constituencies is formed by the Ngaruroro River as requested
by tangata whenua due to its cultural relevance and being how iwi and
hapū traditionally set boundaries
9.2 the +/-10%
threshold exceedance is less than 1%.
Williams/van
Beek
CARRIED
10. Five General constituencies, the proposed
names and boundaries of each of the five to be:
10.1 Tamatea-Central
Hawke’s Bay; the constituency boundary being the same as that for the Central
Hawke’s Bay District Council area.
10.2 Heretaunga-Hastings; the
constituency boundary being that area which encompasses the wards of
Flaxmere, Hastings-Havelock North and most of Heretaunga within the Hastings
District Council area.
10.3 Ahuriri-Napier; the
constituency boundary being the same as that for the Napier City Council
area.
10.4 Ngaruroro; the
constituency boundary being that area which encompasses the Kahuranaki and
Mohaka wards and part of the Heretaunga ward within the Hastings District
Council area as well as meshblocks within the Regional boundary belonging to
Rangitikei District and Taupō District councils.
10.5 Wairoa; the
constituency boundary being the same as that for the Wairoa District Council area.
Table
2: General Constituencies’ Populations
|
Constituency
|
General Electoral Population
|
Reps
|
Population per Rep
|
Difference from
Average
|
% Difference from
Average
|
|
Tamatea-Central Hawke's Bay
|
11,940
|
1
|
11,940
|
-3,238
|
-21.34%
|
|
Ahuriri-Napier
|
53,829
|
3
|
17,943
|
2,765
|
18.21%
|
|
Wairoa
|
4,260
|
1
|
4,260
|
-10,918
|
-71.93%
|
|
Heretaunga-Hastings
|
47,874
|
3
|
15,958
|
780
|
5.14%
|
|
Ngaruroro
|
18,702
|
1
|
18,702
|
3,524
|
23.22%
|
|
Totals
|
136,605
|
9
|
15,178
|
|
|
Williams/Ormsby
Against: 1
Abstained: Foss
CARRIED
11. Notes that the proposal for General
Constituencies does not fully comply with the Local Electoral Act 2001 section
19V(2), but that the proposal is considered the most appropriate
solution for Hawke’s Bay, and applies to the Local Government
Commission, clearly identifying the grounds for the proposed non-compliance
being:
11.1 Tamatea-Central
Hawke’s Bay: The constituency boundary coincides with the Central
Hawke’s Bay District Council territorial authority boundary as being
representative of an area that electors closely identify with. Moreover:
11.1.1 a
significantly large area for one councillor to service, and given the long
distances having to be travelled to have face to face meetings with
constituents, or to attend public meetings throughout the area
11.1.2 The physical realities
of the area give rise to particular issues of concern, such as water
security, pressure on coastal development, biodiversity protection, flooding
and other natural hazards
11.1.3 the Council considers
that extending the boundary to achieve the population increase needed to
comply with s.19V(2) would limit effective representation by requiring the
grouping together of communities of interest with few commonalities across an
extensive area.
11.2 Ahuriri-Napier: The constituency
boundary coincides with the Napier City Council territorial authority
boundary as being representative of an area that electors closely identify
with, which in turn encourages participation in local government. Moreover:
11.2.1 changing the
boundary would require grouping together communities of interest with few
commonalities
11.2.2 Given the numbers
involved (2,765) and the predominantly urban nature of the Napier Constituency,
a large segment of the rural area surrounding Napier City would have to be
transferred from the adjoining Ngaruroro Constituency
11.2.3 While guided by the
principle of fair representation defined in the Act, it is also appropriate
to be guided by the requirement to ensure, so far as is practicable,
constituency boundaries coincide with territorial authority boundaries. This
is important as territorial authorities reflect communities of interest based
on the delivery of a wide range of day-to-day services. Territorial authority
districts are also areas that electors closely identify with which in turn
encourages participation in local government such as by voting or standing as
a candidate at local elections.
11.3 Wairoa: The constituency
boundary coincides with the Wairoa District Council territorial authority
boundary as being representative of an area that electors closely identify
with, which in turn encourages participation in local government. Moreover:
11.3.1 Council considers that
further extending the boundary to achieve the population increase needed to
comply with s.19V(2) would limit effective representation for several
communities of interest isolated from each other across geographically
challenging landscapes and require the grouping together of communities of
interest with few commonalities across an extensive area
11.3.2 Wairoa has a community
of interest distinct from the rest of the region, both physically and
socio-economically, and this presents particular challenges for community
consultation and provision of services
11.3.3 The physical
realities of the area give rise to particular issues not experienced
elsewhere including hill country erosion, pressure on coastal development,
pest management, transport infrastructure, biodiversity protection, wetland
enhancement, flooding and other natural hazards
11.3.4 The
predominant extensive sheep and beef farming land uses, steep terrain, unique
resource management issues and solutions, connection to Wairoa as the main
town, and limited transport connections
11.3.4 The Wairoa District
makes up 29% of Hawke’s Bay’s total land mass and a significantly large area for one
councillor to service given the long distances having to be travelled to have
face to face meetings with constituents, or to attend public meetings throughout
the area.
11.4 Ngaruroro: The Council considers
that changing the boundary to achieve the population decrease needed to
comply with s.19V(2) would limit effective representation as it would require
further splitting this mostly rural community of interest, which shares the
Hastings District Council’s rural community board area that electors
closely identify with.
Barker/Williams
Abstained: Foss
Against: 1
CARRIED
12. That as required by section 19N of the
Local Electoral Act 2001, public notice of the proposals contained in this
resolution be given.
Barker/Foss
CARRIED
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