Whakatane District Council is looking at introducing Maori wards before the next local government elections in October 2019.

The council’s Policy committee is looking at introducing Maori wards as a way of promoting greater Maori involvement in decision making.

The committee received a report on electoral arrangements at its meeting last week, with councillors supporting the retention of a ‘first past the post’ (FPP) system in 2019, in preference to the Single Transferable Vote (STV) system.

Councillors also agreed to pursue further investigations on the possibility of introducing Maori Wards and gather feedback from Iwi following a wide-ranging discussion on ways to promote greater Māori involvement in decision-making, says Whakatane District Council general manager planning, regulatory and corporate services, David Bewley.

The district council will seek comments directly from key stakeholders and will also promote feedback via its social media channels. A report summarising the viewpoints presented will be presented to the Policy Committee later this year.

The Bay of Plenty Regional council has three Maori constituencies since 2001, the result of a request by Maori for direct representation. It took a law change and strong public support.

Tauranga City Councillors last knocked back a Maori request for council representation in November 2014, after being requested to do so by the city council’s Tangata Whenua Committee. The next request will be made in 2020.

At the time Tauranga Mayor Stuart Crosby says current good relations are a reason why there shouldn’t be a Maori seat, and he believes it would damage the current relationship and represent a “big step backwards”.

Councils are required under the Local Government Act to establish and maintain processes providing opportunities for Maori to contribute to the council’s decision making processes.

2014 was also the year then New Plymouth mayor Andrew Judd tried to introduce a Maori ward seat in New Plymouth. It created a community backlash and Andrew retired from politics in 2016.

Andrew’s call for a Maori ward was supported by then Bay of Plenty Regional Councillor Doug Owens who claims opposition to them is ‘political prejudice’.

In an open letter published at the time he says Maori wards had become an issue of political prejudice as parties vie for the ‘prejudice vote against Maori’ and their declared and accepted right to self-determination, as a culture and an indigenous people.

“The essential advantage of direct representation via a ward system is the pragmatic solution to a profound political problem, that being an indifferent electorate having no interest in Maori and no guaranteed election of Maori and therefore continued poor communication and misunderstanding.”

On the BOP Regional Council Doug says the three Maori wards have given way to greater tolerance and understanding of Maori issues and these relationships have grown and deepened as a result of Maori representation at the top table.

The lack of Maori or other city ethnicities on Tauranga City council is blamed on the ward system imposed by the Local Government Commission.

On the current 11 member council, ward councillors outnumber those voted in at large, 6:5. Six ward councillors, four at-large councillors and one mayor. It means each ratepayer can vote for only the four at large seats and the two seats in each ward. There are four council seats that each voter cannot cast a vote for.

“At large council seats represent a golden opportunity for Maori and other minority groups to put up suitable candidates for election with a good chance of success,” says Mount Maunganui resident Rob Paterson. The former lawyer was speaking on April 2016 on his appeal against the ward system.

“Good candidates would stand a very good chance of being elected if all the seats were at large.

“This would also address the calls for race based representation or race based electoral seats on councils.”