Latest news with #ManaWhenua
RNZ News
28-05-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
Nobby Clark delays policy over diversity concern
Invercargill Mayor Nobby Clark says he would leave the policy's adoption on the table while he met with council staff to discuss implications. Photo: RNZ / REECE BAKER Invercargill Mayor Nobby Clark has drawn the ire of some councillors after stalling the council's new procurement policy over concerns with a diversity question. The issue relates to the Invercargill City Council now asking businesses whether they record diversity data as part of the tender process, noting they would not be excluded if they didn't. On Tuesday, Clark chaired a meeting where the updated procurement policy was set for approval following a recommendation from the finance and policy committee on 20 May. But the mayor - who was absent from that committee meeting - said he received feedback from "a number of councillors" uncomfortable with the policy dealing with diversity data. Clark said he would leave its adoption on the table while he met with council staff to discuss implications. Mana whenua representative Evelyn Cook said collecting the data was a small matter that didn't cost anything. "If a contractor feels disadvantaged by the fact that we asked the question, they need to be looking in the mirror, because I don't think this is an unusual request in 2025. It was in 1965. I would be sad if we chose to return there," Cook said. Councillor Lesley Soper, who chaired the finance and policy committee where the recommendation was approved, took strong exception to Clark using his power as council chair to delay adoption. Soper said she was unaware councillors had gone behind her back to raise issues and believed Clark was trying to usurp the democratic process. The move set a dangerous precedent for council because it showed outcomes at committee level could be changed down the line, she said. "I strongly protest this abuse of council's process." Councillor Alex Crackett also took issue with the mayor, saying the process was not being run correctly and was a "perversion of democracy". Despite pressure from some, Clark backed his decision to defer the policy's adoption. Other questions asked under the council's revised policy include whether the business is local and whether it monitors carbon impact. LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
Scoop
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
A Budget Day like no other
Wellington Featured Report and photos by Roy Murphy While Members of Parliament squabbled inside the Beehive in Wellington on Budget Day, more than a thousand angry people gathered on the lawn outside. It was a powerful outpouring of dissent against amendments to the Equal Pay Act rushed through Parliament at short notice and without consultation. Read more » Making democracy work. Part 5: Decisions Part One covered the formation and structure of the Porirua Citizens Assembly. Part Two examined how the Assembly went about its work. Part Three looked at the contribution from the rangatahi. Part Four described the contribution of the Mana Whenua. The Porirua Citizens Assembly finished its work last Saturday. It had no authority to add anything extra to the draft of Day Four. It was refining the expression of the final draft to delete some contested sentences and clarify the wording. It was aiming at 100 percent acceptance, but it agreed to accept an 80 percent favourable vote. In the end the final version was approved by unanimous vote. Read more » Vibes, debt, and affordable housing May 21, 2025 19 comments by Felicity Wong Few affordable houses in Wellington have resulted from de-regulating zoning in the District Plan. So far, the Wellington evidence supports the Independent Hearing Panel's (IHP) view that 'zoning by itself, does not lead to affordable housing'. Read more » Making democracy work. Part 4. Mana whenua kōrero by Roy Murphy Part One covered the formation and structure of the Porirua Citizens Assembly. Part Two examined how the Assembly went about its work. Part Three looked at the contribution from the rangatahi.. One big difference between the wider Porirua community and the Mana Whenua, the indigenous people of Aotearoa, became obvious right from the start. The wider community spent nearly the whole of the first day getting to know each other, developing acceptable ways of dealing with each other, going on a bus tour to get familiar with the land, and agreeing on how to arrive at conclusions. Whereas the Mana Whenua already knew each other, knew the land, knew the families, and used the traditional Māori ways of kōrero (discussion) and of making decisions. Read more » Making democracy work. Part 3: the youth speak up May 19, 2025 9 comments by Roy Murphy Part One covered the formation and structure of the Porirua Citizens Assembly. Part Two examined how the Assembly went about its work. Day Two was centred around the rangatahi, the young people. Read more » Making democracy work. Part 2: getting to know you May 18, 2025 4 comments by Roy Murphy Part One covered the formation and structure of the Porirua Citizens Assembly on climate change. For the wider Porirua community, Day One of the Assembly was devoted to setting the ground rules, finding out about each other so they could talk, going on a bus tour of the Porirua area to develop their knowledge of the local environment, and listening to experts. Read more » Making democracy work. Part 1: building the framework May 17, 2025 24 comments by Roy Murphy In a world first, the Porirua community has improved the experience of people involvement in society three-fold. It has transformed the already successful process of citizens' assemblies. Read more » $800,000 to re-plan Dixon Street by Karl Tiefenbacher The Wellington City Council last week once again showed how desperately out of touch it is with what we need as a city, and how much we need a change at the local elections. Read more » Running out of runway May 14, 2025 50 comments by Councillor Diane Calvert Wellington is running out of runway — financially and politically. City councillors are about to make decisions on a revised 10-year budget that will shape Wellington's direction for years to come. This is the last chance for councillors to face facts: the city we've been planning and spending for isn't a city people can afford to live in. Read more » Eight months of roadworks
