Latest news with #RhiannonSuter
RNZ News
26-05-2025
- Politics
- RNZ News
Invercargill mayor Nobby Clark at odds with council over blacking-out inappropriate language
Invercargill Mayor Nobby Clark doesn't believe his council should redact comments made by the public. Photo: Supplied / Otago Daily Times Invercargill Mayor Nobby Clark believes his council should not redact feedback from the public, even if it is difficult to hear. His comment comes at a time when councils are dealing with an increase of inappropriate language in public submissions. In Invercargill, it is a problem which has led to staff blacking-out some parts of feedback. The council raised the issue in a report last week as it works to introduce an official policy for dealing with community input. Clark told Local Democracy Reporting he noticed inappropriate language on annual plan feedback, but was mindful the forms were given out and taken away for people to submit on. "You can't then redact what you don't like to hear." There were parts of society that had strong views which might be filtered, but ignoring them was perilous, he said. "I personally wouldn't redact it. The rationale is that it's important the public know the sort of feedback we get." Council policy and engagement manager Rhiannon Suter said submissions could be redacted if they contained offensive language, threats, were potentially defamatory, or could lead to abuse of the hearing process. A recommendation would now be made to council to adopt a submissions policy, which would clarify expectations around appropriate language, Suter said. "It is hoped that this will see a reduction in the number of submissions needing redaction." A report prepared for a committee meeting showed the council relied on an "internal approach" for handling feedback instead of an actual policy. In relation to inappropriate language, it gave the example of last year's consultation for Te Unua Museum of Southland where 14 of 286 responses - or almost 5 percent - had to be redacted due to content. A number of other councils were also addressing the issue which was on the rise across the country, the report said. It also discussed social media comments, which didn't meet the criteria for being a formal submission but were summarised by staff for inclusion in documents. That approach would continue under the new framework, but with an allowance for receiving submissions via social media if requested by the author. The council was not aware of any other councils taking that approach. A final decision on whether language should be redacted would remain with the council's manager of governance and legal, Suter said. LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
Otago Daily Times
22-05-2025
- General
- Otago Daily Times
Move to up Māori street names
Oreti Rd sign in Invercargill. PHOTO: MATTHEW ROSENBERG Te reo Māori street names are on track for a boost in Invercargill as the council takes steps to ensure they are more readily available. In March, an Invercargill City Council meeting revealed confusion about its policy for street names, after a developer failed to bring a single te reo option for consideration. It was revealed their inclusion was "highly recommended" but not compulsory. On Tuesday, the council looked to fix that issue by suggesting an amendment to its policy, meaning one of three names brought to the table would need to be in te reo Māori. The council's mana whenua representatives would also be involved in the process, ensuring the whakapapa of an area was considered in naming. Council manager strategy, policy and engagement Rhiannon Suter said the process enabled the council to support developers by connecting them with mana whenua representatives for feedback. In the rare circumstance a Māori name could not be provided within 20 working days, three English names could be presented. "We've agreed that this pragmatic approach should result hopefully in the outcome that everybody is wanting to see," Ms Suter said. "Certainly, that has been the steering provided to us from previous committees, that we would like to see more te reo Māori names ultimately utilised through the district." The change in policy relates to new name applications and is being made under a scheduled review. It is yet to be approved at full council, Tuesday's decision being a recommendation at committee level. A report prepared for the committee noted it was not appropriate to create a list of pre-selected names because whakapapa meant the location needed to be considered. ■LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
Scoop
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
Move To Increase Te Reo Māori Street Names In Invercargill
Article – Matthew Rosenberg – Local Democracy Reporter Te reo Mori street names are on track for a boost in Invercargill as the council takes steps to ensure they are more readily available. Te reo Māori street names are on track for a boost in Invercargill as the council takes steps to ensure they are more readily available. In March, an Invercargill City Council meeting revealed confusion around its policy for street names, after a developer failed to bring a single te reo option for consideration. It was revealed that their inclusion was 'highly recommended' but not compulsory. On Tuesday, the council looked to fix that issue by suggesting an amendment to its policy meaning one of three names brought to the table would need to be in te reo Māori. The council's mana whenua representatives would also be involved in the process, ensuring the Whakapapa of an area was considered in naming. Council manager strategy, policy and engagement Rhiannon Suter said the process enabled the council to support developers by connecting them with mana whenua representatives for feedback. In the rare circumstance a Māori name could not be provided within 20 working days, three English names could be presented, she said. 'We've agreed that this pragmatic approach should result hopefully in the outcome that everybody is wanting to see. 'Certainly, that has been the steering provided to us from previous committees, that we would like to see more te reo Māori names ultimately utilised through the district.' The change in policy relates to new name applications and is being made under a scheduled review. It is yet to be approved at full council, with Tuesday's decision being a recommendation at committee level. A report prepared for the committee noted it was not appropriate to create a list of pre-selected names because Whakapapa meant the location needed to be considered.
Scoop
22-05-2025
- General
- Scoop
Move To Increase Te Reo Māori Street Names In Invercargill
Te reo Māori street names are on track for a boost in Invercargill as the council takes steps to ensure they are more readily available. In March, an Invercargill City Council meeting revealed confusion around its policy for street names, after a developer failed to bring a single te reo option for consideration. It was revealed that their inclusion was "highly recommended" but not compulsory. On Tuesday, the council looked to fix that issue by suggesting an amendment to its policy meaning one of three names brought to the table would need to be in te reo Māori. The council's mana whenua representatives would also be involved in the process, ensuring the Whakapapa of an area was considered in naming. Council manager strategy, policy and engagement Rhiannon Suter said the process enabled the council to support developers by connecting them with mana whenua representatives for feedback. In the rare circumstance a Māori name could not be provided within 20 working days, three English names could be presented, she said. "We've agreed that this pragmatic approach should result hopefully in the outcome that everybody is wanting to see. "Certainly, that has been the steering provided to us from previous committees, that we would like to see more te reo Māori names ultimately utilised through the district." The change in policy relates to new name applications and is being made under a scheduled review. It is yet to be approved at full council, with Tuesday's decision being a recommendation at committee level. A report prepared for the committee noted it was not appropriate to create a list of pre-selected names because Whakapapa meant the location needed to be considered.
Otago Daily Times
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
More te reo Māori street names for Invercargill
The Invercargill City Council is updating its policy on the use of te reo Māori street names. Photo: Matthew Rosenberg/LDR Te reo Māori street names are on track for a boost in Invercargill as the council takes steps to ensure they are more readily available. In March, an Invercargill City Council meeting revealed confusion around its policy for street names after a developer failed to bring a single te reo option for consideration. It was revealed that their inclusion was 'highly recommended' but not compulsory. On Tuesday, the council looked to fix that issue by suggesting an amendment to its policy, meaning one of three names brought to the table would need to be in te reo Māori. The council's mana whenua representatives would also be involved in the process, ensuring the whakapapa of an area was considered in naming. Council manager strategy, policy and engagement Rhiannon Suter said the process enabled the council to support developers by connecting them with mana whenua representatives for feedback. In the rare circumstance a Māori name could not be provided within 20 working days, three English names could be presented, she said. 'We've agreed that this pragmatic approach should result hopefully in the outcome that everybody is wanting to see. 'Certainly, that has been the steering provided to us from previous committees, that we would like to see more te reo Māori names ultimately utilised through the district.' The change in policy relates to new name applications and is being made under a scheduled review. It is yet to be approved at full council, with Tuesday's decision being a recommendation at committee level. A report prepared for the committee noted it was not appropriate to create a list of pre-selected names because Whakapapa meant the location needed to be considered. • LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air
