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New Zealand is divided into sixteen regions for local government purposes. Eleven are administered by regional councils, and five are administered by unitary authorities, which are territorial authorities that also perform the functions of regional councils. The Chatham Islands Council is not a region but is similar to a unitary authority, authorised under its own legislation.
Hawke's Bay is a region on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island. The region is named for Hawke Bay, which was named in honour of Edward Hawke. The region's main centres are the cities of Napier and Hastings, while the more rural parts of the region are served by the towns of Waipukurau, Waipawa, and Wairoa.
The council–manager government is a form of local government commonly used for cities and counties in the United States and Ireland. In the council-manager government, an elected city council hires a manager to serve as chief executive; this manager can be replaced by a simple majority at any time. The council–manager form is also used in New Zealand for regional councils, and in Canada and many other countries for city and county councils. It is used in roughly 40% of American cities.
Territorial authorities are the second tier of local government in New Zealand, below regional councils. There are 67 territorial authorities: 13 city councils, 53 district councils and the Chatham Islands Council. District councils serve a combination of rural and urban communities, while city councils administer the larger urban areas. Five territorial authorities also perform the functions of a regional council and thus are unitary authorities. The Chatham Islands Council is a sui generis territorial authority that is similar to a unitary authority.
Electoral reform in New Zealand has been a political issue in the past as major changes have been made to both parliamentary and local government electoral systems.
Southland District is a New Zealand territorial authority district that covers most of the southern end of the South Island as well as Stewart Island.
Mayors in New Zealand are the directly elected leaders of New Zealand's territorial authorities. They chair local council meetings and have limited executive powers, including the ability to appoint a deputy mayor, establish committees, and select chairpersons for said committees. Their constitutional role, as laid out in the Local Government Act 2002, is to provide leadership to their councillors and citizens of their districts, and to guide the direction of council plans and policies. Mayors are elected using either the first-past-the-post or single transferable vote system.
A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected to the area. It is common in the United States for wards to simply be numbered.
A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural council, village council, or board of aldermen.
The New Zealand Government is the central government through which political authority is exercised in New Zealand. As in most other parliamentary democracies, the term "Government" refers chiefly to the executive branch, and more specifically to the collective ministry directing the executive. Based on the principle of responsible government, it operates within the framework that "the [King] reigns, but the government rules, so long as it has the support of the House of Representatives". The Cabinet Manual describes the main laws, rules and conventions affecting the conduct and operation of the Government.
Local Government New Zealand Te Kahui Kaunihera ō Aotearoa (LGNZ) is the local government association of New Zealand. It represents the interests of the regional, city, and district councils in New Zealand.
Auckland Council is the local government council for the Auckland Region in New Zealand. It is a territorial authority that has the responsibilities, duties and powers of a regional council and so is a unitary authority, according to the Local Government Act 2009, which established the council. The governing body consists of a mayor and 20 councillors, elected from 13 wards. There are also 149 members of 21 local boards who make decisions on matters local to their communities. It is the largest council in Oceania, with a $3 billion annual budget, $29 billion of ratepayer equity, and 9,870 full-time staff as of 30 June 2016. The council began operating on 1 November 2010, combining the functions of the previous regional council and the region's seven city and district councils into one "super council" or "super city".
The 2010 New Zealand local elections were triennial elections to select local government officials and district health board members. All elections are conducted by postal ballot, with election day being Saturday 9 October 2010.
New Zealand has a unitary system of government in which the authority of the central government defines sub-national entities. Local government in New Zealand has only the powers conferred upon it by the New Zealand Parliament. Under the Local Government Act 2002, local authorities are responsible for enabling democratic local decision-making and promoting the social, economic, environmental, and cultural well-being of their communities, as well as more specific functions for which they have delegated authority.
The 1989 New Zealand local government reform was the most significant reform of local government in New Zealand in over a century. Some 850 local bodies were amalgamated into 86 local authorities, made up of regional and territorial levels.
John Stewart Ombler is a New Zealand public servant. He served as deputy State Services Commissioner from 2008 until 2014, and briefly in 2019, and as the controller of the all-of-government response during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic.
Simon Thomas Court is a New Zealand politician. He has been a Member of Parliament for ACT New Zealand since the 2020 general election.
The 2022 New Zealand local elections were triennial elections held in New Zealand on Saturday 8 October 2022. Voting began by postal vote on 16 September and ended at noon on 8 October 2022.
References
- ↑ "Commission Members since 1947". Local Government Commission. Archived from the original on 7 February 2013. Retrieved 14 December 2010.
