Hawke's Bay Regional Council votes to establish Māori wards

Cr Hinewai Ormsby, who last November urged a proper consultation process rather than a rushed decision, voted for the wards. Photo / NZME

Standing ovations, emotion and waiata enveloped the halls of power today for the second time in two days as Hawke's Bay Regional Council voted unanimously to introduce a Maori wards structure for next year's local body elections.

Coming after about 100 minutes of debate on the issue at an Extraordinary Meeting of the council called for the purpose in Napier, it just a day after a similar outcome at the Hastings District Council.

Napier City Council is working on a consultation process, amid a deadline it is asking the Government to extend if it is to be able to have a new structure in place at the 2022 vote.

The atmosphere rose as if a scripted drama for the input of Ngaruroro Ward member Jerf van Beek, who spoke of his commitment to not seeing anyone oppressed any longer, and Central Hawke's Bay member and former Federated Farmers Hawke's Bay president Will Foley spoke of having learnt much during the process, and the "tomorrow".

"So, let's get down to business," he said, to applause around the room, ahead of chairman Rex Graham's call for a show of hands, all raised and to more applause.

Cr Hinewai Ormsby, who last November urged a proper consultation process rather than a rushed decision, said earlier in today's meeting that now there were no restrictions, and if the council decided to resolve to establish Maori wards for 2022, and 2025 local elections, it would create a spirit of 'kotahitanga'.

Council staff member and Te Pou Whakarae Pieri Munro launched the meeting saying: "There's no greater decision that sits before you, than the one we make today."

Graham said after the meeting the council now has to decide whether to increase its numbers from nine to 11 or how else to accommodate the ward or wards, and will be consulting tangata whenua on whether there would be one or two Maori wards.