Plans to bring three Māori ward councillors onto Hastings District Council has reached a major milestone - with a final proposal chosen by the council.
The council met on Thursday to vote about the best way to introduce a Māori ward to the council for the first time.
A finalproposal was chosen which includes three Māori ward councillors being introduced at the 2022 local body elections and the overall number of councillors being increased from 15 (including the mayor) to 16 (including the mayor).
People still have the opportunity to object to the final proposal before it goes to the Local Government Commission, which will have the final say about the council shakeup.
A decision was made earlier this year to introduce Māori wards for Hastings District Council for the October 2022 local body elections.
The final proposal includes three Māori ward councillors being introduced and two seats from the general wards (Flaxmere and Hastings/Havelock North) being dropped.
However, more than 50 submissions called for the number of Flaxmere councillors not to be reduced from two to one.
"I can not support the current proposal because it disadvantages non-Māori electoral roll voters [in Flaxmere]," councillor Peleti Oli argued.
Councillor Peleti Oli was not pleased with the loss of a councillor in Flaxmere. Photo / Paul Taylor
Councillor Bayden Barber said there was a huge population of Māori in Flaxmere who would be represented by the three Māori ward councillors.
Mayor Sandra Hazlehurst said while the council would increase by one councillor overall under the final proposal, it was "eminently sensible and eminently restrained" considering three Māori councillors were being introduced.
Councillor Geraldine Travers said last month that an increase in councillors would not cost ratepayers any extra money, as wages came out of one remuneration pool.
"If you have more councillors it just means each person gets less."
