Rotorua Māori ward local bill law change bid to face MPs' votes

Rotorua Lakes Council building. Photo / Andrew Warner

A bill that could enable an equal number of Māori ward and general ward seats in Rotorua's council if passed into law will encounter its first significant hurdle today – its first reading in Parliament.

The Rotorua District Council (Representation Arrangements) Bill was drafted by the council to enable the model, which is currently unlawful under the Local Electoral Act.

The Local Electoral Act has formula that limits the number of Māori ward seats based on population sizes.

The bill seeks an exemption for the Rotorua district from that rule.

Rotorua-based Labour list MP Tāmati Coffey is the bill's sponsor.

Parliament's order paper for today states allowance for two 10-minute speeches and nine five-minute speeches on the bill. The debate is expected to begin at about 2pm and can be viewed on-demand on the Parliament website or on Parliament TV.

The bill's sponsor, Rotorua-based Labour list MP Tāmati Coffey. Photo / Andrew Warner

After the debate Parliament will decide if the bill will progress and be referred to a select committee.

If it reaches the select committee stage, the bill will be subject to public submissions.

If the bill does not pass before June 1, it will not apply to the 2022 local election and the council will have to proceed with its interim model.

That model had one Māori ward seat, one general ward seat and eight at-large seats, but may change as it is currently being considered by the Local Government Commission, which can overturn the council's decision.

Local Democracy Reporting is public interest journalism funded by NZ On Air