KEY POINTS:
Too many councils to deal with for not much gain is the main thrust of what's wrong with local government institutions, say iwi and urban Maori submissions to the Royal Commission of Inquiry on Auckland Governance.
But instituting statutory Maori seats or wards to address a lack of real decision-making at regional and local government levels is the way to deal with the problem, submitters say.
More 15 hapu from Ngati Whatua, Hauraki, Tainui and other tribes have interests in the Auckland region but tribal boundaries are often cut up by more than one regional and local authority.
With different approaches at eight councils, as well as Environment Waikato and Auckland Regional Council, dealing with multiple agencies is a nightmare, said submitters such as Ngati Hako, an iwi with interests in the Hauraki Gulf.
"One of the biggest bugbears for Hauraki is the imaginary lines that cut across our rural regions of the Hauraki rohe."
Its views were echoed by most iwi-based submissions which said the "ad hoc" nature of how councils dealt with concerns over natural resources was problematic - iwi such as Ngati Paoa asked for a more consistent regime across councils.
It's not solely consultation Maori want any more. Te Taumata Runanga, a Waitakere City Council standing committee, said tangata whenua were way past that.
Instead, it was power sharing by adequate representation through Maori seats, as opposed to just having input, that would give Treaty partnership principles life, the committee said.
And Auckland University political scientist Ann Sullivan said there was a good case for them at local government level where Maori were "unfairly, inequitably and disproportionately under-represented".
Nationally, while Maori make up 15 per cent of the total population, fewer than 5 per cent of all elected local councillors are Maori.
Maori wards provided a way for councils to better reflect their communities of interest and improve participation, Ann Sullivan said.
Only one body, Environment Bay of Plenty, had implemented them, she said, even though the option had been available since 2002.
