Iwi looks to advance Lakes plan

Arapeta Tahana

Te Arawa will meet again on Saturday to discuss its proposal to work more closely with the Rotorua Lakes Council.

The hui-a-iwi (tribal meeting) will be held at Ohinemutu's Te Papaiouru Marae from 10am.

Te Arawa's proposal to set up an independent board on the council was made public late last year and it was decided the proposal would go out for full public consultation.

The council is to meet on Tuesday to discuss a draft "statement of proposal" and to decide on the consultation process and timeframe.

The proposal could see the establishment of an iwi board outside of the council structure to replace the former Te Arawa Standing Committee (TASC).

Te Arawa would appoint or elect a board of up to 14 people with two representatives - with voting rights - to sit on the council's Operations and Monitoring Committee and on its Strategy, Policy and Finance Committee, with one on the Chief Executive Performance Committee and another representative on Resource Management Act hearings panels.

Some councillors and members of the public have criticised it as "undemocratic".

TASC spokesman Arapeta Tahana said the purpose of Saturday's hui was to report back about the outcome of last year's council meeting and to advise iwi how to engage in the consultation process.

"We want them to be fully informed about the process and how they can contribute.

"We'd also like the wider community to get a balanced perspective. We will also be discussing submissions and how we can get our points across.

"We don't control the outcome, it is now the council's process to complete."

Mr Tahana said it was important Te Arawa was closely involved with the council in future decision making which directly affected the iwi.

Jean-Paul Gaston, council strategy & partnerships group manager, said a draft statement of the proposal was being finalised.

"The consultation programme could include a series of community information meetings held across the district to help people to understand the proposal, and so they could make informed submissions to the council," he said.

Submissions would be able to be made in writing, by email and via the council website. Submitters would also be invited to speak to the mayor and councillors at public hearings.

The provisions of Special Consultative Procedures set out in the Local Government Act require councils to identify their preferred position, and to identify options that have been considered in reaching that position.

"For consultation purposes the council's preferred position will be the partnership model proposal presented by Te Arawa in December and approved 'in principle' by a 10-3 majority vote of councillors," Mr Gaston said.

Tuesday's council meeting is set for 1pm in the Council Chamber and is open to the public.