Comments on: Respecting boundaries

By: Super city problems pile up on eve of third bill « Red Alert

Super city problems pile up on eve of third bill « Red Alert — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 05:01:12 +0000

[...] allotting only 20 councillors and requiring Rodney and Franklin have their own wards. The result: unequal voting strength between wards, and a right wing gerrymander across the city. Why is it acceptable for the vote of someone who [...]

By: Swampy

Swampy — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 12:20:29 +0000

The Government is governing. The previous system in Auckland was created by Labour to serve their political interests back in 1989. So it is a bit rich to whine about the system National is setting up, of course they are the government now and they have put together a system they agree with.

By: Jim Partington

Jim Partington — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 07:17:47 +0000

What about Franklin??? 90%+ of Franklin residents DO NOT want any part of the Auckland supershitty and yet we are still having it forced down our throats. Is this democracy ??? When a whole lot of the elderly National voters in Franklin start talking “civil disobedience” then the National government and Paul Hutchison should be getting VERY concerned at just what they have done by pissing off so many of their voters. Time will tell but it seems a strange way to try and be any more than a one term government. Just wait till that idiot Hutchison comes begging for his job in 2011. He may find its not his anymore.

By: TopCat

TopCat — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 05:25:45 +0000

Jarbury
Good point- but when the look at the their neighbours, Kaipara- full council representation for 8-10 thousand people most of whom they will likely be on first name terms with, they may not think so.

By: jarbury

jarbury — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 05:16:42 +0000

TopCat, Rodney are the most over-represented place in the whole of Auckland.

This just shows what a joke it is having only 20 councillors representing the whole of the Auckland region. One person per 70,000 residents is pathetic.

By: TopCat

TopCat — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 04:45:33 +0000

The Rodney people must be thinking what they must have done wrong to deserve having no democratic representation. An area nearly as large as the whole rest of the Auckland region and the population of Rotorua will have 1 elected democratic representative on their local council. As well as that they have a local member who is unable to get involved because he is a celebrity House Speaker.

Real power will devolve to the council staff in the city and to the appointed CCO board members, don’t worry about those show ponies who have to get elected.

By: Jeremy Harris

Jeremy Harris — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 02:53:45 +0000

More than that National won the 2008 election on the strength of it’s result in Auckland… This has been a dog’s breakfast from start to finish and if people get really pissed off in the lead up to the 2010 local election, the All Blacks lose the world cup and Labour runs one heck of a campaign, my National two-term minimum prediction may turn out wrong, Labour will still have the Key problem to deal with…

I wonder why National didn’t do this slowly with a 2013 intro, would have been far easier and cost them much less political capital..?

By: jarbury

jarbury — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 01:43:57 +0000

I agree Tom. It won’t be until next year and even 2011 that the reality of the Super City will really hit home. The “rural Auckland” areas are among the safest National seats in the country if you look at the 2008 election stats. Which means there are plenty of votes National could lose by pissing off their heartland areas.

By: Tom Semmens

Tom Semmens — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 01:31:03 +0000

“…There is a strong undercurrent of local anger about the way this has been handled…”

The right is quick to dismiss SuperCity controversy as a “beltway issue” – something whose complexities are to hard for ordinary voters to really be bothered understanding. They are confident therefore that they can get away with a rampant Gerrymander.

Apart from betraying the basic contempt that most on the right have for ordinary New Zealanders, I think they are plain wrong. From my observations, the SuperCity is one of those stories people take the time to read carefully in the paper and hum thoughtfully to themselves over. It only stands to reason – these decisions will affect them at the most basic level. This is without doubt a major “sleeper” (and not so sleeper) issue in Auckland.

By: dave rutherford

dave rutherford — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 01:07:04 +0000

It’s a scam, there are plenty in north Rodney who want to split at the Hoteo River and join Kaipara.The meeting at the local community centre last month showed support was strongly for not joining the super-city.
The majority view was the community of interest for Auckland stops at Warkworth Matakana (due the motoerway soon to become assimilated in the the North Shore / Silverdale / Whangaparoa / Orewa Borg).
The so called consultation process was a farce.Pretty plain there was an agenda from day one.The process was about managing it to get the desired result, and nothing at all to do with democracy.
Don’t be so sure Rodney is safe national anymore, many many farms have been split into lifestyle blocks over the last decade, and a large percentage of the residents commute out to jobs in AK, or the Shore.There is a strong undercurrent of local anger about the way this has been handled, which could easily offer traction for Labour.