The Local Government Commission (LGC) has redrawn constituency boundaries for the Canterbury Regional Council, Environment Canterbury. The new boundaries and constituencies will apply for this year’s October local body elections. It will remain in force for at least the next three to six years.
"The changes are the most important in the Council's 18-year history and place Environment Canterbury on a much more democratic basis than ever before" said ECan Chairman Sir Kerry Burke.
"When the Regional Council was established in 1989 rural members represented about 17,000 people each while councillors from Christchurch represented 29,000. That undemocratic disparity remained till this review, though the relative numbers had increased to 28,000 and 45,000 respectively.
"The Local Electoral Act of 2001 requires constituency populations to vary by no more than 10% from the average. In Canterbury this average is just over 37,000 for each of our 14 councillors. Mostly, the new boundaries achieve this, with the most notable exception being the new 2-member South Canterbury Constituency, at 25% below the average. The current Waitaki Constituency, at 67% below the average, has been merged with South Canterbury and will lose its separate status from October.
"In order to meet the population rule and still retain a fair balance between urban and rural interests, ECan decided to allocate parts of the edges of Christchurch to the surrounding rural constituencies. The Styx, Belfast, Sawyers Arms and Kaimahi areas of northern Christchurch were added to North Canterbury to enable it to meet the population rule. Both sides of the Waimakariri River, with similar regional issues such as floodplain management, are now part of the same constituency.
"A similar adjustment was made in the west of Christchurch, where Templeton, Yaldhurst and McLeans Island were added to Selwyn/Banks Peninsula, which lost its Ellesmere Ward to Ashburton to comprise the new Rakaia Constituency.
"This "fuzzy edge" approach to the Christchurch/rural boundaries was first suggested by representatives of surrounding district councils, (Waimakariri and Banks Peninsula), was adopted by ECan and accepted by the Local Government Commission.
ECan's proposals were later opposed, however, by all Canterbury district councils and, surprisingly, by the Christchurch City Council. They essentially wanted the old, undemocratic status quo to be retained, but with 8 ECan councillors elected "at large" from across the city, Akaroa Heads to the Waimakariri River.
"Quite why the current CCC wanted its citizens and ratepayers to have votes and rights of the same value as people from the rest of Canterbury will, no doubt, be the subject of closer examination in this year's city elections when 2021 candidates challenge incumbent councillors. City Councillors essentially said that they agreed that 1000 people outside of Christchurch should have the same voting power as 1,600 people from the city.
"I found that to be truly remarkable" said Sir Kerry. "By a majority decision, we rejected the notion, though it was also strange that the Christchurch Citizens Group's representative on ECan, Alec Neill, supported the proposal to give a greater say for rural residents than for his own Christchurch West constituents on important Christchurch issues, such as zoning measures to protect our pure drinking water quality and how much we pay in rates.
"Overall, it is very pleasing that ECan's processes and its decisions have largely been upheld by the Commission, This places the Council on a much more democratic basis than ever before, which can only further enhance its credibility and standing in the community," said ECan Chair Sir Kerry Burke.
2021 is now calling for candidate nominations for the ECan constituencies.
For further Comment:
David Close
Chairperson 2021
388 0151
