Minister Of Local Government

Wherever you live, local councils are working with you and your community helping to enhance community well-being. This website will show you how your local council works, how it interacts with central government and how to access the information that you and your community need.

This Government recognised very early on that an effective working replationship between central and local government is essential. We see the local government sector playing a key role in New Zealand's constitutional democracy and in improving the "well-being" of all our communities.

Your local council is charged with making numerous decisions that affect your community. From water supply, waste disposal, parks and libraries to local roading and public transport, it is your local council's job to see that these issues are dealt with in an effective and responsible manner.

Your council has to make all these decisions in times of constant significant changes in New Zealand communities - our population is ageing, we have become more ethnically diverse, and we have a more mobile population than ever before. These changes will place pressure on the services that communities receive, particularly those that experience significant changes in population.

The Local Government Act, passed in 2002, ensures that your council, above all else, works to empower your community. The Government believes that decisions that affect local communities are best made locally and with the co-operation and input from those communities. Many decisions will have long-lasting effects and the community now has the opportunity to have its say on matters that may affect you well into the future.

This website aims to help you help your council make decisions that are right for your community. In the About Local Government section, the site carries information on the things that councils do and how you can become involved in local decision-making processess. You will also find key information about individual councils and insight into what they are doing to build their local communities. More detailed information is available from individual council websites.

With feedback and active community participation, your council can work even better for your community. I encourage you to use this site, and to engage with your local council to make a difference in your community.

Hon Nanaia Mahuta

Minister Of Local Government