About this site

Local government is an important feature of all our lives. It helps to shape the communities we live in. It is important that local people have the opportunity to influence local decisions about their community, and this website is aimed at providing more accessible information for people to participate in their local processes.

The website provides general information about local government in New Zealand and offers 17 profiles for each of New Zealand's 85 regional and territorial councils – including information about council activities and structures, election statistics, community profiles, council expenditure, debt, and sources of income.

The data used to develop the profiles has been derived from a variety of sources: Statistics New Zealand, the Local Government Surveys by The Department of Internal Affairs, Council Local Governance Statements and Long Term Council Community Plans. The information has been taken as reported from these various sources. In reviewing the information shown in these profiles readers should be mindful that the information has -

• Only been presented in a consistent way.
• Not been analysed or adjusted to allow comparisons between councils to be made.