Local Council

"These seats have brought a Māori worldview to a place where it has a voice and a vote," the council's chair says.

A majority of city councillors are now against the sale of the council's shares in Wellington Airport, casting doubt on an earlier decision to sell.

Local councils will have to show how they will deliver drinking water, wastewater and stormwater services in a financially sustainable way.

The regional council had already decided to create a special ward, but the coalition government has forced it to hold a poll on the issue.

A Muslim leader says it's so far from the truth, when he first heard about it he thought he was being pranked. But a supporter of the flyer says otherwise.

The mill, which employs 230 people across two sites in the central North Island, announced it was closing due to high electricity prices.

Almost 70 percent of people want to be more involved in council decisions, but reaching the community to enable engagement can be a challenge.

But the levels are well within drinking water guidelines, the council says.

The pamplets make claims about council spending, speed limits, and the broadcasting of Islamic calls to prayer. Audio

About 100 people attended a hīkoi to wāhi tapu (sacred) Lake Rotokākahi on Monday in a stand against the route of a sewerage pipeline.

Wastewater from 341 households in the Cardinal West development is being pumped to temporary tanks before being trucked away. Audio

New poll data shows 47 percent of respondents - almost half - favour a council four-year term.

With an average rates rise of 16 percent it's clear increases of that scale can't be absorbed long-term.

The rates bill on the property, which is surrounded by state homes, has grown to $317,846.55 and is now the city's longest outstanding debt.