Gisborne Council Attendance Under Scrutiny; Expert Calls For Rule Change

Thursday, 10 April 2025, 6:37 pm
Article: Zita Campbell - Local Democracy Reporter

A Gisborne councillor who has attended less than half the council meetings and workshops since October says he’s still within the rules.

A local government expert says Gisborne District Council should amend its standing orders – the council rules – as some councillors attend less than 70% of meetings and workshops.

The council maintains all of its councillors are kept up to date, and to amend the standing orders “could have unintended consequences”.

Half the councillors have attended above 90% of all meetings and workshops, while three members attended between 80-89.7%, and four members fell below 80%.

Councillor Nick Tupara’s attendance started at 87.2% during the first year of term, dropping to 66.7% during the second year.

Since October, it has fallen to 41.2%, but he did not give a reason for the decrease.

He said he did not understand “why it is an issue”.

“It’s that kind of thing that plays into the disgruntlement of the community for no particular reason.”

There needed to be more context when reporting on councillors’ attendance rates, Tupara said.

“I’m still within the rules and regulations that govern council.”

He said the council needed to own its part, as sometimes there had been technical difficulties with notifying councillors of meetings.

Local Government expert Dr Andy Asquith, with the Institute for Public Policy and Governance at the University of Technology Sydney and formerly director of the Public Management Group at Massey University, said councils did not have the tools to regulate councillors’ attendance.

He recommended Gisborne District Council amend it.

“If nothing else, the defence of public money should be central to this,” he said.

“You’re elected to represent the community and the community has the right to expect that you will get yourself to the meetings and workshops.

“Far too many people stand for council without having any idea what they are getting involved with.”

Mayor Rehette Stoltz told Local Democracy Reporting that while the Democracy Support team assisted, meeting attendance ultimately rested with each councillor.

“Democracy functions best when those elected to represent are actually present to do so,” Stoltz said.

“A full-year meeting calendar is agreed upon in advance, and councillors receive electronic invitations from our Democracy team, with the option of printed schedules.”

Whenever there had been attendance issues over the past term, the councillor group had tried to address these with the councillor directly, she said.

What are standing orders?

Standing orders aim to help local authorities exercise their decision-making responsibilities in a “transparent, inclusive and lawful manner”.

There are no specific requirements for attendance rates, but an elected member can lose their seat if absent from four consecutive meetings without leave of absence or an apology being accepted under the Local Government Act. This excludes extraordinary or emergency meetings.

In February, a Canterbury water committee representative lost his seat after not attending a single meeting in two years.

The seat of Ashburton Water Zone Committee member Arapata Reuben was declared vacant after repeated no-shows.

Gisborne councillors are paid $49,822, with the potential to earn more if they take on additional responsibilities. It is considered a part-time role.

Council director engagement and Māori partnerships Anita Reedy-Holthausen said the standing order was a legal requirement and any change must remain consistent with the Local Government Act.

“The threshold of four missed ordinary meetings without leave is intentionally high and allows for personal circumstances, especially when apologies are accepted, or leave is granted.

“Tightening the rule beyond legislation could have unintended consequences and would need careful consideration and broad support.”

Elected members remained fully informed whether physically present or attending meetings online, she said.

“Governance decisions can only be made with a quorum of councillors present, ensuring no single individual can act independently of the collective decision-making process.”

She said the council adopted the current standing orders based on the Local Government New Zealand template. These will be reviewed following the release of LGNZ’s 2025 version.

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