Committee Member Loses Seat After Repeated No Shows

Friday, 28 February 2025, 5:44 pm
Article: Jonathan Leask - Local Democracy Reporter

A Canterbury committee representative has lost his seat after not attending a single meeting in two years.

Te Ngai Tuahuriri Rūnanga representative Arapata Reuben's seat was declared vacant at the start of the Ashburton Water Zone Committee meeting on Tuesday.

Local Democracy reported on Monday that Reuben didn’t attend any of the 14 meetings across 2023 and 2024, but received the full $8000 honorarium.

Community and Rūnanga representatives receive a ratepayer-funded $4000 per year to be on Canterbury water zone committee, with the deputy chair receiving $5000 and the chairperson $6000.

Environment Canterbury confirmed with Local Democracy Reporting they had “discussed and clarified with Arapata directly” before the meeting.

Reuben did not attend the Tuesday meeting.

Ngāi Tūāhuriri and Reuben could not be reached for comment.

The water zone committee, a joint initiative of ECan and the Ashburton District Council, is made up of a range of people with interests in water who have a strong connection to the zone.

Both councils standing orders state when a member is absent from four consecutive meetings without leave of absence or an apology, “then the office held by the member will become vacant”.

Reuben gave an apology for four meetings but was listed as absent (without an apology) for the seven meetings prior to Tuesday.

Reuben also sits on the Christchurch-West Melton and the Waimakariri zone committees as the Te Ngai Tuahuriri Rūnanga representative, also receiving a $4000 honorarium for each, where he has been attending meetings, including via visual link.

The Te Ngai Tuahuriri Rūnanga and Te Rūnanga o Arowhenua representative seats are now both vacant on the Ashburton zone committee.

MP James Meager was the Arowhenua representative until resigning in May 2023 when he ran for Parliament. He hasn’t been replaced.

Te Taumutu Rūnanga is represented by Jess Hobbs, who attended Tuesday’s meeting by visual link after she had missed the previous three meetings, of which one was an apology.

Meanwhile, Bill Thomas was re-elected as chairperson of the committee for 2025 while Clare Buchanan was voted in as deputy, replacing Chris Allen.

Allen died in a tragic incident on his farm in December and his passing was acknowledged with a moments silence at the start of the meeting.

Canterbury has 10 water zone committees, which have helped manage local water resources for more than 10 years.

The Canterbury Mayoral Forum - a group of local government leaders - is proposing a restructure which would replace the water zone committees with new local freshwater leadership groups.

LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.

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