No abstract

Enhancing democracy was a paradoxical aspect of the neo-liberal-inspired public sector reforms that occurred in the 1980s and 1990s in many Western liberal democracies. The so-called 'New Zealand model' of public management, which attracted international attention, formed the backdrop of significant reforms of local government and planning legislation which transformed urban governance in New Zealand. Environmental decision-making was devolved to regional and city/district councils, along with new requirements for public participation in both planning and local government legislation to foster accountability. At the time, these new public participation provisions received international acclaim. However, legislative, economic, social and technological change has exposed deficiencies in statutory public participation in local authority planning and decisionmaking. This article reviews developments over the past quarter century in participatory planning provisions and considers the implications for urban governance. Connections are highlighted between the changes in New Zealand and the broader shifts in public participation that have been observed internationally as a result of the impact of neo-liberalisation and further developments in public management (including post-new public management). The article concludes by discussing the challenges associated with fostering participatory planning and public participation in contemporary urban governance arrangements shaped by neo-liberal policies focused on austerity and efficiency.

English Traditional forms of participation and consultation have been widely criticised as limited, but there is also resistance to expanding citizen involvement in decision making. This raises the question of how to achieve democratic legitimacy. New Zealand’s government is encouraging innovative deliberative techniques, including citizens’ juries, in local authority decision making. One very contentious experiment has dampened New Zealand’s enthusiasm for citizens’ juries. This article reviews that experience and makes some comparisons with Britain. It also reviews another initiative: a tribunal deciding whether to continue fluoridation of a municipal water supply. Finally, the article considers prospects for fostering more effective citizen engagement in community decisions in New Zealand.

This article explores the need for Treaty-based local governance, raised to national prominence by the 2014 outrage against New Plymouth Mayor Andrew Judd, who advocated a Māori ward for 2016. The Treaty of Waitangi influenced the creation of Māori seats in Parliament in the nineteenth century, and a provision for Māori seats in local councils in 2001. There has been limited uptake of the latter and Māori remain significantly underrepresented. Innovations in governing arrangements have allowed non-elected Māori to take up advisory roles and, in some cases, decision-making roles. We argue that these do not ensure fair and effective Māori representation. Ad hoc and unpredictable structures have failed to deliver fair and effective representation to all New Zealanders. There is a pressing need for a New Zealand constitutional debatea conversation among Māori and non-Māorito devise a governance model that addresses the Treaty of Waitangi as New Zealand's founding document.

Since 2000 intergovernmental relations in New Zealand have been evolving rapidly as a result of a significant shift in government policy discourse towards a strong central-local government partnership. New statutory provisions empowering local government to promote social, economic, environmental and cultural wellbeing have significant implications for the range of activities in which local authorities are engaged. In turn, this has consequences for the relationship between local government and central government. The effectiveness of the new empowerment and the prospects for further strengthening of the role of local government are critically examined. Despite some on-going tensions, and an inevitable mismatch in the balance of power between central and local government, it is argued that there is a discernible rebalancing of intergovernmental relations as a result of new legislation and central government policy settings which reflect a ‘localist turn’. On the basis of developments since 2000 it may be argued that the New Zealand system of local government is evolving away from the recognised ‘Anglo’ model. However, further consolidation is needed in the transformation of intergovernmental relations and mechanisms that will cement a more genuine central-local government partnership