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Region is the formal term for the top tier of local government in New Zealand. There are 12 regions, each governed by an elected regional council. Four territorial authorities (the second tier of local government) also perform the functions of a regional council and thus are known as unitary authorities (five if the Chatham Islands Council is counted as a unitary authority, but usually it isn't). Some regional boundaries follow territorial authority boundaries but there are plenty of exceptions. The southern boundary of the Auckland Region, for example, cuts through the middle of Franklin District.
Responsibilities
Regional authorities are primarily responsible for environmental management, including water, contaminant discharge and coastal management, river and lake management including flood and drainage control, regional land management; regional transport (including public transport), biosecurity or pest management; while territorial authorities are responsible for: local-level land use management (urban and rural planning); network utility services such as water, sewerage, stormwater and solid waste management; local roads; libraries; parks and reserves; and community development. Property rates (land taxes) are used to fund both regional and territorial government activities. There is often a high degree of co-operation between regional and territorial councils as they have complementary roles.
List of regions
Regions of regional councils and unitary authorities, roughly in north to south order (brand names are in parentheses):
- Northland
- Auckland
- Waikato (Environment Waikato)
- Bay of Plenty (Environment BOP)
- Hawke's Bay
- Taranaki
- Manawatu-Wanganui
(Horizons Regional Council; horizons.mw) - Wellington
(Greater Wellington Regional Council) - Tasman - unitary authority
- Marlborough - unitary authority
- Nelson - unitary authority
- West Coast
- Canterbury (Environment Canterbury)
- Otago
- Southland (Environment Southland)
ISO 3166-2-codes for each can be found in NZ.
Areas outside regional boundaries
New Zealand has a number of outlying islands that are not included within regional boundaries. The Chatham Islands is not a region, although its council operates as a region under the Resource Management Act. The Kermadecs and the sub-antarctic islands are inhabited only by a small number of conservation staff. The Conservation Minister is empowered to act as a regional council for these islands.
Governance
Councils are popularly elected every three years. Councils may use a first past the post or single transferable vote system.
See also
External links
Regions of New Zealand | Subdivisions of New Zealand | Lists of subnational entities
"Regions of New Zealand"