The Local Governance Statement is a collection of information about the processes through which the Council engages with the residents of Dunedin City, how the Council makes decisions and how the citizens can influence these processes.
Introduction
The Local Governance Statement supports the purpose of local government by promoting local democracy. The statement provides the public with information on the ways to influence local democratic processes.
The Local Governance Statement is a requirement of the Local Government Act 2002 and includes the following broad categories of information:
- Functions, responsibilities, and activities of the Council
- Electoral arrangements
- Governance structures and processes
- The way elected members make decisions and relate to each other
- The management structure and key policies of the Council.
The Purpose of Local Government (Section 10 Local Government Act 2002) is
- to enable democratic local decision-making and action by, and on behalf of, communities; and
- to promote the social, economic, environmental and cultural well-being of communities in the present and for the future.
Our Local Governance Statement
-
Functions and Responsibilities
The 9 Year Plan 2025/2034 sets out the activities and services we intend to provide to meet the city’s needs.
-
Legislation and bylaws
Our rights, obligations and responsibilities are described in statutes, regulations and bylaws. To fullfil its purposes, the Dunedin City Council exercises powers and fulfils responsibilities through the following:
- Local Government legislation, which applies to all local government. Key among these are:
- Local Government Acts 1974 and 2002
- Local Government (Rating) Act 2002
- Resource Management Act 1991
- Building Act 1991
- Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987
- Local Electoral Act 2001
And local legislation (which applies only to Dunedin City Council)
Links to key Dunedin City Council documents including Bylaws, Strategies, Plans, Policies, Reports and Submissions.
-
Representation arrangements, Electoral System and Processes
The Council uses the Single Transferable Vote electoral system (STV). Voters rank candidates in order of preference.
The following link provides information on the local elections.
-
Members’ roles and conduct
- A summary of Elected members interests is attached to every agenda. Agendas can be viewed via the following link:
https://www.dunedin.govt.nz/council/council-meetings/agendas-and-minutes
- Role of the Mayor and Elected Members
- Code of Conduct
Elected members are bound by the Code of Conduct as set out in Standing Orders. Code of Conduct ( 3.2 MB, PDF |opens in new window)
Remuneration and Allowances:
-
Governance Structure, membership and delegations
2022- 2025 Elected Members
Mayor and Councillors – The Dunedin City Council is comprised of the Mayor and 14 Councillors. Information regarding the Councillors, the role of the Council can be found on the following link:
https://www.dunedin.govt.nz/council/mayor-and-councillors
Community Boards – Dunedin has 6 Community Boards details of Community Boards and members can be found on the following link:
https://www.dunedin.govt.nz/council/community-boards
Committee Structure – below is the link to the Committee Structure.
Committee Structure ( 2.8MB, PDF | Opens in new window)
-
Meeting processes
Information regarding Council, Committee and Community Board meetings, including agendas, minutes and meeting schedule may be found via the following link:
The Council has adopted a set of Standing Orders for the conduct of its meetings including committees and community boards.
Council and Committee meetings are also record and streamed live and recordings maybe found on the following link
-
Consultation Policies
The Local Government Act 2002 provides principles and requirements for consultation as part of the planning, decision-making and accountability role of Council. Issues that are currently being consulted on can be found via the following link:
The Council also uses the People’s Panel to enable people to have their say on Dunedin’s future.
-
Liaising with Maori
A guide to Iwi Consultation has been prepared to assist with appropriate consultation.
- Iwi consultation ( 39.1 KB, PDF | Opens in new window)
The Council has also formed the Maori Participation Working Party which has representatives from Council and Kai Tahu to discuss matters of interest to both parties.
-
Management Structure
The Local Government Act 2002 requires the Council to employ a Chief Executive who responsibilities are to employ other staff on behalf of the council, to implement Council decisions and provide advice to the Council.
Under the Local Government Act 2002, the Chief Executive is the only person who may lawfully give instructions to a staff member. Information relating to the structure of Council can be found via the following links:
-
Equal Employment Opportunities Policy
Dunedin City Council is committed to the principles of equal employment opportunities and seeks to ensure that there are no barriers present which discriminate against people on the grounds of sex, age, marital status, religious or ethical beliefs, colour, race or national origins, disability, political opinion, employment status, family status and sexual orientation. All employment-related decisions are made on the basis of merit.
-
Policy and Planning Documents
At Dunedin City Council, we have a number of planning documents that provide details on our functions, goals and how we plan to achieve them:
2nd Generation plan - https://www.dunedin.govt.nz/council/district-plan/2nd-generation-district-plan/read-the-plan
-
Official Information Requests
Requests for information can be made by all members of the public under the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 I(LGOIMA) and the Privacy Act 1993. Information may be found via the following link:
https://www.dunedin.govt.nz/council/official-information-lgoima
-
Contact Us
- PO Box 5045 Dunedin 9054
- Phone: +64 03 477 4000
- Email: dcc@dcc.govt.nz
- Or via Facebook and twitter.