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The Stratford District Council is proposing to add just one more seat to its table for next year's election – a Māori one.

They had twice, once in August and once in March after the law allowing a binding referendum changed, pushed out making a decision on the matter. “A hāngī needs to get put down,” Clive Tongaaw’ikau, the chair of Araukuku hapū, said. “I feel like I’ve climbed a mountain, and I’m running down.” ANDY JACKSON/Stuff Tongaaw’ikau spoke at the meeting and led haka and waiata throughout the morning. “I don’t know how to put it into words,” he said, throwing his arms in the air with a grin. He said the thought of his district being the odd one out in Taranaki history had...

In the last 12 months, New Plymouth and South Taranaki district councils, and the Taranaki Regional Council, have all voted for Māori representation. One of the country’s smallest districts with a population of just under 10,000, of whom 14 per cent identify as Māori, councillors had the opportunity to green light the establishment of a Māori ward in Stratford in August last year. But they unanimously voted against it, opting to begin the process in 2024, so they had time to consult with their community. Simon O'Connor/Stuff Stratford deputy mayor Alan Jamieson said what happened to ...

At the end of the day, the community will help make the final call, he said. At a council policy and services committee meeting earlier this week, Bowden asked councillors what they thought of reducing the speed limit. “We all know Opunake Rd has got a serious crash history,” Bowden said. “This is the next step in the journey.” Opunake Rd is nearly 30 kilometres in length, narrow in places and full of bends, dips and shaded patches that become icy in winter and spring. SIMON O'CONNOR/Stuff There have been 57 crashes on Opunake Rd in the past five years, three of which have been ...