Community representation remains largely unchanged
Environment Canterbury media release: 25th February 2025
The Local Government Commission has upheld the Canterbury Regional Council’s (Environment Canterbury’s) decision to largely retain its current representation arrangement.
This will apply to the local government election being held in October this year.
The Waitaha/Canterbury region will retain seven constituencies with their existing boundaries, except for minor adjustments in Christchurch city.
The Regional Council will continue to be made up of 14 elected Councillors and two Ngāi Tahu Councillors under the Canterbury Regional Council (Ngāi Tahu Representation) Act 2022.
Some constituency boundaries within Christchurch have been adjusted slightly so that the Regional Council’s boundaries match the current Christchurch City Council ward boundaries.
Consultation process and representation arrangements
Chair Craig Pauling says the consultation process, which began in May last year, has led to a representation arrangement that maintains the effective representation of communities that share common interests and addresses concerns about Councillors representing large geographical areas.
“We received 217 submissions on our proposed representation arrangements. We listened to that feedback and had robust debate on the pros and cons before making the decision to retain the current structure with minor changes to the Christchurch boundaries,” Chair Pauling says.
“There is no perfect answer for a region as vast and diverse as Canterbury, but the outcome will maintain good representation for residents as we head into the local government elections and ensure elected members can meet the needs of their constituencies,” Chair Pauling says.
Proposed changes and community feedback
The Regional Council had suggested a change from the status quo, which still had a council made up of 14 members elected from seven wards or constituencies but that combined the Ashburton District with South Canterbury/Ōtuhituhi and made Selwyn district its own ward.
Residents from Ashburton and South Canterbury strongly opposed the proposed change as they felt it reduced effective representation, particularly for rural communities. On the other hand, residents from Selwyn were supportive of the proposal.
“The rationale for retaining the arrangement ultimately acknowledged that the different areas didn’t share common interests with respect to land use, community connections, geography, economic activity and environmental characteristics,” Chair Pauling says.
The Commission received one appeal against the Council’s final proposal.
Read the Local Government Commission's determination on the proposed Canterbury representation arrangements [PDF].
Learn more about the 2025 Canterbury local body elections.