Far North District Council supports Head Start Proposal for Northland

Far North District Council has voted in support of the Northland Head Start Outline Proposal, marking a significant milestone in Northland’s local government reform journey.

The decision – made at today’s Extraordinary Council meeting – follows Whangarei District Council’s vote of approval on 3 August.

Mayor Moko Tepania said he was proud of the mahi undertaken with his fellow Northland councils, given Central Government’s three-month timeframe to come up with a proposal.

He said he was also grateful to the people of the Far North and wider Northland for sharing their views on the proposed changes.

"I'm happy with today's decision and believe we've made the best lemonade we could with the lemons and short time we were given," Mayor Tepania said.

"I acknowledge there are still many hurdles ahead and the uncertainty this process has created. While there are still many unknowns, this proposal gives us time to work with our communities to get things right.

"I'm also stoked that more than 2300 Northlanders responded to surveys across the region, which gave us a solid understanding of the needs and desires of our local people.

"These responses enabled us to strongly advocate for their voices in a way that was meaningful for our respective districts."

The outline proposal is expected to be submitted to the Government for consideration by the 9 August deadline, which sets out a staged transition towards a single Northland unitary authority.

If approved, development of a detailed proposal and a full round of public consultation would follow from October, with a final proposal submitted to the Government in March 2027.

Cabinet would then consider that proposal in May and any new local government arrangements would begin at the 2028 local elections.

Under the proposal, the Far North would become a unitary authority from 2028, retaining its existing community boards and Māori ward councillors.

Mayor Moko Tepania said this transition period would be used to review and work through the details of further amalgamation alongside communities, hapū, iwi and the other Northland councils.

"The destination model allows us to uphold the binding poll on Māori wards that the Far North voted to keep," he said.

"It also allows us to retain or enhance our community board structure, while continuing to work on how both can be incorporated or addressed for a single unitary authority.”

The final outline proposal has been developed following direction from participating Northland councils and review by the Local Government Reform Elected Member Steering Group.

Northland Regional Council will consider endorsement of the proposal on 5 August.

Kaipara District Council has said it will not support the proposal and will make a final decision on the proposal at its council meeting on 5 August.

However, the proposal will remain eligible under the Government's criteria, which only requires support from at least two territorial authorities. Under the Head Start pathway, an outline proposal can proceed when two or more of Northland's district councils support it, provided they represent a majority of the population across the affected area.

More information and a full version of the Outline Proposal is available on the Far North District Council website: Simplifying Local Government | Far North District Council