A meeting of the full Porirua City Council was held this week, on Thursday 21 November. Here is a wrap of what was covered:
First up, minutes from the last Council meeting were confirmed.
Porirua Mayor Anita Baker then spoke about what she’d been up to during the past month, including acknowledging the Hīkoi mō te Tiriti passing through Porirua; attending the opening of new exhibitions at Pātaka Art + Museum; joining the AOG Pacific Health Expo; attending Pāuatahanui School Lamb & Calf Day; celebrating 100 years with St Barnabas Plimmerton Presbyterian Church; attending the Kāpiti-Mana Branch of Forest & Bird meeting in Plimmerton; the Secondary School Sports Awards; Postgate School’s cultural event; Awarding prizes to the businesses who won ChoctoberFest; attending the Police graduation, the end-of-year event for an Inspiring Tamariki Through Art pilot programme with Porirua East School and Pātaka, unveiling of a plaque by the Plimmerton Residents’ Association; attending the Plimmerton School gala, the Trust City Brass Band concert, a Western Suburbs football match, citizenship ceremony, judging Paremata School’s speech competition, hosting a delegation from Yangzhou in China – who Council shares a friendly city status with; attending a Shine event, and the Wellington Airport Awards.
After agreeing to recommendations from different committees since the last meeting, the Council discussed whether to formalise its opposition to the Principles of the Treaty of Waitangi Bill currently before Parliament.
This was a Notice of Motion brought to the meeting by Councillor Kathleen Filo, which asked Council to affirm its opposition to the Bill in alignment with Te Runanga o Toa Rangatira as its Mana Whenua partner.
Cr Filo said “by supporting this motion we demonstrate our values, our commitment to mana whenua, and we stand up for what’s right. In kotahitanga, in unity, we reject the divisiveness, and we send a clear message that we are committed to honouring Te Tiriti, and building our future together as a council, as a city and as a nation.”
After words of support for the motion from elected members around the table, Council unanimously voted to formally declare its opposition to the Bill.
Next up, Council agreed to endorse Te Awarua-o-Porirua Whakaritenga – Porirua Harbour Accord. The intention of the accord is to develop a mauri ora approach to guide restoration and monitoring of the harbour’s health. It aims to achieve a joined-up, integrated approach towards restoring the health of the harbour, and to ensure partner organisations remain committed to action to achieve the vision.
Partner organisations Ngāti Toa Rangatira, Wellington Water and Greater Wellington Regional Council have already confirmed their support for the Accord. Wellington City Council will consider it at a meeting on 5 December.
There were no speakers in the public forum.
Missed the meeting? You can watch it in full and read all the associated papers on the meetings page of our website. You can also see what meetings and workshops are coming up, with agendas posted a few days before each one.
The public is welcome to attend most Council meetings and workshops. They are also livestreamed on our YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/@poriruacity
22 Nov 2024
