4.2.1 Governing Body membership and decision-making
Membership of the Governing Body
Auckland Council’s Governing Body is made up of one mayor and 20 councillors, all elected every three years.
For more on the mayor’s role, visit The Mayor of Auckland.
Current representation
- The mayor is elected by voters across the whole Auckland region.
- Councillors are elected from 13 wards [1].
The number of councillors per ward depends on population size, to ensure fair representation. This is currently set at:
| Ward | Number of councillors |
|
Albany |
2 |
|
Albert–Eden–Roskill |
2 |
|
Franklin |
1 |
|
Howick |
2 |
|
Manukau |
2 |
|
Manurewa–Papakura |
2 |
|
Maungakiekie–Tāmaki |
1 |
|
North Shore |
2 |
|
Ōrākei |
1 |
|
Rodney |
1 |
|
Waitākere |
2 |
|
Waitematā and Gulf |
1 |
|
Whau |
1 |
Review of representation
A representation review must happen at least every six years to consider how well the current representation arrangements are working. Following legislative changes to the Local Government (Auckland Council) Act 2009 in 2023, the Governing Body of Auckland Council must now comprise between five and 29 councillors [2].
Auckland Council carried out a representation review ahead of the 2025 elections.
Māori ward option
Auckland Council may choose to introduce a Māori ward. It has decided against this to date. Its next opportunity will be after the 2025 election.
Governing Body decisions
The Governing Body is responsible for key decisions that affect the Auckland region.
It makes the decisions around:
- regulatory matters under laws such as the Resource Management Act 1991, Health Act 1956 and Building Act 2004
- transport networks and major infrastructure
- non-regulatory activities that are allocated to the Governing Body [3]
- establishing and maintaining council services and facilities, including local services
- governance of council-controlled organisations
- financial management [4].
Agreements with local boards help manage local activities, as outlined in local board agreements [5].
Decisions the Governing Body cannot delegate
Certain decisions must be made by the Governing Body and cannot be passed to other parts of council:
- setting council rates
- adopting or amending a bylaw
- borrowing money or buying or selling assets, unless already planned in the long-term plan
- adopting the long-term plan, annual plan, or annual report
- appointing the chief executive
- adopting policies that must be consulted on with the long-term plan, or required for the local governance statement
- adopting a remuneration and employment policy.
Delegated decision-making
All other decisions can generally be delegated to other bodies within council, either for practical reasons or if it’s more appropriate to make the decision at that level.
Visit How the council makes decisions for more information.
Footnotes
[1] Auckland Council Local Governance Statement 2014, s5.1.
[2] Section 8 Local Government (Auckland Council) Act
[3] In accordance with Local Government (Auckland Council) Act 2009, s17.
[4] In compliance with Local Government Act (2002), s101.
[5] Local Government (Auckland Council) Act, s15.