Deputy Mayor Jill Day has called on Maōri to take an active part in the consultations on Wellington City Council's Ten-Year Plan. Day believes it's important that the voice of tangata whenua is heard in the discussion.
"Wellington has a large number of Māori in our community and we need to make sure Māori have an opportunity to say in the decisions that we make, these are big plans it's looking at ten years ahead and there are many aspects that affect Māori in our community," says Day.
Currently, there are policies that affect Māori including a te reo Māori policy, housing resilience, transport and water where are Māori perspective is required. The council currently engage with Māori iwi but the Deputy Mayor says they need more Māori voices.
"I personally work hard to engage with Māori but as a council, we can definitely improve that, there's always room for improvement and we're very focused on that."
Through the annual plan process last year the council trialled new initiatives to engage with the community and running a forum through facebook. They also intend to run a forum out in the community to target people who aren't familiar with the formal submission process can learn access councillors to discuss issues that affect them.
"Ultimately, the council are seeking better representation around our table and one way is helping Māori to be aware of the way that they can make a difference and have a say."