BROADCASTS.com

Local body politics is having a bit of a week in the sun.\xa0

They have formed a group, as we told you Tuesday, to look at ways of pumping up voter turnout and the possibility of a four-year term.\xa0

The Government's change of rules around M\u0101ori wards has also seen the local authorities front up and have their say at a select committee.\xa0

On that specifically they are bogged down, and they don\u2019t even seem to know it, by something that never had to be as problematic as it has turned out to be.\xa0

The old rule was if councils decided to introduce M\u0101ori seats or wards, the locals who hadn't been consulted got to run a vote if they got 5% of the ratepayers backing one.\xa0

When they did hold the vote, it was a landslide win telling the councils M\u0101ori wards weren't wanted.\xa0

Labour changed that rule without consultation. You weren't allowed to vote anymore. Councils could do whatever they wanted with no checks and balances.\xa0

This Government wants to flip the law.\xa0

Mistake number one as argued this week, is that it's central Government overreach. They forget they are the same councils who cry poor to Government's over everything from infrastructure to storm damage to GST collection. You can't have it both ways with central for the money and local for the power.\xa0

The second mistake is that the answer has been in front of them all along. It's called democracy.\xa0

Before they started gerrymandering the system anyone could stand, and still can. If they got enough votes they were elected.\xa0

Because not many M\u0101ori stood some bright spark argued race-based policy was an answer. Stack the rules, M\u0101ori get a different deal and it's been downhill ever since.\xa0

When the rule is that anyone can stand, there are no barriers and you have no problems. The freedom to stand, the freedom to debate and the freedom to contest the vote is a good, clean, clear system and, most importantly, a level playing field. It's fair.\xa0

When you mess with it you strike trouble and here, we are years later trying to untie the mess that race-based bias creates.\xa0

Keep it simple. Listen to the people. Value democracy.\xa0

You might find more people actually turn up to vote.\xa0

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.