Ngāi Tahu lodges plan to replace 24 South Island councils with five, despite no invitation to reform process

Ngāi Tahu has proposed replacing all 24 councils within its rohe across Te Waipounamu with five larger councils aligned to major river catchments. The iwi lodged the plan as a Head Start proposal ahead of the government's 9 August deadline, despite not being invited to take part in the council-led reform process. Ten other proposals were submitted by South Island councils.