Auckland Regional Council

The Auckland Regional Council (ARC) was the regional council (one of the former local government authorities) of the Auckland Region. Its predecessor the Auckland Regional Authority (ARA) was formed in 1963 and became the ARC in 1989. The ARC was subsumed into the Auckland Council on 1 November 2010.

There had been earlier attempts to rationalise Auckland's local government dating back to the early 1900s. Dove-Myer Robinson in standing for a second term as Mayor of Auckland City in 1959 campaigned on wanting to unify all of Auckland. Once elected he sought to build a consensus for reform, starting in 1960 with a meeting of 400 local body politicians from 32 local bodies. An Auckland Regional Authority Establishment Committee resulted. Robinson used the Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto and the Melbourne and Metropolitan Board of Works as models. He started with a draft comprehensive empowering bill but soon ran into opposition, with some Establishment Committee members deliberately avoiding meetings, and the Mayors of the many small boroughs fearing for the ability of their bodies to continue to govern themselves, lobbying against the proposal. Auckland City was the principal supporter of the initiative. A Bill to create the ARA was introduced to Parliament in 1961 but the Establishment Committee then thought better of it and it was withdrawn from the Parliamentary process by the Government. Robinson sought compromises about what was to be included (the Auckland Harbour Board, Electricity Supply Authorities and North Shore Drainage Board were excluded), on representation (appointment by the Local Authorities was used in the first term), on funding (direct rating was excluded) and restricting the role so only specifically empowered functions were allowed. Opposition continued with some parties implacably opposed, others wanting sub-regional councils and some promoting an alternative, much more limited Bill to Parliament. Through a good relationship with the Prime Minister Keith Holyoake, Robinson persuaded the Government to support his second compromise Bill in 1962, which was passed. Many of the compromises persisted though the duration of the ARA and its successor, the ARC. Robinson was rewarded with his election by the Authority members as its first chairman.

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