PODCAST · news
Raglan Politics
by Raglan Community Radio
We talk to anyone involved in local politics in our area including community board members, Councillors and even sometimes the Mayor. We also catch up with our resident politics guy John "Awesome" Lawson.
Episodes
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Local Government Minister Not Getting Any Love at LGNZ Conference
We look at a few local things happening like a road closure on Whaanga Road and the new cell phone tower before looking at the recent Local Government Conference in Rotorua where Minister Simon Watts received a frosty reception from the assembled Mayors and Councillors.
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Phil McCabe and the Green Party Campaign
First time political candidate and Raglan local Phil McCabe is in studio to talk about his experience on the road around the Taranaki King Country electorate and his hopes for the Green Party this election.
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Lisa Thomson In Studio
We talk about the resignation of the council Chief Executive, the Long Term Plan, Wainui Reserve Plan dates, a survey showing council staff across Australasia are disengaged and we ask what questions Lisa has for the election candidate who will be at our meeting in the town hall on Sunday 18th.
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Where Now For Council Mergers
Mayor Aksel Bech joins us to talk about the council merger pause and the effect of the Taxpayers Union on council issues like the rates cap. We also look at what the cap means for out council spending, whether we can get a bed tax for Raglan - plus we talk through the Raglan Lawns fallout.
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Council Mergers On Pause
As well as the shock news from the government yesterday we look the Raglan Lawns situation, the return of the WSL, Wainui Reserve, the long term spending plan and this week's film 1978
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John Lawson's Got All The Details
We talk about the Raglan Community Board meeting, Wainui Reserve, Council funds, the Long Term Plan, and a quick look at the bus situation.
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Community Board Looking For Feedback
With the rates cap coming into force the community board is wanting to know which council services are most important to local ratepayers.
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Council Spending Plans Under Review
Lisa Thomson joins us to talk about plans to cut council spending and what this means for the the services we get. We also talk about the WSL, the Voice & Choice committee and next week's Community Board meeting
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Local Candidate for the Green Party and Council Spending
John Lawson joins us in the studio as we look at council spending (and costs cutting) plans. Plus John has the announcement of a Green Party candidate from Whaingaroa.
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Lisa Thomson - What Is Council Really For
In a wide ranging discussion that takes us through the council merger process, moves to further reduce council powers, the IAWAI Waters bill we talk about the change that are happening around local government and try to unpick the driving forces for these changes.
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What Really Happened In The Council Merger Process
The government's rushed council merger process appears to have pitted council's against each other with Taupo vehemently opposed to a plan developed by Waikato District to combine the five river councils into a single Unitary Authority. How did relationships suddenly get strained near the end of...
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Focus On The Regional Council
Not much is happening at the District Council so John Lawson has been checking out the Regional Council staff's attempts to educate their Councillors about climate change. We also look at transport issues and whether Raglan is preparing properly for it's expected growth.
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John Lawson and Local Politics
John's back on the Morning Show to look at local council issues, plus we accidentally start looking at a bit of national politics and then run out of things to talk about because councils are so busy working on the government's merger program they haven't spent much time on their usual business.
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Ross Wallis Report in from the Raglan Community Board
Following the Community Board meeting on Wednesday we talk to Chairperson Ross Wallis about: The new cell phone tower, Te Uku Subdivision, WSL feedback, discretionary fund grants, constant staffing turnover within council, Manu Bay boat ramp and the proposed council mergers.
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Council Merger Chaos
With just a few days left for councils to decide who they're going to merge with we talk to Waikato Mayor Aksel Bech about who's in who's out of his plan for a Western Waikato Council. We also discuss a solution to the fears around the rural/city divide which is still dominating discussions. We...
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Council Mergers Still Dominating Council Activity
There's not much happening at council aside from the focus on the governmandated merges so we get a good look at that before talking about speed limit changes in Whatawhata and well that's about it
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Mayoral Awards & Council Update with Lisa Thomson
Council is still doing it's normal business, including Mayoral Awards, road closures, planning for the long term spending plan and figuring out details like how much we charge Maui Dolphin Day organisers to use Papahua for their event.
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Mountain to the Sea Council Could Be On The Way
Waikato District Council is settling on a merger plan that includes the councils in the west of our region that form the Waikato River Catchment. Lisa Thomson joins us in the studio to talk about this decision and whether the other councils are interested in joining.
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Ross Wallis Trying To Get Some Work Done
With restructures going on both inside council and outside with the council mergers, our Community Board Chairperson is struggling to get work done but there has been movement on the new cell phone tower problem, Manu Bay boatramp and the board has been submitting on the council merger issues.
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Do Rates Cuts Mean Worse Roads?
Councillor Mike Keir joins us to look at how cutting rates could negatively impact our roads. He talks about the new roading contract at council, how often roads should receive maintenance and whether council can get away with cutting rates by being smarter with the spending. We talk about the...
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Has Council Screwed Up The Buses Again?
John Lawson joins us to talk about problems with the way buses were planned for Raglan plus we look in at the council merger process and cuts that are being planned for council services in the new long term spending plan.
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Making Councils Great Again
What are we going to tell our council to do with the government's council merger program? Tony Mayow, former Council Manager and Community Development Activist, is back in the studio to help us figure out what a good council might actually look like.
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Lisa Thomson on Local Government Reforms
Lisa joins us ahead of the Strengthening Our Voice In Local Government event this Sunday at 2pm in the Town Hall. We talk about the options facing our community and how the governments merger process will work, what the answered questions are and how people can have their say.
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Latest News on Council Merger Plans
Mayor Aksel joins us in the midst of a hurried tour around the district talking to communities about what they want out of the council merger plans. We find out the latest thinking from the region's Mayors as well as the popular sentiment amongst ratepayers - and discuss the options currently on...
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Penny Hulse in Raglan This Sunday
Penny Hulse is the former Deputy Mayor of Waitakere City and the Auckland Super City. She was also a panel member on the 2023 Review Into The Future Of Local Government report. She will speaking at a public meeting in the Town Hall on Sunday at 2pm so we caught up with her in advance to get her...
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The End Of The Road For Regional Councils
Noel Smith our local councillor for the Waikato Regional Council joins us to talk about the nationwide council shakeup and what it means for the work they do at the Regional Council.
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Local Politics With John Lawson
WEL Energy Trust Election, Stormwater issues, overcrowded buses, a brief history of local body politics in Whaingaroa.
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Ross Wallis on Council Mergers
We talk to Ross about the council merger process and what the Community Board perspective is on the big changes coming our way.
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Ross Wallis Raglan Community Board
Ross talks to us about the local boards plans for the community, what it's like working with the council beauracracy, we also look back at the WSL, discuss the proposed church on Wi Nera St and find out how the process of delegating power to the community boards is going
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Tony Mayow Survived The Super City Merger
The Government wants to reduce the number of councils in New Zealand so we've got Tony Mayow in the studio to reflect on his experience with the Auckland Super City merger. Tony spent much of his career trying to make councils more responsive to their community and has experience of ensuring...
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Lisa Thomson Council on Government Reforms
We also discuss the Community Board Meeting and community swimming pool .
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Raglan Community Board Meeting Wednesday
John Lawson joins us to have a look at Wednesday's Raglan Community Board meeting and the issues they'll be discussing.
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Coming Up With A Good Plan For A New Council
John and Aaron come up with their own council amalgamation plan - starting around the 13 minute mark - but before that they also talk about the mythical Raglan Structure Plan and how close we are to manifesting the plan, plus they look at the WSL and whether it will be coming back
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Mayor told amalgamate or "be roadkill"
With just 3 months to meet the government's deadline for council amalgamation plans we get current Mayor Aksel Bech on the line to find out what the process will be and if we will get a say in the process. We also talk about whether Raglan Lawns will still have the council contract to mow locally...
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Lisa Thomson On Council Changes, WSL And More
We catch up with Lisa about what's been happening with Council over the last few months, including setting rates, the rates cap, Wainui Reserve and the recent Community Board Meeting. We also review the recent WSL surf event and look at the changes that council has to make under the governments…
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Mayor Aksel on Government Changes
WDC Mayor Aksel Bech joins us to talk about the Government's local government reforms and how the will impact the reforms he's trying to make within Waikato District Council. We also talk about the rates cap and the work he'll be doing once he's back from the Christmas break as well as the many...
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The Big 2025 Review with John Lawson
John and Aaron attempt to discuss all the big events and headlines that happened in 2025. It was a year that produced a new mayor and a new sewerage treatment plant but also continued the problems with people getting in trouble at sea.
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Ross Wallis - First Community Board Meeting
Ross joins us in the studio to look over the issues discussed at the Raglan Community Board's first full meeting since the election. Meeting times, trial Raglan bus, summer prep with Xtreme Waste and Police, Descretionary Fund, sealing Rural roads, Greenslade Playground, Wainui Reserve 30 year...
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Councillor Thomson Reports In
Lisa Thomson joins us to talk about; freedom camping, this week's community board meeting, a new water tower, cell phone tower government changes to the local body scene, stormwater, traffic issues around Raglan Area School and summer preparations
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RCB Gets Down To Business and Government Destroys Regional Councils
John and Aaron try to figure out what the government is trying to achieve by breaking up regional councils and look at the Community Board agenda for tomorrow's meeting.
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Ross Wallis on Changes At Council
Our new Community Board Chair Ross Wallis is in studio to talk about the new powers that the Mayor has delegated to Community Boards and about the Board's plans for the next three years.
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Lisa Thomson - Community Voice & Choice
Our Councillor Lisa Thomson has been appointed Chair of the new Community Voice and Choice Committee - one of the three main committees of council - so we talk with her about her hopes for this new role and what it means for the new Mayor to prioritise community engagement in such a significant...
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New Mayor Flips The Script
Mayor Aksel joins us to talk about changes he's making to the way council operates and to the new powers he's delegating to the Raglan Community Board. We also talk about his desire for transparency and for communities to have more of a say in how the council operates.
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Local Politics Update With John Lawson
We talk about the efforts at the Regional Council to try to stop Plan Change 1 plus look at various projects and opportunities to give feed back to the District Council. We also look at how many times sewer lines have been incorrectly connected to the stormwater system - something that has caused...
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Meet Our New Community Board Chairperson
Ross Wallis joins us in the studio fresh from being elected as Chair of the Raglan Community Board earlier in the week. We talk about the plans for the next three years and what it might mean if the new Mayor goes through with his plan of giving more power to the Community boards
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Election Wrap Up 2025
John Lawson is in studio to look at the final election results and maybe predict what's going to happen over the next three years. We also look at couple of consultations happening at the moment about activities on our beaches and also freedom camping on James St.
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Lisa Thomson - Election Victory and Work Coming Up
We talk to Lisa Thomson in her first interview since winning a fourth term as our local Councillor and catch up about the local issues that council is working on including bad behavior from campers on James St, the Beaches by-law, Wainui Reserve 30 year plan, CCTV cameras - and we also look back…
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New Mayor - Aksel Bech
Waikato District Council's new Mayor Aksel Bech joins us following his big win at the weekend's local body election. We talk about his plans for the next three years and how he'll keep those election promises.
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Get Your Vote In To The Council Office Says John Lawson
With just days left till the local body election closes we look at the stats to see if there will be a bigger turn out this year and talk about some issues that have come up during the campaign.
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Why The Panic Around Plan Change 1
One of our candidates for Plan Change 1 at the Waikato Regional Council has described this plan as being something that will cost the Regional economy billions of dollars. We've got Craig Mitchell in the studio to see if we can get behind the hyperbole and slogans and find our what the Plan means...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
We talk to anyone involved in local politics in our area including community board members, Councillors and even sometimes the Mayor. We also catch up with our resident politics guy John "Awesome" Lawson.
HOSTED BY
Raglan Community Radio
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Raglan Politics have?
Raglan Politics currently has 282 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Raglan Politics about?
We talk to anyone involved in local politics in our area including community board members, Councillors and even sometimes the Mayor. We also catch up with our resident politics guy John "Awesome" Lawson.
How often does Raglan Politics release new episodes?
Raglan Politics publishes regularly with 282 episodes available. Check the episode list for the typical release schedule.
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You can listen to Raglan Politics on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Raglan Politics?
Raglan Politics is created and hosted by Raglan Community Radio.
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