Gwynn Compton
@gwynncompton.bsky.social
Former local govt councillor, current govt relations and policy guy, writes about local government at www.localaotearoa.nz, overly enthusiastic runner. 🏃♂️👟
Reposted by Gwynn Compton
Kāpiti is at a crossroads. With a fresh push for regional reorganisation underway, our leaders must engage in good faith with this new process. Opting out again means losing our community's ability to shape and ultimately decide our own future.
localaotearoa.substack.com/p/will-kapit...
localaotearoa.substack.com/p/will-kapit...
Will Kāpiti shape reorganisation, or be shaped by it?
Kāpiti is at a crossroads. Whether we join an amalgamated council or choose to remain independent, our leaders must front up and engage in good faith. Opting out means giving up our community’s abilit...
localaotearoa.substack.com
December 12, 2025 at 12:13 AM
Kāpiti is at a crossroads. With a fresh push for regional reorganisation underway, our leaders must engage in good faith with this new process. Opting out again means losing our community's ability to shape and ultimately decide our own future.
localaotearoa.substack.com/p/will-kapit...
localaotearoa.substack.com/p/will-kapit...
Am… am I an influencer now?
December 11, 2025 at 10:53 PM
Am… am I an influencer now?
Received some fan mail this morning from someone who’s well regarded in the local government media scene who evidently has no idea what he’s talking about. 🤣
December 11, 2025 at 6:15 PM
Received some fan mail this morning from someone who’s well regarded in the local government media scene who evidently has no idea what he’s talking about. 🤣
Reposted by Gwynn Compton
The Wellington region is once again gearing up for another push at local government reorganisation. If amalgamation is back on the table, we owe it to our communities to get the process right. So what can we do differently to avoid the mistakes of the past?
localaotearoa.substack.com/p/once-more-...
localaotearoa.substack.com/p/once-more-...
Once more unto the Wellington amalgamation breach
Yes, you read that correctly: the Wellington region is once again gearing up for another push at amalgamation, so I’ve put together 10 recommendations on how our leaders might approach things differen...
localaotearoa.substack.com
December 11, 2025 at 8:16 AM
The Wellington region is once again gearing up for another push at local government reorganisation. If amalgamation is back on the table, we owe it to our communities to get the process right. So what can we do differently to avoid the mistakes of the past?
localaotearoa.substack.com/p/once-more-...
localaotearoa.substack.com/p/once-more-...
Two papers all passed for this trimester… just waiting for grades on two assignments for the final paper which I’m 99% sure I’ll have also passed but still nervous. 😥
December 11, 2025 at 1:35 AM
Two papers all passed for this trimester… just waiting for grades on two assignments for the final paper which I’m 99% sure I’ll have also passed but still nervous. 😥
Surely the White Ferns selectors can’t ignore Xara Jetly any longer?
www.nzc.nz/news-items/c...
www.nzc.nz/news-items/c...
Carson to Undergo Surgery | Rehabilitation Set for Six Months
WHITE FERNS off-spinner Eden Carson will undergo surgery on her right elbow today and is expected to require six months of rehabilitation before returning to play.
www.nzc.nz
December 11, 2025 at 12:12 AM
Surely the White Ferns selectors can’t ignore Xara Jetly any longer?
www.nzc.nz/news-items/c...
www.nzc.nz/news-items/c...
Ultra New Zealand already missing its first deadline with no announcement of its line up today as promised…
December 10, 2025 at 7:59 AM
Ultra New Zealand already missing its first deadline with no announcement of its line up today as promised…
Luxon in post-cab declaring that both he and the NZ public trust Mark Mitchell are words which will surely not come back to haunt him 🤣
December 8, 2025 at 3:44 AM
Luxon in post-cab declaring that both he and the NZ public trust Mark Mitchell are words which will surely not come back to haunt him 🤣
It's funny how this story has evolved from NZ being shut down for January, then it was extended to February, now we're apparently on holiday till March. Next will be business leaders complaining that due to Easter and ANZAC Day April is a write-off too.
www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/3609...
www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/3609...
‘Are we still in holiday mode until March?’ Simon Bridges also questions the long summer break
The summer shutdown is coming but should the Kiwi summer holiday still stay sacrosanct?
www.stuff.co.nz
December 8, 2025 at 1:10 AM
It's funny how this story has evolved from NZ being shut down for January, then it was extended to February, now we're apparently on holiday till March. Next will be business leaders complaining that due to Easter and ANZAC Day April is a write-off too.
www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/3609...
www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/3609...
Reposted by Gwynn Compton
The House's last sitting day is December 18 and it does not meet again until the last week of January (for just a week, before it breaks again for Waitangi Day).
(I do not begrudge MPs this break - it's a hard, grinding job - but I also think everyone else should also have this time off.)
(I do not begrudge MPs this break - it's a hard, grinding job - but I also think everyone else should also have this time off.)
Are NZ summers too long? The PM says we’ve got to keep moving
The summer shutdown is coming but should the Kiwi summer holiday still stay sacrosanct?
www.stuff.co.nz
December 7, 2025 at 9:29 PM
The House's last sitting day is December 18 and it does not meet again until the last week of January (for just a week, before it breaks again for Waitangi Day).
(I do not begrudge MPs this break - it's a hard, grinding job - but I also think everyone else should also have this time off.)
(I do not begrudge MPs this break - it's a hard, grinding job - but I also think everyone else should also have this time off.)
Reposted by Gwynn Compton
In another transparency win, Upper Hutt is set to open its council workshops, joining Wellington, Hutt City, and Porirua in lifting transparency.
Greater Wellington is now the holdout. It’s time they met the same standards their communities deserve.
localaotearoa.substack.com/p/looming-tr...
Greater Wellington is now the holdout. It’s time they met the same standards their communities deserve.
localaotearoa.substack.com/p/looming-tr...
Looming transparency win: Upper Hutt set to open up workshops
In what looks likely to be another transparency win for Local Aotearoa, Upper Hutt City Council is set to consider whether to finally make their workshops and briefings “open to the public by default”...
localaotearoa.substack.com
December 6, 2025 at 11:51 PM
In another transparency win, Upper Hutt is set to open its council workshops, joining Wellington, Hutt City, and Porirua in lifting transparency.
Greater Wellington is now the holdout. It’s time they met the same standards their communities deserve.
localaotearoa.substack.com/p/looming-tr...
Greater Wellington is now the holdout. It’s time they met the same standards their communities deserve.
localaotearoa.substack.com/p/looming-tr...
Honestly feels very weird to have finished all my grad dip studies and now waiting in limbo for final grades to be posted which apparently won’t happen until next Friday.
December 4, 2025 at 2:34 AM
Honestly feels very weird to have finished all my grad dip studies and now waiting in limbo for final grades to be posted which apparently won’t happen until next Friday.
Guess who might be a bit excited by Ultra coming to Wellington judging by my Spotify Wrapped 🪩
December 3, 2025 at 7:33 PM
Guess who might be a bit excited by Ultra coming to Wellington judging by my Spotify Wrapped 🪩
Saw more runners and cyclists this morning out around Oriental Bay using the great shared pathway than cars were using the road. So by the logic of anti-cycleway nutters, based on my single anecdote we must now replace all roads with shared pathways 🏃♂️🚴♂️🤣
December 3, 2025 at 6:00 PM
Saw more runners and cyclists this morning out around Oriental Bay using the great shared pathway than cars were using the road. So by the logic of anti-cycleway nutters, based on my single anecdote we must now replace all roads with shared pathways 🏃♂️🚴♂️🤣
Have gone from feeling cool as a cucumber all day to now being a crazy bundle of nerves/stress/exhaustion/emotion all at once with our final assessment kicking off at 3:45 🫠😭
December 3, 2025 at 2:17 AM
Have gone from feeling cool as a cucumber all day to now being a crazy bundle of nerves/stress/exhaustion/emotion all at once with our final assessment kicking off at 3:45 🫠😭
Reposted by Gwynn Compton
Even the Government’s own departments are trying to warn them about the dangers of keeping rates increases artificially low by underfunding infrastructure.
December 2, 2025 at 3:08 AM
Even the Government’s own departments are trying to warn them about the dangers of keeping rates increases artificially low by underfunding infrastructure.
Latest Local Aotearoa post really riled up the tinfoil cooker racists it seems 🤣
December 1, 2025 at 5:33 PM
Latest Local Aotearoa post really riled up the tinfoil cooker racists it seems 🤣
Reposted by Gwynn Compton
After a year of Simon Watts as Local Government Minister, the direction is unmistakable: less local voice, more central control.
localaotearoa.substack.com/p/simon-watt...
localaotearoa.substack.com/p/simon-watt...
Simon Watts: The Minister Against Local Democracy
For a man who once sang a tune about the value of localism when it suited him, Local Government Minister Simon Watts now seems intent on stripping communities of the power that matters most: the abili...
localaotearoa.substack.com
December 1, 2025 at 7:27 AM
After a year of Simon Watts as Local Government Minister, the direction is unmistakable: less local voice, more central control.
localaotearoa.substack.com/p/simon-watt...
localaotearoa.substack.com/p/simon-watt...
Back to campus for the last four days (and a couple of assessments) of my Graduate Diploma of Teaching (Primary). It’s been a full on year with a busy few days to come.
Next stop - finding a teaching gig for 2026. 🤞🚊🎓🏫
Next stop - finding a teaching gig for 2026. 🤞🚊🎓🏫
November 30, 2025 at 8:21 PM
Back to campus for the last four days (and a couple of assessments) of my Graduate Diploma of Teaching (Primary). It’s been a full on year with a busy few days to come.
Next stop - finding a teaching gig for 2026. 🤞🚊🎓🏫
Next stop - finding a teaching gig for 2026. 🤞🚊🎓🏫
What sort of fresh hell is Metlink serving up ads before I can search for PT information 🙃
November 30, 2025 at 8:13 PM
What sort of fresh hell is Metlink serving up ads before I can search for PT information 🙃
Reposted by Gwynn Compton
Early Bird Charles V
🤝
Diet of Worms
🤝
Diet of Worms
November 27, 2025 at 1:12 AM
Early Bird Charles V
🤝
Diet of Worms
🤝
Diet of Worms
About to go join the traffic chaos… wish we could avoid it but today’s trip is a necessity. Surprised Waka Kotahi hasn’t postponed their TG works given the new issues on SH59.
November 28, 2025 at 8:52 PM
About to go join the traffic chaos… wish we could avoid it but today’s trip is a necessity. Surprised Waka Kotahi hasn’t postponed their TG works given the new issues on SH59.
If we didn’t have bad luck etc etc… still no luck applying for teaching roles, we have to replace one of our cars because it’s finally failed a WOF so catastrophically it’s not worth fixing, and the builder across the road just damaged our fence by scrapping his van along it… 🤦♂️
November 27, 2025 at 8:14 PM
If we didn’t have bad luck etc etc… still no luck applying for teaching roles, we have to replace one of our cars because it’s finally failed a WOF so catastrophically it’s not worth fixing, and the builder across the road just damaged our fence by scrapping his van along it… 🤦♂️
First time I’ve had to abort a run due to lightning. ⛈️ Saw one flash a 1km into my run and didn’t think much of it. Saw the second a bit closer and decided to check the lightning map. Were both just off Kāpiti Island which was about 5km from where I was, so turned a did a shorter loop
close to home.
close to home.
November 27, 2025 at 4:26 PM
First time I’ve had to abort a run due to lightning. ⛈️ Saw one flash a 1km into my run and didn’t think much of it. Saw the second a bit closer and decided to check the lightning map. Were both just off Kāpiti Island which was about 5km from where I was, so turned a did a shorter loop
close to home.
close to home.
Reposted by Gwynn Compton
The Coalition keeps saying it isn’t going to force council amalgamations, but its new local government proposal funnels regions straight towards them, with the Local Government Minister having the final say. 👇
localaotearoa.substack.com/p/coalition-...
localaotearoa.substack.com/p/coalition-...
Coalition lays groundwork for local government amalgamations
In what may become the most consequential restructuring of local government since the 1989 reforms, the National-led Coalition Government has taken the first formal step towards large-scale council am...
localaotearoa.substack.com
November 25, 2025 at 8:18 AM
The Coalition keeps saying it isn’t going to force council amalgamations, but its new local government proposal funnels regions straight towards them, with the Local Government Minister having the final say. 👇
localaotearoa.substack.com/p/coalition-...
localaotearoa.substack.com/p/coalition-...