10 Jul 2008

Waiheke Islanders want more autonomy

7:03 pm on 10 July 2008

Waiheke Islanders have asked a Royal Commission for more autonomy - but most have stopped short of demanding complete separation from Auckland City.

The Royal Commission on Auckland Governance has convened on the island for the last of its submissions hearings to decide how the region will be shaped.

Waiheke Island, in the Hauraki Gulf, is part of the Auckland City Council but is 40 minutes away by ferry.

Waiheke Community Board deputy chairman Tony Sears says there is widespread cynicism about the Auckland council.

He says islanders more power over their own affairs no matter what the commissioners decide about the region's governance.