Template talk:Territorial Authorities of New Zealand

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[edit] Template state

How do you get this template to display collapsed by default? MadMaxDog 10:46, 26 June 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Chatham Islands

The Chatham Islands Territory was grouped with external territories in the Realm of New Zealand. This is extremely misleading. The name Territory as it applies to the Chatham Islands is simply a sui generis category of local authority. The term when applied to an internal division in countries like Australia or the United States implies a much greater level of legal separation than the Chathams have. While the Australian Capital Territory or the District of Columbia constitute distinct legal jurisdictions with their own law-making powers, the Chatham Islands do not. The Chatham Islands Council is not empowered to pass laws, merely bylaws like any other unit of local government.

Contrast this with Niue and the Cook Islands which both have complete law making powers, and for which the New Zealand Government is not empowered to act unilaterally. Contrast it also with the rules that Tokelau's General Fono can pass, and the fact that law passed in New Zealand does not automatically extend to Tokelau. The Ross Dependency constitutes a separate legal system, although laws passed in New Zealand automatically extend to it.[1].

Ben Arnold (talk) 10:46, 17 May 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Realm of New Zealand

I separated out the external parts of the realm of New Zealand from the Chatham Islands, but I don't believe these external entities belong in this list. They are not Territorial Authorities and they are not of New Zealand in the sense of being part of the country.

I think we should remove them but that's a slightly bolder move than simply separating out the Chathams, so I've left it for now.

Ben Arnold (talk) 10:46, 17 May 2008 (UTC)