Please vote wisely
Alexander (Sandy) Milne I commend the Beacon for its diligent coverage of the 2025 local body elect
Vote for people who can actually stand on their platforms
Brendan Horan Are you still deciding who to vote for as Mayor or Councillor? I firmly believe that
Respecting consent is part of democracy
Anaseini Bryant In response to Suzanne Williams’ letter (September 26, 2025), “Contact secrecy obst
Brave move voting down plan
Catrina Jones Insight into Mayor Victor Luca voting down Whakatāne District Council’s long-term pla
Learning about Aotearoa in Germany
In late August Tanja Rother wrote about young Germans finding work and beauty in Ōpōtiki. In part 2
Rates Cap Possible
Chris Hopman It is great to see Mike Fletcher is back with his opinion pieces in the Ōpōtiki News.
Pest control action targets many problems
Dean Baigent-Mercer, Forest & Bird native forest advocate What seems like a good idea to some peopl
Serious matters are council business
Alexander (Sandy) Milne I note that some candidates in our local body elections continue to push th
Choosing complicity: the ethics of Aotearoa’s refusal to recognise Palestine
Dr Mawera Karetai It’s a shameful moment when a country with a global reputation for fairness choos
Free to air opinions
Catina Jones It has come to my attention via Facebook posts that some councillors consider Mayor Vi
Missed opportunities and the future of our district
Malcolm Whitaker With the one public candidates’ meeting that I spoke at, there are definitely some
Spring festival impresses
E Fitzpatrick I would like to convey by thanks to St George & St John Church for the really lovely
When rates rise but council dances on
Keith Melville A front-page Beacon story last Wednesday alerted me to the weird depths of council f
Māori Wards — a pattern of exclusion, a legacy of restoration
Phillip John Hohapata–Oke It began at the Whakatāne rubbish dump in 1988, where I founded the Whaka
Frustrating campaign of misinformation
Dave Stewart If one thing has characterised the local body election campaign this year it has been
Contact secrecy obstructs democratic process
Suzanne Williams When I was asked to send a letter of invitation to candidates to attend a public m
Why vote 'yes' to retain Māori wards?
Graeme Storer Māori wards, like rural wards, are a mechanism to support representation, trust and i
Pawns in campaign
Chris Mulcahy Why is Victor Luca using the poor Matatā ratepayers as pawns in his re-election campa
Petition politics mar Grey Power meeting
Alexander (Sandy) Milne I attended the first 10 minutes of the packed Grey Power meeting on Septemb
Real reform required, not tinkering
Dave Stewart I feel I must respond to Keith Melville’s latest letter “GST refund not the answer” (B
The silent killer of productivity
Ever feel like you’ve got too many tabs open in your head? One moment you’re halfway through an invo
Māori Wards
N Thompson One of the question people have not asked in relation to Māori wards is “how much Māori
Accusations absolutely wrong
Brendan Horan I would like to respond to a recent letter to The Beacon from Becs Mackay (Wednesday,
Avoiding New Zealand's dry-year risk
Graeme Weston New Zealand’s electricity system is heavily dependent on hydro lakes, which normally