Protesters have marched through the Auckland CBD this afternoon protesting the absence of Maori seats on the new supercity council and the lack of consultation with the public over the proposed changes.
Thousands were expected to attend the final stages of the hikoi, arranged after the Government dumped a Royal Commission proposal to have three Maori seats on a 23-member council, two elected and one appointed by local iwi.
The Government instead decided it wanted just 20 councillors, none directly elected by Maori.
Marchers gathered on the North Shore, West Auckland, Manukau City and Bastion Point, 6km east of downtown Auckland, to prepare to head into the city.
All but the Bastion Point marchers drove into the city, the North Shore and West Auckland protesters gathering at Victoria Park and the South Auckland group heading to Auckland Domain.
All three of these groups had made it to their locations by 10:30am. A gathering of hundreds, rather than thousands, was at Victoria Park by 11am.
Many were carrying tino rangatiratanga flags and were dealing with cool, wet but still weather.
From there those groups were planning to walk to the northern end of Queen St, where they were to be met by a group who had walked from Bastion Point.
Bastion Point is the headquarters of key Auckland iwi Ngati Whatua o Orakei and was the scene of an occupation in 1978 calling for the return of the land to local Maori, an important flashpoint in the Maori rights movement.
Once all groups meet at Queen St, they are set to walk to the Town Hall and Aotea Square.
From noon to 4:30pm parts of Queen Street near the Town Hall would be closed to traffic.
Earlier today, Prime Minister John Key said he didn't think the hikoi would make much difference to Government plans, saying it was the wrong forum to raise concerns.
"Obviously people have a right to protest and we respect that," Mr Key said on TVNZ's Breakfast programme.
"I don't think the hikoi of itself will make any difference really...we are going to go through the select committee process, that's not a whitewash we are actually going to listen to what happens there. We are trying to work on getting an outcome that works for everyone."
Mr Key said Labour had supported a unitary council and the majority of Aucklanders were also behind it.
Local Government Minister Rodney Hide told the programme the Government was listening and did want to engage with local iwi and discussions with the Maori Party were continuing.
"I have to say though it's pretty tough to imagine a situation where you have a reserved place or places on the council for a local tribe."
Hikoi organiser Ngarimu Blair told Radio New Zealand this morning the goal was to "galvanise" Aucklanders in supporting the inclusion of Maori seats.
"(It's) also giving them a voice (for) their concerns about how their democratic rights are being ridden roughshod over through this very rushed process," Mr Blair said.
He said the intention was not to inconvenience Aucklanders.
"That's why we have the hikoi at lunchtime. If we were aiming to cause disruption we would have had it at rush hour."
NZPA