Members’ Motions at the 2025 InternetNZ AGM

31 July 2025

Thank you to everyone who joined us online for the 2025 InternetNZ Annual General Meeting (AGM) on 31 July. It was fantastic to see such strong engagement, with 62.40% of Eligible Members casting votes — a marked increase from 43% last year.

This year’s AGM included 24 motions, with 15 Member Motions submitted by InternetNZ members. These motions covered a wide range of issues — from governance improvements and .nz policy matters, to the transparency of operational decisions and community engagement

All voting took place in real time using the integrated Mi-Voice platform within Zoom. Only Eligible Members (those who had been members for at least three months before the AGM and registered to attend in advance) were able to vote on the motions.

Member Motion outcomes

Here’s a summary of the 15 Member Motions presented, along with the outcome of each vote.

Motion number:	Motion:	Mover/Seconder:	Outcome:
1	“That clause 2.8.1 of the Constitution be amended by replacing the final sentence with: “Before imposing any such suspension, the Member must be given notice of the proposed suspension and should be given an opportunity to be heard before a decision is made to suspend the Member.”	David Farrar/David Harvey	Not carried
2	“That clause 11 of the Constitution be amended by adding the following words at the end: “provided that any Code of Conduct must be approved by an Annual General Meeting before coming into effect.”	David Farrar/David Harvey	Not carried
3	“That clause 3.10.1 be amended by: deleting subclause (d), and adding after the words “by resolution” the words “confirmed at a General Meeting”.	David Farrar/David Harvey	Not carried
4	"That clause 3.10.1(b) be amended by inserting the words “regularly scheduled” after the word “three” and before the words “consecutive meetings”. That clause 3.10.3 be amended by deleting the words “has brought the Society into disrepute or”.	David Farrar/David Harvey	Not carried
5	“That Clause 2.6.1(c) be amended by deleting the words: “and do nothing to bring the Society into disrepute.”	David Farrar/David Harvey	Not carried
6	“That Clause 3.2.1 be amended to substitute 11 for 9 and 9 for 7 and subclause (a) should be consequentially amended to substitute 7 for 5 and 9 for 6.”	David Farrar/David Harvey	Not carried
7	“That Clause 1.5.1 of the Constitution be amended by deleting the words “and the Society’s commitment to centring Te Tiriti o Waitangi”.	David Farrar/David Harvey	Not carried
8	“That Clause 3.2.3 be amended by deleting the words “At least two Board Members shall have expertise in Te Tiriti o Waitangi, te ao Māori, and/or Māori governance” and substituting with “The Board should, as far as practicable, include members with expertise or experience in areas such as accounting, legal matters, internet technologies, te ao Māori, and membership engagement, and should reflect a demographically diverse mix.”	David Farrar/David Harvey	Not carried
9	“That clause 3.2.4 be deleted.”	David Farrar/David Harvey	Not carried
10	“That Clause 3.2.5 be amended by: deleting the words “Subject to clause 3.2.6” and “either a) Co-Chairs with joint responsibility for leading the Board, one of whom must be Māori; or”; inserting the words “namely, a Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson appointed by the Board” after “two Board Members”; and clause 3.2.6 be deleted."	David Farrar/David Harvey	Not carried
11	"That Clause 5.1 be amended by deleting the word “tikanga” and substituting the words “Dispute Resolution”. That Clause 5.1.1 be amended by deleting the word “tikanga” where it appears and substituting the words “Dispute Resolution”."	David Farrar/David Harvey	Not carried
12	"That the words 'Māori mediato' in Clause 5.7.1(b) be deleted and replaced with the words “nominated mediator”.	David Farrar/David Harvey	Not carried
13	"That an email survey be conducted with our members, and an online survey be provided for non members, asking whether purchases of .nz domain names should be restricted to individuals and organisations with a New Zealand presence."	Brynn Neilson/ Gareth Baker	Not carried
14	"That: an additional Clause 1.5.2 be added after Clause 1.5.1 of the constitution, to read: This Constitution must be interpreted having regard to the principles of institutional neutrality. In exercising its powers the Board will, so far as is practicable and in keeping with the objects of the Society, maintain neutrality on contentious issues. and that definitions of Contentious Issues and Neutrality be added to clause 1.3 in their appropriate alphabetic locations, as follows: Contentious issue means a political, ideological, religious, moral or cultural issue on which there are substantial differences of opinion or belief that are expressed as significant hostility between communities or groups of New Zealanders, including views on gender identities, sexual preferences, race relations and the role of Te Tiriti, but does not include: (i) Issues of fact; or (ii) Issues directly related to the charitable objects of the Society as listed at or in clause 1.4.1. Neutrality means the eschewing of endorsement, promotion or support of or opposition to perspectives or positions on a contentious issue including avoiding the appearance of any such alignment."	Fiona Margaret Mackenzie/ Lee Warwick Short	Not carried
15	"That InternetNZ and the Board in exercising its powers should recognize that it serves New Zealanders of diverse opinions and values, and so far as is practicable and in keeping with the objects of the Society, maintain neutrality on contentious issues of politics, religion or ideology, including on gender identities and the role of Te Tiriti."	Fiona Margaret Mackenzie/ Lee Warwick Short	Not carried

You can read the full text of each motion and supporting statements here:

View the 2025 Members’ Motions

What happens next?

A full written summary of AGM decisions, including responses to any questions not addressed during the meeting, will be shared with members shortly.

Ngā mihi nui and thank you to all members who submitted motions, seconded them, debated them respectfully, and voted.

If you have any pātai (queries), we're always here to help. Contact us at membership@internetnz.net.nz.