Upheaval within the Southland District Council

According to Local Democracy Reporting, Colin Smith was removed as the Oreti Community Board chair at a public meeting - with an abnormally large crowd.

It came on the back of a July request from four members to remove him.

Smith says there were other agendas on the board, after it voted against CCTV upgrades - which went against the community's wishes and a Police recommendation.

He says the response at Monday's meeting was overwhelming - and showed that the community has no trust in the board going forward.