Source: New Zealand Labour Party
What are the problems with this Bill?
- It works against nature: the Bill is designed to override environmental protection in favour of short-term profit.
- Three Ministers get the final say and can approve projects that destroy native animals and their homes such as coal mining in kiwi habitat. Once these are gone, we cannot get them back.
- Communities, including iwi and hapū, will not have input into developments that will affect them.
- The Bill could revive projects that have previously been declined for being too destructive or risky to the environment.
“The National Government is making a choice to prioritise short-term, environmentally damaging projects like coal mines without proper input from the communities they will affect long-term,” says Labour Environment Spokesperson Rachel Brooking.
“National’s bill is fundamentally different from Labour’s fast track consenting process because the purpose is only about development, it fails to mention the environment in the purpose clause, and it overrides our existing environmental laws.”
“This is about choices – the Government can listen to the thousands of submissions that are overwhelmingly against this Bill, or it can continue to push through a piece of legislation that will impact communities and damage nature for generations to come.”
In Government, Labour proved we can look after our environment, while progressing with projects that benefit our communities. We sped up approvals and reduced the cost of consenting for projects like school buildings, housing, clean energy initiatives, and green areas to absorb water in a flood. These projects were approved by independent panels and worked with nature, rather than against it.
National’s first Budget also revealed over $3 billion of cuts to projects that reduced our climate polluting emissions. This includes canning work on adapting to our changing climate, cutting work on habitat restoration and pest control initiated by Jobs for Nature, reducing key climate research, hundreds of job losses at the Ministry for the Environment, and defunding community projects and advocacy.
Add your voice: Email Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop, and share why this legislation needs to be stopped in its tracks.
A suggested email is below, but feel free to add why you’re concerned for your area or community. Share this page with friends and family: together, we can stop the Fast Track Approvals Bill.
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