The RM Reform Update is a regular update from the Ministry for the Environment to people and organisations that have an interest in the reform of the resource management system. If you would like to subscribe to these updates, please click here.
Kia ora koutou,
Last week, the Government released its 2022 Budget. RM Reform featured strongly with significant funding being allocated over the next four years to implement the future system. This builds on the funding provided in the budget the year before and highlights the Government’s commitment to making sure the new system lands smoothly and successfully.
There has been lots of progress since the Government announced its intention to repeal the RMA and enact the new legislation. To give you an idea of the scale of the programme, in the last 15 months, 14 Ministers have met every few weeks to review advice on multiple policy papers – essentially 17 cabinet papers which contained over 1,000 policy recommendations. We are now in the process of considering the detailed decision making, with officials preparing instructions for the Parliamentary Council Office as they work on drafting the legislation.
As we look towards the next phase of our resource management reform journey, I’d like to take a moment to thank you for your interest and feedback so far as we work together to create a future resource management system that is workable and enduring.
As we look towards the next phase of our resource management reform journey, I’d like to take a moment to thank you for your interest and your feedback so far as we work to create a future resource management system that is workable and enduring.
Ngā mihi nui,
Janine Smith, Deputy Secretary, Natural and Built System and Climate Mitigation.
Budget 2022 provides funding to implement the new resource management system, building on progress made since the reform was announced just over a year ago.
Minister for the Environment David Parker said that there was inadequate funding for the implementation of the Resource Management Act 1991.
There was a lack of national direction about how to tackle environmental or development issues, there were no standard or model plans and there were years of delay for new plans.
“As a result, the current RMA system takes too long, costs too much and has not protected the environment, nor enabled housing to be built,” he said.
“Our reforms will make it easier, faster and cheaper to consent housing and the infrastructure that supports it, while protecting the environment.”
As the resource management reform programme’s focus begins to shift from development to implementation, Budget 2022 ensures we have the funding for its successful implementation.
“Funding an efficient transition to the new system is crucial to delivering a more efficient system with shorter timeframes, lower costs and better outcomes for New Zealanders,” David Parker said.
Budget 2022 provides funding of $179 million over four years. This will support development of the National Planning Framework, which will combine the many national direction instruments of the current system into a single, coherent framework as well as the National Māori Entity recommended by the Randerson report.
It will also help central government work with councils and hapū/iwi/Māori in the regions to come together to develop the first Regional Spatial Plans and Natural and Built Environments Act plans.
The Minister gave a speech at the Thomson Reuters Environmental Law and Policy Conference on 24 May about the latest progress on the reforms and how funding in Budget 22 will help to implement them.
Read the full speech [Beehive website].
In June 2021 the Government released an exposure draft of parts of the Natural and Built Environments Bill, which were considered at the select committee.
When the Natural and Built Environments Bill and Spatial Planning Bill are introduced to Parliament later this year, the public will have another chance to provide more feedback through the select committee process.
Now that many of the major policy decisions have been made, and drafting of the new legislation is underway, the Ministry is shifting its focus to making sure the new system is successfully implemented.
A criticism of the current resource management system is that there wasn’t enough focus on its implementation. The Ministry for the Environment wants to ensure a successful implementation of the future system and has work programmes dedicated to this.
As part of this work, we are developing projects to support the building of capacity and capability within local government, iwi Māori and the wider resource management sector. We are also working on a digital transformation programme that looks at how digital technologies could improve the performance of the future system.
An important part of the implementation work the Ministry is planning is to work with selected regions to develop the first generation of Regional Spatial Strategies and Natural and Built Environments Act plans. This work – referred to as the model project – aims to provide guidance and support to the first regions developing their strategies and plans. Working through these first plans will test and demonstrate the workability of the new system and provide learnings for the regions that follow.
The Ministry has been working through the criteria and process for selecting regions to participate in the model project. The regions selected for the model project will collectively need to provide a range of resource management settings and challenges to test the new system and maximise learnings for the rest of Aotearoa New Zealand.
As part of the culture, capacity and capability work programme, the Ministry has commissioned the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research (NZIER) to identify the numbers and characteristics of the people currently working in the resource management workforce. It is intended that information about the supply and demand of the workforce will also be identified through this research.
The research will inform our work to support the capacity and capability of local government, iwi Māori and the resource management industry as we look to implement the future system.
Interviews across the resource management workforce are now underway.
You can find more information on the reforms on the Ministry for the Environment website or you can email us at rm.reform@mfe.govt.nz.