RMA Reform Minister, Chris Bishop and Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Simon Court, have launched an illustrative National Policy Direction (NPD) for New Zealand’s new planning system for feedback.
The Ministers said the illustrative NPD release responds to the strong interest through Select Committee submissions in how national system instruments would guide how the new planning legislation plays out in communities.
“NPD is what translates the goals of the Planning and Natural Environment Bills into clear directives on national priorities and identifies how key system conflicts should be resolved,” Mr Bishop says.
The illustrative NPD presents draft Government directives across five themes – housing and development, infrastructure, primary production, resources (including quarrying, mining and waste) and public values (including environmental and human health, and indigenous biodiversity) – as well as broader cross-cutting, system-wide directives.
“NPD will influence where homes and businesses can be built, how roads, water infrastructure and renewable energy projects are enabled, how farming, quarrying and other resource uses are managed, and how environmental and public values are protected,” said Mr Bishop.
“This consultation is an important step in giving councils, infrastructure providers, developers, farmers and growers, iwi and communities an early look at how national direction could guide decisions under New Zealand’s new planning system.
“It will help us test the structure and content with those who engage with the planning system every day to identify any improvements needed or gaps needing filling to ensure it’s clear and workable before a formal statutory consultation process.
“NPD directives will be supported by national standards which will provide further detail on how to achieve the directives set out in the NPD. While initial standards are expected in 2027, the illustrative NPD provides some visibility over how key national standards will help implement these directives.”
NPD and national standards are critical layers in the new planning system’s ‘funnel’ architecture which is designed to give councils and users much greater certainty about what has already been decided at the national level and narrow what is up for discussion through planning.
“This will help deliver certainty and consistency for system users across the country, leaving councils to focus on how best to apply these priorities and standards in their regions, without over-reliance on consents,” Mr Court says.
“National direction instruments are not new, but the RMA’s plethora of overlapping and inconsistent National Policy Statements and Environmental Standards – across everything from infrastructure to contaminated land – caused confusion and only served lawyers’ billables.
“Bringing economy-wide priorities and directives together and front-footing key conflicts in one place is designed to provide clearer, more consistent direction to councils and system participants that leaves less up to the courts.”
Minister Bishop said the current engagement is a key milestone in the Government’s wider reform of the planning system.
“The success of the new planning system won’t just depend on what’s in the legislation. It will depend on whether the national priorities and directives are clear, workable and capable of delivering results on the ground.”
“That is why this engagement matters. This is a chance for New Zealanders to help shape the settings that will influence planning decisions for years to come.
“The feedback we receive will help ensure the new planning system is practical, effective and able to deliver on New Zealand’s priorities for property rights, growth, infrastructure and the environment,” he said.
Feedback can be submitted until 11.59pm on Friday 16 October. Details on how to provide feedback are available at https://consult.environment.govt.nz/new-planning-system/testing-the-approach-illustrative-npd/.
