Dear John,

I'm writing this at 11pm at night on Thursday after an absolutely MASSIVE week - for me, and for hopefully New Zealand. On Tuesday morning I unveiled the government's two new pieces of legislation to replace the Resource Management Act, then I spent the next couple of days doing media on the back of it whilst also sitting in Parliament passing urgent legislation, and today I've been in Nelson for a range of new social housing openings. And as I write, Parliament is still sitting - and will likely keep going until Saturday night!

In case you're wondering, yep, I'm really looking forward to Christmas :)

RMA Reform: Christopher Luxon appointed me National's spokesperson for RMA Reform in 2023 and I was initially very daunted by the size of the job ahead of me. The RMA touches almost every aspect of life in New Zealand - it is simply THAT important. There is now widespread consensus that the RMA has been a disaster for our country. It has slowed down energy and infrastructure projects, created our housing crisis, caused enormous uncertainty for developers, councils, farmers and growers – but hasn’t protected the environment.

Successive governments have complained about the constraints imposed by the RMA but done little about it. Our government is finally replacing it with two new laws, with private property rights at their heart. Our reforms are a once-in-a-generation opportunity to free ourselves from a millstone that has weighed on both our economy and our environment.

A quick summary: 
  1. Fewer, simpler consents: fewer activity categories, with low-impact activities no longer requiring consent.
  2. Fewer, faster plans: more than 100 existing plans will be reduced to 17 regional combined plans that bring together spatial, land use and natural environment planning in one place, making it easier for New Zealanders to know what they can do with their property.
  3. Spatial planning: 30-year regional spatial plans to identify growth areas, infrastructure corridors and areas needing protection.
  4. Clearer direction nationally: More consistency through nationally set policy direction will leave less up for debate.
  5. A more proportionate system: all consent conditions must be necessary and proportionate, reducing red tape. Positive effects of development must be taken into account.
  6. More standardization: planned national standards on zoning and common activities will cut red tape and speed up the system.
  7. Consultation only where it matters: clarity about who must be consulted and when, including with iwi.
  8. Regulatory relief: councils must provide practical relief mechanisms when imposing restrictions such as heritage protections and significant natural areas.
  9. Faster conflict resolution: the establishment of a Planning Tribunal will provide a low cost, fast way of resolving simple conflicts.
  10. Better environmental protection: enable community decision making over water quality and improve the efficient use of resources.
This Government’s central ambition is to lift growth, productivity and living standards, and the economic benefits of our new planning system are significant. Independent analysis shows the new planning system is projected to boost GDP by an additional 0.56 per cent every year by 2050, worth up to $3.1 billion annually. We also estimate that up to 46 per cent of consent and permit applications required under the RMA could be removed under the new system. Based on 2023/24 volumes, that represents between 15,000 and 22,000 consents no longer needed. That is massive!

The reaction to our announcement has been very humbling with huge praise across the board. Even groups like the Environmental Defence Society have said nice things about it. One of my prouder days in politics! Lots of hard work to go now - getting the Bills read a first time and off to select committee, improvements during that process, getting them passed into law, and then a three year transition as we move to the new system. Hopefully I'm around to shepherd it through!

I talked about the reforms on Duncan Garner's podcast - you can listen from around 7 minutes here.

... but it's not all about the RMA. Around the Hutt: Lots of community activities in the last couple of weeks. I really enjoyed attending the recent BCITO graduation ceremony to celebrate new apprentices, as well as the the Hutt Valley High prizegiving (sadly couldn't make St Orans as it was on the same night). I also hosted a morning tea for our Justices of the Peace to say thanks to them for their hard work. It's school gala season too and it was great to see so many people at both Eastern Hutt and Wilford School. Plus I took the chance to get around some local Hutt businesses last Friday - you can read more below.

Have a great weekend. I'm going to take Jeremy to the cricket at the Basin - hopefully it is still going!

Chris
Farewell to the RMA

On the way to the "lock-up" to unveil our RMA Reforms with my Undersecretary, Simon Court.

Enjoying a beer at the end of a big day!
Office damage

Very disappointing to see some idiot do this to my Wainuiomata office. Police have been notified obviously.
Times-7 - A real Hutt Success Story

Eight years ago I got to help open Times-7’s expanded facility in Alicetown, and now they’ve grown again in Petone! Loved going back to cut the ribbon on their new building. They’ve doubled their manufacturing output and the business has roughly tripled in size since 2017.

Times-7 are a proper Hutt success story, designing and making high-performance RFID antennas, with 98% of what they make exported all over the world.
100 Years and still going strong
Tranzit are a family owned company and a major part of public transport in the Wellington region. They've recently opened a panel and paint facility in Seaview - their first major location in the Hutt. Was great to drop in and open the new facility on Friday!
Catch-up with my friend Ali
Ali Jodu is a long term friend of mine who is a refugee from Iraq and now a resident at Laura Fergusson Trust in Naenae. Ali has an incredible story, please read more about it here.
West Indies in Town
It’s test match week in Wellington! Every time a touring cricket team comes to town for a test, the PM and I host them for a special welcome function at Premier House (albeit this time it was at Parliament). Nice to see members of the 1st XIs from Wellington secondary schools there too. A chance for them to meet their heroes.
Meet Minami
Meet Minami. Minami is a student at Hutt Valley High who recently won a speech competition with her speech "If I were Prime Minister for the Day" where she talked about her struggles with cerebral palsy and being a wheelchair user. She has made it her mission to make positive change.
Benches, bins and more

Do you ever wonder where metal rubbish bins around town come from? Well, chances are they've been made by Tilley & Patton, who have recently relocated to the Hutt from Rongotai. Was great to welcome the team to the Hutt and to learn more about the fascinating world of sheet metal cutting and manufacturing. Thanks for the tour!
School Gala/Sausage Season

Went for the single at Wilford, the double banger at Eastern Hutt :).

Always sauce and mustard.
JP Morning Tea

I hosted a morning tea to celebrate and thank our incredible local Justices of the Peace. Their quiet, consistent service keeps our community running. Grateful for everything they do for the Hutt South electorate.
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