September 3, 2026 • 5 mins
Federated Farmers Vice President Sandra Faulkner discusses New Zealand’s new emergency management legislation and what it means for rural communities. She explains how guaranteed rural representation in emergency planning and response will help improve outcomes during floods, fires, and other major events, while also highlighting the importance of new powers to protect livestock and companion animals during emergencies. A look at why these long-awaited changes are being welcomed across the rural sector.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Well, here on the country, of course, new legislation to
strengthen our emergency management system passed into its final reading
in Parliament last week. This is pretty good news. And
to look at this in some depth, we are joined
by the Vice President of Federated Farmers, Sandra Faulkner. Sandra,
you're not actually in the country at the moment, though.
(00:22):
I hear you've been passing through places like Dubbo.
Speaker 2 (00:25):
Yeah, that's right. Out in central New South Wales, calling
you from Parks today.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
Yeah, OK. Sounds great. Now, this development with this, not
before time, I would say.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
No, not at all. But the result of a lot
of work, and I have to give a big shout
out to Minister Mark Mitchell for some foresight into how
emergencies are going to be managed in this country today.
particularly with a focus on our rural communities going forward.
Speaker 1 (00:56):
Yeah, it's great to have this rural representation. I mean,
what will it change, though?
Speaker 2 (01:02):
OK, so what it actually mandates is that somebody with
rural expertise will sit on what they call a coordinating
executive group. They're great for acronyms. It's called KEG, which
in turn support and advise the emergency management team around
strategy development. So there's a whole lot of work involved
(01:24):
in planning. So before Mother Nature throws her toys out
or whatever happens, it means that in the depths of
a response, we rural communities are always fantastic. We all
know that everybody just picks up the tools, pulls on
the gumboots and goes out to look after one another.
We've always been really good and strong in response, and
(01:45):
that comes down a lot to relationships, particularly with a
local CDM group controller. But then more importantly, again, flowing
into recovery, which is where it starts to get really
hard because we're talking long-term recovery, particularly when it comes
to those events that cause damage to our infrastructure, flooding, fire,
(02:06):
and the likes of that. Yeah. So really exciting that
somebody with rural expertise will sit at those tables now
to do the planning, work through a response and still
be there going through recovery. That's key. But also it
means that within our organisations that are on any rural
advisory group up and down the length of the country,
(02:29):
they can now feel that they're part of a system,
they understand the timeframes, the rollovers, and they can refresh
people in and out of those roles as needed as well.
Because remembering that in our rural communities, when we have
a big event, usually those rural leaders are just as
impacted as the next person over the boundary. But they're
(02:49):
trying to do what they can for their community at
the same time.
Speaker 1 (02:52):
Yeah, absolutely. See, it's only six or eight weeks ago
since the events down in the southern Wairarapa there where...
It kind of felt like there'd been a major event,
but I don't think that anybody was that aware of
it until suddenly somebody got a TV camera over there.
And three or four days later, we were sort of
aware of the size of what had happened. So, you know,
this can only be good in terms of getting that
(03:13):
response sorted and on the ground much quicker.
Speaker 2 (03:18):
Oh, absolutely. And just having that visibility, but also being
able to utilise the relationships and the connections that our
rural communities have. It's so important, not only from the
point of view of who can get boots on the
ground or a digger or whatever, helicopter in the air,
groceries delivered, whatever it is, but also who they can
(03:40):
be leveraging support and encouragement from to within their wider networks.
Our rural communities are really well connected. So it's actually
giving them a place at the table to be able
to use all of those connections and all of those relationships.
So yeah, it's pretty exciting. I mean, long time coming,
but pretty exciting.
Speaker 1 (04:01):
Yeah, it is. It is indeed. The bill also includes
new powers to help animals during emergencies. How significant is
that as a change?
Speaker 2 (04:10):
Oh, massive. We all know that people will happily put themselves,
their own lives at risk in order to protect their animals,
be they companion animals where people won't leave their homes
if they can't bring their companion animals with them, their
cats and their dogs. right through to farmers who, you know,
we've all seen usually shots from helicopters of farmers doing
(04:34):
some pretty crazy stuff when it comes to getting, you know,
mobs of stock out of floodwaters or out of harm's way.
But I think, again, it comes back to the fact
that for those of us who are out on farm,
recovery starts the minute it stops raining. You know, if
it's a flooding event or whatever. So we're out checking
(04:56):
for feed, checking water reticulation, needing milking sheds stood up,
making sure the irrigation, we can get back to irrigating
and all that sort of stuff. So this is right
at the heart of how we respond to these big events.
And we all know that the weather is becoming less predictable.
(05:17):
Our forecasting, I have to say, is getting better and better,
but we're getting these big events coming through that we
need to be able to respond to and understand that
people will respond with a view to protecting their animals. Yeah, fabulous.
Speaker 1 (05:30):
Thank you very much for joining us, Sandra, from over
there in sort of central New South Wales. Are you
having a bit of a break or are you working?
Speaker 2 (05:38):
Here to catch up with the family and just for
the weekend. So, yeah, quite literally a flying visit.
Speaker 1 (05:47):
Flying visit. You enjoy that. Thank you very much for
joining us.
Speaker 2 (05:51):
Thanks so much, Amish. Bye.
Speaker 1 (05:52):
Bye.
Well, here on the country, of course, new legislation to
strengthen our emergency management system passed into its final reading
in Parliament last week. This is pretty good news. And
to look at this in some depth, we are joined
by the Vice President of Federated Farmers, Sandra Faulkner. Sandra,
you're not actually in the country at the moment, though.
(00:22):
I hear you've been passing through places like Dubbo.
Speaker 2 (00:25):
Yeah, that's right. Out in central New South Wales, calling
you from Parks today.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
Yeah, OK. Sounds great. Now, this development with this, not
before time, I would say.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
No, not at all. But the result of a lot
of work, and I have to give a big shout
out to Minister Mark Mitchell for some foresight into how
emergencies are going to be managed in this country today.
particularly with a focus on our rural communities going forward.
Speaker 1 (00:56):
Yeah, it's great to have this rural representation. I mean,
what will it change, though?
Speaker 2 (01:02):
OK, so what it actually mandates is that somebody with
rural expertise will sit on what they call a coordinating
executive group. They're great for acronyms. It's called KEG, which
in turn support and advise the emergency management team around
strategy development. So there's a whole lot of work involved
(01:24):
in planning. So before Mother Nature throws her toys out
or whatever happens, it means that in the depths of
a response, we rural communities are always fantastic. We all
know that everybody just picks up the tools, pulls on
the gumboots and goes out to look after one another.
We've always been really good and strong in response, and
(01:45):
that comes down a lot to relationships, particularly with a
local CDM group controller. But then more importantly, again, flowing
into recovery, which is where it starts to get really
hard because we're talking long-term recovery, particularly when it comes
to those events that cause damage to our infrastructure, flooding, fire,
(02:06):
and the likes of that. Yeah. So really exciting that
somebody with rural expertise will sit at those tables now
to do the planning, work through a response and still
be there going through recovery. That's key. But also it
means that within our organisations that are on any rural
advisory group up and down the length of the country,
(02:29):
they can now feel that they're part of a system,
they understand the timeframes, the rollovers, and they can refresh
people in and out of those roles as needed as well.
Because remembering that in our rural communities, when we have
a big event, usually those rural leaders are just as
impacted as the next person over the boundary. But they're
(02:49):
trying to do what they can for their community at
the same time.
Speaker 1 (02:52):
Yeah, absolutely. See, it's only six or eight weeks ago
since the events down in the southern Wairarapa there where...
It kind of felt like there'd been a major event,
but I don't think that anybody was that aware of
it until suddenly somebody got a TV camera over there.
And three or four days later, we were sort of
aware of the size of what had happened. So, you know,
this can only be good in terms of getting that
(03:13):
response sorted and on the ground much quicker.
Speaker 2 (03:18):
Oh, absolutely. And just having that visibility, but also being
able to utilise the relationships and the connections that our
rural communities have. It's so important, not only from the
point of view of who can get boots on the
ground or a digger or whatever, helicopter in the air,
groceries delivered, whatever it is, but also who they can
(03:40):
be leveraging support and encouragement from to within their wider networks.
Our rural communities are really well connected. So it's actually
giving them a place at the table to be able
to use all of those connections and all of those relationships.
So yeah, it's pretty exciting. I mean, long time coming,
but pretty exciting.
Speaker 1 (04:01):
Yeah, it is. It is indeed. The bill also includes
new powers to help animals during emergencies. How significant is
that as a change?
Speaker 2 (04:10):
Oh, massive. We all know that people will happily put themselves,
their own lives at risk in order to protect their animals,
be they companion animals where people won't leave their homes
if they can't bring their companion animals with them, their
cats and their dogs. right through to farmers who, you know,
we've all seen usually shots from helicopters of farmers doing
(04:34):
some pretty crazy stuff when it comes to getting, you know,
mobs of stock out of floodwaters or out of harm's way.
But I think, again, it comes back to the fact
that for those of us who are out on farm,
recovery starts the minute it stops raining. You know, if
it's a flooding event or whatever. So we're out checking
(04:56):
for feed, checking water reticulation, needing milking sheds stood up,
making sure the irrigation, we can get back to irrigating
and all that sort of stuff. So this is right
at the heart of how we respond to these big events.
And we all know that the weather is becoming less predictable.
(05:17):
Our forecasting, I have to say, is getting better and better,
but we're getting these big events coming through that we
need to be able to respond to and understand that
people will respond with a view to protecting their animals. Yeah, fabulous.
Speaker 1 (05:30):
Thank you very much for joining us, Sandra, from over
there in sort of central New South Wales. Are you
having a bit of a break or are you working?
Speaker 2 (05:38):
Here to catch up with the family and just for
the weekend. So, yeah, quite literally a flying visit.
Speaker 1 (05:47):
Flying visit. You enjoy that. Thank you very much for
joining us.
Speaker 2 (05:51):
Thanks so much, Amish. Bye.
Speaker 1 (05:52):
Bye.
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