Chris Bishop: RMA Reform Minister on the Government's new Resource Management Act system

Land owners will have more control of their property under the Government's new Resource Management Act system. 

It's scrapping the RMA to replace it with two acts focused on land use and environmental protections. 

Cabinet is hoping to pass it before the next election - to be in place before councils start 2027 long-term plans. 

RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop says building and expanding will become much smoother.  

"So as long as you meet the standards and you're using your own property - you can go off and do it. So fewer plans, fewer resource consents, much more standardisation - a much simpler system."

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Nine after five. Now the government today replacing the dreaded
RIMA with two new laws due to be passed before
the next election. A Planning Act will focus on the
development and use of land, and the Natural Environment Act
will look at the use and protection of the environment.
Sounds about right. Minister for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop is

(00:20):
with me now, High Minister.

Speaker 2 (00:22):
Good afternoon.

Speaker 1 (00:22):
In a nutshell, what are you changing.

Speaker 2 (00:26):
We're going to make fewer plans, there will be less
need for resource consents. There will be greater standardization around
the country what's called permitted activities, So as long as
you meet the standards and you are using your own property,
you can go off and do it. So fewer plans,
fewer resource consents, much more standardization, a much simpler system,
and it will lead to less cost and more ability

(00:49):
to do with your own property what you would like
and make it easy to build the houses and infrastructure
and projects that ZE needs to get ahead.

Speaker 1 (00:55):
So I own a three bedroom home on a five
hundred square meter section in a city in New Zealand.
Can I go three.

Speaker 2 (01:01):
Floors depending on the zoning of the council. Yes, But
one of the things we'll be looking at is standardized zones.
So in New Zealand at the moment there are one
hundred and seventy five different types of zones around the country.
Canterbury alone has over two hundred different zones. It's an
absolute nightmare for builders and from fat for anyone to

(01:23):
work their way through. Japan, by the way, has just
thirteen different zones, thirteen different land zones in which you
can work out what you do. So we want to
radically simplify the number of zones and end up with
standardized zones around the country. So the key point will
be this rhyme. If you want to build a three
bedroom home up to a certain height limit in Lower Hut,
it will be the same in Lower Hut as it

(01:44):
will be in another part of the country because the
standardized zone.

Speaker 1 (01:46):
Okay, the problem you run into always is with councils
is the special character areas, isn't it And they're different
in different places. But will you have a carve out
for areas where Wellington and Auckland and christ whatever might think,
oh these houses are pretty and we don't want people
to be able to build up nine stories here.

Speaker 2 (02:09):
There will be a safety valve through the legislation for
some types of deviation from standardized zones. That is important.
There will be unique cases, but as a general principle,
there won't be the ability to do that. That is
precisely for example, why the eleven story green building which
was due to replace a gravel pit next to a

(02:31):
city rail link station in Auckland got turned down precisely
because of those that sort of behavior and we want
to stop that.

Speaker 1 (02:38):
Minister, thanks very much of your time. That's the minister
in charge of ripping up the RMA and doing something different.
Chris Bishop.

Speaker 2 (02:44):
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Speaker 1 (02:48):
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