Duncan Webb: Labour Regulation Spokesperson on the Regulatory Standards Bill passing its third reading at Parliament

Labour says the new Regulatory Standards bill unfairly tilts the playing field. 

Act's controversial bill has passed its third reading at Parliament despite overwhelming backlash. 

The bill provides principals for lawmaking in an attempt to cut red tape and guide regulation. 

Labour's Regulation Spokesperson Duncan Webb told Ryan Bridge, while it isn't enforceable, it makes forming policy harder. 

He says it's like the Bill of Rights Act - which lawmakers can ignore - but it comes at a political cost. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Labour says it will repeal the Regulatory Standards Bill in
its first one hundred days if elected next year. That
is still a big if. At this point. The bill
passed its third reading in the House last night, officially
becomes Lord Duncan Webb's Labor's Regulation spokesperson. Good morning, good morning,
good to be here, Good to have you on the show.
And what is so Because these are a bunch of principles,
they're not legally enforceable. What are you and nickers in

(00:21):
such a big twist for.

Speaker 2 (00:24):
Well, the point is that this is the rules about
how you make law, and so that affects all the
law we make. And it's tilting the playing field. It's
saying that every time you make a law, you've got
to look at this list of principles and you've got
to apply it. And someone sitting over in the corner
this Regatary Standards Board is a referee and it's telling

(00:44):
you off if you don't follow those particular rules. And
the rules are not balanced, they are to righting.

Speaker 1 (00:53):
But the thing is, you guys had the well being
budgets and you had the you know, you've got to
tick this box and tick that box. What's I mean,
this is just a bit of it in the other direction,
isn't it.

Speaker 2 (01:02):
Well, No, it's quite different because the well Being Budget
was a set of principles around how you spend public funds.

Speaker 1 (01:09):
And this is a set of principles about how you
make laws.

Speaker 2 (01:12):
Yeah, making law is absolutely fundamental to how the society works.

Speaker 1 (01:17):
But they're not there. You can ignore them.

Speaker 2 (01:21):
But if you've got a set of principles that say
you've got to make law that preserves private property but
doesn't mention things like public health, the environment, or human rights,
you're going to get private property promoted and help environment.
Ignore them, duncan, Although that's not how it works. This
is about how you make quality law. This is how
public servants will develop policy. This is how people like

(01:44):
it will be harder to make well, not impossible, but harder.
Just like the Bill of Rights Act, which prevents, for example,
the right from a legal search and seizure. The government
can ignore it, but it does so add its peril.
It's a political cost, even it's not a legal cost.

Speaker 1 (01:58):
The submissions on this, I mean, there were heaps of posed,
but the submissions are different from public opinion. Is this
I don't you guys are saying this is going to
be done in a first one hundred days.

Speaker 2 (02:07):
Big deal.

Speaker 1 (02:08):
I've never heard anyone talking about it at a barbecue.

Speaker 2 (02:12):
Oh gee, you should come to my barbecue. Just all
we talk about think you look, a lot of people
are worried about it, though, and there are people who
who are they. Oh look, a lot of the law Society,
for example, was really the law of human rights. You
go to the barbecues, the Human Rights Commission, the Children's Commissioner,

(02:32):
all these people who aren't necessarily Labor party.

Speaker 1 (02:35):
Duncan, Are you leaving the party because you didn't get
a wealth text?

Speaker 2 (02:41):
No, No, look I'm leaving the party because I'm want
to do some more exciting things. But you know, talking
about it's going to be good, it's good. I think
it's a really good idea. I think so they didn't
want more.

Speaker 1 (02:52):
You didn't want more, Duncan.

Speaker 2 (02:55):
Well, Look, I think I'm happy with where we've blended.
I think it's achievable. It won't affect my Dix neuzialaders,
but it will pay for some really great health services.
I think it's a great step forward.

Speaker 1 (03:04):
Dungan Webb from Labor For more.

Speaker 2 (03:06):
From Early Edition with Ryan Bridge.

Speaker 1 (03:08):
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