Carbon News
  • Members
    • Login
      Forgot Password?
    • Not a member? Subscribe
    • Forgot Password
      Back to Login
    • Not a member? Subscribe
  • Home
  • New Zealand
    • Politics
    • Energy
    • Agriculture
    • Carbon emissions
    • Transport
    • Forestry
    • Business
  • Markets
    • Analysis
    • NZ carbon price
  • International
    • Australia
    • United States
    • China
    • Europe
    • United Kingdom
    • Canada
    • Asia
    • Pacific
    • Antarctic/Arctic
    • Africa
    • South America
    • United Nations
  • News Direct
    • Media releases
    • Climate calendar
  • About Carbon News
    • Contact us
    • Advertising
    • Subscribe
    • Service
    • Policies

Government agency warns controversial bill could delay disaster response

Fri 18 Jul 2025

Auckland Emergency Management
Image: Auckland Emergency Management

Media release – Greenpeace | As the cleanup begins in flood-hit Tasman, fresh documents reveal a stark warning from Land Information New Zealand that the Regulatory Standards Bill could hinder the country’s ability to respond to climate-related disasters.

In a briefing obtained by Greenpeace under the Official Information Act, LINZ - the agency responsible for managing Crown land - warned that the Bill may "limit the ability to respond quickly to emerging issues (for example, climate-related or natural disaster issues)."

Greenpeace has called the advice "yet another nail in the coffin for the doomed Bill".


"As families, businesses and farmers in Tasman begin the difficult cleanup after yet another devastating flood, it’s shocking to learn that officials are warning this Bill could make it harder to respond to exactly these kinds of disasters," says Greenpeace spokesperson Gen Toop.


LINZ also flagged concerns about the Bill’s impact on critical infrastructure and public works, warning "an overly rigid emphasis on property interests may conflict with broader regulatory objectives, including the Government’s ability to acquire land for infrastructure or public good projects." This was a concern echoed by the Treasury in its advice on the Bill.


"The Regulatory Standards Bill is dangerous. It would tie the Government up in new red tape at the very moment when urgent climate action and disaster preparation are needed most," says Toop


"The advice is clear. This Bill would make it harder to build the infrastructure we urgently need to decarbonise the economy and prepare for climate disasters - things like flood protection, improved communication links, and renewable energy."


LINZ further flagged that the legislation could create new legal barriers to returning land to iwi under the Treaty settlement process, citing concerns raised by the Waitangi Tribunal.


"These new warnings are yet another nail in the coffin for this doomed Bill. It has attracted blistering criticism from the United Nations, legal experts, health professionals, Māori leaders, environmental groups, and the public service itself."


"The Labour and Green parties have committed to repealing the Bill. It simply has no future. The Prime Minister should withdraw National’s support immediately before further time and money is wasted on yet another one of David Seymour’s disastrously unpopular policy ideas."


This latest revelation comes as news broke this morning that MBIE had warned the Bill could be much more expensive than previously expected and have a negative impact on economic growth, and just days after news broke that the United Nations has issued a letter to the Government criticising the Bill.


print this story


Related Topics:   Extreme weather

More >
Media releases
More >

Communities can’t foot the bill for climate crisis

Thu 17 Jul 2025

Media release - Te Pāti Māori O Aotearoa | Te Pāti Māori sends aroha to whānau, and communities impacted by the recent severe weather across Nelson Tasman, Banks Peninsula, Northland and beyond.

Antarctica Scholarships 2025: Ocean detectives

Thu 17 Jul 2025

Media release – Antarctica New Zealand | Antarctica’s Southern Ocean is full of unanswered questions, and this year’s Antarctica New Zealand scholarship recipients are on a mission to help solve them.

More choices for how we use, buy and sell electricity – and lower our power bills

Wed 16 Jul 2025

Media release – Electricity Authority | New Zealanders will have more choices for how they use, buy and sell electricity – so they can lower their power bills – because of new market rules confirmed today by the Electricity Authority Te Mana Hiko (the Authority).

Associate Energy Minister Shane Jones

Feedback sought on national fuel security plan

Wed 16 Jul 2025

Media release - Beehive: The Coalition Government is seeking feedback on a draft Fuel Security Plan that provides a long-term strategy to ensure New Zealanders have reliable access to fuel in times of domestic and global disruption, Associate Energy Minister Shane Jones says.

Professor David Frame of the University of Canterbury

Extreme global weather events show urgent need for collective effort ahead of world’s premier climate adaptation event

Tue 15 Jul 2025

As the Northern Hemisphere experiences another major heatwave, and other parts of the world grapple with extreme weather events, experts are calling for the urgent acceleration of adaptation efforts to help manage the life-threatening impacts of a rapidly changing climate.

Councils need more clarity around climate adaptation

Mon 14 Jul 2025

Media release - Local Government NZ | LGNZ says a lack of clarity around who pays for climate adaptation puts ratepayers at risk of footing the bill – which many could not afford.

Key orange roughy population on verge of collapse, govt considers closure

9 Jul 2025

Media release - Deep Sea Conservation Coalition | New data reveals that New Zealand’s main orange roughy fishery, accounting for half of the country’s total catch, is on the brink of collapse, with one model showing it may have reached that point already, and the government’s considering closing it.

Unlocking economic growth on conservation land

9 Jul 2025

Media release - New Zealand Government | A targeted effort to reduce the backlog of applications for use of conservation land is accelerating economic growth without compromising conservation values, says Conservation Minister Tama Potaka.

High Court agrees with Environmental Defence Society - law must be followed as it stands now

7 Jul 2025

Media release – Environmental Defence Society | The Environmental Defence Society (EDS) welcomes the High Court’s finding in Box Property Investments Ltd v The Expert Consenting Panel that decisions must be made based on the law as it currently stands, not on potential future legislative changes.

Carbon News

Subscriptions, Advertising & General

[email protected]

Editorial

[email protected]

We welcome comments, news tips and suggestions - please also use this address to submit all media releases for News Direct).

Useful Links
Home About Carbon News Contact us Advertising Subscribe Service Policies
New Zealand
Politics Energy Agriculture Carbon emissions Transport Forestry Business
International
Australia United States China Europe United Kingdom Canada Asia Pacific Antarctic/Arctic Africa South America United Nations
Home
Markets
Analysis NZ carbon price
News Direct
Media releases Climate calendar

© 2008-2025 Carbon News. All Rights Reserved. • Your IP Address: 216.73.216.153 • User account: Sign In

Please wait...
Audit log: