A Ruapehu councillor has urged her council to take a stand against the Regulatory Standards Bill, describing it as “the evil twin” of the abandoned Treaty Principles Bill.
Janelle Hinch, the council’s youngest elected member, called on the council to submit against the controversial legislative reform bill.
The ACT Party’s bill, part of its coalition agreement with National, passed its first reading in Parliament under urgency last week and now goes before the Finance and Expenditure Committee.
Opponents say the bill could eliminate the place of te Tiriti o Waitangi/the Treaty of Waitangi in New Zealand’s legislative framework.
“Te Tiriti is one of our guiding pou in our values and this is essentially the evil twin of the Treaty Principles Bill,” Hinch told a council meeting in Taumarunui on Wednesday.
Chief executive Clive Manley said the council usually waited to see whether councils’ advocate Local Government New Zealand or local government network Taituarā made submissions on behalf of their members.
“If we agree with their submission, we don’t normally do a separate submission,” Manley said.
Hinch replied: “It affects us. I think we should submit on it.”
Deputy mayor Viv Hoeta backed Hinch, raising a red flag on what she saw as a new strategy to weaken the Treaty’s significance.
Referring to the Treaty Principles Bill, also part of ACT’s coalition agreement with National, Hoeta said: “They didn’t get it through the first time against Māori, they’re going to try this way.”
Hoeta said the bill would have implications for the council in law and law-making, and the council should voice its opposition with an individual submission.
The council had recently signed partnership agreements with post-settlement governance entities and iwi in the wider region.
“We can’t be signing partnership agreements and then just sitting back and doing nothing about it,” Hoeta said.
“We have strong relationships and we are practicing and giving effect to the Treaty of Waitangi in what we do.”
Submissions to the select committee close on June 23.
ACT leader David Seymour said he had seen a lot of rhetoric and misinformation from those opposing the bill.
“Thankfully, I think most Kiwis can see right through this,” he told Local Democracy Reporting.
He said the Regulatory Standards Bill requires politicians and officials to ask and answer certain questions before they place restrictions on citizens’ freedoms.
“What problem are we trying to solve? What are the costs and benefits? Who pays the costs and gets the benefits? What restrictions are being placed on the use and exchange of private property?”
Seymour said the bill was about transparent lawmaking, less red tape, and better lives.
“This Bill turns ‘because we said so’ into ‘because here’s the evidence.’ So if a politician wants to tax you, take your property, or restrict your livelihood, they should be able to show you their work.
“Māori pay taxes, build homes, run businesses and employ people like anybody else. Having more transparency around lawmaking that will affect these can only be a good thing.”
LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air
