On Thursday 18 September, Buddle Findlay welcomed Hon Chris Bishop, Minister of (among others) Housing, Infrastructure, RMA Reform and Transport, for a frank fireside chat with Auckland infrastructure partner Jennifer Caldwell. The discussion covered both the Government’s immediate priorities and its longer-term vision for the future of New Zealand’s infrastructure and housing.
What’s on the horizon
Despite acknowledging that real economic recovery is likely to take until at least the end of 2026, and that a lot of the policies being introduced now would take years to deliver true impact, Minister Bishop was extremely upbeat about the year to come. He cited the opening of Auckland’s City Rail Link and the New Zealand International Convention Centre, work on new stations for Drury, as well as the Melling road interchange and rail improvements in Wellington.
The draft National Infrastructure Plan is due by the end of the year, with the Government to respond early in 2026. New Spatial Plans for the regions will be a feature of the new Resource Management Act (RMA) replacement legislation, aligning central and local government on where growth should (or should not) occur. Regional deals between Government and local authorities start with Auckland’s integrated 30-year transport plan, with Tauranga/Western Bay of Plenty and Queenstown Lakes next on the agenda.
New RMA laws are expected to be in place mid-next year, although implementation won’t happen until the next term of government. The Minister also expects new legislation to enable time of use congestion charging for Auckland by Christmas. Auckland’s Plan Change 78 is more controversial, with Auckland Council due to vote on rezoning land to allow for up to two million homes. The Minister stressed this was about enabling capacity, not prescribing development at anything like that level.
Other announcements were promised soon, including a shift to “proportionate” earthquake liability.
The longer-term Government vision for infrastructure
Minister Bishop acknowledged it wasn’t possible to achieve everything all at once, especially as local authorities are dealing with a lot of change in a short period. He agreed that a “mindset shift” was also necessary to ensure laws were working well at council level.
Significant work was promised should the current Government’s term be extended. This includes research now underway to explore new approaches to urban development, ranging from letting the market dictate development to government-led land acquisition along rail corridors inspired by Singapore.
Minister Bishop also said the Government was taking a more measured approach to new projects, focusing on maintenance over capital expenditure and requiring that every necessary element be ready before committing budget. He expressed frustration with previous governments of all stripes allocating funding for developments before requirements such as land use changes were in place, meaning delays of many years and inevitable funding shortfalls. In the Minister’s words: “Money is not a spade in the ground”.
Ministerial priorities
Minister Bishop was clear about the changes he wants to see. Key among them:
- Those who benefit from infrastructure paying through mechanisms such as value capture, similar to London’s Elizabeth Line and Singapore’s models
- A templated approach to transport infrastructure with less focus on unique design features, similar to models in Madrid and Copenhagen
- Strategic projects including the Northwestern Busway and a new Auckland harbour crossing
- A more strategic role for the Infrastructure Commission, moving away from application-driven planning towards prescribing which projects should be built and when.
The Minister did not hold back on what he sees as missed opportunities. He openly shared frustration with the difficulty of getting accurate data on agency spending and what’s been delivered, saying work is now underway to create transparency.
He highlighted the City Rail Link as a “missed opportunity” demonstrating the inefficiencies of previous approaches to infrastructure development. He believed value had not been captured, budget had been invested in “expensive roadside artworks” rather than focussing on users, and there had been a lack of consideration for the impacts, such as the need for level crossings to be removed.
When questioned about progress on fast-track energy projects, he was equally blunt: “Yes, there are lots of eligible parties on the list, but they haven’t applied to take up the process.”
Work is being done to simplify the applications process, to encourage more to submit their projects.
For him, New York’s example summarised all the difficult decisions that were now being made. He said US$13 tolls to enter the inner city were initially extremely unpopular, but had considerable support once they were introduced.
“It just takes courage.”
