- Hon Chris Bishop
- Hon Chris Penk
The Government will get major infrastructure projects underway faster by speeding up land acquisition and delivering fairer payments for landowners, Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop and Land Information Minister Chris Penk say.
"The Government is committed to a strong pipeline of critical infrastructure projects to boost economic growth and productivity. While the wider Public Works Act (PWA) overhaul is continuing and on track to be completed by early next year, today we're announcing some immediate action," Mr Penk says.
"In the coming months, we'll be amending the PWA to accelerate the acquisition of land needed for the public projects that are listed in Schedule 2 of the Fast-track Approvals Act, and the Roads of National Significance listed in the Government Policy Statement on land transport 2024. It is intended that amendments will come into force six months before wider PWA review amendments.
"Public infrastructure projects up and down the country are often held up for years by overly complex, drawn-out processes for purchasing the land needed. This has meant that projects which would provide massive benefits for communities end up stalled, with the only action happening in courtrooms."
"Basically, as a country, we've accepted too many reasons to say no. The result has been long, drawn-out legal battles over land acquisitions that have cost time, money and livelihoods. All New Zealanders deserve better - not only those who will benefit from a project, but also the people whose land is needed for it. It's time to say yes to getting stuff done," Mr Bishop says.
"We are going to overhaul the Public Works Act to tear down these roadblocks. As part of the reforms, we will put premium payments on the table for landowners whose land needs to be purchased for major public infrastructure projects, and we'll create a streamlined objections process for nationally and regionally significant projects."
The amended legislation will feature:
- Incentive payments: To encourage early agreements, landowners who voluntarily sell their land before a Notice of Intention is issued will receive an additional premium payment equal to 15 percent of their land's value, with a maximum payment of $150,000.
- Recognition payments: All landowners whose land is acquired under the accelerated process will receive a five percent recognition payment, acknowledging the critical role their land plays in delivering essential infrastructure, with a maximum payment of $92,000.
- Replacement objections process: Landowners who object to land acquisition for critical infrastructure projects will no longer go through the Environment Court. They will instead submit their objections directly to the relevant decision-maker, either the Minister for Land Information or the local authority, for faster resolution.
"Objections to the compulsory acquisition of land under the Public Works Act can massively slow down delivery of critical infrastructure projects, causing significant time delays and cost increases.
"These delays and cost increases are unacceptable, which is why the Government is prioritising amendments to the PWA related to critical infrastructure now," Mr Bishop says.
"Over the past ten years, 49 objections have been received for compulsory land acquisitions just for NZ Transport Agency projects.
"The new accelerated objections process will mean we can work through any objections far more quickly. Then we can get on with delivering important infrastructure projects that will help grow our economy so New Zealanders can get ahead."
The proposal supports the Coalition Agreement between National and New Zealand First to prioritise strategic infrastructure and simplify the planning system.
A draft Bill is expected to be introduced to Parliament in May, with the public invited to provide feedback through the select committee process.
Note to Editor:
- The new streamlined objections process will cover some projects listed in Schedule 2 of the Fast-track Approvals Act that qualify as public works where it could significantly reduce project delays.
- The process will also apply to the Roads of National Significance identified in the 2024 Government Policy Statement on Land Transport.
- Two existing protections for landowners will remain: a landowner's ability to challenge the land value to be compensated (via the Land Valuation Tribunal) and the right to seek judicial review of official decision making claimed to be "unreasonable".
- Owners of protected Māori land will gain the benefit of the payments; however, they will retain the right to object to the Environment Court.
