Summarised by Centrist

The government will scrap existing agreements giving iwi a formal role in council planning as it moves its replacement for the Resource Management Act through Parliament.

The Mana Whakahono ā Rohe agreements set out how iwi participate in local authority decision-making.

The government had initially planned to carry existing agreements into the new planning system, but reversed course after councils and iwi began rapidly establishing more of them.

RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop said only eight agreements existed when the replacement legislation was introduced late last year.

“Since then, several dozen more have been agreed or initiated,” Bishop said.

Councils will still be able to enter narrowly defined agreements covering statutory planning processes and Treaty settlement obligations, but Bishop said the legislation would contain “clear guardrails” to prevent “scope creep”.

The wider reforms replace the RMA with a Planning Bill and a Natural Environment Bill. Bishop said the new regime could remove approximately 45% of existing consent and permit applications, equivalent to between 15,000 and 22,000 applications based on recent volumes.

Bishop: "We've just decided to put in place these Iwi participation agreements…": https://t.co/Vn1x0KoRYl
— NZ Media World – by Brynn Neilson (@1nzmw) July 21, 2026

A government cost-benefit analysis estimates the reforms could save $13.3 billion over 30 years and increase annual GDP by as much as $3.1 billion by 2050.

A regulatory relief regime will require councils to compensate property owners when planning rules substantially reduce the use or value of their land.

Supporters argue the measure will discourage councils from imposing costly restrictions without considering who bears the financial burden.

Labour and Greens cite a MartinJenkins report that estimated the expense could range from $7 million to nearly $2 billion, although the report cautioned that the estimates were highly uncertain. But isn’t this estimate of what it could cost councils also an estimate of the costs the councils are otherwise imposing on select landowners?

Read more over at The NZ Herald

_{Image: Greater Wellington Regional Council}

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