10. Resource Legislation Amendment Bill—Progress and Collaboration with Other PartiesDAVID SEYMOUR (Leader—ACT) to the Minister for the EnvironmentResource Legislation Amendment Bill—Progress and Collaboration with Other Parties10. DAVID SEYMOUR (Leader—ACT) to the Minister for the Environment: When will the Resource Legislation Amendment Bill be ready for Committee stage?Hon Dr NICK SMITH (Minister for the Environment): It is ready now. My ambition would be to have the bill passed through next month but ultimately the legislative priorities are determined by the Leader of the House.David Seymour: How does the Minister think the public will interpret the fact that it has become ready within 2 hours of ACT and United Future challenging the Government to support the amendments and put the bill up after 2 years of wrangling with the Māori Party? Hon Dr NICK SMITH: I have sought to get the support of all of the Government support parties. The difficulty is that ACT has said the bill does not go far enough; the United Future party has been concerned that the reforms go too far. As a consequence we have negotiated in good faith with the Māori Party. We have a good bill and the most substantive reforms to the Resource Management Act (RMA) in 25 years and if actually we want more houses built we want more jobs and we want better environmental control then parties will support that bill.David Seymour: Did the Prime Minister at the time John Key not tell the Minister a year ago that the offer made today was on the table and has been for the entire interceding period? Hon Dr NICK SMITH: I have been very aware of both the ACT Party and the United Future party's positions. They have actually been opposite. That is the United Future party has been concerned that the reform has gone too far; the ACT Party has been concerned that it has not gone far enough. This is a centre-right Government and I actually think that the reform and the agreement that we have reached with the Māori Party is a good way in which to advance this important reform.David Seymour: I seek leave to table a letter from the ACT Party and United Future to John Key Prime Minister at the time offering a united front last March.Mr SPEAKER: Order! It does not need further description. I will put the leave. Leave is sought to table that particular letter. Is there any objection to it being tabled? There is not.Document by leave laid on the Table of the House.David Seymour: How does the Minister believe his backbench colleagues will react to the fact that it has taken 2 years to pass a substantially watered-down Resource Management Act reform bill which includes Mana Whakahono a Rohe requirements that duplicate requirements already in sections 6 and 7 of the Act? Hon Dr NICK SMITH: Well the provisions in sections 6 and 7 are very different from the iwi participation arrangements. I would remind the member that prior to this term of Parliament the Government put out an options paper on the RMA and the iwi participation agreements were in the Government's original proposals. They were there before we entered into discussions with the Māori Party and they are there because the obligations to consult with iwi are already in the law and it is our view that the iwi participation arrangements will ensure that occurs in a more effective way.Hon Peter Dunne: Can the Minister recall when he last had discussions with either the ACT Party or the United Future party; was it 2015 or 2016?Hon Dr NICK SMITH: I can very well recall that my office sought to seek a meeting with that member and over 5 months the member could not find time—a frustration that was shared by my colleague Amy Adams the previous Minister for the Environment. As a consequence the Government entered into an agreement with the Māori Party and we are a Government that acts in good faith for our parties and that is why we will continue with our agreement with the Māori Party.David Seymour: Does the Minister believe that anyone will take seriously his claim that this Resource Management Act amendment is more substantial than any of the previous 17 that have been made over the past 26 years and in particular does he still stand by his statement that: There's no question in my mind that we have to break through the stranglehold that the existing legal metropolitan urban limit has on land supply" if we want to make housing more affordable; if so—Mr SPEAKER: Order! You are now getting to three supplementary questions.Hon Dr NICK SMITH: When we get to the Committee stage I am looking forward to pointing out to that member the very specific provision in this bill that introduces an obligation on councils to provide more land for housing and industry."