Wagner Nicky: Environment Canterbury (Temporary Commissioners and Improved Water Management) Amendment Bill — Second Reading 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Wagner Nicky: Environment Canterbury (Temporary Commissioners and Improved Water Management) Amendment Bill — Second Reading 
[Sitting date: 13 February 2013. Volume:687;Page:7812. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
NICKY WAGNER (National—Christchurch Central) 
: 
 Thank you Mr Speaker. Can you hear me? 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (H V Ross Robertson) 
: You just need to keep talking and they will put it on but do not play with the microphone. 
NICKY WAGNER 
: Thank you Mr Speaker. 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (H V Ross Robertson) 
: Hold it up to your mouth and just keep talking. Those are the instructions we have been given by the technician. 
NICKY WAGNER 
: I am pleased to be supporting this Environment Canterbury (Temporary Commissioners and Improved Water Management) Amendment Bill at its second reading. Back in May 2010 the Environment Canterbury (Temporary Commissioners and Improved Water Management) Act was passed. The bill that we are looking at today will extend the governance arrangements under that Act and retain Government-appointed commissioners instead of elected members in the Canterbury Regional Council until the election of 2016. There are also special provisions in the bill that will require a ministerial review in 2014 of Environment Canterbury’s governance structure its membership its powers and its functions. 
At a previous debate on this bill the Hon Annette King had been talking loud and long about how bad this bill will be for Cantabrians but as someone who lives in Canterbury I know that she is wrong. The majority of Cantabrians see this as a sensible way forward during a very difficult time in our province. To understand why they feel like this let us look at the history. Let us look at the history. 
In 2010 following an extended period of poor performance the Government replaced Environment Canterbury councillors with commissioners. How did central government know that Environment Canterbury was performing badly? Firstly it came from other elected representatives in the province. They told us. The mayors across Canterbury came to central government and asked for intervention so that they could better manage the regional council issues. So we set up an independent review and that independent review found that Environment Canterbury granted consents without any proper framework and that it allowed new water to be taken for catchments that were overallocated. 
At the same time the 2007-08 Resource Management Act survey came out and that stated that Environment Canterbury had failed to process more than two-thirds of the resource consent applications within the statutory time frame and that actually Environment Canterbury’s performance was the worst out of 84 councils in New Zealand. The review group also stated that the institutional failure in Environment Canterbury “requires comprehensive and rapid intervention on the part of central government to … enhance both regional and national well-being.” 
So seven commissioners were appointed with Dame Margaret Bazley as the chair and I have to say they have been highly successful and very effective in addressing Environment Canterbury’s systemic problems and reforming the quality of decision making and conduct. More important their work has been totally transparent with public reporting to the people of Canterbury every 3 months. During their time they have managed the Canterbury Natural Resources Regional Plan through to an operative stage and they have started working on a second-generation land and water plan—things that had been hanging around Environment Canterbury for a very long time. 
They have also made significant progress on the implementation of the Canterbury Water Management Strategy. That was a strategy that came out of discussions across the province. It is a very democratic way and it is a really very collaborative process. Through that process they have developed zone implementation plans and are now working their way into a statutory plan by way of planned change processes. The latest survey results on the Resource Management Act show that they have dramatically improved compliance with statutory consent time lines under the Resource Management Act. Ninety-two percent of resource consents were processed within the statutory time frames in 2010-11 compared with 29 percent in 2007-08. 
They have also significantly improved relationships with territorial authorities with iwi and with other stakeholders and through collaboration they have come up with a joint working programme with Ngai Tahu. Finally and very important in our province they have established a strong partnership with the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority to facilitate earthquake recovery. So all in all it has been a very successful body and has delivered good results for the environment and for Canterbury. 
It is really appropriate that central government assists councils when a failure has happened. Not acting can bring serious consequences for the future of Canterbury. The commissioners have done an excellent job and the people of Canterbury are happy to see them continue their work until 2016. And how do I know that the majority of Cantabrians are supportive? Because of their reactions to the bill. Let me read some of their comments. Local Government New Zealand which represents the mayors the councillors and the ratepayers says: “The Commission has made good headway on major issues affecting the region … Environment Canterbury has done outstanding work both in its response to the earthquakes in Canterbury and its work on implementing the Canterbury Water Management Strategy”. 
And the rural community Federated Farmers and Irrigation New Zealand has said: “I would hope”—and I suggest that the Hon Clayton Cosgrove listens to this—“that people who will oppose this move will think before commenting. The Commissioners in a few short years have achieved more than the old failed council ever did. I recall a shrill tone at the time but every prediction of doom has not eventuated.” Irrigation New Zealand has said: “Rural communities now have more opportunities to be involved in water management through the collaborative approach of the Canterbury Water Management Strategy. We are starting to see real gains through the zone committee and we don’t want to go back to the nightmare situation that ratepayers suffered under previously.” 
Finally Ngai Tahu representing tangata whenua and iwi say: “ECan has a significant role in issues of importance to Ngai Tahu and the overall environmental health of Canterbury’s land and water based economy … In our view the commissioners have done a good job to date in addressing some very challenging issues. Iwi and community participation in the Canterbury Water Management Strategy forums has been a very worthwhile exercise.” So I know Mr Cosgrove that local government representing democratically elected members the rural community and Ngai Tahu all support the commissioners. I commend this bill to the House.