Court SimonSIMON COURT (ACT): Thank you Mr Speaker. The ACT Party supports the Fast-track Approvals Bill. New Zealanders have lamented the wasted opportunity left by the previous Labour Government. Lots of talk lots of wasted time and money and for what? Auckland light rail: $220 million on a business case—not a single metre of track laid. They didn't even try and get a consent for it. That was just spinning the wheels. New Zealand's infrastructure is dire. It's not just what we need to build for growth; it's all of those asset renewals and large-scale replacements whether it's ports or hospitals or roads which do need a much smoother consenting pathway.We're in a ridiculous state of affairs now. It's so expensive and time-consuming to get anything permitted and consented. The Infrastructure Commission produced statistics—that were used as a reason to reform the resource management system by the previous Government—that it's costing $1.3 billion a year just to get consents. That's not to build the sediment pond that's not to put in the diversions that's not to actually replant the site after you've finished building the motorway; that's just to do the paperwork and get a consent—$1.3 billion. The amount of time taken to get a consent has almost doubled in the past five years. All the while the former Minister Rachel Brooking in the Labour Government was giving advice on how to reform the Resource Management Act. Instead of actually getting on with fixing it that previous Government wasted five years not fixing it. This Government is different.Now across New Zealand a lot of major projects—a lot of major projects—are desperately needed and they face giant hurdles. [Interruption] They're desperately needed by people in your community too. The fast track is the first step in a wider work programme to create an enabling environment for things to be built that deliver wellbeing to communities—wellbeing to communities just like yours. The first step was to repeal the Natural and Built Environment Act and the Spatial Planning Act which as many lawyers pointed out—and the Hon Rachel Brooking said Bring all the lawyers to the hearing." Many lawyers pointed out to the Hon Rachel Brooking when we were hearing submissions on the Natural and Built Environment Bill as it then was it's a terrible idea. So that's why it's gone. First step: Natural and Built Environment Act el fuego.Second step: introducing the fast-track legislation. The third step once we've carried out some further targeted amendments to the Resource Management Act will be the wholesale replacement of the Resource Management Act with a system based on enjoyment of property rights—a system based on enjoyment of property rights. And that underpins this fast-track legislation and the rest of the work programme.This concept of property rights has become an almost foreign concept in New Zealand in recent times. Steve Abel: The Muld-ACT PartySIMON COURT: How profound that people should be able to do with their own property Mr Steve Abel what they like so long as it doesn't affect the ability of others to do the same. New Zealand's lost sight of this with an increasingly precautionary approach to environmental management—environmental naval gazing over actually getting things built. Joseph Mooney: That's right.SIMON COURT: That's right Joseph Mooney. But I'll tell you what New Zealand thinks of this bill. Infrastructure New Zealand: "We have to be more productive … The link between infrastructure and stronger economic performance is undeniable yet often underappreciated." Infrastructure New Zealand the peak body for infrastructure developers in New Zealand also makes this point to those members of the Green Party and the Labour Party who've raised concerns about the environment: "The process can move faster without compromising environmental standards." And I know that there are members of the Green Party caucus—and I myself have worked as an environmental professional we know how to deliver projects and stick within environmental limits and we can do that with fast tracking.But oh no that's not good enough for the Environmental Defence Society who claims that this bill is the Government's war on nature continuing. Well that type of unhelpful rhetoric will not get New Zealand moving faster and get things built.This week I was lucky enough to host the political scientist Bjørn Lomborg recently in Parliament last night who articulates this concept of a cost-benefit analysis and how to best spend time and money to make a positive impact. That is not spending time in the Environment Court or trying to convince council planners why you should be allowed to use your own land and development assets. Hon Rachel Brooking: Yeah that's right. So you put in the plans like the Natural and Built Environment Act and you have spatial plans that fix it Simon Court.SIMON COURT: This bill is an important—Rachel Brooking this bill is an important step in restoring the concept of private property rights and getting stuff done."