Norman Russel William: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Norman Russel William: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:667;Page:14193] 
2. 
Dr RUSSEL NORMAN (Co-Leader—Green) 
 to the  
Minister for the Environment 
: Will he recommend the adoption of the board of inquiry’s proposed national policy statement on freshwater management now that the Land and Water Forum has reported back; if so when? 
Hon Dr NICK SMITH (Minister for the Environment) 
: 
 The Land and Water Forum involving 58 diverse organisations with an interest in water has recommended the adoption of a national policy statement on fresh water but it also recommended that we amend the one recommended by the board of inquiry. I have been further advised by officials and stakeholders that the version recommended by the board of inquiry is ultra vires—that is it goes beyond what a national policy statement can do under the Resource Management Act. That is why the Minister of Agriculture David Carter and I have asked officials from the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and the Ministry for the Environment to work on a revised national policy statement taking on board the recommendations of the Land and Water Forum. If any significant changes are made from the board of inquiry report the law requires that there be a process of consultation publicly. 
Dr Russel Norman 
: In light of his answer that he accepts the recommendation of the Land and Water Forum that we need a national policy statement does he also accept its recommendation that we need it quickly and what does he understand by the word “quickly”? 
Hon Dr NICK SMITH 
: Firstly I want to make it plain that the Government has made no decisions on the Land and Water Forum report. We hugely welcome it. The fact that we have organisations like Federated Farmers and the Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society coming to a consensus around the way forward on freshwater management is the Government thinks a huge step forward. We have received the final report only today. We want to get advice from officials but it is the Government’s view that we have been treading water—excuse the phrase—for a long time on freshwater policy and we need to make progress. 
Dr Russel Norman 
: Does he agree with the Environmental Defence Society’s chairperson Gary Taylor that it is crucially important that we have the national policy statement as soon as possible and that other issues can be dealt with separately; if so when will we have the national policy statement? 
Hon Dr NICK SMITH 
: I certainly agree that we have over 53 recommendations to consider from the Land and Water Forum’s report. I do not think the Government’s response will be a single measure. It will be a package that will take some time—likely a number of years. I certainly accept that there is a need to get on and resolve the issues around the national policy statement but the Government has not yet decided on that programme particularly given the advice from officials that the board of inquiry version will need to be amended in order for it to be consistent with the Resource Management Act and given that the law itself requires a process of public consultation on any changes. 
Dr Russel Norman 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I have asked this question in three separate ways now seeking some kind of time frame. I appreciate that the Minister cannot give an exact time frame but I ask you to ask the Minster to give some kind of time frame for when we will have the national policy statement. Currently we do not have anything out of him about a time frame. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: I hear the honourable member but I ask him to reflect on the last supplementary question that he asked. If he had asked specifically: “What is the time frame?” it might have been possible for me to insist on a more precise answer but the member actually asked whether the Minister agreed with a statement by someone called Gary Taylor if I remember the question correctly. The Minister answered that perfectly correctly. He said he agreed with some aspects of what that person said so the remedy is in the member’s own hands. If he wants to receive a precise answer he has to ask a precise question. 
Dr Russel Norman 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. If you read the primary question you will see that it does say “when”. I was giving the Minister the benefit of the doubt as obviously there is an extended time frame but I was trying to get a more specific time frame—and the primary question did say “when”. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: The member has further supplementary questions. He can chase that matter up very precisely with the Minister given that he is not satisfied with the answers so far. 
Brendon Burns 
: Given that the Land and Water Forum’s laudable report suggests it will take considerable time to develop the environmental and economic tools necessary to maintain the quality of water emerging from new storage schemes will he now advise the Prime Minister to abandon his goals of seeing new water allocations in place in Canterbury next year? 
Hon Dr NICK SMITH 
: Firstly what I think is hugely encouraging in the Land and Water Forum’s report is that we have key environmental organisations like Fish and Game New Zealand the Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society the Ecologic Foundation and the Environmental Defence Society recognising the economic opportunities that go with storage and equally so organisations like Federated Farmers recognising the need to lift the game around water-quality standards. I think that is a huge step forward. I do not recall the Prime Minister saying any storage facility would be built next year. I know he is a tremendous Prime Minister but I do not think he can do it quite as quickly as that. Members opposite should not doubt this Government’s view that fresh water is an incredibly important resource. There are economic opportunities that go with it and we want to advance those economic opportunities but ensure that they are met with fundamental environmental bottom lines. 
Dr Russel Norman 
: When will he recommend the adoption of the board of inquiry’s proposed national policy statement for freshwater management? 
Hon Dr NICK SMITH 
: We received the Land and Water Forum’s report just today and Cabinet has not had the opportunity to consider any of the recommendations. I and my colleague David Carter have asked for officials’ advice on the amendments that would come from the recommendations in the forum’s report. I hope we will have those by the year’s end. We have also given commitments quite strongly to the Maori Party and to the Iwi Leadership Group that we will consult them on such decisions. I think this is an issue that we should make progress on next year. 
Brendon Burns 
: Can he give a commitment to this House that major new schemes to store and allocate water that come into effect before the recommendations of the Land and Water Forum are acted upon will be subject to the sorts of environmental rules that the forum’s 58 stakeholders signed up to? 
Hon Dr NICK SMITH 
: It is certainly the Government’s view that if we are to have expanded irrigation in New Zealand—and large economic opportunities would come from it—we need to make sure that that is matched in parallel by good environmental standards that will ensure that water quality is not compromised by taking advantage of those economic opportunities. There is a huge amount of work to do in response to this report and that work begins today. 
Dr Russel Norman 
: Is it not the case that adopting the proposed national policy statement would be the swiftest way to immediately set rules for clean water so that we can get on with cleaning up our degraded waterways; if so does he believe that simply making progress on it next year is really fast enough? 
Hon Dr NICK SMITH 
: I draw the member’s attention to exactly what the Land and Water Forum representing 58 organisations like the Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society Fish and Game and the Ecologic Foundation said which was that the current draft is a basis to work from. They are not recommending that the Government immediately adopt the Land and Water Forum’s report. 
Hon Member 
: What’s the Government doing? 
Hon Dr NICK SMITH 
: I hear the Labour member’s interjection. What I would like to know is what the previous Government did in 9 years about freshwater management. 
Dr Russel Norman 
: Will he give this House a guarantee that the proposed national policy statement will not be weakened when he finally recommends it? 
Hon Dr NICK SMITH 
: What the Government will do is consider alongside the board on inquiry report on the national policy statement the advice that we have received from the Land and Water Forum. I have already indicated to the member that I and David Carter have indicated to both the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and the Ministry for the Environment that we want advice from those officials so that we can put a robust national policy statement in place. 
Dr Russel Norman 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. It was a very simple question; it asked whether it would be strengthened or weakened—whether he can guarantee that it will not be weakened. He did not address that part of the question—that was the only part of the question actually. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: I think the member has to be realistic. He cannot expect the Minister to give exactly the answer that he might want to hear because there may be no yes or no answer. What does “weakened” mean? The Minister explained to the House what would happen and what has to be considered in dealing with the report. The member who asked the question may consider some of those matters to strengthen or weaken it but those are matters of opinion. I cannot insist on a Minister giving a precise answer to that kind of question because there is no precise answer to that kind of question. 
Brendon Burns 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I seek your guidance Mr Speaker. The Minister said he did not recall the Prime Minister talking about new storage being built in Canterbury next year— 
Mr SPEAKER 
: That is not a matter of order. The member seems to be litigating the answer given by the Minister and he cannot do that by way of a point of order. 
Brendon Burns 
: Point of order. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: I must hear what the issue of order is. 
Brendon Burns 
: I seek leave to table a written answer to a parliamentary question. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Leave is being sought to table what? 
Brendon Burns 
: A written answer to a parliamentary question. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: No we do not table written answers to written questions; they are available to all members already.