Parliament has unanimously passed legislation that gives the Government
rare, sweeping powers to over-ride a raft of laws it fears could impede
the speedy reconstruction of earthquake-hit Canterbury.
But at the urging of the Green Party, the Government agreed to make a
late change to the Canterbury Earthquake Response and Recovery Bill to
ensure the Recovery Commission set up under the legislation is not
exempt from official information scrutiny.
Despite the cross party support, the Opposition voiced unease about
backing emergency legislation that grants designated ministers almost
unfettered powers to pass regulations that supercede other laws, and
that the bill was rushed through all its stages in a matter of hours.
The Government had rejected the option of amending individual bills as
impracticle. It opted instead for generic powers to override 22 separate
laws, including the Resource Management Act, the Local Government Act,
the Building Act and the Land Transport Act so their normal paperwork
and processes do not slow down vital reconstruction work and consents
can be granted retrospectively.
Labour's Christchurch Central MP Brendon Burns said it was an
extraordinary piece of legislation almost without precedent in terms of
scale and timeframe.
The onus was now on councils and the Government to show Canterbury
people that their faith was well placed, he said.
Port Hills MP Ruth Dyson said she was pleased to back the bill because
it would help rebuild Christchurch, but it had risks attached to it and
Labour would keep an eye on its implementation.
Christchurch-based Green list MP Kennedy Graham failed to get most of
the amendments he sought adopted but during the third reading debate
said the Greens would support the bill for the sake of national
cohesion, even though they considered it "excessive for its purpose".
The Greens were most concerned about the lack of limitation on the
bill's scope and its immunity from judicial review.
Environment Minister Nick Smith rejected calls to further shorten the
bill's 18-month sunset clause, arguing that overseas experience showed
the recovery period could well take longer.
The bill's enactment clears the way for the civil defence state of
emergency in Christchurch to be lifted, with the recovery phase to be
coordinated by the new commission made up of local mayors, government
appointees and an independent chair.
(C) Newsroom 2010
