DOC Reshuffle Fails To Deliver For Taxpayers
Taxpayers' Union spokesperson Tory Relf, said:
'After months of dragging their feet DOC has finally confirmed some actual job losses, but let's not kid ourselves.'
'We said it in May and we'll say it again: this is optics over substance. DOC's headcount exploded by 37 percent between 2017 and 2023, so they're barely scratching the surface with these latest changes.'
'This isn't bold reform, it's damage control. Taxpayers were promised savings, not press releases and token trims. Every dollar spent propping up bloated departments is a dollar not spent on frontline conservation work or returning money to the pockets of hardworking New Zealanders.'
'The Government can't fix the books with PR spin and half-measures. It needs to show some backbone and start cutting where it counts, and that means tackling the bloated back-office beasts like DOC head-on.'
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Or those defending a derelict death-trap – the Gordon Wilson Flats in central Wellington – when Victoria University has plans for more student accommodation in a city that desperately needs it. Each of those cases have now been resolved, but let's get real. If we want to make New Zealand an attractive place to build a career and raise a family, we need high-paying private sector jobs that create opportunity and keep our economy moving. Take a look at Australia. If they shut down their mining industry, or their energy industry tomorrow, as Labour and the Greens want to do here, I guarantee you would see fewer Kiwis moving across the ditch. And if the activists won here at home – pulling cows off the Canterbury Plains, taking cruise ships out of Milford Sound, or closing a gold mine in Otago, more would leave tomorrow. We can't afford to leave any stone unturned, shut down whole sectors, or just sit around and hope that conditions will improve. 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Meanwhile, DOC, who should be focused on protecting the environment, is forced to spend millions of dollars every year fighting appeals. At the heart of the issue is the Conservation Act, which is nearly 40 years old and now unworkably complex. And the effect has been to strangle economic activity on a third of New Zealand's land – when we should be unleashing growth, creating jobs, and increasing wages all across the country. So, in the spirit of saying yes to more jobs, more growth, and higher wages, today I can make two announcements. First, we're going to fix the Conservation Act to unlock more economic activity through concessions – like tourism, agriculture, and infrastructure, in locations where that makes sense. That means more certainty for businesses, less bureaucracy, and much faster decisions, so the businesses that should be operating can get up and running. There will still be restrictions to protect our amazing natural environment – so of course it won't make sense for businesses to be operating on every part of the DOC estate. But where it does make sense, we need to get to the 'yes' much faster – instead of being bogged down in process and uncertainty. If we're serious about keeping Kiwis at home, creating jobs, and increasing wages for all New Zealanders, we can't afford to keep saying no to every opportunity that comes our way. At the same time, sites that are truly special to New Zealanders should be protected. Which is why my second announcement is that we're giving DOC more support, by introducing a charge for foreign visitors at high volume sites. Initially, we will be looking at four locations – Cathedral Cove, Tongariro Crossing, Milford Track, and Mount Cook – where foreigners make up more than 80 per cent of all visitors. I have heard many times from friends visiting from overseas their shock that they can visit some of the most beautiful places in the world for free. It's only fair that at these special locations, foreign visitors make an additional contribution of between $20 and $40 per person. For the conservation estate that will mean $62 million per year in revenue, which will be directly re-invested into those same areas, so we can keep investing in the sites that underpin so much of our tourism sector. At the same time, there will be no charge for New Zealanders to access the conservation estate. It's our collective inheritance and Kiwis shouldn't have to pay to see it. Finally, the man responsible for delivering all of this – Tama Potaka, our great Minister of Conservation, Hamilton legend, can you stand up! Tama, thank you for all of the incredible work you do as part of our economic team, ensuring New Zealand's best days are ahead of us. The best part of this job – by a country mile – is the people. Every week I have the privilege of getting out of the Beehive, and meeting extraordinary New Zealanders who – like me – believe our country's best days are ahead of us. The loud, proud, and excited types. And the rugged, humble, quiet types. Kiwis who – in tough times – make the impossible possible every single week. Kiwis who work all day, and often all night, just to leave a better future for their children and grandchildren. We're doing everything we can to make that a little easier. In difficult times and in a world full of uncertainty, it's never been more important to stay focused. We have the potential. We have the team. And we have the plan. So, let's keep working.
