ACT delivers day of deregulation

"The new financial year has opened with a day of deregulation, cutting red tape from the big structural reforms right down to the small rules that make everyday life more expensive," says ACT Leader David Seymour.

"Rules are supposed to make people safer and freer. Too often they make life slower and more expensive by adding cost without adding protection.

“Today’s changes cut red tape at every level:

•⁠ ⁠Regulatory Standards Act: A new age of transparency has arrived with lawmakers required to openly declare the impacts of their laws on people’s liberties and property rights. The Regulatory Standards Board, that also comes into effect today, will enforce that they do it.

•⁠ ⁠Temporary traffic management: Councils must now take a risk-based approach to road cones and traffic management if they want taxpayer funding for local transport projects. NZTA has already proved this works, cutting temporary traffic management spending by around $46 million last financial year while worksites stayed just as safe.

•⁠ ⁠Anti-money laundering: The Department of Internal Affairs becomes the single AML/CFT regulator, replacing a fragmented system that buried legitimate customers and businesses in paperwork. One regulator will mean less confusion for honest operators and a sharper focus on organised crime, fraud, and dirty money.

•⁠ ⁠Toy standards: After a submission to the Red Tape Tipline, the Government is moving to recognise trusted toy standards from the United States and Europe, cutting duplicated compliance costs for importers and making more safe toys commercially viable for Kiwi families.

“The Regulatory Standards Act is the most important red tape reform New Zealand has seen in a generation, and it’s been 20 years in the making.

“It changes the balance of power between Wellington and the people who pay for its rules. ACT has fought for something like it through successive governments as bad rules piled up and the people paying the cost had almost nowhere to turn. Today, that changes.

"The Ministry for Regulation has already helped unlock around $300 million in value by challenging rules that don't stack up. Today is another step.

"New Zealand can't unlock its potential when every worker, family, and business is forced to navigate rules that add cost without adding safety, whether it's a major regulatory regime or a minor product sign-off. When we clear away unnecessary barriers at every level, we create the conditions for people to build, create, and succeed."