Building monopolies busted: Tradies and home buyers to benefit from cheaper materials

ACT is celebrating a major win for tradies and first home buyers alike. From tomorrow, thousands of overseas building products including plasterboard, cladding systems, and joinery will be available for use in New Zealand. This long-overdue reform was a key ACT campaign policy in the 2023 election.

“Builders and tradies are finally free to use materials trusted and approved around the world,” says ACT Building and Construction spokesperson Cameron Luxton, Parliament’s only licensed builder.

“For years, outdated red tape has locked our building industry into high-cost, low-choice options. Dumb rules kept out better, cheaper, and more innovative products. This stifled competition, inflated prices, and put the dream of home ownership out of reach for too many Kiwis.

"I remember the plasterboard supply crisis back in 2022 and how it crippled the building industry. Only a Government could create the absurd situation where there’s a black market for plasterboard. Tomorrow's changes will break up the plasterboard monopoly and have similar effects for products all across the sector.

“Plasterboard in New Zealand costs 67% more than in the US and Canada, and 38% more than in Australia. That’s not because ours is better, it’s because tradies haven’t been allowed to use anything else.

“More competition doesn’t just help those who choose the new products, it forces existing suppliers to drop their prices or risk losing out.

“This is how ACT thinks across the board. We’re already streamlining medicine approvals, and we’re pushing to open the supermarket sector to more overseas players. When there’s more choice and more competition, Kiwis get better products at better prices.”

Notes to editors:

• Short audio files of Cameron Luxton speaking about this issue can be downloaded here.

• Images of Cameron Luxton building can be downloaded here.

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