David Seymour calls for Council transparency over Plan Change 120 update

"The Government has listened and is changing its position on Plan Change 120," says ACT Leader and Epsom MP David Seymour.

"The current requirement for Auckland Council to accommodate 2.08 million homes in its plans will be reduced to 1.6 million.

"This is good news, zoning is important for coordinating growth with infrastructure. No matter how much of a free marketeer you may be, there is not a competitive market for sewers, roads, or water pipes. They are natural monopolies, so it makes sense to coordinate around them.

"The previous plan pursued an arbitrary number rather than coordination, creating the worst of all worlds.

"However, this is not the end. Having made this decision in principle, the Government now needs to pass legislation through Parliament to give effect to the change.

"That will likely happen in one month from now, but there is another consideration. The Government will now await Auckland Council producing a summary of how the zones will change before legislating.

"It is imperative that Auckland Council are transparent about this. Last year, the zoning maps were not released until after Parliament had voted for the 2.08 million number. They were buried deep in the Council website and I pressured them to display the most topical information on their website prominently.

"The Plan Change process will continue under the Government’s proposal, albeit with the new lower housing capacity target. Current submissions will be considered by the Council through the normal process, which will be finalised sometime next year. Such is the nature of plan changes.

"There will be some who see this as limiting housing supply. A few points about that. If you are concerned about zoned capacity, it will increase by around 25 per cent under the new target.

"But, there’s a more important point when it comes to housing supply. I talk regularly to people who are involved in developing homes. Zoned capacity is rarely their main concern. They are being held back by slow consents, expensive development cost charges, and slow and expensive connection to pipes and infrastructure.

"The Government is addressing all those things with its resource management reforms (e.g. pumping stations will get consented faster), its infrastructure funding reforms (e.g. can raise a bond to pay for development instead of paying council up front) and local government reforms (focusing councils on fixing what matters).

"There is still a process to go through with the changes announced today (there always is in Government) but we just took a big step to a better Auckland for home owners and home buyers alike."