By Simon Court, ACT MP
Over the past few years, many New Zealanders have felt like they’re running up a down escalator. The cost of living surged, interest rates climbed, and the lingering hangover of COVID-era decisions left families, workers, and small businesses feeling squeezed from every direction. People weren’t imagining it, New Zealand really was going backwards.
But over the past year, things have started to turn around. That’s not by accident. It’s because this Government has taken a disciplined approach to spending, ditched the waste, and focused on rebuilding confidence in the economy. When Government stops throwing money around, inflation comes down. And when inflation comes down, interest rates follow.
Now we’re finally seeing those mortgage rates ease. We’re seeing businesses take a breath. And we’re seeing investors – people who build, employ, and innovate – return with the confidence to get things moving again.
One of the clearest signs of renewed optimism is the lift in consent applications. For a long time, the land-development market was flat on its back. High interest rates, high construction costs, and endless planning delays meant it was simply too risky for many to build. The increase in consents tells us confidence is returning, demand for new housing is picking up, and people once again believe in New Zealand’s future.
And this is only the beginning. The real benefits of the Government’s long-term reforms that reshape how our planning, investment, and infrastructure systems work will begin to flow through from 2026 onward.
ACT is driving the replacement of the Resource Management Act because we know it is the single biggest barrier between Kiwis and lower living costs. The RMA is the reason it’s too hard to build a home, expand a business, or construct the infrastructure a growing country needs.
We’re replacing the RMA with a simple, commonsense system based on property rights: your land is your land, and you can use it provided you’re not harming someone else’s property or the environment. Fewer consents. Less red tape. Certainty for builders, investors, and families. And none of the cultural or ideological fluff that has crept into the system over decades.
This will mean more homes, more competition for land and materials, and more infrastructure delivered at a lower cost, all of which puts downward pressure on the cost of living.
Helensville, Kumeu, Riverhead, and our wider northwest communities deserve a planning system that lets us get on with building warm homes, thriving businesses, and the roads and services a growing population needs.
As we head into summer, I want to wish everyone across Helensville a very Merry Christmas. Enjoy time with family, look after your neighbours, and make the most of our incredible backyard. And if you’re into hot sand, mountain biking, or motocross, make sure you head to Woodhill Forest. There’s no better place to burn off the Christmas pudding.
Have a safe and happy holiday season.
