13 November 2025

Please submit your opposition to the Amendment Bill

If you are outraged by the situation, please urgently submit. 

There is a good guide here.  The EDS submission is here.  This is urgent, submissions on the Bill Close on the 17th of November.   You may also want to contact a Member of the Government.

READ ON FOR MORE INFORMATION
The following email was sent to the Bream Bay Guardians mailing list.

All submissions on the Bill must be submitted by November 17th, 2025

There is an irony that the Fast Track legislation was intended to encourage investment and economic growth, but, as you will be aware from our Bream Bay Guardians campaign, the granting of a resource consent to McCallum Brothers' Limited (MBL) to suck up sand from Bream Bay, will inhibit the investment in manufactured sand, the transition to a sustainable source, and it will have disastrous impact on the Bream Bay environment.
 
The Coalition Government has recently introduced the Fast-Track Approvals Amendment Bill. The Government is frustrated that projects aren’t being progressed quickly enough and that the Panels have opted to allow a broader range of organisations to submit.  
 
If this Bill passes as drafted, it poses a serious threat to the community's ability to represent the facts and have a voice in countering the MBL disinformation. 

Under the current legislation, Hapu and Iwi must be consulted.  This is a process MBL is currently undertaking, and they may alter their application accordingly. MBL are under no obligation to incorporate or communicate any facts or perspectives except its own.
 
It is also an unreasonable obligation that Hapu/Iwi will act as facilitators or conduits for the broader community. MBL have told us that they don’t see anything productive from a public consultation. We imagine they are aware of the depth of opposition in the community.
 
It is accepted that Hapu and Iwi will also submit to the Panel.  But it is up to the panel to decide who else to invite.  Typically, this is a submission made through a website, rather than a tedious legal hearing.  We have quietly been building a constructive relationship with Patuharakeke.  They already possess impressive capabilities and experience, and we hope to further assist them.
 
Te Parawhau is the other critical Iwi.  They have been unwilling to engage because of the Langs Beach Society's MACA Court case.  This is also an issue with Patuharakeke, but other community connections have opened the door for dialogue.  It seems that Te Parawhau are viewing the MBL proposal more favourably, although this isn’t universally supported.
 
So, if the Amendment passes, only the Northern Regional Council (NRC), possibly the Whangarei District Council, and Hapu/Iwi will be allowed to submit.  This is very concerning.  In our area, the NRC has been reluctant to engage with us, citing a requirement to remain “neutral.”  Obviously, this position is anything but neutral. If they are unwilling to engage, they only have an MBL perspective and whatever experts they engage.  Enthusiasm for Hapu/Iwi to work with us has been affected by the MACA Court Action.  
 
Potentially, this leaves us with no rights to submit.  This is possibly an unprecedented situation in NZ, where the Public has absolutely no ability to submit on a project that impacts them, presumably even adjoining landowners. 
 
Worse still, the amendment also allows the Minister to determine whether a project meets the test for providing a regional or national economic benefit.  Economists have advised that this project has little or no economic benefit and shouldn’t have been accepted for Fast Track in the first place. But this cannot be challenged if the legislation passes.
 
In addition, the timeframes are significantly reduced, the Applicant has a power of veto over Panel Members, and Government Ministers have a power of direction over the EPA, removing a level of independence. 
 
The head of the EPA resigned within 24 hours of the Bill being introduced.

It's also important to reflect on how this project (and others) were initially enshrined in the Fast Track Act.  Government Ministers invited Companies to submit projects for consideration. Many submitters had previously, and in the MBL case, continued to make political donations. 

Given the timeframe. the panel selected to evaluate the projects for qualification could only have spent minutes or maybe a few hours considering each one. MBL proposal was ranked the lowest among the accepted projects.  It included critical assumptions that are simply not true. We have read the Government Department submissions, which are obviously rushed, startlingly brief and simplistic.  

Please submit your opposition to the Amendment Bill

If you are outraged by the situation, please urgently submit. 

There is a good guide here.  The EDS submission is here.  This is urgent, submissions on the Bill Close on the 17th of November.   You may also want to contact a Member of the Government.