The Labour Government has concluded its campaign to end generations of thoughtful stewardship of the South Island’s high
country, National’s spokesperson for Land Information Nicola Grigg says.
“Today’s passing of the Crown Pastoral Land Reform Bill effectively ends a decades-old relationship between the Crown
and high country pastoral leaseholders.
“The Bill states its purpose as ‘maintaining or enhancing inherent values across the Crown pastoral estate’, and it
will, instead, have the opposite effect.
“These leaseholders have been effective custodians of this land for generations, but the Government will now impose a
punitive regime devoid of any knowledge of practical implementation and will see environmental outcomes worsen rather
than improve.
“It introduces an adversarial system of management with rigid rules and complex processes which will increase costs and
undermine any motivation to look after the land.
“The Bill removes the ability for leaseholders to make operational decisions about farm management to enhance the
environment – farmers will now need consent to clear weeds including gorse, broom or wilding pines.
“Nor will leaseholders be able to maintain roads and tracks that aren’t on the LINZ register – given some of these farms
were developed by settlers a century ago, this is an absolute non-sense.
“National believes the best approach to ensuring ongoing enhancement of the high country would be by using legally
binding farm environmental plans, created in partnership between DOC, Land Information NZ and the leaseholders.
“National would repeal the changes this Bill makes in its next term of government.”