The Me’s
Over recent times we seem to have become a society that is focussed on our own viewpoints without any reference to others. (The Me’s)
Some only want to focus on social outcomes, some only want to focus on the economy and some want to focus on the environment.
In this period whilst we are dealing with the effects of Covid 19, we need to take a wider view and realise that we have to include a range of outcomes in any response we make.
The fix for Covid 19 must be like using a 3 legged stool. We must include social, economic and environmental outcomes to achieve a lasting solution. If we miss out one of the outcomes then we end up like the three legged stool with only two legs – Unusable!
Social outcomes are a very important part of the New Zealand social fabric and include health and education. After the Great Depression of the late 1920’s the government said we needed specific ministries that looked after social welfare, health, education. These worked reasonably well, but over time, as New Zealand became more intensely urban based and people demanded more in other areas we saw more different ministries come into being.
The government bought in experts to reorganise these ministries, and the experts listen to “the me’s” who thought they knew what the average person wanted and this grew the bureaucracy which over time has become much more about designing and recording than actually doing. In other words mostly doing non-productive things.
“The me’s” on the economy are saying that we need to drive the economy to be prosperous which I mostly agree with. Some say we need more taxes, some say less, but over the years these Me’s have mostly thought about raising more revenue by finding more things to tax.
Rather than trying to find new ways to tax the population to fund this non-productive bureaucracy we should be trying to find ways to grow the existing tax take through stimulating the economy.
We should be looking at reforming and deleting rules and policies that are outdated or that have been superseded by technology. We have always been told that taking up technology was going to be our saviour but what’s happening is, it’s getting harder and slower to get responses. When you have questions for these me’s they often don’t respond.
These “me’s” don’t want to simplify their positions because they may do themselves out of a job or lose their position of seniority. If these people are as good as they believe they are surely they would go out into the wide world and create a business because their ideas are so great, they would have no problem attracting customers.
The “me’s” focussed on the environment want to see the environment protected at the exclusion of all else. They want to become all empowering and mostly believe that the RMA should be used to fix the environment whatever the cost to the social and the economic outcomes.
Whilst I recognise that the environment needs looking after, the RMA has after 20years of tinkering, become a mechanism that is used to stifle innovation and inhibit the growth of the economy. The RMA when it was first enacted was designed to be an enabling legislation and has now (mainly through the lobbying of self interest groups) become the exact opposite.
An option that should be taken is to reform the RMA, local government and simplify government agencies. If we don’t reform these all we will be getting from the “me’s” are more convoluted laws, policies and plans and less beneficial social economic and environmental outcomes?
The “me’s” should always look at the possible perverse consequences of what they are wanting because sometimes those consequences are worse than what they either expect or want.
An example: is the Pike River Mine Disaster. The government of the day decided to change the law and also change the method of Inspections and as a direct result of those changes the Pike River Mine Disaster occurred.
Then as a result of the commission of enquiry we got new Health and Safety legislation and when they wanted to reopen the Pike River Mine drift they had to put that new Health and Safety Act to one side to be able to allow the return into the drift.
Another example is the new policies that are coming out in regard to water quality. The bureaucracy is saying that the problems will be solved by introducing stricter rules for farming operations yet one of the greatest problems in respect to water quality (Koi Carp and Catfish) are being totally ignored.
Until we deal with these pest fishes we will never meet the new standards that these Me’s want. Not only will we not achieve the desired standards, the situation is getting worse every day that goes by. The pest fishes are successfully breeding and expanding their territories while we fiddle with smaller problems.
Sometimes the simpler the process the better. We need a few rules but not over powering rules and those rules must address all of the problems not just part of them.
Peter Buckley
Board Member P.L.U.G.