The pipeline
Highlighting the critical pieces of legislation that will affect your business, providing updates along the way.
Health & Safety Reform
NRC submitted in October on the Workplace Health and Safety review being undertaken by MBIE.
In summary, NRC believes the challenge is not the legislation itself but the way it is being applied in the workplace, and the lack of sufficient regulatory intervention at low levels of injury.
NRC has called for the regulatory focus be moved towards preventing serious harm rather than prosecuting after the event.
As MBIE processes submissions we will keep you informed on any policy changes that will impact your business.
Transport Revenue Reform
NRC GM Policy and Regulation James Smith has been appointed to the Land Transport Revenue Stakeholder Reference Group. The Ministry uses the Stakeholder Reference Group to share updates on the revenue work programme progress and activities, collect feedback, test ideas and discuss issues that are important to member organisations, including policy options.
The Government has announced a Revenue Action Plan to enable a clear infrastructure pipeline to deliver the critical transport infrastructure our country needs sooner.
The Revenue Action Plan will:
- Make better use of existing funding tools for the National Land Transport Fund (NLTF).
- Reform tolling legislation to support bringing forward infrastructure investment.
- Unlock new funding tools, including value capture.
- Transition all light vehicles to road user charges by as early as 2027.
NZ Infrastructure Commission testing their thinking
Policy making best practice says don’t just sit inside an echo chamber affirming your own ideas – test them with the public to sharpen them up. The New Zealand Infrastructure Commission is putting this advice to good use, launching their Testing our thinking on the National Infrastructure Plan this week.
This is good news – NRC has long championed development of a 50-year road infrastructure plan, which is based on the average asset life of a road. A combined plan looking at all infrastructure needed over the next 30 years is a major step forward.
The objective of the National Infrastructure Plan is to develop a shared, long-term view of our infrastructure expectations and priorities to guide the future investment needed to underpin New Zealand’s productivity.
As part of the Plan, they‘ve published a discussion document which describes what they expect the Plan will cover and the problem it’s trying to solve, as well as the approach we’re proposing to take to develop it.
NRC encourages members to read this document and have their say – the future of our infrastructure is too important to ignore. We will be providing our own views, and would love to hear yours.
You’ll find questions in each section of the document and you can share your views through the feedback form. https://inform.tewaihanga.govt.nz
You can also engage by registering for the webinar on Friday 15th November at 9:30am.
Completed feedback forms are due by 10 December 2024
Contractor Definition Clarity
Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden has changes underway to the Employment Relations Act which are seeking to provide greater certainty for contractors and businesses around the difference between a contractor and an employee. A four step gateway test will be introduced early in 2025 to clarify who is a contractor or employee.
The criteria under the gateway test will be:
- A written agreement with a worker, specifying they are an independent contractor;
- The business not restricting the worker from working for another business (including competitors);
- The business not requiring the worker to be available to work on specific times of the day or days, or for a minimum number of hours; OR the worker being allowed to sub-contract work; and
- The business not terminating the contract if the worker does not accept an additional task or engagement.
Members who would like clarity on how this test will apply to them should contact a Commercial Transport Specialist team member at NRC.
Road Tolling
NRC provided feedback in October on proposals to toll four state highway projects.
NRC’s position on tolling is used correctly, they can provide a valuable tool for funding an improved roading network. NRC has developed a set of principles for testing the appropriateness of the use of a road toll. Appropriate roading projects for road tolls must:
- deliver productivity gains over existing road, not just be a like-for-like replacement
- have an evidence-based, business case benefit (e.g. reduced journey time, congestion etc.)
- provide an available viable alternative route for all road-freight, including HPMV, at the required safety standard
- inform travelers on what their travel time savings will be
- be well telegraphed – NZTA provide advice ahead of project build that it will be tolled, or if existing road, with at least six–months lead time
- be based on consistent pricing principles – i.e. clear reason for charging, based on road funding policy principles etc.
- have a low administrative burden – e.g. follow a nationally consistent process to avoid operators requiring multiple accounts/systems when driving throughout the country
Tolls are going to be used more frequently and members should have a means to recover this cost from your customers where the charge is not balanced by a cost saving due to greater productivity. Contact a CTS team member to run through your options.
Medical Fitness To Drive
Following the recent consultation, NZTA is now carefully reviewing all feedback it has received. Its next steps will be to publish a summary of submissions document – showing the feedback received, its responses to it, and the rationale for the decisions NZTA make – with the final revised Medical Aspects of Fitness to Drive (MAFTD) guide in a few weeks. We’ll keep you updated.
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