Last chance to do your submission for the Regulatory Standards Bill
With only a few more days before the deadline for submissions on the Regulatory Standards Bill — 1 pm, Monday, 21st of June — we would like to share our own submission, where we, Belong Aotearoa, oppose this Bill.
Remember that your submission can sound however you like; it just needs to be honest and speak to why you are against this Bill. With all the diverse voices in the motu, submissions are bound to vary and differ. Ours looks like this:
SUBMISSION ON THE REGULATORY STANDARDS BILL
To: Finance and Expenditure Select Committee
From: Belong Aotearoa
Date: 17 June 2025
WHO WE ARE
Belong Aotearoa is a not-for-profit innovation and social change hub dedicated to addressing systemic barriers to belonging for migrants and former refugees in Aotearoa. By driving transformational change, we seek an inclusive, connected Aotearoa New Zealand where refugee-background and migrant communities enjoy and contribute towards collective wellbeing.
As an organisation committed to social justice and social cohesion, and to working in a Te Tiriti-centred way, we wish to make the following comments on the proposed Regulatory Standards Bill.
SUBMISSION SUMMARY
Belong Aotearoa opposes the Regulatory Standards Bill in its current form. We believe the bill:
• Undermines Te Tiriti o Waitangi and entrenches constitutional inequality;
• Harms the belonging and wellbeing of migrant and refugee-background communities;
• Lacks a democratic mandate and reflects a narrow ideological agenda inconsistent with the collective values and responsibilities needed for an inclusive Aotearoa.
ISSUES OF OPPOSITION
We oppose the Regulatory Standards Bill in its current form, for the following key reasons:
(a) Te Tiriti o Waitangi Undermined and Private Interests Elevated
The Regulatory Standards Bill proposes sweeping change while omitting any reference to Te Tiriti o Waitangi. This omission erodes the foundational basis of governance in Aotearoa and disregards the Crown’s obligations to actively protect Māori rights and uphold tino rangatiratanga.
By enshrining principles that prioritise individual liberty and property rights, the bill subordinates Te Tiriti and the Crown-Māori relationship to an ideologically narrow regulatory regime. This move risks transforming our constitutional landscape to favour commercial and private interests over collective responsibilities, Māori authority, and public good.
Proceeding without meaningful, targeted consultation with Māori replicates colonial patterns of exclusion and undermines Aotearoa’s democratic legitimacy. The absence of Te Tiriti and of environmental and community protections also means the bill actively undermines the very outcomes it claims to promote: ensuring good regulation that delivers benefits and minimises harm. In fact, under this bill, it would be comparatively easy to implement legislation that causes direct and lasting harm to Māori, the environment, and vulnerable communities.
(b) Harm to Migrant and Refugee Communities and the Need for Collective Protections
Belong Aotearoa works alongside communities who have experienced displacement, trauma, and marginalisation, often as a result of conflict, inequitable economic systems, environmental collapse, and governance failures in their countries of origin. Many have come to Aotearoa with the hope of rebuilding their lives within a society that values fairness, inclusion, and collective wellbeing.
The Regulatory Standards Bill, by elevating individual liberty and property rights above collective responsibility, human rights, and Te Tiriti o Waitangi, threatens to retraumatise and further marginalise these communities. Critically, the bill fails to account for the needs of vulnerable communities, groups who often bear the brunt of poorly designed or ideologically driven regulation. It also fails to consider the intersecting impacts of social exclusion and environmental degradation, both of which disproportionately affect communities already pushed to the margins.
A truly robust regulatory framework must be grounded in principles of equity, inclusion, and collective care. This bill does the opposite. It risks replicating global patterns of deregulation that protect privilege while leaving vulnerable populations exposed and unsupported.
(c) Lack of Mandate and Deep Ideological Bias
This bill does not arise from a widespread public call for reform. Even the Ministry for Regulation, established under the current coalition agreement, has acknowledged that the bill is unnecessary, and that more effective mechanisms already exist to improve regulatory quality.
Current legislative design guidelines already incorporate Te Tiriti, the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act, and sound policy development principles. These tools should be enhanced and better resourced, not overridden by a bill that selectively elevates libertarian values and private rights while ignoring public interest, social equity, and environmental care. By proposing to create a new regulatory standard that sits above existing frameworks, the bill risks elevating a narrow ideology over democratic process, undermines collective rights, and places disproportionate constraints on future Parliaments seeking to address complex societal challenges.
RECOMMENDATIONS
We urge the Select Committee to:
1. Reject the Regulatory Standards Bill, on the grounds that it undermines Te Tiriti o Waitangi and entrenches structural inequality;
2. Ensure any future legislative reform of regulatory processes explicitly upholds Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and is developed in meaningful partnership with Māori as Treaty partners;
3. Protect and strengthen the ability of Parliament to legislate in support of collective and environmental wellbeing, and equity, including for marginalised and newcomer communities;
4. Commit to a legislative culture that centres care, inclusion, and democratic participation, rather than restricting Parliament’s ability to respond to complex social and environmental needs.
CONCLUSION
The Regulatory Standards Bill threatens to undermine the constitutional foundations of Aotearoa and weaken protections for Māori and diverse communities who may face marginalisation. It risks replicating colonial harm, eroding public trust, and compromising our shared future.
Belong Aotearoa urges the Select Committee to reject the bill in its current form and to ensure that any regulatory reform genuinely upholds Te Tiriti, promotes inclusion, and reflects the values and diversity of Aotearoa.
Ngā mihi nui,
Angela Wilton
CEO Belong Aotearoa