Submission: Regulatory Standards Bill

The PHCC has five main reasons for opposing the Bill: 

• Public health and wellbeing excluded
  The Bill’s principles exclude promoting public health or human wellbeing, omitting values foundational to modern welfare states.
• Lack of reference to Māori rights
  The proposed principles exclude any reference to te Tiriti of Waitangi, the principles of te Tiriti or protecting Māori rights and interests which are fundamental to advancing health equity goals in Aotearoa New Zealand.
• Public health protections undermined
  By enforcing a narrow ‘private harm’ standard and rejecting the ‘public harm principle’, the Bill would limit the government’s ability to act in the public interest, limiting the scope for future public health protections.
• Chilling effect on public health measures
  The 'takings or impairment' principle would enable commercial interests to seek public compensation if public health regulations reduce their profits, undermining measures like tobacco and alcohol controls or clean air laws.
• Environmental and public health risks ignored
  The proposed framework ignores ecological integrity and prudent stewardship, risking harm to both environmental and public health objectives.