Melanie Nelson

In the latest Coherent episode, Sir Geoffery Palmer warns the Regulatory Standards Bill is dangerous, unworkable, and undemocratic. He says it could paralyse Parliament, strip ministerial responsibility, and leave the courts powerless.

🎧 Listen here: open.substack.com/pub/melanien...

NZ First is digging its own grave by backing the Regulatory Standards Bill In the name of stability, NZ First may have handed David Seymour the tools to destabilise the future of the party.

Just out on the spinoff by @weavingourworlds.bsky.social

thespinoff.co.nz/politics/18-...

An important piece by @weavingourworlds.bsky.social. If NZ First really have capitulated to Seymour, ACT and the NZ Initiative it's really problematic — at least until we have a government that repeals the Regulatory Standards Bill.

It would be worth people emailing Peters and Jones about this.

“It’s a long-term death charge put in the middle of the Parliament.” - Sir Palmer

On Coherent, former PM & constitutional expert breaks down why the Regulatory Standards Bill is unworkable, undemocratic & dangerously naïve.

open.substack.com/pub/melanien...

#RSB #NZPol #Democracy #GeoffreyPalmer

Dr Melanie Baker Jones joins Coherent to unpack how the RSB could undermine local government action, emissions regulation, intergenerational equity — and even the legal rights of nature.

🎧 Listen here to the full podcast open.substack.com/pub/melanien...

#RSB #ClimateAction #NZPolitics

Can New Zealand still plan for climate change under the Regulatory Standards Bill?
Dr Melanie Baker Jones joins Coherent to unpack how the RSB could undermine government action, emissions regulation, intergenerational equity and the legal rights of nature.

open.substack.com/pub/melanien...

#RSB

Economist Geoff Bertram joins Coherent to break down how monopoly power and regulatory capture are driving the cost of living crisis — and how the Regulatory Standards Bill could lock it all in. Full episode link here open.substack.com/pub/melanien...

Is NZ First Digging Its Own Grave by Backing the Regulatory Standards Bill? NZ First once promised to defend New Zealand from neoliberal experiments. Now, by backing the Regulatory Standards Bill, they may be helping to embed them in law. The Bill hands David Seymour and the ...

Just published by @weavingourworlds.bsky.social
Will New Zealand first sell out on its principles or will it stop the RSB?

Is NZ First Digging Its Own Grave by Backing the Regulatory Standards Bill? NZ First once promised to defend New Zealand from neoliberal experiments. Now, by backing the Regulatory Standards Bill, they may be helping to embed them in law. The Bill hands David Seymour and the ...

What picture are the messages forming about NZ First support for an amended Regulatory Standards Bill?

Bill Rosenberg: How the RSB Privileges Power and Undermines the Public Good

The former Productivity Commissioner lays out why the Regulatory Standards Bill is about embedding corporate power, locking in inequality, and weakening our democracy.

Listen here: melanienelson.substack.com

#RSB

You’re not lost if you don’t know your pepeha | E-Tangata “You can still deliver a pepeha — even if, like me, you’re Māori and don’t know your whakapapa.” — Emma West.

“You can still deliver a pepeha — even if, like me, you’re Māori and don’t know your whakapapa.” — Emma West.

Anne Salmond: Bats in the belfry, trolls in the Beehive

Week in Review:
Dame Anne Salmond laments the falling standards of our political leaders, their attack dogs and policy sources while New Zealanders endure such hard times

Enough said...

Dr Carwyn Jones unpacks the Regulatory Standards Bill’s threat to te Tiriti, democratic lawmaking, and the future of New Zealand’s legal foundations.

Economist and former Productivity Commissioner Dr Bill Rosenberg joins me to unpack the deep ideological roots and real-world risks of the Regulatory Standards Bill.

Seymour makes behind-closed-doors concessions on Regulatory Standards Bill

The coalition Government has quietly amended the controversial Regulatory Standards Bill, even as the legislation is before the select committee. Laura Walters and Sam Sachdeva report. - Newsroom Pro - $ -

Ironically the Regulatory Takings clause in the proposed Planning Act would enable developers to sue the arse off Seymour for denying them the enjoyment of property rights

Hmm. Another over-egged policy paper from #NZInitiative, no doubt for ideological aim of promoting smaller govt. Problem “diagnosis” purports to paint picture of fragmentation/confusion etc. Yet fails to refer collective coordinating role of Cabinet. 🤷🏻‍♂️

www.nzinitiative.org.nz/reports-and-...

#BHN NZ's Epstein Files | Luxon takes Labours glory | Winston grumpy on foreign buyer change reports YouTube video by Big Hairy Network

I'm on BHN 9pm tonight with Dr Ryan Ward talking about our investigative work on the influence of the theory of fringe American legal scholar Richard Epstein on the Regulatory Standards Bill - experimenting on NZ.
youtube.com/live/CP4SKm5...

New Zealand’s Epstein Files New Zealand’s Regulatory Standards Bill looks like tidy lawmaking. But OIA documents reveal decades of foreign influence — embedding Richard Epstein’s radical “regulatory takings” theory into our laws...

Significant new information in this investigative article I've co-authored with Dr Ryan Ward on the foreign ideology influence behind the Regulatory Standards Bill.

I have an article in E-Tangata today on the government's proposals to overhaul conservation, including removing decision-making from communities, increasing commercial activities and even the saleability of the conservation estate.

Around the Treaty in 80 Pages: Ross Calman Makes History Accessible Watch now | 🎧 #13: Weaving our Worlds podcast with Melanie Nelson: Ross Calman’s new book Te Tiriti o Waitangi distils centuries of history, debate, and protest into a clear, accessible guide. In…

Ross Calman’s new book Te Tiriti o Waitangi is short, sharp, and essential. In this kōrero we dive into the rushed translation, the debates at Waitangi, and why the Treaty still matters for all New Zealanders. Listen here:

Could we be saying ‘ka kite’ to our conservation estate? A new government proposal could open up millions of hectares of public land for sale or disposal.

I have an article in the Spinoff today on the amendments to conservation legislation being quietly progressed by the government

Modernising Conservation or Selling it Off? – Eugenie Sage on the Biggest Shake-Up in a Generation Former Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage joins me to unpack the Government’s sweeping “modernisation” of conservation land management — a plan she warns will dismantle decades of protections. We talk...

Don't stop at the headline of charging for tourists on conservation land. It is obscuring proposals to make 60% of conservation land easier to sell and unleash commercial activities on the conservation estate. Here's a detailed explanation.

Does the government want to create a neoliberal conservation estate? Listen to a former Minister for Conservation disect the proposals on the Coherent podcast. Link in bio.

Former Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage joins Coherent to unpack the Government’s “modernisation” of conservation land management — and why she sees it as the most serious weakening of protections in decades. We talk biodiversity, Treaty obligations, land disposals, and climate resilience.

Modernising Conservation or Selling it Off? – Eugenie Sage on the Biggest Shake-Up in a Generation Former Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage joins me to unpack the Government’s sweeping “modernisation” of conservation land management — a plan she warns will dismantle decades of protections. We…

Eugenie Sage on the Coherent podcast: the Government’s sweeping “modernisation” of conservation land management could weaken protections, open the door to land sell-offs, and prioritise development over biodiversity. The biggest shake-up in decades?
melanienelson.substack.com/p/eugenie-sa...

Foreign Ownership, Sacred Sites & Water Rights: MTT submission guide on Overseas Investment Bill (due 23 July) This Bill represents a significant backward step in the protection of Aotearoa’s environmental and cultural heritage. At a time when the public is demanding stronger kaitiakitanga and protection of…

Some alarming changes proposed to foreign investment rules in Aotearoa NZ, outlined in this guide for submissions that are due on Wednesday 23 July: manataiao.wordpress.com/2025/07/20/f...