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Conservation Minister Dr Nick Smith today announced a reduction to Kapiti Island permit fees to come into effect from tomorrow.

“Kapiti Island is an iconic landmark which deserves to be enjoyed by as many New Zealanders as possible. DOC will drop the permit fee for adults from $28.75 to $10.00 and waive the fee for all children aged 17 and under from tomorrow,” Dr Smith says.

Import tariffs on a range of building products will be temporarily suspended from tomorrow – a measure which is expected to reduce housing costs and increase competition in the residential construction sector, Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith and Commerce Minister Craig Foss announced this afternoon.

Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith today welcomed the latest Statistics New Zealand figures showing the number of new dwellings consented is at its highest level since 2007.

The passing of the West Coast Windblown Timber (Conservation Lands) Bill by 65 to 51 votes is a victory for common sense that will enable valuable native timber felled in Cyclone Ita to be recovered and used, Conservation Minister Dr Nick Smith said today.

A Wellington Housing Accord has been proposed between the Government and council to facilitate increased supply of housing in the capital, Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith and Mayor Celia Wade-Brown announced today.

“We need to increase the supply and affordability of housing in Wellington. This Housing Accord will give us access to fast-track planning and consenting tools that will bring more houses to market more quickly,” Dr Smith says.

Queenstown is the latest district to be added to legislation that will enable the council and the Government to work more closely together on housing supply and affordability, Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith announced today.

Special legislation is to be passed by Parliament to enable the recovery of high value native timber blown over in Cyclone Ita on West Coast public conservation land, Dr Nick Smith announced today.

“We need to take a pragmatic approach and enable the timber to be recovered where it can be done so safely and with minimal environmental impact. This initiative will provide welcome jobs and economic opportunities for the West Coast at a difficult time, and will provide a financial return to DOC that can be reinvested in conservation work,” Dr Smith says.

Conservation Minister Dr Nick Smith today announced the appointment of three new Guardians of Lake Wanaka and the reappointment of three other members.

“The Guardians of Lake Wanaka play an important oversight role in the preservation of Lake Wanaka, which is one of the few southern lakes with an unmodified shoreline,” Dr Smith says.

“The lake is protected by special legislation that provides the Guardians with a watchdog role to ensure that the lake and its shoreline remain unspoilt for the enjoyment of future generations.”

Approval has been given for Bathurst Resources to commence work on its Escarpment Mining Project on the Denniston Plateau near Westport, Conservation Minister Dr Nick Smith announced today.

New Zealand’s newest marine reserve in Akaroa Harbour was formally opened today by Conservation Minister Dr Nick Smith, and local MP and Environment Minister Amy Adams to coincide with World Oceans Day.

“World Oceans Day is about recognising the need to better protect marine life and that is what we are doing in creating the Akaroa Marine Reserve,” Dr Smith says.

Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith today visited the site of a new Housing New Zealand development in central Christchurch, saying the progress on the 12 new two-bedroom apartments illustrate the momentum underway to fix and replace the city’s damaged housing stock.

Two sets of figures released today show good progress is being made on increasing housing supply under the Auckland Housing Accord, Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith and Mayor Len Brown say.

The latest building consent figures from Statistics New Zealand show more building consents were issued in Auckland in the year to April 2014 than in any 12-month period since the year to February 2007. For the year to April 2014, there was a 41 per cent increase in the number of issued consents compared to the year before, and a 24 per cent increase since March 2014.

Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith has welcomed today’s release of the latest building consent figures from Statistics New Zealand which show the upward trend in the number of consents issued is continuing nationwide.

The application by Riverstone Holdings Limited to build and operate a $240 million monorail in Fiordland has been declined by Conservation Minister Dr Nick Smith.

“This proposal does not stand up either economically or environmentally. The independent tourism and financial analysis concluded it was not viable. There would be a significant impact on the area’s flora, fauna and natural heritage. The route is not sufficiently defined to properly assess the impacts,” Dr Smith says.

The Government has agreed in principle to establish a new entity that will work with social housing providers to better meet demand, Finance Minister Bill English and Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith say.

“Our plan is to grow and diversify the social housing sector in New Zealand,” Mr English says. “We recognise that most options to do this will have significant implications, so it is important that we fully understand them to get the right options progressed.

A proposal to bring forward a ban on all shark finning to 1 October this year has been announced today by Conservation Minister Dr Nick Smith and Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy.

“We announced a ban on shark finning earlier this year that would phase in the ban by October 2016, but in response to consultations now believe it is possible to implement a ban in October 2014,” Dr Smith says.

“This is good news and builds on New Zealand’s strong reputation for sustainability and protecting our natural environment.  

The Government is investing $15.8 million of operating funding and $10.7 million of capital funding over the next four years to ramp up measures to protect New Zealand’s magnificent kauri forests from the dieback disease.

“Kauri is an iconic species for New Zealand and one of the oldest and largest organisms on earth. Kauri dieback is a significant threat to their survival and we need to ramp up our efforts to protect these magnificent trees,” Conservation Minister Dr Nick Smith says.

Duties on plasterboard, reinforcing steel bar and wire nails and tariffs on building products like roofing, cladding, insulation, paints, electrical and plumbing fittings will be removed temporarily to increase competition and improve housing affordability.

“Reducing the costs of building materials is an important part of the Government’s programme to improve housing affordability,” Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith says.

The Government is providing an additional $30 million of operating spending in Budget 2014 to help the community housing sector provide homes for high-need families, Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith says.

“The community housing sector will be able to help hundreds more high-need New Zealand families get access to a warm, dry, affordable home with Budget 2014’s $30 million boost to the Social Housing Fund,” he says. “This initiative is part of the Government’s social housing reforms and our plan to grow the community housing sector.

Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith today met with Queenstown Lakes Mayor Vanessa van Uden to discuss the district being scheduled under the Housing Accords and Special Housing Areas Act 2013.

“The median house price in Queenstown is $664,000 and the district is one of the five least affordable housing areas in New Zealand. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss how the Government and Council can work together to improve supply and affordability,” Dr Smith says.

A third tranche of 41 Special Housing Areas (SHAs) that would yield 18,000 new homes across Auckland was today announced by Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith and Auckland Mayor Len Brown.

Three new road bridges on the Collingwood Bainham Main Road costing $630,000 were opened this morning by Conservation Minister Dr Nick Smith to provide all-weather access to the Heaphy Track.

“These new bridges are required on the access road to the Heaphy Track to support all-weather access as part of the Government’s decision this year to allow permanent winter mountain biking. It will enhance safety and improve the reliability of access,” Dr Smith says.

Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith today welcomed the release of the latest building consent figures from Statistics New Zealand, saying the record seven-year high for March 2014 shows the Government’s policies are continuing to deliver results.

A new Housing New Zealand Corporation (HNZC) development was opened today in Welcome Bay, Tauranga by Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith.

“These six new homes being developed in Tauranga will help meet local demand. The new homes are fully insulated, have double glazing and are well-positioned to soak up the Bay of Plenty sun. They are also designed to meet the demands of larger families and smaller families being four- and two- bedroomed, because this is where the shortage of social housing in Tauranga lies,” Dr Smith says.