Ministers rush to clear backlog

Covid-19 wreaked havoc on everyone’s schedules and the Government is no exception.

For months, weekly Cabinet meetings have been dominated by the response to Covid-19. Likewise, Parliament lost an entire sitting block to the level 4 lockdown. When it returned under level 3, setting time was reduced and the order paper, the agenda for Parliament’s sitting sessions, was clogged with matters relating to Covid-19.

With only six sitting weeks left before this Parliament is dissolved for the election, the Government is working out which bills it wants to pass and which ones can wait until after the election – if it wins of course.

Leader of the House Chris Hipkins said the Government is currently working out which bills it would prioritise. ‘‘I’ve had to go through the legislative programme and ask what ministers want to do now before the election. Stuff that’s important for the Government like the ETS [Emissions Trading Scheme], RMA [Resource Management Act] – those are the things that will be given priority.’’

He said ministers have been given an ‘‘indicative list’’ of what he planned to prioritise in the House, and were working through it. Some ministers have legislation that touches on aspects of the Covid-19 response.

‘‘There’s not a lot you can do in six sitting weeks, but we’ll give it a lash,’’ Hipkins said.

Parliament had to quickly debate and pass laws giving effect to tax changes during the lockdown. It also passed a law setting out the legal framework the Government would use to respond to Covid-19.

But all of this has had the effect of pushing some of the Government’s plans down the agenda.

Hipkins said 50-60 hours were lost as a result of the lockdown period. He said he had looked at recouping some of this time through extended sitting.

The Cabinet schedule is loaded with Government initiatives including the second media rescue package, and a long-awaited electric vehicles’ policy.

The Government insisted those policies would make it over the line ahead of the election on September 19.

But any legislation needed to give effect to these changes would not pass this term. It was not yet known whether the second round of the media package would require legislation, but the clean car discount consultation paper said legislation would be needed.

Hipkins said it was his hope to get any new legislation through its first reading and sent to select committee before the election.

Cabinet becomes more complicated – it too can move quickly, but divisions within the Cabinet between Labour and NZ First and Labour’s out-of-Cabinet confidence and supply partners, the Greens, could make moving quickly difficult.

The clean car standard finished being consulted on in August last year. The Government’s other electric vehicle policy was blocked by NZ First, as first reported by Stuff in February.