Activists disrupt Parliament over fast-track bill, protest Te Tiriti breach

Parliament's Assistant Speaker Greg O’Connor.

• 350 Aotearoa activists disrupted the Fast-track Approvals Bill reading, protesting its impact on Te Tiriti and climate.
• Adam Currie criticised the bill as anti-democratic, claiming it allows harmful projects like seabed mining.
• Assistant Speaker Greg O’Connor barred the activists from Parliament after they draped banners and chanted.

The third and final reading of the Fast-track Approvals Bill was interrupted by activists from 350 Aotearoa who draped banners in the House in protest - but the legislation was still passed into law.

The activists dropped banners and chanted “this bill kills” from the public gallery.

It says the bill ignores Te Tiriti o Waitangi and violates Tino Rangatiratanga of whānau, hapū and iwi.

“We refuse to take this lying down – and extractive projects will never have the social licence to go ahead as we resist them at every turn,” said 350 spokesman Adam Currie.

“The fast-track bill is anti-democratic, anti-climate, and anti-Te Tiriti.”

The banners highlighted 90% of the 27,000 submissions opposed the fast-track bill.

Parliament's Assistant Speaker Greg O’Connor.

Assistant Speaker Greg O’Connor asked the group to leave and the activists have been barred from Parliament.

They’re part of the New Zealand branch of the global non-profit organisation 350 which aims to build a grassroots movement to address climate change.

Currie said the action was not taken lightly.

“We have followed the official process to a tee – filing submissions, waiting patiently to be heard and so on. But it hasn’t worked, and democratic norms have been breached.

“We may have broken Parliament rules to make a point today, but Christopher Luxon’s Government is not following the rules either.”

He said Luxon’s Government disrespected the democratic process by withholding key information such as the project applications, from MPs and the public at every stage.

“They’re disrespecting democracy by barring thousands of submitters from being heard. And they’re disrespecting the process by shutting communities and whānau out of decision-making and robbing them of their appeal rights.”

Currie said the bill would enable projects that are currently prohibited by local councils, the Environmental Protection Authority or the Supreme Court.

“Such as seabed mining in whale habitats and dumping raw sewage into the moana.

“The bill would allow coal mines on conservation land and enable an air-polluting waste incinerator project that the council, the school and the community all oppose.”

He said the bill would change the national character and core values as New Zealanders – away from care, honesty and the love for outdoors towards exploitation, recklessness and a system of exclusion.

Regardless of the bill passing, Currie said thousands of New Zealanders are ready to stop projects from being built in their communities.