A suggestion by the Finance Minister councils are increasing poverty through poor planning rules that drive housing costs higher has been labelled 'simplistic'.

Property and construction bosses want the Government to reform the Resource Management Act, an extension of Special Housing Areas, the creation of more affordable housing in Auckland and Christchurch and perhaps the introduction of some form of capital ga

As with any law, improvements could be made. Forest & Bird, and other community groups, have no issue with providing for better planning processes, writes Claire Browning.

The Government has just set best-practice guidelines for fracking in various parts of the country.

New Act leader Jamie Whyte will today announce that Act wants the entire 826-page Resource Management Act to be dumped.

An Auckland man jailed for serial polluting crimes must turn up at court on Friday to begin his prison sentence after losing an appeal against his conviction.

Forest and Bird says efforts to rehabilitate the Stockton Plateau after open-cast coalmining has missed the point, with bright green grass sown rather than restoring the natural tussock landscape.

The Waitakere Ranges Protection Society celebrates its 40th anniversary, knowing its battle to keep a wilderness on Auckland's doorstep is still far from over.

For nearly 20 years, solo mum Ginny Walker has had to keep a watchful eye on her son Jarrod, almost 24 hours a day.

The Law Society is urging the Government to drop plans to give itself extraordinary powers to change the Resource Management Act in order to establish "special housing areas" intended to fast track affordable housing.

A leading business group has joined environmentalists in calling on the Government to ease back on changes to the Resource Management Act.

The RMA exists to help work out the right conditions, as well as manage effects, which under O'Reilly's approach would not occur, writes Claire Browning.

In the coming weeks, the Government will be making its decision on the future of the Resource Management Act.

Editorial: Two recent events ought to have injected some urgency into the quest for cleaner, fairer and better use of New Zealand's most valuable resource, water.

Government ministers will have a "disturbing" ability to intervene in resource consents and diminish the role of the Environment Court, Opposition members have warned at the release of new Government reforms.

A few weeks ago, an injured kaka was rescued from a Queen St gutter and is now in a new home at the Auckland Zoo.

A record Resource Management Act fine has been handed out to an Auckland landscaping company for dumping contaminated fill,

Port of Tauranga is signalling another record profit and is frustrated at a new Maori court challenge.