PCE submission on the Environment (Disestablishment of Ministry for the Environment) Amendment Bill

The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment has made a submission to the Environment Select Committee on the Environment (Disestablishment of Ministry for the Environment) Amendment Bill.

He generally supports the Bill’s purpose of allowing the Government to reassign environmental functions to the Secretary for the Environment, as this provides flexibility for future machinery of government changes while keeping core environmental responsibilities intact.

Although the Commissioner supports the technical intent of the Bill, he warns that there are major risks combining environment, housing, transport and local government functions, as it could dilute independent environmental advice and sideline rural challenges.

He recommends excluding the Ministry for the Environment from the merger in order to protect transparency and contestable decision‑making in the new resource management system.