National promises to fee up on farm water storage

Announcing another tranche of its agriculture policy in Canterbury last week, leader Christopher Luxon says National's plan for the primary sector would unleash investment in water storage and food production to lift productivity.

"Farming is how New Zealand pays its way in the world, with the primary sector earning more than three-quarters of export revenue from goods," Luxon says. "National will continue to support the primary sector and get Wellington out of farming."

He says red tape is prohibiting food production and his party wants to make water storage on farmland a permitted activity through National Environment Standards - meaning farmers won't need resource consent for larger storage schemes. The party will also ensure that councils have to approve other types of water storage within two years of an application.

Federated Farmers has welcomed National's proposed changes to water storage rules. Feds freshwater spokesman Colin Hurst says National's plan on water storage is "exactly what farmers have been crying out for".

Hurst says under current regulations it is near impossible to get any new water storage off the ground.

"It makes a lot of sense to support more water capture and storage to help even out those peaks and troughs. There are so many benefits to this kind of infrastructure."

Hurst says there is no shortage of water in New Zealand and water storage has a critical role to play when it comes to climate change resilience in rural communities.

"There will be other benefits too like supporting land use change and increased production."

Irrigation NZ describes the policy as good progress and a step toward developing a country-wide strategic approach to water resilience.

"The National Party policy for primary sector growth will encourage investment on-farm water storage," says Vanessa Winning, IrrigationNZ chief executive. "While stille protecting important environmental assets, it will insist on quicker consenting decisions for off-farm water storage, and will lengthen consent durations to 30 years."

IrrigationNZ chief executive Vanessa Winning.

Meanwhile, National is also promising to double the number of workers available under seasonal worker immigration settings. In a statement, the party promised to double the number of workers under the Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) scheme to 38,000 a year over five years and change settings to allow more flexibility on the number of hours worked.

Currently, employers have to give RSE workers 30 hours minimum per week, but National would allow these 30 hours to be averaged across their contracted period. Other changes included shifting the minimum age for working holiday visas to New Zealand from 30 to 35.

Luxon says National will also make vegetable growing a permitted activity under the Resource Management Act within one year of taking office.

Vegetables NZ chair John Murphy says it welcomes National's announcement and supports any move to increase productivity and improve supply.

Murphy says NZ's vegetable industry needs fit-for-purpose regulations.

"It will allow vegetable operations to thrive, by eliminating hurdles that limit productivity, while at the same time, creating business certainty that will encourage investment."

He also welcomed the National Party's commitments to make it easier to expand water storage and increase numbers under the Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) scheme.