Historic Places Amendment Bill 2004

27 September 2004
Updated on 25 January 2005 (Crown Entity status)
Updated on 2 May 2006

This information has been prepared to inform subscribing members of the New Zealand Historic Places Trust and members of the public about the Historic Places Amendment Bill 2004. This Bill amends the Historic Places Act 1993.

The Historic Places Amendment Bill was introduced in the House of Representatives in August 2004 and had its first reading in September 2004. The Bill has been considered by the Government Administration Committee and was reported back to the House of Representatives from the Committee in February 2005.

The Historic Places Trust has been involved in the proposals contained in the Historic Places Amendment Bill for several years.

The Ministry for Culture and Heritage carried out public consultation on the policy proposals contained in the Historic Places Amendment Bill in May 2003.

The Purpose of the Bill

The policy stance underlying the Historic Places Amendment Bill is:

To strengthen the NZHPT's governance, and
To clarify some sections of the Historic Places Act.

Proposed changes to the NZHPT Board

The current NZHPT Board consists of:

3 persons (the chairperson and 2 Maori members) appointed by the Minister;
3 persons elected by the NZHPT's subscribing members; and
5 persons (including at least 1 Maori member) appointed by the Board.

The amended Board proposed in the Historic Places Amendment Bill would consist of:

6 persons appointed by the Minister (including at least 3 appointed in regard to their knowledge of te ao Maori and tikanga Maori); and
3 persons elected by the NZHPT's subscribing members as at present.

Relevant matters in relation to the board size and membership are:

A smaller board is considered more consistent with current practice in New Zealand;
An increased proportion of Crown appointees on the Board recognises that the government provides the majority of the NZHPT's funding;
The increased proportion of Crown appointees is consistent with the autonomous Crown Entity status of the NZHPT provided for in the Crown Entities Act 2004.

The consequences of autonomous Crown Entity status for the NZHPT and the proposed changes to the Board would be to enhance the NZHPT's accountability to Parliament and the public in relation to the use of public funds and the carrying out of public functions. It is of great importance to the NZHPT to have governance and accountability arrangeent consistent with current best practice and to implement them effectively.

Most aspects of the NZHPT's business will continue as usual:

The NZHPT's purpose, principles, functions and powers will remain unchanged;
The NZHPT will retain its statutory independence through a provision in the Crown Entities Act 2004 that the Minister may not direct the NZHPT in relation to heritage matters;
The Board membership will continue to include three members elected by the NZHPT's subscribing membership;
The NZHPT's branch committees and public membership will continue.

Proposed changes in relation to branch committees

The Historic Places Amendment Bill proposes to

Repeal the Board's current powers to appoint branch committees and branch committee members; and
Substitute wording empowering the Trust to establish or disestablish branch committees and to make rules providing for the election and removal of branch committee members.

These are technical amendments that accord with current practice. The power to appoint branch committees and branch committee members, provided for in the current wording of the Historic Places Act, is contrary to the democratic processes whereby branch committee members are elected by the subscribing membership.

The Board itself does need the power to establish and disestablish branch committees in response to changed circumstances over time, and the power to make rules providing for the election and removal of branch committee members. The Bill would provide for these things.

Proposed changes in relation to the Register

The Historic Places Amendment Bill contains amendments to the registration provisions deriving from recommendations made by Professor Peter Skelton in his recent review of registration. These include:

Consistent notification processes for proposals for registration for all parts of the Register; and
Consistent submission processes for proposals for registration for all parts of the Register, so that relevant persons may make written submissions on any proposal for registration.

Other technical amendments proposed

The Bill includes a range of other technical amendments to address issues of workability which require clarification. These include:

To clarify that the meaning of "historic place" covers more than one associated building or structure;
To provide that an archaeological authority may not commence before the relevant rights to appeal have expired or before any appeals are resolved; and
To clarify the grounds for defence against prosecution under the Historic Places Act relating to an event beyond the control of the defendant.

Further information

You may obtain a copy of the Historic Places Amendment Bill from

the Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives website - here (pdf file, 178kb) or
the Interim website of New Zealand Legislation (Public Access to Legislation Project) - here (txt file only)

More information about the Historic Places Amendment Bill 2004 is available from the website of the Ministry for Culture and Heritage here.

For further information about the Historic Places Amendment Bill, please contact:

Aidan Challis
National Heritage Policy Manager
New Zealand Historic Places Trust
PO Box 2629
Wellington
Telephone 04 494 8033
Email achallis@historic.org.nz