95bFM ‘Major alarm bells’ ringing on ministries merger
20 February, 2026
Interview by Emmanuel Orange, adapted by Sara Mckoy
Given the government’s poor track record on climate policies, Aotearoa New Zealand Climate & Health Council Ora Taiao raise concerns about the impact of a Ministry merger on climate action.
Earlier this week, the Government introduced a draft Environment Amendment Bill for the disestablishment of the Ministry for the Environment.
The bill is the first step towards the establishment of a new Ministry of Cities, Environment, Regions and Transport (MCERT) which combines the Ministry for the Environment, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, the Ministry of Transport and certain local government functions into “one coherent new agency”.
Despite the Government’s assertion that the current system is “too fragmented and too uncoordinated”, Climate & Health Council Ora Taiao believe the decision to undertake such a “chaotic upheaval of institutions” poses a serious threat to climate and health policy-making.
The main concerns expressed by Ora Taiao surround the flurry of changes imposed in recent years which diminish or entirely remove governmental functions designed to respond specifically to climate change.
In this context, the establishment of MCERT threatens to diminish the critical role of the ministries involved for climate mitigation and adaptation.
Ora Taiao coordinator Marnie Prickett told 95bFM’s The Wire that this government’s track record for eroding climate policy “does not inspire confidence” for any positive outcomes generated by this merger.
“I suspect that the government has lost the trust of many people on climate change, especially as we have seen this year — many communities across the country have been experiencing those frequent and more intense storm events and having to deal with the consequences of that…
“But also this merger is being made on the backdrop of what is really sort of chaotic change within the government”.
Prickett is referring, for one, to the recent changes to the Resources Management Act which she says have undermined environmental policy structures crucial for New Zealand’s climate change response.
In particular she raises how these decisions reflect a “minority view” in the coalition government which dismisses the importance of climate action for New Zealanders.
“We had the ACT Party leader… openly celebrate more agricultural emissions allowed and the return of oil and gas exploration; we've got the New Zealand First Party with its bluster about mining and ‘drill baby drill’...
“If the National Party wants to restore confidence, it needs to bring into line its minority parties and it needs to be really clear that climate change is a big issue for New Zealand.”
She says the Government needs to reconsider this merger to ensure that the ministries responsible for crucial climate decisions are as well-equipped as possible to respond to the material effects of climate change.
“Are our communities built in the right place? Do we have access to clean and safe drinking water that isn't going to be washed out with the next flood? Can we afford to repair our houses again and again with climate events?
“These are the real questions that we have to face and they're not abstract questions.”
