Nick is a Senior Fellow, focusing on local government, resource management, and economic policy.
Nick brings 30 years experience in policy and advocacy inside and outside of government. He comes to us from 19 years at Federated Farmers, where he was its National Policy Manager. As well as managing a team of policy advisors, Nick led Federated Farmers' work on economic policy, including on fiscal policy, tax policy, monetary policy, banking policy, competition policy, and overseas investment policy.
He also worked extensively on local government policy issues and has been the administrator of the Local Government Business Forum, a grouping of national business organisations with an interest in local government policy issues.
New Zealand faces significant challenges in managing growth, delivering infrastructure, and improving the well-being of our communities. Our productivity performance has been dismal. Read more
Under a better Resource Management system, there would be no need for fast-track approval processes. The fast process would simply be the process. Read more
1.1 This submission on the Fast-Track Approvals Bill is made by The New Zealand Initiative (the Initiative), a Wellington-based think tank supported primarily by major New Zealand businesses. In combination, our members employ more than 150,000 people. Read more
In this episode, Eric and Nick talk to Peter Nunns and Graham Campbell from New Zealand Infrastructure Commission, Te Waihanga. They discuss council debt and infrastructure funding and financing. Read more
New Zealand has an obsession with size. Maybe the inferiority complex of a small country makes politicians and policymakers assume bigger must be better. Read more
New Zealand is facing enormous challenges. We’re mired in recession. Read more
Initiative Senior Fellow Nick Clark discusses his new policy point with NBR. Read Nick's policy point Fast-Track Approvals Bill here. Read more
WATCH: NZ Initiative senior fellow Nick Clark speaks with Brent Edwards here. Read more
In this episode, Oliver talks to our new Senior Fellow, Economics and Advocacy, Nick Clark. This week he has released a new policy point called Fast-Track Approvals Bill which they talk about in this episode. Read more
The Coalition Government has introduced the Fast-Track Approvals Bill as part of its broader efforts to reform the Resource Management Act (RMA). The Bill aims to speed up decision-making for infrastructure and development projects with potential for substantial regional and national economic benefits. Read more
On 7 March 2024, the Coalition Government introduced a Fast-Track Approvals Bill. Its purpose is to ‘provide a streamlined decision-making process to facilitate the delivery of infrastructure and development projects with significant regional or national benefits’.1 The Bill is a key aspect of the Government’s programme for Resource Management Act (RMA) Reform.2 It is part of the National and New Zealand First coalition agreement and a key component of the Government’s 100-Day Plan. Read more
Wellington (Wednesday, 13 March 2024) - The New Zealand Initiative welcomes the government's introduction of the Fast-Track Approvals Bill to streamline consenting for infrastructure and development projects. However, the Initiative recommends several changes to improve the Bill and mitigate potential downsides. Read more