$13m and counting: Auckland ratepayers pay for housing policy churn
Friday, 16 January 2026
Auckland ratepayers have already spent at least $13 million paying for a housing policy the Government now appears poised to change - again.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon is preparing to step in and override his own Housing Minister, Chris Bishop, in a move that would water down Auckland’s intensification rules and mark the Government’s third reversal on the issue.
The Post revealed on Thursday that Luxon is set to make a captain’s call that undercuts a flagship policy championed by Bishop, amid growing unrest among National’s Auckland MPs and fears of a political backlash.
A source said the intervention was driven as much by internal party pressure and leadership optics as by policy, with Luxon keen to reassert control after months of discontent bubbling in Auckland electorates.
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The manoeuvre has left some Auckland councillors frustrated and feeling locked out of decisions that have already cost the city millions.
Auckland councillor Richard Hills said the secrecy was deeply frustrating.
“We have no idea what the Government is proposing. We've had a lot of people leak to me and mention things to me, but we are not certain what direction the Government is taking us in.”
Hills said councillors were focused on outcomes rather than politically imposed capacity targets, and that moving away from those would be “probably good”.
But the Government needed to give Auckland certainty, he said.
“The Prime Minister should pick up the phone and talk to the mayor and we should discuss how this should roll out.”
Auckland mayor Wayne Brown said he had not spoken to Luxon nor had any “secret meetings” with MPs.
“It’s simply hearsay at this stage.”
Brown told The Post he suspected he would support a change to the rules, but was waiting to see what that change would be.
“I think they’re still learning how to have a grown-up conversation with Auckland Council.”
Meanwhile, Waitākere councillor Shane Henderson, who viewed the zoning changes as progress, has said he was disappointed Auckland was being caught up in “the ping-pong of central government politics”.
The Government remained tight-lipped on Friday, with Bishop saying nothing beyond a statement provided to The Post the day before confirming “the Government is considering a range of options around housing capacity targets for Auckland and as Minister of Housing I will have more to say soon.”
Any retreat from the current intensification rules is expected to be messy.
The Post understands another law change may be required, depending on which option Luxon ultimately pursues.
It will also likely be expensive - with Auckland ratepayers already forking out close to $13m for the previous two plan changes.
In 2021, when National was led by Judith Collins, the party signed a bipartisan accord with the Labour government to agree to the “3x3” law - which would permit three homes three storeys high to be built on most sites in New Zealand's main towns and cities with no need for resource consents.
This was officially known as the Medium Density Residential Standards (MDRS).
Auckland Council worked to meet this standard through Plan Change 78 (PC78) to its Unitary Plan which required consultation, meetings and debates.
In 2023, parts of Auckland flooded so rapidly and severely that four people died and thousands of homes were flooded. It became apparent the MDRS allowed for intensification in flood plains and areas vulnerable to coastal erosion.
Later that year, after Luxon became leader, he said his party campaigned on winding back the standards.
Cabinet subsequently agreed to let Auckland Council scrap PC78 ‒ but only on the condition it replaced it with a plan allowing for the same number of homes.
That replacement became Plan Change 120 (PC120), which concentrates intensification along transport corridors while downzoning areas prone to natural hazards.
PC78 would have enabled around two million homes, meaning PC120 was also required to hit the same figure - a target that quickly became a political lightning rod.
Figures obtained by The Post show Auckland Council spent about $10 million developing PC78, and has so far spent a further $2.7 million on PC120.
Auckland Ratepayers’ Alliance spokesperson Josh Van Veen called the mind-changing “a gross waste of money”.
“For once, we can’t blame the council. This costly and cumbersome process was imposed by the government. Abandoning the ‘2 million homes’ target is sensible, but that should have happened last year, when a more pragmatic approach might have saved ratepayers $3 million.
“It is a pity that the prime minister’s apparent course correction has come so late.”
Labour’s housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said Luxon was “clearly a Prime Minister under pressure, uber sensitive to any political backlash”.
“Given the polls it’s not surprising he’s willing to throw his leadership rival Chris Bishop under the bus.
“We know Luxon caves when it gets hard politically. He has been talking about ‘growth growth growth’ for months, but when it comes down to action he’s running scared.”