The NZMCA generally supported the intent of the legislation, including the requirement for fixed toilets under the proposed new certification regime. However, we believed some aspects of the Bill should have been improved to provide clearer outcomes, while avoiding unnecessary red tape and increased costs that will ultimately be passed down to vehicle owners.
Approximately 10% of members’ motorhomes and caravans have portable toilets. These vehicles will be most affected by the fixed toilet requirement. The vast majority (90%) of members’ vehicles already have fixed toilets.
The NZMCA will continue to welcome into the club members that own well-equipped vehicles with portable toilets. We acknowledge their vehicles are designed to a higher standard than the ill-equipped vans that have frustrated communities for over a decade. Last year, the NZMCA Board passed a motion that ensures members who travel in vehicles with portable toilets can still remain in the club and continue to enjoy their member benefits, including access to NZMCA Parks and attending NZMCA events.
In an ideal world, where everyone behaves responsibly and follows the rules, this legislation and the changes to freedom camping would not be required. However, new rules have been introduced because of the ongoing problems caused by a minority group of campers. We know from our ongoing discussions with communities, councils and central government agencies that unless we work together to tackle this problem right now, a future Government may be forced to adopt new legislation that effectively limits freedom camping to a handful of designated sites only across each region.
Such an outcome will unfairly punish the vast majority of responsible campers and is far worse for freedom camping than what some people fear about this law. A regime that only offers a handful of places to freedom camp will no doubt spell the end of freedom camping as we know it.
In our view, the new Act seeks to protect the ‘freedom’ in freedom camping for the vast majority of responsible campers and it creates a regime that we can use to strengthen community support and their confidence in the systems we rely on.