1
00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:02,680
Speaker 1: Sixteen past six on Newstalks. He'd be an inquiry into

2
00:00:02,759 --> 00:00:06,400
Speaker 1: climate adaptation to seeing politicians of all stripes agree the

3
00:00:06,440 --> 00:00:09,320
Speaker 1: government should not try to stop the values of properties

4
00:00:09,320 --> 00:00:12,760
Speaker 1: that are vulnerable to the effects of climate change from plummeting.

5
00:00:13,440 --> 00:00:16,799
Speaker 1: Through this, they're looking to discourage investment in flood prone areas.

6
00:00:16,840 --> 00:00:19,000
Speaker 1: Seems to make sense, right. Janet Tibtrainey is the New

7
00:00:19,040 --> 00:00:21,400
Speaker 1: Zealand Herald Wellington Business editor and is with us this

8
00:00:21,480 --> 00:00:24,840
Speaker 1: evening agen A. Hey, Jack, so just explain this to us,

9
00:00:24,840 --> 00:00:26,960
Speaker 1: because it's rare that we see politicians of all stripes

10
00:00:27,000 --> 00:00:28,920
Speaker 1: agreeing on anything, but this does seem like a bit

11
00:00:28,920 --> 00:00:29,600
Speaker 1: of a no brainer.

12
00:00:30,640 --> 00:00:33,960
Speaker 2: Yeah. Look, I think this is interesting because this issue

13
00:00:34,000 --> 00:00:37,239
Speaker 2: around how do we respond to climate change? You know,

14
00:00:37,320 --> 00:00:42,200
Speaker 2: do we let communities stay in flood prone areas when

15
00:00:42,240 --> 00:00:45,400
Speaker 2: there are big disasters? Do we bail people with people out?

16
00:00:45,600 --> 00:00:48,239
Speaker 2: Do we pay for them to relocate? If so, how

17
00:00:48,360 --> 00:00:50,760
Speaker 2: much do we pay? Do we compensate them fully? These

18
00:00:50,800 --> 00:00:54,640
Speaker 2: are really thorny gnally questions and I feel like politicians

19
00:00:54,680 --> 00:00:59,080
Speaker 2: have been putting off addressing this issue for quite some years. Interestingly,

20
00:00:59,120 --> 00:01:02,080
Speaker 2: now we have members of the Finance and Expenditure Committee,

21
00:01:02,080 --> 00:01:05,880
Speaker 2: these are politicians from across the political spectrum agreeing to

22
00:01:05,959 --> 00:01:10,040
Speaker 2: some high level principles around how we need to deal

23
00:01:10,080 --> 00:01:13,360
Speaker 2: with this issue going ahead. So they've done this inquiry,

24
00:01:13,600 --> 00:01:16,200
Speaker 2: they've released the report, they've agreed to some broad principles.

25
00:01:16,280 --> 00:01:17,560
Speaker 2: These are the ones you sort of said in your

26
00:01:17,560 --> 00:01:22,120
Speaker 2: intro Jack. Basically, they're saying that that the government can't

27
00:01:22,120 --> 00:01:25,480
Speaker 2: sort of stand behind property owners and it can't protect

28
00:01:25,520 --> 00:01:28,400
Speaker 2: people's wealth. So if you own a property and your

29
00:01:28,480 --> 00:01:31,360
Speaker 2: insurer decides, actually this is a very high risk area,

30
00:01:31,400 --> 00:01:33,120
Speaker 2: your premiums are going to go through the roof. You

31
00:01:33,200 --> 00:01:35,520
Speaker 2: might not be able to get some type of insurance cover.

32
00:01:36,080 --> 00:01:39,240
Speaker 2: You know, it's really hard your property value your property

33
00:01:39,280 --> 00:01:42,280
Speaker 2: value fools, it's unfair, it's not fun situation to be.

34
00:01:42,360 --> 00:01:45,560
Speaker 2: And they're saying, well, we can't really do anything about that,

35
00:01:45,680 --> 00:01:49,600
Speaker 2: and in fact, we kind of need to see the

36
00:01:49,640 --> 00:01:52,880
Speaker 2: price of properties reflect the risk, and if the pricing

37
00:01:53,200 --> 00:01:56,200
Speaker 2: reflects risk, that will push people to live in in

38
00:01:56,320 --> 00:02:00,320
Speaker 2: safer areas. So it's actually quite a bold statement they maying,

39
00:02:01,200 --> 00:02:03,400
Speaker 2: just as a high level principal comment.

40
00:02:03,720 --> 00:02:05,480
Speaker 1: Yeah, what are the insurers saying.

41
00:02:06,560 --> 00:02:10,160
Speaker 2: Look, the insurers are welcoming this. They want some direction

42
00:02:10,360 --> 00:02:12,400
Speaker 2: because you know, they're at the front line of this.

43
00:02:12,480 --> 00:02:16,440
Speaker 2: They're getting flat because they're adjusting premiums in line with risk.

44
00:02:17,160 --> 00:02:20,519
Speaker 2: They think it's great that politicians are signaling that they

45
00:02:20,680 --> 00:02:23,480
Speaker 2: might take some sort of lead. I think insurers will

46
00:02:23,480 --> 00:02:27,680
Speaker 2: also be pleased that politicians support risk based pricing. You know,

47
00:02:27,760 --> 00:02:31,920
Speaker 2: they support making people who are have properties in higher

48
00:02:32,000 --> 00:02:35,079
Speaker 2: risk places pay more because that is the you know,

49
00:02:35,240 --> 00:02:38,280
Speaker 2: that is the approach insurers have been taking. And there's

50
00:02:38,320 --> 00:02:41,160
Speaker 2: always some debate around that because you know, do you

51
00:02:41,400 --> 00:02:43,880
Speaker 2: really make people pay what their risk really is or

52
00:02:43,919 --> 00:02:47,240
Speaker 2: do you share some of those costs? You know, do

53
00:02:47,280 --> 00:02:50,120
Speaker 2: you have a bit of cross subsidization. So it sounds

54
00:02:50,120 --> 00:02:53,480
Speaker 2: like the politicians are as siding with that. But you know,

55
00:02:53,600 --> 00:02:56,720
Speaker 2: this is all just commentary in a report that the

56
00:02:56,760 --> 00:03:00,480
Speaker 2: committee has published. Were yet to see any government policy

57
00:03:00,560 --> 00:03:03,520
Speaker 2: or laws or anything like that that really gets into

58
00:03:03,520 --> 00:03:06,639
Speaker 2: the nitty gritty of how do we deal with this? Now,

59
00:03:06,720 --> 00:03:09,560
Speaker 2: just one more thing in this jack that the committee

60
00:03:09,560 --> 00:03:13,040
Speaker 2: members say that ultimately this is going to cost us money.

61
00:03:13,160 --> 00:03:15,440
Speaker 2: You know, if we're paying to relocate people, for example,

62
00:03:15,440 --> 00:03:17,880
Speaker 2: if there's another big storm, then we need to think

63
00:03:17,919 --> 00:03:20,639
Speaker 2: of ways of generating money to pay for that. Now

64
00:03:20,680 --> 00:03:22,359
Speaker 2: to me, that sounds like there might be some sort

65
00:03:22,360 --> 00:03:25,680
Speaker 2: of future tax or levy to pay for it. So

66
00:03:25,880 --> 00:03:28,760
Speaker 2: that's the sort of Gnali end that needs to be

67
00:03:28,960 --> 00:03:29,520
Speaker 2: worked through.

68
00:03:31,120 --> 00:03:35,000
Speaker 1: Perhaps less likely to be political consensus on that point. Jenay, Well,

69
00:03:35,000 --> 00:03:38,080
Speaker 1: exactly exactly. All right, Hey, thank you. That is really

70
00:03:38,080 --> 00:03:41,360
Speaker 1: interesting genative training the New Zealand Herald's Wellington business editor.

71
00:03:41,720 --> 00:03:45,200
Speaker 1: It's just gone twenty past six on Newsbork's 'db For

72
00:03:45,320 --> 00:03:48,600
Speaker 1: more from Heather duplessy Ellen Drive, Listen live to news

73
00:03:48,640 --> 00:03:51,520
Speaker 1: Talk said Be from four pm weekdays, or follow the

74
00:03:51,600 --> 00:03:53,240
Speaker 1: podcast on iHeartRadio