A newly released report from the government-appointed Independent Reference Group (IRG) has outlined a proposed national adaptation framework for New Zealand, aimed at improving climate resilience and managing the financial burden of natural hazards.
The IRG is calling for clearer governance structures, increased investment in risk reduction, and a phased transition to enable long-term adaptation.
Established by the Ministry for the Environment, the IRG includes senior figures from across finance, local government, iwi, and the insurance sector. The group was tasked with advising on policy changes to improve how New Zealand adapts to climate-related risks.
One of the IRG’s core recommendations was improving public access to natural hazard and climate risk information.
It suggested that property owners, insurers, iwi, and businesses all require up-to-date, standardised data to make informed decisions.
A central database of hazard information was proposed to support this effort.
Suncorp New Zealand CEO and IRG member Jimmy Higgins (pictured) commented on the role of transparent information.
“There’s no easy way around these challenges, so we have to move through them, together. And that starts by being honest about the risks and having the courage to talk about them now, not after disaster strikes,” he said. “Climate adaptation won’t happen overnight, but we can start now, taking everyone along on that journey so that there are no sudden shifts, just smarter decisions being made over time.”
The report proposed a 20-year transition to phase in new approaches to risk-sharing and adaptation planning.
During this time, property owners and financial markets would gradually adjust to evolving climate risks.
Insurance premiums, property values, and home lending terms would increasingly reflect exposure levels.
The IRG recommends adopting a broad interpretation of a “beneficiary pays” model to guide investment decisions.
Under this model, central government would fund mitigation only where it protects Crown assets or produces clear national benefits.
Local adaptation efforts, particularly for Māori land and cultural assets, would be supported through targeted funding.
Buyouts for properties in high-risk areas would cease after the transition period, and future financial assistance would be structured as hardship support rather than being tied to market property values.
To implement the proposed framework, the group calls for legal changes to support adaptation planning within existing statutes.
It recommended that councils be required to plan for climate risk using a full range of options – from protection to retreat – and that these plans be integrated with civil defence, infrastructure, and land-use decisions.
The group also supports reducing liability exposure for decision-makers to allow local authorities to act more decisively.
Adaptation for whenua Māori should be iwi-led, the IRG said, with co-governance models between local and central government. Some regions have begun developing such frameworks, which the IRG encourages embedding into future policy.
