Iwi leader Mike Smith asks UN to intervene before government introduces new climate law

Climate activist and iwi leader Mike Smith has requested the United Nations "intervene urgently" before legislation is introduced preventing companies from being sued over damage caused by greenhouse gas emissions.

Smith, along with the National Iwi Chairs Forum Pou Tikanga, Climate Clinic Aotearoa and Lawyers for Climate Action have jointly filed a complaint to the UN Special Rapporteur on Climate Change and Human Rights.

It comes after RNZ reported Smith accused the government of a "co-ordinated campaign of secret lobbying" following the court ordered release of previously undisclosed documents. At the time, the prime minister indicated he only became aware of the document through the media.

Christopher Luxon has since announced an investigation by the Department of Internal Affairs and the Ombudsman has a investigation underway.

The complaint - which RNZ has seen - raised "serious concerns about procedural defects and substantive inconsistencies with the rule of law, the separation of powers, and New Zealand's binding international human rights obligations".

They said that included the right of access to a court, minority rights under Article 27 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the climate due diligence obligations articulated by the International Court of Justice.

The government announced in May it would amend climate laws, preventing findings of liability in torts - a type of civil case where one person or entity claims another has caused them harm.

Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith said it would apply to current and future cases - stopping a landmark case against Fonterra and five other major emitters in its tracks.

In 2024, Smith was granted permission by the Supreme Court to sue Fonterra and other major dairy and fossil fuel companies.

Goldsmith said the law change was to deal with "uncertainty in business confidence" created by the case.

Lawyers for Climate Action acting executive director Laura MacKay said the tort prohibition was "not just bad climate policy", but it "strikes at the very heart of the rule of law" and the right of New Zealanders to have their day in court.

"The government's own officials advised that there is no evidence the proceeding was having any measurable impact on business confidence, and that the constitutional and access-to-justice costs outweigh any certainty a bar might provide.

"Despite that, the government is pressing ahead. This is compounded by information recently revealed about corporate lobbying to the Prime Minister's Office for exactly this law change."

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