The coalition government is reaching across the aisle to identify any common ground with its political opponents on its overhaul of the Resource Management Act (RMA).
But it is a 'take it or leave it' approach, with the government not looking to make any major changes if opposition parties disagree with parts of the scheme.
The RMA - which governs how people interact with natural resources - has long been criticised as a hindrance, not a help, to getting things done.
It led to the former Labour government repealing and replacing the laws just before Election 2023 - changes that were rolled back when the coalition came into power.
Cabinet has signed off on the high-level design of a new system aimed at liberalising the planning system and promoting property rights.
Several aspects of the government's scheme appear to closely resemble Labour's plan.
Like Labour's, it will use two new pieces of legislation to streamline planning systems between councils, lift the number of "permitted activities" and set environmental limits.
Key differences include promoting property rights and scrapping a Treaty of Waitangi clause.
The minister responsible for the reforms, Chris Bishop, said the new approach could slash administrative and compliance costs by 45 percent - saving a lot of stress and cash.
"Common sense ideas like standardised zoning will be a key feature of the system. Right now, every individual council in New Zealand determines the technical rules of each of their zones.
"Across New Zealand, there are 1175 different kinds of zones. In the entirety of Japan, which uses standardized zoning, there are 13."
Bishop said he would be reaching out to Labour and the Greens to work on areas of common ground, but he was clear the coalition had the mandate to do what it liked.
He also laughed off suggestions opposition parties may not take too kindly to being asked to agree to what had already been set.
"I'm laughing because we are the elected government of the day. All three political parties campaigned on a mandate of scrapping the RMA and a new regime based on, largely on the concepts that we have developed.
"So we are implementing that. We have the right to govern. We'll be putting legislation before the parliament. That's not to say that there isn't room for some consultation and negotiation as we go through I do think it is important we have some degree of stability when it comes to our planning laws."
Labour leader Chris Hipkins was certain there were areas of agreement, but was not ruling out making further changes down the line - pointing to the removal of a Treaty clause as one aspect his party opposed.
"Ultimately, the Treaty itself creates some guarantees for Māori and non-Māori when it comes to the use of New Zealand's natural resources.
"The fact that they're talking about a law that dictates how natural resources in New Zealand can be used without any reference to the Treaty is a big step backwards."
The Green Party also wanted to see the Treaty clause stay in the legislation and more clarity about how the coalition will balance promoting property rights with protecting the environment.
"What we are seeing with the government on their track record so far with their RMA reforms is they are bulldozing through biodiversity, freshwater and environmental protections for the sole purpose of a quick buck for industries."
The coalition is wasting no time in getting to work on the new RMA scheme.
It hopes to pass the legislation into law before next year's election and in time for local councils' next long term plan deadlines in 2027.
