Video episode available on my Substack.

In this episode, Melanie speaks with environmental policy expert and regulatory researcher Marie Doole about the rising threat of regulatory capture—when laws and systems designed to protect the public end up serving powerful interests instead. Marie draws on her independent research and professional experience to explain what regulatory capture looks like in New Zealand, how it spreads across the whole policy cycle, and why it’s more urgent than ever to address.

They discuss:

• What regulatory capture is, and why New Zealand’s small size makes it especially vulnerable
• How subtle forms of corporate influence can erode public trust, environmental protections, and democratic safeguards
• The role of framing strategies that cast regulation as a burden and regulators as villains
• How the Regulatory Standards Bill could increase the risk of capture—by privileging vested interests, narrowing who gets to be heard, and undermining environmental and Tiriti-based protections
• Whether the RSB is itself an instrument of regulatory capture
• What real regulatory stewardship could look like—and why we need independent institutions focused on anti-capture and public interest regulation

This conversation is a critical listen for anyone interested in democracy, environmental protection, te Tiriti o Waitangi, or the creeping influence of corporate power in lawmaking.

Resources:

Navigating Murky Waters: characterising capture in environmental regulatory systems (Marie Doole, Theo Stephens, Geoff Bertram)

Drain the Swamp to Save the Swamp: mitigating capture in environmental regulatory systems (Marie Doole, Theo Stephens)

Sector Specific RSB Tool we mentioned: https://tinyurl.com/RSBTool

Linktree with a wide range of historic and contemporary information on the RSB, including submission guides and builders.

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This is part of a series of in-depth conversations with experts across sectors on the real-world impacts of the Regulatory Standards Bill. If you value independent political analysis, subscribe to my Substack for more interviews, writing, and updates. Free subscribers get regular content. Paid subscriptions really help keep this work going.

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