The government recently released the full list of 149 projects to go ahead once the Fast-track Approvals Bill gets approved.
In the Otago region alone, the projects included 2800 homes at Homestead Bay in Queenstown; 1050 at Silver Creek in Queenstown; a new village at Coronet, with 780 houses and its own gondola; 263 houses in Wānaka; 260 more units at a Mosgiel retirement village; a new village at Gibbston with 900 houses and a primary school; a new golf course at The Hills; the expansion of Macraes gold mine and the establishment of a new gold mine at Bendigo; two wind farms and two open ocean salmon farms.
But the health projects that were not in the main list included the Hawke’s Bay Hospital redevelopment, Nelson Hospital redevelopment, Palmerston North Hospital redevelopment, Project Pihi Kaha — Whangarei Hospital redevelopment, Tauranga Hospital redevelopment and the Hawke’s Bay Cancer Treatment Centre.
Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora applied for these projects to be fast-tracked.
Construction company Roa put forward an application for a $300 million private hospital development in Wānaka, which also did not get into the final list.
The full report on the fast-track process said the advisory group considered "the hospital redevelopments to be of high priority and while not on the 2A recommended list wishes to draw ministers’ attention to these applications".
Labour health infrastructure spokeswoman Tracy McLellan was surprised by the health projects’ exclusion.
"The advisory group thought the six hospital projects that HNZ did apply for were sufficiently high in priority to explicitly draw ministers’ attention to them, but ministers chose not to prioritise them.
"Health clearly isn't a priority — but seabed mining in Taranaki is," she said, referring to a controversial project that did get fast-tracked.
Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop downplayed the concern.
“These health projects were recommended by the panel for listing in Schedule 2B, as while they would deliver nationally and regionally significant benefits, they weren't quite ready for consenting.
"Cabinet subsequently decided that due to the overwhelming interest in the process, and capacity in the system, we would not list any projects in Schedule 2B.
"All applicants who did not have their projects listed will be able to apply to use the fast-track process after enactment, expected to be early next year.”
