David Farrar: Parliament makes the law, not the courts

Radio NZ reports:

The government will pass a law preventing companies from being sued over climate change damage in many cases.

The law, which applies to current and future cases, will stop a High Court case against Fonterra and six other major emitters in its tracks.

Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith said the Climate Change Response Act would be amended to prevent courts from making findings of liability in tort from damage or harm caused by greenhouse gas emissions.

I am 100% in favour of the law change. We have judicial activism gone mad. The courts invented a new type of tort where companies engaged in 100% legal activities can be sued because someone doesn’t like the Government’s climate change policies.

It is for Parliament to set climate policies, not the Supreme Court. This is not Parliament retrospectively amending a statute they got wrong. This is Parliament reasserting its sovereignty.

David Farrar runs Curia Market Research, a specialist opinion polling and research agency, and the popular Kiwiblog where this article was sourced. He previously worked in the Parliament for eight years, serving two National Party Prime Ministers and three Opposition Leaders