Victory for MOTOR caravan association as council backs down

Victory for MOTOR caravan association as council backs down

The Westland District Council has backed down and will be reconsidering its Freedom Camping Bylaw following court action by the New Zealand Motor Caravan Association.

NZMCA General Manager Bruce Lochore is pleased with this important victory. “This decision by the Council is a victory for our members. This is a win for us and for the motor caravan community. We are very pleased with this result.”

NZMCA argued that the Westland District Council Freedom Camping Control Bylaw 2012 was illegal and unreasonable. In particular:

the areas covered by the Bylaw are not appropriately defined;
there was no proper assessment of the necessity of the Bylaw;
the Bylaw is not the most appropriate and proportionate way of addressing the perceived problem; and
the Bylaw unduly limits the right to freedom of movement.

As a result, the Council has today decided to reconsider its bylaw, and resolved to cease enforcing it.

Today’s victory was hard fought, but it is a key priority of the NZMCA that the interests of its members are provided for and are protected.

“NZMCA has always preferred to collaborate with local authorities on workable bylaws. However, we will always stand up for the interests of our members, especially when a Council has failed to comply with its own legal requirements.”

“Workable bylaws strike the proper balance between protecting local authority areas and respecting the rights of responsible freedom campers. We are looking forward to working with the Westland District Council to find a solution that works”, Mr Lochore said.

The NZMCA will be communicating with other councils about the impact of this legal action and will be looking to engage those whose freedom camping bylaws are unlawful and not ‘up to scratch’.

The New Zealand Motor Caravan Association is a membership-based organisation representing the interests of private motor caravan owners in New Zealand. The Association was created in 1956 and today represents over 48 000 individual members nationwide.
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