A Call for Non-partisan Professional Regulators

Dear Minister,

At present, few legal requirements ensure professional regulatory bodies remain politically neutral. This has enabled them to take positions on contentious political and cultural issues and dictate these positions onto the professionals they regulate.

Forcing people to subscribe to (or to appear to subscribe to) contested positions is a form of ‘compelled speech’ - this is the antithesis to free expression and free speech which should be the hallmark of a liberal democracy such as ours.

The integrity and impartiality of professional bodies is fundamental to their ongoing function and productivity. Recent trends have shown a worrying increase in the political and ideological capture of professional regulators. These developments undermine public trust in these institutions and jeopardise their professionalism and ultimate function.

In response to these worrying developments, we urge you to pass the Political Neutrality Bill, requiring regulators to stay away from dictating politically partisan viewpoints on social and political issues on which there is substantial division among New Zealanders, and that has little to do with their professional roles.

Your government has a unique opportunity to restore trust in these institutions and re-establish a strong convention: that regulatory authority should not be used for partisan promotion or suppression of political and cultural strands of contentious opinion.

We call on you to pass the Political Neutrality Bill to protect, uphold, and advance the fundamental right of Kiwi professionals: the right to believe according to their conscience and to express those beliefs.