Regulatory stewardship: why and how the Kiwis manage regulation as an asset

‘Regulatory stewardship’ is a concept whose moment has (apparently) come. But what does it actually mean in practice, particularly in New Zealand where it’s been implemented since 2013 across two different governments and three Prime Ministers?

Regulatory stewardship Kiwi-style conceptualises regulation as an asset, which, like any asset, requires maintenance and proactive care to ensure it remains fit for purpose. It also takes a system-wide approach to its ‘asset portfolio’, giving attention to organisational structures, collaboration, leadership, culture and capability.

This webinar features:

Professor Jeroen van der Heijden

Professor Jeroen van der Heijden is the Chair in Regulatory Practice at the School of Government, Victoria University of Wellington. His research is organised around key-innovations in regulatory governance (including the use of behavioural incentives in regulation, regulatory intermediaries, and the resilience of regulatory regimes) and critical policy objectives in New Zealand and elsewhere. This allows him to draw lessons from New Zealand and elsewhere to improve New Zealand regulation and its impact on economic and social performance, and to showcase the state-of-the-art in regulatory practice in New Zealand to the rest of the world. Jeroen is also an Honorary Professor at the Australian National University (School of Regulation and Global Governance). He has published widely on regulation and governance, including five books and over 60 articles in leading academic journals.

Dr Rebecca Foley, MBIE

Dr Rebecca Foley graduated from Monash University, Melbourne with a PhD in Politics before returning to New Zealand to start her career in the public service. Dr Foley has worked in New Zealand’s Select Committee Office and the Asia New Zealand Foundation before moving to her first role in a regulatory agency – Customs New Zealand. Following Customs, Dr Foley moved to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) where she has had roles in the Labour Inspectorate, worked across a large regulatory delivery group, and is now in the Regulatory Stewardship Branch. For Dr Foley the work of regulatory stewardship is very people-centred which fits her values and strengths, plus it is emergent work meaning that what ‘good’ looks like will evolve and change over time as we learn from what we’re doing.

And is facilitated by:

Dr Lorraine Cherney, Manager, ANZSOG/National Regulators Community of Practice and Honorary Research Fellow, the University of Queensland

Dr Lorraine Cherney is the Manager of the NRCoP where she provides support for the operation of the Community of Practice, assists with developing an ambitious and stimulating program of learning opportunities, and is developing and consulting on ANZSOG’s potential professional development activities for regulators.

Lorraine has worked in the field of gambling regulation, policy and research since 2004. Drawing on this experience, her PhD explored gambling regulatory policy in Queensland. Lorraine is also an Honorary Research Fellow at the School of Political Science and International Studies, the University of Queensland.