The Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Minister says if he was back at the beginning of the Christchurch rebuild again, he would not hesitant to set aside some laws to get more things done.
Gerry Brownlee made the remark today at a Council for International Development conference on infrastructure in Christchurch.
A questioner from the floor had asked the minister what he would do differently if he was again rebuilding a city.
Mr Brownlee replied he would not hesitate to recognise the exceptional circumstances and set aside some laws.
He said the Government's capacity to do some things had been tempered by the courts' view of how its special powers should be used.
He said normally that was good, but it did slow things down.