The government wants to give police the power to tell people — including rough sleepers and teenagers as young as 14 — to move away from a public place if they are being disorderly. The plan is called the Summary Offences (Move-on Orders) Amendment Bill, and it was introduced by Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith. It would change a law called the Summary Offences Act 1981 (RNZ).

Before a bill becomes law, a small group of MPs called a select committee looks at it closely and listens to what the public thinks. Retail NZ, which represents shops across Aotearoa, went along to speak to the committee on 16 July 2026.

Carolyn Young, the head of Retail NZ, told MPs that people who sleep on the street or ask for money are not automatically causing trouble. She said they may sometimes act in a disruptive way because of addiction or mental health problems (RNZ).

Young wants parts of the bill removed — the bits that seem to target who someone is rather than what they are doing. She said move-on orders could be useful for breaking up real disruption outside shops, but she pointed out that telling someone to move does not fix the reasons they are there (RNZ).

National MP Rima Nakhle disagreed. She told the committee that shop owners in South Auckland have said they feel intimidated by beggars near their stores (RNZ).

Retail NZ had already said it was only partly in favour. In February 2026 it put out a statement called 'Move-on orders seen as partial help for retail' (Retail NZ).

The committee asked the public for their views on 22 May 2026. The deadline to have your say was 2 July 2026 (Parliament of New Zealand). The bill's official reference number is 54SCJUST_SCF_27DD41AB-ACD3-4AFA-A59F-08DEB151B1C7 (Parliament of New Zealand).

The head of the Police Association, Steve Watt, also questioned whether the bill is needed. He said police are being asked to fix social problems that are not really their job to solve (NZ Police Association, 14 July 2026). He had raised similar concerns on 30 June 2026 (RNZ).

Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith said on 30 June 2026 that people are getting the bill wrong — he used the word 'mischaracterised' (RNZ).

The bigger picture is a tug-of-war between giving police a tool to keep order and actually dealing with the reasons people end up on the street. The bill would let police move people along, including 14-year-olds, from public spaces. Retail NZ sits somewhere in the middle: it likes the idea for real disruption but does not like rules that seem to target a type of person. The Police Association's stance adds weight to the argument that police should not be the ones sorting out social problems.

The committee is now hearing from people who put in submissions. That window closed on 2 July 2026. The bill is still at the committee stage and has not yet gone to a vote in Parliament (Parliament of New Zealand, 27 May 2026).

Three things are worth watching as this bill moves ahead. First, whether the committee agrees with Retail NZ that the bill should not target groups of people. Second, whether the Police Association's concerns change what the committee recommends. Third, whether the minister's claim that the bill is misunderstood holds up as more people speak publicly about it. How the bill does in committee will show whether the government keeps rough sleeping within the scope of move-on orders.