On 6 April 2026, the panel convener appointed the panel. The panel consists of:
Lachlan Muldowney (Chair)
Lachlan is a highly experienced barrister specialising in environmental and public law. Based in Hamilton and Auckland, he represents local authorities and regulators, public infrastructure providers, developers, and environmental interest groups. He advises on strategic growth issues, and specialises in large-scale land-use and public infrastructure projects, and all forms of urban development.
As well as extensive Fast-track experience, he regularly appears as counsel in council hearings, Environment Court proceedings, Boards of Inquiry, and appeals to superior courts.
He is a presenter for the Ministry for the Environment 'Making Good Decisions' RMA commissioner course and is an accredited commissioner.
Richard Blakey
Richard is a planner and director of Blakey Planning Limited. He has over 30 years’ experience in the following areas:
coastal and urban planning
planning assessments
development planning
special housing areas
a wide range of other resource management matters.
Richard has been an independent commissioner for Auckland Council since 2014 and has sat on over 100 hearing panels as both a panel member and chair, and is also a hearing commissioner for a number of other territorial authorities around New Zealand.
He has been a member of (and advisor to) a number of Fast-track expert panels since 2021 and is also a Chairperson for the Auckland Council Urban Design Panel.
Richard understands the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and te ao Māori, and applies those in hearings where relevant and appropriate.
He is a member of the New Zealand Planning Institute and holds the Making Good Decisions accreditation with a 31 December 2026 expiry date.
Todd Langwell
Todd Langwell is a Director of Traffic Planning Consultants Limited (TPC).
Todd has more than 35 years’ experience in traffic engineering and transport planning. He has extensive experience in large-scale residential and commercial projects, plan change rezoning applications, and road safety and network management projects.
He has provided expert advice under the COVID-19 Recovery (Fast-track Consenting) Act 2020, and participated in expert conferencing, mediation, and hearings for a wide range of projects throughout New Zealand.
Register of interests
The register records all relevant panel members' interests and is updated, when necessary, throughout the consenting process.