Tackling foreign ownership of water bottling companies is proving a major challenge for the Government.

It's continuing to stall on its election promise of a tax on water bottlers, instead announcing a tinker that may stop some overseas companies setting up water bottling plants.

It's one element to wider reforms aiming to prevent overseas sales that don't benefit New Zealand. 

On Tuesday, Associate Finance Minister David Parker revealed changes that will now "require consideration of the impact on water quality and sustainability of a water bottling enterprise, when assessing an overseas investment in sensitive land".  Read more