The Labour Party is proposing rules to make it tougher for foreign purchasers to buy rural land.
However, the Government says the plan would allow applications to be turned down purely on political grounds.
Labour leader David Shearer says New Zealand can't afford to lose control of its best assests, and selling farmland to foreign buyers does not improve the economy.
Labour has drafted a Member's Bill, which would require the Government to be satisfied that such a sale would create a substantial number of new jobs, or substantially increase exports as a result of new technology or products.
The proposed legislation would need to be drawn from a ballot of Member's Bills before it could be debated in the House.
Mr Shearer told Radio New Zealand's Morning Report on Monday there is substantial public interest in this issue, with many New Zealanders concerned they are becoming tenants in their own land.
Mr Shearer says if the bill is drawn from the parliamentary ballot, he believes it would be well-supported, including from United Future's Peter Dunne whose party supports the Government on issues of confidence and supply.
David Shearer says there are 44 applications to buy land at present and it is time to set a higher bar for sales.
A spokesperson for Finance Minister Bill English says the plan would allow applications to be turned down purely on political grounds.
