Another Key lie is why this government can’t be trusted with increased spying powers

Written By: - Date published: 9:07 am, August 16th, 2016 - 33 comments
Categories: Abuse of power, accountability, john key, national, Spying - Tags: , , , ,

As widely reported yesterday the Nats plan to rewrite the law to allow the GCSB to spy on NZ citizens.

Coincidentally yesterday another spying story broke. I/S at No Right Turn summed it up perfectly, so his post is reprinted (with permission) here:

John Key lied about the GCSB circumventing NZ law

no-right-turn-256Back in 2013, when the Snowden leaks were first released, John Key faced some very uncomfortable questions about whether the GCSB used the NSA’s PRISM system to circumvent the law (nad in particular, the law against spying on New Zealanders). His response was a categorical denial:

On TV3’s Firstline this morning, the PM categorically denied New Zealand uses systems like the NSA’s PRISM to circumvent NZ law.

The logic is that if the US government spy agency collects traffic arriving at its borders through PRISM, then it will be hoovering up lots of txts, emails and calls from New Zealanders (it has also been alleged PRISM collects information from the servers of tech companies like Google, Facebook, Twitter, Apple and Microsoft – the companies deny this is happening, at least with their knowledge; in some cases the denials are very carefully worded). When information is exchanged between US and NZ agencies, this US-gathered information would be shared, providing a warrant-less way to spy on Kiwis).
[…]
The Prime Minister continued: “I can’t tell you how the United States gathers all of their information and what techniques they use. I simply don’t know that.”

He added, “If the question is, ‘Do we use the United States or one of our other partners to circumvent New Zealand law?’ then the answer is categorically no we don’t.”

It turns out he was lying. A major story released by The Intercept today (and teased by TVNZ last night) tells the story of how the GCSB spied on kiwi public servant Tony Fullman over his links to Fiji’s pro-democracy movement. And a key part of that spying? Getting the NSA to use PRISM to grab all of his communications, so they could be passed on to the GCSB:

Between early July and early August 2012, New Zealand spies appear to have requested American assistance to obtain the emails and Facebook communications of Fullman and Ratu [ Tevita Mara], including from a “democfiji” email address used by Fullman to organize events for the campaign group, whose slogan was “thumbs up for democracy.”

The NSA’s documents contain a “priority list” that names the two men as “Fiji targets” alongside their Gmail addresses and an account number identifying Fullman’s Facebook page. The documents indicate that the NSA began intercepting messages associated with Ratu’s accounts on about the July 9, 2012 and on August 3 started spying on Fullman’s messages. The agency also obtained historic messages from the two men dating back to the beginning of May 2012.

To conduct the electronic eavesdropping, the NSA turned to one of its most controversial surveillance programs: PRISM. The agency uses PRISM to secretly obtain communications that are processed by major technology companies like Google, Apple, Microsoft, and Yahoo, as the Washington Post and The Guardian first reported in 2013.
[…]
The classification markings on the files — “REL TO USA/NZ” — make clear that the intercepted communications were to be released to New Zealand spies. In one of the files showing Fullman’s intercepted emails and Facebook chats, the NSA explicitly noted that the intercepted material had been forwarded to its New Zealand intelligence counterpart, the GCSB.

And yet the Prime Minister was denying that was was happening just six months later, despite apparently having “personally” signed the warrant authorising the interception. I guess he just wasn’t paying that much attention.

But its not just a case of political deceit about spying – it is also a crime. Because it is very clear that by receiving Fullman’s information, the GCSB was intercepting it. And as that interception was not authorised by the GCSB Act (being explicitly contrary to the section 14 prohibition on intercepting the communications of New Zealanders), it is a breach of s216 of the Crimes Act.

The government clearly owes Fullman an apology and compensation for unlawfully invading his privacy. But more importantly than that, someone at the GCSB needs to go to jail. And the Prime Minister who lied to us about what they do? He needs to resign, now.

That is a warning about how this government abuses its powers. When caught out the response is:

Key defends Fijian anti-terror operation
…
Key was asked whether the Government would consider an apology to avoid a legal challenge from Fullman. He appeared to rule that out: “In the end, people are always free to go and test their rights if they believe they want to.”

Not good enough. Not worthy of being trusted with increased spying powers. When caught abusing those the response will be the same – meh, so sue us.

33 comments on “Another Key lie is why this government can’t be trusted with increased spying powers ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. One Anonymous Bloke 1
    16 August 2016 at 10:03 am

    Will the Prime Minister be correcting his answer?

    Or does Shearer’s “routinely” give him an “out”?

    • Leftie 1.1
      16 August 2016 at 10:30 am

      Aren’t Key and Shearer secret talking buddies? That’s what cost Shearer his job as Lab party leader.

      • One Anonymous Bloke 1.1.1
        16 August 2016 at 10:34 am

        I think Key would be in trouble if our Parliament had a spine.

        Rt Hon JOHN KEY : I can assure the House that we do not use our partners to circumvent New Zealand laws. We do not ask them to do that. I cannot speak for other international agencies; I simply do not know what they do. But I know that from our perspective and from the Government Communications Security Bureau’s perspective we do not use foreign partners to circumvent the law.

        11 June 2013.

        Perjury, to all intents and purposes, and not for the first time. Ladies and gentlemen, your Prime Minister.

    • srylands 1.2
      16 August 2016 at 2:16 pm

      Key’s answer looks fine. He had not received any information that showed routine breaches. Anyway it was a stupid law.

      • One Anonymous Bloke 1.2.1
        16 August 2016 at 2:36 pm

        we do not use foreign partners to circumvent the law.

        the classification markings on the files — “REL TO USA/NZ” — make clear that the intercepted communications were to be released to New Zealand spies

        One of these things is not like the other. I suppose Key can argue that the law being broken was a a side-effect, rather than the intention, and if you’re comfortable with a Prime Minister who twists and turns and wriggles and gets off on qualifiers and clauses, good for you.

      • Paul 1.2.2
        16 August 2016 at 5:13 pm

        How about a post?
        What John Key would have to do that SSLands would not defend?

  2. vto 2
    16 August 2016 at 10:03 am

    An anecdote to expose where the power lies ………

    You can always tell where the power lies in a society by who has the biggest buildings..

    In the long past the churches built the biggest – they had the power
    In sometimes past military forts were the largest and grandest – they had the power
    In most of last century business build the biggest buildings – they had the power

    In Christchurch pre-eq IRD had the biggest flashest building – they have the power

    Now, in post-eq Christchurch the biggest most expensive building is the Justice and Emergency ‘Precinct’. i.e. the cops and the courts, the state enforcers. The state enforcers have the power.

    resistance is futile …

  3. Righty right 3
    16 August 2016 at 10:23 am

    Well if you don’t try and undermine John key by committing economic vandalism iby opening your mouths without thinking then you have nothing to worry about ,in a post gfc environment where uncencered thoughts could cause an economic collapse .so it’s important to learn self censership .Do not contradict john key

    • Leftie 3.1
      16 August 2016 at 2:39 pm

      Seriously, are you for real Righty right? are you making a joke?

    • Mike the Lefty 3.2
      19 August 2016 at 11:03 am

      The greedy right don’t tell me who I can or can’t contradict, I decide that for myself.
      If you don’t have the guts to make your own decisions that’s your problem.

  4. Leftie 4
    16 August 2016 at 10:27 am

    John key always lies, and isn’t that what John key always does to cover himself and his activities, makes whats been illegal, legal?

    • Henry Filth 4.1
      16 August 2016 at 1:13 pm

      It’s what all governments do. All of them.

      Don’t let your bigotries blind you to the truth-power exists to be abused.

    • Righty right 4.2
      16 August 2016 at 2:33 pm

      John key lies because he has to he lies for greater good if truth came out the nZ economy would collapse John key lies for new zealand

  5. Pasupial 5
    16 August 2016 at 10:42 am

    This is the most disturbing passage to me in that Intercept piece:

    the Security Intelligence Service, bugged telephone calls in which it believed it heard people discussing a plot to violently overthrow Bainimarama. According to the source, security officials were “very excited,” thinking they “finally had some baddies, real live terrorists in New Zealand.”

    That eagerness to discover (create?) a terrorist threat is quite a problem in our spies. Diligent pursuit of the truth is one thing, fitting information to a predetermined conclusion is quite another.

    • Wayne 5.1
      16 August 2016 at 11:18 am

      Pasupial

      A slight problem with your narrative. The “spies” did in fact ultimately accept that it was wild talk, and that they were not dealing with “real live terrorists.”

      But the spies would certainly look more than a little foolish if they heard something like that and just ignored it, and then something did happen.

      • Stuart Munro 5.1.1
        16 August 2016 at 11:38 am

        I’m not sure that the potential embarrassment of operatives who are not publicly known is much of a sanction.

        RWNJ spies and their fanboys are nothing if not consistent – MLK was spied on, but not Oswald. Spies were wrong on Zaoui, but couldn’t admit it. There’s a pattern here, and it has nothing to do with suppressing terrorism.

        • Pasupial 5.1.1.1
          16 August 2016 at 12:27 pm

          Stuart Munro
          Actually, the first example that popped into my mind on reading the Intercept piece was; the Tuhoe raids being supposedly in response to the overheard “threat” to catapult a bus onto GWBush (and not at all to exert political pressure to expand police powers). If you take drunken jokes out of context then you could hang anyone for treason (if we were at war; which if we are, hasn’t been announced to the general public):

          “People would say things like, ‘Please can we just hire the Americans to send one drone to Fiji to get rid of those bastards’, or ‘Let me go back to Fiji and I’ll just get a knife and stab him!’” Fullman said. “It’s venting. It’s our way of maintaining sanity — we just sit and bitch about everything. We don’t want violence…
          The New Zealand security agency may not have recognized the difference between eavesdropped venting and an actual plot, prematurely launching its raids and broad secret surveillance operation without any clear evidence.

          [Hmm, thought I’d posted this a while back, but it didn’t come up even with a ctrl-f5 refresh so assume I must have pushed cancel instead. Luckily it was still in the buffer after I came back to the keyboard (always ctrl-A/ ctrl-C before posting!). If it’s gone to moderation for some reason could please you delete the duplicate.]

      • Pasupial 5.1.2
        16 August 2016 at 11:46 am

        Wayne, your point would be valid if it was on the SIS’s own behest that actions against Fullman ceased. However:

        On 16 April, 2013, the internal affairs minister, Tremain, wrote again to Fullman. Contrary to the earlier notice he had issued, Tremain now said that “based on advice” provided by the Security Intelligence Service, there were “no longer national security concerns” about Fullman. The cancellation of his passport was lifted “without requiring an application for a replacement, or payment of a fee.” The change of position followed Fullman initiating legal action against the New Zealand government in the Wellington High Court two months earlier.

        By this stage, the SIS had known that they lacked any evidence of wrongdoing for months, maybe even back in 2012 (the passport was seized on July 17 of that year). But they took no steps to return freedom of movement to Fullman until their minister was pressured with a court case. Which rather neatly ties into the Original Post’s point that the government surveillance authorities (“spies”) are:

        Not worthy of being trusted with increased spying powers. When caught abusing those the response will be the same – meh, so sue us.

  6. save nz 6
    16 August 2016 at 11:15 am

    +1000 The government clearly owes Fullman an apology and compensation for unlawfully invading his privacy. But more importantly than that, someone at the GCSB needs to go to jail. And the Prime Minister who lied to us about what they do? He needs to resign, now.

    Yep, folks, the current ‘targets’ of the US and NZ spies seem to be pro democracy public servants… so let’s not pretend any longer what the spying regime is going to be used for….

    • Garibaldi 6.1
      16 August 2016 at 11:22 am

      All eyes on the Labour party eh? Just watch their response to this latest debacle by Key. The left needs to wake everyone up…… can Little do it? Of course the media will see nothing – too busy with bloody sport.

      • save nz 6.1.1
        16 August 2016 at 12:28 pm

        Labour were very naive about Phil Goff and spying.

        Wake up!

        Do they really trust National to be in charge of the spies, just like does the world really trust Trump to be in charge of the Nukes?

        Personally I don’t trust Clinton either.

        Worldwide there needs to be greater accountability of all governments NOT increase powers to them.

      • Leftie 6.1.2
        16 August 2016 at 2:45 pm

        Rest assured Garibaldi, the media will say “hey, look over there…!!!”

  7. dv 7
    16 August 2016 at 12:30 pm

    Wait till a really left wing govt gets into power, and they start using the new power!!!
    And then listen to the roars of outrage!!!!

  8. Ralf Crown 8
    16 August 2016 at 12:56 pm

    kiwiherald.wordpress.com

    Tells it all.

  9. Repateet 9
    16 August 2016 at 1:27 pm

    “It turns out he was lying.”

    We’re in the realms of, “nothing to see here, nothing new here, nothing to make a fuss over.” And of course that’s the slow working venom which destroys.

  10. Erik Bloodaxe 10
    16 August 2016 at 3:12 pm

    Key is the lowest of the low. At least Trump, despite his many flaws and narcisistic personality, is up front with his dishonesty. Key simply lies and even when caught will carry on – business as usual. The worst thing of all is that there are so many people out there who think he is the messiah. What would it take for this to change? I doubt it will.

  11. ianmac 11
    16 August 2016 at 3:43 pm

    And this intrigued me:
    “Prime Minister John Key was briefed in advance on the operation and personally signed the warrants.”
    See https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/special-investigation-inside-one-siss-biggest-anti-terrorism-operations

  12. srylands 12
    23 August 2016 at 10:42 am

    Rare praise from Andrew Little for a Minister.

    Just shows how well prepared the Government is to win Labour support for this Bill. Well said Andrew Little!

    “I do have some comments to make about the role of the Attorney-General in relation to some of the provisions in this bill, and I do want to say from the outset that the comments I make are absolutely no reflection on the Attorney-General, who has conducted himself, since he has acquired the responsibilities for these agencies, with considerable distinction. ”

    New Zealand Intelligence and Security Bill — First Reading, Speech by Andrew Little.

    https://www.parliament.nz/en/pb/hansard-debates/rhr/document/HansS_20160818_055237000/little-andrew

Recent Comments

Recent Posts

  • Anzac Commemorative Address – NZ National Service, Chunuk Bair
    Distinguished guests -   It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders.   Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 hours ago

  • Anzac Commemorative Address – Dawn Service, Gallipoli, Türkiye
    Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia.   Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    13 hours ago

  • PM announces changes to portfolios
    Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • New catch limits for unique fishery areas
    Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Minister welcomes hydrogen milestone
    Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Urgent changes to system through first RMA Amendment Bill
    The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Overseas decommissioning models considered
    Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Release of North Island Severe Weather Event Inquiry
    Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Justice Minister to attend Human Rights Council
    Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is today travelling to Europe where he’ll update the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s work to restore law and order.  “Attending the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva provides us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Patterson reopens world’s largest wool scouring facility
    Associate Agriculture Minister, Mark Patterson, formally reopened the world’s largest wool processing facility today in Awatoto, Napier, following a $50 million rebuild and refurbishment project. “The reopening of this facility will significantly lift the economic opportunities available to New Zealand’s wool sector, which already accounts for 20 per cent of ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Speech to the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective Summit, 18 April 2024
    Hon Andrew Bayly, Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing  At the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective (SOREC) Summit, 18 April, Dunedin    Ngā mihi nui, Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Ko Whanganui aho    Good Afternoon and thank you for inviting me to open your summit today.    I am delighted ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Government to introduce revised Three Strikes law
    The Government is delivering on its commitment to bring back the Three Strikes legislation, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee announced today. “Our Government is committed to restoring law and order and enforcing appropriate consequences on criminals. We are making it clear that repeat serious violent or sexual offending is not ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • New diplomatic appointments
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today announced four new diplomatic appointments for New Zealand’s overseas missions.   “Our diplomats have a vital role in maintaining and protecting New Zealand’s interests around the world,” Mr Peters says.    “I am pleased to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Humanitarian support for Ethiopia and Somalia
    New Zealand is contributing NZ$7 million to support communities affected by severe food insecurity and other urgent humanitarian needs in Ethiopia and Somalia, Foreign Minister Rt Hon Winston Peters announced today.   “Over 21 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance across Ethiopia, with a further 6.9 million people ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Arts Minister congratulates Mataaho Collective
    Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Paul Goldsmith is congratulating Mataaho Collective for winning the Golden Lion for best participant in the main exhibition at the Venice Biennale. "Congratulations to the Mataaho Collective for winning one of the world's most prestigious art prizes at the Venice Biennale.  “It is good ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Supporting better financial outcomes for Kiwis
    The Government is reforming financial services to improve access to home loans and other lending, and strengthen customer protections, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly and Housing Minister Chris Bishop announced today. “Our coalition Government is committed to rebuilding the economy and making life simpler by cutting red tape. We are ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Trade relationship with China remains strong
    “China remains a strong commercial opportunity for Kiwi exporters as Chinese businesses and consumers continue to value our high-quality safe produce,” Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says.   Mr McClay has returned to New Zealand following visits to Beijing, Harbin and Shanghai where he met ministers, governors and mayors and engaged in trade and agricultural events with the New ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • PM’s South East Asia mission does the business
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago

  • $41m to support clean energy in South East Asia
    New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago

  • Minister releases Fast-track stakeholder list
    The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago

  • Judicial appointments announced
    Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago

  • Education Minister heads to major teaching summit in Singapore
    Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa.  The summit is co-hosted ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago

  • Value of stopbank project proven during cyclone
    A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago

  • Anzac commemorations, Türkiye relationship focus of visit
    Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul.    “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago

  • Minister to Europe for OECD meeting, Anzac Day
    Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago

  • Comprehensive Partnership the goal for NZ and the Philippines
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr.  The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Government commits $20m to Westport flood protection
    The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Taupō takes pole position
    The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Cost of living support for low-income homeowners
    Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners.  “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Government backing mussel spat project
    The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Government focused on getting people into work
    Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Clean energy key driver to reducing emissions
    The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Earthquake-prone buildings review brought forward
    The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Thailand and NZ to agree to Strategic Partnership
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Government consults on extending coastal permits for ports
    RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Inflation coming down, but more work to do
    Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • School attendance restored as a priority in health advice
    Refreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Unnecessary bureaucracy cut in oceans sector
    Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Patterson promoting NZ’s wool sector at International Congress
    Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson is speaking at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide, promoting New Zealand wool, and outlining the coalition Government’s support for the revitalisation the sector.    "New Zealand’s wool exports reached $400 million in the year to 30 June 2023, and the coalition Government ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Removing red tape to help early learners thrive
    The Government is making legislative changes to make it easier for new early learning services to be established, and for existing services to operate, Associate Education Minister David Seymour says. The changes involve repealing the network approval provisions that apply when someone wants to establish a new early learning service, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

Page generated in The Standard by Wordpress at 2024-04-25T15:50:14+00:00