NRT: A death-knell for Ruataniwha?

Written By: - Date published: 12:52 pm, August 31st, 2016 - 54 comments
Categories: Conservation, law, sustainability, water - Tags: , , ,

I/S at No Right Turn writes:


A death-knell for Ruataniwha?

The Court of Appeal has ruled on Forest & Bird’s appeal against the Ruataniwha Dam, finding that the Department of Conservation could not trade protected land unless it no longer needed to be protected:

The future of the proposed Ruataniwha water storage scheme is uncertain after the Court of Appeal found the Director-General of Conservation was not entitled to revoke the special conservation status of Ruahine Forest Park land.
[…]
The Department of Conservation (DOC) and the Hawke’s Bay Regional Investment Company had agreed to exchange 22 hectares of Ruahine Forest Park land for 170 ha of nearby farmland known as the Smedley block.

In order to create a reservoir behind the dam, the flooding of the 22 hectares of the DOC land was required.

Forest and Bird lawyer Sally Gepp said she was “ecstatic” over the decision because it had confirmed the fundamental tenet of the Conservation Act to safeguard specially protected areas.

If the ruling stands, it won’t just kill the dam, but also National’s policy of trying to crack open reserves for development through an ideology of “net conservation gain”. The Court of Appeal has affirmed that the law simply does not support that policy. In the process, it has also called some of DoC’s past land-swaps (for example, with the Porter ski field) into doubt.


54 comments on “NRT: A death-knell for Ruataniwha? ”

  1. weka 1

    “Because the Director-General did not exercise his discretion to revoke by focussing on the land’s intrinsic values, but rather took into account the objective of exchanging the land and the net gain to the conservation estate, the decision was unlawful,” the Court said.

    http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/83749609/court-decision-puts-question-mark-over-ruataniwha-dam

    Very good. The next step is to recognise that nature itself has rights. That the land’s intrinsic values go beyond what humans can do with that land.

    • adam 1.1

      “Very good. The next step is to recognise that nature itself has rights. That the land’s intrinsic values go beyond what humans can do with that land.”

      Sheesh weka, do you want to cause a riot? Most of the Muppet’s’ here couldn’t even get there heads around that concept, let alone support it. To much invested in their superiority of man.

      • weka 1.1.1

        Lol. It’s alright, I think in the end it will be a fairly natural transition to remember that we are part of nature and at that point nature’s rights become self evident (and human-serving 😉 ).

  2. Brigid 2

    Awesome.
    Anyway if DOC intends to continue to try to raise funds by trading forestry for farm land it wont have anything to protect.
    Idiots.
    And how dare they do trades with our forest with some corporate.

    • TC 2.1

      National ‘fixed’ DOC so it does as told now just like their police force does.

      • Michelle 2.1.1

        police do as they are told, newsreaders do as they are told and public servants do as they are told as they have been gagged.

      • The New Student 2.1.2

        Exactly. It takes a special kind of person to grit their teeth and work with Nat policy day in day out

  3. “Having rights” doesn’t sound like a natural law to me. Rights are human constructs that can benefit the non-human world or devastate it in equal measure. I think using the idea of “rights” won’t advance the discussion at all.
    I did begin to wonder though, about a plan to mess with two taniwha 🙂

    • weka 3.1

      I’ve seen it being used in a couple of ways. One has come from indigenous peoples, where the right relationship with nature is seen as being intrinsic to being human (humans belong to the land not the other way round, all of life has value etc). The other is where Western ideas are looking for Western ways to protect nature further e.g. the Green Party are looking at this currently. Part of the latter argument is that if corporations can have personhood then nature should too. I’m comfortable with the former, uncomfortable with the latter. I agree there are perils here, but also potentials for not just good but radical change.

      Part of the Te Urewera settlement involved these things, and work is involved on securing rights for the Whanganui River. I haven’t looked at those closely enough to understand them well, or see how much real protection there is. Most of the the coverage I have seen has come from overseas sources.

      http://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/14/world/what-in-the-world/in-new-zealand-lands-and-rivers-can-be-people-legally-speaking.html

      The best NZ source I have heard is Moana Jackson, who has been working on long term advancement of a NZ constitution that ensures the rights of nature. He has been working with the Bolivians I think, who have already written this into their constitution provisionally. Not sure how much is online, will see what I can dig up.

      I agree that rights are human constructs. Not sure that there is any way around that give how the human world is currently.

      Ruataniwha, could be the lair of the taniwha too 😉

      • “Right relationship with nature”, yes, “rights”, no, imo.
        Formalising a hierarchy of rights means deciding and deciding got us into this mess; in and out, high and low, live and die (what rights would you assign to a tapeworm?)
        Relationship is a different thing. I’ll plump for that.

        • weka 3.1.1.1

          One of the reasons I like the rights angle is because it very quickly brings us to having to consider the relationship. If we were to acknowlege that tapeworms have rights, what happens when we need to kill them? When we can hold those two realities at the same time, then we’ll be getting somewhere.

          btw, I don’t think it’s about assigning specific rights to species or individuals, I think it’s about recognising that they already exist. Two entirely different things.

      • Draco T Bastard 3.1.2

        Part of the latter argument is that if corporations can have personhood then nature should too. I’m comfortable with the former, uncomfortable with the latter.

        Corporations should not have personhood. The environment needs to be protected but I don’t see how giving it personhood would achieve that. It seems to be a way to bypass people’s fears about damage to the economy if we simply protect the environment instead of business.

        • weka 3.1.2.1

          “Corporations should not have personhood.”

          I agree, which is why I’m uncomfortable with that comparison being used in some of the nature rights arguments.

    • Draco T Bastard 3.2

      Generally speaking I tend to think that rights have to be balanced by responsibilities. i.e, A right has inherent responsibilities which are often ignored or simply not even realised in contemporary society.

      Then there’s the fact that some rights aren’t rights at all but duties and responsibilities.

      • weka 3.2.1

        Interesting. What’s the reponsibility that goes with the right not be discriminated against on the basis of sexual orientation?

        • Bill 3.2.1.1

          Yeah well, rather than any torturous negative right to “not to be discriminated against”, it’s probably just as well that we tend to formulate it in a positive way ie, we say that no-one has the right to discriminate…and then shit’s covered with no onus falling on potential targets of discrimination.

        • Draco T Bastard 3.2.1.2

          The responsibility to call it out when it happens.

          • weka 3.2.1.2.1

            Ah, ok, I see what you mean now. I was a bit confused because the same language is used by neoliberals around social contracts and responsibilities of citizens. Different thing though.

      • If you grant organisms that cause suffering in humans, rights, how will you convey to them, their responsibilities?

        • Draco T Bastard 3.2.2.1

          I wouldn’t. We need to put in place protection for the environment but not through giving the environment rights but as part of the responsibilities that we have.

  4. “Right relationship with life” might be a better description. Humans are natural, of nature, there’s no going outside of her.

    • RedLogix 4.1

      Depends on what you mean by nature. Yes we are still a part of the natural world, but there is also good reason to argue we have become post-Darwinian in the manner it applies to all other creatures.

      Whether we frame our future choices as rights or responsibilities matters less than the fact that it will be our knowledge, our will, and our actions that will determine the outcome.

      • “it will be our knowledge, our will, and our actions that will determine the outcome.”
        Agreed.
        Now the horse trading starts (bad model, I know), perhaps “exchange of fluids through cell walls”, something like that.

  5. Kevin 5

    I feel a “Bill under urgency” coming on…

    • Jones 5.1

      Yep… the Nats will just change the Conservation Act.

      • dukeofurl 5.1.1

        Thats it in a nutshell. The judges arent seeing the ‘rights of conservation land’. Its just the wording doesnt allow them to do what they want.
        The wording will be changed without doubt.

  6. Ad 6

    Crown Law should get its ass kicked for this.

    Great hit by my favourite advocates NZ Forest and Bird.

    A Public Works Act acquisition response would not surprise me.

    HBRC have now voted $80m to support the project – just in time for the election.
    I don’t think this is stopped by any stretch.

    • Why would the HBRC invest $80m of ratepayers money into a project that benefits private industry, ie: farming. Surely there are significant numbers of HBRC ratepayers who are not going to be on the receiving end of this irrigation enablement/subsidy?

      • Ad 6.1.1

        Now that the HBRC has voted $$ in favour, guaranteed HBRIC will get the ink dry on a construction contract before the election – just make it subject to the land at the top. They won’t want it unwound by a future Council.

        The ratepayers who supported it turned up in good numbers to support the vote going through, from what I saw on the TVNZ News clip.

        I think a major change in Council makeup through the upcoming election would be the major outstanding risk to the project now.

        As for the question: why would they do it? I think you can probably get the propaganda off their website.

        But the motivation for the government is and has been clear from the first day they were in office: increase productivity of every acre of the non-DOC estate of New Zealand.

        Every single acre.

        • Robert Guyton 6.1.1.1

          Ad – I was watching the right-wing/farming blogs while they frantically mustered support for that “turnout”. They mobilised well, as they can, and made support for the dam seem widespread, which it was, inside the farming/progress bubble.

      • AB 6.1.2

        “a nasty little nest of self-perpetuating provincial elites” perhaps?

    • Hanswurst 6.2

      I don’t think this is stopped by any stretch.

      No, however the conventional institutional legitimacy provided by such a court decision will hopefully see a more searching public discussion begin.

      • Ad 6.2.1

        The only thing they will watch is the election coming up.
        That is the mandate.

        • Hanswurst 6.2.1.1

          That’s certainly the right conclusion in the immediate situation. The wider problem as I see it, though, is that most of the public think that NZ’s clean, green image is somehow indestructible, and that the state takes cultural and environmental values into adequate consideration by design. That is a hangover from the 80s/90s with such measures as nuclear-free legislation, the RMA and the establishment of the Waitangi Tribunal.

          Here, the courts have ended up at odds with the ministry over whether a substantial piece of infrastructure for economic benefit can be reconciled with principles of environmental conservation that the NZ public agreed on decades ago, and that it still seems to subscribe to, if the protests over mining on schedule 4 land a few years ago are any indicator. The memory of those protests and this latest ruling give me some hope that a public debate might be had which results in discouraging future governments, National or Labour, from taking a cavalier attitude towards conservation.

  7. prickles 7

    Great news for Hawkes Bay – now just need to get the Waimea/Lee Valley dam in Tasman scuttled as well. There’s a landswap been mooted there as well but ssshhhh – TDC don’t want anyone to know that.

    • Hey, prickles. The Lee is my river – swam there as a boy as often as possible, even biking from Richmond to get there and spend the day (and night, tenting) so that I could be in that beautiful water. All power to those who want to protect the Lee from damming.

  8. I have always disliked the ability of DoC to swap/trade protected land and I am pleased this case has occurred. The dam is a goner too. Pretty good day when these things happen.

  9. mauī 9

    Fingers crossed this dam is breached so good news on that point.

    I have seen the land swap thing first hand. Developer owns land with DoC land marooned inside it. Developer has new ideas on accessing and changing the boundaries of the Doc land, Council thinks this is a great idea. DoC too busy and staff turnover/restructuring means they have no idea what’s going on with said piece of land and in the end thinks what the developer is doing is also great. Signs it off. Sacred land becomes developer’s play thing aided and abetted by the endless growth industrial economy.

  10. Grant Henderson 10

    Now that the Forest & Bird Society has done a great job on this issue, people should send them a donation to boost their fighting fund. Taking a case to the Court of Appeal is an expensive exercise.

    Donations can be made via their website (http://www.forestandbird.org.nz/). Even a small amount will make a difference.

    Let’s support healthy, free-flowing rivers for all to enjoy.

  11. jcuknz 11

    Once again Labour and Greens jump for joy at a block to progress.

    Better would b a meaningful way to re-settle those creatures rather than have their homes flooded. a forced eviction.

    • dukeofurl 11.1

      There are no creatures ! In this situation its the policy of taking land that has special value.
      For the ratepayers is an unsustainable project financially which has serious downsides for river water quality

    • Ad 11.2

      Would be fun to see a proper defence of the project here. Even just the wider economic and social benefits.

    • One Anonymous Bloke 11.3

      “Progress” doesn’t equal “being a money-grubbing piece of shit”. You have no chance of understanding this so don’t try.

      • jcuknz 11.3.1

        I tend to take a pragmatic view on matters and believe water in the form of lakes is good ….. BUT dairy is big enough so would carefully move those wee creatures and stop any increase in the four legged ones … surely there are kinds of farming which do not polute with run-off … I’m a townie and know little about farming.
        That to me is progress and worth the effort.

    • Draco T Bastard 11.4

      Damming the river to cause even more environmental destruction isn’t ‘progress’.

      • jcuknz 11.4.1

        My solution is preserving the natural while enabling human development but I fear such common sense is lost on some. An unpoluted water source for bottling would be a valuable export earner to pay for all the luxury items a modern society seems to need … else coupled with hydro electric generation to save the wastage caused by taking power hundreds of Km from where it is not needed.

        • Draco T Bastard 11.4.1.1

          An unpoluted water source for bottling would be a valuable export earner to pay for all the luxury items a modern society seems to need …

          1. We’re going to need that water for ourselves. Potable water is rarer than gold.
          2. We can actually make all those luxury items ourselves. Our productivity is already high enough and development of our manufacturing, especially in to 3D printing, gets rid of any scale issues that the 19th century had. Even modern factories today get rid of most economies of scale that was the main drive for massive factories in the past.
          3. Proper development of the economy won’t destroy or pollute the waterways and the environment as our present system does.
          4. Our present system isn’t even economic – it uses up the scarce resources with no thought about sustainability.

          coupled with hydro electric generation to save the wastage caused by taking power hundreds of Km from where it is not needed.

          Hydro power from Te Waipounamu is transferred to Te Ika-a-Maui because there simply isn’t the necessary rivers in the north to produce enough power and because it’s simply not needed in the south ATM. To get proper efficiencies in our power grid requires that it be a national smart grid so that renewable energy that’s generated around the entire country is available where it’s needed.

        • One Anonymous Bloke 11.4.1.2

          So what?

          Cutting down all the kauri in NZ would be a great little earner, too. Farmers find it hard enough as it is. Allowing them to keep slaves would boost the economy.

          The thing is, who wants to have a bag of shit where their ethics should be? Apart from you, obviously.

  12. jcuknz 12

    Insults are poor arguments …. shows the writers character

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    Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
    3 days ago
  • Can you guess where world attention is focussed (according to Greenpeace)? It’s focussed on an EPA...
    Bob Edlin writes –  And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago
  • Further integrity problems for the Greens in suspending MP Darleen Tana
    Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago
  • Jacqui Van Der Kaay: Greens’ transparency missing in action
    For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    3 days ago
  • Bernard’s Dawn Chorus with six newsey things at 6:46am for Saturday, March 16
    TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ Herald Thomas Coughlan Simeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • How Did FTX Crash?
    What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    4 days ago
  • Elections in Russia and Ukraine
    Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s six stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15
    TL;DR: Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it:  We want our country to be a ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago
  • National’s clean car tax advances
    The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Government funding bailouts
    Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Two offenders, different treatments.
    See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    4 days ago
  • Treaty references omitted
    Ele Ludemann writes  – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • The Ghahraman Conflict
    What was that judge thinking? Peter Williams writes –  That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 15
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop: Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • The day Wellington up-zoned its future
    Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Weekly Roundup 15-March-2024
    It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    4 days ago
  • That Word.
    Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • The Hoon around the week to March 15
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Labour’s policy gap
    It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #11 2024
    Open access notables A Glimpse into the Future: The 2023 Ocean Temperature and Sea Ice Extremes in the Context of Longer-Term Climate Change, Kuhlbrodt et al., Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society: In the year 2023, we have seen extraordinary extrema in high sea surface temperature (SST) in the North Atlantic and in ...
    5 days ago
  • Melissa remains mute on media matters but has something to say (at a sporting event) about economic ...
     Buzz from the Beehive   The text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary.  It can be quickly analysed ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago
  • The return of Muldoon
    For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Will the rental tax cut improve life for renters or landlords?
    Bryce Edwards writes –  Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: What Saudi Arabia’s rapid changes mean for New Zealand
    Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    5 days ago
  • Racism’s double standards
    Questions need to be asked on both sides of the world Peter Williams writes –   The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • It’s not a tax break
    Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • The Plastic Pig Collective and Chris' Imaginary Friends.
    I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • Who is responsible for young offenders?
    Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on National’s fantasy trip to La La Landlord Land
    How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
    5 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 14
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop: The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • No, Prime Minister, rents don’t rise or fall with landlords’ costs
    TL;DR: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Cartoons: ‘At least I didn’t make things awkward’
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
    5 days ago
  • Solving traffic congestion with Richard Prebble
    The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    5 days ago
  • I Think I'm Done Flying Boeing
    Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago
  • Invoking Aristotle: Of Rings of Power, Stones, and Ships
    The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
    6 days ago
  • Van Velden brings free-market approach to changing labour laws – but her colleagues stick to distr...
    Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • Why Newshub failed
    Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • Māori Party on the warpath against landlords and seabed miners – let’s see if mystical creature...
    Bob Edlin writes  –  The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they  follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago

  • Government moves to quickly ratify the NZ-EU FTA
    "The Government is moving quickly to realise an additional $46 million in tariff savings in the EU market this season for Kiwi exporters,” Minister for Trade and Agriculture, Todd McClay says. Parliament is set, this week, to complete the final legislative processes required to bring the New Zealand – European ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 hours ago
  • Positive progress for social worker workforce
    New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    8 hours ago
  • Minister confirms reduced RUC rate for PHEVs
    Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April.  ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    10 hours ago
  • Trade access to overseas markets creates jobs
    Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand.  Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    10 hours ago
  • NZ and Chinese Foreign Ministers hold official talks
    Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    24 hours ago
  • Kāinga Ora instructed to end Sustaining Tenancies
    Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Speech to Auckland Business Chamber: Growth is the answer
    Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Singapore rounds out regional trip
    Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships.      “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Minister van Velden represents New Zealand at International Democracy Summit
    Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Insurance Council of NZ Speech, 7 March 2024, Auckland
    ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland  Acknowledgements and opening  Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho.  Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau  My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Five-year anniversary of Christchurch terror attacks
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says.  “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024
    Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024  Acknowledgements and opening  Morena, Nga Mihi Nui.  Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau  Good morning. It’s a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Early visit to Indonesia strengthens ties
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asia’s most populous country.   “We are in Jakarta so early in our new government’s term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • China Foreign Minister to visit
    Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week.  “We look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealand’s ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Minister opens new Auckland Rail Operations Centre
    Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. “The recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Auckland’s rail agencies work together to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Celebrating 10 years of Crankworx Rotorua
    The Government is proud to support the 10th edition of Crankworx Rotorua as the Crankworx World Tour returns to Rotorua from 16-24 March 2024, says Minister for Economic Development Melissa Lee.  “Over the past 10 years as Crankworx Rotorua has grown, so too have the economic and social benefits that ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Government delivering on tax commitments
    Legislation implementing coalition Government tax commitments and addressing long-standing tax anomalies will be progressed in Parliament next week, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The legislation is contained in an Amendment Paper to the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill issued today.  “The Amendment Paper represents ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Significant Natural Areas requirement to be suspended
    Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard has today announced that the Government has agreed to suspend the requirement for councils to comply with the Significant Natural Areas (SNA) provisions of the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity for three years, while it replaces the Resource Management Act (RMA).“As it stands, SNAs ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Government classifies drought conditions in Top of the South as medium-scale adverse event
    Agriculture Minister Todd McClay has classified the drought conditions in the Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts as a medium-scale adverse event, acknowledging the challenging conditions facing farmers and growers in the district. “Parts of Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts are in the grip of an intense dry spell. I know ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Government partnership to tackle $332m facial eczema problem
    The Government is helping farmers eradicate the significant impact of facial eczema (FE) in pastoral animals, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced.  “A $20 million partnership jointly funded by Beef + Lamb NZ, the Government, and the primary sector will save farmers an estimated NZD$332 million per year, and aims to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • NZ, India chart path to enhanced relationship
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters has completed a successful visit to India, saying it was an important step in taking the relationship between the two countries to the next level.   “We have laid a strong foundation for the Coalition Government’s priority of enhancing New Zealand-India relations to generate significant future benefit for both countries,” says Mr Peters, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Ruapehu Alpine Lifts bailout the last, say Ministers
    Cabinet has agreed to provide $7 million to ensure the 2024 ski season can go ahead on the Whakapapa ski field in the central North Island but has told the operator Ruapehu Alpine Lifts it is the last financial support it will receive from taxpayers. Cabinet also agreed to provide ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Govt takes action to drive better cancer services
    Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Govt takes action to drive better cancer services
    Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Work begins on SH29 upgrades near Tauriko
    Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Work begins on SH29 upgrades near Tauriko
    Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Fresh produce price drop welcome
    Lower fruit and vegetable prices are welcome news for New Zealanders who have been doing it tough at the supermarket, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Stats NZ reported today the price of fruit and vegetables has dropped 9.3 percent in the 12 months to February 2024.  “Lower fruit and vege ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Statement to the 68th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women
    Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all.  Chair, I am honoured to address the sixty-eighth session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Speech to the 68th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW68)
    Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all.  Chair, I am honoured to address the 68th session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Government backs rural led catchment projects
    The coalition Government is supporting farmers to enhance land management practices by investing $3.3 million in locally led catchment groups, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “Farmers and growers deliver significant prosperity for New Zealand and it’s vital their ongoing efforts to improve land management practices and water quality are supported,” ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Speech to Auckland Business Chamber
    Good evening everyone and thank you for that lovely introduction.   Thank you also to the Honourable Simon Bridges for the invitation to address your members. Since being sworn in, this coalition Government has hit the ground running with our 100-day plan, delivering the changes that New Zealanders expect of us. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Commission’s advice on ETS settings tabled
    Recommendations from the Climate Change Commission for New Zealand on the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) auction and unit limit settings for the next five years have been tabled in Parliament, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “The Commission provides advice on the ETS annually. This is the third time the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Government lowering building costs
    The coalition Government is beginning its fight to lower building costs and reduce red tape by exempting minor building work from paying the building levy, says Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk. “Currently, any building project worth $20,444 including GST or more is subject to the building levy which is ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Trustee tax change welcomed
    Proposed changes to tax legislation to prevent the over-taxation of low-earning trusts are welcome, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The changes have been recommended by Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee following consideration of submissions on the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill. “One of the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Minister’s Ramadan message
    Assalaamu alaikum. السَّلَام عليكم In light of the holy month of Ramadan, I want to extend my warmest wishes to our Muslim community in New Zealand. Ramadan is a time for spiritual reflection, renewed devotion, perseverance, generosity, and forgiveness.  It’s a time to strengthen our bonds and appreciate the diversity ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Minister appoints new NZTA Chair
    Former Transport Minister and CEO of the Auckland Business Chamber Hon Simon Bridges has been appointed as the new Board Chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) for a three-year term, Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced today. “Simon brings extensive experience and knowledge in transport policy and governance to the role. He will ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Speech to Life Sciences Summit
    Good morning all, it is a pleasure to be here as Minister of Science, Innovation and Technology.  It is fantastic to see how connected and collaborative the life science and biotechnology industry is here in New Zealand. I would like to thank BioTechNZ and NZTech for the invitation to address ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Progress continues apace on water storage
    Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says he is looking forward to the day when three key water projects in Northland are up and running, unlocking the full potential of land in the region. Mr Jones attended a community event at the site of the Otawere reservoir near Kerikeri on Friday. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Government agrees to restore interest deductions
    Associate Finance Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government has agreed to restore deductibility for mortgage interest on residential investment properties. “Help is on the way for landlords and renters alike. The Government’s restoration of interest deductibility will ease pressure on rents and simplify the tax code,” says ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Minister to attend World Anti-Doping Agency Symposium
    Sport and Recreation Minister Chris Bishop will travel to Switzerland today to attend an Executive Committee meeting and Symposium of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Mr Bishop will then travel on to London where he will attend a series of meetings in his capacity as Infrastructure Minister. “New Zealanders believe ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

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