What will National give away?

Written By: - Date published: 9:14 am, July 28th, 2015 - 108 comments
Categories: accountability, Globalisation, International, labour, national - Tags: , ,

The TPP is back in the headlines with hype that agreement may be near (again).

Labour has set out its bottom lines for supporting any final version. You know they make sense because our increasingly shrill PM has described them as “barking madness”. So my question to National and its supporters – which of Labour’s bottom lines are you prepared to give away, and why?

Labour-tpp

Update: We can cross off point 1, Key sells out Pharmac.

108 comments on “What will National give away? ”

  1. Macro 1

    Hmmmm…. Nothing in Labour’s bottom lines about protection for workers who jobs will be off-shored (exported), from competing with countries whose labour laws and working conditions are less than ours (although we are heading rapidly to the bottom anyway). Why does the party call itself “Labour” now? Remind me.

    • Sable 1.1

      Agreed. Hard Labour would be a better title. Maybe for the dirty Nats the National Anti Socialist party of NZ.

  2. BM 2

    Should have left out the treaty of waitangi comment, it wasn’t really needed.

    • DoublePlusGood 2.1

      Please explain why you consider it appropriate for the Treaty to not be upheld by the TPPA?

    • RJL 2.2

      @BM — you only feel that way because you don’t understand the Treaty or its place in NZ.

      Educate yourself.

  3. Charles 3

    Yeah unfortunately, even if he is talking hogshite towards the end of his spiel, Labour just got their ass handed to them by John Key on this matter.

    What do you call malleable positions on yet-to-be-written policy that never turns up/ on-the-hoof/ off-the-cuff/ attached to nothing, when you aren’t doing any of it?

    “Bottom Lines.”

    As for the ToW “bottom line” – do I laugh, or puke? I don’t know what Labour are anymore, but at face value, they aren’t a group I’d want to have anything to do with.

    • ianmac 3.1

      Do you know what you are Charles?

    • Tracey 3.2

      I think it indicates that Labour want the agreement, just as they did previous agreements. No surprise other than their attempt to make it seem like they will resist it.

      How many FTA’s have we pulled out of after signing them?

  4. Tracey 4

    According to a negotiator of the China/NZ FTA there are a bunch of our Dairy Industry heads in Hawaii this week… More corporate reps getting access to the negotiations (and probably documents) but the people, the people can’t be trusted with the info..

    Has anyone made any predictions on how many years before we can expect to see the results of the TPP filtering into our job market, wage markets and so on? They have done projections, right? Otherwise how do they work out what is of benefit to NZ or not? I have asked Dr Mapp many many times on here and he doesn’t know the answer either. If we haven’t done this analysis, how will we be able to measure whether it was a “success” or not in the future, and how do we distinguish its alleged impacts from other impacts?

  5. Tautoko Mangō Mata 5

    National are prepared to give away our right to have any meaningful input into whether or not we want an ISDS in the TPPA. By voting down Fletcher Tabuteau’s Fighting Foreign Corporate Control Bill, National prevented it going to Select Committee
    and therefore preventing the chance for the public to be heard on this issue.
    I doubt that they actually have any bottom lines, BUT I would be happy to be the first to congratulate Tim Groser if he rejects the TPPA and proves me wrong.

    • Fletcher’s bill is actually really problematic, as ISDS provisions alone are not a bad thing and it could constrain future trade deals. The issue is that ISDS provisions have been pretty bad in the past.

  6. Gosman 6

    The first two of them seem quite reasonable and I would expect to see an agreement satisfy much of what has been requested. The bottom three are a little vague.

    What does “The Treaty of Waitangi must be upheld” actually mean in a practical sense? How is it being upheld now in relation to our FTA’s with Australia and China for example.

    CER limits the ability to restrict purchase of land and housing. Does that mean Labour is opposed to CER now?

    What is the definition of meaningful gains? How is such a value laden term quantified? I wouldn’t expect NZ to sign up for a Trade agreement unless we do get better access for our goods and services but there is also advantages in unilaterally lowering trade barriers as well.

    • Lanthanide 6.1

      “What is the definition of meaningful gains?”

      It means they won’t accept National trotting out some token, hollow “wins” and claiming that it will make a big difference to NZ farming when a realistic analysis shows that it’s all hot air and posturing.

      Note that Labour aren’t demanding completely free trade and 0 tarifs for NZ farming exports to all other countries, because they know that isn’t on the table and they won’t get it.

    • Tracey 6.2

      How do you measure ” in the country’s best interests.”? It would make sense to have an analysis of costs/benefits to base this on, wouldn’t it? I wonder if we will get to see those measures when it is signed on Sunday our time?

      Do you have evidence that CER has contributed significantly to the high prices and low supply of houses in NZ? Please post it.

  7. plumington 7

    While the discussion is all about Auckland house prices and tenants in our own country
    Sunday TV1 had an interesting report on Australia farms being bought by Chinese to feed the OWN population no aussies needed thanks Australias food security in under real threat
    With our dairy farmers now being vulnerable to ruin who will have 3 trillion dollars to purchase these cash strapped farmers for a song (WHAT A COINCIDENCE)
    Hungry tenants ?

    • maui 7.1

      I saw the promo for that, and it’s surprising TV1 (being generally anti-Labour) would be so helpful to Labour by showing that item so soon after Labour targetted overseas chinese buyers.

    • Tracey 7.2

      Same thing is happening in Fiji. Large portions of land being sold to Chinese interests and in return they are investing (Lending?) money to the Government there to build roads etc

  8. Save NZ 8

    It’s a bad deal, our sovereignty in exchange for some magic beans.

    Nothing to do with trade and all to do with control by lawyers in foreign tribunals.

    Labour could be reassuring it’s potential voters with a NO to TPPA – the conditions sited by Labour are vague and meaningless.

    National has signed away our property rights already so many Kiwis can look forward to becoming tenants in our own country in the Korea Free trade agreement.

    Labour could be looking forceful and decisive on TPPA instead some sort of confusing vague dribble that has more holes to an intelligent person that swiss cheese. Get some guts and just say NO. Hold the Nats to account for a change. Not dabble around the edges of toxic policy.

    Free trade – more like forced Bankruptcy.

    Ask the farmers, have they benefited from current Free trade agreements or has the constant red tape, increased cost of farms, milk scares, milk price drops, and job losses been worth it?

    Maybe we could look to feed our own children first.

    • tc 9.1

      There’s a bat to smash him with right there given how many folk rely on cheap medicine combined with the underfunding NACT have done in health.

    • Bill 9.2

      And as a ‘sweetener’, major pharmaceutical companies will offer to run late stage drug trials of expensive but unproven medicines in their newly found South Pacific petri dish.

      My, won’t we be the lucky ones! Cutting edge pharmaceuticals. For free!!

      • Colonial Viper 9.2.1

        Yeah, and our public health system will have to deal with any trial participants cut down by adverse effects. Privatising gains, socialising losses.

  9. Adrian 10

    We are in a battle if not a war, all war is predicated on protecting or acquiring land or ” living room” ( liebersraum, was the 2nd Riech’s reason for invasion ) .
    This latest battle or war is all about getting the land by financial means and is being waged by the Chinese Communist Government, 3 trillion to buy inland Australia, and the chilling thing from the doco was how complicit the Aussie banks are in the forcing off of Aussie farmers clearing the way for sales to ” private ” Chinese “investors “.
    There is no ” private ” money in China without the people holding the money having very very close links to regional or central government in China.
    Nepotism and corruption are rife there and is the main reason for the US pushing the TPP and the exclusion of China as China’s desire to be the world financial power is seriously hampered by it’s appalling ” official statistics ” and dodgy asset valuations.
    Like most wars we are fighting this one like it was the last one. Asymmetrical war is so last century.
    As a footnote from last weeks Herald ( I think ), how can two “students” have 26 million of Auckland property to put on the market.

    • rational thinker 10.1

      nice comment

    • Blue Horseshoe 10.2

      Look into who were the advisors to China in setting up the banking industry

      Having migrated tens of millions of jobs to China this massively expanding monetary base, western bankers are now chasing that same money aggressively

      China not being part of TPPA negotiations is irrelevant to the intentions

      Then of course there is India

      Those two nations are the corporations primary targets, for a myriad of reasons

  10. DH 11

    Jane Kelsey made some pretty pertinent observations about Labour’s so-called bottom lines. They’re not definitive, they mean whatever Labour decides they’ll mean, which makes them worthless.

  11. r0b 12

    We can cross off point 1, Key sells out Pharmac.

    • DH 12.1

      “We can cross off point 1”

      But we can’t, can we. “Pharmac must be protected” means what exactly? Protected against what and from what?

      Your link refers to TPP extending patents a la US style and making medicines more expensive. Labour haven’t said they’d prevent that in their bottom lines, Pharmac would still exist with longer patents so it wouldn’t necessarily breach Labour’s bottom lines would it.

      • arkie 12.1.1

        I’m not a Labour fan generally but give them some credit.

        Protecting Pharmac is to protect the cost-saving benefits that the collective bargaining provides the country.

        It’s very uncharitable to suggest that Labour don’t mean exactly this when they say Pharmac must be protected.

        • Colonial Viper 12.1.1.1

          We’re not here to give Labour the benefit of the doubt. Simply put, they haven’t earnt that privilege.
          Labour’s recent statement on the TPPA is better than their previous ones, but there is much room for improvement and clarification.

          The TPPA is fundamentally corporate driven. That’s where all the benefits are accruing. We don’t want it or need it.

          • arkie 12.1.1.1.1

            I just think one sounds a bit like a CT/semanticist pedant if you think that statement “Pharmac must be protected” isn’t about preserving the power of Pharmac to buy us cheaper drugs.

            OTOH I wholeheartedly agree that Labour’s position on the TPPA, and in fact FTAs in general, does not perfectly align with my views also.

            • freedom 12.1.1.1.1.1

              If Labour had used more detail instead of simply saying”Pharmac must be protected” I imagine many decrying the lack of detail would instead be saying Labour should simplify their message into sound-bite friendly phrases like “Pharmac must be protected”

        • DH 12.1.1.2

          “Protecting Pharmac is to protect the cost-saving benefits that the collective bargaining provides the country. ”

          That says little to nothing, you could be a speech writer for Labour.

          I’d point out that extending patent rights wouldn’t stop or change Pharmac’s function or operation. That would only cost the taxpayer more in a higher medicines bill. Pharmac would still be there so can we assume that Labour supports the adoption of US patent laws?

          “It’s very uncharitable to suggest that Labour don’t mean exactly this when they say Pharmac must be protected.”

          Why is it uncharitable? They haven’t been clear in their intentions or meanings, as Jane Kelsey wisely observed. I have no reason to trust them so why should I blindly accept their platitudes which frankly have no worth?

          • arkie 12.1.1.2.1

            Okay to breakdown the first statement:
            Pharmac is fairly unique in the OECD countries and it is highly regarded because it comparatively saves our Government a lot of money by negotiating the best price for the most appropriate medicines. This is its strength and its point of difference which is what is worthy of protection. Agreeing to extending patent rights would prevent Pharmac from doing the very thing that makes it successful.

            On the second point: I think it is uncharitable because at face value a reasonable person would assume that’s what “Protect Pharmac” means. I agree that Labour have done a poor job of communicating their intentions in the past few decades and I am not nor have I ever been a Labour voter but I also think it is highly unlikely that what Labour is saying with “Protect Pharmac” is “Keep the name Pharmac, but entirely undercut it’s ability to save NZ money and we’ll be happy with that”.

            • DH 12.1.1.2.1.1

              If Labour didn’t have the pro free trade politicians like Goff I’d be more inclined to believe their intentions are honorable. Unfortunately we can only judge them on past behaviour and they do not have a very good history of being straight or honest with us.

              Lets try taking this patents issue to a conclusion. Pharmac’s major economic asset isn’t its bulk buying ability but the choice it has. Generics offer not just cheaper alternatives but also create price competition; the big pharma brands are forced to cut their prices if they want our business.

              Extending patents will force Pharmac, in many instances, to buy a single brand without an option for alternatives. The patent holder will have monopoly rights on the supply of that drug and they will price it accordingly.

              Pharmac will still be a bulk buyer, it will still fit this description of ‘protected’, but many of the benefits from having Pharmac will be gone. Now what is Labour’s stance on patents?

              • Colonial Rawshark

                good point. Patent protection on things like pharma is a big deal.

              • northshoredoc

                No disagree – the PHARMAC issue is a red herring.

                More often than not generics enter the market in the USA even before they enter the NZ and Australian market. PHARMAC is also far more canny and has more options at its disposal than people give them credit for.

                As and example the earliest major win for PHARMAC was in a patented drug area long before the relevant products patent expired where one company traded hugely on price to get another of their medications funded. Many companies continue to do this to get increased access for the medicines or to just get them on the pharmaceutical schedule to begin with.

                I still believe the TPP agreement when we finally get to see it will be a waste of time as the lead in for our major offerings in the agricultural/horticultural areas will be decades away.

          • Lanthanide 12.1.1.2.2

            You’re making a fool of yourself.

            Simple question:
            Will the types of drugs Pharmac routinely buys at present cost more after the TPP is passed?

            Answer: Yes.

            Therefore, the TPP does not protect Pharmac, as it stands.

            If you want to try and say “oh, but Pharmac still exists, the drugs just cost more”, then you’re right into slippery slope territory.

            If the TPP said drug patents would now last 1000 years instead of the current limit (apparently after 5 after a drug gets to market), would you try and say “Pharmac still exists, so it’s still protected”?

            What if the TPP said drug patents would now last 1000 years and they would be strictly rationed based on the population of the country? Would you try and say “Pharmac still exists, so it’s still protected”?

            Obviously, “protect Pharmac” means “protect Pharmac in its current form, powers and costs”. Extending patent lifetime for drugs does not protect Pharmac’s costs.

            • DH 12.1.1.2.2.1

              You’re projecting there Lanth, what you’ve written is your own personal interpretation of what you think Labour are saying. It could be correct, it could be completely wrong.

              If you want to assume that’s your wont. For me the lack of clarity implies subterfuge; they’re being vague and obfuscating to avoid being pinned down to positions they don’t want to take.

              The patents issue isn’t about Pharmac, in that context Pharmac would just be collateral damage of changes to patent laws. That issue is about patents so I would expect Labour to publicly oppose the proposed TPP patent extensions. Maybe they do but they’re being pretty quiet about it and its not one of their bottom lines is it.

              • Lanthanide

                No more projecting than this, from you:

                “We can cross off point 1″

                But we can’t, can we. “Pharmac must be protected” means what exactly? Protected against what and from what?

                Refusing to interpret something in a logical and sane fashion, is still an interpretation.

                The patents issue isn’t about Pharmac, in that context Pharmac would just be collateral damage of changes to patent laws.

                Yes, so Pharmac hasn’t been “protected” from “collateral damage”, has it?

                • Tracey

                  If Pharmac’s costs go up as result of extended patents (as suggested by Key), even though the price to the end user stays the same, the taxpayer pays the difference, right? These Pharmaceuticals are all offshore I assume, so that means more money going out of our economy? Just making sure I understand what Key is happy with.

                  • northshoredoc

                    Apart from a very few exceptions all pharmaceuticals are manufactured overseas and imported.

            • northshoredoc 12.1.1.2.2.2

              “Simple question:
              Will the types of drugs Pharmac routinely buys at present cost more after the TPP is passed?

              Answer: Yes.”

              Not sure why or how you come to that conclusion ?

  12. wyndham 13

    For months now, Tim Groser has been assuring New Zealand that Pharmac is non-negotiable under TPP and that is an absolute bottom line. I seem to recall him being asked the question on Q+A or maybe The Nation and coming out emphatically with that position.
    Now what does Slippery John have to say this morning . . . . .

    http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/279879/key-admits-medicines-will-cost-more-under-tpp

  13. Tracey 14

    Pharmac changed the medication I was on a few years ago to a generic medicine. They stated it was the same but cheaper. Within a couple of weeks my dosage had to be doubled cos the new medicine was not performing the same as the original. So, did that work out cheaper, or not?

    • arkie 14.1

      Pharmac isn’t going to get it exactly right every time for every individual. It is widely praised in medical circles and it’s strength lies in it’s ability to produce savings for our collective benefit.

      • Sacha 14.1.1

        Savings which the big pharma companies have been lobbying to reduce or eliminate – and TPP probably gives them just what they wanted. Nice job, Timmy.

      • Tracey 14.1.2

        I was trying to point out that a health model entirely driven by the financial bottom line isn’t always the best at delivering health outcomes. I am aware of the praise for Pharmac and have read extensively about it and its model. It is a good model and as you say not perfect BUT my example above is not isolated.

        It’s interesting to see Key so blase about taxpayers paying more for medicines even if the individual recipients will still be covered by said taxpayers…. usually he is all gung-ho for not putting extra cost on taxpayers.

  14. adam 15

    More smoke and mirrors from Key – not happy to call people crazy – which I’ve said before is the fall back response when ever you question orthodoxy. Key now giving us a TINA moment. And the media, sit there and lap it up. lap dogs one and all.

  15. Stuart Munro 16

    I have it on good authority that National are throwing in Droit de Seigneur as a sweetener to the TPPA. This is consistent with their long term policies; they have always treated New Zealanders basically as livestock.

  16. freedom 17

    “The question for New Zealanders is as simple as this: Do you think if we have access to the massive United States and Japanese markets with our exporters having a level playing field, will they do better or worse, will it create more jobs or less, will the country be more prosperous as a result?” (bold mine)
    http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/70605894/john-key-says-nzs-drug-bill-set-to-rise-under-tpp-but-patients-protected
    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11488109

    so Key is promising a level playing field now ?? roflmao

  17. Sable 18

    I doubt the traitorous National party will uphold any of the points raised unless the public give them no choice. Which in large part is down to the mainstream media making a public issue of this, which with Campbell live gone, is highly unlikely.

    • Wayne 18.1

      Sable,

      You can wait till the general election and vote for a Green government.

      Voters absolutely knew in 2014 that National was committed to TPP, and economic liberalism generally. Voters knew any trade deal inevitably has trade-offs. And they still voted for them, as they did in 2011 and 2008. No-one was being hoodwinked by a secret agenda.

      So how do you say to the majority of your fellow citizens that they are traitors, when they are getting exactly what they voted for.

      That is why National has a mandate to enter into TPP.

      • Stuart Munro 18.1.1

        No democratic government ever has a mandate to act against its citizens enlightened best interests. National are essentially autocratic – their arrogance is only surpassed by their frankly breathtaking economic incompetence.

        $101 billion in debt – $202 billion is my prediction before these clowns leave office, unless we throw them out.

        • Wayne 18.1.1.1

          Stuart,

          You have your chance to “throw them out” in just over two years.

          • Stuart Munro 18.1.1.1.1

            I can’t count on that Wayne, because they dishonestly deprived me of my vote last time for being out of the country a couple of months too long.

            A democratic polity always has the right to throw out a lazy treacherous non-performing government. Some say it is a duty.

            • Wayne 18.1.1.1.1.1

              Stuart,

              You must have been out of the country for some years. My memory of electoral law means that so long as you visit once every three years, or can say New Zealand is home (in the sense of having a home here) then you can vote.

              And this particular law has been unchanged for at least a decade.

              • Stuart Munro

                So what – I left the country to avoid the no growth + slave fishers economy you and your accomplices have created.

                My right to vote is something you interfere with at your peril you tyrannous piece of filth.

                • northshoredoc

                  Stuart, do you think that that such threats make it more or less likely to take your comments seriously ?

                  • Stuart Munro

                    Oh – I suppose you think I should just roll over while the Gnats sell us out.

                    The absolute least they deserve is to be labelled as the traitors and scoundrels they are.

                    There’s no corrupt speaker to cover for them here.

      • Colonial Viper 18.1.2

        That is why National has a mandate to enter into TPP.

        National has a mandate to cut a deal which improves the lives of NZers, not just the lives of a few National Party officials.

        • Wayne 18.1.2.1

          Colonial Viper,

          Indeed you are correct. That is why the National govt is part of the TPP negotiations. Free trade “improves the lives of NZers.”

          • McFlock 18.1.2.1.1

            That’s the religious mantra. Slightly more mixed results in reality.

          • Blue Horseshoe 18.1.2.1.2

            Those like you, Wayne

            Not all New Zealanders, as you should we well aware

            If you gave a toss about Nz’ers you would not repeat the shit you do online.

            My estimation is that you don’t give a fark

            Stooge

          • Draco T Bastard 18.1.2.1.3

            No, it enriches the already rich while making everyone else poorer as history shows.

            • Stuart Munro 18.1.2.1.3.1

              I’m not sure it even enriches the rich in the long term – Robert Reich shows western Friedmanite economies have shown declining growth as they moved away from social responsibility. The Gnats represent a move backward to pre-industrial norms – but lacking the healthy moral influence of Adam Smith.

          • Tracey 18.1.2.1.4

            It would have been really cool if the Nats how outlined (and anyone else backing TPP) before the election their cost/benefit analysis and measurement of “success” and “benefit to NZ” so we could all be convinced. A relatively simple thing to publish considering they must be working off it?

      • RedBaronCV 18.1.3

        Hanging on by the skin of your teeth after gifting a seat = a mandate – cut the crap Wayne – this sort of stuff has to be in the interests of all NZ not the Nact party & their funders.

        But hey the unions can register an offshore company with all the members as shareholders and the first time the NActs try to water any local employment issue down they can sue for the members losses
        ditto for reducing the RMA and building codes – anyone who lives here can buy a one cent share in NZ Inc registered offshore and have a go when they suffer loss – io rent my backyard sunshine out to my neighbour for his laundry business ( offshore)

      • Tracey 18.1.4

        It would have been really cool if the Nats how outlined (and anyone else backing TPP) before the election their cost/benefit analysis and measurement of “success” and “benefit to NZ” so we could all be convinced. A relatively simple thing to publish considering they must be working off it?

  18. tc 19

    Here’s what one independant media in Oz is saying:
    ‘Australian sovereignty is at risk under the Trans-Pacific Partnership, with evidence showing a toxic combination of corporations, ambulance chaser law firms and biased arbitrators will be able to overrule our laws.

    The investor-state dispute settlement mechanism that the Trans-Pacific Partnership will lock Australia into is biased in favour of transnational corporations, evidence shows, and costs governments millions even when they “win”.’

    Sounds exactly like the kind of deal the hollowmen would be happy with.

  19. Jenny Kirk 20

    A basic reason for PHARMAC’s establishment was to use collective bargaining to lower the cost of patented medicines. John Key has just undone what has been an outstanding success for NZ, and is the envy of other countries.

    From Pharmac’s history http://www.pharmac.health.nz/about/our-history

    ” During the 1980s medicines prices were increasing at a faster rate than other healthcare spending, and were one of the fastest growing items of Government expenditure. Growth of more than 20% in some years meant medicine prices were threatening to crowd out other healthcare funding. A response was needed, and in 1993 the Pharmaceutical Management Agency (PHARMAC) was created to actively manage Government spending on medicines.”

    ” PHARMAC’s objective was to introduce price competition to a market where it had not previously existed. PHARMAC’s role was, in effect, to get better value for medicines so that the best health outcomes could be achieved from public money spent on medicines.”

    • northshoredoc 20.1

      Keep calm, while not having see the details…PHARMAC will not be going anywhere and will continue to use the tools at their disposal to block expensive products, source cheap generic medicines for NZ and continue in almost exactly the same way as they have done.

      The reason medicines pricing was out of control in the early 80s was due to the nature of how medicines were funded – effectively the companies popped down to Wellington and said we’d like “x price” and the ministry obliged with little to no restrictions, now we have very significant price competition as soon as medicines go off patent and even before they go off patent between different suppliers of patented medicines.

      • Sabine 20.1.1

        dear leader in his own garbled words seems to know more than you do

        http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/279879/tpp-key-admits-medicine-costs-will-rise
        ————————————————————————————————————–
        Mr Key rejected criticism the deal would be bad for New Zealand, saying by opening up other markets this country’s exporters would benefit.
        But he said there was a high probability patents on medicines would be extended under the deal.
        “That means the Government will have to pay for the original drug rather than the generic for a little bit longer.
        “But for consumers that won’t make any difference because, you know, on subsidised drugs you pay $5 for your prescription so the Government may incur slightly more costs there.”
        Mr Key rejected suggestions that if Pharmac was having to pay more for drugs it might delay bringing expensive drugs into the country.
        “You’ve got to remember under the Pharmac model they always make sure that there are a variety of drugs and often not just one.
        “I mean if you take, you know, drugs for a condition that’s quite common they often have about three on the list. They don’t just have one,” Mr Key said.
        But Green Party co-leader James Shaw said extending patents and making medicines more expensive would have an impact in New Zealand.
        “It means that we may have to wait longer. It means that there may be some medicines that simply aren’t available, that won’t become available or if they do become available that they’re available at the market prices which is eye-wateringly expensive,” Mr Shaw said.
        Labour leader Andrew Little said his party would not support the deal if it did make medicines more expensive.
        “Their right to charge a premium, for their drugs – for there to be no competitors for a longer period of time.
        “That is going to make medicinal drugs more expensive, for a longer period of time.
        “It is going to add costs to Pharmac, it’s going to add costs for the New Zealand taxpayer – that is unavoidable.”
        He said it would breach Labour’s bottom line that the ability of Pharmac to buy drugs should not be undermined, and on that basis the party could not support the trade deal.
        Ian Powell, executive director of senior doctors’ union the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists, said any cost increases to drugs under the proposed TPP would be passed on to consumers.
        Mr Powell said Mr Key’s admission was long overdue and confirmed drug prices would rise.

        • Northshoredoc 20.1.1.1

          I wouldn’t take anything out of key’s mouth as gospel most of the time he has no idea what he’s talking about

      • Stuart Munro 20.1.2

        Yes yes – we should just trust in the gibbering incompetence of the rogues and traitors that have led us into unprecedented levels of debt with no exit strategy.
        Your quietism would do credit to Dr Mengeler.

        This pathetic caricature of a Westminster government is no longer constraining frank corruption and economic treason and it’s time it was brought to heel.

  20. Wayne 21

    Presumably all the negotiating states have agreed to extend patent periods. This also occurred in the WTO negotiations of the early 1990’s.

    So in effect the nations that import drugs (Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Chile, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei) have agreed to give an economic advantage to those nations that manufacture pharmaceuticals (Japan, Mexico, Singapore, United States).

    There will have been a deal struck around this. The pharmaceutical importing nations also export things to the nations they have given an economic advantage to.

    In short; is this effectively the bargain around reduced barriers to agricultural exports to Japan and the United States.

    We will have to see, but it was always apparent that the TPP, as with any trade deal, would involve mutual concessions. Each country would have to give something up in order to gain something of value to it.

    I would also note that this does not breach Labour’s position on Pharmac, which presumably is why it was framed in the way it was.

    Even if Labour ultimately votes against the enabling legislation for those parts of TPP that require it, they will not have put themselves in a position where they are simply saying “no” to TPP. Their position is more nuanced than that. And that will be important to them when they eventually get back on the Treasury benches. Because repeal of TPP simply will not happen.

    • Tracey 21.1

      How is “the best interest of NZ” measured Wayne? Have you seen the cost/benefit analysis that determines the best interest? Have you seen the projections upon which “best interests” are based and when do they start coming to fruition, and, how will they be separated from other factors occurring in NZ in the future?

      Because markets up not just being opened up to our exporters but to exporters of all countries in the TPP, yes? How are these best interests measured Wayne?

      • Wayne 21.1.1

        Tracey,

        In 2008 Treasury said in their analysis of the China FTA that New Zealand might get an extra $1 billion in trade with China. I said to them they had grossly underestimated the impact of the China FTA.

        So as you know I trust my own judgement as to the value of free trade deals. In my view New Zealand has gained from every single trade deal we have entered into. We gain greater access to markets in goods and services, and that means we get better growth. As a general proposition New Zealand has done better as an economy since the early 1990’s which is major period of trade liberalisation.

        Now I know most Standardnista’s don’t accept that.

        But at some point, especially on a blog, it is simply not worth continually making the same points (in different ways) to people who have a diametrically opposed view.

        I know you will never vote for economic liberalisation, just as you know I will never vote for socialism.

        • Draco T Bastard 21.1.1.1

          As a general proposition New Zealand has done better as an economy since the early 1990’s which is major period of trade liberalisation.

          So much better in fact we have far more poverty…

          …Oh, wait, that’s not actually better. In fact, it’s what feudalism did and what brought it down.

        • Grant 21.1.1.2

          “We gain greater access to markets in goods and services, and that means we get better growth. As a general proposition New Zealand has done better as an economy since the early 1990’s which is major period of trade liberalisation.”

          The following link suggests that things are not quite what you state them to be Wayne.

          http://www.rbnz.govt.nz/statistics/key_graphs/real_gdp/

          Can you spot a trend line in that graph?

          • Colonial Viper 21.1.1.2.1

            What Wayne means to say is that the capitalist ownership class has done better in general since the early 1990s.

            Those people having to work 3 or 4 part time jobs to stay afloat don’t count in his calculations.

            • Grant 21.1.1.2.1.1

              I do understand that when Wayne talks about Nz’ers being better off he is referring to a particular class of NZer, not all of us.

              But Wayne is a little bit challenged on some economic concepts as evidenced by the fact that he recently tried to claim (on Bowalley Road) that the average and median incomes were essentially the same thing in this country.

        • Tracey 21.1.1.3

          …and I hoped you would answer the question I asked rather than use it as a platform for your belief or think or view or ideology. Cos cost/benefit analyses and measurement methods preclude the need to rely on your gut feeling.

          “As a general proposition New Zealand has done better as an economy since the early 1990’s which is major period of trade liberalisation.”

          Cold you compare it to say, the 1960’s so we can get a good idea of how we have all benefitted? New Zealand has done better as an economy by what, the measurement of GDP? Many charts/graphs have been posted which cast some doubt on the usefulness to all NZers of measurements base don increased GDP per se.

    • Ad 21.2

      Wayne, I’m not always against free trade deals, and in particular I thank my lucky stars the impact of the Chinese FTA has enabled huge investments in both productive and real estate assets. Which indeed was a Labour deal.

      And we are still feeling the benefits of CER with Australia, one Queenstown ski pass at a time.

      But an FTA so big should show clear benefits for our overseas trade. By definition. All I am hearing from National about the real stuff we need freed up – access to our dairy and meat and other exports – is mumble mumble.

      New Zealand was told from the beginning that nothing but a comprehensive FTA about dairy and other agriculture would be acceptable. Pretty close to Groser’s words.

      New Zealand is being sold side shows right now.
      You will find that NZ citizens will poll National down hard on this, unless they deliver the milk.

      • Tracey 21.2.1

        My concern is the lack of data and mesurement behind all these statements that things will benefit or (not) all NZers or “New ZEaland”. SURELY governments do cost/benefit analyses and projections to ascertain if, in best circumsatnces, we will improve or degarde as a result of something like a TPP?

        And those ought to be publicly available, even if the negotiations are not. Although now even our Dairy Industry Leaders are privvy to the TPP goings on… more corporate knowledge, less people knowledge (cos we are all too dumb to understand what is good for us) . I wonder if Dairy reps are there to comfort them in the sun for what won’t be coming their way.

  21. millsy 22

    Wayne,

    Do you think the government should be sued for increasing the min. wage?

  22. Wayne 23

    Mill yay,
    There is no chance that NZ could be sued for increasing the minimum wage. Do you really think that our negotiators (and for that matter those of the U.S.) are so stupid that they would blithely negotiate away the normal functions of government.
    IDS exists primarily to stop actual expropriation and discriminatory taxes aimed at destroying investments of an international business.

    • Tautoko Mangō Mata 23.1

      “Corporations against the minimum wage – Veolia v. Egypt:
      Since 2012, the French utility company Veolia has been suing Egypt
      based on the bilateral investment agreement between France and
      Egypt for an alleged breach of a contract for waste disposal in the
      city of Alexandria. The city had refused to make changes to the
      contract which Veolia wanted in order to meet higher costs – in part
      due to the introduction of a minimum wage. In addition, according
      to Veolia, the local police had failed to prevent the massive theft of
      dustbins by the local population. According to media reports, Veolia
      wants 82 million euros in compensation. (Karadelis 2012)”
      http://library.fes.de/pdf-files/iez/global/10875.pdf

    • North 23.2

      Depends on your definition of “normal functions of government”, doesn’t it ?……. Weasel Wayne.

    • McFlock 23.3

      Wayne,
      we don’t know how stupid or smart the negotiators are.

      Because the negotiations are secret.

      • Tracey 23.3.1

        not to everyone. Many corporates, and by extension their Boards have access. Our Major Dairy Reps are in Maui now. Apparently our (and other) secret services have been using their tools to spy on allies commercial stuff for years, so why Wayne keeps asserting that democracy has to be denied to keep negotiating positions sacrosanct is bizarre.

    • Colonial Viper 23.4

      IDS exists primarily to stop actual expropriation and discriminatory taxes aimed at destroying investments of an international business.

      Taxes are equivalent to wealth expropriation carried under the threat of official sanction and retribution, wouldn’t you say, Wayne.

    • millsy 23.5

      Wayne,

      What would be possible examples of “actual expropriation and discriminatory taxes aimed at destroying investments of an international business.”?

      Re-regulation of the electricity market to bring down prices?
      Strengthening of public provision of education and health?
      increasing state housing?
      Ensuring water reticulation stays public?

      Mind you, on the plus side, IDS would have probably stopped Max Bradfords power reforms in their tracks…

    • Stuart Munro 23.6

      Yes I really think they are that stupid. We certainly didn’t get $101 billion in debt by surpassing brilliance – it probably involved Treasury being ‘clever’.

  23. North 24

    TV tonight…… The Ponce Key……. pharmaceutics are gonna cost “a little bit more……” As though he never knew it.
    Man…….this effete traitor has ponced us out !

    If Labour can’t do something with this……well fuck, I dunno ?

  24. Tautoko Mangō Mata 25

    I recommend this article, written in a q and a format as it gives a thorough coverage of the Investor-State Dispute Settlement System
    by comparing the official information supplied by Office the of the U.S. Trade Representative then the facts, together with links to the supporting evidence.

    Although it is written for the US, all of the examples are applicable to NZ.
    http://www.peopledemandingaction.org/privacy-policy/item/292-investor-state-dispute-resolution-debunking-ustr-public-affairs-3-11-15-q-a-memo-to-reporters

    • Tracey 25.1

      VERY good link. One only needs to read which nations have utlised the provisions the most to get an idea of potential problems for us, and to see the scope of what they sue for. Either Wayne doesn’t know or is deliberately peddling misdirection, which would be very sad indeed for someone holding the position of Law Commissioner.

  25. Jeremy 26

    NP = a total misrepresentation?

  26. Jeremy 27

    Not a great situation for NZers

  27. John 28

    Labour says if Pharmac isn’t protected, we shouldn’t sign the TPPA.

    So are they really prepared to throw away potentially thousands of dollars per capita in benefits, just because medicines go up a few dollars per capita?

    Because that’s verging on lunacy.

    It’s like turning down your lotto winnings cause you don’t want the expense of going to pick them up.

    • Tracey 28.1

      “potentially thousands of dollars per capita in benefits,”

      Please post the cost/benefit analysis which allowed you to purport this and the measurement of projected benefits/burdens for our participation in the TPP.

      Thanks in advance

  28. What do you call a group of about 500 people called lobbyists, sitting in rooms in places no normal person can get too talking to politicians of countries far away making deals that are going to screw billions of people without them knowing what the agreement actually entails. In other words: secret deals!

    I would call that a CONSPIRACY.

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    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 ...
    6 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
    6 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
    6 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 ...
    6 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
    6 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
    7 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
    12 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
    14 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
    14 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
    1 day 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
    5 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
    5 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
    5 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
    6 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
    6 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
    6 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
    7 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
    7 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
    7 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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