Stupid myths on immigrant construction workers

Written By: - Date published: 9:16 am, September 8th, 2017 - 31 comments
Categories: Globalisation, housing, im/migration - Tags: , , , ,

One of the dafter myths about the current burgeoning immigration industry is what people are being imported for. For instance, a common one is that we need skilled immigrants for the construction industry and this is a reason to keep immigration high. The following is a pretty typical quote by one of the numerically illiterate morons of the right (I have left in some of the context):-

On Wednesday, Little said the party would “reduce immigration numbers, [and] better match migrants with the skills our industries need” without giving details.

Act leader David Seymour questioned where the Opposition would make the cuts, with close to 9000 of the arrivals coming for construction related roles, at a time of housing shortage.

“[I]f they won’t cut construction workers, how will they keep their promises to cut immigration by 45,000 or more?,” Seymour said.

Which is just more Billshit, or in this case – just ignorant shit from Bill’s Act Rimmer sockpuppet back in April… The number doesn’t match up with anything. Just like Gower’s 56 thousand construction workers in the debate the other night.

Sure we could do with them. But we aren’t currently getting them. And those we do get or would have gotten are likely to be starting to eye up the reconstruction bonanza in the US after this climate change driven hurricane season of devastating hurricanes.

Brian Fallow has an interesting analysis of the breakdown of immigration figures in the NZ Herald this morning in Home building hits a roadblock.

As labour is one of those key constraints, it is instructive to look at what contribution immigration has been making to the supply of tradesmen.

Spoiler alert: it is not encouraging.

In the year to June 2016, New Zealand issued 193,000 work visas, the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment reports. This does not include 91,000 student visas which confer some limited work rights.

Of the 193,000 work visas, only a sixth (32,000) were in the essential skills category. The rest were to people on working holidays, family members, people in a transitional study-to-work category and seasonal workers for the horticulture sector.

Of the 32,000 people granted visas under the essential skills category, only one in four were first-timers. The rest were temporary migrants already here. So it is not a case of 32,000 people being added to the skilled workforce that year.

And a startlingly low proportion – 7 per cent, or 2233 to be precise – were classified as construction trades workers like carpenters, plumbers, plasterers, tilers and painters. If you include scaffolders and builders’ labourers, the proportion rises to nearly 10 per cent.

If they are typical of essential skills work visa recipients generally, only 800 were not already in the country.

The 2015-16 year was not an aberration. The proportions were similar in the two previous years.

The conclusion has to be that the impact of net migration flows on the housing market and the construction industry is overwhelmingly on the demand, not the supply, side.

Think about that. The biggest single infrastructure issue right now is in construction. That is because for the last 4 years National has been running our nett migration on policy settings that has culminated in 72 thousand nett inwards migration per year compared to a long term average over the past few decades of seldom reaching 20 thousand nett inwards migration. See the chart.

This inwards stream of people, especially in Auckland where the majority end up, has led to a flooded infrastructure on the the housing, roads, schools, and rapidly rising prices. It means that right now the view from my apartment looks like a crane convention – I can see 15 out of one window. That is something that I haven’t seen since the late 1980s – just about the time of the building crash.

But we have been getting 2 to 3 thousand skilled construction workers from that flood of migration. So who is working around those cranes? After all as Brian Fallow points out

Labour market statistics tell a more cheerful story. The June household labour force survey found that the number of people employed in the construction sector rose 17,900 or 8.2 per cent in the year to June.

At a guess I would say that most of our new construction workers are kiwis, not migrants. But that the industry is in at least part limited by the rate of uptake into those jobs.

Labour’s Kiwibuild category for immigration looks like a good idea. We actually need to compete on the global market for some skills. After all my export based industry in the IT sector is built on them. But even there, the actual numbers arriving in any one year are pretty low – in the low thousands. But even there I get the impression that the policies that the points system has been failing NZ and focusing on the wrong skills. Probably because it is mandated by technically illiterate politicians and their minions who are ignorant on what are skills.

We don’t need people to be rocket scientists to be a good trades person or for that matter to be good at building export software. So the points system actually tends to block a lot of the people that we want to import.

Meanwhile, I’d love to export some of the numerically unskilled like our own version of Rimmer and almost every right wing commenter. They seem to concentrate those who seem to be good at talking and obviously don’t do.

After watching media and especially our comments over the last few years,  I am sure that the fool level has been rising as they flood back here – as their host economies reject them.

I’m sure they could do well in Aussie again. Now could everyone please pray for a revival of their economy.

 

31 comments on “Stupid myths on immigrant construction workers ”

  1. ianmac 1

    Jacinda says that they would target immigrant builders to carry out the build. I think she said that about 5,000 would be necessary as well as using our own NZers. From the figures above we imported only about 800 last year. Sounds good to me. Roll on Jacinda!

  2. popexplosion 2

    Migrants need homes, take up work or leave, so spend money in the economy. So I’m perplexed why did a US Senator claim migrant were taking jobs? Are republicans just stupid on economics? Is this why Key cut apprentices numbers and wouldn’t reinstate them after the chch earthquake… …seems stupid is catching amongst conservative types.

    • dukeofurl 2.1

      The migrants in the US situation were those there illegally who take low paying jobs where no questions were asked.
      The US also allows visas for higher computer skills but again they are paid less than the US workers who were doing the same job until the work was outsourced to a company with the business model of using imported workers on visas.

      • popexplosion 2.1.1

        Yet those underpaid serfs are still spending, paying rent, taxes, etc. The point being freeing up US tech workers to startup companies… …the essential stupidity is seeing migrants as net drags. Only lazy people think that migrants are taking their jobs, since opportunity knocks, even more so if they are underpaid since it lowers costs. So why are you sipping on the poor management memes of the right, they are incompetents when it comes to economics. Has the gfs not taught you anything.

        • dukeofurl 2.1.1.1

          ” The point being freeing up US tech workers to startup companies..”

          These are lower to mid level tech jobs who have been there for a while… the startups are bringing higher skilled people as well..because they are cheaper.

          So how is paying a migrant less than a US worker helping the economy. Those Us workers let go from good jobs are forced to take up lower skilled jobs or do the gig economy with insurance or holiday pay or promotions

          No one is saying slam the door shut, its just going back to the more sustainable levels of a few years back. Migrants are far more likely to sponsor other migrants, who dont have much in the way of skills we need.
          I have worked with some recent migrants who seemed to be very aware of ‘retirement housing’ that they mistakenly though was government provided, they were thinking about when they bought their parents to NZ.

          You have this baffling idea that the ‘economy’ is a person. It doesnt help the working population that the overall wage growth and opportunities for people born here are reduced. Any way the growth is illusory as per capita its non existent- NZ especially has exactly that situation.

          We cant kick out citizens but we can reduce inflow of non residents.

          • popexplosion 2.1.1.1.1

            CS skills are in high demand it does not follow the migrant has forced the displaced US employee into a lower paying job, and still so what,
            I. the US culture accepts this risk, I.e it’s unamerician, its how the US becomes the superpower that lowers prices to its people,
            ii. Migrant would be working outside the US in tech, so may still displace worker, drive down USwages, harms buying power of said US worker,

            NZ grows with migrants, it’s one of the stories of incompetence of National.
            They grew dairy but did not consider or care about runoff.
            They grew immigration, dotcom, students, etc but did nothing about housing but whine about RMA and slap themselves about filling stadiums.
            They grew tourism yet shit abounds, alongside over stretched infrastructure.
            Kids displaced to garages, cars, or left in mold homes.

            The right have no idea how to run a economy efficiently.

  3. Good post – sunlight and facts to clear the gnat shitcloud away. Good that kiwis are into construction – we will need that expertise to move the airports and roads as the sea rises and storms become bigger and more frequent.

    Also I remember bill whatisname in the debate saying, “who will pick the kiwifruit?” as if the numbnut can’t remember who used to do it – ffs pay decent money and people will pick the fucken fruit – I’ve done it and my mates have.

  4. Stuart Munro 4

    The thing about skilled construction workers – carpenters, plumbers and electricians – is that they would be accustomed to different standards and also in demand in their own communities. The employer demand is for un or semi-skilled workers who can be paid as unskilled. Same is true for dairy.

    The basic premise to which we need to return is that employers cannot access unskilled foreign workers, no matter what prodigies of dishonesty they perform.

    The use of contracts to avoid NZ minimums should also be looked at – I’d suggest that any foreign contract active in NZ that goes over three months should come under NZ employment law. And that so-called individual contracts can be defaulted back to minimum wages in the event that they did not exceed them.

    • Pat 4.1

      Theres an element of truth in what you say (esp. re unskilled demand) however there are holes being filled by overseas trained sub trades, carpenters fitter/welders up to draughtsmen, project managers and engineers etc……though theres plenty of examples of bogus quals and exploitation.
      The construction required in the immediate future is however going to require a sensible, well designed and enforced immigration element…alongside a public training initiative….which National have ignored for 9 years….imagine how many more capable tradesmen/technicians would be available now if they had started in 2010 (as they were advised)

      • Stuart Munro 4.1.1

        Well pardon my cynicism – but having watched the fishing industry deskilled by the use of migrants, and seeing the same thing happen to dairy and the trades – this is not a slippery slope the left should be going down.

        People can learn pretty quickly if it gets them a pay step – if semi-skilled is what’s needed then we can easily produce that in two years on the job.

        Reaching for immigration as the first or preferred solution should be right off the table until all the rorts have been wound up.

      • David Mac 4.1.2

        I agree Stuart and Pat, our planning for 5 -10 years down the track has been poor. I guess survival prompts governments to work with 3 year bite-size pieces.

        A building boom will create jobs far beyond those doing the building. White goods need selling, delivering, installing and servicing, builder’s utes need oil changes, nurseries will plant more seedlings.

        Current immigration does seem more and more like a solution to a problem we shouldn’t have for the want of a bit of forward planning. The kneejerk method of taking care of our country’s needs.

    • Cricklewood 4.2

      The big problem is actually sits around skilled experienced tradesmen specifically those with experience with NZ techniques and materials.

      There simply are not enough on the ground as there was a massive training gap as a result of the employment contracts act, outsourcing council contracts etc. Essentially apprenticeships dramaticlly reduced in number and we are now seeing the consequences and we are playing catch up.

      The other big issue sits around cost of living in Auckland, any good tradesman is far better off financially to live in the regions. I personally have 5 friends who have left in the last 2 years purely due to cost of living and fact of the matter is they are way better off in real terms given they can buy a house, dont have to sit in traffic etc.

      I dont see how you can attract the volume of tradesman to Auckland in the current enviroment and the industry is dangerously over leveraged as small companies have taken on large contracts beyond their ability to cash flow. Its not pretty out there.

  5. savenz 5

    The housing crisis has been manufactured from the demand side. For every so called construction worker there seems to be 90% of other migrants who are adding to the demand for housing! It’s a ponzi scheme through and through.

    Not only that the government figures apparently underestimate by about 30% at least the amount of new people living here. In the usual screw up, the immigration figures are based on what overseas people announce on their arrival cards – no one seems to be tracking actually what people are doing here once they get here.

    So many overseas people are not working either, they are having children, being educated here, retired or just don’t need to work. NZ is some sort of Ponzi scheme of lifestyle for the more affluent migrants who actually use facilities here and the working age ones go off and work overseas where the jobs and money is better.

    There seems to be an argument by the pro migrant lobby that NZ is so underpopulated that we could easily add millions more people in, no problem just get the locals to pay for more infrastructure to keep it all going, they cite the UK for example, “England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland make up an area of 242,000 square kilometres – ten percent smaller than NZ – yet they manage to fit 63 million people”. ( funny enough never China or India as population density examples, because nobody want to migrate there, and increasingly not the UK either, apparently the UK Indians are a new sector of people trying to migrate to NZ).

    Population density arguments seems to ignore than we live in a planet inhabited by other creatures and living things in an ecosystem that humans also depend on for survival. How many creature still live in the UK, what is the water and air quality like? Is the Thames swimmable, wadable or pristine? What about housing, Grenfell disaster does not seem to feature as an example of a haven of economic and social bliss that high population density arguers describe.

    Are we going to repopulate the Amazon, the Arctic, Africa and Antartica too and destroy their countries biodiversity to that over populated countries can migrate more people there and have more stores and sell more cornflakes in more places of the world?

    What happens to the local people who are ‘less competitive’ in this brave new world, none of this has been made clear? We are creating problems in this country not solving them.

    There has been a huge rise in world population figures as well as the pollution and climate change. There is zero provisioning for this in the NZ construction sector slowly turning out more houses and apartments without any provisioning for the future of this country not fit for purpose in a disaster ridden new world, large and energy inefficient for the most cases, less and less green spaces and with a lot more people to house, educate, medically treat, give disaster relief and give super too.

    Many of the new taxes being proposed discriminate more against locals than those recent migrants with options. Land taxes, capital gains taxes and congestion charges will all hit local workers on local (aka low incomes) more than those who are rich and have the ability to have other family members work offshore who probably already pay little to zero taxes here.

    This is not against migrants many of whom have made NZ a better place, but more a warning that there are consequences to how NZ has gone about it’s Laissez-faire immigration for the last decade and creating future economic, social and environmental problems, which are being swept up under the carpet and minimised.

  6. Pat 6

    lol…your cynicism would receive stiff competition from my own, however after 35 years in the trades (much of it in construction) i can safely say that the deskilling started long before immigration was ever an issue.
    Sadly due to the failings of the past 30 years, accentuated by the current governments incompetence (and the inherent reluctance of private industry to pay for training) we now find ourselves needing to both import labour WHILE training homegrown talents if we are to make any headway in solving this problem

    • David Mac 6.1

      The search for efficiency forces diminishing multi-skilling, we are becoming specialists, the playing field ever tilting towards specialisation. Not so long ago the same contractor dug and laid the drains, ran the internal pipes and put on the roof.

      I think we’ll see more of this. A worker can become a useful team player in a house framing gang or roofing crew much quicker than he/she would in a traditional apprenticeship setting.

      Mechanics used to do the lot, now we go to the air cond guy, brake guy or transmission guy. I don’t think this is necessarily a bad thing, when it comes to ramping up a mega build, it’s probably a good thing.

      • Pat 6.1.1

        its a great theory that frequently falls down in practice…..its almost an imposed tunnel vision akin to the silo mentality bemoaned of in bureaucracies (private and public)….the end result is diminished quality in the total product.

        • David Mac 6.1.1.1

          Please don’t trust the guy that does your wheel alignments to rebuild your trans Pat. I hear you, pre-drilled roofs, every hole aligning with fresh air etc. With a house, a good roof fit starts with the pouring of the footings.

          There are ways over the hurdles, factory built panels can be made to meet laser sighted accuracy. I think my car would be a less dependable vehicle if it had been built by 1 person rather than 5000.

          • Pat 6.1.1.1.1

            your car wasn’t built by a person at all…and therein lies the issue….when buildings are constructed by robots your quality issues due to specialisation will likely disappear (or at least diminish)…in the meantime human interaction and flaws will continue to play a significant role.
            …and your wheel alignment /trans analogy simply reinforces my point….however Id trust a few old school mechanics i know to do both (and ahead of the so called specialists)….the issue in the autostrade is the capital outlay increasingly required for income streams that don’t support the specialist equipment required, not the training or ability of the human doing the work

            • mikes 6.1.1.1.1.1

              I think wheel alignment is a bad example. Anyone can do a wheel alignment if they can learn to press a few buttons on a machine and bang the inside of a wheel with a hammer….hehehe

      • savenz 6.1.2

        @David Mac, I see the increase of specialists as a bad thing.

        Just to put in a bathroom for example which in the old days used to involved a builder, plumber and electrician nowadays we have labourers, plumbers and electricians, underfloor specialists, cabinet specialists, tilers, stoppers, engineers, waterproofing specialists etc. All these people now require co ordination and can not necessary be at the job when needed. Any delays in any one of the sub contractors affects the time frames of the other contractors, more people are added, accounts people, project manager etc to manage the processes. All these different tradespeople are driving around the roads in their vans from one end of the city to the other increasing congestion. Most of their time is going in traffic!

        A bathroom might take 1 week under the old system of generalists when the builder did most of it, now can easily take 6 weeks and cost 6 x as much with all the inefficiency. Bizarrely the builder has to work harder than before and has more risk as he’s now at the mercy of so many other people on the job. This also increased the insurances, the builder has to get legal advice and keep assets in trusts for the most part in case they get sued. Many tradespeople would prefer a return to the old days as would the consumer. This is why construction costs so much and why nobody can get small jobs done cheaply anymore.

        There is also the idea that the factory manufacturing model can work in social services. Know of one person who works for children in the courts and under the government they have reorganised the family court system to “save money” using a bank like work flow. As the person says, what took 3 days to get urgent court orders now takes 10 days. It’s crazy. People who are fighting for their kids don’t act like they are in a bank and politely queue up, transact and leave – they are angry, emotional and often don’t behave in a rational manner. You can’t make someone withdrawing money the same process as someone who might be losing their kids, but that is how the government thinks everything should be done. The government and their lackeys have zero clue and zero practicality and they don’t save money. They just screw up people’s lives.

        • Mad Plumber 6.1.2.1

          As someone who does more than the odd bathroom I do take issue with some of your comments
          In the old days the selection of fitting was pretty limited with the up market being those Royal blue, Chocolate and Almond Ivory Sanity fitting to name a few. No tiled showers and the odd heated floor.
          Today I am working on a Bathroom with taps obtained over the internet which as soon as I install them I am responsible for so hopefully the disclaimer from the owner will cover me. She also ordered some of the wrong bits.
          Tiled walls and floor that have to be waterproofed, not allowed to be walked on for a day then the time to tile ( on this job 2 bathrooms) Tiler already been 4 days and until he is finish I nor the Sparky can finish Oh and have now found out not enough tiles but still wants to more in next week.
          To do the above there is a builder,plumber,electrician,joiner and a plumber. Do not where you need an engineer.
          As to driving around and getting stuck in traffic, that is what you get for living in a city.
          On a more serious note obtaining staff and training is a more pressing concern and is not a problem that is going to be solved quickly. In the case of the two apprentices we have the biggest problem is keeping them at the block course as they get bored as the course has been dumb down so much.
          As an example the apprentices on one course were asked the make up of water and out of twenty or so only one could answer H2O , Bloody Hell.
          Lprent
          Gotten?

        • KJT 6.1.2.2

          And. You still need the person with experience in all those jobs, to make sure that they all fit together and are done properly.

          The myth that an accountant can manage tradesmen, was exploded long ago.

          And. It is time that we also got over the myth that if you are thick, you become a tradesman. You don’t have to be academic. Something which is overrated, in the Anglo Saxon world, anyway.

          Successful tradespeople have a huge range of skills, from technical ability in their trade, technical knowledge, people skills, business skills, open minds, critical thinking and ability to adapt.

          Apprenticeships in the 70’s produced well rounded, skilled and competent people.

          The removal of apprenticeships has resulted in a huge training gap, which should be filled by training young people.

          Importing marginally qualified and, ignorant of NZ construction, immigrants is only done to keep pay down.

      • Stuart Munro 6.1.3

        In fishing a major issue was that management did not possess the skills themselves, and readily fell into accountancy driven ideas of improvement. With the QMS, the fishermen were basically wiped out by the companies that had operated the markets – Sanford, Sealord, Independent. They tended to capitalize instead of upskilling, which did nothing for their ROI, and subsidize their inefficiency by increasing pressure on the resource or on lower level employees.

        Japan is the contrast to look at – they have a similar littoral fishable resource. But it returns 100x what NZ’s does, and employs a 100x as many people. Japanese people eat locally caught fish 4x a week or more. NZ people eat commercially caught fish roughly once a month. It’s a colonial industry, and it no longer belongs to us.

  7. garibaldi 7

    Stuart, pat, savenz… excellent thread, but it is not cynicism ,it is the truth.

  8. Once was Tim 8

    The labour.org.nz site’s posting on immigration policy appears to have been updated swince I last visted there.
    However! what really peeved me off was the gnat’s (and others) wilful misrepresentation of what it was intended to achieve. Initially there were 3 tranches – the third of which never seemed to be discussed in our wonderful MSM or elsewhere. (Perhaps they should have re-ordered it so that those with an agenda designed to justify their fuckups and record to date, and to introduce a policy that would at least partially coincide with the Greens and even NZF alike).
    Even now, the panick-stricken Natzis are trying to ride on this wave of the bullshit they’ve created.
    When I first looked at the policy (as it was first described), it was bleeding obvious that where skill shortages genuinely existed AND by region, an immigrant contribution would be welcomed.
    So (as they preface everything these days in the cool world),
    BECAUSE this government has deliberated over students coming to NZ to study shitty courses (such as Business Management – the content of which was so facile they’d probably already surpassed their lecturer/tutor’s knowledge in the course material provided, by comparison with their already 3rd World education knowledge),

    and BECAUSE many were promised bullshit opportunities such as relevant work experience and an income such that they’d be able to pay back the substantial loans, mortgages and debt incurred to come to NZ and study some of these brilliant PTE-provided issues of enlightenment,

    and BECAUSE the ‘export education sector’ has become such an earner for the Natzis’ mates and is reliant on a constant supply of suckers, and even intelligent people who have a reasonable expectation that this ‘1st World, least corrupt’ nation was legit and would never rip the vulnerable off,

    and BECAUSE the agents and charlatans who’ve lied, cheated, clipped the ticket and made very nice little earns on the back of their ‘clients – going forward – all enabled by a government policy and oversight of its regulatory authorities these ‘bloody immigrants’ are now here “taking all our bloody jobs”.

    Jesus!, they’re like rats aren’t they? Low Value, Not Genuine!!! Just Economic migrants trying to take us for a ride and displace us. (/sarc)
    Rather than operating with the very same creds and beliefs as the NZ economic migrant who fucks off across the Tassie because the wages are higher, or to our ‘Mother Nation’, but WORSE! – who then expects that when the shit hits the fan, they can always come back and survive. (DOUBLE STANDARD MUCH?)
    And FFS! Billshit English is using all this (and that thing in leopardskin) as evidence of success.

    So… (once again),
    the past nine years where immigration inward
    – based on an industry of ticket clippers, bullshit artists acting as consultants
    (who MAY just have an interest in other little earns – such as a recruitment of labour supply company, or even a PTE which can so easily go out of business and abrogate its liabilities), and under-resourced gubbamint departments (where its employees can ‘engage’ with the above – and IF not that, then go out and set themselves up in a business as experts in immigration/employment/education)…..

    We ARE where we are.
    We have regions where BECAUSE of government policy, the EXPERTISE and EXPERIENCE of whatever is relevant to that region IS NOW IN THE HANDS of the non-NZer, and who has (more often than not) in real debt – the likes of what many credit card holding NZers cannot comprehend.

    So… (again, going forward, ez a metta o’ fek, ekshully, en furtha more ez en iksarm pull):
    In Christchurch there are now bloody foreigners who hold the IP and experience and expertise that NU Zullners could have had
    Elsewhere, there are bloody foreigners who hold the IP and experience and expertise to deal with dairying and the means by which toxic cowshit could be dealt with
    In the Bay of Plenty, there are bloody foreigners versed in all stages of the Kiwifruit industry, from grading, new varieties, grafting, pruning, recognition of symptoms of the PSA virus and how it should best be dealt with, the effects of previous non-expert work,
    etc….
    And all of these exploited individuals willing and able to pass on/educate/elucidate their expertise to what Natzis describe as stoners unwilling to work will likely be tipped out.

    As just about EVERY international student or foreign work visa holder I’ve ever encountered says …. it’s all about the money.

    Probably the most arrogant thing that’s happening is that the Natzi’s think no-one is noticing – they are and its a tik tok scenario.
    Its not just a 14 deported student sob story, or a dairy farmer doing his best to ensure his cows don’t shit in rivers, or a building contractor ….. or even a legitimate and ethical immigration consultant or public servant resisting politicisation and the ministerial whispers from above, or an employee of what we once referred to as a Qango.

  9. Gristle 9

    The education and training industry who focus on overseas students are essentially selling NZ citizenship or residency. Would it not be better just to sell the residency and citizenship without the training etc.

    I am only pointing out that the current approach is economically inefficient as we could strip away all the cost and time associated with the training and processing. Visa, citizenship and permits need only take as long as it takes for funds to be transferred.

    Even Mr Theil shouldn’t have to wait the inordinate length of time he was required to wait and the 12 days he spent in country.

    • Pat 9.1

      Theil a bad example….he was a net loss to the country by 10s of millions…..as for direct sale , you would need to place an upper age limit on the purchaser to achieve the same ( and their target) demographic….and include a sleeping bag and tent in the price,.

      How about we elect a government with a semblance of a real economic plan?

  10. JC 10

    Great Post!

    Sadly…. Haven’t we had NINE years to sort this …. Out!…

    “We need calm heads and experienced minds at the helm to manage New Zealand’s construction sector through this period. We need long-term thinkers, not knee-jerk reactions and political posturing” i.e.,

    http://www.constructionnews.co.nz/opinion/editorial-august-september-2017.

    ” …. demand for construction-related occupations is also projected to increase (by around 56,000 employees); occupations that are expected to experience the largest growth include plumbers, electricians and civil engineering professionals.”..

    (Whatever happened to apprenticeships.. ?)

    or …

    httmps://www.branz.co.nz/cs_show_download.php?id=084f756ba55c5cca2a6ddb2e1b30ee18406cb4b7

    Or compare this “Futuristic wank from the Past… ,(2009), from the dishonorable, “Mr Coleman”

    ” Our Skilled Migrant Marketing Programme uses a combination of search engine optimisation techniques and online advertising to target skilled migrants in the United States and the UK. To date it has built up a database of over 67,000 prospective migrants. They are serious registrants, eager to move here – 52% want to move within 12 months – and are available to fill positions in key skill shortage areas. Over 55% are tertiary qualified and their average age is 35. Over 50% have skills included in the Skill Shortage list and over 15,000 have been linked to prospective New Zealand employers already.” …. (sic)

    https://www.beehive.govt.nz/speech/economic-impact-immigration

    Oh.. and about the Cranes .. It’s All sorted!

    https://www.cranes.org.nz/news/national-construction-pipeline-report-2016

    • Whatever happened to apprenticeships.. ?

      They cost money and so it’s cheaper to import talent trained elsewhere and let our own people’s skills deteriorate – according to NZ ‘managers’.

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  • Ask Me Anything about the week to Sept 29
    Photo by Anna Ogiienko on UnsplashIt’s that time of the week for an ‘Ask Me Anything’ session for paying subscribers about the week that was for an hour, including:duelling fiscal plans from National and Labour;Labour cutting cycling spending while accusing National of being weak on climate;Research showing the need for ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    19 hours ago
  • Weekly Roundup 29-September-2023
    Welcome to Friday and the last one for September. This week in Greater Auckland On Monday, Matt highlighted at the latest with the City Rail Link. On Tuesday, Matt covered the interesting items from Auckland Transport’s latest board meeting agendas. On Thursday, a guest post from Darren Davis ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    23 hours ago
  • Protest at Parliament: The Reunion.
    Brian’s god spoke to him. He, for of course the Lord in Tamaki’s mind was a male god, with a mighty rod, and probably some black leathers. He, told Brian - “you must put a stop to all this love, hope, and kindness”. And it did please the Brian.He said ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    24 hours ago
  • Labour cuts $50m from cycleway spending
    Labour is cutting spending on cycling infrastructure while still trying to claim the higher ground on climate. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Labour Government released a climate manifesto this week to try to claim the high ground against National, despite having ignored the Climate Commission’s advice to toughen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • The Greater Of Two Evils.
    Not Labour: If you’re out to punish the government you once loved, then the last thing you need is to be shown evidence that the opposition parties are much, much worse.THE GREATEST VIRTUE of being the Opposition is not being the Government. Only very rarely is an opposition party elected ...
    1 day ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #39 2023
    Open access notables "Net zero is only a distraction— we just have to end fossil fuel emissions." The latter is true but the former isn't, or  not in the real world as it's likely to be in the immediate future. And "just" just doesn't enter into it; we don't have ...
    1 day ago
  • Chris Trotter: Losing the Left
    IN THE CURRENT MIX of electoral alternatives, there is no longer a credible left-wing party. Not when “a credible left-wing party” is defined as: a class-oriented, mass-based, democratically-structured political organisation; dedicated to promoting ideas sharply critical of laissez-faire capitalism; and committed to advancing democratic, egalitarian and emancipatory ideals across the ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    2 days ago
  • Road rage at Kia Kaha Primary School
    It is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha Primary School!It can be any time when you are telling a story.Telling stories about things that happened in the past is how we learn from our mistakes.If we want to.Anyway, it is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • Road rage at Kia Kaha Primary School
    It is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha Primary School!It can be any time when you are telling a story.Telling stories about things that happened in the past is how we learn from our mistakes.If we want to.Anyway, it is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • Road rage at Kia Kaha Primary School
    It is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha Primary School!It can be any time when you are telling a story.Telling stories about things that happened in the past is how we learn from our mistakes.If we want to.Anyway, it is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha ...
    More than a fieldingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • Hipkins fires up in leaders’ debate, but has the curtain already fallen on the Labour-led coalitio...
    Labour’s  Chris Hipkins came out firing, in the  leaders’ debate  on Newshub’s evening programme, and most of  the pundits  rated  him the winner against National’s  Christopher Luxon. But will this make any difference when New  Zealanders  start casting their ballots? The problem  for  Hipkins is  that  voters are  all too ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    2 days ago
  • Govt is energising housing projects with solar power – and fuelling the public’s concept of a di...
    Buzz from the Beehive  Not long after Point of Order published data which show the substantial number of New Zealanders (77%) who believe NZ is becoming more divided, government ministers were braying about a programme which distributes some money to “the public” and some to “Maori”. The ministers were dishing ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    2 days ago
  • MIKE GRIMSHAW: Election 2023 – a totemic & charisma failure?
    The D&W analysis Michael Grimshaw writes –  Given the apathy, disengagement, disillusionment, and all-round ennui of this year’s general election, it was considered time to bring in those noted political operatives and spin doctors D&W, the long-established consultancy firm run by Emile Durkheim and Max Weber. Known for ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago
  • FROM BFD: Will Winston be the spectre we think?
    Kissy kissy. Cartoon credit BoomSlang. The BFD. JC writes-  Allow me to preface this contribution with the following statement: If I were asked to express a preference between a National/ACT coalition or a National/ACT/NZF coalition then it would be the former. This week Luxon declared his position, ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago
  • California’s climate disclosure bill could have a huge impact across the U.S.
    This re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Andy Furillo was originally published by Capital & Main and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. The California Legislature took a step last week that has the potential to accelerate the fight against climate ...
    2 days ago
  • Untangling South East Queensland’s Public Transport
    This is a cross post Adventures in Transitland by Darren Davis. I recently visited Brisbane and South East Queensland and came away both impressed while also pondering some key changes to make public transport even better in the region. Here goes with my take on things. A bit of ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    2 days ago
  • Try A Little Kindness.
    My daughter arrived home from the supermarket yesterday and she seemed a bit worried about something. It turned out she wanted to know if someone could get her bank number from a receipt.We wound the story back.She was in the store and there was a man there who was distressed, ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 days ago
  • What makes NZFirst tick
    New Zealand’s longest-running political roadshow rolled into Opotiki yesterday, with New Zealand First leader Winston Peters knowing another poll last night showed he would make it back to Parliament and National would need him and his party if they wanted to form a government. The Newshub Reid Research poll ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    2 days ago
  • September AMA
    Hi,As September draws to a close — I feel it’s probably time to do an Ask Me Anything. You know how it goes: If you have any burning questions, fire away in the comments and I will do my best to answer. You might have questions about Webworm, or podcast ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    2 days ago
  • Bludgers lying in the scratcher making fools of us all
    The mediocrity who stands to be a Prime Minister has a litany.He uses it a bit like a Koru Lounge card. He will brandish it to say: these people are eligible. And more than that, too: These people are deserving. They have earned this policy.They have a right to this policy. What ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • More “partnerships” (by the look of it) and redress of over $30 million in Treaty settlement wit...
    Buzz from the Beehive Point of Order has waited until now – 3.45pm – for today’s officially posted government announcements.  There have been none. The only addition to the news on the Beehive’s website was posted later yesterday, after we had published our September 26 Buzz report. It came from ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago
  • ALEX HOLLAND: Labour’s spending
    Alex Holland writes –  In 2017 when Labour came to power, crown spending was $76 billion per year. Now in 2023 it is $139 billion per year, which equates to a $63 billion annual increase (over $1 billion extra spend every week!) In 2017, New Zealand’s government debt ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago
  • If not now, then when?
    Labour released its fiscal plan today, promising the same old, same old: "responsibility", balanced books, and of course no new taxes: "Labour will maintain income tax settings to provide consistency and certainty in these volatile times. Now is not the time for additional taxes or to promise billions of ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago
  • THE FACTS:  77% of Kiwis believe NZ is becoming more divided
    The Facts has posted –        KEY INSIGHTSOf New Zealander’s polled: Social unity/division 77%believe NZ is becoming more divided (42% ‘much more’ + 35% ‘a little more’) 3%believe NZ is becoming less divided (1% ‘much less’ + 2% ‘a little less’) ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on the cynical brutality of the centre-right’s welfare policies
    The centre-right’s enthusiasm for forcing people off the benefit and into paid work is matched only by the enthusiasm (shared by Treasury and the Reserve Bank) for throwing people out of paid work to curb inflation, and achieve the optimal balance of workers to job seekers deemed to be desirable ...
    3 days ago
  • Wednesday’s Chorus: Arthur Grimes on why building many, many more social houses is so critical
    New research shows that tenants in social housing - such as these Wellington apartments - are just as happy as home owners and much happier than private tenants. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The election campaign took an ugly turn yesterday, and in completely the wrong direction. All three ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • Old habits
    Media awareness about global warming and climate change has grown fairly steadily since 2004. My impression is that journalists today tend to possess a higher climate literacy than before. This increasing awareness and improved knowledge is encouraging, but there are also some common interpretations which could be more nuanced. ...
    Real ClimateBy rasmus
    3 days ago
  • Bennie Bashing.
    If there’s one thing the mob loves more than keeping Māori in their place, more than getting tough on the gangs, maybe even more than tax cuts. It’s a good old round of beneficiary bashing.Are those meanies in the ACT party stealing your votes because they think David Seymour is ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago
  • The kindest cuts
    Labour kicks off the fiscal credibility battle today with the release of its fiscal plan. National is expected to follow, possibly as soon as Thursday, with its own plan, which may (or may not) address the large hole that the problems with its foreign buyers’ ban might open up. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    3 days ago
  • Green right turn in Britain? Well, a start
    While it may be unlikely to register in New Zealand’s general election, Britain’s PM Rishi Sunak has done something which might just be important in the long run. He’s announced a far-reaching change in his Conservative government’s approach to environmental, and particularly net zero, policy. The starting point – ...
    Point of OrderBy xtrdnry
    3 days ago
  • At a glance – How do human CO2 emissions compare to natural CO2 emissions?
    On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
    3 days ago
  • How could this happen?
    Canada is in uproar after the exposure that its parliament on September 22 provided a standing ovation to a Nazi veteran who had been invited into the chamber to participate in the parliamentary welcome to Ukrainian President Zelensky. Yaroslav Hunka, 98, a Ukrainian man who volunteered for service in ...
    4 days ago
  • Always Be Campaigning
    The big screen is a great place to lay out the ways of the salesman. He comes ready-made for Panto, ripe for lampooning.This is not to disparage that life. I have known many good people of that kind. But there is a type, brazen as all get out. The camera ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 days ago
  • STEPHEN FRANKS: Press seek to publicly shame doctor – we must push back
    The following is a message sent yesterday from lawyer Stephen Franks on behalf of the Free Speech Union. I don’t like to interrupt first thing Monday morning, but we’ve just become aware of a case where we think immediate and overwhelming attention could help turn the tide. It involves someone ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Competing on cruelty
    The right-wing message calendar is clearly reading "cruelty" today, because both National and NZ First have released beneficiary-bashing policies. National is promising a "traffic light" system to police and kick beneficiaries, which will no doubt be accompanied by arbitrary internal targets to classify people as "orange" or "red" to keep ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Further funding for Pharmac (forgotten in the Budget?) looks like a $1bn appeal from a PM in need of...
    Buzz from the Beehive One Labour plan  – for 3000 more public homes by 2025 – is the most recent to be posted on the government’s official website. Another – a prime ministerial promise of more funding for Pharmac – has been released as a Labour Party press statement. Who ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago
  • Bryce Edwards: The Vested interests shaping National Party policies
    As the National Party gets closer to government, lobbyists and business interests will be lining up for influence and to get policies adopted. It’s therefore in the public interest to have much more scrutiny and transparency about potential conflicts of interests that might arise. One of the key individuals of ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    4 days ago
  • Labour may be on way out of power and NZ First back in – but will Peters go into coalition with Na...
    Voters  are deserting Labour in droves, despite Chris  Hipkins’  valiant  rearguard  action.  So  where  are they  heading?  Clearly  not all of them are going to vote National, which concedes that  the  outcome  will be “close”. To the Right of National, the ACT party just a  few weeks  ago  was ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    4 days ago
  • GRAHAM ADAMS: Will the racists please stand up?
    Accusations of racism by journalists and MPs are being called out. Graham Adams writes –    With the election less than three weeks away, what co-governance means in practice — including in water management, education, planning law and local government — remains largely obscure. Which is hardly ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on whether Winston Peters can be a moderating influence
    As the centre-right has (finally!) been subjected to media interrogation, the polls are indicating that some voters may be starting to have second thoughts about the wisdom of giving National and ACT the power to govern alone. That’s why yesterday’s Newshub/Reid Research poll had the National/ACT combo dropping to 60 ...
    4 days ago
  • Tuesday’s Chorus: RBNZ set to rain on National's victory parade
    ANZ has increased its forecast for house inflation later this year on signs of growing momentum in the market ahead of the election. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: National has campaigned against the Labour Government’s record on inflation and mortgage rates, but there’s now a growing chance the Reserve ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • After a Pittsburgh coal processing plant closed, ER visits plummeted
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Katie Myers. This story was originally published by Grist and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. Pittsburgh, in its founding, was blessed and cursed with two abundant natural resources: free-flowing rivers and a nearby coal seam. ...
    4 days ago
  • September-23 AT Board Meeting
    Today the AT board meet again and once again I’ve taken a look at what’s on the agenda to find the most interesting items. Closed Agenda Interestingly when I first looked at the agendas this paper was there but at the time of writing this post it had been ...
    4 days ago
  • Electorate Watch: West Coast-Tasman
    Continuing my series on interesting electorates, today it’s West Coast-Tasman.A long thin electorate running down the northern half of the west coast of the South Island. Think sand flies, beautiful landscapes, lots of rain, Pike River, alternative lifestylers, whitebaiting, and the spiritual home of the Labour Party. A brief word ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago
  • Big money brings Winston back
    National leader Christopher Luxon yesterday morning conceded it and last night’s Newshub poll confirmed it; Winston Peters and NZ First are not only back but highly likely to be part of the next government. It is a remarkable comeback for a party that was tossed out of Parliament in ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    4 days ago
  • 20 days until Election Day, 7 until early voting begins… but what changes will we really see here?
    As this blogger, alongside many others, has already posited in another forum: we all know the National Party’s “budget” (meaning this concept of even adding up numbers properly is doing a lot of heavy, heavy lifting right now) is utter and complete bunk (read hung, drawn and quartered and ...
    exhALANtBy exhalantblog
    4 days ago
  • A night out
    Everyone was asking, Are you nervous? and my response was various forms of God, yes.I've written more speeches than I can count; not much surprises me when the speaker gets to their feet and the room goes quiet.But a play? Never.YOU CAME! THANK YOU! Read more ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 days ago
  • A pallid shade of Green III
    Clearly Labour's focus groups are telling it that it needs to pay more attention to climate change - because hot on the heels of their weaksauce energy efficiency pilot programme and not-great-but-better-than-nothing solar grants, they've released a full climate manifesto. Unfortunately, the core policies in it - a second Emissions ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • A coalition of racism, cruelty, and chaos
    Today's big political news is that after months of wibbling, National's Chris Luxon has finally confirmed that he is willing to work with Winston Peters to become Prime Minister. Which is expected, but I guess it tells us something about which way the polls are going. Which raises the question: ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • More migrant workers should help generate the tax income needed to provide benefits for job seekers
    Buzz from the Beehive Under something described as a “rebalance” of its immigration rules, the Government has adopted four of five recommendations made in an independent review released in July, The fifth, which called on the government to specify criteria for out-of-hours compliance visits similar to those used during ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago
  • Letter To Luxon.
    Some of you might know Gerard Otto (G), and his G News platform. This morning he wrote a letter to Christopher Luxon which I particularly enjoyed, and with his agreement I’m sharing it with you in this guest newsletter.If you’d like to make a contribution to support Gerard’s work you ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • LINDSAY MITCHELL: Alarming trend in benefit numbers
    Lindsay Mitchell writes –  While there will not be another quarterly release of benefit numbers prior to the election, limited weekly reporting continues and is showing an alarming trend. Because there is a seasonal component to benefit number fluctuations it is crucial to compare like with like. In ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • BRIAN EASTON: Has there been external structural change?
    A close analysis of the Treasury assessment of the Medium Term in its PREFU 2023 suggests the economy may be entering a new phase.   Brian Easton writes –  Last week I explained that the forecasts in the just published Treasury Pre-election Economic and Fiscal Update (PREFU 2023) was ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • CRL Progress – Sep-23
    It’s been a while since we looked at the latest with the City Rail Link and there’s been some fantastic milestones recently. To start with, and most recently, CRL have released an awesome video showing a full fly-through of one of the tunnels. Come fly with us! You asked for ...
    5 days ago
  • Monday’s Chorus: Not building nearly enough
    We are heading into another period of fast population growth without matching increased home building or infrastructure investment.Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Labour and National detailed their house building and migration approaches over the weekend, with both pledging fast population growth policies without enough house building or infrastructure investment ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Game on; Hipkins comes out punching
    Labour leader Chris Hipkins yesterday took the gloves off and laid into National and its leader Christopher Luxon. For many in Labour – and particularly for some at the top of the caucus and the party — it would not have been a moment too soon. POLITIK is aware ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago
  • Tax Cut Austerity Blues.
    The leaders have had their go, they’ve told us the “what?” and the “why?” of their promises. Now it’s the turn of the would be Finance Ministers to tell us the “how?”, the “how much?”, and the “when?”A chance for those competing for the second most powerful job in the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    6 days ago
  • MIKE GRIMSHAW:  It’s the economy – and the spirit – Stupid…
    Mike Grimshaw writes – Over the past 30-odd years it’s become almost an orthodoxy to blame or invoke neoliberalism for the failures of New Zealand society. On the left the usual response goes something like, neoliberalism is the cause of everything that’s gone wrong and the answer ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • 2023 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #38
    A chronological listing of news and opinion articles posted on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Sep 17, 2023 thru Sat, Sep 23, 2023. Story of the Week  Opinion: Let’s free ourselves from the story of economic growth A relentless focus on economic growth has ushered in ...
    6 days ago
  • The End Of The World.
    Have you been looking out of your window for signs of the apocalypse? Don’t worry, you haven’t been door knocked by a representative of the Brian Tamaki party. They’re probably a bit busy this morning spruiking salvation, or getting ready to march on our parliament, which is closed. No, I’ve ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    7 days ago
  • Climate Town: The Brainwashing Of America's Children
    Climate Town is the YouTube channel of Rollie Williams and a ragtag team of climate communicators, creatives and comedians. They examine climate change in a way that doesn’t make you want to eat a cyanide pill. Get informed about the climate crisis before the weather does it for you. The latest ...
    1 week ago
  • Has There Been External Structural Change?
    A close analysis of the Treasury assessment of the Medium Term in its PREFU 2023 suggests the economy may be entering a new phase. Last week I explained that the forecasts in the just published Treasury Pre-election Economic and Fiscal Update (PREFU 2023) was similar to the May Budget BEFU, ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    1 week ago
  • Another Labour bully
    Back in June, we learned that Kiri Allan was a Parliamentary bully. And now there's another one: Labour MP Shanan Halbert: The Labour Party was alerted to concerns about [Halbert's] alleged behaviour a year ago but because staffers wanted to remain anonymous, no formal process was undertaken [...] The ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    1 week ago
  • Climate Change: Ignoring our biggest problem
    Its that time in the election season where the status quo parties are busy accusing each other of having fiscal holes in a desperate effort to appear more "responsible" (but not, you understand, by promising to tax wealth or land to give the government the revenue it needs to do ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    1 week ago
  • JERRY COYNE: A good summary of the mess that is science education in New Zealand
    JERRY COYNE writes –  If you want to see what the government of New Zealand is up to with respect to science education, you can’t do better than listening to this video/slideshow by two exponents of the “we-need-two-knowledge-systems” view. I’ve gotten a lot of scary stuff from Kiwi ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 week ago
  • Good news on the GDP front is accompanied by news of a $5m govt boost for Supercars (but what about ...
    Buzz from the Beehive First, we were treated to the news (from Finance Minister Grant Robertson) that the economy has turned a corner and New Zealand never was in recession.  This was triggered by statistics which showed the economy expanded 0.9 per cent in the June quarter, twice as much as ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 week ago
  • The Scafetta Saga
    It has taken 17 months to get a comment published pointing out the obvious errors in the Scafetta (2022) paper in GRL. Back in March 2022, Nicola Scafetta published a short paper in Geophysical Research Letters (GRL) purporting to show through ‘advanced’ means that ‘all models with ECS > ...
    Real ClimateBy Gavin
    1 week ago
  • Friday's Chorus: Penny wise and pound foolish
    TL;DR: In the middle of a climate emergency and in a city prone to earthquakes, Victoria University of Wellington announced yesterday it would stop teaching geophysics, geographic information science and physical geography to save $22 million a year and repay debt. Climate change damage in Aotearoa this year is already ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • CHRIS TROTTER: Calling the big dog’s bluff
      For nearly thirty years the pundits have been telling the minor parties that they must be good little puppies and let the big dogs decide. The parties with a plurality of the votes cast must be allowed to govern – even if that means ignoring the ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 week ago
  • The electorate swing, Labour limbo and Luxon-Hipkins two-step
     Another poll, another 27 for Labour. It was July the last time one of the reputable TV company polls had Labour's poll percentage starting with a three, so the limbo question is now being asked: how low can you go?It seems such an unlikely question because this doesn't feel like the kind ...
    PunditBy Tim Watkin
    1 week ago
  • A Womance, and a Nomance.
    After the trench warfare of Tuesday night, when the two major parties went head to head, last night was the turn of the minor parties. Hosts Newshub termed it “the Powerbrokers' Debate”.Based on the latest polls the four parties taking part - ACT, the Greens, New Zealand First, and Te ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago

  • New community-level energy projects to support more than 800 Māori households
    Seven more innovative community-scale energy projects will receive government funding through the Māori and Public Housing Renewable Energy Fund to bring more affordable, locally generated clean energy to more than 800 Māori households, Energy and Resources Minister Dr Megan Woods says. “We’ve already funded 42 small-scale clean energy projects that ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Huge boost to Te Tai Tokerau flood resilience
    The Government has approved new funding that will boost resilience and greatly reduce the risk of major flood damage across Te Tai Tokerau. Significant weather events this year caused severe flooding and damage across the region. The $8.9m will be used to provide some of the smaller communities and maraes ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Napier’s largest public housing development comes with solar
    The largest public housing development in Napier for many years has been recently completed and has the added benefit of innovative solar technology, thanks to Government programmes, says Housing Minister Dr Megan Woods. The 24 warm, dry homes are in Seddon Crescent, Marewa and Megan Woods says the whanau living ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Te Whānau a Apanui and the Crown initial Deed of Settlement I Kua waitohua e Te Whānau a Apanui me...
    Māori: Kua waitohua e Te Whānau a Apanui me te Karauna te Whakaaetanga Whakataunga Kua waitohua e Te Whānau a Apanui me te Karauna i tētahi Whakaaetanga Whakataunga hei whakamihi i ō rātou tāhuhu kerēme Tiriti o Waitangi. E tekau mā rua ngā hapū o roto mai o Te Whānau ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Plan for 3,000 more public homes by 2025 – regions set to benefit
    Regions around the country will get significant boosts of public housing in the next two years, as outlined in the latest public housing plan update, released by the Housing Minister, Dr Megan Woods. “We’re delivering the most public homes each year since the Nash government of the 1950s with one ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Immigration settings updates
    Judicial warrant process for out-of-hours compliance visits 2023/24 Recognised Seasonal Employer cap increased by 500 Additional roles for Construction and Infrastructure Sector Agreement More roles added to Green List Three-month extension for onshore Recovery Visa holders The Government has confirmed a number of updates to immigration settings as part of ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Poroporoaki: Tā Patrick (Patu) Wahanga Hohepa
    Tangi ngunguru ana ngā tai ki te wahapū o Hokianga Whakapau Karakia. Tārehu ana ngā pae maunga ki Te Puna o te Ao Marama. Korihi tangi ana ngā manu, kua hinga he kauri nui ki te Wao Nui o Tāne. He Toa. He Pou. He Ahorangi. E papaki tū ana ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Renewable energy fund to support community resilience
    40 solar energy systems on community buildings in regions affected by Cyclone Gabrielle and other severe weather events Virtual capability-building hub to support community organisations get projects off the ground Boost for community-level renewable energy projects across the country At least 40 community buildings used to support the emergency response ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • COVID-19 funding returned to Government
    The lifting of COVID-19 isolation and mask mandates in August has resulted in a return of almost $50m in savings and recovered contingencies, Minister of Health Dr Ayesha Verrall announced today. Following the revocation of mandates and isolation, specialised COVID-19 telehealth and alternative isolation accommodation are among the operational elements ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Appointment of District Court Judge
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