The end of tenure review

Written By: - Date published: 11:45 am, February 15th, 2019 - 29 comments
Categories: Conservation, Environment, farming, greens, Politics, sustainability - Tags: ,

It is said that the worst day in Government is better than the best week in opposition.  That is because you can actually get things done.  Things that matter. Like getting rid of the tenure review policy, under which large tracts of rural land has been privatised and on sold for ridiculous profits and sensitive environmental areas have been wrecked.

The announcement was made yesterday by Land Information Minister Eugenie Sage.  She said this:

We’ve seen a very mixed bag in terms of the tenure review outcomes … [t]here’s been a lot of criticism of the process for a long time, and there is strong support across all of the government parties for ending tenure review and moving to a vision of enduring stewardship for our high country.”

So what exactly is tenure review?

David Williams at Newsroom has this scathing description:

Tenure review ends a Crown pastoral lease by privatising some land and setting aside the rest for conservation.

Bizarrely, in some settlements farmers have been paid by the Crown, because greater value was placed on their interest in the soon-to-be conservation land than the freeholded portion. Research suggests the more rare and threatened the ecological values of the land, the more likely it was to be freeholded.

Tenure review has been slammed by opponents as inefficient, ineffective and ill-judged – not least because former Crown land, once freeholded, has been broken up and sold to property developers for massive profits.

University of Canterbury’s Ann Brower estimates farmers have made $275 million by on-selling 74,000 hectares of former Crown land, at a median sale price of about 500 times what the Crown was paid.

Brower’s latest article, published last November, challenged Sage to turn around a track-record of Crown decisions allowing greater agricultural intensification in the Mackenzie Basin.

And who benefited?  How about Peter Thiel and John Key among others.

From Charlie Mitchell at Stuff:

Some of those who bought land that was formerly Crown leases include Peter Thiel, Graham Hart, and Sir John Key. Some of the most expensive properties advertised for sale in New Zealand are on former pastoral leases.

In numerous cases, land that was privatised by the Crown for significantly less than market value was quickly on-sold for enormous profits.

A Stuff investigation in 2018 found that tenure review had cost taxpayers about $65 million, and, since its beginnings in 1992, had resulted in the privatisation of nearly half a million hectares of once Crown-owned land, some of which had become property developments and luxury golf courses.

The report that prompted the change was summarised by Mitchell in this way:

The decision to scrap the process appears to be driven by an internal report conducted by Land Information New Zealand (Linz), which manages tenure review on behalf of the Commissioner of Crown Lands.

The report said it was unclear what the Crown was trying to achieve with tenure review, and there had been a focus on completing deals.

It said the Crown “does not appear to have a clear strategic objective, other than exiting the [leases]” and the system had been “seen as operational in nature, which has encouraged a focus on processes at the expense of outcomes”.

It concluded: “Overall, the combination of stronger farming links, poor or variable quality ecological advice, and the desire to complete deals has meant development has resulted.”

National’s spokesperson David Bennett has the strange take that it is Government sticking its nose in where it should not.  It is a strange take that the Crown has no interest in the future of Crown owned land.

Well done Eugenie Sage.

29 comments on “The end of tenure review ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. greywarshark 1
    15 February 2019 at 12:00 pm

    Eugenie Sage has carried out a practical policy with this finish to government’s (which?) careless lack of concern over outcomes in their high country. Good on you Minister Sage.

    • Dukeofurl 1.1
      15 February 2019 at 3:30 pm

      The existing tenure review was hijacked by the new national government in July 2009 when they changed the rules to include some 40 lakeside pastoral stations which had been excluded under labour from tenure review.
      There are the ones where huge profits were made form onselling, as of course lake views are worth a lot of money.

    • Jess NZ 1.2
      15 February 2019 at 5:05 pm

      +1000000

      And Good on the Green Party for whom she works and the coalition government that made it possible.

  2. KJT 2
    15 February 2019 at 12:07 pm

    About time. Run holders that have benefited by decades of cheap leases on crown land, were enabled further benefits by “free holding” at well below market prices.

    At a huge cost to tax payers, who have lost public land sold at well below market rates.

    A rort which has helped various of the usual suspects,

    But. “There is no corruption in New Zealand.

    Where is the “Tax payers Union” when you need them?

  3. veutoviper 3
    15 February 2019 at 12:20 pm

    Hi mickysavage, off topic but no Open Mike today?

    [Oops up now – MS]

  4. greywarshark 4
    15 February 2019 at 12:35 pm

    Micky Savage don’t forget we really appreciate both you and lprent and Advantage an Te Reo Putake and Matthew (and ..vv and Anne and incognito and Ianmac and Siobhan and Sabine and swordfish and marty mars and Robert and WetheBleeple and bwaghorn and Patricia and Cinny and ……)

    And by the way if there has been a call for me to be censured for speaking out of turn, okay, I know I am getting stroppy. Over-anxious the shadow is moving fast and I don’t think that most of us are match fit. I’ve got this book of Fast Exercise and another one on Fast Diets and might get some ideas there that can be applied to using for the country’s condition vis a vis the world.

  5. WeTheBleeple 5
    15 February 2019 at 12:45 pm

    Me poor brain wants to open mike about the huge cattle loss in Australia. Off to me PDC course tomorrow so no bringing it up then.

    1/2 million cattle is a billion dollar hit. In the article stating they’d lost 1/2 million cattle they say it was ‘perfect land for cattle grazing’. This disconnect between facing reality and viewing things through the lens of profit has to stop.

    Your money or your life.

    • veutoviper 5.1
      15 February 2019 at 12:49 pm

      OM now up.

    • greywarshark 5.2
      15 February 2019 at 8:10 pm

      Have I got a choice?

      Reminds me of the person who’d fallen over a cliff and was clinging to a bush. ‘Is there anyone there’ came the plaintive cry. ‘Yes’ says God soothingly ‘I am here. Just let go of the bush and all will be well.’. Silence for half a minute then another cry ‘Is there anyone else there’?

      I’m looking for a really good promise!

      • greywarshark 5.2.1
        16 February 2019 at 11:16 am

        Looked up PDC – there are 131 versions of meaning for those letters.
        I guess yours is Permaculture Design Certificate?
        When it’s over I would like to discuss stuff with you, to point me in the right direction at least. Would appreciate it.

  6. James Thrace 6
    15 February 2019 at 12:49 pm

    Great.

    Now all that needs to happen is when large tracts of farmland come up for mortgagee sale in future, the government gets first crack at buying large land tracts and reinstate the leasehold process again.

    At least then if the state buys out the mortgagee and leases the land back to the overly indebted farmer on long term lease principles, the land will still be productive, the farmer stays on the land, the state receives payment via long term lease. Everyone wins.

    But what’s to stop farmers deliberately going into mortgagee sale? Nothing really. And why should it? I doubt farmers would want to be beholden to the state via leasehold and being restricted what they can do on their land and probably wouldn’t go into mortgagee sale if they can help it.

    Such a process would have meant that the crafar farms would have ended up in state ownership at first instance. If the state then wanted to sell it off, they could then split the various lands into separate sales instead of a bulk lot which Westpac did.

    • Dukeofurl 6.1
      15 February 2019 at 2:19 pm

      They werent land held under a mortgage.
      It was a ‘perpetual lease’ which is what it sounds like, if they were seriously in lease arrears they would just have sell with payments from the selling price, but it would be another farmer as thats the only use under the lease.

      The whole thing was changed by the national party during its term in government

      There was the The Crown Pastoral Land (Rent for Pastoral Leases) Amendment Act in 2012 which changed the rent – to favour the farmer as the previous number was just 2% of land value

      But before that , just 6 months after taking office in 2009 Cabinet changed the rules about 40 properties that were excluded from tenure review as they had high country lake frontages, they were now allowed to go through the process.
      Some like Alphaburn Station beside lake Wanaka were put on the market immediately the land was freeholded and sold for a huge gain.

      https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/105146853/after-taxpayers-paid-to-get-rid-of-it-farm-sells-for-175m

      You would have thought that the global Financial crisis was taking all the governments time in July 2009, but jobs and business werent in David Carter and Maurice Williamson as the responsible ministers had more important things to do.
      https://www.linz.govt.nz/system/files_force/media/doc/2009-and-beyond-minute-of-decision_0.PDF?download=1

      • Gabby 6.1.1
        15 February 2019 at 4:27 pm

        So where’s Sirponyboy’s slice of the action?

      • James Thrace 6.1.2
        15 February 2019 at 4:58 pm

        I am well aware of what tenure review involved thank you.

        I was making the suggestion regarding future mortgagee sales of farmland/pastoral land as a way to reinstate a small portion of what has been lost.

  7. Tuppence Shrewsbury 7
    15 February 2019 at 2:16 pm

    Finally, a post about a government minister actually doing something. and something positive.

    Well done Eugenie, and by extension the greens, for getting on with the job of enacting their policies.

    I would include Hipkins with his polytech reform, but it’s still far to early to tell if setting national standards for polytechs will help anyone

    • Dukeofurl 7.1
      15 February 2019 at 2:39 pm

      The Polytechs were competing for students , there were multiple campuses in Auckland, instead of focussing on improving pass rates and providing greater access for courses.
      national government had frozen their funding during most of its term.
      Its was around a$100 mill bail out last year and likely the same again with a few campuses compleley un viable.

      • Tuppence Shrewsbury 7.1.1
        15 February 2019 at 3:13 pm

        I don’t have a problem with the plan of the improvement of the sector by applying national standards dumb dumb. i’m waiting to see how it actually works before praising it or criticising it.

        I think the ending of tenure review, especially for foreigners, is a good enactment of stated government policy. So well done to Eugenie Sage and the Greens.

  8. Gosman 8
    15 February 2019 at 3:25 pm

    What is the issue exactly with the land being broken up and onsold?

    • left_forward 8.1
      15 February 2019 at 3:41 pm

      I’m not falling down the bear trap again Gos. This is how it all begins isn’t it? – a simple request for an explanation… and then when someone takes the bait and innocently tries to he… zzappp!

    • Gabby 8.2
      15 February 2019 at 4:29 pm

      What’s the issue with a 75% top income tax rate gozzer?

    • Robert Guyton 8.3
      15 February 2019 at 8:08 pm

      “What is the issue exactly with the land being broken up and onsold?”
      You don’t know, Gosman?

  9. Jess NZ 9
    15 February 2019 at 5:13 pm

    Yes, and Peter Thiel certainly knew what he was doing when he approached National for special consideration to become a citizen without any other accountability.

    He got the land and the money. Why doesn’t anybody stop to wonder how these businessmen get so fabulously wealthy in the first place? Not by making stupid deals and losing on them…

    I want to start a petition to revoke Thiel’s citizenship. Who’s with me?

    https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11794020

  10. barry 10
    15 February 2019 at 8:03 pm

    The problem is not so much the obscene profits, as the loss of amenity value. The only criterion for freeholding was that it could turn a profit, which means that conservation got the land that nobody wanted.

    A lot of the land was wetland and other rare ecosystems with high conservation values and lakeside land that could have been great for outdoor recreation. Worse, a lot of the land left for parks is isolated hilltops with access only by grace of the owners of the newly freeholded land. For conservation it is best if different areas are linked by natural habitats, so that populations are less threatened by fire and climate events.

    Some of the freeholded areas are turning in to highly irrigated factory farms, which are damaging the waterways.

    The previous leasehold structure didn’t work and many of the stations were becoming uneconomical (as they were restricted from changing the nature of the business). Probably the crown could have bought off the leases in many cases for less than the cost of the freeholding.

  11. mosa 11
    16 February 2019 at 12:07 pm

    Great news.
    This why i wanted the Greens to be in government.
    Another point of view from Idiot Savant.

    http://norightturn.blogspot.com/2019/02/not-one-hectare-more.html

  12. Jum 12
    17 February 2019 at 9:35 pm

    ‘And who benefited? How about Peter Thiel and John Key among others.
    From Charlie Mitchell at Stuff:
    Some of those who bought land that was formerly Crown leases include Peter Thiel, Graham Hart, and Sir John Key. Some of the most expensive properties advertised for sale in New Zealand are on former pastoral leases.’

    So what year did key get his ‘formerly Crown lease’ land?

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    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago

  • Top 10 for Tuesday, December 4
    The RBNZ governor is citing high net migration and profit-led inflation as factors in the bank’s hawkish stance. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Here’s my pick of the top 10 news and analysis links elsewhere on the morning of Tuesday, December 5, including:Reserve Bank Governor Adrian Orr says high net migration and ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago

  • Nicola Willis' 'show me the money' moment
    Willis has accused labour of “economic vandalism’, while Robertson described her comments as a “desperate diversion from somebody who can't make their tax package add up”. There will now be an intense focus on December 20 to see whether her hyperbole is backed up by true surprises. Photo montage: Lynn ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago

  • CRL costs money but also provides huge benefits
    The City Rail Link has been in the headlines a bit recently so I thought I’d look at some of them. First up, yesterday the NZ Herald ran this piece about the ongoing costs of the CRL. Auckland ratepayers will be saddled with an estimated bill of $220 million each ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    4 days ago

  • And I don't want the world to see us.
    Is this the most shambolic government in the history of New Zealand? Given that parliament hasn’t even opened they’ve managed quite a list of achievements to date.The Smokefree debacle trading lives for tax cuts, the Trumpian claims of bribery in the Media, an International award for indifference, and today the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago

  • Cooking the books
    Finance Minister Nicola Willis late yesterday stopped only slightly short of accusing her predecessor Grant Robertson of cooking the books. She complained that the Half Yearly Economic and Fiscal Update (HYEFU), due to be made public on December 20, would show “fiscal cliffs” that would amount to “billions of ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago

  • Most people don’t realize how much progress we’ve made on climate change
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections The year was 2015. ‘Uptown Funk’ with Bruno Mars was at the top of the music charts. Jurassic World was the most popular new movie in theaters. And decades of futility in international climate negotiations was about to come to an end in ...
    Skeptical Science
    5 days ago

  • Of Parliamentary Oaths and Clive Boonham
    As a heads-up, I am not one of those people who stay awake at night thinking about weird Culture War nonsense. At least so far as the current Maori/Constitutional arrangements go. In fact, I actually consider it the least important issue facing the day to day lives of New ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    5 days ago

  • Bearing True Allegiance?
    Strong Words: “We do not consent, we do not surrender, we do not cede, we do not submit; we, the indigenous, are rising. We do not buy into the colonial fictions this House is built upon. Te Pāti Māori pledges allegiance to our mokopuna, our whenua, and Te Tiriti o ...
    Bowalley Road
    5 days ago

  • You cannot be serious
    Some days it feels like the only thing to say is: Seriously? No, really. Seriously?OneSomeone has used their health department access to share data about vaccinations and patients, and inform the world that New Zealanders have been dying in their hundreds of thousands from the evil vaccine. This of course is pure ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 days ago

  • A promise kept: govt pulls the plug on Lake Onslow scheme – but this saving of $16bn is denounced...
    Buzz from the Beehive After $21.8 million was spent on investigations, the plug has been pulled on the Lake Onslow pumped-hydro electricity scheme, The scheme –  that technically could have solved New Zealand’s looming energy shortage, according to its champions – was a key part of the defeated Labour government’s ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago

  • CHRIS TROTTER: The Maori Party and Oath of Allegiance
    If those elected to the Māori Seats refuse to take them, then what possible reason could the country have for retaining them?   Chris Trotter writes – Christmas is fast approaching, which, as it does every year, means gearing up for an abstruse general knowledge question. “Who was ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago

  • BRIAN EASTON:  Forward to 2017
    The coalition party agreements are mainly about returning to 2017 when National lost power. They show commonalities but also some serious divergencies. Brian Easton writes – The two coalition agreements – one National and ACT, the other National and New Zealand First – are more than policy documents. ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago

  • Climate Change: Fossils
    When the new government promised to allow new offshore oil and gas exploration, they were warned that there would be international criticism and reputational damage. Naturally, they arrogantly denied any possibility that that would happen. And then they finally turned up at COP, to criticism from Palau, and a "fossil ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago

  • GEOFFREY MILLER:  NZ’s foreign policy resets on AUKUS, Gaza and Ukraine
    Geoffrey Miller writes – New Zealand’s international relations are under new management. And Winston Peters, the new foreign minister, is already setting a change agenda. As expected, this includes a more pro-US positioning when it comes to the Pacific – where Peters will be picking up where he ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago

  • Gordon Campbell on the government’s smokefree laws debacle
    The most charitable explanation for National’s behaviour over the smokefree legislation is that they have dutifully fulfilled the wishes of the Big Tobacco lobby and then cast around – incompetently, as it turns out – for excuses that might sell this health policy U-turn to the public. The less charitable ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    5 days ago

  • Top 10 links at 10 am for Monday, December 4
    As Deb Te Kawa writes in an op-ed, the new Government seems to have immediately bought itself fights with just about everyone. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Here’s my pick of the top 10 news and analysis links elsewhere as of 10 am on Monday December 4, including:Palau’s President ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago

  • Be Honest.
    Let’s begin today by thinking about job interviews.During my career in Software Development I must have interviewed hundreds of people, hired at least a hundred, but few stick in the memory.I remember one guy who was so laid back he was practically horizontal, leaning back in his chair until his ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago

  • Geoffrey Miller: New Zealand’s foreign policy resets on AUKUS, Gaza and Ukraine
    New Zealand’s international relations are under new management. And Winston Peters, the new foreign minister, is already setting a change agenda. As expected, this includes a more pro-US positioning when it comes to the Pacific – where Peters will be picking up where he left off. Peters sought to align ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    6 days ago

  • Auckland rail tunnel the world’s most expensive
    Auckland’s city rail link is the most expensive rail project in the world per km, and the CRL boss has described the cost of infrastructure construction in Aotearoa as a crisis. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The 3.5 km City Rail Link (CRL) tunnel under Auckland’s CBD has cost ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago

  • First big test coming
    The first big test of the new Government’s approach to Treaty matters is likely to be seen in the return of the Resource Management Act. RMA Minister Chris Bishop has confirmed that he intends to introduce legislation to repeal Labour’s recently passed Natural and Built Environments Act and its ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    6 days ago

  • The Song of Saqua: Volume III
    Time to revisit something I haven’t covered in a while: the D&D campaign, with Saqua the aquatic half-vampire. Last seen in July: https://phuulishfellow.wordpress.com/2023/07/27/the-song-of-saqua-volume-ii/ The delay is understandable, once one realises that the interim saw our DM come down with a life-threatening medical situation. They have since survived to make ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    6 days ago

  • Chris Bishop: Smokin’
    Yes. Correct. It was an election result. And now we are the elected government. ...
    My ThinksBy boonman
    6 days ago

  • 2023 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #48
    A chronological listing of news and opinion articles posted on the Skeptical Science  Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Nov 26, 2023 thru Dec 2, 2023. Story of the Week CO2 readings from Mauna Loa show failure to combat climate change Daily atmospheric carbon dioxide data from Hawaiian volcano more ...
    Skeptical Science
    6 days ago

  • Affirmative Action.
    Affirmative Action was a key theme at this election, although I don’t recall anyone using those particular words during the campaign.They’re positive words, and the way the topic was talked about was anything but. It certainly wasn’t a campaign of saying that Affirmative Action was a good thing, but that, ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    7 days ago

  • 100 days of something
    It was at the end of the Foxton straights, at the end of 1978, at 100km/h, that someone tried to grab me from behind on my Yamaha.They seemed to be yanking my backpack. My first thought was outrage. My second was: but how? Where have they come from? And my ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    7 days ago

  • Look who’s stepped up to champion Winston
    There’s no news to be gleaned from the government’s official website today  – it contains nothing more than the message about the site being under maintenance. The time this maintenance job is taking and the costs being incurred have us musing on the government’s commitment to an assault on inflation. ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 week ago

  • What's The Story?
    Don’t you sometimes wish they’d just tell the truth? No matter how abhorrent or ugly, just straight up tell us the truth?C’mon guys, what you’re doing is bad enough anyway, pretending you’re not is only adding insult to injury.Instead of all this bollocks about the Smokefree changes being to do ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago

  • The longest of weeks
    Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past week’s editions.Friday Under New Management Week in review, quiz style1. Which of these best describes Aotearoa?a. Progressive nation, proud of its egalitarian spirit and belief in a fair go b. Best little country on the planet c. ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 week ago

  • Suggested sessions of EGU24 to submit abstracts to
    Like earlier this year, members from our team will be involved with next year's General Assembly of the European Geosciences Union (EGU). The conference will take place on premise in Vienna as well as online from April 14 to 19, 2024. The session catalog has been available since November 1 ...
    Skeptical Science
    1 week ago

  • Under New Management
    1. Which of these best describes Aotearoa?a. Progressive nation, proud of its egalitarian spirit and belief in a fair go b. Best little country on the planet c. Under New Management 2. Which of these best describes the 100 days of action announced this week by the new government?a. Petulantb. Simplistic and wrongheaded c. ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 week ago

  • While we wait patiently, our new Minister of Education is up and going with a 100-day action plan
    Sorry to say, the government’s official website is still out of action. When Point of Order paid its daily visit, the message was the same as it has been for the past week: Site under maintenance Beehive.govt.nz is currently under maintenance. We will be back shortly. Thank you for your ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 week ago

  • DAVID FARRAR: Hysterical bullshit
    Radio NZ reports: Te Pāti Māori’s co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer has accused the new government of “deliberate .. systemic genocide” over its policies to roll back the smokefree policy and the Māori Health Authority. The left love hysterical language. If you oppose racial quotas in laws, you are a racist. And now if you sack ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 week ago

  • Ministers visit Hawke’s Bay to grasp recovery needs
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon joined Cyclone Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell and Transport and Local Government Minister Simeon Brown, to meet leaders of cyclone and flood-affected regions in the Hawke’s Bay. The visit reinforced the coalition Government’s commitment to support the region and better understand its ongoing requirements, Mr Mitchell says.  ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago

  • New Zealand condemns malicious cyber activity
    New Zealand has joined the UK and other partners in condemning malicious cyber activity conducted by the Russian Government, Minister Responsible for the Government Communications Security Bureau Judith Collins says. The statement follows the UK’s attribution today of malicious cyber activity impacting its domestic democratic institutions and processes, as well ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago

  • Disestablishment of Te Pūkenga begins
    The Government has begun the process of disestablishing Te Pūkenga as part of its 100-day plan, Minister for Tertiary Education and Skills Penny Simmonds says.  “I have started putting that plan into action and have met with the chair and chief Executive of Te Pūkenga to advise them of my ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Climate Change Minister to attend COP28 in Dubai
    Climate Change Minister Simon Watts will be leaving for Dubai today to attend COP28, the 28th annual UN climate summit, this week. Simon Watts says he will push for accelerated action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement, deliver New Zealand’s national statement and connect with partner countries, private sector leaders ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • New Zealand to host 2024 Pacific defence meeting
    Defence Minister Judith Collins yesterday announced New Zealand will host next year’s South Pacific Defence Ministers’ Meeting (SPDMM). “Having just returned from this year’s meeting in Nouméa, I witnessed first-hand the value of meeting with my Pacific counterparts to discuss regional security and defence matters. I welcome the opportunity to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Study shows need to remove distractions in class
    The Government is committed to lifting school achievement in the basics and that starts with removing distractions so young people can focus on their learning, Education Minister Erica Stanford says.   The 2022 PISA results released this week found that Kiwi kids ranked 5th in the world for being distracted ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Minister sets expectations of Commissioner
    Today I met with Police Commissioner Andrew Coster to set out my expectations, which he has agreed to, says Police Minister Mark Mitchell. Under section 16(1) of the Policing Act 2008, the Minister can expect the Police Commissioner to deliver on the Government’s direction and priorities, as now outlined in ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • New Zealand needs a strong and stable ETS
    New Zealand needs a strong and stable Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) that is well placed for the future, after emission units failed to sell for the fourth and final auction of the year, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says.  At today’s auction, 15 million New Zealand units (NZUs) – each ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • PISA results show urgent need to teach the basics
    With 2022 PISA results showing a decline in achievement, Education Minister Erica Stanford is confident that the Coalition Government’s 100-day plan for education will improve outcomes for Kiwi kids.  The 2022 PISA results show a significant decline in the performance of 15-year-old students in maths compared to 2018 and confirms ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Collins leaves for Pacific defence meeting
    Defence Minister Judith Collins today departed for New Caledonia to attend the 8th annual South Pacific Defence Ministers’ meeting (SPDMM). “This meeting is an excellent opportunity to meet face-to-face with my Pacific counterparts to discuss regional security matters and to demonstrate our ongoing commitment to the Pacific,” Judith Collins says. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Working for Families gets cost of living boost
    Putting more money in the pockets of hard-working families is a priority of this Coalition Government, starting with an increase to Working for Families, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says. “We are starting our 100-day plan with a laser focus on bringing down the cost of living, because that is what ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Post-Cabinet press conference
    Most weeks, following Cabinet, the Prime Minister holds a press conference for members of the Parliamentary Press Gallery. This page contains the transcripts from those press conferences, which are supplied by Hansard to the Office of the Prime Minister. It is important to note that the transcripts have not been edited ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Lake Onslow pumped hydro scheme scrapped
    The Government has axed the $16 billion Lake Onslow pumped hydro scheme championed by the previous government, Energy Minister Simeon Brown says. “This hugely wasteful project was pouring money down the drain at a time when we need to be reining in spending and focussing on rebuilding the economy and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago

  • NZ welcomes further pause in fighting in Gaza
    New Zealand welcomes the further one-day extension of the pause in fighting, which will allow the delivery of more urgently-needed humanitarian aid into Gaza and the release of more hostages, Foreign Minister Winston Peters said. “The human cost of the conflict is horrific, and New Zealand wants to see the violence ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Condolences on passing of Henry Kissinger
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters today expressed on behalf of the New Zealand Government his condolences to the family of former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, who has passed away at the age of 100 at his home in Connecticut. “While opinions on his legacy are varied, Secretary Kissinger was ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Backing our kids to learn the basics
    Every child deserves a world-leading education, and the Coalition Government is making that a priority as part of its 100-day plan. Education Minister Erica Stanford says that will start with banning cellphone use at school and ensuring all primary students spend one hour on reading, writing, and maths each day. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • US Business Summit Speech – Regional stability through trade
    I would like to begin by echoing the Prime Minister’s thanks to the organisers of this Summit, Fran O’Sullivan and the Auckland Business Chamber.  I want to also acknowledge the many leading exporters, sector representatives, diplomats, and other leaders we have joining us in the room. In particular, I would like ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Keynote Address to the United States Business Summit, Auckland
    Good morning. Thank you, Rosemary, for your warm introduction, and to Fran and Simon for this opportunity to make some brief comments about New Zealand’s relationship with the United States.  This is also a chance to acknowledge my colleague, Minister for Trade Todd McClay, Ambassador Tom Udall, Secretary of Foreign ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • India New Zealand Business Council Speech, India as a Strategic Priority
    Good morning, tēnā koutou and namaskar. Many thanks, Michael, for your warm welcome. I would like to acknowledge the work of the India New Zealand Business Council in facilitating today’s event and for the Council’s broader work in supporting a coordinated approach for lifting New Zealand-India relations. I want to also ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Coalition Government unveils 100-day plan
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has laid out the Coalition Government’s plan for its first 100 days from today. “The last few years have been incredibly tough for so many New Zealanders. People have put their trust in National, ACT and NZ First to steer them towards a better, more prosperous ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • New Zealand welcomes European Parliament vote on the NZ-EU Free Trade Agreement
    A significant milestone in ratifying the NZ-EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA) was reached last night, with 524 of the 705 member European Parliament voting in favour to approve the agreement. “I’m delighted to hear of the successful vote to approve the NZ-EU FTA in the European Parliament overnight. This is ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

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