NZ Beehive News / 新西兰国会快讯

Minister announces appointments to Te Māngai Pāho Board

Minister for Māori Development, Nanaia Mahuta, today announced the appointment of Paraone Gloyne, and the reappointment of Vanessa Clark to the Te Māngai Pāho Board.   Mr Gloyne brings a wealth of experience from his background as a Māori language advocate, teacher, composer, mentor, and broadcaster. His appointment to the Board will be welcome news to te reo advocates in the media sector.   “Paraone Gloyne has made incredible contributions to the revitalisation of te reo Māori, most notably through his creation of Mahuru Māori, his leadership of Mōtai Tangata Rau, and his work on Taringa, a bilingual podcast.   “I am confident that he will provide a valuable insight to the work of the Te Māngai Pāho Board,” said Hon Nanaia Mahuta.   Ms Clark has been reappointed as a member of the Board for a further three year term. She brings with her over 20 years of business and management experience specialising in the information and communication technology sector.   “Vanessa Clark is a conscientious and highly valued member of the Board. I thank her for the years of service she has already provided and welcome her back to this role. I know she will continue to contribute significantly to the work of Te Māngai Pāho,” said Nanaia Mahuta.   The Te Māngai Pāho Board consists of five members appointed by the Minister. Members serve three year terms and may be reappointed, as was the case for Ms Clark.                                                                 Notes to the Editor:   Paraone Gloyne (Ngāti Raukawa)   Mr Gloyne is a Māori language advocate, teacher, composer, mentor, and broadcaster, with a focus on language, custom, ceremonial calling, oratory and traditional songs. He has taught for more than 10 years at the national Kura Reo, and tutors at Te Whare Kōrero o Raukawa.   Mr Gloyne is a former student, and advocate, of Te Panekiretanga o te reo Māori (the Institute of Excellence in the Māori language), and works as the Pou Tikanga and Pou Reo Matua at Te Wānanga o Aotearoa campus in Te Awamutu, facilitating the internal Māori language strategy Reo Ora.   He was instrumental in the creation of Mahuru Māori, and is the announcer and programmer of Taringa, a bilingual podcast of Te Wānanga o Aotearoa.   Mr Gloyne is currently the Chairperson of the Tainui Waka Cultural Trust, delegate for Tainui to the National Committee of Te Matatini, member of the executive committee or Te Ara Wai: Te Whare Taonga Hou o Waipā. He is also the chairperson of the Te Taumatua of Mōtai Tangata Rau, and the Marae Committee of O-Tāwhao and is currently the organisers of the executive group of Te Ahu o Te Reo ki Tainui.   Vanessa Clark (Waikato-Tainui)   Vanessa Clark is an IT Professional with over 20 years of business and management experience with 15 years global experience in the Information and Communication Technology industry. She has extensive governance experience, and is a current member of the Māori ICT Development Fund Expert Advisory Group and an Associate Member of the Institute of Directors.   Ms Clark specialises predominantly in the information and communication technology sector, working to support Māori in ICT particularly, with innovative ICT solutions and start-up ICT businesses.   Kua pānui te Minita i ngā kopounga ki te Poari o Te Māngai Pāho I pānuitia e te Minita Whanaketanga Māori, a Nanaia Mahuta i te rangi nei te kopounga, arā, te whakatūnga o Paraone Gloyne, rāua ko Vanessa Clark ki te Poari o Te Māngai Pāho.   Haramai nei te tautōhito me ōna matatau, he kaitaunaki reo Māori, he kaiako, he kaitito waiata, he tauira, he kaipāpāho. Ka nui te pakipaki a ngā kaimanako reo i te rāngai pāpāho i te rongo kua riro i a ia tēnei tūranga ki te Poari.   “He whakamīharo ngā mahi a Paraone Gloyne ki te whakarauoratanga o te reo Māori, he mea nui te kaupapa Mahuru Māori nāna i tīmata, āna mahi tātaki i te rōpu o Mōtai Tangata Rau, me ana mahi i runga Taringa, he paohorangi reorua.   “E tino whakapono ana ahau e tino whai hua ai ngā mahi a te Poari o Te Māngai Pāho i ana mātau ki ēnei āhuatanga.   Kua whakahokia anō a Vanessa ki te Poari hei mema mō ngā tau e toru anō e tū mai nei. Mauria mai ana e ia te mātau o te rua tekau tau e mahi ana i roto i ngā pakihi me ngā mahi whakahaere, he mātanga ia i te rāngai hangarau mōhiohio, whakawhitiwhiti kōrero.   “He mema ihupuku he mema tino kura nei o te Poari a Vanessa Clark.  Kei te mihi ki ngā tau i a ia e whakapeto ngoi ana ki ngā mahi nei, e tāwhiri nei taku reo ki tana hokinga mai ki tēnei tūranga. Mōhio kē au ka haere tonu ana whakapau kaha, tana whakaheke werawera ki ngā mahi a Te Māngai Pāho te take me ōna hua katoa,” te kī a Nanaia Mahuta.   E rima ngā mema o te Poari a Te Māngai Pāho nā te Minita rā i whakatū. E toru tau te roa o ngā wāhanga ki ia mema, ā, e āhei ana kia kopoungatia anōtia, pērā i a Vanessa.       He taipitopito kōrero ki te Ētita:   Paraone Gloyne (Ngāti Raukawa)   He kaimanaaki reo Māori a Paraone, he kaiako, he kaitito, he tauira, he kaipāpāho, e aronui ana ki te reo, ki ngā tikanga, ngā karanga, te whaikōrero me ngā waiata tawhito. He kaiako ia i ngā kura reo mō te tekau tau ki ngā Kura Reo ā-motu, he kaiako hoki ia ki Te Whare Kōrero o Raukawa.   He ākonga i mua ia, he kaimanaaki hoki ia o Te Panekiretanga o te reo Māori, ā, kei te mahi ia hei Pou Tikanga, hei Pou Reo Matua ki Te Wānanga o Aotearoa ki Te Awamutu, e whakahaere ana i te rautaki reo Māori ā-roto a Reo Ora.   Nāna te kaupapa o Mahuru Māori i tīmata, ko ia te kaipāpāho, te kaiwhakarite hōtaka hoki o te kaupapa Taringa, he paohorangi reorua nā Te Wānanga o Aotearoa.   I tēnei wā ko te Heamana a Paraone o te Tainui Waka Cultural Trust, he māngai mō Tainui i runga i te Komiti ā-Motu o Te Matatini, he mema hoki ia o te komiti matua o Te Ara Wai: Te Whare Taonga Hou o Waipā. Ko ia hoki te heamana o Te Taumatua o Mōtai Tangata Rau, me te Komiti Marae o O-Tāwhao, ā, ko te kaiwhakarite hoki ia i tēnei wā o te rōpū matua o Te Ahu o Te Reo ki Tainui.   Vanessa Clark (Waikato-Tainui)   He Mātanga Hangarau a Vanessa Clark 20 tau ia e mahi ana i ngā pakihi me ngā mahi whakahaere me te 15 tau e mahi huri noa ana i te ao i te ahumahi Hangarau Mōhiohio, Whakawhitiwhiti Kōrero.  He tino taunga ia ki ngā mahi mana poari, he mema ia i tēnei wā o te Māori ICT Development Fund Expert Advisory Group, ā, he Mema Whakahoa o te Institute of Directors.   He mātanga a Vanessa i te rāngai hangarau mōhiohio, whakawhitiwhiti kōrero, e mahi ana ki te tautoko i ngā Māori i te ao Hangarau, ina koa, ki ngā rongoā Hangarau auaha, ki te whakatū pihinga pakihi Hangarau anō hoki.    

Source: Releases | 18 Aug 2019 | 3:06 pm

Powering up community wellbeing

Minister of Local Government Hon Nanaia Mahuta has announced a far-reaching programme to support New Zealand communities realise their ambitions, goals and potential. “This year  we introduced the four well-beings -- social, economic, environmental and cultural priorities -- into the fabric of local government. We will now be working closely with councils and communities to power up the ways they can articulate and realise the things that matter most to them,’’ Nanaia Mahuta says. Specific options to be explored as part of the programme include: Increasing local government’s involvement in the design and targeting of public services provided by central government; Placing more emphasis on the ongoing relationship between councils and communities as the basis for community participation;  Innovative ways of conducting community participation and building the capability to support it; Aiming for more effective and meaningful council relationships with Māori; Ensuring council plans prioritise community wellbeing and are driven by robust data.   “We know that councils never stopped working on these critical aspects of community life, but we believe there is more that can be achieved by focusing on some key aspects of local decision-making.’’ The range of outcomes that could follow would depend on individual community preferences, but could include regional growth, socially inclusive and resilient communities, a healthier environment and support for appropriate community infrastructure. “Our Government is committed to a strong, robust local government sector focused on wellbeing.   “Although there are good examples of innovative practices in the system already, we want to work with local government to broaden and accelerate their uptake. “We recognise that beyond certain ‘universal’ needs, different communities have different priorities. This work will ensure our communities are empowered to enrich, not only their own lives, but to strengthen local democracy and make it more relevant,” says Nanaia Mahuta. Related Cabinet paper and minute: https://www.dia.govt.nz/Central-Local-Government-Partnership     Questions and Answers Q: Why is this programme necessary? A: To achieve maximum wellbeing for our communities, we must encourage best practice across some key aspects of local decision-making.  We need: better alignment between central and local government in the provision of public services; to facilitate the inclusion of wellbeing priorities and good data in council planning; and, importantly, we need to promote effective community participation and partnership with Māori on the decisions and issues that impact their own wellbeing.  Q: What outcomes do you expect to achieve through it?A: Ultimately, there are a wide range of outcomes that we would expect to see including regional growth, socially inclusive resilient communities and increased environmental responsiveness but these will depend on community preferences. Q: How do you intend to work with local government on this?A:  Over the next few months, we intend to establish working groups with local government practitioners to help develop policy options.  I would then look to discuss these options with local government leaders early in 2020. Q: What happens then, and what are the anticipated timelines?A:  We are hoping to refine the policy options during the early part of 2020 and announce specific initiatives in partnership with the local government sector by May next year. Q: How does this relate to the Government’s other local government work programmes?A: All our local government programmes are about working with local government to improve intergenerational wellbeing and make New Zealand a better place for all New Zealanders. This includes having a fit-for-purpose local government financing and funding system, working together to build community resilience and mitigate the effects of climate change, making sure all New Zealanders have access to safe drinking water, ensuring high-growth councils have the tools to provide necessary infrastructure, supporting councils to achieve more effective relationships with Māori, and developing strategies to assist communities impacted by high tourism demand.    Q: Does this programme take account of Local Government New Zealand’s “Localism’’ project and if so how?A: Many of the aims and goals of this programme coincide and overlap with LGNZ’s localism project. In many respects we are on the same page. We do not believe, however, that formal devolution is an effective answer to the challenges we all face at the local level. There is much more we can do to broaden and accelerate the excellent work that most councils already do towards community wellbeing.   

Source: Releases | 18 Aug 2019 | 2:17 pm

Agriculture Minister announces members of winter grazing taskforce

Minister of Agriculture Damien O’Connor today announced the members of the newly established taskforce to respond to the animal welfare issues associated with the practice of winter grazing. The 10 members are: Independent Chair: Dr John Hellstrom, ONZM Dr Arnja Dale, Chief Scientific Adviser, SPCA Dr Helen Beattie, Chief Veterinary Officer, NZ Veterinary Association Dr Stephen Hopkinson, dairy cattle vet & NZ Veterinary Association Angus Robson, environment campaigner Dr Ross Monaghan, Senior Scientist, AgResearch Elaine Cook, Dairy NZ Dave Harrison, Beef+Lamb NZ Ewen Mathieson, dairy farmer, Southland Pania King, sheep & beef farmer, Gisborne “My expectation of this group is to do a stocktake of the multiple initiatives that are already underway to promote good winter grazing practices and identify why these are not currently working for all. Then we need to come up with actions as to how we can get farmers where they should be. “The taskforce will draw on advice and expertise from various groups and individuals across the country who can inform and challenge the taskforce’s thinking”. The group will provide an initial report back to the Minister by the end of August and will work on a plan of action by the end of September.

Source: Releases | 18 Aug 2019 | 1:00 pm

More measures to help those facing homelessness

The Government has announced additional measures to prevent and reduce homelessness focused on ensuring at-risk individuals and whānau have access to stable housing and continue to stay housed. Associate Minister of Housing, Kris Faafoi, and Minister of Social Development, Carmel Sepuloni, have announced $54 million in Government funding for initiatives which will support at-risk individuals and whānau to stay in their existing tenancies. The funding will also provide additional wrap around services. Strengthening ways to reduce homelessness and prevent it complements the Government’s existing investment in the Housing First Programme which supports people with multiple, high and complex needs who have been, or are already homeless. “These initiatives are part of this Government’s pledge to end homelessness and improve the wellbeing of New Zealanders and their whānau through safe, warm, dry homes,” Minister Faafoi said. “As part of our work on homelessness we are expanding the Sustaining Tenancies programme. It ensures that tenants who may be at-risk of losing their tenancy receive practical support to help them get back on track. “That support includes budget advice, property maintenance, and mental health and addiction support, with the goal of helping people remain in their existing homes. “Sustaining Tenancies is a key prevention initiative and we are keen to see it continue with the support of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development,” Minister Faafoi said. “The Ministry of Social Development (MSD) will be giving targeted support for families with children and people with mental health needs who are living in emergency motel accommodation, or who are at high risk of homelessness, says Minister Sepuloni. “MSD has identified a distinct group of people that face a range of complex issues that are a barrier to finding and keeping a home of their own, such as mental health and addictions, criminal history, or family violence. “We will be supporting these people building their resilience and wellbeing, to break the cycle of homelessness through targeted on the ground support. “The Government is investing $31 million over the next four years for 67 intensive case managers and navigators to work with these people and a further $16 million for increased social services,” Minister Sepuloni said. Ministers Faafoi and Sepuloni described these Government initiatives as pragmatic steps towards ending homelessness in New Zealand, which will be taken in partnership with the wider sector. “We are stepping in where we see an immediate need to support vulnerable people, while we develop a longer-term approach to see homelessness prevented, or at least rare, brief and non-recurring,” they said.   Housing First is a proven, internationally recognised approach to house and support people experiencing homelessness, who have multiple, high and complex needs. The approach is to provide housing quickly then offer tailored support for as long as it’s needed to help people stay housed and help deal with the issues that led to their homelessness. Budget 2019 provided $197 million funding to strengthen the Housing First programmes in Whangarei, mid Far North, Auckland, Hamilton, Rotorua, Tauranga, Hawkes Bay, Wellington and the Hutt, Nelson, Blenheim, and Christchurch. At the end of June 2019 - 806 households have been housed through the Housing First programme. So far, 1,216 households have been accepted into the programme. Sustaining Tenancies is a prevention programme which provides practical support to households to help them retain their tenancies. Currently it is only available for public housing tenants in three locations. However, as part of the increased investment, we will be expanding the service to support five new regions and we will also be rolling it out to private market rentals. The Sustaining Tenancies programme has been trial funding eight providers in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch to support approximately 550 public housing tenants. The trial helped to reduce reliance on transitional and emergency housing support, prevent rates of homelessness from increasing, which improves wellbeing for individuals, families and whānau - including positive outcomes on employment, relationships, education and health. It also reduces pressures/costs on other parts of the state care system, such as Health and Corrections. In the short-term, the Government is investing $6.6 million over 2 years year to support up to 550 at risk households per year. Intensive case managers will be dedicated to supporting families experiencing homelessness who have children, people with mental health needs experiencing homelessness, and people with a history of cycling in and out of emergency housing. An intensive case manager will be an MSD staff member and take an holistic approach to people’s needs to reduce housing instability. The Government is investing $31.28 million over four years into this wrap around support. Navigators will assist where people need more support than an intensive case manager can offer. Navigators will co-ordinate services and provide on-going support for people with housing needs. Navigators will work with providers, health professionals, and government agencies and community organisations. Navigators will be from a local community organisation contracted by MSD. The Government is investing $16.10 million over four years into this programme.

Source: Releases | 18 Aug 2019 | 10:38 am

Next stage of Network Enabled Army programme to begin

Defence Minister Ron Mark has today announced Tranche Two of the Network Enabled Army programme has been approved and will commence this year. “The Network Enabled Army project is transforming our Army,” says Ron Mark. “It gives our men and women in uniform the tools they need to function in today’s dynamic and fast moving environment. We no longer will have an analogue Army operating in a digital world. “The programme equips the Army with a wide range of hardware and software; this includes radios and satellite terminals, through to command posts and power generators. It will provide the modern secure digital services the Army needs to get the job done, in remote locations and austere environments. “This will allow better command and control on operations, maximising our resources in order to achieve more. “It obviously has applications on a battlefield, but it also will provide a fantastic resource on Humanitarian and Disaster Relief operations, enhancing better decision making so commanders can best allocate resources and get real time information on the support that’s required on the ground,” says Ron Mark. Tranche One of the programme commenced in 2015 and is being successfully implemented. Tranche Two expands the capabilities to more units and personnel, and enhances capabilities through new intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities. “Network Enabled Army has been tested, integrated, and been subject to robust experimentation. We have deployed Network Enabled Army systems on exercises with our partners, and we know it is interoperable. We have already used it in support of disaster relief missions in the Pacific. Tranche Two represents a capital investment of up to $106 million and will be rolled out over the next four years. This investment is from within NZDF baseline funding.   “Tranche Two provides more capabilities to more people, as part of a progressive development of our network capabilities, incorporating new technology as it becomes available. Network Enabled Army is the most important Army capability outlined in the Defence Capability Plan 2019. “Cabinet’s approval of Tranche Two reinforces the Coalition Government’s continuing commitment to the men and women of the Defence Force, helping them respond on our behalf quickly, effectively and safely whatever the situation,” says Ron Mark.

Source: Releases | 17 Aug 2019 | 10:03 am

Funding boosted for new English speakers in schools

More children and young people who migrate to New Zealand will benefit from specialised support to learn English, thanks to a $13.2 million increase in funding announced today by Associate Education Minister Jenny Salesa. Being able to communicate effectively in English is vital for students’ sense of wellbeing and belonging, as well as being vital for them to succeed with their education, Minister Salesa says.  “Overseas research shows that children and young people who don’t speak English need targeted, intensive support so they can access the curriculum. Mainstream teaching in a classroom with other students just isn’t enough on its own. “English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) provision in schools also includes encouraging and nurturing students’ first languages. Research shows that students who maintain a strong first language have a better chance of succeeding in English. “In New Zealand, studies show that migrant students who receive our ESOL support achieve NCEA Level 2 to the same extent as students who are native speakers of English. “Succeeding at school makes it easier to gain further qualifications and meaningful employment. For refugee and migrant families, having their children happy and successful at school also reduces stress. “Today’s announcement of an additional $13.2 million in new funding follows the extra $34.5 million allocated for ESOL in Budget 2018, bringing the total increase to $47.7 million.  These increases will help us meet increased demand in primary and secondary schools. “We currently support around 49,000 school pupils from 162 different ethnic groups with our high-quality ESOL programmes. This is expected to increase to 62,000 learners by 2023,” Jenny Salesa says. Note for Editors Students from refugee and migrant backgrounds who speak a language other than English in the home are eligible for ESOL funding, if their English proficiency is below the benchmark for their year level.  New Zealand-born students of migrant parents are eligible for up to three years’ support, and overseas-born migrants for up to five years.

Source: Releases | 16 Aug 2019 | 2:40 pm

New Te Aho o Te Kura Pounamu Board Chair appointed

Education Minister Chris Hipkins has announced the appointment of the new Chair to the Board of Trustees for Te Aho o Te Kura Pounamu (Te Kura) and has acknowledged the leadership of Dame Karen Sewell, who is stepping down from the role after seven years. Barbara Ala’alatoa, the former Chair of the Education Council and member of the Tomorrow’s Schools Independent Taskforce, has been appointed as a Te Kura Board of trustee member and will step into the Chair role in September 2019 when Dame Karen Sewell’s term ends. Ms Ala’alatoa has been the principal of Sylvia Park School in South Auckland since 2006. “I am delighted with Barbara’s appointment. Barbara is an outstanding educational leader who will take forward Te Kura’s plans to lift achievement, wellbeing and sense of belonging for students at our largest school,” Chris Hipkins said. “Barbara will bring to the board a wealth of experience in governance, primary education and teacher training. Barbara also brings her cultural knowledge and understanding of the diverse student body enrolled in Te Kura. Dame Karen Sewell has been Chair of Te Kura since 2012.   During her tenure as Chair she has helped the organisation move to an online learning delivery model and new learning programmes based on the Big Picture learning philosophy support those most at risk of leaving education. “I would like to thank Dame Karen for the time and energy she has given to her role. The Board’s accomplishments during her tenure have been immense due to the changes she has led in the education system and the passion that she has for education.  Dame Karen has a strong commitment to improving educational outcomes for Māori and Pasifika students and her legacy will benefit Te Kura for many years into the future,” Chris Hipkins said. About Te Aho O Te Kura Pounamu (Te Kura) Te Kura offers quality distance education for all ages, from early childhood education through to year 13, second chance learning and trades training. It serves approximately 20,000 students.  It works in partnership with students, whānau, school and communities to support students to achieve their educational and personal goals. Information about Te Kura can be found at: https://www.tekura.school.nz/about-us/who-we-are/about-te-kura/

Source: Releases | 16 Aug 2019 | 1:00 pm

Māori community and employer perspectives on tertiary education – call for nominations

The Government is seeking nominations for Te Taumata Aronui, a group which will help develop tertiary education, including the reform of vocational education, from Māori community and employer perspectives, Education Minister Chris Hipkins said today. “We have heard through engagement and consultation on the Reform of Vocational Education and in the wider Education Conversation | Kōrero Mātauranga that Māori want to be involved in the Crown’s work to re-design our education system so it works better for Māori,” Chris Hipkins said. “We have also heard that the education system, and the vocational education and training system in particular, has not served Māori learners and communities well and does not respond to their needs.” The new group was announced as part of the vocational education reform decisions released on 1 August. It will work with and provide independent recommendations and advice to Ministers and officials on how tertiary education can respond better to the needs of Māori learners and communities was announced. “This is an opportunity for Māori and the Crown to work more closely on changes to the tertiary education system. This will also help to better recognise the needs of Māori communities and acknowledge that Māori are significant employers with social and economic goals,” Chris Hipkins said. The working name of this group is Te Taumata Aronui. “The initial focus of Te Taumata Aronui will be on the reform of vocational education as it is important that we get it right for Māori when we design the new vocational education system and its key organisations. This group will help ensure the reforms reflect the Government’s commitment to Māori Crown partnerships.” The Government is looking for around 8-10 people with a mix of skills, knowledge of and experience in working collaboratively with, and providing a perspective of: Māori learners, whānau and iwi Māori social and economic development Māori industry, education and employment, and mātauranga Māori. It will also be important that the mix of skills, knowledge and experience also includes: Te Tiriti o Waitangi and its implications for government policy improving outcomes for learners and whānau working collaboratively generally government policy and associated processes, and the tertiary education system, including its interface with the schooling sector and vocational education. Nominations are sought from across Aotearoa, from all ages and genders. Nominations for the Chair or group members should be sent to the Ministry of Education at Tertiary.Strategy@education.govt.nz by 6 September 2019. People can nominate themselves and/or others.

Source: Releases | 16 Aug 2019 | 11:48 am

Virtual reality tool game changer for training New Zealanders on benefit

Construction businesses in partnership with the Ministry of Social Development will start using virtual reality technology to prepare people for jobs in the industry, Minister for Social Development Carmel Sepuloni and Employment Minister Willie Jackson announced today. “This government is committed to upskilling and preparing people on benefit so they can access jobs in industries where there are shortages like Construction and today’s announcement is a game changer,” Carmel Sepuloni said. “The use of virtual technology will allow us to prepare more people for roles in the industry anytime, anywhere and will save time and money. “By using the virtual reality headset, a person can test their skills driving a dump truck or operating a digger or managing traffic on a work site. The experience of doing a particular activity in virtual reality is an effective way of practising some crucial skills required for the job, safely and in a cost-effective way. “Employers win too. The selection process for employers is streamlined because they can quickly see if a potential employee has the right skills before employing them. “The tool will also help people with limited numeracy and literacy skills who respond well to learning and training through gamification and that will allow us to upskill and prepare more New Zealanders for employment,” Carmel Sepuloni said. Minister of Employment Willie Jackson says this latest initiative is part of the government’s employment strategy to support industries and regions to thrive by ensuring they are well served by the skills and training system. “Business groups and industry have worked with MSD to develop the tool so that it’s fit for purpose and meets the needs of the client and the construction industry. “We are committed to helping employers find skilled workers and the focus on the construction industry is particularly important given the need to improve capacity and capability,” Willie Jackson said. MSD has partnered with Joy Business Academy and industry partners including Civil Contractors New Zealand, Prefab NZ, Downer, HEB, Evolution Road Services, Fulton Hogan, Wilson Earthmoving Group, Fletcher Living, Construction Health and Safety New Zealand and Concision to develop the tool. The pilot starts in September-October and will be rolled out to more industry partners and MSD service centres in due course.

Source: Releases | 16 Aug 2019 | 11:41 am

Kaikohe benefits from skills and employment boost

The Kaikohe community is set to benefit from the establishment of a wide-ranging skills and employment programme, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones announced today. The Provincial Growth Fund will invest $3 million over three years in the Accelerating our Capability programme, which supports Kaikohe locals who are not in education, employment or training (NEET). “Kaikohe is a town which faces significant economic and social challenges, including a high rate of people who are not earning or learning. Initiatives like this one are the circuit breaker that families need to get out of the intergenerational cycle of poverty, and into long-term employment,” Shane Jones said. “The unemployment rate in Northland has decreased from 7.1 percent to 5.1 percent in the last few months which is a great result. The Coalition Government is committed to continuing on this good path by supporting projects like the Accelerating our Capability programme to get even more people into training or work. “The programme will consist of three initiatives in the areas of industry-based training, horticulture and viticulture. The industry-based training initiative will involve setting up a training centre to provide skills training to people based on the needs of industry and employers in the Kaikohe area. “The horticulture initiative is an extension of the successful Mangatoa Station Forestry and Ecological Restoration project which was funded by our He Poutama Rangatahi programme previously. The additional funding will extend this youth programme so that it serves people of all ages.” “The viticulture initiative will consist of a training programme based on a vineyard which will help prepare Kaikohe locals for skilled jobs in the industry. The programme will continue for ten years, well beyond the three years of PGF funding as a result of co-contributions from other funders. “We’re proud that the PGF has acted as a catalyst for this programme so that it can continue well into the future, for the benefit of the Kaikohe community,” Shane Jones said. Employment Minister Willie Jackson said that the project is a welcome addition to the region. “Up to 145 people and their families are likely to benefit from the project over the three year period of PGF support, which will improve employment outcomes across Kaikohe” “This investment reflects our commitment to lift up the people in some of our most disadvantaged communities and get them onto a path to sustained employment. It builds on previous funding, and this new project is one which we’re proud to support,” Willie Jackson said. The funding comes from the PGF Te Ara Mahi allocation dedicated to supporting projects that improve skills, employment and capability in the region. Notes to editors: Funding from the Provincial Growth Fund is approved in principle and announced, after which contracts are negotiated. Some funding may depend on completion of business cases. Payments are made once agreed milestones are met. These are set as part of contract negotiations, and differ from project to project.

Source: Releases | 16 Aug 2019 | 11:30 am

Speech for Environmental Defence Society workshop

Introduction Thank you for the invitation to attend your water reform pre-conference workshop this afternoon. In the previous session, you heard about and discussed the ongoing reforms in the freshwater space, including the Government’s Essential Freshwater programme. As you would have heard, Essential Freshwater is the result of this Government’s clear mandate to stop the degradation of our waterways, and to restore them to a healthy state. Combined with our comprehensive review of the Resource Management Act, this Government is committed to better environmental outcomes for Aotearoa/New Zealand. As both Minister of Local Government and Associate Minister for the Environment, I have a keen interest in improving water quality and biodiversity – particularly in urban environments – and in upholding Te Mana o Te Wai – the health of the water, the health of the environment, and the health of the people. As you’re aware, the Essential Freshwater reforms are not happening in isolation, but are proceeding in tandem with the Three Waters Review, which is the focus of this session and my discussion with you this afternoon. Link to freshwater reforms and case for change I want to acknowledge that from a Māori world view – water is water , and there are clear overlaps between both programmes of work led by my colleague David Parker and myself. As the lead Minister for the Three Waters Review, I’m well aware of the importance of a joined up and holistic approach to these reforms, cognisant that whatever we do in one area will impact on other parts of the environment. That’s why officials and Ministers are working closely together on both pieces of work. I also accept that, in different circumstances, we’d have one programme of water reform, and there would be no need for the two separate sessions we’re having this afternoon. However, concerns about the safety of our drinking water supplies – most notably the outbreak of gastroenteritis in Havelock North in 2016 – necessitated the establishment of the Three Waters Review. The Havelock North Inquiry found that more than 5000 people became ill as a result of this incident, with four associated deaths. Even putting this event to one side, around 34,000 people across New Zealand become ill from their drinking water every year, and many thousands must boil their water to drink it safely. For a developed country in the 21st century, this is shocking and untenable – the safety of drinking water supply to our communities is non-negotiable. That’s why, as a cross-government priority project, the Three Waters Review has been proceeding on a more urgent timeframe than the wider freshwater reforms. Although drinking water is the priority, the challenges stretch past drinking water. You’ll all be aware of the rate of wastewater discharge non-compliance, and the numerous examples of waste and stormwater treatment failures. These incidents are all too common across the country. Wherever they live, New Zealanders want to be able to swim in our lakes, rivers and the sea, or collect kai moana, without fear of getting sick from poorly treated or overflowing wastewater. The status quo is simply not meeting these expectations, nor is it protecting our invaluable clean, green image. We want to protect our freshwater and marine environments. One way of doing that is to lift the environmental performance of our waste and stormwater systems. Just as our environment is a holistic system, we need to address the challenges with our three waters system in an holistic way –also from source to tap and back again. Three waters regulatory reforms The existing legislation governing our three waters system is characterised by weak or fragmented regulation, and a lack of enforcement. Addressing these immediate regulatory deficiencies has been the priority of the Three Waters Review. This Government has approved a suite of regulatory reforms to help ensure safe drinking water and deliver improved environmental outcomes. We’re introducing a new regulatory framework for drinking water, including: an extension of the regulations to all drinking water suppliers, except individual household self-suppliers; a multi-barrier approach to drinking water safety, including mandatory disinfection of water supplies, with exemptions only in limited circumstances; stronger obligations on water suppliers and local authorities to manage risks to sources of drinking water; and Strengthened compliance, monitoring and enforcement of drinking water regulation. While regional councils will remain the primary regulators for the environment, there will be stronger central stewardship of wastewater and stormwater regulation, including: requirements for wastewater and stormwater operators to report annually on a set of national environmental performance measures; national good practice guidelines for the design and management of waste and stormwater networks; and monitoring of emerging contaminants in wastewater and stormwater, and coordinating national responses where necessary. We’re also proposing a new national environmental standard for the treatment and management of wastewater discharges and overflows. This standard may allow regional councils to set more stringent consent conditions, where needed, to meet national or regional objectives for fresh and coastal waters. It is also expected to support community and tangata whenua values for downstream waterbodies.   We’re planning to provide more information on this proposed new standard as part of the Essential Freshwater programme. These environmental measures reflect our clear mandate to deliver greater oversight, guidance and stewardship in the management of waste and stormwater, and improved environmental performance of municipal systems. Central regulator The Government has also announced the establishment of a dedicated water services regulator to help ensure safe drinking water, underpin community wellbeing, and enhance our country’s clean-green image. The new water regulator will have a range of responsibilities and functions, including: sector leadership; compliance, monitoring and enforcement of drinking water; capability building; information, advice and education; and performance reporting. The details of the institutional form and scope of the regulator – including whether to include regulation of all three waters within a single regulator, or separate entities – will be the subject of further Cabinet consideration in September. Although the details are still being worked through, I expect the regulator to play a key role in sector leadership, including working with organisations such as EDS to ensure the three waters regulatory system is supporting good environmental outcomes. I also expect the regulator to provide guidance and support for water managers and engineers working across all three waters to support compliance with new regulations. Timeframes and transitional arrangements The majority of these reforms – including the new water regulator – will require legislation to implement. We’re aiming to introduce a Water Services Bill by the end of the year, with possible enactment by mid-2020. It’s acknowledged that it may be challenging for some drinking water suppliers – particularly some smaller councils and community suppliers – to comply with their new obligations. This will be managed by allowing for assistance and time to achieve compliance. This includes a proposed five-year transition period to allow smaller suppliers to come up to speed with the new requirements. Addressing funding and capability issues While we’re addressing the immediate regulatory issues, it’s clear there are wider affordability and capability challenges facing the sector. This is highlighted by the historic underinvestment in our water infrastructure. For example: Indicative research indicates that it could cost between $300 and $570 million to upgrade drinking water treatment plants to comply with drinking water standards. In addition, further yet-to-be-completed research shows an indicative cost of between $3 billion to $4 billion to upgrade wastewater treatment systems over the coming years. The challenge we face is that some of our smaller councils and communities, and many non-council drinking water suppliers, such as marae, are not well-positioned to meet these upgrade costs.  We need to ensure communities can receive safe, reliable, culturally-acceptable three waters services in an affordable way. Throughout 2019 and into 2020, my officials will be having conversations with local government, water industry experts, iwi/Māori and others about options to improve three waters service delivery and funding arrangements. This may include thinking differently about how these services are delivered and paid for, including options for sharing costs across communities, or a nationwide fund. Cabinet will consider further advice on these matters at the end of the year. Regardless of what options are considered, the continued public ownership of existing three waters assets will be a bottom line. Support for voluntary initiatives  At the same time, we’re looking at ways to support councils and regions that are investigating collaborative initiatives to improve their water service delivery, including shared services across or within regions. It’s encouraging to see such initiatives already in progress, including: a recent agreement for Watercare to provide water services for the Waikato district; territorial authorities in the Waikato region developing a project plan for collaboration on three waters activities; South Wairarapa District Council joining with Wellington Water; Hawke’s Bay councils undertaking a Three Waters review; and Otago, Canterbury and West Coast councils taking a fresh look at how they manage three waters services for their regions. Closing remarks With these new regulatory measures I’ve outlined, we aim to ensure that New Zealanders can turn on the household tap and drink the water without fear of getting sick. At the same time, this system, from the source to tap and back again, must deliver improved outcomes for water quality, for our aquatic ecosystems and biodiversity, and for our people. I look forward to continued discussion and feedback on these issues. Tena Koutou Katoa. 

Source: Speeches | 16 Aug 2019 | 9:06 am

Speech - Community Finance five year celebration

It was on this day 5 years ago that a Community Finance pilot at two Auckland sites kicked off an innovative partnership between the Government, businesses and social sector. I congratulate BNZ, Good Shepherd New Zealand along with The Salvation Army, Vaka Tautua, AVIVA and Presbyterian Support Otago on their achievement - five successful years of Community Finance no-interest and low-interest lending. I support the vision that you all share and your commitment to helping our communities. I want to thank you for utilising your financial and business skills in order to help create this lending network. I want to acknowledge Frances Ronowitcz, head of BNZ Community Finance, Angie Mentiz, the CEO of BNZ, Diana Crossan, Chair of Good Shepard New Zealand and everyone who has been a part of this collaboration. Community Finance aims to help people in financial hardship to borrow safely. It provides affordable credit to individuals and whānau on low/medium incomes. This Community Finance partnership came out of a recommendation from the Expert Advisory Group on Solutions to Child Poverty. The work was then led by the Ministry of Social Development in conjunction with some greater partners. As a Government we value these partnerships between Govt agencies, NGOs and businesses and what they can offer to our communities. We are committed to genuine change to improve the wellbeing of New Zealanders and reduce hardship. Practical and in-demand support like this partnership is a mechanism to help achieve this, while fighting against the predatory lenders that prey on people, families, whanau and communities. As the Minister for Social Development, I want to support people to achieve their aspirations. From my experience talking to people who are in the welfare system, to Work and Income staff and to social service providers, there are often temporary barriers that prevent people from reaching their goals or that impact on their wellbeing. Things like having a reliable car that can make employment, doctors’ offices, childcare or family and friends easier to get to, or a laptop and text books in order to participate in a training course. A small loan can have a big impact on quality of life. But we know that safe and affordable ‘mainstream’ credit is often inaccessible due to unaffordability and high levels of existing debt. This leaves space for predatory lenders to take advantage of families impacted by hardship or in urgent need of cash flow, leading to often unmanageable cycles of debt. In situations like these, a safe affordable loan could make all the difference. Community Finance works is able to provide this solution. In addition to these community initiatives, the Government has been working on new measures to stop families falling into hardship caused by predatory lending. This includes new consumer credit legislation which is expected to come into force next year. I want to acknowledge the work of Minister Fa'afoi on this legislation, as well as the business unit at MBIE. I know some of you in the room will have submitted on this bill during select committee and I thank you for offering your insights and being a part of this change.   We have also been working on a framework to enable joined up responses from government, the financial services industry and the community sector to the ongoing issue of debt in our communities. The Ministry of Social Development has been working closely with the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment and Te Puni Kōkiri on a joint programme of work that builds an environment where more New Zealanders can achieve their goals and aspirations, free from problem debt. We want people and whanau to have clear pathways to accessing financial and non-financial tools and services that are affordable and appropriate to their needs. I want to finish by acknowledging the additional funding contributed by BNZ to expand the Community Finance partnership. I applaud your ambitions to continue to grow the network around the country and respond to the needs of low-income New Zealanders. I look forward to seeing how partnerships like this can continue to help New Zealanders to achieve their aspirations.

Source: Speeches | 13 Aug 2019 | 6:20 pm

Environmental Defence Society Speech

Speech for EDS workshop  – Three Waters reforms I would like to thank you for the invitation to attend your water reform pre-conference workshop this afternoon. I see that, in the previous session, you heard about and discussed the ongoing reforms in the freshwater space, including the Government’s Essential Freshwater programme. I hope that you all took a lot out of that session. As you would have heard, Essential Freshwater is the result of this Government’s clear mandate to stop the degradation of our waterways, and to restore them to a healthy state. Combined with our comprehensive review of the Resource Management Act, this Government is committed to better environmental outcomes for Aotearoa/New Zealand. As both Minister of Local Government and Associate Minister for the Environment, I have a keen interest in improving water quality and biodiversity – particularly in urban environments – and in upholding Te Mana o Te Wai – the health of the water, the health of the environment, and the health of the people. As you’re aware, the Essential Freshwater reforms are not happening in isolation, but are proceeding in tandem with the Three Waters Review, which is the focus of this session and my discussion with you this afternoon. I firstly want to acknowledge that wai is wai, and there are clear overlaps between both programmes of work. As the lead Minister for the Three Waters Review, I’m well aware of the importance of a joined up and holistic approach to these reforms, cognisant that whatever we do in one area will impact on other parts of the environment. That’s why officials and Ministers are working closely together on both pieces of work. I also accept that, in different circumstances, we’d have one programme of water reform, and there would be no need for the two separate sessions we’re having this afternoon. However, concerns about the safety of our drinking water supplies – most notably the outbreak of gastroenteritis in Havelock North in 2016 – necessitated the establishment of the Three Waters Review. The Havelock North Inquiry found that more than 5000 people became ill as a result of this incident, with four associated deaths. Even putting this event to one side, around 34,000 people across New Zealand become ill from their drinking water every year, and many thousands must boil their water to drink it safely. For a developed country in the 21st century, this is shocking and untenable – the safety of our communities is simply non-negotiable. That’s why, as a cross-government priority project, the Three Waters Review has been proceeding on a more urgent timeframe than the wider freshwater reforms. Although drinking water is the priority, the challenges stretch past drinking water. I’m sure you’ll all be aware of the rate of wastewater discharge non-compliance, and the numerous examples of waste and stormwater treatment failures. These incidents are all too common across the country. Wherever they live, New Zealanders want to be able to swim in our lakes, rivers and the sea, or collect kai moana, without fear of getting sick from poorly treated or overflowing wastewater. The status quo is simply not meeting these expectations, nor is it protecting our invaluable clean, green image. We want to protect our freshwater and marine environments. One way of doing that is to lift the environmental performance of our waste and stormwater systems. Just as our environment is an holistic system, so too must we address the challenges with our three waters system in an holistic way – from source to tap and back again.  Three waters regulatory reforms The existing legislation governing our three waters system is characterised by weak or fragmented regulation, and a lack of enforcement. Addressing these immediate regulatory deficiencies has been the priority of the Three Waters Review. This Government has approved a suite of regulatory reforms to help ensure safe drinking water and deliver improved environmental outcomes. We’re introducing a new regulatory framework for drinking water, including: an extension of the regulations to all drinking water suppliers, except individual household self-suppliers; a multi-barrier approach to drinking water safety, including mandatory disinfection of water supplies, with exemptions only in limited circumstances; stronger obligations on water suppliers and local authorities to manage risks to sources of drinking water; and Strengthened compliance, monitoring and enforcement of drinking water regulation. While regional councils will remain the primary regulators for the environment, there will be stronger central stewardship of wastewater and stormwater regulation, including: requirements for wastewater and stormwater operators to report annually on a set of national environmental performance measures; national good practice guidelines for the design and management of waste and stormwater networks; and monitoring of emerging contaminants in wastewater and stormwater, and coordinating national responses where necessary. We’re also proposing a new national environmental standard for the treatment and management of wastewater discharges and overflows. This standard may allow regional councils to set more stringent consent conditions, where needed, to meet national or regional objectives for fresh and coastal waters. It is also expected to support community and tangata whenua values for downstream waterbodies.   We’re planning to provide more information on this proposed new standard as part of the Essential Freshwater programme. These environmental measures reflect our clear mandate to deliver greater oversight, guidance and stewardship in the management of waste and stormwater, and improved environmental performance of municipal systems. Central regulator This Government has also announced the establishment of a dedicated water services regulator to help ensure safe drinking water, underpin community wellbeing, and enhance our country’s clean-green image. The new water regulator will have a range of responsibilities and functions, including: sector leadership; compliance, monitoring and enforcement of drinking water; capability building; information, advice and education; and performance reporting. The details of the institutional form and scope of the regulator – including whether to include regulation of all three waters within a single regulator, or separate entities – will be the subject of further Cabinet consideration in September. Although the details are still being worked through, I expect the regulator to play a key role in sector leadership, including working with organisations such as EDS to ensure the three waters regulatory system is supporting good environmental outcomes. I also expect the regulator to provide guidance and support for water managers and engineers working across all three waters to support compliance with new regulations. Timeframes and transitional arrangements The majority of these reforms – including the new water regulator – will require legislation to implement. We’re aiming to introduce a Water Services Bill by the end of the year, with possible enactment by mid-2020. It’s acknowledged that it may be challenging for some drinking water suppliers – particularly some smaller councils and community suppliers – to comply with their new obligations. This will be managed by allowing for assistance and time to achieve compliance. This includes a proposed five-year transition period to allow smaller suppliers to come up to speed with the new requirements. Addressing funding and capability issues While we’re addressing the immediate regulatory issues, it’s clear there are wider affordability and capability challenges facing the sector. This is highlighted by the historic underinvestment in our water infrastructure. For example: Indicative research indicates that it could cost between $300 and $570 million to upgrade drinking water treatment plants to comply with drinking water standards. In addition, further yet-to-be-completed research shows an indicative cost of between $3 billion to $4 billion to upgrade wastewater treatment systems over the coming years. The challenge we face is that some of our smaller councils and communities, and many non-council drinking water suppliers, such as marae, are not well-positioned to meet these upgrade costs.  We need to ensure communities can receive safe, reliable, culturally-acceptable three waters services in an affordable way. Throughout 2019 and into 2020, my officials will be having conversations with local government, water industry experts, iwi/Māori and others about options to improve three waters service delivery and funding arrangements. This may include thinking differently about how these services are delivered and paid for, including options for sharing costs across communities, or a nationwide fund. Cabinet will consider further advice on these matters at the end of the year. Regardless of what options are considered, the continued public ownership of existing three waters assets will be a bottom line. Support for voluntary initiatives At the same time, we’re looking at ways to support councils and regions that are investigating collaborative initiatives to improve their water service delivery, including shared services across or within regions. It’s encouraging to see such initiatives already in progress, including: a recent agreement for Watercare to provide water services for the Waikato district; territorial authorities in the Waikato region developing a project plan for collaboration on three waters activities; South Wairarapa District Council joining with Wellington Water; Hawke’s Bay councils undertaking a Three Waters review; and Otago, Canterbury and West Coast councils taking a fresh look at how they manage three waters services for their regions. Closing remarks With these new regulatory measures I’ve outlined, we aim to ensure that New Zealanders can turn on the household tap and drink the water without fear of getting sick. At the same time, this system, from the source to tap and back again, must deliver improved outcomes for water quality, for our aquatic ecosystems and biodiversity, and for our people. I’m happy to take any questions you may have on this work.

Source: Speeches | 13 Aug 2019 | 4:09 pm

Speech NZ Māori Tourism Dragon’s Den

 Mihi Hūtia te rito o te harakeke, kei hea te kōmako e kō, kī mai ki ahau, he aha te mea nui o te ao, māku e kī atu, he tangata, he tangata, he tangata. Kāti rā, tēnā huri noa tātou katoa. E ngā mana, e ngā reo, e ngā hapū kārangaranga, mihi mai rā. E ngā uri o Tahu Pōtiki me tōnā wahine rangatira a Hamo-te-Rangi, tēnei a Tainui waka e mihi kau atu nei. Ka tangi ki ngā tini aituā kei waenganui i a tātou. Ko tātou te kanohi ora e tau nei, ngā mahuetanga iho o rātou mā, tēnā rā tātou katoa.  Introduction Tēnā koutou katoa and warm greetings to you all. I acknowledge: The mana whenua of this land, Ngāi Tahu and Ngāi Tūahuriri Our hosts, New Zealand Māori Tourism Māori tourism operators Finalists in the Māori Tourism Dragons’ Den National Party Spokesperson. Ehara tāku toa i te toa takitahi.  Engari, he toa takitini.Success is not in the work of one, but the work of many. Tonight, we reflect on the message of this whakataukī , which is also in the NZ Māori Tourism logo. We acknowledge the success of individuals and individual businesses but we know that many have contributed to that journey with an equal amount of passion, ambition and determination for success. We also acknowledge that tonight is about networking and sharing ideas, and talking about the future of Māori tourism in Aotearoa, New Zealand. Tourism - Macro Tourism is our country’s biggest export industry, contributing to 21 percent of New Zealand’s foreign exchange earnings – earning around $34 billion to the country’s economy every year. Our tourism industry continues to grow, directly and indirectly employing 14.5 percent of our workforce in Aotearoa New Zealand. Over the last 10 years, Māori tourism earnings have increased from $0.5bn to $1.97bn. We know there are some kuru pounamu in the industry. Ngāi Tahu are a prime example as the largest tourism operator on the West Coast with a world class experience provided at Franz Josef. There is also plenty of scope for Māori tourism to continue growing adding a unique point of difference to the sector and enhancing the overall tourism experience and the product they are offering. A recent report showed that while we welcome three-million tourists to our shores every year only 54 percent of them reported they have had a unique Māori experience. A shift to indigenous tourism Globally, tourism is shifting towards a more holistic view of sustainability, authenticity and social outcomes – which are well aligned to Māori business practices. Governments internationally are also recognising that if their indigenous people do well, so does the entire community. In global markets, the distinctiveness of indigenous peoples’ products and services are enabling a competitive advantage from a country perspective with reciprocal opportunities for indigenous operators. Traditional knowledge, values and language sit at the centre of what is distinct and unique. In this context, the opportunities have never been greater for Māori and Māori tourism. To link this perspective to one of our greatest assets –Story telling. If these opportunities are grasped with both hands, through tourism and enterprise, the wellbeing of communities and Māori thrive. The way we link products and provenance, values and business models take on a very different feel. Māori culture is central to NZ tourism In Māori culture, manākitanga is a strong characteristic of our tourism offerings. This has always characterised who we are as Māori and is a huge draw card for international and local visitors. Our story as a country, what we value and how we share our home and country has taken on the themes of manākitanga and kaitiakitanga. It is the meaningful and genuine people-to-people contact that visitors to our shores enjoy, getting to know our people, our language, our food and culture- the lasting memories that impact on visitors to our shores. I firmly believe that Māori culture is at the heart of tourism in Aotearoa New Zealand  it is the distinguishing feature of the New Zealand visitor experience. I am pleased that New Zealand Māori Tourism provides a range of advice for Māori tourism operators from start-ups to those who are export ready. It is important that we recognise where businesses are at and tailor support accordingly. The contribution of Māori tourism businesses Māori tourism businesses are amazing, they: employ whānau (estimated 70,000 Māori employed in tourism, 2017) make a huge contribution to the New Zealand economy are ambassadors of Māori culture to our international visitors operate across the whole country. More and more international visitors are travelling independently and finding high quality experiences online. To keep providing high quality experiences to our manuhiri, Māori tourism businesses need to keep innovating and building their capability. Major events like earthquakes can have drastic effects on visitor numbers and tourism operations. However, the ability of Māori tourism businesses to bounce back from adversity is also vital and Whale Watch Kaikōura is one local example of this resilience in the face of the 2016 Kaikōura earthquake. It’s important that our businesses are prepared. Quality and capability in your tourism business is what will carry you through. Māori Tourism Capability Survey The Māori Tourism Capability Survey will identify what Māori tourism businesses need to help build their capability and resilience. The survey also identifies key areas where businesses want support such as understanding visitor markets or product plans. NZ Māori Tourism, Poutama Trust and Te Puni Kōkiri will use the survey results to figure out where they can help you. Having good information means good decisions can be made – funding, investment, employment, infrastructure and education. NZ Māori Tourism implemented a number of initiatives in response to the last Māori tourism survey.  This included the establishment of the QRC Hospitality Management School in Northland. Looking to the future All in all, we want visitors to have authentic, meaningful and unforgettable experiences so that they can tell others about their time in Aotearoa New Zealand. In order to achieve this, we need to work together. We all play important and unique roles in enabling the growth of tourism and at the heart of all this is who we are as Māori – our culture, our values, our language, our food. Government is committed – but when we work together – government, Māori business and whānau – all of our aspirations stand a greater, more powerful chance of truly being achieved. Ehara tāku toa i te toa takitahi. Engari, he toa takitini.Success is not in the work of one, but the work of many ENDS     [1]  Source: Stats NZ, 2017 [2] Source: NZTM website

Source: Speeches | 13 Aug 2019 | 3:14 pm

Launch of Te Koiroa o Te Koiora – our shared vision for living with nature

Ngā mihi nui ki a koutou katoa Ki a Ranginui rāua ko Papatūānuku Tēnā kōrua. Ki ngā tini mate Kua haere ki te pō, Haere, haere, haere. Ki te whare e tū nei, tēnā koe Ki nga manawhenua o tenei takiwa   Te Atiawa, nga Taranaki whanui Tēnā koutou E kaimahi o Te Papa Atawhai, tena koutou.    Rau rangatira ma, tena koutou .   Kua honore ahau          ki te tu ki te tautoko tenei kaupapa whakahirahira - Te Koiroa o Te Koiora. Ko te taiao ko tatou   ko tatou ko te taiao.                                                                                                                                                                                                            Mihi mai, mihi mai, karanga mai    Tena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou katoa                                Thank you for joining me for the launch of “Te Koiroa o te Koiora – our shared vision for living with nature.”  The discussion document is intended to assist a national conversation about how we connect with and value nature across land, freshwater and marine environments so that nature is healthy, abundant and thriving, and how we achieve the shifts in our economic and other activities to achieve this.  Many of New Zealand’s plants and wildlife are found nowhere else on Earth because they evolved on these islands in isolation from other land masses for around 80 million years.  They are ancient and unique – we have giant invertebrates like a centipede the length of my hand, penguins that live in the forest, trees that can live for over a thousand years, and the smallest and rarest dolphin in the world. These creatures and plants are our first inhabitants and have lived in Aotearoa since the days of the dinosaurs. New Zealanders value nature for many reasons. Healthy nature is central to human health, wellbeing and our economy. Our natural landscapes and seascapes and the plants and wildlife that they support, are fundamental to Māori and are part of our Kiwi identity We have a bioeconomy – our food and fibre exports are based on the services that nature provides us for free – clean air, rain, soil, sunshine and pollinators and our natural landscapes draw international visitors and are the basis of our leading export industry. Since humans first settled in New Zealand nearly 1000 years ago, indigenous nature has been in decline- through extinctions, loss and disruption of natural areas and ecosystems, and the effects of an increasing number and variety of introduced plant and animal pests.  Human activities are making environments harder for species to live in. Despite all that so many are doing to try to protect and restore indigenous species, habitats and natural environments, indigenous nature in our country is in crisis.  Around 4,000 species are threatened or at risk of extinction. This includes 90% of our seabirds, 84% of reptiles, 74% of terrestrial birds, 76% of freshwater fish, and 46% of vascular plants. It’s not just a crisis for our country, biodiversity is in crisis across the world. A recent report from the IPBES (the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services) provides overwhelming evidence that nature is declining globally at rates unprecedented in human history, with almost one million species are at risk of extinction. Ecosystems are in trouble too. Almost two-thirds of New Zealand’s identified rare and naturally uncommon ecosystems are threatened. Indigenous forests, tussock grasslands, wetlands, estuaries and sand dunes have been lost. This trend of decline has continued throughout the last 50 years, slowed only in part by more active conservation and natural resource management. We’ve made some progress on the targets set in 2010, but this hasn’t been enough to halt the decline. We urgently need to act to better safeguard nature, for its own sake and for ours – both present and future generations. We need to increase our focus and accelerate action. Each country’s contribution to the goals of the international Convention on Biological Diversity is through a national biodiversity strategy and action plan. The New Zealand Biodiversity Strategy 2000-2020 was a landmark document, helping to inspire the increasing public interest especially in local government and providing practical support for protect.  We have made some progress on the targets set in 2010 but this has not been enough to halt the decline. The next fifty years will present many new challenges and opportunities – some we are already aware of, and some we can’t predict. This Government’s focus on wellbeing extends to nature, and there are many initiatives in progress or underway which will help to protect and restore biodiversity. As a strategy Te Koiroa or Te Koiroa could act as a forest canopy, providing guidance and support to other areas of work that grow underneath it. A key supporting ‘tree’ under the canopy will be the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity, which will include objectives and policies to help guide the way regional and district councils work with landholders and communities to look after indigenous biodiversity. Community conservation has grown significantly in recent decades. Community restoration groups, landholders, iwi and hapu, backyard trappers, coastal and marine protection advocates and the sanctuary movement have changed biodiversity management. Philanthropic funding and interest in conservation from some business has increased.  Considerable effort is now going into landscape-scale ecological restoration, community-driven projects and pest management initiatives. Where there has been an investment and focus on recovery efforts there has also been a significant success – the threat status of 22 bird species, including rowi, takahē and mōhua/yellowhead, has improved since 2012 as a result of intensive management and pest control efforts on public conservation land. Because we all depend on nature, we all have a responsibility to safeguard it. If everyone is involved and has a clear role to play – iwi, central and local government, industry and businesses, researchers, community groups and individuals – we can make the biggest difference. If we recognise that nature at the heart of our success and wellbeing that means doing more to protect and restore our unique ecosystems and species. Te Papa Atawhai/ the Department of Conservation has been tasked with leading the development of a new Biodiversity Strategy.  DOC has had preliminary talks with iwi, landowners, farmers, scientists and young people and with three reference groups – Te Ao Maori, science and technical, and stakeholders to find out what their aspirations are for biodiversity and what would help them to succeed. It is vital that the Department and Government hear what others think and believe given that this will be a strategy for all New Zealanders. The discussion document proposes that Aotearoa/New Zealand should be a place where ecosystems are healthy, they are resilient to climate change and other pressures, where indigenous species are abundant, and part of our everyday lives. It also proposes that to make a difference in our lives, the mauri - the living essence - of nature and of people must be restored. Interconnectedness, resilience and wellbeing of nature should be prioritised. If we are true guardians of nature, nature will look after us. During August and September 2019 DOC will be engaging with iwi and hapu around the country, running public workshops, and receiving submissions. There are ways to join the conversation online and a new platform to encourage young people to be involved. As much as a strategy is about the plight of threatened species and places, it must also be about people, about hearts and minds and values. Changes in behaviour and the way many view, use, and consider nature are essential for progress toward a better future for te taio and our connection with nature. Your thoughts will help shape the new strategy. For us to succeed, we need to all have a say.https://www.doc.govt.nz/get-involved/have-your-say/all-consultations/2019/proposal-for-new-zealands-next-biodiversity-strategy/ 

Source: Speeches | 5 Aug 2019 | 8:30 am

Aotearoa: Home to thriving Pacific languages, cultures and identities

Launch of Cook Islands Language Week, St Lukes Pacific Island Presbyterian Church, Tokoroa Kia òràna tatou katoatoa. Papa Turu. To the māmās and pāpās of the Tokoroa Cook Islands community. To the Samoan orator who greeted me, the mana whenua present, and your worship the mayor. It is such a fantastic pleasure to bask in the shining glory of the sixteenth star. You are the most southern of all the Cook Island stars. I have to say, my heart is filled with an immense sense of gratitude at your generosity of spirit this morning. My whole body is overflowing with the power of your wonderful singing and the spirituality of your songs. My legs are still shaking from the beat of your drums. I have brought with me mana and dignity of the New Zealand Parliament with the presence of so many of my parliamentary colleagues, especially local MP Adrian Rurawhe, who is also the Associate Speaker of Parliament. I am particularly pleased to acknowledge the presence of my ministerial colleague and your daughter, Minister Poto Williams, the Minister for the Community and Volunteer Sector. She is a daughter of Manihiki. I am also joined this morning with the royalty of the Cook Islands community from South Auckland. Mama Rosie Blake, the Cook Islands Consul in Auckland is here with Mama Tupou Manapouri.  They are supported by all the beautiful mamas of Mangere - the gateway to the nation, land of the young, beautiful and gifted, home of world champions. They have all come to support you on this auspicious and special occasion. Thank you so much for hosting us this morning. Kia ōrāna kōtou. Kia ōrāna te au manu’iri. Warm Pacific greetings to you all. Let me start by thanking the community of organisers who make this celebration possible, the Cook Islands community in Tokoroa, our church leaders, mana whenua, our traditional leaders, especially the Cook Islands Development Agency New Zealand (CIDANZ) who have worked with the Ministry for Pacific Peoples for this event. Community organisations ensure that the Cook Islands culture, history and custom is understood as part of the fabric of New Zealand - and one of the threads that keeps together the fabric of who we are, is our language. More than this, you have given us a foundation upon which we in government have been able to build a programme of work focused on making Aotearoa New Zealand a home to thriving Pacific languages, cultures and identities. We come together today to celebrate Epetoma o te reo Māori Kūki ’Āirani at an important time for Pacific people in Aotearoa. Our vision of a confident, resilient and prosperous Pacific Aotearoa has become something real. It has taken us to the cusp of great change. The four goals we developed in partnership with the Pacific community are now within reach. Each of these goals tell a story about the challenge and change we have been through, and the aspirations we have for the future. The reason one of these goals is focused specifically on our language is because, for us as Pacific people, language is an important bridge between our place in modern New Zealand and our story as Pacific Islanders. Today, that story is one where we are better recognised for the diversity we bring, the knowledge we impart, and the contribution we make to life in Aotearoa. But our success was not handed to us. It has been fought for, won through hard work, courage, determination, commitment and a faith in our ability to make our own history, to write our own stories, and to have a voice in the decisions that determine what direction our nation takes. Language is an ideal lens through which we can think about what we have accomplished. Because, despite a general expectation that we use English, many Pacific families do still maintain strong affiliations with their language. Think about this for a moment. For decades, English has been internalised as the norm – suppressing the possibility of giving proper value to Pacific languages outside the home, family, and church. And yet so many of us still preserve our language while simultaneously becoming proficient in English. This is a remarkable skill. One we need to acknowledge, value and promote in Aotearoa. Since coming to government, we have developed a vision that speaks of a resilient Pacific Aotearoa. This is what we mean. Epetoma o te reo Māori Kūki ’Āirani is one of seven language weeks we celebrate in Aotearoa New Zealand. Since these celebrations first started, we have been through significant change as a Pacific population. Now, more than ever, the messages we see about what it means to be from the Pacific celebrate what we are – and the contribution we make - rather than defining us by what we are not. We have always known that embracing our Pacific culture would not hold us back, but rather propel us forward. But because of what we have achieved – in part through language weeks, as well as our engagement with the community and our vision for Pacific Aotearoa - we can now point to a set of government policies that say the same thing. Policies that say, “we will support you to explore and express your identity freely, in the context of your own language, cultures, values and beliefs.” But policies alone will not be enough. Changing the status of Pacific languages is a long-term project that requires all of us – politicians, officials, community, academics, journalists, teachers, parents – to work together. That takes me to the theme of this year’s Epetoma o te reo Māori Kūki ’Āirani. … Taku Rama, Taau Toi: Ora Te Reo - My Torch, Your Adze: The Language Lives. What this teaches us is that the vision promise we have made will only be kept if we work together. For it is up to us - as it has been for every Pacific generation - to light the way so the next generation can carve a prosperous future for themselves.  Let us remember those who are no longer with us, who fought hard till their final breath, to value our te reo, and to find ways to pass it to the next generation. What we are here to celebrate today is the role our language play in guiding us towards this future. This is not necessarily going to be easy. We live in a world where encouraging people to speak English is perceived to have greater value and offer more opportunities. Moreover, we belong to a multi-cultural country where identities are not static. They wax, wane, and change. On a day like today, Cook Island Māori may be your most salient identity. Yet, at other times, you may identify more with another part of your heritage. The point is: how we define ourselves depends, in part, on what we understand about where we are from and the extent to which we can participate in the cultures we are surrounded by. Language is a crucial part of this understanding. Because our language is who we are. It defines us. It is a lens through which we can understand and explain the world around us. However, the number of people who speak our Island languages is declining. This is putting the intergenerational transmission of Pacific languages in Aotearoa at risk. What this means is that the stories our languages carry from one generation to the next will – without action – be heard less and less frequently in Pacific homes and communities up and down the country. Nowhere is this starker than with Cook Islands Māori. Over 77 percent of Cook Islanders now live outside of their island homelands, yet so few, particularly of school age, speak their language. What this suggests is that Cook Islanders’ interaction with modern New Zealand - and decades of prioritising monolingualism - has made it much harder to maintain the numbers of native speakers of Cook Islands Māori. What we face now, then, is a similar situation to Māori in the 1970s, where we are struggling to build a linguistic bridge between generations. The hard work of people like you, however - to ensure we never lose the recognition, status and prestige of our language - has always been about changing that, about building that intergenerational bridge.  Indeed, the work you do to celebrate Epetoma o te reo Māori Kūki ’Āirani has a reach that extends into the homes, schools, libraries, churches, media organisations, businesses and government Ministries across New Zealand, who will be joining us in celebrating all this week. With each Pacific person that learns a word, or a phrase, in their language, or better still goes on to become a fluent speaker and advocate for our language, New Zealand and its people change for the better. Together, you are making that change possible. But you know as well as me that we cannot meet our goal of thriving Pacific languages without having a clear and shared understanding of what our languages mean – and that comes from hard work, reflection and an ongoing talanoa. One of the things we do need to reflect on is the story we are all, I’m sure, familiar with – the story that we are the ones responsible for the decline of Pacific languages. This is a story that so often disguises the responsibility of dominant cultures – and the various pressures their expectations and values have placed upon us. We have an obligation to change this story. But, as I said before, this is a job for all of us. That’s why our decision in the first ever Wellbeing Budget to allocate $20 million to a new dedicated Language Unit in the Ministry of Pacific Peoples is so important. This new unit will be tasked with working with you, the community, to figure out how we best deliver our vision of a New Zealand where all Pacific people can learn and use their language - at home, at work, and in our communities. Our objective in this isn’t simply to increase the number of Pacific language speakers, but to help our people develop a stronger identity as Pacific New Zealanders. Because when we have our language, we have our story. And when we have our story, we have a sense of place. And when we have a sense of place, we have the confidence we need to thrive. This year’s Cook Islands Language Week is particularly special as it is taking place during the United Nations’ International Year of Indigenous Languages. In this year of global celebration, we can be proud that we are already making positive changes to support our Pacific languages and those who speak them. Cook Islands Language week is not only about celebrating those who speak this wonderful language, but to inspire others to learn. It is an opportunity to remind all of us that we, as New Zealanders, do not speak with one language. So, for those who do not speak Cook Islands Māori, or any other Pacific language, I encourage you, when you next hear someone use a Pacific greeting or open a meeting in a Pacific language, take time to learn what their words mean. Take time to understand the depth of meaning and the cultural importance of these words. Because your job – like all of ours – is to work together to protect, nurture and grow our Pacific languages. Ends.      

Source: Speeches | 3 Aug 2019 | 11:00 am

Bringing Wellbeing into the Public Finance Act

Nau mai, haere mai. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa.  Good afternoon. It’s great to see you all here, marking 30 years since the Public Finance Act came into law.  If you’ll step into the Tardis with me for a brief moment, I’d like to take us back to 1989, to set the scene, and remind us all how far we’ve come.  The fourth Labour Government was in power. It was the year that Dennis Conner walked out on the interview on the Holmes show, Sunday trading came into effect in time for the Christmas rush, TV3 began broadcasting, and the crew of the Rose-Noelle were found alive after 119 days missing at sea.  Supermarkets started selling wine – but not beer.  (That didn’t happen until ten years later, in 1999.)   And I was in my final year at high school. We were listening – and dancing – to Moana Jackson, When the Cat’s Away, the Warratahs, the Straitjacket Fits, the Front Lawn and Upper Hutt Posse.  Shane van Gisbergen – one of our fastest New Zealanders on four wheels – was born in 1989, as was the Student Army’s Sam Johnson, and our population was less than three and a half million (3.37 million people, to be more precise). But amidst all this, it was a time when the government and the public service were struggling with entrenched issues related to fiscal sustainability – high levels of debt, poor transparency, and poor responsiveness to Ministers.  It was a time of focussing on inputs, not outcomes, and – it sounds incredible today – it was all based on a cash accounting system. It was difficult to measure agencies’ performance and to get an accurate and up-to-date picture of what was being spent, and where wastage was happening. In July 1989 though, something happened that began to change all of that. Peter Neilson, who was the Associate Minister of Finance, introduced the Public Finance Bill to Parliament.  I was amused to read in Professor Ian Ball’s recollection of Peter’s speech, that Peter started off by saying that “We all know accounting is boring; public sector accounting is boring to the power of two”, before going on to introduce what – with the hindsight of today – became a revolution in New Zealand’s public finance system. Since the PFA took effect in 1989, our public finance system has taken control of its fiscal position, has high levels of transparency and accountability; and is renowned internationally.  It did that by putting a model in place that focussed on management, outputs and performance, and was based on decentralisation, accountability and much greater transparency.  The Fiscal Responsibility Act, which followed on the heels of the PFA and was later incorporated into it, created a framework for robust fiscal management. We can easily point to some enduring and positive outcomes from our public finance legislation.  Now: - Our public finances are strong.  New Zealand’s public debt is relatively low compared to our international peers, and the government is running operating surpluses which are forecast to increase further New Zealand ranks relatively close to the top of many international transparency, corruption and wellbeing indicators, and we have a high level of trust in government We are consistently ranked no.1 in global surveys of ease of doing business and starting a business. In contrast, many OECD countries are still grappling with fundamental macro, fiscal, and public trust challenges. And maybe we can see that public sector accounting isn’t “boring to the power of two” any longer – that increased transparency has also brought about an increased – and welcome – level of scrutiny of public sector spending, and the outcomes it achieves; and increased public interest in what the government is delivering using the revenues that it collects. The foundations laid down in the Public Finance Act 30 years ago still provide a platform for us to think about the range of outcomes that matter to the wellbeing of New Zealanders, and how these inform what the public sector does and how it operates.  Our strong fiscal position provides the space for us to be ambitious about what we can do to improve people's living standards.  But the PFA and the public finance system has limitations that undermine the Government’s pursuit of wellbeing objectives, and I hope the architects here today will take this in the right spirit.  The system doesn’t always give us the support we need to fulfil our vision for New Zealand.  We need to maintain the strengths of the current system, while recognising that there are significant improvements we can make.   The system struggles to deal with complex issues and longer-term opportunities and risks.  And while the original intent of the reforms may well have been to bring about greater flexibility, the way they have been operationalised has sometimes had the effect of putting an “electric fence” around parts of the fiscal management system.  This can hinder co-operation and innovation, create silos, and make it harder to help people who have needs or problems that fall across agencies. Let me expand on that a little more: The annual budget cycle based around fixed nominal baselines and annual allowances can encourage short-term thinking, and defer longer-term planning and capability building. It also means that most analytical effort is concentrated on the marginal increase in funding, rather than the effectiveness of total government spending The settings around annual appropriations can be rigid and too tightly controlled, making it unnecessarily difficult to adapt to changing circumstances The performance accountability conventions we have for estimates, annual reporting and many of our strategic planning requirements have driven a focus on compliance and an aversion to risk – becoming a barrier to innovation. While – in principle – we have a high level of transparency, the overall story can be harder to see, being buried in detail that is difficult to absorb.  We can achieve much more. My objective is a public finance system that enables the public service to positively assist and improve the intergenerational wellbeing of New Zealanders. We need a system where our time and effort is focussed more on ‘strategic’ management of public finances – with a clear ‘line of sight’ to the strategic value of public spending.  We believe that the public finance system can be shifted to improve intergenerational wellbeing on a number of fronts. These include: Supporting the parts of the system to work better together Smarter regulation of the system Lifting performance Building capability Strengthening long-term resilience. With these improvements in mind, the Government is taking steps to reform the public finance system to reduce risk aversion, promote innovation, and support a more rapid response from the public sector to issues and challenges. Our modernisation of the public finance system, addressing its current limitations, is a key element of aligning the public sector to a wellbeing approach. The work programme includes three important themes – they are: Firstly, changing the overarching framework for measuring success and identifying the priorities, through amendments to embed wellbeing in the Public Finance Act, as well as the government's broader commitment to sustainable development goals Secondly, changing the financial management framework, to increase flexibility, encourage collaboration and support and enable a more strategic focus.  This includes changes to the appropriation system and a different approach to planning and reporting And thirdly, rethinking the approach to the Budget, so that we look at existing as well as new spending, and create more space to focus on the challenges and trade-offs needed to improve wellbeing for all New Zealanders. The wellbeing of our citizens is at the heart of everything we do, both now and for the future.  We need new thinking to achieve this vision.  Rather than measuring progress in purely economic terms, this Government is committed to using a broader framing to measure New Zealand’s progress, to develop and assess policy and support decision-making.   This includes fiscal policy, where we want to consider the wellbeing of our environment, people and communities, alongside existing macroeconomic and fiscal indicators. As you will know, this year we produced our first Wellbeing Budget. This is built around Treasury’s Living Standards Framework. We used evidence from the LSF and other expert advice to decide our budget priorities, and we are using the framework to measure our success against a range of indicators of wellbeing. We are also developing a broader set of measures that go beyond measuring progress in purely economic terms. Statistics New Zealand has developed and released a new set of metrics – Indicators Aotearoa New Zealand (IANZ) as a source of measures for New Zealand’s wellbeing. IANZ will support the government as it meets the new wellbeing requirements under the Public Finance Act, as well as monitoring and reporting against the SDGs. With that in mind, to ensure that every Government considers the wellbeing of New Zealanders when creating future Budgets, I will soon introduce legislation to amend the Public Finance Act so it includes two key changes: The Government will be required to set out how its wellbeing and fiscal objectives will guide its Budget The Treasury will be required to report on the state of current and future wellbeing in New Zealand, at least every four years. These changes recognise that we expect wellbeing monitoring to evolve over time as theory, evidence and data availability develop and improve. I believe that these amendments will strike the right balance between requiring an enduring focus on wellbeing, but at the same time retaining sufficient flexibility for improvements and changes over time. We have already amended the PFA to require the Minister of Finance to report at each Budget on child wellbeing and child poverty reduction. This legislation, passed by a margin of 119-1 in Parliament, means that at Budget time the Minister of Finance must discuss progress made to reduce child poverty in line with the targets in the Child Poverty Reduction Act, and what measures in the Budget will affect child poverty. The first report of this type was presented in this year’s Budget. The government is introducing changes to the financial management framework.  I emphasise that this doesn’t mean abandoning the foundational principles of transparency and accountability to Parliament.  But it does mean being smarter and more flexible about how we apply those principles, and thinking differently about planning and reporting. Our current system has a very high degree of regulation, which means we spend far too much time and resource on authorising, managing and keeping track of a large number of small funding pools, rather than focusing on the strategic issues and value of spending – the areas where we can make a difference. And this is what we need to change: There are currently about 840 appropriations, and more than a thousand if you can the components of multi-category appropriations, which are reported on More than half – 50 per cent – of the money is in just two per cent of the appropriations  45 per cent of appropriations – again, almost half – have less than $5m in each appropriation (less than one per cent of the money).  Although the system does give some flexibility to shift funding across pools, and to move it from programmes that aren’t working to those that are, this can be difficult and have high transaction costs. The questions we are asking as part of this work are: How can we use appropriations to ensure decisions direct investment towards high priority wellbeing outcomes? What structure of appropriations will encourage the public sector to work together, respond quickly to the needs of New Zealanders and be accountable to Parliament for the difference we are making to wellbeing? In this year’s Budget we founded a joint venture of eight government agencies who work on reducing and eliminating domestic violence. This is ground-breaking collaboration. But if you go looking for it in one place in our accounts you won’t find it. We need appropriation structures that allow this kind of work to be considered and accounted for together. Another important aspect of our reform work involves improving agencies’ strategic planning and reporting. Too many strategic plans involve significant time and effort, but end up sitting on the shelf gathering dust.  I want us to make plans that are meaningful, proportionate, and keep long-term objectives in view. I still expect all agencies to have a current medium- to long-term strategic plan, and expect them to focus on fulfilling those plans.  But during the last 12 months, the Treasury has worked with nearly 200 officials on a better approach to strategic planning and reporting.   Between them, they identified challenges with: The authorising environment The requirements on agencies to write strategic plans Insufficient strategic capability. It’s clear that it’s time to try something different. I will soon go to Cabinet with a proposal to improve strategic planning and reporting, testing a fundamentally different approach with one or two pilots.  I won’t go into detail now, because we are still in the very early stages, but our proposal is that each pilot will put a spotlight on a specific long-term issue. Agency leaders will be asked to: Invite peers and partners into their work, to strengthen the range and quality of thinking Present scenarios and choices Create a multi-year pathway underpinned by milestones and indicators Continue engaging with partners and focusing over a couple of years, to demonstrate progress. What this means is that we are stepping away from a prescriptive approach to one with much more flexibility.  As with any innovation, it may or may not work, but we have to be bold, and be prepared to try. We are also looking at wider changes to financial management.  This could include more meaningful funding allocation through appropriations, along with innovative models to foster collaboration.  As a small first step, we will consider bringing in: Single departmental output appropriations for small departments and consolidating small appropriations to provide more flexibility to move funding between programmes and output classes (work that will be phased over two years) Looking further ahead, we will consider Aggregating non-departmental appropriations aligned to high-level outcome areas Introducing multi-department, multi-Minister appropriations, allowing multiple departments to be responsible – collaboratively – for what they achieve. We also want to look at integrating the various planning and reporting requirements that have been introduced in an ad hoc way over the years, so that they are more clearly connected to each other and enable a clearer ‘line of sight’ of how public financing is supporting the government's overall objectives, and the wellbeing of New Zealanders. I am also keen to see better fiscal management.  My experience of the past two Budgets is that they involved quite high transaction costs focussed on a relatively small proportion of government spending.  Ministers also had little visibility of what was being funded through baselines and where there were opportunities to stop some things to fund other new initiatives. One of my objectives for Budget 2020 is to sharpen the focus on the key strategic decisions which the Government needs to make.  There are a number of choices which I am still considering, including how Ministers and agencies work together, and how we focus on the big choices which will improve wellbeing. I intend firming up on the changes for 2020 after consulting my Cabinet colleagues.  One thing we are already doing to improve the Budget process is making greater use of baseline reviews to assess the effectiveness of current spending and help Ministers decide where any new spending will be most effective.  About 98 per cent of government expenditure – or $89 billion – sits outside the annual Budget process, and yet – as I’ve already mentioned – we spend most of our time assessing how to allocate the next two per cent or so located at the margin though each Budget.  This means having to be reactive through the Budget process, when it is already too late to make the big strategic moves. So, how can we deepen our understanding of how well our baseline expenditure is working for us, and ask the hard questions about productivity, effectiveness, alignment with government priorities and risk accumulation? How can we improve our fiscal management approach, so it supports strategic, long-term decision-making about the key things that the Government needs to do, and how it will pay for them?  The answer is that it means looking at baselines and marginal expenditure together to better prioritise what will improve wellbeing for New Zealanders, and ensure sustainable resourcing to deliver it. We have begun work on this already.  Earlier this year, our baseline review of MSD highlighted that years of under-investment in case management meant that services had become run down, meaning fewer people getting into work, and driving up costs to the taxpayer.  We were able to deal with this immediately through the Wellbeing Budget.  The baseline review also highlighted how reactive approaches to IT investment had left MSD stuck, running expensive, inefficient and risky legacy systems.  This will take years to address, but we now have the information we need to ensure that future investment is strategically aligned with the model that we want for the future of the welfare system. Expanding and embedding this work will lead to changes in how we set our fiscal strategy, how we operate the budget and get into baselines.  Ultimately, we could transition to a system where 80 per cent of baselines are covered by a review every few years.  Instead of just reacting to costs that materialise in the Budget process, governments could be much more proactive about directing investment to where it will make the biggest difference to New Zealanders’ wellbeing.  We have already initiated our next baseline review, looking at the Defence sector, and I am intending to scale up this work as soon as possible – so larger agencies can start looking forward to their baseline review soon. Expanding and embedding this work will require better data stewardship, as well as working smarter and faster.  Most of all, this will require a shift in the public sector toward being more open and transparent.  As a Government, we can’t ensure a joined-up, long-term approach to enhancing wellbeing, if we don’t actively look at what agencies are doing, and how it creates public value.  The PFA started a kind of revolution in the public service.  It supported government agencies being more transparent, accountable, and responsive to Ministers and the needs of the public.   It helped to break down some barriers, and shone a light on what government was spending money on, and how it was accounting for it – increasing the public’s expectations that government is here to serve its citizens, rather than the other way around.  It was ahead of its time, in many ways. It was a milestone, and enabled New Zealanders’ government to function better and more effectively. But now it’s 2019.  And we recognise that while it’s important to keep those principles of transparency, accountability, and responsibility to the forefront, it’s also important to now start looking more broadly, at how we can put New Zealanders’ wellbeing front and centre of everything that we propose, plan and deliver; and to deliver benefits that are sustainable and look to the long-term, for the next generations.  It’s important for us to make it easier for agencies to plan, deliver and account for their work programmes, and to do it collaboratively, and cost-efficiently, with a minimum of waste.  And it’s important for Ministers to have better, more accessible plans and progress information from agencies that lead to better decision-making and ultimately, better outcomes for New Zealanders’ wellbeing. I am not sure the creators of the act would approve of all the changes that I am proposing, but I hope they would admire the reforming spirit that I am approaching them with. It is time, 30 years on, to bring the PFA into the 21st century and put wellbeing and collaborative government at the centre of our approach. Thank you.

Source: Speeches | 26 Jul 2019 | 5:00 pm

Overhauling the resource management system

Welcome and thank you all for coming. I have called this press conference today to announce the Government’s plan to comprehensively overhaul the resource management system. Close to 30 years after the RMA was passed it is not working as well as was intended. It takes too long. It costs too much. It has not protected the environment. It is unacceptable for this cornerstone law to be underperforming in a country that values protection of the environment while properly housing our people. Our aim is to produce a revamped law fit for purpose in the 21st Century that will cut complexity and cost while better protecting our environment. Plan making processes take too long, often longer then the three year term of the democratically elected councils that are meant to be responsible for them. Ad hoc remedies for Environment Canterbury then Christchurch following the earthquake and for Auckland following amalgamation and now for both the new Urban Development Authority and for water plans to protect water quality show the need for reform. While not the sole cause of the housing crisis, planning rules are partly to blame. Restrictive planning rules are also curbing good urban design outcomes. Environmental outcomes have been disappointing. Freshwater quality has been going backwards. Similarly with wetlands. New Zealand lost 90 per cent of our wetlands outside of national Parks a century ago. Sadly last year Environment Aotearoa’s report showed we lost another twentieth of those left. There has been too little spatial planning[1] around growing urban populations. The cumulative effect of intensification of land use on water has been poorly managed. It is clear on many fronts that the system has not delivered the outcomes New Zealanders expect and deserve. Numerous amendments to the RMA since 1991 have added complexity. It’s now close to twice its original length, rendered the RMA more and more unwieldy to interpret, and hampering its effective implementation. There is frustration with the lack of alignment between the RMA and the Land Transport Act and Local Government Acts and with the failure to protect environmental bottom lines. The current limitations of the RMA have been well-researched in a number of recent reports, including two from the Productivity Commission - Better Urban Planning and Using Land for Housing inquiries - and the OECD’s 2017 Environmental Performance by the Environmental Defence Society with input from Infrastructure NZ, the Property Council and the Northern EMA also highlights the need for change, suggests alternative ways in which we could do things differently. The Government already has a wide-ranging work programme underway to improve freshwater quality, urban development, the protection of highly productive land, indigenous biodiversity and to reduce waste. These were urgent and some changes could not wait for comprehensive RMA reform. Take water quality for example. Currently over half our regional councils are not confident of completion of plan changes to give effect to the current (and inadequate) Freshwater NPS by 2025. Most have either extended their timeframe to 2030 or indicated that they might need to do so.  That NPS was promulgated by the last government in 2017 – plainly delays of this sort are one of the reasons water quality has continued to decline. So we will press ahead with changes that will ensure plans needed to give effect to a new National Policy Statement on Freshwater can be put in place with tighter timeframes. All of this shows the need for more comprehensive reform. We need to create a system that better enables economic growth within environmental limits and which aligns the economy with the environment. Further ad hoc patch-ups and work-arounds are not the answer. A thorough overhaul of the law is. The review needs to address urban development, environmental bottom lines, and effective – but not overly complex – participation, including by Maori. The aim is to produce a proposal for resource management reform by mid-2020. This will include drafting for key sections of the new Act. The proposals will build on the Government’s wider work programme across freshwater, climate change and urban development, to ensure reforms come together as a coherent package. The overhaul will be led by a Resource Management Review Panel. I am pleased to announce the chair will be retired Appeal Court Judge Hon Tony Randerson, who brings extensive resource management and legal expertise to the task. He will be joined by a panel who will work with officials to develop proposals for reform. What the review needs to do The review will focus first and foremost on the RMA itself. It will also include how that law interacts with the Local Government Act, the Land Transport Act and the Climate Change Response Act. We will consider whether or not we need a new urban development law separate from a law to manage natural resources like rivers and soils. Also in scope is whether the crucial Part 2– or its equivalent – should sit in the RMA or in a separate piece of law. Part 2 sets out the principles and purposes of the act and sets the objective of “sustainable management”. Subsequent legal cases have helped clarify what it means. We will take care not to unnecessarily discard those legal precedents. We will address issues relating to climate change and urban tree protection. Consideration will be given to accountability mechanisms needed to ensure councils can exercise democratic control of their planning departments to combat the cultural problems that the Productivity Commission said is hindering better outcomes. The public will have the opportunity to have a say on review proposals, before any legislative changes are made. The draft terms of reference and two related Cabinet documents have been released today. While we await the panel’s work, by mid-2020, some interim changes are necessary to remedy and remove some of the unnecessary complexity introduced by the previous National government. Over nine years it failed to achieve any substantive improvements to the system – and in some ways made it worse. So a targeted RMA Amendment Bill will be introduced in the next few months that will reverse some of the changes made by the previous government in 2017. It will increase certainty, restore previous public participation opportunities, and improve RMA processes. For example: It will restore the ability of sub-dividers to appeal against unreasonable conditions imposed by councils. Changes made by the previous government perversely incentivise developers to make non-compliant applications in order to preserve appeal rights. It will ensure those who pollute the environment are held to account for their actions by increasing infringement fees, increasing timeframes for councils to file prosecution charges, and by giving the EPA information gathering powers.  And it will acknowledge councils’ autonomy by repealing the excessive regulation-making powers that enabled the Minister for the Environment to override council rules. Of course the ability to give national direction is preserved. Most significantly, it will support the delivery of the Government’s Essential Freshwater programme by introducing a new planning process for regional plan changes needed to protect freshwater. This will assist regional councils to protect our rivers, lakes and aquifers from pollution, by getting new water quality standards in place years earlier than they otherwise would be. I have said it many times before, and I truly believe that if, with all our advantages, New Zealand can’t overcome its environmental problems, then the world won’t. Our Resource Management System is pivotal to achieving that. ENDS [1] Spatial planning is a high-level strategy for developing a region that relates to its geography to achieve environmental, social, economic, and cultural outcomes.

Source: Speeches | 24 Jul 2019 | 9:39 am

Launch of community-led research report: ‘Spaces of Belonging’

Fa’atalofa atu, malo e lelei, Kia ora koutou katoa And welcome to the launch of the report ‘Spaces of Belonging’. I want to acknowledge Dr Carey-Ann Morrison from Imagine Better, Dr Esther Woodbury from the Disabled Persons Assembly, and Professors, Lynda Johnston and Robyn Longhurst, from Waikato University for their leadership in bringing together this community led research project. I’d like to acknowledge Paula Tesoriero – Disability Rights Commissioner, Gary Williams – Māori advisor to the project, Gerri Pomeroy – President of the Disabled Persons Assembly, and Tony Paine – Chief Executive of Imagine Better. It is lovely to see you here. Importantly, can I welcome and acknowledge people with lived experience of disabilities who have contributed to the report; some of which are here today with their family and whānau.  Tonight is an opportunity to not only launch the report but to recognise the importance of the reports theme of belonging. Some of you may already know that as a government we have an agenda to develop a fully accessible Aotearoa. I think the conversation about belonging is particularly pertinent as we think about accessibility. The report points out that a focus on belonging can progress conversations beyond simple notions of inclusion and exclusion. It’s something that is a valuable complement to this government’s thinking. I want to commend the researchers for really putting disabled people at the centre of the report and validating the expertise that people with disabilities have through their lived experiences. Reports like the one being launched today, remind us of the important role that qualitative data can and should play in understanding what it takes to truly experience belonging and community for people with disabilities.  With my officials and the information I often commission, I’ve stressed the importance of ensuring that data and analytics be complemented by the lived experiences and practices of real people. Good quality and reliable disability data are crucial to understanding the needs of disabled people, their families and communities. Government has not been very good about collecting information about disabled people in the past, which is a challenge also faced internationally, but we are slowly getting better. I am looking forward to the results of the 2018 Census, which are due to be released in September this year as this will use the Washington Group Short Set of questions. I understand that a number of other government departments will also be incorporating these questions into their surveys. The Washington Group Short Set aren’t the perfect solution to our data challenges, but they do allow censuses and surveys that are not disability-specific to produce robust data about how the lives of disabled people differ from those of non-disabled people.While we develop our data collection tools, reports like the one we launch today help us to build our understanding of the experiences of disabled people. As I previously mentioned, I know a number of you here have lived experience of disabilities and have actively contributed to the report we are launching today. I believe that understanding the lived experiences of disabled people is an important approach for improving policy responses across government. Just last month, the Independent Monitoring Mechanism met with Ministers to discuss data collection as well as other key priority areas. I have invited all Ministers to consider how best to ensure that participation of the disabled community occurs within the work of their respective portfolios. Thank you once again to the authors of the report. The findings have given me a lot to think and reflect on. I hope that you are able to share it widely and that it stimulates conversations and actions towards more spaces of belonging across Aotearoa. Fa’afetai lava

Source: Speeches | 23 Jul 2019 | 7:14 pm

Speech to the City Rail Link – Signing of the Project Alliance Agreement

Acknowledgements Morena koutou, good morning everyone. I’d like to acknowledge mana whenua, the iwi of Tamaki Makaurau. Not only for being here today but for the central role mana whenua are playing in all our ambitious projects and the work we are doing to transform our country’s biggest city. I also want to thank members of the Link Alliance here today as well as Kiwi Rail and Auckland Transport for the very significant role each of you have played in delivering this project. Collectively, we’re fortunate to have a tremendous consortium working together on City Rail Link, each offering a wealth of experience in delivering large-scale infrastructure. I’d also like to acknowledge at this important milestone moment that the City Rail Link is in so many ways a break-through project. We are engineering the transition of Auckland from a highly car-dependent city built on a 1950s development model of low-rise suburban expansion and an ever-increasing network of motorways to service it. We are well on the way to becoming a modern international city with a transport system that can give people the mobility that they need to get access to jobs, to education, to community. And to make Auckland’s economy work properly. I want to also acknowledge all the people who fought to achieve this sea change in transport policy, not least the civil society groups, the bloggers, the activists, the campaigners who raised awareness of this thinking and advocated and lobbied and campaigned. And also the politicians past and present who campaigned on public transport and have won election after election in recent years on public transport and an aspirational platform to deliver Auckland a modern transport system. And Mayor Goff, I want to acknowledge the leadership that you provide in Auckland in this respect.   City Rail Link milestone Mā pango, mā whero, ka oti te mahi.  By working together, we will get the job done. Today we’re here to mark a significant milestone in the delivery of the City Rail Link project with the signing of the Project Alliance Agreement. The City Rail Link sits alongside an entire programme of transport investment -- $28 billion worth of multi modal transport investment that we’ve put together and committed to. Central government and local government together are delivering a co-funded and co-governed 10-year programme of transport investments to get Auckland moving again. That transport plan sits alongside an even bigger housing and urban development plan to solve the housing crisis in this city, to build whole new communities and to deliver the infrastructure this city needs to grow. That plan has been signed off by Cabinet and by Auckland Council. So together, Government and Auckland Council are working side by side to build a better Auckland for the 21st Century. Over the next 30 years, a million more people will call Auckland home and this obviously brings pressures on the infrastructure our citizens rely on every single day. Gridlock alone is costing the city $1.3 billion of lost productivity every year. Transport – in all its forms - is absolute critical, not only in shaping our city for the future but supporting economic development and jobs. Cities that don’t have a functioning transport system cannot provide people with the mobility they need to get to work every day, to provide firms with access to their customers and their suppliers. The City Rail Link will provide the equivalent of 16 extra lanes of traffic into the city centre during peak times. What’s more, it will have the effect of doubling the number of people living within 30 minutes of the CBD. That is absolutely critical for productivity and prosperity. By increasing rail capacity into the city centre – and providing two new stations in the heart of Auckland – the City Rail Link will not only improve the liveability of the central city, but it will supercharge the biggest concentration of jobs in our country. But the City Rail Link’s benefits will be felt much wider than the city centre. It will effectively double the carrying capacity of the entire rail network, allowing trains to run as frequently as every few minutes in dozens of town centres across the Auckland region. It will also make so many people mobile and make town centres and suburbs more desirable right across our city. Increasing public transport also has huge benefits for health, safety, the environment and reducing carbon emissions. But perhaps the single most important benefit the City Rail Link will bring is that it locks in the important role of rail as the trunk architecture of the city’s public transport system. By doubling the capacity of the rail network, it gives us the back bone of a rapid transport system that will deliver people the journey times, the reliability and the efficiency that means that public transport in this city will be so reliable and user friendly that it will be a genuine alternative to taking the car to work. That is the strategic imperative we face as we build a modern transport network for Auckland. We have to provide a genuine alternative to sitting in traffic on the motorway, and then we know enough people will choose to leave the car at home and the roads will move more freely for those who have to drive. That my friends is the sustainable fix to the congestion that plagues Auckland. Our Government is committed to working with Auckland Council and its subsidiaries and the private sector to deliver this incredibly important project. I’m proud and excited to be here today as we declare to the people of Auckland and New Zealand that this important project is well on track for completion in 2024.  

Source: Speeches | 19 Jul 2019 | 9:59 am

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