Croatia’s President, Her Excellency Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović, will make her first official visit to New Zealand next week, Prime Minister Bill English has announced.

“New Zealand has a warm and constructive relationship with Croatia. The large Croatian community that has made New Zealand home has made an important contribution to our business, cultural and political life over many years,” Mr English says.

President Grabar-Kitarović and her delegation arrive on Saturday 19 August for a series of events, including an official welcome at Government House in Auckland and a State luncheon hosted by the Governor-General.

“I am looking forward to discussing a number of issues with the President, including her perspective on recent developments in Europe and opportunities to enhance New Zealand’s relations with the region.”

The President will be accompanied by her husband Mr Jakov Kitarović. They will visit Auckland, Wellington, Rotorua and Taupo, and will meet with members of the Croatian community.

The delegation will visit New Zealand until Tuesday 22 August.

| A Beehive release  ||  August 10,  2017   |||

A new nationwide set of environmental rules for managing New Zealand’s 1.7 million hectares of plantation forestry will better protect the environment and deliver significant savings in compliance costs, Minister for the Environment Dr Nick Smith and Associate Minister for Primary Industries Louise Upston say.

“Forestry is New Zealand’s third largest primary industry but its efficiency is hampered by the confusing mix of planning rules across New Zealand’s 86 councils. The strength of this national approach is that it will better protect the environment while also improving the productivity of the forestry sector by applying consistent environmental standards to reduce operational costs,” Dr Smith says.

“A major change with these new regulations is the development of three new tools for managing the environmental impacts from forestry, covering the issues of erosion, wilding pines and fish spawning.

“The benefit of these tools is that the restrictions on forestry activities are related to the environmental risk rather than which council area a forestry operation is in. This change is particularly important as 80 per cent of forest owners manage forests in multiple council areas.

“This new national forestry standard is part of the Government’s broader Resource Management Act reforms, facilitated by amendments passed in May this year. It follows other national regulations covering telecommunications, electricity transmission, waste tyre management, water metering and drinking water, contaminated soils and aquaculture.”

Ms Upston says the forestry industry will benefit from having a set of consistent regulations to operate under.

“Planning rules at local government level are subject to regular reviews and there could be as many as three sets of regional or district plan rules. Some large forests also cross local government boundaries, resulting in different rules for the same forest.”

“Removing this uncertainty will encourage greater investment in a significant contributor to our economy, especially at regional level. Forestry employs more than 26,000 people and exports total more than $5 billion a year,” Ms Upston says.

“The National Environmental Standard for Plantation Forestry covers eight core plantation forestry activities: afforestation, pruning and thinning to waste, earthworks, river crossings, forestry quarrying, harvesting, mechanical land preparation and replanting. Councils may apply stricter rules in special circumstances where local conditions require a more restrictive approach.”

The standard, which comes into force on 1 May, 2018, was developed jointly by the Ministry for Primary Industries and the Ministry for the Environment. Support and guidance will be provided to councils, foresters and key stakeholders to ensure an effective rollout.

Related DocumentsPlantation Forestry NES - Overview of Regulations.pdf (pdf 1.89 MB)

| A Beehive release  ||  August 8,  2017   |||

KiwiRail has linked up the track between Picton and Christchurch for the first time since November’s Kaikoura earthquake devastated the line, Transport Minister Simon Bridges announced today.

“Staff held a small ceremony near Rakautara, north of Kaikoura this morning, and completed the final weld,” Mr Bridges says.

“This is an important milestone in getting the line open again, and in easing the pressure on upper South Island roads.”

Teams from around the country have been working to replace twisted track, rebuild bridges, repair tunnels, and clear enormous slips along the route in order to get freight moving again on rail in the South Island.

“The line is a critical component of the New Zealand transport network, carrying around 1 million tonnes of freight annually before the earthquake,” Mr Bridges says.

“While there is still work to be done, KiwiRail is making good progress towards returning freight services to this route.

“Getting it open will ease pressure on the alternate road, which has been the main route to shift freight south since the earthquake closed the coastal road and rail networks. It will also help with the reinstatement of State Highway 1 and the railway by moving materials to worksites along the route.

“A lot of work still remains to be done, but the workers from KiwiRail and its partners in the North Canterbury Transport Infrastructure Recovery (NCTIR) alliance have done a great job getting it to this stage,” Mr Bridges says.

There were close to 60 major damage sites including tunnels, bridges, embankments, and the line had been buried under more than 100 slips and landslides. Approximately 60 bridges were damaged and repairs are being carried out at more than 750 sites.

“The Government is committed to restoring the road and rail services along this important coastal corridor, and it is great to see the significant progress being made,” Mr Bridges says.

| A Beehive release  ||  August 9,  2017   |||

Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment Minister Paul Goldsmith has today released the Future Demand for Construction Workers Report 2017, the updated forecast of New Zealand’s need for workers in building and construction through to 2022.

“Demand for skills across the board is at fever pitch, but nowhere more so than in construction, which in the year to June employed over 18,200 more people across New Zealand, the second largest contributor to annual employment growth,” Mr Goldsmith says.

The number of people expected to be employed in construction occupations is projected to increase by 10 per cent by 2022, adding around 56,000 employees, increasing the total construction workforce to 571,300.

“The total value of building and construction work forecast over the next six years is expected to top $244 billion, and all of that investment needs skilled construction workers to bring it to reality,” Mr Goldsmith says.

“Our intention is not just to provide accurate forecasts of the value of this work. We want to support planning for this important part of our national workforce.”

The new report and its web application allows anyone to check forecasts for 62 construction occupations across New Zealand. That information will enable construction firms to better plan their workforces, and encourage expanded training by education providers.

“The Government is actively supporting the training of more skilled workers to meet the demand for new housing and construction. Through initiatives such as Trades Academies, Vocational Pathways, the Dual Pathways Pilot, Maori and Pasifika Trades Training, and industry training through the ITOs, we have a significant pipeline for delivering skilled workers,” Mr Goldsmith says.

“We have the funding to take on anyone willing to take up an apprenticeship, and have funded 7,500 new apprentices over the past year. The Government is willing to put the resources in, but we also need the support of parents, teachers, careers advisors, and businesses if we are to get more young Kiwis into the trades.”

“In 2016 the number of new starts for apprenticeships like carpentry, plumbing and electrical engineering were at the highest levels in nearly a decade. We now have over 43,000 apprentices in training, and are on the way to our goal of 50,000 by 2020,” Mr Goldsmith says.

The Future Demand for Construction Workers Report 2017 and web application are located at constructionprojections.mbie.govt.nz.

|  A beehive release  ||  August 7,  2017   |||

A plastics processing facility in Lower Hutt now has the capacity to turn over 200 million plastic drink bottles a year into high grade food-safe packaging, thanks to a $4 million Government grant.

The facility was today opened by Environment Minister Dr Nick Smith and Associate Minister Scott Simpson.

“This new plastics processing facility is an important part of the Government’s programme of building New Zealand’s recycling infrastructure. We are encouraging Councils and the public to do more to recycle plastics like soft drink bottles and fruit and vegetable punnets, but we also need the facilities in New Zealand to be able to remanufacture them into usable products,” Dr Smith says.

“The significance of this project and the Government’s $4 million investment is for the first time having the capacity to recycle polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic into food safe packaging. This high-tech, onshore recycling solution will mean greater employment in New Zealand, less energy used in transport and a reduction in the importation of virgin PET plastics for manufacturing.

“China recently announced a ban on importing waste and recyclables from other countries, including New Zealand. This will reduce end markets for our recyclables, and makes it even more important that we are able to recycle on shore. Flight Plastics will be able to recycle 6000 tonnes of the 8000 tonnes of PET plastic collected for recycling each year in New Zealand.

“As a country we need to be thinking smarter about ways to reduce our waste, and this facility will provide a fundamental change in the way plastic waste is managed,” Mr Simpson says.

“It is pleasing to be able to back an innovative project such as this, which shows Kiwi ingenuity is able to develop practical ideas which enhance our clean, green image.

“The expense of new infrastructure, as well as cost of getting products from one place to another for recycling, has sometimes limited opportunities for on-shore economic development in this space. This is where our Waste Minimisation Fund shows its strengths. The Government’s dedicated fund, created through a levy on waste disposed of at landfills, is available to support these kinds of projects.”

The Waste Minimisation Fund provides financial support to projects that reduce environmental harm and provide social, economic and cultural benefits. It is funded from a levy introduced by the National-led Government in 2009, which is charged on waste disposed of at landfills to discourage waste and to fund recycling initiatives. More than $80 million has been awarded to more than 130 projects to date.

|  A Beehive release  ||  August 2,  2017   |||

Minister for Food Safety David Bennett met with Dr Penny Lukito, the chairwoman of Indonesia’s National Agency of Drug and Food Control (BPOM) this morning.

BPOM is one of Indonesia’s five main regulators for food safety, animal health, and plant health.

It is responsible for the regulation and product safety testing of all processed foods, both domestic and imported.

“Meetings like this are important to ensuring that both agencies are aware of the goals each are working towards within their country’s food safety systems, a key tool underpinning agricultural trade,” Mr Bennett says.

BPOM and Ministry for Primary Industries signed a Food Safety Agreement in 2014 which promotes cooperation on food safety, particularly as it relates to management of risk and trade in processed food products.

“Indonesia’s demand for imported food with changing dietary habits, including milk, yoghurt, red meat, cheese and baby foods.

“New Zealand needs to have a good working relationship on all levels, but especially at a food safety level to ensure we can meet their needs, and expand our export markets.

“Next year will mark 60 years of diplomatic relationships with the two countries and it’s always positive to continue to solidify the relationship,” Mr Bennett says|

  A Beehive release  ||  August 1,  2017   |||

Corrections Minister Louise Upston is impressed at the results being achieved by the Department’s Employer Partnerships initiatives and is looking forward to them continuing to make a positive difference to people’s lives.

“Finding steady employment for offenders when they leave prison is a critical step to helping these people turn their lives around. The work Corrections has been doing with offenders and potential employers in this area is very promising,” says Ms Upston.

“The decision to recruit eight Offender Recruitment Consultants nationwide has proved particularly successful. Since they began making placements in November, 482 offenders have successfully moved into employment.”

The Employer Partnerships initiatives are designed to support offenders into employment with opportunities provided both inside and outside prison.

Offenders can obtain qualifications through education and training courses offered whilst in prison and this provides them with the first step towards employment when they are released.

Corrections then works with potential employers to match prisoners with positions relevant to their experience and qualifications. So far 125 employers have signed MOUs (Memorandums of Understanding) with the Department.

“We have hosted three successful Employer’s breakfasts already this year in Hamilton, Christchurch and Wellington. The feedback from employers has been positive and has enabled us to engage, and build relationships, with employers, informing them of the opportunities available by working with Corrections.”

“There is a natural hesitancy for employers to take on offenders but the work that is being undertaken by Corrections is helping to break down those perceptions and is delivering work ready employees,” says Ms Upston.

Corrections is developing an enhanced strategy to build on the early success of the programme. This includes both a national and regional focus and an initiative to encourage current partners to bring a ‘friend’ to future events to understand the work being done by Corrections in industry, education and training.

|  A Beehive release  ||  July 27,  2017   |||

Trade Minister Todd McClay says Thailand and New Zealand have agreed to market access improvements for our exporters and announced a new agricultural cooperation programme.

“In Bangkok today we signed an agreement increasing the volume of New Zealand dairy products that can enter Thailand under a preferential tariff rate. For some products this will mean a preference increase of between 10 and 20 per cent,” Mr McClay says.

“We also agreed to launch a new programme that will help Thailand to improve its domestic dairy production and processing.”

“This is a positive step forward for our bilateral trade relationship.”

“Thailand is now our eighth largest market. Total goods exports between our countries have increased almost 150 per cent since the Thailand New Zealand Closer Economic Partnership was signed.”

Mr McClay met with the Thai Airways President who also confirmed that Thai Airways will be launching daily flights between Bangkok and Auckland later this year.

“This new service will be a welcome addition for travellers, international students and business people. More than 100,000 Kiwis travelled to Thailand last year and tens of thousands of Thai tourists visited New Zealand,” Mr McClay says.

|  A Beehive release  ||  July 26,  2017   |||

Foreign Minister Gerry Brownlee has welcomed further engagement between New Zealand and the United Kingdom.

“The establishment of a people-to-people dialogue has been announced during Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson’s visit to New Zealand,” Mr Brownlee says.

“New Zealand and the United Kingdom enjoy a broad and enduring partnership. At its foundation are the connections between the people of our two countries.

“The Foreign Secretary and I agreed that enhancing those connections will help support a stronger political and economic relationship between New Zealand and the United Kingdom.

“The dialogue will provide a forum for discussing a wide range of issues of mutual interest, including how we might improve the opportunities that exist for our citizens to live and work in each other’s countries.

“The relationship New Zealand shares with the United Kingdom is an important one. The UK is our fifth largest trading partner and one of our closest international security partners.

“As the United Kingdom looks to reshape its relationships around the world following its decision to leave the European Union, we see enhanced engagement as an opportunity to further strengthen the friendship the UK and New Zealand have enjoyed for so long,” Mr Brownlee says.

The people-to-people dialogue will be convened at officials’ level at six monthly intervals. It will complement the existing trade policy dialogue, and strategic dialogue on foreign policy.

|  A Beehive release  ||  July 26,  2017   |||

The number of women working in construction in Canterbury has more than doubled since the quakes, Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration Nicky Wagner says.

This week’s Greater Christchurch Dashboard — Women in Construction shows the number of women working in both residential and non-residential construction in Canterbury has increased from 3400 in March 2010 to 7600 in March 2017 — a 124 per cent increase.

“That’s 4200 more women employed in skilled trades such as carpentry, plumbing and gas fitting,” Ms Wagner says.

“More and more women are embracing rebuild opportunities by entering and succeeding in this traditionally male-dominated industry. Women can bring a fresh perspective, strengthen customer relations and improve business performance.

“The Stronger Christchurch Infrastructure Rebuild Team (SCIRT), which was responsible for repairing Christchurch’s quake-damaged infrastructure, proactively encouraged women into its workforce through the SCIRT Women in Construction working group.

“Between 2014 and 2015, the number of women in crew roles at SCIRT doubled from 6 to 12 per cent.

“Women are also increasingly represented in trades training at organisations such as the Ara Institute in Christchurch, where the number of women in trade courses rose from 118 in 2011 to more than 300 in 2016.

“With a skills shortage around the country, it’s great to see more women in construction — it makes good business sense and benefits Christchurch and New Zealand economically.”

Related Documents

Greater Christchurch Dashboard - Women in Construction.pdf (pdf 102.55 KB

| A Beehive release  ||  July 23, 2017   |||