A new report on global extreme weather events confirms climate change was a factor in last year’s crippling North Island drought. “Scientists are generally wary of linking single weather events to climate change, so this is a significant acknowledgement of the role man-made climate change played what was one of the worst droughts in New Zealand’s history,” said Green Party climate change spokesperson Dr Kennedy Graham. The report, “Explaining extreme events of 2013 from a climate perspective”, was published overnight...

The Government needs to start reporting the effects of welfare reforms on children, said the Green Party today. A report released today by the Child Poverty Action Group notes that the Ministry of Social Development is providing no reporting on how children are impacted by benefit penalties and sanctions, which can see income support halved. "Halving a family's income is likely to have a very negative impact on children but the Government isn't even looking into the effects of their...

Appointing ACT’s David Seymour as Parliamentary Under Secretary to the Education Minister will mean taxpayers picking up an even bigger bill for the Government’s failing charter schools experiment, the Green Party said today. “David Seymour’s appointment shows the Government’s clear commitment to a privatisation agenda in education,” said Green Party education spokesperson Catherine Delahunty. “ACT has made no secret of its belief that the private sector should take over the public education system. “The ACT-National agreement announced today commits even...

An international dairy report has shown Fonterra is adding little value to its dairy exports compared to European and Chinese dairy companies, exposing the weakness of the National Government’s volume-led dairy strategy, the Green Party said today. The International Farm Comparison Network's (IFCN) 2014 dairy company survey ranks the world’s largest milk processors in terms of milk volume collected and the estimated turnover per kg milk – a crude indicator of value creation. While Fonterra ranks second in the world...

Another steep rise in Auckland public transport patronage in August demonstrates the need for the Government to start investing in rail and busway infrastructure now, not in the 2020s, the Green Party said today. “The rail network is close to peak capacity already and John Key needs to start on projects like the City Rail Link (CRL) now to ensure the city keeps moving,” Green Party transport spokesperson Julie Anne Genter said today. Auckland Transport’s latest patronage figures showed rail...

John Key should not reinvent the wheel when it comes to ideas for tackling child poverty, and instead look to the recommendations of the Children’s Commissioner’s Expert Group on Child Poverty, Green Party co-leader Metiria Turei says. “It is heartening to hear the Prime Minister say that child poverty will be a priority for him this term, though the Green Party would argue that the source of poverty – low income – must be addressed if he is serious about...

The oil and gas industry’s acknowledgment that fossil fuels’ days are numbered has left National isolated in its refusal to work towards a clean energy future, the Green Party said today. The new chief executive of the Petroleum Exploration and Production Association told Radio New Zealand this morning that his industry is ready and willing to adapt to “the transition that we know will ultimately occur”. This follows the Rockefeller Foundation’s decision this week to pull NZ$62 billion worth of...

Fonterra’s cut to the dairy pay-out today shows National needs new ideas for the economy other than reliance on increasing commodity dairy production, which pollutes our waterways more and threatens New Zealand’s clean, green brand, the Green Party said today. “National’s idea of growing our prosperity is to produce ever greater volumes of milk powder, but we need get away from polluting commodities and spend more on innovation so we have a smarter, greener economy,” Green Party Co-leader Dr Russel...

Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully needs to table a New Zealand emissions reduction target while at the UN climate summit in New York this week, the Green Party said today. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon convened the summit so countries can give an indication of the emission reductions they intend to make by 2030. “So far National has not been upfront about what it’s prepared to do as part of global efforts to tackle climate change,” said Green Party Climate Change...

John Key cannot continue another term of ignoring the overwhelming statistics that child poverty is the biggest challenge facing New Zealand, said the Green Party today. On Monday night, less than 48 hours after the election, John Key continued to refuse to acknowledge the mounting evidence from the Children’s Commissioner, the Expert’s Advisory Group on Child Poverty and his own Ministry of Social Development that child poverty in New Zealand is getting worse. “Our national identity will be defined through...