The Green Party congratulates Kirk Hope on his appointment as Chief Executive of BusinessNZ. “Our congratulations go to Kirk Hope for his appointment as BusinessNZ Chief Executive,” Green Party Co-leader James Shaw said. “Mr Hope is the right person for the role.   “The Green Party has worked constructively with Mr Hope at the New Zealand Bankers’ Association and we look forward to working with him at BusinessNZ. “Over its fifteen years, BusinessNZ has shown an increasing understanding of the linkages...

The Green Party will be out in force this weekend, as MPs, celebrities and supporters join the Green Bloc to march in solidarity with thousands of Kiwis taking to the streets to demand action on climate change. Across New Zealand, people from all walks of life will take to the streets, led by a coalition of humanitarian organisations, environment groups, trade unions and faith groups. Tens of thousands of Kiwis are expected to join marches throughout the country on Saturday...

The Land and Water Forum’s mandate should be improving water quality, not making as much money from water as possible before the environment collapses, the Green Party said today.  The group, made up of iwi and stakeholders such as Dairy NZ, Irrigation NZ, commercial interests and some environmental NGOs, released its fourth report today, making recommendations to the Government on maximising the economic use of water within the limits of the National Policy Statement on Freshwater Management (NPS-FM), as it...

The National Government’s research and development (R&D) funding system needs a massive overhaul in light of new information from Deloitte that some R&D Growth Grants don’t actually cover development spending, the Green Party said. A Deloitte report into the Government’s Callaghan Innovation R&D funding organisation’s Growth Grants found that funding agreements were “ambiguous and to a certain extent contradict[ed] the purpose of the grant" and that the “terms of the funding agreement specially prohibit a recipient claiming any development expenditure...

Locust swarms, invasive ants, tick borne livestock diseases and rampant aquatic weed growth are just some of the potential impacts on our agricultural and horticultural industries that the Government must protect against at the Paris climate talks next week, the Green Party said today.   The comments come on the back of a report soon-to-be released by the Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI) on the effects of climate change on current and potential pests and diseases.   “The MPI report...

Proposed changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) appear on first reading to be a boon for seabed miners and property developers, the Green Party said today. The National Government today released a new Bill which proposes changes to the RMA, laws governing conservation lands, and the Exclusive Economic Zone. “The Government has repeatedly attacked the RMA to weaken its environmental protection, reduce public participation, and fast track high impact development. The more than 200 proposed changes in the Bill need...

The Government’s new Education bill appears to continue its moves to privatise New Zealand’s public education system, the Green Party says. The Government today released the Education Legislation Bill, which makes several changes including creating new types of charter schools and paving the way for principals to take over the management of other schools in what appears to be a new franchise-type arrangement. “Schools are not businesses, they are part of their community. New Zealanders don’t want their schools run...

The Government’s failure to fix the Auckland housing crisis will force more families onto the streets, the Green Party said today, with a new Statistics New Zealand report suggesting Auckland households are paying on average 10% more in rent every week than this time last year. The latest Household Economic Survey (Income) shows that median household earnings from wages and salaries have increased just 1.8 percent in the last year, while the amount Auckland households are spending on rent has...

The Green Party is calling on Police Minister Michael Woodhouse to ensure Police scrap controversial contracts that place onerous restrictions on academic researchers’ access to Police data. The Green Party’s call comes following revelations that University of Canterbury sociologist Dr Jarrod Gilbert has been blacklisted from accessing police data and that other academic researchers have been required to sign contracts that give Police the ability to censor research findings. “This is an absolute outrage – it is as though Police...

The National Government’s review of the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) must take climate change seriously by making agriculture part of the discussion, and ensuring there is a meaningful price on carbon, the Green Party said today. Climate Change Issues Minister Tim Groser announced today that agriculture, which makes up 47 percent of New Zealand’s emissions, will be excluded in its review the ETS. “Agriculture must be part of the discussion, and its exclusion is at odds with the Prime Minister’s...