The Government must do a better job of creating a National Policy Statement on Indigenous Biodiversity than it did with its National Policy Statement (NPS) on Freshwater, the Green Party said today. The Minister for the Environment Nick Smith this afternoon announced that the Government is establishing a stakeholder group to design a National Policy Statement on Indigenous Biodiversity. “The Government must do a better job on this NPS than it has on the freshwater version, which allows rivers to...

Corrections’ ongoing accountability failures make it clear that an Independent Prisons Inspectorate is more necessary than ever, the Green Party said today. A RNZ report today revealed that Corrections has refused to share details about the treatment of a prisoner who was tied to his bed as far back as February. His treatment has sparked an investigation by the Ombudsman’s torture team, but Corrections’ own report into the situation is MIA. “Corrections has shown that it cannot be relied upon...

House price data released today shows no signs of a slow down to the overheated housing market and overdue cuts to the Official Cash Rate (OCR) tomorrow are likely to add further fuel to the fire, the Green Party said today. REINZ data released today shows median house prices continue to rise, up 8.6 percent nationally (year on year) and up 12.2 percent in Auckland (year on year). The Reserve Bank will likely announce cuts to the OCR tomorrow, which...

A campaign launched by education unions today against global funding should make the Government carefully consider its next moves on education funding, the Green Party said today. “Make no mistake, global funding is bad old bulk funding in disguise,” Green Party education spokesperson Catherine Delahunty said today. “The Government’s global funding model will force schools to make impossibly tough choices, such as allowing larger class sizes or paying the power bill. “Teachers and educators are on the frontline of our...

The Green Party congratulates Landcorp for making the responsible and environmentally sound decision to stop using palm kernel extract (PKE) on its farms.

The Green Party is calling on the Government to put its money where its mouth is and safeguard Auckland’s second harbour crossing for rail. In response to the launch of the Green Party's campaign for a rail line to the North Shore, the NZ Transport Agency said today that it was "100 percent committed to providing Aucklanders with a future multi-model transport corridor" as part of a second harbour crossing, without providing any specific detail on what that might look...

The Green Party has today launched a new campaign to get rail to Albany and Takapuna on Auckland's North Shore by 2030. In March, Transport Minister Simon Bridges announced that work would restart on a second harbour crossing. However, official briefings released in June show the NZ Transport Agency plans to safe-guard the harbour crossing for a road-only tunnel, meaning the option of connecting rail to the Shore may be shelved completely. “The Green Party is calling on the Government...

Endangered native sea lions will continue to be killed in commercial fishing nets unless the Government takes stronger action than is proposed in a flimsy Threat Management Plan, the Green Party said today. Submissions close today on the proposed Threat Management Plan for the New Zealand sea lion/rāpoka. The plan suggests several streams of new research, but doesn’t make changes to fishing rules to reduce sea lions being caught and drowning in fishing nets. “We don’t allow hunters to accidently...

Unfair differences between pre-paid and normal power prices are costing vulnerable families in some parts of New Zealand hundreds of dollars a year, the Green Party said. Analysis of the cheapest normal power prices and the cheapest pre-paid power prices in Wellington shows that pre-paid customers are paying on average $542 more every year. Nationwide, pre-paid customers pay an extra $153 a year on average.* “Too many pre-paid power customers are getting a bad deal,” Green Party energy spokesperson Gareth...

The Green Party has today released a consultation paper on how to get the Unitary Plan working for Auckland. “The Green Party is going to introduce great standards for warm, safe, dry homes and for building great neighbourhoods that people love living in, and we are welcoming people’s input,” Green Party Co-leader Metiria Turei said today. The Green Party consultation paper brings together two national tools for consideration that will complement the Unitary Plan: ·        Making sure all new homes...