The Green Party has ensured that the next set of changes to the Overseas Investment Act will look at water extraction and whether stronger tests should be set for land sales involving water takes, Green Party Co-Leader Marama Davidson announced today. Parliament passed the Overseas Investment Amendment Bill this week which will stop overseas speculators buying up our houses. A second round of amendments is being developed by Associate Finance Minister David Parker. “In response to Green Party calls for...

The Green Party caucus is listening to the concerns of environmentalists and the local community and will not support the upcoming Waimea Dam enabling legislation, Green Party Co-Leader Marama Davidson announced today. “The Tasman District Council (Waimea Water Augmentation Scheme) Bill is expected to have its first reading later this year, and we will be voting against it,” Marama said. “We share concerns about the impact of this scheme on the natural river flows, and disruption to ecosystems in the...

Single-use plastic shopping bags will be phased out over the next year, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Associate Environment Minister Eugenie Sage announced today. “We’re phasing-out single-use plastic bags so we can better look after our environment and safeguard New Zealand’s clean, green reputation,” said Jacinda Ardern. “We’re listening to New Zealanders who want us to take action on this problem. This year 65,000 Kiwis signed a petition calling for an outright ban. It’s also the biggest single subject school...

A vital step towards better protecting indigenous freshwater fish was taken with today’s introduction of a new indigenous fish conservation bill in Parliament. Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage said the Conservation (Indigenous Freshwater Fish) Amendment Bill amends the Conservation Act 1987 to provide a much-needed “modern toolbox” to help indigenous freshwater fish. “Our indigenous freshwater fish are in trouble. New Zealand has 54 indigenous freshwater fish species and 22 of these are threatened with extinction. Whitebait, freshwater and lamprey fisheries have...

A new report shows serious concerns remain for the continued existence of the native Canterbury mudfish, which is on the brink of extinction. Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage released the New Zealand Threat Classification System report on freshwater fish today. The report provides the latest conservation status of New Zealand’s 76 known freshwater fish species. “Canterbury mudfish remain in the Threatened – Nationally Critical category, and continue to decline,” Eugenie Sage said. “Much of the Canterbury mudfish habitat is on private...

The Government is supporting a project to make Wellington the world’s first predator free capital city with a $3.27 million funding boost announced by Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage today. Capital Kiwi Project (a charitable trust) and Predator Free Wellington, a joint venture between Wellington City Council, Greater Wellington Regional Council and NEXT Foundation are jointly working to create a predator free Wellington which the Predator Free 2050 Limited funding will support. “This work will help native plants and wildlife thrive...

The Green Party today welcomed the settlement of the nurses’ dispute that will give them a decent pay rise. “Nurses, who are at the heart of health care, have historically been underpaid and undervalued,” Green Party Co-leader Marama Davidson said. “It is great they have fought for and won their battle to be paid reasonably and to have more staff employed so they can safely carry out their vital work.” “Given how much nurses have been neglected by the previous...

More than half the new appointments to Conservation Boards announced by Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage today are women. Eugenie Sage announced 57 appointments to the 15 Conservation Boards across New Zealand. “Conservation Boards are the link between DOC and the community. They help ensure their region’s voice is heard on conservation issues,” Eugenie Sage said. “These appointments bring the number of women on the boards to 52 per cent and 41 per cent identify as Maori. “I am thrilled to...

The Green Party has welcomed the establishment of the new Crown-Māori partnership on freshwater, Te Kāhui Wai Māori, and will continue to push strongly for Māori rights over water to be upheld, Co-Leader Marama Davidson said today. “We welcome the establishment of Te Kāhui Wai Māori as it sends a clear signal that this Government will engage robustly with tangata whenua on their rights to freshwater, as opposed to the previous Government who kicked the can down the road,” said...

The Green Party is celebrating the latest figures that New Zealand’s game development industry earned a record $143 million in the last financial year and is urging practical policies to kick this into overdrive. “While this growth is phenomenal, the New Zealand Government can do more to assist in growing it to a billion dollar industry,” said Green Party ICT spokesperson Gareth Hughes. “While income has been concentrated amongst the ten largest companies we think the Government needs to act...