The Government's 2017 Budget will be delivered on Thursday 25 May, and will be centred on providing opportunities for all Kiwis to get ahead, Finance Minister Steven Joyce says.
"The 2017 Budget will build on the strengthening performance of the New Zealand economy over the last several years. It will focus on creating the conditions for further growth and greater prosperity for all New Zealanders," Mr Joyce says.
"New Zealand businesses have generated 328,000 new jobs since 2008, and average weekly wages have grown by 26.1 per cent – more than double the rate of inflation. Budget 2017 will seek to give businesses the confidence to keep investing and keep growing, to provide more opportunities for New Zealand families.”
A key element of the Budget will involve investing in the public services and building the infrastructure for a growing New Zealand.
"As the economy grows, we have a little more headroom to invest in better public services. However, as always, our focus will be on achieving better results, and not just tipping in more taxpayers money," Mr Joyce says.
“It is also very important to remain mindful that the money the Government spends comes from hard working Kiwi families. We remain committed to reducing the tax burden on lower and middle income earners when we have the room to do so.”
Mr Joyce says the Budget will continue a relentless focus on reducing debt as a percentage of GDP.
"A key part of building a resilient economy is creating the necessary buffers to deal with the next economic shock. The Government remains committed to its target of reducing net debt to 20 per cent of GDP by 2020/21," Mr Joyce says.
| A Beehive release | February 08, 2017 ||
Ξ Challenge Steel delivering design complexity cost-effectively
New Zealand construction sector still playing catch-up despite new highs
Official Cash Rate unchanged at 1.75 percent
Mexico deal a chance to 'level the playing field' with US
While you were sleeping: Caution follows records
2017 Budget to be presented on 25 May
Sue Suckling, Chair of Callaghan Innovation, is pleased to welcome Ms Crone to lead the next phase of the organisation’s development, following its establishment and consolidation phase under the inaugural CEO.
“Vic brings a track record of leading and implementing organisational strategy to achieve challenging outcomes, through a customer-driven approach and building the strong organisational culture necessary to deliver results.”
“Her significant executive and governance experience in the tech and innovation sector, and her broader profile, also position her well to drive Callaghan Innovation’s connectedness with all key stakeholders in the innovation ecosystem,” says Ms Suckling.
Ms Crone was previously Managing Director Xero, NZ and New Markets, following executive roles at Chorus and Telecom New Zealand. She is an Independent Director on the Boards of a number of companies in the tech sector.
The Board and Ms Crone are also pleased to announce that Hēmi Rolleston has been appointed to the new role of General Manager Sectors, Māori Economy and Programmes, where his proven expertise in driving external engagement can be more broadly applied to the organisation’s wider client base. Mr Rolleston was previously Callaghan Innovation’s GM Māori Economy and acted as the Interim CEO while the recruitment process was being completed. During the interim period Mr Rolleston implemented significant initiatives to increase Callaghan Innovation’s responsiveness to customers. Ms Crone is very excited to work with Mr Rolleston to continue to drive this forward.
Callaghan Innovation was established in 2013 to help New Zealand businesses in the High Value Manufacturing and Services sector to commercialise innovation, lift international competitiveness and contribute to economic growth. Key to achieving its mission is its role as integrator in the innovation system, making it easier for businesses at all levels of maturity to access the support they need to move further up the value chain.
“This is an exciting time for Callaghan Innovation and for the tech sector, with a new CEO who brings a fresh perspective and proven skills in leading change, complemented by the strengths and experience of the wider executive team,” says Ms Suckling.
Ms Crone takes up the role of CEO on 28 February.
| A Callaghan Innovation release | February 9, 2017 ||
SINGAPORE: The Land Transport Authority (LTA) has appointed AECOM Singapore to conduct an advanced engineering study for Singapore stretch of the Singapore-Kuala Lumpur High Speed Rail (HSR) infrastructure, it announced on Wednesday (Feb 8).
The US engineering firm will provide architectural, civil, electrical, mechanical and other design services required for the Jurong East terminus, tunnels and the bridge across the Straits of Johor.
> > > Continue to full article
Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment Minister, Paul Goldsmith, has today introduced the Education (Tertiary Education and Other Matters) Amendment Bill to Parliament.
The Bill is designed to update legislation that affects the everyday running of tertiary education organisations.
“This Bill will allow for more flexibility in the tertiary funding framework, and improve accountability in return,” Mr Goldsmith says.
“The government has already improved the monitoring of tertiary organisations in response to recent investigations, and the proposals in this Bill will allow for better information collection and oversight of providers.”
A number of changes are also being made to expand student protection arrangements in response to issues raised in the past year.
“We need to ensure that the right settings are in place to support domestic and international student’s safety and wellbeing and ensure they receive a consistently high-quality education in New Zealand.”
The Bill makes a number of largely technical proposals which:
The Bill is also an opportunity to look at some minor matters that need updating in the Education Act.
“Both public and private education providers that achieve good education outcomes for New Zealanders should receive comparable funding. Introducing a requirement that providers are funded consistently I hope will encourage innovation and better performance in the tertiary sector.
The Government consulted on an exposure draft of the Bill in September and October 2016, and a number of improvements have been made to the Bill as a result of the submissions received.
| A Beehive release | February 8, 2017 ||
On Monday, Carl Bass, the CEO of $18 billion Autodesk, gave an interview with Pando Daily’s Sarah Lacy where he described President Donald Trump as “actingsomewhere between a dictator and a small business owner.”
On Tuesday, Bass announced that he’s stepping down as Autodesk CEO, effective immediately.
He’ll stay on the Autodesk board and assist with the search for a new chief executive, with senior executives Amar Hanspal and Andrew Anagnost holding down the fort as interim co-CEOs.
Autodesk is best known as the company behind AutoCAD, the ubiquitous design software for the worlds of architecture, manufacture, and construction.
In a blog entry, Bass says he’s been discussing the possibility of this move “for the last couple of years.” Still, the timing of his departure is interesting, given the explicit nature of his criticisms of Trump.
“I’ve known Bass for a while, and I am used to his outspoken nature. But even I couldn’t’t believe he said some of this on the record,” Lacy wrote in preface to her interview that was published on Monday.
Tech companies like Google and Netflix have spoken out against Trump’s policies, particularly the recent order temporarily suspending immigration from predominantly muslim countries. But those comments have focused on Trump’s policies, whereas Bass’s comments were aimed directly at the President’s character.
“We are talking about a guy who likes belittling people. He really is a bully. Look, everyone I talk to, the tech guys, who went to that first meeting, well, you saw what they looked like. They didn’t want to be there,” Bass told Lacy.
It’s possible that Bass felt more free to express his opinion knowing that he was about to step down from the CEO job.
> > > Continue to full article on BusinessInsider
The exchange rate hit a two year high on the Trade Weighted Index (TWI) last week. Our consistently overvalued exchange rate continues to be an issue for the competitiveness of manufacturers and the wider tradable sector, and we need to investigate ways to bring it back to a sustainable level over time, say the New Zealand Manufacturers and Exporters Association (NZMEA).
NZMEA Chief Executive Dieter Adam says, “The exchange rate hit a two year high on the TWI last week, and while it has dropped back less than a cent since, it remains at a level that damages the competitiveness of our manufacturers and tradable sector.
“This is not a new issue – our exchange rate has been consistently overvalued over the last decade, the average of which has been over 10 percent higher than the previous two decades in TWI terms. This does not, however, mean we should accept the current level as inevitable. We need to see some fresh thinking on how to create conditions that can give our economy a more sustainable exchange rate over time, from both the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) and Government.
“A competitive and fairly valued exchange rate is a key component of ensuring our productive manufacturing and exporting sectors can grow over time, bringing quality jobs and much needed export income. The failure to make ground on the Government's target of improving exports to 40% of GDP has no doubt been hampered by the consistent overvaluation.
“In terms of the RBNZ’s OCR decision tomorrow, we believe holding the current rate is the right move. While we are starting to see signs of an inflation uptick, moving rates up prematurely, as we saw in 2014, would add additional pressure onto our exchange rate.
The exchange rate is currently around 4% above what the RBNZ forecast for the upcoming March quarter.” Says Dieter.
| An NZMEA release | February 8, 2017 ||
The New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union says the $23 million windfall return to internet billionaire Peter Thiel in a corporate welfare sweetheart deal with the Government-owned New Zealand Venture Investment Fund shows why the Government’s programmes of corporate welfare should be shut down as part of this year’s budget.
Jordan Williams, the Executive Director of the Taxpayers’ Union, says:
“This is exactly what we have been accusing the Government of, and Steven Joyce has been denying, for many years. If corporate welfare deals go sour most of the costs land on taxpayers. This most recent example shows that even when ventures do well, most proceeds go to the private party. No wonder people label it ‘crony capitalism’.”
“Our most recent report on corporate welfare shows that the current Government is spending more than ever on these sorts of deals and subsidies. It was $1.36 billion in last year’s budget alone. If that money was used to lower company taxes, the 28% rate could be reduced to 22%. That would mean a boost to all Kiwi businesses, and not just those cherry-picked by the likes of NZVIF and Callaghan Innovation.”
“Politicians and bureaucrats in Wellington need to stop trying to outsmart people like Peter Thiel with our money. They’re on a hiding to nothing and this deal shows why.”
“Criticism of Mr Thiel for accepting corporate welfare misses the point – what businessman would turn down free money? The responsibility lies squarely with the National and Labour Parties which set up these corporate welfare schemes. Peter Beck, probably New Zealand’s largest corporate welfare recipient through his “Rocket Lab” venture, is even a nominee for the NZ Herald’s New Zealander of the Year. Rocket Lab is another taxpayer funded venture competing with Silicon Valley billionaires.”
Jim Rose’s report for the Taxpayers' Union on corporate welfare, Welfare Bums: Adding Up the Cost of Corporate Welfare in the 2016 Budget is available at http://www.taxpayers.org.nz/welfare_bums
| An NZTaxpayers' Union release | February 8, 2017 ||
Exporters Must Persuade Government to Start Backtracking.
Russia’s ban on importing New Zealand beef on the grounds of discovering additives in it has in fact all the characteristics of a reprisal for participating in the United States-invoked embargo.
New Zealand is viewed as an easy target as the Russians now start retaliating against those nations which supported the blockade.
The embargo mainly involved the United States and the EU. But anxious to appease the United States New Zealand deliberately demonstrated “solidarity” with the US, in the words of former premier John Key.
In return for this New Zealand took pole position in the now defunct Trans Pacific Partnership Treaty and as a special reward Auckland was chosen as the venue for participants to sign it.
There are indications that Russia will use several hygiene scares in recent years to choke off supplies of New Zealand dairy products.
At one time Russia was considered as New Zealand’s prime emerging market. But since the 1980s Russia has been supplanted by Asia.
It is here though that the US embargo on Russia did its most serious damage to New Zealand trade.
This occurred when France was prevented from sending its milk to Russia, along with milk exports from several other EU nations.
The result was the EU milk surplus now found its way to China, severely depressing demand for New Zealand milk.
New Zealand’s position in the US-led blockade of Russia will remain a problem for some years to come even though the embargo itself has now become moot under President Donald Trump.
Commodity exporters are trying to cool the ardour of New Zealand legislators in the matter of supporting the embargo.
This will allow them to mend fences with the Russians.
One advantage here will be the resignation at the end of last year of New Zealand premier John Key, known to be an ardent supporter of former United States president Barack Obama.
The public and indeed New Zealand’s legislators in the matter of the long-running embargo have something in common in that they have both been unaware of the consequences of participating in the blockade.
In France, in contrast, the consequences are well understood. Russia’s president Putin (pictured) deliberately called up well-publicised bulldozings of French produce found to have entered Russia via bills of ladings sourced in its old African colonies.
France, under pressure from the United States, was forced to abandon its showpiece advanced technology export which was its Mistral Class vessel for Russia’s navy.
Combined with the loss of its Russia disposal market for milk products the embargo is one of the factors behind the elimination of France’s ruling Socialist Party from any contention in this year’s presidential election.
| From the This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. | Wednesday 8 February 2017 ||
RS Components has launched a new, low-cost, fast and accurate robotics solution. Easy to programme – even for those who have never programmed a robotic arm before – the R12 and R17 benchtop robots from ST Robotics are capable of undertaking the most complex tasks, including product testing, sample handling, parts handling, machine feeding, welding, spraying and sound measurement.
Both models are supplied with controller, teach pad/pendant, all cables, connectors, RoboForthII and RobWin7 software and comprehensive manuals and, as a result, are ready to use immediately out of the box. Their high efficiency motor drives, solid machined-alloy construction and industrial-standard quality deliver outstanding accuracy and reliability, making them suitable for 24/7 operation without failure.
The R12 model comes in five- or six-axis variants, offers a 500 mm reach and is capable of handling a 1 kg payload. The larger R17 model, is a five-axis robot, with a six-axis option, and can handle a 3 kg payload over a reach of 750 mm. In total RS will stock 38 standard lines comprising the two different robot arms, several gripper formats and actuation methods (pneumatic/electric) and numerous optional accessories, including an Android/Bluetooth teach pad, vacuum grippers and USB and TCP/IP converters.
With many years’ experience in the domain, ST Robotics boasts that its robots’ high intelligence finds them niches in the most complex tasks, where they will do most of what their big brothers do, much that they cannot do and at a fraction of the price.
RS is providing large amounts of supplementary support in the form of compatible and complementary product listings, tutorials and bespoke entries within the highly popular DesignSpark section of its website. For more information on ST Robotics products available from RS visit http://smarturl.it/STROBOTICS.
| An RSComponents release | February 7, 2017 ||
Palace of the Alhambra, Spain
By: Charles Nathaniel Worsley (1862-1923)
From the collection of Sir Heaton Rhodes
Oil on canvas - 118cm x 162cm
Valued $12,000 - $18,000
Offers invited over $9,000
Contact: Henry Newrick – (+64 ) 27 471 2242
Mount Egmont with Lake
By: John Philemon Backhouse (1845-1908)
Oil on Sea Shell - 13cm x 14cm
Valued $2,000-$3,000
Offers invited over $1,500
Contact: Henry Newrick – (+64 ) 27 471 2242