Minister of Trade Todd McClay today welcomed the rapidly widening commercial engagement between New Zealand and the United Arab Emirates and said the two governments were committed to growing the trade relationship further. Mr McClay is leading a New Zealand business delegation to Dubai and Sharjah in the UAE and Riyadh in Saudi Arabia. The UAE is the gateway for many New Zealand businesses into the Middle East and North Africa, and our eleventh largest trading partner with two-way goods trade of around $1.3 billion "Today I met with the Chairman of the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and we have…

Prime Minister John Key and Transport Minister Simon Bridges today marked the start of work on the East-West Link roading project, one of the Government’s top priorities in Auckland. The first stage of the project, the $15 million Onehunga works, is now underway. Stage one will improve travel times and congestion for both local road users and freight by widening the Southwestern Motorway to four lanes in each direction between Neilson Street and Queenstown Road in Onehunga to provide extra capacity for the growing numbers of vehicles expected to use State Highway 20. Dedicated bus lanes will also be added…

Minister of Trade Todd McClay says he is encouraged by prospects for New Zealand’s beef and horticultural exports to Indonesia following a meeting with his counterpart in Jakarta today. Mr McClay is currently in Indonesia, where he met for the first time with the new Indonesian Minister of Trade Enggartiasto Lukita. Minister Lukita took office at the end of July. “It was clear from our discussions that demand for beef in Indonesia exceeds domestic production, with prices being high. We agreed that New Zealand could play a role in addressing these imbalances,” says Mr McClay. Historically Indonesia has been an…

Acting ACC Minister Nathan Guy today welcomed the start of ACC’s public levy consultation process. “This is an opportunity for New Zealanders to share their views about levies and other aspects of the ACC scheme,” says Mr Guy. The process involves ACC releasing proposed levy rates, then after considering feedback the ACC Board recommends rates to the Government, which makes the final decision on levies. As part of levy consultation this year, ACC will consult on: a proposed reduction of 8 cents to the average work levy paid per $100 of liable earnings (from 80 cents currently to 72 cents)…

In Indonesia, Mr McClay will meet with new Trade Minister Enggartiasto Lukita, as well as deliver a keynote speech at the World Renewable Energy Congress. “I am pleased to be returning to Indonesia and look forward to continuing our productive discussions on bilateral trade priorities, including market access for New Zealand beef and horticultural exports,” says Mr McClay. Indonesia is New Zealand’s 13th largest trading partner with two-way trade worth NZ$1.6 billion. In the Gulf, Mr McClay will lead a business delegation to the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia and, he will also lead New Zealand’s biennial trade and…

Energy and Resources Minister Simon Bridges today announced the start of the Block Offer 2017 process for awarding oil and gas exploration permits. Consultation with iwi begins now and will begin with local authorities from October 17 in the areas being proposed for onshore and offshore exploration. “This is an important first step in the Block Offer process. Feedback from iwi and local authorities ensures that any areas of sensitivity are identified and carefully considered before the tender round is finalised,” Mr Bridges says. Schedule 4 areas (including national parks and marine reserves) and World Heritage sites are excluded from…

Primary Industries Ministers Nathan Guy and Jo Goodhew have welcomed $3.1 million in new funding for 13 climate change research projects in the agriculture and forestry sectors. The grants were announced today by the Ministry for Primary Industries through the Sustainable Land Management and Climate Change (SLMACC) research programme. “This funding plays an important part in helping our primary industries prepare for the future challenges of climate change,” says Mr Guy. “$935,000 is being invested in three projects to analyse soil carbon on hill country farms and under irrigation systems. “These projects and others like greenhouse gas mitigation research will…

Customs is investing in a world-class patrol vessel to reinforce and enhance the protection of New Zealand’s maritime border, says Customs Minister Nicky Wagner. “Customs has always had a strong maritime role that spans across its 176-year history. While the early days of chasing tobacco smugglers are long gone, maintaining its capabilities to respond to threats is as crucial as ever. “I’m delighted to announce this new vessel, which will be locally-designed, purpose-built, and equipped with state-of-the-art electronics. It will boost Customs’ capabilities to identify risk and carry out enforcement work beyond our territorial waters.” “The decision comes after 15…

Science and Innovation Minister Steven Joyce has today announced a total investment of over $209 million over the next five years in new scientific research projects through the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) 2016 Endeavour Fund. “The Endeavour Fund is a very important fund in the Government’s ten-year vision for a highly dynamic New Zealand science system,” Mr Joyce says. “It invests in excellent science that is designed to have a positive impact for New Zealand economically, environmentally and socially in a three to ten year timeframe. “It sits alongside the Marsden Fund, which is designed to promote…

Retired Court of Appeal judge, the Honourable Lyn Stevens QC, will chair an independent inquiry into the Havelock North water supply contamination incident, Attorney-General Christopher Finlayson announced yesterday. Justice Stevens will be joined on the panel by NZQA CEO and former Director-General of Health, Dr Karen Poutasi CNZM, and local government and engineering expert, Anthony Wilson. “The members of the inquiry panel have the extensive legal, public health, local government and water management expertise required to conduct an inquiry of this nature,” said Mr Finlayson. The Inquiry will commence this week and report back by 31 March 2017. Under the…

Prime Minister John Key has announced a new package of support for renewable energy projects in the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of Marshall Islands and Palau. “New Zealand is committed to boosting the supply of renewable energy across the Pacific in order to help Pacific nations build resilience, and reduce both emissions and dependence on imported diesel,” Mr Key says. “So I’m pleased to announce today that we will be investing $5 million in renewable energy projects in Micronesia. “The funding will allow the development of up to 400kW of solar generated power in each of the three…