16 Nov 2017  -  Foreign Minister’s APEC and EAS visit.  Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister the Rt Hon Winston Peters returns to New Zealand overnight following a visit to Viet Nam and the Philippines where he attended the APEC Meetings in Da Nang, and the East Asia Summit in Manila.   “My first visit to these two major regional summits as Foreign Minister provided a valuable opportunity to be reacquainted with counterparts who I have previously met, and to have introductory meetings with Foreign Ministers from a significant number of countries where New Zealand has strong economic and strategic interests”,…

14 Nov  2017  -  The revelation that Winston Peters filed court proceedings against Bill English and Paula Bennett at 4:59pm on the eve of the election makes a farce of his coalition negotiations with National. The decision was made as soon as the special votes gave Lab-Gre-NZF a comfortable three vote margin. Free Press (almost) feels sorry for all those who voted for and even made large donations (when will they be declared?) to New Zealand First but ended up with the former President of the International Union of Socialist Youth for a Prime Minister backed by a clean sweep…

14 Nov 2017  -  The Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand maintains its strong opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA).   “The Green Party has long opposed the TPPA. The new proposed deal, which came out of the weekend’s talks, still contains key ISDS concessions to corporations that put our democracy at risk, so our position remains the same,” said Green Party trade spokesperson Golriz Ghahraman. “We support fair trade that brings real benefit to all New Zealanders – not trade deals that put our rights and our Government’s ability to legislate to protect our people and our environment at…

12 Nov 2017  -  The Government has outlined its priorities across digital technology, media and open government signalling that the establishment of a Chief Technology Officer is at the top of the list.  Delivering the keynote speech at NetHui 2017, the Minister of Broadcasting, Communications and Digital Media and Government Digital Services and the Associate Minister of State Services (Open Government), Clare Curran, said that the Chief Technology Officer would be responsible for preparing and overseeing a national digital architecture, or roadmap, for the next five to ten years. Ms Curran also said that the Government would begin work on…

10 Nov 2017  -  Minister for Trade and Export Growth, David Parker, today welcomed the World Trade Organisation (WTO) decision to uphold New Zealand’s case against agricultural trade barriers imposed by Indonesia.  On 9 November, the WTO's Appellate Body confirmed that a number of Indonesian agricultural trade barriers are inconsistent with global trade rules. The decision upholds key findings of a WTO dispute settlement Panel, which in December last year ruled in New Zealand's favour and was subsequently appealed by Indonesia. New Zealand and the US initiated the case in 2013 in response to a range of next-generation agricultural “non-tariff”…

10 Nov 2017  -  Foreign Minister Winston Peters says Japan’s decision to continue whaling in the Southern Ocean is out of step with international opinion and defies scientific advice.  Japan’s Institute of Cetacean Research announced on 9 November that the Japanese whaling fleet had departed Japan for the Southern Ocean. “While the world calls for greater protection of the ocean’s ecosystems, Japan’s whaling vessels will be heading to the Antarctic to hunt over 300 minke whales. “New Zealand has long been opposed to whaling and has repeatedly urged Japan to end its whaling programmes,” Mr Peters says. “Japan’s decision to…

9 Nov 2017  -  The Bonn climate change meeting will put the global spotlight on the concerns of vulnerable Pacific nations, Ministers say.  Climate Change Minister James Shaw and Pacific Peoples Minister Aupito William Sio are attending the climate change meeting in Bonn, Germany, known as COP23[1]. “Under Fiji’s leadership the voice of low-lying small islands, such as those in the Pacific, will be heard clearly at this COP,” Mr Shaw says. “Aupito and I will be listening closely to Pacific Island leaders’ concerns and priorities. “This is the first time a small island developing state has presided over the…

8 Nov 2017  - On day one in the House, Labour struck a deal with National to save face, but the consequences of that deal could mean a difficult three years for the government writes Lynda Walters for Stuff today. On Tuesday, during the election of the Speaker of the House, National caught Labour off guard, suggesting the government didn't have the numbers to elect its nominated man, Trevor Mallard. In what appeared to be a mad scramble, leader of the House Chris Hipkins conversed with Jacinda Ardern, Grant Robertson and NZ First's Ron Mark over how best to proceed.…

8 Nov 2017  -   The last government has a lot to be proud of, writes National MP Chris Bishop for The Spinooff, from fending off the GFC and Canterbury earthquake recovery to social investment and addressing child poverty.  As the dust settles on the election and the new super-sized Labour/NZ First/Greens ministry gets to work, it’s worth looking back on nine years of National-led government, and what has been achieved for New Zealand. Let me say at the outset that no government is perfect. All are affected by global economic circumstances and – as encapsulated in Macmillan’s famous dictum –…

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern will travel to Da Nang, Viet Nam to attend the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders’ Meeting 10-11 November. The Prime Minister will then travel to Manila, The Philippines where she will attend the East Asia Summit 12-14 November. Foreign Minister, Winston Peters, and Trade and Export Growth Minister, David Parker, will accompany the Prime Minister in Viet Nam and attend the APEC Ministers’ meetings. Associate Trade and Export Growth Minister Damian O’Connor will also attend the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Ministerial meeting in Manila next week. “I’m very much looking forward to meeting other…

New Zealand’s 52nd Parliament will meet on Wednesday 8 November to hear the Speech from the Throne by Governor General Dame Patsy Reddy, says Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. “We promised we would be a government of action so I’m pleased to announce the opening of Parliament next week. “The Speech from the Throne will set out our vision for a fairer, better New Zealand and the measures we intend to introduce over the next three years to achieve that. “Our priorities are to take action to reduce child poverty and inequality, help Kiwis to live in affordable, warm, dry homes,…