Founded by Max Farndale 1947 - 2018
The number of women working in construction in Canterbury has more than doubled since the quakes, Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration Nicky Wagner says.
This week’s Greater Christchurch Dashboard — Women in Construction shows the number of women working in both residential and non-residential construction in Canterbury has increased from 3400 in March 2010 to 7600 in March 2017 — a 124 per cent increase.
“That’s 4200 more women employed in skilled trades such as carpentry, plumbing and gas fitting,” Ms Wagner says.
“More and more women are embracing rebuild opportunities by entering and succeeding in this traditionally male-dominated industry. Women can bring a fresh perspective, strengthen customer relations and improve business performance.
“The Stronger Christchurch Infrastructure Rebuild Team (SCIRT), which was responsible for repairing Christchurch’s quake-damaged infrastructure, proactively encouraged women into its workforce through the SCIRT Women in Construction working group.
“Between 2014 and 2015, the number of women in crew roles at SCIRT doubled from 6 to 12 per cent.
“Women are also increasingly represented in trades training at organisations such as the Ara Institute in Christchurch, where the number of women in trade courses rose from 118 in 2011 to more than 300 in 2016.
“With a skills shortage around the country, it’s great to see more women in construction — it makes good business sense and benefits Christchurch and New Zealand economically.”
Related Documents
Greater Christchurch Dashboard - Women in Construction.pdf (pdf 102.55 KB
| A Beehive release || July 23, 2017 |||
Trade Minister Todd McClay will make the first official visit to Thailand by a New Zealand Minister since 2013 to engage with key ministers and business leaders on trade.
“Thailand is now our eighth largest trading partner. Since the Thailand New Zealand Closer Economic Partnership came into force, total goods trade has increased almost 150 per cent to more than $3 billion in 2016,” Mr McClay says.
“Many New Zealand companies have benefited from better access, but there is opportunity to further increase goods and services exports.”
During the two day visit, Mr McClay will sign an agreement increasing the volume of New Zealand dairy products that can enter Thailand under a preferential tariff rate.
Mr McClay will also sign the official book of condolence on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand, for the late King, His Majesty Bhumibol Adulyadej.
“New Zealand has a 60 year diplomatic relationship with Thailand, but our economic relationship has been growing rapidly. We look forward to deepening our economic relationship with this important member of the ASEAN region,” Mr McClay says.
| A Beehive release || July 23, 2017 |||
Defence Minister Mark Mitchell has held talks today with Japanese State Minister of Defence Kenji Wakamiya, who is conducting an official visit to New Zealand.
“Japan is an increasingly important defence partner for New Zealand,” Mr Mitchell says. “We have a defence relationship underpinned by our common democratic values, and the fact we are both maritime nations vulnerable to natural disasters.
“The New Zealand Government was immensely grateful for the support the Japan Self-Defense Forces provided us after the Kaikoura earthquake last year,” Mr Mitchell says.
New Zealand and Japan are also strongly committed to maintaining regional peace and security.
“In addition to exploring new ways for our defence forces to work together, Minister Wakamiya and I exchanged views on security issues facing the Asia-Pacific region,” Mr Mitchell says.
Minister Wakamiya’s visit to New Zealand follows Mr Mitchell’s meeting with Japanese Defence Minister Tomomi Inada at the Shangri-La Dialogue in June, and Prime Minister Bill English’s counterpart visit to Japan in May. The frigate HMNZS Te Kaha also recently undertook a port visit to Tokyo.
| A Beehive release || July 21, 2017 |||
The Government will co-invest up to $600 million alongside local councils and private investors in network infrastructure for big new housing developments through a re-purposed ultra-fast broadband company, Finance Minister Steven Joyce and Local Government Minister Anne Tolley say.
“Crown Fibre Holdings will be re-named Crown Infrastructure Partners, and bring the investment skills and experience gained through the Government’s world-leading ultra-fast broadband rollout to the job of attracting private investment in roading and water infrastructure that open up big new tracts of land for more housing development,” Mr Joyce says.
"Crown Infrastructure Partners will set up special purpose companies to build and own new trunk infrastructure for housing developments in return for dedicated long term revenue streams from councils through targeted rates and volumetric charging for use of the infrastructure by new residents.”
“This innovative new funding method will be made available to cash-strapped councils who are struggling to fund new long-term infrastructure from their own balance sheets,” Mrs Tolley says.
“Councils will have the option of buying back the infrastructure at some point in the future, but won’t have to commit to doing so. This is all about introducing outside capital to build this infrastructure, so current ratepayers don’t get burdened with all the costs of growth.”
Two of the earliest projects to be assessed by Crown Infrastructure Partners for investment will be the Auckland North and Auckland South projects previously submitted by Auckland Council as requiring investment outside the Council’s own balance sheet.
“These two large projects can provide an additional 5,500 homes in Wainui to the north of Auckland, and 17,800 homes across Pukekohe, Paerata and Drury to the south of the city,” Mrs Tolley says.
Mr Joyce says the Government is prepared to be an investor alongside the private sector and take up some of the early uptake risk.
“We learnt from the ultra-fast broadband programme that if we de-risk some of the early stages of the investment, we can bring in private sector investors to take on much of the heavy lifting as the investments mature,” Mr Joyce says. “We would expect the Crown’s investment in each project to be matched with at least one to one with private sector investment over time.”
“This new model is another way in which we are helping Councils in our fastest growing cities to open up more land supply so more Kiwis can achieve the goal of home ownership,”
Mr Joyce says it forms part of our comprehensive programme for lifting housing supply to meet the needs of a confident growing country.
“Crown Infrastructure Partners is the logical next step in infrastructure funding following the Government’s Housing Infrastructure Fund which will deliver 60,000 houses across our fastest growing population centres over the next ten years.
Crown Infrastructure Partners (CIP)Questions and Answers
What is Crown Infrastructure Partners?
CIP is a Crown company (formerly Crown Fibre Holdings) that is being tasked with designing and implementing new commercial models to attract co-investment from the private or other sectors and achieve the Government’s objectives for the efficient deployment of water and roading infrastructure to support the timely increase of housing supply.
The aim is to increase the total investment in local arterial roading and network water projects needed to make more housing development possible by tapping private sources of capital.
Why repurpose CFH as CIP?
A number of corporate structures were identified during the review phase. Establishing a . . .
Continue to read full article here . . . A Beehive release || July 23, 2017 |||
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China's trillion-dollar 'Belt and Road Initiative' is still in its early stages, but one expert says New Zealand shouldn't take too long to work out how we can benefit from the project. Sam Sachdeva reports.
Chinese investment is always a touchy subject in New Zealand politics - and that goes double in an election year.
It's no surprise then that ears were pricked during Premier Le Keqiang's visit earlier this year by the signing of a memorandum of agreement between New Zealand and China which could lead to millions more dollars flowing in through a Chinese strategy to lead on the world stage.
Yet while the Belt and Road Initiative has been around for several years, it is in many ways still a mystery.
Stephen Jacobi, executive director of the NZ China Council, has just returned from a trip to China to get a better appreciation of what the Belt and Road Initiative may mean for New Zealand.
The initiative was first pitched by Chinese President Xi Jinping during a 2013 visit to Kazakhstan as a way of improving transport links, trade ties and personal connections through a number of projects along ancient trade routes.
Since then, a number of infrastructure projects have been developed across Asia and elsewhere, with overall spending for the initiative possibly running into the trillions.
Paul Clark, a professor of Chinese at Auckland University and associate director of the New Zealand Contemporary China Research Centre, says Belt and Road is “very much part of the Chinese government’s rhetoric” as it looks to grow its economy.
“It has great promise I think in providing an outlet for Chinese industry and construction in particular to engage with Central Asian and other countries to use up surplus supply of construction people, workers and equipment and so forth.”
Widening belt
While the possibility of Chinese-funded road and rail has dominated much of the discussion in New Zealand, Jacobi says “the real play” in our corner of the world is less about infrastructure and more about connecting up with China through including the flow of goods, services and people.
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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
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