Category: New Zealand

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Insurance Sector – ICNZ welcomes Govt’s Climate Adaptation response

Source: Insurance Council of NZ

The Insurance Council of New Zealand Te Kāhui Inihua o Aotearoa (ICNZ) has welcomed the Government’s commitment to introduce legislation to Parliament this year on a Climate Adaptation framework and prepare New Zealanders for the impact of climate change on lives, property and communities.
“New Zealanders need certainty about the way natural hazard risks from climate change are going to be managed and Government leadership in this critical area is welcome,” ICNZ Chief Executive Kris Faafoi said
The Government was responding to the Finance and Expenditure Select Committee’s Inquiry into Climate Adaptation released in October last year.
“The Government has acknowledged that a significant proportion of New Zealanders live in areas susceptible to increasing natural hazard risk and that the prospect of more frequent and severe weather events may impact the stability of our housing, finance and insurance markets.
“The insurance industry is keen to continue to contribute to the policy formation to keep protecting communities and customers. As the Government has noted, an implementation plan will be required that all sectors can buy into and is achievable.
“New Zealand is a risky country, and we are committed to finding solutions that reduce our exposure to natural hazard risks by avoiding building in dumb places and by investing in infrastructure that protects communities as well as better preparing for recovery from future natural disasters.
“We also support the government’s goal of a cross-party solution to ensure New Zealand’s approach is enduring. Adapting to climate change requires a long-term political commitment as reinsurers and insurers need long-term policy and investment certainty for some of the likely actions and investments required to safeguard Kiwis and minimise the insurance protection gap.
“We commend the Government for taking this approach. When Climate Change Minister Simon Watts and insurers met with reinsurers in London last year, they told us that they have confidence in New Zealand’s plan and that being proactive and having consistent policy settings would help keep reinsurance available for New Zealand.
“While there is work already underway to prepare for a changing climate, we need to work with haste on this issue to keep all of New Zealand protected from the worst effects of future events.
“Research shows every dollar invested in adaptation brings substantial economic benefits..By addressing these risks now, New Zealand can avoid the higher costs associated with future climate-related disasters,” Kris Faafoi said.
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30 January 2025 Kāinga Ora invites wool sector to submit proposals for carpet supply Kāinga Ora is now offering both wool and nylon carpet providers the opportunity to tender for the supply of carpet and underlay in its homes.

Source: New Zealand Government Kainga Ora

Having used nylon carpet for more than a decade, the agency is opening up its recent Request for Proposal (RFP) to wool carpet suppliers also, allowing a direct price and offering comparison.

Chief Executive Matt Crockett says Kāinga Ora has traditionally used solution dyed nylon carpet due to its durability and price.

“Kāinga Ora owns and maintains more than 75,000 homes throughout New Zealand. Over the two years to 30 June 2026, we are adding a further 2,650 new homes to our portfolio and will be significantly renovating or replacing another 3,000 existing homes.

“It’s important the products and materials used in these properties are fit for purpose, durable and cost-effective to ensure value for money. These will continue to be our key assessment criteria when we compare supplier proposals.

“This RFP is an opportunity for us to retest market pricing for both wool and nylon carpet offerings, as part of a robust procurement process. This approach gives all suppliers the fair chance to put their best proposals forward, and we look forward to seeing what they can offer.”

Kāinga Ora has informed suppliers that it is closing its current procurement process and will be reissuing a new RFP inviting submissions from both wool and nylon carpet suppliers.

The new RFP will be released to the market via the Government Electronic Tender Service.

Page updated: 30 January 2025

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30 January 2025 How the healing power of a home has given Matt his voice Moving into a Kāinga Ora home has been such a game-changer for Matt that just three months on he’s regained the ability to speak.

Source: New Zealand Government Kainga Ora

It’s an extraordinary development, more than anyone expected, and one that Matt firmly attributes to the healing power of home and family.

A year ago, Matt was left paralysed from cancer treatment. It was a devastating blow made worse by the fact he couldn’t return home as there was no wheelchair access. The only accommodation that could be found for him was a room in an Auckland retirement home, a very long way from his wife and daughters in the Waikato.

Wife Pene says it was a dark time for the whole family. “We missed each other, and I could see Matt was getting depressed because he couldn’t do much for himself.”

The turning point came in a call from Kāinga Ora; an accessible family home with flat access, wide doorways and a wetroom had become available in Takaanini, South Auckland.

“We were over the moon,” says Pene. “It really was a dream come true. I met the occupational therapist (OT) at the house to ensure it would be suitable then I went straight to Matt to tell him the good news.”

Kāinga Ora Wellbeing Advisor Angeline had coordinated with all stakeholders involved in Matt’s care to aid the search for a suitable home – his social worker, OT and physiotherapist, ACC and the rest home where he was staying.

“Where there are multiple agencies involved, it’s important to take a holistic approach to ensure customers’ needs are met,” she says.

“It was also very lucky that the right home, in the right location became available as it’s often a challenge to find a property that ticks all the right boxes for a whanau with accessibility needs.

“I know Matt and his whānau had endured a long separation, so it was a pleasure to see them reconnect as a whānau unit in their new home.”

“We’re so happy to be back together and it’s had an incredible effect on my physical health,” says Matt.

“My OT and physiotherapist are amazed by how well I’ve progressed since moving in here; I’ve even regained some movement in my legs.

“All the little things like being together and being able to do normal family stuff feels amazing. I used to feel hopeless for myself and worried about my family not having the security of a permanent home.

“Thinking back to where we were a year ago makes me realise how good life is now. I don’t have the words to accurately describe how grateful I feel, it’s overwhelming, but I know I have been blessed.”

Pene says opening the door to their new home “was like the sun coming out and showing us the way out of the dark. Honestly, we’re ecstatically happy to have a home and be together, soaking up the time we have together.”

Page updated: 30 January 2025

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Final step underway to decide council election boundaries

Source: Auckland Council

Auckland Council’s final proposal for representation arrangements will soon be considered by the Local Government Commission, taking Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland one step closer to confirmed electoral boundaries and the total number of elected members for the October 2025 elections.

A public hearing on 4 February at Auckland Town Hall is where the Commission will hear the council’s proposed changes, following a complex review on representation carried out in 2024.

​Albert-Eden-Puketāpapa Ward Councillor Julie Fairey, chair of the council’s Joint Governance Working Party, says the process, through consultation, captured valuable public and local board feedback (2,359 submissions and 19 from local boards) that helped refine the recommendations for change.

“Tāmaki Makaurau is always changing and it’s vital for us to review our local representation structure at least every six years. Keeping Auckland’s council electoral boundaries and elected member ratios up to date helps to ensure fair and effective local and regional representation, and keeps decision-making as local as possible,” says Cr Fairey.

The council’s final proposal for the 2025 representation arrangements was resolved in September and publicly notified in October 2024, so that anyone with outstanding concerns could officially submit an appeal or objection.

The Commission will consider the 18 appeals and objections it received and invite those who submitted an appeal or objection to speak in person at the hearing.

Important changes proposed for Auckland include adjusting the North Shore /Albany ward boundary, central Auckland ward boundaries, and Rodney and Howick local board subdivisions.

These adjustments will accommodate faster growth in some areas by ensuring that each elected member represents more or less the same number of people within their ward or local board area, to provide fair and effective representation for all Aucklanders – no matter where they live.

The Commission must also consider the council’s decision not to comply with the fairness rule in certain areas to keep connected communities together, and to maintain fair representation for those living in less-populated areas.

Areas where exceptions are proposed include the North Shore/Albany wards, Hibiscus and Bays Local Board subdivisions, Maungakiekie-Tāmaki Local Board subdivisions, Ōtara-Papatoetoe Local Board subdivisions and Franklin Local Board subdivisions. 

Minor local board boundary changes may also be discussed. The council has proposed making changes to the Upper Harbour/Devonport-Takapuna local board boundary, in Kaipātiki /Upper Harbour, and Puketāpapa/ Maungakiekie-Tāmaki.

Once the hearing concludes, the Commission must decide whether to approve the council’s proposed changes by 11 April 2025, allowing time for changes to be introduced ahead of the October 2025 elections.

Everyone is welcome to attend the hearing or watch it live-streamed online. The full recording will be made available on the Commission’s YouTube channel afterwards.

To read more on the council’s final proposal, visit OurAuckland and akhaveyoursay/representation.

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US now New Zealand’s second largest export partner – Stats NZ media and information release – Overseas merchandise trade: December 2024

Source: Statistics New Zealand

US now New Zealand’s second largest export partner – 30 January 2025 – The United States (US) was the second largest export destination for New Zealand goods in 2024, with a total value of $9.0 billion, according to figures released by Stats NZ today. The US overtook Australia but remains behind China.

“Although the US is our second largest export partner, New Zealand ranks outside the top 50 countries from which the US purchases goods,” international accounts spokesperson Viki Ward said.

New Zealand exports to the US surpassed $9.0 billion for the first time in 2024, with the US receiving 12 percent of our total exports by value ($71.0 billion). By comparison, in the year ended December 2014, the US received 9.4 percent ($4.7 billion) of New Zealand’s total goods export value ($50.1 billion).

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EPA – Rangitane maritime development declined COVID fast-track consent

Source: Environmental Protection Authority

An independent panel has declined resource consent to construct a public boat ramp facility at Rangitane, Kerikeri.
Far North District Council and Far North Holdings Limited applied for resource consent under the COVID-19 Recovery (Fast-track Consenting) Act 2020.
The decision comes 209 working days after the application was lodged with the Environmental Protection Authority.
The Environmental Protection Authority is not involved in the decision-making. We provide procedural advice and administrative support to the panel convenor, Judge Laurie Newhook, and the expert consenting panel he appoints.
Note that this application was made under the COVID-19 Recovery (Fast-track Consenting) Act 2020 and not the more recent fast-track legislation.
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Universities – Remarkable climate solutions nominated for this year’s Earthshot Prize – Vic

Source: Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington

An ocean remediation project, a predator-free blueprint, cleaner greenhouses, and a clean technology pioneer are the nominees put forward this year by Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington to be considered for one of five £1,000,000 ($1.9m NZD) 2025 Earthshot Prizes.

The Earthshot Prize finds and grows the solutions that will repair our planet, addressing the challenge to regenerate the place we all call home in the next ten years. As a thought leader in sustainability, the University is the only official nominator based in New Zealand.

These remarkable sustainability solutions were selected by a panel for their potential for global impact, ability to be scaled or replicated, various environmental metrics, and solid organisational foundations.

The Earthshot Prize has a network of nominators all over the world who nominate game-changing innovations that will help repair the planet, awarding the best five solutions each year with £1 million to scale their work. The independent charity was founded by Prince William, and former Prime Minister, Dame Jacinda Ardern, is on the Board of Trustees.

The prizes are awarded to projects that highlight human ingenuity, drive change, and inspire collective action. The Earthshot Prize not only makes available the transformative financial resources of £5 million per year, it also has built a global, diverse, and hugely influential network of partnerships and collaborations involved with all levels of how the Prize works. All finalists get access to mentoring and support throughout the process.

In 2023, one of the University’s nominees, Sea Forest Ltd, was one of the fifteen finalists for The Earthshot Prize. (ref. https://www.wgtn.ac.nz/sustainability/about-us/news/methane-busting-seaweed-a-finalist-for-international-earthshot-prize )

The University’s nominees this year are:

Predator Free Wellington

New Zealand is at the top of the global list for threatened or endangered native species resulting from predation by introduced mammals. Predator Free Wellington is creating the world’s first predator-free capital city where native wildlife and communities thrive. They are creating the urban blueprint for the Predator Free Aotearoa New Zealand 2050 goal. The Predator Free Wellington team are developing a scalable, replicable system to permanently eliminate target introduced predators (rats, possums, mustelids) from Wellington city’s 30,000 hectares. This transformational project is a world-first, being delivered in partnership with every single resident and providing a replicable system for urban environments everywhere.

Kaipara Moana Remediation

The Kaipara is the southern hemisphere’s largest harbour and a place of global importance. Once home to ancient forests, the 600,000-hectare catchment is now degraded by land clearance, with around 700,000 tonnes of sediment flowing into the harbour each year, and 90 percent of wetlands lost. Through novel collaborations, investment in people, and ‘end-to-end’ support, Kaipara Moana Remediation mobilises landowners, iwi/hapū, communities, industry, and government to protect 16,200 kilometres of riparian margins, regenerate wetlands, and re-forest eroding hillsides. Using next-generation digital tools to identify ‘hotspots’ in the landscape, Kaipara Moana Remediation supports landowners to offset on-farm emissions, restore ecosystem remnants, and improve resilience to cyclones and floods impacting local communities.

Hot Lime Labs

Seventy percent of commercial greenhouses use natural gas for heat and yield-boosting CO2. The CO2 byproduct from natural gas is critical for greenhouses as it boosts yield by around 20 percent. No other greenhouse heating solution delivers clean CO2, so transitioning from natural gas carries a huge penalty and a major abatement challenge. The Hot Lime Labs vision is to decarbonise half the world’s greenhouses by 2030, reducing fossil emissions by 120 megatons per year. Hot Lime extracts CO2 from forestry and crop waste, replacing fossil-based CO2. Their solution delivers renewable CO2, boosting customer yields and enabling greenhouses to transition to renewable heating and decarbonise their operations.

Mint Innovation

As global mineral reserves deplete and decarbonisation becomes existential, Mint Innovation offers a sustainable solution. Mint is a clean technology pioneer, leveraging the world’s fastest growing waste streams and transforming them into value for a greener future. Their patented low-carbon technologies recover critical metals, such as copper, lithium, cobalt, nickel and rare earths from waste streams such as e-waste and spent li-ion batteries. Mint brings its world-first technology to these waste streams in city-scale facilities to return low-carbon metals back into local economies. The technology will help reduce our reliance on unsustainable practices like smelting and mining for mineral recovery, while diverting waste from landfills and preventing the export of hazardous waste to developing nations where it is typically disposed of in dangerous and highly pollutive ways.

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Business – Clear the queue to boost innovation and primary sector – BusinessNZ

Source: BusinessNZ

BusinessNZ strongly backs Animal and Plant Health NZ’s call for a sensible and modern approvals process for innovative plant and animal products, to unlock greater economic potential for the primary sector and boost economic growth.
Chief Executive Katherine Rich says our current system is too slow, too costly and uncertain.
“Some multinational firms find great difficulty launching in New Zealand because we’ve made bringing innovation here cost and time-prohibitive.
“It should not take an application more than four years to get approval – particularly products or treatments which have been safely on the market elsewhere for a decade.
“Whether it be the approval of innovative new products through the Environmental Protection Authority or new pharmaceuticals and medical devices through Medsafe, New Zealand needs effective approval processes for launching innovation here which is not cost-prohibitive and many years long.
“New Zealand needs to be an attractive place to launch new products for innovation. We must have an effective and efficient approvals process.”
Rich says BusinessNZ gladly joined businesses and organisations in co-signing a letter to Ministers, calling for positive change.
“We also support the Ministry for Regulation’s review of the agricultural and horticultural products regulatory approval process, and BusinessNZ expects to hear more in the coming weeks after findings are presented to Cabinet.”
The BusinessNZ Network including BusinessNZ, EMA, Business Central, Business Canterbury and Business South, represents and provides services to thousands of businesses, small and large, throughout New Zealand.
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Two to front court after plans spiked 

Source: New Zealand Police (National News)

A man who drove a stolen car recklessly from Bombay to Hamilton has had his plans spiked.

At about 8.15pm, officers observed the stolen Honda as it entered the South-Western Motorway at speed.

Acting Detective Inspector Simon Harrison, Waitematā CIB, says a short time later the Police Eagle helicopter located the vehicle, tracking it as it entered the Southern Motorway heading south.

“The vehicle was not pursued, however we continued observations as the vehicle continue south and into Waikato, before it was spiked near Taupiri.

“It has then continued towards Hamilton where it has slowed down due to the tyre destruction.”

Acting Detective Inspector Harrison says the vehicle was also allegedly driven on the wrong side of the road before staff moved in and were able to block the vehicle.

“It’s extremely fortunate that no one suffered any injuries as a result of this man’s alleged actions.

“I’m pleased we were able to take this person into custody and hold them to account for their actions.”

A 19-year-old will appear in Waitākere District Court today charged with burglary, unlawfully taking a motor vehicle and dangerous driving.

A 17-year-old charged with unlawfully getting into a motor vehicle and escapes custody will appear in North Shore Youth Court today.

ENDS.

Holly McKay/NZ Police

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Police make arrest over Ōkaihau hit-and-run

Source: New Zealand Police (National News)

One man has been charged over a fatal hit-and-run in Ōkaihau on Tuesday night.

An investigation has been underway since the teenage cyclist was allegedly struck by a vehicle on Settlers Way.

Detective Senior Sergeant Kevan Verry, of Northland CIB, says there has been a strong public response following the tragic event.

“We have had a number of locals make contact with us and provide information and I acknowledge them for that,” he says.

“Police have been in the small township over the past day conducting enquiries, including checkpoints to try and identify a vehicle involved.”

Police have now located and arrested a 27-year-old Kaikohe man.

Detective Senior Sergeant Verry says he has initially been charged with failing to stop or ascertain injury.

“Our enquiries remain ongoing, and we cannot rule out further charges in our investigation.”

Police are still seeking witnesses to the incident as part of the investigation.

“We know that there were several vehicles travelling on Settlers Road at the time, between 10pm and 10.15pm,” he says.

“I’m still asking that those people make contact with us.”

Please update Police online or call 105 using the reference number 250129/0360.

Information can also be provided anonymously via Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111.

The man charged is expected to appear in the Kaikohe District Court on 31 January 2025.

ENDS.

Jarred Williamson/NZ Police