Author: Press Room

Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown remains tight-lipped about whether he’ll stand for re-election next year, but is keen to tout private polling showing his apparent popularity.The first-term mayor says he hasn’t yet decided on his political future while speculation grows. It remains unclear who Brown’s opponents might be.Speaking to Q+A, he said “Mrs Brown wasn’t that mad” about the idea of him running again, but that “lots and lots of people” had approached him about another campaign.“Lots and lots of people come up every day and say, ‘come on, run.’” he said.“And I said: ‘Last time I put a whole lot…

The government has outlined its upcoming changes to the law to clarify whether a worker is an employee or a contractor. The changes are part of the coalition agreement between National and Act New Zealand, which states they would “maintain the status quo that contractors who have explicitly signed up for a contracting arrangement can’t challenge their employment status in the Employment Court”. The amendment to the Employment Relations Act will add in a test with four criteria:  – a written agreement with the worker, specifying they are an independent contractor  – the business does not restrict the worker from working for…

With the possibility of a partial sale in the works, Kiwibank’s chief executive has questioned whether it’s necessary for the bank to stay 100% locally owned. Speaking to Q+A, Steve Jurkovich said the bank needs to raise significant amounts of capital to compete more effectively with the big four Australian-owned banks.He said opinion within the community is split on the nature of Kiwibank’s ownership. “I think having New Zealand’s bank owned by New Zealand and working for New Zealand is critical to the offering – like you still need to be a good bank, people need to trust you,” Jurkovich…

Transport Minister Simeon Brown pushed through weaker carbon emissions standards in time to meet the car industry’s preferred deadline, documents show.His own officials wanted to give Cabinet another month to decide, to allow more consideration of options.Other emails released by the Ministry of Transport showed environment officials tried at the last minute to warn Cabinet the move risked blowing the country’s climate targets.However, they were told they were too late to get the advice in a Cabinet paper.Importers bring in hundreds of thousands of new and used vehicles every year.According to the Productivity Commission, New Zealand and Australia were the…

A George St retailer shutting up shop says he is tens of thousands of dollars out of pocket after the “atrocious” handling of upgrades to the main street. But the Dunedin City Council says it has always acknowledged the work is disruptive and Dunedin businesses are being affected by other economic forces at play. The Outpost co-owner Paul Currie, of Queenstown, said the Dunedin store was set to close in November after about seven years in business in George St. It was a “huge cost” to close a business, and they would be walking away from the Dunedin store with…

Car importers are grappling with excess stock and high storage costs as demand evaporates for electric vehicles.Sales of electric vehicles have plummeted since the end of the Clean Car Discount and the introduction of road user charges for the vehicles.”Under the previous government, the message was simple: transport emissions were a major concern, EVs were the solution, and because EVs were expensive, rebates would make them more affordable to encourage uptake,” said Motor Industry Association chief executive Aimee Wiley.”This combination of incentives and a clear, focused message to consumers produced tangible results. In 2023 January through August, one in four…

As the Government moves to have fewer people in emergency housing, Q+A’s Whena Owen went to two regional centres to find out how the policy shift is impacting homelessness and why officials can’t account for 20% of people leaving motels.In Masterton, it’s been a community effort in response to the problem of homelessness.Some of the residents have taken it upon themselves to set up a night shelter for what they say is a growing number of people sleeping rough under bridges and in shop doorways.Resident Stella Lennox, one of the project leaders, hopes volunteer tradies will have the shelter finished…

A slow-moving front over the south of the South Island is bringing “significant” snow to Queenstown Lakes, Southland and inland Otago, as well as heavy rain.The latest forecast came after a heavy dump of snow in the South Island on Friday caused power outages, shut schools and closed roads.A heavy snow warning is in place until 10pm Sunday for the Queenstown Lakes District south of Wanaka and for Southland north of Mossburn and west of Athol.MetService said to expect 12-18cm of snow to accumulate above 400 metres, warning that further snow was expected on Monday night and into Tuesday.Heavy snow…

Fundraisers are seeking $380,000 to get a 5.5-metre, teardrop-shaped sculpture built near Wellington’s waterfront.The large art piece will be able to be seen across Waitangi Park, with its reflective covering reflecting a nearby path and vegetation.’KIMI/You Are Here’ was designed by Korean/New Zealand artist Seung Yul Oh.Wellington Sculpture Trust chair Jane Black said commissioning the art would be the trust’s biggest fundraising effort since its inception 40 years ago.”Through vigourous effort it has already raised $220,000, and in the current climate the remaining $380,000 will take a bold effort and it is looking for contributions from the public.”Black said the…

East Coast mayors have joined forces, calling for the government to make Eastern Institute of Technology a standalone institution as part of its plans to disestablish Te Pūkenga.The government had been consulting on a re-designed network for institutes of technology and polytechs, with some standing alone, while others will come under a federated structure, supplemented by the Open Polytechnic.Last week the Tertiary Education Minister Penny Simmonds said she expected five or six institutes would be ready to stand on their own by January, with three more to follow by the end of next year.Hawke’s Bay and Tai Rāwhiti’s five mayors,…