Three Whakatāne women who led the charge for Māori wards in the district are ecstatic legislation change has been signalled. Toni Boynton, Mawera Karetai, and Danae Lee said they were stunned and excited to hear that Local Government Minister Nanaia Mahuta had made removing the poll provisions on Māori wards one of her top priorities. […]

Ōpōtiki will be asked at the next local body election whether it would like to have Māori wards. Despite most councillors believing Ōpōtiki District Council has no need for Māori wards, they have decided to ask the community what it thinks and will be undertaking a poll at the 2022 elections. The council is required […]

Transport Minister Michael Wood has committed to bilingual traffic signs across New Zealand by the end of this term of government, but says the current rules are not racist. Wood was in Rotorua on Friday to meet with Rotorua mayor Steve Chadwick. He said the reason for his visit was primarily to discuss bilingual traffic […]

The government has launched a $70 million fund to help industries switch from fossil fuels to cleaner energy for process heat. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced the fund while in New Plymouth this morning. It will allow businesses to access financial support to switch away from boilers run on coal and gas, to cleaner electricity […]

A new multi-agency campaign is being launched to promote New Zealand overseas amid border closures and the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. The campaign is a joint effort by Tourism New Zealand, New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI), Education New Zealand and New Zealand Story. Tourism New Zealand said ‘Messages from New Zealand’ […]

The new Tourism Minister has announced New Zealanders will no longer subsidise international visitors to the extent they have in the past. Stuart Nash has unveiled four key themes he will focus on to a sold out crowd at Tourism Summit Aotearoa in Wellington this morning. They include strengthening Brand New Zealand, prioritising sustainability, and […]

The government is launching an investigation into supermarket pricing to see if people are paying too much for groceries. Labour promised the investigation during the election campaign. It follows a similar study by the Commerce Commission which looked at the supply of petrol and diesel for land transport. It cost an estimated $2.5 million and […]

House prices have increased 19.8 percent year-on-year with the median now at $725,000. The Real Estate Institute’s (REINZ) House Price Index, which measures the changing value of property in the market also hit a new high, gaining 13.5 percent to 3248. Auckland’s median house price hit the $1 million mark for the first time, up […]

Momentum to increase the parliamentary term to four years seems to be growing, an election law expert says after a new poll. Conducted by Research New Zealand, the survey of 1000 people showed 61 percent support moving from a three year term to a four-year term. About 25 percent were against it, and the rest […]

The new Health Minister is promising to fast track reforms of the health sector within the next 18 months to two years. Andrew Little made his comments to the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists’ annual conference in Wellington this morning. Little told the crowd of up to about 200 people New Zealand has a complex […]