Primary sector and tourism driving growth
Much of this success can be attributed to the primary sector and tourism, which are driving the economic recovery.
This positive trend coincides with farmer confidence surging to its highest level in eight years. Federated Farmers' Confidence Survey indicates a remarkable shift in sentiment, driven by farm profitability at its highest level ever recorded. Additionally, 23% of farmers are forecasting increased production over the next 12 months. This in turn means more economic activity in our region, spurring more opportunities and job growth.
There's been further big news for productivity with the biggest building consent reform in decades set to eliminate system blockages and speed up the delivery of new homes and infrastructure. Making it easier and more affordable to build is an important part of this government's economic growth plan.
In another excellent move for progress, the government's second RMA Amendment Bill has passed into law, bringing in sweeping changes to many of the handbrakes on New Zealanders' lives, helping to drive economic growth, and laying the groundwork for job creation.
The Resource Management Act (RMA) has been holding New Zealand back for decades. We're making it quicker and simpler to boost housing supply, reduce red tape, and consent renewable energy for the primary sector.
Productivity and growth translates into more job and business opportunities, as well as increased funding for the public services that enhance our quality of life, including healthcare and education.
On education, the government's proposing to replace NCEA with a new national qualification. One of the changes put forward is to create new subjects and standards to support stronger vocational pathways. Many employers in our region are involved with vocational training, and it would be great to get your perspective during the consultation period which is open until September 15.
I've had some great feedback about the two new seasonal work visas that were announced last week. Much of Southland's prosperity centres around agriculture and tourism. The success of these seasonal industries is essential for our local economy and the many businesses associated with them.
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26 minutes ago
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The importance of clear laws shown in impressive evidence from Italy
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Genesis And Cogo Launch Go Electric Calculator To Help Kiwi Households Cut Costs And Emissions
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Newsroom
4 hours ago
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Online radicalisation and foreign interference among rising threats to NZ
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The agency says it is aware of 'co-optees' monitoring social media, photographing individuals at events, or instructing other community members to collect information on behalf of foreign states, with the risk that such information could be used to coerce the person being monitored or their family back home. In one case, a foreign state asked a co-optee to collect information on a New Zealand-based person who had applied for refugee status – 'almost certainly' because they were a member of the rainbow community. The report also says it is aware of foreign intelligence officers who have travelled to New Zealand to likely support 'coercive repatriation' of people back to their country of origin. Though it does not name any states, Newsroom has previously reported on China's efforts to force alleged criminals to return from countries including New Zealand. Foreign agents have been taking control of community organisations by co-opting or replacing leaders, with the replacements sidelining those deemed to be a challenge to the foreign state's agenda and sometimes restricting government officials from speaking to the wider community. In one case, a New Zealand official who wanted to share 'important security advice' with a community was discouraged from doing so by a community leader (also a government employee) who had undertaken activity in support of a foreign state's objectives: 'Even though the intent of the security advice was to raise awareness of risks, the gatekeeper likely thought it was against the interests of a particular foreign state.' The report also raises concerns about increasingly polarised and violent rhetoric both in the real world and online, including 'a notable degree of misplaced agitation and blame for perceived societal ills' at the fringes. 'Much of this rhetoric exists solely online, and its spread is aided by algorithms that push controversial content because it generates the most engagement.' The NZ Security Intelligence Service says it has not seen any sophisticated state-backed information operations directly targeting New Zealand, but believes New Zealanders 'have almost certainly consumed foreign state-manipulated information when active online, even if they are not the target audience of that information'. Young and vulnerable Kiwis were particularly at risk of being radicalised online, with teenagers increasingly coming to the attention of security services as unfettered internet access shortened pathways to violence. 'What might have previously been considered societal risks associated with internet safety, now have the potential to pose an ongoing risk to New Zealand's national security.' In an interview with Newsroom, NZSIS director-general Andrew Hampton said the report was not intended to alarm people, but to raise public awareness about the growing threats. 'We certainly don't want to cause despair or anxiety. I actually believe that in a democracy like ours, the public are often those who are best placed to actually see concerning behaviours, report them and take steps to mitigate them.' Although much of the activity outlined in the report was not currently illegal, Hampton said the Government's foreign interference legislation – which is yet to pass its second reading in Parliament – would allow police to take action and give communities a clearer demonstration of what activities were unacceptable in New Zealand, acting as a deterrent to foreign states and the 'sympathetic individuals' they co-opted. Asked how the public should reconcile China's status as both New Zealand's largest trading partner and the most active state carrying out foreign interference here, he said the spy agency was well aware that our country's prosperity relied on its international and trade connections. 'We are not saying don't engage, and we're certainly not saying don't engage with China: what we are saying, though, is be cognisant of the risks that are associated with some of that engagement.' On the issue of young New Zealanders being radicalised, Hampton said questions around greater regulation of internet access – such as a social media ban for under-16s as suggested by Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and others – was for politicians and Parliament, but the agency wanted to draw attention to increased online engagement with grievance-based narratives. 'If you look at our current subjects of investigations – we're not talking about large numbers of people here – they're almost all young, in their teens or early 20s, they aren't part of global terrorist networks, they are people who have been largely radicalised online.' The spy agency had been speaking to school principals and other educators about what online radicalisation looked like, and had received leads as a result of that work.
