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RNZ News
a day ago
- Politics
- RNZ News
New Zealand joins countries in statement on recognition of Palestine
Foreign Minister Winston Peters Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii New Zealand has signed a fresh joint statement with 14 other countries expressing a willingness to recognise the State of Palestine as a necessary step towards a two-State solution. It comes after the United Kingdom announced an intention to recognise a Palestinian state before the United Nations General Assembly in September unless Israel agreed to a ceasefire in Gaza. In a separate declaration, foreign ministers from nations including Australia, Canada, France, Ireland and Spain stressed their "unwavering commitment" to the vision of two democratic states - Israel and Palestine - living side by side in peace within secure and recognised borders. They invited others to join them in that call for a Palestinian state - while also urging countries who had not done so to normalise relations with Israel. In line with previous statements, the ministers condemned the "heinous and antisemitic terrorist attack" of 7 October 2023 and repeated calls for an immediate ceasefire, the unconditional release of all hostages, and unhindered humanitarian access to the region. It comes after Britain announced it would the state of Palestine unless Israel took steps to relieve suffering in Gaza. In response, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer had rewarded "Hamas's monstrous terrorism and punishes its victims." Last week, French President Emmanuel Macron said his country would formally recognise a Palestinian state during a UN meeting in September. Wednesday's statement also expressed grave concern over the high number of civilian deaths in Gaza. It welcomed recent commitments by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to disarm Hamas, end prisoner payments, reform schooling, and hold democratic elections within a year. Greens' co-leader Marama Davidson. Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii On Wednesday morning, the Green Party called for the New Zealand government to put action behind its words and finally recognise Palestinian statehood. "History will judge Aotearoa if we fail to do what is right at this pivotal moment," Greens' co-leader Marama Davidson said. "It's time for the government to make a clear stand for human rights and for justice, and recognise Palestine as a state." Speaking on Monday, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon told reporters New Zealand's position on a Palestinian state remained the same. "New Zealand's position has been... it's a 'when, not if' conversation... we believe very strongly in a two-State solution." Luxon said, however, the immediate focus was on getting all parties to get round the table and "actually work this out so this human suffering stops", "We're putting huge pressure on the parties, as best we can from a long way away... through partnering with like-minded countries." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
NZ Herald
4 days ago
- Politics
- NZ Herald
Winston Peters immigration comments labelled ‘divisive rhetoric', ‘cynical politicking'
The remarks have not gone down well with two of the Opposition parties. The Greens' immigration spokesman Ricardo Menendez March said Peters' 'tired, decades-old playbook of blaming migrants' was a 'distraction' from other actions the coalition Government had taken, such as changes to pay equity rules and tightening emergency housing settings, which critics argue has led to an increase in homelessness. 'We aren't waiting for [Prime Minister Christopher] Luxon to show leadership and shut down this divisive rhetoric, which is why we are fighting to create 40,000 new jobs through a Greens Job Guarantee, build enough public housing and restore pay equity claims,' the Green MP told the Herald. 'We will also ensure every migrant worker is treated with respect and is free from exploitation.' The Greens' Ricardo Menéndez March was critical of the comments. Photo / Mark Mitchell Phil Twyford from Labour told Newstalk ZB it was 'cynical politicking' by Peters. 'Instead of focusing on the things that I think are important to New Zealanders, like the cost of living, they are resorting to imported culture wars that, frankly, New Zealand just doesn't need,' Twyford said. While he said there was always more to be done to improve the system, Twyford said New Zealand 'is completely reliant on immigration for our economy to work and for our society to work'. 'Migrants make a hugely positive contribution to this country. They enrich our communities. It's not helpful for politicians, for their own political purposes, to be trying to divide the community and turn one group of people against another.' Luxon on Sunday said it was important immigration was linked to 'our economic agenda and our ability to support immigration with good infrastructure'. 'Those are the three things that have to come together for any country, and certainly here in New Zealand as well,' the Prime Minister said. 'We have accelerated pathways for residency through the Green List for when we have got job shortages that we desperately need to get into our communities.' Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said immigration needed to be linked to the country's economic agenda. Photo / Mark Mitchell Peters told the Herald NZ First believed immigration should not be used as an 'excuse for our failure to train, skill and employ our own people'. That was one of the party's founding principles 32 years ago and remained 'as much a principle now as it was back then', Peters said. 'We, like wise countries, have always believed we should be training and employing our own people first and not use immigration as an excuse not to do that. That is still our plan.' He said New Zealand still didn't have strong enough initiatives to 'take people from secondary school into employment' and stressed the need for appropriate infrastructure to be in place to support migrants. 'There was a time when we were getting people from around the world putting down £10 to get here. They were coming to a job and a house and infrastructure, schooling, everything. Teachers and doctors and all sorts of people were coming here.' In the year to May 2025, there was a net migration gain of 15,000, driven by 140,000 arrivals and offset by 125,000 departures. The number of arrivals is down from a peak of roughly 235,000 in late 2023, but still above the long-term average of 119,000. However, due to the large number of departures, the net gain is below the average of nearly 28,000. Jamie Ensor is a political reporter in the NZ Herald press gallery team based at Parliament. He was previously a TV reporter and digital producer in the Newshub press gallery office. In 2025, he was a finalist for Political Journalist of the Year at the Voyager Media Awards.
Sky News AU
20-07-2025
- Politics
- Sky News AU
Tasmanian Greens turn state election into ‘international soapbox' with Gaza spiel
Sky News host Danica De Giorgio discusses Tasmanian Greens Leader Rosalie Woodruff's address to the Tally Room in which she reiterated the Greens' stance on Palestine. 'Yeah, because when you think of Tasmanian politics, of course you naturally think of the Middle East conflict,' Ms De Giorgio told Sky News Australia. 'Only the Greens can turn a state election into an international soapbox. 'I would ask Rosalie, is she an MP for Tasmania or is she a member for Gaza?'
NZ Herald
17-07-2025
- Business
- NZ Herald
Letters: Cameron Rd position clarified, traffic flow is faster
While I do sincerely acknowledge that some businesses have issues with customer access since the Cameron Rd upgrade, we do not. Tauranga City Council provided me with a 24-hour, 15-minute loading zone. Pivotal to my business, it enables vehicles, including those with trailers, to drop off and collect goods, regardless of operating bus lanes. From the vantage point of my shop, it is clearly obvious that traffic flow is faster and smoother both ways along Cameron Rd, than prior to the changes. In time, I feel there will be a very positive outcome for all. Howard Jones Naismith & Jones Cameron Rd Cancer treatment The Bay of Plenty Times article regarding decline in the use of low-dose rate brachytherapy to treat prostate cancer was timely and thought-provoking. As a prostate cancer survivor who was treated with brachytherapy in 2008, I can attest to its convenience and effectiveness. As I say in my book Blasted By Seeds (published in 2015), I was in hospital for a night after the procedure on a Thursday afternoon, discharged the next day and back at work the following Tuesday. While I was on medication for several months to control post-treatment symptoms, I kept working fulltime and took minimal sick leave. I was also able to avoid disclosing what had happened to me - which was important in a workplace where there was the possibility of restructuring and downsizing. I doubt my quick return to work would have been possible if I'd undergone prostatectomy - and subsequent hospitalisation. Given the prevalence of prostate cancer, it would be a pity to lose brachytherapy as a treatment option, particularly for men who are diagnosed with early-stage disease and are still working full time. Tom McGrath Karori, Wellington Shoplifting doesn't pay Green MP Tamatha Paul has suggested that people with no money to buy food could turn to shoplifting. Is this suggestion part of the Greens' bold new economic policy? I guess in Tamatha Paul's world, it is only natural that people turn to crime when short of a dollar or two. However, does she not know that food banks exist? Also, if people are short of clothes, then charities exist to help in these circumstances as well. While it is not an ideal situation to rely on charity, one would hope that Paul realises that the crime of shoplifting does not pay. Does she not remember that one of her former colleagues was found guilty of shoplifting even while earning a salary of over $170,000 a year? That's a pretty high pay ceiling to reach while considering whether or not to engage in crime. Bernard Walker Mount Maunganui The Bay of Plenty Times welcomes letters from readers. Please note the following: Letters should not exceed 200 words. They should be opinion, based on facts or current events. If possible, please email. No noms-de-plume. Letters will be published with names and suburb/city. Please include full name, address and contact details for our records only. Local letter writers are given preference. Rejected letters are not normally acknowledged. Letters may be edited, abridged, or rejected at the Editor's discretion. The Editor's decision on publication is final. No correspondence will be entered into. Email editor@
The Spinoff
15-07-2025
- Business
- The Spinoff
Te Pūkenga loses over $80m in funding, 855 staff ahead of disestablishment
The exact number of job losses at Te Pūkenga can now be revealed, as the mega vocational education institute prepares to be split into 10. Mega-institute Te Pūkenga has lost over $80m in funding and one in 10 staff as the nation's largest vocational education provider prepares to be split into 10 polytechnics from the start of 2026, documents released under the Official Information Act show. The government is currently unwinding a 2020 merger of the nation's polytechnics into one entity, moving to a system of 'regional governance' in the hopes of making the sector more financially viable. The documents, released by the Ministry of Education and Tertiary Education Commission to the Greens' vocational education spokesperson Francisco Hernandez and shared with The Spinoff, reveal that staffing numbers at Te Pūkenga dropped by 855 last year, from 10,480 in 2023 to 9,625 in 2024. This equates to about one in 10 roles being cut, including 540 staff at tertiary education institutes and 190 full-time roles (previous documents released by Te Pūkenga projected job losses to be over 150). A separate document confirmed a drop of over $80m in funding for Te Pūkenga this year, from $949,682,296.25 in 2024 to $869,307,291.80 in 2025. This follows the institute making its first ever surplus last year to the tune of $16.6m, after spending $9.5m across its entire network on 288 redundancy payouts. Hernandez said the 'lack of support and ad hoc planning' of the disestablishment of Te Pūkenga had seen the sector, its workers and learners be '[thrown] to the wolves'. 'The cuts to courses, in-person training and teaching staff necessary for the government's new model to add up are undermining vocational education for all learners,' Hernandez said. On Monday, vocational education minister Penny Simmonds confirmed the next steps of the disestablishment of Te Pūkenga would be to break the institute into 10, including a 'federation' which will see The Open Polytechnic absorb Otago Polytechnic and the Universal College of Learning (UCOL) from January 1, 2026. The federation will share online resources, an academic board and other supports to smaller polytechnics which do not have the capacity or financial ability to provide services, at a cost. The 10 polytechnics also include Ara Institute of Canterbury, Eastern Institute of Technology, Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology, Southern Institute of Technology, Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology, Waikato Institute of Technology, and a single entity combining Unitec Institute of Technology with Manukau Institute of Technology. Meanwhile, North Tech, Taranaki's Western Institute of Technology, Tai Poutini Polytechnic, and Whitireia Community Polytechnic and Wellington Institute of Technology remain within Te Pūkenga. Simmonds said a decision on whether these institutes will be closed or merged would be decided in the first half of 2026, though they would 'most likely need federation support'. The Tertiary Education Union has expressed concern that courses being dropped during the disestablishment process are those that can't accommodate large class sizes, such as agriculture. But Simmonds said that $20m per annum had been set aside for the next two years to support certain regions such as Northland and the East Coast, which had a high need for courses that can't be financially viable through student numbers. About $100m worth of Te Pūkenga assets have been identified for sale, with the funding to be returned to Te Pūkenga, she said. Simmonds, a former chief executive of the Southern Institute of Technology (SIT), told The Spinoff she understood the number of jobs lost to be in the 'several hundreds', and it had been a 'really tough time' for those affected, but they were a part of the 'financial pathway to viability'. She said Otago Polytechnic, whose executive director Megan Pōtiki told RNZ it was 'deeply disappointed' to be included in the federation, has 'a little bit of work to do to get to a surplus' and could be removed from the federation if they met this expectation. Tertiary Education Union national secretary Sandra Gray told The Spinoff about 10% of the vocational education workforce had disappeared, and she expected another 400 roles were in scope to change. A 'huge amount' of burnout had been felt by those who had stayed, she said, and all staff were currently at the maximum of their timetable teaching hours while they picked up the duties of leaving staff. 'We have staff working at the top end of the workloads, having to work evenings and weekends just to stand still,' she said. 'When you're overworked, you can't put time into each student, you can't work in the way you want.' Gray said the federation system would be a 'one-size fits all model of blended learning' which she doubted would achieve its purpose. She saw 'no sense' in any polytechnic wanting to be a part of the federation as it would come at the loss of staff and other resources, while paying to access 'someone else's products'. Even if the four institutes that remained with Te Pūkenga were folded into the federation, Gray doubted the system would be economically viable. Contrary to the minister's position that the un-merging of Te Pūkenga would restore decision-making powers back to the regions, many polytechnics had been 'left in the cold', Gray said. 'They're the ones who are with their students every day, and yet someone in Wellington who once ran a polytechnic is the only one making decisions for everybody without proper consultation … there's no local autonomy at all.'
