Cost of living crisis rages on into 2025
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RNZ News
37 minutes ago
- RNZ News
Pensioners pinching pennies to pay for power
Stats New Zealand figures show electricity costs have gone up almost 9 percent since June last year (file photo). Photo: 123RF Some pensioners are resorting to extreme power rationing to keep up with rising costs, turning off hot water cylinders for days at a time and heading to bed as soon as it is dark to save on electricity. Stats New Zealand figures show electricity costs have gone up almost 9 percent since June last year. Petrol has gone up 15.5 percent over the same period. Pensioner Sally told Checkpoint she managed her power down to the last cent - especially since her low-user fixed rate charge rose from 30c a day to $1.80. "The low user charge applies to people who use 8000 units a year or less, and last year, I used to use 4000 or thereabouts. Last year I used to, well, till March this year, 2700 units. "But there's no difference in the daily charge because like everybody, you still got to be connected." She said the Powerswitch website got her to change from Genesis to Frank Energy, saving $360 a year. "But now Frank Energy is quitting , and I'm going to be paying $360 more than what I just had for the last 12 months. "So it's really hard, but it's the one thing apart from food that I feel I can control, and I do that by turning off the water… I have a shower then and it stays off for three nights." Her bill last year was usually around $85 a month, but her most recent was $131. Age Concern Canterbury chief executive Greta Bond said an enormous cold snap in Christchurch meant some older residents would be staying in bed until midday to stay warm. She said the government's winter energy payment of up to $700 over five months was not enough to keep up with rising prices, and stories like Sally's were common. "We're seeing so many older people living in poverty, especially people who are on that solo superannuation, and they're really struggling to get by and doing so by severely rationing their electricity use," Bond told Checkpoint . "I was so impressed with Sally and all the strategies that she had to make her power work for her, but the fact is she's still paying quite a significant percentage more than she was last year." Some people were even eating tinned food cold because of electricity costs. Others were paying 80 percent of their superannuation on rent "and there's really not almost anything left in the remaining 20 percent to warm your home or even eat", let alone go to the doctor or - in some cases - even leave the house. "I think it's a really appalling indictment of our society when you have people who are older who are having these challenges to their dignity and wellbeing based on a few dollars." Bond urged people in this situation to reach out. "There are organisations who want to help, and I think people getting trapped in their own home by their own poverty and their electricity poverty is not a way to live." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
an hour ago
- RNZ News
NZ firm Vantaset sets sights on UK, US law enforcement agencies
Chief executive of Vantaset, Craig Steel, and former Olympic swimmer Moss Burmester. Photo: Supplied What is claimed as a first-of-its-kind workplace performance service from New Zealand is gaining global attention from law enforcement and defence agencies. Vantaset was founded by New Zealand performance strategist and former sports coach Craig Steel. Developed over seven years at a cost of $7 million, the framework has grown into a paid service model designed for government and corporate clients. Steel said critical agencies were a focus for his business, especially those in the Five Eyes nations. The online platform is designed to improve business strategy and increase workplace performance through a framework based on high-performance sport environments, similar to how a coach would oversee a team or athlete. A number of trials are in discussion with police forces in North America and the United Kingdom. They have also signed agreements with a specialist consulting firm that supports government security and law enforcement agencies throughout Europe and North America, including the FBI. However, Steel said because of the sensitive nature of their work, he could not disclose their name. "They work with all of the law enforcement agencies right across Canada and a very high number in the US, including the likes of the FBI. "They're branded, but they can't disclose their brand so the FBI can't disclose the brand. But yes, they are a very legitimate agency of about 160-odd people. "They're domiciled in Canada, but they have agents right throughout the Americas, right down into South America, up into Canada and Alaska, etc. Plus they also do work into Europe. "You turn up to their office, and I've been there many times, and they don't even have a number over the door, it's quite interesting." It's not Vantaset's first foray into police environments. Nine years ago they were brought on to improve performance with New Zealand Police by then-commissioner Mike Bush. Following pilot programmes in Counties Manukau, Auckland City and Southern Districts, Bush used an early iteration of the programme to align the vision and prevention-first strategy for all 14,000 staff working out of more than 300 stations around the country. At that time Bush had noted police were dealing with declining public confidence, poor productivity, falling retention, engagement, levels and morale. Bush wanted a single programme, rather than relying on previous performance management mechanisms that didn't have the same reach across the organisation. Steel said an example of this was streamlining aspects of the organisation, including reducing the more than 6000 job descriptions within the police to a handful. A New Zealand Police case study in 2017 said: "Within 18 months of deploying Vantaset's transformation programme, Bush had lifted public trust and confidence from the 56 percent as it was following the COI to 81 percent. Further to this, an impressive 90 percent of Kiwis said they were either 'satisfied' or 'very satisfied' with the service police was now providing; a number many times greater than those enjoyed by similar nations. What's more, he achieved this while reducing crime across New Zealand by 20 percent. " Police said in a statement they have had a partnership with Vantaset for approximately nine years, but the contract would not continue past 30 June 2025. Chief executive of Vantaset, Craig Steel. Photo: Supplied Steel said the basis for the service came from three decades of research into the psychological breaking point of elite athletes to improve workplace performance. He said the conception was understanding why athletes collapse under pressure. "They do that at a very precise point, so it's at a point where a person comes to believe that the challenge they're up against is greater than the vision they have of themselves. "So what that said to me is that irrespective of the nature of the sport or the nature of the athlete, people capitulate at a very precise point. "What I identified was what I call the layering, which is essentially the process that athletes unconsciously work through that leads to that, what I found was that that was identical in every athlete and the people that we started sharing it with started saying to us, this is a monumental breakthrough in human performance, but we needed to test it. "So as a result of that, what I looked at was if that's what causes capitulation, what would happen if we reverse engineered it? So we take the modeling or the methodology, we invert it, so we start to look through a different lens and say, if we apply the same rationale, but in reverse, can we increase the point at which an athlete capitulates? "In other words, extend it - and what we found is that every time we tested it, people produce personal best within two weeks." The sports connections do not end there - former Olympic swimmers Moss Burmester and Anthony Mosse are among the team, as is former All Blacks manager Darren Shand. Burmester used Steel's approach to performance when he was competing and said you can transfer aspects of the sports field to the workplace. "If you look at a rugby team and you go, right, there's only 15 positions - how do we make them the very best in their position and empower them to go out there and play their best in their 80 minutes? "Same thing - how do we make people feel like they're valued, they're critical, they matter, and they can have a real impact for the team?" Burmester said just like in sport, it was important for staff to understand their roles and how that played a part of the "game plan" of a business or organisation. "It seems very obvious and it's laughable, but that's exactly what we see and so we sit there and we think, well, no wonder organisations aren't getting the best out of people, unlocking the potential in people. "They're just putting them into these boxes, they're not engaging them." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
an hour ago
- RNZ News
Exports of new climate change resilient apple tipped to nearly double this year
A new type of climate change resilient apple is proving popular overseas with exports tipped to nearly double this year. The 'Sassy' apple which was bred by Plant and Food Research has proven to have a long storage and shelf life. Photo: Supplied The 'Sassy' apple was bred by Plant and Food Research and is being grown by Taylor Corp in Hawke's Bay and the Golden Bay Fruit company. It can tolerate warmer climates while still developing good red colouring even during hotter summers. That represents a major success for Plant & Food Research apple breeder Richard Volz who started developing 'Sassy' back in 2001. "It was a little bit by chance that we found it, because it's not often that we find those sorts of apples. It's difficult to breed for a future hot climate in New Zealand when, compared with many other parts of the world, we have a moderate climate," he said. Plant and Food Research apple breeder Richard Volz and Taylor Corp owner Kelvin Taylor. Photo: RNZ / Alexa Cook Volz describes the Sassy apple as being a vibrant block red colour, with a zesty flavour that ripens early in the season. It's also proven to have a long storage and shelf life, and natural resilience in the orchard. "Sassy is unique because it colours often in February in Hawke's Bay when it can be quite warm, and many apples struggle for colour. "We have to have good colour in our fruit particularly for the Asian market. It was identified early on that this is an apple that colours well every year even when it's warm - so it could be good for other hot climates," Volz said. The new apple variety was introduced to the market by Prevar, a joint venture between Plant & Food Research, New Zealand Apples and Pears Inc and Apples and Pears Australia Ltd established to commercialise new apple and pear varieties. The global license is held by NGA, a joint venture between growers Golden Bay Fruit and Taylor Corp, who are working together to export Sassy to consumers all over the world. Sassy can tolerate warmer climates while still developing good red colouring. Photo: Supplied Exports of the zesty block red apple are forecast to nearly double this season to 1.8 million kilograms, and the variety is now being sold to over 10 countries. Volz said it's been a very rewarding project. "It's the kind of success that reminds us why we do this work, to create varieties that truly make a difference for growers, exporters, and consumers," he said. Taylor Corp owner Kelvin Taylor told RNZ he was excited about the apple's future as it was now being grown in nurseries in South Africa, China, Europe and the UK. "The volumes are going to shoot up pretty quickly once these other countries get involved with it, they're all saying the flavour of it and the colouring is outstanding," he said. During the peak of the season, the Taylor Corp packhouse processes about 3000 apples a minute through its new machines that sort through the crop - picking the best fruit for export and sending the blemished apples off to be juiced. Taylor Corp apples ready for export. Photo: RNZ / Alexa Cook Kelvin's been growing apples for over 50 years, and said climate change was certainly something they had to consider when choosing what to plant. "It's a totally different way you have to look at things now, it's a challenge," he said. One of the many challenges in a warming climate is disease and pests, so Plant and Food Research are working on new varieties that are more resistant to both, and will require less spraying. "That's an important part of our work. As the climate changes in future some of those pests and disease pressures for growers are going to get worse and worse so we need to be doing that," Volz said. Exports of Sassy apples are forecast to nearly double this season to 1.8 million kilograms. Photo: Supplied Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
