A Budget Day like no other
Report and photos by Roy Murphy
While Members of Parliament squabbled inside the Beehive in Wellington on Budget Day, more than a thousand angry people gathered on the lawn outside. It was a powerful outpouring of dissent against amendments to the Equal Pay Act rushed through Parliament at short notice and without consultation. Read more »
Making democracy work. Part 5: Decisions
Part One covered the formation and structure of the Porirua Citizens Assembly. Part Two examined how the Assembly went about its work. Part Three looked at the contribution from the rangatahi. Part Four described the contribution of the Mana Whenua.
The Porirua Citizens Assembly finished its work last Saturday. It had no authority to add anything extra to the draft of Day Four. It was refining the expression of the final draft to delete some contested sentences and clarify the wording. It was aiming at 100 percent acceptance, but it agreed to accept an 80 percent favourable vote. In the end the final version was approved by unanimous vote. Read more »
Vibes, debt, and affordable housing
May 21, 2025 19 comments
by Felicity Wong
Few affordable houses in Wellington have resulted from de-regulating zoning in the District Plan. So far, the Wellington evidence supports the Independent Hearing Panel's (IHP) view that 'zoning by itself, does not lead to affordable housing'. Read more »
Making democracy work. Part 4. Mana whenua kōrero
by Roy Murphy
Part One covered the formation and structure of the Porirua Citizens Assembly. Part Two examined how the Assembly went about its work. Part Three looked at the contribution from the rangatahi..
One big difference between the wider Porirua community and the Mana Whenua, the indigenous people of Aotearoa, became obvious right from the start. The wider community spent nearly the whole of the first day getting to know each other, developing acceptable ways of dealing with each other, going on a bus tour to get familiar with the land, and agreeing on how to arrive at conclusions. Whereas the Mana Whenua already knew each other, knew the land, knew the families, and used the traditional Māori ways of kōrero (discussion) and of making decisions. Read more »
Making democracy work. Part 3: the youth speak up
May 19, 2025 9 comments
by Roy Murphy
Part One covered the formation and structure of the Porirua Citizens Assembly. Part Two examined how the Assembly went about its work.
Day Two was centred around the rangatahi, the young people. Read more »
Making democracy work. Part 2: getting to know you
May 18, 2025 4 comments
by Roy Murphy
Part One covered the formation and structure of the Porirua Citizens Assembly on climate change.
For the wider Porirua community, Day One of the Assembly was devoted to setting the ground rules, finding out about each other so they could talk, going on a bus tour of the Porirua area to develop their knowledge of the local environment, and listening to experts. Read more »
Making democracy work. Part 1: building the framework
May 17, 2025 24 comments
by Roy Murphy
In a world first, the Porirua community has improved the experience of people involvement in society three-fold. It has transformed the already successful process of citizens' assemblies. Read more »
$800,000 to re-plan Dixon Street
by Karl Tiefenbacher
The Wellington City Council last week once again showed how desperately out of touch it is with what we need as a city, and how much we need a change at the local elections. Read more »
Running out of runway
May 14, 2025 50 comments
by Councillor Diane Calvert
Wellington is running out of runway — financially and politically. City councillors are about to make decisions on a revised 10-year budget that will shape Wellington's direction for years to come. This is the last chance for councillors to face facts: the city we've been planning and spending for isn't a city people can afford to live in. Read more »
Eight months of roadworks
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NZ Herald
3 days ago
- NZ Herald
Tiny number of new pay equity claims expected – but first is ‘very close'
Last week, the Herald asked Workplace Relations Minister Brooke van Velden for an update on the number of claims brought or likely to be brought under her new regime. Van Velden's office said the matter was better handled by the agencies responsible for the claims, and forwarded the Herald's query to them. When asked whether she was happy with the way the new regime was working, van Velden said it was 'early days to see how it will roll out in practice'. 'I do believe we got the law correct,' she said. Health NZ Te Whatu Ora's funding and investment director, Jason Power, told the Herald it purchased 'services from a large number of third-party providers but we are not the employer of the workforces that deliver these contracted services'. 'We are not aware of any new pay equity claims across the third-party providers we purchase services from,' Power said. The Ministry of Education's hautū (leader), Anna Welanyk, told the Herald 'no new pay equity claims have been raised since the amendments were made to the Equal Pay Act'. She said the ministry 'has ongoing obligations under the amended Equal Pay Act to respond to and investigate new pay equity claim/s that are raised, once it's been determined the claim meets the required thresholds applying to new claims. Our responsibility to respond to new claims continues under the amended Equal Pay Act.' PSA not intending to use new law The Herald also spoke to the unions responsible for the workforces likely to take claims. Public Service Association (PSA) national secretary Fleur Fitzsimons, who ran as a Labour candidate at the last election, told the Herald the union 'had no intention to file any claims under the new amended Equal Pay Act'. Fitzsimons said the union had 'no confidence women will get equal pay through that legislation'. 'It guts the heart of pay equity. It undermines the ability for women to even be heard,' she said. She said that in some cases, the legislation barred claims from being lodged. This was the case with care and support workers' claim. That claim, which was fought in the courts and sparked the creation of the old pay equity scheme, expired at the end of 2023. In some cases, these workers are now earning the minimum wage. The new regime prevents settled claims being revisited for 10 years after they were initially settled. This means if a pay equity settlement is eroded as a result of male-dominated workforces' wages rising faster, it cannot be litigated until 10 years after the settlement. 'There isn't any ability for those women to even advance a claim under the current legislation – it's not a choice we've made, the legislation itself bans the claim,' Fitzsimons said. She said in the case of other workforces such as probation officers, library assistants, and administration and clerical workers, the union would not be taking pay equity claims but is 'seeking improvements to their pay through collective bargaining'. Nurses' union to take claims soon The New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) is taking a different approach. It had 12 claims that it took or was a party to – covering 13,200 members – extinguished by the law change. NZNO chief executive Paul Goulter told the Herald 'we decided pretty much immediately after the announcement the issue was too important for us not to pursue any chance at all of continuing pay equity claims'. 'Our members are very strongly in support of us doing that,' he said. Goulter said the Government's changes were 'intended in our view to rule out advancing pay equity claims under the guise of making it easier and more transparent'. He said employers in the funded sector, the private employers who deliver mainly government-funded services, were also keen to have pay equity established because it would help to grow the workforce. He said the union was 'very close' to lodging claims relating to Plunket and hospice workers. Goulter also raised concerns with the 10-year rule. He noted a large claim relating to nurses employed by Health NZ could not be reopened until 2033. It covered 35,000-40,000 nurses. Education union analysing law's effects Education sector union NZEI Te Riu Roa is still delving into how the new regime will function. Because it was passed in mere hours under urgency, without consultation or a select committee, unions had very little time to come to grips with the way the new regime works. NZEI's national secretary Stephanie Mills said her union was still 'analysing' the new regime. 'We've asked the ministry a number of questions about how they would interpret the new act in relation to a claim or claims,' she said. Mills said many of the things her union is looking at include 'technical' problems, such as the new regime's changing of the threshold for raising a claim to one of 'merit'. The old system allowed claims to be raised if they were 'arguable'. What that means in practice is still not clear to NZEI. Asked whether the union would take a claim in future, Mills said NZEI wanted to 'keep looking'. 'We do want to do the best by members. In the end we'll have to make a call about whether we do or don't [lodge a claim]. 'In the meantime we'll be making the argument that the legislation does need to change and does need to be fixed,' she said.
RNZ News
3 days ago
- RNZ News
Auckland councillors agree on desired helicopter saga outcome - but not how to get there
Waitematā and Gulf Ward councillor Mike Lee has filed two motions of notice calling for the prohibition of private helicopters in residential neighbourhoods. Photo: RNZ / Cole Eastham-Farrelly A motion to block helicopters from Auckland's residential areas has become ensnared in a web of bureaucracy. Councillors gathered on Thursday to discuss Waitematā and Gulf Ward councillor Mike Lee's two motions of notice calling for the prohibition of private helicopters in residential neighbourhoods. It comes after Auckland rich-listers Anna Mowbray and Ali Williams were approved to build a helipad at their Westmere home , a decision now being challenged in the Environment Court . Councillor Lee's first motion urged the council to change the city's Unitary Plan to make private helipads in residential areas a prohibited activity city-wide. The second motion called for the same change, but only for the Hauraki Gulf Islands section of the council's District Plan. The second motion was passed by the council, though it would still need to be approved by the central government. However, the motion to change Auckland's Unitary Plan proved to be much more complicated. Council advisory staff said a city-wide ban would be too difficult to implement. It would require the council to seek permission from the Minister Responsible for RMA Reform Chris Bishop, a request many councillors believed he would decline. Councillor Richard Hills, chairing the meeting, instead proposed an amendment to Lee's motion requesting the council seek a declaration from the Environment Court to strengthen its case before approaching the Minister. "What I'm trying to do here is give us a chance," he told councillors. "You can bet when we have to go and beg to the minister to put through a plan change ... If we said we don't have staff backing and we don't think we have experts, there is no way the minister would say yes to that." Councillor Richard Hills proposed an amendment to one of the motions. Photo: Alexia Russell Councillor Lee described the amendment as an ambush. "There have been ample breaks in this meeting today and this obviously didn't fall out of the air, I would have appreciated the courtesy of some consultation," Lee said. "This outcome-by-ambush approach with no forewarning whatsoever is not going to help the reputation of the council." Speaking after the meeting, Hills said he felt proceeding without the amendment would have only led to disappointment. "We would be giving false hope to people if we went ahead, against advice, over a two year period and spent millions of dollars for an outcome that everything points to we wouldn't have had," he said. "It might make us feel good in the moment, but actually we have to try and get the best, clearest, strongest [outcome] as quick as possible." Councillor Shane Henderson said he voted in favour of the amendment because it was more likely to be approved by the minister. "We were kind of worried it would fail at the end of the day and we would be in a very difficult position," he said. "So we wanted to get something that was more practical and workable over the line." Lee disagreed with the others councillors' assertion that the minister would block the change. "The minister's intention is to stop councils spending a fortune on 10-year reviews of their district and regional plans, I don't think the minister would attempt to block plan changes which correct or modify the existing plan." He believed prohibiting helipads in residential areas was an obvious move and would bring Auckland more in line with its international counterparts. "Internationally, Auckland is an outlier. Just about all the major international cities strictly control or prohibit private use of helipads in residential areas." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Scoop
5 days ago
- Scoop
Mixed Reaction As Councils Told To Halt Planning Work
The Government's call to halt planning work has taken North Canterbury council leaders by surprise. Resource Management Act (RMA) Reform Minister Chris Bishop has put a stop to councils working on District and Regional Plans until the new RMA legislation takes effect. ''Rather than let these pricey, pointless planning and policy processes play out, we will be giving councils clarity on where to focus their efforts while they await the new planning system,'' Mr Bishop said at the Local Government NZ conference in Christchurch last week. The shake-up of the RMA is expected to come into effect in 2027. The Waimakariri District Council recently completed its District Plan, and barring any Environment Court appeals, it will become operative next month. But the Hurunui and Kaikōura district councils are just starting out on their District Plan reviews. Waimakariri Mayor Dan Gordon said he welcomed any initiative which streamlines planning processes and reduces the financial and capacity burdens on councils. ''However, it's essential that these changes still allow for meaningful local decision-making. ''Our recently notified District Plan represents a major investment in the future of our district, built on years of dedicated work and community engagement. ''Growth is important, but it must not come at any cost. We need development that is sustainable, well-planned, and aligned with the aspirations of our residents.'' Mr Gordon said local voices must remain central to local planning. Hurunui District Council chief executive Hamish Dobbie said his council welcomed the pause, but he would seek some clarity around potential plan changes. ''We have held off doing it (the District Plan review) on the basis this (new legislation) was coming up and we didn't want to waste the effort.'' The Kaikōura District Council has been working through a review of its District Plan, which was adopted in 2008. Council chief executive Will Doughty said the announcement will stifle the council's attempts to make changes to benefit the community. ''We have just awarded a contract to our consultants to work on the first two or three chapters. ''We always knew reform was under way, but we took an approach to respond to the needs of our community, while being flexible enough to review and respond to any changes.'' Mr Doughty said the council faced criticism that the ''rules are prohibitive'', so it was keen to update the plan. Mr Bishop said money is wasted on planning review processes, which is required under the existing RMA. ''The Government will suspend councils' mandatory RMA requirements to undertake plan and regional policy statement reviews every ten years, and the requirement to implement national planning standards.'' Mr Bishop said there will be some exemptions, including private plan changes and natural hazards planning. It means Cargill Station Ltd will be able to proceed with its private plan change to sub-divide sections in the Ocean Ridge development, south of Kaikōura, but the council may not be able to make any changes. Other council leaders from around the country expressed frustration, following Mr Bishop's address, at not being able to make changes to fix any planning issues, while private developers are still able to submit plan change requests.
