
Govt pulls funding for rollout of ‘desperately needed' justice programme before review finishes
The Government is being accused of acting in bad faith for pulling $32.1 million in funding for the further rollout of a 'transformational' justice programme before a review is completed.
It has prompted concern from the Criminal Bar Association over the future of Te Ao Mārama,

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NZ Herald
3 hours ago
- NZ Herald
Use of urgency to upend pay equity scheme decided after PM's meeting with senior ministers
Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech. Use of urgency to upend pay equity scheme decided after PM's meeting with senior ministers Pay equity protesters rally outside Minister Brooke van Velden's electorate office in Auckland in May. Photo / Jason Dorday New documents reveal the Government's use of urgency to rush through controversial changes to the country's pay equity scheme wasn't decided until after a high-powered meeting between the Prime Minister and senior ministers. A document dump yesterday from several government agencies provides an insight into the Government's shock decision in May to amend the Equal Pay Act, which ministers claimed created a fiscally unsustainable pay equity scheme as changes saved almost $13 billion over the next four years. The changes, which stopped 33 live pay equity claims, raised the threshold for claims to be made and limited the job types workforces could use as comparators when arguing inequity. The amendments announced by Workplace Relations Minister Brooke van Velden had not been publicly forecast, and the Government used urgency to pass the bill through the House, meaning no public consultation was done. Now, documents released yesterday showed urgency hadn't been raised by officials in the months of preparation through 2024 before potential reform.


Scoop
3 hours ago
- Scoop
Open Letter To The Members Of Parliament
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Scoop
3 hours ago
- Scoop
Higher Tariffs, Higher Cost Of Living For Kiwis
Confirmation today that New Zealand exports to the US will be subject to a 15 percent tariff is a slap in the face for our exporters and could mean higher prices here at home. 'This is a major fail for the Government and for our relationship with the US. Christopher Luxon has failed to secure a low tariff rate for our exports, while others around the world such as the EU and UK have managed to make deals. Unbelievably, the tariff has actually gone up from 10 to 15 percent on his watch,' Labour trade spokesperson Damien O'Connor said. 'Under Luxon, the cost of living is already increasing, making life harder. He promised his business background would help fix things, but it's getting worse. Under this government, this economic uncertainty will only cause more instability and further stifle our economic growth. 'Businesses will have to decide whether to pass the costs on to American customers, or weather those themselves. They may have to explore new markets. None of these options are good for business confidence here at home. 'This is our second-largest market and exporters such as the meat sector will be grappling with the implications of this. This is an additional barrier to competitive access to a hugely valuable market. 'The ripple effects of tariffs imposed by the US on our trading partners will also hit us. 'Christopher Luxon needs to work harder for New Zealand's interests overseas and remind the US that we have low tariffs on their goods and services being imported here,' Damien O'Connor said.