This edition of NewsRoom_Digest contains 6 media release snippets and 3 links for the day of Thursday 2nd July.
Top stories in the current news cycle and at Parliament includes the introduction of the Social Housing Reform (Transaction Mandate) Bill that gives government the mandate to sell state houses if passed, the drop in GlobalDairyTrade prices overnight at an alarming 6% overall and latest property figures that show the so-called ‘Auckland effect’ is leading to house prices in Hamilton and Tauranga going up.
SNIPPETS OF THE DAY
* Politics
NZ Begins Presidency Of UN Security Council : Prime Minister John Key has welcomed the start of New Zealand’s month-long Presidency of the United Nations Security Council in New York. Mr Key says New Zealand is committed to making its mark on the Council, and our first stint as President will allow us to build on the contribution we’ve made over the past six months.
Govt Urged To Review Processes For Valuing Crown Land : Unless the Government reviews its processes for valuing high country pastoral lease land, it will continue to give away millions of dollars to private interests that should be going to the New Zealand public, the Green Party said today.
Newborn Hearing Screening Strengthened: Health Minister Jonathan Coleman says newborn babies across New Zealand are now benefitting from an improved hearing screening programme. “Over 55,000 newborn babies are screened each year through the hearing programme. Early detection of hearing loss means appropriate intervention can be provided,” says Dr Coleman.
* Business
Draft Decisions On Copper Lines & Broadband Prices Released: The Commerce Commission has today released further draft decisions for consultation setting proposed prices that Chorus can charge for use of its local copper lines and broadband service over the next five years. These are wholesale prices that Chorus charges retail telecommunications companies.
Secretive Negotiations Leaked: Following on from a leak less than a month ago when Wikileaks posted 17 documents leaked from the secretive negotiations for a Trade in Services Agreement (TISA) recent texts from April and May 2015, including the proposed core text and annexes on domestic regulation and transparency, were posted today according to Professor Jane Kelsey. New Zealand is part of the group of countries calling themselves ‘the Really Good Friends of Services’ who are trying to negotiate the deal.
* Primary Industries
New Phase For NAIT Programme: July is the next phase for OSPRI’s NAIT (d National Animal Identification and Tracing) programme, this means that all cattle must be tagged and registered in the NAIT system. This is for tighter TB control and continued access to export markets.
LINKS OF THE DAY
STATE OF CSR IN AUSTRALIA AND NZ : On the release of the report – The State of CSR in Australia and New Zealand Annual Review 2015 – Sustainable Business Council Executive Director Penny Nelson said: “We have seen a significant shift for New Zealand businesses over the past year. Increasingly, leaders are bringing sustainability into the heart of their organisation’s strategies. The full report is available for free download at: http://accsr.com.au/csr-services/latest-research/
PUBLIC FEEDBACK SOUGHT ON TRANSITION: The acting chief executive of the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority (CERA), John Ombler, says he expects a healthy level of public feedback on the Draft Transition Recovery Plan for greater Christchurch, which was released today. The Draft Transition Recovery Plan can be viewed athttp://www.cera.govt.nz/transition
JOBS INCREASE BUT SALARIES TO REMAIN STEADY: Employment levels, business confidence and workloads are all increasing in New Zealand’s construction industry – but employees should not get their hopes up for a high salary increase this year as salaries for most roles remain steady, according to the 2015 Hays Construction/NZIOB Salary Guide. Click here for the full 2015 Hays Construction/NZIOB Salary Guide at http://www.hays.net.nz
And that’s our sampling of the day that was on Thursday 2nd July 2015.
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