Category: MIL-OSI

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Budget 2025 – Businesses Watching Closely as Budget 2025 Nears

Source: Business Canterbury

With Budget 2025 being released tomorrow, businesses across Canterbury will be watching closely to see what’s on the table. With clear signals from the Government that this year’s budget has been signalled as a tight one, the focus for business will be on how the initiatives, continued or added, can support economic growth and create the right conditions for them to invest and grow.
Business Canterbury will be releasing a response to Budget 2025 by 3:00pm tomorrow, and Leeann Watson will be available for comment following.
On pre-Budget expectations, Business Canterbury Chief Executive Leeann Watson says, “The key area businesses will be looking at is continued investment in infrastructure, careful spending to continue the downward trend in inflation and interest rates, and initiatives that enable and help boost investment in R&D and growth.
“Two key areas are top of mind for our business community, and this starts with the Government having a long-term plan that focuses on infrastructure investment. New Zealand’s infrastructure deficit continues to grow, and here in the South Island, strong connections to ports, airports, and across the supply chain are essential for the connectivity of our exports, imports and people.
“Investment in critical transport links, including the Interislander replacements and roading projects, needs to remain a priority, even in a fiscally constrained environment. When the economy turns a corner, we need the infrastructure in place to support it.
“Our latest Quarterly Canterbury Business Survey results showed increasing confidence, but this optimism hasn’t yet translated into investment. The right policy settings could shift that.
“Targeted business support that enables innovation and investment, especially among SMEs, will be hugely important as we look ahead at a better economy, but with intentions around investment and creating jobs remaining subdued. Practical and efficient support for research and development, such as accelerated depreciation for R&D activities, for example, would give businesses the confidence to invest now in future growth.
About Business Canterbury
Business Canterbury, formerly Canterbury Employers’ Chamber of Commerce, is the largest business support agency in the South Island and advocates on behalf of its members for an environment more favourable to innovation, productivity and sustainable growth.
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Serious crash, State Highway 1, Timaru

Source: New Zealand Police

Emergency services are at the scene of a serious crash that has blocked Evans Street, State Highway 1, in Timaru this morning.

Police were notified of the single-vehicle crash, between Pringle and Belfield streets, about 9.50am.

The Serious Crash Unit is attending, and the road is expected to be closed for several hours while a scene examination is carried out.

Diversions are in place and motorists should expect delays.

ENDS

Issued by the Police Media Centre

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Nature’s getting a helping hand in Howick — and it’s starting to show

Source: Secondary teachers question rationale for changes to relationship education guidelines

Howick’s green spaces are growing stronger thanks to ecological efforts funded by the Howick Local Board — and the community is part of the story.

Across parks and reserves, an ecological restoration programme is quietly transforming the landscape in Howick.

Weeds are being removed, native plants are going in, and habitats are coming back to life. It’s all part of a wider effort happening right now to restore local nature, support wildlife, and protect our environment.

This work shows a real commitment to helping Howick’s green spaces thrive—not just now, but for the long run.

Board chair Damian Light says, “Our environment / Tō Tātou Taiao, is a key part of our local board plan. We are committed to protecting and nurturing our natural surroundings, ensuring that we leave a healthy, well-cared-for world for future generations. We can’t do this alone and we’re committed to empowering the community to take environmental action with practical support.”

Chisbury Terrace, Shelley Park.

The restoration programme spans 28 local sites, covering a total of 133 hectares. This includes well-loved places like Macleans Park, Point View Reserve, Whitford Road Esplanade, Te Naupata / Musick Point Park, and Mangemangeroa Reserve—just to name a few.

Whether it’s getting involved in planting days, joining a weeding bee, learning about native species, or simply enjoying the spaces and treating them with care, small actions add up.

Senior Ecological Specialist Jillana Robertson adds, “We’re in a constant battle against invasive species. Without pest control contracts, our parks would be overrun by weeds like moth plant and climbing asparagus, while rats and possums would devastate native wildlife. These green spaces play a vital role in erosion control, stormwater filtering, and carbon storage—but Council’s budget can’t cover it all year round. Volunteers are essential and work alongside contractors to protect these ecosystems.”

Murphy’s Bush Reserve.

As progress continues, the changes—and the benefits—will become easier to see. The goal is cleaner waterways, healthier ecosystems, and greener spaces for everyone to enjoy.

King Fern or Para at Pt View Reserve (at risk species).

Light shares, “Howick is a busy, growing part of Auckland — full of homes, shops, roads, and people. But with all that growth, we’ve lost a lot of our natural spaces. Only a small amount of native bush remains, mostly in places like Point View Reserve, Murphy’s Bush, and Mangemangeroa Reserve. These special spots are now more important than ever.”

Support is going into restoring nature across the area – through planting, pest control, and stream clean-ups – to protect wildlife, care for the land, and create clean, green spaces for everyone to enjoy.

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PSA supports Waitangi tribunal’s call to halt Regulatory Standards Bill

Source: PSA

The PSA supports the Waitangi Tribunal’s call to stop progressing the Regulatory Standards Bill until there has been meaningful engagement with Māori.
The Public Service Association (PSA) Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi is deeply opposed to the Bill which is being fast-tracked by the Government despite overwhelming Māori and Tangata Te Tiriti opposition, and serious constitutional concerns.
Driven by Minister for Regulation David Seymour, the Bill prioritises personal liberty and property rights while posing a direct threat to Te Tiriti o Waitangi and the rights of Māori, PSA Te Kaihautū Māori Janice Panoho says.
In an Interim report the Tribunal found that the Bill would be of constitutional significance and relevance to Māori but that Māori were not consulted. The Tribunal therefore called for a halt to the Bill until there had been meaningful engagement with Māori.
On Monday (May 19) Cabinet approved sending the Bill for debate in Parliament, bypassing meaningful consultation and undermining the jurisdiction of the Waitangi Tribunal, which convened an urgent hearing last week in response to the bill, Panoho says.
More than 18,000 individuals supported a collective Waitangi Tribunal claim (Wai 3470) led by Toitū te Tiriti and other Māori groups, reflecting the widespread concern that the Bill is not only anti-Treaty but actively hostile to all New Zealanders.
“This legislation represents a serious constitutional overreach and an attack on the foundational principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi,” Panoho says.
“It entrenches economic ideology at the expense of Māori rights and tino rangatiratanga. Rushing it through Cabinet without proper consultation dishonours Te Tiriti and shows a complete lack of good faith by the Crown. Māori must not be an afterthought in legislative processes that could redefine our rights in law,” Panoho says.
“This is not neutral policy, it is a calculated shift toward deregulation and privatisation, one that threatens public accountability and undermines the government’s ability to protect collective wellbeing.
“By prioritising property rights over social justice, environmental sustainability, and Treaty obligations, the Bill fundamentally alters the role of government in a way that is unbalanced and deeply concerning.
“The Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi urges all political parties and communities to reject the Bill. We must not allow our democratic processes to be hijacked by ideology that seeks to silence Te Tiriti, disempower communities, and privilege profit over people and planet,” Panoho says.
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Budget 2025 – Budget must deliver for burnt-out St John workforce

Source: Workers First Union

Ambulance officers who work for Hato Hone St John say this week’s Budget must include real funding to improve pay and conditions or the Government risks driving more experienced paramedics offshore or back into industrial action.
Last week, ambulance delegates from across Aotearoa gathered in Auckland for a Workers First conference (photo attached) as the group prepares to enter bargaining again with the partially charity-funded ambulance provider. They also discussed their growing concerns about a workforce crisis that is being made worse by insufficient public health funding.
Faye McCann, Workers First National Ambulance Coordinator, said that this year’s Budget marks the final year of a four-year ambulance funding agreement, and last year’s negotiations had failed to substantially lift wages, address penal rates that are significantly lower than comparable health professions, or deliver the infrastructure needed to keep the service functioning successfully while meeting growing patient demand.
“We can’t keep plugging holes with goodwill and expecting ambulance officers to carry the cost of a broken system,” said Ms McCann.
“Ambulance staff are already burnt out, understaffed, and responding to more mental health and high-risk incidents than ever before. It’s getting worse, especially in Auckland, where short staffing is at crisis levels even as the population grows and demand rises.”
“Officers are leaving for Australia because the pay is better, the infrastructure is better, and the workload is safer. We’re losing people we can’t afford to lose.”
“When it comes to the Treaty Principles Bill or other dodgy political priorities, the coalition agreement framework between parties is treated like it’s enshrined in law – but when it comes to funding emergency services, that promise is suddenly a ‘nice-to-have’,” said Ms McCann.
She warned that unless this Budget delivers real improvements, ambulance officers could be forced back into the same impossible bargaining position as last year, when St John repeated that they couldn’t improve wages and conditions without additional Government funding.
“Some funding eventually came, but only after a national strike and a drawn-out, behind-closed-doors process that no one wants to repeat,” said Ms McCann.
“We’re calling on the Government to fund ambulance services properly so that St John can offer decent wages, fair conditions, and a service that New Zealanders can actually rely on.”
“Cuts to the broader health budget, or a failure to meet growing cost pressures and rising demand, will mean ambulance officers are the ones bearing the brunt of underfunding, and patients will be worse off for it.”
“Ambulance services cannot be the casualty of another austerity Budget from this Government.”
Ms McCann said that Workers First ambulance officers’ ultimate goal remained the full operational funding of emergency health services, and she believed that services like St John and Wellington Free fully supported that aim.
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Budget 2025 must prioritise support for small businesses – Buy NZ Made

Source: Buy NZ Made

Buy NZ Made is calling on the Government to deliver meaningful support for New Zealand’s small businesses, the backbone of the economy and the heart of our local communities.
With small businesses making up over 97% of all enterprises in New Zealand and employing more than 600,000 Kiwis, Buy NZ Made Executive Director Dane Ambler says it is essential that the 2025 Budget includes targeted initiatives to ease cost pressures, encourage innovation, and drive local consumer confidence.
“Small businesses are facing a tough economic climate – rising costs, uncertain demand, and global competition. What they need now is a Government that steps up with strategic, long-term investment in local enterprise.
“Ideally, we would like to see increased access to low-interest loans, grants, and tax relief for small businesses, especially those recovering from the impacts of inflation and global supply chain disruptions.”
Ambler says the government’s recent move to a “local-first” approach in procurement to ensure New Zealand-made products and services are given fair consideration in public spending decisions was a good start.
“Backing small businesses is not just good economics – it’s good nation-building.
“When the Government supports local, it sends a powerful message to every New Zealander that choosing Kiwi-made products and services creates jobs, strengthens communities, and keeps money circulating within our own economy.”
Buy NZ Made is encouraging the public and policymakers alike to think local, buy local, and back the businesses that make New Zealand unique.
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Budget 2025 – Balancing the books should be at Budget’s core – Federated Farmers

Source: Federated Farmers

Federated Farmers is urging the Government to focus its Budget announcements on how it can cut waste and balance the books.
“The budget will once again need to be more about reducing spending than announcing spending, and farmers will welcome that,” Federated Farmers president Wayne Langford says.
“Farmers work hard to balance their books on farm, and we expect to see the Government doing the same.
“Farming businesses are beginning to experience the benefits of lower inflation and interest rates this year. A balanced budget will mean this stability is more likely to continue.”
Langford says while big spending isn’t on the cards, one area where there’s a need for a targeted increase in investment is pest management.
“Ballooning numbers of feral deer, pigs and goats – not to mention the spread of wilding pines – continues to have a big economic cost.”
Langford says the Department of Conservation spends only about $13 million a year controlling deer, pigs and goats on the public conservation estate, but these pests are costing the country hundreds of millions of dollars in lost food production, export losses and damage on farms.
“Doubling the pest control spend will have a small overall impact on Crown expense but will see exports increase as farmers lose less pasture to pests.
“In the context of total Crown expenditure of $180 billion, a decent boost to pest control budgets wouldn’t be significant but would help short-circuit a compounding problem.”
Langford says it would be great to see work on rural mental health also get over the line and receive extra funding.
“Again, this would be a small expenditure increase in the grand scheme of things but with significant positive benefits.” 
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Budget 2025 – Greenpeace braced for ‘scorched earth’ budget from Govt

Source: Greenpeace

With the Government set to release its Budget tomorrow, Greenpeace is calling for bold investment in climate and nature, but is bracing for the worst.
“Given that this Government just legalised killing kiwi, we’re bracing for a Scorched Earth Budget,” says Greenpeace Aotearoa spokesperson Gen Toop.
Greenpeace has been critical of the Luxon-led Government’s anti-environment policies, but says that the PM’s war on nature does not have to continue in the 2025 Budget.
Budget 2024 decreased funding for DOC to such an extent that last year the agency was asking for public donations to fund its work and is this year reportedly facing a 30% shortfall for maintaining its hut and track network.
“This Budget is a chance for the Government to change course from its war on nature,” says Toop. “It’s a chance to invest in climate action, protect biodiversity, and support everyday people with the cost of living – that’s what a responsible, future-focused Budget would do.”
“People have a right to clean water, a livable climate, and groceries and power bills they can afford. Any budget that prioritises corporate profits and tax cuts for landlords instead of those basic rights is not the kind of budget we need,” says Toop.
Greenpeace says a Budget that truly tackles the climate, biodiversity, and cost of living crises would:
  • Make a significant investment in distributed solar to bring down power bills, reduce emissions and help communities generate their own energy.
  • Create an ecological farming fund to support farmers to transition away from intensive dairy and take advantage of the rise in demand for plant-based food.
  • Bring back Jobs for Nature, funding real employment in the restoration of forests, rivers and wetlands to combat the biodiversity crisis.
  • Fund it all by taxing corporations and the ultra-wealthy, starting with bringing the country’s biggest climate polluter, Fonterra and intensive dairying into the Emissions Trading Scheme.
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Surveys – Poll shows overwhelming majority support increase in spending on public services

Source: Better Taxes for a Better Future

As the Government prepares to release a Budget that will deliver further cuts to public services an overwhelming majority of New Zealanders support increased spending on those services, according to a new poll commissioned by the Better Taxes for a Better Future campaign.

The Talbot Mills Research poll asked whether government spending on key public services such as hospitals, schools, and the police should increase (a lot or a bit), stay the same or decrease (a bit or a lot). 83% of respondents supported increases in public spending, and this support remained high across the political spectrum with even 62% of ACT supporters endorsing an increase.

“This poll shows that there is widespread support for greater investment in our public services to meet the needs of New Zealanders, such as in healthcare, and education,” says Glenn Barclay spokesperson for the Better Taxes campaign.

“It’s clear that, even in these tough economic times, people across the political spectrum realise investment in public services now is important to help build a better future.”

The poll also asked if wealthier New Zealanders (e.g.people who earn over $180,000 per year and/or have assets worth more than $5m) should pay more, the same, or less tax than they do at present. A majority (57%) supported the wealthy paying more tax.

“This may not be a surprising result for Labour, Green and Te Pāti Māori supporters, yet even a majority of National Party supporters favour the wealthy paying more tax,” says Glenn Barclay.

“The IR report into High Net Worth Individuals in 2023 demonstrated that the wealthiest 310 families in New Zealand had an effective tax rate of 9.4% compared to over 20% for the average New Zealander and it is clear that there is support for rectifying this imbalance,” says Glenn Barclay.

“The responses to these two questions send a clear message that New Zealanders don’t want to see cuts to essential public services, and the government needs to be looking at other ways to generate the revenue we need to provide services that will enable all New Zealanders to succeed,” says Glenn Barclay.

“We encourage the Government and opposition parties to be looking at tax changes that would ensure those that have more to contribute, make that contribution. Gathering more revenue from wealth and gains from wealth would put us in a better position to address the challenges we face in delivering public services, addressing poverty and climate change, and funding major infrastructure.”

The Better Taxes for a Better Future Campaign is a coalition of over 20 organisations led by Tax Justice Aotearoa.

We believe that tax reform is the only solution to the current challenges facing Aotearoa NZ.  We need the tax system to:

  • be transparent
  • raise more revenue to enable us address the challenges we face
  • make sure people who have more to contribute make that contribution: that we gather more revenue from wealth, gains from wealth, all forms of income, and corporates
  • make greater use of fair taxes to promote good health and environmental health
  • address the tax impact on the least well off in our society.
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Budget 2025: Nervous wait for thousands of public service workers – PSA

Source: PSA

Budget 2025: Nervous wait for thousands of public service workers
Cost to New Zealand women of pay equity betrayal to become clear
Embargoed 5am Wednesday 21 May 2025
Tomorrow’s Budget will lift the lid on how much further public services will be cut and expose the cost to underpaid women from the dismantling of the pay equity process.
“Public services including our cash strapped health system cannot afford to face further cuts and job losses,” said Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi National Secretary, Fleur Fitzsimons.
“More than 150,000 women have been denied the pay rise they deserve from this disappointing decision to gut our pay equity laws with no prior notice before the election or even a Select Committee process so that New Zealand women could have their say. Tomorrow’s Budget will make the scale of the cost to women clear.
“We sadly predict Government will be starving many public service agencies and our health system of funds, just as they did last year, and that means further damage to the services New Zealanders rely on.
“And we will see how the ‘billions of dollars’ set aside to fund pay equity settlements for underpaid women, will be freed up to fund the Government’s tax cuts for landlords and make the Budget numbers add up.
“This will be a mean and nasty Budget, built on taking money from care and support workers and others who had been expecting pay equity settlements before the goal posts were shifted, existing claims scrapped, all under urgency, and without a chance for their voice to be heard.
“We call on the Government to reverse all cuts to public services, fund our health system properly and put changes to pay equity laws through a proper select committee process.
“In health, the effective hiring freeze for clinical roles is putting patient care at risk, leaving health workers over worked, stressed and facing increasing risk from angry patients poorly served by the system.
“Every day we see the price New Zealanders and communities are paying for the Government’s short-sighted and rushed cuts to spending.
“Just look at last week’s damning report by the Auditor-General into Oranga Tamariki. Savings demanded by the Government meant the agency cut funding to hundreds of community service provider contracts, with little notice, without regard to the harm inflicted on the vulnerable children they support.
“We have a meth crisis in this country – the Government slashed resources for border protection, which has only made that problem far worse.
“New Zealanders can’t afford any further cuts to public services. Too much damage has already been done.”