Waitangi Tribunal’s authority in Chhour case is upheld – but bill’s introduction to Parliament gazumps the ruling

Buzz from the Beehive

It’s been a momentous few days for Children’s Minister Karen Chhour.  The Court of Appeal has overturned a High Court decision which blocked a summons order from the Waitangi Tribunal for her. And today she has announced the Government is putting children first by introducing to Parliament legislation to repeal section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act.

In its ruling, the Court of Appeal acknowledged the importance of the Waitangi Tribunal’s role in inquiry into legislation that (it contended) is inconsistent with the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi. It found the minister had relevant evidence to give to the Tribunal.

A fortune-telling failure, surely, if the tarot cards can’t see a bulldozer coming

RNZ reports – 

It’s supposed to be a haven of healing and spiritual awakening but residents of the Kawai Purapura community say they’ve been hurt and deceived.

It’s the successor to the former Centrepoint commune, and has been on the bush block opposite Albany shopping centre since 2008. It continues to have around 70 residents and 30 short term workers.

NZTA takes the wheel after govt gives it the road map for regional roads (and puts a speed governor on the spending pedal)

Buzz from the Beehive

 Tolling was mentioned when Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced the government was re-introducing the Roads of National Significance (RoNS) programme, with 15 “crucial” projects to support economic growth and regional development across New Zealand.

All RoNS would be four-laned, grade-separated highways, and all funding, financing, and delivery options should be considered to deliver them in stages as quickly as possible, Brown said.

No, the govt will not be cutting back on every budget – and the Defence vote is among those to be given a funding boost

Buzz from the Beehive

Reporting on defence spending late last year, RNZ said the coalition government will have to make some tough calls this term to help the force address staff shortages and ageing infrastructure.

“These are huge, huge amounts of government spending. It’s a significant proportion of the government’s capital spend each year,” Professor David Capie said.

Capie is the director of the Centre for Strategic Studies at Victoria University.

What’s new? A social agency with an emphasis on “investment” instead of “wellbeing” – but (psst!) we have had one of these before

Buzz from the Beehive

A new government agency will open for business on July 1 – the Social Investment Agency.

As a new standalone central agency effective from 1 July, it will lead the development of social investment across Government, helping ministers understand who they need to invest in, what works for those people and how to measure progress.

But wait.

What’s new?

Hurrah for coal – Shane Jones welcomes Genesis Energy’s import plans as natural gas production shrinks

Buzz from the Beehive

A significant decline in natural gas production has given Resources Minister Shane Jones an opportunity to reiterate his enthusiasm for the mining and burning of coal.

For good measure, he has praised an announcement from Genesis Energy that it will resume importing coal.

He and Energy Minister Simeon Brown have blamed the previous government for the reduced gas supply and its troubling consequences for the energy sector.

17 people in Malaita stand in way of China’s takeover of the Solomons

• Cleo Paskal writes –

WASHINGTON, D.C.: ‘Many of us have received phone calls from [the opposing camp] telling them if they join the camp they will be given projects for their wards and $300,000 [around US$35,000] each’, says former Malaita Premier Daniel Suidani.

The elections in Solomon Islands aren’t over. In an exclusive interview, former Malaita Premier Daniel Suidani tells The Sunday Guardian about the pitched political battle still raging in his province over who will be the next Premier, and why China is involved. But first, a summary of events so far.

Correcting the Corrections announcement – a fiscal farce that should bother the OECD

 Buzz from the Beehive

One headline-grabber from the Beehive yesterday was the OECD’s advice that the government must bring the Budget deficit under control or face higher interest rates.

Another was the announcement of a $1.9 billion “investment” in Corrections over the next four years.

Preposterous priorities – politicians preferred pastry

Newsroom writer Aaron Smale, in an article triggered by the High Court’s ruling on whether a sitting MP must respond to a summons to appear before the Waitangi Tribunal, reports on issues underpinning the tribunal’s urgent inquiry into the Government’s intention to remove Section 7AA from the Oranga Tamariki Act.  

He notes that the Act Party insists we should be rid of any “race-based” policy.

Other councils are keen to be next to strike a water deal with govt

Buzz from the Beehive

Local Water Done Well – let’s be blunt – is a silly name, but the first big initiative to put it into practice has gone done well.

This success is reflected in the headline on an RNZ report:

District mayors welcome Auckland’s new water deal with govt