Yes, the speed limit (on one stretch of our roads) has been lifted but Wood must do much more to rate with Bob Semple

Buzz from the Beehive

Transport  Minister Michael  Wood   has been  busy  beating   his drum  over  the  move  to lift  the  speed  limit on the Waikato Expressway to  110km/h, between Hampton Downs and Tamahere.

He  points  out that the Waikato Expressway is a key transport route for the Waikato region, connecting Auckland to the agricultural and business centres of the central North Island.  The features making it safer for travelling at higher speeds include having at least two lanes in each direction, a central median barrier, and no significant curves.

His press statement was among those to flow from the Beehive since Point of Order’s previous Buzz, including news of further support for Ukraine:

• $4.5 million to provide Ukraine with additional non-lethal equipment and supplies such as medical kit for the Ukrainian Army
• Deployments extended for New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) intelligence, logistics and liaison officers in the UK, Germany, and Belgium
• Secondment of a senior New Zealand military officer to support International Criminal Court (ICC) investigations, and additional funding to the ICC, including the Trust Fund for Victims.

A shakeup for civil defence; more funding for sporting organisations and for projects to improve wetlands

Monitoring the Ministers

We had expected to hear braying from Sports Minister Grant Robertson about funding announced for New Zealand’s high-performance athletes over the next three years.

He must have been busy with balancing the books or some such because High Performance Sport New Zealand chief executive Raelene Castle did the announcing.

High Performance Sport New Zealand will fund 44 of the country’s National Sporting Organisations (NSO’s) to the tune of $131 million over the next three years.

In addition to the $131m, HPSNZ is investing $19m in performance support services such as psychology, strength and conditioning, nutrition, medical, physiotherapy, massage therapy, and athlete life coaching, which support athlete well-being.

Turning our attention back to the Beehive, we did hear – twice – from KiriAllan.

She announced new legislation will ensure the country’s emergency management system

“… is inclusive, modern and fit-for-purpose”.

Inclusiveness – we note  – comes before fitness for purpose in the Minister’s considerations.

Much ado about water, a bill to shake up the health system and an investment in pot (strictly for medicinal purposes)

 

The PM was strutting the international stage (virtually), the Minister of Agriculture turned to pot, the Minister for Emergency Management was limbering up for a shake-up, and the Minister for the Environment was appointing people to speak for a river that (under our laws) is deemed to be a living entity.  

The Minister for Local Government – awash with confidence in her infallibility, it seems – declared her intent to force the Three Waters reforms on local authorities that have raised a raft of reasonable objections.   The local authorities had better believe her.  She has demonstrated in the past her flair for flushing aside the niceties of good legislative procedure.

To counter any impression the government won’t listen to its citizens, on the other hand, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister David Clark announced public feedback is being sought on the regulatory safeguards required to ensure consumers and communities receive three waters services that meet their needs.

“The future three waters system needs to promote consumer interests and ensure infrastructure is delivered in a way that is efficient, affordable and resilient. To achieve this, the Government is considering whether economic and consumer protection regulation is needed, and how any new laws could be designed,” David Clark said

Yep.  It was a busy day in the Beehive.