On Monday the Office of Treaty Settlements opened the Ngāti Porou Customary Marine Title Enquiry. This enquiry will determine whether the claimant group of Ngāti Porou hapū have met the the legal standard for obtaining customary marine title, under provisions set out in the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana)
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Yesterday the Office of the Controller and Auditor General released a report on Māori education. The report is entitled, Education for Māori: Implementing Ka Hikitia – Managing for Success. (Ka Hikitia is the name of the Government’s Māori Education Strategy.) This is the first report in a series of five
On Monday the Associate Minister of Health, Peter Dunne, released a new Suicide Prevention Action Plan (2013-2016). This 9-page plan replaces the previous plan, and identifies actions which align with the broader Suicide Prevention Strategy (2008 – 2016). This plan, with $2 million of funding per annum attached, has five
On Monday the Government announced it will provide financial support to extend a breakfast in schools programme which is currently provided by Fonterra and Sanitarium. These two companies presently gift products for a two-day per week Weet-Bix and milk breakfast programme in certain schools. Community volunteers are used to organise
On Tuesday the Government released its formal response to the Children’s Commissioner’s Expert Advisory Group on Solutions to Child Poverty. [By way of background, in March 2012 the Children’s Commissioner, Russell Wills, established an advisory group to investigate child poverty. After research and consultation, the panel reported back to Mr
• On Thursday the Minister of Māori Affairs, Dr Pita Sharples, and the Minister of Economic Development, Steven Joyce, announced the five member board of the newly established Māori Economic Development Advisory Board. The members are: Ngahiwi Tomoana (Chair), Debbie Ngarewa Packer, Pania Tyson-Nathan, Kingi Smiler, and Hilton Collier. The Advisory
Following the Government’s Budget, Statements of Intent have now been published for Government departments and ministries. These are effectively three-year strategic plans, annual business plans, and their funding agreements with the Government. The statements come into effect from 1 July, and performance is then measured through annual reports. Over the
Appointments • Sir Wira Gardiner has been appointed to the Families Commission Board. • The Member of Parliament for Waikato-Hauraki, Nanaia Mahuta, and Sir Henry van der Hayden have both been named as the members of a group which will review governance arrangements for Tainui. The review is being held as the
• Last week the first reading of the Education (Breakfast and Lunch Programmes in Schools) Amendment Bill was deferred, and will now be read on 10 July. This Member’s Bill, introduced by Hone Harawira, seeks to amend the Education Act to provide for the introduction of state-funded breakfast and lunch programmes
Maungaharuru–Tangitū Hapū to sign Deed of Settlement On Saturday Maungaharuru–Tangitū hapū are scheduled to sign a Deed of Settlement with the Crown. The financial redress value is approximately $23 million, inclusive of $13.3 million cash and $9.7 million in commercial property. The signing will be held at Tongoio Marae (north
Last Monday the Minister of Economic Development, Steven Joyce, announced that the Government had entered into a Heads of Agreement with SkyCity Casino to build an international convention centre in Auckland. The centre, to be completed by 2017, will be built by SkyCity for $402 million. In exchange, the casino’s
On Wednesday the Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) released its report on complaints made against the Police during ‘Operation Eight’. [By way of background, this was the Police investigation into a group of people who were involved in military-styled training camps within the Urewera Forest between 2005 and 2007. Eighteen
Budget overview information The 2012/13 Budget is based on a total Government deficit of $6.2 billion for the year to 30 June 2013. This is down from the previous years’ deficit of $9.3 billion. For the financial year ahead, 2013/14 – which is the focus of this briefing –
• On Wednesday the Prime Minister, John Key, announced a by-election in the seat of Ikaroa-Rawhiti will be held on Saturday 29 June. This follows the death of Parekura Horomia last Monday. The Labour and Māori parties have already indicated that they intend to stand a candidate in the by-election, although
This week the Waitangi Tribunal continued its Te Rohe Pōtae District Inquiry, with the fifth week of hearings held at Te Ihingarangi Marae, north of Lake Taupō. (The Rohe Pōtae inquiry district ranges from Whaingaroa Harbour in the north, east to the Maraeroa and Wharepuhunga blocks, and south to Taumarunui