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NZ government condemns actions of Israeli intelligence agents
Prime Minister Helen Clark said on Friday there were very strong reasons to believe that the two Israelis convicted on charges relating to a fraudulent attempt to obtain a NZ passport were acting on behalf of Israel's intelligence services. Whilst New Zealand's relationship with Israel has long been friendly, the Israeli intelligence agents' actions were an utterly unacceptable breach of New Zealand sovereignty and international law. As a result: New Zealand is suspending high-level visits from and to Israel; any approach by Israel for its head of state, President Katsov, to visit New Zealand in August, in association with a proposed visit to Australia, will be declined; Israelis visiting New Zealand in any official government capacity will be required to apply for visas; Foreign Ministry consultations with Israel, due later this year, will be suspended; approval for appointment of the new Israeli ambassador will be delayed and accreditation visits to Israel suspended meantime; and Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade officials, and Ministers, will observe strict constraints on contact with Israel's honorary consuls.
Second round IVF treatment for couples
Couples undergoing fertility treatment have received a significant boost. Health Minister Annette King announced public funding for a second In Vitro Fertilisation cycle. Since 2000 the government has been progressively improving access to fertility treatment. Annette King says this can now provide a second cycle throughout the entire country. Additional funding will be provided to DHBs on an ongoing basis and this is aimed to start from 1 October. Second cycle treatment will be available to couples who are assessed as meeting the agreed criteria whose first treatment cycle does not result in a live birth. The $4 million being provided in the first year includes some one-off transitional costs.
First air quality environmental standards
The government has approved the first ever national environmental standards aimed at air quality and controlling landfill gas emissions. Environment Minister Marian Hobbs says there are seven standards for dioxins and other toxics, five for ambient (outdoor) air quality, one for the design of new wood burners in urban areas, and one requiring landfills to collect and destroy their greenhouse gas emissions. The improvements in air quality from these standards, which will replace previous guidelines, are expected to save 625 lives by 2020. The first of the standards comes into effect this October.
Major new South Auckland site for homes and schooling
Education Minister Trevor Mallard and Acting Housing Minister Rick Barker have announced the purchase of 36.4 hectares of adjoining land in Papakura for new schooling and housing. The land was formerly owned by the Ministry of Defence and was declared surplus in 1993. The purchase of the site will help cater for anticipated residential growth and schooling in the area. Rick Barker says about 20 hectares of land would be used for about 300 to 400 new homes. About a third of these could be used for social housing, with the balance available for middle-income home ownership.
Cap on community education funding
The Tertiary Education Commission is letting tertiary education institutions know how they can qualify for funding through the government's new ring-fenced pool for community education. Acting Associate Minister of Education (Tertiary Education) Margaret Wilson says the government began discussions with the sector in February about its concerns at the level of growth in community education (funding classification 5.1), which was uncapped as part of the 1998 Budget. The funding rate will reduce from $5,707 per equivalent full-time student (EFTS) in 2004 to $5,000 in 2005 and a cap of 43,500 EFTS will apply over the 2004-06 period. These would be allocated by the Tertiary Education Commission as part of its process of negotiating funding profiles with tertiary education institutions this year.
New Building Bill gives confidence in good construction
New Zealanders can have confidence that buildings will be designed and built right first time, thanks to new legislation going through Parliament. Associate Commerce Minister John Tamihere says the Building Bill, reforming regulation of building work in New Zealand, has been reported back to Parliament by the Government Administration Select Committee. It considered nearly 300 submissions on the bill, which updates the existing Building Act. John Tamihere says he is pleased that the committee endorsed new measures under which a sale cannot be completed until the developer gets a certificate confirming the property complies with the Building Code. The select committee consulted closely with the building industry in considering the legislation.
More New Zealand business in Singapore
Closer trade links with Singapore over the past three years have strengthened New Zealand's business profile in the island state and helped develop a new trade gateway into Asia. Trade Negotiations Minister Jim Sutton met in Wellington with his Singaporean counterpart, George Yeo, to mark the Second Ministerial Review of the New Zealand-Singapore Closer Economic Partnership Agreement. Jim Sutton says since CEP came into being in 2001, New Zealand business has substantially increased its presence in Singapore and has provided a bridgehead for operations in Asia. The two ministers signed a New Zealand-Singapore Film Co-Production Agreement and a memorandum of understanding for trade agencies to work together to develop commercial opportunities in third countries.
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