Communications and Information Technology Minister Amy Adams has today announced that work to build a high-speed fibre broadband network is to start in Upper Hutt, the Kapiti Coast, Levin, and Gisborne.
Ms Adams joined the Government’s Ultra-Fast Broadband (UFB) partner, Chorus, at an event in Paraparaumu this morning to mark the start of the project in [...]

Customs Minister Maurice Williamson says the number of eligible New Zealand and Australian passport holders using SmartGate on arrival has broken the 70 per cent mark for the first time.
SmartGate is Customs’ automated passenger processing system, which was introduced in 2009. Since its roll out in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch almost six million people have [...]

Innovative New Zealand businesses are invited to apply for funding to hire students as part of the Government’s R&D Student Grants scheme.
The R&D Student Grants, which will be administered by Callaghan Innovation, are available this year to R&D active New Zealand companies to employ up to 70 postgraduates and 200 undergraduate students from science, technology, [...]

Economic Development Minister Steven Joyce and Trade Minister Tim Groser today announced the appointment of Jennifer Kerr to the New Zealand Trade and Enterprise Board.
Ms Kerr has been appointed for a three-year term from June 2013.
Ms Kerr was formerly Group Director Human Resources at Fonterra and has worked in human resources in the oil industry [...]

Broadcasting Minister Craig Foss today announced that he has reappointed Josh Easby and Tiwana Tibble to the Radio New Zealand (RNZ) Board and Roger MacDonnell to the Television New Zealand (TVNZ) Board.
Josh Easby is the Deputy Chair of RNZ and is a Cambridge-based managing director of an independent book publisher. He has held a number [...]

The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment is in the process of finalising contracts with 37 advertising agencies that will make up the All-of-Government advertising services, Economic Development Minister Steven Joyce announced today.
The new contracts are part of a public sector-wide Government Procurement Reform Programme aimed at making government buying as efficient as possible and [...]

Labour Minister Simon Bridges has announced new regulations that will raise the standard for workplace safety in petroleum exploration and extraction.
The Health and Safety in Employment (Petroleum Exploration and Extraction) Regulations 2013 replace the 1999 regulations and come into effect on 30 June.
“The Government is committed to responsibly managing and regulating the development of our [...]

Sport and Recreation Minister Murray McCully today appointed former Silver Ferns and Black Ferns manager Jackie Barron to the board of Sport New Zealand.
“Mrs Barron is a seasoned educator and sports administrator with more than a decade of experience at the highest level of netball and women’s rugby,” Mr McCully says.
Mrs Barron managed the Black [...]

Certificates for shipments of New Zealand meat have today received official clearance from Chinese authorities, Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy has announced.
“In the last hour we’ve received an update from the New Zealand Embassy in Beijing. AQSIQ headquarters has confirmed that it has all the information it needs to authorise ports to start clearing the [...]

The Office of Treaty Settlements is seeking information from the public on their use of parts of the common marine and coastal area (CMCA) on the East Coast, to assist with an enquiry into the existence of customary marine title under the Marine and Coastal Area Act, Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations Minister Christopher Finlayson said [...]