Pacific Island Affairs Minister Hekia Parata says Tongan Language Week is a great opportunity for the Tongan community to help ensure the preservation of their language and culture in New Zealand.
“Tongan Language Week will run from this weekend on Sunday, from 1 – 8 September with the theme, Fakakoloa Aotearoa ‘aki ‘etau Hiva Fakatonga – [...]

Key information on where and how visitors are spending their money is now available to the tourism industry as part of a new data collection launched today by Associate Tourism Minister Chris Tremain.
The Regional Tourism Estimates, produced by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, (MBIE) can be accessed via the Ministry’s website.
“This is the [...]

Small Business Minister John Banks today welcomed the Government’s progress towards the introduction of a unique New Zealand Business Number for each of the 550,000 businesses on the Companies Register.
“A single business number will bring benefits to small businesses by making it easier to connect to government systems. In time it will improve productivity and [...]

A draft report outlining New Zealand’s torture prevention efforts has been released for public consultation today by Justice Minister Judith Collins.
“This report is a key part of our commitment to the United Nations Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, a core international human rights treaty,” Ms Collins says.
“It’s important [...]

Legislation to ensure that both parties in relationship welfare fraud are held to account passed its first reading in Parliament today.
“We know the overwhelming majority of beneficiaries are honest and follow the rules,” says Associate Social Development Minister Chester Borrows.
“Yet those very few who chose to defraud the system place a very real cost on [...]

Commerce Minister Craig Foss has today welcomed the passage of major law reform aimed at improving financial market conduct and restoring investor confidence in New Zealand’s financial markets.
“The passage of the Financial Markets Conduct Bill today is a significant milestone and the result of a comprehensive review of securities law.  It addresses the lessons from [...]

Commerce Minister Craig Foss has welcomed the modernisation of New Zealand’s patents laws as the Patents Bill passes its third reading in Parliament today.
“This Bill is marks a significant step towards driving innovation in New Zealand, it replaces sixty year-old legislation and introduces a patent system suited for the 21st century,” says Mr Foss.
Mr Foss [...]

Environment Minister Amy Adams has today announced the Government is investing a further $542,000 to continue the environmental recovery programme, following the Rena grounding.
Today’s announcement brings the total Government funding for the programme to $2.42 million.
The programme identifies the environmental issues for the beaches, seabed, water fisheries, wildlife and management of waste, and sets out [...]

New Zealand researchers will receive $278 million in new research investment, Science and Innovation Minister Steven Joyce announced today.
The 51 research programmes receiving funding are in the biological industries, high-value manufacturing and services, energy and minerals, environmental, and health and society sectors.
“Science and innovation is critical to New Zealand’s economic success and growth. Our science [...]

Associate Education Minister, Nikki Kaye, has today announced Jack Matthews will be joining the board of Crown-owned company Network for Learning (N4L).
Mr Matthews is known in New Zealand as the driving force behind the rollout of Saturn’s (now Vodafone’s) hybrid fibre-coax cable network in Wellington and Christchurch. Most recently he [...]