Emergency housing group Monte Cecilia Trust’s Bernie Smith says the Government promised “transformational change,” but that hasn’t happened. Instead, the housing crisis has worsened. “At the moment we’re getting 20 to 30 calls per day. A year ago, it was 10 to 15 calls per week,” he told TVNZ’s Breakfast this morning. “A year ago, Read more
New Zealand
‘More than a crisis’ – Emergency housing group calls for urgent action
Thursday, November 26th, 2020Change Kavanagh College’s name
Monday, November 23rd, 2020
Regardless of the outcome of any investigation, Kavanagh College’s name should be changed, Dunedin lawyer David More says. Concerns around former Catholic Bishop of Dunedin, Bishop John Kavanagh are the reason for the push to change Dunedin high school’s name. An independent investigation has been started into the way Kavanagh handled sexual abuse complaints during Read more
People pushed into poverty: Government won’t raise benefits
Monday, November 23rd, 2020
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has rejected a plea from 59 organizations to lift the level of welfare payments before Christmas. Trade unions, charities and poverty action groups were among those asking the government to address mass unemployment and poverty. Working through umbrella group ActionStation Aotearoa [New Zealand], the groups published an open letter, saying the Read more
Waimate parish selling old convent as it downsizes
Monday, November 23rd, 2020Waimate’s former convent building is headed for auction as the St Patrick’s Parish looks to downsize. The parish’s finance committee chairman Peter Hughes said the 55-year-old building on a 1793 square metre section and a neighbouring 2583 sq m section were “surplus to requirements” and would be auctioned on November 26. Read more
Immigration NZ denied woman residency because she gave birth to rapist’s child
Monday, November 23rd, 2020Immigration NZ authorities denied a woman New Zealand residency because she gave birth to her rapist’s child. The case came to light in a recently-published decision from the Immigration and Protection Tribunal, which the woman, identified only as IP, appealed to after her bid was denied. The tribunal heard IP, a 22-year-old citizen of the Read more
Stats NZ records New Zealand’s lowest-ever fertility rate
Thursday, November 19th, 2020
The latest quarterly data from Stats NZ reports New Zealand’s lowest-ever fertility rate. It says the ratio of births to the number of women of child-bearing age is now 1.63. This is well below the 2.1 ratio needed for a woman to replace herself, and her partner. Without migration, the New Zealand population will join Read more
Independent investigation into Dunedin Catholic Bishop John Kavanagh
Thursday, November 19th, 2020
An independent investigation into the way Dunedin Catholic Bishop John Kavanagh handled sexual abuse complaints has begun. The New Zealand bishops’ conference (NZBC) says these concerns involved a number of victims of abuse in the Dunedin Diocese who had complained that Kavanagh had not properly dealt with their complaints of sexual abuse by priests. The Read more
Huge increases in people without paid work
Thursday, November 19th, 2020
Thousands of the 27,000 New Zealanders who ceased receiving the 12-week COVID-19 Income Relief Payments (CIRP) have not returned paid work. The Salvation Army says although the application period for CIRP ended last week, only one in ten people who have finished their CIRP are in work. Some people have been able to transition onto Read more
Call to fund training for ex-offenders to secure trucking jobs
Thursday, November 19th, 2020The Howard League for Penal Reform is helping ex-offenders earn a drivers licence – to keep the trucking industry moving. The League claims the cost of imprisoning a person for a year can fund training for 100 people in Class 2 to 5 licences. That includes learning how to operate heavy-vehicles, road works, farm machinery Read more
Time to consider petrol and diesel car import ban, says climate change minister
Thursday, November 19th, 2020Climate Change Minister James Shaw wants to see a new petrol and diesel car ban, to kick in at the same time as the United Kingdom’s ban. During an interview with Stuff on his second-term priorities, Shaw said he would recommend the policy to new Transport Minister Michael Wood as an “anti-dumping measure” as well Read more