Author: MIL-OSI Publisher

Posted on

Politics – Farmers welcome halt to new plan changes

Source: Federated Farmers

The decision that councils will be stopped from rushing through new restrictive plan changes is welcome news to farmers, Federated Farmers RMA reform spokesperson Mark Hooper says.
“Councils across New Zealand have been continuing to push ahead with new district plans that put farms under restrictive overlays, such as Outstanding Natural Landscapes and Significant Natural Areas.
“This is despite the fact any plan changes may only have a shelf life of months, given the Government int

Posted on

Investments Sector – NZ SUPER FUND STAKEHOLDER UPDATE

Source: New Zealand Super Fund

Nelson-Tasman State of Emergency

NZ Super Fund-owned farms and orchards in the top of the South Island seem to have escaped the worst of the recent weather, with extensive cleaning up required but no significant damage to trees or infrastructure. Our thoughts are with those of our neighbours who have been hit hard by successive storms and heavy rain events over the past few weeks. The FarmRight team has been out in the community helping where it can.

Kaingaroa Timberlands expands plantation area

Kaingaroa Timberlands (KT), in which the Guardians has a 42 percent shareholding, recently announced it had bought 9,200 hectares of forestry land from Te Waihou Holdings Ltd.

Ryan Cavanagh, Chief Executive of KT subsidiary Timberlands, said the transaction underscored KT’s long-term commitment to New Zealand and its confidence in the forestry industry:

“By expanding our estate, we are not only securing the future of forestry in the Central North Island, we are also positioning ourselves to make further investments in our operations, driving further economic growth and job creation. It will help ensure New Zealand can remain a global leader in responsibly managed forestry.”

Ryan said the transaction preserves the land’s established role in commercial forestry and supports the South Waikato region’s economic and environmental objectives.

Select Committee Report tabled

The Finance & Expenditure Select Committee has presented a report on the Guardians of New Zealand Superannuation to Parliament. The Committee’s report draws on our appearance before them on 2 April, and covers topics including performance, tax status, domestic investments, and the Elevate NZ Venture Fund. The full report can be found here.

Guardians Board Member joins Business Hall of Fame

Ahead of her induction next month into the NZ Business Hall of Fame, Guardians Board member Hinerangi Raumati talked to the NBR’s Mike McRoberts about the growing influence of kaupapa Māori in corporate New Zealand, and her own efforts to integrate Māori values and perspectives into mainstream boardrooms.

“There is a certain group dynamic that can happen in a room full of men … just bringing a different lens to things, as well as having a holistic view of the world, is what my approach has always been,” said Hinerangi – referring to a time in her career when she was frequently not only the sole Māori at the decision-making table but also the only woman.

Hinerangi also told the NBR that while it’s important to recognise what has been achieved, more remains to be done.

“None of us should sit on our laurels in terms of what we’ve achieved, and we shouldn’t lower our expectations either. Just keep raising the bar on what we’ve done. There’s good things being done in this country … we should all be proud of those things.”

Go to the Business Hall of Fame website for more information on Hinerangi and the other 2025 laureates; click here to read Mike McRoberts’ full story (paywalled). 

Super Fund reintroduces buyout strategies

After stepping back from private market buyouts more than ten years ago, the NZ Super Fund is re-entering the global arena with a commitment of around US$800 million, reports i3Insights’ Florence Chong.

Doug Bell and Sian Orr from our External Investments & Partnerships team talked to Florence about how this initiative reflects a broader strategy designed to enhance international diversification, leverage specialist external managers, and integrate sustainability and other ESG considerations into the NZ Super Fund’s private markets programme.

Read the full article here: https://nzsuperfund.cmail20.com/t/d-l-suikyut-hujkdust-o/

Posted on

Tech – RedShield enhances DDoS and bot attack protection with ‘Third Horizon’

Source: Botica Butler Raudon Partners for RedShield

Innovative RedShield identity challenge responds to evolving threat landscape

Auckland, New Zealand, 16 July 2025 – RedShield, a web application security service using AWS technology, has introduced a new layer of security in response to the proliferation of ever-more-sophisticated Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) and automated bot attacks.

The new ‘Third Horizon’ protection that RedShield is introducing to its service thwarts DDoS attacks by disrupting the attack vector, requiring bad actors to respond in ways that cannot easily be managed by typical automated tools to gain access to a web application.

“Much of the security industry remains focused on traffic profiling via AI-driven anomaly detection,” said Fabian Partigliani, Chief Executive Officer at RedShield. 

“However, in the last three years automated, bot-driven threats have become both greater in scale and frequency and more sophisticated.

“As a result, traditional anomaly detection alone is no longer enough as a defence. In response to the escalation of DDoS and automated bot attacks, RedShield is introducing the ‘Third Horizon' as the next evolution of DDoS and bot protection.”

Practical barriers to bad actors

The Third Horizon introduces additional practical barriers to automated attacks. When deployed to protect an application, and RedShield’s controls detect suspicious activity, users seeking access to a web application must first provide a valid email address and then verify their identity via a code sent to that address. This adds friction and therefore cost to the attacker seeking to make automated attacks. While this may seem like a familiar two factor authentication approach, Third Horizon comes into play even when there is no existing user account.

“Third Horizon adds a layer of complexity that bad actors hate because it costs them more time, resources, and money,” says Partigliani. “There are no simple technologies available to let them create enormous volumes of fake user accounts and then retrieve and enter verification for each one. An attacker will typically go and find an easier target.”  

Three layers of protection

RedShield’s protection operates on multiple horizons:


  • First Horizon: Traffic Profiling: Blocking large volumetric attacks and obvious bad traffic. This is “table stakes” – necessary but not sufficient given the evolving attacks. RedShield uses “always on” volumetric protection from hyperscale cloud provider, AWS, to provide the best defence.
  • Second Horizon: Sophisticated Bot Detection: Using advanced techniques to identify and block malicious bots that are trying to look legitimate. This raises attacker cost but is an ongoing arms race – determined attackers will find ways to evade detection.
  • Third Horizon: Identity & Intent Challenge: When activity looks suspicious or systems are under particular strain, RedShield’s controls can challenge the user, asking for an email address and only enabling access to the site when a code included in an email sent to that address is entered. As mass automated bot attacks cannot readily respond to this challenge at scale, this significantly increases the complexity and cost for the attacker, protecting critical applications while prioritising availability for legitimate users.
Scale of threat

According to the Imperva Bad Bot Report, almost half of all 2024 traffic was related to bot activity, with almost one third of the overall global traffic being connected to malicious bots. While attacks of greater than 1 terabit per second (Tbps) grew 1800% globally from Q3 to Q4 last year alone, a bigger concern is their sophistication. Bots mimic humans to take over accounts, scrape data, or overload specific functions like login pages or checkout processes. Attacks target APIs and business logic, putting New Zealand businesses at risks of operational disruption, data theft, and reputational damage.

RedShield’s service applies its three horizon approach and AWS’ global infrastructure to protect organisations from even these latest threats. RedShield’s Third Horizon will be available to customers in the coming weeks, on request, as an additional service for critical applications that need an extra layer of protection.

 

RedShield solutions are available on the AWS Marketplace.

 

About RedShield

RedShield is the essential partner for enterprises needing a fast, effective security solution for difficult-to-fix application risks. Our expert-driven service, powered by AWS, not only blocks threats and provides application-specific fixes on-the-fly, without requiring code changes, but also includes comprehensive change management, vulnerability scanning, monitoring, 24/7 incident management and detailed reporting. RedShield secures your entire application landscape – from legacy systems to crown jewels – reducing risk, controlling costs, and enabling development teams to stay focused on growth.

For more information visit RedShield’s website and LinkedIn pages:
– https://www.redshield.co
– https://www.linkedin.com/company/redshield-security

Posted on

Education – Eighth charter school opens in Auckland

Source: Charter School Agency

The country's newest charter school, Twin Oaks Classical School, opened its doors today (July 14). 
The Greenlane school combines two educational pathways – the Charlotte Mason method and the Classical tradition shapes what the school teaches, while the Charlotte Mason method informs how the curriculum is taught. 
Head of School Amanda Goodchild says the school has integrated the two complementary learning styles, adapting them for “our unique context here in Aotearoa, New Zealand, and for the emerging world of the 21st century.”
She says the two educational pathways are knowledge-rich and immerse children in a wide range of subjects including literature, mythology, art, grammar, music, history, Shakespeare, mathematics, nature study, formal logic, te reo Māori and Latin. 
“Our community is grateful to be able to access a liberal arts education free of charge thanks to the charter school model,” she says. 
“The families who have enrolled with us come from all four corners of the city; they want a different style of education and more quality time with their children. 
Students will learn at home two days a week, supervised by parents. This means parents will be able to participate in their children's education as “meaningful partners,” implementing the learning plan and using resources provided by the school. 
Amanda says around half of the children who have enrolled at the school were previously home educated. 
“We are helping these families stay connected to their children's learning but now parents have direction, support and accountability from professional educators and children can learn alongside their peers three days a week. 
“Our other parents want to be more involved in their children's lives and learning, but for them, full-time homeschooling is a stretch too far. our school is meeting an important need for both these groups.”
Students in Years 1-9 won't use internet-connected devices. Instead, they will focus on reading, writing by hand, singing, creating art, moving their bodies and studying the natural world. 
“As communication becomes more fragmented in our digital world, so does intelligent reasoning,” Amanda says. “We are excited to teach children the art of thinking and communicating well in a world of sound bites and scrolling.” 
Personal devices will be introduced from year 10 when students begin the High School Diploma programme. The school will select the best online tools that add real value and facilitate personalised training. 
The school's roll is full until 2027 with 88 children pre-enrolled until the end of 2026. It plans to have single year classrooms from years 1-13 and a full school of around 230, and if there is the demand, multiple campuses across the country. 
Twin Oaks will seek accreditation as an international school to provide graduates with a US High School Diploma and is already attracting strong interest from teachers in New Zealand and abroad. 
Notes
The three stages of a Classical education (the Trivium) 
Year 1 – 6: Grammar stage. Students build their foundational knowledge. 
Year 7 – 9: Logic stage. Students begin to learn formal logic and to think more abstractly. 
Year 10 – 13: Rhetoric stage: Students learn to communicate well-reasoned idea persuasively. 
Charlotte Mason
Charlotte Mason was a British educational reformer and philosopher who was active from the late Victorian era through to the early 20th century. She championed a “living education” for children regardless of social background. 
The Charlotte Mason homeschool method is an educational philosophy that emphasises providing a rich, liberal education while using methods that engage a child's natural curiosity and enthusiasm. This approach also places an emphasis on creating an environment in which children feel safe, secure, and respected. 
Posted on

Rural News – Government delivers lifeline for flood-affected farmers – Federated Farmers

Source: Federated Farmers

Federated Farmers are welcoming the announcement of a $600,000 Government support package to help flood-affected farmers in the Nelson Tasman region get back on their feet.
“This funding is desperately needed to support recovery efforts on the ground and will make a real difference for farming families,” says Federated Farmers president Wayne Langford.
“We’re incredibly grateful that the Government have recognised this need early and taken practical steps that will allow clean-up work to get underway immediately.”
The Government package includes $50,000 for the Farmers Adverse Events Trust, established by Federated Farmers, and will be matched dollar-for-dollar by donations from other farmers.
Langford has visited many impacted farmers over the past fortnight, and will be on the ground again today surveying the damage and assessing what further support might be needed.
“Each farm is completely different. Some have only had minor damage that they will be able to fix themselves, but others will definitely need some significant help,” Langford says.
“That’s where Federated Farmers are going to be focusing most of our efforts. We need to prioritise those who have been hit hardest and then work our way out from there.
“What this $50,000 from the Government means is that we can start work almost immediately with diggers, bulldozers and fencers from later this week.
“That’s the kind of support these farmers need the most right now. They need boots on the ground, shovels in the dirt, and heavy machinery starting to roll in.”
Langford says Federated Farmers will be playing a key role in coordinating this work but more donations will still be required to fund recovery efforts over the coming weeks.
“We really need New Zealanders to get in behind these farmers with donations. It doesn’t matter if they’re large or small, every dollar counts and will make a difference.”
Posted on

Northland News – Learn to wipe out Northland’s worst weeds at free workshops

Source: Northland Regional Council

Northlanders keen to join the fight to tackle the region’s worst weeds can learn how at Northland Regional Council’s free weeds workshops next month.
Council’s pest plant experts will be sharing tips at a series of workshops in Kaitaia, Russell, Kerikeri, Maungaturoto and Whangārei from Monday 04 August to Friday 08 August.
Biosecurity Manager – Pest Plants Joanna Barr says the workshops are a great chance to plan ahead and get ready for the busy ‘weed knockdown period’ once the warmth of spring starts to take hold.
“To fight the onslaught of weeds species we are facing in Te Taitokerau we need everyone to tackle the weeds in their backyard, and other special places they care about.”
“Our workshops are a great way to remove some of the barriers to getting stuck in and are a chance to meet others who are keen to make a difference,” Ms Barr says.
“The workshops are hands-on and delivered in a relaxed and fun way to help people learn how best to tackle a wide variety of nasties, including wild ginger, lantana, moth plant, Taiwan cherry and privet.”
The workshops will include a short presentation, hands-on identification tips and information on control options, including chemicals and other methods.
Two workshops will be held on Monday 04 August at Te Ahu Centre, Kaitaia (Corner of State Highway 1 and Matthews Avenue), the first from 9am-noon and the second from 1pm-4pm.
On Tuesday 05 August, a workshop will be held at Russell Town Hall (17 The Strand, Russell) from 9am-noon.
On Wednesday 06 August, two workshops will be held at NorthTec’s Kerikeri Campus (Room 12, Corner of Kerikeri Road and Hone Heke Road), the first from 9am-noon and the second from 1pm-4pm.
The next workshop will be on Thursday 07 August at Maungaturoto Centennial Hall (44 View Street, Maungaturoto) from 9am-noon.
A final three workshops will be held on Friday 08 August at Barge Showgrounds Events Centre (474 Maunu Road, Whangārei). The first will be held from 9am-noon, another from 1pm-4pm and a final session from 6pm-9pm.
Spaces are limited. Those wanting to attend should register at www.nrc.govt.nz/weedsworkshops or contact Biosecurity Specialist Sara Brill on freephone 0800 002 004.
General information on pests in Northland is available from the council’s website via: www.nrc.govt.nz/pestcontrolhub
Posted on

Cyber Security – Privacy Commissioner says better passwords will help fight hackers

Source: Office of the Privacy Commissioner

Privacy Commissioner Michael Webster says New Zealanders need to improve how they’re using passwords.
His warning comes because he’s concerned about the increased risk of privacy breaches caused by privacy spraying. That’s where hackers find one password and then try it on other accounts to see if it will work to open those as well. People recycling passwords for multiple accounts are falling victim.
“Our strong suggestion is for people to have a different password for each account they have. Making a password unique means if one account is hacked then there’s no chance it can also be used to open other accounts and create even more damage”, Mr Webster says.
“Having unique passwords is a great way to make a hacker’s job far harder.”
There are several other things people can do to help protect their personal information. Using a password manager to store all your passwords is a good fix and there are many different options, many of which are free.
People can also use long and strong passwords and change them immediately if they’ve been hacked. Turning on two-factor identification is another good layer of protection.
“Having your information breached on one account is bad enough, but by using a dedicated password and adding extra security steps you can help prevent hackers accessing other accounts and causing even more harm.
Personal information has value, so the more protection you have in place the better. Any step people can take to deter hackers is a good step to take and unique passwords are an excellent start.” 
Posted on

Northland News – $3.8M of Regional Sporting Facilities Rate funding allocated

Source: Northland Regional Council

Ruakākā Wahitakaro and Northland Regional Volleyball Arena will receive up to $2.6 million and Sportsville Dargaville Stage Two up to $1.2M in the latest allocations from the Northland Regional Council’s Regional Sporting Facilities Rate.
The council’s Strategic & Commercial Projects Manager Phil Heatley says the GST exclusive sums will go to Ruakākā Wahitakaro and Northland Regional Volleyball Arena in the current financial year and to Sportsville Dargaville Stage Two in 2026-2027.
Stage One of Ruakākā Wahitakaro was a community centre completed in 2024. The estimated total project cost for Stage Two is $8.5M and will include a multi-sport indoor facility featuring two indoor courts and supporting meeting spaces. It will also include ‘Northland’s Home of Volleyball’, a regional facility for volleyball providing training and competition opportunities and the ability to host regional, district and community events.
Mr Heatley says Sportsville Dargaville Stage One was completed in December 2018 and involved six multi-purpose outdoor courts with a supporting multi-sport facility.
“The estimated project cost of Stage Two is $9M and will include a multi-sport indoor facility featuring two indoor courts and supporting meeting spaces.” “It is designed to provide opportunities for training and district competitions and the ability to host regional, district and community level events.”
Mr Heatley says the NRC struck the targeted $14.07 plus GST Regional Sporting Facilities Rate (per SUIP/Rating Unit) in its 2024-2034 Long Term Plan to provide funding support to assist in the development of Northland sporting facilities that are of regional or district-wide benefit.
A working group made up of representatives from the NRC, Northland’s three district council’s and Sport Northland had recommended the funding for the 2024-2027 financial years. Regional councillors had confirmed the group’s recommendation at a council meeting late last month.
“This will give those overseeing the projects a degree of certainty to plan and a platform to apply for third party funding.”
Mr Heatley says potential recipient projects are identified through a regionwide consultation process, initially to inform ‘Kokiri ai Te Waka Hourua’, a strategy for play, active recreation and sport. The strategy was produced in partnership by the NRC, Sport Northland, Northland’s three district councils and Sport New Zealand.
“A proposed project is presented to Sport Northland in the first instance, by a regional or district not-for-profit sporting focussed group, for consideration and prioritisation.”
“Substantial work by the working group sees the prioritisation of regional sporting facility projects.
Mr Heatley says for this allocation, 16 projects had been in varying states of readiness with six being advanced enough to be able to be scored and benchmarked against council-approved criteria. 
Posted on

Energy Sector – Consultation to build on New Zealand’s strong fuel security welcome

Source: Energy Resources Aotearoa

Energy Resources Aotearoa welcomes today’s announcement of public consultation on the proposed Fuel Security Plan by Associate Minister of Energy Shane Jones.
Energy Resources Aotearoa Chief Executive John Carnegie says the proposed plan is a constructive opportunity to build on New Zealand’s already high-performing fuel security settings.
“New Zealand has a robust, well-functioning fuel supply system. Our current system, based on importing refined fuels, rather than crude, gives us more flexibility and resilience than when we imported crude into Marden Point, a single point of failure.”
Carnegie says the proposed Fuel Security Plan announced today is about building towards a longer-term strategic direction for New Zealand’s fuel security.
“The risks we face today are not the same as five years ago. The geopolitical landscape is shifting, and our security planning must change with it.
It’s critical that the Government balances our high-functioning fuel imports system with any domestic production. We will seek to ensure the final plan does this in a way that minimises costs for consumers.”
Fuel resilience must continue to be balanced with affordability and practical implementation, Carnegie says.
“It’s important to be clear-eyed: New Zealand will always rely on imported fuels. Domestic alternatives like biofuels will only ever supplement, not replace, imported fuels.
We have to weigh the cost of resilience. Emerging technologies often come at a premium, and we need to think critically about how much we’re willing to pay for the insurance for domestic production”
Carnegie says the best insurance policy remains New Zealand’s diversified network of experienced fuel suppliers.
“This consultation is an opportunity to make innovative, cost-effective improvements to an already strong system.
We look forward to engaging with the Government to find the lowest-cost, most effective options to build on our current level of resilience, without duplicating effort or adding unnecessary cost.”
Posted on

Economy – RBNZ to open next phase of Exchange Settlement Account System application process in September 2025

Source: Reserve Bank of New Zealand

15 July 2025 – Payment service providers and other interested entities can request an introductory meeting now.

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand – Te Pūtea Matua (RBNZ) will open the second phase of the Exchange Settlement Account System (ESAS) application process in September 2025.

ESAS is New Zealand's principal high-value payments system used by banks and other financial organisations to settle their financial transactions in real time. In March 2025 RBNZ completed a multi-year review of ESAS and expanded the access criteria to include more non-bank entities.

In April 2025 RBNZ published the new access criteria and opened the first phase of the application process, when licensed non-bank deposit takers (NBDTs) in New Zealand were invited to apply.

In September 2025 RBNZ will open the second phase of the application process, when other interested entities can apply. This may include payment service providers, overseas deposit takers and operators of designated Financial Market Infrastructures (FMIs).

Information on the phase 2 application process and guidance on requirements to meet the access criteria will be published on the RBNZ website in September.

In the meantime, RBNZ invites anyone who has read the access criteria and is considering applying for ESAS access to email ESASAccess@rbnz.govt.nz for an introductory meeting.

The introductory meeting is an informal opportunity to discuss ESAS, and for RBNZ to understand an entity's intended use and share information on prerequisites and other requirements to help the entity prepare to apply from September, if they choose.

Registered banks and licensed NBDTs in New Zealand can continue to apply for ESAS access at any time. Access criteria and information for phase 1 applicants is available on the RBNZ website.

More information

Exchange Settlement Account System: https://govt.us20.list-manage.com/track/click?u=bd316aa7ee4f5679c56377819&id=d9e45cd26c&e=f3c68946f8
ESAS access criteria: https://govt.us20.list-manage.com/track/click?u=bd316aa7ee4f5679c56377819&id=02cc7268e0&e=f3c68946f8