Author: MIL-OSI Publisher

Source: Insurance Council of New Zealand | Te Kāhui Inihua o Aotearoa

London, 6 October 2026

Insurance bodies representing Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada and New Zealand gathered in London today to announce the formation of the Four Nations Insurance Alliance, established to confront the rising risks threatening economic resilience across these four nations.

Together, the Insurance Council of Australia, the ABI, Insurance Bureau of Canada and the Insurance Council of New Zealand | Te Kāhui Inihua o Aotearoa represent insurers writing around USD $200 billion in premiums annually.

The partnership has been established in response to common problems that have been growing across the four economies, including climate risk, persistent inflation, regulatory cost, premium affordability, and a growing protection gap.

Additionally, emerging risks, including cyber threats and greater geopolitical instability, are challenging insurers and the vital economic and financial system role they play.

Insurance is critical economic infrastructure in all four nations; keeping cover sustainable and affordable depends on partnership across industry, government and borders.

The common institutional heritage and similar regulatory, legislative and commercial environment of the four countries have supported informal collaboration and knowledge sharing between the national trade bodies for some time.

The establishment of the Alliance will formalise and boost that work for the benefit of insurers and their customers, regulators and policymakers in all four countries.

Under the partnership, the four trade insurance bodies will share evidence on what works, spanning public-private partnerships, hazard data, resilience investment, regulation and emerging risks including cyber and artificial intelligence, with the intent of turning lessons from one jurisdiction into practical reforms in another.

The launch takes place in London alongside a bipartisan Australian insurance delegation examining how governments and insurers can drive down underlying risk and keep protection available as the risk environment evolves

Comments attributable to Andrew Hall, CEO, Insurance Council of Australia

Insurance is the shock absorber of the economy.

When it comes under strain, that is a signal the risk beneath it is growing, and the honest response is to reduce that risk, not to disguise it.

Right now our economies spend far too much rebuilding after disasters and far too little preventing them, and that equation cannot hold.

Risk does not respect borders, so it makes sense for four countries facing the same pressures to work as one.

We are still paying for yesterday's disasters while new gaps open through cyber, artificial intelligence and global instability, and this Alliance helps us get ahead of them.

Comments attributable to Hannah Gurga, Director General ABI:

Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the UK face many of the same challenges, from climate resilience and cyber risk to growing protection gaps.

The Four Nations Insurance Alliance will help us learn from one another’s experience, share what works and strengthen collaboration on solutions to those challenges.

As policymakers increasingly focus on how to narrow protection gaps and build resilience, this Alliance provides a valuable platform to bring together international experience and insurance expertise to help more households, businesses and communities access the protection they need.

Comments attributable to Celyeste Power, President & CEO, Insurance Bureau of Canada

Across the globe, communities are facing shared challenges, particularly increasingly frequent and severe weather events that threaten individual well-being, community resilience and economic stability. Despite our diverse climates, each member of the Four Nations Insurance Alliance is experiencing catastrophic wind, flood and wildfire events, that are taking a toll on residents and insurers. We need to urgently work together to address these risks.

As insurance associations, our objective is to work with our respective governments in support of insurers so they can continue to protect and assist their customers when disasters occur.

Through this alliance, we can exchange knowledge and advance solutions to the pressures facing insurers, not only from climate-related risks but also geopolitical uncertainty and emerging technologies.

We also understand that affordability is top of mind for most insurance customers. Ensuring their interests remain front and centre will be a key focus of our collaboration.

Comments attributable to Kris Faafoi, CEO, Insurance Council of New Zealand

New Zealand sees great value in collaborating with Australia, the UK and Canada. We face the same fundamental challenges.

Working as a collective of insurance industry bodies we want ensure the shared challenge of resilience and risk reduction can be met to close protection gaps and keep communities safe.

Our members across all four countries understand how insurance underpins economies and communities.

By working with Government’s and sharing our insights, we can ensure regulatory settings, technology and accessible insurance can strengthen the stability we value.

Notes to editors

The Four Nations Insurance Alliance is a non-binding partnership between the ABI, Insurance Bureau of Canada, the Insurance Council of Australia and the Insurance Council of New Zealand.

It works through regular dialogue, joint initiatives, coordinated statements and knowledge exchange.

Alliance priorities

• Share insight, evidence and best practice on the opportunities and challenges facing insurance markets in the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand;
• Share insights on new ways to distribute risk and support economic stability as insurance protection gaps grow, with a focus on working with government on effective Public Private Partnerships;
• Strengthen our advocacy, share best practice and promote great collaboration between governments, regulators, industry and other stakeholders on solutions that strengthen business, community and economic resilience;
• Engage across markets on approaches to resilience, adaption, risk reduction and risk sharing particularly in relation to growing protection gaps and the impacts of extreme weather, including rising “secondary perils” such as bushfire, hail and severe convective storms;
• Advocate for smart and proportionate insurance regulation that supports financial stability, consumer protection, and economic growth.
• Share insights and perspectives on new and emerging risks that are shaping our markets, including geopolitical developments and supply chain pressures, Artificial Intelligence and cyber risks.
• Ensure insurance is at the heart of key international forums and negotiations where appropriate;
• Identify opportunities for joint research, engagement and international cooperation where doing so would advance shared objectives.

Source: ChildFund New Zealand

Right now about 266 million people face acute food insecurity, 117 million have been displaced by war and conflict, and more than 400 million children live in extreme poverty.

“This is not the time in history for our Prime Minister to follow President Trump’s deadly playbook, and cut our aid budget,” says Josie Pagani CEO of ChildFund New Zealand.

Cost of living is a challenge everywhere. In some communities it’s the difference between life and death.

National has announced a 10% cut to foreign aid in some of the most vulnerable places in the world.

“President Trump’s aid cuts are already increasing the number of deaths, particularly of children.”

Data shows that the cuts to USAID could result in 14 million additional deaths by 2030, including around 4.5 million children under five.

These additional deaths are primarily driven by a lack of access to medicines, like vaccinations and treatments to prevent HIV Aids.

It is unclear what New Zealand aid programmes outside of the Pacific will be cut under National’s plan, apparently to fund medicines in New Zealand.

“You can’t fund medicines to New Zealanders by risking access to life saving medicines in the poorest countries in the world. Find the money we need for our medicines from another pot,” says Josie Pagani.

Childfund New Zealand works primarily in the Pacific region, but also supports communities with water, food and education in Zambia, Kenya, Vietnam, Sri Lanka and also children in war-torn communities like Ukraine, Gaza, or those at risk of starvation right now in places like Ethiopia.

“Aid programmes are linked. Without access to water or food, let alone education and protection from violence, children are less likely to access the medicines and health care they need.

“If you cut one aid programme, it has a downstream impact that’s hard to measure, on other programmes.

“Taking aid away from children and families in the poorest countries in the world to pay for our medicines is not something that will sit well with Kiwis.”

National’s proposed cuts to aid add up to about $431 million, and could see New Zealand’s reputation for being a good global citizen decline.

7 October 2026

National dwelling and household estimates are used for many purposes including planning, policy formation, business decisions, and as ‘bottom lines’ in the calculation of market coverage rates.

Key facts

At 30 September 2026, the estimated number of:

Source: Global Sustainable Transition Alliance, WRAP and Wageningen University & Research

• The Global Sustainable Transition Alliance (GSTA) is creating an international GHG product footprinting standard for the global food and beverage sector.
• WRAP and WUR call on businesses to join the alliance and help build a stronger and more consistent GHG footprinting standard with GSTA.
• New international standard aims to move sector beyond confusion over product footprints and towards reducing negative environmental impacts.

The Global Sustainable Transition Alliance (GSTA) convened by WRAP and Wageningen University & Research (WUR) is an international alliance of businesses, NGOs, consultants, and product footprinting tool providers launched in March 2026. GSTA – is calling on all food and beverage businesses worldwide to support it in creating a single, scientifically robust rulebook for calculating product level environmental footprints for the food and beverage sector.

The alliance now wants to engage with more businesses to expand its reach and ensure alignment across its founding members, including Ahold Delhaize, the companies of Schwarz Group, Mars, Incorporated, Mondra, Mondra Coalition, Global Changer, Inoqo, European Sustainable Food Coalition, Partnership for Carbon Transparency (PACT), Systain Coalition (coalition members are also Rewe Group and EDEKA), HowGood and Foodsteps.

Initially focusing on GHG emissions, GSTA will align and conform with major frameworks such as the GHG Protocol, SBTi, PACT, ISO and PEF – adding a high level of specificity and detail, to enable genuinely comparable product footprints, regardless of who is calculating them.

The development of a single footprinting global standard will save the food and beverage sector time, money and deliver consistent data reporting. Its development is supported by international NGOs including Consumers International and also the Partnership for Carbon Transparency (PACT), which is an initiative hosted by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD).

Sofie Schop, Executive Director, EU & Global Partnerships Director at WRAP, said:

“It has been hugely exciting to partner with Wageningen University & Research to establish this alliance for the food and beverage sector. By joining GSTA and our leading founding members, your business will be part of the first global industry-wide alliance to develop a single global footprinting standard. We want this standard to benefit businesses of all sizes and capabilities, providing consistency and efficiency for the industry across the globe. Together, we want to create a shared foundation for comparable data to create faster, more informed decisions that drive measurable emissions reductions across the food and beverage industry.”

Koen Boone, Coordinator Sustainable Value Chains at WUR said:

“Companies need consistent data from their worldwide suppliers to calculate reliable numbers of the impact of their full supply chain (scope 3). Currently suppliers use many different methods and databases which leads to inconsistent totals for the full supply chain. GSTA is going to address this.”

Naama Avni-Kadosh, Director, Partnership for Carbon Transparency (PACT) at WBCSD said:

“PACT is proud to be a founding member of GSTA. Global supply chains inherently cross industry boundaries, so credible carbon data has to as well. Sector initiatives like GSTA add the specificity that food and beverage companies need, while PACT provides the common data infrastructure that keeps those efforts interoperable. Harmonization across initiatives isn't a nice-to-have. It's what lets a footprint calculated once be trusted and reused everywhere, from farm to retail shelf.”

Grant V. Sprick, P.E. VP Climate & Environment at Ahold Delhaize said:

“One of the most important things companies can do is use their influence across the value chain to drive positive change. Better farming practices, improved livestock management, and more efficient processing are just a few examples of where collaboration make a significant positive difference. Equally important is aligning on how impact is estimated and quantified. A common standard for product footprinting helps ensure consistency and keeps efforts focused on the areas where action can deliver the greatest impact. We are excited to help shape a solution that can deliver value for businesses, suppliers and consumers alike.”

Michael Löscher, Climate Strategy Lead, Schwarz Corporate Affairs said:

“Turning climate targets into impact requires clear, measurable progress. Together with our partners at GSTA, we are establishing harmonized standards for transparent product emissions.”

WRAP and WUR are calling on businesses around the world to join GSTA and be part of the progression of this groundbreaking new alliance for the food and beverage industry.

Contact: gsta@wrap.ngo and visit www.wrap.ngo/gsta for more information.

Notes to editor

WRAP is a global environmental action NGO catalysing policy makers, businesses and individuals to transform the systems that create our food, textiles and manufactured products. Together these account for nearly 50% of global greenhouse emissions. Our goal is to enable the world to transition from the old take-make-dispose model of production to more sustainable approaches that will radically reduce waste and carbon emissions from everyday products. To do so we examine sustainability challenges through the lens of people’s day-to-day lives and create solutions that can transform entire systems to benefit the planet, nature and people.

WRAP has a legacy of GHG work internationally, driving major GHG reduction initiatives by targeting resource efficiency, waste prevention, and circular economy transitions in critical sectors like food and textiles. WRAP's global work includes the Food Pact Network which convenes locally led, cross-border national food pacts (in Australia, South Africa and Mexico among others) to share tested solutions and slash greenhouse gas emissions.

The mission of Wageningen University & Research is “To explore the potential of nature to improve the quality of life”. Under the banner Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen University and the specialised research institutes of the Wageningen Research Foundation have joined forces in contributing to finding solutions to important questions in the domain of healthy food and living environment. With its roughly 30 branches, 7,700 employees (7,000 fte), 2,500 PhD and EngD candidates, 13,100 students and over 150,000 participants to WUR’s Life Long Learning, Wageningen University & Research is one of the leading organisations in its domain. The unique Wageningen approach lies in its integrated approach to issues and the collaboration between different disciplines.

Wageningen University & Research (WUR) has a long history of developing international sustainability measurement standards, through initiatives like Product Environmental Footprint (PEF), The Sustainability Consortium (TSC) and Eco Food Choice (EFC). WUR works intensively with the global food industry to improve sustainability of food supply chains.

Source: Royal Australasian College of Surgeons

Wednesday 7 October 2026

Aotearoa New Zealand needs a long-term plan to grow and retain the surgical workforce needed to provide timely care to people across the country, says the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (RACS).

RACS is calling on political parties to commit to planning, growing and retaining a surgical workforce capable of meeting current and future need for timely surgical care as part of its election priorities.

RACS President Dr Phil Morreau says governments need to look beyond political cycles and “silver bullet” solutions to provide leadership for the long-term.

“We need to look at the whole pipeline – from medical school, prevocational education, specialist training and into the consultant workforce,” Dr Morreau says.

“That means having enough training places, enough surgeons to supervise and train the next generation, enough jobs for newly qualified surgeons and the right support to retain surgeons in Aotearoa.

“We also need to make sure there are appropriate pathways for well-qualified international medical graduates to contribute to our surgical workforce, while maintaining the high standards and patient safeguards expected in Aotearoa.”

RACS has been working with Te Whatu Ora on measures to improve retention of New Zealand-trained surgeons, including advance offers of employment that give Trainees greater certainty about opportunities to remain in Aotearoa after completing their specialist training.

But Dr Morreau says workforce planning needs to be more deliberate and coordinated.

“A training place is only one part of the equation. We need the funded positions, operating capacity, clinical exposure and supervision needed to train a competent surgeon.

“If we increase the number of people entering medicine without increasing specialist training capacity, we simply create a bottleneck further down the pipeline.

“Equally, training more surgeons does not solve workforce shortages if they can not gain meaningful employment or retain them in the communities that need them.”

RACS is calling for agreed training volumes across surgical specialties that reflect workforce need across Aotearoa, including regional and rural communities, alongside increased funding for training placements in public and private hospitals. It is also calling for supervision to be planned, allocated and funded nationally, recognising that a shortage of supervisors can constrain both training capacity and career opportunities.

Governments have also been increasingly looking to the private health sector to help ease pressure on public surgical waitlists.

“This can be a good use of available theatre capacity in private hospitals, and there is a role for the private sector in helping address unmet surgical need as well as providing training opportunities” Dr Morreau says.

“But it is not a silver bullet. Using additional private capacity does not, by itself, build the surgical workforce we need for the future or solve the challenge of providing access to surgery in regional and rural communities for example.

“This is not about choosing one approach over another. We need a workforce strategy that does many things at once – training enough surgeons, retaining them, supporting them to work where they are needed and welcoming appropriately qualified international colleagues.

“Ultimately, workforce planning needs to be about the patients and communities we serve. We need enough surgeons, and the wider surgical workforce around them, to provide safe, effective and timely care wherever people live.”

Read the full RACS manifesto

About the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (RACS)

RACS is the leading advocate for surgical standards, professionalism and surgical education in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand. The College is a not-for-profit organisation that represents more than 8000 surgeons and 1300 surgical Trainees and Specialist International Medical Graduates. RACS also supports healthcare and surgical education in the Asia-Pacific region and is a substantial funder of surgical research. There are nine surgical specialties in Australasia being: Cardiothoracic Surgery, General Surgery, Neurosurgery, Orthopaedic Surgery, Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, Paediatric Surgery, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Urology and Vascular Surgery.

www.surgeons.org

Source: deVere Group

October 6 2026

France’s borrowing costs smashing through 5% is the starkest sign yet the world’s debt order has flipped, with rich nations now paying the kind of price once reserved for serial defaulters like Argentina.

This is the warning from the CEO of deVere Group, one of the world’s largest independent financial advisory organisations, as France’s 10-year yield tops 5% for the first time since 2002, its premium over Germany records the sharpest weekly jump in 17 years, and the US 30-year Treasury yield pushes above 5.7%.

Nigel Green says: “A founding member of the euro is now borrowing at levels last seen when the single currency was still in its infancy.

“Meanwhile Argentina, the byword for default, has spent this year collecting credit upgrades.

“The bond market has stopped caring about history. It’s judging governments on what they’re doing right now, and the rich world is failing the test.”

The pressure on France is intensifying fast. Its government last week unveiled a 2027 budget with €43 billion of new savings and revenue measures to tackle a deficit running at 5.4% of GDP. Debt interest is already the country’s largest single budget expense, and its fiscal watchdog calls the plan’s assumptions “optimistic.”

A major rating agency reviews France later this month.

Nigel Green says: “France is caught in the trap every indebted government fears. Higher yields swell the interest bill, a bigger interest bill widens the deficit, and a wider deficit pushes yields higher still.

“Every week of political paralysis makes the escape more expensive.

“Argentina has travelled the other way. The country, which has defaulted on its sovereign debt nine times, secured three major credit upgrades in under three months this year, driving its risk premium over US Treasuries to around 420 basis points in July, the lowest in eight years.

“Its economy minister was in Paris last week telling investors the bigger risk was missing out.”

Argentine spreads have since widened again as US yields surged, a reminder the recovery remains fragile.

“Argentina’s turnaround isn’t finished, and its bonds feel every tremor in US yields,” notes the deVere CEO.

“But it slashed spending, turned deficits into surpluses, and crushed triple-digit inflation. Markets rewarded the pain. France has avoided the pain, and markets are punishing it.”

Britain and the US are feeling the same pressure. Britain’s 30-year gilt yield has hit 6%, a 28-year high.

In the US, the Federal Reserve raised rates on 16 September for the first time since 2023, lifting its target range to between 3.75% and 4% as inflation refused to fade.

The US lost its last top-tier credit rating last year, and deficits still run into the trillions.

The deVere CEO says: “America has assumed the world will always fund it at a discount, whatever it spends. Investors are now charging full price, and the Fed’s hike shows inflation is far from beaten.”

Emerging market debt, by contrast, has clearly outperformed developed market government bonds since late August, helped by average inflation in developing economies of around 3.8%.

Nigel Green concludes: “Plenty of emerging economies took their medicine after the last inflation shock. They raised rates early, tightened budgets and absorbed the political backlash.

“Much of the developed world borrowed its way through, and the bill is landing now.”

deVere Group is one of the world’s largest independent advisors of specialist global financial solutions to international, local mass affluent, and high-net-worth clients. It has a network of offices around the world, more than 80,000 clients, and $14bn under advisement.

Source: Palestine Forum of New Zealand

Palestine Forum of New Zealand stands with Palestinians in Aotearoa and around the world, remembering generations of dispossession and struggle, honouring those who have been lost, and reaffirming the Palestinian people's enduring demand for freedom, dignity and justice.

Palestinian history did not begin yesterday, and it will not end today.

For generations, Palestinians have remained connected to their homeland, their families, their culture and their identity despite displacement, occupation and profound loss.

Our story is not defined by a single day.

It is a story of steadfastness, memory, resilience and an unwavering determination to see Palestine free.

From the river to the sea, and across the diaspora, we will continue to speak, organise and stand for justice.

“Palestinians have survived generations of displacement, dispossession and attempts to erase their history and identity. Yet they remain,” said Maher Nazzal, Chair of the Palestine Forum of New Zealand.

“Remembering is not about looking backwards. It is about understanding why Palestinians continue to demand freedom and justice and why the world must not look away.”

The Palestine Forum of New Zealand calls on Aotearoa New Zealand to stand consistently for human rights, international law, Palestinian self-determination and accountability, and to recognise that Palestinian lives, land, history and dignity cannot be treated as secondary or expendable.

“We will not be silent. We will continue to speak, organise and advocate. We will continue to stand alongside Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank, Jerusalem and throughout the diaspora.”

“For us, remembrance is also resistance. Every Palestinian story preserved, every family connection maintained, every child taught their history, and every voice raised for justice is an affirmation that Palestine and its people cannot be erased.”

The Palestinian struggle is a struggle for the right to live freely, safely and with dignity in the land to which generations of Palestinians remain connected.

We remember.

We resist.

We remain.

And we will continue to work for a future in which Palestinians are free.

Palestine will be free. 🇵🇸

Source: Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi

Government mandated funding cuts that will see Inland Revenue’s budget slashed by 20% over three years leaves an axe hovering over the jobs of hundreds of workers, the PSA says.

An intranet message to Inland Revenue staff from Commissioner Peter Mersi said that the cumulative savings required by the Government from 2026/27 to 2028/29 and rising costs means, “we will need to operate within a 20% reduction to our baseline budget in 2028/29”.

“This means that to deliver the level of savings required, we will need to consider reductions in both workforce numbers, alongside other costs,” the message says.

These savings cannot be made without reducing the workforce, the message says.

The Government is requiring Inland Revenue to cut its baseline budget by 2% this year, an additional 5% in 2027/28 and another 5% in 2028/29. Inland Revenue leadership will be putting proposals for cutting its budget to its Minister by the end of the year.

Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi National Secretary, Duane Leo, says sending workers a signal that their jobs may be cut in the future without providing any details puts a massive strain on them.

“It means Inland Revenue’s more than 4000 staff are now all working under threat of losing their jobs and facing the prospect of struggling to keep up with the mortgage and put food on the table in the near future.

“The workers that remain will face increased stress of having to pick up even more work, while Inland Revenue has signalled that it will also reduce overtime, which it is currently using to manage its workloads,” Leo says.

“Inland Revenue staff already work incredibly hard to deliver on Government priorities. Whether it's implementing tax and social policy changes, delivering new Government initiatives, or meeting increasing expectations around compliance and revenue collection, there is constant pressure to do more,” Leo says.

“Against that backdrop, the prospect of further budget reductions and potential job losses is creating significant concern for members. Many are questioning how Inland Revenue can continue to meet increasing expectations while reducing both funding and staffing levels, Leo said.

“The workers at Inland Revenue aren’t just numbers to be managed on a spreadsheet. They are real people. They deserve better than this Government’s reckless, slash and burn approach to cuts regardless of the consequences.

“Stopping this brutal approach that creates stress and uncertainty for hundreds of workers is why the PSA is calling for a mandatory public good test before government agencies can embark on major restructures and cut jobs,” Leo says.

“The email to staff said that to manage workload amongst a reduced number of staff, some activities would be stopped and others would be managed with more efficient ways of working.

The message’s reference to efficiencies will be read in the current climate by staff as incorporating artificial intelligence technology, Leo says.

“As we’ve said before, we don’t support using AI as an excuse for getting rid of workers rather than making them more productive.

“No country in the world has evidence that AI can replace public sector workers at the scale this Government is betting on. Countries like Singapore, which the Government often cites as a role model, use AI to improve public services not to reduce headcount,” Leo says.

“The PSA completely opposes any new cuts at Inland Revenue. New Zealanders deserve a public service that is funded enough to fulfil basic functions like tax collections.”

The Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi is Aotearoa New Zealand's largest trade union, representing and supporting more than 95,000 workers across central government, state-owned enterprises, local councils, Health NZ and community groups.

Source: Fire and Emergency New Zealand

Firefighting resumed at Walter Peak at 7am today, with air and ground operations underway.

Four helicopters equipped with monsoon buckets are cooling hotspots and dampening the fire perimeter, with a fifth helicopter used as an aerial platform to direct the air attack.

There are 11 firefighters on the ground, with additional crews arriving throughout the day to bring the numbers on the ground up to 25.

Assistant District Commander Nic McQuillan says the protection of Walter Peak Station homestead and farm stock remain the priority.

While overnight conditions were relatively favourable, the fire has continued to grow and is now estimated at approximately 1,200 hectares. The size is likely to increase if the fire becomes more active due to weather conditions.

Members of the public on the lake are reminded to stay at least 500 metres offshore to keep clear of where our helicopters are operating. This exclusion zone will be monitored by the Harbourmaster and Coastguard throughout the day to ensure public and firefighter safety.

Smoke conditions may worsen in some areas on the opposite side of the lake during the day. Residents affected by smoke are advised to keep windows and doors closed and limit exposure where possible.