Posts

Posted on

Green Economics – ASB and Cogo launch online energy calculator to help customers save thousands a year by switching to electric

Source: ASB

 ASB has partnered with global carbon management fintech Cogo to launch a new online calculator which enables Kiwis to measure, understand and optimise the efficiency of their home and vehicle, helping to lower costs, while making their homes more sustainable.

When homeowners are ready to upgrade, they can use the Better Energy Calculator to view and compare options and energy savings that are specific to their property. By choosing to switch heating, appliances or their vehicle to electric, ASB customers stand to benefit from installation discounts and could borrow up to $80,000 at 1% for up to three years through the ‘Better Homes Top Up’ for eligible upgrades.

ASB Lend and Protect Tribe Lead, David Jackson says: “The Cogo team are experts in their field at building technology that has great economic and environmental value. We’re thrilled to be leading the way by providing this online tool to our customers and to all Kiwi.

“Based on research conducted by Rewiring Aotearoa,[1] consumers could save up to $3,000 per year in energy costs with changes such as switching to an EV when it’s time for a new car and replacing old gas appliances with electricity. It means that customers looking to upgrade, are able to make an informed decision on cost-effective long-term choices that are also sustainable.”  

ASB is the first bank in New Zealand to offer Cogo’s Home and Vehicle Electrification solution. It’s part of an ‘electrification ecosystem’ on ASB’s website, which offers personalised suggestions on changes energy users could make, and the upfront costs and potential savings of these changes.

For example, the Better Energy Calculator shows that for a four-person dwelling in the Auckland suburb of Birkenhead, a homeowner could save $1,400 per year by switching their heating, hot water and cook tops to electric, with upfront costs from $15,500. Adding solar to the home increases potential savings by an additional $1,600 per year, based on upfront costs from $11,000. In fact, if they go electric with their next vehicle (costing $49,990), this homeowner could save another $1,200 per year on car running costs. [2]  

With a click of a mouse, people can connect directly with Cogo’s trusted installers offering exclusive discounts, and with the ASB team, who can support with financing of upfront costs. The Better Energy Calculator even removes the hard work of research by suggesting EVs most similar to the user’s existing vehicle.

Cogo founder and CEO, Ben Gleisner says: “We share a strong alignment with ASB in our mission to encourage people to take personal action on climate change, and electrifying their homes and cars is a great way to start.  Success for us would be thousands of Kiwi making changes that save them money and reduce their carbon footprint.”  

The Better Energy Calculator is available now, to anyone, on the ASB website: Get better energy with ASB (ref. https://www.asb.co.nz/home-loans-mortgages/better-energy.html )

[1] Rewiring Aotearoa, Electric Homes Report (ref. https://www.rewiring.nz/electric-homes-report )
2 Upfront costs represent the initial outlay for the product only and do not include finance or interest rates which vary.

Posted on

Health – Already short-staffed Wellington Hospital gynaecology ward losing beds – NZNO

Source: New Zealand Nurses Organisation

The Wellington Hospital gynaecology ward that is losing beds to its Emergency Department in a trial, was already short-staffed more than a quarter of all shifts, figures obtained by NZNO show.
It has been revealed that Wellington Hospital is cutting beds from its maternity and gynaecology wards in a trial designed to make more room for patients from its overcrowded Emergency Department (ED).
The New Zealand Nurses Organisation Tōputanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa (NZNO) has obtained figures under the Official Information Act showing safe staffing levels identified by the Care Capacity Demand Management (CCDM) programme from January to October last year.
NZNO delegate Michelle Cotton says the figures show the gynaecology ward was already short staffed 27% of all shifts.
“That means there are not enough nurses already for more than a quarter of all shifts.
“NZNO is concerned this trail is aimed at meeting the Coalition Government’s arbitrary and unfunded six-hour wait time target for EDs,” she says.
“This trial is starting after the only gynaecological oncologist at Wellington Hospital retired and wasn’t replaced. This is partly the cause of empty beds because those women are being treated in Christchurch.
“The trial requires the ante and postnatal services to be reduced from three pods to two. There will be less options for partners to stay and more women will be required to share rooms.
“This trail is putting the health care of women and their newborn babies at risk. They deserve better at this crucial time in their lives,” Michelle Cotton says. 
Posted on

Government Employment – First-ever strike at Pharmac – PSA

Source: PSA

Health economists, Māori health experts, and medical practitioners who are members of the New Zealand Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi at Pharmac will strike this week, the first-ever at the agency, after their employer proposed an unacceptable pay offer and an extensive clawback of conditions.
The strike will involve walking off the job on Wednesday 9 July at 10:30am for one hour.
“The team at Pharmac, like many other Government agencies, are constantly being asked to deliver more with less,” PSA National Secretary, Fleur Fitzsimons says.
“Pharmac does essential work getting life-saving medicines to New Zealanders. Workers and their families deserve a fair pay increase and decent conditions of work, not this terrible pay offer and a reduction in their conditions of work.”
The PSA initiated bargaining over a year ago in June 2024, but Pharmac did not bargain until October.
At the bargaining, Pharmac management proposed a number of reductions in terms and conditions of employment, including a service eligibility for step pay progression and only making redundancy available to permanent staff, as well as a pay offer of just 0.2 per cent.
In June this year, the PSA proposed mediation after Pharmac proposed to remove members' step pay system.
In mediation, Pharmac proposed a number of new reductions in terms and conditions. Most notably, it proposed a reduction in the size of step pay increases in exchange for a one-off ‘buyout’ of the step increase employees would have otherwise received this year.
“The public servants at Pharmac care deeply about serving New Zealanders. All they ask in return is the right pay and conditions so that they can do their jobs effectively,” Fitzsimons says.
Pharmac staff will be picketing outside their office at 40 Mercer Street from 10:30am-11:30am during the industrial action.
The parties are attending mediation with the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment on 16 and 17 July 2025.
Other PSA statements on Pharmac:
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 boards and community groups.
Posted on

Legislation – FamilyBoost changes will exacerbate inequity of ECE access – CTU

Source: New Zealand Council of Trade Unions Te Kauae Kaimahi

The New Zealand Council of Trade Unions Te Kauae Kaimahi is warning that the FamilyBoost changes announced today by Finance Minister Nicola Willis will fail to make early childhood education more affordable for the families who need it most and will instead widen inequities.

“The Government has missed an opportunity to reflect on the failure of the FamilyBoost scheme and pivot towards improving access and affordability through expanding universal free-fees entitlements and moving towards a quality public ECE system,” said NZCTU Secretary Melissa Ansell-Bridges.

“FamilyBoost puts an administrative burden on whānau and teachers while failing to deal with the key issues in early childhood education, which include low wages, systemic underfunding, and a private model that results in high profits for big corporates.

“The changes announced today disproportionately benefit high-income households, who are already much more likely to be able to afford to send their kids to ECE centres. This means the benefit of the scheme will be weighted against those who need it most.

“Access to quality early childhood education helps ensure that children have the best possible start in life, and no families should be denied that due to costs.

“The revised scheme does nothing to support the development of new centres or to help low-income groups into ECE provision. Instead, the Government has loaded up its support for higher-income groups, once again demonstrating their priorities,” said Ansell-Bridges.

Posted on

Heritage and LEGO a perfect fit for competition winner

Source: Heritage NZ
The winner of a LEGO building competition that combines the iconic multi-coloured bricks with some of New Zealand’s equally iconic heritage buildings has been announced.
Adam Richards of Christchurch has won first prize in the first-ever CBS Heritage Competition in this year’s Christchurch Brick Show with his model of the Church of the Good Shepherd.
Adam has won a $200 Toyworld voucher supplied by Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga, the sponsor of the competition.
Runners up, Ivan and Tamsin Mackintosh, won a $50 voucher for their model of the Christchurch Public Trust office.
Competition judges, LEGO master Centuri Chan and Rosemary Baird of Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga, were looking for technical skill – and in particular what LEGO aficionados refer to as NPU (Nice Piece Usage – using pieces in unusual or creative ways), and accuracy to the historical building.
The winning model ticked all the technical and creative boxes.
“We selected this as the winner because of the technical skill in recreating the vari-coloured stonework and the night sky and stars. They also recreated the snowy terrain skillfully. It’s hard to make LEGO look organic,” says Centuri.
“It was very difficult to choose winners. All the entries were of a high calibre.”
The judges also praised the runner-up entry, the Public Trust building, saying it was “nicely built for the scale they chose”.
Exhibitors to this year’s show were offered the opportunity to enter a special competition to recreate in LEGO a place recognised on the New Zealand Heritage List Rārangi Kōrero – the national inventory managed by Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga that records the country’s rich and diverse place-based heritage.
Seven LEGO masters took up the challenge building models that included the Church of the Good Shepherd, Lyttelton Gaol, Kotahitanga Church, Cape Egmont Lighthouse, the Fire Watchtower, the Boer War Memorial in Invercargill and the Christchurch Public Trust Office.
A further six models were also put forward to display as non-entry exhibition models.
According to Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga Senior Outreach Advisor, Rosemary Baird, the inspiration for the competition was a model of the Lyttelton Timeball created by Christchurch LEGO master Mark Dowers, which featured in the 2023 Brick Show.
“The Timeball model highlighted the close synergy between heritage buildings and LEGO,” she says.
“We thought it would be cool to see what interest there might be in combining the two in a competition – and this year’s incredible entries were the result.”
In addition to the prizes, Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga compiled some information for each of the listed places that featured in the competition.
“It was so interesting researching properties from our list that I was unfamiliar with. I was fascinated to learn about the history of the Cape Egmont Lighthouse, for example, which was reconstructed from a previous lighthouse and became implicated in the New Zealand government’s invasion of Parihaka,” she says.
“The impressive Invercargill Boer War memorial illustrates a time when many New Zealanders identified so closely with ‘Mother Britain’. These places are not just buildings – their history really highlights how our society has changed over the years.”
Christchurch Brick Show organiser Lisa Moon was delighted with all of the exhibits at this year’s show – and was particularly impressed with the heritage entries.
“The entries in the CBS Heritage Competition are amazing, and have generated a lot of positive interest from visitors to the Brick Show, as well as among many building experts who have shown interest in giving it a go next year,” says Lisa.
The Christchurch Brick Show – New Zealand’s largest LEGO fan event – involved 300 exhibitors this year and drew over 15,000 visitors.
Posted on

Weather News – Settled start to the last week of school holidays – MetService

Source: MetService

Covering period of Monday 7th – Thursday 10th July – The last week of the school holidays kicks off with settled weather for most, with plenty of opportunities to get out and about before things take a turn towards the end of the working week.

Clear skies and high cloud keep temperatures cool in northern and western parts of the country, with frosty mornings continuing until mid-week. Auckland started off the week with a chill in the air, with Auckland Airport reaching its second-lowest temperature of the year on Monday morning, at just 5°C.  

The start of the week is a great time to wrap up warm and head outside with the kids, MetService meteorologist Silvia Martino says: “With just a few showers here and there, it shouldn’t dampen anyone’s enthusiasm for outdoor adventures.”  

It's quite a different story in the east, where the weak midwinter sun struggles to break through a chilly blanket of drizzly low cloud. Fog lingers in the valleys of the South Island, making for gloomy grey skies from the ground, but bluebird days on the ski fields floating above it all.

The script starts to flip from Wednesday, with showers in the west and drier days in the east. However, that is just a taster, as the end of the week into the weekend looks to have a wetter weather system in store. Meanwhile, daytime temperatures slowly creep up into the mid to high teens for most by the end of the working week.

Keep up to date with the latest weather forecasts at metservice.com, or download the MetService app to personalise what you want to see.
Posted on

GREENPEACE – A dawn service to commemorate the bombing of the Rainbow Warrior in Auckland

Source: Greenpeace
“You can’t sink a rainbow.”
The iconic Greenpeace flagship Rainbow Warrior will sail into Auckland today to mark the 40th anniversary of the bombing of the original Rainbow Warrior on 10 July 1985.
A dawn ceremony of remembrance will be hosted by Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei on board the Rainbow Warrior from 7am on 10 July 2025 at Halsey Street Wharf in the Viaduct.
[To have cameras set up on the ship, please be there by 06:30am.]
Speakers include:
Russel Norman, Greenpeace Aotearoa executive director
Tui Warmenhoven, Ngati Porou, Greenpeace Aotearoa board chair
Sharon Hawke, Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei
Carmen Gravatt, Greenpeace International programme director
Stephanie Mills, former Greenpeace nuclear campaigner
The Rainbow Warrior comes fresh from confronting bottom trawlers off the East Coast of New Zealand on the Chatham Rise, a biodiversity hotspot under threat from the destructive fishing practice of bottom trawling. Activists from the Rainbow Warrior painted the words Ocean Killer on a Talley’s bottom trawling vessel and then again on a Sealord vessel. In response to the painting in June.
Russel Norman says, “The Rainbow Warrior’s return to Aotearoa comes at a pivotal moment as the fight to protect our planet’s fragile life-support systems has never been more urgent.
“On a planetary scale, climate change, ecosystem collapse, and accelerating species extinction pose an existential threat to us all, while here in Aotearoa, our Government is waging an all-out war on nature.
“As we remember the bombing of the Rainbow Warrior and the murder of Fernando Pereira onboard that night 40 years ago, it’s important to remember why the French Government committed such an extreme act of violence.
“They targeted our ship because Greenpeace and the campaign to stop nuclear weapons testing in the Pacific were so effective. We posed a threat to the French Government’s military programme and colonial power in the Pacific.
“And it’s critical to remember that they failed to stop us. They failed to intimidate us, and they failed to silence us.
“We showed that you can’t sink a rainbow. We showed that courage is contagious. Greenpeace only grew stronger and continued the successful campaign against nuclear weapons testing in the Pacific.
“That lesson is important because now, forty years on, we are just as effective, and it is the fossil fuel industry and the billionaire oligarchs who try to stop us. This time, not with bombs but with armies of lawyers and legal attacks of the kind that right now could threaten the very existence of Greenpeace in the US and beyond.
“But just like in 1985 when the French bombed our ship, now too in 2025, we are showing that we can not be intimidated, we will not back down, and we will not be silenced.
“The Rainbow Warrior has sailed ever since as a symbol of resistance in action. And we cannot be silenced because we are a movement of people committed to peace and to protecting Earth’s ability to sustain life, protecting the blue oceans, the forests and the life we share this planet with,” says Norman.
Following the anniversary, the Rainbow Warrior will be open to the public for tours and talks with the crew on the week

Posted on

Universities – Nafanua Purcell Kersel named as 2025 Emerging Pasifika Writer in Residence – Vic

Source: Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington

Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington’s International Institute of Modern Letters (IIML) is delighted to announce the appointment of Nafanua Purcell Kersel as the Emerging Pasifika Writer in Residence for 2025.

Nafanua, a Sāmoan writer and performer, is based in Heretaunga, Te Mātau-a-Māui (Hawke’s Bay). She will use the residency to work on a stage adaptation of her debut poetry collection Black Sugarcane, as well as a new book of poems.  

Her aspiration is to create work that creates more. “More alofa, more creativity, more understanding in our communities and worlds,” says Nafanua.  

Nafanua has a background in facilitation and community storytelling, including her role with Nevertheless NZ, where she leads the storytelling programme and runs creative writing workshops with Māori, Pasifika, and Rainbow+ communities. Her creative work includes poetry, theatre and spoken word, often centring on themes of intergenerational memory and Pasifika knowledge systems.  (ref. https://neverthelessnz.com/ )

Black Sugarcane, published in 2025 by Te Herenga Waka University Press, grew out of Nafanua’s Master of Creative Writing at IIML, for which she won the 2022 Biggs Family Prize in Poetry. Her poetry has appeared in anthologies and in various literary journals including Cordite, Landfall and Turbine l Kapohau.  

Nafanua says it is a privilege and an honour to receive this award.  

“I admire each of the previous recipients, and feel humbled to have been chosen to follow on from them.  

“My wish is to write work which offers an insight into the complexity of community and the subtle work of shared stories, through my own experiences, dreams, and observations. My goal for the residency is to produce work which is mana-enhancing and unapologetic in its cultural depth. Fa’afetai, fa’afetai, fa’afetai tele lava mo le avanoa.”
Nafanua will receive a stipend of $15,000 to write her new work at the IIML for three months. She will also work with a mentor during the residency.

Damien Wilkins, Director of the IIML, says Nafanua’s wonderful first book of poems shows her to be a highly skilled writer with new things to say.  

“We’re excited to see her work develop. The IIML is also very appreciative of the support of the University and Creative New Zealand.”

Posted on

Export Awards – Finalists Announced for 2025 ExportNZ ASB Hawke’s Bay Export Awards

Source: Business Central

Finalists Announced for 2025 ExportNZ ASB Hawke’s Bay Export Awards
Hawke’s Bay exporters are being recognised for their excellence with today’s announcement of the finalists for the ExportNZ ASB Hawke’s Bay Export Awards.
In a time of substantial global volatility, ExportNZ is proud to recognise just some of the amazing exporters who continue to innovate and succeed in the global market.
The awards celebrate high calibre exporters from Hawke’s Bay up to the southern tip of Gisborne and are awarded annually.
Finalists for 2025 were selected from a wide field of entries, with an expert panel of judges assessing their success across a wide range of categories. The winners of each individual award category will automatically go in the running for the supreme award of the night, the ExportNZ ASB Hawke’s Bay Exporter of the Year.
Judges have lauded the creativity and quality of this year’s finalists, highlighting their innovation, strategy and global growth.
ASB’s Head of International Trade, Mike Atkins said it was exciting to see this year’s finalists covered a mix of businesses from the Food & Fibre sector along with Productive Manufacturing:
“We are extremely proud to enter our eleventh year of celebrating some of the country’s most innovative and inspiring companies and the achievements of the Hawke’s Bay export sector. It was particularly inspiring to see the level of innovation being adopted, including some world firsts,” said Atkins.
Congratulations to all this year’s finalists and award winners – the region should be proud of these amazing achievements.”
This year’s category finalists are:
ContainerCo Emerging Business Award
– Ovenden Seeds Limited
– Six Barrel Soda
– Haumako
– Bayleaf Organics
T&G Global Best Established Business Award
– ABB
– Apollo Foods
– Starboard Bio Limited
Ziwi Excellence in Innovation Award
– Norsewear
– King Bees
– ABB
– Starboard Bio Limited
– Apollo Foods
The Judges’ Choice Award, NZME Service to Export Award and Napier Port Unsung Heroes Award will be announced on the night – as will this year’s supreme prize, ASB Exporter of the Year.
Winners of each category will also go on to the final stage of the New Zealand Trade & Enterprise (NZTE) International Business Awards, held in Auckland on November 11 th.
ExportNZ Hawke’s Bay Executive Officer Amanda Liddle applauded all the efforts of the finalists and the exporting community.
“There’s no denying that the past few years have been challenging for exporters. Yet, time and again, our exporters have not only persevered but outperformed on the global stage-a true testament to their resilience, quality, and determination,” said Liddle.
“Amid ongoing global uncertainty, it’s more important than ever to pause and celebrate their achievements. ExportNZ is proud to stand behind our exporters-driving economic growth, lifting national pride, and showcasing New Zealand to the world.”
“This night would not be possible without the support of our category sponsors and our family sponsors. A special thank you to New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, Hastings District Council, Napier City Council, Hawke’s Bay Airport and Craggy Range Winery. Congratulations to all the finalists.”
Gala Dinner and Winners Announcement
The winners in each category will be revealed during the upcoming Gala Dinner and Awards night on July 31st, at the Toitoi Hawke’s Bay Arts and Event Centre. Tickets for the event are available for purchase here: https://exportnz.org.nz/event/exportnz-asb-hawkes-bay-export-awards-2025/
Notes:
ExportNZ Hawke’s Bay is overseen by Business Central, which represents around 3,500 organisations across the lower North Island. Business Central offers advice, learning, advocacy, and support to a wide range of organisations across Central New Zealand. Business Central is part of the BusinessNZ Network.
Tickets to the event go on sale today on the Export NZ website: https://exportnz.org.nz
Posted on

Stats NZ information release: Dwelling and household estimates: June 2025 quarter

Dwelling and household estimates: June 2025 quarter – information release

7 July 2025

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 June 2025, the estimated number of:

  • private dwellings is 2,125,000
  • households is 2,041,900.

Visit our website to read this information release: