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Northland News – Free earthworks field day

Source: Northland Regional Council

Contractors, consultants, and council staff working across erosion and sediment control are being urged to attend a free hands-on day for the earthworks industry to be held in Whangārei in mid-September.
Tess Dacre, the Northland Regional Council’s (NRC) Compliance Monitoring Manager, says the Wednesday 16 September event will run from 9am to 3pm at Whangārei’s Barge Showgrounds.
The first of its kind event is a collaboration between NRC, the region’s three district councils, the International Erosion Control Association and Civil Contractors New Zealand.
Ms Dacre says the event is built on an “education before enforcement” approach, helping lift capability across the region through shared learning, practical demonstrations, and real-world insights.
The day will include short, practical presentations, live product demonstrations, real-world examples and lessons learned as well as opportunities to connect with councils and industry.
Ms Dacre says the day will benefit earthworks contractors, site supervisors, environmental managers, engineers and consultants, council compliance and monitoring officers.
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Finance – Farm mortgages drop on strong returns – Federated Farmers

Source: Federated Farmers

Many farmers are taking advantage of strong returns for meat and milk to pay down debt, the latest Federated Farmers Banking Survey and Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) data shows.
Reserve Bank data that shows total agricultural lending dropped $1.4 billion to $61.2 billion in the year to April 2026.
“Strong dairy payouts, including a capital redistribution of $2 per share to Fonterra suppliers, combined with record beef and sheep farmgate prices, have likely allowed farmers to meaningfully reduce loan principal,” Federated Farmers banking spokesperson Mark Hooper says.
Responses from nearly 540 farmers to the Federated Farmers Banking survey in May also show falling farm mortgages and improved farmer-banker relationships.
In the Feds survey, the number of respondents with mortgages under $2 million has risen to 41%, up from 38% six months earlier.
Average mortgages for sharemilkers and for dairy and meat and wool farms all fell significantly between the November 2025 and May 2026 surveys.
“The outlier is arable farms,” Hooper says.
“That sector is in near-crisis mode, with weak grain prices, rising costs, tough growing conditions and competition from lower cost imports.
“The arable farm median mortgage of $3.5 million is the highest of all farm types.”
Other key survey results tracking the farmer-banker relationship continue an upward trend.
Farmer satisfaction with banks reached 69% in May, the highest rate recorded in the last eight years of Federated Farmers’ twice-a-year surveys.
The survey shows banks have lifted their game on the communication front.
Farmer satisfaction with their bank’s communication is at 69%, up from 61% in the November survey.
Another positive is that the number of farmers who said they were feeling undue pressure from their bank came in at 10%, the lowest since 2018.
The average mortgage rate was 5.49%, down from 5.78% in the November survey, and two out of five respondents to the May survey have over 75% of their loans on floating rates.
“One finding that all banks should ponder: the single most consistent theme across more than 200 general comments added by farmers was that a knowledgeable, available bank manager outweighs factors such as loan rate competitiveness,” Hooper says.
“Where communication from banks works, it tends to reflect a specific person rather than the bank system. Where it fails, the cause is usually the same.
“One farmer’s comment states it plainly: ‘Never hear from our bank; don’t even know who our rural bank manager is. That’s concerning and disappointing if we need them’.”
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Pacific Civil Society Calls for a Genuine Ocean of Peace: The Pacific is NOT a battleground

Source: Pacific Regional Non-Governmental Organisations (PRNGO) Alliance

The Pacific Ocean is far more than a strategic waterway; it is the foundation of our cultures, identities, livelihoods and futures. It sustains our communities, connects our islands, and underpins our sovereignty and self-determination. Yet today, our ocean is increasingly being treated as a theatre for geopolitical competition, where strategic interests are too often prioritised over the rights, wellbeing and aspirations of Pacific peoples.

The Pacific Regional Non-Governmental Organisations (PRNGO) Alliance unequivocally condemns the recent test of a nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) by the People's Republic of China across the Pacific Ocean.

We oppose all forms of militarisation and nuclear threats in the Pacific, irrespective of which state is responsible. We cannot condemn missile tests, military build-ups and strategic military expansion undertaken by one power, while remaining silent when comparable actions are undertaken by another.

We equally oppose the recent Chinese ICBM test, and the continued testing of Minuteman III ICBMs by the United States over the Pacific, alongside the expansion of military alliances and strategic military partnerships, including AUKUS, large-scale military exercises such as the Rim of the Pacific Exercise (RIMPAC), Valiant Shield, Talisman Sabre, and the continued expansion of foreign military presence and infrastructure across our Blue Pacific.

For Pacific peoples, this is not an abstract geopolitical contest. It is our home.

At a time when the region commemorates some of the darkest chapters in the Pacific's nuclear history, the continued militarisation of our ocean is a stark reminder that the lessons of the past remain unlearned.

A painful reminder during a month of remembrance

The timing is particularly significant given the major nuclear anniversaries commemorated across the Pacific this month, including the 80th anniversary of Operation Crossroads, when the United States began detonating nuclear weapons at Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands; the 60th anniversary of France's first nuclear detonation at Moruroa Atoll in Ma'ohi Nui (French Polynesia); the 41st anniversary of the bombing of the Rainbow Warrior in an act of French state terrorism intended to silence opposition to nuclear testing in the Pacific; and the ninth anniversary of the adoption of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).

For many outside the region, these anniversaries are history, but for Pacific peoples, they remain a lived memory. These anniversaries are more than moments of remembrance. They are also reminders that today's security challenges cannot be separated from the unresolved legacies of nuclear colonialism, and that the pursuit of genuine peace in the Pacific must begin with acknowledging, addressing and learning from this shared history.

Another missile crossing our ocean cannot be separated from that history. Nor can it be separated from the continued use of the Pacific as a missile testing-corridor, including the regular testing of United States Minuteman III ICBMs towards Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands. The Treaty of Rarotonga, the Nuclear Free and Independent Pacific movement, and today's aspiration for an Ocean of Peace were all born from a shared determination that our region should never again become a testing ground for the strategic ambitions of others.

Militarisation is not peace

The Pacific has repeatedly declared its vision of becoming an Ocean of Peace. That vision is not simply the absence of armed conflict, but a Pacific understanding of security founded on justice, sovereignty, self-determination, environmental stewardship and the wellbeing of our peoples.

The recent missile test by China is not an isolated incident. It forms part of a broader pattern of escalating militarisation across our region that includes expanding defence agreements, increasing foreign military deployments, large-scale military exercises such as RIMPAC, Valiant Shield and Talisman Sabre, strategic infrastructure development, and growing geopolitical competition among external powers.

The PRNGO Alliance rejects the notion that military deterrence delivers peace. Escalating military competition is fundamentally inconsistent with the Pacific's aspiration for an Ocean of Peace.

The Treaty of Rarotonga remains our regional foundation

As the Treaty of Rarotonga approaches its 40th anniversary, Pacific governments should reaffirm and strengthen one of the region's most enduring commitments to peace and security. Born out of decades of Pacific resistance to nuclear detonations and nuclear colonialism, it declares our region as one of the world's first nuclear-weapon-free zones and affirms the Pacific's determination that our region would never again become a nuclear sacrifice zone.

Our call to Pacific Leaders

The PRNGO Alliance's position is grounded not in the strategic interests of competing powers, but in decades of Pacific regional leadership and civil society advocacy. From the Nuclear Free and Independent Pacific movement and the Treaty of Rarotonga to the Boe Declaration, the 2050 Strategy for the Blue Pacific Continent and the collective positions advanced by Pacific civil society, Pacific peoples have consistently articulated a vision of security founded on justice, sovereignty, self-determination, environmental stewardship, and demilitarisation. Recent events reinforce the urgency of translating those longstanding regional commitments into consistent political action.

The PRNGO Alliance therefore calls upon Pacific Leaders to:

Unequivocally condemn all missile tests conducted in or across the Pacific Ocean, regardless of whether they are undertaken by China, the United States or any other military power.

Reject the continued militarisation of the Blue Pacific, including expanding military alliances, foreign military basing, strategic deployments, nuclear deterrence policies and large-scale military exercises such as RIMPAC.

Reaffirm and strengthen the Treaty of Rarotonga as the cornerstone of Pacific regional security and fully implement its objectives.

Ensure that any future Ocean of Peace framework is genuinely Pacific-led, centred on human security, environmental protection, Indigenous rights, decolonisation and demilitarisation – not great-power strategic competition.

Support the universalisation of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, including urging Australia and all Pacific partners that remain outside the Treaty to sign and ratify it.

Recognise that true regional security requires addressing climate change, ecological degradation, economic inequality and the unfinished business of nuclear justice, rather than expanding military competition.

Ensure that the future of Pacific security is determined by Pacific peoples, through Pacific institutions, and according to Pacific priorities. Build on an Ocean of Peace founded on human security, regional solidarity and environmental stewardship, and respect for Pacific sovereignty, not on the strategic calculations of external powers.

The Pacific has already paid the price of being treated as a testing ground, a military frontier, and a dumping ground for other nations' ambitions.

The Pacific Ocean is not a theatre for great-power rivalry. It is our home. It is the foundation of our cultures, identities, livelihoods and futures.

If the Blue Pacific is to become a genuine Ocean of Peace, then militarisation must give way to justice, cooperation, and Pacific-led security founded on sovereignty, self-determination and the wellbeing of our peoples.

This statement is issued by the Pacific Regional Non-Governmental Organisations (PRNGO) Alliance and, at the time of publication, is endorsed by:

  • Pacific Conference of Churches (PCC)
  • Pacific Islands Association of Non-Governmental Organisations (PIANGO)
  • Pacific Islands Climate Action Network (PICAN)
  • Pacific Network on Globalisation (PANG)
  • Oxfam in the Pacific.
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Oxfam – Rich countries exaggerating "true value" of climate finance by around $100 billion

Source: Oxfam Aotearoa

Rich countries have again inflated the “true value” of the climate finance they provide to low- and middle-income countries, overstating it by around $100 billion in 2024, according to new analysis by Oxfam. This exceeds the $88 billion by which climate finance was overstated in 2022.
Governments reported mobilizing nearly $137 billion in climate finance in 2024 to help Global South countries cut emissions and cope with the worsening impacts of climate breakdown. While $106 billion of the reported amount was provided as public finance, $69 billion (65 percent) was delivered as loans. Many of these loans are provided on market terms, requiring little or no financial effort from rich countries while increasing the debt burdens of countries in the Global South.
Oxfam estimates that the “true value” of the climate finance provided by rich countries in 2024 is between $33 billion and $45 billion, equivalent to no more than one-third of the amount reported. Only $15 billion to $18 billion was allocated to adaptation.
The findings come just weeks after the Bonn climate talks, where rich governments refused to strengthen the commitment they made at COP30 in Brazil to triple adaptation finance by 2035. Oxfam estimates that even tripling adaptation finance would meet only one-third of poorer countries’ adaptation needs.
Oxfam calculated the “true value” of climate finance by estimating the grant equivalents of climate-related loans and other non-grant instruments, rather than at their face value, in order to gauge rich countries’ real financial effort. Oxfam accounts for the difference between loans at market rate and those at preferential terms, while also considering the overly generous claims about the climate-related significance of these funds.
“New Zealand is outperforming other richer countries by giving all our climate funding as grants, not loans,” said Oxfam Aotearoa Policy and Advocacy Lead Nick Henry. “New Zealand’s climate grants are an essential lifeline for our Pacific neighbours and we need to keep our promise to increase the funding over time.”
“Once again, the richest and most polluting countries are inflating the value of the climate finance they provide, creating the illusion of solidarity while delivering far less than they claim,” said Oxfam Climate Policy Lead Mariana Paoli. “Instead of helping poorer countries withstand a crisis they did little to cause, rich countries are pushing them deeper into debt through loans, many offered on profitable commercial terms. It is a cruel irony: those most responsible pay less -and even make a profit- while those least responsible pay more.”
“What is needed is public, grant-based climate finance at the scale the climate crisis demands -not accounting tricks, not loans that worsen debt, and not empty promises. Grants are lifelines that enable countries to adapt to a changing climate, cut emissions, protect lives, and respond to devastating loss and damage. At COP31, rich countries need to drastically increase grant-based climate finance and finally deliver on the commitments they have made.”
Notes
Download Oxfam’s methodology note. Calculations are based on original research by INKA Consult and Steve Cutts using the latest OECD climate-related development finance datasets for 2023 and 2024. Figures are rounded to the nearest 0.5 billion.
According to the OECD, rich countries say they mobilized $136.7 billion in climate finance for Global South countries in 2024.
According to the UNEP Adaptation Gap Report 2025, the estimated adaptation finance needs of low- and middle-income countries range from $310 billion to $365 billion per year by 2035.
At the Bonn climate talks last month, rich governments refused to strengthen the commitment they made six months ago at COP30 in Belém, Brazil, to triple adaptation finance, which Oxfam estimates would still provide only one-third of the finance needed to meet the needs of poorer countries.
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Funding boost welcomed as complexity of mental health calls continues to rise

Source: Whakarongorau Aotearoa

Every year, more than 30,000 New Zealanders reach out to 1737 in moments of distress – for support with anxiety, depression, loneliness, thoughts of self-harm, or simply not knowing where else to turn.
Whakarongorau Aotearoa has welcomed the Government's additional investment in telehealth services announced today [Telehealth investment to deliver faster access to support | Beehive.govt.nz], saying the funding will help ensure more people can connect with support when they need it.
Acting Chief Executive Brian O'Connell said the announcement reflects a growing reality facing mental health services across New Zealand.
“People aren't just reaching out more often – they're reaching out with more complex needs, higher levels of distress, and increasingly difficult situations to navigate.”
“Every day our counsellors are supporting people through some of the toughest moments of their lives. This investment recognises both the changing demand for support and the incredible work our teams do to meet it.”
The additional funding will enable Whakarongorau to recruit more counsellors, increasing frontline staffing for 1737.
Alongside additional counsellors, Whakarongorau is continuing to invest in digital tools designed to improve access to support. Around 5,000 people access the 1737 Digital Hub each month, and new initiatives include an AI-powered Welcome Service and a Mental Health Navigation Platform to help people find the support that's right for them.
“This investment is about much more than funding,” said Mr O'Connell. “It's about making sure that when someone reaches out for help, there's someone there to answer.”
“For someone sitting alone at and taking the brave step of reaching out, being able to connect with a counsellor sooner can make all the difference.”
While demand for 1737 is changing, it is the changing nature of those conversations that is placing the greatest pressure on the service. Four in ten callers are already known to secondary mental health services and the average length of a call has increased by around 50 percent since the service was established.
“Our counsellors are spending more time with people because the issues they're dealing with are more complex. That's not a failure of the system – it's a reflection of the pressure many New Zealanders are under.”
Despite that growing complexity, more than 75 percent of people who contact 1737 have their needs met within that initial interaction, without needing referral elsewhere. Research has also shown the service saves lives and prevents more than 150 suicide attempts each year.
“1737 is often the front door to support. For many people it's the first conversation they have about how they're feeling.”
“It's immediate, it's free, it's available 24 hours a day.
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Save the Children – "They’re flinching at the slightest noise" – Children’s mental wellbeing at stake two weeks on from devastating Venezuela earthquakes

Source: Save the Children

Children are showing signs of mental distress in the wake of last month’s devastating earthquakes in Venezuela, with parents and psychologists reporting children flinching at the slightest noise, finding it difficult to sleep, and showing more signs of irritability and aggression.
  Children who have undergone such stressful experiences will often show their stress through behaviour changes and need support to recover, said Save the Children.
  Save the Children has established safe spaces for children within the earthquake zone where families can bring their children to play and regain a sense of normalcy and strengthen their resilience, while also being assessed for more severe psychosocial distress or other protection concerns.
  Counsellors at these spaces have reported some children are showing signs of acute distress including anger, while children as young as seven or eight are saying they are scared of what the future holds. Some parents have told our staff that their children now become anxious when they see the cracks in the ground, while others are struggling to sleep at night and are flinching when they hear loud sounds such as rumbles of thunder.
  Some older children told Save the Children staff that they had to protect and rescue younger family members while they escaped from the earthquake, despite feeling deeply scared themselves, and continue to carry this anxiety with them.
  Around 1.8 million people including about 680,000 children have been impacted by the earthquakes that struck Venezuela two weeks ago, many of whom witnessed their friends and family members die before their eyes, with mental and health and psychosocial support identified by the UN and NGOs as one of the key needs facing affected people.
  Children who have experienced extremely distressing events are at risk of long-lasting impacts for months or even years to come unless they receive mental health and psychosocial support at the onset of the distressful event, said Save the Children.
  Two-year-old Daisy- was with her parents when the earthquake struck their home in Caracas. When Daisy stopped eating after the earthquake, her mother Yusmary-, 24, brought her to Save the Children’s mobile health clinic, run by local partner Paluz. Yusmary said that Daisy will now only breastfeed for comfort and will only eat a few spoonfuls of solid food if she is extremely hungry.
Yusmary said: “Before the earthquake, [Daisy] used to eat normally, just fine. But after the earthquake, she became like this. When she sees cracks on the floor, she starts crying and screaming. Then she calls me and says, “Mom, look at the floor!”
Isabel-,
“In our safe spaces where children come to play and receive support, we are seeing children who are scared about what the future holds. They are telling us things such as ‘my parents worked so hard to have a house, and now we have nothing.’ Children as young as seven or eight are deeply worried about how they're going to rebuild their lives.
“Our safe spaces allow children to express themselves in a safe and supportive environment which is vital since some children are telling our teams that they are reluctant to express their fears at home, as they see their parents and caregivers upset and worried”.
Fatima Andraca, Save the Children’s Country Director in Venezuela said:
“Many children in Venezuela have experienced extremely distressing events that no child should ever have to see. They have witnessed their friends and family members die before their eyes, while others continue to live with the uncertainty of not knowing where their loved ones are. Thousands of children are sheltering in tents in the streets where their daily routines and sense of security have been ripped away.
“Protection and psychosocial support are urgent priorities for children. With so many people dead, injured or missing, and so many families uprooted from their homes, children need both immediate and long-term support to ensure that this devastating disaster does not cause long lasting mental harm. With the right help, most children psychologically impacted by the earthquakes will eventually be able to recover.”
  Save the Children is an independent, impartial child rights organisation, working in Venezuela since 2019. Since the humanitarian crisis started to rapidly deteriorate a few years ago, Save the Children has been scaling up its response through local partners to support the increasing number of children in need.
  -Names changed for anonymity.
About Save the Children NZ:
Save the Children is responding and working urgently with teams and partners to assess needs and support affected children and families.
In Aotearoa New Zealand, Save the Children is raising much-needed funds to support the response. To donate, go to: Venezuela Earthquakes Appeal. 
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BANGLADESH: Deadly landslide kills seven more children in Rohingya camps

Source: Save the Children

A landslide triggered by monsoon rains has reportedly killed seven students and a teacher at a school in the Rohingya camps in Bangladesh, with more children being pulled from the rubble in the second deadly incident this week, Save the Children said.
The landslide came after at least eight people – including five children – died in flooding and landslides on 6 July in Cox’s Bazar, the world’s largest refugee settlement, that is home to more than one million Rohingya refugees, most of them women and children.
Several Save the Children learning centres have been damaged by heavy rain and flash floods, forcing their temporary closure. Homes, clean water sources and latrines and washing facilities have also been damaged.
Rohingya refugees mostly live in shacks made of bamboo and plastic sheets that cling to steep, bare hills. Flooding has further worsened their living conditions along with an overall deterioration of conditions inside the camps due to aid cuts in 2025 and donors scaling back funding for the protracted crisis.
Golam Mostofa, Head of the Cox’s Bazar Area Office at Save the Children in Bangladesh, said:
“The deaths of these students are a devastating reminder of the dangers children in the Rohingya camps face when extreme weather strikes. They are living in one of Bangladesh’s most climate-vulnerable regions, where crowded camps cling to landslide-prone hillsides.
“With the monsoon far from over, the risks remain acute. Continued rainfall is threatening to trigger further landslides, disrupting learning, damaging fragile shelters and leaving children exposed to serious health threats, including dengue, cholera and diarrhoea.
“Save the Children is working with partners and government authorities to strengthen disaster preparedness, anticipatory action and early warnings in the Rohingya camps.
“Protecting children from increasingly severe weather must be a priority. Communities on the frontlines of the climate crisis in Bangladesh need stronger infrastructure, safer learning spaces and sustained support to reduce the risks they face year after year.”
Save the Children has been working in Cox's Bazar since 2012 and significantly increased its activities following the 2017 exodus of refugees to Bangladesh, with programs in education, health and nutrition, food, water, shelter, and child protection services.
About Save the Children NZ:
Save the Children works in 120 countries across the world. The organisation responds to emergencies and works with children and their communities to ensure they survive, learn and are protected.
Save the Children NZ currently supports international programmes in Fiji, Cambodia, Bangladesh, Laos, Nepal, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea. Areas of work include child protection, education and literacy, disaster risk reduction and climate adaptation, and alleviating child poverty.
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Dairy Sector – Fonterra revises its 2026/27 forecast Farmgate Milk Price

Source: Fonterra Co-operative Group Ltd

Fonterra Co-operative Group Ltd has today updated its forecast 2026/27 Farmgate Milk Price off the back of declining prices at recent Global Dairy Trade (GDT) auctions.
 
The revised forecast is $9.25 per kgMS, with a new range of $8.00 – $10.50 per kgMS.
 
This is down from the opening forecast of $9.75 per kgMS announced in May, when the Co-operative started with a wide range of $8.00 – $11.00 per kgMS to reflect the potential for volatility and varied outcomes throughout the season.
 
Fonterra CEO Richard Allen says the change to the 2026/27 forecast reflects softer-than-expected demand at a time of strong global supply.
 
“GDT prices have fallen 11% across the reference products that inform the Farmgate Milk Price since we announced the opening forecast in late May, while milk production from key exporting regions is up on last year. We’re expecting a strong start to the season in New Zealand, noting the potential for the El Niño weather pattern to impact global supply as the season progresses,” says Mr Allen.
 
“It’s very early days in terms of the proportion of our FY27 sales book that has been contracted, so we face significant exposure to changes in commodity prices.”
 
Mr Allen says the Co-operative continues to focus on maximising returns for its farmer shareholders.
 
“As the seasonal supply picks up, our plan will ensure we utilise our flexible operations footprint, strong customer relationships and robust supply chain to shift milk into the products and markets where we can get the best returns for our farmers’ milk.”
 
The 2025/26 forecast Farmgate Milk Price of $9.60 – $9.80 per kgMS, with a mid-point of $9.70, remains unchanged.

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Tertiary Education – Cost of tertiary education will be 19% higher than 2 years ago

Source: Tertiary Education Union

The union for academics and staff working in universities, polytechnics and wānanga say that the proposal to permit tertiary institutions to increase student fees to 6% in a year when fees-free support has been withdrawn is unacceptable and irresponsible.
President Te Tiriti for the Tertiary Education Union (TEU), Ti Lamusse, says the 6% addition proposed by the Government in the Annual Maximum Fee Movement would push fees for New Zealand students to more than 19% above 2024 levels.
“Everyone is suffering from the cost of living crisis. To remove fees free and to push student costs and debt even higher is cruel, short-term thinking by this Government.”
Ti Lamusse says that students are being asked to absorb fee increases at nearly double the rate of general price increases. Inflation currently sits at 3.1%.
“This puts the burden of education on the shoulders of young people and their whānau. We want our young people to enter the workforce armed with skills, energy and great ideas, not weighed down by debt.
“Ultimately TEU believes education is a public good and it should be freely accessible to all. We want to set our young people up for success, not use their education as a profit-making machine.”
Aidan Donoghue, President of Victoria University of Wellington Students’ Association (VUWSA) says students are doing it hard. 
In a recent State of the Student Survey conducted by VUWSA with 1200 students at Victoria University, 38% of respondents said they had skipped a meal in the last fortnight.
“Our everyday living costs and debt have been compounded. Having fees free ripped away from us was an absolute kick in the teeth. I had a student phone me in tears after the annoucement, because they’d budgeted their education under the assumption that their last year would be free.They’ve now left university.
“Students I talk to are wondering why they’d stay in New Zealand. We’re talking about losing the next generation of nurses, teachers, doctors, agricultural workers and engineers – highly skilled people who should be moving into our workforce, but they can’t see why they’d stay with the level of debt and cost and a better lifestyle overseas. There’s a sense that there’s no support for them here in their own country.”
Ti Lamusse says the Annual Maximum Fee Movement has become a mechanism for passing the chronic government underfunding of universities, polytechnics and wānanga onto students.
“The answer to creating a thriving society for our young people is proper government investment, not higher fees.
The Tertiary Education Union submitted on the consultation which closed this morning.
Notes:
  • 19% increase in student fees cost since 2024 is based on: the 6% increases over three years ( link) are compounding. In other words, each year’s 6% increase is calculated on the already-increased fee from the year before (assuming a TEI chooses to go with the maximum). Over 3 years, this works out to be just over 19%.
  • Public investment in tertiary education sits more than 24% below the OECD average ( link).
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Election 2026 – EMA calls for fewer policy shocks, more certainty for business in 2026 Election Policy Directives

Source: EMA

A plan for manufacturing, a clear future for energy, and stable settings for the business community are the post-election policy directions for the EMA as November’s general election approaches.
The EMA’s 2026 Election Policy Directives, released today, focus on further improving the business environment for EMA members and the wider business community across the key areas in which the EMA policy team operates, as well as several broader strategic themes.
The directives centre on five key priorities: stability and certainty, infrastructure and consenting, energy supply, employment legislation, and investment and innovation.
Collectively, they have the common goal of improving business productivity.
“In the past few years, we have seen the rapid progression of de-industrialisation across New Zealand,” says the EMA’s Head of Advocacy Alan McDonald.
“The time is right to make a clear call on retaining the critical businesses that underpin our supply chain resilience, and to ensure the policy settings are in place to support them.
“There are always a number of factors behind the closures of these businesses, but a common factor has been the cost and availability of energy supply. We’ve gone from a country that attracted international business because of our energy supply, to having energy costs and availability routinely cited as a reason for closing domestic businesses.
“We need to accelerate new supply, unlock the regulatory constraints faced by our transmission network, and further encourage electrification.
“However, we also need to ensure we have sufficient firming capacity available to back up the electricity system during dry years. It’s a tough mix to get right, but our market regulators are clearly failing.”
McDonald also highlighted the lack of work readiness among those graduating from educational institutions as a major concern that needed further work.
“The number of NEETs (those not in employment, education, or training) in the 18-24 age bracket continues its concerning rise. There is no doubt one of the drivers behind these numbers is a reluctance by employers to hire those new faces. They are simply not ready for the workforce, lacking many basic skills, and struggling with the simple disciplines of turning up, listening and engaging in the workplace.
“We are finally acknowledging that not all school leavers are going to university and that we need residency pathways for skilled workers, not just university grads, in our immigration system.
“But none of the recent changes, which we see as moving in a positive direction for business, will endure if we face another round of political utu and change for its own sake.
“Reforms in areas such as the problematic RMA, infrastructure planning and implementation, education and immigration, fast-tracking energy generation, employment law and gains in Free Trade Agreements need time to settle and stick.
“That’s regardless of who is in Government.”
McDonald says the past decade of constant change and turmoil, both domestically and internationally, has left businesses hardened but cautious, with managing crises becoming a form of BAU (business as usual).
Businesses are also navigating emerging challenges such as AI – particularly the need for strong governance to capture its benefits while supporting workforce adaptation. The EMA has launched Workforce 2030 to help businesses prepare for this shift.
“Some calm would be a welcome respite. That’s why you see these calls for a grand coalition (not going to happen) and bi-partisanship (not that realistic either) popping up.
“If whoever forms the Government can keep the major settings and guardrails in place, and make some adjustments around the edges, that’s about as close to bi-partisanship as we can expect – and that level of stability would be welcome.”
McDonald says that level of domestic certainty, ideally matched by greater global stability, is needed to unlock the underlying strength in the economy, which remains dampened by ongoing uncertainty.
“And could we throw in a four-year electoral term too please.”
The EMA’s 2026 Election Policy Directives, developed from extensive engagement with EMA members, has been shared with political parties and policymakers ahead of the election. The document is available at: EMA_Policy-Directives_2026_A4_07FA-spreads.pdf (ref; https://ema.co.nz/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/EMA_Policy-Directives_2026_A4_07FA-spreads.pdf )