A major highlight this month was our launch of TIMES-NZ 3.0 in collaboration with EECA, a powerful energy system model that gives businesses and policymakers a shared analytical foundation for decisions on infrastructure, investment, emissions reduction and economic growth.
...Meeting New Zealand’s energy needs to 2050 will cost approximately $1.3 trillion, according to the country’s latest and most comprehensive whole-of-energy-system model to date. BusinessNZ Energy Council (BEC) Policy Advisor Ben Young says meeting New Zealand’s future energy demand will require stable, predictable and permissive policy settings that give businesses the...
I have just returned from Delhi, where ExportNZ’s Josh Tan and I were proud to be part of a 40-strong BusinessNZ-coordinated delegation supporting the NZ government, as Trade Minister Hon. Todd McClay signed the New Zealand–India Free Trade Agreement. This is a landmark deal for our exporters, opening up significant...
BusinessNZ welcomes New Zealand’s first City Deal as a long-overdue step toward unlocking economic growth, through better coordinated infrastructure planning and delivery. BusinessNZ Chief Executive Katherine Rich says the agreement for Auckland signals a shift toward more constructive collaboration between central and local government. “Developing world-class cities requires long-term thinking,...
The Government’s introduction of two Bills to replace the current Resource Management Act (RMA) is transformational and should result in fewer consents required to unlock development while protecting what matters, BusinessNZ says. Chief Executive Katherine Rich says the next step will be securing broad support for the changes, which will...
A new report by BusinessNZ calls for bold, long-term planning to enable a greater New Zealand by 2050. The report titled New Zealand 2050: A Long-Term Vision, makes a case for a bipartisan national plan to redefine NZ’s competitiveness, social cohesion, and global standing by 2050. Starting with NZ’s looming...
BusinessNZ says urgent and co-ordinated action is needed to avoid what gas users describe as a ‘devastating’ disruption to New Zealand jobs, services and manufacturing. Chief Executive Katherine Rich says New Zealand’s dwindling natural gas supply is an issue that must be taken seriously. “The assumption that industry can quickly...
BusinessNZ supports the Infrastructure Commission’s endorsement for extending fibre broadband to more areas of New Zealand. A proposal by Chorus to gain government backing for expanding fibre broadband from 87% to 95% of households and businesses has been endorsed by the Infrastructure Commission as a national priority. BusinessNZ Advocacy Director...
As councils consider their spending and rates decisions for the coming year and as October’s local authority elections draw closer, business groups are calling for greater transparency on how councillors vote. “It is time for councils to make it easier to show how their elected members vote at each meeting...
BusinessNZ welcomes the Government’s commitment to reforming resource management laws, based on the principle of the enjoyment of property rights. “The latest announcement on phase 3 reforms is another step in the right direction,” BusinessNZ Chief Executive Katherine Rich said. “Current consenting processes are slow and costly, and projects can...
