Federated Farmers transport and health & safety spokesperson Karen Williams is asking rural residents to sign a petition calling for a law change requiring seat belts in school buses. Philippa (Pip) Cameron, who farms on Otematata Station in the Waitaki Valley, lodged the petition with Parliament on 6 April. The closing date for signatures is […]
Politics
Economic Week April 16
by Nick Clark, Federated Farmers Manager General Policy Monetary policy unchanged The Reserve Bank has kept monetary policy settings unchanged at this week’s review, keeping in place its big stimulus. The OCR was kept on hold at 0.25% while the Large Scale Asset Purchase Programme and Funding for Lending Programme were both unchanged. In its […]
Feds: live export ban ‘surprising’
The government’s announcement this morning that live export of animals will be banned after a transition period of up to two years has come as a surprise to Federated Farmers, Feds animal welfare spokesperson Wayne Langford says. “The Minister has said this is all about protecting New Zealand’s reputation as the most ethical producer of […]
Bills on tax bracket creep and sound law-making deserve debate
A government committed to fairness and responsible law-making should not allow two bills recently drawn from the Member’s Ballot to sink without debate, Federated Farmers says. “At the very least the Regulatory Standards Bill and the Income Tax (Adjustment of Taxable Income Ranges) Amendment Bill deserve to go to select committee for examination and public […]
Economic Week – April 9
by Nick Clark, Manager General Policy Commodity prices March upwards The monthly ANZ World Commodity Price Index lifted 6.1% in March to reach a record high. The strength in the overall index was driven primarily by a sharp lift in dairy prices, with the dairy sub-index up 12.7% to its highest level in seven years. […]
Federated Farmers sees MIQ opportunity for agriculture
Federated Farmers hopes that the Government will take the opportunity of newly available space in MIQ quarantine to bring much-needed workers for the primary industries into New Zealand. COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins estimates that the Australian quarantine-free travel bubble will free up 1000 to 1300 beds in MIQ a fortnight. “MIQ spacing has been […]
Arguing the case for extra dairy workers to cross border
By Chris Lewis, Federated Farmers national board member With the developing and serious workforce shortage on dairy farms top of mind, Federated Farmers and DairyNZ have combined to put the case to government for 500 migrant staff to be allowed into New Zealand to head off critical animal and human welfare issues. A survey conducted […]
Log supply not the cause of timber shortage – Forest Owners Assn
Forest organisations have joined to reject statements that the current shortage of framing timber is caused by foresters selling logs to China and not leaving enough timber to be processed for sale in New Zealand. The Wood Processors and Manufacturers Association’s Chief Executive, Jon Tanner says Chinese log buyers were going to what he called […]
Economic Week – April 1
by Nick Clark, Manager General Policy Feds urges fiscal responsibility On Wednesday Federated Farmers presented its submission on the Budget Policy Statement to Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee. Read here to see what National President Andrew Hoggard told the Select Committee but the gist of it is that he urged caution on any spending spree […]
Red meat sector’s resilience highlighted in B+LNZ’s latest update
Media Release from Beef+Lamb NZ Following a challenging year with COVID-19 disruptions and drought, Beef + Lamb New Zealand’s (B+LNZ) Mid-Season Update 2020-21 highlights the resilience and adaptability of New Zealand’s red meat sector as solid market fundamentals continue to support global demand. Although the outlook predicts that the sector will continue to be challenged […]