WYSIWYG NEWS - 12 August, 2007

[news at wysiwygnews.com]

Subject: 12 August, 2007 
----- WYSIWYG NEWS ------------------------------ 
Copyright, Brian Harmer. 

Though I don't allow my students to cite from Wikipedia I 
confess that I used it to learn that Homer (the Greek, not the 
one from Springfield) used the term "silent majority" to refer 
to the dead. Richard Nixon gave the phrase new life in 1969 
when he laid claim to the tacit support of those who were not 
on the streets protesting against the war in Viet Nam. I 
sincerely hope that I am not sending WYSIWYG to 1,735 dead 
people. I must assume therefore that Nixon's definition of 
silent majority applies ... and that the aforementioned 1,735 
of you who didn't respond are practicing a policy of "benign 
neglect" and don't actually oppose the idea. To the 102 of you 
who sent affirming emails, and the very gracious gentleman who 
phoned from British Columbia to  urge me to continue, my 
grateful thanks for the positive support. Your kind remarks 
were enormously helpful. Some of you were even kind enough to 
offer a bed in the event that I should be passing through 
which is really very nice. Thank you all, you make it 
worthwhile to keep going. 

Yesterday Mary and I did a day trip to Wanganui to visit my 
mother. I seem to be suffering from an attack of gout so Mary 
did most of the driving and that left me more free than usual 
to observe the landscape. It was a peculiar day from the 
weather viewpoint. Low clouds, high winds and grey outlooks 
could put a damper on things, but somehow things were bright 
enough to bring the signs of the season into focus. Daffodils. 
New lambs. Acacia trees in prolific bloom. (In the first few 
weeks of August? Weird!) Anyway, our journey was largely 
uneventful except for the discovery of a new and very pleasant 
café/restaurant in Bulls. Mothered Goose is in what I suspect 
to have been the old Post Office, or was it a bank, on the 
South West corner of the intersection between SH1/3 and High 
Street. Lots of dark wood and simple furniture, pleasant art 
on the walls, really excellent coffee and heaps of home style 
cooking.  I was well impressed. They seem to make something of 
a feature of the serving sizes. A sausage roll, for example is 
sufficient for a small meal. A custard square may seem 
expensive at $4.00 but  certain institutional caterers not far 
from my office would cut that serving in four and sell each 
portion for $3.50. Moving on to that stretch of road between 
Bulls and Wanganui, I was struck by the variety of bird life. 
Most spectacular of New Zealand's birds of prey is the 
Australasian Harrier (Circus approximans). My guess is that it 
is becoming lazier than its ancestors which used to eat 
carrion when the live prey was scarce. The modern bird gets 
much of its nourishment from "fast food" outlets, in the form 
of road kill, at some risk if becoming such itself. On a 
couple of occasions, a harrier glided low over the road, 
barely rocking in the slipstream of passing vehicles just 
below it. These are handsome birds found throughout 
Australasia, Polynesia and Micronesia. They have the look of 
warriors, though I have seen a pair of magpies see one off on 
several occasions. Magpies were plentiful during the journey, 
as were spur winged plover (Vanellus miles novaehollandiae) 
dotted about short pastures. Flocks of what I think were 
chaffinches occasionally swirled across the road, and since 
this is a coastal road, there were always plenty of gulls. In 
fact at one stage, while crossing the Whirokino trestle, there 
was a waterlogged paddock just North of the Manawatu River and 
East of the road, and thousands of common Red-billed gulls 
(Larus novaehollandiae scopulinus) were arrayed across the 
area more or less a wingspan apart looking for all the world 
like some amazing self harvesting crop that was just ripening 
in the field. Enough of such fantasies. The wind increased as 
the day wore on, and the clouds became more menacing in their 
appearance. We visited my mother, and Mary's parents who also 
live in Wanganui. And in due course we set out on the return 
journey. Despite the signals of spring mentioned earlier 
headlights were necessary by about 4 pm. Intermittent rain 
made driving less pleasant than it might have been, as did the 
steady flow of traffic in both directions. Somewhere about 
Poroutawhao (South of Foxton, North of Levin), some loon in a 
black low slung boy-racer vehicle came barrelling past despite 
the oncoming traffic. He continued to duck and dive in and 
out, overtaking in places where no sane person would attempt 
such things. I sincerely hope that when he inevitable hits 
something, it will be a brick wall rather than another 
vehicle. 
---- 
Any text above this point, and all subsequent material in 
parentheses, and concluded with the initials "BH" is the 
personal opinion of Brian Harmer as editor of this newsletter, 
or occasionally "GS" will indicate an opinion from our 
editorial assistant. In all cases they are honest expressions 
of personal opinion, and are not presented as fact.  
 
All news items (except where noted otherwise) are reproduced 
by kind permission of copyright owner, Newstalk ZB News. All 
copyright in the news items reproduced remains the property of 
The Radio Network Limited. 

----  
On with the News.  

Monday, 6 August 2007
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

HERCEPTIN FIGHT BEGINS IN COURT
-------------------------------

A group of breast cancer sufferers has started its fight 
against PHARMAC's Herceptin funding decision at the High Court 
in Wellington. It is questioning PHARMAC's decision-making 
process, over the choice to fund just a nine week course of 
the breast cancer drug Herceptin, rather than a 12-month which 
course. In 23 other OECD countries the full year course is 
funded. This morning the court was shown an affidavit from the 
oncologist for seven of the women. It states that with the 
year-long course of Herceptin the chances of cancer returning 
are 22.5 percent, compared with 50 percent for the nine week 
course. 
 
(I have every sympathy with awful plight of these women. 
However, as one doing battle with a DHB over other aspects of 
their spending, I am all too aware of the finite nature of the 
health budget. What is given to one group is not available to 
give to another. From an external dispassionate point of view, 
the Herceptin budget represents a very large chunk of the 
health vote for a comparatively small number of people who 
will be cured. Who decides whether the money comes out of the 
budget for MND or Cystic Fibrosis? I have no answers. I am 
just aware that the problem is much more complex than it is 
presented. - BH)

QUICK HIV TEST PROVING POPULAR
------------------------------

The AIDS Foundation is being inundated with requests for its 
faster HIV test. The test gives a result in just 20 minutes, 
compared to up to a week for earlier procedures. The AIDS 
Foundation says it has noticed an increase in testing of up to 
300 percent in some cities, since it was introduced late last 
year. It is looking at hiring more staff to deal with the 
demand. A spokesman says many of those getting the faster test 
have not been tested for HIV before, because they did not want 
to wait so long for the results.

(Well, as per the previous item on which I commented, every 
advance in medicine represents a new cost. This requires 
either an increase in health spending overall, or a reduction 
in some existing programme. Shades of King Solomon's dilemma. 
- BH)

NATS LEADER UNVEILS KEY TO HOUSING AFFORDABILITY
------------------------------------------------

Tax cuts, lower interest rates, and more land for development 
are some of the answers John Key is offering to the housing 
affordability crisis. Figures released over the weekend 
suggest a growing number of households are suffering mortgage 
stress. More than half a million home owners are spending 40 
per cent of their take home pay on home loan repayments. The 
National Party leader made the issue one of the key points of 
his address to party faithful at their annual conference in 
Auckland. Mr Key says a major initiative for any government he 
leads will be to open up more land for new housing. John Key 
says tax cuts would be a big step forward, and he would also 
see that government expenditure was not driving up interest 
rates. Mr Key also advocates lower building compliance costs, 
and allowing state house tenants to buy their homes. However 
Housing Minister Chris Carter has attacked the plans, 
labelling them a return to failed policies. Mr Carter argues 
the only people to benefit will be property developers. He 
says people live in state houses because they cannot to 
service a mortgage. Government allies The Greens have also had 
a stab, claiming National's economic policies are at odds with 
its environmental aspirations. Co-leader Russel Norman says it 
appears National wants to gut the Resource Management Act to 
enable new developments regardless of the environmental 
impacts. He says National's earlier environmental concerns are 
being put on the back burner to make way for faster economic 
growth. He says while he is pleased National has previously 
set a target of cutting carbon emissions in half by 2050, he 
doubts that can happen if it develops more motorways.

FAMILY TRAMPS BECOME CHEAPER
----------------------------

The organisation representing outdoor clubs is delighted with 
a government announcement which will make tramping cheaper for 
families. Trampers aged under 18 will be able to stay in 
Department of Conservation huts on New Zealand's nine Great 
Walks without charge, from July next year. Federated Mountain 
Clubs president Brian Stephenson says the average saving 
across the nine Great Walks will be about $15 per child per 
night. He says the change is a long-term investment in getting 
people out into the hills and involved in healthy activities. 
 
(I am in favour of reduced fees, but am not sure that singling 
out any particular age group is a great idea. - BH)

SUPPORT FOR FOOD LABELLING GROWS
--------------------------------

A food safety lobby group is supporting a Green Party proposal 
for mandatory country of origin labelling of food products. 
The Government has so far resisted the labelling, arguing it 
conflicts with trade liberalisation. But GE Free NZ spokesman 
Jon Carapiet says the Government needs to realise food 
labelling is becoming common practice in many countries. He 
says it is vital consumers are given the option of knowing 
where their food comes from. Mr Carapiet says it is only a 
matter of time before consumer demand for labelling outweighs 
business concerns over the costs. 
 
(Yes and no. I worry that such labelling will become a vehicle 
for the exercise of prejudice, and that, in the end, it will 
bite us in the pocket. Our goods go to China, and in return we 
take theirs. If we start xenophobic purchasing, we will soon 
experience a backlash. - BH)

SPEED FORGOTTEN IN JUDGEMENT CALLS
----------------------------------

Research at Victoria University suggests training to improve 
drivers judgement of speed and distance will lead to fewer 
road accidents. The study concentrated on so-called gap-
acceptance decisions, in which drivers make a call about 
whether it is possible to complete a manoeuvre such as 
overtaking, or crossing an intersection. Associate Professor 
David Harper says research indicates people usually rely 
heavily on how far away vehicles are, rather than how fast a 
vehicle is travelling, when they are making a gap decision. 
The principle also applies to other road users, such as 
pedestrians. He says it is likely that if people can be taught 
to incorporate speed into their decisions, crashes would be 
reduced. 
 
(Though I work in the same building I haven't met Associate 
Prof. Harper who is head of school in Psychology. It's an 
interesting topic. Some people with whom I have been a 
passenger seem paralysed at intersections because they lack 
the ability to judge speed. Similarly when merging onto 
motorways, I often see people who can't find a gap because 
they simply seem unable to grasp that you need to match the 
speed of the traffic if you are to merge with it, so there 
they sit, with a tail behind them, waiting for the entire 
evening rush to pass. - BH)

TOP DOCS EDGE CLOSER TO STRIKING
--------------------------------

A fourth week of stopwork meetings for senior doctors begins 
today, as they continue their campaign for better pay and 
conditions. This time it is the turn of medical specialists 
working for the Auckland District Health Board. Their union 
says the 19 meetings to date have overwhelmingly supported 
holding a vote on whether to take nationwide industrial 
action. The Association of Salaried Medical Specialists says 
in some meetings the vote has been unanimous. The Association 
says 80 senior doctors have left for Australia in the past 18 
months, or plan to, because of better pay and conditions 
there. Strike action would be a first for senior doctors. 
District Health Boards have responded to the campaign by 
revealing the size of the pay rise on the table for senior 
staff. Dr Nigel Murray, lead negotiator for the DHBs, says the 
boards have offered specialist doctors a $45,000 increase, 
which would take their pay to an average of just over 
$243,000. He says the offer was put on the negotiating table 
in June.

MORE WINNERS IN WFF CHANGES
---------------------------

National Leader John Key is promising there will be more 
winners than losers from his planned changes to the Working 
For Families package. He is proposing to remove higher income 
families from the scheme, but replace the benefit they can now 
claim as a tax credit with a tax cut. The plan was revealed at 
National's annual conference over the weekend, but no specific 
details are being released at this point. Mr Key admits he 
cannot guarantee the changes will not leave some families 
worse off, as there can always be a family on the absolute 
margins. However he has promised National would not roll out a 
policy which would leave thousands of New Zealanders worse 
off. Finance Minister Michael Cullen is dismissing the 
direction signalled by Mr Key. He says there is no way 
National could afford to cut taxes, yet still ensure those 
receiving Working For Families would be no worse off. Speeches 
at the conference went over ground which would be familiar to 
many, re-emphasising existing policies but with the finer 
details kept under wraps. What was new was a tougher line on 
gangs offered by Justice Spokesman Simon Power. In addition to 
giving police more powers, National is proposing the 
membership of a gang should become a factor in sentencing 
decisions.

Tuesday, 7 August 2007
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

SEARCH AND SURVEILLANCE LAWS UNDER FIRE
---------------------------------------

The Law Commission has labelled police search and surveillance 
powers "a mess". It has released a 500 page report, which was 
researched over five years, and makes 300 recommendations for 
change. President Sir Geoffrey Palmer says the current laws 
are not fit for their purpose. He says the laws are sometimes 
too restrictive, prevent law enforcement agencies from 
gathering evidence and do not have enough safeguards to 
protect the rights of innocent citizens. Sir Geoffrey says 
search and surveillance powers have not kept in touch with 
changing trends in crime and rapid developments in technology. 
Among the 300 recommendations are changes to allow police to 
apply for warrants electronically, additional search powers 
for police, as well as greater ability for them to establish 
crime scenes. The Law Commission also believes enforcement 
officers should have greater access to specialised 
surveillance gear in authorised circumstances. Justice 
Minister Mark Burton says 50 years of work needs to be updated 
and it is clear technology has overtaken current legal 
provisions. He says the need for an update of legislation is 
obvious and the Government will look at the full report and 
its recommendations.

TEACHERS HOLDING STOPWORK MEETINGS
----------------------------------

The union representing secondary school teachers says staff 
shortages will worsen unless pay and conditions improve. The 
PPTA is holding stopwork meetings with around 17,000 teachers 
over the next fortnight to discusses their collective 
agreement offer. Today's meetings affect schools on the North 
Shore, western parts of Auckland, Hutt Valley and Oamaru. 
President Robin Duff claims the government's offer of a nine 
percent increase over three years is unreasonable compared 
with the 12 percent rise the union is seeking. He says the 
deal falls short of pay hikes in other professions and fails 
to address conditions such as class sizes, professional 
development and support for school administrations. "When we 
have something like 200 vacancies in secondary schools and 
specialist teaching positions across the country I think that 
gives great cause for concern."

AGE OF ABUSE VICTIMS LOWERING
-----------------------------

A woman at the coal face of child abuse says the victims are 
getting younger than ever before. Sarah McMillan, Rotorua 
Hospital's child protection officer, says in her five years in 
the role she has noticed younger child abuse victims suffering 
more severe injuries. She says the youngest case she has seen 
involves a two-week-old boy who came in with a bruised face. 
She says while such cases are in the minority, they are 
happening. Ms McMillan says there has also been a slight 
increase in the number of children referred to her for care. 
She believes the community needs to learn how to identify 
child abuse and realise its many forms, not just the extreme 
cases.

STOP FOREIGNERS BUYING ASSETS SAY GREENS
----------------------------------------

MPs are being asked to support a law change making it harder 
for foreign investors to get a stake in local airports. The 
Greens want to introduce a bill to Parliament which aims to 
prevent overseas companies such as Dubai Aerospace Enterprise 
being able to buy into Auckland International Airport. If the 
Manukau and Auckland City Councils decide to sell their 22.8 
percent stake, the sale would then be looked at by the 
Overseas Investment Commission and two cabinet ministers. 
Under the Overseas Investment Act, government ministers must 
approve the sale of sensitive land to foreigners. Green MP Sue 
Kedgley says the bill aims to give the Government more power 
to block key national assets being sold to offshore investors. 
Yesterday, Auckland Airport shares dropped 15 cents to $3.13 
after Trade Minister Phil Goff said the Government agreed with 
opponents of Dubai Aerospace's $2.6 million takeover bid. His 
comments suggest the Government might not approve the deal. 
 
(As I understood it, Mr Goff was referring specifically and 
solely to the shareholdings of the Auckland and Manukau City 
Councils - BH)

FURTHER RESEARCH INTO BREAST CANCER
-----------------------------------

A breast cancer trial group is about to embark on further 
research to battle the disease. The Australian New Zealand 
Breast Cancer Trials Group has already undertaken a successful 
trial of the drug tamoxifen. The study known as IBIS-1 
demonstrated the drug reduced hormone sensitive invasive 
breast cancer in a third of at-risk women aged between 35 and 
70. A second study, IBIS-2 is looking for a more effective and 
safer drug for prevention by testing anastrozole in 
postmenopausal at-risk women. Twenty-five New Zealand 
institutions are taking part in the study.

RENEWED CALL FOR DANGEROUS DOG BAN
----------------------------------

There is a renewed call for dangerous dog breeds to be banned 
following the vicious dog attack on a Christchurch toddler. 
Two-year-old Aotea Coxton has undergone several hours of 
facial surgery after a Staffordshire Cross attacked her at 
Jellie Park on Sunday. Police say the dog latched on to her 
face and refused to let go. Peter Macintosh, who was in the 
park with his children, saw what was unfolding and managed to 
prise the dog off by trying to choke it. United Future leader 
Peter Dunne called for the banning of dangerous dogs after the 
death of a woman following the fatal attack on Murupara woman 
Virginia Ohlson, who was mauled by a pitbull and a 
Staffordshire cross in April. He wants the issue looked at 
again. "Just how long are we going to go on allowing these 
things to happen, allowing these dangerous dogs to maim these 
kids." Aotea has a broken jaw and may lose the sight in one 
eye. She required dozens of stitches to her face. The dog has 
been destroyed and police say its owners are distraught about 
the incident. Senior constable Rod Fraser says police are 
trying to establish how the dog escaped from its nearby home 
which appears to be well-fenced. Police are still considering 
whether charges will be laid. 
 
(All indications seem to be that the owners were responsible. 
The animal was fenced and had not previously behaved badly. I 
know that there are a lot of dog lovers in this country, but I 
am tired of hearing that "it's not the dog, it's the owners". 
These owners seem to have done everything right, and the dog's 
behaviour was totally unpredicted. - BH) 

NZ$ PICKS UP AS GREENBACK TUMBLES
---------------------------------

The New Zealand dollar has picked up nearly half a cent in 
overnight trade as the greenback takes another tumble. The US 
dollar has fallen to a 15 year low against several major 
currencies amid fears America's economy is braking. There is 
speculation that the Federal Reserve might cut its 5.25 
percent interest rate later this year. Crude oil prices have 
also had a tough time, falling more than three percent to 
below $US73 a barrel. However, US stocks rebounded in 
overnight trade, driven by bargain hunters. On Wall Street, 
the Dow Jones Industrial Average is 70 points higher on 
13,252. The NZX50 opens 1.6 percent lower this morning 
following comments that US credit markets are in their worst 
shape in 20 years. More than three billion dollars have been 
wiped from New Zealand's sharemarket in the last week, as 
local investors feel the impact of Wall Street's mortgage 
market problems. 
 
(Pride cometh before a fall - BH)

EMERGENCY SERVICES WORKING MORE CLOSELY
---------------------------------------

Firefighters and ambulance officers will be working even more 
closely together in future. The two services have signed a 
memorandum of understanding which formalises the arrangement 
whereby both services attend emergencies. Fire Service 
Communications manager Scott Sargentina says it will be of 
particular benefit in small towns where the Fire Service and 
St John Ambulance already enjoy a very close relationship. He 
says the two services will also look for opportunities to 
share buildings and other facilities.

Wednesday, 8 August 2007
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

ORGANICS COMPANY PREDICTS PROFIT
--------------------------------

Organic herbicide and direct marketing company CER Group says 
both sides of its business are trading profitably. The 
company's Annual General Meeting has heard that earnings 
before interest and taxes increased by 79 percent on the 
previous 12 months, to $393,000. The group's New Zealand 
Nature company is on track for revenue of $6 million for the 
full year and its Certified Organics branch has gained 
registration for its herbicide products in America and 
Australia. CER hopes to sell its weed control product used by 
the South Australian Government to control broomrape to the 
American market late this year or early next year.

NEW LAWS WILL TIGHTEN BORDER SECURITY
-------------------------------------

New immigration legislation is being tabled in Parliament 
today, in which security is a key feature. The Immigration 
Bill replaces the 1987 Immigration Act. Immigration Minister 
David Cunliffe says it will strengthen border security, 
tighten laws against those who pose a risk to the country, and 
facilitate the entry of favoured migrants. He says it will 
also allow classified information to be used in immigration, 
refugee, and protection decisions. Mr Cunliffe says it will 
also establish an independent appeals body and a detention 
system. He pledges the systems will uphold human rights and 
high standards of fairness, maintaining the law changes are 
consistent with the Bill of Rights. 
 
(I would hope that there is some consistency in the new laws, 
and that money cannot buy exemptions. I hope that our 
obligations with regard to refugees continue to be honoured. - 
BH)

MANUFACTURERS SET UP ADVISORY GROUP
-----------------------------------

New Zealand's largest manufacturing union is pleased it is 
getting a positive response to the formation of an advisory 
group for the sector. The group will be chaired by the 
Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union and Business New 
Zealand and will provide a voice to Government for the 
industry. Andrew Little, EPMU National Secretary, says the 
manufacturing sector employs nearly a quarter of a million 
people but is facing serious issues including global 
competition, a high New Zealand dollar and capacity 
constraints. He says that the Government's response to the 
idea of an advisory group acknowledges that securing a future 
for manufacturing will take a whole-industry approach. "With 
this initiative and the measures already announced in the 
budget we're seeing a real willingness from this Government to 
secure the future of manufacturing in this country." The 
advisory group will be co-chaired by Mr Little and Business NZ 
CEO Phil O'Reilly.

RANKIN'S STANCE ON ABUSE CRITICISED
-----------------------------------

The credentials of former Work and Income boss Christine 
Rankin are being questioned by a group opposing the plan for 
three minutes of silence to reflect on the problem of child 
abuse today. Ms Rankin, who heads the For the Sake of our 
Children Trust wants people to stop what they are doing at 12 
minutes past 12 and think about the abuse issue. But a new 
Maori group, the Allies of Whanau of Aotearoa, is calling for 
people to make some noise about the problem instead. It says 
the Pakeha groups behind the move have spent the last week 
Maori bashing over the problem but when Ms Rankin was chief 
executive of WINZ she made it harder for Maori families to get 
government support as she oversaw a major restructuring of 
social welfare. Spokesman Te Kanikani Tautoko says the three 
minutes of silence is yet another example of non-Maori people 
using culturally inappropriate methods to deal with a problem 
affecting Maori.

CIVIL LIBERTIES SAY SEARCH LAWS GO TOO FAR
------------------------------------------

A civil liberties advocate says a proposal allowing police to 
search a property without a warrant is a step too far and 
could lead to an abuse of police powers. The Law Commission 
has released a report after a five-year review of search and 
surveillance laws. Included in the suggestions are proposals 
allowing police to apply for warrants electronically and the 
ability to enter a property without a warrant if officers 
think there is a chance they will find evidence of serious 
crime. Barrister and civil rights campaigner Stuart Cummings 
says although the laws need to be amended to catch up with 
current technology, it is not acceptable for police to have 
the powers to search properties without a warrant. He believes 
problems would arise if police came across a far more minor 
offence than would have warranted a search in the first place. 
Police say the law changes would prevent abuses of power 
rather than provoke them. Inspector Scott Spackman says the 
proposals clarify police parameters and officers are less 
likely to act beyond their powers.

SHEEP POPULATION DECLINES
-------------------------

There are nearly a million fewer sheep in the country than a 
year ago, largely due the drought on the East Coast. The 
number stands at 39.1 million, a drop of 2.4 percent and a ten 
year low. Meat and Wool New Zealand says the drop is largely 
driven by the drought on the East Coast which has resulted in 
numbers in the region falling by nine percent. Some farms in 
the worst affected areas of the East Coast have reduced stock 
numbers by as much as 50 percent. Southland recorded the 
second largest decrease in ewe numbers as farms convert to 
dairying. The overall lamb crop may decline by five percent 
because fewer ewes have mated. New Zealand is the world's 
biggest exporter of sheep meat. Sheep and beef meat processed 
accounts for 13 percent of the country's $35 billion exports 
in the year to June 30. There are now nine sheep for every one 
New Zealander.

(I remember when there were 14. I suspect that a lot of dairy 
conversion may also be a factor as the dairy industry is 
paying at record levels. - BH)

LATEST POLL HAS NATIONAL AHEAD
------------------------------

National remains well out in front according to the latest 
political opinion poll. The Morgan poll shows support for 
National is up two percent to 49, while Labour has dropped one 
percent to 35. The Greens have dropped half a percent to six, 
while New Zealand First remains below the MMP threshold on 
four percent. The Maori Party registers with three percent 
support. ACT, United Future and the Progressives are all 
polling below one percent.

(Yet another poll on TV tonight has National on 53. - BH)

Thursday, 9 August 2007
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

KIWISAVER SIGN-UPS MINIMAL
--------------------------

Just five percent of New Zealanders have signed up for the 
Government's KiwiSaver scheme. It has been available since the 
beginning of July, but so far only 92,000 people have joined. 
Many of that number will have been automatically signed up by 
their employers, and can now opt out of it. Officials remain 
confident KiwiSaver will still be able to attract at least 
half the workforce within a decade. 
 
(Perspective is a lost art. I saw another report suggesting 
that 92,000 was a massively successful initial take up. - BH)

GOVT TAKES OVER PYLON PROPOSAL
------------------------------

The Government is taking control of Transpower's proposal to 
build a new electricity supply line from Waikato to Auckland. 
Energy Minister Pete Hodgson has announced he will call it in, 
using a rare intervention under the Resource Management Act. 
He says Transpower's proposal is of national significance, and 
the Government intervention will involve publicly notifying 
resource management applications for the project. It will also 
allow public submissions, and see the creation of an 
independent Board of Inquiry which will be chaired by a 
current or former Environment Court judge. The board will then 
make a decision regarding the placement and consent for the 
transmission line.

CYBER IDENTITY FRAUD LIKELY TO RISE
-----------------------------------

Internet users of social networking sites are being warned 
about the increasing risk of identity theft. A report by 
credit agency Dun and Bradstreet has found that Australians 
lost nearly $3 billion in the past year through identity 
fraud. General Manger John Scott says most people are careful 
when it comes to internet banking, but some get a bit relaxed 
about the extent of personal information they reveal when 
using social networking sites such as MySpace or FaceBook. Mr 
Scott says it is inevitable cases of cyber identity theft will 
emerge in New Zealand but people can protect themselves by 
using the privacy settings that come with most networking 
sites.

LOCAL LOOP UNBUNDLING
---------------------

The local loop is finally unbundling. Telecom has opened up 
two of its exchanges in Auckland to competitors. Internet 
providers Orcon and Ihug are installing their own equipment in 
the exchanges in Ponsonby and Glenfield, allowing Telecom's 
rivals to offer phone and broadband services. Both companies 
will spend the next few months testing their gear. 
 
(This was more symbolic than real, and the roll out to all 
exchanges could take 11 years to complete. - BH)

SUPPORT FROM NATS FOR NEW IMMIGRATION LAWS
------------------------------------------

National is supporting a Government bill giving immigration 
officials greater powers. In the biggest rewrite of 1987 law 
in two decades, Immigration Minister David Cunliffe says the 
changes will clarify and strengthen boarder security and 
tighten the law against people who pose a risk to New 
Zealand's well-being. "It allows Classified Information to be 
used in immigration, refugee, and protection decisions." The 
proposed changes to the Immigration Act will allow people to 
be detained at the border for up to 96 hours, New Zealanders 
will be photographed at the airport upon their return from 
abroad, the visa system will be simplified and there will be 
more sharing of information between Government agencies. 
National's immigration spokesman Lockwood Smith hopes the 
changes will make it easier to deal with cases such as that of 
Ahmed Zaoui, who is fighting a judicial review of the security 
risk certificate issued by the SIS, which could lead to his 
deportation. Currently Mr Zaoui is not entitled to know the 
nature of the allegations against him. Under the new system, 
officials will be entitled to a "non-classified summary" of 
the allegations where possible. 
 
(I think any legal system in which the accused cannot know 
what he is accused of is abhorrent. - BH)

HOPES VACCINE RATES WILL IMPROVE
--------------------------------

Government targets set for District Health Boards are expected 
to have a positive impact on health services. Ten target areas 
have been announced, including a greater plan to tackle 
obesity, cut waiting lists and immunise more young people 
against disease. DHBs must strive for 95 percent of two-year-
olds being fully immunised, up from the current level of just 
under 80 percent. Immunisation Advisory Council director Nikki 
Turner says her organisation has struggled for many years to 
push their message and she hopes that may now change. She says 
with renewed energy and focus at all levels, it may finally 
make a difference.

Friday, 10 August 2007
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

FOODSTUFFS' LABELLING ONLY ON FRESH PRODUCTS
--------------------------------------------

Supermarket operator Foodstuffs has decided to put country of 
origin labelling on its fresh fruit, vegetables, meat and 
seafood following concern about the safety of food from 
overseas, but says it is not practical to do the same for 
processed food. Hundreds of suppliers to PAK'nSAVE, New World, 
Write Price, Shoprite Supermarkets and Four Square stores are 
being asked to provide information about where their food 
comes from. Melissa Hodd, Foodstuffs executive manager says it 
is a big job but suppliers should know the origins of their 
food. The policy should be in place by December. Foodstuffs 
says while it is relatively straightforward to declare the 
country of origin for one single ingredient, it would be 
difficult and expensive to produce labels for processed food, 
because it involves more than one ingredient. It says tinned 
fruit salad for example, may contain New Zealand peaches 70 
percent of the time, but when the supplier cannot supply 
enough local fruit they are forced to import to meet demand. 
Foodstuffs says that would involve changing the packing and 
the label, which is time-consuming and extremely costly. 
Recently, there has been concern about food from China in 
particular after fish exported to America was found to contain 
high quantities of chemicals, toothpaste was contaminated with 
anti-freeze and cats and dogs died from eating Chinese 
manufactured pet food. After complaints about its peanut 
butter being made in China, Sanitarium has announced it will 
also import the Australian-made spread into New Zealand within 
the next two months.

FARMERS SAY GOVT MANIPULATING CONSENT PROCESS
---------------------------------------------

Federated Farmers says the Government's decision to change the 
resource consent process for the planned Transpower grid 
upgrade in the North Island, amounts to manipulation. The 
Government is setting up a single body to deal with resource 
consent issues because the 200km power line stretching from 
south Waikato to Auckland will cross into areas governed by 
nine regional and district councils. The board of inquiry will 
mean consent issues will not have to go before the Environment 
Court. Waikato branch president, Peter Buckley, says the 
government's ability to intervene highlights the urgent need 
for changes to the Resource Management Act. He says private 
citizens have complained for years about the cost, delay and 
uncertainty of RMA processes. Mr Buckley says farmers are 
frustrated the minister has taken the important matter of 
consents away from local councils and the Environment Court. 
 
(I see no difficulty in principle in reducing 9 parallel 
inquiries to a single inquiry. Provided the single inquiry 
offers proper avenues for people to express themselves, it 
makes a lot of sense to me. - BH)

GOVT SPENDING TO ATTRACT FOREIGN STUDENTS
-----------------------------------------

The Government is pumping $10 million into getting more 
international students studying in New Zealand. Part of the 
funding will go towards enhancing the reputation of New 
Zealand qualifications overseas. It will also allow the 
appointment of an education counsellor in the Gulf states, to 
encourage more students from the Arab world to study here. 
Last year, 93,000 foreign students, from 150 countries, were 
studying in New Zealand.

CTU HOUSING OUTSTRIPPING WAGES
------------------------------

The Council of Trade Unions is calling for wage increases to 
keep up with house prices. The latest figures show a slight 
drop in house prices with the national median falling $2,500 
to $345,000. CTU President Ross Wilson says housing is still 
too costly, with prices outstripping wages four to one. He 
believes ownership is getting further out of reach for many 
people and even those who have managed to get into their own 
home are getting deeper in debt because they are not being 
paid enough. He says many are drawing heavily on the equity in 
their houses to fund spending.

CONCERN ABOUT LEPTOSPIROSIS RATES
---------------------------------

Veterinarians want more to be done to stop the spread of 
leptospirosis, the most commonly notified infectious disease 
in the country's workplace. The disease is contracted through 
contact with the urine of infected animals and in humans can 
cause persistent flu-like symptoms, renal failure and 
occasionally death. It was responsible for the death of a meat 
worker earlier this year. Julie Hood from the Veterinary 
Association says leptospirosis is the most important 
occupationally-acquired infectious disease caught from animals 
but the rate of occurrence can be reduced by creating greater 
awareness of the need for vaccination. She says other 
important factors include rodent control, effluent and water 
management and staff education. Dr Hood is calling for greater 
cooperation between farmers, researchers, vets, and government 
agencies to gauge the extent of the disease. She says while a 
lot is known about leptospirosis in dairy cattle, little is 
known about its effect on other livestock species, such as 
sheep, deer and beef cattle. Dr Hood says the fact that meat 
workers and non-dairy farmers have contracted the disease 
proves it is not limited to dairy cattle.

PEANUT BUTTER WORRIES
---------------------

Food giant Sanitarium has been forced to bring back its 
original Australian-made peanut butter after a consumer outcry 
about the spread being made in China. The company has been 
inundated with complaints from New Zealanders worried about 
food safety, after recent cases of contaminated products from 
China. General Manager Pierre van Heerden admits consumers 
were unhappy when the company moved its production of peanut 
better to China six months ago and says the re-introduction of 
an Australian-made product will give consumers the choice they 
have been seeking. The spread will have distinctive new 
packaging and will be available in around two months. Problems 
with products manufactured in China include toothpaste found 
to contain anti-freeze, tainted pet food which caused the 
deaths of cats and dogs in America, toys made with lead-
tainted paint and a contaminated antibiotic which killed at 
least 10 people.

(Problems with taste are fair enough. Who among us remembers 
the "new coke" debacle? However, I have serious qualms about 
pandering to xenophobia. - BH)



SUBSCRIBE OR UNSUBSCRIBE 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 
 
Brian Harmer does NOT administer the mailing list. Please do 
not send subscription related messages to him. Instead, visit 
the website listed below, where you can make changes as 
required. If you want to send a personal message to Brian, 
change the country code to nz and send a message 
brian.harmer at vuw.ac.xx If you do choose to comment on 
something in these posts, please don't send the whole 
newsletter with your message. Just trim it back to the 
relevant bits. Thanks. Brian.