WYSIWYG NEWS - 3 September, 2007

[news at wysiwygnews.com]

Subject: September, 2007 
----- WYSIWYG NEWS ------------------------------ 
Copyright, Brian Harmer. 

What a monumental week for our family! Special news to come.

Mid term break at the university is an opportunity to take 
some annual leave, so with Mary's blessing I travelled to 
Queenstown last Thursday to spend some time with our middle 
son, Andrew, his partner Abbey, and our lovely little 
granddaughter, Billie. Andrew and Abbey are currently running 
"Sombreros", the Mexican restaurant in town.  

The direct Wellington to Queenstown flight was absolutely 
delightful. The weather was clear and blue all the way. 
Somewhere off Kaikoura, the pilot of our Air New Zealand Link 
ATR72 announced that in view of the favourable viewing 
conditions, he had decided to take the inland route, and would 
fly via Arthur's pass, and thence to Queenstown by way of Mt 
Cook. So we altered course a few degrees to starboard, and 
were soon above the magnificent mountains of the Seaward and 
the Inland Kaikoura ranges. 

Though not as fast as the Boeings and lacking reclining seats, 
nevertheless the ATR has the distinct advantage of a high wing 
which affords a superb view of the snow covered majesty below. 
Kaikoura's Seaward and Inland ranges are not often in the news 
or even in the public consciousness, but they are at once  
extensive and imposing, with peak after snow covered peak 
stretching away in all directions, for all the world like the 
serrations on a shark's skin. I have probably mentioned before 
that the highest point in the range, Tapuae-o-uenuku is the 
highest South Island peak outside of the Mt Cook group. 

>From somewhere above Arthur's pass, it was possible to see 
clearly, the vehicles travelling along the elegant concrete 
viaduct that has straightened out the once tortuous route down 
beside the Bealey River to Otira and beyond. However, leaving 
aside such puny man-made artefacts, the real stars of the show 
were the mountains themselves. Wearing their thick mantle of 
utterly pristine snow, they gave the impression (from around 
16,000 feet) that they had never been trod by mankind. Highly 
improbable, of course. In places great curved cracks in the 
snow seemed, to my uninformed eye, to warn of significant 
impending avalanches. And now we were above the Southern Alps 
proper. From this altitude, it was possible to see the tracks 
of numerous avalanches and at least one of these spread fan 
like over a frozen mountain tarn. 

Over to the West, I could see the glittering waters of lovely 
Okarito, and the narrow bar that separates it from the sea. 
Warm memories of West Coast paradise and neglected friendships 
came flooding back. Soon, however, we were over the great 
glaciers, Franz Josef, Fox and Tasman, which of course meant 
that that the big lump of rock just ahead must surely be 
Aoraki Mt Cook. The pilot obeyed my telepathic wish and 
obliged with an "S" curve to give passengers on both sides of 
the cabin close up views of that mighty  mountain, immense and 
immovable and seemingly not very far below us at all, before 
continuing South over the uncountable peaks of the Mt Aspiring 
National Park and thence down the length of Lake Hawea to line 
up somewhere over the Crown Range for a more Westerly approach 
across Lake Hayes. Near the threshold, a bunch of rather 
soulless looking new Queenstown suburbs were trying 
desperately to imitate Northern California. Abandoning such 
negative thoughts, we arrived exactly on time at Queenstown 
airport, and there in the sharp cold sparkle of a perfect 
Queenstown day, were Andrew, Abbey and Billie to meet me. 

I love to be with any of my family at any time, and I take 
great pride not only in what they do, but in who they have 
each become, and when they are not here, I miss them all. And 
now it was great to see Andrew and Abbey interacting with 
their 18 month old daughter Billie, who is at the stage of 
communicating with the world in words, but not yet in 
sentences. Billie is a delightful little girl who has 
inherited her mother's good looks, and her father's impish 
sense of humour. She is ultra-cute with her pink complexion 
and blonde hair, and on many occasions tourists seek to have a 
picture taken with her.

We had a quick look around the town that afternoon, and then 
went out to dinner at Fishbone, a very nice sea-food 
restaurant where I enjoyed an excellent pan-fried flounder 
with salad. Back at the house, after Billie had been put to 
bed, we sat and listened to music and I looked out the window 
at the stunning moonlit view of the Remarkables across Lake 
Wakatipu. During the early part of the evening the peaks had 
gone from clean white, to gold, to crimson and now, at the end 
of the day, they had faded to ghostly blue against the night 
sky.  

And so at last, exhausted, I laid me down to sleep that night 
- and slept so soundly that I completely missed the sound of 
the incoming text message from Brisbane. Fortunately, David in 
Brisbane had also phoned Mary in Wellington, and she in turn 
phoned Andrew who woke me up to pass on the good news "Isaac 
George Harmer born about 15 mins ago. 4.34 kg. Mum and baby 
safe and well". The older I get, the harder it is to be 
unemotional about these things. Stoicism isn't all it's 
cracked up to be anyway, so I confess that my eyes were 
distinctly prickly. 

I phoned David and managed a brief congratulatory conversation 
before he had to rush off and attend to matters of immediate 
need. Wow! Just a few weeks ago, I was reminiscing about my 
youth with my friend Roger, and now we have our fifth 
grandchild, and second grandson. Fantastic! Warmest 
congratulations to Rowena and David, and of course, to big 
sister Grace who was holding little Isaac so tenderly and 
carefully in the first photographs to arrive the next morning, 
and of course a big gold medal and hug to Rowena who did all 
the heroic bits. Well done!  

Wait a minute here! Shouldn't all this have been the headline 
news? Doesn't it deserve top billing? Of course it does, and I 
am overjoyed at the news, but I couldn't resist letting the 
story unfold in the sequence in which things actually  
occurred. Anyway, most excellent news! Readers may remember 
that, at about this time last year, we were preparing to spend 
a month in Australia with Rowena and David as he underwent 
some very serious surgery.

Murphy stuck his nose in at about this stage, and my laptop 
suddenly lost its ability to communicate with the Internet, 
and communication with the rest of the world became 
immediately more problematic. Despite phone calls to the 
University's help desk, it seems that it won't be fixed until 
I get back to work on Monday 3 September. Oh well, I didn't go 
to Queenstown for technology anyway. 

On the next day, after the appropriate exchange of family 
phone calls, Andrew set about making sure I saw some the 
sights of the region. He borrowed a friend's 4WD ... a big 
capable Mitsubishi Challenger, and we set off for Skipper's 
canyon. Now the Skippers road is apparently one which demands 
the utmost respect, even in the height of summer. In winter 
under ice and snow, I would regard it as impossible. As we 
encountered it, with deep mud, it was simply insane. Andrew 
drove the big vehicle with skill and occasional creativity  
along the length of the road which was sometimes merely 
narrow, and at other times downright terrifying. 

In places, as we moved further from the main road, the track 
was so deep in thick glutinous mud that the wheels were up to 
their hubs, and the under-body was scraping the tops off the 
mud between the wheel ruts. Nevertheless we kept moving 
through some of the wildest and grandest landscape in New 
Zealand, always striving to stay closer to the cliff wall than 
to the long drop to the river on the other side. At last we 
reached the lovingly preserved remnants of the tiny township 
that existed there in the glory days of mining in the region, 
and you just had to admire the sheer pioneering fortitude of 
those settlers. 

Lest the adventure of the road should outweigh the grandeur of 
the scenery itself, I should say that this wild and lonely 
landscape, where the Shotover River winds its way between the 
Richardson Mountains to the West and the Harris Mountains to 
the east is among the most spectacular you could imagine. The 
astonishing rock formations, and the sheer endless majesty of 
the place are such that I urge anyone who is inclined to visit 
Queenstown to make the Skippers Rd part of your itinerary. Of 
course, you should do so only if you have a very capable off-
road vehicle, and are experienced in driving it in tricky 
conditions. For most, it may be wiser to do the trip with 
"Nomads" or one of the other local tour operators who have the 
right kind of equipment. Most rental car companies 
specifically prohibit taking their cars on the road, and your 
insurance will be void if you do so. 

Beautiful the landscape is, hospitable it most assuredly is 
not. On the way back out, we had at least overcome the element 
of surprise, so it was marginally less terrifying than on the 
journey in. Somewhere just past the old pipe bridge, we 
encountered two young Australians who with more courage than 
good sense, had attempted the road with an ordinary Subaru 
Legacy wagon on street tyres. Not all 4WD vehicles are created 
equal, so there was a certain gloomy inevitability to the 
sight of their Legacy with its two left hand wheels hanging in 
space, and the vehicle sitting precariously on its underbody 
on the edge of a very long and steep drop. 

The guys had wisely, and no doubt very carefully, got 
themselves out of the car, but now needed to get their vehicle 
home. They were hoping that Andrew would tow them free of the 
sticky mud. He inspected the situation, and it was obvious 
that as soon as the towrope took the strain, the vehicle would 
pivot and in all probability slide right over the edge, 
perhaps taking us with it. The best thing was to give the 
crestfallen youngsters a ride back to town where they could 
summon a professional recovery vehicle. More adventures from 
Queenstown next week. 

To those who have responded to the request for sponsorship of 
the news, many thanks indeed. I am sorry for the lack of 
personal responses so far. The computer outage was a barrier. 
One or two raised a concern over the costs of issue of 
international cheques. I should have been clearer that my bank 
will accept an ordinary hand-written domestic cheque in your 
local currency and convert it with no deductions. You should 
not need to ask your own bank for anything. However, if that 
remains a concern, I can provide either a bank account number, 
or if you are familiar with paypal, I have an account 
associated with my normal email address 
(brian.harmer at vuw.ac.nz). So far I have sufficient responses 
to support approximately six months worth of further WYSIWYG. 
In previous rounds, we have usually had sufficient support for 
about 18 months. 

---- 
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, 20 August 2007
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

KIDS TO GET CHECKS BEFORE STARTING SCHOOL
-----------------------------------------

Children will undergo health checks before they start school, 
to determine whether they are showing any behavioral concerns. 
The Government has announced the B4 School programme will be 
piloted in Wanganui and South Auckland before being rolled out 
nationwide next year. The scheme will allow parents to provide 
consent for their four-year-olds to undergo a test, in an 
effort to show any health or social issues which could hamper 
their child's ability to learn. Health Minister Pete Hodgson 
says finding problems early will better support them as they 
adjust to their new life as school pupils.

INVESTORS REEL AT FINANCE COMPANY COLLAPSE
------------------------------------------

Thousands of small investors are in shock at news of the 
collapse of Nathans Finance. Its parent company VTL has been 
suspended from the New Zealand Exchange, after telling 
authorities it was insolvent. The Securities Commission is 
investigating and says its investigations will focus on 
Nathans Finance. Commission spokesman Liam Mason says its will 
look at whether the information in its prospectus complied 
with the law, or was misleading. There is no word on how many 
investors had money in the company. Mr Mason says anyone with 
any concerns should contact Nathans Finance direct. Newstalk 
ZB's newsroom says a man has told them he and his wife 
invested tens of thousands of dollars of retirement savings in 
Nathans Finance. He is desperate to know whether he will see 
any of it again, but says he cannot get anyone at Nathans 
Finance to answer the phone.

(Sadly, another similar company has since fallen over. I am 
way too risk averse, or financially timid to seek out these 
kinds of investment. - BH)

TELECOM CLAIMS UPGRADE WAS PUBLICISED
-------------------------------------

Telecom says it did everything it could to notify customers of 
the weekend's email outage. Xtra webmail customers could not 
access their mail for 24 hours during an upgrade of 800,000 
mailboxes. Many claim they were not told of the inconvenience. 
Telecom spokesman Adrian Littlewood says Telecom did 
everything it could to warn people, through emails and online 
notices. He says most Xtra customers use applications like 
Outlook to access email, which were not affected.

(For all their protestations, they subsequently published full 
page newspaper apologies for the debacle, and gave their 
customers a week's free service as compensation. - BH)

LAMB SECTOR URGED TO BURY HATCHET
---------------------------------

Meat companies and farmers are being warned they must work 
together to avoid another disastrous year, as early season 
lamb hits the market. Keith Kelly from Federated Farmers says 
while the lower New Zealand dollar is good news for sheep 
farmers, the currency has been just one part of the problem in 
the sheep industry. He says farmers should remember the battle 
they had with meat companies last year over procurement and 
both sides must commitment themselves to livestock supply 
contracts to move the industry forward. Mr Kelly says farmers 
and companies must commit themselves to livestock supply 
contracts and meat companies must be more transparent with 
their suppliers and not reward volume of supply. He says 
although farmers are sympathetic with meat companies about the 
costs and difficulties they face, it is unacceptable for the 
current lack of transparency to continue. Mr Kelly says the 
Meat and Fibre Producers' Council has agreed on several remits 
to improve the situation, which will be developed into policy. 
Federated Farmers is warning that dark times are ahead if 
things do not change.

GOVERNMENT UNFAZED BY CRITICAL UN REPORT
----------------------------------------

The Government is brushing aside renewed criticism of the 
plight of Maori. A United Nations report by the Committee on 
the Elimination of Racial Discrimination is once again 
criticising New Zealand's race relations record. It is 
questioning a proposal which would remove references to the 
Treaty of Waitangi in statues and once again raises concern 
about Maori poverty and the high number of Maori in prisons. 
The report calls for renewed dialogue between the government 
and Maori on the foreshore and seabed legislation. Deputy 
Prime Minister Michael Cullen believes the document is a lot 
softer than a previous one which raised similar concerns. He 
says the UN Committee has recognised the Government is 
involved in a range of discussions with Maori groups and is 
confident of reaching some satisfactory agreements. Maori 
Party MP Te Ururoa Flavell says the report is a depressing 
read and indicates the Government's retargeting of policies on 
the basis of need, rather than ethnicity, has created a 
political climate unfavourable to Maori. He says that is a 
huge blow to New Zealand's international reputation on race 
relations.

MINISTRY INVESTIGATING TOXIC CLOTHES
------------------------------------

The Ministry of Consumer Affairs is investigating claims that 
clothing from China contains high levels of a toxic substance. 
The investigation follows a TV3 Target programme which found 
levels of formaldehyde in children's clothing imported from 
China, hundreds of times higher than levels considered safe by 
the European Union. The programme also says New Zealand made 
clothes using fabric manufactured in China have the same 
problem. Liz MacPherson, the ministry's general manager says 
an investigation will be carried out into the programme's 
findings and samples will be analysed. She says action could 
include a ban on some clothing and mandatory safety standards. 
She says all new clothing should be washed and aired, 
particularly permanent press or anti-wrinkle clothing items. 
Ms MacPherson says if anyone is concerned about their health 
they should contact a doctor. Formaldehyde can cause health 
problems including skin and eye irritation, heightened asthma 
symptoms and cancer. It is used in clothing to give a 
permanent press effect.

(Apparently the formaldehyde is to render the fabric crease 
resistant. However most customers would prefer the odd wrinkle 
to automatic embalming. - BH)

Tuesday, 21 August 2007
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

AIR NZ LOOKS AT SECOND AUCKLAND AIRPORT
---------------------------------------

Air New Zealand has confirmed it is interested in setting up a 
domestic service out of Whenuapai Air Force Base. Plans for a 
commercial airport were put on hold several years ago, after 
the Defence Force said it would not consider leaving until 
after 2015. Air New Zealand says it has now formed a 
favourable view on the possibilities that Whenuapai may be an 
appropriate location for domestic services in the future. It 
says the next step is to investigate the issues around the use 
of Whenuapai as a dual use domestic airport, including 
building an Air New Zealand terminal.

(I am mystified as to how this will work. How will Air New 
Zealand handle the inevitable transfers as someone flies in 
from Gisborne and wants to go to Kaitaia, while the passenger 
in the next seat wants a transfer to the Tokyo flight. Which 
lucky passenger will get to spend the next 90 minutes on 
Auckland's motorways being transferred from Whenuapai to 
Mangere or vice versa? - BH)

MAORI KING DELIVERS SPEECH IN TE REO
------------------------------------

The Maori King has underlined his belief in the importance of 
the Maori language by delivering his first public speech 
entirely in Maori. In his Coronation speech, broadcast live on 
Maori Television, King Tuheitia emphasised the need for unity. 
An array of royalty from around the Pacific is at 
Turangawaewae Marae for today's celebrations. They include the 
King of Tonga, who joined King Tuheitia for the formal waka 
salute on the banks of the Waikato River.

SOME XTRA CUSTOMERS STILL WITHOUT WEBMAIL
-----------------------------------------

Telecom admits a number of its customers are still unable to 
access Xtra webmail. It follows a major upgrade of 800,000 
mailboxes over the weekend. Telecom spokesman Adrian 
Littlewood says a fault in the registration process was 
detected late last night. He says the problem only affects a 
small proportion of customers but is complex and he is not 
sure how long it is going to take to fix. Mr Littlewood says 
extra call centre staff are being put on to deal with the 
increased number of calls.

HERBICIDE BEING WITHDRAWN
-------------------------

Householders will no longer have access to a common herbicide 
for lawn weeds from August next year, but it will continue to 
be available for use in agriculture. The Environmental Risk 
Management Authority says weed killers containing the 
herbicide clopyralid must be withdrawn from public sale from 
August 2008. However, the chemicals will still be able to be 
used in agriculture and on large turf areas such as golf 
courses and sports fields. Clopyralid is the active ingredient 
in a range of weed-killers approved 23 years ago to control 
broadleaf weeds such as dandelions, clover and thistles in 
suburban lawns. Andrea Eng from ERMA says while the substance 
is very effective and poses little threat to humans, it is 
very persistent in the environment and can damage plants grown 
in composted grass clippings from lawns treated with it.

(As I understand it, this move is driven by the manufacturers 
of compost who complain that their product is killing the 
plants to which it is applied. - BH)

ANTI-INFLAMMATORY DRUG RECALLED
-------------------------------

Medsafe has decided to recall forms of the anti-inflammatory 
drug Prexige. The pain relief drug used, which is long term by 
people with osteoarthritis, has already been withdrawn in 
Australia after it was linked to two deaths. The drug comes in 
200, 400 and 100 milligram doses. Today the pharmaceutical 
company that sponsors the medicine is issuing a recall of the 
200 and 400 milligram tablets. The 100 milligram dosage will 
remain on the market. Medsafe spokesman Dr Stewart Jessamine 
says Medsafe and the Medicines Adverse Reactions Committee 
believe the active ingredient in Prexige has a greater 
association with liver damage than other anti-inflammatories. 
Around a thousand people are expected to be affected by the 
recall.

IMPORTED TIMBER USED IN "HOMEGROWN" BUILDING
--------------------------------------------

The Department of Conservation's much touted new head office 
in Wellington is not completely home-grown. The building was 
opened earlier this year with much fanfare from Prime Minister 
Helen Clark and Minister of Conservation Chris Carter who 
extolled its sustainability and energy efficiency. However 
Nick Smith, National's environment spokesman says almost 
$70,000 worth of imported Australian timbers were used in its 
construction. He says it is a bad look to use the imported 
timber with its associated import costs to be used in 
preference to sustainably produced New Zealand product. 
Figures provided by Mr Carter show 89 percent of the timber 
used in the building came from New Zealand.

FUEL EFFICIENCY INFO MAY BE MANDATORY
-------------------------------------

The Government wants information on vehicles' fuel efficiency 
made available for consumers and is considering a mandatory 
labelling scheme. New and used vehicles would be sold with a 
comparative star rating allowing buyers to know exactly how 
fuel efficient they are. The proposal is limited to vehicles 
under 3.5 tonnes and motorcycles would be excluded. The scheme 
would not apply to private sales.

INVESTORS NEED TO BE MORE SAVVY
-------------------------------

An investment consultant says many people fail to realise that 
the higher rate of return the greater risk they are taking 
with their money. Nathans Finance is the latest finance 
company to collapse, with the Stock Exchange suspending 
trading in VTL Group, its parent company. The insolvency 
follows the collapse of Bridgecorp last month, which is in 
receivership, and the failures of Western Bay Finance, 
Provincial Finance and National Finance 2000 last year. 
Richard Newell says people assume there is no risk involved in 
investing and are more inclined to go with whichever 
investment offers the greatest return, without understanding 
the risk they are taking on. He says investors need to become 
more familiar with the companies and products they are 
investing in. Mr Newell says the only way for people to 
safeguard their cash is to go to a qualified, experienced 
financial advisor.

Wednesday, 22 August 2007
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

PARTY PILL LEGISLATION INTRODUCED TO PARLIAMENT
-----------------------------------------------

Legislation to ban party pills has been introduced to 
Parliament this afternoon. BZP is the main ingredient in party 
pills and it will be classified as a Class C drug. Those 
supplying BZP face a maximum jail term of eight years, while 
those found using it face three months in prison or a $500 
fine. Associate Health Minister Jim Anderton says because 
party pills have been available legally for years, there will 
be an amnesty until June next year allowing less than five 
grams of the drug for personal use.

HEAVY CRITICISM OF ELECTORAL FINANCE BILL
-----------------------------------------

The Government's Electoral Finance Bill is being heavily 
criticised by the New Zealand Law Journal. It has published a 
damning editorial on Government moves to define election 
advertising and restrict third party campaigns. It describes 
it as a case of the crooks writing the legislation that is 
supposed to control them. The Journal rubbishes the purpose 
clause of the bill, that it promotes participation in 
Parliamentary democracy, as a nonsense. It instead argues the 
legislation is about making political activity a regulated 
profession. The editorial goes on to say the bill is 
fundamentally obnoxious and should be scrapped. National 
leader John Key is also critical of the proposed legislation, 
and is urging New Zealanders to make submissions. Mr Key says 
the bill poses a real danger to democracy. Mr Key told the 
National Press Club that to drag out an election campaign for 
the whole of an election year and to apply restrictions to 
speech and advertising means voters could spend a third of 
their lives being muzzled. He says the bill as it stand must 
be opposed at all costs.

(Somehow, the present government seems to be increasingly 
prone to self-destructive behaviour. - BH)

PRISON CELLPHONE BLOCK WILL BE PHASED IN
----------------------------------------

The Government has confirmed moves to combat illegal cellphone 
use in prisons. The Department of Corrections has signed a 
deal with Telecom and Vodafone that will see jamming 
technology introduced into most prisons around the country. 
Full details are still to be fleshed out as the initiative is 
phased in over the next few months, because the Government 
wants to make sure people living near prisons are not 
affected. That concern is likely to see Mt Eden Prison in 
central Auckland left out of the programme. Vodafone spokesman 
Tom Chignell says the company is pleased to be working with 
Corrections and the Government to solve the problem. He says 
Vodafone is keen to find a solution that has the minimum 
impact on their legitimate customers. His views are echoed by 
his Telecom counterpart Greg Patchell who says they are keen 
to ensure the technology works.

LEAKY HOMEOWNERS CAN APPLY FOR DAMAGES
--------------------------------------

Parliament has cleared the way for leaky homeowners to claim 
general damages. Legislation allowing the move was passed into 
law last night. Building and Construction Minister Clayton 
Cosgrove says the law clears up any problems that could have 
arisen from a recent High Court decision. It ruled general 
damages could not be awarded as compensation for mental 
anxiety or stress. Mr Cosgrove says the ability to claim 
damages in such circumstances is an important principle of 
justice for owners of leaky homes.

POWER DECISIONS FOR REMOTE FARMERS
----------------------------------

The government is seeking feedback on how electricity should 
be supplied to rural customers beyond 2013. Under the 
Electricity Act, lines companies are not obliged to continue 
supplying electricity to properties that were connected before 
April the first 1993, but not after that date, beyond 2013. 
The clause is mainly relevant to remote rural areas where 
lines can be expensive to maintain and which lines companies 
could consider uneconomic. Energy Minister David Parker says 
he wants consumers to continue to have access to an 
electricity supply that is efficient, reliable and delivered 
in an environmentally sustainable manner. The discussion paper 
wants opinions on options including continuing supply 
obligations with no expiry date, a transition period beyond 
2013 and lines companies helping customers with transitions to 
alternative systems.

BLANKET RECALLED DUE TO FORMALDEHYDE
------------------------------------

The distributor of a blanket is recalling the product because 
of formaldehyde fears. Anyone who bought a Superlux blanket 
sold under the Gainsborough brand name since 2004 is being 
urged to return it for a full refund. Testing in Australia 
shows the blanket contains unacceptable levels of 
formaldehyde. The freephone number 0800 800 872 has been set 
up a freephone number for further information. The recall 
follows concerns about high levels of formaldehyde in clothing 
imports from China.

DHB CHIEF STEPPING DOWN
-----------------------

The chief executive of Capital and Coast District Health Board 
is resigning after eight years in the job. Margot Mains will 
step down in February. The Association of Salaried Medical 
Specialists hopes new leadership will bring a more positive 
and responsive culture at Wellington Hospital. Executive 
director Ian Powell says Ms Mains has been a hard-working CEO, 
but he believes fresh leadership is timely. The union is 
currently embroiled in a dispute with DHBs for higher pay and 
better conditions for senior doctors.

Thursday, 23 August 2007
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

FINANCE PRODUCTS TO BE CREDIT RATED
-----------------------------------

A shakeup of the financial market is being promised by 
Commerce Minister Lianne Dalziel. Ms Dalziel says regulations 
are being worked on to give people more comfort when it comes 
to making investments. She says before the next election, 
financial products on offer will be credit rated. Ms Dalziel 
says investors should not be spooked by the Government's 
moves. She says the risk today is no worse that it was 
yesterday or than it was last year. Three finance companies 
went belly up last year and two have gone into receivership 
this year. Ms Dalziel is urging people who deal with financial 
advisors to ask what the investment risk is and what the 
advisor is getting out of it. She says all that glitters is 
not gold and while people are being told their investment is 
safe, it may not be at all.

HOPE BOOK WILL EDUCATE ABOUT CHILD ABUSE
----------------------------------------

A book aimed at educating people on how to detect child abuse 
has been launched in Hamilton. The booklet titled "How Can I 
Tell" is an initiative of the Institute of Child Protection 
Studies. CPS Chief Executive Anthea Simcock says the 
organisation and book are not trying to take the place of 
organisations like Child, Youth and Family, but they will help 
people to spot the signs of child abuse. Mrs Simcock says 
30,000 copies of the book have been printed and will be sent 
to all schools and child based institutions. The books are 
also free to the public and can be obtained through the 
institute.

XTRA WEBMAIL CUSTOMERS TO BE COMPENSATED
----------------------------------------

Telecom says it will compensate customers who have been 
without access to webmail since the weekend. The outage was 
supposed to be for 24 hours while the company upgraded 800,000 
inboxes to a new service called Yahoo Xtra Bubble, but some 
customers were still having problems today. Telecom spokesman 
Kevin Kenrick says the company is are not being specific about 
the compensation they will offer. He says they will consider 
what is fair and reasonable compensation once they have the 
service up and running. Mr Kenrick says they do not intend to 
charge people for a service they did not receive.

GENESIS JOINS TE WAKA WINDFARM
------------------------------

Genesis Energy has joined the development of a controversial 
wind farm. The state-owned enterprise has linked up with the 
two other firms behind the proposed 34 turbines at Te Waka in 
Hawke's Bay. Earlier this year the Environment Court ruled 
against the wind farm after objections from the local Maori 
community. The plans have now been scaled down and re-lodged. 
Genesis Energy says the wind farm would help New Zealand meet 
its environmental targets.

PACIFIC BLUE SAYS IT CAN SUSTAIN LOW PRICES
-------------------------------------------

Pacific Blue has announced details of its plans for the 
domestic market, including an opening promotional fare of $39 
dollars each way between Auckland, Wellington and 
Christchurch. The service is set to start on November 15 and 
at this stage it will concentrate on the main trunk route. 
Chief executive Brett Godfrey says Pacific Blue expects its 
competitors to match its prices, but believes it will be able 
to sustain them over a longer time. "I don't think we are 
going to be in a position to beat up on Air New Zealand, that 
would be totally arrogant. What we are saying is we think 
there is a great opportunity to lower the cost of travel and 
at the same time grow the pie." Mr Godfrey says it may take 
some time for Pacific Blue to find its feet in New Zealand, 
but it is prepared to take a loss in the first couple of 
years. The Travel Agents Association says the low airfares are 
a wake up call for domestic airlines, which it says have been 
charging high prices for too long because of a lack of 
competition. Chief executive Paul Yeo says the association is 
expecting Air New Zealand and Qantas to match the low fares, 
creating a very competitive domestic market. He says it is 
about time. The bottom dollar Pacific Blue prices are 
available for six months and passengers need to book flights 
before mid-September. After the first six months, the cost of 
flying from Auckland to Wellington will be $69 dollars, 
Auckland to Christchurch $79 and Wellington to Christchurch 
$59 dollars.

PROFIT DROP FOR PIZZA MAKER
---------------------------

Pizza maker Domino's has announced an increase in full year 
sales, but a decrease in net profit. The Australian owned and 
operated company has reported a net profit after tax of $9.1 
million, a 30 percent decrease on the previous year. However 
sales rose by 44.4 percent. The company says the full year 
result reflects the forecasted impact of the European 
expansion in Belgium, France and the Netherlands and the 
weaker trading performance in Australia.

WINDFALL FOR SOME, SHORTFALL FOR OTHERS AT ATM
----------------------------------------------

A mistake loading cash into a Kiwibank ATM machine has lined 
the pockets of a number of Queenstown residents, but left 
others shortchanged. Customers were lining up to withdraw cash 
from the machine on Tuesday night after it began dishing out 
either twice as much money as requested or not enough. 
Kiwibank spokesman Bruce Thompson says the problem was 
incorrect stacking. The $10 box was filled with $20 notes and 
the $20 box was filled with $10 notes. Mr Thompson says a 
guilty conscience has got the better of some who have 
voluntarily handed the money back. It is not known whether 
other customers will be forced to do so. The bank will 
reimburse people who were shortchanged.

(In my experience, most ATMs offer fewer small denominations 
than large ones, so more customers would have been 
shortchanged than overpaid. That didn't stop a feeding frenzy 
that was the talk of the town when I arrived a few days later 
- BH)

MORE TOURISTS EXPECTED
----------------------

The Ministry of Tourism is predicting a big jump in the amount 
New Zealand earns from foreign visitors. It says a 64 percent 
rise in earnings is on the cards for the next six years. 
Tourism spending is forecast to grow annually by around 7.5 
percent to $10.5 billion per year by 2013. The number of 
foreign tourists is expected to grow by four percent a year to 
reach 3.2 million. That will be boosted by a predicted 140 
percent increase in visitors from China, which is set to 
become the fourth-largest source of tourists, after Australia, 
the United Kingdom and the United States.

TASER OPPONENTS DISAPPOINTED
----------------------------

The controversial year long Taser trial is drawing to a close, 
but opponents believe police will use the device regardless of 
the outcome. The latest issue of the police magazine Ten-One 
says police have used the stun gun device 19 times in 111 
deployments. Criminal lawyer Marie Dhyrberg from the lobby 
group Campaign Against the Taser says the trial has not been 
transparent or independent. She claims that throughout the 
trial period police have refused to give her group detailed 
information about the situations where the Taser has been 
used, preventing monitoring and assessment of whether the gun 
is reasonable or necessary. Ms Dhyrberg says opponents 
understand police need to use an immobilising device to help 
defuse difficult situations, but believe a safer alternative 
should be used.

(Somehow, Ms Dhyrberg always takes the opposing viewpoint to 
me. I disagree with almost every public utterance she makes. - 
BH)

WHAT PRICE FOR LEAKY HOME STRESS?
---------------------------------

Parliament has passed legislation paving the way for 
compensation claims based on the mental anxiety caused by 
having a leaky home, but affected home owners are questioning 
how a dollar value can be put on stress. Northland leaky 
homeowner Gavin Williams has been battling the builders of his 
damaged Whangarei home for five years and says the stress is 
relentless. He welcomes the new laws, but believes it is 
almost impossible to quantify the suffering involved in the 
five year battle. He says some days the stress is 
incapacitating, as more and more problems with his house 
emerge every day. Mr Williams says he and his wife have been 
seeing a psychologist, who has told them they will need 
ongoing counselling, even after their case is settled.

HOUSING MARKET SHOWS SIGNS OF COOLING OFF
-----------------------------------------

Climbing interest rates are starting to have an effect on the 
overheated property market. New figures suggest the market is 
starting to stagnate, with prices levelling off and sales 
volumes down. Harcourts' chief executive Bryan Thomson says 
that is not unusual for this time of year, although it is a 
bigger slow down than usual. He says agents are looking 
forward to the spring market which usually brings a flush of 
listings and warmer weather brings buyers out of the woodwork. 
Mr Thomson says the Reserve Bank's attempts to cool off the 
housing market through higher mortgage interest rates are 
definitely starting to bite.

Friday, 24 August 2007
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

BIG FOUR WANT FINANCE SECTOR OVERHAUL
-------------------------------------

The big four in New Zealand's financial world are calling for 
the introduction of a national independent audit regulation 
and oversight system. Deloitte, Ernst and Young, KPMG and 
PricewaterhouseCoopers have met with the Securities Commission 
to discuss the matter. Together they have sent a letter to 
Commerce Minister Lianne Dalziel requesting it be addressed as 
a high priority. The organisations argue New Zealand is 
falling behind international practice by not having an 
independent audit oversight structure.

GOVT DENIES LENGTHENED TREATY SETTLEMENTS
-----------------------------------------

The Government is defending itself against allegations it has 
blown out the time taken to settle historic Treaty grievances. 
National claims since 1999, the Government has taken just one 
settlement from start to finish, compared with ten settlements 
during the 1990s. It says it now takes an average of almost 21 
months to pass settlement legislation, compared with nine 
months under National. Treaty Negotiations Minister Mark 
Burton says the Government has had to complete a number of 
settlements which were unresolved when they took office. He 
says five of the settlements completed in the 90s were so 
small, they did not require legislation.

FONTERRA PAYOUT INCREASES BY 87C
--------------------------------

There is a windfall for dairy farmers with their pay out per 
kilogram of milk solids from Fonterra revised to $6.40. It is 
an increase of 87c on the May forecast of $5.53 a kilogram. 
Chairman Henry van der Heyden says it is due to the high price 
of milk powder and strengthening commodity prices, especially 
increases in butter and cheese. He says the prices Fonterra 
received at the start of the season have more than offset the 
dollar's rise to US80c at one point. "We have seen huge 
volatility in the New Zealand dollar which has risen to 
historic highs and then plummeted recently. While we are using 
a 71c spot rate in our forecasts, we have to acknowledge that 
rates have not settled and could go either way. If the lower 
dollar is sustained over time, we could see more of an upside 
in payouts, but this is not the time to be gambling on that." 
Mr van der Heyden says the Fonterra board has decided to 
increase the advance rate which will be paid in October from 
$3.60 to $4.20.

TRADE DEFICIT BIGGER THAN EXPECTED
----------------------------------

The trade deficit rose more than expected in July, thanks to 
falling exports and rising imports. A figure of $791 million 
was posted for the month, when the markets were expecting a 
figure of around half a billion. The annual deficit is now 
running at $6.3 billion about $300 million higher than 
expectations. 

(Falling exports? What was the preceding article about? Dairy 
is still the largest single component of our export earnings, 
and it is exceeding previous levels by an extraordinary margin 
despite the exchange rates. What gives? - BH)

MIDWIFE SAYS HOSPITAL CARE "INADEQUATE"
---------------------------------------

A midwife at Auckland City Hospital fears pregnant women could 
start losing their babies because of inadequate care. The 
worker, who wants to remain anonymous, deals with pregnant 
woman and women with acute gynaecological problems. The 
midwife says every day women discharge themselves from 
hospital because the wait is too long. She says patients have 
to sign an agreement absolving the hospital of responsibility 
if something goes wrong. The midwife says in her last 12 hour 
shift she dealt with around 20 women and had no break for 
meals or rest, other than three cups of coffee. She says her 
equally-experienced colleague was recently reduced to tears 
because of the pressure she is faced with at work.

FRAUD IMPACTS ON COMPANY'S PROFITS
----------------------------------

Turners Auctions has announced a 78 percent drop in half year 
net profit after tax of $524,000. The company says the result 
has been adversely affected by fraud, which is being 
investigated by the Serious Fraud Office. It has set aside 
$1.158 million to cover the costs of the crime. It says 
without the unexpected fraud, first half profit after tax 
would have been $1.3m. Graham Roberts, CEO, says he is 
disappointed about the extent of the fraud and says the 
company is now focussed on changes to its internal control 
systems. It is also investigating ways to recover the stolen 
money. The company has reported growth in Group profit of 3.9 
percent. The biggest growth area was Turners Fleet where 
revenues were up 15 percent or $2.8 million on the previous 
period. Chairman, Michael Dossor, says the used car market 
remains tough with more traders disappearing from the market 
and registrations of overseas vehicles declining by a further 
10 percent in the first half of 2007. Mr Roberts reported a 
brighter outlook for the remainder of 2007 as the import 
market grew by five percent in June 2007 for the first time 
since January 2006. Turners Auctions plans to drive future 
earnings with several initiative including making 30 percent 
more cars available online. A special dividend of 9.5 cents 
per share has been declared.

REPORT CRITICISES SEX EDUCATION
-------------------------------

A new Education Review Office report is highly critical of the 
way schools teach sex education. The report is the first since 
the subject became a compulsory part of the Health and 
Physical Education Curriculum in 2001. ERO chief review 
officer Graham Stoop says there are three distinct groups. He 
says 20 percent of schools are teaching sex issues well, 60 
percent offer a reasonable level of teaching but need to do 
further work, while the remaining 20 percent need to make 
significant changes. Dr Stoop says it is important schools 
liaise with the community about how the best way to teach 
pupils about sex.

CHEAP AIRFARES A WORRY SAYS GREENPEACE
--------------------------------------

Greenpeace is concerned about the environmental impact of $39 
airfares. Newcomer Pacific Blue is offering the rock bottom 
one way internet fare until September 16 or until sold out for 
travel from November 2007 through to February 29, 2008. Air 
New Zealand says it will not be beaten on price and has 
matched Pacific Blue's year-round lead-in fare of $69. 
Susannah Bailey from Greenpeace says flying causes a lot of 
damage to the environment and she would like other forms of 
transport to fight back. Ms Bailey fears the cheap fares will 
encourage people to fly unnecessarily. However, travel agents 
are welcoming the addition of Pacific Blue to New Zealand. The 
Travel Agents Association claims consumers have faced over-
priced domestic fares for too long and the new services will 
stimulate competition and grow the overall market. Paul Yeo, 
CEO, says recent research shows that New Zealand's domestic 
airfares have been rising at levels well above the Consumer 
Price Index whereas international fares have been falling. He 
accuses Air New Zealand and Qantas of profiting handsomely and 
says Pacific Blue's arrival will give everyone a reality 
check. Mr Yeo hopes Pacific Blue will eventually open up new 
routes once the airline becomes established in New Zealand.

RESEARCH WANTED INTO DRIVERS USING CELL PHONES
----------------------------------------------

An inquest into the deaths of two Levin teenagers in a car 
crash in January calls for more research into cell phone use 
amongst drivers. Lucy Simon aged 18 and her 15-year-old sister 
Isabelle were instantly killed when their car hit an oncoming 
truck on a bridge on State Highway 1 near Manakau. Coroner 
Phillip Comber says it appears Lucy, the driver, was texting 
when the crash happened. The fact that the vehicle was fitted 
with both worn snow tyres and summer tyres were contributing 
features. Mr Comber says it is the second inquest he has 
handled within a year where cell phone use has been a factor 
in a collision. While he does not have enough information to 
make a recommendation about the issue, he would like to see 
research and discussion carried out into drivers using cell 
phones. Mr Comber also wants Warrant of Fitness testing on 
tyres beefed up because mismatched tyres can create dangerous 
situations. He recommends that vehicles should fail warrants 
if they are fitted with a dangerous combination of tyres and 
that snow tyres be rejected when they become 50 percent worn. 
Andy Knackstedt from Land Transport New Zealand says the 
accident which claimed the Simon sisters' lives is a tragic 
reminder of the consequences of not concentrating when 
driving. 
 
(Dear Lord, every time there is a crisis, someone has the 
earthshaking idea of commissioning a report or conducting more 
research. I wonder if any research has been done elsewhere 
that we might use? Or do we have grounds to believe that kiwis 
are somehow physiologically different to people in other 
places? - BH)

REVIVAL OF RARE DISEASE IN WELLINGTON
-------------------------------------

A highly infectious disease thought to be virtually wiped out 
since the 1940s, has sprung up again in Wellington. Health 
authorities believe a decline in the practice of safe sex is 
responsible for a revival of syphilis in the capital. Research 
published in the New Zealand Medical Journal shows around 200 
cases of syphilis in the Wellington region between 2004 and 
2006. Most are gay men however some women are presenting with 
the disease. One of the authors of the report, Jane MacDonald, 
says there have been outbreaks in Australia, America and the 
UK so it was only a matter of time before cases increased in 
New Zealand. She says it is possible people that are getting 
tired of the safe sex message and are putting themselves at 
risk more than they used to. Dr MacDonald says despite the 
outbreak, the rates of syphilis in Wellington are still lower 
than HIV rates and as long as people practice safe sex they 
should not contract the disease. She says most medical 
practitioners know little about syphilis as it has become rare 
in developed countries with the advent of penicillin. Dr 
MacDonald says a number of teaching seminars have been 
organised in hospitals and general practices to raise 
awareness. In an earlier paper on the issue, Dr MacDonald said 
the disease is spreading faster than any other sexually 
transmitted disease and could become a serious public threat. 
She said for decades, it was only seen in New Zealand when it 
had been brought into the country by recent immigrants or by 
New Zealanders who had had sex overseas. She says syphilis is 
endemic in the Pacific region amongst heterosexuals. Syphilis 
is a highly infectious bacterial disease and early symptoms 
include swollen glands and ulcers in the mouth and genital 
area. It is often mistaken for other illnesses including 
meningitis or liver problems. In its early stages it can be 
easily cured with the use of penicillin but if untreated, can 
damage internal organs including the brain.


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