The programmed increase was previously 9.5% but the ending of Three Waters meant that this was not going to happen. The Three Waters reform also proposed balance sheet separation although in Three Waters’ case the entities would have been larger and four of them would have covered the whole country. It should be noted that under S&P’s evaluation of the effects of the Three Waters Reform on Auckland Council’s credit rating would have increased from AA to AA+. National’s alternative approach means a lower credit rating for Auckland Council and a lower credit rating for Watercare. And Watercare’s latest Statement of Intent states this:Watercare is an active member of the Māori Outcomes Steering Group.

issues underpinning the tribunal’s urgent inquiry into the Government’s intention to remove Section 7AA from the Oranga TamarikiNewsroom writer Aaron Smale, in an article triggered by the High Court’s ruling on whether a sitting MP must respond to a summons to appear before the Waitangi Tribunal, reports on...

This week's watch: Scream Queens. Scream Queens is a satirical, high-camp slasher series where the most traumatic elements of the horror genre are made the butt of the joke. Scream Queens' strength lies in its punchy humour and killer dialogue. If you're in the mood for something dark, camp, and funny as hell, Scream Queens could be the one for you. Scream Queens is streaming now on Disney +.

London, July 17 (ANI): English Premier League club Manchester United has been named as the world's most valuable sports team followed by Spanish champions Real Madrid, according to an annual top 50 list released by Forbes. The 19-times Premier League winners, who are preparing for a listing on the New York Stock Exchange, were valued at 2.23 billion dollars, up from 1.86 billion dollars last year and 19 percent above No. 2 Real Madrid valued at 1.88 billion dollars. Real Madrid (football) - $1.88 billion 3. New England Patriots (NFL) - $1.40 billion 8.

A new Treasury paper published on Friday suggests productivity growth will likely be slow in the coming years and could lead to downgrades in long-term fiscal and economic forecasts. A lot has happened since then, but improved productivity growth hasn’t been one of them. Productivity growth in advanced economies has been slowing since the turn of the century and New Zealand has been among the worst affected. What can be doneThe Coalition Government has policies intended to tackle some of the productivity problems, such as education, directly. Treasury said international trade and investment can support productivity through knowledge and technology sharing, economies of scale, and increased competition.

Reiko Ioane to miss top table clash this weekReiko Ioane to miss top table clash this weekPhoto: Stuff.coBlues star Rieko Ioane has been ruled out of next weekend’s top-of-the-table Shop N Save Super Rugby Pacific clash with the Hurricanes. The All Blacks centre faces a mandatory 12-day stand-down period following a sickening collision during their 38-11 win against the Melbourne Rebels on Friday. The head knock took the gloss off the Blues’ bonus point win. Ioane appeared to be in a bad way after attempting to tackle Josh Kemeny and copping a hip to the head in the final minute of the first half. Ioane was splayed out on the ground before being attended to by medical staff.

Half of the young offenders remanded to Auckland community homes have escaped custody in recent years, an Oranga Tamariki memo reveals. The homes are mostly run by contracted social services providers, with a few run directly by Oranga Tamariki. In the first three months of this year, the community homes filed 67 missing person reports to police, Oranga Tamariki said. Oranga Tamariki staff realised the error when contacted for comment and later supplied a redacted version, with an official asking for the earlier document to be deleted. Oranga Tamariki internal statistics show 49 per cent of young offenders remanded to community homes in Auckland escaped custody.

His conclusion is that this could be a one term Government. But he has a caveat, that Labour needs to present an alternative. Labour needs to supply that leadership, which it isn’t doing right now. The usual logic for a party that’s just been turfed out of government is to lick its wounds and focus on stability, keeping its powder dry, rather than hoping to win again after one term. Because for the first time in this Country’s history this could be a one term National led Government.

A man sent threatening messages to his partner before leaving her with a serious brain injury, saying she had fallen in the shower. As a result of the assault by her partner, she has been left with a serious brain injury and will need care for the remainder of her life. In a recently released judgment, the court quashed the minimum term of imprisonment replacing it with a minimum term of eight years and eight months. The woman has suffered a serious brain injury and will remain in care for the rest of her life being unable to feed herself. “It was common ground that the MPI (minimum term of imprisonment) imposed exceeded the maximum.

Photo: PhotosportAfter a slight stutter in Canberra last weekend, the Hurricane's train is back on track after an emphatic 41-12 win over the Waratahs in Wellington tonight. It was an explosive start for the Hurricane's, who scored three tries in the opening twenty minutes, before a late brace by Salesi Rayasi sealed the victory. The Cane's faltered somewhat early in the second, before Rayasi and his fellow replacements closed the show in style. Hurricane's captain Billy Proctor said it was the perfect response to last week's loss to the Brumbies. Another try went begging shortly after, as Ben Grant charged down Jack Grant's box kick and scored, only for replays to show a slight knock on in the deflection.

To put this in perspective, global GDP contracted by 2.7% in 2020, at the height of the pandemic. Moreover, achieving net-zero emissions requires trillions of dollars in investment, which will add to, not subtract from, economic growth. Either way, economic growth was inevitable. In fact, using limited inputs more efficiently is the definition of economic productivity – which, in turn, boosts growth. Staving off climate catastrophe will require more growth, not because ever-increasing GDP – itself a fundamentally inadequate metric – is the end goal, but because it is the result of cutting emissions fast enough.

An Ecuadorian beauty queen was assassinated after her Instagram post of a plate of octopus ceviche led gunmen to the restaurant where she was dining. Police are investigating the shooting of 23-year-old Landy Párraga amid media speculation the hit was ordered by the widow of a drug lord with whom she is believed to have had an affair. The beauty queen and social media influencer was gunned down shortly after her name appeared in a corruption inquiry linking judicial officials to organised crime. Párraga had just posted a photo of the ceviche she was about to eat for lunch to her 173,000 followers on Instagram when two armed men burst into the restaurant in Quevedo and fired several times at her. She was reportedly shot three times and died shortly after.

Photo: Photo / Sarah RobsonWarning: This story contains references to sexual abuseAn advocate for survivors of sexual abuse says the true extent of Brad Shipton's crimes may never come to light. Brad Shipton was convicted for his part in the 1989 pack rape of a woman in Mt Maunganui. He and two other police officers were later found not guilty of raping victim advocate, Louisa Nicholas, when she was a teenager. McPhillips said the story of Shipton's offending triggered significant change in police to better support complainants of sexual assault. Rural Support Trust Helpline: 0800 787 254Healthline: 0800 611 116Rainbow Youth: (09) 376 4155OUTLine: 0800 688 5463 (6pm-9pm)If it is an emergency and you feel like you or someone else is at risk, call 111.

By Katharine Moody*The Coalition government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill is proving highly controversial – so much so, I suspect the poor polling performance of the coalition parties, might have a bit to do with the widespread public distaste generated by this authoritarian-style, executive branch decision-making in environmental management. The kerfuffle arising from the Bill, reminds me of the last time a National Government tried to substantively reform the Resource Management Act (RMA), as a means to ‘tip’ the legislation in favour of development. As Jacques Derrida theorised, each binary oppositional privileges one side over the other, and to my mind, attempting to ‘strike a balance’ between the economy and the environment in environmental management decision-making, is a futile exercise. ♦ Development conflict: The conflict between human prosperity and environmental protection. ♦ Resource conflict: The conflict between the economic and the ecologic utility of natural resources.

Some of these prisoners’ crimes are so horrific that they are not yet eligible for parole – and won’t be for years. At the time of the murder, Holdem was on parole after being convicted of the attempted rape of a 10-year-old in a Christchurch park in 1982. Really, since our last contact with Mr Holdem, no real progress had been made,” said Parole Board chairman Sir Ron Young last year. The Parole Board is under no obligation to release them just because they are eligible. Parole Board chair Sir Ron Young.