Justice and Courts Minister Amy Adams has welcomed the completion of New Plymouth Courthouse’s $3.9 million upgrade.
“The renovations are the largest upgrade to New Plymouth’s 50-year old court,” says Ms Adams.
“The upgraded courthouse includes a refreshed registry space bringing all court registry staff into the one building, and creating one contact point for court customers.
Communications Minister Amy Adams has welcomed the start of the Hawaiki cable’s build at Mangawhai Heads today.
The 14,000km cable will link Mangawhai, New Zealand and Sydney, Australia to mainland USA, and become Australasia’s fastest international cable. The Government entered into a $65 million anchor tenancy contract through REANNZ to the project.
“New Zealand’s demand for data is ever-increasing, and international connectivity is critical for our economy – particularly due to our geographical isolation,” says Ms Adams.
Communications Minister Amy Adams says the number of premises connected to Ultra-Fast Broadband (UFB) has now surpassed 300,000 New Zealanders.
Ms Adams has today released the quarterly broadband update to September 2016, which highlights that nearly 50,000 connections were made last quarter.
At the end of September, 288,700 premises were connected out of a possible one million, and this increased to 300,000 by mid-October.
“Uptake nationwide has increased to 28.3 per cent,” says Ms Adams.
Justice Minister Amy Adams has wished Netsafe well as it begins its role as the Approved Agency under the Harmful Digital Communications Act.
“From today, Netsafe has responsibility for receiving, assessing and investigating complaints about harm caused to individuals by digital communications,” says Ms Adams.
“This is a free, seven-day-a-week service which is available to all people in New Zealand who experience online harassment or cyber-bullying.
Communications Minister Amy Adams has today thanked telecommunications companies and their field force partners for their collaborative efforts in restoring physical infrastructure to areas badly affected by last week’s 7.8 magnitude earthquake, and returning service close to pre-quake levels.
“New Zealanders will appreciate how important communications are at a time like this as we need to know who to get to, what they need, and how to best prioritise emergency team responses,” says Ms Adams.
Justice Minister Amy Adams has congratulated Dr Kim McGregor on her first year as the inaugural Chief Victims Advisor to Government.
“Dr McGregor has quickly become a valuable and trusted source of independent advice to me as Justice Minister, and to senior officials across the justice sector,” says Ms Adams.
“Dr McGregor has contributed to a number of cross-agency initiatives, and is a visible presence across sector work as a member of senior government and governance boards working to improve outcomes for victims.
A new technical advisory group is being created to advise the Ministry of Primary Industries on how to accelerate the use of smart agriculture technology, Ministers Amy Adams and Nathan Guy have announced today.
“Technology has major potential to support higher productivity and more sustainable use of natural resources in farming,” says Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy.
Justice Minister Amy Adams today released draft legislation that will update our trust law and aid in their administration.
“Trusts play an important role in New Zealand. Between 300,000 and 500,000 trusts are operating today. Every day, ordinary New Zealanders use them to manage their finances, with an estimated 15 per cent of private houses held in a trust. They also form part of the economic backbone of the commercial and social sectors,” says Ms Adams.
Justice Minister Amy Adams today announced the garden at the Auckland High Court would be developed as a memorial garden in memory of former High Court Judge, Sir Robert Chambers.
“This is a fitting tribute to someone who served the law with distinction and was highly regarded among New Zealand’s legal fraternity,” says Ms Adams.
Strength in New Zealand’s music industry has been welcomed by Broadcasting Minister Amy Adams and Arts, Culture and Heritage Minister Maggie Barry.
PricewaterhouseCoopers’ New Zealand Music Industry Economic Report 2015 report found that the direct contribution to the economy was $245 million, up from $213 million in 2014.
“It’s incredibly encouraging to see such a positive year for the New Zealand music industry, with four out of five market segments recording increased growth rates,” says Ms Adams.
Communications Minister Amy Adams has today announced the establishment of a Cyber Security Skills Taskforce to address the shortage of cyber professionals in New Zealand.
The Taskforce will focus on practical actions to increase the number of cyber professionals the industry needs to help defend against cyber-attacks, which cost the New Zealand economy $257 million last year.
Communications Minister Amy Adams has today welcomed the Commerce Select Committee’s decision to seek public submissions on the benefits of rolling out fibre on rural electricity infrastructure, albeit on a shortened timeframe.
The Broadcasting (Election Programmes and Election Advertising) Amendment Bill, recently introduced to the House by Justice and Broadcasting Minister Amy Adams, has today received its first reading.
The Bill will remove the requirement for opening and closing addresses to be broadcast at election time and instead allow parties to advertise more flexibly and effectively, using their funding allocations under the Broadcasting Act.
Under the bill, parties will also be able to use this funding to advertise online, rather than only on television and radio.
Justice Minister Amy Adams and Social Development Minister Anne Tolley say that a comprehensive information sharing framework is to be created to keep vulnerable children and young people safe from harm, as part of the radical overhaul of care and protection.
New Zealand and Australia are working together on practical initiatives to boost trans-Tasman cyber security, Communications Minister Amy Adams says.
Ms Adams recently returned from Australia, where she met with her counterpart, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Cyber Security, Dan Tehan.
Broadcasting Minister Amy Adams has today announced the appointment of Abby Foote to the Board of Television New Zealand (TVNZ).
“Ms Foote is a Christchurch-based professional director with a background in law and accountancy. Her executive career was with major corporates, both in New Zealand and the United Kingdom,” says Ms Adams.
“Ms Foote has particular skills in audit and risk governance that will supplement the commercial strength of the TVNZ Board.”
Justice and Courts Minister Amy Adams has welcomed a new pilot programme which sees Community Magistrates sitting in Christchurch from today – the first time the judicial officers have sat in the South Island.
The Christchurch pilot programme will run for two months and is part of the work of the Christchurch Justice and Emergency Services Precinct project to test new ways of working to benefit the justice system.
Crime is significantly down over the last five years, but the latest figures highlight that more work needs to be done to drive it down further, Justice Minister Amy Adams says.
The Justice Sector’s BPS results for the quarter ending June 2016 released today show increases in all four measures, although all remain down on 2011 levels.
Improved broadband and mobile services for rural New Zealand will grow regional economies and boost tourism in key destinations, Communications Minister Amy Adams says.
A Request for Proposals has been issued to extend the Rural Broadband Initiative (RBI) and provide mobile coverage to black spots on state highways and in tourist areas.
Ministers today welcomed the start of the second Integrated Safety Response (ISR) pilot site in Waikato and announced another $1.4 million in new funding to support the pilot programme.
The ISR pilot involves core agencies and specialist family violence NGOs working together as a team to ensure that families experiencing violence get the help and support they need to stay safe.
An additional $1.4 million from the Justice Sector Fund will support the new site in Waikato, as well as the Christchurch pilot site which has been up and running since 4 July.
Justice Minister Amy Adams will today travel to Melbourne to attend the Law, Crime and Community Safety Council (LCCSC).
“The LCCSC is a joint-Ministerial council which helps maintain a consistent Trans-Tasman focus on fighting crime and promoting best practice in law, criminal justice and community safety,” says Ms Adams.
The meeting will focus on a range of topics including:
Justice Minister Amy Adams has today announced two key appointments to the Electoral Commission.
Alicia Wright is to be appointed as the Chief Electoral Officer of the Commission and Kristy McDonald QC as the Deputy Chair. Both will be appointed for a term of five years.
Ms Adams says the Commission requires strong leadership in order to maintain New Zealand’s politically neutral and independent democratic processes.
A new pilot that aims to speed up sexual violence court cases should help reduce trauma for victims during the court process, says Justice Minister Amy Adams.
Ms Adams today welcomed the announcement by Chief District Court Judge Jan-Marie Doogue that two dedicated sexual violence courts will be trialled in Whangarei and Auckland.
