Displaying 193 - 215 of 215 results.

New Zealand women are continuing to strive for leadership success but there’s still more to be done, Minister for Women Louise Upston says.

Ms Upston has welcomed the results of the 2014 gender stocktake of state sector boards and committees, showing 41.7 per cent of female representation on these boards, up slightly from 41.1 per cent in 2013.

  • Louise Upston
  • Women

Councils now have the guidance they need to decide if they want to offer online voting at the 2016 local body elections.

The Government has been looking into the feasibility of enabling local authorities to undertake an online voting trial in response to requests from councils, and a set of requirements for councils interested in undertaking a trial has been released today.

  • Louise Upston
  • Local Government

Associate Minister of Local Government Hon Louise Upston has today announced the three Commissioners appointed to the Kaipara District Council in 2012 are to be re-appointed for a further year.

  • Louise Upston
  • Local Government

Associate Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment Louise Upston has tonight highlighted the importance of Chinese international students in Christchurch.

Speaking this evening’s opening ceremony for Cultural China – Splendid Sichuan at the Air Force Museum in Wigram, Ms Upston recognised the passionate interest the Sichuan and Christchurch regions share.

  • Louise Upston
  • Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment

Land Information Minister Louise Upston says a new approach to mapping will encourage Kiwis to find innovative uses for information about our land.

“Land Information New Zealand’s (LINZ) topographic data – the authoritative record of the country’s physical features – has long been used to create maps, but recently we’ve seen businesses reuse it to create some rather clever products.

  • Louise Upston
  • Land Information

The final event in the current New Zealand job fair series in Australia will take place in Melbourne this weekend, Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment Minister Steven Joyce and Associate Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment Minister Louise Upston announced today.

The Melbourne event is the fourth in the series, following the Perth and Sydney fairs in November 2014, and the Brisbane fair last month.

  • Louise Upston
  • Steven Joyce
  • Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment

Minister for Women Louise Upston has used this week’s 30th anniversary of the Ministry for Women to encourage all New Zealanders to do their part to encourage and develop women leaders.

In a speech at the Ministry’s offices tonight, Ms Upston said New Zealand has seen many gains for women in New Zealand over the past three decades.

  • Louise Upston
  • Women

Environment Minister Dr Nick Smith and Associate Local Government Minister Louise Upston have today announced the Government’s proposal for a mixed-model governance structure for Environment Canterbury (ECan).

  • Louise Upston
  • Nick Smith
  • Local Government
  • Environment

Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa.

I am honoured to present the New Zealand Government’s national statement to the Commission on the Status of Women.

To start, I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge civil society for its contributions to the preparation for this important meeting. In particular, I would like to thank the non-governmental organisations from New Zealand and the Pacific for their contributions to the national and regional preparations.

  • Louise Upston
  • Women

Gender equality and the empowerment of women will take centre stage at the United Nations in New York this week with New Zealand having a strong voice in discussions.

Minister for Women Louise Upston will arrive in New York today, coinciding with International Women’s Day, to attend the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women until 12 March.

“New Zealand has a strong international reputation on gender equality and this is a valuable opportunity to share our work to improve the lives of women across our region,” Ms Upston said.

  • Louise Upston
  • Women

Increased participation in the workforce, a decline in the gender pay gap and changes to flexible working arrangements are just a few reasons to celebrate tomorrow’s International Women’s Day.

The theme for this year’s annual celebration is Empowering Women, Empowering Humanity; Picture it, and Minister for Women Louise Upston says opportunities for New Zealand women to be empowered to achieve their potential are on the rise.

  • Louise Upston
  • Women

E aku rangatira, tēnā koutou katoa. Ka nui te honore ki te mihi ki a koutou.

[Distinguished guests.  It is a great honour to greet you all at this important event today].

Thank you for inviting me to host this important breakfast this morning, and thank you, Beryl, for your kind introduction.

I would like to acknowledge:

  • Louise Upston
  • Women

The presentation of vital data on shipping hazards to Vanuatu, Tonga and the Cook Islands is an important first step toward significantly improving maritime safety in the South West Pacific, Land Information Minister Louise Upston said today.

“The risk maps – created by Land Information New Zealand (LINZ) – are a world first, combining a range of information to show where maritime safety improvements are most needed,” Ms Upston says.

  • Louise Upston
  • Land Information

A research report released today has highlighted the importance of whanau and the community in preventing violence against Maori women and children.

Minister for Women Louise Upston this afternoon launched Wahine Maori, Wahine Ora, Wahine Kaha - Preventing violence against Maori women.

The research, which was undertaken by the Ministry for Women in partnership with the Ministry for Social Development, reinforces how whanau and the community have a role to play in keeping women and their children safe. 

  • Louise Upston
  • Women

The 2014/15 Open Data Barometer Global Report shows that New Zealand continues to be one of the best countries in the world at allowing open access to government data, Finance Minister Bill English and Land Information Minister Louise Upston say. 

“New Zealand leads the East Asia-Pacific region and ranks fourth-equal with France in the world behind the UK, US and Sweden,” Mr English says.

Open data is a key indicator of a country’s innovation, transparency and lack of corruption.

  • Louise Upston
  • Bill English
  • Land Information
  • Finance

Minister for Women, Louise Upston, has welcomed statistics showing women’s participation in the labour market and women’s employment is at record highs.

The latest Household Labour Force Survey (from the December 2014 quarter) shows the participation rate for women is 64.6 per cent and the employment rate for women is 60.4 per cent.  Both of these rates are the highest since the survey began in 1986.

“This is great news for women and there are also improvements across key areas,” said Ms Upston.

  • Louise Upston
  • Women

The Government has agreed to continue work to enable a small number of local authorities to trial online voting, Associate Minister of Local Government Louise Upston said today.

“The agreement to continue work is in response to requests from local government to trial online voting at the October 2016 local authority elections. The councils that may participate in a trial are still to be determined.”

Ms Upston said it is important to ensure the trial process is secure and fair so public confidence in the integrity of local elections can be maintained.

  • Louise Upston
  • Land Information
  • Local Government

The Government will finalise an options document on the future of Environment Canterbury (ECAN) for public discussion in the new year, Environment Minister Dr Nick Smith and Associate Minister of Local Government Louise Upston said following their attendance at today’s Canterbury Mayoral Forum.

  • Louise Upston
  • Nick Smith
  • Local Government
  • Environment

Minister for Women Louise Upston today recognises women around the country for the hours they contribute to their communities.

“With today being International Volunteers Day I want to acknowledge the thousands of New Zealand women who on average spend over four hours a day completing unpaid work.

“These women give up their time to volunteer in their communities in places such as sports clubs, on their marae, in education, social services and in faith communities.

  • Louise Upston
  • Women

Minister for Women Louise Upston has announced a name change for the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, which will represent the Ministry’s work in a more modern way.

“In October the Prime Minister announced new names for several portfolios and following on from this, I am pleased to announce that from today the Ministry of Women’s Affairs will officially be the Ministry for Women.

  • Louise Upston
  • Women

The limitless potential of location information, and the innovative people working at its forefront, took centre stage last night at the inaugural New Zealand Spatial Excellence Awards (NZSEA), Land Information Minister Louise Upston said today.

Location – or spatial – information tells us where things are, how they relate to one another, and how they change over time.

“Decisions using this sort of information contribute over $1 billion to the economy each year,” Ms Upston says.

  • Louise Upston
  • Land Information

Minister for Women Louise Upston is encouraging employers to attract more women to trades work to assist with the Canterbury rebuild.

The Minister has today launched a new handbook for employers, giving practical advice on how to attract women to trade jobs, as well as finding qualified female workers for trade positions.

  • Louise Upston
  • Women

Land Information Minister Louise Upston has welcomed the removal of aquatic hornwort from Lake Karapiro, saying it will enhance the health of this nationally significant lake. 

The project will ensure the public can fully enjoy the lake, especially with a number of notable events this summer.

“Lake Karapiro – near my home – is one of our most well-known lakes and is enjoyed by both locals and visitors alike,” says Ms Upston.

  • Louise Upston
  • Land Information