Search

The first homes in the Chatham Islands have been insulated under the Government's Warm Up New Zealand: Heat Smart programme, Acting Minister of Energy and Resources, Hekia Parata, announced today.

“An important part of our $347 million insulation and clean heating programme is that it’s available to homeowners everywhere in New Zealand,’’ Ms Parata says.

“Because of the Chathams remote location, they haven’t had anyone to deliver the scheme until now.

Seven new energy efficiency standards for products and appliances, that passed into regulation this week, are expected to create net savings of $360 million for the country by 2020, says Acting Minister of Energy and Resources Hekia Parata.

The new standards set minimum energy performance requirements, which encourage manufacturers to continually improve the energy efficiency of their products and prevent poorly performing products from being sold.

Acting Minister of Energy and Resources, Hekia Parata, today announced details of the transfer of the Tekapo A and B power stations from state-owned electricity generator-retailers Meridian to Genesis Energy.

The move is part of the Government’s programme to improve New Zealand’s electricity sector.

Greetings, it is a pleasure to be here to open to new premises of the National Council of Women of New Zealand.

The Council has been contributing to women’s progress for 115 years. Their service to women, the family and the community at local, national and international levels through advocacy, research, and action has been extremely valuable.

I would like to start by talking about the Government’s vision for New Zealand. That is to build a strong economy and a society that enables all New Zealanders to reach their personal goals and dreams.

It is time for New Zealand to break the cycle of sexual violence that sees some women suffering multiple revictimisation says the Minister of Women’s Affairs, Hekia Parata.

This week (May 2-6) is Rape Awareness Week, which aims to raise awareness of the terrible human and economic costs of sexual violence.

“New Zealanders need to wake up to the fact that sexual violence is shamefully common in New Zealand, and that the impacts – and often the abuse – frequently continue throughout people’s lives.

The Minister of Ethnic Affairs, Hekia Parata, is encouraging people to participate in the EthnicA conference which starts in Wellington on Friday.

Ms Parata is one of the guest speakers at the conference along with the Chair of the Federation of Ethnic Communities’ Council of Australia Pino Migliorino, the President of the Chinese Association Steven Young, Multicultural Framework Advocate Pancha Narayanan and Wellington Mayor Celia Wade-Brown.

Small to medium companies will get financial help to boost competitiveness and reduce costs through energy savings, the Acting Minister of Energy and Resources, Hekia Parata, announced today.

Ms Parata today launched Energising Business, a new programme run by the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA). The programme will assist around 180 companies to increase profitability and competitive advantage by helping them invest in energy efficiency.

Acting Minister of Energy and Resources Hekia Parata welcomes New Zealand’s membership of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). 

IRENA is an international organisation dedicated to facilitating the rapid development and deployment of renewable energy worldwide.

New Zealand is already one of the world’s leading countries in renewable energy. Last year 74 per cent of New Zealand's electricity came from renewable sources. The Government has a target of 90 per cent by 2025.

The Minister of Women’s Affairs, Hekia Parata, will meet some of Australia’s top business leaders in Sydney this week to find out how Australia has managed to significantly boost the number of women on private sector boards.

“In 2009 only five per cent of new appointments to ASX 200 boards were women, but that jumped to 25 per cent last year, and so far this year 31 per cent of appointments are women,’’ Ms Parata says.

Acting Minister Energy and Resources, Hekia Parata, today welcomed Auckland Council’s introduction of a special rates scheme to encourage people in the region to insulate their homes.

Auckland Council has agreed to launch a programme that will allow ratepayers to access the Government’s Warm Up New Zealand: Heat Smart funding for home insulation and heating, and pay the difference over time through their rates bill.

Acting Minister of Energy and Resources, Hekia Parata, has expressed her disappointment at the action of Greenpeace protestors who disrupted the research programme being undertaken by Petrobras off the East Cape today.

The Brazilian state-owned oil company suspended their seismic surveying in the Raukumara Basin after several Greenpeace protestors in survival suits came dangerously close to the Petrobas boat, making it unsafe for Petrobras to continue their research programme.

New Zealand’s Acting Minister of Energy and Resources, Hekia Parata, and Australian Parliamentary Secretary for Climate Change and Energy Efficiency, Mark Dreyfus, met in Auckland today to collaborate on energy efficiency measures for households and businesses.

Today’s discussions covered the development of legislation for consistent energy standards and labelling for household appliances across both countries. These labels make it easier for shoppers to identify which appliances would lead to the biggest savings on their electricity and gas bills.

The introduction of Electricity Authority’s Customer Compensation Scheme today is a welcome step forward for the electricity sector, Acting Energy and Resources Minister Hekia Parata said today.

“Another important milestone has been achieved in the Ministerial Review of Electricity Market Performance,” said Ms Parata.

“The Customer Compensation Scheme is one of the priority initiatives to be implemented by the Electricity Authority following the review into the electricity market.’’

The Minister for Ethnic Affairs, Hekia Parata, has told ethnic communities in Auckland that the current financial environment presents opportunities to improve coordination and collaboration.

During a two day visit to Auckland Ms Parata met with representatives from the Chinese, Indian, Korean, Filipino, Muslim and African communities along with the Sikh Council, the South East Asian Business Core Group and  Ethnic Business Councis, to share views about the Government’s responsiveness to ethnic people in New Zealand.

Ethnic Affairs Minister Hekia Parata has today announced three reappointments and five new appointments as Trustees of the Chinese Poll Tax Heritage Trust.

The Trust aims to create a heightened understanding of the Chinese community within New Zealand and to strengthen the unique identity of Chinese New Zealanders.

The Minister has reappointed Maureen Leong (Hamilton), George Sue (Levin), and Tony Thackery (Palmerston North) for a second term on the Trust. Their terms commence on April 21, 2011 and expire on April 4, 2014.

Acting Energy and Resources Minister Hekia Parata today confirmed New Zealand is making good progress towards implementing recommendations outlined in the International Energy Agency 2010 In-Depth Review of New Zealand’s Energy Policies.

The report was released by International Energy Agency (IEA) Executive Director Mr Nobuo Tanaka in Wellington today following a visit to New Zealand in December 2009 by a team of energy experts from Australia, Germany, Sweden, Finland, Canada, Norway, Netherlands, and the IEA’s headquarters in Paris.

Another 2,583 New Zealand housholds have taken advantage of the Government’s home insulation and heating scheme in February, bringing the total to 91,506 households since July 2009, says Acting Minister of Energy and Resources Hekia Parata.

The Government is investing $347 million in Warm Up New Zealand: Heat Smart over four years to retrofit at least 188,000 homes. The scheme is part of a joint initiative with the Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand.

The Minister for Ethnic Affairs, Hekia Parata, has acknowledged the rich contribution that people of Pakistani origin make to New Zealand during a speech to mark Pakistan Day in Wellington tonight.

Ms Parata said New Zealand and Pakistan have enjoyed a good relationship over many years.

‘’We have worked, and continue to work positively in a range of international forums including the Commonwealth, United Nations, World Trade Organisation and the Cairns Group.

Associate Minister for the Community and Voluntary Sector, Hekia Parata, is encouraging Kiwis to celebrate “Neighbours Day Aotearoa” this weekend.

The vision for Neighbours Day Aotearoa is simple - “Turning streets into neighbourhoods - Hurihia nga ara hei tui i te ata noho a te tangata”.

This community-led initiative encourages everyone to go one step further to know their neighbours. It could be through a wave or smile, a first chat over the fence, inviting a neighbour in for a cuppa or holding a street barbeque.

The Minister of Women’s Affairs Hekia Parata has applauded an initiative by the Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand to encourage more women into engineering.

The Institution of Professional Engineers (IPENZ), along with officials from the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, has developed a business plan which aims to increase the number of women in engineering.

Strong hydro inflows and generation from new wind and geothermal sources has resulted in the highest level ever of annual renewable electricity generation, Acting Minister for Energy and Resources Hekia Parata said today.

“Over 32,000 gigawatt hours of electricity was produced from renewable sources in 2010 which is the highest level ever. This represents over 74 percent of all electricity generated in 2010 – a level we have not seen for 12 years.

It is now about three months since I became Minister of Women’s Affairs. I have spent much of that time, as much as my other portfolios allow, thinking about what the women of New Zealand need from government, and how women can contribute more to the future of our nation.

Today I want to share with you the results of that reflection – to set out my high-level priorities for women in New Zealand.

The Government is urging women to put themselves forward for business leadership roles, says the Minister of Women’s Affairs Hekia Parata.

In a speech to “HER Business Network”  in Wellington today, the Minister said New Zealand has to make better use of women’s skills and experience if it is going to significantly lift productivity.

“Tapping more effectively into women’s potential is one of the keys to New Zealand’s future growth and prosperity.

Disabled women may be at greater risk of domestic violence than other New Zealanders, says the Minister of Women’s Affairs Hon Hekia Parata.

Ms Parata was speaking at the launch of a booklet Domestic Violence and Disabled People in Auckland today, which is the centennial of International Women’s Day.

The Minister welcomed the booklet as a valuable resource which helps disabled people to be more aware of domestic violence, and provides practical advice on what to do about it.