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Dear John, I hope you enjoyed the long weekend that we had for Waitangi Day, 6 February. It was a day that was remarkable in 2022 for a number of reasons. As well as New Zealand’s Waitangi Day it was 70 years since Her Royal Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second acceded the throne on the sad death of her father George VI in 1952. It was also 70 years since New Zealand first sent athletes to the Winter Olympics in 1952. And remarkably 70 years later to the day, New Zealand’s first gold medal at a Winter Olympic Games was won by snow boarder Zoi Sadowski-Synott. I want to especially acknowledge the remarkable service of Her Majesty as Queen and Head of the Commonwealth. She has served her people for all of these 70 years with selfless commitment and a dedication to her duty that is unsurpassed in 1000 years. I hope you join with me in wishing her well in her 70th Jubilee year and in the years that are ahead of her. Kainga Ora tenants – Three Strikes legislation now applies I have received many complaints from constituents over the last five or so years about the behaviour of Kainga Ora/Housing New Zealand tenants in their neigbourhoods. The complaints increased during the Covid-19 lockdowns which meant no action could be taken by the state landlord to address the problem. It was clear that Kainga Ora /Housing New Zealand ’s 'sustaining tenancies' policy that saw no evictions in the last three years was not working for communities in Papakura and many other communities across New Zealand. Sustaining tenancies was designed to safeguard stable housing for Kainga Ora’s tenants, but I personally know that terrified and abused neighbours saw it develop into a 'no eviction' loophole for the worst behaved. Bad tenants in many communities cause neighbours to suffer threats and abuse, sleepless nights and post-traumatic stress disorder with some having no option but to move away. It is a relief that the Government’s Associate Minister of Housing has recognised that not enough was done in a timely way to resolve these issues. It must be said that local Kainga Ora tenancy managers, MSD and the New Zealand police have worked hard to bring lasting solutions even during Lockdowns but without lasting success in some really serious cases. Now the Residential Tenancies Act has finally been amended to allow Kainga Ora to use its “three strikes” complaints scheme. This means that unmanageable tenants who used to have to agree to be relocated can now be moved by the state landlord once the ‘three strikes” process has been completed. Hopefully people will now understand that they are in a neighbourhood and part of a community where people expect to live without being troubled by their neighbours. I want people to learn to consider others and look after their homes. Nobody wants to see a family moving out but if bad behaviour is so severe it deeply affects the lives of other families then being evicted by their landlord is the consequence. Te Ara Paerangi - Future Pathways As National spokesperson for Research Science Innovation and Technology I will be looking closely at the new strategy launched by the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment (MBIE). It is called Te Ara Paerangi Future Pathways and it is a multi-year programme focused on the future of New Zealand’s research system. The programme seeks to start an open and wide-ranging conversation on many issues facing the research system, how these issues might be addressed, and how to take advantage of emerging opportunities. The reason for the review says MBIE is that New Zealand’s research system was designed nearly 30 years ago, and some parts of the system are not working as well as they should be. Since 2018 reports on various topics in the Research Science and Innovation areas that include funding and prioritising of environmental research in New Zealand, a paper on the future of commercial fishing and a Treaty of Waitangi- led Science policy approach for New Zealand, have been sought and are the basis of Te Ara Paerangi Future Pathways. The full report strategy is available on the MBIE website: https://www.mbie.govt.nz/science-and-technology/science-and-innovation/research-and-data/ MBIE say that there is a lack of role clarity for institutions, unproductive competition between institutions and that integration is lacking between universities, CRIs and other parts of the research system. It says that the RSI strategy has found the system is weak in its responsiveness to Māori. A preliminary report also noted difficulties the research system has in adapting to changing national needs and building capabilities necessary for future resilience and transformation. It found a proliferation of governance and a large number of competing strategies and priorities, which struggle to be given meaningful effect. As the website says the Te Ara Paerangi – Future Pathways Green Paper seeks to start an open, deliberative and wide-ranging discussion on the future of New Zealand’s public research system. It seeks involvement from New Zealand’s current researchers and research users to provide a broad base of views on the performance of the current system. This is needed to better understand the issues and the opportunities for the future. If this is in your area of expertise and interest, it is important to express your opinions on the truth of what is stated and what is suggested by the Future Pathways Green Paper which you can do through the website above and then by clicking on Te Ara Paerangi-Future Pathways. For New Zealand’s ongoing success, prosperity, and well-being, it’s essential that this review gets the right results and the right strategies for the future. I will be very concerned if the government puts politics before science, and you can be assured that I will be holding the line for science. Stay safe and best wishes, Judith
Hon Judith
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