NZ governor-general appointment raise head of state question...

Image via Wikipedia Lt General Jerry Mateparae

NZ Governor-General appointment raises head of state question



The Republican Movement acknowledges the nomination of Lieutenant General Jerry Mateparae as Governor-General by Prime Minister John Key today. Lt. Gen. Mateparae is a well known and respected New Zealander. He topped a poll in October last year of 1,435 New Zealanders conducted by the Republican Movement to find New Zealand's next Governor-General.

"Yet, his appointment was made in secret and lacked democratic oversight" said Lewis Holden, chair of the Republican Movement.

New Zealand needs a proper elected head of state, not an appointee of the Prime Minister. Lt. Gen. Mateparae is one of many New Zealanders who could fulfil the role and there is no reason why voters or parliament cannot be trusted to elect the best person. The anachronistic system where a hereditary British monarch appoints a local deputy - hand-picked by the Prime Minister - is no longer fit for purpose.

"Cutting ties with the monarchy and becoming a republic will ensure we have a Kiwi, chosen by us, as our head of state. That continues to be the ultimate goal of the Republican Movement" continued Mr Holden.

"It's time for the government to update the process for appointment of the Governor-General to make it more modern, democratic and transparent. The Republican Movement believes, as a minimum, Lt. Gen. Mateparae should be endorsed by a resolution of parliament in the coming weeks before he takes office. This is an important first step in Kiwis claiming ownership of their head of state" concluded Mr Holden.

www.republic.org.nz/media/governor-general-appointment-raises-head-of-state-question

Acknowledgements: www.republic.org.nz

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Tainui would be interested in buying the Huntley power station...

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Tainui would be interested in buying the Huntley power station...


Tuku Morgan has told the Prime Minister Waikato-Tainui wants to buy the Huntly power station if a National Government decides to sell.



The tribe has more than $500 million of property-focused assets and for the past two years Mr Morgan has been pushing iwi ownership of important national infrastructure.



Last Friday, John Key visited the tribe's Endowed College in Hopuhopu on business related to the recent Waikato River settlement.



Mr Morgan used the opportunity to tell Mr Key the tribe was "dead-set" on the station, which is owned by state-owned enterprise Genesis Energy.



Waikato-Tainui has rights of first refusal over the 1448MW station because of its Treaty settlement legislation but Mr Morgan said the iwi was not wholly convinced that future governments would honour the tribe's front-of-the-line position, if it came up for sale.



"Obviously we're very keen on it, we're dead set keen on it," Mr Morgan told the Herald.



"There are all sorts of ways that governments can move on this."



Huntly is New Zealand's largest thermal power station and can provide up to 20 per cent of national supply.
 

Mr Morgan said the tribe understood the key role the station, which is powered by coal and gas, has in power production. Any deal would come with an important rider, aimed at protection, he said.



"We'd lock it up and specify that we wouldn't sell.



"In relation to the Huntly power station we've been very clear that should the Crown sell we want to buy because iwi are the best investors because we won't sell - we're here forever. We're the face of the public interest in this country."



Future investment in another SOE, Solid Energy, which operates mines out of Huntly, was also something the iwi would be interested in, Mr Morgan said.



The Government has said it will not sell any assets in its first term, but iwi, just like the rest of the country, are waiting to see what National's policy will be past the next election.



A spokesman for Energy and Resources Minister Gerry Brownlee said he had nothing to say about the issue as the Government was not contemplating selling.



Genesis owns the Tongariro and Waikaremoana hydro Schemes as well as the Haunui windfarm in Wairarapa.



A Genesis spokesman said the company had no view on the matter.



Huntly Station:



* 1488MW



* Can supply 20 per cent of national supply



* Coal and gas fired



Waikato Tainui:



* Assets worth more than $500 million


Acknowledgements: MSN News

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Who will own the foreshore under proposed changes to the S&B Ac...

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Who will own the foreshore under proposed changes to the S&B Act?

Neither the Government nor Maori would own the nation's beaches under a proposal to settle the dispute over laws governing the foreshore and seabed.

The proposal is one of several on the table, the Government told the Iwi Leaders Forum at Waitangi.

It is understood Maori kaitiakitanga (guardianship) over an area - which would allow greater decision-making by tangata whenua - could also be provided for if the 2004 Foreshore and Seabed Act is repealed.

The act gave ownership to the Crown and denied Maori the chance to test their claims to the foreshore and seabed in court.

Repealing the legislation is the issue that brought the Maori Party into Parliament, and a degree of realism on both sides could see that happening this year, Prime Minister John Key has said.

Sources close to negotiations have said it would be a huge shift for the Crown to take the foreshore and seabed off its books, but this was a crucial starting point for a new law because it would emphasise "shared" interests.

"It's a Treaty partnership working in action without the [ownership] hassles around it," one source said. [Therefore] everyone's rights are protected."

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