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Displaying: 1 - 32 of 229 items.
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Submission on the 2012/13 appropriations for electricity efficiency appropriation
20 December 2011,
A joint submission by the Major Electricity Users’ Group and the New Zealand Business Roundtable on the 2012-13 appropriations for electricity efficiency appropriation.
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Submission on the Spending Cap (People's Veto) Bill
2 December 2011,
A submission on the Spending Cap (People's Veto) Bill to require a voter referendum to approve any real per capita increase in core Crown operating spending and proposed strengthening measures.
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Submission on the Draft Auckland Plan
10 November 2011, New Zealand Business Roundtable
A submission by the New Zealand Business Roundtable on the Auckland Council's Draft Plan.
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Submission on the Regulatory Standards Bill
19 August 2011, New Zealand Business Roundtable
The Taskforce has produced a report and draft Bill of exceptional quality. The Bill provides the best current option for improving regulatory quality, even though on its own it is no panacea. It may be capable of improvement as it passes through parliament. On this basis we recommend strongly that it should proceed.
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Submission on New Zealand Productivity Commission Issues Paper on Housing Affordability
5 August 2011, New Zealand Business Roundtable
The affordability of housing is an important issue. The quantity, quality and price of housing services obtained through owner-occupation, renting and other arrangements are vital for the overall welfare of all New Zealanders.
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Submission on the Ministry of Economic Development Exposure Draft on Cartel Criminalisation
22 July 2011, New Zealand Business Roundtable
The Business Roundtable supports well-conceived law regulating cartel conduct. However, for the reasons explained in our March 2010 submission on the earlier Ministry of Economic Development discussion document, we are opposed to criminalisation.
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Emissions Trading Scheme Review
6 April 2011, New Zealand Business Roundtable
A submission by the New Zealand Business Roundtable to members of the 2011 Emissions Trading Scheme Review Panel.
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New Zealand’s 2050 Emissions Reduction Target
3 March 2011, Ralph Matthes and Roger Kerr
This is a submission by the Major Electricity Users’ Group and the New Zealand Business Roundtable on the paper “Gazetting New Zealand’s 2050 Emissions Target - Minister’s Position Paper” released 29th January 2011 by the Minister for Climate Change Issues along with a media release “50 by 50 emissions reduction target proposed”.
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Submission on the Welfare Working Group paper Reducing Long-Term Benefit Dependency: The Options
23 December 2010, New Zealand Business Roundtable
1.2 We see the issue of welfare dependency and welfare costs as hugely important – economically, fiscally and socially. The WWG’s work should be seen in the context of the precarious current economic situation, with an anaemic GDP growth outlook and dangerous external vulnerabilities due to very high foreign indebtedness. Within a short period of time demographic trends will add to fiscal pressures with the prospect of higher government spending on superannuation, health and welfare.
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Submission on the Financial Markets (Regulators and KiwiSaver) Bill
16 November 2010, New Zealand Business Roundtable
The Financial Markets Authority (FMA) has the potential to play a positive role in relation to New Zealand’s financial markets provided that its approach to the exercise of its significant regulatory powers is measured and responsible.
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Submission to the Savings Working Group
24 September 2010, New Zealand Business Roundtable
The Business Roundtable welcomes the establishment of the Savings Working Group. We think there has been much mistaken analysis around savings over the past decade, especially by the Treasury, and that as a result, costly policies have been based on false premises.
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Submission on the Employment Relations Amendment Bill (No 2)
22 September 2010, New Zealand Business Roundtable
The Business Roundtable believes that New Zealand employment law has become unnecessarily complex and costly for both employers and employees. Contrary to common misconceptions, there is no inherent and systematic imbalance in bargaining power in the labour market. As a consequence we believe employment law should move in the direction of standard contract law.
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Submission on the Holidays Amendment Bill
22 September 2010, New Zealand Business Roundtable
Holidays legislation remains complex and difficult to administer. It is far less problematical in many countries, including Australia. Moreover, the costs associated with the additional week’s leave have slowed the rate of real wage growth for affected workers.
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Submission on the Welfare Working Group's Paper, 'Long-Term Benefit Dependency: The Issues'
20 September 2010, New Zealand Business Roundtable
The Business Roundtable welcomes the establishment of the Welfare Working Group (WWG). Welfare dependency is an enormous problem that blights the lives of many people and has wider deleterious social and economic effects. Its roots lie in a welfare system that, despite the admirable intentions of its founders, has over time eroded the acceptance of personal responsibility, diminished self-reliance and weakened the family as a social institution.
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Submission on Questions Arising from the Regulatory Responsibility Bill Prepared by the Regulatory Responsibility Taskforce
27 August 2010, New Zealand Business Roundtable
The Business Roundtable has supported proposals for a Regulatory Responsibility Act from the time of its 2001 report Constraining Government Regulation. We made submissions to the select committee that considered the earlier Members Bill. We agree with the Minister that the Taskforce has produced an excellent report.
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Submission on the Ministry of Economic Development Discussion Paper: Review of Securities Law
19 August 2010, New Zealand Business Roundtable
The Business Roundtable does not propose to individually address
each of the 204 questions presented in the Discussion Paper but
instead address five key issues arising from it. These include: The public policy framework for evaluating New Zealand's securities laws; the scope of the securities laws; the substantive duties of disclosure; the standards of liability under the securities laws; and the securities law reform process.
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Local Government Forum Submission on the Local Government Act Amendment Bill
2 August 2010, Local Government Forum
The Bill arises from concerns expressed by ratepayers about the strong growth of
local government expenditure and the resulting increases in rates. It also arises from
the need for local government, which is a significant component of the economy, to
positively contribute to the Government's economic goals.
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Submission on Consumer Law Reform Discussion Paper
30 July 2010, New Zealand Business Roundtable
This submission focuses on making three high-level comments on the discussion paper: problem definition, the need for the law to protect reputable suppliers and customers alike, and the case for general and enduring statute law rather than for detailed law that can quickly become obsolescent.
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Submission on the Electoral Referendum Bill
20 June 2010, The New Zealand Business Roundtable
The Business Roundtable is pleased that the government is giving effect to its manifesto commitment to hold another referendum on the voting system. This was expected by many voters when the mixed-member proportional (MMP) system was introduced.
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Submission on the Commerce Commission's Draft Reconsideration Report on Mobile Termination Services
19 May 2010, New Zealand Business Roundtable
We made our first submission on these issues in November 2004 and
our last submission was in July 2009. Throughout we have been
greatly concerned about the implications for investment in
infrastructure of the never-ending litigation and re-litigation of pricing
issues. It is clear that currently incumbents can have no certainty as to
future pricing plans even if they have reached firm deeds of agreement
with the Crown.
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Submission on the Department of Labour Discussion Paper 'Employment Relations Act 2000: Review of Part 9: Personal Grievances'
30 March 2010, New Zealand Business Roundtable
In our view, issues relating to Part 9 of the Employment Relations Act
2000 need to be seen in the context of the government’s overriding
goal of lifting average New Zealand incomes to Australian levels by
2025. To achieve that goal, major improvements in labour
productivity growth are required, given the staggering decline in
recent productivity growth rates with the ill-conceived policies of the
previous government. The Employment Relations Act (the ERA) was
one such policy.
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Submission to the Ministry of Economic Development on the Discussion Document 'Cartel Criminalisation'
30 March 2010, New Zealand Business Roundtable
We agree with the view of the 2025 Taskforce that “In
economies with open markets, competition policy is likely to be, at
most, a minor contributor to economic performance.” We note, for
example, that two other small and open economies, Hong Kong and
Singapore, attained levels of per capita income much higher than
New Zealand’s before they developed comparable antitrust laws.
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Submission on the Education (Freedom of Association) Amendment Bill
30 March 2010, New Zealand Business Roundtable
Compulsory students’ association membership (CSM), as opposed to
voluntary students’ association membership (VSM), is an
anachronism. Students’ associations are incorporated societies
formed by members with common interests and are akin to the
Automobile Association, the Consumers' Institute, staff associations
and sporting clubs.
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Submission on the Employment Relations Act 2000: Review of Part 6A: Continuity of Employment
30 March 2010, New Zealand Business Roundtable
In our view issues relating to Part 6A of the Employment Relations Act need to be
seen in the context of the government’s overriding goal of lifting average New Zealand
incomes to Australian levels by 2025. As the minister of labour notes in the foreword
to the Discussion Document, “The Government aims to put employment relations on
sound and solid footings so that New Zealand can focus on building more productive
businesses and higher wages.” To achieve that goal, major improvements in labour
productivity growth are required, given the slump in productivity growth resulting in
large part from ill-conceived policies of the previous government.
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Submission on the Financial Service Providers (Pre-Implementation Adjustments) Bill
30 March 2010, New Zealand Business Roundtable
We welcome the government’s efforts to streamline the implementation of the previous
government’s Financial Advisers Act 2008 and the Financial Service Providers
(Registration and Dispute Resolution) Act 2008, and in the process to reduce compliance
costs. In our view the Regulatory Impact Statement associated with the FAA 2008 was
inadequate and did not provide a rigorous assessment of its costs and benefits.
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Submission on the Local Government (Auckland Law Reform) Bill
12 March 2010, Local Government Forum
While improved governance arrangements for Auckland are a commendable first
step, the Forum believes that much work remains if local government is to contribute
fully to lifting overall economic performance. Broader reform of local government,
which the government is progressing separately, can assist.
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Pan-Industry Letter to Prime Minister on the Emissions Trading Scheme
5 March 2010,
Recent events show that the international climate change context is less certain than
previously anticipated. We think that the current emissions trading scheme is too rigid
and may in fact frustrate the delivery of the outcomes sought from it. Therefore, we
seek an assurance from you that in light of recent events the Government is taking
stock of whether the current climate change policy settings which focus primarily on
an emissions trading scheme remain appropriate for New Zealand.
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Submission to the Law Commission on Alcohol In Our Lives: An issues paper on the reform of New Zealand's liquor laws
30 October 2009, New Zealand Business Roundtable
A national interest perspective in the context of the Law Commissions’ inquiry means giving primacy to the interests of consumers. In respect of alcohol, it does not, as in the days of pervasive controls on competition in the liquor industry, mean favouring producer interests. At the same time, such a perspective requires attention to the effects and costs of misuse of alcohol products and effective ways of minimising them.
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2025 TASKFORCE: INVITATION TO HAVE YOUR SAY
29 October 2009, New Zealand Business Roundtable
“On a first examination, the Regulatory Responsibility Taskforce appears to have produced an outstanding and robust report that deserves the support of the government and parliament”, the executive director of the New Zealand Business Roundtable, Roger Kerr, said today. “Poor quality regulation has been a perennial problem which has become worse in recent years. Less and better regulation must be a key element of the government’s programme for substantially raising New Zealand living standards.
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TSO Review (2009) Discussion Document
29 October 2009, New Zealand Business Roundtable
In our view the general context in which policy related to the Telecommunications Services Obligation (TSO) should be set is the government’s goal of closing the per capita income gap with Australia by 2025. Achieving that goal will require a sustained commitment to the adoption of institutions and policies of the highest order. Policy proposals that do not meet that standard should not be adopted.
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Submission on the Climate Change Response
16 October 2009, New Zealand Business Roundtable
The Business Roundtable believes that policy development on climate change has entered a more constructive phase over the past 12 months. We were critical of the previous government’s ‘carbon neutrality’ ambitions because of their enormous potential adverse economic impact; the lack of an adequate regulatory impact analysis as a basis for policy; many design features of its Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS); and the rushed process. We were pleased that the select committee reviewing the scheme abandoned the unrealistic March deadline for a report, and we believe its deliberations over a longer period contributed to a better understanding among policymakers and the public of the difficult issues New Zealand is grappling with.
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Submission on the Climate Change Response (Moderated Emissions Trading) Amendment Bill
16 October 2009, New Zealand Business Roundtable
The Business Roundtable believes that policy development on climate change has entered a more constructive phase over the past 12 months. We were critical of the previous government’s ‘carbon neutrality’ ambitions because of their enormous potential adverse economic impact; the lack of an adequate regulatory impact analysis as a basis for policy; many design features of its Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS); and the rushed process. We were pleased that the select committee reviewing the scheme abandoned the unrealistic March deadline for a report, and we believe its deliberations over a longer period contributed to a better understanding among policymakers and the public of the difficult issues New Zealand is grappling with.
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