JOB SUMMIT – UPDATE

I’ve enjoyed reading your comments about the Job Summit. It was a really useful day and it sparked some great ideas. Now we’re focusing on putting the best of these into action.

Yesterday I announced that the Government will provide financial assistance to businesses to encourage them to keep workers.

The Job Support Scheme is aimed at private sector businesses with more than 100 full-time staff.  Employers, workers, and unions will be able to negotiate voluntary agreements to reduce their hours of work to a nine-day fortnight. The Government will pay employers $12.50 (the adult minimum wage) an hour per worker, for up to five hours a fortnight.

While workers are in the scheme they can’t be made redundant.

I’d like to thank business and the unions for working with us to develop this idea. It will give struggling firms some extra time to ride out tough conditions and retain jobs.

The Job Support Scheme is just one of the ideas from the Summit. On Monday, Cabinet allocated more than 40 other ideas to Ministers to drive forward.

Some of these may not stack up. But I think that many will lead to real actions we can get done quickly to save and boost jobs. Others – like the National Cycleway – are likely to take a bit longer to put in place.

BOOSTING TRADE

With the global recession dominating the headlines, we shouldn’t lose sight of some of the opportunities we face.

Last week I met with Lee Myung-bak, President of South Korea, and we agreed to start negotiating a Free Trade Agreement between our two countries.

This followed the signing of the agreement to establish a free trade area between New Zealand, Australia and ASEAN – which includes countries like Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam – and a separate agreement with India to launch bilateral Free Trade Agreement negotiations.

I’m excited about these developments. Over time they’ll bring a huge benefit to New Zealand. Our businesses stand to gain better access to hundreds of millions of consumers in some of the world’s most exciting and rapidly-developing economies. My challenge is to make sure that New Zealand can make the most of these opportunities.

CELEBRATING SUCCESS

Our success as a country relies on people from all walks of life stepping forward, helping others, seeking new ways of doing things, and reaching for their dreams. And we should acknowledge and celebrate those people who make an outstanding contribution to that success. They enrich the lives of us all.

That’s why, on Sunday, I announced that the new Government is reinstating titles in the New Zealand Honours system. The titles of Knight and Dame Grand Companion (GNZM) and Knight and Dame Companion (KNZM/DNZM) will return in time for the Queen’s Birthday honours list in June.

It’s a great pleasure to reinstate these titles. I’m looking forward to celebrating outstanding New Zealanders who have given such great service to their communities and their country.

SUPPORTING COMMUNITY LAW CENTRES

It’s important that everyone has access to justice – not just a privileged few who can afford it.

Community Law Centres do a vital job providing legal information and advice to hundreds of Kiwis every week. They are even more essential in the current environment because a growing number of people are finding themselves in financial difficulty.

Much of the funding for the centres comes from the Lawyers and Conveyancers Special Fund which has had a drop in income thanks to falling interest rates and a slowing housing market. That’s why, earlier this week, Justice Minister Simon Power announced that the Government will ensure community law centres get the same funding this year that they received last year. He is also working to make sure Community Law Centres have an enduring funding framework in the years ahead.

I’m really glad we’ve been able to help struggling New Zealanders get the legal support they need.

OUT AND ABOUT

Maths is a lot more fun than when I was at school. Last week I visited Thorndon School in Wellington with Education Minister Anne Tolley to launch World Maths Day in New Zealand. It was great to spend some time with the schoolchildren and exciting to see how engaged they are when they are learning with computers. Click here for video of that visit

I was in Rotorua on Thursday – as Minister of Tourism – with local MP Todd McClay. We visited the Tourism Upskilling Cluster at the Te Puia Maori Arts and Crafts Institute, before meeting the pupils at Owhata school, and taking a ride on a luge.

On Saturday I’m looking forward to heading to the Pasifika Festival at Western Springs in Auckland. It’s the largest Polynesian event in the world and a brilliant way to enjoy the music, dance, and food of our many Pacific cultures. Perhaps I’ll see some of you there?

Best wishes

Hon John Key
Prime Minister