Must do more
Peter Adams, the head of NZAID - the semi-autonomous government agency that delivers New Zealand’s overseas development assistance to the world - spoke at the weekend of the importance of doing more to combat global poverty. He said:
We need to see our relationships in the Pacific and Near Asia not through a donor/recipient lens, but as part of the society we live in…
We need to do much more through development assistance to help our Pacific neighbours achieve educated, healthy, well-governed, economically prosperous and safe societies.
Well, yes, we do need to do these things. The only problem is that the Government is steadfastly refusing to properly fund NZAID. In its recent Budget, the Government increased our foreign aid spend by $60 million a year. However, this increase will only bring New Zealand up to 0.28% of gross domestic product, about the same level as when Labour took office. It’s also less than half of the 0.7% of GDP target we signed up to at the turn of the millennium.
As is so often the case, the Government has been talking the talk without walking the walk.
June 27th, 2005 at 4:45 pm
If climate change causes the oceans to rise significantly then many of our Pacific neighbours will need somewhere to find refuge. Surely we need to be visionary about that scenario and consider realistic options as to how we, as a nation, would help?
June 27th, 2005 at 5:36 pm
It would seem we could do better…
http://www.globalissues.org/TradeRelated/Debt/USAid.asp#Almostallrichn ationsfailthisobligation
OTOH, I have to confess that I do not feel as though NZ can be “required” to give beyond its means, and I have to wonder what limits NZ has to observe in order not to hurt itself. We have some backbreaking taxes for folks above 50K income (unless of course they form an LAQC and become “landlords”). It works out to a tax wedge over 50% and it guts the ability of a business to compete for skilled labour against countries that haven’t decided to go QUITE so far over the edge. I may have to spend some time analyzing the data, but I sure don’t feel like the wealthy person whose taxes I am paying.
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respectfully
BJ >
respectfully
BJ
June 27th, 2005 at 6:40 pm
you gotit chip .. fwee twade is big axe .. Gween idea of fair twade good except like carbon discwdut we need to give company tax cwedits .. we buy the good hardwood from malaysai, pwocesswed with cheap labour ..
difficult calculation value wood to environment, loss of future environment, real cost of labour on Western standard, maybe best not sell to warehouse after all .. but youse got red rod donald he know how to do it .. he not pay those wokin womin at Fair Trade NZ one cent, not one red rod cent ..
update on conspiracy against helengrad.. winston not keen on carbon discwedits either, 2 million tax payer = $2500 each per annum, now the centre right sure have the good figure on yo .. fell sowwy for you in a way Gweens you ok really
June 27th, 2005 at 9:38 pm
Peter
I have to say, I have a hard time understanding all you say. However, my take on the carbon credits we seem to be missing is that we ought to be building wind turbines on top of the beehive to power our way out of the problem. Enough renewable power and the burning of dead dinosaurs fades to insignificance.
That would also answer the problem of peak oil… slaying twice the birds with half the stones… if only someoe here had the stones to make it happen instead of letting the yammerheads run the government.
I was not aware that NZ was importing any variety of wood except as a finished product. Can you point me at a reference?
Real cost of western standard labour? Here? New Zealand pays half price already, and the government takes half of that. It isn’t that strange that people are trying to go pretty much anywhere else to make a few shekels before they come back here to retire and die. I think NZ has to hold its own as long as it can. Sock some of the money away and limit the amount of stuff that foreigners can buy and own (and profit from).
Within a year, the US is going to experience a recession. It is going to be pretty ugly and the odds are better than even that it will drag the entire world into recession with it. When that happens oil consumption will plummet and the price of oil will temporarily tank. The effect will be 10x anything the folks at Kyoto ever had a wet-dream about.
If NZ does what it can NOW to prepare to “go it alone” in terms of its internal markets and the government has some cash to spend to help stimulate things, it will soften the pain. In the USA the pinheads running the show now are going to be up against it with massive debts and obligations, and nothing at all in the bank.
I wonder if Cullen is watching this and biding his time. In some ways it is a smart move, but it doesn’t work if he is too stingy and gets the electorate PO’d with Labour… which appears to be happening. Promising to give some more money away is only going to exacerbate the situation.
He needs another tax cut… and I have pointed one out that greens can support with some justification. Wouldn’t even cost a heck of a lot.
I have a feeling that you and fwog are the same person
I wouldn’t know either of you though.
respectfully
BJ