1. You don’t attack the legitimacy of a union, as you have with Actors Equity. This particular union is alive and well, as shown by 200 members turning up to its Auckland meeting, and 80 in Wellington.

2. You don’t portray people you want to work for you as tools of Aussie unionists. Kiwis like Jennifer Ward-Leyland are clearly in charge of Actors Equity here.

3. You respect union meetings. Trying to crash an internal Actors Equity meeting in Wellington last night didn’t look good. You’d be upset if union officials demanded seats at one of your management meetings.

4. While the law surrounding ‘actors as independent contractors’ is complicated, don’t try to hide behind it as an excuse not to talk to the unions on pay and conditions. With good will you can find a way through.

Do you really think that giving Kiwi actors a few extra dollars will endanger the viability of the Hobbit? Most New Zealanders think it will be a raging success at the box office. And more so if all your workers are happy campers.

There’s been commentary claiming the government hasn’t actually done very much in its first year. Rodney’s embarrassment aside, it seems safe to say that Rod wouldn’t agree.

First off is the long list of backward steps taken on environmental protection. National started the year as it is likely to finish it – under urgency. Under the guise of the collapsing world economy, legislation having little to do with the crisis was repealed, such as the act that set standards for sustainable biofuels, and one that established a renewable preference for electricity generation.

At the other end of the first year, we have the fiasco of the government’s 0-20% emissions target (for who knows where it will end up), and an Emissions Trading Scheme that will subsidise polluters by the billions at taxpayer expense, likely increasing our emissions rather than reducing them. I’d forgive Rod if what he might have to say about that wasn’t even printable.

The great worry is that this government has only just begun its programme of environmental negligence. The Resource Management Act part two reforms is an example of things still to come, with the government showing it will trade short term economic gain for long term economic and environmental sustainability.

And you can be sure Rod would be out there gathering signatures for the Green Party mining petition too.

Rod's tree at Parliamentary Library

One of the other early casualties was Rod’s beloved Buy Kiwi Made programme, ably implemented by Sue Bradford after Rod’s death. The Kiwi Diary 2009 notes today is the anniversary of when the Green Party won the battle to have the “Buy Kiwi Made” campaign restricted to goods and services manufactured and processed in New Zealand, 2006. Even Labour didn’t get it.

There are so many other examples. But most of all, I think Rod would be gearing up for the next public discussion on MMP, due to occur over the next two election cycles. Rod was a passionate advocate of the new system recommended by the Royal Commission and helped lead the coalition advocating change. Rod knew that MMP meant  fair representation for all Kiwi voters and that it would lead to the current diversity we see in the House today. I think Rod would agree that there are improvements to be made to our MMP system. I’m certain he would be fighting hard on behalf of all citizens for its retention.

Greens across Aotearoa are thinking of you today, Rod.

No one would argue that this programme alone is going to save all the jobs that are going to be lost due to the global recession, but MED’s own review of the programme showed that many more kiwis were conciously looking out for kiwi made goods and services as a result of the campaign. There is no doubt that keeping our cash circulating around the country just a few more times before it wanders overseas to pay for our oil and the interest on our debt keeps people gainfully employed, rather than on the dole queue. I guess we will just have to borrow more from overseas to pay some kiwi workers the unemployment benefit. 

1. The use of a broader range of policy tools to control inflation that support trade weighted interest and exchange rates.  Consistently lower and more stable interest and exchange rates are necessary to encourage long-term investment in productive exporting businesses.
2. A Research and Development (R&D) tax credit to encourage innovation and the development of new products across the real economy.
3. A first year write-off for productive plant and patent expenditure to encourage investment in new product development and intellectual property protection.
4. Balanced taxation on both capital and revenue accounts.
5. Enforcing national product standards to ensure local producers and importers are on a level playing field.
6. Mandatory country of origin labelling to give consumers choice and enhance the value of the ‘New Zealand’ brand.

We have definite and distinguishing policy on points 1, 2, 5 and 6.  After a quick search I can’t find anything on the other two points but I’m sure some commenters will be able to enlighten me below.

The Greens have a detailed and supportive policy on sustainable manufacturing, including continuing to promote Buy Kiwi Made and support the initiatives of manufacturers to work collaboratively.  Local manufacturing plays a key part in sustainable, diverse local economies that can support themselves.  An economy that needs to import vast amounts of goods is not only vulnerable to peak oil and climate change, it also lacks diverse jobs for its workers and is more exposed to global financial crises.

And there is the Greens’ future focused campaign to vote for something positive from little New Zealand company Special.

“Not hectoring or bombastic, just a simple reminder of what is at stake.”

The Greens have also used a locally owned market research company and are using a locally owned media buyer, as well as swathes of local on-the-ground volunteers (and some overseas volunteers) to put together its election campaign.  Which all just shows promoting kiwi made does work.

But successive governments have not always seen it that way.  The Buy Kiwi Made programme that the Greens initiated is small but successful step in the right direction, but that does, at times, look like it is swimming against other government policy. 

The Herald on Sunday interviewed a range of people involved in manufacturing who are all increasingly worried. It notes that in the last six weeks at least 830 people in manufacturing around New Zealand have learned they’re about to lose their jobs.

The NDU‘s Laila Harre says the Government’s apparent belief that the only manufacturing worth nurturing is innovative, high end and technically cutting edge.  Continuing to make things we have always needed and always will need doesn’t seem to warrant attention:

“Labour has lost the plot. Who says New Zealanders are brainier than the rest of the world? In order to keep the brainy jobs going you need the brawny jobs.

“It’s all very well to say high-tech, high-end, high-skill, but New Zealand workers at Fisher & Paykel are among the highest-tech, highest-end, highest-skill in the world. That hasn’t saved their jobs.”

Green MP Sue Bradford calls the knowledge economy line arrogant. For years, Bradford has been exhorting us to preserve and expand our ability to make what we need here.

A significant part of the current problem is the Reserve Bank’s use of the Official Cash Rate to keep inflation down.  While that is an important goal it is being exercised at the expense of our primary industries and it is hurting them badly.  Rampant inflation was the problem a quarter of a century ago but we need to be wary that it is neither the only nor the pre-eminent problem that our economy can face.

Today and tomorrow many thousands of New Zealanders will be visiting their local farmers markets around the country, neatly skirting around New Zealand’s supermarket duopoly, and trading directly with the people who grow their food.

Radio New Zealand’s Country Life currently has an interesting podcast documentary on the Hamilton Farmers’ Market, which is giving small growers in the Waikato a unique opportunity to supply fresh healthy produce direct to locals.

A couple of years ago, farmers’ market and small business researcher Dr Alan Cameron defined a farmers’ market as:

‘One in which farmers, growers and producers from a local area are present in person to sell their own products directly to the public. All of the products sold should be grown, reared, caught, brewed, pickled, baked, smoked or processed by the stallholder. Less quantifiably, farmers’ markets place an emphasis on quality and freshness and provide a vibrant atmosphere to make shopping a more social experience…

The essence of a farmers’ market, he says, is “buy local, eat seasonal, enjoy high quality food”.

Bll McKibben, in his latest book, Deep Economy, notes that people who shop at local farmers’ markets have ten times more conversations while shopping than people who shop at supermarkets. Which, I guess undermines the theory about supermarkets being the place to go to score.

Cameron says farmers’ markets are giving people more control over the food they eat:

Supermarkets threaten to engulf other forms of retailing by combining the scale of the market with the convenience of the shop, but in recent years there has been a quiet counter-revolution. One of the driving forces is the increasing demand for better food and information about that food, by increasingly discerning consumers.

Sue Bradford recently announced that Buy Kiwi Made programme is helping to fund farmers’ markets to develop a major national initiative to promote New Zealand made and grown products through a system of authentication for the goods sold at markets, and the provision of better information for shoppers.

Near the end of her walk, in Bluff, a civic reception and dance in her honour was held. She was whisked on to the dance floor by a ‘dashing young stranger’ who said:

‘I’ve come all the way from Gore to see this big hiking woman. I bet she’s built like an Amazon, eight feet tall with feet the size of a draught horse.’

Straight after the dance James was required to give a speech

‘Some people,’ I said, ‘imagine that to walk all this way I must be a huge girl with big feet. But you can see that I am not. I weigh seven stone and take size three in shoes. You see, in New Zealand-made goods, it’s the quality that counts not the size.’

At that my blushing partner turned around and left the hall.

(Extract from James’ autobiography, Jobbing Along, Whitcombe and Tombs, 1965, p81)

Hat tip to John Barleycorn who drew my attention Esther James’ story last year.

Sue Bradford will also be at the show tomorrow morning on the Buy Kiwi Made stall promoting companies that are supporting our economy, our workers and our environment by manufacturing here in New Zealand.