Ministry deserves chocolate fish, but can ask for less from industry

Green MP Mike Ward says Marian Hobb’s announcement today that the Environment Ministry has reduced its waste to landfill by 80 per cent is great news.

“Brilliant, the Ministry staff involved deserve a chocolate fish, unpackaged of course, for their vision and efforts,” said Mr Ward, the Green Party’s Waste-free Spokesperson.

“This is a great example of what can be done to reduce waste and a clear indication that Ministry staff know how to go about it.

“However, it is a little surprising, in view of this sterling effort, that the Ministry were prepared to accept such timid reduction targets in the recently signed Packaging Accord.

“If they can reduce their waste by 80 per cent across the board, why are they asking for a recovery rate of only 23 per cent of plastic packaging from industry? Lets hope the private sector is sufficiently inspired by their efforts to surpass their expectations,” said Mr Ward.

© Scoop Media

Gordon Campbell: On the Sony cyber attack

Given the layers of meta-irony involved, the saga of the Sony cyber attack seemed at the outset more like a snarky European art film than a popcorn entry at the multiplex.

Yet now with (a) President Barack Obama weighing in on the side of artistic freedom and calling for the US to make a ‘proportionate response’quickly followed by (b) North Korea’s entire Internet service going down, and with both these events being followed by (c) Sony deciding to backtrack and release The Interview film that had made it a target for the dastardly North Koreans in the first place, then ay caramba…the whole world will now be watching how this affair pans out. More>>