Labour's Uncosted Policy Initiatives - Nats
Justice
No New Policies
1 Major public awareness
campaign to change public attitudes
towards buying
stolen goods
2 Investigate establishing a National Crime
Authority to coordinate the fight against organised
crime
3 Establish a Community Safety Office (CSO) to
allow community feedback & input regarding the strategic
direction of policing [CSO will also take over many current
Crime Prevention Unit functions]
4 Promote successful
truancy programmes
5 Expand the successful “Project
Early” Christchurch pilot which deals with child behavioural
problems
6 Expand the placement of social workers & youth
workers in schools
7 Subject to positive evaluation, will
promote concepts such as the sports academy at Aranui School
in Christchurch which encourages young people to stay at
school beyond the leaving age
8 Pilot school community
conferences using restorative justice & modelled on family
group conferences as an alternative to suspension
9
Evaluate programmes such as “cool schools” & ensure that the
successful models are used for expanding such programmes to
other schools
10 Build on successful community schemes
–eg the Mt Roskill project which should be expanded &
appropriate training provided for police
11 Pilot
mentoring programmes for children who lack any positive male
role model. (Need to screen adults & train
them)
12 Strengthen family placement services - develop a
specialist foster care programme to provide high levels of
foster parent training/support
13 Further develop
individualised programmes aimed at youth with multiple needs
& at risk of offending. (eg Wraparound service piloted by
Waipareira Trust)
14 Develop & expand police intervention
programmes which try to get youth out of the cycle of
criminal offending – eg “turn your life around”
15 Ensure
police are organised, trained & supported to respond more
effectively to youth crime.
16 Introduce a police
infringement notice system for less serious offences – eg
community work - restorative justice focus
17 Improve
the resourcing & support given to CYPFA
18 Establish a
secure purpose-built facility for recidivist young offenders
& ensure it is staffed by specially trained staff & offers
effective rehabilitation options
19 Allow youth court
judges to sentence young offenders to appropriate secure
care for up to 1 year instead of current 3
months
20 Promote programmes which involve at risk youth
in sports, music etc to develop their talents
positively
21 Develop & expand police intervention
programmes which focus on trying to get youth out of the
cycle of criminal offending
22 Increase funding to
community based programmes which tackle causes of criminal
behaviour eg STOP programme for sexual
offenders
23 Expand placement opportunities for young
offenders in the army & wilderness programmes
24 Ensure
that specialist youth mental health services are available
through the health system.
25
Provide more
opportunities for Maori to work with their young offenders
and take responsibility for rehabilitation. Will include
piloting iwi provision of youth full-time supervision
programmes
26 “Beef up” court security so that victims
can observe or testify without fear of intimidation or
violence
27 Resource the police to purchase anti-gang
surveillance equipment
28 Establish a Judicial Commission
to bring transparency to the judicial appointment,
accountability & removal process
29 Move to restore
victims rights to financial compensation
Maori
No New
Policies
30 Provide resources for whanau, hapu, iwi &
Maori organisations to assess their existing capacity,
identify strengths & weaknesses & develop plans to address
their skills shortage Assist these groups to implement
their development plans
31 Conduct a face to face general
enrolment census to ensure all eligible voters are on the
electoral role of their choice – (ensure that adequate
funding is provided & the campaign is appropriately
promoted)
32 Resource a treaty education programme to
improve the understanding of all New Zealanders
33 Ensure
that illiteracy & poor education of prisoners is fully
addressed by educational programmes in
prisons.
34 Provide programmes for anger management &
teach conflict resolution skills as an alternative to
violence
35 Expand intensive programmes dealing with
violent offenders
36 Encourage the use of more arts &
culture based rehabilitation programmes in prisons
37 Address drug, alcohol & gambling addiction problems
of inmates
38 Expand pre-release & post release
programmes
39 Adequately resource the Maori land
court
40 Immediately update & develop the Papakainga and
Kaumatua housing schemes & work with iwi to make more marae
based housing available
41 Develop the low deposit rural
lending scheme so whanau can own their own homes and use
sweat equity as the deposit.
42 Assist the development of
sport and recreation programmes specifically for
Maori
43
Establish a new Local Economic Assistance
Fund that is responsive to Maori to encourage local
development
44 Reinstate Maori business venture capital
funding & encourage support, mentoring & managerial training
programmes designed for Maori
45 Ensure that specific
funding is available to assist Maori who wish to live & work
on the land, to develop the land
commercially
46 Facilitate a national tourism summit for
Maori tourism operators
47 Establish a representative
Maori tourism board
48 Work with Maori to further develop
opportunities in the fishing industry & allocate 20 % of
quota to Maori
49 Assist Maori in the development of
fresh water & marine farming technologies
50 Encourage
Maori organisations to enter the Marine & fisheries tourism
industry
51 Provide training programmes specifically
aimed at providing commercial and managerial expertise to
Maori
52 Investigate the feasibility of establishing an
industry training organisation to develop training
programmes aimed at providing suitable workers to manage
Maori social services delivery
organisations
53 Strengthen the Maori Language Commission
and government sector Maori language
policy
54 Investigate the establishment of a Maori
Cultural Foundation to coordinate & promote all forms of
Maori culture and arts. (indication that this funding could
come from CreativeNZ)
55 Develop viable commercial
activities & Maori authenticity standards with Maori to
protect & promote Maori artists nationally and
internationally
56 Assess the proposed Maori TV
channel
57 Strengthen existing iwi radio stations &
ensure their continued viability
Immigration & Veterans Affairs
No New Policies
58 Establish a working party of
representatives of the Pacific Island (PI) community &
officials to investigate & review the issues of traditional
discipline & cultural values
59 Promote programmes which
involve at-risk young PI in sport, music, cultural or
recreation activities to develop interests and
talents
60 Provide funding for education initiatives
especially at the point of immigration, to educate PI on the
social values & laws of NZ
61 Ensure that public
servants who interact with PI in the justice system are
trained to appreciate & understand the cultural values of
the PI community
62 Set aside a “contestable fund” for
employment programmes (proposals put forward by PI
employment groups)
63 Implement a through review of the
Ministry of PI affairs
64 Appoint a board to advise &
monitor the work of the Ministry
65 Re-establish a
national radio network for PI groups
66 Investigate the
establishment of a PI Broadcasting Foundation to co-ordinate
strategy for the broadcasting of PI
languages.
67 Increase funding for PI broadcasting both
in radio & TV
68 Ensure all war veteran pensions are
adjusted annually to maintain their relativity with average
wages & NZ super & reverse the changes that were made this
year.
69 Ensure that NZ service personnel who were
exposed to agent orange & their children receive state
support & financial assistance.
70 Support the
development of a register of immigration consultants to
ensure that services provided are of an acceptable
standard
71 Promote & develop settlement programmes in
partnership with local & regional government & key community
organisations
72 Encourage & assist the development of
refugee & migrant resource centres
73 Support & fund a
languages policy that includes both provision of English
language tuition for speakers of other languages & a
commitment to inheritance language
74 Take a pro-active
approach to seeking those migrants who have the potential to
contribute to a knowledge-based economy
75 Provide
adequately funded policies that address the key areas of
needs of refugees – community orientation, housing, health,
education, ESOL, intergration, family reunification, skills
development & work
76 Encourage festivals, art
exhibitions & other cultural activities for people of
different ethnic backgrounds & programmes to increase
community understanding of major ethnic groups
77 Consult
with ethnic communities and their organisations to develop
effective government advice structures that would best meet
their needs
78 Encourage the development of programmes
aimed at helping people from traditionally isolated ethnic
communities to contribute & interact with the wider
community
79 Introduce community & school programmes to
improve understanding of the major ethnic groups which have
settled in NZ
Housing
No New Policies
80 Pilot
programmes for tenants to participate in decision making
about their housing.
81 Investigate ways the government
can encourage private landlords to improve the quality of
housing available to low income households.
82 Scrap the
tenancy tribunal $20 application fee
83 Pilot programmes
to meet the needs of the PI community – may include the
design of appropriately sized housing & the development of
community centred living
84 Establish “special housing
action zones” in areas with serious housing need where the
land available is predominantly multiply owned with the
objective of increasing the supply of houses & home
ownership in those areas.
85 Provide appropriate houses
for organisations providing emergency housing, refugees,
services for youth at risk and people with disabilities &
special needs.
86 Ensure that subsidised lending
facilities are available to community groups for the purpose
of financing housing projects
87 Support local government
housing initiatives, especially for pensioners / innovative
housing programmes.
88 Reinstate the advance for major
home repairs programme & investigate introducing a home
equity conversion scheme.
89 Further develop the low
deposit rural lending scheme
90 Ensure that a strategic
process for rehabilitation & disability support includes a
comprehensive plan for the housing needs of people with
disabilities
91 Have HousingNZ develop programmes
designed to assist people into home ownership. Eg,
extending the coverage of home ownership workshops & other
initiatives designed to get people into
housing
92 Investigate ways to help low & modest income
earners buy their first home
93 Establish a training
programme for house construction & maintenance to
accommodate the principle of sweat equity & investment
protection.
Adult Education
No New Policies
94 Extend
local involvement in adult & community education programmes
through the establishment of Community Learning Programmes
(CPLs) with a view to a nationwide network over
time.
95 Appoint a short term working group to prepare an
action blue print for the implementation of Labour’s Adult
Education policy – including funding mechanisms
Employment & Workplace
No New Policies
96 Establish an Employment
Rights Unit (ERU) to coordinate a review & update of minimum
code legislation
97 Establish an Employment Equity office
within the Department of Labour & review the future of the
EEO trust & EEO Fund
98 Offer encouragement & financial
assistance where appropriate to industry based safety &
health promotion & education programmes
99 Better
resource the current labour inspectorate & will require it
to move from being reactive to pro-active
100 Provide a
centrally administered contestable fund to consider
applications for funding to assist in the provision of
employment related education.
101 Expand the “Be your own
Boss” programme
102 Support the availability of quality
childcare through the provision of childcare subsidies &
after school programmes
103 Establish a FutureWork Unit
to be responsible for promoting the value of changes to
working arrangements & provide policy advice to the
government on the policy implications of changing work
structures
104 Establish a Workplace Literacy Group to
provide recommendations to Government on a new policy
framework for literacy & numeracy in the
workplace
105 Introduce a comprehensive Workplace English
Language & Literacy Development Fund to support literacy &
numeracy in the workplace
106 Introduce a “Live Wire”
initiative aimed at new businesses run by young people
107 Encourage towns & communities to participate in the
Mainstreet programme to revitalise town centres, thereby
creating employment opportunities
Broadcasting
No New
Policies
108 Establish a taskforce to investigate &
report on future funding mechanisms for TVNZ
109 Support
the growth of regional TV & conduct a review of barriers to
its development. Investigate ways of providing finance or
spectrum allocation to encourage growth
110 Reserve a FM
frequency for youth, and establish a board made up of
representatives of youth interests to allocate broadcast
times within the frequency
Energy, Transport & Fisheries
NO New Policies
111 Increase research funding
for renewable energy & energy efficiency & facilitate the
development of relevant technologies such as wind & solar
power
112 Fund energy efficiency programmes for state
houses, pensioner units, schools etc & restart the energy
saver fund to support community based energy efficiency
programmes.
113 Promote public education on energy
efficiency
114 Set up an inquiry to establish whether
there is a need to regulate distribution & transmission
companies, the robustness of the valuation & efficiency
benchmarks needed to undertake any such regulation, and an
appropriate structure for any regulatory
response.
115 Consider re-amalgamating the 3 “baby ECNZs”
& making that new company responsible for maintaining
security of generation
116 Widen the role of the Energy
Efficiency & Conservation Authority
117 Support the
progressive upgrading of electricity generation
efficiency
118 Ensure significant & ongoing investment in
roading & public passenger transport
119 Reduce black
spots & increase the number of passing lanes
120 Improve
road surfaces & trial rumble strips before sharp
corners
121 Consider new arrangements such as joint
ventures to speed up investment in alternative
routes
122 Separate opposing lanes with barriers in high
risk accident areas
123 Pilot child road safety
programmes
124 Develop driver education programmes in
schools
125 Introduce a comprehensive safety programme to
ensure that significant improvements are made to vehicle
safety
126 Introduce a spot-check requirement for the
testing of taxi drivers to ensure that drivers are not
exceeding license hours requirements & meet required
standards.
127 Increase the activity of the Commercial
Vehicle Investigation Unit
128 Establish the NZ Shipping
Industry Review team to conduct a short-term inquiry into
the future of the shipping industry.
129 Review all
aviation agencies to ensure logical & sensible developments
& the eradication of unnecessary costs.
130 Establish a
National Fisheries Advisory Council to help develop a
co-operative partnership & provide the Minister with policy
advice. (Help fund sufficient consultation to ensure all
relevant parties are able to contribute)
131 Consult
with permit holders with the aim of establishing fair
compensation.
132 Consider establishing an Oceans
Commission to bring fisheries, environment, scientific etc &
other interests together in a more holistic approach to
marine management.
ACC
No New
Policies
133 Reconstruct ACC
134 Collect & monitor a
national database of injuries
135 Resources will be
applied to ensure advocacy services are available for
injured persons should they wish to have someone act on
their behalf
136 Address the anomaly between the
entitlements of people incapacitated by illness compared
with those incapacitated by accident
137 Occupational
diseases will be explicitly recognised in ACC schedules to
shift the burden of proof in cases where workers are
employed in industries in which the diseases are
endemic
138 Reinstate cover for stress which follows a
traumatic event or which has a significant work
component
139 Move to a realistic assessment of potential
loss of earnings so that no one will be paid less than an
Invalids benefit
140 ACC will have the flexibility to pay
for actual & reasonable costs associated with an accident &
subsequent incapacity. This includes home help,
rehabilitation, related travel costs for the injured person
& immediate family. A funeral grant will also be made
available
141 Will allow private insurers the option of
applying for a buy out of their liabilities
Rural Affairs & the Sharemarket
No New Policies
142 Rebuild
the effective partnership with producer boards & continue to
support statutory boards
143 Advance agriculture by
forming active partnerships between the public and private
sectors to boost funding for new R&D, add value, push for
access to markets.
144 Provide access to funding through
the Local Economic Assistance Fund for feasibility studies
for potential water management & irrigation schemes, &
regional initiatives.
145 Support research & investment
to build expertise in diverse forestry
techniques.
146 Investigate providing a public
prosecution agency & improving monitoring & surveillance of
the sharemarket
Research & Development, & Labour Online, Small Business & Industrial Development
No New
Policies
147 Establish a Science & Innovation Advisory
Council
148 Establish national awards for excellence in
science & technology
149 Undertake science & technology
promotion through NZ on Air, careers advisory agencies
etc…
150 Promote TechNZ programmes more
effectively
151 Establish a contestable fund for science
promotion so that existing & new initiatives can bid equally
for support
152 Increase the budget for the Marsden
fund
153 Allow all R & D expenditure to be expensed in
the year of investment for tax purpose.
154 Accelerate
the depreciation regime for new capital investment in
technology
155 Establish a small business research fund &
encourage the formation of Group Research Trusts to make
recommendations to the fund for public/private
research
156 Introduce a national science & technology
information service to co-ordinate existing services & fill
the current gaps
157 Investigate establishing a Social
Services Science Research Council to direct the funding and
priority setting for social science research
158 A $ for
$ subsidy for small businesses purchasing
computers
159 Provide an arbitration regime where parties
to anti-competition disputes can have their disputes
resolved without having to go through the formal court
process
160 Provide additional resources to the Commerce
Commission
161 Achieve a unified E-Commerce-based system
of notifying purchasing requirements across all central &
local government agencies facilitated by the Industrial
Supplies Office to ensure all producers of goods & services
have access to the information needed to tender for
contracts & have the option of submitting such tenders
online.
162 Develop the “single window” electronic
service delivery option across central & local government so
that all citizens are able to deal with central & local
government online, & have access to all departments through
a “single window” via the Internet
163 Convene a
E-Commerce leaders summit to agree on an implementation
strategy to achieve objectives in E-Commerce
164 Provide
assistance through industry development programmes to assist
Small/Medium Enterprise’s to take up
E-Commerce
165 Establish a programme through Industry NZ
to attract foreign investment in areas such as technology
and R&D that will help accelerate NZ’s transition into the
knowledge economy
166 Develop a Small/Medium Enterprise
Guide to E-Commerce in partnership with local government &
the information industry
167 Establish an Office of Small
Business within Industry NZ
168 Deliver a range of
government assisted enterprise finance options to help small
businesses obtain funds they need to grow
169 Introduce a
modern Business Development Programme to be run by the Small
Business
Office
ends