Scoop has an Ethical Paywall
Work smarter with a Pro licence Learn More

Gordon Campbell | Parliament TV | Parliament Today | News Video | Crime | Employers | Housing | Immigration | Legal | Local Govt. | Maori | Welfare | Unions | Youth | Search

 

Oxfam’s Five Top Tasks for English to be a Great PM

12 December 2016

Oxfam’s Five Top Tasks for English to be a Great Prime Minister

Leading anti-poverty charity Oxfam New Zealand have highlighted five key areas Bill English must tackle if he’s going to be judged to be a successful Prime Minister of New Zealand, and tackle poverty and inequality in the Pacific and around the world.

They are:

1. Make sure that New Zealand is a good neighbour to our Pacific friends, by helping them to tackle rising sea levels and turbo-charged cyclones. Families in the Pacific are living on the frontline of climate change and they need resources to adapt to these increasing threats. But they’re just not getting adequate support from the New Zealand government right now. Solar panels are good, but not enough to battle rising tides. The new prime minster should fix that by rebalancing resources intended to tackle climate change in the Pacific so that they are adequate, effective, and reach those most in need.

2. Lead New Zealand to be a caring, decent and responsible global citizen, by allowing more refugees to make their home here. The world is in the middle of the most serious refugee crisis since the Second World War. Millions of people have been forced to flee their homes by conflict, violence, disasters and poverty. We should be helping more of these people out, and increasing the New Zealand refugee quota to 1500 will go some way to shouldering our fair share. That’s just 500 more people, who need our help, a year.

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading

Are you getting our free newsletter?

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.

3. Crack down on the dodgy multinationals who aren’t paying their way in New Zealand. The schemes and deals that allow multinationals to minimise their tax, whilst legal, should not be tolerated by the new Prime Minister. If people are to have trust in the tax system, all governments, including New Zealand, must act immediately to end tax avoidance. Bill English should also use New Zealand’s international reputation as a fair-minded country to encourage other nations to crack down on tax avoidance.

4. Show clear intent to tackle the big issues of poverty, inequality and climate change by implementing the United Nations’ sustainable development goals, and do everything possible to end child poverty in New Zealand.

5. Be a decent bloke, and buy some goats for his cabinet colleagues this Christmas.

Rachael Le Mesurier, executive director of Oxfam New Zealand, said: “If being a good neighbour, leading New Zealand to be a responsible global citizen, cracking down on tax-dodging multinationals, tackling the big issues of poverty, inequality and climate change are all on Bill English’s to-do list, then he’ll be off to a cracking start as the new Prime Minister.

“If he manages to tick them all off during his tenure, he’ll be seen as one of the great New Zealand prime ministers, a true friend of the Pacific and an internationally acclaimed politician.

“And he could kick off his stint as the PM by showing he’s a decent bloke, and buying some goats for his cabinet.”

ENDS


© Scoop Media

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading
 
 
 
Parliament Headlines | Politics Headlines | Regional Headlines


Gordon Campbell: On The US Opposition To Mortgage Interest Deductibility For Landlords


Should landlords be able to deduct the interest on the loans they take out to bankroll their property speculation? The US Senate Budget Committee and Bloomberg News don't think this is a good idea, for reasons set out below. Regardless, our coalition government has been burning through a ton of political capital by giving landlords a huge $2.9 billion tax break via interest deductibility, while still preaching the need for austerity to the disabled, and to everyone else...
More


 
 

Government: Concerns Conveyed To China Over Cyber Activity
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has confirmed New Zealand’s concerns about cyber activity have been conveyed directly to the Chinese Government. “The Prime Minister and Minister Collins have expressed concerns today about malicious cyber activity... More

ALSO:


Government: GDP Decline Reinforces Government’s Fiscal Plan

Declining GDP for the December quarter reinforces the importance of restoring fiscal discipline to public spending and driving more economic growth, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says... More

ALSO:


Government: Humanitarian Support For Gaza & West Bank

Winston Peters has announced NZ is providing a further $5M to respond to the extreme humanitarian need in Gaza and the West Bank. “The impact of the Israel-Hamas conflict on civilians is absolutely appalling," he said... More


Government: New High Court Judge Appointed

Judith Collins has announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister Jason Scott McHerron as a High Court Judge. Justice McHerron graduated from the University of Otago with a BA in English Literature in 1994 and an LLB in 1996... More

 
 
 
 
 
 

LATEST HEADLINES

  • PARLIAMENT
  • POLITICS
  • REGIONAL
 
 

InfoPages News Channels


 
 
 
 

Join Our Free Newsletter

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.