ESL News New Zealand: Recent Episodes
ESL News New Zealand
Statistics New Zealand has released data about wellbeing in Aotearoa New Zealand in 2023. This data tells us about people’s happiness or satisfaction. The people in the survey were aged 15 years and over. For many questions, people were asked to rate their experience on a scale of 0 to 10, where 0 is low and 10 is high.
Life satisfaction for most people remains high. In 2023 people reported an average overall life satisfaction score of 7.6 out of 10, a slight drop from 7.7 in 2021. However, some groups rated their life satisfaction lower than average, such as families with one parent and a child or children (7.0 out of 10) and LGBT+ people (6.9).
Family wellbeing had similar scores. The average score for family wellbeing was 7.6 out of 10, compared with 7.7 in 2021. Interestingly, migrants rated their family wellbeing more highly than people born here. 87 percent of people who arrived in New Zealand in the last five years rated their family wellbeing at 7 or higher, compared with 81 percent of long-term migrants and only 76 percent of people born in New Zealand.
People in New Zealand are generally comfortable having neighbours who are different from them. 89 percent of people said they felt comfortable or very comfortable about a new neighbour with a different ethnicity, 87 percent about a neighbour with a different religion, and 84 percent about a neighbour with a different language or a different sexual orientation.
However, more people reported that it is hard to meet everyday costs. In 2023, 39 percent of people reported that they had only just enough, or had not enough, money to meet their everyday needs. This was a slight increase from 37 percent in 2018 (there was not enough data about this in 2021 to make comparisons). 48 per cent of people said that they had gone without or cut back on fresh fruit and vegetables, up considerably from 23 percent in 2018. 28 percent of people put off going to the doctor in 2023, compared with 25 percent in 2018. 58.5 percent spent less on hobbies and other special interests, down slightly from 59.7 percent in 2018.
Other significant changes were that people reported feeling less safe in New Zealand and having less trust in institutions. 55 percent of people said they felt safe or very safe walking alone in their neighbourhood after dark, down from 59 percent in 2021. Trust in the police was the highest, at 7.4 out of 10, but it fell from 7.7 in 2021. Trust in parliament decreased the most, down to 4.9 from 5.7 in 2021. Trust in the media was the lowest, at 4.3, down from 4.7 in 2021.
Why do you think recent migrants rated their family wellbeing higher than long-term migrants and people born in New Zealand?
Vocabulary
wellbeing (sometimes spelt: well-being) – a feeling of being comfortable, healthy, and happy
LGBT+ – lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and others
work/ life balance – the number of hours you spend working compared with the number of hours you spend with family or friends, or relaxing
go without – to not have something that you usually have
cut back on – to reduce
hobbies – interests, activities that people enjoy doing in their free time
The post Wellbeing statistics from 2023 appeared first on ESL News New Zealand.
In March, the government announced that it would increase some speed limits on roads around the country, but this has met some opposition. Last week, a group of experts wrote an open letter to the Prime Minister and the Minister of Transport, urging them not to do this, for safety reasons.
The previous Labour government reduced speed limits on some state highways, and many local councils cut speed limits in towns and cities. During the election campaign, National promised to reverse these changes. Now that they are in government, they propose to keep this promise: all speed limits on roads and state highways which had been reduced since 1 January 2020 would increase again by 1 July 2025. This means that in some places, 30km/h speed limits would go back to 50km/h, and 80km/h limits would go back to 100km/h. They say that reversing these speed reductions would boost productivity and economic growth.
However, the road safety and health experts who wrote to the government last week argue that these changes are a bad idea. They say there is considerable evidence showing that when vehicles travel faster, they cause more deaths and injuries in accidents. Research shows even a 5km per hour increase in speed can double the risk of a fatal crash in urban areas. There are also increased emissions, which lead to deaths from air pollution. The experts claim that, in contrast, there is almost no evidence to show that higher speeds lead to greater productivity, because trips are sometimes only up to a minute faster. Many councils around the country also oppose the government’s proposals, mainly for two reasons. Firstly, they are concerned about road safety. Secondly, it would cost councils a lot of money to implement the new speed limits, for example, paying for new signs and road markings.
As part of the government’s plan, speed limits near schools would also increase except for drop-off and pick-up times. Drop-off times in New Zealand are usually 8-9am, and pick-up times 2.30-3.30pm. This means that streets outside a school in urban areas would have a limit of 30km/h when parents are dropping children off and picking them up, but outside these times, the limit would be 50km/h.
There is also a lot of opposition to this plan. 78% of school leaders want lower speeds around schools all the time, because children sometimes leave school at other times. They argue that it is easier for people to remember one speed limit near schools, so it improves safety. According to a survey commissioned by Waka Kotahi/ New Zealand Transport Agency, the majority of respondents want lower speed limits round schools.
We have to wait and see if the government changes its proposal after hearing these views.
Vocabulary
opposition – strong disagreement, because people have an opposite view
campaign – a series of activities that are intended to achieve a particular aim. In politics, a campaign promise is something a political party promises that they will do if they are elected.
km/h – kilometres per hour
boost – to increase or improve something
vehicles – cars or trucks
a fatal crash – a crash which results in someone’s death
urban – relating to towns and cities
emissions – gases that are sent into the air
road markings – signs painted on the road
commissioned by – requested by. To commission means to formally ask someone to write an official report (or in other contexts, to produce a painting or a piece of music)
majority – most of the people
The post Government wants changes to speed limits appeared first on ESL News New Zealand.
This week, from 14 to 21 September, is Te Wiki o te Reo Māori, or Māori Language Week. The theme this year is ‘Ake Ake Ake – A Forever Language,’ because the language has endured despite challenges in the past, and it is hoped that it will survive forever.
Aotearoa New Zealand has celebrated Māori Language Week since 1975. Three years earlier, on 14 September 1972, a group of Māori students presented the Māori Language Petition to Parliament, asking for the recognition and revitalisation of te reo Māori. The petition had over 30,000 signatures. Te Wiki o te Reo Māori is now a celebration for all New Zealanders to show their support for the language. Everyone is encouraged to speak Māori, even if it’s just saying kia ora (which means hi or hello and is informal) or tēnā koe (which means hello to one person and is formal).
There are events around the country as part of this week’s celebration. Unfortunately, the Māori Language Parade in Wellington today had to be cancelled due to heavy rain, but there is a march in Christchurch on Friday, 20 September, starting from the Bridge of Remembrance at 11.45am. There is a Māori film festival at Alice Cinema in Christchurch all week, a Kapa Haka performance at the Whangārei Central library on Wednesday at 11.15am, and a family fun afternoon with games, waiata (or songs) and shared kai (or food) at Birkdale Hall in Auckland on Saturday afternoon. Click on this link to search for events in your region.
Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori – the Māori Language Commission – have released a waiata or song to celebrate this week. It’s called Kōrero Māori, which means speak Māori, and was written in 1984 but it had never been recorded. The song encourages people to use te reo Māori at every opportunity. Click here to watch the video of the song.
This year for the first time, people could buy the Kia Kaha te Reo Māori clothing from The Warehouse. It went on sale online on Saturday and sold out in just 10 minutes. Perhaps this shows how popular Te Wiki o te Reo Māori is and how the language is treasured. Kia Kaha te Reo Māori means Be Strong, Māori language.
Vocabulary
theme – topic or main idea
endure – to remain alive for a long time
challenges – difficulties
petition – a written request signed by a lot of people, asking the government to do or change something
revitalisation – the process of making something stronger, more active or more healthy
march – when a large group of people walk together to express their ideas or to protest about something
cancel – to stop something, to decide that something official that was planned will not happen
release – in this context, release means to make the song available to the public
The post Māori Language Week appeared first on ESL News New Zealand.
Last week the data about winter was released by the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (or NIWA). It showed that winter this year was the third warmest on record.
The nationwide average temperature was 9.6° Celsius. This was 1.0° higher than the long-term average recorded between 1991 and 2020. This year there were more easterly and northeasterly winds than normal, especially over the South Island, and fewer cold southerly winds. That resulted in these warmer than average temperatures.
The highest temperature was 25.7°C, in Hastings on 10 June. That is the second-highest temperature ever recorded in winter in New Zealand. The lowest temperature was -11.8°C, recorded in Lake Tekapo on 3 August.
The six main centres in New Zealand are Auckland, Tauranga, Hamilton, Wellington, Christchurch, and Dunedin. This winter, Auckland was the warmest, Tauranga was the sunniest, Wellington was the wettest, and Christchurch was the coolest and driest. Although Dunedin was the least sunny centre, with only 322 hours of sunshine, it had its warmest winter since records began in 1947, with an average temperature of 8.7°C – but the previous warmest winter on record in Dunedin was just last year.
The weather records seem to keep breaking nowadays. Five of New Zealand’s six warmest winters have occurred since 2020, and the warmest winter ever was in 2022.
NIWA also reported that there was not much rain in June and July in many parts of the country. As a result, the hydro lake levels were lower than usual, which led to some concerns about electricity shortages. However, there was more rain in August which boosted the hydro lake levels.
The highest amount of rain in one day was 139mm, recorded at Arthur’s Pass (in Canterbury) on 9 June. The second highest amount was 126mm, on 25 June in Gisborne, which led to flooding there and in the surrounding areas, especially in Wairoa.
Vocabulary
was released – in this context, was released means official information was given out
° – the symbol for degrees
Celsius – a scale for measuring temperature. We don’t usually need to say Celsius when we talk about the temperature in everyday conversation, though.
easterly, north-easterly, southerly winds – winds that come from the east, north-east, or south
– the symbol for minus, which means less than zero
hydro lake – lake which stores water for generating hydropower
shortage – when there is not enough of something
boost – to increase or improve something
The post A very warm winter in 2024 appeared first on ESL News New Zealand.
On Friday, 30 August, the Māori king, Kiingi Tuheitia, died peacefully in hospital, aged 69. He was recovering from planned heart surgery.
Although the king had had health problems, including cancer and diabetes, his death was unexpected, especially because he had celebrated the 18th anniversary of his coronation only a few days before. Now, he is lying in state at Turangawaewae Marae in Ngāruawāhia, which is north of Hamilton. Thousands of people are going there to pay their respects, including people from various iwi from all around the country, the Governor-General, leaders of New Zealand’s political parties, and leaders from the Pacific Islands. The tangihanga, or funeral, will continue until Thursday, when he will be taken to Taupiri Mountain, where the kings and queens of the Kiingitanga are buried. The flags on all government and public buildings around New Zealand are now flying at half-mast, to mark his death.
Kiingi Tuheitia became king in August 2006, after the death of his mother. He was the seventh monarch since the Kiingitanga movement was founded in 1858. This movement wanted to unite many tribes so that they could stop the sale of land to Pākehā, stop fighting between Māori, and to maintain Māori culture. The Kiingitanga movement remains influential. Earlier this year, the king called a meeting to discuss the government’s proposals around Te Tiriti o Waitangi (the Treaty of Waitangi) and te reo Māori (the Māori language), and around 10,000 people came to the meeting.
Unlike royal families in other countries, we do not know yet who will be the next monarch. The Kiingitanga is an elective monarchy, so the leaders from different iwi will meet in the next couple of days to choose the next king or queen from the monarch’s whānau (or family). The new monarch will be crowned on the final day of the tangi.
Vocabulary
surgery –an operation
coronation – a ceremony when someone is officially made king or queen
lying in state – after an important person dies, their body is in a public place
at half-mast – if a flag is flying at half-mast, the flag is raised to halfway up the pole to show respect and sadness for someone who has died
monarch – a king or queen
elective – chosen by election. In this case, a group of Māori leaders choose the next monarch
to be crowned – (passive) when someone puts a crown on the head of a new king or queen in a ceremony
Many Maori words are used in New Zealand English:
marae – a meeting place
iwi – tribe
tangihanga or tangi – funeral
Pākehā – a European New Zealander
reo – language
whānau – family
The post The death of Kiingi Tuheitia, the Māori King appeared first on ESL News New Zealand.
Research published last week shows that more children cannot speak well when they start school, and it may be because of Covid-19 and too much time spent on screens.
The research, which was published by the Education Review Office, showed that 80 percent of children at age 5 are developing oral language well, but 20 percent are struggling with it. Teachers of new-entrant classes reported that some children cannot speak in sentences of more than four or five words. These children are not able to communicate their needs and are not used to having conversations. They also have difficulty understanding what teachers say to them.
These problems are particularly common in poorer neighbourhoods. 27 percent of teachers in lower socio-economic communities reported that most children in their new entrant classes are below the expected level of oral language, compared with just 3 percent of new entrant teachers in schools in higher socio-economic communities.
The report said that Covid-19 has had a significant impact. It limited children’s interaction with others, so they had fewer opportunities to speak and develop oral language. Many children did not go to pre-school because of Covid-19, which also limited their learning. 65 percent of new entrant teachers reported that Covid-19 has impacted children’s language development. This finding is similar to other research overseas, such as in the United Kingdom.
Another reason for children’s low oral skills is too much time on screens. This reduces interactions with adults at home, so there are fewer extended conversations between children and their parents and family. They also read books less often, but reading helps children to learn language.
It is interesting to note that the report did not find any significant problems for children who learn more than one language. If children speak another language at home, their English may appear to be below that of other children, but they soon catch up.
Vocabulary
published – in this context, made available to the public
screens – devices such as smartphones, laptops and computers
oral – spoken, not written
new entrant – in New Zealand, new entrants are children who start school, usually at age 5
socio-economic – a combination of social and economic factors
extended – long, or longer than usual
The post Children starting school with low speaking skills appeared first on ESL News New Zealand.
The Paralympics start in Paris this Wednesday, 28 August (or Thursday 29 August in New Zealand). The Paralympics are for athletes with disabilities. New Zealand has 25 athletes going to these games, competing in eight para sports, including para swimming, para cycling, and para athletics.
You can watch the Paralympics live on TVNZ+, or each evening on TVNZ1, from 29 August to 9 September.
Vocabulary
disability – a physical or mental condition, which makes it difficult for someone to do some things that most people can do (Notice the prefix dis-, which shows an opposite or negative, and the word ability)
The post Paralympics appeared first on ESL News New Zealand.
Last week the company that uses the most gas in New Zealand, Methanex, announced that it is shutting its plant until the end of October. As a result, it can sell the gas to two power companies, Contact Energy and Genesis Energy. This is good news, as there were concerns about lack of gas for the rest of winter and spring, which could have led to electricity shortages.
New Zealand relies a lot on renewable electricity production, from hydropower, geothermal power and increasingly from wind and solar energy. However, sometimes there is not enough electricity from these sources. For example, at the moment the hydro lake levels are low, at just 46 percent of the average for this time of year, because of a lack of rain. Consequently, at these times, gas and coal need to be used to generate electricity. Genesis Energy uses gas and coal at the Huntly power station, in the Waikato region, and Contact Energy has a gas-fired station at Stratford, in Taranaki.
The agreement between Methanex and these two power companies means that there is enough gas to run the Huntly power station at full capacity until spring as well as the station at Stratford. However, this is only a temporary solution, as Methanex wants to re-open their plant in a few months.
There is a problem with gas supplies in New Zealand. Not as much extra gas has been discovered in recent years, so perhaps there is less gas than was previously thought. Perhaps the country is running out of gas. If that happens, the companies may need to use more coal when there is not enough generation from wind, hydro and solar sources. But both gas and coal contribute to carbon emissions, so that is not good for New Zealand’s target of reducing emissions.
The previous government banned new oil and gas exploration, but the current government wants to reverse that ban. However, it is not clear if any companies would invest in new gas fields, and even if they did, it could take ten years or more to get a reliable supply from those new fields. But it also takes time to build wind and solar farms, and there will still be times when there is not enough wind or sun. Research into how to store wind and solar energy is needed, and perhaps all forms of electricity generation are needed to cope with increased demand from a growing population.
There is no easy solution for this complex problem.
Listen to Possible power shortages from May to hear about other problems in this sector.
Vocabulary
announce – to officially tell people something, especially a plan or decision
shortage – when there is not enough of something
renewable energy – energy that is replaced easily (notice the prefix re- = again, and the suffix -able)
hydro – relating to water
geothermal – relating to heat coming from inside the Earth
solar – relating to the sun
generate – to produce
carbon emissions – the release of carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere
ban – to say that something must not be done
cope with – to succeed in dealing with a difficult problem or situation
The post Gas and electricity in NZ appeared first on ESL News New Zealand.
The Paris Olympics finished today with the closing ceremony. New Zealand won 20 medals, which is the same number as from Tokyo 2020. However, this time New Zealand won more gold medals than in Tokyo – 10, compared with 7 in 2020.
The gold medals were won in several different sports, including women’s rugby sevens, women’s double rowing, men’s high jump, and women’s golf. Lisa Carrington won three gold medals in women’s kayak singles, doubles and fours. She is now New Zealand’s most successful Olympian, having won one bronze and five gold medals at the 2012, 2016 and 2020 Olympics. Alicia Hoskin won two gold medals, with Lisa Carrington in the kayak doubles and fours, and Ellesse Andrews won two in different cycling events.
The New Zealand team won seven silver and three bronze medals, including in rowing, cycling and sailing.
New Zealand finished 11th on the medal table, between Germany and Canada. However, some people think that does not reflect our success, given our small population. A New Zealand computer scientist created a website called Medals Per Capita, which shows a medal table based on population. In that table, New Zealand comes fourth at the Paris Olympics, with around 267,000 people per medal.
The next Olympics will be held in Los Angeles in 2028. Next, though, there are the Paralympics, which start on Wednesday 28 August in Paris. The Paralympics are for athletes with disabilities. New Zealand has 25 athletes going to these games, competing in eight para sports, including para swimming, para cycling, and para athletics.
Vocabulary
kayak – a long, light boat that is pointed at both ends
bronze (medal) – the medal given to the athlete who came third
per capita – per head of population, or per person
disability – a physical or mental condition, which makes it difficult for someone to do some things that most people can do (Notice the prefix dis-, which shows an opposite or negative, and the word ability)
The post Olympics results appeared first on ESL News New Zealand.
This week, 4-10 August, is Cook Islands Māori week. Cook Islands Māori is related to New Zealand Māori but is a separate language. There are many events around the country to celebrate this language and promote its use in New Zealand.
The official opening ceremony was held today in Auckland, and the official closing ceremony will be in Porirua on Saturday. Some of the other events include a film night in Dunedin on Tuesday, a Culture Dancing Night in Christchurch on Wednesday, and a language class to learn numbers in Porirua and a karaoke with Cook Island songs in Hamilton on Thursday. For more specific information, use this link to look at the list of events.
According to the 2018 Census, there were 80,532 people who identified as Cook Islands Māori living in New Zealand. Many people from other Pacific Islands live here as well. New Zealand has one of the largest Pacific Islander populations in the world, making up over 8% of the population. However, use of the languages is declining. For example, Cook Islands Māori is one of the Pacific Languages at risk of disappearing, and only 9% of Cook Islanders living here can speak the language. Because of this, Pacific Language Weeks are organised to help people to maintain their own language and culture.
There are ten other Pacific Language Weeks in New Zealand this year. The language weeks for Rotuman and Samoan were in May and that for Kiribati was in July. Tonga’s language week is later in August, Tuvalu’s is at the end of September, and Fiji’s, Niue’s and Tokelau’s are in October. Two new languages are included this year, Solomon Islands Pidgin and Papua New Guinea Tok Pisin, in November. If you want to see the exact dates, go to the Ministry for Pacific People’s website.
Vocabulary
to celebrate – to show that something is special
to promote – to help something to develop
to identify as – to say that you belong to a category or group
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Many people around the world know the haka, the traditional Māori dance, because the All Blacks perform it before the start of their rugby games. Other New Zealand sports teams also perform the haka when they travel overseas.
However, the world record for the largest haka is not currently held by New Zealand. France claimed the world record in 2014 with a group of 4,028 people. There have been two attempts to break the record, in Masterton in 2016 with 6,000 people, and in Rotorua in 2017 with 7,700 people, but neither of these attempts were officially recognized by Guinness World Records.
Consequently, it was announced last week that there is going to be another record attempt at Eden Park in Auckland on 29 September. Although there needs to be only 4,029 people to break the record, the organisers are aiming to have 10,000 people. They say that anyone can take part, for a small fee, and beginners are welcome to join in. It will even be possible to participate online.
This attempt is being organised by Dame Hinewehi Mohi, who argues that the haka is unique to Aotearoa New Zealand and so it is important to bring the world record back here. The attempt will also raise money for the music therapy centre that she founded. Music therapy uses music to help people with special needs. The centre is a charity and is celebrating its 20th anniversary, but it needs to raise money, especially in the current cost-of-living crisis when many people cannot donate as much.
Dame Hinewehi is a musician, producer, and te reo Māori advocate. She is also famous for being the first person to sing New Zealand’s national anthem in Māori, at the opening game of the 1999 Rugby World Cup.
Click on this link if you’d like to find out more about the haka record attempt.
Click on this link to watch the world record attempt in Rotorua in 2017.
Vocabulary
unique – if something is unique, it is the only one of its kind
to found – to start an organisation or company
to donate – to give money to an organisation
advocate – someone who publicly supports something or someone
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The Paris Olympics start soon, on 27 July. New Zealand is sending a team of 195 athletes to the Games. There are 98 men and 97 women. 34 athletes (or 17.4 percent of the team) are Māori, and others come from a wide range of cultural backgrounds, such as Samoan, Tongan, Australian, Chinese, and Indian – but they are all New Zealanders. The youngest is Milly Clegg, in the football team, who is just 18 years old. The oldest team member is an equestrian, or horse-rider, Tim Price, who is 45 years old.
101 of the athletes are competing at the Olympics for the first time, while the other 94 have already been to at least one Olympics. They will compete in 23 sports, including canoe/ kayak, rowing, athletics, swimming, cycling, rugby sevens, and football. There is a new Olympic sport this year, breaking (or breakdancing), but there is no New Zealander competing in that sport.
At the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, New Zealand won 20 medals in total, including seven gold medals. This was the highest number of medals New Zealand has ever won at an Olympic Games. We have to wait and see how many medals the team will win this year.
If you want to watch the 2024 Olympics, you can watch them on Sky. There will be 12 channels for the Games. Some events will be on Sky Open, which is free-to-air. That means you don’t need a subscription to Sky for that channel.
Vocabulary
athlete – someone who competes in sport competitions
equestrian (noun) – someone who rides horses or competes in equestrian sports
equestrian (adj) – relating to horses
canoe/ kayak – a long, light boat that is pointed at both ends
athletics – sports such as running, high jump, and long jump
subscription – an amount of money you pay regularly for a service, for example, for a streaming service
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On 24 June, the government announced extra funding for cancer drugs. The funding is $604 million over four years, which will cover up to 54 medicines, including 26 cancer drugs. The money goes to Pharmac, who decides which medicines to fund and who manages the budget for those medicines.
Some of the new cancer drugs should be available from October or November, but others might not be available until next year. The Health Minister, Dr Shane Reti, said that this will benefit about 175,000 people in the first year.
National promised to fund 13 cancer drugs before the election, but that was not included in this year’s Budget. Listen to Funding for cancer drugs to hear more about this story.
Vocabulary
announce – to officially tell people something, especially a plan or decision
budget (small b) – the money that an organisation or person has
Budget (capital B) – an official statement from the government about how much income it has and how much it will spend
The post Update on funding for cancer drugs appeared first on ESL News New Zealand.
Scams have become a serious problem in recent years, so a website in New Zealand now has information in several languages to help non-English speakers.
Many organisations, including banks, travel websites, and New Zealand Post, are reporting an increase in the number of scams. For example, you may receive a text, email or phone call saying that a parcel is on its way, but you need to update information or pay by clicking on a link. The link is not safe, however. The scammers are trying to gain access to your personal information or to get money from you.
Some scams appear to target specific communities. In June there were reports of an investment scam aimed at the Chinese community in New Zealand, where contact was made on WeChat or Telegram. Police were investigating two cases where people lost millions of dollars. Also, in November last year, there were more than 400 reports of immigration scams targeting Chinese visa holders.
The Computer Emergency Response Team (or CERT) NZ website has advice about how to protect yourself online, which is now available in te reo Māori, Chinese, Korean, Hindi, Punjabi, Samoan and Tongan. The main advice is to use long, strong and unique passwords – that is, passwords with a mix of numbers, words and symbols – and to turn on two-factor authentication for your accounts – that means doing an extra step when you log in, such as entering a code which is texted to your phone.
A general piece of advice is also “If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is”. That means, if something sounds unbelievable or surprising, you should not believe it immediately but should stop and think. For example, if someone phones you to say you’ve won $5 million dollars, but you didn’t buy a lottery ticket, don’t believe them or give them any information.
Use this link to read the information on CERT NZ.
Vocabulary
cyber – relating to computers and the internet
scam – a dishonest way of making money, an illegal trick
scammer – someone who organises a scam lottery – a game used to raise money. People buy tickets with numbers on them, and if their numbers are picked by chance, they win money
lottery – a game used to raise money. People buy tickets with numbers on them, and if their numbers are picked by chance, they win money or prizes
The post Cyber safety information available in several languages appeared first on ESL News New Zealand.
A recent report from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment explored the changing demand for electricity and found that more wind and solar power will be the cheapest way to meet that demand.
As more New Zealanders adopt electric vehicles, electric heating, and other electric replacements for fossil fuels, demand for electricity will increase. Commerce and industry will also contribute to growing demand, as will new data centres built in New Zealand by major computing companies.
The Ministry stated that this new demand will probably be met by building more wind and solar power as well as some new hydro and geothermal plants. As a result, it expects that by 2035, 92 percent of New Zealand’s electricity generation would be from renewable sources, that is, hydro, wind, solar and geothermal. Then by 2050, that could increase to 96 percent or even 98 percent. Currently, just over 80% of electricity generated here comes from renewable sources.
However, the report stated that gas will still be used in the future, particularly when supply of electricity is lower than needed. It is therefore likely that more gas power plants will also be built. Another factor that may affect the level of renewable generation is the use of coal at the Huntly Power Station. Genesis Energy, the company that runs this station, have said they expect to reduce the amount of coal they use, but it depends on demand.
This report, called the Electricity Demand and Generation Scenarios, will be used by the Commerce Commission when it decides whether to approve Transpower’s plans for major investments in the electricity transmission grid. The previous report was from 2019.
Listen to Possible Power Shortages for more information about electricity in New Zealand.
Vocabulary
solar – relating to the sun
fossil fuels – fuels such as coal or oil
commerce – buying and selling of goods and services
hydro – relating to water
geothermal – relating to heat coming from inside the Earth
electricity or power generation – the process of producing electricity
The post More wind and solar energy needed appeared first on ESL News New Zealand.
The 2023 Census shows us some interesting information about which places in New Zealand have grown since the 2018 Census. The Census looked at regional council areas (which are quite large) as well as city or district councils.
The region with the highest growth in the country was Tasman, in the South Island, with a population increase of 10.3 percent from the 2018 Census. Another region in the South Island with a large change in population was Canterbury, where it grew from just under 600,000 to just over 650,000, or an increase of 8.6%. The fastest growing regions in the North Island were Northland, Waikato, and the Bay of Plenty. The population in Waikato rose from just over 450,000 in 2018 to just under 500,000 in 2023, or an increase of 8.9 percent. The populations in both Northland and the Bay of Plenty increased by 8.3%.
Looking at the smaller council areas, Selwyn district and Queenstown-Lakes district grew the most, with rises of 29 percent and 22.1 percent respectively. The main centres did not see such a significant change. Tauranga city grew by 11.5 percent, Hamilton city by 8.6 percent, and Christchurch city by 6.1 percent. Auckland’s growth rate halved in comparison to the previous Census, from 11 percent in 2018 to 5.4 percent in 2023. Dunedin city and Invercargill city grew by only 2.1 and 2.6 percent respectively. The population of Wellington city saw 0 percent growth, and in fact declined by 48 people, though the neighbouring cities of Lower Hutt, Upper Hutt and Porirua grew by 2.9, 4, and 5.1 percent respectively.
It is possible that these changes were due to higher costs in cities. Houses were expensive to buy, and rents rose, so some people may have moved to the outskirts of cities or neighbouring areas where living costs may be lower. In addition, if people can work from home or want a different lifestyle, they may prefer to live in beautiful scenic areas such as Queenstown or Tasman.
Here is a link to some maps of the North Island and the South Island, if you would like to see where these regions are.
Vocabulary
halve (verb) – to decrease by a half
outskirts – the parts of a city or town that are furthest from the centre
scenic (adjective) – surrounded by views of beautiful countryside
lifestyle – the way someone lives, including where they live, what kind of work they do, and what kinds of activities they do
The post More Census information appeared first on ESL News New Zealand.
This Friday, 28 June, is the public holiday for Matariki, the Māori New Year. This is when the group of nine stars called Matariki, also known as Pleiades, rises. For Māori this is an important time to remember the past, celebrate the present and look forward to the future. Remembering the past includes honouring those who have died since the last rising of Matariki. Celebrating the present involves sharing food and giving thanks for what we have. Looking forward to the future includes planning for the year ahead, especially planting crops.
Matariki became a public holiday in 2022. The date changes every year because it follows the Māori lunar calendar, but it is always a Friday. The emphasis is on people spending time with whānau (family), perhaps travelling back to their hometown, or going away for the weekend together. When the Matariki holiday was introduced, the government said that they hoped it would not lead to commercialisation, or a lot of shopping, but rather keep the principles of whānau and community. There are many events organised in cities and towns around the country which everyone can join in. However, most councils have decided not to have firework displays, as Māori focus on the stars and the environment at this time, and fireworks distract from the stars.
The theme for 2024 is Matariki heri kai, or the feast of Matariki. Food is an important part of Matariki, both preparing food to share together and planning for the next year’s crops.
If you want more listening practice, go to Matariki from 2013.
Vocabulary
celebrate – do something special or enjoyable for an event or day
honour (verb) – to show respect for someone
lunar – relating to the moon
commercialisation – the act of using something to make money (this word is often used to show disapproval)
The post Matariki appeared first on ESL News New Zealand.
The government announced its first Budget on 30 May, but funding for some new drugs for cancer was not included.
Before the election last year, the National Party promised that if they won the election, they would fund 13 drugs for cancer that are not subsidised in New Zealand. They said then that these drugs were funded in Australia and as a result, survival rates for cancer in Australia were higher than in New Zealand. The drugs are for several types of cancer, including lung, liver and skin cancers. The National Party said they could fund these drugs if they restricted free prescriptions to elderly people and those on low incomes. The previous Labour government made prescriptions free for everyone.
However, in the Budget there was no funding for the cancer drugs. Prescription fees for most people will return on 1 July, and the money saved from this change will go to Pharmac, which is the organisation who decides which medicines are funded in New Zealand. But this money is not going to fund the 13 cancer drugs. The Finance Minister, Nicola Willis, said it was not possible to fund them in this Budget, but that the government is still committed to doing it in the future. The Prime Minister, Christopher Luxon, has said they will make an announcement as soon as possible.
Many people with cancer are very disappointed about the lack of funding for drugs that they need. Some of them pay for the drugs themselves now, but they are very expensive. One person said she pays $5,500 per month for the drugs she needs, and another pays $8500 every two weeks. They use their savings, are helped by family and friends, and sometimes raise money through public fundraising such as Givealittle pages. Doctors and organisations are also shocked that the funding was not in the Budget. A group including the Cancer Society wrote an open letter to the Prime Minister, the Finance Minister, and the Associate Health Minister, David Seymour, to urge them to keep their promise and fund the drugs urgently.
Vocabulary
Budget – an official statement from the government about how much income it has and how much it will spend
subsidise – to pay part of the cost of something
prescription – medicine or treatment ordered by a doctor
fundraising – collecting money for a specific purpose
The post Funding for cancer drugs appeared first on ESL News New Zealand.
The first results of the Census were released at the end of May, and they show some interesting changes in New Zealand.
According to the Census, the population was 4,993,923. This is an increase of about 295,000, or 6.3%, since the previous Census in 2018. The population growth rate has slowed, however – it was 10.8% between the 2013 and 2018 Censuses. This drop is due to a fall in migration due to the Covid19 pandemic and a lower fertility rate.
New Zealand has a more diverse population now. People who identify as European or Pākehā make up 67.8 percent, Māori 17.8 percent, Pasifika 8.9 percent, people of Asian ethnicities 17.3 percent, and those from other backgrounds, including Middle Eastern, Latin American and African, make up 3 percent. The percentages of those identifying as Māori, Pasifika and Asian have all increased since the 2018 Census (16.5%, 8.1% and 15.1% respectively), whereas the percentage identifying as European or Pākehā has dropped (from 70.2%). Note that the percentages do not add up to 100%, because some people selected more than one ethnicity.
The population is continuing to age: the median age is now 38.1, up from 37.4 in 2018. That means that half the population are younger than 38.1, and half are older. Auckland and Gisborne regions had the youngest median age, 35.9 and 36.7 years respectively, whereas West Coast and Tasman regions had the oldest median age, 48.1 and 46.8 years respectively. The median age of Māori increased from 26 years in the 2018 Census to 27.2 years in 2023.
If you’d like to learn more about New Zealand’s population in the past, listen to New Zealand people are diverse, Cultural diversity, and Māori population, from 2014, based on the 2013 Census.
Vocabulary
census – an official process of counting a country’s population and collecting information about the people
fertility rate – average number of children born to women over their lifetime
ethnicity – the fact of belonging to a particular ethnic group (= a group of people that share a cultural tradition)
median – the middle number in a set of numbers that have been arranged in order
The post Census 2023 results appeared first on ESL News New Zealand.
Audio will be uploaded as soon as some technical problems are solved! Apologies for the delay
It is only May which is still autumn, but winter illnesses are already causing problems for schools. Many teachers are sick and there are sometimes not enough relief teachers to cover for them.
Yesterday Timaru’s South School closed for the day because ten of its staff were sick and there was only one reliever available. Similarly, there were four teachers sick at Nelson Intermediate but only three relievers could be found, so students from one class were sent to other classes. Other schools in Nelson also had a lot of teachers away sick: three of the seven teachers at Hampden Street School tested positive for Covid, and 20 of Nayland College’s 100 teachers were sick on Monday. Cromwell College in Otago rostered year 12 students home on Monday as there were so many staff away unwell. Last Thursday Mt Cook School in Wellington asked parents to keep their children at home because half of its teachers were sick with Covid and there were not enough relievers.
Doctors around the country are reporting a rise in rates of winter illnesses, including flu and Covid19. Rates of calls to Healthline for flu-like illness increased in the week ending 12 May, although this was below the rate at the same time last year. For Covid19, there were 6146 cases reported in the week ending 19 May, up from 3922 the previous week. However, this is only the number of cases who have reported the result of the RAT test, so the number may in fact be higher. There were 242 people in hospital, up from 152 people the week earlier. Another illness circulating at the moment is RSV, which is like a cold but can be very serious for babies, young children and older adults.
It is still recommended that people who feel unwell test for Covid19. If the test is positive, Health New Zealand recommends that people isolate for at least five days, even if their symptoms are mild. It also recommends that those who have a cold or flu should rest at home and drink plenty of fluids.
Vocabulary
relief teacher/ reliever – a teacher who replaces another teacher who is sick or
roster … home – if students are rostered home, their year group is told not to come to school on a specific day
circulating – going around
RSV – respiratory syncytial virus. Note: a respiratory virus affects breathing or your lungs
symptom – something wrong with your body or mind that shows you have an illness
fluids – drinks such as water or juice
The post Schools and winter illnesses appeared first on ESL News New Zealand.
At the end of last week there were warnings about possible electricity shortages, and there may be more such warnings through winter.
Transpower operate the national grid which supplies electricity. It issued a warning last Thursday that there may not be enough electricity between 7am and 9am on Friday, and asked households and businesses to conserve electricity. One reason for this problem was that the weather was unusually cold for May, so demand for heating was higher than normal. At the same time, some of the lines companies were doing maintenance on their power plants, which had already been planned as they didn’t expect high demand at this time of year. They needed to do this maintenance before winter really starts. Another reason was that there was less electricity generated by wind than usual. All of these factors combined to create a risk of insufficient electricity supply on Friday morning. Consequently, Transpower asked people to help by turning off heaters and lights in unused rooms, waiting to use appliances such as washing machines, and not charging devices and cars, for two hours.
Fortunately, there were no power cuts on Friday. Transpower thanked households and businesses for reducing their usage. It said New Zealanders saved the equivalent of Hamilton City’s typical electricity use that morning, so it was an amazing response. This was particularly impressive because it was very cold in some places: Christchurch recorded -6.3 degrees, Palmerston North was -3.1 degrees, and even Auckland was only 4 degrees.
However, it is possible that there may be similar warnings in future. Because New Zealand relies on renewable sources such as wind and hydropower, there may be times when there is not enough electricity generated to meet demand in cold weather. In addition, we need more electricity now because people need to charge electric vehicles, and because some companies are building large data centres in New Zealand which use a lot of power.
There has been a problem with a shortage of electricity recently in New Zealand. In 2021, almost 34,000 households lost power on one of the coldest nights of the year, as there was not enough supply for the large increase in demand. Transpower was fined $150,000 for its role in this power cut, because a report found that it did not manage the supply or communicate with power companies appropriately.
Vocabulary
warning – a statement that something bad might happen, so that you can be ready for it
shortage – when there is not enough of something
grid – the network of electricity supply wires
household – all the people who live together in a house
conserve – to use as little of something as possible
data centre – a large group of networked computers which store and process large amounts of data
The post Possible power shortages appeared first on ESL News New Zealand.
This week, 6-12 May, is NZSL Week. NZSL stands for New Zealand Sign Language, one of our two official languages. The other official language is te reo Māori.
NZSL became an official language in 2006 under the New Zealand Sign Language Act. The purpose of the Act was to recognise NZSL in society and to ensure that the Deaf community could use it in courts. Since 2006 NZSL has become more visible – for example, there are sign language interpreters during press conferences for government announcements. NZSL Week was first celebrated in 2007. It aims to raise awareness of the language and to encourage the Deaf community to be proud of their identity and culture.
Yesterday, on the first day of NZSL Week this year, cabin crew on an Air New Zealand flight used NZSL for the first time for safety announcements and food and drink services. Passengers were encouraged to try to use NZSL, with cards showing the signs for ‘water’, ‘cookie’, and ‘lolly’ placed on seats. Some of the passengers on the flight from Auckland to Wellington were members of the Deaf community who were going to attend the NZSL Awards at Parliament. They reported feeling included and happy to see their language being used. Air New Zealand says that they have been working hard to encourage more employees to use NZSL. The airline worked with the national organisation Deaf Aotearoa to develop a training module with 30 travel-related signs. Now, around 400 Air New Zealand staff have completed the module, and they wear a special pin on their uniform to show that they have learned these signs.
The theme for this year’s NZSL Week is ‘an Aotearoa where anyone can sign anywhere’. If you want to learn some NZSL, look at the information and resources at nzslweek.org.nz
If you want to listen to earlier posts about NZSL week, listen to NZ Sign Language Week from 2016.
Vocabulary
cabin crew – the people who look after passengers in a plane
cookie – another word for a biscuit
lolly – a hard sweet made of boiled sugar. Air New Zealand usually offers lollies near the end of a flight
module – a unit of study or training
Term 2 started for schools yesterday, Monday 29 April, and there is a new rule this term – students cannot use a cell phone during classes or at breaks or lunchtime. This ban was introduced by the government after the National Party promised it during the election campaign last year. Sometimes the ban is called ‘away for the day’, because students have to put their phones away, for example, in their bags, during the school day.
The aim of this ban is to remove the distractions caused by students using their phones in class. The National Party said banning cell phone use at school would help to raise achievement levels and support students to concentrate on learning. Other countries such as Italy, China, and Australia have also banned phones either during class or completely at school. The ban in New Zealand includes breaks and lunchtime to encourage students to socialise with each other face-to-face, and to play games or read a book.
There are a few exceptions to the ban, though. Students can have access to their phones if they need one to monitor a health condition, or to help them with a disability or learning support need. Teachers may also ask students to use their phones for a specific task or assignment.
Many schools adopted the policy at the beginning of this school year, if they hadn’t already developed their own policy before that. Some principals and teachers report that it is successful, as students are less distracted in class and so can concentrate better on their study. While many students say they do not want to be without their phones, some also say they are getting used to it. On the other hand, some principals think banning cell phones completely is not practical as it is difficult to enforce at breaks and lunchtime, especially in a very large school. The principal of Wellington High School said he believes that breaks are the students’ own time, and teachers should not have to monitor what students are doing throughout breaks. However, the Minister of Education, Erica Stanford, says that the government expects all schools to follow this new regulation, and that the Education Review Office (ERO) will visit those schools which do not.
It is up to schools to decide what to do if a student is caught using their phone when they should not be. If parents need to get a message to their child during school hours, they now have to contact the school office.
Vocabulary
ban – an official order that prevents something from being used or done
election campaign – a series of planned activities to encourage people to vote for a political party
distraction – something that stops you paying attention to what you are doing
distract – to take your attention away from something
socialise – to spend time with people in a friendly way
25 April is Anzac Day, the day we remember people who have served in the armed forces for New Zealand. ANZAC means Australia and New Zealand Army Corps.
At dawn on 25 April 1915 New Zealand and Australian soldiers landed on the beaches at Gallipoli in Turkey. The Turkish army defended the area and the fighting lasted for 8 months. In total, 2779 New Zealand soldiers died, along with more than 8700 Australians. Thousands more were injured.
The first Anzac Day memorial service was held in 1916 and it became an official public holiday in 1920. It is now an important day to remember the soldiers who fought in World Wars One and Two, and in other wars since.
On Anzac Day there are dawn services in cities and towns around the country. Former and current service men and women march to their local war memorial, where they are joined by the public. The short service includes prayers, songs, and a minute’s silence to remember those who died. Later in the day there are other services where people give speeches and lay wreaths at war memorials. These services have become very popular in recent decades, with thousands of people attending them. This may be because they want to remember family members who were involved in a war. Another reason may be that people are grateful for what others did during war and want to honour them. Everyone wants to share their sorrow at the loss of life in war and hope for peace.
In New Zealand people wear red poppies before and on Anzac Day, whereas in other countries they wear them on Remembrance Day, 11 November. Poppies are used for fundraising for the RSA (Returned and Services Association) who support former and current service men and women and their families.
Listen to Anzac Day 2015 for more information about this day, or type Anzac in the search box to hear other posts.
Vocabulary
Corps – a special group of soldiers
sorrow – a feeling of great sadness
dawn – the time when light first appears at the beginning of the day
wreath – a circle made of leaves and flowers (see image below)
fundraising – collecting money for a specific purpose
Images
red poppy
Anzac poppy, late 2000s, New Zealand, by Royal New Zealand Returned and Services’ Association. Gift of an anonymous donor, 2011. CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. Te Papa (GH021294) Image from Te Papa https://collections.tepapa.govt.nz/object/1161315 A former serviceman and a current serviceman at a wreath-laying service in Hamilton, 2010. Image from Te Ara https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/32475/laying-wreaths-at-the-cenotaph
According to the New Zealand Health Survey, smoking rates are continuing to decline. In 2011/2012, the rate of daily smoking among New Zealanders aged 15 years or over was 16.4%, but that dropped to 8.6% in 2021/2022, and fell again, to 6.8%, in 2022/23. One probable reason for this decrease is the high price of cigarettes in New Zealand. The cost of a packet of cigarettes rises every year, as part of the government’s efforts to reduce smoking rates. The current price of a pack of 20 cigarettes is between $34 and $45. Other likely reasons for the decline in smoking rates include the creation of programmes which help people quit smoking, and an almost complete ban on tobacco advertising.
The previous government passed a law to create a smokefree generation of New Zealanders. This law banned the sale of tobacco to anyone born after 1 January 2009, reduced the number of outlets able to sell tobacco from 6000 to 600, and removed 95 percent of nicotine from cigarettes. However, on 28 February the new government scrapped this law, because it would reduce income from taxes on cigarettes, and the government needs that income to fund tax cuts. Health experts are very disappointed with this change, but the Health Minister says the government is still focussed on reducing smoking rates, although it wants a different approach to achieve that goal.
Vaping is used as an alternative to cigarettes to help people stop smoking. However, there are now concerns about the number of young people who have never smoked but who regularly use vapes. The New Zealand Health survey data shows that the daily vaping rate of teenagers aged between 15 and 17 years old has almost doubled from 8.3% in 2021/2022 to 15.4% in 2022/2023. In March the government announced that single-use vapes will be banned by the end of 2024, as part of a plan to reduce youth vaping. Other measures in the plan include higher fines, of up to $100,000, for selling vapes to under 18-year-olds. The requirement for reusable vapes to have removable batteries and other ways to stop children using them was going to come into effect in March, but this has been delayed until October. The government said they needed more time to check some aspects of this requirement, but critics say that the government is not acting fast enough to protect children.
Vocabulary
quit – to stop doing something
outlets – in this context, places which could sell cigarettes, such as supermarkets and dairies
vapes – e-cigarettes
come into effect – if a law or rule comes into effect, it officially starts
On Friday 5 April thousands of students left school and university to protest for more action on climate change. They were joined by adults and young children who support their goals.
The protests were held in 20 cities and towns around New Zealand, including Whangārei, Auckland, Gisborne, Wellington, Nelson, Christchurch, Dunedin, Wānaka and Invercargill. The organisers, School Strike 4 Climate, said their aim was to “raise awareness about the urgent need for climate action and to demand meaningful policy changes to combat the climate crisis”. That means that they want people to understand the problems that climate change is causing, and they want the government to develop plans to reduce emissions.
The students are particularly concerned about some of the government’s new policies, including the promise to allow oil and gas exploration again, and the proposed new Fast Track Approval bill which is currently going through Parliament. This new law would speed up approval of infrastructure and development projects, if they are of national or regional significance. However, government ministers would make the final decisions, and many environmental groups are concerned that these ministers may ignore environmental protections because they want to develop the economy.
This protest was not only about climate change though. School Strike 4 Climate joined with two other organisations, Toitū Te Tiriti and Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa, so they had two other demands – toitū Te Tiriti or honour the Treaty of Waitangi, and to “free Palestine” and stop the war in Gaza. The students also want the voting age to be lowered to 16. Currently, only people who are 18 and over can vote in New Zealand, but 16 and 17-year-olds say that they are affected by government decisions, so they want a say in choosing the government.
Students who left school to go to the protests missed some classes. Schools keep records of students’ attendance, and absences are noted as either ‘justified’ (that is, the student had a good reason to be absent), or ‘unjustified’. The Secondary Principals’ Association president said that it is up to schools to decide if absence from school to go to the climate strike was justified or not. David Seymour, the leader of the ACT party and the Associate Education Minister, said that students should have been in school, but the founder of School Strike 4 Climate, Sophie Handford, said if Seymour did not want students to miss school, he needed to take the climate crisis more seriously.
If you’d like to listen to the news about the climate strike in New Zealand in 2019, go to Students striking for Climate.
Vocabulary
strike – in this context, strike means to stop doing your normal work to protest
protest (verb) – to do or say something publicly, often with other people, to show that you disagree with something
protest (noun) – an event where people come together to say they disagree with something
emissions – gasses that are released into the air
The 1st of April is the beginning of the financial year in New Zealand. As a result, benefit rates increase from this date, as part of what is called the Annual General Adjustment – when benefits are adjusted to match the increase in the consumer price index or in the average wage.
The benefit that is paid while people are looking for work is called Jobseeker Support. A single person on Jobseeker Support without children will now get $353.46 a week, up from $337.74, while a couple without children will receive $601.46 a week, up from $574.70. A single parent will now get $494.80, and a couple with children will qualify for $635.10 a week.
There are two benefits which support families. The Best Start credit is paid to all families until their baby turns one (as long as they are not receiving paid parental leave). This payment has increased from $69 a week to $73. The Family Tax Credit, or Working for Families, has risen from a maximum $136 to a maximum $144 a week for the oldest child in a family, and from $111 to $117 per week for subsequent children.
Superannuation is paid to New Zealanders aged 65 and over. From 1st April, a single person in this age group who is living alone will get $46.20 more a fortnight, and a couple will get an extra $71.08.
A student allowance is paid to people to help with their living expenses while they’re studying. This has also increased – for example, the allowance for eligible students under 24 will go up by $27.94 to a maximum of $314.15 a week after tax.
In addition, on Monday the minimum wage rose from $22.70 to $23.15, which is a 2% increase. This is a smaller increase than in the past few years under the Labour government and is less than the current rate of inflation of 4.7%.
One other change introduced on Monday relates to landlords. They can now claim 80% of their mortgage interest expenses, and from April 2025 they will be able to claim 100% of those costs. This represents a $2.9 billion tax break for landlords over the next four years. The government hopes that this will help reduce rents, as landlords’ costs will be lower. However, several academics and economists have said it’s unlikely that people’s rents will decrease.
Vocabulary
benefit – money paid by the government to people who are unemployed, sick or have little money
subsequent – happening or coming after something else
fortnight – two weeks
eligible – if you are eligible for something, you are able or allowed to do it
landlord – a person who owns a house and rents it to someone else
mortgage – money borrowed from a bank to buy a house
This weekend is Easter, which is one of the most important holiday times in Christianity. Good Friday and Easter Monday are public holidays, so banks and offices are closed on those days. Schools and universities have Tuesday off as well, which means they have a 5-day weekend.
Almost all shops must close on Good Friday. The only shops that can open on Good Friday are pharmacies, petrol stations, and small grocery shops such as dairies – because people may need emergency supplies from these kinds of shops. There are one-and-a half other days in the year with similar restrictions on shopping: Christmas Day (25 December), and until 1pm on ANZAC day (25 April).
Easter Sunday is also a restricted trading day, but it is not a public holiday and there are some extra rules for shops on this day. As well as the shops for emergency supplies, some shops which sell souvenirs in popular tourist areas such as Taupo and Queenstown can open. In addition, a law was passed in 2016 which allowed local councils to decide whether shops in their area could open on Easter Sunday. Many councils have now set their own rules to allow shops to open in their area. However, they are not required to open, and workers are not required to work if they don’t want to. Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch do not have Easter Sunday shop trading policies so shops in those cities will be closed.
There has been a lot of discussion over recent decades about Easter trading. Some people think that there should be no restrictions anymore, as not as many people in New Zealand are Christian as in the past, and there is now a more multi-cultural society. They also say that online shops are open all day, every day, so the current restrictions are unfair for physical stores. However, other people think that it is good for retail workers to have some guaranteed days of holidays, and unions which support these workers do not want the law to change. Easter can be a chance for families to spend time together and sometimes to go away on holiday.
If you want some extra listening, type “Easter” in the search box to find earlier posts about Easter.
Vocabulary
dairy (dairies, plural) – a small local shop. This is a NZ word – in other countries dairies are called convenience stores or corner shop
pharmacy – a chemist, where people get medicines
guaranteed – if something is guaranteed, you are sure it will happen
union – an organisation which protects workers’ rights
The programme that provides free lunches to students in school is under review and may be cut.
The free school lunches programme, called Ka Ora, Ka Ako in Māori, was introduced by the previous government in 2019. At first it was only for some primary and intermediate schools, but in February 2020 it was expanded to some secondary schools. The aim is to give lunches to children from families who may not be able to afford them, so that the children can learn well. Schools which are in lower socio-economic areas can apply to join the programme. There are now 1,023 schools participating, with 229,811 students. The meals must be nutritious – for example, there can be nothing deep-fried or fatty, and no juice or chocolate.
When they were in opposition, the National Party said they supported the programme but wanted to make it more efficient and effective. The ACT Party opposed the scheme, saying it was a waste of money, and promised to abolish it. Now that both these parties are in government, they are going to conduct a review.
One change that has been suggested is that free lunches could be provided only to those children who need them, instead of the whole school. This could save money and avoid food waste. However, a Ministry of Education survey showed that 61% of leftover lunches were taken home by students and 21% were given to the community, such as foodbanks and charities. One advantage of giving free lunches to all students is that there is no stigma, or shame, in having one, and it is simple to administer.
David Seymour, leader of the ACT Party, claims that there is no evidence that the programme works: for example, that it does not lead to increased attendance or better academic achievement. Reports in 2020, 2022 and 2023 found that children receiving free lunches were happier and healthier but did not find benefits in attendance and achievement. However, other studies have found that student behaviour and learning improved, and many school principals and teachers have stated that they want the programme to continue. Last week, twelve school and teacher organisations signed a letter asking the Prime Minister to retain funding for the scheme. It is likely that we will find out what will happen to the free lunches programme when the government releases the budget on 30 May.
Vocab
socio-economic – a combination of social and economic factors
nutritious – food that is nutritious is very good for you, as it has natural substances that help your body stay healthy or grow
abolish – to officially end something
wastage – when something is not used, especially in a way that’s bad
stigma – negative feelings that people have about a situation someone is in
retain – to keep
In the last two weeks there have been major announcements about job losses at New Zealand’s two television stations – TV3 and TVNZ.
On 28 February the owners of TV3, Warner Brothers Discovery, announced that they planned to close their Newshub operations from 30 June. This would include all Newshub’s TV and online news. The company said that there has been a significant drop in TV advertising so they have to reduce their costs, and they believe that closing the newsroom is the only way to do that. The closure will lead to around 300 people, or 75% of the TV3 workforce, losing their jobs. Staff were told at a meeting and were shocked and upset at the news. There will now be a consultation process (when staff can suggest alternatives) and a final decision is expected in April.
Then on 1 March TVNZ announced a $16.8 million loss for the six months ended December. Six days later management met with staff and proposed cutting 68 jobs, which amounts to 9% of their total staff. TVNZ also blamed a fall in revenue from ads for the situation and said that they need to reduce their costs to match their revenue. Like the Newshub staff, the TVNZ staff were devastated by the proposals, which include axing the news at midday and later in the evening, and two programmes, Sunday and Fair Go. Sunday started in 2002 and won the award for Best Current Affairs Programme at the New Zealand Television Awards last year. Fair Go has been on TVNZ for 47 years. It’s a consumer affairs programme – that is, viewers who have problems with companies can contact Fair Go to help them find a solution.
Many journalists and commentators are concerned about the loss of news and current affairs programmes. They say that it is important to have many organisations providing news, so that people have a choice and also hear a range of perspectives on issues. They say it is not good for democracy if there are not enough journalists asking questions and holding the government and others in power to account.
The problems in the media in New Zealand are also happening around the world. The increased use of the internet, including social media and streaming services, means that people watch TV less often. As a result, companies spend less in advertising on TV, which then reduces the television companies’ revenue. However, unlike some countries, New Zealand does not have a fully funded public broadcaster for television.
Vocab
workforce – staff
devastated – extremely shocked and sad
award – prize for something that someone has done
hold someone to account – to make someone responsible for their actions, and to explain their decisions broadcaster – a TV or radio company
Question for you: Do you watch TV news – live or later online? Do you follow the news? You can answer by commenting below.
The university year has started again, but the financial situation for many of the universities in New Zealand is quite difficult. Although enrolments this year are looking better than in the last two years, the tertiary sector is under significant pressure.
There are several reasons for this situation. Firstly, before the Covid19 pandemic, many international students came to New Zealand, but when the borders closed in 2020, new students could not enter the country. As a result, the number of international tertiary students decreased by 23% between 2020 and 2021. In addition, although domestic enrolments increased by 9% in that period, they then fell by 4.1% in 2022. Some universities had a further decrease in domestic enrolments in 2023. At the same time, inflation in New Zealand is high and costs are increasing, but funding from the government has not increased at the same rate as inflation.
Consequently, last year three universities had to look at ways to save money. A total of almost 600 jobs and some courses were cut at Otago University, Victoria University of Wellington, and Massey University in 2023. This year, Massey University has said they may need to make further job cuts so that they can reduce their deficit. Other universities face similar but less serious financial problems. Some people now say that the way universities are funded needs to change, but it is not yet clear what the government plans to do about tertiary funding.
Polytechnics also face an uncertain time at the moment. The previous Labour government merged them into a national institution called Te Pūkenga, but the new government is disestablishing that. The individual polytechnics will be separate again but exactly how they will operate is unclear.
Vocabulary
enrolments – the number of people who have arranged to join a university or school
tertiary – third level of education, after primary and secondary schools. Tertiary education is at a university or polytechnic
domestic – relating to within a country. Domestic enrolments are students who are New Zealand citizens or permanent residents.
deficit – when the amount of money spent is greater than the amount of money earned
merge – join together to make a single thing
disestablish – dis- means not or the opposite of, so disestablish means to end something that was established
Air New Zealand is starting to increase fares on some of its domestic routes. The airline flies between the main centres (that is, Auckland, Hamilton, Wellington, Christchurch, and Dunedin) and also to regional centres (including Napier, New Plymouth, Rotorua, Nelson, and Queenstown). It hasn’t said which routes have already had fare increases, or how much they’ve increased, but prices for all routes may go up later this year.
Air New Zealand announced last week that its half-year profit fell 39%, from $213 million in the same period last year to $129 million. The chief executive of Air New Zealand, Greg Foran, said that domestic fares were kept low in 2023 but inflation and rising fuel prices have affected the company. Consequently, they now need to pass some of those extra costs on to customers. He said that it might look like a very big profit, but it costs $200 million to buy one wide-bodied plane. That means that they need to keep making a profit so that they can invest in the business.
In New Zealand there are only a few airlines: Air New Zealand and Jetstar are the largest, although Jetstar now only flies between Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Dunedin, and Queenstown. There are also some smaller airlines such as Air Chathams and Sounds Air which fly between a few regional centres. For example, Sounds Air flies from Wellington to Taupo, Picton, Nelson, Blenheim, or Westport, and from Christchurch to Blenheim or Wanaka. However, their planes have only 9 or 12 seats. Thus, people do not have a lot of choice if they need to get to a regional centre. There are no longer trains between some centres, so if flying is too expensive, the only other options are to drive or perhaps take a bus. Because of this, some people say that Air New Zealand should keep domestic fares lower.
If you want more listening practice, you could listen to a story from 2015: Jetstar will fly to smaller towns.
Vocabulary
fare – the price you pay for a ticket on a plane, bus or train
domestic routes – national routes, inside New Zealand
a wide-bodied plane – a plane that has two passenger aisles
option – choice
Since last Wednesday there has been a major fire on the Port Hills in Christchurch. It has spread to around 650 hectares, and firefighters are still working to put it out.
When the fire started, many people who live in the area were evacuated and had to stay in community halls. Most have now been allowed to return home as the fire was brought under control near their houses. However, one woman, Anna Spark, lost her home and most of her belongings on Wednesday. She managed to rescue her three dogs, cat and goat but didn’t have time to take her family’s alpacas. Fortunately, she returned on Thursday to find they all survived. She said “the fact that they’re alive is amazing” because the fire went right through her family farm.
Fire and Emergency New Zealand have had over a hundred staff on the ground fighting the fire, as well as several helicopters and planes. The firefighters have sometimes been hampered by people coming to watch or trying to go walking on the hills. Also, on Sunday the helicopters had to stop flying because a private drone was being used in the area. The police and firefighters are asking people to stay away from the area and not to fly drones, so that they can do their work safely. Although the fire was contained in the weekend, there are still hotspots which fire crews are working hard to dampen down. The weather has not helped – there have been strong winds which can make the fire spread, high temperatures, and no rain until this morning.
It is not yet known how the fire started but both Fire and Emergency New Zealand and the police are investigating. Today police have received some information from people who were walking near where the fire started. However, they still don’t know the cause of the fire.
There was a fire on the Port Hills in 2017, so you can listen to the news stories about that fire at Fire Tragedy and Fire Continues.
Meanwhile, another fire started on Sunday evening in Waikari Valley, in North Canterbury (that is, north of Christchurch). People were evacuated from their homes but were allowed to return home yesterday evening. Firefighters on the ground, supported by helicopters, have contained the fire but it is not completely out yet.
Vocabulary
hectare = 10,000 square metres
put out a fire – to make a fire stop burning
be evacuated – be told to leave a place because it is dangerous
goat – an animal with horns on its head (see image below). Goats live wild in the mountains or on farms.
alpaca – an animal from South America (see image below)
hamper – to make it difficult for someone to do something. People coming to watch or walk on the hills made it difficult for the firefighters to work.
contained – stopped from spreading
drone – an aircraft that does not have a pilot, but is controlled by radio (see image below)
hotspots – a place where there is a lot of heat. Hotspots may turn back into a fire if they are not put out
dampen down – to make a fire burn more slowly or stop burning
Images (from Unsplash https://unsplash.com/)
goat
Photo by Ray Aucott on Unsplashalpaca
Photo by Sébastien Goldberg on Unsplashdrone
Photo by david henrichs on Unsplash
Last Thursday, 8 February, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced that the Auckland regional fuel tax will be scrapped on 30 June. This tax was introduced in July 2018 under the previous Labour-led government. It added 11.5 cents (including GST) per litre of fuel for Aucklanders.
Scrapping the fuel tax was one of the National Party’s campaign promises and is part of the plan for the government’s first 100 days. The Prime Minister said it would lower the cost of filling some cars with petrol by between $5.75 and $9.20. He said reducing the price of fuel would ease the pressure on people who are struggling with the cost of living, particularly those on lower incomes who have less fuel-efficient vehicles.
The regional fuel tax was meant to help fund new transport projects in Auckland. By September 2023 it raised around $780 million. Although the government said that only half of that amount had been spent, the mayor of Auckland, Wayne Brown, argued that the remaining $341 million had already been allocated to several transport projects. He is not happy that the council is losing the funding that the regional tax brought in, and yesterday he asked Auckland Transport to stop work immediately on projects funded by the regional fuel tax. These include some busways and road developments.
The mayor has promised, however, not to increase rates for Aucklanders because that would just raise people’s costs again. Instead, he will discuss with the council and government what other funding options may be available. He also said that Auckland wants to make its own decisions about transport, and that Wellington – that is, the government in Wellington – should not decide what projects will be done in Auckland.
Vocabulary
scrapped – if something is scrapped, it is no longer used
fuel – petrol or diesel
campaign – a series of activities that are intended to achieve a particular aim. In politics, a campaign promise is something a political party promises that they will do if they are elected.
fuel-efficient vehicle – if a vehicle (a car or truck) is fuel-efficient, it does not use as much fuel as other vehicles travelling the same distance
fund – to provide money for something
allocate – to use something for a particular purpose. If money is allocated to a project, it has been decided to use that money for the project. rates – a tax that owners of houses and buildings pay to their local government
On 1st February new rules for recycling came into effect throughout the country. The new national standards will make it easier for everyone to understand what can and cannot be recycled.
So now, you can only put glass bottles and jars, paper and cardboard, aluminium and steel tins and cans, and plastics 1, 2 and 5 into your recycling. Some examples of plastics with a number 1 are fruit and vegetable containers and water or soft drink bottles. Those with a number 2 are milk and juice bottles, shampoo bottles and detergent bottles. The most common examples of plastics with a number 5 are large (1 kg) yoghurt containers, 2-litre ice cream containers and some takeaway containers. It’s usually easy to see what type of plastic something is, by looking at the bottom or side of the bottle or container.
Other plastics, with numbers 3, 4, 6 or 7, or with no number, must go into rubbish which will go to landfill. This is because these plastics are more difficult to recycle. Also, lids need to be removed from bottles and jars and put in your rubbish, as they are too small to be processed by the machines which sort the recycling. Similarly, anything (glass, paper, metal or plastic) less than 50mm x 50mm cannot be recycled, because it may block the machines. Aerosol spray cans and milk and juice cartons are now not accepted by any councils for recycling, although there is commercial or community recycling for them in some places. Soft plastics such as bread bags and plastic bags are not collected by councils, but there are bins for them at many supermarkets in large centres around New Zealand.
It is really important to put the right things into recycling. If rubbish or non-recyclable items get mixed with recycling in bins or bags, then the recycling is considered contaminated and all of it will have to go to landfill. In addition, it’s important to clean anything before putting it into recycling or it could contaminate other items.
There are a few exceptions to these new national rules: Clutha, Hurunui and Westland District Councils can’t recycle glass yet, and Gore Council can’t recycle some paper and plastic. The deadline for these councils to add those types of recycling is now 2027.
Vocabulary
come into effect – if a law or rule comes into effect, it officially starts
aluminium – a light metal
steel – a strong metal
detergent – a liquid or powder that helps remove dirt, for example, from dishes or clothes
landfill – a place where rubbish is buried under the ground
50mm x 50mm – 50mm high by 50mm wide
aerosol spray cans (see picture below)
contaminated – dirty after being mixed with other things
deadline – if you have a deadline, you must finish by that date or time
Image (from Free SVG https://freesvg.org/aerosol-can)
aerosol spray can
This week schools start again, but they do not all start on the same day. Schools can choose their own start day for term 1, between dates set by the Ministry of Education. This year term 1 can begin any day between 29th January at the earliest and 7th February at the latest. However, term 1 ends for all schools on Friday 12th April. The dates for terms 2 and 3 are also fixed – term 2 is from Monday 29th April to Friday 5th July, and term 3 is from 22nd July to 27th September. Term 4 starts on 14th October and ends no later than 20th December. That means that schools can also choose their end date for the year, depending on the number of half-days (mornings and afternoons) that they are open. The Ministry of Education requires schools to be open a certain number of half-days: for primary and intermediate schools that is a minimum of 384 half-days in 2024, and for secondary schools the minimum is 380 half-days.
The beginning of the school year can be a difficult time for parents because they have to buy new uniforms and equipment for their children. Schools give lists of stationery – exercise books, pens and pencils – which students need for the year, and many students at high schools need a laptop as well. These costs add up, particularly if a family has more than one child. The charity KidsCan supports over 1000 schools by providing breakfasts and lunches, and some clothes such as jackets and shoes. KidsCan report that demand is higher this year than in the last five years, so more schools are on their waitlist for support. They say that some families are having to choose between paying rent, buying food, and paying for the things needed for school. They also say that some young people who are still at school are working part-time to help their families with living costs.
This year there are some changes for the education sector. The new government is planning to review the curriculum, with the aim of improving literacy and numeracy achievement. It has already announced that from term 1, primary and intermediate schools are expected to teach reading, writing and maths for one hour each, every day. Then from term 2, students will not be allowed cell phones in classrooms during the school day. However, each school will have to work out how to implement this ban on cell phones.
For more information about schools in New Zealand, listen to Back to School and School starts this week.
Vocabulary
minimum – the smallest number needed or allowed
uniform – clothes that all children at one school wear, or all the workers at one organisation
charity – an organisation that gives money, things or help to people who need it
curriculum – the subjects that are taught in schools
literacy – the ability to read and write numeracy – the ability to count and do simple maths
Many areas of New Zealand are facing water restrictions this summer. This is because in summer it rains less and demand for water is high, as people water their gardens or fill swimming pools, or children play in water outside. With an increasing population, there is not enough water, particularly if there are problems with water infrastructure.
One of the most affected is Wellington, where the problem is made worse by leaking pipes around the city. On 17 January Wellington moved to level 2 restrictions, which means that all unattended watering systems, such as sprinklers and irrigation systems, are banned. In other words, people can only water their gardens if they hold a hose in their hand. If the warm weather continues and there is little rain, it is quite likely that Wellington will move to level 3 restrictions, so all outdoor residential use for water would be banned, or even level 4, so on top of the ban, residents would be advised to take two-minute showers and only do one load of washing per person a week.
Many people in Wellington are frustrated because they are being asked to reduce their water use, but there is a lot of water lost from leaking pipes. Some pipes are 100 years old. There are currently around 3000 leaks, and 45% of the water supply is being lost. The pipes are owned by the City Council, and Wellington Water is the organisation which runs the water system. In December Wellington Water fixed 552 leaks, but there are many more waiting to be fixed. Some leaks are only small when they start, but by the time Wellington Water fixes them, thousands of litres of water have been lost. For example, there was a leak on Lambton Quay, one of the city’s main streets, which was fixed 33 days after it was first reported. Wellington Water has told the councils that it will cost $1 billion per year for the next 10 years to fix the region’s water system.
Other cities and regions in New Zealand are also under water restrictions. Like Wellington, South Wairarapa (including Featherston, Greytown and Martinborough) is at level 2 restrictions and there are more than 100 leaks in the system. In New Plymouth, residents can use handheld hoses to water their gardens every second day, depending on their address – odd-numbered homes on odd-numbered days, and even-numbered homes on even-numbered days. There are similar restrictions in Napier and Hastings, where watering is only allowed between 6am and 8am, and between 7pm and 9pm. In the South Island, Nelson is at stage D of their restrictions, which means that residents can only use buckets to water fruit and vegetable plants, and buckets of grey water (for example, water from a washing machine) to wash cars. In Picton and Waikawa, the Council has told residents to take a short shower, turn off the tap when brushing their teeth, and not to wash their car or use the garden hose. People in Southland can only water gardens by hand between 7pm and 7am. Timaru District Council has just announced that watering of lawns is now not allowed and businesses should try to use less water.
While these restrictions may be difficult, it is important that we all do our bit to save water where we can.
Vocabulary
restriction – a rule or law that limits what people can do
infrastructure – the basic systems and structures that a country needs, for example, roads, buildings, water and power supplies
leak – a small hole that lets water flow out of something
sprinkler – a piece of equipment used for scattering water on grass or soil
irrigation systems – ways of watering land or crops
hose – a long rubber tube that people use outside, for example, to put water on gardens
ban – to say that something must not be done
do our bit – do a fair share of a task. If we all do our bit to save water, everyone saves some water and together we achieve the goal of reducing water use.
Images (from Unsplash https://unsplash.com/)
sprinklerirrigation systemhandheld hose
Thousands of photos of Māori life in the 20th century have been bought by the National Library, after they were almost lost in America.
The photos are part of a set of 1.4 million photos which were taken by photographers at newspapers in New Zealand. They were sent to the United States to be digitised in 2013, but the digitisation company went under, so the photos were going to be dumped. However, they were saved by a gallery, the Duncan Miller Gallery, in Los Angeles, which has restored the photos over a period of three years.
There are 5300 images of Māori in the collection. It includes photos of many leaders, writers, musicians, and politicians, and of important events in New Zealand at the time. The photos were independently valued at $340,000, but the gallery owner, Daniel Miller, said the National Library paid less than that for them.
Now the gallery is trying to find people or places to take the remainder of the set of more than a million photos, which were taken from 1840 to 2005. They include photos of Napier after the strong earthquake in 1931, of Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay after they climbed Mount Everest, and of Princess Diana in Auckland in 1983. Daniel Miller would like all the photos to be back in New Zealand as he believes they should “all be in Kiwi hands”.
Vocabulary
landfill – a place where rubbish is buried under the ground
be digitised – if photos are digitised, they are turned into an electronic file that can be saved on computer
go under – if a business goes under, it has to stop doing business because of financial problems
be dumped – be taken away
gallery – a building where people can see works of art
One of the new government’s policies is that all public service departments should have their name in English, except those specifically related to Māori. They say this will help everyone to understand what each department does. Many departments have both an English and a Māori name, and now they have been told that they should use the English name first. For example, in August 2019 the New Zealand Transport Agency starting using its Māori name, Waka Kotahi, first, and in the news they were often referred to only as Waka Kotahi. Now they have to change the order back to English first.
Many people, both Māori and Pakeha (that is, non-Māori), are not happy with this decision. They want to support the use of te reo Māori, or the Māori language, because it is an important part of the culture and of New Zealand. In fact, for much of the twentieth century, Māori were not allowed to speak their language at school, so by 1970 only 5% of Māori children could speak it. There were concerns that the language could be lost. In the 1970s, there was a lot of discussion and protest about this, resulting in the Māori Language Petition being presented to Parliament in 1972. Since then, the language has been revived and it became an official language in 1987. So now many people do not want the language to be replaced by English in department names. They feel that this is an attempt to limit the use of te reo.
Another plan from the new government is to make English an official language. It may surprise you to learn that it is not already! In fact, English is not an official language by law in New Zealand, Australia, the United States or the United Kingdom, because it is used so widely in those countries. Often a language is made an official language to give it some protection or to give people the right to use it in court. However, English is not in danger in New Zealand and people can speak it anywhere, so some experts in languages and law wonder if it’s necessary to make it an official language.
Since 2006 New Zealand has had a second official language, New Zealand Sign Language. This has led to more use of NZSL in the news as well as courts. You may see Sign Language interpreters on television when there are government announcements.
Vocabulary
petition – a written request signed by a lot of people, asking the government to do or change something
revive – to bring something back, or to make something healthy and strong again
Note: I’ll be on holiday until mid-January and may not be able to do any new stories until then. Merry Christmas and all the best for 2024!
The number of Covid-19 cases has increased in the past week. On Monday 4 December, the Ministry of Health reported that there were 6656 new cases, but on Monday 11 December the Ministry reported 7880 new cases. There were 336 cases in hospital and five in intensive care. Last week there were 20 deaths attributed to the virus, whereas this week there were 27 deaths.
Professor Michael Baker, an epidemiologist from the University of Otago, said in November that New Zealand was experiencing a fifth wave of Covid-19 infections. The numbers of people with Covid-19 in hospital then were at their highest point in six months. He explained that this was probably because people’s immunity was lower, partly because they may not have had a booster recently. Of people aged 50 to 64, fewer than 40% had received their second booster. He said that people have got used to living with Covid-19 but that it is still the most significant infectious disease problem in New Zealand. There are also some concerns about repeated infections and long Covid. Professor Baker said that if people have not had a booster, they are more likely to need to go to hospital if they get Covid.
Health officials are now reminding the public that anyone over 30 can get a booster for free if it’s over six months since their last one or their last Covid infection. The booster is recommended for people aged 65 and over, Māori and Pasifika aged 50 and older, people who are immunocompromised, and pregnant women.
Health officials still advise people to stay home if they’re unwell and to wear a mask in closed or crowded spaces. Rapid antigen tests, or RAT tests, will remain free until the end of February 2024.
Vocabulary
attributed to – believed to be caused by
epidemiologist – someone who studies how diseases spread and how to control them
booster – another vaccination that helps increase someone’s protection against a disease
immunocompromised – if someone is immunocompromised, their immune system is weakened, so their body cannot fight infections as easily
If you live in New Zealand, you have probably noticed that prices have increased considerably over the past couple of years. However, perhaps there is now some good news: Statistics New Zealand reported in November that food prices fell slightly in October, although they are still higher than a year ago.
Statistics New Zealand calculates the Food Price Index every month, to measure the changes in prices that households pay for food. Their latest report showed that food prices in October were 0.9% lower than in September. Fruit and vegetable prices fell 3.4%, and grocery foods, such as cheese, white bread and muesli bars, dropped 0.8%. Meat, poultry and fish prices were down 0.7%. In contrast, restaurant meals and takeaway food prices rose 0.2% from September.
This may be a relief for people who are struggling with the cost of living, but in comparison with October 2022, food prices were 6.3% higher this October. The most significant increases were in grocery foods, which rose 7.9%, and restaurant meals and takeaway food prices, which were up 7.7%. Fruit and vegetable prices increased 3.3%, as did meat, poultry and fish prices.
New Zealand is not the only country where prices have increased over recent years. Inflation is currently a global problem, with food prices in OECD countries going up 7.4% in October. In the United Kingdom, food prices rose by 10.1% in the year to October 2023. Like other countries, New Zealand has been affected by supply problems after the pandemic, but there are other reasons for inflation here. In February Cyclone Gabrielle damaged many crops and affected supply. In addition, some people think there should be more competition in the supermarket sector to bring prices down.
Vocabulary
household – all the people who live together in one house
poultry – meat from birds such as chickens and geese
OECD – Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development. There are 38 countries in the OECD.
Last week two kiwi chicks, or baby birds, hatched in the wild near Wellington. This may not sound like news to some people, but it is the first time in 150 years that kiwi chicks have hatched in this area, so it is great news for people who look after or care about our national bird.
Earlier this year 50 kiwi were released into the hills in the south and west of Wellington. This was only possible because predators had been controlled in the area. The organisation Capital Kiwi Project laid 4,600 stoat traps across 24,000 hectares and worked to reduce the numbers of stoats over many years. Now kiwi can live safely near Wellington again. The new chicks will hopefully grow and put on weight, until they are big enough to fight off stoats with their big claws.
The kiwi is one of the symbols of New Zealand. It is flightless, like many other New Zealand birds, because there were no predators before humans arrived here. The animals that were introduced, such as stoats, rats and possums, eat native birds, chicks and eggs. Now there are many groups of people around the country working hard to protect our birds. Sometimes the birds live on predator-free islands, or they live in areas where people have trapped predators. There is a large wildlife sanctuary called Zealandia in Wellington which has a fence around it to keep predators out. Many native birds have been successfully reintroduced to Wellington at Zealandia and are now seen all around the city.
Listen to October 2 2018 to hear about Kiwi in Shakespeare Park and to July 26 2016 to learn more about Predator-free New Zealand by 2050.
Vocabulary
hatch – when a baby bird comes out of its egg
predator – animals that hunt other animals
stoat – a small wild animal that has a long thin body and brown fur
hectare – a unit for measuring area, equal to 10,000 square metres
sanctuary – an area for animals or birds where they are protected and cannot be hunted
The coalition negotiations are now complete and the deal between National, ACT, and New Zealand First was formally signed on Friday. We knew that Christopher Luxon will be Prime Minister, but we now know that Winston Peters, leader of New Zealand First, will be Deputy Prime Minister for the first half of the parliamentary term, and David Seymour, leader of ACT, will be Deputy Prime Minister for the second half. A parliamentary term is 3 years so they will each be in the role for 18 months.
The new government’s policies are now public. Some policies of each party have been altered slightly in order to reach agreement between the three parties. National’s tax cuts will go ahead in 2024 but the tax on foreign buyers of expensive houses will not. This means that money will need to be saved in other areas of the budget. The new Finance Minister has confirmed that one saving will come from the new smokefree laws being scrapped, but some public health experts are shocked at this news. ACT wanted a referendum on the Treaty of Waitangi but instead the new government will support a Treaty Principles bill to Select Committee. That means Parliament will discuss the Treaty and the public will be able to make submissions.
Other key parts of the new government’s plan include government departments reducing staff numbers, reviewing the firearms laws, and switching the Fees Free scheme for tertiary level study from the first year free to the final year. A Regional Infrastructure Fund, proposed by New Zealand First, will have $1.2 billion in capital funding.
The new government will be sworn in by the Governor-General, Dame Cindy Kiro. The Governor General represents the King. The swearing-in ceremony will take place at Government House in Wellington sometime this week.
Note: the swearing-in ceremony took place on Monday 27 November. You can watch it on YouTube below. The ceremony starts at about 13 minutes from the start of the recording.
Vocabulary
to scrap – to decide not to use a plan or system, or to get rid of something
referendum – when people vote to make a decision about something
Select Committee – a small group of Members of Parliament who are responsible for looking at a particular area of government activity.
make a submission (to a Select Committee) – give an opinion and recommendation on a bill
capital funding – money for spending on large projects
Last week Statistics New Zealand released its most recent national population estimates. They show that there are now 5.27 million people living in Aotearoa New Zealand. During the year ended September 2023, the population grew by 138,100 or 2.7 percent. Part of this rise was due to natural increase, that is, the number of births minus deaths, but most was the result of migration. Net migration – the number of migrant arrivals minus departures – was 118,800.
There are slightly more women than men in New Zealand – approximately 2,647,000 females compared with 2,621,000 males. The median age of females and males is 39 and 37 years respectively.
The estimated Māori population is now 904,100, which is 17.3 percent of the national population. The median age of Māori females is 27.9 years and that of Māori males is 25.8 years. These lower median ages compared with the national population show that the Māori population is younger.
It is interesting to look back at the growth in New Zealand’s population over the past 30 years. In 1993 it was 3.5 million and it increased to just over 4 million in 2003. The population first reached 5 million in 2019.
Vocabulary
release – in this context, release means to give out official information
estimates – an approximate calculation of the number or size of something
median – the middle number in a set of numbers
A huge thank you to Melissa Cassidy who ran this website for the past 5 years. These were particularly challenging years with Covid19 and ever-changing news about that, along with many major news stories. Melissa, we’re very grateful that you took on the role after Pat Syme, founder of ESL News, retired. Enjoy a break from it now.
My name is Anna Dowling and I’m going to post stories here from now on.
by Anna Dowling
New Zealand had a general election on Saturday 14 October but there is still no new government. One reason for this is that special votes needed to be counted, and that takes a long time. People can make a ‘special vote’ if they are not in their home electorate when they vote, or if they are overseas, or if they enrol to vote on the day of the election. Their votes needed to be checked and counted separately, and as there were 603, 257 special votes, the Electoral Commission had three weeks to do that counting.
The official results were released on Friday 3 November. There were a few changes to the results announced on 14 October. Now the National Party has 48 seats in Parliament, whereas on election night they had 50 seats. The results for the other parties are: Labour has 34 seats, the Green Party has 15, the Act Party has 11 seats, New Zealand First has 8 seats, and Te Pāti Māori has 6 seats. The National Party won 38.06% of the party votes, while Labour won 26.91%. Given these numbers, it is clear that National will lead the next government. Now the National Party, Act and New Zealand First are negotiating the details for a coalition agreement. They will work together to form a new government, but each party has different policies so now they need to discuss how they can work together, what the policy priorities are, and which roles (for example, Deputy Prime Minister, or Minister of Finance) the various members of each party will have. We have to wait and see what the agreement will be.
Vocabulary
electorate – in New Zealand, an area that has its own Member of Parliament (MP). All the people who live in that area can vote to choose their MP.
enrol – to officially arrange to join a course, school, or university – or here, to vote
negotiate – to discuss something in order to reach an agreement
coalition – a group of two or more political parties who form a government
A national state of emergency has been declared after the effects of Cyclone Gabrielle which hit New Zealand last week. During the storm emergency services were overwhelmed and communications were cut off as cell phone towers were damaged. It wasn’t until some time after the storm that we were able to learn about the terrible damage around the country, and a week later, news is still coming through. Some 10,000 people are displaced. On Friday, some 62,000 homes were still without electricity. Eleven people have died.
Cyclone Gabrielle is estimated to have affected at least a third of New Zealand’s population of five million.
The worst damage has been on the far north and east coast of the North Island – areas like Hawke’s Bay, Tairawhiti (Gisborne), Coromandel and Northland. Some places that you might hear about a lot are the Esk Valley and Wairoa in the Hawkes Bay, which were buried in mud after their rivers flooded, and Muriwai, a hilly area in Auckland that had some deadly landslides.
New Zealand announced a national state of emergency on Tuesday the 14th of February. The country has only declared a national state of emergency on two other occasions – the Covid-19 pandemic and the 2011 Christchurch earthquake.
Vocabulary:
Last weekend the upper North Island was hit by very heavy rain, causing flooding in many areas. In Auckland, the rainfall for Friday was 245mm. Over a thousand people called emergency services. Many peoples’ homes have been damaged by flood water. All soft furnishings and carpet will have to be thrown out. Hundreds of cars have been under water and will probably have to be replaced. Some houses have been completely destroyed in landslides, and others have been cut off by washed-out roads. There will be many people who need emergency housing, and there may soon be diseases that are spread by the dirty flood water.
The heavy rain is still continuing, and there are heavy rain warnings for the Coromandel and Bay of Plenty. The storm will probably travel south and then become less and less. If we are lucky, the storm will blow out to sea.
You can read more about Auckland’s emergency services here. If you need help because of flooding, you can call this number: 0800 22 22 00
Vocabulary:
Flooding: too much water on the land
Emergency services: if you call 111 you can get emergency help from the Fire Service, the ambulance, or the police.
Soft furnishings: furniture that has cloth on it, such as sofas and beds
Thrown out: if you throw something out, you don’t want it any more and put it in the rubbish
Replaced: if you replace something, you throw it out and get a new one
Landslide: when a hill falls down
Cut off: when a road or path is broken, people can’t get to a place any more. The place is cut off.
Washed-out: damaged by moving water
Emergency housing: a temporary place to stay
Spread: carried, delivered
Chris Hipkins is our new Prime Minister. Jacinda Ardern resigned in January this year and a few days later Chris Hipkins agreed to become our next Prime Minister. He chose Carmel Sepuloni as the deputy Prime Minister.
Chris Hipkins is aged 44. He lives in Upper Hutt, which is in the Wellington area, and has 2 young children. All his formal education was in the Wellington region including at a primary school and high school in the Hutt Valley and then at Victoria University where he majored in politics and criminology. He was elected to Parliament in 2008. Since then, he has been Minister of Education, Minister of Police and leader of the House (of Parliament). Another responsibility for him was to try to eliminate COVID in New Zealand.
Carmel Sepuloni was born in Waitara. Her father was a migrant with a Samoan and Tongan background and her mother was a Pakeha New Zealander. Carmel is a teacher and has taught in Samoa and New Zealand. Since she starting working in parliament, she has served as Minister for Social Development and Employment, Minister for ACC, Minister for Disability Issues, and Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage.
Vocabulary
formal education: this refers to the institutions where someone went to school and university. “Informal education” refers to life long learning from listening, reading, discussing ideas etc.
resigned: quit, stop doing a job
deputy: assistant, someone who will do the job for the leader if the leader is away
major in: mostly study (at University)
criminology: the study of crime
politics: the study of government
Minister: someone who leads the government in a particular issue
eliminate: get rid of, stop
pakeha: usually this means a New Zealander of European descent, sometimes it can mean anybody who is not Māori.
Extra vocabulary for fun: people who have family members throughout the Pacific Islands (Tonga, Samoa, Niue, Fiji, etc) sometimes jokingly say that their ethnicity is “fruit salad”
If you look at a map of the North Island, you can see Lake Taupō right in the middle, and just to the north-west is a town called Te Kūiti. Te Kūiti is the home of a Māori tribe called Ngāti Maniopoto. Like most Māori tribes in New Zealand, Ngāti Maniopoto lost a lot during British colonisation. They were forced to sell important land cheaply, and decisions made by the government were often damaging for Māori people.
For 30 years, Ngāti Maniopoto have been talking with the government about what they need to do to make this right. They did this through a special court called the Waitangi Tribunal. The Waitangi Tribunal was established in 1975 to help the government to make amends for damage done by colonisation. It uses our founding document, the Treaty of Waitangi, to make decisions about what should happen.
In 2021 the government and Ngāti Maniopoto finally agreed on a solution. Money would be paid to the tribe as compensation, and some very special land would be given back to them. In the future, when nearby land owned by the government is being sold, Ngāti Maniopoto would be given the first choice to buy it. In addition, the government agreed to formally apologise to the tribe, and agreed that in the future, they would consult with Ngāti Maniopoto about decisions that would affect them.
All of this has been agreed on, but the agreement was made in 2021 when we were all in lockdown because of covid, so the Prime Minister was unable to travel to Te Kūiti to make a formal apology.
On Sunday the 4th of December, the Prime Minister was finally able to go to the Marae in Te Kūiti to meet with the tribe and offer a formal apology from the government for past wrong-doings. It was presented to the tribe as a framed document, and the tribe was very happy to receive it. They gave the Prime Minister a special gift to take back to Wellington. It was a Māori spear, called a taiaha. Because it is a very special one, it will be returned to the tribe in five years’ time.
Vocabulary:
Apology: the things you say when you apologise, a noun for the act of apologising
Apologise: to say sorry
Compensation: something you give or do in order to pay for harm done
Tribe: a large community
Colonisation: the act of making one country serve another country
Founding document: a document that defines a country or organisation
On Wednesday, a man working in an Auckland Dairy, Janak Patel, was killed by robbers. This has caused a huge concern in New Zealand for several reasons. The first concern is that shop owners have been asking for protection from robbery for some time. There is government funding to help protect shops with things like ... Read more Robbery and Murder Sparks Protests
On the first of October, new regulations came into effect. The regulations are about single-use plastic products. In the past, we used to call these products “disposable”, meaning that you can use them once and then throw them away. But now people understand how bad this is for the environment. Making the products causes pollution, ... Read more Single-Use Plastics In New Zealand
Queen Elizabeth the Second passed away on the eighth of September at age 96. Although this should not be a shock, it is hard for many people to adapt to, as she has been the queen of the United Kingdom and the British Commonwealth for seventy years. Queen Elizabeth passed away in Balmoral, Scotland, and ... Read more The Queen is Dead
The Zespri Aims games are currently running in Tauranga from the second to the ninth of September. Since they began sixteen years ago, the games have grown from a small annual sports festival to a major middle school sports event, expecting around 12,000 students to compete this week. The games give 11, 12 and 13 ... Read more The Aims Games are Back!
With thanks to contributing author, Jordyn Skye On August the 5th, near the Northland town of Panguru, a pack of dogs killed Neville Thomson, a 69-year-old man. Mr Thomson usually lived on his own, but he had let a friend stay with him. It was the friend’s dogs that killed him. The friend had bought ... Read more Northland Dog Attack
Yesterday there was another “anti-government” protest outside parliament in Wellington. The last such protest was in February and attracted many different protestors who didn’t agree with the government about their public health measures. It was called the Convoy 2022 protest, and went on for a month and ended in riots. There were fears we may ... Read more Anti-Government Protests…again!
Thanks to contributing author, Jordyn Skye The government wants to outlaw selling tobacco. They plan to create a ‘Smoke Free Generation”. Anyone born after January 1, 2009 will be prohibited from ever buying tobacco. They plan to introduce this law in 2027. New Zealand will be one of the first countries in the world to ... Read more New Zealand Aims for a World First in Stopping Smoking
The Ministry of Health has ordered all New Zealand city councils to make sure that the water supplied to people’s houses is flouridated. For most New Zealanders, this is not very interesting because their water is already flouridated, but 14 regions do not have fluoride in all of their water. These regions, (Auckland, Hastings, Horowhenua, ... Read more Flouride In Drinking Water
On Monday, many people who live in New Zealand will get a payment of $116 from the government. This is the first instalment of the cost-of-living bonus announced in May. It is to help people who are suffering because of inflation. Inflation is when prices become more expensive and the cost of living increases. The ... Read more The Cost-of-Living Bonus
From August 1st, New Zealand borders will be open to everybody who has the right visa. New Zealand borders have been closed to avoid increasing COVID in our country. Gradually, the border has opened to a limited number of people. New Zealanders wanting to return home from overseas were the first, but they had to ... Read more New Zealand’s Border Regulations Updated
This week there will be a by-election in the North Island city of Tauranga. It will give the people who live in Tauranga a chance to vote for a new representative in parliament. They need to choose a new representative because the incumbent, Simon Bridges, has retired from politics. Simon Bridges belongs to the National ... Read more By-Election In Tauranga
You may have heard people talking about a recent spate of ram-raids around New Zealand. Usually a young person, or a group of young people, steal a car and drive it through the window of a shop, and then steal as much as they can before they run away. It seems as though there is ... Read more Ram-raids Around New Zealand
About 10,000 allied health workers are waiting for a pay offer from district health boards (DHBs), and hoping that they will not need to take industrial action. If the pay offer is not enough, the staff plan to work-to-rule for two weeks from Monday and strike for 24 hours on 16 May. Work-to-rule is when ... Read more Will Allied Health Workers Go On Strike?
Methamphetamine use has increased a lot since the Delta lockdown last August. The Delta lockdown was New Zealand’s longest Covid 19 lockdown, lasting 100 days in Auckland. Methamphetamine is an illegal drug also known as ice, or P. It makes people feel very excited and happy and stops them from sleeping. When people are “coming ... Read more Drug Use Increased During Lockdown
I apologise for the lack of posts recently. My father passed away (died) last month. I will resume working on the eslnews web site next week.
If you have walked down Auckland city’s Albert Street in the last five years, you would have noticed that the roads are very difficult to walk or drive down because engineers are building a new rail link under the road. The businesses in this area are hidden behind many safety barriers and are suffering huge ... Read more Auckland’s Building Project Disrupts Businesses
This year New Zealand is hosting the Women’s Cricket World Cup tournament. There will be 31 cricket matches, 1 every day, from the 4th of March to the 3rd of April. There are 8 women’s cricket teams competing: New Zealand, the West Indies, Bangladesh, the Republic of South Africa, Australia, England, Pakistan and India. This ... Read more The ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup
Wellington has faced traffic delays and closed streets since February 8 as protesters – inspired by the so-called ‘freedom convoy‘ in Canada – parked cars, vans and campervans near parliament in order to protest about Covid 19 laws. The protest was organised by a group called the Freedom and Rights Coalition and started with just ... Read more Petition to Stop Wellington Protests
The Government has announced its 5-step plan to re-open New Zealand borders. Step 1 — from Sunday February 27, 11.59 pm New Zealand citizens and residents can come here from Australia. As long as they are vaccinated, they can self-isolate instead of going through MIQ. Step 2 — from Sunday 13 March, 11.59 pm New Zealand citizens and residents ... Read more New Zealand’s Borders Will Open Again
Last night New Zealand moved into Phase 2 of the Red Setting. This is because the number of Omicron cases around New Zealand is now too high for contact tracing to be done by government workers. The key idea in Phase 2 is that you have to do your own contact tracing. Here is how ... Read more Phase 2 of the Red Setting
I apologise that there has not been a post on this website for a while. There has been a sickness in my family, and it has been difficult to focus on the eslnews website. I am currently moving cities in order to be in a better position to help, and once I am settled, I ... Read more A Sickness in the Family
Translator Diana Renker, is worried that people could be coming into New Zealand with fake vaccine exemptions. Diana recently had to translate an exemption certificate that made her suspicious. The document was signed by a German doctor, and she googled his name, Michael Foti. She discovered that he is a well-known opponent of vaccinations, and ... Read more Can We Trust Foreign Covid Documents?
Abdul Aziz and Doctor Naeem Rashid have been given the country’s highest bravery award, the New Zealand Cross. Ten people were given awards today for their courage in the terror attack on 15 March, 2019. Doctor Naeem Rashid died protecting the people in the Al Noor Mosque. He had already been shot in the shoulder ... Read more Bravery Awards for Christchurch Heroes
In order to tell you how to get a vaccination certificate, I did it myself, and took notes as I did it. Here is how I got my certificate. I went to www.mycovidrecord.nz. When I wanted to sign in, the website took me to login.health.nz so that I could create a My Health Account. To ... Read more How to Get a Vaccination Certificate
Because more people are getting vaccinated against Covid-19, we will soon have freedom to travel. People can start traveling out of Auckland on the 15th of December. Anyone leaving will need to have a vaccination certificate or have had a negative test within 72 hours of departure. These are called travel documents, and people will ... Read more We can travel on 15 December
The Government is making new laws about the vaccination of workers. Close-contact businesses, such as restaurants and gyms, will need to have all of their staff vaccinated against Covid-19. Close contact businesses must also make sure their customers have vaccination certificates. This law will come into effect by the end of November or December There ... Read more Workers Getting Vaccinated
A new Covid-19 traffic light system will replace our Alert Levels. The traffic light system will give us rules for what to do when there is Covid-19 in the community. It will be introduced when 90% of eligible New Zealanders have been vaccinated against Covid-19. “Eligible” is an adjective that means “able to” or “can”. ... Read more Covid-19 Traffic Lights
On October the 16th, there will be a national event called Super Saturday. It is like a kind of festival to get more people vaccinated against Covid-19. People are asked to go to a pop-up clinic to get vaccinated. People who have only had their first shot are asked to get a second shot, if ... Read more Super Saturday
The Minister of Immigration, Kris Faafoi, has announced the 2021 Resident Visa. It is a one-off residence visa that is easier and faster to apply for. It will help the 165,000 migrants currently living in New Zealand on temporary work visas. Migrant families have been in a difficult situation during the Covid-19 crisis. Some of ... Read more A Good Chance to Get the Residency Visa in 2021
Recently, New Zealand has been in lockdown because the Delta variant of Covid-19 was found in Auckland. Lockdowns are expensive and damaging to the economy, so we are feeling some urgency to get everybody vaccinated. Critics of the government have complained that the rollout of the vaccine has been too slow, but other critics are ... Read more Vaccinations and Misinformation
A local company in New Zealand, The Covid-19 Vaccine Corporation (CVC), is working to develop a different kind of vaccine against Covid-19. There are two things that make CVC’s planned vaccine different from other vaccines. The first point of difference relates to how the vaccine is produced. It uses biobead technology. Biobeads are produced by ... Read more A Different Kind of Vaccine
New Zealand and Australia have a very close relationship in many ways. New Zealanders can travel to Australia on a New Zealand passport. We don’t need a visa. Similarly, Australians can live and work here on an Australian passport. However, more than 600,000 New Zealanders live in Australia whereas the number of Australians in New ... Read more Disagreement with Australia About Deportations
The Paralympic Games opened in Tokyo, Japan just days after the Olympic Games. These games are similar to the Olympics but are for athletes who have a disability which means that they cannot compete fairly with athletes who compete in the Olympic Games. Most of the events are similar to the events in the Olympics; ... Read more New Zealanders Compete in Paralympics
New Zealand swimmer Sophie Pascoe has won yet another gold medal at a Tokyo Paralympics swimming event. Pascoe fainted and vomited after winning the SM9 200m individual medley. SM9 is a category in the Paralympics in which swimmers have severe weakness in one leg. An individual medley is a race in which each swimmer must ... Read more Success at the Paralympics
Suhayra Aden was born in New Zealand but she moved with her family to Australia when she was 6 years old and her family became dual New Zealand and Australian citizens. When she decided to join ISIL in Syria in 2014, she travelled on an Australian passport. Then Australia cancelled her citizenship so she cannot ... Read more New Zealand Accepts ISIL Woman
New Zealand athlete Hayden Wilde, aged 23, won a Bronze Medal for third place in the Men’s Triathlon. The triathlon consists of 3 events (tri means 3): a 1500m swim, a 40 km bike ride and 10km run with no rest in between. Wilde’s time was one hour, 45 minutes and 24 seconds (1.45.24). He ... Read more Hayden Wilde’s Bronze Medal
New Zealand has 213 athletes competing in a wide range of summer sports at this year’s Tokyo Olympics. For the first time, we have a karate athlete chosen for the Olympics. She is Andrea Anacan, aged 30. Andrea was born in the Philippines but immigrated to New Zealand with her family when she was 12. ... Read more New Zealand Karate Athlete for Tokyo Olympics
The government’s child welfare organisation, Oranga Tamariki, is in trouble once again. Some time ago, there was a scandal because social workers were taking new-born babies from young mothers against their will. Now there is another scandal because workers have been using excessive force to control children and teenagers staying in hostels called “care and ... Read more Another Child Welfare Scandal
New Zealand will have a new public holiday in 2022. This will celebrate Matariki, and in 2022 it will be celebrated around June 24th. Type Matariki in the search box of this website to find information about what it means to Maori people. While most workers will be happy to have another public holiday, business ... Read more Matariki will be a holiday in 2022
Wellington City recently had a Covid-19 scare when a tourist from Australia came down sick immediately after visiting the city for a weekend. The tourist came to Wellington on Friday night, the 18th of June, and met with friends from Tauranga and Wellington. Because it was raining, they visited several indoor venues, including Te Papa, ... Read more Covid Scare in Wellington
Negotiations between the New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO), and district health boards (DHBs) have stalled after nurses voted to reject the latest pay offer yesterday. The New Zealand Nurses Organisation is the union that represents nurses. The DHBs are the organisations that run hospitals. The strike will go from 11am until 7pm Wednesday the ninth ... Read more Looming Nurses’ Strike
Auckland is facing a shortage of water again. The water level in the storage lakes is usually at 77% at this time of year but now, despite recent rain, it’s still only at 50%. Residents are asked to limit their use of water by about 15% – that’s 20 litres of water a day. Take ... Read more Does Auckland have enough water?
The government has announced a pay freeze for public service workers who earn $60,000 or more a year. Public service workers are people who are paid by the government. They are teachers, nurses hospital doctors, police, army, and staff who work in parliament. The three-year pay freeze will mean anyone earning over $100,000 will not ... Read more Public Service Workers Pay Freeze
Prince Philip, husband of Queen Elizabeth, died at Windsor Castle on April 9th aged 99. The couple had been married 73 years. His funeral will take place at St Georges chapel in Windsor this weekend, with only 30 people invited to attend the ceremony. The small number is partly because of Covid-19.
Prince Philip was 26 years old and Princess Elizabeth was 21 years old when they were married in 1947. The wedding took place in Westminster Abbey, and Prince Philip was given the title of the Duke of Edinburgh on that day.
When King George VI died in 1952, Princess Elizabeth became Queen Elizabeth II. She has said many times that her husband has been a great support for her in her busy life.
Her husband was an officer in the Royal Navy before he was married. During his long life as husband to the Queen, he has been known for his work for the WorldWde Fund for Nature. WWF is concerned about conservation of wild animals such as elephants and pandas.
Another important interest of his was sport and fitness. He played many sports including polo. He encouraged his daughter Princess Anne when she competed in many horse-riding events including in the 1976 Olympics. Prince Philip was known for the Duke of Edinburgh Awards for young people. This encourages young people from 14 to 24 years of age to challenge themselves on a range of skills, such as physical and leadership skills and includes becoming a volunteer for some worthwhile project.
The Queen and her husband have 4 children, Charles, Anne, Andrew and Edward. There are many grandchildren. Charles is heir to the throne which means that after the queen dies, he will be the next king.
Vocabulary
chapel – small church
conservation – looking after the environment, saving native plants and animals
award – a prize like a medal
worthwhile – valuable for the community, not for money
throne – the seat where the Queen sits in Parliament, it also is another way of saying The Queen or King
New Zealanders will soon be able to travel to Australia and return without going through quarantine here. The Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, announced the travel bubble will start on April 19th. At the moment, travellers would need a negative Covid-19 test before leaving.
This announcement was good news for many businesses in New Zealand and for families here who have relatives in Australia who have not been able to meet since our lockdown in March 2020. In that time, babies have been born, couples have married, and people have become older. Some family members have been separated for a year because of lockdowns. They have been able to keep in touch through technology, but it is not the same as meeting in person.
New Zealand businesses are hoping that Australian tourists will spend money on hotels, restaurants, campervans, rental cars and tourist activities like jet boating. With winter fast approaching, ski areas like Queenstown, Wanaka and Taupo are also hoping for Australian skiers.
Ms Ardern warned of what she called “Flyer Beware”. She copied the well known phrase, “Buyer Beware” which means be careful when you buy something from someone you don’t know. There may be a problem with the product you buy. However, “Flyer Beware” probably means that there is always a possibility of a lockdown in the country you are visiting. If that happens, you may not be able to get home until after the lockdown.
At the moment, there is no discussion about a vaccination passport but as soon as many people have been vaccinated, that could change.
Vocabulary
quarantine – isolation from other people; at the moment, travellers to New Zealand have to spend two weeks in a quarantine hotel.
keep in touch – this is a useful phrase which has a wide meaning. You can keep in touch sometimes through phone, video, email, text, letter or visiting in person.
Listen again:
Multimedia art exhibition, Van Gogh Alive, has recently finished showing in Christchurch and will soon be showing at the Spark Arena in Auckland. It is an exhibition that teaches people about the art of Vincent Van Gogh using large, projected screens that include animation of the art. The exhibition includes classical music and wafted perfume. Visitors will have the opportunity to take selfies in a room full of sunflowers, and to get their photos taken in a room that looks like Van Gogh’s painting of his bedroom.
The exhibition is showing from April 10th to May 6th. If you want to buy tickets to this event, you can buy them at ticketmaster. When you buy your tickets, you have to choose what time you start your exhibition because at the very beginning of the tour, everybody learns information about each painting that they will see in the main show. The entire exhibition lasts about 2 hours, but you can stay as long as you want.
Vocabulary
multimedia: media which uses many different technologies, in this case music, perfume and video
exhibition: an art show
projected: when light is used to make an image shine onto a wall
waft: the movement of a smell through the air
opportunity: chance
selfie: a photo of yourself
entire: whole, complete
lasts: takes (an amount of time), continues (for an amount of time)
The same exhibition was in Wellington at the beginning of this year. Here is a video about it.
The government has ordered 8.5m doses of the Pfizer vaccine which will arrive in the second half of the year. It will be free and available for all those over the age of 16.
In the meantime, the Ministry of Health is vaccinating all those who are at greater risk of getting Covid-19. They include border workers and their families. People who work at the airport and in the quarantine hotels are border workers. Frontline health professionals are also at risk. These are nurses and doctors who are testing people for the virus or in contact with sick people who already have the virus. Then there are others in the community who have health issues like asthma and they are given priority.
The rest of New Zealand will have to wait. The Pfizer vaccine needs two doses for each person and must be stored at a very low temperature. It is 95% effective after the second dose. We don’t yet know how the Ministry of Health will organise the vaccination programme.
Vocabulary
dose (n)– an amount of medicine for one person at one time
asthma (n) – people who have asthma may find it difficult to breathe
a vaccine (n) – to vaccinate (v), a vaccination (adj) programme: a vaccine is a medicine that teaches the body how to fight a disease
Earthquakes off the coast of Te Araroa on the East Cape of the North Island and another near the Kermadec Islands brought warnings of a tsunami last week. Residents near Te Araroa were woken with a loud siren to move to the hills. About an hour later residents of parts of Northland received a similar warning to move to higher ground.
The East Cape earthquake was 7.1 and the Kermadec Islands was 8.1. The Kermadecs are about 1,000km North East of Auckland, and New Zealand scientists often visit there but fortunately there was no one on the islands at that time.
A message from NZ National Emergency Centre came later in the morning that people could return home as there was no longer a risk of a tsunami.
What is a tsunami? This is a Japanese word. In the past, we have called this a tidal wave but this doesn’t give any idea of the size or danger. A tsunami is a series of very high waves, maybe more than 10 high, which can travel long distances inland. It is caused by an earthquake off the coast. In December 2004, a tsunami in the Indian Ocean, killed more 200,000 people.
Vocabulary
residents (n) – people who live in that area
siren (n)– loud noise used by police to warn people of danger
Whakatane is a small town of about 38,000 people, in the Bay of Plenty. It has a paper mill which uses logs to make paper and cardboard. The mill opened in 1939 and at that time mostly made paper including newsprint. Now it makes packaging, especially food packages made from clean cardboard, to replace the use of plastic. The mill employs 210 people. These people will lose their jobs when the mill closes in June. Other people like truck drivers and local shop keepers depend on this business too. This is bad news for Whakatane. There are not many other job opportunities in a small town.
Why is the mill closing? Probably a number of reasons. It is now owned by a Swiss company which also owns other bigger paper mills in Europe and Asia. They say it is not viable to keep this small mill open.
There are a number of pine plantations in the Bay of Plenty which supply the logs for the mill. These pine trees grow quickly. They are ready to be cut down in about 25 years. People (mostly men) in the logging business, cut down the trees. Machines are used to remove the branches, leaving just the logs. These logs are loaded onto logging trucks and taken to the mill. More pine trees are planted in the same area.
Because New Zealand grows these trees quickly, many of the logs are exported. Other countries may buy our logs for their paper mills.
Vocabulary
mill: a factory which makes flour, paper, steel
logs: wood from trees
plantation: a kind of farm that grows things such as cotton, sugar, tea, coffee and wood
Listen again
Immigration Minister Kris Faafoi is telling businesses who need migrant workers to change the way they do business. He says that even when New Zealand is able to open its borders, it will not be so easy to bring workers in from overseas, and that the number of migrants will be a lot less than before.
He says that the government has spent money on training New Zealanders for work, and businesses can hire staff who already live in New Zealand. Later this year, the Skilled Migrant Category visa will be overhauled so that the skills on the list are up-to-date.
This reduction in migration is driven by the need to reduce pressure on New Zealand’s infrastructure. Examples of pressure on infrastructure are the housing shortage and overworked hospitals.
Vocabulary:
Immigration Minister: an elected member of the government who controls immigration.
migrant: someone who travels, usually for work
open/close borders: when a country closes its borders, nobody can come into the country. When the borders are open, travellers can come into the country.
staff: workers in a business
overhaul: redesign, make big changes
up-to-date: current; based on data that is true now
reduction: when something becomes less
reduce: make less
driven by: caused by; motivated by
pressure on (resources/infrastructure): problems caused by too much demand. For example, too many people and not enough water puts pressure on water resources.
infrastructure: things that support a society. For example: roads, water systems, electricity.
Clauses and phrases
Talking About Data
This graph shows migration to and from New Zealand over the last three years. It comes from the New Zealand government’s Statistics Department. You can look at the graph more carefully here.
What can you say about this graph? Can you make sentences using these words?
Nouns: a trough, a plateau, a sharp drop, a steady increase
Verbs: peaked, plummeted, held steady, dropped, increased
Auckland’s Lantern Festival is a traditional Chinese festival that is extremely popular. For many years, the festival has been held next to Auckland Hospital in a park called the Auckland Domain. The festival, lasting several days, regularly attracted over a hundred thousand visitors. This caused traffic problems for the hospital.
So this year, organisers moved the festival to the Auckland waterfront to make life easier for the hospital. But this is not the only change. To keep social distancing, and also to trace contacts, people need a ticket to get into the festival. You can get tickets for free online, and the tickets only last three hours. Time is limited to three hours so that everybody can have a chance to see the festival. At any time, there will be a limit of 11,000 people looking at the lanterns.
But that is not the only change! Because we recently went to Alert Level 2, the festival has been postponed by one week to the first week of March.
If you go to the festival, you can see over 500 lanterns, see some live entertainment and buy fun things (including food) from the stalls.
Here are the details of how to get to the festival:
When: 4-7 March, 2021
Where: Captain Cook Wharf. To get there, you need to walk down Queen’s Wharf, near the ferry terminal.
Ticket times: You can book tickets for 5pm, 6:30pm or 8:30pm. Each ticket lasts for three hours.
How to get tickets: go to https://www.moshtix.co.nz/v2/event/auckland-lantern-festival-2021-all-dates/125696
vocabulary:
attract: make someone want to come
Wharf: a wooden platform that goes out over the water
organisers: people who make an event (such as a festival or a party) happen
waterfront: an area of land that is close to the sea. This can include beaches or wharfs.
trace contacts: follow a person’s past movements to find out who they may have passed on a virus to.
last: continue, endure
postponed: rescheduled for a later date; made later
stalls: small, temporary shops for special events
Comprehension Questions:
- Why is the festival being held in a different place this year?
- Why is the event ticketed?
- When is the event being held?
- Where is the event being held?