New Zealand: Politics
Nats' ETS opinions don't worry me, says Hide
20 Jan 2009
Act Party leader Rodney Hide says that he is unconcerned by comments from United Future leader Peter Dunne and Energy Minister Gerry Brownlee that New Zealand’s emissions trading scheme is here to stay.
No takers with emissions trading review a month away
16 Jan 2009
Submissions on the review of New Zealand emissions trading scheme close on February 13 - and so far none have been made.
Solid Energy: NZIER report all we funded
16 Jan 2009
Solid Energy says that the NZIER report on the implications of the emissions trading scheme is the only work it has funded on the issue.
ETS select committee opens for business
19 Dec 2008
Submissions on the review of the emissions trading scheme are now open.
No suspension of ETS - what the PM said
19 Dec 2008
On Wednesday, Prime Minister John Key told Parliament that the Government would not now suspend the emissions trading scheme.
PM indicates ETS law will not be suspended during review
18 Dec 2008
The Prime Minister has indicated the ETs law will not be suspended during the select committee review.
Dunne to bar time-wasters from ETS review hearings
16 Dec 2008
Groups wanting to relitigate the science of climate change or to grandstand on the issue are likely to find themselves shut out from appearing before the select committee reviewing the emissions trading scheme.
National will have an ETS, says Brownlee
12 Dec 2008
National will bring in an emissions trading scheme, says Energy Minister Gerry Brownlee.
Environmental sustainability key issue, say advisers
12 Dec 2008
Environmental sustainability is now a central issue for New Zealand, say top government advisers.
Harawira tries again to link treaty and ETS
12 Dec 2008
The Maori Party is again trying to get the impact on Treaty of Waitangi settlements included in the emissions trading scheme.
ETS review committee announced
9 Dec 2008
The ETS review is shaping as a bun-fight, with Rodney Hide, David Carter and Jeanette Fitzsimons all on the committee that will do the work.
Smith: we want consensus on climate change
9 Dec 2008
Climate Change Minister Nick Smith says he wants New Zealand to build a broader consensus on how to make progress on climate-change issues.
Chauvel: Hide failed to show for the last select committee
9 Dec 2008
Labour says that Act Party leader Rodney Hide has some gall pushing a new select committee inquiry into the emissions trading scheme when he hardly showed up for the last one.
Dunne at the helm: We need an ETS quickly
9 Dec 2008
New Zealand needs a robust emissions trading scheme in place as quickly as possible to reassure businesses and shore-up our international credibility, says the man who will chair the ETS review.
Buck: Forget ETS review, we're nearly out of time
9 Dec 2008
A New Zealander named in Britain as one of the 50 people most able to prevent the continued destruction of the world says that New Zealand doesn’t have the luxury of “forgetting” about climate change while it reviews its legislative direction.
Emissions scheme 'sound', but Treasury issues warning
5 Dec 2008
Treasury says that the emissions trading scheme is sound, and warns that giving “generous treatment” to emitters would simply transfer the costs to taxpayers.
We should put a price on water, says Treasury
5 Dec 2008
Treasury is floating the prospect of a market price for water.
District council factors in 10% cost of ETS
2 Dec 2008
Stratford District Council will factor in a 10 per cent increase in operating costs from 2011 to cover the increased transport and reporting costs under the current ETS, and “perhaps” a 5 per cent increase in its farm operating budget from 2013.
Anxious EMA wants to meet ministers on ETS review
28 Nov 2008
The Employers and Manufacturers' Association is seeking urgent meetings with government ministers to express concern that a review of the emissions trading scheme might include questioning whether human-induced climate change is real.
Act's climate change questions damaging, says professor
28 Nov 2008
Questioning the science of human-induced climate change will damage New Zealand’s ability to promote agricultural interests at the Copenhagen talks and beyond, says a leading scientist.
Govt mum on position for Poznan
28 Nov 2008
Government ministers and officials are tight-lipped the position New Zealand will take at next week’s Poznan talks preparing for next year’s Copenhagen conference on the second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol.
Oil companies hail move to look at carbon tax
25 Nov 2008
Oil and gas companies are applauding National's moves to revisit carbon tax and to overhaul the Resource Management Act, and say they are confident of a better working relationship with the new government than with the old one.
Listener criticises government's ETS move
25 Nov 2008
The new government's decision to completely review the emissions trading scheme "beggars belief", says the Listener.
We're now a joke in Europe, says carbon trader
21 Nov 2008
Delaying the emissions trading scheme is costing New Zealand the chance to be the major Asian carbon market hub, says a leading New Zealand trader.
Hold on to your carbon credits, experts advise
21 Nov 2008
New Zealanders shouldn’t buy or sell carbon credits until the Government’s plans for the emissions trading scheme are clear, says a prominent law firm.
NZ businesses told: Get used to it, carbon rules
21 Nov 2008
New Zealand business will have to account for its carbon – regardless of whether it is through an emissions trading scheme or a carbon tax, says PricewaterhouseCooper partner and sustainability specialist Julia Hoare.
EXCLUSIVE: Carbon market leader shelves NZ plans
18 Nov 2008
One of the biggest players in the world carbon market has put plans to set up in New Zealand on hold in the wake of the new government’s decision to review the emissions trading scheme.
NZUs 'dead' as carbon market struggles with confusion
18 Nov 2008
Sales of NZUs are effectively dead as carbon markets struggle to understand the implications of the new government's moves on the ETS.
Nats' ETS position changes from promise to preference
18 Nov 2008
The National Party has changed its pre-election promise to have an emissions trading scheme up and running by January 1, 2010 to a “preference”.
Big Three power companies silent on changes
18 Nov 2008
Most power companies are remaining tight-lipped in the wake of news that the National-led government will scrap the ban on new non-essential fossil-fuelled power stations and will review the emissions trading scheme.
ETS uncertainty worries geothermal developers
14 Nov 2008
Uncertainty over the future of the emissions trading scheme and the thermal generation moratorium is casting doubt over the development of new geothermal projects in the Bay of Plenty.
Hide stands firm: ETS should be scrapped
11 Nov 2008
The future of the emissions trading scheme is back on the table today as National and Act continue negotiations to form a government.
Ditch ETS and we're in big trouble, say business bosses
11 Nov 2008
Business leaders are warning against scrapping the emissions trading scheme, saying New Zealand risks international trade sanctions and missing out on business opportunities.
Time for another look at carbon tax, say farmers
11 Nov 2008
Federated Farmers wants the carbon tax revisited.
O'Reilly questions future of leadership forum
11 Nov 2008
Business New Zealand chief Phil O’Reilly is questioning the future role of the Leadership Forum on Climate Change in overhauling the emissions trading scheme, saying that it is highly politicised.
ANALYSIS: Clark could follow in Blair's footsteps
11 Nov 2008
The US presidential victory of Democrat Barack Obama boosts the chances of former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark winning a role with the United Nations.
Labour eyes nation-wide electric-car charging network
7 Nov 2008
The Labour Party has announced an election-eve plan for a nationwide infrastructure to recharge electric cars, saying New Zealand could be the first country in the world to get such a network in place.
Fisheries TAG in the wings as others wind down
7 Nov 2008
A fisheries ETS technical advisory group is due to be set up next year, but most other advisory groups are winding up.
UK wants carbon assessment standard to go world-wide
7 Nov 2008
The UK Government wants its recently released carbon footprint assessment standard to be adopted internationally.
Ecology group slams Key's call for more growth
4 Nov 2008
The Pacific Institute of Resource Management - the Wellington-based ecological group backed by wealthy British environmentalist Teddy Goldsmith - says a call by National Party leader John Key for increased growth is like giving a drunk more drink.
Forum leaders keen to keep on being heard
31 Oct 2008
The Climate Change Leadership Forum is making a bid to keep going.
Australian ETS not enough, says leading scientist
31 Oct 2008
Prominent scientist and 2007 Australian of the Year, Professor Tim Flannery, says that the Australian Emissions Trading Scheme is nowhere near sufficient.
Look to your triple bottom line, say fund-keepers
28 Oct 2008
New Zealand’s Super Fund and 51 other international investment funds managing a total of $US4 trillion worth of assets are telling companies to focus on their triple bottom lines.
Now is the time to get out of Kyoto, says Hide
24 Oct 2008
ACT party leader Rodney Hide says New Zealand should pull out of the Kyoto Protocol in the face of increased pressures on businesses and households caused by the global financial crisis - but it won’t be a make-or-break issue during any post-election discussions with National.
WANTED: 10,000 rich investors to boost our country
21 Oct 2008
Attracting 10,000 rich investors who want a “piece of the New Zealand story” is the key to getting New Zealand’s clean-tech revolution off the ground, says a former cabinet minister and merchant banker.
Nats promise electricity-first ETS by 2010
21 Oct 2008
The National Party will have an emissions trading scheme covering the electricity sector by January 1, 2010, climate change spokesman Nick Smith said in a debate yesterday.
Parker: Nats won't, but we'll answer the questions
21 Oct 2008
Climate Change Minister David Parker says that he is willing to answer Carbon News’ questions on climate change policy – even if National isn’t.
Nats and climate change: The unanswered questions
17 Oct 2008
Carbon News’s questions for the National Party on key climate-change policy issues have met with silence over the past week.
Nat's insulation snub huge setback, says health expert
17 Oct 2008
National’s plan to scrap the $1 billion home insulation fund will be a huge setback to the health of New Zealanders and to moves to cut energy consumption, says a leading health researcher.
National-Maori coalition raises major issues over fate of ETS
17 Oct 2008
ANALYSIS: If a National-Maori Party Government takes power next month the new coalition could face immense difficulties agreeing on changes to the emissions trading scheme.
Profound shifts in our changing energy system – new data
Today 10:46am
New Zealand’s energy system is undergoing a profound shift as falling gas production and a dry hydro year reshaped the electricity market in 2024, according to data from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment’s Energy in New Zealand 2025.
International scientists slam NZ govt's proposed approach to methane
13 Aug 2025
New Zealand's proposed approach to methane emissions has again been attacked by international climate scientists, with a new study saying the attempt to redefine climate target-setting by livestock-exporting countries undermines the transition to a sustainable and equitable food system
Marginal drop in last year's regional emissions
Today 10:46am
Regional greenhouse gas emissions were down slightly last year, with a fall in gas supply leading to a big drop in Taranaki, but more coal burnt leading to higher emissions in Waikato, according to new figures from Stats NZ
Fund for low emissions transport winds up
31 Jul 2025
New Zealand’s Low Emission Transport Fund has officially wrapped up, ending a nine-year programme that put hundreds of millions of dollars towards accelerating the country’s shift to cleaner transport.
Certainty crucial to emissions cuts – Watts
20 Aug 2025
By Shannon Morris-Williams | Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says that policy certainty is the Government’s primary lever for unlocking private capital and meeting climate targets, telling a carbon forestry conference that ETS settings are 'locked' through 2030.
Why climate strategy is now central to business success
Tue 26 Aug 2025
SPONSORED CONTENT: Ahead of next month’s Climate Change and Business Conference, New Zealand businesses are being urged to treat climate strategy not as a regulatory burden, but as a core driver of economic competitiveness.
