Quote:
Key pushes the competitive economy button
28 January 2013
John Key made it clear through the media on Friday that the Government is pressing ahead with a wide range of measures to build a more productive and competitive economy.
His speech dovetailed with Finance Minister Bill English pointing out that in recent months the Government had been able to hone the deficit.
“New Zealand has to be a magnet for investment,” Key told the North Harbour Club in Auckland.
“That’s investment by individuals and small businesses, as well as big businesses; and it’s investment by people from overseas as well as Kiwis. The more investment we get, the more jobs will be created.”
He said that to ensure future growth is based on investment, exports and savings, the Government has set out a wide-ranging programme of initiatives – including ensuring people have the right skills to contribute to the workforce.
The Prime Minister announced an initiative to expand and improve apprenticeship training.
“As a result of these changes, and stimulated by the boom in construction and other trades that is already underway in Christchurch, we estimate that around 14,000 additional apprentices will start training over the next five years, over and above the number previously forecast,” he said.
“That will mean thousands of New Zealanders get to learn a new trade that will last them a lifetime.”
Addressing issues in the housing market and further reforming the Resource Management Act (RMA) are also among the Government’s priorities.
“With housing, we want to work closely with local councils and I believe our goals in the end are the same. But if councils aren’t able to change their planning processes, then the Government will have to get a lot more proactive because we are very serious about this issue.”
Key said the Government was working on a further stage of comprehensive RMA reforms, which will be released in the next few months.
“I want to see big improvements in this area and it’s going to be a high priority for the Government this year.”
Commenting, the New Zealand Herald said of the apprenticeships initiative that currently modern apprenticeship subsidies have been limited to the Industry Training Organisations with trainees aged between 16 and 21. The subsidy is paid to the ITOs to visit the apprentices.
From 2014 there will be a single rate of subsidy for apprentices and there will be no age restriction.
Subsidies for existing modern apprenticeships will be protected however for four years or until they finish.
As an incentive the Government will give a $1,000 gratis payment to each new apprentice enrolled after April 1 this year for tools and off-job course costs and $2,000 to those in priority construction industries. The same amount will be given to their employers.
Key said claimed that under earlier Labour Governments’ “'wasteful management,” up to 100,000 people a year listed as being in industry training but were in fact “phantom trainees.”
Key said Australia had done so well over the last few years because it had massive investment in its economy.
Investment in Western Australia had seen the lowest unemployment rate and highest population growth of any Australian State.
In New Zealand, Taranaki had attracted significant oil and gas investment. It had a low unemployment rate and incomes had grown faster than anywhere else in the country.
“The key factor is investment and not just in oil and gas. So here in NZ we have to be a magnet for investment."
Key attacked Opposition parties accusing them of opposing most measures the Government proposed to encourage investment, growth and job. They opposed tax changes, major roading projects, free trade with the United States [Labour does not], RMA changes, 90-day work trial, work expectations for beneficiaries, oil and gas exploration, labour market legislation for The Hobbit film, and a national convention centre.
“There is only one type activist government they know - the big spending and big-borrowing kind. It's called 'chequebook activism' and New Zealanders know it well because they have seen it before," he added.
Sources: NZResources.com files and nzherald.co.nz
Huh? that's funny, the economic data from the previous govt's term shows that Labour paid off heaps of old debt, resisted divvying out any spare cashflow as tax reductions although National was bleating for it in paliament for months/years, and increased the tax base for several years running. I wonder what the real story about '100,000 phantom trainees' is. John's probably hoping no-one will bother to research that, and just believe him.
Quote:
Why did the Government review industry training?
In the 10 years to 2010, Government funding for industry training trebled, but value for money has been poor – qualification completions and credit attainment have been very low. In 2008, 96,831 people being funded to participate in industry training did not achieve a single credit. In 2009 the same figure was 100,801.
Audits of ITOs in 2009 and 2010 also revealed that Government had been subsidising a significant number of trainees who were not eligible for funding under the existing funding rules.
In response to these issues, the funding rules were tightened and monitoring was increased. Qualification and credit attainment in industry training has improved as a result.
In 2011, the Government initiated a wider policy review of industry training to assess whether the current model was fit for purpose and providing the best value for money. The review found that although the system was not broken, there was room for significant improvement. One of the main findings of the review was that the current single funding rate for industry training does not appear to adequately support the theory learning required in apprenticeships, as indicated by the high ITO fees for employers of apprentices.
The figures above don't spell out how many other students were involved and who achieved some credits, but it would have been many more than 100,000. Even universities have students who enrol and drop out early, for a number of reasons. The official article above doesn't say all of these students were phantoms, because they wouldn't have been.