Repatriation, innovation, virtual reality and other digital opportunities and issues around earthquake strengthening buildings will all come up for debate next weekend at our museums' national conference in Christchurch. The MA18 Conference brings together several hundred museum leaders to talk about a time of rapid change in how museums display their taonga and how they reach out to their communities. Lynn Freeman spoke to Phillipa Tocker who's the Executive Director of Museums Aotearoa, and to one of the guest speakers, futurist Kaila Colbin who's curator of TEDxChristchurch and TEDxScottBase, co-founder and Chair of the Ministry of Awesome and a director of ChristchurchNZ which is responsible for tourism, major events and economic development in the city.
Architect Bob Burnett is part of a class action group yet to resolve claims with Southern Response. The group argues the insurer, which was established to settle outstanding AMI claims, has systematically short-changed them. Mr Burnett said the insurer had done more damage to his home than had been done in the earthquakes. The 40 members of the class action group head to court next Wednesday.
Javier and Jackie Garcia Knight look back on the earthquake that changed Christchurch and New Zealand forever.
A Christchurch man has begun a hunger strike over an earthquake insurance claim. Fonterra changes its policy and promises to pay bills more promptly.
As the government eyes an EQC overhaul, Christchurch earthquake insurance specialist Dean Lester wants to see action, not hear more empty words. This after a report yesterday found EQC staff had no confidence in their own data, and the organisation needed to drastically improve its treatment of claimants. The minister in charge of the Earthquake Commission is calling for immediate changes to the organisation.
A review of the week's news including... The bill to fix botched EQC repairs from the Canterbury earthquakes is now four times what the previous Government predicted just two years ago, immigrants are being computer profiled, MPs are told that medicinal cannabis should be legalised for more people, Middlemore Hospital's woes continue, the Government orders a compulsory recall of 50 thousand vehicles with faulty airbags, Auckland drivers face a double tax hike under proposed sweeping changes to transport funding, Parliament changes the law so New Zealand men with historical homosexual convictions can have them wiped, a bus company wants to recruit more than 100 drivers from overseas because it can't find enough people to do the job here, Dunedin has its biggest weekend ever in terms of money spent thanks to Ed Sheeran, first it was closing - now it's not, Kaikohe's Warehouse is to stay, it all comes together for the New Zealand cricket team against England, an international consortium reaches a verbal agreement to buy the New Zealand Warriors and the woman who was RNZ's Washington correspondent for more than 20 years has died.
Disaster teams in Papua New Guinea are still struggling to reach parts of the country hit hard by Monday's 7-point-5 earthquake: the Tongan branch of aid agency Live and Learn is still busy helping people patch up their homes two weeks on from the battering dished out by Cyclone Gita: Oceania leaders of the Anglican church gathering in Fiji will be looking at better preparing their people for natural disasters at a fono this week in Suva attended by the Archbishop of Canterbury; Pacific people call for more influence on global issues that affect the region's rapidly changing climate; a mould problem in Australia's refugee detention centre on Nauru posed a serious health threat.
Hon PAULA BENNETT to the Prime Minister: Does she stand by all her statements?
Dr DEBORAH RUSSELL to the Minister of Finance: What does the Treasury’s 2018 Investment Statement show about the state of the Government’s balance sheet?
Hon AMY ADAMS to the Minister of Finance: How much capital expenditure is this Government forecast to spend in the period 2018-2022 compared to the previous Government over these same years, and how much of the difference is funded by an increase in debt?
Hon PAUL GOLDSMITH to the Minister for Economic Development: Does this Government have a broad economic development strategy; if so, what is it?
Dr DUNCAN WEBB to the Minister responsible for the Earthquake Commission: What announcements has the Government made about changes to how the Earthquake Commission operates?
Hon DAVID BENNETT to the Minister of Corrections: Does he stand by his statement on the Marae programme that “the problem right now is that corrections doesn’t have any flexibility…we’re in a real bind”?
Hon SCOTT SIMPSON to the Associate Minister for the Environment: Does she agree with the statements in the Annual Report of the Environmental Protection Authority, “we have our share of science deniers, who oppose fluoride, 1080, vaccinations, glyphosate, genetic modification, and much more” and “our Chief Scientist is prominent in emphasising the evidence, data, and science that underpins EPA decision making”; if so, why?
JENNY MARCROFT to the Minister for Regional Economic Development: What recent announcements has he made pertaining to the Provincial Growth Fund?
SIMEON BROWN to the Minister of Justice: Should maximum legislated sentences reflect the seriousness of the crime committed?
Hon NICKY WAGNER to the Minister for Greater Christchurch Regeneration: Does she stand by all her answers to written questions?
ANGIE WARREN-CLARK to the Minister for the Environment: What does he think New Zealanders have to celebrate on World Water Day?
MELISSA LEE to the Minister of Broadcasting, Communications and Digital Media: Does she stand by all her Government’s policies and actions in the Broadcasting, Communications and Digital Media portfolio?
