Bill English’s first budget has disappointed many by ditching promised tax cuts, but pleased a few by reinstating a Green home insulation initiative. The Science Media Centre has a handy summary here. There’s $321 million of new money for R&D through a “Primary Growth Partnership” (details due on June 2), which goes some way to offset the loss of Labour’s “Fast Forward” fund, but no money for the promised climate change research centre (it was going to be a “virtual” centre, now it’s actually gone). Reaction in the science community was mixed, as the Science Media Centre documents. Professor Philippa Howden-Chapman, director of the He Kainga Oranga/Housing and Health Research Programme at the University of Otago, Wellington commented:
“I’m very pleased to see that there has been multi-partisan agreement about the importance of retrofitting insulation and install sustainable heating and that significant investment has been included in this Budget. There is going to be a ramp up over four years and by the end of that time it is estimated that over a quarter of uninsulated houses in New Zealand will be insulated.
“I think it’s important that the Government is requiring people to insulate their houses before they can access the subsidies for sustainable heaters. This makes physical and energy efficiency sense and is based on sound public health science. There has also been further attempts to increase the incentives for landlords to upgrade their properties, which is important for the 40% of householders that rent in the private sector.
Meanwhile, Prof Paul Callaghan at Victoria University was “disappointed” with the budget:
“If New Zealand is to turbocharge its way out of this recession, we have to develop new export businesses based on knowledge and innovation. What we need are significant new investments to build our innovation system. The 2009/10 budget has not addressed that issue.â€
However, in a fairly clear signal that the Emissions Trading Scheme is going to survive its select committee review, Nick Smith announced increased funding of $6.9 million for developing the Emissions Trading Scheme, “including international linkages”.
[Beatles (rare long version)]
Is this the Research Centre that just a few days ago Nick Smith spoke of in glowing terms in his speech commented on in the previous Hot Topic post? In his words:
“A very important initiative is the work being led by Agriculture Minister David Carter on National’s policy of an international centre for research on Agricultural Greenhouse Gas Emissions. I rate this as the most important contribution New Zealand can make internationally to the whole problem of climate change – particularly as the issue of developing country emissions come into focus.”
If so, does it mean that Smith is on the outer when decisions are being made? Does it leave him looking stranded? Will he object? What does it say about the Government’s intent in tackling climate change?
Gareth, Bryan,
In Nick Smith’s budget announcement on MfE priorities, he says “Feel good programmes that cost much and achieved little have been shelved”.
Does any one know which programmes he is talking about?
I think, Mr Feb, he’s referring to programmes such as the Carbon Neutral Public Service, which was canned earlier this year.
Mr February, this link will take you to the Minister’s March announcement which details the five programmes affected.