Planners warn the rushed consents could sideline community input and environmental safeguards as recovery projects are sped through this month.
Deloitte urges New Zealand businesses to prioritise reskilling, with fewer than 5% confident in identifying future skills. Leaders must adapt to thrive.
New rules will impose tougher farm controls and swimming standards, but scientists warn implementation will determine whether waterways actually improve.
Homeowners could save NZD $18 million a year as councils drop consents for sheds, carports and other low-risk work from August.
Rail operators under pressure from Covid-19 can join a 24-hour virtual summit with 50 speakers live or on-demand.
Domestic travel spending could help cushion the sector as international arrivals slump and businesses await the effect of a new campaign.
Experts say the $50 billion COVID-19 recovery plan will lift jobs and infrastructure, but warn it leaves big tax and housing gaps.
Better freight services and more reliable trains are set to follow, as the funding also covers new ferries and ageing locomotives.
New Zealand’s wage subsidy extension and infrastructure spending are meant to blunt soaring unemployment as the economy heads into recession.
New distancing and travel rules aim to help builders restart safely under Level 2, with updated protocols now available online.
A slump in private development could let ministers add 9,400 state houses, easing a record waiting list and propping up builders.
Recognition of waste-to-energy plants as essential has sharpened focus on their role in safely treating infectious rubbish during the pandemic.
Temporary changes to resource consenting could speed up Covid-19 recovery projects, though councils warn wider planning reforms must follow.
Covid-19 travel restrictions forced an early 83-hour transfer of the Hope Probe to Japan, keeping the UAE’s first Mars mission on schedule.
Small firms face months of cashflow pain as the wages subsidy runs thin and landlords and utilities keep billing during lockdown.
Lockdowns are set to cut CO2 emissions by at least 5% this year, but any climate gain could be erased unless stimulus backs cleaner growth.
Construction firms now have detailed COVID-19 rules to resume work under Alert Level 3, aiming to protect workers and avoid a return to lockdown.
Retailers, couriers and cafes could see demand rebound sharply, with most New Zealand adults expecting to return once restrictions ease.
Construction jobs and council investment could restart quickly, as Auckland submits 73 infrastructure projects for the Government’s stimulus list.
Remote work, home schooling and digital healthcare could outlast the pandemic, reshaping cities, travel and emissions for years to come.
