European Parliament
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT DELEGATION FOR RELATIONS WITH AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND 12TH EP/NEW ZEALAND INTERPARLIAMENTARY MEETING 26 FEBRUARY - 5 MARCH 2006 AUCKLAND, WELLINGTON, CHRISTCHURCH CHAIRMAN'S REPORT The Delegation travelled to New Zealand from 26 February to 5 March. The delegation was headed by Mr Neil Parish (EPP-ED, United Kingdom). The full list of the participants is appended. MEPs held meetings at the highest level, in particular with the Prime Minister, the Rt. Hon. Helen Clark; the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Hon. Margaret Wilson; the Foreign Minister, the Rt. Hon. Winston Peters; and the Leader of the National Party, Dr Don Brash. Members also met a wide range of Members of Parliament, including the Labour Party, the National Party, the New Zealand First Party, the United Future New Zealand Party and the Green Party. Meetings also took place with the Business Committee of the House of Representatives. On regular occasions during the entire visit the Delegation was accompanied by members of Parliament. The Delegation was briefed by the Heads of Mission of the Member States to New Zealand, including the Delegation of the European Commission, and met also representatives of agriculture, academia and the press. Key items discussed during the meetings were the EU-New Zealand relationship; Common Agriculture Policy reform; development aid to the Pacific region; New Zealand's free trade agreement with China; internal New Zealand politics, in particular the Mixed Member Proportional representation system (MMP) that has been in operation since 1996; the post-enlargement EU and the draft constitutional treaty; world affairs and global security. The Delegation thanks its interlocutors for the excellent exchanges; it looks forward to continuing the interparliamentary dialogue during the return visit to Europe by the Parliament of New Zealand in April 2006. The Chairman of the Delegation would also like to thank all Members for their support and help during the visit. The Chairman would also like to note that Mr Mike Fokker of the Visits and Ceremonial Office of the Department of Internal Affairs and Mrs Cheryl Ferguson of the Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives were particularly helpful in dealing with all organisational aspects of the mission. The European Commission Delegation was also very supportive and assisted the parliamentarians during their time in New Zealand. PE 372.922 1 CR/610287EN.doc .25-26 February 2006 The delegation arrived on 25 and 26 February. They held an informal meeting at 1700hrs on 26 February at which the programme was outlined. Monday 27 February 2006 The delegation left Auckland accompanied by Mr Lindsay Tisch, National MP for Piako. They were subsequently joined by Diana Yates, List Labour MP. Maungatautari Ecological Island Trust 0930 - 1100hrs The delegation visited the Maungatautari Ecological Island Trust, which seeks to re- create the environment of New Zealand before mammals were introduced by human beings during the last 1000 years. Members were briefed by David Wallace, Chairman of the Trust. Maungatautari is a forested volcanic cone rising above the Waikato basin. The aim is to restore to the forest a diversity of endangered native flora and fauna, including the kiwi, saddleback and tuatara. NZ$ 14 million is required to build a pest-proof fence around the bush edge of Maungatautari and to create the largest restoration project and wildlife sanctuary in New Zealand. When completed the 47 kilometre fence will cover 3400 hectares. Fences have been constructed to date around two sections of 35 hectares and 65 hectares. The delegation learned that four kiwis had been released in the enclosure, which would provide a valuable refuge for this endangered species. It was noted in particular that farmers and environmentalists were working together on the project, and that it enjoyed huge local support. University of Waikato 1130 - 1330hrs On arrival at the university the delegation took part in a Maori welcoming ceremony. This was followed by a briefing on the Te Kotahitanga Educational Project. The project seeks to address the problem of underachievement of Maori and minority students in mainstream schools. The professional development/research project began in 2001 and is now in its third phase. It has involved nearly 20 schools, 500 teachers and thousands of Maori and non-Maori students throughout New Zealand. There has been a statistically significant improvement in results for both Maori and non-Maori students in schools where the project has been operating. Livestock Improvement Corporation 1400hrs - 1500hrs The delegation attended a series of briefings at the Livestock Improvement Corporation (LIC) The Corporation has a unique database on dairy herds in New Zealand, which provides information on traceability, genetic improvement systems and laboratory automation solutions. PE 372.922 2 CR/610287EN.doc LIC has an annual turnover of NZ$108 million and 26% is invested in product development. It has around 500 full time staff and 1,600 seasonal employees. It is a market leader in areas such as herd testing, milk analysis, herd recording (the "MINDA" service) and research and development. The MEPs learned that dairy farmers in New Zealand operate in a highly competitive market with no government subsidies and that New Zealand has the world's most productive dairy farms. Currently there are 12,751 dairy farms and 3,851,302 cows. The number of farms is, however, declining as the average sizes increase - currently they are 111 hectares with 2.75 cows per hectare. 95% of dairy products are exported and the total revenue in 2004 was US$7.7 billion. The absence of foot and mouth disease and BSE are great advantages and New Zealand dairy products have an extremely high reputation in the world. There was an additional briefing session on the effects of the recent EU Regulations for Importing Bovine Semen, which set out new rules on testing for the Infective Bovine Rhinotracheitis (IBR) virus that affects bulls. Dexcel - Greenfield Project 1505 - 1545hrs Dexcel ("Dairying Excellence") is a commercial trust established in 2001 by the New Zealand Dairy Board. It undertakes research and education activities and is funded by a direct levy on dairy farmers who own the company. The delegation witnessed a practical demonstration of the completely automated milking process taking place at Dexcel's Greenfield Project. The Project is located on an area of 43 hectares with 147 cows. Over 95% of the cows' foodstuff is pasture. The project involves milking 24 hours a day and the role of the staff is to monitor the process. Six to seven cows are milked every hour in each of the two paddocks. The aims of the five year project are to reduce labour costs, to improve product quality and to ensure the health and welfare of the animals. The process is currently more expensive than the traditional method of manual milking; nevertheless the project is particularly important in the light of the reduction in the number of young people who are prepared to go into farming in New Zealand. At present the average age of farmers is over 50. PE 372.922 3 CR/610287EN.doc Tuesday 28 February 2006 Meeting with Heads of Mission from EU member states, 0800 - 0910hrs The delegation held a working breakfast with the EU Heads of Mission and/or their representatives where they were given an update on current developments in New Zealand. Key points were as follows: The EU-New Zealand relationship has broadened in the last 20 years beyond a heavy concentration on agriculture. Cooperation on science and technology is now extremely important. Other important areas of cooperation include security and anti- terrorism, the fight against money laundering, and the environment. New Zealanders do not always appreciate how much development aid is currently being provided by the EU to the South Pacific, and there are unfounded fears that the EU is turning its attention away from the region. The EU is, in fact, the second largest donor to the South Pacific after Australia. The new Foreign Minister, Winston Peters, is likely to seek closer ties with the USA and consequently the nuclear issue will become less important. Nevertheless the Prime Minister, Helen Clark, and the Trade Minister, Phil Goff, are keeping a close interest in foreign policy. New Zealand is in the process of opening embassies and expanding trade with Asian countries Although Mr Peters is not in the Cabinet he is committed to following the government line in the area of the portfolio for which he is responsible. The same is the case for the Revenue Minister, Peter Dunne, who comes from the United Future Party. New Zealand needs to learn more about how the EU has developed since enlargement in particular because knowledge about the new member states (apart from the Commonwealth countries of Cyprus and Malta) is limited. Nevertheless the New Zealand side are very keen to develop links. United Future Party - 0925 - 1000hrs Members met with Peter Dunne (Party Leader and Minister of Revenue), Judy Turner (Deputy Leader), and Gordon Copeland (Party Whip). The United Future Party is in coalition with the Labour government and has agreed on a joint policy agenda of 15 points. Peter Dunne holds the Ministry of Revenue and has the right to attend Cabinet meetings when his portfolio is being discussed. At present the arrangement is working smoothly, although there are some areas of difference between the Labour Party and the United Future Party. In particular the United Future Party is more favourable to Taiwan, which is New Zealand's ninth largest trading partner (China is the eighth). United Future recognises Beijing as the legitimate government but maintains unofficial links with Taipei. United Future stands for the devolution of decision making to the lowest possible level.