AMY ADAMS MP for Selwyn

ational is allocating money seized from drug crime to government agencies to directly fight crime and drug addiction.

As part of our 2009 Methamphetamine Action Plan, we’ve received about $8.3 million since the Criminal Proceeds (Recovery) Act came into force – delivering on our commitment that money taken from those who profit from drug crime, would be used to reduce the harm from drugs.

We’re serious about tackling drug crime, and the harm it causes in our communities. This is part of our priority to deliver better public services.

Key agencies will now bid for funding for drug treatment projects and law enforcement initiatives, ensuring our law enforcement agencies can continue to break drug supply chains and tackle organised crime.

More information: http://www.national.org.nz/Article.aspx?articleId=41225

Commercial building energy efficiency could be boosted by as much as 25 per cent with the launch of a new energy rating scheme this week.

Commercial buildings use 21 per cent of New Zealand’s electricity, and boosting energy efficiency is part of National’s drive to build a more competitive and productive economy.

The NABERS NZ scheme rates commercial buildings on an energy efficiency scale of one to six, and is based on a similar scheme that works well in Australia.

Just as we have the energy star mark for electronic appliances, the new scheme will be a good incentive to raise performance and help businesses become more productive.

More information: : http://www.national.org.nz/Article.aspx?ArticleID=41226 and http://www.nabersnz.govt.nz/

National is improving safety and security with the expansion of audio-visual links to 14 more district courts and nine more prisons, meaning more prisoners can make court appearances while remaining inside the wire.

The $27.8 million expansion will take place over the next two years.  There are huge gains to be made from this technology.  We will be saving staff time in escorts, having already saved over 8000 prisoner trips to and from courts where the technology already exists.

This also removes the risk of contraband being smuggled into prison, and eliminates the risk of escape while out of prison. 

National is committed to delivering better public services, and modernising our court system with the right technology will deliver better, faster, cheaper, easier, and more convenient court services.

More information: http://www.national.org.nz/Article.aspx?articleId=41234

We’re making changes to the Food Bill to ensure communities can continue fundraising that involves the sale of food.

People have expressed concerns that the bill could have placed unnecessary regulation and compliance on community and fundraising groups.

We’ve listened to those concerns and made changes to the bill, clarifying aspects of the law where there was uncertainty. We’ll now send it back to select committee for consideration.

The changes relate to community activities, including swapping food in non-commercial exchanges and fundraising activities such as sausage sizzles and school fairs.

The bill has significant support from industry and businesses – it will protect the health of New Zealand consumers, improve the integrity of our food systems, and support export-led economic growth.

More information: http://www.national.org.nz/Article.aspx?articleId=41235

Communications and Information Technology Minister Amy Adams leaves today for a Ministerial ICT conference in Singapore.

More than 500 delegates from the Asia Pacific region will be represented at the conference, which will focus on key ICT trends, policies and regulations.

“Conferences like this provide an important opportunity to discuss the economic, social and cultural opportunities that ICT provides, to challenge existing thinking about how we utilise the connected world and to question what we need to do better,” Ms Adams says.

Environment Minister Amy Adams says she is pleased with the strong demand for a new multimedia toolbox to help businesses understand and manage the risks posed by hazardous substances.

Two weeks since Ms Adams launched the resource, more than 1500 orders have been made for the toolbox.

The toolbox is designed to help businesses, particularly small businesses, understand and manage the risks posed by hazardous substances.

National is allocating money seized from drug crime to government agencies to directly fight crime and drug addiction.

As part of our 2009 Methamphetamine Action Plan, we’ve received about $8.3 million since the Criminal Proceeds (Recovery) Act came into force – delivering on our commitment that money taken from those who profit from drug crime, would be used to reduce the harm from drugs.

We’re serious about tackling drug crime, and the harm it causes in our communities. This is part of our priority to deliver better public services.

Key agencies will now bid for funding for drug treatment projects and law enforcement initiatives, ensuring our law enforcement agencies can continue to break drug supply chains and tackle organised crime.

More information: http://www.national.org.nz/Article.aspx?articleId=41225

Latest National Standards data shows an increase in Years 1-8 achievement, particularly for Pasifika children, who have the greatest increase – about 3 per cent in all three standards.

Ensuring every child gets a good education is one of the most important things National can do to raise living standards and build a more competitive and productive economy.

The 2012 national aggregate data shows reported achievement against the National Standard for reading increased by 1.2 per cent from 76.2 per cent in 2011 to 77.4 per cent in 2012. For mathematics, the figure went up by 1.4 per cent from 72.2 to 73.6 per cent, while the writing result increased 2 per cent from 68 to 70 per cent.

More information: http://www.national.org.nz/Article.aspx?ArticleID=41228