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Everything you need to know about the world today, curated by 95bFM and VICE NZ.No More Oil and Gas Exploration in New Zealand
The government will no longer grant new deep sea oil and gas explorations permits for the transition from fossil fuels. New Plymouth mayor Neil Holdem says the move will be a kick in the guts for the local economy and isn't founded on strong alternatives. Petroleum and Production Association chief executive Cameron Madgwick says the move had come from a complete lack of consultation with the industry. The Block Offer programme set up by the previous government invited bids for new on and offshore oil and gas exploration annually. Energy and Resources Minister Megan Woods said there will be no more offshore block offers. Exploration for petroleum products on land has not been stopped yet. Last month, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern accepted a petition signed by 45,000 people who wanted offshore drilling to come to an end.New Privacy Bill Before Parliament
Justice Minister Andrew Little has introduced a new bill to replace New Zealand's Privacy Act. The reforms are said to give more confidence in the protection of data and personal information. Agencies will be expected to take reasonable steps to ensure the security of data and individuals must be notified of data breaches or potential privacy risks. Personal information disclosed overseas must also meet privacy standards. Under the Bill, New Zealanders will now be more aware of what happens to their personal information.Auckland Hospitals Need Repairing
District Health Board chiefs in Northland and Auckland say they made it clear to the previous government that several buildings in the regions were in a state of disrepair. The warnings for the Auckland region were sent as part of a 140-page report addressed to the former health minister, Jonathan Coleman. The most recent Northern Region Health Plan report clearly states that "significant capital investment" would be required to upgrade a mass of facilities that were not fit for purpose. 18.4 percent of Auckland DHB assets were said to be in poor or very poor condition, and the report clearly highlighted deferred or delayed maintenance for most Auckland DHB facilities. Coleman remains adamant that he was never informed about major structural or leaky problems at Middlemore hospital. Counties Manukau's management told RNZ in recent interviews said they were reluctant to ask the previous government for funding for maintenance due to pressure from ministers to stay in surplus.Immigrant Data Profiling Programme is Now on Hold
Immigration New Zealand is suspending its 'migrant risk factor' data modelling programme, after being accused of racial profiling. Last week, a Radio NZ report showed INZ had been collecting information on overstayers, including their age, gender and ethnicity. Data would help figure out which demographics would be more likely to commit crime or run up hospital costs. Advocacy groups have raised concerns over the arbitrary nature of the programme. Immigration lawyer Alastair McClymont spoke with 95bFM News and said the programme opens the door for race-based assumptions, and can use other factors as proxies for race. âYou donât have to have a tool which states the race of a person to know what race they are, you just use other criteria. The vast majority of international students are from India and China, so the modelling tool very clearly identifies Indian and Chinese people who arrive as students as being the targets for early intervention.â Immigration New Zealand is now waiting for the Privacy Commission and Human Rights Commission to check the programme before either carrying on or abandoning it.Aotearoaâs Abattoirs in Arab States
New Zealand Trade and Enterprise are waiting for approval from the Saudi government before it ships an abattoir to a wealthy Saudi businessman. The former National government secured a free trade deal with the Gulf States, including the abattoir. 900 heavily pregnant sheep were flown to a farm in the desert, with many lambs dying upon arrival. The former government built the agri-hub for Sheik Hmood Al-Khalaf in the Saudi desert. The former National government claimed the agri-hub was to showcase New Zealand's agriculture.Trump Tweets Provoke Russia
President Donald Trump has tweeted Russia to prepare for missile attacks. This comes after a gas attack on Houthi rebels in Syria on Saturday. Trump attacked Russia's support of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Wednesday's tweet, saying it "shouldn't be partners with a Gas Killing Animal who kills his people and enjoys it!" Media spectators on Twitter are calling for greater mediation of the platform saying the medium could be responsible for potential nuclear action in the future. Saturday's attack in Eastern Ghouta killed dozens of people, mostly women and children.Aftermath of Cyclone Keni Continues to Cause Havoc in Fiji
Two weeks after the two cyclones and flooding, people are still cleaning up in Fiji. The power is still out in some areas with many citizens still in evacuation centres in the aftermath of Cyclone Keni. The local Red Cross is running low on aid due to poor weather which is slowing down their access to stocks for storm victims. Local schools which acted as shelters in the storm are being vacated in order to allow children to resume studies. Schools within the Northern, Eastern and Central divisions will be open for classes.The Water Crisis Grows
Morocco, India, Iraq and Spain may be the next countries to be hit by the water crisis. Morocco's second-largest reservoir, Al Massira has shrunk by 60 percent in the past three years due to a recurring drought. Iraq, India and Spain are also having similar effects with their largest reservoirs drying up. Charles Iceland of the World Resources Institute said things will only get worse globally as water demand continues to increase. All four countries are on both sides of the tropics and can expect droughts to become more frequent because of climate change.Nicaraguaâs Tropical Forests Continue to Blaze
Nicaragua's government has rejected Costa Rica's offer as fires continue to rage in their protected tropical forests. Relations between Nicaragua and Costa Rica are not best due to a long-running border dispute, which is why Nicaragua rejected Costa Rica's offer. Environmentalists in Central America are appealing to the government to ask for international help to deal with the blazes which started on April 3. The fire is estimated to have consumed more than 5000 hectares of tropical rainforest. The fires appear to have been started by illegal homesteaders, who were clearing land for planting crops. The reserve was traditionally home to the indigenous Rama people, but has been taken over by non-indigenous people lured in by the promise of cheap land and timber.Additional reporting: Darashpreet Johal, Luci Maâasi, Leah Garcia-Purves
LOCAL NEWS
The government will no longer grant new deep sea oil and gas explorations permits for the transition from fossil fuels. New Plymouth mayor Neil Holdem says the move will be a kick in the guts for the local economy and isn't founded on strong alternatives. Petroleum and Production Association chief executive Cameron Madgwick says the move had come from a complete lack of consultation with the industry. The Block Offer programme set up by the previous government invited bids for new on and offshore oil and gas exploration annually. Energy and Resources Minister Megan Woods said there will be no more offshore block offers. Exploration for petroleum products on land has not been stopped yet. Last month, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern accepted a petition signed by 45,000 people who wanted offshore drilling to come to an end.New Privacy Bill Before Parliament
Justice Minister Andrew Little has introduced a new bill to replace New Zealand's Privacy Act. The reforms are said to give more confidence in the protection of data and personal information. Agencies will be expected to take reasonable steps to ensure the security of data and individuals must be notified of data breaches or potential privacy risks. Personal information disclosed overseas must also meet privacy standards. Under the Bill, New Zealanders will now be more aware of what happens to their personal information.
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District Health Board chiefs in Northland and Auckland say they made it clear to the previous government that several buildings in the regions were in a state of disrepair. The warnings for the Auckland region were sent as part of a 140-page report addressed to the former health minister, Jonathan Coleman. The most recent Northern Region Health Plan report clearly states that "significant capital investment" would be required to upgrade a mass of facilities that were not fit for purpose. 18.4 percent of Auckland DHB assets were said to be in poor or very poor condition, and the report clearly highlighted deferred or delayed maintenance for most Auckland DHB facilities. Coleman remains adamant that he was never informed about major structural or leaky problems at Middlemore hospital. Counties Manukau's management told RNZ in recent interviews said they were reluctant to ask the previous government for funding for maintenance due to pressure from ministers to stay in surplus.Immigrant Data Profiling Programme is Now on Hold
Immigration New Zealand is suspending its 'migrant risk factor' data modelling programme, after being accused of racial profiling. Last week, a Radio NZ report showed INZ had been collecting information on overstayers, including their age, gender and ethnicity. Data would help figure out which demographics would be more likely to commit crime or run up hospital costs. Advocacy groups have raised concerns over the arbitrary nature of the programme. Immigration lawyer Alastair McClymont spoke with 95bFM News and said the programme opens the door for race-based assumptions, and can use other factors as proxies for race. âYou donât have to have a tool which states the race of a person to know what race they are, you just use other criteria. The vast majority of international students are from India and China, so the modelling tool very clearly identifies Indian and Chinese people who arrive as students as being the targets for early intervention.â Immigration New Zealand is now waiting for the Privacy Commission and Human Rights Commission to check the programme before either carrying on or abandoning it.
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New Zealand Trade and Enterprise are waiting for approval from the Saudi government before it ships an abattoir to a wealthy Saudi businessman. The former National government secured a free trade deal with the Gulf States, including the abattoir. 900 heavily pregnant sheep were flown to a farm in the desert, with many lambs dying upon arrival. The former government built the agri-hub for Sheik Hmood Al-Khalaf in the Saudi desert. The former National government claimed the agri-hub was to showcase New Zealand's agriculture.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
President Donald Trump has tweeted Russia to prepare for missile attacks. This comes after a gas attack on Houthi rebels in Syria on Saturday. Trump attacked Russia's support of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Wednesday's tweet, saying it "shouldn't be partners with a Gas Killing Animal who kills his people and enjoys it!" Media spectators on Twitter are calling for greater mediation of the platform saying the medium could be responsible for potential nuclear action in the future. Saturday's attack in Eastern Ghouta killed dozens of people, mostly women and children.Aftermath of Cyclone Keni Continues to Cause Havoc in Fiji
Two weeks after the two cyclones and flooding, people are still cleaning up in Fiji. The power is still out in some areas with many citizens still in evacuation centres in the aftermath of Cyclone Keni. The local Red Cross is running low on aid due to poor weather which is slowing down their access to stocks for storm victims. Local schools which acted as shelters in the storm are being vacated in order to allow children to resume studies. Schools within the Northern, Eastern and Central divisions will be open for classes.The Water Crisis Grows
Morocco, India, Iraq and Spain may be the next countries to be hit by the water crisis. Morocco's second-largest reservoir, Al Massira has shrunk by 60 percent in the past three years due to a recurring drought. Iraq, India and Spain are also having similar effects with their largest reservoirs drying up. Charles Iceland of the World Resources Institute said things will only get worse globally as water demand continues to increase. All four countries are on both sides of the tropics and can expect droughts to become more frequent because of climate change.Nicaraguaâs Tropical Forests Continue to Blaze
Nicaragua's government has rejected Costa Rica's offer as fires continue to rage in their protected tropical forests. Relations between Nicaragua and Costa Rica are not best due to a long-running border dispute, which is why Nicaragua rejected Costa Rica's offer. Environmentalists in Central America are appealing to the government to ask for international help to deal with the blazes which started on April 3. The fire is estimated to have consumed more than 5000 hectares of tropical rainforest. The fires appear to have been started by illegal homesteaders, who were clearing land for planting crops. The reserve was traditionally home to the indigenous Rama people, but has been taken over by non-indigenous people lured in by the promise of cheap land and timber.Additional reporting: Darashpreet Johal, Luci Maâasi, Leah Garcia-Purves