Human Rights, Environment Obligations, and Ethical Investment: Aotearoa New Zealand is Going Down the Wrong Path
Dr Robert Howell
1 Introduction and Summary
A considerable portion of the world’s investments are unethical in that they have inadequate regard for the welfare of people and/or the planet. They invest in companies that abuse workers’ or other stakeholders rights. Their activities destroy our environment. Very few companies are fully fossil-free, or operate within ecological boundaries. One of the reasons for this is that the term ethical investing is defined by such unvalidated concepts as ESG, or responsible.
Should the Reserve Bank target unemployment as well as inflation? Will the new government abolish the dual mandate?
Back in 1989 – near the end of the fourth Labour government – the inflation-busting Reserve Bank Act was passed. Labour has shifted well away from the Rogernomics of that decade, and in 2021 Grant Robertson added maximum sustainable employment to the bank’s mandate - with the support of coalition partner NZ First.
Our Reserve Bank joined a powerful grouping of central banks that have dual targets, including the US Federal Reserve, the Reserve Bank of Australia, the Bank of Canada, the Bank of England and the European Central Bank.
Going into the 2023 election, National and Act committed to a return to the 1989 objective. Will they take us out of the mainstream and into a straitjacket rather than a life-jacket? And how does it square with their stated aim of getting people off the dole and back to work?
The next three years – the job ahead for Labour, Greens and Te Pāti Māori
The Fabians had a session on Nov 14th reflecting on the elections. Our panel of Simon Wilson, Senior Writer at NZ Herald, Bridie Witton, Stuff Press Gallery Reporter and Ollie Neas, freelance writer used the election results as a springboard to target some of the key issues for Labour, the Greens and Te Pāti Māori as they head into opposition.
Thank you for the opportunity to discuss the Pae Ora health reforms with you.
Since I was sacked by the Health Minister I have taken time to reflect on the experience and to make a considered assessment of what I learned in the process. My intention tonight is to share that with you, making the assumption that we share common ground in wanting to have an effective, efficient, excellent and equitable public health service.
If anyone does not want that, I don’t really have anything useful to share with you.
The Fabian Society is an independent membership-based organisation that aims to provide a forum for education and debate on progressive policy priorities by providing quality events, publications and research. Via a series of lectures and seminars, we will provide a forum for critiquing the prevailing economic orthodoxy and the advocacy of viable alternatives.
Fabian Societies have been established and been active in New Zealand from time to time; in Christchurch in the late 19th century, and in Auckland in the 1940s and 1950s. Peter Fraser and Walter Nash extablished the Wellington Fabain Society in 1934 with the express purpse of hearing a lecture from Bernard Shaw, then visiting New Zealand.
The New Zealand Fabian Society was established in 2009 as an Incorporated Society, with branches currently active in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch. Fabian Societies have helped develop an independent social-democratic tradition throughout the 20th century in English-speaking countries, particularly Britain and Australia.
While independent of other Fabian groups, the New Zealand Fabian Society aims to generate and disseminate ideas that are original, meet the challenge of the times, and are of high quality. Our values are that we are independent of all political parties, open and progressive. We do not believe that “There is no alternative”; rather that there are not enough alternatives. Our motto is “Inciting debate – Wero o te ahi”.
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We aim to change the intellectual climate by making progressive thinking commonplace.
We will be at the forefront of education and debate about progressive ideas and policy reforms.
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