Point of Order: More money for musicians (but Sepuloni isn’t saying how much) because they say the last lot was successfully spent

Ministers were dishing out money to musicians and Māori farmers over the past day or so while also announcing awards for women and – in the case of our Minister of Defence – travel plans for a a trip to the Solomon Islands.

The announcement of goodies for musicians was warbled by Arts, Culture and Heritage Minister Carmel Sepuloni under the heading The beat goes on as Government renews support for musicians:

The Government is hitting a high note, with the extension of the successful Aotearoa Touring Programme which will further support the recovery of Aotearoa’s music industry.

The key points are –

* Extension of Aotearoa Touring Programme supporting domestic musicians;

* The Programme has supported more than 1,700 shows and over 250 artists;

* New Zealand Music Commission estimates that around 200,000 Kiwis have been able to attend shows because of the programme.

The costs incurred so far?

And the costs of extending the programme?

Alas, these are missing.

But we are told about the money being well spent:

“We know the Aotearoa Touring Programme has been successful, supporting artists and household names like TEEKS, Drax Project, Nadia Reid, Stan Walker, Reb Fountain and Shapeshifter, which is why we’re extending it so more Kiwis can enjoy the best of home-grown talent and live music.”

The programme has been judged a success because the people who have benefited from it – and who will benefit from its extension – say it was a success:

“Performers, crew and the music industry told us clearly that the Aotearoa Touring Programme has been incredibly successful in supporting domestic talent to tour the country. Further support is needed to help restore vitality to our music scene and we’re taking action by directly responding to that need.

“Extending the Aotearoa Touring Programme assists the ongoing recovery of domestic music touring and supports a thriving hospitality sector. The Programme has a focus on tours that reach beyond the main cities into the regions, so that all New Zealanders can experience the magic of live performance.”

Some hard data helps us to judge the worth of the spending:

The Aotearoa Touring Programme has supported more than 1,700 shows and over 250 artists to perform in 132 towns and cities across Aotearoa.

The Aotearoa Touring Programme complements the Arts and Culture Event Support Scheme, which covers key losses for events that can’t go ahead due to COVID-19 and was extended in March to cover new events scheduled up to 31 January 2023.

Recently the Government launched the Cultural Sector Regeneration Fund to support strategic, sector-led initiatives, “that will have lasting benefits for arts, culture, and heritage in Aotearoa New Zealand.”

The Aotearoa Touring Programme has been extended until June 2023, after initially concluding in June 2022.

The statement about awards for women drew attention to the 2022 Women in Governance Awards, celebrating governance leaders, directors, change-makers, and rising stars in the community.

Pacific Peoples Minister Aupito William Sio did the announcing, presumably because his Ministry for Pacific Peoples for the second consecutive year is sponsoring the Pacific Governance Leader category, recognising Pacific women in governance and presented to a woman who is acknowledged as an experienced and reputable governance leader at a regional or national level, championing gender diversity and equity.

Hosted by Women on Boards New Zealand in conjunction with Governance New Zealand, the awards were announced at a gala dinner held at Parliament’s Banquet Hall.

We haven’t spotted a subsequent statement to tell us who won which awards.

But we did receive a statement to advise us that women account for 52.5 per cent of the people on public sector boards and committees, the highest-ever level.

The Minister for Women, Jan Tinetti, reporting on the statistics on membership of public sector boards and committees as at 31 December 2021 said:

“This Government is taking action to make Aotearoa a more equal society for all.”

This probably explains why Ngai Tahu have been given extraordinary entitlements to seats on the Canterbury Regional Council. They have been deemed to be more equal than the rest of the Canterbury community thanks to the government’s highly contentious interpretation of the Treaty of Waitangi.

Hard on the heels of voting in favour of the bill that gives governance privileges to the tribe, the government announced it is partnering with Ngāi Tahu Farming Limited and Ngāi Tūāhuriri on a whole-farm scale study in North Canterbury “to validate the science of regenerative farming.”

The programme aims to scientifically evaluate the financial, social and environmental differences between regenerative and conventional practices.

The seven-year research programme, called ‘Te Whenua Hou Te Whenua Whitiora (The New Land, The New Horizons), will provide valuable insights into the comparable impacts of regenerative farming practices, Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor said.

It will compare outcomes on a 286-hectare dairy farm at Ngāi Tahu Farming’s Te Whenua Hou farming operation in North Canterbury with the conventional approach of the farm next-door.

The Government is investing $8 million towards the $11.58 million programme through the Ministry for Primary Industries’ Sustainable Food and Fibre Futures fund.

“This study aims to demonstrate a viable alternative approach that enhances soil health, has a lower environmental footprint, reduces water use, complements the mātauranga Māori (knowledge) of Māori landowners, and is financially profitable,” O’Connor said.

Hmm.

Does anyone recall the Minister saying he wants low-carbon products?

The way to achieve that is high-quality pasture allowing fast-growing/high producing animals that stay at optimum body condition score.

Regenerative Agriculture (according to the scientists we consulted) is not the way to achieve anything except a transient increase in soil organic matter due to trampled pasture that has gone past optimal growth/quality – and the transient increase will not offset the increased methane and NOx that result from animals on poorer quality pasture (long pasture grazing of mixed species gone to seed because you can’t manage all species to optimal at once) resulting in slower growing/less highly producing animals.

Point of Order is a blog focused on politics and the economy run by veteran newspaper reporters Bob Edlin and Ian Templeton