The Asia-Pacific region is significantly off track in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with most targets either stalled or off pace – despite ongoing efforts, according to a new UN report.
The 2025 SDG Progress Report from the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) launched on Tuesday, also revealed persistent data gaps which are limiting policymakers’ ability to address key challenges.
“Without urgent action to accelerate progress, many of the Goals will remain out of reach,” Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, Executive Secretary of ESCAP, said in a foreword to the report.
Challenges mounting
The report found that responsible consumption and production (Goal 12), quality education (Goal 4) and decent work and economic growth (Goal 8) are severely off track.
Key drivers of this stagnation include increases in fossil fuel subsidies, poor proficiency in reading and maths, and unsustainable production patterns, according to the report.
Of most concern, climate action (Goal 13) witnessed an “alarming regression”, driven by the region’s vulnerability to disasters and continued greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, which account for half of global pollution.
Environmental sustainability remained a major roadblock, with land degradation and declining economic benefits from sustainable fisheries hampering progress on life below water (Goal 14) and life on land (Goal 15).
The report also highlighted persistent data gaps as a key challenge.
While data availability has improved slightly, with some 54 per cent of indicators now having at least two data points – a slight increase from the previous year – there are still significant blind spots in measuring progress across different population groups, including by age, migratory status, disability, and gender.
Some progress
The region also recorded progress in some areas, such as in Goal 9 (industry, innovation and infrastructure) and Goal 3 (health and well-being), with progress driven by expanded access to mobile networks and remarkable improvements in maternal, infant and child health.
The report also highlighted promising examples of regional cooperation and innovation.
“Shared commitment and collaboration can yield transformative results,” said Ms. Alisjahbana, emphasising the need for a whole-of-society approach to achieving the SDGs.
However, with just five years remaining until the 2030 deadline, achieving the SDGs will require bold action, strengthened political leadership, and significant investments in sustainable development.
“Nothing short of the most urgent acceleration of progress will close the gap,” Ms. Alisjahbana underscored.
In a report released today, the Independent Police Conduct Authority has called for new standalone legislation directed at preemptively policing protest.
“I completely reject the IPCA recommendation for a specific protest law. It will limit our fundamental rights and freedoms,” said Valerie Morse.
“We already have a great protest law: it’s called the NZ bill of rights.”
“Police regularly try to limit or shut down protests that are simply embarrassing or unhelpful for the government. They cannot be trusted to prioritise people’s rights at protests.”
“I have been arrested a number of times at protests. When these charges have gone to court the judge has thrown them out. If the police had had their way these protests never would have occurred.”
“Just because similar jurisdictions have laws about policing protests doesn’t mean that they are a good idea. The US, UK and Australia are all suffering from extreme democratic deficits – in part due to authoritarian responses like these anti-protest laws.”
Today the independent Reserve Bank of Australia Board decided to lower the cash rate by 25 basis points to 4.10 per cent.
This is very welcome news for millions of Australians.
This is the rate relief Australians need and deserve.
It won’t solve every problem in our economy or in household budgets but it will help.
Today’s result is a demonstration of the substantial and sustained progress we’ve made on inflation together.
When we came to office, interest rates were going up, now they are going down.
For a household with a mortgage of $500,000, this rate cut will save them $80 a month, or $960 per year.
Under Labor, inflation is down, wages are up, unemployment is low and now interest rates have started to come down too.
This is the soft landing we have been planning for and preparing for but we know there’s more work to do.
Other countries have had to pay for progress on inflation with higher unemployment, growth going backwards or even a recession.
Inflation is now almost a third of the 6.1 per cent we inherited, and that’s a testament to the efforts of all Australians.
In its statement today, the RBA Board said we have made welcome progress on inflation and that inflationary pressures are easing more quickly than expected.
Today’s decision and the statement from the Board gives us further confidence that the worst of the inflation challenge is behind us, but we can’t be complacent.
Today’s decision is welcome but it’s not mission accomplished because people are still under pressure.
The Government will maintain a primary focus on the cost of living.
When we came to office, real incomes were going badly backwards.
Now they’re growing again due to moderating inflation, wages growth, jobs growth and our tax cuts.
Lower mortgage costs will also support the growth of real disposable incomes into the future.
Australians would be thousands of dollars worse off if Peter Dutton had his way on tax cuts, wages and energy bill relief – and worse off still if he wins the election.
The biggest risk to the progress we have made together is a Coalition government that would come after Medicare again, push wages down again, and push electricity prices up with more expensive nuclear energy.
We’re fighting inflation, helping with the cost of living and building Australia’s future, and this encouraging decision shows our policies are making a meaningful difference.
The Commonwealth Bank has responded to the Reserve Bank of Australia’s cash rate decision, reducing rates on eligible business lending products.
Commonwealth Bank will reduce interest rates by 0.25% per annum (p.a.) on eligible business lending products, following the Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) decision to decrease the official cash rate by 0.25% p.a.
CBA’s Business Bank will be reducing interest rates across its Variable Base Rate, Residential Equity Rate, and Overdraft Reference Rate, by 25 basis points.
This reduction will apply to business lending products including Better Business Loans and Business Overdrafts. All business loan variable rate changes announced today will be effective 28 February 2025.
CBA Group Executive Business Banking, Mike Vacy-Lyle, said: “Businesses are the lifeblood of Australia’s economy, and they’ve shown remarkable resilience in what has been a challenging environment.
“While today’s rate reductions may provide some relief, we recognise some of our business customers are facing challenging times and we have a range of measures available for businesses facing difficulty, such as waiving merchant terminal rental fees and deferring repayments on business loans.
“We also recognise the importance of balancing the needs of business borrowers and business depositors, and we will continue to review our pricing and make further adjustments as required.”
For business deposit customers, CBA continues to offer a range of options for those looking for at call, notice deposit and term deposit products. CBA will be reducing the interest rate by up to 0.10% p.a. on the Business Online Saver product. The interest on 48 hours and 7-day notice Capital Growth Account remains unchanged.
Support for small businesses customers
A range of support options are available for business customers. These include:
Deferred business loan repayments or debt restructuring. Free comprehensive cash flow tracking capabilities via a Business Cash Flow tool in the CommBank app. Bill Sense to help customers predicts future bills and our business insights tool called Daily IQ.
More information is available on our website and businesses seeking support can speak to their Relationship Manager or call CBA’s dedicated Business Financial Assistance team, available 24/7, on 13 26 07.
Across Asia and the Pacific, communities are pioneering innovative solutions to bridge critical data gaps, ensuring that marginalized populations are no longer invisible in policymaking. From surveying hundreds of nomadic tribal households across Rajasthan State in India to health-monitoring mobile applications in Indonesia, these efforts are transforming sustainable development in the region.
A new report by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) demonstrates that by amplifying the voices of underrepresented communities, these solutions are not only making policies more inclusive but also making sustainable development monitoring more representative across Asia and the Pacific.
However, the Asia and the Pacific SDG Progress Report 2025 also stresses that urgent action is still needed in order to achieve the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.
“Data gaps persist and leave some of the most vulnerable populations invisible in official statistics, limiting policymakers’ ability to address their needs effectively,” underscored United Nations Under-Secretary-General and ESCAP Executive Secretary Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana.
She added, “Constrained resources to modernize statistical systems pose additional hurdles. Without urgent action to accelerate progress, many of the Goals will remain out of reach.”
The report highlights several SDG targets where Asia and the Pacific leads globally such as reducing income poverty (Goal 1), addressing undernourishment (Goal 2), supporting small-scale industries (Goal 9), reducing hazardous waste (Goal 12), mitigating land degradation (Goal 15), and combating human trafficking and intentional homicide (Goal 16).
Despite these strides, slow progress or setbacks in critical goals such as quality education (Goal 4), decent work and economic growth (Goal 8), and sustainable consumption and production (Goal 12) threaten regional efforts to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Rising fossil fuel subsidies, low literacy and numeracy rates, and unsustainable production patterns further compound these challenges.
Meanwhile, environmental degradation, increasing vulnerability to natural disasters, and persistent greenhouse gas emissions are exacerbating setbacks on climate action (Goal 13), life below water (Goal 14) and life on land (Goal 15).
The report further finds that development benefits often bypass vulnerable groups, with intersecting factors like age, gender, education, location and wealth exacerbating inequalities. Poverty and education level are the two most significant factors contributing to inequality of opportunity. Poorer households in rural areas with lower levels of education are the most disadvantaged in accessing basic services such as water, sanitation and clean energy.
To bridge these gaps, ESCAP calls for innovative and inclusive data collection and analysis. Nuanced and granular data will provide policymakers a clearer understanding of the realities of specific population groups especially those most at risk of being left behind.
The report further emphasizes that transforming national statistical systems to meet the data needs of the 2030 Agenda requires urgent political commitment, financial investment and stronger cross-sector partnerships.
An annual flagship publication of ESCAP, the Asia and the Pacific SDG Progress Report 2025 uses the latest data for global SDG indicators to determine where additional effort is needed in the region and where momentum for future progress is building.
The Commonwealth Bank has responded to the Reserve Bank of Australia’s cash rate decision.
Following the Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) decision to decrease the official cash rate by 0.25% per annum (p.a.), CBA will decrease home loan variable interest rates by 0.25% p.a.
All home loan variable rate changes announced today will be effective 28 February 2025.
CBA’s Group Executive, Retail Banking Services, Angus Sullivan said: “We know that cash rate increases have been challenging for our home loan customers and they are looking forward to some relief.
“We recognise some customers will continue to need support as they manage household budgets. We strongly encourage anyone who is experiencing hardship to contact us, so we can help with a solution that suits their circumstances.
“We are committed to ensuring our customers have the right tools, support and advice as they navigate this change. After today’s interest rate changes are effective, eligible home loan customers may choose to reduce their mortgage repayments in line with the change to their variable rate via the CommBank app, NetBank, or by messaging us directly.
“For our savings customers, we continue to offer a range of options for those looking for both at call savings and term deposits. We will maintain our current 10-month term deposit special of 4.60% p.a. for a limited time.”
Support for home loan customers
A range of support options are available for home loans customers. These include:
Estimating how much home loan repayments will be via the home loan repayments calculator. You can also estimate the impact additional payments can make to your loan balance and duration. Changing the repayment amount and frequency of home loan payments. Eligible customers can reduce their mortgage repayments and align their repayment timing to when and how often they are paid via the CommBank app or NetBank.
A range of money management support and tools are available in the CommBank app. These include:
Spend Tracker in the CommBank app to help categorise your debit and credit card transactions, making it easier to see the impact your spending decisions have on your everyday finances. Category budgets to set weekly, fortnightly or monthly budgets for different categories of your spending – from entertainment to transport, eating out and shopping. You can see how your spending compares to the budget you set yourself, to help you stay on track.
Marine scientists are calling for more focused management strategies and further interventions to secure the future of marine ecosystems and key fish species, as well as ‘near threatened’ dolphins and shellfish species around South Australia’s coastline.
With ongoing pressure from human activities and climate change, three new research articles led by Flinders University experts have warned of the need for more research and regular monitoring to take into consideration rising pressure on marine ecosystems.
Leading South Australian Whale & Dolphin Conservation scientist Dr Mike Bossley and his team have been tracking the local Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops aduncus) of the Adelaide Dolphin Sanctuary for 34 years.
Despite living in this highly urbanised estuary, these dolphins have shown remarkable resilience, say Flinders University researchers in a recent article in the journal Ecology and Evolution.
The Flinders University Cetacean Ecology, Behaviour and Evolution Lab (CEBEL) study of Dr Bossley’s long-term data highlighted a troubling population decline between 2012 and 2020.
Fortunately recent dolphin sightings have stabilised in 2021-24, according to Dr Bossley’s observations.
“Despite numerous environmental and anthropogenic disturbances, the Adelaide Dolphin Sanctuary is a shallow, protected area and it’s likely that the dolphins are continuing to use this area for its benefits,” says Kennadie Haigh, a PhD candidate at the Flinders College of Science and Engineering.
“It’s important to focus conservation strategies on improving the Adelaide Dolphin Sanctuary ecosystem and promoting connectivity to the surrounding waters to help secure the future of these dolphins.”
The Adelaide Dolphin Sanctuary is located in Port Adelaide and was established in 2005 with the intention to protect the dolphins and the habitat that sustains them.
The article, ‘Long-term demographic trends of near threatened coastal dolphins living in an urban estuary’ (2025) by Kennadie Haigh, Guido J Parra, Luciana Möller, Aude Steiner and Mike Bossley was published in Ecology and Evolution First published: 06 January 2025 https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.70834
Meanwhile, a second Flinders University study examined the historical exploitation of South Australian shellfish reefs – and calls for urgent interventions to restore native marine species for local ecosystem health.
“Human and environmental stresses, as well as overfishing and dredge harvesting, have combined to significantly diminish our local multi-species shellfish reefs, which once covered more than 2600 square kilometres of the state’s coastline,” says PhD candidate Brad Martin.
“Based on historical records, we documented 140 potential shellfish reef locations, and we estimate that over 43 million flat oysters were commercially harvested statewide between 1849 and 1915, prior to their functional extinction by the 1940s.
“Shellfish reef decline was also influenced by environmental factors including drought and salinity issues, disease, heavy predation by marine species and sediment deposition from storms.”
Researchers say the demise of these coastal features since colonisation should be reflected in future conservation and restoration efforts, to include these important native shellfish species in policy-setting and coastal management strategies
See more, ‘Reviving shellfish reef socio-ecological histories for modern management and restoration’ (2025) by Brad Martin, Charlie Huveneers, Simon Reeves (The Nature Conservancy Australia) and Ryan Baring as published in Ocean and Coastal Management (Elsevier) DOI: 10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2025.107540.
In a third article published in Environmental DNA , scientists at Flinders University and South Australia’s Department of Environment and Water conducted a study in collaboration with Parks Australia to assess the best method to detect fish communities in marine ecosystems, including remote regions of the Great Australian Bight.
Environmental DNA (eDNA) and Baited Remote Underwater Video Systems (BRUVS) were assessed and compared across offshore seamounts and islands in SA’s Nuyts Archipelago marine park and the Commonwealth South West Marine Park Network.
“Fish communities are critical indicators of ecosystem health, and comprehensive monitoring strategies are vital to effective management of marine fishes,” say Flinders University senior author Dr Michael Doane.
The study found the two survey methods were effective and complementary in detecting different fish species.
“By combining both methods, we gain a much fuller picture of fish communities,” says first author Ewan Burns. “eDNA excelled at detecting large pelagic species like white sharks (Carcharodon carcharias) and southern bluefin tuna (Thunnus maccoyii), while BRUVS revealed more bottom-dwelling fish,” he says.
This dual approach is particularly valuable in remote, challenging environments like the Great Australian Bight, where it enables monitoring of key species – both those of conservation concern with high economic value – while providing crucial insights into reef health, researchers add.
The third article, ‘Complementary Non-invasive Fish Monitoring Distinguishes Depth-Dependent Fish Communities’ (2024) by Ewan Burns, Vijini Mallawaarachchi, Thomas M. Clarke, Belinda Martin, Joseph D DiBattista, Jamie Hicks, Danny Brock, Elizabeth A Dinsdale, Charlie Huveneers and Michael P Doane has been published in Environmental DNA (Wiley). DOI: 10.1002/edn3.70050 First published: 21 December 2024 https://doi.org/10.1002/edn3.70050
Today’s release of two reports into the protection of personal information show agencies must be better at privacy, says Privacy Commissioner Michael Webster.
The Inquiry into how government agencies protected personal information for the 2023 Census and COVID-19 vaccination programme (the PSC Inquiry) and the Independent investigation and assurance review of allegations of misuse of 2023 Census information (the Stats NZ report), show the protection of personal information needs to be treated as a priority.
Several matters have now been referred to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner (these are detailed below).
Privacy Commissioner Michael Webster said he is carefully reviewing the referrals raised in the two reports. That work will be done in the context the Privacy Act and the need to ensure individuals’ rights to privacy is protected and respected.
“New Zealanders need to be confident that when they do activities, like filling in their Census form, or giving over information for medical services, that their information is collected, used, and shared as the law outlines it should be,” says Mr Webster.
“The Privacy Act is very clear that agencies collecting personal information need to keep it safe and treat it with care. This responsibility extends to the use of third-party service providers.
Agencies need to be confident that personal information is protected wherever and whatever organisation is handling it.”
The Office of the Privacy Commissioner has recently issued guidance to help agencies working with third-party providers understand their responsibilities.
Mr Webster said he was encouraged to see that work on a new information sharing standard is underway, supporting the information stewardship framework at the core of the Privacy Act.
“Its important people can trust that their information is treated with care. In our 2024 Privacy Survey the percentage of people who said they are “more concerned” about privacy issues over the last few years has increased to 55%, a 14% increase from two years ago. New Zealanders were clear in their response to these concerns:
80% want more control and choice over the collection and use of their personal information.
63% said protecting their personal information is a major concern in their lives.
around two-thirds of New Zealanders are concerned about businesses or government
organisations sharing their personal information without telling them.
“Good privacy is an essential part of providing services and doing business in a digital economy. Today’s findings should be a reminder to government organisations that good privacy practices aren’t an optional extra but are fundamental to the work they do,” says the Commissioner.
A number of questions have now been referred to the Privacy Commissioner by the PSC Inquiry:
Whether systems and controls were appropriate for personal data following its transmission by Te Whatu Ora, the Ministry of Health and Stats NZ to service providers
Whether there were appropriate means in place for these public agencies to be confident that their service providers were meeting their contractual privacy requirements
Whether personal information was collected or used by Manurewa Marae for unauthorised purposes
Whether separation of personal data from Census data was maintained at Manurewa Marae, and whether privacy statements were adequate to inform people about the use of their information.
A further matter has been referred to the Privacy Commissioner by the Stats NZ report about the collection and management of personal information and confidential census data.
While the review of the referrals takes place, the Office will not be making any further comment.
“The ACT Party can’t be bothered putting an MP on one of the Justice subcommittees hearing submissions on their own Treaty Principles Bill,” Labour Justice Spokesperson Duncan Webb said.
“It is bad enough that ACT has put New Zealand through the expense and anguish of this doomed Bill, but to then refuse to hear oral submissions is utterly disrespectful, lazy, and it shows that this is all just a stunt by David Seymour.
“It is outrageous that $6 million of the taxpayer’s money is being misused to promote ACT Party ideology, while Christopher Luxon stands idly by. For the ACT Party to refuse to send an MP to hear 30 of the 80 hours of submissions just adds insult to injury.
“Thousands of New Zealanders have spent hours carefully preparing their submissions and some have been invited to submit to the select committee. Those submitters deserve to have the ACT Party listen to what they have to say. The ACT Party’s suggestion that they have more important things to do is insulting and disingenuous,” Duncan Webb said.
Wonboyn residents are benefitting from improved access, safety and resilience following the completion of the new Watergums Creek Bridge.
Three levels of government have worked together to fund and deliver this key piece of infrastructure for the Wonboyn community.
The Australian Government has contributed $1.24 million towards this project under its Bridges Renewal Program, while the NSW Government contributed $1 million, and the Bega Valley Shire Council delivered the project.
The new reinforced concrete structure, with a 100-year design life, will be able to withstand bushfires and will be more flood resilient thanks to its significant additional height.
The new bridge has been designed to withstand the Wonboyn River and Watergums Creek flood conditions, ensuring the Wonboyn community has access to key transport links.
The new bridge:
replaces the existing timber bridge with a reinforced concrete structure, resilient to bushfire threats and designed to withstand greater flood forces and debris loading.
Includes a deck 3m higher than the previous bridge
includes a deck above the estimated 1% annual flood event (100-year flood event). The previous bridge was below the 20% AEP flood height.
has a greater resilience to natural disasters.
Quotes attributable to the Member for Eden-Monaro, Kristy McBain MP:
“The new bridge has already been put the test during the recent flooding event – and pleasingly it passed with flying colours.
“It’s not acceptable to see the community of Wonboyn cut off for considerable periods of time, and I know this new bridge will be a huge benefit to the community for decades to come.
“Congratulations to the community on its advocacy for a new bridge – I’m proud to have backed you in and delivered this project.”
Quotes attributable to Member for Bega, Dr Michael Holland MP:
“I’m pleased that the NSW Government has contributed to this essential project for the Wonboyn community.
“Access to reliable transportation is a key determinant of health – it not only ensures the safety and connectivity of our communities but also provides access to critical essential services.”
“I want to express my gratitude to the Wonboyn community for their patience as this project has come to completion.”
Quotes attributable to Bega Valley Shire Council Mayor, Russell Fitzpatrick:
“The opening of the new Watergums Creek Bridge marks the end of years of uncertainty for the Wonboyn community, ensuring a safer, more reliable connection to the Princes Highway.
“For too long heavy rain meant isolation—cutting off families, businesses and emergency services. Thanks to this joint investment to improve vital infrastructure, that all changes.
“The completion of this project stands as a testament to what can be achieved when all levels of government work together with the community’s needs at heart.
“Today cannot pass without acknowledging the resilience of Wonboyn residents who understand better than anyone that this bridge is a lifeline, a promise their community will stay connected, no matter what.”
VICTORIA, Seychelles, Feb. 18, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Bitget Wallet, a leading Web3 non-custodial wallet, is expanding the utility of its native token, Bitget Token (BGB), alongside the launch of a limited-time BGB onchain staking program on Morph chain. BGB is evolving into a bridge connecting onchain ecosystems and real-world applications. The onchain staking program offers higher returns while enhancing fund autonomy and privacy, providing users with greater security compared to centralized options.
The first BGB onchain staking program will run from February 14, 2025, 20:00 (UTC) to February 21, 2025, 20:00 (UTC) with a staking pool capped at 350,000 BGB. Users can stake their tokens through Bitget Wallet’s BGB Center or Bitget Exchange’s Earn section for a 90-day period and earn 5% APY fixed returns along with access to 20,000 Morph Points. For every 15 BGB staked, users will receive 1 Morph Point, which can be redeemed for future Morph tokens and other rewards.
BGB’s expanding utility is central to Bitget Wallet’s long-term vision, with applications in decentralized trading, staking, and payments driving its growth. As a multi-chain gas token within Bitget Wallet, BGB eliminates the need to manage multiple gas tokens across different blockchains, simplifying onchain interactions and ensuring smoother user experiences. Staking BGB onchain allows users to earn rewards and qualify for project airdrops, while VIP holders can access exclusive benefits, including Bitget Wallet Card cashback and other premium services through Bitget Wallet’s growing PayFi ecosystem. These features bridge the gap between DeFi returns and real-world spending opportunities.
BGB’s market momentum highlights its growing demand and deflationary design. Over the past two months, BGB’s price has surged over 320%, driven by increased utility and token burn. Starting in 2025, Bitget will implement quarterly token buybacks and burns to reduce the token’s circulating supply and enhance token value. By encouraging long-term holding, this strategy aims to maintain steady growth and strengthen BGB’s role within Bitget’s ecosystem.
“BGB’s rapid growth reflects its key role in the Web3 ecosystem,” said Alvin Kan, COO of Bitget Wallet. “As we continue expanding BGB’s utilities in staking, payments, and decentralized finance, we are committed to creating long-term value and a dynamic, sustainable community.” To support community participation, Bitget Wallet will host the BGB Builders Night during the Hong Kong Consensus event, where discussions will focus on BGB’s future.
About Bitget Wallet Bitget Wallet is the home of Web3, uniting endless possibilities in one non-custodial wallet. With over 60 million users, it offers comprehensive onchain services, including asset management, instant swaps, rewards, staking, trading tools, live market data, a DApp browser, an NFT marketplace and crypto payment. Supporting over 100 blockchains, 20,000+ DApps, and 500,000+ tokens, Bitget Wallet enables seamless multi-chain trading across hundreds of DEXs and cross-chain bridges, along with a $300+ million protection fund to ensure safety of users’ assets. Experience Bitget Wallet Lite to start a Web3 journey.
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Allan Fels, Professor Allan Fels, Professor of Law, Economics and Business at the University of Melbourne and Monash University., The University of Melbourne
Under such a law, the courts, on the recommendation of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, could break a firm into parts.
Divestiture is currently used in Australia when the competition and consumer commission considers proposed mergers. Often it will only approve a merger when certain parts of the business are broken up to prevent monopolies.
It has also been used to deal with abuse of market power by electricity providers.
Under the proposed change, a company with substantial market power which breaches the Consumer and Competition Act may be forced to divest assets to restore balance and ensure the market is competitive. This would reduce the possibility of consumers being over-charged.
The Coalition has already proposed breaking up the major supermarkets, Coles and Woolworths which have been long-accused of price gouging customers.
On Sunday, Coalition leader Peter Dutton signalled he was likely to introduce divestiture if elected to stop insurers from “ripping off” customers by charging exorbitant premiums or refusing to pay claims.
If we have a situation where people are being priced out of insurance or they’re deemed an uninsurable risk when they shouldn’t be, that is a failure of the market and we’ll respond accordingly to that.
He said insurance companies had to be responsible corporate citizens and work with their customers.
We’re not going to have a situation where people can’t afford insurance or they’re being priced out of products.
Previously the Morrison government enacted laws which enabled a breakup of energy companies in certain circumstances.
Labor has not supported a divestiture power. One reason is the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association has opposed such measures.
The case for divestiture
In principle there is a strong case for a divestiture law.
Monopolies and market power stem from an industry being highly concentrated. Often the only way to prevent them from misusing their monopoly is to break them up. The solution could be left to the market or to price regulation or other remedies but these do not address the source of the problem.
A divestiture power has long existed in the United States. It was used to break up oil, cigarettes, and chemicals in the early days of antitrust law. In the mid-80s it was successfully used to break up the AT&T telephone monopoly. AT&T controlled both long distance and local calls before it was broken up.
But divestiture is only occasionally used and only when stringent criteria are satisfied.
Some 20 years ago the US Department of Justice proposed a breakup of Microsoft – the case was never finalised because of procedural problems. However, the Federal Court laid out many prerequisites before this drastic remedy could occur.
The power has been used in a number of other OECD countries including the United Kingdom.
And there is a strong case for making it a general remedy available for all industries, even though its use would be infrequent.
Importantly, the availability of this sanction would provide an incentive for firms to comply with abuse of market power provisions of the competition law. These provisions are intended to stop powerful businesses from deterring competition by making it difficult for new entrants to join the market.
The sanctions for this part of the law currently are very weak. Fines are rarely imposed and if they are, they are small and seen as a cost of doing business to be weighed up against the benefits of anti-competitive behaviour.
Another reason is that cases take many years. For example, the ACCC case v Safeway 19 years ago took seven years before a court resolution.
A divestiture power would make firms far more careful before breaching the law.
Too ‘Russian’?
Occasionally people question the desirability of this power on the grounds it is the sort of thing you would only see in a country like Russia.
We have a private sector economy in Australia and not a command and control economy […]We’re not the old Soviet Union. What we have the power to do is to encourage competition and encouraging new entrants.
However, most observers agree one of the big failures of the Soviet economy has been failure to divest monopolies in energy, transport and other parts of the economy.
The Coalition’s adoption of a divestiture remedy in three industries is welcome. We need at some point to move to a divestiture power that is available for the whole economy.
The Reserve Bank has delivered the expected modest rate cut of a quarter of a percentage point, and we’re set for the predictable frenzy of speculation about an April election.
The cut is unlikely to be a major vote changer, after 13 increases. But it was absolutely vital to the government. Labor would have suffered a big knock if Michele Bullock and her board had held out.
The cut underpins the narrative of things improving, and may put voters in a better mood. At least that’s the government’s thinking.
But the bank is highly circumspect in its tone. It warned in its statement:
The forecasts published today suggest that, if monetary policy is eased too much too soon, disinflation could stall, and inflation would settle above the midpoint of the target range. In removing a little of the policy restrictiveness in its decision today, the Board acknowledges that progress has been made but is cautious about the outlook.
Speculation about the election date is a frustrating exercise, given only Anthony Albanese – and perhaps a few closest to him – knows his thinking, which could still be, as he suggested recently, “fluid”. In recent days the PM has played the tease. Periodically he talks about the intense work on budget, set for March 25; if that went ahead, it would mean a May election. But last week, he was also talking about parliament having seen its last day, which pointed to April.
It is hard to see the logic of Albanese launching a campaign before the March 8 Western Australian election, given that would be confusing for both state and federal campaigns and put maximum pressure on Labor’s WA volunteers. If Albanese opts for April 12, he would have to call it immediately after the WA poll.
Many in the business world would like the election done and dusted ASAP, because the pre-election period means a hiatus of sorts.
The opinion polls can be read various ways, but as things stand, they point to a minority government.
This is already putting pressure on crossbenchers, notably the teals, to indicate what factors they’d take into account in deciding who they’d support. The Coalition, if it reached about 72 seats (76 is a majority), would be eyeing off crossbenchers Bob Katter, Rebekha Sharkie, Allegra Spender and Dai Le as potentials to guarantee them confidence and supply. Of course that would assume they all were re-elected.
But this is putting several carts before the horse. Much will happen in the next few weeks, whether the election is April or May. Current polls that make predictions down to individual seats should be treated with much caution.
While the polls are presently depressing for Labor, this week’s Newspoll had a finding on inflation that might cheer treasurer Jim Chalmers. It found that less than a quarter of people believe inflation would have been lower under a Coalition government. In other words, while high prices are making voters sour, that is not necessarily directly translating into blame for Labor.
When the campaign proper is underway, the smallest things can blow up in leaders’ faces.
Albanese failed to remember key numbers in 2022. He had enough fat so his generally lackluster performance didn’t matter in the end. Dutton is yet to be campaign-tested. Rather disconcertingly for his handlers, in his Sky interview last Sunday he forgot deputy prime minister Richard Marles had just been in Washington.
Meanwhile Dutton is hard at work humanising his image in a series of interviews, and the obligatory 60 Minutes family get together with Karl Stefanovic (who did the Meet the Morrisons – the Duttons-at-home came without an musical performance).
Albanese worked hard at this before the last election, repeating over and over his story of being brought up in council housing, son of a single mother.
Dutton’s more complicated back story involves a stint as a youngster in a butcher’s shop, buying a house at 19, an early divorce, and a failed relationship that produced a baby who became his first child in his second marriage. And of course his career as a policeman.
One can imagine that some of these memories are painful to have to canvas in public, but the campaign’s hard heads say the public want to know all about a potential PM. So it has to be done.
(One Dutton incident is rarely recalled these days, that involved a temporary loss of political nerve. In 2009, after a redistribution made his seat of Dickson notionally Labor, Dutton sought to jump to the Gold Coast seat of McPherson. But he was beaten in a preselection by Karen Andrews, who is retiring at this election. That forced him back to Dickson, which he then held at the 2010 election.)
Albanese does not need to canvass his backstory as much these days but he took advantage of Valentine’s day to put out some sentimental social media fodder.
He and fiancé Jodie (to whom he proposed on Valentine’s day last year) sat, with Toto between them, turning over cards. with questions said to be posed by the public. With each question (such as “who said I love you first”) they pointed to each other or themselves.
Opinion was divided about the video. Toto fell into the sceptics’ camp, jumping to the ground before it was finished.
Michelle Grattan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Returning the Ō-Rākau battle site to tūpuna ownership will help to recognise the past and safeguard their stories for the benefit of future generations, Minister for Māori Crown Relations Tama Potaka says. The Te Pire mō Ō-Rākau, Te Pae o Maumahara / Ō-Rākau Remembrance Bill passed its third reading at Parliament today. The Bill will vest the title to the 9.7-hectare battle site, five kilometres east of Kihikihi, in ngā tūpuna o Ō-Rākau – the ancestors of Ō-Rākau. “This unique arrangement acknowledges those who were present during the battle or had traditional connections to the land,” Mr Potaka says. “The battle site will be managed by a body representing the descendants of ngā tūpuna, as well as their whānau, hapū and Iwi. “I know it’s been a long journey to achieve this result and I acknowledge the work of Maniapoto, Raukawa, Waikato and all others whose mahi has contributed to the return of the whenua. “Since 2015, the Crown and Iwi have worked closely together to return the whenua at Ō-Rākau and honour the tūpuna who had connections to that land. Ō-Rākau was the site of the last major battle in the Crown’s 1863-64 invasion of Waikato. Between 31 March and 2 April 1864, around 300 Māori, many of them women and children, defended their pa against an attack by 1,400 British troops. An estimated half of the defenders were killed during the fighting and subsequent retreat and the land was subsequently confiscated by the Crown. “Ō-Rākau was the site of an important conflict in our nation’s history and I was honoured to attend the 160th anniversary commemorations there last year. “Today is the next step on a journey taken together by Crown and Iwi in recognition of our shared experiences together.” E hoki ana te pae riri o Ō-Rākau ki raro i te rangatiratanga o ngā tūpuna Mā te hokinga o te pae riri o Ō-Rākau ki raro i te rangatiratanga o ngā tūpuna ka āhukahukatia tō rātou onamata, ka whakamarua ā rātou kōrero hei painga mō ngā whakatupuranga kei te heke mai, te kī a te Minita mō Te Arawhiti, a Tama Potaka. Kua pāhi Te Pire mō Ō-Rākau, Te Pae o Maumahara i muri i te pānuitanga tuatoru i te Pāremata i tēnei rā. Ka tukuna e te Pire te taitara ki te pae riri e 9.7 heketea te rahi, e 5 kiromita te tawhiti whakaterāwhiti o Kihikihi, ki ngā tūpuna o Ō-Rākau. “Ko tā tēnei whakaritenga ahurei he āhukahuka i ērā i reira i te wā o te pakanga, i whai hononga taketake rānei ki taua whenua,” hei tā Minita Potaka. “Ka whakahaeretia te pae riri e tētahi rōpū e whakakanohi ana i ngā uri o aua tūpuna, i ō rātou whānau, hapū, iwi anō hoki. “E mōhio ana ahau he roa te huarahi i whāia kia puta ai tēnei otinga, me āku mihi ki ērā mahi nunui a Maniapoto, a Raukawa, a Waikato, a ētahi atu rānei i whai wāhi ki te whakahokinga o te papa whenua nei. “Mai i 2015 he kaha te mahi ngātahi a te Karauna me ngā Iwi ki te whakahoki i te whenua i Ō-Rākau me te whakamiha i ngā tūpuna i whai hononga ki taua pito whenua. Ko Ō-Rākau te pae o te pakanga nui whakamutunga o tā te Karauna urutomokanga o Waikato i te 1863-64. I waenga i te 31 o Māehe me te 2 o Aperira 1864 i whakangungua e tōna 300 tāngata Māori, ko te tokomaha o rātou he wāhine me te tamariki, tō rātou pā ki tētahi pāhatanga e ngā hōia Piritene 1,400. Ko te whakatau tata, i whakamatea tata ki te haurua o ngā kaiwawao i ngā wā o te pakanga, me te whakatahinga i whai muri, ka mutu, he mea raupatu te whenua e te Karauna. “Ko Ō-Rākau te pae o tētahi pakanga nui i te hītori o te motu, ā, nōku te whiwhi i tae atu au ki reira mō te whakanuinga huritau 160 i tērā tau. “Ko tēnei rā he wāhanga anō i te haerenga ngātahi o te Karauna me ngā Iwi ki te āhukahuka i ō mātou hononga tētahi ki tētahi.”
Last updated 18 February 2025 Last updated 18 February 2025
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This page provides information about tertiary education organisations’ (TEOs’) reporting on TEO-led Workplace Literacy and Numeracy (TEO-led WLN) delivery, and our monitoring of their performance. This page provides information about tertiary education organisations’ (TEOs’) reporting on TEO-led Workplace Literacy and Numeracy (TEO-led WLN) delivery, and our monitoring of their performance.
For information about Employer-led Workplace Literacy and Numeracy (EWLN) reporting and monitoring, see Employer-led Workplace Literacy and Numeracy (EWLN) Fund. Reporting If you receive TEO-led WLN funding, you must submit:
a progress report for the period 1 January to 31 May no later than 10 working days after 31 May; and a progress report for the period 1 January to 30 September no later than 10 working days after 30 September; and a final report for the period 1 January to 31 December no later than 31 January of the following year.
Each progress report and the final report must:
be submitted in accordance with the template that we will provide to you; and relate to the specific delivery commitments outlined in your Investment Plan.
For details about the information we require you to report, please refer to Data requirements: Other Fund Actuals. Templates for the two progress reports and one final report are available for TEOs to complete and submit by the due dates on DXP Ngā Kete. Monitoring We monitor TEO performance and practices to understand their performance in the sector, and to inform our decisions about future funding they may receive. We monitor a TEO’s:
achievement of mix of provision (MoP) delivery commitments compliance with TEO-led WLN funding conditions for the relevant year compliance with legislative requirements, and achievement of other expectations that we communicate to TEOs.
“In some more remote places we’ve seen a few bits and pieces, but otherwise we haven’t seen much rubbish at all,” said Jack and Sarah, campervan tourists from Australia who’d parked up at Lake Takapō as part of a three-week South Island road trip.
Caroline and David, from Germany, had their van parked up near Lake Ruataniwha at the southern side of Twizel.
“In Germany, it’s super important to take care of the environment,” they said.
“So, it’s cool to see the same thing happening here. The scenery here is crazy by the way.”
Katrien and Femke, Dutch friends travelling near Lake Takapō, said their stay had been “super clean and nice to experience”.
Our compliance staff are active on the ground in Lower Waihao following elevated nitrate concentrations in a rural water scheme last year.
The ‘do not drink’ notice for the Morven, Glenavy, and Ikawai water scheme, including Waikakahi East, was lifted on December 18 after nitrate levels were successfully reduced.
On 2 December 2024 nitrate concentrations in the Lower Waihao rural community supply well exceeded the Maximum Acceptable Value (MAV) of 50mg/l.
The MAV of 50mg/l for nitrate in drinking water in New Zealand is set by Taumata Arowai, the regulator of water services in New Zealand. This aligns with guidelines set by the World Health Organisations (WHO).
The immediate issue was resolved when Waimate District Council facilitated a temporary alternative supply from the Waitaki River to mix with and dilute the water in the scheme.
This reduced the nitrate concentration in the supply to be below the MAV. The ‘do not drink’ notice was lifted on 18 December. They have since stopped using the alternative supply.
As of Friday 7 February, the scheme recorded a nitrate concentration of 33mg/l. A longer-term solution is currently being worked through.
Our compliance mahi
We conducted compliance visits at key properties in late 2024 and continue to work with landowners in the region to ensure there are no obvious point sources of nitrates and to check that landowners are following the conditions of their resource consent.
We are focused on ongoing compliance and consents work to implement the Land and Water Regional Plan, as well as land management work to improve on the ground practices.
Compliance officers conducted all priority site visits in late 2024. They continue to visit other relevant sites and complete compliance monitoring reports following these visits. Our land management advisors are also working directly with landowners in the region to ensure they are following the conditions of their resource consent.
We are also working with the local irrigation scheme’s members to ensure the necessary consents are in place.
In terms of the cause of the elevated nitrate concentrations, no single source was found for this specific event, and we don’t believe there would be a single source of nitrates that would account for the increased concentrations seen in December.
Private well users should check their supply
Private well users were advised that it remains their responsibility to test water quality to ensure it was safe to drink. We have information available about testing private wells and drinking water safety.
Communication with the community
Waimate District Council continues to update its ratepayers on the issue and we will provide updates through its website and to relevant authorities and community groups.
Te Rūnanga o Waihao is being kept up-to-date directly by our compliance team.
Factors affecting nitrate concentration
In late 2024, several heavy rainfall events in the area caused nitrate in the soil to get flushed down to the groundwater flows causing increased nitrate concentration. The Lower Waihao supply well is very shallow at 4 metres, and shallow groundwater is prone to contamination from upgradient land use.
Local land use consists of intensive farming and related rural discharges (both from animal and human origin), which are known nitrate sources.
Previous updates
Update: 18 December 2024
The cease water consumption notice for the Lower Waihao Rural Water Scheme (including Waikakahi East) has been lifted.
Nitrate levels have been reduced and Waimate District Council have advised consumers on this scheme they can once again use water for drinking and cooking.
This does not apply to private wells. If you source your drinking water from a private well, it remains your responsibility to test water quality to ensure it’s safe to drink.
Private wells can still have high nitrate concentrations, despite the above-mentioned scheme now being declared safe to drink from.
Update: 3 December 2024
We have been advised by Waimate District Council that nitrate concentrations in the Lower Waihao Rural Water Scheme (including Waikakahi East) have now exceeded drinking water standards.
Waimate District Council is now providing alternative water for residents in this scheme.
This increase follows three large rainfall events over October and November that have caused nitrate in the soil to get ‘flushed’ down to the groundwater flows.
The Lower Waihao drinking water supply is a shallow groundwater well, located in an area of intensive farming. This means that heavy rainfall in the area can impact nitrate concentrations.
Our monitoring has shown nitrate concentrations in shallow groundwater in the area to be increasing over the past 20 to 30 years.
We are supporting Waimate District Council with this issue. This includes encouraging private well owners outside the drinking water scheme to test their water if they use it for drinking.
We are committed to taking further steps to improve water quality in this area. As the land use activity regulator, we have boosted our compliance monitoring in the region to ensure potential sources of nitrate are being well-managed.
This includes on-farm visits to monitor dairy effluent consents in the catchment and checking on permitted activities to ensure they are being carried out within plan limits. We are also working with the local irrigation company on its consenting requirements.
The aim is for tamariki (children) to be able to grow vegetables and plants all year round and make food in classes, demonstrating ‘garden to plate’ learning. The native plants grown will be used for the school’s riparian planting projects.
The school would like to eventually provide produce to food banks, and to families within the school community who need support.
Just under $1,300 will go towards equipment such as an irrigation pipe and attachments, the hiring of a trenching machine (to bury the pipes) and a garden shed to act as a pump house.
Principal Elizabeth Coyle says the school was set up with a vision to develop an environmental awareness amongst ākonga (students).
“We’ve achieved great things already and wish to keep the momentum going to help tamariki reach their full potential in this space.
“This project will certainly help with that, and we’re grateful to the Selwyn Waihora Water Zone Committee for backing this important mahi.”
Vegetables and plants growing inside the tunnel house
Water zone committee Action Plan funding
Each water zone committee was allocated $50,000 this financial year. The committees make funding recommendations on projects in their zone that benefit the environment or engage the community on environmental issues.
This support in turn helps the committees meet the goals in their Action Plans – which outline their tactics for delivering on the targets of the Canterbury Water Management Strategy.
Selwyn Waihora Water Zone Committee’s Action Plan priorities are:
enhancing mahinga kai, biodiversity and recreation opportunities
raising awareness about the risks to private drinking water supplies
supporting actions to restore Te Waihora to a healthy state
facilitating actions to achieve catchment nutrient targets and water quality outcomes
facilitating a community-wide approach to restore the Waikirikiri/Selwyn River back to a healthy state.
Action Plan projects in Selwyn Waihora
Rolleston Christian School’s project is one of six funded this year by the Selwyn Waihora Water Zone Committee’s Action Plan.
The other projects are:
Scamander Swamp Wetland Restoration
This project aims to ‘crack the whip’ on crack willow, which is increasingly encroaching on the wetland. Reducing the prevalence of this weed will help protect the function of the wetland ecosystem, habitat for native biodiversity and aesthetic values.
$16,500 in ZCAP funding will go toward covering the initial control works, along with some of the ongoing costs.
Halswell/Huritini Wetland Restoration
Raupō largely dominates this wetland, but crack and grey willow, as well as some other woody pest species, are increasingly invading the site.
Scamander wetland, on the edge of Lake Coleridge, is known for its scenery, recreation and cultural importance.
$10,000 in ZCAP funding will go towards controlling the willow and the other pest species before they become overly problematic.
Old Tai Tapu bush deer fence
Old Tai Tapu bush is a 6.5 hectare indigenous lowland forest, which is being devastated by fallow deer.
QEII National Trust is looking to fence 11,015 metres of bush to keep deer out, eliminate deer that are already in the bush, and undertake monitoring. The project will benefit from $12,762 in ZCAP funding.
Lincoln students discovery plant-out and monitoring days
This project is part of a greater effort to restore vegetation along the Huritini/Halswell Awa (river) in Ahuriri Reserve and other awa in Selwyn Waihora.
A plant-out day for Te Kura o Tauhinu/Lincoln Primary students will be held, centred on a variety of activities to help the students learn about the positive effects of native species on aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. They’ll also look at the cultural uses of plants and certain species.
A hands-on monitoring event for a school to check plant survival and measure biosecurity at a restoration site will also be organised. This will include a native bird count, a terrestrial invertebrate hunt, and aquatic and fish invertebrate investigations.
$6,941 in funding will go towards the cost of running the two events.
The Fantail Trust native bird and plant sanctuary
This project will see the creation of a native bird and plant sanctuary in the Rakaia Gorge along the walkway.
$2,500 in ZCAP funding will go towards the deployment of five AT220 traps in remote sites to help eliminate possums and rats. This is in addition to other traps already installed in the forest. The aim is to significantly improve the survival of native birds and invertebrates and enable the forest to regenerate and rejuvenate.
Committee delighted by high quality proposals
Selwyn Waihora Zone Committee deputy chair Allanah Kidd says the projects will help improve freshwater and/or biodiversity outcomes.
“This was a highly competitive round which made allocations recommendations difficult” she said.
“As a committee we were delighted to see so many high-quality and worthy proposals put forward, and to be able to support a range of inspiring projects.”
Laurence Smith, Principal Advisor – Biosecurity says there are currently no eradication tools available for didymo.
“Didymo can be spread by a single drop of water. Even if you can’t see it, you could be spreading it.
“There are many waterways in Waitaha/Canterbury that are free of didymo, so it’s important we all do our bit to protect the freshwater spaces we all enjoy.”
Didymo found in Te Tautea o Hinekakai/Devils Punchbowl Creek in Arthur’s Pass
Check, Clean, Dry
The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) has declared the South Island a controlled area for didymo. This means there is a legal requirement to clean all gear used in the water before going from one waterway to another.
Laurence encourages water users to adopt the Check, Clean, Dry method before moving between waterways.
“It’s important we do our best to prevent its spread with behaviour change,” he says.
Check
Check kayaks, footwear, fishing gear and anything else that was in the water, for any mud, dirt and debris and remove it. Leave debris at the site or, if you find any later, treat and dispose of it in the rubbish. Do not wash it down drains.
Clean
Wash all equipment such as nets, machinery, footwear and clothing thoroughly with an appropriate decontamination solution (10% detergent for 10 minutes or 2% bleach for at least one minute in water) before putting it in any new waterway.
Dry
If you can’t clean your gear, restrict your use to a single waterway OR dry completely to the touch inside and out, and leave to dry for at least another 48 hours.
NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi is urging drivers to expect delays following a truck breakdown on Hawke’s Bay Expressway.
The truck is partially blocking the northbound lane just before Tutaekuri River Bridge.
The southbound lane is unaffected.
However motorists through this area are currently experiencing significant delays. Please avoid this stretch of road if possible and plan ahead, until the truck can be removed from the road.
NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) advises resurfacing work will take place on southbound lanes 1 & 2 (clip-on lanes) of the Auckland Harbour Bridge this weekend.
This will require longer than a typical overnight closure due to the nature of the material used to pave the bridge. Southbound lanes 1 & 2 (clip-on lanes) will be closed from 9pm Saturday 22 February until 12pm Sunday 23 February while this work is carried out. Shelly Beach southbound off-ramp will also be closed.
Traffic will still be able to cross the bridge in both directions at all times during the works.
We recommend using State Highway 16 Western Ring Route where possible to avoid congestion. The route carries traffic between SH1 Constellation Drive and SH1 Manukau using State Highway 18, SH16 and State Highway 20.
This work has been scheduled on a weekend to avoid disrupting peak travel times during the week.
Please be patient and treat our crews with kindness and respect. Reduce your speed, adhere to the temporary speed limits and follow the traffic management directions at our work sites.
This work is weather dependent and there may be changes to the planned works in the case of unsuitable weather. Please visit the NZTA Journey Planner website for up-to-date information on these works, including any changes due to weather.
(From left to right): Neville Chamberlain, Édouard Daladier, Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, and Italian Foreign Minister Galeazzo Ciano before signing the Munich Agreement, which gave the Sudetenland to Germany.German Federal Archives/Wikimedia Commons
Ukraine has not been invited to a key meeting between American and Russian officials in Saudi Arabia this week to decide what peace in the country might look like.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine will “never accept” any decisions in talks without its participation to end Russia’s three-year war in the country.
A decision to negotiate the sovereignty of Ukrainians without them – as well as US President Donald Trump’s blatantly extortionate attempt to claim half of Ukraine’s rare mineral wealth as the price for ongoing US support – reveals a lot about how Trump sees Ukraine and Europe.
But this is not the first time large powers have colluded to negotiate new borders or spheres of influence without the input of the people who live there.
Such high-handed power politics rarely ends well for those affected, as these seven historical examples show.
1. The Scramble for Africa
In the winter of 1884–85, German leader Otto von Bismarck invited the powers of Europe to Berlin for a conference to formalise the division of the entire African continent among them. Not a single African was present at the conference that would come to be known as “The Scramble for Africa”.
Among other things, the conference led to the creation of the Congo Free State under Belgian control, the site of colonial atrocities that killed millions.
Germany also established the colony of German South West Africa (present-day Namibia), where the first genocide of the 20th century was later perpetrated against its colonised peoples.
How the boundaries of Africa changed after the Berlin conference. Wikimedia Commons/Somebody500
2. The Tripartite Convention
It wasn’t just Africa that was divided up this way. In 1899, Germany and the United States held a conference and forced an agreement on the Samoans to split their islands between the two powers.
This was despite the Samoans expressing a desire for either self-rule or a confederation of Pacific states with Hawai’i.
As “compensation” for missing out in Samoa, Britain received uncontested primacy over Tonga.
German Samoa came under the rule of New Zealand after the first world war and remained a territory until 1962. American Samoa (in addition to several other Pacific islands) remain US territories to this day.
3. The Sykes-Picot Agreement
As the first world war was well under way, British and French representatives sat down to agree how they’d divide up the Ottoman Empire after it was over. As an enemy power, the Ottomans were not invited to the talks.
Together, England’s Mark Sykes and France’s François Georges-Picot redrew the Middle East’s borders in line with their nations’ interests.
The Sykes-Picot Agreement ran counter to commitments made in a series of letters known as the Hussein-McMahon correspondence. In these letters, Britain promised to support Arab independence from Turkish rule.
The Sykes-Picot Agreement also ran counter to promises Britain made in the Balfour Declaration to back Zionists who wanted to build a new Jewish homeland in Ottoman Palestine.
The agreement became the wellspring of decades of conflict and colonial misrule in the Middle East, the consequences of which continue to be felt today.
Map showing the areas of control and influence in the Middle East agreed upon between the British and French. The National Archives (UK)/Wikimedia Commons
4. The Munich Agreement
In September 1938, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain and French Prime Minister Édouard Daladier met with Italy’s fascist dictator, Benito Mussolini, and Germany’s Adolf Hitler to sign what became known as the Munich Agreement.
The leaders sought to prevent the spread of war throughout Europe after Hitler’s Nazis had fomented an uprising and began attacking the German-speaking areas of Czechoslovakia known as the Sudetenland. They did this under the pretext of protecting German minorities. No Czechoslovakians were invited to the meeting.
The meeting is still seen by many as the “Munich Betrayal” – a classic example of a failed appeasement of a belligerent power in the false hope of staving off war.
5. The Évian Conference
In 1938, 32 countries met in Évian-les-Bains, France, to decide how to deal with Jewish refugees fleeing persecution in Nazi Germany.
Before the conference started, Britain and the US had agreed not to put pressure on one another to lift the quota of Jews they would accept in either the US or British Palestine.
While Golda Meir (the future Israeli leader) attended the conference as an observer, neither she nor any other representatives of the Jewish people were permitted to take part in the negotiations.
The attendees largely failed to come to an agreement on accepting Jewish refugees, with the exception of the Dominican Republic. And most Jews in Germany were unable to leave before Nazism reached its genocidal nadir in the Holocaust.
6. The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
As Hitler planned his invasion of Eastern Europe, it became clear his major stumbling block was the Soviet Union. His answer was to sign a disingenuous non-aggression treaty with the USSR.
Joseph Stalin and Joachim von Ribbentrop after the signing of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. German Federal Archives/Wikimedia Commons
The treaty, named after Vyacheslav Molotov and Joachim von Ribbentrop (the Soviet and German foreign ministers), ensured the Soviet Union would not respond when Hitler invaded Poland. It also carved up Europe into Nazi and Soviet spheres. This allowed the Soviets to expand into Romania and the Baltic states, attack Finland and take its own share of Polish territory.
Unsurprisingly, some in Eastern Europe view the current US-Russia talks over Ukraine’s future as a revival of this kind of secret diplomacy that divided the smaller nations of Europe between large powers in the second world war.
7. The Yalta Conference
With the defeat of Nazi Germany imminent, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, Soviet dictator Josef Stalin and US President Franklin D Roosevelt met in 1945 to decide the fate of postwar Europe. This meeting came to be known as the Yalta Conference.
Alongside the Potsdam Conference several months later, Yalta created the political architecture that would lead to the Cold War division of Europe.
At Yalta, the “big three” decided on the division of Germany, while Stalin was also offered a sphere of interest in Eastern Europe.
This took the form of a series of politically controlled buffer states in Eastern Europe, a model some believe Putin is aiming to emulate today in eastern and southeastern Europe.
Matt Fitzpatrick receives funding from the Australian Research Council. He is affiliated with the History Council of South Australia.
Australia’s minister for home affairs announced on Sunday that the federal government has struck a deal with Nauru to “resettle” three non-citizens from what’s come to be known as the “NZYQ cohort”.
The NZYQ cohort is a group of people released from long-term immigration detention after the High Court’s NZYQ 2023 decision.
The court found their ongoing detention was unconstitutional where there was no reasonable prospect of removing them to another country. This led to the release of over 200 people from detention, the majority of whom had previously had visas cancelled on character grounds or had committed crimes.
This new deal with Nauru has significant implications.
The minister said all three have criminal histories. One has been convicted of murder.
Nauru may accept more people from the NZYQ cohort, referring to these people as “the first three”. The minister says he expects a legal challenge to their removal.
Once a non-citizen has had their visa cancelled on criminal grounds, they are often deported to their country of origin after serving their prison sentence.
However, the individuals in the NZYQ group cannot be returned to their country of origin. That could be because international law prevents Australia returning them to places where they may face harm (a principle known as “non-refoulement”).
Or, they may have no recognised nationality and no country to accept them.
This raises the question of what should be done with them after they complete their prison sentence.
Up until the decision in NZYQ, people in this situation were simply kept in immigration detention. It was often almost impossible to get another country to accept them.
The Australian government tried to get many other countries to accept the man at the centre of the NZYQ case. This person, a stateless Rohingnya man given the pseudonym NZYQ, had been convicted of a serious crime.
The High Court noted no country had a standard practice of resettling people in situations such as this. It noted the immigration department had never successfully transferred such a person to a third country (in other words, to a place that was not Australia, and not their country of origin).
The Nauru deal announced on the weekend is an important development, in part because it is the first significant use of new migration laws rushed through late last year.
What do the new migration laws allow?
These laws aimed to respond to concerns around the NZYQ cohort being released into the community.
The new laws allow the government to transfer non-citizens to third countries, in this case Nauru, under “third country reception arrangements.”
The details of these agreements are left entirely to the discretion of government. The laws grant broad powers to remove people and provide payments to those third countries.
People who may be removed to a third country include those in the NZYQ group who, since the High Court decision, have been living in the community on bridging visas.
The new laws allow the government to transfer non-citizens to third countries, in this case Nauru. Robert Szymanski/Shutterstock
Why are some concerned?
A major issue is the uncertainty surrounding the rights and support of individuals sent to Nauru.
It’s unclear how or whether these people will be able to get housing and access to work, or how they might be treated in a country with high unemployment. Some may have family members in Australia and may be separated indefinitely from them.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has raised significant concerns around what it calls “externalisation” of international protection obligations without adequate protection safeguards or standards of treatment.
indefinite “warehousing” of asylum-seekers in isolated places, exposing them to indirect refoulement and other dangers.
The UN Human Rights Committee has also said that outsourcing operations to another country did not absolve Australia of accountability and its human rights obligations.
A possible precedent
A final concern is the precedent this agreement with Nauru sets for how other countries may treat refugees with criminal convictions.
Australia’s model of offshore processing has already been used as a reference by other countries, including the UK.
With the growing international debate about managing refugees with criminal convictions, this arrangement may end up being replicated elsewhere.
The lack of safeguards for people in third countries, such as Nauru, could mean refugees and asylum seekers are transferred without proper protection, exposing them to further harm.
How do other countries handle cases like this?
It is not uncommon for countries to send criminal deportees to their home countries. But in situations where people are stateless or cannot be sent home due to a fear of serious harm, countries either have to allow the person to remain or seek an alternative country to send them to.
However, it remains very hard for countries to convince other countries to accept people who have criminal convictions.
Earlier this year, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order to prepare a detention facility at Guantanamo Bay in order to hold up to 30,000 “high-priority criminal aliens unlawfully present in the United States”.
Exact details of the arrangement remain unclear and the plan has been criticised by a range of human rights groups and legal organisations.
What are the alternatives to Australia’s Nauru plan?
Other countries have established systems for managing non-citizens who are not entitled to protection or whose visas have been revoked due to criminal offences, ensuring they are not detained indefinitely.
After completing their prison sentences, these individuals are typically released into the community, where domestic law enforcement handles any further offending.
Neglecting to address offending behaviour or rehabilitation within the Australian system – whether during imprisonment, detention, or in the community – and then deporting individuals to developing countries doesn’t really solve the problem.
It simply means we are externalising the problem to a poorer country.
Mary Anne Kenny has received funding from the ARC. She is a member of the Migration Institute of Australia and the Law Council of Australia and an affiliate of the UNSW Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law. She previously was an independent advisor to the governments of Australia and Nauru as part of the Joint Advisory Committee on Nauru between 2012 – 2016.
Lisa van Toor receives funding from Research Training Plan (RTP) scholarship for her PhD. She is currently a PhD student with the UNSW Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law. She previously was a Judge’s Associate in the Supreme Court of Nauru between 2018-2019. Lisa is a member of the Greens WA.
What makes something quantum? This question has kept a small but dedicated fraction of the world’s population – most of them quantum physicists – up at night for decades.
At very small scales, we know the universe is made up of waves and energy fields ruled by the laws of quantum mechanics, but at the scale of the everyday world around us we mostly see solid objects following the older rules of classical mechanics. When we ask what makes something quantum, we are asking where the line is between these two realms and how it can be drawn.
In a new study published in Newton, we answer this question in a previously undiscovered way. We show that a single spinning particle can show indubitable evidence of quantum behaviour.
The discovery of spin
One hundred years ago, Dutch physicists Samuel Goudsmit and George Uhlenbeck proposed the idea that most tiny particles never really stand still. Instead, they suggested, electrons – elementary particles that form the outer shell of atoms – behave like minuscule spinning tops.
The spin can be either clockwise or anticlockwise, or what physicists call “spin up” and “spin down”. This binary nature of spinning electrons means that they can be used as building blocks for quantum computers.
However, in 1925 Goudsmit and Uhlenbeck’s spinning electron proposal caused an uproar in the physics establishment. At this time, physics was shaped by illustrious names such as Albert Einstein, Max Planck and Paul Ehrenfest, who laid the groundwork for the grand theories of relativity and quantum mechanics that transformed our understanding of the universe.
After eminent physicist and Nobel laureate Hendrik Lorentz criticised the spin theory, Uhlenbeck got cold feet and wanted to retract the paper. Uhlenbeck and Goudsmit’s mentor Ehrenfest told them to persist, writing: “You are both young enough to be able to afford a stupidity!”
Old ideas still remain
This kind of resistance to new ideas is not unusual in physics. As Planck put it, science progresses one funeral at a time.
Much like the scepticism about the discovery of spinning electrons, today many physicists are educated with a misconception about how spin works. Conventional wisdom, still taught in standard textbooks, tells us that spin is a quantum property that is essential to understanding the behaviour of electrons and nuclei. But at the same time, the textbooks say the rotation of the particle is still somehow perfectly described by classical physics.
Tsirelson’s forgotten protocol
A similar consideration applies to another textbook system, the harmonic oscillator (e.g. a pendulum). According to a 1927 theorem by Paul Ehrenfest, the way a quantum pendulum swings is indistinguishable from a swing in the park.
Strikingly, almost 80 years later the Russian-Israeli physicist Boris Tsirelson had an idea showing that it is possible to discern a quantum pendulum from a swing in the park, provided the quantum system is prepared in a truly quantum state. At the time, Tsirelson’s paper attracted little notice.
Another 15 years later, the research team of Valerio Scarani in Singapore resurfaced Tsirelson’s paper from the depths of the internet. Scarani’s student Zaw Lin Htoo extended Tsirelson’s idea, proving theoretically that it actually was possible to detect quantumness in the rotation of a spin.
Bigger particles and Schrödinger’s cat
Our team at the University of New South Wales decided to take on the challenge and prove the quantumness of a spin in a real experiment. However, we couldn’t do it with a simple spin like an electron. Because an electron is so small, it only has two possible spin states: up and down. Again defying widespread intuition, it turns out that an electron spin can only be prepared in quasi-classical states, which obey the old textbook predictions.
Instead we used a much larger particle, the nucleus of an antimony atom. The spin of this particle can point in eight different directions, instead of just two.
We were able to place the atom in a so-called “Schrödinger’s cat” state, in which it is in a superposition of two widely different spin directions at once.
We then performed the Tsirelson-Scarani protocol, which involves measuring not just the average orientation of the spin, but the positivity of it – a very different kind of measurement to what is done in standard spin resonance setups. This experiment showed unquestionable evidence for the quantumness of the antimony’s spin.
What’s next?
Our study is important for discovering fundamental truths about the universe, and for providing clarity on what it means to “be quantum”. However, it may also have real-life applications.
The states that we demonstrated to be quantum with the Tsirelson-Scarani protocol are exactly the kind of thing that give quantum computation and quantum sensing an advantage over classical counterparts. In the future we will focus making the most of these systems for use in technological applications.
Arjen Vaartjes receives funding from the Sydney Quantum Academy.
Andrea Morello receives funding from the Australian Research Council, the Australian Department of Defence, and the US Army Research Office.
(From left to right): Neville Chamberlain, Édouard Daladier, Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, and Italian Foreign Minister Galeazzo Ciano before signing the Munich Agreement, which gave the Sudetenland to Germany.German Federal Archives/Wikimedia Commons
Ukraine has not been invited to a key meeting between American and Russian officials in Saudi Arabia this week to decide what peace in the country might look like.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine will “never accept” any decisions in talks without its participation to end Russia’s three-year war in the country.
A decision to negotiate the sovereignty of Ukrainians without them – as well as US President Donald Trump’s blatantly extortionate attempt to claim half of Ukraine’s rare mineral wealth as the price for ongoing US support – reveals a lot about how Trump sees Ukraine and Europe.
But this is not the first time large powers have colluded to negotiate new borders or spheres of influence without the input of the people who live there.
Such high-handed power politics rarely ends well for those affected, as these seven historical examples show.
1. The Scramble for Africa
In the winter of 1884–85, German leader Otto von Bismarck invited the powers of Europe to Berlin for a conference to formalise the division of the entire African continent among them. Not a single African was present at the conference that would come to be known as “The Scramble for Africa”.
Among other things, the conference led to the creation of the Congo Free State under Belgian control, the site of colonial atrocities that killed millions.
Germany also established the colony of German South West Africa (present-day Namibia), where the first genocide of the 20th century was later perpetrated against its colonised peoples.
How the boundaries of Africa changed after the Berlin conference. Wikimedia Commons/Somebody500
2. The Tripartite Convention
It wasn’t just Africa that was divided up this way. In 1899, Germany and the United States held a conference and forced an agreement on the Samoans to split their islands between the two powers.
This was despite the Samoans expressing a desire for either self-rule or a confederation of Pacific states with Hawai’i.
As “compensation” for missing out in Samoa, Britain received uncontested primacy over Tonga.
German Samoa came under the rule of New Zealand after the first world war and remained a territory until 1962. American Samoa (in addition to several other Pacific islands) remain US territories to this day.
3. The Sykes-Picot Agreement
As the first world war was well under way, British and French representatives sat down to agree how they’d divide up the Ottoman Empire after it was over. As an enemy power, the Ottomans were not invited to the talks.
Together, England’s Mark Sykes and France’s François Georges-Picot redrew the Middle East’s borders in line with their nations’ interests.
The Sykes-Picot Agreement ran counter to commitments made in a series of letters known as the Hussein-McMahon correspondence. In these letters, Britain promised to support Arab independence from Turkish rule.
The Sykes-Picot Agreement also ran counter to promises Britain made in the Balfour Declaration to back Zionists who wanted to build a new Jewish homeland in Ottoman Palestine.
The agreement became the wellspring of decades of conflict and colonial misrule in the Middle East, the consequences of which continue to be felt today.
Map showing the areas of control and influence in the Middle East agreed upon between the British and French. The National Archives (UK)/Wikimedia Commons
4. The Munich Agreement
In September 1938, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain and French Prime Minister Édouard Daladier met with Italy’s fascist dictator, Benito Mussolini, and Germany’s Adolf Hitler to sign what became known as the Munich Agreement.
The leaders sought to prevent the spread of war throughout Europe after Hitler’s Nazis had fomented an uprising and began attacking the German-speaking areas of Czechoslovakia known as the Sudetenland. They did this under the pretext of protecting German minorities. No Czechoslovakians were invited to the meeting.
The meeting is still seen by many as the “Munich Betrayal” – a classic example of a failed appeasement of a belligerent power in the false hope of staving off war.
5. The Évian Conference
In 1938, 32 countries met in Évian-les-Bains, France, to decide how to deal with Jewish refugees fleeing persecution in Nazi Germany.
Before the conference started, Britain and the US had agreed not to put pressure on one another to lift the quota of Jews they would accept in either the US or British Palestine.
While Golda Meir (the future Israeli leader) attended the conference as an observer, neither she nor any other representatives of the Jewish people were permitted to take part in the negotiations.
The attendees largely failed to come to an agreement on accepting Jewish refugees, with the exception of the Dominican Republic. And most Jews in Germany were unable to leave before Nazism reached its genocidal nadir in the Holocaust.
6. The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
As Hitler planned his invasion of Eastern Europe, it became clear his major stumbling block was the Soviet Union. His answer was to sign a disingenuous non-aggression treaty with the USSR.
Joseph Stalin and Joachim von Ribbentrop after the signing of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. German Federal Archives/Wikimedia Commons
The treaty, named after Vyacheslav Molotov and Joachim von Ribbentrop (the Soviet and German foreign ministers), ensured the Soviet Union would not respond when Hitler invaded Poland. It also carved up Europe into Nazi and Soviet spheres. This allowed the Soviets to expand into Romania and the Baltic states, attack Finland and take its own share of Polish territory.
Unsurprisingly, some in Eastern Europe view the current US-Russia talks over Ukraine’s future as a revival of this kind of secret diplomacy that divided the smaller nations of Europe between large powers in the second world war.
7. The Yalta Conference
With the defeat of Nazi Germany imminent, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, Soviet dictator Josef Stalin and US President Franklin D Roosevelt met in 1945 to decide the fate of postwar Europe. This meeting came to be known as the Yalta Conference.
Alongside the Potsdam Conference several months later, Yalta created the political architecture that would lead to the Cold War division of Europe.
At Yalta, the “big three” decided on the division of Germany, while Stalin was also offered a sphere of interest in Eastern Europe.
This took the form of a series of politically controlled buffer states in Eastern Europe, a model some believe Putin is aiming to emulate today in eastern and southeastern Europe.
Matt Fitzpatrick receives funding from the Australian Research Council. He is affiliated with the History Council of South Australia.
A man has been charged after several people were injured when a vehicle fled the scene of a shoplifting in Henderson.
Waitematā West CIB have been investigating the offending which unfolded in the car park at Woolworths on Lincoln Road after 11am on 27 January.
Detective Senior Sergeant Megan Goldie says a shoplifting allegedly occurred at the supermarket, with the female offender running to a waiting vehicle.
“The driver tried to leave the car park quickly but, in the process, crashed into another vehicle carrying two occupants,” she says.
“Shockingly, the getaway driver allegedly stole a handbag from the victims he had just crashed into after the occupants got out to exchange details.”
A third member of the public tried to intervene with what was unfolding.
“All three members of the public suffered injuries after the getaway vehicle was driven off at speed,” Detective Senior Sergeant Goldie says.
“They all suffered physical injuries including grazing and bruising.
“Understandably this ordeal has left them very shaken up and we are continuing to support them through this process.”
This week, detectives located a 19-year-old Ranui man and charged him with three counts of aggravated assault and one count of theft.
He will appear in the Waitākere District Court on 24 February.
Detective Senior Sergeant Goldie says the initial offender, a 21-year-old woman, has been summonsed to court over the supermarket shoplifting.
“I would like to acknowledge the support from the public we received in this investigation,” she says.
Global financial institutions are increasingly bullish on China’s economic development, with multiple 2025 outlook reports highlighting the nation’s accelerating transition to high-quality growth driven by a stronger consumer sector and service industry.
During the recent Spring Festival, China witnessed a burgeoning consumption market, marked by record-setting sales revenues in “Guochao” — or trendy merchandise inspired by traditional Chinese culture — along with new records in intangible cultural heritage experiences, the ice and snow economy, and consumer goods trade-in programs. Driven by digital transition and technological development, new consumption models have continued to emerge.
Analysts noted that emerging consumption trends — from product launches to winter sports and silver-haired consumer markets — demonstrate China’s evolving consumer landscape and its potential for sustained growth.
Trendsetters Trade up
Shanghai’s debut economy is transforming the city’s retail landscape, increasingly led by homegrown brands launching global flagship stores. A notable example is SHUSHU/TONG, a local designer label that chose Shanghai’s Jing’an District for its first global store. The store has since become a magnet for international visitors, especially from the Republic of Korea (ROK).
The store has evolved into a social media hotspot, where Korean visitors frequently create content for platforms like rednote, sharing their shopping experiences and fashion discoveries. This organic promotion has significantly boosted the store’s international profile.
“New customers now make up half of our foot traffic, with ROK visitors accounting for 80 percent of first-time shoppers,” says Yu Yaqi, head of SHUSHU/TONG’s offline operations. “To better serve our international clientele, we’re streamlining membership registration for foreign customers and optimizing our product display and inventory to match visitor preferences.”
China’s policymakers have identified the debut economy as a key driver of growth, making it a 2025 priority at December’s Central Economic Work Conference. This strategic focus aims to upgrade consumption quality and accelerate industrial transformation, with regional governments already implementing supportive measures.
Positioned as a global hub for product debuts, flagship store launches and exclusive exhibitions, Shanghai is leveraging this innovative model. The policy blueprint includes an annual “FIRST in Shanghai” flagship event from March to May, designed to attract global attention as a premier platform for product launches.
Looking ahead to 2025, the city’s government work report prioritizes scaling up the debut economy, along with emerging consumption sectors such as automobiles and green consumption.
Frost to Fortune
“Endless snow slopes stretch before my eyes, with the howling wind echoing in my ears: That feeling of free flight delivers a unique thrill,” said 28-year-old Sun Hong, an avid skier who travels to different resorts each winter to seek fresh experiences.
Winter tourism has become a major driver of China’s economy, sparking nationwide interest in cold-weather activities.
Different regions have developed distinctive winter tourism offerings: Southwest China’s Chongqing Municipality focuses on themed events and travel routes, southern Guangdong Province provides year-round indoor snow activities, while Xinjiang’s Altay region features unique ethnic winter experiences.
Dai Bin, president of the China Tourism Academy, highlighted the role of technology and investment in promoting winter sports, with artificial snow and ice facilities making winter sports accessible even in the warmest regions.
A survey from the academy showed more than 70 percent of the respondents are willing to engage in winter leisure activities, with over 60 percent planning to maintain or increase their spending on winter tourism. The 2024-2025 winter season is expected to attract some 520 million trips, generating over 630 billion yuan (about 87.86 billion U.S. dollars) in tourism revenue.
Winter has evolved from a season of dormancy to one of vibrant activities, Dai noted. “In the past, winter meant freezing temperatures and a pause in daily life. Now, people embrace the cold and explore northern regions.”
Silver is the New Gold
Local governments have prioritized expanding elderly care products and services in their 2025 agendas. Guangdong plans to enhance research and development (R&D) and promotion of senior-friendly products while accelerating the rehabilitation assistive devices industry.
Heilongjiang aims to boost service-oriented consumption in digital, elderly care and childcare sectors, with a focus on developing traditional Chinese medicine-based wellness and smart elderly care. Shanghai will deepen the application of technologies like smart nursing homes in elderly care scenarios.
The economic potential is substantial. According to a recent blue paper on China’s silver economy, the sector is currently valued at 7 trillion yuan, with tourism being a key growth area.
Elderly adults in China had amassed wealth totaling 78.4 trillion yuan by 2023, according to the China National Committee on Ageing. The silver economy is projected to reach 30 trillion yuan by 2035.
The silver economy is creating new growth opportunities across multiple industries. “A growing number of seniors are demanding higher quality of life, prioritizing health and fashion, making the anti-aging industry particularly promising,” said Chen Juanling, a Shanghai municipal lawmaker and public affairs general manager of cosmetics brand Chando Group.
China firmly opposes relevant countries’ attempts to put together small circles to interfere in China’s internal affairs, attack and smear China, and stoke confrontation and antagonism, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said on Monday.
Spokesperson Guo Jiakun made the remarks at a daily press briefing when asked to comment on a joint statement made by the Republic of Korea, the United States and Japan in Munich, Germany, which contains negative comments regarding China’s Taiwan and the South China Sea issue.
“We’ve lodged serious representations with relevant countries,” Guo said.
Noting Taiwan is an inalienable part of China’s territory, Guo said the Taiwan question is purely an internal affair of China, which brooks no external interference.
The key to upholding peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait lies in abiding by the one-China principle, and firmly opposing “Taiwan independence” separatism, said Guo, adding the Taiwan region’s participation in the activities of international organizations must and can only be handled in line with the one-China principle.
The spokesperson stressed that the Asia-Pacific is a stellar example of peace and development, not a chessboard for geopolitical contests. “We call on relevant parties to earnestly respect regional countries’ effort for peace and stability, abandon the Cold War mentality, stop creating bloc confrontation and stop fueling tensions in the region,” he said.
“China will firmly safeguard territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests, and meanwhile, stays committed to properly handling differences through dialogue and consultation with countries concerned,” Guo said.
