Labour Caucus Portfolios Reshuffled Ahead of 2026 Election
Labour Party Leader Chris Hipkins has announced a reshuffle of the party's caucus portfolios.
OPINION: Meanwhile, red blooded Northland politician Matua Shane Jones has provided one of the most telling quotes of the year thus far.
Replacing his mining hard-hat with his Fisheries Minister hat, Jones has beat a quick political retreat after being blindsided by the backlash from the recreational fishing community after proposing to let commercial operators land and sell dead marlin bycatch.
Reminding us that it is election year, Jones was surprisingly honest about it: “A good politician has to know how to pivot” adding “The reality is that we’ve got to prioritise our efforts in an election year”.
The lesson here for the farming community is that, in election year, politicians are very susceptible to a bit of arm twisting, or negative publicity that might cost them a few votes and risk tipping them out of the trough when the public heads to the polls!
Matt McRae, a farmer from Mokoreta in Southland who runs a sheep, beef and dairy support business alongside a sheep stud, has been elected to the Beef +Lamb NZ Board as a farmer director.
Ravensdown's next evolution in smart farming technology, HawkEye Pro, was awarded the Technology Section Award at the Southern Field Days Farm Innovation Awards in February 2026.
While mariners may recognise a “dog watch” as a two-hour shift on a ship, the Good Dog Work Watch is quite a different concept and the clever creation of Southland siblings Grace (9) and Archer Brown (7), both pupils at Riverton Primary School.
Philip and Lyneyre Hooper of the Hoopman Family Trust have tonight been named the Taranaki Regional Supreme Winners at the Ballance Farm Environment Awards.
We are not a bunch of sky cowboys. That was one of the key messages from the chairperson of the NZ Agricultural Aviation Association (NZAAA) Kent Weir, speaking at an education day at Feilding aerodrome for 25 policymakers and regulators from central and local government and other rural professionals.
New Zealand's dairy and beef industries say they welcome the announcement that the Government will invest $10.49 million in the Dairy Beef Opportunities (DBO) programme.

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