Minister of Internal Affairs, Hon Peter Dunne, today presented to Parliament a report on the review of public access to birth, death, marriage, civil union, and name change (BDM) records.

The report meets a requirement to review the operation of access provisions in the Births, Deaths, Marriages, and Relationships Registration Act 1995 after five years, which Parliament put in place as part of changes it made in 2009.

Internal Affairs Minister Peter Dunne has announced that public consultation on proposed changes to birth, death, marriage and civil union fees has opened.

“The proposed changes follow a review of fees for products and services provided by the Department of Internal Affairs which have remained unchanged since 2003.

“Over the last 13 years the costs to provide these services has increased – these changes better reflect the actual cost of providing them and will ensure users pay a fair price for whichever service they require”, says Mr Dunne.

Internal Affairs Minister Peter Dunne says applications for urgent, lost, stolen or damaged passports and those that require a name change can now be made on-line, in a further improvement of the passport service.

“Urgent applications make up around seven percent (44,000) of the total number of passports issued annually. Urgent passport applications are processed and completed within three working days and can be delivered to most locations in the world within several days.

Internal Affairs Minister Peter Dunne today congratulated Lotto New Zealand on obtaining two sought-after international security certifications.

“Lotto players can trust that Lotto NZ’s systems and processes are designed to protect the integrity of its games and the personal information of its players,” said Mr Dunne.

The Ministers of Police, Customs, and Internal Affairs have congratulated their departments for their efforts in fighting online child sexual abuse.

The Ministers say identification and rescue of victims, both within New Zealand and internationally, will continue to be a priority of their departments’ work. Police, Customs and Internal Affairs recently worked together to create a national database of images to assist in the assessment of child abuse material and victim identification. 

Internal Affairs Minister Peter Dunne has called on the New Zealand public to take the opportunity to have their say on the operation of Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ).

Internal Affairs Minister Hon Peter Dunne today announced the name and visual identity of the new archive exhibition to open within the National Library of New Zealand in Wellington during early 2017.

“The permanent exhibition will be known as ‘He Tohu’, which has a number of meanings – signs, signatures, marks and symbols. The exhibition will feature three important New Zealand constitutional documents:

Internal Affairs Minister and Presiding Member of the Lottery Grants Board, Hon Peter Dunne today announced that approximately $189 million of Lottery profits is being made available in 2016/17 to help build stronger, more cohesive communities.

Through the Lottery Distribution Committees over $108 million will flow into the community, supporting work and projects across a wide range of sectors. In addition, over $80 million will be granted to three key statutory bodies supported by the Grants Board.

Following the First Reading passage of the Fire and Emergency Bill today, Internal Affairs Minister Peter Dunne has released a discussion document on new fire services regulations as part of the reform of the fire services sector.

Legislation before the House will establish a new organisation, Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ), on 1 July 2017 that amalgamates rural and urban fire services.

The Bill to modernise New Zealand’s fire services has passed its first reading and heralds the most significant change in the sector for 70 years, Internal Affairs Minister Peter Dunne said today.

The Fire and Emergency New Zealand Bill will amalgamate more than 40 separate organisations, 600 fire brigades and forces, 12,000 volunteers, and 3000 paid staff into a single unified fire services organisation, to be set up on 1 July 2017.

Internal Affairs Minister Peter Dunne has introduced legislation to modernise New Zealand’s fire services by setting up a single fire organisation responsible for urban and rural fire.

“The Bill will strengthen and future-proof our fire services, and ensure they remain connected to our communities.

“This is the most substantial change to the fire sector since the 1940s.

“This modern, comprehensive and enabling Bill will establish a new organisation, Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ), and allow it to adapt as circumstances change.

A public discussion document about the sustainability of community funding from pub and club gaming machines is now available, Internal Affairs Minister Peter Dunne said today.

“Earlier this year I announced a review of class 4 gambling and the release of a public discussion document gives the public a chance to have their say.

“The release of the discussion document is the next step in the Government’s review of the class 4 gambling sector, which operates “pokie” machines in non-casino venues”, says Mr Dunne.

Internal Affairs Minister Peter Dunne is going the distance to acknowledge some of New Zealand’s most far-flung volunteers.

The Minister will visit the Chatham Islands this week and will celebrate National Volunteer Week with the local volunteer fire brigade.

“In a small island community like the Chathams, volunteers are crucial,” Mr Dunne said.

The Minister will also talk with the local volunteers about the merger next year of New Zealand’s urban and rural fire services into a new organisation, Fire and Emergency New Zealand.

Internal Affairs Minister Peter Dunne has welcomed improvements to New Zealand’s passport service which will allow parents to renew their children’s passports online, and also allow adults who have never had a passport to apply online using their RealMe verified identity.

The uptake of RealMe, the secure consent based identity verification service that allows people to prove who they are online continues to rise. More than 160,000 verified identities have now been issued since RealMe went live in July 2013.

The Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) has had budget confirmed of $13.0 million operating funding over the next four years, and $3.4 million capital funding to continue developing its information and data portfolio.

The work DIA do is central to making it easier for New Zealanders and New Zealand businesses to access trusted government information and data clearly and simply, Internal Affairs Minister Peter Dunne says.

Internal Affairs Minister, Hon Peter Dunne, has congratulated the seven members of the New Zealand Fire Service community who all received the Queen’s Service Medal in the Queen’s 90th Birthday Honours List.

“Their citations reveal decades of service not just to their local fire brigades but also their wider communities. The much deserved recognition by Her Majesty

is a very fitting way to acknowledge their years of dedicated service.”  

Minister for Internal Affairs Hon Peter Dunne and Local Government Minister Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga are welcoming new initiatives that make open government data more accessible than ever before.

“It is important we continue to improve online access to government data so anyone can use it to develop new products and share with others. Data has little value if it is not used,” Minister Dunne says.

Internal Affairs Minister Peter Dunne today announced a new appointment and three reappointments to the Archives Council.

The Archives Council has a statutory role to provide the Minister with independent advice on archives and recordkeeping matters.

Dr Aroha Harris, Dr Gillian Oliver and David Reeves have been reappointed for a further term, starting on 30 May 2016. The new member is Sandra (Sandi) Beatie and she will also be starting on 30 May 2016.

They will join current members Anna Blackman, Dr Angela Wanhalla and Thomas Norcliffe.

The Government has agreed to a new payments system for venues hosting pokie machines in bars and pubs, Internal Affairs Minister Peter Dunne said today.

The new commission-based system will be much simpler. Each venue will be paid up to 1.28 per cent of weekly gaming machine turnover. Total annual payments for each venue must not exceed 16 per cent of a venue’s gross gaming machine proceeds (GMP) excluding GST.