Policy Goals of the NZMA

These are in no particular order:

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• Removal of the constraints of the supply of suitably skilled labour

  • Recent changes in immigration policy settings have led to an increase in the number of migrant workers, but have done little to alleviate the shortage of the (highly) skilled workers we need to accelerate the adoption of advanced manu­facturing technologies

  • International competition for skills in manufacturing will only increase, and we need to do more to ‘grow our own’. The Reform of Vocational Education (RoVE) has introduced welcome improvements, such as the establishment of Workforce Development Councils, but other parts still need to be worked on further.
    
     

• Access to Capital for Growth and Productivity Improvement

  • Current depreciation rules are completely out of touch with actual replacement sche­dules for machinery and equipment in manufacturing. Industry needs to be able to depreciate investment over its actual useful life. In addition, and to facilitate the intro­duction of advanced manufacturing technologies to improve productivity and energy efficiency, a scheme of targeted accelerated depreciation is required.

  • Accelerated depreciation applied to energy and carbon reduction investments in the manufacturing sector will be far better use of taxpayers’ money than the GIDI Fund, as it a tax deferral, rather than a grant.  It would also be more equitable for SME's who struggle with compliance costs for GIDI Fund applications. 
    
     

• Innovation Support that is Fit for Purpose

  • The system in place to stimulate and support innovation in manufacturing is under­delivering for the majority of New Zealand’s manufacturing businesses, and measures proposed in the Advanced Manufacturing ITP will do little to change that. The system needs to be re-designed based on a proper understanding of how innovation actually happens in manufacturing SMEs.
    
     

• Empowering New Zealand’s manufacturers to succeed in a world where domestic subsidies and other measures increasingly threaten their global competitive position

  • Access to and success in export markets for our manufacturers are increasingly deter­mined by trade policies driven by geo-political considerations (‘friend-shoring’) and market distortions caused by domestic subsidies. The New Zealand government needs to:

    • work with government agencies in key markets so that non-tariff barriers and other trade-distorting practices are removed or, at least, reduced

    • ensure that current government procurement rules are fully adhered to at all levels, and wherever central government funding is involved in the purchase of products and services

    • bring New Zealand’s system of trade remedies up to a standard and practice where it is fit for purpose to address the significant distortions in our domestic market caused by the dumping of subsidised imports.
      
       

• Clear and consistent policy settings for a secure supply of energy at stable cost

  • Secure long-term access to energy at prices that allow New Zealand manufacturers to remain globally competitive is critical for the industry to survive and thrive. We see that global investment decisions in manufacturing are increasingly driven by this factor, and New Zealand needs to compete internationally for investment in manufacturing just as much as in gaining market share for its products and services.