WAIKATO BUSINESS PULSE: UPDATES FROM YOUR MPS
Stay in the know with Waikato Business Pulse, a monthly communications piece featuring insights from one or more Waikato MPs. This platform, from time to time, will also give you a chance to share your thoughts through surveys and polls, ensuring your voice is heard on issues that matter to our business community.
Keep connected, stay informed, and make your impact!
June 2025
MP Ryan Hamilton
MP for Hamilton East
Hamilton’s business community is innovative, passionate, and tenacious. I want to start by acknowledging you.
Hamilton is New Zealand’s fastest-growing city – the City of the Future. We’ve got huge potential: some of it already realised, and some still untapped. In my first year and a half as an MP, what’s excited me most is just how large the opportunity is here in Hamilton – and I’m putting all my energy into helping unlock it.
When we stand up in Parliament and talk about growing the economy, it’s you – the people with boots on the ground – who make it real. You’re out there every day building businesses, creating jobs, and driving progress. Our job is to make that easier: by cutting red tape, reducing barriers, and giving you the tools to succeed.
That’s exactly what this year’s Budget is all about – Going for Growth.
A growing economy means a lower cost of living. It means more jobs and higher wages. It means you can see a doctor when you need to, your kids get a world-class education, and you feel safe in your neighbourhood. It means better roads, more homes, and improved public transport.
But we all know that only happens when the economy is managed responsibly.
At the centre of the Budget is Investment Boost – a tax incentive that lets businesses deduct 20% of the cost of new assets, on top of regular depreciation. It’s already up and running.
I’ve already heard great feedback from businesses who are using it to invest, expand, and hire more locals. That’s what we love to see. It’s going to make an exciting Fieldays when payouts are high, the OCR is dropping, and it’s on top of good policy like Investment Boost.
Can I also acknowledge the current Chair of the Chamber, Peter Nation, the former CEO of Fieldays Society, with his recent King’s Honours and being made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for his services to the agricultural industry and governance. Well done, Peter.
There are other growth-focused initiatives too – like growing tourism, attracting foreign investment, lifting KiwiSaver employer and employee contributions, and investing in new infrastructure like roads and schools.
In fact, it was fantastic to see just this week the announcement of the approval of a detailed business case for the new four-lane Ruakura Eastern Transport Corridor in Hamilton, which will deliver economic growth for the region.
The project, which is cost-shared between Hamilton City Council (HCC) and NZTA, will enable the completion of the Ruakura Inland Port while also unlocking residential and commercial land for the Ruakura Superhub.
This will enable the golden triangle – Auckland, Tauranga and Hamilton – to continue to provide freight corridors for the most economically significant part of New Zealand.
The land owned by Tainui Group Holdings, the Ruakura Superhub, is a nationally significant development which services around 45 per cent of New Zealand's population, 42 per cent of the nation's freight, and 55 per cent of the country's GDP, with a 30ha inland port connected via rail to Auckland's port and the Port of Tauranga.
On a more personal note, I was stoked to get my Private Member’s Bill in the famous biscuit tin at Parliament this week. It’s the Policing Direction to Move On Amendment Bill.
Right now, communities across NZ have expressed growing concern about persistent anti-social behaviour, intimidation and public disturbances in important places like town centres, transport hubs, parks and near schools. Current enforcement tools can be either too limited or overly formal for early intervention.
There’s a need for a proportionate, flexible mechanism that empowers Police to take swift, preventative action before more serious offences occur – and can be useful to proactively prevent anything escalating. I have had great feedback from Hamilton City Council, the Central Business Association and Police already.
There is still a lot of work to do, but we are focused on doing all we can to support New Zealanders and drive a more prosperous future.
Authorised by Ryan Hamilton, MP for Hamilton East, Level 2, 697c Wairere Drive, Hamilton.
May 2025
Minister Scott Simpson
MP for Coromandel
This National-led Government is all about growth.
Across the country, including here in the beautiful Coromandel and across the Waikato, we are laying the foundations for a healthy, growing economy. We know the challenges faced by businesses, such as global uncertainty and inflation. But Nicola Willis and our team are determined to unlock opportunities for businesses, communities, and families through a responsible Budget focused on growth.
Closer to home, we’ve had plenty to celebrate over summer. Beach Hop is always a massive event on the Coromandel calendar, and it continues to deliver enormous value. This year alone, it’s estimated to have pumped $10 million into the Coromandel economy. A special shout out to Noddy Watts – Noddy has been the driving force behind this iconic event for 25 years. His vision has helped put the Coromandel on the map and filled our local motels, cafes, and shops, year after year.
Tourism is important for our region, and is a key part of the Government’s Going for Growth plan – and it’s great to see the Coromandel leading the way. Over the summer, ANZ’s consumer spending data showed the Coromandel had the highest domestic tourist spend in New Zealand. This is a reflection of the strength and appeal of our communities. As we head into the autumn and winter shoulder seasons, new investment in Tourism New Zealand will help continue this momentum, encouraging more visitors to explore regional gems like ours year-round.
Progress on the roads has also been substantial, with the SH2 corridor between Katikati and Te Puna returning to a 100 km/h speed limit. This is an example of how we are putting common sense back into road management.
In fact, a lot of our work has been focused on delivering results through a common-sense approach. As Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, I’ve been busy working to make it easier to do business, increase competition, and better protect Kiwi consumers. This is because a stronger, healthier market benefits everyone.
One of my big priorities is leading an ambitious review of New Zealand’s competition settings, as set out in the Commerce Act 1986. This Act hasn’t been substantially reviewed for more than 20 years, so it’s certainly time for a bit of modernisation. When competition is working well, New Zealand businesses, both big and small, can thrive, with flow-on benefits for consumers such as greater choice and lower prices.
I am also continuing reforms to invigorate New Zealand’s capital markets. There are several streams to this work, including changes to make it easier for companies to list on the NZ Stock Exchange. We want to make it easier not only for great Kiwi companies to list, but also for people to invest in them.
Looking ahead, Nicola Willis’ Budget next week is being built on a clear strategy: responsible management of money, a focus on the areas that matter, and economic growth.
This year’s Budget will focus on the priorities: health, education, law and order, and business growth. We are focused on boosting the economy, creating jobs, and maintaining stability, without raising taxes that would only undermine recovery and drive investment offshore.
Already, we are seeing encouraging signs. Inflation is back under control. Export-led growth, critical for Waikato’s agricultural and manufacturing sectors, is strengthening. Business confidence, while still recovering, is coming off its lows. Growth is happening, the Waikato will be at the heart of it, and we intend to accelerate it.
The Waikato, as one of New Zealand’s most dynamic regions, will be a key driver of that future. Whether it’s in agriculture, manufacturing, tourism, construction, or new tech sectors, the region’s hard work, innovation, and resilience will continue to lead the way.
In the Coromandel, in the Waikato, and across the country, the opportunities are there. We’re backing you, the entrepreneurs, the employers, the innovators, and the workers who will shape the next chapter of New Zealand’s bright future.
We are going for growth and together with your drive and determination, we will achieve it.
Authorised by Scott Simpson, 614 Pollen St, Thames
