Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive

Two by-elections have spelt bad news for the ruling Conservative Party ahead of the next general election.

Mid Bedfordshire has elected its first Labour MP since the 1930s, and Tamworth also swung towards the Labour Party.

Both by-elections were triggered by the resignation of their respective Conservative MPs.

Violent crime statistics are down by 28 percent.

The decline is driven by a fall in criminal damage and fraud offences.

However, shoplifting and knife crimes are on the rise.

A late Italian Prime Minister has seen his art collection mocked by leading art critics.

Silvio Berlusconi, who died in June aged 86, bought around 25,000 paintings and sculptures over the years, ranging from Titian and Rembrandt to more recent ones from late-night telesales.

But top art critic Vittorio Sgarbi, says perhaps six or seven of them are of any artistic value.

UK correspondent Gavin Grey joined Jason Pine.

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Chinese President Xi Jinping promised foreign companies greater access to China’s huge market and more than $100 billion in new financing for other developing economies as he opened a forum Wednesday on his signature Belt and Road infrastructure initiative.

Xi's initiative has built power plants, roads, railroads and ports around the world and deepened China’s ties with Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Mideast. But the massive loans backing the projects have burdened poorer countries with heavy debts, in some cases leading to China taking control of those assets.

At the forum’s opening ceremony at the ornate and cavernous Great Hall of the People, Xi promised that two Chinese-backed development banks – the China Development Bank and the Export–Import Bank of China – will each set up 350 billion yuan ($47.9 billion) financing windows. An additional 80 billion yuan ($11 billion) will be invested in Beijing's Silk Road Fund to support BRI projects.

“We will comprehensively remove restrictions on foreign investment access in the manufacturing sector,” Xi said. He said China would further open up “cross-border trade and investment in services and expand market access for digital products” and carry out reforms of state-owned enterprises and in sectors such as the digital economy, intellectual property rights and government procurement.

The pledges of hefty support from Beijing come at a time when China's economy has slowed and foreign investment has plunged.

Xi alluded to efforts by the United States and its allies to reduce their reliance on Chinese manufacturing and supply chains amid heightened competition and diplomatic frictions and reiterated promises that Beijing would create a fairer environment for foreign firms.

“We do not engage in ideological confrontation, geopolitical games nor clique political confrontation,” Xi said. “We oppose unilateral sanctions, economic coercion and the decoupling and severance of chains,” a reference to moves elsewhere to diversify industrial supply chains.

Reiterating Chinese complaints that such moves are meant to limit China's growth, Xi said that “viewing others’ development as a threat or taking economic interdependence as a risk will not make one’s own life better or speed up one’s development.”

“China can only do well when the world is doing well,” he said. “When China does well, the world will get even better.”

Representatives from more than 130 mostly developing countries are attending the forum, including at least 20 heads of state and government. Russian President Vladimir Putin is attending, reflecting China’s economic and diplomatic support for Moscow amid the isolation brought by its war in Ukraine.

Addressing the forum right after Xi, Putin praised BRI as being “truly important, global, future-oriented, aimed at creating more equitable, multipolar world relations."

“This is truly a global plan,” he said, adding that it aligns with Russia's plan “to form a large Eurasian space, as a space of cooperation and interaction of like-minded people, where a variety of integration processes will be linked.” He referred to other regional organizations, such as the security-oriented Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and the Eurasian Economic Union of former Soviet states.

Several European officials including the French and Italian ambassadors to China and former French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin walked out while Putin spoke and returned afterwards.

On Tuesday, Putin met with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who is the sole European Union government leader attending the forum. Their meeting was a rare instance of the Russian president meeting a European leader since the start of Russia’s war in Ukraine in February 2022.

Putin met with Xi after the opening ceremony.

Also in attendance are the presidents of Indonesia, Argentina, Kazakstan, Sri Lanka, Kenya among other countries, as well as U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres. Most Western European countries and U.S. allies sent lower level or former officials to the forum.

Guterres highlighted the BRI’s potential to bring development to neglected areas while stressing the need for projects to be environmentally sustainable. He said the initiative could help drive the transition away from reliance on fossil fuels.

“Developing countries will need massive support for a fair, equitable and just energy transition toward renewables while providing affordable electricity to all,” Guterres said.

He also called for an “immediate, humanitarian” ceasefire in the Israel-Palestine war after a strike killed hundreds at a Gaza City hospital on Tuesday.

With the BRI, China has become a major financer of development projects on a par with the World Bank. The Chinese government says the initiative has launched more than 3,000 projects and “galvanized” nearly $1 trillion in investment.

It has also attracted criticism from the U.S., India and others that China is engaging in “debt trap” diplomacy: Making loans Beijing knew governments would likely default on, enabling Chinese interests to take control of the assets. An oft-cited example is a port that the Sri Lankan government ended up leasing to a Chinese company for 99 years. Many economists say China did not make the bad loans intentionally.

A key concern is whether the BRI can become more sustainable in terms of debt burdens, said Steve Tsang, director of the SOAS China Institute in London.

The initiative now aims to become smaller and greener after a decade of big projects that boosted trade but left big debts and raised environmental concerns.

China will also “monitor the debt sustainability of BRI countries more closely,” Christoph Nedopil, director of the Asia Institute at Griffith University in Australia, wrote in a report.

“Chinese financial institutions will likely limit their exposure to projects that do not have stable cash flows from within the project,” he added. “That being said, ‘beautiful’ strategic projects, such as strategic railways or ports, will still find Chinese financial creditors.”

- by Simina Mistreanu, AP

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Fletcher has its AGM next Friday, but it’s expecting a tough time from the shareholders.

It’s expected the Iplex pipes drama will be a hot topic, as well as its persistently poor performance, and a number of shareholders being told to vote against directors’ remuneration.

Business commentator Rod Oram joined Jason Pine.

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Exporters and importers are calling on Ports of Auckland to lift its efficiency and productivity by at least as much as they’re hiking their user prices.

The number of containers moved on and off ships has dropped by 42 percent in the past four years.

But at the same time, the Ports put up its prices, including a general increase of 7 percent from next year.

New Zealand Council of Cargo Owners chair Mike Knowles joined Jason Pine.

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The All Blacks aren’t taking their Rugby World Cup semi-final opponents lightly at all.

Despite having the easier opponent on paper, Los Pumas have beaten Ian Foster twice since the 2019 Rugby World Cup.

Meanwhile, the other matchup will see England take on the Springboks in a rematch of the 2019 Rugby World Cup final – but also the 2007 final.

NZR’s investigation of the Ranfurly Shield saga has found insufficient evidence of foul play.

It confirmed the shield was broken accidentally on a concrete floor – and no drugs were involved.

It comes as holders Hawke’s Bay gear up to face Taranaki in the NPC Final this weekend.

A tough run of fixtures awaits the Black Caps in the Cricket World Cup.

Having won their first four games convincingly with a healthy run rate, they now have to face hosts India this weekend.

They follow that with Australia, South Africa and Pakistan, before wrapping up the first round against Sri Lanka.

Clay Wilson and Matt Brown joined Jason Pine to discuss the week’s sports news

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The All Blacks are one win away from their fifth Rugby World Cup final – but they’ll have to get past Argentina.

Los Pumas have beaten the All Blacks twice in their history – both of those coming in the past four years during Ian Foster’s tenure.

Their first win came in 2020 with a 25-15 win in Sydney, before following it up with a 25-18 win in Christchurch last year.

Argentina rugby journalist Frankie Deges joined Jason Pine.

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A Wellington day care centre says its frustrated parents will have to park 50 meters away to drop off their kids while a cycleway is installed.

CoKids Daycare Centre on Thorndon Quay claims they've been given less than a week's notice to prepare for a year of disruption.

The centre looks after around 100 children and is concerned they may have to close.

CoKids' Steve Piper told Jason Pine the lack of communication has been stressful.

He says he would've appreciated some notice so he could inform the parents and his staff.

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The Transport Accident Investigation Commission wants good safety assurance processes in the stevedoring industry.

The watchdog has identified serious safety concerns in the sector after investigating two fatal accidents at ports in April 2022.

It recommends Maritime NZ work with the sector on minimum training standards and a code of practice.

Chief Accidents Investigator Naveen Kozhuppakalam told Jason Pine organisations have largely been left to understand their own risks and put mitigations in place.

“There is regulatory oversight, but it only happens after an accident has occurred. What we want to see is more proactive leadership.”

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The All Blacks are eyeing up a fifth Rugby World Cup final, as they look to take on Argentina tomorrow morning.

Coach Ian Foster says they aren’t looking past Los Pumas in any way, shape, or form to get there though.

Since the 2019 Rugby World Cup, the All Blacks have lost twice to Argentina.

Former All Black and 2011 Rugby World Cup winner Mils Muliaina joined Jason Pine.

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Candidates for the Port Waikato by-election have closed, but Labour has chosen to sit this one out.

Labour Party President Jill Day says it's an "unwinnable" contest for them, and the party is focusing on its transition to opposition.

The by-election was triggered by the death of ACT candidate Neil Christensen just before the election.

Meanwhile, negotiations continue between Prime Minister-elect Christopher Luxon and Winston Peters.

It's expected that any policy announcements between the two parties won't be announced until after the special votes.

NZ Herald deputy political editor Thomas Coughlan joined Jason Pine.

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