The New Zealand Government (Māori: Te Kāwanatanga o Aotearoa) is the central government through which political authority is exercised in New Zealand. As in most other parliamentary democracies, the term "Government" refers chiefly to the executive branch, and more specifically to the collective ministry directing the executive. Based on the principle of responsible government, it operates within the framework that "the Queen reigns, but the government rules, so long as it has the support of the House of Representatives". The Cabinet Manual describes the main laws, rules and conventions affecting the conduct and operation of the Government.Executive power is exercised by ministers, all of whom are sworn into the Executive Council and accountable to the elected legislature, the House of Representatives. Several senior ministers (usually 20) constitute a collective decision-making body known as the Cabinet, which is led by the prime minister (currently Jacinda Ardern). A few more ministers (usually junior or supporting) are part of the Executive Council but are outside Cabinet. Most ministers have a portfolio of specific responsibilities such as departments or policy areas, although ministers without portfolio can be appointed.The position of prime minister belongs to the person who commands the confidence of the majority of members in the House of Representatives. The position is determined also by several other factors, such as support agreements between parties and internal leadership votes in the party that leads the Government. The prime minister and other ministers are formally appointed by the governor-general (who is the Queen's personal representative in New Zealand). By convention, the governor-general acts on the advice of the prime minister in appointing ministers.
This study uses a meta-analysis to synthesize the effects of agricultural cooperative membership on the yield of crops and livestock. It collects 158 estimated yield effects from 42 studies, covering 19 developing countries. Our analysis finds evidence that there exists positive publication bias in the empirical literature, confirming that researchers and journals have a preference to publish articles that report positive and significant results. After correcting for publication bias, we find that cooperative membership has a small-sized and insignificant effect on the yield. The meta-regression analysis reveals that variation in the reported yield effects can be largely explained by the study attributes such as the sample type (full sample vs. subsample), membership ratio, econometric approaches (instrumental-variable based parametric approach, non-parametric approach or ordinary least square regression), effect size types (average treatment effects on the treated, average treatment effects, or coefficient), agro-product type (grain or others), and climate zones (tropical or non-tropical).
Robust estimates of the incidence of children living with a stepparent are lacking, partly due to a lack of the requisite questions on census and survey questionnaires. Even when these questions are included, resultant estimates are impacted by how respondents choose to portray their relationships. Our first aim was to develop a method for combining census or survey data with administrative data (birth registrations and migrant visa applications) to identify step-relationships. Our second aim was to use this methodology to calculate estimates of children living with a stepparent in New Zealand. We estimate 7.5% of children aged 17 and under were living with a stepparent at the 2013 Census. Estimates using Household Labour Force Survey data produced slightly lower estimates of 6.3-6.9% of all children aged 17 and under for the years 2016 through 2019. Our results provide the most comprehensive attempt to estimate the prevalence of children living with stepparents in New Zealand to date, and demonstrate a novel methodology for identifying step-relationships using administrative data in a linked data environment.
Alpine ecosystems represent varied climates and vegetation structures globally, with the potential to support rich and functionally diverse avian communities. High mountain habitats and species are under significant threat from climate change and other anthropogenic factors. Yet, no global database of alpine birds exists, with most mountain systems lacking basic information on species breeding in alpine habitats, their status and trends, or potential cryptic diversity (i.e., sub-species distributions). To address these critical knowledge gaps, we combined published literature, regional monitoring schemes, and expert knowledge from often inaccessible, data-deficient mountain ranges to develop a global list of alpine breeding bird species with their associated distributions and select ecological traits. This dataset compiles alpine breeding records for 1,310 birds, representing 12.0% of extant species and covering all major mountain regions across each continent, excluding Antarctica. The Global Alpine Breeding Bird dataset (GABB) is an essential resource for research on the ecological and evolutionary factors shaping alpine communities, as well as documenting the value of these high elevation, climate-sensitive habitats for conserving biodiversity.
A Census of a nation’s people and housing provides statistics about its health, income and social structures at a local level. While the demand for these statistics is unchanged the way they are collected is changing in many nations because of common drivers: cost pressure, web-based collection, decreasing response rates, environmental shocks and the availability of administrative data. Within this context, this paper gives an overview of the evolution of the Census in Israel, Italy, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom and thereby provides an insight of the challenges and solutions of the modern Census.
