The Country 17/02/26: Jane Smith talks to Jamie Mackay

Today, we find a high-profile North Otago farmer in the Big Smoke of Auckland on a director’s course. But can she use her “self-reflection break” to learn to be more tolerant of activists and diversity experts? 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
She is a North Otago farmer, a former winner of
the Balanced Farm Environment Awards them these days a professional director,
but to be qualified for the latter, she needs to
go on a director's course. Her name is Jane Smith. Jane,
we catch you this lunch break on a self reflection break.
What have you self reflected on?

Speaker 2 (00:20):
Good after Jamie. Well, I've got a lot of self
reflection to do, apparently, because one, I'm not a fan
of course courses, especially those that get you in touch
with your faults, of which I have many and varied.
I think I'd rather be crutching your lands today. But
I guess one point that has been glary obvious to
me today is, you know, I could have been gluten
intolerant or lex host intolerant, but I'm actually relatively people intolerant,

(00:44):
particularly those that you meet that they tell you what
their job description or what their job title is, and
you think, actually, what do you do all day? And
so I've got a little bit be a little bit
more reflective around that, and a bit more apparently respective
to people that aren't necessarily in the productive parts of
our sector are our economy, Jamie.

Speaker 1 (01:04):
And you're talking about activists and diversity experts. It's all
about the vibe, Jane.

Speaker 2 (01:10):
It's really interesting, Jamie. I'm in closely following the Public
Service Amendment Bill of twenty five and twenty six, so
this is of course touted to repeal or replace the
Public Service Act of twenty twenty and essentially, as your
listeners will no doubt, No, it's talking about actually hiring

(01:30):
people on their merits, Jamie. Imagine that on their merits
rather than their diversity, so that twenty twenty at ask
them to have a diversity higher content in terms of
that reflected society. And so potentially there's going to be
changing the public sector of what there has been some
changes made already. And you know, in a country like

(01:52):
New Zealand, it has woeful productivity stats. I think what
was it, ninety three to twenty thirteen, we were one
point four which isn't great, but the last ten years
we've been point two percent productivity. And you know, again
the unionist activists and the socialists of the country seem
to think we can taxt our way into prosperity, which
we can't, and we need to increase our productivity Jamie,

(02:15):
and I guess just cinderboard and those values based productivity measures.
And that is why Jamie, she's still flying around New
Zealand or the world on a broomstick and can't actually
land back in New Zealand because our economy is in
dire straits.

Speaker 1 (02:29):
Because well, I'm thinking of petitioning in z me who
I contract myself to, and thinking that they should kind
of do like a diversity because let's face it, pale, stale,
middle aged male boomers like myself and now very much
a minority, and I'm thinking I perhaps deserve some special
extra annual leave. I mean, if I rung At Tamareki
can do it, why can't enzend me.

Speaker 2 (02:51):
I'm sure you're up in some sort of long service
leave or something, Jenny. But yes, you're right. You are
quickly becoming a minority and you will be in demand.
And I think the other interesting thing about this is
they're going to require public service executives to reapply for
their job on a certain term, be at three years,
five years, et cetera. So I thought i'd take that
back to the farm later in the week and asked

(03:11):
Blair to apply for his job. But actually I've just
been rolling them over on a ninety day trial period
for the last few years, which has worked quite well, Jamie.

Speaker 1 (03:18):
Let's just quickly finish because I'm running out of time.
You're also up in arms. You're up in arms about
everything you need to learn to relax during your self
reflection break, Chaine. But you're quite rightly up in arms.
About two hundred and fifty rural school bus runs are
being cut or they're being examined. That's the last thing
rural in New Zealand. I would have thought needed.

Speaker 2 (03:40):
One hundred, Jamie. And I think that the term has
been reviewed, which we always know a reviewer is generally
a cut in the public sector. So were so, I
guess a lot of these bus contracts have been with
local bus companies, and a lot of them have been
amalgamated into bigger companies, and then obviously all of the
margins have been pressed. And so there's fifty I think

(04:00):
about fifty five thousands rural kids on bus routes at
the moment, and this has huge implications in terms of
you know, a lot of these families are driving a
long way just to get to the school bus on
the existing route, and if these are changing and all
being cut, massive implications in terms of being able to
encourage young families to come and work on farms and
live in communities if there is no bus system and

(04:23):
or there is a long way distance to get to
those buses, massive line effects for numbers at schools and
encouraging teachers and young families into those areas. Jamie. So,
I mean, the nets say they want eighty to nine
percent school attendance, but these types of things are really
pushing against that. And again quite often the minority here
we go, rural people get forgotten about, Jamie. And you know,

(04:44):
again we've got to keep that economy running and those
communities service, Jamie.

Speaker 1 (04:48):
Jane Smith, I know your self, reflection break is coming
to an end. Just remember be a bit more tolerant
of people, including activists and diversity experts.

Speaker 2 (04:56):
Okay, thanks Shemy. That's my work on for the day.