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NEWS IN BRIEF New Zealand legislation brings gender pay equality a step closer New Zealand, one of the countries closest to achieving gender pay parity, has passed legislation to ensure equal remuneration for men and women. It has been a legal requirement for New Zealanders to receive the same wages for doing the same job regardless of their gender since 1972. The Equal Pay Amendment Bill goes further by ensuring women in female-dominated industries receive salaries equal to men with “substantially similar skills, responsibility and service” in male-dominated occupations. It will come into force in November. The bil l fulfi ls a promise made by pr ime minister Jacinda Ardern, who pledged when she was elected in 2017 to close the pay gap. “We said we’d fix the legislation aimed at addressing historic inequalities in pay for women,” she said. “The bill delivers on our promise to create a more equitable New Zealand.” According to the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Index, New Zealand currently ranks sixth out of 153 nations for gender pay equality, behind Iceland, Norway, Finland, Sweden and Nicaragua. The UK, by contrast, is 21st and the US 53rd. Fair pay: New Zealand’s bill also outlines the process for bringing claims against employers Lyme disease vaccine shows ‘positive results’ in clinical trials A vaccine against Lyme disease has been found to be safe and effective in clinical trials and could reportedly be available by 2025. The inoculation is being developed by French biotech company Valneva, and works by preventing the Lyme-causing bacteria in ticks from passing into people’s bloodstream when they are bitten. Every year, tens of thousands of people are diagnosed with Lyme disease, which can cause lifelong health problems including nerve pain and joint ache if left undiagnosed. The vaccine will now enter the next phases of clinical trials, with the results due to be published in a few months. Afghanistan to establish women’s rights council ahead of peace talks A new council has been announced by the Afghan government, with the stated aim of empowering women in the country and protecting their rights. The council was announced in August, after women’s rights activists wrote to President Ashraf Ghani demanding a place in peace talks with the Taliban. Their concern, they wrote, is that a peace deal with the Islamist group would see progress made for women being “erased or reversed”. Politician and activist Fawzia Koofi told Reuters that the council could “definitely change the status quo”. It is not yet clear, however, what formal powers the council will have, and critics have warned against putting too much faith in it. 15

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NEWS IN BRIEF

New Zealand legislation brings gender pay equality a step closer

New Zealand, one of the countries closest to achieving gender pay parity, has passed legislation to ensure equal remuneration for men and women.

It has been a legal requirement for New Zealanders to receive the same wages for doing the same job regardless of their gender since 1972. The Equal Pay Amendment Bill goes further by ensuring women in female-dominated industries receive salaries equal to men with “substantially similar skills, responsibility and service” in male-dominated occupations. It will come into force in November.

The bil l fulfi ls a promise made by pr ime minister Jacinda Ardern, who pledged when she was elected in 2017 to close the pay gap. “We said we’d fix the legislation aimed at addressing historic inequalities in pay for women,” she said. “The bill delivers on our promise to create a more equitable New Zealand.”

According to the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Index, New Zealand currently ranks sixth out of 153 nations for gender pay equality, behind Iceland, Norway, Finland, Sweden and Nicaragua. The UK, by contrast, is 21st and the US 53rd.

Fair pay: New Zealand’s bill also outlines the process for bringing claims against employers

Lyme disease vaccine shows ‘positive results’ in clinical trials

A vaccine against Lyme disease has been found to be safe and effective in clinical trials and could reportedly be available by 2025.

The inoculation is being developed by French biotech company Valneva, and works by preventing the Lyme-causing bacteria in ticks from passing into people’s bloodstream when they are bitten.

Every year, tens of thousands of people are diagnosed with Lyme disease, which can cause lifelong health problems including nerve pain and joint ache if left undiagnosed.

The vaccine will now enter the next phases of clinical trials, with the results due to be published in a few months.

Afghanistan to establish women’s rights council ahead of peace talks

A new council has been announced by the Afghan government, with the stated aim of empowering women in the country and protecting their rights. The council was announced in August, after women’s rights activists wrote to President Ashraf Ghani demanding a place in peace talks with the

Taliban. Their concern, they wrote, is that a peace deal with the Islamist group would see progress made for women being “erased or reversed”. Politician and activist Fawzia Koofi told Reuters that the council could “definitely change the status quo”. It is not yet clear, however, what formal powers the council will have, and critics have warned against putting too much faith in it.

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