New Zealand High Tech Awards Dinner

On Friday night Miang and I attended the New Zealand High Tech Awards dinner in Wellington, where Magritek was a finalist in the category "High Tech Exporter of the Year-under $5 million per annum". I was filling in for CEO Andrew Coy who was overseas making sales. Sadly, we didn't win, but we had an enjoyable evening out.

The next day Miang and I headed up to the Rangitikei river where we were staying in Tarata Lodge for the weekend. More on that in the next blog.

I am in the midst of a hectic round of speaking engagements relating to the "New Zealand prosperity" theme. One of the more remarkable of these involved a visit to Christchurch on Tuesday last, where I spoke to university students and also appeared on the inaugural "City Life" programme for CTV, the local television company that lost so many of its staff in the building collapse on February 22nd. They were naturally very interested in the result of the HEKE project, and I was able to announce that the 2011 March repayments from overseas NZ ex-students were $2 million higher than last year ("better than a cake stall"), and that the increase from February to March was significantly greater in 2011 than 2010. Whether this is a result of the campaign, I cannot tell. Only three days following the launch of the campaign on 29 March fell in that month. Once Inland Revenue supply with the 2011 April figures we will have a better idea.

Some blog followers have noticed that I have been a bit silent lately, and in particular, have said nothing about my health situation. I have to admit, there has been some discouraging recent data but I am holding off reporting more until we get a clearer picture. Meanwhile I am feeling well.