Hey haughtney,
Are you sure they are set to be hired on completion of their course, not just given (a.k.a. paying for) a bit of extra training?
I heard about some connection there too, but I was under the impression that it was the UK carriers wanting their cadets to have a bit more experience and therefore paying (at the trainees' expense, of course) that particular turbine operator to give them that experience. I.e They aren't actually hiring 250hr pilots, but rather taking money and training them.
The amount of money available to training organisations is already stretched for a student doing a basic PPL & CPL in a light trainer plus a bit of twin time... I cant see that local students will be able to afford to pay for their own turbine time.
One rumour suggested the UK cadets are paying 240,000 pounds for the course..... Even assuming pounds and NZ dollars have been confused, this would suggest that they pay at least triple what the locals pay. (And might afford them some time in a 1900).