Angry Simon implodes on Campbell Live

Written By: - Date published: 8:32 pm, October 14th, 2013 - 239 comments
Categories: accountability, Conservation, disaster, Mining, same old national, slippery, spin, sustainability - Tags:

This must be one of the worst “interviews” given by an NZ cabinet minster.

He clearly was aiming for the John Key style of fast talking, hand waving, talk over the other person style of aggressive interview technique.  However, Simon Bridges has less of the practiced, used car salesman style of slippery evasion and attack.  Less subtley and all his non-answers there for all to see.

Last week Campbell Live presented the arguments against deep sea oil drilling off the Otago cosat and the Kaikouras.

It is a balancing act – big, foreign oil, and us.

Next month, texan oil giant Anadarko begins the process of drilling deep sea exploration wells off the Taranaki and Otago coasts. In December, they’ll go exploring off Kaikoura.

That’s the same Anadarko that owned a 25 percent stake in the well that so disastrously exploded in 2010, spilling 5 million barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico.

In Kaikoura, many people view Anadarko’s arrival with trepidation. This is a community defined by the sea and its relationship with it. They’re not as confident as the Government Anadarko will get it right.

Tonight Simon Bridges finally fronted up to Campbell Live, allegedly to answer some questions.  As it turned out, Bridges could only shout, bluster, spin superficial arguments and attempt to divert.  He kind of defended Anadarko’s record in the Gulf of Mexico, repeating Anadarko’s “passive shareholder” line and saying they have an excellent record.  Then Bridges says he wasn’t there to defend Anadarko.  Bridges claimed the government had a layered set of safety procedures in place, but wouldn’t answer specific questions.

Gareth Morgan’s Tweet on this:

Excellent piece of work on deep water drilling @JohnJCampbell , Simon Bridges out of his depth, “rigorous process” polemic a shallow defence

Bridges side-stepped the issue of the dangerous depths of the planned drilling off the Kaikoura coast.he talks about preventitive measures and the procedres to get a permit, but doesn’t really answer about response measures in place to deal with a spill.

And, after Bridges complained Campbell just presented the negative view of the oil drilling industry and Anadarko, Bridges asked if there had been one comment in favour of the drilling in his report.  Actually the programme last week did present statements from an Anadarko person.

But last week it had focused on the views of the locals in the Kaikouras.  Tonight’s interview ended with Bridges being asked if he had any evidence of comments from Kaikoura people in favour of the drilling.  Bridges said “No.”

This is the ugly, angry, spinning face of John Key’s government.

[Update]: Youtube video of the interview

239 comments on “Angry Simon implodes on Campbell Live ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. mickysavage 1
    14 October 2013 at 8:40 pm

    Wow, wow, wow, wow, wow

    I think that the Labour Party should get money together to replay this clip on prime tv, over and over.

    Only a nutcase would try and defend the oil industry after the Deepwater spill.

    • infused 1.1
      14 October 2013 at 8:49 pm

      Nevermind, I stand corrected

      Taranaki survives because of the oil wells.

      • McFlock 1.1.1
        14 October 2013 at 8:55 pm

        Almost thought you were puling a hoots.

        Taranaki survives [partially] because of the [much more shallow] oil wells.
        FIFY

      • Saarbo 1.1.2
        15 October 2013 at 8:09 am

        My guess is that Taranaki is driven economically by Dairy Farming, Oil and Gas will be well behind.

        But what we saw from Bridges last night is what is really wrong with this National Party, they have a “born to rule” lack of respect for democracy. Bridges has no interest in answering the critical questions about the safety of deep sea oil drilling. Oil and Gas may well be very beneficial to our economic growth, but under National with their half arsed approach they will stuff things up as they did with their building regulation changes under Jenny Shipley which led to the $11 billion leaky home problem.

        We are seeing a similar problem with the Ruataniwha dam, this may well be the answer to the effects that Global Warming will have on dairy farming, but Nick Smith decides to brush concerns under the carpet. A good open government should deal with the issues up front, there will be solutions that exist but by ignoring peoples concerns will only lead to more massive balls ups.

        Same problem with TPPA, this may actually be beneficial to our economy by $1 to $3 billion, but this National government is difficult to trust, their lies and memory lapses just prove that they simply have no respect for democracy, they are more interested in spinning bullshit so that they can take half arsed shortcuts, they are a hopeless government. Their sloppy cronyism approach ends up costing more than any anticipated benefits.

      • Nakai Boy 1.1.3
        15 October 2013 at 4:29 pm

        I’m sorry, but the dairy industry is also VERY big in Taranaki – oil isn’t necessary to it’s economy. And the oil and gas wells there, are all on land or in relatively shallow water.

        • Karl 1.1.3.1
          18 October 2013 at 9:00 pm

          Nakai Boy… The Dairy industry relies in the natural gas industry for the energy needed to pasteurise all the milk in NZ. No more gas = more cost to pasteurise = less profit for Fonterra.

      • Ian Todd 1.1.4
        31 October 2013 at 11:25 am

        True, Micky, but the proposed wells are in rougher water many,many times deeper than Taranaki’s wells.

    • Headlessrd 1.2
      15 October 2013 at 12:06 pm

      It would probably hurt the Labour Party actually since they almost as pro fossil fuel exploration as National.

    • The Pink Postman 1.3
      15 October 2013 at 2:34 pm

      Also the disgusting comments by Henry regarding the cleaners wages.Typical,Tory response.

  2. BM 2
    14 October 2013 at 8:40 pm

    Did Campbell have a bit more luck with young Simon?

    • geoff 2.1
      14 October 2013 at 8:46 pm

      That’s right, BM, John Key is better at deceiving the public than Simon Bridges. Very perceptive of you.

    • Rogue Trooper 2.2
      14 October 2013 at 9:02 pm

      to channel Millsy…well, you can envisage the piano wire.

    • emergency mike 2.3
      14 October 2013 at 10:05 pm

      “Did Campbell have a bit more luck with young Simon?”

      Uh if having a Nact minister look like a childish wanker is having a bit more luck, then yeah, I guess he did BM.

  3. miravox 3
    14 October 2013 at 8:48 pm

    I’d like to see Campbell do a show and tell on Planet Key world class exploration regulations, and real world class exploration regulations – starting with the expectation of technical expertise expectations of the companies eligible for the permits.

  4. mickysavage 4
    14 October 2013 at 8:50 pm

    Shouty Simon!

  5. ianmac 5
    14 October 2013 at 8:51 pm

    Ask a question of Bridges and he spins wildly into a programmed insult to the senses. How should John Campbell counter this? Perhaps most intelligent people would see through Bridges intransigence. Fool some of the people some…….

  6. Will@Welly 6
    14 October 2013 at 8:51 pm

    I was offended. Simon Bridges was there not to be interviewed, he went there to abuse John Campbell. Shocking and disgusting. This is not a democratic Government, it is a dictatorship.

  7. CC 7
    14 October 2013 at 8:51 pm

    If Campbell is to have ‘pants on fire’ Bridges on again, he will either have to borrow Graham Norton’s big red chair or obtain a medical certificate to prove that Simon has taken his meds.

  8. Ad 8
    14 October 2013 at 8:55 pm

    I am all for National Ministers have Memphis Meltdowns.

    Does Labour have a position on this issue?

    I am personally conflicted because I really like the idea of more oil being extracted, more drilling, more engineering jobs, more New Plymouth economies. But I can see what went wrong in the Gulf of Mexico, and I certainly beige in the right to peaceful protest, even on the high seas. What’s Labour’s view?

    • Rogue Trooper 8.1
      14 October 2013 at 9:03 pm

      what, on earth, is wrong with U Ad?

    • BM 8.2
      14 October 2013 at 9:07 pm

      What’s Labour’s view?

      Depends who’s the audience.

    • miravox 8.3
      14 October 2013 at 9:12 pm

      Kaikoura barely had an economy before Whale Watch.

      Let Taranaki build an oil industry (as long as it’s not fracking or deep sea), and leave the Kaikoura Coast for something more sustainable.

      Oil can only destroy what the current investors (life + financial) in Kaikoura have created.

      • Tamati 8.3.1
        14 October 2013 at 10:58 pm

        How are these two industries mutually exclusive?

        The Pegasus basin stretches for hundreds of kilometers off the coast, whilst most whale watching is only a few kilometers off shore.

        • Colonial Viper 8.3.1.1
          14 October 2013 at 11:06 pm

          Look at the oil hitting the beaches over 100km from the Deep Water Horizon explosion.

          How many km’s offshore minimum would you want to locate drilling wells? And how would you prevent damage to wildlife around those wells if there was an incident?

          • Tamati 8.3.1.1.1
            14 October 2013 at 11:29 pm

            Take appropriate precautions to minimize the risk and demand that the oil companies take f**king huge insurance policy against the costs of a spill.

            I’d much rather Greenpeace actually focused their attention on climate change, and argued we needed to keep fossil fuels under the ground if we want to stop the planet from boiling. A far more reasoned argument that this oil spill scare tactics.

            • Colonial Viper 8.3.1.1.1.1
              14 October 2013 at 11:32 pm

              Take appropriate precautions to minimize the risk and demand that the oil companies take f**king huge insurance policy against the costs of a spill.

              What are electronic currency units going to do against 20,000 barrels of oil washing up on the coastline every day?

              Take appropriate precautions to minimize the risk

              Surely the most effective precaution against an oil spill is to not go ahead with oil drilling?

              • Rogue Trooper …
                14 October 2013 at 11:39 pm

                Yep

              • Tamati …
                14 October 2013 at 11:42 pm

                I agree that money could never negate the effects of a spill, but it could at least adequately compensate those whose jobs and businesses suffer.

                Of course doing nothing poses no risk, but we have to take a realistic view on what the actual risks are and weigh them up against the benefits. I’m yet to see anyone actual data on what the risks are — all we’ve seen are youtube clips of sad pelicans.

                • Rogue Trooper …
                  14 October 2013 at 11:52 pm

                  your comments, really, at the end of the day, are not helpful.

                • Colonial Viper …
                  14 October 2013 at 11:55 pm

                  If the NZ Government were to own no less than 50% of the energy recovered, and no less than 50% of the revenues from that was going into the Cullen Fund, we can talk.

                  Otherwise, too much of the “benefits” are going offshore, and not enough staying in NZ.

                  but we have to take a realistic view on what the actual risks are and weigh them up against the benefits.

                  Who do you believe defines the “realistic view” then? Simon Bridges? His mates Andarko?

                  • Tamati …
                    15 October 2013 at 12:02 am

                    We’re singing off the same song sheet here. The Norwegians got it right with their oil industry, we should try to emulate their model.

                    A realistic view would be a peer reviewed scientific journal. Not industry, not activists and not politicians.

                    • Colonial Viper …
                      15 October 2013 at 12:11 am

                      The peer reviewed science on the oil industry is funded by the oil industry.

                      We’re singing off the same song sheet here. The Norwegians got it right with their oil industry, we should try to emulate their model.

                      Our model will be better. It’s not going to leave that much money on the table for big oil companies though. Are you OK with that?

                    • Tamati …
                      15 October 2013 at 12:16 am

                      I don’t have any shares in big oil companies so I’m fine with that.

                      As for the world of science being corrupted I’ll disagree with you there.

                    • Colonial Viper …
                      15 October 2013 at 12:19 am

                      Disagree all you want, the truth is the truth. Further, I’d only trust NZ research on NZ conservation and environment issues.

                  • Draco T Bastard …
                    15 October 2013 at 11:23 am

                    If the NZ Government were to own no less than 50% of the energy recovered,

                    Actually, the NZ government should own 100% of the oil recovered and get the full amount of the sale of that oil. It just pays the company, be it private or SOE, the running costs of recovering that oil.

                    • Rogue Trooper …
                      15 October 2013 at 3:04 pm

                      and they (drillers and frackers) would come down here because? they want to take a bath?

        • miravox 8.3.1.2
          14 October 2013 at 11:47 pm

          “How are these two industries mutually exclusive?”

          Perception is reality – remember that clean, green, 100% our image that tourists expect when they get here? Kaikoura has that. Tourists don’t want to go where oil rigs are, it doesn’t matter how many kms offshore they are. No do they want to go where the onshore support services are. Pretty simple, really.

          • Tamati 8.3.1.2.1
            14 October 2013 at 11:53 pm

            Providing they can still get a nice photo of the Southern Alps, see a whale and drink a glass of sav, tourists aren’t going to care if there are oil wells 100s of kilometers off shore. We’ve had oil wells in the Naki for years and tourism is doing just fine…I really don’t see the logic in your argument!

            • Rogue Trooper 8.3.1.2.1.1
              14 October 2013 at 11:55 pm

              and, I had such faith in you; misplaced, it appears.

              • Tamati …
                14 October 2013 at 11:58 pm

                Since when?

                As I said before, I strongly believe we need to end our reliance on fossil fuels if we want to avoid the near certainty that is climate change. But let’s be realistic about what the real risks are and how much of a threat they pose.

                • Pascal's bookie …
                  15 October 2013 at 7:07 am

                  Well, we aren’t going to get a scandinavian type deal, and we can see how the oil industry talks about the risks before the event with regard to what happened in the Gulf of Mexico. We can also see how they respond after the event. How are the court cases with BP going? Have they rolled over and said obviously we’ll pay all the fishers whose businesses have been destroyed?

                  Also, acoustics in water travel a long way. Marine mammals are senstive to them. It’s not certain that a few hundred kms is a long way in that regard.

                  • Rogue Trooper …
                    15 October 2013 at 3:14 pm

                    watched an article on a man who befriended Moko the dolphin on the weekend (TV1), very moving, and he, a salt-of-the-earth sort of character, acknowledged that dolphins may well be smarter than humans. (well, they have occupied some prime real estate for millennia). Frugivorism may find us all in time Waits for no-one.

            • miravox 8.3.1.2.1.2
              15 October 2013 at 12:08 am

              100s? afaik the basin starts 50km offshore.

              You underestimate tourists. Not that many travel all the way to NZ just to tick a list.

              • Tamati …
                15 October 2013 at 12:13 am

                You can see around 8km offshore we standing on the beach, so not really going to be an issue. Most tourists aren’t going to indulge in in depth research about our energy industry before visiting here.

                If we wanted to improve our clean green image perhaps we could stop leaving beer bottles on the beach?

                • Colonial Viper …
                  15 October 2013 at 12:15 am

                  If we wanted to improve our clean green image perhaps we could stop leaving beer bottles on the beach?

                  Engage in a serious discussion or fuck off.

                  • Tamati …
                    15 October 2013 at 12:20 am

                    It was just a simple example. I bet tourist would be put off much more by beer bottles on the beaches, than invisible oil wells offshore.

                    There are countless other things we could do that would improve our clean green image, all of which are much cheaper and effective than banning the oil industry.

                    • Colonial Viper …
                      15 October 2013 at 12:25 am

                      Oh FFS.

                    • miravox …
                      15 October 2013 at 12:26 am

                      That’s a big step from me saying exploration off the Kaikoura Coast will impact on tourism, with special reference to whale watching and the viable business model the people of this area have invested in … to your interpretation that suggests I said something about ‘banning the oil industry.’

                      As for beer bottles on the beach – It’s not an either or proposition.

                    • Rogue Trooper …
                      15 October 2013 at 12:27 am

                      Petrostates my good acquaintance Tamati, Petrostates ; shall we succumb and leave it there. 😉

            • Tracey 8.3.1.2.1.3
              15 October 2013 at 3:41 pm

              pretty sure your wells are about 120m deep, not 2000 m.

            • BoboTehClown 8.3.1.2.1.4
              15 October 2013 at 6:57 pm

              Don’t be daft, Sav is so last year … they’ll be on the Pinot.

        • Murray Olsen 8.3.1.3
          15 October 2013 at 3:37 am

          1. Sound at the intensity used for their sonic testing travels a hell of a long way under water. Underwater acoustics experiments regularly listen to sound which propagates from one side of the ocean to the other, with oned difference being that they don’t let off a blast every few seconds for months at a time.

          2. Whales have very sensitive hearing and use sound to locate food, especially at the depths that sperm whales dive to. It’s very dark down there. They also communicate with sound. There is a good possibility they’d leave.

          3. How long would the economy in Kaikoura last without the whales?

          4. Now throw in an oil spill or three.

          Basically, NAct wants to take away the long term income from one set of voters and give a much higher short term income to a much richer set of non-voters. I haven’t even mentioned renewable energy sources or global warming yet, but I’d hate to scare wee Simon.

          • Pascal's bookie 8.3.1.3.1
            15 October 2013 at 7:09 am

            Exactly. And the onus of proof is on the companies who want to change things, not those who are thriving with the way things are.

        • Bleh 8.3.1.4
          18 October 2013 at 12:05 am

          The whales sighted off the Kaikoura oastline are semi residential Sperm Whales that migrate all year round from North and South. They, as well as many other types of mammals inhabit the waters of Kaikoura for hundreds of miles from the coastline not just one area.

  9. Lanthanide 9
    14 October 2013 at 9:00 pm

    If this is National’s up-and-coming leader, they’ve got a real problem on their hands.

    He comes across like a village idiot that’s been swotting for 3 hours before the interview.

    • toad 9.1
      14 October 2013 at 9:37 pm

      Suppose that is Round 1 to Judith Collins then for the post-PlanetKey era, without her even having to open her mouth.

      Scary as that may be, at least, unlike Bridges, I can understand what Collins is saying (coz Thatcher said it just the same 30 years ago).

      • felix 9.1.1
        14 October 2013 at 10:07 pm

        “Suppose that is Round 1 to Judith Collins then for the post-PlanetKey era, without her even having to open her mouth.”

        Or because she didn’t have to open her mouth.

  10. Rogue Trooper 10
    14 October 2013 at 9:05 pm

    Personally, I have observed that village idiot very closely.(will just leave it at that) needless to say…

  11. Rodel 11
    14 October 2013 at 9:10 pm

    Remember Melissa Lee in a corner.. years ago..can’t remember the content of the interview , when she unsuccessfully tried to maneuver the interview by the John Key (read Crosby Textor) diversionary tactic of prefixing every non statement with, “Look !, look!” about 15 times.

    Interesting that Simon Bridges tried to do the same with the diversionary phrase, “The fact of the matter is…! ….. blah..blah…blah.. (about 12 times I think). Equally unsuccessful I think.

    And it’s not a ,’who won the interview?’ issue. (It’s not a sport) .The fact of the matter is, the real question is ,’did the interviewee answer the interviewer’s question and acquit himself with the dignity expected of a minister of the crown?’

    • karol 11.1
      14 October 2013 at 9:15 pm

      Well, for me part of the point is that Bridges attempted attack, spin and divert – all he showed was he didn’t answer the questions, and the attempted spin showed the superficiality of his arguments.

      • David H 11.1.1
        15 October 2013 at 11:10 am

        So the bigger question should be what is he hiding? a shonky deal that’s been stitched up with bugger all safe guards, and no insurance, to one of their new found rich mates from the petro corner?

    • Rogue Trooper 11.2
      14 October 2013 at 9:40 pm

      but, but, there must be sport, to emulate their betters.

    • Chris 11.3
      15 October 2013 at 11:28 am

      The fact of the matter is … akshully NO

  12. vto 12
    14 October 2013 at 9:12 pm

    dork extraordainre

    for kaikoura there be no care

    got the gel in the hair

    the white shoe and collar flair

    let your family nowhere near

  13. toad 13
    14 October 2013 at 9:24 pm

    What a dork!

    I expect the Green Party will run excerpts from that interview on social media right up to the next election.

    Bridges is an arrogant and abusive prat on the wrong side of public opinion on this issue. And he knows it, but doesn’t have the political and media skills to come across as even remotely credible, so engages in a shoutathon with Campbell.

    FFS, even Brownlee could have done better than that.

  14. Ron 14
    14 October 2013 at 9:25 pm

    I think I read that Bridges is standing down next year is that correct?

  15. vto 15
    14 October 2013 at 9:30 pm

    fancy that
    owning an oil business
    getting a cheerleader government of an entire nation
    fancy

    fancy

    someone’s pulling pancy

  16. NattyM 16
    14 October 2013 at 9:36 pm

    I was appalled at the arrogance and the bluster of this wet behind the ears, born to rule little whippersnapper. I agree that he sounded like a little swot who regurgitated everything that someone had crammed into him for the previous three hours. Whoever media minder is will have been appalled although he was obviously trying to be a John Key mini me, right down to his dreadful use of English, pronunciation etc. If he said “the fact of the matter” or “actually” one more time, I was going to scream. Well I didn’t scream but ended up shouting at the TV. And this little piece of self importance is a Cabinet Minister?

    • JK 16.1
      14 October 2013 at 9:58 pm

      NattyM – Simon Bridges doesn’t say “actually” he says “ackshuullly” awfully badly ! Just as the rest of his speech is awfully bad too .

      • Steve 16.1.1
        14 October 2013 at 10:13 pm

        Yeah, naughty Simple Simon’s not been paying enough attention at JK’s elocution classes.

        Hilarious though how his fawning adulation even leads him to try to mimic how the boss speaks.

        This boy is way out of his depth but is comedy gold. The left should be grateful for the gifts that he brings – no doubt the slide in the polls for the Nats was given an extra big shove downwards by tonight’s performance.

  17. vto 17
    14 October 2013 at 9:55 pm

    Well you know the practicalities of drilling a hole in the seabed about 2.5km below the surface of the water would be quite a feat. Maybe it could be a reality tv show. How will they stay above the drill hole? what if the drill bit breaks? what if oil spurts up a few millemeniums prematurely? what ports are the nearest rescue ships berthed in? Miami? who’s idea was this? are they still being paid? royalties? who has paid simple simon’s salary recently? taxpayer? others? its such a shame that wisdom and youth never coincide. Is it? it weeds out the useless. ..

  18. newsense 18
    14 October 2013 at 10:00 pm

    Loved the quote from Rod Oram to Hooton “…and we know you have a problem listening” on Q and A.

    Shouty young men!

    On all these shows the other pundits are the different except Matthew Hooton.

    • newsense 18.1
      14 October 2013 at 10:15 pm

      I mean Hooton seems to be on every show and in every paper and magazine

      • fender 18.1.1
        14 October 2013 at 10:54 pm

        Yeah, they need a rat who can spin the bullshit pump without laughing. Looks like Bridges has been taking too much notice of sHootons technique though…

        • felix 18.1.1.1
          14 October 2013 at 11:45 pm

          Simple Simon doesn’t seem to realise that goons like Hooten can afford to be dislikeable. All Hoots has to do is get his message across, he doesn’t have to convince anyone to vote for him.

      • geoff 18.1.2
        14 October 2013 at 10:58 pm

        Watched it on demand. I think he’s going through a midlife crisis, he looked really fat.

  19. vto 19
    14 October 2013 at 10:06 pm

    why would someone sink a super-long spinning bendy steel dentists drill down into the deep blue depths halfway between the quake belt of Christchurch and the quake belt of Seddon?

    does it not occur to them that the sea floor they want to drill has just been moving for the last 3 years? and still is today just up the road?

    there no oil there anyway – it be a ruse. watch out.

    • felix 19.1
      14 October 2013 at 10:25 pm

      So what are they up to v?

      • vto 19.1.1
        14 October 2013 at 10:34 pm

        diversion of some kind in typical humanly conspiratorial fashion. I wonder if simple simon conspired with others to conduct the interview in a certain manner.

        the oil is on land. though nobody ever found the source. tasted it once. in the hill cracks.

        there are many reasons for oil company actions and inactions.

        who would trust an oil company

        or john key

        there no oil there

  20. toad 20
    14 October 2013 at 10:11 pm

    My little cat, because of her advanced age (she is 17), does turds that are remarkably like Simon Bridges. They don’t always end up where we would like them to be.

    What’s John Key’s excuse re Bridges?

    • The Al1en 20.1
      14 October 2013 at 11:04 pm

      My cat, flat arsed fat fu*k that it is, does night time turds in the laundry basket if it’s raining out, then comes to wake me with an informing mew that it’s okay, he doesn’t need to go out anymore.

      With this stormy weather upon us, I’m hoping I don’t find a Bridges in my smalls tomorrow morning.

    • David H 20.2
      15 October 2013 at 1:00 pm

      Maybe he’s John keys ‘Evil side’

  21. newsense 21
    14 October 2013 at 10:12 pm

    Winston Peters without charm

  22. georgecom 22
    14 October 2013 at 10:12 pm

    On at least 2 occasions, maybe more, Bridges makes the statement that he is not there to ‘defend Anadarko’ or ‘speak for Anadarko’. He then proceeds to defend them, explain what nice people they are, how wonderful they are and how nice they are to their mums and fluffy kittens.

    I am not sure, but I think that maybe Birdges might have actually let Campbell ask one entire question before jumping in and trying to slam him. or maybe not.

  23. Rhinocrates 23
    14 October 2013 at 10:46 pm

    Oh, magnificent! To use an analogy, if that interview was a war, Bridges was trying so hard to win battles that he lost the war – calamitously.

    This is what you get when little men with terminal testosterone poisoning are backed into a corner. I can Imagine the C-T media advisors clutching their foreheads as they watched that meltdown.

    When Campbell points out that the electorate had supported National for decades and Bridges turns on them… oh, the schadenfreude is turning into Merkwurdigliebe… (a smiley for anyone who gets that reference).

    • David H 23.1
      15 October 2013 at 11:31 am

      We’ll meet again.

      • Tim 23.1.1
        15 October 2013 at 2:01 pm

        Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition – just long enough to enable us to get into bed with them anyway. Afterall … Soimun Brujizz is just so sexy ain’t he!
        (I was so impressed – I bought the company!)
        Next

      • Rogue Trooper 23.1.2
        15 October 2013 at 3:44 pm

        “does anybody here remember Vera Lynn…”

        • Tracey 23.1.2.1
          15 October 2013 at 3:47 pm

          never saw her live if that’s what you mean 😉

        • David H 23.1.2.2
          16 October 2013 at 1:45 pm

          Pink Floyds The Wall. Did you see the story on TV News the other night, about the Wall and his (Roger Waters) Fathers death, which he wrote about in the wall.

  24. Venezia 24
    14 October 2013 at 11:11 pm

    I saw that interview live and have just watched the first few minutes again. The Crosby Textor shouting-over-the-interviewer technique is not working and someone should tell Simon Bridges and Key. A dreadful display of bad manners. They are losing the argument and they don’t like it.

    • felix 24.1
      14 October 2013 at 11:37 pm

      Indeed. These my-little-ponies have only got one trick and it ain’t working like it used to.

      The king is in the altogether and the pigs are on the wing.

  25. the pigman 25
    15 October 2013 at 12:01 am

    Look ekshully Bridges did a very good job, I can tell without watching the clip, and I know that John Campbell is just a meanie and a bully.

    But seriously fuckin CHRIST can you believe the faux-down-home-koiwoi bullshit he was doing with his voice, there? Coup de grace would have been Campbell calling him out on that rather than just the shouting alone…

    I long for the day when the wurm starts trending downwards when National golden boys attempt that bullshit…

    • Rogue Trooper 25.1
      15 October 2013 at 12:20 am

      gold leaf

    • Tracey 25.2
      15 October 2013 at 3:49 pm

      I thought that too… but god give me strength the transparency of the repeating of a phrase (meme) was taken to extremes

      anyone count how many times he said “the fact of the matter is”… once he changed it to “the truth of the matter is”

      His lips quivered alot during the intro, like a horse champing at the bit. I thought he did a great job of sticking to his pre-practised script. Campbell looked like he was going to pull the plug. I wonder if he shouldnt have done that?

  26. Bob Green 26
    15 October 2013 at 12:36 am

    Bridges quite frankly is a poor representative in our political system. He has no manner, acts like the school bully and can’t answer a straight question. His whole attitude is biased and highly abrasive.

    This comes on top of Key lauding offshore the merits of oil exploration and the amount of money derived for a Kingdom whose leader lives in a obscenely extravagant way BUT this same country has been absolutely ravaged by widespread environmental destruction on a horrendous scale. Wildlife and ecology has been sacrificed to give the King yet another gold plated car to join the fleet he already has!

    Key made derogatory comments that he couldn’t seek to do the same with the Greens and their ilk bound to give him rough passage if he tried the same exercise here.

    Now marry the Key remarks and attitude with that of Bridges – it’s a very, very revealing message for us all.

    Frankly I am glad these revelations took place – it shows, warts and all, the wayward attitude of Government. Short term gain is paramount for a potential long term disaster.

    These guys would scurry away quickly if a major disaster happened – you wouldn’t ” see them for dust”!

  27. Naturesong 27
    15 October 2013 at 1:55 am

    Lewis CK on oil – “Why did you take it out of the fucking ground!?”

    http://youtu.be/LOojbp8ptWI

  28. Fiddlesticks 28
    15 October 2013 at 6:41 am

    “Tonight’s interview ended with Bridges being asked if he had any evidence of comments from Kaikoura people in favour of the drilling. Bridges said “No.””

    That’s not a fair representation. He was asked if he would name a specific person on national television. He said he couldn’t ie that would be unfair to the named person. He followed that up by saying people had expressed support to him on his visit to the community. Believing or not the latter doesn’t change the former. It would have been inappropriate for him to “out” someone (if they do exist) in such a way. It was an unfair question from John Campbell.

    • Pascal's bookie 28.1
      15 October 2013 at 7:15 am

      Bullshit. Bridges said Campbell wouldn’t show any positive comments even if he had heard them.

      Campbell asked if Bridges could name one poerson who would make such comments, and Bridges said ‘no I can’t’.

      He could have said “Of course I can, I’ll give you the name off air and you can get in touch. But he didn’t, because his girlfriend is a super hot model who lives in Perth at the moment, so you can’t meet her, but boy is she hot.

      • Fiddlesticks 28.1.1
        15 October 2013 at 7:43 am

        I suggest you watch it again and listen a little more carefully than John ‘The Green’ Campbell.

        • Pascal's bookie 28.1.1.1
          15 October 2013 at 7:58 am

          He didn’t have to ‘out’ anyone, all he had to do was say he could put CL in touch with people. So your argument is as shit as Bridges’.

          Birdiges went off the deep end saying that Campbell wouldn’t broadcast positive comments, Campbell asked him if he knew of any locals who would make them. If Bridges didn’t want to go there, he should have kept his angry little brain engaged before flapping his lips.

          • Fiddlesticks 28.1.1.1.1
            15 October 2013 at 8:25 am

            He asked for a person to be named – right now – right then. Listen more carefully.

            You might not have liked his answer. You may think he could have answered more appropriately. Neither of those things make it fair to say that his response to the question asked can be summised as “Tonight’s interview ended with Bridges being asked if he had any evidence of comments from Kaikoura people in favour of the drilling. His answer was No”. Particularly since he said he did.

            • Linz 28.1.1.1.1.1
              15 October 2013 at 8:55 am

              Why didn’t he say Colin King? Maybe even he isn’t in favour. Who’s Colin Key? Good question. The MP for Kaikoura.

            • karol 28.1.1.1.1.2
              15 October 2013 at 9:14 am

              Asking Bridges to name someone in favour is asking for evidence of positive support. The main focus of last week’s CL was on the views of Kaikoura residents. Bridges said CL didn’t present any positive views. Campbell then asked Bridges to name someone in Kaikoura for the drilling: i.e. for evidence such positive views exist. Bridges said “No”. And yes, he did add, “but I’ve been there and talked with some people who do” [support the drilling]. Yeah right.

              Bridges finally fronts up to respond to last week’s programme. You’d expect him to be well prepared: eg. if he thinks there are people there who are for the drilling, why didn’t he come prepared to CL with evidence of that? Instead, all we got was attack, spin, deny. And “I talked to some people who do”

            • Lanthanide 28.1.1.1.1.3
              15 October 2013 at 9:20 am

              “He asked for a person to be named – right now – right then. Listen more carefully.”

              Yes, because intelligent people being interviewed must absolutely answer every question asked in exactly the way the interviewer is wanting them to answer.

              That’s why Winston Peters is always very forthcoming and transparent in his media interviews.

              Get a grip. Bridges is an idiot.

            • Pascal's bookie 28.1.1.1.1.4
              15 October 2013 at 9:36 am

              You might not have liked his answer.

              Nah. I thought his answer was hilarious. He’s been talking himself up in his local paper for the last few days, ranting away about the mean old John Campbell and how he’d only do a live i/v.

              He got his live i/v and went in twitching at the prospect of proving what a big swinging dick he is, and he came away with his nuts crushed because he wasn’t prepared and answered terribly. ‘

    • Tracey 28.2
      15 October 2013 at 3:43 pm

      you are making things up. The interview finished when he said “no”.You are mixing it up with his earlier comments.

  29. Morrissey 29
    15 October 2013 at 7:12 am

    I am sure that as Joyce, Key, English and the rest of the Brains Trust watched Simon Bridges’ absurdly inept performance, the following tune came into their heads…

  30. Sanctuary 30
    15 October 2013 at 7:18 am

    Simon Bridges discovers he can’t get McNuggets at 10:30am:

  31. chris73 31
    15 October 2013 at 7:26 am

    Why quote Gareth Morgan? May as well quote a nut bar instead (oh wait…)

    • Galeandra 31.1
      15 October 2013 at 8:46 am

      Being a jerk yet again? Morgan is has long shown that his thinking is intelligent and evidence-based, and he puts his money where his mouth is. Unlike you, he seems to be a rightie who found his own road to Damascus. When you learn to read you will be able to find this out.

      • Puckish Rogue 31.1.1
        15 October 2013 at 3:06 pm

        “his thinking is intelligent and evidence-based”

        – Yes it sure is, I mean his take on North Korea was outstanding (yes thats sarcasm)

    • karol 31.2
      15 October 2013 at 9:08 am

      I quote Gareth Morgan because he’s not particularly aligned to the left. I could have named any number of confirmed lefties that were critical of Bridges performance last night.

  32. Sable 32
    15 October 2013 at 7:46 am

    The reality is this government is slowly eroding our clean green image selling off the country to foreign adventurers and capitalists. They don’t care one hoot about the potential for environmental damage or ruined ecosystems as long as the money keeps flowing in their direction. I just hope people have learned their lesson and National are permanently sent to the political dustbin where they belong.

  33. Anne 33
    15 October 2013 at 8:02 am

    Yes last nights interview on Campbell Live with Simon Bridges Shouting !Shouting!Shouting!
    Him brow beating us on what we should believe has got to be the worst interview I have ever seen.

    If this is an example of a Minister we pay a high salary to, then I say roll on the next elections.

    I watch the news and Campbell Live because I like to get up to date balanced views.

    Not the Mickey Mouse answers and rhetoric I was exposed to last night.

  34. ak 34
    15 October 2013 at 8:33 am

    Love the Simon n Carbunkle graphic.

    Bridges under troubled waters indeed. Welcome darkness, my gold friends.

    Hum it today, brothers and sisters:

    For a vision softly is creeping.

    • Tracey 34.2
      15 October 2013 at 10:10 am

      you mean like this

      When you’re leary
      Feeling pall
      When doubt is in your eyes
      I will lie to you all

      I’m on your side
      When polls get rough
      And truth just can’t be found
      Like a Bridge over polluted water
      I will lie me down
      Like a Bridge over polluted water
      I will lie me down

      When you’re down and out
      When you’re on the street
      When wages fall so hard
      I will lie to you

      I’ll make up a part
      When oil spills come
      And birds lie all around
      Like a Bridge over troubled water
      I will lie me down
      Like a Bridge over troubled water
      I will lie me down

      Drill on Corporate Oil,
      Drill on down
      Your time has come to scour
      All your profit is on the way

      See how they refine
      If you need a friend
      I’m lying right behind
      Like a Bridge over troubled water
      I will ease your way
      Like a Bridge over troubled water
      I will lie your way

  35. jaymam 35
    15 October 2013 at 8:46 am

    I think Simon Bridges did a wonderful interview, and John Key should find out who Bridges’ media trainer was so that he can do as well in the election campaign.
    Next time Campbell interviews Bridges live they should both be in the same room and have boxing gloves!

    • captain hook 35.1
      15 October 2013 at 2:46 pm

      yes and he should wear them when he goes to bed at night.
      and so should hooten. aka the angry ant!

  36. marty mars 36
    15 October 2013 at 9:13 am

    Just watched it and very revealing. bridges spins the positive and ignores the negative and jeepers his mannerisms were so keyish to be uncanny. I do think campbell should be wary of the distractions these losers try to pull and keep sticking to the points – he does that reasonably well but any interview with these sock-puppets is likely to go the same way.

    These exploiters won’t get this off the ground – I think we can stop them and I’ll be working hard to do that.

  37. TheContrarian 37
    15 October 2013 at 9:13 am

    I am no Campbell fan but Bridges, Christ, what an awful interview.

  38. karol 38
    15 October 2013 at 9:21 am

    We need the full interview on youtube.

    Someone has put a short 3 minute, highly edited and selective version of the interview on yt.

    And in this clip, when asked what is the deepest well, Bridges some 1500 meters. Campbell says the planned wells are twice that deep.

    • karol 39.1
      15 October 2013 at 9:36 am

      Well said, OI.

      This:

      New Zealand learnt very little of substance from Bridges as he resorted to rhetoric reminiscient of Muldoon and the American Joe McCarthy at their most pugnacious and vindictive. It was, however, obvious that Bridges was not aware of the risks involved with drilling at the depths of the Pegasus Trench, was ignorant of the resources needed to be available to cope with a similar disaster to that in the Gulf of Texas and the presumed economic return exploitation of an oil field would give to both NZ or the Kaikoura area. (the financial returns are geared to advantage the foreign corporates rather than New Zealand whose reserves would be being exploited).

      That’s exactly SB’s MO – though, it’s disputable whether he is ignorant of the things needed to do a clean up and of the economic return, and is just covering up that they don’t advantage NZ in general.

      • Anne 39.1.1
        15 October 2013 at 10:04 am

        I’m looking forward to the MSM’s reflective thoughts on the dishonest and odious tactics adopted by a NZ minister of the Crown…. like we know we would see and hear if an opposition party member had behaved in such a way. I think I may be disappointed but:

        parliament sits this week so I look forward to some questions/comments about the behaviour of Simon Bridges and what his prime minister is going to do about it?

    • ianmac 39.2
      15 October 2013 at 11:33 am

      Nailed it OI.

    • Rogue Trooper 39.3
      15 October 2013 at 3:58 pm

      great writing

  40. Tracey 40
    15 October 2013 at 10:07 am

    You learn alot about politicians when someone asks them to show some substance and knowledge of their area. Bridges always got a dream run when he and adern were first on our TVs. BUT he could rely just on “charm”. Once the veneer is prised away the dull sound of hollowness seeps out.

    • Anne 40.1
      15 October 2013 at 10:18 am

      Yep. Good looks, nice even white teeth and a youthful appearance . The no 1 priority for a young Nat minister. Take away the looks, the teeth and the youth on the outside, and you find an empty, clueless, psychopathic bully residing inside.

    • Rogue Trooper 40.2
      15 October 2013 at 4:02 pm

      Ardern, the former Mormon (see teeth); 5/10 (needs to apply herself to homework more diligently).

  41. Bren 41
    15 October 2013 at 10:16 am

    I wish I had the skills to turn Bridges ridiculous rant into a rap song. It seems to have all the right ingredients. He’s his own worst enemy.

  42. vto 42
    15 October 2013 at 10:25 am

    Where are the clean-up ships and apparatus and the booms and all the bits and pieces that are necessary to clean up if a spill does happen?

    If they are not in NZ waters at the time of drilling then it should not happen.

    Imagine having to wait for gear to arrive from timbuktoo…. guarantee this detail is being quietly ignored

    • greywarbler 42.1
      15 October 2013 at 12:18 pm

      According to report on Exxon Valdez spill in Alaska. The regulated clean up equipment and ships had long been ‘dispersed’. Such implements-in-waiting have a limited availability apparently through unwillingness of oil companies to maintain them and governments to steadfastly insist on them. They gradually fade away after an undetermined number of years, along with the fresh, keen inspectors eager to ensure the validity and effectiveness of the safety and preventative regulations. The keenness gradually wears off till they become blunt seat-fillers. (I haven’t got source to hand – I got it out of a summary in a textbook.)

      Look on google under search heading – exxon oil spill alaska failure of controls. Lots of information comes up.

  43. Pascal's bookie 43
    15 October 2013 at 10:27 am

    Right wing blogs all putting this video up on the front page, proudly showing the Minister defending a flgaship government strategy, I suppose.

    • greywarbler 43.1
      15 October 2013 at 12:24 pm

      What flagship is that? Surely not the USA sending some nuclear powered drilling rig in an unholy barter deal over us joining TPPA?

      • Pascal's bookie 43.1.1
        15 October 2013 at 1:20 pm

        Simon Bridges this afternoon: “The greens are at fault for our being unprepared for a spill because of the stupid ban on nuclear ships; also nine long years.” probably.

        • Tracey 43.1.1.1
          15 October 2013 at 1:44 pm

          if we had nuclear ships we would be prepared for spills? Really? Wasn’t it labour who championed nuclear free?

  44. fender 44
    15 October 2013 at 10:47 am

    Cardboard Bridges fail compilation, poor wee Soymin….

  45. Rolando 45
    15 October 2013 at 11:01 am

    Very well said Anne. I was quite disgusted in Simon Bridges spoilt child like outbursts and avoidance of the real concerns about drilling so deep. Look at the so called improved safety with Nuclear Power after Chernobyl and what happened recently in Japan. This area of Deep Sea Drilling off Kaikoura is also a Fault Line, who knows just when it will “Go Off:? It is time for all Governments to advance the manufacture of Wind Energy in New Zealand and other parts of the world. Short term profits very often cause long term problems that far outway the initial gains.

  46. karol 46
    15 October 2013 at 12:15 pm

    Two questions coming up in question time today:

    9. GARETH HUGHES to the Minister of Energy and Resources: Does he stand by his statement that “there may well be” a relief rig present during the drilling of Anadarko’s exploratory deep sea oil wells; if so, can he guarantee that there will be a relief rig?
    […]

    11. MOANA MACKEY to the Minister for the Environment: Does she agree with all the comments made by her colleague the Minister for Energy and Resources, Hon Simon Bridges, on Campbell Live last night relating to the regulation and risk management of offshore oil and gas exploration?

  47. steven 47
    15 October 2013 at 12:23 pm

    Lets all just live off the backs off of the rest of the world like preverbial clingonns shall we.Lets be the backwater of the civillised world with our mouths and ears and eyes covered and let everybody else look after our needs. Do not go out and have a go at providing the energy needs off our country. Do not try and move forward. Hug a tree

  48. aotearoean 48
    15 October 2013 at 1:09 pm

    I wasnot disappointed at his performance.Reminded me of a rat caught in a trap/

  49. bad12 49
    15 October 2013 at 1:15 pm

    Ah Simon Bridges, i have commented on this one befor, noting that just in behind His eyes their is something deeply ugly, the fact that He cannot control this ugliness in the face of public questioning doesn’t surprise me at all,

    Strangely enough Bridges related to Koro Wetere on His fathers side and taught at college by none other than Labour’s Chris Carter, i don’t believe that Bridges has any particular view of politics as left or right, rather with wee simple Simon it’s the ‘power rush’ and being on the winning side that gets Bridges going,

    Slippery the PM calls Bridges the ‘future’ of the National Party, small wonder, in the area of intellectual rigor both seem to have been born carrying empty suitcases and more fool National if He is promoted as future Prime Minister material as in my view a completely unfettered,(and dare i add unhinged), Bridges would disturb the wider electorate in a way that is best described in terms of what appears to be a real disturbance going on within His mind that would become glaringly apparent should Bridges receive any really probing interrogation from the media,(ala Campbell Live),

    i can well imagine Bridges at a future point in time, trapped like a rat upon some as yet unheralded issue, exploding in the public arena like no other politician befor Him,

    Having just had a wee squizz at Bridges ‘facebook page’ i would say we can expect more bitter vitriol from the Minister considering the mounting number of negative comments and His obvious penchant for dealing with anyone who would question His authority with such vitriol, after all He has no great belief in the policy either way, it is the ‘power’ and the ‘authority’ which moves Simple Simon’s world…

    • Tracey 49.1
      15 October 2013 at 1:41 pm

      Yup, Key sees himself reflected behind Bridges eyes

      • fender 49.1.1
        15 October 2013 at 2:19 pm

        Bridges is an awful mix of the most horrible traits found in Bennett, Brownlee and Key.

        • emergency mike 49.1.1.1
          15 October 2013 at 6:49 pm

          I would say more like Key mixed with Aaron Gilmore. But hey, there are so many horrible narcissistic flavours of NAct to choose from. (Admittedly Gilmore is past tense, but Bridges surely has one foot down that path.)

    • Rogue Trooper 49.2
      15 October 2013 at 4:08 pm

      chianti with those Fava beans then
      (having an old ‘friend’ for dinner).

  50. Skinny 50
    15 October 2013 at 1:55 pm

    I will give Bridges credit for fronting up & trying to hold his own, which largely he did, apart from spinning nonsense that the risks were ‘low’. Drilling at that depth is highly risky and capping or plugging a well is very problematic. The result would be a pretty much instant with the upflow from the trench to the coast causing dramatic harm.

  51. gobsmacked 51
    15 October 2013 at 1:55 pm

    Here’s a round-up of reaction to Bridges’ performance …

    http://liberation.typepad.com/liberation/2013/10/top-tweets-about-simon-bridges-on-campbell-live.html

    It’s 95% negative – or just, um, gobsmacked.

    (and no, it’s not just a bunch of lefties. Look more closely).

  52. Tracey 52
    15 October 2013 at 2:10 pm

    Thank God for Seven Sharp, otherwise no one would be tuning into Campbell Live

  53. Denise 53
    15 October 2013 at 2:11 pm

    Kindergarten kids are able to communicate with more respect than this. This is NOT the only time I have seen National ministers behave in a way that shames me. They need to go back to kindergarten to once again learn basic respect, and communication skills. Campbell did well to deal with him. Goodness me. No wonder we are in so much trouble!

  54. Tracey 54
    15 October 2013 at 2:31 pm

    This interview just shows what happens when we move from interviewing politicians without them knowing in advance what they will be asked, to them waiting, practising and speaking a rehearsed speech and damn the interviewers questions.

    There must be a middle gorund here. Good on Campbell for trying to find it…

    Those on the right who hate Campbell must forget corngate and how excitable they all were afterwards, as they should have been.

    Pollies see appearances on tv asnothing more than an election speech.

    Ban them all, dont interview a single one for, say, 3 months. Watch them scramble to be on under any terms.

  55. captain hook 55
    15 October 2013 at 2:47 pm

    I second that.

  56. Anne 56
    15 October 2013 at 3:03 pm

    I think boy Bridges has been studying Rob Muldoon. That was his approach when being interviewed. The reason Muldoon always had a smart answer to questions was because the interviewer had to submit the questions he was going to ask him in advance.

  57. phil 57
    15 October 2013 at 5:00 pm

    I don’t watch much TV, since National Government killed off TVNZ7. I happened to enter the lounge to my wife watching CL. I could not believe what I was seeing. Live comedy in prime time TV in NZ! Apparently NOT. It was our Government Minister, SB, being serious? Glad I don’t watch any more. Too silly.. Has it really sunk this low? Good work JC. All power to your arm. You are challenging the powerful and they don’t like it.

  58. BoboTehClown 58
    15 October 2013 at 7:08 pm

    Simon Bridges …. oh dear… and I thought Australian politicians were clueless bozos.

    We have plumbed new depths.

  59. T 59
    15 October 2013 at 9:07 pm

    Well even if you had minor deception training you would recognise that Simon Bridges is lying his ass off, as for John whether you hate or love him you must appreciate that without journalists like him our country is moving further away from democracy.

  60. peterlepaysan 60
    15 October 2013 at 9:13 pm

    Bridges performance was as preplanned as Key’s yap attack dog approach.
    The Nats are experts at diversion.

    The yap attack dog might occasionally have traction in parliament but usually leaves a sour smell in living rooms. A sour smell of desperation.

    Key and Bridges were both running scared and cornered and behaved accordingly. Not pretty.
    Which is why BM did not watch it so he/she could confidently comment on it.

  61. HeidiT 61
    16 October 2013 at 9:15 pm

    As it stands, once the TPPA comes into effect if we (New Zealanders) stop companies like Anadarko in a democratic process (the people’s voice) or even if they have a huge accident while deep sea drilling and are commanded to stop drilling by our Government they (the company) will be able to sue New Zealand for loss of potential profits… not kidding. Help us demand that the NZ Government release the full details of everything that is in the TPPA before they sign over the rights of New Zealander forever.

    http://www.itsnotright.org.nz

  62. Umwhat? 62
    16 October 2013 at 10:30 pm

    Well that’s embarrassing.

  63. Balance 63
    17 October 2013 at 1:00 pm

    1. To say that oil from Taranaki (Our current major drilling prospects sit here) isn’t critical to Taranaki and its workforce please do some research. It contributes a huge amount of investment and infrastructure to New Zealand and its potential for future growth is massive. As is drilling off the east cost of the North and Lower South Islands. Huge GDP and massive investment is at stake.
    2. Simon Bridges is so one eyed in this video and has come hugely unprepared which makes you think he hasn’t given due process to initial permits for seismic (Scary).
    3. In essence there is still a huge process before any drilling would take place. You don’t just get huge rigs and pull oil from the ground this is 1,2 or 3 years down the track.
    4. The real issue here is the potential for disaster and disaster recovery. The chances are very low and post BP spill there has been massive reform in Health and Safety. This is still being rolled out so you can bet your bottom dollar its even less likely now than a couple years ago.
    However we need the garuntees of both oil giants e.g. Anardarko and the Government that our country will be protected whether this comes with massive amounts of insurance money maybe but the problem is once you have a spill its very hard to prevent massive ecological loss. Prevention is the key and I don’t know enough about the engineering of it but we need to be sure we can prevent everything from happening. Can this be done? I don’t know. Should it stop us taking the risk?
    Who knows massive money is at stake and I guess it depends how you feel.

    • McFlock 63.1
      17 October 2013 at 1:31 pm

      4. The real issue here is the potential for disaster and disaster recovery. The chances are very low and post BP spill there has been massive reform in Health and Safety. This is still being rolled out so you can bet your bottom dollar its even less likely now than a couple years ago.

      That is my main concern (although there are other issues about climate change and extracting the last few remnants of an almost -exhausted resource, rather than developing ne infrastructure that will set us up on a front-footing for post-carbon energy).
      The problem is that all the “very low chances…learned lessons…excellent systems in place” lines are a ritual catechism to be stated after each and every disaster, from nuclear to oil to chemical spills to explosions to structural failures. And the fact is that these depths will be at the cutting edge of drilling, which means that most of the minimisation, prevention and cleanup lessons are obsolete.

      Couple that against possible damage to a $20bil annual tourist industry and the fishing industry, and it begins to look like a close-run equation. Which is of course why the nats want to remove as much public involvement and protest as possible.

  64. s y d 64
    17 October 2013 at 1:55 pm

    What were the chances of a 220m cargo vessel being sailed onto a well charted reef?
    Our coast is still polluted, despite what you may see, hear and read. More than two years on and we can’t even organise (or enforce those responsible) to clean up the resulting mess. Oil and plastic (beads fom 1 container) still litter the BOP coast. Every day I see it and every day it reminds me that all the processes, systems, best practice world class, health and safety procedures mean shit. Once it’s done no amount of hand wringing MP’s manning shovels in shiny shoes and finger pointing can change it.

    If the worst eventuates there will be no clean up. The gun is pointed at our heads. Who has their finger on the trigger?

  65. orson unwell 65
    17 October 2013 at 4:35 pm

    Expecting a rationally perceptive ,let alone a logically consistent , argument from any Conservative politician is a hell of a big ask. And when that politician is a trained Lawyer , well, you have no chance whatsoever. Hats off to David Cunliffe for a faultless performance so far as Leader of the Opposition. At least he has avoided the mistake of trying to swap ‘smart-ass’ commentary with the P.M. . Now if only Labour could take down the biggest fraud in this John Key government-Tony Ryall- I would be a very happy camper.

  66. merv 66
    17 October 2013 at 9:34 pm

    simon bridges…what a jumped up 12 year-old
    was originally in favour of “drill off shore”, but now bollocks to the ballbags
    the only regime he knows is the one hes in