Written By: - Date published: 11:38 am, May 20th, 2012 - 26 comments
Like a polluter making money while passing on the costs of pollution to the rest of us, a media organisation can make money out of hatred while passing on the costs to society. Case in point – Paul Henry, who didn’t take long to revert to type in Australia.
Written By: - Date published: 10:54 am, May 7th, 2012 - 11 comments
Over the past few months, we’ve seen Auckland City’s wholly-owned port, Ports of Auckland, waging war against its own workforce, costing the city millions of dollars in lost dividends. Now, the Auckland Council has acted, requiring its intermediate Auckland Council Investments Limited to impose “good employer” provisions on its subsidiaries.
Written By: - Date published: 7:16 am, May 3rd, 2012 - 85 comments
Such was the magnitude of the Nat’s “big win” in 2011 that Key has to wake up every morning and do the numbers. His government hangs by a rotten thread. That rotten thread is John Banks.
Written By: - Date published: 9:02 pm, May 2nd, 2012 - 4 comments
There’s the facts, the questions and the legal opinions. Today in Parliament John Key stuck to his lack of interest in detailed questions, and adherence to Banks’ reliance on legal opinions. He even alleged that the Labour Opposition agreed with these opinions. Not likely. The Police need to ask all the relevant questions that have so far not been answered by Banks or asked by Key, then their veracity and reliability should be established by a judge.
Written By: - Date published: 10:03 am, May 1st, 2012 - 24 comments
According to 3 News, Kim Dotcom paid cheques into John Banks’ campaign account in Queenstown. Duncan Garner says this would show up on Banks’ bank records as “anonymous”. So how did Kim Dotcom get TeamBanksie’s account number? Two days after he had had a lunch meeting with Banks.
More questions for the Police to ask and Banks to answer.
Written By: - Date published: 9:21 am, May 1st, 2012 - 41 comments
In 2008 John Key was loudly telling us about his high standards and principles. The Banks case is yet more proof that it was all a prattle of empty rhetoric.
Written By: - Date published: 11:04 pm, April 30th, 2012 - 55 comments
Campbell Live showed us pictures of the Cheques by which Kim Dotcom’s company Megastuff made donations to Team Banksie 2010. How can John Banks argue that the two donations of $25,000 from Kim Dotcom’s company Megastuff Limited are anonymous when the company name is on the cheque? You could look up their address on the website. Game over, John and John.
Written By: - Date published: 9:50 pm, April 29th, 2012 - 13 comments
Party donations for the 2011 general election will be published on Tuesday . One new provision in the Act provides for the declaration of the number of donations in two bands; $1500 to $5,000, and up to $15,000. It will be very interesting to see the number of upper level donations in National and ACT particularly. They could hide Banks-type split donations from asset-sale backers.
Written By: - Date published: 10:11 pm, April 25th, 2012 - 7 comments
James Murdoch has confirmed to the Leveson enquiry that he did discuss News International’s bid to take over BSkyB with Cameron at a dinner at the home of Rebekah Brooks. Cameron had previously denied this. Also Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt, charged with ensuring that the takeover was according to law, was briefing Murdoch on the back channel via his staff. His tenure looks very shaky. Cameron will also be under severe pressure. There are lessons for us as well.
Written By: - Date published: 10:42 pm, April 19th, 2012 - 69 comments
Alistair Cameron is heavily tipped to become Labour’s Chief of Staff. That’s a change that would signal even bigger change to come.
Let’s hope that bigger change is done openly and with party members’ input.
Written By: - Date published: 9:38 am, April 17th, 2012 - 17 comments
A Green Party bill proposes bringing some transparency to political lobbying. National is expressing support to the select committee stage – will they support it all the way?
Written By: - Date published: 10:16 am, April 12th, 2012 - 34 comments
In opposition the Nats were critical of Labour’s spending on consultants. Thanks to Keith Ng we now have some figures on sending under the Nat government. Guess what…
Written By: - Date published: 9:30 am, April 7th, 2012 - 14 comments
No Right Turn on another sad chapter for democracy in NZ.
Written By: - Date published: 6:31 am, April 5th, 2012 - 81 comments
Update: Labour had accused Banks of not declaring the $15,000 donation from SkyCity as required under local government electoral law. The law is strict. If he is charged and convicted he’ll be kicked out of Parliament. Key will have to take his portfolios if Banks didn’t declare the money.
Written By: - Date published: 9:17 am, April 1st, 2012 - 10 comments
The police have announced that they will not be laying charges over John Key’s pre-election radio show. Their reason? “Insufficient evidence”.
Written By: - Date published: 11:03 am, March 29th, 2012 - 6 comments
Apparently the Auckland Council doesn’t know how much the POAL fiasco is costing. Rough estimates suggest that the cost is at least $400,000 a day, probably significantly more. No wonder the Council doesn’t want to know.
Written By: - Date published: 11:34 am, March 24th, 2012 - 18 comments
NRT with yet another example of the Nats’ intimidation tactics.
Written By: - Date published: 10:05 am, March 13th, 2012 - 19 comments
Seems Judith Collins has been cutting corners in the appointment of Wayne Mapp to the Law Commission. NRT has the story.
Written By: - Date published: 7:23 am, March 9th, 2012 - 86 comments
You betrayed the people you pretended to represent Len.
Written By: - Date published: 11:08 pm, February 27th, 2012 - 16 comments
As controversy swirls over Murray McCully’s leaked emails and the government’s secret position on “restraining China” and McCully is nowhere to be found to answer questions, John Key says “I have absolutely no clue where he is“. Funny, cause he was the one who approved McCully’s travel. Seems a lot of ministers are taking to hiding when the heat comes on.
Written By: - Date published: 10:01 pm, February 21st, 2012 - 31 comments
National’s getting a reputation for not being able to keep its secrets secret. When its National’s political plans, it’s a public good when this info gets out. When it’s free and frank, and classified, communications with a minister about our diplomatic relations, that’s a risk to NZ. As we see a taste of the McCully emails, we wonder when Key’s going to hold his minister to account for his disregard for security. Updated.
Written By: - Date published: 2:57 pm, February 17th, 2012 - 1 comment
Peter Radich, BSA Chair, absolutely rejects “any kind of improper influence” over his controversial decision that Radio Live PM’s Hour was not an election programme. I wouldn’t accuse him of improper influence, rather lack of competence as his judgement was completely outside the Authority’s brief.
Written By: - Date published: 1:50 pm, February 16th, 2012 - 93 comments
Why do we tolerate, indeed sometimes glorify, thoroughly toxic commentators and “media figures” in NZ? It’s a rhetorical question. The answer is, of course, that it’s all about the money…
Written By: - Date published: 8:30 am, February 3rd, 2012 - 16 comments
The Briefings to Incoming Ministers, which government departments produce after each election, give the public (via the media) an insight into on coming challenges in portfolios, elaborate on how election promises will be converted into real policies, and – most importantly – reveal things the government is planning that weren’t election policies. So, it’s disturbing that the Nats are censoring them.
Written By: - Date published: 8:57 am, January 31st, 2012 - 35 comments
I/S at NoRightTurn says we should hold Key to his latest pathetic excuse making for his inaction on the sale of our farmland overseas: “John Key’s excuse for the Crafar farms sale? His hands were tied. But he’s promising to change the law if we make enough noise about it” Unfortunately, Key doesn’t mean it. He has no intention of listening.
Written By: - Date published: 8:09 am, January 24th, 2012 - 46 comments
The high point of John Key’s popularity came about 3 weeks before the election. Then the tea tapes meant a spectacle that was meant to be a show of his power became a media storm with him at the centre. National lost 5% in those last few weeks of the campaign. Key blamed the media. Bryan Gould looks at the war he has been waging against the press ever since.
Written By: - Date published: 12:01 pm, January 22nd, 2012 - 124 comments
Labour’s internal politics is public property while National get a free pass on theirs.
This imbalance of transparency and accountability seems weird given National are the ones wielding the real power.
More to the point, what does it mean for our democracy?
Written By: - Date published: 10:14 am, January 18th, 2012 - 91 comments
National is quietly using its power to try to prevent programmes about important issues from being broadcast during election campaigns, after a documentary on childhood poverty upset them. When Key finally gets back from holiday, he’s got to explain why his party and government are trying to dictate what should be on TV during election campaigns.
Written By: - Date published: 11:22 am, December 21st, 2011 - 71 comments
Irony will be if Anne Tolley gets sacked over a portfolio she no longer holds. And if she’s fired, not for turning one of the world’s most successful education systems into an ideological warzone over performance pay but, for lying to Parliament about a principal turned ministry expert with a sleazy husband being suspended.
Written By: - Date published: 11:55 am, December 16th, 2011 - 78 comments
“British philosopher Edmund Burke termed two different modes of viewing representation as the trustee and delegate models. ” Guest poster Pointy looks at this related to the recent Labour leadership selection debate.
Written By: - Date published: 8:44 am, December 12th, 2011 - 70 comments
Tomorrow morning the Labour caucus will meet to vote on a new leader.
That means there’s just one day left for party member to have their say.
So email or phone your nearest labour MP and let them know who you want. It’s time for party members to own their party’s future.
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