Written By: - Date published: 8:35 am, May 28th, 2011 - 71 comments
Auckland ratepayers are going to be stuck with a huge bill for the Nats’ failure to properly cost the merging of the old Councils’ IT systems. As Russell Brown puts it – “Someone has to be accountable for this”…
Written By: - Date published: 8:46 am, February 10th, 2011 - 5 comments
*English vs English on assets sales, as business commentators come out against the flawed business case for privatisation. *Will Hide honour his word and resign over Supercity debacle? *Foreshore Bill to join CERRA as a constitutional outrage. *Economic woe keeps coming. *Is the ‘brighter future’ on its way or just more Key stunts?
Written By: - Date published: 12:01 am, November 1st, 2010 - 7 comments
Happy Birthday Auckland! The new Supercity is now in effect, with Mayor Len Brown at the helm. How is the tension between a left wing mayor representing a third of the country, and a right wing central government, going to play out? The Nats can’t afford to let Auckland fail…
Written By: - Date published: 7:29 am, September 22nd, 2010 - 32 comments
John Banks has gone big on billboards in his campaign for mayor. So I thought I’d show some that I’d like to see…
Written By: - Date published: 2:28 pm, August 28th, 2010 - 17 comments
Yet another broken promise on the Auckland Supercity, as ministers fail to consult on the directors of council-controlled organisations. Will The Herald stand by its earlier thundering editorial?
Written By: - Date published: 10:42 am, July 14th, 2010 - 24 comments
Can we pease have some reporting on the actual issues in the super-major race and where the candidates stand? I’m so sick and tired of loading the news-sites to be told who spent what on what (with the implication that there’s all a massive scandal somewhere) or a factual piece reporting on the opinion of some supposed expert on how the candiates are doing as if it’s a horse race.
Written By: - Date published: 9:57 am, June 29th, 2010 - 40 comments
I have very mixed feelings about all this scrutiny of the spending of public figures. However, for the record, Supercity mayoral hopeful John Banks now joins the spending club.
Written By: - Date published: 11:22 am, May 16th, 2010 - 9 comments
Sam Cash writes it’s good news for Auckland with Len Brown opening up a strong lead over John Banks. Len Brown’s campaign seems to have been quietly gathering momentum since he launched his insurgency last year.
Written By: - Date published: 9:05 am, May 14th, 2010 - 37 comments
The Right has forced the Supercity on Aucklanders who don’t want it, don’t need it, and won’t benefit from it. Aucklanders were denied their legal right to a referendum on amalgamation into the Supercity. But they’re getting a vote soon. And they’re going to punish the Right’s candidates. And, of course, Brown is also just a far better candidate.
Aucklanders – check OurAuckland and vote.
Written By: - Date published: 3:05 pm, March 11th, 2010 - 23 comments
The Local Government Commission released its final ward boundaries for Auckland today and the result is a city gerrymandered by ACT to favour the interests of the rich.
That’s the verdict from No Right Turn, who’s crunched the numbers and discovered a systematic bias for the Right.
Written By: - Date published: 7:05 am, February 25th, 2010 - 4 comments
Auckland is being stolen from the people who live there. It will end up like a christmas turkey – “decapitated, plucked, gutted, stuffed, stitched up, roasted and carved up. And when the diners have eaten their fill, all you have left is a dead carcass.”
Written By: - Date published: 10:35 am, February 19th, 2010 - 10 comments
The Northern Action Group has, with the support of 80% of Northern Rodney District, been petitioning the Government to leave Northern Rodney out of its Supercity experiment. The Government, as throughout the Supercity process has completely ignored the wishes of the people. Symbolically, the Northern Action Group has put a broken campaign sign on Trade …
Written By: - Date published: 12:46 pm, January 16th, 2010 - 22 comments
There is a story in today’s Herald noting that current C&R Hobson councillor Aaron Bhatnagar is not going to stand for the new super-council. He is taking on the running of Banks’ faltering mayoral campaign and has been offered a job in the new mayoral office should they turn around Len Brown’s momentum. But the …
Written By: - Date published: 4:49 pm, November 3rd, 2009 - 2 comments
Yesterday the Auckland Transition Agency (ATA) released its draft structure for the new Auckland council. Fortunately for the staff, and service levels in the new Auckland council, the ATA has a ‘commitment to maintaining or enhancing council service delivery.’ This means: ‘A prudent approach will be taken to staff reduction where services are reorganised to …
Written By: - Date published: 10:31 pm, August 19th, 2009 - 84 comments
An email leaked to 3News suggests that Rodney Hide is holding the government to ransom over denying guaranteed Supercity representation for Maori. The email – reportedly from a senior National Party MP and sent to the whole caucus – reads, in part: Clearly we are at a crossroads. The ACT party has threatened to end …
Written By: - Date published: 8:11 pm, July 11th, 2009 - 26 comments
Labour MP Phil Twyford is launching a campaign around his bill to protect Auckland’s community assets. www.notyourstosell.co.nz Phil Twyford’s private members bill, the Local Government (Protection of Auckland Assets) Amendment Bill, was pulled from the ballot last week. It will force a referendum before any of Auckland’s public assets are sold off. Criticism from the …
Written By: - Date published: 12:28 pm, July 3rd, 2009 - Comments Off
The Left continues to have luck with the private member’s bill ballot, getting both of the bills drawn today just like a couple of weeks back (well, not so much luck, most of the bills in the ballot are from the Left). Metiria Turei’s Marine Animals Protection Law Reform Bill was drawn, which while worthy …
Written By: - Date published: 3:04 pm, May 26th, 2009 - 22 comments
It’s a disgrace that the supercity agenda is being foisted on Auckland undemocratically, and it is an additional disgrace that it is being bulldozed through uncosted. The government cannot tell Aucklanders what this reorganisation is going to cost them on their rates bills – though some estimates put it at over $550 each. Whatever happened to …
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