Dope-growing, cross-dressing BDSM male prostitute police officer convicted of harassment

Written By: - Date published: 9:36 am, November 25th, 2015 - 91 comments
Categories: crime, drugs, Ethics, human rights, law and "order", police, Social issues - Tags:

Last week’s conviction of eight-year veteran constable Jason Karl Harris, 43, has capped off a recent surge in the level of systemic criminality, thuggery, and general incompetence which now defines the New Zealand Police Force.

Harris appeared before the Auckland District Court for sentencing on Monday last week after carrying out what was described as a four-month “campaign of hatred” against a woman he had fallen out with. Not surprisingly, Harris escaped jail-time. He received instead three and a half months home detention, 100 hours of community work, and was ordered to pay the woman $3000.

What was surprising is that Harris was only fined $600 for his dope growing. When police searched his house, they found a hydroponic cannabis set-up with 15 plants and 20 seedlings. According to Judge John Bergseng there was nothing to suggest this wee agricultural enterprise was anything other than for personal use.

Contrast and compare!!11!!

<sigh>

So, just to update the performance of the New Zealand police since National Ltd™ came to power, we have . . .

09/04/15 – A review shows that the police do not carry out analysis on the quality of the crime statistics

10/04/15 – Another police chase, another death

17/04/15 – Waitakere police officer Constable Lomitusi Lomi, 24, was stood down after appearing in court charged with injuring with intent to injure, which carries a maximum of five years’ imprisonment. The alleged victim is understood to be the partner of Lomi.

22/04/15 – police fail to act to prevent the murder of two children.

24/04/15 – It is revelaed that since 2009 more than $12.7 million was spent on repairing police vehicles, not including 126 vehicles were written off.

01/05/15 – South Auckland police officer Hamish McCormack, 30, avoids a conviction for a careless driving charge, instead receiving diversion.

07/05/15 – Another police chase, another death

10/05/15 – Police are ordered to pay tens of thousands of dollars to a truck driver they blamed for a crash caused by an off-duty cop.

11/05/15 – http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL1505/S00043/police-persecution-at-lake-horowhenua.htm

12/05/15 – Police HQ pays out out tens of thousands of dollars to Christchurch property developer Dave Henderson after conceding they acted unlawfully by raiding his business based on dodgy warrants.

17/05/15 – It is revealed that three unnamed police officers have been disciplined and several others stand accused of botched checks of hand-held speed cameras, potentially leaving police exposed to legal action over speeding tickets.

20/05/15 – Police were forced to cancel 1,778 speeding tickets worth a total of $151,880 due, according to police, to a technology glitch.

03/06/15 – Police are refusing to say why the West Coast’s top cop and two of his senior sergeants are on leave. West Coast area commander John Canning went on leave on Friday. Inspector Tim Crawford took over his duties on Tuesday.

13/06/15 – A top lawyer says there’s a “very good argument” for charging police officers for possible serious criminal offending during an undercover investigation of the Red Devils gang in Nelson.

13/06/15 – It is revealed that Police waited two days before beginning to search for a man who went missing from a Waikato DHB mental health facility. The man was subsequenty found drowned.

17/06/15 – Police Commissioner Mike Bush admits crime resolution statistics are worryingly low and that it would be a stretch for police to make an improvement in that area.

23/06/15 – A south Taranaki woman, 67, with a broken arm is thrown to the ground and handcuffed by police for attempting to discuss the need for her to be forcibly evacuated from her home.

23/06/15 – Another South Taranaki woman, 69, is elbowed in the head and forced to the ground by police for attempting to discuss the need for her to be forcibly removed from her home.

30/06/15 – Significant reductions in the number of cases resolved by New Zealand police are revealed by research completed by the New Zealand Family Violence Clearinghouse (NZFVC) based at the University of Auckland compiled the data from from police and NGO records.

06/07/15 – It is revealed in Court that police breached an understanding given to a Judge that it would not use information under privilege seized during a dodgy search.

03/07/15 – Another police chase, another serious injury

07/07/15 – West Coast police officers Inspector John Canning, Senior Sergeant Allyson Ealam, and Senior Sergeant Phillip Barker launch a $1.5 million suit against Tasman District Commander Superintendent Karyn Malthus and the Attorney General for alleged defamation.

09/07/15 – An unidentified police officer tells a teenager that appealing a ticket on technical grounds is “immoral”. The said ticket is subsequently cancelled and police apologise.

10/07/15 – A survey of police in the Nelson area shows a massive reduction in morale which is being blamed on management and an on-going funding freeze put in place by National Ltd™ in 2009

10/07/15 – Southland area commander police Inspector Joel Lamb is “not concerned” that only one in ten of his officers feels engaged in their work.

12/07/15 – A Judge orders police to pay $32, 000 in costs and slams Counties Manukau police officer Constable Richard Wright and the Crown for failing to properly investigate a theft dispute and “negligence” in proceeding with the prosecution. The judgement was made in October 2014 and police finally got around to making the payment in June 2015 before media found out about it in July 2015.

13/07/15 – Police admit that some affidavits in an important case before the High Court “overstated” some things – i.e., they lied.

14/07/15 – Hawkes Bay police officer Constable Shane Greville pleads guilty to careless driving causing injury after “showing off” and smashing into the back of another car at 91kph in a 50kph zone.

15/07/15 – Police admit to breach of journalistic privilege by using material gathered as the result of a search warrant which should have been sealed.

18/07/15 – Another police chase another death.

23/07/15 – Another police chase another serious injury

30/07/15 – Police are found to have illegally detained a family including a sick baby. No apology will be offered by police.

04/08/15 – Another police chase, another crash

10/08/15 – Another police chase, another accident

10/08/15 – An OIA request to police reveals that Thirty police officers across the country have been convicted or accused of serious charges within the past year, including one who filmed a teenager in a shower.

11/08/15 – It is revealed that police officers were involved in trying to stop one man’s email-a-day protest against an insurance company

14/08/15 – Police request that a blog by John Minto be taken down.

22/08/15 – Another police chase, another crash

24/08/15 – Another police chase, another crash.

25/08/15 – Continuing intransigence from Police regarding the murder of Susan Burdett is noted in the media

27/08/15 – Police admit that an investigation into a death of a prisoner was “sub-standard” even though the IPCA had earlier stated that a review of the initial investigation was satisfactory.

30/08/15 – A former spy for the police, Rob Gilchrist, receives an undisclosed sum in compensation for stress and other ailments arising from his activities involving spying on organisations such as Greenpeace, EPMU, the Martime Union, the Council of Trade Unions, and animal rights groups.

30/08/15 – Police state that between July 2010 and May 2015 it has paid out a total of $2,491,751.05 to 78 people who sought compensation from the police and, between August 2010 and May 2015, it has paid out $645,996 to cover for personal grievance claims made by 61 staff.

04/09/15 – Auckland police officer < a href= http://www.nzherald.co.nz/crime/news/article.cfm?c_id=30&objectid=11491926> Lomitusi Lomi, already facing a charge of injuring with intent, is further charged with conspiring to defeat the course of justice.

12/09/15 – Top secret police intelligence reports are accidentally sent out and are now circulating among the very criminals being targetted.

12/09/15 – Police pepper spray an innocent 10 year old girl in the face

22/09/15 – Another death in police custody

01/10/15 – Another police chase another accident

08/10/15 – Another police chase, another serious injury

09/10/15 – A review shows that police have underpaid staff by $40 million

11/10/15 – Another police chase, another serious injury

16/10/15 – a police dog mauls a disabled man who claims the attack took place in police cells.

29/10/15 – Police admit to being responsible for 500 out of 800 traffic accidents involving police vehicles.

10/11/15 – Police delayed calling for an ambulance for 35 minutes after being informed by a hospital emergency department of the assault of a man who subsequently died

11/11/15 – Police refuse to visit scene of a burglary and then refuse to visit an address where the burglars had been found

12/11/15 – Police are videoed using excessive force while arresting a man in Napier

16/11/15 – Cross-dressing, male prostitute, dope growing Pukekohe Police Officer Jason Karl Harris is sentenced to three and a half months home detention, 100 hours of community work and ordered to pay a woman $3000 after being found guilty of misusing the police computer system to check up on the woman and for a four-month long campaign of intimidation and harassment against the woman.

17/11/15 – Police admit that a six-year-old was pepper-sprayed after refusing to put down a knife.

20/11/15 – Police are videoed using excessive force while arresting a man in Christchurch

22/11/15 – It is revealed that the police have lost the original, signed, hard-copy documents which make up the investigation file in unsolved homicide enquiry.

. . . but wait, there’s more.

91 comments on “Dope-growing, cross-dressing BDSM male prostitute police officer convicted of harassment ”

  1. Atiawa 1

    Looks like more crime committed by our police force then the citizens they are charged to protect.

    • Colonial Viper 1.1

      There is a rot growing in law enforcement agencies throughout the western world, as their power, weaponry, surveillance tools and authoritarianism increases.

      • infused 1.1.1

        NZ police have been like this for a long time… It’s just spilling over now. The only people they care about are their own.

        I’ve had a few incidents with police… the one I remember the fondest was 17 years ago. I got king hit by a bouncer. I never threw a punch or anything. He hit me from behind. Knocked out cold on the pavement. Police came and locked me up in the cells.

        I went to take them to court. I remember the police calling me saying “Don’t bother taking this to court, you won’t win”.

        So since that day, NZ police can go fuck themselves.

        Any FYI, bouncer got done (lightly in those days). Police tried doing me for assault. The judge basically laughed and threw it out.

        My other experience was a few years earlier. We took a trolly home from The Warehouse. The cops came down the street, for some reason we ran… It was just a trolly. Anyway, cops called the dog squad. Long story short, dogs were set on me.

        Many puncture holes later, we sued the police, guy lost his job (As no justification for setting dogs on me. He had a record of doing this). Police tried jacking up the charges 3 times. It went from trolly theft to something quite bizarre. Can’t remember.

        • tracey 1.1.1.1

          Sorry to hear it. This notion that the police have improved… we are always told when something surfaces “oh that was then, we have changed the culture since then” is bollocks.

          There are good cops out there, but when you become a cop your world shrinks. The hours and what you see, and that you begin to spend your down time with fellow cops… all result in a specific world view. In this world view they are hard done by and “know” who “done it”.

          • infused 1.1.1.1.1

            I’ve had a more recent once since. Nowhere near as bad as those two experiences, but same shit. They haven’t changed.

            Best advice I can give is know the law and don’t tell them a god damm thing.

  2. mickysavage 2

    Headline of the year!

    • weka 2.1

      or not. What do his sexual preferences, or occupation as a prostitute (alleged), or the fact that he cross-dresses have to do with this story? To juxtapose those things with criminal activities like harassing an ex, misusing police systems or growing drugs suggests there is something wrong with them and thus, by association, other people who are similar. They’re actually irrelevant.

      • Ron 2.1.1

        I agree they don’t have anything to do with the crime but if I remember correctly the victim in this case had her details including her work spread all over the court and media.
        so maybe sauce for goose and gander applies

        • weka 2.1.1.1

          Not on a left wing political blog IMO.

          Some years ago Cameron Slater was on a Sickness Benefit. There were a couple of people commenting on ts who would start calling him a bludger and questioning his right to a benefit and generally using his illness and status as a beneficiary to undermine him. When challenged on that they gave pretty much the same arguments as being used here i.e. that he deserved it.

          The problem is that those comments and that stance by the commenters basically legitimises a principle that it’s ok to hurt people as long as you think they deserve it. I have been on the receiving end of a number of people’s bigotry over my disability/illness (including some that had real world effects not just on me but on people I cared about), and I have no doubt whatsoever that the people who did that believed that I deserved it.

          To add to that (and I’ve commented elsewhere in the thread on this), it’s not just about his wellbeing, it’s about how it affects people close to him, and how it affects people who cross-dress/like BDSM/are sex workers, and how it affects society as whole.

          When people legitimise attacking Slater as a Sickness Beneficiary they endanger his livelihood and this affect his children, they reinforce the bludger and bene bashing memes (on a left wing political blog ffs), and they make society just that much more meaner.

          Sorry to go on about this, but it’s really simple. Sex workers, cross-dressers and people into BDSM all experience varying degrees of marginalisation through to outright abuse simply because of shit like this where people think having a go at someone on the basis of those things is legitimate. They’re nothing to do with this story (unless one is talking about the victim impact statement, or what actually happened to the woman, neither of which appear to be the topic of this post).

          • Ron 2.1.1.1.1

            and once again The Victim seems to be sadly missing from all the comments.

            • weka 2.1.1.1.1.1

              Why are completely and utterly ignoring what I said?

              If you want to talk about the victim then do so. But your prvious comment was saying that bad people deserve bad things. I responded to that.

      • Hear! Hear! I too find the juxtaposition alarming and it’s clickbait nature detracts from the seriousness of the post. It would be good to see the title reflect the latter.

  3. RedLogix 3

    Without taking anything away from all the other implications of BLiP’s impressive list; imprisoning ex-Police officers is always problematic. We put people in prison to serve time, not to be severely beaten or sexually assaulted because of their previous day-job.

    The Courts cannot but be aware that putting such a person in the general prison population is an almost certain guarantee of this happening. I’d suggest this creates an invisible threshold below which the Courts are reluctant to sentence prison time for relatively minor offenses.

    • Sabine 3.1

      actually no it is not. If they become criminals, and dope growing at this scale for anyone in this country would be prison or something up to a year of home detention and a lengthy probation period, then they too will go to prison.

      These guys are paid good wages to ‘protect and serve’ and if they become criminals, then they should go to prison, not go over start and not collect 200$. Or else our system is a sham. As for the ‘one’ rotten apple, let me tell you that you don’t want a rotten apple within your crate of good ones. You will remove that one rotten apple and throw it as far away as possible, together with all other apples that show sign of rot, lest they ruin the rest of the apples in your crate.

      Mind, one could argue, that if hardened criminals don’t want to go to prison, they just have to join the police force. Feel safer now?

      • RedLogix 3.1.1

        Sighs … sometimes I wonder why I bother.

        • Sabine 3.1.1.1

          why do you bother?

          Are you saying we should not put offending police in prison like all the other of us that would go to prison
          Because they might bet raped or beaten? What about the genral public that offended – and I don’t consider weed growing an offense that should fall under the criminal code at all – that gets thrown by the same judge into prison where they may or may not get raped or beaten?

          heck it is something of a running joke in all the blokes blow up movies that one gets done in the back side should they be send to prison?

          And if they assume they can not guarantee the safety of a prisoner cause he / she used to be a copper than they put them into isolation, or create a facility that only houses coppers.

          But frankly to be lenient on them because they get hurt? Have you read the litany of police offenses above and seen how many people they have hurt?
          And just who do you think is paying for the pay outs that come from the Police? That my dear would be you and me, Tax payer.
          So yeah if they can do the fucking crime, they can do the time.

          • tracey 3.1.1.1.1

            IF the imprisonment of law enforcement officers showed a disproportionate number of rapes or assaults as against the “regular” population inside, would you consider something should be done to alter how the punishment is served?

            • barry 3.1.1.1.1.1

              Maybe the problem is the prisons. If we can’t guarantee people’s safety in prison then we shouldn’t put anyone there.

        • greywarshark 3.1.1.2

          RL
          My thoughts. The easy assurance of the PC perfect and pure in mind makes them fervent and unswerving in their opinions.

          About police needing consideration because of their jobs and attitudes towards them. We must try to keep them from being roughed up, and similarly try and stop them from committing violence and lowering standards themselves. I think cops must be affected by some of those disgraceful videos we see from abroad especially USA.

          I think they have become too powerful, too all-encompassing. Divide off the road cops to a parallel liaising force responsible for their own standards. Put search and rescue into its own separate organisation that liaises with police, and can request personpower when extra needed.

          And the expectation that having minority officers will gradually change attitudes. Doesn’t happen, according to a report I read from a black officer. The prevailing and dominant expectation and leadership rolls down and the newer cops of whatever ethnicity behave similarly to the majority group.

    • vto 3.2

      The police should in fact get heavier sentences, not lighter.

      Re prison and associated risks – just make a separate space for them. It is done with others so do so with police.

      In fact you could have a specially designated Police Officers Prison ha ha ha ha ha ha – wonder how full it would be???

      • McFlock 3.2.1

        I agree.

        Police are in a position of trust to uphold the law. They have an increased responsibility to obey it, rather than bringing the entire justice system into disrepute by breaking the law.

        Judith Collins laughed at the idea of prisoners being sexually assaulted because of double bunking. That was wrong of her – prisons should be safe places for prisoners and society. Failing in that duty should not be an excuse for leniency when criminal police officers fail in their duty to obey the law.

        • tracey 3.2.1.1

          I agree too BUT and if they are shown to be disproportionately raped or assaulted than the general population then we need to look at alternatives. Which is NOT same as being more lenient.

          • McFlock 3.2.1.1.1

            aye, true

          • weka 3.2.1.1.2

            +1 tracey. I agree that the Police should be held to a higher standard/attract longer sentences, but rape and assault should in no way be part of that sentence.

          • greywarshark 3.2.1.1.3

            I would like to know that all would be safe from sexual assault and attacks in prison (as well as outside). It makes me sick when I hear sly ‘jokes’ about what someone being sent away to jail might expect, like it is taken for granted. Those enjoying the idea, smirking about forced sex and attacks on an individual against their will, are as perverted as the criminal.

      • weka 3.2.2

        “Re prison and associated risks – just make a separate space for them. It is done with others so do so with police.”

        How would you protect them from the Prison Officers?

        • tracey 3.2.2.1

          Ignorance alert: I didn’t know offending cops were hated by the prison officers?

        • Sabine 3.2.2.2

          Well we could send them to Christmas Island, and they could police themselves.? Or employ Serco to do the job. 🙂

          But of course we could just not criminalize criminal cops, lest they get roughed up in prison. Cause clearly its ok for the general public that is sentenced to prison to run the risk of beatings, death, and rape, but not cops. No we must create a different sentencing and housing system.

          These fuckwits are criminals, and they should be treated as that. Essentially no one knows the system better then a cop, so clearly if they offend it must be because they do believe that they will get a way with it.

          Safer yet? No. WE are not, and too boot we are forced to pay for their fuckups.

          • weka 3.2.2.2.1

            “But of course we could just not criminalize criminal cops, lest they get roughed up in prison.”

            That’s probably the most idiotic comment in this thread. Please don’t misrepresent what people are saying, it just leads to fights.

            • Sabine 3.2.2.2.1.1

              It is actually not an idiotic comment, considering that many cops don’t get to do hard time precisely for that fact.

              It is however somewhat stupid and even ‘second system’ promoting to say that we can’t lock ex cops (once they have been found guilty of criminal activities they should loose any and all status that comes with the job) into a standard prison, that you or i would be send should we be found guilty for the same offenses. And I do hope that this geezer is not on the force anymore. Once you start blackmailing some Dominatrix and get away with, you know, one may blackmail others. And sending pictures to the hubby and raising shit is simply that, black mail.

              Btw. I was tongue in cheek ….but i guess you just did not see the smiley face.

              • weka

                No-one has said what you just claimed. You are arguing with yourself and misrepresenting others.

                The idiotic bit is the second part of your sentence, which nobody is arguing but you.

                And no, I don’t have a smiley face on when talking about rape or beatings.

    • tracey 3.3

      We have isolation cells for this RedL. Even a month in isolation is some message to many… then put them on home detention.

  4. Lanthanide 4

    It’s not illegal to be into BDSM, cross-dressing or prostitution. Mud slinging.

    Why don’t you just stick to the actual illegal acts of harassment and dope-growing, or do you want to sensationalise everything like the MSM does?

    • Sabine 4.1

      Because the same copper would give me a run down when i am in leathers on my bike. Or he would give you a rundown where you a cross dresser, a prostitute or a consenting participants in BDSM community.

      And yes, i have taken a copper to the IPCA for essentially what was revolting fucking behavior, harassment and intimidation. And no it was not a bloke, it was a female enabled by her male superiors. And she got shown up for it, as essentially with her attitude, and her harassment, and intimidation (fucking stupid women) she supported a chick that was committing insurance fraud. But i was the bikie in leathers, so it would be the easiest thing to write me several tickets for an accident that was caused by the other party. Ooops. the Court sided with me.

      What goes around, comes around. And no, they are not better then us clearly, but they would like to be treated better then they would treat anyone of us.

      But the question you should ask yourself is simple: Do you feel safer being ‘served and protected’ by these guys, and are you happy to pay money to people that have been hard done by the Police, cause its us that raise the funds for the Police via our taxes.

      • Rosemary McDonald 4.1.1

        @ Sabine “Ooops. the Court sided with me.”

        Don’t you just love it when that happens?

        So…after the court has dismissed the charge against you, you gather your evidence and go down to the Police Station to lodge a complaint against other parties for obvious, at the minimum…perverting the course of justice. Throw in there an obviously dodgy insurance claim, and the first cop seems sympathetic but when passed on to the higher ups…shot down. IPCA a chocolate fireguard.

        There is nothing one can do to fix this as a private individual. I am sure the Police have someone monitoring these pages…one day maybe, since I comment using my own name, some officer just might think “what the hell is this woman banging on about”. And look into this…and restore my faith in what I now consider to be an incompetent and corrupt police force.
        (I won’t hold my breath!)

        @Red Logix “The Courts cannot but be aware that putting such a person in the general prison population is an almost certain guarantee of this happening.”

        So too would a police officer know that committing crimes that attract a prison term if detected and successfully prosecuted is an almost certain guarantee of this happening.

        Arrogance? Assume the ‘club’ will protect them? Stupidity?

        • Sabine 4.1.1.1

          We went to court as the chick was refusing to accept the pay out the insurance offered her, claiming other parts of her vehicle were equally damaged – it was her insurance company that called for it. I strictly refused any damages was caused and i also refused to accept that I had caused the accident.

          So we all went there, the insurance officer essentially said, look we would be happy to settle but she is not ($ 300 co-payment – stupid women).
          So when all was said and done the judge asked if the car was there, yes it was, was it fixed – no she had not fixed it (this was several month after the ‘accident”), which raised eyebrows as that is unusual, and also is the bike there….yes it is.
          So down to the road we go, and we all agree that unless I ride a fucking submarine (and my bike is not tiny) , no way could i have hit her were she insisted i had hit her, considering as well all the photos that I took at the crash site, it clearly showed she hit me instead of the other way around.
          It went down hill from there, all ‘guilt’ was taken from me, lol, the other chick was suddenly guilty of causing an accident, careless driving, etc etc and to boot the face of the insurance guy….OHMGOSH, t’was funny.

          With the results of the court I went to the Police…..t’was fun as well. Essentially it is simple, don;t call my phone and try to intimidate me, don’t do that once, don’t do it several tens of times over the weekend. Don’t accuse me of providing false statements, when your coppers are as fucking dump as the dodo, and can’t read their own writing and can be called out on it, cause proof. Fuckit. Don’t threaten me with an arrest warrants for fines (heck these were my first fines in my life, and i am a middle aged broad!) when you are to dumb to send them out in the first fucking place – and they are still in your fucking out tray!. It just pisses me off, and then my inner german demands satisfaction, and i will lodge a formal complaint.
          And frankly i think every time a copper is basing decisions on what are clearly issues of discrimination, then lies, then starts harassing people by phone, threatening them to go to their work place etc etc etc a formal complaint should be lodged, and if it is only to get them sick of their fucking ‘rotten apples’ and maybe start doing their jobs.

          Speaking to Seargeant BlueBerryMuffin, i made it quite clear that they should mark my file with…..”Handle with Care, as she will complain to the IPCA everytfuckingtime if need be”.

          Lol.

          • Rosemary McDonald 4.1.1.1.1

            “Speaking to Seargeant BlueBerryMuffin,”

            Hah! Love it! For all the Judiciary gets a hard time from the Left, Right and Centre…sometimes, just sometimes, you strike a Judge with a functioning bullshit detector.

            I too am a “middle aged broad”..not a bikie chick…just plain old boring hausfrau with a penchant for being pro active on disability issues.

            Until this shit went down…I kinda thought the poor old bobbies hard a tough job…and I cut them a lot of slack.

            Sometimes, even now, I get a bit dizzy when I recall the complete 180 degree turn my attitude towards the police took.

            And…realising that a shitload of other boring middle aged Kiwis have the same opinion as me about the police.

            Kia kaha Sabine.

          • Bill 4.1.1.1.2

            🙂

          • left for deadshark 4.1.1.1.3

            Good stuff, they can be lazy fuckers, by the way, I ride a Moto Morini 500

            🙂

            • Sabine 4.1.1.1.3.1

              very nice, my little one is english…and does not leak oil . 🙂

            • gsays 4.1.1.1.3.2

              black, naked bmw k75s. ’87, drops a little oil. lots of fun.

              got stopped in ashhurst 12 months ago, no wof or rego.
              “pay the fine quick and you can write away and they will wipe the fines”
              did this and got the reply “we are overturning the constable’s decision.”
              no refund.

              ’twas worth the fine so my son could see that the police lie.

        • Ron 4.1.1.2

          So what happened to former police prosecutor that was sent to jail for some pretty horrendous crimes against minors. Did he get beaten up/raped etc Don’t think so

      • tracey 4.1.2

        If *I* supply cannabis and go to jail, I am exposed to the usual risks of incarceration. If a law enforcement officer is sent to jail whatever they are given is harsher because the risk of them being targeted is higher, than for general populace of the prison. My personal view is that because a crime against a law enforcement officer suffers a higher sentence than against a non enforcement officer (due to status and public interest) then a law enforcement officer who falls must suffer a higher punishment… BUT NOT a much higher chance of rape or assault or death.

  5. trendy lefty 5

    Is there something illegal or wrong about cross-dressing, BDSM or prostitution?

    • BLiP 5.1

      No, not as far as I am aware. However, since reading past the headline is too difficult for some, allow me to point out that I was helping give voice to the victim. She was the one who felt it was important enough to mention that Harris was a cross-dressing, BDSM male prostitute. She made specific mention of it in her victim impact statement. The New Zealand Fox News Herald, on the other hand, chose instead to make a joke at her expense in the headline.

      • Lanthanide 5.1.1

        You mean, the Herald, being bound by journalism standards, reported on the facts of the case, and not on the women’s hearsay testimony?

        You know how reporters always say “alleged to have done x” until there has been a sentencing for the offense? There’s a reason for that. Even the twat who police found in Brazil and extradited back to NZ was “alleged to have escaped and fled the country”.

        You are stating that this person is these things, based upon the unsubstantiated words of one woman who clearly has a grudge against this man (understandably so). Not something I’d choose to do.

        • Bill 5.1.1.1

          Thing is Lanth, that if you have no issues with cross-dressing, BDSM and prostitution, then any incorrect ‘allegation’ is no allegation at all.

          • Lanthanide 5.1.1.1.1

            It’s not an “allegation” of anything, it’s prying into someone’s private life when such details are irrelevant.

            When was the last time you saw a headline saying “man killed in car crash had a collection of toasters and enjoyed watching trains on the weekend”? Assuming that toasters and trains didn’t somehow contribute to the car crash.

            • gsays 5.1.1.1.1.1

              hi lanth, i often read headlines ‘framing’ how police would like to see the story perceived.

        • Sabine 5.1.1.2

          So the victim statement of the women who was the aggrieved party is something that you consider unsubstantiated cause she ‘clearly has a grudge against this man” (but you understand that she has a grude against this man) . oh dear.

          • Lanthanide 5.1.1.2.1

            No, it’s unsubstantiated because it’s unsubstantiated.

            If the prosecution thought these things were relevant to the case, they would have introduced them. They didn’t.

            • BLiP 5.1.1.2.1.1

              A victim impact statement must be vetted by the court before it is read out and must be truthful. It is the Judge who decides what is and isn’t to be introduced into the record of the case. Your concern for the comfort of the perpetrator and your frothing contempt for what the victim chose to say is telling.

              Meanwhile, do you think it might be about time for Michael “Worm Farm” Woodhouse to at least recognise the New Zealand Police Force has to pull up its socks in order to maintain public confidence?

              • Lanthanide

                Thanks Blip, I wasn’t aware of the process for the judge to decide whether it should be allowed or not – although this is obviously how it would work so I could have assumed that.

                Even so, the prosecution evidently didn’t see it as being relevant to the case.

                “Your concern for the comfort of the perpetrator”
                No, it’s my concern for anyone that has irrelevant personal details about themselves, particularly sensitive ones, that are aired in public. The fact that they have committed a crime is irrelevant – just as the fact that people in the Australian detention centres have committed crimes, doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be afforded basic human dignity and rights.

                “your frothing contempt”
                I strongly reject “frothing contempt” – that is you reading tone into my writing that does not exist.

            • tracey 5.1.1.2.1.2

              for clarity

              unsubstantiated
              adjective
              1.
              not substantiated; unproved or unverified:
              unsubstantiated allegations.
              2.
              being without form or substance.

              It seems to me that Lanth is saying that it is both irrelevant(?) and that there is no third part corroboration of the assertions?

              Yes?

              • weka

                That’s how I read the Herald article. The things the woman said the man was are presented out of context so no-one here knows what their relevance was to the case.

                And they certainly have no relevance to this post.

      • weka 5.1.2

        No, not as far as I am aware. However, since reading past the headline is too difficult for some, allow me to point out that I was helping give voice to the victim. She was the one who felt it was important enough to mention that Harris was a cross-dressing, BDSM male prostitute. She made specific mention of it in her victim impact statement. The New Zealand Fox News Herald, on the other hand, chose instead to make a joke at her expense in the headline.

        As did you with your headline.

        If you don’t want people to have difficulty getting past a post headline, perhaps you could write one that is less inflammatory. Based on your authoring and commenting history on the standard, I’m sure that your post itself is good. Myself, I didn’t get that far as I had to go off and read the Herald article a number of times to understand what the headline and that case was about and came to the conclusion that the headline was a piece of bigotry based on things that are irrelevant. I’m pretty sure you didn’t mean it that way, but as I comment below, women get the label ‘prostitute’ used against them all the time and it’s not appropriate to do that in a left wing political blog not matter how much you are wanting to support someone who’s been victimised.

        • Lanthanide 5.1.2.1

          I also had to read the Herald article several times to work out where the headline for this post came from, since the body of the post doesn’t mention it again, which is quite odd for ‘important’ details to be stated in a headline but not once in the body of the post.

  6. Anno1701 6

    policing citizens

    or citizens policing , there’s a big difference !

  7. No dispute with the main points of the OP, but the numerous incidents of “Another Police chase” you mention aren’t indicative of criminality, thuggery or incompetence on the part of anyone but the driver of the fleeing vehicle.

    • BLiP 7.1

      Every police chase puts innocents at risk. Given the persistent high number of accidents which result from a police chase, its indicative of incompetence that the Police have not learned to manage them more safely and are still, in many cases, breaking their own guidelines.

      • Psycho Milt 7.1.1

        The Police have a responsibility to minimise the risk to the public in apprehending offenders, but the responsibility for whatever risk the public ends up facing lies with the offender. It would be nice if the courts started dealing with them appropriately.

    • tracey 7.2

      could be incompetence if they have disregarded the rules that apply to pursuits and/or are a really bad driver

      Of course the person fleeing bears the lion’s share by far of the consequences of their actions. However the police also have a responsibility beyond the apprehension of just the driver they are pursuing.

  8. weka 8

    Lanth, I agree.

    Those things have nothing to do with the story and are there to sensationalise something (not sure what) or give people a laugh. But what it does is associate those legal and normal things with crime and/or things to be ridiculed, which then reinforces stigma within society as well as reinforcing ideas about what is normal and what isn’t and just adds to the general fuckedupness in NZ around things considered marginal.

    Women sex workers get unecessarily described by their occupation as a way of undermining them because so many people still consider that to be a moral issue. That’s what’s happening here too. The man should be held accountable for his actions, not for things that have no bearing on that.

    I can’t be bothered getting into a argument about this today, but disappointing to see such a headline on a political blog.

    • Lanthanide 8.1

      Thanks weka, I thought I’d probably get support from people, but so far it’s been less than I expected.

      I see feminists standing up for women and the language used when women’s issues are reported on. But it seems no one stands up for those who have sexual proclivities outside what is considered ‘the norm’.

      • weka 8.1.1

        yeah, I’m surprised.

        So much for me not getting involved though.

      • Rosemary McDonald 8.1.2

        Reading the article in the Herald…paragon of journalism that it is…there seems to me to be some ground for the victim ‘outing’ this guy.

        There is some relevance.

        Cop met victim”professionally”. She is a professional dominatrix.

        Cop was her client in this capacity.

        He then mounts (no pun intended!) a hate campaign against her…

        “Harris even sent letters to her husband at work, which included further explicit photos of the victim.

        The letters “outlined what you considered to be her immoral lifestyle”, Judge John Bergseng said.””

        http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11546240

        This was really quite vicious stuff…an attack on a woman hired by him.

        Methinks he richly deserved his outing.

        Hire a sex worker(after checking her out on the police computer (to see if any heavies have her back, perhaps?)) then harass her for her immoral ways?

        The toasters and the trains did have a fair amount to do with her becoming a victim.

        Are professional dominatrices bound by a code of client confidentiality?

        • wtl 8.1.2.1

          Methinks he richly deserved his outing.

          No, he doesn’t. He deserves to be dealt with by the law (and he has been – unless you are claiming the judiciary is corrupt) not by a political blog spreading rumours about his private life.

          • weka 8.1.2.1.1

            +1000 (and appreciate the succintness).

          • tracey 8.1.2.1.2

            Yeah, does seem to be a strong element of 2 wrongs make a right here? He wrongly sent stuff about her to third parties… and has been punished so why the need to stoop to his level?

            I am confused.

        • weka 8.1.2.2

          “Methinks he richly deserved his outing.”

          So says most people who harm others. This is why we have ethics, so we don’t have to rely on our personal sense of offense in deciding who deserves punishment and why. Myself, I think it’s unethical to use ‘they deserve it’ to undermine basic principles of fairness and justice. It’s not like I’m overly concerned for the man himself (although he may very well deserve concern, how would we know?), it’s that the basic principles have to be applied universally. If you get to pick and choose, why not Cameron Slater? Or anyone with prejudices?

          The justice system looks at the situation and applies sentencing appropriate to context, because it’s in the position to do so. We’re not. That’s certainly not an infallible system, and I’m guessing BliP’s post is about where it fails majorly. But to then say oh well, I think someone deserves shit because they were a shit themselves just makes the whole world blind.

          For instance, does the man have young children? What is happening to them at school? It doesn’t take much imagination to see how wanting to hurt people because we think they deserve it can affect far more than we can see. I’ve explained elsewhere how it can also affect other people as well because of the culture of shame and marginalisation in NZ.

          • tracey 8.1.2.2.1

            Thanks weka, nice points made.

            It’s kind of like aspects of the detainees thing and stuff, but in reverse (I tihink)

            They have committed crimes so fuck their human rights… you want to protect their human rights, then you are a lover of paedophiles and rapists…

            High Ground – Gone

          • Rosemary McDonald 8.1.2.2.2

            @weka “Myself, I think it’s unethical to use ‘they deserve it’ to undermine basic principles of fairness and justice. ”

            The offending words were in her Victim Impact Statement.

            The Judge, if he felt the need, could have suppressed all or part of her statement.

            http://www.justice.govt.nz/publications/publications-archived/2002/victims-rights-act-2002-a-guide-for-agencies-dealing-with-victims-of-offences/victim-impact-statements

            “The judicial officer can also make orders to limit the distribution and disclosure of a VIS. This includes how many copies can be made and who, apart from the offender, is allowed to see them.

            The Act requires that all copies of a VIS be returned to court staff at the end of proceedings, with the exception of copies held by the victim, relevant officials and specified persons allowed by the court to retain the VIS.”

            This would be in the “take it up with the Judge” category.

            “For instance, does the man have young children? What is happening to them at school?”

            Good question. One he maybe should have asked himself.
            As should all of us before we set off on such a path. Bearing in mind this was a carefully planned crime.
            His lawyer…could have asked for name suppression…

            Always more to a story in the media than meets the eye.

            • weka 8.1.2.2.2.1

              You’ve missed the point. The ‘offending words’ are in the title of this post, that’s what is being debated.

              Good to know you think the sins of the fathers should be visited on the sons and daughters.

              edit, you also quoted me and then didn’t respond to what I said. The ethics I’m talking about are those of some of the people this this thread.

      • wtl 8.1.3

        When I saw the headline of this post on my feed I thought it was a joke or satire. But it’s not. I agree with you Lanth and Weka and I am extremely disappointed to site it on this site.

  9. Once was Tim 9

    No surprises in any of the above.
    Personally, I think (reckon) there’s time to salvage things and there is time for those in power to change before things get out of hand.
    Quite obviously there’s a problem in the Police, AND there’s also a inkling of a problem with the Judiciary. Perhaps the Judiciary are inflicted with fear.

    I’d hate to think we (NuZull) have to descend into appointing overseas people to resolve the predicament we’re obviously headed into, but I suspect its inevitable.

    I suspect in the very near future – if we continue along the path of Natzi Keyoikon like administration, then there’ll need to be maybe some Canadians in the Pleece, and one or two International judges to remind us what we once stood for.

    I wonder how Dear Helen feels. One things for sure ….. she can be excused for not knowing what she unleashed

  10. Vaughan Little 10

    thanks heaps blip. this is all really good data which needs to be out there in the public domain.

    my pov is that declining standards are wider than just a cop problem.

    there has been a crisis in public morality for a long time. long crisis.

    it’d be interested to know what retired cops think.

  11. greywarshark 11

    Was he – A police officer,
    Harrassing someone,
    A prostitute,
    Growing dope,
    Into BDSM – for the ignorant like me – “Bondage and Discipline, Sadism and Masochism” .,
    Cross-dressing?

    Sounds far out for a police person. And with all the knowledge and experience that comes from being involved in his various pursuiits, he still harrasses someone like any common old bloke with a nasty nature and unhealthy obssession to control and dominate.
    His wide interests don’t seem to have made him a nicer human being and a better police officer.

    That’s my attempt at forming an objective view of the matter. I think that he is getting the velvet glove treatment too. What is everyone complaining about again?

  12. North 12

    Gotta say I am touched by Infused’s account of ‘citizen meets police’. It’s fucking churlish I know but I hope Infused is straight up here. If so, I’m surprised you’re not on ‘our’ side Infused.

    Great list BLIP ! Note I’ve elevated you to all cap’s (partially ‘cos I can’t remember the one that’s lower). Anyway, Arise Sir BLIP ! And, provisionally, Sir-Infused.

  13. Treetop 13

    Good to see a conviction for harassment and it not being made into an employment issue, which has no teeth.

    Note: There is nothing good about a cop harassing anyone.

  14. ZTesh 14

    Why is this sort of bigotry towards trans people accepted on this blog. This is really puerile infantile stuff that I would expect from Cam Slater.

    Pathetic.

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    PunditBy Brian Easton
    4 days ago
  • Elections in Russia and Ukraine
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    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s six stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15
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    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
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    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago
  • National’s clean car tax advances
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    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Government funding bailouts
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    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Two offenders, different treatments.
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    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    4 days ago
  • Treaty references omitted
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    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • The Ghahraman Conflict
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    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 15
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop: Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • The day Wellington up-zoned its future
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    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Weekly Roundup 15-March-2024
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    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    5 days ago
  • That Word.
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    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • The Hoon around the week to March 15
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Labour’s policy gap
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    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #11 2024
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    5 days ago
  • Melissa remains mute on media matters but has something to say (at a sporting event) about economic ...
     Buzz from the Beehive   The text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary.  It can be quickly analysed ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago
  • The return of Muldoon
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    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Will the rental tax cut improve life for renters or landlords?
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    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: What Saudi Arabia’s rapid changes mean for New Zealand
    Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    5 days ago
  • Racism’s double standards
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    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • It’s not a tax break
    Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • The Plastic Pig Collective and Chris' Imaginary Friends.
    I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • Who is responsible for young offenders?
    Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on National’s fantasy trip to La La Landlord Land
    How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
    5 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 14
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop: The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • No, Prime Minister, rents don’t rise or fall with landlords’ costs
    TL;DR: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • Cartoons: ‘At least I didn’t make things awkward’
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
    6 days ago
  • Solving traffic congestion with Richard Prebble
    The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    6 days ago
  • I Think I'm Done Flying Boeing
    Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago
  • Invoking Aristotle: Of Rings of Power, Stones, and Ships
    The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
    6 days ago
  • Van Velden brings free-market approach to changing labour laws – but her colleagues stick to distr...
    Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • Why Newshub failed
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    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • Māori Party on the warpath against landlords and seabed miners – let’s see if mystical creature...
    Bob Edlin writes  –  The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they  follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago

  • Government moves to quickly ratify the NZ-EU FTA
    "The Government is moving quickly to realise an additional $46 million in tariff savings in the EU market this season for Kiwi exporters,” Minister for Trade and Agriculture, Todd McClay says. Parliament is set, this week, to complete the final legislative processes required to bring the New Zealand – European ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 hours ago
  • Positive progress for social worker workforce
    New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    10 hours ago
  • Minister confirms reduced RUC rate for PHEVs
    Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April.  ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    12 hours ago
  • Trade access to overseas markets creates jobs
    Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand.  Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    12 hours ago
  • NZ and Chinese Foreign Ministers hold official talks
    Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Kāinga Ora instructed to end Sustaining Tenancies
    Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Speech to Auckland Business Chamber: Growth is the answer
    Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Singapore rounds out regional trip
    Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships.      “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Minister van Velden represents New Zealand at International Democracy Summit
    Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Insurance Council of NZ Speech, 7 March 2024, Auckland
    ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland  Acknowledgements and opening  Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho.  Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau  My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Five-year anniversary of Christchurch terror attacks
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says.  “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024
    Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024  Acknowledgements and opening  Morena, Nga Mihi Nui.  Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau  Good morning. It’s a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Early visit to Indonesia strengthens ties
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asia’s most populous country.   “We are in Jakarta so early in our new government’s term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • China Foreign Minister to visit
    Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week.  “We look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealand’s ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Minister opens new Auckland Rail Operations Centre
    Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. “The recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Auckland’s rail agencies work together to ...
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    5 days ago
  • Celebrating 10 years of Crankworx Rotorua
    The Government is proud to support the 10th edition of Crankworx Rotorua as the Crankworx World Tour returns to Rotorua from 16-24 March 2024, says Minister for Economic Development Melissa Lee.  “Over the past 10 years as Crankworx Rotorua has grown, so too have the economic and social benefits that ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Government delivering on tax commitments
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    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Significant Natural Areas requirement to be suspended
    Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard has today announced that the Government has agreed to suspend the requirement for councils to comply with the Significant Natural Areas (SNA) provisions of the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity for three years, while it replaces the Resource Management Act (RMA).“As it stands, SNAs ...
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    5 days ago
  • Government classifies drought conditions in Top of the South as medium-scale adverse event
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    5 days ago
  • Government partnership to tackle $332m facial eczema problem
    The Government is helping farmers eradicate the significant impact of facial eczema (FE) in pastoral animals, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced.  “A $20 million partnership jointly funded by Beef + Lamb NZ, the Government, and the primary sector will save farmers an estimated NZD$332 million per year, and aims to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • NZ, India chart path to enhanced relationship
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters has completed a successful visit to India, saying it was an important step in taking the relationship between the two countries to the next level.   “We have laid a strong foundation for the Coalition Government’s priority of enhancing New Zealand-India relations to generate significant future benefit for both countries,” says Mr Peters, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Ruapehu Alpine Lifts bailout the last, say Ministers
    Cabinet has agreed to provide $7 million to ensure the 2024 ski season can go ahead on the Whakapapa ski field in the central North Island but has told the operator Ruapehu Alpine Lifts it is the last financial support it will receive from taxpayers. Cabinet also agreed to provide ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Govt takes action to drive better cancer services
    Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
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    6 days ago
  • Govt takes action to drive better cancer services
    Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Work begins on SH29 upgrades near Tauriko
    Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Work begins on SH29 upgrades near Tauriko
    Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Fresh produce price drop welcome
    Lower fruit and vegetable prices are welcome news for New Zealanders who have been doing it tough at the supermarket, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Stats NZ reported today the price of fruit and vegetables has dropped 9.3 percent in the 12 months to February 2024.  “Lower fruit and vege ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Statement to the 68th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women
    Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all.  Chair, I am honoured to address the sixty-eighth session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
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    6 days ago
  • Speech to the 68th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW68)
    Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all.  Chair, I am honoured to address the 68th session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Government backs rural led catchment projects
    The coalition Government is supporting farmers to enhance land management practices by investing $3.3 million in locally led catchment groups, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “Farmers and growers deliver significant prosperity for New Zealand and it’s vital their ongoing efforts to improve land management practices and water quality are supported,” ...
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    6 days ago
  • Speech to Auckland Business Chamber
    Good evening everyone and thank you for that lovely introduction.   Thank you also to the Honourable Simon Bridges for the invitation to address your members. Since being sworn in, this coalition Government has hit the ground running with our 100-day plan, delivering the changes that New Zealanders expect of us. ...
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    1 week ago
  • Commission’s advice on ETS settings tabled
    Recommendations from the Climate Change Commission for New Zealand on the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) auction and unit limit settings for the next five years have been tabled in Parliament, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “The Commission provides advice on the ETS annually. This is the third time the ...
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    1 week ago
  • Government lowering building costs
    The coalition Government is beginning its fight to lower building costs and reduce red tape by exempting minor building work from paying the building levy, says Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk. “Currently, any building project worth $20,444 including GST or more is subject to the building levy which is ...
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    1 week ago
  • Trustee tax change welcomed
    Proposed changes to tax legislation to prevent the over-taxation of low-earning trusts are welcome, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The changes have been recommended by Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee following consideration of submissions on the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill. “One of the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Minister’s Ramadan message
    Assalaamu alaikum. السَّلَام عليكم In light of the holy month of Ramadan, I want to extend my warmest wishes to our Muslim community in New Zealand. Ramadan is a time for spiritual reflection, renewed devotion, perseverance, generosity, and forgiveness.  It’s a time to strengthen our bonds and appreciate the diversity ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Minister appoints new NZTA Chair
    Former Transport Minister and CEO of the Auckland Business Chamber Hon Simon Bridges has been appointed as the new Board Chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) for a three-year term, Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced today. “Simon brings extensive experience and knowledge in transport policy and governance to the role. He will ...
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    1 week ago
  • Speech to Life Sciences Summit
    Good morning all, it is a pleasure to be here as Minister of Science, Innovation and Technology.  It is fantastic to see how connected and collaborative the life science and biotechnology industry is here in New Zealand. I would like to thank BioTechNZ and NZTech for the invitation to address ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Progress continues apace on water storage
    Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says he is looking forward to the day when three key water projects in Northland are up and running, unlocking the full potential of land in the region. Mr Jones attended a community event at the site of the Otawere reservoir near Kerikeri on Friday. ...
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    1 week ago
  • Government agrees to restore interest deductions
    Associate Finance Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government has agreed to restore deductibility for mortgage interest on residential investment properties. “Help is on the way for landlords and renters alike. The Government’s restoration of interest deductibility will ease pressure on rents and simplify the tax code,” says ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Minister to attend World Anti-Doping Agency Symposium
    Sport and Recreation Minister Chris Bishop will travel to Switzerland today to attend an Executive Committee meeting and Symposium of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Mr Bishop will then travel on to London where he will attend a series of meetings in his capacity as Infrastructure Minister. “New Zealanders believe ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

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