Benefits, wages and anger

Written By: - Date published: 11:51 am, July 31st, 2009 - 69 comments
Categories: capitalism - Tags:

The recent furore about benefit levels has brought a lot of comments along the lines of ” I don’t get it why should they?” out of the woodwork along with a lot of hardluck stories from low wage earners such as this one from Phoenix on Colin Espiner’s blog:

I am 6 months pregnant with my first child. 6 weeks into my pregnancy, my prick of a boss decided to make me redundant, forcing me into a position paying $5 an hour less than my normal rate of pay, I had to move to Chch from Auckland to keep my job, and whats more, he replaced me with someone else about 2 weeks after I had moved! (changed the name of the position of course, but it is the same blinkin job)

I have a partner, he got a job paying $38k a year (before tax), I now earn a pathetic $30k a year, and because of our two incomes, we are not eledgible for any government help.

I felt like I had to stay employed with this company as it would be very difficult to find a job when you are pregnant, especially at the moment with the recession and the lack of jobs out there.

What annoys me here, is I am battling to stay afloat, will be taking the least amount of maternity leave owing so we dont lose any income, and will have to put my child into child care to go back to work while these ladies earn a heck of a lot more than I do for sitting on the benefit.

Perhaps I should have a couple more kids and pretend I am single, to get more money?? Oh yeah, and I did 3 polytech courses, and have already paid back my student loan. No freebies there either….

Apart from the fact Phoenix would clearly have a strong case for a personal grievance which should include reinstatement and maternity leave (join your union!), this comment and the hundreds like it are a constant reminder of how low wages are in New Zealand.

The dark irony is that by calling for beneficiaries to have their entitlements cut, these low paid workers are effectively asking to have more pressure put on them to work harder for less because if they don’t there will be more people lined up to do their job for less. In fact in the 1990’s a constant refrain from bosses during negotiations was “if you don’t like the wages there’s hundreds of people who will.”

What astounds me is that so many people with these hard luck stories are willing to attack other people at the bottom of the pile rather than the people and policies that are oppressing them both.

I guess it shows how effective the New Right’s individualist agenda has been in that rather than see themselves as part of society these people see themselves only as individuals in competition with other individuals.

And while I’m at it there’s a second strain of comment that has come through during this debacle – the one where the commenter talks about how proud they are they are toughing it out and working for SFA. There’s a name for that kind of person and apparently there’s one born every minute.

69 comments on “Benefits, wages and anger ”

  1. ieuan 1

    I doubt that it would be worthwhile for Phoenix to put her child in child care and return to work as her $30K salary would barely cover the cost of the child care.

    Of course once the child is born they will qualify for WFF but living on a $38K salary would be tough.

    You do have to ask two questions:

    (i) How can they not survive on $68K per year between them?

    (ii) Why are they having a child when they don’t have the means to support themselves?

    • IrishBill 1.1

      Right so you are now attacking the victim that was attacking another victim? The right is a real pit of vipers sometimes.

      I’d suggest that when Phoenix got pregnant she didn’t expect to be unlawfully removed from her job.

      I’d also suggest that if Phoenix reads this she should contact an employment lawyer as quickly as possible to ensure she is compensated for this serious breach of her employment rights.

    • Draco T Bastard 1.2

      (i) How can they not survive on $68K per year between them?

      Because $68k is barely enough for one person to live on and participate in the community.

      • Zorr 1.2.1

        ummm… I generally don’t speak up because quite often it seems that my opinion is a little out of whack but here are a couple of my thoughts on this matter, suprisingly, partly in support of ieuan.

        1) Yes, this woman has a case for grievance and should roast her employer over the coals for it.

        2) She is now earning $5/hr less, that is a reasonably large reduction in pay (along with the moving to Christchurch) but would that really make that much of a difference when it comes to having a child?

        3) From my own personal experiences, it doesn’t cost that much to participate in the community. I am a science graduate going for some postgrad qualifications (only way to get a decent job) and currently my wife and I live on ~$420/wk. So that comes to just over $20k a year for a 3 person family. I just bring this up because we participate in our community as much as we feel fit and we are nowhere near this strange magical figure of $68k per person? x_x

        If there is one thing I have noticed about the people around me who complain about their inability to meet their bills it generally boils down to one of two things. Overspending on a regular basis, or overcommitment of resources in the longterm.

        Anyway, this is just a splurge of what is in my head. Feel free to correct me if you will and I will reply… 😛

        • Draco T Bastard 1.2.1.1

          $5/hr = $200/wk = $10400
          I’d say quite a bit.

          Where the hell are you living? In Auckland (where she was living previously) the rent alone would come to nearly $20k/year. It’d be more if you owned the home. And was that 420/wk before or after tax? Other than that, yeah, I probably exaggerated a bit but I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t be by much. Go to the club, have a beer or two, throw in a couple of hobbies and that $68k (before tax) doesn’t go very far.

          • travellerev 1.2.1.1.1

            Euh,

            We have a mortgage, two cars and partake in our community. My husband earns $ 65.000 more or less before tax and I can put $ 300,- dollars a week on average aside.

            We eat Organic, healthy food and don’t scrimp on meat, cheese and other expensive dairy and generally feel quit rich.

            Mind you we do distil our own so that helps I guess.

          • Zorr 1.2.1.1.2

            Draco, we live in Christchurch renting in Cashmere. We are a little lucky in that we have been living here for a long time and the landlord has been very good to us. However we were doing a little shopping round lately (just for interests sake) and we could get a potentially bigger place for less in a lower quality part of town. There -are- reasons why our rent is relatively low… but they are equivalent factors to the reasons why rent is lower in worse parts of town. And as you mention, rent in Auckland is much higher, hence why we don’t live there… 😛

            Plus, if she is working full time before taking maternity leave she can also get a 14 week subsidy from the government for her and her husband for $150/wk additional (from memory).

            As far as our hobbies go, we don’t drink or smoke because we had done enough of that in our youth and looking to live a reasonably healthier life but we do regularly (once or twice a week) go out and have a nice cafe meal or something. We never skimp at the supermarket, we just buy intelligently and generally get our meat and produce elsewhere.

            The only financial issues we actually have are big ticket items as our savings reserves only grow very slowly. But yeah… all on what would work out to $20-25k a year. That $420 is from various government sources so only $340 is taxed.

            One of the disturbing things we have noticed as we have been raising our child (he is nearly 2 now) is that the mums we met through Plunket by and large spent excessive amounts of money on their “little bubs” with them wearing what would probably pass for the “latest in baby fashion”. Not to mention the ridiculous philosophy surrounding baby footwear… x_x.

            We are currently in the progress of having our second and final… and the reason why we are doing it now rather than when we are more financially stable? Because A) we loved having our first one and we want him to have a sibling and B) my wife will be 33 when our second is born… we wanted to breed before she got too old.

            Anyway, such are my brain splurges, Enjoy.

            • Zorr 1.2.1.1.2.1

              Oh yeah,

              Definition of wealth = what you get – what you spend…

              No matter how much you earn, if you consistently spend more than that, you will never end up wealthy. A lesson I learned from watching my parents… x_x

            • Draco T Bastard 1.2.1.1.2.2

              No matter how much you earn, if you consistently spend more than that, you will never end up wealthy. A lesson I learned from watching my parents x_x

              Unfortunately, I think most people don’t learn that from their parents or anywhere. I’d even go so far as to say that business people haven’t learned that which is partly (greatly?) why we now have a credit crises.

  2. Nick 2

    Ieuan, those are the wrong questions to be asking on this blog.

  3. There’s often good that comes out of bad situations.

    If Labour was smarter (the evidence suggests this is not the case) they would realise that the socialist dream they have has to be funded by someone. And there’s not enough rich pricks to fund this vision.

    The problem is not that people are attacking each other.

    The problem is that the safety net idea of social welfare has morphed into a dependency/expectation model.

    Therein lies Labour’s problem. The low paid simply don’t want a bar of the socialist utopia that the left cherishes because someone has to pay for it.

    That’s not to say there is no acceptance of the need for decent support for those in need. The problem naturally arises when those who are paying for it perceive they are worse of than those who are in receipt of it.

    Actually you are wrong IB about one point. The low paid aren’t directly attacking the recipients of the benefits – they are attacking those who created this model. And that’s a real problem for the left.

    • IrishBill 3.1

      “socialist utopia”? You’re kidding, right?

      • Daveski 3.1.1

        No more or less than “secret agenda”.

        In fact, I’d say more so. Goff recently stated that he agreed the market economy was the best way to deliver the social objectives he favoured and this was attacked by many on the left.

        So yes, the model espoused by many here would fall under “utopia” … kind of like dole for millionaires 🙂

        Just to make clear in no way am I victimising those in receipt of welfare. Nor am I victimising those on low wages who wonder pay their taxes.

    • Draco T Bastard 3.2

      Actually, Daveski, it’s the Rich Pricks who are preventing it from working. They really are dependent upon the majority of the population being poor. Of course, they do try to paint it as being the other way around.

  4. Nick 4

    IB, what rights? You don’t kow what rights she had as you, presumably, haven’t seen her employment agreement. And you don’t know whether she was “removed from her job” as a result of her pregnancy at all. I’d suggest the comment by Phoenix is not so much about low wages but rather how we financially encourage women in this country to have kids, not work and rely on benefits as it is more rewarding (see her quote below).

    Perhaps I should have a couple more kids and pretend I am single, to get more money??

    • IrishBill 4.1

      Her rights under the law.

    • snoozer 4.2

      Nick. The Bill of Rights Act prevents discrimination on the grounds of pregnancy. ECA prevents employers disestablishing jobs only to re-establish it under a different name as a way of dismissing a worker.

      That’s just the start of it.

      Our rights are conferred by law, not be contract.

  5. Peter Johns - bigoted troll in jerkoff mode 5

    Like any other pro Lab/Grn site, have all of the facts of this case been brought to light. This is the theme for awhile now, Worthgate, Burgessgate, DPBgate.
    For instance, was Phoenix capable enough for the job she was doing, maybe there were job issues, we do not know fully.

    She’s a Bennett supporter you moron

    • Lanthanide 5.1

      As my ex, who earned $120k a year was just made redundant, I have done a lot of investigation into the legalities of redundancy recently.

      It is illegal to dismiss someone for poor work performance etc using the cloak of redundancy.

      If Phoenix was made redundant, and she was replaced within a couple of weeks by someone doing substantially the same role, that is a breach of the law. If she was made redundant because she was pregnant, or made redundant because of a poor work record etc, that is also a breach of the law.

      If Phoenix was not made “redundant”, then things are entirely different, but we only have her word to go on here that she was “made redundant”.

  6. Nick 6

    It is the Human Rights Act that prohibits such discrimination and it is the ERA, not the ECA.

    But there is nothing in Phoenix’s comment that shows she was made redundant because of her pregnancy. Indeed at only six weeks it is unlikely her boss knew; and unlikely she would have told him so early (but we just don’t know this from the brief facts).

    • IrishBill 6.1

      I didn’t say anything about pregnancy. The key phrase here is:

      “he replaced me with someone else about 2 weeks after I had moved! (changed the name of the position of course, but it is the same blinkin job)”

      If that is an accurate representation of what happened then it is in breach of the law.

  7. insider 7

    Still have low wages after 9 years of a labour government. Bit of an indictment isn’t it? Shows that something had to change.

    When you can earn more from benefits than from working full time don’t expect the people who usually would be Labour voters to have much empathy with the party as it champions beneficiaries causes.

    • IrishBill 7.1

      The wage gap actually started to close under Labour. But I agree, they didn’t do enough and I made that opinion very clear during their time in government.

    • snoozer 7.2

      You can’t solve every problem in 9 years, you can make progress though, and Labour certainly did. You’ve seen the graphs.

      You can only get more on the benefit than working full time in exceptional circumstances – several sick kids to support

    • Derek 7.3

      Yeah it’d be nice if they were even higher than they are now. But really, the dishonesty of your comment is astounding. You know perfectly well that wage growth was strong under Labour, much stronger than it was under National.

      In fact it was your business mates who were complaining for the last few years that wage increases were too high!

      The blame for our continuing low wages falls squarely on the people in charge when they were falling – the Labour Govt of the 1980s and the National Govt of the 1990s.

  8. snoozer 8

    Nick “my prick of a boss decided to make me redundant…he replaced me with someone else about 2 weeks after I had moved (changed the name of the position of course, but it is the same blinkin job)”

    That’s illegal. And the ECA is the labour law in effect. I don’t know when rules against this kind of dismissal came in, but I would think it was around before the ERA

  9. outofbed 9

    Well I, through some pretty horrible circumstances ,have had to take a really low paying job . i currently get $15.50 per hour have to work Saturdays , Sundays and sometimes have to start at 4 am (all for the same rate.)
    It is hard physical ,boring work and pretty soul destroying.
    My income has ,halved (but hey one has to eat)
    The other workers hate the work all are in constant debt. just one step ahead of baycorp
    it is a real eye opener I had forgotten what the slog at the bottom is like

    There is absolutely no chance of higher wages or career advancement for many of the people I work with its a battle of constant debt boredom and disillusionment.
    Luckily i have had a bit of a life ,travelled, sucessfully brought up kids etc but my collegues many of them young with families and unskilled have no chance for advancement whatsoever, apart from lining up on a Saturday for a $ 2.oo lotto ticket for the chance to get out of this strife. a forlorn hope.me thinks.

    They complain bitterly that someone is getting the same as them on a benefit and rightly so., but as i point out it is not that benefit is high, its that they are not getting paid enough,for the work they do (which actually if done incorrectly would have major safety consequences for the travelling public.)
    What to do ?
    I am slowly trying to get them unionised but the are scared of the consequences and many of them couldn’t t even afford that small cost involved
    It is thoroughly thoroughly disheartening

  10. Nick 10

    You’re saying it’s illegal because it wasn’t a redundancy as they re-hired two weeks later; at face value it appears shaky. I accept that part of it.

  11. IB – you do yourself a disservice when you generalise about employers. Not all employers are arseholes. Sure, some give everyone a bad name, but the same applies equally to unionists.

    We’ve had an interesting situation in the last few weeks. One of our employees told us she might have to stop working as her partner had been stuffed around by a former employer who didn’t keep a job open while he was on ACC – she works part-time with us, and because of that earns too much for them to be able to get any support for their large family. We looked at solutions, and have taken him on on a part-time basis. It works for us – he is doing work which we haven’t been able to get to for a while, and it worked for them – there’s a few more bucks to put food on the table. We don’t know if it’s sustainable long-term and we’ve made no promises, but it’s something. And why are we helping? They’re great people, and we believe in them and want to help.

    Most employers have a significant emotional stake in their businesses, and it’s an over-simplification to just say “business = bad”

    • snoozer 11.1

      “you do yourself a disservice when you generalise about employers.”

      where does IB generalise?

      where does IB say “business = bad’

      Oh, you’ve been reading what isn’t there again.

  12. Draco T Bastard 12

    The dark irony is that by calling for beneficiaries to have their entitlements cut, these low paid workers are effectively asking to have more pressure put on them to work harder for less because if they don’t there will be more people lined up to do their job for less.

    Which, of course, is why benefits were cut in the early 1990s and probably why the 5th Labour government didn’t raise them back up. NZBR et al made a large song and dance about career beneficiaries and the need to cut benefits. Apparently, raising wages wasn’t an option.

  13. Adolf Fiinkensein 13

    Why would she want to join a union?

    The young lady could do with the services of a ‘take no prisoners’ private industrial advocate. One of those fellows Adolf hired 28 years ago to ‘negotiate’ a settlement with a prick of an employer who had engineered a sham redundancy. The guy concerned was an ex union ‘heavy’ whose knuckles dragged on the ground. He took my case on for 20% of the settlement with no upfront fees. The prick of an employer settled the day before we were to appear in the employment court.

    The major advantage of this approach for the young lady today is that none of her hard earned cash will find its way into the coffers of the Labour Party.

    • IrishBill 13.1

      20% of a 10k settlement is $2k. That’s about 6 years of union fees. Add to that the fact unionised workers get higher pay rises than non-union workers and you’re really not looking much like an rational economic man there Adolf.

    • Draco T Bastard 13.2

      If she was part of the union in the first place it would’ve been highly unlikely that she would have had to take a pay cut in the thousands of dollars per year and move to Chch (probably at her own expense as well). How much is the union fees? A couple of hundred per year? Seems like a good investment to me.

  14. Adolf Fiinkensein 14

    I think your are bullshitting me here. If unions were so bloody good for ‘the workers’ why do most of them give you the flick?

    Probably because they are smart enough to know most of you are Labour Party activists masquerading as workers advocates. Worker’s aren’t silly. They know a con job when they see one.

    Perhaps you’d like to share some union membership figures and compare them with total numbers in the work force?

    • IrishBill 14.1

      Union members get better pay rises than workers on non-union sites. Union fees range from about $4 a week through to about $10 a week depending on the union.

      You got ripped off for 20% of your settlement.

    • snoozer 14.2

      The unions are the largest democratic organisations in this country with about 370,000 members in total.

      • Adolf Fiinkensein 14.2.1

        Shit eh? You blokes wouldn’t survive long in the real world.

        You’ve got zero competition along with gummint subsidies and you can only manage to attract 370,000 members from 2,182 million people employed?

        It’s time you gave up politicking on the bosses’ time and focused on getting yourself a better monopoly market share than your current lousy 17%.

        Laaaaarrrrfff my bloody arse off.

        • felix 14.2.1.1

          Hey Fink,

          Worker’s aren’t silly. They know a con job when they see one.

          You didn’t. You got ripped off for 20% of your settlement.

          You were even proud of it you fucking sucker.

    • RedLogix 14.3

      Adolf,

      Whereas in Australia the union membership is around 76%. (Another comparison with Australia we are not likely to hear from that nice Mr Key anytime soon either.) The main reason why union penetration is so low here in NZ is that employers are legally permitted to allow non-union employees to piggy-back off the award conditions negotiated by their unionised colleagues.

      By contrast in Australia a non-union employee has to negotiate up front with their employer. This is pretty unsatisfactory for both parties, and especially large employers whose HR dept would much prefer to hammer out a single agreement with a union, than hundreds, maybe thousands of individuals.

      • Swampy 14.3.1

        The main reason why union penetration is so low in NZ is governments got fed up with being held to ransom by Labour party’s union buddies in the 70s/80s and did something about it; and even Labour has never dared return to the closed shops of that era.

      • Ray 14.3.2

        Union membership in NZ is low because Union’s dont offer workers anything of value. Case and point the NDU’s hopeless cake stall response to job loses at LWR. Why would you pay your membership fees if when its crunch time your Union’s response is to bake some cakes and little else?

        If Union’s were actually comitted to getting real gains for workers we’d see higher membership.

        • IrishBill 14.3.2.1

          Under voluntary unionism union members vote on what claims they put up, then they vote on what action to take if their claims are not met by the employer and then they vote on whether to accept whatever offer they get to. In effect the members are the union and union officials are only there to facilitate the process and provide logistical support.

          I don’t know what you mean by “real gains” but whatever union members get they get via their own collective choices. The union is only there to provide the democratic umbrella for their collective action. I find it hard to understand how you can see “unions” to be at fault for not getting these “real gains”. In fact I’m not even sure you know what a union is.

          • Swampy 14.3.2.1.1

            We have not got truly voluntary unionism in NZ and have only had it for short periods of time. It will probably be reintroduced by the National Government for the third time as their predecessors did in 1983 and 1991. Trade unions currently operate in an environment in which they are allowed to form legal cartels which is a strange hypocrisy considering the battery of laws and legal constraints directed against businesses to ensure effective and free competition.

            The fact that after nine years of a Labour government and with the above protections union membership is still very low points to the fact that many people still do not want to hand over their hard earned dollars to the Labour Party’s fundraisers.

            If unions stuck to the basics and kept out of politics they would not be the target of Government policy to the extent that they are. You can hardly expect National to create policy that supports the financial and social base of its major Parliamentary opposition.

            • IrishBill 14.3.2.1.1.1

              We have not got truly voluntary unionism in NZ

              Now I know you don’t know what you’re talking about. Would you care to explain the manner in which unionism in NZ is not voluntary (other than the fact that some employers make life very hard for workers who choose to be in a union).

            • RedLogix 14.3.2.1.1.2

              If unions stuck to the basics and kept out of politics they would not be the target of Government policy to the extent that they are. You can hardly expect National to create policy that supports the financial and social base of its major Parliamentary opposition.

              Can I apply the same logic to Federated Farmers then? What if a Labour govt decided to ‘de-register’ FF, or whack a sodding great levy or tax on farmers who were members, or more insidiously… offered tax breaks to to farmers who were NOT members.

              You would rightly find such behaviour outrageous, yet somehow when the same ‘attention’ is directed to ordinary, non-wealthy working people…. it’s somehow ok.

            • lprent 14.3.2.1.1.3

              In other words, National targets people who oppose it or even disagree with it. I know that you are correct.

              You don’t need to look at unions to see that, just ask Paula Bennett

            • Daveo 14.3.2.1.1.4

              Moron. The reason the National Party was founded was to counter the threat of organised labour. Learn some history, for god’s sake.

              National has always worked to undermine organised labour through legislation in order to increase the profits of their business supporters. That’s why unions generally oppose National and generally support Labour and other parties of the left.

              It’s really pretty basic stuff.

        • Swampy 14.3.2.2

          They offer various things, the problem as I see it is they offer too much, all the cake and the icing and everything… and a big fee.

          Matt McCarten runs Unite on a shoestring, charges a few dollars a week in fees and he is about what all the unions should be about in my view. Just stick to the basics, stop trying to be a welfare service (health benefits and holiday homes) or an empire builder (millions of dollars in assets) or a Labour Party fundraiser (siphoning support from the masses who are not interested in politics).

  15. Luke H 15

    Ha – I wasn’t going to make a comment but the security word is “Granted”.

    As in, leftists take jobs for GRANTED and don’t consider that employers are not all evil pricks, but are forced to make difficult choices by shifts in the market, especially in this economic climate.

    I’m not even going to mention red tape and compliance costs (whoops, I did).

    • snoozer 15.1

      We take our rights for granted and this woman has had hers violated. Actually, people take for them gor granted too often and don’t realise they need to fight for them by joining a union.

    • Draco T Bastard 15.2

      I don’t take jobs for granted but I do question why, after nearly 100 years since the 40 hour week was introduced and all the improvements in productivity, we’re still working more than 40hours per week on average.

      You mean the red tape and compliance costs that are the least in the world right?

      Anti Spam: reason – something the right don’t seem to have any of.

      • Bill 15.2.1

        Why 40 hour week?

        The answer doesn’t change. After WW2, production was outstripping consumption and so to avoid a 4 hour working day and workers having time to lead a life, Capitalism instigated the wonderful dual ideas of built in obsolescence and the fashion industry… to create demand and keep those consumer goods turning over all the while happily, and not incidentally, keeping workers chained to the factory.

        • Draco T Bastard 15.2.1.1

          I was just using the imposition of the 40 hour week as a benchmark both for the time since and the fact that, even though there’s been 200 or 300% increase in productivity we’re still working 40+ hours when we really should be down to 20 or less. I actually think most of the “work” that happens today is make work. As you say, things like built in obsolescence to continue to give all that productivity a purpose.

          • RedLogix 15.2.1.1.1

            That’s a good point Draco. I recall reading somewhere ages ago that pre-Industrial nomadic hunter-gatherers, in a favourable environment, at low population densities, typically worked less than 20 hrs pw to sustain themselves, while still enjoying suprisingly good life expectancies.

            Makes you wonder about so-called progress sometimes.

  16. Swampy 16

    I’m astonished by this post; it comes across as an attack on hard working people, denigrating their industriousness while exalting welfare beneficiaries.

    I bet when any of those benefit were introduced by leftie governments no one said anything about intergenerational welfare dependency or the social underclass created by the poverty of being long term dependent on welfare. The DPB being the most recent example of social engineering of this kind creating an incentive for teenage mothers from the wrong side of the tracks to start solo parent families

    • Draco T Bastard 16.1

      I bet when capitalism was introduced by the capitalists no one said anything about intergenerational poverty and it being a prerequisite condition.

      • Swampy 16.1.1

        Intergenerational poverty comes in many forms. The welfare state perpetuates one of those forms through multigenerational welfare dependency.

        I live in a socially deprived area that has received masses of government grants under Labour who seemed to think if they spent up large on new state houses, redeveloped parks and the like, they would somehow change people’s attitudes. Yet they missed the little things like better street lighting and in a way that is an appropriate metaphor for the fact that they have ignored the necessity to change what goes on inside people’s heads.

        The DPB is one of the least onerous benefits in terms of obligations and the reason it perpetuates poverty is its grossly discriminatory bias against working. Here we have the notion that the mother has a choice of collecting the money and not working, or putting her kids into childcare and working. That’s why the work test should be there from the very beginning of receiving the DPB. In fact a lot of the teenage mums on it should be on the dole instead and the DPB (or the HPB as it is now known) reserved for the really deserving cases.

        • felix 16.1.1.1

          Here we have the notion that the mother has a choice of collecting the money and not working, or putting her kids into childcare and working.

          Big fan of “20 hrs free”, were you Swampy?

  17. Swampy 17

    “What astounds me is that so many people with these hard luck stories are willing to attack other people at the bottom of the pile rather than the people and policies that are oppressing them both.”

    Beneficiaries are in a different league from working people so the attack is quite fair. You need to get your head around the notion that unlimited government handouts creates massive social problems rather than solving them. There is a big difference between a safety net at the bottom of the cliff and a pot of gold at the top.

    There are some women (or men) on the DPB who are there because of circumstances wholly beyond their control like the death of a spouse. The same cannot be said for teenage girls getting pregnant and carrying on ad infinitum, getting non stop handouts for behaving irresponsibly, leaving school with no job skills or academic qualifications and becoming unemployable. Fair game frankly. It’s nonsense to claim these people are being oppressed by the system. It was clearly a bad decision to create this benefit for them for supposed social equality when the welfare dependency it creates has resulted in even greater levels of social deprivation and intergenerational welfare dependency.

    • felix 17.1

      Beneficiaries are in a different league from working people so the attack is quite fair.

      You sound like you’re describing different species.

      What bullshit. You lose your job, you go from being a worker to a beneficiary.

  18. RedLogix 18

    In the meantime I wonder if anyone has considered the veracity of this little spot of ‘intergenerational welfare dependency’.

    According to the title, the Karori home was bought by Mr English and his wife, Mary, for $800,000 in 2003. However, in March this year the title was transferred to Mrs English alone. A spokesman for Mr English said the home was always owned by a family trust.

    Details of Mr English’s expenses were revealed this week in the first public disclosure of MPs’ travel and accommodation costs.

    They show he claimed $23,763 for Wellington accommodation costs in the first six months of the year for living in the Karori house.

    • felix 18.1

      So Bill’s wife is charging us, the taxpayers, 50 grand a year for having Bill in the house?

      Can’t say I blame her for wanting to be compensated – I wouldn’t want him in my house either – but I don’t see why WE should be paying.

      • felix 18.1.1

        *in before righty whingers: “you called Bill’s wife a whore, wah wah!”

        No I didn’t. Grow up.

  19. SPC 19

    Swampy

    1. most women on the DPB are either single parents who have lost their job or they have separated from a working partner (or they left their job when they left their partner/their partner left to look after the children – they could not afford childcare on their income).

    2. If one work tested the DPB where children needed child care – they would only be available for jobs which would provide for the cost of childcare.

    PS

    If the minimum wage was at the level it was in 1990, it would now be $15 an hour ($30,000) not $12.50 ($25,000).

    It should be the campaign of every union where the award is below $15 an hour to make this an issue.

  20. SPC 20

    The key point to note about wages and benefits is that because the minimum wage rose from $7 to $12 in the 9 years of the Labour led government

    1 any worker gets more in the hand ($20,000 any age compared to $10,000 over 25) from work than on the benefit.

    2 and because of this and WFF any worker with children is better off than any beneficiary with children (so much so that poverty amongst children was nearly exclusive amongst families living on benefit income in the 2007-2008 year.

    Otherwise a union campaign for a minimum “award” wage of $15 for all covered by union awards is necessary. This can maintain the pressure on this government to keep increasing the minimum wage each year (unlike their 1990’s policy).

Recent Comments

Recent Posts

  • Bishop scores headlines with crackdown on unwelcome tenants – but Peters scores, too, as tub-thump...
    Buzz from the Beehive Housing Minister Chris Bishop delivered news – packed with the ingredients to enflame political passions – worthy of supplanting Winston Peters in headline writers’ priorities. He popped up at the post-Cabinet press conference to promise a crackdown on unruly and antisocial state housing tenants. His ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 hour ago
  • Will it make the boat go faster?
    Ele Ludemann writes – The Reserve Bank is advertising for a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion advisor. The Bank has one mandate – to keep inflation between one and three percent. It has failed in that and is only slowly getting inflation back down to the upper limit. Will it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 hours ago
  • Bryce Edwards: Is Simon Bridges’ NZTA appointment a conflict of interest?
    Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi The fact that a ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    5 hours ago
  • Is Simon Bridges’ NZTA appointment a conflict of interest?
    Bryce Edwards writes – Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 hours ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' at 10:10am on Tuesday, March 19
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Gavin Jacobson talks to Thomas Piketty 10 years on from Capital in the 21st Century The SalvoLocal scoop: Green MP’s business being investigated over migrant exploitation claims Stuff Steve KilgallonLocal deep-dive: The commercial contractors making money from School ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 hours ago
  • Bernard's six newsy things on Tuesday, March 19
    It’s a home - but Kāinga Ora tenants accused of “abusing the privilege” may lose it. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Government announced a crackdown on Kāinga Ora tenants who were unruly and/or behind on their rent, with Housing Minister Chris Bishop saying a place in a state ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 hours ago
  • New Life for Light Rail
    This is a guest post by Connor Sharp of Surface Light Rail  Light rail in Auckland: A way forward sooner than you think With the coup de grâce of Auckland Light Rail (ALR) earlier this year, and the shift of the government’s priorities to roads, roads, and more roads, it ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    7 hours ago
  • Why Are Bosses Nearly All Buffoons?
    Note: As a paid-up Webworm member, I’ve recorded this Webworm as a mini-podcast for you as well. Some of you said you liked this option - so I aim to provide it when I get a chance to record! Read more ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    9 hours ago
  • Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6.06 pm on March 18
    TL;DR: In my ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Monday, March 18:IKEA is accused of planting big forests in New Zealand to green-wash; REDD-MonitorA City for People takes a well-deserved victory lap over Wellington’s pro-YIMBY District Plan votes; A City for PeopleSteven Anastasiou takes a close look at the sticky ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    21 hours ago
  • Peters holds his ground on co-governance, but Willis wriggles on those tax cuts and SNA suspension l...
    Buzz from the Beehive Here’s hoping for a lively post-cabinet press conference when the PM and – perhaps – some of his ministers tell us what was discussed at their meeting today. Until then, Point of Order has precious little Beehive news to report after its latest monitoring of the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 day ago
  • Labour’s final report card
    David Farrar writes –  We now have almost all 2023 data in, which has allowed me to update my annual table of how  went against its promises. This is basically their final report card. The promise The result Build 100,000 affordable homes over 10 ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago
  • “Drunk Uncle at a Wedding”
    I’m a bit worried that I’ve started a previous newsletter with the words “just when you think they couldn’t get any worse…” Seems lately that I could begin pretty much every issue with that opening. Such is the nature of our coalition government that they seem to be outdoing each ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 day ago
  • Wang Yi’s perfectly-timed, Aukus-themed visit to New Zealand
    Geoffrey Miller writes – Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago
  • Gordon Campbell on Dune 2, and images of Islam
    Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture ...
    1 day ago
  • New Rail Operations Centre Promises Better Train Services
    Last week Transport Minster Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre. The new train control centre will see teams from KiwiRail, Auckland Transport and Auckland One Rail working more closely together to improve train services across the city. The Auckland Rail Operations Centre in ...
    1 day ago
  • Bernard's six newsy things at 6.36am on Monday, March 18
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson said in an exit interview with Q+A yesterday the Government can and should sustain more debt to invest in infrastructure for future generations. Elsewhere in the news in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 6:36am: Read more ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: Wang Yi’s perfectly-timed, Aukus-themed visit to New Zealand
    Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. It is more than just a happy ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    1 day ago
  • The Kaka’s diary for the week to March 25 and beyond
    TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to March 18 include:China’s Foreign Minister visiting Wellington today;A post-cabinet news conference this afternoon; the resumption of Parliament on Tuesday for two weeks before Easter;retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson gives his valedictory speech in Parliament; ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • Bitter and angry; Winston First
    New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters’s state-of-the-nation speech on Sunday was really a state-of-Winston-First speech. He barely mentioned any of the Government’s key policies and could not even wholly endorse its signature income tax cuts. Instead, he rehearsed all of his complaints about the Ardern Government, including an extraordinary claim ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    1 day ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
    1 day ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
    1 day ago
  • Out of Touch.
    “I’ve been internalising a really complicated situation in my head.”When they kept telling us we should wait until we get to know him, were they taking the piss? Was it a case of, if you think this is bad, wait till you get to know the real Christopher, after the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • The bewildering world of Chris Luxon – Guns for all, not no lunch for kids
    .“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
    Frankly SpeakingBy Frank Macskasy
    3 days ago
  • Expert Opinion: Ageing Boomers, Laurie & Les, Talk Politics.
    It hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.”THUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
    3 days ago
  • Manufacturing The Truth.
    Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology – the Internet –  is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
    3 days ago
  • A Powerful Sensation of Déjà Vu.
    Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
    3 days ago
  • Can you guess where world attention is focussed (according to Greenpeace)? It’s focussed on an EPA...
    Bob Edlin writes –  And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago
  • Further integrity problems for the Greens in suspending MP Darleen Tana
    Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago
  • Jacqui Van Der Kaay: Greens’ transparency missing in action
    For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    3 days ago
  • Bernard’s Dawn Chorus with six newsey things at 6:46am for Saturday, March 16
    TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ Herald Thomas Coughlan Simeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • How Did FTX Crash?
    What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    4 days ago
  • Elections in Russia and Ukraine
    Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s six stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15
    TL;DR: Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it:  We want our country to be a ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago
  • National’s clean car tax advances
    The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Government funding bailouts
    Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Two offenders, different treatments.
    See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    4 days ago
  • Treaty references omitted
    Ele Ludemann writes  – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • The Ghahraman Conflict
    What was that judge thinking? Peter Williams writes –  That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
    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
    Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Weekly Roundup 15-March-2024
    It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    4 days ago
  • That Word.
    Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 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
    4 days ago
  • Labour’s policy gap
    It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    4 days ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #11 2024
    Open access notables A Glimpse into the Future: The 2023 Ocean Temperature and Sea Ice Extremes in the Context of Longer-Term Climate Change, Kuhlbrodt et al., Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society: In the year 2023, we have seen extraordinary extrema in high sea surface temperature (SST) in the North Atlantic and in ...
    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
    For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Will the rental tax cut improve life for renters or landlords?
    Bryce Edwards writes –  Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
    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
    Questions need to be asked on both sides of the world Peter Williams writes –   The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
    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
    5 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 ...
    5 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
    5 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
    5 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
    Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
    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
  • There’s a name for this
    Every year, in the Budget, Parliament forks out money to government agencies to do certain things. And every year, as part of the annual review cycle, those agencies are meant to report on whether they have done the things Parliament gave them that money for. Agencies which consistently fail to ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    6 days ago
  • Echoes of 1968 in 2024?  Pocock on the repetitive problems of the New Left
    Mike Grimshaw writes – Recent events in American universities point to an underlying crisis of coherent thinking, an issue that increasingly affects the progressive left across the Western world. This of course is nothing new as anyone who can either remember or has read of the late ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • Two bar blues
    The thing about life’s little victories is that they can be followed by a defeat.Reader Darryl told me on Monday night:Test again Dave. My “head cold” last week became COVID within 24 hours, and is still with me. I hear the new variants take a bit longer to show up ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 13
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Angus Deaton on rethinking his economics IMFLocal scoop: The people behind Tamarind, the firm that left a $500m cleanup bill for taxpayers at Taranaki’s Tui oil well, are back operating in Taranaki under a different company name. Jonathan ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • AT Need To Lift Their Game
    Normally when we talk about accessing public transport it’s about improving how easy it is to get to, such as how easy is it to cross roads in a station/stop’s walking catchment, is it possible to cycle to safely, do bus connections work, or even if are there new routes/connections ...
    6 days ago
  • Christopher's Whopper.
    Politicians are not renowned for telling the truth. Some tell us things that are verifiably not true. They offer statements that omit critical pieces of information. Gloss over risks, preferring to offer the best case scenario.Some not truths are quite small, others amusing in their transparency. There are those repeated ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    6 days ago
  • Funding hole for tax cuts growing by the day
    The pressure is mounting on the Government as it finalises its Budget Policy Statement, but yet more predicted revenue ‘goes missing’. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Climate Commission has delivered another funding blow to the National-ACT-NZ First coalition Government’s tax-cutting plans, potentially carving $1.4 billion off the ‘climate ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • Luxon’s brave climate change promise
    The Government now faces the prospect of having to watch another tax raise the price of petrol when, only six days ago, it abolished the Auckland Regional Fuel tax. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon argued that the regional fuel tax imposed costs on lower-income people with less fuel-efficient vehicles  and that ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    6 days 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
    3 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
    5 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
    5 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
    19 hours 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
    23 hours 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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    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
    Legislation implementing coalition Government tax commitments and addressing long-standing tax anomalies will be progressed in Parliament next week, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The legislation is contained in an Amendment Paper to the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill issued today.  “The Amendment Paper represents ...
    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Government classifies drought conditions in Top of the South as medium-scale adverse event
    Agriculture Minister Todd McClay has classified the drought conditions in the Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts as a medium-scale adverse event, acknowledging the challenging conditions facing farmers and growers in the district. “Parts of Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts are in the grip of an intense dry spell. I know ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    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
    5 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 ...
    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 ...
    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    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,” ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    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. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days 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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    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. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    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
  • Pacific Language Weeks celebrate regional unity
    This year’s Pacific Language Weeks celebrate regional unity and the contribution of Pacific communities to New Zealand culture, says Minister for Pacific Peoples Dr Shane Reti.  Dr Reti announced dates for the 2024 Pacific Language Weeks during a visit to the Pasifika festival in Auckland today and says there’s so ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

Page generated in The Standard by Wordpress at 2024-03-19T02:03:26+00:00