Five headed monster

Written By: - Date published: 9:30 am, October 24th, 2014 - 56 comments
Categories: john key - Tags: ,

Key has so much dirt to try and dodge that his playing slippery has reached a whole new plane. Depending on the political needs of the moment Key may or may not be:

  • Prime Minister
  • The Prime Minister’s Office
  • Leader of the National Party
  • A private citizen
  • That guy who keeps ringing Cameron Slater for no reason at all.

With all due respect to the five-headed monster, I think it’s time for a new version…

five-headed-key-monster300

56 comments on “Five headed monster ”

  1. ankerawshark 1

    brilliant!

    • seeker 1.1

      Agreed -totally brilliant. This is the perfect image of the ‘crittur’ that we have voted in as our Prime Minister. It says so much more than words!

      I’m sure this monster is just an “adolescent” one though. I hope it is soon dispensed with before it really matures!

      *”adolescent” quote was seen as a Guardian headline after Greenwald’s comment on September 15. The headline said something like “New Zealand’s adolescent PM”-can’t find the link at the mo.

  2. Rodel 2

    I’ve often thought two faced but can’t cope with five faced.

  3. vto 3

    all those heads but still no substance.

    they must all be empty

    • lprent 3.1

      They just contain sensory clusters. Unlike large dinosaurs who had the ancillary brain down by the tail, this species of hydra has their real brain under the tail.

    • Treetop 3.2

      “they must all be empty”

      Either that or the five senses (see, hear, touch, taste, smell) are haywire.

  4. Treetop 4

    Irrespective of which hat Key is wearing, there is no excuse for bad judgement or using your position and resources (crown) to evade what you are responsible for and required to do.

    Question time is for questions, not to cower behind the speaker.

  5. philj 5

    But they’re all masks!

  6. blue leopard 6

    It is difficult to see how people would think this type of shite was worth re-electing back into power

    The opposition parties were showing much more sincerity toward addressing the problems New Zealand has to address.

    They were offering way more and better policies to address these issues and for making improvements

    They all show a lot more understanding of the value of democratic processes

    They all show a lot more respect toward the New Zealand public

    …And people voted this useless and degenerate bollocks back in?

    Who are these people who voted this back into government?
    And what were they thinking?

    • b waghorn 6.1

      They are the people that don’t go past the head line , listen past the sound bite and the greedy.

      • blue leopard 6.1.1

        That sounds about right.

        Democracy’s weakness is that of becoming a mob-rule.

        The manner in which the right are propagandizing the public and the weakness that the public are showing toward that propaganda, means all we are achieving is weakening democracy into mob-rule.

        This is truly a disgrace.

        • BM 6.1.1.1

          Christ, what a lot of wailing and nonsense.

          Just because people didn’t vote the way you wanted doesn’t mean democracy has being cheated.

          The fact are, the left didn’t appeal to as much to people as the right, except it and move on.

          • blue leopard 6.1.1.1.1

            How about you prove what I am saying is nonsense, rather than state such without providing justification for your stance.

            Speak to the points I made as to why I believe the left were offering more than the right.

            Provide reasons for what is so shit hot about having a PM that takes no responsibility and fudges issues on a regular basis?

            Prove to me that people didn’t fairly well much do, exactly as B Waghorn outlined?

            Do this without stating the cheap-shit propaganda slogans that were used that is the probable cause of this election result.

            I often am capable of seeing another side of a matter, but on this one, I am waiting for a reasonable justification to be put to me from the other side.

            I have a nasty feeling that the result of this election was more due to powerful spin and lack of skill in countering that spin, (there we are, a criticism of the left for you), than anything to do with thinking about aims, direction, policies or what was best for New Zealand.

            I will take one part of your advice, I will except it – by which I assume you meant take exception to it.

            • BM 6.1.1.1.1.1

              Reasons the left lost.

              1. David Cunnliffe.
              – Sorry for being a man
              -not a leaders arsehole

              2. Hone Harawera and Kim Dotcom
              – Hones the racist Mofo is hated by middle Nz
              – No one liked Mr Fritz trying to buy the election

              3. Winston Peters
              – No one apart from the uninformed idiots wants Peters holding the country to ransom

              4. The Greens.
              -Extremists, could have made up a large portion of government if the left was elected, not liked by vast majority of voters,which is why they only got 10%

              5.Dirty politics.

              • blue leopard

                Thanks for the summary of the propaganda that you are most susceptible to, BM.

                You just highlighted my point.

                • BM

                  What are you going to do when National wins 2017 and probably 2020 as well?

                  • blue leopard

                    I do not like to disappoint, so, I’ll leave that to your wild imaginings, and I do this particularly because wild imaginings is something you appear to enjoy and do so well. (Perhaps that is why you are so susceptible to propaganda?)

                  • McFlock

                    If that comes to pass, then the same thing as when they won last time and the time before: keep slogging away.

                    Because it’s one thing to have a blatantly corrupt government that treats a large number of its citizens worse than you’d treat an animal, simply because propaganda and stupidity get it re-elected.
                    It’s another thing entirely to say nothing while you watch them do it.

              • adam

                I’d like a link to prove Hone is a racist, BM. I think that is the least you could do.

                Because calling someone a racist – you had better back that shit up.

          • b waghorn 6.1.1.1.2

            A person I know well said to me before the election that she knew national where dodgy but was worried about losing two much money with cgt on the 2 rentals she owns .

    • fisiani 6.2

      On the other hand they could have voted for The Cunliffe………..no wait, that would truly be comedy.

    • Murray Rawshark 6.3

      One of my nieces voted for Key. In her case, she’s thick, selfish, greedy, and attention seeking. This used to make her different from most Kiwis. Used to 🙁

  7. Tautoko Mangō Mata 7

     @BM 6.1.1.1.1.1 Some corrections; Reasons the left lost
    1. David Cunliffe- vilified by red neck knuckle-draggers for saying
    “I’m sorry for being a man right now, because family and sexual violence is perpetrated overwhelmingly by men against women and children.”
    -not a leaders arsehole- that would be John Key

    • grumpystilskin 7.1

      I do agree that DC’s statement was taken out of context and edited but here’s some stats.

      (sorry can’t find the link but saved the text earlier in the year)
      From the Otago Daily Times

      Children most often killed by mothers
      Home » News » National
      Tue, 25 Sep 2012
      News: National

      New Zealand mothers kill more children than any other group in society and men are victims of domestic violence as often as women, a police investigation has found.

      The Family Violence Death Review, released today by police, found mothers were responsible for 45 per cent of children killed by domestic violence.

      The review of 95 family violence deaths involving 101 victims between 2004 and 2011 revealed some “inconvenient truths”, Family First national director Bob McCoskrie said.

      He said the statistics debunked the misleading popular perception “that women and children need to be protected from men”.

      “This gender focus is misleading,” Mr McCoskrie said.

      “If we’re really serious about reducing family violence, we need to talk about … our violent culture and the role alcohol and drugs play in fuelling this environment.”

      The police report – which only involved deaths that were subject to a Family Violence Death Review – found:

      • Victims were spread almost equally between men, women and children

      • Mothers killed 15 of the 33 child victims

      • 81 per cent of female victims and 29 per cent of male victims were killed by a former or current spouse or partner

      • 64 per cent of all deaths were in families where police had prior involvement

      • In 55 per cent of child deaths police had prior involvement with the family

      • Most suspects or offenders were aged in their 20s.

      University of Otago Professor David Fergusson, an expert on domestic violence, said the public perception that men were the perpetrators of most domestic violence was the result of biased publicity.

      “The proper message is that both gender groups have a capacity for domestic violence [and] women probably perpetrate more assaults on children then men do,” Mr Fergusson said.

      The ramifications are a public health system that tends to overlook male victims of domestic violence.

      One example was White Ribbon Day, which he had been critical of because it focused on female survivors of domestic violence and there was “no comparable day for male victims”.

      “It is those biases which have been built into our system right the way through it, largely from feminist rhetoric that implies that males are always to blame.

      “The bottom line is the importance of public policy being based on evidence.”

      Mr Fergusson said dealing with child abuse “certainly needs to be a lot more of a priority than it’s given”.

      Education should be the cornerstone for parents, particularly to learn how to cope with the stresses associated with a newborn.

      “I think that by a series of programs targeted at teaching parents better skills, giving them support, we can minimise the risk of child abuse.”

      Labour’s women’s affairs spokeswoman Sue Moroney said the report showed “police must resume reporting full family violence statistics so we can get the full picture”.

      National crime manager Detective Superintendent Rod Drew said police had introduced ways to deal with domestic violence since 2004, including a risk analysis tool.

  8. Tautoko Mangō Mata 8

    Here are some other reports on domestic violence, other than deaths. Of course women have the capacity to engage in domestic violence, but Mr McCoskrie, who has been involved in campaigns against the legislative change that removed the justification of corporal punishment by parents in New Zealand is hardly one to quote on domestic violence issues. People who resort to physical punishment as an automatic response to having their “authority” questioned are not going to be motivated to learn non-violent responses unless the act is illegal.

    http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/10060345/Domestic-violence-stats-buried

    Peter Adams: Gender blind view of violence lets men off the hook
    This article is by Associate Professor Peter Adams School of Population Health, University of Auckland
    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10896956

  9. Doug Stuart 9

    you lost national won get over it

    • Clemgeopin 9.1

      More than us, it is New Zealand that lost in many more ways than one when National won. Think about it.

      • Aerobubble 9.1.1

        National won by not having to compete. The nonsense the media ran after crushed much of the debate. Government need mandates, if they arrogantly assume many frustrated voters gave them a vote, on the basis better the party they know, then Key is in for a ruff time. Key downer. Key flaws are now recognizable. Worn out Key, useless and locked out.

    • One Anonymous Bloke 9.2

      Winning an election makes hiding from Parliamentary scrutiny ok, does it Doug?

      Scraping the bottom of the barrel much?

    • Colonial Rawshark 9.3

      Very few of National’s policies have any electoral mandate as they did not campaign on them.

    • seeker 9.4

      Decent New Zealanders lost, national just won in usual tricky, smeary way, will never get over it until national defested.

      • Clemgeopin 9.4.1

        until national defested
        Yep, that too.

        • seeker 9.4.1.1

          oops meant to be defeated, but you’re right Clem my typo strangely works. Nats being an infestation is just how I felt about this govt. when I saw them bluely blanketing Parliament this week.

        • greywarshark 9.4.1.2

          ‘defested’ that is a very good word for NZs political situation now – just invented by seeker?

          I have found it on google but only at Urban dictionary which used it in an explanation of another usage:
          It was probably supposed to be a faster paced and fun battleground, but more often than not it ends up as a flag humping contest, with people ignoring the objectives and mindlessly running to the flag, which results in bullshit and defest.

          Anything else shown for it seems actually to be a mistake of recognition of an old font which has more flourishes or whatever its called in serif and non-serif etc, and the word actually is defeated.

          • Clemgeopin 9.4.1.2.1

            Nigeria claims to be defested of Ebola now. Cool bananas.
            Obama handled, kissed and hugged an Ebola defested patient today. Good for him…Hope so, anyway!

    • Andrea 9.5

      “you lost national”

      Well, I didn’t.

      But…

      if you have – try looking in a few corporate hip pockets.

      And, if you draw a blank there…

      there are always plenty of ‘special interest’ groups to ask.

      Just not

      ‘hard working New Zealanders’ – nothing but empty wallets in their back pockets.

      Sorry.

      Sort of.

  10. Jrobin 10

    John Key the empty signifier, the archetypal Hollow Man, or is that Hollow Lizard.

  11. greywarshark 11

    I was interested in investigating thisfrom grumpyskilstin’s comment.
    New Zealand mothers kill more children than any other group in society and men are victims of domestic violence as often as women, a police investigation has found.
    The Family Violence Death Review, released today by police, found mothers were responsible for 45 per cent of children killed by domestic violence.

    Also, Mr McCroskie Family First national director commented in a way that pointed the figure at women in a direct and rather hostile way and the whole item seems mother-unfriendly.. Which isn’t helpful to looking at the matter of family violence and who gets hurt and who dies.

    And about the police report on reviews completed by them, these did not cover all family violence deaths over the years in question. It is a selective sample of the deaths.

    I looked at the Family Violence death report to check the actual reported facts.
    In this report from the Family Violence Death Review Committee for December 2011-December 2012 they give thorough statistics.
    http://www.hqsc.govt.nz/assets/FVDRC/Publications/FVDRC-3rd-Report-FINAL-locked-June-2013.pdf

    It is shocking to read that there were 94,000 family violence incidents in 2011. Yet the estimate is that only 18-20% are reported to police. So the deaths are the tip of the iceberg.

    On whether more women than men kill children it shows similar rates:
    In the year reviewed in the Child Abuse and Neglect death cases 50% (9) were killed by men and 44% (8) were killed by women. (Table 7).

    In Figure 9 the highest number of child deaths is 4 per 100,000 for under age one, falling to 2.2 by age five. Mental health issues were mentioned as important aspects leading to events.
    So if mothers could get more help during this time the abuse and death rates could be cut substantially. They are the ones most involved with them. and feel the stress and demands for the baby’s needs alone. It can be very hard and dispiriting, and sleep deprivation can have a harsh effect.

    Among IPV (Intimate Partner Violence) deaths, there were more female victims (69%) than male (31%).
    Males were significantly more often perpetrators (76 percent) of IPV than females (Table 7; Figures 7 and 8).

    In total family violence deaths, 47 perpetrators (66 percent) were male and 21 perpetrators (30 percent) were female. This difference in the gender of perpetrators was statistically significant (Table 7; Figure 8)

    Though there was this note, that the stats are influenced by the range of deaths and other people involved.
    For the family violence deaths that occurred during 2009 and 2010, there was no significant difference in the gender of victims of family violence death overall, although gender ratio did vary by category of death (Figure 7). (ie whether rated as Child Abuse & Neglect CAN, Intimate Partner Violence IPV, or Other which involves other members of the family, and there are some that are outside the strict Family guidelines, involving outsiders.)

    The 78 family violence and family violence related death events in 2009 and 2010 were associated with 91 deaths (see Figures 1 and 2). Of these 91 deaths, 19 fall outside the FVDRC terms of reference.
    These 19 deaths are primarily perpetrator suicides, but there are also suicide pacts, bystander deaths and intervener deaths.

    It is a fraught area of social work. The interplay of relationships within the family and with outsiders, with ex partners, and sometimes murder and suicide acts cause much trauma. This continues after the event, and it is recommended in the report that there be ongoing work with the families left.

    Ethnicity
    The families involved in family violence deaths show a higher rate for Maori perpetrators per 100,000 at 2,13, for Pacific Islanders 1.09 and for other all others is 0.50 -Table 6

    Age
    Note to Table 8. on Age P.42
    There were 22 child victims under 20 years of age, and 50 adult victims (Table 8). Five child victims were under one year of age, and 16 under five years of age.

    Perpetrators were more often in the age band from 20 to 39 years compared to younger or older age categories (Table 9, Figure 10)
    I noticed that nearly all of the partners involved in a death had criminal convictions of some sort.

    McCroskie made a valid point to take note of.
    If we’re really serious about reducing family violence, we need to talk about … our violent culture and the role alcohol and drugs play in fuelling this environment.”

    And University of Otago Professor David Fergusson had further useful advice although he seems determined to undermine women’s efforts to get more attention to their problems by implying that they are hiding their own propensity for violence.

    “The proper message is that both gender groups have a capacity for domestic violence [and] women probably perpetrate more assaults on children then men do,” Mr Fergusson said…
    The ramifications are a public health system that tends to overlook male victims of domestic violence….One example was White Ribbon Day, which he had been critical of because it focused on female survivors of domestic violence and there was “no comparable day for male victims”.

    “It is those biases which have been built into our system right the way through it, largely from feminist rhetoric that implies that males are always to blame.
    “The bottom line is the importance of public policy being based on evidence.”

    Mr Fergusson said dealing with child abuse “certainly needs to be a lot more of a priority than it’s given”.
    Education should be the cornerstone for parents, particularly to learn how to cope with the stresses associated with a newborn….

    It would be wise to help parents, really offer them a generous hand for the first two years of a child’s life, with a lot of coaching, training for respect for others and values, awhi coupled with education about managing naughtiness (not regarding it as a challenge to their authority or malicious) and take the money out of the prisons account.
    Reduce the punishment period and reduce the cost of this incarceration except for violent offenders and serious recidivists.

    This is something that should come at the top of social development, working with parents and turning the lives of people stuck at the bottom around.

    • Tracey 11.1

      we dont like to really help. our society prefers blame and punish. i think it helps many to remain falsely smug about their own lives. ..

  12. Aerobubble 12

    Key the complaint against media privacy invasion.
    Key trust owner fifty thousand.

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    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

  • 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
    5 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
    7 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
    7 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
    21 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
    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 ...
    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
    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 ...
    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
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  • Minister’s Ramadan message
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