In Solidarity with Sony

Written By: - Date published: 4:37 pm, December 20th, 2014 - 98 comments
Categories: Abuse of power, censorship, International, Media - Tags:

Because freedom of speech and expression is something to be protected and censorship is ultimately futile …

98 comments on “In Solidarity with Sony ”

  1. batweka 1

    I’m confused, who are the baddies here?

    • mickysavage 1.1

      North Korea although I wish Sony had not have caved!

      • b waghorn 1.1.1

        Obama’s upped the anti now threatening pay back of an unspecified type

        • Weepus beard 1.1.1.1

          You’re kidding.

          For an email hack on a private company?

          First world problems, eh?

          • b waghorn 1.1.1.1.1

            6 years ago I truly believed Obama would change the world for the better. . sigh!

            • Weepus beard 1.1.1.1.1.1

              He’s not been good.

              A terrible orator. Sounds like he’s reading advertising copy when he speaks.

              As for not being able to reform health and reign in US global hegemony, well there’s a lot of racist rednecks to appease over there and he’s up against it.

              • b waghorn

                I don’t fully understand there political system but it seems bonkers for the people of America to elect Obama and then cripple him by giving his opponent s the power.

                • Weepus beard

                  I don’t understand their political system either. Who would want to apart from Leighton Smith?

                • Lanthanide

                  “but it seems bonkers for the people of America to elect Obama and then cripple him by giving his opponent s the power.”

                  Don’t you think left-wingers in NZ would vote in a counter-balance to National if they could?

                • Colonial Rawshark

                  I don’t fully understand there political system but it seems bonkers for the people of America to elect Obama and then cripple him by giving his opponent s the power.

                  I think the American people intuitively get that both major parties act to the detriment of most Americans, and primarily for the benefit of major banks and corporations.

                  So introducing maximum gridlock into the political system to slow down the rate at which damage can be done to the people, is actually a pretty sensible strategy.

                  BTW Obama has been a worse destroyer of civil rights and abrogator of international law than GW.

                • b waghorn

                  the left wingers would have to convince enough people who voted for the right to change sides wouldn’t they

      • Weepus beard 1.1.2

        In the same way you must have been unhappy when TVNZ sacked Paul Henry.

      • batweka 1.1.3

        ok, so we’re taking the US govt’s word that NK are responsible for the hack/threat, and that the threat was credible?

  2. Weepus beard 2

    Larry Williams had a benighted crack at this the other day. The thrust of his argument was to equate the evil NK hack of Sony with the equally evil and militant left wing hack of Slater’s emails as if some angelic innocent victim had been wronged.

    The fact is, today, if you practice pure hate-speech (Slater), or international satire (Sony’s film and the Jyllands-Posten cartoons of a few years ago), you had better watch out for some backlash.

    BTW, free speech is not allowed in China yet we all bow with appalling hypocrisy before their economic might.

  3. Agree with notice and features. A bit like the modern day equivalent of the BBC banning God save the queen.

    Question have to be asked of N Korea’s true motive. It’s not like they’re going to let their people see the film, and many think of kim lil dong as a loony dictator anyway, so why the hacktivism?

  4. joe90 4

    I’m feeling the love for the American subsidiary of a Japanese multinational.
    /

  5. joe90 5

    In other news: Empire threatens Alderann-like massacre if new Star Wars released.

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/B5RA-r9IUAAIR6R.jpg:large

  6. Bill 6

    The North Korean complaint to the UN on July 10 ran To allow the production and distribution of such a film on the assassination of an incumbent head of a sovereign state should be regarded as the most undisguised sponsoring of terrorism..

    http://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/dec/18/sony-hack-the-interview-timeline

    Some may think that reasonable and some may scoff at it.

    But what if it was Barack Obama being assassinated in a movie slated for widespread commercial release? What would he (B.O.)and the US admin be saying then? Or what would those who would scoff at the N.Korean UN complaint say then?

    Or what if there was a video game slated for general release where the idea was to assassinate Barack Obama? Still freedom of speech? Or is that inciting violence and possibly terrorism?

    Bringing it closer to home and down many, many levels, when I used the throwaway phrase here the other day, that someone ‘needed a bullet’, which obviously didn’t mean that anyone ought to be actually shot, that part of the comment was edited out.

    Anyway. I reckons… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYSnZRDe7h4

    • The Al1en 6.1

      Like day of the Jackal? Did it get De Gaulle all stroppy back in 1973? Well not him, since he was dead already, but the French government at the time.

      “what if it was Barack Obama being assassinated in a movie slated for widespread commercial release? ”
      “Or what would those who would scoff at the N.Korean UN complaint say then?”

      Exactly the same over here as about this one, though lil dong probably wouldn’t figure in it.

      • batweka 6.1.1

        A drama film made in 1972 about a planned assassination of a president who is already dead in RL, and made by a country that’s an ally, it’s not quite the same is it.

      • Bill 6.1.2

        Like day of the Jackal?

        No. Not like ‘Day of the Jackal’, that took actual events and then offered up a fictionalised post assassination plot. Also, as you point out, De Gaulle was already dead by the time of the book publication and the subsequent film adaptation.

        Day of the Jackal corresponds more with historical portrayals of attempts on the life of Hitler or other already dead people.

        Just absently wondering how many people have had comments alluding to assassination from facebook used against them by so-called anti-terror agencies, and yet here we have a Hollywood studio doing it on steroids. Actually, wasn’t somebody grilled in court and labelled as some sort of terrorist or danger to society for saying something along the lines of how they wanted to drop a bus on John Key?

        • batweka 6.1.2.1

          not to mention the people in the Tuhoe raids who allegedly said they wanted to kill Helen Clark and the police took that seriously.

          • b waghorn 6.1.2.1.1

            tama iti was runnning around the bush with guns that was enough reason to go get him and see what he was upto.

            • batweka 6.1.2.1.1.1

              His name is Tame, and no I don’t think running round in the bush with guns was reason for the terrorism charges. Besides, afaik he’s not the person who was caught on surveillance joking about killing Helen Clark.

              • b waghorn

                While i don’t see Tame as a threat it’s something that needed nipping in the bud , btw the i am in no way condoning the insane level of the cops behavior.
                I had a little batch in tuai at the time and my neighbour got turned over .!

                • batweka

                  People joking about killing the PM needs nipping in the bud? Really?

                  If the cops wanted to look at the firearms issue they could have asked to see Iti and co’s licence. Everything else was bullshit.

                  • b waghorn

                    No playing out gun fantasies in bush needs nipping in the bud and as i said the cops went over the top .

                  • b waghorn

                    the rolling round on car bonnets footage

                    • greywarshark

                      What I’d like nipped in the bud is the exciting spotlighting at night close to public or private areas where they it is actually banned. A real life killing took place a few years ago as someone cleaned her teeth outside a hut. That’s manslaughter and egregious because the shooter should not have been operating in that area.

                      Then the killing of animals on farms in meat hunting or rustling operations, the perps probably have firearms. A not-accident waiting to happen. Tuhoe running round their own areas with guns is hardly a notable event. As far as the Tuhoe raid goes, I think the operatives had been told to look closely for a suitable place for a raid and they could hang one on Tuhoe. A practice run. To fit in with other maneouvres of an international forces nature in Timaru. So there would be a state of readiness by all forces if anything did happen I suppose. The scenario set up for the Timaru get-together was interesting.
                      And gave an idea of what could occur.

                    • tracey

                      wasnt that rickard, former police officer?

        • The Al1en 6.1.2.2

          So not like the day of the jackal, fair enough.

          What about ‘Johnny English’ with it’s plot to steal the crown jewels and replace/kill the Queen? That’s got to be the same hasn’t it?

          Edit: Actually don’t think it is about a plot to assassinate E2R, but usurp.

          • The Al1en 6.1.2.2.1

            But this should qualify and upset no one on here.

            http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_a_President_%282006_film%29

            “Death of a President is a 2006 British high concept mockumentary political thriller film about the fictional assassination of George W. Bush, the 43rd U.S. President, on 19 October 2007 in Chicago, Illinois.”

            I think we can call this one busted.

            • batweka 6.1.2.2.1.1

              who made it?

              • The Al1en

                Google is your friend, but

                Directed by Gabriel Range
                Produced by Gabriel Range Simon Finch Ed Guiney Robin Gutch
                Written by Gabriel Range Simon Finch
                Starring Hend Ayoub Brian Boland Becky Ann Baker
                Music by Richard Harvey
                Cinematography Graham Smith
                Edited by Brand Thumim
                Production company FilmFour Borough Films
                Distributed by Optimum Releasing (UK) Newmarket Films (U.S.)
                Release dates 10 September 2006 (Toronto Film Festival)
                9 October 2006 (UK TV)
                27 October 2006 (U.S.)
                Running time 93 minutes
                Country United Kingdom
                Language English, Arabic
                Budget $2,000,000[1]
                Box office $869,352[2]

                • batweka

                  google likes to pretend it’s my friend but it’s really not.

                  So, a film made by the US and its allies about killing its own president. Still not the same is it.

                  • The Al1en

                    Film about the assassination of a sitting leader is apparently the issue. This production nails that.

                    • batweka

                      You think if the film was about assassinating Obama that the US govt would have hacked Sony*? Who made the film, and which country the president is in is entirely pertinent.

                      *ok, yeah, bad example, but I’m sure you get the point about the difference between allies and non-allies.

                    • The Al1en

                      I don’t know, maybe. They probably would have definitely released a statement exclaiming poor taste, though I’d imagine tea party members would be the first to express their dissatisfaction if the film was going to be prohibited from screening.

          • Bill 6.1.2.2.2

            How’s about a film was made in Pakistan that was a piss take on some Pakistani journos assassinating Narendra Modi?

            More to the point, what about the rank hypocrisy of people in power, who seek to slam their own citizens in jail for no more than making jokes on facebook, getting all high and mighty when an official enemy takes umbrage at a popular film that seeks to take the piss out of the assassination of their head of state?

            • The Al1en 6.1.2.2.2.1

              I don’t care about that or Rogen’s film, it’s others than are getting pissy and wanting to censor film content.
              Should the N Korean’s react the way they did, sure, if it bothers them that much, though I don’t believe artists should have topics that are off limits, even if some find those limits offensive.

              • batweka

                who exactly want’s the censor film content? Apart from Sony.

                • The Al1en

                  Everyone who says that the film’s plot is a reason for the film not being distributed or even being made in the first instance. That’s censorship.
                  And sony says it wants to release but theatres are backing out because of the threats of retribution.

                  • batweka

                    “Everyone who says that the film’s plot is reason for the film not being distributed.”

                    That doesn’t make sense. That’s people observing what is happening. You seem to think that there are people who are pissy about the film and want it censored. Apart from the hackers and Sony, who would that be exactly?

                    • The Al1en

                      Yes it does. Makes perfect sense.

                    • batweka

                      That’s people observing what is happening. You seem to think that there are people who are pissy about the film and want it censored. Apart from the hackers and Sony, who would that be exactly?

                    • The Al1en

                      Nope. I’m observing what’s happening and yet I’m not guilty of backing censorship, because even though I see the same reports, I don’t agree with it [censorship].
                      Those who say ‘the film should never have been made’ or ‘the film should not get a release’, because of it’s plot line, are agreeing with the N Korean narrative, and reinforcing censorship as it’s their intention to block it’s release.

                    • batweka

                      Yes, but I’m still not clear who you are hearing say that?

                    • The Al1en

                      You weka, it’s you. I’m hearing you say it 🙄

                      But there are a couple at the bottom of this page that agree with censorship based on the content of this film which validates my position.

                      And you weka, it’s you 🙄

                      😆

                    • batweka

                      and yet I made a comment below* that I’m not suggesting censorship of the film.

                      Maybe you are using the term censorship differently than me, I mean that someone in a position of power prevents the film from being shown (Sony, the US govt). Sony censored the film. I don’t have an opinion about that really because I don’t know how credible the threat was.

                      * eg where I say specifically “This isn’t an argument for censorship,”

                    • The Al1en

                      “Maybe you are using the term censorship differently than me,”

                      Yeah, I’m sure that must be it.

                      Sony haven’t censored the film at all. The film isn’t being shown because theatres are scared to play it because of threats of retribution. If that isn’t censorship by intimidation then you’ll have to google to try and find a better definition of it.

                      ————————————————————————————————-

                      ^ That’s me drawing a line under it. If we’re at a place where we can’t even agree on what constitutes censorship, then I’d rather be playing with the xmas present I bought myself today than going any further with this little game.

                      :halo: 🙂

                    • batweka

                      I don’t know why Sony withdrew the film. But let’s say for the sake of argument the threat was credible, then I agree they were coerced into censorship (as you have just said).

                      I still haven’t said I think the film should be censored for other reasons though, and you are misreading my comment below if that’s what you think I meant. Asking for clarification always seems to work better than making assumptions. And if you had pointed to me the first time I asked, then we might have gotten somewhere more interesting. Just saying.

              • Bill

                So okay, can we move on from the tittle tattle and on to the double standards at play by ‘our’ leaders in all of this?

                They sanction the cops to bash down the doors of kids for not much else than jokes written on facebook. Our media report on some of it with (laughably) a straight face, as though there is something to be answered for.

                And now we have them doing a 180 turn and wanking on about freedom of expression.

                The issue isn’t the film, or what is in the film, or why Sony have withdrawn distribution, or whatever threats might have been issued by whomever. The issue is that ‘our leaders’ lead far too much of public opinion by the nose and no-one ever questions the fucking glaring inconsistencies in their attitudes. But hey…

  7. xanthe 7

    cmon we all know it was kim

  8. Macro 8

    I’m with bill on this. IMHO the film was crap and offensive and could well be taken as an inducement to assassination by misguided individuals, and there are plenty of them about these days, as the US well knows to it continual cost.
    We live in the “age of stupid” and this film is the epitome of it. So I have no problems with it being canned. Good riddance. Freedom of speech also brings with it responsibilities about what we say, and how we say it.

    • b waghorn 8.1

      Can i ad that to my knowledge none of the other movies mentioned here plotted to kill a president while he was still in office.

      • Macro 8.1.1

        One would have thought that the US in particular would have been more sensitive to this issue. It wasn’t until relatively recently that if you were a President elected to office in a year divisible by 20 your chance of dying in office either by assassination or natural causes was 100%.

      • nadis 8.1.2

        Death of a President released in 2006, about GW Bush (PResident to 2008).

        When released (and shown in the US) the White House declined to comment on it.

    • batweka 8.2

      I also can’t help thinking about the plethora of films from Hollywood studios that consistently misportray countries and cultures outside the US, esp films that are political in nature, and where those misportrayals reinforce US prejudices about the rest of the world, or actively promote US hegemony. And do this in a world where the US’s foreign policy has been fucking with the international stage for its own political, cultural and financial ends.

      We can argue the freedom of speech thing but eventually we get to a point where we have to acknowledge that Hollywood influences culture domestically and globally, and in that influence it is perpetuating cultural imperialism. This isn’t an argument for censorship, but I can understand why eventually some people are going to get sick of it and take things too far. In the west we might argue that it’s just entertainment, but not everyone has the same cultural values. If the US and the west want globalisation then they need to understand they don’t get to control everything and as you say Macro, there are responsibilities that go with the freedom.

    • Rodel 8.3

      Macro I agree.Sony and the US belief they have a right to this kind of so called ‘free speech ‘ is in my view an illustration of an amoral and arrogant attitude present in some sections of American culture.

      To paraphrase Pam Corkery some years ago,”that’s why we love you uncle Sam.”

  9. Weepus beard 9

    Well said Rodel. Free speech is all fine when you control the speech. Not so much otherwise.

  10. Tom Jackson 10

    Making an offensive movie about the leader of a country that has not hesitated in the past to use terrorism to punish its enemies is not a good idea. The North Koreans aren’t going to take it as a joke, and they don’t really have a lot to lose. The North Koreans are also inclined not to make much of a distinction between what US companies do and what the US government does (they might be on to something there). This was a diplomatic disaster.

    Sony Pictures put its employees in harm’s way by making this movie. It was a phenomenally stupid idea.

  11. One Anonymous Bloke 11

    Did Salman Rushdie deserve it too?

    That’s the argument, isn’t it? That saying something that might upset psychotic right wing trash makes their psychotic reaction your fault.

  12. I support freedom of speech like no other but again this might not be what it seems.

    First of all North Korea denies that hacking attack and is in fact offering a joint investigation into where they really came from and secondly it seems to be used to push for massive injunctions against freedom of speech and more monopolizing of cultural expressions with copyright laws.

    • One Anonymous Bloke 12.1

      I suspect making death threats against cinema goers and screenwriters is exactly what it looks like, no matter the source: someone doesn’t like this free speech, and wants it to stop.

      Unless you’re going to argue that bad people don’t deserve the UDoHR, that is. The character (or otherwise) of the speakers is irrelevant.

      • travellerev 12.1.1

        Oh, I agree with you but you might want to follow the money or Hui Bono. Sony and fellow big amusement industry corps have been wanting to sew up the amusement industry with their copy right laws for a very long time (Kim Dotcom knows all about that) and this is being used to do just that. Thing is if they can blame it on North Korea the sheeple will follow where ever they are led. So who hacked Sony?

  13. No1kiwi 13

    You guys are all assuming this hack was done by the North Koreans.

    How do you know this?

    Because the merican government said so….LOL.

    This is the same guys who said Iraq had WMD…LOL.

    I would not believe a word the US Government said..especially not the FBI, or the CIA.

    The hack was most likely a disgruntled employee…an inside job.

    PS. The Movie is inflammatory, and reckless. Free speech has consequences.

  14. hoom 14

    Nup Fuck Sony. I got no sympathy on this.

    This whole hacks & threats thing screams marketing campaign/propaganda via CIA black-ops or something.

    The idea that NK would have the capability of taking down a big film studio in such an obviously Hollywood way is pretty much ludicrous.

    I mean if there was any indication that the contents was somehow actually important artistically or as commentary on the current state of NK or even USA, then by all means but I’ve seen nothing indicating that to be the case.

    As someone said on RNZ, a movie that was almost guaranteed a cinema flop is now essentially guaranteed a huge DVD/BR release.

    • One Anonymous Bloke 14.1

      The idea that NK would have the capability of taking down a big film studio in such an obviously Hollywood way is pretty much ludicrous.

      That’s some lovely shiny prejudice you got there. North Koreans can’t code?

      • hoom 14.1.1

        North Korea has a very low number of computers, extremely limited internet (physical infrastructure, state control of content & very likely death for being caught hacking)

        A quick google shows there are under 3,000 IPs assigned to North Korea.

        Its about the least likely place in the world to have bred a bunch of master hackers.

        • One Anonymous Bloke 14.1.1.1

          Oh, do they breed? I thought they learn those sorts of skills at Westminster University.

        • batweka 14.1.1.2

          hoom, do you think the NK government has no IT specialists skilled enough for this?

          • hoom 14.1.1.2.1

            Well they are much more likely to be found in countries with largely unrestricted internet access in the millions…

            • One Anonymous Bloke 14.1.1.2.1.1

              That’s where the truth lies, right down here in the gut. Do you know you have more nerve endings in your gut than you have in your head? You can look it up. Now, I know some of you are going to say, “I did look it up, and that’s not true.” That’s ’cause you looked it up in a book. Next time, look it up in your gut. I did. My gut tells me that’s how our nervous system works.

              Stephen Colbert.

  15. Bill 15

    Just been skim reading across the web on this and am wondering if people are rolling across the floor clutching their sides…somewhere in Beijing.

    What a nice riposte to all the US web based sabotage and snooping it would represent, if indeed, N.Korea’s main sponsor proved to be behind all this malarkey.

    Like I said up thread, it’s not the film or its contents that I see as the issue, but the contortions being undertaken by the US admin as it seeks to gain moral high ground in the presence of a void.

    • batweka 15.1

      The one I’m finding interesting is Obama coming out saying Sony was wrong to pull the movie, and in the next breath saying the internet is the wild west and needs to be controlled more 🙄

      (apparently the US movie industry is about to do another big push to legally remove net neutrality)

  16. Morrissey 16

    “In solidarity with Sony”?!!??!?

    You must have a screw loose. You cannot be serious. Sony, in case you’ve been in a Hobbit Hole for the last two years, is a part of the gang attacking Kim Dotcom….

    The record labels are understood to be Warner Music, UMG Recordings, Sony Music and Capitol Records, while the film companies are 20th Century Fox, Disney, Paramount, Universal, Columbia Pictures and Warner Brothers.

    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11270566

    • Murray Rawshark 16.1

      Pretty much my thoughts as well. I bet the film isn’t funny either. I’d expect 90 minutes of racist stereotypes.
      I suspect the whole bloody thing is a marketing ploy anyway.

  17. Rolf 17

    You need to ask yourself too i war propaganda, sedition, and defamation is part of free speech, and if not, where is the boundary. Obviously the film has been found seriously insulting to another country and that country’s leader.

    • One Anonymous Bloke 17.1

      …insulting…

      Um, yeah, and so is any decent comedian worth their salt. Your point is?

      • RedLogix 17.1.1

        Even comedians know there are some places you shouldn’t go. As more than a few jesters have found just after their head got handed to them.

        • One Anonymous Bloke 17.1.1.1

          Cruel despots have also been known to suffer similar fates.

          When they came for the comedians, I spoke out, even though I’m not a comedian 😉

  18. tracey 18

    I am still trying to understand why so many people said hager was exploiting stolen emails but all our major media pounced on the hacked/stolen sony emails to sell their press ads and space.

  19. xanthe 19

    There is really no evdence apart from FBI say so that NKorea sponsored the hack. There are however very good reasons why sony would promote that myth. They are faceing huge civil damages for lax security of employees personal data. Look at the timeline of the hack and releases of info. There was no wiff of geopolitical motive but a strong theme of corporate overreach untill suddenly it was all about some low budget “comedy”. This is damage control (by increasing the damage!)

    • One Anonymous Bloke 19.1

      So that’s drawing quite a long bow, assuming Sony has that much control over the FBI. You’d have to assume the evidence for said control would be part of the hack, eh.

  20. Draco T Bastard 20

    This guy asks an important question.

    • RedLogix 20.1

      SONY is no longer just a Japanese corporation – it’s a global one and as such operates very much within the US sphere of influence.

  21. Phil 21

    Scott Adams makes some good (and some long-bow) points on this.

    It’s not the Job of Sony to protect the american constitution. It’s also also not their job to put the lives of their employees, and the lives of their clients and associates employees, in unnecessary danger.

    http://dilbert.com/blog/entry/sony_and_the_hackers/

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    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
    17 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
    17 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
    17 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
    18 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
    19 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
    21 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
    1 day 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
    2 days 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
    2 days 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
    2 days 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
    2 days 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 ...
    2 days 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 ...
    2 days 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
    2 days 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
    2 days 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
    2 days 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
    2 days 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 ...
    2 days 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 ...
    2 days 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
    3 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
    3 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
    3 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
    3 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
    4 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
    4 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
    4 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
    4 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
    5 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
    5 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
    5 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
    5 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
    5 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
    5 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
    5 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
    5 days ago
  • The Hoon around the week to March 15
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Labour’s policy gap
    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
    5 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
    6 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
    6 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
    6 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
    6 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
    6 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 ...
    6 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
    6 days ago
  • No, Prime Minister, rents don’t rise or fall with landlords’ costs
    TL;DR: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • Cartoons: ‘At least I didn’t make things awkward’
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
    6 days ago
  • Solving traffic congestion with Richard Prebble
    The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    6 days ago
  • I Think I'm Done Flying Boeing
    Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago
  • Invoking Aristotle: Of Rings of Power, Stones, and Ships
    The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
    6 days ago
  • Van Velden brings free-market approach to changing labour laws – but her colleagues stick to distr...
    Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • Why Newshub failed
    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

  • Government moves to quickly ratify the NZ-EU FTA
    "The Government is moving quickly to realise an additional $46 million in tariff savings in the EU market this season for Kiwi exporters,” Minister for Trade and Agriculture, Todd McClay says. Parliament is set, this week, to complete the final legislative processes required to bring the New Zealand – European ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    10 hours ago
  • Positive progress for social worker workforce
    New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    15 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
    17 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
    17 hours ago
  • NZ and Chinese Foreign Ministers hold official talks
    Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Kāinga Ora instructed to end Sustaining Tenancies
    Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Speech to Auckland Business Chamber: Growth is the answer
    Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Singapore rounds out regional trip
    Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships.      “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Minister van Velden represents New Zealand at International Democracy Summit
    Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 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
    5 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
    5 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
    5 days ago
  • Early visit to Indonesia strengthens ties
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asia’s most populous country.   “We are in Jakarta so early in our new government’s term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • China Foreign Minister to visit
    Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week.  “We look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealand’s ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Minister opens new Auckland Rail Operations Centre
    Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. “The recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Auckland’s rail agencies work together to ...
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    5 days ago
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