Jackal: A coalition with Winston Peters

Written By: - Date published: 3:54 pm, September 14th, 2014 - 79 comments
Categories: election 2014, john banks, john key, national, nz first, winston peters - Tags: ,

The Jackal-squareReposted from The Jackal

I’m not sure how to break the news to all those desperate right wingers out there wanting the NZ First party to form a coalition government with National, but, despite the mainstream medias misleading coverage, it doesn’t look like a realistic scenario at all.

NZ First leader Winston Peters and Green party co-leader Russel Norman.

It appears that on current polling, and without Winston Peters’ help, National’s dreams for a third term in power look set to be dashed against the rocks of public opinion.

Never say never though so let’s go back in time a bit and revise some history showing why it’s highly unlikely Peters will get into bed with the political contortion artist, John Key:

On January 22, One News reported:

Winston Peters not grabbing John Key’s olive branch

Asked if he could hold a ministeral warrant alongside Mr Dunne, Mr Peters said: “This comes down to the country’s leadership. And if a leader has that sort of unprincipled position it would be almost untenable to be able to deal with a government.”

Not working with Peter Dunne appears to be a bottom line for Winston.

“This is no time to start jacking up the election results like some tin pot military dictatorship where the general election results always favour the generals.”

Peters calls Key’s administration a “tin pot military dictatorship” for trying to jack up the election. Nice! He was clearly still pissed off about the smear campaign that the right wing had been running against him, a smear campaign likely orchestrated directly by the National party itself.

Of course Peters was eventually cleared of any wrongdoing, but by then the damage was done. What I’m trying to say is that the National party and their attack bloggers Dirty Politics won’t have been forgotten by Winston Peters.

However, what about John Key’s thoughts on Winston Peters? Is there any room for the corrupt PM to wriggle his way back into power?

On February 2011, the NZ Herald reported:

PM rejects post-election coalition with Peters

Mr Key said although it could cost National the election, he would not work with Mr Peters. It was up to voters to decide who they wanted in government and he wanted his position to be clear.

“If Winston Peters holds the balance of power it will be a Phil Goff-led Labour government.”

Around the same time Key also said:

“I want to lead an aspirational Government, I don’t believe a Winston Peters Government does that.”

“I’m about tomorrow – not yesterday.”

I guess that was all about getting voters to not support NZ First in the hope they would instead support National, so obviously the wily old fox was a bit pissed off about that as well. He was however rather diplomatic on that occasion concerning John Keys’ insults:

“New Zealanders don’t take kindly to being told what they’ve got to do, particularly when they’re the masters come election day.”

Voters especially didn’t take kindly to John Key and John Banks talking about NZ First supporters dying off. Here’s a little excerpt from the teapot tapes, which clearly display exactly what Key really thinks about older people:

Yeah, yeah, yeah, that’s, but no, no, not a show. He, look, he’s at 2.5 I think on the TV3 poll, we have him about 2.5, 3. Look, he polled 4 last time, he’ll poll 3 this time, a lot of his constituents have all died. He won’t poll, I don’t think he’ll poll much above 3 this time.

John Key was amused that NZ First supporters were dying. This clearly shows he has no principles, which, despite his previous criticism, is why the PM is now giving the glad eye to Winston Peters.

Personally I don’t think Peters will have a bar of it. Not just because those who continue to support NZ First because of the teapot tape scandal would look elsewhere, but because of his other bottom lines.

On September 10, Tim Watkin over at Pundit reported:

Winston Peters: His six bottom lines

But let’s not pretend Peters has only just started positioning himself. I’ve been keeping a running tally of Peters’ “bottom lines” this year, and they are:

New Zealand First won’t work in a coalition with a “race-based party”.

New Zealand First will block the sale of Lochinver Station (“we would not allow this deal”), demands a register of land sales to non-New Zealanders and further, “we will not go into any arrangement with any party that thinks they can go on doing this [foreign land sales]. That’s it.”

New Zealand First could not offer even confidence and supply to a party that didn’t agree to a royal commission into the Dirty Politics allegations.

New Zealand First insists on a state asset buy-back programme that begins now, not in years to come. More specifically, he has a bottom line that the power companies part-sold last year must be bought back. “If either side prefers to sell out New Zealand’s long-term heritage, then they can line up and find their own support”.

New Zealand First wants a public KiwiSaver fund (It’s calling it KiwiFund). Peters said it’s “most definitely” a bottom line.

New Zealand First says generally immigration must come down, and specifically that new migrants must move into the regions for up to five years. That’s also a bottom line, Peters has said.

Clearly the National party isn’t going to agree to at least half of those conditions and Winston is unlikely to compromise, which would rule out any type of coalition deal with NZ First.

In my opinion, Winston Peters has a lot to lose if he makes a deal with Key and everything to gain if he makes a deal with Cunnliffe. The political divide between NZ First and Labour is a lot less pronounced than with National. Also, with compromises to policy likely to be acceptable to their supporters, a coalition between NZ First and Labour looks like a workable solution.

A Labour led government with NZ First on the right and the Green party on the left would be a very stable and moderate administration dedicated to all the things that New Zealanders believe in. Far from being an uncontrollable multi-headed hydra, Labour and their coalition partners would bring years of experience and newfound enthusiasm to the table.

The only real question is who’s going to be Deputy Prime Minister?

 


lprent: The results of a series of Horizon online polls would also appear to make it a party losing proposition to support National.

7th August 2014

A new HorizonPoll finds 58.8% of those intending to give their party vote to New Zealand First would prefer Labour to lead a coalition government if one is needed after the election.

41.2% would prefer a National-led coalition.

 2nd September 2014 – after Dirty Politics was released

67% of those who voted for New Zealand First at the 2011 general election would prefer Labour to lead a coalition government if one is needed after September 20’s general election.

The majority preference for a change of Government among the party’s voters underscores the “difficult” decision making party leader Winston Peters says he will face.

The sample sizes for NZ First voters are pretty small. But the margins are pretty significiant.

When I went to the NZ First conference in mid-July as ‘media’, I was struck by the distaste that many delegates had for John Key and National both on the remit floor and privately. They actually reminded me in many ways of the conservative delegates from a Labour conference.

I could see why they didn’t have significiant issues working with Helen Clark, or for that matter with Jim Bolger. However in my opinion, they would be like sulphuric acid and salt with John Key, Jenny Shipley or for that matter with Bill English. Reactive and dangerous.

Not to mention the factor that The Jackal didn’t mention. The smearing of Winston Peters and NZ First back in 2008 on pretty spurious corruption charges using National’s sockpuppets – Act, David Farrar, and Cameron Slater. They must have been shocked when Winston Peters and NZ First returned in 2011.

79 comments on “Jackal: A coalition with Winston Peters ”

  1. b waghorn 1

    Might be a case for three deputy’s or something like that the greens leaders were talking vice presidents this morning. Could be a natural progression for MMP governments.

    • lprent 1.1

      Don’t know why anyone would want to be a deputy when they could be a minister. The only real power of a deputy is to be a placeholder when the PM is out of contact or offshore. They aren’t in the succession to becoming PM.

  2. b waghorn 2

    So was the greens talk of vice presidents just waffle our were the aiming at something else.

  3. weka 3

    “Personally I don’t think Peters will have a bar of it.”

    And there’s the rub. We can all have our theories about what Peters will do (and Jackal’s is not too shabby), but in the end, there’s nothing to rely on. A vote for Peters is not a vote for a change in govt, it’s a vote for letting Peters decide the outcome of the election. If you want to change the govt, vote left (L, GP, IMP).

    • Draco T Bastard 3.1

      +1

    • Local Kiwi 3.2

      Weka,

      Don’t make the fatal error of miscalculation of the importance of needing such a senior politician on our side as Winston.

      He is the most senior skilful politician to save the Parliamentary system from the endemic corruption and dirty op’s network in the parliamentary level.

      He will be most important in ridding all the vestiges of NatZ moles hidden in every corner make no mistake here.

      Winston will smell out every corner like no others can, so choose your side carefully and he is one you need on your side, as there will be a lot of sorting to do when taking over rest assured.

      • weka 3.2.1

        “Don’t make the fatal error of miscalculation of the importance of needing such a senior politician on our side as Winston.”

        You miss my point. I actually think NZ would be much better off with Peters out of politics altogether, but if I were to agree with you on his importance in govt, then yes he should be on the left’s side. But the point is he’s not. He’s sitting on the fence until after the election and then he will get to choose the govt.

        It’s bullshit, not least because he makes a big hooha about waiting to see what the people want, but has already said he will disenfranchise some of those people (the IMP and Mp). My point was that voting for him doesn’t vote for a change in govt. He might support a change, but there are no guarantees, and that’s not good enough IMO.

        I don’t have a problem with NZF being part of the next left wing govt. I do have a problem with him hedging his bets.

        • Clemgeopin 3.2.1.1

          He has said he will first talk to the party that most voters have selected and then go with the side that helps push many of his party policies. That is a fair position to take, because as a party, he is concerned about his own party policies not those of other parties.

          • weka 3.2.1.1.1

            the policy one is completely fair, but he should be able to give an indication before the election. The largest party one is bullshit, unless he will count L/GP together. MMP is supposed to increase representation.

      • Mike 3.2.2

        Could not agree more. Key is toxic and with proposed Royal Commission findings based on 2011 TV 1 press conference he should be sent to Coventry. Given Keys likely demise any chance of a grand coalition interim government in meantime run by Winnie? Then its all about policy really and there is hardly any from national that is relevant and Labour have copied NZ First policies anyway. Could be neat to bring together and in the national interest.
        For some confirmation of the work NZ First is doing read the Legasea fishing report released today. NZ Scored 94 out of 120 while the government scored 20 out of 120. National is out of touch and now that their rock star is imploding what is left are completely off the pace.

    • Hanswurst 3.3

      Absolutely. He campaigned at least as strongly on changing the National government in 1996, and look what happened then. I agree he could work with Labour, but I would only be comfortable that it is in any way likely if the numbers didn’t stack up for NZ First + National. That’s far from a given unless people vote in large numbers for Labour + Greens — so don’t vote NZ First. Vote Green or Labour.

      • cogito 3.3.1

        Right now, Labour really needs the votes. Cunliffe has come a long way, has debated well and deserves the support.

        I’m a big fan of Winston, but right now Cunliffe is the one who needs the votes more.

        The only other alternative for me is Internet Mana. Kiwis owe Kim a massive debt of gratitude for exposing Key…. and it would be good to see Laila in Parliament again.

        • Hanswurst 3.3.1.1

          I also have a lot of time for both Harre and Harawira (I seriously considered voting Mana in 2011). As regards Kim Dotcom, I also agree that he deserves gratitude for putting pressure on Key. However, while I might advocate sending him flowers or a buzzy bee or something, I don’t think anybody owes him their vote. If you vote for Mana/Internet, do it because of their policies, not because of a loveable rogue.

        • Sans Cle 3.3.1.2

          +++ on all your comments.
          Hager fighting for integrity and transparency domestically, Greenwald and Dotcom for integrity and transparency globally.
          I seem to remember that the general public were outraged by the raids on KDC’s house at the time…..our police being “henchmen” for the US. How times quickly changed, by twists of smears, all of a sudden KDC vilified within NZ!

    • Clemgeopin 3.4

      Best option is for all National party inclined soft voters to vote for NZF to keep Key and National honest in case he decides to go with National. A no brainer!

    • Sebastian 3.5

      I imagined that before I really looked into it. But at this point I really don’t believe for a moment now that Mr Peters will betray the country on this. He has said there must be a wider inquiry into Nicky Hager’s book and he has said “why would the Prime Minister say no to that? Mr Key has said he is completely innocent of any wrong doing, so why would he not want an inquiry to exonerate himself? He’s already agreed by saying he’s innocent.” Then the media go to Key and he says “no I don’t agree the inquiry won’t be widened. It will be an inquiry focusing only on Judith Collins”. But to those who vote for Winston who still have any faith in Mr Key not being a corrupt Prime Minister, Winston has proven he is being 100% fair to Mr Key, he’s giving him a chance to exonerate himself by insisting on a wider inquiry.

  4. b waghorn 4

    @weka I fully agree with that but he will be there in the mix I’m just trying to learn how it could work if you’ve got 3 parties that aren’t that far apart. Because that is the only way we will see key Collins and the rest of them gone.

    • weka 4.1

      L/GP/NZF in coalition with confidence and supply support from the IMP. Keep an eye on the Māori seats, and Epsom and Ōhariu. If we get really lucky National will win Epsom, and anyone but Dunne will win Ōhariu.

      That’s the numbers game. Coalition building is another matter.

      • Colonial Viper 4.1.1

        Once the numbers can stack up, all else is possible; the desire for Ministerial Warrants is the true certainty at that point.

  5. Kat 5

    IF! ……. the possibility of a change of govt on the 20th September is to occur and that govt includes Labour + Greens + NZ1st then Labour needs to get to 30% minimum.

    The current poll of polls would have to be out by a minimum of 4.6%.

    Somewhere somehow some more people are just going to have to party vote Labour or it won’t happen. Sorry to spoil anyone’s hopes here.

    • Lanthanide 5.1

      “IF! ……. the possibility of a change of govt on the 20th September is to occur and that govt includes Labour + Greens + NZ1st then Labour needs to get to 30% minimum.

      No it doesn’t. It’s perfectly possible for a left-wing government to be formed if Labour gets just 25% of the vote, as long as the other left parties make up the numbers.

      • weka 5.1.1

        +1. Except if Labour are too low Peters may choose to not work with them.

        Kat, the polls don’t count the undecideds and non-responders.

        • Lanthanide 5.1.1.1

          Yes, that’s probably the biggest threat. I’d say 23% or less would definitely be danger territory for that outcome, assuming the seats still added up such a result for Labour would likely require leaning on the Greens or IMP too heavily for Winston’s liking.

      • Kat 5.1.2

        At 25% Labour has no real chance of forming a new govt.

        • lprent 5.1.2.1

          Why? It depends on what the bloc has a vote rather than what one party has.

          In this case the real problem is that National at 45% and below has no coalition partners with which to form a coalition. Assume they get the 2 or even 3 seats from their current partners (and that will be pushing it) and that the conservatives fail to hit the threshold – which seems likely.

          I can’t see any way that national can cobble together a coalition that gets the required 61-62 seats required without NZF.

          • Kat 5.1.2.1.1

            David is talking Labour + Greens + Nz1st being the possible new govt that he envisages leading. That combination is why Labour needs 30% to have a real chance of successfully putting that particular troika together. I do realise that it is technically possible with Labour at a knife edge 25%, but on current poll of polls it would involve another party, even two.

            The other scenario is that the polls are all bunk, the Conservatives definitely don’t make it or that the Nat vote collapses on the day.

            • lprent 5.1.2.1.1.1

              You are asserting rather than explaining. Even when challenged on it.

              A government is defined by having the seats in parliament to pass confidence and supply legislation. There are cases in various legislatures where the leading party of a government wasn’t even the largest in the governing coalition.

              Your silly assertion indicates that you have no freaking idea why? Is it someone else’s line you are repeating?

              Are you a mindless astroturfing troll? Or are you a thinking human?

              You answer should consist of the logic behind your assertion.

              • Kat

                The logic behind my assertion that at 25% Labour has no real chance of forming a new govt that comprises solely Labour + Greens + NZ1st is based on a degree of probability given current poll of polls and on the topic of “A coalition with Winston Peters”.

                What vote the left bloc may achieve in total is a different outcome to the point I was making. The maths there are fairly obvious and I did mention that.

                I would add that my assertive observations may be considered generalisations if you wish but hardly mindless or unthinking.

            • Lanthanide 5.1.2.1.1.2

              “I do realise that it is technically possible with Labour at a knife edge 25%, but on current poll of polls it would involve another party, even two.”

              Yes, with Labour stuck squarely on 25% and NZFirst and Greens at around 7% and 14%, that comes to 46% and other parties very likely would be required to get the requisite seats. Cunliffe has already ruled out giving ministerial posts to IMP, Dunne and MP, but that doesn’t mean those parties can’t give votes (or abstain) on confidence and supply.

        • Hanswurst 5.1.2.2

          Don’t forget that there will be at least a significant number of people who vote Green because they think a Labour-led government will be a good thing and they have high confidence in Cunliffe as prime minister. As such, a high Green vote should be seen as positive a vote for a more left-wing Labour-led government, rather than as a failure of Labour to appeal to the electorate.

          National campaign on their leadership team and the ability to make pragmatic decisions in government. Because they have no electoral stake in promoting their principles, they are happy to incorporate conservatives, neo-liberals and opportunists under one generic, anti-progressive roof. Whereas Labour, Green, Mana etc. are representatives of clear principles and ideas, National is basically like one great big factional salad. Because of that, they take in a monolithic conservative vote, with a gaggle of individual fools and nincompoops to the right.

    • Sebastian 5.2

      Not really because IMP can support them on confidence and supply. That is what Cunliffe is counting on. And IMP will support them. It’s a question of how well IMP do as well as the % on the other three parties.

  6. b waghorn 6

    Kat 2% is all the shift that’s needed kiwis are decent people(mostly) and when they get in the election box enough will do the right thing and ditch key.

    • Kat 6.1

      If Labour were on 28% I would agree another 2% will do it.

      • JRT 6.1.1

        Labour on 28%, Greens on 13%, NZFirst on 8%, IMP on 2.5% is not an unrealistic result of the election and that would take the left + NZ First over 50%. It is all still in play, and National are not looking friendly towards Winston so he may get more of what he wants from the left. He has said it is all about getting as many of NZFirst policies enacted as he can, and he and Labour have a lot in common. I’m still hopeful for a good outcome.

        • Sebastian 6.1.1.1

          He’s also said Hager’s book is very serious, that it’s Watergate and that there must be a wider inquiry for the sake of honesty and integrity.

  7. b waghorn 7

    Keys talking minority government , he knows the numbers are only going to get worse for nats

    • harry holland 7.1

      What’s the constitutional position if the Nats have 45% and ask the GG to let them form a minority govt? even if L/G/NZF/IMP has 51% ? I wouldn’t put it past Key to try. He still has a FPP mentality and would feel entitled to rule as the largest party. I have heard some loose talk, but surely it would be irresponsible of the GG to take the risk that such a minority govt could survive a no conf motion?

      • yeshe 7.1.1

        wise to remember who appointed this GG and the position he came from .. wish we could guarantee we can trust him. i sincerely hope we don’t need to find out.

        ( And I back Winston as a more shrewd and cunning politician ndthan Key — as he referred to this today from his meeting in Levin .. TV3 Nation I think it was.)

        • Sebastian 7.1.1.1

          Yes he’s very clever how he keeps saying “Why wouldn’t the Prime Minister want a full inquiry into Hager’s book that will exonerate him? The Prime Minister has said he’s completely innocent.” And then Key keeps saying “no only Judith Collins to be investigated not me or any of my other staff”

  8. SPC 8

    At the weekend the Herald, Herald on Sunday and Dominion all attacked votes for NZ First. Commentators such as Armstrong and Garner said the same.

    The public are being told not to vote for NZ First.

    Not only is it a restraint on a National led government it might even enable a Labour led one and so they stand united opposed to this outcome.

    • JRT 8.1

      So sick of the “journalists” at the Herald….

    • Hanswurst 8.2

      I can’t see that as a secure ploy. It looks desperate mroe than anything. There is no way of knowing how many NZ First supporters would peel off to Labour and how many to National, or how many would simply not vote. It could work in National’s favour, but it could also work against them.

    • Sebastian 8.3

      Yes there have been a ton of anti NZfirst, anti Winston articles that just say “oh Winston is (some meaningless insult)

      You know I only looked into it the other day the reason why Mr Peters was ejected from National way back under Jenny Shipley was over asset sales. Shipley was selling off govt shares in Wellington Airport and Peters would not back down on fighting it so she sacked him. I always thought it was shocking they could use him to get into govt then just throw him out.

  9. jackp 9

    Being an ex National supporter (do I dare show my face here?) but after two years of Key I realized that Key was a George Bush, a US corporate stooge. That’s when I looked at Winston and found him to be more to my liking. This year will be the first year I will vote labour and second time for NZ first because I can’t stand National. The Jackael is right, I might add too that Winston is 69, he has mellowed out with less ego. I really believe he wants to do better for his country and he is now in the position to do so. Yes, I too think he’ll go with Labour but the media keep saying National because they know it might turn a few voters away from NZ first. I’m sick of the media ragging on NZ first and it shows Winston’s character to not bend for the MSM. Key’s just an arrogant wall street boy with no brains which is why Crosby/Textor is working overtime. To the life of me I don’t see how he can be popular when he treats the average kiwi with so much contempt.

    • Lanthanide 9.1

      How are you voting both Labour and NZFirst?

    • blue leopard 9.2

      Now there is the type of comment I like to read 🙂

      • Colonial Viper 9.2.1

        Lots of good Kiwis who are (ex)-National Party supporters starting to see through the John Key veil. Do we have enough time less than a week to go…

        • blue leopard 9.2.1.1

          It is pretty awful how we can’t trust the polls.
          I would have thought they were a lot higher for the left in reality than they are registering in the polls, however I thought that last election…

          I keep having this circular conversation with myself, the above sentence followed by the thought that the polls affected the way people voted.

          Was wondering why Labour or the Greens don’t give us some clue on their internal polling – the way Cunliffe has been talking makes it sound they are about the same as the public polls.

          I would think left and right are even now (given the historical bias of them and re landline etc) and the next few days left will be over taking.

          What do you reckon?

          • weka 9.2.1.1.1

            I think National are in trouble. I hadn’t cottoned on to the whole once they drop below 45% thing, but I’ve just put it in the election calculator and it makes sense. Even with ACT/UF/Mp, they’re screwed if they drop. Conservatives above 5% would change that I think.

            “I would think left and right are even now (given the historical bias of them and re landline etc) and the next few days left will be over taking.”

            I think the left will win, but the stakes are so high I can’t let myself believe it.

            • blue leopard 9.2.1.1.1.1

              Yes, and it is really difficult separating what one hopes to occur from what one thinks is realistic!

              By the way, I appreciated you replied to the comment in Open Mike a day or so ago (over the Green issue), and apologize for not replying – I got overwhelmed by the conversation and needed to remove myself from it.

          • Sebastian 9.2.1.1.2

            The polls are all landline polls and a lot of young people no longer bother paying for landlines as they all have cell phones.

          • Francis G 9.2.1.1.3

            I’ve heard Labour’s internal polling has them in the high 20s, a fair bit higher than most of the publicly available ones.

            Still, I’d hoped they would have been in at least the low 30s by now.

            • blue leopard 9.2.1.1.3.1

              Thanks Francis G,

              I would have thought so. I do wonder why Labour don’t openly share that info with the public. I wish they would, because it is important for people to feel there is a good chance the left can win and knowing the polls are trending lower than reality would be a really good way to do that.

  10. Dakta Green 10

    Labour will poll 30% + on Saturday, Greens will go over 15%, Internet/Mana are the sleeper party and will poll 6 to 8%. There is your next Government.

    National will poll the worst result in their history and will share the opposition benches with NZ First. Act will not win Epsom and will disappear. Peter Dunne will lose and United Future will join ACT in the political wilderness. The Maori Party will not win a seat this election and will merge with Mana before the 2017 election. The Conservatives will stay below 5% and disappear.

    You read it here first.

    • Colonial Viper 10.1

      I like the theory but 😯

      Upper upper limits 31% LAB, 14.0% GR are my picks. IMP at 4.5% max. But I hope you are right and I am wrong.

      PS I am picking National at between 42.5% to 45%…no way is it going to go down to Bill English levels, sadly.

      No doubt I will be live tweeting angst and elation during the evening 😈

      • weka 10.1.1

        I’m trying to decide whether to find a television for the evening, or go bush for the weekend 😉

        • yeshe 10.1.1.1

          well, I’d shout you a drink if I could weka !! 🙂

        • Colonial Viper 10.1.1.2

          a day tramp on Sunday sounds like a perfect compromise haha

          • weka 10.1.1.2.1

            I have a feeling that if I know the result on Sat night, I’ll want to be celebrating/commiserating on ts on Sunday. Or taking part in the confusion if there is no clear result 😀

    • Mike 10.2

      NZ First to achieve plus 10 to 12% and Nats 44% and lower will allow NZ First to go with either left or right factions. Key in a royal commission and a caretaker government while Keys fate is determined, Labour has agreed basically to NZ First policies would it be that simple? I think not. How about a grand coalition with cherry picked ministers and English PM? Greens and Labour represented and NZ First inside or outside but with voting strength to go both ways which allows support for his policies. That gets rid of dirty politics and is policy driven. That would ensure an independent speaker in the house and Peters legacy

    • Sebastian 10.3

      NZfirst will get something like 9% and they will support Labour.

  11. Mike 11

    you better factor in 11 to 12% for NZ First. They are the sleeper here.Many have Peters to be there and want him there in the mess created by the Nats. He will on those numbers be able to go both ways if he want. This is going to be the most exciting election in years. I am hoping that Peters has the balance as he is the best option all round to ensure this nonsense stops

    • Colonial Viper 11.1

      NZF 6% to 8%…they’ll get 8.0%-9.0% only if the NATs have a crushingly bad night.

      NZ First on 12%…my god do they have enough sane MPs on their list???

      • Sebastian 11.1.1

        This is the kind of meaningless nonsense the right throw out. Sane MPs? Yes they are lovely people and respond to all emails from the public unlike most parties.

  12. Local Kiwi 12

    Bang on Jackp,

    Winston has mellowed and sounds very socialist like statesman now.

    He talks very badly of Key and co, one can never imagine he would go within a country mile of Key any more, they are enemies we see.

    Winston has made it clear at two public meetings, at Napier & Gisborne, we have attended he will not personally want to go with the toxic National Government.

    But he does qualify the fact that is the electorate and his own party that will decide post election final choice of partnerships.

    His preference is to go away from NatZ and their toxic mob.

    • Sebastian 12.1

      I know Tracey Martin has she said that they would be standing firm on a wider inquiry into Hager’s accusations as essential when it comes to coalition deals.

  13. Mike 13

    When you see the Herald editorial and John Armstrong’s bleatings berating Peters you know this is down to the wire. Given the toxic dirty politics just having effect I do not see any sackings at the Herald and other main right propogandists after their complicity with the attack bloggers. Here we have Peters calling for a commission to start to sort out this mess and he is the only one with any ideas as to what is required and to move forward. He is 69 years and going flat out, has run a brilliant campaign and this is his time. The Herald and some on that side are in panic. If folk think that dirty politics is not important and John Key was entitled to do what he has done we are stuffed as a country

  14. Jack 14

    Interesting article by Rodney Hide yesterday also bags Peters.

  15. Scott1 15

    Would Labour be willing to largely shut out the greens?

    For example form a coalition with NZfirst and ask for supply and confidence from the greens (or otherwise a situation where NZfirst is the major partner). If this is on the cards then all of a sudden labour can offer Peters quite a lot and make him look good to his own supporters.

    If not then National can offer him pretty much anything he wants but Labour has its hands a bit tied.

  16. gnomic 16

    I have heard Winston speak at public meetings for older citizens twice in the last 15 months or so. Both times he spoke of National and the Key-Joyce-English triumvirate in extremely scathing terms, effectively saying the National leadership suffers from an honesty deficit. He had nothing to say about Labour whatsoever if I recall correctly. However, and here’s the rub, he continued with his seemingly near-irrational dislike of the Greens. And I think we can safely say he will not be in a government including Hone Harawira.

    But hey, it’s Winston so who the hell knows?

Recent Comments

Recent Posts

  • Bishop scores headlines with crackdown on unwelcome tenants – but Peters scores, too, as tub-thump...
    Buzz from the Beehive Housing Minister Chris Bishop delivered news – packed with the ingredients to enflame political passions – worthy of supplanting Winston Peters in headline writers’ priorities. He popped up at the post-Cabinet press conference to promise a crackdown on unruly and antisocial state housing tenants. His ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    2 hours ago
  • Will it make the boat go faster?
    Ele Ludemann writes – The Reserve Bank is advertising for a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion advisor. The Bank has one mandate – to keep inflation between one and three percent. It has failed in that and is only slowly getting inflation back down to the upper limit. Will it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 hours ago
  • Bryce Edwards: Is Simon Bridges’ NZTA appointment a conflict of interest?
    Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi The fact that a ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    5 hours ago
  • Is Simon Bridges’ NZTA appointment a conflict of interest?
    Bryce Edwards writes – Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 hours ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' at 10:10am on Tuesday, March 19
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Gavin Jacobson talks to Thomas Piketty 10 years on from Capital in the 21st Century The SalvoLocal scoop: Green MP’s business being investigated over migrant exploitation claims Stuff Steve KilgallonLocal deep-dive: The commercial contractors making money from School ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 hours ago
  • Bernard's six newsy things on Tuesday, March 19
    It’s a home - but Kāinga Ora tenants accused of “abusing the privilege” may lose it. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Government announced a crackdown on Kāinga Ora tenants who were unruly and/or behind on their rent, with Housing Minister Chris Bishop saying a place in a state ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 hours ago
  • New Life for Light Rail
    This is a guest post by Connor Sharp of Surface Light Rail  Light rail in Auckland: A way forward sooner than you think With the coup de grâce of Auckland Light Rail (ALR) earlier this year, and the shift of the government’s priorities to roads, roads, and more roads, it ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    7 hours ago
  • Why Are Bosses Nearly All Buffoons?
    Note: As a paid-up Webworm member, I’ve recorded this Webworm as a mini-podcast for you as well. Some of you said you liked this option - so I aim to provide it when I get a chance to record! Read more ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    10 hours ago
  • Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6.06 pm on March 18
    TL;DR: In my ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Monday, March 18:IKEA is accused of planting big forests in New Zealand to green-wash; REDD-MonitorA City for People takes a well-deserved victory lap over Wellington’s pro-YIMBY District Plan votes; A City for PeopleSteven Anastasiou takes a close look at the sticky ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    21 hours ago
  • Peters holds his ground on co-governance, but Willis wriggles on those tax cuts and SNA suspension l...
    Buzz from the Beehive Here’s hoping for a lively post-cabinet press conference when the PM and – perhaps – some of his ministers tell us what was discussed at their meeting today. Until then, Point of Order has precious little Beehive news to report after its latest monitoring of the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 day ago
  • Labour’s final report card
    David Farrar writes –  We now have almost all 2023 data in, which has allowed me to update my annual table of how  went against its promises. This is basically their final report card. The promise The result Build 100,000 affordable homes over 10 ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago
  • “Drunk Uncle at a Wedding”
    I’m a bit worried that I’ve started a previous newsletter with the words “just when you think they couldn’t get any worse…” Seems lately that I could begin pretty much every issue with that opening. Such is the nature of our coalition government that they seem to be outdoing each ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 day ago
  • Wang Yi’s perfectly-timed, Aukus-themed visit to New Zealand
    Geoffrey Miller writes – Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago
  • Gordon Campbell on Dune 2, and images of Islam
    Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture ...
    1 day ago
  • New Rail Operations Centre Promises Better Train Services
    Last week Transport Minster Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre. The new train control centre will see teams from KiwiRail, Auckland Transport and Auckland One Rail working more closely together to improve train services across the city. The Auckland Rail Operations Centre in ...
    1 day ago
  • Bernard's six newsy things at 6.36am on Monday, March 18
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson said in an exit interview with Q+A yesterday the Government can and should sustain more debt to invest in infrastructure for future generations. Elsewhere in the news in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 6:36am: Read more ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: Wang Yi’s perfectly-timed, Aukus-themed visit to New Zealand
    Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. It is more than just a happy ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    1 day ago
  • The Kaka’s diary for the week to March 25 and beyond
    TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to March 18 include:China’s Foreign Minister visiting Wellington today;A post-cabinet news conference this afternoon; the resumption of Parliament on Tuesday for two weeks before Easter;retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson gives his valedictory speech in Parliament; ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • Bitter and angry; Winston First
    New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters’s state-of-the-nation speech on Sunday was really a state-of-Winston-First speech. He barely mentioned any of the Government’s key policies and could not even wholly endorse its signature income tax cuts. Instead, he rehearsed all of his complaints about the Ardern Government, including an extraordinary claim ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    1 day ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
    1 day ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
    1 day ago
  • Out of Touch.
    “I’ve been internalising a really complicated situation in my head.”When they kept telling us we should wait until we get to know him, were they taking the piss? Was it a case of, if you think this is bad, wait till you get to know the real Christopher, after the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • The bewildering world of Chris Luxon – Guns for all, not no lunch for kids
    .“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
    Frankly SpeakingBy Frank Macskasy
    3 days ago
  • Expert Opinion: Ageing Boomers, Laurie & Les, Talk Politics.
    It hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.”THUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
    3 days ago
  • Manufacturing The Truth.
    Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology – the Internet –  is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
    3 days ago
  • A Powerful Sensation of Déjà Vu.
    Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
    3 days ago
  • Can you guess where world attention is focussed (according to Greenpeace)? It’s focussed on an EPA...
    Bob Edlin writes –  And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago
  • Further integrity problems for the Greens in suspending MP Darleen Tana
    Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago
  • Jacqui Van Der Kaay: Greens’ transparency missing in action
    For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    3 days ago
  • Bernard’s Dawn Chorus with six newsey things at 6:46am for Saturday, March 16
    TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ Herald Thomas Coughlan Simeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • How Did FTX Crash?
    What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    4 days ago
  • Elections in Russia and Ukraine
    Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s six stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15
    TL;DR: Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it:  We want our country to be a ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago
  • National’s clean car tax advances
    The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Government funding bailouts
    Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Two offenders, different treatments.
    See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    4 days ago
  • Treaty references omitted
    Ele Ludemann writes  – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • The Ghahraman Conflict
    What was that judge thinking? Peter Williams writes –  That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 15
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop: Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • The day Wellington up-zoned its future
    Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Weekly Roundup 15-March-2024
    It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    4 days ago
  • That Word.
    Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago
  • The Hoon around the week to March 15
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Labour’s policy gap
    It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    4 days ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #11 2024
    Open access notables A Glimpse into the Future: The 2023 Ocean Temperature and Sea Ice Extremes in the Context of Longer-Term Climate Change, Kuhlbrodt et al., Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society: In the year 2023, we have seen extraordinary extrema in high sea surface temperature (SST) in the North Atlantic and in ...
    5 days ago
  • Melissa remains mute on media matters but has something to say (at a sporting event) about economic ...
     Buzz from the Beehive   The text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary.  It can be quickly analysed ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago
  • The return of Muldoon
    For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Will the rental tax cut improve life for renters or landlords?
    Bryce Edwards writes –  Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: What Saudi Arabia’s rapid changes mean for New Zealand
    Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    5 days ago
  • Racism’s double standards
    Questions need to be asked on both sides of the world Peter Williams writes –   The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • It’s not a tax break
    Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • The Plastic Pig Collective and Chris' Imaginary Friends.
    I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • Who is responsible for young offenders?
    Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on National’s fantasy trip to La La Landlord Land
    How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
    5 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 14
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop: The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • No, Prime Minister, rents don’t rise or fall with landlords’ costs
    TL;DR: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Cartoons: ‘At least I didn’t make things awkward’
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
    5 days ago
  • Solving traffic congestion with Richard Prebble
    The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    5 days ago
  • I Think I'm Done Flying Boeing
    Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    5 days ago
  • Invoking Aristotle: Of Rings of Power, Stones, and Ships
    The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
    6 days ago
  • Van Velden brings free-market approach to changing labour laws – but her colleagues stick to distr...
    Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • Why Newshub failed
    Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • Māori Party on the warpath against landlords and seabed miners – let’s see if mystical creature...
    Bob Edlin writes  –  The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they  follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • There’s a name for this
    Every year, in the Budget, Parliament forks out money to government agencies to do certain things. And every year, as part of the annual review cycle, those agencies are meant to report on whether they have done the things Parliament gave them that money for. Agencies which consistently fail to ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    6 days ago
  • Echoes of 1968 in 2024?  Pocock on the repetitive problems of the New Left
    Mike Grimshaw writes – Recent events in American universities point to an underlying crisis of coherent thinking, an issue that increasingly affects the progressive left across the Western world. This of course is nothing new as anyone who can either remember or has read of the late ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • Two bar blues
    The thing about life’s little victories is that they can be followed by a defeat.Reader Darryl told me on Monday night:Test again Dave. My “head cold” last week became COVID within 24 hours, and is still with me. I hear the new variants take a bit longer to show up ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 13
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Angus Deaton on rethinking his economics IMFLocal scoop: The people behind Tamarind, the firm that left a $500m cleanup bill for taxpayers at Taranaki’s Tui oil well, are back operating in Taranaki under a different company name. Jonathan ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • AT Need To Lift Their Game
    Normally when we talk about accessing public transport it’s about improving how easy it is to get to, such as how easy is it to cross roads in a station/stop’s walking catchment, is it possible to cycle to safely, do bus connections work, or even if are there new routes/connections ...
    6 days ago
  • Christopher's Whopper.
    Politicians are not renowned for telling the truth. Some tell us things that are verifiably not true. They offer statements that omit critical pieces of information. Gloss over risks, preferring to offer the best case scenario.Some not truths are quite small, others amusing in their transparency. There are those repeated ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    6 days ago
  • Funding hole for tax cuts growing by the day
    The pressure is mounting on the Government as it finalises its Budget Policy Statement, but yet more predicted revenue ‘goes missing’. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Climate Commission has delivered another funding blow to the National-ACT-NZ First coalition Government’s tax-cutting plans, potentially carving $1.4 billion off the ‘climate ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • Luxon’s brave climate change promise
    The Government now faces the prospect of having to watch another tax raise the price of petrol when, only six days ago, it abolished the Auckland Regional Fuel tax. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon argued that the regional fuel tax imposed costs on lower-income people with less fuel-efficient vehicles  and that ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    6 days ago

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

Page generated in The Standard by Wordpress at 2024-03-19T02:18:26+00:00