Lessons from Brexit

Written By: - Date published: 3:08 pm, June 27th, 2016 - 40 comments
Categories: capitalism - Tags:

Post Brexit some on the left are applying the analysis that it was the result of the masses acting out of uneducated racism.

That’s an analysis that’s not just wrong, and a little classist, but – if it is the final analysis social democratic organisations fall back on – extremely dangerous.

With the Brexit referendum the Government foolishly gave the nation the opportunity to raise a middle finger to a political and financial establishment that they have been systematically estranged from. And the nation took that opportunity.

Much as they took a similar opportunity when they voted Corbyn in as Labour leader, and much as their brethren across the Atlantic did in voting up Trump as a candidate and in getting a septuagenarian socialist within cooee of taking the Democratic candidacy.

In a smaller way there was an element of that reaction against the establishment in the election of the last two Labour leaders here in New Zealand – neither of whom were caucus’ first choice.

These are lessons it’s important for the establishment to learn. Particularly the social democratic establishment. Representative democracy fails to maintain legitimacy when it is no longer representative of the people. And in an interconnected world in which the most successful businesses and movements are those that give voice to their customers and members, the insular paternalistic liberalism of late 20th century social democracy no longer provides enough sense of such voice.

The Brexit failure of David Cameron notwithstanding, the right have generally adapted better to this new electoral environment, perhaps because it reflects an atomised and individualised customer environment they have been dealing with through business for some time, perhaps because they take a more cynical and expedient approach to politics than your average wonky lefty.

The danger is that by not taking this lesson on board, and instead dismissing the electorate as ignorant or racist, social democratic organisations in particular would move further away from their traditional base and cede even more ground to the right. Because people can sense when you don’t like them and they don’t support people who don’t like them.

An even more dangerous situation would be these organisations mistaking the symptoms – anti-immigration and other reactionary positions – for the cause and trying to regain currency by triangulating these positions. That would be a serious error – the electorate is extremely clever, not in a delving-into-debate-about-policy-detail way (really, who has the luxury of time for that kind of thing?), but in their ability to recognise when people are being inauthentic. And there are few things as inauthentic as a triangulating social democrat.

A much better reaction to Brexit and to what now appears to be a wave of anti-establishment reaction across western democracies, would be for social democratic political parties to look for ways to reengage with the electorate, and particularly the working class, on progressive issues.

That means seeing the parliamentary left not as leaders of the debate but as an equal part of a broader progressive movement. It means giving more authority to rank and file party members (it’s no coincidence that people joined NZ Labour and UK Labour in droves when they had a meaningful opportunity to make a choice of leader), it means working alongside democratic organisations like unions and NGOs as a parliamentary cog of the progressive movement rather than acting as defacto leaders of it.

Ultimately it means acknowledging that representing people in the 21st century means opening the doors to them, not just “looking after” them from within the inner sanctum. That shift was what Corbyn was signalling when he let the people have his parliamentary questions to Cameron, it’s what Sanders was showing with his mass rallies and campaign advertising focused on other people’s stories, and it’s what has worked best for New Zealand Labour when they have done it.

Even in opposition, social democratic parties and non-parliamentary organisations have incredible opportunities to make change. If there’s one thing they should learn from Brexit it’s that they need to work with the electorate as equals to do it. That’s how you re-engage people, and it’s how you build the trust that allows them to feel you are fit to lead on their behalf.

 

Rob Egan is an ex-senior advisor to two Labour leaders and co-owner of public relations firm Piko Consulting

40 comments on “Lessons from Brexit ”

  1. Kevin 1

    The link to Boots Theory takes me to a WordPress log-in page.

  2. r0b 2

    That’s a very useful and important post – thanks for it!

  3. Greg 4

    I’m surprised that somehow, the red communists got left out of whose fault it all was.

    Aint It all good news for the kiwi economy in exporters, the dollar is falling,
    interest rates not changing,according to Key order, opps press statement,
    Kiwi travelers buying up cheap as chips British Pounds,

    sure kiwisaver funds have taken a hit, they are a gamble,

    Where does the Treasury top up its credit card from?
    hey look its come down,

    http://www.nationaldebtclocks.org/debtclock/newzealand

  4. Glenn 50 5

    ” This is the most frightening period for the left in generations”

    Hilary Benn’s “sacking”, a dubious description seeing as the shadow foreign secretary constructed his own dismissal, was followed by the self-sacrifice of no fewer than 11 shadow cabinet ministers by late evening on 26 June, a run of career suicide bombs all detonated with the single aim of forcing Jeremy Corbyn out, just nine months after the leftwinger secured an almighty mandate from party members, taking more than thrice the votes of any of his three rivals, from the party’s centre and right.

    https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/jun/26/the-guardian-view-on-post-brexit-politics-perilous-times-for-progressives

  5. Colonial Viper 6

    One of the best write ups on this topic since the BREXIT vote.

    And yes, the Establishment could listen to what the masses are saying, but The Establishment is pretty confident that they know better, and has had this hubris for a very long time now.

    • AmaKiwi 6.1

      CV

      + 1

      In my regular conversations over many years with some highly placed Labour MPs, I think the chance of getting them to convert from their elitism to taking advice from constituents is as probable as convincing a gay man to become straight.

      • Colonial Viper 6.1.1

        The culture of elite superiority amongst these MPs also affects who they select as lieutenants, staffers and new candidates, and so the attitude perpetuates itself deeply into the organisation through both selection and socialisation.

        Which is why IMO Labour (NZ or UK) is never turning around at this point.

        • AmaKiwi 6.1.1.1

          CV

          Sadly I must agree with you 100%.

          It’s precisely the Jeremy Corbyn situation. The people want a say but the “tribe” (i.e. NZ Labour caucus) will destroy anyone who tries to let the people decide. The tribe call it “populist” and treat it like dog shit they accidentally stepped in.

          So we can watch the UK Labour party destroy itself and see what we are in for.

  6. Olwyn 7

    If there’s one thing they should learn from Brexit it’s that they need to work with the electorate as equals to do it.

    Indeed, but that is easier said than done – beginning with working out just who the electorate includes, and what it supports, opposes, and suffers from. And importantly, who or what its enemy is. To me, the core enemy is a financial sector that demands fealty from everyone, is not answerable to anyone beyond itself, and thinks that those it doesn’t need can be safely kicked to the kerb. It did not gain its dominance without allies. The first ally, soon to be dropped, was the manufacturing sector – “we’re on the same team, we both hate unions”, to be quickly replaced by salaried liberals – “we both hate bigoted, uneducated rednecks.” Its most permanent ally is the speculator. However, not all liberals are neoliberals. The young people supporting Corbyn and Sanders are for the most part liberal – their politics now extend from liberalism to socialism in the way that politics of seventies’ youth extended from socialism to liberalism. The working class who have been kicked to the kerb, however, mistrust liberals, with very good reason. It might not be easy for these two groups to find common purpose, but it has to happen. If we cannot achieve it, the neolibs will go on swapping allies while we get ever weaker. You do not get anywhere without allies.

    • Rob Egan 7.1

      This is a good point. I take the view that a social democratic organisation (note: not just parties but any progressive-leaning organisation that seeks to act as a political/civic player) should be looking to build relationships based on common-cause with other organisations.

      On the matter of working class youth v.s. liberal youth I’m less sure – I think the young working class are generally quite socially liberal. At least that’s been my experience.

      In one of her Brexit pieces Polly Toynbee described strong unions as “the glue that held together that postwar coalition of intelligentsia and working class.” I’d add to that indigenous movements, in our case Iwi, and a well-funded and intellectually independent education system.

      Social democratic parties need to recognise that they are there to enable progressive organisations rather than just legislating legal minimums that, although perfectly worthy in terms of alleviating social ills, remove agency from civic institutions and individuals, and are ultimately vulnerable to a change of government and the subsequent stroke of the legislative pen.

      The payoff for social democratic parties that take this approach is a series of campaign and discursive networks that have a clear stake in ensuring these parties’ electoral success.

      • Olwyn 7.1.1

        I think the young working class are generally quite socially liberal. True, but it doesn’t follow that they trust the liberals in public life to represent their concerns. Take the Blairites in the UK Labour Party, for example. Those who supported austerity were certainly not representing the concerns of working class youth. In my opinion support for an austerity imposed only on the poor should be grounds for expulsion from any Labour Party. The Labour Party was formed to defend those who must sell their Labour to live, as opposed to collecting rents or profits from investments. It is good that it has broadened its scope, but when that evolves into a radical change of focus it cannot assume working class support.

        I agree that we need to basically reinvent or rediscover a glue that will hold us together, and it should include progressive movements as a whole, and not just the facilitators at the top. That is what I think Bernie is trying to achieve – an electorate that is able to expect its claims to be taken seriously, as the business sector does automatically.

        • Rob Egan 7.1.1.1

          I agree – I think the conflation of social liberalism with economic liberalism has been incredibly costly for the parliamentary left internationally. One is progressive the other is certainly not.

  7. Bill 8

    …it means working alongside democratic organisations like unions and NGOs as a parliamentary cog of the progressive movement rather than acting as defacto leaders of it.

    Almost, but not quite. Most unions and NGOs are structured so that they inevitably produce an organisational elite or clique that determines what issue gets prioritised, what issue gets dropped, what strategy is pursued and so on. In other words they offer up a mirror image to political parties and the detachment that always threatens to afflict them after a given period of time. In coalition, the problems magnify or intensify as the orgs with most financial resources inevitably dominate any agenda settings.

    Any movement can only succeed and persist when the domineering structures of NGOs etc are absent. For political parties then, their only way to ensure relevance is to encourage the formation and growth of movements, but to never be an integral part of them. As particular issues gain prominence and traction from the level playing field of a genuine movement (ie – not as a result of any coalition negotiations between different NGOs or whatever orgs), then a parliamentary party can choose to give those issues some expression within parliament, and maybe increase their vote or relevance as a result of that.

    Ultimately, politic’s home is in society, not parliament. But while (if) movements take root and flourish, political parties can tap them, both for reasons of enlightened self interest and the common good, before they and the particular narrow parliamentary definition of politics they practice is subsumed and left behind by politics grounded in society rather than institutions.

    And yes, I’m fully aware that the usual dynamic is for ‘institutional’ politics to contain and harness what it can from any groundswell in social politics while simultaneously seeking to consign it back to the margins. It won’t necessarily always play out that way though.

  8. weka 9

    An even more dangerous situation would be these organisations mistaking the symptoms – anti-immigration and other reactionary positions – for the cause and trying to regain currency by triangulating these positions.

    Can someone please explain what that is?

    • Greg 9.1

      How Fascism gets into power, =currency of hate and fear, always blaming someone else for social problems, rather than a failed system, or leadership.

      hmm maybe?

      • Richardrawshark 9.1.1

        The end part Weka talks about, means using the symptoms of the Brexit vote to gain power by whipping the public up and faking a few things to inflame it even more for political power..

        Hitler used this trick, willingly/knowingly or not, he fed the hatred, fear, Hatred for the rising inflation and blaming the jewish bankers, fear of communist socialist, taking over a excellent example of this was his own bombing of the Parliament, blaming the communists and increasing his powers demanding joint presidency/ whatever Frau Merkel calls herself,

    • Rob Egan 9.2

      Sorry – it’s a little bit too much political jargon. I mean working to find a way to accommodate those positions by shifting toward them – i.e. shift right to find a mythical sweetspot between what your base believe and what you think is the reactionary politics of your target vote.

      • weka 9.2.1

        So for instance, UK Labour thinking that the Brexit vote was about anti-immigration/racism instead of concern about the state of poor people and their communities in the UK, and thus Labour shifting its policy away from pro-immigration/anti-racism to something closer to UKIP policy in order to chase perceived votes? The triangle being between Labour, the working class concerns and the UKIP-esque policies?

        Is one corner of the triangle always a myth or not necessarily so?

  9. Richardrawshark 10

    Not one of the Labour lot who’s resigned looked like they had ever done a proper days work in their lives to me, as in labour work, boring, mundane shite, no, these were champagne socialists I thought. Fresh from University all good but where is the knowing, it’s liken they skip floor sweeping and went straight into management.

    We need wise elders leading, and idiots learning AFAIC.

  10. joe90 11

    The economy, stupid.

    The forces driving those populist uprisings, both against E.U. bureaucrats in Brussels and elected officials in Washington, are complex and intertwined. They include long-simmering racial tensions and increased political polarization. But across the West, the economist Branko Milanovic argues, the rise of populism corresponds to a decline in the income share held by the broad middle classes of those countries.

    Milanovic has studied global inequality trends extensively, and is the creator of a semi-famous chart showing how the rise of global trade boosted incomes for the poorest and very richest workers in the world — everyone, really, except for the working class in the West. In a recent blog post, Milanovic writes that in the United States and other rich countries “populism is rooted in the failure of globalization to deliver palpable benefits to its working class.”

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/06/25/great-britain-just-killed-globalization-as-we-know-it/

  11. Steve Bradley 12

    While the elites are worried about Brexit, the masses are worried about breakfast.
    Whoever acknowledges that will garner support from ordinary working people.

  12. Incognito 13

    I think this is a very good post but I disagree with some of the statements.

    The electorate is ignorant insofar as they get fed a real dog’s breakfast from politicians, economists, journalists, columnists, etc., by and through the media.

    The electorate is irrational and easily manipulated through emotive messaging.

    The electorate is extremely clever in self-deception and denial; it can take years before they admit anything and act on it accordingly.

    Raging against the establishment is all nice and well but the vacuum often gets filled by the far-right because TINA.

    I would applaud engagement on progressive issues but I suspect that right now many people would prefer some sense of stability, security, calm, and control; this is not the time for revolution but for transformation or better even, a wee pause. Then you start forming those long-term meaningful relationships that are built on trust.

    • Wainwright 13.1

      You should read paragraph 8 again.

      • Incognito 13.1.1

        This one you mean?

        The danger is that by not taking this lesson on board, and instead dismissing the electorate as ignorant or racist, social democratic organisations in particular would move further away from their traditional base and cede even more ground to the right. Because people can sense when you don’t like them and they don’t support people who don’t like them.

        Would you please state your point or argument rather than just telling to re-read paragraphs; I am no mind reader nor do I have time to second-guess people.

  13. Jenny 14

    Great Post Rob.

    I have just read a list of the UK Shadow Cabinet resignation emails.

    http://indy100.independent.co.uk/article/17-of-the-most-ouch-comments-from-the-labour-shadow-minister-resignation-letters-to-jeremy-corbyn–ZkUm3SWJrZ?utm_source=indy&utm_medium=top5&utm_campaign=i100

    All the anti-Corbyn Labour MPs were ‘Remain’ supporters, angry at Corbyn’s less than enthusiastic support for the cause.

    To my mind this showed that Corbyn was more deeply in touch with the British people and in particular the British working class than he was with the elites they were rejecting.

    A common theme of the emails is one the one of the “Unity” argument the Right have always used to smother debate, and impose their rule without having to see it challenged by open debate and honest political contest. I perceived, (though it was not stated), the oft stated refrain here “That Labour is a broad church”.

    “That Labour is a Broad Church” is what we hear in this country excusing the Roger Douglas’s and Richard Prebble’s and their heirs inside the Labour Party.

    All power to Corbyn. To his credit he has stuck to his guns and not buckled to this Right Wing Pressure. In my opinion the British Labour Party will be made stronger to see the back of these plotters.

    I hope to see Corbyn making no concessions to these right wingers and instead the coming weeks will see him promote and cement into place a crop of young and progressive new Shadow Cabinet MPs more in touch with the people they are supposed to represent.

    I hope that Andrew Little will take the same hard line against those Labour MPs here who he has allowed to support the TPPA, and instead accept their resignations if they don’t back down.

    TTIP*, Central Bankers EU imposed austerity, global corporate power and even the TPPA have all been seriously weakened by the Brexit.

    See for instance the call by Podemos of Spain for the end of EU imposed austerity, coupled to the threat to leave the EU if their demands are not met.

    The lessons for New Zealand are clear, those who want to sell out our sovereignty to foreign and more importantly unaccountable (foreign) interests need to be given the swift boot.
    No, “But Labour is a broad church” excuses should be accepted from these quislings by Andrew Little.

    *What is TTIP?
    http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/what-is-ttip-and-six-reasons-why-the-answer-should-scare-you-9779688.html

    • miravox 14.1

      “See for instance the call by Podemos of Spain for the end of EU imposed austerity, coupled to the threat to leave the EU if their demands are not met.”

      I don’t share your positivity.

      In the last few days before the election the support on the left drained away. Although the People’s Party still didn’t achieve a majority, Rajoy feels confident enough that that he can form a government.

      Meanwhile it seems the Labour Party chaos in the UK has absolutely taken the heat off the Conservatives. All day the new has pictured them come across looking all statesman-like after being AWOL in the weekend. I blame the Blairites for this. No question.

      A final act in the Blairite opera that ends the Labour Party? Not necesarily a bad thing in the big scheme of things, the factions going their separate ways, but it means the Torys once again get away with destruction.

      This whole referendum, a Tory ego project, is ending in disaster for the left.

      • Jenny 14.1.1

        “This whole referendum, a Tory ego project, is ending in disaster for the left.”
        miravox

        I disagree, the referendum on the Brexit was granted by the Torys through gritted teeth, after a rash promise was given to do so, and only in the misplaced arrogance that they would win it.

        What I think, is that the Brexit referendum, mirrors in some ways the referendum for MMP in this country. The MMP referendum was wrung out of the Bolger National Government, also after a rash promise was given to do so, after a campaign spearheaded from the Left by Rod Donald. And which the Right had confidently assumed that they would also win.

        We can see the dissarray on the Right who campaigned for the Brexit who now are trying to backpeddle, and go back on their promises.

        http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/brexit-eu-referendum-nigel-farage-nhs-350-million-pounds-live-health-service-u-turn-a7102831.html

        http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/nigel-farage-admits-wont-extra-8271594

        • miravox 14.1.1.1

          “What I think, is that the Brexit referendum, mirrors in some ways the referendum for MMP in this country”

          Hmm… we’ll have to agree to disagree on that. My understanding is that this was the result of a powerplay between Cameron and Johnson after Cameron said he’d got concessions from the EU in 2013. Boris ridiculed him and this was widely considered a powerplay for leadership of the Conservative Party

          Labour had nothing to do with it at all. It was a Tory private members bill that enabled the legislation for the referendum to be held before the end of 2017. Initally Labour opposed it (but along with the Lib Dems) eventually allowed the legislation to enable the referendum to pass after losing the 2015 election.

          Nothing like NZ MMP

          https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Union_Referendum_Act_2015

          I agree that they never expected an exit to happen. Which pretty much underlines the Johnson power play.

      • Jenny 14.1.2

        This post was titled “Lessons from Brexit”

        So what can we learn from the Brexit?

        How can the Left benefit from the Brexit?

        The cleaning out of all the conservative influences in the UK Labour Shadow Cabinet is a good start, replacing them with younger more Left and more in touch MPs would build on that.

        The next thing Jeremy Corbyn could do would be to take a lead from the New Zealand Labour Party and reach out to the British Green Party, who are generally considered to be to the Left of British Labour. What form this outreach could take is up to UK Labour to decide. But there could be some definite advantages as has been shown in New Zealand where polls have shown the electorate reacting favourably to the MoU between the NZ Green Party and the NZ labour Party.

        https://www.greenparty.org.uk/

        Corbyn should also reach out to the Scottish people and promise them that a Labour government would give them them a second referendum. As the Scottish First Minister has noted under the rules agreed to at the last referendum a new referendum could be triggered if there was any major change among the parties. She argued that the Brexit is that major change that requires (under the rules) for the independence referendum to be revisited.

        I imagine that a promise from UK Labour to hold a second referendum on Scottish independence would see a huge swing of support towards UK Labour from the Scottish electorate.

        A benefit might come that if Scottland did vote for independence and then stayed in the EU, that Britain could with the open land border between Scotland and England gain the best of both worlds.

  14. Jenny 15

    This is one of the most interesting posts that I have ever read from a Labour Party advisor. (Labour need to take him back on board again.)

    What I particularly appreciated was Rob’s faith in the electorate.

    “The danger is that by not taking this lesson on board, and instead dismissing the electorate as ignorant or racist, social democratic organisations in particular would move further away from their traditional base and cede even more ground to the right. Because people can sense when you don’t like them and they don’t support people who don’t like them.

    An even more dangerous situation would be these organisations mistaking the symptoms – anti-immigration and other reactionary positions – for the cause and trying to regain currency by triangulating these positions. That would be a serious error – the electorate is extremely clever,….”
    Rob Egan

    And I agree the electorate are not stupid. Though the Xenophobic Right have managed to hijack the Brexit debate, this was in part due to the Left’s inconsistency and unclarity, which saw them sideline themselves throughout the debate.

    Of course EU membership has several and progressive advantages, not least is the Schengen Agreement, that broke down internal borders. And I can understand the Left’s inconsistency on EU membership.

    But at the heart of the EU is the rule of central bankers and the corporates which act mainly to the benefit of the European Elites. (including the British Elite).

    In my opinion, and many others, it is this unaccountable and remote control that the British electorate have reacted against.

    • locus 15.1

      In my opinion, and many others, it is this unaccountable and remote control that the British electorate have reacted against.

      No it’s not

      It’s the lies and bullshit about the EU that was fed to them by unscrupulous politicians and fanned by the tabloid press that motivated many of the 52%

      “David Cameron has reaped a crisis of his own making, assisted by a virulently right-wing press and a dearth of strong leadership in all political parties. Since the start of Cameron’s leadership in opposition he has indulged anti-EU sentiment in the media and on his own benches, unleashing forces that ultimately he could not control. His attempts at negotiating better deals within the EU were undermined by politically expedient rhetoric which both insulted EU partners and raised expectations at home that he was never going to be able to meet.”
      https://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/voices/taking-stock-brexit

      • Jenny 15.1.1

        The Irony Lady.

        Tory hero and EU Remainer Margaret Thatcher, in 1975 wears a knitted jumper emblazoned with the flags of the EU, manufactured in a now defunct woollen mill in Scotland, no doubt sunk by cheap imported synthetics.

        https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/shortcuts/2016/jun/22/margaret-thatcher-pro-europe-jumper-perfect-referendum-day-fashion

        How far we have come.

        (And not in a good way)

        In 1975 the British Labour Party campaigned against membership of the EU, today the right wing neo-Blairite caucus of the British Labour Party are trying to sack the membership elected Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn for not campaigning to stay in the EU hard enough.

        https://www.totalpolitics.com/articles/news/jeremy-corbyn-admits-he-%E2%80%98no-lover-eu%E2%80%99-during-candid-defence-remain

        • Jenny 15.1.1.1

          David Cameron comes in behind the neo-Blairite Labour Party Caucus trying to oust the membership elected Labour Party leader.

          Echoing his political soul mates in the Labour caucus Cameron stated that having the Left Wing Jeremy Corbyn as leader of the British Labour Party “is not in the national interest.”

          http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-36663181

          The best Prime Minister we never had.

          All this reminds me strongly of the ABC dominated caucus who pressured the membership elected David Cunliffe out of office.

          Unfortunately Cunliffe didn’t have the steel to stare down his right wing, that Corbyn seems to have. And instead, David Cunliffe caved into the pressure from the neo-Liberal, neo-Rogergnomes, and resigned without letting it go to a membership vote as he should have.

          • Jenny 15.1.1.1.1

            The question must be asked; Who’s national interest?

            Prime Minister David Cameron has told Jeremy Corbyn to resign as Labour leader, claiming it is not in the national interest for him to continue.

            During Prime Minister’s Questions, the PM criticised Mr Corbyn’s efforts during the EU referendum, telling him: “For heaven’s sake man, go.”

            A challenge to Mr Corbyn’s Labour leadership is expected following a no-confidence vote by MPs.
            The Labour leader says quitting would betray all the members that back him.

            Allies of Mr Corbyn, who has strong support among the party’s members, have called on his critics to trigger a formal leadership contest.

            http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-36663181

            Who’s national interest is it to remain in the EU? The People’s, or the Elite?

            Who’s national interest is it to sign up to the TTIP? The People’s or the Eiltie?

            Who’s national interest is it here in NZ to sign up to the TPPA? The People’s or the Elite?

  15. Anno1701 16

    “we never lived before the EU and havent known life outside in any capacity, and barely turned out to vote”

    “But you gotta listen to us and vote how we want because thats how democracy works”

    ….. Millennial , some where in Hackney 2016

  16. Colonial Viper 17

    The Saker reports that the Anglo elite are now determined to use their ‘Colour Revolution’ tactics on the UK in order to undermine the BREXIT referendum result and totally halt the exit of the UK from the EU. This includes various NGOs popping up campaigning, polls asking to ignore the result, pressure on the financial markets, etc.

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    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
    5 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
    8 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
    8 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
    8 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
    9 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
    10 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
    11 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
    13 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
    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
    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
    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
    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
    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
    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
    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
    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
  • 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

  • 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
    1 hour 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
    6 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
    8 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
    9 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
    22 hours ago
  • Kāinga Ora instructed to end Sustaining Tenancies
    Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Speech to Auckland Business Chamber: Growth is the answer
    Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Singapore rounds out regional trip
    Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships.      “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Minister van Velden represents New Zealand at International Democracy Summit
    Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Insurance Council of NZ Speech, 7 March 2024, Auckland
    ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland  Acknowledgements and opening  Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho.  Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau  My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Five-year anniversary of Christchurch terror attacks
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says.  “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024
    Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024  Acknowledgements and opening  Morena, Nga Mihi Nui.  Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau  Good morning. It’s a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Early visit to Indonesia strengthens ties
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