Massive changes to employment legislation announced today

Written By: - Date published: 12:15 pm, April 26th, 2013 - 139 comments
Categories: business, employment, equality, jobs, minimum wage, Unions, wages, workers' rights - Tags:

The changes announced today to employment law represent the most serious attack on the rights of working people to a fair go since 1991. As I wrote on this blog that the Bill will reduce the Employment Relations Act to a farce and the result will be wages are driven down and employment agreements broken up, with some of the most significant impact being on workers in the public sector.

It was astonishing to see the Minister’s statement this morning saying the Bill would speed up processes in the Employment Relations Authority! This is a political tactic of this Government to play down its worst legislation as “clarifications” or improvements when they are anything but.

The Bill removes the duty to conclude a collective agreement. NZ has committed to international obligations to promote collective bargaining and it is the key mechanism for distribution within a workplace or industry. This Bill will breach those obligations including where we have committed to them as part of our trade agreements.

The removal of this duty means employers are able to not only surface bargain (turn up to bargaining but have no intention of concluding a collective), but they can state a preference for individual agreements. Employers will be able to apply to the Employment Relations Authority for a ruling that bargaining is concluded. If this is granted, the collective agreement still in force (collectives run for a year after expiry to enable the parties to negotiate renewal) instantly ends, leaving workers no longer covered (let’s call this the Port of Auckland clause!). Parties then have to wait 60 days in this unprotected state before they can initiate again for a collective or take any strike action in pursuit of a collective. During this time, the employer can do all it can to undermine the union and the bargaining, or as the Port tried to do, sack the labour and contract it out. Can you also imagine the fun Talleys will have!

For workers starting and changing jobs, many go to work now and there is no collective in place. The terms they are employed under are unilaterally determined by their employer and for most, they have no option but to accept them (that is why almost 300,000 workers in the country earn on or near the minimum wage). Those lucky enough to have a job offer in a unionised site (including for example in hospitals, schools, councils, manufacturing plants, progressive supermarkets, Warehouse, meat works, Air NZ etc), have to be offered the collective conditions for the first 30 days of work so they can decide if they want to be on the collective. This provision is being axed and employers will now be able to exclude these workers altogether from collective coverage. This method will be used to de-unionise union sites and to destroy the collective agreement over time. We have seen this before and the victims are both those new workers (every worker starting a new job in places with a collective), but also those already in the workplace as the collective begins to only cover the established workforce.

The Bill also introduces a Strike Tax. Workers that take partial industrial action (say teachers refusing to take Saturday sport) can be taxed 10% of their wages even though they are still doing all the hours required of them. Fire fighters hate taking strike action – they sometimes take action like not filling in fire reports – they work their full shift – fight every fire in town – but could be taxed 10% of their pay (or more if the employer wants!) for taking this action. There is no reciprocity for a partial lock out. If an employer for example takes partial lock out action – and as a result the workers lose work and wages, there is no reciprocal penalty.

The Bill excludes employers in cleaning and hospitality that employ less than 20 employees from the transfer of undertakings provision. This was a revolution for cleaners and hospitality workers when it was introduced. Subject to instant job loss when their boss lost a cleaning or catering contract, this provision protected them by ensuring they transferred to the new employer. The Government is removing this protection. They are dreaming of a country where economic growth is built on “mum and dad” cleaning companies starting up all over the place with no obligations to the cleaning workforce. This will see the proliferation of small cleaning companies, competing for work on the price of labour, exploiting these invisible workers to the maximum and removing any hope of security of employment. Large cleaning companies will be disadvantaged if they choose to maintain their collectives and operate at a national level. They can be undercut and will be forced to drive wages down (how low can they go?).

The Bill removes the minimum entitlement to a tea break. I asked a forestry owner recently why they were working forest workers to death without proper breaks etc. He told me they could have a break when they refilled their chainsaws with gas! The Bill means these breaks will not be compulsory anymore and employers can introduce unspecified “compensatory measures” when they don’t provide for them.

The Bill allows employers to refuse to negotiate for multi-employer agreements. This is the direct attack on agreements that for example cover teachers and nurses, clerical staff in hospitals, support staff in schools etc. Kindergarten teachers and support staff can tell you the story of this when they were deregulated in the 1990’s. This will enable the Government to refuse to renegotiate these agreements when they expire.

The Bill is being introduced at a time when workers can’t live on the wages they are being paid, when safety is at an all-time low and improved conditions of employment are needed to resolve this, and when unemployment is a massive problem. This Bill works against any of these issues being improved. Wages will decrease (they did last time law like this was in play), unions will be driven out for new workers and work will become more dangerous for them, and those seeking work will be exploited because of the desperation of being unemployed. Unions increase wages and improve conditions through collective bargaining. This Bill attacks collective bargaining as a process and is totally biased in favour of bad employers.

There is no problem being address by this Bill. It is an all-out ideological statement about who the Government acts for. It is not good for business to take this low road approach and is part of our economic failure that there is little room for those that want to be better than this. I don’t expect the national business organisations to do anything but support this. I hope some major employers will speak out against it as some did the youth rates. It is time for a better approach to work in this country – today is a giant step backwards.

Today is a bad day for this country.

139 comments on “Massive changes to employment legislation announced today ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. framu 1
    26 April 2013 at 12:21 pm

    “totally biased in favour of bad employers.”

    so just like every single piece of nact employment policy

    This is real “your either with us or against us” stuff

  2. johnm 2
    26 April 2013 at 12:25 pm

    At least in Australia there are jobs and opportunities and higher pay an optimistic society. With the Key demolition gang going and our youngest and brightest getting out, N$Z (Dollars everything people don’t count) is heading to be a retiree village and not a lot else.
    Oh, I forgot there going to get 100000 of benefits in 10 years with harassment and punitive sanctions, look forward to having more and more dumpster diving destitute beggars on the streets while Yankey john happily retires to hawaii. 🙂

    • Dicklr 2.1
      30 April 2013 at 8:30 pm

      Us Kiwis accuse foreign workers for using us as a backdoor into Australia, but with a government led by such an idiot, how can we blame them? I bet they did not plan it that way originally. Even I don’t feel safe in this country anymore. We are being setup for an industrial foreign take-over.

      Watch this space in a couple of years.

  3. Bill 3
    26 April 2013 at 12:54 pm

    -sigh- If only people had it in them to raise merry hell….

  4. quartz 4
    26 April 2013 at 1:01 pm

    The reason the ERA was acceptable was the good faith provisions. By removing good faith and effectively exempting employers from having to play by the rules National has also removed any incentive for organised labor to play clean and fair. It’s going to get really, really, really nasty.

  5. tc 5
    26 April 2013 at 1:18 pm

    “Today is a bad day for this country” pretty much as every day has been since they blagged their way into power in 08 on the back of a BS campaign about a brighter future.

  6. BLiP 6
    26 April 2013 at 1:23 pm

    ‘

    And another one for the list, thank’s John, I’m lovin it . . .

    National believes employment law should treat all parties fairly. It should . . . Protect employees and employers.

  7. Peter 7
    26 April 2013 at 1:25 pm

    Time to call a general strike, if that power still exists anywhere in this country?

  8. Tim 8
    26 April 2013 at 1:33 pm

    Now….. we need to hear from the one trick ponies Robertson/Shearer WHAT exactly they intend to do about this sort of thing once they gain the Treasury benches – especially in light of the blunder Chris Trotter has outlined re Robertson and NZ Power proposals.
    These are the sorts of things Labour needs to start dealing with and outlining for an electorate waiting to see that there is indeed a viable alternative.
    Let’s hope we hear soon. For me, it’s already too late for Labour to expect my vote at the next election (ESPECIALLY given Robertson’s latest little ooopsie), but I am hoping some time in the future they may actually get their shit together.

    • Peter 8.1
      26 April 2013 at 1:36 pm

      Well, lets also hope that the union movement doesn’t repeat the failure of 1991, by failing to fire the shots that it possessed at the times. Political gunpowder decays if it doesn’t get used.

      Fortunately, I think the CTU is far better led these days than when in the hands of the supposedly Red Ken.

    • Lanthanide 8.2
      26 April 2013 at 1:57 pm

      Hopefully their answer is that they would just out-and-out repeal this bill within the first 90 takes of taking office.

      Reading Helen’s summary above, there’s not a single point that I think is worth keeping, or modifying in some way.

      • Colonial Viper 8.2.1
        26 April 2013 at 2:15 pm

        Judging by Labour’s ERA response to the ECA, you can expect the Tory changes to be reversed by roughly half.

    • Murray Olsen 8.3
      26 April 2013 at 8:04 pm

      I suspect the Labour front bench think unions are just a recruitment agency for prospective MPs. Any of them that were involved in unions probably only did it as a career move. It’s going to be up to the unions themselves to stop this, along with a few Labour backbenchers, Mana, the Greens, and other militant leftists. Shearer probably thinks UN conventions are sufficient to protect workers’ rights.

  9. Colonial Viper 9
    26 April 2013 at 1:46 pm

    Union membership is workers insurance against these Tory changes.

  10. Enough is Enough 10
    26 April 2013 at 1:48 pm

    Mr Shearer, This is a political gift handed to you on a plate.

    You are the leader or the Labour Party. The Party that was created for the interests of workers. Notwithstanding the fact the Labour Party has forgotten since the 70’s who it stands for, now is your chance to fight these oppresive reforms and stand up for the workers of Aotearoa.

    Forget about GCSB, Ian Fletcher, John Key et all, for now. This issue can define you and make the Labour Party the movement it should be with you as its figure head.

    • karol 10.1
      26 April 2013 at 1:54 pm

      Enough is Enough: Mr Shearer, This is a political gift handed to you on a plate.

      Exactly! And ditto for the rest of Team Shearer: Robertson et al.

      Now is not the time for appeasement. Stand up for all workers; be prepared for a major stoush.

      • Colonial Viper 10.1.1
        26 April 2013 at 2:12 pm

        No guts, no glory. I’m not holding my breath however as Labour has no come back against Tory claims that these are merely “sensible changes” designed to “create jobs”.

        • AmaKiwi 10.1.1.1
          26 April 2013 at 2:54 pm

          Not holding my breath either because this is the way the rotating dictatorship game is played.

          When we are in power, we screw your supporters to within an inch of their lives.

          If/When you get in power you try to turn the tables.

          The system is not working. We need intelligent legislation instead of “Fuck you, I’m in charge and will do whatever I want.”

          • Enough is Enough 10.1.1.1.1
            26 April 2013 at 3:48 pm

            When Labour is in power (or at least the last two times they have been) they bend over backwards to not spook the elite. They throw a few bones to their supporters but in reality they have preserved the sytem which has transferred the nations wealth to a very small minority.

            National on the other hand, get into power and reward their grass roots supporters, (Farmers, Business Elite, Polluters etc…) without giving two shits about those who have voted against them.

            Labour can learn a few lessons from National in how to look after those you represent. When we get back into power we should not give two shits about how much wealth we are redistributing from the rich who have stolen it from the workers in the past 30 years.

            • Colonial Viper 10.1.1.1.1.1
              26 April 2013 at 4:53 pm

              Labour’s too busy ingratiating itself with the elites and the capitalists. The simple realisation is: if they are acting like they are your friends, you’re doing it wrong.

          • tc 10.1.1.1.2
            26 April 2013 at 3:53 pm

            the left or what passes for it in NZ do no such thing, The right did well under the 9 years of Clark and other labour govts as they attempt to be fair to all sides if not particularly radical when it comes to reversing such clusterf!£€s as the Bradford reforms, TVNZ etc etc.

            It’s the NACT who have persisted with this winner takes all approach and EisE is correct that Labour could learn from them on how to get what you want done however they do lack the ‘business leader’ contacts required to pull the SOE’s etc into line.

      • Paul 10.1.2
        26 April 2013 at 2:21 pm

        Mr Shearer, National accuse you of extremism.
        Pot. Kettle. Black.
        Make a sentence of out it and challenge this nonsense.

      • North 10.1.3
        26 April 2013 at 9:51 pm

        Karol…….Stop It !!!!!

    • prism 10.2
      26 April 2013 at 3:05 pm

      Enough is enough
      Well said.

    • Rich the other 10.3
      26 April 2013 at 4:02 pm

      There will be a small delay before he stands up, He’ll have to ask the greens first, and they will ask Clint.

  11. asd 11
    26 April 2013 at 2:22 pm

    The last few nails are being hammered in to this governments coffin. If they survive after next years general election I will be very surprised. It seems that everyone everywhere is unhappy about them now, and this will flow through to the polls very quickly once momentum builds.
    Labour must seize the advantage here and remove Shearer soon to add to this momentum. A new, strong, fresh leadership team and more bold policies to counter the neo-liberals are a must to regain the treasury benches. The lost vote must be recovered too.

    • freedom 11.1
      26 April 2013 at 2:35 pm

      New Zealand is not a teeter totter, there are other options. Difficult as it is these days, reality can still rear its head because truth is truth. Both National and Labour where first time Governments, once.
      perhaps it is simply time for some other groups to have the reins for a while.

      • muzza 11.1.1
        26 April 2013 at 2:39 pm

        Thats right Freedom, but it can’t come from inside the existing parliament, they are tainted, owned and hardly even NZ’ers, in many cases!

      • Draco T Bastard 11.1.2
        26 April 2013 at 5:05 pm

        Yes, it is. A party with no connection to the rich.

      • AmaKiwi 11.1.3
        26 April 2013 at 5:14 pm

        @ freedom Here’s an alternative

        The Five Star Movement in Italy started only 3 years ago and now has 25% of the seats in parliament. Five Star won’t go into coalition because they believe the people should decide, not the politicians.

        If the NZ center decided our labor relations laws (by internet or postal ballots) instead of the right (Nats) and the left (Labour), what would they decide? What would they say about expanded powers for GCSB? Asset sales? Key’s holiday highway versus rail loop for Auckland? TPPA?

        I would trust the majority more than I trust either National OR Labour.

    • Colonial Viper 11.2
      26 April 2013 at 2:39 pm

      The Labour/Greens NZ Power policy is reasonably social democratic policy. Are we going to see more and stronger? We definitely need it but who knows if they will deliver.

      Or as Robertson seems to be saying – that’s our one and only shot, don’t expect anything more.

      Personally I think Labour is two strong policy releases away from a landslide in 2014, will it go guts for glory or will it play a tip toeing middle of the road game.

      • Draco T Bastard 11.2.1
        26 April 2013 at 5:07 pm

        I’d bet on the tip-toeing middle of the road game as it tries to appease the sociopaths that vote for National.

    • AmaKiwi 11.3
      26 April 2013 at 3:07 pm

      @ asd

      “The last few nails are being hammered in to this governments coffin.”

      I wish you were right but the workers who are going to be hurt by this were never going to vote Nats.

      Some people watch rugby. I watch The Standard. Is there any difference? Neither of us change the game.

    • Jane Vile 11.4
      29 April 2013 at 6:47 pm

      Jacinda for prime minister

  12. enn 12
    26 April 2013 at 2:54 pm

    All this the day after we remember all those who gave their lives so we could live in a free and democratic country…….

  13. Descendant Of Sssmith 13
    26 April 2013 at 2:56 pm

    They pay the bosses while they are whining about the workers, they pay the bosses while they are on the golf course, they pay the bosses when profit goes up and give em a raise even when profit goes down, they pay the shareholders who don’t actually do a days work in the business at all, they pay Te workers while they are on annual leave or sick leave, they pay workers on ANZAC day, they pay shop assistants when there is no customers, they pay fireman when there are no fires to put out, they pay farm boys while they are shagging sheep in the back paddock.

    There’s plenty of people get paid when they are not actually working.

    Trouble is you want slaves not workers.

    Farm boy wants to be “massa”.

    • prism 13.1
      26 April 2013 at 3:12 pm

      Descendant of Sssss dischord
      What are you on about? If you don’t want policies that are supportive of workers having a good job, working safely for a good wage with reasonable conditions and able to rise to a more than living wage, with some left over to enjoy and better themselves – then don’t bother about spreading your thought viruses here.

      • Descendant Of Sssmith 13.1.1
        26 April 2013 at 4:13 pm

        That was a response to the obnoxious post by farm boy which somehow ended up on the wrong thread.

        He was moaning about paying workers while not working.

        How it got here I don’t know and it’s not here in any sort of context so bemused you should be.

        At the same time I was responding Irepent was banning him so the response is likely totally irrelevant now. Sorry for any confusion.

        The law changes are utterly wrong for the record.

        • prism 13.1.1.1
          26 April 2013 at 4:22 pm

          DoS
          Oh okay. As I said – dischord – I hadn’t remembered similar from you before so was surprised. Sometimes the sarc comments are too good and one can’t tell them from the non tongue in cheek.

          But I think I have read farm boy deliver a load of steaming pig s..t before.

          • ghostrider888 13.1.1.1.1
            26 April 2013 at 4:54 pm

            16:13 (The Emperor) takes pleasure in honest lips; he values a person who speaks the truth. 😉

  14. hedonismbot 14
    26 April 2013 at 3:04 pm

    Damn the proles !

    Where’s my Krug and saffron bath ?

  15. handle 15
    26 April 2013 at 3:05 pm

    If Labour do not strongly oppose this, they deserve everything they get.

  16. Saarbo 16
    26 April 2013 at 3:07 pm

    What a horrible direction that this National Party is legislating towards. What an absolute bunch of low life scum, this really pisses me off.

    Increases in funding in private schools, privatising strategic assets, careless deregulation and now this, it makes you wonder what sort of vision the National Party have for the country.

    If Labour/Greens don’t win next year the damage to the broader society in New Zealand isn’t going to be repaired until the 2020’s (assuming Labour can clean out the imposters:-)), it just defies logic that National are still in the game given their performance. Matthew Hooten, Fran O Sullivan and John Armstrong like to spout on about how NZ’s growth is higher than most of the OECD, but it has nothing to do with National’s policies and all to do with our primary sector growth (record dairy payouts) and Canterbury rebuild, the growth would have been higher under Greens/Labour because of their priorities in spending.

    When you take account of what a horrible society we are heading towards combined with this excerpt from Anthony Robbin’s post today

    “Take the global financial crisis caused by the consequences of the deregulation of the financial sector (explained here by Elizabeth Warren). Take the leaky homes crisis brought to us by a National government’s deregulation of the building industry. Take our failed and extortionate electricity “market”, brought to us by a National government’s deregulation of the electricity industry. Take the under-resourcing that leads to a lack of effective oversight and gave us (in various contexts) disasters at Cave Creek, the Pike River Mine, and the CTV building in Christchurch.”

    then surely this gives the left plenty of material to obliterate National, surely. If Labour and their strategists cannot use the above to put forward a strong narrative, to make some real headway into National’s popularity, then we really have some average representatives in parliament (Maybe they should stop pissing off their members and ex members)

    Good work Helen Kelly…I hope that you get some strong support from labour on this.

    Clearly NZ is accelerating towards a class based society. Sad, very sad.

    • Draco T Bastard 16.1
      26 April 2013 at 5:18 pm

      Increases in funding in private schools, privatising strategic assets, careless deregulation and now this, it makes you wonder what sort of vision the National Party have for the country.

      Only if you’re ignorant of history. If you’re not then the parallels between what National are doing and feudalism are easy to see. National are trying to turn the capitalists back into feudal lords and everyone else into serfs.

  17. ghostrider888 17
    26 April 2013 at 3:11 pm

    NEARLY HALF KIWIS LIVING WEEK TO WEEK and lovin’ their Big Mac of lies John.

  18. ghostrider888 18
    26 April 2013 at 3:40 pm

    “There’s nothing fundamentally wrong with people. Given a story to enact that puts them in accord with the world, they will live in accord with the world. But given a story to enact that puts them at odds with the world, as yours does, they will live at odds with the world. Given a story to enact in which they are lords of the world, they will ACT like lords of the world. And given a story to enact in which the world is a foe to be conquered, they will conquer it like a foe and one day, inevitably, their foe will lie bleeding to death at their feet, as the world is now.”
    -Daniel Quinn : Ishmael

  19. Darien Fenton 19
    26 April 2013 at 3:50 pm

    http://www.labour.org.nz/news/workplace-law-changes-whack-hard-working-kiwis

    It is appalling stuff but no one should be surprised. It’s been signalled for nearly a year

    • Rhinocrates 19.1
      26 April 2013 at 4:53 pm

      “Hands on” is really starting to grate – it looks like Uriah Heep-style handwringing. What are you actually committed to reversing when it’s “your turn”?

      • Darien Fenton 19.1.1
        26 April 2013 at 5:04 pm

        Whatever. You’re hearing it which is a good sign. Our policy is to repeal all this crap and go much further. I can point you to links if you can’t find them.

        • Rhinocrates 19.1.1.1
          26 April 2013 at 5:10 pm

          “Whatever”

          Oh blow your bubblegum and twirl your hair. Condescension is soooo going to win you votes. I’m sick to death of Labour In Name Only wringing hands and spouting cliches.

          I note that Ruth Richardson’s cuts to welfare weren’t substantially reversed, and I note today that Robertson is suddenly turning tail on being too “hands on”.

          Earn your votes! That means earning trust, ie., working for it and setting a good example. Curran’s bullying does not, your condescension does not. Don’t think that we are obsequiously grateful to have the honour of giving votes as some sort of tithe.

          • McFlock 19.1.1.1.1
            26 April 2013 at 5:30 pm

            Condescension doesn’t usually involve wringing one’s hands, in my experience.

            I agree regarding the ECA, though. But I’m waiting to see the policy before I spit tacks.

        • handle 19.1.1.2
          26 April 2013 at 5:14 pm

          In this context, “hands-on” doesn’t say much. I am waiting for a clear statement of what Labour intend to do, along with other potential coalition partners.

          • Rhinocrates 19.1.1.2.1
            26 April 2013 at 6:00 pm

            Don’t hold your breath – it seems now that jellyfish Robertson is absolutely terrified by the likes Hooton and doesn’t want to CRASH THE MARKET!!!!!11111ZOMG!!! so it’s going to be more “hands on…. blah blah waffle, blah holding the government to account… blah …. zzzzzz”

            Apparently they think elections are like vending machines – you keep inserting sanctimonious press releases and then eventually government falls out, just like a can of Coke.

            • Colonial Viper 19.1.1.2.1.1
              26 April 2013 at 6:24 pm

              it seems now that jellyfish Robertson is absolutely terrified by the likes Hooton and doesn’t want to CRASH THE MARKET!!!!!11111ZOMG!!! so it’s going to be more “hands on

              The capital markets have turned into highly centrally controlled, Stalinist operations. They co-ordinated a market crash in the price of gold and silver and now physical metal dealers all over the world are turning customers away saying that there are now minimum 4 week delays to receive physical metal.

              BTW, I don’t think that you can get a more hands-on Government than the one which was run by Douglas, Prebble, and Moore.

    • Saarbo 19.2
      26 April 2013 at 5:48 pm

      Thanks Darien (I get the impression that you are inferring that we should have known all about this, im sure some here did but I didnt), a good idea might be to get David Shearer to cut and paste Helen Kelly’s post into one of his weekly emails so that we get a clear view of what is happening.

      I think if we go to the trouble of requesting his weekly email we probably have an appetite for more depth in the info than the insipid lightweight stuff he sends out…just a thought.

      • McFlock 19.2.1
        26 April 2013 at 6:10 pm

        Is he still doing those? Haven’t seen one here for a while.

      • Darien Fenton 19.2.2
        26 April 2013 at 6:34 pm

        @Sarbo : Hearing you. I do a regular e-news on the labour portfolio to an email list I have built up over time – it might be time to extend that given this is now current. I’ve done heaps of media interviews on this isssue over the last year since I got hold of leaked cabinet papers, as has Helen, but take your point that even if it makes the news, which is often hard going, it doesn’t mean everyone knows. This is serious stuff and we will need all the forces of good on the left to oppose it.
        @McFlock and @handle. Policy from 2011 is on website. Here’s a brief :
        Labour will repeal all National Govt changes to ERA, including these and previous ones like the 90 day trial period and the Holidays Act.
        Labour will strengthen collective bargaining, multi employer agreements, the right to strike around restructuring and the role of unions.
        Labour will introduce a new system of collective bargaining called Industry Agreements, which will set standards for all workers in an industry (in the first instance, negotiated, but arbitrated if agreement not reached). These standards will extend to all workers in that industry.
        Labour will tackle non standard work, including dependent contractors, temporary labour hire and other workers to ensure these workers have at least the same standards as directly employed workers.
        Nothing has changed about this policy. The CTU and Affiliated Unions support it and we will continue to work together to ensure this is leading Labour policy into the 2014 election .

        • McFlock 19.2.2.1
          26 April 2013 at 6:57 pm

          fair enough 🙂

        • Rhinocrates 19.2.2.2
          26 April 2013 at 7:00 pm

          Labour will repeal all National Govt changes to ERA

          Supposedly yes, and Labour will make the sun shine every day too (though not so much as to cause a drought).

          Ah, but could it?

          Don’t get me wrong, I think that the new power policy presented with the Greens is great… a real “government in waiting” will be serious about strategy as well as intentions… so I’m seriously pissed off by the fact that that spineless lump of custard* Robertson has declared now that it’s a one-off because he doesn’t want to frighten the markets.

          So no more of that, it seems. A couple of days of sunshine, and once again the fog closes in.

          Now, considering this sincere concern for the poor, will beneficiaries be allowed to paint their roofs without the sanction of the Amazing Psychic Doctor David?

          Unless you think I’m harping, I’ve been a beneficiary and I have a couple of very close friends who look physically fine but are gravely ill. That “rich prick” Shearer’s use of them as scapegoats was utterly vile opportunism, and he’s still not repudiated it. I will not forget or forgive.

          So what will Labour do for beneficiaries?

          Anyway, I will admit that, under pressure, you shifted from “Well, duh, have a look at my website little person” to actually articulating something, so apparently you’re learning. Keep it up – you’ve got a long way to go yet, but you might get there in 2017.

          *”Custard”, I think is appropriate – he’s yellow, and a very pale yellow at that.

          • Hami Shearlie 19.2.2.2.1
            26 April 2013 at 11:39 pm

            That’s a “trifle” harsh Rhino!!! LOL

          • farmboy 19.2.2.2.2
            28 April 2013 at 2:11 pm

            [deleted]

            [lprent: You will find that any comment I see of yours that does not contain information or humour will be deleted. Any comment that I see that constitutes a flame starter will be deleted.

            If you want to comment here then you have to show that at least occasionally you provide comments that either show intelligence or wit. So far you’ve merely accumulated a reputation for dumb stupidity and a talent for diversion trolling. That brings out my talent for troll suppression. Personally I don’t think you have the snowballs chance in hell because you seem to be too thick.

            My patience for doing this educational task is limited… start now.]

        • Red Blooded 19.2.2.3
          26 April 2013 at 7:07 pm

          Thanks Darien, Great to see you here and great to hear your strong comments against this abuse of workers. I’m sure your job is often thankless but there are many silent workers out here that thank you for your fighting for our protection. Thanks again, Lyall.

        • DH 19.2.2.4
          26 April 2013 at 7:25 pm

          I agree with other comments here Darien. I think you do a pretty good job pushing your portfolio but this is core Labour Movement values here and we need to see some evidence of it. Every one of your fellow MPs should be unanimous in their display of disgust and contempt for this, you shouldn’t be flying alone on it. IMO you don’t need to push your own policy, just show us that all of you genuinely reject this grave-robbing.

          What’s next from this mob, selling our organs?

        • handle 19.2.2.5
          26 April 2013 at 11:07 pm

          Thank you for those details, Darien. What points do you believe have support from your fellow parties?

          • IrishBill 19.2.2.5.1
            27 April 2013 at 6:53 am

            I have no doubt that the next Labour/Greens government will knock these back and more. This policy is far more radical than any other the Nats have brought in (and far more radical than NZ Power – in fact it’s not hyperbole to describe it as NZ dis-empower).

            It’s a swing to the far right.

            • Olwyn 19.2.2.5.1.1
              29 April 2013 at 11:12 am

              It is not enough for Labour to promise to repeal these laws, and it is not enough either to simply leave it to Darien, who does a good job with what rope she has, as the lone employment spokesperson. It is not enough, because by the time Labour regain the treasury benches, the damage will be done. As with the asset sales, once they are sold you can no longer refuse to sell them. And as DH says, this is core Labour stuff. The forthrightness, wholeheartedness and resourcefulness with which these changes are opposed will be the real litmus test as to whether there is still a Labour party in anything but name.

        • asd 19.2.2.6
          26 April 2013 at 11:50 pm

          Thanks Darien! This is truely wonderful news! (I already knew about it) but it’s good to see it released publicly.

          • Malcolm 19.2.2.6.1
            27 April 2013 at 6:31 am

            Darien

            Will Labour legislate to give us a genuine right to strike?

            The right to strike, not just during negotiations, but the right to strike in solidarity with other workers, the right to strike for political reasons, eg. to stop the massive erosion of civil liberties we have seen in the last 12 odd years, etc., etc.?

            The MUNZ workers at POA could have relied on solidarity action by fellow union members to stop the union-busting bosses there but instead …. well we know what is happening there instead, despite the savvy media campaigns, etc.

            (This is a serious question by the way, not a rhetorical one.)

  20. Cant remember my last username 20
    26 April 2013 at 3:59 pm

    Helen Kelly is upset it about meaning it must be brilliant for the economy….keep up the good work Mr Key

    • Lanthanide 20.1
      26 April 2013 at 5:00 pm

      🙄

    • Murray Olsen 20.2
      26 April 2013 at 8:38 pm

      Get back to your Treasury desk. It’s not a holiday and John needs another economic forecast.

      • Colonial Viper 20.2.1
        26 April 2013 at 8:47 pm

        It’s not a holiday and John needs another economic fantasy.

        For the sake of clarity.

      • Cant remember my last username 20.2.2
        26 April 2013 at 9:09 pm

        Actually got offered a job out of Uni at Treasury back in 2000 but labour was in power and spending the next decade having your ideas and work vetoed by economic bunnies wasn’t very appealing

        I still remember the group interview question, where they asked us to determine how to value a human life….(hint: saying you can’t wasn’t the right answer)

  21. fambo 21
    26 April 2013 at 4:45 pm

    I think it’s worse than 1991 because that was more or less a New Zealand centred singular initiative although influenced from overseas. The forces behind these changes are much bigger and murkier. They have to be seen in the context of other changes like spying on New Zealanders, making protests illegal etc.

  22. Draco T Bastard 22
    26 April 2013 at 4:48 pm

    Today is a bad day for this country.

    One more step back to the poverty and destitution that were prevalent in the 19th century and before. How long before this government takes us back to total feudalism?

    Oh, wait, already happening. That is the purpose of state asset sales after all.

    All of this is about John Key’s promise to lower wages.

  23. McFlock 23
    26 April 2013 at 4:51 pm

    I fucking hate this government.

  24. Alana Bowman 24
    26 April 2013 at 5:03 pm

    This is massive, and thanks for the summary, with clear examples of the effects. Is someone doing bullet points that we can tell people about?

    • dumrse 24.1
      26 April 2013 at 10:23 pm

      Try reading it when you are sober then you might remember it and not have to rely on somebody else.

  25. Colonial Viper 25
    26 April 2013 at 6:33 pm

    The NATs likely have minimal to worry about from the unions or from the Labour Party re: these employment law changes.

    I say that because without the power of a general strike, or ability to strike in support of others, neither the unions nor the Labour Party have any live rounds left in the gun.

    So the main weapon available to the unions and to Labour against the Tories is harsh language.

    We might also organise some protest marches. These will have to happen outside of work hours of course (you wouldn’t want workers to inconvenience employers, after all).

  26. BM 26
    26 April 2013 at 7:00 pm

    After watching Helen speak on the news, I don’t see the issue.
    If agreement can’t be reached, the employer should be able to break of negotiations.
    It’s their business, the final say should be with the employer.

    Edit: No idea why this comment ended up here, more database bs is my guess.

    [lprent: Yeah it was from moving farmboy’s . I have been fixing the accumulated errors this morning (saturday). ]

    • Daveo 26.1
      26 April 2013 at 7:14 pm

      Because the employer can decide ‘I don’t want to agree to a pay rise’, repeatedly, so that there’s no point in actually barganing. It’s what happened in the 90s and it led to mass deunionisation and a drop in wages for all workers.

      • BM 26.1.1
        26 April 2013 at 7:24 pm

        Then the employee moves onto another job.
        If the employer only wants to or can only afford to pay so much, that’s just how it goes, if no laws are been broken I don’t see an issue.

        If you think you’re worth more, move on and get a job that pays more, no one is being forced to stay.

        • Colonial Viper 26.1.1.1
          26 April 2013 at 7:33 pm

          I’m sorry, but it’s better for workers to have higher levels of bargaining power vs employers.

          Otherwise employers will simply use a “take it or stick it” attitude.
          Which is of course characteristic of the low quality of employers and management in NZ.

          In the high unemployment and high underemployment environment that National has created, moving to another job usually means moving to Australia (and that door is closing now too).

          • BM 26.1.1.1.1
            26 April 2013 at 8:27 pm

            That’s how it goes.
            The employer calls the shots, it’s his/hers company.
            You don’t like it, leave, everyone gets that and accepts that.

            • North 26.1.1.1.1.1
              26 April 2013 at 10:07 pm

              “That’s how it goes” “That’s how it goes” “That’s how it goes”.

              As say you, over and again Me Old Mate BM.

              Yeah, that’s how it goes alright. When you get sucked in by a fake.

              Teach you for tryin’ to slide up that fake. Thought it made you look big aye ?

              Oh, Kia Ora…………

            • Colonial Viper 26.1.1.1.1.2
              26 April 2013 at 10:09 pm

              Nah you’re fucking dreaming. The economy grinds to a halt without workers who actually add value.

              Most CEOs can’t even operate a photocopier.

            • felix 26.1.1.1.1.3
              26 April 2013 at 10:11 pm

              “You don’t like it, leave, everyone gets that and accepts that.”

              Everyone except anyone who ever signed an employment contract of course.

            • Draco T Bastard 26.1.1.1.1.4
              26 April 2013 at 10:21 pm

              But it shouldn’t be like that. People really should have a say in their lives and not just have to do what the boss tells them for what the boss wants to give them. This is something that you psychopaths on the right fail to understand.

              • Colonial Viper …
                26 April 2013 at 10:34 pm

                When Dickhead BM talks about “Employers” he actually means “Lords/Masters”

              • BM …
                27 April 2013 at 10:00 am

                Then start your own business, that way YOU can decide who gets paid what.
                Problem solved.

                • Colonial Viper …
                  27 April 2013 at 10:03 am

                  No silly billy, you can’t solve societal and economic structural issues individually, on a one by one basis.

                  That’s why National is introducing this sweeping worker damning legislation, after all.

                • Paul …
                  27 April 2013 at 10:08 am

                  Your solution – that everyone in the country sets up their own business? Now you must know that is not possible. The discussion is about those who don’t own their own businesses and it would seems your solution is let them suffer…
                  Have you heard of the social contract or are you sufficiently unread that you have only read the gospel of Ayn Rand ?

                  • BM …
                    27 April 2013 at 10:14 am

                    I have never read Ayn Rand or heard of the social contract.

                    I have run my own business though.

                    • Paul …
                      27 April 2013 at 10:23 am

                      “Of The Social Contract, Or Principles of Political Right (Du contrat social ou Principes du droit politique) (1762) by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, is the book in which Rousseau theorized about the best way in which to set up a political community in the face of the problems of commercial society which he had already identified in his Discourse on Inequality (1754).” From Wikipedia.

                • Draco T Bastard …
                  27 April 2013 at 10:35 am

                  No, that would be me being as psychopathic as you. I’m all for starting a business but it would be a cooperative where everyone has a say.

                  • BM …
                    27 April 2013 at 10:57 am

                    All self employed people are psychopathic?
                    Is that what you’re implying?

                    Or does one only become psychopathic if they start employing people?

                    • Draco T Bastard …
                      27 April 2013 at 11:23 am

                      They become psychopathic when they start treating people as things as you suggest.

                • One Anonymous Knucklehead …
                  27 April 2013 at 10:47 am

                  Nah BM, you don’t need to start a business, you just have to join a union. That’s just how it is, that’s the way it goes, you don’t like it but you just have to suck it up. Problem solved.

            • Dv 26.1.1.1.1.5
              27 April 2013 at 11:24 am

              You mean like the Bangladesh factory that colapsed.
              Thats ok?

        • Cant remember my last username 26.1.1.2
          26 April 2013 at 7:37 pm

          ^^^

          Exactly

          Why do the left not get this point…if think you worth more then prove it!

          Employers that under paid will be left with cr@p staff hence will have to pay more or go under…

          Helen really needs to work on her media presentation skills it was a very poor interview (maybe Shearer can give her some pointers)

          • Colonial Viper 26.1.1.2.1
            26 April 2013 at 7:48 pm

            Oh you’ve missed the idea

            It’s simply time to reallocate a larger proportion of national income from unearned profits and rentier behaviour, to labour.

            • Cant remember my last username 26.1.1.2.1.1
              26 April 2013 at 7:57 pm

              Why? They will get ‘allocated’ it if they deserve it

              As long as minimum protections in place

              • Colonial Viper …
                26 April 2013 at 8:48 pm

                No no no

                It’s not a matter of “deserve”

                its a matter of taking through negotiating power.

                • Cant remember my last username …
                  26 April 2013 at 9:05 pm

                  Sadly for you lot in the real word it is….

                  • Colonial Viper …
                    26 April 2013 at 10:07 pm

                    You Tories are deathly afraid of co-ordinated worker negotiating power. That’s the entire reason behind your cowardly and short lived legislation.

                    It’s time to reallocate income from unearned profits and rentier revenues to workers.

              • North …
                26 April 2013 at 10:10 pm

                You’re a biblical fuckwit, John Key my last username. Old Testament at that.

              • Draco T Bastard …
                26 April 2013 at 10:23 pm

                They do deserve it, they’re the ones creating the wealth. The rentiers are the ones that don’t as they don’t produce any wealth.

              • Mike S …
                27 April 2013 at 2:55 am

                “They will get ‘allocated’ it if they deserve it”

                Then how do you explain the fact that despite massive productivity increases in the last 30 years and despite record profits for businesses, incomes for those on low wages have remained stagnant or decreased in real terms, while those at the top have had huge increases?

                Because exactly the opposite to what you’ve stated has happened. Instead of the increased income being shared with those who produce it (workers), it has all been grabbed by greedy execs and business owners.

  27. freedom 27
    26 April 2013 at 7:18 pm

    http://www.national.org.nz/PDF_General/Employment_Relations_Policy.pdf

    How many National voters out there actually read the Policy?
    Page six laid it out plain enough. National voters certainly have a lot to answer for.
    Thankfully it appears that a growing number are beginning to accept their poor decision and if they want this regression stopped, they know they better speak up soon.

    Tomorrow is a perfect opportunity for them to raise their voice
    http://aotearoaisnotforsale.com/2013/03/07/a27-national-day-of-action/

  28. Tanz 28
    26 April 2013 at 8:02 pm

    What a surprise. National rides again, and they don’t care about ordinary folk. Does Labour really listen to the masses though? Only sometimes. Key will just lose more votes, pretty misberable to trade away teabreaks.

  29. dave 29
    26 April 2013 at 8:31 pm

    ive been to couple meetings on employment law reform if torys were upset at power reform just wait for the employment reform to be announced lets just say its alot more than half

  30. RedBaronCV 30
    26 April 2013 at 9:30 pm

    And I say it again. How about Labour does this- “for all employees on the minimum wage or 25% above that – the employer will pay a union fee. The employee has 90 days to chose a union or to opt out in which case the employer will pay said fee pro rata to unions that are represented in the said workplace “

    • Te Reo Putake 30.1
      27 April 2013 at 10:15 am

      Interesting idea, but unions don’t want the boss paying the subs. They want members who are invested in the organisation, including making a financial contribution.

      • RedBaronCV 30.1.1
        27 April 2013 at 3:21 pm

        Not suggesting it goes on for ever but it would be a good quick start. It means a large business could be unionised virtually overnight .
        Employers couldn’t distingush from those in the union and those out so easily and then discriminate over conditions and wages. There would be a solid flow of money into unions and they would get the chance to discuss their benefits with employees.
        Most staff no longer have a clue about unions and it would also make it easier for higher paid, salaried staff to join too as many of them are efectively working for less than a minimum wage now.

        Have to be careful the employers didn’t set up house unions, so have to be CTU affiliated ? and perhaps start with the big employers – say over 25 staff?

        I believe all the staff at Reading’s Cinema joined up on the same day some years back to prevent an individual backlash.

  31. felix 31
    27 April 2013 at 9:51 am

    Is the maori party going to support this?

    • Te Reo Putake 31.1
      27 April 2013 at 10:12 am

      Good question! I imagine the Nats will want to get these changes, and any other contentious legislation, through parliament before Banks is jailed, just in case the MP go rogue. However, my gut feeling is that the Maori Party MP’s will support this attack on their own people because they will put their class interests first.

    • lprent 31.2
      27 April 2013 at 12:09 pm

      A very good question. More correctly asked would probably be the question of what is their price?

  32. Lance 32
    27 April 2013 at 12:05 pm

    This is great news !

    Less power to the communist unions

    [lprent: what century are you in? The rise of the crawling zombies is insidious. Do you waft of dead as much as you read as being as thick as a fencepost ]

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    The absolute brass neck of this guy.We want more medical doctors, not more spin doctors, Luxon was saying a couple of weeks ago, and now we’re told the guy has seven salaried adults on TikTok duty. Sorry, doing social media. The absolute brass neck of it. The irony that the ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago

  • Jones finds $410,000 to help the government muscle in on a spat project
    Buzz from the Beehive Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones relishes spatting and eagerly takes issue with environmentalists who criticise his enthusiasm for resource development. He relishes helping the fishing industry too. And so today, while the media are making much of the latest culling in the public service to ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    2 days ago

  • Again, hate crimes are not necessarily terrorism.
    Having written, taught and worked for the US government on issues involving unconventional warfare and terrorism for 30-odd years, two things irritate me the most when the subject is discussed in public. The first is the Johnny-come-lately academics-turned-media commentators who … Continue reading → ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    2 days ago

  • Despair – construction consenting edition
    Eric Crampton writes – Kainga Ora is the government’s house building agency. It’s been building a lot of social housing. Kainga Ora has its own (but independent) consenting authority, Consentium. It’s a neat idea. Rather than have to deal with building consents across each different territorial authority, Kainga Ora ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago

  • Coalition promises – will the Govt keep the commitment to keep Kiwis equal before the law?
    Muriel Newman writes – The Coalition Government says it is moving with speed to deliver campaign promises and reverse the damage done by Labour. One of their key commitments is to “defend the principle that New Zealanders are equal before the law.” To achieve this, they have pledged they “will not advance ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago

  • An impermanent public service is a guarantee of very little else but failure
    Chris Trotter writes –  The absence of anything resembling a fightback from the public servants currently losing their jobs is interesting. State-sector workers’ collective fatalism in the face of Coalition cutbacks indicates a surprisingly broad acceptance of impermanence in the workplace. Fifty years ago, lay-offs in the thousands ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago

  • What happens after the war – Mariupol
    Mariupol, on the Azov Sea coast, was one of the first cities to suffer almost complete destruction after the start of the Ukraine War started in late February 2022. We remember the scenes of absolute destruction of the houses and city structures. The deaths of innocent civilians – many of ...
    Open ParachuteBy Ken
    2 days ago

  • Babies and benefits – no good news
    Lindsay Mitchell writes – Ten years ago, I wrote the following in a Listener column: Every year around one in five new-born babies will be reliant on their caregivers benefit by Christmas. This pattern has persisted from at least 1993. For Maori the number jumps to over one in three.  ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago

  • Should the RBNZ be looking through climate inflation?
    Climate change is expected to generate more and more extreme events, delivering a sort of structural shock to inflation that central banks will have to react to as if they were short-term cyclical issues. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMy pick of the six newsey things to know from Aotearoa’s ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago

  • Bernard's pick 'n' mix of the news links
    The top six news links I’ve seen elsewhere in the last 24 hours, as of 9:16 am on Thursday, April 18 are:Housing: Tauranga residents living in boats, vans RNZ Checkpoint Louise TernouthHousing: Waikato councillor says wastewater plant issues could hold up Sleepyhead building a massive company town Waikato Times Stephen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago

  • Gordon Campbell on the public sector carnage, and misogyny as terrorism
    It’s a simple deal. We pay taxes in order to finance the social services we want and need. The carnage now occurring across the public sector though, is breaking that contract. Over 3,000 jobs have been lost so far. Many are in crucial areas like Education where the impact of ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    2 days ago

  • Meeting the Master Baiters
    Hi,A friend had their 40th over the weekend and decided to theme it after Curb Your Enthusiasm fashion icon Susie Greene. Captured in my tiny kitchen before I left the house, I ending up evoking a mix of old lesbian and Hillary Clinton — both unintentional.Me vs Hillary ClintonIf you’re ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    2 days ago

  • How extreme was the Earth's temperature in 2023
    This is a re-post from Andrew Dessler at the Climate Brink blog In 2023, the Earth reached temperature levels unprecedented in modern times. Given that, it’s reasonable to ask: What’s going on? There’s been lots of discussions by scientists about whether this is just the normal progression of global warming or if something ...
    Skeptical Science
    2 days ago

  • Backbone, revisited
    The schools are on holiday and the sun is shining in the seaside village and all day long I have been seeing bunches of bikes; Mums, Dads, teens and toddlers chattering, laughing, happy, having a bloody great time together. Cheers, AT, for the bits of lane you’ve added lately around the ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago

  • Ministers are not above the law
    Today in our National-led authoritarian nightmare: Shane Jones thinks Ministers should be above the law: New Zealand First MP Shane Jones is accusing the Waitangi Tribunal of over-stepping its mandate by subpoenaing a minister for its urgent hearing on the Oranga Tamariki claim. The tribunal is looking into the ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago

  • What’s the outfit you can hear going down the gurgler? Probably it’s David Parker’s Oceans Sec...
    Buzz from the Beehive Point  of Order first heard of the Oceans Secretariat in June 2021, when David Parker (remember him?) announced a multi-agency approach to protecting New Zealand’s marine ecosystems and fisheries. Parker (holding the Environment, and Oceans and Fisheries portfolios) broke the news at the annual Forest & ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago

  • Will politicians let democracy die in the darkness?
    Bryce Edwards writes  – Politicians across the political spectrum are implicated in the New Zealand media’s failing health. Either through neglect or incompetent interventions, successive governments have failed to regulate, foster, and allow a healthy Fourth Estate that can adequately hold politicians and the powerful to account. ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago

  • Matt Doocey doubles down on trans “healthcare”
    Citizen Science writes –  Last week saw two significant developments in the debate over the treatment of trans-identifying children and young people – the release in Britain of the final report of Dr Hilary Cass’s review into gender healthcare, and here in New Zealand, the news that the ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago

  • A TikTok Prime Minister.
    One night while sleeping in my bed I had a beautiful dreamThat all the people of the world got together on the same wavelengthAnd began helping one anotherNow in this dream, universal love was the theme of the dayPeace and understanding and it happened this wayAfter such an eventful day ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago

  • Texas Lessons
    This is a guest post by Oscar Simms who is a housing activist, volunteer for the Coalition for More Homes, and was the Labour Party candidate for Auckland Central at the last election. ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    3 days ago

  • Bernard's pick 'n' mix of the news links at 6:06 am
    The top six news links I’ve seen elsewhere in the last 24 hours as of 6:06 am on Wednesday, April 17 are:Must read: Secrecy shrouds which projects might be fast-tracked RNZ Farah HancockScoop: Revealed: Luxon has seven staffers working on social media content - partly paid for by taxpayer Newshub ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago

  • Fighting poverty on the holiday highway
    Turning what Labour called the “holiday highway” into a four-lane expressway from Auckland to Whangarei could bring at least an economic benefit of nearly two billion a year for Northland each year. And it could help bring an end to poverty in one of New Zealand’s most deprived regions. The ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    3 days ago

  • Bernard's six-stack of substacks at 6:26 pm
    Tonight’s six-stack includes: launching his substack with a bunch of his previous documentaries, including this 1992 interview with Dame Whina Cooper. and here crew give climate activists plenty to do, including this call to submit against the Fast Track Approvals bill. writes brilliantly here on his substack ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago

  • At a glance – Is the science settled?
    On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
    Skeptical Science
    3 days ago

  • Apposite Quotations.
    How Long Is Long Enough? Gaza under Israeli bombardment, July 2014. This posting is exclusive to Bowalley Road. ...
    Bowalley Road
    4 days ago

  • What’s a life worth now?
    You're in the mall when you hear it: some kind of popping sound in the distance, kids with fireworks, maybe. But then a moment of eerie stillness is followed by more of the fireworks sound and there’s also screaming and shrieking and now here come people running for their lives.Does ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 days ago

  • Howling at the Moon
    Karl du Fresne writes –  There’s a crisis in the news media and the media are blaming it on everyone except themselves. Culpability is being deflected elsewhere – mainly to the hapless Minister of Communications, Melissa Lee, and the big social media platforms that are accused of hoovering ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago

  • Newshub is Dead.
    I don’t normally send out two newsletters in a day but I figured I’d say something about… the news. If two newsletters is a bit much then maybe just skip one, I don’t want to overload people. Alternatively if you’d be interested in sometimes receiving multiple, smaller updates from me, ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago

  • Seymour is chuffed about cutting early-learning red tape – but we hear, too, that Jones has loose...
    Buzz from the Beehive David Seymour and Winston Peters today signalled that at least two ministers of the Crown might be in Wellington today. Seymour (as Associate Minister of Education) announced the removal of more red tape, this time to make it easier for new early learning services to be ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago

  • Bryce Edwards: Will politicians let democracy die in the darkness?
    Politicians across the political spectrum are implicated in the New Zealand media’s failing health. Either through neglect or incompetent interventions, successive governments have failed to regulate, foster, and allow a healthy Fourth Estate that can adequately hold politicians and the powerful to account. Our political system is suffering from the ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    4 days ago

  • Was Hawkesby entirely wrong?
    David Farrar  writes –  The Broadcasting Standards Authority ruled: Comments by radio host Kate Hawkesby suggesting Māori and Pacific patients were being prioritised for surgery due to their ethnicity were misleading and discriminatory, the Broadcasting Standards Authority has found. It is a fact such patients are prioritised. ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago

  • PRC shadow looms as the Solomons head for election
    PRC and its proxies in Solomons have been preparing for these elections for a long time. A lot of money, effort and intelligence have gone into ensuring an outcome that won’t compromise Beijing’s plans. Cleo Paskall writes – On April 17th the Solomon Islands, a country of ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago

  • Climate Change: Criminal ecocide
    We are in the middle of a climate crisis. Last year was (again) the hottest year on record. NOAA has just announced another global coral bleaching event. Floods are threatening UK food security. So naturally, Shane Jones wants to make it easier to mine coal: Resources Minister Shane Jones ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago

  • Is saving one minute of a politician's time worth nearly $1 billion?
    Is speeding up the trip to and from Wellington airport by 12 minutes worth spending up more than $10 billion? Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The six news items that stood out to me in the last day to 8:26 am today are:The Lead: Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago

  • Long Tunnel or Long Con?
    Yesterday it was revealed that Transport Minister had asked Waka Kotahi to look at the options for a long tunnel through Wellington. State Highway 1 (SH1) through Wellington City is heavily congested at peak times and while planning continues on the duplicate Mt Victoria Tunnel and Basin Reserve project, the ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    4 days ago

  • Smoke And Mirrors.
    You're a fraud, and you know itBut it's too good to throw it all awayAnyone would do the sameYou've got 'em goingAnd you're careful not to show itSometimes you even fool yourself a bitIt's like magicBut it's always been a smoke and mirrors gameAnyone would do the sameForty six billion ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago

  • What is Mexico doing about climate change?
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections The June general election in Mexico could mark a turning point in ensuring that the country’s climate policies better reflect the desire of its citizens to address the climate crisis, with both leading presidential candidates expressing support for renewable energy. Mexico is the ...
    Skeptical Science
    4 days ago

  • State of humanity, 2024
    2024, it feels, keeps presenting us with ever more challenges, ever more dismay.Do you give up yet? It seems to ask.No? How about this? Or this?How about this?When I say 2024 I really mean the state of humanity in 2024.Saturday night, we watched Civil War because that is one terrifying cliff we've ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 days ago

  • Govt’s Wellington tunnel vision aims to ease the way to the airport (but zealous promoters of cycl...
    Buzz from the Beehive A pet project and governmental tunnel vision jump out from the latest batch of ministerial announcements. The government is keen to assure us of its concern for the wellbeing of our pets. It will be introducing pet bonds in a change to the Residential Tenancies Act ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago

  • The case for cultural connectedness
    A recent report generated from a Growing Up in New Zealand (GUiNZ) survey of 1,224 rangatahi Māori aged 11-12 found: Cultural connectedness was associated with fewer depression symptoms, anxiety symptoms and better quality of life. That sounds cut and dry. But further into the report the following appears: Cultural connectedness is ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago

  • Useful context on public sector job cuts
    David Farrar writes –    The Herald reports: From the gory details of job-cuts news, you’d think the public service was being eviscerated.   While the media’s view of the cuts is incomplete, it’s also true that departments have been leaking the particulars faster than a Wellington ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago

  • Gordon Campbell On When Racism Comes Disguised As Anti-racism
    Remember the good old days, back when New Zealand had a PM who could think and speak calmly and intelligently in whole sentences without blustering? Even while Iran’s drones and missiles were still being launched, Helen Clark was live on TVNZ expertly summing up the latest crisis in the Middle ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    5 days ago

  • Govt ignored economic analysis of smokefree reversal
    Costello did not pass on analysis of the benefits of the smokefree reforms to Cabinet, emphasising instead the extra tax revenues of repealing them. Photo: Hagen Hopkins, Getty Images TL;DR: The six news items that stood out to me at 7:26 am today are:The Lead: Casey Costello never passed on ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago

  • True Blue.
    True loveYou're the one I'm dreaming ofYour heart fits me like a gloveAnd I'm gonna be true blueBaby, I love youI’ve written about the job cuts in our news media last week. The impact on individuals, and the loss to Aotearoa of voices covering our news from different angles.That by ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago

  • Who is running New Zealand’s foreign policy?
    While commentators, including former Prime Minister Helen Clark, are noting a subtle shift in New Zealand’s foreign policy, which now places more emphasis on the United States, many have missed a key element of the shift. What National said before the election is not what the government is doing now. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago

  • $41m to support clean energy in South East Asia
    New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    13 hours ago

  • Minister releases Fast-track stakeholder list
    The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    15 hours ago

  • Judicial appointments announced
    Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    16 hours ago

  • Education Minister heads to major teaching summit in Singapore
    Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa.  The summit is co-hosted ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    17 hours ago

  • Value of stopbank project proven during cyclone
    A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    17 hours ago

  • Anzac commemorations, Türkiye relationship focus of visit
    Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul.    “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    17 hours ago

  • Minister to Europe for OECD meeting, Anzac Day
    Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    19 hours ago

  • Comprehensive Partnership the goal for NZ and the Philippines
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr.  The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago

  • Government commits $20m to Westport flood protection
    The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Taupō takes pole position
    The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Cost of living support for low-income homeowners
    Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners.  “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Government backing mussel spat project
    The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Government focused on getting people into work
    Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Clean energy key driver to reducing emissions
    The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Earthquake-prone buildings review brought forward
    The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Thailand and NZ to agree to Strategic Partnership
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Government consults on extending coastal permits for ports
    RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Inflation coming down, but more work to do
    Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • School attendance restored as a priority in health advice
    Refreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Unnecessary bureaucracy cut in oceans sector
    Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Patterson promoting NZ’s wool sector at International Congress
    Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson is speaking at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide, promoting New Zealand wool, and outlining the coalition Government’s support for the revitalisation the sector.    "New Zealand’s wool exports reached $400 million in the year to 30 June 2023, and the coalition Government ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Removing red tape to help early learners thrive
    The Government is making legislative changes to make it easier for new early learning services to be established, and for existing services to operate, Associate Education Minister David Seymour says. The changes involve repealing the network approval provisions that apply when someone wants to establish a new early learning service, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • RMA changes to cut coal mining consent red tape
    Changes to the Resource Management Act will align consenting for coal mining to other forms of mining to reduce barriers that are holding back economic development, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The inconsistent treatment of coal mining compared with other extractive activities is burdensome red tape that fails to acknowledge ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • McClay reaffirms strong NZ-China trade relationship
    Trade, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Todd McClay has concluded productive discussions with ministerial counterparts in Beijing today, in support of the New Zealand-China trade and economic relationship. “My meeting with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao reaffirmed the complementary nature of the bilateral trade relationship, with our Free Trade Agreement at its ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Prime Minister Luxon acknowledges legacy of Singapore Prime Minister Lee
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today paid tribute to Singapore’s outgoing Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.   Meeting in Singapore today immediately before Prime Minister Lee announced he was stepping down, Prime Minister Luxon warmly acknowledged his counterpart’s almost twenty years as leader, and the enduring legacy he has left for Singapore and South East ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • PMs Luxon and Lee deepen Singapore-NZ ties
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. While in Singapore as part of his visit to South East Asia this week, Prime Minister Luxon also met with Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and will meet with Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.  During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Antarctica New Zealand Board appointments
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters has made further appointments to the Board of Antarctica New Zealand as part of a continued effort to ensure the Scott Base Redevelopment project is delivered in a cost-effective and efficient manner.  The Minister has appointed Neville Harris as a new member of the Board. Mr ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Finance Minister travels to Washington DC
    Finance Minister Nicola Willis will travel to the United States on Tuesday to attend a meeting of the Five Finance Ministers group, with counterparts from Australia, the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom.  “I am looking forward to meeting with our Five Finance partners on how we can work ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Pet bonds a win/win for renters and landlords
    The coalition Government has today announced purrfect and pawsitive changes to the Residential Tenancies Act to give tenants with pets greater choice when looking for a rental property, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Pets are important members of many Kiwi families. It’s estimated that around 64 per cent of New ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Long Tunnel for SH1 Wellington being considered
    State Highway 1 (SH1) through Wellington City is heavily congested at peak times and while planning continues on the duplicate Mt Victoria Tunnel and Basin Reserve project, the Government has also asked NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) to consider and provide advice on a Long Tunnel option, Transport Minister Simeon Brown ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • New Zealand condemns Iranian strikes
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Foreign Minister Winston Peters have condemned Iran’s shocking and illegal strikes against Israel.    “These attacks are a major challenge to peace and stability in a region already under enormous pressure," Mr Luxon says.    "We are deeply concerned that miscalculation on any side could ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Huge interest in Government’s infrastructure plans
    Hundreds of people in little over a week have turned out in Northland to hear Regional Development Minister Shane Jones speak about plans for boosting the regional economy through infrastructure. About 200 people from the infrastructure and associated sectors attended an event headlined by Mr Jones in Whangarei today. Last ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Health Minister thanks outgoing Health New Zealand Chair
    Health Minister Dr Shane Reti has today thanked outgoing Health New Zealand – Te Whatu Ora Chair Dame Karen Poutasi for her service on the Board.   “Dame Karen tendered her resignation as Chair and as a member of the Board today,” says Dr Reti.  “I have asked her to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Roads of National Significance planning underway
    The NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has signalled their proposed delivery approach for the Government’s 15 Roads of National Significance (RoNS), with the release of the State Highway Investment Proposal (SHIP) today, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.  “Boosting economic growth and productivity is a key part of the Government’s plan to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Navigating an unstable global environment
    New Zealand is renewing its connections with a world facing urgent challenges by pursuing an active, energetic foreign policy, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says.   “Our country faces the most unstable global environment in decades,” Mr Peters says at the conclusion of two weeks of engagements in Egypt, Europe and the United States.    “We cannot afford to sit back in splendid ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • NZ welcomes Australian Governor-General
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