Will 2013 be the year serious action against climate change begins in this country?
Though it is not widely known, or admitted, even by themselves, the Green party has backed off raising the issue of climate change.
It is not, that the reality of the danger has passed, far from it.
It is because they are seeking a political accommodation with the Labour party.
In exchange for cabinet positions in the next government the Greens are preparing to give away their opposition to government policies that contribute to climate change.
Coal has been identified as the number 1 causative factor in climate change by James Hansen, NASA’s chief climate scientist. Hansen says that if we are to have any chance of arresting runaway climate change, coal use must be seriously curtailed. Despite this fact, the Labour Party are fully committed to expanding the coal industry in this country.
In contrast, it is Green Party policy to oppose any new coal mines.
However, in practice the Greens are giving up their opposition to new coal mines.
It is Green Party policy to make New Zealand coal free by 2020. However without any clear strategy for proceeding from where we are now, to achieving this goal, the policy from Greens to make New Zealand “Coal Free”, can only be said to be, “Aspirational”. (In the John Key sense of the word).
I my opinion, as a concrete step to achieving a “Coal Free” New Zealand by 2020, the Green Party should give up their lobbying for cabinet positions, instead they should concentrate their efforts on lobbying the Labour Party to give up their support for new coal mines. This should be the number one condition for any coalition agreement with Labour.
Yes the glittering career path of some Green MPs may be affected, and yes this may even cost the Green Party some votes.
But what is more important?
Cabinet Positions, or concrete concessions to take action against climate change?
Of course, the MSM has difficulty grasping the way they are intertwined, and tend to focus more on the economy. The challenge for the Green Party is to get all 3 of their planks heard more and understood.
In the RNZ interview,/a> on the same day as the TV3 one, Metiria Turei said environment is one of their 3 intertwined central planks: economy, child poverty, environment.
karol
Unfortunately for the Greens, even the climate change denying, ACT Party have an equally vague environment policy plank.
According to our constitution, the ACT Party shall promote, develop and pursue policies and proposals which:
7. explore and implement practical and innovative ways to protect the natural environment;
act.org.nz/principles
To say that you care for the environment is to say nothing at all. For the Green Party to mention, (as an after thought) that the environment is one of their 3 “intertwined” planks, while refusing to specifically acknowledge climate change as the number one environmental problem facing us. Is in my opinion level with ACT’s likewise non-specific pledge to ” implement practical and innovative ways to protect the natural environment”. A very low threshold indeed. So low, they risk becoming a laughing stock.
James Hansen, NASA’s chief climate scientist. Hansen says that if we are to have any chance of arresting runaway climate change, coal use must be seriously curtailed.
That would be the same James Hanson who derided Germany for abandoning its new Nuclear programme following the Fukushima disaster!
Maybe have a look at the motivations (lobbying money flow) behind these people Jenny, then ask yourself if they are clean!
I guess that Nuclear catastrophies are seen as not so bad eh!
I guess that climate change isn’t the most serious issue facing the world then. Nuclear power -really bad. Catastrophic climate change – not so bad. Thanks for clearing that up for us.
The changes that occurred in our society over the past three decades have made the “kiwi dream” a sham. The huge widening of the gap between richer and poorer and the massive increase in emigration are the obvious and easily measured ones. More insidious is that far more members of each household are working longer hours and years in less secure and poorer paid employment. Kiwis are doing it hard, so hard that 800,000 did not vote.
This now requires an early and fundamental set of new policies for a new-deal society.
That 800,000 does not show up in the marketing strategist’s reports. They don’t come into the reckoning when the analysts are calculating whether the left vote of A+B+C will surpass the right vote of D+E. Nor do they articulate themselves well in “focus ” groups”.
No, the voice of the 800,000 can be heard through the supporters/members of the Labour Party. The upside to the Conference is that Labour has won the opportunity to brand itself at the most democratic Party with the constitution and structure to act as a grass-roots-up one.
We can win the next election only with the help of the 800,000. We have to be genuinely part of them to be their voice. When we have policies and leadership that makes us relevant to them, they will believe that we can make that fundamental change towards a new fair-deal society.
Election Cycles! An excuse for laziness and also a sense of entitlement. My turn to Rule! National ain’t going to hand power on a plate.
The Left Vote? Boll•cks. The Greens are not about the 800,000. That is Labour’s space and we must make them central to ALL of our policies, strategies and tactics.
2013 has to be a new start for Labour.
No more innocuous palp that ignores the 800,000 and alienates the active members.
”The Greens are not about the 800,000”, really???, if the previous 2 elections were to be used as a gauge Labour’s past and present policies have failed sensationally to move the 800,000,
My view is that voting every 3 years is a right and a DUTY, i see no valid reason why voting every 3 years should not be compulsory…
What, other than the obvious removal of the right to exercise free will you mean, whats left of it!
Sounds like you may believe voting makes a difference, in case you missed, it makes no difference in the greater scheme of things!
Perhaps it makes a little differnce to some along the journey, but the outcomes are the same, so why the hell would it be acceptable to force people to vote for their own demise!
Note: I can understand why people might see benefit in forced voting, deperation for change comes to mind, but FORCING, is not the answer!
for me Mana IS an alternative party to vote for as I agree with their kaupapa and values. Some say it is a waste – look at the polls and so on but they are wrong IMO. People make the difference, individuals working collectivelly.
Given your reply it would then be ‘pointless’ to be discussing politics and policy here on the Standard, because by your reasoning if voting changes nothing commenting on-line would change even less and we all should subscribe to ‘home and garden’ and discuss issues relevant to present and past issues of that…
Hi Marty – Its about having the choice to vote, or not – The question was nothing to do with voting/not, or who for.
I agree with your sentiment about people making the difference, working collectively etc. If there was a framework for change to better NZ, I would seriously consider putting my support/energy behind it, as I have said on here many times previously. Mana may or may not be that, too soon to tell for me, but some encouragement can be had from the movement so far.
B12 – Agree completely, the discussion around policy is mostly pointless, albeit interesting, as we see that the policies which further denegrate NZ are implemented/forced through etc anyway, against the best interests of NZ, and its peoples
.
That is why my comments around policy are limited to comments about addressing the *core issue*, which is the monetary supply/control by the NZ government/treasury, and audit/investigation into the *independence* of the RBNZ/OoDM.
Until the issue of monetary/debt control is addressed, policy discussions/directions are moot, and little good can come from even beneficial policy regardless, as it will always have the equivilant opposite policy to off-set any overall longer term positive benefit, hence continuing the negative trending in the NZ inc statistics! While policy is driven by monetary/debt position as under current conditions., without addressing monetary control, NZ will continue to slide at increasing velocity!
In any case my response was around your statement that you can *see no valid reason why voting every 3 years should not be compulsory* – Which I disagreed with!
From memory, Marty, the ‘donkey vote’ in Oz is around 2% and a further 1% don’t vote despite it being compulsory. Compulsory voting works well there so I see no problems bringing it in here.
The upside to the Conference is that Labour has won the opportunity to brand itself at the most democratic Party with the constitution and structure to act as a grass-roots-up one.
Watching it from the sidelines for a change, that was what impressed the hell out of me. It was rather overtaken in the media by whoever the silly arse in caucus decided to use it to take out Cunliffe in a tediously juvenile power play*. But it was definitely the best conference I have attended in terms of getting some work done.
* It was almost as stupid as the similar play in 2007/8 to try to take out NZF. That didn’t work either. Quite simply you cannot externally destroy constituencies or patterns of political thought in a MMP environment with dumbarse power plays. It simply doesn’t work because people will move their votes to counter such game plays. The only effective way to destroy political factions is for them to fall apart internally – Act being te most recent example.
Lynn, Chris Trotter’s latest post, The Lazarus Option says something similar.
“POLITICS IS ALMOST as exciting as war, and quite as dangerous. In war you can only be killed once, but in politics many times.” This pithy Churchillian aphorism should be framed and prominently displayed in every politician’s office. It wouldn’t hurt if one or two political journalists did the same. We might then, perhaps, read fewer political obituaries of Members of Parliament who, having suffered a temporary set-back, are declared officially, politically dead….
The wounds inflicted upon Mr Cunliffe by Mr Shearer and his allies are, therefore, readily survivable. The Parliamentary Press Gallery – so easily stampeded by Mr Shearer’s backers at the Labour Party Conference in November – are slowly and shame-facedly backing away from their earlier, supremely confident, assertions of an imminent Cunliffe-led leadership coup. But, if there was no “plot” to unseat Mr Shearer, then for what “crime” – exactly – was Mr Cunliffe demoted? The answer appears to be: “For refusing to rule out the possibility of a leadership challenge at some point in the future.”
But, as Mickysavage points out on the Year in review thread, it’s worth considering why such violent metaphors are used to describe politics.
Whilst musing over the last year in the last few days, that was the thing in the local political world that stood out for me as being the weirdess. This was in a remarkably politially weird year. A tactically well implemented play, it was so utterly inept at a strategic level.
All it really did for me was to highlight the lack of clear direction inside the Labour caucus, who instead seemed to be pissing about with such silly games. While literally at the same time that the party organisation was busy with the largest and most productive renewal I have ever seen. The political contrast between the two main parts of Labour could not have been starker.
Not to mention the contrast in the effective utilization of resources. The party organisation was literally doing this on a shoestring. Meanwhile the caucus with all of the support of parliamentary services appeared to be quite limited on what they could achieve in connecting to that massive constituency of unenrolled and enrolled non-voters lost to elections since 2005. That group have a pretty typical response when asked why they don’t vote any more – it is because they don’t see any real hope arising from the act of voting.
Not really. As I have mentioned a few times previously, I’m a political pragmatist who looks at the longer term rather than the short term. What I’m looking for are things that are likely to work efficiently to solve or at least alleviate current or future problems. Most of that is simply providing routes of opportunity for people and especially their kids to use. Providing services like mostly free adult education were extremely efficient providers. Creating motorways in an era of increasing fuel costs and falling road usage for the taxpayer support of contributors is not.
I want to see the tens of thousands of dollars I contribute to the commonweal to be used effectively. Frittering them away on trivialities like the Labour caucus appears to be doing just offends me. It also gives me little confidience that they will be more effective if on the treasury benches. So I’ll shift my vote to a partner that looks more effective.
Someone correct me if I’m wrong, but I think it was following those ‘revelations’, that David Shearer was asked if he planned to demote Cunliffe. He laughed it off and made reference to Cunliffe being far too valuable. His response struck me as being genuine and, at that point anyway, I have to wonder how much he had known of the covert ABC club activities. It almost seems to me that the publishing of the Garner article – together with a concentrated campaign by Cunliffe’s caucus enemies – is what convinced Shearer that Cunliffe was planning a coup.
The set-up of Cunliffe at the Conference (aided and abetted by an eager MSM) would have sealed the suspicion for him. If I’m right, then Shearer may have learned a very valuable political lesson. His actions in the coming 2 to 3 months will give us the answers we seek.
I’m not convinced that Shearer wasn’t part of the turn against Cunliffe as signaled by the Garner blog you linked to, Anne. The leak to Garner seems to have come right from the top. There’s this bit in the blog post:
Sources have told me Shearer was advised to demote him when he became Labour’s leader, but Shearer resisted and said he wanted to work with Cunliffe.
That hasn’t worked apparently – my sources tell me Shearer is deeply disappointed with Cunliffe and he feels let down. This relationship cannot last.
According to Shearer’s sources, the Labour leader no longer trusts Cunliffe. That view is shared by the majority of the caucus.
I’m not saying he wasn’t part of the turn against Cunliffe. I just wonder whether he was fully conversant with what was going on behind the scenes. It might have caused him to be a bit suspicious of the ABC club’s modus operandi – or at least some of those within it.
Sources have told me Shearer was advised to demote him when he became Labour’s leader, but Shearer resisted and said he wanted to work with Cunliffe.
Not quite correct.
Yes, he was encouraged to demote him when he became Labour’s leader, and he came within a hair-breadth of doing so. In other words, he had ‘fallen in behind’ what he was being told by Cunliffe’s caucus enemies. Commonsense did prevail in the end. We will have to wait and see if it prevails again.
You may be right, Anne, but, on the other hand your quote suggests that all along, Shearer has made his own decisions. There is a use of ruthless tactics that seem to have started under Shearer. He is after all someone who, with little parliamentary experience, backed himself to be leader. This suggests a certain amount of strength.
Team Shearer only turned against Cunliffe when he continued to get support from the membership, while Shearer continued to get criticised. The strategies became particularly ruthless when the membership voted for democratisation. The strategy against Cunliffe was to reinforce Shearer’s power, and, along the way, make him look decisive to the public, via the MSM.
Now that the opposition, including within the membership, still can’t be silenced, it looks like the ABC leaders are the ones to be sacrificed. There’s quite a ruthless pattern there, and, my trust having been dented by the above happenings, I am not convinced Shearer is that blameless.
I agree with your analysis. There is certainly an element of ruthlessness that I find abhorrent and I agree Shearer has been part of it. Don’t think for a moment
that it only started under Shearer. It has been there since the 1980s but Helen Clark kept it well under control.
The key word in that quote of Duncan Garner’s is resisted. Actually he didn’t resist. My understanding from what I heard at the time is: Shearer was all set to demote Cunliffe but at the last minute wiser counsel (and I don’t know who it was, or what was said) reached Shearer and he changed his mind.
It puts a slightly different complexion on Garner’s take of what happened, which (of course) came from the mallarfia and associates.
I can’t say more except to say my source for the above is likely to be more accurate than Garner’s sources.
My views on Shearer have changed a bit having looked at his CV and his involvement in being a consultant, researcher, and adviser of intelligence and military strategy. So, while he may be a novice in NZ’s parliament, he is a strategic thinker, and one prepared to suggest coercion in certain circumstances.
It looks to me that the most recent moves are in the form of a charm offensive re-the membership.
But, I still don’t know what Shearer’s political values are. That gives me pause. Especially as he might negotiate some policies with membership now, in order to get them onside for the election campaign. But, as Clark did on closing the gaps, he could be just as likely to change tack when a PM.
Trotter is absolutely onto it with his new blog posting of today. The early part of this year will be the very last chance for possibly years to come, for Labour – and especially it’s caucus – to sort itself out once and for all by February 2013.
Shearer has shown that he is not a smart, strong, competent leader by demoting Cunliffe the way he did, and by stripping him off all spokespersons’ responsibilities, banning him to the back bench.
Shearer panicked and made a stupid, in principal also undemocratic decision, out of fear for the media’s reporting, which was without real basis.
The very last chance for Shearer will be to get Cunliffe back into a top role through a re-shuffle, to engage him and to bind him into the team, so that he will improve team skills. Of course the other – less likely – chance chance will be, that Shearer will call a vote on leadership and any likely challenger anyway, to face the challenge.
As I do not at all expect that the not so confident, weak Shearer will feel safe and happy to go for that second last chance, only the last one can be hoped for.
All else will likely mean that Labour will continue to sit around 30 to 35 per cent support for years, given Shearers scandalous stuff up after the conference. Wasting economic knowledge, experience and talent Cunliffe has (besides of other areas) is completely irresponsible and idiotic.
But DS is enjoying the beach up north, taking it easy, surfing, playing guitar, grilling some chops and saussies, so prepare yourselves for more disappointments, as February is just a month away!
I dunno about red herrings. I’ve never seen why any age cutoff is not simply an arbitrary point between rationality (all capable people should vote) and absurdity (all 6-month-olds should vote).
Khandalla you have got to be one of the most on-message people I know. May you ever raise The Standard.
For me, contemplating the earth running my side of the lake this morning, there were two things that gave me hope last year.
The first was this site. It grew in strength and stature, and I met hundreds of simpatico voices. basic solidarity.
The second was the Asset Sales petitions. Just required me and many thousands to talk and talk and talk with many hundreds of people on a simple issue that most people agreed with.
Neither required any contact with caucus, or a single leader, or Parliament as a whole, or any faction, or constitutional rules, or anything like that, just needed volunteer time and basic commitment. Or polls or fictions or factions.
And both were the best outreach to the 800,000 non-vote that anyone mustered, anywhere. I can cope with doing more of those.
Sorry Ad but while the petition and marches have the feel good factor they haven’t stopped National’s plans to sell those assets.
The most effective way to kill the asset sales programme is to have a strong Opposition that makes it clear that they will consider reversing those sales. It will undermine the value imputed by the merchant bankers, the risk will be too high for investors and the costs of sale will be too high relative to the rewards. But you have to have an Opposition who believes in that approach and an Opposition leader able to communicate that astutely in economic terms. Unfortunately, Labour doesn’t have that so we must rely on the Greens for such messages/policies.
Yes, Benghazi, a simple statement by the leader of the opposition that the re-nationalisation of unique or monopoly class assets like the hydro-dams and electricity infrastructure will be a major red-flag highlight of he risk analysis by the Australian, US and Asian investment analysts.
The Labour Party had previously made a similar statement in respect of the ACC.
There is nothing wrong with someone bidding: the wrong is in the selling.
All potential buyers should be fully informed of the risks.
A clear statement by the major opposition party that any buy-back price will be market value capped at the sale price and CoF of 10% will be adequate.
Q.E.D.
I am not expecting a strong market-focussed signal of anything of Labour with Shearer leading and Robertson driving policy. Certainly no bold statements. Nor feom the Greens either on asset sales. So I expect the sales to continue and not a market murmur.
That was not, of course, my point.
I think Labour’s activist core are generally disheartened and want positive things to do, whatever the leadership does. So my inferred question was pointed only at why the hell anyone would continue in this godforsaken game when there is no detectable spine, soul, or heart in Labour.
Any MP I think who engaged on this site with any substance would harvest thousands of activists.
Disagree?
Ad I think that many on this site are disillusioned with Labour and, just as you have previously expressed yourself, are now looking closely at the Greens or others to see if there is a fit. Many are waiting till February to see if the trigger for a membership vote will happen. So in that sense they are hoping.
I think a February membership vote would be energising for the Party in a healthy cathartic way, drive good policy debate, and would give everyone the opportunity to unite around the membership’s choice of Leader. But I don’t see Shearer and his King/Mallard cohorts being prepared to open themselves to that or do anything except run their swords through any MPs not following their edicts.
What to do? If the members want a vote then they need to put real pressure on their relevant MPs and the Party hierachy.That means writing letters, copying those letters widely, even perhaps publishing them openly on this site, and an electronic petition for those members willing to publish their names? Do others have additional ideas?
It only takes 12 MPs to think that initiating the member vote is the best process to unite us all so Labour can win strongly in 2014. We are not asking MPs to select a Leader, we don’t even know at this stage who might put their name forward. Rather, we’re asking them to support the launch of the newly, democratic Labour Party. I’m a member of many varied organisations and my experience is that a healthy, robust organisation emerges following contested democratic elections, as opposed to back room deals done by a few office holders.
Isn’t this something more purposeful for disheartened members to strive for in the next 34 days till the first February caucus?
Only in the sense of watching a car-wreck in slow motion.
Its like whistle-blower legislation. Great for everyone else, and refreshing, but always ruinous for the whistleblower.
National should be politically dead now, and Labour mocking on their graves. Instead, belonging to Labour feels like belonging to the Cathloic church: you still go, but only out of the sense that those bastards running it do not touch my faith. And some of those bastards are evil.
I hope that communicates the level of disgust I have in them and their “renewal processes”.
My New Year wish? That I could block certain commentors. Wondering if anyone can modify the adblocking plugin in Firefox to do this or create one Troll blocker plugin specifically for the purpose?
Yea, sure….I could just scroll down. The thing is they tend to create strings of nasty responses back and forth using up my scrolling time and besides, I really don’t care what they think.
The below was a response by Auckland Council, about the $167m (loss) , stemming from the derivatives portfolio, bolds are my emphasis.
Firstly it needs to put into perspective against the scale of the Auckland region and Auckland Council.
· The Auckland region comprises 37% of National GDP and 34% of population.
· The role of Council is to provide infrastructure and other services to the region under the Local Government Act. As we plan to accommodate the large increase in population and the vision of making Auckland the most liveable city in the world we need to invest in infrastructure assets.
· Our approach to investing in infrastructure is to debt fund this investment and repay the debt back over the life of the asset.
· Council net assets at the Group level are currently $28.3 billion comprising assets of $35.7 billion and liabilities of $7.4 billion. Net Assets are expected to grow by $14.2 billion over the 10 year Long Term Plan period to June 2022 to $42.5 billion.
· Group revenue is currently $3.5 billion and forecast to grow to $5.12 billion p.a.
· Group finance costs are currently $268 million p.a. and forecast to grow to $745 million p.a.
A non-cash mark to market revaluation loss of $167 million on a derivatives portfolio of approximately $5 billion in size and borrowing requirement (including refinancing) over the next ten years of approximately $8.75 billion is not in the opinion of most finance professionals, either material or relevant.
Investors, credit rating agencies, auditors, advisors and banks are not concerned by this because of a number of factors that we have explained to them including;
· The forecast additional debt and associated interest expense needs to be managed in a prudent and conservative manner. Council has a Treasury Management Policy that outlines our approach to managing assets and liabilities. Furthermore, we have internal processes, procedures, governance and management controls to ensure our exposures are managed to best practice. Council receives external Treasury advice and engages with the major New Zealand banks. The government appointed auditor, Audit New Zealand has reviewed our approach to the use of derivatives and is very comfortable with the approach taken as it is in line with what other major organizations (both private sector and public sector) undertake.
· We believe that our Treasury team are resourced, experienced and capable of managing the exposures – the team were a finalist in the INFINZ awards for Excellence in Treasury in 2011 and our Treasurer was awarded the Kanga News Treasurer of the Year award in late 2011. Furthermore, credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s (“S&P”) in an unusual statement last week commented “In our view, Auckland Council’s own financial strength is evidenced by its strong treasury team and its approach to liquidity and debt management”. S&P rarely makes these types of public comments.
· Interest rate derivative products were first created in the 1980’s and it is true that some of these products have been used incorrectly, primarily for purposes they were not originally intended for – speculation. Auckland Council (and the predecessor councils) has always used these instruments only for hedging purposes (not for speculation) and within the parameters of its risk management policies. Council (like all other private and public sector borrowers) uses interest rate swaps primarily to lock in future borrowing rates and to provide certainty for forecasting purposes. This approach is prudent given the forecast borrowing programme of Council and its objective of maintaining a balanced operating budget annually. If interest rates were to rise and Council had not hedged its debt, the consequential increase in borrowing costs is considered to be riskier than the interest cost certainty that hedging gives, even if there is an “opportunity cost” should interest rates reduce.
Snap, micky. Just referred to the same post above in reply to Lynn.
This bit by Trotter is also spot on:
Mr Shearer seems to believe that having once been elected to the leadership of the Parliamentary Labour Party he is entitled to hold that position until he decides to relinquish it. In other words, Labour’s new constitutional procedures for confirming or changing the parliamentary leadership must now be set aside. Mr Shearer has signalled that any caucus member who even thinks (let alone suggests) that someone else might do a better job of leading the Opposition will be publicly disparaged and demoted.
Such authoritarian notions should be anathema to all political parties – especially social-democratic ones. …
The attitudes evinced by Mr Shearer and his backers have no place in such a democratic political organisation. They belong in princes’ courts: spawning courtiers not comrades; factionalism not solidarity.
karol – am relieved to see you back on track re Shearer, you had me worried for a bit! (I am sure you have looked up Cunliffe’s fantastic credentials, including Minister of Health). Labour members should be very, very worried by what could be descending upon them.
I don’t think I’ve changed my position that much. I just focus on the evidence available or that I am aware of at the time.
I’ve always said I think Cunliffe is very well qualified and skilled and should be on Labour’s front bench. I don’t know if he’d be a good caucus leader. But I also have many questions about Shearer and have continued to question what exactly his politics are. My biggest concern is not whether or not he has leadership abilities, but what his political views actually are.
News media or news massagers???, here’s the same news item viewed through the lens of 2 entirely different news organizations,
Early last week RadioNZ National broadcast a news item about a London fish seller who had made up a song he sang at the fish market in an attempt to sell fish,
As happens with these things, he got videoed, uploaded to Utube and the song immediately went viral, British immigration then took an interest in the fish seller and found He was not a legal immigrant and were going to deport Him,
A few days later TV1 News told the exact same story, except their fish seller had become such a celebrity after having His song go viral on Utube that He had given up selling fish so as to concentrate on His new music career,
One of the news organizations is obviously not telling the truth, there is no apparent reason why one of the news organizations would lie about such a minor story that has no direct bearing on anything that occurs in New Zealand,
Would ‘they’ lie to you???, you bet,continuously even when there is no ‘need’ just to condition you all to accept such lies as the truth…
RNZ, credible newspapers and online sources are Standard fare for this canines teeth to get stuck into. (I’ve negotiated an affordable rate and am going Unlimited from today, sooo, I’m gonna play
in the sand pit and throw some castles in the air) 🙂
He was on tv the other night, saying the jobless figures were his parties only bad mark.
Knowing that’s all bollocks, my mind wandered.
Is he still on holiday? Why did he dress in a suit and tie and pretend he was in an office?
If that is his office, given the ‘victory’ frame behind him, what a vain twat.
If that’s his holiday home, given the ‘victory’ frame behind him, what a vain twat.
Would have been less disingenuous and subliminal if he’d been there with his muffin top poking over his diplomatically protected speedos.
The tax on tobacco products also goes up today, Happy New years all you smokers from Slippery, the National Government, and how could we forget the Maori Party,(just because everyone else including their voters have),
2% of smokers will ‘give up’ using the product after such a price rise, 3 months after having given up use of the product an unmeasured but large % of that 2% will be back smoking as hard out as ever,(such is the nature of addiction),
98% of those using the product, unable to ‘give up’ such use will in the case of those with restricted low incomes have to ‘make savings’ elsewhere and as their ‘food budget’ is the only part of their income that has any discretionary spending in it then their ‘choice’ becomes one of an even ‘poorer diet’ or ‘the addiction’ and i would suggest you all find someone that is ‘addicted’ to anything and ask them given such a choice ‘addiction’ or ‘good food choices’ wins in such an equation,
Poor diet brought about by financial constraint will kill a lot more of the nations users of tobacco products one hell of a lot faster than the use of tobacco products will…
Well, it is the old assumption that everyone who smokes wants to give up.
But this link reckons a 4-7% success rate of cessation on any given attempt, so essentially the government’s predicting that half to a third of smokers will try to quit because of the tax hike.
The rest just put up with subsidisng the government’s economic incompetence while being treated like paedophilic lepers.
By Quitlines own admission from the first line of the Chairman’s report they reach fewer than 9% of the smoking population, i am sure you can then work out from Professor whats-his-faces figure of a 10% success rate the actual numbers of those who manage to quit what has been a product with addictive qualities as strong or stronger than Heroin,
What i cannot find figures for is the actual number of young people who despite all the INFORMATION still take up smoking and become the next generation of addicts, and, as i can find no figures for such i am going to suggest that (a), for every person that has quit a young person has become addicted, and (b), the Government knows this, chooses to be blind to it and refuses to collect and publish such data as to do so would reveal it’s taxation of tobacco products as a failure to incentivize people not to use tobacco products and simply a revenue grabbing exercise which takes the food off of the tables of those addicted,
There is only one means to stop the use of tobacco products and that is to register all those who are presently addicted to the product with their doctors as addicts and then ban anyone else from access to the product…
ASH do school surveys, for whatever they’re worth.
As for banning tobacco, piss off. I might go to hell early, but I’ll pick my own damned method, ta very much. Oh, and before you bring up passive smoking, I remind you that given there is pretty much nowhere outside my own home that I can smoke indoors, it’s now a bullshit factor. Play me a violin.
Shall i clarify the last paragraph of my previous comment???, there is only way to stop mass tobacco use into the future, that is to have all present users register as addicts with their doctors so as to allow them to continue their use and ban all those not registered at a cut-off date the purchase of the product,
Have we been on the turps a touch too much Mac, why would i bother mentioning passive smoking which seems to me as being an attempt to demonize those who smoke as a health initiative, and, if your memory can be stretched to a point past 5 minutes it has been me that has taken to (at times)picking holes in what the anti-smoking zealots and the media put out there as the gospel on smoking,
It is a FACT that the majority of us when our time comes to snuff it will in fact succumb to one form of cancer or another, something that mostly goes unmentioned by the anti-smoking zealots and at best considering that ‘averages’ can have wild fluctuations in-built in the ‘averaging’, those who have smoked will die of cancers at much the same rate as the rest of the population but averages would have that death on ‘average’ occur 5 years earlier than those who have never smoked…
Why stop tobacco use indeed, of course you mean why have i put up an alternative to the obvious FAILURE of the Governments supposed means of stopping tobacco use, simply to show the utter bullshit inherent in using the pricing mechanism as a means to stop the mass of those who smoke from doing so,
My favorite piece of shock horror from the anti-smoking zealots has to be the yearly deaths from lung cancer, 10% of lung cancer deaths every year are from smokers, betcha the other 90% of those who die of that particular cancer ever year wish now they had smoked like friggin chimneys…
Or the other ‘goody’ that was fashionable among the anti-smokers for a while, ‘tobacco is a product that kills half it’s users’,
Considering the numbers of those who do not and have never used the product who will die of one form of cancer or another the exact same thing could be said about ‘air’…
In Stuff this morning a short article ” Give Hekia Parata the sack’ Some good comments but one by ‘collhug’ was very interesting, mentioning the Charter School Scam and John Banks’ involvement but also this:
“NOVAPAY (fair & proper tender??????)
The Hon John Banks Family Trust has not held shares in Talent2 International Limited since 28 May 2012 when Talent2 moved to privatise the company and de-list from the Australian stock exchange. Mr Banks advised the Cabinet Office of the sale of his Family Trust’s shares on 29 May 2012.(press release J B )”
You have to begin to wonder, and this has been mentioned on the Standard befor, whether or not the abysmal cluster-f**k that National have made of Education hasn’t been a deliberate series of chaotic coincidence designed to destabilize the Education sector,
Setting up ‘charter schools’ in the minds of the nut jobs, the likes of Banks et al, possibly has at it’s heart not the actual building of schools, more than likely the thinking is that if ‘they’ can get schools to ‘fail’ to the point of having a Commissioner installed then ‘they’ could turn such schools into ‘charter schools’ having use of the buildings and the budgets by default…
Good point. All the government negativity about education is demoralising teachers. Principals have to spend more time supporting teachers because of it. All this time and energy could have otherwise been spent by teachers and principals enjoying their jobs.
Tension
-pulling together (no, not soggy biscuit)
-pressure in vapours
-Electro-motive force
-(state of barely suppressed e-motion; excitement, surprise, and a few less helpful ones too)
-strain-with resultant symptoms (psych.)
-strained relations between persons
-opposition between conflicting ideas or forces
Tensile
-stretching (not the foreskin or labia) foreward
Tensible
-capable of being stretched (or exaggerated in some sites’ case) 😉
Tension Rod-a structural member subjected to tensile stress only
Tense; present, Future, or, Living In The Past (which does have some great tracks though)
First the news,
-More fires
-Script subsidy increases
-Drugged drivers (the stories i could tell ;))
Pi’s Life
Parker Richard a clerical error. Product Placement; Camus L’Etranger and Dostoyevsky’s Notes from the Underground (thats what i think). “Lord, Thank You for my Life.The carnivorous island that Day and Night took away. Day destroys the night, night divides the day. Which story do you prefer? mankind or island in your arms, country in your eyes. Kingdom.”wise men seek peace, history is war”
RNZ-analysts are still not optimistic looking over the cliff; may bunji back to where they lept from
sooner rather than later; ratifications from the Republicans is a Slow Train Coming (more than technicalities) Five days is forever, forever and a day, gotta go to work on Monday (scheming to change the world). I hear slander, libel, I hear words I never heard in the bible, just one step ahead of the shoeshines.Fishermans’ Blues (The Water Boys) wish I was a fisherman, sailed beyond the past, these chains will be loosened and fall away at last. We live in a wheel where everyone steals but when we rise it’s like Strawberry Fields. Camping New Zealand; Do not pass Go. Community Chest the Monopoly, divide the Duopoly. Time spent shopping around is money saved. Think I’m going to Katmandu, thats really really what I’m going to do, If I ever get out of here, thats what I’m gonna do. You tell one person and they tell one person, thats the Faberge organic connection.
RNZ-people emotionally motivated by “expectations” of tomorrow. Worry not.Each day has enough troubles of it’s own. Natural, healthy disgust is manipulated into social exclusion.Well, conservatism can be disgusting and some avoid it like the plague. He’s got Gary Cooper’s eyes, He’ll “believe” you, He’ll deceive you. Anything Could Happen by The Clean. They’re accounting to cheat 2 3 4 5…Just keeping things “neat” to be Alive.I’m lookin’ at you, you’re lookin at me. Bee a Stealthy Bomber. So you think you can tell, Heaven from Hell, Blue Skies from Pain, can you tell a green field from a cold steel rail, Cold Comfort from change. That was my Mistake, that was my miss Stake ache, that was my missed steak. As falls Wichita, so falls Wichita falls-Pat Metheny Group Falls Into You-Mazzy Star-Amen (Did ya get healed?) off Poetic Champions Compose. Let go into the mystery…just let yourself go.
On the Horizon research; one half of households believe their income will drop (some significantly) in 013. Hey There Mr Blue Sky, how’s that “bright future” coming along? The sun is eclipsed by the Moon; the Key is not to lie too soon. Rainman pisses on amerika. Takin’ The Bible “literally” need ya head read. Fall of the house of Ussher. Poe-faced the swinging pendulum. The Harder They Come the harder they fall, one and all. Nothin like the chase to sweet decline, no ones gettin’ out of here alive this time. It’s a shame we have to die so dear, what a way to go, but have no fear. False Evidence Appearing Real. The beginning of Wisdom…? In Isolation, where are the young men, away from these shores, where are the young men, economic casualties, playthings in fat cats paws, a weight on their shoulders. Minesheads revisited. Decline and Fall.
Warne out. Vineyard Choppers chop Pink Frost. They’re so scared. Alcohol Reform, as if anyone cared. Dead duck, Cold in the water. For Now. For Today, I remember your smile Schizophrenic uncle smothered by maternal infection. The Divided Self. History of The Bicameral Mind. A R D
Fairburn, burn baby burn. Seasons don’t Fear The Reaper, Nor’ do The Wind, The Son or The Rain (we can be like they are) Then the door was opened and the wind appeared. New Blood joins this earth and quickly they’re subdued through constant pained disgrace The Young Ones learn their rules.
New Year Dissolution; of Southland water catchments. Liar Liar, pants on fire. Babylons Burning.
The Ruts are well worn out. Side with amerika, side with amerika, Where The Streets Have No Name. L.A Confidential. Mr Bronze, Mr Green and Mr In-Between.
11.6 The righteousness of the upright delivers them, but the unfaithful ones are trapped by evil desires..
11.8 With his mouth the godless destroys his neighbour, but through knowledge the righteous escape.
Open access notables A survey of interventions to actively conserve the frozen North, van Wijngaarden et al., Climatic Change:The frozen elements of the high North are thawing as the region warms much faster than the global mean. The dangers of sea level rise due to melting glacier ice, increased ...
Bryce Edwards writes – New Zealand’s biggest-ever political donations scandal is finally at an end. But what is the conclusion? No one can really be sure. The Court of Appeal released its judgement on Tuesday about the Serious Fraud Office case against the NZ First Foundation. On ...
In 2015, then-Prime Minister John Key announced plans for a huge ocean sanctuary around the Kermadec Islands, banning fishing and mining from 15% of Aotearoa's EEZ. It was bold, it was ambitious, and it suggested that National might actually care about the environment. Except they fucked it up: Key failed ...
1. Who has just been given the accolade New Zealander of the Year?a. The Kokakob. The Cook Strait Ferryc. Fair God. Dr Jim Salinger 2. Which of these is an affront to decent society?a. Dame Edna Everageb. Mrs Doubtfire c. Dr. Frank-N-Furterd. Brian 3. Who is Penny Simmonds?a. The aspiring actress in Big ...
New Zealand’s biggest-ever political donations scandal is finally at an end. But what is the conclusion? No one can really be sure.The Court of Appeal released its judgement on Tuesday about the Serious Fraud Office case against the NZ First Foundation. On the face of it, the court found ...
Buzz from the Beehive Waves of rain are set to lash much of the North Island during Easter Weekend as a low-pressure system forms east of New Zealand, according to a weather forecast published in the past day or so. Niwa was warning of a “moisture-laden” long weekend, with rain expected ...
Look around us…Nicola Willis’ promises of balancing the books, of cutting spending without reducing services, and of delivering game changing tax cuts are disappearing before her eyes.Everyday we see stories of violent crime ending in horrific injuries, or worse. The cost of living worsens, whereas the PM claimed renters would ...
TL;DR: My top six news of note on the morning of Thursday, March 28 include:The Government will have to borrow between $10 billion to $15 billion more than previously expected in order to make up for a slowing economy and to pay for $14.9 billion of tax cuts, according to ...
This story by Naveena Sadasivam and Kate Yoder was originally published by Grist and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. The long-awaited jobs board for the American Climate Corps, promised early in the Biden administration, will open next month, according to details shared exclusively ...
Should landlords be able to deduct the interest on the loans they take out to bankroll their property speculation? The US Senate Budget Committee and Bloomberg News don’t think this is a good idea, for reasons set out below. Regardless, our coalition government has been burning through a ton of ...
Treasury’s first report on the economy since the change of government presents a damning indictment of Labour’s economic management. The problem for National is that it is so damning that logically, coupled with a rapidly slowing economy, Finance Minister Nicola Willis should respond to it by postponing or even cancelling ...
Budget tensions are becoming evident within the Coalition Government. Winston Peters made numerous political points in his speech to the NZF annual conference. But the attack on his own government’s fiscal policies raised issues of substance. ‘Today in the Sunday Star Times, journalist and former advisor to the Labour ...
Buzz from the Beehive The media – sure enough – have been binging on Finance Minister Nicola Willis’ release of the Budget Policy Statement and a statement headed Government announces Budget priorities This assures us – or rather, this parrots the Luxon team mantra – that the Budget “will deliver ...
The Ides of March brought me COVID followed by a bereavement. No wonder they tell you to be careful of them.I’m home now and have resumed the interrupted recuperation. Very much looking forward to getting back to regular things. Meanwhile, some thoughts…OneThis new Prime Minister guy just keeps getting more dire. ...
News that the Chinese ATP 40 cyber-hacking unit penetrated parliamentary internet networks in 2021 has renewed concerns about the PRC’s malign intentions in Aotearoa. But is the hack that significant given the length of time that has passed since its … Continue reading → ...
When Parliament passed the Intelligence and security Act in 2017, they assured us all that it was full of safeguards. Any intrusive surveillance of New Zealanders would be subject to a "triple lock", requiring the approval of the Minister and (supposedly independent) Commissioner of Intelligence Warrants, as well as post-facto ...
Eric Crampton writes – Richard Harman’s Politik newsletter provides a bit of the context that ought to have been showing up in other media reports on potential reductions in public service staffing. Media has been reporting on staffing cuts on the order of about 7%. Is that ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – It’s becoming increasingly apparent that many perceive free speech to have become the preserve of the politically right wing, the religiously conservative, the libertarian fringe, the anti-trans, the anti-Māori and…. well, just fill in with whatever groups or individuals you don’t like and don’t ...
Don Brash writes – As everybody who is not blind and deaf is aware, there is a huge political preoccupation with climate change at the moment, a widespread (though by no means unanimous) belief that global temperatures are rising mainly as a result of the greenhouse gases created ...
TL;DR: My six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy on Wednesday, March 27 include:Chris Bishop laid out his vision for filling Aotearoa-NZ’s $100 billion infrastructure deficit in a speech yesterday, emphasising user pays and private funding, but failed to say how to achieve bipartisanship on population, public borrowing and ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Former Finance Minister Grant Robertson and former Prime Minister Chris Hipkins have been conveying how unhappy they are with the tax system. Last week in his valedictory speech, Robertson called for the introduction of a wealth or capital gains tax. And this week Hipkins ...
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 ...
Buzz from the Beehive China has loomed large in Beehive considerations over the past 24 hours, largely because of that country’s mischief-making in the cyber espionage department. Two media statements emerged on that subject hard on the heels of the PM baulking at questions put to him on RNZ’s Morning ...
Chris Trotter writes – WHY IS THE NATIONAL PARTY doing so much for landlords, property developers, trucking, and construction companies, and so little for everybody who isn’t already pretty well-off? It’s as if protecting landlords’ investments and building apartments and roads now constitute the whole of National’s ...
Bryce Edwards writes – When she was campaigning to be Minister of Finance last year, Nicola Willis pledged that she would resign from the job if she failed to deliver tax cuts in her first Budget. Now, it’s that pledge, along with Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s ...
Robert MacCulloch writes – The Reserve Bank has doubled staff numbers in five years to 510, with personnel costs rising to $80 million in 2023 from $32 million in 2018 – up by a whopping 150%. I guess when you print $50 billion and flood markets with liquidity, ...
The furore. In case you didn’t notice there was a controversy in the weekend involving dolphins in a little town off the South Island. Don’t panic, they haven’t declared independence and resumed whaling, this was simply a sailing event.The problem began when racing was cancelled on the opening day of ...
For 20 years or more, the case for a meaningful capital tax gains has been mulled over and analysed to death, including by the tax working group chaired by Sir Michael Cullen. More than once, the International Monetary Fund has said a CGT would be a good idea for New ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: The Public Health Communications Centre (PHCC) call for urgent preventive action and a risk assessment survey of long covid in this briefing noteLocal scoop: NZ road deaths surpass OECD rates, so why is the govt reversing safety plans? ...
This story was originally published by Grist and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. This story is part of a collaboration with Grist and WABE to demystify the Georgia Public Service Commission, the small but powerful state-elected board that makes critical decisions about everything from raising ...
This is a guest post from Robert McLachlan Global warming is accelerating; 2023 was off the charts. We need to stop burning fossil fuels. In New Zealand, transport accounts for half of all fossil fuels burnt. In the Emissions Reduction Plan, transport emissions fall 41% by 2035. As the ...
Labour productivity has been receding rapidly over the past two years, reversing a post-lockdown rise. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy as at 6:26am on Tuesday, March 26 include:Workers have been treading water in output per hour worked for 12 years, ...
TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to April 2 include:Today, Parliament resumes sitting at 2pm for the second week of a two-week session. Officials for SIS and GCSB report their annual reviews in public to the Intelligence and Security Select Committee from 5.10pm.Tomorrow, ...
Faced with a barrage of criticism over the promised tax cuts from usually supportive commentators, Finance Minister Nicola Willis yesterday reaffirmed her intention to include them in this year’s Budget. The Government is up against it over the cuts just about every way it turns. Commentators like Fran O’Sullivan, Matthew ...
Here’s my pick of today’s substack posts as of 6:26pm on Monday, March 25: writes via his substack that Market-rate housing will make your city cheaper writes via his substack about the problems talking to double-cab ute (truck) drivers about their vehicles. today about moments of radicalisation in ...
Buzz from the Beehive Just before Christmas, Finance Minister Nicola Willis delivered something that was pitched as a mini-budget and brayed about the decisive action being taken to repair the Government books and support income tax relief in Budget 2024. In a statement headed Fiscal repair job underway. she introduced ...
My sister Belinda asked Dad yesterday what one word would describe Mum best. He said: vivacious.If you only knew her from the photos on the slideshow we've made for today,you might wonder about that, because the camera tended to lie with Mum.If ever she saw a camera pointed at her, she ...
There are two major public consultations closing in the next week, Auckland Council’s Long Term Plan (LTP), and the draft Government Policy Statement on Land Transport (GPS). Closing dates and times: LTP closes Thursday 28 February, at 11.59pm – a minute to midnight! GPS closes Tuesday 2 April, at 12pm noon – note that’s ...
From Kiwiblog’s David Farrar – Bryce Wilkinson writes: Senior Fellow Bryce Wilkinson’s analysis reveals that since March 2009, New Zealand has spent $158 billion more overseas than it has earned, but its NIIP has only fallen by $32 billion.Statistics New Zealand shows that receipts from overseas reinsurers have ...
Is she hinting that the Coalition Government will have to back down on key promises it made in Opposition? Brian Easton writes – The Minister of Finance, Nicola Willis, is telling an evolving story about her fiscal challenges. In Opposition she was confident that she could ...
Dear Nicola Willis,Right now you’ve probably got lots of competing demands coming at you. Ministers who’ve inherited quite a mess, or so you’ve told us, looking for money in the budget to improve things. I imagine that’s why they came to parliament - to make things better.You’ll have to make ...
The Local Government, Transport and Auckland Minister hasthreatened councils with intervention if they don’t merge water assets to take them off balance sheet, just as the now-repealed Three Waters plan directed. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My six things of note this morning for Monday, March 25 include:Simeon ...
A listing of 36 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 17, 2024 thru Sat, March 23, 2024. Story of the week Thanks to John Mason having the stamina to sit down to watch "Climate - the Movie" ...
This morning the Q&A programme had Simeon Brown on to talk about National’s replacement for Three Waters. In case anyone’s forgotten the three are - drinking water, waste water, and sewerage. It’s quite important not to get them mixed up. In much the same way that you wouldn’t want to ...
Today’s newsletter comes with a mini-podcast conversation between me and my buddy Liv Tennet, talking about her time as a child actor in Lord of the Rings. It’s a conversation with a lot of giggles as she talks about falling off a horse, and becoming a meme. Read ...
The Desmog Climate Disinformation Database documents, "individuals and organisations that have helped to delay and distract the public and our elected leaders from taking needed action to reduce greenhouse gas pollution and fight global warming." It's a who's who of the organised climate change denial movement, in other words. In ...
Bob Edlin writes – A High Court judge has decided miscreants who have mana – or who claim to have mana – should be treated differently from miscreants who have none. It’s a ruling that suggests indigenous law-breakers have a better chance of securing a discharge without conviction ...
Welcome to the first, and possibly last, edition of Brickbats, Bouquets and Bull’s Wool. In which I’ll take a look at the events of the last week or so, and rate them.In such ratings the numbers usually have more to do with the opinions of the reviewer, than the actual ...
Roger Partridge writes – My earlier column this month, New Zealand’s highest court could be facing a turning point, prompted a flood of feedback from business readers and lawyers alike. A common query was what Parliament can do to restrain an overreaching judiciary. This week I discuss two steps Parliament ...
TL;DR: In today’s ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.16pm on Friday, March 22: writes about New Zealand's Building Boom—And What the World Must Learn From It over at his substack. challenges the Auckland Council’s use of a 3.8 degrees of warming forecast to oppose a wave-park and data centre project ...
Is she hinting that the Coalition Government will have to back down on key promises it made in Opposition?The Minister of Finance, Nicola Willis, is telling an evolving story about her fiscal challenges. In Opposition she was confident that she could deliver her promised income tax cuts. Appointed minister, she ...
Buzz from the Beehive Ministers of the Crown have drawn attention to one sector of the science sector which is unlikely to be subjected to heavy spending cuts, a state-funded broadcaster which is doing nicely, thank you, and a sporting event that had $5.4 million from the public purse puffed ...
Abbott’s Freestyle Libre sensors allow continuous glucose monitoring (CGM). The sensor is applied to the back of the patient’s arm, with a thin filament under the skin measuring glucose levels constantly. But it costs around $100 per sensor and must be replaced once every 14 days. Photo by BSIP/Universal Images ...
The Inspector General of Intelligence and Security (IGIS) recently released a report in which he exposes the existence of a foreign intelligence partner-controlled technological “capability” inside the headquarters of the GCSB, NZ’s 5 Eyes-affiliated signals intelligence collection and analysis agency. … Continue reading → ...
Peter Dunne writes – Nearly three decades after the introduction of MMP and multiparty governments there should be a greater level of understanding about their finer points than often appears to be the case. The reaction to the despicable outburst from the Deputy Prime Minister at the weekend highlights ...
The sweet kisses from fruit of summerHave slowly been turning dullerYou say, "those times"And "remember the daysWhen we went outside and there still was the shade?"Taking no reason into play…Autumn. Clear, blue days shortening to longer nights, growing colder. Aotearoa.That’s us. The temperature dropping, the looming car crash - so ...
Bryce Edwards writes – “It is often said that behind every great man is a great woman”. This is the pitch by the National Party Botany electorate branch to attend their “Ladies Afternoon Tea with Amanda Luxon”. For $110 including GST, you can turn up on Saturday 20 April ...
David Farrar writes – The Electoral Commission has published the expense returns for political parties for the 2023 election. I’ve put them in a table with how many votes a party got so we can see the spend per vote. National only spent $3.34 for every vote they got, almost ...
Winston Peters’ headline-making actions over the past week may have been a show of political power intended to strengthen his hand in Budget negotiations. It was no accident that his State of the Nation speech was as it was. He made it as New Zealand First Leader, not as Deputy ...
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:Former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson bowed out of politics this week, giving a series of exit ...
Graham Adams writes — If you love the law or sausages, as the saying goes, best not to look too closely at how they are made. And after watching the orgy of self-pity when Newshub’s closure was announced on February 28, television journalism should definitely be added to the list of those ...
Venerable New Zealand political commentator, Chris Trotter (https://bowalleyroad.blogspot.com/), is a sad creature these days. Once one of the most reliable Leftist writers out there – Economic Left at that – Trotter seems to have absorbed the worldview of Auckland culture-war obsessives. It is not for me to categorise what he ...
The cruelty of short-term memory loss is that each time you ask where she is, you get the fresh shock and grief of the news. That was Dad's day yesterday.Comfortingly, it seems to be less so today. Last night he looked crumpled, today he seems more settled. There's a card ...
Photo by Alvan Nee on UnsplashIt’s that new day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when and I co-host our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm. Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream for our chat about the week’s news ...
Buzz from the Beehive One minister is talking tough while a colleague – whose ministry had acted tough and drawn a barrage of flak – has shown an official softening. Some ministers are doing what Labour was good at, which is distributing public funds to causes regarded as worthy or ...
A ballot for 4 Member's Bills was held today, and the following bills were drawn: Insurance Contracts Bill (Duncan Webb) Income Tax (Clean Transport FBT Exclusion) Amendment Bill (Julie Anne Genter) Crimes (Increased Penalties for Slavery Offences) Amendment Bill (Greg Fleming) Pae Ora (Healthy Futures) ...
One of the strongest narratives about "our" spy agencies is that they are basically institutional traitors, working for foreign powers (or just themselves), without any control or oversight by the elected government. And today, we have yet another report from the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security which explicitly confirms this. ...
“It is often said that behind every great man is a great woman”. This is the pitch by the National Party Botany electorate branch to attend their “Ladies Afternoon Tea with Amanda Luxon”. For $110 including GST, you can turn up on Saturday 20 April to meet the Prime Minister’s ...
The Coalition Government’s plan to ‘get Auckland moving’ is a cuts cover-up that will ultimately cost Aucklanders more to move around the city, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Slashing the Ministry of Pacific Peoples by 40% will have a devastating impact on pacific communities and further highlights how little this government cares about anything other than cutting taxes for the wealthiest few. ...
Labour has proposed an urgent inquiry to investigate the ever-increasing profits of supermarkets, aiming to lower costs for shoppers and food producers alike, says Labour Spokesperson for Commerce and Consumer Affairs Arena Williams and Primary Production Spokesperson Cushla Tangaere-Manuel. ...
With 14% of jobs on the line at the Ministry for Ethnic Communities, the responsible Minister Melissa Lee is failing to stand up for the very communities she’s meant to be representing. ...
COURT OF APPEAL: TRIFECTA OF VICTORY FOR NZ FIRST, TRIFECTA OF FAILURE FOR OPPONENTS For the third time since April 2020, New Zealand First has defeated the Serious Fraud Office and all those complicit in a malicious attack against a political party going about its lawful business in a lawful ...
The Green Party stands with people who live in public housing, people in dire housing need, experts and advocates in demanding better than the Government’s archaic approach to housing those who need our support the most. ...
New Zealand has recently lost the hosting rights of some major international sporting events including the America’s Cup, the Rugby Championship, Netball World Cup, and the Wellington Sevens. We are now at a huge risk of losing SailGP as well. And it won’t stop there. The recent issues with SailGP ...
A Member’s Bill drawn this week would modernise insurance law and make things fairer and more transparent for consumers, Christchurch Central MP Duncan Webb said. ...
The Minister for Disability Issues has confirmed she was aware of funding issues in mid-December and did nothing to stop it. On 14 March, she signed off on changes that were announced and implemented on 18 March without any consultation with disability communities. ...
Green Party MP Julie Anne Genter says her members' bill is an opportunity for the coalition government to plug the gap in electric vehicle incentives. ...
The National Government continues to talk about irresponsible tax cuts that will only drive up inflation, despite the country entering a technical recession. ...
The Minister for Disability Issues must act urgently to reinstate flexibility around the funding for disability support and apologise to disabled carers. ...
This story has been initiated by a leftie shill reporter who proactively sought to call a member of a former band, which disbanded twelve years ago, give their biased appraisal of what was said in my speech, and concocted a ham-fisted attempt at a story that does nothing but show ...
The Government has accepted Labour’s change to the Road User Charge (RUC) discount for hybrid vehicles, meaning there will still be some incentive for people to buy greener vehicles. ...
Many in the mainstream media have taken what was said in New Zealand First’s State of the Nation Speech in Palmerston North on Sunday and deliberately, deceitfully, and ignorantly misrepresented what I said and why I said it. The headlines and commentary on the news stated that I compared ‘co-governance ...
Kicking the most vulnerable people out of state housing and pushing them towards homelessness will result in a proliferation of poverty and trauma across our most vulnerable communities. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader and MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi has penned a letter asking MPs to support his members bill to remove GST from all food. The bill is expected to go through its first reading in parliament this Wednesday. “I’m calling on all political parties to support my ...
Good afternoon. Thank you for, in your very busy lives, turning up to this meeting today. On October 14th last year New Zealanders overwhelmingly voted for change. That is exactly what this new government is bringing. New Zealand First campaigned to ‘take back our country’ and stop the disastrous economic ...
This year is about getting real with Kiwis and discussing the tough issues, as the National Government exacerbates inequality and divides New Zealand, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said ...
The Government adding Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) to its already roaring environmental policy bonfire is an assault on the future of wildlife that makes Aotearoa unique. ...
After 12 years of fighting to protect our moana we are finding ourselves back at square one and back at court. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is sitting in Hawera to reconsider an application from Trans-Tasman Resources to dig up 50 million tonnes of the seabed in South Taranaki. This ...
Minister Shane Jones’ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Government’s fast-track 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 publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
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 publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Government’s miscalculation saga continues as it has forgotten an eyewatering $90 million gap in its interest deductibility cost figures, say Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds and Revenue Spokesperson Deborah Russell. ...
He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission has today released advice that says if the Government doesn’t act now New Zealand is at risk of not meeting its climate goals. ...
The Coalition Government has today confirmed it is abandoning first home buyers who are struggling to get ahead, says Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds. ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed the passing of legislation to move light electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) into the road user charges system from 1 April. “It was always intended that EVs and PHEVs would be exempt from road user charges until they reached two ...
New Zealand is strengthening its ability to combat illegal fishing outside its domestic waters and beef up regulation for its own commercial fishers in international waters through a Bill which had its first reading in Parliament today. The Fisheries (International Fishing and Other Matters) Amendment Bill 2023 sets out stronger ...
Economists Carl Hansen and Professor Prasanna Gai have been appointed to the Reserve Bank Monetary Policy Committee, Finance Minister Nicola Willis announced today. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is the independent decision-making body that sets the Official Cash Rate which determines interest rates. Carl Hansen, the executive director of Capital ...
Apartment owners and buyers will soon have greater protections as further changes to the law on unit titles come into effect, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “The Unit Titles (Strengthening Body Corporate Governance and Other Matters) Amendment Act had already introduced some changes in December 2022 and May 2023, and ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters will travel to Egypt and Europe from this weekend. “This travel will focus on a range of New Zealand’s traditional diplomatic and security partnerships while enabling broad engagement on the urgent situation in Gaza,” Mr Peters says. Mr Peters will attend the NATO Foreign ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown is encouraging all road users to stay safe, plan their journeys ahead of time, and be patient with other drivers while travelling around this Easter long weekend. “Road safety is a responsibility we all share, and with increased traffic on our roads expected this Easter we ...
About 1.4 million New Zealanders will receive cost of living relief through increased government assistance from April 1 909,000 pensioners get a boost to Superannuation, including 5000 veterans 371,000 working-age beneficiaries will get higher payments 45,000 students will see an increase in their allowance Over a quarter of New Zealanders ...
Ensuring social housing is being provided to those with the greatest needs is front of mind as the Government restarts social housing tenancy reviews, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. “Our relentless focus on building a strong economy is to ensure we can deliver better public services such as social ...
The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary will not go ahead, with Cabinet deciding to stop work on the proposed reserve and remove the Bill that would have established it from Parliament’s order paper. “The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary Bill would have created a 620,000 sq km economic no-go zone,” Oceans and Fisheries Minister ...
Dam safety regulations are being amended so that smaller dams won’t be subject to excessive compliance costs, Minister for Building and Construction Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on reducing costs and removing unnecessary red tape so we can get the economy back on track. “Dam safety regulations ...
The coalition Government is expanding the medium-scale adverse event classification to parts of the North Island as dry weather conditions persist, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced today. “I have made the decision to expand the medium-scale adverse event classification already in place for parts of the South Island to also cover the ...
The passing of legislation giving effect to coalition Government tax commitments has been welcomed by Finance Minister Nicola Willis. “The Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill will help place New Zealand on a more secure economic footing, improve outcomes for New Zealanders, and make our tax system ...
Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins and Tertiary Education and Skills Minister Penny Simmonds today announced plans to transform our science and university sectors to boost the economy. Two advisory groups, chaired by Professor Sir Peter Gluckman, will advise the Government on how these sectors can play a greater ...
The Budget will deliver urgently-needed tax relief to hard-working New Zealanders while putting the government’s finances back on a sustainable track, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The Finance Minister made the comments at the release of the Budget Policy Statement setting out the Government’s Budget objectives. “The coalition Government intends ...
The coalition Government will look at options to address a zoning issue that limits how much financial support Queenstown residents can get for accommodation. Cabinet has agreed on a response to the Petitions Committee, which had recommended the geographic information MSD uses to determine how much accommodation supplement can be ...
Cabinet has agreed to a short extension to the final reporting timeframe for the Royal Commission into Abuse in Care from 28 March 2024 to 26 June 2024, Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden says. “The Royal Commission wrote to me on 16 February 2024, requesting that I consider an ...
The coalition Government is delivering an $18 million boost to New Zealanders needing to travel for specialist health treatment, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says. “These changes are long overdue – the National Travel Assistance (NTA) scheme saw its last increase to mileage and accommodation rates way back in 2009. ...
The Government is recognising the innovative and rising talent in New Zealand’s growing space sector, with the Prime Minister and Space Minister Judith Collins announcing the new Prime Minister’s Prizes for Space today. “New Zealand has a growing reputation as a high-value partner for space missions and research. I am ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has confirmed New Zealand’s concerns about cyber activity have been conveyed directly to the Chinese Government. “The Prime Minister and Minister Collins have expressed concerns today about malicious cyber activity, attributed to groups sponsored by the Chinese Government, targeting democratic institutions in both New ...
Independent Reviewers appointed for School Property Inquiry Education Minister Erica Stanford today announced the appointment of three independent reviewers to lead the Ministerial Inquiry into the Ministry of Education’s School Property Function. The Inquiry will be led by former Minister of Foreign Affairs Murray McCully. “There is a clear need ...
State Highway 1 across the Brynderwyns will be open for Easter weekend, with work currently underway to ensure the resilience of this critical route being paused for Easter Weekend to allow holiday makers to travel north, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Today I visited the Brynderwyn Hills construction site, where ...
Introduction Good morning to you all, and thanks for having me bright and early today. I am absolutely delighted to be the Minister for Infrastructure alongside the Minister of Housing and Resource Management Reform. I know the Prime Minister sees the three roles as closely connected and he wants me ...
New Zealand stands with the United Kingdom in its condemnation of People’s Republic of China (PRC) state-backed malicious cyber activity impacting its Electoral Commission and targeting Members of the UK Parliament. “The use of cyber-enabled espionage operations to interfere with democratic institutions and processes anywhere is unacceptable,” Minister Responsible for ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Defence Minister Judith Collins today announced New Zealand will provide logistics support for the upcoming Solomon Islands election. “We’re sending a team of New Zealand Defence Force personnel and two NH90 helicopters to provide logistics support for the election on 17 April, at the request ...
The European Union Free Trade Agreement Legislation Amendment Bill received Royal Assent today, completing the process for New Zealand’s ratification of its free trade agreement with the European Union. “I am pleased to announce that today, in a small ceremony at the Beehive, New Zealand notified the European Union ...
Public consultation on the terms of reference for the Royal Commission into COVID-19 Lessons has concluded, Internal Affairs Minister Hon Brooke van Velden says. “I have been advised that there were over 11,000 submissions made through the Royal Commission’s online consultation portal.” Expanding the scope of the Royal Commission of ...
Hardworking families are set to benefit from a new credit to help them meet their early childcare education (ECE) costs, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. From 1 July, parents and caregivers of young children will be supported to manage the rising cost of living with a partial reimbursement of their ...
A specialised Independent Technical Advisory Group (ITAG) tasked with preparing and publishing independent non-binding advice on the design of a "green" (sustainable finance) taxonomy rulebook is being established, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “Comprising experts and market participants, the ITAG's primary goal is to deliver comprehensive recommendations to the ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins has thanked the Chief of Army, Major General John Boswell, DSD, for his service as he leaves the Army after 40 years. “I would like to thank Major General Boswell for his contribution to the Army and the wider New Zealand Defence Force, undertaking many different ...
25 March 2024 Minister to meet Australian counterparts and Manufacturing Industry Leaders Small Business, Manufacturing, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly will travel to Australia for a series of bi-lateral meetings and manufacturing visits. During the visit, Minister Bayly will meet with his Australian counterparts, Senator Tim Ayres, Ed ...
Government commits almost $3 million for period products in schools The Coalition Government has committed $2.9 million to ensure intermediate and secondary schools continue providing period products to those who need them, Minister of Education Erica Stanford announced today. “This is an issue of dignity and ensuring young women don’t ...
Good morning, it’s great to be here. First, I would like to acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of Building Surveyors and thank you for the opportunity to be here this morning. I would like to use this opportunity to outline the Government’s ambitious plan and what we hope to ...
Minister for Pacific Peoples Dr Shane Reti has announced the Government’s commitment to the Auckland Secondary Schools Māori and Pacific Islands Cultural Festival, more commonly known as Polyfest. “The Ministry for Pacific Peoples is a longtime supporter of Polyfest and, as it celebrates 49 years in 2024, I’m proud to ...
Before moving onto the substance of today’s address, I want to recognise the very significant and ongoing contribution the Breast Cancer Foundation makes to support the lives of New Zealand women and their families living with breast cancer. I very much enjoy working with you. I also want to recognise ...
New Zealand has notched up a first with the launch of University of Canterbury research to the International Space Station, Science, Innovation and Technology and Space Minister Judith Collins says. The hardware, developed by Dr Sarah Kessans, is designed to operate autonomously in orbit, allowing scientists on Earth to study ...
Introduction Thank you for inviting me to speak with you today and I’m sorry I can’t be there in person. Yesterday I started in Wellington for Breakfast TV, spoke to a property conference in Auckland, and finished the day speaking to local government in Christchurch, so it would have been ...
The Coalition Government is contributing more than $1 million to support the establishment of an emergency multi-agency coordination centre in Northland. Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell announced the contribution today during a visit of the Whangārei site where the facility will be constructed. “Northland has faced a number ...
New Zealanders have enjoyed a broader range of voices telling the story of Aotearoa thanks to the creation of Whakaata Māori 20 years ago, says Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka. The minister spoke at a celebration marking the national indigenous media organisation’s 20th anniversary at their studio in Auckland on ...
Commercial catch limits for some fisheries have been increased following a review showing stocks are healthy and abundant, Ocean and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The changes, along with some other catch limit changes and management settings, begin coming into effect from 1 April 2024. "Regular biannual reviews of fish ...
EDITORIAL:The Jakarta Post It happens again and again; indigenous Papuans fall victim to Indonesian soldiers. This time, we have photographic evidence for the brutality, with videos on social media showing a Papuan man being tortured by a group of plainclothes men alleged to be the Indonesian Military (TNI) members. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robyn J. Whitaker, Director of the Wesley Centre for Theology, Ethics, and Public Policy & Associate Professor, New Testament, Pilgrim Theological College, University of Divinity A strange and eclectic range of activities takes place across these few weeks of the year. Some ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Panizza Allmark, Professor Visual & Cultural Studies, Edith Cowan University It’s Easter weekend, which means many of us will be kicking back with the greatest hits on repeat. But whether you’re a boomer, or an ‘80s or ’90s kid, you might be ...
RNZ Pacific Fiji’s Acting Public Prosecutor has filed an appeal against the sentences of former prime minister Voreqe Bainimarama and suspended police chief Sitiveni Qiliho in their corruption case. Bainimarama was granted an absolute discharge for attempting to pervert the course of justice while Qiliho received a conditional discharge with ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Arosha Weerakoon, Senior Lecturer and General Dentist, School of Dentistry, The University of Queensland Casezy idea/Shutterstock How does toothpaste work? What did people use before toothpaste was invented? – Amelia, age 7, Meanjin (Brisbane) Thanks for your ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brett Hallam, Associate professor, UNSW Sydney IM Imagery/Shutterstock Solar SunShot is well named. The Australian government announced today it would plough A$1 billion into bringing back solar manufacturing to Australia, boosting energy security, swapping coal and gas jobs for those ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Dix, Research Fellow in Nutrition & Dietetics, The University of Queensland Easter is the time for chocolate. The shops are full of fantastically packaged and shiny chocolates in all shapes and sizes, making trips to the supermarket with children more challenging ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emma Felton, Adjunct Senior Researcher, University of South Australia Even in a stubborn cost-of-living crisis, it seems there’s one luxury most Australians won’t sacrifice – their daily cup of coffee. Coffee sales have largely remained stable, even as financial pressures have ...
Mining company Trans-Tasman Resources has unexpectedly withdrawn its application for a consent to suck the valuable metals vanadium and titanium from the Taranaki seafloor, as it apparently wagers on the Government’s new fast-track process. It had spent two-and-a-half days putting its case to the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision-making committee, at ...
Contrary to the Associate Minister of Education’s claims, analysis of Healthy School Lunches Programme - Ka Ora, Ka Ako assessments has revealed it provides excellent value for the taxpayer dollar, as a groundswell of public opposition to Government ...
Greenpeace says wannabe Taranaki seabed miner Trans-Tasman Resources is likely banking on Christopher Luxon’s fast-track process to side-step proper scrutiny of its Taranaki seabed mining proposal by bailing out of the Environmental Protection Agency hearing ...
Kiwis Against Seabed mining today slammed Australian owned would-be seabed miner Trans Tasman Resources (TTR) for abandoning its application to the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) to mine the seabed of the South Taranaki Bight. The company ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katie Attwell, Associate Professor, School of Social Sciences, The University of Western Australia Ground Picture/Shutterstock Months after COVID vaccines were introduced in 2021, governments and private organisations mandated them for various groups. Health and aged care workers were among the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Dzurak, Scientia Professor Andrew Dzurak, CEO and Founder of Diraq, UNSW Sydney Diraq For decades, the pursuit of quantum computing has struggled with the need for extremely low temperatures, mere fractions of a degree above absolute zero (0 Kelvin or ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne A national Essential poll, conducted March 20–24 from a sample of 1,150, gave the Coalition a 50–44 lead including undecided, a reversal ...
The Taxpayers’ Union has today made a formal request under the Regulations of the People’s Republic of China on Open Government Information () for information held about how New Zealand Members of Parliament are spending taxpayer ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robert Nelson, Honorary Principal Fellow, The University of Melbourne A Byzantine depiction of the Eucharist in Saint Sophia Cathedral, Kyiv.Jacek555/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA A nasty quarrel arose in the 11th century over what kind of bread should be used in holy ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Patrick Hesp, Professor, Flinders University Patrick Hesp In some parts of Australia, coastal dunes are retreating from the ocean at an alarming rate, as waves carve up the beach and wind blows the sand inland. But coastal communities are largely ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Luke Heemsbergen, Senior Lecturer, Digital, Political, Media, Deakin University With an impressive 60% of the US smartphone market, Apple is undeniably big, but not a clear monopoly. Yet, years of innovation by Apple have effectively given the company its own exclusive ...
Whether you’re facing layoffs or are just an emotional junior staffer, it’s always a good idea to scout out a good crying place before you need it. It’s an incredibly hard time for Wellington. Across the city, thousands of public servants are hearing tough news about redundancies and layoffs. Government ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James Miller-Jones, Professor, Curtin University Nuclear explosions on a neutron star feed its jets. Danielle Futselaar and Nathalie Degenaar, Anton Pannekoek Institute, University of Amsterdam, CC BY-SA How fast can a neutron star drive powerful jets into space? The answer, it ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Daryl Adair, Associate Professor of Sport Management, University of Technology Sydney Earlier this week, independent MP Andrew Wilkie accused the AFL of conducting “off the books” illicit drug testing to identify players using substances of abuse, then inappropriately withdrawing them from matches ...
The Government’s announcement that it will scrap plans for a vast marine sanctuary around the Kermadec Islands is ‘shameful’ and will make it impossible for Aotearoa New Zealand to meet its international commitments, says the World Wide Fund for Nature ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Quiggin, Professor, School of Economics, The University of Queensland Shutterstock The federal government has bowed to pressure from the car industry, announcing it will relax proposed emissions rules for utes and vans and delay enforcement of the new standards ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Suzanne Rutland, Professor Emerita, University of Sydney In his latest book, Jewish Life in Medieval Spain, Jonathan Ray focuses on the tumult of the 14th century in Spain – a time of the plague, civil strife and war between the two largest ...
While creating a slate of world-class shows, Whakaata Māori also developed a generation of world-class creatives. Television is an odd word. It mixes the Ancient Greek and Latin languages, and its most literal meaning is “far-off sight”. In the contemporary and living language of te reo Māori, “whakaata” as a ...
Yesterday the UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Israel’s war on Gaza. This significant step and the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza prompted an urgent debate in the New Zealand Parliament. Leader ...
The Government’s decision to reduce access to continuous glucose monitors (CGM) not only threatens the lives of children with type 1 diabetes and increases the potential for ‘Dead in Bed’ syndrome, but also threatens the health of their parents an ...
Apples are available year-round, but the wide variety on offer involves intensive scientific research – and large-scale commercialisation. What’s beautiful, red, sweet and crunchy? Tony Martin’s favourite kind of apple: Sassy. The CEO of apple and pear breeding organisation Prevar, Martin’s fondness for Sassy represents professional success as well as ...
Family violence specialist service Shine is calling on employers to stop asking for proof of domestic violence in order for employees to access domestic violence leave. The call comes five years after the introduction of the Domestic Violence ...
The Deputy Chairperson of the Finance and Expenditure Committee is calling for public submissions on the Budget Policy Statement 2024. The Budget Policy Statement 2024 (BPS) sets out the Government's priorities for the 2024 Budget. It explains the approach ...
Brutal government spending cuts that will see the size of the Ministry for Pacific Peoples slashed by 40% will hit Pasifika communities hard, the PSA says. The Ministry has told staff that it is seeking voluntary redundancies, and to redeploy and reassign ...
I live with five people I mostly love, but our different ideas about generosity are starting to really irk me.Want Hera’s help? Email your problem to helpme@thespinoff.co.nzDear Hera,This is a bit of a random one but here goes. I’m 22 and work an OK job (OK meaning I get paid ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Maria Nicholas, Senior Lecturer in Language and Literacy Education, Deakin University Earlier this month, the New South Wales government announced it would roll out programs for gifted students in every public school in the state. This comes amid concerns gifted school ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christopher Rudge, Law lecturer, University of Sydney Massachusetts General Hospital In a world first, we heard last week that US surgeons had transplanted a kidney from a gene-edited pig into a living human. News reports said the procedure was a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Tombs, Howard Paterson Chair of Theology and Public Issues, University of Otago The 5th-century Maskell panel showing Jesus in a loincloth.British Museum, CC BY-NC-SA When Jesus is shown on the cross, he is almost always depicted wearing a loincloth around ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Panizza Allmark, Professor Visual & Cultural Studies, Edith Cowan University Shutterstock When you think about a red object, you might picture a red carpet, or the massive ruby in the Queen’s crown. Indeed, Western monarchies and marketing from brands such ...
COMMENTARY:Jewish Voice for Peace The UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza on Monday — and for the first time since the beginning of the Israeli military’s genocide of Palestinians, the United States abstained rather than vetoing it. Security Council resolutions are legally binding, ...
Asia Pacific Report A New Zealand investigative journalist and author says the US spy system hosted by the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) appears to be a controversial intelligence system used in global capture-kill operations. Writing a commentary for RNZ News today, Nicky Hager, author of Secret Power, a 1996 ...
While Nicola Willis wouldn’t give any details on its size, she said a package of tax cuts is definitely still coming in this year’s budget, writes Catherine McGregor in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. ...
The Taxpayers’ Union is welcoming the investigation into the Department of Internal Affairs after it was revealed that the Department’s Chief Executive personally reached out to expedite a DJs passport application. Taxpayers’ Union Campaigns ...
Finance minister Nicola Willis delivers her first budget statement, and unwittingly helps Joel MacManus save his relationship. Nicola Willis strode into the Beehive Theatrette. Around me, on the green foldout seats, were the country’s top business and political journalists. They were all here to see her announce the Budget Policy ...
Twenty years ago today, Māori Television launched after much controversy. Jamie Tahana looks back on its survival and impact across two decades. Chad Chambers stepped onto the stage, the brim of his cap casting a shadow across his face. His smile beamed as bright as his white freezing works gumboots, ...
A lengthy response to the recently released draft Government policy statement on transport will soon be delivered from Auckland Council to Minister of Transport Simeon Brown. A submission raising concerns about funding distribution and the plan’s treatment of Auckland passed through the council’s transport committee on Wednesday, despite some councillors ...
The unidentified foreign intelligence operation discussed in a scathing report by New Zealand’s Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security (IGIS) last week appears to be a controversial United States intelligence system. The IGIS report said the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) decision to host a foreign system from 2012-2020 was “improper” ...
Tauranga, Rotorua, Wellsford, Onehunga, Westhaven marina – Gavin Strawhan walks the meanish streets of New Zealand in his entertaining debut novel The Call, almost sure to roar into the number 1 position on the Nielsen bestseller chart, its front cover bearing a rave from somebody: “A really good and genuinely ...
On a Thursday in February, at Wellington’s Conservation House, the Conservation Authority, a statutory body advising the eponymous department and minister, Tama Potaka, opened its 195th meeting. Under consideration that afternoon was an agenda item written by Tim Bamford, chief advisor in the Department of Conservation’s biodiversity, heritage and visitors ...
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As a young gymnast, Aimee Didierjean was always conscious of making sure her underwear wasn’t showing on the competition floor. A peek of a bra strap, or briefs if a leotard rode up, would cost a gymnast points in her routines. “When I was growing and going through puberty, it ...
Jubi/West Papua Daily Repeated cases of Indonesian military (TNI) soldiers torturing civilians in Papua have been evident, as seen in the viral video depicting the torture of civilians in the Puncak Regency allegedly done by soldiers of Raider 300/Brajawijaya Infantry Battalion. There is a pressing need for stringent law enforcement ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra In 2023, Anthony Albanese was shooting for the moon, his eyes on the Voice referendum. On one view, he looked like the idealist reflecting his left-wing roots. In 2024, we’re seeing a pragmatic, determined, ...
The House - The principle that all MPs are honourable and that they should be taken at their word has been tested multiple times this week in Parliament. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Helen Dickinson, Professor, Public Service Research, UNSW Sydney Drazen Zigic/Shutterstock Since the review of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) released its recommendations in December, there has been a series of Town Hall events to discuss them around the country ...
Asia Pacific Report Two of the global Freedom Flotilla ships are being prepared in Turkey and almost ready for the upcoming humanitarian mission to Gaza. It is expected that the flotilla will include a New Zealand medical team. Kia Ora Gaza is a member of the international Freedom Flotilla Coalition ...
Will 2013 be the year serious action against climate change begins in this country?
Though it is not widely known, or admitted, even by themselves, the Green party has backed off raising the issue of climate change.
It is not, that the reality of the danger has passed, far from it.
It is because they are seeking a political accommodation with the Labour party.
In exchange for cabinet positions in the next government the Greens are preparing to give away their opposition to government policies that contribute to climate change.
Russel Norman “wants the Minister of Finance job and his MPs to get a third of the seats in cabinet.” TV3 News
In her post commenting on the Green Party retrospective delivered by Green Party co-leader Metiria Turei, TS author Karol writes:
“I was particularly impressed with Turei’s focus on child poverty, and the need for a more fair and equal society.
“However, on the debit side. Turei did not once mention the urgent matter of climate change.
In my opinion, for an environmental party this is unacceptable. This is not an oversight, this is a deliberate and glaring omission.
http://www.3news.co.nz/Green-Party-continues-to-push-Government/tabid/370/articleID/280880/Default.aspx
Coal has been identified as the number 1 causative factor in climate change by James Hansen, NASA’s chief climate scientist. Hansen says that if we are to have any chance of arresting runaway climate change, coal use must be seriously curtailed. Despite this fact, the Labour Party are fully committed to expanding the coal industry in this country.
In contrast, it is Green Party policy to oppose any new coal mines.
However, in practice the Greens are giving up their opposition to new coal mines.
It is Green Party policy to make New Zealand coal free by 2020. However without any clear strategy for proceeding from where we are now, to achieving this goal, the policy from Greens to make New Zealand “Coal Free”, can only be said to be, “Aspirational”. (In the John Key sense of the word).
I my opinion, as a concrete step to achieving a “Coal Free” New Zealand by 2020, the Green Party should give up their lobbying for cabinet positions, instead they should concentrate their efforts on lobbying the Labour Party to give up their support for new coal mines. This should be the number one condition for any coalition agreement with Labour.
Yes the glittering career path of some Green MPs may be affected, and yes this may even cost the Green Party some votes.
But what is more important?
Cabinet Positions, or concrete concessions to take action against climate change?
2013 – Time for the Green Party to decide.
Yes, Information from TV3 news, the same people that brought you ‘the Cunliffe coup at Conference’,
When will you learn that 3 news is not speaking on behalf of the Green Party…
Yes, there’s always the possibility that TV3 edited out any reference to climate change or the environment.
In the RNZ interview,/a> on the same day as the TV3 one, Metiria Turei said environment is one of their 3 intertwined central planks: economy, child poverty, environment.
Of course, the MSM has difficulty grasping the way they are intertwined, and tend to focus more on the economy. The challenge for the Green Party is to get all 3 of their planks heard more and understood.
Unfortunately for the Greens, even the climate change denying, ACT Party have an equally vague environment policy plank.
To say that you care for the environment is to say nothing at all. For the Green Party to mention, (as an after thought) that the environment is one of their 3 “intertwined” planks, while refusing to specifically acknowledge climate change as the number one environmental problem facing us. Is in my opinion level with ACT’s likewise non-specific pledge to ” implement practical and innovative ways to protect the natural environment”. A very low threshold indeed. So low, they risk becoming a laughing stock.
All brought to you by, the obnoxious school boy Gower!
That would be the same James Hanson who derided Germany for abandoning its new Nuclear programme following the Fukushima disaster!
Maybe have a look at the motivations (lobbying money flow) behind these people Jenny, then ask yourself if they are clean!
I guess that Nuclear catastrophies are seen as not so bad eh!
I guess that climate change isn’t the most serious issue facing the world then. Nuclear power -really bad. Catastrophic climate change – not so bad. Thanks for clearing that up for us.
Ooooorrrrrr….. Nuclear disasters: bad.
Catastrophic climate change: bad
You: incredibly dense.
Morning Everyone. A fresh year to do with what we please.
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
and never brought to mind ?;
I don’t bloody think so. Let’s rip Key a new one this year.
My wish is for the Left to come together to start building momentum towards 2014. Time for us to stop looking inwards and start looking outwards.
Banksies fav tune?
Happy New Year to All?
The changes that occurred in our society over the past three decades have made the “kiwi dream” a sham. The huge widening of the gap between richer and poorer and the massive increase in emigration are the obvious and easily measured ones. More insidious is that far more members of each household are working longer hours and years in less secure and poorer paid employment. Kiwis are doing it hard, so hard that 800,000 did not vote.
This now requires an early and fundamental set of new policies for a new-deal society.
That 800,000 does not show up in the marketing strategist’s reports. They don’t come into the reckoning when the analysts are calculating whether the left vote of A+B+C will surpass the right vote of D+E. Nor do they articulate themselves well in “focus ” groups”.
No, the voice of the 800,000 can be heard through the supporters/members of the Labour Party. The upside to the Conference is that Labour has won the opportunity to brand itself at the most democratic Party with the constitution and structure to act as a grass-roots-up one.
We can win the next election only with the help of the 800,000. We have to be genuinely part of them to be their voice. When we have policies and leadership that makes us relevant to them, they will believe that we can make that fundamental change towards a new fair-deal society.
Election Cycles! An excuse for laziness and also a sense of entitlement. My turn to Rule! National ain’t going to hand power on a plate.
The Left Vote? Boll•cks. The Greens are not about the 800,000. That is Labour’s space and we must make them central to ALL of our policies, strategies and tactics.
2013 has to be a new start for Labour.
No more innocuous palp that ignores the 800,000 and alienates the active members.
”The Greens are not about the 800,000”, really???, if the previous 2 elections were to be used as a gauge Labour’s past and present policies have failed sensationally to move the 800,000,
My view is that voting every 3 years is a right and a DUTY, i see no valid reason why voting every 3 years should not be compulsory…
Good to see that compulsion default setting coming through. The party will be proud.
Is it not compulsory to be registered to vote???…
What, other than the obvious removal of the right to exercise free will you mean, whats left of it!
Sounds like you may believe voting makes a difference, in case you missed, it makes no difference in the greater scheme of things!
Perhaps it makes a little differnce to some along the journey, but the outcomes are the same, so why the hell would it be acceptable to force people to vote for their own demise!
Note: I can understand why people might see benefit in forced voting, deperation for change comes to mind, but FORCING, is not the answer!
do you vote muzza?
for me Mana IS an alternative party to vote for as I agree with their kaupapa and values. Some say it is a waste – look at the polls and so on but they are wrong IMO. People make the difference, individuals working collectivelly.
+1
If people don’t like a party then they can, and should, vote for another party.
Given your reply it would then be ‘pointless’ to be discussing politics and policy here on the Standard, because by your reasoning if voting changes nothing commenting on-line would change even less and we all should subscribe to ‘home and garden’ and discuss issues relevant to present and past issues of that…
Hi Marty – Its about having the choice to vote, or not – The question was nothing to do with voting/not, or who for.
I agree with your sentiment about people making the difference, working collectively etc. If there was a framework for change to better NZ, I would seriously consider putting my support/energy behind it, as I have said on here many times previously. Mana may or may not be that, too soon to tell for me, but some encouragement can be had from the movement so far.
B12 – Agree completely, the discussion around policy is mostly pointless, albeit interesting, as we see that the policies which further denegrate NZ are implemented/forced through etc anyway, against the best interests of NZ, and its peoples
.
That is why my comments around policy are limited to comments about addressing the *core issue*, which is the monetary supply/control by the NZ government/treasury, and audit/investigation into the *independence* of the RBNZ/OoDM.
Until the issue of monetary/debt control is addressed, policy discussions/directions are moot, and little good can come from even beneficial policy regardless, as it will always have the equivilant opposite policy to off-set any overall longer term positive benefit, hence continuing the negative trending in the NZ inc statistics!
While policy is driven by monetary/debt position as under current conditions., without addressing monetary control, NZ will continue to slide at increasing velocity!
In any case my response was around your statement that you can *see no valid reason why voting every 3 years should not be compulsory* – Which I disagreed with!
yep indeed muzza
the compulsion question is moot if people don’t think there is a party to vote for – it then becomes a rubbish collection of defaced voting papers.
From memory, Marty, the ‘donkey vote’ in Oz is around 2% and a further 1% don’t vote despite it being compulsory. Compulsory voting works well there so I see no problems bringing it in here.
It’s more like 3-8%;
http://www.aec.gov.au/Voting/Informal_Voting/summary.htm
Watching it from the sidelines for a change, that was what impressed the hell out of me. It was rather overtaken in the media by whoever the silly arse in caucus decided to use it to take out Cunliffe in a tediously juvenile power play*. But it was definitely the best conference I have attended in terms of getting some work done.
* It was almost as stupid as the similar play in 2007/8 to try to take out NZF. That didn’t work either. Quite simply you cannot externally destroy constituencies or patterns of political thought in a MMP environment with dumbarse power plays. It simply doesn’t work because people will move their votes to counter such game plays. The only effective way to destroy political factions is for them to fall apart internally – Act being te most recent example.
Lynn, Chris Trotter’s latest post, The Lazarus Option says something similar.
But, as Mickysavage points out on the Year in review thread, it’s worth considering why such violent metaphors are used to describe politics.
I will go and have a read of it.
Whilst musing over the last year in the last few days, that was the thing in the local political world that stood out for me as being the weirdess. This was in a remarkably politially weird year. A tactically well implemented play, it was so utterly inept at a strategic level.
All it really did for me was to highlight the lack of clear direction inside the Labour caucus, who instead seemed to be pissing about with such silly games. While literally at the same time that the party organisation was busy with the largest and most productive renewal I have ever seen. The political contrast between the two main parts of Labour could not have been starker.
Not to mention the contrast in the effective utilization of resources. The party organisation was literally doing this on a shoestring. Meanwhile the caucus with all of the support of parliamentary services appeared to be quite limited on what they could achieve in connecting to that massive constituency of unenrolled and enrolled non-voters lost to elections since 2005. That group have a pretty typical response when asked why they don’t vote any more – it is because they don’t see any real hope arising from the act of voting.
LPrent, am I imagining things, or have your views moved to the left in the past few years since the beginning of The Standard?
Not really. As I have mentioned a few times previously, I’m a political pragmatist who looks at the longer term rather than the short term. What I’m looking for are things that are likely to work efficiently to solve or at least alleviate current or future problems. Most of that is simply providing routes of opportunity for people and especially their kids to use. Providing services like mostly free adult education were extremely efficient providers. Creating motorways in an era of increasing fuel costs and falling road usage for the taxpayer support of contributors is not.
I want to see the tens of thousands of dollars I contribute to the commonweal to be used effectively. Frittering them away on trivialities like the Labour caucus appears to be doing just offends me. It also gives me little confidience that they will be more effective if on the treasury benches. So I’ll shift my vote to a partner that looks more effective.
Perhaps this is an appropriate time to resurrect that Duncan Garner blog. The one which started the ball rolling…
http://www.3news.co.nz/Opinion-Why-does-Labour-hate-David-Cunliffe-so-much/tabid/1135/articleID/264472/Default.aspx
Someone correct me if I’m wrong, but I think it was following those ‘revelations’, that David Shearer was asked if he planned to demote Cunliffe. He laughed it off and made reference to Cunliffe being far too valuable. His response struck me as being genuine and, at that point anyway, I have to wonder how much he had known of the covert ABC club activities. It almost seems to me that the publishing of the Garner article – together with a concentrated campaign by Cunliffe’s caucus enemies – is what convinced Shearer that Cunliffe was planning a coup.
The set-up of Cunliffe at the Conference (aided and abetted by an eager MSM) would have sealed the suspicion for him. If I’m right, then Shearer may have learned a very valuable political lesson. His actions in the coming 2 to 3 months will give us the answers we seek.
I’m not convinced that Shearer wasn’t part of the turn against Cunliffe as signaled by the Garner blog you linked to, Anne. The leak to Garner seems to have come right from the top. There’s this bit in the blog post:
Hi karol,
I’m not saying he wasn’t part of the turn against Cunliffe. I just wonder whether he was fully conversant with what was going on behind the scenes. It might have caused him to be a bit suspicious of the ABC club’s modus operandi – or at least some of those within it.
Not quite correct.
Yes, he was encouraged to demote him when he became Labour’s leader, and he came within a hair-breadth of doing so. In other words, he had ‘fallen in behind’ what he was being told by Cunliffe’s caucus enemies. Commonsense did prevail in the end. We will have to wait and see if it prevails again.
You may be right, Anne, but, on the other hand your quote suggests that all along, Shearer has made his own decisions. There is a use of ruthless tactics that seem to have started under Shearer. He is after all someone who, with little parliamentary experience, backed himself to be leader. This suggests a certain amount of strength.
Team Shearer only turned against Cunliffe when he continued to get support from the membership, while Shearer continued to get criticised. The strategies became particularly ruthless when the membership voted for democratisation. The strategy against Cunliffe was to reinforce Shearer’s power, and, along the way, make him look decisive to the public, via the MSM.
Now that the opposition, including within the membership, still can’t be silenced, it looks like the ABC leaders are the ones to be sacrificed. There’s quite a ruthless pattern there, and, my trust having been dented by the above happenings, I am not convinced Shearer is that blameless.
I agree with your analysis. There is certainly an element of ruthlessness that I find abhorrent and I agree Shearer has been part of it. Don’t think for a moment
that it only started under Shearer. It has been there since the 1980s but Helen Clark kept it well under control.
The key word in that quote of Duncan Garner’s is resisted. Actually he didn’t resist. My understanding from what I heard at the time is: Shearer was all set to demote Cunliffe but at the last minute wiser counsel (and I don’t know who it was, or what was said) reached Shearer and he changed his mind.
It puts a slightly different complexion on Garner’s take of what happened, which (of course) came from the mallarfia and associates.
I can’t say more except to say my source for the above is likely to be more accurate than Garner’s sources.
My views on Shearer have changed a bit having looked at his CV and his involvement in being a consultant, researcher, and adviser of intelligence and military strategy. So, while he may be a novice in NZ’s parliament, he is a strategic thinker, and one prepared to suggest coercion in certain circumstances.
It looks to me that the most recent moves are in the form of a charm offensive re-the membership.
But, I still don’t know what Shearer’s political values are. That gives me pause. Especially as he might negotiate some policies with membership now, in order to get them onside for the election campaign. But, as Clark did on closing the gaps, he could be just as likely to change tack when a PM.
Karol: I just read it!
Trotter is absolutely onto it with his new blog posting of today. The early part of this year will be the very last chance for possibly years to come, for Labour – and especially it’s caucus – to sort itself out once and for all by February 2013.
Shearer has shown that he is not a smart, strong, competent leader by demoting Cunliffe the way he did, and by stripping him off all spokespersons’ responsibilities, banning him to the back bench.
Shearer panicked and made a stupid, in principal also undemocratic decision, out of fear for the media’s reporting, which was without real basis.
The very last chance for Shearer will be to get Cunliffe back into a top role through a re-shuffle, to engage him and to bind him into the team, so that he will improve team skills. Of course the other – less likely – chance chance will be, that Shearer will call a vote on leadership and any likely challenger anyway, to face the challenge.
As I do not at all expect that the not so confident, weak Shearer will feel safe and happy to go for that second last chance, only the last one can be hoped for.
All else will likely mean that Labour will continue to sit around 30 to 35 per cent support for years, given Shearers scandalous stuff up after the conference. Wasting economic knowledge, experience and talent Cunliffe has (besides of other areas) is completely irresponsible and idiotic.
But DS is enjoying the beach up north, taking it easy, surfing, playing guitar, grilling some chops and saussies, so prepare yourselves for more disappointments, as February is just a month away!
Should we make voting in New Zealand like Australia – Compulsory,
and listen to the Greens to make the voting age 16 ?
Why should you discriminate against those intelligent 15/14/13/12/10…. year olds. They have rights too you know.
Are you seriously advocating for the voting age to go down to 15 then? Or are you just waving red herrings around?
I dunno about red herrings. I’ve never seen why any age cutoff is not simply an arbitrary point between rationality (all capable people should vote) and absurdity (all 6-month-olds should vote).
Khandalla you have got to be one of the most on-message people I know. May you ever raise The Standard.
For me, contemplating the earth running my side of the lake this morning, there were two things that gave me hope last year.
The first was this site. It grew in strength and stature, and I met hundreds of simpatico voices. basic solidarity.
The second was the Asset Sales petitions. Just required me and many thousands to talk and talk and talk with many hundreds of people on a simple issue that most people agreed with.
Neither required any contact with caucus, or a single leader, or Parliament as a whole, or any faction, or constitutional rules, or anything like that, just needed volunteer time and basic commitment. Or polls or fictions or factions.
And both were the best outreach to the 800,000 non-vote that anyone mustered, anywhere. I can cope with doing more of those.
They, not caucus, will me on this year.
Sorry Ad but while the petition and marches have the feel good factor they haven’t stopped National’s plans to sell those assets.
The most effective way to kill the asset sales programme is to have a strong Opposition that makes it clear that they will consider reversing those sales. It will undermine the value imputed by the merchant bankers, the risk will be too high for investors and the costs of sale will be too high relative to the rewards. But you have to have an Opposition who believes in that approach and an Opposition leader able to communicate that astutely in economic terms. Unfortunately, Labour doesn’t have that so we must rely on the Greens for such messages/policies.
Yes, Benghazi, a simple statement by the leader of the opposition that the re-nationalisation of unique or monopoly class assets like the hydro-dams and electricity infrastructure will be a major red-flag highlight of he risk analysis by the Australian, US and Asian investment analysts.
The Labour Party had previously made a similar statement in respect of the ACC.
There is nothing wrong with someone bidding: the wrong is in the selling.
All potential buyers should be fully informed of the risks.
A clear statement by the major opposition party that any buy-back price will be market value capped at the sale price and CoF of 10% will be adequate.
Q.E.D.
I am not expecting a strong market-focussed signal of anything of Labour with Shearer leading and Robertson driving policy. Certainly no bold statements. Nor feom the Greens either on asset sales. So I expect the sales to continue and not a market murmur.
That was not, of course, my point.
I think Labour’s activist core are generally disheartened and want positive things to do, whatever the leadership does. So my inferred question was pointed only at why the hell anyone would continue in this godforsaken game when there is no detectable spine, soul, or heart in Labour.
Any MP I think who engaged on this site with any substance would harvest thousands of activists.
Disagree?
Ad I think that many on this site are disillusioned with Labour and, just as you have previously expressed yourself, are now looking closely at the Greens or others to see if there is a fit. Many are waiting till February to see if the trigger for a membership vote will happen. So in that sense they are hoping.
I think a February membership vote would be energising for the Party in a healthy cathartic way, drive good policy debate, and would give everyone the opportunity to unite around the membership’s choice of Leader. But I don’t see Shearer and his King/Mallard cohorts being prepared to open themselves to that or do anything except run their swords through any MPs not following their edicts.
What to do? If the members want a vote then they need to put real pressure on their relevant MPs and the Party hierachy.That means writing letters, copying those letters widely, even perhaps publishing them openly on this site, and an electronic petition for those members willing to publish their names? Do others have additional ideas?
It only takes 12 MPs to think that initiating the member vote is the best process to unite us all so Labour can win strongly in 2014. We are not asking MPs to select a Leader, we don’t even know at this stage who might put their name forward. Rather, we’re asking them to support the launch of the newly, democratic Labour Party. I’m a member of many varied organisations and my experience is that a healthy, robust organisation emerges following contested democratic elections, as opposed to back room deals done by a few office holders.
Isn’t this something more purposeful for disheartened members to strive for in the next 34 days till the first February caucus?
I think you might find that the requirement is 40% of the Labour caucus which translates as 14 MPs.
Only in the sense of watching a car-wreck in slow motion.
Its like whistle-blower legislation. Great for everyone else, and refreshing, but always ruinous for the whistleblower.
National should be politically dead now, and Labour mocking on their graves. Instead, belonging to Labour feels like belonging to the Cathloic church: you still go, but only out of the sense that those bastards running it do not touch my faith. And some of those bastards are evil.
I hope that communicates the level of disgust I have in them and their “renewal processes”.
amen to all three of you-honourable mentions in despatches
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
My New Year wish? That I could block certain commentors. Wondering if anyone can modify the adblocking plugin in Firefox to do this or create one Troll blocker plugin specifically for the purpose?
Yea, sure….I could just scroll down. The thing is they tend to create strings of nasty responses back and forth using up my scrolling time and besides, I really don’t care what they think.
Firstly it needs to put into perspective against the scale of the Auckland region and Auckland Council.
· The Auckland region comprises 37% of National GDP and 34% of population.
· The role of Council is to provide infrastructure and other services to the region under the Local Government Act. As we plan to accommodate the large increase in population and the vision of making Auckland the most liveable city in the world we need to invest in infrastructure assets.
· Our approach to investing in infrastructure is to debt fund this investment and repay the debt back over the life of the asset.
· Council net assets at the Group level are currently $28.3 billion comprising assets of $35.7 billion and liabilities of $7.4 billion. Net Assets are expected to grow by $14.2 billion over the 10 year Long Term Plan period to June 2022 to $42.5 billion.
· Group revenue is currently $3.5 billion and forecast to grow to $5.12 billion p.a.
· Group finance costs are currently $268 million p.a. and forecast to grow to $745 million p.a.
A non-cash mark to market revaluation loss of $167 million on a derivatives portfolio of approximately $5 billion in size and borrowing requirement (including refinancing) over the next ten years of approximately $8.75 billion is not in the opinion of most finance professionals, either material or relevant.
Investors, credit rating agencies, auditors, advisors and banks are not concerned by this because of a number of factors that we have explained to them including;
· The forecast additional debt and associated interest expense needs to be managed in a prudent and conservative manner. Council has a Treasury Management Policy that outlines our approach to managing assets and liabilities. Furthermore, we have internal processes, procedures, governance and management controls to ensure our exposures are managed to best practice. Council receives external Treasury advice and engages with the major New Zealand banks. The government appointed auditor, Audit New Zealand has reviewed our approach to the use of derivatives and is very comfortable with the approach taken as it is in line with what other major organizations (both private sector and public sector) undertake.
· We believe that our Treasury team are resourced, experienced and capable of managing the exposures – the team were a finalist in the INFINZ awards for Excellence in Treasury in 2011 and our Treasurer was awarded the Kanga News Treasurer of the Year award in late 2011. Furthermore, credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s (“S&P”) in an unusual statement last week commented “In our view, Auckland Council’s own financial strength is evidenced by its strong treasury team and its approach to liquidity and debt management”. S&P rarely makes these types of public comments.
· Interest rate derivative products were first created in the 1980’s and it is true that some of these products have been used incorrectly, primarily for purposes they were not originally intended for – speculation. Auckland Council (and the predecessor councils) has always used these instruments only for hedging purposes (not for speculation) and within the parameters of its risk management policies. Council (like all other private and public sector borrowers) uses interest rate swaps primarily to lock in future borrowing rates and to provide certainty for forecasting purposes. This approach is prudent given the forecast borrowing programme of Council and its objective of maintaining a balanced operating budget annually. If interest rates were to rise and Council had not hedged its debt, the consequential increase in borrowing costs is considered to be riskier than the interest cost certainty that hedging gives, even if there is an “opportunity cost” should interest rates reduce.
S&P make their comments on Auckland City’s finance because they know that any deficits are guaranteed by the Ratepayers = 34% of the population.
QED
That does not account for the *unusual* S&P statement, think about it!
And Chris Trotter poses an interesting question, why should David Shearer have the right to demand unflattering loyalty?
http://bowalleyroad.blogspot.co.nz/2013/01/the-lazarus-option.html?m=1
Snap, micky. Just referred to the same post above in reply to Lynn.
This bit by Trotter is also spot on:
Thanks Karol. I meant to say “unfaltering” but my iPad decided to change it …
Seeing suicide nets at apple factories is enough to stop me from ever owning one of their products.
I know TA but they are so shiny and pretty …
And overpriced, Faulty and fragile. I’ll stick to an Android one for about 1/3rd of the price And way better Apps and updates. Thank you.
karol – am relieved to see you back on track re Shearer, you had me worried for a bit! (I am sure you have looked up Cunliffe’s fantastic credentials, including Minister of Health). Labour members should be very, very worried by what could be descending upon them.
I don’t think I’ve changed my position that much. I just focus on the evidence available or that I am aware of at the time.
I’ve always said I think Cunliffe is very well qualified and skilled and should be on Labour’s front bench. I don’t know if he’d be a good caucus leader. But I also have many questions about Shearer and have continued to question what exactly his politics are. My biggest concern is not whether or not he has leadership abilities, but what his political views actually are.
Gods, I’m starting off 2013 in complete air-punching agreement with Chris Trotter. I feel wrong.
I’ve always agreed with trotter on some, if not many things. It’s when he gets on to gender and ‘race’ or Maori politics that I disagree with him.
Thats okay, he will get back to his regular service soon.
at least you are not head full of air Medusa
News media or news massagers???, here’s the same news item viewed through the lens of 2 entirely different news organizations,
Early last week RadioNZ National broadcast a news item about a London fish seller who had made up a song he sang at the fish market in an attempt to sell fish,
As happens with these things, he got videoed, uploaded to Utube and the song immediately went viral, British immigration then took an interest in the fish seller and found He was not a legal immigrant and were going to deport Him,
A few days later TV1 News told the exact same story, except their fish seller had become such a celebrity after having His song go viral on Utube that He had given up selling fish so as to concentrate on His new music career,
One of the news organizations is obviously not telling the truth, there is no apparent reason why one of the news organizations would lie about such a minor story that has no direct bearing on anything that occurs in New Zealand,
Would ‘they’ lie to you???, you bet,continuously even when there is no ‘need’ just to condition you all to accept such lies as the truth…
And I see this morning’s NZ Herald editorial has bit of Shearer cheer-leading embedded in it, based on no evidence whatsoever.
What kind of evidence is actually available?
Not just massaging or lying, flat out making stuff up!
Reality TV, has of course played its part is assisting with the widening gap in peoples ability to disseminate fact from fiction!
People need to stop watching tv, reading the glossies, and the *news*, its all 100% designed to remove your ability to think!
RNZ, credible newspapers and online sources are Standard fare for this canines teeth to get stuck into. (I’ve negotiated an affordable rate and am going Unlimited from today, sooo, I’m gonna play
in the sand pit and throw some castles in the air) 🙂
-She sells sea shells on the sea shore
National’s Happy New Year to you all = prescriptions at the chemist’s will change from 3 dollars an item to 5 dollars an item from today,
Slippery’s New Years gift to one and all….
He was on tv the other night, saying the jobless figures were his parties only bad mark.
Knowing that’s all bollocks, my mind wandered.
Is he still on holiday? Why did he dress in a suit and tie and pretend he was in an office?
If that is his office, given the ‘victory’ frame behind him, what a vain twat.
If that’s his holiday home, given the ‘victory’ frame behind him, what a vain twat.
Would have been less disingenuous and subliminal if he’d been there with his muffin top poking over his diplomatically protected speedos.
The tax on tobacco products also goes up today, Happy New years all you smokers from Slippery, the National Government, and how could we forget the Maori Party,(just because everyone else including their voters have),
2% of smokers will ‘give up’ using the product after such a price rise, 3 months after having given up use of the product an unmeasured but large % of that 2% will be back smoking as hard out as ever,(such is the nature of addiction),
98% of those using the product, unable to ‘give up’ such use will in the case of those with restricted low incomes have to ‘make savings’ elsewhere and as their ‘food budget’ is the only part of their income that has any discretionary spending in it then their ‘choice’ becomes one of an even ‘poorer diet’ or ‘the addiction’ and i would suggest you all find someone that is ‘addicted’ to anything and ask them given such a choice ‘addiction’ or ‘good food choices’ wins in such an equation,
Poor diet brought about by financial constraint will kill a lot more of the nations users of tobacco products one hell of a lot faster than the use of tobacco products will…
“98% of those using the product, unable to ‘give up’ ”
Link please.
Well, it is the old assumption that everyone who smokes wants to give up.
But this link reckons a 4-7% success rate of cessation on any given attempt, so essentially the government’s predicting that half to a third of smokers will try to quit because of the tax hike.
The rest just put up with subsidisng the government’s economic incompetence while being treated like paedophilic lepers.
Here you go,
”Fewer than 10% of those who try manage to quit smoking”,
The Google = Number of quit smoking attempts key to success/ Scoop news.
http://www.scoop.co.nz>health
”Our service is reaching nearly 9% of the smoking population”.
Google = Quitline annual review 2011 (PDF)-Quitline New Zealand
http://www.quit.org.nz/file/quit-ar2011-lo-pdf
By Quitlines own admission from the first line of the Chairman’s report they reach fewer than 9% of the smoking population, i am sure you can then work out from Professor whats-his-faces figure of a 10% success rate the actual numbers of those who manage to quit what has been a product with addictive qualities as strong or stronger than Heroin,
What i cannot find figures for is the actual number of young people who despite all the INFORMATION still take up smoking and become the next generation of addicts, and, as i can find no figures for such i am going to suggest that (a), for every person that has quit a young person has become addicted, and (b), the Government knows this, chooses to be blind to it and refuses to collect and publish such data as to do so would reveal it’s taxation of tobacco products as a failure to incentivize people not to use tobacco products and simply a revenue grabbing exercise which takes the food off of the tables of those addicted,
There is only one means to stop the use of tobacco products and that is to register all those who are presently addicted to the product with their doctors as addicts and then ban anyone else from access to the product…
ASH do school surveys, for whatever they’re worth.
As for banning tobacco, piss off. I might go to hell early, but I’ll pick my own damned method, ta very much. Oh, and before you bring up passive smoking, I remind you that given there is pretty much nowhere outside my own home that I can smoke indoors, it’s now a bullshit factor. Play me a violin.
Shall i clarify the last paragraph of my previous comment???, there is only way to stop mass tobacco use into the future, that is to have all present users register as addicts with their doctors so as to allow them to continue their use and ban all those not registered at a cut-off date the purchase of the product,
Have we been on the turps a touch too much Mac, why would i bother mentioning passive smoking which seems to me as being an attempt to demonize those who smoke as a health initiative, and, if your memory can be stretched to a point past 5 minutes it has been me that has taken to (at times)picking holes in what the anti-smoking zealots and the media put out there as the gospel on smoking,
It is a FACT that the majority of us when our time comes to snuff it will in fact succumb to one form of cancer or another, something that mostly goes unmentioned by the anti-smoking zealots and at best considering that ‘averages’ can have wild fluctuations in-built in the ‘averaging’, those who have smoked will die of cancers at much the same rate as the rest of the population but averages would have that death on ‘average’ occur 5 years earlier than those who have never smoked…
Why stop tobacco use?
Why stop tobacco use indeed, of course you mean why have i put up an alternative to the obvious FAILURE of the Governments supposed means of stopping tobacco use, simply to show the utter bullshit inherent in using the pricing mechanism as a means to stop the mass of those who smoke from doing so,
My favorite piece of shock horror from the anti-smoking zealots has to be the yearly deaths from lung cancer, 10% of lung cancer deaths every year are from smokers, betcha the other 90% of those who die of that particular cancer ever year wish now they had smoked like friggin chimneys…
Or the other ‘goody’ that was fashionable among the anti-smokers for a while, ‘tobacco is a product that kills half it’s users’,
Considering the numbers of those who do not and have never used the product who will die of one form of cancer or another the exact same thing could be said about ‘air’…
Theoretically, the prices should only go up on NEW stock. Not on existing stock.
Both British American and Phillip Morris delivered the last of their stock on december 24. The next deliveries take place on the 4th January.
So prices shouldn’t rise as a result of the excise tax until January 4th at the earliest.
It’s all set out in legislation. New stock delivered after January 1 must have the increased excise tax applied.
Of course, it’s all just too difficult so just bump up the prices across the board on January 1 and make a little extra money in the meantime.
I knocked em off when Slippery announced the increase. And I feel so much better since I kicked the filthy, expensive, coffin nails.
Yay, more tax increases under National.
Is anyone keeping a list of all John Key’s rising levies, fees, duties, charges and taxes since 2008?
That would be way too depressing, the most recent tho include:
Fuel tax rises,
road user charges/registration for SUV’s.
Prescription charges,
Tobacco taxes,
Gotta keep the peasants paying for the hole blown in the Government revenue stream by giving the upper echelons of income earners tax cuts…
In Stuff this morning a short article ” Give Hekia Parata the sack’ Some good comments but one by ‘collhug’ was very interesting, mentioning the Charter School Scam and John Banks’ involvement but also this:
“NOVAPAY (fair & proper tender??????)
The Hon John Banks Family Trust has not held shares in Talent2 International Limited since 28 May 2012 when Talent2 moved to privatise the company and de-list from the Australian stock exchange. Mr Banks advised the Cabinet Office of the sale of his Family Trust’s shares on 29 May 2012.(press release J B )”
Link please? I can’t see it on the Stuff site anywhere.
It’s in the Readers Report section:- the relevant comment is by collhug
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff-nation/8125334/A-new-year-a-new-Education-Minister
Thanks, marsman.
You have to begin to wonder, and this has been mentioned on the Standard befor, whether or not the abysmal cluster-f**k that National have made of Education hasn’t been a deliberate series of chaotic coincidence designed to destabilize the Education sector,
Setting up ‘charter schools’ in the minds of the nut jobs, the likes of Banks et al, possibly has at it’s heart not the actual building of schools, more than likely the thinking is that if ‘they’ can get schools to ‘fail’ to the point of having a Commissioner installed then ‘they’ could turn such schools into ‘charter schools’ having use of the buildings and the budgets by default…
Good point. All the government negativity about education is demoralising teachers. Principals have to spend more time supporting teachers because of it. All this time and energy could have otherwise been spent by teachers and principals enjoying their jobs.
This’ll tickle a few.
http://player.vimeo.com/video/56093731
http://stevecutts.wordpress.com/
Kim Hill is interviewing Steven Keen again this coming Saturday morning.
In the meantime there’s lot to be had from his latest lecture on econophysics:
http://www.debtdeflation.com/blogs/2012/11/16/energy-production-and-entropy/
Exegesis
Tension
-pulling together (no, not soggy biscuit)
-pressure in vapours
-Electro-motive force
-(state of barely suppressed e-motion; excitement, surprise, and a few less helpful ones too)
-strain-with resultant symptoms (psych.)
-strained relations between persons
-opposition between conflicting ideas or forces
Tensile
-stretching (not the foreskin or labia) foreward
Tensible
-capable of being stretched (or exaggerated in some sites’ case) 😉
Tension Rod-a structural member subjected to tensile stress only
Tense; present, Future, or, Living In The Past (which does have some great tracks though)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Living_in_the_Past_%28album%29
-Jef free
(off for a vee, then some more waffle in the iron)
Minister says she can live on the dole. Currently she earns $6321 AUD a week, c/w the dole $246.
http://www.news.com.au/national/i-could-live-on-the-dole-says-families-minister-jenny-macklin/story-fndo4dzn-1226546184170
AWW Shucks, and here was me anticipating nightmares (self-doubt is an Achilles Last Stand)
-Pegasus (In Flight)
First the news,
-More fires
-Script subsidy increases
-Drugged drivers (the stories i could tell ;))
Pi’s Life
Parker Richard a clerical error. Product Placement; Camus L’Etranger and Dostoyevsky’s Notes from the Underground (thats what i think). “Lord, Thank You for my Life.The carnivorous island that Day and Night took away. Day destroys the night, night divides the day. Which story do you prefer? mankind or island in your arms, country in your eyes. Kingdom.”wise men seek peace, history is war”
RNZ-analysts are still not optimistic looking over the cliff; may bunji back to where they lept from
sooner rather than later; ratifications from the Republicans is a Slow Train Coming (more than technicalities) Five days is forever, forever and a day, gotta go to work on Monday (scheming to change the world). I hear slander, libel, I hear words I never heard in the bible, just one step ahead of the shoeshines.Fishermans’ Blues (The Water Boys) wish I was a fisherman, sailed beyond the past, these chains will be loosened and fall away at last. We live in a wheel where everyone steals but when we rise it’s like Strawberry Fields. Camping New Zealand; Do not pass Go. Community Chest the Monopoly, divide the Duopoly. Time spent shopping around is money saved. Think I’m going to Katmandu, thats really really what I’m going to do, If I ever get out of here, thats what I’m gonna do. You tell one person and they tell one person, thats the Faberge organic connection.
RNZ-people emotionally motivated by “expectations” of tomorrow. Worry not.Each day has enough troubles of it’s own. Natural, healthy disgust is manipulated into social exclusion.Well, conservatism can be disgusting and some avoid it like the plague. He’s got Gary Cooper’s eyes, He’ll “believe” you, He’ll deceive you. Anything Could Happen by The Clean. They’re accounting to cheat 2 3 4 5…Just keeping things “neat” to be Alive.I’m lookin’ at you, you’re lookin at me. Bee a Stealthy Bomber. So you think you can tell, Heaven from Hell, Blue Skies from Pain, can you tell a green field from a cold steel rail, Cold Comfort from change. That was my Mistake, that was my miss Stake ache, that was my missed steak. As falls Wichita, so falls Wichita falls-Pat Metheny Group Falls Into You-Mazzy Star-Amen (Did ya get healed?) off Poetic Champions Compose. Let go into the mystery…just let yourself go.
On the Horizon research; one half of households believe their income will drop (some significantly) in 013. Hey There Mr Blue Sky, how’s that “bright future” coming along? The sun is eclipsed by the Moon; the Key is not to lie too soon. Rainman pisses on amerika. Takin’ The Bible “literally” need ya head read. Fall of the house of Ussher. Poe-faced the swinging pendulum. The Harder They Come the harder they fall, one and all. Nothin like the chase to sweet decline, no ones gettin’ out of here alive this time. It’s a shame we have to die so dear, what a way to go, but have no fear. False Evidence Appearing Real. The beginning of Wisdom…? In Isolation, where are the young men, away from these shores, where are the young men, economic casualties, playthings in fat cats paws, a weight on their shoulders. Minesheads revisited. Decline and Fall.
Warne out. Vineyard Choppers chop Pink Frost. They’re so scared. Alcohol Reform, as if anyone cared. Dead duck, Cold in the water. For Now. For Today, I remember your smile Schizophrenic uncle smothered by maternal infection. The Divided Self. History of The Bicameral Mind. A R D
Fairburn, burn baby burn. Seasons don’t Fear The Reaper, Nor’ do The Wind, The Son or The Rain (we can be like they are) Then the door was opened and the wind appeared. New Blood joins this earth and quickly they’re subdued through constant pained disgrace The Young Ones learn their rules.
New Year Dissolution; of Southland water catchments. Liar Liar, pants on fire. Babylons Burning.
The Ruts are well worn out. Side with amerika, side with amerika, Where The Streets Have No Name. L.A Confidential. Mr Bronze, Mr Green and Mr In-Between.
11.6 The righteousness of the upright delivers them, but the unfaithful ones are trapped by evil desires..
11.8 With his mouth the godless destroys his neighbour, but through knowledge the righteous escape.