Speaking in 2007 Key when he was bidding for power, Key told the electorate: “Housing affordability is a big deal. It used to be the Kiwi dream that every New Zealander would be able to buy the house, the quarter acre pavlova paradise and that dream is diminishing.”
Key was “very optimistic” that National, if voted into power, could make a difference. Then the median house in Auckland was selling for just over six times the median household income.
Ten years later progress has been “by and large, extremely muddled and slow”, says Pavletich.
“In many ways Labour is more advanced than the government on these issues.”
Stock provides a link and refers to the Briefing Paper on the issue. That shows the value of solid, and concise articles on issues, that will maybe only be read by a minority. But it is a source journalists are likely to read and possibly draw on occasionally.
I think the comparison between the main parties totally ignores Green Party policies on state housing.
@Carolyn_nth, while it is a pretty good piece, it only shows the lack of long term vision from all parties to deal with the obscene specter of commodified housing, which is ripping community cohesion and the country apart.
“Restoring the ability of young New Zealanders to buy a home is being tipped as a defining issue of the upcoming general election”. You see the obvious class war in that sentence? media commentators and politicians can only get their head around housing affordability if affects their own children/grandchildren, what about the 100,000’s of adult workers who have effectively been shut out?
Class war is so normalized now that it not seen for what it is, even on a left wing forum.
No mention that Labours housing plans have no plan built into them to protect the whole strata of workers in jobs like , cleaners, elderly care workers, factory workers etc, where the average wage is around 32-35,000 P/A, so can’t afford to buy into Labours affordable housing scheme, there by consigned to life of renting, with no long term security…no it seem that Labour really are what they profess they wanted to be, the party of the centre (exclusively)…….what about a real living wage for these workers now (and not some fantasy future) and higher interest rates for the little money these workers can save?
Where is Labour on that conversation?
” You see the obvious class war in that sentence? media commentators and politicians can only get their head around housing affordability if affects their own children/grandchildren, what about the 100,000’s of adult workers who have effectively been shut out?”
Agree with you there Adrian.
The “affordability” – approach to housing misses the most important aspect to providing everyone with secure, healthy, really affordable homes (owned or rented) in non-transient connected communities.
The value of that approach to housing impacts on many aspects of our lives: health, education, work-life balance, community etc.
All the issues you relate in your last paragraph are pertinent to a long-term solution.
“really affordable homes (owned or rented) in non-transient connected communities.”
A good friend of mine with multiple rentals (not in Auckland) likes to argue that we don’t need a culture of home ownership, that lifelong renting is fine provided there is some security of tenancy
It’s fine in theory – but in low-wage NZ, with few alternative investment vehicles that are not scams, lifelong renting is a recipe (in most cases) for lifelong poverty and a desperate old age. Whereas owning houses is a recipe for wealth and a comfortable retirement because the tax situation so favours this form of unearned income from capital.
Before we can have lifelong renting in NZ there are some fundamentals to be fixed.
A good friend of mine with multiple rentals (not in Auckland) likes to argue that we don’t need a culture of home ownership, that lifelong renting is fine provided there is some security of tenancy
Yep, people like that love the idea of long term rentals as they get to bludge off of other people securely.
Whereas owning houses is a recipe for wealth and a comfortable retirement because the tax situation so favours this form of unearned income from capital.
For a few people. I think you’ll find that the majority still end up in poverty. In fact, that seems to be a major issue with old people not being able to afford power for heating, not being able to afford food, etcetera.
Private home ownership is a recipe for poverty as the few who own the homes bludge off of the rest of the population.
I think you’ll find that the majority still end up in poverty. In fact, that seems to be a major issue with old people not being able to afford power for heating, not being able to afford food, etcetera.
Actually, the majority of people age 65+ are not below the poverty line, although there is some veriation by type of housing tenure Table G.7b.
“the lack of long term vision from all parties to deal with the obscene specter of commodified housing”
Not ‘all’ parties. Didn’t the Greens get slagged for promising exactly that? – to act to reduce house prices over a decade, to fix the tax/finance incentives that make houses an investment rather than a place to live, and to strongly regulate rentals to provide an option for people who will never afford to buy.
Agree with what you say about the approach to housing not focused primarily on the needs of low income people, whether in paid work or not. It is all about the desires of the better off, and better off wannabes.
I read the article fairly quickly before going out this morning.
I would like to say how much I admire the people who have put their lives on hold to attempt to save some of the whales stranded on Farewell Spit. They are truly awesome, thank you for your efforts.
Next thing I would like to know – what can we do to prevent this happening? It was about 300 pilot whales I think. There must be something that scientists have developed or would like to trial. Some sort of pulse which the whales will recognise as indicating land or shallow water. Apparently sound waves travel well through water. We can send complicated machines into outer space just because we want to, not because it is of true service to the planet. NASA could stand for Necessary Action to Sort our Attitudes.
Can we apply science and money where it is most needed? Can we please…can
we plese…cn w plse…shrinking but still shrieking.
The impact of sonar on whales has become an increasingly fraught issue in recent years, with submarine exercises being linked to several high-profile mass strandings. The US Navy has admitted concerns over sonar’s effects on marine mammals, although actual evidence for harm has been in short supply.
But military-sponsored tests now suggest that low levels of sonar, which do not cause direct damage to whales, could still cause harm by triggering behavioural changes.
It’s heartbreaking when so many go off beam. If we could do something as civilians here now, we could help with this. Trying to find, blame and clear up the
original cause would take too long. Just another one of those unintended consequences we are running into more and more as our planet gets too crowded with us – we’re everywhere.
Commercial and military sonar may be affecting tuna as well.
The oceans and seas in which marine mammals like whales and dolphins live may be getting noisier. Increased levels of shipping, seismic sounds from activities such as oil and gas exploration may be to blame. Ocean noise can travel over long distances and affect waters outside the control of individual nations. Given the fact that such noise is transboundary – and that some marine species relying on sound for orientation, communication and feeding migrate across hundreds of miles – this is an issue that calls for international regulation. High noise
levels can cause disorientation, exclude cetaceans from habitats and even directly cause physical injury and death. Propeller-driven ships have become the most dominant human-induced low frequency noise
. A new concern are rising concentrations of C02 which may be making sounds waves travel further and faster, as a recent study suggests,
demonstrating the link between climate change and this conservation issue. The Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS) and some of its agreements have identified ocean noise as a potential threat to migratory species and support action to reduce its impact.
Noise pollution in the oceans has been estimated to be increasing at a rate of around 6db per year mainly due to the increasing number of super cargo ships and expanding world trade. Sorry can’t find the link for this – read it in the Science section of the Guardian a couple of years go.
It must be tough work searching each day for the stories to feature – a labour MP sneezes in UK without putting his hand over his mouth becomes an implicit condemnation of left politicians in NZ.
A company in Temuka taking on an employee in Temuka is an utter triumph for the government’s employment strategies. Someone arrested for jay-walking is massive credit to their law and order policy. Some Nat backbencher helps a constituent get their cat out of a tree is some sort of Nobel prize candidate.
A green MP puts out rubbish in a plastic bag and they’re all the biggest hypocrites since hypocrisy was invented.
Fortunately the polls are unlikely to show National at risk, imagine him then.
Look forward however to anti Ardern stuff even though they are not standing. That’s the way it is.
National went into election mode once Blinglish replaced shonky.
They know it’s an uphill battle but the war chest is deep with the shills well placed and briefed. DPF will be a lot busier with Cammy making himself hotter than usual to handle.
So along with all the usual dirty tricks that are stock in trade national party standard operating procedure and a date announced its game on.
Reading group – E F Schumacher Small is Beautiful: Economics as if People Mattered.
Sorry, sorry, I didn’t make the deadline though got most of it together with some that Weka needed to tidy up and insert. So will be all ready to present to next Sunday.
But in the meantime I have looked up availability of book, I suggest you check your library on line and if available, put a hold on it for yourself, or ask them if they will obtain it on inter-loan for you (has a cost), as a number of NZ libraries have copies. (I think not every library is in inter-loan.) It can be bought to go on Kindle from Amazon about $10 don’t know whether that’s USA or NZ$, the site didn’t provide that information.
It can be bought new as hard copy on Trademe but look for one that says available in NZ, Hamilton based, and should get delivery in week if pay immediately. Otherwise you may be waiting three weeks from overseas. There are pdfs available so you can start reading directly on your computer – presented clearly but without much formatting. http://www.colinalexander.info/files/pdfs/Schumacher.pdf http://www.ditext.com/schumacher/small/small.html
The more I have read about E F Schumacher, the more sure I am that he is going to be a great and valuable read.
I too have a library copy, and also downloaded the .pdf above so I can make notes, and am reading it. Most impressed so far – lots of food for thought!
How to do something good from your computer chair. Donate to Riverton environment centre. They need to buy the building to give them a secure home so they can invite us in to have some green tea and fairy cakes! Seriously folks, 11 days to go to raise $20,000 and they are almost to $10,000 so see if we can get them up there by tonight. All those rounded 0’s are so sexy and smooth Mmmmm.
Firstly the proposals were not all that radical-take a look at the contributions they make over in Oz-and secondly there has to be a party that takes the retirement funding crisis seriously rather than the Nats “head in the sand” approach.
Labour, Greens and NZF have to go into this Election with a concise plan that they can govern constructively as a coalition Government anything whacky and most New Zealanders will stick with what we have got.
There are a continuation of stories regarding the record level of building permits “Auckland fell just short of the 10,000 market with 9930 consents, a 7 per cent increase on 2015. ” , this does create a huge amount of construction work – Some of which the industry is struggling to meet.
“It’s no surprise to anyone Auckland is the worst affected, with about four to five years of backlog based on historical build rates.” & “The number of homes being built in 2016 – 29,970 nationally and 9930 in Auckland “.But what has not been talked about is the number of dwellings that have been demolished, should you travel thru Glen Innes you will see many high density houses being build on old State house sites. These new dwellings are recorded in the permit numbers below but this is a gross number, and no mention of the lower net number of dwellings that has been added to the Auckland housing stock, so the level of activity is producing a lower number of dwellings than is implied by the quoted permit data. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11799310
While much of the Northeast was forced to batten down the hatches this week against strong winds, heavy snow and other icy conditions, the usually frigid Arctic experienced the opposite – a period of unseasonably mild weather and high temperatures, for at least the third time this winter.
A powerful low-pressure storm system in the northern Atlantic has helped carry warm air up to the frozen north this week, sending temperatures in the Arctic soaring. Data from the Danish Meteorological Institute suggests that, as of Thursday, temperatures in the area above 80 degrees north latitude were already more than 20 degrees warmer than the average temperature for this time of year. As a graphic from Climate Reanalyzer shows, the most unusually warm region is right over the North Pole.
It’s at least the third such extreme winter-warming event for the Arctic this season – temperatures skyrocketed on two occasions in November and December as well. Similar incidents also occurred in December of 2015 and 2014.
“It is an astonishing sum. However, it is the kind of outlay that may become necessary if we want to halt the calamity that faces the Arctic, says Desch, who, like many other scientists, has become alarmed at temperature change in the region. They say that it is now warming twice as fast as their climate models predicted only a few years ago and argue that the 2015 Paris agreement to limit global warming will be insufficient to prevent the region’s sea ice disappearing completely in summer, possibly by 2030.”
who’s question about modelled data excursions?…..your comment never questioned the data, you asked why it was calamitous….my link discusses a clear feedback , not developing but active with the consequent air and water current changes and albedo effect…somewhat calamitous if you are a fragile temperature sensitive environment or being
“Therefore, do NOT use this measure as an actual physical mean temperature of the arctic. The ‘plus 80 North mean temperature’ graphs can be used for comparing one year to an other.”….your link.
…which is what they have done.
“Unprotected you would freeze to death in around 2 minutes.”
ice is still cold so no need to be concerned because it hasn’t all melted yet….thats a load off my mind.
It may be true, it may be fake news! Nine ‘anonymous’ informants. And the presenter kept repeating, as if it were proven fact, that Russia interfered in the US election. Lots of innuendo and assumptions.
Or it just may have been a smart move by Putin to not retaliate – he really caught the US napping!
On the other hand, I could easily credit any stupid thing Trump and Co. get up to.
I’d be favouring my ‘other hand’ if I were you Tony Veitch.
Just the possibility also that Putin (not exclusive to him I grant) is a murderous KGB monster. That’s how TS ended up in measure a bugle for fucking Trump. HRC, Obama were horrendous etc etc etc……..thus (so indulgently and utterly counter-intuitively)…….”Trump can only be better…….”.
When’s Archie ‘CV’ Bunker back ? He’s got a lot of explaining to do. Which of course he won’t do, Such is Child-Trump-Hubris.
“A person who undertakes to grow a garden at home, by practices
that will preserve rather than exploit the economy of the soil, has
set his mind decisively against what is wrong with us. He is
helping himself in a way that dignifies him and that is rich in
meaning and pleasure. But he is doing something else that is
more important: he is making vital contact with the soil and the
weather on which his life depends. He will no longer look upon
rain as an impediment of traffic, or upon the sun as a holiday
decoration. And his sense of man’s dependence on the world will
have grown precise enough, one would hope, to be politically
clarifying and useful.”
Patrick Whitefield (british permaculture teacher or what some would call a teacher of ‘mumbo jumbo’ 😆 ) “If everybody stopped ploughing and digging it would probably sort out global warming.” Makes his point from 4:55
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Polling shows that Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau has the lowest approval rating of any mayor in the country. Siting at -12 per cent, the proportion of constituents who disapprove of her performance outweighs those who give her the thumbs up. This negative rating is higher than for any other mayor ...
Buzz from the Beehive Pharmac has been given a financial transfusion and a new chair to oversee its spending in the pharmaceutical business. Associate Health Minister David Seymour described the funding for Pharmac as “its largest ever budget of $6.294 billion over four years, fixing a $1.774 billion fiscal cliff”. ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government is trying to achieve and its ...
TL;DR: Here’s my top 10 ‘pick ‘n’ mix of links to news, analysis and opinion articles as of 10:10am on Monday, April 29:Scoop: The children's ward at Rotorua Hospital will be missing a third of its beds as winter hits because Te Whatu Ora halted an upgrade partway through to ...
span class=”dropcap”>As hideous as David Seymour can be, it is worth keeping in mind occasionally that there are even worse political figures (and regimes) out there. Iran for instance, is about to execute the country’s leading hip hop musician Toomaj Salehi, for writing and performing raps that “corrupt” the nation’s ...
Yesterday marked 10 years since the first electric train carried passengers in Auckland so it’s a good time to look back at it and the impact it has had. A brief history The first proposals for rail electrification in Auckland came in the 1920’s alongside the plans for earlier ...
The Government is again adding to New Zealand’s growing unemployment, this time cutting jobs at the agencies responsible for urban development and growing much needed housing stock. ...
With Minister Karen Chhour indicating in the House today that she either doesn’t know or care about the frontline cuts she’s making to Oranga Tamariki, we risk seeing more and more of our children falling through the cracks. ...
The Labour Party is saddened to learn of the death of Sir Robert Martin, a globally renowned disability advocate who led the way for disability rights both in New Zealand and internationally. ...
Labour is calling for the Government to urgently rethink its coalition commitment to restart live animal exports, Labour animal welfare spokesperson Rachel Boyack said. ...
Today’s Financial Stability Report has once again highlighted that poverty and deep inequality are political choices - and this Government is choosing to make them worse. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to do more for our households in most need as unemployment rises and the cost of living crisis endures. ...
Unemployment is on the rise and it’s only going to get worse under this Government, Labour finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds said. Stats NZ figures show the unemployment rate grew to 4.3 percent in the March quarter from 4 percent in the December quarter. “This is the second rise in unemployment ...
The New Zealand Labour Party welcomes the entering into force of the European Union and New Zealand free trade agreement. This agreement opens the door for a huge increase in trade opportunities with a market of 450 million people who are high value discerning consumers of New Zealand goods and ...
The National-led Government continues its fiscal jiggery pokery with its Pharmac announcement today, Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall says. “The government has increased Pharmac funding but conceded it will only make minimal increases in access to medicine”, said Ayesha Verrall “This is far from the bold promises made to fund ...
This afternoon’s interim Waitangi Tribunal report must be taken seriously as it affects our most vulnerable children, Labour children’s spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime. ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
Te Pāti Māori is disgusted at the confirmation that hundreds are set to lose their jobs at Oranga Tamariki, and the disestablishment of the Treaty Response Unit. “This act of absolute carelessness and out of touch decision making is committing tamariki to state abuse.” Said Te Pāti Māori Oranga Tamariki ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
The Government has delivered on its election promise to provide a financially sustainable model for Auckland under its Local Water Done Well plan. The plan, which has been unanimously endorsed by Auckland Council’s Governing Body, will see Aucklanders avoid the previously projected 25.8 per cent water rates increases while retaining ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters discussed the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and enhanced cooperation in the Pacific with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock during her first official visit to New Zealand today. "New Zealand and Germany enjoy shared interests and values, including the rule of law, democracy, respect for the international system ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop today released his decision on four recommendations referred to him by the Western Bay of Plenty District Council, opening the door to housing growth in the area. The Council’s Plan Change 92 allows more homes to be built in existing and new ...
Thank you, John McKinnon and the New Zealand China Council for the invitation to speak to you today. Thank you too, all members of the China Council. Your effort has played an essential role in helping to build, shape, and grow a balanced and resilient relationship between our two ...
The Government is modernising insurance law to better protect Kiwis and provide security in the event of a disaster, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly announced today. “These reforms are long overdue. New Zealand’s insurance law is complicated and dated, some of which is more than 100 years old. ...
The coalition Government is refreshing its approach to supporting pay equity claims as time-limited funding for the Pay Equity Taskforce comes to an end, Public Service Minister Nicola Willis says. “Three years ago, the then-government introduced changes to the Equal Pay Act to support pay equity bargaining. The changes were ...
Structured literacy will change the way New Zealand children learn to read - improving achievement and setting students up for success, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “Being able to read and write is a fundamental life skill that too many young people are missing out on. Recent data shows that ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay says Canada’s refusal to comply in full with a CPTPP trade dispute ruling in our favour over dairy trade is cynical and New Zealand has no intention of backing down. Mr McClay said he has asked for urgent legal advice in respect of our ‘next move’ ...
The rights of our children and young people will be enhanced by changes the coalition Government will make to strengthen oversight of the Oranga Tamariki system, including restoring a single Children’s Commissioner. “The Government is committed to delivering better public services that care for our most at-risk young people and ...
The Government is making it easier for minor changes to be made to a building consent so building a home is easier and more affordable, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on making it easier and cheaper to build homes so we can ...
New Zealand lost a true legend when internationally renowned disability advocate Sir Robert Martin (KNZM) passed away at his home in Whanganui last night, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. “Our Government’s thoughts are with his wife Lynda, family and community, those he has worked with, the disability community in ...
Good evening – Before discussing the challenges and opportunities facing New Zealand’s foreign policy, we’d like to first acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. You have contributed to debates about New Zealand foreign policy over a long period of time, and we thank you for hosting us. ...
From today, passengers travelling internationally from Auckland Airport will be able to keep laptops and liquids in their carry-on bags for security screening thanks to new technology, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Creating a more efficient and seamless travel experience is important for holidaymakers and businesses, enabling faster movement through ...
People with an interest in the health of Northland’s marine ecosystems are invited to a public meeting to discuss how to deal with kina barrens, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones will lead the discussion, which will take place on Friday, 10 May, at Awanui Hotel in ...
Kiwi exporters are $100 million better off today with the NZ EU FTA entering into force says Trade Minister Todd McClay. “This is all part of our plan to grow the economy. New Zealand's prosperity depends on international trade, making up 60 per cent of the country’s total economic activity. ...
There are heartening signs that the extractive sector is once again becoming an attractive prospect for investors and a source of economic prosperity for New Zealand, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The beginnings of a resurgence in extractive industries are apparent in media reports of the sector in the past ...
The return of the historic Ō-Rākau battle site to the descendants of those who fought there moved one step closer today with the first reading of Te Pire mō Ō-Rākau, Te Pae o Maumahara / The Ō-Rākau Remembrance Bill. The Bill will entrust the 9.7-hectare battle site, five kilometres west ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has announced 25 new high-speed EV charging hubs along key routes between major urban centres and outlined the Government’s plan to supercharge New Zealand’s EV infrastructure. The hubs will each have several chargers and be capable of charging at least four – and up to 10 ...
The coalition Government will not proceed with the previous Government’s plans to regulate residential property managers, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “I have written to the Chairperson of the Social Services and Community Committee to inform him that the Government does not intend to support the Residential Property Managers Bill ...
The Government has announced an independent review into the disability support system funded by the Ministry of Disabled People – Whaikaha. Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston says the review will look at what can be done to strengthen the long-term sustainability of Disability Support Services to provide disabled people and ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith has attended the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva and outlined the Government’s plan to restore law and order. “Speaking to the United Nations Human Rights Council provided us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while responding to issues and ...
The Government and Rotorua Lakes Council are committed to working closely together to end the use of contracted emergency housing motels in Rotorua. Associate Minister of Housing (Social Housing) Tama Potaka says the Government remains committed to ending the long-term use of contracted emergency housing motels in Rotorua by the ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay heads overseas today for high-level trade talks in the Gulf region, and a key OECD meeting in Paris. Mr McClay will travel to Riyadh to meet with counterparts from Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). “New Zealand’s goods and services exports to the Gulf region ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford has outlined six education priorities to deliver a world-leading education system that sets Kiwi kids up for future success. “I’m putting ambition, achievement and outcomes at the heart of our education system. I want every child to be inspired and engaged in their learning so they ...
The new NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) App is a secure ‘one stop shop’ to provide the services drivers need, Transport Minister Simeon Brown and Digitising Government Minister Judith Collins say. “The NZTA App will enable an easier way for Kiwis to pay for Vehicle Registration and Road User Charges (RUC). ...
Whānau with tamariki growing up in emergency housing motels will be prioritised for social housing starting this week, says Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka. “Giving these whānau a better opportunity to build healthy stable lives for themselves and future generations is an essential part of the Government’s goal of reducing ...
Racing Minister Winston Peters has paid tribute to an icon of the industry with the recent passing of Dave O’Sullivan (OBE). “Our sympathies are with the O’Sullivan family with the sad news of Dave O’Sullivan’s recent passing,” Mr Peters says. “His contribution to racing, initially as a jockey and then ...
Assalaamu alaikum, greetings to you all. Eid Mubarak, everyone! I want to extend my warmest wishes to you and everyone celebrating this joyous occasion. It is a pleasure to be here. I have enjoyed Eid celebrations at Parliament before, but this is my first time joining you as the Minister ...
Associate Health Minister David Seymour has announced Pharmac’s largest ever budget of $6.294 billion over four years, fixing a $1.774 billion fiscal cliff. “Access to medicines is a crucial part of many Kiwis’ lives. We’ve committed to a budget allocation of $1.774 billion over four years so Kiwis are ...
Hon Paula Bennett has been appointed as member and chair of the Pharmac board, Associate Health Minister David Seymour announced today. "Pharmac is a critical part of New Zealand's health system and plays a significant role in ensuring that Kiwis have the best possible access to medicines,” says Mr Seymour. ...
Hundreds of New Zealand families affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) will benefit from a new Government focus on prevention and treatment, says Health Minister Dr Shane Reti. “We know FASD is a leading cause of preventable intellectual and neurodevelopmental disability in New Zealand,” Dr Reti says. “Every day, ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones today attended the official opening of Kaikohe’s new $14.7 million sports complex. “The completion of the Kaikohe Multi Sports Complex is a fantastic achievement for the Far North,” Mr Jones says. “This facility not only fulfils a long-held dream for local athletes, but also creates ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters’ engagements in Türkiye this week underlined the importance of diplomacy to meet growing global challenges. “Returning to the Gallipoli Peninsula to represent New Zealand at Anzac commemorations was a sombre reminder of the critical importance of diplomacy for de-escalating conflicts and easing tensions,” Mr Peters ...
Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service. It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
Distinguished guests - It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders. Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia. Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
RNZ News A group of academic staff at New Zealand’s largest university have expressed concern at the administration’s move to block a protest encampment that was planned to take place on campus calling for support for the rights of Palestinians. This week, the University of Auckland warned that while it ...
Genterwocky After a hard days marching, Sir Doocey calls in at the Village Tavern For a pint of ale and a pork pie. The grim villagers stare at him. “Do not be travelling on the forest road,” warns a crusty old beak. “And why is that, antique peasant?” Grins Sir ...
Political conferences after a party returns to power are usually a chance for some healthy, even unhealthy backslapping. Yet National Party president Sylvia Wood’s address to its mainland representatives on Saturday hardly contained the unalloyed delight that one might have expected following National’s escape from the wilderness of opposition. Yes, ...
Comment: Almost half the world is voting in national elections this year and artificial intelligence is the elephant in the room. There are genuine fears AI-generated or AI-edited deepfakes will potentially manipulate election outcomes not just in the US and UK, but critically in countries such as India. For that ...
Ahead of the reality franchise’s return to New Zealand, allow us to introduce the eight brides and grooms. Chuck on a veil and tie back your man bun, because it’s time to say “I do” to a new season of Married at First Sight NZ. The reality TV “social experiment” ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Norton, Professor in the Practice of Higher Education Policy, Australian National University Every year on June 1, student debt in Australia is indexed to inflation. In 2023, high inflation pushed the indexation rate to 7.1%, the highest since 1990. This ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Changes in the May 14 budget will cut the student debt of more than three million people, wiping more than $3 billion from what people owe. The government will cap the HELP indexation rate ...
Asia Pacific Report The prosecutor’s office at the International Criminal Court (ICC) has appealed for an end to what it calls intimidation of its staff, saying such threats could constitute an offence against the “administration of justice” by the world’s permanent war crimes court. The Hague-based office of ICC Prosecutor ...
By Patrick Decloitre, RNZ Pacific correspondent French Pacific desk A women’s union in New Caledonia has staged a sit-in protest this week to support senior Kanak indigenous journalist Thérèse Waia, who works for public broadcaster Nouvelle-Calédonie la Première, after a smear attack by critics. The peaceful demonstration was held on ...
New Zealand Food Safety is monitoring overseas recalls of Indian packaged spice products manufactured by MDH and Everest due to concerns over a cancer-causing pesticide. ...
By Stephen Wright and Stefan Armbruster of BenarNews Fiji’s ranking in a global press freedom index has jumped into the top tier of countries with free or mostly free media after its government last year repealed a draconian law that threatened journalists with prison for doing their jobs. Fiji’s improvement ...
We might be in Invercargill but all anyone can talk about is Gore. Specifically, Salford Street. That’s where three-year-old Lachlan Jones lived, south of the centre of town, between the A&P Showgrounds and the Mataura River. Roughly 1.2 km away from the single level home he lived in with his ...
MONDAY I lined up the latest round of civil servants from city hall against the wall, and signalled for the firing squad to drop their rifles. I stepped up onto a wooden crate to look at the office workers in the eye. But that didn’t feel right, so I found ...
Keen hiker and second-year MSc student Liam Hewson wears two hats when he’s in the great outdoors. “The scientist in me appreciates nature and goes, ‘Oh, there’s that thing and there’s another thing,’ but then the tramper and the outdoorsy person in me thinks, ‘Cool bush.’” Born and bred in ...
After a long and illustrious career as a goal kicker, Dan Carter’s favourite way to unwind is… kicking goals. Why can’t he get enough of it? And what it’s like to watch him do it for an hour straight? A semicircle of people wielding cameras and phones has formed in ...
Dame Susan Devoy takes us through her life in television, including late night ER debriefs, her proudest CTI moment and the show she watches in secret. Quite aside from her four world champion squash titles, Dame Susan Devoy will likely go down in history as one of the best Celebrity ...
Hera Lindsay Bird reveals the best places in Ōtepoti to score more for your apocalypse-prep book hoard.Sometimes I get the feeling I’ve been killed in a car crash, and this second half of my life is just the brain unspooling itself, like one of those episodes of a hospital ...
ThreeNow’s new murder mystery series takes us on a dark, damp journey into the Australian wilderness.This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. High Country is ThreeNow’s new Australian eight-part crime drama, set in a remote part of the Victorian highlands. It tells ...
Introducing a new way to read The Spinoff every weekend. After nearly 10 years of being an online magazine, we’re finally embracing the weekend liftout. Despite our best efforts to convince you otherwise, writers and editors at The Spinoff don’t work weekend. It is through the sheer power of technology ...
Tip one: let yourself be nurtured by this big old man. Tip two: don’t ask him to adopt you. So, you’ve arrived at your first session with a new therapist. He tells you to make yourself comfortable and you opt for the tweed armchair, hoping it makes you look like ...
I didn’t know books could open you back up; that there were books that stayed with you, where reading was like a chemical event. I knew nothing.The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.Not too long ago, I was listening to the American ...
Former Olympic swimmer James Magnussen has already started training for the Enhanced games, though says he won’t start taking performance enhancing substances until about nine months out from the competition. The Australian world champion was the first athlete to be announced by Enhanced, but he says the organisation has had ...
Everyone thinks he’s dead. Every day they expect his body to be washed up along the coast. Most likely up Karitane way, the way the tide’s running. But nobody’ll be too surprised if his body’s never found. Even in death he wouldn’t have wished for such attention. He would have ...
Council members voted 21 to 4 in favour of Ahluwalia returning to the Laucala campus following a much-awaited meeting in Vanuatu this week. It comes as USP and its two unions — the Association of the University of the South Pacific Staff (AUSPS) and the Administration and Support Staff Union ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Nicola Henry, Professor & Australian Research Council Future Fellow, Social and Global Studies Centre, RMIT University Shutterstock Following an emergency meeting of the National Cabinet this week, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has announced a raft of measures to tackle the problem ...
Analysis - A poll showing the opposition is more popular than the government raises questions, politicians go through their 'trial by pay rise' and a Green MP loses her cool in the debating chamber. ...
The entire stretch of Tokomaru Bay on the East Coast will be subject to a joint customary marine title for two hapū, and extending up to four miles out to sea. A High Court judge has found the two groups, who during the case settled a dispute over boundaries for ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James Hall, Lecturer, Media & Cultural Studies, Edith Cowan University A longstanding feud between TikTok and Universal Music Group seems to have finally reached an end, with both parties signing a deal that will see Universal-backed music returned to the social media ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Siobhan O’Dean, Postdoctoral Research Associate, The Matilda Centre for Research in Mental Health and Substance Use, University of Sydney After several highly publicised alleged murders of women in Australia, the Albanese government this week pledged more than A$925 million over five years ...
Political parties have now fully disclosed the donations they received last year - with National getting more than double the cash of any other party. ...
A Pacific regionalism expert has called out New Zealand's Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters for withholding information from the public on AUKUS military pact. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Richard de Grijs, Professor of Astrophysics, Macquarie University Bruno Scramgnon/Pexels All systems are “go” for tonight’s launch of China’s next step in a carefully planned lunar exploration program. Placed on top of a powerful Long March 5 rocket, the Chang’e 6 ...
National returned a massive donation the day after a Newsroom story linked the donors to a property being investigated for operating unlawfully as a migrant workers’ hostel. The party’s 2023 donation filings, released on Friday, show it returned a $200,000 donation from Buen Holdings on August 23. That was the ...
Pacific Media Watch New Zealand has slumped to an unprecedented 19th place in the annual Reporters Without Borders World Press Freedom Index survey released today on World Press Freedom Day — May 3. This was a drop of six places from 13th last year when it slipped out of its ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Joshua Black, Political Historian and Administrator Officer, Australian Historical Association, Australian National University Australia has had its fair share of public record-keeping controversies in recent years. Some have been mere farce, as in the case of two formerly government-owned filing cabinets (containing ...
Heavenly Culture, World Peace, Restoration of Light (HWPL), a United Nations-affiliated organization dedicated to fostering peace through civilian-led initiatives, has issued a statement in response to the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran. ...
A poem by Tessa Keenan, from AUP New Poets 10. Mātou These days we are a photograph; one of a farm strewn with cows that used to be bright harakeke or swamp. The kids point at it and say the sun sits behind a smudge (left by someone at Christmas); ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan (Faber & Faber, $25)The masterful Irish writer ...
Marriage and civil union statistics record the number of marriages and civil unions registered in New Zealand each year, and divorce statistics record the number of divorces granted in New Zealand each year. Key facts Marriages and civil unions In ...
Marriage and civil union statistics record the number of marriages and civil unions registered in New Zealand each year, and divorce statistics record the number of divorces granted in New Zealand each year. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lennon Y.C. Chang, Associate Professor of Cyber Risk and Policy, Deakin University Taiwan stands out as a beacon of democracy, innovation and resilience in an increasingly autocratic region. But this is under growing threat. In recent years, China has used a variety ...
In this excerpt from her new memoir, Dame Susan Devoy remembers her turn as star contestant on the 2022 season of Celebrity Treasure Island. The most anxious time of every day was pre-elimination, when you knew this could be your final day on the show. I felt such contradictory emotions, ...
A week that began in triumph ended in an all-too-familiar disaster for the Green Party. Duncan Greive asks if there’s something in the mission that breaks its best and brightest. A long, strange week for the Green party began with a fantastic poll result. On one level this is hardly ...
By Lydia Lewis, RNZ Pacific journalist Vanuatu’s former prime minister and opposition MP Ishmael Kalsakau has stepped down — just two days after he confirmed he was the rightful opposition leader. Kalsakau, MP for Port Vila, confirmed to ABC’s Pacific Beat, and the Vanuatu Daily Post on Thursday that he ...
What’s to blame for the coalition’s choppy start? Six months in, and the mojo meter is in the doldrums. A new poll would put National out of power and sees its leader, Chris Luxon, sliding in popularity. How much is it about policy, how much coalition management and a perception ...
The striking report goes far beyond the proposed repeal of the Oranga Tamariki Act’s Treaty of Waitangi provision, and its impact should be felt far beyond the unique circumstances of the claim it addresses. Earlier this week, the Waitangi Tribunal released an interim report on the government’s proposed repeal of ...
The world has been experiencing a productivity slowdown, from which New Zealand has not been exempt. COVID-19 temporarily boosted labour productivity, but more recently, productivity has retreated. The overall trend since 2007 has been one of slow productivity ...
What’s more wasteful than spending $315k on syrup and machine maintenance? Trying to drum up a controversy about it.Cast your mind back to the pre-pandemic idylls of 2019. A “rat” was a disgusting rodent and not a self-administered plague test; the sixth Labour government was in power; and the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Fitz-Gibbon, Professor of Social Sciences, Faculty of Arts, Monash University, Monash University Ken stocker/Shutterstock In the wake of numerous killings of women allegedly by men’s violence in 2024, thousands of Australians have joined rallies across the country to demand action ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Henry Cutler, Professor and Director, Macquarie University Centre for the Health Economy, Macquarie University Oleg Ivanov IL/Shutterstock Waiting times for public hospital elective surgery have been in the news ahead of this year’s federal budget. That’s the type of non-emergency surgery ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Konstantine Panegyres, McKenzie Postdoctoral Fellow, Historical and Philosophical Studies, The University of Melbourne Amna Artist/Shutterstock One of the earliest descriptions of someone with cancer comes from the fourth century BC. Satyrus, tyrant of the city of Heracleia on the Black Sea, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Rose, Professor of Sustainable Future Transport, University of Sydney LanaElcova/Shutterstock Electric vehicles are often seen as the panacea to cutting emissions – and air pollution – from transport. Is this view correct? Yes – but only once uptake accelerates. Despite the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Giselle Natassia Woodley, Researcher and Phd Candidate, Edith Cowan University There is widespread agreement Australia needs to do better when it comes to gender-based violence. Anger and frustration at the numbers of women being killed saw national rallies over the weekend and ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James Graham, Lecturer in Economics, University of Sydney Mark and Anna Photography/Shutterstock As home ownership moves further out of reach for many Australians, “rentvesting” is being touted as a lifesaver. Rentvesting is the practice of renting one property to live ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sukhmani Khorana, Associate Professor, Faculty of Arts, Design and Architecture, UNSW Sydney Netflix The new season of Heartbreak High is garnering mixed reviews. Critics are writing about the racy story lines, comparing it to other coming-of-age series about teenage relationships and ...
Bob Carr intends to launch legal action against Winston Peters and Julie Anne Genter is facing a second allegation of bullying. Both sucked the air out of an announcement on education, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in ...
In 1995, Sally Clark went out on her own in a bold and unorthodox attempt to join an illustrious group of equestrian riders conquering the world. In the days of glovebox road maps, brick cell phones, and the hit song How Bizarre, Clark refused to follow Sir Mark Todd, Blyth ...
Very good article by Rob Stock on housing afforability:
Nails shonkey
Stock provides a link and refers to the Briefing Paper on the issue. That shows the value of solid, and concise articles on issues, that will maybe only be read by a minority. But it is a source journalists are likely to read and possibly draw on occasionally.
I think the comparison between the main parties totally ignores Green Party policies on state housing.
@Carolyn_nth, while it is a pretty good piece, it only shows the lack of long term vision from all parties to deal with the obscene specter of commodified housing, which is ripping community cohesion and the country apart.
“Restoring the ability of young New Zealanders to buy a home is being tipped as a defining issue of the upcoming general election”. You see the obvious class war in that sentence? media commentators and politicians can only get their head around housing affordability if affects their own children/grandchildren, what about the 100,000’s of adult workers who have effectively been shut out?
Class war is so normalized now that it not seen for what it is, even on a left wing forum.
No mention that Labours housing plans have no plan built into them to protect the whole strata of workers in jobs like , cleaners, elderly care workers, factory workers etc, where the average wage is around 32-35,000 P/A, so can’t afford to buy into Labours affordable housing scheme, there by consigned to life of renting, with no long term security…no it seem that Labour really are what they profess they wanted to be, the party of the centre (exclusively)…….what about a real living wage for these workers now (and not some fantasy future) and higher interest rates for the little money these workers can save?
Where is Labour on that conversation?
” You see the obvious class war in that sentence? media commentators and politicians can only get their head around housing affordability if affects their own children/grandchildren, what about the 100,000’s of adult workers who have effectively been shut out?”
Agree with you there Adrian.
The “affordability” – approach to housing misses the most important aspect to providing everyone with secure, healthy, really affordable homes (owned or rented) in non-transient connected communities.
The value of that approach to housing impacts on many aspects of our lives: health, education, work-life balance, community etc.
All the issues you relate in your last paragraph are pertinent to a long-term solution.
“really affordable homes (owned or rented) in non-transient connected communities.”
A good friend of mine with multiple rentals (not in Auckland) likes to argue that we don’t need a culture of home ownership, that lifelong renting is fine provided there is some security of tenancy
It’s fine in theory – but in low-wage NZ, with few alternative investment vehicles that are not scams, lifelong renting is a recipe (in most cases) for lifelong poverty and a desperate old age. Whereas owning houses is a recipe for wealth and a comfortable retirement because the tax situation so favours this form of unearned income from capital.
Before we can have lifelong renting in NZ there are some fundamentals to be fixed.
Yep, people like that love the idea of long term rentals as they get to bludge off of other people securely.
For a few people. I think you’ll find that the majority still end up in poverty. In fact, that seems to be a major issue with old people not being able to afford power for heating, not being able to afford food, etcetera.
Private home ownership is a recipe for poverty as the few who own the homes bludge off of the rest of the population.
Actually, the majority of people age 65+ are not below the poverty line, although there is some veriation by type of housing tenure Table G.7b.
“the lack of long term vision from all parties to deal with the obscene specter of commodified housing”
Not ‘all’ parties. Didn’t the Greens get slagged for promising exactly that? – to act to reduce house prices over a decade, to fix the tax/finance incentives that make houses an investment rather than a place to live, and to strongly regulate rentals to provide an option for people who will never afford to buy.
Yep. Is not very popular with the electorate. Homeowners vote, and don’t want the market value of their house reduced
A.
Agree with what you say about the approach to housing not focused primarily on the needs of low income people, whether in paid work or not. It is all about the desires of the better off, and better off wannabes.
I read the article fairly quickly before going out this morning.
I would like to say how much I admire the people who have put their lives on hold to attempt to save some of the whales stranded on Farewell Spit. They are truly awesome, thank you for your efforts.
+infinity
Next thing I would like to know – what can we do to prevent this happening? It was about 300 pilot whales I think. There must be something that scientists have developed or would like to trial. Some sort of pulse which the whales will recognise as indicating land or shallow water. Apparently sound waves travel well through water. We can send complicated machines into outer space just because we want to, not because it is of true service to the planet. NASA could stand for Necessary Action to Sort our Attitudes.
Can we apply science and money where it is most needed? Can we please…can
we plese…cn w plse…shrinking but still shrieking.
We were talking about that last night. Some sort of frequency sonar, on a buoy.
R&D we need so much more of that.
Perhaps we should stop doing what’s causing it?
And it’s not just the military that carry sonar.
It’s heartbreaking when so many go off beam. If we could do something as civilians here now, we could help with this. Trying to find, blame and clear up the
original cause would take too long. Just another one of those unintended consequences we are running into more and more as our planet gets too crowded with us – we’re everywhere.
Commercial and military sonar may be affecting tuna as well.
From The Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species media release:
Noise pollution in the oceans has been estimated to be increasing at a rate of around 6db per year mainly due to the increasing number of super cargo ships and expanding world trade. Sorry can’t find the link for this – read it in the Science section of the Guardian a couple of years go.
Ocean noise pollution, that would be horrid.
And again the planet suffers because of humanity
Thanks for the info Draco and Macro, really interesting
POLITICAL SATIRE!
Pullya Bennefitt is now famous
😉
(One way of getting around the effective mainstream media ‘censorship’?)
https://www.google.co.nz/search?site=&source=hp&ei=MG6fWJ2yC4v_8QWK3abQDA&q=Anti-prison+march+heads+to+Mt+Eden+prison&oq=Anti-prison+march+heads+to+Mt+Eden+prison&gs_l=mobile-gws-hp.3..30i10k1.2360.28209.0.29049.50.49.1.0.0.0.348.10386.3j3j41j2.49.0….0…1.1.64.mobile-gws-hp..0.47.9768.0..0j0j0i131k1j0i10k1j0i30k1j0i22i30k1j33i160k1j33i21k1.YQHwJ8pV-os#imgrc=nLfkk-1H5QdxZM:
(Authorised by 2017 Independent candidate Mt Albert by-election, 86A School Rd, Kingsland, Auckland 1021.)
Farrar on his blog is really into election mode.
It must be tough work searching each day for the stories to feature – a labour MP sneezes in UK without putting his hand over his mouth becomes an implicit condemnation of left politicians in NZ.
A company in Temuka taking on an employee in Temuka is an utter triumph for the government’s employment strategies. Someone arrested for jay-walking is massive credit to their law and order policy. Some Nat backbencher helps a constituent get their cat out of a tree is some sort of Nobel prize candidate.
A green MP puts out rubbish in a plastic bag and they’re all the biggest hypocrites since hypocrisy was invented.
Fortunately the polls are unlikely to show National at risk, imagine him then.
Look forward however to anti Ardern stuff even though they are not standing. That’s the way it is.
National went into election mode once Blinglish replaced shonky.
They know it’s an uphill battle but the war chest is deep with the shills well placed and briefed. DPF will be a lot busier with Cammy making himself hotter than usual to handle.
So along with all the usual dirty tricks that are stock in trade national party standard operating procedure and a date announced its game on.
Reading group – E F Schumacher Small is Beautiful: Economics as if People Mattered.
Sorry, sorry, I didn’t make the deadline though got most of it together with some that Weka needed to tidy up and insert. So will be all ready to present to next Sunday.
But in the meantime I have looked up availability of book, I suggest you check your library on line and if available, put a hold on it for yourself, or ask them if they will obtain it on inter-loan for you (has a cost), as a number of NZ libraries have copies. (I think not every library is in inter-loan.) It can be bought to go on Kindle from Amazon about $10 don’t know whether that’s USA or NZ$, the site didn’t provide that information.
It can be bought new as hard copy on Trademe but look for one that says available in NZ, Hamilton based, and should get delivery in week if pay immediately. Otherwise you may be waiting three weeks from overseas. There are pdfs available so you can start reading directly on your computer – presented clearly but without much formatting.
http://www.colinalexander.info/files/pdfs/Schumacher.pdf
http://www.ditext.com/schumacher/small/small.html
The more I have read about E F Schumacher, the more sure I am that he is going to be a great and valuable read.
I have a copy of the book from the local library, and will start reading it this week.
Me too Olwyn. What a great guy, reviews from newbies to him say it is dry. Perhaps they suffer from Trump syndrome!
I too have a library copy, and also downloaded the .pdf above so I can make notes, and am reading it. Most impressed so far – lots of food for thought!
Good Tony, that’s a good idea. Glad you are into it too.
Capuchin monkeys reject unequal pay
Tracking
bullshitmore recycled speculative bullshit put out by……/
https://medium.com/@DFRLab/spread-it-on-reddit-3170a463e787#.qvkc7xfqu
How to do something good from your computer chair. Donate to Riverton environment centre. They need to buy the building to give them a secure home so they can invite us in to have some green tea and fairy cakes! Seriously folks, 11 days to go to raise $20,000 and they are almost to $10,000 so see if we can get them up there by tonight. All those rounded 0’s are so sexy and smooth Mmmmm.
Pledge Me
https://www.pledgeme.co.nz/projects/5022-help-secure-the-future-of-the-riverton-environment-centre
🙂
Is Labour planning on entering this election with the same radical changes to KiwiSaver it had last election?
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/money/10014015/Labour-defends-KiwiSaver-plan
Firstly the proposals were not all that radical-take a look at the contributions they make over in Oz-and secondly there has to be a party that takes the retirement funding crisis seriously rather than the Nats “head in the sand” approach.
In context, the changes are radical to what we currently have.
Moreover, it planned to go far beyond retirement funding, substituting interest rates with Kiwisaver as a means to control inflation.
Hence, there are concerns with the uncapped scope of the variable savings rate potentially pushing those already struggling into further hardship.
Thus a number were hopeful the policy would be dropped.
Labour, Greens and NZF have to go into this Election with a concise plan that they can govern constructively as a coalition Government anything whacky and most New Zealanders will stick with what we have got.
There are a continuation of stories regarding the record level of building permits “Auckland fell just short of the 10,000 market with 9930 consents, a 7 per cent increase on 2015. ” , this does create a huge amount of construction work – Some of which the industry is struggling to meet.
“It’s no surprise to anyone Auckland is the worst affected, with about four to five years of backlog based on historical build rates.” & “The number of homes being built in 2016 – 29,970 nationally and 9930 in Auckland “.But what has not been talked about is the number of dwellings that have been demolished, should you travel thru Glen Innes you will see many high density houses being build on old State house sites. These new dwellings are recorded in the permit numbers below but this is a gross number, and no mention of the lower net number of dwellings that has been added to the Auckland housing stock, so the level of activity is producing a lower number of dwellings than is implied by the quoted permit data.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11799310
Calamity, here we come.
While much of the Northeast was forced to batten down the hatches this week against strong winds, heavy snow and other icy conditions, the usually frigid Arctic experienced the opposite – a period of unseasonably mild weather and high temperatures, for at least the third time this winter.
A powerful low-pressure storm system in the northern Atlantic has helped carry warm air up to the frozen north this week, sending temperatures in the Arctic soaring. Data from the Danish Meteorological Institute suggests that, as of Thursday, temperatures in the area above 80 degrees north latitude were already more than 20 degrees warmer than the average temperature for this time of year. As a graphic from Climate Reanalyzer shows, the most unusually warm region is right over the North Pole.
It’s at least the third such extreme winter-warming event for the Arctic this season – temperatures skyrocketed on two occasions in November and December as well. Similar incidents also occurred in December of 2015 and 2014.
https://www.adn.com/arctic/2017/02/10/temperatures-in-the-arctic-are-skyrocketing-for-the-third-time-this-winter/
How is it calamitous?
“It is an astonishing sum. However, it is the kind of outlay that may become necessary if we want to halt the calamity that faces the Arctic, says Desch, who, like many other scientists, has become alarmed at temperature change in the region. They say that it is now warming twice as fast as their climate models predicted only a few years ago and argue that the 2015 Paris agreement to limit global warming will be insufficient to prevent the region’s sea ice disappearing completely in summer, possibly by 2030.”
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/feb/12/plan-to-refreeze-arctic-before-ice-goes-for-good-climate-change
That is an astonishing sum,but does not answer the question about the modeled data excursion.
who’s question about modelled data excursions?…..your comment never questioned the data, you asked why it was calamitous….my link discusses a clear feedback , not developing but active with the consequent air and water current changes and albedo effect…somewhat calamitous if you are a fragile temperature sensitive environment or being
J90 post suggests that it is modeled, due to the latitudinal constraints.
It is NOT an actual representation of physical temperature.
http://ocean.dmi.dk/arctic/documentation/arctic_mean_temp_data_explanation_newest.pdf
somewhat calamitous if you are a fragile temperature sensitive environment or being
Unprotected you would freeze to death in around 2 minutes.
“Therefore, do NOT use this measure as an actual physical mean temperature of the arctic. The ‘plus 80 North mean temperature’ graphs can be used for comparing one year to an other.”….your link.
…which is what they have done.
“Unprotected you would freeze to death in around 2 minutes.”
ice is still cold so no need to be concerned because it hasn’t all melted yet….thats a load off my mind.
Just a reaction to the likelihood the dramatic changes over the last decade or so could signal the beginnings of an Arctic feedback.
Feedbacks are always an issue,and as climate is essentially a redistribution of mass and subjective.
Would these be classified as calamitous?
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/2016GL068059/full
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/2016GL068092/full
Ex Police union boss Greg O’Connor confirmed as Labour candidate for Dunne’s Ohariu seat:
http://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2017/02/former-police-association-president-confirmed-as-labour-candidate.html
Hopefully offended caucus members can keep their wailing and gnashing in-house this time.
Post: https://thestandard.org.nz/greg-oconnor-selected-for-ohariu/
“Hopefully offended caucus members can keep their wailing and gnashing in-house this time.”
Is that how you characterise Williams’ speaking out? Really?
Yes another Trump news bite but if you have 10 mins to spare this is well worth watching.
http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/magnitude-of-trump-adviser-flynn-s-russia-scandal-gains-clarity-874908739801
My god! Thanks nzsage. I’ll bet my every possession this is true.
It may be true, it may be fake news! Nine ‘anonymous’ informants. And the presenter kept repeating, as if it were proven fact, that Russia interfered in the US election. Lots of innuendo and assumptions.
Or it just may have been a smart move by Putin to not retaliate – he really caught the US napping!
On the other hand, I could easily credit any stupid thing Trump and Co. get up to.
I’d be favouring my ‘other hand’ if I were you Tony Veitch.
Just the possibility also that Putin (not exclusive to him I grant) is a murderous KGB monster. That’s how TS ended up in measure a bugle for fucking Trump. HRC, Obama were horrendous etc etc etc……..thus (so indulgently and utterly counter-intuitively)…….”Trump can only be better…….”.
When’s Archie ‘CV’ Bunker back ? He’s got a lot of explaining to do. Which of course he won’t do, Such is Child-Trump-Hubris.
http://thehill.com/sites/default/files/styles/thumb_small_article/public/article_images/screen_shot_2017-01-22_at_10a.png?itok=WBBZk6ge
The risks around truth.
“A person who undertakes to grow a garden at home, by practices
that will preserve rather than exploit the economy of the soil, has
set his mind decisively against what is wrong with us. He is
helping himself in a way that dignifies him and that is rich in
meaning and pleasure. But he is doing something else that is
more important: he is making vital contact with the soil and the
weather on which his life depends. He will no longer look upon
rain as an impediment of traffic, or upon the sun as a holiday
decoration. And his sense of man’s dependence on the world will
have grown precise enough, one would hope, to be politically
clarifying and useful.”
Wendell Berry – Think Little
Regarding preserving soil.
Patrick Whitefield (british permaculture teacher or what some would call a teacher of ‘mumbo jumbo’ 😆 ) “If everybody stopped ploughing and digging it would probably sort out global warming.” Makes his point from 4:55
https://www.change.org/p/hon-amy-adams-minister-of-broadcasting-increase-funding-for-radio-new-zealand-in-this-year-s-budget/u/19319645?utm_content=update&utm_medium=email&utm_source=notification&utm_campaign=campaigns_digest&sfmc_tk=dva95TYibluxOjXMFJTSbhLf7ergPOzO02sSC2ZVrlWH0PbS9PpvfRKDqVxjtCs
PLEASE SIGN THIS PETITION FOR MORE RNZ FUNDING FOR INVESTIGATIVE JOURALISM.