Cullen says the New Zealand government of the day was “forced into” a much more comprehensive, open ended scheme than it had been considering by Rudd’s “panicky” actions.
Cullen says the New Zealand Government didn’t want to get itself into such a comprehensive scheme, but had to “because of Rudd’s action.”
“Whether he was under pressure from the Aussie banks, who have always had enormous amount of entree into the Prime Minister’s office in Australia, I don’t know. He just seemed to me to panic and clearly hadn’t consulted properly with the Australian Treasury about it,” Cullen adds.
A lot of our economic policy is forced by outside influences, and in this case Rudd seems to have thrown a rock and a hard place at us.
Yes PG, and when are you, Peter Dunce, or for that matter any of the current political class going to shake their heads and say, “Enough is enough, time to regain our sovereignty”? It wont happen because you are on the right side of the pay off divide (the place where you blithely close your eyes to injustice / inequity because “you are all right Jack”).
Consequently you and all the other RWNJs, (and a whole pile from the left as well) bicker over the rotten fetid carcass left to us as our share of the wealth we produce. And your mate Dunce is about to collude with making the scraps from the rich mans table smaller. Your constant whingeing in his defence disgusts me.
In an abrogation of leadership and political buck passing David Cullen makes the cowardly excuse that everyone else was doing it.
Well they weren’t. And those that didn’t, were much better off than those who did.
Compare Iceland to Greece.
After a voter revolt and public referendum against it, the Iceland government refused to bail out the failed private banks and finance companies to the benefit of their people, instead protecting their public accounts.
In Greece the opposite happened, a referendum on the matter was cancelled, a political dictatorship was imposed, huge loans were taken out on the public account to bail out the wealthy investors, leaving the country indebted and impoverished.
After rescuing the wealthy investors and failed bankers, the rest of the population was prostrated before the bankers and the government, to pay off the huge loans mostly taken from the EU.
Pete, which country would you prefer to be living in now?
People who bring up how good Iceland have it are somewhat missing the forest for the trees: a handful of countries can do what Iceland did. If all countries did like Iceland did, the entire system would collapse.
That isn’t necessarily a bad thing though; it’s going to collapse eventually the only question is when.
If all countries did like Iceland did, the entire system would collapse.
Nope.
We could have planned and structured defaults for very specific countries, namely:
– Greece
– Ireland
– Portugal
And kept the powder of QE/LTRO dry for the real problem countries: France, Italy, Japan.
Instead, we’ve already used up most of what can be done in a game of pretend/extend, ironically increasing, not decreasing, sovereign debt levels with every so-called “bail out” (in essence new loans needed to cover the repayments on previous loans).
This article aseems to have gone up this morning on Stuff, but it doesn’t have a date/time or author attribution. Some strong language though, “reviled”!
Submissions on National’s reviled Mixed Ownership Model Bill closed on Friday – and the majority of the 600 already made public were in opposition.
[…]
However, a large proportion of the submitters disagree with Prime Minister John Key’s assertion that National has a mandate for the sale because it won.
Many called for a referendum on the sale, backing a Labour, Greens and Grey Power alliance which has launched a petition. A number of the correspondents asked to be allowed to appear before the 11 MPs sitting on the finance and expenditure committee.
Many kept their letters brief, with Panayiotis Matsis writing simply: “NO ASSET SALES.”
The first submission, from Vivienne Shepherd, called the sell-off “theft”. “How it is that the people of New Zealand are being conned into buying shares they already own, but then those who purchase them will be the chosen ones … I do not give John Key, Bill English and Tony Ryall permission for my 49 per cent to be sold.”
Sad news from Italy with the death of Piermario Morosini. The Livorno player, and former youth international, survived the initial collapse, but a delay in getting the ambulance on the field due to a police car blocking the entrance meant he went without the assistance he needed for some twenty minutes and he apparently succumbed to a heart attack as the ambulance left the field.
Not normally an item for the Standard, I know, but given AS Livorno’s impeccable left wing credentials, I hope Standardistas will spare a moment to salute the club, the fans and the player.
So why are political parties world wide struggling to retain membership?
I discovered this interesting US paper recently. It considers part of the problem is that thanks to the internet we are so wired up to the body politic and we receive so many calls to action that many of us are struggling with “decision paralysis”. To add to this the old way of organizing, with meetings, minutes, financial reports bore too many people who are willing to give time to a cause but do not want to be part of a laborious decision making process.
People also want to protect their privacy. Slater’s attack style politics means that many prefer not to engage.
To succeed in this new world requires a realization that there are four different ways to engage people and each type should be used.
They include:
Direct engagement: the individual acts alone to influence society and government.
Grassroots engagement: individuals act as a part of a loose coalition.
Organizational engagement: people work through nonprofit and advocacy corporations with governing boards and centralized leadership.
Network-centric engagement: an individual acts as part of a coordinated network.
The growth of environmental groups is an indicator of the type of change that has been occurring.
The internet has also fueled this change. Whereas the dissemation of information was previously reserved to the well resourced nowadays anyone with a laptop and a feed can express their point of view and thanks to sites like the Standard have it broadcast to many.
One comment stood out.
“The most troubling trend and direct threat to the organizational structure is a basic shift in behavior of the American public away from “joiners”. Demographics and membership data show that the average citizen does not join organizations, political parties or institutions.
Increasingly, individuals get involved in an issue on their own terms rather than on the terms forced on them by organizational membership. Membership of major organizations is increasingly old, white and declining in number. ”
Food for thought for Labour in its organizational review.
Maybe Mickey the people cant find who to focus their efforts on. We have got conditioned to comments that reflect our thinking like:
* “What can the government do? ”
* “Its not the government fault, they have to do xyz otherwise the economy…..”
* “We are a small fish…..”
* “But the banks and corporations actually run things…”
In effect I believe that most people are disengaged with the concept of participatory democracy because they dont believe the democratic political process can actually run things on their behalf. And they are right to a high degree. Do you think a political party can persuade them to join up without a radical agenda of enpowerment?
So to Labour: a party who had 9 years in “power” and blithely did nothing but “manage”, went with the flow on globalisation / financialisation, and I would argue did nothing to push back the corporatist erosion of our democratic process. Why would I rejoin as a member?
Yep. Labour continues to let the Right Wing write the rules and frame how the game should be played. Recipe for slip slip sliding backwards and to the rRight – which is what this country has been doing for decades.
Probably a glass half full argument Bored. The last Labour Government paid off debt, improved the plight of most of the poor and working class, brought in an ETS, took steps to make our power generation sustainable, poured huge investments into health and education, ran an independent foreign affairs policy, yada yada yada …
But the trend appears to be world wide and it affects all political parties. I would appreciate someone pointing out a party which is going against what appears to be a clear trend.
Very true Micky but that is not what the Right-Wing press told the people .They attacked !attacked !attacked and we lost . And I have no idea how to counter this.
One of the main reason the Left is on the back foot is the destruction of the Unions we lost not only protection of workers but the main source of real information of the political situation. The unions not only protected workers but gave many the chance of having an education .WEA informed on a number of issues .Now its all gone and workers main source of any form of political information is the TV news %90 Right-wing biased .Ask any low paid worker if their firm is unionised and they have a blank look about it.The majority have no idea what one is talking about.
However having said that I was most surprised at how the clued up the young Labout guy on backbenchers was last Friday.
Yes he seemed definitely Gay but not as Gay as the Green representative is being A Gay now a prerequisite for representing both of these parties. There was truth in Damien Ocoonor well publicised news story after all
I reckon that sort of pointless bigoted bullshit would be enough to get some people booted out of here for good if they were nothing but waste of pixels at the best of times.
Luckily for jimmie he’s usually a thoughtful and considered commenter who argues his points well and backs up his statements with evidence, so he’ll probably be sweet.
With a bit of luck this latest blunder by the pathetic james 111 will result in him imposing a ban on himself from posting his brainless rubbish on this excellent blog site.
Do us all a favour and just play with your old sock james and give the keyboard a rest. Theres dog shit on the lawn with more to contribute than you “old sock jim”.
“We will consult widely,” they say blandly. But of course they just carry on doing exactly what they set out to do. “We have listened carefully to what the people had to say and we have taken their views on board.”
Yeah right! This seems to me to a disincentive for action from the people by the people.
“We will consult widely,” they say blandly. But of course they just carry on doing exactly what they set out to do. “We have listened carefully to what the people had to say and we have taken their views on board.”
Yeah right! This seems to me to a disincentive for action from the people by the people.”
Agreed. Take our area (Greater Waikato) Waikato regional council who were told by 60% by the community by way of “communty consultation” that we cannot afford or did not want a right wing elitist Velodrome, but still went ahead and gave 6 million which can be ill afforded by some ratepayers who now have the burden of a special rate for 20 years. Sad day for so called democracy that day.
Yeah – ‘they’ have taken the requirement for consultation to heart on many matters. And the ‘consultation’ that has been adopted is a meeting where they listen and then later over-ride peoples objections to whatever, and go ahead with the plan with a bit of parsley on the meat for window dressing. But it is still going to be ground and minced as planned.
So why are political parties world wide struggling to retain membership?
No doubt a variety of reasons, including:
– “what’s the point, won’t be able to change anything”
– presidentialisation of politics, where local politics doesn’t matter
– poor reputation of politicians
– high exposure of people who get involved in politics
Probably one of the main reasons is that there are vastly more things to do, and ways of doing them. Fifty years ago to have a say in politics you probably had to join a party, now you just have to get on the Internet.
Yes, but if they waste too much time on the internet they don’t get elected. You might’ve been the exception to this though because in your case it mightn’t have made any difference. Do you think you might’ve been elected if you hadn’t spent too much time on the internet?
MS I think that was a very good analysis on the left rules of engagement. The left as far as I see it is much more wide and deep than partisan politics.
OK, somebody in government finally woke up from their afternoon snooze and realised that Section 29, article 4 of the EQC Act 1993 created a legally binding 1yr time-frame on the commission. On 2 April 2012, the Gov-General, made an Order in Council relaxing the 1yr time restriction on EQC to pay-out for reinstatement, ie. repair. As I posted before, the CERA Act 2011, Section 71 required this course of action. The order is here: http://www.legislation.govt.nz/regulation/public/2012/0063/l
atest/DLM4365601.html , and the timing is obviously made to slip through the Easter “downtime” period of Parliament and the media.
Yes, this order is only 13 days old and backdated to take effect from 4 Sept 2010. What does it mean?
It probably means someone dropped the ball. Well spotted DC.
Section 29 EQC requires payments to be made within 12 months after “the amount of the damage has been duly determined”. I guess the Government want to delay the process. I would be interested to see if some payments should have been made but the regulation validates the delay.
oh what a beautiful morning on the MSN homepage.
their little poll has it that more people support the freezing company and not the workers.
get off your bums people and let the rest of NZ know that the workers need and deserve your support.
Well someone’s off their bum here in Whangavegas. Every Talley’s product in the supermarket, from the frozen goods through to the meat and kai moana in the chillers, had accompanying flyers asking why would you buy this product and requesting support for the Affco workers with details on how to donate.
Hey Joe, did you get to the march yesterday? Fantastic to see hundreds of supporters get the message out on the streets, a real wake up call for the shits currently trying to destroy Imlay’s union.
Afraid not Te Reo Putake, the early boy gets the waves, but I have spent some time with Bill R and the people manning/ladying the Beach Rd picket. Some very determined union members.
Another detail of note, Affco are in the process of offering jobs to those who’ve been sacked during the last few years. Most of the sackings have been for theft, assault, attendance issues, gross misconduct and drug and alcohol offences including those who’ve been dismissed for being intoxicated on the job. Happy days indeed.
No worries, I’ve always found Morgan St strangely attractive too! It’s hard to say how many were there, but the first marchers were reaching the square as the last were leaving Taupo Quay, so that’s two blocks of the Ave full of workers and supporters. It would have to be the biggest demo Whanganui’s seen since the occupation of pakaitore.
Hopefully there’ll be some good coverage in tomorrow’s Chronicle, but I have a feeling it’ll be full of self congratulatory articles about the shift to a tabloid format instead.
David Shearer has now been Labour leader for a little over four months (Friday the 13th was his anniversary). To celebrate, there has been a spate of criticism in the media about his lack of profile.
Whoever was elected leader, they had weeks to turn the sinking ship around, not months. Shearer seems to think he has all the time in the world. He doesn’t. The next election may not be until 2014 but Labour are already looking like they will lose. The most critical thing right now is that Labour does not fall into the same trap it did under Phil Goff, where the media knocking machine gets momentum and after that it becomes impossible to stop. The seeds are there right now.
The media have had time to weigh up Shearer, and their verdict is in: they are not impressed:
Labour under Shearer is looking disorganised, irrelevant and invisible.
Stuff has a poll on their politics page at the moment, asking readers who the most effective political party is right now. Unsurprisingly, the Greens are trouncing Labour 38% to 10%.
Something must be done about this soon, or the track to defeat in 2014 will become set in stone. The wheels are coming off National now, and the only thing that could possibly save them and hand them three terms in Government is Labour’s poor performance.
Last time I looked, Labour was doing remarkably well in circumstances they had better not be so contented to wallow ….. just about a couple of percent more than ACT.
Given the current direction and approach Labour and the new, leadership is taking or maybe not taking, it seems quite appropriate? No?
It looks like one of those shoddy polls where you can keep voting by just exiting and re-entering the site as many times as you wish. I think you will find the Young Nats and many youthful Greens with lots of time on their hands are having a ball. The rest of us have better things to do?
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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 ...
You're in the mall when you hear it: some kind of popping sound in the distance, kids with fireworks, maybe. But then a moment of eerie stillness is followed by more of the fireworks sound and there’s also screaming and shrieking and now here come people running for their lives.Does ...
Karl du Fresne writes – There’s a crisis in the news media and the media are blaming it on everyone except themselves. Culpability is being deflected elsewhere – mainly to the hapless Minister of Communications, Melissa Lee, and the big social media platforms that are accused of hoovering ...
I don’t normally send out two newsletters in a day but I figured I’d say something about… the news. If two newsletters is a bit much then maybe just skip one, I don’t want to overload people. Alternatively if you’d be interested in sometimes receiving multiple, smaller updates from me, ...
Buzz from the Beehive David Seymour and Winston Peters today signalled that at least two ministers of the Crown might be in Wellington today. Seymour (as Associate Minister of Education) announced the removal of more red tape, this time to make it easier for new early learning services to be ...
Politicians across the political spectrum are implicated in the New Zealand media’s failing health. Either through neglect or incompetent interventions, successive governments have failed to regulate, foster, and allow a healthy Fourth Estate that can adequately hold politicians and the powerful to account. Our political system is suffering from the ...
David Farrar writes – The Broadcasting Standards Authority ruled: Comments by radio host Kate Hawkesby suggesting Māori and Pacific patients were being prioritised for surgery due to their ethnicity were misleading and discriminatory, the Broadcasting Standards Authority has found. It is a fact such patients are prioritised. ...
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. ...
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. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
The Government’s newly announced review of methane emissions reduction targets hints at its desire to delay Aotearoa New Zealand’s urgent transition to a climate safe future, the Green Party said. ...
The Government must commit to the Maitai School building project for students with high and complex needs, to ensure disabled students from the top of the South Island have somewhere to learn. ...
Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey and his Government colleagues have made a meal of their mental health commitments, showing how flimsy their efforts to champion the issue truly are, says Labour Mental Health spokesperson Ingrid Leary. ...
Māori are yet to see anything from this Government except cuts, reversals and taking our people backwards, Māori Development spokesperson Willie Jackson said. ...
The Coalition Government’s refusal to commit to ongoing funding for social housing is seeing the sector pull back on developments and families watch their dreams of securing a home fade away, says Labour Housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty. ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
Refreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...
Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson is speaking at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide, promoting New Zealand wool, and outlining the coalition Government’s support for the revitalisation the sector. "New Zealand’s wool exports reached $400 million in the year to 30 June 2023, and the coalition Government ...
The Government is making legislative changes to make it easier for new early learning services to be established, and for existing services to operate, Associate Education Minister David Seymour says. The changes involve repealing the network approval provisions that apply when someone wants to establish a new early learning service, ...
Changes to the Resource Management Act will align consenting for coal mining to other forms of mining to reduce barriers that are holding back economic development, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The inconsistent treatment of coal mining compared with other extractive activities is burdensome red tape that fails to acknowledge ...
Trade, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Todd McClay has concluded productive discussions with ministerial counterparts in Beijing today, in support of the New Zealand-China trade and economic relationship. “My meeting with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao reaffirmed the complementary nature of the bilateral trade relationship, with our Free Trade Agreement at its ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today paid tribute to Singapore’s outgoing Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Meeting in Singapore today immediately before Prime Minister Lee announced he was stepping down, Prime Minister Luxon warmly acknowledged his counterpart’s almost twenty years as leader, and the enduring legacy he has left for Singapore and South East ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. While in Singapore as part of his visit to South East Asia this week, Prime Minister Luxon also met with Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and will meet with Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has made further appointments to the Board of Antarctica New Zealand as part of a continued effort to ensure the Scott Base Redevelopment project is delivered in a cost-effective and efficient manner. The Minister has appointed Neville Harris as a new member of the Board. Mr ...
Finance Minister Nicola Willis will travel to the United States on Tuesday to attend a meeting of the Five Finance Ministers group, with counterparts from Australia, the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. “I am looking forward to meeting with our Five Finance partners on how we can work ...
The coalition Government has today announced purrfect and pawsitive changes to the Residential Tenancies Act to give tenants with pets greater choice when looking for a rental property, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Pets are important members of many Kiwi families. It’s estimated that around 64 per cent of New ...
State Highway 1 (SH1) through Wellington City is heavily congested at peak times and while planning continues on the duplicate Mt Victoria Tunnel and Basin Reserve project, the Government has also asked NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) to consider and provide advice on a Long Tunnel option, Transport Minister Simeon Brown ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Foreign Minister Winston Peters have condemned Iran’s shocking and illegal strikes against Israel. “These attacks are a major challenge to peace and stability in a region already under enormous pressure," Mr Luxon says. "We are deeply concerned that miscalculation on any side could ...
Hundreds of people in little over a week have turned out in Northland to hear Regional Development Minister Shane Jones speak about plans for boosting the regional economy through infrastructure. About 200 people from the infrastructure and associated sectors attended an event headlined by Mr Jones in Whangarei today. Last ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti has today thanked outgoing Health New Zealand – Te Whatu Ora Chair Dame Karen Poutasi for her service on the Board. “Dame Karen tendered her resignation as Chair and as a member of the Board today,” says Dr Reti. “I have asked her to ...
The NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has signalled their proposed delivery approach for the Government’s 15 Roads of National Significance (RoNS), with the release of the State Highway Investment Proposal (SHIP) today, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Boosting economic growth and productivity is a key part of the Government’s plan to ...
New Zealand is renewing its connections with a world facing urgent challenges by pursuing an active, energetic foreign policy, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “Our country faces the most unstable global environment in decades,” Mr Peters says at the conclusion of two weeks of engagements in Egypt, Europe and the United States. “We cannot afford to sit back in splendid ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced the Australian Governor-General, His Excellency General The Honourable David Hurley and his wife Her Excellency Mrs Linda Hurley, will make a State visit to New Zealand from Tuesday 16 April to Thursday 18 April. The visit reciprocates the State visit of former Governor-General Dame Patsy Reddy ...
Associate Health Minister David Seymour has announced that Medsafe has approved 11 cold and flu medicines containing pseudoephedrine. Pharmaceutical suppliers have indicated they may be able to supply the first products in June. “This is much earlier than the original expectation of medicines being available by 2025. The Government recognised ...
New Zealand and the United States have recommitted to their strategic partnership in Washington DC today, pledging to work ever more closely together in support of shared values and interests, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The strategic environment that New Zealand and the United States face is considerably more ...
April 11, 2024 Joint Declaration by United States Secretary of State the Honorable Antony J. Blinken and New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs the Right Honourable Winston Peters We met today in Washington, D.C. to recommit to the historic partnership between our two countries and the principles that underpin it—rule ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Duckett, Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne iamharin/Shutterstock For many people, the term “bulk billed” refers to a GP visit they don’t have to pay ...
Emmas Hislop, Sidnam and Wehipeihana discuss what’s in a name. Emma Sidnam: Hello Emmas! Thank you so much for agreeing to do this with me. My first question for you is related to what’s been on my mind for a while. It’s very important. You see we’ve recently had some ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Sievers, Research Fellow, Global Wetlands Project, Australia Rivers Institute, Griffith University Chris Brown Humans love the coast. But we love it to death, so much so we’ve destroyed valuable coastal habitat – in the case of some types of habitat, ...
Josh Thomson on the 80s milk ad jingle he can’t stop singing, the beauty of The Simpsons, why Jersey Shore is as good as Shakespeare and more. For someone who spends a lot of time on our screens, popping up in everything from 7 Days to Taskmaster, Educators to Good ...
In apparent defiance of the Biden administration, the Netanyahu government has now initiated missile strikes against Iran. Last Saturday night (Sunday morning in New Zealand) Iran launched more than 300 drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles against Israeli military targets. With the assistance of US, UK and possibly French forces, ...
Māori representation brings a perspective that encompasses not only the interests of Māori communities but also a broader, holistic approach to environmental stewardship and community well-being, principles deeply embedded in Te Ao Māori (the Māori ...
This week in Auckland, a group of young people took over the microphone at a ministerial press conference, to explain why they oppose the Fast-Track Approvals Bill. One young woman said, ‘We’re here because we love Aotearoa New Zealand. We want to raise our children in an environment that’s thriving, ...
The summer was wonderful. Evie was wonderful, too; finally a teenager, finally worthy of long, hot days. She shaved her legs for the first time and bought cut-off shorts from the op-shop that made them look long. She got a Warehouse singlet so tight on her new shape that her ...
When Thomas James was on his solo camp as part of Outward Bound, the keen outdoorsman didn’t find it too challenging, as others often do. In what might just be the perfect illustration of his character, he saw it as a great opportunity to solve a few problems. “I thought, ...
From the unstable and drippy to the hi-tech and pretty, here’s our ranking of all the tunnels you can drive through in this country. The first tunnel seems to have been built in 2200BC in Babylonia, kicking off a global phenomenon for digging holes in order to get places more ...
Lucinda Bennett on the art of being greedy but resourceful. This is an excerpt from our weekly food newsletter, The Boil Up. When I picture the market, it is always this time of year. Crisp air, dripping nose, counting coins with cold fingers. Sunlight pale, filtered through specks of dew still ...
Zoë Colling’s favourite piece in the ‘That’s So Last Century’ collection is a lubrication chart for a sewing machine from the ’60s. It’s about the size of a postcard, and carefully maintained. “I like it that this piece of ephemera highlights that manual and technical side of the skill involved ...
Kia Ora Gaza A passionate haka reverberated through Auckland International Airport as a medical team of three New Zealand doctors received an emotional farewell from a big crowd of supporters before flying to Turkey to join the international Freedom Flotilla to Gaza. The doctors, who left Auckland yesterday, hope to ...
With submissions closing today, Macassey-Pickard says groups around the country have been supporting a huge range of people to make their submissions. ...
Our response to the new legislation is informed by targeted conversations with practitioners working in the system and through an implementation lens. ...
The new ‘Fast-track Approvals Bill’ would give just three Ministers the power to approve or deny development projects. They would avoid the usual checks and balances that are in place to protect rivers, land, the ocean, and communities. ...
COMMENTARY:By Eugene Doyle Helen Clark, how I miss you. The former New Zealand Prime Minister — the safest pair of hands this country has had in living memory — gave a masterclass on the importance of maintaining an independent foreign policy when she spoke at an AUKUS symposium held ...
The government's released the list of organisations provided with information on how to apply - just hours before public submissions on the bill close. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Milton Speer, Visiting Fellow, School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, University of Technology Sydney Before climate change really got going, eastern Australia’s flash floods tended to concentrate on our coastal regions, east of the Great Dividing Range. But that’s changing. Now ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Elizabeth Finkel, Vice-Chancellor’s Fellow, La Trobe University Sia Duff / South Australian Museum In February, the South Australian Museum “re-imagined” itself. In the face of rising costs and inadequate government funds, CEO David Gaimster, who took the reins last June, declared ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alan Pearce, Professor, School of Allied Heath, Human Services & Sport, La Trobe University, La Trobe University This week, Collingwood AFL player Nathan Murphy announced his retirement, brought on by his concussion history and ongoing issues. The 24-year-old’s seemingly sudden retirement, ...
The Mental Health Foundation provides support and resources for those facing the loss of their job, so it’s wrong in the very week the Government adds another 1000 jobs to its tally of cuts, that this is happening. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexander Howard, Senior Lecturer, Discipline of English and Writing, University of Sydney Daniel Boud/Sydney Theatre Company Decay, terror, revulsion. These are three of the central themes of Thomas Bernhard’s rarely performed play The President. The Austrian is one of the greatest ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ye In (Jane) Hwang, Postdoctoral Research Associate at School of Population Health, UNSW Sydney Shutterstock You’d be hard pressed to find any aspect of daily life that doesn’t require some form of digital literacy. We need only to look back ten ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says threats by ministers Shane Jones and David Seymour to reform or close down the Waitangi Tribunal were “ill-considered”, as legal experts say the ministers may have breached Cabinet Manual conventions. “I think those comments are ill-considered and we expect all ministers to actually exercise good ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rob Newton, Professor of Exercise Medicine, Edith Cowan University Pexels/RDNE stock project You’re not in your 20s or 30s anymore and you know regular health checks are important. So you go to your GP. During the appointment they measure your waist. ...
A new poem by Evangeline Riddiford Graham. Mitochondrial Problem I. It was long drive to Kansas for the man and his dog but you have to understand he said She doesn’t fly. Which calls to mind not carsick shitting barking or whining but a dog who chooses not to as ...
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 Hemingway’s Goblet by Dermot Ross (Mary Egan Publishing, $38)Hot off the press, this debut ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laura Wajnryb McDonald, PhD candidate in Criminology, University of Sydney Less than 24 hours after Ashlee Good was murdered in Bondi Junction, her family released a statement requesting the media take down photographs they had reproduced of Ashlee and her family without ...
Chief executive Shaun Robinson said it has not had any government funding cut, but government-funded contracts have not kept pace with rising costs. ...
The Ministry of Health has delayed the release of its evidence brief on the safety, reversibility and mental health and wellbeing outcomes for puberty blockers. While we wait, Julia de Bres speaks to those with firsthand experience. Best practice gender-affirming healthcare is based on trans people’s self-determination and agency. The ...
Barcelona’s city streets have gone from traffic-clogged to pedestrian-friendly. How? Superblocks. Ellen Rykers explains. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week I read a great interview with renowned urbanist Janette Sadik-Khan by The Spinoff’s Wellington editor Joel MacManus: “You can reimagine streets, ...
Student groups ‘Climate Action VUW’, Schools Strike 4 Climate and VUWSA will be on the street in Wellington today, the last day for submissions on the Fast-track Approvals Bill, with a message that the fight against the Government’s ‘War on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sofia Ammassari, Research Fellow, Griffith University Since 2014, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popularity has grown exponentially – and so has the formidable organisational machine of his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). These two factors will be key to delivering the BJP a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brendon Hyndman, Associate Professor of Education (Adjunct) & Senior Manager (BCE), Charles Sturt University During COVID almost all Australian students and their families experienced online learning. But while schools have long since gone back to in-person teaching, online learning has not gone ...
Yes, they’re better for the environment. No, that’s not a good enough reason for me to use them. Once every 26 days or so, my period arrives, and if struck by an act of God, I am caught red-crotched without products. How, after 17 years of this, do I still ...
“It will cause significant harm to our environment and communities. It is completely at odds with New Zealanders’ relationship with nature and our need for a low-carbon, sustainable economic future." ...
The Chair of the National Maori Authority, Matthew Tukaki, has warned a Parliamentary Select Committee that fast-tracking legislation is a perilous practice that undermines the core tenets of democracy, transparency, and accountability. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Tenbensel, Associate Professor, Health Policy, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Getty Images Since coming into power, the coalition government has adopted a simple but shrewd see-how-fast-we-can-move political strategy. However, in the health sector this need for speed entails ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anastasia Hronis, Clinical Psychologist, University of Technology Sydney Darya Sannikova/Pexels Whether you’re watching TV, attending a footy game, or eating a meal at your local pub, gambling is hard to escape. Although the rise of gambling is not unique to Australia, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Wong, Forrest Fellow, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia Have you ever wondered if there are more insects out at night than during the day? We set out to answer this question by combing through the scientific ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Carol T Kulik, Research Professor, University of South Australia IR Stone/Shutterstock In Australia, it’s not the done thing to know – let alone ask – what our colleagues are paid. Yet, it’s easy to see how pay transparency can make pay ...
The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) is sounding a warning to migrants, that running foul of the law may see them leaving the country prematurely. ...
The government’s plan to get 50,000 people off jobseeker support by 2030 has had a rocky start, 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. Beneficiary numbers are up – and so are ...
Raglan Roast is a staple of Wellington coffee culture. But with five branches across the capital, which one is the best? I am a die-hard Raglan Roast fan. It’s consistently the most affordable cafe in Wellington, and one of the only places you can get a coffee after 3pm. So, ...
Residents of University of Auckland halls are being urged to withhold their accommodation fees from May 1, in a bid to force the university to take student concerns over rent hikes seriously.The University of Auckland is facing a strike from students over the cost of on-campus accommodation. The Students ...
Hineaupounamu ‘Missy’ Nuku has been scaling mountains in Canada for her college basketball team, the Lakeland Rustlers. Alberta is currently home for the 20-year-old point guard, who is in her first year of a scholarship at Lakeland College, where she is studying for a business degree. She has certainly made ...
New Zealand and the Philippines have signed a new maritime security agreement and stated their concerns over activity in the South China Sea, as Chinese vessels continue to flout international law. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Philippines President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos committed to signing a Mutual Logistics Supporting Arrangement by ...
The thousands of government “back-office” job cuts are causing widespread pain in the capital city. In today’s episode of The Detail, we speak to three journalists and a think tank researcher, looking at the larger picture around the cuts and what effect it will have on Wellington, a city that’s ...
Opinion: The famed American architect and urban designer Daniel Burnham once said, “Make no little plans. They have no magic to stir men’s blood!” Burnham wouldn’t have been referring to the transport plans in Aotearoa New Zealand over the past five years; projects so big they hadn’t the credibility to ...
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Opinion: With maths understanding at 42 percent for Year 8 students, there’s no doubt something has to be done. But how? The post Financial literacy should be on all of us appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra When ASIO boss Mike Burgess delivered his annual threat assessment earlier this year, he stressed the rising danger posed by espionage and foreign interference. “In 2024, threats to our way of life have surpassed ...
The National government is often blamed here for “handouts” to rich investors. Cullen blames it on Kevin Rudd.
A lot of our economic policy is forced by outside influences, and in this case Rudd seems to have thrown a rock and a hard place at us.
Yes PG, and when are you, Peter Dunce, or for that matter any of the current political class going to shake their heads and say, “Enough is enough, time to regain our sovereignty”? It wont happen because you are on the right side of the pay off divide (the place where you blithely close your eyes to injustice / inequity because “you are all right Jack”).
Consequently you and all the other RWNJs, (and a whole pile from the left as well) bicker over the rotten fetid carcass left to us as our share of the wealth we produce. And your mate Dunce is about to collude with making the scraps from the rich mans table smaller. Your constant whingeing in his defence disgusts me.
Protecting the fortunes of the rich with tax payer funds
In an abrogation of leadership and political buck passing David Cullen makes the cowardly excuse that everyone else was doing it.
Well they weren’t. And those that didn’t, were much better off than those who did.
Compare Iceland to Greece.
After a voter revolt and public referendum against it, the Iceland government refused to bail out the failed private banks and finance companies to the benefit of their people, instead protecting their public accounts.
In Greece the opposite happened, a referendum on the matter was cancelled, a political dictatorship was imposed, huge loans were taken out on the public account to bail out the wealthy investors, leaving the country indebted and impoverished.
After rescuing the wealthy investors and failed bankers, the rest of the population was prostrated before the bankers and the government, to pay off the huge loans mostly taken from the EU.
Pete, which country would you prefer to be living in now?
People who bring up how good Iceland have it are somewhat missing the forest for the trees: a handful of countries can do what Iceland did. If all countries did like Iceland did, the entire system would collapse.
That isn’t necessarily a bad thing though; it’s going to collapse eventually the only question is when.
Nope.
We could have planned and structured defaults for very specific countries, namely:
– Greece
– Ireland
– Portugal
And kept the powder of QE/LTRO dry for the real problem countries: France, Italy, Japan.
Instead, we’ve already used up most of what can be done in a game of pretend/extend, ironically increasing, not decreasing, sovereign debt levels with every so-called “bail out” (in essence new loans needed to cover the repayments on previous loans).
Considering just how bad the system is I don’t have any problem with it collapsing.
This article aseems to have gone up this morning on Stuff, but it doesn’t have a date/time or author attribution. Some strong language though, “reviled”!
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/6744454/Hundreds-beg-committee-to-stop-sale-of-state-assets
Sad news from Italy with the death of Piermario Morosini. The Livorno player, and former youth international, survived the initial collapse, but a delay in getting the ambulance on the field due to a police car blocking the entrance meant he went without the assistance he needed for some twenty minutes and he apparently succumbed to a heart attack as the ambulance left the field.
Not normally an item for the Standard, I know, but given AS Livorno’s impeccable left wing credentials, I hope Standardistas will spare a moment to salute the club, the fans and the player.
RIP Piermario, solidarity Livorno.
Seconded! He was only 25 years old…
..
So why are political parties world wide struggling to retain membership?
I discovered this interesting US paper recently. It considers part of the problem is that thanks to the internet we are so wired up to the body politic and we receive so many calls to action that many of us are struggling with “decision paralysis”. To add to this the old way of organizing, with meetings, minutes, financial reports bore too many people who are willing to give time to a cause but do not want to be part of a laborious decision making process.
People also want to protect their privacy. Slater’s attack style politics means that many prefer not to engage.
To succeed in this new world requires a realization that there are four different ways to engage people and each type should be used.
They include:
Direct engagement: the individual acts alone to influence society and government.
Grassroots engagement: individuals act as a part of a loose coalition.
Organizational engagement: people work through nonprofit and advocacy corporations with governing boards and centralized leadership.
Network-centric engagement: an individual acts as part of a coordinated network.
The growth of environmental groups is an indicator of the type of change that has been occurring.
The internet has also fueled this change. Whereas the dissemation of information was previously reserved to the well resourced nowadays anyone with a laptop and a feed can express their point of view and thanks to sites like the Standard have it broadcast to many.
One comment stood out.
“The most troubling trend and direct threat to the organizational structure is a basic shift in behavior of the American public away from “joiners”. Demographics and membership data show that the average citizen does not join organizations, political parties or institutions.
Increasingly, individuals get involved in an issue on their own terms rather than on the terms forced on them by organizational membership. Membership of major organizations is increasingly old, white and declining in number. ”
Food for thought for Labour in its organizational review.
“So why are political parties world wide struggling to retain membership?”
Because they’re cunts ?
HS, language please.
I concur with the sentiment but you can think of a dozen more appropriate and less offensive terms.
Maybe Mickey the people cant find who to focus their efforts on. We have got conditioned to comments that reflect our thinking like:
* “What can the government do? ”
* “Its not the government fault, they have to do xyz otherwise the economy…..”
* “We are a small fish…..”
* “But the banks and corporations actually run things…”
In effect I believe that most people are disengaged with the concept of participatory democracy because they dont believe the democratic political process can actually run things on their behalf. And they are right to a high degree. Do you think a political party can persuade them to join up without a radical agenda of enpowerment?
So to Labour: a party who had 9 years in “power” and blithely did nothing but “manage”, went with the flow on globalisation / financialisation, and I would argue did nothing to push back the corporatist erosion of our democratic process. Why would I rejoin as a member?
Yep. Labour continues to let the Right Wing write the rules and frame how the game should be played. Recipe for slip slip sliding backwards and to the rRight – which is what this country has been doing for decades.
Probably a glass half full argument Bored. The last Labour Government paid off debt, improved the plight of most of the poor and working class, brought in an ETS, took steps to make our power generation sustainable, poured huge investments into health and education, ran an independent foreign affairs policy, yada yada yada …
But the trend appears to be world wide and it affects all political parties. I would appreciate someone pointing out a party which is going against what appears to be a clear trend.
Very true Micky but that is not what the Right-Wing press told the people .They attacked !attacked !attacked and we lost . And I have no idea how to counter this.
One of the main reason the Left is on the back foot is the destruction of the Unions we lost not only protection of workers but the main source of real information of the political situation. The unions not only protected workers but gave many the chance of having an education .WEA informed on a number of issues .Now its all gone and workers main source of any form of political information is the TV news %90 Right-wing biased .Ask any low paid worker if their firm is unionised and they have a blank look about it.The majority have no idea what one is talking about.
However having said that I was most surprised at how the clued up the young Labout guy on backbenchers was last Friday.
Aye PP.
The Labour guy was Glenn Riddell, definitely one to watch in the future.
Yes he seemed definitely Gay but not as Gay as the Green representative is being A Gay now a prerequisite for representing both of these parties. There was truth in Damien Ocoonor well publicised news story after all
James you have to be joking. This has to be the most stupid comment made by a poster to the Standard in the last 12 months if not ever.
Did you realise you are homophobic?
What the flippin’ fuck?
I reckon that sort of pointless bigoted bullshit would be enough to get some people booted out of here for good if they were nothing but waste of pixels at the best of times.
Luckily for jimmie he’s usually a thoughtful and considered commenter who argues his points well and backs up his statements with evidence, so he’ll probably be sweet.
3 weeks last time wasn’t it? Won’t be missed if it’s a lot lot longer this time.
What a fucking numpty you are jimmy
.
Tell me james, are you trying to hide something?
So I see the Sabbath hasn’t had any demonstrable beneficial effect on your commenting standard then, James 111.
You are a non-thinking, homophobic waste of oxygen
With a bit of luck this latest blunder by the pathetic james 111 will result in him imposing a ban on himself from posting his brainless rubbish on this excellent blog site.
Do us all a favour and just play with your old sock james and give the keyboard a rest. Theres dog shit on the lawn with more to contribute than you “old sock jim”.
“We will consult widely,” they say blandly. But of course they just carry on doing exactly what they set out to do. “We have listened carefully to what the people had to say and we have taken their views on board.”
Yeah right! This seems to me to a disincentive for action from the people by the people.
“We will consult widely,” they say blandly. But of course they just carry on doing exactly what they set out to do. “We have listened carefully to what the people had to say and we have taken their views on board.”
Yeah right! This seems to me to a disincentive for action from the people by the people.”
Agreed. Take our area (Greater Waikato) Waikato regional council who were told by 60% by the community by way of “communty consultation” that we cannot afford or did not want a right wing elitist Velodrome, but still went ahead and gave 6 million which can be ill afforded by some ratepayers who now have the burden of a special rate for 20 years. Sad day for so called democracy that day.
Yeah – ‘they’ have taken the requirement for consultation to heart on many matters. And the ‘consultation’ that has been adopted is a meeting where they listen and then later over-ride peoples objections to whatever, and go ahead with the plan with a bit of parsley on the meat for window dressing. But it is still going to be ground and minced as planned.
So why are political parties world wide struggling to retain membership?
No doubt a variety of reasons, including:
– “what’s the point, won’t be able to change anything”
– presidentialisation of politics, where local politics doesn’t matter
– poor reputation of politicians
– high exposure of people who get involved in politics
Probably one of the main reasons is that there are vastly more things to do, and ways of doing them. Fifty years ago to have a say in politics you probably had to join a party, now you just have to get on the Internet.
Yes, but if they waste too much time on the internet they don’t get elected. You might’ve been the exception to this though because in your case it mightn’t have made any difference. Do you think you might’ve been elected if you hadn’t spent too much time on the internet?
MS I think that was a very good analysis on the left rules of engagement. The left as far as I see it is much more wide and deep than partisan politics.
Found this on trademe discussion
Looks distinctly sneaky .
http://www.trademe.co.nz/Community/MessageBoard/Messages.aspx?id=1005210&topic=45
OK, somebody in government finally woke up from their afternoon snooze and realised that Section 29, article 4 of the EQC Act 1993 created a legally binding 1yr time-frame on the commission. On 2 April 2012, the Gov-General, made an Order in Council relaxing the 1yr time restriction on EQC to pay-out for reinstatement, ie. repair. As I posted before, the CERA Act 2011, Section 71 required this course of action. The order is here: http://www.legislation.govt.nz/regulation/public/2012/0063/l
atest/DLM4365601.html , and the timing is obviously made to slip through the Easter “downtime” period of Parliament and the media.
Yes, this order is only 13 days old and backdated to take effect from 4 Sept 2010. What does it mean?
It probably means someone dropped the ball. Well spotted DC.
Section 29 EQC requires payments to be made within 12 months after “the amount of the damage has been duly determined”. I guess the Government want to delay the process. I would be interested to see if some payments should have been made but the regulation validates the delay.
oh what a beautiful morning on the MSN homepage.
their little poll has it that more people support the freezing company and not the workers.
get off your bums people and let the rest of NZ know that the workers need and deserve your support.
Well someone’s off their bum here in Whangavegas. Every Talley’s product in the supermarket, from the frozen goods through to the meat and kai moana in the chillers, had accompanying flyers asking why would you buy this product and requesting support for the Affco workers with details on how to donate.
Hey Joe, did you get to the march yesterday? Fantastic to see hundreds of supporters get the message out on the streets, a real wake up call for the shits currently trying to destroy Imlay’s union.
Afraid not Te Reo Putake, the early boy gets the waves, but I have spent some time with Bill R and the people manning/ladying the Beach Rd picket. Some very determined union members.
Another detail of note, Affco are in the process of offering jobs to those who’ve been sacked during the last few years. Most of the sackings have been for theft, assault, attendance issues, gross misconduct and drug and alcohol offences including those who’ve been dismissed for being intoxicated on the job. Happy days indeed.
No worries, I’ve always found Morgan St strangely attractive too! It’s hard to say how many were there, but the first marchers were reaching the square as the last were leaving Taupo Quay, so that’s two blocks of the Ave full of workers and supporters. It would have to be the biggest demo Whanganui’s seen since the occupation of pakaitore.
Hopefully there’ll be some good coverage in tomorrow’s Chronicle, but I have a feeling it’ll be full of self congratulatory articles about the shift to a tabloid format instead.
>>>get off your bums people and let the rest of NZ know that the workers need and deserve your support <<<
Why?
David Shearer has now been Labour leader for a little over four months (Friday the 13th was his anniversary). To celebrate, there has been a spate of criticism in the media about his lack of profile.
Whoever was elected leader, they had weeks to turn the sinking ship around, not months. Shearer seems to think he has all the time in the world. He doesn’t. The next election may not be until 2014 but Labour are already looking like they will lose. The most critical thing right now is that Labour does not fall into the same trap it did under Phil Goff, where the media knocking machine gets momentum and after that it becomes impossible to stop. The seeds are there right now.
The media have had time to weigh up Shearer, and their verdict is in: they are not impressed:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=10798848
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/news-cartoons/news/article.cfm?c_id=500814&objectid=10796296
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/news-cartoons/news/article.cfm?c_id=500814&objectid=10797731
http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/will-labour-follow-liberals-116557
Labour under Shearer is looking disorganised, irrelevant and invisible.
Stuff has a poll on their politics page at the moment, asking readers who the most effective political party is right now. Unsurprisingly, the Greens are trouncing Labour 38% to 10%.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/
Something must be done about this soon, or the track to defeat in 2014 will become set in stone. The wheels are coming off National now, and the only thing that could possibly save them and hand them three terms in Government is Labour’s poor performance.
Last time I looked, Labour was doing remarkably well in circumstances they had better not be so contented to wallow ….. just about a couple of percent more than ACT.
Given the current direction and approach Labour and the new, leadership is taking or maybe not taking, it seems quite appropriate? No?
/sarc
It’s almost as it if the supposed “left” , has been moved deliberately..
A bit like a game of chess you might say!
It looks like one of those shoddy polls where you can keep voting by just exiting and re-entering the site as many times as you wish. I think you will find the Young Nats and many youthful Greens with lots of time on their hands are having a ball. The rest of us have better things to do?
This is new Labour as David calls it ,and we love it!
Well put. What more needs to be said?
Yet again ACC hits the news on privacy matters – http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/6746061/Legal-row-over-ACC-blog
And no – WO is not involved in this one.
Cat-astrophic Ch-Ch
In rejecting the Green proposals to extend their MoU, National has clearly indicated how far they have lurched to the right. http://localbodies-bsprout.blogspot.co.nz/2012/04/national-rejects-broadening-mou-with.html