“The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reported earlier this month that New Zealand was unprepared for between 2C and 4C of warming this century. Climate Change Minister Tim Groser said New Zealand was doing its fair share to reduce emissions and that the onus was on local councils to respond to the effects of climate change such as sea level rise.
Mr Mills said: “For me that was the end. I thought ‘I’ve got to stand up and be counted now’.”
Good on Mr Mills.
Time for more New Zealanders to stand up and be counted on this vital issue.
Who are you voting for?
Your own greedy needs of those of your grandchildren?
Certainly putting His money where His mouth is,”tired of National Government inaction on climate change issues” the owner of the Les Mills fitness business donates $64,999 to Labour and 65,000 to the Green Party,
Suggests exactly what this businessman wants as the next Government…
The Pure Advantage website that is mentioned in the article is worth checking out. It’s been active for a year or two now – definitely not picking political sides, so this article from Phillip Mills is a bit of a step up in the campaign it seems.
Also positive to see Cunliffe making some right (uncosted, not sure of programme) noises about forming a mitigation package against climate change.
Groser was saying yesterday that there’s really no point doing anything unless the major country emitters agree to do it together. Because I am deeply pessimistic about climate change, I could understand that.
But when we choose to be New Zealand can lead globally. I want more for and from this country than that.
When even party political funding is becoming dependent on where you stand on climate change, you know the worm is turning.
To properly capitalise on this new political understanding David Cunliffe needs to announce that the law that prevents climate change being raised as an objection in consent hearings for new coal mines will be repealed on the return of a Labour Government.
It would also be good if Labour could announce that on regaining office they will impose a complete moratorium on new coal mines, in line with their coalition Partner the Green Party policy of No New Coal Mines.
A moratorium on deep sea oil drilling and fracking and on any other extreme non-traditional fossil fuel extraction methods, would be good too.
Lets not hear anymore sychophantic pedantic whining about ‘we must respect existing contracts’.
What’s more sacred, business contracts negotiated unfairly with no mandate, or the environment we all depend on to survive?
If we want to respect contracts how about this one?
Maybe instead of honouring deals done with Bathurst Resources we should first honour the contract we signed with our Pacific neighbors to endeavor to cut back our CO2 emissions? A contract to which we are a signatory, but which John Key had no problem tearing up to keep letting Solid Energy cook the climate.
Many of the islands look to New Zealand, their closest large land mass, to give financial and diplomatic leadership.
“New Zealand can and should do more. They are the fifth highest per capita emitters in the world and Kiwi emissions continue to climb.” President Loeak of the Marshall Islands
Honour the Majuro Declaration. Send Bathurst packing.
Jenny, Yesterday you wanted Cunliffe to announce the adoption of Greens policy of no deep see drilling. Today you want him to adopt their policy on mining AND announce the Greens as a Coalition Partner!
I wait with baited breath to hear what wonderful original thoughts you have tomorrow!
“Jenny, Yesterday you wanted Cunliffe to announce the adoption of Greens policy of no deep see drilling. Today you want him to adopt their policy on mining” Wyndham, George
So what?
Labour are demanding that the Greens adopt their policies of supporting deep sea oil drilling, and new coal mines.
I have argued for some time that it will be electoral suicide for the Greens to concede to Labour’s demands, and if they persist with these demands better to sit on the cross benches giving support only on budget and supply.
But apart from the Greens calling for Labour to change, physics demand it.
The coy Mr Key.
“Mr Key confirmed yesterday it was paid for by the taxpayer and when asked whether that meant it was not such a private dinner after all, he said “well, it kind of is and it isn’t”.
“This time round, it was the tight five – the royals, himself, his wife Bronagh and son Max, who met William during the Keys’ stay at Balmoral last year.” – and this –
“It has become a bit of a tradition for Mr Key and William to cook for each other: after Mr Key hosted the 2010 barbecue, William returned serve by helping out cooking a barbecue for the Key family at Balmoral.”
The wonderful work of Claire Arse-Licker Trevett !
Facts are, the majority of the sheeple are enjoying having the royals out here, the cute little baby, the glamorous duke/duchess.
It’s fun, it’s happy and people especially women want to hear all about it, which is why Cunnliffe came across as such an arse by politising the royal tour.
After the Campbell debacle last night one really has to wonder if the man has a political bone in his body, he really is doing a shit job.
The people giddiest about the royal tour are the trivia and celebrity obsessed media. Despite the efforts of the press to whip up a colonial cringeworthy royal hysteria the crowds are modest, at best. If you scratch the surface, most people think that they seem nice but the whole thing is a bit of a circus.
It’s not my cup of tea, but that doesn’t mean other people aren’t allowed to enjoy it.
Anyway, whats the harm the oldies get to relive the past, the woman get to oooh and ahhh over the cute baby and the young girls get to see a real life princess/duchess.
The Woyal Bludgers must be leaving soon, good riddance, there hasn’t been a scrap of blue sky here in Wellington since these sponges arrived for a break from sponging on the English to take a few big slurps at the trough here…
Oh I don’t know, I expect the advertising and exposure NZ has got in the commonwealth media (most particularly the UK) is more than worth the cost to the taxpayer of having the royals visit.
I must admit I’m a bit bemused as to why anyone gets so worked up one way or the other about the royals visiting.
BM, a ‘youtube video for simpletons!!!’ who would have thunk that You would use such a child’s view to explain the Woyal Family of Bludgers,
Basically a ‘Disneyland tourist attraction way over-paid for the role that lot have sponged off of the people of Britain for centuries, murder, standover, and direct taxation of the peasants was how the ‘Crown Estate’ came into being so it doesn’t matter an iota that a previous head of the Bludge Family gave up ownership in favor of a direct ‘suck’ on the revenue stream now managed by the democratically elected Government,
”The Crown Estate is NOT the private property of the Monarch. It cannot be owned by the Monarch in a private capacity”,
The royals are a tourist attraction they make the UK a truck load of money, far more than what they cost.
The UK has set it’s self up as a Victorian Disney land and the Royals are the centerpiece.
The Royal family generate close to £500 million every year for British tourism with The Tower of London, Windsor Castle and Buckingham Palace the most popular Royal destinations.
More rubbish BM, the Woyals do not own the Tower of London, Windsor Castle or Buckingham Palace and as such are simply overpaid actors sucking at the public teat to the tune of millions of pounds a year,
A handful of actors could be hired to ‘play’ the role that these sponges are paid multi-millions of pounds a year to act out for a fraction of the cost,
That still doesn’t explain the fact that the Sponge family is over here bludging off of us at the moment…
I think you should pop down to Civic Square and see them tomorrow. You don’t need to wave a flag, but seeing them in person might change your mind about them, and you have nothing else to do.
Getting all bitter and twisted about Will, Kate and George seems a little sad.
Ha Ha SSLands, the last time i seen one of the plastic Lowness’es was years back when Dun Mihaka gave Her an entirely appropriate whakapahone as a greeting,
My presence so exercised the DPS prowling the side-show bob spectators that they saw reason to curtail my civil rights by bailing me up against a wall asking the same sort of stupid questions that you are famed for…
slylands this is one of your more vacuous efforts during worktime. you start work at 10am and at 10:10am here you are posting. the king of productivity preaches not practices.
It’s fun, it’s happy and people especially women want to hear all about it, which is why Cunnliffe came across as such an arse by politising the royal tour.
The entire tour is politicking – exactly as planned. You’re here adding more to it.
majority bm, you mean the fewthousand who turn out in the streets. by your logic the majority of kiwis are against the gcsb act, the tpp because a few thousands took to the streets.
I haven’t been looking at Royals visit news. I don’t click on the links on news websites. I switch on mute during the TV News, and attend to something else. Why encourage the media obssession – they measure success by the number of clicks on those links, not whether you are for or against the royals.
I have been enjoying a relatively royals free space on TS.
And all this on TV at dinner time, where we all eating ‘cheap’. If eating at all. But nice to see that our tax dollars are being used for something important …
We don’t need a monarchy anymore — anywhere, not just here. We are capable of choosing our own leaders, like religion, it is a hangover from more archaic times.
The Chinese managed to get rid of their monarchy after 3000 years, as did the Russians, the French, the Indians, and so on. We should be able to do the same.
Have just turned on and then turned off morning report. Radio New Zealand have employed one of the slimiest national party shills to front their flagship operation. What an awful mouthful of mangement speak but a slimy little toad is a slimy little toad whichever way you paint it.
I missed hearing Rod Oram because I forgot to turn the radio back on again after another (gag) news report with heartfelt sound of Piss story wringing out his tears. How long Oh Lord do we have to put up with this `news’ from South Africa? We have a good celebrity story incubating right here in River City, or NZ when we find our bearings.
It may be that there are some strange radio news agreements with countries such as South Africa also the USA, so that we take whatever because more volume (hah) costs less, and we then sound so linked in and international.
I haven’t bothered with the Royal visit. I wish them well and hope that they didn’t mind spending time watching children play rugby in Dunedin. How exciting. I can understand that the Dunedinites wanted to show off their wonderful stadium, but it wouldn’t please me as an event if I was on a Magical Mystery Tour.
Something else I missed on radio was Ellis at 11.45 discussing somebody interviewed by Campbell last night prevaricating. There that’s my big word for the day – hope it’s the right one.
Apparently whoever said whatever was not sure about whether he would do something or not. Might have been Cunliffe. Doesn’t sound like Winston who is always positive about things – even positive that he is negative on a policy. Same with Hone. Dunne’s been done. Russel is being spoken to tomorrow I think!
I did think that someone may have had some comment to make about last night’s pollies but you are all of on a royal tour around the beltway or somewhere. Perhaps someone can enlighten me on a) the person who was interviewed, and b) what it was he wasn’t sure about. (I understood it was a him.)
I remember Sharon Crosby leaving for (somewhere) and she made a departing statement, (something like) “there you all thought I was right wing didn’t you”
There is something positive about the interwebs at the moment… Almost as if a malevolent force has been removed. What might have excised the ugliness? What great change?
Ah yes, there it is!!!
DPF is in the Himalayas and can’t update his little National Party propaganda vehicle. Let’s hope he doesn’t stumble into the path of a grumpy Yak. That would be terrible. Yesssireeeee, ait would be absolutely terrible.
Prostituting the Office of the Prime Minister, fresh from being the ‘star’ attraction at the Northern Club said to be the most exclusive ‘Gentlmen’s club’ in Auckland,(funnily enough the Splash Club, a Brothel, advertises itself as an ‘exclusive Gentlemen’s Club here in Wellington),on sale for 5 grand a ‘client’ the ACT Party are now saying they have a far better deal ‘for sale’,
Is this the benefit of ‘competition’ or just the fact the Prime Minister has been well used by the ‘clients’ at previous 5 grander’s, ACT are selling Him to the ‘clients’ at $100 a time at an upcoming dinner,(pretty much ‘street prices’ for a ‘one on one’ with the PM),
Meanwhile Oravida having already ‘paid’ handsomely for the Prostitution of the Office of the Prime Minister are wringing as much use out of Him as possible, featured next to an Oravida ad in a magazine a large picture of Slippery the Prime Minister is said by His office not to breach any rules of propriety because He is not quoted as endorsing the Oravida products being advertised next to it,
What price will this Political prostitute be fetching next year???10 bucks for a quicky…
SSLands, as usual you use what you see as a cunning lie to advance whatever the point is you are attempting to advance,
Notice who Slippery the Prime Minister is Prostituting the Office of Prime Minister in aid of??? who would have thunk it, the Prime Minister is selling himself for 5 grand a time not in aid of any non-political ”good deed”, simply applying Political Prostitution to raise funds for the National Party, the ACT Party, and, the Maori Party,
Compare that with the fundraising of an auctioned dinner with ex-Prime Minister Helen Clark???the beneficiary of the Clark dinner, Team NZ,
If you cannot see the difference then your stupidity level is far greater than i have previously imagined…
Shane Jones drops the hyperbole and makes sense again, describing on Morning report this morning the Maori Party as hypocrites for their 5 grand a time dinner for Auckland’s pakeha elite while they at the same time ‘dissed’ the Mana Party for being in negotiations with the Internet Party,
Jones then went on to draw a thin line of split flax through the chances of the Maori parties Te Ururoa Flavell in the Waiariki electorate saying Annette Sykes will give Him what He has earned for 5 years spent as a lapdog of the National Government,(that don’t include another 3 years),
Jones’es prognosis for the future of the Maori Party, the same as mine, Haere ra…
so dpf is up a mountain. well whipty do for him. does he think he is Sir Ed or sumfing. why doesn’t he just look in a mirror and get some tools for looking into his black heart for the causes of his bile and pathology.
Another appalling example of Judith Collins’ arrogance.
But what can you expect from an admitted liar(re Oravita), who is also Minister of (choke) Justice?
This needs vigorous followup. What are the chances of a criminal prosecution of the ACC executives involved? After all, we have the good old standover tactics, coercion, fraudulent threats etc?
INTERNET FREEDOM is crucial to a DEMOCRACY…it is perhaps one of the most important issues of our time….especially on issues such as globalisation, monopoly capitalism, free debate
….just think what one can learn from the internet and how much authorities with a totalitarian bent would like to control, censor….. close down an open internet …or make it user pays ( to them) and so restrict full public access
…the free open internet fills in many of the gaps and omissions of the mainstream media
as just one example .. ..a free open internet provides people the ability to think critically about the pharmaceutical industry…and take charge of their own health decisions….(just think how much multi national multi billion dollar pharmaceutical companies would like to censor and close down open debate/ critiques and counter research , people sharing adverse effects / experiences etc which cut into their profits)
…in some ways the issues Dotcom and the Internet Party are promoting are the most important issues for all New Zealanders and their democracy , freedom of thought …regardless of what party they belong to
what did you make of the nine to noon discussion of the way winz is dealing with mental health “clients”. i was a little perturbed than they are expected to get into preparedness to return to work immediately, unless granted an exemption. surely complete rest and freedom from work stresses has merit.
i also note how quickly ryan changed 40% may remaon on a benefit for a long time to “most” will do do.
Her unwillingness to admit total numbers of people on any of the benefits was a really big tell. Exception being the 400 people she mentioned who had found work on the new trial, work she was quick to qualify by saying it included [mainly?] part time hours.
The references to the general Jobseeker benefit were particularly funny. Listening to her explain what the Jobseeker seminars are like and how hands on the staff are getting people into work was surreal. Is there a word for laughing out loud whilst internally cringing?
Mana seem to be making sincere overtures to The Greens
The comments come after Mana leaders said at the weekend they wanted to meet with like-minded parties including the Greens in order to try and flesh out a cooperative election strategy, including possible electorate deals.
The comments were Metiria’s comment that
Turei said she was always open to having such conversations with other parties but was yet to hear from Mana.
“It’s highly unlikely though that we would do deals in an electorate, we don’t favour that approach. We haven’t done any in the past and we’re highly unlikely to do any in the future.”
I don’t disagree with
“Voters want to have a genuine choice about the person who will represent them as well as the party that will and they’re entitled to that choice and that’s why we’ve done our best to stand in every electorate where we can.”
but i wonder if that will cut it in today’s political environment. Personally I’ve struggled with deals for the same reasons that Metiria says but times have changed and the way it is is the way it is even though we would wish it different. It is time for The Greens to get into power and enact some of their great policies, we can’t afford another 3 years of the gnats, we need The Greens in there. I don’t believe in any means being justifiable but working together with others is essential and it can be done with integrity and alignment with values imo.
I’m against deals and coat-tail type arrangements. I have been very critical of the way the right games the system. Ultimately, it undermines democracy.
I vote Green party, but understand that in my electorate voting for the Green candidate is a waste of a vote. I will vote for the most viable “left” electorate candidate. But the choice should be up to voters.
I think like-minded parties can have on-going talks on polices, without needing a formal “deal” for elections.
Generally, voters could be educated more about their choices. The media focuses too much on the horse race and “strategies” and deals. I think that tends to put off a lot of voters. It becomes more of a game between parties and pollies, and doesn’t directly address the needs and interests of the public.
but isn’t, in the example you give, that just being covert instead of overt? That those who understand the ramifications of tactical voting make their choice and those that don’t miss the choice or opportunity. So the choices are explained to people and they choose but really the choice explanation is guiding their choices anyway by showing the lie of the land from the choices made.
sorry about that paragraph but hopefully you’ll get my meaning 🙂
Yesterday John Key challenged Cunliffe to a live debate on TV One about housing affordability. It was reported on TV1 news at 6pm that Cunliffe accepted the challenge.
This is really win-win for Cunliffe. He’s now accepted the challenge, so will get air-time opposite Key, months ahead of the election, showing that he is a contender for the job, in the same way that Key getting up next to Clark for the S59 deal only helped him out.
If Key backs down on the challenge, Labour can trumpet from the ramparts that Key is a coward and all talk.
The only downside is if Cunliffe gets smacked around in the debate, but truthfully I don’t think that’s likely.
Is this perhaps the biggest strategic mis-step from smart-alec Key in this election campaign?
Keys dealt to: Cullen, Clark, Goff, Shearer (well ok he didn’t get the chance to deal to him but most likely he would have) and Campbell whereas Cunliffes dealt to Robertson, Jones and has ducked Campbell twice
Yeah it might possibly be a mis-step by Key but based on what Keys done to the best and brightest of the Left in the past its probably not
In the debates against Clark, Key was the real underdog. He ‘won’ the debates on the back of ‘doing better than everyone expected’. That’s not a ringing endorsement.
He beat Clark, he had her screeching about not shouting her down like he does to his wife at home (forgotten that?)
But the point being that Keys gone up against the best the left could muster whereas Cunliffe has gone up against the rest the left could muster so its a calculated decision by Key
Disagree.
Key can’t handle difficult interviews. Stephen Sackur on Hard Talk had him on the ropes.
Hence Key’s aversion to interviews on RNZ ; instead he has cosy chats with Mike, Rawdon and Marcus in the morning.
If ( and it’s a big if) a half decent and impartial interviewer is brought to the debate, Key is toast.
From what I’ve seen of Cunliffe unless the interview follows a set path he’s in trouble.
If Key asks him a question he hasn’t got a set answer to, he’ll fall apart.
It’s a valid question you can research if you like, but as I’m not a politician in the house where knowing the answer to a question before you ask it is a pre requisite, or blogger with credibility resting on the outcome, I’ll just quietly wait in the hope of an adequate response.
When Key was asked on his return from China on the level of discussion and representation re climate change, his eyes took that all too familiar fixed stare position and he fudged that “yeah we talked about it at dinner…” Key does not handle direct, unrehearsed questions well at all.
watch this … https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrPgK3bf9_4
Many people who have only a passing interest in politics tend to not know who David Cunliffe is. So it will be of value for David to appear on national TV. Exposure is important.
the one saving grace from such a debate is that if its chaired by hoskings he wont be able to help himseld and his career and might just be even handed as a result.
Now how about Cunliffe and co. do some serious mocking of the coward on TV, radio and the newspapers – and in parliament. I’m sick of Labour letting Key and co. get away with murder without responding in kind.
If they think the general public are going to give them brownie points for behaving nicely then they are seriously deluded.
Probably Key made that challenge to Cunliffe off the cuff in a moment of bravado, then backed down when Cunliffe accepted it and Key(or his advisors) realised what it would involve.
key could just be feeling bullet proof with his second family currently touring… once off the podium he had to deal with the looks of horror in the corridor and the realisation he isnt actually a Windsor.
doesnt follow as such. look at his past popularity in polls compared to election day results.
all that aside, neither cunliffe nor key look good from this BUT cunliffe is moving to the position key had in 2008. low expectation in the debate and all the pressure on key to deliver up a storm.
Key definitely has a positive story to tell with the Reserve Bank moves cooling the lower end of the housing market effectively.
His HNZ recent reforms also seem to be going down pretty well as well among the NZ Housing NGOs.
The cooperation with Auckland Council, and the acceleration of Hobsonville and Tamaki Transformation, are also positive for the government.
Cunliffe however will be able to point to the Christchurch housing rebuild debacle, and the range of more structural responses that Labour has ready.
Cunliffe will not be caught short on briefing.
I would however further arm him with those tasty zingers that Peters is grand master of – because those are the lines that turn ito memes the day after.
Housing is certainly preferable ground for the Left to argue on than the economy.
Key’s “co-operation” with Auckland Council, involved threatening them if they did not comply with the addition of SHA’s, which effectively undermined the more sustainable compact city outcomes that the Unitary Plan was trying to achieve.
The debacle of the Hobsonville project, which was intended to provide 20%, or 500 affordable homes under Labour, but after National came in – only “achieved” 17 Gateway home purchases is not actually positive from my perspective. I’m guessing the Tamaki transformation will be similar.
Anyone familiar with my commenting will realist that I don’t approve National’s direction – just stating what the overwhelming majority of MSM say it is. Unfortunately that matters this year.
Yes Hobsonville is in small part a missed opportuity – but it is also a massive masterplanning, sustainability and commercial success. Started and imagined under Labour. Don’t believe me – go and have a drive through – or take the ferry up there.
Re last sentence: Labour has pretty much run out of the time to turn the MSM to believing that National aren’t doing a good job at economic growth, and that economic growth their way is a good thing. Fight other fights.
My personal approach is never to let the memes pass uncommented, but yes, I can understand where you are coming from.
To me, Hobsonville looks pretty and is pretty, but also pretty much missed the boat in terms of it’s intention of redevelopment of government owned land.
The first few pages of Adding it all Up by the Salvation Army in 2012, puts the success of Hobsonville in perspective.
Tamaki will be the same. And economic growth from where I (and many others) sit, just means our expenses have grown and nothing else!
cunliffe needs to talk about rising interest rates, likely to rise further, so the only thing national has done is prevent young and lower income getting a house, while landlords pass on interest hikes through increasing the same folks rent. thats not housing affordability its preserving home ownership for the wealthy and investors.
I’m agreeing with you, when Keys prepared he makes it look like hes not prepared similar to Churchill saying his best come-backs were thought of ahead of time
thats not even remotely what im saying or asking you
you claimed key is good off the cuff
i disagreed and asked you to further explain your opinion, specifically asking if there was anything you could bring to the discussion that showed how you formed this opinion
if pr can compare key to churchill, we must be able to compare his lying about ian fletcher, his use of the gcsb and his disdain for democracy with hitler.
Why did Cunnliffe cancel. Labour needs an effective leader. Shane Jones would be far more effective. Labour is no longer the opposition party. It is the Labour Greens and the greens don’t even have an elected representative. Come on the Unions get your party back up the polls. NZ needs a decent opposition and one that has the potential to govern NZ effectively.
The GP has 14 elected representatives. You may have noticed that change to our electoral system in the 1990s, whereby we moved to a more representative and fairer system.
Jones may or may not be more effective for Labour than DC, but he would be a disaster for the left and any hope of NZ shifting away from neoliberalism, relieving poverty, addressing AGW/PO/GFC etc, ie doing the things we desperately need to do. Jones = BAU.
State geologists in Ohio have for the first time linked earthquakes in a geologic formation deep under the Appalachians to gas drilling, leading the state to issue new permit conditions in certain areas that are among the nation’s strictest.
A state investigation of five small tremors in the Youngstown area, in the Appalachian foothills, last month has found the high-pressure injection of sand and water that accompanies hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, in the Utica Shale may have increased pressure on a small, unknown fault, said State Oil & Gas Chief Rick Simmers. He called the link “probable.”
[…]
Under the new permit conditions, all new drilling sites in Ohio within 3 miles of a known fault or seismic activity of 2.0 magnitude or higher will be conditioned on the installation of sensitive seismic-monitoring equipment. Results will be directly available to regulators, Simmers said, so the state isn’t reliant on drilling operators providing the data voluntarily.
If seismic activity of 1.0 magnitude or greater is felt, drilling will be paused for evaluation. If a link is found, the operation will be halted
In 1991 the Club voted to admit women and today has a thriving membership of men and women. Membership of the Northern Club attracted many leaders of the Auckland community, and the Club has played an active and sometimes pivotal role in the history of New Zealand’s largest city.
In 2010, the Auckland Club[5] was absorbed by The Northern club, adding over $3,000,000 in assets to the club, and 250 members. Exclusively male in its membership for over 120 years, facilities for women were introduced only gradually. The first female member was admitted in 1990, shortly after the earliest woman after-dinner speaker, the Minister of Finance Ruth Richardson, who addressed the club in 1989.
The Northern Club Building is significant as the oldest surviving gentlemen’s club in Auckland, and one of the city’s oldest hotels. It has strong links to early colonial institutions, such as the provincial government and British army, as well as prominent individuals in New Zealand history.
It is representative of important aspects of colonial society, such as all-male associations and business networks. It demonstrates the implanting and nurturing of traditions introduced from Britain, particularly among the social elite. The building’s well-preserved interiors yield information about nineteenth- and twentieth-century life in New Zealand, from the use of decor to attitudes about gender and class. The building is particularly significant for its association with other early colonial structures in the area, such as the Albert Barracks Wall and former Government House.
Very interesting interview on RNZ, with Dr Michael Stevens on the historical importance of Bluff. Lots of good stuff on Kāi Tahu culture, southern Māori and a bit of myth busting too.
Dr. Michael Stevens, history lecturer at Otago University and a proud “Bluffie”, has received a Marsden Fund Fast-Start grant to research the history of Bluff between the years 1800 and 2000. He believes his historical case study of the port will re-shape thinking about New Zealand’s economic development and race relations. Of Kai Tahu descent, Dr. Stevens is descended from some of Bluff’s oldest Maori and Pakeha families and grew up in the port town.
Thanks, I missed that, it was good to listen to the interview. I’ve got multiple family connections with Bluff.
Dr Stevens’ research will be interesting. He advises:
I am in the process of developing a “blog” to help spread the word about this project and progressively disseminate some of its findings in advance of the book that will come out of it.
I really like Dame Anne Salmond and this article is awesome imo
Echoing the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment, Sir David argues that in choosing between intensive farming and dirty and degraded waterways, the country faces “a classic economy versus the environment dilemma”.
This kind of framing, which speaks as though the interests of the economy and the environment are at odds, is based on a logic that splits mind from matter, subject from object, and people from the world around them.
The difficulty with this logic is that it has been rendered obsolete by the findings of contemporary science – brain science, quantum physics and the social and environmental sciences, for example.
Economics, too, has moved on. To quote Herman Daly, a senior economist at the World Bank, “the economy is a wholly owned subsidiary of the environment”.
As Daly points out, it is an oxymoron to separate people from the ecosystems that sustain us. This is certainly true in New Zealand, a country that derives so much of its wealth from the land, waterways and the sea.
Yep we really need to see with fresh eyes and be open to other options than the duopoly often presented as ‘the only options’ – there are infinite options if we allow our minds to consider and be open.
On polluted Seas and Land in Taranaki due to oil drilling and dairying …Film maker Eruera Ted Nia, a child of Parihaka and Taranaki, has produced documentaries.
In 1986 Eruera formed Rangiatea Films and Produced/Directed the 48 minute documentary ‘Te Atiawa o Runga te Rangi’ that was commissioned for TVNZ. A portrait of the remaining kuia and koro from Taranaki, they discuss in 100% Taranaki mita, their families, education and way of life.
On Tuesday 24 July 2013 Eruera traveled to Wellington thanks to NZ Film Archives and screened his films ‘Te Atiawa o Runga Te Rangi’ (1986) ‘ Huakina (1987) a look at the polluted seas and land in Taranaki due to oil drilling, ‘Nga Tai o Makiri’ (1987) a study of four Taranaki rivers, with three being almost destroyed due to dairy farming and oil drilling, ‘Te Ara Puoro o Aotearoa’ (1996) a portrait of long time colleague and fellow artist Hirini Melbourne to a largely Taranaki audience.
Just watched “How Wolves Change Rivers” narrated by George Monbiot. I had read of this effect, but 4 mins on Youtube provides a pretty effective summary.
You need to keep dairying in context. NZ has about 2% of the world’s dairy cows. If we reduce dairying the slack will just get taken up elsewhere. Brazil has FOUR TIMES our dairy cow numbers with poorer environmental standards. Do you want to see more pollution in Brazil? No of course you don’t.
Better have dairying in clean green New Zealand where we can keep an eye on it rather than send it off to Brazil and destroy more rainforest. PLUS Brazil is NEVER going to bring its agriculture sector into any future agreement on GHG reductions. Do you want to increase global greenhouse emissions? No of course you don’t.
So I encourage you to think globally. Get out on your next vacation and go and check out dairying in Brazil. It will allow you to keep perspective.
So unless you want to stuff our economy and stuff Brazil’s environment there is no alternative.
Dairy in New Zealand is a win win for the economy and the environment.
Actually, in an own goal sort of way, he has a point.
It’s the same with the big Greens push for solar – great for NZ, but ignores the strip mining of rare earths, inhuman working conditions, and coal-powered production in China which makes the pannels in the first place.
You need to keep dairying in context. NZ has about 2% of the world’s dairy cows. If we reduce dairying the slack will just get taken up elsewhere. Brazil has FOUR TIMES our dairy cow numbers with poorer environmental standards. Do you want to see more pollution in Brazil? No of course you don’t.
You know, there’s actually a better solution and it’s one that will probably work because, no matter what we do, chances are Brazil will end up having more cows than us anyway meaning that we will lose the income from all those dirty, filthy cows that are polluting our waterways. That better solution is tariffs specifically linked to environmental policy and enforcement. Basically, no country gets to export unless it meets minimum environmental standards. There, looking after the environment in a way that might actually work.
Of course, I don’t think international trade works so I’ll take that with a grain of salt.
Where should we go to check out dairying in Brazil, SSLands? How far is it from the rainforest that is being destroyed? Which states are involved? I’d love to hear your version. Who runs the largest grass fed dairy farm in Brazil?
Is Cunnliffe working for National.His transport policy has just been announced and ridiculed by MSM. IF Shane Jones is unpalatable try Robinson or Parker please.
[lprent: If you just want to be a fuckwit and just write trite trollisms, then just go elsewhere please.
Next time I see you utter one under any handle, you will get a permanent ban for basic stupidity.
To make sure you see this, I’m adding you to auto-moderation. ]
Trucks should not be in the fast lane in the first place.
All heavy traffic is meant to stick to 90km/hr or under when on the open road.
It is not just a rule it is actually a law.
” So why not police the current rule?”
please srylands, you want the rules enforced, an honest answer from you on this topic would be very interesting.
Why do the powers that be not actively police this consistently ignored law ?
Seriously? With the country facing unemployment, inequality, a housing crisis and climate change, and Labour is relentlessly talking about regulatory subsidies for the caravan-rental industry.
So much for “talking about the real issues”.
When we’ve got thousands of people without houses to live in to the point that people are buying caravans to park up on friends and neighbours lawns to live in then those people will probably find the extra few hundred a year to be a serious drain on their finances.
I think NRT is dead right. If Labour was concerned about the thousands of people living in caravans it would say so. This is what they did say to explain the policy:
“There’s nothing Kiwis like more than getting on the road and going on holiday. But on public holidays like Easter and Anzac Weekend fun can quickly turn to frustration when the family realises the rego for the caravan has expired or there’s a big truck hogging the fast lane,” he said.
Last week it was Kauri trees.
It’s just the same old crap from Labour. There is now a leader who is able to string a sentence together, but still the same refusal to stand up for anything substantial for fear of upsetting the well-to-do. It is beyond pathetic. Labour doesn’t desrve to continue to exist it has no reason to exist, National looks after the top 20 percent just fine.
There is some good stuff in there (including reversing the idiotic charges on motorhomes as if they were freight vehicles). But I tend to agree js. Labour should be fronting up with the big, important policies. That someone has spent time on that graphic so Cunliffee can tweet it makes me despair, as does the ignorance about the two kinds of people in NZ that have caravans – those that go on holidays, and those that don’t have anywhere else to live.
Weekend fun can quickly turn to frustration when the family realises the rego for the caravan has expired or there’s a big truck hogging the fast lane,” he said.
So they are going to ban trucks that have a speed limit of 90 kph from the fast lane so cars and caravans can go on holiday faster – with a speed limit of 90 kph.
theres an “or” in their pete – nearly gave you a “well spotted” myself there – but the “or” in cunliffes statement changes the meaning from what you (and i) first read it to mean
situation (A) can turn to frustration if (B) OR (C)
One anonymous bloke. Sorry about the mistake my P.A.is away. Also where is the reply button? Anyway you understood.What’s wrong with Robertson or Parker?
all the tory kiss arses are out in full strength today.
I guess they are taking their lead from guyon epsiner.
he wont last long though.
his arrogance and contempt for average kiwis is already showing through but I guess as long as he is there to help swing the election for national then he has a job.
this country gets creepier and crepier by the day.
Do you get that defensive yet quizzical look from people when you say that to them?
Like you have just offered to brush their hair with a fetid dingo tail 🙂
yes i know that look( fetid dingo tail)…so i never say it.( “turn it off”)…but i think to myself …”you dont know you are alive”…”you are already half an automated moron”….my daughters friend lost her cell phone in a pub for an hour and she just about had a nervous or mental breakdown..it was like she had lost a vital part of her Self…she was all at sea….she had lost her pilot and her pivot…WEIRD
It seems, according to exchanges in the House, that John Key has backed down on his challenge to have a specific debate with Cunliffe on TV on housing policy.
Do you think it was ‘incredible luck’, or it was your political connections that helped to ensure that ‘one law for all’ did not apply to yourself or John Banks as former fellow Directors of Huljich Wealth Management (NZ ) Ltd, and you were never charged or prosecuted for signing Registered Prospectuses which contained misleading information?
you believe key was going to debate cunliffe on housing affordability and a hundred other things… which turned out to be “mispoking” . you dont have any high ground here puck
FYI folks – this is rather politically significant given that the Committee for Auckland is like a HERD of mammoth elephants in the room, that apparently hardly anyone dare mention??
THE COMMITTEE FOR AUCKLAND HAVE ACKNOWLEDGED MY PRIVACY ACT REQUEST. THIS SHOULD NOW GET VERY INTERESTING ………..
9 April 2014
To whomever is responsible for handling PRIVACY ACT requests for the Committee for Auckland
On 20 February 2014, I made a copy of the membership list of the Committee for Auckland, which included Auckland Council CEO, Stephen Town.
The next day, the name of Auckland Council CEO Stephen Town, was removed from the Committee for Auckland membership list, which now still lists Auckland Council, and their website, but the name column is now blank:
Please provide all copies of information (including, but not limited to: emails, reports, letters, memos, diary notes, meeting minutes, text messages, telephone messages which contain my name, Penny Bright (Penelope Mary Bright), or make referral to me, in relation to the removal of Auckland Council CEO Stephen Town’s name from the Committee for Auckland membership list.
Please be reminded that the Committee for Auckland is covered by the Privacy Act.
I look forward to your prompt reply.
Kind regards,
Penny Bright
Attendee Australian Public Sector Anti-Corruption Conference 2009
Attendee Transparency International Anti-Corruption Conference 2010
Attendee Australian Public Sector Anti-Corruption Conference 2013
Auckland Mayoral candidate 2013 (polling 4th with 11,723 vote, campaigning against corrupt corporate control of the Auckland region)
11 April 2014
‘Admin’
Committee for Auckland
To whom it may concern
Please be reminded that it it is ‘good business practice’ to acknowledge correspondence?
I look forward to your prompt acknowledgement of this correspondence.
Kind regards,
Penny Bright
from: Committee for Auckland Administration admin@committeeforauckland.co.nz
to: Penny Bright
date: Tue, Apr 15, 2014 at 2:13 PM
subject: RE: ‘Open Letter / Privacy Act request’
– When and why was Auckland Council CEO Stephen Town removed from the Committee for Auckland membership list?
Dear Penny,
Thank you for your email. Receipt of your correspondence is acknowledged.
Craig’s speech theme – “five things we shouldn’t be afraid to say” – acted as a launching pad for his concerns about becoming a nanny state and his push to remove bureaucracy and legislation, such as the anti-smacking law.
[…]
The five things were:
1. Say no to drugs, special interest groups, and don’t give added significance to Maori spirituality.
2. Say yes to business opportunities, freeing up land particularly.
3. Take responsibility – make people work for the dole, make prisoners work.
4. Let people decide – more consultation with the public.
5. Don’t be afraid to be politically active.
Isn’t #1 actually 3 things? That makes 7 things.
And they are very spirashional – aiming for up to 10% of the vote. Reminds me of Don Brash’s ACT, aiming for 15% of the vote.
Well, the report was hidden in a local newspaper, so I don’t think it’s getting much traction – not worthy of a full post – just a passing reference on open mike to his punitive approach to the less well off – and as for lumping “drugs, special interest groups and Maori spirituality” into one “thing”… not a lot to recommend his 7 things and an empty aspiration.
Given that perception is almost everything in politics Cunnliffe has made so many mistakes that even if he comes up with decent policy it won’t be heard by the MSM let alone the swing voter that will decide the outcome of the election. Please fix him up.I am not a Labour supporter nor am I happy with National but the Greens and their Australian leader scare the hell out of me.
Prosper, you can’t even prosper as a concern tr*ll. If your PA ever realises what a failure you are, expect to be drinking a lot more sputum in your coffee.
Just heard Cunliffe on Radio live. He sounded good, quite natural and a reasonable explanation as to why he failed to front on TV. Keep it up. Much better.
In my considered opinion, as an ‘anti-corruption / anti-privatisation Public Watchdog’, Minister for Justice Judith Collins is CORRUPT and should be sacked FORTHWITH.
[Sitting date: 15 April 2014. Volume:698;Page:7. Text is subject to correction.]
Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS (Leader—NZ First) to the Minister of Justice: Does she maintain that it is not in the public interest to answer all questions regarding Oravida?
Hon JUDITH COLLINS (Minister of Justice) :I have never made that statement.
Rt Hon Winston Peters: How can she give that answer, when it is crystal clear that her pre-arranged meeting with a senior Chinese customs official at the height of the botulism scare was not just dinner with close personal friends but a serious conflict of interest that she and the Prime Minister are trying to cover up?
Hon JUDITH COLLINS: I can make that statement because it is the truth.
Rt Hon Winston Peters: Well, if that is the case, why will she not give the name and position of the customs official, when she arranged to meet the customs official at the very time that her husband’s company was having huge issues getting its product through customs and had enlisted her willing intervention?
Hon JUDITH COLLINS: The member is quite wrong in his question. If he goes back and looks at previous questions he has asked of that nature, he will see that I have corrected him.
Rt Hon Winston Peters: Is it not the case that, when she was told that joining her and her close personal friends at the dinner was a senior customs official, it did not raise alarm bells, because meeting this customs official was the whole reason for the dinner in the first place?
Hon JUDITH COLLINS: The member is quite wrong. I have never said that there was any senior customs official, and he knows it.
Rt Hon Winston Peters: Why is the Minister now claiming that there is no connection with the senior customs official, and does she not understand that her arranged meeting with that official was a serious conflict of interest and a corrupt abuse of her Cabinet position?
Hon JUDITH COLLINS: No. The member is quite wrong again. He continues to state in his question matters that are incorrect. I would say to that member that if he is worrying about corruption, I think he should consider a member of Parliament who asks questions in this House and written questions to help his girlfriend in her position with a major global company.
Rt Hon Winston Peters: Does the Minister not understand that throwing out those sorts of allegations will not save her when she was moonlighting for her husband’s company, that her DNA is all over this issue, and that if she answers questions fully, she would no longer get the Prime Minister’s defence and would be sacked for corruption?
Hon JUDITH COLLINS: The only member of this House who should be sacked for corruption is that member who has asked the question.
Rt Hon Winston Peters: I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker. [Interruption]
Mr SPEAKER: Order! This is a point of order. It will be heard in silence.
Rt Hon Winston Peters: That Minister is not within the Standing Orders attempting to answer that question that way. She has been asked a serious question on a very serious matter—as serious as this House has ever seen—and she is seeking now to deflect it by attacking the questioner.
Mr SPEAKER: In my opinion, the Minister addressed the question.
Grant Robertson: I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker.
Mr SPEAKER: Before I hear any more, I just want to clarify the member is not in any way questioning the decision I have just made.
Grant Robertson: No, it is a different point of order. I am under the impression that in this House a member cannot accuse another member directly of being corrupt, and that is what the Minister just did.
Mr SPEAKER: No, I have already ruled that the answer was addressing the question and I think on this occasion, in light of the tone of the question, it adequately addressed it.
Rt Hon Winston Peters: I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker.
Mr SPEAKER: Again, before I hear the member, is he raising a fresh point of order?
Rt Hon Winston Peters: I am raising a fresh point of order. The Minister made an allegation for which she has no evidence whatsoever, and I want an apology.
Mr SPEAKER: If the member is now saying that he took offence, well, on that basis, if the member, the Rt Hon Winston Peters, was offended by that answer, I ask the honourable Minister to stand and withdraw.
Hon JUDITH COLLINS: Well, I withdraw—is it? I withdraw. But I am happy—
Mr SPEAKER: Order! It is not helpful to do that. The withdrawal does help the order of the House.
Rt Hon Winston Peters: I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker.
Mr SPEAKER: If the member is attempting to trifle with the Chair, I will take a very dim view of that.
Rt Hon Winston Peters: I am not trifling with the Chair, Mr Speaker. That Minister did not apologise as required under the Standing Orders—
Mr SPEAKER: Order! The member will resume his seat. [Interruption] The member will resume his seat. I did not ask the Minister to apologise; I asked her to withdraw the remark, and she did so.
just tried to read this through but all the tory twerps are basically illiterate and functionally imbecilic.
I really cant understand what they are trying to say except that they are all shifty key arse kissers and desperate to please their masters. all in all a thundering herd of lobotomised warthogs.
I can’t find anything that says James Dunne is “the Legal High Industry’s key advocate” or that shows Peter Dunne in a bad light? James Dunne deals with legal issues around such recreational drugs. Article that includes comments from James Dunne on legal highs.
”
Tonight … a Seven Sharp exclusive! … Revelations that a lawyer is acting on behalf of the legal high companies is none other than the son of Minister Peter Dunne.
What do you think about this? ”
ps correction on my post. “Labour’s”. I missed the apostrophe key in my excitement
Add to that Dunne’s very recent “economy of truth” about leaking some report and Dunne’s poor judgement in his behaviour towards some young journalist of the opposite gender.
The Legal Highs story is being pumped by the RadioLive/TV3 stable, under the Duncan Garner brand, on a daily basis. The problems arising from Dunne’s legislative approach is very hot in call-back land. TV3 will be pissed that TV One has trumped them with this explosive story. Each will now try to out-do the other on milking this story. Alfa-laval don’t make milking machines as effective as a miffed media outlet!
On top of that Ohariu is middle-class to the core. Even beggars in Ohariu are middle class! They will not like this narrative: Your local “independent” MP and serial government minister is failing to crack down on scummy legal-high peddlers. Co-incidentally that scummy industry is paying that Minister’s son a big wad of cash on a regular basis to negotiate with the Ministers civil servants….
Dunne’s other problem is that he is sanctimonious. Very very sanctimonious. Many many people love love seeing sanctimonious people fall.
2.89 When accepting an invitation, a Minister should inform the organisation that it may not:
use any photos taken of the Minister at the event; or
publicise the event,
in a way that could be perceived as an endorsement by the Minister of the organisation, or its products or services.
Seems fairly clear to me that our PMs pic is being used as an endorsement and so is a few other ministers.
The accusations that Judith Collins made about girlfriends and corruption, anyone have any idea what she was on about? Had a distinctly whaleoilish smell about it. What a dreadful old gossip she is. Parliament gets more like absurdist theatre and pantomime every day.
Jrobin, it was very specifically directed at her accuser, Winston. It has been reported elsewhere that Winston’s lady was a senior exec of a pharmaceuticals related business.
Perhaps Collins is suggesting that Winston asked loaded questions in Parliament?
James Dunne
SENIOR ASSOCIATE – LEADER PARLIAMENT TEAM
James has valuable inside knowledge of how Parliament works in New Zealand, and is New Zealand’s leading specialist in the regulation of new psychoactives under the Psychoactive Substances Act 2013. He has an LLB and a BA (History) from Victoria University, and has worked at Chen Palmer since his admission to the bar in 2008. At Chen Palmer he specialises in policy and law reform, and has developed a wide range of expertise in a number of areas:
Policy and law reform: James has advised on a range of law reforms including liquor law reform, psychoactives law reform, real estate agents law reform, taxation law reform, and child support law reform;
Parliament: James advises on how Parliament works and on interacting with Parliamentary processes including the passage of legislation, Select Committees, financial reviews and issues of Parliamentary privilege; and
Regulatory affairs: James advises on the interface with a range of regulators including the Overseas Investment Off
hmmm, that’s tricky. Minimum house sizes set too high prevent people from building small, more energy efficient and cheaper houses for themselves. The problem with NACT setting policy is that it’s bound to be to the advantage of developers, not the community. Also smacks of squashing as many low paid workers into one block as possible. At the other end, people of means are building houses that are too big in terms of ecological footprinting. Lots of problems here, not too many easy solutions.
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Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it: We want our country to be a ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading → ...
Ele Ludemann writes – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
What was that judge thinking?Peter Williams writes – That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop:Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
Buzz from the BeehiveThe text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary. It can be quickly analysed ...
For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
Questions need to be asked on both sides of the worldPeter Williams writes – The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop:The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
TL;DR:Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
Bob Edlin writes – The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
The Government has accepted Labour’s change to the Road User Charge (RUC) discount for hybrid vehicles, meaning there will still be some incentive for people to buy greener vehicles. ...
Kicking the most vulnerable people out of state housing and pushing them towards homelessness will result in a proliferation of poverty and trauma across our most vulnerable communities. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader and MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi has penned a letter asking MPs to support his members bill to remove GST from all food. The bill is expected to go through its first reading in parliament this Wednesday. “I’m calling on all political parties to support my ...
This year is about getting real with Kiwis and discussing the tough issues, as the National Government exacerbates inequality and divides New Zealand, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said ...
The Government adding Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) to its already roaring environmental policy bonfire is an assault on the future of wildlife that makes Aotearoa unique. ...
After 12 years of fighting to protect our moana we are finding ourselves back at square one and back at court. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is sitting in Hawera to reconsider an application from Trans-Tasman Resources to dig up 50 million tonnes of the seabed in South Taranaki. This ...
Minister Shane Jones’ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Government’s fast-track legislation. ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Government’s miscalculation saga continues as it has forgotten an eyewatering $90 million gap in its interest deductibility cost figures, say Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds and Revenue Spokesperson Deborah Russell. ...
He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission has today released advice that says if the Government doesn’t act now New Zealand is at risk of not meeting its climate goals. ...
The Coalition Government has today confirmed it is abandoning first home buyers who are struggling to get ahead, says Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds. ...
The New Zealand public voted for a change in direction at the 2023 general election and that is exactly what this coalition government has been delivering in its first 100 days. There was an immediate focus on the economy, easing the cost of living, cracking down on law and order ...
The Government has left the health system as an afterthought, announcing half-baked targets at the last minute of their 100-day plan, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
Kiwis are still waiting for their promised cost of living support after 100 days of a National Government that is taking us backwards, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
100 days of National taking NZ backwardsThe National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
The Government must commit to funding free and healthy school lunches, as thousands of people sign the petition to keep them, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti says. ...
If the Government was serious about moving families into public housing, they would build more houses so there is actually somewhere for people to go. ...
The free and healthy school lunches programme feeds our kids, helps them to learn, and saves families money – but it is at risk under this Government, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
The Government’s proposed changes to Firearms Prohibition Orders (FPO) add almost nothing new and are merely an attempt to distract from its plans to loosen gun laws, police spokesperson Ginny Andersen and justice spokesperson Dr Duncan Webb said. ...
The great Victorian era English politician Lord Macauley stood in the British House of Parliament and said, "The gallery in which the reporters sit has become a fourth estate of the realm".He understood and outlined even way back then, the significant role and influence media have in a democracy. ...
"The Government is moving quickly to realise an additional $46 million in tariff savings in the EU market this season for Kiwi exporters,” Minister for Trade and Agriculture, Todd McClay says. Parliament is set, this week, to complete the final legislative processes required to bring the New Zealand – European ...
New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April. ...
Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand. Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships. “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland Acknowledgements and opening Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says. “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024 Acknowledgements and opening Morena, Nga Mihi Nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau Good morning. It’s a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asia’s most populous country. “We are in Jakarta so early in our new government’s term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week. “We look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealand’s ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. “The recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Auckland’s rail agencies work together to ...
The Government is proud to support the 10th edition of Crankworx Rotorua as the Crankworx World Tour returns to Rotorua from 16-24 March 2024, says Minister for Economic Development Melissa Lee. “Over the past 10 years as Crankworx Rotorua has grown, so too have the economic and social benefits that ...
Legislation implementing coalition Government tax commitments and addressing long-standing tax anomalies will be progressed in Parliament next week, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The legislation is contained in an Amendment Paper to the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill issued today. “The Amendment Paper represents ...
Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard has today announced that the Government has agreed to suspend the requirement for councils to comply with the Significant Natural Areas (SNA) provisions of the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity for three years, while it replaces the Resource Management Act (RMA).“As it stands, SNAs ...
Agriculture Minister Todd McClay has classified the drought conditions in the Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts as a medium-scale adverse event, acknowledging the challenging conditions facing farmers and growers in the district. “Parts of Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts are in the grip of an intense dry spell. I know ...
The Government is helping farmers eradicate the significant impact of facial eczema (FE) in pastoral animals, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “A $20 million partnership jointly funded by Beef + Lamb NZ, the Government, and the primary sector will save farmers an estimated NZD$332 million per year, and aims to ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has completed a successful visit to India, saying it was an important step in taking the relationship between the two countries to the next level. “We have laid a strong foundation for the Coalition Government’s priority of enhancing New Zealand-India relations to generate significant future benefit for both countries,” says Mr Peters, ...
Cabinet has agreed to provide $7 million to ensure the 2024 ski season can go ahead on the Whakapapa ski field in the central North Island but has told the operator Ruapehu Alpine Lifts it is the last financial support it will receive from taxpayers. Cabinet also agreed to provide ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Lower fruit and vegetable prices are welcome news for New Zealanders who have been doing it tough at the supermarket, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Stats NZ reported today the price of fruit and vegetables has dropped 9.3 percent in the 12 months to February 2024. “Lower fruit and vege ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the 68th session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the sixty-eighth session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
The coalition Government is supporting farmers to enhance land management practices by investing $3.3 million in locally led catchment groups, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “Farmers and growers deliver significant prosperity for New Zealand and it’s vital their ongoing efforts to improve land management practices and water quality are supported,” ...
Good evening everyone and thank you for that lovely introduction. Thank you also to the Honourable Simon Bridges for the invitation to address your members. Since being sworn in, this coalition Government has hit the ground running with our 100-day plan, delivering the changes that New Zealanders expect of us. ...
Recommendations from the Climate Change Commission for New Zealand on the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) auction and unit limit settings for the next five years have been tabled in Parliament, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “The Commission provides advice on the ETS annually. This is the third time the ...
The coalition Government is beginning its fight to lower building costs and reduce red tape by exempting minor building work from paying the building levy, says Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk. “Currently, any building project worth $20,444 including GST or more is subject to the building levy which is ...
Proposed changes to tax legislation to prevent the over-taxation of low-earning trusts are welcome, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The changes have been recommended by Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee following consideration of submissions on the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill. “One of the ...
Assalaamu alaikum. السَّلَام عليكم In light of the holy month of Ramadan, I want to extend my warmest wishes to our Muslim community in New Zealand. Ramadan is a time for spiritual reflection, renewed devotion, perseverance, generosity, and forgiveness. It’s a time to strengthen our bonds and appreciate the diversity ...
Former Transport Minister and CEO of the Auckland Business Chamber Hon Simon Bridges has been appointed as the new Board Chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) for a three-year term, Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced today. “Simon brings extensive experience and knowledge in transport policy and governance to the role. He will ...
Good morning all, it is a pleasure to be here as Minister of Science, Innovation and Technology. It is fantastic to see how connected and collaborative the life science and biotechnology industry is here in New Zealand. I would like to thank BioTechNZ and NZTech for the invitation to address ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says he is looking forward to the day when three key water projects in Northland are up and running, unlocking the full potential of land in the region. Mr Jones attended a community event at the site of the Otawere reservoir near Kerikeri on Friday. ...
Associate Finance Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government has agreed to restore deductibility for mortgage interest on residential investment properties. “Help is on the way for landlords and renters alike. The Government’s restoration of interest deductibility will ease pressure on rents and simplify the tax code,” says ...
Sport and Recreation Minister Chris Bishop will travel to Switzerland today to attend an Executive Committee meeting and Symposium of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Mr Bishop will then travel on to London where he will attend a series of meetings in his capacity as Infrastructure Minister. “New Zealanders believe ...
Pacific Media Watch Earthwise hosts Lois and Martin Griffiths. Earthwise presenters Lois and Martin Griffiths on Plains FM 96.9 community radio talk to Dr David Robie, a New Zealand author, independent journalist and media educator with a passion for the Asia-Pacific region. David talks about the struggle to raise awareness ...
Pacific Media Watch Ismail al-Ghoul, an Al Jazeera Arabic correspondent who was held for 12 hours at Gaza’s al-Shifa hospital, says Israeli forces rounded up Palestinian journalists at the facility and made them kneel on the ground for hours, while naked and blindfolded. “The occupation forces handcuffed and blindfolded us ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tony Wood, Program Director, Energy, Grattan Institute chinasong, Shutterstock Electricity customers in four Australian states can breathe a sigh of relief. After two years in a row of 20% price increases, power prices have finally stabilised. In many places they’re ...
Chumbawamba have reportedly issued the deputy PM a cease-and-desist notice after he used their song 'Tubthumping' before his state of the nation speech. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Deborah Lupton, SHARP Professor, Vitalities Lab, Centre for Social Research in Health and Social Policy Centre, and the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society, UNSW Sydney kitzcorner/Shutterstock The assertion from Queensland’s chief health officer John Gerrard that ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Martin, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University Shutterstock Why are musicians so keen to get played on the radio? It can’t be because of the money. In Australia they are paid at rates so low they ...
"Farmers make a point not to tell our urban cousins how to live, yet Chlöe from central Auckland is hell-bent on having her say about farmers," says ACT Rural Communities spokesman Mark Cameron. “On her first day in the House as Green ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards – Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Curran, Associate Professor of Ecology, Lincoln University, New Zealand Getty Images/Gerald Corsi In the latest move to reform environmental laws in New Zealand, the coalition government has introduced a bill to fast-track consenting processes for projects deemed to ...
Uber has argued it does not have as much control over drivers as the unions suggest, and wants a judgment ruling that drivers are employees and not contractors set aside and sent back to the Employment Court. The 2022 ruling followed a three-week hearing in which four drivers sought to ...
What can and can’t be purchased by disabled people or their carers has been slashed in an effort by the Ministry of Disabled People Whaikaha to save money. The purchasing guidelines, a set of rules that sets out what can be purchased using the various streams of Government disability funding, ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Tod Wright and Hien Nguyen, Fiscal incidence in New Zealand: The effects of taxes and benefits on household incomes in tax year 2018/19 . Analyses of the distributional impact of taxation and government ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Cory Davis, Boston Hart and Benjamin Stubbing, Household cost-of-living impacts from the Emissions Trading Scheme and using transfers to mitigate regressive outcomes . This Analytical Note ...
A coalition of public transport and climate organisations, united as ‘Transport for All’, is actively opposing the government’s transport proposals. The draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) includes plans for higher fares for public transport, ...
Greater Wellington is inviting feedback on proposed changes to its Revenue and Financing Policy. The Revenue and Financing Policy covers the Council’s various sources of funding, and how the cost of services is shared across the region. This includes ...
Labour has conceded it could have done more to deal with disruptive state housing tenants while in government but says the current coalition is going too far. ...
The band has asked their record label to issue a cease and desist to stop the NZ First leader using their 1997 hit to support his ‘misguided political views’. “I get knocked down, but I get up again,” blared through the speakers on Sunday as Winston Peters took the stage ...
By Lydia Lewis, RNZ Pacific journalist Food rationing is underway in remote areas in Papua New Guinea’s Highlands following torrential rain and flash flooding. More than 20 people have been reported dead in Chimbu Province. In nearby Enga Province, the centre of last month’s massacre, a 15-year-old boy has been ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Hughes, Lecturer, Research School of Management, Australian National University After months of debate and intrigue, the AFL’s 19th and newest team, the Tasmania Devils, finally launched its jumper, logo and colours in Devonport this week. The Devils will wear green, ...
Brannavan Gnanalingam reviews the debut novel by Saraid de Silva.One of the most baffling things for children who move to a new country is what their parents’ (or grandparents’) lives were like prior to moving – for kids in particular, they’re too busy trying to fit in in their ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Gaunson, Associate Professor in Cinema Studies, RMIT University Narelle Portanier/Binge “If you don’t know who your mob are, you don’t know who you are,” Detective Andrea “Andie” Whitford (played by Leah Purcell) is told early into the new crime ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Elise Klein, Associate professor, Australian National University It’s commonly accepted that women do the vast majority of caregiving in Australian society. But less appreciated is that Indigenous women do larger amounts of unpaid care than any other group. Working with the Aboriginal ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne Joe Biden and Donald Trump have both secured their parties’ nominations for the November 5 United States general election by winning a ...
Comment: There has been a striking contrast in trans-Tasman interest about Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi’s visit to New Zealand and Australia. While the Australian press has been full of articles about the visit – including his curious decision to meet with former prime minister and China booster Paul Keating ...
After years of pressuring banks and other institutions to stop investing in fossil fuels, climate campaigners are making some progress. So how does divestment work?For years, climate activists have been pushing banks and other big institutions to divest from fossil fuels. New research from climate advocacy group 350 Aotearoa ...
For Boba, Ethan and Ashley, K-pop is a place to belong, a way to express themselves, and a bridge to connect with others. The three young Polynesians are part of a K-pop fan community in Tāmaki Makaurau. It’s one of many that have sprung up worldwide as K-pop has gone ...
For Boba, Ethan and Ashley, K-pop is a place to belong, a way to express themselves, and a bridge to connect with others. This one-off documentary presents three intimate portraits of young Polynesians who are pulled into a Korean cultural phenomenon. K-POLYS is directed by Litia Tuiburelevu, Produced by Hex ...
There’s ample evidence demonstrating free school lunch programmes provide wide benefits across schools, households and communities according to public health researchers. ACT Minister David Seymour wants to reduce the spending on Aotearoa New Zealand’s ...
By Wata Shaw in Suva Fiji is facing an exodus of Fijians as many are leaving for overseas seeking employment and education and others are migrating, says Opposition MP Viliame Naupoto. Speaking in Parliament, he said: “His Excellency’s speech (Ratu Wiliame Katonivere) comes after a little over one year of ...
The Taxpayers’ Union is welcoming comments from Christopher Luxon this morning recommitting to ‘no new taxes’ as part of Budget 2024. “Mr Luxon’s refusal at the Post-Cabinet press conference yesterday to repeat the ‘no new taxes’ promise ...
SAFE is urgently calling on the Environment Committee to reject the Government’s Fast-Track Approvals Bill, and is urging New Zealanders to rally behind the call. The proposed Bill, currently under consideration with the Environment select committee, ...
Teammates who spend all their time picking fights with spectators are only helpful for the other team, writes Madeleine Chapman. Anyone who has ever played a team sport competitively, particularly as a child and particularly, for some reason, basketball, will know that there’s a lot of politics involved. While there ...
The long-running Wellington music festival is too focused on the Jim Beam-ness and not enough on the Homegrown-ness.There is something about Homegrown that’s difficult to place. A barely perceptible-ness. Like feeling a ghost is watching you from the corner of the room but when you look, there’s nothing there. ...
The latest Ipsos New Zealand Issues Monitor reveals that fewer New Zealanders believe crime / law and order is one of the top issues facing our country. In 2018, Ipsos New Zealand started tracking the key issues facing New Zealand. In this wave ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Griffiths, Deputy Program Director, Budgets and Government, Grattan Institute Australia’s political donations rules are woefully inadequate, but donations reform is finally on the agenda. The federal government has signalled its interest in reform and will soon begin briefing MPs on its ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Patrick Taylor, Chief Environmental Scientist, EPA Victoria; Honorary Professor, School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University Naiyana Somchitkaeo/Shutterstock A recent study published in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine has linked microplastics with risk to human health. The study ...
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http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11238187
“The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reported earlier this month that New Zealand was unprepared for between 2C and 4C of warming this century. Climate Change Minister Tim Groser said New Zealand was doing its fair share to reduce emissions and that the onus was on local councils to respond to the effects of climate change such as sea level rise.
Mr Mills said: “For me that was the end. I thought ‘I’ve got to stand up and be counted now’.”
Good on Mr Mills.
Time for more New Zealanders to stand up and be counted on this vital issue.
Who are you voting for?
Your own greedy needs of those of your grandchildren?
Certainly putting His money where His mouth is,”tired of National Government inaction on climate change issues” the owner of the Les Mills fitness business donates $64,999 to Labour and 65,000 to the Green Party,
Suggests exactly what this businessman wants as the next Government…
+1.
The Pure Advantage website that is mentioned in the article is worth checking out. It’s been active for a year or two now – definitely not picking political sides, so this article from Phillip Mills is a bit of a step up in the campaign it seems.
http://www.pureadvantage.org/
Also positive to see Cunliffe making some right (uncosted, not sure of programme) noises about forming a mitigation package against climate change.
Groser was saying yesterday that there’s really no point doing anything unless the major country emitters agree to do it together. Because I am deeply pessimistic about climate change, I could understand that.
But when we choose to be New Zealand can lead globally. I want more for and from this country than that.
When even party political funding is becoming dependent on where you stand on climate change, you know the worm is turning.
To properly capitalise on this new political understanding David Cunliffe needs to announce that the law that prevents climate change being raised as an objection in consent hearings for new coal mines will be repealed on the return of a Labour Government.
It would also be good if Labour could announce that on regaining office they will impose a complete moratorium on new coal mines, in line with their coalition Partner the Green Party policy of No New Coal Mines.
A moratorium on deep sea oil drilling and fracking and on any other extreme non-traditional fossil fuel extraction methods, would be good too.
Lets not hear anymore sychophantic pedantic whining about ‘we must respect existing contracts’.
What’s more sacred, business contracts negotiated unfairly with no mandate, or the environment we all depend on to survive?
If we want to respect contracts how about this one?
Maybe instead of honouring deals done with Bathurst Resources we should first honour the contract we signed with our Pacific neighbors to endeavor to cut back our CO2 emissions? A contract to which we are a signatory, but which John Key had no problem tearing up to keep letting Solid Energy cook the climate.
The Majuro Declaration on Climate Change
Many of the islands look to New Zealand, their closest large land mass, to give financial and diplomatic leadership.
“New Zealand can and should do more. They are the fifth highest per capita emitters in the world and Kiwi emissions continue to climb.”
President Loeak of the Marshall Islands
Honour the Majuro Declaration. Send Bathurst packing.
Jenny, Yesterday you wanted Cunliffe to announce the adoption of Greens policy of no deep see drilling. Today you want him to adopt their policy on mining AND announce the Greens as a Coalition Partner!
I wait with baited breath to hear what wonderful original thoughts you have tomorrow!
Lolz, a million different people from one day to the next…
So what?
Labour are demanding that the Greens adopt their policies of supporting deep sea oil drilling, and new coal mines.
I have argued for some time that it will be electoral suicide for the Greens to concede to Labour’s demands, and if they persist with these demands better to sit on the cross benches giving support only on budget and supply.
But apart from the Greens calling for Labour to change, physics demand it.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11238219
Corrupt.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11238214
More diversionary trivia for NZers so they don’t pay attention to the important stuff.
The coy Mr Key.
“Mr Key confirmed yesterday it was paid for by the taxpayer and when asked whether that meant it was not such a private dinner after all, he said “well, it kind of is and it isn’t”.
Celebrity Grossed ?
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/royal-tour/9940930/Wills-and-Kates-dinner-is-on-us
“My understanding is they were certainly keen to catch up, they were certainly keen to have something that was relaxed and in a fun environment.”
Imelda without the heels !
@north.
And the poor blighters ended up spending the evening with ‘thick as batshit’ key. Yawn.
FFS ! It gets worse – From the Herald this morning –
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11238214
“This time round, it was the tight five – the royals, himself, his wife Bronagh and son Max, who met William during the Keys’ stay at Balmoral last year.” – and this –
“It has become a bit of a tradition for Mr Key and William to cook for each other: after Mr Key hosted the 2010 barbecue, William returned serve by helping out cooking a barbecue for the Key family at Balmoral.”
The wonderful work of Claire Arse-Licker Trevett !
What an uplifting piece of journalism.
Makes you proud to be a New Zealander.
Who said ShonKey Python and his pet scribblers wouldn’t be working the guts out of it a few months out from a general election, then ?
Facts are, the majority of the sheeple are enjoying having the royals out here, the cute little baby, the glamorous duke/duchess.
It’s fun, it’s happy and people especially women want to hear all about it, which is why Cunnliffe came across as such an arse by politising the royal tour.
After the Campbell debacle last night one really has to wonder if the man has a political bone in his body, he really is doing a shit job.
The people giddiest about the royal tour are the trivia and celebrity obsessed media. Despite the efforts of the press to whip up a colonial cringeworthy royal hysteria the crowds are modest, at best. If you scratch the surface, most people think that they seem nice but the whole thing is a bit of a circus.
It’s not my cup of tea, but that doesn’t mean other people aren’t allowed to enjoy it.
Anyway, whats the harm the oldies get to relive the past, the woman get to oooh and ahhh over the cute baby and the young girls get to see a real life princess/duchess.
Good harmless family fun.
The Woyal Bludgers must be leaving soon, good riddance, there hasn’t been a scrap of blue sky here in Wellington since these sponges arrived for a break from sponging on the English to take a few big slurps at the trough here…
Have a look at this, you may learn something.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bhyYgnhhKFw
That may be a true picture for the UK. But none of that is valid for NZ is it BM?
Oh I don’t know, I expect the advertising and exposure NZ has got in the commonwealth media (most particularly the UK) is more than worth the cost to the taxpayer of having the royals visit.
I must admit I’m a bit bemused as to why anyone gets so worked up one way or the other about the royals visiting.
BM, a ‘youtube video for simpletons!!!’ who would have thunk that You would use such a child’s view to explain the Woyal Family of Bludgers,
Basically a ‘Disneyland tourist attraction way over-paid for the role that lot have sponged off of the people of Britain for centuries, murder, standover, and direct taxation of the peasants was how the ‘Crown Estate’ came into being so it doesn’t matter an iota that a previous head of the Bludge Family gave up ownership in favor of a direct ‘suck’ on the revenue stream now managed by the democratically elected Government,
”The Crown Estate is NOT the private property of the Monarch. It cannot be owned by the Monarch in a private capacity”,
http://www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/finances_of_the_british_royal_family
The royals are a tourist attraction they make the UK a truck load of money, far more than what they cost.
The UK has set it’s self up as a Victorian Disney land and the Royals are the centerpiece.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/environment/tourism/8587231/UK-Tourism-facts-and-figures.html
Try to think out side the square, chap.
More rubbish BM, the Woyals do not own the Tower of London, Windsor Castle or Buckingham Palace and as such are simply overpaid actors sucking at the public teat to the tune of millions of pounds a year,
A handful of actors could be hired to ‘play’ the role that these sponges are paid multi-millions of pounds a year to act out for a fraction of the cost,
That still doesn’t explain the fact that the Sponge family is over here bludging off of us at the moment…
I think you should pop down to Civic Square and see them tomorrow. You don’t need to wave a flag, but seeing them in person might change your mind about them, and you have nothing else to do.
Getting all bitter and twisted about Will, Kate and George seems a little sad.
And SSLands proves his complete and total shallowness. For him, looks and image are everything.
Ha Ha SSLands, the last time i seen one of the plastic Lowness’es was years back when Dun Mihaka gave Her an entirely appropriate whakapahone as a greeting,
My presence so exercised the DPS prowling the side-show bob spectators that they saw reason to curtail my civil rights by bailing me up against a wall asking the same sort of stupid questions that you are famed for…
“you have nothing else to do.”
mind your manners
classic transference by slylands
slylands this is one of your more vacuous efforts during worktime. you start work at 10am and at 10:10am here you are posting. the king of productivity preaches not practices.
good harmless costly to the taxpayer fun.perhaps the govt should pass buckets through the crowd seeking donations to pay for it all.
The entire tour is politicking – exactly as planned. You’re here adding more to it.
majority bm, you mean the fewthousand who turn out in the streets. by your logic the majority of kiwis are against the gcsb act, the tpp because a few thousands took to the streets.
Or about half the entire population according to the last poll
one fact at a time or bm’s head will explode
Makes you ill.
not a nzer bm, a colonial.
I haven’t been looking at Royals visit news. I don’t click on the links on news websites. I switch on mute during the TV News, and attend to something else. Why encourage the media obssession – they measure success by the number of clicks on those links, not whether you are for or against the royals.
I have been enjoying a relatively royals free space on TS.
Yeah, I’ve managed to bypass it so far as well.
Goebbels would be proud of the corporate media.
And all this on TV at dinner time, where we all eating ‘cheap’. If eating at all. But nice to see that our tax dollars are being used for something important …
Im over the Royal Family.
We don’t need a monarchy anymore — anywhere, not just here. We are capable of choosing our own leaders, like religion, it is a hangover from more archaic times.
The Chinese managed to get rid of their monarchy after 3000 years, as did the Russians, the French, the Indians, and so on. We should be able to do the same.
Claire “Key Cracks a Joke” Sycophantic Trevett. Time to start collecting her articles for systematic bias complaint.
She’s not a journalist’s backside.
Have just turned on and then turned off morning report. Radio New Zealand have employed one of the slimiest national party shills to front their flagship operation. What an awful mouthful of mangement speak but a slimy little toad is a slimy little toad whichever way you paint it.
Espiner?
I missed hearing Rod Oram because I forgot to turn the radio back on again after another (gag) news report with heartfelt sound of Piss story wringing out his tears. How long Oh Lord do we have to put up with this `news’ from South Africa? We have a good celebrity story incubating right here in River City, or NZ when we find our bearings.
It may be that there are some strange radio news agreements with countries such as South Africa also the USA, so that we take whatever because more volume (hah) costs less, and we then sound so linked in and international.
I haven’t bothered with the Royal visit. I wish them well and hope that they didn’t mind spending time watching children play rugby in Dunedin. How exciting. I can understand that the Dunedinites wanted to show off their wonderful stadium, but it wouldn’t please me as an event if I was on a Magical Mystery Tour.
Something else I missed on radio was Ellis at 11.45 discussing somebody interviewed by Campbell last night prevaricating. There that’s my big word for the day – hope it’s the right one.
Apparently whoever said whatever was not sure about whether he would do something or not. Might have been Cunliffe. Doesn’t sound like Winston who is always positive about things – even positive that he is negative on a policy. Same with Hone. Dunne’s been done. Russel is being spoken to tomorrow I think!
I did think that someone may have had some comment to make about last night’s pollies but you are all of on a royal tour around the beltway or somewhere. Perhaps someone can enlighten me on a) the person who was interviewed, and b) what it was he wasn’t sure about. (I understood it was a him.)
I remember Sharon Crosby leaving for (somewhere) and she made a departing statement, (something like) “there you all thought I was right wing didn’t you”
There is something positive about the interwebs at the moment… Almost as if a malevolent force has been removed. What might have excised the ugliness? What great change?
Ah yes, there it is!!!
DPF is in the Himalayas and can’t update his little National Party propaganda vehicle. Let’s hope he doesn’t stumble into the path of a grumpy Yak. That would be terrible. Yesssireeeee, ait would be absolutely terrible.
They have cyber cafes in Nepal….??
“they have McDonald’s in Tibet”
theological complexities aside – Amused to Death is still a great album and has one of those timeless message thingys to boot
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uaGXVU2CbNs
Prostituting the Office of the Prime Minister, fresh from being the ‘star’ attraction at the Northern Club said to be the most exclusive ‘Gentlmen’s club’ in Auckland,(funnily enough the Splash Club, a Brothel, advertises itself as an ‘exclusive Gentlemen’s Club here in Wellington),on sale for 5 grand a ‘client’ the ACT Party are now saying they have a far better deal ‘for sale’,
Is this the benefit of ‘competition’ or just the fact the Prime Minister has been well used by the ‘clients’ at previous 5 grander’s, ACT are selling Him to the ‘clients’ at $100 a time at an upcoming dinner,(pretty much ‘street prices’ for a ‘one on one’ with the PM),
Meanwhile Oravida having already ‘paid’ handsomely for the Prostitution of the Office of the Prime Minister are wringing as much use out of Him as possible, featured next to an Oravida ad in a magazine a large picture of Slippery the Prime Minister is said by His office not to breach any rules of propriety because He is not quoted as endorsing the Oravida products being advertised next to it,
What price will this Political prostitute be fetching next year???10 bucks for a quicky…
You are making a big deal out of absolutely nothing. PMs have been involved in fundraising forever.
NZ PM on menu at auction
http://edition.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/sailing/10/17/tnz.auction.biz/
That doesn’t make it right. Specifically, a picture of our PM should not be part of a products promotion.
SSLands, as usual you use what you see as a cunning lie to advance whatever the point is you are attempting to advance,
Notice who Slippery the Prime Minister is Prostituting the Office of Prime Minister in aid of??? who would have thunk it, the Prime Minister is selling himself for 5 grand a time not in aid of any non-political ”good deed”, simply applying Political Prostitution to raise funds for the National Party, the ACT Party, and, the Maori Party,
Compare that with the fundraising of an auctioned dinner with ex-Prime Minister Helen Clark???the beneficiary of the Clark dinner, Team NZ,
If you cannot see the difference then your stupidity level is far greater than i have previously imagined…
These clowns are just bitter because no one would pay good money to talk to Clusterfuck Cunliffe
Shane Jones drops the hyperbole and makes sense again, describing on Morning report this morning the Maori Party as hypocrites for their 5 grand a time dinner for Auckland’s pakeha elite while they at the same time ‘dissed’ the Mana Party for being in negotiations with the Internet Party,
Jones then went on to draw a thin line of split flax through the chances of the Maori parties Te Ururoa Flavell in the Waiariki electorate saying Annette Sykes will give Him what He has earned for 5 years spent as a lapdog of the National Government,(that don’t include another 3 years),
Jones’es prognosis for the future of the Maori Party, the same as mine, Haere ra…
so dpf is up a mountain. well whipty do for him. does he think he is Sir Ed or sumfing. why doesn’t he just look in a mirror and get some tools for looking into his black heart for the causes of his bile and pathology.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/southland-times/news/9941577/ACC-forms-ruled-to-be-unlawful
Another appalling example of Judith Collins’ arrogance.
But what can you expect from an admitted liar(re Oravita), who is also Minister of (choke) Justice?
This needs vigorous followup. What are the chances of a criminal prosecution of the ACC executives involved? After all, we have the good old standover tactics, coercion, fraudulent threats etc?
arrogance and bullying.
INTERNET FREEDOM is crucial to a DEMOCRACY…it is perhaps one of the most important issues of our time….especially on issues such as globalisation, monopoly capitalism, free debate
….just think what one can learn from the internet and how much authorities with a totalitarian bent would like to control, censor….. close down an open internet …or make it user pays ( to them) and so restrict full public access
…the free open internet fills in many of the gaps and omissions of the mainstream media
as just one example .. ..a free open internet provides people the ability to think critically about the pharmaceutical industry…and take charge of their own health decisions….(just think how much multi national multi billion dollar pharmaceutical companies would like to censor and close down open debate/ critiques and counter research , people sharing adverse effects / experiences etc which cut into their profits)
…in some ways the issues Dotcom and the Internet Party are promoting are the most important issues for all New Zealanders and their democracy , freedom of thought …regardless of what party they belong to
….So go Mana for Internet Freedom and Democracy!
I’m glad Mana is getting on board with what has long been Green Party Policies.
So Mana and The Greens should be able to work well together.
agree.
what did you make of the nine to noon discussion of the way winz is dealing with mental health “clients”. i was a little perturbed than they are expected to get into preparedness to return to work immediately, unless granted an exemption. surely complete rest and freedom from work stresses has merit.
i also note how quickly ryan changed 40% may remaon on a benefit for a long time to “most” will do do.
I didn’t hear it. I don’t listen to RNZ much these days – browse their website and selct an audio or 2.
Generally, I don’t support an approach that stresses work as a priority over mental health.
it all was said by a woman with such a reasonable tone and yet…
Her unwillingness to admit total numbers of people on any of the benefits was a really big tell. Exception being the 400 people she mentioned who had found work on the new trial, work she was quick to qualify by saying it included [mainly?] part time hours.
The references to the general Jobseeker benefit were particularly funny. Listening to her explain what the Jobseeker seminars are like and how hands on the staff are getting people into work was surreal. Is there a word for laughing out loud whilst internally cringing?
and her single example of a job well done…
Mana seem to be making sincere overtures to The Greens
The comments were Metiria’s comment that
I don’t disagree with
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/9943442/Greens-open-to-talks-with-Mana
but i wonder if that will cut it in today’s political environment. Personally I’ve struggled with deals for the same reasons that Metiria says but times have changed and the way it is is the way it is even though we would wish it different. It is time for The Greens to get into power and enact some of their great policies, we can’t afford another 3 years of the gnats, we need The Greens in there. I don’t believe in any means being justifiable but working together with others is essential and it can be done with integrity and alignment with values imo.
I’m against deals and coat-tail type arrangements. I have been very critical of the way the right games the system. Ultimately, it undermines democracy.
I vote Green party, but understand that in my electorate voting for the Green candidate is a waste of a vote. I will vote for the most viable “left” electorate candidate. But the choice should be up to voters.
I think like-minded parties can have on-going talks on polices, without needing a formal “deal” for elections.
Generally, voters could be educated more about their choices. The media focuses too much on the horse race and “strategies” and deals. I think that tends to put off a lot of voters. It becomes more of a game between parties and pollies, and doesn’t directly address the needs and interests of the public.
“But the choice should be up to voters.”
but isn’t, in the example you give, that just being covert instead of overt? That those who understand the ramifications of tactical voting make their choice and those that don’t miss the choice or opportunity. So the choices are explained to people and they choose but really the choice explanation is guiding their choices anyway by showing the lie of the land from the choices made.
sorry about that paragraph but hopefully you’ll get my meaning 🙂
Yesterday John Key challenged Cunliffe to a live debate on TV One about housing affordability. It was reported on TV1 news at 6pm that Cunliffe accepted the challenge.
This is really win-win for Cunliffe. He’s now accepted the challenge, so will get air-time opposite Key, months ahead of the election, showing that he is a contender for the job, in the same way that Key getting up next to Clark for the S59 deal only helped him out.
If Key backs down on the challenge, Labour can trumpet from the ramparts that Key is a coward and all talk.
The only downside is if Cunliffe gets smacked around in the debate, but truthfully I don’t think that’s likely.
Is this perhaps the biggest strategic mis-step from smart-alec Key in this election campaign?
Depends on who is the m.c.
If it’s someone like Hosking, expect an ambush.
well, he can always quip to hosking that
” at least i know the difference between climate change and a weather forecast”
“Or I didn’t know Sky City sponsored this programme”
Cunliffe cancelled twice from appearing on cambell live – I’m guessing he wont turn up for this either.
He is re-scheduling for Campbell Live.
Why? So he can cancel a third time ?
so he can by an expensive bach to pretend its his “home”.
key backed off his challenged. opps, aye james?
Even if Cunliffe smacks around Key in the debate, it will be reported the other way around.
Worth bearing in mind, for anyone that can recall it, the result of that tv3 debate on housing.
Pundits were sure that Metiria Turei had stuffed everything up till the results came in.
http://www.3news.co.nz/How-do-we-fix-the-housing-crisis/tabid/1785/articleID/311238/Default.aspx
Keys dealt to: Cullen, Clark, Goff, Shearer (well ok he didn’t get the chance to deal to him but most likely he would have) and Campbell whereas Cunliffes dealt to Robertson, Jones and has ducked Campbell twice
Yeah it might possibly be a mis-step by Key but based on what Keys done to the best and brightest of the Left in the past its probably not
No, Key held his own against Clark.
In the debates against Clark, Key was the real underdog. He ‘won’ the debates on the back of ‘doing better than everyone expected’. That’s not a ringing endorsement.
dont confuse the right with facts
He beat Clark, he had her screeching about not shouting her down like he does to his wife at home (forgotten that?)
But the point being that Keys gone up against the best the left could muster whereas Cunliffe has gone up against the rest the left could muster so its a calculated decision by Key
on which he has reneged already
😕 just how drunk was he when he made the challenge?
Was at his weekly press briefing.
Cunliffe doesn’t do off the cuff, Key does and he’s very very good at it.
I’m get the feeling that this is Key going in for the kill.
Disagree.
Key can’t handle difficult interviews. Stephen Sackur on Hard Talk had him on the ropes.
Hence Key’s aversion to interviews on RNZ ; instead he has cosy chats with Mike, Rawdon and Marcus in the morning.
If ( and it’s a big if) a half decent and impartial interviewer is brought to the debate, Key is toast.
From what I’ve seen of Cunliffe unless the interview follows a set path he’s in trouble.
If Key asks him a question he hasn’t got a set answer to, he’ll fall apart.
And what happens when a good interviewer asks Key a difficult question on say child poverty?
Like how much have you done personally to ease child poverty having $50 mil sitting in the bank of Hawaii?
you need to know the answers before you ask the questions…
cunliffe can debate. i have no doubt and he will be uneditted, thats a plus
It’s a valid question you can research if you like, but as I’m not a politician in the house where knowing the answer to a question before you ask it is a pre requisite, or blogger with credibility resting on the outcome, I’ll just quietly wait in the hope of an adequate response.
When Key was asked on his return from China on the level of discussion and representation re climate change, his eyes took that all too familiar fixed stare position and he fudged that “yeah we talked about it at dinner…” Key does not handle direct, unrehearsed questions well at all.
watch this … https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrPgK3bf9_4
Cunliffe is rescheduling the interview with Campbell Live.
They now have weekly interviews with both Key and Cunliffe on Morning Report.
Many people who have only a passing interest in politics tend to not know who David Cunliffe is. So it will be of value for David to appear on national TV. Exposure is important.
remember when key stormed off in a huff.
the one saving grace from such a debate is that if its chaired by hoskings he wont be able to help himseld and his career and might just be even handed as a result.
David Parker said in the House a few minutes ago that Key had backed down from doing a specific TV debate with Cunliffe on housing.
http://tvnz.co.nz/politics-news/pm-won-t-debate-cunliffe-over-housing-5931001
Now how about Cunliffe and co. do some serious mocking of the coward on TV, radio and the newspapers – and in parliament. I’m sick of Labour letting Key and co. get away with murder without responding in kind.
If they think the general public are going to give them brownie points for behaving nicely then they are seriously deluded.
pretty hard to do that when you just backed out of a tv appearance
Probably Key made that challenge to Cunliffe off the cuff in a moment of bravado, then backed down when Cunliffe accepted it and Key(or his advisors) realised what it would involve.
Lanthanide said it was announced at the PM’s press briefing, so it was surely not an off the cuff idea ?
key could just be feeling bullet proof with his second family currently touring… once off the podium he had to deal with the looks of horror in the corridor and the realisation he isnt actually a Windsor.
don’t the corgis carry the surname ?
Verily it was off the cuff. He was giving a smart-alec reply to a journalist’s question, grinning ear to ear and walked off the stage.
Good, starve Cunliffe of oxygen until you have to deal with him then smoke in the debate
yet your saying key can slay him any time, any where, with no prep
which is it?
its hard to support someone that just made him look so stupid. why do these folks keep sticking up for key, he just makes fools of them over and over.
wow, you need a panadol for that superfast flip flop sir??
“so its a calculated decision by Key” Puckish rogue only one hour ago folks
So …. what is the next step in this cunning plan we wonder ?
His next step is to continue to have an approval rating at least 5 times the size of Cunliffe
Which is going according to plan 🙂
his party poll is the relevant one. .. hence hes baking cakes for the maori party fair.
The more popular he is the better it is for National so expect to see Keys face on more womens magazines in the near future
doesnt follow as such. look at his past popularity in polls compared to election day results.
all that aside, neither cunliffe nor key look good from this BUT cunliffe is moving to the position key had in 2008. low expectation in the debate and all the pressure on key to deliver up a storm.
i see youve steered away from the issue of you contradicting yourself
Key definitely has a positive story to tell with the Reserve Bank moves cooling the lower end of the housing market effectively.
His HNZ recent reforms also seem to be going down pretty well as well among the NZ Housing NGOs.
The cooperation with Auckland Council, and the acceleration of Hobsonville and Tamaki Transformation, are also positive for the government.
Cunliffe however will be able to point to the Christchurch housing rebuild debacle, and the range of more structural responses that Labour has ready.
Cunliffe will not be caught short on briefing.
I would however further arm him with those tasty zingers that Peters is grand master of – because those are the lines that turn ito memes the day after.
Housing is certainly preferable ground for the Left to argue on than the economy.
Key’s “co-operation” with Auckland Council, involved threatening them if they did not comply with the addition of SHA’s, which effectively undermined the more sustainable compact city outcomes that the Unitary Plan was trying to achieve.
The debacle of the Hobsonville project, which was intended to provide 20%, or 500 affordable homes under Labour, but after National came in – only “achieved” 17 Gateway home purchases is not actually positive from my perspective. I’m guessing the Tamaki transformation will be similar.
As for your last sentence – satire?
Anyone familiar with my commenting will realist that I don’t approve National’s direction – just stating what the overwhelming majority of MSM say it is. Unfortunately that matters this year.
Yes Hobsonville is in small part a missed opportuity – but it is also a massive masterplanning, sustainability and commercial success. Started and imagined under Labour. Don’t believe me – go and have a drive through – or take the ferry up there.
Re last sentence: Labour has pretty much run out of the time to turn the MSM to believing that National aren’t doing a good job at economic growth, and that economic growth their way is a good thing. Fight other fights.
My personal approach is never to let the memes pass uncommented, but yes, I can understand where you are coming from.
To me, Hobsonville looks pretty and is pretty, but also pretty much missed the boat in terms of it’s intention of redevelopment of government owned land.
The first few pages of Adding it all Up by the Salvation Army in 2012, puts the success of Hobsonville in perspective.
Tamaki will be the same. And economic growth from where I (and many others) sit, just means our expenses have grown and nothing else!
cunliffe needs to talk about rising interest rates, likely to rise further, so the only thing national has done is prevent young and lower income getting a house, while landlords pass on interest hikes through increasing the same folks rent. thats not housing affordability its preserving home ownership for the wealthy and investors.
“Key does and he’s very very good at it.”
yeah – nah.
i dont know where you get that idea from – the same place as cunliffes faux bro accent perhaps?\
jesus wept – you seriously think that key does well when hes off script?
note – off script doesnt mean the appearance of making off the cuff remarks in an environment where you control or know the questions before hand
Worked for Winston Churchill and it works for John Key
no it doesnt
on what do you base this weird opinion? – when ever key is put on the spot in an unscripted or unprepared environment he makes an ass of himself
note – major point here – unscripted and unprepared, so dont bring up the campbell live thing because that was a planned prepared appearance
could you provide some examples?
I’m agreeing with you, when Keys prepared he makes it look like hes not prepared similar to Churchill saying his best come-backs were thought of ahead of time
thats not even remotely what im saying or asking you
you claimed key is good off the cuff
i disagreed and asked you to further explain your opinion, specifically asking if there was anything you could bring to the discussion that showed how you formed this opinion
and you came back with churchill
if pr can compare key to churchill, we must be able to compare his lying about ian fletcher, his use of the gcsb and his disdain for democracy with hitler.
id say its the opposite. key needs time to prepare and be prepared.
http://tvnz.co.nz/politics-news/pm-won-t-debate-cunliffe-over-housing-5931001
gutless wonder
“Yeah, we’ll call it the first debate, I’m looking forward to it.”
He says the Prime Minister does not start debating with the Leader of the Opposition prior to the debates.”
thats almost pythonesque
i think the team planned on four more months preparation…
what a lot of shit bm. wait a moment. thats what a bm is. a load of crap.
Why did Cunnliffe cancel. Labour needs an effective leader. Shane Jones would be far more effective. Labour is no longer the opposition party. It is the Labour Greens and the greens don’t even have an elected representative. Come on the Unions get your party back up the polls. NZ needs a decent opposition and one that has the potential to govern NZ effectively.
The GP has 14 elected representatives. You may have noticed that change to our electoral system in the 1990s, whereby we moved to a more representative and fairer system.
Jones may or may not be more effective for Labour than DC, but he would be a disaster for the left and any hope of NZ shifting away from neoliberalism, relieving poverty, addressing AGW/PO/GFC etc, ie doing the things we desperately need to do. Jones = BAU.
Shane Jones should probably shift to National. Not a great endorsement for a Labour Party leader.
F*ck the poor.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBuC_0-d-9Y#t=48
Keeping it that way.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/monkey-cage/wp/2014/04/08/rich-people-rule/
The Taranaki regional council assurance does seem rather convenient.
http://www.trc.govt.nz/seismologists-find-nothing-to-fear/
.
State geologists in Ohio have for the first time linked earthquakes in a geologic formation deep under the Appalachians to gas drilling, leading the state to issue new permit conditions in certain areas that are among the nation’s strictest.
A state investigation of five small tremors in the Youngstown area, in the Appalachian foothills, last month has found the high-pressure injection of sand and water that accompanies hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, in the Utica Shale may have increased pressure on a small, unknown fault, said State Oil & Gas Chief Rick Simmers. He called the link “probable.”
[…]
Under the new permit conditions, all new drilling sites in Ohio within 3 miles of a known fault or seismic activity of 2.0 magnitude or higher will be conditioned on the installation of sensitive seismic-monitoring equipment. Results will be directly available to regulators, Simmers said, so the state isn’t reliant on drilling operators providing the data voluntarily.
If seismic activity of 1.0 magnitude or greater is felt, drilling will be paused for evaluation. If a link is found, the operation will be halted
http://www.cnbc.com/id/101576489
im sure they are lying
On ‘Martin Bradbury’s New Zealand’ ( cf Alistair Cooke’s America):
Maori National Party vs Mana Socialist Party…and BIG Money connections
Q: who is the biggest hypocrite?…
A:.Maori National Party
‘Comparing Maori Party $5000 per ticket John Key Fundraiser at sexist Northern Club to MANA’s Internet Party alliance’ –
http://thedailyblog.co.nz/2014/04/15/comparing-maori-party-5000-per-ticket-john-key-fundraiser-at-sexist-northern-club-to-manas-internet-party-alliance/
In 1991 the Club voted to admit women and today has a thriving membership of men and women. Membership of the Northern Club attracted many leaders of the Auckland community, and the Club has played an active and sometimes pivotal role in the history of New Zealand’s largest city.
In 2010, the Auckland Club[5] was absorbed by The Northern club, adding over $3,000,000 in assets to the club, and 250 members. Exclusively male in its membership for over 120 years, facilities for women were introduced only gradually. The first female member was admitted in 1990, shortly after the earliest woman after-dinner speaker, the Minister of Finance Ruth Richardson, who addressed the club in 1989.
The Northern Club Building is significant as the oldest surviving gentlemen’s club in Auckland, and one of the city’s oldest hotels. It has strong links to early colonial institutions, such as the provincial government and British army, as well as prominent individuals in New Zealand history.
It is representative of important aspects of colonial society, such as all-male associations and business networks. It demonstrates the implanting and nurturing of traditions introduced from Britain, particularly among the social elite. The building’s well-preserved interiors yield information about nineteenth- and twentieth-century life in New Zealand, from the use of decor to attitudes about gender and class. The building is particularly significant for its association with other early colonial structures in the area, such as the Albert Barracks Wall and former Government House.
Is that a cut and paste? Can you please attribute clearly, Tracey?
Very interesting interview on RNZ, with Dr Michael Stevens on the historical importance of Bluff. Lots of good stuff on Kāi Tahu culture, southern Māori and a bit of myth busting too.
Dr. Michael Stevens, history lecturer at Otago University and a proud “Bluffie”, has received a Marsden Fund Fast-Start grant to research the history of Bluff between the years 1800 and 2000. He believes his historical case study of the port will re-shape thinking about New Zealand’s economic development and race relations. Of Kai Tahu descent, Dr. Stevens is descended from some of Bluff’s oldest Maori and Pakeha families and grew up in the port town.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon/audio/2592674/dr-michael-stevens-traces-the-history-of-bluff
Thanks weka – will listen to that later on. The deep south has much to teach us all about how to get on.
Thanks, I missed that, it was good to listen to the interview. I’ve got multiple family connections with Bluff.
Dr Stevens’ research will be interesting. He advises:
I really like Dame Anne Salmond and this article is awesome imo
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/article.cfm?c_id=466&objectid=11238114
Yep we really need to see with fresh eyes and be open to other options than the duopoly often presented as ‘the only options’ – there are infinite options if we allow our minds to consider and be open.
On polluted Seas and Land in Taranaki due to oil drilling and dairying …Film maker Eruera Ted Nia, a child of Parihaka and Taranaki, has produced documentaries.
In 1986 Eruera formed Rangiatea Films and Produced/Directed the 48 minute documentary ‘Te Atiawa o Runga te Rangi’ that was commissioned for TVNZ. A portrait of the remaining kuia and koro from Taranaki, they discuss in 100% Taranaki mita, their families, education and way of life.
On Tuesday 24 July 2013 Eruera traveled to Wellington thanks to NZ Film Archives and screened his films ‘Te Atiawa o Runga Te Rangi’ (1986) ‘ Huakina (1987) a look at the polluted seas and land in Taranaki due to oil drilling, ‘Nga Tai o Makiri’ (1987) a study of four Taranaki rivers, with three being almost destroyed due to dairy farming and oil drilling, ‘Te Ara Puoro o Aotearoa’ (1996) a portrait of long time colleague and fellow artist Hirini Melbourne to a largely Taranaki audience.
http://falamedia.com/category/polynesian-screen-production/pasefika-filmmakers/
Excellent.
The connectedness of all things….
Just watched “How Wolves Change Rivers” narrated by George Monbiot. I had read of this effect, but 4 mins on Youtube provides a pretty effective summary.
thanks for that ‘How Wolves Change Rivers’ …it is lovely
You need to keep dairying in context. NZ has about 2% of the world’s dairy cows. If we reduce dairying the slack will just get taken up elsewhere. Brazil has FOUR TIMES our dairy cow numbers with poorer environmental standards. Do you want to see more pollution in Brazil? No of course you don’t.
Better have dairying in clean green New Zealand where we can keep an eye on it rather than send it off to Brazil and destroy more rainforest. PLUS Brazil is NEVER going to bring its agriculture sector into any future agreement on GHG reductions. Do you want to increase global greenhouse emissions? No of course you don’t.
So I encourage you to think globally. Get out on your next vacation and go and check out dairying in Brazil. It will allow you to keep perspective.
So unless you want to stuff our economy and stuff Brazil’s environment there is no alternative.
Dairy in New Zealand is a win win for the economy and the environment.
LOL that was awesome comedy slylands.
Actually, in an own goal sort of way, he has a point.
It’s the same with the big Greens push for solar – great for NZ, but ignores the strip mining of rare earths, inhuman working conditions, and coal-powered production in China which makes the pannels in the first place.
So make them here.
You know, there’s actually a better solution and it’s one that will probably work because, no matter what we do, chances are Brazil will end up having more cows than us anyway meaning that we will lose the income from all those dirty, filthy cows that are polluting our waterways. That better solution is tariffs specifically linked to environmental policy and enforcement. Basically, no country gets to export unless it meets minimum environmental standards. There, looking after the environment in a way that might actually work.
Of course, I don’t think international trade works so I’ll take that with a grain of salt.
Where should we go to check out dairying in Brazil, SSLands? How far is it from the rainforest that is being destroyed? Which states are involved? I’d love to hear your version. Who runs the largest grass fed dairy farm in Brazil?
slylands says its the only way to grow and make everyone better off…
egosystem versus ecosystem
Is Cunnliffe working for National.His transport policy has just been announced and ridiculed by MSM. IF Shane Jones is unpalatable try Robinson or Parker please.
[lprent: If you just want to be a fuckwit and just write trite trollisms, then just go elsewhere please.
Next time I see you utter one under any handle, you will get a permanent ban for basic stupidity.
To make sure you see this, I’m adding you to auto-moderation. ]
Today, on Irrelevant Trivia, we will explore why the Labour Party doesn’t take advice from pseudonymous right wing wankers.
common sense to get trucks out of the fast lane.. but seriously prosper did you read the policy or just the headline?
All slow moving vehicles are already required to keep left. So why not police the current rule?
As for the changes, they are stupid. They simply introduce cross subsidies.
Whatever.. both issues are so trivial why would they go there for an announcement? It is like someone was bored.
Trucks should not be in the fast lane in the first place.
All heavy traffic is meant to stick to 90km/hr or under when on the open road.
It is not just a rule it is actually a law.
” So why not police the current rule?”
please srylands, you want the rules enforced, an honest answer from you on this topic would be very interesting.
Why do the powers that be not actively police this consistently ignored law ?
Can someone please show me where in the road code and in legislation that it says that our highways have a fast lane.
A little bit presumptuous don’t you think? Is Cunnliffe taking advice from anybody?
A little out of your depth, aren’t you, dribbling drivel when you haven’t learnt to spell the subject?
Can you learn to use the reply button?
learn????
NRT is wrong on this one:
When we’ve got thousands of people without houses to live in to the point that people are buying caravans to park up on friends and neighbours lawns to live in then those people will probably find the extra few hundred a year to be a serious drain on their finances.
I think NRT is dead right. If Labour was concerned about the thousands of people living in caravans it would say so. This is what they did say to explain the policy:
“There’s nothing Kiwis like more than getting on the road and going on holiday. But on public holidays like Easter and Anzac Weekend fun can quickly turn to frustration when the family realises the rego for the caravan has expired or there’s a big truck hogging the fast lane,” he said.
Last week it was Kauri trees.
It’s just the same old crap from Labour. There is now a leader who is able to string a sentence together, but still the same refusal to stand up for anything substantial for fear of upsetting the well-to-do. It is beyond pathetic. Labour doesn’t desrve to continue to exist it has no reason to exist, National looks after the top 20 percent just fine.
Ok, then, Labour are still barking up the wrong tree.
More on the whole policy here http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11238595
There is some good stuff in there (including reversing the idiotic charges on motorhomes as if they were freight vehicles). But I tend to agree js. Labour should be fronting up with the big, important policies. That someone has spent time on that graphic so Cunliffee can tweet it makes me despair, as does the ignorance about the two kinds of people in NZ that have caravans – those that go on holidays, and those that don’t have anywhere else to live.
https://www.labour.org.nz/easierdriving
The RUC needs to be a logarithmic calculation based upon mass. Doubling the mass of the vehicle and load does 16 times more damage.
So they are going to ban trucks that have a speed limit of 90 kph from the fast lane so cars and caravans can go on holiday faster – with a speed limit of 90 kph.
theres an “or” in their pete – nearly gave you a “well spotted” myself there – but the “or” in cunliffes statement changes the meaning from what you (and i) first read it to mean
situation (A) can turn to frustration if (B) OR (C)
One anonymous bloke. Sorry about the mistake my P.A.is away. Also where is the reply button? Anyway you understood.What’s wrong with Robertson or Parker?
Are you on a mobile device? No reply button on the mobile version. It’s highly irritating.
Prosper, no-one said anything is wrong with Robertson or Parker. Like I said, you’re a miserable failure as a tr*ll.
you use your pa to help you post??
all the tory kiss arses are out in full strength today.
I guess they are taking their lead from guyon epsiner.
he wont last long though.
his arrogance and contempt for average kiwis is already showing through but I guess as long as he is there to help swing the election for national then he has a job.
this country gets creepier and crepier by the day.
Draco.That could be it. I am using a Kindle that runs on android.The auto correct drives me nuts. It keeps spelling your name as Drake.
turn it off then.
Do you get that defensive yet quizzical look from people when you say that to them?
Like you have just offered to brush their hair with a fetid dingo tail 🙂
yes i know that look( fetid dingo tail)…so i never say it.( “turn it off”)…but i think to myself …”you dont know you are alive”…”you are already half an automated moron”….my daughters friend lost her cell phone in a pub for an hour and she just about had a nervous or mental breakdown..it was like she had lost a vital part of her Self…she was all at sea….she had lost her pilot and her pivot…WEIRD
Now I’m imagining Game of Thrones with giant fire-breathing ducks…
😆
Unfortunately they cast John Key as Ramsay Snow and all the little wingnuts are fighting over who gets to play Reek.
sounds fun for you
It seems, according to exchanges in the House, that John Key has backed down on his challenge to have a specific debate with Cunliffe on TV on housing policy.
Reported by Pundit as “Wimp” 😀
do you have a link please? just went to pundit, couldn’t see anything. Maybe i’m looking in the wrong place?
http://tvnz.co.nz/politics-news/pm-won-t-debate-cunliffe-over-housing-5931001
Wonder why he won’t. Wriggles off by saying he meant for the official Election period.
thanks ianmac, I got that one but thought there was a Pundit post somewhere.
Sorry Freedom, my mistake: the “Wimp” post is on Polity not Pundit
http://www.nbr.co.nz/ask-don-brash
My question to Don Brash (not yet published).
Do you think it was ‘incredible luck’, or it was your political connections that helped to ensure that ‘one law for all’ did not apply to yourself or John Banks as former fellow Directors of Huljich Wealth Management (NZ ) Ltd, and you were never charged or prosecuted for signing Registered Prospectuses which contained misleading information?
https://docs.google.com/file/d/1OfbKNxoyZgDs1gZtA1zJLTYAl7sqjYDZgKrIXdUU21S2WRG2D7quY_VyXOKA/edit?pli=1
Penny Bright
nice question. could you ask them to disclose total director fees they took from hujlich
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11238656
Does anyone really believe he had a sitting MP?
Does anyone believe you have anything to contribute other than mockery and right-wing propaganda?
So you believed him then
you believe key was going to debate cunliffe on housing affordability and a hundred other things… which turned out to be “mispoking” . you dont have any high ground here puck
why so binary?
FYI folks – this is rather politically significant given that the Committee for Auckland is like a HERD of mammoth elephants in the room, that apparently hardly anyone dare mention??
THE COMMITTEE FOR AUCKLAND HAVE ACKNOWLEDGED MY PRIVACY ACT REQUEST. THIS SHOULD NOW GET VERY INTERESTING ………..
9 April 2014
To whomever is responsible for handling PRIVACY ACT requests for the Committee for Auckland
On 20 February 2014, I made a copy of the membership list of the Committee for Auckland, which included Auckland Council CEO, Stephen Town.
The next day, the name of Auckland Council CEO Stephen Town, was removed from the Committee for Auckland membership list, which now still lists Auckland Council, and their website, but the name column is now blank:
http://www.committeeforauckland.co.nz/membership/member-organisations
Auckland Council www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz
Please provide all copies of information (including, but not limited to: emails, reports, letters, memos, diary notes, meeting minutes, text messages, telephone messages which contain my name, Penny Bright (Penelope Mary Bright), or make referral to me, in relation to the removal of Auckland Council CEO Stephen Town’s name from the Committee for Auckland membership list.
Please be reminded that the Committee for Auckland is covered by the Privacy Act.
I look forward to your prompt reply.
Kind regards,
Penny Bright
Attendee Australian Public Sector Anti-Corruption Conference 2009
Attendee Transparency International Anti-Corruption Conference 2010
Attendee Australian Public Sector Anti-Corruption Conference 2013
Auckland Mayoral candidate 2013 (polling 4th with 11,723 vote, campaigning against corrupt corporate control of the Auckland region)
11 April 2014
‘Admin’
Committee for Auckland
To whom it may concern
Please be reminded that it it is ‘good business practice’ to acknowledge correspondence?
I look forward to your prompt acknowledgement of this correspondence.
Kind regards,
Penny Bright
from: Committee for Auckland Administration admin@committeeforauckland.co.nz
to: Penny Bright
date: Tue, Apr 15, 2014 at 2:13 PM
subject: RE: ‘Open Letter / Privacy Act request’
– When and why was Auckland Council CEO Stephen Town removed from the Committee for Auckland membership list?
Dear Penny,
Thank you for your email. Receipt of your correspondence is acknowledged.
Regards,
Committee for Auckland
T: + 64 9 300 1234 | E: admin@committeeforauckland.co.nz
Level 21, SAP Tower, 151 Queen Street, Auckland
PO Box 3403, Shortland Street, Auckland 1140
http://www.committeeforauckland.co.nz
For all the nut bars who think Cameron Slater had anything to do with the assult on Blomfield:
http://www.whaleoil.co.nz/2014/04/press-release-regarding-certain-rumours-circulating-around-recent-assault/
Only a nut-bar would instantly conclude that a creep like Slater couldn’t possibly be involved.
Conservative Party’s 5 things:
Isn’t #1 actually 3 things? That makes 7 things.
And they are very spirashional – aiming for up to 10% of the vote. Reminds me of Don Brash’s ACT, aiming for 15% of the vote.
will he be mauled like the internet party for masquerading fluff as policy?
Well, the report was hidden in a local newspaper, so I don’t think it’s getting much traction – not worthy of a full post – just a passing reference on open mike to his punitive approach to the less well off – and as for lumping “drugs, special interest groups and Maori spirituality” into one “thing”… not a lot to recommend his 7 things and an empty aspiration.
yup, he would rather make us pray to his invisible friend… so much more rational than honouring nature
“1. Say no to drugs, special interest groups, and don’t give added significance to Maori spirituality.”
Oh dear – the heathens are at the gate.
“1. Say no to drugs, special interest groups, and don’t give added significance to Maori spirituality.”
like most religious tub thumpers he hasnt spotted the massive slippery slope hes just made with that comment – in fact hes made two
If we’re saying no to special interest groups, can we start with rich white fundementalist bigots?
plus 100
Given that perception is almost everything in politics Cunnliffe has made so many mistakes that even if he comes up with decent policy it won’t be heard by the MSM let alone the swing voter that will decide the outcome of the election. Please fix him up.I am not a Labour supporter nor am I happy with National but the Greens and their Australian leader scare the hell out of me.
Goodness – just as well you aren’t living in the 1930s – the Savage government would be one long horror show for you.
well for a start hes a co-leader
maybe you would be less afraid if you took the time to get to know them and their policies?
the greens are widely recognised across parliament for both their professional behaviour and the detail level of their policies
what does that make you, an ACT voter??? the greens are also led by a maori woman, i bet that bunches up your undies bigtime.
lol
Prosper, you can’t even prosper as a concern tr*ll. If your PA ever realises what a failure you are, expect to be drinking a lot more sputum in your coffee.
Just heard Cunliffe on Radio live. He sounded good, quite natural and a reasonable explanation as to why he failed to front on TV. Keep it up. Much better.
Loomio: 2 days to go on crowd funding
In my considered opinion, as an ‘anti-corruption / anti-privatisation Public Watchdog’, Minister for Justice Judith Collins is CORRUPT and should be sacked FORTHWITH.
http://www.parliament.nz/en-nz/pb/business/qoa/50HansQ_20140415_00000007/7-justice-minister%E2%80%94compliance-withcabinet-manual
Justice, Minister—Compliance withCabinet Manual
[Sitting date: 15 April 2014. Volume:698;Page:7. Text is subject to correction.]
Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS (Leader—NZ First) to the Minister of Justice: Does she maintain that it is not in the public interest to answer all questions regarding Oravida?
Hon JUDITH COLLINS (Minister of Justice) :I have never made that statement.
Rt Hon Winston Peters: How can she give that answer, when it is crystal clear that her pre-arranged meeting with a senior Chinese customs official at the height of the botulism scare was not just dinner with close personal friends but a serious conflict of interest that she and the Prime Minister are trying to cover up?
Hon JUDITH COLLINS: I can make that statement because it is the truth.
Rt Hon Winston Peters: Well, if that is the case, why will she not give the name and position of the customs official, when she arranged to meet the customs official at the very time that her husband’s company was having huge issues getting its product through customs and had enlisted her willing intervention?
Hon JUDITH COLLINS: The member is quite wrong in his question. If he goes back and looks at previous questions he has asked of that nature, he will see that I have corrected him.
Rt Hon Winston Peters: Is it not the case that, when she was told that joining her and her close personal friends at the dinner was a senior customs official, it did not raise alarm bells, because meeting this customs official was the whole reason for the dinner in the first place?
Hon JUDITH COLLINS: The member is quite wrong. I have never said that there was any senior customs official, and he knows it.
Rt Hon Winston Peters: Why is the Minister now claiming that there is no connection with the senior customs official, and does she not understand that her arranged meeting with that official was a serious conflict of interest and a corrupt abuse of her Cabinet position?
Hon JUDITH COLLINS: No. The member is quite wrong again. He continues to state in his question matters that are incorrect. I would say to that member that if he is worrying about corruption, I think he should consider a member of Parliament who asks questions in this House and written questions to help his girlfriend in her position with a major global company.
Rt Hon Winston Peters: Does the Minister not understand that throwing out those sorts of allegations will not save her when she was moonlighting for her husband’s company, that her DNA is all over this issue, and that if she answers questions fully, she would no longer get the Prime Minister’s defence and would be sacked for corruption?
Hon JUDITH COLLINS: The only member of this House who should be sacked for corruption is that member who has asked the question.
Rt Hon Winston Peters: I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker. [Interruption]
Mr SPEAKER: Order! This is a point of order. It will be heard in silence.
Rt Hon Winston Peters: That Minister is not within the Standing Orders attempting to answer that question that way. She has been asked a serious question on a very serious matter—as serious as this House has ever seen—and she is seeking now to deflect it by attacking the questioner.
Mr SPEAKER: In my opinion, the Minister addressed the question.
Grant Robertson: I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker.
Mr SPEAKER: Before I hear any more, I just want to clarify the member is not in any way questioning the decision I have just made.
Grant Robertson: No, it is a different point of order. I am under the impression that in this House a member cannot accuse another member directly of being corrupt, and that is what the Minister just did.
Mr SPEAKER: No, I have already ruled that the answer was addressing the question and I think on this occasion, in light of the tone of the question, it adequately addressed it.
Rt Hon Winston Peters: I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker.
Mr SPEAKER: Again, before I hear the member, is he raising a fresh point of order?
Rt Hon Winston Peters: I am raising a fresh point of order. The Minister made an allegation for which she has no evidence whatsoever, and I want an apology.
Mr SPEAKER: If the member is now saying that he took offence, well, on that basis, if the member, the Rt Hon Winston Peters, was offended by that answer, I ask the honourable Minister to stand and withdraw.
Hon JUDITH COLLINS: Well, I withdraw—is it? I withdraw. But I am happy—
Mr SPEAKER: Order! It is not helpful to do that. The withdrawal does help the order of the House.
Rt Hon Winston Peters: I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker.
Mr SPEAKER: If the member is attempting to trifle with the Chair, I will take a very dim view of that.
Rt Hon Winston Peters: I am not trifling with the Chair, Mr Speaker. That Minister did not apologise as required under the Standing Orders—
Mr SPEAKER: Order! The member will resume his seat. [Interruption] The member will resume his seat. I did not ask the Minister to apologise; I asked her to withdraw the remark, and she did so.
Penny Bright
just tried to read this through but all the tory twerps are basically illiterate and functionally imbecilic.
I really cant understand what they are trying to say except that they are all shifty key arse kissers and desperate to please their masters. all in all a thundering herd of lobotomised warthogs.
Ohariu is Labours.
Peter Dunne is killed off politically by TV One 7oc show tonight.
The Legal High industry’s key advocate and government liaison person is none other that his son James Dunne!
http://www.chenpalmer.com/people/james-dunne/
http://tvnz.co.nz/seven-sharp
I can’t find anything that says James Dunne is “the Legal High Industry’s key advocate” or that shows Peter Dunne in a bad light? James Dunne deals with legal issues around such recreational drugs. Article that includes comments from James Dunne on legal highs.
The Seven Sharp site has a teaser on their site and on their Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/sevensharp?ref=stream&hc_location=stream
”
Tonight … a Seven Sharp exclusive! … Revelations that a lawyer is acting on behalf of the legal high companies is none other than the son of Minister Peter Dunne.
What do you think about this? ”
ps correction on my post. “Labour’s”. I missed the apostrophe key in my excitement
Hmmmm… I still need to see more information to show that this is a problem for Peter Dunne.
Perception is everything. No one is going to believe that father and son don’t talk and that daddy doesn’t listen to his son.
+1 DTB
Add to that Dunne’s very recent “economy of truth” about leaking some report and Dunne’s poor judgement in his behaviour towards some young journalist of the opposite gender.
The Legal Highs story is being pumped by the RadioLive/TV3 stable, under the Duncan Garner brand, on a daily basis. The problems arising from Dunne’s legislative approach is very hot in call-back land. TV3 will be pissed that TV One has trumped them with this explosive story. Each will now try to out-do the other on milking this story. Alfa-laval don’t make milking machines as effective as a miffed media outlet!
On top of that Ohariu is middle-class to the core. Even beggars in Ohariu are middle class! They will not like this narrative: Your local “independent” MP and serial government minister is failing to crack down on scummy legal-high peddlers. Co-incidentally that scummy industry is paying that Minister’s son a big wad of cash on a regular basis to negotiate with the Ministers civil servants….
Dunne’s other problem is that he is sanctimonious. Very very sanctimonious. Many many people love love seeing sanctimonious people fall.
that’s an optimistic scenario, i reckon
Even if the family relationship doubles as a backchannel, it’s not gonna go anywhere.
Oravida has more leg-power.
Oh dear, it appears that the Beehive hasn’t been reading the cabinet manual.
No of course not. You will know much more about the Cabinet Manual.
Cabinet Manual 2,89
Seems fairly clear to me that our PMs pic is being used as an endorsement and so is a few other ministers.
So what do you think 2.89 actually says, SSpylands?
Gonna try to tell us that ministers appearing in advertisements is cool?
[distantly, you can hear the screams of a troll being burned to the ground]
Gonna say sry now?
The accusations that Judith Collins made about girlfriends and corruption, anyone have any idea what she was on about? Had a distinctly whaleoilish smell about it. What a dreadful old gossip she is. Parliament gets more like absurdist theatre and pantomime every day.
Jrobin, it was very specifically directed at her accuser, Winston. It has been reported elsewhere that Winston’s lady was a senior exec of a pharmaceuticals related business.
Perhaps Collins is suggesting that Winston asked loaded questions in Parliament?
James Dunne
SENIOR ASSOCIATE – LEADER PARLIAMENT TEAM
James has valuable inside knowledge of how Parliament works in New Zealand, and is New Zealand’s leading specialist in the regulation of new psychoactives under the Psychoactive Substances Act 2013. He has an LLB and a BA (History) from Victoria University, and has worked at Chen Palmer since his admission to the bar in 2008. At Chen Palmer he specialises in policy and law reform, and has developed a wide range of expertise in a number of areas:
Policy and law reform: James has advised on a range of law reforms including liquor law reform, psychoactives law reform, real estate agents law reform, taxation law reform, and child support law reform;
Parliament: James advises on how Parliament works and on interacting with Parliamentary processes including the passage of legislation, Select Committees, financial reviews and issues of Parliamentary privilege; and
Regulatory affairs: James advises on the interface with a range of regulators including the Overseas Investment Off
Bill English want us to live in cupboards
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11238867
Wanker!
hmmm, that’s tricky. Minimum house sizes set too high prevent people from building small, more energy efficient and cheaper houses for themselves. The problem with NACT setting policy is that it’s bound to be to the advantage of developers, not the community. Also smacks of squashing as many low paid workers into one block as possible. At the other end, people of means are building houses that are too big in terms of ecological footprinting. Lots of problems here, not too many easy solutions.