$ 22 a week
‘Poverty, illness and living on less than the minimum wage.
The last time there was fresh produce on the table was more than two years ago.
After covering her basic expenses, Lynlie Beazley survives on just $22 per week and sometimes she sleeps on an empty stomach.
The west Auckland resident described herself as the “face of poverty” in the country.’
I read through Marie Brady’s paper on Chinese influence in NZ. Without being xenophobic, I’d be surprised if Winston went with National seeing how deeply they are funded by Chinese government front entities. But also how would he go with Labour, as there are some questionable involvements there too? I’m also surprised that there hasn’t been more journalistic enquiry, or maybe I’m not surprised.
“Denmark’s Housing for All policy is built on the belief that affordable, decent, quality housing for people from all income levels is the foundation of a healthy family and harmonious community.
We want that too. There’s a clamour for change, for breaking out of our traditional approach, to look fresh. Let’s become a nation of home makers who collaborate on devising a made in New Zealand housing accord that respects the dream for everyone here to have a decent place to call home and to participate on an even footing as a valued member of a living, nurturing democracy.”
Would have been nice to have said that two weeks ago Michael, or did granny hold on to it for a while.
But still, it’s the way forward. We’ve got a housing trust in Queenstown which is working, so far. Would be nice if it could have kept it’s charitable status but that’s a call for a new government to sort out to encourage more housing options.
I had a most disturbing conversation just now with a new immigrant (as in arrived since 2008) Fillipino guy I work with who basically is almost literally violently opposed to ANYONE but National being the government. He hates the idea of a coalition (coalitions are “a fucking weak clown show”) and as far as he is concerned Labour is unsetting the apple cart of of his carefully cultivated connections via church to National party people in his electorate. Now, this guy is a voting resident. It reinforced to me that a) only citizens should be able to vote, and b) citizenship shouldn’t just be a matter of timeserving then swearing an oath to the Queen, but should involve some sort of compulsory civics course – especially if you have come here from a third world shit hole run by a lunatic like the Phillipines is.
I am still taken aback at how angry this guy is at the idea Labour might form the next government, he just didn’t seem to grasp the point of democracy.
Not at all surprising – but as you know already, you are opening yourself up to the xenophobic label.
There’s been a couple of interesting MSM articles in the past about the numbers of people coming and being granted PR by country – eg UK US Aus China etc.
What there hasn’t been is the number of applications DECLINED (by country) – i.e. even as a percentage of the number of applications received by country.
That would show what a complete farce the points system is. It’d also be interesting to see it by year (for the past nine years).
A very good signal that National has successfully captured yet another immigrant sector away from Labour. They had no other home, and National selected Filipinos – the one in New Lynn came within 1800 votes of taking a seat that Labour had held since the seat was formed after World War 2.
After 9 years of Natz I think it would be very revealing to know the voting behaviour of all our “hand picked” immigrants. 90% of the ones I know are greedy me-me’s.
The Electoral Commission has NO WAY of knowing whether enrolled voters are even eligible to vote.
There is no data matching with Department of Internal Affairs, nor Immigration NZ.
There is no requirement to declare yourself a citizen or a permanent resident on the enrolment forms.
There are NO checks and balances to ascertain whether people who are enrolled to vote, are even eligible to do so.
There are specific concrete examples I am aware of, where immigrants, on student visa, work visa, and tourist visas, have enrolled to vote and have done so.
They have done this because they are aware that there is no ability for their vote to be discarded. All that is required is their name, and an address. They provide the address of a long term friend / family member and they get away with it.
I think we should restrict voting to just citizens only. Failing that, restricting it to citizens only, and permanent residents who have been here since 1973.
Voting is a privilege. Not a right. The fact we allow every Tom, Wing and Patel to vote without checking their credentials makes a complete mockery and a farce of our democratic rights.
If 500,000 immigrants over the last 9 years have registered to vote, and have done so, imaging the skewing effect that would have on our proportional representation.
There is a lack of understanding in the nuances of our political history by immigrants. The example of the filipino above, who clearly hasn’t lived in NZ under a Labour government, would have NO idea how good they actually are for NZ as a whole.
The whole system as it is right now, is far too open for abuse. NZ is only of only FIVE countries that allow non-citizens to vote. We share this ridiculous situation with:
Is it fair to say to someone in the Far North “Don’t bitch about there being no employment up there, uproot yourself from your whanau, go to Christchurch, you’ll get a job there”. Is it just as fair to say to the person described should Labour form a government, “Don’t bitch, go somewhere else”? Without being called racist or xenophobic?
Re- the Filipino guy. Think I might be able to help you there.
Here’s what I understand has been going on:
Paulo Garcia – the former Filipino Consul General and National’s candidate in New Lynn – spent the past few weeks/months travelling around the country bad mouthing Labour big time. He used his connections to the Filipino Catholic Church groups to facilitate his campaigning. Our candidate on the Shore, Romy Udanga also travelled the country trying to reassure the Filipino communities they had nothing to fear from Labour. I don’t know the outcome, but I gather things turned nasty presumably when Garcia discovered Romy was also talking to the communities.
Born to rule authoritarian types again. Btw, Romy Uganda’s academic qualifications far outstripped the Nat. man so that wouldn’t have helped.
From your post he did not see to be against democracy, only against coalitions. It is a position that people can take, even if it is a bit unrealistic.
Obviously he prefers National. So do 46% of the voters who voted. He might hold those views strongly. But you only have to read this site to see that many people do, at least on the internet.
Maybe we generally expect people to be more circumspect when face to face in person.
Personally I would like to see less invective on the internet. Just because someone has a different view does not make them evil or criminal, and there is no need to make such accusations.
Not actually aimed at you, but I am sure you have read such posts on this and other political sites.
He preferred National because he was brainwashed into believing National good… everybody else bad. He has no knowledge or understanding of the NZ political system and its history. Naturally the Nat government would like to keep it that way.
If we are to have all these immigrants coming into the country then it is incumbent on the government of the day to introduce a civics course they must attend before being granted NZ citizenship. Of course we know that’s the last thing National will agree to because the more ignorant they remain the better for National eh?
We can’t have these immigrants ‘getting learned’ can we. They might get uppity and start voting for the Labour Party. (sarc)
Anne – you don’t need to be a citizen to vote. Hell, you don’t even need to be a resident given the lack of checks and balances in place to determine a voters eligibility.
It is wrong that many thousands of individuals in this country are given the same voting rights as NZ citizens when half of them can’t even speak the language let alone have any idea what they’re voting for. They are screwing and skewering out election outcomes and that is not acceptable.They should have to attend a civics course at the least before being allowed on the electoral roll. Once they understand our political system they become eligible to vote in our elections.
On this matter alone it is essential NZ First go with Labour so that the issue will be dealt with once and for all. National might pay lip service to doing something about it, but they never will because it is not in their interest to do anything.
To be honest, I don’t think many politicians are even aware that this rort is taking place.
Like I said, there is nothing in place for the Electoral Commission to ascertain an enrolled voters eligibility. It’s why there are foreign students enrolling to vote (and are voting) despite not being eligible to do so.
It’s because they know that the Electoral Commission don’t have any way of knowing whether they are enrolling correctly eligible people.
We run an honesty system when it comes to voting rights in this country.
At least for citizenship applications there is a kind of civics course that covers the democracy and the rule of law. However, it is a reasonable point that it should also apply to permanent residency, given that permanent residents can vote after 12 months.
Which on international terms is very generous. Maybe 3 year PR would be better to qualify for the vote.
I agree with you John Anderson @4.6.1.2.1
The 12 month period before becoming eligible to vote goes back many decades to a time when 90% of our immigrants came from English speaking nations with democratically elected governments similar to our own.
However, the scenario has dramatically changed in the past 10 years and it is imperative the law applying to voting rights is accordingly amended. Your suggestion they be required to have gained eligibility for citizenship before they can vote in NZ is the obvious answer.
The point is, Wayne, is that people who are here since 2008, and come from foreign cultures, generally have a mindset that the “governing power” is what let them into the country, and so they “reward” them for doing so.
No thought is given to the actual realities of the effect that governing power has on the long term. In the case of National, it is bereft of long term ideas. Muldoon was the last National MP that was able to think long term. We didn’t get a long term government after him, until 2000 when Labour set up Kiwibank, Kiwisaver and the NZ superannuation fund
I haven’t seen any long term policies enacted by National. All their policies and laws since 2008 have been short termist, insular, and never focused on the long term.
Businesses can get away with 2 – 5 year short term thinking. Governments should be focused on 20 years out, with minor meddling when required on short term policy settings.
As for the 46% – given that the Electoral Commission allows anyone to register, without any checks and balances in place to determine said eligbility, are you surprised we have foreign students registering to vote? Nothing is stopping them as they know the Electoral Commission have no way of knowing the visa status of people who enrol. It’s all done on an honesty basis, and to be honest, honesty seems to be in short supply when it comes to people who are “backing bill”
Most countries reserve voting as a privilege, not a right.
I agree with the franchise. Just not to every man and his bastard dog.
If you want to vote, become a citizen. Prove your allegiance.
Permanent residency is not allegiance. Nor is being able to rort the electoral system knowing that the Electoral Commission have no way of knowing whether people who are registering to vote even have the right to.
They don’t even ask if you’re a permanent resident or a citizen ffs.
I registered a fake person last night. Signed it, sent it through. I have no doubt that new person will end up on the electoral roll.
I think Winston knows this all too well.
I don’t agree with him on simplistic solutions regarding immigration, but the situation – especially during the Gnat’s reign has caused real problems for all to see.
Bollocks to residents having to prove allegience. Get the lazy bum stay at home citizen voters to prove it first by participating in their own democracy.
As a permanent resident for nigh on 20 years I’m no more a kiwi now than I was when I got off the plane, but as a law abiding tax payer ever since, it would be a travesty to remove my voting rights.
The travesty was giving you voting rights without requiring you become a citizen first. As I’m fairly sure whatever other countries you’re a citizen of require. I was permanent resident here for around 15 years and voted in two elections before becoming a citizen and it certainly felt weird to me.
Given the right, that’s correct.
It may be the case for new residents in the future, or the eligibility period increased, but it would I’m sure it’s never going to be taken away from me, so moot.
But let us not get all xenophobic just because of national’s imported blue dragons. That’s a different argument altogether.
Just out of curiosity if it came down to it, would there be a downside to you of becoming an NZ citizen? Such as having to give up your citizenship of another country or worldwide tax or pension implications? There weren’t any in my case since my other nationality is US and I would never have any interest in taking any kind of position where that dual nationality might raise eyebrows.
Labour /greens should stay away from anything more than c and f from nzf , at only a 1 to at best 3 seat majority the risk is too high of one of the loons in nzf bring down the house , and labour will be the one blamed ,
Not so sure about that. Waka jumpers are not well regarded in NZ. If the coalition collapsed because NZF as a party pulled out, maybe. But a couple of MPs jumping to National? I think they’re be scorned, not Labour.
Perhaps you can explain how you are going to bring this scenario about.
Who is going to be able to persuade Winston to provide C & S to a Labour Green Government when he gets nothing at all from them? Even the Green Party who have prostituted themselves to Labour aren’t willing to do such a thing.
Even if Winston was willing to do so his party members will not be at all happy.
They are far more likely to jump- ship and support National than they are to stay with Winston First.
i’m of the fuck im the nats can have him mindset ,in saying that winston may want it as he could back policy he likes from both sides that way while insureing stable gov .
a three way is too unstable , when they only just get enough seats, of course a lab nzf with greens in c and s is the other mix and would surely be on more than one parties mind .
Well…another typical Waikato spring morning. There was a bit of rain overnight, not that its needed as there’s green, green, green as far as the eye can see. Grass is growing faster than the cows could possibly eat it so why the fuck has the neighbouring dairy farmer (~1000 cows) got his irrigation boom going full blast????
They had the chopper in last week spreading some kind of fertiliser, so I guess they’re making sure that all of it is properly sluiced off and into the Waipa River, just over the fence from the boom.
When you think about it…no surprise that these people are stupid enough to think the CEO of their company is worth paying $4000 per hour.
Think about that next time some whining dairy farmer gets on the radio claiming poverty.
“Today, agriculture in New Zealand is bankrupt, as it was in 1985. Then it was an economic failure, particularly in the sheep industry. The sector was propped up by $1.2 billion of taxpayer funding under the Supplementary Minimum Price regime, most of it paid out in just two years to 1984. Adjusted for inflation, that would be $4b today.
No…its water. Not even a hint of shit. Besides, the farm has a newish pond for the cowshed waste and I’m pretty sure the regs wouldn’t allow discharge in any fashion so close to the river.
However, this is the Waikato, where the regulations are loosely enforced.
beatie….thanks for the link and thank goodness the fb page is open so those of us who don’t do facebook can read the story.
i have no doubt at all that this happened the way described.
I have encountered the exact same response from farmers and farm workers (I have a theory about required IQ levels for farm workers), albeit not over contamination of waterways.
A brave stand, and wise to take photos…but consider perhaps a go pro set up, discretely mounted, so you can record visual and sound.
I too got the line from the Regional Council and CAA that photos must be taken to properly identify the offender and any vehicle being used in commission of the offense. Back 7 years ago I’d have to trespass on the cocky’s land to photgraph identification marks….noticed just last week that these craft now have the ID numbers prominently displayed on the side of the aircraft. Makes my job much easier and marks a small but significant advance for us.
I know the Mokihinui, have caught fish at the river mouth and have relatives in the area.
Unfortunately down here the Regional Council are a big part of the problem. Comprised of farmers and gold miners who police themselves and their cronies by way of wet bus-ticket fines and penalties (if any)
When you live long enouh you see it all. I’ve seen political parties born grow and die like the MP . I’ve heard every political excuse out.
For me the greens dropped the ball. I don’t agree that MT outing herself was some massive thing. She wanted out she is out. The greens have lost support – no great win there. The green supporters underminned their only hope labour – not smart imo. The greens will never go into talks with the gnats – must keep the purity pure. Over it. Some will say you weren’t a proper green anyway and that is true. I’m sick of bullshit for sure.
New Zealand is well overdue for a new political party to form.
The Greens have a chance to recover, but also the chance to die at .9% away from parliamentary death. A coalition with either government coalition will probably kill them because their membership tends to wilt at the first sign of compromise.
Labour has lost much of its base within the immigrant community and among core urban seats in Auckland. They have lost the massive Chinese community which is over 25% of some electorates and over 20% in others.
United is dead.
The Maori Party: weeping at its tangi.
Act: put a fork in it.
Mana: splat.
Democrats: couldn’t fill a phonebox.
Conservative Party: unressurectable
That’s a reasonable-scale sized democratic wreckage for one election.
National stand astride our political world – renewed, refreshed, well funded, achieving little, delivering the small state.
TOP may well be the one that makes it – the y have all the Green policies and more, but they have the willingness to coalition with whomever will get the most of those policies in.
That doesn’t mean some evil will beset us like the Alternative for Germany people.
It means New Zealand is well overdue for a new political party to form that will guide that rag-tag battlefleet of waifs and strays and turn it into something new and strong.
That kind of arrogance in the face of a really poor result will see the Greens go the same was as the other parties listed. No political party is immortal, and like companies, they either grow safely, or they stagnate and die.
We collectively voted for change. I did. You did.
So how come we deride the ideas espoused by TOP?
We should be a fertile ground for ideas to improve our lot rather than become National-like in a stolid hanging on to the status quo.
(I have it on good authority that the Labour tax working group have Guaranteed Universal Income on their consideration list.)
Some of Morgan’s ideas are harmful. When I see pro TOP people engaging meaningfully on that I’ll be more willing to talk about the good ideas that have.
Btw would you be ok with TOP supporting National over L/G if they’d got 5%?
Leave the Green movement alone all you nay sayers. It is a far stronger movement than you can write off just like that. Look to our founding principles and realize there will always be support if there is no betrayal.
We will not become centrists, we will not go into coalition with hard line free market Capitalists.
“Some of Morgan’s ideas are harmful.” That is like saying that the ideas of any or all parties are “harmful.” That is no way to start a discussion.
I did not vote for TOP but I see the future as being vitally in need of some very different ways of managing society. But those new ideas will not get a hearing if we deny them before they are uttered. Some see the outspoken Morganisms as denial of any reasoned ideas. Not so.
Morgan was quoted yesterday as saying he’d be in negotiating with national already had they got 5%. Hope that isn’t lost on the idiot fringe on the left who were seduced by his moustache and fake left policies.
When AD says a new party needs to form, the by product of his apparent on going sustained attack on the greens, is to create a new coalition partner for the nasty party.
He never fooled me, zero sincerity and his past actions on Property speculation, selling businesses etc is all you needed to extrapolate where he would end up.
I’m not talking about ideas so much, as organisational structures. They are difficult to build, and will not be easily wiped away with one election – look at NZF – sat one term out, but kept working away from the main arena.
The Greens have a well-organised system, strong membership…. and they are still in the House. They they are not going anywhere soon.
There is strong support among some Maori for the Mp. It’s not going to die that quickly.
ACT has been slowly dying.
There is room for new parties, but they require a significant operating group, a well worked out philosophy, and a sense of relevance.
We are in a time of change. All 4 main parties in the current mix will be undergoing some change. People are done with the neoliberal philosophy, especially many of the young.
TOP belongs to the neoliberal wave when guys with money have tried to be a dominant force in politics. Change is coming.
To me green left is the way forward for the future.
But time will tell – my feeling is TOP, and the Internet Party (and Mana) will slowly die – they do not have the organisational or community involvement.
The Mp and the GP will continue, but may be somewhat reshaped. As will Labour and the Nats.
There is room for a strong left wing party, and a strong right wing one. They may develop over the next few years – but they will be reformations of some remnants of past parties – Alliance, Conservatives, maybe blue-environmentalists (lets not call them blue-greens as political greens are about more than just the environment).
The maori party can come back as a proper socialist party, nobody else is and it’s a natural fit to overall benefit all of Maoridom.
IMO nothing less than that will appease their base who punished them over state house sales, supporting the gutting of NZ by voting with nact and having arrogant leaders like Flavell/Fox.
Yep divide and conquer. Possibly they may have found their Mana again. But labour had some sorting out to do and they did it. Tough times ahead for many of us.
I have pretty mixed feelings about Labour getting all the Maori seats.
Few of Labour’s Maori MPs are strong politicians with the capacity to bang the table and get great dividends for Maori.
I have no idea if TOP will rise of fail, but your instinct about a capitalist environmental party is a possibility.
II think the National capture of the Chinese vote will become more powerful than the Labour capture of the Maori vote. But therein is also the potential for more ethnically-based splinter parties to emerge out of Auckland.
Ad
It appears that we need a dynamic leader that sounds rather like Hitler? Looking at the old but not totally out-dated Marien’s Guide to Public Policy Proposers you appear to be a Primitive Populist with the view that we are dominated by pointy-headed pseudo-intellectuals with proposal is to throw out briefcases and restore common sense.
But your solution is totally pragmatic based on what will win government power, which is in parallel with National. Is there no other way that you can conceive that would serve the half of NZ that wants thoughtful change that would better most of the people and the environment?
Charisma should not be mistaken for a sad slippery-slope argument towards totalitarianism. It’s a necessary element for any successful movement, full stop.
I am not currently in the mood for idealism while the coalition is formed, because that is precisely the time where really tough compromises are formed into deals to run an actual country. We campaign in poetry, we govern in prose.
For TOP to make it there’s a few things that will need to change.
Morgan needs to understand that gratuitous offensiveness as a political strategy only has a chance if it’s pandering to some base impulses, and the audience you’re seeking is strongly driven by those base impulses. Being gratuitously offensive about murdering moggies or “lipstick on a pig” comments aren’t going to attract the audience he’s seeking.
TOP needs to have a serious think about their CCT and whether that’s a policy that’s important enough to them that they’re willing to die in a ditch for it. It never really got publicity or critiqued, outside of “they want to tax people to live in their own homes”. But it’s got many other serious flaws that never got examined at all. If TOP ever really looks like it might break 5%, it will be torn to shreds over the CCT. It will certainly instantly put off any blue-green that takes a close look at it and starts thinking through the implications.
If anyone wants to emulate Winston Peters they need only start a “Renters and Home Buyers Party”. The nation has become divided on housing and there’s a big gap in the market for a party that puts renters and first home buyers first. You could count on at least 15% of the vote.
The newish Chinese immigrants by and large I imagine do not want immigration curbs, that’s why all the Chinese Commmunist Government money is going to the Nats.
If you think all those big donations from Chinese Government part owned ” NZ” companies are coming out of individuals own pockets you are dreaming.
And it is not racism when you are at war. We should be fighting for our survival as an independent country, but only one country knows we are in a war.
Guns have been replaced by money and influence.
I speculate that the current ‘take a knee’ actions in US nfl could catch on and be a clarion call across the nation.
As a protest against: institutional racism, growing inequality, the president….
On my OE, I went to a rodeo in Phoenix, Arizona.
This was at the time of Bush War One, early ’90’s.
A white stallion entered the arena with the rider bearing the stars and stripes.
After a short propaganda monologue lauding American might, the national anthem started (akin to the scene in borat).
We were young, idealistic and refused to stand.
Our host was mortified, and we left early.
On the way out he essentially said ‘I appreciate your right to protest, but a rodeo isn’t the place to express it’.
I remember the intense fury of my young civilian contractor colleagues at a US Army base at the news that Aussie soldiers by the pool had remained seated when the bugle for the flag ceremony was blowing, instead of standing to attention. They looked on me as a near-enough Australian so wanted me to tell them what was up wtih those guys who were lucky they didn’t get physically assaulted. It wasn’t really possible to explain the general disdain for nationalistic bullshit felt in our part of the world without giving offence, so I just pointed out I wouldn’t stand to attention for my own country’s flag, let alone someone else’s. They were horrified, but did accept from that point that antipodeans are unpatriotic barbarians who don’t stand to attention if they have a choice about it, so all’s well that ends well…
I remember a few builder mates of mine telling me of the time they went over to the states to watch the indie 500 and a bit of the Nascar series.
The anthem came on, everyone stood except the kiwis, not because they had a political agenda but because they weren’t American.
It was soon made clear that you better be standing and singing with pride otherwise you will be shot.
It’s a different world over there and it pays to be aware of the cultural differences.
One of the guys got arrested as a vagrant in one of the small towns because he was wearing work shorts and jandals, the Sheriff was all
“I don’t care where you’re from boy, you’re in America now, don’t dress like a god damn hobo!”
It’s a different world over there and it pays to be aware of the cultural differences.
Oh, sure – same as how you don’t want to be wearing a tank top and shorts showing off your tattoos and body piercings in Kuwait. You don’t pretend to be a conservative out of politeness, but because the locals are likely to get violent if you don’t. For all its self-proclaimed love of individual freedom, American culture is little different from other countries where the population consists of religious conservatives – authoritarian to a high degree.
USA has been indoctrinating and glamorising the military into sports and public events via their national anthem etc for a very long time. Thrilled we don’t do that here.
Well it is a hard one for a border post, more for the government to handle and I see that she is going to go to government.
I also see that Harvard University has cancelled a fellowship because she is classed as a felon. They would not want to harm their brand. And they seem to be the leader in teaching the pure theories of neo lib economics and the free market to politicians and aspiring leaders. Wouldn’t want to besmirch the image.
Wow interesting juxtaposition of weka and Anthony R posts.
Also interesting is this Standford University course on how to hone your mind and know what you really want to do and get a feeling of achievement. Obviously for most of us we don’t have a feeling of achievement. A new way of working and thinking and visualising the possible and the desirable is needed.
The Weiner gets 21 months in the slammer for sexting a minor. Can we add on 50 years for his contribution to delivering us T. Rump (officially known as Tyrannosaurus Arse)? Please?
I suspect that Hoskings is increasingly deranged. Seriously. His outpourings are getting hysterical. The Media no doubt need his style but that says more about the desperation of the Media.
Would there be any advantage in the Greens and Labour respectively asking their supporters to give their party vote to their party but their electoral vote to one specified candidate from one of the two parties. E.g. In Nelson Labour voters give their party vote to Labour but their candidate vote to the Green candidate.
There’s only a benefit if there’s a specific candidate you want to keep out (that isn’t certain to get in on a list) and a split left vote might let that candidate win. Such as the hairdo from Ohariu. Or Paulo Garcia in New Lynn.
In addition to the niche pro Andre mentioned, the con is that it gets portrayed as a hypocritical dirty deal that ends up doing more damage to the overall party vote than the advantage of beating candidate T.
E.g. you stop ACT getting an orphan MP, but lose 2% between greens and lab, which equals 2 or 3 labgrn list mps. Not much point to it.
Are we still talking about electorate MPs in rotten boroughs?
The best way is to beat the national patsy hands down.
the second best way is to make the number of patsies irrelevant to the outcome of the election, such as this time (apparently). The nats will knife their patsies themselves.
The absolute worst way is to horse-trade electorate fights between parties – nobody likes being treated like a bargaining chip, and it looks as corrupt as the nats are.
I believe the Green Party had a bequest that was conditional on them standing a candidate that took a serious tilt at unseating Nick Smith, and that candidate was Matt Lawrey.
Go figure, the only two left National thinks it could work with. No wonder Boag, Hooten think only the one party, with the largest vote should rule, all others bow down. Media Q&A PANEL backed up this myth, largest party must rule.
Welcome to one party MMP NATION. Wholely supported by the supine NZ MEDIA.
BTW: I guess that most people around here values your opinion about as much as I do. I deleted 8 comments before I found one that anyone had actually commented on. ]
Now let’s not be to hard on Theo of fonterra because I’m sure he’s not a neo liberal first point is milk in schools next there factory staff get good money and it’s a 20 billion dollar any were else and he would be on 50 million and the fonterra setup makes it a price maker and not a price taker nuff said
Points taken. But whether Fonterra is a price maker or taker and does some good things to be well regarded, it is excessive money for the CEO and this trend is an international one as you say. And further the criticism of putting most of our biccies in one churn is that Fonterra is in the commodity market with its skim milk, and we definitely are not price makers in that market.
I like Gordon Campbell’s whimsical observations about Joyce over on Scoop.
This is how he starts. Amusing.
Gordon Campbell: PPPs are Steven Joyce’s new imaginary friend
Like the kid in that Bruce Willis movie who could see dead people, Finance Minister Steven Joyce can see stuff (like holes in Labour budgets) that no-one else can see. So maybe it shouldn’t be all that surprising that Joyce can also see ‘efficiencies’ …More»
The problem to solve is how does one process millions of ltr of milk at peak production before it turns to yogurt one can not accurately forecast the weather so one can not accurately forecast peak production so during peak production some milk gets turned into milk powder.
Because we have a seasonal based Dairy system which is timed for peak grass production we have times when we have a shit load of milk .
Unlike other countries that feed all there cows rations in a feed bin. So they have a flat line milk supply which is easy to plan for.
But those systems are more vulnerable to price fluctuations I.E they go tits up when the milk price drops to much .
Our grass based system are more resilient to price fluctuations and the grass based milk is better nutritional and that is the reason why the REST of the World is envious of our Dairy industry Ka Pai
Chris Trotter writes – Had Zheng He’s fleet sailed east, not west, in the early Fifteenth Century, how different our world would be. There is little reason to suppose that the sea-going junks of the Ming Dynasty, among the largest and most sophisticated sailing vessels ever constructed, would have failed ...
David Farrar writes – Two articles give a useful contrast in balance. Both seek to be neutral explainer articles. This one in the Herald on Social Investment covers the pros and cons nicely. It links to critical pieces and talks about aspects that failed and aspects that are more ...
The tikanga regulations will compel law students to be taught that a system which does not conform with the rule of law is nevertheless law which should be observed and applied…Gary Judd KC writes – I have made a complaint to Parliament’s Regulation ...
The future of Te Huia, the train between Hamilton and Auckland, has been getting a lot of attention recently as current funding for it is only in place till the end of June. The government initially agreed to a five year trial, through to April 2026, but that was subject ...
TL;DR: Hamas has just agreed to Israel’s ceasefire plan. Nelson hospital’s rebuild has been cut back to save money. The OECD suggests New Zealand break up network monopolies, including in electricity. PM Christopher Luxon’s news conference on a prison expansion announcement last night was his messiest yet.Here’s my top six ...
A homicide in Ponsonby, a manhunt with a killer on the run. The nation’s leader stands before a press conference reassuring a frightened nation that he’ll sort it out, he’ll keep them safe, he’ll build some new prison spaces.Sorry what? There’s a scary dude on the run with a gun ...
Hi,I know it’s been awhile since there’s been any Webworm merch — and today that all changes!Over the last four months, I’ve been working with New Zealand artist Jess Johnson to create a series of t-shirts, caps and stickers that are infused with Webworm DNA — and as of right ...
The OECD’s chief economist yesterday laid it on the line for the new Government: bring the deficit under control or face higher Reserve Bank interest rates for longer. And to bring the deficit under control, she meant not borrowing for tax cuts. But there was more. Without policy changes—introducing a ...
After a hiatus of over four months Selwyn Manning and I finally got it together to re-start the “A View from Afar” podcast series. We shall see how we go but aim to do 2 episodes per month if possible. … Continue reading → ...
In 2008, the UK Parliament passed the Climate Change Act 2008. The law established a system of targets, budgets, and plans, with inbuilt accountability mechanisms; the aim was to break the cycle of empty promises and replace it with actual progress towards emissions reduction. The law was passed with near-universal ...
Buzz from the Beehive Local Water Done Well – let’s be blunt – is a silly name, but the first big initiative to put it into practice has gone done well. This success is reflected in the headline on an RNZ report:District mayors welcome Auckland’s new water deal with ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate ConnectionsA farmworker cleans the solar panels of a solar water pump in the village of Jagadhri, Haryana Country, India. (Photo credit: Prashanth Vishwanathan/ IWMI) Decisions made in India over the next few years will play a key role in global ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – The Children’s Minister, Karen Chhour, intends to repeal Section 7AA from the Oranga Tamariki Act 1989 because it creates conflict between claimed Crown Treaty obligations and the child’s best interests. In her words, “Oranga Tamariki’s governing principles and its act should be colour ...
Geoffrey Miller writes – The gloves are off. That might seem to be the undertone of surprisingly tough talk from New Zealand’s foreign and trade ministers. Winston Peters, the foreign minister, may be facing legal action after making allegations about former Australian foreign minister Bob Carr on Radio New Zealand. ...
Brian Easton writes – This is about the time that the Treasury will be locking up its economic forecasts to be published in the 2024 Budget Economic and Fiscal Update (BEFU) on budget day, 30 May. I am not privy to what they will be (I will report on them ...
TL;DR:Winston Peters is reported to have won a budget increase for MFAT. David Seymour wanted his Ministry of Regulation to be three times bigger than the Productivity Commission. Simeon Brown is appointing a Crown Monitor to Watercare to protect the Claytons Crown Guarantee he had to give ratings agencies ...
The gloves are off. That might seem to be the undertone of surprisingly tough talk from New Zealand’s foreign and trade ministers. Winston Peters, the foreign minister, may be facing legal action after making allegations about former Australian foreign minister Bob Carr on Radio New Zealand. Carr had made highly ...
I could be a florist'Round the corner from Rye LaneI'll be giving daisies to craziesBut, baby, I'll wrap you up real safe Oh, I can give you flowers At the end of every dayFor the center of your table, a rainbowIn case you have people 'round to stay Depending on ...
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to May 12 include:PM Christopher Luxon is scheduled to hold a post-Cabinet news conference at 4 pm today. Finance Minister Nicola Willis will give a pre-budget speech on Thursday.Parliament sits from Question Time at 2pm on ...
The price of the foreign affairs “reset” is now becoming apparent, with Defence set to get a funding boost in the Budget. Finance Minister Nicola Willis has confirmed that it will be one of the few votes, apart from Health and Education and possibly Police, which will get an increase ...
A listing of 26 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 28, 2024 thru Sat, May 4, 2024. Story of the week "It’s straight out of Big Tobacco’s playbook. In fact, research by John Cook and his colleagues ...
Yesterday I received come lovely feedback following my Star Wars themed newsletter. A few people mentioned they’d enjoyed reading the personal part at the beginning.I often begin newsletters with some memories, or general thoughts, before commencing the main topic. This hopefully sets the mood and provides some context in which ...
April 30 was going to be the day we’d be calling Mum from London to wish her a happy birthday. Then it became the day we would be going to St. Paul's at Evensong to remember her. The aim of the cathedral builders was to find a way to make their ...
Rob MacCulloch writes – Can’t remember the last book by a Kiwi author you read? Think the NZ government should spend less on the arts in favor of helping the homeless? If so, as far as Newsroom is concerned, you probably deserve to be called a cultural ignoramus ...
Eric Crampton writes – Grudges are bad. Better to move on. But it can be fun to keep a couple of really trivial ones, so you’re not tempted to have other ones. For example, because of the rootkit fiasco of 2005, no Sony products in our household. ...
A new report warns an estimated third of the adult population have unmet need for health care.Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāHere’s the six key things I learned about Aotaroa’s political economy this week around housing, climate and poverty:Politics - Three opinion polls confirmed support for PM Christopher Luxon ...
Today is May the fourth. Which was just a regular day when my mother took me to see the newly released Star Wars at the Odeon in Rotorua. The queue was right around the corner. Some years later this day became known as Star Wars Day, the date being a ...
Buzz from the Beehive Much more media attention is being paid to something Winston Peters said about former Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr than to a speech he delivered to the New Zealand China Council. One word is missing from the speech: AUKUS. But AUKUS loomed large in his considerations ...
Is the economy in another long stagnation? If so, why?This is about the time that the Treasury will be locking up its economic forecasts to be published in the 2024 Budget Economic and Fiscal Update (BEFU) on budget day, 30 May. I am not privy to what they will be ...
The annual list of who's been bribing our politicians is out, and journalists will no doubt be poring over it to find the juiciest and dirtiest bribes. The government's fast-track invite list is likely to be a particular focus, and we already know of one company on the list which ...
In the weeks after the October 7 Hamas attacks on Southern Israel I wrote about the possible 2nd, 3rd and even 4th order effects of the conflict. These included new fronts being opened in the West Bank (with Hamas), Golan … Continue reading → ...
Peter Dunne writes – It is one of the oldest truisms that there is never a good time for MPs to get a pay rise. This week’s announcement of pay raises of around 2.8% backdated to last October could hardly have come at a worse time, with the ...
David Farrar writes – Newshub reports: Newshub can reveal a fresh allegation of intimidation against Green MP Julie-Anne Genter. Genter is subject to a disciplinary process for aggressively waving a book in the face of National Minister Matt Doocey in the House – but it’s not the first time ...
The Treasury has published a paper today on the global productivity slowdown and how it is playing out in New Zealand: The productivity slowdown: implications for the Treasury’s forecasts and projections. The Treasury Paper examines recent trends in productivity and the potential drivers of the slowdown. Productivity for the whole economy ...
Winston Peters’ comments about former Australian foreign minister look set to be an ongoing headache for both him and Luxon. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for subscribers features co-hosts and , along with regular guests on Gaza and ...
These puppet strings don't pull themselvesYou're thinking thoughts from someone elseHow much time do you think you have?Are you prepared for what comes next?The debating chamber can be a trying place for an opposition MP. What with the person in charge, the speaker, typically being an MP from the governing ...
The land around Lyme Regis, where Meryl Streep once stood, in a hood, on the Cobb, is falling into the sea.MerylThe land around Lyme Regis, around the Cobb that made it rich, has always been falling slowly but surely into the sea. Read more ...
Buzz from the Beehive Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters was bound to win headlines when he set out his thinking about AUKUS in his speech to the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. The headlines became bigger when – during an interview on RNZ’s Morning Report today – he criticised ...
The Post reports on how the government is refusing to release its advice on its corrupt Muldoonist fast-track law, instead using the "soon to be publicly available" refusal ground to hide it until after select committee submissions on the bill have closed. Fast-track Minister Chris Bishop's excuse? “It's not ...
As pressure on it grows, the livestock industry’s approach to the transition to Net Zero is increasingly being compared to that of fossil fuel interests. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / Getty ImagesTL;DR: Here’s the top five news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa-NZ this week, and a discussion above ...
The New Zealand Herald reports – Stats NZ has offered a voluntary redundancy scheme to all of its workers as a way to give staff some control over their “future” amidst widespread job losses in the public sector. In an update to staff this morning, seen by the Herald, Statistics New Zealand ...
On Werewolf/Scoop, I usually do two long form political columns a week. From now on, there will be an extra column each week about music and movies. But first, some late-breaking political events:The rise in unemployment numbers for the March quarter was bigger than expected – and especially sharp ...
David Farrar writes – The Herald reports: TVNZ says it is dealing with about 50 formal complaints over its coverage of the latest 1News-Verian political poll, with some viewers – as well as the Prime Minister and a former senior Labour MP – critical of the tone of the 6pm report. ...
Muriel Newman writes – When Meridian Energy was seeking resource consents for a West Coast hydro dam proposal in 2010, local Maori “strenuously” objected, claiming their mana was inextricably linked to ‘their’ river and could be damaged. After receiving a financial payment from the company, however, the Ngai Tahu ...
Alwyn Poole writes – “An SEP,’ he said, ‘is something that we can’t see, or don’t see, or our brain doesn’t let us see, because we think that it’s somebody else’s problem. That’s what SEP means. Somebody Else’s Problem. The brain just edits it out, it’s like a ...
Our trust in our political institutions is fast eroding, according to a Maxim Institute discussion paper, Shaky Foundations: Why our democracy needs trust. The paper – released today – raises concerns about declining trust in New Zealand’s political institutions and democratic processes, and the role that the overuse of Parliamentary urgency ...
This article was prepared for publication yesterday. More ministerial announcements have been posted on the government’s official website since it was written. We will report on these later today …. Buzz from the BeehiveThere we were, thinking the environment is in trouble, when along came Jones. Shane Jones. ...
New Zealand now has the fourth most depressed construction sector in the world behind China, Qatar and Hong Kong. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 8:46am on Thursday, May 2:The Lead: ...
Hi,I am just going to state something very obvious: American police are fucking crazy.That was a photo gracing the New York Times this morning, showing New York City police “entering Columbia University last night after receiving a request from the school.”Apparently in America, protesting the deaths of tens of thousands ...
Winston Peters’ much anticipated foreign policy speech last night was a work of two halves. Much of it was a standard “boilerplate” Foreign Ministry overview of the state of the world. There was some hardening up of rhetoric with talk of “benign” becoming “malign” and old truths giving way to ...
Graham Adams assesses the fallout of the Cass Review — The press release last Thursday from the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls didn’t make the mainstream news in New Zealand but it really should have. The startling title of Reem Alsalem’s statement — “Implementation of ‘Cass ...
This open-for-business, under-new-management cliché-pockmarked government of Christopher Luxon is not the thing of beauty he imagines it to be. It is not the powerful expression of the will of the people that he asserts it to be. It is not a soaring eagle, it is a malodorous vulture. This newest poll should make ...
The latest labour market statistics, showing a rise in unemployment. There are now 134,000 unemployed - 14,000 more than when the National government took office. Which is I guess what happens when the Reserve Bank causes a recession in an effort to Keep Wages Low. The previous government saw a ...
Three opinion polls have been released in the last two days, all showing that the new government is failing to hold their popular support. The usual honeymoon experienced during the first year of a first term government is entirely absent. The political mood is still gloomy and discontented, mainly due ...
National's Finance Minister once met a poor person.A scornful interview with National's finance guru who knows next to nothing about economics or people.There might have been something a bit familiar if that was the headline I’d gone with today. It would of course have been in tribute to the article ...
Rob MacCulloch writes – Throughout the pandemic, the new Vice-Chancellor-of-Otago-University-on-$629,000 per annum-Can-you-believe-it-and-Former-Finance-Minister Grant Robertson repeated the mantra over and over that he saved “lives and livelihoods”.As we update how this claim is faring over the course of time, the facts are increasingly speaking differently. NZ ...
Chris Trotter writes – IT’S A COMMONPLACE of political speeches, especially those delivered in acknowledgement of electoral victory: “We’ll govern for all New Zealanders.” On the face of it, the pledge is a strange one. Why would any political leader govern in ways that advantaged the huge ...
Bryce Edwards writes – The list of former National Party Ministers being given plum and important roles got longer this week with the appointment of former Deputy Prime Minister Paula Bennett as the chair of Pharmac. The Christopher Luxon-led Government has now made key appointments to Bill ...
TL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 10:06am on Wednesday, May 1:The Lead: Business confidence fell across the board in April, falling in some areas to levels last seen during the lockdowns because of a collapse in ...
Over the past 36 hours, Christopher Luxon has been dong his best to portray the centre-right’s plummeting poll numbers as a mark of virtue. Allegedly, the negative verdicts are the result of hard economic times, and of a government bravely set out on a perilous rescue mission from which not ...
Auckland Transport have started rolling out new HOP card readers around the network and over the next three months, all of them on buses, at train stations and ferry wharves will be replaced. The change itself is not that remarkable, with the new readers looking similar to what is already ...
Completed reads for April: The Difference Engine, by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling Carnival of Saints, by George Herman The Snow Spider, by Jenny Nimmo Emlyn’s Moon, by Jenny Nimmo The Chestnut Soldier, by Jenny Nimmo Death Comes As the End, by Agatha Christie Lord of the Flies, by ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
Have a story to share about St Paul’s, but today just picturesPopular novels written at this desk by a young man who managed to bootstrap himself out of father’s imprisonment and his own young life in a workhouse Read more ...
The list of former National Party Ministers being given plum and important roles got longer this week with the appointment of former Deputy Prime Minister Paula Bennett as the chair of Pharmac. The Christopher Luxon-led Government has now made key appointments to Bill English, Simon Bridges, Steven Joyce, Roger Sowry, ...
Newsroom has a story today about National's (fortunately failed) effort to disestablish the newly-created Inspector-General of Defence. The creation of this agency was the key recommendation of the Inquiry into Operation Burnham, and a vital means of restoring credibility and social licence to an agency which had been caught lying ...
The Government needs to be clear with the people of the Nelson Marlborough region about the changes it is considering for the Nelson Hospital rebuild, Labour health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall said. ...
Ministers must front up about which projects it will push through under its Fast Track Approvals legislation, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
The Government is again adding to New Zealand’s growing unemployment, this time cutting jobs at the agencies responsible for urban development and growing much needed housing stock. ...
With Minister Karen Chhour indicating in the House today that she either doesn’t know or care about the frontline cuts she’s making to Oranga Tamariki, we risk seeing more and more of our children falling through the cracks. ...
The Labour Party is saddened to learn of the death of Sir Robert Martin, a globally renowned disability advocate who led the way for disability rights both in New Zealand and internationally. ...
Labour is calling for the Government to urgently rethink its coalition commitment to restart live animal exports, Labour animal welfare spokesperson Rachel Boyack said. ...
Today’s Financial Stability Report has once again highlighted that poverty and deep inequality are political choices - and this Government is choosing to make them worse. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to do more for our households in most need as unemployment rises and the cost of living crisis endures. ...
Unemployment is on the rise and it’s only going to get worse under this Government, Labour finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds said. Stats NZ figures show the unemployment rate grew to 4.3 percent in the March quarter from 4 percent in the December quarter. “This is the second rise in unemployment ...
The New Zealand Labour Party welcomes the entering into force of the European Union and New Zealand free trade agreement. This agreement opens the door for a huge increase in trade opportunities with a market of 450 million people who are high value discerning consumers of New Zealand goods and ...
The National-led Government continues its fiscal jiggery pokery with its Pharmac announcement today, Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall says. “The government has increased Pharmac funding but conceded it will only make minimal increases in access to medicine”, said Ayesha Verrall “This is far from the bold promises made to fund ...
This afternoon’s interim Waitangi Tribunal report must be taken seriously as it affects our most vulnerable children, Labour children’s spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime. ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced Rosemary Banks will be New Zealand’s next Ambassador to the United States of America. “Our relationship with the United States is crucial for New Zealand in strategic, security and economic terms,” Mr Peters says. “New Zealand and the United States have a ...
The Government is considering creating a new tier of minerals permitting that will make it easier for hobby miners to prospect for gold. “New Zealand was built on gold, it’s in our DNA. Our gold deposits, particularly in regions such as Otago and the West Coast have always attracted fortune-hunters. ...
Minister for Trade Todd McClay today announced that New Zealand and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will commence negotiations on a free trade agreement (FTA). Minister McClay met with his counterpart UAE Trade Minister Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi in Dubai, where they announced the launch of negotiations on a ...
New Zealand Sign Language Week is an excellent opportunity for all Kiwis to give the language a go, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. This week (May 6 to 12) is New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) Week. The theme is “an Aotearoa where anyone can sign anywhere” and aims to ...
Six tertiary students have been selected to work on NASA projects in the US through a New Zealand Space Scholarship, Space Minister Judith Collins announced today. “This is a fantastic opportunity for these talented students. They will undertake internships at NASA’s Ames Research Center or its Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), where ...
New Zealanders will be safer because of a $1.9 billion investment in more frontline Corrections officers, more support for offenders to turn away from crime, and more prison capacity, Corrections Minister Mark Mitchell says. “Our Government said we would crack down on crime. We promised to restore law and order, ...
The OECD’s latest report on New Zealand reinforces the importance of bringing Government spending under control, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The OECD conducts country surveys every two years to review its members’ economic policies. The 2024 New Zealand survey was presented in Wellington today by OECD Chief Economist Clare Lombardelli. ...
The Government has delivered on its election promise to provide a financially sustainable model for Auckland under its Local Water Done Well plan. The plan, which has been unanimously endorsed by Auckland Council’s Governing Body, will see Aucklanders avoid the previously projected 25.8 per cent water rates increases while retaining ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters discussed the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and enhanced cooperation in the Pacific with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock during her first official visit to New Zealand today. "New Zealand and Germany enjoy shared interests and values, including the rule of law, democracy, respect for the international system ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop today released his decision on four recommendations referred to him by the Western Bay of Plenty District Council, opening the door to housing growth in the area. The Council’s Plan Change 92 allows more homes to be built in existing and new ...
Thank you, John McKinnon and the New Zealand China Council for the invitation to speak to you today. Thank you too, all members of the China Council. Your effort has played an essential role in helping to build, shape, and grow a balanced and resilient relationship between our two ...
The Government is modernising insurance law to better protect Kiwis and provide security in the event of a disaster, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly announced today. “These reforms are long overdue. New Zealand’s insurance law is complicated and dated, some of which is more than 100 years old. ...
The coalition Government is refreshing its approach to supporting pay equity claims as time-limited funding for the Pay Equity Taskforce comes to an end, Public Service Minister Nicola Willis says. “Three years ago, the then-government introduced changes to the Equal Pay Act to support pay equity bargaining. The changes were ...
Structured literacy will change the way New Zealand children learn to read - improving achievement and setting students up for success, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “Being able to read and write is a fundamental life skill that too many young people are missing out on. Recent data shows that ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay says Canada’s refusal to comply in full with a CPTPP trade dispute ruling in our favour over dairy trade is cynical and New Zealand has no intention of backing down. Mr McClay said he has asked for urgent legal advice in respect of our ‘next move’ ...
The rights of our children and young people will be enhanced by changes the coalition Government will make to strengthen oversight of the Oranga Tamariki system, including restoring a single Children’s Commissioner. “The Government is committed to delivering better public services that care for our most at-risk young people and ...
The Government is making it easier for minor changes to be made to a building consent so building a home is easier and more affordable, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on making it easier and cheaper to build homes so we can ...
New Zealand lost a true legend when internationally renowned disability advocate Sir Robert Martin (KNZM) passed away at his home in Whanganui last night, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. “Our Government’s thoughts are with his wife Lynda, family and community, those he has worked with, the disability community in ...
Good evening – Before discussing the challenges and opportunities facing New Zealand’s foreign policy, we’d like to first acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. You have contributed to debates about New Zealand foreign policy over a long period of time, and we thank you for hosting us. ...
From today, passengers travelling internationally from Auckland Airport will be able to keep laptops and liquids in their carry-on bags for security screening thanks to new technology, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Creating a more efficient and seamless travel experience is important for holidaymakers and businesses, enabling faster movement through ...
People with an interest in the health of Northland’s marine ecosystems are invited to a public meeting to discuss how to deal with kina barrens, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones will lead the discussion, which will take place on Friday, 10 May, at Awanui Hotel in ...
Kiwi exporters are $100 million better off today with the NZ EU FTA entering into force says Trade Minister Todd McClay. “This is all part of our plan to grow the economy. New Zealand's prosperity depends on international trade, making up 60 per cent of the country’s total economic activity. ...
There are heartening signs that the extractive sector is once again becoming an attractive prospect for investors and a source of economic prosperity for New Zealand, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The beginnings of a resurgence in extractive industries are apparent in media reports of the sector in the past ...
The return of the historic Ō-Rākau battle site to the descendants of those who fought there moved one step closer today with the first reading of Te Pire mō Ō-Rākau, Te Pae o Maumahara / The Ō-Rākau Remembrance Bill. The Bill will entrust the 9.7-hectare battle site, five kilometres west ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has announced 25 new high-speed EV charging hubs along key routes between major urban centres and outlined the Government’s plan to supercharge New Zealand’s EV infrastructure. The hubs will each have several chargers and be capable of charging at least four – and up to 10 ...
The coalition Government will not proceed with the previous Government’s plans to regulate residential property managers, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “I have written to the Chairperson of the Social Services and Community Committee to inform him that the Government does not intend to support the Residential Property Managers Bill ...
The Government has announced an independent review into the disability support system funded by the Ministry of Disabled People – Whaikaha. Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston says the review will look at what can be done to strengthen the long-term sustainability of Disability Support Services to provide disabled people and ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith has attended the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva and outlined the Government’s plan to restore law and order. “Speaking to the United Nations Human Rights Council provided us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while responding to issues and ...
The Government and Rotorua Lakes Council are committed to working closely together to end the use of contracted emergency housing motels in Rotorua. Associate Minister of Housing (Social Housing) Tama Potaka says the Government remains committed to ending the long-term use of contracted emergency housing motels in Rotorua by the ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay heads overseas today for high-level trade talks in the Gulf region, and a key OECD meeting in Paris. Mr McClay will travel to Riyadh to meet with counterparts from Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). “New Zealand’s goods and services exports to the Gulf region ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford has outlined six education priorities to deliver a world-leading education system that sets Kiwi kids up for future success. “I’m putting ambition, achievement and outcomes at the heart of our education system. I want every child to be inspired and engaged in their learning so they ...
The new NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) App is a secure ‘one stop shop’ to provide the services drivers need, Transport Minister Simeon Brown and Digitising Government Minister Judith Collins say. “The NZTA App will enable an easier way for Kiwis to pay for Vehicle Registration and Road User Charges (RUC). ...
Whānau with tamariki growing up in emergency housing motels will be prioritised for social housing starting this week, says Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka. “Giving these whānau a better opportunity to build healthy stable lives for themselves and future generations is an essential part of the Government’s goal of reducing ...
Racing Minister Winston Peters has paid tribute to an icon of the industry with the recent passing of Dave O’Sullivan (OBE). “Our sympathies are with the O’Sullivan family with the sad news of Dave O’Sullivan’s recent passing,” Mr Peters says. “His contribution to racing, initially as a jockey and then ...
Assalaamu alaikum, greetings to you all. Eid Mubarak, everyone! I want to extend my warmest wishes to you and everyone celebrating this joyous occasion. It is a pleasure to be here. I have enjoyed Eid celebrations at Parliament before, but this is my first time joining you as the Minister ...
Associate Health Minister David Seymour has announced Pharmac’s largest ever budget of $6.294 billion over four years, fixing a $1.774 billion fiscal cliff. “Access to medicines is a crucial part of many Kiwis’ lives. We’ve committed to a budget allocation of $1.774 billion over four years so Kiwis are ...
Hon Paula Bennett has been appointed as member and chair of the Pharmac board, Associate Health Minister David Seymour announced today. "Pharmac is a critical part of New Zealand's health system and plays a significant role in ensuring that Kiwis have the best possible access to medicines,” says Mr Seymour. ...
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The two faces of inequality in New Zealand.
$160 000 a week
‘Fonterra chief executive Theo Spierings earned a total of $8.32 million in 2017, a 57 per cent jump from last year. ‘
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/97212718/fonterra-ceo-theo-spierings-paid-832m-this-year
$ 22 a week
‘Poverty, illness and living on less than the minimum wage.
The last time there was fresh produce on the table was more than two years ago.
After covering her basic expenses, Lynlie Beazley survives on just $22 per week and sometimes she sleeps on an empty stomach.
The west Auckland resident described herself as the “face of poverty” in the country.’
https://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/local-news/western-leader/96992301/poverty-illness-and-living-on-less-than-the-minimum-wage
And 46% of New Zealanders voted to maintain the status quo.
There are words for people like that.
although I wonder how many of the 46% believed the promises of hospitals and halved poverty this time?
46%? Where did you get that figure?
That’s right Brigid, Nowhere near 46% when you count the non voters and spoiled votes.
I read through Marie Brady’s paper on Chinese influence in NZ. Without being xenophobic, I’d be surprised if Winston went with National seeing how deeply they are funded by Chinese government front entities. But also how would he go with Labour, as there are some questionable involvements there too? I’m also surprised that there hasn’t been more journalistic enquiry, or maybe I’m not surprised.
https://www.wilsoncenter.org/sites/default/files/for_website_magicweaponsanne-mariesbradyseptember2017.pdf
Yes good point that dailey, well thought out.
Strange days indeed. Michael Barnett is chief executive of the Auckland Chamber of Commerce seems to have had an epiphany on housing.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11926368
“Denmark’s Housing for All policy is built on the belief that affordable, decent, quality housing for people from all income levels is the foundation of a healthy family and harmonious community.
We want that too. There’s a clamour for change, for breaking out of our traditional approach, to look fresh. Let’s become a nation of home makers who collaborate on devising a made in New Zealand housing accord that respects the dream for everyone here to have a decent place to call home and to participate on an even footing as a valued member of a living, nurturing democracy.”
Would have been nice to have said that two weeks ago Michael, or did granny hold on to it for a while.
But still, it’s the way forward. We’ve got a housing trust in Queenstown which is working, so far. Would be nice if it could have kept it’s charitable status but that’s a call for a new government to sort out to encourage more housing options.
Pity Michael Barnett didn’t bark about his wishes for more ‘affordable’ housing before the election!!
But that may have damaged national even further then.
I had a most disturbing conversation just now with a new immigrant (as in arrived since 2008) Fillipino guy I work with who basically is almost literally violently opposed to ANYONE but National being the government. He hates the idea of a coalition (coalitions are “a fucking weak clown show”) and as far as he is concerned Labour is unsetting the apple cart of of his carefully cultivated connections via church to National party people in his electorate. Now, this guy is a voting resident. It reinforced to me that a) only citizens should be able to vote, and b) citizenship shouldn’t just be a matter of timeserving then swearing an oath to the Queen, but should involve some sort of compulsory civics course – especially if you have come here from a third world shit hole run by a lunatic like the Phillipines is.
I am still taken aback at how angry this guy is at the idea Labour might form the next government, he just didn’t seem to grasp the point of democracy.
Not at all surprising – but as you know already, you are opening yourself up to the xenophobic label.
There’s been a couple of interesting MSM articles in the past about the numbers of people coming and being granted PR by country – eg UK US Aus China etc.
What there hasn’t been is the number of applications DECLINED (by country) – i.e. even as a percentage of the number of applications received by country.
That would show what a complete farce the points system is. It’d also be interesting to see it by year (for the past nine years).
A very good signal that National has successfully captured yet another immigrant sector away from Labour. They had no other home, and National selected Filipinos – the one in New Lynn came within 1800 votes of taking a seat that Labour had held since the seat was formed after World War 2.
After 9 years of Natz I think it would be very revealing to know the voting behaviour of all our “hand picked” immigrants. 90% of the ones I know are greedy me-me’s.
There’s something even more insidious to this
The Electoral Commission has NO WAY of knowing whether enrolled voters are even eligible to vote.
There is no data matching with Department of Internal Affairs, nor Immigration NZ.
There is no requirement to declare yourself a citizen or a permanent resident on the enrolment forms.
There are NO checks and balances to ascertain whether people who are enrolled to vote, are even eligible to do so.
There are specific concrete examples I am aware of, where immigrants, on student visa, work visa, and tourist visas, have enrolled to vote and have done so.
They have done this because they are aware that there is no ability for their vote to be discarded. All that is required is their name, and an address. They provide the address of a long term friend / family member and they get away with it.
I think we should restrict voting to just citizens only. Failing that, restricting it to citizens only, and permanent residents who have been here since 1973.
Voting is a privilege. Not a right. The fact we allow every Tom, Wing and Patel to vote without checking their credentials makes a complete mockery and a farce of our democratic rights.
If 500,000 immigrants over the last 9 years have registered to vote, and have done so, imaging the skewing effect that would have on our proportional representation.
There is a lack of understanding in the nuances of our political history by immigrants. The example of the filipino above, who clearly hasn’t lived in NZ under a Labour government, would have NO idea how good they actually are for NZ as a whole.
The whole system as it is right now, is far too open for abuse. NZ is only of only FIVE countries that allow non-citizens to vote. We share this ridiculous situation with:
Malawi
Ecuador
Paraguay and;
Chile.
Such illustrious company we keep.
wow!! I seem to remember an article where Winston talked about this voting factor and the pensions. How it could easily be rorted.
Is it fair to say to someone in the Far North “Don’t bitch about there being no employment up there, uproot yourself from your whanau, go to Christchurch, you’ll get a job there”. Is it just as fair to say to the person described should Labour form a government, “Don’t bitch, go somewhere else”? Without being called racist or xenophobic?
Re- the Filipino guy. Think I might be able to help you there.
Here’s what I understand has been going on:
Paulo Garcia – the former Filipino Consul General and National’s candidate in New Lynn – spent the past few weeks/months travelling around the country bad mouthing Labour big time. He used his connections to the Filipino Catholic Church groups to facilitate his campaigning. Our candidate on the Shore, Romy Udanga also travelled the country trying to reassure the Filipino communities they had nothing to fear from Labour. I don’t know the outcome, but I gather things turned nasty presumably when Garcia discovered Romy was also talking to the communities.
Born to rule authoritarian types again. Btw, Romy Uganda’s academic qualifications far outstripped the Nat. man so that wouldn’t have helped.
https://i.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/95869217/abortion-goes-against-his-conscience-says-nationals-new-lynn-candidate
Sanctuary,
From your post he did not see to be against democracy, only against coalitions. It is a position that people can take, even if it is a bit unrealistic.
Obviously he prefers National. So do 46% of the voters who voted. He might hold those views strongly. But you only have to read this site to see that many people do, at least on the internet.
Maybe we generally expect people to be more circumspect when face to face in person.
Personally I would like to see less invective on the internet. Just because someone has a different view does not make them evil or criminal, and there is no need to make such accusations.
Not actually aimed at you, but I am sure you have read such posts on this and other political sites.
Obviously he prefers National.
He preferred National because he was brainwashed into believing National good… everybody else bad. He has no knowledge or understanding of the NZ political system and its history. Naturally the Nat government would like to keep it that way.
If we are to have all these immigrants coming into the country then it is incumbent on the government of the day to introduce a civics course they must attend before being granted NZ citizenship. Of course we know that’s the last thing National will agree to because the more ignorant they remain the better for National eh?
We can’t have these immigrants ‘getting learned’ can we. They might get uppity and start voting for the Labour Party. (sarc)
Anne – you don’t need to be a citizen to vote. Hell, you don’t even need to be a resident given the lack of checks and balances in place to determine a voters eligibility.
Thanks for the correction. You’re right.
It is wrong that many thousands of individuals in this country are given the same voting rights as NZ citizens when half of them can’t even speak the language let alone have any idea what they’re voting for. They are screwing and skewering out election outcomes and that is not acceptable.They should have to attend a civics course at the least before being allowed on the electoral roll. Once they understand our political system they become eligible to vote in our elections.
On this matter alone it is essential NZ First go with Labour so that the issue will be dealt with once and for all. National might pay lip service to doing something about it, but they never will because it is not in their interest to do anything.
To be honest, I don’t think many politicians are even aware that this rort is taking place.
Like I said, there is nothing in place for the Electoral Commission to ascertain an enrolled voters eligibility. It’s why there are foreign students enrolling to vote (and are voting) despite not being eligible to do so.
It’s because they know that the Electoral Commission don’t have any way of knowing whether they are enrolling correctly eligible people.
We run an honesty system when it comes to voting rights in this country.
It’s completely bizarre.
Anne,
At least for citizenship applications there is a kind of civics course that covers the democracy and the rule of law. However, it is a reasonable point that it should also apply to permanent residency, given that permanent residents can vote after 12 months.
Which on international terms is very generous. Maybe 3 year PR would be better to qualify for the vote.
The question is, why should permanent residents get the right to vote after 12 months?
Surely an equivalent length of time to that required to live in NZ before applying for citizenship should be apropos?
I agree with you John Anderson @4.6.1.2.1
The 12 month period before becoming eligible to vote goes back many decades to a time when 90% of our immigrants came from English speaking nations with democratically elected governments similar to our own.
However, the scenario has dramatically changed in the past 10 years and it is imperative the law applying to voting rights is accordingly amended. Your suggestion they be required to have gained eligibility for citizenship before they can vote in NZ is the obvious answer.
The point is, Wayne, is that people who are here since 2008, and come from foreign cultures, generally have a mindset that the “governing power” is what let them into the country, and so they “reward” them for doing so.
No thought is given to the actual realities of the effect that governing power has on the long term. In the case of National, it is bereft of long term ideas. Muldoon was the last National MP that was able to think long term. We didn’t get a long term government after him, until 2000 when Labour set up Kiwibank, Kiwisaver and the NZ superannuation fund
I haven’t seen any long term policies enacted by National. All their policies and laws since 2008 have been short termist, insular, and never focused on the long term.
Businesses can get away with 2 – 5 year short term thinking. Governments should be focused on 20 years out, with minor meddling when required on short term policy settings.
As for the 46% – given that the Electoral Commission allows anyone to register, without any checks and balances in place to determine said eligbility, are you surprised we have foreign students registering to vote? Nothing is stopping them as they know the Electoral Commission have no way of knowing the visa status of people who enrol. It’s all done on an honesty basis, and to be honest, honesty seems to be in short supply when it comes to people who are “backing bill”
Which is why National opened the gates and let every Tom, Wing and Patel in.
Just wondered who Peter Theil voted for. 🙂
Be fair. At least Thiel took out citizenship, even though he’s barely even visited us for a few brief moments.
Just wondered who Peter Theil voted for.
Yep. I wondered that too. Guess he was the voter which give ACT their 0.1 % average – he and Seymour, Prebble and a handful of underlings.
Sanc, how does it feel to be singing from the same page as David Farrar?
http://www.kiwiblog.co.nz/2017/07/nz_unusual_in_allowing_non_citizens_to_vote.html
It fucks with my head big time, that’s for sure.
Farrar isn’t wrong.
Most countries reserve voting as a privilege, not a right.
I agree with the franchise. Just not to every man and his bastard dog.
If you want to vote, become a citizen. Prove your allegiance.
Permanent residency is not allegiance. Nor is being able to rort the electoral system knowing that the Electoral Commission have no way of knowing whether people who are registering to vote even have the right to.
They don’t even ask if you’re a permanent resident or a citizen ffs.
I registered a fake person last night. Signed it, sent it through. I have no doubt that new person will end up on the electoral roll.
Does Winston know this???
You’d think he’d be all over it like the proverbial…
I think Winston knows this all too well.
I don’t agree with him on simplistic solutions regarding immigration, but the situation – especially during the Gnat’s reign has caused real problems for all to see.
Bollocks to residents having to prove allegience. Get the lazy bum stay at home citizen voters to prove it first by participating in their own democracy.
As a permanent resident for nigh on 20 years I’m no more a kiwi now than I was when I got off the plane, but as a law abiding tax payer ever since, it would be a travesty to remove my voting rights.
The travesty was giving you voting rights without requiring you become a citizen first. As I’m fairly sure whatever other countries you’re a citizen of require. I was permanent resident here for around 15 years and voted in two elections before becoming a citizen and it certainly felt weird to me.
Given the right, that’s correct.
It may be the case for new residents in the future, or the eligibility period increased, but it would I’m sure it’s never going to be taken away from me, so moot.
But let us not get all xenophobic just because of national’s imported blue dragons. That’s a different argument altogether.
Just out of curiosity if it came down to it, would there be a downside to you of becoming an NZ citizen? Such as having to give up your citizenship of another country or worldwide tax or pension implications? There weren’t any in my case since my other nationality is US and I would never have any interest in taking any kind of position where that dual nationality might raise eyebrows.
I’ve no real desire to be citizen, even though I meet the current criteria as set out by immigration, but sure the cost of applying is a barrier.
Perhaps it should be automatic, or at least the option given, after a set period of law abiding spent time .
Even David can’t be wrong all the time, just 95% of it.
A broken clock is right two times a day.
unless it’s digital 🙂
Thanks for sharing this at post 4 with us sanctuary much appreciated.
So it appears that these immigrants are schooled in immigration matters by this government before?
When I immigrated to canada many years ago we were sent to an ‘induction’ course’ as we arrived there.
Labour /greens should stay away from anything more than c and f from nzf , at only a 1 to at best 3 seat majority the risk is too high of one of the loons in nzf bring down the house , and labour will be the one blamed ,
Why would Labour be blamed for NZF waka jumpers?
if coalition collapsed most would blame the biggest party imho
Not so sure about that. Waka jumpers are not well regarded in NZ. If the coalition collapsed because NZF as a party pulled out, maybe. But a couple of MPs jumping to National? I think they’re be scorned, not Labour.
Perhaps you can explain how you are going to bring this scenario about.
Who is going to be able to persuade Winston to provide C & S to a Labour Green Government when he gets nothing at all from them? Even the Green Party who have prostituted themselves to Labour aren’t willing to do such a thing.
Even if Winston was willing to do so his party members will not be at all happy.
They are far more likely to jump- ship and support National than they are to stay with Winston First.
i’m of the fuck im the nats can have him mindset ,in saying that winston may want it as he could back policy he likes from both sides that way while insureing stable gov .
a three way is too unstable , when they only just get enough seats, of course a lab nzf with greens in c and s is the other mix and would surely be on more than one parties mind .
“of course a lab nzf with greens in c and s is the other mix and would surely be on more than one parties mind .”
That might be true but I don’t think that the Greens are one of the parties considering it. From a James Shaw interview.
“The Green Party would be unlikely to sign up to that kind of deal,” he told The AM Show on Monday. “We are in politics in order to make change.”
http://www.newshub.co.nz/home/election/2017/09/greens-unlikely-to-back-labour-nz-first-from-outside-the-tent.html
He sounded a little more obliging a couple of days ago but I think he realised what a hole he was digging and what it would enable Winston to demand.
Well…another typical Waikato spring morning. There was a bit of rain overnight, not that its needed as there’s green, green, green as far as the eye can see. Grass is growing faster than the cows could possibly eat it so why the fuck has the neighbouring dairy farmer (~1000 cows) got his irrigation boom going full blast????
They had the chopper in last week spreading some kind of fertiliser, so I guess they’re making sure that all of it is properly sluiced off and into the Waipa River, just over the fence from the boom.
When you think about it…no surprise that these people are stupid enough to think the CEO of their company is worth paying $4000 per hour.
Think about that next time some whining dairy farmer gets on the radio claiming poverty.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/country/340179/farmers-batten-down-their-hatches-post-election
The only reason they are crying poverty is their debt levels are so high ?
Could very well be.
But whose fault is that?
We’re talking about a group who flag wave for the right…the parties of personal responsibility and all that.
And Bankrupt!
“Today, agriculture in New Zealand is bankrupt, as it was in 1985. Then it was an economic failure, particularly in the sheep industry. The sector was propped up by $1.2 billion of taxpayer funding under the Supplementary Minimum Price regime, most of it paid out in just two years to 1984. Adjusted for inflation, that would be $4b today.
Rod Oram explains why here:
https://www.newsroom.co.nz/2017/09/25/49857/rod-oram-farmings-bankrupt-time-for-natural-capital
is it a big one or a little one . if it’s little ish it’s most likely spreading the cowshed waste , which has pretty strict regs you will find .
No…its water. Not even a hint of shit. Besides, the farm has a newish pond for the cowshed waste and I’m pretty sure the regs wouldn’t allow discharge in any fashion so close to the river.
However, this is the Waikato, where the regulations are loosely enforced.
Meanwhile down here on the West Coast this shit is happening,
https://www.facebook.com/CleanupOurWaterways/posts/1439821476101015?pnref=story
beatie….thanks for the link and thank goodness the fb page is open so those of us who don’t do facebook can read the story.
i have no doubt at all that this happened the way described.
I have encountered the exact same response from farmers and farm workers (I have a theory about required IQ levels for farm workers), albeit not over contamination of waterways.
A brave stand, and wise to take photos…but consider perhaps a go pro set up, discretely mounted, so you can record visual and sound.
I too got the line from the Regional Council and CAA that photos must be taken to properly identify the offender and any vehicle being used in commission of the offense. Back 7 years ago I’d have to trespass on the cocky’s land to photgraph identification marks….noticed just last week that these craft now have the ID numbers prominently displayed on the side of the aircraft. Makes my job much easier and marks a small but significant advance for us.
I know the Mokihinui, have caught fish at the river mouth and have relatives in the area.
Thanks to CleanUpOurWaterways for the commitment.
kia kaha.
Unfortunately down here the Regional Council are a big part of the problem. Comprised of farmers and gold miners who police themselves and their cronies by way of wet bus-ticket fines and penalties (if any)
When you live long enouh you see it all. I’ve seen political parties born grow and die like the MP . I’ve heard every political excuse out.
For me the greens dropped the ball. I don’t agree that MT outing herself was some massive thing. She wanted out she is out. The greens have lost support – no great win there. The green supporters underminned their only hope labour – not smart imo. The greens will never go into talks with the gnats – must keep the purity pure. Over it. Some will say you weren’t a proper green anyway and that is true. I’m sick of bullshit for sure.
New Zealand is well overdue for a new political party to form.
The Greens have a chance to recover, but also the chance to die at .9% away from parliamentary death. A coalition with either government coalition will probably kill them because their membership tends to wilt at the first sign of compromise.
Labour has lost much of its base within the immigrant community and among core urban seats in Auckland. They have lost the massive Chinese community which is over 25% of some electorates and over 20% in others.
United is dead.
The Maori Party: weeping at its tangi.
Act: put a fork in it.
Mana: splat.
Democrats: couldn’t fill a phonebox.
Conservative Party: unressurectable
That’s a reasonable-scale sized democratic wreckage for one election.
National stand astride our political world – renewed, refreshed, well funded, achieving little, delivering the small state.
TOP may well be the one that makes it – the y have all the Green policies and more, but they have the willingness to coalition with whomever will get the most of those policies in.
That doesn’t mean some evil will beset us like the Alternative for Germany people.
It means New Zealand is well overdue for a new political party to form that will guide that rag-tag battlefleet of waifs and strays and turn it into something new and strong.
Hahahaha – TOP makes it over the Greens? Way to let your bias get in the way of logic.
The GP is a well organised party – with a philosophy of process and substance, and world wide connections.
TOP is a one man’s vanity project.
That kind of arrogance in the face of a really poor result will see the Greens go the same was as the other parties listed. No political party is immortal, and like companies, they either grow safely, or they stagnate and die.
We collectively voted for change. I did. You did.
So how come we deride the ideas espoused by TOP?
We should be a fertile ground for ideas to improve our lot rather than become National-like in a stolid hanging on to the status quo.
(I have it on good authority that the Labour tax working group have Guaranteed Universal Income on their consideration list.)
Some of Morgan’s ideas are harmful. When I see pro TOP people engaging meaningfully on that I’ll be more willing to talk about the good ideas that have.
Btw would you be ok with TOP supporting National over L/G if they’d got 5%?
Leave the Green movement alone all you nay sayers. It is a far stronger movement than you can write off just like that. Look to our founding principles and realize there will always be support if there is no betrayal.
We will not become centrists, we will not go into coalition with hard line free market Capitalists.
“Look to our founding principles and realize there will always be support if there is no betrayal.”
This.
Agreed
“Some of Morgan’s ideas are harmful.” That is like saying that the ideas of any or all parties are “harmful.” That is no way to start a discussion.
I did not vote for TOP but I see the future as being vitally in need of some very different ways of managing society. But those new ideas will not get a hearing if we deny them before they are uttered. Some see the outspoken Morganisms as denial of any reasoned ideas. Not so.
Morgan was quoted yesterday as saying he’d be in negotiating with national already had they got 5%. Hope that isn’t lost on the idiot fringe on the left who were seduced by his moustache and fake left policies.
When AD says a new party needs to form, the by product of his apparent on going sustained attack on the greens, is to create a new coalition partner for the nasty party.
Nice try, but no thanks, comrade Plastic.
He never fooled me, zero sincerity and his past actions on Property speculation, selling businesses etc is all you needed to extrapolate where he would end up.
Two ticks to that
Heh.
I suspect the Maori Party will reform.
I’m not talking about ideas so much, as organisational structures. They are difficult to build, and will not be easily wiped away with one election – look at NZF – sat one term out, but kept working away from the main arena.
The Greens have a well-organised system, strong membership…. and they are still in the House. They they are not going anywhere soon.
There is strong support among some Maori for the Mp. It’s not going to die that quickly.
ACT has been slowly dying.
There is room for new parties, but they require a significant operating group, a well worked out philosophy, and a sense of relevance.
We are in a time of change. All 4 main parties in the current mix will be undergoing some change. People are done with the neoliberal philosophy, especially many of the young.
TOP belongs to the neoliberal wave when guys with money have tried to be a dominant force in politics. Change is coming.
There may be a place for a capitalist environmental party – by the way, Green politics does lean left. It includes environmentalism (sometimes called ecological wisdom), social justice, anti-violence, and grass roots democracy.
That is not the more narrow, caring capitalist environmentalism of TOP. It does lean to the right in it’s MO and underlying principles.
Green parties around the world embrace social democracy and lean left.
To me green left is the way forward for the future.
But time will tell – my feeling is TOP, and the Internet Party (and Mana) will slowly die – they do not have the organisational or community involvement.
The Mp and the GP will continue, but may be somewhat reshaped. As will Labour and the Nats.
There is room for a strong left wing party, and a strong right wing one. They may develop over the next few years – but they will be reformations of some remnants of past parties – Alliance, Conservatives, maybe blue-environmentalists (lets not call them blue-greens as political greens are about more than just the environment).
The maori party can come back as a proper socialist party, nobody else is and it’s a natural fit to overall benefit all of Maoridom.
IMO nothing less than that will appease their base who punished them over state house sales, supporting the gutting of NZ by voting with nact and having arrogant leaders like Flavell/Fox.
Yep divide and conquer. Possibly they may have found their Mana again. But labour had some sorting out to do and they did it. Tough times ahead for many of us.
I have pretty mixed feelings about Labour getting all the Maori seats.
Few of Labour’s Maori MPs are strong politicians with the capacity to bang the table and get great dividends for Maori.
I have no idea if TOP will rise of fail, but your instinct about a capitalist environmental party is a possibility.
II think the National capture of the Chinese vote will become more powerful than the Labour capture of the Maori vote. But therein is also the potential for more ethnically-based splinter parties to emerge out of Auckland.
A new political party? ffs this fantasy is popular. Seems to be the go to strategy for everyone without any actual ideas.
And Māori. Does make sense for us and so that is what will happen.
Ad
It appears that we need a dynamic leader that sounds rather like Hitler? Looking at the old but not totally out-dated Marien’s Guide to Public Policy Proposers you appear to be a Primitive Populist with the view that we are dominated by pointy-headed pseudo-intellectuals with proposal is to throw out briefcases and restore common sense.
But your solution is totally pragmatic based on what will win government power, which is in parallel with National. Is there no other way that you can conceive that would serve the half of NZ that wants thoughtful change that would better most of the people and the environment?
Charisma should not be mistaken for a sad slippery-slope argument towards totalitarianism. It’s a necessary element for any successful movement, full stop.
I am not currently in the mood for idealism while the coalition is formed, because that is precisely the time where really tough compromises are formed into deals to run an actual country. We campaign in poetry, we govern in prose.
We campaign in poetry, we govern in broken English.
Well said Ad, TOP are a likely winner if they stick around and as politics as we know it changes.
For TOP to make it there’s a few things that will need to change.
Morgan needs to understand that gratuitous offensiveness as a political strategy only has a chance if it’s pandering to some base impulses, and the audience you’re seeking is strongly driven by those base impulses. Being gratuitously offensive about murdering moggies or “lipstick on a pig” comments aren’t going to attract the audience he’s seeking.
TOP needs to have a serious think about their CCT and whether that’s a policy that’s important enough to them that they’re willing to die in a ditch for it. It never really got publicity or critiqued, outside of “they want to tax people to live in their own homes”. But it’s got many other serious flaws that never got examined at all. If TOP ever really looks like it might break 5%, it will be torn to shreds over the CCT. It will certainly instantly put off any blue-green that takes a close look at it and starts thinking through the implications.
Agree. Anything that smells anti-female will die fast and hard in this media environment.
Its still quite possible that TOP will fold since it depends on the funding of one person.
If anyone wants to emulate Winston Peters they need only start a “Renters and Home Buyers Party”. The nation has become divided on housing and there’s a big gap in the market for a party that puts renters and first home buyers first. You could count on at least 15% of the vote.
The newish Chinese immigrants by and large I imagine do not want immigration curbs, that’s why all the Chinese Commmunist Government money is going to the Nats.
If you think all those big donations from Chinese Government part owned ” NZ” companies are coming out of individuals own pockets you are dreaming.
And it is not racism when you are at war. We should be fighting for our survival as an independent country, but only one country knows we are in a war.
Guns have been replaced by money and influence.
I speculate that the current ‘take a knee’ actions in US nfl could catch on and be a clarion call across the nation.
As a protest against: institutional racism, growing inequality, the president….
On my OE, I went to a rodeo in Phoenix, Arizona.
This was at the time of Bush War One, early ’90’s.
A white stallion entered the arena with the rider bearing the stars and stripes.
After a short propaganda monologue lauding American might, the national anthem started (akin to the scene in borat).
We were young, idealistic and refused to stand.
Our host was mortified, and we left early.
On the way out he essentially said ‘I appreciate your right to protest, but a rodeo isn’t the place to express it’.
How embarrassing for your host.
Typical left winger though, absolutely no situational awareness and the social graces of an angry drunk who’s shit themselves.
You were lucky you weren’t beaten within an inch of your life, hopefully, you’ve matured and have a bit more nous.
I remember the intense fury of my young civilian contractor colleagues at a US Army base at the news that Aussie soldiers by the pool had remained seated when the bugle for the flag ceremony was blowing, instead of standing to attention. They looked on me as a near-enough Australian so wanted me to tell them what was up wtih those guys who were lucky they didn’t get physically assaulted. It wasn’t really possible to explain the general disdain for nationalistic bullshit felt in our part of the world without giving offence, so I just pointed out I wouldn’t stand to attention for my own country’s flag, let alone someone else’s. They were horrified, but did accept from that point that antipodeans are unpatriotic barbarians who don’t stand to attention if they have a choice about it, so all’s well that ends well…
I remember a few builder mates of mine telling me of the time they went over to the states to watch the indie 500 and a bit of the Nascar series.
The anthem came on, everyone stood except the kiwis, not because they had a political agenda but because they weren’t American.
It was soon made clear that you better be standing and singing with pride otherwise you will be shot.
It’s a different world over there and it pays to be aware of the cultural differences.
One of the guys got arrested as a vagrant in one of the small towns because he was wearing work shorts and jandals, the Sheriff was all
“I don’t care where you’re from boy, you’re in America now, don’t dress like a god damn hobo!”
It’s a different world over there and it pays to be aware of the cultural differences.
Oh, sure – same as how you don’t want to be wearing a tank top and shorts showing off your tattoos and body piercings in Kuwait. You don’t pretend to be a conservative out of politeness, but because the locals are likely to get violent if you don’t. For all its self-proclaimed love of individual freedom, American culture is little different from other countries where the population consists of religious conservatives – authoritarian to a high degree.
So BM are you quite happy for this Country to keep going the American way ? Of course you are, you vote National.
“beaten within an inch of your life”
By whom, typical right wingers?
For not standing up?
BM, your thinking is rotten.
USA has been indoctrinating and glamorising the military into sports and public events via their national anthem etc for a very long time. Thrilled we don’t do that here.
In times of conflict, when the mainstream news media already tend to pound the drums of war, having sports audiences repeatedly exposed to pro-military messaging tilts the playing field further still.
For anyone who still thinks Canada is a shining example of the liberal left:
https://www.rt.com/news/404570-chelsea-manning-canada-ban/
Well it is a hard one for a border post, more for the government to handle and I see that she is going to go to government.
I also see that Harvard University has cancelled a fellowship because she is classed as a felon. They would not want to harm their brand. And they seem to be the leader in teaching the pure theories of neo lib economics and the free market to politicians and aspiring leaders. Wouldn’t want to besmirch the image.
Wow interesting juxtaposition of weka and Anthony R posts.
Also interesting is this Standford University course on how to hone your mind and know what you really want to do and get a feeling of achievement. Obviously for most of us we don’t have a feeling of achievement. A new way of working and thinking and visualising the possible and the desirable is needed.
It’s a long read, perhaps to break up into available time spots. If you find something good that applies to you and helps tell us all about it.
I would like to know and learn from anyone else. And I think many of us are gagging for ideas of how to be, feel more effective.
https://www.fastcompany.com/3044043/stanfords-most-popular-class-isnt-computer-science-its-something-much-m
I don’t see it happening. Politics in NZ are far too extreme and polarised.
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
Polarised between people who are duped by the National Party’s lies, and people who aren’t.
The Weiner gets 21 months in the slammer for sexting a minor. Can we add on 50 years for his contribution to delivering us T. Rump (officially known as Tyrannosaurus Arse)? Please?
http://edition.cnn.com/2017/09/25/politics/anthony-weiner-sentencing/index.html
Going out to mow the lawn. Might have to remove dog crap.So I practised first by reading this:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11926482
I suspect that Hoskings is increasingly deranged. Seriously. His outpourings are getting hysterical. The Media no doubt need his style but that says more about the desperation of the Media.
Ha Ha fucking Ha, I really really like that. Excellent.
Strategic Voting – serious question.
Would there be any advantage in the Greens and Labour respectively asking their supporters to give their party vote to their party but their electoral vote to one specified candidate from one of the two parties. E.g. In Nelson Labour voters give their party vote to Labour but their candidate vote to the Green candidate.
What are the pros and cons?
There’s only a benefit if there’s a specific candidate you want to keep out (that isn’t certain to get in on a list) and a split left vote might let that candidate win. Such as the hairdo from Ohariu. Or Paulo Garcia in New Lynn.
In Nelson another pro would be the greens getting an electorate and all the money and resources and profile that go with it.
I have been wondering why an ‘accommodation’ wasn’t made in Nelson.
In addition to the niche pro Andre mentioned, the con is that it gets portrayed as a hypocritical dirty deal that ends up doing more damage to the overall party vote than the advantage of beating candidate T.
E.g. you stop ACT getting an orphan MP, but lose 2% between greens and lab, which equals 2 or 3 labgrn list mps. Not much point to it.
OK, so if you accept that the left vote gets split amongst Green and Labour the best way forward is to get National voters to change sides?
Are we still talking about electorate MPs in rotten boroughs?
The best way is to beat the national patsy hands down.
the second best way is to make the number of patsies irrelevant to the outcome of the election, such as this time (apparently). The nats will knife their patsies themselves.
The absolute worst way is to horse-trade electorate fights between parties – nobody likes being treated like a bargaining chip, and it looks as corrupt as the nats are.
I believe the Green Party had a bequest that was conditional on them standing a candidate that took a serious tilt at unseating Nick Smith, and that candidate was Matt Lawrey.
Survivor island. Key gone, Turei, Dunne, Farvel, Little. Whose left? Peters and Shaw.
Go figure, the only two left National thinks it could work with. No wonder Boag, Hooten think only the one party, with the largest vote should rule, all others bow down. Media Q&A PANEL backed up this myth, largest party must rule.
Welcome to one party MMP NATION. Wholely supported by the supine NZ MEDIA.
[lprent: Answer https://thestandard.org.nz/metiria-tureis-legacy/#comment-1392256
BTW: I guess that most people around here values your opinion about as much as I do. I deleted 8 comments before I found one that anyone had actually commented on. ]
Little isn’t gone!!!
Now let’s not be to hard on Theo of fonterra because I’m sure he’s not a neo liberal first point is milk in schools next there factory staff get good money and it’s a 20 billion dollar any were else and he would be on 50 million and the fonterra setup makes it a price maker and not a price taker nuff said
Points taken. But whether Fonterra is a price maker or taker and does some good things to be well regarded, it is excessive money for the CEO and this trend is an international one as you say. And further the criticism of putting most of our biccies in one churn is that Fonterra is in the commodity market with its skim milk, and we definitely are not price makers in that market.
I like Gordon Campbell’s whimsical observations about Joyce over on Scoop.
This is how he starts. Amusing.
Gordon Campbell: PPPs are Steven Joyce’s new imaginary friend
Like the kid in that Bruce Willis movie who could see dead people, Finance Minister Steven Joyce can see stuff (like holes in Labour budgets) that no-one else can see. So maybe it shouldn’t be all that surprising that Joyce can also see ‘efficiencies’ …More»
The problem to solve is how does one process millions of ltr of milk at peak production before it turns to yogurt one can not accurately forecast the weather so one can not accurately forecast peak production so during peak production some milk gets turned into milk powder.
Because we have a seasonal based Dairy system which is timed for peak grass production we have times when we have a shit load of milk .
Unlike other countries that feed all there cows rations in a feed bin. So they have a flat line milk supply which is easy to plan for.
But those systems are more vulnerable to price fluctuations I.E they go tits up when the milk price drops to much .
Our grass based system are more resilient to price fluctuations and the grass based milk is better nutritional and that is the reason why the REST of the World is envious of our Dairy industry Ka Pai