‘Landlords are failing to meet their legal obligation to to disclose how much insulation is in their rental properties when they sign up new tenants, the Building and Construction Minister says.’
I read somewhere that one of the Scandinavian countries does fines as a % of taxable income. E.g a speeding ticket is three days’ income.
Can do similar to landlords: have a range of fine scales for various violations, from one week to 52 weeks’ rent, with the option of tenants having the right to zero-notice end to the lease if the infraction is for something with a max fine of over, say, 1 month’s rent.
Sounds on to it.
Double it for two rentals, treble for three…
Can’t see our property owning parliamentarians of either hue doing anything about it though.
I doubt many landlords would disclose P usage in the rental properties to the Council as it will appear on their LIM Reports about 5 years ago in real estate circles it was suggested 35% of rental properties in West Auckland showed evidence of P contamination.
P is a bigger problem than what most people actually realise and it is destroying families and communities. Evidently there is a new drug available in India called Crocodile which is 10 x more addictive than P and it makes the skin go green and wrinkly, I guess serious P users & dealers can’t wait to get there hands on it ?
any rental in NZ will show signs of P. Literally. Even high end properties would if tested show signs of P, Coke, la Marie Jeanne, and any other drugs.
Before i moved to West AKL i lived central and i can guarantee you that those well to do, soon to be doctors or lawyers use the same drugs to stay awake then the bogan in West AKL.
Go test all housing for P and be amused.
Crocodile has been making the rounds of Russia for years now, you can youtube that shit.
I believe that most P testing on housing is/was a sham that has helped the outgoing government remove housing nz tenants making way for state housing sales.
It has also helped carpet firms etc with sales and testing companies with an income.
With changed standards will they retest all the houses people were kicked out of?
$30 million spent by Housing NZ testing houses without researching appropriate guidelines first. Feels like an exploit to me, making out it’s all good now because they’ve changed guidelines.
Hundreds of people kicked out of housing nz properties, many given a black mark against their name as a result.
The precursors for this insipid drug come from Asia, too many high brows making money for the issue to be resolved with the current mob in power. Must be frustrating for many police atm, no wonder their moral is so low. Change the government
New Zealand sheeple are being farmed for rent & tax free capital gains. NatCorp ™ have been pimping our people and taonga around the world and found lots of buyers.
Forty of the boat builders behind the remarkable vessel which Emirates Team New Zealand sailed to America’s Cup glory were recently made redundant.
One former employee said he was “disgusted” that the company that built the boat, Southern Spars, had let him go after years of highly-specialised work.
AND found this too
BUT oracle boat builders got 17.25m from NZ!!!!!
America’s Cup team Oracle’s New Zealand-based boat builders get government grant
The company that builds the America’s Cup boats for Team New Zealand’s arch rivals Oracle has been awarded a $17.25 million grant by the New Zealand government.
So here we are again giving an American company $$ to exploit NZ ingenuity.
Pretty much sums up the whole short sighted approach by this Nats govt. MBIE seems to use the Callaghan Innovation Growth Grant as a pot of cash to disseminate to their friends and enablers without any real method of maintaining the innovation in NZ to benefit NZers in the long term.
The fund needs to lock in a return for the investment, surprise, surprise – just like banks or other investors handing over cash would demand. Currently it seems a good idea is bankrolled and ASAP the owners sell off shore – where’s the gain for NZ?? Or Fronterra once again get a check from this govt for R and D ( biggest company in the country and sucking on the tax payers still).
Ooh ooh (hopping around on one foot) shot myself in the foot again. Damn! We are just simple Kiwis who foul our own nest and self-mutilate so often it is no wonder that NZ is like a dead man walking.
The zombie nation, don’t let us get near you other citizens of the world or we will give your economies the kiss of death. Too late, Roger Douglas has already been on the talking head circuit telling gummints round the world how to ease the pearls out of the peoples’ oyster without immediately killing them.
The company that builds the America’s Cup boats for Team New Zealand’s arch rivals Oracle has been awarded a $17.25 million grant by the New Zealand government.
It comes in the form of a three-year research and development grant from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment to Warkworth boat building company Core Builders Composites.
The company, which is reportedly owned by Oracle Racing, is headed up by Kiwis Mark Turner and Tim Smyth and has been based in New Zealand since 2010.
The business specialises in sailing technology and built the AC72 catamarans which Oracle used in 2013 when they defended their America’s Cup title, beating Team New Zealand in San Francisco.
The news comes in the same week that Prime Minister John Key reiterated the government would be unlikely to help fund Team New Zealand’s next America’s Cup campaign after a challenger series mooted for Auckland was scrapped.
Although a wholly owned subsidiary of Oracle Racing, Core Builders Composites is a New Zealand company providing services to the American team and receives the grant as it has committed to furthering research and development in New Zealand.
Core Builders Composites was one of three companies to receive the Callaghan Innovation Growth Grant and must now commit $300,000 and spend at least 1.5 percent of its revenue on research and development as well as well as maintain or increase their spending in that area of the business over a three-year period.
Any truth in a story doing the rounds on Facebook about Paula Bennett claiming the DPB while in a relationship renting out her house while receiving a sudsidy from hnz to pay for a mortgage.
While living in a relationship in another house doing drugs a Drunken behaviour abusing children.
Any truth to Seymour having a clue about economics? He believes that food retail is competitive having only two companies in the marketplace. He’s a authoritarian, he apes all the rhetoric around libertarianism, free marketneo-lib but supports charter schools! He wants govt to tell poorer citizens what to teach yet supports the outsourcing of govt to a few boardrooms coz govt can’t be trusted.
IF (and that is a big IF) these allegations are PROVED to be true, then it would be a hell of a scalp. But as I said before, there has to be 100% proof here.
Can someone give this its own post r0b? It’s the main feature for today and the rest of the hunting season till the elections.
(I’m talking about the post Americas Cup debacle with people being sacked, and rorts and subsidies, grants to the sailing and business mates in other countries especially USA, our friends.)
Subject: Re: The Clear Water Action Plan
From Robert Atac
To Gareth Morgan
Date Today 09:14
Hi Gareth
I think you know a lot more than you let on,but maybe not?
It is very confusing, your public statements have mentioned our inaction on climate change clash with say your past promotion of Kiwisaver for one thing, and your political goals?
@405ppm CO2 and nearly 2 ppm CH4 humans are very much in the same position the dynasors were in when they saw the Syberian traps forming astroid flying through the atmosphere, except the they had a few thousand more years to get use to the fact that they were going extinct, as it took something like 10,000 years of constant volcanic action to do what humans have done in about 200 years.
Your constant promotion of growth is just compounding the situation, not that it matters for everything that is alive now as ‘we’ can not make the situation any worse.
Then there is the 440 neculer power plants, that will need upto 50 years of power inputs to prevent all of then going ‘Fuckashima’ dumping ton and tons of radiation into the atmosphere – causing the atmosphere to total burnoff.
You have got to spend a few hours listening to or reading professor Guy McPherson’s statements and summery of the true situation humans and the rest of life is in
I’m a 4th for dropout, so what would I know? But I have been following all this stuff for the past 18 years with an average of at least 2 hours a day reading about our future, and humans reaction to the truth, I can see you now looking like the 3 monkeys hear,see,say nothing. I know you will prove me right by you not telling the truth to the pig ignorant masses.
This system is a heat engine, even if all 7.3 billion of us went back to running around naked and living in caves it wouldn’t change the position we are locked into.
About the only thing the global ‘leaders’ could do to reduce future suffering (apart from mass sterlisation, or maybe including) is to stock pile sucide pills, I’m sure that would go down like a cup of cold sick.
I know these are just ‘movies’ but maybe it will help you get your head around what Guy and all the pear reviewed info he supplies is showing
The Road, 22After.Com, and for a resonably good depiction of why you are looking like a primate – Blind Spot
You are saying a lot of good things,but alas I think you are 200 years to late if not several thousand years, as this shirt storm has been on the cards since the first day we planted our first carrot 😉
On election day I will be tossing myself off, as George Carlin says, then at least I will have something to show for my efforts.
If any humans are alive in the next 10 – 20 years they will be radioactive canables.
Good luck with all you time wasting.
Regards Robert Atack
0274 301 574 http://Www.oilcrash.com
Robert Atack
Sincerely meant, and wisely said. There is no way to say anything in a calm or cool and decisive manner that will penetrate the frothy coffee miasma that rolls around in the heads of people who have houses and are earning enough money to have cars, travel, holidays and go to concerts. That is what is important to think about these days. So keep on shouting, someone might look up from their handheld life organisers and hear you.
And the fact that we can’t get a well-thought-out euthanasia, right to die when you want to, agreement passed into law is the biggest bell of those on the Joker’s cap that is this NZ government’s answer to the magic, all-knowing hat of JKRowling;s imagination. If only we could have a wise Sorting Hat as in Harry Potter.
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fA3dbvRCui0
And what a great sort of People’s Parliament if it went like this and despite all the extras that magic adds, there is more decorum and better procedures and results than we have now: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQZFWA2KDbw
Some real magic is needed from our imaginative brains to produce a better reality that matches the fictions that we can conjure up for art.
Happy Thursday to you to robert, bright and cherry this morning as usual Please less on tossing off as this raises disturbing imagery but again this is your contribution to population control and not diluting the world collective iq with your progeny so a gold star for you in this regard
Yeah sorry about the spelling mistakes- bottom of the form is English way back then, and currently one finger typing on a Samsung note thingie
But it does show you don’t have to be a brain surgeon to see the naked king.
My spelling is shit mate. I was trying to help because I know you believe. Morgan won’t be able to get it and as you know the politicans are pretty well mostly like the band on the titanic. I don’t agree with a lot of your conclusions but I do admire your tenacity. Kia kaha.
While the country is carrying on about Barclay, news emerges about the Tongaririo National park, the jewel in the country’s national park crown, being included in a treaty settlement. Which will see the new iwi owners/guardians set an entry fee.
An entry fee. No doubt the likes of marty mars will come in and carry on about iwi land rights and confiscation and so on, but we need to realise that Tongariro was GIFTED to the Crown so ALL NEW ZEALANDERS could use it.
This is wrong.
Very wrong.
It would be shameful for this to be waved through by Labour, New Zealand First and the Greens.
FFS Millsy, this is Maori land, if it’s part of a treaty settlement all well and good and if the Iwi who oversee it charge a fee for people to enjoy the land that is also their absolute right to do so.
Yeah.. I’m sure it was gifted so thousands of tourists could come and walk over what the iwi find sacred each and every day. At least they get some appropriate say in the management of it now.
“Which will see the new iwi owners/guardians set an entry fee.”
You do realise that DOC routinely charges fees for access to tracks on conservation estate?
In this case the hapū want to reduce tourism numbers. Looks like the state has been remiss in its management up until now.
If you want to have a go at someone, have a go at successive govt and NZers that insist on treating nature as a commodity and have pushed tourism numbers without regard for the impacts. Tourism is an extractive industry, this is just one of the consequences. Push back against that, because IME Māori are generally more than happy to share fairly where they are able to.
I understand that the track Tongariro Crossing is a pigs sty at the moment with rubbish and human filth everywhere caused by the overwhelming numbers of tourists. The track cannot cope with the number of visitors, like sometimes up to 3000 a day when the track can only take about 600 The local iwi is doing it’s best to clean the track up removing rubbish and filth as much as possible.
Good on them for charging, I also think it is about time more areas have to have a charge to see them to cope with the excessive numbers of tourists we have now.
Try and visit some of the small villages in the UK and you will be charged a fee to get in by the National Trust
It is about time something like a National Trust was set up in this country before the excessive number of tourists ruin this once great place.
Yep, and it’s a real shame it is coming to this because NZers shouldn’t be being pushed out of their own landscapes in order for someone to make tourism dollars. See my comment above, I’m not blaming Māori, I’m blaming people who think industrial tourism is a good thing.
Even under the most hopeful of predictions on sea level rise, lowlying homes in Dunedin are gone. If I was an owner of one of these homes, I’d be thinking of selling up soon, as its only a matter of time before their value will drop to almost nothing. No-one is going to take a 30 year mortgage on a property that will barely survive past its term. And it won’t be long before insurances will go up or be unavailable for such properties. Same goes for other vulnerable properties around New Zealand.
too late,
the netherlands have infrastructure in place several hundreds years old and they have always been forward thinking and forward building.
We however are still discussing if forcing landlords to upgrade their leaky moldy – not fit for dogs as per the SPCA – dwellings with 1! heating source and maybe some insulation. Cause that would hurt the landlord financially and rents would go up and and and and and
we are nowhere near the dutch model, not because we could not, but because we don’t want to. And i include all parties in that comment. The left can’t get its shit together if its life depends on it, and the right does not give a flying fuck so as long as they have theirs and will be right.
In saying that, i am waiting for the day were some solemn looking dudes in suits tell us that we must bail out the ‘homewoners’ that bought coastal McMansions cause they are underwater now and blahblablabaslblablabalblabal
because the will is not there.
someone else is gonna pay to fix the shit in a few years, and it ain’t gonna be them.
this is why we can’t have nice things. We want cheap shit that looks fancy.
Not sure about that – the Netherlands might have substantially different geology.
Sth Dn is basically on sandy marshland – dig down a foot in some places and you hit groundwater, non-salty simply because it’s runoff that percolates through pushing the saltwater aside. Or as one study put it: “Recent drilling investigations have characterised a sandy aquifer in hydraulic communication with the sea, including tidal fluctuations of the water table in proximity to the ocean.”
Dykes won’t work alone, and even constant pumping might be pissing into the wind depending on the extent of the “hydraulic communication”.
Not saying it couldn’t be done, it just might be cheaper and easier to relocate folks or give them canoes.
How many times can we ‘afford’ to relocate folks? Giving them canoes would not be an option as one would only make money once and that is not a good business model.
If you plan it properly, they only need to be relocated once.
Basically, what Dunedin does to resolve the south dunedin issue has as much to do with climate-change-associated global migration, or even NZ migration, as local weather has to do with climate.
“…it just might be cheaper and easier to relocate folks or give them canoes.”
Cheapest and easiest to just let the residents fend for themselves. Since it’s apparently not a high-income area and the locals are skilled in dealing with adversity through long experience, that’s probably what will happen. Unlike the snowflakes at places like Omaha, who will probably get all the protection the state can throw at them, poor dears.
“Cheapest and easiest to just let the residents fend for themselves. Since it’s apparently not a high-income area and the locals are skilled in dealing with adversity through long experience,”
I’m curious what you mean there. You mean they will find themselves some other land and build new houses themselves? Thought not. You mean they will engineer some solution on site to prevent the water from rising underneath them each time there is a big rain? Do you realise that South Dunedin has a lot of elderly and people with disabilities?
That was a cynical extrapolation of current government trends of withdrawing assistance from those that genuinely need it in favour of coddling the wealthy.
hang on,
surely Nationals Bennett would be happy to spend tax money to get homeless people rehomed and pay mega accomodation supplements to the owners of the buildings to compensate them for not being able to sell their underwater houses.
tbh, while I think that something needs to be done about that situation fairly, I also think it’s one of our lesser worries. We have plenty of space and can rehouse people. And we can sort out some assistance for that. But worrying about the mortgage in the face of CC that will cause massive upheavals globally and locally is like worrying if one has a cushion on the life boat off the titanic. Sorry, that’s a bit harsh, but it’s not like this is new in any way at all. We’ve been talking about sea level rise for a long time. Did people think it wouldn’t happen within the lifetime of their mortgage and they could pass the problem on to someone else?
More of a concern is how fast CC will hit things like our ability to grow food, and what will happen when we get a confluence of GFC, CC and Peak Oil.
@ Weka
More of a concern is how fast CC will hit things like our ability to grow food, and what will happen when we get a confluence of GFC, CC and Peak Oil.
many of us will die of preventable diseases and things tooth infections or a breech position cause a. we can’t afford the medical care, b. we are to far away from any medical care. This to me is what is the most frightening aspect. That due to lack of money, and access to medical services small things can go out of hand very quickly and will go very deadly. humans don’t need much to die – we are fragile that way.
i don’t think that trade etc will disappear, but it will be rationed and if many of us would be honest with themselves there literally is no reasons why rations would be wasted on us. Be that food, fuel, or transportation.
our communities will be more dangerous with the lack of lights. Dark streets make for good muggins.
sexual violence and domestic violence will be ‘domestic issues’ and no one will do much about it. cause thats just how it is and several different religious text will support such a system.
religion will replace law and secular government in regions where the government has opted out (this is what we are seeing in certain of the red states)
and so on and so on
but until such time, be sure for the same people who want to do nothing because we are making money to make a killing on all our demise.
I am forever grateful for not having had children. We are leaving them with nothing but misery.
Are you talking about NZ or globally? I’m not so worried about the health stuff in NZ. Yes there will be people affected by medical and surgical shortages, some quite badly, but we know from Cuba that reduction in the economy/standard of living improved general health across the board because people were forced to eat differently and move more.
We have botanical medicines to deal with infection, combined with modern hygiene to prevent the worst of things that are seen in the past. A bigger concern for me is if we get slacker on biosecurity and end up with things like Lyme Disease here. I expect warmer climate will bring more tropical illness up north too. But its not like we are doing to lose our modern knowledge about how to manage those things at the basic level.
Not trying to minimise what individuals will face, but putting that alongside the shit that individuals already face. I’m in two minds about whether places will get less safe. I think that largely depends on what we do in the next decade or so in terms of restoring community. This is why I don’t give a shit about Labour not being what lefties want enough, the most important thing is to change the government so that the rest of society can get on with doing the right thing.
And i am not talking about medical and surgical shortages, i am talking about living isolated or of the main drag with no pharmacy and no resident doctor where a child in a breech position – if you can’t get someone qualified most likely will kill the mother or the child. Or if you scratch yourself with a nail you die of blood poisoning.
It is the very little things that we overlook and simplify, yet they are the silent issues. And if you can’t afford the cost, or there is no one there to assist, well you are shit outta luck. Up until very long ago dying in childbirth was a normal risk associated with childbirth. If you look at Texas which has done a good job of closing clinics in rural areas (especially women clinics) you will see that mortality rates are up for mothers and children as the women simply home birth maybe with a mid wife, or a doula or maybe just with a woman whom herself has birthed alone at home.
The shit we are putting up with now is simply because we still have not quite grasped just how easy we are to kill as humans. No shelter in a cold area? freeze. No food? starve. No water? dehydrate. To hot? heat stroke, these are things that already kill our homeless and poor, elderlies and very young every year. And we are happy to put up with it so long as it is others – and it makes for riveting TV news. Yet, as the tower fire in London showed us we are already rationing our resources. And the poor – not us yet – are the ones who get nothing much of substance. We only get concerned if it is us. but if you want to know what we would look like without container ships landing every week bringing in our food, our medicine, our building tools and so on? Crime, Prostitution, slavery/bondage are all used in order to stay alive in many countries and why should this not happen to us? Cause we are special?
.
As for parties being left or not, i never cared. I generally vote left as this is where some of the concerns that i have are addressed. simple as that. If the left would be called Pink Fuzzy Bears i would vote for the Pink Fuzzy Bears. My issue with the ‘left’ is generally that they don’t work well among their fractions. that many of the left vote against their self interest in order to promote this party or that party even if they are destined to loose, i still posit that Fucking Dunne should have been done and send packing last time around – alas the left could not get its act together. Sad! really.
But am i worried about what will happens when/if we have a societal collapse? No. If i am lucky i be dead when it happens, if i am lucky i will die quickly and painlessly and if i am to live for hecks sake i will have to do what people do today – suck it up and carry on. Cause at the end of the day, that is literally all we can do, now in our current society and in what ever society we have when our civilization has gone bust like so many before us.
Get yourself healthy; drink clean water, sleep deeply and well, eat good food, generate well-being amongst your nearest and dearest then spread the love…those other things? Take them as they come.
It was used as a incendiary munition. An important distinction.
Now folks this is being led by NZ, and they are killing civilians. If this is what Key meant by getting some guts. Then God help us all. This is what the rabbit hole looks like.
Oh, and here is the piece where they admit they are using it in civilian areas.
The screening effect referred to in the final link would be a very specific effect.
I imagine the intended effect is effectively a narrow line of bright light that is used to prevent ISIS actually seeing the fleeing civilians. The bright white light is being used to destroy night vision of the ISIS fighters (by that I don’t mean actually used on the ISIS fighters). The effect is that the ISIS fighters cannot see what is happening beyond the bright white line of light.
So not a use on civilians, or ISIS fighters to kill or injure them, as adam purports.
Come on Wayne you were minister of defense, I’m sure you were briefed on the differences in use of white phosphorus? If not, you should really put a complaint to parliamentary services.
And in this case it was used as incendiary munitions. I agree in all probability it was used as makers and/or flairs as you said. However my case is simple, the media have asked if it was used as a munition, and the gen. responded that it was. So once again if you take the time to read and understand the uses of white phosphorus then you get why I’m saying that firing this stuff at civilians is nasty.
But then again, you don’t want to have to face the fact that our defense forces have broken the mandate we were suppose to operate under in the middle east. Not only broken it, but gone as far as burning civilians to death with a pretty awful munition. It’s not a banned munition, I get that. But anything which burns straight through flesh is a terror weapon, and to use older language – evil.
Ok, let’s go with that best-case scenario, where they dropped WP onto an urban war zone without immediately hitting any civilians or combatants. You’re still left with the problem of fragments of WP not being immediately consumed, but lying in wait for weeks until people return to the area.
That’s the other part of the problem of WP: not just that it’s an indiscriminately-burny weapon that is particularly gross and painful, but that also it lurks like an IED until it’s disturbed and burns someone’s foot off.
So White Phosphorous can be legally used in warfare these days doesn’t appear to be a particularly nice product especially if it is used on civilians, what about the Geneva Convention Rules ?
If the primary purpose of the weapon is to burn or poison people, it’s illegal. If it has some other primary purpose and poisoning or burning is incidental or additional to that, then it’s legal. Hence “blinding ISIS NVDs” rather than “intentionally burning ISIS fighters cajun-style”.
I’ve heard urban myths of protocols for some weapons (variously .50 cal or WP) that were restricted to use against equipment and vehicles, so tactical commanders would order their employment against “helmets and webbing” to stick precisely within the word of the law.
Basically, WP is as legally obscure as the vision of people it’s dropped in front of. If you’re dropping it on open fields to cover an advance, and it’s well short of enemy emplacements, there’s not much wrong with that. But dropping it in a city (via artillery or aircraft) basically assumes that sooner or later someone, probably a civilian, will be screaming in agony for an extended period of time.
I have read the article that is referenced. I know Gen McAslan, having met him professionally on a number of occasions. I understand enough of military operations to know how white phosphorus munitions would be used in these circumstances. It was once a standard source of white light in various munitions used by the NZDF.
That is why I am confident it was not used against civilians or ISIS. So while it was obviously “used as a munition” it was not used to target people.
And that is really the key point. Even Adam seems to accept that in his post at 12.1.1.1.2. I imagine there will be some sort of cleanup plan when the Iraqis troops actually take control.
It’s the key legal point. But I’m sure many people imagined that various armies had a plan to clean up minefields and DU from various battlefields in the last 80 years, and look how that turned out.
I see Little and Labour have offered working people and good employers new policy positions.
See Scoop today.
Can’t say they are the same as Nats !!!
Gives people a real difference to vote for.
I don’t know, the price does seem high, but it includes power, water and internet in a semi-self contained separate building. Looks not bad to me and I would probably call that tiny housing.
“Tiny housing” to me is intentionally designed or converted fit for purpose.
Given the scale (looking at the outside table and chairs) and the loft space for sleeping, I would think that the roof is most likely uninsulated, and ventilation would be poor.
It would more than likely be an illegal occupancy, and a poor substitute for a bedroom in a reasonable house.
I would understand that it might appeal to some though, but is this the quality we should deliver for $215/wk?
The maximum sleepout area of 10m2 should be increased to at least 20m2, so that rentals of this kind can be better utilised and built. Local government would be better placed to address this, and failed to do so in the Unitary Plan.
Uninsulated and poorly ventilated, are you thinking in the summer it would be too hot?
In terms of tiny housing, it does look converted fit for purpose to me albeit not perfectly. But then I’m used to people living in much more basic conditions in house trucks, containers, caravans, yurts etc. I agree there is a quality issue for the price, and there will be issues there I don’t understand about the Auckland climate.
There was one on twitter a while back, single room in a house that was a converted porch, glass on three walls, enough room for a single bed and a cupboard from memory, lots of windows. Near varsity. $90/wk. Some on twitter were saying how terrible it was, while others, myself included, were thinking it didn’t look too bad 😉 Having lived in small spaces like that on low incomes, I looked at the pictures and immediately figured out how to make it better in the winter/summer etc. I wouldn’t live in a space like that now, but when I was 20? Sure, it seems ok. So my expectations start lower I think.
More of problem for me is the pushing more people into smaller overall spaces e.g. the infill building going on. It’s one thing to live in a small space, it’s another to go outside and be crowded there as well (e.g. building 4 houses on a section seems insane to me, where will you plant the trees 😉 ). I guess some people like that, but each time it just brings me back to the limits of growth.
I was thinking more of the mould and dampness that would likely occur from sleeping in such a small space. The problem with some tiny houses on trailers is the loft space has such a small space that people are just glad to get mattresses on them, and don’t think about the fact that mattresses on a solid surfaces sweat and become damp very easily.
As for the porch for $90 – it is something I would have looked at in my 20’s as well. For me it was the $215, and the permission to use the kitchen for “heavy cooking” if required. No mention of shared space in the actual house ie. sitting room, the requirement for four weeks rent for bond and one week in advance.
Also, I have graphic memories of living in Southall, London where there were a lot of jimmy rigged sheds and houses in backyards being used for accommodation. A slippery slope, that got worse over time. Have no idea what that is like now. So that may very well be colouring my view.
Well it’s a sad indictment that I’m relatively complacent about it. I think for some people it would be fine but as we know the problem with the shortage is that people are being forced into situations that were meant for people of difference circumstances. Like you I would love to see some good tiny home options being on offer for the people that are suited to them.
I think there would be lots of rooms for rent around, that by the time you’ve put a bed in you have less floor space available than this tiny house. They’ve wisely used the floor space.
All it needs is a water supply and sink, some sort of fuel stove and a composting toilet and its good to go.
I think there’s at least 3 windows so ventilation should be ok. Also you can’t tell with the ceiling because it’s lined, but there could well be insulation – it looks pretty decently built too and well presented so they’re more likely to have thought of it.
I agree though up to 20 square metre building without a permit should be allowable. That would allow more flexibility with the design and you wouldnt be jamming everything into every spare little space.
Nah NZF & Winston highly unlikely to go with Labour however could be an option if NZF can’t stitch a deal together with Labour or the Greens. NZF will be a major player in this coming Election ?
yes, which is a very good reason to not vote for them. If NZF spits the dummy over an actual left wing govt (which is quite possible IMO) they will go with National. Either way there is no way to know which means that voting NZF is not a vote to change the govt. It’s roulette.
This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Adam Levy. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). Climate change is everywhere. And when something's everywhere it can feel like it's nowhere. So how do we get our heads ...
Its a law like gravity: whenever a right-wing government is elected, they start attacking democracy. And now, after talking to their Republican and Tory and Fidesz chums at the International Democracy Union forum in Wellington, National is doing it here, announcing plans to remove election-day enrolment. Or, to put it ...
Yesterday Winston Peters focussed his attention on the important matter at hand. Tweeting. Like the former, and quite possibly next, orange POTUS, from whom he takes much of his political strategy, Winston is an avid X’er.His message didn’t resemble an historic address this time. In fact it was more reminiscent ...
Buzz from the Beehive A significant decline in natural gas production has given Resources Minister Shane Jones an opportunity to reiterate his enthusiasm for the mining and burning of coal. For good measure, he has praised an announcement from Genesis Energy that it will resume importing coal. He and Energy ...
“Follow the money” is the classic directive to journalists trying to understand where power and influence lie in society. In terms of uncovering who influences various New Zealand political parties and governments, it therefore pays to look at who is funding them. The political parties are legally obliged to make ...
Rob MacCullough writes – Here is my subjective ranking on a “most-left” to “most-right” scale of most of our major NZ Universities, with some anecdotal (and at times amusing) evidence to back up the claim.Extreme Left Auckland University of TechnologyEvidenceThe ...
Eric Crampton writes – I hadn’t thought about this one until a helpful email showed up in my inbox.It’s pretty obvious that income tax thresholds should automatically index with inflation – whether to anchor the thresholds in percentiles of the income distribution, or to anchor against a real ...
Jacqui Van Der Kaay writes – Parliament’s speaker had no option but to refer Green MP Julie Anne Genter to the Privileges Committee for her behaviour in the House last Wednesday evening. The incident, in which she crossed the floor to wave a book and yell at National ...
Gary Judd writes – The Dean of the law school at the Auckland University of Technology is someone called Khylee Quince. I have been sent her social media posting in which she has, over the LawNews headline “Senior King’s Counsel files complaint about compulsory tikanga Maori studies for ...
Cleo Paskal writes – WASHINGTON, D.C.: ‘Many of us have received phone calls from [the opposing camp] telling them if they join the camp they will be given projects for their wards and $300,000 [around US$35,000] each’, says former Malaita Premier Daniel Suidani. The elections in Solomon Islands aren’t ...
With hindsight, it was inevitable that (a) Hamas would agree to the ceasefire deal brokered by Egypt and Qatar and that ( b) Israel would then immediately launch attacks on Rafah, regardless. We might have hoped the concessions made by Hamas would cause Israel to desist from slaughtering thousands more ...
Placards and mourners outside the Kilbirnie Mosque following the Christchurch terror attack: MSD has terminated the Kaiwhakaoranga service, which has been used by 415 families since the attacks. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: The Government’s pledge to only cut ‘back office’ staff rather than ‘frontline’ services is on increasingly shaky ground, with ...
There’s been a few smaller public transport announcements over the last week or so that I thought I’d cover in a single post. Fareshare I’ve long called for Auckland Transport to offer a way to enable employer-subsidised public transport options. The need for this took on even more importance ...
Parliament’s speaker had no option but to refer Green MP Julie Anne Genter to the Privileges Committee for her behaviour in the House last Wednesday evening. The incident, in which she crossed the floor to wave a book and yell at National Minister Matt Doocey, reflects poorly on Genter and ...
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 ...
Who likes being sneered at? Nobody. Worse yet, when the sneerer has their facts all wrong, and might well be an idiot.The sneer in question is The adults are in charge now, and it is a sneer offered in retort to criticism of this new Government, no matter how well ...
When in government, Labour pushed to extend the Parliamentary term to four years, to reduce accountability and our ability to vote out a bad government. And now, they're trying to do it through the member's ballot, with a Four-Year Parliamentary Term Legislation Bill. The bill at least requires a referendum ...
A ballot for a single Member's Bill was held today, and the following bill was drawn: Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill (Hūhana Lyndon) The bill would prevent the government from stealing Māori land in breach of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. It ...
Simeon Brown, alongside Wayne Brown, is favouring a political figleaf now in exchange for loading up tens of millions in extra interest costs on Auckland ratepayers. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Ratings agency Standard & Poor’s is pushing back hard at suggestions from Local Government Minister Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown ...
Buzz from the Beehive One headline-grabber from the Beehive yesterday was the OECD’s advice that the government must bring the Budget deficit under control or face higher interest rates. Another was the announcement of a $1.9 billion “investment” in Corrections over the next four years. In the best interests of ...
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 ...
Photo by Jari Hytönen on UnsplashIt’s that new day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when and I co-host our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm. Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream for our chat about the week’s news ...
Buzz from the Beehive 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 ...
The Green Party is welcoming the announcement by the Minister Responsible for RMA Reform Chris Bishop to approve most of the Wellington City Council’s District Plan recommendations. ...
David Seymour has failed to get the sweeping cuts he wanted to the free and healthy school lunch programme, Labour education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
Hon Willie Jackson has been invited by the Oxford Union to debate the motion “This House Believes British Museums are not Very British’ on May 23rd. ...
Green Party MP Hūhana Lyndon says her Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill is an opportunity to right some past wrongs around the alienation of Māori land. ...
A senior, highly respected King’s Counsel with decades of experience in our law courts, Gary Judd KC, has filed a complaint about compulsory tikanga Māori studies for law students - highlighting the utter depths of absurdity this woke cultural madness has taken our society. The tikanga regulations will compel law ...
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. ...
Your Excellency Ambassador Meredith, Members of the Diplomatic Corps and Ambassadors from European Union Member States, Ministerial colleagues, Members of Parliament, and other distinguished guests, Thank you everyone for joining us. Ladies and gentlemen - In diplomacy, we often speak of ‘close’ and ‘long-standing’ relations. ...
The Therapeutic Products Act (TPA) will be repealed this year so that a better regime can be put in place to provide New Zealanders safe and timely access to medicines, medical devices and health products, Associate Health Minister Casey Costello announced today. “The medicines and products we are talking about ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop, today released his decision on twenty recommendations referred to him by the Wellington City Council relating to its Intensification Planning Instrument, after the Council rejected those recommendations of the Independent Hearings Panel and made alternative recommendations. “Wellington notified its District Plan on ...
Rape Awareness Week (6-10 May) is an important opportunity to acknowledge the continued effort required by government and communities to ensure that all New Zealanders can live free from violence, say Ministers Karen Chhour and Louise Upston. “With 1 in 3 women and 1 in 8 men experiencing sexual violence ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government will be delivering a more efficient Healthy School Lunches Programme, saving taxpayers approximately $107 million a year compared to how Labour funded it, by embracing innovation and commercial expertise. “We are delivering on our commitment to treat taxpayers’ money ...
New research on the impacts of extreme weather on coastal marine habitats in Tairāwhiti and Hawke’s Bay will help fishery managers plan for and respond to any future events, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. A report released today on research by Niwa on behalf of Fisheries New Zealand ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters will lead a broad political delegation on a five-stop Pacific tour next week to strengthen New Zealand’s engagement with the region. The delegation will visit Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, and Tuvalu. “New Zealand has deep and ...
There has been a material decline in gas production according to figures released today by the Gas Industry Co. Figures released by the Gas Industry Company show that there was a 12.5 per cent reduction in gas production during 2023, and a 27.8 per cent reduction in gas production in the ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins tonight announced the recipients of the Minister of Defence Awards of Excellence for Industry, saying they all contribute to New Zealanders’ security and wellbeing. “Congratulations to this year’s recipients, whose innovative products and services play a critical role in the delivery of New Zealand’s defence capabilities, ...
Welcome to you all - it is a pleasure to be here this evening.I would like to start by thanking Greg Lowe, Chair of the New Zealand Defence Industry Advisory Council, for co-hosting this reception with me. This evening is about recognising businesses from across New Zealand and overseas who in ...
It is a pleasure to be speaking to you as the Minister for Digitising Government. I would like to thank Akolade for the invitation to address this Summit, and to acknowledge the great effort you are making to grow New Zealand’s digital future. Today, we stand at the cusp of ...
New Zealand is urging both Israel and Hamas to agree to an immediate ceasefire to avoid the further humanitarian catastrophe that military action in Rafah would unleash, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The immense suffering in Gaza cannot be allowed to worsen further. Both sides have a responsibility to ...
A new online data dashboard released today as part of the Government’s school attendance action plan makes more timely daily attendance data available to the public and parents, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. The interactive dashboard will be updated once a week to show a national average of how ...
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. ...
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Six charged over Hillsborough disaster.
Wonder how long the families of Pike River will wait.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=11883345
Manslaughter by gross neglect
The brighter future….
‘Landlords are failing to meet their legal obligation to to disclose how much insulation is in their rental properties when they sign up new tenants, the Building and Construction Minister says.’
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/334058/landlords-told-to-come-clean-on-rental-insulation
wow – so you’re putting up a comment that is positive for Nick Smith – righto
$4000 fine will hardly dent landlords pockets – what should happen ed?
for me I’d add maybe a zero to the fines for their first offence and maybe keep adding zeros until they comply of get out of the landlording business.
I read somewhere that one of the Scandinavian countries does fines as a % of taxable income. E.g a speeding ticket is three days’ income.
Can do similar to landlords: have a range of fine scales for various violations, from one week to 52 weeks’ rent, with the option of tenants having the right to zero-notice end to the lease if the infraction is for something with a max fine of over, say, 1 month’s rent.
something to roll around the noggin for a while.
Sounds on to it.
Double it for two rentals, treble for three…
Can’t see our property owning parliamentarians of either hue doing anything about it though.
Widespread failure to disclose P contamination as well. Must preserve rental income and property values. Doesn’t matter if tenants die
Landlords omitting P history to protect property values
I doubt many landlords would disclose P usage in the rental properties to the Council as it will appear on their LIM Reports about 5 years ago in real estate circles it was suggested 35% of rental properties in West Auckland showed evidence of P contamination.
P is a bigger problem than what most people actually realise and it is destroying families and communities. Evidently there is a new drug available in India called Crocodile which is 10 x more addictive than P and it makes the skin go green and wrinkly, I guess serious P users & dealers can’t wait to get there hands on it ?
any rental in NZ will show signs of P. Literally. Even high end properties would if tested show signs of P, Coke, la Marie Jeanne, and any other drugs.
Before i moved to West AKL i lived central and i can guarantee you that those well to do, soon to be doctors or lawyers use the same drugs to stay awake then the bogan in West AKL.
Go test all housing for P and be amused.
Crocodile has been making the rounds of Russia for years now, you can youtube that shit.
I believe that most P testing on housing is/was a sham that has helped the outgoing government remove housing nz tenants making way for state housing sales.
It has also helped carpet firms etc with sales and testing companies with an income.
With changed standards will they retest all the houses people were kicked out of?
$30 million spent by Housing NZ testing houses without researching appropriate guidelines first. Feels like an exploit to me, making out it’s all good now because they’ve changed guidelines.
Hundreds of people kicked out of housing nz properties, many given a black mark against their name as a result.
The precursors for this insipid drug come from Asia, too many high brows making money for the issue to be resolved with the current mob in power. Must be frustrating for many police atm, no wonder their moral is so low. Change the government
Asian house farmers getting Government Subsidies renting houses to New Zealanders, free market zombie economics or neoliberalism ?
New Zealand sheeple are being farmed for rent & tax free capital gains. NatCorp ™ have been pimping our people and taonga around the world and found lots of buyers.
i bet you would have to close every motel and hotel in nz if you tested them,
This left a sour taste.
Finished won and dumped!!!
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11883219
Forty of the boat builders behind the remarkable vessel which Emirates Team New Zealand sailed to America’s Cup glory were recently made redundant.
One former employee said he was “disgusted” that the company that built the boat, Southern Spars, had let him go after years of highly-specialised work.
AND found this too
BUT oracle boat builders got 17.25m from NZ!!!!!
So here we are again giving an American company $$ to exploit NZ ingenuity.
Pretty much sums up the whole short sighted approach by this Nats govt. MBIE seems to use the Callaghan Innovation Growth Grant as a pot of cash to disseminate to their friends and enablers without any real method of maintaining the innovation in NZ to benefit NZers in the long term.
The fund needs to lock in a return for the investment, surprise, surprise – just like banks or other investors handing over cash would demand. Currently it seems a good idea is bankrolled and ASAP the owners sell off shore – where’s the gain for NZ?? Or Fronterra once again get a check from this govt for R and D ( biggest company in the country and sucking on the tax payers still).
Ooh ooh (hopping around on one foot) shot myself in the foot again. Damn! We are just simple Kiwis who foul our own nest and self-mutilate so often it is no wonder that NZ is like a dead man walking.
The zombie nation, don’t let us get near you other citizens of the world or we will give your economies the kiss of death. Too late, Roger Douglas has already been on the talking head circuit telling gummints round the world how to ease the pearls out of the peoples’ oyster without immediately killing them.
Cool rant
marty mars
TQ I thought it went rather well.
from the 2015 article in dv’s link
“How about a Callaghan grant for Southern Spars?”
How do feel about giving taxpayer money away to foreign-owned companies?
http://www.southernspars.com/company/
Any truth in a story doing the rounds on Facebook about Paula Bennett claiming the DPB while in a relationship renting out her house while receiving a sudsidy from hnz to pay for a mortgage.
While living in a relationship in another house doing drugs a Drunken behaviour abusing children.
Any truth to Seymour having a clue about economics? He believes that food retail is competitive having only two companies in the marketplace. He’s a authoritarian, he apes all the rhetoric around libertarianism, free marketneo-lib but supports charter schools! He wants govt to tell poorer citizens what to teach yet supports the outsourcing of govt to a few boardrooms coz govt can’t be trusted.
IF (and that is a big IF) these allegations are PROVED to be true, then it would be a hell of a scalp. But as I said before, there has to be 100% proof here.
We’re keeping an eye on it, but not inclined to move first. Aspects of it look fake.
Can someone give this its own post r0b? It’s the main feature for today and the rest of the hunting season till the elections.
(I’m talking about the post Americas Cup debacle with people being sacked, and rorts and subsidies, grants to the sailing and business mates in other countries especially USA, our friends.)
I’ll note your suggestion to others, though it’s not a topic I feel strongly enough about to follow up myself.
Subject: Re: The Clear Water Action Plan
From Robert Atac
To Gareth Morgan
Date Today 09:14
Hi Gareth
I think you know a lot more than you let on,but maybe not?
It is very confusing, your public statements have mentioned our inaction on climate change clash with say your past promotion of Kiwisaver for one thing, and your political goals?
@405ppm CO2 and nearly 2 ppm CH4 humans are very much in the same position the dynasors were in when they saw the Syberian traps forming astroid flying through the atmosphere, except the they had a few thousand more years to get use to the fact that they were going extinct, as it took something like 10,000 years of constant volcanic action to do what humans have done in about 200 years.
Your constant promotion of growth is just compounding the situation, not that it matters for everything that is alive now as ‘we’ can not make the situation any worse.
Then there is the 440 neculer power plants, that will need upto 50 years of power inputs to prevent all of then going ‘Fuckashima’ dumping ton and tons of radiation into the atmosphere – causing the atmosphere to total burnoff.
You have got to spend a few hours listening to or reading professor Guy McPherson’s statements and summery of the true situation humans and the rest of life is in
I’m a 4th for dropout, so what would I know? But I have been following all this stuff for the past 18 years with an average of at least 2 hours a day reading about our future, and humans reaction to the truth, I can see you now looking like the 3 monkeys hear,see,say nothing. I know you will prove me right by you not telling the truth to the pig ignorant masses.
This system is a heat engine, even if all 7.3 billion of us went back to running around naked and living in caves it wouldn’t change the position we are locked into.
About the only thing the global ‘leaders’ could do to reduce future suffering (apart from mass sterlisation, or maybe including) is to stock pile sucide pills, I’m sure that would go down like a cup of cold sick.
I know these are just ‘movies’ but maybe it will help you get your head around what Guy and all the pear reviewed info he supplies is showing
The Road, 22After.Com, and for a resonably good depiction of why you are looking like a primate – Blind Spot
You are saying a lot of good things,but alas I think you are 200 years to late if not several thousand years, as this shirt storm has been on the cards since the first day we planted our first carrot 😉
On election day I will be tossing myself off, as George Carlin says, then at least I will have something to show for my efforts.
If any humans are alive in the next 10 – 20 years they will be radioactive canables.
Good luck with all you time wasting.
Regards Robert Atack
0274 301 574
http://Www.oilcrash.com
Robert Atack
Sincerely meant, and wisely said. There is no way to say anything in a calm or cool and decisive manner that will penetrate the frothy coffee miasma that rolls around in the heads of people who have houses and are earning enough money to have cars, travel, holidays and go to concerts. That is what is important to think about these days. So keep on shouting, someone might look up from their handheld life organisers and hear you.
And the fact that we can’t get a well-thought-out euthanasia, right to die when you want to, agreement passed into law is the biggest bell of those on the Joker’s cap that is this NZ government’s answer to the magic, all-knowing hat of JKRowling;s imagination. If only we could have a wise Sorting Hat as in Harry Potter.
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fA3dbvRCui0
And what a great sort of People’s Parliament if it went like this and despite all the extras that magic adds, there is more decorum and better procedures and results than we have now:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQZFWA2KDbw
Some real magic is needed from our imaginative brains to produce a better reality that matches the fictions that we can conjure up for art.
Happy Thursday to you to robert, bright and cherry this morning as usual Please less on tossing off as this raises disturbing imagery but again this is your contribution to population control and not diluting the world collective iq with your progeny so a gold star for you in this regard
Wake up: http://dieoff.org/
Or, continue to keep your head in the sand
Not sure why you mentioned that you were a fourth form dropout – that and the spelling mistakes probably means he won’t take you seriously.
Yes Marty Dear
Why are you poking your nose in – you’re likely to find out trying to provoke me isn’t such a great idea, for you…
Yeah sorry about the spelling mistakes- bottom of the form is English way back then, and currently one finger typing on a Samsung note thingie
But it does show you don’t have to be a brain surgeon to see the naked king.
My spelling is shit mate. I was trying to help because I know you believe. Morgan won’t be able to get it and as you know the politicans are pretty well mostly like the band on the titanic. I don’t agree with a lot of your conclusions but I do admire your tenacity. Kia kaha.
Going to type all my raves in word first from now on
Sorry everyone I do try eg that last rant took me about 60 min to type
While the country is carrying on about Barclay, news emerges about the Tongaririo National park, the jewel in the country’s national park crown, being included in a treaty settlement. Which will see the new iwi owners/guardians set an entry fee.
An entry fee. No doubt the likes of marty mars will come in and carry on about iwi land rights and confiscation and so on, but we need to realise that Tongariro was GIFTED to the Crown so ALL NEW ZEALANDERS could use it.
This is wrong.
Very wrong.
It would be shameful for this to be waved through by Labour, New Zealand First and the Greens.
FFS Millsy, this is Maori land, if it’s part of a treaty settlement all well and good and if the Iwi who oversee it charge a fee for people to enjoy the land that is also their absolute right to do so.
You should pay and at the gate at the start of your street too.
Get onto brash he might make it part of their push.
Yeah.. I’m sure it was gifted so thousands of tourists could come and walk over what the iwi find sacred each and every day. At least they get some appropriate say in the management of it now.
“Which will see the new iwi owners/guardians set an entry fee.”
You do realise that DOC routinely charges fees for access to tracks on conservation estate?
In this case the hapū want to reduce tourism numbers. Looks like the state has been remiss in its management up until now.
If you want to have a go at someone, have a go at successive govt and NZers that insist on treating nature as a commodity and have pushed tourism numbers without regard for the impacts. Tourism is an extractive industry, this is just one of the consequences. Push back against that, because IME Māori are generally more than happy to share fairly where they are able to.
https://www.maoritelevision.com/news/latest-news/native-affairs–warning-tongariro-tourists
I understand that the track Tongariro Crossing is a pigs sty at the moment with rubbish and human filth everywhere caused by the overwhelming numbers of tourists. The track cannot cope with the number of visitors, like sometimes up to 3000 a day when the track can only take about 600 The local iwi is doing it’s best to clean the track up removing rubbish and filth as much as possible.
Good on them for charging, I also think it is about time more areas have to have a charge to see them to cope with the excessive numbers of tourists we have now.
Try and visit some of the small villages in the UK and you will be charged a fee to get in by the National Trust
It is about time something like a National Trust was set up in this country before the excessive number of tourists ruin this once great place.
http://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2017/02/tongariro-crossing-struggling-to-cope-with-hordes-of-tourists.html
Yep, and it’s a real shame it is coming to this because NZers shouldn’t be being pushed out of their own landscapes in order for someone to make tourism dollars. See my comment above, I’m not blaming Māori, I’m blaming people who think industrial tourism is a good thing.
Agree 2000%
This hurts but yeah
Ralph Nader’s view. All a bit depressing.
https://theintercept.com/2017/06/25/ralph-nader-the-democrats-are-unable-to-defend-the-u-s-from-the-most-vicious-republican-party-in-history/
Application here ?
Following the global pandemic of liberalism in the 80’s ,peaking in the early 1990’s we can see the aftermath.
Wellington the rustbelt years.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/travelling–light/sets/72157624758199920/with/4911888512/
neoliberalism peaked in the 90s?
Even under the most hopeful of predictions on sea level rise, lowlying homes in Dunedin are gone. If I was an owner of one of these homes, I’d be thinking of selling up soon, as its only a matter of time before their value will drop to almost nothing. No-one is going to take a 30 year mortgage on a property that will barely survive past its term. And it won’t be long before insurances will go up or be unavailable for such properties. Same goes for other vulnerable properties around New Zealand.
https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/world/scientists-in-antarctica-painting-bleak-picture-low-lying-nz-coastal-communities
At first glance, south Dunedin may be suitable for a Netherlands-style solution. Roughly a quarter of their land is below sea level.
too late,
the netherlands have infrastructure in place several hundreds years old and they have always been forward thinking and forward building.
We however are still discussing if forcing landlords to upgrade their leaky moldy – not fit for dogs as per the SPCA – dwellings with 1! heating source and maybe some insulation. Cause that would hurt the landlord financially and rents would go up and and and and and
https://www.jlgrealestate.com/2014/02/18/floating-houses/
we are nowhere near the dutch model, not because we could not, but because we don’t want to. And i include all parties in that comment. The left can’t get its shit together if its life depends on it, and the right does not give a flying fuck so as long as they have theirs and will be right.
In saying that, i am waiting for the day were some solemn looking dudes in suits tell us that we must bail out the ‘homewoners’ that bought coastal McMansions cause they are underwater now and blahblablabaslblablabalblabal
Even after the leaky building crisis we are still building leaky homes-absolute muppets in Government and Local Councils ?
because the will is not there.
someone else is gonna pay to fix the shit in a few years, and it ain’t gonna be them.
this is why we can’t have nice things. We want cheap shit that looks fancy.
Not much point in upgrading houses that are going to drown.
Not sure about that – the Netherlands might have substantially different geology.
Sth Dn is basically on sandy marshland – dig down a foot in some places and you hit groundwater, non-salty simply because it’s runoff that percolates through pushing the saltwater aside. Or as one study put it: “Recent drilling investigations have characterised a sandy aquifer in hydraulic communication with the sea, including tidal fluctuations of the water table in proximity to the ocean.”
Dykes won’t work alone, and even constant pumping might be pissing into the wind depending on the extent of the “hydraulic communication”.
Not saying it couldn’t be done, it just might be cheaper and easier to relocate folks or give them canoes.
How many times can we ‘afford’ to relocate folks? Giving them canoes would not be an option as one would only make money once and that is not a good business model.
If you plan it properly, they only need to be relocated once.
Basically, what Dunedin does to resolve the south dunedin issue has as much to do with climate-change-associated global migration, or even NZ migration, as local weather has to do with climate.
Yep the area is going under eventually.
Mums old whare at ocean grove might be okay but will be pretty hard to get to I’d say.
“…it just might be cheaper and easier to relocate folks or give them canoes.”
Cheapest and easiest to just let the residents fend for themselves. Since it’s apparently not a high-income area and the locals are skilled in dealing with adversity through long experience, that’s probably what will happen. Unlike the snowflakes at places like Omaha, who will probably get all the protection the state can throw at them, poor dears.
council seems to be beginning to pull finger on the issue re:district plan.
“Cheapest and easiest to just let the residents fend for themselves. Since it’s apparently not a high-income area and the locals are skilled in dealing with adversity through long experience,”
I’m curious what you mean there. You mean they will find themselves some other land and build new houses themselves? Thought not. You mean they will engineer some solution on site to prevent the water from rising underneath them each time there is a big rain? Do you realise that South Dunedin has a lot of elderly and people with disabilities?
That was a cynical extrapolation of current government trends of withdrawing assistance from those that genuinely need it in favour of coddling the wealthy.
hang on,
surely Nationals Bennett would be happy to spend tax money to get homeless people rehomed and pay mega accomodation supplements to the owners of the buildings to compensate them for not being able to sell their underwater houses.
tbh, while I think that something needs to be done about that situation fairly, I also think it’s one of our lesser worries. We have plenty of space and can rehouse people. And we can sort out some assistance for that. But worrying about the mortgage in the face of CC that will cause massive upheavals globally and locally is like worrying if one has a cushion on the life boat off the titanic. Sorry, that’s a bit harsh, but it’s not like this is new in any way at all. We’ve been talking about sea level rise for a long time. Did people think it wouldn’t happen within the lifetime of their mortgage and they could pass the problem on to someone else?
More of a concern is how fast CC will hit things like our ability to grow food, and what will happen when we get a confluence of GFC, CC and Peak Oil.
@ Weka
More of a concern is how fast CC will hit things like our ability to grow food, and what will happen when we get a confluence of GFC, CC and Peak Oil.
many of us will die of preventable diseases and things tooth infections or a breech position cause a. we can’t afford the medical care, b. we are to far away from any medical care. This to me is what is the most frightening aspect. That due to lack of money, and access to medical services small things can go out of hand very quickly and will go very deadly. humans don’t need much to die – we are fragile that way.
i don’t think that trade etc will disappear, but it will be rationed and if many of us would be honest with themselves there literally is no reasons why rations would be wasted on us. Be that food, fuel, or transportation.
our communities will be more dangerous with the lack of lights. Dark streets make for good muggins.
sexual violence and domestic violence will be ‘domestic issues’ and no one will do much about it. cause thats just how it is and several different religious text will support such a system.
religion will replace law and secular government in regions where the government has opted out (this is what we are seeing in certain of the red states)
and so on and so on
but until such time, be sure for the same people who want to do nothing because we are making money to make a killing on all our demise.
I am forever grateful for not having had children. We are leaving them with nothing but misery.
Agree with a lot of that. Your last line not so much.
forever the optimist -not.
Are you talking about NZ or globally? I’m not so worried about the health stuff in NZ. Yes there will be people affected by medical and surgical shortages, some quite badly, but we know from Cuba that reduction in the economy/standard of living improved general health across the board because people were forced to eat differently and move more.
We have botanical medicines to deal with infection, combined with modern hygiene to prevent the worst of things that are seen in the past. A bigger concern for me is if we get slacker on biosecurity and end up with things like Lyme Disease here. I expect warmer climate will bring more tropical illness up north too. But its not like we are doing to lose our modern knowledge about how to manage those things at the basic level.
Not trying to minimise what individuals will face, but putting that alongside the shit that individuals already face. I’m in two minds about whether places will get less safe. I think that largely depends on what we do in the next decade or so in terms of restoring community. This is why I don’t give a shit about Labour not being what lefties want enough, the most important thing is to change the government so that the rest of society can get on with doing the right thing.
NZ and globally.
And i am not talking about medical and surgical shortages, i am talking about living isolated or of the main drag with no pharmacy and no resident doctor where a child in a breech position – if you can’t get someone qualified most likely will kill the mother or the child. Or if you scratch yourself with a nail you die of blood poisoning.
It is the very little things that we overlook and simplify, yet they are the silent issues. And if you can’t afford the cost, or there is no one there to assist, well you are shit outta luck. Up until very long ago dying in childbirth was a normal risk associated with childbirth. If you look at Texas which has done a good job of closing clinics in rural areas (especially women clinics) you will see that mortality rates are up for mothers and children as the women simply home birth maybe with a mid wife, or a doula or maybe just with a woman whom herself has birthed alone at home.
The shit we are putting up with now is simply because we still have not quite grasped just how easy we are to kill as humans. No shelter in a cold area? freeze. No food? starve. No water? dehydrate. To hot? heat stroke, these are things that already kill our homeless and poor, elderlies and very young every year. And we are happy to put up with it so long as it is others – and it makes for riveting TV news. Yet, as the tower fire in London showed us we are already rationing our resources. And the poor – not us yet – are the ones who get nothing much of substance. We only get concerned if it is us. but if you want to know what we would look like without container ships landing every week bringing in our food, our medicine, our building tools and so on? Crime, Prostitution, slavery/bondage are all used in order to stay alive in many countries and why should this not happen to us? Cause we are special?
.
As for parties being left or not, i never cared. I generally vote left as this is where some of the concerns that i have are addressed. simple as that. If the left would be called Pink Fuzzy Bears i would vote for the Pink Fuzzy Bears. My issue with the ‘left’ is generally that they don’t work well among their fractions. that many of the left vote against their self interest in order to promote this party or that party even if they are destined to loose, i still posit that Fucking Dunne should have been done and send packing last time around – alas the left could not get its act together. Sad! really.
But am i worried about what will happens when/if we have a societal collapse? No. If i am lucky i be dead when it happens, if i am lucky i will die quickly and painlessly and if i am to live for hecks sake i will have to do what people do today – suck it up and carry on. Cause at the end of the day, that is literally all we can do, now in our current society and in what ever society we have when our civilization has gone bust like so many before us.
Get yourself healthy; drink clean water, sleep deeply and well, eat good food, generate well-being amongst your nearest and dearest then spread the love…those other things? Take them as they come.
Just in case you missed it, our military is in charge whilst munitions grade white phosphorous is pored down on civilian populations in northern Iraq.
What a great country we are, is this what getting guts was.
Are superpose to stomach our military burning civilians to death, thanks national, it’s quite sickening how low you can take us.
Link pls?
NZ is only supposed to be there to train local troops (and defend themselves as necessary)
I put this up yesterday.
Brig. Gen. Hugh McAslan (http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11824303) has said that we are using white phosphorus on civilian targets.
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/munitions/wp.htm
It was used as a incendiary munition. An important distinction.
Now folks this is being led by NZ, and they are killing civilians. If this is what Key meant by getting some guts. Then God help us all. This is what the rabbit hole looks like.
Oh, and here is the piece where they admit they are using it in civilian areas.
http://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2017/06/13/532809626/u-s-led-coalition-has-used-white-phosphorous-in-fight-for-mosul-general-says
The screening effect referred to in the final link would be a very specific effect.
I imagine the intended effect is effectively a narrow line of bright light that is used to prevent ISIS actually seeing the fleeing civilians. The bright white light is being used to destroy night vision of the ISIS fighters (by that I don’t mean actually used on the ISIS fighters). The effect is that the ISIS fighters cannot see what is happening beyond the bright white line of light.
So not a use on civilians, or ISIS fighters to kill or injure them, as adam purports.
I suspect that you’re talking out your arse and Making Shit Up to defend possible indefensible actions.
+ 1 nothing worse that a know it all who doesn’t know it all at all – that’s you wayne.
Come on Wayne you were minister of defense, I’m sure you were briefed on the differences in use of white phosphorus? If not, you should really put a complaint to parliamentary services.
And in this case it was used as incendiary munitions. I agree in all probability it was used as makers and/or flairs as you said. However my case is simple, the media have asked if it was used as a munition, and the gen. responded that it was. So once again if you take the time to read and understand the uses of white phosphorus then you get why I’m saying that firing this stuff at civilians is nasty.
But then again, you don’t want to have to face the fact that our defense forces have broken the mandate we were suppose to operate under in the middle east. Not only broken it, but gone as far as burning civilians to death with a pretty awful munition. It’s not a banned munition, I get that. But anything which burns straight through flesh is a terror weapon, and to use older language – evil.
The wall of white light is no justification for using such a terrible chemical weapon such as white phosphorus. What a sick species we are!
Ok, let’s go with that best-case scenario, where they dropped WP onto an urban war zone without immediately hitting any civilians or combatants. You’re still left with the problem of fragments of WP not being immediately consumed, but lying in wait for weeks until people return to the area.
That’s the other part of the problem of WP: not just that it’s an indiscriminately-burny weapon that is particularly gross and painful, but that also it lurks like an IED until it’s disturbed and burns someone’s foot off.
So White Phosphorous can be legally used in warfare these days doesn’t appear to be a particularly nice product especially if it is used on civilians, what about the Geneva Convention Rules ?
Short answer “yes with an if”, long answer “no with a but”.
If the primary purpose of the weapon is to burn or poison people, it’s illegal. If it has some other primary purpose and poisoning or burning is incidental or additional to that, then it’s legal. Hence “blinding ISIS NVDs” rather than “intentionally burning ISIS fighters cajun-style”.
I’ve heard urban myths of protocols for some weapons (variously .50 cal or WP) that were restricted to use against equipment and vehicles, so tactical commanders would order their employment against “helmets and webbing” to stick precisely within the word of the law.
Basically, WP is as legally obscure as the vision of people it’s dropped in front of. If you’re dropping it on open fields to cover an advance, and it’s well short of enemy emplacements, there’s not much wrong with that. But dropping it in a city (via artillery or aircraft) basically assumes that sooner or later someone, probably a civilian, will be screaming in agony for an extended period of time.
I have read the article that is referenced. I know Gen McAslan, having met him professionally on a number of occasions. I understand enough of military operations to know how white phosphorus munitions would be used in these circumstances. It was once a standard source of white light in various munitions used by the NZDF.
That is why I am confident it was not used against civilians or ISIS. So while it was obviously “used as a munition” it was not used to target people.
And that is really the key point. Even Adam seems to accept that in his post at 12.1.1.1.2. I imagine there will be some sort of cleanup plan when the Iraqis troops actually take control.
WP was George Bush’s way of making sure no child is left behind.
It’s the key legal point. But I’m sure many people imagined that various armies had a plan to clean up minefields and DU from various battlefields in the last 80 years, and look how that turned out.
I see Little and Labour have offered working people and good employers new policy positions.
See Scoop today.
Can’t say they are the same as Nats !!!
Gives people a real difference to vote for.
Now our defense force – or arm of the state which kills people. Is arming the gangs.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/94028743/new-zealand-defence-force-rules-out-national-investigation-into-missing-weapon-parts
One bedroom flatshare for $215/wk in Onehunga, artfully described as a “tiny house”, in realspeak it would called an uninsulated playhouse.
Will be interesting to see how long the listing remains there.
I don’t know, the price does seem high, but it includes power, water and internet in a semi-self contained separate building. Looks not bad to me and I would probably call that tiny housing.
“Tiny housing” to me is intentionally designed or converted fit for purpose.
Given the scale (looking at the outside table and chairs) and the loft space for sleeping, I would think that the roof is most likely uninsulated, and ventilation would be poor.
It would more than likely be an illegal occupancy, and a poor substitute for a bedroom in a reasonable house.
I would understand that it might appeal to some though, but is this the quality we should deliver for $215/wk?
The maximum sleepout area of 10m2 should be increased to at least 20m2, so that rentals of this kind can be better utilised and built. Local government would be better placed to address this, and failed to do so in the Unitary Plan.
Uninsulated and poorly ventilated, are you thinking in the summer it would be too hot?
In terms of tiny housing, it does look converted fit for purpose to me albeit not perfectly. But then I’m used to people living in much more basic conditions in house trucks, containers, caravans, yurts etc. I agree there is a quality issue for the price, and there will be issues there I don’t understand about the Auckland climate.
There was one on twitter a while back, single room in a house that was a converted porch, glass on three walls, enough room for a single bed and a cupboard from memory, lots of windows. Near varsity. $90/wk. Some on twitter were saying how terrible it was, while others, myself included, were thinking it didn’t look too bad 😉 Having lived in small spaces like that on low incomes, I looked at the pictures and immediately figured out how to make it better in the winter/summer etc. I wouldn’t live in a space like that now, but when I was 20? Sure, it seems ok. So my expectations start lower I think.
More of problem for me is the pushing more people into smaller overall spaces e.g. the infill building going on. It’s one thing to live in a small space, it’s another to go outside and be crowded there as well (e.g. building 4 houses on a section seems insane to me, where will you plant the trees 😉 ). I guess some people like that, but each time it just brings me back to the limits of growth.
I was thinking more of the mould and dampness that would likely occur from sleeping in such a small space. The problem with some tiny houses on trailers is the loft space has such a small space that people are just glad to get mattresses on them, and don’t think about the fact that mattresses on a solid surfaces sweat and become damp very easily.
As for the porch for $90 – it is something I would have looked at in my 20’s as well. For me it was the $215, and the permission to use the kitchen for “heavy cooking” if required. No mention of shared space in the actual house ie. sitting room, the requirement for four weeks rent for bond and one week in advance.
Also, I have graphic memories of living in Southall, London where there were a lot of jimmy rigged sheds and houses in backyards being used for accommodation. A slippery slope, that got worse over time. Have no idea what that is like now. So that may very well be colouring my view.
Well it’s a sad indictment that I’m relatively complacent about it. I think for some people it would be fine but as we know the problem with the shortage is that people are being forced into situations that were meant for people of difference circumstances. Like you I would love to see some good tiny home options being on offer for the people that are suited to them.
I think there would be lots of rooms for rent around, that by the time you’ve put a bed in you have less floor space available than this tiny house. They’ve wisely used the floor space.
All it needs is a water supply and sink, some sort of fuel stove and a composting toilet and its good to go.
I think there’s at least 3 windows so ventilation should be ok. Also you can’t tell with the ceiling because it’s lined, but there could well be insulation – it looks pretty decently built too and well presented so they’re more likely to have thought of it.
I agree though up to 20 square metre building without a permit should be allowable. That would allow more flexibility with the design and you wouldnt be jamming everything into every spare little space.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/94230206/peters-set-to-announce-shane-jones-candidacy-in-whangarei-for-nz-first
This could be interesting come September!
well that 100% kills any should i vote winston thoughts, fuck shane jones
no thanks
Up here in the North it could unseat National, potentially, I suspect
unseat one candidate and give the nats the next two elections in a nzf nat gov , remember who put jones on the gravy train after he shit on labour?
Nah NZF & Winston highly unlikely to go with Labour however could be an option if NZF can’t stitch a deal together with Labour or the Greens. NZF will be a major player in this coming Election ?
yes, which is a very good reason to not vote for them. If NZF spits the dummy over an actual left wing govt (which is quite possible IMO) they will go with National. Either way there is no way to know which means that voting NZF is not a vote to change the govt. It’s roulette.
That’s a very good description of it – roulette
This confirmed yet? Feels liek every year we’re told THIS year will be the year Shane Jones returns to politics, like anyone remembers or cares.
Well, that is a really radical difference, 75c extra on the minimum wage. Under National it would probably get there on 1 April next year anyway.
All those 85 foreign interns will no doubt be hittting the streets claiming nirvana has finally arrived. Not that they get paid.
[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.]
Petty, Wayne.
Petty.
Here’s a Petty song for Wayne.
I Won’t Back Down. Seems right for him.
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nUTXb-ga1fo