And they’ll be grateful!

Written By:
Date published: 10:17 am, May 20th, 2015 - 15 comments

Bill English tells us that the promise that they won the election on – that they’re the only Masters of Finance who could balance the government books (because that’s all that’s important…) – now isn’t at all important to the public.

And Bill tells us: they’ll get their surplus when I give it to them, and they’ll be grateful for it.

Young Labour and sex change ops

Written By:
Date published: 10:04 am, May 20th, 2015 - 274 comments

Young Labour has proposed that there is public funding for hormone replacement therapy and gender reassignment.  Jonathan Coleman described the proposal as “absolutely nuts” but it then emerged that there is already some public funding for this treatment.  And the media tried to suggest that some off the cuff comments by Labour MPs is evidence of division.

Polity on Housing

Written By:
Date published: 9:07 am, May 20th, 2015 - 39 comments

Rob had a couple of great posts on National & Housing yesterday, as they are all over the place on it. Still trying to point the finger at Helen Clark because average house prices in Auckland rose $219,000 in the 9 years of the last Labour government; but it’s no longer crisis after a further $313,000 rise in 7 years of National.

National literally want to hide the costs of inaction on climate change

Written By:
Date published: 6:45 am, May 20th, 2015 - 134 comments

We the people only learned of Treasury projections on the costs of inaction on climate change (up to $52 billion) because someone screwed up a redacted document. We were never meant to know. And National’s Minister for Climate Change Issues statement on the matter is that Treasury should have done a better job of hiding this vital information from the public.

Open mike 20/05/2015

Written By:
Date published: 6:00 am, May 20th, 2015 - 29 comments

Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …

Tolleyisms

Written By:
Date published: 10:30 pm, May 19th, 2015 - 18 comments

We haven’t cut their funding, there’s just been a change in their contract = We’ve cut their funding $4.8 million

Daily review 19/05/2015

Written By:
Date published: 5:30 pm, May 19th, 2015 - 22 comments

Daily review is also your post. This provides Standarnistas the opportunity to review events of the day.  The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Don’t forget to be kind to each other.

John Banks; Conviction Quashed

Written By:
Date published: 12:14 pm, May 19th, 2015 - 198 comments

John Banks has been acquitted of electoral fraud and his re-trial has been abandoned. Kim Dotcom has once again failed to follow through. Banks vs Goff in next year’s mayoralty race?

Curiouser and curiouser

Written By:
Date published: 10:13 am, May 19th, 2015 - 22 comments

Creepy Key has dodged a question from the Green Party about any contact he may have had with the New Zealand Fox News Herald in the lead-up to Rachel Glucina’s hit job on the cafe worker who’s ponytail he pulled.

Herald praises Cunliffe for CGT policy

Written By:
Date published: 9:30 am, May 19th, 2015 - 29 comments

The Herald has praised David Cunliffe with changing public opinion about the introduction of a capital gains tax. And rubbished John Key’s suggestion that the announced limited tax on increasing housing values is not a capital gains tax.

Climate “consultation” – Fix Our Future

Written By:
Date published: 8:16 am, May 19th, 2015 - 13 comments

The government is “consulting” we the people on New Zealand’s climate change target. You can use Generation Zero’s Fix Our Future site to make a submission. Do it!

Rushed policy is bad policy

Written By:
Date published: 7:10 am, May 19th, 2015 - 24 comments

National’s policy opens the door to more effective capital gains tax, thus irritating investors and their base, while probably not achieving anything in practice. The worst of both worlds. Bonus question – does this policy effectively underwrite losses when the property bubble bursts? Plus another bonus John Key lie!

Open mike 19/05/2015

Written By:
Date published: 7:02 am, May 19th, 2015 - 100 comments

Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …

Daily Review 18/05/2015

Written By:
Date published: 5:30 pm, May 18th, 2015 - 20 comments

Daily review is also your post. This provides Standarnistas the opportunity to review events of the day.  The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Don’t forget to be kind to each other.

Mapital Mains Max

Written By:
Date published: 5:26 pm, May 18th, 2015 - 14 comments

John Key is now arguing that black is white – that a Tax on Capital Gains isn’t a Capital Gains Tax.

“Typical politician” many will say – and that shows how far John Key’s skills have fallen.

Burning issues of the day

Written By:
Date published: 12:32 pm, May 18th, 2015 - 9 comments

flag-meeting

Poverty and the budget

Written By:
Date published: 10:37 am, May 18th, 2015 - 13 comments

The levels of poverty and inequality in NZ are a disgrace. Apparently the budget is to “arrest the decline”, but we have heard such promises again and again from Key.

Deborah Russell: Preliminary thoughts on the Government’s new tax

Written By:
Date published: 9:15 am, May 18th, 2015 - 48 comments

Deborah Russell is a senior lecturer in taxation at Massey University and was Labour’s candidate in Rangitīkei in the 2014 general election.  In this post she sets out her preliminary views on National’s new tax.

CGT: the focus groups made Key do it

Written By:
Date published: 8:42 am, May 18th, 2015 - 39 comments

According to John Key the proposed tax on capital gains if a property is sold within two years of purchase is not a capital gains tax, there is no housing bubble in Auckland, and the proposed new tax does not represent a complete about face by the Government.

“The poor have a better life than King Henry VIII did” – Matthew Hooton

Written By:
Date published: 7:08 am, May 18th, 2015 - 261 comments

Just two years ago, leading lights in the neo-liberal cult were denying the existence of poverty in New Zealand. In the semi-public havens of the rich, it was the messengers who were being abused for rattling the neo-liberal cognitive dissonance with pesky facts and sympathetic portrayals of actual poor people.

Open mike 18/05/2015

Written By:
Date published: 6:00 am, May 18th, 2015 - 46 comments

Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …

Capital gains tax to be introduced

Written By:
Date published: 11:45 am, May 17th, 2015 - 196 comments

National appears to be doing an about face on a Capital Gains Tax for housing.

Are the left really angry?

Written By:
Date published: 10:14 am, May 17th, 2015 - 52 comments

The latest attacks on the left involves the right claiming that left activists are too angry and hurting labour’s chances in the UK as well as New Zealand.

Human Synergistics, Richard Prebble, and the end of government

Written By:
Date published: 6:08 am, May 17th, 2015 - 64 comments

Back in March 1988 David Lange had a clear idea about what lay ahead for New Zealanders as the long-term consequences of Roger Douglas’ psychopathic worshipping of the metaphysical Invisible Hand gradually materialised.

Open mike 17/05/2015

Written By:
Date published: 6:00 am, May 17th, 2015 - 76 comments

Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …

Robbie would be turning in his grave

Written By:
Date published: 11:47 am, May 16th, 2015 - 46 comments

Simon Bridges wants to ease Auckland’s congestion by investing more into local roads and less in rail. And by the looks of things he wants to politicise transport funding in a way that has not occurred for decades.

Auditor General rules on Dirty Politics allegation

Written By:
Date published: 8:33 am, May 16th, 2015 - 46 comments

The Auditor General has decided that Katherine Rich, head of the Food and Grocery Council which includes Coca Cola as well as Alcohol and Tobacco interests has no conflict in being a member of the Health Promotion Agency, a quango with the role of supporting healthy lifestyles.

Jon Stewart on Fox News on the poor

Written By:
Date published: 8:06 am, May 16th, 2015 - 18 comments

Unbelievable.

Your pre-budget speech

Written By:
Date published: 7:43 am, May 16th, 2015 - 38 comments

What would be in your budget speech if you were leader of the opposition?

Open mike 16/05/2015

Written By:
Date published: 6:00 am, May 16th, 2015 - 45 comments

Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …

Daily Review 15/05/2015

Written By:
Date published: 5:30 pm, May 15th, 2015 - 9 comments

Daily review is also your post. This provides Standarnistas the opportunity to review events of the day.  The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Don’t forget to be kind to each other.

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