Andrew Little; leadership, loyalty and lasting the distance.

Written By:
Date published: 1:19 pm, February 26th, 2015 - 64 comments

Its 100 days since the NZ Labour Party elected Andrew Little as its leader. What an inspired decision that has turned out to be! Little has galvanised the party, united the caucus and looks set to be the next PM. How has he turned Labour around?

Obama vetos Keystone pipeline

Written By:
Date published: 10:42 am, February 26th, 2015 - 8 comments

Too little, too late, but a victory the environment (and for sanity) none the less.

All the best Helen Kelly

Written By:
Date published: 10:26 am, February 26th, 2015 - 49 comments

“The head of the Council of Trade Unions has confirmed she has lung cancer.”

Get some guts

Written By:
Date published: 8:11 am, February 26th, 2015 - 114 comments

After the formal speeches on the Iraq deployment John Key set off on an extraordinary spittle-flecked rant against Labour. His “get some guts line” is going to haunt him for the next 3 years.

Petition – Not In My Name

Written By:
Date published: 7:11 am, February 26th, 2015 - 5 comments

A petition to oppose sending troops to Iraq has gained over 9,000 signatures in its first 24 hours. You can sign the petition here.

Open mike 26/02/2015

Written By:
Date published: 6:54 am, February 26th, 2015 - 268 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 …

Carmel stood down for possible conflict of interest

Written By:
Date published: 6:48 pm, February 25th, 2015 - 231 comments

Carmel Sepuloni’s mother has had charges of benefit fraud being laid against her. Andrew Little has done the sensible thing and stood down her as its social development spokesperson. While I’m sure that we will still get the dribbling trolls, this is how potential conflicts of interest should be handled. Updated.

The Continuing Fight for Justice at Pike River

Written By:
Date published: 4:16 pm, February 25th, 2015 - 7 comments

Yesterday the families lost only a small bit of the battle for justice at Pike in an application to get some of the documentation on the Peter Whittall decision. It is clear from the decision that the process of filing itself caused MBIE to agree to release a number of the key documents.

Polity: Excluded middle

Written By:
Date published: 2:59 pm, February 25th, 2015 - 24 comments

National counterattack line on Iraq is now out and about, courtesy of National’s tester and parrot of lines – National pollster David Farrar at Kiwiblog. It consists of two contradictory lines about Labour. Also neither line is true. But they are just there for the ‘journalists’ to mindlessly repeat in the evening news.

National’s electoral returns and the Donghua Liu donation

Written By:
Date published: 11:22 am, February 25th, 2015 - 41 comments

The Electoral Commission has now released individual returns of donations and electoral expenses.  And the Donghua Liu donation appears in Jamie-Lee Ross’s return.  But the vast majority of electorate campaigns recorded head office donations and the overwhelming impression is that cabinet club donations are collected centrally and then distributed.  So what happened with the Liu donation?

Three speeches on going to war

Written By:
Date published: 8:42 am, February 25th, 2015 - 109 comments

The first three speeches from yesterdays session in Parliament on sending troops to Iraq – John Key, Andrew Little, Russel Norman. Little’s speech is cogent, Norman’s is brilliant.

NZ Banks are very worried…

Written By:
Date published: 5:59 am, February 25th, 2015 - 76 comments

New Zealand banks (which are really Australian banks) are REALLY worried for us (oh, and for themselves).

Open mike 25/02/2015

Written By:
Date published: 5:55 am, February 25th, 2015 - 161 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 …

Key’s Plazatoro guts

Written By:
Date published: 7:30 pm, February 24th, 2015 - 81 comments

John Key’s frothing exhortation to Andrew Little in Parliament to “get some guts” reminds one of opera’s famous Duke of Plazatoro “who led his regiment from behind, he found it less exciting.” Key’s not going to Iraq – our soldiers are the ones in danger.

The price of the club?

Written By:
Date published: 4:15 pm, February 24th, 2015 - 105 comments

Back in 2003, John Key had an interesting take on whether it was appropriate to send troops to Iraq.

ISIS. Crowdsourcing a solution.

Written By:
Date published: 11:15 am, February 24th, 2015 - 172 comments

So, we’re off to Iraq. If the answer to ISIS isn’t sending Kiwi troops, what do Standardistas think practical alternatives might be?

EDIT: Key announces 143 troops to go to Iraq and support staff.

National’s fruit flies

Written By:
Date published: 7:13 am, February 24th, 2015 - 73 comments

Brook Sabin pulls no punches laying the blame for the fruit fly outbreak at National’s feet. Key’s attempted denial is some of his worst work ever.

Open mike 24/02/2015

Written By:
Date published: 6:33 am, February 24th, 2015 - 133 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 …

National hypocrisy about the gay pride parade

Written By:
Date published: 12:00 pm, February 23rd, 2015 - 86 comments

National engages in Auckland’s Gay Pride parade by sending two MPs who voted against marriage equality and an Auckland Councillor who on Facebook calls a young man who pointed this out as a “little c*ck”.  Way to blow relations with the gay and lesbian community.  Update: And Linda Cooper has apologised, sort of …

The Save Invermay Campaign

Written By:
Date published: 10:24 am, February 23rd, 2015 - 8 comments

National is letting the regions wither. None more so than (Labour voting) Dunedin, with the closure of the Hillside Workshop, the underfunding of Dunedin Hospital, and the planned closure of the agricultural research center at near-by Invermay. Check out Dunedin North MP David Clark’s video update on Invermay.

NZ sending troops to Iraq

Written By:
Date published: 10:00 am, February 23rd, 2015 - 227 comments

New Zealand will be sending troops to Iraq, and you read it first on The Standard. Or in other words, why are we still pretending that the decision hasn’t been made?

Three polls is a trend

Written By:
Date published: 7:05 am, February 23rd, 2015 - 79 comments

That’s the third poll this year to have Labour well up to 30% range.

Open mike 23/02/2015

Written By:
Date published: 6:30 am, February 23rd, 2015 - 130 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 …

The more complete Donghua Liu timeline

Written By:
Date published: 2:34 pm, February 22nd, 2015 - 90 comments

Yesterday’s Herald revealed that Donghua Liu made a second donation to National in 2013 which was repaid to him after last year’s election.  A brief timeline was provided but in the interests of greater understanding I thought a fuller timeline would be helpful.

Christchurch four years on

Written By:
Date published: 12:41 pm, February 22nd, 2015 - 42 comments

It will soon be four years to the minute since the most destructive and deadly Canterbury / Christchurch earthquake. Condolences to the friends and families of the dead. Greetings to all who lived through it and remember.

New blog – Edge Times

Written By:
Date published: 8:55 am, February 22nd, 2015 - 45 comments

Karol, ex of The Standard (and sorely missed), has started a new blog covering a mix of politics and popular culture. Please head on over and visit!

Open mike 22/02/2015

Written By:
Date published: 7:15 am, February 22nd, 2015 - 189 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 …

A random impertinent question about Donghua Liu

Written By:
Date published: 8:30 pm, February 21st, 2015 - 61 comments

The Herald announced today that Donghua Liu donated to National the sum of $25,000 in 2013.  But the National return for donations in that year, signed on April 30, 2014, do not include this donation and Lee-Ross did not put it in his declaration of pecuniary interests.  Maurice Williamson resigned on May 1 2014 for his attempting to affect a police prosecution of Donghua.  But the story broke earlier.

Charter schools mess – what a surprise

Written By:
Date published: 10:35 am, February 21st, 2015 - 193 comments

One of National’s first five charter schools is a failure, and applications for new charter schools have been cancelled. Who could have predicted such a mess? Just about everybody…

I hope Ngati Whatua have a really good Mokopuna day

Written By:
Date published: 8:00 am, February 21st, 2015 - 48 comments

According to some Ngati Whatua wanting to use Okahu Bay for a Mokopuna day has created something of a crisis.  Maybe not for us or anyone who is reasonable but for the rednecks and the rabid right.

Another Roy Morgan

Written By:
Date published: 7:20 am, February 21st, 2015 - 79 comments

Another Roy Morgan poll out late last night makes decent reading for Little, Labour and the left.

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