Paid parental leave bill progress towards anti-democratic veto

Written By: - Date published: 7:01 am, May 26th, 2016 - 49 comments
Categories: babies, families, human rights, labour, law, national, quality of life - Tags: , , ,

Sue Moroney’s bill to extend paid parental leave passed its second reading last night – bravo to all those who supported it! Unfortunately the bill is progressing towards inevitable veto:

Increased paid parental leave a no-go as Government promises to veto it

Getting 26 weeks paid parental leave for Kiwi Mums and Dads has passed its second hurdle in Parliament, but it won’t get across the line because of a Government veto.

Finance Minister Bill English confirmed on Wednesday that he still intends to use the financial veto to block the bill, introduced by Labour MP Sue Moroney.

The financial veto was introduced by Nats in 1998 and has been modified several times since. It has been used several times before – but always to veto “non-contentious amendments to larger bills”. This will be the first time it has ever been used to to shut down a whole bill.

In this case the use of the veto is anti-democratic, overruling the will of Parliament. The cost of the bill, estimates at $150 million a year, is a drop in the government’s budget which could be easily afforded (today’s Budget is reputed to reveal $1.6bn in “new” spending). If this bill is passed by Parliament it should not be vetoed.

49 comments on “Paid parental leave bill progress towards anti-democratic veto ”

  1. Sabine 1

    Well the Government can give either 3 billion worth of Tax Cuts to deserving Kiwis or the government can give exteneded parental leave to people who are obviously not able to afford to take unpaid leave after having a child. And why would the government help people that have children they obviously can’t afford.

    Clearly, we all see the hard choices Bill English has to make. Paid Parental leave for Worker Drones, or Tax Cuts for deserving people like him.

    Democracy? ah, who cares.

  2. esoteric pineapples 2

    I’m probably unusual for a progressive in that I don’t support extending paid parental leave or working for families (and also want to keep the Queen as head of state).

    • AmaKiwi 2.1

      Regrettably the Labour caucus is as anti-democratic as the Nats. NZ First is our best hope for direct democracy.

      For the last 20 years NZ First has always included binding referendums in their party platform.

      By contrast, every Labour leader from Helen Clark to David Cunliffe has denigrated any proposals that would stop a Labour government from being just another elected dictatorship. Labour’s mantra: “Parliament is sovereign.”

      (Note: I have personally asked everyone of them. I have not yet asked Andrew Little.)

      • alwyn 2.1.1

        “I have not yet asked Andrew Little”.

        A waste of time I’m afraid. He will say that he will set up a panel of experts to examine the matter and will request that they report their findings within four years, thus shifting it back until after the next election. Then, should a miracle have occurred and Labour are still in power, a second group will be chosen to examine whether any changes should be made. They will have another four years to return their report. By that time any Labour Government will be out of power and nothing will happen.
        etc, etc, etc.

      • DoublePlusGood 2.1.2

        Direct democracy would just lead to a tragedy of the commons where stupid nonsense like the antismacking referendum would get implemented into law.

        • Draco T Bastard 2.1.2.1

          There is no Tragedy of the Commons if we have adequate regulation. The poisoning of our waterways by farmers is because we don’t have adequate regulation.

          The anti-smacking referendum is a good example of how well funded interest groups can pervert democracy for their own aggrandisement by loudly proclaiming false information. Considering the lies that the groups who wanted to stop the repeal of section 59 told the managers of those groups should have ended up in jail and the groups heavily fined.

        • Lanthanide 2.1.2.2

          Agreed. I don’t want binding referendums initiated by the public, because I don’t trust the public.

          It seems unlikely we would repeal things like same-sex marriage, but euthanasia and potentially abortion could be targets for the majority to quash progressive change.

          • te reo putake 2.1.2.2.1

            Exactly right, Lanthanide. If the public had their way we’d be hanging criminals and merrily beating our children. We vote for leadership, not knee jerk populism. Sometimes the leadership isn’t great, but it’s better than being ruled by talkback radio.

          • Draco T Bastard 2.1.2.2.2

            Euthanasia and abortion are majority supported by the populace in general. It’s a few loud minorities that are holding the MPs back from making the decision to allow them and, of course, the MPs own biases and ideology.

            This can be said for many policies. Marijuana legalisation is another.

            The We know what’s best for you argument is always a bad argument as it’s not actually an argument but an excuse to maintain dictatorship.

            • DoublePlusGood 2.1.2.2.2.1

              And yet the public would also probably vote to remove the unemployment benefit in a direct democracy referendum.

              • Draco T Bastard

                Unless such went against the Bill of rights.

                But, to be honest, I don’t think that they would. Also, I think we’d probably have a better chance of getting a UBI through direct democracy. Again, it’s a policy that seems favoured by the majority (only seen the unscientific polling which was in favour).

          • AmaKiwi 2.1.2.2.3

            @ Lathanide

            “I don’t want binding referendums initiated by the public, because I don’t trust the public.”

            You trust John Key? Donald Trump? You trust a NZ version of the extremist groups gaining power all across Europe?

            In the end someone gets the final say. I have more faith in my neighbors and my ability to talk sense to them than I do in the 1% to do anything except stuff their pockets at my expense (while they record all Nickie Hager’s and my conversations).

            How bad does it have to get before you admit that elected dictators are dangerous?

      • Macro 2.1.3

        Sorry – but if this is what you call democracy – I want nothing of it!
        This is just stupid behaviour by NZ First. This was a Bill designed to increase transparency and accountability in government and just because one party has a snitch against another they act like kids in the playground. Once NZ First grow up and start acting for the benefit of NZers then they will gain more respect.

  3. jcuknz 3

    I would think it is quite reasonable for those having to find the money have the final word.
    In any case there are too many children being procreated in NZ ..ie a woman of 28 with eight or is it ten children is the latest headline case … completely irresponsible. There are numerous examples of smaller families. couples should have the number of children the family income can properly support without govt subsidies. With assistance being provided when family circumstances change for reasons out of their control.

    • AmaKiwi 3.1

      @ jcuknz

      I think the issue is the importance of infants being cared for by their parents. I don’t think the issue is population management.

      “There was an old lady who lived in a shoe. She had so many children she didn’t know what to do.” If the shoe was properly insulated, did her children smell like dirty socks? Why didn’t WINZ help her? Is this writer “one toke over the line, sweat Jesus”? Go ask Alice.

      • jcuknz 3.1.1

        Sorry Amakiwi but the thread is about democracy rather than child welfare and my key point was it is the funder who has the final word rather than half baked idealism … which may or may not have a basis.

        • AmaKiwi 3.1.1.1

          @ jcuknz

          “my key point was it is the funder who has the final word rather than half baked idealism”

          Jcuknz, you and I are the funders. You and I have NO say.

          It is OUR country, not Parliament’s.

          • jcuknz 3.1.1.1.1

            Perhaps I should have used the word ‘allocater’ rather than funder, but I am sure that could be twisted too.
            If we cut out WFF subsidies to those that might expect them in the future [ note grandfather principle beloved by the left] then families could make a sensible choice to use contraceptives or not.
            When I and my wife raised our family’s single child the benefit was for the child but silly polies changed it. We as a unit have had a much better lifestyle than neighbors with less income and more children. even though we were limited at the time, all the time including today, but sensible people cut their cloth to suit their income.

    • Sabine 3.2

      i too would approve of vasectomies of all man that are of the legal age to have sex.

      When they, in the future, can prove that not only can they help make babies, but also can afford them – even after they split from the mother and child – can they have a vasectomy reversal.

      And of course i would like to see free visits to doctors for the ladies, so that they can get the reproductive healthcare they need, that would also include a. free access to the pill (cause condoms just don’t feel right you know), free access to any other pregnancy preventing device, free morning after pill, free and easy access to abortion.

      And of course i would like to see education that focuses on sexual reproduction irrespective of ‘abstinence only’ or in ‘marriage only’ type situations. How are babies made? And how do we prevent baby making?

      And of course we should also stipulate a minimum income that people have to have before they can apply at the Ministry of approved Children for their bub.

      That should have covered it all ? No?

      edit: And of course I would propose Ms. Bennett as the Minister for the Ministry of approved Children.

      • jcuknz 3.2.1

        The responsible society needs a responsible populace to work. Having more children and expecting the govt to pay you to look after them for longer is irresponsible if there is not the money available. English has the difficult task of balancing the books for the good of everybody rather than just one segment.

        By the bye English lost my vote over selling state housing rather than this veto.

        • Sabine 3.2.1.1

          so you don’t like my suggestion that controlling the fertility of man is as much needed as controlling the fertility of women?

          I mean if women only had sex with women we would not have the issue, same goes for the blokes of course.

          it is that rampant sex between heterosexual couples that makes babies that you may consider surplus, but clearly, as I stated, Vasectomies for all 🙂 That would do it very quickly. After all a women needs 9 month to make one baby, man on the other hand can just go around and procreate with impunity and no one would be the wiser ey?

          To boot your comment about the homeless lady with her children is moot, as parental leave applies to women and man that are in paid employment and have worked for a minimum of at least 10 hours per week for a certain time.

          As for you not admiring and voting for the double dipper from dipton, you will come around again next years when its time for another round of beneficiary and poor people bashing and tax cuts. Surely you will be fine.

        • Draco T Bastard 3.2.1.2

          The responsible society needs a responsible populace to work.

          Not really. Or, to be more precise, a few thousand years ago sustainable societies only required about 4 hours per week of work from everyone.

          Having more children and expecting the govt to pay you to look after them for longer is irresponsible if there is not the money available.

          That is so wrong on so many levels.

          First, all of society always pays for the children and the adults as well
          Second it’s not money that’s the problem but actual physical resources. It’s out of these limited resources that a society ‘pays’ for both adults and children
          Thirdly, a society needs to maintain itself and so it needs to have children. A society that doesn’t have children is a dead society. Your prescription would actually result in that dead society

          Now, we actually have the resources available to feed, house and clothe all the people who live here and the children that they have.

          So, why are you insisting that we need poverty?

        • AmaKiwi 3.2.1.3

          jcuknz

          Economic genocide NZ style.

          The elite create an economy in which even full-time workers live in poverty. If these workers dare to have children, make sure their children are malnourished, poorly housed, and less educated than the elite.

          In the Occupied Territories, we recognize it for what it is, economic genocide.

          It’s economic genocide here, too.

          • Draco T Bastard 3.2.1.3.1

            +1

            Exactly. It’s the war upon the poor that the rich always engage in.

      • Lanthanide 3.2.2

        Vasectomy reversal is not always without complications, and is sometimes impossible.

        So your policy will not be implemented until a 100% safe and reversible procedure is available.

        If you’re considering long-term easily-reversed contraception, then IUDs are a more feasible avenue with today’s available technology. But even then, IUDs aren’t suitable for all women.

        Also any policy like this would likely lead to a reduction in condom use and hence increase in STIs.

        • Sabine 3.2.2.1

          so in short Lanthanide,
          lets do nothing and continue to shame women for having children, and never ever mention the men that have helped make these children?

          And don’t you think it is about time that we hold man accountable for the children they father or are we just to accept that some men are official Samenschleudern* and nothing can be done about it, and we don’t ever hold them responsible, but we will shame the women for having the children, or we will attempt and shame her for having an abortion?

          And the cost of pregancy prevention is to be carried by women only? Not only the financial cost but also the cost of side effects of the pill, iud’s and the like? No frankly i think a vasectomy is the best bet.

          *Samenschleudern loosly translated is a semen sprinkler and refers to men that have several children often with several women (who often now nothing of each other) and who do not help in the upkeep of their children.

          • Lanthanide 3.2.2.1.1

            I think you need to try and read my comment again, and see what i actually said, and not what you imagined I said.

    • AB 3.3

      “a woman of 28 with eight or is it ten children is the latest headline case … completely irresponsible”
      Yes- so what do you want to do about it?
      a.) pull the plug on social support due to the irresponsibility so that kids go hungry/homeless and are likely to become similarly irresponsible?
      b.) compulsorily sterilise beneficiaries after ‘n’ children (‘n’ to be defined) ?
      c.) recognise that fertility rates fall with growing affluence so ensure there is well-paid work, education, and support for parenting and hope to fix it a generation or two down the line?

      a.) is favoured by Tories, b.) by fascists and c.) by social democrats. Take your pick.

  4. ianmac 4

    Depending how the MSM reports the pending veto, it could result in a disappointment to a huge numbers of parents. A parent at home for the longest period would be so good for babies. But this Government cares not for family welfare.

  5. srylands 5

    “The financial veto was introduced by Nats in 1998 ..”

    No. It was introduced in 1995. Prior to 1995, private members were prohibited from introducing Bills that involved public expenditure. In 1995 the National Government changed standing orders to allow public members to introduce such Bills. But the Financial Veto was the quid pro quo.

    If you think the Veto is anti-democratic, you could lobby the Labour party to adopt a policy commitment to amend Standing Orders to prohibit the use of the veto on a whole Bill.

    Good luck with that.

    • Lanthanide 5.1

      Seems like a reasonable quid pro quo to me.

      I’m struggling to see how this is ‘anti-democratic’ – a democratically elected government is exercising its sovereign right to govern.

      It would be nice if we had a second house of Parliament, but we don’t.

      • Draco T Bastard 5.1.1

        It would be nice if we had a second house of Parliament,

        Really, why do people always think that having a second house of parliament is going to solve anything? There’s plenty of them operating around the world and they don’t solve a damn thing.

        The only solution is for the policies to come from the people themselves and then have parliament implement them. Get rid of the bloody dictatorship that we have.

        • Enough is Enough 5.1.1.1

          Talk me through this Draco…

          In this solution of yours would every new law require the majority of the people to agree? Would we need a referendum for every law change?

          • Draco T Bastard 5.1.1.1.1

            Would need a referendum and agreement on every policy change but not necessarily a law change if the law change still fits within the general policy. A clarification of an existing law would not need the referendum and agreement. A change in policy, say recreational drug policy, would though.

            The Bill of Rights would be supreme law and no policy or law would be able to go against it. That said, I’ve got ideas on how to set the Bill of Rights via referendum which, of course, would be the first thing done.

            Although the people would set the policies it would be parliament that actually wrote the laws to implement those policies so as to maintain consistency. They’d also be duty bound to not to implement a policy if it contradicted another policy or it went against the Bill of Rights and to make sure that the research that we need to make policy decisions is available to us.

            And before you go on about how much work that would be you should note that overall policy doesn’t change all that much. Perhaps policy is the wrong word and what I’m looking for is more General Principles.

            • Enough is Enough 5.1.1.1.1.1

              You would have too seriously regulate marketing though wouldn’t you?

              The rich would dump endless resources on spin and marketing to get the result they want.

              • Draco T Bastard

                Yes but we already do that with limits on campaign spending so it shouldn’t be too much of a hurdle to minimise such manipulation.

          • AmaKiwi 5.1.1.1.2

            @ Enough is Enough

            “Would we need a referendum for every law change?”

            Deterrence is the purpose of binding referendums.

            As I understand the Swiss system, when parliament passes a law people can give notice they seek to challenge it in a referendum.

            They have 3 months to collect signatures.

            If they don’t get enough signatures, the bill becomes law. If they get the signatures, a referendum is scheduled.

            Please note, fewer than 10% of Swiss referendums which challenge an act of parliament succeed in overturning parliament’s bill.

            Deterrence is the purpose of referendums. Parliament is deterred from passing unpopular laws because they know they will be challenged in a referendum.

        • AmaKiwi 5.1.1.2

          + 100

          If the elite can buy off one house of parliament, they can afford to buy the second house as well.

          A $1 million campaign contribution and other concealed “gifts” to politicians is chicken feed to a crook with hundreds of millions hidden in a NZ overseas trust.

      • Ed 5.1.2

        A democratically elected government can pass any legislation it likes, so long as each Bill is supported by a majority of the House. If it does not have the support of a majority of Members of Parliament, the Bill would be lost. National could presumably invoke “confidence and supply” in relation to this Bill and regain the support of one member to ensure that the legislation is not passed – but either their agreements do not allow for that situation, or they have not been able to persuade a majority of MPs to defeat the bill. The Standing Order provision is anti-democratic.

        • Lanthanide 5.1.2.1

          “A democratically elected government can pass any legislation it likes, so long as each Bill is supported by a majority of the House, and can veto any other legislation on financial grounds if required.”

          FTFY.

      • AmaKiwi 5.1.3

        @ Lanthanide

        “a democratically elected government is exercising its sovereign right to govern.”

        You hit the nail on the head. Parliament is the sovereign, NOT the people. Once elected, the people have no control over parliament what-so-ever.

        In a democracy, the PEOPLE are sovereign, not the people they elected.

        Example: The referendum to stop the sale of OUR power companies. The people democratically voted to not sell. The sovereign (parliament) told us to fuck off.

  6. Nick Morris 6

    This is the one the Govt will include in the Budget.

    A gormless media will headline: “Stealing Labour’s Thunder” and this Throw-out-a-few-baubles Budget will win widespread praise among the pundits who will chortle “Labour has nowhere to go!”

    That’s how it works

  7. save nz 7

    Great bill. Hope it passes. Pretty much all health advisers advise 6 months of exclusive breastfeeding of infants if possible. That is pretty hard to do if you have to go back to work.

    It is about time people started voting for living a fulfilling life and more quality of life including relationships, not just making more money for business and consumption.

    Nowadays businesses and shareholders as entities, seem to have more rights than humans. In particular if they don’t even live in the country or community.

    • AmaKiwi 7.1

      save nz

      “Nowadays businesses seem to have more rights than humans.”

      Precisely.

      Big businesses pay to elect governments who know the price of everything and the value of nothing.

  8. Jenny 8

    Not only is the veto law antidemocratic it is treasonous.

    The history of the veto law was the establishment’s response to one of the greatest victories for democracy in this country.

    In 1984 parliament had the numbers to over rule the Muldoon government’s support for nuclear ship visits.

    A private members bill put forward by Richard Prebble (of all people) to ban nuclear capable and powered warhsips had gathered the numbers to overturn the government’s one seat majority, gaining the support of Marilyn Waring, National. And Mike Minogue, National.

    To prevent this bill being passed Muldoon adjourned parliament and called a snap election.

    We all know the rest. (or we should).

    This legislation when it was finally passed in 1987 just before the election was a singular victory over the projection of US power in this part of the world.

    Admired around the world and particularly across the Pacific The Fiji Labour Party under the leadership of Timoti Bavandra took up the batton and campaigned on a progressive program part of which was to make Fiji also nuclear free. (other progressive Fiji Labour policies was the introduction of a state house building program and social welfare reforms)

    Top US generals flew to Suva to meet with military officer Colonel Sitiveni Rabuka.

    We all know the rest. (or should)

    In New Zealand, in an act of revenge and to prevent a recurrence of the events of 1984, the forces of reaction and war inside the National party, on returning to government passed the veto law.

    The use of the veto law ties in with all the other treachery that this government has championed; from the TPPA, which surrenders our sovereignty to overseas multinational tribunals with no right of appeal. To engagement in bloody US invasions. To subservience of our spy agencies to US interests under 5 Eyes, and PRISM and XKeyscore Score, which used meta data techniques to illegally spy on all New Zealanders, information that was then illegally shared with the 5 Eyes partners.
    And inevitably, to top it all off, the government’s intention to resume US war ship visits.

    This government’s treasonous nature, sensed at some level by most New Zealanders, is one of the reasons that the government’s campaign to rebrand, NZ Inc. failed so miserably.

    Most people sensed that this symbolic change in our flag represented a symbol of moving away from the traditional values that New Zealand was world famous for, including such things as in this case increased paid parental leave, social welfare, state housing for all who needed it etc.

    So what should we do about this obscene affront to our democracy to prevent a recurrence?

    The opposition is not powerless.

    Every opposition party that support Sue Moroney’s bill, for paid parental leave, shall tell this government that if they abuse the power of veto to kill this bill then they will make it an election campaign promise to abolish the undemocratic veto law and return the democratic primacy of parliament to our government.

    And explain to the voters why;

    • John shears 8.1

      @ Jenny Well said thank you.

      • Jenny 8.1.1

        Thank you John, for your vote of confidence.

        Much of the information of how we came to have a veto over parliament, came from my memory of living through the historic event that saw parliament over rule the Muldoon government’s support for nuclear ship visits.

        New Zealand’s Nuclear Free status is something that the US has been trying to water down ever since it was first imposed.

        New Zealand now has a government proven to be one of the most subservient to US interests in a very long time.

        Our nuclear free status has been a sore point of discussion raised by US political leaders whenever they meet our leadership. Remember National Party leader of the time Don Brash promising the Americans that this policy “Would be gone by lunchtime”. And now how John Key is now preparing to do a rerun of the USS Buchanan gambit in November as the thin end of the wedge to water this policy down.

        Even earlier, no doubt due to intense US pressure to do so, David Lange issued a statement that, “New Zealand’s Anti-nuclear policy was not for export.”

        But too late the genie was out of the bottle.

        The anti-nuclear movement in Fiji was particularly strong, led by FANG the Fiji Anti-nuclear Group. Suva harbour’s sea walls were covered with Fang anti-nuclear grafiti greeting every US warship visit, no doubt much to US dismay.

        Following New Zealand’s stand, the Fiji Labour Party led by Timoci Bavandra promised to ban nuclear ships as well.

        And on being elected Bavandra’s government imposed a total ban on all nuclear warship visits to Fiji.

        Much to the chagrin of the US and despite David Lange’s statement that New Zealand’s Nuclear Free policy was not for export, the campaign to make the whole South Pacific region a Nuclear weapons Free Zone became a real force.

        Enter US General Vernon Walters known as the “Coup Master” for his role in the Chilean coup and in particular his complicity in the murder of US journalist Charles Horman dramatised in the movie “Missing” starring Jack Lemmon and Sissy Spacek.

        The “Coup Master” General Walters flew to Suva and met with Colonel Sitiveni Rabuka.

        Two weeks later Colonel Rubuka staged a coup storming the Fijian parliament and arresting all the Labour Government MPs. Rabuka also suppressed FANG and the union movement. As well as storming parliament Colonel Rabuku sent armed troops to occupy the University of the South Pacific campus which had become the organising centre for a Nuclear Free Pacific.

        How to Stage a Military Coup

        More aid came in the shape of Lieutenant-General Vernon Walters, who arrived in Suva on 30 April 1987 – two weeks after the election and two weeks before the coup. Walters had a very public career as US Ambassador to the UN and former Director of the CIA. He also had a somewhat less well-known career as a coup plotter, starting with Iran 1953 (Chapter 3) and progressing through Brazil 1964 to Chile 1973 (Chapter 6). The writing was on the wall of the arrivals hall at Nadi International Airport.

        After a short, uncomfortable meeting with the new prime minister, General Walters moved on to hector Foreign Minister Krishna Datt about the no-nuclear-ship policy. No doubt the envoy lectured him about the American policy of ‘strategic denial’ under which Washington was determined to prevent, by whatever means necessary, South Pacific island states from entering into any foreign relationship of which the US did not approve. Next on the schedule was a protocolbusting meeting with Lieutenant-Colonel Sitiveni Rabuka; the minutes of that encounter have never been published.

        https://books.google.co.nz/books?id=RrEtAgAAQBAJ&pg=PT167&lpg=PT167&dq=General+Vernon+Walters+Colonel+Sitiveni+Rabuka&source=bl&ots=oMpEzA7HOM&sig=7gTMPrmCCExYlpcAgE_qQhXTDtw&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjN4qyVz5XNAhVFKaYKHbbfBVMQ6AEIOzAG#v=onepage&q=General%20Vernon%20Walters%20Colonel%20Sitiveni%20Rabuka&f=false

        When Lt. Col. Sitiveni Rabuka and his military conspirators stormed Fiji’s Parliament House on May 14, the one-month-old coalition government of Prime Minister Timoci Bavadra ended abruptly. Upon taking office after the April 12 election, Bavadra (a medical doctor) instituted a progressive program of domestic and foreign policy reforms in the wake of the 17-year rule of staunchly pro-Western Sir Kamisese Ratu Mara. Domestically, Bavadra expanded medical care, resolved to protect Fijian timber resources (which were often sold by the Mara government without the owner’s consent), created an Institute for Fijian Language and Culture and promised greater access for Fijians to Fiji Development Bank loans that had been going to foreign-owned businesses. “We have done in four weeks for poor people,” said Dr. Bavadra, “what Mara’s Alliance Party could not do in 17 years”. But most controversial was the nascent government’s nonaligned foreign policy, which banned port visits by nuclear-laden warships.

        https://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/fiji/not-so-pacific-pacific

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    It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just show a minimal amount of flux in public support for the various parties in ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    9 hours ago
  • Bishop scores headlines with crackdown on unwelcome tenants – but Peters scores, too, as tub-thump...
    Buzz from the Beehive Housing Minister Chris Bishop delivered news – packed with the ingredients to enflame political passions – worthy of supplanting Winston Peters in headline writers’ priorities. He popped up at the post-Cabinet press conference to promise a crackdown on unruly and antisocial state housing tenants. His ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    10 hours ago
  • Will it make the boat go faster?
    Ele Ludemann writes – The Reserve Bank is advertising for a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion advisor. The Bank has one mandate – to keep inflation between one and three percent. It has failed in that and is only slowly getting inflation back down to the upper limit. Will it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    12 hours ago
  • Bryce Edwards: Is Simon Bridges’ NZTA appointment a conflict of interest?
    Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi The fact that a ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    13 hours ago
  • Is Simon Bridges’ NZTA appointment a conflict of interest?
    Bryce Edwards writes – Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    13 hours ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' at 10:10am on Tuesday, March 19
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Gavin Jacobson talks to Thomas Piketty 10 years on from Capital in the 21st Century The SalvoLocal scoop: Green MP’s business being investigated over migrant exploitation claims Stuff Steve KilgallonLocal deep-dive: The commercial contractors making money from School ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    13 hours ago
  • Bernard's six newsy things on Tuesday, March 19
    It’s a home - but Kāinga Ora tenants accused of “abusing the privilege” may lose it. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Government announced a crackdown on Kāinga Ora tenants who were unruly and/or behind on their rent, with Housing Minister Chris Bishop saying a place in a state ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    14 hours ago
  • New Life for Light Rail
    This is a guest post by Connor Sharp of Surface Light Rail  Light rail in Auckland: A way forward sooner than you think With the coup de grâce of Auckland Light Rail (ALR) earlier this year, and the shift of the government’s priorities to roads, roads, and more roads, it ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    15 hours ago
  • Why Are Bosses Nearly All Buffoons?
    Note: As a paid-up Webworm member, I’ve recorded this Webworm as a mini-podcast for you as well. Some of you said you liked this option - so I aim to provide it when I get a chance to record! Read more ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    18 hours ago
  • Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6.06 pm on March 18
    TL;DR: In my ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Monday, March 18:IKEA is accused of planting big forests in New Zealand to green-wash; REDD-MonitorA City for People takes a well-deserved victory lap over Wellington’s pro-YIMBY District Plan votes; A City for PeopleSteven Anastasiou takes a close look at the sticky ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • Peters holds his ground on co-governance, but Willis wriggles on those tax cuts and SNA suspension l...
    Buzz from the Beehive Here’s hoping for a lively post-cabinet press conference when the PM and – perhaps – some of his ministers tell us what was discussed at their meeting today. Until then, Point of Order has precious little Beehive news to report after its latest monitoring of the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 day ago
  • Labour’s final report card
    David Farrar writes –  We now have almost all 2023 data in, which has allowed me to update my annual table of how  went against its promises. This is basically their final report card. The promise The result Build 100,000 affordable homes over 10 ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago
  • “Drunk Uncle at a Wedding”
    I’m a bit worried that I’ve started a previous newsletter with the words “just when you think they couldn’t get any worse…” Seems lately that I could begin pretty much every issue with that opening. Such is the nature of our coalition government that they seem to be outdoing each ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 day ago
  • Wang Yi’s perfectly-timed, Aukus-themed visit to New Zealand
    Geoffrey Miller writes – Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on Dune 2, and images of Islam
    Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture ...
    2 days ago
  • New Rail Operations Centre Promises Better Train Services
    Last week Transport Minster Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre. The new train control centre will see teams from KiwiRail, Auckland Transport and Auckland One Rail working more closely together to improve train services across the city. The Auckland Rail Operations Centre in ...
    2 days ago
  • Bernard's six newsy things at 6.36am on Monday, March 18
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson said in an exit interview with Q+A yesterday the Government can and should sustain more debt to invest in infrastructure for future generations. Elsewhere in the news in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 6:36am: Read more ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: Wang Yi’s perfectly-timed, Aukus-themed visit to New Zealand
    Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. It is more than just a happy ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    2 days ago
  • The Kaka’s diary for the week to March 25 and beyond
    TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to March 18 include:China’s Foreign Minister visiting Wellington today;A post-cabinet news conference this afternoon; the resumption of Parliament on Tuesday for two weeks before Easter;retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson gives his valedictory speech in Parliament; ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Bitter and angry; Winston First
    New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters’s state-of-the-nation speech on Sunday was really a state-of-Winston-First speech. He barely mentioned any of the Government’s key policies and could not even wholly endorse its signature income tax cuts. Instead, he rehearsed all of his complaints about the Ardern Government, including an extraordinary claim ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    2 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
    2 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
    2 days ago
  • Out of Touch.
    “I’ve been internalising a really complicated situation in my head.”When they kept telling us we should wait until we get to know him, were they taking the piss? Was it a case of, if you think this is bad, wait till you get to know the real Christopher, after the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • The bewildering world of Chris Luxon – Guns for all, not no lunch for kids
    .“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
    Frankly SpeakingBy Frank Macskasy
    3 days ago
  • Expert Opinion: Ageing Boomers, Laurie & Les, Talk Politics.
    It hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.”THUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
    3 days ago
  • Manufacturing The Truth.
    Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology – the Internet –  is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
    3 days ago
  • A Powerful Sensation of Déjà Vu.
    Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
    3 days ago
  • Can you guess where world attention is focussed (according to Greenpeace)? It’s focussed on an EPA...
    Bob Edlin writes –  And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago
  • Further integrity problems for the Greens in suspending MP Darleen Tana
    Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago
  • Jacqui Van Der Kaay: Greens’ transparency missing in action
    For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s Dawn Chorus with six newsey things at 6:46am for Saturday, March 16
    TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ Herald Thomas Coughlan Simeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • How Did FTX Crash?
    What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    4 days ago
  • Elections in Russia and Ukraine
    Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s six stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15
    TL;DR: Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it:  We want our country to be a ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago
  • National’s clean car tax advances
    The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Government funding bailouts
    Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Two offenders, different treatments.
    See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    4 days ago
  • Treaty references omitted
    Ele Ludemann writes  – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • The Ghahraman Conflict
    What was that judge thinking? Peter Williams writes –  That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 15
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop: Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • The day Wellington up-zoned its future
    Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Weekly Roundup 15-March-2024
    It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    5 days ago
  • That Word.
    Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • The Hoon around the week to March 15
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Labour’s policy gap
    It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #11 2024
    Open access notables A Glimpse into the Future: The 2023 Ocean Temperature and Sea Ice Extremes in the Context of Longer-Term Climate Change, Kuhlbrodt et al., Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society: In the year 2023, we have seen extraordinary extrema in high sea surface temperature (SST) in the North Atlantic and in ...
    5 days ago
  • Melissa remains mute on media matters but has something to say (at a sporting event) about economic ...
     Buzz from the Beehive   The text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary.  It can be quickly analysed ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago
  • The return of Muldoon
    For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Will the rental tax cut improve life for renters or landlords?
    Bryce Edwards writes –  Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: What Saudi Arabia’s rapid changes mean for New Zealand
    Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    5 days ago
  • Racism’s double standards
    Questions need to be asked on both sides of the world Peter Williams writes –   The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • It’s not a tax break
    Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • The Plastic Pig Collective and Chris' Imaginary Friends.
    I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • Who is responsible for young offenders?
    Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on National’s fantasy trip to La La Landlord Land
    How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
    6 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 14
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop: The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • No, Prime Minister, rents don’t rise or fall with landlords’ costs
    TL;DR: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • Cartoons: ‘At least I didn’t make things awkward’
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
    6 days ago
  • Solving traffic congestion with Richard Prebble
    The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    6 days ago
  • I Think I'm Done Flying Boeing
    Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago
  • Invoking Aristotle: Of Rings of Power, Stones, and Ships
    The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
    6 days ago
  • Van Velden brings free-market approach to changing labour laws – but her colleagues stick to distr...
    Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • Why Newshub failed
    Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • Māori Party on the warpath against landlords and seabed miners – let’s see if mystical creature...
    Bob Edlin writes  –  The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they  follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago

  • Government moves to quickly ratify the NZ-EU FTA
    "The Government is moving quickly to realise an additional $46 million in tariff savings in the EU market this season for Kiwi exporters,” Minister for Trade and Agriculture, Todd McClay says. Parliament is set, this week, to complete the final legislative processes required to bring the New Zealand – European ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 hours ago
  • Positive progress for social worker workforce
    New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    11 hours ago
  • Minister confirms reduced RUC rate for PHEVs
    Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April.  ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    13 hours ago
  • Trade access to overseas markets creates jobs
    Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand.  Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    14 hours ago
  • NZ and Chinese Foreign Ministers hold official talks
    Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Kāinga Ora instructed to end Sustaining Tenancies
    Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Speech to Auckland Business Chamber: Growth is the answer
    Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Singapore rounds out regional trip
    Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships.      “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Minister van Velden represents New Zealand at International Democracy Summit
    Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Insurance Council of NZ Speech, 7 March 2024, Auckland
    ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland  Acknowledgements and opening  Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho.  Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau  My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Five-year anniversary of Christchurch terror attacks
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says.  “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024
    Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024  Acknowledgements and opening  Morena, Nga Mihi Nui.  Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau  Good morning. It’s a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
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