Political donations and conflicts of interest

Written By: - Date published: 12:30 pm, March 2nd, 2015 - 53 comments
Categories: Abuse of power, christchurch earthquake, election 2014, election funding, Gerry Brownlee, hone harawira, john key, labour, national - Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Danyl has some thought-provoking comments about the Herald’s analysis of electoral donations:

MPs and other political insiders get really upset if you suggest to them that this is all basically political corruption. Partly this is down to their massive egos. MPs don’t think it’s strange that corporations just give them huge sums of money. Are they not extraordinary individuals? Have they not been chosen by destiny to lead the nation? Related to that is cognitive dissonance. The system around political donations might look totally corrupt, but MPs all know that they personally are not corrupt – how dare anyone suggest that? – so Tallys must just be giving free money to the MPs that happen to sit on the Select Committee that oversees and regulates their industry because they personally believe in those individual MPs.

A lot of it looks pretty dodgy, especially National’s apparent funnelling of larger anonymous donations through party HQ, and the Talleys’ enthusiastic support of people making the laws which affect the Talleys’ business.

But it also led me to reflect on some of the criticisms – from the left and right alike – of Andrew Little and Carmel Sepuloni’s decision that she give up the social development portfolio temporarily while her mother faces charges of benefit fraud.

The same kind of arguments that Danyl outlines were in play – everyone knows Sepuloni is a person of integrity! How can she be held responsible for the actions of her mother? No one would dare accuse her of impropriety!

This is on the one hand rubbish – just look (or don’t!) at how furiously Cameron Slater, of all people, defended Sepuloni, with the exact same arguments. Wouldn’t you know it, just a few days later we got a well-timed story about Sepuloni asking the Minister questions about benefit fraud. Slater’s fury probably has a lot less to do with Due And Fair Process and a lot more to do with whatever additional attack lines he had queued up.

And on the other hand, it’s rubbish again, because that’s not how conflicts of interest work. People in positions of influence don’t get to walk around saying “I’m making decisions about something I have a personal stake in, but I’m a good person so it’s not a problem!” or “But I haven’t done anything corrupt yet so I can’t have a conflict of interest!”

It’s all there in the name: when your interests are in conflict, you have a problem. And the unfortunate reality of our society is that people are judged by what their family members do – otherwise stories about Hone Harawira’s nephew’s conviction or John Key’s daughter’s art would never get the headlines they get. And those aren’t issues where you can make any kind of case that the famous person “involved” has done anything dodgy.

But it does look dodgy as hell when Talleys are pouring money into the primary production select committee. It does look dodgy as hell when Amy Adams as Minister for the Environment is overseeing freshwater management changes which just happen to massively increase the value of her land, or Gerry Brownlee denies there’s a problem with rental prices soaring in Christchurch, where he happens to own four properties.

And it would have been child’s play for the right to make it look dodgy as hell for Sepuloni to stay on as social development spokesperson. They already had the ratf*cking machine up and running and ready to go.

We can’t give our people a free pass just because they’re our people and we know they’d never do anything wrong. And the good ones who have integrity – like Carmel Sepuloni – don’t expect us to.

It’s a temporary situation for Sepuloni, and she’s continuing to do damn fine work in the meantime. The issue of political donations – and how much our political system is influenced by the people with the most money to spare – is going to be far more difficult to change.

53 comments on “Political donations and conflicts of interest ”

  1. One Anonymous Bloke 1

    Here’s what MBIE has to say:

    The options for managing a conflict of interest include:
     restricting: imposing restrictions on the person’s further involvement in the matter
     recruiting: engaging an independent third party to oversee all or part of the process and verify its integrity
     removing: where the person chooses, or is asked, to be removed completely from the matter
     relinquishing: where the person relinquishes the private interest that created the conflict
     resigning: where the person resigns from their position with the agency. (This should only be considered if the conflict of interest can’t be resolved in any other workable way.)

    I can’t see the National Party’s preferred method – defunding the regulatory body – anywhere. Must be some sort of oversight.

  2. Draco T Bastard 2

    Ban all donations from legal entities, limiting them to natural persons (Who must be citizens) only.
    Ban all donations from offshore.
    Maximum of $1000 per person per year and nobody under the age of 18 can donate.

    Make it so that political parities have to become mass parties again and that they’re forced to listen to the broader membership and not just the rich that give large donations.

    • dv 2.1

      AND all donations (per dtb) are published on a public web based data base every month

      • Colonial Rawshark 2.1.1

        Anonymise the donations through a central authority or website.

        You want to give $1000 to a Labour or National candidate, or to the parties themselves. It goes through the central authority which strips identifiers from the donation and then passes it on to the recipient’s bank account.

        • One Anonymous Bloke 2.1.1.1

          So I donate to National through the CA, then I show Peter Goodfellow the receipts and it’s corruption as usual.

          You want to make political donations: donate them to democracy, ie: split among all parties.

          That will sort the National Party’s owners out from the altruists.

        • Paul Campbell 2.1.1.2

          No – no anonymous donations – ever – every donation right down to the dollar should be noted online with the name of the person doing the donation – otherwise you can never tell there’s no quid pro quo there

          National’s funding their candidates from “Candidate Club” donations funneled through the party are so obviously wrong – the cabinet members have already actually met with the donors even though the money passed through the party – it’s an obvious way to avoid the sort of transparency that we need as a functioning democracy to decide if our politicians have been bought and by who – of course in the case of “Cabinet Clubs” they have indeed been bought, by the hour

          • Colonial Rawshark 2.1.1.2.1

            Well, lots of people would not be happy to see their $20 donation to Labour or the Greens de-anonymised.

            • Anne 2.1.1.2.1.1

              Yes and in some cases find themselves being harassed and intimidated and in others… losing their jobs or being isolated from peers and colleagues. And if anyone thinks that’s being over the top, it’s happened before many times. That is the reason for pseudonyms etc.

            • Paul Campbell 2.1.1.2.1.2

              I think that the only rules that really work here are rules that apply to everyone. If you expect the rich and powerfull to come clean about who they are buying then equally we should expect everyone – then we can look and see that Jan Bloggs sent a hard earned $20 to Labour while at the same time Michael Rich-Fuker send $100k from petty cash to the Nats

          • One Anonymous Bloke 2.1.1.2.2

            How does knowing that Talleys buy MPs stop them being bought? Will any of those MPs step down from the select committee?

  3. Tracey 3

    The National Party are taking the piss with this cover-up. If, as they seem to be saying, there is nothing untoward, why not reveal all?

  4. exStatic 4

    Conflict of interest is very serious. Mona Dotcom’s latest revelation that the whole Mana/Internet thing was a setup to try and prevent extradition is serious.
    Hone and his Mana mates taking huge amounts and spending very little might make their ex benefactor a bit grumpy?
    As far as Conflict of Interest goes, KDC, Hone and the entire Mana Internet lot own it.

    • rawshark-yeshe 4.1

      hyperbole much ? and of course, you have a link for that exStatic ? and hopefully, something slightly more reputable than trashy Glucina gossip ?

    • Colonial Rawshark 4.2

      Huh? Dotcom spun a sweet story for his wife so that she would let him blow $400K on a pet project.

      If Dotcom was really aiming to stop his extradition with that $400K – like you outrageously claim – he would have given that money to the high court judge in a fat brown envelope.

    • One Anonymous Bloke 4.3

      Exstatic is a lying hypocrite.

      IMP, completely open about its funding sources, gets no seats, thanks to the Left. Exstatic wets the bed over it.

      National hides its foreign donors and pretends they’re anonymous until Goodfellow runs his mouth and reveals they in fact have a “relationship”. Exstatic says there’s nothing to see.

      Right wing smears reveal their ethics: the reason Exstatic thinks money buys influence, is because money buys Exstatic.

      • Colonial Rawshark 4.3.1

        BOOOOM!

      • Lanthanide 4.3.2

        “IMP, completely open about its funding sources, gets no seats, thanks to the Left. Exstatic wets the bed over it.”

        I think Exstatic has a valid point.

        KDC and Laila Harre always insisted that KDC was “in the background” of the party and that being in Parliament / Government would have no impact on his extradition process at all.

        Then we find out, from Mona, that KDC had told her exactly the opposite.

        This is worth remarking on. KDC has lied to someone. His wife, or the public?

        • One Anonymous Bloke 4.3.2.1

          At best, we have hearsay evidence of something KDC may have believed.

          Meanwhile, we have horse’s mouth evidence that the National Party maintains relationships with foreign buyers who it pretends are anonymous. Its MPs sell access and other services in exchange for financial rewards, and again, this is from the horse’s mouth.

          Lusk and Goodfellow have let the cat out of the bag. No wonder the smears are coming thick and fast, and how sad is it that the best these hypocrites can do is more squealing about Hone, who isn’t even in Parliament.

          Several orders of magnitude more remarkable much?

    • Murray Rawshark 4.4

      I don’t think Dotcom should be extradited and he’s never given me a cent. Mana stand for an independent and sovereign Aotearoa and would not have needed to be paid to oppose this low toadying to the US and A.

      • Chooky 4.4.1

        +100….and he may have been saying that to his wife to keep her happy about his donation

  5. alwyn 5

    You appear to be suggesting that there is something contrived about the story regarding Sepuloni’s questions when you say ” Wouldn’t you know it, just a few days later we got a well-timed story about Sepuloni asking the Minister questions about benefit fraud”.

    It couldn’t really have been any earlier could it. The questions were asked on 23 February. How could the story be at a different time? It is not as if they were a secret either. Any reporter commenting on politics would, or at least should, look at the questions for written answer every day. I’m not even involved but I look at them and try and guess what scandal the opposition are going to try and pin on the Government from the questions asked.

    Finding out her questions is as easy as looking at Parliamentary Business. under the section on questions for written answer.

    They ones being talked about are 1085 to 1099 on 23 February. Actually I’m surprised they haven’t been withdrawn. If you want to find them just use the option of selecting questions by Carmel Sepuloni. I find it a little unlikely that she started asking these questions just, by coincidence, a couple of days before her mother appeared in court. I think by this stage she knew what was going on.

    The real trouble with questions for written answer is that they are really only “gotcha’s”. There is often something small that an opposition MP finds out about. He/she will then ask an enormous number of, often computer generated, questions which are intended to hide the thing they know about. Then if the department doesn’t spot the problem they will go to town complaining that the Minister is lying. The Opposition MP isn’t really interested in the answer, or solving the problem. They are just trying to score points at our expense.

    Trevor Mallard was one of the worst at this. He would find out, say, that the part-time cleaner at some little school was related to the headmaster. Then he would ask some trick question, not about that school but with separate questions for every one of the thousands of schools in the country. The questions were all computer generated by using a form question and merging it with a list of every school in the country to get all the questions. He didn’t care what it cost to answer the thousands of questions and he wasn’t even going to look at 99.9% of the answers. He was just trying to get something where the department could be claimed to have lied about one school.

    • One Anonymous Bloke 5.1

      🙄

      Paranoid right wing nut job conspiracy theorist unintentionally reveals personal ethics.

      • alwyn 5.1.1

        ??????????
        There, there. Just take a deep breath and calm down.

        • One Anonymous Bloke 5.1.1.1

          I’m picking you know precisely zero about the inner workings of Trevor Mallard: instead, you’re telling us what you would do if you were him.

          • alwyn 5.1.1.1.1

            Well here is an example of the sort of thing he did.
            It is only one screen from dozens on the same day.
            Now tell me again why you think I am making it up what Trevor used to do?

            10186 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
            What is the total value of school property at Te Aro School?
            Reply 17 Jul 09

            10185 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
            What is the total value of school property at Tawa School?
            Reply 17 Jul 09

            10184 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
            What is the total value of school property at Tawa Intermediate School?
            Reply 17 Jul 09

            10183 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
            What is the total value of school property at Tawa College?
            Reply 17 Jul 09

            10182 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
            What is the total value of school property at Tautoro School?
            Reply 17 Jul 09

            10181 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
            What is the total value of school property at Taipa Area School?
            Reply 17 Jul 09

            10180 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
            What is the total value of school property at Swanson School?
            Reply 17 Jul 09

            10179 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
            What is the total value of school property at Sunnyvale School?
            Reply 17 Jul 09

            10178 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
            What is the total value of school property at Sunderland School?
            Reply 17 Jul 09

            10177 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
            What is the total value of school property at Sunderland College?
            Reply 17 Jul 09

            10176 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
            What is the total value of school property at Summerland Primary?
            Reply 17 Jul 09

            10175 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
            What is the total value of school property at Strathmore Community School?
            Reply 17 Jul 09

            10174 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
            What is the total value of school property at Springbank School?
            Reply 17 Jul 09

            10173 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
            What is the total value of school property at South Wellington Intermediate?
            Reply 17 Jul 09

            10172 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
            What is the total value of school property at Seatoun School?
            Reply 17 Jul 09

            10171 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
            What is the total value of school property at Scots College?
            Reply 17 Jul 09

            10170 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
            What is the total value of school property at Samuel Marsden Collegiate School?
            Reply 17 Jul 09

            10169 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
            What is the total value of school property at Sacred Heart School?
            Reply 17 Jul 09

            10168 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
            What is the total value of school property at Rutherford School?
            Reply 17 Jul 09

            10167 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
            What is the total value of school property at Rutherford College?
            Reply 17 Jul 09

            • One Anonymous Bloke 5.1.1.1.1.1

              Thought so: your interpretation is based on conjecture and projection.

              • Lanthanide

                Please offer an alternative interpretation of Trevor Mallard’s questions, as you seem to think alwyn’s is unlikely.

                • One Anonymous Bloke

                  I think it’s based on conjecture and projection.

                  We have a list of questions: where’s the example of the ‘gotcha’ that allegedly followed?

                  • Lanthanide

                    Ok, so you don’t have an alternative interpretation.

                    Given the evidence we have, alwyn’s interpretation is pretty compelling to me.

                    Regardless of Trevor’s true motives, he certainly looks like he’s wasting taxpayers time and money.

                    • One Anonymous Bloke

                      It might be that, or it might be that Hekia Parata has instructed officials to be so willfully obstructive of Parliamentary questions, that single specific questions are the only way to get the information.

                      Still no evidence of the gotcha, eh.

                    • Lanthanide

                      Yes, but what “information” does Trevor want?

                      If he wants specific information on all of these individual schools – for what purpose? If he’s using it for some sort of statistical purpose, what purpose could that be that wouldn’t already be covered by the ministry itself, or potentially the parliamentary library? If his statistical purpose is valid and useful, then surely he could ask either of those institutions to perform that analysis themselves – and I’d dare say they’d be more efficient and cheaper at doing it than he would, especially as he has to ask for all of this raw data in such a ponderous way in the first place.

                      If he only wants information about a few or one school(s), then he should ask only about those schools, not all of them.

                      So, plenty of evidence that what Trevor is doing is either very unusual, or very misguided. If we consider what Trevor’s job is – to hold the government to account – surmising that he is trying some sort of gotcha attack is a reasonable assumption, especially given his personality.

                    • One Anonymous Bloke

                      If, if, if, if.

                      Projection and conjecture.

                    • Lanthanide

                      People on this site routinely make projection and conjecture about the National party and associates.

                    • One Anonymous Bloke

                      Ok then, look at what we know: Trevor Mallard can be a bit of an egg, and he also knows Parliamentary procedure pretty well.

                      Anne Tolley (the Minister at the time) is dismissive of criticism and incompetent. The National Party actively obstructs information requests.

                      Without further information who knows why TM asked all those questions.

                      Alwyn took the trouble to list them, and “somehow” failed (the word keeps cropping up around wingnuts, funny that) to find any follow-up questions to support the allegation. Alwyn is not noted for deep insight: quite the contrary, in fact.

                      Perhaps you can be bothered trawling through Hansard to discover that Alwyn is full of shit, again.

            • mickysavage 5.1.1.1.1.2

              You are struggling Alwyn. You are looking for a pattern when clearly there is none.

              • Lanthanide

                You’re saying there is “clearly no pattern” in Trevor Mallard’s questioning?

              • Enough is Enough

                Yes Micky…clearly.

              • alwyn

                You may doubt my opinion that the questions are computer generated. I offer just a few of the many, many questions that Trevor produced. Unfortunately the table of school names included the word “school”. Thus you get a repetition because the word was also put into the basic question.
                Do you honestly think that a human being generated these questions, and the hundreds of others where the same question was asked about other schools, or that anyone at all looked at them before they were entered into the system?

                22901 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
                What is the expected costs of operations for 2010 at Mangamuka School school?
                Reply 16 Dec 09

                22900 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
                What is the expected costs of operations for 2010 at Mangonui School school?
                Reply 16 Dec 09

                22896 (2009). Hon Trevor Mallard to the Minister of Education
                What is the expected costs of operations for 2010 at Massey Primary School school?
                Reply 16 Dec 09

                Incidentally, Trevor asked over 20,000 questions of this repetitive type in 2010. Do you really think he looked at all the answers?

                • One Anonymous Bloke

                  When you vote for a party that obeys the Official Information Act, and point to the ‘gotcha’ moment you allege without a shred of proof, you’ll be a bit more credible.

                  As it is, you just look like a partisan hypocrite.

    • Murray Rawshark 5.2

      Damn. I will never be able to hold Trevor Mallard in high esteem ever again. The meaning has evaporated from my life.

      • alwyn 5.2.1

        Think and consider Murray
        Please, please, don’t rush in and do anything foolish.
        Don’t even think of taking some terrible final action because meaning has vanished from your life. You will make me feel like the guy in the current drink driving ad who doesn’t want the young chap to drive after being in the pub.

        After all, even Trevor can reform. His character will no doubt be vastly improved with the love of a good woman. He too can now learn and follow the ways of righteousness.

        Actually it is probably a bit late for that.

        • mac1 5.2.1.1

          Alwyn, seriously, we have to believe in redemption. If we can’t have hope and redemption, we are truly fucked.

  6. adam 6

    Why is this difficult?

    Why are people making this difficult?

    No donations above $5

    No corporations or business to make any donations

    No trusts or other front’s to make donations

    Simple

    Level playing field

    Oh wait – Orthodoxy economics alter worshippers. Sorry my bad – you lot will make the world difficult, because if it was simple and working people could just get on with their lives – you could not keep putting them in shackles.

    • One Anonymous Bloke 6.1

      Delivering an innate advantage to those candidates with independent means. Fish-hooks to the left of them, fish-hooks to the right of them…

      • Colonial Rawshark 6.1.1

        Not if the candidate himself or herself cannot donate more than the same limited amount to their own campaign fund.

  7. les 7

    ‘money talks and bullshit walks…’reality ..das Kapital…the sword is mightier than the pen…thats reality.

  8. les 8

    politics ‘American Style’…exported around the world.

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    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
    4 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
    7 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
    12 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
    14 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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Early visit to Indonesia strengthens ties
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asia’s most populous country.   “We are in Jakarta so early in our new government’s term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • China Foreign Minister to visit
    Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week.  “We look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealand’s ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Minister opens new Auckland Rail Operations Centre
    Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. “The recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Auckland’s rail agencies work together to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Celebrating 10 years of Crankworx Rotorua
    The Government is proud to support the 10th edition of Crankworx Rotorua as the Crankworx World Tour returns to Rotorua from 16-24 March 2024, says Minister for Economic Development Melissa Lee.  “Over the past 10 years as Crankworx Rotorua has grown, so too have the economic and social benefits that ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Government delivering on tax commitments
    Legislation implementing coalition Government tax commitments and addressing long-standing tax anomalies will be progressed in Parliament next week, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The legislation is contained in an Amendment Paper to the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill issued today.  “The Amendment Paper represents ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Significant Natural Areas requirement to be suspended
    Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard has today announced that the Government has agreed to suspend the requirement for councils to comply with the Significant Natural Areas (SNA) provisions of the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity for three years, while it replaces the Resource Management Act (RMA).“As it stands, SNAs ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Government classifies drought conditions in Top of the South as medium-scale adverse event
    Agriculture Minister Todd McClay has classified the drought conditions in the Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts as a medium-scale adverse event, acknowledging the challenging conditions facing farmers and growers in the district. “Parts of Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts are in the grip of an intense dry spell. I know ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Government partnership to tackle $332m facial eczema problem
    The Government is helping farmers eradicate the significant impact of facial eczema (FE) in pastoral animals, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced.  “A $20 million partnership jointly funded by Beef + Lamb NZ, the Government, and the primary sector will save farmers an estimated NZD$332 million per year, and aims to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • NZ, India chart path to enhanced relationship
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters has completed a successful visit to India, saying it was an important step in taking the relationship between the two countries to the next level.   “We have laid a strong foundation for the Coalition Government’s priority of enhancing New Zealand-India relations to generate significant future benefit for both countries,” says Mr Peters, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Ruapehu Alpine Lifts bailout the last, say Ministers
    Cabinet has agreed to provide $7 million to ensure the 2024 ski season can go ahead on the Whakapapa ski field in the central North Island but has told the operator Ruapehu Alpine Lifts it is the last financial support it will receive from taxpayers. Cabinet also agreed to provide ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Govt takes action to drive better cancer services
    Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Govt takes action to drive better cancer services
    Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Work begins on SH29 upgrades near Tauriko
    Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Work begins on SH29 upgrades near Tauriko
    Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Fresh produce price drop welcome
    Lower fruit and vegetable prices are welcome news for New Zealanders who have been doing it tough at the supermarket, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Stats NZ reported today the price of fruit and vegetables has dropped 9.3 percent in the 12 months to February 2024.  “Lower fruit and vege ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Statement to the 68th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women
    Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all.  Chair, I am honoured to address the sixty-eighth session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Speech to the 68th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW68)
    Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all.  Chair, I am honoured to address the 68th session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Government backs rural led catchment projects
    The coalition Government is supporting farmers to enhance land management practices by investing $3.3 million in locally led catchment groups, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “Farmers and growers deliver significant prosperity for New Zealand and it’s vital their ongoing efforts to improve land management practices and water quality are supported,” ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago
  • Speech to Auckland Business Chamber
    Good evening everyone and thank you for that lovely introduction.   Thank you also to the Honourable Simon Bridges for the invitation to address your members. Since being sworn in, this coalition Government has hit the ground running with our 100-day plan, delivering the changes that New Zealanders expect of us. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Commission’s advice on ETS settings tabled
    Recommendations from the Climate Change Commission for New Zealand on the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) auction and unit limit settings for the next five years have been tabled in Parliament, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “The Commission provides advice on the ETS annually. This is the third time the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Government lowering building costs
    The coalition Government is beginning its fight to lower building costs and reduce red tape by exempting minor building work from paying the building levy, says Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk. “Currently, any building project worth $20,444 including GST or more is subject to the building levy which is ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Trustee tax change welcomed
    Proposed changes to tax legislation to prevent the over-taxation of low-earning trusts are welcome, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The changes have been recommended by Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee following consideration of submissions on the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill. “One of the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Minister’s Ramadan message
    Assalaamu alaikum. السَّلَام عليكم In light of the holy month of Ramadan, I want to extend my warmest wishes to our Muslim community in New Zealand. Ramadan is a time for spiritual reflection, renewed devotion, perseverance, generosity, and forgiveness.  It’s a time to strengthen our bonds and appreciate the diversity ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Minister appoints new NZTA Chair
    Former Transport Minister and CEO of the Auckland Business Chamber Hon Simon Bridges has been appointed as the new Board Chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) for a three-year term, Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced today. “Simon brings extensive experience and knowledge in transport policy and governance to the role. He will ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Speech to Life Sciences Summit
    Good morning all, it is a pleasure to be here as Minister of Science, Innovation and Technology.  It is fantastic to see how connected and collaborative the life science and biotechnology industry is here in New Zealand. I would like to thank BioTechNZ and NZTech for the invitation to address ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Progress continues apace on water storage
    Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says he is looking forward to the day when three key water projects in Northland are up and running, unlocking the full potential of land in the region. Mr Jones attended a community event at the site of the Otawere reservoir near Kerikeri on Friday. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Government agrees to restore interest deductions
    Associate Finance Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government has agreed to restore deductibility for mortgage interest on residential investment properties. “Help is on the way for landlords and renters alike. The Government’s restoration of interest deductibility will ease pressure on rents and simplify the tax code,” says ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Minister to attend World Anti-Doping Agency Symposium
    Sport and Recreation Minister Chris Bishop will travel to Switzerland today to attend an Executive Committee meeting and Symposium of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Mr Bishop will then travel on to London where he will attend a series of meetings in his capacity as Infrastructure Minister. “New Zealanders believe ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

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