Standing in the Shadow of the Red Flag

Written By: - Date published: 10:30 am, November 25th, 2015 - 47 comments
Categories: activism, class war, democratic participation, elections, labour, local body elections, local government, phil goff, Politics - Tags: , ,

There was a brief discussion on The Standard about whether it appropriate for Phil Goff to win the Auckland mayoralty as an independent. Regular commenter Atiawa asked this question:

“Why would Goff stand for the Auckland mayoralty as an independent candidate considering his life-long commitment to the Labour Party?”

Why indeed?

In the parties century of political activism, I can’t find any Auckland mayor who officially stood under the Labour banner. The nearest I can get is Ernest Davis, who was a millionaire beer baron back when being a millionaire meant something. Davis was clearly associated with the workers’ party, but again, I can’t find any record of this staunch (and complex) Labour supporter actually flying the red flag in his successful campaigns. Readers with better historical knowledge may be able to point to instances where this has happened and I’m happy to have the record corrected.

Of course, Auckland was a much more narrowly defined area until the Lange Labour government introduced local government reforms in 1989. These changes ended the independence of neighbouring boroughs such as Newmarket, Mt Eden and Mt Roskill and established the Auckland City Council as arguably the most powerful single local government body. The more recent reforms have further consolidated the Queen St council as the major player in local government. The role of Mayor of Auckland can reasonably seen as being as politically significant and, in some ways, equivalent in power to a Government Cabinet Minister.

Actually, I have no problem with Goff standing as an independent this time. To be an effective Auckland mayor, he will have to appeal across the political divide. The repeated endorsements from John Key will certainly help!

National, as we know, preferred to use the Citizens and Ratepayers vehicle (now Communities and Residents). Prior to the formation of the National Party, the Reform and United parties stood joint tickets. There have been many left leaning coalitions and City Vision was probably the most successful of those, ending decades of of C&R dominance in the Queen City. Many current left MP’s in the Greens and Labour have cut their teeth as City Vision councillors and local board members. The same applies to the Future West coalition in the city’s western suburbs. Good results and good experience.

I know that there have been candidates in other council elections in the past who have officially represented Labour. For example, veteran campaigner Richard Northey stood and won the Maungakiekie-Tamaki ward in Auckland under the Labour banner.  The local local board there also went to Labour candidates, as did the local boards in Mangere-Otahuhu and Otara. However, it’s clear that the vast majority of candidates at every level in Auckland, and from every political perspective, stand as independents.

It appears that both major parties accept that at local government level, the tickets should de-emphasise the links to national politics and present as broad community groups. This concept has worked since the twenties, but I think it might be time for Labour to re-think the strategy. If not in Auckland, where the coalition with the Greens is clearly working, then maybe in the provinces, where the party struggles to make headway.

New Zealand seems unique in this approach. The major parties in the UK, Europe and the USA most often stand under their own name. Council elections are regarded as both workouts for general elections and important indicators of a party’s prospects nationally. But not here, apparently.

I’m a firm believer in the Popular Front. The Bulgarian communist leader Georgi Dimitrov recognised the fascist threat in the early thirties and campaigned for progressive parties to put aside their divisions to oppose the common foe. His was a hard fight at a time when Stalinism was being established in the USSR and the naive alternative, Trotskyism, was still convinced that a purist worldwide revolution should be the goal. In the face of a direct threat, unity is vital. Division is often fatal, particularly when the opposition is singular in its purpose.

But these are different times and there are limits to the political effectiveness of united fronts for the constituent parties. Subsuming your own identity within the electoral grouping does not enhance a party’s wider prospects. As noted above, it can be a great learning experience for candidates and a test of a party’s electoral machine, but it does little to broaden the appeal of a individual party.

For the Labour Party I think it’s time they seriously consider putting up tickets in next year’s council elections under the red flag. If the left is to win Government, Labour must pick up more support in the provinces. It’s not good enough to just have a few MP’s outside the major urban areas. The provinces have been abandoned to their fate by National. If it isn’t Labour championing the needs of towns like Gisborne, Whanganui and Dunedin, who will?

My proposal is that Labour pick a couple of small towns and one larger city and run a Labour ticket in next year’s council elections as an experiment. Let’s see if we can win under our own name and then let’s look at the results in the General Election eighteen months later and see if there is a related improvement. I reckon local Labour Party members will embrace the chance to fly the red flag in their communities. I’m equally sure that local voters will be happy to see that the Labour Party is more than just the Parliamentary caucus and is not just a 3 yearly parliamentary electoral machine.

I don’t think it would hurt Labour to stand under the scarlet standard in council elections. I believe there is nothing to lose and much to gain if candidates are proudly and publicly Labour at a local level. Could it hurt to try? Readers, would you be more interested in local body elections if you knew for sure what the politics of the candidates were? I suspect the answer might be ‘yes’.

 

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47 comments on “Standing in the Shadow of the Red Flag ”

  1. Bill 1

    I’ve never understood why local elections don’t have up-front party participation here in NZ. It’s struck me as almost dishonest insofar as I doubt the actual independence of candidates running on assumed independence.

    Anyway, not only would standing as a party give voters a bit of a heads up on (often) quite unknown candidates, it would be a perfect opportunity to generate party enthusiasm or trust at the local level (assuming the elected reps don’t fuck up) that would flow seamlessly to the national level.

    A ‘no-brainer’ I’d have thought.

    • Atiawa 1.1

      I agree Bill.
      I could understand left leaning Labour/Greens aspiring politicians standing previously as independent candidates, however I’m not so sure about Goff who was a Labour cabinet Minister and party leader. It doesn’t sit comfortably with me.
      Ratepayers are more likely to gain greater satisfaction/value from their elected representatives when a group of like minded people are able to make decisions in their collective interests rather than the independent councilor who is guided by his/her individual and friends beliefs and thoughts.

    • The Greens actually do run local candidates already. (At least, they do here in Wellington) They just may not have an Auckland presence yet.

      • Visubversa 1.2.1

        Labour and the Green Party have been in a political arrangement called City Vision in parts of Auckland since 1998. They also work together in Roskill Community Voice and Future West. In some Wards it is obviously smarter to stand as Labour – South Auckland ones in particular. Most of the time it works very well.

      • ln the 1970s the Cambridge Branch NZLP put up a full ticket fpr the local council Caused quite a stir and the local Tories really went on the abuse.we did not win but our branch membership,increased by 100 ,quite something for Blue Cambridge.

  2. Sanctuary 2

    I can understand why local body politics was historically pretty much free of political parties – local governance was about drains, roads, rates, rubbish, sewage, parking, petty by-laws and all the dross minutaie of local administration and democracy that the great ideological struggles of government are but a sideshow.

    But the supercity especially is a different kettle of fish. It is moving inexorably towards the status of a quasi-federal state within New Zealand, complete with it’s own funding streams and monopoly utility assets. And with independent funding comes the ability to pursue political agendas at variance with the prevailing central governments ideology or policies. In that environment, you need to know what sort of politician you are electing, not just the title of some front organisation he or she is standing for and from which you can have no idea of where they actually stand on the political spectrum.

  3. Colonial Viper 3

    It is right for Goff to distance himself from the Labour Party.

    • Skinny 3.1

      I agree, campaigning under the Labour banner would be a disaster in Auckland. Hence Goff takes no chances, I have seen enough Nat voters saying they will vote for him, under the LP ticket this may not be the case. Interesting hearing Key saying there is a popular right-wing candidate about to throw his hat into the contest, someone he believes can win the Auckland Mayoralty. Sounds like Key has shoulder tapped a ex pat Kiwi from abroad, if so expect Key to be plugging them through his MSM mates.

  4. tracey 4

    Interestingly today Mr Smith, venerable Minister for the Environment, was at New World for a new campaign for recycling soft plastic bottles.

    Which New Work I hear you ask? Why the one in MT Roskill where the long standing MP will not stand in 2017.

    Coincidence I am sure.

    The history of the Red Flag

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_flag_%28politics%29

    and the song

    The People’s Flag is deepest red,
    It shrouded oft our martyred dead,
    And ere their limbs grew stiff and cold,
    Their hearts’ blood dyed its every fold.

    Chorus:
    So raise the scarlet standard high.
    Beneath its folds we’ll live and die,
    Though cowards flinch and traitors sneer,
    We’ll keep the red flag flying here.

    Look round, the Frenchman loves its blaze,
    The sturdy German chants its praise,
    In Moscow’s vaults its hymns were sung
    Chicago swells the surging throng.

    (chorus)

    It waved above our infant might,
    When all ahead seemed dark as night;
    It witnessed many a deed and vow,
    We must not change its colour now.

    (chorus)

    It well recalls the triumphs past,
    It gives the hope of peace at last;
    The banner bright, the symbol plain,
    Of human right and human gain.

    (chorus)

    It suits today the weak and base,
    Whose minds are fixed on pelf and place
    To cringe before the rich man’s frown,
    And haul the sacred emblem down.

    (chorus)

    With head uncovered swear we all
    To bear it onward till we fall;
    Come dungeons dark or gallows grim,
    This song shall be our parting hymn.

    (chorus)

    I wonder if, like the British Labour Party, our LP has forgotten the roots of both the song and the flag or knows it well and has deliberately distanced itself from the association…

    For something lighter

    “The Red Flag” was parodied by singer-songwriter Leon Rosselson as the “Battle Hymn of the New Socialist Party,” also known as “The Red Flag Once a Year” or “The People’s Flag Is Palest Pink.” It is intended to satirise the perceived lack of socialist principles in the Labour Party. The initial parody was widely known in the 1960s, sometimes sung during late night parties at student conferences. It was revived in the early 2000s in response to the centrist reforms associated with Tony Blair.[13] A version which began “The people’s flag is palest pink, mum washed it in the kitchen sink” was popular among schoolchildren in the 1950s, which may have inspired Rosselson’s version.

    A version of the lyrics sung regularly at the Liberal Democrats’ Glee Club, also dated to the mid-sixties, is:

    The people’s flag is palest pink,
    It’s not as red as most think.
    We must not let the people know
    What socialists thought long ago.
    Don’t let the scarlet banner float;
    We want the middle classes’ vote.
    Let our old fashioned comrades sneer,
    We’ll stay in power for many a year.[14

    • RedBaronCV 4.1

      Well that should get rid of a good chunk of the Mt Roskill New World customers if it is widely publised. I try to vote with my money if I see a business owner supporting NAct.

      • tracey 4.1.1

        Yeah. I switched from countdown to New World to support NZ owned and that hire people to pack my bags, rather than me doing it myself (of which I am capable but surely better to have someone get a job from it?)

        So, what to do now.

        • Karen 4.1.1.1

          Actually Tracey, Countdown have unionised staff with better pay and conditions than New World offers their staff. Just ignore the self service booths there in favour of a real person.

          • RedBaronCV 4.1.1.1.1

            Yep I always support the local jobs here, in the banks with the ird etc etc. Always ask if the call centre is local.

          • tracey 4.1.1.1.2

            I do that Karen. I stopped the self service queues after someone brought it up here a year or more ago.

            And that’s the crux Karen. Countdown probably are shafting all consumers and suppliers with their standover (reverse loss leader practice) AND profits going offsore…

            So, I fruit and veggie at my local fruit and veggie store. Buy my meat online and have the choice between the devil and his brother for the rest.

            Nonetheless Mr Smith in Mt Roskill… starting to build a profile for the nat candidate? I note all the people outside were in suits or part of the recycling group (and predominantly white and male…. Smith didn’t go near a worker inside (to my knowledge).

            • Karen 4.1.1.1.2.1

              Personally I will always support a business that is union friendly, so it is Countdown for me for all those things I cannot get at my local vege shop, fish shop or butchers.

            • Nessalt 4.1.1.1.2.2

              you gave up self service queues to help workers but you order your meat online? so you’re a contradictory luddite?

              • Online deliveries still have to be prepared and shipped. Supermarket workers go through and prepare the bundles, it’s just instead of having a checkout worker scan them, they have a truck worker deliver them. It’s probably more labour-intensive than ordering in person, (and certainly moreso than self-service) it just shifts some of that labour away from the busiest periods.

    • Mike the Savage One 4.2

      Nick the D*ck should get rid of plastic bags and most one way packaging full stop, had he any damned guts to do something for the environment. This is just more tinkering around the edges, as recycled plastic bags and wrappings do not result in any good quality goods made from recycled material. It is at best second to third rate plastics what comes out of recycling that, and it may even be cheaper to fire the stuff through a furnace as part of a generator that produces electricity from burning such rubbish (filtering the toxic stuff out of the fumes of course).

      New Zealand, like many other western nations, that go on about the “green” image are a joke, to be honest. We should not get more recycling but first of all go back to re-used packaging, such as we once had when milk was still delivered to homes, in reusable glass bottles. But as most are now convenience addicts, it is hard to convince the lazy minds and bodies, to change thinking and habits.

      That is one area where Auckland as the largest city in NZ could lead the way, by bringing in rules under the RMA that does actually do more to reduce waste, that is altogether, so that only minimal amounts need recycling and even less go to landfill. There is a real job for Phil, I wonder whether he is up to annoying the convenience-obsessed and consumerist Aucklanders, used to buy and turf out one way stuff.

      • Macro 4.2.1

        Absolutely. NZ is adjacent to one of the worst polluted areas of Ocean in the world and is the breeding ground for about 70% of sea birds all of which are now under threat because of this massive rubbish dump.
        http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11505808
        I and my wife refuse plastic bags for all our purchases – we carry our own bags, and for our meat I visit the local butcher and supply my own reusable tinfoil trays.
        It was a bit strange at first – but the local shops now know we don’t want their bags and are happy not to press one on us. The old plastic bags we have have been reused may times – spuds, carrots, etc. Paper bag if we have one, for the home baked bread at the market. It can be done and does not need a lot of thought.

  5. tracey 5

    TRP

    So when Len Brown was being denoted as Labour, that was more the use of it as a sneer by the Right (genuine question)?

    • I’m pretty sure he also stood as an independent, but was endorsed by Labour.

      • tracey 5.1.1

        he was also affiliated with the Labour Party, does that mean was a member? I, perhaps wrongly, assumed Goff stands as an independent to pitch himself to both sides?

        • te reo putake 5.1.1.1

          Brown has been an LP member since he was 17. I just checked and he won the Manukau mayoralty as an independent too. I guess you’re right that the independent tag helps get broad support.

    • Hanswurst 5.2

      I seem to recall Phil Goff expressing satisfaction at the election of a “Labour mayor” in footage of him congratulating Brown on the latter’s victory in the inaugural super city election. I couldn’t find any footage online in a quick search just now, though.

  6. Ad 6

    For Auckland, Councillors Ross Clow and Alf Filipaina stood successfully under Labour.

    For the Whau and Mangere-Otahuhu and Otara Local Boards, a majority stood and won under Labour.

    Whereas in the centre of Auckland it’s the City Vision coalition, which is predominantly Labour with some Greens. In the Waitakere Local Board the same thing was called Vision West or something.

    While in some suburbs it may be horses for courses, the Labour brand has been ridiculously undersold in local government. And when Labour activists have the conviction to get behind proudly Labour-branded candidates, the results are that targeted turnout can win otherwise unlikely seats. Fewf are now naively saying that party politics should be kept out of local government. Unite or be crushed.

    Against that, Labour are polling not well, have very little money to contribute to a local campaign let alone a central one, and it’s not a brand that resonates at all well with any male over 40. So I can see why it’s not entirely attractive.

  7. Anne 7

    Readers, would you be more interested in local body elections if you knew for sure what the politics of the candidates were? I suspect the answer might be ‘yes’.

    I think the answer is a ‘yes’ but for a different reason put forward by TRP.

    The main reason why most candidates for local body elections have run as ‘independent’ – or loosely defined tickets – was borne out of experience. Rightly or wrongly, voters find party political involvement in LB elections to be anathema to them. That’s the way it’s always been and I don’t think anything has changed.

    It has long been a farce because the Cits and Rats have never been anything else but National in drag, but they conned the voters for decades. That’s why they dominated Auckland Councils for so long. It took Labour (remember this was FPP days) a long, long time to cotton on, and start up their own “loosely defined tickets” and since then their fortunes have improved.

    Therefore I say, leave things as they are. Voting habits are notoriously hard to change.

  8. alwyn 8

    I didn’t think that the Labour Party had ever stopped running candidates.
    In Wellington at least they had a number representing the party in the last Local Body Election.
    Here is a press release that was issued by The New Zealand Labour Party at the time.
    http://wellington.scoop.co.nz/?p=54793

    • Thanks, Alwyn. When I was researching for the post, I concentrated on Auckland, but I was reasonably confident that there were Labour candidates elsewhere. I just didn’t know where exactly.

      • alwyn 8.1.1

        You at least know something about our largest city.
        As a Wellington resident I can only offer a parody of L P Hartley’s line.
        “”The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there”,”
        and change “past” to “Queen city”.
        I suppose “Queen City” is still used for Auckland or am I even out of date on that?

        On the other hand our current mayor ran as an Independent, even though she had been on the Green Party list for Parliament at one point. She had the gall to use orange as her campaign colour. As a UK born person I would have remembered the Northern Irish troubles and the difference between Orange and Green.

        • tracey 8.1.1.1

          Haven’t heard it called that in a long time alwyn. City of Sails (sales) maybe but not Queen city for a long time

        • te reo putake 8.1.1.2

          Ironically, I’m the atheist chair of a Catholic football club. Our bhoys and ladies play in green, but our away colours are orange. That’s a nod to the club’s Dutch dominated post war history. We’ve got a Northern Ireland born player who swears he only plays well in the orange away kit and that the green shirt makes him want start fights with himself. You can take the boyo out of Belfast, but you can’t take Belfast out of the boyo, apparently.

  9. Richard Christie 9

    Why?

    Because he’s always been Labour, but never been Labour.

  10. Tiger Mountain 10

    yep, it makes little sense in a class society to claim independence, one obvious problem is all of the current parliamentary parties present as cross class–representing “all New Zealanders” when in fact the bourgeois parliament is itself a part of the state superstructure enforcing private ownership, and currently via the Nats and ACT openly facilitating private penetration of publicly owned assets and services

    but if you want to talk pragmatism and reforms the least local government voters need to know is where Mayors stand on Living Wage, CCO type organisations and flogging off public assets

  11. Tiger Mountain 11

    yep, it makes little sense in a class society to claim independence, one obvious problem is all of the current parliamentary parties present as cross class–representing “all New Zealanders” when in fact the bourgeois parliament is itself a part of the state superstructure enforcing private ownership, and currently via the Nats and ACT openly facilitating private penetration of publicly owned assets and services

    but if you want to talk pragmatism and reforms the least local government voters need to know is where Mayoral candidates stand on Living Wage, CCO type organisations and flogging off public assets

  12. pipalbany 12

    My only question is who or how Labour would fund these local body elections, the coffers are a bit barren for the Parliamentary Election machine. and there seems to be a dearth of fundraising at local level that is channeling into the main coffers, or is there funding or fund-raising going on at local levels that would allow a candidate to nail their colours that clearly to a mast?

  13. RedBaronCV 13

    I quite like candidates to have some form of endorsement from established parties – at least for larger centres and bodies.
    Even when you have been around a while it can be tedious trying to sort through the ticket to work out who is going to vote for what if elected. How a newcomer copes I don’t know.
    An endorsement also helps to sift out some of the less desirable candidates as the parties do care about their reputations. At the last elections, quite apart from the usual single issue candidates, there were candidiates in jail awaiting trial and subsequent conviction, some who were seriously ill before nomination, unlikely to recover and died soon after election day. Then there are the muddlers, the clueless etc etc. and some good people who will miss out.

    I’d also like a bit of non financial support for endorsed candidates post elections, maybe drawn from the local community. If they want to be re-elected then they have to generally cleave to the values supported but they get piles of stuff to analyse so a bit of help may not go amiss.

    Mainly they get information and analysis from council officers and officers have been caught briefing some councillors and not others depending on what they support. I have seen councillors who are great in some areas but with the help of a bit of independent analysis could put more pressure on council officers to widen the values they use or put a wider agenda up front for consideration.

  14. Mike the Savage One 14

    Is it not for the fact that local body elections, especially here in Auckland, do get a rather low turnout and participation rate, that there is a need to try and appeal across party lines?

    I think that it has been reported before, that of those that still bother to vote, most seem to be those with some vested interests, which would include property ownership (rate-payers) and those with business interests. As far as I know voter participation in Auckland is low among those that do not own property, who are renters, who are ordinary workers and who are at the same time often not that well informed on what goes on in their city.

    And the lowest participation is among those that are not even in work due to unemployment and/or health reasons, same among many of a younger age.

    With that in mind, it is not at all surprising that Goff and others try to run as “independents”, as that makes them appear as wanting to reach out to voters and residents that bother voting, many of whom may feel little inclined to vote for a person that openly carries the “Labour” brand.

    As no candidate addresses a major issue, that is trying to activate and interest the many non voters, we simply continue to get a repeat of the same of past years, on local body and national level. Those that vote are home owners, and others, who are very interested in keeping their interests considered and looked after. So we can already predict what Phil Goff will stand for and do, as he will depend on the votes of many middle class and upper class people with their very vested interests here in Auckland.

    If only someone had the guts and resources, and ability of course, to mobilise the large number of disenfranchised and marginalised, we could have very different results and a different future for Auckland, but it seems, that as campaigns depend on financial support, again coming from the better off, we will not get any change soon.

  15. Penny Bright 15

    I’ll be running a full frontal Mayoral campaign against the neo-liberal ‘Rogernomics reforms’ which have made the Auckland region a ‘Supercity’ – for the 1%.

    That may help inspire some of the 64% of Auckland voters, who didn’t bother in 2013 to participate in the 2016 election?

    What is Phil Goff saying, or, more importantly, what has he ever done to inspire real confidence in anyone but the ‘corporate 1%’ in whose interests the Auckland region is currently being run?

    (I first encountered Phil Goff back in 1985, when he was the Rogernomics Labour Minister of Housing, and Labour had just lifted the rent freeze.

    Which affected low-income renters.

    I was one of those fighting those neo-liberal Rogernomics reforms – that Phil Goff was helping to implement.)

    Penny Bright

    Confirmed and serious 2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.

  16. rhinocrates 16

    What “life-long commitment to the Labour Party”? It was only a vehicle for his ambitions and his only loyalty was to himself and to Douglas. The only reason he didn’t follow his idol into ACT was because he thought that he was going to be PM and he’d never be that in a minor party. Labour’s well rid of the toxic bastard.

  17. FlashinthePan 17

    I think TRP’s on to something but, as others have mentioned, this could backfire for Labour as most people don’t like politics in their local bodies.

    However, a cunning underdog like Winston could use the local body elections as a great forerunner to the general election in branding NZ First as the “party of the provinces”. Finding good candidates would be their biggest challenge.

    NZ First tapped into a provincial resentment towards being taken advantage of by National in the Northland By-Election that they’d be mad not to tap into.

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    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
    12 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
    13 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
    14 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
    16 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
    1 day 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 ...
    1 day 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
    2 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
    4 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 ...
    5 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
    5 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
    4 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
    9 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
    11 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
    12 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 ...
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  • Statement to the 68th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women
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  • Speech to Life Sciences Summit
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