Who texts the PM?

Written By: - Date published: 12:00 pm, January 16th, 2015 - 87 comments
Categories: accountability, blogs, Dirty Politics, john key, national - Tags: , , , , ,

(Originally published at Boots Theory.)

An OIA request for information about the Prime Minister deleting his text messages is back (hat-tip to @eey0re) and Wayne Eagleson has found another wafer-thin excuse for the wholesale deletion of his master’s cellphone records:

With the large volume of text messages received and sent by the Prime Minister every day, these need to be regularly deleted not only for security reasons but also to ensure that the Prime Minister is always able to send or receive messages by preventing the cellphone exceeding its memory capacity.

What I always like to do with issues around newfangled technology is compare them to an old-school, “real-world” situation. In this case, let’s imagine that Treasury has been OIA’d about documents relating to a policy decision, like cutting taxes. And let’s imagine that the response says, “We can’t produce those papers, because we destroyed them.” And when people say “I’m sorry, what the hell did you just say?” Treasury responds,

With the large volume of documents received and written by the Treasury every day, these need to be regularly incinerated to ensure the Treasury is always able to receive and write documents by preventing our filing cabinets exceeding their capacity.

Yeah, that’s not how it’s meant to work, and they know it.

My view on this issue from day 1 has been: sure, you don’t want to keep sensitive material on a cellphone in case it gets nicked. Sure, cellphones only have a limited memory capacity. But if you are a senior civil servant, or an experienced politician, you know damn well that there is a set of principles and rules around preserving that information for the integrity of the state.

Maybe those rules aren’t completely up-to-date with all the new nifty ways we have of communicating. Maybe there’s not a specific “how to deal with a ton of meaningless text messages about when the car’s arriving” guideline.

So you ask. If you appreciate the need for transparent and accountable government, that is.

Unless, of course, it’s very convenient for you to just go “oh whoops, there’s no guidelines around deleting thousands of messages sent and received by the Prime Minister’s Prime Ministerial cellphone, guess we’ll just erase them.”

Because then no one would ever be able to prove, to pick a random example, just how often he contacts Cameron Slater.

87 comments on “Who texts the PM? ”

  1. peterh 1

    I bet Bea B, texts him all the time, just to say how right ,they both always are

  2. Tom Gould 2

    The rules do not apply to Key or his circle. They are higher beings. The privileged elite. Rightfully in charge. Integration of the best interests of the National Party and the best interests of the public is now complete.

  3. Harriet 3

    “…..What I always like to do with issues around newfangled technology is compare them to an old-school, “real-world” situation…..”

    Very few people in government ever had to record their phone conversations.

    Why then would they have to now record txt messages?

    • Te Reo Putake 3.1

      Txt messages, by their nature, are ‘recorded’. They exist until deleted. The PM is required to keep such communications and given how easy it is to do, he has no excuse not to comply.

      btw, does anyone know if he is still wiping them? Given that he’s now aware that he shouldn’t delete them, it would be incredibly arrogant if he was still doing exactly that.

      • Tracey 3.1.1

        and do we know how many cellphones he now has. Do they have labels… PM phone, Johnny phone, PM office phone…

        • The OIA response indicates he only has one, or at least, doesn’t have a “personal” one.

          • tracey 3.1.1.1.1

            he wouldnt lie though.

          • TheContrarian 3.1.1.1.2

            If he did have a personal one (I would have assumed he would) would the contents of it fall under an OIA?

            • Stephanie Rodgers 3.1.1.1.2.1

              I am uncertain, though back in 2012 when Murray McCully’s Xtra account got hacked, No Right Turn suggested it would be an ineffective way of dodging the OIA.
              http://norightturn.blogspot.co.nz/2012/02/there-is-no-escape-from-oia.html

              • tracey

                my understanding is their personal accounts would be subject to backing up because it would be unlikely that a personal email or phone account would NEVER have public interest info on it. Therefore back it up/keep it and argue over the release later pursuant to exemptions.

            • RJL 3.1.1.1.2.2

              Legally texts sent to the PM’s personal phone, if he has one, are subject to OIA if they met the usual criteria (i.e. if the content is OIA-able).

              Whether or not something is OIAable is about the information content, not the medium or device used to transmit or store the information.

              The only “advantage” of a private phone is that he can hide/deny the existence of it and any OIAable information it contains. But if he did so he would be breaking the law around OIA.

      • disturbed 3.1.2

        Bloody good subject Stephanie,

        Te Reo Putake,

        John Key is the symbol of arrogance!

        So he wont change is character when he wields such power as he lives power and privilege now until someone spots some flawed chink in his armour.

        He will cover his tracks with the litter of politicians he has sacked along with the civil servants he has destroyed also as he continues to cover his tracks.

    • framu 3.2

      compare txt message to written document – they both contain written words after all, and phones already record txt messages!

      you actually have to go and delete them or set the phone to not keep them

      wow harriet – keep it up. Your a shinning star amongst a sea of fools (/sarc)

    • And before 1980 no one had to record their emails, either. 🙄

      Besides, they will have records of the times, dates, and recipients of those phone conversations. You haven’t watched season 2 of House of Cards, have you?

    • Tracey 3.4

      can you cite your source for knowledge that phone calls to Ministers and PMs were not recorded? Heck, the oval office was recorded back in the 50s.

    • Draco T Bastard 3.5

      Very few people in government ever had to record their phone conversations.

      Well, IMO, it’s time that every politicians conversations were recorded. And, no, it really wouldn’t be an imposition as ministers conversations while on government business are already recorded by a stenographer.

  4. Colonial Rawshark 4

    The NZ intelligence services or their foreign counterparts will have full copies of these communications.

  5. Rob 5

    He needs to get a contemporary cell phone
    They have so much memory even his huge number of texts could be kept forever

  6. Treetop 6

    A lot of people must know Key’s confidential phone number for the system to possibly crash.

    Can the phone memory be transferred each day into a computer?

      • Neil 6.1.1

        Key must have a dumb phone & cant back it up

        • Rawsharkosaurus 6.1.1.1

          If someone’s phone messages are so important that OIA requests cannot be answered without them, but that someone is incapable of backing up said messages, then maybe it isn’t the phone that is dumb…

      • lprent 6.1.2

        Depends how it is configured.

        My work laptops, phones and tablets are pretty encrypted and that explicitly limit doing easy backups to insecure devices and systems. So are my personal ones both because they talk to work, and because I’m mildly paranoid about my data anyway.

        Somehow I don’t think that parliamentary services will hand out wide open devices doing backups to anything. They will usually require explicit permission by the user to backup as well with security codes etc. What is the bet that they frequently don’t get done by the illiterates who frequent parliament?

    • Neil 6.2

      The phone memory could be backed up to a PC everyday or whenever the phone is full, all you have to do is plug the phone into a PC via a usb cable, then after a couple of mouse clicks its done, but hey that’s in the to hard basket for our PM to do.

      • Colonial Rawshark 6.2.1

        Sheeezus, do it transparently using your 3G or 4G data service and store it in the cloud. That’s what the NSA does with your txts.

      • Treetop 6.2.2

        Would a lap top be enough?

        When it comes to using technology to back up texts, for some reason it is taboo where Key is concerned.

        • tracey 6.2.2.1

          A lap top? Although it would make him an ordinary bloke, our PM doesn’t go to those kinds of places.

    • Chch_Chiquita 6.3

      And he must be spending so much time on txt messages it makes you wonder when he has time left for anything else.

      Every child today will snort in laughter to that OIA reply and say – have it automatically backed up to the cloud, stupid.

      • Lanthanide 6.3.1

        “Every child today will snort in laughter to that OIA reply and say – have it automatically backed up to the cloud, stupid.”

        Yes, but children are stupid and don’t understand the complexities of business or government.

        Do you think Barrack Obama relies on iCloud to backup his phone contents…?

        • David H 6.3.1.1

          “Do you think Barrack Obama relies on iCloud to backup his phone contents”

          And do you think that Barak Obama would get away with deleting all his texts ?

  7. Tracey 7

    the GCSB just released a 500+ page manual on techincal stuuf around protection of IT and data… and they dont know how to backup a cellphone?
    BULLSHIT, and most readers of that excuse who have smartphones know it. This shows how dumb Wayne and john think their fellow kiwis are.

  8. adam 8

    Silly question but can’t we just ask the NSA for these text messages. I’m sure they have a copy.

  9. Neil 9

    Crikey our PM must have a real low end phone if it hasn’t got enough memory in it. I vaguely remember reading somewhere that you can plug a 64gb memory card into your phone if you’re short on storage, oh that’s right on planet key they don’t have memory cards, come to think of it on planet key the inhabitants don’t have memory of anything they have done or said.

  10. weka 10

    ” But if you are a senior civil servant, or an experienced politician, you know damn well that there is a set of principles and rules around preserving that information for the integrity of the state.”

    yes. But I still haven’t seen comment on what everyone else is doing. Does anyone know?

    • tracey 10.1

      Funny thing weka, when I do searches to find that out, all that keeps coming up is the rushed western government laws to trace and intercept public texts etc…

      However here is something about the Dutch Pm’s phone use… including one that can’t be intercepted and a personal one that can.

      http://electrospaces.blogspot.co.nz/2014/11/the-phones-of-dutch-prime-minister.html

      • weka 10.1.1

        By who else, I meant who else in the NZ parliament. Yes Key is being an arsehole as per usual, but I want to see that in context of what his peers and colleagues are doing. Who says txts should be kept? It’s not like cell phones, or even smart phones are new, so has anyone thought about this before now?

        • tracey 10.1.1.1

          I don’t understand what you are asking? IF the texts are covered by the Official Information Act, then everyone has to be keeping them and having them backed up, not just john key. This includes Government departments and employees when they relate to public business.

          • tracey 10.1.1.1.1

            “public office—

            (a) means the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of the Government of New Zealand; and

            (b) means the agencies or instruments of those branches of government; and

            (c) includes (without limiting the agencies or instruments)—

            (i) departments as defined in section 2 of the State Sector Act 1988; and

            (ii) Offices of Parliament as defined in section 2(1) of the Public Finance Act 1989; and

            (iii) State enterprises as defined in section 2 of the State-Owned Enterprises Act 1986; and

            (iv) Crown entities as defined in section 7(1) of the Crown Entities Act 2004; and

            (v) the Parliamentary Counsel Office; and

            (vi) the Parliamentary Service; and

            (vii) the Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives; and

            (viii) the New Zealand Police; and

            (ix) the New Zealand Defence Force; and

            (x) the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service; and

            (xi) any person or class of persons declared by an Order in Council made under section 5(1)(a)(i) to be a public office for the purposes of this Act

            public record—

            (a) means a record or a class of records, in any form, in whole or in part, created or received (whether before or after the commencement of this Act) by a public office in the conduct of its affairs; and

            (b) includes—

            (i) a record or a class of records declared under section 5(1)(a)(ii) to be a public record for the purposes of this Act; and

            (ii) estray records; but

            (c) does not include—

            (i) a special collection; or

            (ii) records created by the academic staff or students of a tertiary education institution, unless the records have become part of the records of that institution

            record means information, whether in its original form or otherwise, including (without limitation) a document, a signature, a seal, text, images, sound, speech, or data compiled, recorded, or stored, as the case may be,—

            (a) in written form on any material; or

            (b) on film, negative, tape, or other medium so as to be capable of being reproduced; or

            (c) by means of any recording device or process, computer, or other electronic device or process”

            So, does a text from a cellphone fit the purpose and definitions described above?

          • weka 10.1.1.1.2

            “IF the texts are covered by the Official Information Act, then everyone has to be keeping them and having them backed up, not just john key.”

            Are you saying that you know that all MPs and relevant staff at parliament are making backups of their phones? Txts and voicemails? And it’s just John Key that isn’t?

            • Tracey 10.1.1.1.2.1

              no. i am saying they ALL should be. along with every phone user in all the other categories. That they are not beggars belief because the wording looks very clear to me that texts are a public record.

              IF they all were NOT deleting texts wouldnt some parties have issued press releases to show how out of step PM is.

              I spent too much of today trying to find this out. It shouldnt be this hard in an open and transparent society

              • weka

                Yes, that was my point. We’ve heard all this about the PM, but nothing about what is common practice within the rest of parliament.

        • tracey 10.1.1.2

          The Chief Archivist was conducting an investigation following Green Party complaint. Maximum fine is $10,000. The Archive sits under the Public records Act and the Minister for Archives is Mr Peter Dunne.

          If nothing else, the fine is out of date. A quick cost benefit analysis and our PM will be laughing.

          Who isn’t covered by the Pubic records Act?

          Examples of organisations not covered by the Public Records Act include:

          Privately Owned Companies
          Political Parties
          Charitable Trusts

          Always start at the Purposes section

          “Purposes of Act

          The purposes of this Act are—

          (a) to provide for the continuation of the repository of public archives called the National Archives with the name Archives New Zealand (Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga); and

          (b) to provide for the role of the Chief Archivist in developing and supporting government recordkeeping, including making independent determinations on the disposal of public records and certain local authority archives; and

          (c) to enable the Government to be held accountable by—

          (i) ensuring that full and accurate records of the affairs of central and local government are created and maintained; and

          (ii) providing for the preservation of, and public access to, records of long-term value; and

          (d) to enhance public confidence in the integrity of public records and local authority records; and

          (e) to provide an appropriate framework within which public offices and local authorities create and maintain public records and local authority records, as the case may be; and

          (f) through the systematic creation and preservation of public archives and local authority archives, to enhance the accessibility of records that are relevant to the historical and cultural heritage of New Zealand and to New Zealanders’ sense of their national identity; and

          (g) to encourage the spirit of partnership and goodwill envisaged by the Treaty of Waitangi (Te Tiriti o Waitangi), as provided for by section 7; and

          (h) to support the safekeeping of private records.”

          electronic records are defined as ” includes electrical, digital, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, biometric, and photonic
          estray record—”

          • wearerevolution 10.1.1.2.1

            10 000 max fine. That’s pocket change for these fraudsters. It’s like fining your average New Zealand ‘slave’ (sadly almost all of us are modern day slaves enslaved by the puppet politicians and their globalists masters) 50 cents for robing a bank of $100 000. They are immoral and sick sociopaths.

    • tracey 10.2

      There was this back in 2012 in UK

      http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2012/oct/01/ministers-private-text-email-foi

      “.. “Official information recorded on mobile devices, including text messages on mobile phones, or in any other media, may also be considered to be held on behalf of the public authority.” However, officials have blocked attempts to obtain them using exemptions written into the Freedom of Information Act. Attempts to access ministers’ texts and emails sent from private accounts could still be blocked using exemptions.”

      This would, on the face of it, suggest it must be held, stored, backed up and not deleted.

  11. aerobubble 11

    People who txt and recieve txts with Key do back them up, so its essential Key does. Its not like a phone call where parties must know its being recorded, since txt are by default. Maybe Key should call the US spy agencies they have them.

    • Lanthanide 11.1

      “Its not like a phone call where parties must know its being recorded”

      Actually only 1 party needs to know it is being recorded:
      http://www.lawspot.org.nz/privacy/can-i-surreptitiously-record-a-conversation-if-i-want-proof-of

      From wikipedia: “Recording of phone calls by private persons falls under interception-related provisions of the Crimes Act 1961, which has a general prohibition on the use of interception devices. An exception is made for when the person intercepting the call is a party to the conversation. There is no requirement that both parties be aware of the interception”

      Crimes act: http://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1961/0043/latest/DLM329814.html
      “Subject to subsections (2) to (5), every one is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years who intentionally intercepts any private communication by means of an interception device.
      (2)Subsection (1) does not apply where the person intercepting the private communication—
      (a)is a *party* to that private communication; or”
      emphasis mine.

  12. tracey 12

    “He gave Slater his new number.

    Key’s explanation for this was he gave his new number to “every member” of the press.

    There are any number of journalists without his number who could argue this point, and those that do have his number can attest to not always receiving a reply.”
    editorial in http://www.stuff.co.nz November 29 2014

    lest John forgets

  13. fisiani 13

    The impotence of the Left in regard to John Key is plain to see “Show us your texts!!!” Get a grip. Meanwhile the economy is booming, wages are rising, and people are happy. When Key retires after six terms it will be 2026 and a current back bencher will take over. Given the prosperity that will increase in the next decade such trivial issues do not resonate with real people.

    [Stephanie: you’re trolling with a bunch of meaningless, unsubstantiated spin messages. Go away.]

    • b waghorn 13.1

      Brilliant I needed a laugh 6 terms ha ha ha the only way he would get six terms if he became a dictator .

      • Jones 13.1.1

        Don’t tempt fate… Dictator Key could happen. A few false flag terrorist attacks is all it could take…

        • McFlock 13.1.1.1

          6 terms of key and we’d have a peasants’ revolution, which is probably a touch too far the other way.

        • b waghorn 13.1.1.2

          I started the comment as a laugh and that horrible thought “dictator key” hoped into my mind and squirmed out through my fingers .

  14. “With the large volume of text messages received and sent by the Prime Minister every day”

    Do we know how many?

    It seems weird that there is a ‘large volume’ – does he give his number out willy nilly, does he conduct the affairs of state through text, is it part of his popularity offensive – just seems very strange to me.

  15. Draco T Bastard 15

    With the large volume of text messages received and sent by the Prime Minister every day, these need to be regularly deleted not only for security reasons but also to ensure that the Prime Minister is always able to send or receive messages by preventing the cellphone exceeding its memory capacity.

    That’s a load of bollocks.

    A text message takes up 140 characters, also know as bytes, plus a little for overhead. Being generous lets say that it takes up 200 bytes of memory total.

    My Samsung S2 has 48GB of memory which is quite capable of holding 240 million texts. Of course, my memory isn’t standard and has a 32GB SD card.

    I’m also not taking into account the memory that the OS and other apps uses. Once we take that into account we can expect a standard 16GB phone to have 10GB of memory left. With 10GB of memory available the phone is still capable of holding 50 million texts.

    Now, he may not be using a modern cell phone but there is that lovely selfy he took with his son that says otherwise.

    And that doesn’t even take into account that they should all be automatically backed up to the governments server.

    • Lanthanide 15.1

      160 chars for a text message + overhead.

      “Now, he may not be using a modern cell phone but there is that lovely selfy he took with his son that says otherwise.”

      Which was most likely his personal cell phone, not a government issued one.

      • Draco T Bastard 15.1.1

        Do you really think the government is going to issue a ten year old phone considering the benefits of a modern smart phone?

        And it doesn’t matter anyway. As someone points out above – if it’s government business it’s still OIA’ble and should be recorded.

  16. The Murphey 16

    Q. How are the text messages deleted ?

    Q. In what sense are the messages ‘deleted’ ?

    Q. What about messages stored by telco providers such as those often used in court cases ?

    Q. The ‘ spooks ‘ ?

    Q. Does digital technology ever ‘truly’ become deleted ? – under regular conditions

      • Tracey 16.1.1

        good, but seemingly too hard for the media…. paddy gower was busy reading of mice and men for rnz. cliff notes?

      • The Murphey 16.1.2

        Once a digital trail or footprint is created it could be considered an impossible task to remove every trace instance of the ‘trail’

        The text messages exist in multiple locations and will remain so in perpetuity

  17. Truth Will Out 17

    “If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear” ~ John Key.

    • Tracey 17.1

      funny how judys facebook entries disappeared too…

      so that is collins and johnny with stuff to fear…

      • idlegus 17.1.1

        all facebook stuff is kept in back up, if you delete your account then a year later rejoin all your old emails are still there, its quite a wake up call when you realise its all stored somewhere~!

  18. Neil 18

    I bet cam slater has a back up of all keys texts to him, in case he needs to dish dirt on key.

  19. Truth Will Out 19

    Why won’t John Key live up to the same standards of transparency he holds the rest of us to?

  20. Truth Will Out 20

    Why do so many John Key’s supporters exonerate him for not living up to the same standards of transparency and accountability he is holding every citizen to?

    Why are they entitling him to be above the very laws he has been pushing through under urgency?

    Do they believe he is above the law?

    If so, why? What is their reasoning?

    What entitles him to impose laws upon us requiring complete transparency and accountability from us when he is clearly refusing to live up to his own standards and his own laws, the very standards and laws he is demanding the rest of us live up to and obey, by force if necessary?

  21. Gruntie 21

    “experienced politician, you know damn well that there is a set of principles and rules around preserving that information for the integrity of the state.”

    that would be great but John Key has proven time and time again he has no integrity, and neither does his government

  22. Penny Bright 22

    I for one, totally dispute that the PRIME Minister John Key, is not in that role 24/7.

    Check for yourselves the Cabinet Manual.

    And why is politically-partisan, CHIEF ‘Spin Doctor’ / ‘Minder’ for John Key in his role as Leader of the National Party – Wayne Eagleson replying to OIA requests, when that is supposed to be the role of the DPMC (the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet)?

    If you’re in public office – particularly at the highest levels – you’re effectively in a goldfish bowl, and the public are entitled to ‘transparency’.

    Interesting questions arise as to where the line is drawn as to the rights of those in public office to ‘privacy’ and, in John Key’s case, what information can be officially requested from him in his capacity as Leader of the National Party?

    Thus – when, if ever, can texts / emails / phone messages be lawfully deleted?

    High time for an ENFORCEABLE ‘Code of Conduct’ for MPs – which give clearer guidelines as to the contradiction between public’s right to transparency’ for those in public office, and ‘privacy’ for citizens?

    Think it’s high time for some serious debate on these matters!

    Penny Bright

  23. disturbed 23

    1000% Penny,

    “High time for an ENFORCEABLE ‘Code of Conduct’ for MPs”.

    I say for FJK and his faceless Government,-

    “Time for an overhaul”

    Credit goes to the movie “The Mask” Jim Cary.

  24. Conversations and recollections are covered by the Official Information Act. But of course these can be “forgotten”.

  25. Penny Bright 25

    Which is why the Public Records Act 2005 needs to be spelled out in the Cabinet Manual – that ‘full and accurate records need to be CREATED and MAINTAINED’ – which was NOT the situation last time I looked.

    If the Public Records Act 2005 was implemented and enforced as it is supposed to be by LAW – then – in my considered opinion, transparency in NZ would be transformed.

    Penny Bright

  26. Lloyd 26

    If the SIS and the GCSB aren’t recording all the PMs txts, are they doing their job?

  27. A Voter 27

    Well thats the biggest crock o’shite I heard since Watergate
    He could alway use Mega if hes run out of server storage cause privacy wont matter wikileaks is still running isnt
    What kind of moron would be believe Eagleson anyway everybody knows payday is eagleshit day
    His argument is like pouring water into a colander and expecting it to not run thru

  28. wearerevolution 28

    Who would trust anything that this Globalist puppet says? Hasn’t he already been proven to be dishonest and a liar? We do not need to be reminded about his NZRail share trading among so many other immoral and law breaking activities. Puppet Presidents and Prime Ministers don’t represent us, instead force the policies handed to them by their Elite masters and thei institutions (the IMF, Wrold Bank, UN, etc.

  29. wearerevolution 29

    A long jail sentence awaits you John Keys soon to be ex-New Zealand prime minister.

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    Bryce Edwards writes – Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    7 hours ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' at 10:10am on Tuesday, March 19
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Gavin Jacobson talks to Thomas Piketty 10 years on from Capital in the 21st Century The SalvoLocal scoop: Green MP’s business being investigated over migrant exploitation claims Stuff Steve KilgallonLocal deep-dive: The commercial contractors making money from School ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    7 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
    9 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
    10 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
    12 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
    24 hours 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 ...
    1 day 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
    1 day 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
    1 day 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
    1 day 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
    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
    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
    2 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
    3 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
    3 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
    4 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
    4 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
    4 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
    5 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 ...
    5 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
    5 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
    5 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
  • There’s a name for this
    Every year, in the Budget, Parliament forks out money to government agencies to do certain things. And every year, as part of the annual review cycle, those agencies are meant to report on whether they have done the things Parliament gave them that money for. Agencies which consistently fail to ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    6 days ago
  • Echoes of 1968 in 2024?  Pocock on the repetitive problems of the New Left
    Mike Grimshaw writes – Recent events in American universities point to an underlying crisis of coherent thinking, an issue that increasingly affects the progressive left across the Western world. This of course is nothing new as anyone who can either remember or has read of the late ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days 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
    5 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
    7 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
    8 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
    21 hours 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
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