Archive for April, 2011
Open mike 18/04/2011
Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, April 18th, 2011 - 99 comments
Hot topics:
• Hooton wants to gloat
• polls
• every Kiwi counts
and more!
Spending cuts I’d like to see – No 1
Written By: - Date published: 8:57 pm, April 17th, 2011 - 33 comments
This Herald story about spin doctor Brad Tattersfield was paid hundreds of thousands of dollars by the Ministerial offices of the Prime Minister, Judith Collins, Paula Bennett, and the Chief Executive of the Department of Labour to “minimise scandal” is one example of the sort of back-room spending of public money I’d like to see cut.
Phone hack saga now Pandora’s box
Written By: - Date published: 6:03 pm, April 17th, 2011 - 4 comments
The News of the World phone hacking saga involving the Murdoch media has opened up with news that there could have been over ninety people whose phones were affected. The police have announced that they are looking into possible criminal activity following Rebekah Brooks’ earlier statement that papers paid police for tips. James Murdoch hasn’t […]
Upgrading (yet again)
Written By: - Date published: 12:05 pm, April 17th, 2011 - 8 comments
There will be a number of (hopefully) small disruptions over the next few days to upgrade the site servers. The sunday upgrades are underway. Hopefully there will not be too much of a disruption.
Some Epsom arithmetic
Written By: - Date published: 11:00 am, April 17th, 2011 - 8 comments
Unsurprisingly it’s taking the nats a wee while to decide who to stand in Epsom.
I’d imagine that’s because they’re struggling with the maths.
Hartevelt hearts Brownlee
Written By: - Date published: 10:48 am, April 17th, 2011 - 21 comments
Young John Hartevelt has obviously decided it’s a good idea to cozy up to our new dictator. How else to explain the fawning piece in today’s Sunday Star-Times? Hartevelt heaps plaudits on Gerry Brownlee for deigning to have a one day select committee and swipes at Labour’s Lianne Dalziel for daring to demand better for her constituents.
A broad church
Written By: - Date published: 10:39 am, April 17th, 2011 - 36 comments
Ratana elders are unhappy with Labour over its list rankings, and have called on supporters to abandon the Party. Phil Goff needs to work on the relationship with the Church immediately. For Labour the only silver lining in this cloud, and the focus on its list in general, is the fact that it illustrates what a large and diverse group of people the Party has to represent.
Dim-Post: Electoral Commission to offer suicide voting booths
Written By: - Date published: 9:00 am, April 17th, 2011 - 4 comments
The Electoral Commission will give New Zealanders voting in the November General Election the option to take their own lives rather than live in a country run by any of the possible governing coalitions, the chair of the Commission Sir Hugh Williams announced today.
Open mike 17/04/2011
Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, April 17th, 2011 - 99 comments
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike…
Beware of politicians brandishing statistics
Written By: - Date published: 8:00 pm, April 16th, 2011 - 9 comments
John Key wants to talk about how average after tax wages have gone up since he became Prime Minister. But as Brian Fallow says in today’s Herald: Averages are all well and good. If John Key walks into a room the average net worth of the people in the room shoots up, but the rest […]
How to tell you have a Tory govt
Written By: - Date published: 5:01 pm, April 16th, 2011 - 7 comments
Brian Fallow is one of the Heralds more understated columnists. Brian and I probably vote differently, but I find his articles usually worth the read. But there is understatement, and then there is deliberate obfuscation. His column today starts out workmanlike enough, repeating the PM’s case how average wages/salaries have increased in real terms around […]
I’m sorry, I’m out
Written By: - Date published: 2:00 pm, April 16th, 2011 - 68 comments
Every country that has ever sleepwalked from democracy to dictatorship has done it in the belief that it was taking extraordinary, temporary measures in response to an emergency. Seeing Labour denounce every aspect of CERA and then vote for it has shaken me to the core.
Whambulance needed for P North Nats
Written By: - Date published: 12:30 pm, April 16th, 2011 - 23 comments
National’s Palmerston North candidate, Leonie Hapeta, is having a cry because the Labour MP, Iain Lees-Galloway, and supporters had an anti-asset sales demonstration that happened to be outside her hotel. It’s one thing for a n00b like Hapeta to cry about politics but surprising that Farwhaa and Wail-oil joined her.
Welcome to the Stroppery
Written By: - Date published: 11:31 am, April 16th, 2011 - 18 comments
The brilliant haranguer and occasional guest poster here Queen of Thorns and a few of her mates have launched a new blog, The Stroppery.
It looks like it’ll be a bloody good read.
Armstrong on Nats’ elitist agenda
Written By: - Date published: 10:47 am, April 16th, 2011 - 7 comments
National has pillaged the poor to benefit the rich. That can be seen in the tax cuts, the GST hike, the subsidies for climate polluters, even the cuts to public transport to fund holiday highways. But sometimes it’s the smaller stories that best expose the underlying theme of a government, as John Armstrong shows in his piece today.
Garth George’s China syndrome
Written By: - Date published: 9:28 am, April 16th, 2011 - 66 comments
I don’t read Garth George columns. Life’s too short eh? But I could hardly miss this one, with its bizarre anti-China quote plastered on the front page of The Herald.
Open mike 16/04/2011
Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, April 16th, 2011 - 58 comments
Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the link to Policy in the banner). Step right up to the mike…
Economists line up on “Robin Hood” tax
Written By: - Date published: 9:16 pm, April 15th, 2011 - 31 comments
1000 economists have written to the G20, about to meet in Washington, and to Bill Gates, asking for a tax on financial transactions known as a Tobin tax after its originator, or a Robin Hood tax as it is known in the US. 4 New Zealanders are among the 1000; Prue Hyman, Stefan Kesting, Peter Conway, and Petrus Simons. Good on them.
Weekend social 15/04/2011
Written By: - Date published: 2:00 pm, April 15th, 2011 - 25 comments
Weekend social is for non political chat. What’s on for the weekend, gigs, film or book reviews, sports, or whatever. No politics, no aggro, why can’t we all just get along?
SCF broke rules, kept deposit guarantee
Written By: - Date published: 1:00 pm, April 15th, 2011 - 26 comments
Yesterday, under the cover of CERA, the government released hundreds of documents relating to South Canterbury Finance, it’s use and abuse of the deposit guarantee scheme, and the bailout. They show SCF broke the terms of its guarantee but National turned a blind eye. Someone needs to resign.
Elitist Nats divorced from everyday Kiwis
Written By: - Date published: 11:00 am, April 15th, 2011 - 49 comments
National pollster David Farrar reckons that its sweet for the elite to spend $100 a head on meals at the taxpayer’s expense. Same time as he’s sneering at a woman struggling to get by feeding four people on $200 a week. This is National’s New Zealand. The best for the elite. Cat food for the rest.
Good-bye rule of law
Written By: - Date published: 10:05 am, April 15th, 2011 - 10 comments
I was going to write about how ludicrous it is that National is abandoning the idea of a warranty or bond system for builders in the new Building Act designed to stop a repeat of the leaky homes debacle, given that we’re about to embark on the largest rebuilding programme in the country’s history. But then I realised it no longer matters what laws say.
Worth a crack Nigel?
Written By: - Date published: 8:46 am, April 15th, 2011 - 22 comments
Even the supporters of Deep Sea Oil Drilling admit it is risky. Like the two rats in the old advertisement discussing the odds of going for a cheezel set in a trap, Petrobras and the Herald editor discuss the advantages of Deep Sea Oil, in the columns of the Herald.
Boiling the frog
Written By: - Date published: 7:07 am, April 15th, 2011 - 62 comments
There are many significant changes to our legal and democratic rights that are going on under this National government. Each on its own might look like a small thing, but collectively they add up to a major erosion of our freedom.
Open mike 15/04/2011
Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, April 15th, 2011 - 49 comments
Hot topics:
• protest in Palmy
• public broadcasting
• and more!
Rodney (still) wrecking the wacky party
Written By: - Date published: 3:41 pm, April 14th, 2011 - 13 comments
You almost have to admire Rodney Hide for his total contempt for political reality. He has managed to annoy aged GoldCard users with his comments on their off-peak free use of public transport. There’s also a horrible irony in Hide opposing publicly funded transport for people who aren’t him or his girlfriend.
Skinheads in Suits
Written By: - Date published: 2:03 pm, April 14th, 2011 - 53 comments
ChrisH has been goaded to write this post by a couple of Jim Mora panels last week, which created a stronger than usual temptation to throw the radio out the window. Here he writes a scholarly polemic castigating the implied or explicit assumptions of the people involved in these panels.
Some are more equal than others
Written By: - Date published: 1:00 pm, April 14th, 2011 - 41 comments
Next time some righties are protesting in Queen St, will the government call out an army LAV to clear a path for my car so I can go about my lawful business without being blocked by protesters? Or do only foreign multinationals have this government at their beck and call?
Wong corruption to be investigated
Written By: - Date published: 11:45 am, April 14th, 2011 - 12 comments
We might be about to find out why Pansy Wong suddenly announced she would resign from Parliament late last year, after John Key had previously expressed full confidence in her. The Auditor-General will investigate those mysterious flights that she and husband Sammy took to China while she was a minister and he was working for Kiwirail.
You’re an internet pirate
Written By: - Date published: 9:25 am, April 14th, 2011 - 37 comments
Last night the Nats were ramming their new copyright bill through under urgency. Like the much reviled Labour bill that preceded it, it contains the assumption of guilt by accusation. There are already calls for repeats of the 2009 blackout protest…
- Cow Farts and Cancer Sticks.
What do you do if you’re a new government minister and the science is in. All of the evidence and facts are clear, but they’re not to your liking? They’re inconsistent with your policy positions and/or your spending priorities.Well, first off you could just stand back and watch as the ...2 weeks ago - Member’s Day
Today is a Member's day. First up is James Shaw's New Zealand Bill of Rights (Right to Sustainable Environment) Amendment Bill, which does exactly what it says on the label. Despite solid backing in international law and from lawyers and NGOs, National will likely vote it down out of pure ...2 weeks ago - Bernard's Top 10 'pick 'n' mix' at 10:10 am on Wednesday, April 10
2 weeks ago - What’s happening with Airport to Botany
One of the few public transport projects the current government have said they support is the Airport to Botany project (A2B) and it’s one we haven’t covered in a while so worth looking at where things are at. A business case for the project was completed in 2021 before being ...3 weeks ago - Bishop more popular than Luxon in Curia poll
Count the Chrises: Chris Bishop (2nd from right) is moving up in the popularity polls. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: These six things stood out to me over the last day in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy, as of 7:06 am on Wednesday, April 10:The National/ACT/NZ First coalition Government’s opinion poll ...3 weeks ago - Silmarillion Fan Poetry: A Collection (2022-2024)
It’s been some time since I properly exercised my poetic muscles. Prose-writing has been where it’s at for me, these past few years. Well, to get back into practice, I thought I’d write the occasional bit of jocular fan poetry, based off Tolkien’s Silmarillion… with this post being a collection ...3 weeks ago - At a glance – The Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) is not causing global warming
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...3 weeks ago - Bryce Edwards: What’s to blame for the public’s plummeting trust in the media?
The media is in crisis, as New Zealand audiences flee from traditional sources of news and information. The latest survey results on the public’s attitude to the media shows plummeting trust. And New Zealand now leads the world in terms of those who want to “avoid the news”. But who ...3 weeks ago - Dead on target
My targets for today are: 1 newsletter sent out by 4.30pm 800 words of copy delivered to a client by COB, as we say in the world of BAU1 dinner served by sunset GST returnSo far so good. Longer-term targets are: Get some website copy finished before I get on a plane on Saturday ...3 weeks ago - The PM sets nine policy targets- and in case you missed the truancy one, Seymour has provided some...
Buzz from the Beehive Targets and travel were a theme in the latest flow of ministerial announcements. The PM announced a raft of targets (“nine ambitious Government Targets to help improve the lives of New Zealanders”) along with plans to head for Singapore, Thailand, and Philippines. His Deputy and Foreign ...3 weeks ago - Climate Change: Unwelcome adviceYesterday He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission released two key pieces of advice, on the 2036-40 emissions budget and the 2050 target. Both are statutorily required as part of the Zero Carbon Act budgeting / planning process, and both have a round of public consultation before being finalised and ...3 weeks ago
- In a structural deficit, the only real tax cut is a spending cut
Eric Crampton writes – This week’s column in the Stuff papers. A snippet: Tabarrok warned that America had two political parties – “the Tax and Spenders and the No-Tax and Spenders” – and neither was fiscally conservative. In the two decades after Tabarrok’s warning, the federal government ...3 weeks ago - A Return to Kindness?
New Zealanders are a pretty fair minded bunch. By and large we like to give people a go.Ian Foster, for example, had a terrible record as a head rugby coach. Like not even good, and did we let that bother us? Yeah, but also Nah. Because we went ahead and ...3 weeks ago - Aukus or not, New Zealand’s foreign policy is being remadeGeoffrey Miller writes – This could be a watershed week for New Zealand’s international relations. Winston Peters, the foreign minister, is heading to Washington DC for a full week of meetings. The surprisingly lengthy trip just happens to coincide with a major trilateral summit of leaders from the United States, ...3 weeks ago
- Back to the future, with a 2032 deadlineAiming to look visionary and focused, Luxon has announced nine targets to improve measures for education, health, crime and climate emissions - but the reality is only one target is well above pre-Covid levels. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The six news items of note for me in Aotearoa-NZ’s ...3 weeks ago
- Why Rod Carr is optimistic farmers can beat climate change
The future of farming went on the line yesterday when the Climate Change Commission presented its first review of New Zealand’s target of net zero emissions by 2050. The Commission said New Zealand’s target was unlikely to be consistent with the 2015 Paris Agreement goal of holding temperature rise to ...3 weeks ago - Grifters, Bigots & Booling With the Dawgs
3 weeks ago - Goldsmith spots a cost-saver in his Justice domain – let’s further erode our right (under Magna ...Bob Edlin writes – Chapter 39 of the Magna Carta (from memory) includes the guarantee that no free man may suffer punishment without “the lawful judgment of his peers.” This was a measure which the barons forced on England’s King John to delegate part of his judicial authority ...3 weeks ago
- Climate Adam: Is Global Warming Speeding Up?This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Adam Levy. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). Thanks to climate change, 2023 has shattered heat records, and 2024 is continuing where last year left off. With this devastating ...3 weeks ago
- Brooke is on the TV, being a Minister!
Brooke is on the TV, being a Minister! She is going to talk to Jack on the TV!It's hard to watch Jack on the TV without thinking to yourself:How can anyone be that good-looking,and also be even brainier than they are good-looking?Talk about lucky!But also, Jack works for the TV news. So ...3 weeks ago - There’s gold – or rather, energy without carbon – in that rock, but Jones reminds us of the Tr...Buzz from the Beehive Oh, dear. One News tells us an ownership spat is brewing between Māori and the Crown as New Zealand uses more renewable energy sources. No, not water or the shoreline. Ownership of another resource has come into the reckoning. The One News report explained that 99% of ...3 weeks ago
- Climate Change: Bad faith from NationalOne of the weird features of the Zero Carbon Act was its split-gas targets, which separated methane, produced overwhelmingly by farmers, from carbon dioxide produced by the rest of us. This lower target for methane was another effective subsidy to the dairy industry, and was the result of a compromise ...3 weeks ago
- Gordon Campbell on Israel’s murderous use of AI in GazaThis may seem like a dumb question– but how come Israel has managed to kill at least 33,000 Palestinian civilians in Gaza, including over 13,000 children? Of course, saturation aerial bombing and artillery shelling of densely populated civilian neighbourhoods will do that. So will the targeting of children by IDF ...3 weeks ago
- Total Eclipse of the Mind.
All that you touch And all that you seeAll that you taste All you feelAnd all that you love And all that you hateAll you distrust All you saveEarly tomorrow morning as the sun is rising in Aotearoa many people across North America, from Mexico to Canada, will be losing ...3 weeks ago - So why do that degree… here?A report – and discussion – from the university front line… Mike Grimshaw writes – I have been involved in numerous curriculum and degree reviews over the decades and in all of them the question always skirted around is: “If you had to leave now with ...3 weeks ago
- The hunt is on for an asterix for farm emissions3 weeks ago
- Geoffrey Miller: Aukus or not, New Zealand’s foreign policy is being remadeThis could be a watershed week for New Zealand’s international relations. Winston Peters, the foreign minister, is heading to Washington DC for a full week of meetings. The surprisingly lengthy trip just happens to coincide with a major trilateral summit of leaders from the United States, Japan and the Philippines. ...3 weeks ago
- The Kaka’s diary for the week to April 15 and beyond
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to April 15 include:PM Christopher Luxon is scheduled to hold a post-Cabinet news conference at 4 pm today. The Climate Commission will publish advice to the Government this evening.Parliament is sitting from Question Time at 2pm ...3 weeks ago
- Nearly 140 roles proposed to go at Customs and DIA
Nearly 140 roles are proposed to go at Customs and at the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA), a larger number than PSA announced this afternoon. ...5 days ago - More than coral: the unseen casualties of record-breaking heat on the Great Barrier Reef
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Turnbull, Postdoctoral Research Associate, University of Sydney John Turnbull, CC BY-NC-ND In past bleaching events on the Great Barrier Reef, the southern region has sometimes been spared worst of the bleaching. Not this time. This year’s intense underwater heat has ...5 days ago - New play The Exact Dimensions of Hell explores the chaos and contradiction of teenage girlhood – a...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Austin, Lecturer in Theatre, The University of Melbourne Darren Gill/Mackey, Darling & Collaborators The relationship between witchcraft and teenage girls has been the subject of many books, films and television shows. Over time, the traditional image of witch as crone ...5 days ago
- Bryce Edwards Analysis – Time for “Fast-Track Watch”Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards, Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz) Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. Calling all journalists, academics, planners, lawyers, political activists, environmentalists, and other members of the public who believe that the relationships between vested interests and politicians need to be scrutinised. We need to work together to make sure ...5 days ago
- Far North mayor hits out at government's Māori ward changesMoko Tepania says the government's plan is 'disheartening' when they are already on the back foot with issues facing the region. ...5 days ago
- Fast Track Approval Bill: Government watchdogs seek substantial curbs on ministers' powersThe Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment says the role of ministers as decision-makers should be scrapped. ...5 days ago
- The UK plans to phase out smoking. What does this new law mean for tobacco control in Australia?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Becky Freeman, Associate Professor, School of Public Health, University of Sydney Andres Siimon/Unsplash There are no silver bullets, magic tricks or secret hacks to solving complex public health problems. Taking on the global tobacco industry and reducing the devastating consequences of ...5 days ago
- We mapped a massive explosion in space, showing how galaxies ‘pollute’ the cosmosSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adam B. Watts, Research Associate in galaxy evolution, The University of Western Australia ESO/A. Watts et al., CC BY We breathe oxygen and nitrogen gas in our atmosphere every day, but did you know that these gases also float through space, ...5 days ago
- Watch: Three strikes policy to return with changes, PM announcesThe coalition will reintroduce the sentencing law later this year - but it will be slightly different than last time. ...5 days ago
- Opioids more potent than fentanyl have been detected in Australia. So what are nitazenes?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Suzanne Nielsen, Professor and Deputy Director, Monash Addiction Research Centre, Monash University Maxime Bhm/Unsplash A new group of drugs called nitazenes has been detected in Australia. They have been sold as heroin as well as other drugs like ketamine. Concerns ...5 days ago
- Two people want to share the job of MP for Higgins. Is it constitutional?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anne Twomey, Professor emerita, University of Sydney Image from Bradlow + Bock campaign Can the job of being a federal member of parliament be shared by two or more persons? Two prospective candidates for the inner-Melbourne federal seat of Higgins, Lucy ...5 days ago
- Family law has been overhauled. With the new changes about to kick in, how will they affect children...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Zoe Rathus, Senior Lecturer in Law, Griffith University Shutterstock In October 2023, the federal parliament passed major changes to how children’s cases are decided under the Family Law Act, which kick in next month. Among other things, they repeal a ...5 days ago
- Archie Moore’s Venice triumph: the sublime kith and kin is simultaneously somber and stirringSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Wes Hill, Associate Professor, art history and visual culture, Southern Cross University Archie Moore in kith and kin 2024. Australia Pavilion at Venice Biennale 2024. Photographer Andrea Rossetti. © the artist. Image courtesy of the artist and The Commercial This article ...5 days ago
- Activists defy Israel with Gaza-bound ‘freedom’ flotilla and humanitarian aidBy Salwa Amor in Istanbul Palestine solidarity activists are preparing a flotilla to deliver urgently needed humanitarian aid to Gaza, vowing to break Israel’s blockade of the Palestinian territory on board the Akdeniz, a seven-deck passenger ship. Currently docked in Istanbul, the ship will carry 800 people from more than ...5 days ago
- Auditor-General's Submission On The Fast-track Approvals Bill
We’d like your feedback: Our website includes a feedback form. Please tell us if you found our information useful. ...5 days ago - More Frontline Cuts As Government Goes Soft On Organised CrimeThe Government is putting at risk the defences of our land and sea borders against organised crime, and our online defences against child exploitation, terrorism and online crime with cuts to critical frontline roles at Customs and Internal Affairs. ...5 days ago
- Supermarket facial recognition failure: why automated systems must put the human factor firstSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Rickerby, Lecturer, School of Product Design, University of Canterbury Getty Images The incident of a woman misidentified by facial recognition technology at a Rotorua supermarket should have come as no surprise. When Foodstuffs North Island announced its intention to trial ...5 days ago
- Job cuts: Proposal for 79 roles to go at airports, portsWorkers from teams such as boarder operations, intelligence and compliance service delivery are on the chopping block, PSA says. ...5 days ago
- New to streaming: What to watch on Netflix NZ, Neon and more this week
We round up everything coming to streaming services this week, including Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+, Apple TV+, ThreeNow, Neon and TVNZ+. If you love a good cry: All of Us Strangers (Disney+) It’s the dreamlike, emotional film that had viewers running from the cinema in floods of tears, and ...5 days ago - Foreign Minister Winston Peters defers recognition of PalestineThe foreign minister says diplomatic recognition of Palestine is a matter of "when not if", but doing so now could impede progress towards a two-state solution. ...5 days ago
- Watch live: Three strikes policy to return with changes, PM announcesThe coalition will reintroduce the sentencing law later this year - but it will be slightly different than last time. ...5 days ago
- Global Military Spending Increase Threatens Humanity And The PlanetSIPRI has estimated global military expenditure last year was at least $2,443 billion (USD, ±$4,150 billion NZD), an increase of 6.8% in real terms from 2022 and the steepest year-on-year increase since 2009. ...5 days ago
- Why the Waitangi Tribunal has summonsed a minister – and why the Crown is fighting itToday in the High Court, Crown lawyers will argue that the minister for children shouldn’t have to appear in front of the Waitangi Tribunal to answer questions about proposed changes to the Oranga Tamariki Act. Carwyn Jones explains. The past week has seen two cabinet ministers publicly criticise the actions ...5 days ago
- What do we make of The Tortured Poets Department?Our tortured critics department reviews the new Taylor Swift album. On Friday, Taylor Swift smashed records held by the likes of Taylor Swift and Taylor Swift, when her new album The Tortured Poets Department became the most streamed album on Spotify in a single day. Her 11th album had only ...5 days ago
- Labor maintains narrow Newspoll lead but drops in other pollsSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne A national Newspoll, conducted April 15–18 from a sample of 1,236, gave Labor a 51–49 lead, unchanged from the previous Newspoll in ...5 days ago
- More than half of Solomon Islands election results in as counting continuesBy Koroi Hawkins, RNZ Pacific editor in Honiara More than 60 percent of the national results of the Solomon Islands election are now in. So far, two female MPs have been elected and three former prime ministers may be in the running for the top job. Counting is still progressing ...5 days ago
- Daily crossword, Monday 22 April
The post Daily crossword, Monday 22 April appeared first on Newsroom. ...5 days ago - How Popstars and TrueBliss changed reality television foreverThis week we’re celebrating 25 years since the first episode of Popstars, a series that cemented TrueBliss in our pop culture history and created a new genre of reality television. Today, Alex Casey looks back at the origin story of Popstars and its impact. It could have been our own ...5 days ago
- Newsroom daily quiz, Monday 22 AprilLoading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[quiz],DIV[quiz],A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp'); Got a good quiz question? Send Newsroom your questions. The post Newsroom daily quiz, Monday 22 April appeared first on Newsroom. ...5 days ago
- Health NZ denies it's ordered a hiring freezeThe agency says it is still recruiting to fill shortages after writing about a ban on double shifts and closing some vacant roles. ...5 days ago
- Government risks own goal in cutting funding for Growing up in New ZealandA study that tracks the life course of 6,000 kids provides crucial data for government decision making and spending, say those involved. Yet the axe hovers over Growing up in New Zealand, writes Max Rashbrooke. The government risks sabotaging its own targets – on school attendance, for instance – if ...6 days ago
- How will US foreign policy affect Joe Biden’s chances of re-election in November?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emma Shortis, Adjunct Senior Fellow, School of Global, Urban and Social Studies, RMIT University When big questions about American foreign policy collide with an election, it’s rarely good news for a sitting president. Like many leaders before him, US President Joe ...6 days ago
- Unstable employment while you’re young can set you up for a wage gap later in life – even if you...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Irma Mooi-Reci, Professor in Labour Sociology, The University of Melbourne The Conversation/Pexels/Unsplash, CC BY As they kick off their careers, young people often have to navigate a maze of short-term and casual jobs. In Australia, many of them also wish to ...6 days ago
- Lending rule changes a prelude to bigger overhaul of CCCFAThe government has announced tweaks to the much-maligned law, but isn’t scrapping the lending affordability regulations – at least, not yet, writes Catherine McGregor in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. The first stage of ...6 days ago
- Financial mentoring services sound warning over wind-back of lending regulationsThe government is reforming the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act (CCCFA), which it says has created unnecessary compliance costs, and blown out the timeframes for accessing a loan. ...6 days ago
- New Zealand Passport system upgrades lead to longer processing timesThe government target for processing passports is 10 days but the current wait-time guideline is much longer than that. ...6 days ago
- In demand but disempowered: why low-skilled migrant workers face even worse exploitation under NZ’...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Francis L Collins, Professor of Sociology, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Arkadiusz Warguła/Getty Images The New Zealand government claims its recently announced changes to visa rules will address exploitation and unsustainable migration. In reality, the new rules are likely to ...6 days ago
- Consultants are just the sound of cans being kicked down potholed roadsOpinion: We do not need to spend resources on identifying our problems because the big ones are already obvious The post Consultants are just the sound of cans being kicked down potholed roads appeared first on Newsroom. ...6 days ago
- At least two businesses invited to apply for fast-track consents have donated to National, says Labo...Labour is warning that allowing just three ministers the last word on fast-tracking infrastructure projects opens them up to accusations of bias, especially when political donations might muddy the waters. ...6 days ago
- There’s no need to make emergency housing harder. It’s hard enough alreadyTrust me, I know: I’ve been living in a damp, violent hotel in central Auckland for six months and counting. I get it, Minister. I really do. You want us out of emergency housing. And believe me, so do we. I have been living in emergency accommodation in a hotel ...6 days ago
- A list of transport projects Wellington could actually deliver in the next 10-15 yearsMetlink is warning Wellington commuters to expect buses to replace trains on weekends for the next 10-15 years. But there are a few things to look forward to while we wait. Thomas Nash is a Greater Wellington Regional Councillor. Ten to fifteen years. Four little words that sparked a mini ...6 days ago
- Iwi, business lay down the wero for climate ministerTangata whenua has laid down the wero for the climate minister, while business is urging the Government to go faster and further The post Iwi, business lay down the wero for climate minister appeared first on Newsroom. ...6 days ago
- How NZ can truly be independent in foreign policyComment: This country talks up its independent foreign policy but in reality it is not much more than an aspiration, still wedded to western worldviews The post How NZ can truly be independent in foreign policy appeared first on Newsroom. ...6 days ago
- The revolution will be memoired1967: I hadn’t heard from my family in Rotorua for months and months, not a letter or a phone call, nothing. One weekend I decided to go back on the Herald bus, along with bundles of newspapers tied up with rough twine that were stacked in the side compartments and ...6 days ago
- Maths education more than just test scoresOpinion: There has been a lot of talk of late about maths education due to New Zealand’s poor results in international testing. We can certainly improve maths learning experiences in our classrooms, and outcomes. However, I’m concerned that the desire to get better test results might lead to undesirable curriculum ...6 days ago
- Breaking barriers on sexual assault figuresAlison Mau had two choices when she was laid off from Stuff – carry on in journalism but not her specialist #MeToo reporting or quit the industry and try to make a meaningful difference in that area. She chose the latter and teamed up with another high-profile campaigner, barrister Zoe ...6 days ago
- Where is she now? Sonia WaddellIn a full circle moment, Olympic rower Sonia Waddell is back entrenched in the sport of athletics – the first of three codes in which she’s worn the silver fern. “Athletics will always be my passion, even though I ended up rowing at the Olympics,” laughs Waddell, at home ...6 days ago
- Taiwan wants NZ support to counter ‘expanding authoritarianism’Taiwan’s foreign minister says the territory can also expand ties with New Zealand in areas less likely to attract Chinese ire The post Taiwan wants NZ support to counter ‘expanding authoritarianism’ appeared first on Newsroom. ...6 days ago
- Markets at a tipping point as outlook darkensBusiness and investing: Half a year of stock market gains seem to be over as uncertainty starts to grow The post Markets at a tipping point as outlook darkens appeared first on Newsroom. ...6 days ago
- View from The Hill: Albanese to walk Kokoda track and engage in some jungle diplomacySource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Anthony Albanese will trek the Kokoda track on Tuesday and Wednesday before attending the Anzac Day dawn service at the Isurava Memorial site that commemorates one of the toughest battles the Australians fought in the ...6 days ago
- Australian author leads silent protest over ‘blood debt’ owed to PapuansAsia Pacific Report An Australian author and advocate, Jim Aubrey, today led a national symbolic one minute’s silence to mark the “blood debt” owed to Papuan allies during the Second World War indigenous resistance against the invading Japanese forces. “A promise to most people is a promise,” Aubrey said in ...6 days ago
- EDS Highlights Reputational Risks Of Fast-track Inclusion“Make no mistake: this proposed legislation, with its Ministerial overreach and capacity for environmental harm, is extremely radical and controversial,” said EDS CEO Gary Taylor. ...6 days ago
- Government agrees to raise concerns about forcible deportation of Afghans with PakistanThe government has promised to raise concerns about the forcible deportation of Afghans with Pakistan. ...6 days ago
- Australia’s social cohesion under strain, challenges and solutionsPacific Media Watch Australians are being urged to stay united following the horrific events in Sydney last week, reports the ABC’s Saturday Extra programme. Five women and one man were killed in a mass stabbing at Bondi Junction last Saturday by a man with a history of mental illness, and ...6 days ago
- Government announces lending changesThe government has announced it will reform financial services in a bid to make it easier to get home loans and other lending, and strengthen customer protections. ...6 days ago
- Who helps with the 'huge emotional toll' of being an MP?The House - MPs have some of the highest pressure jobs in New Zealand, and the stressors aren't always what you might think. ...6 days ago
- How to read a poem: All day on Ma’uke by Rob HackThe latest in a semi-regular series that breaks down a poem to analyse what it’s really trying to tell us. In this edition of How to Read a Poem, Vaughan Rapatahana reads All day on Ma’uke by Rob Hack, published in a new anthology called Katūīvei: Contemporary Pasifika poetry from ...6 days ago
- Hear me out: It’s embarrassing that Wellington doesn’t have an ice rink Wellington’s lack of ice rinks undermines our credibility as a ‘capital’, much less a ‘city’, writes ice enthusiast Fox Meyer. When I moved to Aotearoa to study, I had several universities to choose from. I ignored all their academic merit and simply googled “best ice rink in New Zealand”. Google ...7 days ago
- Prime Minister Christopher Luxon returning from Southeast Asian tripPolitical issues such as the war in the Middle East had not overshadowed Southeast Asian mission, Christopher Luxon says. ...7 days ago
- Luxon pushes at an open door in Southeast AsiaAnalysis: Christopher Luxon’s first trip outside Australasia should be seen as a success. But the real test is whether he can translate his new friendships into a cohesive strategy for Asia, backed by the resources to see it through. During the Prime Minister’s five days travelling through Singapore, Bangkok and ...7 days ago
- Time to give your heart (and wallet) an oil changeOpinion: Extreme weather events in Europe, where most of our olive oil is imported from, have led to reduced olive harvests and higher prices for olive oil on our supermarket shelves. In March it was estimated to be the highest global price in 26 years. Only about 10 percent of ...7 days ago
- An Ode to .. Simeon BrownSimeon’s Hole The Profit Simeon walked upon The Concrete Overpasses of the Holey Land. “Cancel everything,” he told his followers. “Including the ferries …?” “Cancel.” “Auckland light rail … ?” “Cancel.” “The Mt Victoria double tunnels of prophecy …?” “Cancel.” His followers wondered aloud at this zealous fervour. But the ...7 days ago
- Lest we forget? The shame of our two-tier veteran’s systemOur laws are leaving many veterans who served after 1974 out in the cold. I know, because I’m one of them. The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand. As I write this story, I am in constant pain. My hands shake with adrenaline, and the ...7 days ago
- Five reasons why you should watch new reality series My Mum, Your Dad NZThree’s new dating show breaks all the reality rules, writes Tara Ward. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. If you think dating shows are only for the young, think again. From The Bachelor, to Too Hot to Handle, to Love Is Blind, there’s ...7 days ago
- Firms invited to apply for fast-track consents include 'environmental destroyers' – ...Environmentalists have slammed a list of organisations who have been invited to apply to the Government's proposed fast-track approvals scheme. ...1 week ago
- Solomon Islands political chess begins with Manasseh Sogavare re-elected in East ChoiseulBy Koroi Hawkins, RNZ Pacific editor in Honiara Solomon Islands’ incumbent prime minister Manasseh Sogavare has been re-elected in the East Choiseul constituency. It is the opening move in the political chess match to form the country’s next government. Returning officer Christopher Makoni made the declaration late last night after ...1 week ago
- The moment of friction.Headline: The moment of friction. – 36th Parallel Assessments In strategic studies “friction” is a term that it is used to describe the moment when military action encounters adversary resistance. “Friction” is one of four (along with an unofficial fifth) “F’s” in military strategy, which includes force (kinetic mass), ...1 week ago
- Fast-track Bill A Fraud Being Perpetrated On All Future GenerationsThe Fast-track Bill, if passed, would allow three Ministers, unchallenged and unchecked, to approve the immediate extraction and exhaustion of one-off resources. ...1 week ago
- Focus on Politics: Luxon boosts defence amid rising global tensionsAs global tensions escalated this week, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon was touring Southeast Asia, strengthening defence and security ties. ...1 week ago
- Why the pathology bulk-billing campaign is more about driving industry profits than saving you moneySource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Duckett, Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne iamharin/Shutterstock For many people, the term “bulk billed” refers to a GP visit they don’t have to pay ...1 week ago
- All about Emma: Three writers talk about the name they share in commonEmmas Hislop, Sidnam and Wehipeihana discuss what’s in a name. Emma Sidnam: Hello Emmas! Thank you so much for agreeing to do this with me. My first question for you is related to what’s been on my mind for a while. It’s very important. You see we’ve recently had some ...1 week ago
- Restoring coastal habitat boosts wildlife numbers by 61% – but puzzling failures mean we can still...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Sievers, Research Fellow, Global Wetlands Project, Australia Rivers Institute, Griffith University Chris Brown Humans love the coast. But we love it to death, so much so we’ve destroyed valuable coastal habitat – in the case of some types of habitat, ...1 week ago
- Public sector job cuts: Affected staff criticise leaders' handling of announcementsStaff are shell shocked and frustrated, and say leaders handled the announcements poorly. ...1 week ago
- ‘The room went dead quiet’: Josh Thomson on his worst 7 Days momentJosh Thomson on the 80s milk ad jingle he can’t stop singing, the beauty of The Simpsons, why Jersey Shore is as good as Shakespeare and more. For someone who spends a lot of time on our screens, popping up in everything from 7 Days to Taskmaster, Educators to Good ...1 week ago
- Shadow-boxing turns real for Israel and IranIn apparent defiance of the Biden administration, the Netanyahu government has now initiated missile strikes against Iran. Last Saturday night (Sunday morning in New Zealand) Iran launched more than 300 drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles against Israeli military targets. With the assistance of US, UK and possibly French forces, ...1 week ago
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