Andrew Little’s plan for Labour

Written By: - Date published: 3:22 pm, November 9th, 2014 - 103 comments
Categories: Andrew Little, labour - Tags: , ,

(Sent out to all Labour members today and posted by Chooky in comments)

One of the most important challenges we must confront is rebuilding our Party and our movement.

If we’re going to be ready to win in 2017, we need to represent and serve more people, in our community and our affiliates. Our policies have to be tied to the interests and goals of more New Zealanders.

We have to be crystal clear about what we stand for: making sure people earn a decent wage, can live with dignity, and get a fair deal at work. If New Zealanders aren’t getting a fair go in the health system, the courtroom, or the classroom, our caucus needs to be united and proactive about campaigning for them.

Here are my ideas for making that happen. I call it my Five-Point Plan. It’s simple, practical, and realistic.

1. Greater coordination across the Labour movement

We have to remain relevant and represent more New Zealanders. A Labour Party I lead will:

  • have a joint plan between caucus and the Party to campaign and build our membership with measurable milestones.
  • communicate regularly to all members, not just during election campaigns.
  • coordinate external campaigns with community stakeholders, unions and affiliates.
  • link up our fundraising so we’re all working together.

2. A clear sense of purpose

It’s not enough to want to be in government. Caucus and the Party need a clear sense of what Labour stands for. A Labour Party I lead will:

  • go back to basics by fighting for New Zealanders’ rights to a fair deal at work, in the health system, in the courtroom and in the classroom.
  • make sure Labour’s policy platform is the foundation for everything we do.
  • have a single campaign strategy for caucus so we work as a team at all times.

3. Real community engagement

MPs and candidates are a national voice for local issues. A Labour Party I lead will:

  • give MPs the opportunity to report on their community and business contact, including work done by List MPs and electorate MPs in neighbouring electorates.
  • ensure caucus supports the work of Māori MPs who often cover vast electorates.
  • support important local issues through parliamentary questions, Members’ Bills and the resources of the Leader’s Office.

4. Constant campaigning

An effective Opposition not only keeps the Government in check, but campaigns for positive change. A Labour Party I lead will work with the General Secretary and Party President to:

  • create a permanent, active campaign team.
  • ensure all regional actvities include engagement with the general public.
  • regularly communicate with all New Zealanders about our values.

5. Review our policies

Too much of our policy is presented as if we are still in Government.  We must present a carefully prioritised set of policies without losing sight of our vision and values.  A Labour Party I lead will:

  • make sure New Zealanders know what we stand for well in advance of an election.
  • take a team approach to the submission of Members Bills.
  • remove the policy to increase the age of New Zealand Superannuation. It’s unfair to expect future generations to work longer to pay for the economic failure of the last thirty years and there are alternatives.

This is the plan which will get us back and ready to win in 2017. That’s why I’m asking for your first preference in the Labour leadership vote.

If any other leadership candidates want to share their plans, drop us a line.

103 comments on “Andrew Little’s plan for Labour ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. Chooky 1
    9 November 2014 at 3:54 pm

    Yes thanks …my comment on Andrew Little’s strategy for Labour …was that it is impressive ….that he thinks like a philosopher and an organiser…(.but does he have the heart psyche /intelligence of Mahuta?…they could make a formidable Leadership duo…and why cant Labour have a male/female Co-Leadership like the Greens and Mana and Maori Party?l ( seems a wee bit old fashioned of Labour)

  2. weka 2
    9 November 2014 at 4:19 pm

    “It’s not enough to want to be in government.”

    Very good.

    “remove the policy to increase the age of New Zealand Superannuation. It’s unfair to expect future generations to work longer to pay for the economic failure of the last thirty years and there are alternatives.”

    Also very good. Go Tara!

    Great to see some smart, ethically based strategic thinking that covers lots of good ground. The two bum notes that stood out were the complete absence of concern for beneficiaries, and the bit about the courts (what’s that about specifically?).

    • goodsweat 2.1
      9 November 2014 at 5:46 pm

      ” the complete absence of concern for beneficiaries”

      I wonder if any leader with a desire to see Labour in power will see the voter swing required being won in appealing to the wish-lists of beneficiaries. Right or wrong, I fear not.

      • Tracey 2.1.1
        9 November 2014 at 6:14 pm

        reading isnt your forte is it sweaty

        • goodsweat 2.1.1.1
          9 November 2014 at 6:45 pm

          Anyone can read and draw assumptions, insight lives between the lines of what is said.

          Between the lines, I see this: If Andrew wins the big seat and has a burning desire to lead Labour to a win in 2017 his focus will not be ‘I’m going to make everything fantastic for beneficiaries.’

          I think his primary push would be pitched to dispel lingering notions. Suggest that he is only partly a union man and is in fact a latent industrialist that loves businessmen.

          • Tracey 2.1.1.1.1
            9 November 2014 at 7:42 pm

            you want him to be more like national, such a surprise. you claim to have moved from feeling to thinking. your compass is broken

          • Tracey 2.1.1.1.2
            9 November 2014 at 7:43 pm

            actualy not anyone can read and then there are the ones who can read but wont.

          • weka 2.1.1.1.3
            9 November 2014 at 7:45 pm

            “If Andrew wins the big seat and has a burning desire to lead Labour to a win in 2017 his focus will not be ‘I’m going to make everything fantastic for beneficiaries.’”

            What does that have to do with my comment? No-one is suggesting that Labour should make everything fantastic for beneficiaries, and your phrasing is just outright disingenuous.

            One of Labour’s recent leaders gave a speech demonstrating outright bigotry for a class of NZers. This included prejudice against people with disabilities. Some of us are waiting to see if Labour is going to recant. They don’t even have to do it with a big fanfare, but as far as I can see none of them can even bring themselves to use the W words. I don’t yet trust them to treat beneficiaries with the respect that is given and being promised to other NZers. For me this is the ongoing signalling about whether they will truly be a left wing govt. Other people see other signals too, this is just the one I am most familiar with.

            In other words, we’re still waiting to see which way this all goes.

            • Tracey 2.1.1.1.3.1
              9 November 2014 at 7:48 pm

              sweaty has a slight variation on our rwnj theme but his cracks are starting to show. its tr***l time

    • Tracey 2.2
      9 November 2014 at 6:17 pm

      the court reference might be to the victims of sexual crimes and the inherent bias and racism within the justice system.

      “can live with dignity” doesnt include beneficiaries to you Weka?

      • weka 2.2.1
        9 November 2014 at 7:49 pm

        It might. But it might not either. It would help if he hadn’t bracketed it between two statements about people in paid employment i.e.

        “making sure people earn a decent wage, can live with dignity, and get a fair deal at work”

        The court reference jars. It’s too ambiguous I think. I hope he does mean victims of sexual crimes. And as you say, ethnicity issues. That would be surprising but very welcome.

        • Tracey 2.2.1.1
          9 November 2014 at 7:52 pm

          i agree it is not specific, politikpeke.

          • weka 2.2.1.1.1
            9 November 2014 at 7:58 pm

            It’s an interesting list for a speech, used twice – health, court, classroom, workplace. I wonder if they could put unpaid work in there somehow, that might change the paranoia about the W words.

    • bruhaha 2.3
      9 November 2014 at 6:57 pm

      Apart from dropping the super policy this looks to me to be a plan about how Little will build the Labour party to win in 2017 rather than a manifesto for what policy he will implement.

      I like it. I think it’s good. Labour has no shortage of good policy but seems to have no idea how to get into government and stay there so they can actually implement it.

      The only candidate who is really talking about how to fix that problem and now showing how he’ll do it is Andrew Little. Which is why I cast my vote for him.

      • weka 2.3.1
        9 November 2014 at 7:50 pm

        Yes, I liked it for those reasons too. I think Mahuta also has some good plans. Would love to see them working together in whatever roles.

  3. Tracey 3
    9 November 2014 at 4:42 pm

    impressed!

    he is talking about equality of opportunity. yay.

    greg oconnor was interviewed in sst business section. said something that this release of littles puts me in mind

    ” Do you think New Zealanders have a generally healthy attitude to money and equality?

    Definitely not equality. I had always assumed that everyone believed egalitarianism was good. However, I am alarmed at how many of my generation who benefited from things like subsidised home ownership schemes, farming, education and health are quick to resent the next generation getting any state help.

    Race masks class in this country and we have to keep investing heavily in the poorer part of town, which is increasingly the brown part of town. There will be failures and waste but many more successes and they will be our next generation of wealth creators.

    There are many I call “lucky spermers”, of which I consider myself one, who fail to understand the massive advantage it is to be born middle class and how difficult it can be to get into that club. ”

    http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/money/63001658/Face-Value-Its-a-fair-cop

    • fisiani 3.1
      9 November 2014 at 5:29 pm

      Choose you parents wisely. I was born in a family of ten with a father who worked as a welder and left school aged 15. My mother was forced to leave school at 15 as her mother believed education was wasted on a girl.
      She was determined that none of her children would ever be forced to stop education. My parents who never smoked or drank bought a house. Unheard of behaviour. All 12 of us were staunch Labour supporters. None of us are now. It’s the 21st century. Labour were relevant in the 20th century. Very relevant. The Liberals were very relevant in the 19th century. The world is changing. ‘Labour’ is an old fashioned brand.
      Little will probably win the selection but needs to purge the far Left to form a party of the far Left. He also has to allow a party to form that lies between Labour and National. NZF will disappear when Winston dies. NZF is not that party.

      • Tracey 3.1.1
        9 November 2014 at 6:15 pm

        whoooooooosh

        when did you all pay off your student debts?

      • felix 3.1.2
        9 November 2014 at 7:51 pm

        This idea that Labour “needs to purge the far Left to form a party of the far Left. He also has to allow a party to form that lies between Labour and National” is definitely on the right-wingers talking points list.

        Think about what it really means. A small left-wing party with no chance of forming a government, and a small centre-right party that can work with National (when National feels like it of course).

        It’s the final solution for the parliamentary left. And that’s why you’ll only see it promoted by extreme right-wingers, National party spokespeople, and trools who repeat everything they read on Kiwiblog and Whaleoil.

      • weka 3.1.3
        9 November 2014 at 7:54 pm

        fisi, your story sounds like someone who benefited from previous values in NZ and now wants to deny them to other people. Which makes you a greedy selfish fuck.

        • Tracey 3.1.3.1
          9 November 2014 at 7:57 pm

          now WHO does that mentality remind us of. i bet his mum is very proud

        • Chooky 3.1.3.2
          9 November 2014 at 8:11 pm

          obviously fisi wasn’t brought up THAT well…ie to be an ethical caring human being for others…fisi is a bit lacking imo

        • fisiani 3.1.3.3
          9 November 2014 at 9:01 pm

          Au contraire weka , and there is absolutely no need to be offensive. Have a look at the rules. There are far more students now than when I graduated. I would never deny an education to anyone with ability. Note the word ability. It has more than four letters so you may have to look in a dictionary and a French one.

  4. Keir 4
    9 November 2014 at 5:10 pm

    I have no idea how Little squares “make sure Labour’s policy platform is the foundation for everything we do” with his public statements that he’ll disregard the platform’s stance on a CGT because “leaders have to lead” even if that mean ignoring “democratically elected policy”. It’s bizarre.

    • Jamal 4.1
      9 November 2014 at 7:28 pm

      Every single comment you have posted here has been to attack Andrew Little.

      What exactly is your role on Grant Robertson’s campaign, Keir?

      • Keir 4.1.1
        9 November 2014 at 7:53 pm

        I don’t have a role on Robertson’s campaign. I was on the Policy Council when we wrote the Platform though, and it annoys me to see Andrew Little throw away one of the biggest tools for membership control of policy direction.

    • karol 4.2
      9 November 2014 at 7:57 pm

      I didn’t understand Little to be saying he’d disregard the CGT policy. More that Labour needs to be more careful about which policies they foreground and, when they do that. He has said they had too much detailed policy during the last election campaign, and it just confused people.

      I think Mahuta said that the CGT is the sort of policy that that takes tine to explain to people. So it’s about building the understanding of what the CGT is aiming to do, before highly promoting it. And that could take a few years.

      Little said (on The Nation) that it’s about first explaining, and putting before the public, the core principles on which the policy platform is built.

      So it’s not about ignoring Labour Party policies, but about the strategies around which the party builds an election campaign – based on Labour’s policy platforms.

      • Jamal 4.2.1
        9 November 2014 at 8:00 pm

        Yeah, what he’s said is that he thinks it should go and that a leader leads. Keir is only interested in personally attacking Andrew Little. I doubt Grant Robertson will be impressed that one of his key supporters is engaged in such dirty politics on the blogs.

      • Keir 4.2.2
        9 November 2014 at 8:07 pm

        No, Little outright said he’d drop the CGT – and the CGT is in the Party Platform. And it was explicitly framed as “yes it was democratically decided policy, but leaders have to lead”. (Mild paraphrases from memory – cf the Christchurch Press report of the hustings for their phrasing of it http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/editors-picks/10677450/Andrew-Little-vows-polarising-policy-crackdown.) And it wasn’t just the CGT he was referring to – the idea was that, as leader, he’d show leadership by disregarding the democratic party policy process when it came to unpopular policies.

        I find that deeply frustrating. It’s not the Party leader’s role to announce policy by fiat anymore. That’s the whole point of the Platform. There’s no point having made all those changes to the policy process last term if the new leader will just walk all over it.

        [And, good grief, this isn’t a personal attack on Little! I think he’s a great guy and will be a great minister, and a good PM if he wins. I just don’t like the way he’s disregarding the party’s democratic processes here.]

        • mickysavage 4.2.2.1
          9 November 2014 at 8:10 pm

          OK so we should never discuss a change in party policy because it attacks the integrity of the party platform?

          Really???

          • Keir 4.2.2.1.1
            9 November 2014 at 8:18 pm

            Little explicitly framed it as “yes that was democratically decided but leaders have to lead”. The whole point of the Platform was that the leader and caucus gave up control over the Platform, which was a membership driven process answerable to the whole party, not just the leader and caucus. There’s no point having a binding Platform if the leader gets to change it just by his say-so!

            In the Green Party, in fact, the MPs make a conspicuous point of not getting ahead of the binding policy adopted by the membership – watch Kevin Hague be punctilious respectful about the less-evidence based parts of their health policy. It’s an admirable feature of their party.

            • Jamal 4.2.2.1.1.1
              9 November 2014 at 8:22 pm

              Show me where he explicitly said he’d override the party’s democratic processes. Just one quote will do.

              Or do you think it might just be possible that he meant that a leader shows leadership by working within the party to ensure policies that make Labour less electable don’t appear in the manifesto?

              Looking at your earlier comments on this blog, it strikes me that you’re motivated by a desire to smear Andrew Little in order to advance Grant Robertson’s campaign for the leadership.

              That’s pretty disgraceful. I seriously doubt Grant wouldn’t approve of his supporters engaging in this sort of politics.

              • bruhaha …
                9 November 2014 at 8:26 pm

                What did Keir think of the three Labour leadership contenders, including Grant, announcing their own policy during the last leadership campaign? That was done outside of the policy process. We’re they acting undemocratically?

              • Keir …
                9 November 2014 at 8:28 pm

                As I say, it’s not a smear. I’ve given you a link to the Press report, and I was at the Christchurch hustings. I’m sure Little is an admirable man, a strong MP, and he’ll be a great Minister or PM, and I have no intention of “smearing him”, because quite apart from anything else, if he wins this race, I really want him to win in 2017 and lead a Labour government.

                I disagree with this particular aspect of his politics, because one of my (somewhat tragic, I will admit) pet obsessions within the Labour Party is increasing internal party democracy, particularly around member control of policy. I am worried that Little’s plans, especially around the CGT, are problematic from that point of view.

                • mickysavage …
                  9 November 2014 at 8:32 pm

                  It is a Cameron Slater quality smear. Little advocates a change in two policy positions and you assert that he wants to remove democratic input into policy formation.

                  • Keir …
                    9 November 2014 at 8:40 pm

                    Isn’t pre-empting the membership process to amend the platform precisely removing democratic input? There’s a process for amending the platform – motions to annual conference, votes, all that stuff. If the leader overrides it by saying “this is what I want the Platform to be”, what’s the point of having that process? It becomes a dead letter.

                    Seriously, put aside the fact it’s Little here. I don’t actually think anyone but a few tragics cares about this stuff, and no-one’s going to be voting on this basis. If I was trying to sway people’s voting intentions, I wouldn’t be quibbling over the party’s policy process! Doesn’t it bother you that a leadership contender outright said “yes, democratically selected policy, but I’m going to go ahead and say what the policy will be when I’m leader”?

                    And let’s be clear – the CGT is a policy that’s in the platform. It’s not like the Super age, which isn’t a platform commitment. If a binding Platform means anything it has to be binding when it’s politically difficult, and it has to be binding on the leader.

                    • Jamal …
                      9 November 2014 at 8:45 pm

                      You’re saying the leader should never give their opinion on major policies, particularly at a time when we’re assessing the direction they want to take the party in? What kind of crazy shit is this?

                      Also, in reference to your comment about wanting Andrew to be PM in 2017 and not attacking him personally, here’s one you made earlier:

                      “Grant and Jacinda might be able to win in 2017. None of the others would – they’d be looking for a six year programme.”

                      http://thestandard.org.nz/i-have-the-form-but-none-to-vote-for/#comment-914741

                      Like I said, your previous history here betrays your real motives.

                    • Keir …
                      9 November 2014 at 8:49 pm

                      I want Labour to win in 2017, no matter who the leader is.

                      Look, seriously, I don’t really think that the way to convince people to vote for Grant Robertson is to have an arcane argument about the party’s policy process. I just straight up disagree with Little on this particular procedural issue. There’s no grand conspiracy here – this is just me avoiding doing the dishes on a Sunday night.

                    • weka …
                      9 November 2014 at 8:53 pm

                      “You’re saying the leader should never give their opinion on major policies, particularly at a time when we’re assessing the direction they want to take the party in? ”

                      No, I don’t think they are saying that. Keir is expressing concern about his view that Little will override the membership on policy.

                      Keir, can you please explain how Little could do that constitutionally?

                    • Keir …
                      9 November 2014 at 9:02 pm

                      Weka – well, by doing it “through the usual channels” as it were. The leader has lots of places where they can make their case – there’s five caucus reps on the policy council, including the leader themselves, and the council generally gives quite a bit of weight to their views. And the finance spokesperson’s view on taxes is generally given a LOT of weight. The policy council tries hard to work with the leader to get things done, in my experiences.

                      And similarly, when it comes to Annual Conference which amends the Platform, it’s perfectly in line for a leader to make their views known to the membership and argue for their position – and accept the possibility of losing, of course!

                      So it’s not like it’s difficult for the leader to make their views known, make the argument, and get a change to the Platform – if they can convince the membership, of course.

                      I just don’t like the idea of the leader pre-empting that discussion by saying “this is the party’s policy”, and then, well, there’s very little the membership can do, which is very disempowering.

                    • weka …
                      9 November 2014 at 9:16 pm

                      Ok, so Little could influence but no impose.

                      I think it would help if you can find a direct quote where Little says he will scrap the policy.

                    • Cave Johnson …
                      9 November 2014 at 10:56 pm

                      Robertson also mentioned that Labour should talk more about what it wants to achieve and less about the mechanisms. i.e. Don’t talk CGT, talk tax fairness. Which I read as a similar message. I think any new leader (apart from Parker) is likely to ask the party to soften the CGT policy, and yes a leader has to lead, and if the leader presents a good case for something like that, having just been freshly elected, then I expect the party would be foolish to refuse.
                      .
                      And on the policy itself, it was unwise to create a complex tax policy without first building a broader consituency for it. It’s important to get fairer taxes like FTT and CGT out being discussed by the public in a non-threatening way over the next 3 to 6 years, and especially if they can be strongly linked to income tax cuts in the public’s mind then they will also be more positively considered.

                • Jamal …
                  9 November 2014 at 8:34 pm

                  But you haven’t found a single quote to back up what you’ve claimed. You’ve jumped to conclusions and attacked Little stridently and repeatedly, and it turns out you’ve got no grounds. You can claim it’s not intended to smear Andrew and advantage Grant, but people can look back at your older posts and see the pattern for themselves. Frankly shameful behaviour.

            • mickysavage 4.2.2.1.1.2
              9 November 2014 at 8:34 pm

              Um Little is saying what he believes in. We can accept it and vote for him or refute it and vote for someone else. We should know that if we support him he will advocate for the policy to change. Your line is disingenuous because he has not advocated for a change of policy in breach of the party’s constitutional processes, he has just said that he thinks the policy should change.

              For me I agree with him entirely about the age of retirement. I still think there should be a capital gains tax but there needs to be a debate about it.

              • Sirenia …
                9 November 2014 at 10:52 pm

                I think it is strange that only last year commentators on the Standard were so vocal in support of the party having a more democratic say in chosing the leader. But now they are happy for a leader to potentially overrule democratically decided policy. A true leader who disagreed with policy would say – I will go through the policy process again just like any member could – but I will go with the consensus. But what Little is reported as saying – in the media and by people attending meetings – is that he would just change it. I agree with Keir that this is worrying. (It is no pro any other candidate – it is about the integrity of party processes).

                • swordfish …
                  10 November 2014 at 12:41 am

                  “I agree with Keir that this is worrying. (It is no pro any other candidate – it is about the integrity of party processes)”

                  I won’t comment on the broad thrust of the sentiments you and Keir are attributing to Little (because I haven’t had time to explore it in any depth), but let’s just make it clear that both of you are highly enthusiastic Robertson supporters and have been pushing this argument about Little – arguably Robertson’s main leadership rival – for quite some time.

                • ankerawshark …
                  10 November 2014 at 9:03 am

                  Sirenia and Keir. I agree with Swordfish as below.

                  You and a few others have come on the Standard to do PR for GR. You are entitled to do that, but it hasn’t been a particularly effective strategy, certainly as far as I am concerned.

                  Your comments about GR and the ABC’s and Grant’s loyalty, forced me to really search my memory for why intuitively I felt GR had been disloyal to DC. And I came up with examples, from GR own mouth (not rumour and speculation) that I have detailed on other posts.

                  GR then got bumped down on my voting form.

                  Little is signalling how he thinks we can win. He said very early own that he believed we scared voters and this is the rationale for likely dropping two major policies. I feel I know where I stand with him.

  5. Zolan 5
    9 November 2014 at 5:22 pm

    The Left needs a strong Labour party primarily committed to workers and social infrastructure.

    Security, dignity, and well-being will contribute to a more politically astute, benevolent, and active population. Such a foundation would open the public will to greater movement on other progressive issues.

    Labour must serve its core purpose first, and then work to accommodate, rather than cannibalise the contributions of other Left parties.

    • goodsweat 5.1
      9 November 2014 at 7:08 pm

      I think you’re wise.

      Being concerned about the wellbeing of other people is never going to go out of fashion or stop being an intrinsic component of a quality society.

      Unions won, their wish-lists are law. We need to progress the manner in which we take care of everyone.

      • Tracey 5.1.1
        9 November 2014 at 7:40 pm

        it has been out of fashion for over six years… I wonder who you are trying to fool?

        • goodsweat 5.1.1.1
          9 November 2014 at 8:09 pm

          National borrowed heavily through the GFC to ensure all of the safety nets we had prior, continued. Many Euro countries have slashed. We still have one of the most generous welfare systems in the world. Throwing ‘You heartless bastards’ mud at the Nats won’t stick enough to win an election.

          • Molly 5.1.1.1.1
            10 November 2014 at 8:17 am

            The “safety nets” for whom?

            Access to surgery, quality care in ACC, benefits and housing has been fundamentally lessened.

            The security and safety in the workplaces continues to be eroded. With the number of 90 day turnovers increasing, and part time hours contracts being offered more and more.

            Beneficiaries, are denied the right to have supportive relationships or provide housing for friends and family – in a bizarre and brutal attempt to both stigmatise and chase a imaginary $30 million national fraud cost.

            The “safety net” of a healthy environment is being trampled beneath the hooves of dairy herds and cast on the oily waves of deep sea oil drilling.

            Access to education continues to be narrowed, while the calls to “upskill” become ever more strident.

            Your comments and your family anecdote unfortunately show what happen when empathy and understanding is not part of the success model for families and people.

      • Draco T Bastard 5.1.2
        9 November 2014 at 7:56 pm

        Neither National nor you show any concern for other people.

  6. mickysavage 6
    9 November 2014 at 7:36 pm

    I am watching the life hustings. Grant Robertson thinks that the perception of disunity has hurt the party. I wish that he was right that it was only a perception …

  7. Tracey 7
    9 November 2014 at 8:01 pm

    gower had a rant masquerading as news tonigth. called the labour leadership race a “flop” cos the public “dont care”. he ranted for a couple of minutes.

    they never rant about closed door appointments… and when they do mention the bod style of ACT it is as an aside.

    odd gower, just odd. four minutes to rant that could have been used for any manner of informative pieces… stll its not about explaining stuff so people understand, its about a constant audition for your own show

    • karol 7.1
      9 November 2014 at 8:03 pm

      IMO, the mainstream news is not the place for such editorialising.

      • weka 7.1.1
        9 November 2014 at 8:06 pm

        Agreed, it shouldn’t be. It didn’t used to be, did it?

        • b waghorn 7.1.1.1
          9 November 2014 at 8:52 pm

          @ Tracy well said some days he’s just a muppet

        • Puddleglum 7.1.1.2
          9 November 2014 at 9:11 pm

          No it didn’t.

          News bulletins were primarily reportage.

          It actually wasn’t that long ago but in this pastless present – in which we seem to be interminably stuck – I imagine hardly anyone ever reflects on the fact that things were different or, if they did, would consider it remotely relevant to them.

          Today it’s judged as elitist to question the quality of anything that the ‘market’ delivers up – even the news. It’s what the ‘audience’ wants, you know? So much for a nation of citizens.

          ‘What can the past teach me?’ … Sigh … only how to think and how to value.

          Today we’re meant to believe that the market (for news in this case) can do both of those things for us – all on its magical ‘ownsome’, instantly and without end, day after day as yesterday gets immediately sucked down the memory hole.

          Convenience food for the mind with no ‘added ingredients’ from the viewer needed. Instant opinion: Just add mouth and stir.

          Hence the supremacy of the style of Patrick Gower et al. A beltway bevy of pimps for effortless, depthless – and therefore usually insubstantial – thinking about the issues of the day.

          • weka 7.1.1.2.1
            9 November 2014 at 9:20 pm

            I’ve been trying to think when it changed. I assume it was over time. I was born in the mid 60s and it was definitely different when I was growing up. I think until maybe the 90s? But I’ve had long periods of time avoiding the MSM, esp TV.

            I remember when the Listener changed, esp after Gordon Campbell left (mid 90s?). I also remember the shift to infotainment and celeb culture (again mid 90s??). A post-neoliberal revolution change? Or do you think it’s more recent than that?

            • Puddleglum 7.1.1.2.1.1
              9 November 2014 at 10:03 pm

              I haven’t watched television since 1996, apart from at other people’s places or news items over the internet. I’m a bit older than you and can clearly recall Bill Toft, Philip Sherry and (the youngster on the block) Dougal Stevenson reading the television news. It was definitely only reporting then and it was watched by almost everyone.

              I remember when the hour long 3 News came along (here’s the Wikipedia entry for 3 news – quite interesting to be reminded of the details)). John Campbell became co-anchor in 1998 and, I think, Bill Ralston provided the slightly irreverent ‘commentary’ – a precursor to editorialising in an extended, hour long 6 o’clock bulletin? (That may also have been Campbell’s role under Hawkesby?).

              So that may have been the start – of course ‘Holmes’ had begun almost a decade before but that wasn’t the news bulletin.

              I’m pretty sure Pamela Stirling took over the Listener (from Finlay MacDonald) in the mid 2000s (2006?). At the time I remember thinking it seemed part of a quite deliberate ‘push’ to oust left-leaning editorialising under the guise of trying to resurrect subscriptions and circulation numbers.

              Sure enough, Stirling got rid of Campbell (probably, then, the best mainstream investigative journalist around but now pushed to the margins by the corporate dominated market). Stirling claimed that it was not ‘ideological’ just a ‘business decision’.

              It was at roughly the same time that Kathryn Ryan took over from Linda Clark on Nine to Noon and I remember right wingers (Farrar?) claiming that it was an excellent choice because Ryan had no ideological leanings. Clark had been more opinionated. (My partner still has trouble recalling Ryan’s name and refers to her often as Linda Clark.)

              • swordfish …
                10 November 2014 at 1:21 am

                Stirling took over in 2004. Argued that The Listener was losing circulation because it had become “predictably Left-Wing”.

                Campbell left (or was ousted ?) about a year later, I think. Braunias and Matthews had already left by that stage and I remember saying to family members that if Campbell goes I’ll stop buying. A few weeks later, Campbell was gone.

                The broad dumbing-down of TVNZ current affairs and network news had its roots in the Rogernomes’ deregulation of broadcasting in 1989 and the subsequent commercialisation / intense competition for the advertising dollar.

                Content analysis of primetime TVNZ News carried out in separate studies by Joe Atkinson and Daniel Cook revealed that by the mid-90s there had been a marked move to brief soundbytes, human interest stories (away from more in-depth items on politics and the economy) and a significant increase in advertising time over the entire bulletin.

            • Tracey 7.1.1.2.1.2
              10 November 2014 at 12:04 pm

              when it became a tool of the market to generate profit rather than a public service.

              the proliferation of us tv and its attended shallowness has also contributed imo.

              weka, we are a similar age. once we had tv it was predominantly british programming.

              then there is the cheap, profitable and numbing “reality” tv popularising nastiness.

          • felix 7.1.1.2.2
            9 November 2014 at 10:10 pm

            “Today it’s judged as elitist to question the quality of anything that the ‘market’ delivers up – even the news.”

            And even those who present us with news. Remember when Holmes had the whole industry – probably including himself – convinced that people were tuning in to the news because he was presenting it?

            And how he chucked his toys and went to Prime, and no-one followed?

            And how surprised he was to discover that people had only been watching him because he was on tv?

            Gower and the rest could do well to remember that.

    • weka 7.2
      9 November 2014 at 8:05 pm

      “its about a constant audition for your own show”

      Next up, Patrick “I wish all these people would just leave me alone!!” Gower 🙄

      • b waghorn 7.2.1
        10 November 2014 at 7:22 am

        Gower went up a couple of gears on 3 this morning regarding labour , the great ego implosion might be coming soon

      • Tracey 7.2.2
        10 November 2014 at 12:06 pm

        it would be nice if he remember his job is to disseminate information for people to understand the world around them, as opposed to lectures on what he wants us to think.

  8. Pat O'Dea 8
    10 November 2014 at 8:34 am

    There is much to admire in Andrew’s program. (I have condensed them down)

    “Our policies have to be tied to the interests and goals of more New Zealanders….”

    “coordinate external campaigns with community stakeholders, unions and affiliates.”

    “making sure people earn a decent wage, can live with dignity, and get a fair deal at work….”

    “remove the policy to increase the age of New Zealand Superannuation.”

    I like it that Andrew repeats the need to campaign between elections.

    It is my opinion that this is the key to building a permanent Left movement to sustain and feed into the Labour Party. There is an old saying in the union movement, that goes like this; “Workers who fight Left, vote Left.” Labour needs to take this old union truism to heart.

    But more than this, in the modern era, this old union motto should be expanded and adapted to be taken into the political sphere, to go; “People who campaign Left, will vote Left.”

    An example: At the anti-TPPA marches there was no visible Labour Party presence, (There was a union presence, but not of the big Labour Party affiliated unions).
    There was also a clear Green Party presence with MPs speaking from the stage.

    This needs to change, Labour need, as Andrew says, to make it crystal clear where we stand.

    As Andrew says Labour need a clear sense of purpose.

    I support Andrew’s stated initiative to “create a permanent, active campaign team.”

    Labour can not be seen to be pulling in all sorts of different directions as they are at the moment.

    An example, some leaders for the TPPA, some against, with no clear decided party position or policy direction. The result; dithering and indecision, leading to paralysis and lack of action and immobilisation of members and affiliates. The very opposite of Andrew’s stated aim to “coordinate external campaigns with community stakeholders, unions and affiliates.”

  9. Pat O'Dea 9
    10 November 2014 at 9:13 am

    “We have to be crystal clear about what we stand for.”
    ANDREW LITTLE

    In his statement, Andrew misses two big things.

    The environment and the Green Party.

    It is like these two big things don’t exist.

    I can understand that Andrew Little with his union background and coming from Taranaki where many of his former union EPMU members work in the oil and gas industry, (As well as coal mining in other regions), is leery of mentioning the environment and the Green Party.

    But this has to change.

    First off, there has to be a recognition that Labour cannot get into parliament on its own. (No party gets into parliament on its own under MMP).

    Secondly, there also needs to be a recognition that the environment particularly the climate and its health will have a growing negative impact on all of us, union, non-union rich or poor, and that this is a fact that cannot in all conscience be ignored by any serious political party, Left or Right.

    On the first point, it is my opinion that a big part of the reason that Labour lost the last election is Labour’s sectarian approach to the Left. While it is true that a few (minority) Labour MPs are supportive of the other Left parties, the publicly perceived Caucus direction was to court and build up the more conservative Parties, New Zealand First and the Maori Party, as preferred coalition partners. (Over the Greens and Mana).

    Effectively what this did, was buy into the National Party’s campaign of demonising the other Left Parties, and scare more voters into the National Party camp.

    Overall it is not very clear, what Labour’s stance toward the Green Party is.

    The impression given, is that the Green Party are a necessary evil, we will work with them if we have to. (Because they are the third biggest parliamentary party and we can’t rule without them.)

    This approach doesn’t inspire much confidence in a Labour led, Labour/Green Coalition government, when it is perceived that even the Labour Party regard this government as second best.

    On the second point. As the impending climate crisis threatens to engulf all of human society, it can no longer remain unadressed by anybody.

    • Karen 9.1
      10 November 2014 at 10:46 am

      I agree.

      Andrew is the weakest of the candidates when it comes to climate change, Grant and David the strongest. I suspect the Andrew is being influenced by loyalty to the EPMU and coal, oil and gas workers.

      He needs to be educated on this topic.

    • Tracey 9.2
      10 November 2014 at 12:07 pm

      as long as labour thinks it has to get 47% of the popular vote it can only see the green party as its enemy.

      • Kiwiri - Raided of the Last Shark 9.2.1
        10 November 2014 at 7:12 pm

        Quite.
        A meaningful, real change in perspective is required.
        There is ‘an’, if not ‘the’, answer.
        If their hearts and minds are truly in the progressive and MMP space, the leadership candidate can see it and will find the words to express it.

    • Murray Rawshark 9.3
      10 November 2014 at 6:35 pm

      +1 Pat.
      I was disgusted by how Labour chose Winston First over the Greens, not to mention their despicable treatment of Mana. They need to get over themselves and sort this out.

  10. vto 10
    10 November 2014 at 11:33 am

    Andrew Little’s plan seems to be pretty obvious. In fact so obvious that it is surprising that those matters are not attended to already? If they have not been then it is probably no wonder that labour did so poorly….

    sharpen up people

  11. Karen 11
    10 November 2014 at 12:10 pm

    My comment that he needs to educated on this topic was overstated – I just think Grant and David have more in depth knowledge about climate change issues than Andrew, and he is somewhat conflicted as the candidate for Taranaki and ex head of EPMU.

    On the other hand, I think Andrew has a better chance of getting the caucus sorted than any of the other candidates, and he has the best analysis of what went wrong.

  12. Halcyon 12
    11 November 2014 at 9:41 pm

    True Karen, I have been saying that from day one. Labour can have all the ideology it likes but that does not translate into policies unless they can gain the Treasury benches.

    Aim first at getting voted in and then build on that to introduce new ideas prior to the 2020 election. If they had done so this time they would have managed to have policies like the CGT in place after 2017.

Recent Comments

Recent Posts

  • Forward to 2017
    The coalition party agreements are mainly about returning to 2017 when National lost power. They show commonalities but also some serious divergencies.The two coalition agreements – one National and ACT, the other National and New Zealand First – are more than policy documents. They also describe the processes of the ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    3 hours ago

  • Questions a nine year old might ask the new Prime Minister
    First QuestionYou’re going to crack down on people ram-raiding dairies, because you say hard-working dairy owners shouldn’t have to worry about getting ram-raided.But once the chemist shops have pseudoephedrine in them again, they're going to get ram-raided all the time. Do chemists not work as hard as dairy owners?Second QuestionYou ...
    More than a fieldingBy David Slack
    4 hours ago

  • Questions a nine year old might ask the new Prime Minister
    First QuestionYou’re going to crack down on people ram-raiding dairies, because you say hard-working dairy owners shouldn’t have to worry about getting ram-raided.But once the chemist shops have pseudoephedrine in them again, they're going to get ram-raided all the time. Do chemists not work as hard as dairy owners?Second QuestionYou ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 hours ago

  • Finally
    Henry Kissinger is finally dead. Good fucking riddance. While Americans loved him, he was a war criminal, responsible for most of the atrocities of the final quarter of the twentieth century. Cambodia. Bangladesh. Chile. East Timor. All Kissinger. Because of these crimes, Americans revere him as a "statesman" (which says ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 hours ago

  • Government in a hurry – Luxon lists 49 priorities in 100-day plan while Peters pledges to strength...
    Buzz from the Beehive Yes, ministers in the new government are delivering speeches and releasing press statements. But the message on the government’s official website was the same as it has been for the past several days, when Point of Order went looking for news from the Beehive that had ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 hours ago

  • DAVID FARRAR: Luxon is absolutely right
    David Farrar writes  –  1 News reports: Christopher Luxon says he was told by some Kiwis on the campaign trail they “didn’t know” the difference between Waka Kotahi, Te Pūkenga and Te Whatu Ora. Speaking to Breakfast, the incoming prime minister said having English first on government agencies will “make sure” ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    8 hours ago

  • Top 10 at 10 am for Thursday, Nov 30
    There are fears that mooted changes to building consent liability could end up driving the building industry into an uninsured hole. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Here’s my pick of the top 10 news and analysis links elsewhere as of 10 am on Thursday, November 30, including:The new Government’s ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    11 hours ago

  • Gordon Campbell on how climate change threatens cricket‘s future
    Well that didn’t last long, did it? Mere days after taking on what he called the “awesome responsibility” of being Prime Minister, M Christopher Luxon has started blaming everyone else, and complaining that he has inherited “economic vandalism on an unprecedented scale” – which is how most of us are ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    11 hours ago

  • We need to talk about Tory.
    The first I knew of the news about Tory Whanau was when a tweet came up in my feed.The sort of tweet that makes you question humanity, or at least why you bother with Twitter. Which is increasingly a cesspit of vile inhabitants who lurk spreading negativity, hate, and every ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    12 hours ago

  • Dangling Transport Solutions
    Cable Cars, Gondolas, Ropeways and Aerial Trams are all names for essentially the same technology and the world’s biggest maker of them are here to sell them as an public transport solution. Stuff reports: Austrian cable car company Doppelmayr has launched its case for adding aerial cable cars to New ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    13 hours ago

  • November AMA
    Hi,It’s been awhile since I’ve done an Ask-Me-Anything on here, so today’s the day. Ask anything you like in the comments section, and I’ll be checking in today and tomorrow to answer.Leave a commentNext week I’ll be giving away a bunch of these Mister Organ blu-rays for readers in New ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    15 hours ago

  • National’s early moves adding to cost of living pressure
    The cost of living grind continues, and the economic and inflation honeymoon is over before it began. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: PM Christopher Luxon unveiled his 100 day plan yesterday with an avowed focus of reducing cost-of-living pressures, but his Government’s initial moves and promises are actually elevating ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    15 hours ago

  • Backwards to the future
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has confirmed that it will be back to the future on planning legislation. This will be just one of a number of moves which will see the new government go backwards as it repeals and cost-cuts its way into power. They will completely repeal one ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    16 hours ago

  • New initiatives in science and technology could point the way ahead for Luxon government
    As the new government settles into the Beehive, expectations are high that it can sort out some  of  the  economic issues  confronting  New Zealand. It may take time for some new  ministers to get to grips with the range of their portfolio work and responsibilities before they can launch the  changes that  ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    1 day ago

  • Treaty pledge to secure funding is contentious – but is Peters being pursued by a lynch mob after ...
    TV3 political editor Jenna Lynch was among the corps of political reporters who bridled, when Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters told them what he thinks of them (which is not much). She was unabashed about letting her audience know she had bridled. More usefully, she drew attention to something which ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 day ago

  • How long does this last?
    I have a clear memory of every election since 1969 in this plucky little nation of ours. I swear I cannot recall a single one where the question being asked repeatedly in the first week of the new government was: how long do you reckon they’ll last? And that includes all ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 day ago

  • National’s giveaway politics
    We already know that national plans to boost smoking rates to collect more tobacco tax so they can give huge tax-cuts to mega-landlords. But this morning that policy got even more obscene - because it turns out that the tax cut is retrospective: Residential landlords will be able to ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    1 day ago

  • CHRIS TROTTER: Who’s driving the right-wing bus?
    Who’s At The Wheel? The electorate’s message, as aggregated in the polling booths on 14 October, turned out to be a conservative political agenda stronger than anything New Zealand has seen in five decades. In 1975, Bill Rowling was run over by just one bus, with Rob Muldoon at the wheel. In 2023, ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago

  • GRAHAM ADAMS:  Media knives flashing for Luxon’s government
    The fear and loathing among legacy journalists is astonishing Graham Adams writes – No one is going to die wondering how some of the nation’s most influential journalists personally view the new National-led government. It has become abundantly clear within a few days of the coalition agreements ...
    Point of OrderBy gadams1000
    1 day ago

  • Top 10 news links for Wednesday, Nov 29
    TL;DR: Here’s my pick of top 10 news links elsewhere for Wednesday November 29, including:The early return of interest deductibility for landlords could see rebates paid on previous taxes and the cost increase to $3 billion from National’s initial estimate of $2.1 billion, CTU Economist Craig Renney estimated here last ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago

  • Smokefree Fallout and a High Profile Resignation.
    The day after being sworn in the new cabinet met yesterday, to enjoy their honeymoon phase. You remember, that period after a new government takes power where the country, and the media, are optimistic about them, because they haven’t had a chance to stuff anything about yet.Sadly the nuptials complete ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 day ago

  • As Cabinet revs up, building plans go on hold
    Wellington Council hoardings proclaim its preparations for population growth, but around the country councils are putting things on hold in the absence of clear funding pathways for infrastructure, and despite exploding migrant numbers. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Cabinet meets in earnest today to consider the new Government’s 100-day ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago

  • National takes over infrastructure
    Though New Zealand First may have had ambitions to run the infrastructure portfolios, National would seem to have ended up firmly in control of them.  POLITIK has obtained a private memo to members of Infrastructure NZ yesterday, which shows that the peak organisation for infrastructure sees  National MPs Chris ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    2 days ago

  • At a glance – Evidence for 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 ...
    Skeptical Science
    2 days ago

  • Who’s Driving The Right-Wing Bus?
    Who’s At The Wheel? The electorate’s message, as aggregated in the polling booths on 14 October, turned out to be a conservative political agenda stronger than anything New Zealand has seen in five decades. In 1975, Bill Rowling was run over by just one bus, with Rob Muldoon at the wheel. In ...
    Bowalley Road
    2 days ago

  • Sanity break
    Cheers to reader Deane for this quote from Breakfast TV today:Chloe Swarbrick to Brook van Velden re the coalition agreement: “... an unhinged grab-bag of hot takes from your drunk uncle at Christmas”Cheers also to actual Prime Minister of a country Christopher Luxon for dorking up his swearing-in vows.But that's enough ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago

  • Sanity break
    Cheers to reader Deane for this quote from Breakfast TV today:Chloe Swarbrick to Brook van Velden re the coalition agreement: “... an unhinged grab-bag of hot takes from your drunk uncle at Christmas”Cheers also to actual Prime Minister of a country Christopher Luxon for dorking up his swearing-in vows.But that's enough ...
    More than a fieldingBy David Slack
    2 days ago

  • National’s murderous smoking policy
    One of the big underlying problems in our political system is the prevalence of short-term thinking, most usually seen in the periodic massive infrastructure failures at a local government level caused by them skimping on maintenance to Keep Rates Low. But the new government has given us a new example, ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    2 days ago

  • NZ has a chance to rise again as our new government gets spending under control
    New Zealand has  a chance  to  rise  again. Under the  previous  government, the  number of New Zealanders below the poverty line was increasing  year by year. The Luxon-led government  must reverse that trend – and set about stabilising  the  pillars  of the economy. After the  mismanagement  of the outgoing government created   huge ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    2 days ago

  • KARL DU FRESNE: Media and the new government
    Two articles by Karl du Fresne bring media coverage of the new government into considerations.  He writes –    Tuesday, November 28, 2023 The left-wing media needed a line of attack, and they found one The left-wing media pack wasted no time identifying the new government’s weakest point. Seething over ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago

  • PHILIP CRUMP:  Team of rivals – a CEO approach to government leadership
    The work begins Philip Crump wrote this article ahead of the new government being sworn in yesterday – Later today the new National-led coalition government will be sworn in, and the hard work begins. At the core of government will be three men – each a leader ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago

  • Black Friday
    As everyone who watches television or is on the mailing list for any of our major stores will confirm, “Black Friday” has become the longest running commercial extravaganza and celebration in our history. Although its origins are obscure (presumably dreamt up by American salesmen a few years ago), it has ...
    Bryan GouldBy Bryan Gould
    2 days ago

  • In Defense of the Media.
    Yesterday the Ministers in the next government were sworn in by our Governor General. A day of tradition and ceremony, of decorum and respect. Usually.But yesterday Winston Peters, the incoming Deputy Prime Minister, and Foreign Minister, of our nation used it, as he did with the signing of the coalition ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 days ago

  • Top 10 news links at 10 am for Tuesday, Nov 28
    Nicola Willis’ first move was ‘spilling the tea’ on what she called the ‘sobering’ state of the nation’s books, but she had better be able to back that up in the HYEFU. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Here’s my pick of top 10 news links elsewhere at 10 am ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago

  • PT use up but fare increases coming
    Yesterday Auckland Transport were celebrating, as the most recent Sunday was the busiest Sunday they’ve ever had. That’s a great outcome and I’m sure the ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    3 days ago

  • The very opposite of social investment
    Nicola Willis (in blue) at the signing of the coalition agreement, before being sworn in as both Finance Minister and Social Investment Minister. National’s plan to unwind anti-smoking measures will benefit her in the first role, but how does it stack up from a social investment viewpoint? Photo: Lynn Grieveson ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago

  • Giving Tuesday
    For the first time "in history" we decided to jump on the "Giving Tuesday" bandwagon in order to make you aware of the options you have to contribute to our work! Projects supported by Skeptical Science Inc. Skeptical Science Skeptical Science is an all-volunteer organization but ...
    Skeptical Science
    3 days ago

  • Let's open the books with Nicotine Willis
    Let’s say it’s 1984,and there's a dreary little nation at the bottom of the Pacific whose name rhymes with New Zealand,and they've just had an election.Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, will you look at the state of these books we’ve opened,cries the incoming government, will you look at all this mountain ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago

  • Climate Change: Stopping oil
    National is promising to bring back offshore oil and gas drilling. Naturally, the Greens have organised a petition campaign to try and stop them. You should sign it - every little bit helps, and as the struggle over mining conservation land showed, even National can be deterred if enough people ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago

  • Don’t accept Human Rights Commission reading of data on Treaty partnership – read the survey fin...
    Wellington is braced for a “massive impact’ from the new government’s cutting public service jobs, The Post somewhat grimly reported today. Expectations of an economic and social jolt are based on the National-Act coalition agreement to cut public service numbers in each government agency in a cost-trimming exercise  “informed by” head ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago

  • The stupidest of stupid reasons
    One of the threats in the National - ACT - NZ First coalition agreements was to extend the term of Parliament to four years, reducing our opportunities to throw a bad government out. The justification? Apparently, the government thinks "elections are expensive". This is the stupidest of stupid reasons for ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago

  • A website bereft of buzz
    Buzz from the Beehive The new government was being  sworn in, at time of writing , and when Point of Order checked the Beehive website for the latest ministerial statements and re-visit some of the old ones we drew a blank. We found ….  Nowt. Nothing. Zilch. Not a ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago

  • MICHAEL BASSETT: A new Ministry – at last
    Michael Bassett writes – Like most people, I was getting heartily sick of all the time being wasted over the coalition negotiations. During the first three weeks Winston grinned like a Cheshire cat, certain he’d be needed; Chris Luxon wasted time in lifting the phone to Winston ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago

  • Luxon's Breakfast.
    The Prime Minister elect had his silver fern badge on. He wore it to remind viewers he was supporting New Zealand, that was his team. Despite the fact it made him look like a concierge, or a welcomer in a Koru lounge. Anna Burns-Francis, the Breakfast presenter, asked if he ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago

  • LINDSAY MITCHELL:  Oranga Tamariki faces major upheaval under coalition agreement
     Lindsay Mitchell writes – A hugely significant gain for ACT is somewhat camouflaged by legislative jargon. Under the heading ‘Oranga Tamariki’ ACT’s coalition agreement contains the following item:   Remove Section 7AA from the Oranga Tamariki Act 1989 According to Oranga Tamariki:     “Section ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago

  • BRIAN EASTON:  Peters as Minister
    A previous column looked at Winston Peters biographically. This one takes a closer look at his record as a minister, especially his policy record. Brian Easton writes – 1990-1991: Minister of Māori Affairs. Few remember Ka Awatea as a major document on the future of Māori policy; there is ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago

  • Cathrine Dyer's guide to watching COP 28 from the bottom of a warming planet
    Is COP28 largely smoke and mirrors and a plan so cunning, you could pin a tail on it and call it a weasel? Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: COP28 kicks off on November 30 and up for negotiation are issues like the role of fossil fuels in the energy transition, contributions to ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago

  • Top 10 news links at 10 am for Monday, Nov 27
    PM Elect Christopher Luxon was challenged this morning on whether he would sack Adrian Orr and Andrew Coster.TL;DR: Here’s my pick of top 10 news links elsewhere at 10 am on Monday November 27, including:Signs councils are putting planning and capital spending on hold, given a lack of clear guidance ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago

  • Gordon Campbell on the new government’s policies of yesteryear
    This column expands on a Werewolf column published by Scoop on Friday Routinely, Winston Peters is described as the kingmaker who gets to decide when the centre right or the centre-left has a turn at running this country. He also plays a less heralded but equally important role as the ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    3 days ago

  • The New Government’s Agreements
    Last Friday, almost six weeks after election day, National finally came to an agreement with ACT and NZ First to form a government. They also released the agreements between each party and looking through them, here are the things I thought were the most interesting (and often concerning) from the. ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    4 days ago

  • How many smokers will die to fund the tax cuts?
    Maori and Pasifika smoking rates are already over twice the ‘all adult’ rate. Now the revenue that generates will be used to fund National’s tax cuts. Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: The devil is always in the detail and it emerged over the weekend from the guts of the policy agreements National ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago

  • How the culture will change in the Beehive
    Perhaps the biggest change that will come to the Beehive as the new government settles in will be a fundamental culture change. The era of endless consultation will be over. This looks like a government that knows what it wants to do, and that means it knows what outcomes ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    4 days ago

  • No More Winnie Blues.
    So what do you think of the coalition’s decision to cancel Smokefree measures intended to stop young people, including an over representation of Māori, from taking up smoking? Enabling them to use the tax revenue to give other people a tax cut?David Cormack summed it up well:It seems not only ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago

  • 2023 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #47
    A chronological listing of news and opinion articles posted on the Skeptical Science  Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Nov 19, 2023 thru Sat, Nov 25, 2023.  Story of the Week World stands on frontline of disaster at Cop28, says UN climate chief  Exclusive: Simon Stiell says leaders must ‘stop ...
    Skeptical Science
    5 days ago

  • Some of it is mad, some of it is bad and some of it is clearly the work of people who are dangerous ...
    On announcement morning my mate texted:Typical of this cut-price, fake-deal government to announce itself on Black Friday.What a deal. We lose Kim Hill, we gain an empty, jargonising prime minister, a belligerent conspiracist, and a heartless Ayn Rand fanboy. One door closes, another gets slammed repeatedly in your face.It seems pretty ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 days ago

  • “Revolution” is the threat as the Māori Party smarts at coalition government’s Treaty directi...
    Buzz from the Beehive Having found no fresh announcements on the government’s official website, Point of Order turned today to Scoop’s Latest Parliament Headlines  for its buzz. This provided us with evidence that the Māori Party has been soured by the the coalition agreement announced yesterday by the new PM. “Soured” ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago

  • The Good, the Bad, and the even Worse.
    Yesterday the trio that will lead our country unveiled their vision for New Zealand.Seymour looking surprisingly statesmanlike, refusing to rise to barbs about his previous comments on Winston Peters. Almost as if they had just been slapstick for the crowd.Winston was mostly focussed on settling scores with the media, making ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago

  • When it Comes to Palestine – Free Speech is Under Threat
    Hi,Thanks for getting amongst Mister Organ on digital — thanks to you, we hit the #1 doc spot on iTunes this week. This response goes a long way to helping us break even.I feel good about that. Other things — not so much.New Zealand finally has a new government, and ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago

  • Thank you Captain Luxon. Was that a landing, or were we shot down?
    Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past week’s editions.Also in More Than A FeildingFriday The unboxing And so this is Friday and what have we gone and done to ourselves?In the same way that a Christmas present can look lovely under the ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago

  • Cans of Worms.
    “And there’ll be no shortage of ‘events’ to test Luxon’s political skills. David Seymour wants a referendum on the Treaty. Winston wants a Royal Commission of Inquiry into Labour’s handling of the Covid crisis. Talk about cans of worms!”LAURIE AND LES were very fond of their local. It was nothing ...
    Bowalley Road
    6 days ago

  • Disinformation campaigns are undermining democracy. Here’s how we can fight back
    This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. Misinformation is debated everywhere and has justifiably sparked concerns. It can polarise the public, reduce health-protective behaviours such as mask wearing and vaccination, and erode trust in science. Much of misinformation is spread not ...
    Skeptical Science
    6 days ago

  • Peters as Minister
    A previous column looked at Winston Peters biographically. This one takes a closer look at his record as a minister, especially his policy record.1990-1991: Minister of Māori Affairs. Few remember Ka Awatea as a major document on the future of Māori policy; there is not even an entry in Wikipedia. ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    6 days ago

  • The New Government: 2023 Edition
    So New Zealand has a brand-spanking new right-wing government. Not just any new government either. A formal majority coalition, of the sort last seen in 1996-1998 (our governmental arrangements for the past quarter of a century have been varying flavours of minority coalition or single-party minority, with great emphasis ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    6 days ago

  • The unboxing
    And so this is Friday and what have we gone and done to ourselves?In the same way that a Christmas present can look lovely under the tree with its gold ribbon but can turn out to be nothing more than a big box holding a voucher for socks, so it ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago

  • A cruel, vicious, nasty government
    So, after weeks of negotiations, we finally have a government, with a three-party cabinet and a time-sharing deputy PM arrangement. Newsroom's Marc Daalder has put the various coalition documents online, and I've been reading through them. A few things stand out: Luxon doesn't want to do any work, ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    6 days ago

  • Hurrah – we have a new government (National, ACT and New Zealand First commit “to deliver for al...
    Buzz from the Beehive Sorry, there has been  no fresh news on the government’s official website since the caretaker trade minister’s press statement about the European Parliament vote on the NZ-EU Free Trade Agreement. But the capital is abuzz with news – and media comment is quickly flowing – after ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago

  • Christopher Luxon – NZ PM #42.
    Nothing says strong and stable like having your government announcement delayed by a day because one of your deputies wants to remind everyone, but mostly you, who wears the trousers. It was all a bit embarrassing yesterday with the parties descending on Wellington before pulling out of proceedings. There are ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    6 days ago

  • Coalition Government details policies & ministers
    Winston Peters will be Deputy PM for the first half of the Coalition Government’s three-year term, with David Seymour being Deputy PM for the second half. Photo montage by Lynn Grieveson for The KākāTL;DR: PM-Elect Christopher Luxon has announced the formation of a joint National-ACT-NZ First coalition Government with a ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago

  • “Old Coat” by Peter, Paul & Mary.
     THERE ARE SOME SONGS that seem to come from a place that is at once in and out of the world. Written by men and women who, for a brief moment, are granted access to that strange, collective compendium of human experience that comes from, and belongs to, all the ...
    Bowalley Road
    6 days ago

  • Weekly Roundup 23-November-2023
    It’s Friday again! Maybe today we’ll finally have a government again. Roll into the weekend with some of the articles that caught our attention this week. And as always, feel free to add your links and observations in the comments. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    7 days ago

  • Geoffrey Miller: New Zealand’s strategy for COP28 in Dubai
    The COP28 countdown is on. Over 100 world leaders are expected to attend this year’s UN Climate Change Conference in in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which starts next Thursday. Among the VIPs confirmed for the Dubai summit are the UK’s Rishi Sunak and Brazil’s Lula da Silva – along ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    7 days ago

  • Coalition talks: a timeline
    Media demand to know why a coalition government has yet to be formed. ...
    My ThinksBy boonman
    7 days ago

  • The Hoon around the week to Nov 24
    Luxon was no doubt relieved to be able to announce a coalition agreement has been reached, but we still have to wait to hear the detail. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / Getty ImagesTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    7 days ago

  • Passing Things Down.
    Keeping The Past Alive: The durability of Commando comics testifies to the extended nature of the generational passing down of the images, music, and ideology of the Second World War. It has remained fixed in the Baby Boomers’ consciousness as “The Good War”: the conflict in which, to a far ...
    Bowalley Road
    7 days ago

  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #47 2023
    Open access notables How warped are we by fossil fuel dependency? Despite Russia's invasion of Ukraine, 35-40 million cubic meters per day of Russian natural gas are piped across Ukraine for European consumption every single day, right now. In order to secure European cooperation against Russian aggression, Ukraine must help to ...
    Skeptical Science
    7 days ago

  • New Zealand welcomes European Parliament vote on the NZ-EU Free Trade Agreement
    A significant milestone in ratifying the NZ-EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA) was reached last night, with 524 of the 705 member European Parliament voting in favour to approve the agreement. “I’m delighted to hear of the successful vote to approve the NZ-EU FTA in the European Parliament overnight. This is ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Further humanitarian support for Gaza, the West Bank and Israel
    The Government is contributing a further $5 million to support the response to urgent humanitarian needs in Gaza, the West Bank and Israel, bringing New Zealand’s total contribution to the humanitarian response so far to $10 million. “New Zealand is deeply saddened by the loss of civilian life and the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

Page generated in The Standard by Wordpress at 2023-11-30T07:45:37+00:00