Author Archive

Time to add parliamentary services to the OIA

Written By: - Date published: 4:00 pm, June 12th, 2011 - 19 comments

Although the latest “scandal” the HoS and a couple of bloggers are getting excited about is a damp squib it does raise a few issues about the accountability and transparency of parliamentary services.

I think it’s time to add parliamentary services to the OIA.

Welcome molesworthst

Written By: - Date published: 3:40 pm, June 5th, 2011 - Comments Off on Welcome molesworthst

A warm welcome to molesworthst – a new political blog recommended by Morgan over at his own must read blog, Maui Street.

Just like Ruth, Jim and Jenny

Written By: - Date published: 9:48 pm, May 30th, 2011 - 131 comments

Having wrecked the economy and put tens of thousands of workers on the dole queue John Key is now planning to give them another kick in the guts by cutting their benefits.

And of course that’ll help drive wages down too.

To anyone that lived through the 1990’s this bullshit should be very very familiar by now.

Your chance to ask John the hard questions

Written By: - Date published: 2:36 pm, May 26th, 2011 - 47 comments

John wouldn’t answer our readers’ questions but he’s out in New Plymouth this Tuesday.

Get along and ask him the hard questions if you can.

And if you can’t get there make sure you email your question to editor@dailynews.co.nz

A shoddy, shoddy budget

Written By: - Date published: 8:12 am, May 20th, 2011 - 60 comments

Poor accounting, bad forecasting, dodgy cuts and no vision whatsoever.

Yesterday’s budget was a fail on pretty much every front.

The Kiwisaver “employer contribution” scam

Written By: - Date published: 7:28 am, May 12th, 2011 - 23 comments

The media is claiming Kiwisaver cuts will be offset by increased worker and employer contributions.

But because of a loophole in the scheme National created in 2009, employers can simply take their “contribution” out of their workers’ wages.

No wonder business lobby groups are unconcerned by the move.

The “big issues”

Written By: - Date published: 6:30 am, May 12th, 2011 - 77 comments

John Key is whinging about how labour isn’t focusing on the “big issues”

But he and his government have been avoiding the big issues for years.

That’s not surprising given how badly they do on these big issues. But it’s still pitiful to see them whinging about it.

They made this guy the minister of tourism?

Written By: - Date published: 6:12 pm, May 10th, 2011 - 102 comments

I was wondering why Key’s team weren’t trying to milk his upcoming hardtalk interview for PR like they have with his other international media appearances.

I guess now we know…

Two term John?

Written By: - Date published: 12:01 pm, May 8th, 2011 - 77 comments

Selwyn Manning’s sources in the National party have confirmed John Key is considering leaving parliament next term even if National wins.

That’s not surprising: Key clearly wants to leave a popular legacy and the hard right agenda National has planned if it wins will make such a legacy unlikely.

John Key’s $800,000 funnies

Written By: - Date published: 9:08 pm, May 6th, 2011 - 45 comments

Turns out John Key quite likes making jokes about his DPS entourage.

I wonder if he finds it even funnier that we’re the ones picking up the $800k bill for them.

Protocol

Written By: - Date published: 6:44 am, May 6th, 2011 - 129 comments

Judith Collins has broken protocol to defend John Key’s overuse of the DPS.

Looks to me like the threats they’re most concerned about are the threats to brand Key.

And they’ll pick and chose the rules they want to defend it.

Anatomy of a lie

Written By: - Date published: 8:51 pm, May 5th, 2011 - 158 comments

Hone Harawira left himself open to attack with his comments on Te Karere.

But that doesn’t excuse the disgraceful beat-up executed so well by the right’s smear machine.

If this is how the election is gonna play out it’ll be no good for anyone.

$800,000 for PR props

Written By: - Date published: 8:34 pm, May 5th, 2011 - 103 comments

John Key’s vanity has cost us another $800k

And the nats have the gall to tell us to tighten our belts?

What a joke.

Rights and privilege

Written By: - Date published: 8:53 pm, May 4th, 2011 - 218 comments

Righto. I’ve just watched the debate between Harawira and Brash on Close Up and about five minutes fifty into the second part Brash had the gall to challenge Harawira on whether he believed everyone should have the same rights.

Russel’s mana

Written By: - Date published: 7:35 am, May 4th, 2011 - 127 comments

Russel Norman has followed John Key and Phil Goff in the attack on the Mana party.

I’d hoped for better from him.

Perhaps it’s time he reflected on his own mana.

Update: it seems the Dom Post quotes might have been a fit of pique. Russel has posted the following on his facebook page:[more over the break]

It’s all on Calvert

Written By: - Date published: 8:38 pm, April 26th, 2011 - 66 comments

Hide’s gone if Calvert or Boscawen jump ship.  But so is the one that doesn’t jump. I’m picking Calvert will be the key.

Update: As of noon today 3 News reports that Rodney may be about to go…

Nowhere to Hide

Written By: - Date published: 4:54 pm, April 26th, 2011 - 22 comments

Rodney Hide’s only chance of staying as the leader of ACT is to keep Hilary Calvert and John “Lamington” Boscawen on side.

Like other commentors, I’m calling time on Hide.

A challenge to Gerry Brownlee

Written By: - Date published: 7:54 pm, April 25th, 2011 - 24 comments

Lianne Dalziel has left her political future to the people of Christchurch that she represents.

If it’s good enough for her to seek such a mandate, then why shouldn’t King Gerry do the same?

Brash to roll Hide?

Written By: - Date published: 8:29 am, April 23rd, 2011 - 100 comments

Brash has thrown his hat in the ring for ACT’s leadership.

If the best the far right can do is a failed National MP warmed over then things are looking up.

So what’s changed?

Written By: - Date published: 9:32 am, April 22nd, 2011 - 64 comments

In 2008 John Key attacked the Labour government on high prices and low wages.

In 2011 he’s telling us the government can’t help.

So what’s changed?

A correction

Written By: - Date published: 8:29 pm, April 21st, 2011 - 54 comments

I’ve long held to the principle of owning your mistakes and as such I’ve gotta say I was wrong about one aspect of the “stop asset sales” campaign – the signs are authorised.

Amateur hour – or how to take a good idea and turn it into a bad campaign

Written By: - Date published: 12:20 am, April 21st, 2011 - 110 comments

Labour’s stop asset sales campaign should have been good but it wasn’t.

Not because of its legal cock-ups (okay not just because of its legal cock-ups) but because it was rolled out in a vacuum.

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.

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.

Helen Kelly on the Hobbit dispute

Written By: - Date published: 8:45 pm, April 12th, 2011 - 66 comments

Helen Kelly has published a full and detailed account of the Hobbit dispute.

The result is a story that leaves you in no doubt about big business’s class war on workers.

Or which side this government has taken.

On NZPA’s demise

Written By: - Date published: 7:30 am, April 8th, 2011 - 9 comments

Yesterday it was announced that NZPA would be closing.

That’s bad news for us all as a news audience and as citizens in a democracy.

RESIGN

Written By: - Date published: 6:25 pm, April 5th, 2011 - 87 comments

National Cabinet

Actually Phil Goff has it right – these clowns should resign – all they seem to be able to do is screw the economy and cut juicy public-money deals for their mates.

Oh yeah, and photo ops. Can’t forget the photo ops.

Whatever happened to “we’re all in this together”?

Written By: - Date published: 7:44 am, April 5th, 2011 - 63 comments

Displaced Christchurch residents are being told they need to pay at least $190 a week to stay in emergency campervan housing.

Meanwhile picking up the tab for wealthy SFC investors just got another third of a billion more expensive.

A class massacre

Written By: - Date published: 11:16 am, April 3rd, 2011 - 61 comments

The number of New Zealanders desperate for food is increasing.

But the government’s priority is to look after its wealthy mates.

What a joke.

Heroic cynicism

Written By: - Date published: 6:58 am, March 30th, 2011 - 140 comments

The government is backing a call for “heroic” student loan holders to pay their loans back asap to help fund the earthquake recovery.

But there doesn’t seem to be a similar call for “heroic” high earners to return their unaffordable tax cuts.

Show some leadership, please

Written By: - Date published: 6:12 pm, March 8th, 2011 - 136 comments

Key has been caught out bullshitting about the earthquake again.

This time about how many houses will have to be destroyed.

With so much uncertainty surrounding the quake and its aftermath already that’s not good enough.

Key needs to show some leadership.