Author Archive

It has been a long week for Casey Costello

Written By: - Date published: 10:45 am, February 2nd, 2024 - 46 comments

Recent disclosure of the actions of associate Minister of Health Casey Costello raises the extraordinary possibility that British American Tobacco may be having an undue influence on the setting of the Government’s smoking policies.

Christopher Luxon is no John Key

Written By: - Date published: 10:13 am, February 1st, 2024 - 48 comments

Yesterday in Parliament Christopher Luxon showed that he is struggling on the job.

Does the Western World really want to starve Palestine?

Written By: - Date published: 3:43 pm, January 30th, 2024 - 17 comments

Western Nations including New Zealand have suspended urgently needed aid for Palestine after revelations that a tiny minority of UNRHA workers may have been involved in Hamas raids and despite the UNHRA taking immediate action to address issues arising.

The week Luxon lost his moral mandate to lead

Written By: - Date published: 8:44 am, January 29th, 2024 - 30 comments

The last week has shown how Christopher Luxon has no understanding of New Zealand’s history and no appreciation about how dangerous Act’s proposed Treaty Principles Bill is.

Economy improves dramatically thanks to Labour

Written By: - Date published: 9:32 am, January 27th, 2024 - 26 comments

This week there were two pieces of economic news showing a dramatic improvement credit for which should be given to the last Labour Government.

The Government is planning to cut tobacco excise duty

Written By: - Date published: 9:36 am, January 25th, 2024 - 78 comments

Hot on the heels of the Government’s walk back from the previous Government’s smoke free policies is the disclosure that the Government is considering halting increases to excise duties on tobacco. And the Government tried to hide this.

Which side are you on?

Written By: - Date published: 9:59 am, January 21st, 2024 - 191 comments

The Act Party is seeking to undermine te Tiriti o Waitangi and ferment racial hatred and division while nominally seeking unity. And National clearly has no idea what to do about the situation.

The best Electoral System that money can buy

Written By: - Date published: 10:33 am, January 19th, 2024 - 22 comments

The Independent Electoral Review Panel has recommended changes to the electoral system including the banning of any donations unless made by enrolled voters, a cap on the size of those donations and a requirement that third parties disclose all large donations that they receive.

Mood of the smokoroom – fearful

Written By: - Date published: 9:11 am, January 18th, 2024 - 53 comments

The Council of Trade Unions has completed its annual survey of workers and the mood is grim.

Why does National hate EVs?

Written By: - Date published: 2:17 pm, January 17th, 2024 - 71 comments

At a time when we need cool heads and leaders who understand the enormity of the problem that is climate change and the consequences of getting our response right we are getting this retrograde culture war from people who should know better.

NZ First does not want National to have good relations with Kiingi Tuuheitia

Written By: - Date published: 1:32 pm, January 16th, 2024 - 13 comments

The day after Christopher Luxon made the pilgrimage to meet with Kiingi Tuuheitia and try and calm feelings ahead of the Weekend’s hui at Ngaruwahia to discuss the Government’s attacks on Te Tiriti and Te Reo Shane Jones went onto Morning Report and applied the blowtorch to Luxon’s attempt to keep matters calm.

Ghahraman goes

Written By: - Date published: 12:49 pm, January 16th, 2024 - 77 comments

Green MP Golriz Ghahrahman has resigned from Parliament. 

Atlas smirked

Written By: - Date published: 12:15 pm, January 7th, 2024 - 115 comments

A George Monbiot article in the Guardian made me wonder what effect the Atlas Network is having on New Zealand politics through the Taxpayer’s Union. Publicly available information suggests considerable funding is being made available and that the current Government’s priorities are precisely those that the Atlas Network would approve of.

Corbyn was right about Palestine

Written By: - Date published: 10:44 am, January 3rd, 2024 - 106 comments

In the United Kingdom Keir Starmer’s refusal to call for a cease fire in Gaza and his claim that holding back food and water for Gaza was justified has put him increasingly at odds with Labour members and MPs. Meanwhile Jeremy Corbyn’s expulsion as a Labour MP is puzzling, particularly given that his stance on Palestine is increasingly justified.

Repealing the Tax Principles Reporting Act is performative nonsense

Written By: - Date published: 7:30 am, December 29th, 2023 - 29 comments

National’s 100 days of action is frankly performative nonsense. But it did not include the repeal of the Tax Principles Reporting Act which National smashed through under urgency in the last sitting day of Parliament. What was it trying to hide?

The Pogues wrote the best Christmas song ever

Written By: - Date published: 8:53 am, December 25th, 2023 - 4 comments

It is Christmas time and the eternal debate about who wrote the best Christmas song ever is being debated yet again. For me there is only one possible contender.

National wants to hide huge potential rates rises caused by canning of Three Waters

Written By: - Date published: 9:23 am, December 24th, 2023 - 20 comments

Someone should tell the Taxpayer’s Union. Some Local Councils are planning to put rates up by double digit figures.  And the Government is planning on exempting them from discussing this with ratepayers.

Be very afraid for Kainga Ora

Written By: - Date published: 9:08 am, December 20th, 2023 - 19 comments

So National’s shock and awe campaign is under way. And the first target is Kainga Ora.

National’s complete indifference to climate change

Written By: - Date published: 9:05 pm, December 18th, 2023 - 18 comments

This is the only possible explanation.  As well as celebrating all things car National has a pathological hatred of cycleways and walkways and public transport.

Why was Judith Collins appointed as a KC?

Written By: - Date published: 9:46 am, December 17th, 2023 - 35 comments

Judith Collins has been appointed a Kings Counsel even before she has had time to show her performance as Attorney General and even though previous highly respected lawyers such as David Lange, Geoffrey Palmer and Margaret Wilson were not appointed while serving as Attorneys General.

The week of going backward

Written By: - Date published: 11:06 am, December 15th, 2023 - 30 comments

National has this week chosen to smash through under urgency legislation that will increase unemployment and interest rates, reduce workers wages and increase the country’s emissions of greenhouse gasses.

Shame Jones

Written By: - Date published: 11:33 am, December 13th, 2023 - 24 comments

In one speech Shane Jones has talked about the “hysteria surrounding climate change”, promised to disregard targets agreed to under the Paris Agreement, ordered the halting of work at the Ministry for the Environment, promised the lifting the ban on offshore oil and gas exploration at pace, and said that Mining on Department of Conservation (DoC) and Stewardship land is also in the pipeline.

About the Te Papa protest

Written By: - Date published: 12:32 pm, December 12th, 2023 - 183 comments

Yesterday’s protest at Te Papa is but a teaser of what can be expected when Act’s Treaty Principles Bill is introduced.

National’s contradictory stance on Immigration

Written By: - Date published: 8:38 am, December 12th, 2023 - 38 comments

So Christopher Luxon thinks there is too much immigration.  It was not what he was saying last year.

The Government is leaking like a leaky thing

Written By: - Date published: 10:39 am, December 9th, 2023 - 15 comments

Another day and another leak. And this time it calls into question the Government’s commitment to informed decision making.

Who leaked the Fair Pay Cabinet Paper?

Written By: - Date published: 12:39 pm, December 7th, 2023 - 33 comments

My initial impression was that the person who leaked the Fair Pay Cabinet Paper to the media was probably a disgruntled Public Servant but was it?

What does National have against Te Reo?

Written By: - Date published: 10:17 am, December 6th, 2023 - 177 comments

It may have been coincidental but the day after there were mass protests against the new Government’s actions in undermining te Tiriti o Waitangi it was announced that National would seek to remove bonus payments for Public Servants learning Te Reo. Not only is this petty and vindictive, it may also be a breach of te Tiriti.

Willis’s budget analysis is either deeply cynical or evidence she does not know what she is talking about

Written By: - Date published: 8:33 am, December 5th, 2023 - 75 comments

Recent claims by Nicola Willis that the Governments Finances are full of fiscal cliffs is evidence either that National will cynically make baseless claims to attack Labour or that Nicola Willis has no idea about what she is talking about and has not been doing her most basic job of reading and comprehending previous budget documents.

Cutting fair pay agreements will disproportionately impact women, Māori and Pasifika and young people

Written By: - Date published: 9:49 pm, December 4th, 2023 - 15 comments

The Cabinet Paper dealing with the Government’s proposal to do away with fair pay agreements has hit the media.  And the advice suggests that Cabinet is completely disinterested in the on the ground reality of what their shitty policy will do to ordinary Kiwis.

Chris Bishop can’t count

Written By: - Date published: 12:26 pm, December 3rd, 2023 - 48 comments

This morning on Q&A and despite being pulled up on it Chris Bishop repeated National’s claim that under the Smokefree reforms there would only be allowed one tobacco retail shop in Northland when there would actually be at least 34.

Gangs rejoice as Pseudoephedrine is back

Written By: - Date published: 8:51 am, December 2nd, 2023 - 18 comments

For a Government that hates gangs you would think that they would be more circumspect with policies that may enrich gangs and increase illicit drug use.  But this is exactly what the current Government is planning.