Blogs and election fatigue

Written By: - Date published: 10:00 am, August 18th, 2020 - 28 comments
Categories: election 2020, jacinda ardern, Media, The Standard - Tags:

One of the characteristics of a political blog in New Zealand is the way that our operations reflect the political cycle. Coming into an election after mid-year, we have a steadily increasing level of traffic, posts, and comments. Moderators, commenters and even authors start showing a more cranky disposition.

This is hardly surprising, in election month we will at least nearly triple our page views by humans compared to the average of a mid term year. As it is this year, a month out from the previous election date, we’d already doubled traffic over two months previously.

The really stupid trolls come out from their sewers with their poor abilities to distinguish between what is their opinion and what is a false assertion of fact.

From my personal view at the system level, the machines that plague our sites will have increased their ceaseless probing of the site by closer to ten fold. Bots attracted by the rapidly rising page views zero in and try to crack into the site. Googlebot and bingbot start reading the site at an increased frequency. And the fans on the CPU coolers and case start whining at a increased rate.

This tends to irritate my partner and I because there are limited ways to moderate the rising whine of the computer fans in our apartment. That is because The Standard runs on the back of one of our home servers. On the other hand it provides a great space heater during the cold weather we have been having. It is almost a pity that the weather is getting lot better by October 17th.

But as you can imagine that I’m not that enthralled by the prospect of an extra month of the election. More cranky commenters. Moderators starting to do the triennial resolutions to drop this voluntary shit after the election and start having a real life. Authors running out of the ideas for their voluntary musing of their opinions and pulling in of links to substantiate them.

Now I’m not so sure that Jacinda was thinking of us or for that matter the same kinds of issues with the mass media (who at least get paid for the task) when the election moved forward a month. But while the election cycle this year hasn’t been too bad on the site. I foresee fatigue problems from the extra month.

But I’d reiterate her advice. Be kind.

It doesn’t get in the way of having a robust debate.

There is an incentive to do so. Please also remember that when I get cranky and irritated, then I am not kind. I release my lurking tendencies to be a bastard operator from hell. This is your warning.

28 comments on “Blogs and election fatigue ”

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  1. Tricledrown 1
    18 August 2020 at 10:43 am

    New Zealanders are OK with the delays we know this pandemic is causing massive disruption and it's not going away anytime soon.

    We have so much more access to news of what's happening around the World most of us have close relatives living abroad .

    As Fred Dagg would say we don't know how lucky we are.We know how lucky we are and having to put up with a few inconveniences is not a big Deal.Every time Trump opens his mouth we are glad we live here not their!

  2. weka 2
    18 August 2020 at 11:08 am

    Lol, why didn't they think of the bloggers! I'm sure it's the same sentiment for many MPs, staff and journos. I was agnostic on the extension until I saw it in black and white 30 days to go becomes 60, and I already want it to be over. I'm not sure I've felt like that about an election before.

    I'm ok with the moderating, but finding it hard to put up posts. Mostly I suspect because the energy is with the whole Nat bullshit and I can't be bothered with trying to write something to compete with that. We get the kind of election we focus on I guess and it's been disappointing to see so many lefties think this election is about the failing of National. Not that that is unimportant (and I think Micky's been right to document what happened), but on twitter too it seems like National is all anyone has wanted to talk about.

    Meanwhile, there's a small number of climate activists and scientists still tweeting out, throughout covid pointing out that we ain't seen nothing yet. Can't help but feel we've taken our eye off the ball.

    I guess I should have made this comment a post.

    • Andre 2.1
      18 August 2020 at 11:21 am

      Well, at least the shitshow in the US can't change dates since it's fixed by law and only Congress can change it. Although it may drag out a bit longer with slow counting of postal votes and lawsuits etc etc.

    • lprent 2.2
      18 August 2020 at 11:58 am

      Meanwhile, there's a small number of climate activists and scientists still tweeting out, throughout covid pointing out that we ain't seen nothing yet. Can't help but feel we've taken our eye off the ball.

      Yeah I know. I looked at that Death Valley peak temp of 54.4C – highest recorded since a confluence of weather factors in 1913 in Death Valley that gave the worlds highest recorded temperature of 56.7C (although there are some issues with measurement). I was going to write something about that – but I have had Climate Change writing fatigue for a quite a few years now.

      There is nothing strange about Californian weather patterns right now. This is a just a simple dry summer. Not an extreme one. It is just that the ambient temperature is hotter. There are hell of lot of people in California… In a few years I suspect that they'll find out what a real hot summer brings these days.

      • aj 2.2.1
        18 August 2020 at 9:15 pm

        There is nothing strange about Californian weather patterns right now. This is a just a simple dry summer.

        Are you sure?

        Earlier this week, I wrote about a “sustained warming trend and long-duration inland heatwave” that would develop this week in California. Well, that’s still true…but that language turns out to have been more than a little understated. A very intense and prolonged heatwave now appears likely for a large portion of California over the next 7-10 days, and this event will likely have wide-ranging impacts from human health, wildfire, and electricity demand perspectives. I suspect this event will probably end up being one of the most significant widespread California extreme heat events in the past decade, if not longer.

        https://weatherwest.com/archives/7427

        • lprent 2.2.1.1
          18 August 2020 at 9:53 pm

          Yep. It is a matter of time scale

          They have always had some very bad heatwaves and cyclic multi-year droughts within historic times.
          https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Droughts_in_California

          But they were dwarfs compared to what shows up in tree ring climatic proxies. This is a reasonably accessible piece – but they’re only looking at the last 1k years. I think that the title says what it is about.
          California drought: Past dry periods have lasted more than 200 years, scientists say

          I’d like to find something about the paleo history over the last 10k years of relative climatic stability n California. There are a lot of pollen, salt and other climatic proxy studies that go a long way back. But I’d have to dig into the earth science archives somewhere. It doesn’t look there is a lot of it online.

          Suffice it to say, that there is a pretty strong cycle of the Californian climates oscillating in a rather extreme way and usually across most of its area. Both in mega centuries long cycles, and in decade cycles. Sometimes way too wet, and often way too dry. The last two centuries have been a cool damp and stable period by comparison.

    • Incognito 2.3
      18 August 2020 at 12:09 pm

      I'm ok with the moderating, but finding it hard to put up posts.

      For me it is the other way round and I feel an urge to escape (!) into writing posts (rants) rather than moderating. It drains my energy to try be patient, balanced, moderate, impartial (non-partisan), respectful, et cetera, and not stifle robust debate by stomping around in my Moderator boots.

      • RedLogix 2.3.1
        18 August 2020 at 12:33 pm

        Totally get it. It's made only worse when others get confused about when you are moderating and when you are commenting. The convention that moderation is always done in bold type should make the distinction obvious, but all too often someone fails to spot the difference.

        In some forums moderators just don't participate in the debate at all in order to avoid this problem, but in my view that's an unreasonable demand to make here.

        But for our system to work it's essential for moderators to ensure they're keeping clear blue sky between their views when commenting and their actions when moderating, and that isn't always easy. It would be good if all of us, who all benefit from competent moderation, recognised this and were respectful of the fact that being a moderator is much less of a privilege, and much more of a selfless duty.

        • lprent 2.3.1.1
          18 August 2020 at 12:44 pm

          …were respectful of the fact that being a moderator is much less of a privilege, and much more of a selfless duty.

          It sure is. Bloody hard to maintain the kind of focus on the educative objectives of moderation when it becomes repetitive slog.

  3. bwaghorn 3
    18 August 2020 at 11:45 am

    I'm just wrapped the the loathing of all things rural has so far not raised its ugly head ,not like last election.

    Much nicer thanks

    • lprent 3.1
      18 August 2020 at 12:14 pm

      The dairy side? It got the desired result as far as I am concerned.

      Farmers are leaning on farmers and councils are running prosecutions. There is far less push back from the usual arsehole farmers about how no-one who lives in this country apart from those owning the land has any right to get upset about polluted waterways.

      Right now I'm observing to see if the farming community and their regional councils pay more than lip service to their obligations.

      Stories like this give me hope that it is happening.

      Do you think that any of that would have happened without the farming community and councils being spiked by a good dose of visible outrage on public forums? Because I don't . They'd have just gone on feeling victimised when told that it was a bad idea to defecate all over our common landscape.

      The question now is if it results in measurable improvements in water quality in rivers and aquifers. That I'm not so sure on – each farmer thinks that their little bit shouldn't be a problem – then of course the cumulative effect of a lot of small bits of overflows and drainage is disastrous.

      Of course there are separate questions about sheer volume water take from aquifers and rivers. And the greenhouse gas emissions.

      • bwaghorn 3.1.1
        18 August 2020 at 2:36 pm

        I have no problem with pushing for positive change ,but you go back three years and it was a frenzied hatred being stoked by wedge politics from the left.

        The left is ment to have a higher standard.

        • solkta 3.1.1.1
          18 August 2020 at 2:43 pm

          I thought it was just people getting really fucked off after decades of going backwards. Farmers need to be held accountable.

        • Drowsy M. Kram 3.1.1.2
          18 August 2020 at 5:37 pm

          Was it the "frenzied hatred being stoked by wedge politics from the left" that prompted a farmer to raise his SHE’S A PRETTY COMMUNIST placard?

          Is it possible to unpick cause and effect here? The farming sector went down in my estimation after the protests against the "Fart Tax" that was to fund research into GHG emission reductions, and yes, I'm sure there were responsible farmers around even then, and a lot more now.

          Tbh I'd forgotten (now Sir) Bill English brandishing a placard reading "THE MAD COW SHOULDN'T HAVE SIGNED" during those 2003 protests. I hope attitudes have changed – those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.

        • Draco T Bastard 3.1.1.3
          19 August 2020 at 1:05 am

          The Left does have a higher standard. The problem was, and is, the lack of standards of the farmers.

  4. Patricia Bremner 4
    18 August 2020 at 12:31 pm

    As I heard Judith Collins with her cries about "failure"……. Him indoors said "That woman and her bully boy should come up with some policy!"

    I spluttered into my coffee, having the self same thought.

    Judith has been to Charm School we learned in a TV interview. We also learned she believes "You don't get angry you pay it back".

    She makes a mean cheese cake, and talked about herself most of the interview.

    There was no policy, just slagging off the efforts against covid, and how she would do it better. Huge hubris and entitlement evident.
    “I would not tolerate covid in the country” she said…..Who does she think tolerates it ????

    • bwaghorn 4.1
      18 August 2020 at 2:38 pm

      ""“I would not tolerate covid in the country” she said…."""

      I'm sure covid is quaking in its boots.

  5. peter sim 5
    18 August 2020 at 9:48 pm

    Election fatigue is easily caught when the msm will not stop chattering about it.

    Why cannot we wait until election day and vote?

    The extension of the date just gives "pollsters" more time to b……t .

    No doubt several participants on this blog site will be in ecstasy.

  6. peter sim 6
    18 August 2020 at 10:23 pm

    Election fatigue is easily caught when the msm will not stop chattering about elections.

    Now that would be an interesting ( the msm finding something worth chattering about

    Why cannot we wait until election day and vote?

    The extension of the date just gives "pollster" more time to b……t .

    No doubt several participants on this blog site will be in ecstasy.

    I strongly suspect the electorate has already made its mind up, mind you, jamie lee and his favoured well informed co party leader could surprise us.

    his idiot mate could win. trumpiania could arrive.

    Collins is wishing for enough time for people to forget what she built her reputation on.

  7. sumsuch 7
    18 August 2020 at 11:00 pm

    More and more the conductors here appear as brothers, when I really want fathers — I'm 54 so I have no right to that.

    As long as you are fair.

  8. gsays 8
    19 August 2020 at 7:14 am

    As I have said in the past, I really appreciate this space as a place to engage, debate, have beliefs challenged, learn and grow. (although I do struggle with the views of the more ardent practitioners of identity politics..)

    Thank-you lprent for the mahi and expertise in keeping this site running.

    Cheers too, to Weka, Incognito and any other mods for moderating/bouncing the day to day rigmarole.

    I figure the seperate thread for the US election is coming up, as that bickering can get fairly tedious and quickly descends into name calling and negativity.

    Especially as the style seems to be more about throwing shit at the 'other' candidate rather than showing the good their candidate can/has done. Having said that, it is probably a reflection of the state of the US empire as it flails about in it's sunset years.

    The kindness being asked for here and in the Beehive is a sign of new politics emerging and offers a stark contrast to the way Crushed and The Tin Foil Man are choosing to behave.

  9. Patricia Bremner 9
    19 August 2020 at 7:46 am

    I think this second outbreak of the virus has shaken our confidence, and left us feeling emotionally bruised. It is a great relief to realise the death rate has actually dropped according to published stats.

    Anyone out there with mortgage problems, please seek help. We are fortunate our banks and businesses and their customers/workers are being helped. NAB in Australia not so much according to friends.

    The whole unemployment system needs a revamp as there are too many rabbit holes showing. Holes people fall into which block actual help. It is time people were treated as individuals with worth, not appendages of another worker. This really impacts women.

    Our Acc system should cover health pitfalls in the same way as accident pitfalls. Some like my husband have good general health and do 45 years of work before the heart problems arrive. I had 4 hospital stays, 5 bouts of pneumonia and asthma, so the other end of the scale. We say together we are "Normal" whatever normal is.

    The stresses of income food housing schooling and job hunting do not leave some with much time to consider more than the next month, let alone an election in two months. In this climate that feels a long way into the uncertain future.

    We are all watching the tragic scenes over seas of mass burials economic fallout and social dislocation with growing trepidation. Our return to L1 confidence might not be as rapid this time, and 2 months of haranguing by Judith and c/o doesn't delight, so yes election and covid fatigue.

    Thanks to the moderators bloggers and posters here. You company is appreciated and anticipated. Always a new word or two, new ideas slants and info. Often a great laugh or enjoyable sharing. Keep on keeping on please.

  10. Christopher Randal 10
    19 August 2020 at 3:18 pm

    I'm sure Jacinda gave no thought whatsoever to those of us whose mental health has suffered under Covid and is now being detrimentally affected by the election.

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    Open access notables Publicly expressed climate scepticism is greatest in regions with high CO2 emissions, Pearson et al., Climatic Change: We analysed a recently released corpus of climate-related tweets to examine the macro-level factors associated with public declarations of climate change scepticism. Analyses of over 2 million geo-located tweets in the U.S. showed that climate ...
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    5 days ago

  • The thrilling possibilities of charter schools
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    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 days ago

  • This Unreasonable Government.
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    5 days ago

  • Supreme Court weighs in on name suppression
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  • Is This A “Merchants” Government?
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  • This is what corruption looks like
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    5 days ago

  • Take that, Vladimir – and be warned: we have plenty more sanctions (at least, we hope so) in our ...
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    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago

  • More Harm Than Good.
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    5 days ago

  • The Ombudsman fails again
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    5 days ago

  • No Time To Think: Ageing Boomers, Laurie & Les, Talk Politics.
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    5 days ago

  • Bryce Edwards: Lobbying for Waikato’s Medical School causing problems for the Govt
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    5 days ago

  • Picking Sides.
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    5 days ago

  • Universities offer course in self-serving cowardice
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    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago

  • The teacher trainee challenge
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    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago

  • Words and (in)actions
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    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago

  • What do you hope for/fear from the budget?
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    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago

  • Gordon Campbell on ACT’s charter schools experiment
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    5 days ago

  • Drought fuels wildfire concerns as Canada braces for another intense summer
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    Skeptical Science
    5 days ago

  • Bernard’s Dawn Chorus and pick ‘n’ mix for Thursday, May 16
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    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago

  • Controversial proposal could threaten coalition
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    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago

  • Of Rings of Power Annatar, Dramatic Irony, and Disguises
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    5 days ago

  • The future of Nick's Kōrero.
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    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    6 days ago

  • The PM promises tax relief in the Budget – but will it be enough to satisfy the Taxpayers’ Union...
    Buzz from the Beehive The promise of tax relief loomed large in his considerations when  the PM delivered a pre-Budget speech to the Auckland Business Chamber. The job back in Wellington is getting government spending back under control, he said, bandying figures which show that in per capita terms, the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago

  • Fucking useless
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    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    6 days ago

  • Setting things straight.
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    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    6 days ago

  • Far too light a sentence
    David Farrar writes – Newstalk ZB report: The man responsible for a horror hit and run in central Wellington last year was on a suspended licence and was so drunk he later asked police, “Did I kill someone?” Jason Tuitama injured two women when he ran a red ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago

  • Unwinding Labour’s Agenda
    Muriel Newman writes –  Former US President Ronald Reagan once said, “Freedom is a fragile thing and it’s never more than one generation away from extinction. It is not ours by way of inheritance; it must be fought for and defended constantly by each generation.” The fight for ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago

  • Sequel to “Real reason Waitangi Tribunal could not summons Chhour”
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    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago

  • The Govt’s Fast-Track is being demolished by submissions to Parliament
    Bryce Edwards writes –  The number of voices raising concerns about the Government’s Fast-Track Approvals Bill is rapidly growing. This is especially apparent now that Parliament’s select committee is listening to submissions from the public to evaluate the proposed legislation. Twenty-seven thousand submissions have been made to Parliament ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago

  • A generation is leaving at a rate of one A320-load per day
    An average of 166 New Zealand citizens left the country every day during the March quarter, up 54% from a year ago.Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The economy and housing market is sinking into a longer recession through the winter after a slump in business and consumer confidence in ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago

  • NZUP RORS back to life
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    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    6 days ago

  • School Is Out.
    School is outAnd I walk the empty hallwaysI walk aloneAlone as alwaysThere's so many lucky penniesLying on the floorBut where the hell are all the lucky peopleI can't see them any moreYesterday morning, I’d just sent out my newsletter on Tama Potaka, and I was struggling to make the coffee. ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    6 days ago

  • How Are You Doing?
    Hi,I wanted to check in and ask how you’re doing.This is perhaps a selfish act, of attempting to find others feeling a similar way to me — that is to say, a little hopeless at the moment.Misery loves company, that sort of deal.Some context.I wish I could say I got ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago

  • The Rings of Power: Season Two Teaser Trailer
    I have hitherto been fairly quiet on the new season of Rings of Power, on the basis that the underwhelming first season did not exactly build excitement – and the rumours were fairly daft. The only real thing of substance to come out has been that they have re-cast Adar ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    6 days ago

  • At a glance – What ended the Little ice Age?
    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
    7 days ago

  • Talking Reo with the PM
    “The thing is,” Chris Luxon says, leaning forward to make his point, “this has always been my thing.”“This goes all the way back to the first multinational I worked for. I was saying exactly the same thing back then. The name of our business needs to be more clear; people ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    7 days ago

  • Waitangi Tribunal’s authority in Chhour case is upheld – but bill’s introduction to Parliament...
    Buzz from the Beehive It’s been a momentous few days for Children’s Minister Karen Chhour.  The Court of Appeal has overturned a High Court decision which blocked a summons order from the Waitangi Tribunal for her. And today she has announced the Government is putting children first by introducing to ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    7 days ago

  • Government to rollout roadside drug testing
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    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    15 hours ago

  • Minister responds to review of Kāinga Ora
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    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    17 hours ago

  • Pseudoephedrine back on shelves
    Associate Health Minister David Seymour is pleased that Pseudoephedrine can now be purchased by the general public to protect them from winter illness, after the coalition government worked swiftly to change the law and oversaw a fast approval process by Medsafe. “Pharmacies are now putting the medicines back on their ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    19 hours ago

  • New Zealand-China Business Summit
    Tēnā koutou katoa. Da jia hao.  Good morning everyone.   Prime Minister Luxon, your excellency, a great friend of New Zealand and my friend Ambassador Wang, Mayor of what he tells me is the best city in New Zealand, Wayne Brown, the highly respected Fran O’Sullivan, Champion of the Auckland business ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago

  • New measures to protect powerlines from trees
    Energy Minister Simeon Brown has announced that the Government will make it easier for lines firms to take action to remove vegetation from obstructing local powerlines. The change will ensure greater security of electricity supply in local communities, particularly during severe weather events.  “Trees or parts of trees falling on ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Wairarapa Moana ki Pouakani win top Māori dairy farming award
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    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • DJ Fred Again – Assurance report received
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    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • District Court Judges appointed
    Attorney-General Judith Collins has announced the appointment of three new District Court Judges, to replace Judges who have recently retired. Peter James Davey of Auckland has been appointed a District Court Judge with a jury jurisdiction to be based at Whangarei. Mr Davey initially started work as a law clerk/solicitor with ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Unions should put learning ahead of ideology
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    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Craig Stobo appointed as chair of FMA
    Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly today announced the appointment of Craig Stobo as the new chair of the Financial Markets Authority (FMA). Mr Stobo takes over from Mark Todd, whose term expired at the end of April. Mr Stobo’s appointment is for a five-year term. “The FMA plays ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Budget 2024 invests in lifeguards and coastguard
    Surf Life Saving New Zealand and Coastguard New Zealand will continue to be able to keep people safe in, on, and around the water following a funding boost of $63.644 million over four years, Transport Minister Simeon Brown and Associate Transport Minister Matt Doocey say. “Heading to the beach for ...
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    4 days ago

  • New Zealand and Tuvalu reaffirm close relationship
    New Zealand and Tuvalu have reaffirmed their close relationship, Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters says.  “New Zealand is committed to working with Tuvalu on a shared vision of resilience, prosperity and security, in close concert with Australia,” says Mr Peters, who last visited Tuvalu in 2019.  “It is my pleasure ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • New Zealand calls for calm, constructive dialogue in New Caledonia
    New Zealand is gravely concerned about the situation in New Caledonia, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says.  “The escalating situation and violent protests in Nouméa are of serious concern across the Pacific Islands region,” Mr Peters says.  “The immediate priority must be for all sides to take steps to de-escalate the ...
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    5 days ago

  • New Zealand welcomes Samoa Head of State
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    5 days ago

  • Island Direct eligible for SuperGold Card funding
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    5 days ago

  • Further sanctions against Russia
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters today announced further sanctions on 28 individuals and 14 entities providing military and strategic support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.  “Russia is directly supported by its military-industrial complex in its illegal aggression against Ukraine, attacking its sovereignty and territorial integrity. New Zealand condemns all entities and ...
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    5 days ago

  • One year on from Loafers Lodge
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    5 days ago

  • Pre-Budget speech to Auckland Business Chamber
    Ka nui te mihi kia koutou. Kia ora and good afternoon, everyone. Thank you so much for having me here in the lead up to my Government’s first Budget. Before I get started can I acknowledge: Simon Bridges – Auckland Business Chamber CEO. Steve Jurkovich – Kiwibank CEO. Kids born ...
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    6 days ago

  • New Zealand and Vanuatu to deepen collaboration
    New Zealand and Vanuatu will enhance collaboration on issues of mutual interest, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says.    “It is important to return to Port Vila this week with a broad, high-level political delegation which demonstrates our deep commitment to New Zealand’s relationship with Vanuatu,” Mr Peters says.    “This ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago

  • Penk travels to Peru for trade meetings
    Minister for Land Information, Chris Penk will travel to Peru this week to represent New Zealand at a meeting of trade ministers from the Asia-Pacific region on behalf of Trade Minister Todd McClay. The annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Ministers Responsible for Trade meeting will be held on 17-18 May ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago

  • Minister attends global education conferences
    Minister of Education Erica Stanford will head to the United Kingdom this week to participate in the 22nd Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers (CCEM) and the 2024 Education World Forum (EWF). “I am looking forward to sharing this Government’s education priorities, such as introducing a knowledge-rich curriculum, implementing an evidence-based ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago

  • Education Minister thanks outgoing NZQA Chair
    Minister of Education Erica Stanford has today thanked outgoing New Zealand Qualifications Authority Chair, Hon Tracey Martin. “Tracey Martin tendered her resignation late last month in order to take up a new role,” Ms Stanford says. Ms Martin will relinquish the role of Chair on 10 May and current Deputy ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago

  • Joint statement of Christopher Luxon and Emmanuel Macron: Launch of the Christchurch Call Foundation
    New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and President Emmanuel Macron of France today announced a new non-governmental organisation, the Christchurch Call Foundation, to coordinate the Christchurch Call’s work to eliminate terrorist and violent extremist content online.   This change gives effect to the outcomes of the November 2023 Call Leaders’ Summit, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago

  • Panel announced for review into disability services
    Distinguished public servant and former diplomat Sir Maarten Wevers will lead the independent review into the disability support services administered by the Ministry of Disabled People – Whaikaha. The review was announced by Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston a fortnight ago to examine what could be done to strengthen the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago

  • Minister welcomes Police gang unit
    Today’s announcement by Police Commissioner Andrew Coster of a National Gang Unit and district Gang Disruption Units will help deliver on the coalition Government’s pledge to restore law and order and crack down on criminal gangs, Police Minister Mark Mitchell says. “The National Gang Unit and Gang Disruption Units will ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago

  • New Zealand expresses regret at North Korea’s aggressive rhetoric
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today expressed regret at North Korea’s aggressive rhetoric towards New Zealand and its international partners.  “New Zealand proudly stands with the international community in upholding the rules-based order through its monitoring and surveillance deployments, which it has been regularly doing alongside partners since 2018,” Mr ...
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    7 days ago

  • New Chief of Defence Force appointed
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    7 days ago

  • Government puts children first by repealing 7AA
    Legislation to repeal section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act has been introduced to Parliament. The Bill’s introduction reaffirms the Coalition Government’s commitment to the safety of children in care, says Minister for Children, Karen Chhour. “While section 7AA was introduced with good intentions, it creates a conflict for Oranga ...
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    1 week ago

  • Defence Minister to meet counterparts in UK, Italy
    Defence Minister Judith Collins will this week travel to the UK and Italy to meet with her defence counterparts, and to attend Battles of Cassino commemorations. “I am humbled to be able to represent the New Zealand Government in Italy at the commemorations for the 80th anniversary of what was ...
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    1 week ago

  • Charter schools to lift educational outcomes
    The upcoming Budget will include funding for up to 50 charter schools to help lift declining educational performance, Associate Education Minister David Seymour announced today. $153 million in new funding will be provided over four years to establish and operate up to 15 new charter schools and convert 35 state ...
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    1 week ago

  • COVID-19 Inquiry terms of reference consultation results received
    “The results of the public consultation on the terms of reference for the Royal Commission into COVID-19 Lessons has now been received, with results indicating over 13,000 submissions were made from members of the public,” Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden says. “We heard feedback about the extended lockdowns in ...
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    1 week ago

  • The Pacific family of nations – the changing security outlook
    Foreign Minister, Defence Minister, other Members of Parliament Acting Chief of Defence Force, Secretary of Defence Distinguished Guests  Defence and Diplomatic Colleagues  Ladies and Gentlemen,  Good afternoon, tēna koutou, apinun tru    It’s a pleasure to be back in Port Moresby today, and to speak here at the Kumul Leadership ...
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    1 week ago

  • NZ and Papua New Guinea to work more closely together
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    1 week ago

  • Driving ahead with Roads of Regional Significance
    The coalition Government is launching Roads of Regional Significance to sit alongside Roads of National Significance as part of its plan to deliver priority roading projects across the country, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.  “The Roads of National Significance (RoNS) built by the previous National Government are some of New Zealand’s ...
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    1 week ago

  • New Zealand congratulates new Solomon Islands government
    A high-level New Zealand political delegation in Honiara today congratulated the new Government of Solomon Islands, led by Jeremiah Manele, on taking office.    “We are privileged to meet the new Prime Minister and members of his Cabinet during his government’s first ten days in office,” Deputy Prime Minister and ...
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    1 week ago

  • New Zealand supports UN Palestine resolution
    New Zealand voted in favour of a resolution broadening Palestine’s participation at the United Nations General Assembly overnight, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says.    “The resolution enhances the rights of Palestine to participate in the work of the UN General Assembly while stopping short of admitting Palestine as a full ...
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    1 week ago

  • Speech to the 2024 Infrastructure Symposium
    Introduction Good morning. It’s a great privilege to be here at the 2024 Infrastructure Symposium. I was extremely happy when the Prime Minister asked me to be his Minister for Infrastructure. It is one of the great barriers holding the New Zealand economy back from achieving its potential. Building high ...
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    2 weeks ago

  • $571 million for Defence pay and projects
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    2 weeks ago

  • Climate change – mitigating the risks and costs
    New Zealand’s ability to cope with climate change will be strengthened as part of the Government’s focus to build resilience as we rebuild the economy, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “An enduring and long-term approach is needed to provide New Zealanders and the economy with certainty as the climate ...
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    2 weeks ago

  • Getting new job seekers on the pathway to work
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    2 weeks ago

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