Blue on the polls

Written By: - Date published: 12:04 pm, September 14th, 2014 - 62 comments
Categories: act, brand key, conservative party, david cunliffe, greens, john key, labour, Minister for Overseas Holidays, national, nz first, same old national - Tags: ,

Landline polls are a traditional gripe for lefties. But this election, more than any other, the polls look seriously out of whack with reality.

They are bouncing around so much that no one knows what’s going on – is National at 55%, 50%, 48% or 46%? But whatever number the latest poll shows, it’s always far too large for a party at National’s current stage in the political cycle.

Last election National got 47% and parties traditionally lose support the longer they are in government. Added to this, National are looking increasingly tired and stale, to the point where they seem to have given up entirely and are now just going through the motions.

There are no new ideas, hardly any policies, no major ones and little detail. They are now trying to make a virtue out of having no ideas. It’s funny that two terms of National were enough to ‘fix’ the ‘disaster’ that National claimed they were left with after Labour’s last term and deal with a major earthquake and a worldwide recession to boot. Apparently we’re all done now and all we need to do is keep standing still while the rest of the world continues moving forward without us.

John Key is looking more and more like he just wants to escape to Hawaii and be shut of us, and after the Dirty Politics revelations, it’s hard to see how anyone would want him to stay. He’s presided over a Government marked by Ministerial irresponsibility, dirty tricks and a level of corruption within the machinery of government that no sane person would want to see continue.

What reason could anyone have to vote National? Tax cuts in three years? Possibility of selfie with John Key? Please help me, I’m really struggling here.

The only other reason would be if Labour were so bad that voting for National was a lesser evil. But that’s definitely not the case now. David Cunliffe has performed extremely well in the debates – he will be a fantastic Prime Minister and David Parker will be an excellent Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance. Labour has the leadership team, the policies and the coalition partners all buttoned down.

What does National have? Tired leader, no policies and the prospect of a coalition with the loonies from the Conservatives and Act.

A Labour/Greens/NZ First government will be stable, progressive and fiscally responsible. So why not vote for them?

Blue

62 comments on “Blue on the polls ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. Paul 1
    14 September 2014 at 12:05 pm

    Just vote.
    Ignore the pollsters.

  2. JRT 2
    14 September 2014 at 12:12 pm

    I have stopped listening to the MSM as they are so clearly working on behalf of their overseas masters. I am just ignoring the polls now. After Saturday we will know the truth. Hopefully the election isn’t corrupted as well.

  3. Chooky 3
    14 September 2014 at 12:52 pm

    Good post….totally agree!…the Polls are crap

  4. Thinker 4
    14 September 2014 at 1:10 pm

    There’s a lot of early voting going on, apparently.

    That’s one poll that can’t be fudged.

    Of course, it could be we’re all so prosperous, that a lot of people will be out of the country next Saturday…

    • Thinker 4.1
      14 September 2014 at 1:52 pm

      Plus…

      The Fortune Cookie my wife brought home from the supermarket, opened after lunch today, reads “Happy News Is On The Way”.

      Not sure about the margin of error on that particular poll, but it could turn out to be more accurate than some of the more-techological polls carried out using landlines.

      If it works, I’ll use the same technique for 2017 and let you know.

  5. just saying 5
    14 September 2014 at 1:11 pm

    The polls certainly aren’t reflecting what I’ve been hearing.

    Just one example, I was talking to a friend yesterday who lives in heartland National (Howick Village) and she was saying that she has never known an election in which virtually everyone she talks to say they don’t know who they will vote for.

    They may just be embarrassed to admit that they intend to vote for more corruption, but it wouldn’t take much of a swing away from the government to make a difference.

    This may be the election that finally puts an end to these bullshit, push-polls by proving them too inaccurate to report.

    • Thinker 5.1
      14 September 2014 at 1:59 pm

      I thnk, if the left win, it will be a combination of blue team supporters staying home and red team supporters coming back. That’s not impossible, and your Howick Village micro-poll could be blue supporters feeling a different kind of blue than in 2014.

      It’s simply too close to call this time and we’ll have to wait.

  6. Rich 6
    14 September 2014 at 1:19 pm

    There are no new policies for a very obvious reason. Also note that the ministers (Key, English, Tollie) are not in any way across their portfolios and look/sound like idiots when asked about those portfolios. Collins job was Minister of Cameron Slater. I suspect strongly that this is the sort of role Key has as well.

    Policy is obviously not something that the National Party anymore decides on. They must be taking directives.

  7. Clemgeopin 7
    14 September 2014 at 1:20 pm

    Labour is not short of excellent leadership or great policies. What they are starved off are votes. That I think is due to unfairness of media reporting and dirty tactics, mainly from National.

    Consider giving your party vote to Labour as they for sure need lots and lots of them now.

    • Lanthanide 7.1
      14 September 2014 at 1:54 pm

      I voted Greens because they have better policies.

      • Tracey 7.1.1
        15 September 2014 at 11:27 am

        Was it a relatively quick process Lanth, I know you were concerned about a delay in the advanced polling system?

        • Lanthanide 7.1.1.1
          15 September 2014 at 11:44 am

          The hardest part was finding out where to actually vote.

          It was in a local library that I’ve never been to before, with a sign pointing into the door for voting. I went inside an was confronted with all the normal library stuff, checkout counters with librarians helping people, computers with kids playing games on them, rows and rows of bookshelves. Initially I lined up to speak to a librarian to ask where I was supposed to vote, but after about a minute of standing in line I saw down the very back of the library (some 30m+ away), crammed in by the cafe, a little voting area with no direct line of access (I had to navigate around the computers and through the library shelves) and no blatant signage like I was expecting.

          Once I got to the place, there was no queue, and my EasyVote card made voting Easy.

          I give the overall voting experience a 6/10 for ease.

  8. Jrobin 8
    14 September 2014 at 1:27 pm

    Yes agree Cl. I have decided to do just that even though I support Green policies more. Cunliffe impresses a lot of people as soon as he is not filtered through the vicious claptrap of a caged media. Good on Lisa Owen, Wallace Chapman and recently Paddy Gower and David Fisher. At least there are a few brave souls amidst the pet journalists. Polls are propaganda no more no less. Roy Morgan the one exception and they only get reported when Labour drops.

    • Clemgeopin 8.1
      14 September 2014 at 1:44 pm

      I too have more confidence in the Roy Morgan poll, irrespective of the poll numbers, compared to all the other poll companies which I suspect are compromised by some shadowy RW entities manipulating behind the scenes. In the last election, except for Roy Morgan, the other polls were way off the margin of error mark!

  9. Saarbo 9
    14 September 2014 at 2:14 pm

    100% Blue. Labour’s polling is frustrating. But I am hearing very good feedback regarding David Cunliffe…so let wait and see.

  10. Roger 10
    14 September 2014 at 2:26 pm

    “Why not vote for them”. All right, since you asked, here’s why:
    Labour has got the most underwhelming lineup I have seen in my 50+ years. Unlike National, there has been no renewal and the way the polls are going, there won’t be a chance of renewal for another 3 years.

    David Cunliffe would be a terrible prime minister – he doesn’t even have support from his own caucus. He has a very tenuous grasp on his own policies, he whiteanted David Shearer(who, although he probably would have lost the debates with Key, at least comes across as genuine and would certainly have had Labour higher in the polls than Cunliffe). He sounds fake, he will tell people whatever he thinks they want to hear and will no doubt have to “consult his advisors” (“are you there, Matt?”) before he can offer an opinion on anything – a la Jenny Shipley.

    Nicky Hager has actually done National a big favour. Hopefully, they will still be in control of the government after the election, they’ve got rid of a big vote-loser (Collins) and they’ve been given just enough of a slap in the face to dispel any inevitable third-term hubris. Who knows, they may even get a fourth term the way Labour is going.

    • kenny 10.1
      14 September 2014 at 3:35 pm

      Hahahahahahahahahaha!

      Back to dreamland for you.

      • anker 10.1.1
        14 September 2014 at 8:41 pm

        Kenny 10000000+ What a dick Roger is!

        • Roger 10.1.1.1
          14 September 2014 at 9:13 pm

          I’m sure you’ve got nothing but contempt as well for the around 50% of the voting population who prefer National to your sad little party.

          Perhaps that says more about you than them.

          The thing is, the voters have usually got it right, whether they’ve voted in a centre right or centre left government and it looks like they’re going to get it right again. Get over it.

          • word 10.1.1.1.1
            15 September 2014 at 12:18 am

            Roger from Planet key, national couldn’t even muster 48% at the last election, and John key has done alot more damage since then.

          • Tracey 10.1.1.1.2
            15 September 2014 at 11:29 am

            i think as of today it is 47% of the voting population who voted national in 2011

          • framu 10.1.1.1.3
            15 September 2014 at 12:56 pm

            “I’m sure you’ve got nothing but contempt as well for the around 50% of the voting population who prefer National to your sad little party. ”

            that right there is the give away rogered – your mask slipped big time

    • Tracey 10.2
      15 September 2014 at 11:29 am

      By “renewal” do you mean the resignations by people who disagreed with key or looked bad for them?

      Aaron Gilmore
      Simon Power

      to name two such old and stale national Mps

  11. Dont worry. Be happy 11
    14 September 2014 at 2:31 pm

    Just did an Horizon poll. Oddly when it came to which party do you support Mana and Internet Party were listed individually.

  12. Tangled_up 12
    14 September 2014 at 2:36 pm

    Even if allowing for poll bias it looks like a Labour, Greens and NZF coalition would still need IMP to make up the numbers. I wonder whether Winston be willing to consider them tagging along? If he doesn’t king National that is.

  13. Colonial Viper 13
    14 September 2014 at 2:47 pm

    Winston is going to be the man of the moment…again. Will be very surprised if National gets over 44%.

    • Lanthanide 13.1
      14 September 2014 at 5:58 pm

      iPredict has National on a raw vote of 44.5%. On the electionresults.co.nz output the algorithm scales the major party vote share dependant on the minor parties in order to calculate seats, and in that formula Nats are currently on 43.4%

      • Tracey 13.1.1
        15 September 2014 at 11:30 am

        Whih of the VRWC are fixing ipredict so they can make money… the one thing they care about and use politics to make

  14. hoom 14
    14 September 2014 at 3:01 pm

    I think its not that they don’t have new policy, they are just terrified to point out stuff they already said in the past/what they plan to actually do.

    There are a bunch of very controversial bills that they shelved ’till after the election’.
    Not ‘dumped’, just left to fester because they don’t want an actual public debate about them in the lead up to an election.

  15. Kiwi Local 15
    14 September 2014 at 3:05 pm

    Blue

    you should mention this happening to quite a number called by Herald recently.

    we all got rejected way after they confirmed we were eligible age 70+ to be polled.- and after half way though just cut us off,

    It is very fishy. “Selective polling they all it apparently.

    Our conclusion;

    NZ polls are manipulated.

    Read & learn here.

    We think only two polls should be operating. They should be banned two weeks before election day to give folks time to concentrate properly.

    Corruption case to answer and a police investigation must be ordered by the opposition, here are some facts.

    A simple search last night of “Polls can be manipulated” – Google
    found about 1,400,000 results.
    Below leaves us all now with the knowledge of what in New Zealand is actually going on, it is more corruption of our MSM conducting manipulated polling results, and opposition now must call this as it is, corruption of the MSM and manipulation of all polls.

    We were contacted Friday 22nd of August at 4pm by Herald Digipoll by a lady who first said we are conducting a poll and could we participate?
    We said yes, then she said my supervisor is listening in, is that o/k?

    I hesitated but agreed and she went through a ten minute questioning, and then abruptly said we don’t need your input thanks, and hung up!

    This left us so disturbed we searched the web and found all 1.4 million cases of poll manipulations globally on Goggle, which include what is called “selective polling”

    We believe we were victims of a Herald Digipoll selective polling strategy.

    NZ polls are corrupted, is this a crime?
    Manipulated polls are occurring often overseas see below.

    This is just one case of the 1.4 million sites on Goggle in India which may show what is happening here in NZ.
    quote;

    New Delhi: Public opinion gathered by leading opinion poll agencies is often tweaked to give misleading results, Operation Prime Minister, a sting operation by a private news network, News Express, has revealed Tuesday. Well-known faces from leading opinion poll agencies have been caught on hidden camera agreeing to such malpractices.

    Operation Prime Minister shows how opinion polls are conducted and manipulated at the instance of political parties, their results traded to show a particular party in a favourable position, for a price. Presenting snippets from the sting operation at a press conference, Editor-in-chief of News Express, Vinod Kapri said, “Our motivation behind conducting the sting operation was a letter written by the Election Commission of India to all regional and national parties inviting their views on the publication of opinion polls.

    We wanted to investigate the concerns of the Commission.” In its letter dated 4 Oct, 2013, the Election Commission had said, “The Commission has been suggesting to the government that there should be a similar prohibition or restriction on opinion polls also as there could be several manipulated opinion polls which could impact the voting pattern.”

    Another motivation behind the sting operation was the mushrooming of opinion polls. “There used to be one or two opinion polls every election. But now, one sees an opinion poll almost every week. Which leads us to the question- how is the data generated so quickly and processed,” said Kapri.

    “Operation Prime Minister has exposed eleven opinion poll agencies, whose surveys are published in leading newspapers and magazines besides being broadcast by leading news channels”, it was claimed in the sting opertaion.

    It demonstrates how the 810 million voters of our country are duped into believing trends or waves that are manipulated. – See more at:

    “Opinion polls seem to have become the latest weapon in the poll campaign.

    For a price, the prediction of seats tally can be changed to suit the interests of political parties.

    The agencies have no qualms accepting even black money for this purpose”,

    News Express claimed. The influence of opinion poll agencies goes beyond mere opinion polls. In some cases, the poll agencies have claimed they can even prop up dummy candidates in the constituencies where the rival candidate is on a strong wicket.

    It has also been claimed that some leading editors are hand in glove with these poll agencies.

    This is just a few of the 1.4 million sites on Goggle. – See more at:

    http://www.ummid.com/news/2014/February/26.02.2014/opinion-poll-companies-exposed.html#sthash.wqSJ2ylu.dpuf

    http://www.sciences360.com/index.php/statistics-16350/

    http://www.ummid.com/news/2014/February/26.02.2014/opinion-poll-companies-exposed.html#sthash.h8rTzw8V.dpuf

    http://ibnlive.in.com/videos/471548/exit-polls-manipulated-modi-will-never-be-pm-samajwadi-party.html

    http://www.rediff.com/news/report/general-impression-that-opinion-polls-can-be-manipulated-sibal/20131109.htm

    http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Many-agencies-manipulating-opinion-poll-projections-claims-sting-operation/articleshow/31013534.cms

    http://www.sunnewsnetwork.ca/video/2764415112001

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Misuse_of_statistics

    http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/mhp-furious-over-opinion-poll-manipulation-claims.aspx?pageID=238&nID=62184&NewsCatID=338

    • rod 15.1
      14 September 2014 at 3:37 pm

      In Britain most polls have a proviso after the result, it states. Results are indicative only and may not reflect public opinion. In New Zealand, the MSM would have us all think the results are set in concrete.

  16. Harry Holland 16
    14 September 2014 at 3:12 pm

    In the corporate and small business circles in which I often mix, John Key is still Teflon John. Their cocky confidence has however gone. They are now nervous. Businesses seem to be doing OK and I think they are genuinely concerned that a change will disrupt that, even if only temporarily.
    .
    It would be very interesting to know what history tells us about economic growth in the 1-2 quarters following a change of government. Can anyone tell me?
    .
    [My instincts are with Laila, but my vote will probably go to Labour in support of DC.]

    • KJT 16.1
      14 September 2014 at 3:52 pm

      There is always a bit of a dip just before and after a change, regardless of the incoming party.

      Plenty of small and medium business people I know think National is destructive, however.

      • Lanthanide 16.1.1
        14 September 2014 at 6:01 pm

        National hasn’t really done much to support small business.

        Anecdote around that is that there’s a very busy roundabout near my work, with a car panel beater shop right on the corner of the round-about. Has been there for years, always looks busy. In 2011 they had a big free-standing election hoarding for John Key. There’s no sign there this year.

  17. kenny 17
    14 September 2014 at 3:45 pm

    Has anyone considered that the surge in business confidence earlier in the year may have been due to the fact that businessmen in general liked what they were hearing from Labour and saw the prospect of a Labour-led government more to their liking?

    Perhaps their current pessimism stems from the fact that National are still favourites, according to the media, to win the election.

    Bugger the polls!!!

    The real McCoy is next Saturday. I’m looking forward to a lot of so-called experts having to eat their words come Sunday.

  18. Matthew Hooton 18
    14 September 2014 at 4:00 pm

    Trust ipredict over polls.
    Latest update is here: http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1409/S00317/ipredict-daily-update.htm

    • bearded git 18.1
      14 September 2014 at 4:12 pm

      Yes. Interesting. Ipredict has LGNZFIMP at 61 seats Nats rabble at 59 seats.

      Hold on to your hats-this will be a roller coaster!!

    • lprent 18.2
      14 September 2014 at 4:15 pm

      iPredict is way way too easy to manipulate if you are unconcerned with losing small amounts of money. The number of active traders is too small, the number of trades is low, and the amount of money in the system is pretty pathetic.

      When I did my MBA, these were all signs of classic crony markets. Not a free market at all.

      I can’t see any difference between it and the polls in terms of accuracy in the 6 months prior to an election.

    • hoom 18.3
      14 September 2014 at 4:19 pm

      Why would we trust a weird market-based self-selected & small sample?

      • Matthew Hooton 18.3.1
        14 September 2014 at 4:20 pm

        On empirical grounds.

        • quartz 18.3.1.1
          14 September 2014 at 4:23 pm

          Hey Matthew. Did you ever pay Slater to run spin posts you’d written on behalf of your clients under his name?

        • blue leopard 18.3.1.2
          14 September 2014 at 4:28 pm

          @ M Hooton

          It has been pretty empirically established that market failure is a problem for markets.

          Yes?

          • hoom 18.3.1.2.1
            14 September 2014 at 4:43 pm

            The emperical history of Statistics shows that self-selecting samples are not reliable at all.

            But hey, lets get back to talking policy: What policy does ipredict predict for a 3rd term NACT Govt?

        • jaymam 18.3.1.3
          14 September 2014 at 8:46 pm

          Do you still have an interest in iPredict and what is the meaning of this comment from Slater?
          December 16, 2013
          ————————-
          Cameron Slater, 12/16, 4:56am
          Matthew Owen Hooton..but is director of iPredict Administration Limited
          ————————-
          Company Number
          3732480
          Status
          Struck Off

      • One Anonymous Bloke 18.3.2
        14 September 2014 at 4:22 pm

        It’s a model. We don’t trust models we ask how much “skill” they have.

  19. infused 19
    14 September 2014 at 7:20 pm

    awwww. So cute. These polls cannot be right??! Everyone I talk to says they are voting Labour!!!!11

  20. word 20
    15 September 2014 at 12:22 am

    There are no doubts whatsoever, that national/media are using manipulated polls as electioneering tools to hoodwink NZers.

  21. Hannahj 21
    15 September 2014 at 1:46 pm

    I guess it depends who you associate with. I know many National voters.

    I asked my friend a couple of weekends back who he was voting for and to my shock he said National because he thinks small business owners (like his friend that owns a Hell’s Pizza) will struggle to pay their staff at the increased wage and will have to close. He also said he liked National’s home policy as he wants to buy a home in the next 1 or 2 years and that policy would help with his deposit. He admitted he does not like John Key.

    My other friend likes National. For no reason of substance, but not that they can be convinced otherwise. They basically see no viable alternative. I mentioned the rising debt levels under National to which my friend said ‘no, that’s not true!’. She then went on to talk about how she’s worked hard to get to where she is and why should some of her hard earnings be redistributed to others. I said people are really struggling to live off minimum wage and in many cases cannot get jobs but that didn’t seem to worry her.

    And other family are clueless to the point it is awkward to even bring it up. They vote for John Key as he is ‘a nice man’. They seem to realise families are struggling but think that it is because of their bad management i.e. it’s not expensive to make a sandwich or give your children some weet-bix in the morning.

    I noticed on Facebook out of about 300 friends, about 30 like John Key/13 like National Party page, about 14 like the Green Party and 2 like Labour’s page/2 like David Cunliffe and 2 like Mana.

    Note: My friends would mostly be in the 25-35 age bracket.

    That says to me that Labour are not getting any traction whatsoever with my age group and Team Key is winning out (although Greens have a good amount of support).

  22. JRyan 22
    16 September 2014 at 5:26 am

    Hannahj says she has 300 friends. Simply sad. Does this fakeness fill your emotional vaccum or something? The polls are favouring National because people prefer them more, as we will see in a few days time. If Labour want to side up with nasty unrealistic people then expect the polls that you are all fretting about. KDC is nothing more than a manipulating buffoon. Pretty hard to watch as kiwis rally around the great hulk like some saviour or something. Sickening.

  23. philj 23
    16 September 2014 at 7:46 pm

    xox
    Hey Jryan,re Hannahj,
    Why pick up on ‘300 friends, simply sad’ ? R u you a rwnj? Head back to your friends at whale oil.

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    Finance Minister Nicola Willis late yesterday stopped only slightly short of accusing her predecessor Grant Robertson of cooking the books. She complained that the Half Yearly Economic and Fiscal Update (HYEFU), due to be made public on December 20, would show “fiscal cliffs” that would amount to “billions of ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    1 day ago

  • Most people don’t realize how much progress we’ve made on climate change
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections The year was 2015. ‘Uptown Funk’ with Bruno Mars was at the top of the music charts. Jurassic World was the most popular new movie in theaters. And decades of futility in international climate negotiations was about to come to an end in ...
    Skeptical Science
    2 days ago

  • Of Parliamentary Oaths and Clive Boonham
    As a heads-up, I am not one of those people who stay awake at night thinking about weird Culture War nonsense. At least so far as the current Maori/Constitutional arrangements go. In fact, I actually consider it the least important issue facing the day to day lives of New ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    2 days ago

  • Bearing True Allegiance?
    Strong Words: “We do not consent, we do not surrender, we do not cede, we do not submit; we, the indigenous, are rising. We do not buy into the colonial fictions this House is built upon. Te Pāti Māori pledges allegiance to our mokopuna, our whenua, and Te Tiriti o ...
    Bowalley Road
    2 days ago

  • You cannot be serious
    Some days it feels like the only thing to say is: Seriously? No, really. Seriously?OneSomeone has used their health department access to share data about vaccinations and patients, and inform the world that New Zealanders have been dying in their hundreds of thousands from the evil vaccine. This of course is pure ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago

  • A promise kept: govt pulls the plug on Lake Onslow scheme – but this saving of $16bn is denounced...
    Buzz from the Beehive After $21.8 million was spent on investigations, the plug has been pulled on the Lake Onslow pumped-hydro electricity scheme, The scheme –  that technically could have solved New Zealand’s looming energy shortage, according to its champions – was a key part of the defeated Labour government’s ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    2 days ago

  • CHRIS TROTTER: The Maori Party and Oath of Allegiance
    If those elected to the Māori Seats refuse to take them, then what possible reason could the country have for retaining them?   Chris Trotter writes – Christmas is fast approaching, which, as it does every year, means gearing up for an abstruse general knowledge question. “Who was ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    2 days ago

  • BRIAN EASTON:  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. Brian Easton writes – The two coalition agreements – one National and ACT, the other National and New Zealand First – are more than policy documents. ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago

  • Climate Change: Fossils
    When the new government promised to allow new offshore oil and gas exploration, they were warned that there would be international criticism and reputational damage. Naturally, they arrogantly denied any possibility that that would happen. And then they finally turned up at COP, to criticism from Palau, and a "fossil ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    2 days ago

  • GEOFFREY MILLER:  NZ’s foreign policy resets on AUKUS, Gaza and Ukraine
    Geoffrey Miller writes – New Zealand’s international relations are under new management. And Winston Peters, the new foreign minister, is already setting a change agenda. As expected, this includes a more pro-US positioning when it comes to the Pacific – where Peters will be picking up where he ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago

  • Gordon Campbell on the government’s smokefree laws debacle
    The most charitable explanation for National’s behaviour over the smokefree legislation is that they have dutifully fulfilled the wishes of the Big Tobacco lobby and then cast around – incompetently, as it turns out – for excuses that might sell this health policy U-turn to the public. The less charitable ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    2 days ago

  • Top 10 links at 10 am for Monday, December 4
    As Deb Te Kawa writes in an op-ed, the new Government seems to have immediately bought itself fights with just about everyone. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Here’s my pick of the top 10 news and analysis links elsewhere as of 10 am on Monday December 4, including:Palau’s President ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago

  • Be Honest.
    Let’s begin today by thinking about job interviews.During my career in Software Development I must have interviewed hundreds of people, hired at least a hundred, but few stick in the memory.I remember one guy who was so laid back he was practically horizontal, leaning back in his chair until his ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 days ago

  • Geoffrey Miller: New Zealand’s foreign policy resets on AUKUS, Gaza and Ukraine
    New Zealand’s international relations are under new management. And Winston Peters, the new foreign minister, is already setting a change agenda. As expected, this includes a more pro-US positioning when it comes to the Pacific – where Peters will be picking up where he left off. Peters sought to align ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    2 days ago

  • Auckland rail tunnel the world’s most expensive
    Auckland’s city rail link is the most expensive rail project in the world per km, and the CRL boss has described the cost of infrastructure construction in Aotearoa as a crisis. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The 3.5 km City Rail Link (CRL) tunnel under Auckland’s CBD has cost ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago

  • First big test coming
    The first big test of the new Government’s approach to Treaty matters is likely to be seen in the return of the Resource Management Act. RMA Minister Chris Bishop has confirmed that he intends to introduce legislation to repeal Labour’s recently passed Natural and Built Environments Act and its ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    2 days ago

  • The Song of Saqua: Volume III
    Time to revisit something I haven’t covered in a while: the D&D campaign, with Saqua the aquatic half-vampire. Last seen in July: https://phuulishfellow.wordpress.com/2023/07/27/the-song-of-saqua-volume-ii/ The delay is understandable, once one realises that the interim saw our DM come down with a life-threatening medical situation. They have since survived to make ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    2 days ago

  • Chris Bishop: Smokin’
    Yes. Correct. It was an election result. And now we are the elected government. ...
    My ThinksBy boonman
    3 days ago

  • 2023 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #48
    A chronological listing of news and opinion articles posted on the Skeptical Science  Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Nov 26, 2023 thru Dec 2, 2023. Story of the Week CO2 readings from Mauna Loa show failure to combat climate change Daily atmospheric carbon dioxide data from Hawaiian volcano more ...
    Skeptical Science
    3 days ago

  • Affirmative Action.
    Affirmative Action was a key theme at this election, although I don’t recall anyone using those particular words during the campaign.They’re positive words, and the way the topic was talked about was anything but. It certainly wasn’t a campaign of saying that Affirmative Action was a good thing, but that, ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago

  • 100 days of something
    It was at the end of the Foxton straights, at the end of 1978, at 100km/h, that someone tried to grab me from behind on my Yamaha.They seemed to be yanking my backpack. My first thought was outrage. My second was: but how? Where have they come from? And my ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago

  • Look who’s stepped up to champion Winston
    There’s no news to be gleaned from the government’s official website today  – it contains nothing more than the message about the site being under maintenance. The time this maintenance job is taking and the costs being incurred have us musing on the government’s commitment to an assault on inflation. ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago

  • What's The Story?
    Don’t you sometimes wish they’d just tell the truth? No matter how abhorrent or ugly, just straight up tell us the truth?C’mon guys, what you’re doing is bad enough anyway, pretending you’re not is only adding insult to injury.Instead of all this bollocks about the Smokefree changes being to do ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago

  • The longest of weeks
    Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past week’s editions.Friday Under New Management Week in review, quiz style1. Which of these best describes Aotearoa?a. Progressive nation, proud of its egalitarian spirit and belief in a fair go b. Best little country on the planet c. ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 days ago

  • Suggested sessions of EGU24 to submit abstracts to
    Like earlier this year, members from our team will be involved with next year's General Assembly of the European Geosciences Union (EGU). The conference will take place on premise in Vienna as well as online from April 14 to 19, 2024. The session catalog has been available since November 1 ...
    Skeptical Science
    5 days ago

  • Under New Management
    1. Which of these best describes Aotearoa?a. Progressive nation, proud of its egalitarian spirit and belief in a fair go b. Best little country on the planet c. Under New Management 2. Which of these best describes the 100 days of action announced this week by the new government?a. Petulantb. Simplistic and wrongheaded c. ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 days ago

  • While we wait patiently, our new Minister of Education is up and going with a 100-day action plan
    Sorry to say, the government’s official website is still out of action. When Point of Order paid its daily visit, the message was the same as it has been for the past week: Site under maintenance Beehive.govt.nz is currently under maintenance. We will be back shortly. Thank you for your ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago

  • DAVID FARRAR: Hysterical bullshit
    Radio NZ reports: Te Pāti Māori’s co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer has accused the new government of “deliberate .. systemic genocide” over its policies to roll back the smokefree policy and the Māori Health Authority. The left love hysterical language. If you oppose racial quotas in laws, you are a racist. And now if you sack ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago

  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #48 2023
    Open access notables From this week's government/NGO section, longitudinal data is gold and Leisorowitz, Maibachi et al. continue to mine ore from the US public with Climate Change in the American Mind: Politics & Policy, Fall 2023: Drawing on a representative sample of the U.S. adult population, the authors describe how registered ...
    Skeptical Science
    5 days ago

  • ELE LUDEMANN: It wasn’t just $55 million
    Ele Ludemann writes –  Winston Peters reckons media outlets were bribed by the $55 million Public Interest Journalism Fund. He is not the first to make such an accusation. Last year, the Platform outlined conditions media signed up to in return for funds from the PJIF: . . . ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago

  • Weekly Roundup 1-December-2023
    Wow, it’s December already, and it’s a Friday. So here are few things that caught our attention recently. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt covered the new government’s coalition agreements and what they mean for transport. On Tuesday Matt looked at AT’s plans for fare increases ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    5 days ago

  • Shane MacGowan Is Gone.
    Late 1996, The Dogs Bollix, Tamaki Makaurau.I’m at the front of the bar yelling my order to the bartender, jostling with other thirsty punters on a Friday night, keen to piss their wages up against a wall letting loose. The black stuff, long luscious pints of creamy goodness. Back down ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago

  • The Hoon around the week to Dec 1
    Nicola Willis, Chris Bishop and other National, ACT and NZ First MPs applaud the signing of the coalition agreements, which included the reversal of anti-smoking measures while accelerating tax cuts for landlords. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago

  • 2023 More Reading: November (+ Writing Update)
    Completed reads for November: A Modern Utopia, by H.G. Wells The Vampire (poem), by Heinrich August Ossenfelder The Corpus Hermeticum The Corpus Hermeticum is Mead’s translation. Now, this is indeed a very quiet month for reading. But there is a reason for that… You see, ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    6 days ago

  • 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
    6 days 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
    6 days 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
    6 days 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
    6 days 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 days 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
    6 days 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
    6 days 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
    6 days 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
    6 days 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
    6 days 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
    6 days 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
    6 days 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
    6 days 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
    7 days 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
    7 days 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
    7 days 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
    7 days 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 week 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 week 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 week 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 week 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
    1 week 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
    1 week 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
    1 week 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
    1 week ago

  • PISA results show urgent need to teach the basics
    With 2022 PISA results showing a decline in achievement, Education Minister Erica Stanford is confident that the Coalition Government’s 100-day plan for education will improve outcomes for Kiwi kids.  The 2022 PISA results show a significant decline in the performance of 15-year-old students in maths compared to 2018 and confirms ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    16 hours ago

  • Collins leaves for Pacific defence meeting
    Defence Minister Judith Collins today departed for New Caledonia to attend the 8th annual South Pacific Defence Ministers’ meeting (SPDMM). “This meeting is an excellent opportunity to meet face-to-face with my Pacific counterparts to discuss regional security matters and to demonstrate our ongoing commitment to the Pacific,” Judith Collins says. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Working for Families gets cost of living boost
    Putting more money in the pockets of hard-working families is a priority of this Coalition Government, starting with an increase to Working for Families, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says. “We are starting our 100-day plan with a laser focus on bringing down the cost of living, because that is what ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Lake Onslow pumped hydro scheme scrapped
    The Government has axed the $16 billion Lake Onslow pumped hydro scheme championed by the previous government, Energy Minister Simeon Brown says. “This hugely wasteful project was pouring money down the drain at a time when we need to be reining in spending and focussing on rebuilding the economy and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • NZ welcomes further pause in fighting in Gaza
    New Zealand welcomes the further one-day extension of the pause in fighting, which will allow the delivery of more urgently-needed humanitarian aid into Gaza and the release of more hostages, Foreign Minister Winston Peters said. “The human cost of the conflict is horrific, and New Zealand wants to see the violence ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Condolences on passing of Henry Kissinger
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters today expressed on behalf of the New Zealand Government his condolences to the family of former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, who has passed away at the age of 100 at his home in Connecticut. “While opinions on his legacy are varied, Secretary Kissinger was ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Backing our kids to learn the basics
    Every child deserves a world-leading education, and the Coalition Government is making that a priority as part of its 100-day plan. Education Minister Erica Stanford says that will start with banning cellphone use at school and ensuring all primary students spend one hour on reading, writing, and maths each day. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • US Business Summit Speech – Regional stability through trade
    I would like to begin by echoing the Prime Minister’s thanks to the organisers of this Summit, Fran O’Sullivan and the Auckland Business Chamber.  I want to also acknowledge the many leading exporters, sector representatives, diplomats, and other leaders we have joining us in the room. In particular, I would like ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago

  • Keynote Address to the United States Business Summit, Auckland
    Good morning. Thank you, Rosemary, for your warm introduction, and to Fran and Simon for this opportunity to make some brief comments about New Zealand’s relationship with the United States.  This is also a chance to acknowledge my colleague, Minister for Trade Todd McClay, Ambassador Tom Udall, Secretary of Foreign ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago

  • India New Zealand Business Council Speech, India as a Strategic Priority
    Good morning, tēnā koutou and namaskar. Many thanks, Michael, for your warm welcome. I would like to acknowledge the work of the India New Zealand Business Council in facilitating today’s event and for the Council’s broader work in supporting a coordinated approach for lifting New Zealand-India relations. I want to also ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago

  • Coalition Government unveils 100-day plan
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has laid out the Coalition Government’s plan for its first 100 days from today. “The last few years have been incredibly tough for so many New Zealanders. People have put their trust in National, ACT and NZ First to steer them towards a better, more prosperous ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    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
    2 weeks 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
    3 weeks ago

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