Boots Theory: Creepy behaviour from David Farrar

Written By: - Date published: 9:49 am, September 27th, 2014 - 78 comments
Categories: David Farrar, tertiary education, welfare - Tags: , , , , , , ,

This post by Stephanie Rodgers originally appeared at Boots Theory. You can follow Stephanie on Twitter.

It wasn’t at all surprising to me that David Farrar is scathing of students who have to seek hardship grants to pay their bills, categorising them as bludgers who “say yes to free cash“. Nor that he believes that every journalist who reports on the cost of living should demand “a detailed break down of income and expenditure, so readers can judge for themselves the situation”.

(David Farrar isn’t a journalist, so he’s not bound by such ethical considerations – or he might have considered linking to the actual UCOL policy on hardship grants which makes it clear it is definitely not just “free cash”.)

It’s a typical rightwing attitude which reinforces the idea that lesser people – beneficiaries, students, parents – just aren’t allowed to have nice things. It assumes that survival is good enough – not being able to live a life with some dignity, nor understanding that human beings aren’t just automatons who you input fuel into to extract productivity.

What’s disturbing is this bit, where after completely misrepresenting an interviewees’ statements (she commented that she was speaking generally, not of her own situation; Farrar reforms this into wholesale journalistic inaccuracy):

I’ve had a look through the Facebook pages of Lauren and Karn. They both seem very cool friendly people, and in no way are they political activists for a cause. They seem very typical students. I would note however that contrary to the perception in the article of starving students (and I am not blaming them, but the story) they seem to have pretty good social lives judging by the photos, and references to Big Day Out etc.

We’ve seen this before, of course, with Paula Bennett unashamedly releasing the personal details of beneficiaries who criticised her ill-judged, mean-spirited decision to cut the Training Incentive Allowance. And there have been many similar cases of people having sick leave cut because they looked happy in a couple of Facebook photos.

It’s a really nasty intimidation tactic – silencing people by threatening to embarrass them publicly, undermining their experiences by attacking their credibility. If you’re not dressed like a Dickensian urchin covered in chimney-dust, the argument goes, you can’t really be struggling to pay bills week-to-week.

David Farrar is saying no more and no less than this: if you do have political leanings, your argument would be invalid (he pretends to be generous in pointing out that they don’t); if you do have a social life, you must be lying when you say some students are trying to get by with $2 a day to spend on food sometimes. And don’t even think about attending the Big Day Out in February if you might be short of cash in September or you deserve to go hungry, you horrid, reprehensible bludgers.

It’s par for the course for our government and its bloggers, and it needs to be named for what it is: unacceptable bullying.

Edited to add: a few responses on Twitter which highlight that this is repeated behaviour from Farrar, and why it’s irresponsible for him to expose young women to the lecherous creepiness of his commentariat (which he keeps promising to clean up).

78 comments on “Boots Theory: Creepy behaviour from David Farrar ”

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  1. Tom Gould 1
    27 September 2014 at 10:19 am

    How long will it take for this latest Tory dog whistle to appear in the Herald and on Newstalk ZB? When it comes to the media, the owners tend to get what they pay for.

    • Mark 1.1
      27 September 2014 at 11:01 am

      Have to say I am have been stunned that the ZB network continues to use Cameron Slater as a commentator on politics. Slater has come out of the Dirty politics saga without a shred of credibility.

  2. Yoyo 2
    27 September 2014 at 10:22 am

    Does anyone have any idea what this post is about? Hard to understand the comparison with Paula B. I just don’t get it.

    • Bill 2.1
      27 September 2014 at 10:38 am

      Smearing and/or embarrassing people to shut down debate on the issues they have raised. That was just from a cursory read. Christ! If you’re being genuine, I really despair on peoples’ ability to comprehend anything in print beyond ‘Dick played with Nip’.

      • adam 2.1.1
        27 September 2014 at 8:44 pm

        It’s because the written word is dying as a means of communication Bill. It is this massive decline in our ability to communicate issues and ideas, is just one of many ways, which has enabled the corporatocracy to walk into power. And also why people like Farrar can write any nasty piece they like. Who is going to pull him up – really who?

        I mean if I saw him I’d kick him in the nuts and break my non-violence vowel – No I won’t as he really is not worth breaking that vowel, but I’d be tempted. Why? This man has put so many women lives in danger, he needs to live with the fear some man or some women, will kick him in the nuts. A little pain ,may make him human again – but some how, I doubt that.

        • Bill 2.1.1.1
          27 September 2014 at 11:40 pm

          Remember the days when people used to talk? Maybe even attend meetings comprised of people who had gathered for the sake of some common cause?

          Remember how ground shifted between you and another when there was the ability to engage in actual conversation before this stilted interweb bollox?

        • Elizabeth FOY 2.1.1.2
          28 September 2014 at 10:58 pm

          The written word may be dying – it just gets harder to take people seriously when they have a silent (or is it non-violence) A-E-I-O-U …. not that I have even been credited with great spelling – but I’ve also not taken a vow to be non-violent (its just I have been raised in a time when manners were more important than vowels)…LOL

  3. Disraeli Gladstone 3
    27 September 2014 at 10:32 am

    It was creepy behaviour from Farrar. But to compare it with what Paula Bennett did really does a disservice to how unbelievably unethical Bennett acted when releasing private information for her own gain.

  4. quartz 4
    27 September 2014 at 10:37 am

    Farrar’s still up to his neck in dirty politics. Someone says something that contradicts his paymasters? He trawls through their facebook (or the research unit does) and uses it to have a crack at them.

    The lesson he is trying to teach people is don’t even tangentially criticise his masters or your personal/social life is fair game. As is the reputation of any journalist who carries a story his masters don’t like.

    The irony is when someone points out his dodgy behaviour he starts to cry about he’s the victim.

    He’d do well to remember that those who live by the sword die by the sword.

    • ghostwhowalksnz 4.1
      27 September 2014 at 11:04 am

      Farrar and the research unit are one and the same. Thats where he started for national, before he moved to parliament to work alongside Eade.
      Still connected to their ‘opposition research unit’ as this sort of story shows.

      Someone should dig out the council floorplans of his building where he works and look at the names on the wall in the lift lobby. Could there be a office area with no listed tenant but a ‘hive of activity’

  5. waikatosinger 5
    27 September 2014 at 11:02 am

    This is a bit over the top. You pick a minor nit with one of Farrar’s articles and work yourself into a frothing fit over it. Farrar actually seems like the sweet voice of reason by comparison.

    [lprent: You mean like Farrar does? Perhaps you should talk to him… ]

    • ghostwhowalksnz 5.1
      27 September 2014 at 11:27 am

      “…responses on Twitter which highlight that this is repeated behaviour from Farrar,”

      You can retract now or have you another ‘minor nit’ to raise ?

  6. ghostwhowalksnz 6
    27 September 2014 at 11:09 am

    As the ‘Princess party’ part of Hagers book showed, we know why Farrar is interested in poor struggling female students.

    The vile Jimmy Savile at least raised millions for charity for further his own leacherous ends.

    • Higherstandard 6.1
      27 September 2014 at 11:39 am

      Pretty vile smear.

      • ghostwhowalksnz 6.1.1
        27 September 2014 at 4:29 pm

        “..well i was going to say i have cleared the field for you, given you the most likely targets and will get them drunk for you”

        So they were considered ‘targets’, I dont think he was thinking of getting them enrolled to vote’

    • TheContrarian 6.2
      27 September 2014 at 6:51 pm

      Wow, putting Farrar up there with one of worlds most notorious sex offenders and pedophiles.

      You fucking awful derelict.

      • adam 6.2.1
        27 September 2014 at 8:51 pm

        So you’re OK with sex offenders TheContrarian? It’s OK to publish details of young women on line, or have parties and get them drunk, to do sex with them?

        And your calling ghostwhowalksnz the derelict – that’s a bit rich don’t you think – or are you just another one of those RWNJ women haters?

        • TheContrarian 6.2.1.1
          27 September 2014 at 9:25 pm

          “So you’re OK with sex offenders TheContrarian? It’s OK to publish details of young women on line, or have parties and get them drunk, to do sex with them? ”

          Not one fucking part of that statement is true. You’re calling Farrar a sex offender. That is a very serious claim and not something one just lays down lightly. When Farrar is charged with a sex offence then we’ll go down that route.

          And “to do sex with them?” What are you, 10 fucking years old?

          • adam 6.2.1.1.1
            29 September 2014 at 2:39 pm

            Yeap thought you were a women hater, thanks TheContrarian – just wanted to make sure.

            I didn’t call Farrar anything, I asked if you supported it – and by your response it appears so.

        • Psycho Milt 6.2.1.2
          27 September 2014 at 9:44 pm

          Dunno about you Adam, but when I were a lad we absolutely did think it was OK to have parties at which young women would (we hoped) get drunk enough to do sex with us. We were often disappointed at just how astonishingly drunk a young woman could get without finding herself wanting to do sex with us, but hope springs eternal in the human breast…

          • Murray Olsen 6.2.1.2.1
            28 September 2014 at 3:15 am

            Which governing party were you running these parties on behalf of, PM? We all did shit when we were young, except probably for Farrar and his mates, but we learned. When we grew up and participated in adult organisations, we did not carry on that behaviour.

          • adam 6.2.1.2.2
            29 September 2014 at 2:43 pm

            You really could not get laid without booze Psycho Milt? Wow, sorry for you – that is just sad. And, one of the lamest stories I’ve ever heard. I hope you grew up and became a real man.

  7. aerobubble 7
    27 September 2014 at 11:45 am

    the right is not just hooten, boag, farrer, slater, these commentors all are neo-liberals, they have the same values. And thats the problem. The right only lets one view of conservatism, revolutionary conservatism.

    The editors actively choose these people and deny the right the same disunity we see in the left. Its nothing less than state sanction censorship.

    • Sacha 7.1
      27 September 2014 at 6:20 pm

      Genuine conservatives don’t get a look-in. Must feel uncomfortable about at least some of the stuff we have heard about dirty politics. Where are their values at?

      • adam 7.1.1
        27 September 2014 at 8:52 pm

        I’m also pretty sure, most of the libertarians on the right – are feeling stab in the back right about now.

        • aerobubble 7.1.1.1
          29 September 2014 at 2:30 pm

          Weed party gets more votes than United future. Its a complete joke to have Dunne as a minister in every government, no matter what hue.

  8. Psycho Milt 8
    27 September 2014 at 11:57 am

    We’ve seen this before, of course, with Paula Bennett unashamedly releasing the personal details of beneficiaries who criticised her ill-judged, mean-spirited decision to cut the Training Incentive Allowance.

    And that certainly was pretty appalling. However, looking somebody up on Facebook is not “releasing personal details,” it’s “looking somebody up on Facebook.”

  9. infused 9
    27 September 2014 at 12:59 pm

    Well, I don’t buy that shit about being a student either. I was one from 2000-2003. I was denied the free allowance, whatever that was called, so could only pull $150 a week, which i had to pay back.

    I got a part time job at burger king, which paid fuck all.

    I lived in a flat with 5 other people. Was pretty grubby. There were some very poor weeks, but that was mostly due to me buying piss.

    Not once did I ever visit winz though. I don’t understand what’s so hard.

    It’s good going through a tough time like this imo, gives a lot of perspective later on in life.

    • Tom Gould 9.1
      27 September 2014 at 1:15 pm

      Ah, so poverty is character building? Interesting. What does extreme wealth do to the character, then?

      • Richies McClaw 9.1.1
        27 September 2014 at 1:51 pm

        Extreme wealth is the result of good character. People who are extremely wealthy are always nice people who worked hard to get where they are. There is not one single example of an extremely wealthy person having bad character.

        • SPC 9.1.1.1
          27 September 2014 at 3:56 pm

          I suppose you have little knowledge of the eugenics movement in the USA and its relationship to US support for the German regime in the 1930’s.

        • KJT 9.1.1.2
          28 September 2014 at 9:09 am

          “Wealthy people are all extremely hard working, entrepreneurs who got their wealth through effort and sacrifice”.

          That’s why you see so many on the Golf course. Very hard work, Golf!

          “Wealthy people are job creators who make new businesses and create employment”.

          In fact research has shown that less than 3% of the wealthy in the USA gained their wealth through entrepreneurship and even less invest in new businesses and job creating industries.
          Preferring instead to invest in existing assets, especially tax payer started ones, or join each other in bidding up the prices of financial instruments.

          Most inherited their wealth.

          Which is why capitalism needs redistribution, socialism, to work.

      • mac1 9.1.2
        27 September 2014 at 1:58 pm

        And Jesus said to His disciples, “Truly I say to you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” Matthew Ch19.

        • Richies McClaw 9.1.2.1
          27 September 2014 at 2:08 pm

          Why are you citing a totalitarian communist?

          • mac1 9.1.2.1.1
            27 September 2014 at 3:03 pm

            Ah, the Left have all the good lines………………… and the good songs.

            • Richies McClaw 9.1.2.1.1.1
              27 September 2014 at 4:20 pm

              To be fair, the right have Ted Nugent….

              • lprent …
                27 September 2014 at 4:54 pm

                Braindead Headbanger (the two things are definitely interconnected).

                He did crap dumb music when I was young and it doesn’t seem like his limited intellectual abilities survived the experience.

                • Psycho Milt …
                  27 September 2014 at 9:48 pm

                  I recall an interview with Steve Jones in which he banged out a few fave Sex Pistols riffs and disclaimed any particular talent, saying that without the others it just sounded like fucking Ted Nugent. A wise oik, is Steve.

    • SPC 9.2
      27 September 2014 at 2:30 pm

      When you say you worked 2000-2003 and were paid little, you were right. The current government learnt how to be cheap with MW increases from the 1990-1999 government.

    • David H 9.3
      28 September 2014 at 1:21 am

      IN 2000-2003 the $150.00 was the living allowance. Your fees were paid and they gave you the living allowance and yes you have to pay it back. But in 2k3 jobs esp part time were easy to get,

      And if you went to WINZ they would laugh at you, or have you arrested for attempted benefit fraud. Because you were on a living allowance.

      And the so called free money, wasn’t free, you paid for it in your compulsory student fees!

      http://www.msd.govt.nz/about-msd-and-our-work/publications-resources/statistics/statistical-report/statistical-report-2008/students/student-loans.html

      I know this is 2k8 but still pretty much unchanged from 2k3

      I did the Student thing in Dunedin best time ever

  10. Treetop 10
    27 September 2014 at 1:21 pm

    I’d like to know if Farrar thinks that a birthday gift of money or a stocking filler sould be used to buy food?

  11. Delia 11
    27 September 2014 at 2:22 pm

    How about we just ignore him and his bunch of merry followers and hopefully he will just go away.

  12. Del Griffith 12
    27 September 2014 at 2:47 pm

    Looking up someone on Facebook who decides to put themselves in the public eye is not creepy, particularly given that one of the women openly admitted on Facebook that the press blew the article all out of proportion a fact the author of this post chose to leave out.

    Some of you might do well do reflect on the election result and the mood of the nation at the moment. It appears that the “beneficiaries can do no wrong ” meme you are pushing is out of step and if someone expects the rest of us to give them a helping hand they should respect that there are limits to what they can expect of us.

    • Stephanie Rodgers 12.1
      27 September 2014 at 2:49 pm

      Students aren’t even beneficiaries, so … go away, astroturfer.

      • Del Griffith 12.1.1
        27 September 2014 at 3:31 pm

        I don’t know what an astroturfer is but if you want to avoid my points and argue semantics instead I think you learned nothing from last weekend.

        • Sacha 12.1.1.1
          27 September 2014 at 8:12 pm

          gosh, you’re awfully persistent

        • Psycho Milt 12.1.1.2
          27 September 2014 at 9:53 pm

          I don’t know what an astroturfer is…

          So, if I understand this correctly, ignorance is a point of pride with you, but you nevertheless hope to write persuasive comments on people’s blogs? That would require not merely ignorance, but stupidity, which is why the post author is doing you the courtesy of assuming you’re an astroturfer.

    • Tigger 12.2
      27 September 2014 at 2:57 pm

      Our nation’s mood has been twisted by creeps like Farrar so it’s not a reliable gauge.

      And Farrar is not an investigative journalist. He is a hired National Party apologist. So yep, it’s creepy.

      • Del Griffith 12.2.1
        27 September 2014 at 3:37 pm

        “Our nation’s mood has been twisted by creeps like Farrar so it’s not a reliable gauge.

        And Farrar is not an investigative journalist. He is a hired National Party apologist. So yep, it’s creepy”

        its a stretch to say the entire nation has been hoodwinked by the likes of Slater and Farrer, why hasn’t it been twisted by the likes of Bradbury and Mickey Savage? You would scoff at that kind of heavy handed remark if the election had gone the other way and someone claimed the countries collective mind had been twisted by [insert name of respected left wing blogger here] and I’m doing the same to you.
        Its odd that the left have been left behind to such a degree by social media when they are usually the first to embrace new ideas.

        Who said he was an investigative journalist? All he had to do was google the names and thats all he appears to have done.

        • SPC 12.2.1.1
          27 September 2014 at 3:42 pm

          You cannot have it both ways, say that there is a left wing as well as right wing presence in the social media and then that the left is being left behind by the right in this medium.

        • lprent 12.2.1.2
          27 September 2014 at 3:52 pm

          Social media is a two edged sword. You have to respect it or you get #dirtypolitics. We don’t do it so we don’t get a book written about us in the way that Slater / Farrar / Odgen / Hooton / Ed / Collins / Key / Williams etc have

          • Psycho Milt 12.2.1.2.1
            27 September 2014 at 10:00 pm

            We don’t do it so we don’t get a book written about us in the way that Slater / Farrar / Odgen / Hooton / Ed / Collins / Key / Williams etc have

            The currently-favoured right-wing view (depressingly iterated on my own blog) is that this merely demonstrates that no-one has hacked into your messaging accounts (yet), and were someone to do so, the vicious conspiracies thereby uncovered would make Slater et al look… well, that’s the funny thing – it would apparently make them look no worse than the vile smear campaigners of The Standard (a “nest of vipers” being a direct quote), which is an odd recommendation for a Slater enthusiast to make if you ask me.

            • lprent 12.2.1.2.1.1
              27 September 2014 at 11:21 pm

              Ha! We don’t do that kind of stuff. Definitely not the paid attacks on civilians. There is a bit of authors attacking their internal dislikes in the left parties. But it is outweighed by having a diversity of opinion as you can see now.

              This is a collective made up of everything from myself (and politically I am right of most of the party and MPs) to Mike Smith (who is a the classic beltway insider) to more radical greens and lefties (both old school and internet generations, party and non party (hi Karol)) with an anarchist on the side (hi Bill).

              Any attempt to coerce or manipulate them is liable to give cause a tearing of anyones body parts. I certainly don’t try it. We cooperate. We don’t have to like each others ideas.

              Over the last year, we have managed to get Labour to release stuff to us about the same time that they do to the journos most of the time. The Greens are more consistent at present via email. Good thing too as we seem to have lost their RSS feed again. All of them are still getting chastised by me periodically about not having the links to to the deeper information that we can inform opinion from. Press releases have about as much information in them as reading a dry turd.

              I’m testing mechanisms to disperse that internally to authors.

              That is about it. The rest of it tends to be from twitter, facebook, blogs, and other media. We argue our own impressions.

              Pretty much the same at the daily blog apart from Bombers line into the the IMP.

          • politikiwi 12.2.1.2.2
            27 September 2014 at 11:18 pm

            “We don’t do it so we don’t get a book written about us in the way that Slater / Farrar / Odgen / Hooton / Ed / Collins / Key / Williams etc have”

            I hope that’s not the only reason…!

        • Disraeli Gladstone 12.2.1.3
          27 September 2014 at 4:03 pm

          “its a stretch to say the entire nation has been hoodwinked by the likes of Slater and Farrer, why hasn’t it been twisted by the likes of Bradbury and Mickey Savage?”

          Because Bradbury is an idiot and couldn’t hoodwink a paper bag, quite frankly.

          • ghostwhowalksnz 12.2.1.3.1
            27 September 2014 at 6:13 pm

            Too dangerous to appear on The Panel ?

            But of course Princess Farrar gets invited to all the best parties

        • Huginn 12.2.1.4
          27 September 2014 at 4:03 pm

          The difference between Slater and Mickley Savage & Bradbury?

          Judith Collins Slater & Odgers Mark Hotchin ; The Russian Mafia; money laundering for organised crime

          Now stop being so naive

      • ghostwhowalksnz 12.2.2
        27 September 2014 at 4:23 pm

        yeah a 47 year old unmarried man trolls through facebook pages of young female students.

        Nothing to see here people !

  13. Lucy 13
    27 September 2014 at 3:57 pm

    I would have thought that the fact that he thinks its OK to go through someone’s facebook page while not their friend gives an indication of what type of mind set he has. Its nasty and stalky and definitely not journalism – equivalent to going through peoples rubbish bins in a previous time.
    When I was on my tech student association people could ask for help and each case was determined on need. Some gave money back when they were in a position to do so.
    Anyway student associations are not compulsory (thanks to this Government) so if you are a student who does not agree with hardship grants just don’t to join. But shut up when people who are more compassionate than you help!

    • ghostwhowalksnz 13.1
      27 September 2014 at 6:05 pm

      Farrar runs the Stasi operation for national- indexes of all the enemies no matter how insignificant.

      Filed, indexed, and stored in a database.

      • One Anonymous Bloke 13.1.1
        27 September 2014 at 6:08 pm

        Imagine the fun when all his bases are belong to us.

        • ghostwhowalksnz 13.1.1.1
          27 September 2014 at 6:17 pm

          A good location for rawshark to run his password cracker.

          After all its all in plain sight as Slater said. ( in reality he had to spend money to get computer gurus to read ‘the data’ as it was in backup format)

          • infused 13.1.1.1.1
            27 September 2014 at 6:57 pm

            No it wasn’t. It was sql data in zip format. Don’t need to pay anyone to read that.

            • ghostwhowalksnz 13.1.1.1.1.1
              28 September 2014 at 12:55 pm

              How do you know that. Plus Slater doesnt have software and in depth data skills to reverse engineer that.
              eg zip is easy only if it says .zip and sql data in its raw format could be anything ( and sometimes version number or ‘flavour’ counts)

              Rawshark files have Oily Orca discussing payment for work on labours data

  14. Murray Olsen 14
    28 September 2014 at 3:03 am

    From Kiwibog: “I’ve had a look through the Facebook pages of Lauren and Karn. They both seem very cool friendly people, and in no way are they political activists for a cause.”

    An excellent reason to keep your Facebook account private. I wouldn’t want Jimmy Saville looking at photos of my kids, not even someone who just thinks it’s funny to pretend to be him.

  15. Eliza 15
    29 September 2014 at 10:32 am

    He is a bit of a leech, I’m friends with a young Nat on Facebook, she’s 21 years old and very youthful looking. The other day she posted “Wind = 1. “Name retracted’s” skirt = 0. He replied almost straight away saying “God bless the wind :)”

  16. Dramaticus 16
    30 September 2014 at 1:39 pm

    David Farrar is a right wing opinionated twerp who is so far into John Key that he can even replace Keys mouth on national television, quite amazing to see that occur
    No matter what his credentials he is just another of these pseudos who has never had his mouth shut when a bit of fear in his direction may help ensure that that could happen
    He speaks with all the gaul of someone who has never really done anything to help his fellow man A classic waste of space
    Its time to go back to a real job if I can find one or maybe I could encourage Farrar to do the same

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    IN THE CURRENT MIX of electoral alternatives, there is no longer a credible left-wing party. Not when “a credible left-wing party” is defined as: a class-oriented, mass-based, democratically-structured political organisation; dedicated to promoting ideas sharply critical of laissez-faire capitalism; and committed to advancing democratic, egalitarian and emancipatory ideals across the ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    2 days ago

  • Road rage at Kia Kaha Primary School
    It is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha Primary School!It can be any time when you are telling a story.Telling stories about things that happened in the past is how we learn from our mistakes.If we want to.Anyway, it is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago

  • Road rage at Kia Kaha Primary School
    It is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha Primary School!It can be any time when you are telling a story.Telling stories about things that happened in the past is how we learn from our mistakes.If we want to.Anyway, it is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago

  • Road rage at Kia Kaha Primary School
    It is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha Primary School!It can be any time when you are telling a story.Telling stories about things that happened in the past is how we learn from our mistakes.If we want to.Anyway, it is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha ...
    More than a fieldingBy David Slack
    2 days ago

  • Hipkins fires up in leaders’ debate, but has the curtain already fallen on the Labour-led coalitio...
    Labour’s  Chris Hipkins came out firing, in the  leaders’ debate  on Newshub’s evening programme, and most of  the pundits  rated  him the winner against National’s  Christopher Luxon. But will this make any difference when New  Zealanders  start casting their ballots? The problem  for  Hipkins is  that  voters are  all too ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    2 days ago

  • Govt is energising housing projects with solar power – and fuelling the public’s concept of a di...
    Buzz from the Beehive  Not long after Point of Order published data which show the substantial number of New Zealanders (77%) who believe NZ is becoming more divided, government ministers were braying about a programme which distributes some money to “the public” and some to “Maori”. The ministers were dishing ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    2 days ago

  • MIKE GRIMSHAW: Election 2023 – a totemic & charisma failure?
    The D&W analysis Michael Grimshaw writes –  Given the apathy, disengagement, disillusionment, and all-round ennui of this year’s general election, it was considered time to bring in those noted political operatives and spin doctors D&W, the long-established consultancy firm run by Emile Durkheim and Max Weber. Known for ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago

  • FROM BFD: Will Winston be the spectre we think?
    Kissy kissy. Cartoon credit BoomSlang. The BFD. JC writes-  Allow me to preface this contribution with the following statement: If I were asked to express a preference between a National/ACT coalition or a National/ACT/NZF coalition then it would be the former. This week Luxon declared his position, ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago

  • California’s climate disclosure bill could have a huge impact across the U.S.
    This re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Andy Furillo was originally published by Capital & Main and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. The California Legislature took a step last week that has the potential to accelerate the fight against climate ...
    Skeptical Science
    2 days ago

  • Untangling South East Queensland’s Public Transport
    This is a cross post Adventures in Transitland by Darren Davis. I recently visited Brisbane and South East Queensland and came away both impressed while also pondering some key changes to make public transport even better in the region. Here goes with my take on things. A bit of ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    2 days ago

  • Try A Little Kindness.
    My daughter arrived home from the supermarket yesterday and she seemed a bit worried about something. It turned out she wanted to know if someone could get her bank number from a receipt.We wound the story back.She was in the store and there was a man there who was distressed, ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 days ago

  • What makes NZFirst tick
    New Zealand’s longest-running political roadshow rolled into Opotiki yesterday, with New Zealand First leader Winston Peters knowing another poll last night showed he would make it back to Parliament and National would need him and his party if they wanted to form a government. The Newshub Reid Research poll ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    2 days ago

  • September AMA
    Hi,As September draws to a close — I feel it’s probably time to do an Ask Me Anything. You know how it goes: If you have any burning questions, fire away in the comments and I will do my best to answer. You might have questions about Webworm, or podcast ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    2 days ago

  • Bludgers lying in the scratcher making fools of us all
    The mediocrity who stands to be a Prime Minister has a litany.He uses it a bit like a Koru Lounge card. He will brandish it to say: these people are eligible. And more than that, too: These people are deserving. They have earned this policy.They have a right to this policy. What ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago

  • More “partnerships” (by the look of it) and redress of over $30 million in Treaty settlement wit...
    Buzz from the Beehive Point of Order has waited until now – 3.45pm – for today’s officially posted government announcements.  There have been none. The only addition to the news on the Beehive’s website was posted later yesterday, after we had published our September 26 Buzz report. It came from ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago

  • ALEX HOLLAND: Labour’s spending
    Alex Holland writes –  In 2017 when Labour came to power, crown spending was $76 billion per year. Now in 2023 it is $139 billion per year, which equates to a $63 billion annual increase (over $1 billion extra spend every week!) In 2017, New Zealand’s government debt ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago

  • If not now, then when?
    Labour released its fiscal plan today, promising the same old, same old: "responsibility", balanced books, and of course no new taxes: "Labour will maintain income tax settings to provide consistency and certainty in these volatile times. Now is not the time for additional taxes or to promise billions of ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago

  • THE FACTS:  77% of Kiwis believe NZ is becoming more divided
    The Facts has posted –        KEY INSIGHTSOf New Zealander’s polled: Social unity/division 77%believe NZ is becoming more divided (42% ‘much more’ + 35% ‘a little more’) 3%believe NZ is becoming less divided (1% ‘much less’ + 2% ‘a little less’) ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago

  • Gordon Campbell on the cynical brutality of the centre-right’s welfare policies
    The centre-right’s enthusiasm for forcing people off the benefit and into paid work is matched only by the enthusiasm (shared by Treasury and the Reserve Bank) for throwing people out of paid work to curb inflation, and achieve the optimal balance of workers to job seekers deemed to be desirable ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    3 days ago

  • Wednesday’s Chorus: Arthur Grimes on why building many, many more social houses is so critical
    New research shows that tenants in social housing - such as these Wellington apartments - are just as happy as home owners and much happier than private tenants. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The election campaign took an ugly turn yesterday, and in completely the wrong direction. All three ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago

  • Old habits
    Media awareness about global warming and climate change has grown fairly steadily since 2004. My impression is that journalists today tend to possess a higher climate literacy than before. This increasing awareness and improved knowledge is encouraging, but there are also some common interpretations which could be more nuanced. ...
    Real ClimateBy rasmus
    3 days ago

  • Bennie Bashing.
    If there’s one thing the mob loves more than keeping Māori in their place, more than getting tough on the gangs, maybe even more than tax cuts. It’s a good old round of beneficiary bashing.Are those meanies in the ACT party stealing your votes because they think David Seymour is ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago

  • The kindest cuts
    Labour kicks off the fiscal credibility battle today with the release of its fiscal plan. National is expected to follow, possibly as soon as Thursday, with its own plan, which may (or may not) address the large hole that the problems with its foreign buyers’ ban might open up. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    3 days ago

  • Green right turn in Britain? Well, a start
    While it may be unlikely to register in New Zealand’s general election, Britain’s PM Rishi Sunak has done something which might just be important in the long run. He’s announced a far-reaching change in his Conservative government’s approach to environmental, and particularly net zero, policy. The starting point – ...
    Point of OrderBy xtrdnry
    3 days ago

  • At a glance – How do human CO2 emissions compare to natural CO2 emissions?
    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
    3 days ago

  • How could this happen?
    Canada is in uproar after the exposure that its parliament on September 22 provided a standing ovation to a Nazi veteran who had been invited into the chamber to participate in the parliamentary welcome to Ukrainian President Zelensky. Yaroslav Hunka, 98, a Ukrainian man who volunteered for service in ...
    Open ParachuteBy Ken
    4 days ago

  • Always Be Campaigning
    The big screen is a great place to lay out the ways of the salesman. He comes ready-made for Panto, ripe for lampooning.This is not to disparage that life. I have known many good people of that kind. But there is a type, brazen as all get out. The camera ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 days ago

  • STEPHEN FRANKS: Press seek to publicly shame doctor – we must push back
    The following is a message sent yesterday from lawyer Stephen Franks on behalf of the Free Speech Union. I don’t like to interrupt first thing Monday morning, but we’ve just become aware of a case where we think immediate and overwhelming attention could help turn the tide. It involves someone ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago

  • Competing on cruelty
    The right-wing message calendar is clearly reading "cruelty" today, because both National and NZ First have released beneficiary-bashing policies. National is promising a "traffic light" system to police and kick beneficiaries, which will no doubt be accompanied by arbitrary internal targets to classify people as "orange" or "red" to keep ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago

  • Further funding for Pharmac (forgotten in the Budget?) looks like a $1bn appeal from a PM in need of...
    Buzz from the Beehive One Labour plan  – for 3000 more public homes by 2025 – is the most recent to be posted on the government’s official website. Another – a prime ministerial promise of more funding for Pharmac – has been released as a Labour Party press statement. Who ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago

  • Bryce Edwards: The Vested interests shaping National Party policies
    As the National Party gets closer to government, lobbyists and business interests will be lining up for influence and to get policies adopted. It’s therefore in the public interest to have much more scrutiny and transparency about potential conflicts of interests that might arise. One of the key individuals of ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    4 days ago

  • Labour may be on way out of power and NZ First back in – but will Peters go into coalition with Na...
    Voters  are deserting Labour in droves, despite Chris  Hipkins’  valiant  rearguard  action.  So  where  are they  heading?  Clearly  not all of them are going to vote National, which concedes that  the  outcome  will be “close”. To the Right of National, the ACT party just a  few weeks  ago  was ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    4 days ago

  • GRAHAM ADAMS: Will the racists please stand up?
    Accusations of racism by journalists and MPs are being called out. Graham Adams writes –    With the election less than three weeks away, what co-governance means in practice — including in water management, education, planning law and local government — remains largely obscure. Which is hardly ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago

  • Gordon Campbell on whether Winston Peters can be a moderating influence
    As the centre-right has (finally!) been subjected to media interrogation, the polls are indicating that some voters may be starting to have second thoughts about the wisdom of giving National and ACT the power to govern alone. That’s why yesterday’s Newshub/Reid Research poll had the National/ACT combo dropping to 60 ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    4 days ago

  • Tuesday’s Chorus: RBNZ set to rain on National's victory parade
    ANZ has increased its forecast for house inflation later this year on signs of growing momentum in the market ahead of the election. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: National has campaigned against the Labour Government’s record on inflation and mortgage rates, but there’s now a growing chance the Reserve ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago

  • After a Pittsburgh coal processing plant closed, ER visits plummeted
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Katie Myers. This story was originally published by Grist and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. Pittsburgh, in its founding, was blessed and cursed with two abundant natural resources: free-flowing rivers and a nearby coal seam. ...
    Skeptical Science
    4 days ago

  • September-23 AT Board Meeting
    Today the AT board meet again and once again I’ve taken a look at what’s on the agenda to find the most interesting items. Closed Agenda Interestingly when I first looked at the agendas this paper was there but at the time of writing this post it had been ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    4 days ago

  • Electorate Watch: West Coast-Tasman
    Continuing my series on interesting electorates, today it’s West Coast-Tasman.A long thin electorate running down the northern half of the west coast of the South Island. Think sand flies, beautiful landscapes, lots of rain, Pike River, alternative lifestylers, whitebaiting, and the spiritual home of the Labour Party. A brief word ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago

  • Big money brings Winston back
    National leader Christopher Luxon yesterday morning conceded it and last night’s Newshub poll confirmed it; Winston Peters and NZ First are not only back but highly likely to be part of the next government. It is a remarkable comeback for a party that was tossed out of Parliament in ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    4 days ago

  • 20 days until Election Day, 7 until early voting begins… but what changes will we really see here?
    As this blogger, alongside many others, has already posited in another forum: we all know the National Party’s “budget” (meaning this concept of even adding up numbers properly is doing a lot of heavy, heavy lifting right now) is utter and complete bunk (read hung, drawn and quartered and ...
    exhALANtBy exhalantblog
    4 days ago

  • A night out
    Everyone was asking, Are you nervous? and my response was various forms of God, yes.I've written more speeches than I can count; not much surprises me when the speaker gets to their feet and the room goes quiet.But a play? Never.YOU CAME! THANK YOU! Read more ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 days ago

  • A pallid shade of Green III
    Clearly Labour's focus groups are telling it that it needs to pay more attention to climate change - because hot on the heels of their weaksauce energy efficiency pilot programme and not-great-but-better-than-nothing solar grants, they've released a full climate manifesto. Unfortunately, the core policies in it - a second Emissions ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago

  • A coalition of racism, cruelty, and chaos
    Today's big political news is that after months of wibbling, National's Chris Luxon has finally confirmed that he is willing to work with Winston Peters to become Prime Minister. Which is expected, but I guess it tells us something about which way the polls are going. Which raises the question: ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago

  • More migrant workers should help generate the tax income needed to provide benefits for job seekers
    Buzz from the Beehive Under something described as a “rebalance” of its immigration rules, the Government has adopted four of five recommendations made in an independent review released in July, The fifth, which called on the government to specify criteria for out-of-hours compliance visits similar to those used during ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago

  • Letter To Luxon.
    Some of you might know Gerard Otto (G), and his G News platform. This morning he wrote a letter to Christopher Luxon which I particularly enjoyed, and with his agreement I’m sharing it with you in this guest newsletter.If you’d like to make a contribution to support Gerard’s work you ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago

  • LINDSAY MITCHELL: Alarming trend in benefit numbers
    Lindsay Mitchell writes –  While there will not be another quarterly release of benefit numbers prior to the election, limited weekly reporting continues and is showing an alarming trend. Because there is a seasonal component to benefit number fluctuations it is crucial to compare like with like. In ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago

  • BRIAN EASTON: Has there been external structural change?
    A close analysis of the Treasury assessment of the Medium Term in its PREFU 2023 suggests the economy may be entering a new phase.   Brian Easton writes –  Last week I explained that the forecasts in the just published Treasury Pre-election Economic and Fiscal Update (PREFU 2023) was ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago

  • CRL Progress – Sep-23
    It’s been a while since we looked at the latest with the City Rail Link and there’s been some fantastic milestones recently. To start with, and most recently, CRL have released an awesome video showing a full fly-through of one of the tunnels. Come fly with us! You asked for ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    5 days ago

  • Monday’s Chorus: Not building nearly enough
    We are heading into another period of fast population growth without matching increased home building or infrastructure investment.Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Labour and National detailed their house building and migration approaches over the weekend, with both pledging fast population growth policies without enough house building or infrastructure investment ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago

  • Game on; Hipkins comes out punching
    Labour leader Chris Hipkins yesterday took the gloves off and laid into National and its leader Christopher Luxon. For many in Labour – and particularly for some at the top of the caucus and the party — it would not have been a moment too soon. POLITIK is aware ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago

  • Tax Cut Austerity Blues.
    The leaders have had their go, they’ve told us the “what?” and the “why?” of their promises. Now it’s the turn of the would be Finance Ministers to tell us the “how?”, the “how much?”, and the “when?”A chance for those competing for the second most powerful job in the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    6 days ago

  • MIKE GRIMSHAW:  It’s the economy – and the spirit – Stupid…
    Mike Grimshaw writes – Over the past 30-odd years it’s become almost an orthodoxy to blame or invoke neoliberalism for the failures of New Zealand society. On the left the usual response goes something like, neoliberalism is the cause of everything that’s gone wrong and the answer ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago

  • 2023 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #38
    A chronological listing of news and opinion articles posted on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Sep 17, 2023 thru Sat, Sep 23, 2023. Story of the Week  Opinion: Let’s free ourselves from the story of economic growth A relentless focus on economic growth has ushered in ...
    Skeptical Science
    6 days ago

  • The End Of The World.
    Have you been looking out of your window for signs of the apocalypse? Don’t worry, you haven’t been door knocked by a representative of the Brian Tamaki party. They’re probably a bit busy this morning spruiking salvation, or getting ready to march on our parliament, which is closed. No, I’ve ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    7 days ago

  • Climate Town: The Brainwashing Of America's Children
    Climate Town is the YouTube channel of Rollie Williams and a ragtag team of climate communicators, creatives and comedians. They examine climate change in a way that doesn’t make you want to eat a cyanide pill. Get informed about the climate crisis before the weather does it for you. The latest ...
    Skeptical Science
    1 week ago

  • Has There Been External Structural Change?
    A close analysis of the Treasury assessment of the Medium Term in its PREFU 2023 suggests the economy may be entering a new phase. Last week I explained that the forecasts in the just published Treasury Pre-election Economic and Fiscal Update (PREFU 2023) was similar to the May Budget BEFU, ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    1 week ago

  • Another Labour bully
    Back in June, we learned that Kiri Allan was a Parliamentary bully. And now there's another one: Labour MP Shanan Halbert: The Labour Party was alerted to concerns about [Halbert's] alleged behaviour a year ago but because staffers wanted to remain anonymous, no formal process was undertaken [...] The ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    1 week ago

  • Climate Change: Ignoring our biggest problem
    Its that time in the election season where the status quo parties are busy accusing each other of having fiscal holes in a desperate effort to appear more "responsible" (but not, you understand, by promising to tax wealth or land to give the government the revenue it needs to do ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    1 week ago

  • JERRY COYNE: A good summary of the mess that is science education in New Zealand
    JERRY COYNE writes –  If you want to see what the government of New Zealand is up to with respect to science education, you can’t do better than listening to this video/slideshow by two exponents of the “we-need-two-knowledge-systems” view. I’ve gotten a lot of scary stuff from Kiwi ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 week ago

  • Good news on the GDP front is accompanied by news of a $5m govt boost for Supercars (but what about ...
    Buzz from the Beehive First, we were treated to the news (from Finance Minister Grant Robertson) that the economy has turned a corner and New Zealand never was in recession.  This was triggered by statistics which showed the economy expanded 0.9 per cent in the June quarter, twice as much as ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 week ago

  • The Scafetta Saga
    It has taken 17 months to get a comment published pointing out the obvious errors in the Scafetta (2022) paper in GRL. Back in March 2022, Nicola Scafetta published a short paper in Geophysical Research Letters (GRL) purporting to show through ‘advanced’ means that ‘all models with ECS > ...
    Real ClimateBy Gavin
    1 week ago

  • Friday's Chorus: Penny wise and pound foolish
    TL;DR: In the middle of a climate emergency and in a city prone to earthquakes, Victoria University of Wellington announced yesterday it would stop teaching geophysics, geographic information science and physical geography to save $22 million a year and repay debt. Climate change damage in Aotearoa this year is already ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago

  • CHRIS TROTTER: Calling the big dog’s bluff
      For nearly thirty years the pundits have been telling the minor parties that they must be good little puppies and let the big dogs decide. The parties with a plurality of the votes cast must be allowed to govern – even if that means ignoring the ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 week ago

  • The electorate swing, Labour limbo and Luxon-Hipkins two-step
     Another poll, another 27 for Labour. It was July the last time one of the reputable TV company polls had Labour's poll percentage starting with a three, so the limbo question is now being asked: how low can you go?It seems such an unlikely question because this doesn't feel like the kind ...
    PunditBy Tim Watkin
    1 week ago

  • A Womance, and a Nomance.
    After the trench warfare of Tuesday night, when the two major parties went head to head, last night was the turn of the minor parties. Hosts Newshub termed it “the Powerbrokers' Debate”.Based on the latest polls the four parties taking part - ACT, the Greens, New Zealand First, and Te ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago

  • New community-level energy projects to support more than 800 Māori households
    Seven more innovative community-scale energy projects will receive government funding through the Māori and Public Housing Renewable Energy Fund to bring more affordable, locally generated clean energy to more than 800 Māori households, Energy and Resources Minister Dr Megan Woods says. “We’ve already funded 42 small-scale clean energy projects that ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Huge boost to Te Tai Tokerau flood resilience
    The Government has approved new funding that will boost resilience and greatly reduce the risk of major flood damage across Te Tai Tokerau. Significant weather events this year caused severe flooding and damage across the region. The $8.9m will be used to provide some of the smaller communities and maraes ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Napier’s largest public housing development comes with solar
    The largest public housing development in Napier for many years has been recently completed and has the added benefit of innovative solar technology, thanks to Government programmes, says Housing Minister Dr Megan Woods. The 24 warm, dry homes are in Seddon Crescent, Marewa and Megan Woods says the whanau living ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Te Whānau a Apanui and the Crown initial Deed of Settlement I Kua waitohua e Te Whānau a Apanui me...
    Māori: Kua waitohua e Te Whānau a Apanui me te Karauna te Whakaaetanga Whakataunga Kua waitohua e Te Whānau a Apanui me te Karauna i tētahi Whakaaetanga Whakataunga hei whakamihi i ō rātou tāhuhu kerēme Tiriti o Waitangi. E tekau mā rua ngā hapū o roto mai o Te Whānau ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Plan for 3,000 more public homes by 2025 – regions set to benefit
    Regions around the country will get significant boosts of public housing in the next two years, as outlined in the latest public housing plan update, released by the Housing Minister, Dr Megan Woods. “We’re delivering the most public homes each year since the Nash government of the 1950s with one ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago

  • Immigration settings updates
    Judicial warrant process for out-of-hours compliance visits 2023/24 Recognised Seasonal Employer cap increased by 500 Additional roles for Construction and Infrastructure Sector Agreement More roles added to Green List Three-month extension for onshore Recovery Visa holders The Government has confirmed a number of updates to immigration settings as part of ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Poroporoaki: Tā Patrick (Patu) Wahanga Hohepa
    Tangi ngunguru ana ngā tai ki te wahapū o Hokianga Whakapau Karakia. Tārehu ana ngā pae maunga ki Te Puna o te Ao Marama. Korihi tangi ana ngā manu, kua hinga he kauri nui ki te Wao Nui o Tāne. He Toa. He Pou. He Ahorangi. E papaki tū ana ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Renewable energy fund to support community resilience
    40 solar energy systems on community buildings in regions affected by Cyclone Gabrielle and other severe weather events Virtual capability-building hub to support community organisations get projects off the ground Boost for community-level renewable energy projects across the country At least 40 community buildings used to support the emergency response ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • COVID-19 funding returned to Government
    The lifting of COVID-19 isolation and mask mandates in August has resulted in a return of almost $50m in savings and recovered contingencies, Minister of Health Dr Ayesha Verrall announced today. Following the revocation of mandates and isolation, specialised COVID-19 telehealth and alternative isolation accommodation are among the operational elements ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Appointment of District Court Judge
    Susie Houghton of Auckland has been appointed as a new District Court Judge, to serve on the Family Court, Attorney-General David Parker said today.  Judge Houghton has acted as a lawyer for child for more than 20 years. She has acted on matters relating to the Hague Convention, an international ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Government invests further in Central Hawke’s Bay resilience
    The Government has today confirmed $2.5 million to fund a replace and upgrade a stopbank to protect the Waipawa Drinking Water Treatment Plant. “As a result of Cyclone Gabrielle, the original stopbank protecting the Waipawa Drinking Water Treatment Plant was destroyed. The plant was operational within 6 weeks of the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Govt boost for Hawke’s Bay cyclone waste clean-up
    Another $2.1 million to boost capacity to deal with waste left in Cyclone Gabrielle’s wake. Funds for Hastings District Council, Phoenix Contracting and Hog Fuel NZ to increase local waste-processing infrastructure. The Government is beefing up Hawke’s Bay’s Cyclone Gabrielle clean-up capacity with more support dealing with the massive amount ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Taupō Supercars revs up with Government support
    The future of Supercars events in New Zealand has been secured with new Government support. The Government is getting engines started through the Major Events Fund, a special fund to support high profile events in New Zealand that provide long-term economic, social and cultural benefits. “The Repco Supercars Championship is ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • There is no recession in NZ, economy grows nearly 1 percent in June quarter
    The economy has turned a corner with confirmation today New Zealand never was in recession and stronger than expected growth in the June quarter, Finance Minister Grant Robertson said. “The New Zealand economy is doing better than expected,” Grant Robertson said. “It’s continuing to grow, with the latest figures showing ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
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