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Postcards from the brighter future

Written By: - Date published: 10:58 am, June 1st, 2017 - 3 comments

Part of an occasional series. It all seems to be going according to plan.

Tax cuts and 1600 deaths per year

Written By: - Date published: 2:53 pm, May 31st, 2017 - 16 comments

One of the nasty little fishhooks in the budget was the cutting of the home insulation scheme (Warm Up New Zealand). The scheme had a benefit-cost ratio of $6 for every $1 invested. Around 1,600 people die in NZ a year of cold-related factors. Hope the tax cuts are worth it eh?

English on our low wage growth

Written By: - Date published: 9:38 am, May 30th, 2017 - 40 comments

Bill English knows that our low wage economy is a ticking time-bomb for the government. He must be starting to get worried. The repeated promises of jam tomorrow are well worn out now.

The Greens and voting on the Budget

Written By: - Date published: 6:45 am, May 29th, 2017 - 150 comments

Wondering about what the Greens are voting for? It might not be what you think.

Good news for landlords

Written By: - Date published: 7:19 am, May 28th, 2017 - 141 comments

How nice of the government to help out property investors.

White middle class male privilege

Written By: - Date published: 9:07 am, May 27th, 2017 - 19 comments

Rohan Lord this week pulled out from being a Labour candidate because he thought his prospects of being elected were remote because he was a white middle class male.  His comments displayed a complete lack of understanding of how the Labour Party works and ignores the fact that having a truly representative caucus is a virtue.

Campbell on the budget

Written By: - Date published: 7:05 am, May 27th, 2017 - 31 comments

Campbell: “As I asked Joyce at the Budget lockup: ‘What is to stop landlords from treating this increase as a green light to hike up rents?’ … In reply, Joyce said that the government would be ‘keeping an eye’ on landlords, to ensure they did not abuse the situation.”

NRT: A constitutional change

Written By: - Date published: 3:01 pm, May 26th, 2017 - 8 comments

I/S at No Right Turn writes: “The Court has ruled that the High Court was right to declare that National’s 2010 prisoner voting restrictions (the ones which were so shabby and shoddily passed that they brought Parliament into disrepute) were inconsistent with the Bill of Rights Act“

The three big fails in the budget

Written By: - Date published: 7:02 am, May 26th, 2017 - 72 comments

It was National’s best budget. Which means there are only three critical areas of failure.

Keith Ng’s four tax myths

Written By: - Date published: 7:31 am, May 25th, 2017 - 23 comments

A useful piece from Keith Ng on myths about tax. It’s an extract from The PSA’s “Progressive Thinking: Ten Perspectives on Tax” booklet.

Budget 2017 – general discussion post

Written By: - Date published: 6:04 am, May 25th, 2017 - 20 comments

Budget Day.

Tipping vs fair wages

Written By: - Date published: 9:46 am, May 24th, 2017 - 39 comments

I don’t know of a single piece written in support of Bennett’s proposal. She has been in the bubble too long, and lost touch with the values of NZ.

Pre budget positioning for a government that says it is “doing all it can”

Written By: - Date published: 1:37 pm, May 22nd, 2017 - 10 comments

National does the bare minimum that it thinks it can get away with for those in need. This positioning is just preparing the ground for a budget that does more the same not enough.

The other conference

Written By: - Date published: 7:05 am, May 18th, 2017 - 26 comments

Richard Harman on the Politik blog: “Overall, to use a favourite Government saying, it was an ‘untidy’ weekend capped by a flat speech from English which saw delegates ignore placards they’d been given to wave when he finished speaking.” The B-team is missing John Key.

Property speculator panic

Written By: - Date published: 12:26 pm, May 15th, 2017 - 128 comments

Labour has set the cat among the property speculator pigeons, and they don’t like it at all.

Still spinning “social investment”

Written By: - Date published: 10:04 am, May 7th, 2017 - 36 comments

Directing welfare spending where it will do most good makes sense. But let’s make sure that that is what it is, not an excuse to simply cut funding, stigmatise, and target “undesireables”. National’s record does not inspire confidence, to say the very least. Then there’s the hypocrisy…

Targeting deceased estates, divorcees and dummies

Written By: - Date published: 11:06 am, May 6th, 2017 - 30 comments

Good work by Lane Nichols in The Herald, a window into the minds of what we must hope is small subset of “property investors”.

NRT: Inflation and poverty

Written By: - Date published: 4:13 pm, May 4th, 2017 - 8 comments

I/S at No Right Turn writes: “The CPI is out today, and it shows that the poor are getting poorer … This is a long-term trend. Since National took office, inflation for poor households has been nearly twice that of rich households.”

Bill English doesn’t get it – literally doesn’t get it – how messed up the “Brighter Future” is

Written By: - Date published: 11:30 am, May 4th, 2017 - 55 comments

“There are approximately 92,700 Kiwis aged between 15 and 24 who aren’t working, in education or training. That’s up 19 percent during National’s time in power, and Prime Minister Bill English admits he’s not sure why.” Could it be because…

Pencilsword on renting

Written By: - Date published: 1:16 pm, April 29th, 2017 - 14 comments

Pencilsword does brilliant analysis and commentary in cartoon form. Go check out the latest on the invisible rental crisis…

Anzac Day

Written By: - Date published: 3:36 pm, April 26th, 2017 - 15 comments

Am I the only one who is upset, over mealy mouthed politicians making flowery speeches saying “We will remember them”

when they manifestly don’t.

The case for higher wages

Written By: - Date published: 7:01 am, April 26th, 2017 - 31 comments

In the warm afterglow of the huge wage increase for health care workers the case for addressing NZ’s creaking low-wage economy is getting some recognition (along with the effect of immigration on wages).

Thank you Charlie.

Written By: - Date published: 10:56 pm, April 24th, 2017 - 60 comments

I took myself along to Dunedin’s March for Science last Saturday. There was a high point.

A tin shed and a cup of cold Milo

Written By: - Date published: 11:10 am, April 24th, 2017 - 14 comments

Funny how the Nats can always find millions for vanity projects – and sweet FA for the homeless.

Left Rising.

Written By: - Date published: 2:49 pm, April 23rd, 2017 - 49 comments

In something over 24 hours time from now, the results from the first round of the French Presidential elections will be in.

RNZ: The 9th floor – Bolger

Written By: - Date published: 11:47 am, April 21st, 2017 - 12 comments

“He says neo-liberalism has failed and suggests unions should have a stronger voice. He says Treaty of Waitangi settlements may not be full and final and that Māori language tuition should be compulsory in primary schools.”

National’s short lived status as a supporter of pay equity

Written By: - Date published: 9:06 am, April 21st, 2017 - 25 comments

The day after Kristine Bartlett’s and the SFWU’s well deserved pay equity victory the Government has released for consultation draft legislation the effect of which would be to stop similar victories occurring in the future.

Missing voices

Written By: - Date published: 11:24 am, April 20th, 2017 - 39 comments

Former Trump supporter speaks Her Truth

 

Mental health needs vs. cuts

Written By: - Date published: 7:01 am, April 20th, 2017 - 25 comments

The People’s Mental Health Review report puts the deterioration of our mental health system firmly in the spotlight. Despite a 60 per cent increase in demand since 2007/08 National has been slashing funding. Lives are at risk.

Why National had to settle the Pay Equity case

Written By: - Date published: 10:19 am, April 19th, 2017 - 45 comments

National is trying to give the impression that it settled the pay equity case out of the goodness of its heart.  The reality is that the Unions forced it to settle through gritted teeth.

The United Airlines fiasco

Written By: - Date published: 2:05 pm, April 12th, 2017 - 29 comments

United Airlines in America has in the past few days provided a text book example of how a large corporation should not behave.

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