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National tacks right
Written By: - Date published: 3:35 pm, August 26th, 2019 - 44 comments
National has released its economic policies for the next 12 months and they have a decidedly backward feeling about them.
Should the Government spend massively more?
Written By: - Date published: 3:18 pm, August 8th, 2019 - 58 comments
With yesterday’s announcement by the Reserve Bank to cut interest rates by 1%, some are suggesting that the government should embark on a massive public works spree to stimulate the economy while increasing national debt at low interest rates. But Kiwisaver reform may be more effective.
Jacindamania
Written By: - Date published: 8:01 am, July 28th, 2019 - 138 comments
Despite the babies and the engagements, maybe it’s time to ditch the default Jacindamania.
About the CGT decision
Written By: - Date published: 8:06 am, April 18th, 2019 - 232 comments
With the benefit of hindsight the decision not to proceed with a capital gains tax was almost inevitable.
CGT Dumped
Written By: - Date published: 2:08 pm, April 17th, 2019 - 244 comments
The Government has announced that there will be no Capital Gains Tax. It’s a shame, but it’s good politics.
Support Tax Fairness Reform
Written By: - Date published: 12:15 pm, April 9th, 2019 - 16 comments
The Tax Justice Network has started a campaign to gain support for taxing capital as income to support and improve our public services. If you would like to support the campaign, you can sign the petition here or donate here. All funds donated will go to the campaign advertising.
Astroturf organisation accuses Tax Justice Aotearoa of being an astroturf organisation
Written By: - Date published: 12:13 pm, April 8th, 2019 - 18 comments
The Taxpayer’s Union (not a real union) has hit peak irony by accusing another organisation of being an astroturf organisation.
Tax Justice Aotearoa starts campaign in support of CGT
Written By: - Date published: 7:46 am, April 8th, 2019 - 168 comments
Tax Justice Aotearoa has started a public campaign in support of a capital gains tax.
We need more than capital gains tax to address inequality
Written By: - Date published: 2:41 pm, March 25th, 2019 - 46 comments
The most important comment in the Tax Working Group’s Final Report is that even the reasonably comprehensive capital gains tax proposed is likely to have only a minor impact on addressing inequality — what is needed is a more progressive income tax system that lifts the top marginal tax rate
Landlord advocates threatening rent increases if Labour wins next election
Written By: - Date published: 8:05 am, March 11th, 2019 - 288 comments
A landlord has advocated that all landlords should threaten to increase tenant’s rentals if Labour wins the next election.
The tax debate – Dogwhistle time
Written By: - Date published: 8:07 am, March 7th, 2019 - 111 comments
National has resorted to race baiting in its attempt to denigrate the Tax Working Group’s proposed capital gains tax.
National’s Tax review strategy
Written By: - Date published: 11:22 am, March 5th, 2019 - 107 comments
The Government is not due to announce its response to the Tax Working Group’s recommendations for a few more weeks. It appears that National using outrageous assumptions will take the opportunity to raise horror stories in the media on how bad the tax could be.
MAFS National Style*
Written By: - Date published: 10:32 am, March 3rd, 2019 - 61 comments
National is grooming the voters for another dirty ACT.
Lies damn lies and tax analysis
Written By: - Date published: 1:21 pm, March 2nd, 2019 - 67 comments
National’s claim that a capital gains tax would reduce the value of an average worker’s Kiwisaver account by $64,000 over a 45 year working life seems to be as valid as Steven Joyce’s claim there was an $11.5 billion dollar hole in Labour’s draft budget.
CGT as a Charitable Donation
Written By: - Date published: 12:44 pm, March 2nd, 2019 - 31 comments
Treat CGT like a semi-voluntary donation and give people a say in how it is spent.
Why New Zealand needs a capital gains tax
Written By: - Date published: 9:16 am, February 27th, 2019 - 249 comments
Expert comment suggests that a capital gains tax will redress inequality, improve the economy and make housing more affordable.
‘Taxpayers union’ – too ‘stupid’ to understand tax?
Written By: - Date published: 9:30 am, February 26th, 2019 - 59 comments
There is a classic piece of waffle in the NZ Herald about when capital gains tax will apply to the family home. But the conditions when this applies are extremely simple and obvious. However professed experts on taxation like the so-called ‘taxpayers union’ can’t understand them. Probably because they are paid not to.
Spare a thought for our poor impoverished landlords
Written By: - Date published: 8:17 am, February 25th, 2019 - 225 comments
Spare a thought for poor landlords who are aghast at the thought that they should have to share capital gains on properties they have purchased with no intent of making a capital gain.
It’s the kiwi way
Written By: - Date published: 8:41 am, February 22nd, 2019 - 74 comments
National is engaging in hysterical levels of hyperbole in its response to the Tax Working Group’s reform package.
In defense of taxing the family home
Written By: - Date published: 7:53 pm, February 21st, 2019 - 129 comments
Let’s talk about why houses, art, and basically everything should be in the new Capital Gains Tax that Labour and New Zealand First should get onboard with, contrary to their reservations.
The Tax Working Group proposals
Written By: - Date published: 12:38 pm, February 21st, 2019 - 339 comments
The Tax Party working group’s recommendations have been released.
National and its no tax promises
Written By: - Date published: 1:51 pm, November 27th, 2018 - 38 comments
National have got out the old “no new taxes” songbook and are singing it as loudly as they can.
Tax Working Group report depressing reading
Written By: - Date published: 6:10 pm, September 21st, 2018 - 66 comments
The Tax Working Group says the gaping holes in our tax system make it unfair and undermine its integrity, but the prospect of the electorate embracing even its limited recommendations on taxing capital gains make for depressing contemplation.
Cullen says 2020 election effectively a referendum on tax
Written By: - Date published: 1:20 pm, March 7th, 2018 - 32 comments
Don’t hold your breath for recommendations of radical tax reform from the Tax Working Group. Chair Sir Michael Cullen says the 2020 election will be a referendum on tax and he is already kicking for touch
Tumbleweeds from National on the Tax Working Group
Written By: - Date published: 12:37 pm, December 21st, 2017 - 40 comments
A month ago Labour announced that Sir Michael Cullen would chair the tax working group and the National Party was cock-a-hoop! Steven Joyce said: “Sir Michael is many things but a politically independent voice on taxation policy he is not,” Judith Collins had fun with it too, in her regular spot on Newshub she dubbed […]
IMF: higher taxes for rich will cut inequality and won’t hurt growth
Written By: - Date published: 12:30 pm, October 14th, 2017 - 104 comments
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says it now favours higher taxes on the rich and has demolished the myth this might adversely affect economic growth. The authoritative Washington-based think tank in its influential half-yearly monitor also argued for taxes on capital, suggesting a wealth and/or land taxes should be considered, something that will make Gareth […]
Labour won’t regain power until it wins the tax debate
Written By: - Date published: 4:36 pm, September 25th, 2017 - 178 comments
Labour didn’t deserve to win on Saturday because, firstly, because it failed to bring a fully-fleshed tax policy to voters, and, secondly, it never attempted to win the ideological battle over tax. To succeed at the next election, Labour must begin work today to frame this debate.
Lets talk about tax policy
Written By: - Date published: 8:29 am, September 14th, 2017 - 282 comments
Tax is emerging as the big issue of this campaign. How valid are National’s claims that Labour will introduce a variety of new taxes and what has National’s record been like? Update: in a smart tactical move Labour has promised no new taxes will be introduced until after the next election.
The actual implications of a Capital Gains Tax
Written By: - Date published: 1:38 pm, September 4th, 2017 - 109 comments
Matthew Whitehead looks at what the Greens, Labour and National really mean when they talk about a CGT.
Ardern cautious on capital gains tax
Written By: - Date published: 7:04 am, August 23rd, 2017 - 146 comments
Jacinda Ardern will not campaign on a capital gains tax, but will seek advice and will not rule it out in a first term. The Nats have introduced a week form of CGT already. A more robust version needs serious consideration.
Greens will finally close property speculators’ tax loophole
Written By: - Date published: 11:24 am, August 22nd, 2017 - 71 comments
The Green Party in government will end the tax advantages property speculators currently enjoy under National by implementing a comprehensive tax on capital gains
- 2020 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #3
A chronological listing of news articles linked to on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week, i.e., Sun, Jan 12, 2020 through Sat, Jan 18, 2020 Editor's Pick The Past and the Future of the Earth’s Oldest Trees Bristlecone pines have survived various catastrophes over the millennia, and they ...5 hours ago - How climate change influenced Australia’s unprecedented firesThis is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections, and has been adapted into a new myth rebuttal on climate-wildfire connections with the short URL sks.to/wildfires Australia’s frightening bushfires, which kicked off an early fire season in September 2019, have already had cataclysmic effects, and the continent is still just in the early ...15 hours ago
- Gender Identity Ideology – A Partial Bibliography of Online Coverage
This great resource has been contributed to Redline by Janie Doebuck. Janie made some notes on the bibliography: 1) It is by no means exhaustive. There are tons more gender critical posts, essays, articles, podcasts, youtube videos, etc. online. 2) There are links in the bibliography that are behind paywalls. There ...2 days ago - About those biased Oscar Nominations
There’s been a lot written about the 2020 Oscar Nominations and their apparent lack of diversity. It’s true, there are in fact no women nominated for the Best Director and very few nominees of colour across the board. But is this a result of a biased process or a symptom ...2 days ago - How New Zealand media reports chronic pain
Hemakumar Devan Around three million New Zealanders access news media (both paper and online) every week. Yes, you heard that right! So, the potential for news media to shape public health beliefs is common sense. As chronic pain affects one in five New Zealanders, we wanted to find out how ...2 days ago - Still Waiting For American Democracy.
Unfinished Republic: Though the United States' crimes against democracy are legion, most Americans are blissfully unaware of them. The brutal realities of American life: the officially sanctioned violence; the refusal to hold racists accountable for their actions; the seemingly endless tragedy of African-American suffering; of which White America is the ...2 days ago - In Outrage Over Its Bunk Science, Goop Finds Fuel for GrowthMichael Schulson For years, experts have said that Goop, the wellness and lifestyle brand founded by the actor and entrepreneur Gwyneth Paltrow, markets pseudoscience and overblown cures. And for years, despite the criticism, Goop has just kept growing. Now the company, which was valued at $250 million in 2018, ...3 days ago
- Tobacco Excise Taxes and the Smokefree 2025 Goal: Some Ways ForwardJanet Hoek, Richard Edwards, George Thomson, Andrew Waa, Nick Wilson Debate over tobacco tax increases has intensified as research indicates potentially conflicting policy directions. On the one hand, excise tax increases continue to stimulate quit attempts among smokers yet, on the other hand, they may lead to financial hardship for ...3 days ago
- Skeptical Science New Research for Week #2, 2020Conflation and how to fix it VIa AMS, Raul Lejano looks at what in a layperson's thinking would be called conflation— confusion and blending of entirely different topics— when people think about climate change. Ideology and the Narrative of Skepticism (open access) starts with some arguably frightening false connections between the science and ...3 days ago
- ‘Cranky Uncle’ smart phone game will show you how to disarm climate deniersThis is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Bud Ward (Image: Courtesy of John Cook) When it comes to climate change, it seems every family has its own version of the proverbial Cranky Uncle. An uncle, cousin, grandparent, in-law, neighbor, whatever. Just think back to the recent holiday season’s large ...4 days ago
- Science in the ’20s – part 1Outrageous, immoral or downright dangerous. That’s a description of the lifestyle of women “flappers” in the 1920s. Could it apply to science (and scientists) in the 2020s? Actually, you could look back at the past decade and see those, or similar terms, used about some science and scientists. Sometimes ...4 days ago
- Postscript: Citizenship Granted.
I am pleased to say that I have been granted NZ citizenship. I need to do the ceremony for things to be official, but the application was a success. I now join my son as a dual NZ-US citizen. To be fair, very little will change other than the fact ...4 days ago - Hard News: Music: Morales is coming
It will be no secret to longtime readers that I, Russell Brown, love the disco. So I'm pretty excited by the fact that one of the greats of the game is returning this summer – and also pleased to say I have tickets to give away.Legendary mixer and DJ ...4 days ago - The WHO Vaccine Safety Summit – from someone who was actually thereThe conspiracy I saw a new conspiracy theory flying around the other day. According to the conspiracy (that seems to originate from Del Bigtree), the World Health Organization have been ‘caught on camera’ questioning the safety of vaccines. Gosh this sounds as though someone was a mole at a ...5 days ago
- The timely death of the British Labour PartyBelow is an article submitted to Redline by Alec Abbott At its inception, the British Labour Party was a vehicle for the propagation of racist and imperialist views within the working-class. Such views are still widespread in the party, as they are in Europe’s Social-Democratic parties, though, in the case of ...5 days ago
- Mystery China pneumonia outbreak likely caused by new human coronavirusConnor Bamford, Queen’s University Belfast Since December 2019, there has been a cluster of 59 cases of pneumonia in Wuhan, eastern China. The pneumonia is associated with a previously unidentified coronavirus related to the deadly SARS virus. Seven of those cases are thought to be serious, and one person – ...5 days ago
- Yes, koalas are cute – but should we bring them to NZ? Errm, noIt’s been hard to miss the extreme fires raging across Australia and the tragic plight of the animals – human and otherwise – affected by the fires’ insatiable spread. I know I’ve been captivated and concerned by the tales of how Australia’s famous wildlife has been coping. Koalas approaching cyclists ...5 days ago
- National’s negative campaigningAnybody who looked into the Dirty Politics saga knows all too well that honesty is often in short supply within the National Party. You would think that after the exposure the John Key government received over their untruthful attack politics, the National Party would learn from its "mistakes" and leave ...5 days ago
- Ending the government’s charade over water
For the past decade, the government has been responding to the obvious Treaty issues raised by water allocation with the mantra that "no-one owns water". But last year, the Waitangi Tribunal ruled that actually, Māori owned it, and that those rights had never been extinguished. They recommended that iwi bring ...5 days ago - Northern Ireland joins the civilised worldSame-sex marriage has finally become legal in Northern Ireland. But not through any decision of the Northern Irish Executive or Assembly, which has only just reformed after a three year walkout by the DUP; instead, Westminster made that decision for them. I've talked before about the constitutional impropriety of this, ...5 days ago
- I had an intense conversation at work today.Claire Cohen-Norris volunteers with Citizens Climate Lobby as a chapter founder and leader in rural New York. Her climate advocacy sprung from her drive to provide a secure, joyful and fulfilling life for her two wonderful children. It has become a life’s mission, shared with her like-minded husband and partner. Claire ...6 days ago
- French transport workers take on Macron over pension reform
by John Edmundson Starting on December 5th, 2019 workers in the Parisian rail network commenced an open-ended strike in opposition to French President Emmanuel Macron’s proposed changes to their pension scheme. Rail workers in the Metro Underground have, for decades, had retirement conditions that compensate them for the low wages, ...6 days ago - What a difference the decimal point makesI’m back at work following a nearly three-week break over Christmas. We were fortunate to be offered a house to stay in for a week over Christmas, which enabled us to have a holiday in Dunedin and see the extended family reasonably cheaply. But the house came with a catch: ...6 days ago
- Who’s Going To Stop Him?Blank And Pitiless: Having ordered the assassination of the Iranian General, Qasem Soleimani, President Donald Trump promised to reduce the cultural monuments of Iran’s 3,000 year-old civilisation to rubble if a revenge attack was mounted. A breach of international law? Certainly. A war crime? Indisputably. Who’s going to stop him? Nobody.WHAT ...6 days ago
- A worker’s storyThis interview is from Aotearoa Workers Solidarity Movement (AWSM) and is the first of an ongoing series of interviews they plan to do with workers from various sectors who are having their well being and livelihoods damaged. They begin with an educator in Southland. Due to the attitude and actions ...7 days ago
- 2020 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #2A chronological listing of news articles linked to on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week, i.e., Sun, Jan 5, 2020 through Sat, Jan 11, 2020 Editor's Pick Debunked Australian Bushfire Conspiracy Theories Were Pushed by Alex Jones, Murdoch Media As unusually intense and widespread bushfires have ...1 week ago
- J.K. Rowling, the Seattle Library, and the Issue That Must Not Be NamedThis article was submitted to Redline by Seattle-based activist Lucinda Stoan J.K. Rowling recognizes repression when she sees it. That’s why the author of the wildly popular Harry Potter books recently tweeted in defense of Maya Forstater. Forstater lost her job for stating that sex is real and immutable. A judge ...1 week ago
- Rules of Empire: Laws simply do not apply and “National Security” excuses all else.
Empires rise and fall, and the American Empire is absolutely no different. But while an Empire, in order to further the footprint, it seems to pay to do one primary thing above all else: project that everything – everything – is “simply for the good of the world” at large, ...1 week ago - Indian lessons for NZ workers – the January 8 general strikeby Phil Duncan On Wednesday (January 8) another massive general strike took place in India. Some 250 million industrial workers, white-collar workers, agricultural labourers struck against the government’s economic policies and attacks on the Muslim population through new proposed citizenship rules. This ...1 week ago
- Climate Change: The action that countsOver on Newsroom, Professor Jacqueline Beggs writes about the action she is taking on climate change. Its the usual list: reduce meat, don't fly, consume less. I'm doing some of this myself, and none of it hurts - but the way our economic system is constructed means the impact of ...1 week ago
- Fossil fuel political giving outdistances renewables 13 to oneThis is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Karin Kirk Corporations, special interest groups, and individuals inject billions of dollars into the American political system every year. Much of the financial support in politics is concealed from public view, as some rules – and loopholes – allow “dark money” and ...1 week ago
- Should I ditch my fossil-fueled car?Yes. Reducing the number of cars in your household, or switching from petrol/diesel to electric, will dramatically reduce your greenhouse gas emissions. It’s one of the easiest and highest-impact climate steps you can take. New Zealand is being flooded with cars The New Zealand vehicle fleet is increasing rapidly. In ...1 week ago
- Speaker: Planet History: Taking Tea with QuentinThis interview with Quentin Crisp is part of a series of articles republished from Planet, the independent magazine I edited in the early 90s from a base at 309 Karangahape Road, along with Grant Fell, Rachael Churchward, Fiona Rae, David Teehan, Mere Ngailevu and others.Inevitably, you forget things, and over ...1 week ago
- Skeptical Science New Research for Week #1, 2020Supply Side How are we doing with CO2 emissions? It's an important question, increasingly posed to a mixed bag of CO2 contributors who may or may not provide accurate reportage. Liu et al present a new, additional means of measurement based on satellite observations of nitrogen dioxide co-emitted from ...1 week ago
- Is the prostitute the seller or the sold?Excerpts from Being and Being Bought, by Kajsa Ekis Ekman, Spinifex Press, 2013. Ekman, a Swedish journalist and critic, brings together a Marxist and feminist analysis of prostitution and surrogacy in this groundbreaking book. This is the third part of a synopsis and brief commentary of the book by Daphna Whitmore. Part 1 was ...2 weeks ago
- The climate crisis is also a biodiversity crisisDr Andrea Byrom Like many of us, the summer break has seen me transfixed with horror at the scale and magnitude of the bushfire crisis in Australia. As an ecologist, I can’t help but be appalled at the loss of some of Australia’s most beautiful ecosystems and landscapes. And ...2 weeks ago
- Labour opposes leisureFinland's new Prime Minister has made headlines by pushing for a 4-day week. So what does new Zealand's "centre-left" government think? Nope. They'd rather people kept working themselves into misery and death:The Government does not plan to follow Finland's lead to encourage businesses to offer staff a four-day week. [...] ...2 weeks ago
- Who’s afraid of the non-native accent? Everyone … unless you tell them about itAs someone who learnt English late-ish in life, I was always on the look-out for signs which betray my foreignness, afraid that my clumsy mispronunciation or syntactic misalignment will give away my outsider status. And for once, sadly, my worries were well-founded it seems. It’s bad, prejudice is rife! In ...2 weeks ago
- Donald Trump’s strategic gambleThere’s a meme going around the Internet at the moment claiming that Donald Trump is a bit of an idiot. To outside eyes it does seem as though the President of the United States thumbs his nose at his own countries laws and administration far too often to be taken ...2 weeks ago
- More Spanish repressionBack in December, the European Court of Justice ruled that jailed Catalan politician Oriol Junqueras was a Member of the European Parliament and therefore had immunity from prosecution. In a democratic state under the rule of law, he would have been immediately released from prison (and compensated for his illegal ...2 weeks ago
- Doubling down: Researchers investigate compound climate risksThis is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Daniel Grossman It was a grim day in Moscow on July 25, 2010. The English-language Moscow Times reported that the Russian capital had broken the 1936 temperature record for July: 98 degrees Fahrenheit. That month, the city, where air conditioning was (and still is) ...2 weeks ago
- Everyone, we must be united and work together (now we’ve got rid of the Corbyn)
Yvette Cooper has written a piece in the Guardian outlinig 'Seven things Labour Must Do To Win The Next Election'.I'll overlook the absurd headline - no-one is talking about Labour winning the next election and I assume that Cooper didn't write the headline (she doesn't mention winning the next election anywhere ...2 weeks ago - “A common interest in war with Iran” say those who will NOT be in the firing line
Well, things have certainly escalated. Brent Crude hits $70 in light of recent geopolitical incidents. There’s a British nuclear sub on its way to thump Iran if needed, and Netenyahu says “everyone” is keen on war with Iran. Of course in terms of the oil prices, that’ll have downstream ...2 weeks ago - 2020 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming Digest #1Story of the Week... Editorial of the Week... El Niño/La Niña Update... Toon of the Week... Coming Soon on SkS... Climate Feedback Claim Reviews... SkS Week in Review... Poster of the Week... Story of the Week... The signal of human-caused climate change has emerged in everyday weather, study finds ...2 weeks ago
- New Fisk2 weeks ago
- Climate Change: Complementary measuresFor the past twenty-five years, climate change policy in New Zealand has been all about emissions pricing. Policy makers thought that all you needed to do was make people pay for their pollution via a carbon tax or emissions trading scheme, and the problem would be solved. This mechanism was ...2 weeks ago
- Jeremy Clarkson – God is an arsonistYou've really got to wonder if Jeremy Clarkson is worshiping the right deity? I mean thinking that Australia is somehow deserving of the calamity that has befallen it in the form of unprecedented bush fires is one thing, but claiming God intentionally likes to cause people and animals immeasurable pain ...2 weeks ago
- We are no longer welcome in IraqLast Friday, the US murdered a high-ranking Iranian general, ostensibly as retaliation for Iraqi militias attacking US troops in Iraq. It was a stupid move, a mistake as well as a crime (to misquote Talleyrand), and it is already having the expected effects: the Iranian nuclear deal is now completely ...2 weeks ago
- Miscalculation, escalation and the law of unintended consequences.Note: I penned a series of tweets on the consultancy page offering my thoughts on the Soleimani assassination. I have decided to gather them together, add some more material, and edit them into a blogpost. Here it is. The US drone strike in Baghdad that killed Iranian Quds force commander ...2 weeks ago
- 2020 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #1A chronological listing of news articles linked to on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week, i.e., Sun, Dec 29, 2019 through Sat, Jan 4, 2020 Editor's Pick There Is No Safe Global Warming Australia Bushfire - Shutterstock Safety is something we all crave. It’s human nature. ...2 weeks ago
- The strike on Suleimani: a Neocon gambit for rolling the MIC onwards to a new chapter of global dest...
Anyone who thinks this was merely a so-called “precision strike” on “a really bad man!” and doesn’t get the wider geopolitical ramifications of this is beyond deluded. Probably those who think Commando comics are actually transcripts from a lost war documentary, and GI Joe was the biography of a real ...2 weeks ago - This is goodStill feeling very kicked in the head. Took some time off over Christmas and New Year to think about stuff, contemplating the unthinkable idea that i might have been ... wrong. But, after a thorough deconstruction of my cerebellum and rigorous self examination, I conclude I was not, am not.Okay, ...2 weeks ago
- A standout example of Right-wing truth inversion: “debating” responsibility for the Aust...
Many people must have seen the copious amounts of emotive, highly charged blame being increasingly passed onto “the bloody environmentalists!” and “the bloody Greenies” for this absolute debacle. This blame has been fomented by the Rightwing press, and the Governing coalition under Scott Morrison, who it must be said never ...2 weeks ago - Someone To Follow, Something To Blame.Poshing The Proletariat: As we enter the third decade of the twenty-first century, the question for New Zealand politicians is a simple one. Will workers’ expectations of fair treatment erode faster than their rising political determination to find someone to follow and something to blame? Significant sections of the United ...2 weeks ago
- Skeptical Science New Research for Week #52, 2019The other side of the coin Last week's New Research mentioned a New York Times article describing how academic researchers plow straight through holidays with work. On the publishing side: not so much. Argue about priorities but clearly there's a difference in attitudes between the input hopper and the output conveyor. ...2 weeks ago
- December ’19 – NZ blogs sitemeter ranking
I notice a few regulars no longer allow public access to the site counters. This may happen accidentally when the blog format is altered. If your blog is unexpectedly missing or the numbers seem very low please check ... 3 weeks ago - 2019 in Review: another busy year for the Skeptical Science teamAs we wrap up 2019 and prepare for 2020, here is our annual review of what our team was up to during the year. As in previous recaps, this one is divided into several sections: Scholary publications, projects and books Other publications and activities Recorded talks and podcasts Our ...3 weeks ago
- You thought 2019 was warped? Strap in, 2020 may make you nostalgic…
What a hard year 2019 was on so many fronts. In its wake, not a small amount of victims along the way. Dissembling reality really seems to have been Project #1 as far as can be seen from much of the basis of 2019’s ups and downs…Culturally, politically, socially and ...3 weeks ago - Seasons Greetings and Happy New Year.I hope that all readers have had a good festive season and are headed into a healthy, happy and productive New Year. 2019 was a relatively consistent and quiet year at KP, as befits a niche political blog. 39 posts this year, including three by Lew on the gun buy ...3 weeks ago
- Apathy in the face of disasterWarning: This article contains topics that might trigger right wing snowflakes!Unless you’ve had your head buried in a billabong for the last four months you’d of heard about the Australian bushfires. The fires have been unprecedented, with approximately five million hectares (12.35 million acres) of land burned nationwide. More than ...3 weeks ago
- TransitioningTwo things you can guarantee at this time of the year. Predictions about the coming year, and days at the beach (only lightly polluted, hopefully). Futures thinking is often seen as identifying the “next big thing” – technology and consumer trends. But that’s surface level futuring. Wave spotting. As ...3 weeks ago
- 2019 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming Digest #52Story of the Week... Editorial of the Week... Toon of the Week... Coming Soon on SkS... Climate Feedback Reviews... Poster of the Week... SkS Week in Review... Story of the Week... 2019 in review: Polarised world entering era of climate impacts We look back on CHN’s reporting from ...3 weeks ago
- The Spinoff is pretty shit reallyCall me old fashioned, but I like my sport to be played fair and on an even field. In fact there’s nothing worse than a game where the ref fails to actually umpire properly and one team is flouting the damn rules.The same goes for politics. If journalists don’t do ...3 weeks ago
- Government to deliver family carers $2000 pay rise, expand scheme to spouses this year
The Coalition Government is delivering this year the changes to Funded Family Care the disability sector has long-asked for, says Associate Minister of Health Jenny Salesa. “Today we are announcing the details of our big changes to Funded Family Care, including an annual average pay boost of $2,246.40 for funded ...3 hours ago - Ko te reo kua mū: Piri SciasciaMinister for Māori Development Nanaia Mahuta joins te ao Māori in their sorrow as they learn of the loss of one of the great orators and spokespersons of a generation – Piri Sciascia. “The son of Pōrangahau was a staunch advocate for Māori development and served his people for over ...17 hours ago
- Minister opens new ecosanctuary at Cape FarewellA new ecosanctuary with a predator proof fence on Golden Bay’s Cape Farewell, which will restore a safe home for sea birds, rare native plants, giant snails, and geckos, was officially opened today by the Minister of Conservation Eugenie Sage. “There has been a fantastic community effort supported by the ...22 hours ago
- Pacific partners work together to provide additional support to AustraliaThe NZDF continues to support the Australian Defence Force (ADF) as it battles fires in Victoria and New South Wales, including by transporting Republic of Fiji Military engineers from Nadi to Australia, announced Defence Minister Ron Mark. On Saturday morning a NZDF Boeing 757 will depart New Zealand to uplift ...2 days ago
- Kaikōura $10.88 million boost in tourism & businessThe Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) is investing $10.88 million to boost business and tourism opportunities in Kaikōura, Parliamentary Undersecretary for Regional Economic Development, Fletcher Tabuteau announced today. As part of the Kaikōura Marina Development Programme, the following two projects will receive PGF funding: A $9.88 million investment to begin the ...2 days ago
- Govt accounts in surplus, debt remains lowThe Government’s books are in good shape with the accounts in surplus and expenses close to forecast, Finance Minister Grant Robertson says. The Treasury today released the Crown accounts for the five months to November. The operating balance before gains and losses (OBEGAL) was above forecast by $0.7 billion resulting ...2 days ago
- Auckland focus for first Police graduation of 2020The number of Police on the Auckland frontline is increasing with the graduation today of a special locally-trained wing of new constables. Police Minister Stuart Nash says the graduation of eighteen officers from Recruit Wing 333-5 means that more than 1900 new Police have been deployed since the Coalition Government ...3 days ago
- Wairarapa gets $7.11m PGF water boostThe Provincial Growth Fund is putting $7.11 million into creating a sustainable water supply for Wairarapa, Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau announced today. The following two projects will receive Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) funding: A $7 million investment in Wairarapa Water Limited for the pre-construction development of ...4 days ago
- Progress with new Police station in MahiaCommunity safety and crime prevention in the East Coast community of Mahia has moved forward with the opening of a new Police station to serve the growing coastal settlement. Police Minister Stuart Nash has officially opened the new station, which was relocated almost 20 kilometres along the coast from the nearby ...5 days ago
- Plans to protect the future of whitebaiting announcedWith several native whitebait species in decline the Minister of Conservation Eugenie Sage has today released proposals to standardise and improve management of whitebait across New Zealand. “The need for action for a healthy whitebait fishery has never been greater,” Eugenie Sage said. “Four of the six whitebait species are ...5 days ago
- New resource for schools to increase awareness and understanding of climate changeA new Ministry of Education resource available for schools in 2020 will increase awareness and understanding of climate change, Education Minister Chris Hipkins said today. “The resource, Climate Change – prepare today, live well tomorrow, will help students understand the effects of climate change at a local, national and global ...7 days ago
- Getting more out of our most productive firmsFinance Minister Grant Robertson has approved the terms of reference for an Inquiry into the economic contribution of New Zealand's frontier firms. Frontier firms are the most productive firms in the domestic economy within their own industry. “These firms are important as they diffuse new technologies and business practices into ...1 week ago
- NZDF sends more support to AustraliaThe New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) is sending an Environmental Health Team, a Primary Health Care Team and a Chaplain to Australia, boosting New Zealand support for the Australian Defence Force (ADF) as it battles bush fires in Victoria and New South Wales, Defence Minister Ron Mark announced today. The ...1 week ago
- New Zealand joins partners in calling for full investigation into air crash in IranActing Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Rt Hon Winston Peters says that developments suggesting a surface-to-air missile is responsible for the downing of the Ukrainian International Airlines flight in Iran is disastrous news. “New Zealand offers its deepest sympathies to the families of the 176 victims. It is ...1 week ago
- Staying connected to Australian agricultureAgriculture Minister, Damien O’Connor, says the Ministry for Primary Industries is continuing to stay connected to federal authorities in Australia as devastating fires affect the country. “The Ministry is using an existing trans-Tasman forum for discussions on the agricultural impact of the fires and the future recovery phase,” says Damien ...1 week ago
- Investment in schools – a commitment to communitiesThousands of school-age children, their teachers and wider communities are benefiting from the Government’s multi-million dollar investment upgrading and renewing schools, Education Minister Chris Hipkins said today. “We want New Zealand to be the best place to be a child and that means learning in warm, comfortable and modern classrooms,” ...2 weeks ago
- New Zealand Defence Force sends support to AustraliaMinister of Defence Ron Mark today announced New Zealand is sending three Royal New Zealand Air Force NH90 helicopters and crew, and two NZ Army Combat Engineer Sections as well as a command element to support the Australian Defence Force efforts in tackling the Australian fires. The New Zealand Defence Force ...2 weeks ago
- Better access to books for blind and low vision citizens on World Braille Day"Today is World Braille Day and I am delighted to announce that an international treaty giving blind and low vision New Zealanders access to books and literary works comes into force today,” Minister for Disability Issues Carmel Sepuloni announced today. “Today the Marrakesh Treaty and the associated amendments to the ...2 weeks ago
- New Zealand to send further firefighter support to AustraliaThe New Zealand Government is sending a further 22 firefighters to help fight the Australian fires. “The devastation caused by these fires is taking a substantial toll on our Australian neighbours and we will continue to do what we can to assist as they deal with this extremely dynamic, dangerous ...2 weeks ago
- Reducing the cost of educationTwenty-two more schools have opted into the Government’s policy of providing $150 per child to schools who don’t ask parents for donations– bringing the total number of schools in the policy to 1,585. The Ministry of Education has accepted late opt ins past the November 14 deadline from schools that ...2 weeks ago
- Road deaths lower in 2019, but still more work to do“As we enter the new decade, my thoughts are with the families, friends and communities of the 353 people who lost their lives in road crashes last year. While the number of deaths is lower than in 2018 (377), this is still a staggering loss of life,” Duty Minister Iain ...3 weeks ago
- PM congratulates New Year 2020 Honours recipientsPrime Minister Jacinda Ardern has congratulated the diverse group of New Zealanders recognised for their contributions to the country and their communities in the New Year 2020 Honours List. The list of 180 honours recipients includes three Dames and three Knights Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, ...3 weeks ago
- Justice Minister congratulates first Māori Supreme Court judge on New Year’s HonourJustice Minister Andrew Little has congratulated The Honourable Justice Joe Williams for receiving a knighthood for services to the state. Sir Joe Williams has been appointed as a Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the New Year 2020 Honours List. “Sir Joe Williams has made an ...3 weeks ago
- New Year honours for top sportspeopleTwenty-one of New Zealand’s top sportspeople, coaches and leaders in the sporting community have been recognised in the New Year 2020 Honours List. The Silver Ferns coach Noeline Taurua has been made a Dame Companion and the former All Blacks Steve Hansen has been made a Knight Companion of the ...3 weeks ago
- Leading architect of Zero Carbon Bill honouredIt’s great to see ordinary New Zealanders doing extraordinary things, Minister for Climate Change James Shaw today said in response to the news that Lisa McLaren is included in the New Year 2020 Honours List for her exceptional work leading the campaign for the Zero Carbon Bill. Lisa McLaren was ...3 weeks ago
- Social entrepreneurs and innovation leads Pacific contributionMinister for Pacific Peoples Aupito William Sio says the New Year 2020 Honours List highlights the valuable contribution Pacific social entrepreneurs and innovators make to New Zealand, the Pacific region and the world. “The standout common factor that underlines their contribution to Aotearoa is the value they place in their ...3 weeks ago
- Service to birds and bush recognised in New Year HonoursDecades of dedication to Aotearoa’s unique birds, landscapes, and native eels is recognised in the New Year 2020 Honours List said Minister of Conservation Eugenie Sage. “I’m delighted that the decades of dedication to conservation, and fantastic leadership in giving nature a helping hand is being acknowledged,” said Eugenie Sage. ...3 weeks ago
- Closer Economic Partnership with Singapore comes into force on 1 JanuaryNew Zealanders will start to see the benefits of the upgraded Closer Economic Partnership (CEP) with Singapore from 1 January 2020, when the agreement comes into force. Minister for Trade and Export Growth David Parker said the agreement would open more opportunities for New Zealand companies looking to do business with ...3 weeks ago
- Six million hectares of threatened species habitat up in smoke
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Ward, PhD Candidate, The University of Queensland More than one billion mammals, birds, and reptiles across eastern Australia are estimated to have been affected by the current fire catastrophe. Many animals and plants have been incinerated or suffocated by smoke and ...3 hours ago - Simon Bridges to raise concerns over killings in Philippines trip
National Party leader Simon Bridges will meet with a number of politicians and officials for talks on trade and other cooperation. ...4 hours ago - Oram: The systems that got us he have failed
What I should focus on for the final five and a half years of my career as a business journalist? ...4 hours ago - Emily Writes and Eddie, 7, review Wellington’s best places for swimming
My name is Eddie and I’m seven and my mum said I have to write about my school holidays and I just want to play Minecraft. I love swimming so these are the best places for swimming by me Eddie.Eddie: Kilbirnie pool is new now but the only thing that’s ...5 hours ago - A West Coast internshipBetween the city and the coast lies an insurmountable gulf, or so they say. Fresh from university, Michael Andrew decided to test that by interning at a local paper in the West Coast and found himself beguiled by the strangeness and the beauty. I had never smelled fresh newsprint coming straight ...6 hours ago
- Death of Professor Piri Sciascia, Government House Kaumatua
The Governor-General, HE Dame Patsy Reddy and Sir David Gascoigne were deeply distressed to receive the news that Government House’s Kaumatua, Professor Piri Sciascia died this morning. ...20 hours ago - Media academic warns shutting key TV channel would be step to ‘dictatorship’By Camille Abiel H. Torres, Charm Ryanne C. Magpali, Laurd Menhard Salen of The Varsitarian in Manila A New Zealand media academic and freedom advocate has warned that shutting down the Philippines’ largest and most popular media network would be a move toward dictatorship. Professor David Robie, director of ...21 hours ago
- Ravensdown’s Western Sahara story rebuttedWestern Sahara Campaign-NZ enlisted the support of Western Sahara Resource Watch (WSRW) to question and comment on Ravensdown’s stated position in its press release of the 11th of December 2019, “Two sides to the Western Sahara story”. https://www.ravensdown.co.nz/in-the-community/two-sides-to-the-western-sahara-story ...24 hours ago
- Another New Year handout from the PGF nudges us to wonder: where’s the Jones boy?
So where’s Shane Jones, we wondered after the Point of Order Trough Monitor sounded its second alert of the week. Again, the alert was triggered by the sound of taxpayers’ money being given away by the Parliamentary Undersecretary for Regional Economic Development, Fletcher Tabuteau. The ...1 day ago - Short story: Festival on a blanket, by Harley Hern
"Muscled, tattooed guys peel off their shirts...Voluptuous women curl and flex their fingers...Same sex couples smooch and purr": a short story, by writer Harley Hern. ...1 day ago - On swampy ground: Painter and printmaker Brent Harris returns homePalmerston North-born Brent Harris’s considers himself an Australian artist, but his work is suffused with the unease and melancholia long associated with New Zealand art, cinema and music. Kiran Dass spoke to him about his monsters, and his solo exhibition on now in Christchurch.Brent Harris left New Zealand in 1981; ...1 day ago
- Please stop offering sober people orange juiceEmbrace the many zero-alcohol drink options out there and stop bloody serving OJ.How many times have you been at home, or at work, or at a concert, or at a birthday party, or at a formal event, and thought, “What would go really well with this experience is some orange ...1 day ago
- ‘Monsters Inc’ – Ampatuan massacre justice aftermath with more fear of warlords, corruptionReport by Dr David Robie – Café Pacific. – [embedded content] The Rappler video feed on the Ampatuan convictions last month. For decades, the feared Ampatuan clan held sway in the impoverished province of Maguindanao in Mindanao in the southern Philippines. Through a ruthless private army and a ...2 days ago
- Plunging DHB deficits prove the pie is too smallReports that DHB deficits are set to plunge even further this year are yet more proof that underfunding is bringing hospitals to their knees, says the new Executive Director of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists, Sarah Dalton. ...2 days ago
- Before we rush to rebuild after fires, we need to think about where and howSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Maund, PhD Candidate, School of Architecture and Built Environment, University of Newcastle A primary school in East Gippsland was burnt down in the current bushfire crisis. While Premier Daniel Andrews immediately committed to rebuilding the school as it was, media reported ...2 days ago
- Australian sea lions are declining. Using drones to check their health can help us understand whySource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jarrod Hodgson, PhD Candidate, University of Adelaide Australian sea lions are in trouble. Their population has never recovered from the impact of the commercial sealing that occurred mainly in the 19th century. Low-lying rock islands and outcrops make important breeding sites for ...2 days ago
- With costs approaching $100 billion, the fires are Australia’s costliest natural disasterSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Paul Read, Climate Criminologist & Senior Instructor/Lecturer, Faculty of Medicine, Monash University It’s hard to estimate the eventual economic cost of Australia’s 2019-20 megafires, partly because they are still underway, and partly because it is hard to know the cost to attribute ...2 days ago
- Anniversary of the War on Drugs – a young ACT statementToday marks 100 years since America began waging a war on drugs. This war cannot be won; the effects of prohibition have long pointed this out. In fact, young ACT believes drug prohibition causes more harm than the precise drugs it aims to protect ...2 days ago
- What Trump’s re-election would mean for us
Bernard Hickey looks at the second big question for 2020: Will Trump get re-elected? ...2 days ago - Karen Walker’s Takapuna store to close after 10 years
An Auckland retail store owned by fashion designer Karen Walker is closing its doors permanently at the end of this month. ...2 days ago - In cases of cardiac arrest, time is everything. Community responders can save livesSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Bill Lord, Adjunct Associate Professor, Monash University Each year more than 24,000 Australians experience a sudden cardiac arrest. This means their heart unexpectedly stops beating. A cardiac arrest leads to loss of consciousness and will result in death if not recognised and ...2 days ago
- Auckland Island pigs: ‘It’s a big call to eradicate them’
The Department of Conservation's efforts to cull Auckland Island pigs are being labelled a crime against humanity by the Rare Breeds Conservation Society. ...2 days ago - Action needed to improve youth justice systemChildren and adolescents detained in the youth justice system experience poor health across a range of complex physical and mental health disorders, according to new research . ...2 days ago
- Make-or-break year for Bridges – he must prove he is PM material without shouting down Ardern
Already it is shaping as the most challenging year for National since it lost the Treasury benches in 2017. For Simon Bridges, it’s make-or-break for his leadership. Going head-to-head with the Jacinda phenomenon, he has little chance of monstering her in television broadcasts, and even if he did it could ...2 days ago - Westpac centralising 250 jobs in Auckland
Westpac plans to shift 250 jobs from Wellington to Auckland to consolidate its technology and product marketing team. ...2 days ago - So the government gave sports grants to marginal seats. What happens now?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Maria O’Sullivan, Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Law, and Deputy Director, Castan Centre for Human Rights Law, Monash University When Australians pay their income tax, they assume the money is going to areas of the community that need it, rather than being used ...2 days ago
- Manufacturing sector index falls
The manufacturing sector is back in the doldrums after a short-lived improvement. ...2 days ago - Who the hell are the celebs on The X-Factor UK: Celebrity?Tara Ward breaks down the full line-up for The X-Factor UK: Celebrity and we promise you’ll recognise at least a few of them.What makes everything better in this rancid world of ours? Not trees, not cooler temperatures, not an unexpected Briscoes ‘Monday Madness Sale’. It’s celebrities. Celebrities make the world ...2 days ago
- Kāinga Ora’s borrowing limit lifted by $4b
Just quietly, the Government is gearing up to announce in an election year that it will borrow $4 billion more to almost double its plans for state house building. Bernard Hickey reports exclusively. ...2 days ago - Unity Books bestseller chart for the week ending January 17The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Normal People by Sally Rooney (Faber & Faber, $23)WTAF Auckland2 The Truants by Kate Weinberg (Bloomsbury, $33)Agatha Christie + ...2 days ago
- Freight company’s sales suffer, in talks with bank
Freight company TIL Logistics has cut its earnings expectations as its sales suffer. ...2 days ago - Yesterdaze: Logging back in to reality without a password
Haven't been paying attention to the news over the holidays? Fret not, James Elliott has your water-cooler chat covered with his take on the news of the summer. ...2 days ago - Remuneration Authority loses credibility with 41% pay hikeThe 41 percent pay hike for West Coast regional councillors will further erode taxpayers’ trust in the Remuneration Authority, says the New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union . Taxpayers’ Union spokesman Louis Houlbrooke says, “Pay rates for councillors should broadly ...2 days ago
- Government welcomes $100m surplus after predicting deficitA Crown accounts surplus will be welcomed by the government today, given that a deficit had been forecast at the end of last year. ...2 days ago
- $10.98 million of PGF funding announcedKaikōura’s bright future received a $10.98 million endorsement from the Provincial Growth Fund today at Kaikōura District Council. ...2 days ago
- The Friday Poem: Kae and the Tohorā by essa may ranapiriA new poem by Kirikiriroa poet essa may ranapiri. Kae and the Tohorā did u think of the taste of his blubber even as u sat upon his great mammal form ? think of unmasking the slip of his great flippers that churn the salt troth of the sea to reveal the bones of ...2 days ago
- All Take and No Give in the State Mismanagement of CareMāori Party President Che Wilson is angry that yet another report has detailed "persistent and intergenerational" inequities in the treatment of Māori babies by the state. ...2 days ago
- Review: Netflix’s Sex Education keeps it up for a charming second seasonIs there a more empathetic show on television than the British teen comedy-drama Sex Education? Unlikely, writes Sam Brooks.If you had a Netflix subscription last January, chances are you’re one of the reportedly 40 million people who watched Sex Education, the gentle British show about a teenager who gives sex ...2 days ago
- The Olympics have always been a platform for protest. Banning hand gestures and kneeling ignores the...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Rowe, Emeritus Professor of Cultural Research, Institute for Culture and Society, Western Sydney University It is the year of the Tokyo Olympics, and the International Olympic Committee was quickly out of the blocks with new guidelines regarding athlete protests. The IOC ...2 days ago
- Kaikōura to get $11m injection for tourism and business opportunitiesKaikōura is set to get a multi-million dollar tourism boost from the Provincial Growth Fund. ...2 days ago
- Hell yes it’s time for more pictures of New Zealand politicians’ dogsInspired by Winston Peters’ dog and muse, Beau, a range of other dogs have urged their politician owners to get them in the Spinoff gallery. Drool away.For the second time in a week, The Spinoff is bringing together New Zealand’s politician and dog communities in celebration. On Tuesday we published ...2 days ago
- National happy Green Party’s call for troop withdrawal not being acted onThe National Party says it's pleased Labour and New Zealand First haven't buckled to pressure from the Green Party over Iraq. ...2 days ago
- Homosexuality may have evolved for social, not sexual reasonsSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Barron, Professor, Macquarie University How did homosexuality in humans evolve? Typically, this question is posed as a paradox. The argument is this: gay sex alone can’t produce children, and for traits to evolve, they have to be passed onto children, who ...2 days ago
- Beware of bushfire scams: how fraudsters take advantage of those in needSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Cassandra Cross, Senior Research Fellow, Faculty of Law, Cybersecurity Cooperative Research Centre, Queensland University of Technology There’s been an overwhelming outpouring of love and support around the world for those impacted by the bushfires, from social-media donation drives to music concerts to ...2 days ago
- To improve firefighters’ mental health, we can’t wait for them to reach out – we need to ‘re...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Erin Smith, Associate Professor in Disaster and Emergency Response, School of Medical and Health Sciences, Edith Cowan University Many firefighters will by now be exhausted, having been on the front line of Australia’s bushfire crisis for weeks or months. This bushfire season ...2 days ago
- Yes, native plants can flourish after bushfire. But there’s only so much hardship they can takeSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lucy Commander, Adjunct Lecturer, University of Western Australia In a fire-blackened landscape, signs of life are everywhere. A riot of red and green leaves erupt from an otherwise dead-looking tree trunk, and the beginnings of wildflowers and grasses peek from the crunchy ...2 days ago
- ‘What subjects do I choose for my last years of school?’Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Susanne Gannon, Associate Professor, Western Sydney University We are being asked to do work experience this year, in a field we might like to work in. We are being asked to think about choosing electives that are directing us towards our ...2 days ago
- Vital Signs: the end of the checkout signals a dire future for those without the right skillsSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Richard Holden, Professor of Economics, UNSW There has already been a fair number of jobs lost to automation over recent decades – from factory workers to bank tellers. In the coming decade we might see radically larger numbers of jobs lost to ...2 days ago
- Take care when examining the economic impact of fires. GDP doesn’t tell the full storySource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Janine Dixon, Economist at Centre of Policy Studies, Victoria University Estimates of the economic damage caused by the bushfires are rolling in, some of them big and some unprecedented, as is the scale of the fires themselves. These types of estimates will ...2 days ago
- Hidden women of history: Catherine Hay Thomson, the Australian undercover journalist who went inside...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kerrie Davies, Lecturer, School of the Arts & Media, UNSW In this series, we look at under-acknowledged women through the ages. In 1886, a year before American journalist Nellie Bly feigned insanity to enter an asylum in New York and became a ...2 days ago
- How AI can help the move to a low-carbon future
There's a dire need to speed the planet's shift to clean energy - and the power of Artificial Intelligence can help. ...2 days ago - Why DHBs should go on the chopping block
When no other nation copies New Zealand's district health board model, a rethink is needed. ...2 days ago - Changing South: Overtourism
In the latest of our summer video series on the South Island: We’ve never been so popular. But how much tourism is too much? ...2 days ago - Climate change adds to frog woes
Frog and lizard scientists add their voices to the call for climate change action to save species from extinction. ...2 days ago - How to stop getting sunburnt without trashing the oceansA Wellington startup is tapping into the worldwide move away from ocean-destroying chemical sunscreens with a natural product.Sailing fans got used to seeing helmsman Peter Burling’s ghost-like face as he and the Emirates Team New Zealand crew battled to reclaim the America’s Cup in 2017. Red-headed Burling clearly felt the ...2 days ago
- Four new year’s resolutions for Jacinda Ardern. And four for Simon BridgesWe’re half a month into the year, and the political wheels are just beginning to turn. To celebrate, Brigitte Morton proffers some resolutions for the leaders of the two big parties.Like most people, for me the reality of the New Year and those shiny resolutions are starting to wear off. ...2 days ago
- Ampatuan massacre justice aftermath with more fear of warlords, corruptionThe Rappler video feed on the Ampatuan convictions last month. For decades, the feared Ampatuan clan held sway in the impoverished province of Maguindanao in Mindanao in the southern Philippines. Through a ruthless private army and a reported “propensity for beheadings”, the clan cultivated a culture of impunity. Now, ...3 days ago
- Borrow, build, hold says Green co-leader
Break the Budget rules and borrow more for housing, Marama Davidson says. ...3 days ago - Winston Peters defends decision to keep New Zealand troops in IraqDeputy Prime Minister Winston Peters has defended the decision to keep New Zealand troops in Iraq, saying New Zealand won't be "cutting and running" in the face of heightening conflict. ...3 days ago
- Russian government resignation: what’s just happened and what’s in store for Putin beyond 2024?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Graeme Gill, Professor, Department of Government and Public Administration, University of Sydney News came from Moscow overnight that the Russian government had resigned, followed by the announcement that the current prime minister Dmitry Medvedev would be replaced by the head of the ...3 days ago
- How an Aussie invention could soon cut 5% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissionsSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Blakers, Professor of Engineering, Australian National University In the 1980s, a global race was underway: to find a more efficient way of converting energy from the sun into electricity. Some 30 years ago, our research team at the University of New ...3 days ago
- Black Drop Effect review: infusing the present moment with layers of the pastSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amanda Harris, Research fellow, Sydney Conservatorium of Music, University of Sydney Review: Black Drop Effect, directed by Felix Cross for Sydney Festival Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised this article contains names of deceased people. Nardi Simpson’s debut play Black ...3 days ago
- Searching for glimpses of a sustainable future
What I should focus on for the final five and a half years of my career as a business journalist? ...3 days ago - Battlelines drawn as council backs latest dam project
Greater Wellington Regional Council is heralding a controversial dam project for Wairarapa as necessary protection against the threat of climate change. ...3 days ago - On creating a great side hustle, with the founder of Thing Industries and WrappyBusiness is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovators and commentators focused on the future of New Zealand. This week he talks to Bridie Picot, founder of Thing Industries and Wrappy. This week’s podcast is ...3 days ago
- Youth-led climate advocates fundraising for fire helpYouth-led climate advocates School Strike 4 Climate, Generation Zero and WYMO are holding a fun-focused, community organised, collaborative fundraiser towards aid for the Australian Bushfires. ...3 days ago
- Creditor calls for government to step in over Tamarind Taranaki collapse
A New Plymouth business owed hundreds of thousands of dollars by a failed oil and gas company is calling on the government to force the parent company to sell its remaining New Zealand assets. ...3 days ago - Moving the A-League to the winter would improve the play, but will it attract the fans?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jessica Richards, Lecturer Sport Business Management, Western Sydney University In the past week, the Australian football players union has been pressuring the A-League to make a major change in the sport – shifting to a winter competition, instead of its current spot ...3 days ago
- Frustration over CRL hardship fund: ‘They’re playing God with our businesses’
Small businesses affected by delays to Auckland's City Rail Link (CRL) project say they have little faith that a hardship fund set up for them will be of much help. ...3 days ago - Housing market heating up: What can we expect
The housing market is holding on to its renewed strength underpinned by a recovery in Auckland, and a three-year high in the number of house sales. ...3 days ago - You can shop around for an affordable gluten-free sandwich – but being sure of what’s in it is ...
One way to express dismay at the price being asked for the goods and services we want is to shop elsewhere. Another is to cough up, then grumble about being ripped off on social media. Taking the second course of action may well attract the mainstream media and soon an ...3 days ago - Originair brings back Nelson to Wellington route
A Nelson-based commuter airline is re-introducing a Cook Strait service to its schedule. ...3 days ago - Curious Kids: why does reading in the back seat make you feel sick?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Wayne Wilson, Associate Professor in Audiology, The University of Queensland Why does reading in the back seat make you feel sick? – Jane, aged 10, from Coburg North, Australia. Hi Jane, your question about why reading in the back ...3 days ago
- Black Friday takes bite out of Christmas holiday sales
Black Friday retail sales could be changing the shopping habits of consumers ahead of traditional pre-Christmas and Boxing Day holiday sales. ...3 days ago - Māori babies five times more likely to end up in state care – stats
Children's Commissioner Judge says the rate of urgent entries into state care for Māori babies had doubled since 2010. ...3 days ago
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