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How Brexit Shanked Britain
Written By: - Date published: 8:05 am, October 17th, 2022 - 23 comments
The political and economic disasters now unfolding in Britain are the responsibility of the Conservative Party from their 2016 Brexit vote through to now.
Will We Go Down With China?
Written By: - Date published: 11:24 am, August 22nd, 2022 - 19 comments
Muchn’all as I try and stay positive about New Zealand’s economic direction, our reliance on China is getting much, much worse, and we need to move as China declines.
Ardern significantly improves EU Free Trade deal
Written By: - Date published: 11:13 am, July 2nd, 2022 - 26 comments
Before her involvement in the European Union Free Trade Agreement negotiations Jacinda Ardern was accused of “scattering stardust” in a vain attempt to get an agreement over the line. If this is an example of Jacinda scattering stardust then long may she continue to do so.
Foot-shooting the sanctions’ lockstep
Written By: - Date published: 6:41 pm, June 18th, 2022 - 45 comments
RNZ’s “The Detail” asked are New Zealand’s sanctions against Russia working? They aren’t, but one detail we learnt that MFAT has 100 staff members assigned to sorting out their complications!! What a waste.
Who Pays the Price of Sanctions
Written By: - Date published: 4:32 pm, March 20th, 2022 - 194 comments
New Zealand’s sanctions on Russia have not stopped the war in Ukraine. They may have made our parliamentarians feel better, and Tony Blinken was quick to congratulate us on falling into line with the US “high-impact sanctions.” The language is combative, but the evidence shows sanctions do not work. They can have significant blow-back effects, particularly if not combined with effective diplomacy.
The world in 6 months
Written By: - Date published: 8:59 am, March 15th, 2022 - 117 comments
In six months time the world could be in a very precarious position.
Is This The Boom We Wanted?
Written By: - Date published: 11:20 am, March 4th, 2022 - 65 comments
New Zealand’s time as high end ingredients producer to the world has arrived. But it has big costs.
Covid alters Auckland
Written By: - Date published: 8:43 am, November 3rd, 2021 - 22 comments
With in-person shopping about to re-start in Auckland next week, this is the best moment we will have to reinvent Auckland: one customer at a time.
The Covid vaccine rollout
Written By: - Date published: 10:48 am, October 30th, 2021 - 185 comments
Matt Nippert’s in depth article in the Herald this morning provides a well researched deep insight into the Government’s vaccine roll out. And as it progresses the New Zealand response places us mid table and improving in the OECD vaccination comparison and gives us some hope that the Delta outbreak may be controlled.
Have we just thrown the fight, before the war has ended?
Written By: - Date published: 8:59 am, October 6th, 2021 - 53 comments
With all the unfortunate rhetoric around “giving up on the elimination strategy”.
Small businesspeople around me, who have quietly carried on with the program, and have been supportive of the Government strategy of elimination, even though, in many cases, it has been personally costly, are telling me,, “why did we bother”!
It doesn’t matter if it is the actual Government intention, or the media interpretation, the damage has now been done.
CPTPP V Nuclear Submarines
Written By: - Date published: 2:45 pm, September 19th, 2021 - 41 comments
In a piece of incredible timing, on the same day as Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom announced their defence technology procurement pact and pissed off ally and competitor alike, China formally applied to join the Comprehensive and Porgressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership.
Why Not Support The Farmers?
Written By: - Date published: 8:43 am, July 17th, 2021 - 106 comments
The Groundswell farmers movement want the new freshwater policy scrapped, the “ute tax” removed, lots of imported labour for farm work, parts of the ETS dumped the new Significant Natural Area policy dumped, the draft policy on indigenous biodiversity scrapped and Crown Pastoral Land Reform Bill stopped. How likely is this?
The week when Scomo came to visit
Written By: - Date published: 11:12 am, June 6th, 2021 - 5 comments
This week has seen the Australian Broadcasting Corporation to suggest that Australia is adopting a principled stand and New Zealand has sold its soul to China for trade. But the comments by Morrison and Ardern made after their Queenstown meeting suggests the opposite.
New Zealand’s Perverse Economy
Written By: - Date published: 7:28 am, May 29th, 2021 - 37 comments
At a forecast farm gate milk price of between NZ$7.25 and NZ$8.75 per kilo of milk solid, Fonterra is going to fill up its milk tankers, drive back to their suppliers with cash and pump it straight back into the farmhouse like we haven’t seen in a decade.
Reasons to abandon NZ’s Five-Eyed Folly
Written By: - Date published: 2:35 pm, February 4th, 2021 - 29 comments
Wayne Brown’s recent suggestion “Is it time to sell our seat on FiveEyes?” is from someone well placed by experience to form an educated opinion. “Trade sanctions of the type Australia is facing are a weapon used by both USA and China. So let’s have a debate on whether we need Five Eyes, or whether it’s time for us to trade on independently.”
Brexit revisited
Written By: - Date published: 7:19 am, December 13th, 2020 - 19 comments
With Brexit looming there is talk of unfinished customs software and the possibility of chaos around ports, the UK’s food supply being compromised, and potential skirmishes with France at fishing spots. And Angela Merkel and Emmanuel Macron are refusing to talk to Boris Johnson. Hang on England, this is going to get wild.
The boy from Matamata
Written By: - Date published: 8:28 am, October 28th, 2020 - 43 comments
Trump deputy chief of staff Chris Liddell, who is also a Kiwi, has announced his candidacy to be head of the OECD. The Greens have announced their opposition because he has been part of inhumane decisions and also decisions that undermine international institutions. The right back him because he is a kiwi. What should Labour do?
How Trump Has Changed New Zealand’s future
Written By: - Date published: 7:00 am, September 2nd, 2020 - 28 comments
Post Trump how is the world order looking?
Re-open New Zealand
Written By: - Date published: 10:23 am, July 3rd, 2020 - 82 comments
It is great to see former Prime Minister Helen Clark join the debate about re-opening New Zealand’s borders. We need it. There is no better time for New Zealand to re-launch itself to the world.
The plan for Monday
Written By: - Date published: 9:43 am, April 18th, 2020 - 30 comments
Even if New Zealand gets out of the immediate Covid-19 infection better than most other countries, the result is still a wrecked world and a slow recovery. What we face is something like an Australian firefighter with a hose and a tanker facing an onrushing wall of flame: they successfully dampen down a defined circle […]
New Zealand’s poor in this new crisis
Written By: - Date published: 9:16 am, April 11th, 2020 - 126 comments
Covid 19 is not some great leveller. To succeed the state has to completely redirect the economy to so that ordinary workers and working families are supported.
China: Guns, Germs, and Steel
Written By: - Date published: 8:00 am, February 14th, 2020 - 34 comments
The coronavirus outbreak that exploded three weeks ago in the central Chinese city of Wuhan has prompted the most severe Chinese government actions in three decades.
Mike Moore
Written By: - Date published: 7:30 am, February 3rd, 2020 - 104 comments
It’s not often you find New Zealanders who give every single breath they have to the left and do it with resounding and even global success. Such a person was Mike Moore.
Chinese New Year
Written By: - Date published: 9:26 am, January 27th, 2020 - 15 comments
With China’s New Year arriving, and a terrible flu virus struggling to be contained within it at the same time, it’s time to reflect again on China’s future and impact for New Zealand.
Trickle down fails yet again
Written By: - Date published: 11:13 am, November 3rd, 2019 - 50 comments
Despite its continuous failure to work over the past 40 years trickle down remains a favourite justification by right wing administrations for allowing unfettered greed.
China independence day
Written By: - Date published: 4:17 pm, October 1st, 2019 - 91 comments
October 1st is the National Day of the People’s Republic of China. They like to make it a big day, bigger than the United States’ July 4th. It’s called Golden Week because they all really holiday and reconnect across the country. They shop like lock forwards pack down. It’s massive. As the 70th event, it […]
Fonterra, again
Written By: - Date published: 9:15 am, September 29th, 2019 - 24 comments
Why New Zealand – and its government – need to engage much harder about Fonterra.
National are lighting political dumpster fires while the Amazon burns
Written By: - Date published: 7:15 am, August 27th, 2019 - 47 comments
New Zealand’s poster boys for late stage capitalism’s dying throes are fools of the highest order.
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.
Fonterra failure and Government failure
Written By: - Date published: 7:38 am, August 19th, 2019 - 95 comments
Fonterra is dragging New Zealand down, faster and faster. What is this Government going to do?
US China trade talks and New Zealand
Written By: - Date published: 7:30 am, May 12th, 2019 - 91 comments
Donald Trump’s trade war with China is way, way bad for New Zealand.
- The Iran protests and the battle for Women’s Rights
In this Free Speech Union podcast Daphna Whitmore speaks with Dr Forough Amin about what’s happening in Iran after two months of growing protests across the country. Forough is a women’s rights activist and the founder of the Iranian Women in NZ Charitable Trust. Forough discusses the dire state of ...5 hours ago - The Sagas and Fairy Tales of the South Pacific: Maori Legends, as collected by Sir George Grey (1855...
As a Pakeha New Zealander who spent the majority of his school-level education in the lower North Island in the 1990s, I received a smattering of Maori cultural infusion. I learned how to count to ten in Maori, learned the names of colours, some rudiments of pronunciation from singing ...12 hours ago - A victory for democracy!
Today, the Supreme Court ruled on the case of Make it 16 Inc v AG, declaring that the law forbidding 16 and 17 year olds from voting was inconsistent with the right to be free from discrimination, and that it had not been justified under the BORA. Its a ...14 hours ago - Gordon Campbell on Qatar, Joyce Carol Oates and Mimi Parker
The FIFA World Cup has kicked off amid laments about Qatar’s terrible human rights record, and FIFA’s greed in awarding them the Cup hosting rights in the first place. The criticism raining down on Qatar over its murderous treatment of migrant workers errs and its persecution of its LGBT community ...14 hours ago - Geoffrey Miller: Does New Zealand need to up its game with World Cup host Qatar?
As the FIFA World Cup gets underway in Qatar, it is worth looking at the state of New Zealand’s wider relationship with the host nation. While New Zealand often likes to think of itself as a small country, it comfortably outranks Qatar in both size and population. In terms of ...17 hours ago - Elizabeth Rata: The Curriculum, intelligence, and democracyThe intelligence of the New Zealand population increased during the 20th century. Nutrition played its part but so too did education. Young people were taught the abstract knowledge of academic subjects and in the process developed secondary intelligence. Since the 1990s, the emptying out of prescribed academic knowledge from the ...19 hours ago
- Where are Ukrainian refugees going? – an update
A temporary tent camp set up for Ukrainian refugees in Donetsk, in Russia’s Rostov region near the Russian-Ukrainian border, June 22, ... 1 day ago - If It Ain’t Broke, Why Fix It?
Still Going Strong: Why has the Minister of Justice cobbled together a group of “progressive” academics, most of whom subscribe to the core beliefs of Māori nationalism, “decolonisation”, and te Tiriti revisionism, to “review” our political system? In the absence of any convincing evidence that our electoral machinery is “broke”, ...2 days ago - 2022 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #47
A chronological listing of news articles posted on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Nov 13, 2022 thru Sat, Nov 19, 2022. Story of the Week Is COP27 the End of Hopes for Limiting Global Warming to 1.5 Degrees Celsius? The climate talks are going into overtime ...2 days ago - Labour grovels to the bigotsIn the wake of the March 15 terror attack, the inquiry recommended tougher hate-speech laws. And after dragging their feet on it for a full year, the government has basicly said "fuck that": The Government has drastically watered down its hate speech reforms, Justice Minister Kiri Allan said on Saturday. ...2 days ago
- Are We in a Stagflation?
Recently, I have often been asked whether we (New Zealand or the World) are experiencing a stagflation. There is no meaningful ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer. You have to define the term before deciding what is going on.Rutherford once said there were only two kinds of science: stamp collecting and physics. ...3 days ago - More police racismThe police annual report was released this month, with the usual statutory information on surveillance warrants and DNA samples. And it turns out there's some shocking evidence of racism among the latter: The proportion of youth DNA samples collected by police that belong to rangatahi Māori continues to rise, ...3 days ago
- The Political Minefield
Poor Christopher Luxon. His lack of political experience (and judgment) is constantly being highlighted – not least by his recent foray into the treatment of child criminality. So keen was he to draw attention to his assertion that “Labour is soft on crime” that he was prepared to run the ...4 days ago - Media Link: “AVFA” on US midterms and Trump’s return.
After a small hiatus due to Covid hitting my household, Selwyn Manning and I resumed our weekly ” A View from Afar” podcast series with an analysis of the 2022 US midterm results and a look at what Trump’s decision to run for president again means for the GOP. You ...4 days ago - Bryce Edwards: National wants to brand the Govt as soft on crimeAs Government politicians put the boot into National’s bootcamp announcement yesterday, Christopher Luxon would have been celebrating. His populist announcement wasn’t only designed to scratch an electoral itch, but to cynically trap his opponents into looking soft on crime. And it probably worked. Soon after announcing his policy for bootcamps ...4 days ago
- Free Speech to fight anti-SemitismFree Speech Union member Daphna Whitmore talks with Daniel Ben-Ami, an author, and journalist based in London. His website “The Radicalism of Fools” https://www.radicalismoffools.com/ aims to develop a better understanding of anti-Semitism and its root causes. Daniel talks about different forms of anti-Semitism from the right and the left. He explains ...4 days ago
- Hello, do you know the difference? The Raytheon, Goldman Sachs Left is not the LeftThe left free speech site Plebity has published this handy chart. When you say left, you probably aren’t actually talking about the left. Find another name. Or at least understand the difference between the woke left and the traditional left which although largely silenced does still exist. Here is a ...4 days ago
- Skeptical Science New Research for Week #46 2022Notables: Presence or absence of stabilizing Earth system feedbacks on different time scales Arnscheidt and Rothman confirm the stabilizing effect of carbonate geochemistry on Earth's climate, at least on "short" timescales. More provocatively: "We have shown that the observations are inconsistent with a dominant stabilizing feedback on the longest time scales ...4 days ago
- Gordon Campbell on the case for universal free dental careLike Banquo’s ghost, the issue of universal free dental care keeps hovering into sight at Labour’s top table. ‘Tis a goodly, progressive idea, but it is also one that’s been done in repeatedly down the years by the shafts of political expedience, some of which were fired again this week ...5 days ago
- Political Roundup: 17 November 2022Items of interest and importance today FOREIGN AFFAIRS Claire Trevett (Herald): Russia, China, a Trump comeback – PM Jacinda Ardern will face a big plate of troubles at Apec (paywalled) Thomas Manch (Stuff): Risky business: NZ seeks greater trade with Vietnam as China dependency causes concern Thomas Manch (Stuff): Prime Minister ...5 days ago
- New reports spell out climate urgency, shortfalls, needed actionsThis is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Michael Svoboda In the weeks leading up to the 27th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, often called COP27, several organizations released major reports detailing the many difficult tasks on the climate negotiators’ agenda. Some of ...5 days ago
- Climate change: The cost of inactionA couple of days ago I highlighted National's opposition to all actual policies to reduce emissions. Now, the government has put some numbers on the cost of that, and it is staggering: nearly 24 million tons by the end of the decade: Labour says National’s promises to repeal its ...5 days ago
- The Facts Don’t Always Tell The Truth.6 days ago
- Bryce Edwards: Labour’s decaying policy on free universal dental careGrant Robertson has once again ruled out implementing a popular Labour Party policy: free universal dental care. He did so yesterday on RNZ’s Morning Report, citing the cost factor. The Acting Prime Minister suggested that spending on dental care wasn’t a priority for the Government and that the health budget ...6 days ago
- Grant says “no” againYesterday the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists released a report on dental care in Aotearoa, highlighting its unaffordability and recommending free, universal dental care. This is something the left has been campaigning for for a long time - Jim Anderton pushed for it before the 2011 election, and Helen Clark ...6 days ago
- On NZ foreign policy “independence.”For many years New Zealand elites have claimed to have an “independent” foreign policy, so much so that it has become a truism of NZ politics that transcends the partisan divide in parliament and is a shibboleth of the NZ foreign policy establishment that is parroted by media and pundits ...7 days ago
- Bryce Edwards: Momentum growing to reform lobbying lawsThis week global anti-corruption agency Transparency International released a report on lobbying, which described New Zealand’s lack of regulation as “glaring”. Transparency International New Zealand has developed an international comparison of New Zealand’s lobbying regulations so that MPs here can decide whether to reform this sector. Currently, a group of ...7 days ago
- The “Us versus Them” Worldview.Behind Closed Doors: What were the organisers of He Whenua Taurikura, the second hui called into existence by the recommendations of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Christchurch mosque shootings, afraid of? Were they worried that journalists not 100 percent sympathetic to the ideals animating the hui might report ...7 days ago
- Don’t get fooled: Electric vehicles really are better for the climateThis is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Daisy Simmons You may have heard the myth that electric vehicles are just as bad for the climate — or worse — than gas-powered cars and trucks. One common myth claims that the climate-warming pollution caused by manufacturing electric vehicle batteries ...7 days ago
- Privatisation screws the futureThere's a major report out today from 350 Aotearoa, First Union and the CTU about how National's privatisation of the electricity sector has led to entirely predictable outcomes of price gouging and underinvestment: Meridian, Mercury, Genesis and Contact Energy paid out $8.7b in dividends to shareholders between 2014 ...1 week ago
- Gordon Campbell on abortion politics, Murdoch and the DeSantis surgeSo the Democrats did a whole lot better than OK in the midterm elections despite the cost of living crisis and despite the President’s low approval ratings. How come? In a word, “abortion” was the key mobilising issue. It inspired many women (and some men) to register to vote. In ...1 week ago
- New BookI have a new book being published this month. It is entitled “What Does It Mean to Be Human?” and is an attempt to arrive at a moral code of our own making – one that will serve all our interests and those of other creatures and of the planet ...1 week ago
- Three Little Words!The crucial moment in the Black Ferns’ Rugby World Cup triumph came in the closing minute. The Red Roses had used a penalty to kick to the corner, and from the throw-in that followed they had clearly planned to use a rolling maul to get the ball across the line ...1 week ago
- Geoffrey Miller: Jacinda Ardern’s Asia trip rekindles New Zealand’s independent foreign policyNew Zealand’s independent foreign policy is back. That’s a key underlying message from Jacinda Ardern’s trip this week to Southeast Asia. The New Zealand Prime Minister attended the East Asia Summit in Cambodia over the weekend. She will head to Thailand for the APEC leaders’ meeting later in the week. ...1 week ago
- 2022 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #45A chronological listing of news articles posted on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Nov 6, 2022 thru Sat, Nov 12, 2022. Story of the Week What the tiny remaining 1.5C carbon budget means for climate policy The latest estimates from the Global Carbon Project (GCP) show that total worldwide CO2 ...1 week ago
- David Farrier’s unsettling new documentary ‘Mister Organ’ – a film to watch through your fin...
In this age of entitled white men behaving badly, it’s common to hear the term “malignant narcissist” Anyone who’s had the misfortune to be sucked into the orbit or one of these miscreants, (let alone been obliged to, say, sue one for copyright infringement) eventually learns that the ONLY ‘exit ...1 week ago - The End of Neoliberalism?
Gary Gerstle’s The Rise and Fall of the Neoliberal Order: America and the World in the Free Market Era is a frustrating book. It is an impressive sweeping history of American politics and economic policy from the New Deal in the 1930s to today, predicting that we are coming to ...1 week ago - Phil Ferguson on radical youth politics and the Irish republican strugglePhil Ferguson is a founding editor of Redline and was a regular contributor. He has been out of action for the past year after suffering a stroke. He is learning to walk again and hoping to get back to writing. Tim Leadbeater sat down with Phil to talk about about ...1 week ago
- Climate Change: Submit!Farming industry groups today released a joint statement against their own proposal - as adopted by the government - to price agricultural greenhouse gas emissions at the farm level. Its a perfect example of the bad faith with which they have engaged in the entire process, and of the industry's ...1 week ago
- Is is the beginning of the end of the toxic Trump TV show?
In 2016 the US electorate was feeling frustrated, let down, embattled, even desperate. It was – truth be told – willing to indulge its tendency for some racism and misogyny. So it screwed up its face, held its breath and reached out for Donald Trump. The years since have been ...1 week ago - Political Roundup: 11 November 2022Items of interest and importance today PARLIAMENT AND GOVERNMENT Shane Jones (Herald): Stop the forays into identity politics, de-colonisation and global posturing, St Jacinda. We must focus on economic essentials (paywalled) Peter Dunne (Newsroom): Luxon is not yet the direct threat Labour is painting him as Jo Moir (Newsroom): Luxon set ...2 weeks ago
- Skeptical Science New Research for Week #45 2022Catastrophic reverb Kemp et al. caused prolonged ripples with their paper Climate Endgame: Exploring catastrophic climate change scenarios. One can't help but think most of the heat is emotional, not intellectual; excited critics of the paper offer little more than "this sounds scary, don't harsh our vibe." Vague and even outlandish concerrns over terminology aside, true ...2 weeks ago
- Solar panels on car parks are a no-brainerThe Guardian reports that France is going to require all large car-parks to be covered by solar panels: All large car parks in France will be covered by solar panels under new legislation approved as part of president Emmanuel Macron’s renewable energy drive. Legislation approved by the French Senate ...2 weeks ago
- Climate Change: National wants to burn the planetLast month, the National Party announced they would repeal any price on agricultural greenhouse gas emissions, effectively declaring that they would do nothing about them. Today, they've followed that up by announcing that they will repeal the ban on offshore oil and gas exploration: The National Party has reaffirmed ...2 weeks ago
- DrawnA ballot for a single Member's Bill was held today, and the following bill was drawn: Fair Trading (Gift Card Expiry) Amendment Bill (Melissa Lee) Its a worthy but minor bill, and the best you can say about it is that at least none of National's tough-on-crime ...2 weeks ago
- Gordon Campbell on the midterms, Adrian Orr and taxing the BanksIt used to be a joke, but it seems that a lot of Republicans really might have moved to Florida to escape from the gulag of Dr Fauci. While in these midterms the “red wave” didn’t happen anywhere outside of Florida, the GOP control of the Senate will now come ...2 weeks ago
- Political Roundup: 10 November 2022Items of interest and importance today BANKING Thomas Coughlan (Herald): Why Jacinda Ardern hit out at banks (paywalled) Bernard Hickey (Interest): Open banking still two years away 1New: Open banking to make it easier to switch banks, compare rates Bridie Witton (Stuff): Government moves to introduce open banking Martien Lubberink (Newsroom): ...2 weeks ago
- Addicted to secrecyBack in July, Public Service Minister Chris Hipkins said he was concerned about the growing number of secrecy clauses excluding information from the coverage of the Official Information Act, and promised "safeguards" to limit their use in future. meanwhile, the government he is part of has just introduced another one, ...2 weeks ago
- Bryce Edwards: Will the Govt act on mega bank profits and reform the banking sector?The corporate retail banks are making mega profits on the back of Government policies and indirect subsidies of recent years. As a result, there are calls from across almost the whole political spectrum for greater regulation of the banking sector, including windfall taxes. But will outrage turn into action? Prime ...2 weeks ago
- Member’s DayToday is a Member's Day. First up is the second readings of Ginny Andersen's Crimes (Child Exploitation Offences) Amendment Bill and Deborah Russell's Employment Relations (Extended Time for Personal Grievance for Sexual Harassment) Amendment Bill. Following that, the House should complete the first reading of Duncan Webb's Companies (Directors Duties) ...2 weeks ago
- Climate change reparations – who pays?This is a re-post from the NZ Newsroom by Kevin Trenberth Climate change reparations are expected to be one of the main issues at COP27, the next round of international climate talks from November 6-18 in Egypt. Climate change reparations are a new way of looking at how to pay developing countries ...2 weeks ago
- Much Worse Than It Looks.Bad News: While Labour’s refusal to back away from its most controversial policies is mobilising right-wing voters against them, its all-too-evident failure to address the worsening problems associated with the cost of living, health, education, housing and criminal offending will be having the opposite effect on the voters in its ...2 weeks ago
- The Drift South: The Changing Face of New Zealand Population
One of the defining aspects of New Zealand population dynamics since European settlement was the so-called Drift North. People relocating from the South Island to the North Island, in search of economic opportunity and of warmer weather. The early years of settlement saw most Europeans head for the South ...2 weeks ago - Free Speech Union holds its first symposium and AGMReport by Daphna Whitmore The growth of the Free Speech Union is remarkable. In just a few years it has grown to 72,000 registered supporters, 6,000 New Zealanders have donated to it, and more than 1000 people are members of its trade union arm. The FSU put on a symposium ...2 weeks ago
- All noise and no policyOver the weekend Labour had a very bad poll - basicly, the chickens coming home to roost on their fuck around and do nothing policy. But on Monday, price-gouging Aussie bank Westpac offered them a golden opportunity, in the form of a billion dollar profit. Everyone hates the banks, they're ...2 weeks ago
- Gordon Campbell on bank profits, and the US midtermsSo far, the political response to excessive bank profits has held up a mirror to party identity. Labour thinks the level of bank profits is “open to question” but offers no action in response. National thinks the problem must lie with the state (not the banks), and wants to investigate ...2 weeks ago
- Luxon and WillisChristopher Luxon was, presumably, in his day a dab hand at airline schedules, but he is obviously a little less competent when it comes to running a country. There is a world of difference between focussing on the single objective of the bottom line when running a trading company and ...2 weeks ago
- Jacinda Ardern’s Wall Of Sound.Thirty Minute Symphony? Among her peers there is no one who approaches Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern when it comes to talking the talk. She is, indisputably, New Zealand’s foremost impresario of political verbiage.PHIL SPECTOR’S “WALL OF SOUND” production technique revolutionised the recording of popular music in the 1950s and 60s. ...2 weeks ago
- Political Roundup: 8 November 2022Items of interest and importance today PARLIAMENT, ELECTION Chris Trotter (Daily Blog): Much Worse Than It Looks Thomas Coughlan (Herald): Battle of the polls: Internal poll has Labour equal with National Newshub: Video: Newshub political editor Jenna Lynch breaks down ‘terrible, terrible’ poll result for Labour David Fisher (Herald): Why ...2 weeks ago
- Are clean technologies and renewable energies better for the environment than fossil fuels?This is a re-post from the CCL Blog The grand transition from a fossil fuel-based economy to a green one is underway. It will involve a fundamental shift in the way we generate and use energy for various purposes. Instead of drilling and mining for fossil fuels, we’ll need to mine ...2 weeks ago
- Labour’s morally indefensible choicesLabour held its party conference over the weekend, and the government announced a minor expansion of its free ECE policy - actually a subsidy to ECE providers - to try and shore up middle-class support. And in the Herald today, Jacinda Ardern said she'd go further if money was no ...2 weeks ago
- Climate Change: A “nightmare” of their own makingLast month, the government grovelled to the sacred cow, basicly adopting Federated Farmers' he waka eke noa framework to not-really price greenhouse gases at the farm level. And of course, farmers hate it and are calling it a "bureaucratic nightmare": "Paying taxes doesn't equal doing our part, and paying ...2 weeks ago
- Bryce Edwards: Labour’s version of conservatism is no longer popularNew Zealand now essentially has two conservative major parties for the public to choose from. Unfortunately for one of them – the Labour Party – the public increasingly prefers the more authentic conservative option, National. This can be seen in the latest opinion poll showing National continuing to storm ahead ...2 weeks ago
- 2022 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #44A chronological listing of news articles posted on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Oct 30, 2022 thru Sat, Nov 5, 2022. Story of the Week COP27 climate summit to test resolve of world battling war, inflation Many of the biggest players distracted by crises Global ...2 weeks ago
- Is New Zealand covertly supporting the glorification of neo-Nazism?Ukrainian veterans of the Azov Battalion, formed by a white supremacist and banned from receiving U.S. aid, attend a rally in Kyiv on March 14, 2020. Source “Ukraine’s Nazi problem is real, even if Putin’s ‘denazification’ claim isn’t” Vladimir Sindeyeve / NurPhoto via Getty ...2 weeks ago
- Disingenuous National Party s(loga)neering continues to make seeing out 2022 way harder than it need...
Make it make sense. For the love of retaining some sanity as we chase down the end of the year, make. it. make. sense! A Party that wants us to get in thousands more people to fill jobs… that being, the ones that are presumably to be vacated ...2 weeks ago- Climate Change: Winning slowly
Five years ago David Wallace-Wells published "The Unihabitable Earth", looking at the horrifying consequences of what-were-then-likely climate change scenarios. Today, he has something of a followup in the New York Times, "Beyond Catastrophe: A New Climate Reality Is Coming Into View". Its a very long article, but the TL;DR is ...2 weeks ago- Why are Bond Markets So Terrifying?
‘I used to think that if there was reincarnation, I wanted to come back as the president or the pope or as a .400 baseball hitter. But now I would like to come back as the bond market. You can intimidate everybody.’ James Carville.The rule by British politicians Liz Truss ...2 weeks ago- Political Roundup: 4 November 2022
Items of interest and importance today GOVERNMENT, PARLIAMENT, ELECTIONS Toby Manhire (Spinoff): Labour’s conference challenge is to launch Project Dawn Matthew Hooton (Herald): Bureaucracy needs shaking into action (paywalled) Brent Edwards (NBR): Economic gloom, Iranian balance, Labour’s tough challenge(paywalled) RNZ: Labour’s party faithful to gather for annual conference as pressure mounts ...3 weeks ago- 0-800-STASI
The Lidless Eye: New Zealand’s Security Intelligence Service has scoured its own files, and drawn on the relevant files of its Five Eyes partners, to produce a handbook identifying all the tell-tale signs that a citizen has undergone radicalisation, and is on the verge of organising and/or engaging in an act ...3 weeks ago- Three Waters. Three Mayors. Three Cheers!
Three Wise Men: Who should pay for upgrading New Zealand's waste, storm and drinking water services? That is the $64 billion (at the very least!) question. The most obvious answer: and the one Mayor Wayne Brown in Auckland, Mayor Phil Mauger in Christchurch, and the Mayor of the Waimakariri District, ...3 weeks ago- Skeptical Science New Research for Week #44 2022
Notables: Usable, but unused: A critical story of co-producing the UK’s Climate Change Risk Assessments. We seem to have all the pieces needed to build climate-risk-responsive policy but often there's no policy product at the end of the assembly line. James Porter & Caitlin Clark investigate and explain how our blueprint for building ...3 weeks ago- More wind
If Aotearoa is going to decarbonise, we're going to need a lot more renewable electricity. And it looks like the industry is stepping up, with the announcement of Aotearoa's first offshore wind farm: New Zealand’s first offshore wind farm will be built 22km off the coast of South Taranaki ...3 weeks ago- Media Link: “AVFA” on electoral politics in Brazil, US and Israel.
This week Selwyn Manning and I do a post-mortem on Brazil’s election and a preview of the US midterms under the general banner of “it is about the movement, not the man,” then turn to the tactical and existential issues surrounding Israel’s latest (and increasingly rightwing-leaning) elections. You can draw ...3 weeks ago- Gordon Campbell on inflating the threat posed by social media
It has been a big week for the preachers of the social media apocalypse. During her speech on Monday to the He Whenua Taurikura hui on Countering Terrorism and Violent Extremism, PM Jacinda Ardern told us that the country’s security agencies have just released a draft National Security Long Term ...3 weeks ago - Disingenuous National Party s(loga)neering continues to make seeing out 2022 way harder than it need...
- Time to extend the voting age
The Green Party is calling on the Government to take immediate action to lower the voting age to 16. ...14 hours ago - Supporting Kiwi kids this Children's Day
Our Government has put the wellbeing of children at the heart of everything we do. As we celebrate World Children’s Day, we’re taking a look at some of the ways Labour is working to make New Zealand the best place in the world to be a child. ...2 days ago - Hate speech change welcome, but still leaves communities at riskThe Green Party welcomes hate speech reform to protect religious groups, but is concerned that the exclusion of gender, rainbow, and disability communities sends a signal that these groups are less deserving of protection. ...3 days ago
- Young people deserve betterThe National Party’s plan to put children into military boot camps is so flawed it is dangerous. ...4 days ago
- Thousands more homes under LabourWe’ve just announced a massive infrastructure investment to kick-start new housing developments across New Zealand. Through our Infrastructure Acceleration Fund, we’re making sure that critical infrastructure - like pipes, roads and wastewater connections - is in place, so thousands more homes can be built. ...4 days ago
- Green Party solution better for Māori voters, not deal with NationalAn agreement between Labour and National misses an historic opportunity to make our democracy more accessible for Māori voters. ...6 days ago
- Govt must extend Samoa visa changes to all Pacific countriesThanks to Green Party pressure, visitors from Samoa can soon travel to Aotearoa without a visa – a right that should be extended to every Pacific country. ...6 days ago
- A cheaper, faster, better resource management systemOur Government is delivering a new resource management system that will better protect the environment while cutting red tape, lowering costs and speeding up the time it takes to approve new homes and infrastructure projects. ...6 days ago
- Nature missing in RMA reformThe Government has missed a crucial opportunity to redesign the resource management system with climate and nature at its heart. ...7 days ago
- Govt continuing to prioritise high income earners in immigration systemThe resumption today of the parent visa category needs to be followed by an end to the Government’s unfair salary based family reunification policy. ...1 week ago
- Supporting more Kiwis into jobsWe’re helping more Kiwis into work, to help support whānau, grow our skilled workforce and secure our economy for future generations. During our time in Government, we’ve delivered record low unemployment rates, as well as a steady fall in the number of New Zealanders receiving a main benefit, and we’re ...1 week ago
- Fix electricity market to help both climate and cost of livingThe four big electricity companies should be required to reinvest massive profits into cutting both household bills and climate pollution, the Green Party says. ...1 week ago
- Next Waitematā Harbour crossing must be climate-friendlyThe Minister for Transport can show climate leadership and consider only the lowest carbon ways of crossing Waitematā harbour. ...1 week ago
- Changes needed to three waters plansGreater local oversight and control, seven instead of four entities, stormwater staying with councils, and stronger safeguards against privatisation are among the changes the Green Party wants to three waters legislation. ...1 week ago
- Bold action needed on food prices and supermarket profitsSupermarkets are profiteering from families struggling to put food on the table. ...2 weeks ago
- Don’t let open banking close the door on action to address excess profitOpen banking is fine but the simplest and most effective way to address record bank profits is to tax them fairly to provide relief to families struggling to get by. ...2 weeks ago
- Rainbow Report shows more needs to be done for takatāpui and Rainbow peopleThe Green Party welcomes the Rainbow report released by Stats NZ today and calls for better support for takatāpui and Rainbow people, particularly our trans and non-binary whānau. ...2 weeks ago
- Greens call on Education Minister to bring tertiary sector to the tableThe Green Party is once again calling on the Minister of Education to bring union, government officials and sector leaders together to urgently improve the pay and condition of tertiary education staff. ...2 weeks ago
- Making childcare more affordableWe know childcare is one of the biggest costs for working families. That’s why, as part of our work to support New Zealanders with the cost of living, we’re making childcare more affordable for low and middle income families. ...2 weeks ago
- Greens welcome childcare support, call for more actionThe Green Party is welcoming the modest support for families announced by the Labour Government but calling for more urgent action to ease the pressure on households. ...2 weeks ago
- Jacinda Ardern: Speech to the Labour Party Conference 2022As we near the end of 2022, Jacinda Ardern addresses the Labour Party Conference in South Auckland. Watch the Labour Leader’s speech here. ...2 weeks ago
- Kelvin Davis: Address to the Labour Party Conference 2022I often refer to, and draw inspiration from, our tupuna, and when I reflect on the last few years the words of a famous Ngapuhi chief Te Ruki Kawiti come to mind. ...2 weeks ago
- Grant Robertson: Speech to the Labour Party Conference 2022Labour Finance Spokesperson Grant Robertson speaks at the Labour Party Conference in South Auckland. ...2 weeks ago
- Luxon risks burning down five years of climate progressChris Luxon’s plan to reopen new gas projects in the middle of the climate crisis is about as irresponsible as it gets. ...3 weeks ago
- Greens call on Govt to grant visa waiver status to all Pacific countriesThe Green Party is calling on the Government to change visa settings to allow people visiting Aotearoa from the Pacific Islands to do so without having to apply for a visa. ...3 weeks ago
- 100 things we’ve delivered this yearOver the past year, we’ve worked hard to deliver for Kiwis. As we’ve continued to secure our economy, we’ve also made good progress across long term challenges like climate change, housing, and health. While there is more to do, we’ve achieved a lot over the past year. Here are just ...3 weeks ago
- New Zealand’s place in the worldPrime Minister Jacinda Ardern recently gave a speech on the economy and New Zealand’s place in the world. Here’s a super quick overview of what she had to say about global challenges, like workforce shortages, and why New Zealand can be optimistic about the future. ...3 weeks ago
- Tax excess profits, don’t leave it to the good will of large corporationsThe Green Party is once again calling on the Government to introduce an excess profits tax and use the money to support people, rather than relying on the good will of corporations. ...3 weeks ago
- RBNZ report strengthens case for excess profit tax and more income supportA drop in household income from rising bank interest rates further demonstrates the need for an excess profits tax, the Green Party says. ...3 weeks ago
- Further sanctions on the political and economic elites of Russia and Belarus
Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta today announced further sanctions on members of the inner circles of governments in Russia and Belarus, as part of the ongoing response to the war in Ukraine. “Aotearoa New Zealand first moved against the powerful and wealthy in Russia with sanctions on political and economic ...9 hours ago - Another step towards improved supermarket competitionThe Bill to trigger an unprecedented shake-up of the grocery sector and deliver New Zealanders a fairer deal at the checkout and help tackle cost of living pressures is ready for its first reading at Parliament. “The duopoly has now been given plenty of warning. If they fail to adequately ...9 hours ago
- Black Ferns to be celebrated at ParliamentA public event and celebration will be held on Parliament’s lawn on December 13 to celebrate our Rugby World Cup winning Black Ferns. “The Black Ferns’ triumph at Eden Park is one of New Zealand’s greatest sporting moments,” Grant Robertson said. “They are extraordinary athletes, exceptional people and proud New ...10 hours ago
- Autism Guideline released by MinistryThe release of the latest edition of the Aotearoa New Zealand Autism Guideline – He Waka Huia Takiwātanga Rau has been welcomed by Minister for Disability Issues Poto Williams today. The Guideline provides an opportunity to better understand and communicate best practices for supporting autistic people and their families and ...12 hours ago
- Speech to Aotearoa Refugee HuiNga mihi nui ki a koutou, Welcome to the Parliament, your Parliament. It is great to see the community here in such numbers, and I am happy to be here with my parliamentary colleagues to listen and take part in the discussions today. I particularly want to acknowledge Ibrahim Omer ...15 hours ago
- Global climate talks underline need for domestic actionMinister of Climate Change James Shaw marked the end of COP27 negotiations in Egypt by saying it was now crunch time for counties to step up and take urgent action at home. “Even though we have these international negotiations every year, our focus must always be on what we do ...1 day ago
- Defence Minister visits Ukraine and PolandDefence Minister Peeni Henare has visited Ukraine and Poland, holding talks with his Ministerial counterparts. During the talks Minister Henare reaffirmed New Zealand’s unwavering support for the Ukrainian defence against Russia’s illegal and unprovoked invasion. The visit was a further demonstration of New Zealand’s ongoing support to the people ...1 day ago
- Stuart Nash to attend OECD meetingsSmall Business Minister Stuart Nash will travel to Paris today to attend small business meetings with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Stuart Nash will chair the OECD’s Digital for SMEs (D4SME) Steering Group meeting and the 4th Roundtable of the OECD D4SME Global Initiative. “The OECD’s Digital ...2 days ago
- Human Rights Act enhanced to protect religious communitiesThe Government will amend the law to make sure religious communities feel safe and welcome in New Zealand. After extensive consultation, with more than 19,000 submissions on six proposals, the Government will make one change to address incitement towards religious communities while asking for further work to be done alongside ...3 days ago
- Defence Minister meets with UK counterpart and visits NZDF personnelMinister of Defence Peeni Henare held talks in the UK today with his counterpart, Secretary of State for Defence Ben Wallace. The Ministers reiterated the importance of our defence relationship, and reflected on the strong historical and cultural ties between the United Kingdom and New Zealand. Together, they ...4 days ago
- Government takes action to reduce gambling harm from pokiesThe Government is announcing today changes to strengthen the requirements in venues which have pokie (gambling) machines to reduce the harm they cause people. “The changes focus on reducing harm caused by pokies, which can affect both those people gambling and their whānau. In short, they would make the ‘host ...4 days ago
- The Pacific business village comes to AucklandThe Pacific Business Village (the Village) is now going to set up in the Auckland region, said Minister for Pacific Peoples Aupito William Sio. The Ministry secured $15.5 million in Budget 2022 to meet community demand volumes for services to support Pacific businesses and Pacific social enterprises across Aotearoa. “The ...4 days ago
- Government’s health investments making a difference for New ZealandersFewer New Zealanders say cost is a barrier to visiting a GP or getting a prescription. The number of children going hungry has halved over the past decade. Statistics show why the Government has made major investment in mental health. Official statistics released today show the Government’s targeted health investments ...4 days ago
- Speech to the Asia New Zealand FoundationKia koutou, warm pacific greetings.I am delighted we have the opportunity to meet kanohi ki te kanohi and talanoa in-person, I would like to extend my thanks to Adele and her team for organising this event, for us, today; fa’afetai tele lava. I am also delighted to see some rangatahi ...4 days ago
- Major investment in Māori HealthLargest commissioning investment to date from Te Aka Whai Ora | Māori Health Authority boosts funding for Maori health providers $29.3 million for Te Pae Tata | interim New Zealand Health Plan priority areas $13.0 million for Māori primary and community providers $17.6 million for te ao Māori solutions, mātauranga ...4 days ago
- Govt delivers connectivity for rural and remote householdsSome of New Zealand’s most remote communities will receive broadband for the first time thanks to a new Government-led initiative. The Remote Users Scheme will equip as many remote households as possible with the connectivity infrastructure needed to access broadband services, Minister for the Digital Economy and Communications, David Clark ...5 days ago
- Government appoints investigator to work with Christchurch City Council to improve housing supplyAssociate Minister for the Environment, Phil Twyford has appointed an investigator under part 4 of the Resource Management Act, to work with Christchurch City Council on its housing intensification plan. “John Hardie is a skilled and experienced mediator with local knowledge of Christchurch City. The aim of the investigation is ...5 days ago
- New Zealand records lowest smoking rate everStatistics released today show New Zealand’s smoking rate has fallen to an historic low of 8% of adults smoking daily, down from 9.4% a year ago, Associate Minister of Health Dr Ayesha Verrall said. “The Government’s plan to reduce smoking is working. The number of people smoking fell by 56,000 ...5 days ago
- Over 16,000 more new homes to be unlocked with infrastructure bonanzaApproximately 16,600 new homes across New Zealand set to be unlocked by Government’s third tranche of the Infrastructure Acceleration Fund New homes enabled in Hamilton, Auckland, Tauranga, Christchurch, Kawakawa, Kaikohe, Westport, Upper Hutt, Waipukurau, Hokitika and Pahiatua Critical infrastructure projects will get Government support to unlock thousands more homes in ...5 days ago
- New model to better support kids with the highest needsThe Government is committed to designing a system that better supports our kids and young people with the highest needs, Associate Minister of Education Jan Tinetti announced today. The Highest Needs Review was launched in April 2021 and was completed recently, with 1100 submissions received. “Following the feedback from the ...5 days ago
- Firearms Prohibition Orders now in force help to reduce gun harmNew tools to reduce gun crime come into force today, Police Minister Chris Hipkins said. Firearms Prohibition Orders will improve public safety by stopping people whose behaviour and actions represent a high risk of violence from accessing firearms or restricted weapons. “Firearms Prohibition Orders are another measure that will help ...6 days ago
- New Deputy Public Service Commissioner appointedMinister for the Public Service Chris Hipkins has today announced the appointment of Ms Rebecca Kitteridge CVO as Deputy Public Service Commissioner. The Deputy Public Service Commissioner is appointed by the Governor-General on the recommendation of the Prime Minister, under the Public Service Act 2020. Subject to the control of ...6 days ago
- Innovative projects to cut transport emissions and costs, get government co-fundingThe first marine project under the Low Emission Transport Fund is among 11 projects getting $2.14 million Eleven new transport projects including clever solutions for electric vehicle charging, ways to cut fuel costs in heavy freight, and the first marine project will get co-funding from the Government, Energy and Resources ...6 days ago
- Government buys land for affordable housing on major transport corridor in WellingtonThe Government’s plan to increase housing supply and affordability in Wellington in places with good access to public transport has moved another step forward following the acquisition of a 2,016m2 section of land on Adelaide Road in Mount Cook, as part of a Kāinga Ora urban development programme. “Wellington, in ...6 days ago
- New Zealand National Statement – COP27Tēnā koutou katoa. Mr President, Excellencies, Delegates. This 27th Conference of the Parties is being referred to as the Implementation COP. The Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC asked us at the start of this Conference to show evidence of how we have started to implement the decisions that we collectively ...6 days ago
- Minister to travel to UK for bilateral defence meetingMinister of Defence Peeni Henare departs for the United Kingdom tomorrow to meet with Secretary of State for Defence Ben Wallace to discuss the UK and New Zealand’s shared security interests and ongoing defence co-operation. “This will be my first trip to Europe as Minister of Defence, and I’m looking ...6 days ago
- New Zealand Sovereign Green Bonds issuedThe Government welcomes New Zealand Debt Management’s issuance today of NZ$3 billion of the New Zealand Sovereign Green Bonds that will mature in 2034. Launched in September, New Zealand’s Sovereign Green Bond Programme provides the opportunity to invest in projects that contribute to climate and environmental objectives. “Green Bonds will ...6 days ago
- NZ steps up with extra support for climate adaptationAotearoa New Zealand has announced a five-fold increase in its contribution to global efforts to support climate change adaptation. The announcement of a new $15 million commitment to the Adaptation Fund was made while Climate Change Minister James Shaw is at COP27 in Egypt. “Aotearoa New Zealand is committed to ...6 days ago
- Resource Management reform ensures Crown fulfils Treaty obligationsNew Resource Management reform will uphold Treaty settlements, commitments and arrangements and ensure Māori maintain established decision-making and participation at both a regional and national level, which has been the case to date as a result of successive governments’ Treaty Settlement arrangements, Associate Minister for the Environment Kiri Allan said. ...6 days ago
- Cheaper, faster, better resource management lawThe system is broken, consent fees have almost doubled, and consenting time frames increased by 50% New standardised conditions will see fewer “bespoke” consents and speed up the process Time to consent will shorten, and fast track process retained On a conservative estimate costs will fall 19% a year ($149m) ...7 days ago
- Better infrastructure to be built fasterMaking the Resource Management process quicker, cheaper and better will help boost New Zealand’s economic growth. “The cost and time it takes to get a resource consent for infrastructure projects has grown significantly in recent years, with smaller projects being disproportionately affected,” Grant Robertson said. Infrastructure developers collectively pay about ...7 days ago
- New resource management system provides clearer direction for farmersThe new resource management system aims to reduce a reliance on consenting and provide clearer direction for farmers and the agricultural sector. Minister for the Environment David Parker today introduced legislation to Parliament for the comprehensive reform of New Zealand’s resource management system – the Natural and Built Environment Bill ...7 days ago
- New Zealand’s tourism rebound continuesTowns and cities up and down the country should be prepping for a busy summer season, as officials numbers released today highlight the continued growth in international visitors, Tourism and Immigration Ministers Stuart Nash and Michael Wood announced today. Overseas visitor numbers for the month of September showed a significant ...7 days ago
- RMA reforms aim to make housing and urban system simpler, faster, cheaperNew Zealand’s housing and urban system is set to benefit from the overhaul of the Resource Management system, making the ability to build new housing simpler, faster and cheaper. ...7 days ago
- Prime Minister reaffirms economic ties with Viet NamPrime Minister Jacinda Ardern met Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh of Viet Nam for a Prime Ministers’ Summit today in Ha Noi, Viet Nam. The Prime Ministers reaffirmed New Zealand and Viet Nam’s commitment to working together as strategic partners. “Viet Nam is an important partner for New Zealand, and ...7 days ago
- Graduate scheme attracts 32 new vets to rural New ZealandThirty-two graduate vets will begin their careers in rural New Zealand, with a financial boost from the Government’s Voluntary Bonding Scheme for Veterinarians (VBS), Acting Agriculture and Rural Communities Minister Meka Whaitiri announced today. Each recipient will receive funding of $55,000 over five years to kick-start their careers and help ...1 week ago
- Next Ambassador to Argentina announcedForeign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta today announced the appointment of Kathryn Beckett as New Zealand’s next Ambassador to Argentina. “Aotearoa New Zealand enjoys a friendly and cooperative relationship with Argentina,” Nanaia Mahuta said. “We work particularly closely together on issues key to New Zealand’s multilateral agenda, such as climate change, human ...1 week ago
- Assistance to Ukraine extended and enhancedNew Zealand is extending its defence commitments and providing further support and personnel to assist Ukraine, as part of the Government’s ongoing response to Russia’s illegal and unprovoked invasion. The NZ Defence Force infantry training for Ukrainian military personnel in the United Kingdom will be extended. There is more funding ...1 week ago
- 2000 visas a year to be granted through resumption of parent categoryThe Government is ensuring skilled migrants can resettle in Aotearoa New Zealand with their families, Immigration Minister Michael Wood announced today. “We recognise the importance for migrants resettling here to have a pathway for their parents to join them,” Michael Wood said. “We are resuming selections of the Parent Category ...1 week ago
- Appointment of Judge and Associate Judge of the High CourtHigh Court Associate Judge Peter Andrew has been appointed a Judge of the High Court, and Tauranga King’s Counsel Grant Brittain has been appointed an Associate Judge of the High Court, Attorney‑General David Parker announced today. Justice Andrew graduated from the University of Otago in 1984 with a BA and an ...1 week ago
- Groundbreaking studies of Earth’s churning oceans recognised at Australia’s most prestigious sci...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Signe Dean, Science + Technology Editor, The Conversation Greg Shirah/NASA Scientific Visualisation Studio This year, Australia’s prestigious Prime Minister’s Prize for Science has been awarded to a physical oceanographer whose work has had a “transformative impact” on our understanding of ...1 hour ago - NZCFS — ‘It's In Our Interest To Work With China'
China President Xi Jinping has recognised New Zealand as an ‘important partner and friend’ and has proposed the relationship between our two countries be taken ‘to a higher level’. The remarks were made in a face-to-face meeting between ...6 hours ago - Government Bill To Lower Voting Age Must Include Option To Just Lower Voting Age For Local Elections“We welcome the decision of the Government today to introduce a Bill to lower the voting age to 16. This is an appropriate response to the Supreme Court’s historic decision that the current voting age is a breach of the Bill of Rights Act,” says ...6 hours ago
- Victorian Liberals embarrassed by extremists within: how does this keep happening?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Kenny, Professor, Australian Studies Institute, Australian National University By rights, Victorians marking their ballot papers in the 2022 election this week should be casting judgment on the unprecedented emergency powers enforced during the COVID-19 crisis, while also evaluating the health, education ...6 hours ago
- Luxon not ruling out post-election deal with NZ First
National Party leader Christopher Luxon is not ruling out working with New Zealand First, after Winston Peters said Labour could not be trusted. ...7 hours ago - Queensland’s high-tech plan to make the 2032 Brisbane Olympic Games smarter and greenerSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Davina Jackson, Visiting Scholar, Department of Architecture, University of Cambridge Shutterstock With Brisbane to host the 2032 Olympic Games, Queensland is accelerating “smart” and “green” infrastructure projects right across the coast from Coolangatta to Coolum. So what practical steps is ...8 hours ago
- We’ve been editing Shakespeare’s plays for 400 years – but does a new Australian production of...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gabriella Edelstein, Lecturer in English, University of Newcastle Daniel Boud/Sydney Theatre Company Review: The Tempest, directed by Kip Williams, Sydney Theatre Company. The Tempest, first performed in 1611 and probably Shakespeare’s last solo-written play before his late collaborations with John ...9 hours ago
- Voting age 16 law to be drafted requiring three quarters of MPs to pass – ArdernPrime Minister Jacinda Ardern says legislation will be drafted for making the voting age 16 after the finding of the Supreme Court, but whether it passes is a matter for the whole Parliament. ...9 hours ago
- It’s time-out for leap seconds: an expert explains why the tiny clock adjustments will be paused f...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Darryl Veitch, Professor of Computer Networking, University of Technology Sydney Shutterstock Meeting in Versailles, France, on Friday, the Bureau International des Poids et Mesures (BIPM) has called time-out on “leap seconds” – the little jumps occasionally added to clocks running ...10 hours ago
- Urgent action needed on global warming:but does NZ need to be out in front of the big polluters?
Climate Change Minister James Shaw who led the NZ delegation to COP27 reckons it’s crunch time for countries to step up and take urgent action at home on global warming. Shaw tells the world at Sharm al-Sheik NZ will do everything it can to urgently cut climate pollution and ...11 hours ago - Government Must Commit To Eliminating Workplace Violence, Says NZCTUThe New Zealand Council of Trade Unions is calling on the Government to follow Australia’s commitment to eliminating violence and harassment in the world of work. Today, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced his plan to ratify International Labour ...12 hours ago
- We asked people why they don’t donate their eggs or sperm. Their responses could help us attract m...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Karin Hammarberg, Senior Research Fellow, Global and Women’s Health, School of Public Health & Preventive Medicine, Monash University Surface/Unsplash, CC BY-SA The demand for donor eggs and sperm outstrips supply in Australia. To find out what can make donor recruitment ...12 hours ago
- E Tipu E Rea Tautoko #MakeIt16 Supreme Court DecisionE Tipu E Rea Whānau Services are pleased to see the Supreme Court decision today that declining 16 and 17 year olds the right to vote is inconsistent with the New Zealand Bill of Rights. As an organisation that works with rangatahi we see the value ...12 hours ago
- Why you should know the exciting experimental, political and feminist work of senior Indian artist N...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Catherine Speck, Emerita Professor, Art History and Curatorship, University of Adelaide Installation view: Nalini Malani: Gamepieces, featuring Gamepieces by Nalini Malani. Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide, photo: Saul Steed. Contemporary Indian artist Nalini Malani, born in 1946, is infinitely experimental. ...13 hours ago
- Greater Wellington Strongly Endorses Call For Government Co-funding On Flood Protection In View Of C...Greater Wellington’s just released, Climate change projections for west of Wellington’s Tararua and Remutaka Ranges, shows the urgency of bringing government co-funding into flood protection schemes, says chair Daran Ponter. The report paints an alarming ...13 hours ago
- ‘We had to Google a lot’: what foster and kinship carers looking after babies told us about the ...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stacy Blythe, Deputy Director Translational Research and Social Innovation Group at the Ingham Institute, Associate Professor, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Western Sydney University Shutterstock Foster and kinship carers are volunteers who provide day-to-day care to children who are unable ...14 hours ago
- Supreme Court rules in favour of 'Make It 16' to lower voting ageThe Supreme Court has granted an appeal which could see the voting age lowered to 16. ...14 hours ago
- New Zealand’s 'Third World' Roads Claim More Innocent LivesThe police and government are pushing discredited road safety strategies, says the car review website dogandlemon.com . Editor Clive Matthew-Wilson, who is an outspoken road safety campaigner, says: “For years we’ve been told that lowering speeds ...14 hours ago
- Supreme Court Declares Preventing 16 And 17 Year-olds From Voting Is A Breach Of The Bill Of RightsIn a landmark judgment issued on Monday 21 November te Kōti Mana Nui o Aotearoa | the New Zealand Supreme Court declared that the current law preventing 16 and 17 year-olds from voting is inconsistent with the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990. ...15 hours ago
- Interest Rate Cycle Under Labour Headed For 6 PercentIn 2004, then Labour Finance Minister [Sir] Michael Cullen, was in a difficult position to work with the Reserve Bank Governor Alan Bollard and effectively address the significant inflation. At that time, the Reserve Bank was preparing for its fifth interest rate ...15 hours ago
- The Coming Hate Speech Battle...15 hours ago
- Jacinda Ardern talked to Xi Jinping on human rights, Pacific development, Robertson saysThe Deputy Prime Minister says building a relationship with China is important, but issues with the country need to be put on the table. ...15 hours ago
- Vision Zero Needs 30km/h Outside Every SchoolContending with cars driving at variable and often high speeds during heavy school time traffic, distractions from other children and no safe place to cross. Add to that illegal parking, cars turning and distracted driving. Children have to navigate ...16 hours ago
- Pokies Minister Makes Weak Regulations, For The Wrong ReasonsFeed Families Not Pokies Aotearoa cannot properly comment on the recently announced changes to pokies regulations, because we only have the Minister's media release to go by. The draft regulations have not been released, nor any cabinet papers or ...16 hours ago
- COP Officials Eating Our ResourcesAlthough it is widely agreed that red meat is a leading driver of climate change, VIPs have been eating beef medallions and salmon during this year’s COP conference. This blatant disregard for following the science when it comes to climate change ...16 hours ago
- Geoffrey Miller’s Political Roundup: Does New Zealand need to up its game with World Cup host Qata...Analysis by Geoffrey Miller Political Roundup: Does New Zealand need to up its game with World Cup host Qatar? As the FIFA World Cup gets underway in Qatar, it is worth looking at the state of New Zealand’s wider relationship with the host nation. While New Zealand often likes to ...17 hours ago
- Healthy Homes deadline extension under 'active consideration'The government has confirmed it is considering extending the deadline for landlords to comply with its Healthy Homes standards. ...17 hours ago
- As Victorians head to the polls, will voters punish the major parties?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Zareh Ghazarian, Senior Lecturer, School of Social Sciences, Monash University Joel Carrett/AAP There are now just five days until the last day of voting in the Victorian state election. Much of the focus of the campaign so far has been ...18 hours ago
- How to talk to your child about their autism diagnosis – the earlier the betterSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Josephine Barbaro, Associate Professor, Principal Research Fellow, Psychologist, La Trobe University Pexels/Ketut Subiyanto, CC BY With better awareness and acceptance, approximately one out of every 50 children is receiving an autism diagnosis. More and more families are deciding when to ...18 hours ago
- With record numbers of students cheating, unis should revert to old school in-person examsSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Meena Jha, Researcher in Information Communications Technology, CQUniversity Australia Sergey Zolkin/Unsplash Contract cheating – where commercial cheating services provide assignments for university students – has become a global problem. Australia is not immune. According to the latest data, record ...18 hours ago
- It’s time to add climate change and net-zero emissions to the RBA’s top 3 economic goalsSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Toby Phillips, Public Policy Researcher, University of Oxford Shutterstock Increasingly, climate change is at the centre of government decision-making. This year’s federal budget devoted pages to an examination of the fiscal impact of climate change; Treasury has established a ...18 hours ago
- Defence Minister Peeni Henare to discuss funding weapons for Ukraine with Cabinet colleaguesThe Defence Minister says New Zealand could help fund more equipment - and possibly weapons - for Ukraine. ...18 hours ago
- COP27: one big breakthrough but ultimately an inadequate response to the climate crisisSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Matt McDonald, Associate Professor of International Relations, The University of Queensland For 30 years, developing nations have fought to establish an international fund to pay for the “loss and damage” they suffer as a result of climate change. As the COP27 climate ...1 day ago
- View from The Hill: What Anthony Albanese wants from parliament for ChristmasSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra With the Albanese government now at its six months mark and the end of the parliamentary year fast approaching, it’s tick-off time. In a Monday speech to the International Trade Union Confederation, the prime minister ...1 day ago
- Ministers tackle various issues overseas while Kiri Allan extends the Human Rights Act to combat rel...
Buzz from the Beehive Two ministers are overseas, combating climate change (in the case of James Shaw) and Russian invaders (in the case of Defence Minister Peeni Henare). Another minister is bound for Paris, to combat mental ill-health among other things, according to his press statement. And back home, Justice ...1 day ago - Peeni Henare pays respects to war victims during Ukraine visitNew Zealand's Minister of Defence is on the ground in Ukraine and Poland, holding talks with officials. ...1 day ago
- As APEC winds up, ‘summit season’ brought successes but also revealed the extent of global chall...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Nick Bisley, Dean of Humanities and Social Sciences and Professor of International Relations at La Trobe University, La Trobe University Mick Tsikas/AAP Every November, the annual summit meetings of Asia’s key regional institutions attracts the world’s attention. The APEC leaders’ ...1 day ago
- Government’s Harmful Speech Proposal Very Disappointing19th November 2022 This morning the Human Rights Commission heard the Minister of Justice’s announcement that the Human Rights Act will only be amended to protect religious groups from hatred-inciting speech. This will expand the groups protected ...2 days ago
- Who says Britain’s Conservative MPs are not future oriented?
In fact, they are acutely focused on what job they might be able to get after the next general election, due in 2024. Prospects looked worse after new Chancellor Jeremy Hunt delivered his mini-budget on Thursday. His programme: rolling tax increases for the next six years. And because tax ...2 days ago - COP27 finale: Leaders debate climate damage funding for Pacific nationsBy Rachael Nath, RNZ Pacific journalist After two weeks of negotiations at the United Nations’ Climate Change Conference (COP27) talks at an Egyptian resort, it is now down to the wire. Diplomats have created proposals on the controversial loss and damage agenda that will be decided upon by politicians. Robust ...2 days ago
- Regional USP staff, students call for vote against FijiFirst over $85m unpaid feesGRUBSHEET: By Graham Davis With barely four weeks to go to the election, students and staff at the regional University of the South Pacific have stepped up their political activity against the FijiFirst government over its refusal to pay $85 million (and counting) in outstanding contributions to the running of ...2 days ago
- Papuan solidarity group criticises NZ for ‘weak’ concern over Indonesian human rights abusesAsia Pacific Report The solidarity group West Papua Action Aotearoa has criticised New Zealand for not “being stronger” over growing global concern about Indonesian human rights violations in West Papua, and contrasted this with Vanuatu’s leadership. The group was reacting to the UN Human Rights Council Universal Periodic Review into ...2 days ago
- Government Backdown On 'Hate Speech' Laws Major Win For Free SpeechThe Free Speech Union welcomes Minister of Justice Kiri Allan’s announcement that each of the 6 proposals released last year to amend hate laws will be dropped, except the inclusion of religious communities. We commend the Minister for listening to ...3 days ago
- Confirmation Of 2022-2023 Work ProgrammeOn Friday 18 November, the Minister responsible for Te Aka Matua o te Ture | Law Commission, Hon Kiritapu Allan, referred to the Commission the following issues: Legal responses to hate-motivated offending; Legal responses to speech that expresses ...3 days ago
- THOMAS CRANMER: ‘New Zealand has been duped’
‘New Zealand has been duped’was the view expressed by National’s Maureen Pugh in the House this week, but despite opposition from National and Act, the Water Services Entities Bill passed its second reading. THOMAS CRANMER writes: This week, the Water Services Entities Bill passed its second reading in the House ...3 days ago - Govt goes to war against pokies but gambles on Putin keeping his hands off the button and takes a pu...Buzz from the Beehive At first blush, our protection and wellbeing was high in the Ardern government’s considerations in the latest batch of statements posted on the Beehive website. One statement was posted in the name of the Minister of Internal Affairs, who is determined to protect us from the ...3 days ago
- Focus on Politics: Poland missile dominates summits in AsiaAs Jacinda Ardern returned to the world stage this week, a stray missile threatened to escalate the Ukraine war. Political reporter Katie Scotcher appraises a week of summits and uncertainty. ...3 days ago
- APEC summit: Frank exchange of views important, Jacinda Ardern tells China's President Xi Jinpi...The prime minister has wound up a face to face meeting with Xi Jinping in which he said China saw New Zealand as an "important partner and friend". ...3 days ago
- APEC summit: Frank exchange of views important, Ardern tells XiNew Zealand will continue to raise concerns about Chinese policy in an open manner, the prime minister has told Xi Jinping. ...3 days ago
- VAR and peace? Why tech-assisted refereeing won’t do away with disputed decisions at the World CupSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stan Karanasios, Associate professor, The University of Queensland The football teams of 32 nations are gathered in Qatar for the quadrennial FIFA World Cup. Some 5 billion people around the world are expected to tune in to watch matches over the course ...3 days ago
- If you care about nature in Victoria, this is your essential state election guideSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Bekessy, Professor in Sustainability and Urban Planning, Leader, Interdisciplinary Conservation Science Research Group (ICON Science), RMIT University Daniel Pelaez Duque/Unsplash, CC BY If we learnt anything from the past federal election, it’s that Australians care about climate change and ...3 days ago
- Victoria’s economic growth leads nation, as NSW falls to last placeSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Hawkins, Senior Lecturer, Canberra School of Politics, Economics and Society, University of Canberra Shutterstock The latest figures on the economic performance of Australia’s states and territories shows Victoria leading the nation and New South Wales falling to last place. ...3 days ago
- MH17 convictions pave the way for war crime prosecutions from Ukrainian invasionSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lauren Sanders, Senior Research Fellow on Law and the Future of War, The University of Queensland Remko de Waal/EPA/AAP On November 17 2022, the Hague District Court in the Netherlands convicted two Russians and a Ukrainian of murder in relation ...3 days ago
- Week in Politics: National gets tough on young offenders, but policy faces strong oppositionWeek in Politics - National announces a strong youth offender policy; the government calls for an apology after Luxon points the finger at principals over truancy. ...3 days ago
- China’s influence in Myanmar could tip the scales towards war in the South China SeaSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Htwe Htwe Thein, Associate professor, Curtin University The fate of Myanmar has major implications for a free and open Indo-Pacific. An undemocratic Myanmar serves no one’s interests except China, which is consolidating its economic and strategic influence in its smaller neighbour ...3 days ago
- The Jungle and the Sea reminds us war is profoundly local, with the intimate negotiation of human re...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Niro Kandasamy, Lecturer in History, University of Sydney Sriram Jeyaraman/Belvoir Review: The Jungle and the Sea, directed by Eamon Flack, Belvoir. After the roaring success of their debut collaboration, Counting and Cracking, S. Shakthidharan and Eamon Flack have produced another ...3 days ago
- Proposed Changes To Reduce Gambling Harm “don’t Go Far Enough”: GMANZThe Gaming Machine Association of New Zealand (GMANZ) believes DIA’s proposed regulations don’t go far enough to address problem gambling harm. The changes announced by Minister Tinetti today are intended to reduce harm caused by electronic gaming ...3 days ago
- Kiwis' rights in Australia: No mention of 501 policy from minister in 'family' lectur...Australia's Home Affairs minister Clare O'Neil has ignored its controversial 501 deportation policy when speaking about the rights of New Zealanders living in Australia. ...3 days ago
- I’m thinking of surgery for endometriosis. What’s involved? Does it work?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mike Armour, Senior research fellow in reproductive health at NICM Health Research Institute, Western Sydney University Shutterstock Endometriosis is a painful condition caused by the presence of tissue similar to the lining of the uterus found outside the uterus. It ...3 days ago
- Locking up kids has serious mental health impacts and contributes to further reoffendingSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Summer May Finlay, Senior Lecturer – Indigenous Health, University of Wollongong This article contains information on violence experienced by First Nations young people in the Australian carceral system. There are mentions of racist terms, and this piece also mentions self harm, trauma ...3 days ago
- Caution Over Fertility Rate & Ex-Nuptial BirthsFamily First NZ warns that the declining marriage and fertility rates and increase in ex-nuptial births are setting up a ‘perfect storm’ for negative social consequences in New Zealand. According to statistics just released , the number of births to unmarried ...3 days ago
- We created the world’s first donkey embryo using IVF in a bid to save species from extinctionSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andres Gambini, Senior Lecturer, School of Agriculture and Food Science, The University of Queensland Shutterstock You may not realise it, but the world’s donkeys are in trouble: many domestic breeds and wild species are headed for extinction. But my colleagues ...3 days ago
- Diverting children away from the criminal justice system gives them a chance to ‘grow out’ of cr...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Faith Gordon, Associate Professor in Law, Australian National University Shutterstock Prison is no place for a child. Putting children in youth justice facilities can have long-lasting consequences for their physical, psychological and emotional health, wellbeing and development. Prison can ...3 days ago
- Pillars Ka Pou Whakahou Calls For Immediate Implementation Of Care Plans For Children Of People Serv...Pillars Ka Pou Whakahou, a children’s charity supporting positive futures for the tamariki and whānau of people in prison, are calling for urgent legislative action and policy requiring the implementation of care plans for children of people ...3 days ago
- ‘I’ve been on the waiting list for over 20 years’: why social housing suitable for people with...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alan Morris, Professor, Institute for Public Policy and Governance, University of Technology Sydney Shutterstock One of the most common reasons people apply for social housing is because they or their immediate family members have a disability and they are unable ...3 days ago
- Dylan Alcott says he missed out on childhood friends. With support, disabled kids today can have a b...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Armstrong, Senior Lecturer in Special and Inclusive Education, RMIT University Shutterstock At a press conference last week, paralympian Dylan Alcott recalled the pain of being a child with a disability. “I had no friends when I was five,” the ...3 days ago
- Boot camps a 'cliche', says former National minister Chester BorrowsFormer National Party minister Chester Borrows says the solutions to youth crime are better social supports, and we must be prepared to pay for it as a society. ...4 days ago
- Comprehensive Container Return Scheme Major AchievementThe Zero Waste Network is thrilled that Cabinet will consider a container return scheme before Christmas. “We congratulate Minister David Parker and the Ministry for the Environment team in shepherding through the container return scheme to the ...4 days ago
- Mayor’s Office Corrects Misinformation On Three WatersA spokesperson for Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown has corrected misinformation from central government about Three Waters costs. Last month, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern incorrectly told media that Auckland rates would go up by 7% if the controversial ...4 days ago
- ‘What shall we have for dinner?’ Choice overload is a real problem, but these tips will make you...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Janneke Blijlevens, Senior Lecturer Experimental Methods, RMIT University Brenna Huff/Unsplash It’s been a long day. Your partner messages you: “let’s just order in, I don’t feel like cooking”. With a sense of relief, you open your usual takeaway app and ...4 days ago
- Piopio College Students Celebrate World Children’s Day With A National Launch Of Child Rights Reso...School students at Piopio College celebrated World Children’s Day on Thursday, a global day of action for children by children, by ‘going blue’ and launching new child rights resources for schools in Aotearoa. Piopio College is the first school ...4 days ago
- Healthcare for New Zealanders with multiple chronic conditions needs ‘radical rethinking’ – he...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anna Askerud, PhD candidate, University of Otago One in four New Zealanders have more than two chronic conditions, including both physical and mental health issues. The COVID pandemic has highlighted how difficult it can be for people with multiple pre-existing ...4 days ago
- National Accounts (industry Production And Investment): Year Ended March 2021The national accounts (industry production and investment) release contains a full reconciled set of detailed industry data on production, investment, and capital stock. It is used to update and maintain the quality of quarterly GDP statistics. Visit ...4 days ago
- National Accounts (income And Expenditure): Year Ended March 2022National accounts (income and expenditure) provides information on domestic production and the resulting income that is available for spending and saving. It also provides an insight into how saving is used and invested between different sectors of the ...4 days ago
- Hāpai Te Hauora Welcomes Long Overdue Review Into PokiesThe Minister of Internal Affairs Jan Tinetti launched a review into pokies today. There will be a focus on increased penalties for venues which are non-compliant with the rules legislated in the Gambling Act 2003, and strengthening of host responsibility ...4 days ago
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