political parties
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Universal allowance – Labour joins rest of Left
Written By: - Date published: 3:25 pm, October 13th, 2008 - 59 comments
Good to see Labour joining the Greens and Progressives with a universal student allowance policy. It has been a crying shame that many people who are trying to get an education and whose parents can’t support them have had to borrow to get a fraction of the money that one gets on a benefit or […]
Working our way forward
Written By: - Date published: 11:50 am, October 13th, 2008 - 16 comments
It was inevitable that the focus of media coverage of Labour’s announements yesterday would be the deposit insurance, it’s a good self-centred middle-class story. But the important stuff, as Irish pointed out last night, is the re-training money, the speed-up of infrastructure construction, the money for sewerage, housing, and anti-erosion projects. The deposit insurance simply acts to […]
Labour takes bull by the horns, Nats left standing
Written By: - Date published: 10:14 am, October 13th, 2008 - 25 comments
One of the first rules of politics is don’t set yourself up to be snookered; don’t position yourself in a way that your opposition can and will undercut, don’t run attack lines that your opposition can and will invalidate. National has repeatedly done this. They ran on tax cuts as their sole platform when it […]
Tories still bigots at heart
Written By: - Date published: 11:56 pm, October 12th, 2008 - 47 comments
When I saw this guy using the guise of a Youtube debate question to attack Clark on her appearance, I felt sorry for the little jerk – what a pathetic life he must lead. When I saw Bill ‘do what it takes to win’ English do the same thing (at 1.30), while an audience of […]
Labour – too popular
Written By: - Date published: 2:46 pm, October 12th, 2008 - 70 comments
Labour is too damn popular! I’m at the campaign launch and the place is full. There are a couple of hundred of us hanging around in the lounges looking at the televisions – metres away from the hall. The Auckland town hall is overflowing with activists. I’ve been at a large number of these launches […]
Live: Helen Clark launches Labour campaign
Written By: - Date published: 2:06 pm, October 12th, 2008 - 9 comments
Hooten shows his true colours
Written By: - Date published: 1:56 pm, October 12th, 2008 - 36 comments
The Herald reports that producers had to interrupt the filming of today’s Eye to Eye because Mathew Hooten called Winston Peters a “f***ing c***”. Apparently Hooton confirmed he used the phrase but was unrepentant. I think we all knew Hooten was a childish bully, it’s just kind of a shame he had to confirm it […]
Trickle-down
Written By: - Date published: 11:22 am, October 12th, 2008 - 11 comments
A few thoughts from today’s Agenda: Questioned about why National would introduce another tax rebate, having endlessly criticised Working for Families because of its complexity, English says ‘we do, in the long term, want a simpler tax system’. So, be on notice, Working for Families is under threat from National – they would ‘eventualy, but […]
Getting it right matters
Written By: - Date published: 9:49 pm, October 11th, 2008 - 11 comments
I don’t want this post to be taken as overly critical; it’s just meant to offer some constructive advice. John Armstrong’s piece in the Herald today is good. It’s great to see a senior political commentator acknowledging that politics is a competition of ideologies, rather than merely a game or competition of personalities, but it’s […]
From the jaws of victory
Written By: - Date published: 12:16 pm, October 11th, 2008 - 19 comments
My sources tell me Key has a big surprise planned for National’s campaign launch tomorrow. In a break with tradition, Key will not be telling supporters about his plans for “a Labour government I lead”. Instead, he will not be telling them about his plans for a National government. Seriously though, National needs the next […]
Nats letting the facade drop
Written By: - Date published: 2:06 pm, October 10th, 2008 - 4 comments
We’ve been receiving reports of some appalling statements by National MPs on the campaign trail. They mesh with the arrogance and heartlessness that shines through in the secret agenda tapes. A writer reports on David Bennet’s performance at a forum on mental health policy in Hamilton: Mr Bennett came absolutely unprepared. he had no knowledge […]
What happens if Nats gut Kiwisaver?
Written By: - Date published: 12:53 pm, October 10th, 2008 - 23 comments
I was going to write about the economic effects of taking money out of Kiwisaver and spending it on tax cuts but this youtube video with South Park characters does the job and is much more fun: (hattip: Labour’s ‘Campaign Trail‘ blog)
Even your Granny doesn’t believe you anymore
Written By: - Date published: 11:37 am, October 10th, 2008 - 32 comments
The Herald editorial this morning lambastes National’s crime policy as “simply a more extreme version of a policy that has failed this country and others” but Granny Herald consoles herself: In all likelihood, this is not something that Mr Key will pursue if National wins the election. It is a policy calculated to strike a […]
Green TV ads
Written By: - Date published: 10:55 am, October 10th, 2008 - 22 comments
The Greens’ new TV ads are up on Youtube. Pretty sparse, but they get the message across clearly. [Hat tip: frogblog]
In case you missed it
Written By: - Date published: 9:31 am, October 10th, 2008 - 14 comments
Here’s the footage from 3News last night on the fresh National Party cocktail revelations. Bill English’s comments again serve to reinforce the message of The Hollow Men: this is a group of people who are about winning at all costs, principles be damned.
Johnnie’s choice
Written By: - Date published: 8:30 am, October 10th, 2008 - 17 comments
With the second English secret agenda tape out, John Key was asked whether he was worried about whether he had been caught on a tape. His answer: “oh, look, who knows” That’s a weak answer. A strong answer would be along the lines of ‘I’m not worried if there is a tape of me because […]
No, Bill.
Written By: - Date published: 8:29 pm, October 9th, 2008 - 27 comments
I felt a pang of pity for Bill English tonight as I watched TV3 roll out another secret tape. After all, “winning is everything” isn’t an unusual sentiment in politics. But when I considered the second part of his comment, “despite the highly principled statements”, my pity faded. It’s one thing to engage in “win […]
Costs of the Nats tax cuts – commentators’ views
Written By: - Date published: 12:15 pm, October 9th, 2008 - 4 comments
Here’s a smattering of what some of the commentators are saying: Gordon Campbell: Putting tax cuts ahead of science and research neatly underlines the lack of vision, or sensible strategy for growth in the National package … The cutbacks on science and research will only send more scientists and high tech jobs offshore and rob New […]
Greens set their standards for coalition partners
Written By: - Date published: 11:34 am, October 9th, 2008 - 43 comments
The Greens have announced that they will choose their preferred coalition partner based on their commitment to 12 criteria. I’ll just look at 5 (not that the others are less important, just space): reduce New Zealand’s oil dependence and climate change emissions; – senior Nats don’t even think climate change is happening and the Party […]
Small change
Written By: - Date published: 1:32 am, October 9th, 2008 - 56 comments
That was going to be the title of my first post on National’s tax-cut plan but then it turned out National’s plan would actually make about 1 million taxpayers worse off compared to Labour’s cuts (all figures derived from the Budget and National’s tax policy). That 1 million comprises approx 650,000, including nearly all super-annuitants, […]
Reviews of Nats’ tax cut/Kiwisaver cut/R&D cut policy
Written By: - Date published: 7:27 pm, October 8th, 2008 - 37 comments
Just a quick note at the start for our press gallery friends who live in central Wellington on high incomes. 50% of New Zealanders have an income below $27,000 and 50% of workers earn less than $37,000 a year (all of which is heaps higher than it was under National). The point is this: National’s […]
Nats break into your piggy-bank
Written By: - Date published: 3:42 pm, October 8th, 2008 - 61 comments
John Key has announced that Kiwisaver would be slashed along with National’s tax cuts for the rich (and they are tax cuts for the rich, while most people would get less than under Labour’s plan, under National’s plan by 2011 around half a billion a year more than under Labour’s plan would be going to […]
No tax cut for most from Nats
Written By: - Date published: 1:40 pm, October 8th, 2008 - 91 comments
As predicted on The Standard, National has announced it would abolish the increases in the bottom threshold to pay for tax cuts for the rich. Here’s a break down of what would happen: April 1 2009: Lift 33 cent thresold from $40K to $48K, reduce 39 cent rate to 38 cents. April 1 2010: Lift […]
Tax cuts for the rich
Written By: - Date published: 1:12 pm, October 8th, 2008 - 29 comments
National has released its tax policy. At first glance it appears the top rate will be reduced to 37% by 2011, giving the rich thousands of dollars in tax cuts. People earning $24-50k who aren’t getting Working for Families will get $15 a week rebate by 2011. Working families will basically get nothing, except for […]
The test
Written By: - Date published: 8:40 am, October 8th, 2008 - 84 comments
After building a political career that has consisted of little more than calling for tax cuts and attacking those that were delivered, John Key will finally present his party’s tax cut package today. Already, they have had to reduce its size but they will still make it the central part of their mystical economic platform […]
Power to attack Nats’ new prison policy?
Written By: - Date published: 2:55 pm, October 7th, 2008 - 30 comments
If he stands true to his principles, National justice spokesman Simon Power will soon be criticising the cost of their proposed new prison. You’ll note in this story that National proposes to build a prison (for their new reactionary justice policy) at a cost of $314 million. That is $548,951 per bed. Or not far […]
Note to self – Mr Key will say what you want to hear
Written By: - Date published: 2:39 pm, October 7th, 2008 - 18 comments
Mr Key will tell you what you want to hear. That’s the message that Pita Sharples has taken from his encounter with Mr Key over the future of the Maori seats: Dr Sharples told Sky TV on Sunday night Mr Key had assured him the seven Maori seats would not be abolished till Maori agreed […]
Changing the subject
Written By: - Date published: 2:05 pm, October 7th, 2008 - 15 comments
Former National advisor Richard Long has let the cat out of the bag. The day before National’s much-hyped, cure-all tax cut package is to be announced, he is desperately trying to change the subject. National has nothing but tax cuts to offer, it has been their one consistent answer for every problem but, now, tax cuts are […]
Will Labour back $15 minimum wage?
Written By: - Date published: 12:30 pm, October 7th, 2008 - 45 comments
The unions want the minimum wage lifted to $15 an hour, two thirds of the average hourly rate, restoring the historic ratio. The Greens, New Zealand First, The Progressives (I think), the Maori Party* and, oddly, the Kiwi Party are also calling for $15 an hour. Will Labour join them? Labour has an excellent record on the […]
Spin-busting: Govt could have used surpluses for tax cuts
Written By: - Date published: 2:37 pm, October 6th, 2008 - 28 comments
With the economic situation deteriorating the surpluses the Government has run for the first eight years have turned to a deficit. National’s line now is that the Government ‘suquendered’ these surpluses when it could have been cutting taxes. As if when the Government runs a surplus it takes the extra money out and burns it. […]
Reverting to type
Written By: - Date published: 11:23 am, October 6th, 2008 - 48 comments
Fearing a PR disaster over their tax-cut package announcement later this week, National has reverted to type, shedding the moderate facade and proposing a good old fashioned ‘get tough’ crime policy. National would abolish parole for people convicted of murder who have previously been convicted of a serious violent crime. In the last six years, […]
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