political parties

Business NZ runs bogus poll

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:18 am, September 12th, 2018 - 65 comments

Business NZ has admitted that a poll that it ran was fundamentally flawed but has threatened to go to the ILO about Labour’s rather modest proposed changes to Industrial Relations law. And Radio New Zealand has reported on an industrial dispute involving Sistema plastics where union workers are working 60 hour working weeks without overtime pay on not much more than the minimum wage.

Ghahraman speaks out about online trolls

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:21 am, September 11th, 2018 - 134 comments

Green MP Golriz Ghahraman has talked to the New Zealand Herald about the online treatment she has received and described the nature of the attacks and the absurdity of the allegations made against her.

Te Wiki o te Reo Māori

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 11:00 am, September 10th, 2018 - 61 comments

It is Maori Language week. And National has come out with the unusual situation of requiring primary and intermediate schools to teach a compulsory second language. But the language may not necessarily be te Reo Māori. And Simon Bridges opposes it being taught compulsorily.

Ardern and Pelosi.

Written By: Bill - Date published: 11:36 am, September 9th, 2018 - 65 comments

There is something very wrong with “our” media when it takes a stand-up comedian to alert people to important stuff. But anyway…

We need to push back on Leighton Smith

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:00 am, September 8th, 2018 - 85 comments

Leighton Smith is living for the day when it is proved that climate change is nothing more than a lefty hoax. I hope he is right.

The right work themselves into a frenzy about Ardern and Curran

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 3:52 pm, September 7th, 2018 - 65 comments

The latest right wing beat up is that Jacinda told a porkie this morning to Chris Lynch on Newstalk ZB. A closer inspection reveals that nothing of the sort happened.

Curran resigns as a Minister

Written By: notices and features - Date published: 12:09 pm, September 7th, 2018 - 156 comments

In breaking news Clare Curran has resigned as a Minister.

Public Service Reform

Written By: advantage - Date published: 4:30 pm, September 6th, 2018 - 27 comments

For a country the size of Melbourne, we have a ridiculously complex state, and this layer of accountablility is largely a complete waste of our taxpayer money and degrades our agency as citizens. Can we do better?

Politicians should be allowed to have families

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 9:45 am, September 5th, 2018 - 74 comments

Elements of the media are criticising Jacinda Ardern for juggling her personal responsibilities with her working life, something that most of us do every day.

And the antisemites are…?

Written By: Bill - Date published: 9:30 am, September 5th, 2018 - 65 comments

UK Labour adopted the IRHA definition of antisemitism in full, and…

Winston and the refugee issue

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 12:49 pm, September 4th, 2018 - 30 comments

Winston has suggested that New Zealand First may not agree to an increase in the number of refugees New Zealand accepts. Even though the infrastructure needed for the increase is paid for.

Government as startup

Written By: advantage - Date published: 8:00 am, September 4th, 2018 - 67 comments

Labour and New Zealand First Ministers under the first term of the sixth Labour government sitting in the Cabinet office.

This new government is almost perfectly replicating the burn cycle of a startup business.

Bridges establishes working group to prepare discussion document

Written By: notices and features - Date published: 10:00 am, September 3rd, 2018 - 19 comments

Simon Bridges has announced the formation of a working group to prepare a policy discussion document.

Farrar peddles climate change denial nonsense

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:57 am, September 3rd, 2018 - 151 comments

David Farrar has posted a guest post by climate change denialist Bryan Leland where he has criticised the Royal Society of New Zealand for accepting that climate change is an actual phenomenon.

Simon Bridges says the weirdest things – Criminal Justice

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 10:29 am, September 1st, 2018 - 30 comments

Simon Bridges has justified his claim that the three strikes law is working by releasing an Italian study that has not been peer reviewed on the effects on white collar criminals of a pardon system.

Parliament and bullying

Written By: advantage - Date published: 12:42 pm, August 31st, 2018 - 41 comments

It should be a qualification of being a Labour Member of Parliament that they treat their worked in an exemplary manner.

Business confidence verses business certainty

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 11:13 am, August 31st, 2018 - 37 comments

Lately the news has been all doom and gloom about business confidence. But what is the reality? And should we worry what an Australian Bank is telling us?

Facing Meka

Written By: te reo putake - Date published: 9:11 am, August 31st, 2018 - 143 comments

How should Labour react to the loss of two Ministers in a week? And what would John Key have done?

Simon Bridges says the weirdest things – petrol prices

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 9:41 am, August 30th, 2018 - 43 comments

Simon Bridges has been trying to create a narrative about increasing petrol prices being the fault of the current government. But he has been tweeting an incorrect price and his claims about responsibility have been contradicted by BP.

What’s wrong with asking people for their ideas?

Written By: Guest post - Date published: 2:26 pm, August 29th, 2018 - 78 comments

Guest post from Darien Fenton questioning National’s obsession with Government working groups.

Let Chelsea Manning speak

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 7:00 am, August 29th, 2018 - 146 comments

Chelsea Manning wants to visit New Zealand and talk about how evil war is and what should be done to stop it. We should let her.

Simon’s first six months

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 9:00 am, August 28th, 2018 - 106 comments

Simon Bridges has now been leader of the Opposition for six months. What has he to show for his time? People are questioning his judgment over his fixation on who leaked his travel information early.

Litigation and equal pay – a history of the 1950’s equal pay campaign

Written By: nickkelly - Date published: 7:26 am, August 28th, 2018 - 3 comments

Forward In 2016 I wrote the below dissertation as part of my History Honours degree at Victoria University. This dissertation explores the 1950s equal pay campaign, and specifically looks at the Jean Parker Case. Jean Parker was a PSA member employed at IRD, who like Kristine Bartlett 60 years later, won a landmark equal pay legal […]