political parties

Maori health and children not a priority

Written By: Natwatch - Date published: 3:20 pm, July 11th, 2016 - 77 comments

Essential reading, two pieces highlighting institutional racism today. Someone needs to ask the Maori Party how proud they are to be propping up this government.

A tale of two housing policies – Steven Joyce writing National’s on Twitter

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 7:01 am, July 11th, 2016 - 106 comments

In some kind of panic over Labour’s housing policy package, Steven Joyce was writing Nat policy on Twitter yesterday. The promise to forego 2 years of HNZ dividend appears to have been made up on the fly.

Eagle vs Window Pane

Written By: Bill - Date published: 5:14 pm, July 10th, 2016 - 81 comments

So Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership has been openly challenged.

Andrew Little’s speech: Backing the Kiwi dream of home ownership

Written By: notices and features - Date published: 2:47 pm, July 10th, 2016 - 176 comments

Text from Andrew Little’s speech today given in New Lynn to announce Labour’s latest housing policy.

John Roughan on Labour’s birthday

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:11 am, July 10th, 2016 - 60 comments

In the Herald John Roughan has offered some very positive comments about the Labour Party and what it stands for.

Labour announcement: Labour will require Housing Corporation to use dividends to build state houses

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 2:40 pm, July 9th, 2016 - 348 comments

Andrew Little has announced at the Labour Party’s 100 year special conference that Labour in Government will require Housing Corporation to instead of paying dividends to instead build houses.

Reserve Bank gives Key the fingers on housing crisis

Written By: Natwatch - Date published: 11:17 am, July 8th, 2016 - 14 comments

In The Herald Liam Dann asks – Did the Reserve Bank just give two fingers to the Prime Minister?. That would be a “yes”.

Judith Collins is losing a PR battle with a patched Gang Member*

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:30 am, July 8th, 2016 - 322 comments

*title borrowed from @shakingstick.

What I would like from the Labour Party Conference

Written By: advantage - Date published: 8:00 am, July 8th, 2016 - 120 comments

Some thoughts on what this weekend’s centennial Labour Party conference might achieve.

Helen Clark on Iraq

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 11:37 am, July 7th, 2016 - 41 comments

Thirteen years ago Helen Clark said despite intense pressure that the threshold for the use of force against Iraq had not been met. How right she was.

Happy Birthday Labour – 100 Years!

Written By: notices and features - Date published: 6:02 am, July 7th, 2016 - 100 comments

Michael Savage here to serve

Social bonds negotiations collapse

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 8:39 am, July 6th, 2016 - 65 comments

The Governments attempt to incentivise the provision of social services by greed has failed with the first proposed social bond failing.

Housing bubble inflating faster – Key’s panic now obvious

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 7:01 am, July 6th, 2016 - 157 comments

The housing bubble is inflating faster than ever, and Key is visibly panicking. His political problem is insoluble and his electoral problem is about to get worse.

National’s strike-breaking fail

Written By: Natwatch - Date published: 3:21 pm, July 5th, 2016 - 23 comments

The Police want no part of the Nats’ plan to use them as airport security. Perhaps instead of bungled attempts at strike-breaking the Nats should consider – dealing fairly with aviation security staff concerns?

The silence of the lambs – media (not) on McCully

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 11:10 am, July 5th, 2016 - 21 comments

Interesting discussion on the silence of the lambs. Where have all the journalists gone?

A week at Te Puea Marae

Written By: notices and features - Date published: 10:35 am, July 4th, 2016 - 8 comments

Unlike our “government”, Te Puea Marae is trying to do something practical for the homeless. Madeleine Chapman spent a week volunteering there, and wrote about it for The Spinoff. Note that The Warehouse will match donations made through Spinoff.

#Sheepgate – The Compensation payment for the claim that did not exist

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 10:22 am, July 4th, 2016 - 27 comments

The Nation has been doing some digging into #Sheepgate and last weekend broadcast its results. There were some findings that if confirmed should result in McCully’s cabinet career being ended. Not to mention a potential Privileges Hearing to decide if he has misled Parliament.

National to seize privately owned land

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 7:01 am, July 4th, 2016 - 57 comments

National is now proposing to extinguish private property rights and seize land. Cue political and media outrage? Yeah right.

Billion dollar boondoggle

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 3:00 pm, July 3rd, 2016 - 112 comments

In an effort to be seen to be doing something about a housing crisis that they say doesn’t exist, the Nats have offered to lend councils $1 Billion that they can already borrow. Homeless families will also be offered a free deckchair on the Titanic to re-arrange as they please.

National costs you $100,000 from your retirement fund

Written By: notices and features - Date published: 9:49 am, July 2nd, 2016 - 66 comments

If you’re an average worker the actions of the National government have reduced the value of your KiwiSaver fund at retirement by about $100K.

“Post-truth” politics (and false equivalences)

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 7:56 am, July 2nd, 2016 - 38 comments

Interesting pieces recently on “post-truth” politics. They rightly tear strips off Key and a government that lies and denies reflexively and at all levels, and has been doing so for eight long years.

Another Lifeline cut

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 7:07 am, July 1st, 2016 - 45 comments

budget-quote
— Deborah Russell

A bit wet lately

Written By: notices and features - Date published: 12:31 pm, June 30th, 2016 - 105 comments

emmerson-climate-change

Parental leave – did English know or care what he was vetoing?

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 7:02 am, June 30th, 2016 - 84 comments

Bill English didn’t know the cost of the parental leave bill that he vetoed on the grounds of cost, and he didn’t care enough about it to speak to the matter in Parliament last night.

Chilcot, Corbyn and the UK Labour Party caucus.

Written By: Bill - Date published: 10:23 am, June 29th, 2016 - 62 comments

Three dots.

Updated

Suck-up economics proceeding as planned – rich getting richer

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 9:42 am, June 29th, 2016 - 56 comments

Inequality in NZ is the worst it’s been in a decade. Key’s response is pathetic. We need to vote to end suck-up economics. We need to be a better country than this.

Who is knifing Nat MP Paul Foster-Bell?

Written By: Natwatch - Date published: 1:52 pm, June 27th, 2016 - 56 comments

Foster-Bell seems to be a cross between Aaron Gilmore (vanity), Todd Barclay (people skills) and Bill English (high on the hog). No surprises there then, Nat MP, ho hum. The more interesting question is – who is out to knife him? Two hits in two days?

Speaking of inequality…

Written By: Anthony R0bins - Date published: 9:35 am, June 25th, 2016 - 45 comments

“Poverty NZ’s ‘new normal’ – report”. “Food bank pantries bare, emergency food grant dropping – report”. “NZ egalitarian? That’s a pretty little lie”. Hello – National supporters – where do you think this is going to end?

Four personal stories

Written By: notices and features - Date published: 10:24 am, June 23rd, 2016 - 38 comments

From the “Brighter Future”, four personal stories published recently are all well worth reading.

Panama papers: investors were advised how to avoid Government disclosure obligations

Written By: mickysavage - Date published: 7:23 am, June 23rd, 2016 - 70 comments

Doubt has been cast on the utility of John Key’s claim that New Zealand is not a tax haven because there are disclosure treaties with the revelation that Mossack Fonseca’s primary New Zealand agent instructed clients to avoid investing in those countries.