public services

Categories under public services

Who will do the rebuilding?

Written By: - Date published: 8:26 am, March 19th, 2011 - 38 comments

Who will plan, oversee and administer the rebuilding of Christchurch?  Public servants.  The kind of “back room bureaucrats” that the Nats love to hate.  But governments can’t get anything done without them.

Rebuilding choices reveal govt priorities

Written By: - Date published: 12:32 pm, February 28th, 2011 - 93 comments

Unless a leader is horribly neglectful in the wake of a disaster, like Bush after Katrina, I don’t think there is any grounds to criticise them for the immediate disaster response, which is largely out of their hands anyway. But the policy response that follows is a legitimate topic for political debate. And I’m worried about Key’s.

Some personal reflections on the quake

Written By: - Date published: 7:20 am, February 28th, 2011 - 57 comments

There’s been lots of good stuff written on the quake, I’m not going to try to add to it in any systematic way.  These are just a few random personal reflections from inside the disaster zone, big picture and small, all that I can put my head around writing tonight.

The benefits of public spending

Written By: - Date published: 9:36 am, February 21st, 2011 - 97 comments

We know from history, and from our own recent experience, that tax cuts don’t cause growth.  Privatisation and public service cuts don’t do us any good either.  What does cause growth?  Public spending.  What’s more, public spending is much more efficient than the private sector too…

S&P says no need for cuts, asset sales

Written By: - Date published: 12:00 pm, February 16th, 2011 - 27 comments

As you know, National has been trying to justify selling off our assets and cutting our public services to pay for tax cuts for the rich by saying that debt is at dangerous levels and we risk a credit downgrade. Numerous commentators have shown that’s false. Now, the final nail in the coffin has come from credit ratings agency Standard & Poor’s.

Cuts to our public services to pay for elite’s tax cuts

Written By: - Date published: 10:54 pm, February 8th, 2011 - 69 comments

John Key’s government is just two years old but it is already clearly bereft of ideas. His lacklustre speech showed no innovative thinking. There was just his usual bile directed at Labour and the same old failed National formula: asset sales, welfare cuts, and public service cuts masked by restructuring to fund tax cuts for the rich elite.

What will Key cut?

Written By: - Date published: 10:37 am, February 1st, 2011 - 27 comments

The early childhood education cuts have hit – families will face an average $20-$45 a week increase in the cost of sending a kid to kindy. And Anne Tolley is signaling more to come. But it’s not just the education of the next generation that’s for the chop as National seeks to balance the books after its tax cuts for the rich binge.

Slash & sell … then crash

Written By: - Date published: 10:55 am, January 27th, 2011 - 6 comments

Ironically, the best response to Key’s ‘slash and sell’ agenda came from Obama, whose spotlight Key is always trying to share: “Cutting the deficit by gutting our investments in innovation and education is like lightening an overloaded airplane by removing its engine. It may feel like you’re flying high at first, but it won’t take long before you’ll feel the impact.”

National’s Impending Swingeing Cuts

Written By: - Date published: 2:42 pm, January 26th, 2011 - 31 comments

Whilst John Key’s raising of privatisation is the first focus of his State of the Nation speech, perhaps equally as important is his intention for swingeing cuts to public services. Health and Education will have to pay higher wages from the same budget, but the likes of Police, Justice, Conservation and Social Services can expect cuts of more than 10%.

Public Tertiary Education

Written By: - Date published: 12:20 pm, January 18th, 2011 - 13 comments

The Tertiary Education Union’s new National President, Sandra Grey, joins us for a guest post on the challenges facing tertiary education as the government cuts funding and institutions are ‘rationalised’ to focus on economic values alone. Tertiary education can be so much more than that.

The state is MY servant

Written By: - Date published: 1:14 pm, January 2nd, 2011 - 25 comments

Why in the hell should I carry a passport or a birth certificate for the benefit of the state? There is no reason that I can see, but at least one DHB thinks that I should because it makes their life easier. If they want proof of citizenship or resident status then they should be prepared to pay for it themselves rather than throwing the onus to prove status onto us. If the government wants to introduce a requirement to carry identity papers then they should debate this in the political arena rather than trying to sneak it in through the back door.

Student freedom

Written By: - Date published: 8:34 am, December 22nd, 2010 - 109 comments

National and Act are attacking student unions.  The cover story is freedom of association, but it’s bollocks, freedom of association is already protected.  Without the unions students will still have to pay.  But they will lose the rich social and cultural heritage of the unions, lose the learning experiences that the unions provide, and lose their independence.  Hey students – does that sound like a good deal to you?

The new economy: Govt as an economic actor

Written By: - Date published: 11:00 am, December 17th, 2010 - 42 comments

Three government investment decisions in the last couple of weeks have shown the deficiencies in the neoliberal way of doing things. SOE Solid Energy’s lignite-to-liquids obsession, Kiwirail buying trains in China rather than making them itself and Steven Joyce decision to re-create Telecom’s monopoly by giving it 70-84% of the broadband contracts.

Government Spending Ideology

Written By: - Date published: 7:45 am, December 16th, 2010 - 29 comments

The Right always advocates for less government spending as a percentage of GDP. Those with ideological blinkers cannot see the high correlation between being a free and stable country and paying for it. The most successful nations are willing to invest in quality public services. Government spending is low in poor, unequal, and unstable countries.

Starve the beast

Written By: - Date published: 12:39 pm, December 14th, 2010 - 50 comments

Let’s face it. A government doesn’t accidentally spend $15 billion more than its revenue while cutting billions in taxes. The unsustainably high deficit is intentional policy, not happenstance. In good times and bad, National’s answer is always to cut taxes. The objective is to make huge deficits that then need to be ‘fixed’ with spending cuts.

The perils of out-sourcing public services

Written By: - Date published: 9:00 am, December 8th, 2010 - 18 comments

One of the features of the neoliberal revolution has been the outsourcing of public service delivery, usually to not-for-profits, sometimes to profit-making entities like private hospitals. Whanau Ora is an extension of this. Two recent stories have exemplified the risks of this model – corruption and cuts by stealth.

National’s Privatisation Agenda Continues

Written By: - Date published: 9:17 am, November 4th, 2010 - 25 comments

National are continuing their privatisation by stealth.  Hospitals services and a new prison are the current targets.  Tony Ryall, Judith Collins and Bill English are the ministers currently pushing their ideology in their respective areas.

NoRightTurn: Nats let IHC burn

Written By: - Date published: 6:14 am, October 15th, 2010 - 20 comments

The government is refusing to step up to save IHC providers that are insolvent due to a recent court case that resulted in IHC carers being awarded hundreds of millions in back wages. The government is washing its hands, even though it is the primary funder of the services. Will the Nats let IHC collapse or will they use this to bring in their corporate mates?

Paul Henry: we all pay for his unending bigotry

Written By: - Date published: 11:40 am, October 4th, 2010 - 195 comments

New Zealand’s most infamous anti-Ambassador Paul Henry has shamed us all once again. On TVNZ’s Breakfast this morning, Henry asked John Key (at 6’30” into the interview) of our Governor General “Is he even a New Zealander” (Satyanand was born in NZ) and could the next GG be someone who “looks and sounds a bit […]

Ryall: Our Only Plan Is Cuts

Written By: - Date published: 7:41 am, October 2nd, 2010 - 12 comments

Treasury in their first year under National tripled their expenditure on contractors whilst forcing all other departments into cuts.  Bill English decided against having any public accountability, and left Tony Ryall talking rubbish trying to explain it.

But will he make the trains run on time?

Written By: - Date published: 9:22 pm, September 22nd, 2010 - 27 comments

Parliament unanimously made Gerry Brownlee dictator. Apparently, this was necessary to save Christchurch. But are Dictator Gerry and Bob ‘the Rebuilder’ (wonder how long it took Kevin Taylor to come up with that one) actually delivering for the people who need it the most? Not if the anger in poor Christchurch suburbs is anything to go by.

Neoliberalism bringing US to its knees

Written By: - Date published: 10:10 am, September 22nd, 2010 - 145 comments

A recent article in Canada’ MacLean’s magazine on the decline of public services in the US bears sobering links to what is happening in New Zealand. For three decades the neo-liberals have worked to starve public services to death with tax cuts for the rich. Now, the US is facing the consequences. New Zealand is on the same path just a little behind.

Losing Momentum

Written By: - Date published: 9:28 am, September 15th, 2010 - 32 comments

Momentum Recruitment is in the gun yet again, this time for placing a woman in an accounting firm when she did not have the qualifications she claimed. The fake accountant then went on to defraud the company Momentum had placed her with of $60,000. Momentum is the same company that placed fantasist Stephen Wilce in […]

Nats’ new health head: ‘Fewer doctors OK’

Written By: - Date published: 6:55 am, September 15th, 2010 - 12 comments

The state sector is in turmoil. Secondary teachers and medical technicians are striking for fair pay and against claw-backs in their work conditions. Junior doctors look set to join them. What’s the Nats’ reaction? They’ve appointed the Scottish ‘smiling assassin’, Dr Kevin Woods, who  fired 1,500 nurses from the Scottish NHS and will apply the same formula here.

English refuses inquiry into $1.7bln SCF bailout

Written By: - Date published: 11:00 am, September 11th, 2010 - 34 comments

Bill English has ruled out an inquiry into the SCF affair. Think about that: the government is forced to spend the annual Police budget in a single morning and isn’t even interested in learning what could have been done better. The public service’s response, on the other hand, to the Christchurch earthquake will doubtlessly be subject to numerous inquires. It’s just good governance.

‘Bureaucrat’ bites back

Written By: - Date published: 12:40 pm, September 8th, 2010 - 19 comments

A hell of a lot of those ‘back office bureaucrats’ that the Nats love to attack have been working their arses off on the Christchurch earthquake. You would think they’d get some respect from their political bosses. You would think wrong.

Public service deserves praise for earthquake response

Written By: - Date published: 5:12 pm, September 5th, 2010 - 37 comments

After every emergency come the media articles that accuse the civil defence system of failing. This time the well-known emergency relief experts at the Herald were criticising within a day. Well, the Herald can go f*ck itself. I take my hat off to all the public servants who did their jobs with skill and dedication. The public services responded swiftly to get the situation under control and get people the help and information they needed.

It’s outrageous

Written By: - Date published: 3:39 pm, September 3rd, 2010 - 45 comments

Whatever flimsy and tattered remains of Labour-lite which National used to disguise itself at the 2008 election has well and truly disappeared. Thank goodness we can now call a spade a spade. National is making its priorities crystal clear to the public. On a week when up to 500 elderly or disabled people in the […]

Key slams teachers, medics. Puppies next in his sights

Written By: - Date published: 9:17 am, September 1st, 2010 - 10 comments

Key says that teachers are “disconnected from the real world” for wanting a pay rise that will barely beat inflation. This from the same guy who promised higher wages. The same guy chucked half a billion dollars this year alone on the taxpayer credit card for tax cuts for the rich. The only people disconnected from the real world are those who think skimping on education and health will take this country forward.

The cost of National’s health care cuts

Written By: - Date published: 3:35 pm, August 6th, 2010 - 15 comments

What’s going on in our health care system when the well respected head of a DHB resigns, saying he cannot cut costs any further without undermining patient care. The Dom Post is reporting: Ken Whelan (chief executive of Capital & Coast District Health Board) announced his resignation yesterday as chief executive of Capital & Coast […]

NZ Herald tells Collins to reset compass on private prison

Written By: - Date published: 11:51 am, July 14th, 2010 - 29 comments

The NZ Herald editorial criticising National’s pursuit of a private prison in Auckland should make Judith Collins and her cabinet colleagues sit up and rethink.

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