child welfare
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Race Relations Commissioner calls on UN to to support inquiry into the abuse of children in state care
Written By: - Date published: 9:53 am, August 16th, 2017 - 14 comments
Race Relations Commissioner Dame Susan Devoy has called on the UN to tell the government to hold an independent inquiry into the abuse of children and people with disabilities in state care. (Some of us were wrong about Devoy!)
An appropriate apology and an issue that needs fixing
Written By: - Date published: 7:04 am, June 2nd, 2017 - 103 comments
The Ministry of Social Development illegally penalised a woman who refused to name the rapist father of her child. The case shines a spotlight on an issue that needs fixing.
The Labour lite budget
Written By: - Date published: 8:31 am, May 25th, 2017 - 25 comments
From pre announced budget initiatives it is clear that today’s budget will provide National the opportunity to announce watered down insipid versions of current Labour Party policies.
The Greens – Budget for All Mothers
Written By: - Date published: 7:02 am, May 22nd, 2017 - 33 comments
Some great ideas in The Greens “Budget for All Mothers”. Surely no “data driven” “social investment” party could be opposed?
Future state abuse victims
Written By: - Date published: 1:18 pm, March 5th, 2017 - 9 comments
What to do with the helpless anger generated by such a statement?
Social investment meets the surveillance state
Written By: - Date published: 11:14 pm, March 4th, 2017 - 45 comments
First they came for the budgeting services. Now we know that every social service agency has to provide clients’ private personal data to the Ministry of Social Development or get no funding. Apparently it’s essential to Bill English’s much-touted and little understood “social investment” strategy, which is sounding more like something out of Orwell’s 1984. […]
State care inquiry
Written By: - Date published: 1:22 pm, February 16th, 2017 - 6 comments
We need one – and an apology. Bill may wonder aloud whether we’ll learn much, but I wonder if he’s more concerned we’ll learn too much…
Marama Fox vs Bill English – who will blink?
Written By: - Date published: 6:49 am, February 16th, 2017 - 167 comments
Marama Fox and Bill English have painted themselves into a bit of a corner, and Fox is threatening to “walk away from the Government”. Key would have handled this better.
Human Rights Commission calls for an inquiry – English says no
Written By: - Date published: 7:02 am, February 15th, 2017 - 10 comments
Tolley needs to apologise
Written By: - Date published: 2:00 pm, November 30th, 2016 - 34 comments
Kim Hill had an astounding and outstanding interview with Anne Tolley this morning on RNZ. The 7.30 news was delayed 12 minutes as Tolley evaded the fact that thousands of children were abused by the state in the 50s and 60s, and she refused to hold an inquiry into just how many thousands. She also […]
Child abuse and poverty – still with us
Written By: - Date published: 11:32 am, November 28th, 2016 - 33 comments
As topics like Trump and the quakes take the limelight, the slow tragedies unfolding in NZ carry on in the background.
RNZ on suppressed child abuse report
Written By: - Date published: 7:59 am, November 24th, 2016 - 21 comments
RNZ this morning describes a 2011 report by the Chief Human Rights Commissioner on historical child abuse in NZ. “It was never published because, she says, the Attorney General Chris Finlayson did not like its recommendations.”
New Zealand’s most shameful secret: ‘We have normalised child poverty’
Written By: - Date published: 4:01 pm, August 16th, 2016 - 175 comments
Fuck the whole “Brighter Future” New Zealand.
CYF massively underfunded
Written By: - Date published: 10:30 am, July 26th, 2016 - 28 comments
National pays electoral homage to our vulnerable children. They talk a big game about putting “the needs of our most vulnerable children and families at the centre of decisions”. Their actions tell a different story – of under-funding at CYF and falling numbers of social workers.
Be Like Dad, Keep Mum (in fear).
Written By: - Date published: 9:42 am, July 10th, 2016 - 62 comments
Temuera Morrison has made a powerful video for the Women’s Refuge annual appeal. He’s making a difference. You can do something the Key Government won’t do. You can make a difference. You can stop keeping mum about domestic violence and you can help fund your local refuge.
Nats overrule Parliament to veto parental leave extension
Written By: - Date published: 3:54 pm, June 16th, 2016 - 102 comments
So – like Canterbury, like Auckland, the democratic process can get stuffed as far as National are concerned.
Postcard from the “brighter” future
Written By: - Date published: 11:27 am, March 30th, 2016 - 31 comments
Evidence of growing poverty hitting “mid-decile” schools.
Easter Monday Round Up
Written By: - Date published: 8:54 am, March 28th, 2016 - 101 comments
Three news items stand out from the long weekend. Actor Robert De Niro being inoculated against anti-vaxxers, ISIS being driven out of Palmyra and the free part of Ireland celebrating the centenary of the Easter Rising. All are milestones of sorts, markers of positive change.
The great big list of John Key’s big fat lies (UPDATED)
Written By: - Date published: 7:00 am, January 27th, 2016 - 76 comments
How many more lies will John Key tell today in his so-called State of the Nation address? Virtual chocolate fish to whomever guesses the closest number.
Coleman to regulate high sugar industry
Written By: - Date published: 9:37 am, December 1st, 2015 - 32 comments
Health Minister Jonathan Coleman said there is a voluntary regime in place for the manufacture and sale of high sugar food but where there is is self regulation it is often ignored.
Because of the danger high sugar foods potentially pose it’s important to have a regulatory body and licensing/education regime to ensure manufacturers and retailers only provide food that has healthy outcomes.
Stuff report on child abuse
Written By: - Date published: 12:32 pm, November 21st, 2015 - 123 comments
Not exactly light or cheerful Saturday morning reading – but we should all read it anyway. Stuff’s (Katie Kenny & Blair Ensor) excellent special investigation on child abuse in NZ.
Poverty’s Beneficiaries.
Written By: - Date published: 10:02 am, November 8th, 2015 - 68 comments
While pondering this post, I was pointed to a post from last year, in which poverty and the cost of breakfast were on the agenda. Stephanie was writing in response to the ignorance of Nikki Kaye who claimed that giving affordable nutritious breakfast to children was easy. While I haven’t taken the time to read all of the comments on the subject, I thought Stephanie proved the point quite aptly that the reality is far different than the hypothetical world of poverty in which Nikki Kaye lives.
Food Bank Charity
Written By: - Date published: 4:45 pm, October 30th, 2015 - 97 comments
Guest post from Kōrero Pono on the politics and ethics of food banks.
CYF Review: Great work if you can get it
Written By: - Date published: 12:21 pm, October 13th, 2015 - 40 comments
Radio New Zealand has reported that Paul Rebstock, chair of the Government appointed committee engaged in the review of Child Youth and Family, is being paid $2,000 a day to perform her job. This is the equivalent to the daily pay of thirteen social workers.
The problem is child poverty not CYF
Written By: - Date published: 1:49 pm, September 28th, 2015 - 33 comments
The Rebstock Panel inquiry could be read to confirm that Child Youth and Family is unable to perform its job properly because of it is not properly resourced to provide the job. But it is clear that National is loathe to provide it with any more resources. And the elephant in the room is that the Government fails to understand that escalating child poverty is the cause the crisis.
Paid parental leave bill progresses – towards veto
Written By: - Date published: 7:02 am, September 17th, 2015 - 30 comments
Last night in Parliament Labour MP Sue Moroney’s bill extending paid parental leave to 26 weeks passed its first reading by one vote, with only National and ACT opposed.
Costly government
Written By: - Date published: 3:00 pm, June 14th, 2015 - 43 comments
This is the true irony of National governments. Their entire platform is one of “fiscal responsibility” and “good economic management” yet time and time again they spend money the way I did when I was a teenager: false economies and short-term wish fulfilment.
Heartless government
Written By: - Date published: 3:00 pm, June 13th, 2015 - 123 comments
A few stories of recent weeks which show exactly what kind of government we have.
Petition: Raise the age of child protection
Written By: - Date published: 8:30 am, May 27th, 2015 - 29 comments
Currently, child protection law means a young person leaves CYFS care at 17, but other state support, like housing and student allowances, doesn’t start until age 18.
Human Synergistics, Richard Prebble, and the end of government
Written By: - Date published: 6:08 am, May 17th, 2015 - 64 comments
Back in March 1988 David Lange had a clear idea about what lay ahead for New Zealanders as the long-term consequences of Roger Douglas’ psychopathic worshipping of the metaphysical Invisible Hand gradually materialised.
If you can’t afford children…
Written By: - Date published: 7:58 am, April 10th, 2015 - 186 comments
- PM runs from equal pay
2 hours ago - Beyond the Beehive: Rodney
In episode three of Beyond the Beehive, our epic election road trip series, we ask: Will Rodney stay true blue for National? Beyond the Beehive is presented by Max Towle. Produced by Max Towle, John Lake and Lucy Smith. ...7 hours ago - Flashback Saturday: Snapper off the Menu?
This post by Cam Pitches originally appeared in August 2012. With integrated ticketing and integrated fares now completed, it’s interesting to remember how tortuous the process was. Brian Rudman writes in today’s Herald that Auckland Transport board members gather in ...8 hours ago - PM confused over latest court action
8 hours ago - José Carlos Mariátegui book now available: History of the World Crisis and Other Writings
212 pages; softcover. Price: $20.00 USD (plus shipping: $5.00 US, $22.50 int’l); published by Marxists Internet Archive; ISBN: 978-0-692-88676-2 Orders: http://www.erythrospress.com/store/mariategui.html José Carlos Mariátegui (1894-1930), the founder and director of the seminal journal Amauta and of the Peruvian Socialist Party, is regarded ...16 hours ago - Problems For Oil
The importance of oil should not be underestimated as an energy source – and a pollutant. Almost every form of transport is dependent on it and its refined products and the present economy would not have been created without it. ...17 hours ago - Suing for justice
In August 2010, NZ SAS soldiers murdered six civilians in a revenge raid in Afghanistan. When the raid was exposed, the government denied everything and refused to investigate. But now, their victims are going to court to force an inquiry:The ...24 hours ago - Weekly Reading: Best longreads on the web
Our weekly recap highlighting the best feature stories from around the internet Neo Nazis, Alt-Right, and White Supremacists march in Charlottesville, Virginia. Photo: AFP The New Uniform of White Supremacy, by Cam Wolf, GQ “A weekend that ...1 day ago - The Jacinda Files (1)(Jacinda illustrations from John Moore facebook page) Jacinda – Labour’s most pleasant leader Jacinda redefines fairness Jacinda’s aspirational fluff Jacinda’s plan of hitting workers with more indirect tax Jacinda’s party ...1 day ago
- The Greens can take nothing for grantedLike many people, I was shocked by last night's One News poll showing the Greens on 4%. Sure, I'd expected them to lose support over middle-class hatred for the poor and Labour finally having a credible leader, but that much? ...1 day ago
- About Matthew Hooton’s declared loyalties
I’ve discussed Matthew Hooton a few times here. My views of his ‘service’ to political commentary in New Zealand have hardened lately. I find Matthew a personally very engaging, even charming man. There can be few smoother and more persuasive ...1 day ago - Winston Peters sues for defamation
Winston Peters has sued AM Show presenter, former Black Cap opener, and general larrikin Mark Richardson for defamation. The NZ Herald summarises the offending statements: Richardson said Peters was a “political predator” and took advantage of civil unrest to grandstand, attaching ...1 day ago - Weaponised nicenessThe citizenship insanity continues in Australia, with National deputy leader Fiona Nash admitting that she is a British citizen. Unlike other Senators who have found themselves in this situation, she has neither resigned, nor stood aside - and seems to ...1 day ago
- Food truck stories: The Ride, The Recipe and The Travelling Chef
Three chefs driven to fuel the masses. Shane Lunn at work in the Beat Kitchen food truck. Photo: RNZ/Rebekah Parsons-King THE RIDE Before Beat Kitchen, the bus was a motorhome. And before it was a ...1 day ago - Kate Wilkinson’s crony appointmentLast month, Science and Innovation Minister Paul Goldsmith appointed former National MP Kate Wilkinson to the board of Landcare Research. Naturally, I sent away the usual OIA request. And naturally, it exposed the appointment as the usual crony stitch-up. Here's ...1 day ago
- With love from the Arctic
Greenpeace kayakers have stopped an oil rig drilling in the Norwegian Arctic. I know, because I’m there right now.My name is Lizzie. I’m a web designer from New Zealand, and I’m here on the Greenpeace ship Arctic Sunrise with people ...1 day ago - Hard News: Friday Music: The Return of Disasteradio
I confess, it had escaped me that there had not been a Disasteradio album for seven years. It's not as if Luke Rowell had been idle: he's made a bunch of records as his alter-ego Eyeliner in that time. But ...1 day ago - What to know what’s happening in Charlottesville?Do yourself a favour and watch this. ...1 day ago
- Kiwi petition ignored by National
1 day ago - Don’t You Dare, Jacinda Ardern! Don’t You Dare!
1 day ago - In the Name of God, Go!
As storm clouds gathered over Europe in 1938, Neville Chamberlain, the British Prime Minister, went to Munich where he believed that he had obtained undertakings from Hitler to the effect that Germany would not launch further attacks on its neighbours. ...1 day ago - 2017 Rail Station Boardings
For the last few years now and since electrification of the network, ridership on Auckland’s rail network has surged, jumping from 10 million trips in the year to June-2013 to 19.6 million trips in June this year (and bound to ...1 day ago - Mark Richardson plays dirty
1 day ago - Beyond the Beehive: Kaikohe / WhangareiIn the lead-up to the election, journalist Max Towle is on an epic road trip taking the political pulse of young New Zealanders. The Whangarei electorate has been a safe National seat. Is that about to change? Beyond the ...1 day ago
- We are beneficiaries: I was used to feeling like a beggar
A group of artists are continuing the conversation Metiria Turei MP started – demanding a more compassionate social welfare system. They asked artists who have been on a benefit in NZ (DPB, sickness, invalids, jobseeker, whatever) to draw a picture ...2 days ago - Metiria Turei has started something
. . When Metiria Turei announced her resignation as co-leader of the Green Party, on the afternoon of 9 August, it could be said that the bullies had won. The reactionary media pack – led chiefly by so-called “journalists” ...2 days ago - National would tax water as well
2 days ago - Change happens when we stand together
Tertiary Update Election Edition Vol 1 No 1 Together we have stopped National’s attempt to change the law to funnel public money to private tertiary education. Over the past few months, nearly 5,000 people have joined our campaign to keep tertiary education ...2 days ago - Your university, pay and the living wageDr. Wayne Linklater, co-president of the Victoria University of Wellington (VUW) branch of the Tertiary Education Union, discusses how paying the Living Wage would help advance the values of public institutions like VUW. Universities are the engine of progress. They train ...2 days ago
- Mental health needs are failed by competitive fundingNicole Wallace from the School of Social Sciences at the University of Auckland, shares a powerful story about studying for a tertiary degree with a mental health condition, highlighting why we need to support public tertiary education for better access to ...2 days ago
- Local public tertiary education is vital for MāoriSteven Wharehinga, president of the Tertiary Education Union branch at the Universal College of Learning, explains what impact reforms introduced by National have had on the provision of regional tertiary education and what this means for Māori, Pasifika and low income families. ...2 days ago
- Our own memorial problemThis week we've all been made aware of the problem of the USA commemorating the leaders of the racist, slave-owning Confederacy with public monuments. Meanwhile, there's a similar problem in New Zealand. Via Twitter, I was pointed at a map ...2 days ago
- No protection for whistleblowers in NZThere's been some debate about the need for increased whistleblower protection in New Zealand. And today, we have a perfect example of why it is needed: because the Western Institute of Technology at Taranaki has just got the Employment Relations ...2 days ago
- That rail planThe big political news this morning in Greater Auckland's proposal for Auckland-Hamilton-Tauranga commuter rail. It looks like a good idea. In the southern part of the North Island we already have (limited) commuter rail between Palmerston North, Masterton and Wellington, ...2 days ago
- The Singles Life: The evolution of Shorecore
Welcome to weekly series The Singles Life, where known experts Katie Parker and Hussein Moses peruse, ponder and pontificate on the latest and (maybe) greatest in New Zealand music. Photo: Florence Noble/Facebook It may have been nearly a decade ...2 days ago - Just how bad is the Aussie NZ relationship?
As the finger wagging continues both here and over the ditch about Australian MP Barnaby Joyce being outed as a New Zealand citizen (oh the horror!) it's probably work pointing out just how bad our political relationship with our closest ...2 days ago - Voter Motivators 2017: Water.
2 days ago - Are we all anti-fascist now?
US neo-Nazis and fascists supporters march in Charoltsvill, USA. Image credit: Alejandro Alvarez/News2Share via Reuters Wouldn’t that be nice? What if the current almost universal condemnation of fascism by the main stream media and social media commenters were genuine.? That it represents an ...2 days ago - Beyond the Beehive: The Far NorthIn the lead-up to the election, journalist Max Towle is on an epic road trip taking the political pulse of young New Zealanders. Drugs, jobs and housing are on the minds of people in the Far North. Beyond ...2 days ago
- Introducing Regional Rapid Rail
Greater Auckland is proud to present our proposal for Regional Rapid Rail – an Upper North Island Passenger Network. This post gives you a brief summary of our staged proposal to introduce higher speed inter-city rail to the Upper North ...2 days ago - Media Link: Second radio interview in the US travelogue series.
There is some overlap between yesterday’s post and today’s radio interview, but there is also a a fair bit of other material as well: http://www.radiolive.co.nz/home/video/2017/08/trump–charlottesville-and-north-korea—the-latest-from-the-us.html ...3 days ago - Whatever happened to one law for all?by Susanne Kemp The Metiria Turei case certainly brought a lot of mean-spirited people with double standards out of the woodwork. People who vigorously defended John Key’s electoral fraud and Bill English’s rorting of the public purse for the ...3 days ago
- Access: The Driverless Road AheadFor the past decade and a bit, I've been working as a computer technician and sales rep. During that time, I've seen the desktop and laptop computer go from being the main method people get on the Internet, to an ...3 days ago
- Speaker: Low-quality language on immigrationOrcon IRL’s election special took place Sunday evening, and it was a right time. Kiri Allan mesmerised crowds in te reo. Stephen Berry knocked Rock Enrol. Chloe Swarbrick spoke of a Green future. And I disrespected Russell’s authority and went ...3 days ago
- Meanwhile, in PolandWhile we're all worrying about Nazis in America, we might also want to keep an eye on Poland:Polish police broke up a feminist rally and forcefully removed activists to clear the way for a march for far-right extremists. A live ...3 days ago
- Privacy, not “secrecy”Politik breathlessly reports that the New Zealand government kept information on Barnaby Joyce's kiwi citizenship "top secret":New Zealand Ministers and officials imposed a heavy security lid once they realised that they had information which could, in effect, topple the Australian ...3 days ago
- General Election Debate on Transport – Campaign for Better TransportThe Campaign for Better Transport is holding an election debate with all the major parties this month in Auckland. The CBT is led by Cameron Pitches and over the years has led campaigns and advocated for many transport issues including: Airport ...3 days ago
- The Real Reason for Housing UnaffordabilityThe news that the number of houses being sold is falling and that prices are rising more slowly has been greeted in some quarters with responses that are – sadly – all too predictable. The consensus is that these shifts ...3 days ago
- Renting in New Zealand (and what politicians are promising to change)
As politicians talk up their housing policies ahead of the election, renters share stories of stress, illness and why the current system doesn’t work. Photo: CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 Jared Kelly / Flickr Cleaning the house of mould and ...3 days ago - National fails miserably on housing
I don’t know about you, but I’m not very happy with all the homeless people wandering the streets and sleeping rough in the cold, some of whom are dying on park benches. But instead of blaming the victims, I think ...3 days ago - Check this outThe Spinoff has a terrific tool that lets you see and compare the leading parties’ election policies. You can tick your favourites and then see which way you lean based on your policy choices. It is beautifully done. It almost ...3 days ago
- Loading Docs: Asian Men Talk About SexEight Asian men bare all as they speak candidly about sex, love and dating. Asian Men Talk About Sex has been released as part of Loading Docs - a launchpad for short New Zealand documentaries. DIRECTOR INTERVIEW: ...3 days ago
- “Let’s Tax This?” – “Hell, Yeah!”
3 days ago - Barnaby Joyce – Asshole of the Week
3 days ago - Letters from America, take three: a scab got picked.Donald Trump picked a scab during his campaign for the presidency and now the puss is draining out. It will be a while before the wound is cleansed. The puss is racism, xenophobia and bigotry. When I left the US ...3 days ago
- Timing is everything for Ardern & Labour
Timing is just so important in politics, as in so much of life. Plenty of able people don't have the luck – or planning – to be in the right place at the right time. But right now, timing may ...3 days ago - Pouring gasoline on the housing fire
Yesterday, Prime Minister Bill English announced that he would encourage the Reserve Bank to remove the loan to value ratio (LVR) rules that it put in place to take the heat out of rising house prices. As reported in Newsroom: ...3 days ago - Inferno VII: The circle of capitalists
"Pape Satàn, pape Satàn aleppe!" If these words ever meant anything in any language, or were otherwise intelligible to the contemporaries of Dante Alighieri, that meaning is lost. What’s left to us is the beginning of a curse, or a ...4 days ago - Gordon Campbell on why Labour isn’t responsible for Barnaby Joyce
First published on Werewolf As a desperate Turnbull government tries to treat the Barnaby Joyce affair as a Pauline Hanson fever dream – blame it on the foreigners! We’re the victims of the dastardly New Zealand Labour Party! – our ...4 days ago - Media Release: TIME TO TURN UP THE PRESSURE ON CANDIDATESFor Immediate Release Tuesday 15 August 2017 TIME TO TURN UP THE PRESSURE ON CANDIDATES Polls are showing that inequality is a top voter concern (Roy-Morgan and UMR Polls). The income equality group Closing the Gap is urging New Zealanders ...4 days ago
- Ardern stands up for kiwisToday politics seems to be dominated by Australian ridiculousness, after the Australian government blamed Chris Hipkins (rather than hard-working Australian journalists) for exposing Barnaby Joyce as a New Zealand citizen, and Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop interfering in our election ...4 days ago
- Editors put the boot into National
4 days ago - Civil Disobedience Against Big Irrigation
Construction has started on huge irrigation schemes in Canterbury. When they start working, it’s going to be disastrous for our rivers - most of which are already struggling. More irrigation means more cows and that means more pollution.A few weeks ...4 days ago - Climate change: The Cullen fund divestsClimate change is now undeniable, and if we are to survive it, the fossil fuel industry has to die. And now the Cullen Fund has recognised that fact, and started divesting its risk:The New Zealand Superannuation Fund has sold shares ...4 days ago
- Dirty farmersSurprise, surprise - Waikato's dairy farmers are failing to comply with their resource consents:The Waikato Regional Council says dairy farm effluent compliance rates are heading in the right direction despite less than one quarter of farms monitored last year deemed ...4 days ago
- National’s policy hardly Christian
It’s often amazing to see the ill-conceived political arguments that make it to print in New Zealand sometimes. Perhaps one of the least canvassed areas of voting preference is that of religious beliefs, and where those beliefs coincide with a ...4 days ago - “As soon as reasonably practicable”
The Official Information Act requires agencies to decide on requests "as soon as reasonably practicable, and in any case not later than 20 working days after the day on which the request is received". But over the decades that the ...4 days ago - Wijkontsluitingsweg
This is another post about my recent trip to the Netherlands. The Netherlands has a standard road classification system with ideally three types of roads: flow roads (motorways), distribution roads (arterials), and local roads (residential roads). This system does not ...4 days ago - Eyewitness report from Charlottesville by Redneck RevoltREPORTBACK: CHARLOTTESVILLE: August 13, 2017 by Redneck Revolt members The situation on the ground in Charlottesville, Virginia, is still developing and unstable, but a few of our Redneck Revolt members on the ground took some time to provide the ...4 days ago
- Treating young people differently
The Labour party has hit the ground running with Jacinda Ardern. Not only has she shown immense capability as leader, the Labour party has clearly got its game on and returned to its core values, values that once made New ...4 days ago - Looking to the past to understand the Politics of Love
We need to transcend us vs them struggles, writes Philip McKibbin. Image: The Prophet Te Whiti Addressing a Meeting of Natives from The Graphic (1881) In 1881, the peaceful village of Parihaka was invaded. Fifteen-hundred men, led ...4 days ago - Power imbalances in local vs central government
Local government in New Zealand is a creature of statute, so it’s subservient to powers bestowed upon it by central government. From the creation of its mandate and structure, to the reforms imposed through time, local councils are, and will ...4 days ago - The Greens’ Campaign Reset: Normal Ideological Transmission Is Resumed.
4 days ago - Victory on Victoria
The Victoria St Linear Park has been saved from the clutches of Auckland Transport. You may recall that we’ve been concerned about ATs plans for the future of many of the streets in the city centre for some time. In ...4 days ago - MSM catches up on Unemployment stats rort. . The mainstream media – or at least one clever journalist working for Mediaworks/Newshub – has finally caught up with a story broken by this blogger last year that unemployment data from Statistics NZ was no longer reliable; ...5 days ago
- Government must apologise over rebuild debacle
The Prime Minister owes the public of Otago and Southland an apology and then he must come up with an unredacted copy of the business case for the Dunedin hospital rebuild, says Labour’s Health spokesperson David Clark. "For too long the interests of ...1 day ago - Government caves to multi-national tax avoiders in the shadowsNews that the Government has secretly caved in to the demands of multi-national tax avoiders come as no surprise, but will disappoint Kiwi taxpayers, says Labour’s spokesman for Revenue Michael Wood. “It has been revealed that a United States ...2 days ago
- Cheaper to stay at The Langham than emergency housing motelsLabour’s comprehensive plan to fix the housing crisis and ensure there’s enough state housing, means we won’t be paying through the nose for emergency accommodation like the current Government has to, says Labour’s Social Development spokesperson Carmel Sepuloni. “National has ...2 days ago
- Government must come clean on waterNews that the National Government is secretly working behind closed doors on its own water charging schemes shows their utter hypocrisy on this issue, says Labour’s water spokesperson David Parker. “They have been carping on about Labour’s plan for ...2 days ago
- Government pays twice the price for emergency housing motels – with two more on the wayUnder Labour’s plan to build at least 1000 state houses each year, New Zealand wouldn’t be paying more than double the valuations for motels to house Kiwis needing emergency housing, says Labour’s Social Development spokesperson Carmel Sepuloni. “Under questioning today, ...3 days ago
- HAM shows country needs Labour on housingThe latest Housing Affordability Measure report shows affordability dramatically worsening for Auckland first home buyers, says Labour’s Housing spokesperson Phil Twyford. ...3 days ago
- Canterbury kids get more support for mental healthChildren in Canterbury and Kaikoura will get dedicated mental health support to help them overcome the trauma of the earthquakes, says the Leader of the Opposition Jacinda Ardern. “We’ll fund an extra eighty mental health professionals for the next three ...3 days ago
- Statement on Julie Bishop’s commentsIt is highly regrettable that the Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop has chosen to make false claims about the New Zealand Labour Party. I have been utterly transparent about this situation. I stand by my statements this morning that I ...4 days ago
- Labour stands with Pike familiesA Labour Government will stand with the families of Pike River and reaffirm its commitment to safe workplaces by ensuring there will be a Minister responsible for Pike River, says Leader of the Opposition Jacinda Ardern. “The Pike River disaster ...4 days ago
- Yes to Sallies – Labour will build more state housesThe Salvation Army’s latest report ‘Taking Stock’ shows why New Zealand needs a Labour-led Government committed to a massive house building programme, says Labour’s Housing spokesperson Phil Twyford. “When the Sallies say the country needs 2000 extra state houses a ...4 days ago
- New Zealanders deserve better than scaremongering over waterNew Zealanders need to hear from National about how they will fund the clean-up of our rivers and lakes for future generations. Instead, National has broadened its scare-mongering, says Labour’s Water spokesperson David Parker. ...5 days ago
- School Leavers’ Toolkit to equip young people for adult lifeLabour will give school leavers the practical skills and knowledge they need for adult life with a new School Leavers’ Toolkit, says Leader of the Opposition Jacinda Ardern. “Our teachers and schools do a great job of teaching our children ...5 days ago
- Pay equity to be a priority for LabourLabour will make sure that the country’s mental health workers are a priority when it comes to pay equity negotiations, says the Leader of the Opposition Jacinda Ardern. “It is very important for me to right the wrong created ...1 week ago
- Labour’s positive education planToday’s announcement on learning support is more tinkering and proof that only a Labour Government will deliver the resources that schools and parents are crying out for, says Labour’s Education spokesperson Chris Hipkins. “We have a positive vision for a ...1 week ago
- Pike footage raises questions over government’s actionsThe Government’s seeming determination to turn a blind eye to new questions about what happened at Pike River Mine is troubling, says Labour’s West Coast-Tasman MP Damien O’Connor. ...1 week ago
- Solution to rent rises lies in building houses and stopping speculatorsThe spread of rental increases from the big cities to the surrounding regions shows why we need to get on top of the housing shortage build homes our families can afford, and lock out the speculators, says Labour’s Housing spokesperson ...1 week ago
- Clean rivers don’t cost $18 a cabbageNational is falling into a bad pattern of promising the world and not saying how they will fund it, says Labour’s Water spokesperson David Parker. ...1 week ago
- Time for honest answer on transport fundingNational needs to explain how they will fund the $6 billion funding gap in their 10-year Auckland transport plan, says Labour’s Auckland Issues spokesperson Phil Twyford. ...1 week ago
- Time for true numbers on overseas speculatorsIt’s time for the Government to give accurate figures on the number of houses being bought by overseas speculators, says Labour’s Land Information spokesperson Raymond Huo. ...1 week ago
- Fair and sustainable trade: A Green Party vision for New Zealand’s trading relationships
Trade is a cornerstone of the New Zealand economy. It provides us with the things we want and need, and enables us to pay for those with exports that generate business opportunities and jobs. However, it should be recognised that ...1 week ago - Clean rivers for future generationsLabour will lead a nationwide effort to restore our rivers and lakes to a clean, swimmable state, says Leader of the Opposition Jacinda Ardern. ...1 week ago
- New Zealand really can do better on healthLabour’s commitment to affordable access to high quality healthcare will provide a better service for New Zealanders than the current Health Minister, who will not apologise for statements that he made that wrongly criticised hard-working staff in the Southern DHB’s ...2 weeks ago
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- Is pay equity just too hard for this Govt?You are hard pressed these days to find someone that openly admits their misogyny, that men should still be paid more than women. Politicians proclaim that they want to see women paid more, but do their actions back it up? ...2 weeks ago
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- Maori Landowners Misled by Maori PartyMāori landowners are being misled by Government hui being held throughout the country promoting the troubled Māori Land Service (MLS), which underpins the Crown’s unpopular Ture Whenua reforms, says Labour’s Ikaroa-Rāwhiti MP Meka Whaitiri. ...2 weeks ago
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- Experience in Youth Parliament 2016
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- Roy Morgan Poll July 31 to Aug 13Jacinda Ardern’s ascension to leadership revitalises Labour, up 2% to 32.5%; Turei scandal costs Greens support, down 4.5% to 9% ...19 hours ago
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- New Zealand First announces its candidatesRt Hon Winston Peters New Zealand First Leader Member of Parliament for Northland 18 AUGUST 2017 Public meeting Red Square, Central Business District, Tauranga 12.30pm ...1 day ago
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- “Saying goodbye to what has been my life for so many years”Last week I made my valedictory statement to Parliament. After 12 years as an MP, firstly for Aoraki and then Rangitata, it is an odd feeling saying goodbye to what has been my life for so many years. ...1 day ago
- NZ Government Fails! No Answers over Injustices at IhumātaoThe New Zealand Government delegation to the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racism and Discrimination in Geneva yesterday failed to answer multiple questions about the development of a Special Housing Area on confiscated Māori land at Ihumātao ...1 day ago
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- Social Housing Minister stifles debate on critical issuesSocial Housing Minister Amy Adams is refusing all requests to front up and justify the National government’s plan to sell 2,500 state houses in Christchurch after the election. ...1 day ago
- Armed Robber Gets Hand SmackedDouglas Roake committed six aggravated robberies and shot two innocent members of the public during an armed home invasion – gets smack on the hand.SST ...1 day ago
- Local Government Leaders failing New ZealandIt is a sad coincidence that newly elected head of Local Government New Zealand is facing his own water crisis in North Dunedin – with it being exactly one-year since his predecessor's Council killed three people and caused 6,000 to ...1 day ago
- DoC Missing In Action – AgainThe NZ Outdoors Party is reminding the Minister of Conservation of her statutory duty of protecting and preserving our public conservation estate and wild places as there have been two particularly disturbing instances where Department of Conservation ...1 day ago
- CBB welcomes NZ First Broadcasting and ICT policy17 August 2017 The Coalition for Better Broadcasting (CBB) welcomes the NZFirst Broadcasting and ICT policy . ...2 days ago
- ANZASW expresses its appreciation of Turei’s contributionThe Aotearoa New Zealand Association of Social Workers wishes to place on record its appreciation of Metiria Turei’s contribution, both at the political and grassroots level. Throughout her 15 years in Parliament Metiria has been an advocate for the ...2 days ago
- The Battle for Te Tai HauaruTe Tai Hauauru MP Adrian Rurawhe hasn’t put himself in the spotlight in his first term, but how will that translate into votes against two high profile opponents? ...2 days ago
- Microbead policy a “good start”Greenpeace is welcoming the Government’s latest announcement on microbeads as a good start. ...2 days ago
- Cheaper to stay at The Langham than emergency housing motelsLabour’s comprehensive plan to fix the housing crisis and ensure there’s enough state housing, means we won’t be paying through the nose for emergency accommodation like the current Government has to, says Labour’s Social Development spokesperson ...2 days ago
- Labour And National Fiddling While Housing Crisis Burns onAfter Labour’s announcement yesterday that it would look to conduct a “review” of taxation mechanisms to deal with the housing crisis, it is now obvious that both old establishment parties have zero commitment to deal with the root causes of ...2 days ago
- National Scheming to Lock in TPPARt Hon Winston Peters New Zealand First Leader Member of Parliament for Northland 17 AUGUST 2017 National Scheming to Lock in TPPA So Future Govt Has No Influence ...2 days ago
- Local Government stepping stone to Parliament stingRatepayers should not be paying councillors for one job while they are out campaigning for another, says the Taxpayers’ Union. At least four candidates in the three main centres are still enjoying salaries over $90,000 while they campaign for seats ...2 days ago
- Oranga Tamariki’s staff exodusThe number of social workers leaving Child, Youth and Family during the formation of Oranga Tamariki was largely down to the expertise of long-serving staff being ignored in the review process and a costly and wasteful Expert Advisory Panel (EAP) ...2 days ago
- Volunteers collect shoes for suicide preventionVolunteers are collecting hundreds of shoes across the country to draw attention to our alarming suicide rates, says YesWeCare.nz . ...2 days ago
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- Garner, Gower And Owen to Front Decision17Duncan Garner will be hosting Three’s election night special from 7:00pm on September 23rd, 2017. With close to 20 years press gallery experience and host of The AM Show, Garner will be joined by Newshub Political Editor Patrick Gower and ...2 days ago
- Labour Party spot on – not government’s role to own hotelsThe Taxpayers’ Union agree with Labour: the use of millions of dollars of taxpayers’ money for the Government’s desperate attempts to pepper over the housing crisis by buying its own hotels, is ridiculous. Responding to Carmel Sepuloni's comments ...2 days ago
- Tourism supports call for better biodiversity managementProtection of New Zealand’s unique biodiversity is imperative to our social and economic future, Tourism Industry Aotearoa says. ...2 days ago
- Addressing the Freshwater Crisis – It’s Time for ActionWater is a hot topic at the moment. The Māori Party has long been advocating for water to be recognised as a taonga, not just at election time. We have always said that the absolute priority is for all New ...2 days ago
- Rahui Papa – why criticize Metiria Turei?The status quo is not working for our people – we need a higher level of care ...2 days ago
- Ministry of Defence Major Projects Report 2016 PublishedIn 2008, the Office of the Auditor-General identified a need for the Ministry of Defence and the New Zealand Defence Force to report better and more complete information to show how well they manage projects to acquire new defence capability. ...2 days ago
- Why will the least swimmable rivers receive less funding?IrrigationNZ is continuing to challenge the logic of Labour’s water tax proposal, after finding that regions with more swimmable rivers will receive more funding from the water tax, while those with the least swimmable rivers will receive less funding ...2 days ago
- REINZ applauds voluntary Rental Warrant of FitnessThe Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ) applauds moves by the Wellington City Council today to launch a voluntary Rental Warrant of Fitness for minimum housing standards in Wellington. The Council has partnered with the University of Otago to ...2 days ago
- How low can the Health Minister sink?The on-going performance of Jonathan Coleman as health minister is no longer a major concern but a complete disaster for the New Zealand public health system, according to Democrats for Social Credit health spokesman David Tranter. ...2 days ago
- Interactive Webinars on Living and DyingParliament’s Health Select Committee suggested in their recent report on public attitudes to ‘assisted dying’* that “greater communication between health professionals and the general public is required to explain the dying process and alleviate fear” ...2 days ago
- National says drop in social housing being addressed
National says the number of social houses has fallen while it's been in government, but it's promising to change that if re-elected. ...3 hours ago - Outside the Asylum: chapters one and two of Eric Crampton’s epic essay situating New Zealand as an...
Living in New Zealand and focusing on our very real social issues, it’s easy to forget that there are many things we do quite well. Or, to put it another way, that things are frequently a lot worse in other ...9 hours ago - NZ’s Labour Party needs to ‘reach back into Pacific community’, says panel
Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz Tagata Pasifika’s first election talanoa … Labour must engage Pacific voters. Video: Tagata Pasifika Tagata Pasifika has kicked off its election talanoa series with a panel discussion weighing-in on Jacinda Ardern’s recent appointment to leader of the ...22 hours ago - LETTERS: Operation Burnham – New Zealand Government Must Initiate Independent InquiryLETTERS to the Editor: Operation Burnham – New Zealand Government Must Initiate Independent Inquiry In July It was revealed Australia Special Forces may have been responsible for the deaths of children in Afghanistan. In ...23 hours ago
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- Bryce Edwards Analysis: Political Roundup – Bittersweet “Pollquake” for the left
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New Zealand has a long history of introducing foreign insect predators to control crop pests and weeds. How risky is that? Thanks to a lack of long-term monitoring of our native insect populations, nobody really knows, explains the University of ...1 day ago - Amid all this political turmoil, where are the policy faultlines?
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The 'Jacinda effect' and the implosion of support for the Greens has transformed the election campaign and could change the Government, a fresh poll shows. ...2 days ago - Greens are goneburger in new poll which shows English and Ardern level pegging
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- Poll puts Greens at 4%, Labour at 37%A new political poll has the Green Party plummeting to just 4 percent support - below the threshold to re-enter Parliament. ...2 days ago
- Winston takes on Mediaworks over Richardson remarks
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- What Rainbow Families need teachers to know – and how you can support this kaupapaKath Cooper, an early childhood lecturer who parents four children with her wife, believes all parents need to actively support LGBTQI-friendly environments at their children’s schools. With input from the Rainbow Families NZ community, she’s sharing this article in the ...2 days ago
- Kiwis of Snapchat: Gerald Cobb, Auckland commuterIn our video series Kiwis of Snapchat, comedian Tom Sainsbury sources exclusive Snapchat footage of Kiwi citizens making the news. Today: Aucklander Gerald Cobb walks us through his early morning commute.Click here for all our Kiwis of Snapchat videos.The Spinoff ...2 days ago
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Z Energy is the largest retailer of petrol in New Zealand, yet is paying to promote Al Gore’s climate change movie An Invonvenient Sequel. Duncan Greive meets Z CEO Mike Bennetts and asks what’s up with that.The CEO stood atop ...2 days ago - I studied in Charlottesville as an Asian New Zealander and racism was… selective
The horrific events of last weekend at the white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, brought back memories for Hye Ji ‘Erica’ Lee, a Korean New Zealander who studied there six years ago.In 2011 I was a student at the University ...2 days ago - Tears as petition for Family Court inquiry handed over
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An essay by Carl Shuker in response to the shoddy response of most reviewers to the new novel by Wellington writer Pip Adam. Why, he simmers, are so many New Zealand critics so lazy, so patronising, so cheerfully ignorant, and just plain ...2 days ago - Never forget the horniest biscuit ad this country has ever seen
Lucy Zee revisits the sensual Toffee Pops ad of the 90s starring Carlos Spencer and a whole lot of lust. The best factory produced, mid-range, supermarket shelf, chocolate coated cookie in New Zealand according to this statistically accurate twitter poll is: ...2 days ago - Chartlander: What we were listening to the day Helen Clark became Prime Minister
Every week Chartlander travels back through time, landing in a different year on the official New Zealand singles chart in the hopes of (re)discovering forgotten Top 40 gold. Today we go back to the last time the Labour Party came ...2 days ago - A showdown in Winton
Last night the Clutha Southland National Party selected Hamish Walker, a 32 year old business advisor from Dunedin, as the replacement for disgraced MP Todd Barclay. But if National think that will put to rest the questions swirling around their ...2 days ago - The ETS is ready to reduce New Zealand’s emissions
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Bryce Edwards Analysis: Political Roundup: NZ (and Australia) needs better political scandals Trans-Tasman rivalry between New Zealand and Australia.Dr Bryce Edwards.The current trans-Tasman citizenship saga doesn’t warrant the level of hysteria coming from politicians in both countries, on both sides ...2 days ago - Ned Stark is alive and well and trapped in a British stoner comedy
Tara Ward watches Wasted, a buzzy British comedy starring spirit guide Sean Bean as every famous Sean Bean character ever. Imagine discovering your subconscious mind can manifest itself into the form it trusts the most. It’s an alarming thought, mostly because ...2 days ago - Beyond the Beehive: The Far NorthIn a new video series, The Wireless journalist Max Towle hits the road to take the political pulse of young New Zealanders from Cape Reinga to Bluff. ...2 days ago
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