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Labour’s List
Written By: - Date published: 12:54 pm, June 15th, 2020 - 38 comments
The Labour Party has released its list lineup. It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity to refresh the caucus, and it’s down to one leader’s sacrifice and another’s steller performance.
Two Tier. Bull. Shit.
Written By: - Date published: 2:58 pm, May 25th, 2020 - 217 comments
I thought we were “in this together” or some such?
Should Parents and Teachers Defy the Government?
Written By: - Date published: 4:02 pm, May 16th, 2020 - 66 comments
School’s back on Monday, but the medical community is still struggling to understand covid 19
His work here is not yet done
Written By: - Date published: 7:00 am, May 1st, 2020 - 71 comments
Former Prime Minister John Key has said that under current conditions employers are going to sack 20 per cent of their workers even if the company is doing well and that employers should never waste a crisis.
The class politics of the Covid-19 pandemic response
Written By: - Date published: 7:35 am, April 28th, 2020 - 59 comments
National economics spokesperson Paul Goldsmith has advanced a plan to address the Covid 19 pandemic which includes union bashing and privatisation.
Eat the rich
Written By: - Date published: 9:06 am, April 22nd, 2020 - 47 comments
Richard Branson, who has arranged his affairs so that he pays tax to no government, is upset that Governments are not bailing his empire out. And an idea has been floated to allow billionaires to set up boltholes in New Zealand.
Generational astrology
Written By: - Date published: 10:00 am, March 25th, 2020 - 25 comments
In the time of coronavirus, we can move from blame to connection.
BREAKING NEWS: Simon Bridges Calls on Simon Bridges to Stand Down
Written By: - Date published: 6:30 pm, February 18th, 2020 - 5 comments
BREAKING NEWS: Simon Bridges calls on the leader of the opposition to stand down while the SFO case is before the courts.
Mike Moore
Written By: - Date published: 7:30 am, February 3rd, 2020 - 104 comments
It’s not often you find New Zealanders who give every single breath they have to the left and do it with resounding and even global success. Such a person was Mike Moore.
Results matter
Written By: - Date published: 9:34 am, June 21st, 2019 - 29 comments
Everyone knows that getting employers to increase rates of pay and improve conditions of work takes real pressure and the only real way working people can exert pressure, in the unbalanced relationship that exists between individual employees and employers, is by acting together; collectively. And that’s what we’ve been doing week in, week out and getting real results.
Bene bashing
Written By: - Date published: 11:27 am, June 1st, 2019 - 101 comments
National has engaged in the most crass form of beneficiary bashing in opposing Government changes to the benefit system announced in the budget and passed under urgency.
Budget commentary
Written By: - Date published: 12:23 pm, May 31st, 2019 - 65 comments
Has New Zealand’s social media spent too much time on gocha politics and not enough on the substance of the wellbeing budget?
New Child Poverty statistics will provide a sound baseline for reduction targets
Written By: - Date published: 7:00 am, April 4th, 2019 - 6 comments
Child Poverty Action Goup has provided comments about new child poverty measurements.
Spare a thought for our poor impoverished landlords
Written By: - Date published: 8:17 am, February 25th, 2019 - 225 comments
Spare a thought for poor landlords who are aghast at the thought that they should have to share capital gains on properties they have purchased with no intent of making a capital gain.
All hail our computer overlords
Written By: - Date published: 8:00 am, February 24th, 2019 - 34 comments
IBM has staged a debate between an IBM computer and the world debating champion. The human won but the debate suggests that it may be just a matter of time … and the computer had remarkable things to say about poverty.
Child poverty reduction
Written By: - Date published: 8:00 am, December 5th, 2018 - 65 comments
It’s likely that Labour’s new Child Poverty Reduction Bill will get through its third reading by the end of this year.
National forgets it apologised for Housing Corp meth hysteria
Written By: - Date published: 9:12 am, September 22nd, 2018 - 31 comments
Three months ago National apoligised for getting dud advice and evicting hundreds of state house tenants where miniscule amounts of methamphetamine were discovered. This week National backed off from that very proper apology.
We are failing kids from poor families
Written By: - Date published: 9:21 am, September 16th, 2018 - 77 comments
Kirsty Johnston has produced an in-depth analysis of the current rate of young people from poor backgrounds entering professional ranks. And the news is not good.
Period. End. Done.
Written By: - Date published: 12:12 pm, August 26th, 2018 - 42 comments
The Scottish government has just taken a massive step to eradicate period poverty. Why not here?
Nurses.
Written By: - Date published: 12:31 pm, July 27th, 2018 - 76 comments
There’s a sickness affecting our health system.
The UN is shocked by NZ’s child poverty rates
Written By: - Date published: 11:40 am, July 22nd, 2018 - 89 comments
Earlier this year the United Nations expressed shock and concern at New Zealand’s rates of child poverty, homelessness, incarceration and violence. What is this Government doing to address these issues?
Killing Them Softly With…
Written By: - Date published: 10:24 am, June 11th, 2018 - 48 comments
In New Zealand there is sufficient evidence to show that poor peoples’ lives are cut short because of poverty related poor nutrition. While food banks are alleviating the worst impacts of hunger, their kindness may well be contributing to the problem. Food poverty is a systemic issue and requires a systemic response, a response that successive governments are able to avoid while charities continue to provide a buffer for the system.
Collins keeps Housing Corp P debacle in news cycle
Written By: - Date published: 7:53 am, June 7th, 2018 - 122 comments
Judith Collins has managed to keep the Housing Corp methamphetamine story alive for another news cycle by attacking poor people who take drugs.
Housing Band Aids
Written By: - Date published: 9:54 am, May 26th, 2018 - 54 comments
What lies behind the homelessness crisis in Aotearoa New Zealand? Is it a housing crisis or are the homeless to blame? If the problem is a housing crisis, why is there an assumption that the homeless themselves need extra services to secure and maintain rental housing?
Rogue Nation(s)
Written By: - Date published: 10:19 am, May 9th, 2018 - 30 comments
Just some thoughts that kind of meandered down to the ocean.
Thank you Metiria.
Written By: - Date published: 11:14 am, April 25th, 2018 - 94 comments
Some movement on social security (a thing we all deserve)
Mike Hosking reckons: Minimum wage increase will be terrible for everyone
Written By: - Date published: 9:55 am, April 9th, 2018 - 159 comments
Mike Hosking reckons that an increase in the minimum wage will increase housing unaffordability and cause job losses and business closures.
Is youth the new political divide?
Written By: - Date published: 9:21 am, March 11th, 2018 - 44 comments
There is evidence in the United Kingdom and in New Zealand that youth and not class may be the new political divide.
Jacinda Ardern’s child poverty speech
Written By: - Date published: 7:42 am, February 1st, 2018 - 74 comments
In a major speech yesterday on poverty, Prime Minister Ardern has laid out fully and forthrightly what is the problem and what need to be done.
Ruminations on deprivation
Written By: - Date published: 8:00 am, January 29th, 2018 - 172 comments
Man gets wet feet. Is reminded of privilege.
Up in Smoke.
Written By: - Date published: 2:38 pm, January 5th, 2018 - 23 comments
US reverses Federal marijuana stance.
- Geoffrey Miller: NZ’s Olympic-sized relationship with Japan may be about to change
As the Tokyo Olympics come to an end, Geoffrey Miller analyses the state of New Zealand’s wider relationship with Japan – and says that a very successful partnership may be about to become a lot more complicated. As New Zealand’s very successful Olympic campaign in Tokyo draws to a ...2 hours ago - National's oily mates love burning coal
You’ve probably noticed National criticising the Labour and Green Coalition Government recently about the amount of coal that’s being imported into New Zealand.In fact they’ve been incessantly repeating their disapproval about imported coal for well over a year now, which is getting a bit tedious to say the least.There is ...3 hours ago - Skeptical Science New Research for Week #31, 2021
Want to make a dangerous bet? Modes of climate science denial run across a spectrum, with the "soft" end being "climate change has happened in the past what's the big deal," through "we don't really know what'll happen" and ending with the fully delusional "it's not possible for humans to change ...14 hours ago - On the wrong side of history, like always
Parliament debated the Conversion Practices Prohibition Legislation Bill this afternoon, and voted to send it to select committee by a margin of 87 to 33. The only party opposed? National. This is a bill aimed at ending the torture of LGBTQ kids and giving them the freedom to be who ...16 hours ago - Bryce Edwards: Political Roundup – Progressive opposition will help kill off hate speech proposalsWhen significant voices on the political left start speaking out against Labour’s proposed hate speech laws it’s a sign that they’re in big trouble. With criticisms now coming from across the political spectrum, it’s much more likely that the Government will ditch the botched speech regulation reforms. The latest leftwing ...16 hours ago
- National continue climate change denialIt seems somewhat absurd for there still to be climate change deniers around these days. Not only is the world experiencing unprecedented heat waves, droughts, floods and more intense wildfires than ever before, but these extreme weather events have all been categorically linked to climate change by peer-reviewed scientific research.However ...19 hours ago
- Climate Change: Unfit to governWe've just had record floods on the West Coast, and freak wind events in Auckland. Greece and Turkey are on fire. And in what seems like a blast from the past, National's climate change spokesperson is calling climate change "bullshit": National Party MP Stuart Smith has described a government ...19 hours ago
- Graham Adams: The thorny hate-speech debate sorts sheep from goatsFormer Labour MP Sue Moroney discovers the perils of offering simple solutions to a complex problem. Graham Adams argues that common sense isn’t enough to decide when speech becomes a crime scene. The hate-speech debate is quickly becoming an arena where reputations go to die. Kris Faafoi, the Minister ...20 hours ago
- DrawnA ballot for three member's bills was held today, and the following bills were drawn: New Zealand Public Health and Disability (Restriction on Crown Funding Agreements and Unfunded Cancer Medicines) Amendment Bill (Shane Reti) Overseas Investment (Exempt Investment from OECD Countries) Amendment Bill (Damien Smith) Crimes ...21 hours ago
- The Herald’s Bias
Like many other Kiwis, my wife and I have had our first Covid vaccination. It was efficiently delivered at the time and place specified, and our second vaccination will take place next week. The Herald, however, continues to pursue its determined campaign to persuade us – in the face of ...22 hours ago - An immediate perception of corruptionOver the course of the Covid crisis there has been unease with border restrictions, as people have found it difficult to get MIQ spots. And meanwhile, the government has been secretly letting billionaires in: Billionaire Google co-founder Larry Page visited New Zealand amid Covid-19 border restrictions after his child ...22 hours ago
- NZ Politics Daily: 5 August 2021Parliament, political parties Michael Neilson (Herald): Government communications spending increases 50 per cent in four years(paywalled) Jo Moir (Newsroom): What’s eating Kris Faafoi? Sam Sachdeva (Newsroom): Mystery delay to National Party donations trial Ben Thomas (Stuff): Collins lurches off-road in search for culture wars vote 1 News: Labour’s ‘massive’ drop in poll a ‘wake up ...1 day ago
- Gesta Gertrudis: Volume I
Introducing my new D&D character, taking the place of Annalax: https://phuulishfellow.wordpress.com/2021/01/07/the-adventures-of-annalax-a-compendium/ Gertrude von Amleth: Level 8 Human Bard (Glamour)STR: 10DEX: 17CON: 13INT: 18WIS: 4CHA: 20Will Power: 13 Cantrips: Vicious Mockery, Prestidigitation, Minor IllusionFirst Level Spells: Comprehend Languages, Healing Word, Tasha’s Hideous Laughter, Dissonant WhispersSecond Level: Heat Metal, Silence, ...1 day ago - What’s the carbon footprint of a wind turbine?This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Sara Peach Dear Sara, Wind turbines are an absolute joke. Has anyone actually figured out the amount of carbon emissions emitted for the entire process from initial construction of the components and land development (construction machinery emissions)? — Mike ...2 days ago
- Throw the landlords out!The Spinoff this morning has a horrific cartoon from the Side Eye about how people are being locked out of owning their own home. Along the way, it points out that the only people who benefit from this crisis are property investors, and that there's remarkably few of them: only ...2 days ago
- People could live in those ghost houses, Jacinda ArdernYou can understand why Jacinda Ardern is somewhat hesitant to do more about tackling the housing crisis. After all, making houses affordable would effectively mean that billions of dollars of paper wealth would be wiped from people's books. And with a considerably larger percentage of the voting public owning property ...2 days ago
- One way of fixing itYesterday, in response to upcoming industrial action, DHBs decided to take the nurses' union to court, claiming they weren't doing enough to guarantee safe staffing levels during the strike. The core issue in the strike is... safe staffing levels, so there's a heavy dose of irony there. And its a ...2 days ago
- 5,000 employed under LabourThe quarterly labour market statistics have been released, and outperformed expectations again, with unemployment dropping to 4.0%. There are now 117,000 unemployed - 5,000 fewer than when Labour took office. Which, given the pandemic, is a pretty spectacular performance. Throw in a drop in underutilisation and increased wages, and it ...2 days ago
- Member’s DayToday is a Member's Day. First is the committee stage of Andrew Bayly's racist, anti-immigrant New Zealand Superannuation and Retirement Income (Fair Residency) Amendment Bill. Labour has sadly decided to back it - apparently they value the votes of dying, racist NZ First voters more than those of their own ...2 days ago
- NZ Politics Daily: 4 August 2021Housing Bernard Hickey: Here’s all the levers the Govt is not pulling to fix our housing catastrophe Chloe Swarbrick (Herald): UN-enshrined human right to housing eclipsed by investor greed Charlie Dreaver (RNZ): ‘Way too many hoops’: First Home Grant payouts fall short Toby Morris (Spinoff): The Side Eye’s Two New Zealands: Locked out Claire ...2 days ago
- Playing Skadi: The Amazon Identification Debate
As I noted in a previous post, Amazon have released the first image of the upcoming Second Age series. Much like their map-leak from a couple of years ago, it is clearly intended to get the geekier elements of online Tolkien fandom in a lather. And much like a ...2 days ago - An increasingly hysterical base and the National “Leadership”team: far too similar in mindset, o...
Fuming and foaming about the fact their Party lost most recent NZ Election, the barrage, even four years on, from their supporters has not lost any signs of abating. Partly because they claimed high support in the past which gave them an unearned sense of “Right to Rule” and ...3 days ago - Racist party wants to ban Maori word3 days ago
- Dawn raids, continuing exploitation
by Don Franks Beginning in 1974, New Zealand police armed with dogs repeatedly accosted Pacific Nation people, in their homes, in the early morning. The operations were carried out to arrest alleged visa overstayers. After these raids some of the adult victims were deported, their children being placed in state care ...3 days ago - Bryce Edwards: Political Roundup – Radical reform coming to a supermarket near youThe supermarket sector is finally about to receive some serious government intervention. Following a scathing report from the Commerce Commission, it’s now almost inevitable that the Labour Government is going to have to introduce some major changes to this vital but uncompetitive retail sector. And these moves are likely to ...3 days ago
- Thinking is Power: The problem with “doing your own research”This is a re-post from the Thinking is Power website maintained by Melanie Trecek-King where she regularly writes about many aspects of critical thinking in an effort to provide accessible and engaging critical thinking information to the general public. The phrase “do your own research” seems ubiquitous these days, often by those who ...3 days ago
- Air pollution exposure is shifting from outdoor to indoor – here’s why
Nicola Carslaw, University of York and David Carslaw, University of York You may have seen the before-and-after-lockdown photos of major cities that appear to show dramatic changes in air quality. In one, the India Gate war memorial in New Delhi is barely visible amid the smog. Then, during lockdown, ...3 days ago - Curiouser and Curiouser: The First Image Out of Amazon’s Second Age Series
Courtesy of Twitter, we now a release date for the upcoming Amazon LOTR/Second Age series: 2nd September, 2022. Which just happens to be the 49th anniversary of Tolkien’s Death. We also have the first image from the series: Very pretty. A figure in white robes looking out over ...3 days ago - Our brains perceive our environment differently when we’re lying downDavid I. Shore, McMaster University You’re agitated by the sound of a mosquito buzzing around your head. The buzzing stops. You feel the tiny pinprick and locate the target. Whack! It’s over. It’s a simple sequence, but it demands complex processing. How did you know where the mosquito was ...3 days ago
- Incentives workHuh. It turns out that incentives to buy EVs and lower their price relative to fossil vehicles work: The first month of the "feebate" saw a huge spike in electric vehicle sales, which nearly quadrupled. There were 1944 pure EV and hybrid light vehicle new registrations during July, according ...3 days ago
- NZ Politics Daily: 3 August 2021Opinion polls, government, political parties Claire Trevett (Herald): Poll should be death knell for Judith Collins but a Covid hangover is hitting for PM Jacinda Ardern (paywalled) Mark Quinlivan (Newshub): Newshub-Reid Research Poll: Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern not bothered by result as Labour plummets to 43 percent Zane Small (Newshub): Newshub-Reid Research Poll: Judith ...3 days ago
- New technology offers insights on Southern Ocean’s carbon secretsThis is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Kristen Pope The Southern Ocean surrounding Antarctica makes up less than a third of the global ocean surface, yet scientists believe it “plays an outsized role in the climate system,” according to a 2021 journal article in Geophysical Research Letters. Water and currents from other ...3 days ago
- The government is breaching the right to housingHousing is a human right, one which the New Zealand government accepts through its adherence to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. And now the Human Rights Commission has stated the obvious: we're breaching it: Successive Governments have breached New ...4 days ago
- Mass vaccination event wasn’t a shambles4 days ago
- Climate Change: A $3.5 billion mistakeIn May last year the government increased the ETS fixed price option to $35, as a prelude to moving to an auction-based system with a cost-containment reserve. At the time, carbon prices were $25 - hard up against the previous price cap - so it must have looked impossibly high. ...4 days ago
- Neither Passionless, Nor Zombies.
Once Again With Feeling: What the parties on both sides of the aisle need to understand, however, is that New Zealanders are not passionless, and they are certainly not zombies. They are voters – and they want change. Now.I NEVER BOUGHT Gordon McLauchlan’s Passionless People argument. The book was published ...4 days ago - NZ Politics Daily: 2 August 2021NOTE TO SUBSCRIBERS AND READERS I’m very pleased to bring back the “NZ Politics Daily” email service today. During the break I’ve been able to secure some funding so that a research assistant can help put the service together. I will, however, need to find more money to make the service sustainable. ...4 days ago
- Collins is crushing her own credibilityEven before Judith Collins became overlord of the National Party, you could tell there was a huge ideological divide between her questionable values and those of the party’s former leaders. And just over a year after becoming the opposition's de facto leader, that chasm between Crusher and what her party ...4 days ago
- Legal Beagle: The New New Prohibition
In the decades leading up to the 18th Amendment, the case for the prohibition of alcohol was made repeatedly. The harms of alcohol were substantial, and the US experience was worse than most. The victims made the case, and campaigners made the case for those who couldn’t speak for themselve. ...4 days ago - Let’s talk about sex self ID
Speak Up For Women have toured New Zealand in the last month speaking on the proposed law change that would allow people to change their birth certificate sex by a simple declaration. It was a great opportunity to meet with hundreds of people and exchange ideas. Here is the talk: ...5 days ago - 2021 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #31Listing of articles linked to on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, July 25, 2021 through Sat, July 31, 2021 The following articles sparked above average interest during the week: The insect apocalypse: ‘Our world will grind to a halt without them’, State of the climate: 2021 ...5 days ago
- July ’21 – NZ blogs sitemeter ranking
Image credit: Nicole MamaNYC I notice a few regulars no longer allow public access to the site counters. This may happen accidentally when the blog format is altered. If your blog is unexpectedly missing or the numbers seem very low please check this out. ...5 days ago- The Adventures of Annalax: Volume XXVI
Session Fifty-Six Annalax’s schemes were, alas, put on hold at the start of the session, due to a horrifying discovery of a mangled body outside the town brothel. The victim had been hideously mutilated, complete with faux-antlers being driven into their skull. And, sure enough, a crowd was ...5 days ago- 2021 Reading Log: July (+ Writing Update)
Completed reads for July: The Caesars, by Emperor Julian the ApostateThe A.B.C. Murders, by Agatha ChristieFive Little Pigs, by Agatha ChristieThe Works of Edgar Allan Poe (Vols 2-4 of 6) The Works of Poe is the six volume 1896 edition, edited by Stoddard. The library was missing the first ...6 days ago- Clouds study finds that low climate sensitivity is ‘extremely unlikely’
This is a re-post from Carbon Brief by Ayesha Tandon It is “very likely” that the way clouds change as the world warms will drive further temperature rise, a new study finds. The response of clouds to a change in global temperature – known as the “cloud feedback” – plays a ...6 days ago- Are We Nudging Enough?
Inside the Nudge Unit by David Halpern, provides new insights into behaviour which New Zealand public policy is steadily taking into consideration.Have you noticed that the defaults or first choices in the website of a commercial entity favour the business’s goal? Fill in their forms and, as like as not, the ...7 days ago- Ending royal corruption in Scotland?
Earlier in the week, The Guardian reported that England's monarch had been secretly having laws amended to carve out exemptions for herself, using a procedure called "crown consent". Its a corrupt holdover from the days of absolute monarchy, and something which has no place in a modern democracy, or even ...7 days ago- Government must ban synthetic fertilisers
7 days ago- Ending conversion “therapy”
The government has introduced a bill to outlaw homophobic conversion "therapy": Practices intended to change or suppress someone's sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression, also referred to as gay conversion therapy, will become a criminal offence under legislation announced today. Minister of Justice Kris Faafoi said today the ...7 days ago- The Sin Of Cheapness.
Commodities, Commodities, Everywhere - And None Of Them Are Cheap! No less an authority than the Commerce Commission has determined that New Zealanders are paying too much for their food and groceries. An apparent aversion to aggressive competition has led the dominant players to match one another’s’ prices rather than better ...7 days ago- Should We Trust The Science – Or Ourselves?
“Pure” Science: The lesson to be drawn from the history of science, however, is that knowledge is always and everywhere embedded in culture. That the one cannot be separated from the other. Culture can empower knowledge, or suppress it; advance it or divert it to the utmost wickedness. Knowledge goes where it’s told. “TRUST ...7 days ago- Kids set free to roam on their own feel more confident navigating in adulthood
Vanessa Vieites, Rutgers University The distance from home that kids are allowed to roam and play has shrunk significantly over the last 50 years. That’s largely due to parents’ concerns over safety, especially in cities. More recently, the COVID-19 pandemic has further restricted children’s independent activity. As a Ph.D. ...7 days ago- Running into Trouble: COVID-19 in Japan during the Tokyo Olympics
Dr Leah Grout, Dr Jennifer Summers, Prof Nick Wilson, Prof Michael Baker * The 2020 Olympic Games were originally postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The delayed event has now opened, with the opening ceremonies held on 23 July 2021 and competitions scheduled to take place through 9 August 2021. ...7 days ago- Simon Bridges cannot be trusted
You may recall former National Party leader Simon Bridges gaining a lot of public attention last month after claiming he was a witness to a gang fight. The former Crown Prosecutor made a huge song and dance about it all over Facebook and Twitter while also attacking the Government with ...1 week ago- Skeptical Science New Research for Week #30, 2021
88 articles Physical science of climate change, effects Energetics of surface melt in West Antarctica Ghiz et al. The Cryosphere Open Access pdf 10.5194/tc Quantifying the Mechanisms of Atmospheric Circulation Response to Greenhouse Gas Increases in a Forcing–Feedback Framework Zhang et al. Journal of Climate 10.1175/jcli ...1 week ago- Hate Speech law is unworkable
Make a submission to stop this mess being codified into law The Free Speech Union is urging people to make submissions to halt the proposal putforward by the Ministry of Justice for hate speech laws. The FSU state: “[T]he proposals put forward by the Ministry of Justice are dangerously vague ...1 week ago- Bryce Edwards: Political Roundup – How the Government has fuelled rampant increases in wealth
Jacinda Ardern’s household wealth increased by an estimated $290,000 over the last year. Although she earnt nearly half a million dollars from her job, her windfall was solely due to the value of her Auckland house increasing. And by her own policy designs, it’s a capital gain which is untaxed. ...1 week ago- Climate Change: The other Tiwai scam
Newsroom has a good piece this morning about the government's consultation on industrial free allocations, revealing that Fletcher Building is getting an extra $5 million a year ($7 million at today's prices) due to miscalculated carbon subsidies. That's bad, and it needs to be stopped by resetting emissions baselines to ...1 week ago- End the Tiwai scam
A little over a year ago, Rio Tinto was pleading povery, claiming its Tiwai Point aluminium smelter was unprofitable, and threatening to close it unless it got a government handout to keep it running. Their bluff worked, and we ended up paying the BluffGeld by giving them lower electricity prices ...1 week ago- Holes in the Tundra: Why Burping Cows Are the Least of Our Worries.
1 week ago- Piers Morgan – Arsehole of the Week
1 week ago- Climate change and tornadoes: Any connection?
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Bob Henson Climate change may be the existential threat of our lives, yet when it comes to in-your-face weather, tornadoes are in a class of their own. Fortunately, human-warmed climate isn’t making violent U.S. tornadoes any more frequent. However, climate change may ...1 week ago- Bryce Edwards: Political Roundup – Labour’s sacrificing of the poor
Jacinda Ardern and Grant Robertson like to think of themselves as leftwing politicians. So why aren’t they prioritising and championing the vulnerable at the bottom of society? Since Covid hit they have chosen economic policies that benefit the rich while pushing more into poverty. Increasing inequality was thrown into stark ...1 week ago- Climate Change: Just predatory delay again
Another day, another story arguing that climate change is Just Too Hard for farmers, and that they should be given more time to wait for a magic technological solution which will cut emissions while allowing them to continue doing exactly what they're doing at the moment. Today, the magic Technological ...1 week ago- A note on the “jihadi bride.”
I ruffled a few feathers by referring to Gerry Brownlee as a “buffoon” during a radio interview this week. The subject in question was the involuntary repatriation of Suharya Aden and her children to NZ after Australia cancelled her citizenship. Brownlee was blathering about her being a terrorist security threat, ...1 week ago- Militaries plunder science fiction for technology ideas, but turn a blind eye to the genre’s socia...
Will Slocombe, University of Liverpool Military planning is a complicated endeavour, calling upon experts in logistics and infrastructure to predict resource availability and technological advancements. Long-range military planning, deciding what to invest in now to prepare armed forces for the world in thirty years’ time, is even more difficult. ...1 week ago- Still the same question
The Independent Police Conduct authority has found another case where police used excessive force in making an arrest: A police officer broke a woman’s arm with a baton before dragging her out of her car by the hair following a chase. The Independent Police Conduct Authority has found the ...1 week ago- The Danger from the Extreme Right
Like other readers, no doubt, I recently experienced a “believe it or not” moment, when I read an account of a crowd at a recent Trump rally cheering the news that the US Women’s Football Team had been beaten at the Olympic Games. The reason for the cheering was, apparently, ...1 week ago- Aggressive marketing has driven the rise of the double-cab ute on New Zealand streets — time to hi...
Kirsty Wild, University of Auckland and Alistair Woodward, University of Auckland “Explore your inner beast.” That was the slogan used last year to sell the Ford Ranger. At 2.4 tonnes, that’s a lot of “light” truck, but the stakes are rising. This year, the 3.5 tonne Ram 1500 “eats ...1 week ago- Why calling ordinary Kiwi cyclists ‘elitist’ just doesn’t add up
Timothy Welch, University of Auckland Something strange has happened to the perception of cyclists and cycling in the more than 200 years they’ve been around. Once a novelty, bike riding has moved from being a critical transport mode to a children’s pastime to now being popularly perceived as an ...1 week ago- How do Olympic athletes stack up against invertebrates? Not very well
Caitlyn Forster, University of Sydney and Eliza Middleton, University of Sydney Olympians spend years training to be the best of the best. Scientists and sportspeople have spent decades researching the mechanics of the human body to ensure our elite athletes are always reaching higher, faster and stronger. But how ...1 week ago- Zebra Ethics: The Amazon Second Age Series and Lessons from Game of Thrones
Today I stumbled across a genuinely interesting reddit article, which looks at the (positive) influence Game of Thrones may have on the upcoming Amazon Tolkien series: https://www.reddit.com/r/LOTR_on_Prime/comments/oqvi81/amazons_the_lord_of_the_rings_show_going_got/ Essentially, the argument is that the framework of Tolkien’s Second Age material inherently lends itself to “Machiavellian Thriller” stories, rather than to ...1 week ago- The War over Sex and Gender: Kathleen Stock talks to the Free Speech Union
Speakeasy #1: Free Speech and the War over Sex and Gender from Free Speech Union on Vimeo. ...1 week ago- Why governments will have to consider the costs of long COVID when easing pandemic restrictions
Richard Meade, Auckland University of Technology With governments worldwide under pressure to ease pandemic restrictions as vaccination rates rise and impatience with border restrictions grows, new threats become clearer. One of the costliest, it is now feared, could be a tsunami of “long COVID” cases. Long COVID is a ...1 week ago- Taxpayers' Union gets destroyed
The Taxpayers’ Union scored another own goal yesterday when they decided to have a go at well-known journalist David Farrier (not to be confused with David Farrar) over Government funding he’d received to make a documentary.While that slinging match isn’t really worth reporting on, being that it was mainly just ...1 week ago - The Adventures of Annalax: Volume XXVI
- New classrooms for thousands of Kiwi kids
As part of our work to secure our COVID recovery, we’re upgrading schools around the country. This will not only ensure young Kiwis have modern classrooms to learn in, but will also support hundreds of local jobs and provide an economic boost for our communities. ...23 hours ago - How the TIA helped three Kiwi mums into careersAs we secure our recovery from COVID-19, we’re helping more Kiwis get the skills they need for work. The Training Incentive Allowance, which supports people into training or to transition into new careers, is one way we’re doing this. We chatted with three people who know first-hand the difference this ...2 days ago
- Green Party welcomes conversion therapy prohibition bill
The Green Party welcomes the announcement by Minister of Justice Kris Faafoi to introduce a bill to prohibit conversion therapy used against Rainbow communities. ...7 days ago - Green Party welcomes Commerce Commission’s draft findings, cautions against wait and hope solution...The Green Party welcomes the findings of the Commerce Commission’s report on competition in the retail grocery sector, which takes aim at the duopoly formed by Woolworths NZ and Foodstuffs. ...1 week ago
- Building back betterIt’s a three-week recess in Parliament – so, no bills are going through the House and no select committees are meeting. But the hard work of our ministers continues, and many of our MPs are back in their electorates, taking the opportunity to meet with local communities and businesses about ...2 weeks ago
- Greens call for a Warrant of Fitness for rental homesThe Green Party is launching a petition today calling on the Government’s Healthy Homes Standards to be backed up with a proper Warrant of Fitness (WoF) for rental homes. ...2 weeks ago
- Govt congratulates Lisa Carrington on becoming NZ’s most decorated Olympian
Sport and Recreation Minister Grant Robertson has today congratulated New Zealand Olympic kayaker Lisa Carrington on her exceptional performance at the Tokyo Olympics which has led to her becoming the most decorated New Zealand Olympian. “Lisa is a phenomenal athlete. To win the K1 200m three Olympics in a row, ...17 hours ago - Construction sector transformation continues with Network launchHousing Minister Hon Dr Megan Woods and Building and Construction Minister Hon Poto Williams today launched the Construction Sector Accord Network. Designed to bring the sector together to lift performance and drive change, the Network is a collective of businesses, government agencies and other organisations committed to a higher performing ...18 hours ago
- The ‘Tulī Takes Flight’ scholarships announcedThe Associate Minister of Education, Aupito William Sio, has today announced the establishment of the ‘Tulī Takes Flight’ scholarships as part of the goodwill gesture of reconciliation to accompany the Government’s apology to Pacific families and communities impacted by the Dawn Raids. “Education is the key to unlocking success, opportunity, ...20 hours ago
- 8,000 additional public housing places delivered in major Government milestone New Zealanders now have an extra 8,000 warm, dry public housing places to call home, under a Government public housing programme that is full steam ahead, says Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern. “Of the 74,337 households now being supported in public housing places, more than six thousand (6,503) are living in ...21 hours ago
- New classrooms and building improvements for central and lower North Island schoolsSix schools across Wellington, Manawatū-Whanganui and Taranaki are getting a funding boost so projects can enter construction and deliver much needed works sooner, Education Minister Chris Hipkins announced today. While visiting Cannons Creek School in Porirua, Chris Hipkins also announced 10 schools in the central and lower North Island that ...21 hours ago
- Restoring the richness of the Rangitata riverA major Jobs for Nature project to protect and enhance some of the South Island’s most unique habitats and restore the health of the Rangitata River highlights the important role farmers have in caring for the land, Conservation Minister Kiri Allan says. “Canterbury’s braided rivers are an iconic part of ...21 hours ago
- Foreign Minister to take part in ASEAN-related meetingsForeign Minister Nanaia Mahuta will today begin a suite of meetings with her ASEAN and East Asia Summit counterparts, starting with the 11th East Asia Summit (EAS) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting tonight. That will be followed by the ASEAN-New Zealand Ministerial Meeting on Thursday 5 August and the 28th ASEAN Regional ...2 days ago
- Arts and heritage venues get helping handA new round of funding to support capital projects will help keep our arts and heritage sector alive and vibrant, Associate Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Kiri Allan announced today. “Communities work hard to raise funds for arts, culture and heritage related capital projects as they add significant value ...2 days ago
- Foreign Ministers welcome opening of New Zealand High Commission in ColomboNew Zealand and Sri Lanka’s Foreign Ministers, Nanaia Mahuta and Dinesh Gunawardena, have welcomed the opening of the New Zealand High Commission in Colombo next week. The Foreign Ministers, who met virtually yesterday, spoke about the opening of the High Commission as a major milestone in the bilateral relationship. Both ...2 days ago
- New Zealand to increase NZDF commitment to the United Nations Command, Republic of KoreaThe New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) will deploy three additional personnel to the Republic of Korea, increasing the size of its contribution to the United Nations Command and its Military Armistice Commission from nine to 12 personnel. “Increasing the size of our deployment to the Republic of Korea ...2 days ago
- Wages up, unemployment downThe Government’s efforts to secure the recovery has seen more Kiwis in jobs and higher wages, with unemployment falling to pre-COVID levels and more people in work. Stats NZ figures show unemployment rate fell to 4 percent in the June quarter from 4.6 percent in the March quarter, the lowest ...2 days ago
- Poroporoaki: Dr Kihi Ngatai OSMMauao tiketike tūmokemoke mai ana ra koe, papakitia ana e ngā tai kawenga roimata o te motu. E Ngāti Ranginui, mo tō manuhuia kua tīkapea i te rangi. E Ngai Te Rangi, mo tō manutaki kua riro i te hau o Aitū kikini, E Ngāti Pukenga mo tō manutaiko, kua ...2 days ago
- Government support screen industry with funding for sound stages in West AucklandAuckland Film Studios in West Auckland has received funding for a major expansion through the Government’s Infrastructure Reference Group’s (IRG) COVID-19 Response Fund. The Government is investing $30 million of a total $35 million project to construct two 2,000sqm sound stages and development of further workshops and offices, to expand ...3 days ago
- Protecting unique land for generation nextThe Government is boosting legal protection for critically important natural habitats on private land, Minister of Conservation Kiri Allan says. “An $8 million investment over four years will see Queen Elizabeth II National Trust Ngā Kairauhī Papa (QEII) work with government agencies, councils and others to provide legal protection of ...3 days ago
- New Zealand’s support for Fiji’s COVID-19 response continues with vaccine delivery, operational ...Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta has announced further support for Fiji, including funding support for nursing staff and 100,000 doses of vaccines due to arrive in country today. “Our thoughts remain with Fiji during this incredibly challenging period,” Nanaia Mahuta said. “New Zealand has funded 100,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine ...3 days ago
- Poroporoaki: Dr Hōhepa (Joe) MasonKo koe tēnā e te hurumanu e Hōhepa, te tōwenetanga a te iti, te māpihi herenga mahara o te tini, ka tauawhi tonuhia koe e to iwi ki te uma pupuri ai. Me pēhea he kupu kia koutou kua puta i nga ākinga a nga tau kua hori, kua waia ...3 days ago
- Finance Minister and RBNZ Governor agree to update MOU on macro-prudential policyFinance Minister Grant Robertson and Reserve Bank Governor Adrian Orr have updated the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on macro-prudential policy to further protect the financial system and support the Government’s housing objectives. “This change will ensure that the Reserve Bank has the flexibility to respond to emerging financial stability risks ...3 days ago
- Government commits further assistance for drought and flood-affected rural communitiesFarmers and growers affected by this year’s drought or floods in Marlborough, Tasman, West Coat, Canterbury, Otago and the Chatham Islands will have access to Rural Assistance Payments (RAPs) from today, Social Development and Employment Minister Carmel Sepuloni has announced. “The Government is committed to easing the financial pressures on ...4 days ago
- Cook Islands youth lead Language WeekThe Cook Islands Language Week theme for 2021 highlights the vital role language plays in maintaining young people’s links to their Pacific home, said Minister for Pacific Peoples Aupito William Sio. “The Epetoma o te reo Māori Kūki ‘Āirani – Cook Islands Language Week – theme is ‘Ātuitui’ia au ki ...4 days ago
- Government offers formal apology for Dawn RaidsA formal and unreserved apology for the Dawn Raids The Government will offer education scholarships as part of the apology Manaaki New Zealand Short Term Scholarship Training courses Support Pacific artists and historians to develop a comprehensive written and oral account of the Dawn Raids Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has ...5 days ago
- Speech to Dawn Raids ApologyTēnā koutou katoa, Kia orana kotou katoatoa, Fakaalofa lahi atu ki mutolu oti, Tālofa nī, Mālō nī koutou, Ni sa bula vinaka, Fakatalofa atu, Noa'ia 'e mauri, Kam na mauri, Malo e lelei, Sioto'ofa, Mālō lava le lagi e mamā ma le soifua maua, Oue tulou, tulou atu, tulouna lava ...5 days ago
- Bridging the gap – last piece of Northcote Safe Cycle Route now completeThe opening of two bridges over Auckland’s Northern Motorway is the last link of a cycling and walking route which provides a safe, active alternative for students and commuters, Transport Minister Michael Wood said today. Michael Wood cut the ribbon for the completion of the Northcote Safe Cycle Route, at ...5 days ago
- Progress in establishment of Aged Care CommissionerRecruitment for an Aged Care Commissioner will start next month, to ensure greater oversight of New Zealand’s aged care sector. “This sector is responsible for supporting a large and often vulnerable population. While most people are able to access quality care, there have been cases where that care has fallen ...6 days ago
- New record number of homes consentedIn the year ended June 2021, the actual number of new dwellings consented was 44,299, up 18 percent from the June 2020 year. In June 2021, the seasonally adjusted number of new dwellings consented rose 3.8 percent. In June 2021, 4,310 new dwellings were consented, an increase of 3.8 per ...7 days ago
- Communities backed to tackle wilding pinesTwelve community projects across New Zealand will receive a share of $2 million to carry out wilding pine control, Biosecurity Minister Damien O’Connor announced as part of Biosecurity Week. “Wilding pines are a serious problem that threaten many of the unique landscapes that New Zealanders value. Community groups and trusts ...7 days ago
- Health Minister Andrew Little responding to the New Zealand Nurses Organisation's rejection of ...I was advised last night that the result of the ballot of Tōpūtanga Tapuhi Kaitiaki o Aotearoa New Zealand Nurses Organisation members have rejected the latest proposal to settle their collective agreement. Let me be clear: the proposal was one they put to the Government. The Nurses Organisation rejected their ...7 days ago
- Conversion Practices Prohibition Legislation introduced to ParliamentLegislation has been introduced to Parliament to protect against practices intended to change or suppress someone’s sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression. Introducing the Conversion Practices Prohibition Legislation Bill, Minister of Justice, Kris Faafoi, said the measures proposed were aimed at ending conversion practices which don’t work, are widely ...7 days ago
- New kaupapa Māori mental health and addiction services to support people in central North IslandNew mental health and addiction services rolling out across the central North Island will improve outcomes and equity for Māori, Associate Minister of Health (Māori Health) Peeni Henare says. Today the Minister met with providers of the new kaupapa Māori primary mental health and addiction service, Poutama Ora, which will ...1 week ago
- New kaupapa Māori mental health and addiction services to support people in central North IslandNew mental health and addiction services rolling out across the central North Island will improve outcomes and equity for Māori, Associate Minister of Health (Māori Health) Peeni Henare says. Today the Minister met with providers of the new kaupapa Māori primary mental health and addiction service, Poutama Ora, which will ...1 week ago
- New school site for booming West AucklandThe Government will build on a new school site in West Auckland to cope with rapid population growth in the area, Education Minister Chris Hipkins says. The Ministry is working with existing local schools to determine how the 1.5-hectare site at 279 Hobsonville Point Road will be used to support ...1 week ago
- Trans-Tasman travel window to close at midnight tomorrowA further 500 MIQ rooms released for managed returnees from NSW Further Government actions announced today are balanced to provide more certainty for Kiwis wanting to return from Australia, while continuing to protect New Zealand from COVID-19, acting Minister for COVID-19 Response Ayesha Verrall says. The actions were foreshadowed last ...1 week ago
- Govt investing millions in Hawke's Bay and Tairāwhiti schoolsNapier Boys’ and Girls’ High Schools are among those set to benefit from a $16.5 million investment in the Hawke's Bay and Tairāwhiti region, Economic and Regional Development Minister Stuart Nash announced today. The Government has set aside money in Budget 2021 to accelerate five projects in Napier, Hastings, Havelock North ...1 week ago
- Game changing Jobs for Nature investment for NorthlandConservation Minister Kiri Allan has announced Jobs for Nature funding for a portfolio of projects that will create ‘game changing’ gains for nature and communities across Northland/Te Tai Tokerau as part of the Government’s acceleration of the economic recovery from COVID. “This portfolio of 12 projects will see over $20 ...1 week ago
- Third COVID-19 vaccine receives provisional approvalNew Zealand’s regulatory authority Medsafe has granted provisional approval of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine for individuals 18 years of age and older, Acting Minister for COVID-19 Response Dr Ayesha Verrall announced today. New Zealand secured 7.6 million doses (enough for 3.8 million people) of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine through an ...1 week ago
- Bowel-cancer screening programme is saving livesMore than 1000 New Zealanders have had bowel cancer – New Zealand’s second-most-common cause of death from cancer - detected under the Government’s National Bowel Screening Programme, Health Minister Andrew Little said today. More than 1200 New Zealanders died from bowel cancer in 2017. The screening programme aims to save ...1 week ago
- Govt welcomes draft report on the retail grocery sectorThe Commerce Commission’s draft report into the retail grocery sector is being welcomed by Government as a major milestone. “I asked the Commerce Commission to look at whether this sector is as competitive as it could be and today it has released its draft report for consultation,” Commerce and Consumer ...1 week ago
- Christchurch’s Youth Hub ‘set to go’ thanks to further Government fundingConstruction of New Zealand’s first, purpose-built centre for youth well-being is ready to get underway thanks to an extra $2.5 million of COVID-19 response funding, Housing Minister and Associate Minister of Finance, Megan Woods announced today. “The Christchurch Youth Hub is about bringing together all the things young people need ...1 week ago
- Next step to protect Milford Sound PiopiotahiExpert group lays out plan to better protect iconic UNESCO World Heritage site Milford Sound Piopiotahi and its surrounds Funding confirmed for dedicated unit and Establishment Board to assess the recommendations and provide oversight of the process from here Milford Opportunities Project a test case for transformational change in tourism ...1 week ago
- Funding for projects to reduce waste from construction and demolitionThe Government has announced funding for projects in Auckland and the lower North Island to help reduce construction and demolition waste. “Construction is the main source of waste sent to landfill, and much of this could be reduced, reused and recovered,” Environment Minister David Parker said. “The Government is funding ...1 week ago
- Speech at the launch of the National Hepatitis C Action PlanTēnā koutou katoa. Thank you Anglesea Pharmacy and Te Manawa Taki for hosting this event. As a doctor, I saw first hand the impact of hepatitis C. I met Moana in 2019; she came to the infectious diseases outpatient clinic at Wellington Hospital having tested positive for hepatitis C. Like ...1 week ago
- A ‘Christian nation’ no longer: why Australia’s religious right loses policy battles even when...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Smith, Associate Professor in American Politics and Foreign Policy, US Studies Centre, University of Sydney Conservative Christians are prominent in Australia’s Liberal-National Coalition parties. Scott Morrison and Tony Abbott are two of the most devout and theologically conservative prime ministers in ...50 mins ago - Australians are 3 times more worried about climate change than COVID. A mental health crisis is loom...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rhonda Garad, Senior Lecturer and Research Fellow in Knowledge Translation, Monash University Shutterstock As we write this article, the Delta strain of COVID-19 is reminding the world the pandemic is far from over, with millions of Australians in lockdown and ...50 mins ago
- Being able to skip classes improves some students’ performance. Others struggle with more autonomySource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rigissa Megalokonomou, Lecturer in Economics, The University of Queensland Shutterstock Remote learning online has been a common tool in the battle against COVID-19. School and university campus closures have affected over 1.5 billion learners in 165 countries. The reduced need ...50 mins ago
- If machines can be inventors, could AI soon monopolise technology?Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Dr Amanda-Jane George, Postgraduate Research Coordinator, Senior Lecturer in Innovation & Intellectual Property Law, School of Business and Law, CQUniversity Australia Shutterstock What does it mean to be an inventor? In patent law, designed to protect the intellectual property of ...50 mins ago
- Friday essay: Tongerlongeter — the Tasmanian resistance fighter we should remember as a war heroSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Nicholas Clements, Adjunct Researcher, University of Tasmania Lieutenant John Bowen and party arriving at Risdon, by Thomas Gregson (c.1860). Courtesy of the WL Crowther Library Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised this article contains images and names of deceased ...50 mins ago
- Live updates, August 6: National’s president faces challenge as annual conference kicks off
Welcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for August 6, bringing you the latest news updated throughout the day. Get in touch at stewart@thespinoff.co.nz8.10am: National’s president could face challenge as party conference kicks offThe National Party’s annual conference kicks off today, with reports party president Peter Goodfellow could lose his job.It’s ...52 mins ago - The young Māori designer overcoming whakamā with fluoroSmall Ōtepoti label Karaoke Superstars has gained a cult following on social media for its distinct motocross-meets-goth hoodies and t-shirts. Charlotte Muru-Lanning talks to Rosette Hailes-Paku, the designer behind the brand.Dressing up in her mum’s ever-growing collection of vintage dresses as a child sparked Rosette Hailes-Paku’s fascination with fashion. Now 23, ...1 hour ago
- The Bulletin: Covid in Australia worse every dayGood morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Covid in Australia worse every day, it turns out the co-founder of Google has NZ residency, and conversion therapy ban passes first reading.Despite the measures taken against spread, the Covid situation in Australia is getting worse by the day. The Sydney Morning ...2 hours ago
- DHB reform consultation with people who are disabled will continue – govt
The government is reassuring disabled people their voices will be heard as it presses on with major reforms to New Zealand's district health boards. ...2 hours ago - Power Play: Pressure at the top – National's annual conferenceThere will be little to celebrate at the National Party annual conference this weekend as the party still nurses its wounds from the 2020 election, Jane Patterson writes. ...2 hours ago
- Time to put right the damage we've done to nature
An environment conference hears from all parties that the time for exploiting nature is over and we need to focus on putting things right, writes Rod Oram ...3 hours ago - Marsden Point's fuel company owners split over biofuels
Biggest shareholder Mobil questions viability of biofuels production in shareholder vote on refinery's future ...3 hours ago - Refinery Closure A Serious Strategic Mistake
05.08.21 A decision at tomorrow’s shareholders meeting meaning New Zealand's capability to refine oil will be shut down and Refining New Zealand then becoming an importer of pre-refined fuel would be a serious strategic mistake. Such a move would put New ...3 hours ago - French Embassy Targeted To Mark Hiroshima DayThe French Embassy will be targeted for its ongoing role in the nuclear poisoning of the Pacific by activists and artists following a day of kōrero and art-making at the Newtown Community Centre starting at 1pm on Saturday, 7th August. “As we ...4 hours ago
- Almost 20-thousand Strong Petition Handed To Iranian Embassy In WellingtonAmnesty International is handing over 19,300 signatures to the Iranian Embassy in Wellington tomorrow morning (from 8.45am) . The signatures are across three petitions focusing on the rights of women and children. One calls for an end to the execution ...4 hours ago
- Newsroom daily quiz, Friday 6 August
Got a good quiz question? Send Newsroom your questions. ...4 hours ago - Newsroom daily crossword, Friday 6 August
...4 hours ago - Conversion therapy ban passes first hurdle in divided parliamentA ban on conversion therapy is coming and it remains possible, just maybe, that parliament could pass the law unanimously in the end. Justin Giovannetti reports.A proposed ban on conversion therapy passed its first reading at parliament yesterday following a tense debate where the chamber seemed unanimously opposed to the ...4 hours ago
- Pictures of politicians getting their Covid vaccinations – reviewed2021, we are told by Jacinda Ardern, is the year of the vaccine. And as the rollout gathers pace, we now have the pictures to prove it. Ben McKay critiques our leaders’ social media vaxpics and asks: whose shot of their shot is the shit? Litres of Pfizer’s finest are hitting ...4 hours ago
- Bernard Hickey: The team of five million rhetoric rings hollow for those locked in visa limboAmid increasing calls for the tens of thousands of temporary workers stranded here to be given pathways to residence, Bernard Hickey says the government risks being exposed as the Dubai of the South Pacific.Follow When the Facts Change on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or your favourite podcast provider.Whaddarya? Whaddarya? Whaddarya? Whaddarya? ...4 hours ago
- Demand, but no debate, at National AGM
The National Party wants all New Zealanders to demand a debate. But its own members will be stopped from doing just that at this weekend’s conference, writes political editor Jo Moir Today the National Party will gather in Auckland for a three-day conference but not everyone is happy with what’s ...4 hours ago - Black Ferns find right fit with new kit
The Black Ferns' brand new jersey means so more than just kit - it bears the legacy of teams past, Ashley Stanley discovers. There will come a day where the ‘firsts’ in women’s sport are no longer considered news, but rather the norm. Unveiling a Black Ferns jersey will be part ...4 hours ago - Closing our fuel insurance policy
Marsden Pt shareholders will vote today on a proposal to shut down New Zealand's only oil refinery, slashing hundreds of jobs. Is it worth fighting to save it? Perched on the edge of a pristine white beach on Whangārei Harbour, with the backdrop of the Heads and Mt Manaia, is ...4 hours ago - From 9 to 5 Freightways job to founding vetting startup
Freightways employee was shocked to find how often employers were collecting too much personal information. ...4 hours ago - Teens looking in the cracked mirror of social media
Teachers and psychologists say schools need to equip teens with the tools to be aware of the insidious effects of social media It’s been just over a decade since the internet migrated onto the average Kiwi's phone. Today’s teens are the first generation to grow up never having known a life ...4 hours ago - Treasury wanted EVs feebate deferred
Briefings in a Budget-related document dump show officials recommended funding for the EV subsidy be deferred to future Budgets. ...4 hours ago - Andrew Little's hospital pass
Despite billions of dollars going into health, the new minister is stumped by how little has changed. ...4 hours ago - Treasury wanted feebate deferredBriefings in a Budget-related document dump show officials recommended funding for the EV subsidy be deferred to future Budgets. ...4 hours ago
- Grattan on Friday: We will need an inquiry to learn from rollout mistakesSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra We are living simultaneously in two COVID worlds. On the one hand we’re talking about how life will be when 70% or 80% per cent of eligible people are fully vaccinated. On the other, what ...9 hours ago
- Morrison government loses fight for national cabinet secrecySource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra original The Morrison government has been dealt a blow with the Administrative Appeals Tribunal ruling national cabinet is not a committee of federal cabinet and therefore is not covered by cabinet confidentiality. This means ...10 hours ago
- Carrington's first concern: Colin
With all the pressure of her epic Olympic Games schedule, paddler Lisa Carrington thinks of home, and one bright-eyed supporter. Suzanne McFadden reports. When Lisa Carrington calls home from Tokyo once a day, there’s always one thing she wants to talk about first. And that’s Colin. Colin is Carrington’s cavoodle ...13 hours ago - Hillsong pastor Brian Houston charged with allegedly concealing information about child sex offencesSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Hillsong church pastor Brian Houston has been charged over the alleged concealment of information relating to child sex offences. Houston is a personal friend of Scott Morrison who wanted him invited to the White House ...14 hours ago
- Fiji’s climate of fear deepens in time of covid pandemic crisisBy Johnny Blades, RNZ Pacific journalist As Fiji struggles with an unprecedented health and economic crisis, the country’s already limited democratic space is being choked off. Opposition MPs routinely face arrest for criticising legislation before Parliament, and the international response has been found lacking. In the past two weeks numerous ...14 hours ago
- Government marks adding 8000 additional public housing placesThe government says it has reached a milestone of 8000 additional public housing places across the country. ...14 hours ago
- Voting age discrimination case is heard in Court of AppealSixteen and 17 year olds are continuing their pursuit of the right to vote spending the day trying to convince the Court of Appeal leaving them out is unjustified discrimination. ...14 hours ago
- When faces are partially covered, neither people nor algorithms are good at reading emotionsSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Hedwig Eisenbarth, Senior Lecturer in Psychology, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington Shutterstock/Sergey Tinyakov Artificial systems such as homecare robots or driver-assistance technology are becoming more common, and it’s timely to investigate whether people or algorithms are better ...15 hours ago
- Australia’s vaccination plan is 6 months too late and a masterclass in jargonSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lesley Russell, Adjunct Associate Professor, Menzies Centre for Health Policy, University of Sydney from www.shutterstock.com Six months after the prime minister received his first jab, Australia finally has a national plan to roll out COVID vaccines. The plan’s goals, set ...16 hours ago
- Conversion therapy ban legislation passes first reading at ParliamentNew Zealand is a step closer to banning gay conversion therapy, with legislation criminalising the practice passing its first hurdle in Parliament this afternoon. ...16 hours ago
- A brief history of asylum seekers at the Olympics — and why they are sometimes misunderstoodSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Keith Rathbone, Senior Lecturer, Modern European History and Sports History, Macquarie University Martin Meissner/AP The Belarusian sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya left Tokyo this week after her Olympics were over, bound not for her home country, but a new home in Poland. ...16 hours ago
- General arming of police not the answer, say Ardern, Minister Williams, Commissioner CosterThe prime minister, the police minister and the police commissioner all remain firmly against the general arming of police, despite 73 percent of frontline officers favouring the move. ...16 hours ago
- Dairy industry emissions depend on who does the measuring but Greenpeace presses for a culling of th...
Greenhouse gas emissions from dairy farming have reached an all-time high – but emissions from the dairy cows themselves have dropped year-on-year. Confused? Well you might be. And to many it might not matter much, but for NZ’s most important export industry, it looms as a vital issue. The calculation ...16 hours ago - Think our unis are all much the same? Look more closely and you will find diversitySource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Julian Zipparo, Executive Manager, Research Engagement, UTS; PhD Higher Education, UNSW Shutterstock The COVID-19 pandemic plunged Australian universities into crisis. From early 2020, many voices declared increased specialisation and difference between institutions was the way for them to survive. Yet ...17 hours ago
- Business is Boring: What Theresa Gattung is doing to support women in entrepreneurshipThe New Zealand business leader tells Simon Pound why she’s funding the Theresa Gattung Chair of Women in Entrepreneurship and why we need to start taking burnout in business more seriously.Follow Business is Boring on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or your favourite podcast provider.When Theresa Gattung became CEO of Telecom at ...17 hours ago
- Taking back the streets: Meet the South Aucklanders standing up to violence in their communitiesIn response to a recent spate of violent crime in Māngere and Manurewa, South Aucklanders are fighting back by bringing people together.On a blustery Sunday afternoon when many in Māngere were glued to their TV screens watching the dawn raids apology, an altercation in the neighbouring community of Favona was ...17 hours ago
- Raiding the dawnA spoken word poem by Marina Alefosio.Who is worthy of the first light?The break of day?A new beginning?If our value is measured by the pigment of our skin or the origin of our story – who gets to decide how that story is analysed? Captured in text? Bound in history ...17 hours ago
- What’s eating Kris Faafoi?Opinion - Once a shining star of Cabinet, Kris Faafoi has gone to ground as pressure mounts in his immigration and justice portfolios, political editor Jo Moir writes. ...17 hours ago
- Call to change how Māori can be enrolled to voteThe amount of Māori voters on each roll determines how many Māori electorates or seats there are in Parliament - and there are calls to change how Māori can switch between them ...18 hours ago
- NZ is beefing up its defence commitment to UN work in South Korea (a reminder that the Korean War ha...
Three of the latest Beehive announcements pertain to this country’s relationships with countries in South-east and East Asia, giving pointers to our foreign affairs geopolitical priorities. One statement signalled “a suite of meetings” between Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta and her ASEAN and East Asia Summit counterparts, starting with the ...18 hours ago - Maritime Union Says Tauranga Incident Reinforces Need To Stay On GuardThe Maritime Union says a COVID alarm aboard a vessel in the Port of Tauranga is a reminder that strict processes at ports are essential to protect New Zealand from exposure. Maritime Union of New Zealand National Secretary Craig Harrison says the ...18 hours ago
- We may need to vaccinate children as young as 5 to reach herd immunity with Delta, our modelling sho...Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emma McBryde, Professor of Infectious Disease and Epidemiology, James Cook University from www.shutterstock.com Recently released modelling from the Doherty Institute, which the federal government used to back its roadmap out of the pandemic, misses one critical point — the importance ...18 hours ago
- Three women at the sharp end of the tech revolutionThe way we work – and why we go to work in the first place – is changing rapidly under the influence of technology. Simon Day spoke to three women who have embraced that change. This content was created in paid partnership with Vodafone. Many of the loudest predictions about the way ...19 hours ago
- How AI can help choose your next career and stay ahead of automationSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Nik Dawson, Honorary Scholar, University of Technology Sydney Rawpixel / Shutterstock The typical Australian will change careers five to seven times during their professional lifetime, by some estimates. And this is likely to increase as new technologies automate labour, production ...19 hours ago
- ‘No need to agitate’, warns Rabuka against instability over Fiji lands billBy Arieta Vakasukawaqa in Suva Violence can only hinder Fiji’s safe passage leading up to next year’s next general election, says former prime minister Sitiveni Rabuka. After the enactment of Bill 17 to amend the iTaukei Lands Trust Act 1940, he said no disturbance could change what had been done ...19 hours ago
- For Sesenieli, the Fijiana sevens rugby triumph in Tokyo thrills home villageBy Josefa Babitu in Suva It might have been just a bronze medal to some people but for the Fijiana team — especially Sesenieli Donu — it was the fruit of sacrifice and a token of appreciation for her village of Vatukarasa in Nadroga. After an intense competition for the ...19 hours ago
- We’re hiring: part-time office manager, 12-month contractSeeking an office manager to join our dynamic, creative organisation on a fixed-term contract as maternity cover.The Spinoff Group is seeking an office manager for approximately 20-25 hours per week for a 12-month fixed-term contract while our current office manager goes on maternity leave beginning early October. We’re looking for someone ...19 hours ago
- Young Nats break with party over conversion therapy voteYouth wing are "deeply disappointed" National's caucus has decided to vote against legislation banning conversion therapy. ...20 hours ago
- The Law Of Unintended ConsequencesThe New Zealand Amateur Sport Association is calling out the Government for creating a law of unintended consequences with reforms to the Incorporated Societies Bill. In a submission to the Economic Development, Science and Innovation Committee, Association ...21 hours ago
- Papuan local governments push covid vaccine in spite of hoaxes, distrustBy Hengky Yeimo in Jayapura Local governments in Papua — such as the Yapen Islands and Puncak administrations — say they are continuing to promote the benefits of covid-19 vaccines to indigenous Papuans as hoaxes and distrust from local people towards the Indonesian government has increased low vaccination rates. Head ...21 hours ago
- Local Voice Not Strong Enough In The Replacement For The RMALGNZ is calling on the Government to bolster the provisions for communities to have a stronger voice in the exposure draft of the Natural and Built Environments Bill if it wants to improve environmental outcomes and enable development within limits. ...21 hours ago
- Review: The Justice of Bunny King is an engrossing take on a tragic and common realityThe simplicity of the plot recalls well-loved New Zealand films, says novelist Rachel Kerr, but The Justice of Bunny King feels like a step up. She takes a close look, moment by moment, at what makes the new movie work.Bunny King is peeling potatoes when her sister’s partner cruises in.“Hey ...21 hours ago
- EPA Welcomes New Ngā Kaihautū Tumuaki Mavis MullinsE te rangatira, nau mau haere mai ki te Mana Rauhī Taiao. Mavis Mullins has been appointed the new Tumuaki (Chair) of the Environmental Protection Authority’s (EPA) statutory Māori Advisory Committee, Ngā Kaihautū Tikanga Taiao. Mavis will take ...21 hours ago
- What New Zealand can learn from hate speech laws in EnglandAs Aotearoa grapples with a reform of hate speech legislation, it could look to the other side of the world, and the case of a celebrated footballer, for inspiration, writes Ling Yee Wong.Connecting Euro 2020 and hate speech via Marcus RashfordWhat is discrimination? What kind of hate speech law can ...21 hours ago
- 4 gambling reform ideas from overseas to save Australia from gambling loss and harmSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Angela Rintoul, Senior Research Fellow, Federation University Australia Shutterstock It’s now well recognised gambling can cause significant harm. However, many countries have done much more to reduce gambling-related harm than we have in Australia. Here’s four examples of how ...21 hours ago
- NFP / Community-Based Aged Care In CrisisNew Zealand Council of Christian Social Services (NZCCSS) warns that access to not-for-profit aged residential care is reaching breaking point. With the likelihood of DHB nurses receiving a well-deserved increased pay package, NZCCSS has been urging the Government ...22 hours ago
- Green MP Chloe Swarbrick on housing: Much more intervention neededPlans to toughen mortgage lending rules and bring in debt-to-income ratios aren't enough, the Green MP says. ...22 hours ago
- Morrison government sets up redress scheme for survivors of Stolen Generation in territoriesSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The Morrison government will provide $378.6 million for a new redress scheme for Stolen Generation survivors as part of more than $1 billion for its Closing the Gap implementation plan. The one-off payments will go ...22 hours ago
- Health specialists warn against mutating delta variant in FijiBy A new vaccine may be needed if the delta variant of covid-19, which is currently in Fiji, continues to mutate, health experts say. The government says more than 22,000 people with covid are in isolation and the death toll has passed 260, and climbing. ...22 hours ago
- PNG police rescue girl, 15, ‘sold’ for by her cousin for sex in city crackdownBy Miriam Zarriga in Port Moresby A 15-year-old Papua New Guinean girl, found in a Port Moresby guesthouse during a spot check by immigration and police officers yesterday, says she was sold without her knowledge by her cousin sister for K100 to two men for sex. Officers of the Immigration ...22 hours ago
- La’auli condemns Tuila’epa’s ‘extreme behavour’ in losing office in SamoaBy Sialai Sarafina Sanerivi in Apia Veteran Samoan parliamentarian and chairman of the Fa’atuatua i le Atua Samoa ua Tasi (FAST) has criticised what he characterises as the “extreme” and “defamatory” behaviour of the former Prime Minister of Samoa since losing government. Speaking during his programme Ia Ao Samoa yesterday, ...22 hours ago
- Fiji faces 1220 new covid cases, seven deaths as infections still riseRNZ Pacific Covid-19 infections continue to rise in Fiji with 1220 new cases recorded in the last 24 hours to 8am yesterday. The government also confirmed seven more deaths, bringing the toll to 261. That compares with 1100 cases and 13 deaths in the previous 24-hour period. Health Secretary Dr ...22 hours ago
- Ardern’s apology to Pacific peoples just the beginning – we will fight onCOMMENT: By Melani Anae When the Polynesian Panthers (PPP) activist group began calling for an apology for the Dawn Raids two years ago, we went into the process with eyes wide open. Government lobbyists seldom get everything they ask for, but our intent was honest and real and fuelled by ...22 hours ago
- COVID-19 Likely Cause Of Sharp Drop In Marriages In 2020The number of marriages, civil unions, and divorces fell sharply in 2020, Stats NZ said today. “Last year, 16,779 New Zealand residents celebrated a marriage or civil union,” population estimates and projections manager Hamish Slack said. “Marriages ...22 hours ago
- Government Short-changes ECE Teachers’ Pay Parity FundingEarly learning centres say the government’s $170m budget initiative to close the pay gap between kindergarten and early learning centre teachers is short-changing the sector to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars and is unaffordable to ...22 hours ago
- Employment Indicators: Weekly As At 2 August 2021Key facts The 6-day series includes jobs with a pay period equal to or less than 7 days, while the 20-day series covers jobs with pay periods of 14 days or fewer. The 34-day series includes all jobs regardless of their pay period. The 34-day series ...22 hours ago
- Let’s not forget what Valerie Adams has doneDame Valerie Adams is our greatest Olympian and greatest athlete.When someone is so good at what they do for so long, it’s easy to forget they’re the exception that proves the rule. In this case, the rule is that no athlete could medal at four consecutive Olympic Games, navigating potentially ...24 hours ago
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