loan sharks
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Poverty and the need to belong
Written By: - Date published: 8:03 am, October 25th, 2014 - 35 comments
I’ve read a couple of thought-provoking accounts of poverty lately. There are common themes – issues that the political right, which can only see “the poor” as separate from “us”, will never understand and acknowledge.
Nats stand up for loan sharks
Written By: - Date published: 10:15 am, July 22nd, 2010 - 85 comments
Disgraceful to see that National and Act have voted down Carol Beaumont’s moderate and sensible bill to take action against loan sharks.
All we got from National was weak spin and misdirection, while they sat there and committed to doing nothing. The result will be more Kiwis getting ripped off and abused.
- Behind Every Good Woman Should Stand – Another Good Woman.
1 hour ago - Chris Trotter on the BFD
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- $100,000 CEO pay Rise a slap in the face, say Port WorkersThe release yesterday of Port Otago’s financial result for 2019, outlining a 12% increase and profits, including the news that the Chief Executive had received a $100,000 pay increase taking his remuneration to between $610,000-620,000, is like ...5 days ago
- Maori Council warns Minister not to proceed with appointment“ I continue to be amazed at the incompetence of this Government when it comes to suicide prevention and mental health. Not only is this Government about to appoint a regional coroner who has a history of under reporting suicides amongst children ...5 days ago
- Inspection finds Tongariro Prison ‘safe, well managed’An unannounced inspection at Tongariro Prison has found a safe and well-managed prison, with a clear sense of purpose and striving for continuous improvement. ...5 days ago
- Public accountability: A matter of trust and confidenceThe Auditor-General’s discussion paper Public accountability: A matter of trust and confidence was presented to the House of Representatives today. ...5 days ago
- Young Reporters for the Environment winners announcedKeep New Zealand Beautiful (KNZB) are proud to announce the winners of the Young Reporters for the Environment (YRE) – Litter Less 2019 competition. ...5 days ago
- New Zealand rescue recognised at international awardsA dramatic rescue off the Port Waikato bar has earned New Zealand search and rescue agencies international recognition. ...5 days ago
- Community Support for Councils’ appeal on GMO’sThe Far North District Council (FNDC) and the Whangarei District Council (WDC) have lodged a joint appeal against the Northland Regional Council’s (NRC) omission of precautionary rules in its plan. [1] ...5 days ago
- Second tasering unjustified following disorder in PictonThe Independent Police Conduct Authority has found that an officer was not justified in tasering a man for a second time during an arrest in Picton on 23 June 2018. ...5 days ago
- Chairman to assist Hong Kong IPCCThe Chairman of the Authority, Judge Colin Doherty, has agreed to assist the Hong Kong Independent Police Complaints Council (IPCC) as a member of an international panel to provide high level advice to the IPCC in relation to its proposed "Thematic ...5 days ago
- Genuinely affordable homes are the answer to housing crisis“Putting families into motels is a temporary fix for desperate situations, rather than a sustainable solution to problems of poverty and homelessness,” says Scott Figenshow, Chief Executive of Community Housing Aotearoa. He was commenting on media ...5 days ago
- Explainer: what happens when magnetic north and true north align?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Paul Wilkes, Senior Research Geophysicist, CSIRO At some point in recent weeks, a once-in-a-lifetime event happened for people at Greenwich in the United Kingdom. Magnetic compasses at the historic London area, known as the home of the Prime Meridian, were said to ...27 mins ago - As pressure on Iran mounts, there is little room for quiet diplomacy to free detained Australians
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tony Walker, Adjunct Professor, School of Communications, La Trobe University Australia’s attempts to secure the release of an Australian national and two with joint UK-Australian citizenship from an Iranian prison have become vastly more complicated following the brazen attacks on Saudi oil ...27 mins ago - Curious Kids: why are some twins identical and some not?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alison McEwen, Head of Discipline of Genetic Counselling, Graduate School of Health, University of Technology Sydney If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to curiouskids@theconversation.edu.au. Why are some twins identical and some not? – Chloe, ...27 mins ago - The gloves are off: ‘predatory’ climate deniers are a threat to our children
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Flannery, Professorial fellow, Melbourne Sustainable Society Institute, University of Melbourne In this age of rapidly melting glaciers, terrifying megafires and ever more puissant hurricanes, of acidifying and rising oceans, it is hard to believe that any further prod to climate action ...28 mins ago - Greens’ challenge aptly described by Paddy Manning, but with no solutions in sight
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Marc Hudson, Researcher, University of Manchester Paddy Manning’s excellent account of the Australian Greens will not be the last word on Australia’s most successful third party, but will doubtless remain important and influential for many years to come. Manning’s exhaustive (but never ...28 mins ago - Keeping the city cool isn’t just about tree cover – it calls for a commons-based climate respons...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Abby Mellick Lopes, Senior Lecturer in Design, Western Sydney University This story is part of Covering Climate Now, a global collaboration of more than 250 news outlets to strengthen coverage of the climate story. A recent report by the Greater Sydney Commission ...28 mins ago - ‘An insult’ – politicians sing the praises of the cashless welfare card, but those forced to u...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Eve Vincent, Senior Lecturer, Macquarie University “This is a bit controversial, we know that,” deputy prime minister Michael McCormick told the National Party’s federal council, which on the weekend voted for a national roll-out of cashless debit cards for anyone younger than ...28 mins ago - Suddenly, the world’s biggest trade agreement won’t allow corporations to sue governments
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Pat Ranald, Research fellow, University of Sydney The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership has been touted as the best hope for keeping world trade flowing after the attacks on the World Trade Organisation. The WTO isn’t dead yet, but in a two-pronged attack, ...28 mins ago - Civilization: The Way We Live Now – powerful, troubling photographs of a crowded planet and uncert...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sasha Grishin, Adjunct Professor of Art History, Australian National University In 1955, an enormous photographic exhibition, The Family of Man, challenged the world as to what it meant to be human. The curator, Edward Steichen, assembled 503 photographs by 273 photographers from ...28 mins ago - Why it’s time for New Zealanders to learn more about their own country’s historySource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Belgrave, Professor History, Massey University From 2022, New Zealand history will be taught at all schools as part of the compulsory national curriculum. The announcement is an astonishing turnaround, given that the ministry of education and parliament’s education and workforce select ...29 mins ago
- The Bulletin: Defence Force under heavy Burnham scrutiny
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: NZDF under inquiry scrutiny, competing statements on Labour investigation released through lawyers, and a thorough look at Air NZ’s carbon offsets. Ever since the book Hit and Run was published, the Defence Force have been under various degrees of pressure over whether ...2 hours ago - Scandal: Councils spending too little on staff Christmas parties
Yesterday Newshub revealed something shocking and disheartening about the spending practices of our local councils. Hayden Donnell registers his disappointment.The Spinoff local election coverage is entirely funded by The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The Spinoff’s journalism click here.Councils often get a raw deal in ...3 hours ago - Solving our housing crisis will require a change of tack
If NZ wants to address its housing crisis, there are vital planning measures we must take first. The University of Auckland's Lee Beattie explains. ...4 hours ago - Silver Ferns icon caught in Paris’ spell
Irene van Dyk reckons she “hit the jackpot” when she was asked to mentor Paris Lokotui, who at 17 has already played for NZ in three different sports. ...4 hours ago - Drilling into the past to predict the future
Climate change is at the centre of a remarkable international drilling operation into Antarctica’s Ross Ice Shelf this summer. ...4 hours ago - NZ loses our ‘Kiwi Cousteau’
His passion for conserving New Zealand’s marine ecosystems and his love of whales and dolphins made Wade Doak a conservation icon. Sue Halliwell farewells a legend. ...4 hours ago - A dehydrated national icon
Droughts and dying trees are hardening forest floors and starving Northland's kiwi. Climate change threatens to double the region's time spent in drought. ...4 hours ago - The evolution of Steve Hansen
Jim Kayes recounts his jousts with the All Blacks coach as the clock winds down on Steve Hansen's reign. ...4 hours ago - New campaign to beat the Australian-owned banks
Kiwibank says the four big Australian owned banks are sending five billion dollars in profits a year back to Australia and it's time New Zealand hung on to some of it. ...4 hours ago - The NZ history curriculum – a Trojan horse
Professor Elizabeth Rata argues the introduction of a standard course of NZ history in schools should be a start, not an end, and should lead to agreed nationwide curricula in other subjects. ...4 hours ago - Should you choose to offset your emissions, and where does the money go?
Covering Climate Now: ‘Click here to offset your emissions.’ It’s an appealing, guilt-assuaging idea. But what does it really amount to, asks Mirjam Guesgen.New Zealanders travel overseas a lot, with trips totalling close to 3 million a year. And every time a Kiwi takes flight, tonnes of earth-heating gases spew ...4 hours ago - Jacinda Ardern: ‘We have a duty of care, and we failed in it’The prime minister has admitted mistakes, and outlined measures to change the party culture.Jacinda Ardern, the prime minister and leader of the Labour Party, yesterday addressed at length the situation around allegations of sexual assault by a Labour volunteer and an investigation into a Labour staffer. “We have a duty ...4 hours ago
- A community in the cross-fire
A new gang in south Auckland has raised tensions and is being blamed for a spike in violence. ...4 hours ago - Airport fuel outage probe faults companies
A new inquiry into the 2017 Auckland Airport fuel outage says fuel companies need to invest in more resilient infrastructure, particularly as the airport uses ever more fuel. ...4 hours ago - Why the UN Climate Summit matters
The media and climate activists must “name and shame” laggards, says the UN special envoy. Mark Hertsgaard reports. ...10 hours ago - New beginning for climate reporting
Could it be that that the press, especially the US press, is finally waking up to the climate story? Mark Hertsgaard and Kyle Pope, co-founders of the Covering Climate Now initiative, report. ...10 hours ago - Two statements on the Labour Party inquiryIn spite of Jacinda Ardern’s exhortation that ‘it would be preferable if this case were not in the public domain’, differing accounts of what was said in an inquiry into the conduct of a (now former) Labour staffer, who denies wrongdoing, have been issued today to media from the chair ...12 hours ago
- Three out in front of Hamilton mayoral race
While eight candidates are vying for the top job in Hamilton, only three appear to be front-runners. ...13 hours ago - UK Trade Secretary Liz Truss holds talks in Beehive over trade agreementNegotiating a free trade agreement with New Zealand will be a top priority for the UK once it leaves the European Union. ...14 hours ago
- Ardern outlines further actions taken regarding assault allegationsThe Prime Minister has announced the Labour Party will conduct two separate inquiries into sexual assault allegations. ...14 hours ago
- Politics with Michelle Grattan: Jim Chalmers on the need to change economic courseSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Shadow Treasurer Jim Chalmers says it’s time to change Australia’s economic course “in a responsible and affordable way which doesn’t jeopardise the surplus”. Chalmers predicts the budget outcome for last financial year, forecast to be ...14 hours ago
- Office of Ethnic Communities overhauled
Six months on from the terrorist attacks, and after years of frustrations, the Office of Ethnic communities is changing. ...15 hours ago - Reality slippages and narcissistic stereotyping – watching Content, a TV show made for smart phone...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emma Maguire, Lecturer in English and Creative Writing, James Cook University Lucy (Charlotte Nicado) is a pink-haired millennial having a quarter-life crisis. Her school friends have drifted away, she has a useless law degree, and a depressing rotation of casual jobs has ...15 hours ago - Labour Party investigator: I wasn’t told about sexual allegations
Labour Party member tasked with investigating misconduct doubles down on claims he never received sexual assault complaints. ...16 hours ago - Labour abuse allegations investigator brings in computer expertOne of the people who investigated complaints about a Labour staffer has hired a forensic computer expert to prove he was never told about sexual assault allegations. ...16 hours ago
- Debt-financed infrastructure spending won’t solve Germany’s problems
Germany doesn't need a grand scale infrastructure programme, it needs a different Chancellor in a different coalition government. ...17 hours ago - You can help track 4 billion bogong moths with your smartphone – and save pygmy possums from extin...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sally Sherwen, Director Wildlife Conservation and Science, Zoos Victoria, University of Melbourne Each year, from September to mid-October, the tiny and very precious mountain pygmy-possums arise from their months of hibernation under the snow and begin feasting on billions of bogong moths ...17 hours ago - Race brefing: Hutt City, where a 28-year-old might become mayorIn our latest local elections 2019 race briefing (read the rest here), Alex Braae breaks down the surprisingly bitter Hutt City mayoral race.The Spinoff local election coverage is entirely funded by The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The Spinoff’s journalism click here.Where?Hutt City covers the ...17 hours ago
- Kiwis shopping around for power companies
More than 42,000 households switched power companies last month, the highest amount for a month since 2011. ...17 hours ago - Plant power: The Spinoff food section goes vegan (for a week)
Covering Climate Now: Why we’re saying adios to animal products (just for a little while). The Spinoff’s participation in Covering Climate Now is made possible thanks to Spinoff Members. Join us here!As part of The Spinoff’s commitment to Covering Climate Now, a week-long worldwide initiative aimed at strengthening the media’s focus ...18 hours ago - The gaming apocalypse scenarios most (and least) likely to happen in real life
Covering Climate Now: Grim post-apocalyptic settings are a dime a dozen in gaming, but which ones are the most realistic? Sam Brooks talked to climate scientist David Tong to find out.The Spinoff’s participation in Covering Climate Now is made possible thanks to Spinoff Members. Join us here!Every year there’s a ...18 hours ago - Is vigorous exercise safe during the third trimester of pregnancy?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kassia Beetham, Exercise Physiology Lecturer, Australian Catholic University Expectant mothers receive an avalanche of information about potential risks to their baby. There’s a growing list of foods, toxins and environmental threats to avoid. It’s normal for this to lead to an increased ...18 hours ago - Complaints against banks up 20 percent
Complaints to the Banking Ombudsman rose 20 percent in the last financial year as the conduct of banks and financial agencies was thrust into the spotlight. ...19 hours ago - The Testaments: Pip Adam reviews the ultra-hyped new Margaret Atwood
One of our country’s finest writers gorges herself on Gilead – and finds herself wishing for more osmosis between the Booker-shortlisted new novel and the horror-story politics playing out around us. Over the past five days I’ve re-read Margaret Atwood’s 1985 novel The Handmaid’s Tale, caught myself up with the MGM/Hulu ...20 hours ago - Lowballing construction contracts a ‘massive problem’
Builders are setting up a new scheme to lessen the chances that companies close to collapse can win major contracts. ...20 hours ago - Waterdeep Mountain High: Welcome to the Home of the Dragon BurgerIn this special episode, we welcome you back to Waterdeep Mountain High, a Dungeons & Dragons podcast set in a below average school in the mystical land of Faerun.The gang are back and this time they have to… get summer jobs! Join Kate, Forrest, Hillardo and Peng as they begin ...21 hours ago
- Naomi Klein: The link between climate crisis and white supremacy
Author and social activist Naomi Klein talks the Green New Deal, Greta Thunberg and the links between the rise of white supremacy and the climate crisis. ...21 hours ago - The clothing label that’s built a bond with Kiwi women through online interaction
Napier-based women’s clothing company KILT is a big brand with local charm. Josie Adams finds out how they’ve adapted their boutique strategy to work on a national level.Having grown up in the internet era New Zealand fashion label KILT has developed a unique relationship with its customers via an online ...22 hours ago - National: Gun bill may stop gunowners seeking mental health helpNational is concerned the government's bill to tighten up gun laws and introduce a gun registry will stop gun owners in mental crisis seeking help from their GPs. ...22 hours ago
- Blank stares and brain explosions: My day speaking only te reo
For the first day of Te Wiki o te Reo Māori, Alice Neville banned herself from speaking English. Here’s how it went down.I discovered a foolproof way to make a day of speaking only te reo Māori easy. Just don’t talk. Seriously, turituri and you’ll be fine. I know, I know, ...22 hours ago
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