Chris Hipkins – Values Matter
Written By:
- Date published:
3:59 pm, March 24th, 2024 - 94 comments
Categories: chris hipkins, labour -
Tags:
Text of his speech delivered today in Auckland.
E ngā mana, e ngā reo, e ngā iwi, e rau rangatira ma.
Tena koutou tēnā koutou tēnā koutou katoa.
Mālō e lelei
Kia Orana
Talofa Lava
Fakaalofa lahi atu,
Mālō Ni
Ni sa bula.
Namaste
As-salamu alaykum
Ni hao
Warm pacific greetings to you all.
Five months ago I gave one of the hardest speeches of my political career, conceding that we had lost the general election.
After six years of turmoil marked by natural disasters, a terrorist attack, rising crime, a global pandemic and an international cost of living crisis, New Zealanders voted for change.
The incoming National government promised voters that all the good things that happened under Labour would continue, the cost of living would come down, crime would stop, incomes would grow, climate change would be addressed, and we would all be better off.
But five months on, Kiwis are getting something quite different.
Did New Zealanders voting for change vote to wind back our world-leading smoke-free laws to fund tax cuts?
Did they vote for billions in tax breaks for landlords while threatening to cut free school lunches?
Did they vote for National’s new drivers tax and higher fuel prices while winding back almost every measure our Labour government put in place to tackle climate emissions?
Did they vote to suspend work upgrading our schools and hospitals and to stop the building of new state houses?
I’m pretty certain they didn’t vote for the Prime Minister to talk about tough love for others whilst claiming a $1,000 a week housing allowance he doesn’t need.
Before the election just about every economist in New Zealand said the National Party’s numbers didn’t add up, but Christopher Luxon and Nicola Willis assured everyone their numbers were rock solid.
Day after day it becomes abundantly clear – the economists were right, National said whatever they thought Kiwis wanted to hear and now they can’t deliver.
Let me be absolutely clear. The financial crisis the current government claim to have inherited is one they have created for themselves.
National told New Zealanders that their promises were affordable and they could balance the books just by cutting back supposed ‘wasteful spending’.
Increasing the number of teachers, nurses, doctors, and police we employ and the amount we pay them is not wasteful spending.
It’s certainly not wasteful spending to rebuild our schools and hospitals, our roads and water infrastructure, and to invest in public transport.
Properly supporting those with disabilities and those who care for them is not wasteful spending.
Vital preventative healthcare like free prescriptions and cheaper doctors visits is not wasteful spending.
I could go on but let me just cut to the chase. National’s plan to slash spending on the public services New Zealanders rely on to fund tax cuts will leave us all worse off.
The ruthless attack on Government workers has been heartless and cruel. It is so easy to brand public servants as faceless bureaucrats, but they are people.
They are people with families, mortgages and they work tirelessly. National is rewarding that hard work with redundancy and an uncertain future.
It’s easy to diminish the work many of our public servants do. Five years ago if we had known we had a team in the Ministry of Health dedicated to planning what we might do in the event of a global pandemic some might have questioned the value of spending money planning for something that might never happen.
But then it did happen, and if anything, the question people were asking was why we hadn’t done more to plan and prepare.
When we became the government in 2017 Mycoplasma Bovis was wreaking havoc on our dairy farms. We made the decision to invest in elimination, and to strengthen our border defences so biosecurity incursions like M Bovis are less likely in the future.
National’s cuts to Customs and the Ministry for Primary Industries shows they have learned nothing from their own past failings.
This Government’s lower spending goal simply means they take from the many to give to the few – and life will only get worse for most people. This National-led government believes its role is to do things to people rather than with them.
It is a government of entrenched privilege and entitlement.
Our country is not a company, and it shouldn’t be governed as if it is. Slavery and child labour weren’t abolished because of a cost benefit analysis. They were abolished because it was the right thing to do.
Not every government decision comes down to what is best for the bottom line.
Kiwis deserve a government that puts people first. We deserve a government that backs Kiwis to come together to support and help each other to thrive.
I accept that New Zealanders voted for change at the last election, but Kiwis are quite right to be asking whether the change they are getting is the change they voted for.
There is a better way.
Throughout our history, Labour has been the party of positive change. The party that moves New Zealand forward, and the party that ensures everyone has a stake in the future of this amazing country.
From our founding, Labour has been guided by a clear set of principles and values.
We believe in equality and the notion that all those who work hard should be able to get ahead, enjoy the fruits of their labour, and create a better life for themselves and their families. It’s in our name.
Labour was founded on the idea that hard work should pay off and that those who help to generate wealth should enjoy their fair share of it.
We believe in the common good, that we are stronger together, and that when we all look out for each other we are all better off.
We value equality, opportunity, responsibility and a fair go for everyone.
I recall in my first term as an MP meeting with an organisation called Roots of Empathy. They run programmes in schools where they bring babies into classrooms to teach kids about the importance of loving and caring for those more vulnerable than ourselves. I remember two main things from that meeting.
The first was a book of photos of babies’ common emotions, laughing, smiling, sleeping, and crying. They explained how when they showed those photos to babies of the same age, a lot of the babies would lean forward and kiss the photo of the baby that was crying.
We all have the capacity to care and show empathy, it’s one of the features that defines us as human beings.
But the second story from that meeting is the most powerful. The founder of Roots of Empathy told me about one of their early experiences taking a baby into a classroom. A teacher on maternity leave had taken her newborn into a primary school aged class and the kids took turns holding the baby and asking questions.
One child held back. Once all the other kids had left the class for morning tea, he approached the mother and asked if he could hold the baby. He then sat in the corner of the room cuddling and cradling the baby as the precious little human life that it was.
As he handed the baby back he asked the mother “do you think it is possible for someone who has never been loved to be a loving Dad?”. That boy had been one of the roughest toughest kids in the school. Always in trouble, destined for a life of trouble. The founder of the programme then showed me a photo of that same boy as an adult, with his beautiful young family.
When we treat each other with respect, when we create moments filled with genuine humanity, when we foster empathy, we can change lives.
In today’s world we are all encouraged to look out for number one, to place our own self interest above the interests of those around us.
Competition and individualism have been society’s backing track for the past 40 years and yet never have so many felt so dissatisfied, disempowered, and left behind.
But it hasn’t always been this way and it doesn’t have to be in the future.
Every year at ANZAC Day we remember those who sacrificed for the freedoms we so often take for granted today. I reflect on my own grandparent’s generation, whose sacrifice and contribution didn’t end when they returned home.
I reflect on how the perils of war drew them together, and how that collective spirit shaped the peace that followed. After the fighting stopped, their toil continued as they built schools, hospitals, roads, power plants, and houses.
They found comfort in each other through RSAs and bowling clubs, on the sports field, and in the large workplaces that were so much more common in those times. They viewed the taxes they paid as their contribution to the type of society that they wanted to live in.
They strove for a society free from oppression, not just political oppression but economic and social oppression too.
The world is a very different place these days, and the things that worked for my grandparent’s generation won’t necessarily be the right answers to today’s challenges. But what they achieved does show how collective effort and contribution can benefit everyone, and how when government action brings us together, our whole society can thrive.
It’s not hard to contrast the commitment of my grandparent’s generation with the aggressive drive towards individualism and dog-eat-dog competition that has prevailed since the 1980s.
Later this year we will mark a significant, and challenging, milestone in Labour’s history, the 40-year anniversary of the election of the 4th Labour government.
We will remember with pride the early steps that government took to stamp our proudly Nuclear Free mark on our foreign policy, the work of that government to advance human rights, including homosexual law reform, and to bring conservation and environmental issues much more to the fore.
But we will also look back with much more mixed feelings on the economic reforms of that and subsequent governments, and the four decades of growing inequality and societal decay that has followed.
Forty years on it is long since time we acknowledged that a rising economic tide does not lift all boats.
The majority find themselves constantly bailing water just to stay afloat, while far too many are left to just sink.
Our current economic model celebrates those who live off wealth over those who live off work. In the modern economy, contribution and reward aren’t as linked as they used to be.
Hard work is no longer the ticket to getting ahead it should be. While some earn a lot more than they are worth, the majority are worth a lot more than they earn. Success and aspiration should be celebrated. But when hard work no longer pays off, it’s time for a rethink of the system.
Around the world, a populist backlash against so-called elites demonstrates that people have had enough of being told that if they just work harder the benefits will flow, when they clearly experience the opposite. They work hard, but they can’t get ahead.
Younger working Kiwis struggle to get onto the home ownership ladder, something the current government’s prioritisation of the economic interest of landlords will only make worse.
Worldwide we are seeing increasing concern that the next generation could be the first to be worse off than their parents.
Increasingly numbers of self-employed Kiwis find themselves driving down their own pay to compete in a race to the bottom, and economic insecurity touches the lives of more and more Kiwis every day.
The world around us continues to change and evolve at an ever-increasing pace. Globalisation, automation, the rise of digital technology, the increase in self-employment, and increasing life expectancy are all realities.
Those who long for a return to a bygone golden era where none of these things were happening are hankering for a world that no longer exists. Our great challenge today is to shape and craft an alternative that speaks to the future, not the past.
Technology makes the free flow of creativity and ideas borderless. People are more mobile than ever before. Protectionist rhetoric is safe, comfortable and easy. Embracing the harsh reality that the world will never be the way it used to be is hard, but it’s vital.
We don’t need to accept that the corporatized, dehumanized approach that has dominated the globe for the past three or four decades is the only way.
A new approach that democratizes, empowers, and ensures that the benefits of success are shared amongst the many, not hoarded by the few, is possible.
Labour’s mission is that of the fairer society, where everyone has the chance to get ahead, inequality is confronted head on and faith in the role of government is restored.
Labour’s challenge in the modern world is to define what the new collectivism looks like. It won’t be the same as it was when mass industrialisation and working-class solidarity were dominant features of the workplace.
Today’s workplaces are less secure, that’s a fact. Technology makes jobs redundant at a faster rate than ever before. The rapacious rise of AI will make it faster still.
The investment we make in our people has never been more important. The work we did over the past six years to modernise our education system was vital.
We should also remember that today’s generation of school leavers, the ones our current Prime Minister likes to spread anxiety about, did almost all of their primary school education during the era of national standards. Slogans are not solutions.
I passionately believe in the power of education to transform lives. Reverting to a 20th century model of educational delivery is not going to cut it in the 21st century.
During the election campaign I visited a small film and TV production house in Gisborne. They’re running a training programme for their largely younger staff. I spoke to one of the workers there who was turning her life around.
She’d got a job there after being in trouble, big trouble, for dealing drugs. Her job had given her a reason to get out of bed and something to get excited about. Her learning was giving her hope for the future. Her job, and her learning, were supported by a range of programmes put in place by our Labour Government.
We need more on-job learning, more apprenticeships, and an ongoing focus on the skills that our people will need to thrive in the 21st century.
I’ve heard people say they think Labour is soft on crime. Nothing could be further from the truth. But a race to outbid each other on longer sentences won’t address the underlying problem of why we have so much crime in the first place. If we want safer communities, we need to tackle the causes of crime.
When I speak to dairy owners who have been the victims of ram raids they are at the end of their tether. Their businesses aren’t just where they work, they’re also often their homes too. They work so hard and they shouldn’t have to endure the fear and insecurity they currently experience.
But when I talk to them, they also express concern for the future of the kids who are doing the ram raiding. They often know the kids’ families, they know their backgrounds, and they want to know we are going to do something to give these kids a better future, not one where they spend a lifetime in and out of prison. It’s expensive, it doesn’t work, and it’s such a waste of human potential.
Investments in our people are investments in the future prosperity of all of us.
If we really want to be tough on crime, we should spend a lot more time and energy breaking the cycle before people offend.
We also need to recognise and celebrate the contribution of those who put the interests of others ahead of their own.
A few days after becoming Prime Minister I flew to Auckland to inspect the damage caused by extensive flash flooding. A few weeks after that I was in the Hawkes Bay and Tairāwhiti seeing first hand the devastation wrought by Cyclone Gabrielle.
The power mother nature has to destroy was overwhelming. But within the destruction and devastation I also found inspiration. I saw Kiwis doing what we do best, coming together to support each other in times of adversity.
In a small rural pub I spoke to a nurse who was part of a makeshift health clinic that the local community had set up to support those affected by the cyclone. We talked about the types of issues they were helping people with, and then I asked her how she was going. She cried as she told me how she had lost everything in the flooding the cyclone had caused, but didn’t have time to think about it. She was too busy helping others.
I will never forget that conversation, or countless others like it that I had during that time. When we are tested to our limits, we see the true nature of the human spirit, and what I saw during those disasters was a solidarity and a compassion for each other that gave me huge hope.
In the face of the havoc this Government is wreaking, Labour must provide New Zealanders with hope. To do that we all need to be on the same page.
As a united and focused team we will define the policies and ideas that will drive Kiwi prosperity into the next generation.
Our country is not a company and our citizens are not just consumers. More people smoking might be good for the government’s bottom line, but it won’t make for a healthier society. Cutting school lunches and support for those with disabilities might help Nicola Willis balance the budget, but at what cost to those who will miss out?
We need to make sure that hard work does pay off and that we tackle inequality head on. Kiwis shouldn’t have to work multiple jobs just to keep their heads above water. Those who help to create the nation’s wealth should enjoy their fair share of it.
Rising wages, improved working conditions, closing the gender pay gap, and creating the right conditions so that our businesses can thrive and their workers can share in the rewards will be key goals for our next government.
For the first time in my life, we currently have a government that is taking us backwards when it comes to outcomes for Māori, ignoring and in some cases reversing the huge progress we have made as a nation to right the wrongs of the past. That’s not just bad for Māori, it’s bad for all of us.
Labour will stand alongside our indigenous people as they face this disgusting barrage, then when we are in Government, we will again continue the work that we were doing to lift outcomes for Māori.
We need to keep investing in all our people. We need health and education systems that meet the needs of our people in the 21st century. We need a welfare system that recognises that kicking people when they are down is no way to help them back onto their feet.
We need to keep rebuilding our public services and institutions, and not just their buildings. The digital world is here, and the way we deliver our public services needs to embrace that.
We need to place sustainability at the core of all that we do. We have one planet and one chance. I don’t want my kids, grandkids and great grandkids to find that the legacy we leave them is one of a planet that they cannot live on, swim on, plant on and explore like we do today.
When we say climate change is the preeminent challenge of our generation we need to match those words with action.
Climate change isn’t just a challenge, it’s a massive opportunity if we’re willing to grasp it. New Zealand can be a world leader in sustainable food production, renewable energy, and science and innovation. There is money in our brand and we mustn’t squander it.
And, yes, we need to talk about tax.
Our current tax system is inequitable, and it’s unsustainable. We have one of the least diversified tax systems in the world, meaning public investment into things like health, education, welfare, housing and infrastructure is more reliant on income tax than most other countries we compare ourselves to.
In other words, those who earn their living through their salary and wages are contributing a greater share than those who earn income through wealth. Under this government, those with multiple investment properties are getting huge tax breaks while those on salary and wages pay tax on every dollar they earn.
When even the IMF is saying our tax system is broken it really is time to do something.
As the way we live and work continues to change, with a smaller proportion of the workforce earning taxable salary and wages, reform of our tax system won’t just be a matter for the idealists, it will be an economic necessity.
Now is the time to have that debate. After the election I said that all options around changes to the tax system were back on the table and I meant it.
Shortly our Labour Party Policy Council will release a series of discussion documents on key issues we will be working on over the next two years. One of those will be on tax. It will set out some of our options for future tax policy. It’s intended to help inform the debate, but how we shape it will be up to us.
Our work on future policy will take some time, as it should, because none of the issues I just mentioned can be considered in isolation. We will use our time in opposition to listen, to build relationships, to research and to develop new ideas and new policies.
When the 2026 general election rolls around we will be more prepared for government than any opposition in our country’s history.
In my maiden speech I said we need to reignite the fire of our collective spirit. We need to rediscover what it means to live as part of a community. And I spoke of values. My values, Labour’s values, and values that I believe have defined New Zealand society in the past and need to do so again into the future.
Compassion, respect, fairness, friendship, love, and forgiveness.
In politics, values matter, and we should talk about them a lot more. When I look at the actions of this new government, I see very different values in play to the ones that I hold and that I believe define and motivate our Labour movement.
They’re putting landlords ahead of hungry kids, smoking revenue ahead of people’s health, and tax cuts ahead of supporting the most vulnerable among us like people living with disabilities.
We are a better country than that.
New Zealand is a country that abounds with opportunity. Together our job is to ensure everyone can benefit from that.
Our mission is to create a prosperous, inclusive New Zealand where everyone has a role to play, and nobody gets left behind.
Let’s make that happen together.
94 comments on “Chris Hipkins – Values Matter ”
- Comments are now closed
- Comments are now closed
Recent Comments
- Fact brief – Are most glaciers growing?
Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. This fact brief was written by Sue Bin Park from the Gigafact team in collaboration with members from our team. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Are most glaciers ...5 hours ago - It’s not (just) about the economy, stupid.
In 1992 James Carville, Bill Clinton’s lead strategist, hung a sign on the wall of the Democratic candidate’s campaign office in Little Rock, Arkansas. It had three lines on it to focus the team on the key vote-swinging issues and one of those lines would become so famous it’s turned ...13 hours ago - Let’s Make Things Better
If you're down and out and you feel really hurtCome on over to the place where I workAnd all your loneliness, I'll try to sootheI'll play the blues for youLyrics: Albert King.Often, in these newsletters, I tell you about what is wrong. You know the sort of thing - oh ...14 hours ago - Floating a few ideas
19 hours ago - Our Thousand-Year Struggle Over Technology and Prosperity
A new book challenges how we need to think about technological innovation.Last week’s column mentioned the three 2024 Nobel laureates in economics. The column focused only on the 2012 book Why Nations Fail by Daron Acemoglu and James Robinson with little reference to Simon Johnson, although the three have worked ...21 hours ago - Rebutting 33 False Claims About Solar, Wind, and Electric Vehicles thanks to the Sabin Center for Cl...
Earlier this year our volunteer editor Marc Kodack spotted an impressive answer to climate change solutions denial, "Rebutting 33 False Claims About Solar, Wind, and Electric Vehicles," which he included in our weekly climate research survey. Written by Matthew Eisenson, Jacob Elkin, Andy Fitch, Matthew Ard, Kaya Sittinger & Samuel ...1 day ago
- An expert walks into a bar
Quiz1. On what study was Mike King basing his assertion that Alcohol is not a problem for people with mental issues. It’s actually the solution ?a. Klein, Sawyer, Chomsky et al; Harvard, 2002b. Black Brown and Bleu; Yale, 1999c. Bloomfield, Verall, Ardern et al, Otago 2022d. Homer, Lenny, Carl and ...1 day ago - The High Court says “Land Back”
Way back in 1839, the New Zealand Company bought the area that is now Nelson from local iwi and hapu. As part of the deal, they promised that Māori would retain their homes, fields, and burial grounds, and that in addition, 10% of the land in the planned township and ...1 day ago - US military-industrial-sports complex.
A US friend of mine wrote on social media about attending a Homecoming football game at her niece’s Red State university. Although the referees stunk and her team lost, my friend said that she enjoyed her visit, especially the halftime … Continue reading ...1 day ago - The Hoon around the week to November 1
The podcast above of the weekly ‘Hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers on Thursday night features co-hosts & talking about the week’s news with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent on the latest climate news, including research showing the lethality of gas hobs and research on the health effects of climate ...2 days ago - ‘Get ready for more landlord buying’
The RBNZ sees the potential for a spike in demand from landlords. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāKia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Friday, November 1: The RBNZ has warned the Government’s tax changes ...2 days ago - Alcohol and Mental Health
2 days ago - Weekly Roundup 1-November-2024
Wow, we’re in November already and it’s a Friday so welcome to another round-up of interesting stories about what’s happening in Auckland and other cities. Feel free to add your links in the comments! This post, like all our work, is brought to you by a largely volunteer crew and ...2 days ago - A Mysterious Sound
Hi,Thanks for all your feedback to Hayden Donnell’s fantasy of communal living. “Camping in summer is really the only time I get to experience village life and I love it so much,” said Michelle. “You’ve infuriated me by writing the article that’s been in my head only much better than ...2 days ago - Toxic positivity and toxicity in the kitchen
Long stories short, here’s the top six news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa this week, and a discussion above between Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer:A study looking at psychological distress associated with climate change has stimulated discussion about the insistent demands for ‘hope’ ...2 days ago
- Geoffrey Miller: New Zealand’s breakthrough free trade deal with the Gulf
New Zealand’s new free trade agreement with the Gulf Cooperation Council is a major win for both sides. Todd McClay, New Zealand’s trade minister, announced the long-awaited deal on Thursday with his counterparts in Doha, Qatar. It is a remarkable, yet also surprising sudden success: the genesis of the agreement ...2 days ago - Todd McClay wins breakthrough for women in Saudi Arabia
In a major international breakthrough, New Zealand has negotiated a free trade agreement with Saudi Arabia and other Arabian Peninsula countries, which includes a provision requiring them to uphold the UN Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women. Trade Minister Todd McClay signed the agreement in Doha overnight. The ...2 days ago - Gordon Campbell on America’s fear of foreigners
Mike King’s latest comments about the relationship between alcohol and mental health – according to King, alcohol does more good than harm – raises red flags once again about this organisation, and the quality of the “counselling” it provides. Here’s what the scientific research says. The latest example of King’s ...2 days ago - Skeptical Science New Research for Week #44 2024
Open access notables Communicating the most accurate and reliable science on climate change to society: A survey of editors from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Molina & Abadal Abadal, Geoscience Communication: This study focuses on the perspectives of scientists involved in the IPCC AR5 and AR6 synthesis reports, examining ...2 days ago
- Gumboot Friday’s Founder Says Drugs and Alcohol Is A “Solution”
This afternoon, I turned to the fellow sitting near me and called out:“Guess what? A guy who runs a charity for mental health just said alcohol is a solution!”And his eyes popped out…his mouth opened ajar.That gave me some satisfaction - only because this person has zero care when it ...2 days ago - What can you do about bad journalism?
Day after day of David Seymour being accorded media time and attention like he’s doing this stuff in good faith and advancing these ideas in earnest. Come on. He’s a cosplaying libertarian who is really just a glove puppet for anti-democratic capitalist pigs. Read more ...2 days ago - A collapse in police legitimacy
Last week, the government had a big wank about police raids in Ōpōtiki, crowing about "gangs" and "drugs" and "law and order". Unfortunately the police did exactly the same shit they did in the Urewera terror raids 17 years ago, dragging people off in front of their kids and terrorising ...2 days ago
- 2024 Reading Summary: October (+ Writing Update)
No, I haven’t vanished from the Internet. Or died. Completed reads for October: The Castle of Otranto, by Horace Walpole The Sidereal Messenger of Galileo Galilei, by Galileo Galilei and Johannes Kepler Jurgen, by James Branch Cabell A very quiet reading month, and a very quiet writing month ...2 days ago - Suicide Rates Continue To Climb (Because We Are Not Treating Suicidal Patients)
Our suicide rates are skyrocketing again, and I’m going to spare you the faux-shock I could put on here, given that it would be frankly more surprising to me if our death toll had gone in the other direction. Preliminary data from 2023-24 shows that our annual suicide deaths have ...3 days ago - Are We The Baddies?
Difficult Questions: Does denying human equality and rejecting the principles of colour-blind citizenship place you among the baddies? Yes, I’m afraid it does.THE DEMON OF UNREST documents the descent of the United States into civil war. The primary focus of its author, Erik Larson, is the period of roughly five months ...3 days ago - Thursday 31 October 2024
Health and safety campaigner Sonya Rockhouse has come out in support of the joint open letter from the NZCTU, Business NZ and others. A new Xero Small Business Insights report shows that small businesses are cutting staff and keeping wages low, while the Salvation Army’s State of the Pacific Peoples ...3 days ago - Today’s Political Roundup – From Health to Self-Certification Risks
The focus on budgets is "going to cripple the health system".1. Cardiac specialist quits, saying Dr Lester Levy, the Part Time Health Commissioner, is "living in La La Land" and has no idea what's happening on the groundDr Dean BoddingtonDr Boddington, an electrical cardiologist, was the only person who did ...3 days ago - A deliberate and unnecessary crash landing
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāKia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Thursday, October 31: US and European GDP growth figures overnight show the world’s largest economies, along with that of our nearest neighbour Australia, ...3 days ago - Seymour: Swastikas OK
Race hatred cannot stop usThis one thing we knowYour poll tax and Donald TrumpGreed has got to go!You’re bound to loseYou fascists bound to lose.Original Lyrics: Woody GuthrieThere are a lot of things this government doesn’t like. Te Reo - got to go, they said, it’s too confusing for our ...3 days ago - Sumbission: Have Your Say on Work Health and Safety
Health and safety is core union mahi. Unions recognise that health and safety is a fundamental aspect of good work, and that every worker has the right to work that is safe and healthy, and to have a voice on the operation of their work. In this submission on MBIE’s ...3 days ago
- The hidden health toll of hurricanes
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Neha Pathak Disasters can disrupt medical care both during and long after the event. (Photo credit: U.S. Air National Guard / Sgt. Jorge Intriago) Weeks after Hurricanes Milton and Helene tore paths of destruction across the Southeast, pictures of communities ...3 days ago
- First section of Te Ha Noa Opens
Something definitely worth celebrating is the opening of the first section of Te Hā Noa, the Victoria St Linear Park. As we highlighted eight years ago, this project is vital for helping move the thousands of people that will pour out of the Te Waihorotiu station once the CRL opens. ...3 days ago
- Boldness be my friend
When Nicola Willis gave the annual Finance Minister’s speech to the country’s top public servants last week, what she said must have landed like a bomb. “Now is the time for your best and boldest ideas,” she said at the Institute of Public Administration (IPANZ) event. Coming from a minister ...3 days ago
- Wednesday 30 October 2024
The NZCTU has joined with Business NZ and health and safety groups to call on the Government to drop its plans to reform health and safety law. The Postal Workers Union is opposing a plan to reduce rural postal deliveries from five to three days a week. The Government has ...3 days ago
- Yer doin it all wrong mate
Reader Jeff Howell is the best kind of social media friend to have. When there's outrage and denunciation needed he’s in there dishing it with verve; and when those storms pass you get happy Jeff, sharing his projects. His projects are awesome.Until a week or so ago it was a ...3 days ago - Out Of Sympathy.
3 days ago
- Two States – But No Solutions.
My Enemy’s Enemy Is My Friend: Mohammad Amin al-Husseini, the former Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, at the opening of the Islamic Central Institute in Berlin, December 19, 1942. The elimination of the Jewish state has been the unwavering ambition of successive generations of Palestinian leaders.AMIDST ALL THE HORROR of the Israel-Hamas War, ...3 days ago
- NZ For Sale: Chris Luxon Is Concierge To The Wealthy
Watching a Christopher Luxon press conference is a masterclass in gaslighting. You just know what he’s saying is disingenuous - if not outright deceptive and lies - but out he comes - with confidence and vigour - telling me black is white, and white is red.According to the Prime Minister, ...3 days ago
- Will banks & insurers back self-consented homes?
Kia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, October 30: The Government’s move to allow qualified builders, plumbers and drainlayers to self-consent their work faces potential hurdles from reluctant insurers and bankers wanting protection against ...4 days ago
- Ātahu from Moana Maniapoto
We are blessed in Aotearoa with certain people that you might call National Treasures—those with great talents and a strong affinity for this place they are the custodians of. It’s not an official list; the people you think of might differ from those I think of.What are the attributes of ...4 days ago - Henderson Station Upgrade but will it Improve Customer Experience
Over the long weekend rail shutdown a new project got underway, an upgrade to Henderson station but the plans highlight that improving the customer experience by making it easier to use public transport is not a part of Auckland Transport’s agenda.
...
4 days ago - Climate Adam: Is climate change fuelling mega hurricanes?
This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Adam Levy. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). From hurricanes like Helene and Milton, to typhoons like Gaemi, vast storms are causing devastation: destroying cities and tearing up lives. ...4 days ago
- Get in the sea, old mate
For the State Highway One traveller, some sights remain dramatic no matter how many times you see them: Wellington harbour opening out at the bottom of Ngauranga Gorge; the first glimpse of Ruapehu; three quarters of the South Island. Also: the moment when you reach the top of the Brynderwyns and ...4 days ago - Taking the piss again
Remember Casey Costello? The government's most ignorant Minister? First she was referred to the Chief Archivist after claiming that key advice on her cancer promotion policy had simply magically appeared on her desk one day, and that she had no idea where it came from. Then, when the Ministry of ...4 days ago
- Monthly Employment Data shows weakness in economy
Monthly employment data released today by Statistics New Zealand showed our continuing labour market weakness, and particularly challenging conditions for young working people, said NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi Economist Craig Renney. “There are 21,000 fewer filled jobs than this time last year, and the fall has been led by those ...4 days ago
- Copy of Rwanda’s Kagame: from Saviour to Tyrant?
Is Rwanda turning into a country that seeks regional dominance and exterminates its rivals? This is a contention examined by Dr Michela Wrong, and Dr Maria Armoudian Dr Wrong is a journalist who has written best-selling books on Africa. Her latest, Do Not Disturb. The story of a political murder ...5 days ago - We’ve got issues
5 days ago - ‘Happy to watch your grandkids grow up in Australia via WhatsApp?’
Globally, NZ has the second-highest share of its population living overseas permanently, many of them now permanently in Australia. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāKia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Tuesday, October 29: A ...5 days ago
- October-24 AT Board Meeting
Today the Auckland Transport board meet again as a whole for the first time in two months. AT note: Members of the public are welcome to join the meeting via Teams. Please note, due to technical difficulties, the video feed will be unavailable. However, attendees will still be able to view ...5 days ago
- The fourth article of the Treaty
While Parliament struggles with David Seymour’s Treaty Principles Bill, a Christian scholar and some heavyweight mainstream church leaders have developed a different perspective on the Treaty of Waitangi. Theologian Alistair Reese presented a petition to Parliament’s Petitions Committee on Thursday asking Parliament to legislate to recognise the oral agreement “4th ...5 days ago
- Gordon Campbell on why so many young males like Donald Trump
To foreigners, the fact that so many millions of Americans are buying the used and poisonous goods that Donald Trump is selling is an unfathomable mystery. However, some clues to the allure of Trumpism can be found in the gender gap of unprecedented size that has opened up between those ...5 days ago
- Building a Safer Future for Every Worker
Every New Zealander deserves a workplace that puts safety and wellbeing first. Too often, we’ve seen the real cost of a system that doesn’t fully protect workers. Lives are lost, families grieving, and communities bearing the burden of preventable tragedies. That’s why, alongside Business New Zealand, the New Zealand Institute ...5 days ago
- Not all authoritarians are fascists.
A few days ago I responded to a post about Trump being a fascist on one of my friend’s social media page, then made a few comments on the consultancy social media page by way of follow up. Given the … Continue reading ...6 days ago
- Keep the Vampires From Your Door
I'll protect you from the hooded clawKeep the vampires from your doorWhen the chips are down I'll be aroundWith my undying, death-defying love for youEnvy will hurt itselfLet yourself be beautifulSparkling love, flowersAnd pearls and pretty girlsLove is like an energyRushin' an' rushin' inside of me, ehSongwriters: Brian Philip Nash ...6 days ago - The Odd Couple.
Strange Political Bedfellows: Matthew Hooton’s support for Winston Peters’ New Zealand Futures Fund reflects the Radical Right’s newfound reluctance to bet everything on the efficacy of market forces.AS IF HE WASN’T IN ENOUGH TROUBLE, Matthew Hooton has now come out for Winston Peters’ New Zealand Futures Fund (NZFF). Not only ...6 days ago
- Your Friends Should Be Close By
Hi,I’ll never forget the time the guy next to me on the plane got really angry because the Wi-Fi wasn’t working. Here we were, 40,000 feet in the air, and he couldn’t get Facebook. He was huffing, he was puffing. He was insufferable.I’m constantly amazed you can get the internet ...6 days ago - 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #43
A listing of 30 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, October 20, 2024 thru Sat, October 26, 2024. Story of the week As an experiment, we asked Google's Gemini for help categorizing the articles we shared during the week. ...6 days ago
- Labour Weekend
Stand up all victims of oppressionFor the tyrants fear your mightDon't cling so hard to your possessionsFor you have nothing if you have no rightsLet racist ignorance be endedFor respect makes the empires fallFreedom is merely privilege extendedUnless enjoyed by one and allSongwriters: Eugene Edme Pottier / Petrus Christianus De ...7 days ago - Fact brief – Do volcanoes emit more CO2 than humans?
Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. This fact brief was written by Sue Bin Park from the Gigafact team in collaboration with members from our team. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Do volcanoes emit ...1 week ago
- People of Courage & Decency. And Everyone In Between.
Today, news broke that Jeff Bezos, the American billionaire with a net worth of $206 B (NZ $344B), personally vetoed Washington Post’s Editorial Team from endorsing Kamala Harris.That stops the decades-old tradition of the Wapo for endorsing Presidential candidates. And editors have resigned - that includes Editor at large Robert ...1 week ago - Let’s Talk About… Anything.
Can't we talk about anything else but love?Love that launched a thousand shipsPlease! Let's talk about anything else but loveLove that causes war and famineCan't we speak about real estate?Love of wifeWatergate?Love of children!Seasonal fluctuations in the prime interest rate?Love of chocolate, you must love chocolate, everybody loves chocolate, say ...1 week ago - Can you hear me now?
1 week ago - Why Nations Fail
This year’s Nobel awards in economics raise critical issues about the future of the world.I was not alone with high hopes when the Soviet Union collapsed. It has been good to see various nations leave the yoke of the Soviet Empire and move towards liberal democracies with thriving economies although ...1 week ago - All very instructive
1. Who played the sax solo on Gerry Rafferty’s Baker Street?a. Kenny Gb. Lisa Simpsonc. Bill Clintond. Raphael Ravenscroft2. What did Nicola Willis, addressing a large gathering of senior public servants this week, ask them to do?a. Come up with fresh ideas and innovative audacious out of the box thinking b. ...1 week ago - More Sabotage
The Waitangi Tribunal has been one of the most effective critics of the National government and its racist, anti-Māori agenda. So naturally, they're sabotaging it with a crony appointment: Former ACT Party leader Richard Prebble has been appointed to the Waitangi Tribunal. Prebble, a Commander of the British Empire, ...1 week ago
- Ghost of a (Mad) Dog
How can that dog be barkin' in the backyard?We ran over him years agoHow can that dog be runnin' by the backfence?We ran over him years agoGhost of a dogBarkin' in the backyardSongwriters: Edie Brickell, Kenny Withrow.I have to say this one caught me by surprise. I had to check ...1 week ago - David Seymour’s School Lunch Provider Has Questionable Record – Including Listeria, Hors...
Yesterday, I looked into Seymour’s school lunch provider and found out it was Compass Group - a group that has had a long list of food quality issues and settled out of court for corruption and bribery of officials.Never mind the food looked like slop - heavy, process laden food ...1 week ago - After years of cover ups and hacks, the truth on gas is out
Long stories short, here’s the top six news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa this week, and a discussion above between Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer:Gas is worse for the climate than coal, over any timeframe that is relevant for a ‘bridging strategy’. The ...1 week ago
- Brown orders motorway building to start before business case done
Kia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Friday, October 25: Scoop of the day: Oliver Lewis reported for BusinessDesk-$$$ this morning that Transport Minister Simeon Brown ordered construction to start on the four-lane Hawkes Bay ...1 week ago - The Hoon around the week to October 25
The podcast above of the weekly ‘Hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers on Thursday night features co-hosts & talking about the week’s news with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent on the latest climate news, including another extreme climate event in the United States; on the escalating conflict between Israel, Iran ...1 week ago
- Weekly Roundup 25-October-2024
Happy Friday, even more so as we’re head to a long weekend, so welcome to another round-up of interesting stories about what’s happening in Auckland and other cities. Feel free to add your links in the comments! This post, like all our work, is brought to you by a largely ...1 week ago
- Skeptical Science New Research for Week #43 2024
Open access notables The rate of global sea level rise doubled during the past three decades, Hamlington et al., Communications Earth & Environment: The rise in globally averaged sea level—or global mean sea level—is one of the most unambiguous indicators of climate change. Over the past three decades, satellites have ...1 week ago
- Does New Zealand need Vegas-style transit security on our busses?
There’s a reason why people are supposed to stay on the Strip when they go to Las Vegas, and it’s not just proximity to the best attractions. This city of fluorescent lights and gambling halls extends in all directions across the Nevada landscape, for as far as the eye can ...1 week ago - No Enemies To The Left – Or The Right.
Wrong Turn: Labour and National can only reduce the toxic influence of their electoral competitors by rejecting their extremism.“NO ENEMIES TO THE LEFT” has always been Labour’s rule-of-thumb. What, after all, does a moderate, left-of-centre party gain by allowing its electoral rivals to become repositories for every radical (i.e. congenitally dissatisfied) ...1 week ago
- All the tools we need
Off I went yesterday, me and my little ear robots, to a workshop.Did I hear every word? Reader, I most surely did. Did I have to ask anyone to repeat themselves? I did not, not one single time.Ironically, the subject of the workshop was one that prompts many to cover ...1 week ago
... 
- Greens call for bottom trawling ban and call out Minister for lacklustre response
The Green Party is urgently calling on the Government to ban bottom trawling, following news a New Zealand bottom trawler caught 37kg of coral in international waters, prompting the suspension of all fishing in the area until 2026. ...2 days ago - Mark Patterson: Farmers understand we have their backs
Spring is here which means the start of the A&P show season. Those treasured community days where town meets country. There's no rural-urban divide here, just a chance to meet up with family and old friends and celebrate all things that make rural New Zealand so special. I'm embarking on ...2 days ago - Release: Funding for Gumboot Friday should pause
The National Government should review its support for Gumboot Friday after unacceptable comments by its leader and champion Mike King. ...2 days ago - Louise Upston cherry-picks data to punch down on the poor
The Government has very conveniently cherry-picked data from the latest MSD projections to justify its cruel agenda and punch-down policy when it comes to people living in poverty. ...3 days ago
- Luxon needs to address the cow in the room
The Green Party was appalled to hear Prime Minister Christopher Luxon claim we are “doing everything we can” on climate change, while his government does nothing to address emissions in our most polluting sector. ...4 days ago
- Govt Must Clean Up ‘Its Shit’ From Sunken HMNZS Manawanui
Te Pāti Māori is calling out the Government and New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) for their inaction and disgraceful downplaying of the impact caused by the sunken HMNZS Manawanui in Samoa. “We demand the Government move without further delay to clean up its shit from the sunken HMNZS Manawanui in Samoa,” said co-leader Debbie ...6 days ago
- Jamie Arbuckle: Inquiry into Banking Competition
This week was the start of the bank inquiry hearings into banking competition. The inquiry was confirmed in the NZ First/National Coalition agreement. 140 submissions were received on the inquiry, and we will hear from over 60 submitters including all the major banks. ANZ, New Zealand's largest bank, was first ...6 days ago
- Tanya Unkovich: It’s time to start the debate on palliative care as a ‘right’
There is one topic that is the great human leveller, and that is of death and dying. One day, we will all have to face it, and I am of the belief that being able to pass away with grace and dignity is a vital, basic, human right. How we ...1 week ago
- Release: Labour backs Christchurch City Council sanctions on Israel
Labour is backing Christchurch City Council’s decision not to do business with firms involved in Israel’s illegal settlements in the Occupied Territories. ...1 week ago
- Release: Government driving away offshore wind industry
The Government has created a hostile environment for companies seeking to build offshore wind farms. ...1 week ago
- Another step towards Pasifika justice
The Green Party acknowledges the historical importance of MP Teanau Tuiono’s Member’s Bill, Restoring Citizenship Removed By Citizenship (Western Samoa) Act 1982 Bill, passing its second reading in Parliament today. ...1 week ago
- Sanctions Soar, Jobs Vanish – National’s Cruelty Exposed
Te Pāti Māori is enraged at the National government’s ruthless punishment of beneficiaries, all while jobs are disappearing. MSD data shows a 133% increase in sanctions over the past year, with over 14,000 sanctions in just three months. The kicker? The jobs this government insists people should find are nowhere ...2 weeks ago
- Police Perpetuate Siege on Ōpōtiki
Te Pāti Māori MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi, says today’s police-sponsored terrorism in Ōpōtiki is a continuation of the State’s predatory behaviour towards the iwi of Te Whakatōhea. "Ōpōtiki is once again being intentionally targeted and is the direct byproduct of this Government’s 'tough on crime' legislative changes,” said MP ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Govt cuts school lunches even further
The Government has gone back on its word and cut the full school lunch programme in primary schools after saying it wouldn’t. ...2 weeks ago
- Time to shut down failed Youth Justice Residences
The Green Party is calling for Youth Justice Residences to close, following a protest in which a group of young people spent the night on the roof of an Oranga Tamariki justice facility. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Appalling process on three strikes law
The Government is subverting parliamentary process on laws the evidence already shows don’t work. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Labour calls for investigation into tobacco tax cut
The Government’s decision to award a $216 million tax break for Philip Morris’ heated tobacco products reeks of tobacco industry interference and needs to be thoroughly investigated. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Delay to retirement village review won’t help residents
The National Government is treading water on a much-needed review of the Retirement Villages Act, kicking any amendments down the road till the next parliamentary term in 2027. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Serious concerns ignored in Govt’s fast track bill
National’s fast track bill enables the most radical and unbalanced consenting regime in living memory. ...2 weeks ago
- Fast-Track, off the rails: Submitters show strong opposition to Bill
Despite resounding public opposition, the fast-track legislation is being pushed through Parliament with provisions that could have real consequences for people and planet. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Labour supports continuing fight for dairy access
Labour welcomes the National Government’s decision to further pursue our access to the Canadian dairy market under the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Job losses devastating for Timaru
Confirmed news that the Smithfield meatworks will close is devastating for the hundreds of people who work there, Timaru and the wider region. ...2 weeks ago
- New Zealand First Member’s Bill to Improve Access to Palliative Care
New Zealand First has introduced a Member’s Bill which aims to improve access to palliative care for all New Zealanders, ensuring kiwis have better access to the compassionate palliative support they may need. The ‘Improving Access to Palliative Care Bill’ seeks to guarantee that every New Zealander has the right ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Further uncertainty for Kiwirail as jobs set to go
KiwiRail offering voluntary redundancy to all its staff is hugely concerning given the future of New Zealand’s rail system is under threat. ...2 weeks ago
- ASA Declares Hobson’s Pledge Advertising Misleading and Socially Irresponsible
Te Pāti Māori Co-leaders Rawiri Waititi and Debbie Ngarewa-Packer welcome today’s ruling from the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), which found that a Hobson's Pledge advertisement regarding customary marine titles was misleading and socially irresponsible. The two-page wraparound ad, published in The New Zealand Herald, suggested that nearly the entire coastline ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Benefit numbers continue to soar under National
National’s all pain approach to beneficiaries has yielded no gain as benefit numbers continue to surge past projected figures. ...2 weeks ago
- Casey Costello: What Once Was…
Entering politics is a privilege afforded to very few and, as the saying goes, with great power comes great responsibility. Being an MP is a call to service. Whatever your politics you have a duty to show up. Whatever your party's policy, you have made a promise to those who ...2 weeks ago
- Soaring benefit sanctions push more into poverty
Sanctions on beneficiaries have sky-rocketed since the Coalition Government came to power, pushing more families into poverty. ...2 weeks ago
- International Energy Agency issues wake-up call on climate action
Today’s report from the International Energy Agency highlights how far this Government’s actions are dragging us backwards in the fight against climate change. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Lack of funding puts pressure on frontline Police
News that 173 roles are being cut at Police will only put more pressure on the frontline. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Bipartisan agreement on outdated marriage law
Changes to outdated relationships legislation has passed its third reading giving family violence survivors the power to quickly dissolve abusive marriages. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Cuts to Apprenticeship Boost will fail future NZ
The Government’s cuts to the Apprenticeship Boost programme will leave New Zealand without the workforce it needs to build homes, schools and hospitals. ...3 weeks ago
- Release: Sluggish economy means struggles ahead for Kiwis
While today’s inflation numbers are good news for Kiwis, there are still struggles ahead with rising rents, rates, insurance and high unemployment. ...3 weeks ago
- CPI figures show rents continuing to soar
Stats NZ has confirmed that higher rent prices were the biggest contributor to the annual inflation rate. Almost a fifth of the 2.2 per cent annual increase in the CPI was due to rent prices. ...3 weeks ago
- New Charter to guarantee better access for hunting and fishing
Minister for Hunting and Fishing Todd McClay has today launched an Access Charter (the Charter) to ensure better access for recreational hunting and fishing on public conservation land (PCL) across New Zealand. “This Charter establishes guiding principles for the Department of Conservation (DOC) to provide clear and transparent decisions on ...16 hours ago - Pou Whenua blessing honours Tongariro
A beautiful new Pou Whenua at the beginning of the Tongariro Alpine Crossing will introduce visitors to the sacred landscape they are entering, says Conservation Minister Tama Potaka. Mr Potaka attended a blessing for the specially carved Pou Whenua at Mangatepopo, at the start of the track on 1 November. ...1 day ago
- New members appointed to the NZTA Board
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today announced two new appointments to the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) Board. Mary-Anne Macleod and Mike Rudge have both been appointed as members for three-year terms commencing 1 November 2024 and ending 31 October 2027. “Transport is a critical part of our Government’s plan ...1 day ago
- Welcome relief from new oestradiol gel funding
Associate Health Minister David Seymour is welcoming Pharmac’s funding of oestradiol gel, following global shortages of oestradiol patches earlier this year. “I’m well aware of the stress caused by the global shortage earlier this year. At the time I said I was confident Pharmac was working hard to find a ...2 days ago
- Deputy Prime Minister visit to Australia
Foreign Minister and Racing Minister Winston Peters will visit Australia next week. “Australia is New Zealand’s closest partner, and we are pleased to make this second official visit there for 2024 following the first ever Foreign and Defence Ministers 2+2 Meeting between our two countries in Melbourne in January,” ...2 days ago
- Applications now open for new training pathway
Applications have now opened for tertiary education organisations to seek Government funding to develop New Zealand’s first postgraduate diploma programme for associate psychologists, Minister for Mental Health Matt Doocey announced today. “Investment in this new training pathway supports the Government’s target to grow our mental health and addiction workforce and ...2 days ago
- Increased medicines access continues following budget boost
Associate Health Minister with responsibility for Pharmac David Seymour is pleased to see further increased availability of medicines for Kiwis following the Government’s increased investment in Pharmac. “Pharmac operates independently, but it must work within the budget constraints set by the Government,” says Mr Seymour. “When this Government assumed office, ...2 days ago
- New Zealand concludes high quality trade deal with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)
New Zealand and the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have concluded negotiations on a trade agreement that will open up significant opportunities for New Zealand exporters in the Gulf region, Minister for Trade and Agriculture Todd McClay announced from Doha today. Today’s announcement follows significant reengagement with the GCC following meetings ...2 days ago
- Government seeks views on remote court attendance
The Government is exploring how to modernise the law around people attending court remotely, to support access to justice and enhance court performance. Courts Minister Nicole McKee says the current law has not kept up with evolving court practices and public attitudes to the use of remote technology, nor been ...2 days ago
- Breast screening age extension begins in Nelson Marlborough
Free breast screening has been extended for 70 to 74-year-old women living in the Nelson Marlborough district, ahead of a national roll-out late next year, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti announced today. “Breast cancer is the most common cancer in New Zealand with about 3,400 women diagnosed with the disease ...3 days ago
- Te Māori Manaaki Taonga Trust Board strengthened
He toi whakairo, he mana tangata. The reappointment of one trustee and the appointment of four new trustees to the Te Māori Manaaki Taonga Trust Board will enable the legacy of Te Māori to be carried forward into the future, Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka and Arts Minister Paul Goldsmith ...3 days ago
- Affordable housing project supporting home ownership
Up to 300 affordable, healthy, community-tailored homes helping to support home ownership are set to be built in eastern Porirua, supported by Government funding for Our Whare Our Fale through the Building Homes for Pacific in Porirua initiative, Minister for Pacific Peoples Dr Shane Reti and Associate Housing Minister Tama ...3 days ago
- Dire benefit forecasts show the need for Welfare that Works
A new report that forecasts young people on benefits will spend an average of 20 more years relying on welfare underscores the need for the Government’s reforms, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. MSD’s latest Benefit System Insights report, released today, which estimates how many future years different ...3 days ago
- Trade Minister travels to Doha for GCC trade discussions
Trade Minister Todd McClay will hold trade discussions with Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) trade ministers in Doha this week. Minister McClay will meet with all six GCC Trade Ministers, as well as the GCC Secretary General. “This will be my seventh visit to the region this year including two Ministerial ...3 days ago
- Podiatry prescribers will boost patient care
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti and Associate Minister David Seymour say it’s great news that podiatrists will soon be able to prescribe medicines, meaning patients with painful foot and leg conditions don’t have to make a separate trip to the doctor. “This simple step means a big change for people ...4 days ago
- Historic redress inequities finally resolved for Lake Alice Unit survivors
The Government is addressing historic redress inequities for some survivors abused at the Lake Alice Child and Adolescent Unit. In 2001, the Crown reached a $6.5 million group settlement with 95 survivors subjected to abuse at the Lake Alice Unit. Law firm Grant Cameron & Associates (now GCA Lawyers) represented ...4 days ago
- ERO report shows Government’s truancy emphasis is vital
Associate Education Minister David Seymour says that the Education Review Office’s (ERO) timely report on chronic school absence released today is further evidence of a truancy crisis. “Chronic absence has doubled since 2015. This report reinforces that action is needed to ensure this generation reaches its full potential,” says Associate ...4 days ago
- Minister welcomes business view on AML
Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee welcomes BusinessNZ’s report which addresses reducing the compliance burden on small businesses. “The challenges outlined in the report released today echo many of the concerns I have heard from businesses, which have informed my Anti Money Laundering/Countering Financing Terrorism (AML/CFT) priorities,” she says. “I have ...4 days ago
- Mangamuka Gorge opening in time for Christmas
State Highway 1 through the Mangamuka Gorge will be open for Christmas, with critical work currently underway to clear the large slips and dropouts that have caused significant disruption for Northlanders trying to get where they want to go quickly and safely, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The Mangamuka Gorge ...4 days ago
- Trusted building professionals able to self-certify
The Government is proposing further significant action to reform the building and construction sector to support more affordable homes and a stronger economy, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “If we want to grow the economy, lift incomes, create jobs and build more affordable, quality homes we need a ...4 days ago
- New appointments to the TEC board
Dr Alan Bollard CNZM and Mr Bharat Guha have been appointed to the Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) board, Tertiary Education and Skills Minister Penny Simmonds says. “I would like to welcome the two new members joining the TEC board,” Ms Simmonds says. “Dr Alan Bollard CNZM is an experienced public ...4 days ago
- Move to fast-track overseas doctors welcomed
Fast tracking applications for registration by eligible specialist doctors wanting to practice in New Zealand is in line with the Government’s push to improve the health outcomes for New Zealanders, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says. This fast-track pathway applies to specialists trained in anaesthesia, dermatology, emergency medicine, general practice, ...5 days ago
- Address to Western Sydney University: Constitutional and Rule of Law challenges in current global en...
Tēnā koutou Nau mai haere mai ki tenei hui Thank you to Vice Chancellor Williams, and the University of Western Sydney, for inviting me to speak today. I speak to you today in my capacity as Attorney-General – the New Zealand Crown’s Senior Law Officer. In this capacity, I serve ...5 days ago
- Security advice for start-ups welcomed
Minister responsible for the security and intelligence agencies Judith Collins has welcomed new guidance that aims to protect New Zealand’s start-up and emerging technology sector from the threat of economic espionage. “We are a nation well-known for our ingenuity, and our willingness to openly collaborate in the spirit of enterprise ...5 days ago
- Funding support to strengthen frontline volunteer service organisations
The Government has approved $23.1 million for four critical frontline volunteer service organisations to replace storm-damaged assets and provide training and equipment to improve New Zealand’s response to future emergency events, Transport Minister Simeon Brown and Associate Transport Minister Matt Doocey says. $14.6 million for Surf Life Saving New ...6 days ago
- Jones heads to international mining conference
Resources Minister Shane Jones will speak at Australia's largest annual mining event in Sydney this week to mark New Zealand’s return to the international industry stage. Mr Jones will attend the International Mining and Resources Conference (IMARC) where he will update the sector’s most influential players on the work the ...7 days ago
- NZ investing in Pacific disaster preparedness & climate resilience
New Zealand will contribute $20 million to the Pacific Resilience Facility, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters have announced. “The Pacific Islands region faces severe challenges from natural disasters and climate change impacts and New Zealand is committed to doing its part to help meet them,” ...1 week ago
- Police to increase presence on Auckland public transport
Aucklanders will see a greater Police presence on public transport services to boost safety and reassure public transport workers and passengers, Police Minister Mark Mitchell and Transport and Auckland Minister Simeon Brown say. “Minister Brown and I are working together, alongside Police and Auckland Transport in response to the horrific ...1 week ago
- Government funds helicopter replacements
The Government is investing in eight new emergency helicopters to replace some of New Zealand’s ageing air ambulance fleet, Associate Health Minister Casey Costello and ACC Minister Matt Doocey announced today. “Our air ambulance helicopters play a vital role in saving lives around New Zealand,” Casey Costello says. “This is ...1 week ago
- China and New Zealand strengthen organic trade
An uplift to New Zealand’s organic product trade is expected through a new upgraded arrangement with China, Food Safety Minister Andrew Hoggard says.“The upgraded Mutual Recognition Arrangement (MRA) for organic products will deliver opportunities for our organic export sector.”The upgraded MRA was signed in Central Otago today by Andrew Hoggard ...1 week ago
- Judicial appointments announced
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced two Court of Appeal and two High Court appointments. The four appointments will take effect on 21 November 2024 and are: Justice Christine French Justice French, who has been appointed President of the Court of Appeal, graduated with an LLB (Honours) from the University of Otago ...1 week ago
- Tuatapere Hump Ridge Track becomes New Zealand’s 11th Great Walk
Conservation Minister Tama Potaka joined tangata whenua from Ngāi Tahu and local community members today to celebrate the opening of New Zealand’s eleventh Great Walk – the Tuatapere Hump Ridge Track. “The 60km upgraded track provides the opportunity to do one of New Zealand’s world-class multi-day walks, and will bring ...1 week ago
- New Chief Criminal Cases Review Commissioner
The Honourable Denis Clifford has been appointed Chief Commissioner of the Criminal Cases Review Commission, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith says. Hon Clifford brings a wealth of expertise and experience that will prove invaluable to the Commission. “He has served as a judge at both the Court of Appeal and High ...1 week ago
- Changes to improve building fire safety
The Government is progressing changes to better protect Kiwis and their property from fires, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Following the tragic Loafer’s Lodge fire in 2023, 37 boardings houses across the country were assessed and I am pleased to say that all fire safety recommendations from the ...1 week ago
- Germany and New Zealand partner to support agriculture and tackle global emissions
New Zealand and Germany have announced the official start of a partnership aimed at supporting the agriculture sector and tackle global agricultural greenhouse gas emissions Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced today. “The partnership, called the Alliance for the Climate – Dialogue on Climate and Agriculture between New Zealand and Germany (Agri-DENZ project), ...1 week ago
- New members appointed to the Waitangi Tribunal
Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka today confirmed the appointment of two new members to the Waitangi Tribunal, as well as the reappointment of Kevin Prime. The members appointed and reappointed are: Hon Richard Prebble (CBE). Mr Prebble is a former Cabinet Minister where he held a broad range of portfolios. ...1 week ago
- New appointments to the Local Government Commission
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has today announced the reappointment of the current Chair and the appointment of a temporary member to the Local Government Commission.Current Chair Brendan Duffy ONZM has been reappointed as Chair for a one-year term ending 23 October 2025, while Gwen Bull CNZM will be joining ...1 week ago
- New Electoral Commission Chair appointed
Today the House agreed to Justice Simon Moore KC being appointed chair of the Electoral Commission, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “Justice Moore brings with him a high level of legal acumen and decision-making ability, strategic planning skills and unquestionable personal integrity and independence. “He retired from the High Court ...1 week ago
- Education Minister attending conference in Australia
The Education Minister is travelling to Australia today to attend the 23rd edition of public policy conference, Consilium. “New Zealand and Australia share common challenges and aspirations for education. New South Wales has recently introduced a new curriculum that is explicit, sequenced and knowledge based while Victoria is requiring structured ...1 week ago
- Launching VisAble to enable safer lives
The launch of new community advocacy group VisAble signals an important development in community advocacy to achieve more focus on the needs and rights of disabled people in the family violence and sexual violence system. Minister for the Prevention of Family and Sexual Violence, Karen Chhour, and Disabilities Issues Minister, ...1 week ago
- Palau newspaper sued by president’s family company ahead of general election
By Stefan Armbruster of BenarNews Palau’s largest newspaper is being sued for defamation by the company of President Surangel Whipps Jr’s father, just days ahead of general elections in the Pacific nation. Surangel and Sons alleges “negligence and defamation” by the Island Times and its editor Leilani Reklai for an ...4 hours ago - Cook Islands PM calls for easing of tensions in New Caledonia
By Caleb Fotheringham, RNZ Pacific journalist Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown has returned from New Caledonia saying it is not a simple “black and white situation”. Brown returned from a three-day Pacific fact-finding mission in the French Pacific territory alongside the Prime Ministers of Solomon Islands, Tonga and Fiji. ...12 hours ago
- Another Palestinian journalist killed in Gaza as Israel ‘suffocates the truth’
“In his message for the day, the secretary-general underscores that a free press is fundamental to human rights, to democracy and to the rule of law,” Dujarric said. ‘Alarming rate of fatalities’“Recent years have seen an alarming rate of fatalities in conflict zones, particularly in Gaza, which has seen the ...13 hours ago
- Chris Penk lays foundations for self-certified building scheme
As the government sets about laying the foundations for tradespeople to sign off their own work, RNZ sits down with the minister responsible to hammer out the details. ...15 hours ago - Short story: 3rd place, Sargeson Prize
WinterI still think of Michael often. We first met at Grace’s thirty-first birthday party. I was sitting outside on the back deck when he came out through the sliding glass doors. He was pulling a pouch from his coat pocket.“You want a smoke?” he asked, planting himself on the bench ...19 hours ago - The Secret Diary of .. Mike King
MondayI sat in at a team meeting to discuss our suicide prevention fundraising event this Friday night in Dunedin and was told we were struggling to gain an alcohol licence from the council.“Tell them Mike King is behind it,” I said. “My name opens doors. Do you see that door? It ...19 hours ago
- The making of Donald Trump
It’s taken six years, but The Apprentice, the film former US President Donald Trump didn’t want anyone to see, is finally out in cinemas, just ahead of the US presidential election.There was so much back-and-forth around whether or not the production would go ahead that by the time filming was ...19 hours ago
- Where the brain goes, the gut will follow
Comment: There has been a growing understanding of the powerful two-way connection between our stomach and brain in recent years, suitably named the gut-brain connection. This link is so strong that the gut is sometimes nicknamed our “second brain”, highlighting how real your “gut feelings” can be. If you’ve ever ...19 hours ago
- The Weekend: When the tide turns
Madeleine Chapman reflects on the week that was. The window in which to “have an opinion” on an unfolding news story is shockingly small. Just as large newsrooms know that being “the first” to publish a breaking news story is often more important than anything written in it – ever ...20 hours ago - Let people respond to the haka how they want to
Cultural challenges are an integral part of sports, but how teams respond has been a point of debate for some time. Self-proclaimed “loose head” England prop Joe Marler called for the haka to be scrapped earlier this week, before “clarifying” what he meant, attempting to pivot his statement, and then ...20 hours ago
- ‘I’ve never lived it down’: The Breakfast live cross that still haunts Jack Tame
The TVNZ broadcaster reflects on his life in television, including a full circle moment with David Attenborough, his favourite politicians to interview and why he’ll never watch Game of Thrones. Jack Tame spends most of his time grilling our own MPs, but at the moment his heart is somewhere else. ...20 hours ago
- ‘So subtle, yet so chaotic’: Wiri Donna’s perfect weekend playlist
Wellington’s Wiri Donna shares her perfect weekend playlist. Bianca Bailey is the lead singer, guitarist and songwriter behind the chamber-pop project Wiri Donna, which recently released its second EP, In My Chambers. “I’m feeling a little vulnerable about it, almost like I’m about to out myself as an angry person. ...20 hours ago
- How the Gen Z broccoli haircut became big business for a teen barber
Three teenage barbers in Mt Albert have capitalised on a viral haircut to build businesses on Instagram. Duncan Greive gets a haircut and a lesson in modern business. Photography by Jin Fellet. ‘When I first started cutting hair, I messed up my friend really badly,’ says Ali. I shiver involuntarily ...20 hours ago
- A new novel imagines a New Zealand version of the conservative South Asian grifter
There’s little to like about figures like American politician Vivek Ramaswamy, but there is a lot to learn. Earlier this year, American politician and failed Republican candidate, Vivek Ramaswamy, hosted notorious bagpipe, Ann Coulter, on his podcast. They talked for an hour, and frankly there’s no way I’m going to ...20 hours ago
- The wild, exotic life of Katherine Mansfield
https://player.vimeo.com/api/player.jsKatherine Mansfield left New Zealand when she was 19 years old and died at the age of 34.In her short life she became our most famous short story writer, acquiring an international reputation for her stories, poetry, letters, journals and reviews. Biographies on Mansfield have been translated into 51 ...
20 hours ago - Podcast: Giving employees what they want, when they want it
Fintechs are changing the way we spend and save, but they are also set to change the way we could be paid for work, or more correctly, how workers receive fringe benefits. As New Zealanders we’re used to having the bulk of our remuneration paid as an electronic payment ...20 hours ago
- Albanese promises changes to HELP repayment arrangements to ease cost of living
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra People repaying HELP student debts would get cost-of-living relief under changes to repayment arrangements to be announced by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Sunday. The minimum threshold for repayments to start would be lifted ...1 day ago
- Philippine Supreme Court orders ‘temporary protection’ for abducted environmental activist
By Jairo Bolledo in Manila The Philippine Supreme Court has granted temporary protection to an environmental activist abducted in Pangasinan earlier this year. In its resolution dated September 9 — but only made public this week — the court granted Francisco “Eco” Dangla III’s petition for temporary protection, and prohibited ...1 day ago
- Politics with Michelle Grattan: Bruce Wolpe says personal relations between Trump and Albanese would...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Days from the US presidential election, the polls are showing the outcome of the race between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump remains a nail biter. With the United States our closest ally, the result ...1 day ago
- Indo-Fijian ‘listen to us’ plea to NZ over Pacific ethnicity classification
By Lydia Lewis, RNZ Pacific presenter/Bulletin editor Fiji Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka says that as far as Fiji is concerned, Fijians of Indian descent are Fijian. While Fiji is part of the Pacific, Indo-Fijians are not classified as Pacific peoples in New Zealand; instead, they are listed under Indian and ...1 day ago
- Is thirst a good predictor of dehydration?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lauren Ball, Professor of Community Health and Wellbeing, The University of Queensland KieferPix/Shutterstock Water is essential for daily functioning and health, and we can only survive a few days without it. Yet we constantly lose water through sweat, urination and even ...1 day ago
- US election: The world could wait a fortnight thanks to one Arizona County
Come next Tuesday, the world will be watching Nate Young and his team – literally. There are now 21 livestream cameras showing early voter ballot drop-off locations and the inner-workings of the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Center.The 24/7 livestreams that capture election employees’ every move might seem like overkill, but ...1 day ago
- Te Arawhiti – the Office for Māori Crown Relations set to lose more than 50 roles
Two proposals were made to staff on Friday - one would see a transfer of functions to Te Puni Kōkiri - with 44 employees transferred. ...1 day ago
- Naked tennis, outback feuds and a chimp named Tonka: what we’re streaming in November
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexa Scarlata, Research Fellow, Media & Communication, RMIT University As I write this, people around the country will be recovering from last night’s Halloween shenanigans, perhaps even experiencing a candy-induced comedown. Luckily, this month’s streaming picks include a serial killer flick that’ll ...1 day ago
- Tech billionaire Elon Musk’s social media posts have had a ‘sudden boost’ since July, new rese...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Timothy Graham, Associate Professor in Digital Media, Queensland University of Technology On July 13, shortly after Donald Trump was targeted by an assassination attempt, Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of X (formerly Twitter), tweeted to his more than 200 million followers: ...1 day ago
- Could Ukraine be heading toward a frozen conflict? Why so much is hinging on the US election
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jessica Genauer, Senior Lecturer in International Relations, Flinders University In recent months, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has been pushing hard for the United States and European countries to double down on military support for his country until he can achieve his “victory ...1 day ago
- Australians love sport, but which ones do they actually play? National survey results paint a surpri...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Vaughan Cruickshank, Senior Lecturer in Health and Physical Education, University of Tasmania Liderina/Shutterstock Sport and physical activity are an important part of Australian culture and society. But how do we know which sports have the highest participation rates in Australia? ...1 day ago
- Mike King: A timeline of ups and downs in mental health
The former comedian is back in the headlines, this time for making controversial comments about alcohol - but it's not the first time he's ruffled feathers. ...1 day ago
- ‘I’m coming home from a party, and I don’t want to end up getting arrested’: do driving apps...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Verity Truelove, Senior Research Fellow in Road Safety Research, University of the Sunshine Coast Vlad Ispas/Shutterstock Apps such as Google Maps, Apple Maps and Waze can tell drivers when they are approaching speed cameras or random breath testing stations. Countries such ...1 day ago
- The Friday Poem: ‘THE THING IS’ by Johanna Cosgrove
A new poem by Johanna Cosgrove. THE THING IS i don’t know how to write about you while my heart bloated is mince for the jackdaws the slack jaw you pried open with careful fingers stroking my tongue as a treasure belonging to only you my whole mouth bruised by ...1 day ago
- The Unity Books bestseller chart for the week ending November 1
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington. AUCKLAND 1 Intermezzo by Sally Rooney (Faber & Faber, $37) “Though not perfect, a clear leap forward for ...1 day ago
- Dunedin council grants liquor licence for suicide prevention event that sparked Mike King’s al...
Dunedin's district licensing committee has granted a special licence for alcohol sales at a fashion show on Saturday that is raising money for a suicide prevention charity. ...1 day ago
- This new docuseries shows us another world of learning
Episode four of Home Education follows Kensey and her mum Alesha as they navigate a new journey of learning at home. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. As the wind blows through the poplar trees and the sun begins to lower, a ...1 day ago
- Which Australian states and territories perform best on gender representation in parliament? We crun...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Blair Williams, Lecturer in Australian Politics, Monash University Abortion became a key issue at the recent Queensland election, despite its decriminalisation in 2018. Voting against the motion at the time, LNP leader David Crisafulli fumbled questions throughout the election campaign about ...1 day ago
- Dunedin council grants liquor license for suicide prevention event that sparked Mike King’s al...
Dunedin's district licensing committee has granted a special licence for alcohol sales at a fashion show on Saturday that is raising money for a suicide prevention charity. ...1 day ago
- Te Arawhiti – the Office for Māori Crown Relations set to lose 40% of its staff – union
Te Arawhiti is being "gutted", the Public Service Association says. ...1 day ago
- Fisheries Minister Shane Jones calls for review of coral limits to avoid fishing bans
Shane Jones' comments come after a New Zealand vessel caught more than double the legal amount of coral - triggering an automatic suspension of fishing in the Lord Howe area of the Tasman Sea. ...2 days ago
- NZ must step up to protect its own oceans to match international commitments made at Commonwealth le...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Karen Scott, Professor in Law, University of Canterbury Fiona Goodall/Getty Images New Zealand and other Commonwealth nations wrapped up their global meeting in Samoa last week with a declaration to protect the ocean in the face of severe climate change, pollution ...2 days ago
- Big Job Losses Coming As Govt Guts Te Arawhiti – Office For Māori Crown Relations
Te Arawhiti - the Office for Māori Crown Relations will focus on its legislative functions to progress settlements under Te Tiriti o Waitangi and the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act. Te Puni Kōkiri will take over the post Treaty settlement ...2 days ago - Ratu Naiqama Lalabalavu elected as Fiji’s new president
RNZ Pacific Ratu Naiqama Lalabalavu has been elected as the new president of Fiji, despite opposition from women’s rights groups. Ratu Naiqama was the current Speaker of Parliament and nominated by Fiji Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka. He was elected yesterday after getting 37 out of 55 votes. He is the ...2 days ago
The server will be getting hardware changes this evening starting at 10pm NZDT.
The site will be off line for some hours.
A good speech but I don't believe either Hipkins or Labour will convince anyone except the already-faithful.
The fact he was about to make a speech had bigger headlines than the speech itself across all three MSM websites. Nothing new to say. Opportunity lost.
Man who held powerful portfolios for several years tells us all about what he should have put in place.
Will be interesting to see whether kiwis are prepared to give him yet another chance.
Geez don't some people read? This was a powerful speech and significant in many ways, especially in signalling a big shift in the thing many people here grizzle about ; neo liberal economics. Quotes :
"We will remember with pride the early steps that government took to stamp our proudly Nuclear Free mark on our foreign policy, the work of that government to advance human rights, including homosexual law reform, and to bring conservation and environmental issues much more to the fore.
But we will also look back with much more mixed feelings on the economic reforms of that and subsequent governments, and the four decades of growing inequality and societal decay that has followed. Forty years on it is long since time we acknowledged that a rising economic tide does not lift all boats.
The majority find themselves constantly bailing water just to stay afloat, while far too many are left to just sink.
“Our current economic model celebrates those who live off wealth over those who live off work. In the modern economy, contribution and reward aren’t as linked as they used to be.
“Hard work is no longer the ticket to getting ahead it should be. While some earn a lot more than they are worth, the majority are worth a lot more than they earn. Success and aspiration should be celebrated. But when hard work no longer pays off, it’s time for a rethink of the system.”
Thing is he had the opportunity and instead had a policy bonfire. That and the cold shoulder given to David Parker who has actually done work on and advocated for the changes needed speakes volumes.
Basically I think Hipkins is full of shit.
Imho, Hipkins makes some interesting points about our CoC govt shitting on Kiwis.
Won't someone please think of the landLords! *
Bishop and Luxon seem "deeply committed" ** – best of luck Reti.
Tax cuts? Let's not get ahead of ourselves.
Another Todd! So dopey.
What an intelligent comment,
Someone like David Parker who actually did something successfully before he got into politics will always get more airtime from some like me, even if I don’t necessarily agree with him at any given time.
All around the world people are getting sick of the political careerists and NZ is no different.
And his response is let’s talk about maybe doing something that I ruled out a month or two back. Back the words with action, otherwise they’re wasted words, and more than likely require someone who can be credible announcing it.
100% Cricklewood.
Hipkins is a leading, shining light for the status quo (with tinkering on social issues which arguably have alienated more than they have gathered)
I agree Darien. It remains to be seen if the left and others interested in a "fairer society" work and plan together. It has rekindled my enthusiasm.
So it only took forty years for this revelation for labour..?
What took them so long…?
Are you the same Phillip Ure who said I needed a makeover when I was in Parliament?
I don't recall saying that..if I did I belatedly apologise..
(I must have been desperately grabbing for punchlines..)
Do you remember the context..?
You are one of the labour mps I respected..
It was on your whoar blog during q time when as a backbencher, I asked a question. I got enough shite to last me a lifetime from Whaleoil et al who loved critiquing my appearance. These things stick. So thank you for the apology. It means a lot.
I am horrified that I said that…there is/I have no excuse..
As you say it was when you asked a question..I am guessing it was in a question time commentary…where I pretty much indiscriminately fired from the hip..
But as I say…no excuse…
I suppose the section you highlighted is as close to an apology as we're going to get for the betrayal of New Zealand by Labour through the release of neoliberalism.
I take it the tax options being put back on the table will include the ones Hipkins took off the table pre-election. And the policies Labour will work on could well replace the ones he threw into his policy bonfire.
Nice words in his speech but I don't trust the man. Those saying how great "Chippy" now is seem to have short memories.
Good start though even if it's six months after the election. The election for which he hasn't admitted his own part in losing.
I think there have been other "apologies" from Labour about the 1980s. I hated it too. and I have a very long memory. But neo-liberalism is a world wide thing, invented in the 1970s. Tell me one country that hasn't embraced the global free market, or one country that has rejected it successfully. Also worth remembering that National had three terms in the 1990s and another three from 2008 and entrenched and worsened the doctrine – ie with labour law changes and benefit cuts. Now they are back again, so my thinking is rather than dwelling on something from 40 years ago, we build a bridge and look ahead. I don't care if you trust Chippy or not. He is one person in a wider labour movement. I prefer not to live in grievance mode for the rest of my life. The fights we have right now are too important.
Thanks for your reply. Paul Kelly has a song called "I'll forgive, but I won't forget." Maybe mine has been "I won't forgive, and I won't forget". 🙂 I'll think on that.
I agree the fight we have now is critical for our future on many levels, including our very survival with the climate in crisis and wreckers and deniers in control.
I hope Labour will be part of solution along with the Greens and Te Pati Maori. I am an older person living rurally but I am not sitting back living in grievance mode. I recently re-joined the Green Party and will attend a branch AGM soon and try and make some connections and see what energy there is for fighting back locally. Chloe Swarbrick is attending a regional meeting next month and I hope to get the chance to ask her for her perspective on how we can fight back as individuals, locally and regionally.
I also hope to ask her whether there have been/will be discussions between Labour, GP and TPM about providing a united opposition to the three-headed taniwha.
This would be powerful if it was from a guy who wasn't a senior minister for the past 6 years (including 6 months as PM) and failed to do anything like he is now saying he will.
I am all for it, but he has a credibility problem that won't be fixed with words.
He has to work very hard to convince those who voted right (the 400,000 ACT NZ First and National voters that we need back on our side to win), that he is now capable of delivering, when he failed to deliver last time he was given the chance.
Not a bad speech.
He gives a nod to the 'deserving / undeserving poor' belief and repeats one of the big neoliberal lies that hard work is (or should be) the main cause of wealth and quality of life, when the power of capital is the main driver in our current system. We are a wealthy enough country that even those who just work a bit (and those who can't work at all), should be able to have a reasonable life. The "go getters" are not always doing good for society.
" We believe in equality and the notion that all those who work hard should be able to get ahead, enjoy the fruits of their labour, and create a better life for themselves and their families." [my emphasis]
This is not a neoliberal doctrine. It is an old saying from Labour and is even implicit in the song Solidarity. Obama also said it as did Martin Luther-King. Work includes those who work for our families, who volunteer in the local community, who help feed others in need, who look after our seniors, who raise our babies, who share their food. This is all working hard and speaks to the redistribution of wealth and power.
What's the name of his political party again?
I am in two minds about Hipkins' speech. On one hand a lot of it made sense, but on the other this Government is like an out of control scrub fire at the moment, with no obvious fire service to bring it under control. Are we going to have to watch vast tracts of all that is good and proper about this country go up in socio-economic flames – a bit like Napier following the earthquake in 1931 where the water mains were destroyed, and fire spread unchecked for some time?
To carry on the analogy, watching Hipkins at question time and his speech this afternoon, he’s certainly lost his fire. Queue the leadership speculation – IMO that will be Labours headline over coming months … but who?
I think you are a right wing troll and should go away. I am definitely no Hipkins fan but to say he has lost his lost his fire is bullshit. So no, the leadership speculation is not being queued, sorry, and will not be Labour's headline over coming months, much as you would like it to be.
You look like a troll to me too. Eventually that will get boring and one of the mods will step in, so you can consider this a pre-warning.
Meanwhile, here's Hipkins if people want to watch the video.
https://www.youtube.com/live/tXAic-CapAw?si=i4i4C3SlC-noNc6V
I see I already gave you a warning the other day, so ball is in your court now.
https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-21-03-2024/#comment-1993370
QueueCue.Kieren Mcanulty is the only person in the Labour party the public actually likes, he has charisma, he's funny, young and his down to earth bogan personality appeals to everyone but most importantly, males under 40 which the left has lost globally desperately needs to win over or we’ll never win anywhere ever again.
I show Kierens videos to males who voted Labour or greens in 2017 and 2020 but voted tory, nzf act in 2023 and they LOVE him.
Him and his ute up against captain limo will get Labour up 10% in the next election as long as Labour doesn't ruin what we like about him by changing the way he talks, the way he dresses and the things he talks about….
He’s the most likeable person in nz politics and his bloke next door personality is endearing and if Labour doesn’t ruin him by trying to turn him into another personality free academic robot, he’d bolt in.
this is heartening. How would you compare him to Andrew Little, who there were also hopes for? Or even Cunliffe?
Seems like there is the additional issue of substantial resistance to more socialist policies. Where would McAnulty fit into that?
"Kieren Mcanulty…."
Yea….Nah
"Labour has confirmed it would keep the new Government’s tax deductibility for landlords… Housing spokesman Kieran McAnulty clarified this when speaking to property developers last week"
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/political-roundup-is-hipkins-to-be-trusted-on-tax-reform-bryce-edwards/LRQJZFBPK5CABEK23FWJ7NE4EQ/
You missed a bit. The whole quote,
And from the Stock piece Edwards refers to but doesn't link,
Archived version of the Post article, from behind the paywall,
https://archive.is/DjYJn#selection-1041.0-1053.163
I have quoted at length because I think Edwards was misleading, and so were you.
To me that reads as a warning to landlords and investors to build new houses rather than competing and pushing the property prices up, and if they don't Labour will intervene more strongly next time they are in government.
OK, but when they announce policy it had better:
I'm not totally confident these will be the case.
Labour and the left generally are in a difficult position with tax policy.
They have made a commitment to electrify the country by 2050 which is estimated to cost 500 billion.
Superannuation costs remain unaddressed. We used to have 8 workers to tax for each superannuitant. Today we have 2 and falling.
There are more people on welfare and they are staying on it longer. From the time welfare was introduced in 1938 until the 1970's the percentage of working age people on a benefit never exceeded 2%. Today it is 12% and growing.
The final issue is that wealth taxes are deeply unpopular to the majority of voters.
“Three great forces rule the world: stupidity, fear and greed.” – Einstein
Might you be projecting? "Wealth taxes are deeply unpopular to" some voters, notably many of the few who would be adversely affected in their all-important hip pocket.
But that's not a majority of Kiwis.
I wonder, will Kiwis be polled again about their views on a wealth tax any time soon?
There will always be very wealthy individuals who oppose being parted with any more of their precious wealth with every fibre of their being. Some are opposed to disclosing even the magnitude of their wealth to the IRD – can't think why.
Drowsy I wrote that wealth taxes are deeply unpopular in NZ because I'm sure I remember Jacinda saying that. But can't find any link.
I find as I have more time now that I enjoy reading political blogs and thinking about what I would do if I was running the show.
Often I want to respond to a comment but don't because I rely on my memory for comments and I'm not good at finding link proof.
I personally don't like wealth taxes because they don't work. Most european countries that tried them have abandoned them.
The top 10% of earners pay 25% of all tax collected in NZ and the lowest 50% pay no net tax at all according to the Treasury (2021) So the rich are pulling their weight if this is correct.
In economic terms we need more net contributors.
The 'top' 10%, who own more than 50% of NZ's wealth, pull some of their weight. The poorest 50% have done a very poor job of bleeding the wealthy dry.
Our CoC govt is implementing welfare for the wealthy, while the ‘plebs’ face austerity – NAct MPs are waging war on the poor, rather than on poverty.
LESS? Unacceptable! – UNPALATABLE – – – – – UNTENABLE
https://thespinoff.co.nz/society/16-08-2022/the-side-eyes-two-new-zealands-the-table
In fact those in the middle pay 60% of all taxes.
The wealthy pay nowhere near what the should, compared with the proportion of the National wealth, built up by tax payers, that they have benefited from.
Which is why National canned anyone looking at real rates of tax.
Almost all countries in Europe have Capital gains and inheritance taxes. Wealth taxes. Because they help even up the tax people pay.
NZ is an outlier in that almost all taxes are on workers incomes and sales taxes.
And polls show that between 60 and 80% of New Zealanders support CGT.
"Almost all countries in Europe have Capital gains and inheritance taxes. Wealth taxes"
The majority of EU countries do NOT have wealth taxes. There are, in the EU and OECD European countries, only 3 which charge a net wealth tax. Another 4 charge some form of selective tax.
The remaining 25 countries do not levy any form of wealth tax. Your statement is misleading.
https://taxfoundation.org/data/all/eu/wealth-taxes-europe-2024/#:~:text=As%20today's%20map%20shows%2C%20only,individual's%20net%20wealth%20per%20se.
Yours is.
Your link uses a very narrow definition of wealth taxes.
If you define wealth taxes as any tax on wealth.
Capital Gains Tax by Country 2024 (worldpopulationreview.com)
List of countries by inheritance tax rates – Wikipedia
Of course there are also other taxes on wealth. Even NZ has progressive local body rates.
A Capital Gains tax is NOT a wealth tax.
If you don't have any gain then you don't pay a CGT. That would be if you followed the old joke about airlines.
How do make a small fortune? Start with a large fortune and buy an airline.
If you list 3 types of taxes , as you did, preceded by "almost every country" then you are claiming that all the taxes apply to all the countries. If you had said "Almost every country in Europe have a CGT. Some have inheritance and a few have wealth taxes" you would have been OK.
However almost nobody has a wealth tax. They are terrible thing to administer or apply fairly. They are almost impossible to administer fairly. If you own a home can we charge you a wealth tax on the CV? It is nothing like what you could sell a property for today, is it? That is one of the major problems with our rates system.
Semantic bullshit. If it quacks like a duck….
24 of 36 nations in the OECD have an estate tax,
Switzerland is cited as the other nation in the OECD without a CGT, it has a wealth tax.
Some of the nations with a CGT, include the family home where it is way above the norm (top few percentile) as a form of wealth tax.
2/3rd of the OECD have a combination of CGT and estate tax.
Oz does not have an estate tax, they do have stamp duty and land taxes.
The IMF thinks we should have a CGT and a land tax – presumably to further increase government revenue off other than worker income and discourage land banking and encourage investment in other areas.
That is only if you are very selective about considering what taxes and rebates that you count.
You only get there if you are stupid enough to have a very narrow view of what is a tax (ie only consider income tax, company tax, and taxes on dividends) and forget about about the ubiquitous consumption taxes like GST (15% on most things apart from second hand property like housing), taxes for things like cars, petrol, booze, tobacco, other custom and excise taxes, ACC, etc – all of which wind up on the end-user.
If you have a lower income, like the lowest 50% on incomer earners, then the majority of your taxes are consumption taxes. They pay close to double the tax as a percentage of all income than the the top 10% do on all their income (because the wealthy usually earn most of their income from property – most of which is largely untaxed).
Looks like you're also numerically and economically illiterate – what we need are fewer parasites making unearned income of unproductive wealth with pyramid property price schemes.
This sort of argument is disingenuous in my opinion.
For a start we're talking about income tax. not net tax whatever that is.
If the top 10% of earners pay 25% of all of the income tax that is because they have by far the largest proportion of all of the income. So a pointless figure.
But the very wealthy aren't captured in any of those sorts of data and they pay the equivalent of only 8.5% income tax. This isn't fair.
I think most people would be happy if the tax system was fair, which it isn't. It massively benefits those who gain income from wealth as opposed to those who's only income is from work
There are more people on welfare and they are staying on it longer. From the time welfare was introduced in 1938 until the 1970's the percentage of working age people on a benefit never exceeded 2%. Today it is 12% and growing.
Because the welfare system until the mid-80's for most was a job in the public service. This included the compulsory taking on of the excess school leavers that the private sector could not take on, who then never got a chance to languish on benefit. Wives did not need to work or get a benefit because husbands got tax rebates.
It also wasn't government policy back then to have structural unemployment of around 6% and sole parent benefits only came in relatively recently because teenage mums were forced to give up their kids for adoption, and 60 to 64 year olds and underage partners got a pension.
According to MSD fact sheets there are now 77,000 people on benefit aged 55-64. At least half of those would have been on an old age pension (at which point they metamorphasise from bludgers to beautiful "paid taxes all my life" deserved citizens.
It is really dumb to compare the way you have.
Sure and that was completely obvious to me back in 1977 when National Superannuation was instigated by Muldoon. The basic demographics of a falling birthrate on a superannuation system was obvious even before I first went to uni.
But clearly you are an monumental historical idiot about it being 'unaddressed'.
Have you never heard of the New Zealand Superannuation Fund that was started in 2001 and gets regular larger top-ups whenever we don't have the short-term stupidity of a of yet another National-led government. That was started 23 years ago. That was intended to provide pre-saved income for dealing with the economic hump.
and
Or Kiwisaver that was instituted in 2007 as a supplement to help people save for their own retirement.
You really are a bit of dumbarse. Not to mention this pile of lying shit
Yeah?
New survey shows widespread support for taxes on capital gains and windfall profits
Newshub-Reid Research poll finds majority Kiwis back Government revisiting Capital Gains Tax
Poll: Slim majority of voters want capital gains tax on rentals
More Kiwis support capital gains tax than oppose in new poll
In fact when I look at polls and analysis on capital gains tax the only ones that don't seem to support it are those commissioned by the people who have something to lose from it and who usually think only of themselves and have no thought for the good of the economy. Like Business NZ, 'Taxpayers Union' (a property owners lobby group),
You really need to get out and start listening to actual people. I'd suggest talking to people under the age of 35 who have virtually no chance of buying property unless thier parents are affluent enough to leverage up a large deposit.
Lprent why are you so uncivil? I didn't know that the sovereign fund was set up to cover the superannuation shortfall. Now that I do I will check it out to see how it will do that.
On the CGT I do not understand why Jacinda categorically ruled it out if most people support it. It would be far better than a wealth tax which seems to be about taxing savings upon which tax has already been paid.
And rich people would pay tax at the highest rate on the annual income those savings earn.
I agree with you about the difficulty young people have in saving a deposit for a home and believe this is the biggest problem for us to solve as a nation.
"…taxing savings upon which tax has already been paid."
Not if the savings come from unearned income….
“And rich people would pay tax at the highest rate on the annual income those savings earn…”
Except the very wealthy only pay around 8.5% income tax…
“…this is the biggest problem for us to solve as a nation.”
I would say the price of housing relative to income is the problem. Young people’s inability to save a deposit is a symptom of that. (IMO)
No, I don't trust this guy for a second.
He trashed most of the progressive policies of the last Labour government, strangled tax and worker-protection policies despite years of preparation, and led us to crushing electoral defeat without apology.
One of the clearest signals he's sent on tax is hiring a shadow Minister of Finance who simply doesn't believe in substantial tax reform.
On a very, very slow news day he had nothing clear to say about any policy field other than 'all options are on the table'. It's like he's now unable to speak clearly other than in a set of poorly connected abstract nouns.
Wot ad said…
No mention of Trade Unions or Pacifica.
He has to do better than this.
And the term 'working class' mentioned only once by my count.
From a leader of the Labor Party… unbelievable!
To me it sounded like he ignored what Labour actually is and went for the sound bite of Tax reform.
There's nothing more Labour than halfheartedly trying to fight the previous election 6 months to a year too late.
Too late!
I've already joined the Greens!
After 40 years of the legacy of “Roger’n’Ruth” NZ Labour owes the working class of this country a grovelling apology at the very least for all those redundancies of the 80s/90s, market rents, State Sector Act, creation of an ongoing underclass which was never retrained etc. etc.
The way forward for Parliamentary left politics is a broad agreement with TPM, Greens and Labour on Tax and Capital gains and major infrastructure being run and owned by the people again–including disbanding the power market and retiring WINZ/MSD in favour of a Basic Income administered by IRD.
Chris Hipkins is a place holder and significantly helped lose the election with his “Cap’n’s Calls”. Robbo and David Parker are credible people but he managed to alienate them. Credit to him for saying what he did, but…lets move on.
All those thinking that Hipkins sounded good like I did, might like to reflect that according to Plunket & others , yes I know, Shaneel Lal is working in as an executive asst to either Labour party or a Labour MP. Hipkins didn't know what a woman was, Lal was most emphatic that people should go to Albert Park to attempt a thug's veto on Posie Parker who most definitely knows what a women is and wanted to provide a place where women could have their say.
The optics are hopeless
https://x.com/KatrinaBiggs2/status/1771984792357323142?s=20
https://x.com/SeanPlunket/status/1772031086018900299?s=20
Further to this Katrina Biggs comments below:
https://open.substack.com/pub/aboldwoman/p/the-man-who-was-instrumental-in-whipping?r=wthj9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&comments=true
A quote
and
I am hopeful but not starry eyed about the possibility that this GI stuff will be rolled back as Weka has suggested. I am hoping that this will be by left leaning parties and not the right. Otherwise there will be possibly be some dead rat gulping around NZ.
It is not lost on me that the date that this became public marks a year since the LWS gathering was subjected to a thug’s veto at Albert Park in Auckland.
Labour's main problem is still the reason they were unceremoniously thrown out of office..six years of non-delivery on the promises they made..to get elected..
If labour had done what they promised then…they would still be in office..
So now…5 mins after their ejection ..they are expecting voters to believe what they are saying now..?
Good luck with that one..eh..?
And this will last up to the next election..
The only hope that labour have to regain any credence..is to go into the election pledging/arguing for policies agreed by labour/grns/
tmp…
Labour must acknowledge this change in the power dynamic..
That they are no longer the dominant force on the left..
They have to settle under the credibility-wings of grns/tmp..as an equal partner with them..
Everyone knows they mean what they say..
..whereas nobody believes a word labour says..
And labour standing out there on their own..will just be viewed as posturing/hot-air..
After reading this I even more rue Labour's decision making in the last 2-3 years of their government. It is a basic admission that Labour knew what they should have done, but lacked the guts to do it.
And unfortunately Jacinda Adern has to take a large amount of the blame for that. Notwithstanding her fine leadership qualities, Jacinda's emphatic rule out of a wealth tax/CGT/ whatever effectively scuppered any real progress that the Labour government could have made in tax reform and made them look impotent. The first party winning power with an overall majority in MMP elections. They could have done anything they wanted, but in the end didn't want to do anything.
It is like they knew deep down what they needed to do, but their insistence of being "defender of the faith" to corporate NZ ensured they could never do it.
They were loathe to break the promise. That is not something that National would have had any qualms about doing had they been in a parallel situation.
But on the brighter side we must remember that this coalition of chaos exists on a fragile frame of the ostensibly fatherly Luxon trying to control the two spoilt brats Seymour and Peters. At the moment they are all gung-ho and drunk with success. When reality kicks in down the line the more conservative element of National are going to start asking their leadership what the hell have we got ourselves into?
Labour's message must be direct and uncompromising. The public need to be shown the pork barrels and conspiracy theories of NZ First, plus the reverse Robin Hoods of the ACT party. No more playing the respectful nice guy opposition. The NACTZ don't deserve it.
I quite like Chippy, more human than most politicians. If he had never been PM he would be a good leader of the opposition now. He constantly gets the better of Luxon in the House (although that's a pretty low bar, outwitting Luxon is like outrunning a snail).
But he had his chance, and he pursued a defeatist, foolish strategy (not hindsight, many of us said so at the time: you don't get elected by promising not to do things).
It's good that Labour are promoting these policy reviews, and it may well be that Labour have a more positive platform next time. Unfortunately the message is only as strong as the messenger, and Hipkins would spend the entire campaign on the defensive, no matter how good the policies.
Memo to labour:(an ongoing series)
Talk to millennials/gen z…ask them what they want from a political party to gain their support..
Main reason being they are a large demographic bulge…lots of potential votes..
And they are also perhaps the worst affected by the shit storm these decades of neoliberal-incrementalism has wrought…
Hard for them to have much hope about their futures..as things stand..
If labour/the left parties can present solutions to what is ailing them…they will gain their support for the foreseeable future..
And…ignore them at your electoral-peril..
Words are pretty but actions are what matter and Hipkins and post 84 Labour's actions when in positions of power have always protected, upheld and reinforced the status quo and wealthy.
Ardern said things like this all the time in the 2017 campaign and during the first 100 days "globalism has failed" and when push came to shove she ruled out any major economic reforms and upheld the status quo.
Same with Clark who with the alliance/progressives, the greens and later the Maori party had 9 years where there was a progressive majority to reform taxation and plan for the future, she never did
Labour can make all the pretty speeches they want they have NO CREDIBILITY , with a sole majority and an international crisis they could have used to justify changes and unprecedented public support they always protected the interests of the capital and asset class.
from housing reforms, tax reforms to even something as enormously popular as breaking up the supermarket duopoly, they always take the cowards way out, they didn't even have a party position on the weed Referendum which 49.6% supported and even neoliberals like Trudeau and US dems favor.
Labour are cowards.
Forget socialism or even bloody social democracy, anyone wants even basic liberal regulation of capitalism in this country has to go to the Greens or TPM and have them literally force Labour who will to do it.
A Labour party that is too cowardly to reform capitalism so it works for everyone is a Labour that is not worth existing.
The sole majority along with all the many captains calls (along with Clark's 9 years) showed us all what Labour would do if it "had the votes" and that is protect capital at all costs.
All United, sorry Labour will ever offer us are pretty speeches, greenwashed environmental policy, eye wateringly expensive public funded private developer built infrastructure and housing, tut tutting duopolies, a few crumbs for the poor, a new public holiday and going all in on bilingualism and corporate rainbow politics (the last two they go all in on cos they are progressive without threatening capital)
Hipkins failed worse than Cunliffe, why is he still even there? Outside the beltway he's detested left right and center, bye Felicia go and stand for mayor somewhere or get on the reserve Bank board which is our retirement home for politicians.
Wot corey said…
Agree. Labour has no credibility under Hipkins.
Corey: speak for yourself. Chris Hipkins gave a great speech yesterday. He has reflected on Labour's election loss and acknowledges that changes to tax policies are necessary, to address NZ's societal inequities.
Evidently most people weren't voting for a wealth tax, or a tax exemption up to $30,000 of income, because more would have voted for Te Pāti Māori or the Green Party if these were the main policies concerning most people. Labour didn't lose the election because of their tax policies.
Critics on the Left should remember that the Right's $12 million plus relentless attack campaign against Labour played a large part in their election loss.
"If we subtract negative posts from positive posts, about 63 percent more Labour posts included positive self-presentation than negative attacks. In comparison, when we do the same for National, it had a net positivity score of just 5.5 percent". https://www.wgtn.ac.nz/news/2023/10/negative-campaiging-in-the-2023-new-zealand-election
To people who claim this did not have much impact on the result, can they explain why the donors would contribute so much if this was unlikely to be effective?
People have short memories. Prior to the election The Right encouraged feelings of resentment against Maori, by claiming that Labour's policies advantaged Maori at the expense of other NZers. Also, people expressed anger about being expected to comply with Labour's COVID 19 minimisation strategies. Media repeatedly gave entitled individuals opportunities to complain about their specific circumstances, which built up more feelings of anger, as regularly reported by the media.
Chris Hipkins is the best person to lead Labour into the next election. His affable, practical manner and his ability to respond quickly and pragmatically to the media and in Parliament, is reflected in his popularity polling exceeding that of Christopher Luxon.
" Prior to the election The Right encouraged feelings of resentment….."
BooHoo.
It's up to a strong leadership team to present a great policy platform that makes people sit up and take notice.
"Chris Hipkins is the best person to lead Labour into the next election"
Not if Labor wants to win.. (IMO)
Well said Vivie.
The Clark government was in coalition with United 2002-2005 and NZF 2005-2008.
It's a fine speech. I'm still politically homeless.
Labour is a story of missed opportunities and political cowardice and they've just hired a misogynistic bully. Perhaps Hipkins will turn this around: I'll believe it when he unequivocally backs a CGT.
National/ACT are economic incompetents who think that the limits of what will happen with climate change are set by what they are comfortable with (or possibly by baby jeebus).
The Greens have never really backed up their claim to be "science-based" and have done basically nothing to disassociate themselves from a massive medical scandal with Green fingerprints all over it. But at least they get that the climate crisis is just that.
Winston is Winston.
At this point I guess I'll have to vote for the misogynistic homophobic Greens, because even though most of the people on the planet are women, all of the people on the planet are on the planet. Dead rat: it's what's for dinner.
it's going to take some time but the GI stuff will roll back eventually. I just hope the GP aren't so stupid as to follow the UK Greens' example (I don't think they are).
How have Labour just hired?
from the mouth of Chris Hipkins: a Labour MP (Hon Jenny Salesa ?) has hired misogynist and radical activist Shaneen Lal as Executive Assistant.
It is all about the ‘T’ in Labour, Grant Robinson, past minister for sport, couldn’t help himself to hide his misogyny in his very last speech in parliament.
A real shame as I thought he knew his stuff on his other portfolio economics but a really, really disappointment on women's and girl's issues and stubbornly refused to discuss it, as he knew he is wrong on the facts: men are not women.
Lol.
Looks like their researchers still haven't discovered Terf Island. FFS. Being ambushed by Plunkett over 'what is a woman?' should have been a wake up call. To be clear, hiring a trans person is none of our business. Hiring Lal given his politics towards women and his involvement in the Albert Park violence is just wilful fucking stupidity.
Hipkins spoke to Plunket today, on the Let Women Speak anniversary. Audio link here
https://thestandard.org.nz/daily-review-25-03-2024/#comment-1993948
Yet Hipkins couldn't resit the myth of 'both sides' : @7.30min
"There were people on either side who were aggravating the situation to the point that it became impossible for people to exercise their right to free speech.”
Really Mr Hipkins show me the both sides ….
But if you do as a women, exercise your right to free speech, you are a radical feminist – good to know Mr Hipkins.
Still poking the bear
I'm guessing he's asked what TERF stands for, and thinks the GC movements are run by radical feminists. Still come catching up to do.
I've held aloof from the GI debate so far, mainly because of a personal conflict. On the one hand I want to be tolerant of non-binary people, but on the other I'm unconditionally supportive of cis-women's right to be unmolested by male-bodied bullies of whatever self-identified status.
In the end, though, if forced to choose, then there can't be any question of where I stand. Now and for ever, it's with the cis-women.
And having done some reading-up about [insert own choice of honorific] Lal, I don't feel I can stay silent any longer. If
heoh all right they side with the people waving "Suck my lady-dick" signs at Albert Park, and the sort of thug who repeatedly punches a woman old enough to be his grandmother, then they are an absolute no-no as far as I'm concerned, and no politician of any stripe should be daft enough to have anything to do with them. And before I get piled-on: it's nothing to do with their gender-identity. In my book, siding with mysogs and thugs is in itself more than enough to condemn anyone.I predict this hire – if what TT says is true – will be short and unhappy, quite possibly for more than one person.
thanks for taking this position.
Hipkins confirmed that Lal was hired to Sean Plunket (but didn't say which MP had take him on).
For me too it's not Lal's transness, nor even his politics. It's his nastiness and intolerance, and basically inciting violence against women. That someone in Labour hired him shows seriously poor judgement, both for a workplace, but also for the politics of the situation. A TRA would be bad enough, but this particular TRA? Nah.
There's a fair bit of tweeting using Lal's name with photos of his involvement in the Albert Park mob.
We can also look to the UK to see what happens to political parties that have this degree of ideological blindness. The UK Green Party and SNP have both shot themselves in the foot (the Greens multiple times). Labour came to its senses and has started to make some position changes, which suggests they want to win the next election and recognise they need women to do that.
At least no one claims that GR's position is informed by homophobia.
His comments as per sport, are of a person with some personal affinity with the portfolio and interest in the development of women's sport.
it's structural lesbophobia if an MP believes that male people can be lesbians and this impacts on legislation and policy.
Likewise, it's sexist if a male MP believes that male people have no unfair advantage over women in sports.
Good people can be bigots too. Liberals can be bigots. At what point that becomes wilful is less clear, but NZ Labour have had plenty of opportunity to get their heads around the conflict of rights issues and start to listen to women.
Has GR ever said that a male born person can be a lesbian?
Has GR ever denied that a male born person has an advantage over women in sport?
Where does the term structural lesbophobia term come from?
He has been an influential minister in a government that chose trans rights over women's rights and repeatedly refused to address women's concerns about the impact on women of self-ID.
This is GR throwing women under the bus,
Then he has the gall to say "There is still a long way to go to achieve the equity that women in sport deserve".
If GR meant that there are bigots on the fight, he could have said that there are safety and fairness issues for women as well as trans people. Let me know if you see anything like this.
Tbf, I think he is being clueless, but as I said in OM today, Labour have had a long time to get their heads around this issue, and at some point the ignorance has to be seen as wilful.
I made up the term structural lesbophobia but google is telling me, unsurprisingly, that others have used the term too. Do I need to explain what it means?
The "medical practice" was developing during the 2008-2017 period (some of the early gender ID developments occurred under that government – and NACT voted for the later self ID changes here under the last Labour government).
And worldwide little influenced by Green political parties.
A notable amount of revisionism on this since it became a culture war issue.
"Labour was founded on the idea that hard work should pay off and that those who help to generate wealth should enjoy their fair share of it."
So, good. Capital Gains tax I welcome, but wealth tax will send the richest NZers offshore with their wealth and leave the middle to pay the taxes again. IMHO.
"…wealth tax will send the richest NZers offshore with their wealth…"
Rubbish (IMO)
The thing a about a well thought through and effective wealth tax is that it doesn't have to be huge in order to gain significant revenue.
Regardless if people disappear (where too I'm not sure) then there will always be others who step up to take their place.
If they take the wealth to Oz, all of the investment is subject to a CGT.
IF one applies a CGT here first (and backdate it to date of purchase for those who leave the country), one can take a clip of it before they go.
"Our current economic model celebrates those who live off wealth over those who live off work. In the modern economy, contribution and reward aren’t as linked as they used to be."
"I’m confirming today that under a Government I lead there will be no wealth or capital gains tax. End of story."
Note – the second quote may not be 100% as it's from memory but I'm pretty sure is close to what he said.
The point is the disconnect between the two statements, both from the leader of the Labor party and both within the last 6 months.
I can 100% guarantee (in my opinion..hehe) Labor will not win or be in a position to form a government at the next election if Hipkins is still leader.
Hipkins did the left of the party the favour in 2023 of not losing with a CGT or wealth tax policy.
Whether he would have won with it is unknown. A way ahead is good.
A major problem was state house tenancy management and the related impact on public support for the Kainga Ora building programme in their areas.
But the big one was rising rents – a rent freeze, or the Greens 3% pa rent increase cap, would have made a difference.
Highlighting Labour's MW increase record and FPA development when combined with lower rents was the way …
I don't think labour taking a cgt policy into 2023 would have won them the election .
They were kicked out 'cos of non-delivery on the policies/promises made that got them elected..
It’s as simple/straightforward as that..
Cgt/wealth taxes are just part of the policies they have to take into the next election..
"Mixed feelings"?
The 1984-1993 economic reforms were evil. No mixed feelings about that.
Quite apart from the obvious point: Hipkins has no values.
Values do indeed matter, which is why I wont ever vote mainstream in New Zealand.