Cuts, three of the same kind

Written By: - Date published: 10:21 am, November 13th, 2008 - 36 comments
Categories: economy, national/act government - Tags:

From Stuff:

Mr Key said New Zealand had a significant advantage over other countries because official cash rates set by the Reserve Bank were high. “If that weaker scenario is anything like what it could be, then you will see significant rate cuts in New Zealand.”

Oh Christ. It was bad enough when he was trying to direct the Reserve Bank as Opposition Leader but to be making comments like this when he is, in effect, Prime Minister is beyond the Pale. Does this guy not understand that our constitutional set-up gives independence from political interference to the Reserve Bank or does he just not care?

Of course, while the erosion of our constitutional separation of powers is one thing to worry about, a more serious issue, in terms of everyday impact, is where National/Act is going to cut the billions it needs to keep the budget from blowing out while still giving tax cuts to the rich. There’s only a few programmes big enough to cut billions out of them – health, education, Working for Families, benefits, Super, and the Cullen Fund. Where will the National/Act cleaver slice?

[turns out we’ve always used the term PM-elect, thanks mysterious stranger]

36 comments on “Cuts, three of the same kind ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. NX 1
    13 November 2008 at 10:45 am

    I think the term Prime Minister designate is probably more appropriate.

  2. Seti 2
    13 November 2008 at 10:48 am

    Bollix SP. He’s giving an obvious prediction not direction.

  3. Bryan Spondre 3
    13 November 2008 at 10:54 am

    “It’s time the Reserve Bank stopped strangling New Zealand with high interest rates when the problem is coming from overseas. The only result is to weaken New Zealand’s economy when it needs to be strong. Stop punishing Kiwis for a problem they didn’t create. Lower interest rates.” – July 15, 2008

    [bryan. a few dumb commentators waste too much of other people’s time on this blog. you’re one of them. I didn’t say no-one can comment on what they want to RB to do, I said that it is established practice that the Government and the PM do not comment on what they wnat or expect the RB to do because it undermines the RB’s independence. It’s fine fr you and I to express an opinion because we’re not the PM, it’s not ok for Key to do so. SP]

  4. Simon 4
    13 November 2008 at 10:55 am

    Labour eroded the constitutional separation of powers more than any government in the OECD; stacking the Public Service with Labour apparatchiks and interfering in Justice and the Police by setting targets and quotas.

    Yet _now_ the communist hypocrites of the “Standard” are concerned about the separation of powers -you couldn’t make this stuff up.

    Now to tax cuts. They’re not “Tax Cuts for the Rich” as the slobbering imbeciles of the Standard would have us believe. They’re long-overdue respite for the overburdened who for TOO LONG have been expected to support the lavish lifestyles of the undeserving.

    Where are the tax cuts going to come from? The New Zealand taxpayer is no longer going to be expected to pay to support the P habits of the criminals and the lazy.

    IrishBill: I’m getting sick of people coming onto our blog and abusing us with this sort of shit. Who the fuck do you think you are? You’re banned for a week.

  5. Robinsod 5
    13 November 2008 at 10:56 am

    Seti – The PM is not supposed to engage in predictions on the OCR. That’s to ensure that so called impartial observations are not used – or seen to be used – as a way of tacitly directing the RB guv.

    NX – I agree with you… Probably for the last time in a long time…

  6. Matthew Pilott 6
    13 November 2008 at 10:57 am

    Bryan – the executive SP ain’t.

    Edit – Simon, the election is over. Please, for the love of the Great Magnet, spare us the C/T manicured bullshit National PartySpeak.

  7. Graeme 7
    13 November 2008 at 10:57 am

    TVNZ have been using “Prime Minister designate”, and occassionally “Prime Minister to be”.

  8. Steve Pierson 8
    13 November 2008 at 10:59 am

    Seti. There is very well established practice arond what politicians can say about independent bodies’ actions – no direction, no ‘prediction’. Just as it’s not OK for the PM to go around saying what they want the outcome of a criminal trial to be, they can’t go around ‘predicting’ the actions of the Reserve Bank. No matter how you couch it, it is an attack on the independence of the independent body by the politician. because politicians are elected they have a lot of force behind what they say and they can generate public expectations about what will happen – given this power, it is wholly inappropriate for them to abuse it.

    Key would be wise to not be seen to be trying to influence the decisions of independent bodies

  9. Bryan Spondre 9
    13 November 2008 at 11:01 am

    “As a matter of urgency, we must then rewrite the Reserve Bank Act.

    Now this is an obscure piece of legislation that very few New Zealanders understand and even fewer have actually read.

    The job of the Reserve Bank should be to maintain stability in the economy in terms of employment and growth as well as keeping inflation under control – as it is for example in Australia, the UK and the US.” – Winston Peters October 21, 2008

  10. lonelyavenger 10
    13 November 2008 at 11:01 am

    “Does this guy not understand that our constituional (sic) set-up gives independence from political interference to the Reserve Bank or does he just not care?”

    I suspect he just took his cue from Helen Clark when in May she made a comment about the government being committed to interest rate cuts and then in October said is was her view that interest rates “should come down”.

  11. Bryan Spondre 11
    13 November 2008 at 11:06 am

    “Bollard said he had an easier time of it than previous Reserve Bank governors, such as Don Brash, who had to hammer inflationary expectations lower with less flexible inflation targeting.

    Bollard said the current Policy Targets Agreement between himself and Finance Minister Michael Cullen requires the Reserve Bank to “minimise unnecessary instability in output and exchange rates and interest rates.’

    “That says don’t get too cute about these things. We’ve got to be aware of the broader objectives of government and we’ve got to allow for flexibility,’ he said.” – Allan Bollard August 6, 2008

    Pot, kettle,black ?

    [no Bryan. The Policy Targets Agreement does not allow the Government to direct or ‘predict’ the RB’s behaviours. It requires the RB to be mindful of government objectives other than inflation, something else entirely. honestly, last chance to say something sensible. SP]

    [Tane: Steve, Bryan is banned from this site permanently. He can go play at policy.net with his mates Chri… oh, that’s right, they’ve both quit.]

  12. Steve Pierson 12
    13 November 2008 at 11:06 am

    lonelyavenger. The first is a statement of government policy, not a direction to the RB to behave a certain way in response to certian events. The second, I haven’t seen the quote but as you have and you haven’t given it word for word, I suspect she’s talking about banks’ interest rates, not the RB’s OCR.

    If she did make statements on what the RB should do, that would also be wrong.

  13. Scribe 13
    13 November 2008 at 11:14 am

    There is very well established practice arond what politicians can say about independent bodies’ actions – no direction, no ‘prediction’.

    Wasn’t there an interesting situation earlier this year (or maybe last year) about Auckland International Airport and possible overseas investment? Can’t remember the exact details, but I recall there were allegations of ministerial influence.

  14. Tigger 14
    13 November 2008 at 11:16 am

    For Key I propose the use of the phrase Prime Tosser.

    The Americanisation of our electoral process was an unfortunate by-product of our and their elections occurring close together. I’m not a fan of it at all – especially since Key seems to have ridden on Obama’s coat-tails – I can’t fathom why the press fell for that linking but they did and they pushed it and it helped National win.

  15. lonelyavenger 15
    13 November 2008 at 11:17 am

    Steve,

    The quote is from memory, so it shouldn’t give it too much credence. Regardless of who said what, a politician or PM commenting what they think the Reserve Bank should do or will do does not necessarily compromise its operational independence. Surely there would need to be more action than mere comment?

  16. Mike 16
    13 November 2008 at 11:23 am

    Re Prime Minister – Elect… I hate to cite Wikipedia but it seems “Prime Minister Elect” is often used (incorrectly) by the media throughout the world – must be part of an international right wing conspiracy…. ;P
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prime_Minister-elect

  17. Graeme 17
    13 November 2008 at 11:26 am

    I’ll add that I’m pretty sure that, long before some were calling John Key the Prime Minister-elect (even though we don’t elect prime ministers), others were calling Helen Clark out “first elected woman prime minister” (even though we don’t elect prime ministers).

  18. Akldnut 18
    13 November 2008 at 11:43 am

    Key – Prime Minister elect. He hasn’t been sworn in as PM! So until it happens he is still clearly leader of the opposition. The term Prime Minister designate is more appropriate.
    But I agree with Tigger – Prime Tosser / Liar would do.

    Simon the communist hypocrites of the “Standard I think that you would be pretty lucky to find anyone here a member of the Communist Party – a typical statement from a gloating troll.

  19. Killinginthenameof 19
    13 November 2008 at 11:52 am

    That is pretty bloody damning of John Key, surely he can be that green at this that he can let one like that slip? This along with the herceptain thing is a worrying trend.

  20. Scribe 20
    13 November 2008 at 11:54 am

    Here’s a look at the Auckland Airport situation. Comparing Cullen to Muldoon.

    From the Sunday Star-Times

    And from the Herald

    Cullen’s comments and actions cost many New Zealanders a lot of money.

  21. Steve Pierson 21
    13 November 2008 at 11:56 am

    scribe. Making money for Auckland Airport shareholders is not the only priority of a government. And I’m speaking as one.

  22. tsmithfield 22
    13 November 2008 at 12:02 pm

    Hasn’t the RB governer already been making statements along these lines? If not, would it not be unreasonable to assume that the RB governer had given Key a heads-up on his future plans?

    In either case, it seems likely to me that Key is taking his direction from the RB not the other way around.

  23. TimeWarp 23
    13 November 2008 at 12:13 pm

    Scribe. Your point has some bearing, if being untimely and misdirected.

    $1.5bn of our money to be thrown loosely away on a “Think Big” style program to run glass wires into every premise in the country. So who is Muldoon now?

  24. Scribe 24
    13 November 2008 at 12:36 pm

    TimeWarp,

    How is National’s broadband policy in the same league? John Key isn’t making up policy as he goes like Cullen did in this case, or like Muldoon routinely did.

    From the Star-Times column linked to above:

    Political commentator Chris Trotter said the use of an order-in-council to rewrite the law harked back to the 1980s. “It would have been just another day under Rob Muldoon,” he said, “but using the governor-general and most of the cabinet to rewrite the rules is not something we are used to any more.”

  25. Tim Ellis 25
    13 November 2008 at 12:51 pm

    I’m afraid you’re wrong, SP. Prime Ministers have frequently commented on the Reserve Bank and its activities. The convention is that PMs should avoid saying anything that may interfere with the political independence of the RBNZ. That does not extend to banning PMs from welcoming rate cuts after the fact, or giving a personal view as to which way rates may move, or the sort of factors that the RBNZ may take into account.

    Just a few weeks ago, the PM was reported as saying:

    Labour’s leader Helen Clark says she is sure the Reserve Bank will ignore high inflation when it reviews interest rates on Thursday, despite inflation peaking at 5.1% in the year to the end of September.

    http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/events/election2008/stories/2008/10/21/12437a22356c

    Where was your hysteria then, SP?

  26. TimeWarp 26
    13 November 2008 at 1:24 pm

    Scribe.

    How is it not? It’s a grandiose, headline-grabbing scheme (I use that term loosely given the lack of policy definition) that squanders billions of taxpayer money without good economic return. (As it happens I have concerns about the AIAL intervention, but it pales by comparison to the fibre plan. The AIAL intervention it can be argued took away some of the property rights of shareholders – but it didn’t take away their property. By contrast, the fibre scheme both in effect nationalises Telecom’s copper network, and misappropriates $1.5b of taxpayer funds.)

    Don’t take my word for it:

    “Fibre to the Home is too interventionist and too expensive.” – Rod Drury, NBR this week.

    “The price tag of $1.5 billion represents only a small portion of the total cost of FTTP deployment, for which estimates range from $4 billion to $10 billion, depending upon whether we take it to the street or make the highcost
    leap into the premises. We risk marginalizing current and future investment,
    overbuilding and destabilising the industry with no clear view of what exactly we want to achieve or the total price tag to taxpayers…. New Zealand already has considerable metropolitan and urban fibre, with
    more planned through private investment. On this basis, a new nationalized fibre
    network risks overlaying or bypassing, at least in part, existing competitive
    infrastructure. Is that the Government’s objective?” – IDC

    Quite apart from all that, the Cullen/Muldoon reference was avoidance on your part. National supposedly is the party of individual freedom, responsibility and accountability; but when it’s Leader is questioned the answer is the actions of someone else months or years ago? Apparently the previous Labour government did little right, but is now an appropriate benchmark by which Key & co should be evaluated?

    There are important issues for the country to address in the here-and-now for the benefit of all New Zealanders, and we should focus on those. There has been little real critical evaluation and debate in the election campaign; perhaps we could start some now than firing shots at dead and departed Finance Ministers.

    One of the immediate questions to you as a supporter of Key’s policy, echoing the comment above: Do you believe the government should be competing with/superseding established commercial entities and networks?

  27. randal 27
    13 November 2008 at 3:22 pm

    oh goody
    now I can play pac man and space invaders on line with some dweeb in the middle of the sahara desert
    wow
    sign me up
    is it free?
    where’s winnie whenyou need him

  28. travellerev 28
    13 November 2008 at 3:25 pm

    Oh shit,

    All of youse left and right still believe in a benign institution protecting the countries financial affairs with dignity and suitably independent from us the people who govern through our elected representatives but somehow we need an external undemocratic group of people who deal with what is ostensible that which wields the most power: Money. Our wealth, earned by our toil but we don’t get to decide how much of it is in the system or where we spend it on. An non-transparent international cartel of banks and powerful mysterious individuals is tasked with our finanacial affairs

    Doesn’t it sound strange to you that and unelected, uncountable group of people deals with what we build up in wealth through our labour.

    An unelected group of people who are giving billions of “our” money to other powerful unelected institutions called banks.

    And who borrow billions and billions to keep those banks afloat to “protect” us and our economy. Shady money funnelling, unelected but powerful and unaccountable international institutions who lend money and charge interest and on whom we are totally dependent for some strange reason.

    For all of you now would be a really good time to watch “Money masters” and “money as debt” and if you really want to know why it is that the federal reserve can “lend” (i.e. print money out of thin air” watch this presentation about “the creature from Jekyll Island”.
    The presenter of whom told me when I met him in Sidney in March 2008 when I conveyed my worries about JK, “he will sell your country and throw in his mother with the deal.”

    After you’ve watched those you will probably understand that JK is probably the only one who really understand who really rules.

    I’ll give you hint: Baron the Rothschild once said, “give me the right to print money and I care not who makes the laws.” His family has been printing the money for England, Australia and the US ever since. he also said:” I care not who sits on the throne, the one with the real power is who the one who controls the money stream. I control the money stream.

    And yes, when the NZ government signed the Federal reserve act in 1989 as prepared by Don Brash they started to print it for NZ too.

    Two years after Alan Greenspan took the chair, allowed the trade in speculative derivatives again which had been shelved in the year 1933 to protect us the working population from the speculative Wall street/City of London predators and allowed bubble after bust after bubble and which is now bringing down our financial system.

    Congratulations New Zealanders, you just told the fox he could eat the chickens.

  29. Billy 29
    13 November 2008 at 3:45 pm

    Ignore Ev, everyone. She is running a “NZ sucks” campaign. Everyone around here hates that.

  30. Tim Ellis 30
    13 November 2008 at 5:12 pm

    Ev, you are running a “NZ sucks” campaign. If you don’t like living in New Zealand, and think New Zealanders are stupid, feel free to leave. If you do leave, I suggest you go to live some place where there is no democracy so that you don’t have to suffer the pain of seeing your beloved dictatorship voted out by stupid people.

  31. randal 31
    13 November 2008 at 6:32 pm

    dont listen to them ev.
    they are incapable of understanding the difference between the general and the particular and in particular they are new zealanders and they suck
    just have to look at teevee and listen to the radio with the ignorati thinking they are somebodies now because jahnny keys got a go
    suck suck
    those people suck and furthermore they are not real mainstream new zealanders and neither is john keys
    he is just a currency speculator lining up his mark

  32. travellerev 32
    13 November 2008 at 6:47 pm

    Biily and Tim,

    Perhaps you don’t get it but I really love this country and it’s people but I also see a lot of ignorance.

    Randal,

    What are you doing tonight.

  33. randal 33
    13 November 2008 at 6:55 pm

    why ev
    I thought you were a happily married gel
    however I will be thinking of you and your courage to keep on at these sub humans
    they need it
    onya mate

  34. randal 34
    13 November 2008 at 7:25 pm

    Hey Ev
    while we are about it
    the same lot of noo noo heads are busy hijacking kiwi cultural icons like anzac day and saying they are exlusively national party fixtures
    sick dudes ev
    watch out for them

  35. keith 35
    14 November 2008 at 11:33 am

    Key is an ex-FOREX trader and knows that when the reserve bank drops its rate (or even looks like droppping its rate) that the NZ dollar falls with respect to foreign currency. I suspect that Key has a boatload of foreign $ that he wants to convert to NZ$ at the best rate possible so this announcment is just him using his political clout to drop the NZ exchange rate for that purpose. He’ll want all that NZ$ to spend on the sweet NZ based business deals him and his cronies will be giving each other now that they’re in government.

  36. Blue is good 36
    14 November 2008 at 1:58 pm

    Irish Bill is correct.
    Freedom of speech is also part of our constitution and typical of the left, if they don’t like what they hear, they will shut them up.
    Yep domocracy at work right here at the Standard.
    What a joke..

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    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    22 hours ago

  • An impermanent public service is a guarantee of very little else but failure
    Chris Trotter writes –  The absence of anything resembling a fightback from the public servants currently losing their jobs is interesting. State-sector workers’ collective fatalism in the face of Coalition cutbacks indicates a surprisingly broad acceptance of impermanence in the workplace. Fifty years ago, lay-offs in the thousands ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    23 hours ago

  • What happens after the war – Mariupol
    Mariupol, on the Azov Sea coast, was one of the first cities to suffer almost complete destruction after the start of the Ukraine War started in late February 2022. We remember the scenes of absolute destruction of the houses and city structures. The deaths of innocent civilians – many of ...
    Open ParachuteBy Ken
    23 hours ago

  • Babies and benefits – no good news
    Lindsay Mitchell writes – Ten years ago, I wrote the following in a Listener column: Every year around one in five new-born babies will be reliant on their caregivers benefit by Christmas. This pattern has persisted from at least 1993. For Maori the number jumps to over one in three.  ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago

  • Should the RBNZ be looking through climate inflation?
    Climate change is expected to generate more and more extreme events, delivering a sort of structural shock to inflation that central banks will have to react to as if they were short-term cyclical issues. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMy pick of the six newsey things to know from Aotearoa’s ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago

  • Bernard's pick 'n' mix of the news links
    The top six news links I’ve seen elsewhere in the last 24 hours, as of 9:16 am on Thursday, April 18 are:Housing: Tauranga residents living in boats, vans RNZ Checkpoint Louise TernouthHousing: Waikato councillor says wastewater plant issues could hold up Sleepyhead building a massive company town Waikato Times Stephen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago

  • Gordon Campbell on the public sector carnage, and misogyny as terrorism
    It’s a simple deal. We pay taxes in order to finance the social services we want and need. The carnage now occurring across the public sector though, is breaking that contract. Over 3,000 jobs have been lost so far. Many are in crucial areas like Education where the impact of ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    1 day ago

  • Meeting the Master Baiters
    Hi,A friend had their 40th over the weekend and decided to theme it after Curb Your Enthusiasm fashion icon Susie Greene. Captured in my tiny kitchen before I left the house, I ending up evoking a mix of old lesbian and Hillary Clinton — both unintentional.Me vs Hillary ClintonIf you’re ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    1 day ago

  • How extreme was the Earth's temperature in 2023
    This is a re-post from Andrew Dessler at the Climate Brink blog In 2023, the Earth reached temperature levels unprecedented in modern times. Given that, it’s reasonable to ask: What’s going on? There’s been lots of discussions by scientists about whether this is just the normal progression of global warming or if something ...
    Skeptical Science
    1 day ago

  • Backbone, revisited
    The schools are on holiday and the sun is shining in the seaside village and all day long I have been seeing bunches of bikes; Mums, Dads, teens and toddlers chattering, laughing, happy, having a bloody great time together. Cheers, AT, for the bits of lane you’ve added lately around the ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago

  • Ministers are not above the law
    Today in our National-led authoritarian nightmare: Shane Jones thinks Ministers should be above the law: New Zealand First MP Shane Jones is accusing the Waitangi Tribunal of over-stepping its mandate by subpoenaing a minister for its urgent hearing on the Oranga Tamariki claim. The tribunal is looking into the ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    2 days ago

  • What’s the outfit you can hear going down the gurgler? Probably it’s David Parker’s Oceans Sec...
    Buzz from the Beehive Point  of Order first heard of the Oceans Secretariat in June 2021, when David Parker (remember him?) announced a multi-agency approach to protecting New Zealand’s marine ecosystems and fisheries. Parker (holding the Environment, and Oceans and Fisheries portfolios) broke the news at the annual Forest & ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    2 days ago

  • Will politicians let democracy die in the darkness?
    Bryce Edwards writes  – Politicians across the political spectrum are implicated in the New Zealand media’s failing health. Either through neglect or incompetent interventions, successive governments have failed to regulate, foster, and allow a healthy Fourth Estate that can adequately hold politicians and the powerful to account. ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago

  • Matt Doocey doubles down on trans “healthcare”
    Citizen Science writes –  Last week saw two significant developments in the debate over the treatment of trans-identifying children and young people – the release in Britain of the final report of Dr Hilary Cass’s review into gender healthcare, and here in New Zealand, the news that the ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago

  • A TikTok Prime Minister.
    One night while sleeping in my bed I had a beautiful dreamThat all the people of the world got together on the same wavelengthAnd began helping one anotherNow in this dream, universal love was the theme of the dayPeace and understanding and it happened this wayAfter such an eventful day ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 days ago

  • Texas Lessons
    This is a guest post by Oscar Simms who is a housing activist, volunteer for the Coalition for More Homes, and was the Labour Party candidate for Auckland Central at the last election. ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    2 days ago

  • Bernard's pick 'n' mix of the news links at 6:06 am
    The top six news links I’ve seen elsewhere in the last 24 hours as of 6:06 am on Wednesday, April 17 are:Must read: Secrecy shrouds which projects might be fast-tracked RNZ Farah HancockScoop: Revealed: Luxon has seven staffers working on social media content - partly paid for by taxpayer Newshub ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago

  • Fighting poverty on the holiday highway
    Turning what Labour called the “holiday highway” into a four-lane expressway from Auckland to Whangarei could bring at least an economic benefit of nearly two billion a year for Northland each year. And it could help bring an end to poverty in one of New Zealand’s most deprived regions. The ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    2 days ago

  • Bernard's six-stack of substacks at 6:26 pm
    Tonight’s six-stack includes: launching his substack with a bunch of his previous documentaries, including this 1992 interview with Dame Whina Cooper. and here crew give climate activists plenty to do, including this call to submit against the Fast Track Approvals bill. writes brilliantly here on his substack ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago

  • At a glance – Is the science settled?
    On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
    Skeptical Science
    3 days ago

  • Apposite Quotations.
    How Long Is Long Enough? Gaza under Israeli bombardment, July 2014. This posting is exclusive to Bowalley Road. ...
    Bowalley Road
    3 days ago

  • What’s a life worth now?
    You're in the mall when you hear it: some kind of popping sound in the distance, kids with fireworks, maybe. But then a moment of eerie stillness is followed by more of the fireworks sound and there’s also screaming and shrieking and now here come people running for their lives.Does ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago

  • Howling at the Moon
    Karl du Fresne writes –  There’s a crisis in the news media and the media are blaming it on everyone except themselves. Culpability is being deflected elsewhere – mainly to the hapless Minister of Communications, Melissa Lee, and the big social media platforms that are accused of hoovering ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago

  • Newshub is Dead.
    I don’t normally send out two newsletters in a day but I figured I’d say something about… the news. If two newsletters is a bit much then maybe just skip one, I don’t want to overload people. Alternatively if you’d be interested in sometimes receiving multiple, smaller updates from me, ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago

  • Seymour is chuffed about cutting early-learning red tape – but we hear, too, that Jones has loose...
    Buzz from the Beehive David Seymour and Winston Peters today signalled that at least two ministers of the Crown might be in Wellington today. Seymour (as Associate Minister of Education) announced the removal of more red tape, this time to make it easier for new early learning services to be ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago

  • Bryce Edwards: Will politicians let democracy die in the darkness?
    Politicians across the political spectrum are implicated in the New Zealand media’s failing health. Either through neglect or incompetent interventions, successive governments have failed to regulate, foster, and allow a healthy Fourth Estate that can adequately hold politicians and the powerful to account. Our political system is suffering from the ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    3 days ago

  • Was Hawkesby entirely wrong?
    David Farrar  writes –  The Broadcasting Standards Authority ruled: Comments by radio host Kate Hawkesby suggesting Māori and Pacific patients were being prioritised for surgery due to their ethnicity were misleading and discriminatory, the Broadcasting Standards Authority has found. It is a fact such patients are prioritised. ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago

  • PRC shadow looms as the Solomons head for election
    PRC and its proxies in Solomons have been preparing for these elections for a long time. A lot of money, effort and intelligence have gone into ensuring an outcome that won’t compromise Beijing’s plans. Cleo Paskall writes – On April 17th the Solomon Islands, a country of ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago

  • Climate Change: Criminal ecocide
    We are in the middle of a climate crisis. Last year was (again) the hottest year on record. NOAA has just announced another global coral bleaching event. Floods are threatening UK food security. So naturally, Shane Jones wants to make it easier to mine coal: Resources Minister Shane Jones ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago

  • Is saving one minute of a politician's time worth nearly $1 billion?
    Is speeding up the trip to and from Wellington airport by 12 minutes worth spending up more than $10 billion? Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The six news items that stood out to me in the last day to 8:26 am today are:The Lead: Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago

  • Long Tunnel or Long Con?
    Yesterday it was revealed that Transport Minister had asked Waka Kotahi to look at the options for a long tunnel through Wellington. State Highway 1 (SH1) through Wellington City is heavily congested at peak times and while planning continues on the duplicate Mt Victoria Tunnel and Basin Reserve project, the ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    3 days ago

  • Smoke And Mirrors.
    You're a fraud, and you know itBut it's too good to throw it all awayAnyone would do the sameYou've got 'em goingAnd you're careful not to show itSometimes you even fool yourself a bitIt's like magicBut it's always been a smoke and mirrors gameAnyone would do the sameForty six billion ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago

  • What is Mexico doing about climate change?
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections The June general election in Mexico could mark a turning point in ensuring that the country’s climate policies better reflect the desire of its citizens to address the climate crisis, with both leading presidential candidates expressing support for renewable energy. Mexico is the ...
    Skeptical Science
    3 days ago

  • State of humanity, 2024
    2024, it feels, keeps presenting us with ever more challenges, ever more dismay.Do you give up yet? It seems to ask.No? How about this? Or this?How about this?When I say 2024 I really mean the state of humanity in 2024.Saturday night, we watched Civil War because that is one terrifying cliff we've ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 days ago

  • Govt’s Wellington tunnel vision aims to ease the way to the airport (but zealous promoters of cycl...
    Buzz from the Beehive A pet project and governmental tunnel vision jump out from the latest batch of ministerial announcements. The government is keen to assure us of its concern for the wellbeing of our pets. It will be introducing pet bonds in a change to the Residential Tenancies Act ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago

  • The case for cultural connectedness
    A recent report generated from a Growing Up in New Zealand (GUiNZ) survey of 1,224 rangatahi Māori aged 11-12 found: Cultural connectedness was associated with fewer depression symptoms, anxiety symptoms and better quality of life. That sounds cut and dry. But further into the report the following appears: Cultural connectedness is ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago

  • Useful context on public sector job cuts
    David Farrar writes –    The Herald reports: From the gory details of job-cuts news, you’d think the public service was being eviscerated.   While the media’s view of the cuts is incomplete, it’s also true that departments have been leaking the particulars faster than a Wellington ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago

  • Gordon Campbell On When Racism Comes Disguised As Anti-racism
    Remember the good old days, back when New Zealand had a PM who could think and speak calmly and intelligently in whole sentences without blustering? Even while Iran’s drones and missiles were still being launched, Helen Clark was live on TVNZ expertly summing up the latest crisis in the Middle ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    4 days ago

  • Govt ignored economic analysis of smokefree reversal
    Costello did not pass on analysis of the benefits of the smokefree reforms to Cabinet, emphasising instead the extra tax revenues of repealing them. Photo: Hagen Hopkins, Getty Images TL;DR: The six news items that stood out to me at 7:26 am today are:The Lead: Casey Costello never passed on ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago

  • True Blue.
    True loveYou're the one I'm dreaming ofYour heart fits me like a gloveAnd I'm gonna be true blueBaby, I love youI’ve written about the job cuts in our news media last week. The impact on individuals, and the loss to Aotearoa of voices covering our news from different angles.That by ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago

  • Who is running New Zealand’s foreign policy?
    While commentators, including former Prime Minister Helen Clark, are noting a subtle shift in New Zealand’s foreign policy, which now places more emphasis on the United States, many have missed a key element of the shift. What National said before the election is not what the government is doing now. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    4 days ago

  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #15
    A listing of 31 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 7, 2024 thru Sat, April 13, 2024. Story of the week Our story of the week is about adults in the room setting terms and conditions of ...
    Skeptical Science
    5 days ago

  • Feline Friends and Fragile Fauna The Complexities of Cats in New Zealand’s Conservation Efforts

    Cats, with their independent spirit and beguiling purrs, have captured the hearts of humans for millennia. In New Zealand, felines are no exception, boasting the highest national cat ownership rate globally [definition cat nz cat foundation]. An estimated 1.134 million pet cats grace Kiwi households, compared to 683,000 dogs ...

    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    5 days ago

  • Or is that just they want us to think?
    Nice guy, that Peter Williams. Amiable, a calm air of no-nonsense capability, a winning smile. Everything you look for in a TV presenter and newsreader.I used to see him sometimes when I went to TVNZ to be a talking head or a panellist and we would yarn. Nice guy, that ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 days ago

  • Fact Brief – Did global warming stop in 1998?
    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 in collaboration with members from our Skeptical Science team. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Did global warming stop in ...
    Skeptical Science
    6 days ago

  • Arguing over a moot point.
    I have been following recent debates in the corporate and social media about whether it is a good idea for NZ to join what is known as “AUKUS Pillar Two.” AUKUS is the Australian-UK-US nuclear submarine building agreement in which … Continue reading → ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    6 days ago

  • No Longer Trusted: Ageing Boomers, Laurie & Les, Talk Politics.
    Turning Point: “What has turned me away from the mainstream news media is the very strong message that its been sending out for the last few years.” “And what message might that be?” “That the people who own it, the people who run it, and the people who provide its content, really don’t ...
    Bowalley Road
    6 days ago

  • Mortgage rates at 10% anyone?
    No – nothing about that in PM Luxon’s nine-point plan to improve the lives of New Zealanders. But beyond our shores Jamie Dimon, the long-serving head of global bank J.P. Morgan Chase, reckons that the chances of a goldilocks soft landing for the economy are “a lot lower” than the ...
    Point of OrderBy xtrdnry
    6 days ago

  • Sad tales from the left
    Michael Bassett writes –  Have you noticed the odd way in which the media are handling the government’s crackdown on surplus employees in the Public Service? Very few reporters mention the crazy way in which State Service numbers rocketed ahead by more than 16,000 during Labour’s six years, ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago

  • In Whose Best Interests?
    On The Spot: The question Q+A host, Jack Tame, put to the Workplace & Safety Minister, Act’s Brooke van Velden, was disarmingly simple: “Are income tax cuts right now in the best interests of lowering inflation?”JACK TAME has tested another MP on his Sunday morning current affairs show, Q+A. Minister for Workplace ...
    Bowalley Road
    6 days ago

  • Don’t Question, Don’t Complain.
    It has to start somewhereIt has to start sometimeWhat better place than here?What better time than now?So it turns out that I owe you all an apology.It seems that all of the terrible things this government is doing, impacting the lives of many, aren’t necessarily ‘bad’ per se. Those things ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    6 days ago

  • Auckland faces 25% water inflation shock
    Three Waters became a focus of anti-Government protests under Labour, but its dumping by the new Government hasn’t solved councils’ funding problems and will eventually hit the back pockets of everyone. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTL;DR: The six news items that stood out to me at 8:06 am today are:The Government ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago

  • Small accomplishments and large ironies
    Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past week’s editions.Share Read more ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago

  • Comprehensive Partnership the goal for NZ and the Philippines
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr.  The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    12 hours ago

  • Government commits $20m to Westport flood protection
    The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    17 hours ago

  • Taupō takes pole position
    The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    18 hours ago

  • Cost of living support for low-income homeowners
    Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners.  “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    20 hours ago

  • Government backing mussel spat project
    The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    21 hours ago

  • Government focused on getting people into work
    Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    24 hours ago

  • Clean energy key driver to reducing emissions
    The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago

  • Earthquake-prone buildings review brought forward
    The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago

  • Thailand and NZ to agree to Strategic Partnership
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Government consults on extending coastal permits for ports
    RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Inflation coming down, but more work to do
    Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • School attendance restored as a priority in health advice
    Refreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Unnecessary bureaucracy cut in oceans sector
    Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Patterson promoting NZ’s wool sector at International Congress
    Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson is speaking at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide, promoting New Zealand wool, and outlining the coalition Government’s support for the revitalisation the sector.    "New Zealand’s wool exports reached $400 million in the year to 30 June 2023, and the coalition Government ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Removing red tape to help early learners thrive
    The Government is making legislative changes to make it easier for new early learning services to be established, and for existing services to operate, Associate Education Minister David Seymour says. The changes involve repealing the network approval provisions that apply when someone wants to establish a new early learning service, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • RMA changes to cut coal mining consent red tape
    Changes to the Resource Management Act will align consenting for coal mining to other forms of mining to reduce barriers that are holding back economic development, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The inconsistent treatment of coal mining compared with other extractive activities is burdensome red tape that fails to acknowledge ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • McClay reaffirms strong NZ-China trade relationship
    Trade, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Todd McClay has concluded productive discussions with ministerial counterparts in Beijing today, in support of the New Zealand-China trade and economic relationship. “My meeting with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao reaffirmed the complementary nature of the bilateral trade relationship, with our Free Trade Agreement at its ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Prime Minister Luxon acknowledges legacy of Singapore Prime Minister Lee
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today paid tribute to Singapore’s outgoing Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.   Meeting in Singapore today immediately before Prime Minister Lee announced he was stepping down, Prime Minister Luxon warmly acknowledged his counterpart’s almost twenty years as leader, and the enduring legacy he has left for Singapore and South East ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • PMs Luxon and Lee deepen Singapore-NZ ties
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. While in Singapore as part of his visit to South East Asia this week, Prime Minister Luxon also met with Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and will meet with Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.  During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Antarctica New Zealand Board appointments
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters has made further appointments to the Board of Antarctica New Zealand as part of a continued effort to ensure the Scott Base Redevelopment project is delivered in a cost-effective and efficient manner.  The Minister has appointed Neville Harris as a new member of the Board. Mr ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Finance Minister travels to Washington DC
    Finance Minister Nicola Willis will travel to the United States on Tuesday to attend a meeting of the Five Finance Ministers group, with counterparts from Australia, the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom.  “I am looking forward to meeting with our Five Finance partners on how we can work ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Pet bonds a win/win for renters and landlords
    The coalition Government has today announced purrfect and pawsitive changes to the Residential Tenancies Act to give tenants with pets greater choice when looking for a rental property, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Pets are important members of many Kiwi families. It’s estimated that around 64 per cent of New ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Long Tunnel for SH1 Wellington being considered
    State Highway 1 (SH1) through Wellington City is heavily congested at peak times and while planning continues on the duplicate Mt Victoria Tunnel and Basin Reserve project, the Government has also asked NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) to consider and provide advice on a Long Tunnel option, Transport Minister Simeon Brown ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • New Zealand condemns Iranian strikes
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Foreign Minister Winston Peters have condemned Iran’s shocking and illegal strikes against Israel.    “These attacks are a major challenge to peace and stability in a region already under enormous pressure," Mr Luxon says.    "We are deeply concerned that miscalculation on any side could ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Huge interest in Government’s infrastructure plans
    Hundreds of people in little over a week have turned out in Northland to hear Regional Development Minister Shane Jones speak about plans for boosting the regional economy through infrastructure. About 200 people from the infrastructure and associated sectors attended an event headlined by Mr Jones in Whangarei today. Last ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago

  • Health Minister thanks outgoing Health New Zealand Chair
    Health Minister Dr Shane Reti has today thanked outgoing Health New Zealand – Te Whatu Ora Chair Dame Karen Poutasi for her service on the Board.   “Dame Karen tendered her resignation as Chair and as a member of the Board today,” says Dr Reti.  “I have asked her to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago

  • Roads of National Significance planning underway
    The NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has signalled their proposed delivery approach for the Government’s 15 Roads of National Significance (RoNS), with the release of the State Highway Investment Proposal (SHIP) today, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.  “Boosting economic growth and productivity is a key part of the Government’s plan to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago

  • Navigating an unstable global environment
    New Zealand is renewing its connections with a world facing urgent challenges by pursuing an active, energetic foreign policy, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says.   “Our country faces the most unstable global environment in decades,” Mr Peters says at the conclusion of two weeks of engagements in Egypt, Europe and the United States.    “We cannot afford to sit back in splendid ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago

  • NZ welcomes Australian Governor-General
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