Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern receives giant Valentine card
Thursday, 14 February 2019, 3:03 pm
Press Release: SAFE For Animals
Three of Jacinda Ardern’s constituents and SAFE delivered a giant Valentine’s card to the Prime Minister’s Mt Albert electorate office this morning. Inside were hundreds of messages and signatures from caring Kiwis, all calling for Ms Ardern to have a heart for mother pigs this Valentine’s Day.
In New Zealand, thousands of mother pigs are confined in metal cages called farrowing crates for up to five weeks, from just before they give birth until their babies are weaned. This is repeated two to three times a year.
SAFE Head of Campaigns Marianne Macdonald says these Valentine’s messages reflect how strongly New Zealanders feel about this important animal welfare issue.
“A mother pig trapped in a farrowing crate is stripped of her ability to care for her piglets. At her most vulnerable time of motherhood, she desperately wants to protect and nurture her babies. Instead, she is trapped behind bars. She can’t build a nest for her piglets or even turn around,” says Ms Macdonald.
“This is no way to treat a mother. A mother pig wants to love her piglets and keep them safe. It’s only right that we show pigs love in return and free them from cruel farrowing crates.”
“Hundreds of Kiwis have signed this card asking Jacinda to show compassion for mother pigs and end their suffering in farrowing crates.”
Last year SAFE delivered a petition containing 122,844 signatures to Parliament demanding a ban on farrowing crates, which the Primary Production Select Committee has since taken submissions on. Ms Ardern has remained silent on the subject since being elected.
Yesterday SAFE and the New Zealand Animal Law Association announced they had filed legal proceedings against the Government for their failure to ban farrowing crates.
“The Prime Minister stated when she was sworn in that she wants to transcend politics and bring kindness back to Government. It’s time that kindness was extended to mother pigs,” says Ms Macdonald.
Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) welcomes the The Salvation Army’s annual State of the Nation report “Are You Well? Are We Safe?” released today, which provides an overview of how New Zealand is doing for the wellbeing of its citizens. The report has a particular focus on children, including comments on child poverty, care and protection as well as educational achievement.
The latest report shows incremental policy changes over the past few years have done little toward providing the substantial improvements which current and future generations of children need, to have equitable opportunities and to sustain good outcomes. In particular there are still large gaps for Māori children who are disproportionately represented across multiple statistics, including youth offending, education, and those in state care, compared to non-Māori.
CPAG Co-Convenor Janfrie Wakim says, “It seems clear that there have been no real successes in ameliorating the social inequities and associated health issues that are experienced by families and whānau, and it is critical that a more radical approach is needed to address reform of welfare and justice systems as well as education in Aotearoa.
“Changes need to be robust enough to have longevity, or they risk fragility and failure.”
CPAG says it is vastly concerning to see there been little in the way of change over the past four years in the nature and extent of adult violence toward children, while the number of children in state care has reached the highest ever recorded.
The increased number of children in care is only partially explained by the extension of the age of care from 17 to 18 years.
“It’s critical that we hear from Oranga Tamariki why there should be such an increase,” says Wakim.
“Is it due to changing operational priorities or increased levels of neglect and abuse of children, and are there sufficient resources within the service providers to meet the need?”
The Salvation Army report highlights consistently wide gaps between Maori and non-Maori in terms of social outcomes, a concern highlighted by the United Nations in the recent Universal Periodic Review of how New Zealand is performing on human rights issues. The UN draft outcomes report included a recommendation that New Zealand should “continue to work to enhance the rights of Māori and other indigenous minority groups in New Zealand, and provide increased rehabilitative support for Māori prisoners”.
CPAG says that as a Nation, Aotearoa should be working hard to close these gaps completely over the next 10 years.
New minimum wage legislation, the Winter Energy Payment and the Families Package have been helpful to many who have low incomes, and the report notes a slight reduction in income inequality. However, the picture is uneven, as the reduced food bank demand outcome reported is for the Salvation Army alone while other charities, such as the Auckland City Mission, report figures that show demand increasing.
“While things may have improved for those on low incomes in paid work, little has changed for people who have need of a benefit, or for their children,” says Wakim.
“The Government has placed a commendable focus on the interests of low-income working families, through recent increases to the Working for Families maximum payment threshold and the minimum wage. But many of our very worst-off children – those in families whose income is primarily from benefits, remain in severe hardship.”
CPAG believes a meaningful reduction in child poverty rates is not attainable unless the harmful inadequacy of benefit levels is addressed, and the application of harmful sanctions is abolished.
“Budget 2019 should prioritise at least a 20 per cent increase in all core benefits, and a removal of the paid work criteria from the portion of Working for Families that children supported by benefits are currently denied,” says Wakim.
Take some time and broaden your horizons.
At least the T.D.B is available to give us the facts we don’t get with our MSM.
I know it is hard reading these reports and where i can i will provide a link so you are better informed.
Great picture of Key and the sausage, pity there wasn’t a shot of his face at that time………oh, hang on will try turning the screen upside down…..crikey he’s legless!!
Gosh he eats a sausage like any ordinary person. I feel he has lost some of his charisma now I’ve seen that. It’s like he has taken his mask off – the one with the pleasant. smiling face that makes you feel warm and trusting.
/sarc
I guess a promo for a short film about the perils of populism might upset some very fine people.
Fox News has rejected a national advertising buy for a 30-second spot that warns viewers about the potential dangers of American fascism after an ad sales representative said network leadership deemed it inappropriate, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.
The spot was to double as a promotion of this year’s Oscar-nominated documentary short A Night at the Garden, which recounts a 1939 Nazi rally in New York City, and a warning — “It Can Happen Here” — to Sean Hannity’s largely conservative viewers about the potential dangers of President Donald Trump’s brand of populism.
[…]
“The film shines a light on a time when thousands of Americans fell under the spell of a demagogue who attacked the press and scapegoated minorities using the symbols of American patriotism,” Night at the Garden director Marshall Curry said in a statement to THR.Very fine people” might get upset about airing an anti-Nazi movie.
Jeez these guys have a real shit disaster over there with this. Kia kaha.
In northern Queensland, record rain has created an instant “mega river” so immense it can be clearly seen on satellite imagery.
In parts, the Flinders River is now so swollen with floodwater it’s expanded to a width of 60 kilometres from bank to sodden bank, news.com.au reports.
Marty Mars
I think that something could be done in NZ quite soon to promote that Mulloon Institute idea Marty. Are you interested in picking up the ball and thinking if something can happen as a result of all the talking and chewing over things that we have been doing? Okay if you can’t – just asking. Can you say yay or nay in the next day.
I am pretty organised (in the Key sense) but if I wait till everything is perfect it will always be tomorrow to do something. Then I will work out how to exchange phone numbers emails etc so we stay private.
I have wanted to contact WtB through the standard admin but getting nowhere and have thought up a way, but then I thought of you also. Maybe we could be a loose collection of distance neurons focussing on various possibilities? Could give it a try.
Okay thanks for reply. I am thinking of something for around Motueka – do you want to hear about it, and offer suggestions if I get something worked out myself?
The Opposition attack line is that China/NZ relationships are in trouble.
Audrey Young:”Foreign Minister Winston Peters has rejected claims by National that New Zealand exporters are experiencing delays at Chinese ports.
Peters challenged deputy National leader Paula Bennett to show some evidence after she made the suggestion in Parliament but none was forthcoming.
“There are no delays on our ports or Chinese ports at this point in time,” Peters said. “In fact if you look at the growth in exports, the growth in inter-country travel, the growth in expenditure between China and New Zealand, it’s all gone up in the last year dramatically.”
“Peters said suggestions that Chinese authorities had turned back an Air New Zealand plane at the weekend were wrong and there had been no communication with China before the decision was taken.
Air New Zealand itself took the decision to return the plane to Auckland when it realised mid-flight it did not have proper permission to land the plane, rather than risk being turned back from Shanghai.”
“Some of those who bought land that was formerly Crown leases include Peter Thiel, Graham Hart, and Sir John Key. Some of the most expensive properties advertised for sale in New Zealand are on former pastoral leases.”
A very very sad obituary for the the death of that most hated of National Party creations; tenure review.
Instead of ensuring sustainable farming could continue for the public benefit, the Crown allowed the value of that land to be appropriated by a select few, at the taxpayer’s considerable expense. Land that was owned by no-one, then owned by everyone, is now owned by the lucky few who can afford it. Some parts of the landscape have been all but destroyed.
The creation of five conservation parks is significant, and public access to the high country has undoubtedly improved. Despite its flaws, the tenure review at Alphaburn allowed for the creation of the overwhelmingly popular Roys Peak trail overlooking Lake Wanaka.
They are dwarfed, however, by what has been lost. The repercussions of this wave of privatisation, which the public paid for, are ongoing, and will continue long after tenure review is finally dead.
National government changed the rules barely 6 months after gaining power back in 2009 ….instead of concentrating on GFC… to allow 43 lakeside properties that had been banned from tenure review to go ahead.
Funny that , these were the same properties where huge financial windfalls for the new ‘owners’ occurred.
From the beginning I thought the ballot idea was gross. There’s no place for random chance when housing young working families. And now it looks like the ballot system is being shelved in many if not most developments. I’d say this is less to do with outright non-interest as Jenna Lynch suggests and more to do with the fact that the people who are interested in these houses (and there are lots of them) are unable to go to the bank in these restrictive times for approval.
So what happens when you remove the ballot? They get sold direct to whoever is eligible and can access the money – quite a small pool of people as I have always said, and that is now clearly apparent. I had a massive rant about this a couple of months back. You’ve basically got to have a household income of between about $120K and $160K. Anything outside those parameters and you can’t get in. People on those incomes probably have the time to pick and choose what is currently being offered at this very early stage so they’re in no hurry.
So they get sold direct and this is where the equally gross incentives such as $5000 cash back for white-ware start popping up. This is how the private sector markets and sells things. It’s how they roll. Totally looks like a bribe, as Lynch says, and when it’s pegged to a government scene it looks doubly gross.
This government should have looked, and should be looking, at ways to get that $80K – $120K band into these houses. By that I mean shared equity schemes which Twyford has mildly hinted at after being prompted by the media and the various trusts who do that already. But he is not driving those ideas in any way shape or form which is a real shame.
Next step for the government is to admit the issues with the discrepancy between people who can afford them and how much they cost (you can’t really bring the cost down and keep the quality). Apologise and admit you’re not going to get the numbers originally stated in the conditions, then shave some of the original budget to throw at actually building some fucking communities by helping working people get into homes.
They are going to have to attempt to regain the narrative somehow, and soon. It’s running away from them big time.
“But he is not driving those ideas in any way shape or form which is a real shame.”
A possible explanation is to avoid attack on ideas that are not yet workable proposals. Kiwibuild is an all out challenge to the way the property and construction sectors work and will be attacked vigorously by those sectors, which they are. To the government’s credit they have bent over backwards to involve the existing industry, and some industry players are getting heavily involved.
To regain the narrative these naysayers should be asked what their solution would be. Collins is all criticism of KB, but no alternative proposals. OK, it’s putting the narrative into her court but she won’t have anything that will do anything but further increase housing costs, which is the gnat objective
To get the 80-120K lot, but really 60K, into home ownership an option that’s worked before is to capitalise an existing benefit. It was done in 70’s with the Family Benefit, a qualifying young family could convert their future benefit payments into a cash deposit on a qualifying new house. Worked well then and could work now with WFF. It’d just move the current WFF subsidy from employers to the property sector which should have greater economic benefit from actually producing something rather than increasing individual employer profits.
He understands why the cull was necessary, but is blunt when it comes to his assessment of the process: “Shambles.”
“[It’s been] pretty chaotic really, and really lacking on the human front,” he said. “Their shortcomings on human welfare and farmer welfare is just abysmal.
Farmer welfare – they have done themselves in, they needed no help; the behaviour of some of their own has been ‘abysmal’ and that is from – politicians off farms who haven’t learned how to be decent people apparently, and people who own farms and haven’t learned how to do the job as decent people. There are many who do farm and live the life themselves trying to be good and responsible, and are suffering because of the lack of respect that their fellows show for all around.
And as for the rest of us, what do the farmers in prominent positions and leadership roles care about us. I think they have a herd mentality to everyone outside of their elite stud.
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The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
The Government’s newly announced review of methane emissions reduction targets hints at its desire to delay Aotearoa New Zealand’s urgent transition to a climate safe future, the Green Party said. ...
The Government must commit to the Maitai School building project for students with high and complex needs, to ensure disabled students from the top of the South Island have somewhere to learn. ...
Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey and his Government colleagues have made a meal of their mental health commitments, showing how flimsy their efforts to champion the issue truly are, says Labour Mental Health spokesperson Ingrid Leary. ...
Māori are yet to see anything from this Government except cuts, reversals and taking our people backwards, Māori Development spokesperson Willie Jackson said. ...
The Coalition Government’s refusal to commit to ongoing funding for social housing is seeing the sector pull back on developments and families watch their dreams of securing a home fade away, says Labour Housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty. ...
Changes to minimum wage and benefit indexation means many New Zealanders will get less this year, as the Government gives a big tax break to landlords instead. ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 - ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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, ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced the Australian Governor-General, His Excellency General The Honourable David Hurley and his wife Her Excellency Mrs Linda Hurley, will make a State visit to New Zealand from Tuesday 16 April to Thursday 18 April. The visit reciprocates the State visit of former Governor-General Dame Patsy Reddy ...
Associate Health Minister David Seymour has announced that Medsafe has approved 11 cold and flu medicines containing pseudoephedrine. Pharmaceutical suppliers have indicated they may be able to supply the first products in June. “This is much earlier than the original expectation of medicines being available by 2025. The Government recognised ...
New Zealand and the United States have recommitted to their strategic partnership in Washington DC today, pledging to work ever more closely together in support of shared values and interests, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The strategic environment that New Zealand and the United States face is considerably more ...
April 11, 2024 Joint Declaration by United States Secretary of State the Honorable Antony J. Blinken and New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs the Right Honourable Winston Peters We met today in Washington, D.C. to recommit to the historic partnership between our two countries and the principles that underpin it—rule ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced further New Zealand cooperation with the United States in the Pacific Islands region through $16.4 million in funding for initiatives in digital connectivity and oceans and fisheries research. “New Zealand can achieve more in the Pacific if we work together more urgently and ...
Kia Ora Gaza A passionate haka reverberated through Auckland International Airport as a medical team of three New Zealand doctors received an emotional farewell from a big crowd of supporters before flying to Turkey to join the international Freedom Flotilla to Gaza. The doctors, who left Auckland yesterday, hope to ...
With submissions closing today, Macassey-Pickard says groups around the country have been supporting a huge range of people to make their submissions. ...
Our response to the new legislation is informed by targeted conversations with practitioners working in the system and through an implementation lens. ...
The new ‘Fast-track Approvals Bill’ would give just three Ministers the power to approve or deny development projects. They would avoid the usual checks and balances that are in place to protect rivers, land, the ocean, and communities. ...
COMMENTARY:By Eugene Doyle Helen Clark, how I miss you. The former New Zealand Prime Minister — the safest pair of hands this country has had in living memory — gave a masterclass on the importance of maintaining an independent foreign policy when she spoke at an AUKUS symposium held ...
The government's released the list of organisations provided with information on how to apply - just hours before public submissions on the bill close. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Milton Speer, Visiting Fellow, School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, University of Technology Sydney Before climate change really got going, eastern Australia’s flash floods tended to concentrate on our coastal regions, east of the Great Dividing Range. But that’s changing. Now ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Elizabeth Finkel, Vice-Chancellor’s Fellow, La Trobe University Sia Duff / South Australian Museum In February, the South Australian Museum “re-imagined” itself. In the face of rising costs and inadequate government funds, CEO David Gaimster, who took the reins last June, declared ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alan Pearce, Professor, School of Allied Heath, Human Services & Sport, La Trobe University, La Trobe University This week, Collingwood AFL player Nathan Murphy announced his retirement, brought on by his concussion history and ongoing issues. The 24-year-old’s seemingly sudden retirement, ...
The Mental Health Foundation provides support and resources for those facing the loss of their job, so it’s wrong in the very week the Government adds another 1000 jobs to its tally of cuts, that this is happening. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexander Howard, Senior Lecturer, Discipline of English and Writing, University of Sydney Daniel Boud/Sydney Theatre Company Decay, terror, revulsion. These are three of the central themes of Thomas Bernhard’s rarely performed play The President. The Austrian is one of the greatest ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says threats by ministers Shane Jones and David Seymour to reform or close down the Waitangi Tribunal were “ill-considered”, as legal experts say the ministers may have breached Cabinet Manual conventions. “I think those comments are ill-considered and we expect all ministers to actually exercise good ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ye In (Jane) Hwang, Postdoctoral Research Associate at School of Population Health, UNSW Sydney Shutterstock You’d be hard pressed to find any aspect of daily life that doesn’t require some form of digital literacy. We need only to look back ten ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rob Newton, Professor of Exercise Medicine, Edith Cowan University Pexels/RDNE stock project You’re not in your 20s or 30s anymore and you know regular health checks are important. So you go to your GP. During the appointment they measure your waist. ...
A new poem by Evangeline Riddiford Graham. Mitochondrial Problem I. It was long drive to Kansas for the man and his dog but you have to understand he said She doesn’t fly. Which calls to mind not carsick shitting barking or whining but a dog who chooses not to as ...
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.AUCKLAND1 Hemingway’s Goblet by Dermot Ross (Mary Egan Publishing, $38)Hot off the press, this debut ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laura Wajnryb McDonald, PhD candidate in Criminology, University of Sydney Less than 24 hours after Ashlee Good was murdered in Bondi Junction, her family released a statement requesting the media take down photographs they had reproduced of Ashlee and her family without ...
Chief executive Shaun Robinson said it has not had any government funding cut, but government-funded contracts have not kept pace with rising costs. ...
The Ministry of Health has delayed the release of its evidence brief on the safety, reversibility and mental health and wellbeing outcomes for puberty blockers. While we wait, Julia de Bres speaks to those with firsthand experience. Best practice gender-affirming healthcare is based on trans people’s self-determination and agency. The ...
Barcelona’s city streets have gone from traffic-clogged to pedestrian-friendly. How? Superblocks. Ellen Rykers explains. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week I read a great interview with renowned urbanist Janette Sadik-Khan by The Spinoff’s Wellington editor Joel MacManus: “You can reimagine streets, ...
Student groups ‘Climate Action VUW’, Schools Strike 4 Climate and VUWSA will be on the street in Wellington today, the last day for submissions on the Fast-track Approvals Bill, with a message that the fight against the Government’s ‘War on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sofia Ammassari, Research Fellow, Griffith University Since 2014, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popularity has grown exponentially – and so has the formidable organisational machine of his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). These two factors will be key to delivering the BJP a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brendon Hyndman, Associate Professor of Education (Adjunct) & Senior Manager (BCE), Charles Sturt University During COVID almost all Australian students and their families experienced online learning. But while schools have long since gone back to in-person teaching, online learning has not gone ...
Yes, they’re better for the environment. No, that’s not a good enough reason for me to use them. Once every 26 days or so, my period arrives, and if struck by an act of God, I am caught red-crotched without products. How, after 17 years of this, do I still ...
“It will cause significant harm to our environment and communities. It is completely at odds with New Zealanders’ relationship with nature and our need for a low-carbon, sustainable economic future." ...
The Chair of the National Maori Authority, Matthew Tukaki, has warned a Parliamentary Select Committee that fast-tracking legislation is a perilous practice that undermines the core tenets of democracy, transparency, and accountability. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Tenbensel, Associate Professor, Health Policy, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Getty Images Since coming into power, the coalition government has adopted a simple but shrewd see-how-fast-we-can-move political strategy. However, in the health sector this need for speed entails ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anastasia Hronis, Clinical Psychologist, University of Technology Sydney Darya Sannikova/Pexels Whether you’re watching TV, attending a footy game, or eating a meal at your local pub, gambling is hard to escape. Although the rise of gambling is not unique to Australia, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Wong, Forrest Fellow, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia Have you ever wondered if there are more insects out at night than during the day? We set out to answer this question by combing through the scientific ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Carol T Kulik, Research Professor, University of South Australia IR Stone/Shutterstock In Australia, it’s not the done thing to know – let alone ask – what our colleagues are paid. Yet, it’s easy to see how pay transparency can make pay ...
The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) is sounding a warning to migrants, that running foul of the law may see them leaving the country prematurely. ...
The government’s plan to get 50,000 people off jobseeker support by 2030 has had a rocky start, writes Catherine McGregor in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. Beneficiary numbers are up – and so are ...
Raglan Roast is a staple of Wellington coffee culture. But with five branches across the capital, which one is the best? I am a die-hard Raglan Roast fan. It’s consistently the most affordable cafe in Wellington, and one of the only places you can get a coffee after 3pm. So, ...
Residents of University of Auckland halls are being urged to withhold their accommodation fees from May 1, in a bid to force the university to take student concerns over rent hikes seriously.The University of Auckland is facing a strike from students over the cost of on-campus accommodation. The Students ...
The thousands of government “back-office” job cuts are causing widespread pain in the capital city. In today’s episode of The Detail, we speak to three journalists and a think tank researcher, looking at the larger picture around the cuts and what effect it will have on Wellington, a city that’s ...
Opinion: The famed American architect and urban designer Daniel Burnham once said, “Make no little plans. They have no magic to stir men’s blood!” Burnham wouldn’t have been referring to the transport plans in Aotearoa New Zealand over the past five years; projects so big they hadn’t the credibility to ...
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Opinion: With maths understanding at 42 percent for Year 8 students, there’s no doubt something has to be done. But how? The post Financial literacy should be on all of us appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Hineaupounamu ‘Missy’ Nuku has been scaling mountains in Canada for her college basketball team, the Lakeland Rustlers. Alberta is currently home for the 20-year-old point guard, who is in her first year of a scholarship at Lakeland College, where she is studying for a business degree. She has certainly made ...
New Zealand and the Philippines have signed a new maritime security agreement and stated their concerns over activity in the South China Sea, as Chinese vessels continue to flout international law. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Philippines President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos committed to signing a Mutual Logistics Supporting Arrangement by ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra When ASIO boss Mike Burgess delivered his annual threat assessment earlier this year, he stressed the rising danger posed by espionage and foreign interference. “In 2024, threats to our way of life have surpassed ...
The Tribunal had called on Minister for Children Karen Chhour to provide evidence at an urgent inquiry into the repeal of Section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By T.J. Thomson, Senior Lecturer in Visual Communication & Digital Media, RMIT University Midjourney image by T.J. Thomson As more than half of Australian office workers report using generative artificial intelligence (AI) for work, we’re starting to see this technology affect every ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lisa Nicole Sharwood, Injury epidemiologist | Expert Witness, UNSW Sydney Sergey Novikov/Shutterstock Injuries are the leading cause of disability and death among Australian children and adolescents. At least a quarter of all emergency department presentations during childhood are injury-related. Injuries can ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Di Winkler, Adjunct Associate Professor, Living with Disability Research Centre, La Trobe University Shutterstock/Ground PictureMany Australians with disability feel on the edge of a precipice right now. Recommendations from the disability royal commission and the NDIS review were released late ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Salman Shooshtarian, Senior Lecturer, School of Property, Construction and Project Management, RMIT University Salman Shooshtarian Asbestos has been found in mulch used for playgrounds, schools, parks and gardens across Sydney and Melbourne. Local communities naturally fear for the health of their ...
Family First says that the latest abortion statistics make grim and upsetting reading, with a 25% increase in abortions since the decriminalisation of abortion in March 2020. According to an Official Information Act request received by Right to Life ...
Ipsos New Zealand's inaugural participation in a global study on populism reveals a pervasive sense of societal and economic decline among New Zealanders. MORE DETAILS AND FULL REPORT HERE Ipsos New Zealand's inaugural participation in a global study ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern receives giant Valentine card
Thursday, 14 February 2019, 3:03 pm
Press Release: SAFE For Animals
Three of Jacinda Ardern’s constituents and SAFE delivered a giant Valentine’s card to the Prime Minister’s Mt Albert electorate office this morning. Inside were hundreds of messages and signatures from caring Kiwis, all calling for Ms Ardern to have a heart for mother pigs this Valentine’s Day.
In New Zealand, thousands of mother pigs are confined in metal cages called farrowing crates for up to five weeks, from just before they give birth until their babies are weaned. This is repeated two to three times a year.
SAFE Head of Campaigns Marianne Macdonald says these Valentine’s messages reflect how strongly New Zealanders feel about this important animal welfare issue.
“A mother pig trapped in a farrowing crate is stripped of her ability to care for her piglets. At her most vulnerable time of motherhood, she desperately wants to protect and nurture her babies. Instead, she is trapped behind bars. She can’t build a nest for her piglets or even turn around,” says Ms Macdonald.
“This is no way to treat a mother. A mother pig wants to love her piglets and keep them safe. It’s only right that we show pigs love in return and free them from cruel farrowing crates.”
“Hundreds of Kiwis have signed this card asking Jacinda to show compassion for mother pigs and end their suffering in farrowing crates.”
Last year SAFE delivered a petition containing 122,844 signatures to Parliament demanding a ban on farrowing crates, which the Primary Production Select Committee has since taken submissions on. Ms Ardern has remained silent on the subject since being elected.
Yesterday SAFE and the New Zealand Animal Law Association announced they had filed legal proceedings against the Government for their failure to ban farrowing crates.
“The Prime Minister stated when she was sworn in that she wants to transcend politics and bring kindness back to Government. It’s time that kindness was extended to mother pigs,” says Ms Macdonald.
Source Scoop news.
Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) welcomes the The Salvation Army’s annual State of the Nation report “Are You Well? Are We Safe?” released today, which provides an overview of how New Zealand is doing for the wellbeing of its citizens. The report has a particular focus on children, including comments on child poverty, care and protection as well as educational achievement.
The latest report shows incremental policy changes over the past few years have done little toward providing the substantial improvements which current and future generations of children need, to have equitable opportunities and to sustain good outcomes. In particular there are still large gaps for Māori children who are disproportionately represented across multiple statistics, including youth offending, education, and those in state care, compared to non-Māori.
CPAG Co-Convenor Janfrie Wakim says, “It seems clear that there have been no real successes in ameliorating the social inequities and associated health issues that are experienced by families and whānau, and it is critical that a more radical approach is needed to address reform of welfare and justice systems as well as education in Aotearoa.
“Changes need to be robust enough to have longevity, or they risk fragility and failure.”
CPAG says it is vastly concerning to see there been little in the way of change over the past four years in the nature and extent of adult violence toward children, while the number of children in state care has reached the highest ever recorded.
The increased number of children in care is only partially explained by the extension of the age of care from 17 to 18 years.
“It’s critical that we hear from Oranga Tamariki why there should be such an increase,” says Wakim.
“Is it due to changing operational priorities or increased levels of neglect and abuse of children, and are there sufficient resources within the service providers to meet the need?”
The Salvation Army report highlights consistently wide gaps between Maori and non-Maori in terms of social outcomes, a concern highlighted by the United Nations in the recent Universal Periodic Review of how New Zealand is performing on human rights issues. The UN draft outcomes report included a recommendation that New Zealand should “continue to work to enhance the rights of Māori and other indigenous minority groups in New Zealand, and provide increased rehabilitative support for Māori prisoners”.
CPAG says that as a Nation, Aotearoa should be working hard to close these gaps completely over the next 10 years.
New minimum wage legislation, the Winter Energy Payment and the Families Package have been helpful to many who have low incomes, and the report notes a slight reduction in income inequality. However, the picture is uneven, as the reduced food bank demand outcome reported is for the Salvation Army alone while other charities, such as the Auckland City Mission, report figures that show demand increasing.
“While things may have improved for those on low incomes in paid work, little has changed for people who have need of a benefit, or for their children,” says Wakim.
“The Government has placed a commendable focus on the interests of low-income working families, through recent increases to the Working for Families maximum payment threshold and the minimum wage. But many of our very worst-off children – those in families whose income is primarily from benefits, remain in severe hardship.”
CPAG believes a meaningful reduction in child poverty rates is not attainable unless the harmful inadequacy of benefit levels is addressed, and the application of harmful sanctions is abolished.
“Budget 2019 should prioritise at least a 20 per cent increase in all core benefits, and a removal of the paid work criteria from the portion of Working for Families that children supported by benefits are currently denied,” says Wakim.
Posted on T.D.B
if it was posted there – why not trying using a link like a normal person.
Take some time and broaden your horizons.
At least the T.D.B is available to give us the facts we don’t get with our MSM.
I know it is hard reading these reports and where i can i will provide a link so you are better informed.
show us the sausage Simon! your glorious ex leader Mr Key certainly knew what to do with a good sausage…
issues of the day; Nats threatening to sabotage the Representation Committee on Electorate Boundaries quoting the dodgy census…
https://www.kiwiblog.co.nz/2019/02/national_calls_for_existing_boundaries_to_remain_for_next_years_election.html
and Tenure Review aka “the great land grab” is being scrapped…
https://www.stuff.co.nz/environment/110557002/the-multimillion-dollar-public-land-sales-scheme-tenure-review-will-be-stopped
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/105162657/the-case-for-an-inquiry-into-tenure-review
now if those resorts, gated developments and golf courses could just be vested with HNZ as stock…
Great picture of Key and the sausage, pity there wasn’t a shot of his face at that time………oh, hang on will try turning the screen upside down…..crikey he’s legless!!
Gosh he eats a sausage like any ordinary person. I feel he has lost some of his charisma now I’ve seen that. It’s like he has taken his mask off – the one with the pleasant. smiling face that makes you feel warm and trusting.
/sarc
Fucked if I know why the king derp still gets space her at all .# key who
Key Derangement Syndrome alive and well on the left
Totally – but then how can someone who looks so stupid have been such a vicious panderer to wealth? D’ya want a foreign trust with ya snarler?
That explains it then, anyone that takes a sausage like that would definitely be exhibiting some form of derangement.
Valentines day, some administrator at TS still has a little crush…..
I wonder what SHG stands for? Intriguing.
I guess a promo for a short film about the perils of populism might upset some very fine people.
Fox News has rejected a national advertising buy for a 30-second spot that warns viewers about the potential dangers of American fascism after an ad sales representative said network leadership deemed it inappropriate, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.
The spot was to double as a promotion of this year’s Oscar-nominated documentary short A Night at the Garden, which recounts a 1939 Nazi rally in New York City, and a warning — “It Can Happen Here” — to Sean Hannity’s largely conservative viewers about the potential dangers of President Donald Trump’s brand of populism.
[…]
“The film shines a light on a time when thousands of Americans fell under the spell of a demagogue who attacked the press and scapegoated minorities using the symbols of American patriotism,” Night at the Garden director Marshall Curry said in a statement to THR.Very fine people” might get upset about airing an anti-Nazi movie.
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/fox-news-rejects-national-ad-oscar-nominated-anti-nazi-documentary-1186379
edit:
https://vimeo.com/237489146
Thanks for sharing this joe.
Jeez these guys have a real shit disaster over there with this. Kia kaha.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=12203900
I put some links up about the flood and looked at what the Mulloon Institute might do about it over on Open Mike 25.
Can’t give you the comment link – it just goes to the post link.
But the No. will help.
Thanks I missed that.
A case of great minds think alike!
Marty Mars
I think that something could be done in NZ quite soon to promote that Mulloon Institute idea Marty. Are you interested in picking up the ball and thinking if something can happen as a result of all the talking and chewing over things that we have been doing? Okay if you can’t – just asking. Can you say yay or nay in the next day.
I am pretty organised (in the Key sense) but if I wait till everything is perfect it will always be tomorrow to do something. Then I will work out how to exchange phone numbers emails etc so we stay private.
I have wanted to contact WtB through the standard admin but getting nowhere and have thought up a way, but then I thought of you also. Maybe we could be a loose collection of distance neurons focussing on various possibilities? Could give it a try.
Thanks but I feel over committed already and I really can’t take on more. I wish you success.
Okay thanks for reply. I am thinking of something for around Motueka – do you want to hear about it, and offer suggestions if I get something worked out myself?
Nice.
https://twitter.com/metrolinaszabi/status/1094728274608119808
https://spacestationguys.com/iss-extremely-good-lunar-transit/
The Opposition attack line is that China/NZ relationships are in trouble.
Audrey Young:”Foreign Minister Winston Peters has rejected claims by National that New Zealand exporters are experiencing delays at Chinese ports.
Peters challenged deputy National leader Paula Bennett to show some evidence after she made the suggestion in Parliament but none was forthcoming.
“There are no delays on our ports or Chinese ports at this point in time,” Peters said. “In fact if you look at the growth in exports, the growth in inter-country travel, the growth in expenditure between China and New Zealand, it’s all gone up in the last year dramatically.”
“Peters said suggestions that Chinese authorities had turned back an Air New Zealand plane at the weekend were wrong and there had been no communication with China before the decision was taken.
Air New Zealand itself took the decision to return the plane to Auckland when it realised mid-flight it did not have proper permission to land the plane, rather than risk being turned back from Shanghai.”
What is sad is that MSM have bee accepting the Opposition lies in spite of no supporting evidence.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12204005
Why is no-one making more noise about this.
What a dodgy prime minister.
Glad he’s no longer in charge.
“Some of those who bought land that was formerly Crown leases include Peter Thiel, Graham Hart, and Sir John Key. Some of the most expensive properties advertised for sale in New Zealand are on former pastoral leases.”
From
https://i.stuff.co.nz/environment/110557002/the-multimillion-dollar-public-land-sales-scheme-tenure-review-will-be-stopped
I’ve made a couple of comments on this sad story today and several over the last months.
Charlie Mitchell is I think New Zealand’s most important journalist right now.
John f’ing Key profitted from buying and then selling cheap Government sell-off, high country land!!?
WTF – do we know the details of this?
A very very sad obituary for the the death of that most hated of National Party creations; tenure review.
https://i.stuff.co.nz/environment/110587602/the-slow-sorry-end-of-tenure-review
At least this government has had the guts to shoot this cancerous monster in the head. Too late but at least it’s done.
National government changed the rules barely 6 months after gaining power back in 2009 ….instead of concentrating on GFC… to allow 43 lakeside properties that had been banned from tenure review to go ahead.
Funny that , these were the same properties where huge financial windfalls for the new ‘owners’ occurred.
heh
https://twitter.com/David_Cormack/status/1095803936445886464
edit: oh the replies
https://twitter.com/dpfdpf/status/1095802372985565184
teachers have been offered pay rises …just not to make up for the deals they didnt get when national was in power
Fascinating to see the developments in Kiwibuild.
From the beginning I thought the ballot idea was gross. There’s no place for random chance when housing young working families. And now it looks like the ballot system is being shelved in many if not most developments. I’d say this is less to do with outright non-interest as Jenna Lynch suggests and more to do with the fact that the people who are interested in these houses (and there are lots of them) are unable to go to the bank in these restrictive times for approval.
So what happens when you remove the ballot? They get sold direct to whoever is eligible and can access the money – quite a small pool of people as I have always said, and that is now clearly apparent. I had a massive rant about this a couple of months back. You’ve basically got to have a household income of between about $120K and $160K. Anything outside those parameters and you can’t get in. People on those incomes probably have the time to pick and choose what is currently being offered at this very early stage so they’re in no hurry.
So they get sold direct and this is where the equally gross incentives such as $5000 cash back for white-ware start popping up. This is how the private sector markets and sells things. It’s how they roll. Totally looks like a bribe, as Lynch says, and when it’s pegged to a government scene it looks doubly gross.
This government should have looked, and should be looking, at ways to get that $80K – $120K band into these houses. By that I mean shared equity schemes which Twyford has mildly hinted at after being prompted by the media and the various trusts who do that already. But he is not driving those ideas in any way shape or form which is a real shame.
Next step for the government is to admit the issues with the discrepancy between people who can afford them and how much they cost (you can’t really bring the cost down and keep the quality). Apologise and admit you’re not going to get the numbers originally stated in the conditions, then shave some of the original budget to throw at actually building some fucking communities by helping working people get into homes.
They are going to have to attempt to regain the narrative somehow, and soon. It’s running away from them big time.
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2019/02/revealed-no-one-entered-kiwibuild-ballot-for-waikato-development.html
“But he is not driving those ideas in any way shape or form which is a real shame.”
A possible explanation is to avoid attack on ideas that are not yet workable proposals. Kiwibuild is an all out challenge to the way the property and construction sectors work and will be attacked vigorously by those sectors, which they are. To the government’s credit they have bent over backwards to involve the existing industry, and some industry players are getting heavily involved.
To regain the narrative these naysayers should be asked what their solution would be. Collins is all criticism of KB, but no alternative proposals. OK, it’s putting the narrative into her court but she won’t have anything that will do anything but further increase housing costs, which is the gnat objective
To get the 80-120K lot, but really 60K, into home ownership an option that’s worked before is to capitalise an existing benefit. It was done in 70’s with the Family Benefit, a qualifying young family could convert their future benefit payments into a cash deposit on a qualifying new house. Worked well then and could work now with WFF. It’d just move the current WFF subsidy from employers to the property sector which should have greater economic benefit from actually producing something rather than increasing individual employer profits.
A farmer doesn’t like MPI and the eradication concept? Big deal! Shouldn’t have tried to dodge the tracking system.
I bet they liked the previous MPI under Nathan Guy when dodging the tacking system was met with absolutely zero penalties.
So a few businesses are going to fold. Welcome to the real world. A world with fewer dairy herds. That’s a win for New Zealand.
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/rural/2019/02/just-abysmal-farmers-furious-at-mpi-s-shambles-response-to-m-bovis.html
He understands why the cull was necessary, but is blunt when it comes to his assessment of the process: “Shambles.”
“[It’s been] pretty chaotic really, and really lacking on the human front,” he said. “Their shortcomings on human welfare and farmer welfare is just abysmal.
Farmer welfare – they have done themselves in, they needed no help; the behaviour of some of their own has been ‘abysmal’ and that is from – politicians off farms who haven’t learned how to be decent people apparently, and people who own farms and haven’t learned how to do the job as decent people. There are many who do farm and live the life themselves trying to be good and responsible, and are suffering because of the lack of respect that their fellows show for all around.
And as for the rest of us, what do the farmers in prominent positions and leadership roles care about us. I think they have a herd mentality to everyone outside of their elite stud.