Daily Review 14/11/2017

Written By: - Date published: 5:30 pm, November 14th, 2017 - 86 comments
Categories: Daily review - Tags:

Daily review is also your post.

This provides Standardistas the opportunity to review events of the day.

The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy).

Don’t forget to be kind to each other …

86 comments on “Daily Review 14/11/2017 ”

  1. chris73 1

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/98871168/national-sets-the-nanny-trap-labour-walks-right-in-over-paid-parental-leave

    “Our concern with that is the likelihood it would reduce the amount of time that baby has to bond with their primary caregiver,” said Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Iain Lees-Galloway.”

    Yeah I’d be advising Labour to tread very carefully here because its starting to get a bit of traction

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/parenting/baby/breastfeeding/98877615/labours-parental-leave-policy-puts-babies-health-first–midwives

    • One Anonymous Bloke 1.1

      “Traction”

      Oh noes! Wingnuts are repeating it to one another.

      • chris73 1.1.1

        Well Labour were warned National won’t make it easy for Labour and nor should they

        • One Anonymous Bloke 1.1.1.1

          Go full Tea Party. It’s the right move. You know you want to.

          • chris73 1.1.1.1.1

            No not at all, I’m center right at best but the amount of mistakes Labours already made so far isn’t exactly heartening

            Although knowing they want to sign the TPPA means they’re not all bad

        • McFlock 1.1.1.2

          Well, in the interests of reciprocal advice, it really looks like National could gain traction on this. Labour look weak, caring about babies and suchlike.

          National have a strong track record in this regard to build on, but maybe they could suggest sending babies into Pike River mine as gas canaries, or just get one or two front-benchers photographed using babies as bowling pins?

          • chris73 1.1.1.2.1

            The question is though what do parents want or think is best for their kids? I personally have no skin in the game so it’ll be interesting to see how this plays out

            Of course Labour could surprise everyone by batting this away effortlessly but even you would have to admit Labours start hasn’t exactly been a raging success

            • Robert Guyton 1.1.1.2.1.1

              “The question is though what do parents want or think is best for their kids? I personally have no skin in the game so I’ll desist from offering my opinion”.
              fify

              • Bondy

                I’ll offer mine then. When my partner and I had our youngest daughter our first-born was 3. The rare times (weekends) that we could all spend together in those wonderful first few weeks were hugely rewarding for all of us as a family. Nats initiative is great, it allows choice for parents to make on what works best for them. Hardly surprising then that Labour is against it.

                • Robert Guyton

                  Bondy – isn’t spending time with young sons and daughters (grandsons and granddaughters too!) wonderful!
                  Do you have any ideas as to why National didn’t bring this in when they were in Government? It seems as though they are just talking big at this point when they have no power to enact the needed legislation.
                  Cheers.

                  • Bondy

                    Yes it is wonderful. Said youngest turns 11 today and happily her & sister are coming to visit for the weekend for birthday celebrations.
                    We know the Nats did increase parental leave, no doubt they would have further and it would have been well considered as to how it would work and give choice. As we know they were also considering the fairness of the duration to other interested parties not the least of whom were taxpayers and non/parents.

            • McFlock 1.1.1.2.1.2

              Actually, the question is whether you lot will walk over babies to try to get back into government.

              Apparently the answer is “yes”.

              As to the administrative issue of consecutive vs concurrency in leave allocation… good luck with that.

              • weka

                Yeah, I was wondering about. Hadn’t realised that it was even a thing. How do they manage that?

                • McFlock

                  What, create media mountains out of dust motes?

                  Tories are just lucky I guess, lol

                  • weka

                    Lol, not I meant how do they know if two people take PPL at the same time for the same child.

                    • McFlock

                      Well, it’s paid by the IRD. I assume that the paperwork to verify a child exists would involve mother and delivery date, but the intricacies are not really my field…

            • Muttonbird 1.1.1.2.1.3

              It’s been better than the Nat’s start to opposition. They are so miserable and negative!

            • greywarshark 1.1.1.2.1.4

              chris73
              FFS STFU Don’t start all the concern trolling. It doesn’t look nice.

        • Booker 1.1.1.3

          Anyone else confused as hell that National’s opposition tactics are to try and show up Labour by being even further left, and placing themselves as the party of the people? I wonder if this National Party knows the National Party of the last 9 yeasts?

          Still, if their opposition plan is go hard left, the next 3 years will be awesome 🙂

    • weka 1.3

      Looking at that URL, I see Stuff still think that point scoring and the political battle is more important than, you know, actual governing and getting good legislation from the parliamentary process.

      I’m going to guess you think the same.

      • chris73 1.3.1

        I do admit that what fascinates me about politics is what it makes people do in that I’d hazard a guess that most every new mp wants to help, make the country a better place, be honest and truthful etc etc yet somewhere along the way changes happen, in every party

        I like the reactions of supporters and while said supporters are very keen to point out errors in the opposition seem blind to the faults of their own party (no I’m not missing the irony)

        I like the point scoring, I like (love) the drama, the tit-for-tat, how politicians can all say one thing then another (I couldn’t be a politician) the sheer chutzpah of what it takes

        Yet somehow it all seems to combine to make NZ a pretty decent place to live

        • One Anonymous Bloke 1.3.1.1

          …unless you’re one of the people the National Party sponsors human rights abuses against, that is.

    • Paul Campbell 1.4

      If National really think this is so important why didn’t they pass it years ago when they were in govt?

      methinks they doth protest too much

  2. I think this is so wrong. The court has made a mistake. Māori is an official language. As the mother says if the shoe was on the other foot the outcry would be huge. Shame on the court and the father – disgraceful.

    http://www.maoritelevision.com/news/national/court-rules-no-maori-immersion-school-child

    • weka 2.1

      That was bizarre and a classic example of just how much mainstream NZ expects Māori to be assimilated. I hope it gets appealed further.

      It’s possible the father has some legitimate issues around involvement, but I think there are far better ways of solving that. I would have thought the family court could have helped with that. (Hard to tell at the distance though).

    • James 2.2

      “But the father submitted to the family court his daughter was enrolled without his consent and had concerns about her academic progress”

      That’s a really valid issue and seems that the court has taken it into account.

      There seems to be more at play – and being a family matter I doubt we will know all the story.

      • weka 2.2.1

        There are other ways to solve those issues though.

      • marty mars 2.2.2

        Play a mindgame James and turn the situation the other way round. You’d be bleating like a paddock full of lonely lambs.

      • That’s a really valid issue and seems that the court has taken it into account.

        It would be if he could actually show reason for those concerns. But then there’s this bit from him:

        He supported his daughter’s culture but wanted to be involved in her education.

        “I feel rather uncomfortable in that world and the school has not assisted in this regard I am treated as an outsider,” said the father.

        All he had to do is learn – and he refused.

        Seems to me that he’s just being a control freak.

    • Seems the high court has over turned the family court ruling:

      It took three High Court judges to preside over the case. After 10 weeks of deliberations, the third judge noted, “It is perhaps surprising in 2017, especially given the Māori Language Act, that it is not yet Government policy that all primary schools teach te reo as a compulsory subject.”

      The judge effectively overturned the Family Court ruling and enabled the girl to resume her Māori education at a new, bilingual school.

      And, yes, it is surprising that Te Reo (sp?) isn’t compulsory in school.

  3. Robert Guyton 3

    Chris73 – Give us a break from your attempts to erode our feelings of delight around the new Government. You’re coming across as a petty spoiler.

    • chris73 3.1

      Hey I’m more than willing to give Labour a chance, I mean they really want to sign the TPPA and I want the TPPA signed but that doesn’t mean we should ignore whats happening unless you mean Labour should have a grace period?

      • weka 3.1.1

        Who blocked extending paid parental leave last year chris? Your concerns would have more legitimacy if you weren’t backing a bunch of power-mongering hypocrites who are still blatantly power mongering rather than trying to help NZ.

        Here you go, you can refresh your memory.

        http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/81138922/Government-has-used-the-financial-veto-to-stop-an-extension-to-paid-parental-leave

        • chris73 3.1.1.1

          Thats true however they did campaign at the election for an extension to 22 weeks, which included the ability for parents to choose whether they took that leave at the same time.

          • weka 3.1.1.1.1

            sure, they threw in some liberal/left wing policy when they realised they were at risk of losing the election (August I think).

      • “Hey I’m more than willing to give Labour a chance”, says chris73.
        He also says,
        “you would have to admit Labours start hasn’t exactly been a raging success…”
        and
        “…the amount of mistakes Labours already made so far isn’t exactly heartening
        …”
        Showing, to those of us with radar tuned to concern trolling, that you are not “willing to give Labour a chance”, but instead are determined to magnify and broadcast every bump in the road, not because you wish them bon chance but because you wish them ill. Aye.

      • Ed 3.1.3

        You really are quite a dishonest person .

      • One Two 3.1.4

        “I want the tpp signed”….

  4. Zorb6 4

    this Govts biggest screw up is going on about Manus Is refugees,even if its a distraction tactic it could blow up,bigtime.

  5. bwaghorn 6

    opinions are like arsehole , every one has one, but unlike your arsehole you should examine your opinion regularly .

    stolen from some bloke on fb

  6. ianmac 7

    Wonder if the published commentary from the failed English Government is greater than the published commentary from the present Government by more than 80%.

    I reckon that this is an all time record given that Opposition traditionally complains that they cannot get air time.

  7. ScottGN 8

    Ardern is probably the least of Malcolm’s problems right now.
    Shorten has pulled a swifty and put up Kristina Keneally, the former Labor Premier of NSW to contest the seat of Bennelong in the upcoming by-election caused when the sitting Liberal MP Alexander was forced to resign because of dual citizenship issues.
    Bennelong is a wealthy metro seat on Sydney’s North Shore whose voters have a habit of voting Labor when they’re pissed off with Liberal governments.
    Keneally is an American who renounced her US citizenship to become a State MP and then Premier. The contrast with the citizenship omnishambles engulfing the government in Canberra is stark.
    If Keneally wins then Turnbull’s government is almost certainly gone…
    http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-11-14/kristina-keneally-to-run-in-bennelong-by-election/9147640

    • exkiwiforces 8.1

      She does have some baggage from the Eddie Obeid corrupting saga when she was the NSW State Labor Leader, anyway good luck to her if she pull’s it off.

  8. alwyn 9

    I’ve been away for the last month or so.
    Can anyone inform me of the progress that the Government has made on the Pike River mine re-entry?
    I presume that Little, Andrew has got it well underway although Google didn’t tell me anything about what he must have organised by now.
    Just what has he been up to on the matter? Or is this something we are not allowed to ask about?

      • alwyn 9.1.1

        That is about what I tried.
        The most promising statement I could find was at the end of October when Little said
        “I would be surprised if we can’t make an entry, provided everything else lines up, by sometime in the early part of next year… March, April I say would be realistic,” he said.”
        That hardly seemed to be very certain that it would go ahead though.

        The PM seemed to be ticking it off her 100 day list because the Minister in charge had been named. That really didn’t seem very much like the promises from before the election though. At that time we were told
        “Jacinda Ardern says a Labour Government would reenter the Pike River Mine.
        The leaders of Labour, United Future, the Maori Party and the Green Party signed a commitment in Wellington on Tuesday to reenter the West Coast mine”
        This now seems to have become
        “She said the incoming government had already ticked off one of its commitments for the first 100 days, with the appointment of Andrew Little as the Minister responsible for Pike River Re-Entry”

        • Bondy 9.1.1.1

          A bit rich putting Little in charge. Didn’t he state on more than 1 occasion that he was entirely happy with the H&S & operations at the mine, after the explosion?
          Anyhow, I hope any reentry personnel are accompanied by independent observers. Stories I heard from coasters who had worked there suggest that not all evidence of the cause of explosion will be what the families want made public. I hope that’s not the case.

          • adam 9.1.1.1.1

            Bondy I’m no friend of the labour party – so I’ll politely ask you to back up that statement you made about Andrew Little. As for the second part you might want to get that sorted as well – as it stands all your doing is ‘making shit up’.

            • Bondy 9.1.1.1.1.1

              “Following the disaster, Little defended the company’s safety record. He told the New Zealand Herald on November 21, 2010, that the company had an “active health and safety committee” and that there was “nothing unusual about Pike River or this mine that we’ve been particularly concerned about.” (see video) He repeated his comments to Radio NZ the following day, saying the company had taken “great care” with safety.”
              https://m.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1701/S00183/opposition-parties-feign-support-for-pike-river-families.htm

              • McFlock

                I think that’s a bit of a slide.

                there’s a difference between not having anything out of the ordinary and someone being “entirely happy” with it and “defending” it.

                All Little did was state two facts about the union’s dealings with the mine, a day or two after the first explosion.

                “Defending” it would be more like saying their safety record was second to none and they were exceptionally diligent about safety. He didn’t do that: just said the company wasn’t out of the ordinary.

                A bit like how the cops saying someone isn’t convicted of or wanted in relation to any serious offences is not a defense of the individual’s character.

                And the “active health and safety committee” line is significantly out of context:

                Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union (EPMU) national secretary Andrew Little said he had never heard of any Pike mineworker becoming sick from the gas.

                “I was told there was a pretty active health and safety committee there. They were meeting on a regular basis,” he said.

            • Bondy 9.1.1.1.1.2

              “In January 2009, an advisory notice was given to Pike staff after cigarette butts were found in the mine. Two months later, another notice stated the mine had “very strict rules of the taking of contraband items underground that could cause a spark or fire”.

              “Everyone’s lives are at stake with the breach of these rules,” the notice stated, which Shortall read.

              In December 2009, a cigarette lighter was found underground.”
              http://i.stuff.co.nz/national/pike-river-mine-disaster/6386869/Methane-lit-by-spark-likely-cause-of-Pike-blast

          • James 9.1.1.1.2

            “Stories I heard from coasters who had worked there suggest that not all evidence of the cause of explosion will be what the families want made public. I hope that’s not the case.”

            Why not – it’s about truth is it not ?

    • Ed 9.2

      Concern trolls out in force.
      A clear reminder of the dishonesty and heartlessness of the previous government.

    • adam 9.3

      Worst concern troll ever, caught out in your own lie.

      Must be tough, not being a the trough at the moment.

      Must be tough not being able to read

      http://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2017/11/pike-river-re-entry-process-gets-underway.html

      • Bondy 9.3.1

        Nothing in that article gives any indication of concrete action. Must be tough to have such limited skills of comprehension & discernment.

        • adam 9.3.1.1

          So a planning meeting is no longer concret action?

          A meeting to actually do the reentry happened on the 6th of November. Which included the families to keep them informed of progress, is way more than the previous government did.

          You did realise the families did not go out to the media after the meeting and complain about no action. Which was the families did after almost every meeting with the previous government.

    • Nick 9.4

      Yep has been better on the Standard for the last month or so alwyn.

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