Yeah. I was more talking about the Nat caucus. Even when they are trying to endorse her no-one can bring themselves to say they like her. It's always through gritted teeth.
Ha!- Over in Twitter land the conspiracy is Tova is batting for Labour, as all the leaks come from National. First she went after Simon, the Todd, and now Judith, National just can't get a break! So it goes. Maybe Labour just aren't leaking? & certainly not to O'Brien.
there's a real risk that if Collin's implodes National even further or goes down in a ball of flames that the left in turn will implode from the schadenfreude.
In the same vein Collins sounded really stupid on Checkpoint when she said she can't use the government's tracer app….and at the same time undermines it.
It is really easy to use ….she must be technologically challenged.
Those comments were very revealing of Collins' 'character', for want of a better word.
She can't (or won't) use the Government's tracer app, and then implies it's unnecessary to use it because "I thought the borders were secure, aren't they?"
These are irresponsible comments – Collins is virtually encouraging the team of nearly 5,000,000 to let their Covid-19 guard down, because community transmission would be a gift to the opposition National party's election campaign. DISGUSTING & DIRTY.
Would expect any opposition 'leader' to do during a global pandemic? There's Bridges/Muller for comparison – do their ethics compare favourably to Collins'? I think Muller's do, although admittedly there's not that much evidence to assess.
Then, once you have mastered the first identification challenge, the next challenge is identifying exactly which one is the original master lurking in amongst the sea of enthralled clones.
Last night Farrar ran a poll of his readers. He listed the six top contenders for the Nat leadership & invited them to choose their preference. He advised that the poll would close when caucus convened at 7pm last night. I just went & checked out the result:
UPDATE: Over 4,000 votes cast and the results are:
Judith Collins 67%
Simon Bridges 12%
Nikki Kaye 6%
Mark Mitchell 6%
Gerry Brownlee 4%
Amy Adams 4%
I'm surprised at how decisive respondents were in agreeing on the best contender and how huge the margin ahead of the also-rans she was. I thought it would be close. Goes to show my grasp of current rightist politics is rather ephemeral! 😕
Dennis, it's not that surprising. IMHO Collins' views are far more closely aligned to traditional nat voters than either Muller or Brudges. Collins has always been popular with national's grass roots, just not it's caucus. How things change when people are looking at a career change!
Yes, the prospect of a Labour landslide sure did herd them in behind JC. Such evident unity will likely only persist if polls leading up to the election show National in with a chance. If not those in caucus who see her as divisive may start to brainstorm a plot or two. Or three. Depends if the faction divides run deep or not I guess. If she really does bridge the liberals & conservatives she may instead consolidate despite any plots.
IMHO there will be no attempt to bridge liberals and conservatives. Many of Collins ideas are actually very traditional national, but rather than being a 'wet' (like Muller – eg the MAGA hat back down), her approach is likely to be 'take it or leave'. Following the reaction to her elevation yesterday, I suspect she will galvanise centre right support, which was drifting to NZF/Act. But broad enough appeal to win an election?
I just can't see Judith Collins holding it together. She will never have faced the sort of pressure which is going to be applied over the next 8 weeks and she clearly doesn't have the emotional intelligence to weather that storm.
Collins doesn’t play to win in September, she plays to hurt Labour, in particular. Oppositions don’t win elections, Governments lose them. She has the advantage of being the underdog and has almost nothing to lose and everything to gain. I don’t think she has what it takes but my opinion doesn’t matter at all in this.
They tried nasty in Bridges, didn't work. They tried nice in Muller but that turned out nastier. Now they are desperate and are trying the nastiest of the lot.
I'll say it,It's bitch. No such thing as a female dog. We here in Dunedin have lawyers working for that council that thinks the use of bitch should be changed to female dog,woof wooof.
It's no so much about facing the pressure, IMO. It's more that she just loves the sound of her own voice, and will keep on talking and giving gifts.
Personally I'd like to see Labour accepting these gifts more, not by attacking her but simply quoting her. I know Ardern doesn't want to have "opposition research" and attack ads, but they can at least notice what she says.
Like the cheese thing above – a social media meme waiting to happen. No need for nastiness, just quote her own words. With a picture of a supermarket shelf, 2020. Done.
I thought earlier today that Collins most resembled Muldoon and you'd not be surprised if one day soon she was stopped by the media drunk, then proceeding to give it to reporters.
Being in NZ feels like being nicely hauled up inside on a cosy couch with a nice hot cuppa and the cat purring away while a winter storm is raging outside and battering the house. Don’t go outside if you don’t need to and open doors and windows very carefully or the wind will smash them wide open and cause major damage. Alert Level 1.
Judith Collins allows herself to be wound up by man-bun wearing Ryan Bridge.
"If Jacinda Ardern hasn't noticed that I'm here and leader of the National Party, then perhaps maybe she should stop being quite so woke and wake up a bit," she says.
"Jacinda Ardern knows fully well that I'm there, so I think she's just playing games. I'm not a kid, I don't play games."
"Of course I'll debate Jacinda Ardern on your show… I think that if she refuses to do so then she's probably running a bit scared."
To me, Collins comes across as easily the most capable and intelligent member of the National caucus. Even from the early years of the Key administration, she seemed like their only debater able to think on their feet, whether in the house or in interviews (I think that situation is even more pronounced now). That doesn't mean that she's good at anything other than using her replies to put people in their place, of course, but it wouldn't surprise me if she were. Her statements about Ardern there, though, look rather petulant, and suggest an insecure, "Look at me, please…" attitude that could actually damage her tough image. If she gets frustrated that easily, or even simply comes out with poor wording or inopportune phrases when trying to present her person, as opposed to the substance of an argument, it does not bode well for her at all.
A ray of hope for the future of natural environments and our civilisation, all without genocide. We don't have to maintain population numbers, or patterns of consumption.
"Our findings suggest that continued trends in female educational attainment and access to contraception will hasten declines in fertility and slow population growth. A sustained TFR [total fertility rate] lower than the replacement level in many countries, including China and India, would have economic, social, environmental, and geopolitical consequences. Policy options to adapt to continued low fertility, while sustaining and enhancing female reproductive health, will be crucial in the years to come." https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)30677-2/fulltext https://episodes.buzzsprout.com/n7oh3nfooiuswhpux42zgxpl8j0b
Interesting about birth rates. The mental health of a society may be more affected by drops in wages and job numbers through replacement by technology. It is notice able that education is not as encouraged, in all its forms, as it used to be in NZ. It has been turned into a business, and so the poor get less concern, and have to pay for courses that were free. Why bother to educate our own when the masses from overseas will pay to come here and give the barons the business and profits.
The idea that education will save us and raise living standards was a 20th century truth that has been diluted by how we are brain washed by tv and other technology.
Also falling birth rates for women in China has turned females from being advanced people in a modern country to being sought after in rather dodgy ways. Chinese men are looking for wives, and now they are tending to go to the Philippinnes. These are things that have cropped up which I have noticed.
April has been a quiet month at A Phuulish Fellow. I have had an exceptionally good reading month, and a decently productive writing month – for original fiction, anyway – but not much has caught my eye that suggested a blog article. It has been vaguely frustrating, to be honest. ...
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Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service. It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
Distinguished guests - It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders. Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia. Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is today travelling to Europe where he’ll update the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s work to restore law and order. “Attending the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva provides us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while ...
Associate Agriculture Minister, Mark Patterson, formally reopened the world’s largest wool processing facility today in Awatoto, Napier, following a $50 million rebuild and refurbishment project. “The reopening of this facility will significantly lift the economic opportunities available to New Zealand’s wool sector, which already accounts for 20 per cent of ...
Hon Andrew Bayly, Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing At the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective (SOREC) Summit, 18 April, Dunedin Ngā mihi nui, Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Ko Whanganui aho Good Afternoon and thank you for inviting me to open your summit today. I am delighted ...
The Government is delivering on its commitment to bring back the Three Strikes legislation, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee announced today. “Our Government is committed to restoring law and order and enforcing appropriate consequences on criminals. We are making it clear that repeat serious violent or sexual offending is not ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today announced four new diplomatic appointments for New Zealand’s overseas missions. “Our diplomats have a vital role in maintaining and protecting New Zealand’s interests around the world,” Mr Peters says. “I am pleased to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the ...
New Zealand is contributing NZ$7 million to support communities affected by severe food insecurity and other urgent humanitarian needs in Ethiopia and Somalia, Foreign Minister Rt Hon Winston Peters announced today. “Over 21 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance across Ethiopia, with a further 6.9 million people ...
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Paul Goldsmith is congratulating Mataaho Collective for winning the Golden Lion for best participant in the main exhibition at the Venice Biennale. "Congratulations to the Mataaho Collective for winning one of the world's most prestigious art prizes at the Venice Biennale. “It is good ...
The Government is reforming financial services to improve access to home loans and other lending, and strengthen customer protections, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly and Housing Minister Chris Bishop announced today. “Our coalition Government is committed to rebuilding the economy and making life simpler by cutting red tape. We are ...
“China remains a strong commercial opportunity for Kiwi exporters as Chinese businesses and consumers continue to value our high-quality safe produce,” Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says. Mr McClay has returned to New Zealand following visits to Beijing, Harbin and Shanghai where he met ministers, governors and mayors and engaged in trade and agricultural events with the New ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
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 ...
The protest outside the White House correspondents’ dinner hotel. Image: Anatolu video screenshot APR More than two dozen Palestinian journalists had called for a boycott of the dinner, writing an open letter urging their American colleagues not to attend. “You have a unique responsibility to speak truth to power and ...
“Our exporters should, therefore, be deeply concerned that the Fast-track Approvals Bill was not assessed for consistency with any of our free trade commitments prior to being introduced to the House,” says Gary Taylor, Chief Executive of the Environmental ...
NZCTU President Richard Wagstaff is calling on all political parties to support the new Member’s Bill from Labour’s workplace relations and safety spokesperson Camilla Belich MP that would ensure negligent companies are held accountable when their employees ...
A historian with an uncanny track record of predicting US election winners tells RNZ's Sunday Morning that President Biden looks to be on track for another term, but things could still go very wrong for him. ...
A historian with a track record of predicting US election winners tells RNZ's Sunday Morning that President Biden looks to be on track for another term, but things could still go wrong for him. ...
Ngaio Marsh House is one of Christchurch’s best kept secrets – and contains more than a few mysteries of its own.Trust Ngaio Marsh to leave more than a few mysteries scattered through her house long after her departure. For a start, there’s the curious concrete portal in the garden, ...
Appointment viewing has been lost to the mists of time, but memories of Montana Sunday Theatre can still be conjured by hitting play on a particular piece of classical music. “You’re not going to be able to sell it.” Over 30 years on, Karen Bieleski still recalls how the task ...
Performance Review King Luxon sat behind His massive polished oak desk. It is Performance Review time. There is a knock on the door. “Enter!” says the King. In steps Minister of Disabilities and Carer Pedicures, Penny Simmonds. “I can explain everything …” she begins. “Fine,” says King Luxon, pressing the ...
The pair opened their first fully collaborative exhibition, Nina for Flowers, last Saturday. Gabi Lardies visited their studio to find out who Nina is and what working together was like.‘It didn’t start out like, ‘This is a show about Nina,’” says Josephine Jelicich, gripping a thermos of peppermint tea. ...
Thank you, Dr Maximilian Oskar Bircher-Benner, for your brilliant invention. I’m another mid-20s Kiwi who had an OE last year. I hopped on my bicycle where France meets the Atlantic and cycled east. I pedalled through the Loire Valley, down rivers lined with willows and ancient wisteria-draped chateaus. I relished ...
Asia Pacific Report From France to Australia, university pro-Palestine protests in the United States have now spread to several countries with students pitching on-campus camps. And students at Columbia and other US universities remain defiant as campuses have witnessed the biggest protests since the anti-Vietnam war and anti-apartheid eras in ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards, Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)New Zealand Government’s Fast Track legislation. Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government ...
Tara Ward talks to presenter Naomi Toilalo about the new TV show that turns food waste into a three course feast. Naomi Toilalo is standing in the warehouse at Good Neighbour Tauranga, helping unpack the two-and-a-half tonnes of rejected food that will arrive at the community support hub that day. ...
Scout is our latest Dog of the Month. This feature was offered as a reward during our What’s Eating Aotearoa PledgeMe campaign. Thank you to Scout’s human, Avril, for her support. Dog name: Scout (named after the little girl in To Kill a Mockingbird – she inherited the independent spirit ...
Megan Alatini takes us through her life in TV, including ‘terrible’ daytime TV, the class of Carol Hirschfeld and her most embarrassing TrueBliss moment. When she responded to a vague newspaper ad asking “do you have what it takes to be a popstar?” 25 years ago, Megan Alatini never guessed ...
A new exhibition in Wellington showcases the faces behind your local goods and services. Back in 1977, when I was a fine arts student at the University of Canterbury, I took a series of photographs of Christchurch shopkeepers. The photos were for a calendar – a project for my end ...
Toomaj and his resistance to tyranny through his songs have become an icon for the youth of Iran, so his sentence has hit the nation hard. Toomaj Salehi is not the first artist to pay the price for standing with the people. ...
My cousin Dylan and I spotted these big eels under the bridge that summer. We watched them lounging under the dark weed, facing into the flow of water, their mouths frozen open. Dylan and I couldn’t stop thinking about those eels. The night we went down to the creek, we ...
Newsroom, home of satire. My long-running weekly satirical series The Secret Diary has moved to Newsroom and will appear every Saturday, with Victor Billot’s wildly popular satirical Odes continuing to appear every Sunday. Diaries, Odes – while serious political columnists toil at meaningful opinions and stroke their chins to an ...
Tara Ward unravels the many nuanced layers of a cartoon about talking dogs.This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. It’s not often an episode of a children’s cartoon has adults sobbing into their sleeves, but that’s exactly what happened this week when ...
Working as a doctor in developing countries to help communities achieve better health outcomes is nothing short of a life goal for Jessica Tater. The University of Otago medical student has her sights firmly set on joining the international humanitarian organisation Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) when she qualifies ...
There’s an island in the far reaches of Auckland’s territory, sitting off the tip of the Coromandel Peninsula, 30 minutes by air from the city or four hours on the slow boat. Aotea Great Barrier is off-grid, it has a population of fewer than a thousand people … and most ...
Asia Pacific Report An Australian author and advocate, Jim Aubrey, today led a national symbolic one minute’s silence to mark the “blood debt” owed to Papuan allies during the Second World War indigenous resistance against the invading Japanese forces. “A promise to most people is a promise,” Aubrey said in ...
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Pacific Media Watch Palestine solidarity protesters today demonstrated at the Auckland headquarters of Television New Zealand, accusing the country’s major TV network of broadcasting “propaganda” backing Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza. About 50 protesters targeted the main entrance to the TVNZ building near Sky Tower and also picketed a side ...
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The PSA is shocked that Oranga Tamariki has used the cost cutting drive to downgrade its commitment to Te Ao Māori and remove many specialist Māori roles. ...
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The sector says it’s hopeful her replacement Paul Goldsmith will be able to throw it a lifeline, after six months with a minister deemed missing in action, 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 ...
The government can't just rely on axing public sector jobs and has to do more to cut spending, says the chief economist at a free market think tank. ...
Rock The Vote NZ, known for its advocacy for minor party unity and its role within the Freedoms NZ Coalition during the 2023 General Election, celebrates this merger as a strategic enhancement of its operational strength and outreach. ...
https://twitter.com/bex_stevenson/status/1282973047125762050
I was wondering how Tova always seemed to have a mic in the Nats caucus meetings, but this explanation makes more sense
Will Tova get a very high place on the List?
Tova is still receiving leaks (plural) from inside National's caucus, and doing her job, reporting them to us. Good.
True. I'd just prefer we got past the aggravated political model and then we'd have less terrier at the trouser leg journalism.
It highlights how absolutely nothing has changed in the National Party despite their spin machine claiming she is a game changer.
They are still fractured (probably even more so because absolutely no-one has a nice word to say about her) and leaking and in disarray.
What the hell is Judith Collins going to bring to the table except more bile, division and intolerance?
I've always been amazed at how varied the people are that profess to like her .
Fucked if I know why . But it's a worry.
Yeah. I was more talking about the Nat caucus. Even when they are trying to endorse her no-one can bring themselves to say they like her. It's always through gritted teeth.
Heh.
Ha!- Over in Twitter land the conspiracy is Tova is batting for Labour, as all the leaks come from National. First she went after Simon, the Todd, and now Judith, National just can't get a break! So it goes. Maybe Labour just aren't leaking? & certainly not to O'Brien.
Has Katie Bradford written about this thrilling development yet?
Katie doesn't do political reporting any more. She's based in Auckland and seems to be their business/industrial reporter.
It did occur to me that the Caucus which is claimed to be so capable, elected a man who only lasted a few weeks. Very capable lot don't you think?
Have they done it again with Collins?
there's a real risk that if Collin's implodes National even further or goes down in a ball of flames that the left in turn will implode from the schadenfreude.
Remember it was Collins who swung crucial votes behind Muller rather than Bridges. Maybe she could see exactly how competent he was?
A sort of evil masterplan perhaps? Surely not.
And would Hooton be party to that? Surely n-n-n…
Collins needs to be careful with her language saying she won't put up with Ardern's nonsense………….she runs the risk this sort of talk will back fire.
In the same vein Collins sounded really stupid on Checkpoint when she said she can't use the government's tracer app….and at the same time undermines it.
It is really easy to use ….she must be technologically challenged.
Those comments were very revealing of Collins' 'character', for want of a better word.
She can't (or won't) use the Government's tracer app, and then implies it's unnecessary to use it because "I thought the borders were secure, aren't they?"
These are irresponsible comments – Collins is virtually encouraging the team of nearly 5,000,000 to let their Covid-19 guard down, because community transmission would be a gift to the opposition National party's election campaign. DISGUSTING & DIRTY.
Yip a real leader would be getting kiwis to behave responsibly around covid . Attack on the other shit ,but covid is levels above bullshot politics.
KiwiBuild-19
That is closer to what you'd expect any opposition leader to do than most of her other behaviour.
Would expect any opposition 'leader' to do during a global pandemic? There's Bridges/Muller for comparison – do their ethics compare favourably to Collins'? I think Muller's do, although admittedly there's not that much evidence to assess.
Agree 100 per cent Drowsy.
In making the nasty and snide "I thought the borders were secure, aren't they?" comment she showed why she will never get elected as PM.
Have you watched the Natty caucus walking to the Death Star musical signature?
Very Darth and Jabba, with a menagerie of oddly-formed off-worlders in tow.
Know that I'm a bit slow but whose face is on the Caucus faces of top of the page "If Judy and Jerry are the……"
There is only one person of current interest that possesses eyebrows that can shatter glass at 40 paces like those in the image.
(if you need to zoom in on the image, on a desktop hit ctrl + to zoom in, then to go back to normal hit ctrl 0)
Then, once you have mastered the first identification challenge, the next challenge is identifying exactly which one is the original master lurking in amongst the sea of enthralled clones.
Thanks Andre. Sheep always cluster together under threat and try to be anonymous in a group, but sheep very seldom darken their eyebrows.
Last night Farrar ran a poll of his readers. He listed the six top contenders for the Nat leadership & invited them to choose their preference. He advised that the poll would close when caucus convened at 7pm last night. I just went & checked out the result:
UPDATE: Over 4,000 votes cast and the results are:
I'm surprised at how decisive respondents were in agreeing on the best contender and how huge the margin ahead of the also-rans she was. I thought it would be close. Goes to show my grasp of current rightist politics is rather ephemeral! 😕
Dennis, it's not that surprising. IMHO Collins' views are far more closely aligned to traditional nat voters than either Muller or Brudges. Collins has always been popular with national's grass roots, just not it's caucus. How things change when people are looking at a career change!
Yes, the prospect of a Labour landslide sure did herd them in behind JC. Such evident unity will likely only persist if polls leading up to the election show National in with a chance. If not those in caucus who see her as divisive may start to brainstorm a plot or two. Or three. Depends if the faction divides run deep or not I guess. If she really does bridge the liberals & conservatives she may instead consolidate despite any plots.
A plot to do what?
They're stuck with her now, last card played.
That’s when the revolvers come out.
Kiwibog attracts righties with mummy issues, so no surprise there..
IMHO there will be no attempt to bridge liberals and conservatives. Many of Collins ideas are actually very traditional national, but rather than being a 'wet' (like Muller – eg the MAGA hat back down), her approach is likely to be 'take it or leave'. Following the reaction to her elevation yesterday, I suspect she will galvanise centre right support, which was drifting to NZF/Act. But broad enough appeal to win an election?
Similar numbers could probably be found on Kiwiblog for Don Brash, and the Standard for David Cunliffe, when they were leaders of the opposition.
Neither got to be PM.
So, did David take the results into the Caucus meeting?
Farrar hated Muller. Proof of that is the glaring lack of endorsement from him at any point in Muller's leadership.
Muller may not have had the stomach for nasty operators, hence his current position.
Collins thinks 1kg of cheese costs 4 or 5 dollars (Project, TV3). In touch with "real everyday Kiwis", eh?
good grief
The Oravida profit margins must be huge.
No wonder they think beneficiaries are living it up.
Collins is lapping it up and enjoying every minute of being the opposition leader.
Valse du petit chien by Frédéric Chopin.
I just can't see Judith Collins holding it together. She will never have faced the sort of pressure which is going to be applied over the next 8 weeks and she clearly doesn't have the emotional intelligence to weather that storm.
Collins doesn’t play to win in September, she plays to hurt Labour, in particular. Oppositions don’t win elections, Governments lose them. She has the advantage of being the underdog and has almost nothing to lose and everything to gain. I don’t think she has what it takes but my opinion doesn’t matter at all in this.
They tried nasty in Bridges, didn't work. They tried nice in Muller but that turned out nastier. Now they are desperate and are trying the nastiest of the lot.
Good luck with that.
In the old days there used to be words which specified gender, like 'actor' and actress.' The world has changed.
Is there a female word for underdog? To apply to Collins. Is there still a word for female dog?
Ir doesn't matter which way you stack it , the new National team is still YMCA – yesterdays muck cooked up again .
Rabid wolverine (HT to lurgee).
@Peter
I'll say it,It's bitch. No such thing as a female dog. We here in Dunedin have lawyers working for that council that thinks the use of bitch should be changed to female dog,woof wooof.
It's no so much about facing the pressure, IMO. It's more that she just loves the sound of her own voice, and will keep on talking and giving gifts.
Personally I'd like to see Labour accepting these gifts more, not by attacking her but simply quoting her. I know Ardern doesn't want to have "opposition research" and attack ads, but they can at least notice what she says.
Like the cheese thing above – a social media meme waiting to happen. No need for nastiness, just quote her own words. With a picture of a supermarket shelf, 2020. Done.
That's what I mean by pressure. Show the country her words in a calm way and Judith will double down. This will lead to reckless behaviour from her.
Is chien a dog?
Please translate.
Also it was Bastille Day in France on 14 July.
Let them eat cheese.
Literally, waltz of the small doggie AKA the minute waltz. It is short but not quite a minute short 😉
Farrar watch:
You know things are bad for National when the attack lines from their pollster and blogger dry up and he is reduced to posting about Trump.
Awaiting fresh orders
You’d love the newly revamped party website.
I thought earlier today that Collins most resembled Muldoon and you'd not be surprised if one day soon she was stopped by the media drunk, then proceeding to give it to reporters.
This columnist makes the link to Muldoon.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/local-democracy-reporting/300058019/dont-give-me-culture-the-appeal-of-judith-collins
But in 1975 Muldoon was 54 and rising. In 2020 Collins is 61 and fading.
Have you seen Anne's comment at 12.1 Judith and Gerry are …
Yep I agree with you and Anne.
Drunk on politics.
Contradictory, weak-willed messages anyone?
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon/audio/2018755012/judith-collins-on-her-plans-for-national
The government should have a field day with that.
Being in NZ feels like being nicely hauled up inside on a cosy couch with a nice hot cuppa and the cat purring away while a winter storm is raging outside and battering the house. Don’t go outside if you don’t need to and open doors and windows very carefully or the wind will smash them wide open and cause major damage. Alert Level 1.
Always at least one silly uncle who reckons the weather is just fine and you're oppressing his weiner by keeping the windows closed.
Judith Collins allows herself to be wound up by man-bun wearing Ryan Bridge.
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2020/07/prime-minister-jacinda-ardern-should-stop-being-so-woke-judith-collins.html
She's going down the wrong path using pejorative terms like 'woke'. It didn't work for Simon Bridges and to won't work for her.
I think Collins is a more reckless and less intelligent version of Bridges. The National Party caucus apparently agreed.
How pythonesque.
Those pesky kids…
To me, Collins comes across as easily the most capable and intelligent member of the National caucus. Even from the early years of the Key administration, she seemed like their only debater able to think on their feet, whether in the house or in interviews (I think that situation is even more pronounced now). That doesn't mean that she's good at anything other than using her replies to put people in their place, of course, but it wouldn't surprise me if she were. Her statements about Ardern there, though, look rather petulant, and suggest an insecure, "Look at me, please…" attitude that could actually damage her tough image. If she gets frustrated that easily, or even simply comes out with poor wording or inopportune phrases when trying to present her person, as opposed to the substance of an argument, it does not bode well for her at all.
A ray of hope for the future of natural environments and our civilisation, all without genocide. We don't have to maintain population numbers, or patterns of consumption.
"Our findings suggest that continued trends in female educational attainment and access to contraception will hasten declines in fertility and slow population growth. A sustained TFR [total fertility rate] lower than the replacement level in many countries, including China and India, would have economic, social, environmental, and geopolitical consequences. Policy options to adapt to continued low fertility, while sustaining and enhancing female reproductive health, will be crucial in the years to come."
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)30677-2/fulltext
https://episodes.buzzsprout.com/n7oh3nfooiuswhpux42zgxpl8j0b
Collapso-praxis advocates and collapsonauts rejoice – this century is your time to shine.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collapsology
Interesting about birth rates. The mental health of a society may be more affected by drops in wages and job numbers through replacement by technology. It is notice able that education is not as encouraged, in all its forms, as it used to be in NZ. It has been turned into a business, and so the poor get less concern, and have to pay for courses that were free. Why bother to educate our own when the masses from overseas will pay to come here and give the barons the business and profits.
The idea that education will save us and raise living standards was a 20th century truth that has been diluted by how we are brain washed by tv and other technology.
Also falling birth rates for women in China has turned females from being advanced people in a modern country to being sought after in rather dodgy ways. Chinese men are looking for wives, and now they are tending to go to the Philippinnes. These are things that have cropped up which I have noticed.