The country’s largest insurance company is tipped to be moving more than a hundred jobs overseas.
The Herald understands IAG, which has about 40 per cent of the general insurance market, could be set to shift 55 jobs from its NZI insurance business and a further 77 from the parent company.
The roles are currently based in Christchurch but would be done by overseas partners, according to an unnamed source.
An IAG New Zealand spokesperson said an “operational partnering project” was under way affecting approximately 141 positions involving some parts of its Christchurch operation. Positions affected by the project could be moved to the Philippines.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11979552
“In the UK, a loaf of the bread sells for just over £1.50 ($2.86) at British supermarket chain Sainsbury’s and $4.50 on average here in New Zealand. At Countdown a loaf of Vogel’s bread can be bought for $4.50 or $7 for two, and at New World it sells for $4.49.”
“New Zealand Food & Grocery Council chief executive Katherine Rich said the price difference was due to a number of factors, including that there was no tax on bread in the UK.
For a start, there’s no VAT [tax] on bread in the UK, while in New Zealand there’s GST of 15 per cent. That will account for most of the difference,” Rich said.
Note to Katherine GST on a $4.50 loaf of bread is $0.59 so the exclusive price is $3.91 still a difference of $1.05. Me thinks there is something rotten here.
Just confirms our low wage high cost economy.
A bit of a beat-up really, it’s a function of New Zealand being a small country with a really shitty geography for doing things cheaply.
Ms Rich sort of redeemed herself with this,
“”Also, UK Vogel’s is made by a different company to Vogel’s in New Zealand, so there will be different manufacturing cost structures and specifications.
There model of “economies of scale” was also a contributing factor, she said.
“You can produce more items for less in a market of 65 million people, due to longer production runs, than you can in a market of 4.7 million people.”
Pretty much everything I eat has done at least 500 km in the back of a truck, that doesn’t do much good to the price.
I’m really enjoying the intercept it has some really thoughtful pieces. This is a long piece, and is quite involved. But well worth the effort, and the analysis is first class.
I cant agree that it’s first class actually. No where has the author explained where Isis et al got their funding. No where does he give credit to those who have removed (mostly) these head choppers from Iraq and Syria. Are we suppose to believe US,UK, NATO, Saudi, Turkey, Quatar facilitated their removal? They were funding them ffs!!
As one commenter said:
JeffD
15 hours ago
This is such a clueless, superficial, out-of-context column that I stopped reading after a few paragraphs. The Intercept should do a lot better than this.
First and foremost, the tyrannical regimes in the Middle East would have been thrown out of power long ago if not for huge sums of money and military equipment & support, mainly from the U.S. and secondarily from western Europe.
Second, it was the U.S. that created the Islamic fanatic groups, starting with the Mujahideen that they used to fight the Soviet Union in Afghanistan. ISIS and Al Qaeda are their babies and they have no one else to blame for them.
So, when it came to the Arab Spring, the only country where there was any success was the original one, Tunisia. Egypt was the most well-covered one in the U.S., and the U.S. made sure that no one good like Mohamed ElBaradei would take power. The rulers in the Middle East knew that they could count on U.S. support to crush any movement or potential leader who did not fall in line with the U.S./Israel program.
The people who removed ISIS/Isil/Daesh were the Kurds on the whole.
A people more committed to a left wing solution to the problems for people. You know the democratic, freedom embracing, equality and talk about economics crowd.
The group who at this moment are being bombed by the Turks.
Come on are you saying there was no agency in this, that this warped type of Islam that ISIS/Isil/Daesh promoted was/is just a USA creation?
By your summary, and you might just be right, the Kurds are dead. And the USA will make it happen. I’m hoping it is not the case.
‘The people who removed ISIS/Isil/Daesh were the Kurds on the whole.”
Actually no. That isn’t correct. The Kurds, most of whom are immigrants, inhabit the north east of Syria. It was the Syrian, Russian, and Hezbollah armies who removed Isis from Damascas, Aleppo etc.
The Kurds at this time are being funded by the US not realising that they’re only being used by the US to divide Syria.
The US has just instralled some thousand of troops across the border of Syria – which constitutes an invasion.
I suggest you read articles by Vanessa Beeley, Eva Bartlett, Janice Kortkamp, Tim Anderson, Pierre Le Corf. These are people who actually went to Syria and spent time talking to Syrians and members of the Syrian Arab Army. Not one of them is aligned to any establishment media.
It’s not that I disagree with what the author of this article says, it’s that he chooses to tell only half the story and in satisfying his urge to for intellectual analyses insults the thousands and thousands and thousands of victims of this western created and funded scourge.
“The era of “private good, public bad” is drawing to a close. Unshakeable faith in Margaret Thatcher’s privatisation creed is being killed off not just by counter-ideology, but by the sheer irrationality, expense and failure of so many private contracts. Carillion’s spectacular collapse makes big headlines, but out of the spotlight local councils, under extreme stress from cuts, are cancelling contracted-out services. Why? Because it saves them money and improves services. I have been talking to councils around the country where in-sourcing is how they best cope with savage budget reductions.”
and allowing for the possibility of bias from the Herald…this part of the biography is true…
“In 1988 Harawira, her daughter Hiniwhare, son Arthur and two others were found guilty of beating a Carrington Hospital patient. At the time Harawira was head of the Whare Paia Maori health unit. The jury also found Harawira guilty of a charge of threatening to kill. She was jailed for nine months.
The sentencing judge said that the five had carried out a “vicious and violent” attack on the patient and that the offences were “an arrogant and frightening abuse of authority and power”.
He described Harawira’s role as “outrageous”.Imposing a longer prison sentence on Harawira, the judge told her “You were in a position of authority, you ought to have prevented what occurred.””
I vividly remember this, and vividly remember the member of the whanau I was working with at the time of the investigation into Whare Paia defending Titewhai’s actions claiming it was the Maori way. I was working in the sector at the time.
For shame…and by all rights she should have scuttled off into silent obscurity…
“The plain fact of the matter is that New Zealand as a country has moved on and Jacinda Arden’s pregnancy is a non issue with most people. It is some Labourites, ironically, who have tried to make it an issue. It would be better for all concerned if they turned their attention to the policies that their government is pursuing. Because, whether they care to admit it or not, Jacinda Ardern – even pregnant- is leading a government that is still pursuing the policies of neoliberalism.”
We should be investing heavily in researching Science and Tech renewable energy sector this is one way we could minimise carbon emissions and generate export dollars.
Peter Becks Rocket lab is a Great feet one of the greatest feets of any Kiwi and he respects Maori he got the site blessed by Maori ka pai Peter .
Video Games market is worth 100 billion surely we could easily get a couple of those billions I won’t say too much because I have ideas on this subject
We need big changes in our justice systems Equality will be a starter.
I know most of our civil servants read my posts when I put a good post up the sirens start up lol I feel for my neighbours. Many thanks to all our truck drivers I know a lot of you know about ECO Maori Ka pai.
Civil construction /Road workers Alot of you know about ECO Maori Ka pai don’t listen to the bullshit lies of the sandflys and watch out for there shiney object they will use it and there viruses as that will turn you into the gullable people be warned.
To all our Maori leaders don’t go biting the hand that feeds the people it the people that count in my view Ka pai. Yes WAI/WATER is a very important issue lets make wise choices when dealing with the issue There are many ways to solve the problem the wise people find the best way to a positive answers to our water questions.
To all the that are not Maori cultured you don’t have to worry about Maori getting to much Mana/power with all the treasure of NZ. As when the settlers were in need Maori help them. Maori are a kind caring people who will share with other kiwis. It is neoliberals that one has to be worried about getting control of NZ Treasures they will bleed us dry for there dollar they wership this is fact Ana to kai
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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 ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Sievers, Research Fellow, Global Wetlands Project, Australia Rivers Institute, Griffith University Chris Brown Humans love the coast. But we love it to death, so much so we’ve destroyed valuable coastal habitat – in the case of some types of habitat, ...
Josh Thomson on the 80s milk ad jingle he can’t stop singing, the beauty of The Simpsons, why Jersey Shore is as good as Shakespeare and more. For someone who spends a lot of time on our screens, popping up in everything from 7 Days to Taskmaster, Educators to Good ...
In apparent defiance of the Biden administration, the Netanyahu government has now initiated missile strikes against Iran. Last Saturday night (Sunday morning in New Zealand) Iran launched more than 300 drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles against Israeli military targets. With the assistance of US, UK and possibly French forces, ...
Māori representation brings a perspective that encompasses not only the interests of Māori communities but also a broader, holistic approach to environmental stewardship and community well-being, principles deeply embedded in Te Ao Māori (the Māori ...
This week in Auckland, a group of young people took over the microphone at a ministerial press conference, to explain why they oppose the Fast-Track Approvals Bill. One young woman said, ‘We’re here because we love Aotearoa New Zealand. We want to raise our children in an environment that’s thriving, ...
The summer was wonderful. Evie was wonderful, too; finally a teenager, finally worthy of long, hot days. She shaved her legs for the first time and bought cut-off shorts from the op-shop that made them look long. She got a Warehouse singlet so tight on her new shape that her ...
When Thomas James was on his solo camp as part of Outward Bound, the keen outdoorsman didn’t find it too challenging, as others often do. In what might just be the perfect illustration of his character, he saw it as a great opportunity to solve a few problems. “I thought, ...
From the unstable and drippy to the hi-tech and pretty, here’s our ranking of all the tunnels you can drive through in this country. The first tunnel seems to have been built in 2200BC in Babylonia, kicking off a global phenomenon for digging holes in order to get places more ...
Lucinda Bennett on the art of being greedy but resourceful. This is an excerpt from our weekly food newsletter, The Boil Up. When I picture the market, it is always this time of year. Crisp air, dripping nose, counting coins with cold fingers. Sunlight pale, filtered through specks of dew still ...
Zoë Colling’s favourite piece in the ‘That’s So Last Century’ collection is a lubrication chart for a sewing machine from the ’60s. It’s about the size of a postcard, and carefully maintained. “I like it that this piece of ephemera highlights that manual and technical side of the skill involved ...
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 ...
“Activist Penny Bright’s house could be sold to recover unpaid rates and penalties on the house.
Auckland Council has asked the High Court to proceed with the sale of her Kingsland house.
The sale would seek to recover unpaid rates and penalties dating back to 2007.”
Oh Penny! You need a roof!
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11979811
Not a done deal yet, but yeah – I hope she has a decent contingency plan.
Well if it is sold she’ll still walk away with several hundred thousand dollars in the bank.
Which, even if accurate (e.g. no other personal debt on it) might still get a hefty dent in auckland.
Oh, Penny! You do need a roof, but respect for making a stand.
I began a began a rates strike against the Waikato Regional Council back in 2011…I chickened out, and have regretted it ever since.
I don’t know how you’re going to deal with this, but all the best.
I can’t help but sense a link between these circumstances and Bill’s solidarity post.
Brighter minds than mine will suggest ways that we can assist.
Whether you agree with Penny or not you have to admire her steadfastness in putting her money where her mouth is.
Have to agree with that.
Good on Auckland council bringing her to account.
She could have stopped this years ago – about time she pays her fair share.
With apologies to German Lutheran pastor Martin Niemöller
First they came for the Socialists, and the middle classes did not speak out—
Because they were not Socialists.
Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and the middle classes did not speak out—
Because they were not Trade Unionists.
Then they came for the middle classes.
And there was no one left to speak for them.
Because the middle class had betrayed everyone else
And so the plutocrats swallowed them up.
And increased their profits.
Insurer tipped to move more than 100 jobs overseas
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11979552
“In the UK, a loaf of the bread sells for just over £1.50 ($2.86) at British supermarket chain Sainsbury’s and $4.50 on average here in New Zealand. At Countdown a loaf of Vogel’s bread can be bought for $4.50 or $7 for two, and at New World it sells for $4.49.”
“New Zealand Food & Grocery Council chief executive Katherine Rich said the price difference was due to a number of factors, including that there was no tax on bread in the UK.
For a start, there’s no VAT [tax] on bread in the UK, while in New Zealand there’s GST of 15 per cent. That will account for most of the difference,” Rich said.
Note to Katherine GST on a $4.50 loaf of bread is $0.59 so the exclusive price is $3.91 still a difference of $1.05. Me thinks there is something rotten here.
Just confirms our low wage high cost economy.
A bit of a beat-up really, it’s a function of New Zealand being a small country with a really shitty geography for doing things cheaply.
Ms Rich sort of redeemed herself with this,
“”Also, UK Vogel’s is made by a different company to Vogel’s in New Zealand, so there will be different manufacturing cost structures and specifications.
There model of “economies of scale” was also a contributing factor, she said.
“You can produce more items for less in a market of 65 million people, due to longer production runs, than you can in a market of 4.7 million people.”
Pretty much everything I eat has done at least 500 km in the back of a truck, that doesn’t do much good to the price.
Testing….
Great image in the post. Really highlights the hypocrisy of privileged whites.
Would crowd funding work?
I’m really enjoying the intercept it has some really thoughtful pieces. This is a long piece, and is quite involved. But well worth the effort, and the analysis is first class.
https://theintercept.com/2018/01/21/isis-defeated-syria-iraq-islamic-state/
I cant agree that it’s first class actually. No where has the author explained where Isis et al got their funding. No where does he give credit to those who have removed (mostly) these head choppers from Iraq and Syria. Are we suppose to believe US,UK, NATO, Saudi, Turkey, Quatar facilitated their removal? They were funding them ffs!!
As one commenter said:
JeffD
15 hours ago
This is such a clueless, superficial, out-of-context column that I stopped reading after a few paragraphs. The Intercept should do a lot better than this.
First and foremost, the tyrannical regimes in the Middle East would have been thrown out of power long ago if not for huge sums of money and military equipment & support, mainly from the U.S. and secondarily from western Europe.
Second, it was the U.S. that created the Islamic fanatic groups, starting with the Mujahideen that they used to fight the Soviet Union in Afghanistan. ISIS and Al Qaeda are their babies and they have no one else to blame for them.
So, when it came to the Arab Spring, the only country where there was any success was the original one, Tunisia. Egypt was the most well-covered one in the U.S., and the U.S. made sure that no one good like Mohamed ElBaradei would take power. The rulers in the Middle East knew that they could count on U.S. support to crush any movement or potential leader who did not fall in line with the U.S./Israel program.
The people who removed ISIS/Isil/Daesh were the Kurds on the whole.
A people more committed to a left wing solution to the problems for people. You know the democratic, freedom embracing, equality and talk about economics crowd.
The group who at this moment are being bombed by the Turks.
Come on are you saying there was no agency in this, that this warped type of Islam that ISIS/Isil/Daesh promoted was/is just a USA creation?
By your summary, and you might just be right, the Kurds are dead. And the USA will make it happen. I’m hoping it is not the case.
‘The people who removed ISIS/Isil/Daesh were the Kurds on the whole.”
Actually no. That isn’t correct. The Kurds, most of whom are immigrants, inhabit the north east of Syria. It was the Syrian, Russian, and Hezbollah armies who removed Isis from Damascas, Aleppo etc.
The Kurds at this time are being funded by the US not realising that they’re only being used by the US to divide Syria.
The US has just instralled some thousand of troops across the border of Syria – which constitutes an invasion.
I suggest you read articles by Vanessa Beeley, Eva Bartlett, Janice Kortkamp, Tim Anderson, Pierre Le Corf. These are people who actually went to Syria and spent time talking to Syrians and members of the Syrian Arab Army. Not one of them is aligned to any establishment media.
It’s not that I disagree with what the author of this article says, it’s that he chooses to tell only half the story and in satisfying his urge to for intellectual analyses insults the thousands and thousands and thousands of victims of this western created and funded scourge.
“The era of “private good, public bad” is drawing to a close. Unshakeable faith in Margaret Thatcher’s privatisation creed is being killed off not just by counter-ideology, but by the sheer irrationality, expense and failure of so many private contracts. Carillion’s spectacular collapse makes big headlines, but out of the spotlight local councils, under extreme stress from cuts, are cancelling contracted-out services. Why? Because it saves them money and improves services. I have been talking to councils around the country where in-sourcing is how they best cope with savage budget reductions.”
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/jan/22/carillion-privatisation-myth-councils-pfi-contracts
You can fool some of the people some of the time……..
The Corillion saga suggests finance capitalism, in conjunction with neoliberal politicians, are still fleecing honest, yet naive , citizens.
https://www.rt.com/uk/416113-labour-galloway-carillon-liquidation/amp/
I’ll add another ‘activist’ into tonight’s discussion.
Titewhai Harawira.
Touted to be escorting the PM onto Waitangi this year.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/te-manu-korihi/348656/titewhai-harawira-to-escort-pm-on-waitangi-marae
Now some of us have long memories….http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10864470
and allowing for the possibility of bias from the Herald…this part of the biography is true…
“In 1988 Harawira, her daughter Hiniwhare, son Arthur and two others were found guilty of beating a Carrington Hospital patient. At the time Harawira was head of the Whare Paia Maori health unit. The jury also found Harawira guilty of a charge of threatening to kill. She was jailed for nine months.
The sentencing judge said that the five had carried out a “vicious and violent” attack on the patient and that the offences were “an arrogant and frightening abuse of authority and power”.
He described Harawira’s role as “outrageous”.Imposing a longer prison sentence on Harawira, the judge told her “You were in a position of authority, you ought to have prevented what occurred.””
I vividly remember this, and vividly remember the member of the whanau I was working with at the time of the investigation into Whare Paia defending Titewhai’s actions claiming it was the Maori way. I was working in the sector at the time.
For shame…and by all rights she should have scuttled off into silent obscurity…
a case of inmates running the asylum perhaps.
She has/had some ‘interesting’ views on purity of blood also.
Today in the news…..
1% own 30% of NZ’s wealth
Tauranga and Auckland are extremely unaffordable cities.
And now this.
Small town NZ is slowly dying.
http://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2018/01/are-the-regions-are-dying-in-new-zealand.html
Tinkering won’t end the neoliberal nightmare.
Radical reform will.
Where do you live Ed?
Plain speaking from Steve Cowan
“The plain fact of the matter is that New Zealand as a country has moved on and Jacinda Arden’s pregnancy is a non issue with most people. It is some Labourites, ironically, who have tried to make it an issue. It would be better for all concerned if they turned their attention to the policies that their government is pursuing. Because, whether they care to admit it or not, Jacinda Ardern – even pregnant- is leading a government that is still pursuing the policies of neoliberalism.”
http://nzagainstthecurrent.blogspot.co.nz/2018/01/baby-talk.html
We should be investing heavily in researching Science and Tech renewable energy sector this is one way we could minimise carbon emissions and generate export dollars.
Peter Becks Rocket lab is a Great feet one of the greatest feets of any Kiwi and he respects Maori he got the site blessed by Maori ka pai Peter .
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/100766610/rocket-lab-will-make-life-on-earth-better-no-need-to-move-to-mars
Video Games market is worth 100 billion surely we could easily get a couple of those billions I won’t say too much because I have ideas on this subject
https://www.google.co.nz/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=13&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjI8vqZluvYAhWHVLwKHW_CBScQFghjMAw&url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FList_of_best-selling_video_games&usg=AOvVaw3xKQ6_PFmhJVQpZtVoegy9
Clean energy sector is 330 billion eazy 5 billion here A if we invest in this we will benefit immensely.
https://www.google.co.nz/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=6&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwio-Z_SmuvYAhXKurwKHewFDicQFghLMAU&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffortune.com%2F2016%2F01%2F14%2Frecord-funding-clean-energy%2F&usg=AOvVaw3qjw4fr8OkSiOLF-U2XcUn.
We produced Ernest Rutherford it must be in the wai/water Ka pai
https://www.google.co.nz/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjc3amQnOvYAhUCwbwKHQsyCpcQFggpMAA&url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FErnest_Rutherford&usg=AOvVaw1DVFpYd3zlxLq215I_dvkJ.
Ka kite ano
Bryan Bruce has started New Zealand Public Television.
http://www.nzptv.org.nz/
Some good stuff there.
Like this.
https://www.facebook.com/www.redsky.tv/photos/a.334553779960314.75108.334536643295361/1582195341862812/?type=3
We need big changes in our justice systems Equality will be a starter.
I know most of our civil servants read my posts when I put a good post up the sirens start up lol I feel for my neighbours. Many thanks to all our truck drivers I know a lot of you know about ECO Maori Ka pai.
Civil construction /Road workers Alot of you know about ECO Maori Ka pai don’t listen to the bullshit lies of the sandflys and watch out for there shiney object they will use it and there viruses as that will turn you into the gullable people be warned.
To all our Maori leaders don’t go biting the hand that feeds the people it the people that count in my view Ka pai. Yes WAI/WATER is a very important issue lets make wise choices when dealing with the issue There are many ways to solve the problem the wise people find the best way to a positive answers to our water questions.
To all the that are not Maori cultured you don’t have to worry about Maori getting to much Mana/power with all the treasure of NZ. As when the settlers were in need Maori help them. Maori are a kind caring people who will share with other kiwis. It is neoliberals that one has to be worried about getting control of NZ Treasures they will bleed us dry for there dollar they wership this is fact Ana to kai