Daily review 22/05/2023

Written By: - Date published: 5:30 pm, May 22nd, 2023 - 47 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 …

47 comments on “Daily review 22/05/2023 ”

  1. Ed1 1

    Not that long ago I recall another country lamenting their excess deaths and making a comparison with New Zealand's exceptional performance, but now I cannot remember where I saw it. Can anyone help?

    • Phillip ure 1.1

      You could google it…and you will find our death rate in the pre-vaccine period is (from memory)..right down there.. especially when compared with the likes of denier-trump america..

      The reason I remember this is that for me it underlined what can never be taken away from jacinda ardern..

      That is the large number of nz lives that were saved ('cos of her lockdowns)…

      That was down to her..

  2. The Chairman 2

    A former union leader and Labour Party activist is establishing a Women’s Rights Party.

    https://womensrightsparty.nz/putting-womens-rights-on-the-ballot-in-october/

    Wonder what impact they will make? How long before they are labelled Nazis?

    [We’re all trying hard to lift the debate here on TS, especially around women’s issues, and then you come along with this unnecessary needling and misogynist provocation that could easily start flame wars. I consider it inciting violence and this site has a strong Policy against violence. Do it again and you won’t be commenting here till sometime after the General Election – Incognito]

    • Phillip ure 2.1

      Not nazis..but definitely trans-bashers..

      [We’re all trying hard to lift the debate here on TS, especially around women’s issues, and then you come along with this unnecessary needling and misogynist provocation that could easily start flame wars. I consider it inciting violence and this site has a strong Policy against violence. Do it again and you won’t be commenting here till sometime after the General Election – Incognito]

    • Incognito 2.2

      Mod note

    • The Chairman 2.3

      Misogynist and inciting violence?????

      I’m not calling them Nazis nor am I calling for any violence.

      • Incognito 2.3.1

        Wondering aloud when (not if) others might resort to verbal violence against (some) women lowers the threshold to do exactly that. It was utterly unnecessary to open the door (or trap, rather) for others to go through. Instead, you could have initiated a mature and constructive political conversation about a new political party on a political blog site. Don’t waste my time!

        • The Chairman 2.3.1.1

          Bit late mate. That lower threshold is already upon us.

          Sadly, in the current political environment the bar has become that low.

          The link below is an example of where we are already at. Not to mention the real physical violence that also took place against women at the event.

          Remember the Let Women Speak event? Here is a response to that. No less, from one of our MPs. Note the heading above the picture in the tweet.

          https://twitter.com/golrizghahraman/status/1639380952131715072

          Therefore, in this current environment (where the bar is already that low) the question is extremely valid.

          • Incognito 2.3.1.1.1

            Why then stomp on it when it is already down and going down further? Why not try lifting the bar instead?

            You and I have no control over the Twitter sphere but we can influence the tone & content here on this blog site and we can call out others if/when required (and ban them if/when necessary). We can try steering things towards constructive & respectful discourse.

            You don’t invite verbal violence by speculating about it the way you did without reason or cause.

            Your Mod note stays firmly in place!

            PS you have wasted enough of my time on this, so move on.

  3. Phillip ure 3

    Rnz doing a moral panic number on the cocaine flooding into australia..

    I would just like to note that of all the drugs I gave up.. cocaine was the easiest to kick…

    Compared to tobacco/alcohol/heroin/crack cocaine/barbiturates etc… it's a breeze..

    And on a slightly different tack..I actually think that with the gold card should come the access to pharmaceutical cocaine..

    It would put a spring into the step and a sparkle into the eyes of those officially retired…

    And why not..?… where's the harm..?

  4. bwaghorn 4

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/country/490413/ratio-of-sheep-to-people-drops-below-five-to-one-for-first-time-in-170-years

    2%drop in sheep in 1 year, but over 40%in 30 years.

    8%drop in dairy cows in 5 years.

    Hope this is being noticed by the powers that be .

    • Phillip ure 4.1

      You ain't seen nothing yet…

      The rise of animal suffering free/small environmental footprint lab-grown meats is going to decimate the animal exploitation industries our economy seems to rely upon..

      I also hope our powers that be are taking notice…

      And planning for this upcoming seachange..

      • bwaghorn 4.1.1

        I'm all for lab meat , it's theory way we can colonise space,.

        Can you answer my favorite? For people such as your self in a nz context.

        If we stopped all meat eating what would we do to control the rampant wild pig,deer and goat populations that would explode?

        • Phillip ure 4.1.1.1

          The reality is that there will always be people who get off on killing..

          It would likely be done under the umbrella of pest control..

          I find it difficult..as a member of the apex predators..man/woman to pass judgement on animal 'pests'..

          I would just let it roll,.and see what happens..

          With all the animal exploitation 'farms' closing down…there will be plenty of room for all..

          Live and let live..

          • Belladonna 4.1.1.1.1

            If there is no control of the feral pig, deer, possum, mustelid and rodent population (control, being a euphemism for killing) – then we will have very little native wildlife left in NZ.

            Is it more moral to kill off those animals and leave them to rot; or to kill them off and use their meat and skin?

            • Phillip ure 4.1.1.1.1.1

              Humans are the biggest pest…we have wiped out the native species…not possums..not cats..

              Us…

              In just a couple of hundred years..we have fucken decimated what was an iteration of paradise..

              Any finger pointing should be straight back at ourselves..

              • Belladonna

                That's a nice philosophical statement. Although, you might want to extend the 'couple of hundred years' to the arrival of humans to the islands which would become NZ.

                In practical terms what do you propose to do about it? Reduce population growth (Chinese 1 child policy)?
                The possible alternatives go downhill from there. Are you proposing widescale euthanasia?

                Personally, regardless of decisions which were made in the past (and, which actually my personal ancestors had no voice in) – I prefer to make the attempt to retain as much of NZ's native flora and fauna as possible. And, in utterly practical terms, that requires reduction and elimination (if possible) of a wide range of animal pests.

                It seems that you don't.

                • Phillip ure

                  No…I don't support'widespread euthanasia..

                  And I think the only way to restore native flora/is to do what has already been shown to work..

                  Namely approaching it like one would eating an elephant ..one bite at a time..fencing off areas…and letting them come back..piece by piece..

                  Unsure why you dived down the one child policy rabbit hole..

                  There is plenty of room in this country for more people..

                  (Did you know the Japanese call nz the empty islands..same size as japan..and largely empty…we have heaps of room..)

                  And yes maori burnt off/extinguished some species..

                  But seriously..it has been pakeha who have so fucked the place over..

                  Most of the country has been turned into an animal fattening yard…

                  That all has to change..and some of those changes will be forced upon us (ie..lab-meat killing our killing floors..)

                  And just out of interest…your thoughts on the way forward..?

                  Just more of the same..?

                  • Belladonna

                    You brought up the devastation that humanity has caused. But somehow think that increasing the population would be a good thing.

                    More people = less space for wildlife. Or do you think that Japan (since that's the example you chose) is a shining example of retention of native wildlife.

                    Fencing off areas (cf Zealandia, and offshore islands) only works with a very heavy trapping elimination programme. Certainly in Auckland, DoC swings into urgent action every time there is evidence of rats/possums, etc. on the sanctuary islands. Predators are *highly* motivated to get through fences, and, in the absence of active management, that's exactly what they do.

                    Way forward?

                    Control of introduced pest animals. Heavy culling, 1080, genetic engineering – whatever it takes for the native wildlife to have a chance at regenerating (and we can see from where that has worked successfully, that it will do so, if given space).

                    Agricultural exports (beef, milk, lamb, etc.) are a very significant component of our trade balance with the rest of the world.

                    If you are envisaging these disappearing, what do you propose to replace them with?

                    Because, I can guarantee that the rest of NZ doesn't want to do without the overseas products that we trade for them (all the medical equipment in our hospitals, all of the tech that we are using to connect with each other and the rest of the world, large elements of our basic food supply, etc.)

                    My pick, is as I said above – real meat will become a luxury item, with a luxury price tag – and NZ will switch to supplying that market. Which we can do very effectively (open spaces, mild climate, year-round growing conditions, etc.).

                    That may well result in a reduction of the amount of land which is taken up by farming. The question is what (high-end, added value) product/s we can utilize this space for?

                    Our track record in this has currently been abysmal. All of those conversions to forestry for the purpose of shipping raw logs off to China (the lowest possible income stream).

                    I'm, personally, not in favour of turning it into mega-cities to house a vastly increased population because we have "heaps of room".

                    It is possible that though shifting to supply of high-end, rather than mid-price agricultural products, that we'll be able to afford to return more marginal or ecologically sensitive areas, currently in farmland, back into native parks (bush, wetlands, tussock). Which will, of course, require not just fencing, but active management as above. I'd love to be seeing takahe and kakapo (for example) in significant mainland areas.

                    • Phillip ure

                      More people..living much more sustainably than we do.. wouldn't be a problem.

                      There is middle ground between empty islands and megacities..

                      And I must repeat that the decimation of our animal flesh export industries will happen because of outside forces..

                      And just saying you don't want it to happen.. won't stop it happening..

                      Our meat industries can be compared to the owners of the infrastructure for a horse based transport industries..just before the arrival of their great disrupter..the motor car..

                      They didn't want that to happen either..it didn't stop it tho'..

                      And of course current animal fatteners can see the writing on the wall..and change to being farmers… growing real food…

                      Those who just stick their heads in the sand..will be swept away by these winds of change…

                      And/but of course this discussion of the infrastructure of these vile/cruel industries ignores the philosophical imperatives..

                      A very smart person..einstein..said that in the future humanity will view how we currently treat/exploit animals with the same abhorrence that we now regard human slavery..

                  • Belladonna

                    Well, you think our animal export industries will be decimated. I think that they'll pivot to luxury trade. After all, the trade in breeding racehorses, went right on – completely unaffected by the switch from horse-drawn carriages to automobiles.

                    Only time will tell who is right.

                    If I'm right, then NZ will be able to continue to pay for our first world lifestyle. If you're right (since you haven't been able to come up with even one alternative export idea) – NZ will rapidly have a substantial drop in living standards (the current cost-of-living crisis will be peanuts by comparison).
                    Note that the current switch away from dairy (encouraged by Government incentives) has been to forestry – the lowest added value trade there is.

                    Housing intensity is one of those things that many people feel is good in abstract, but turn into NIMBYs the moment they, personally, are affected.

                    Are you going to put your hand up to have a medium-rise (only 5 floors) block of flats put up on your side boundary? It will only take away the sun from your house for 6 hours a day.

                    • Phillip ure

                      I talk on this subject because I want the animal suffering to end…but also to try to alert others to these upcoming massive changes we will face..

                      And I have no prescription for seeing off this disruption..what to pivot to..

                      I understand james cameron has been doing this on his wairarapa farms…experimenting with different crops to confirm which are best for the animal fatteners to convert to..

                      And I think his intention is/was to make the results of these experiments availabile to the animal 'farmers'..

                      And I want the government to pull their heads out of the sand..and to get cracking/put their thinking caps on..

                      To prepare for these changes..

                    • Phillip ure

                      Yep.. that's him…he must need the money..

                      That report is from over two years ago..

                      Any featherston readers able to give us an update..?

          • bwaghorn 4.1.1.1.2

            Ta

      • joe90 4.1.2

        The rise of animal suffering free/small environmental footprint lab-grown meats

        Or not.

        Recent sales of The Alternative Meat Co. products in Australia have not been at a level that allows for continued production at an affordable price for consumers.

        Unfortunately as it is not possible to make these products here, from July 2022 we have withdrawn the range from the New Zealand market.

        https://lifehealthfoods.co.nz/goodbye-amc/

        The challenges in the marketplace in the UK and overseas are reflected in values of the leading specialist vegan food manufacturers, which in some cases have plummeted. Shares in meat-free brand Beyond Meat have crashed, down from more than $230 after it went public on the Nasdaq stock exchange in May 2019 to about $11. The meat-free market in the US is described by experts as “stagnating”.

        […]

        “There has been a gold rush followed by a cull. There were too many products on the shelf for the volume of sales.”

        https://www.theguardian.com/food/2023/may/20/has-the-vegan-bubble-burst-sales-stagnate-in-uk-as-brands-withdraw-plant-based-products?

        • Phillip ure 4.1.2.1

          Text book use of links to mislead..

          Beyond meat is not lab grown meat..for starters..

          That industry is just in it's infancy…

          Give it five years..and your much cheaper animal suffering free kobe beef will be in yr supermarket..

          I haven't eaten animal flesh for about 45 yrs..

          And i don't eat the fake meats myself..

          Have no desire for a near meat culinary experience…

          And the explosion of plant based options in my local supermarket puts yr last rites in the wrong basket..

          • joe90 4.1.2.1.1

            Give it five years..and your much cheaper animal suffering free kobe beef will be in yr supermarket..

            A snip. And then there's the yuck factor.

            The cost to produce cell-cultured meat is projected for a large-scale plant.

            […]

            • The wholesale cost of cell-cultured meat is optimistically projected to be as low as $63/kg.
            • A retail price of $18 or more for a 0.14 kg hamburger will impede consumer adoption.

            https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666154322000916

            • Phillip ure 4.1.2.1.1.1

              You really are on a bender with those misleading links..eh..?

              Your yuck link claims 35% of carnivores are disgusted by the idea of lab grown meat..

              Of course that would also mean 65% of carnivores aren't disgusted by the concept..eh..?

              Which means yr link supports what I am saying..

              Eh..?.

              Heh..!

            • tWiggle 4.1.2.1.1.2

              In fact, industrial-scale cell-culture is an art and not a science. AI may change this, but this process needs bioengineers with green-thumbs, someone working at Callaghan Innovation told me.

              When a big 20,000 L batch goes bad, through insterility, the fact that the cell line is getting past its use-by date, or because the manufactured hormones used to direct growth are substandard, that's a huge capital loss. Add the cost of reconditioning the equipment. Which is why cell-culture at this scale is limited to high-value pharma to date.

              There may also be 5-10 years' research before this step from your ref is achieved: " assuming huge technological advances in the cell-culture medium." It's even possible that vat-grown 'meat' will be a hybrid of plant and animal materials, with muscle fibres grown on a pre-made soy protein scaffold.

              Our body is hardwired to feed itself essentials. I remember the first thing I did on getting home after a 10-day freeze-dry meal tramp was cook up a bit of liver in the fridge. I hate liver, but my body went EAT IT! NOW! Peasant recipes all throw a bit of meat in the legume stew, to get enough B12, and add some protein-dense nutrition, and use cheese and eggs where they can.

              Many in the UK, the epicentre of faked meat products, recently went vegan for animal welfare reasons. To be a healthy vegan requires careful nutrition, and manufactured non-meat sausages and rissoles are not enough. Two years on, and the tiredness brought on by nutritional imbalance or lack of something essential has made a lot of recent vegans rethink their diet choices.

              • Phillip ure

                Who are these pussy 'recent vegans..?

                Like I said I don't go for fake meats…have been vegan for 20 + yrs..

                I am old..like really old..heh..!..and today I did four hours hard physical labour..(just having a after work coffee + joint ..)

                So…y'know…!

        • Belladonna 4.1.2.2

          I have to say that I'm struggling to understand how a highly processed meat-alternative (requiring a significant investment in equipment and infrastruction, and ongoing operating costs) can be a solution which is better for the planet.

          That may be the case in areas like Singapore (one of the front-runners, I understand), where they have no land on which to grow anything. But much of the overseas coverage on this topic talks about the high-intensity farming (feedlots, routine antibiotics, etc.) which are rare in NZ.

          From the ethical perspective, I can understand the attraction of 'cruelty-free' meat. However, it seems that at least some of the more …. extreme vegetarians/vegans (as evidenced by the comments here), wouldn't accept this, anyway.

          My pick would be that 'real' meat will become a luxury item (with luxury pricing), and that the vat-grown meat will become the staple.

          • Phillip ure 4.1.2.2.1

            Lab grown vs animal flesh..

            Lab grown has a very small environmental footprint.. compared with the animal stuff…

            Also.. especially relevant for nz..it can be made locally in a warehouse.. doesn't need to be transported to the other side of the world..

            When the industry matures economies of scale and market forces will drive prices further down.. and I agree with your prediction of animal based becoming a high end product..and lab for most..

            And of course the fast food industries will be the early adopters..driven by low cost..and to be able to boast of being green..

            You seem to think that vegans not that keen on lab meat..is somehow strange..

            Lab grown meat is not for the likes of me..and most other vegans I know..we all go 'yuck..!'

            It is for carnivores addicted to the sensation of eating animal-flesh..

            • Belladonna 4.1.2.2.1.1

              So no ideas, then, on what would work to plug the hole that this transition might make in our balance of payments?
              Or do you agree that NZ farmers will just shift to the high-end luxury supply for 'real' meat? [That has its own risks – but the truly wealthy are prepared to pay almost anything – as we see from the ridiculous prices paid in Japan for 'perfect' fruit, or large tuna]

              The articles I've read have been around lab-based meat fulfilling the mass-market needs (for chicken and pork) in Asian countries – with their expanding middle-class. But I agree that it will be an easy greenwashing win for the fast-food chains. Although it's anything but low-cost ATM – I can see prices will fall.
              Mind you – I'd be pretty concerned over quality and possibility of contamination – but that's the case with many products imported from countries without a solid food quality supply chain checking system now (Hepatitis A in frozen fruit from Serbia is just one of the latest).

              The 'yuck' factor is interesting. Many omnivores I know also go 'yuck' at the thought of eating lab-grown meat. Sounds like an uphill battle for the marketers :-). Although, I know several vegetarians who have made that choice over ethical concerns over animal welfare – they'd be ecstatic to be able to ethically eat bacon again!

              • Phillip ure

                Just to clarify something..lab meat is real meat..it is grown from cells taken from animals…and will be indistinguishable from the dead animal one in flavour/taste..

                So unsure why those people you know go 'yuck..!'..

                And tell those vegetarians you know who are jonesing for bacon..that I've been told some of the current fake ones are getting pretty close to the real thing..

                And yes..I see many vegetarians using lab-meat..more so than vegans..

                Vegetarian is closer to carnivore than to vegan..

                And animal fatteners relying on that high end of the market..will find that is a very crowded market..

                • Belladonna

                  Guess the 'yuck' factor is over the highly processed part. Sourced from a factory. Most 'foodies' are into food tracking – knowing where the ingredients come from. Black Angus cattle on XYZ farm just outside Cambridge is a much better selling point than Digestor no. 9 in an anonymous warehouse in South Auckland.

                  [Yes, of course this isn't applicable to McDonalds – though I did have the tour guide to Hobbiton tell us that the cattle we were driving past were McDonalds beef]

                  ATM, it's all theoretical – none of us have actually seen or tasted the product, so have no idea over whether it really will be indistinguishable from 'real' meat.
                  If you're talking about chicken nuggets – then it probably doesn't matter – they're already highly processed – but top-end eye-fillet is a different story.

                  Having ethical-vegetarians as a possible market is a good thing – there are a lot more of them, than there are vegans. None of the ones I know would give tuppence for any of the current fake bacon substitutes.

                  NZ already has a pretty good success story with premium pricing our wines in a crowded luxury market – I don't see why we wouldn't be equally as successful with meat.

                  BTW – it's 'omnivore' rather than 'carnivore'. Very, very few people eat nothing but meat.

                  • joe90

                    Guess the 'yuck' factor is over the highly processed part.

                    And the techniques/mediums currently in use.

                    https://archive.li/BkRsv#selection-4055.0-4055.5 (goodfoodinstitute)

                    • Belladonna

                      Whew! That's a cold dose of reality on the 'ethical' side.

                      It won't matter for the current Asian market – where animal welfare is not a significant factor. But would have a very chilling effect on many Western potential consumers.

                      It also reinforces the concerns I had over contamination issues. The GIGO principle at work. If your inputs aren't high quality then your output is likely to be rubbish.

                    • joe90

                      But welfare is paramount.

                      /

                      Guidelines

                      The welfare of calves during slaughter of pregnant animals should be safeguarded.

                      • If uterine, placental or foetal tissues, including foetal blood, are not to be collected as part of the post-slaughter processing of pregnant animals, the foetus should be left inside the unopened uterus.
                      • When uterine, placental or foetal tissues (not foetal blood) are to be collected, the foetus should not be removed from the uterus until at least 15–20 minutes after the cow is slaughtered.
                      • When foetal blood is to be collected, the foetus should not be removed from the uterus until at least 5 minutes after the cow is slaughtered. At this stage, the foetus should be unconscious. A foetal heartbeat will usually still be present and foetal movements may occur. These are only a cause for concern if the exposed foetus begins to breathe air.
                      • If a live mature foetus is removed from the uterus, it should be prevented from breathing air and inflating its lungs — for example, by clamping the trachea.
                      • If there is any doubt about consciousness of the foetus, it should be killed with a captive bolt or a blow to the head with a suitable blunt instrument.

                      https://www.ava.com.au/policy-advocacy/policies/cattle-health-and-welfare/foetal-bovine-serum-collection/

                  • Phillip ure

                    I just googled carnivore..the definition is 'an animal that eats other animals'..

                    That is the flesh-eating human.. surely..?

                    And sourced from a factory..or sourced from a charnal house..?

                    I think the latter has the higher yuck factor..

                    And this is all no longer theoretical…we are way past there

                    Different groups..with serious money behind them are in an arms race..to get this to market…in a big way..

                    They know how high the stakes are here..

  5. adam 5

    WOW, just wow. How good are the Australian labour party with fixing up tax loop hole for corporations. Bloody awesome is the only answer.

    Just one more reason not to vote for the Tories, we need this here. And face reality folks only a labour led government can deliver on it.

    https://cictar.org/news/cictar-welcomes-australia-cbcr

    And this link for fun

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4NORz8IWB9M

    • Grey Area 5.1

      "And face reality folks only a labour led government can deliver on it."

      But they won't though. Neoliberals through and through. Your hope is sadly misplaced IMO.

      • Ngungukai 5.1.1

        Labour & National are both the same these days, promise plenty and deliver 5/8th's of Fck All. We do not have the people with intelligence or foresight in Government or our Business Communities who can deliver results to the Country which will benefit the Whole Country and the General Public. We keep enriching the top 10% of the people in this country who already have more than a Bull can Sht. Time to start looking after the Country's People rather than pandering to Off Shore Corporates and New Immigrants.

    • tWiggle 5.2

      Is that part of an OECD initiative to inhibit 'a tax rate' race to the bottom', which seems to be when you shift profits off-shore to a tax haven to avoid tax in country of origin?

      NZ appears to have legislation updated for this OECD initiative in this years' annual Tax Bill.

      https://legislation.govt.nz/bill/government/2023/0255/latest/LMS844398.html

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    Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi The fact that a ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    11 hours ago
  • Is Simon Bridges’ NZTA appointment a conflict of interest?
    Bryce Edwards writes – Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    11 hours ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' at 10:10am on Tuesday, March 19
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Gavin Jacobson talks to Thomas Piketty 10 years on from Capital in the 21st Century The SalvoLocal scoop: Green MP’s business being investigated over migrant exploitation claims Stuff Steve KilgallonLocal deep-dive: The commercial contractors making money from School ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    11 hours ago
  • Bernard's six newsy things on Tuesday, March 19
    It’s a home - but Kāinga Ora tenants accused of “abusing the privilege” may lose it. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Government announced a crackdown on Kāinga Ora tenants who were unruly and/or behind on their rent, with Housing Minister Chris Bishop saying a place in a state ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    12 hours ago
  • New Life for Light Rail
    This is a guest post by Connor Sharp of Surface Light Rail  Light rail in Auckland: A way forward sooner than you think With the coup de grâce of Auckland Light Rail (ALR) earlier this year, and the shift of the government’s priorities to roads, roads, and more roads, it ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    13 hours ago
  • Why Are Bosses Nearly All Buffoons?
    Note: As a paid-up Webworm member, I’ve recorded this Webworm as a mini-podcast for you as well. Some of you said you liked this option - so I aim to provide it when I get a chance to record! Read more ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    15 hours ago
  • Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6.06 pm on March 18
    TL;DR: In my ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Monday, March 18:IKEA is accused of planting big forests in New Zealand to green-wash; REDD-MonitorA City for People takes a well-deserved victory lap over Wellington’s pro-YIMBY District Plan votes; A City for PeopleSteven Anastasiou takes a close look at the sticky ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • Peters holds his ground on co-governance, but Willis wriggles on those tax cuts and SNA suspension l...
    Buzz from the Beehive Here’s hoping for a lively post-cabinet press conference when the PM and – perhaps – some of his ministers tell us what was discussed at their meeting today. Until then, Point of Order has precious little Beehive news to report after its latest monitoring of the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 day ago
  • Labour’s final report card
    David Farrar writes –  We now have almost all 2023 data in, which has allowed me to update my annual table of how  went against its promises. This is basically their final report card. The promise The result Build 100,000 affordable homes over 10 ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago
  • “Drunk Uncle at a Wedding”
    I’m a bit worried that I’ve started a previous newsletter with the words “just when you think they couldn’t get any worse…” Seems lately that I could begin pretty much every issue with that opening. Such is the nature of our coalition government that they seem to be outdoing each ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 day ago
  • Wang Yi’s perfectly-timed, Aukus-themed visit to New Zealand
    Geoffrey Miller writes – Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago
  • Gordon Campbell on Dune 2, and images of Islam
    Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture ...
    1 day ago
  • New Rail Operations Centre Promises Better Train Services
    Last week Transport Minster Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre. The new train control centre will see teams from KiwiRail, Auckland Transport and Auckland One Rail working more closely together to improve train services across the city. The Auckland Rail Operations Centre in ...
    2 days ago
  • Bernard's six newsy things at 6.36am on Monday, March 18
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson said in an exit interview with Q+A yesterday the Government can and should sustain more debt to invest in infrastructure for future generations. Elsewhere in the news in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 6:36am: Read more ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: Wang Yi’s perfectly-timed, Aukus-themed visit to New Zealand
    Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. It is more than just a happy ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    2 days ago
  • The Kaka’s diary for the week to March 25 and beyond
    TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to March 18 include:China’s Foreign Minister visiting Wellington today;A post-cabinet news conference this afternoon; the resumption of Parliament on Tuesday for two weeks before Easter;retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson gives his valedictory speech in Parliament; ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Bitter and angry; Winston First
    New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters’s state-of-the-nation speech on Sunday was really a state-of-Winston-First speech. He barely mentioned any of the Government’s key policies and could not even wholly endorse its signature income tax cuts. Instead, he rehearsed all of his complaints about the Ardern Government, including an extraordinary claim ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    2 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
    2 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
    2 days ago
  • Out of Touch.
    “I’ve been internalising a really complicated situation in my head.”When they kept telling us we should wait until we get to know him, were they taking the piss? Was it a case of, if you think this is bad, wait till you get to know the real Christopher, after the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • The bewildering world of Chris Luxon – Guns for all, not no lunch for kids
    .“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
    Frankly SpeakingBy Frank Macskasy
    3 days ago
  • Expert Opinion: Ageing Boomers, Laurie & Les, Talk Politics.
    It hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.”THUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
    3 days ago
  • Manufacturing The Truth.
    Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology – the Internet –  is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
    3 days ago
  • A Powerful Sensation of Déjà Vu.
    Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
    3 days ago
  • Can you guess where world attention is focussed (according to Greenpeace)? It’s focussed on an EPA...
    Bob Edlin writes –  And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago
  • Further integrity problems for the Greens in suspending MP Darleen Tana
    Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago
  • Jacqui Van Der Kaay: Greens’ transparency missing in action
    For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s Dawn Chorus with six newsey things at 6:46am for Saturday, March 16
    TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ Herald Thomas Coughlan Simeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • How Did FTX Crash?
    What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    4 days ago
  • Elections in Russia and Ukraine
    Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s six stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15
    TL;DR: Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it:  We want our country to be a ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago
  • National’s clean car tax advances
    The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Government funding bailouts
    Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Two offenders, different treatments.
    See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    4 days ago
  • Treaty references omitted
    Ele Ludemann writes  – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • The Ghahraman Conflict
    What was that judge thinking? Peter Williams writes –  That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 15
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop: Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • The day Wellington up-zoned its future
    Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Weekly Roundup 15-March-2024
    It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    5 days ago
  • That Word.
    Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • The Hoon around the week to March 15
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Labour’s policy gap
    It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #11 2024
    Open access notables A Glimpse into the Future: The 2023 Ocean Temperature and Sea Ice Extremes in the Context of Longer-Term Climate Change, Kuhlbrodt et al., Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society: In the year 2023, we have seen extraordinary extrema in high sea surface temperature (SST) in the North Atlantic and in ...
    5 days ago
  • Melissa remains mute on media matters but has something to say (at a sporting event) about economic ...
     Buzz from the Beehive   The text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary.  It can be quickly analysed ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago
  • The return of Muldoon
    For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Will the rental tax cut improve life for renters or landlords?
    Bryce Edwards writes –  Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: What Saudi Arabia’s rapid changes mean for New Zealand
    Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    5 days ago
  • Racism’s double standards
    Questions need to be asked on both sides of the world Peter Williams writes –   The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • It’s not a tax break
    Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • The Plastic Pig Collective and Chris' Imaginary Friends.
    I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • Who is responsible for young offenders?
    Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on National’s fantasy trip to La La Landlord Land
    How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
    5 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 14
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop: The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • No, Prime Minister, rents don’t rise or fall with landlords’ costs
    TL;DR: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • Cartoons: ‘At least I didn’t make things awkward’
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
    6 days ago
  • Solving traffic congestion with Richard Prebble
    The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    6 days ago
  • I Think I'm Done Flying Boeing
    Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago
  • Invoking Aristotle: Of Rings of Power, Stones, and Ships
    The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
    6 days ago
  • Van Velden brings free-market approach to changing labour laws – but her colleagues stick to distr...
    Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • Why Newshub failed
    Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • Māori Party on the warpath against landlords and seabed miners – let’s see if mystical creature...
    Bob Edlin writes  –  The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they  follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago

  • Government moves to quickly ratify the NZ-EU FTA
    "The Government is moving quickly to realise an additional $46 million in tariff savings in the EU market this season for Kiwi exporters,” Minister for Trade and Agriculture, Todd McClay says. Parliament is set, this week, to complete the final legislative processes required to bring the New Zealand – European ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 hours ago
  • Positive progress for social worker workforce
    New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    9 hours ago
  • Minister confirms reduced RUC rate for PHEVs
    Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April.  ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    11 hours ago
  • Trade access to overseas markets creates jobs
    Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand.  Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    11 hours ago
  • NZ and Chinese Foreign Ministers hold official talks
    Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Kāinga Ora instructed to end Sustaining Tenancies
    Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Speech to Auckland Business Chamber: Growth is the answer
    Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Singapore rounds out regional trip
    Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships.      “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Minister van Velden represents New Zealand at International Democracy Summit
    Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Insurance Council of NZ Speech, 7 March 2024, Auckland
    ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland  Acknowledgements and opening  Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho.  Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau  My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Five-year anniversary of Christchurch terror attacks
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says.  “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024
    Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024  Acknowledgements and opening  Morena, Nga Mihi Nui.  Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau  Good morning. It’s a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Early visit to Indonesia strengthens ties
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asia’s most populous country.   “We are in Jakarta so early in our new government’s term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • China Foreign Minister to visit
    Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week.  “We look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealand’s ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Minister opens new Auckland Rail Operations Centre
    Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. “The recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Auckland’s rail agencies work together to ...
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