The Prime Minister will need fast and clear clear information from Fletchers and Sky City to provide assurance to all APEC participants (Putin, Xi, Trump etc) that this fire does not disturb that programme.
This fore is both a logistical and diplomatic problem for the government now.
Otherwise this is liqudated damages and court cases, as well as a catastrophic defeat for the government.
Apart from the difficulties this obviously poses for APEC planning, and the government is going to have to get on top of that real fast, I’d be pleased as hell if shitty Skycity’s ugly convention centre never rose from the ashes.
Catastrophic defeat for the government? How do you come to that conclusion?
It was the John Key government who insisted on building the thing. The Labour Oppo. was vehemently opposed because it was seen as a massive fiscal extravagance. And time has proved it to be so. Now add to the cost a humongous repair bill and how is that supposed to reflect badly on the Labour led government?
Ad is right. If the government doesn’t act fast and get planning for APEC back on track after this (Skycity convention centre was the big venue for it) and, worst case scenario, it has to be moved offshore because there is nowhere else to hold it in Auckland the government will pay big time.
While I absolutely don’t want that to happen it will be just rewards for our total inability to plan and execute national infrastructure in NZ
How’s Christchurch convention centre coming along?
You do realise this was being paid for privately and not by the government Anne?
So what were the labour opposition opposing then if they objected to this?
For some reason I believe you know the answers to your questions. In any case, the Opposition was opposed to the $128 million taxpayer top-up to build the Centre and to the gambling concessions they were given, estimated worth tens of millions per year.
"as well as a catastrophic defeat for the government"
You vastly overestimate the public liking for these non-performing trade deals – they've been oversold as being wonderful for decades without producing anything much.
Surely there would be quite well developed plans for a back-up venue in place since the proposed venue is still under construction, and just from the importance and stature of the event.
Wellington should have possible venues, there must be alternatives in Auckland. Queenstown hosted CHOGM at Millbrook in 1995, which was quite high profile but surprisingly low key with world leaders like Mandela, John Major and Howard wandering around Arrowtown with general public and tourists.
Millbrook would be as secure, maybe more. There's all sorts of things go on there that are kept out of sight.
Whether it can cope with the business side as well as the leader side could be another matter.
But more immediate is how this is going to affect Fletchers, insurance claim could be interesting if media reports of a blow torch being left on over smoko are correct. But not the first butynol job to go up in smoke, hopefully the risk was appropriately managed.
Ironically the NDP in Canada, having lost almost half their seats, will probably have more power than they have ever had in Ottawa as Trudeau will need to their votes to get his legislative agenda through the House of Commons. ProRep back on the agenda?
The Greens have made a breakthrough in Atlantic Canada too, winning Fredericton, the provincial capital in New Brunswick. They will hold their current two seats on Vancouver Island.
Sheer, the Tory leader is already fending off the predictable questions about his campaign strategy. If he couldn’t beat a PM that’s had a year as hellish as Trudeau who could he beat?
.
Yep … back in 2011 the New Dems take 31% of the vote & a record 103 seats (partly a sympathy vote for Jack Layton), official Opposition status for the first time but precisely zero power … fast-forward to 2019, a measly 16% / 24 seats … and the prospect of real influence on Govt direction.
Vancouver Island remains a Left stronghold. Overwhelmingly Orange with a couple of dabs of Green.
Major live feed fail on the telly in Canada. All three major party leaders have started their victory/concession speeches at the same time. Networks are all going with Trudeau of course. Pretty funny though.
Then there is the prairie provinces and BC outside Vancouver and its island, where all the seats, apart from 3 ,won by Conservatives. PQ of course only stands in Quebec
Noticed too the election slogans. Conservatives in Quebec were
"Plus. Pour vous. Dès maintenant." "More. For you. Starting now." They only won about 5 seats around Quebec City and none in Montreal
Wonder what it will take to change some attitudes – nothing worse than dirty cockies
Open Country Dairy was ordered to pay $221,250 after an objectionable smell from its Waharoa plant caused residents to vomit and suffer headaches last year.
It was also found to have unlawfully discharged wastewater into a stream causing contamination of the Waitoa River.
…The Waikato Regional Council – which took the prosecution – said Open Country Dairy must prove to the community that it can operate in a compliant way in the future.
The council's investigations and incident response manager, Patrick Lynch said the company's record of now having five prosecutions relating to unlawful discharges into the environment was of concern.
"They will be looking at their own history of non-compliance now and they should be aghast at the amount of actions that the council has had to take to try and get them to a compliant place."
They are very open and straightforward – their name Open Country Dairy indicates their intention, to be transparent about sharing their pollution with all the surrounding country. That's bare-faced isn't it – quite a provocation to the local and central government. Do we put up with this sort of thing from business? Are they part of the entitled percentage cocking a finger or a leg at us whenever they feel the urge?
Or imprisonment with no early release. But maybe they were just too busy making ads about clean dairying? This is a black mark for those making nice ads about how farmers are trying so hard to be green and clean.
I think the reality of environmental responsibility has yet to sink in, not least with councils. So it's really WRC that need the hard talk, because if they continue to be as flaccid as overcooked pasta, companies will continue to take full advantage.
It's interesting (to linguists) that the origin of fine lies in its function of bringing an end to a legal dispute or debt. As such they are not appropriate to continuous breaches of operating conditions.
Open Country Dairy, New Zealand's second-largest milk processor, generated more than $1 billion of revenue last year but payments for milk rose faster than receipts from customers and profit fell.
Profit was $23 million in the year ended Sept. 30 from about $62 million a year earlier, its accounts show. Sales rose 34 percent to $1.1 billion while cost of sales gained about 44 percent.
Open Country didn't disclose volume figures in its public annual accounts but chair Laurie Margrain said it was up on a year ago.
"We have more market share, more farmers supplying us," he said. "We've got more of the market than a year ago and hugely more than 10 years ago."
Open Country is 76.6 percent owned by diversified agribusiness Talley's Group, slightly up on a year earlier and reflecting a share sale to Talley's by a small shareholder….
I general try to avoid Talleys because of their reputation. Suspect I might occasionally unknowingly buy some through supermarket own brands as there is no easy way to know who has packed what.
I remember seeing a Talleys list during the strikes, and noting that thankfully we did not purchase any of those items, but with the constant changes in ownership and shares it is always good to keep up to date.
I don't recall seeing Motueka Creamery brand before. The name sounds like a little local independent outfit (which I guess is the impression they want). Haven't seen any in the supermarket either but then I don't usually buy ice cream in tubs…
Me either. Thanks to a long-delayed realisation that I really need to do something about healthy eating, we avoid processed foods at the supermarket. Limited to buying tinned tomatoes and tomato paste.
Fully agree. But if they get new powers as currently proposed, we may barely be able to question their questionable activities. They are the holy crusaders fighting against crime, gangs and terrorism. How dare anyone question what they do?
Lets hope this idiot driver gets charged and goes to jail to get him off the roads. I feel sorry for the bloke driving to work that has been killed by him due directly to his dumb decision.
Bold Speaker in UK House of Parliament with verve, determination and a man holding onto the principles of Parliament so far. May he be able to stand against the Jester: 'You shall not pass'.
Jacob Rees-Mogg and son, 12, heckled by anti-Brexit protesters who scream ‘Nazi’ and ‘traitor
Rees Mogg is starting to look like H..ler. I am interested in the loving gesture that this UK politician shows to his son's sensitive ear. (And I hadn't even noticed the caption then.)
556 comments I thought this one showed the depth of thought of many Brexiters. '
Shameful Positions 2 days ago (edited)
Typical anti Brexit mob that have been crying for 3 years. Learning to lose as well winning is part of life. Their behaviour is shameful.'
Anyone would think the matter discussed is a football match. This person doesn't realise that politics is about life; how people are to be treated in their country, and if they are to actually have a country to belong to. This sort of shallow thought is probably common.
Rafael Behr has consistently been a critic of Jeremy Corbyn on the Guardian. And it's not surprising that during this short video his criticism is based on the Labour Party, and no mention – at all – is made of the Torys.
I found his point about the remainers being just as in the dark as the brexiteers (a group that bojo is part of) during the referendum to be interesting. And his evaluation of the generalised clusterfuck that brings the UK to this point didn't seem unreasonable.
How was his description of political attitudes after the brexit negotiations were started incorrect?
In the admittedly short clip provided, only Labour is mentioned. And tbh, they were not the architects or the current party in charge of this delivering a solution.
The full interview might be more balanced, but the clip itself just reinforces a strange continual media narrative that blames Labour – particularly Jeremy Corbyn – for the current state of affairs.
And no, the clip doesn't blame Labour for the current state of affairs. It does, however, criticise Labour for standing back from the entire affair in the hope that complete failure or catastrophe will get it elected.
How was his description of political attitudes after the brexit negotiations were started incorrect?
Which, in part, is to blame for the latest yougov poll putting them 15% behind the conservatives. Total mismanagement of the agenda and a complete failure of Labour voters.
I thought that twitter thread was great. I liked the summation of the barebones of the UK Brexit Grand Funfair Slide. The comments were not at all the low mindless stuff as common. And Behr's attitude re Labour fairly found fault with their softly softly catchee monkee approach. I think they are suffering from the new sign of these debilitated modern times – a low sperm count. For women the feminists should be putting up those that have gone transgender, with the sensitivity, intelligence and BMI of blokes and girls mixed, or just females letting out more of their masculine side. These are changes that have happened at the same time as the trend to machine-run systems high on algorithms, and programmed thinking and nelibeconomics. The finding your own a-gender may be the new vanguard that saves us all. That and more vitamins and minerals to replace sugar, so we can get our teeth into our problems and those dozy pollies who need a bite on the bum, and then supporters and minders for those who venture forth into those enchanted and uncharted waters, watching their backs.
Git is a term of insult with origins in English denoting an unpleasant, silly, incompetent, annoying, senile, elderly or childish person. As a mild oath it is roughly on a par with prat and marginally less pejorative than berk.
The man who allegedly led a group of armed white citizens assisting in a search for a black burglary suspect in Sumner has a history of taking the law into his own hands.
#John Whitten III is a prosecutor for Tallahatchie County and the town attorney for Tutwiler. On Aug. 20, 2009, he attempted to assist law enforcement officers in searching for 28-year-old Will Pittman on the outskirts of the town of Sumner. Although he holds no law enforcement position, after hearing about the burglary, Whitten drove his Jeep to the cotton field and wooded area that officers were searching.
For me I think this racist bastard should be resigned from his role – he is a dim witted racist wanker – and we don't need more of those arseholes running the place.
The newly elected Tauranga councillor is already facing calls for his resignation.
While councillor Andrew Hollis was campaigning, he said the Treaty of Waitangi was "past it's use-by-date" and "a joke".
Local iwi leader Buddy Mikaere is a former director of the Waitangi Tribunal and said he wanted Mr Hollis to step aside.
"I think that in saying things like, the Treaty is a joke and that it's past its use-by-date and I think in one instance also saying, the Treaty should be burnt, that seems to me to be in direct contradiction of part one of the Local Government Act, and part four and six, where treaty principles are clearly something which councils needed to taking into account.
"So this guy has got a conflict of interest which seems to me would disqualify him from any participation in any council business that has to do with Māori interests because the whole purpose of those sections of the LGA is to give Māori input into the business of council.
"How can he participate on any reasonable debate on issues such as that?"
The sad thing is, though marty. That even if he does resign – which seems unlikely – he was vocal on his views during his campaign, and many Tauranga voters voted him in.
So, the issue is about a lot more than one man's views and the response to them. It is about the fact that such a climate of misunderstanding and bias exists that someone who holds those views is considered fit for office by a fairly significant number of voters, 5091 before iterations.
Yep we are good at growing racists – wilding racists can be plucked one at a time. Replacing the wilding racists with solid thinking migrants would be good imo.
Wilding racists – good term – act as a good indicator of how well we educate and discuss. They are part of New Zealand, and we get to figure out how to reduce their numbers and impact. We need to do better, but we also need to recognise that regardless of best intentions – we have created the environment that allowed them to take root.
The immigration issue is another one that requires more responsive discussion, both online and in person.
Having lived in another country for a few years, I have enjoyed the benefit of travel and living elsewhere. I can't deny the value of such an experience.
But I can also see how being prepared to do any job, for any money which was only possible because I was prepared to live lightly in order to travel, and contributed to the degradations of the working conditions of workers who lived there. It is also true that due to very high levels of ignorance and self-interest, I contributed nothing to the communities in which I lived or the political direction of that country.
I believe that is is really important that our New Zealand immigration policies are reviewed, not because I am against immigrants, but because new New Zealanders – alongside existing ones, should be protected against exploitation and should expect a better standard of living than many experience. We also do have to look at how badly prepared many of our systems are set up to deal with a high population increase, in terms of infrastructure, work regulation, housing, health and education. And we need to invest in these aspects of living, which will return dividends for both new immigrants, and existing New Zealanders.
At the moment, we appallingly treat immigrants purely as investors both financially in terms of bringing money into the country, and socially, as invigorating our diversity. We act as passive investors and contribute very little in return. We also devalue existing New Zealanders because they are not considered as contributing to the vitality of the country. It is not good enough.
The conditions that made you do what you did and others do it too are economic and nothing to do with migrants and immigrants imo – a bit like saying the world food issue is a distribution and waste issue, not a 'not enough food' issue. Low wages and poor conditions are NOT driven by migrants – migrants are used within these conditions, they are exploited. We don't blame the starving people for starving do we?
I've just driven from the top to the bottom to the top of Te Waka a Māui – we have plenty of room for more people who can contribute to this country. And with the amount of things that will need to be moved to higher ground there should be tons of work to do around the whole country imo.
“The conditions that made you do what you did and others do it too are economic and nothing to do with migrants and immigrants imo…” Really. Just young and self interested, not concerned with the wider ramifications of meeting low expectations and conditions, and working within a regulatory system that provided opportunity for exploitation.
“Low wages and poor conditions are NOT driven by migrants – migrants are used within these conditions, they are exploited.”
Pretty much my point, marty. Obviously not clear enough about expressing it:
"…but because new New Zealanders – alongside existing ones, should be protected against exploitation and should expect a better standard of living than many experience."
The discussion needs to be broader than 'migration is good', in order to address valid concerns about what kind of country we are welcoming people to. New Zealanders, of all shapes sizes and origins are a diverse group of people. Some very self-interested, some community minded and with wider perspectives – irrespective of whether they are recent arrivals or not.
We need to ensure that our policies and support systems for critical infrastructure and facilities are working and robust before we place further burdens upon them. For many who have not travelled any further than New Zealand, they already have experience of failed systems. Even if you don't agree with them, surely you can understand their concerns.
" I've just driven from the top to the bottom to the top of Te Waka a Māui – we have plenty of room for more people who can contribute to this country. "
I agree. But I think we currently fail at welcoming them because our focus is on what they bring, rather than what we offer. And we still need to look after our own – economic contributors or not.
I think we have some alignment of views – and some differences
"We need to ensure that our policies and support systems for critical infrastructure and facilities are working and robust before we place further burdens upon them."
The burdens are there and aren't going away and as we move into the future the burdens change and expand and very rarely reduce, so waiting for them is not really an option imo. Seems like waiting for the perfect time to get pregnant – that time never comes imo – you just have to do it and that becomes the right time.
TL;DR: In today’s ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Tuesday, March 19:Kāinga Ora’s dry rot The Spinoff DailyBill McKibben on ‘Climate Superfunds’ making Big Oil pay for climate damage The Crucial YearsPreston Mui on returning to 1980s-style productivity growth NoahpinionAndy Boenau on NIMBYs needing unusual bedfellows Urbanism SpeakeasyNed Resnikoff's case ...
Negative yesterday, negative today. Negative all year, according to one departing reader telling me I’ve grown strident and predictable. Fair enough. If it’s any help, every time I go to write about a certain topic that begins with C and ends with arrrrs, I do brace myself and ask: Again? Are ...
Bryce Edwards writes – It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just show a minimal amount of flux in public support ...
Inspirational: The Family of Man is a glorious hymn to human equality, but, more than that, it is a clarion call to human freedom. Because equality, unleavened by liberty, is a broken piano, an unstrung harp; upon which the songs of fraternity will never be played.“Somebody must have been telling lies about ...
Tax Lawyer Barbara Edmonds vs Emperor Justinian I- Nolo Contendere: False historical explanations of pivotal events are very far from being inconsequential.WHEN BARBARA EDMONDS made reference to the Roman Empire, my ears pricked up. It is, lamentably, very rare to hear a politician admit to any kind of familiarity ...
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Buzz from the Beehive Housing Minister Chris Bishop delivered news – packed with the ingredients to enflame political passions – worthy of supplanting Winston Peters in headline writers’ priorities. He popped up at the post-Cabinet press conference to promise a crackdown on unruly and antisocial state housing tenants. His ...
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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 ...
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 ...
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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. ...
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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 ...
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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 ...
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. ...
Buzz from the BeehiveThe 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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
Questions need to be asked on both sides of the worldPeter 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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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, ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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, ...
Every year, in the Budget, Parliament forks out money to government agencies to do certain things. And every year, as part of the annual review cycle, those agencies are meant to report on whether they have done the things Parliament gave them that money for. Agencies which consistently fail to ...
The Government has accepted Labour’s change to the Road User Charge (RUC) discount for hybrid vehicles, meaning there will still be some incentive for people to buy greener vehicles. ...
Kicking the most vulnerable people out of state housing and pushing them towards homelessness will result in a proliferation of poverty and trauma across our most vulnerable communities. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader and MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi has penned a letter asking MPs to support his members bill to remove GST from all food. The bill is expected to go through its first reading in parliament this Wednesday. “I’m calling on all political parties to support my ...
This year is about getting real with Kiwis and discussing the tough issues, as the National Government exacerbates inequality and divides New Zealand, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said ...
The Government adding Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) to its already roaring environmental policy bonfire is an assault on the future of wildlife that makes Aotearoa unique. ...
After 12 years of fighting to protect our moana we are finding ourselves back at square one and back at court. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is sitting in Hawera to reconsider an application from Trans-Tasman Resources to dig up 50 million tonnes of the seabed in South Taranaki. This ...
Minister Shane Jones’ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Government’s fast-track 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 publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
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 publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Government’s miscalculation saga continues as it has forgotten an eyewatering $90 million gap in its interest deductibility cost figures, say Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds and Revenue Spokesperson Deborah Russell. ...
He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission has today released advice that says if the Government doesn’t act now New Zealand is at risk of not meeting its climate goals. ...
The Coalition Government has today confirmed it is abandoning first home buyers who are struggling to get ahead, says Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds. ...
The New Zealand public voted for a change in direction at the 2023 general election and that is exactly what this coalition government has been delivering in its first 100 days. There was an immediate focus on the economy, easing the cost of living, cracking down on law and order ...
The Government has left the health system as an afterthought, announcing half-baked targets at the last minute of their 100-day plan, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
Kiwis are still waiting for their promised cost of living support after 100 days of a National Government that is taking us backwards, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
100 days of National taking NZ backwardsThe National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
The Government must commit to funding free and healthy school lunches, as thousands of people sign the petition to keep them, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti says. ...
If the Government was serious about moving families into public housing, they would build more houses so there is actually somewhere for people to go. ...
The free and healthy school lunches programme feeds our kids, helps them to learn, and saves families money – but it is at risk under this Government, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
The Government’s proposed changes to Firearms Prohibition Orders (FPO) add almost nothing new and are merely an attempt to distract from its plans to loosen gun laws, police spokesperson Ginny Andersen and justice spokesperson Dr Duncan Webb said. ...
The great Victorian era English politician Lord Macauley stood in the British House of Parliament and said, "The gallery in which the reporters sit has become a fourth estate of the realm".He understood and outlined even way back then, the significant role and influence media have in a democracy. ...
The government’s attack on Māori health this week is committing tangata-whenua to a premature death, says Te Pāti Māori. “The government have begun their onslaught on Māori health with the abolishment of the Māori Health Authority and smokefree laws in the same day” said health spokesperson and co-leader, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. ...
"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 ...
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 ...
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. ...
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 ...
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, ...
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. ...
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 ...
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 ...
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, ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
The Government is proud to support the 10th edition of Crankworx Rotorua as the Crankworx World Tour returns to Rotorua from 16-24 March 2024, says Minister for Economic Development Melissa Lee. “Over the past 10 years as Crankworx Rotorua has grown, so too have the economic and social benefits that ...
Legislation implementing coalition Government tax commitments and addressing long-standing tax anomalies will be progressed in Parliament next week, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The legislation is contained in an Amendment Paper to the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill issued today. “The Amendment Paper represents ...
Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard has today announced that the Government has agreed to suspend the requirement for councils to comply with the Significant Natural Areas (SNA) provisions of the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity for three years, while it replaces the Resource Management Act (RMA).“As it stands, SNAs ...
Agriculture Minister Todd McClay has classified the drought conditions in the Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts as a medium-scale adverse event, acknowledging the challenging conditions facing farmers and growers in the district. “Parts of Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts are in the grip of an intense dry spell. I know ...
The Government is helping farmers eradicate the significant impact of facial eczema (FE) in pastoral animals, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “A $20 million partnership jointly funded by Beef + Lamb NZ, the Government, and the primary sector will save farmers an estimated NZD$332 million per year, and aims to ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has completed a successful visit to India, saying it was an important step in taking the relationship between the two countries to the next level. “We have laid a strong foundation for the Coalition Government’s priority of enhancing New Zealand-India relations to generate significant future benefit for both countries,” says Mr Peters, ...
Cabinet has agreed to provide $7 million to ensure the 2024 ski season can go ahead on the Whakapapa ski field in the central North Island but has told the operator Ruapehu Alpine Lifts it is the last financial support it will receive from taxpayers. Cabinet also agreed to provide ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Lower fruit and vegetable prices are welcome news for New Zealanders who have been doing it tough at the supermarket, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Stats NZ reported today the price of fruit and vegetables has dropped 9.3 percent in the 12 months to February 2024. “Lower fruit and vege ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the sixty-eighth session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the 68th session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
The coalition Government is supporting farmers to enhance land management practices by investing $3.3 million in locally led catchment groups, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “Farmers and growers deliver significant prosperity for New Zealand and it’s vital their ongoing efforts to improve land management practices and water quality are supported,” ...
Good evening everyone and thank you for that lovely introduction. Thank you also to the Honourable Simon Bridges for the invitation to address your members. Since being sworn in, this coalition Government has hit the ground running with our 100-day plan, delivering the changes that New Zealanders expect of us. ...
Recommendations from the Climate Change Commission for New Zealand on the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) auction and unit limit settings for the next five years have been tabled in Parliament, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “The Commission provides advice on the ETS annually. This is the third time the ...
The coalition Government is beginning its fight to lower building costs and reduce red tape by exempting minor building work from paying the building levy, says Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk. “Currently, any building project worth $20,444 including GST or more is subject to the building levy which is ...
Proposed changes to tax legislation to prevent the over-taxation of low-earning trusts are welcome, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The changes have been recommended by Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee following consideration of submissions on the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill. “One of the ...
Assalaamu alaikum. السَّلَام عليكم In light of the holy month of Ramadan, I want to extend my warmest wishes to our Muslim community in New Zealand. Ramadan is a time for spiritual reflection, renewed devotion, perseverance, generosity, and forgiveness. It’s a time to strengthen our bonds and appreciate the diversity ...
Former Transport Minister and CEO of the Auckland Business Chamber Hon Simon Bridges has been appointed as the new Board Chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) for a three-year term, Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced today. “Simon brings extensive experience and knowledge in transport policy and governance to the role. He will ...
Good morning all, it is a pleasure to be here as Minister of Science, Innovation and Technology. It is fantastic to see how connected and collaborative the life science and biotechnology industry is here in New Zealand. I would like to thank BioTechNZ and NZTech for the invitation to address ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says he is looking forward to the day when three key water projects in Northland are up and running, unlocking the full potential of land in the region. Mr Jones attended a community event at the site of the Otawere reservoir near Kerikeri on Friday. ...
Associate Finance Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government has agreed to restore deductibility for mortgage interest on residential investment properties. “Help is on the way for landlords and renters alike. The Government’s restoration of interest deductibility will ease pressure on rents and simplify the tax code,” says ...
Sport and Recreation Minister Chris Bishop will travel to Switzerland today to attend an Executive Committee meeting and Symposium of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Mr Bishop will then travel on to London where he will attend a series of meetings in his capacity as Infrastructure Minister. “New Zealanders believe ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Deborah Lupton, SHARP Professor, Vitalities Lab, Centre for Social Research in Health and Social Policy Centre, and the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society, UNSW Sydney kitzcorner/Shutterstock The assertion from Queensland’s chief health officer John Gerrard that ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Martin, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University Shutterstock Why are musicians so keen to get played on the radio? It can’t be because of the money. In Australia they are paid at rates so low they ...
"Farmers make a point not to tell our urban cousins how to live, yet Chlöe from central Auckland is hell-bent on having her say about farmers," says ACT Rural Communities spokesman Mark Cameron. “On her first day in the House as Green ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards – Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Curran, Associate Professor of Ecology, Lincoln University, New Zealand Getty Images/Gerald Corsi In the latest move to reform environmental laws in New Zealand, the coalition government has introduced a bill to fast-track consenting processes for projects deemed to ...
Uber has argued it does not have as much control over drivers as the unions suggest, and wants a judgment ruling that drivers are employees and not contractors set aside and sent back to the Employment Court. The 2022 ruling followed a three-week hearing in which four drivers sought to ...
What can and can’t be purchased by disabled people or their carers has been slashed in an effort by the Ministry of Disabled People Whaikaha to save money. The purchasing guidelines, a set of rules that sets out what can be purchased using the various streams of Government disability funding, ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Tod Wright and Hien Nguyen, Fiscal incidence in New Zealand: The effects of taxes and benefits on household incomes in tax year 2018/19 . Analyses of the distributional impact of taxation and government ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Cory Davis, Boston Hart and Benjamin Stubbing, Household cost-of-living impacts from the Emissions Trading Scheme and using transfers to mitigate regressive outcomes . This Analytical Note ...
A coalition of public transport and climate organisations, united as ‘Transport for All’, is actively opposing the government’s transport proposals. The draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) includes plans for higher fares for public transport, ...
Greater Wellington is inviting feedback on proposed changes to its Revenue and Financing Policy. The Revenue and Financing Policy covers the Council’s various sources of funding, and how the cost of services is shared across the region. This includes ...
Labour has conceded it could have done more to deal with disruptive state housing tenants while in government but says the current coalition is going too far. ...
The band has asked their record label to issue a cease and desist to stop the NZ First leader using their 1997 hit to support his ‘misguided political views’. “I get knocked down, but I get up again,” blared through the speakers on Sunday as Winston Peters took the stage ...
By Lydia Lewis, RNZ Pacific journalist Food rationing is underway in remote areas in Papua New Guinea’s Highlands following torrential rain and flash flooding. More than 20 people have been reported dead in Chimbu Province. In nearby Enga Province, the centre of last month’s massacre, a 15-year-old boy has been ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Hughes, Lecturer, Research School of Management, Australian National University After months of debate and intrigue, the AFL’s 19th and newest team, the Tasmania Devils, finally launched its jumper, logo and colours in Devonport this week. The Devils will wear green, ...
Brannavan Gnanalingam reviews the debut novel by Saraid de Silva.One of the most baffling things for children who move to a new country is what their parents’ (or grandparents’) lives were like prior to moving – for kids in particular, they’re too busy trying to fit in in their ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Gaunson, Associate Professor in Cinema Studies, RMIT University Narelle Portanier/Binge “If you don’t know who your mob are, you don’t know who you are,” Detective Andrea “Andie” Whitford (played by Leah Purcell) is told early into the new crime ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Elise Klein, Associate professor, Australian National University It’s commonly accepted that women do the vast majority of caregiving in Australian society. But less appreciated is that Indigenous women do larger amounts of unpaid care than any other group. Working with the Aboriginal ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne Joe Biden and Donald Trump have both secured their parties’ nominations for the November 5 United States general election by winning a ...
Comment: There has been a striking contrast in trans-Tasman interest about Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi’s visit to New Zealand and Australia. While the Australian press has been full of articles about the visit – including his curious decision to meet with former prime minister and China booster Paul Keating ...
After years of pressuring banks and other institutions to stop investing in fossil fuels, climate campaigners are making some progress. So how does divestment work?For years, climate activists have been pushing banks and other big institutions to divest from fossil fuels. New research from climate advocacy group 350 Aotearoa ...
For Boba, Ethan and Ashley, K-pop is a place to belong, a way to express themselves, and a bridge to connect with others. The three young Polynesians are part of a K-pop fan community in Tāmaki Makaurau. It’s one of many that have sprung up worldwide as K-pop has gone ...
For Boba, Ethan and Ashley, K-pop is a place to belong, a way to express themselves, and a bridge to connect with others. This one-off documentary presents three intimate portraits of young Polynesians who are pulled into a Korean cultural phenomenon. K-POLYS is directed by Litia Tuiburelevu, Produced by Hex ...
There’s ample evidence demonstrating free school lunch programmes provide wide benefits across schools, households and communities according to public health researchers. ACT Minister David Seymour wants to reduce the spending on Aotearoa New Zealand’s ...
By Wata Shaw in Suva Fiji is facing an exodus of Fijians as many are leaving for overseas seeking employment and education and others are migrating, says Opposition MP Viliame Naupoto. Speaking in Parliament, he said: “His Excellency’s speech (Ratu Wiliame Katonivere) comes after a little over one year of ...
The Taxpayers’ Union is welcoming comments from Christopher Luxon this morning recommitting to ‘no new taxes’ as part of Budget 2024. “Mr Luxon’s refusal at the Post-Cabinet press conference yesterday to repeat the ‘no new taxes’ promise ...
SAFE is urgently calling on the Environment Committee to reject the Government’s Fast-Track Approvals Bill, and is urging New Zealanders to rally behind the call. The proposed Bill, currently under consideration with the Environment select committee, ...
Teammates who spend all their time picking fights with spectators are only helpful for the other team, writes Madeleine Chapman. Anyone who has ever played a team sport competitively, particularly as a child and particularly, for some reason, basketball, will know that there’s a lot of politics involved. While there ...
The long-running Wellington music festival is too focused on the Jim Beam-ness and not enough on the Homegrown-ness.There is something about Homegrown that’s difficult to place. A barely perceptible-ness. Like feeling a ghost is watching you from the corner of the room but when you look, there’s nothing there. ...
The latest Ipsos New Zealand Issues Monitor reveals that fewer New Zealanders believe crime / law and order is one of the top issues facing our country. In 2018, Ipsos New Zealand started tracking the key issues facing New Zealand. In this wave ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Griffiths, Deputy Program Director, Budgets and Government, Grattan Institute Australia’s political donations rules are woefully inadequate, but donations reform is finally on the agenda. The federal government has signalled its interest in reform and will soon begin briefing MPs on its ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Patrick Taylor, Chief Environmental Scientist, EPA Victoria; Honorary Professor, School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University Naiyana Somchitkaeo/Shutterstock A recent study published in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine has linked microplastics with risk to human health. The study ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Albert Van Dijk, Professor, Water and Landscape Dynamics, Fenner School of Environment & Society, Australian National University Global climate records were shattered in 2023, from air and sea temperatures to sea-level rise and sea-ice extent. Scores of countries recorded their hottest year ...
As part of our series exploring how New Zealanders live and our relationship with money, a teacher explains why he and his partner are in frugal mode – and how they’re making it work. Gender: Male Age: 35Ethnicity: Pākehā Role: I am an intermediate school teacher and my partner is ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Bendall, Senior Lecturer, Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences, Australian Catholic University Binge Mary & George, the new British television drama series, depicts the real-life story of Mary Villiers and her son George, and their social climbing at the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jason Nassios, Associate Professor, Centre of Policy Studies, Victoria University This article is part of The Conversation’s series examining the housing crisis. Read the other articles in the series here. Australian state and federal governments spend money in many ways to ...
The finance minister is denying that there’s a $5.6b shortfall in paying for the government’s campaign promises, including tax cuts. At his post-cabinet press conference yesterday, the PM refused to rule out new taxes to pay for the cuts, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s ...
Kāinga Ora tenants abused by their neighbours are doubting the government's crackdown on disruptive tenants will make a difference on their behaviour. ...
Kāinga Ora is New Zealand’s biggest residential landlord, housing more than 180,000 vulnerable people in more than 67,000 properties. Yesterday the government announced a crackdown on its tenants who fall behind on rent. One longtime Kāinga Ora tenant shares her experience.For 18 years I lived in a 1960s standalone ...
Why does this myth persist, and what’s the real reason our skin is suffering?It’s one of the biggest international grievances New Zealanders hold, up there with the sinking of the Rainbow Warrior and 1981’s underarm incident. We’re quick to tell international travellers that the world’s pollution led to the ...
Opinion: We are fast approaching a fundamental change in prisons. As the number of people on custodial remand looks set to overtake the number of sentenced prisoners, the main function of prisons in New Zealand may become incarcerating un-sentenced people who may not be guilty of offending. We have already ...
A huge seven months lies in store for the White Ferns, beginning this week with the visit of England and culminating with the T20 World Cup in Bangladesh in September and October. Starting on Tuesday in Dunedin, the world ranked No. 2 visitors will play five T20s and three ODIs, ...
Opinion: In a move that has shocked road safety advocates across the country, the new Minister of Transport, Simeon Brown, is poised to abandon the previous government’s speed limit reduction policy, particularly around schools. Even more alarmingly, he wants school speed limits to be variable rather than full-time, arguing ...
Auckland Council is opposing a fast-track development backed by Sir John Kirwan and Spark NZ, because it doesn’t meet stringent new climate adaptation requirements The post Surf-data centre faces new 3.8C climate warming rules appeared first on Newsroom. ...
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Yeah well… I guess that's the end of the new convention centre.
Let's wait until morning.
The Prime Minister will need fast and clear clear information from Fletchers and Sky City to provide assurance to all APEC participants (Putin, Xi, Trump etc) that this fire does not disturb that programme.
This fore is both a logistical and diplomatic problem for the government now.
Otherwise this is liqudated damages and court cases, as well as a catastrophic defeat for the government.
Apart from the difficulties this obviously poses for APEC planning, and the government is going to have to get on top of that real fast, I’d be pleased as hell if shitty Skycity’s ugly convention centre never rose from the ashes.
Both National and Labour are committed to it.
We will see the extent of the damage tomorrow, but there's no starting from scratch.
One of them is going to open it in 2021.
So Sir John Key did so well to negotiate the Sky City deal. A great deal. Thanks you so much,
Wonder if this will finally send Fletchers finally bust. Online it was said workers on the roof left a blow torch unsupervised.
Funny how workers get the blame right out of the gate.
I hope there is a right prober insurance investigation – hearing all sorts of nasty rumors about sky city being saved by this accident….
I know Ad. But I can dream and hope for some decent architecture in Auckland sometime surely?
Aye dat
Catastrophic defeat for the government? How do you come to that conclusion?
It was the John Key government who insisted on building the thing. The Labour Oppo. was vehemently opposed because it was seen as a massive fiscal extravagance. And time has proved it to be so. Now add to the cost a humongous repair bill and how is that supposed to reflect badly on the Labour led government?
Ad is right. If the government doesn’t act fast and get planning for APEC back on track after this (Skycity convention centre was the big venue for it) and, worst case scenario, it has to be moved offshore because there is nowhere else to hold it in Auckland the government will pay big time.
While I absolutely don’t want that to happen it will be just rewards for our total inability to plan and execute national infrastructure in NZ
How’s Christchurch convention centre coming along?
You do realise this was being paid for privately and not by the government Anne?
So what were the labour opposition opposing then if they objected to this?
For some reason I believe you know the answers to your questions. In any case, the Opposition was opposed to the $128 million taxpayer top-up to build the Centre and to the gambling concessions they were given, estimated worth tens of millions per year.
Depends what you mean by being paid for.
How about an increase in the number of pokies and changes to legislation to make it all happen.
Great symbolism though eh?
"as well as a catastrophic defeat for the government"
You vastly overestimate the public liking for these non-performing trade deals – they've been oversold as being wonderful for decades without producing anything much.
Both kinds of government are neck-deep in them, and the national and international media know it.
SCCC is like the big motorway jobs: National start them, but Labour front them to the finish.
Surely there would be quite well developed plans for a back-up venue in place since the proposed venue is still under construction, and just from the importance and stature of the event.
Wellington should have possible venues, there must be alternatives in Auckland. Queenstown hosted CHOGM at Millbrook in 1995, which was quite high profile but surprisingly low key with world leaders like Mandela, John Major and Howard wandering around Arrowtown with general public and tourists.
It's the security features.
There will be a scramble in the next 48 hours, or we will have to give it up.
It will come up the post-Cabinet media briefing anyway.
Millbrook would be as secure, maybe more. There's all sorts of things go on there that are kept out of sight.
Whether it can cope with the business side as well as the leader side could be another matter.
But more immediate is how this is going to affect Fletchers, insurance claim could be interesting if media reports of a blow torch being left on over smoko are correct. But not the first butynol job to go up in smoke, hopefully the risk was appropriately managed.
The Fire Chief said this morning the roof made of straw and butynol layers was "complex".
There's the word.
Yes, but we still had an Airforce back then as well, unlike the glorify Flying Club/ Airfarce we have these days.
Ironically the NDP in Canada, having lost almost half their seats, will probably have more power than they have ever had in Ottawa as Trudeau will need to their votes to get his legislative agenda through the House of Commons. ProRep back on the agenda?
The Greens have made a breakthrough in Atlantic Canada too, winning Fredericton, the provincial capital in New Brunswick. They will hold their current two seats on Vancouver Island.
Sheer, the Tory leader is already fending off the predictable questions about his campaign strategy. If he couldn’t beat a PM that’s had a year as hellish as Trudeau who could he beat?
.
Yep … back in 2011 the New Dems take 31% of the vote & a record 103 seats (partly a sympathy vote for Jack Layton), official Opposition status for the first time but precisely zero power … fast-forward to 2019, a measly 16% / 24 seats … and the prospect of real influence on Govt direction.
Vancouver Island remains a Left stronghold. Overwhelmingly Orange with a couple of dabs of Green.
Major live feed fail on the telly in Canada. All three major party leaders have started their victory/concession speeches at the same time. Networks are all going with Trudeau of course. Pretty funny though.
Looking at the % of votes and the seats won its way out of kilter from what we expect here under MMP
However Canada seats are allocated by provinces, with some places like Maritime provinces 'over represented'.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_federal_electoral_redistribution,_2012
Then there is the prairie provinces and BC outside Vancouver and its island, where all the seats, apart from 3 ,won by Conservatives. PQ of course only stands in Quebec
Noticed too the election slogans. Conservatives in Quebec were
"Plus. Pour vous. Dès maintenant." "More. For you. Starting now." They only won about 5 seats around Quebec City and none in Montreal
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019_Canadian_federal_election#Results
Wonder what it will take to change some attitudes – nothing worse than dirty cockies
They are very open and straightforward – their name Open Country Dairy indicates their intention, to be transparent about sharing their pollution with all the surrounding country. That's bare-faced isn't it – quite a provocation to the local and central government. Do we put up with this sort of thing from business? Are they part of the entitled percentage cocking a finger or a leg at us whenever they feel the urge?
It's their fifth prosecution for this shit – ordinary protocol would expect to begin closedown procedure after three.
Or imprisonment with no early release. But maybe they were just too busy making ads about clean dairying? This is a black mark for those making nice ads about how farmers are trying so hard to be green and clean.
Jailing company directors would sure focus their minds.
I think the reality of environmental responsibility has yet to sink in, not least with councils. So it's really WRC that need the hard talk, because if they continue to be as flaccid as overcooked pasta, companies will continue to take full advantage.
No argument there.
What's that line – something like "an offence only punishable by fine means 'legal for rich people'"
Surely, that should be ‘pretty legal for rich people’?
Depends on whether they figured out how to pay the fine without committing a corrupt practise that could get them up to two years in the klink 🙂
It's interesting (to linguists) that the origin of fine lies in its function of bringing an end to a legal dispute or debt. As such they are not appropriate to continuous breaches of operating conditions.
Open Country Dairy = Talleys
Thanks for that, Alice. Adds yet another layer of information.
NBR article: Open Country Revenue tops $1 billion
Molly, you might be interested in other Talleys Group brands:
Talleys also "process and pack a range of private label products across the food range"
source
I general try to avoid Talleys because of their reputation. Suspect I might occasionally unknowingly buy some through supermarket own brands as there is no easy way to know who has packed what.
Thanks Alice.
I remember seeing a Talleys list during the strikes, and noting that thankfully we did not purchase any of those items, but with the constant changes in ownership and shares it is always good to keep up to date.
I don't recall seeing Motueka Creamery brand before. The name sounds like a little local independent outfit (which I guess is the impression they want). Haven't seen any in the supermarket either but then I don't usually buy ice cream in tubs…
Me either. Thanks to a long-delayed realisation that I really need to do something about healthy eating, we avoid processed foods at the supermarket. Limited to buying tinned tomatoes and tomato paste.
"nothing worse than dirty cockies"
Typical of you to try to blame cockies for the actions of Talleys.
lol – own it gnatyman – imo the company is dirty, the cockies are dirty – thus the rivers are dirty, the land is dirty.
When can we get some control over our Police Force? They, and the Defence Force don't impress with their perspicacity, and self-discipline.
What if we all started behaving like the police, where would be? We set them a good example by most of us being law abiding citizens and they give us the wrong steer too often.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/401572/police-don-t-seem-to-know-when-to-back-off-papanui-road-resident
Fully agree. But if they get new powers as currently proposed, we may barely be able to question their questionable activities. They are the holy crusaders fighting against crime, gangs and terrorism. How dare anyone question what they do?
Lets hope this idiot driver gets charged and goes to jail to get him off the roads. I feel sorry for the bloke driving to work that has been killed by him due directly to his dumb decision.
Bold Speaker in UK House of Parliament with verve, determination and a man holding onto the principles of Parliament so far. May he be able to stand against the Jester: 'You shall not pass'.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CKomPaKjbB0
21 October 2019 9:05 Brexit: House of Commons Speaker refuses vote on Brexit deal- BBC News
Codewords: ‘Patchwork Principles’.
He’s outta there as soon as the election is called.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wL2GrszjSXk
Jacob Rees-Mogg and son, 12, heckled by anti-Brexit protesters who scream ‘Nazi’ and ‘traitor
Rees Mogg is starting to look like H..ler. I am interested in the loving gesture that this UK politician shows to his son's sensitive ear. (And I hadn't even noticed the caption then.)
556 comments I thought this one showed the depth of thought of many Brexiters. '
Shameful Positions 2 days ago (edited)
Typical anti Brexit mob that have been crying for 3 years. Learning to lose as well winning is part of life. Their behaviour is shameful.'
Anyone would think the matter discussed is a football match. This person doesn't realise that politics is about life; how people are to be treated in their country, and if they are to actually have a country to belong to. This sort of shallow thought is probably common.
Interesting take on different groups' approaches to Brexit.
Nobody mentioned comes out looking good.
Rafael Behr has consistently been a critic of Jeremy Corbyn on the Guardian. And it's not surprising that during this short video his criticism is based on the Labour Party, and no mention – at all – is made of the Torys.
He was specifically asked about Labour.
I found his point about the remainers being just as in the dark as the brexiteers (a group that bojo is part of) during the referendum to be interesting. And his evaluation of the generalised clusterfuck that brings the UK to this point didn't seem unreasonable.
How was his description of political attitudes after the brexit negotiations were started incorrect?
" Nobody mentioned comes out looking good. "
In the admittedly short clip provided, only Labour is mentioned. And tbh, they were not the architects or the current party in charge of this delivering a solution.
The full interview might be more balanced, but the clip itself just reinforces a strange continual media narrative that blames Labour – particularly Jeremy Corbyn – for the current state of affairs.
Remainers and brexiteers were also mentioned.
And no, the clip doesn't blame Labour for the current state of affairs. It does, however, criticise Labour for standing back from the entire affair in the hope that complete failure or catastrophe will get it elected.
How was his description of political attitudes after the brexit negotiations were started incorrect?
Which, in part, is to blame for the latest yougov poll putting them 15% behind the conservatives. Total mismanagement of the agenda and a complete failure of Labour voters.
I thought that twitter thread was great. I liked the summation of the barebones of the UK Brexit Grand Funfair Slide. The comments were not at all the low mindless stuff as common. And Behr's attitude re Labour fairly found fault with their softly softly catchee monkee approach. I think they are suffering from the new sign of these debilitated modern times – a low sperm count. For women the feminists should be putting up those that have gone transgender, with the sensitivity, intelligence and BMI of blokes and girls mixed, or just females letting out more of their masculine side. These are changes that have happened at the same time as the trend to machine-run systems high on algorithms, and programmed thinking and nelibeconomics. The finding your own a-gender may be the new vanguard that saves us all. That and more vitamins and minerals to replace sugar, so we can get our teeth into our problems and those dozy pollies who need a bite on the bum, and then supporters and minders for those who venture forth into those enchanted and uncharted waters, watching their backs.
FPTP Has delivered the following in Canada in a House of Commons of 338 seats
Liberals 156 seats
Conservatives 122
Bloc Québécois 32
NDP 24
Green Party 3
Ind 1
Our system of MMP would give the following (not allowing for discarded votes)
Liberals 112
Cons 117
Bloc 27
NDP 54
Greens 22
Ind 1
Shocked!
Ms Ardern’s tweet came days after Mr Jones made comments about Julia Gillard's late father John saying he "died of shame”.
https://twitter.com/SkyNewsAust/status/1186446802037268480
Lol, very slow news day for Sky. Twitter are having fun with it.
Git is a term of insult with origins in English denoting an unpleasant, silly, incompetent, annoying, senile, elderly or childish person. As a mild oath it is roughly on a par with prat and marginally less pejorative than berk.
Git (slang) – Wikipedia
I'd say she was being very mild considering what Jones said, when and where, and why.
Jones was publicly criticised by Labour and Green politicians in 2012 for his comments. He apologised later. This from the ABC. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-09-30/jones-apologises-for-black-parody-remarks/4288118
I think Twitter is having more fun with Russell Norman's tweet about the fire.
Aerial timelapse of the Sky City fire over 4 1/2 hours
https://twitter.com/NiwaWeather/status/1186519410820833285
'Murica's original sin.
(Whitten is son of a man who defended two men accused of killing Emmett Till).
https://twitter.com/hodgman/status/1185920931610464256
The man who allegedly led a group of armed white citizens assisting in a search for a black burglary suspect in Sumner has a history of taking the law into his own hands.
#John Whitten III is a prosecutor for Tallahatchie County and the town attorney for Tutwiler. On Aug. 20, 2009, he attempted to assist law enforcement officers in searching for 28-year-old Will Pittman on the outskirts of the town of Sumner. Although he holds no law enforcement position, after hearing about the burglary, Whitten drove his Jeep to the cotton field and wooded area that officers were searching.
'
https://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2009/sep/09/a-sordid-history-manhunt-leader-has-history-of/
In that area of the USA they need to have properly defined hunting season regulations. He probably thought they were hunting for skunks.
For me I think this racist bastard should be resigned from his role – he is a dim witted racist wanker – and we don't need more of those arseholes running the place.
The sad thing is, though marty. That even if he does resign – which seems unlikely – he was vocal on his views during his campaign, and many Tauranga voters voted him in.
So, the issue is about a lot more than one man's views and the response to them. It is about the fact that such a climate of misunderstanding and bias exists that someone who holds those views is considered fit for office by a fairly significant number of voters, 5091 before iterations.
Yep we are good at growing racists – wilding racists can be plucked one at a time. Replacing the wilding racists with solid thinking migrants would be good imo.
Wilding racists – good term – act as a good indicator of how well we educate and discuss. They are part of New Zealand, and we get to figure out how to reduce their numbers and impact. We need to do better, but we also need to recognise that regardless of best intentions – we have created the environment that allowed them to take root.
The immigration issue is another one that requires more responsive discussion, both online and in person.
Having lived in another country for a few years, I have enjoyed the benefit of travel and living elsewhere. I can't deny the value of such an experience.
But I can also see how being prepared to do any job, for any money which was only possible because I was prepared to live lightly in order to travel, and contributed to the degradations of the working conditions of workers who lived there. It is also true that due to very high levels of ignorance and self-interest, I contributed nothing to the communities in which I lived or the political direction of that country.
I believe that is is really important that our New Zealand immigration policies are reviewed, not because I am against immigrants, but because new New Zealanders – alongside existing ones, should be protected against exploitation and should expect a better standard of living than many experience. We also do have to look at how badly prepared many of our systems are set up to deal with a high population increase, in terms of infrastructure, work regulation, housing, health and education. And we need to invest in these aspects of living, which will return dividends for both new immigrants, and existing New Zealanders.
At the moment, we appallingly treat immigrants purely as investors both financially in terms of bringing money into the country, and socially, as invigorating our diversity. We act as passive investors and contribute very little in return. We also devalue existing New Zealanders because they are not considered as contributing to the vitality of the country. It is not good enough.
The conditions that made you do what you did and others do it too are economic and nothing to do with migrants and immigrants imo – a bit like saying the world food issue is a distribution and waste issue, not a 'not enough food' issue. Low wages and poor conditions are NOT driven by migrants – migrants are used within these conditions, they are exploited. We don't blame the starving people for starving do we?
I've just driven from the top to the bottom to the top of Te Waka a Māui – we have plenty of room for more people who can contribute to this country. And with the amount of things that will need to be moved to higher ground there should be tons of work to do around the whole country imo.
“The conditions that made you do what you did and others do it too are economic and nothing to do with migrants and immigrants imo…” Really. Just young and self interested, not concerned with the wider ramifications of meeting low expectations and conditions, and working within a regulatory system that provided opportunity for exploitation.
“Low wages and poor conditions are NOT driven by migrants – migrants are used within these conditions, they are exploited.”
Pretty much my point, marty. Obviously not clear enough about expressing it:
"…but because new New Zealanders – alongside existing ones, should be protected against exploitation and should expect a better standard of living than many experience."
The discussion needs to be broader than 'migration is good', in order to address valid concerns about what kind of country we are welcoming people to. New Zealanders, of all shapes sizes and origins are a diverse group of people. Some very self-interested, some community minded and with wider perspectives – irrespective of whether they are recent arrivals or not.
We need to ensure that our policies and support systems for critical infrastructure and facilities are working and robust before we place further burdens upon them. For many who have not travelled any further than New Zealand, they already have experience of failed systems. Even if you don't agree with them, surely you can understand their concerns.
" I've just driven from the top to the bottom to the top of Te Waka a Māui – we have plenty of room for more people who can contribute to this country. "
I agree. But I think we currently fail at welcoming them because our focus is on what they bring, rather than what we offer. And we still need to look after our own – economic contributors or not.
I think we have some alignment of views – and some differences
The burdens are there and aren't going away and as we move into the future the burdens change and expand and very rarely reduce, so waiting for them is not really an option imo. Seems like waiting for the perfect time to get pregnant – that time never comes imo – you just have to do it and that becomes the right time.
Yeah, I think we are in alignment mostly. However, rather than waiting, we should be prioritising, and I don't see that happening.