Ferry sweary

Written By: - Date published: 9:08 am, June 27th, 2024 - 45 comments
Categories: climate change, Environment, grant robertson, infrastructure, national, nz first, public transport, same old national, transport - Tags:

The Government is in a rather precarious position relating to the contract to replace the ageing Cook Straight ferries, which clearly need replacing.

The last Labour Government had a difficult time with the issue. The contract to replace the ferries with modern rail enabled ferries clearly was the right decision.

But the need to make sure that Wellington and Picton wharves were up to scratch and optimal made the decision more complex and more expensive.

You would think however that making sure that they are earthquake proof and climate change proof was something that should happen anyway. Perhaps Grant Robertson was right to push back on the actual scale and cost of the project. But it really feels like something that should be business as usual not something that could be avoided.

This Government chose to go to town on the issue and claim they were better financial managers and could save us all of this money and get a useable Toyota Corolla instead of the Rolls Royce they were depicting the new ferries as being.

But the recent grounding of the Aratere showed what bad shape the ferries are in and how vital it is that replacements should be obtained as soon as possible. This event clearly showed that the decision to purchase new ferries was the right one and they cannot arrive soon enough.

There are a couple of twists to the story.

The Government’s language around ending the contract is loose and the reality is there is something between a unilateral repudiation and a furious renegotiation around the scope of the project.

This has made us an international Banana Republic laughing stock. Who would do business with a sovereign state that will welch on contracts just to gain a political advantage over its rival? Good luck to National to find a firm to construct the ferries and deliver them in the near future.

And there are hints that behind the scenes there is a furious fight between anti rail forces in National and pro rail forces in New Zealand First.

Clearly National does not like the fact that the ferries are so rail enabled and will contribute so much to the rail system.

Why else would you appoint an advisory board that includes a director of a trucking firm and Auckland airport, the Nelson Airport Chief Executive, and a former National MP? Where is the rail expertise? Where is the advocate for sustainable and future focussed transport systems?

National is also dumping all over Kiwirail. Ad is right in contending that Kiwirail or aspects of it could be prepared for sale.

This is a big test of the Government’s commitment to use the power of the state to protect and upgrade the country’s important infrastructure. I get the horrible feeling they will fail miserably.

45 comments on “Ferry sweary ”

  1. Anne 1
    27 June 2024 at 9:45 am

    Who would do business with a sovereign state that will welch on contracts just to gain a political advantage over its rival?

    This is the crux of the argument. A bunch of disparate adults intent upon gaining power, are prepared to dump everything the previous government achieved for puerile, petty and vindictive electoral one-up-man-ship. It is more than enough to banish them from the treasury benches.

    It is also high time Labour rose to the occasion and spelt these betrayals out in forthright language that the voters understand. Academic discourse is fine for those who undertake serious research on such matters [as we see daily on this site] but it means nothing to the average voter. It is a lesson some in Labour still badly need to learn.

    Reply
    • Tiger Mountain 1.1
      27 June 2024 at 10:00 am

      Agree, it is time to start gut punching the CoC Govt.

      These vandals may well oversee the severing of significant maritime/rail links between North and South Islands, unthinkable really with the geography of our nation.

      Reply
    • gsays 1.3
      27 June 2024 at 12:10 pm

      To add to the picture of economic ineptitude.

      I have been reliably informed the taxpayer is paying an on-going fee for the storage of the steel that is sitting in the ship builder's yard.

      National's management of the economy is up there with the tooth fairy and Father Christmas.

      Reply
    • James Simpson 1.4
      27 June 2024 at 12:58 pm

      I am not convinced that a Labour government would have done things differently in the past 6 months.

      The first time the government asked Kiwirail to consider their options was in July 2023 by the then Finance Minister Grant Robertson. He was clearly concerned with the project, after he was asked for a further substantial top up from Kiwirail.

      The Treasury then provided this advice to the new government in November:

      “Officials are of the view Project iReX no longer represents good value for money, and that lower cost alternatives more closely aligned to KiwiRail’s current business model have yet to be fully explored.

      Both governments were clearly concerned with the mounting project costs and they they were both asking their officials to consider options.

      Reply
      • James Noble 1.4.1
        27 June 2024 at 10:04 pm

        Asking officials to consider options is one thing.

        cancelling the contracts before you know what those options are is something else entirely

        Reply
  2. ianmac 2
    27 June 2024 at 10:01 am

    "Has the Contract been cancelled?" the Opposition asked.

    Answer equivocal. Huh?

    As for the Advisory Board! Conflict of interest?

    Reply
  3. Mike the Lefty 3
    27 June 2024 at 11:06 am

    The talk about "Toyota Corolla" instead of "Rolls Royce" is simply National political rhetoric and bears no relationship to the actual problem.

    The problem is that the Cook Strait ferry rail freight system has become a vital part of NZ's transport network. If ever there was a "road of national significance" this is it.

    To try and save money by making new ferries that are not rail capable will slow down freight movement between the two islands heaps, because everything will have to be loaded into smaller capacity trucks.

    It will also increase freight costs, which inevitably will be passed onto the consumer, when National were pledging at the last election to lower the cost of living, not raise it.

    National are playing a political game here – and the losers will of course be us!

    Reply
    • Graeme 3.1
      27 June 2024 at 11:36 am

      Kite flying and cat (deceased) swinging is how the Nats develop policy and construct consensus.

      The Key government played that way for nine years.

      They freaked at where the costs project were going and tried to find a cheaper way. To be fair Robertson was asking questions too. They might find a cheaper option, they might not

      Reply
      • mpledger 3.1.1
        27 June 2024 at 11:42 am

        The problem is that people devoid of any maritime knowledge are going to choose the cheap option over the option that has the essential features. And noone with the right knowledge to choose will be listened too.

        Reply
  4. Ad 4
    27 June 2024 at 11:48 am

    Kiwirail needs to be merged inside NZTA as part of an agency.

    Being a Crown corporation enables all politicians to pick it apart. As it is now. And avoids another set of political appointments.

    The merger should be Green and Labour manifesto.

    Would need MoT to be beefed up as rail regulator.

    But otherwise reflects current Auckland integrated operations at ATOC.

    And enables full road-rail efficiency as a single system. And heads towards tracking full rail+car electrification of NZ.

    Reply
  5. tsmithfield 5
    27 June 2024 at 12:05 pm

    The government canned the project because an additional 1.47 billion was requested for the project above what had been budgeted.

    That is a huge amount of money that could go into health or any other critical function that kiwis need. At some point any government will pull the pin if the blowout is big enough. Mickey, if $1.47 billion wasn't a big enough blowout to cancel the project, then what blowout would be large enough for you to cancel it? Because there would be a point where it is just getting too expensive.

    Another issue is that the existing ferries had been required to go slow through Queen Charlotte sound due to the effect of wash on the shore line. I can only assume the wash from much larger vessels would even be worse. Hence, they may not have been viable from an environmental standpoint anyway.

    I don't think anyone disagrees the existing ferries need replacing. But, I think the most sensible option is to replace them with newer ferries equivalent to the ones we already have. Plus, I think increased use of coastal shipping is something that also needs to be explored to reduce the amount of road freight.

    Reply
    • gsays 5.1
      27 June 2024 at 12:15 pm

      You are being a tad disingenuous conflating the ferry build with $1.4B.

      Most acknowledge the price for the ferries ($551M, from memory), was a very good price.

      Where the 'blowout' came about was from the infrastructure build. That is happening because after 40 years of neo liberalism the state no longer has the capacity to build basic infrastructure.

      If the NAct coalition was half as good as they claim, they could streamline the process and get it done.
      In reality they know the cost of everything and the value of nothing.

      Reply
      • David 5.1.1
        27 June 2024 at 12:36 pm

        The blowout is due to the total package, this includes the new ships as well as the port infrastructure at both ports. The new ships are much larger than the current ships.

        Im in no way a shipping expert, so I don’t have any knowledgeable opinion on what size ships we should be using. However since the’90’s there has been regular commentary regarding the environmental impact of large ships (current sized ferries as well) have through the sounds on the way to Picton.

        This may be a odd question, but would freight ferries from Wellington to the port close to Christchurch be a better alternative? I’m sure most of the freight southbound is headed to Christchurch and further south.

        Reply
        • gsays 5.1.1.1
          27 June 2024 at 1:51 pm

          Christchurch could well be a netter alternative along with further bolstered coastal shipping.

          As to blowout see BGs comment below.

          This is a multi-generational investment. Worth twice as much as the ticket price.

          Reply
        • William 5.1.1.2
          27 June 2024 at 3:12 pm

          Lyttelton port is about 11 or 12 hours sailing time from Wellington, so to provide the same capacity there would need to be maybe three times as many ships, or much larger ships. That's a big extra capital outlay that is merely duplicating the existing rail line and road. Larger ships would of course require new shore facilities at both ends, Lyttelton would need a new terminal anyway. Sounds similar (but magnified) to the situation that caused Nicolla Willis have conniptions six months ago.

          Reply
        • aj 5.1.1.3
          27 June 2024 at 5:41 pm

          Current ferry length range from 150m to 182m. The new ones apparently 40m longer. Larger cruise ships measure up to 300m.

          Speed generating wake in the sounds is an issue for all large vessels and is tightly regulated for both safety and environmental reasons. As it is in any harbor area.

          The CoC is stoking up misinformation around all aspects of the previous governments (wise) decision to upgrade these ferries. Unfortunately it's all about politics, not the long-term benefits to New Zealand.

          Reply
    • Bearded Git 5.2
      27 June 2024 at 12:26 pm

      We all need to stop framing the ferries in terms of "cost blowout" and look at reality.

      The $3 billion price tag for two new state of the art large and rail capable ferries and associated infrastructure that will serve NZ for several generations on the most important transport link in NZ is PEANUTS when compared with the $16.5 billion the COC is proposing to spend on RONS.

      Gordon Campbell gets it right as usual, especially:

      "The decision taken last December to cancel the contract for the two purpose-built Cook Strait ferries – without having a Plan B in mind, let alone in place – has been a calamity that’s going to haunt New Zealand for decades to come, long after the Luxon government has been consigned to the dustbin of history. The contract …had locked in the building cost for ferries large enough (a) to carry rail economically and (b) carry passengers in relative comfort. Crucially, the vessels would have been big and sturdy enough to handle the constant hammering from Cook Strait’s fierce weather conditions, for the next 30 years or so."

      http://werewolf.co.nz/2024/06/gordon-campbell-on-cancer-drugs-and-the-great-ferries-cancellation-disaster-of-23/

      Reply
    • joe90 5.3
      27 June 2024 at 12:39 pm

      At some point any government will pull the pin if the blowout is big enough.

      Wonder how much of the cost blowout was associated with ferries and passenger facilities and how much was associated with other functions.

      Ad station and system design, we have pointed out that stations for Second Avenue Subway Phase 1 dug a cavern twice as long as necessary for the train, for the benefit of extensive back-of-the-house spaces, where in non-UK Europe and in China, the digs are typically a single-digit percent longer than the train.

      […]

      The same is true when nobody bothers to say no as each operating department demands more back-of-the-house space until half the station dig is about providing high-cost underground break rooms and storage rather than about providing space for trains and passenger circulation.

      https://pedestrianobservations.com/2024/06/22/meme-weeding-high-wages-and-baumols-cost-disease/

      Reply
    • Ad 5.4
      27 June 2024 at 1:05 pm

      It was cheap.

      Only gets expensive when you leave it for a couple of decades.

      Will now get more expensive.

      Reply
      • tsmithfield 5.4.1
        27 June 2024 at 2:16 pm

        Ad, I am not convinced the large ferries will ever be a solution.

        A few decades back there was a major issue with ferries causing wash that was eroding beaches etc. Hence the ferries had to slow down.

        Surely even bigger ferries will cause a larger wake. Thus, the erosion issues are likely to make the speed they can travel untenable through Queen Charlotte Sound.

        Unless they go to moving the ferries out of Picton There was a proposal that for that option a number of years ago. To somewhere near Blenheim I think. I can't remember exactly.

        Reply
        • Ad 5.4.1.1
          27 June 2024 at 2:31 pm

          Yes they examined Clifford Bay, over about a decade. It was dead even before the Kaikoura Earthquake truly buried the idea.

          Also Nelson is way too shallow.

          We're not going to shift our core exports by plane ever, and we won't ever have a bridge or tunnel connecting us.

          2 rail capable ferries, with Bluebridge doing some passenger and some domestic freight, is as optimal as you're going to get.

          Reply
          • tsmithfield 5.4.1.1.1
            27 June 2024 at 2:56 pm

            I think coastal shipping would be a great addition. This would reduce a lot of trucks on the road which would be a great thing.

            Reply
            • Tony Veitch 5.4.1.1.1.1
              27 June 2024 at 4:18 pm

              Coastal shipping will never be an option when you consider how much the truck lobby (in various forms) donates to the CoC!

              Reply
        • Simbit 5.4.1.2
          27 June 2024 at 5:18 pm

          Remember the court case (two UC geog lecturers testified, for opposite sides I recall). The solution was noted above: Lyttleton. (Took this ferry in '74). Smaller ferries for Marlborough/Nelson passengers. But agree with other comments re: canceling a large contract. Corporate negotiators follow the basic headlines read the tea leaves and will push up gossip through their personal professional networking. I'd add 10% to even pick up the phone.

          Reply
        • bwaghorn 5.4.1.3
          27 June 2024 at 5:30 pm

          It was the high speed cats doing the damage, but I expect you know that.

          Reply
          • joe90 5.4.1.3.1
            27 June 2024 at 6:17 pm

            Cracker memory there, bwags

            N.Z.Rail was sold, purchased by the American multi-national Wisconsin Rail and re-named, Tranz Rail. Unfortunately, the 14-knot speed limit agreement was dishonoured and discontinued.

            1994 saw the introduction of the ‘Albeyzen’, a high speed mono-hull, by a company called Sea Shuttle, owned by Brooke Mckenzie and capable of travelling at 36 knots or more. Tranz Rail saw this as a serious threat to their monopoly, moved quickly and leased the ‘Lynx’, a first-generation high-speed catamaran capable of travelling at 38 knots. This was the beginning of a new era in shipping, one that everyone was excited about. New technology: We are all fascinated by speed.

            The buzz didn’t last long however. Because of the size of their wake, the effects the new “fast ferries” had on the environment and the threat to human safety were catastrophic!

            http://www.guardiansofthesounds.co.nz/2008/ferries/fast-ferry-debacle-in-the-queen-charlotte-sounds/

            Reply
            • I Feel Love 5.4.1.3.1.1
              27 June 2024 at 7:15 pm

              Travelled on the Lynx a few times, it was quick, 1 & a half hours sometimes less, couldn't stand outside without falling over holding onto something.

              Reply
            • bwaghorn 5.4.1.3.1.2
              27 June 2024 at 8:24 pm

              Fun while it lasted

              Reply
              • I Feel Love …
                27 June 2024 at 10:14 pm

                It was, & the wake was huge. The first time I travelled on it I saw a guy outside in full wet weather gear, the big yellow hat everything, like he was on top of an oil rig thinking the guy was an eccentric or whatever, then when the ferry really got going & we all had to leave the deck the guy was hanging on the rail the whole trip laughing his head off having a blast.

                Reply
    • bwaghorn 5.5
      27 June 2024 at 1:12 pm

      That is a huge amount of money that could go into health or any other critical function that kiwis need

      It's a shame it went into tax breaks for landlords then ain't it?

      Reply
      • tsmithfield 5.5.1
        27 June 2024 at 2:37 pm

        You mean treating them just the same as other businesses?

        Reply
        • Ed1 5.5.1.1
          27 June 2024 at 4:27 pm

          I agree T Smithfield. Our capital gains tax requirements do have a few exemptions, but the exemption for commercial investments by landlords is the most conspicuous exemption that has distorted our capital markets for a long time – to the detriment of investment in many of our local companies, and a shallow share market with a lot of overseas owners. That giving priority to increasing a major anomoly in our investment markets in favour of the incoming Prime Minister and other landlords and donors to the coalition parties is blatantly against the principles of tax neutrality that even those political parties have pretended to support in the past.

          Reply
        • bwaghorn 5.5.1.2
          27 June 2024 at 5:28 pm

          Don't care houses are for living in not profiting from, labour did the right thing guiding investors into new builds and investing in productive sectors.

          Reply
  6. Stephen D 6
    27 June 2024 at 4:05 pm

    A generation ago, Labour had a complete transport policy integrating coastal shipping, rail, and road. Who knows what happened to it?
    Fish hooks everywhere. Rationalising coastal ports, redeveloping railheads, fighting off the roading lobby.

    Reply
  7. adam 7
    27 June 2024 at 5:32 pm

    Welcome to the Banana Republic of Nu Zild.

    Where idiocy of ideological purity is on full display.

    Reply
  8. thinker 8
    27 June 2024 at 6:02 pm

    Seems to me the game is to make rail freight as uncompetitive as possible to trucks.

    Truckers, road building, oil, PPPs, would all be happy with ferries that can't easily do rail.

    Reply
    • joe90 8.1
      27 June 2024 at 6:28 pm

      Stopped clocks etc etc..

      However, a former minister of railways, Richard Prebble, said ditching rail ferries could mean the end of New Zealand's rail freight altogether, as moving freight on and off trains would not be economic.

      And that would cost exporters, importers, industry, tourism and by extension the entire country, he said.

      "Without the rail, we'd be putting thousands of extra heavy trucks on our roads, which aren't built to take it.

      "The country's roads cannot take the heavy trucks that would be needed to shift freight from the North to South Island. It would cost hundreds of millions of dollars in extra funding for our roading network.

      "From an ordinary motorist's point of view, if you think it's hard being behind a heavy truck today, you're going to be stuck behind a queue of heavy trucks all the way from Auckland to Christchurch."

      https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/520436/aratere-ferry-failure-final-straw-for-residents-farmers-and-truckies

      Reply
      • mac1 8.1.1
        27 June 2024 at 10:31 pm

        À propos of Richard Prebble, I heard him as Minister of Railways talking in Parliament about the stupid complaints he got in his mail box. One was from a commuter in Wellington who complained that every time he came in on the train all he saw were workmen leaning on their shovels. Prebble wrote back saying that it was not Railway policy to have men working on rail lines whilst trains travelled over them…..

        People with their 'reckons' instead of informed, thoughtful, researched and well-discussed policy!

        Reply
    • Powerman 8.2
      28 June 2024 at 5:26 pm

      Thinker maybe to push privatisation of rail?

      Reply
  9. Binders full of women 9
    27 June 2024 at 8:20 pm

    Julie Ann Genter and Dharleen Tana are the wise heads that can solve this crisis. They know transport.

    Reply
  10. newsense 10
    29 June 2024 at 12:16 am

    Amazing to find out who is an expert in rail and coastal shipping amongst the RW interference runners!

    We badly badly badly need some quality satire.

    I do wonder though if the possibility of a hot air balloon service across Cook Strait has been entirely discounted? Along with a pod transport system and trackless trams along the Auckland waterfront to service the stadium which will float on jet skis, a balloon system is being trialed in a Canadian town.

    Most importantly it will free up car parking spaces as it will not provide for vehicular passage.

    Reply

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    The anti Three Waters campaign which seemed so simple during the election campaign is now bogged down in a Select Committee as submitter after submitter raises issues with the replacement legislation. The so-called “Local Water Done Well” has now morphed into the Local Government (Water Services Preliminary Arrangements) Bill, which ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    4 days ago

  • At a glance – What caused early 20th Century warming?
    On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
    Skeptical Science
    4 days ago

  • A privilege
    On we go, at 20 kilometres an hour, truly the best pace for rolling through the world and breathing it all in.Fascinating to get to see two, four, twenty new places each day. Marvellous to get to see how very many different ways you can make it good for people ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 days ago

  • Unbridled power again
    There's a couple of pieces about architect-of-our-constitution Geoffrey palmer's views on the current government doing the rounds today. The first, on Newsroom is an excerpt from a speech he gave to a Young Labour meeting last weekend, in which he says NZ an executive paradise, not democratic paradise. The Spinoff ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago

  • National’s secret schools
    The government just introduced its Education and Training Amendment Bill to the House. The name is deliberately obfuscatory, because what the bill actually does is reintroduce charter schools - effectively allowing National to privatise the education system. That's corrupt and it stinks, but to add insult to injury, National's new ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago

  • Bernard's mid-winter pick 'n' mix for Tuesday, June 25
    Confidence about future job availability collapsed after Budget 2024 to lows last seen during the the Global Financial Crisis of 2008/09. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Employee confidence in more jobs being available in a year’s time collapsed in the first two weeks of June after the Budget, falling ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago

  • “I Don't Care”
    Walking through the rooms in my headI came across your image,You looked at me with that sweet smile and saidSomething they won't let me repeatWe hurt the ones we love the mostIts a subtle form of complimentAfter you’ve watched Christopher Luxon for a while you think to yourself - that ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago

  • Gordon Campbell on cancer drugs, and the Great Ferries Cancellation Disaster of ’23
    The decision taken last December to cancel the contract for the two purpose-built Cook Strait ferries – without having a Plan B in mind, let alone in place – has been a calamity that’s going to haunt New Zealand for decades to come, long after the Luxon government has been ...
    WerewolfBy lyndon
    5 days ago

  • June-24 AT Board Meeting
    Today the Auckland Transport board meets again,so I’ve taken a look through the items on their public agenda to see what’s interesting. Musical Chairs The first item of note is another change to the make-up of the AT Board. The legislation that established Auckland Transport allows for Waka Kotahi to ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    5 days ago

  • Colonial oppression in Kanaky
    How does France deal with opponents of its colonisation of the Pacific? Arrest them and deport them to France to face prosecution in a foreign court: A group of pro-independence leaders charged with allegedly organising protests that turned into violent unrest in New Caledonia last month was indicted on ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago

  • Media Link: Post-pandemic economics and the rise of national populism” on “A View from Afar.”
    On this edition of AVFA Selwyn Manning and I discuss post-pandemic economics and the rise of national populism. It seems that a post-pandemic turn to more nationalist economic policies may have encouraged the rise of populists who use xenophobia and … Continue reading → ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    5 days ago

  • Climate Change: National’s vice-signalling
    Two weeks ago the climate denier government announced they would be giving farmers what they want and removing agriculture from the ETS. On Friday they introduced the bill for it to the House. Due to past efforts and backdowns, the Climate Change Response Act has a lot of inactive clauses ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    6 days ago

  • The Left’s Joyous Cherub: Keith Locke, 1944 – 2024.
    The Struggle Continues: Keith Locke belonged to a generation that still believed in a world that could be, through struggle, relieved of its chains. That struggle constituted the core of a life lived with purpose, courage and determination. MANY NEW ZEALANDERS would, no doubt, have been surprised to discover that Keith Locke was ...
    Bowalley Road
    6 days ago

  • The Night Before Yule: A Reprint
    A couple of my stories – A Breath Through Silver, and The Last Libation – have previously earned themselves reprints. Well, I am pleased to report that the nice people at Heroic Fantasy Quarterly (https://www.heroicfantasyquarterly.com/) have included my narrative horror-poem, The Night Before Yule, in their newly-compiled Best Of anthology. ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    6 days ago

  • Bernard’s mid-winter pick ‘n’ mix for Monday, June 24
    TL;DR: Responding to the grounding of the Aratere over the weekend, the Government has signalled it will buy new replacement ferries, but only enough to replace existing freight capacity.That would effectively limit Aotearoa-NZ’s ability to handle any growth in population or the need to reduce emissions by shifting freight from ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago

  • Greater Auckland 2.0 – we need your help!
    Hi, we’re Greater Auckland. We’ve been a part of the landscape for over 15 years now. Over that time, we’ve provided informed commentary, evidence-based analysis, and inspiring visions for the future of Tāmaki Makaurau. You might know us from such hits as: The Congestion-Free Network 2013 (and its 2017 ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    6 days ago

  • Distractions and Inaction.
    Fancy, a fast carA bag full of lootI can nearly guaranteeYou'll end up with the bootThe Prime Minister arrived home, perhaps a bit surprised, maybe even secretly a little pleased at the diversion, to find the country falling apart. Things going more badly that even his c-list, self back-slapping, trip ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    6 days ago

  • KiwiRail aground while Government obfuscates
    The problems at KiwiRail go further and deeper than the maintenance issue, which caused the inter-island ferry Aratere to run aground on Saturday. The company is also the subject of a damning report published last week about the way it runs its rail operations from the Transport Accident Investigation Commission. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    6 days ago

  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #25
    A listing of 32 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, June 16, 2024 thru Sat, June 22, 2024. Stories we promoted this week, by publication date: Before June 16 ‘Unprecedented mass coral bleaching’ expected in 2024, says expert, ...
    Skeptical Science
    6 days ago

  • The Realm Of The Possible.
    The People’s House: What would it be like to live in a country where a single sermon could prick the conscience of the comfortable? Where a journalist could rouse a whole city to action? Where the government could be made to respond to the people’s concerns? Where real change was possible? And ...
    Bowalley Road
    7 days ago

  • Public Service Day
    Good morn or evening friendsHere's your friendly announcerI have serious news to pass on to everybodyWhat I'm about to sayCould mean the world's disasterCould change your joy and laughter to tears and painIt's thatLove's in need of love todayDon't delaySend yours in right awayHate's goin' 'roundBreaking many heartsStop it pleaseBefore ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    7 days ago

  • When is a road of National significance not a road of National significance?
    I loved everything about my first Cook Strait ferry crossing: a day parked in the car in howling Wellington wind and driving Wellington rain, waiting to hear if they were going to sail or not; watching the huge black ministerial limousines come and go; listening to the adventures of Chicken ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    7 days ago

  • Fact Brief – Was the Medieval Warm Period a global event?
    Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. This fact brief was written by John Mason in collaboration with members from the Gigafact team. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Was the Medieval Warm Period a global ...
    Skeptical Science
    1 week ago

  • Aotearoa Runs Aground
    Your face has fallen sad nowFor you know the time is nighWhen I must remove your wingsAnd you, you must try to flyCome sail your ships around meAnd burn your bridges downWe make a little history, babyEvery time you come aroundWhen I went to bed last night I thought the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago

  • Wagon keeps movin'
    Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past somewhat interrupted week. Still on the move!Share Read more ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 week ago

  • Mainstreaming Māori
    Mainstreaming need not be inherently anti-Māori. It will be if it is done badly because it will be anti-those-in need, and proportionally more of them are Māori.That the Coalition Government says it will deliver public services on the basis of need rather than, say, race deserves consideration, even though many ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    1 week ago

  • National says “fuck you”
    The Justice Committee has reported back on the government's racist bill to eliminate Māori representation in local government. The report duly notes the Waitangi Tribunal's finding that the bill breaches te Tiriti, and the bill's inconsistency with our international human rights obligations - and then proceeds to ignore both. Instead, ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    1 week ago

  • Christopher Luxon is – Big in Japan
    This week our Prime Minister Christopher Luxon… mmm, let’s take a moment to consider just how good that sounds. Hope you weren’t eating.Anyway that guy. Better? That bloke from the telly, he said - what I would say to you is… I’m big in Japan. My kind of people, hard ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago

  • Weekly Roundup 21-June-2024
    Tis the winter solstice! The shortest day and longest night of the year. The good news: we’re on our way back to summertime. Here’s another roundup of stories to brighten up your Friday. Our header image is from CRL and shows Waihorotiu Station lit up for Matariki 2024.  The ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    1 week ago

  • Bernard’s mid-winter pick ‘n’ mix for Friday, June 21
    Our economic momentum remains anaemic, and it’s possible the tiny increase in GDP was a ‘dead cat bounce’. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Per-capita GDP has fallen 4.3% from its peak over the last 21 months, which is more than it it fell in the Global Financial Crisis recession ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago

  • The Futility of Punishment
    Hi,I was in Texas recently and couldn’t stop thinking about how in some parts of America they really like to kill their prisoners. As a society we tend to agree murder is wrong, but somewhere along the way Texas figured it’s fine if it’s after 6pm and the killing is ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    1 week ago

  • The new Beehive approach to the environment
    A persistent theme has been weaving between the Committee rooms at Parliament all this so-called “Scrutiny” week as MPs have probed Ministers and agencies about their work and plans. The question has been simply what the environmental price might be if the country begins to accelerate its infrastructure building to ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    1 week ago

  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #25 2024
    Open access notables Climate Change Is Leading to a Convergence of Global Climate Distribution, Li et al., Geophysical Research Letters: The impact of changes in global temperatures and precipitation on climate distribution remains unclear. Taking the annual global average temperatures and precipitation as the origin, this study determined the climate distribution with the ...
    Skeptical Science
    1 week ago

  • You take nicer pictures when you’re not drunk
    Readers keeping count will know it's more than five years since I gave up booze. Some of you get worried on my behalf when I recount a possibly testing moment. Anxious readers: today I got well tested.All the way across France I've been enquiring in my very polite and well-meaning but ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 week ago

  • Cancer
    Turn awayIf you could, get me a drinkOf water 'cause my lips are chapped and fadedCall my Aunt MarieHelp her gather all my thingsAnd bury me in all my favourite coloursMy sisters and my brothers, stillI will not kiss you'Cause the hardest part of this is leaving youI remember the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago

  • Gordon Campbell on why we shouldn’t buy new planes for the PM
    Its not often that one has to agree with Judith Collins, but yes, it would indeed cost “hundreds of millions of dollars” (at least) to buy replacement aircraft to fly the Prime Minister on his overseas missions of diplomacy and trade. And yes, the public might well regard that spending ...
    WerewolfBy lyndon
    1 week ago

  • The Stadium Debate – What About the Transport Options?
    A few weeks ago, Auckland Council took another step in the long-running stadium saga, narrowing its shortlist down to two options for which they will now seek feasibility studies. The recommendation to move forward with a feasibility study was carried twenty to one by the council’s Governing Body for the ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    1 week ago

  • Bernard’s mid-winter pick ‘n’ mix for Thursday, June 20
    Social Development Minister Louise Upston has defended the Government’s decision to save money by dumping a programme which tops up the pay of disabled workers. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: It has emerged the National-ACT-NZ First Government decided to cut wages for disabled workers from the minimum wage to $2 an hour ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago

  • Where the power really resides in Wellington
    The new Chief Executive of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet (DPMC) yesterday gave a Select Committee a brutally frank outline of the department’s role as the agency right at the centre of power in Wellington. Ben King, formerly a deputy Chief Executive at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    1 week ago

  • Climate Adam: Why we're still losing the fight against Methane
    This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Adam Levy. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). Carbon dioxide is the main culprit behind climate change. But in second place is methane: a greenhouse gas stronger than CO2, ...
    Skeptical Science
    1 week ago

  • Climate Change: More ETS failure
    A few weeks ago, I blogged about the (then) upcoming ETS auction, raising the prospect of it failing, leaving the government with a messy budget hole. The auction was today, and indeed, it failed. In fact, it was such a failure that no-one even bothered to bid. Its easy to ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    2 weeks ago

  • The Return of Jacinda.
    Oh, take me, take me, take meTo the dreamer's ballI'll be right on time and I'll dress so fineYou're gonna love me when you see meI won't have to worryTake me, take mePromise not to wake me'Til it's morningIt's all been trueEarly morning yesterday, well before dawn, doom-scrolling.Not intentionally, that’s ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 weeks ago

  • How good is the interim NW busway?
    This is a guest post by Pshem Kowalczyk, a long-time follower of the blog. With great fanfare, just over six months ago (on 12 November 2023), AT launched its interim busway for the NorthWest region, with the new WX express service at the heart of the changes. I live ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    2 weeks ago

  • Consumer confidence collapses after Budget, in contrast with rest of world
    The first widespread survey of consumers and voters since the Budget on May 30 shows a collapse in confidence. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The belt-tightening and tax-cutting Budget delivered on May 30 has not delivered the boost to confidence in the economy the National-ACT-NZ First Government might have ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 weeks ago

  • The end for the Air Force 757s
    The Air Force 757 that broke down with the Prime Minister on board in Port Moresby on Sunday is considered so unreliable that it carries a substantial stock of spare parts when it travels overseas. And the plane also carries an Air Force maintenance team on board ready to make ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    2 weeks ago

  • At a glance – Was 1934 the hottest year on record?
    On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
    Skeptical Science
    2 weeks ago

  • It's not New Zealand they've never heard of, it's him
    Sometimes you’ll just be so dog-tired, you can only keep yourself awake with a short stab of self-inflicted pain.A quick bite of the lip, for instance.Maybe a slight bite on the tongue or a dig of the nails.But what if you’re needing something a bit more painful?The solution is as ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 weeks ago

  • Some “scrutiny” II
    Last month I blogged about the Ministry of Justice's Open Government Partnership commitment to strengthen scrutiny of Official Information Act exemption clauses in legislation", and how their existing efforts did not give much reason for confidence. As part of that, I mentioned that I had asked the Ministry for its ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    2 weeks ago

  • Gordon Campbell on why the Biden “peace plan” for Gaza is doomed
    After months and months of blocking every attempt by the UN and everyone else to achieve a Gaza ceasefire, US President Joe Biden is now marketing his own three-stage “peace plan” to end the conflict. Like every other contribution by the US since October 7, the Biden initiative is hobbled ...
    WerewolfBy lyndon
    2 weeks ago

  • Raised crossings: hearing the voice of vulnerable pedestrians
    This is a guest post by Vivian Naylor, who is the Barrier Free Advisor and Educator at CCS Disability Action, Northern Region, the largest disability support and advocacy organisation in Aotearoa New Zealand. She also advises on AT’s Public Transport and Capital Projects Accessibility Groups. Vivian has been advocating and ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    2 weeks ago

  • Leaving on a Jet Plane
    So kiss me and smile for meTell me that you'll wait for meHold me like you'll never let me go'Cause I'm leavin' on a jet planeDon't know when I'll be back againOh babe, I hate to go“The true measure of any society can be found in how it treats its ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 weeks ago

  • Wairarapa lakes return to iwi ownership
    Today the Crown joined Rangitāne and Ngāti Kahungunu at Papawai Marae to mark the return of Wairarapa Moana to iwi, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith and Māori Crown Relations Minister Tama Potaka says. “The legal transfer of the ownership of Wairarapa Moana is the final chapter in a fraught dispute between ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    14 hours ago

  • Government passes Clean Car Importer Standard Bill
    Changes to the Land Transport (Clean Vehicle Standard) Act will enable changes to the emissions targets more easily with a review of the Clean Vehicle Standard currently underway, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Large changes in technology, fuel efficiency, and consumer trends and preferences means that the Clean Car Importer Standard ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Fire and Emergency New Zealand board reappointments
    Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden has today announced that four members have been reappointed to the Fire and Emergency New Zealand [FENZ] board. “I am pleased to announce that Rebecca Keoghan has been reappointed as chair for a two-year term of office,” says Ms van Velden.  Rebecca was appointed ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Therapeutic Products Act repeal bill gets 1st reading
    The Government has taken further steps to providing better regulation for medicines, medical devices, and natural health products with the first reading of a bill to repeal the Therapeutic Products Act 2023. Repealing the Therapeutic Products Act (TPA) shows the Government is listening to the concerns of industry and consumers, says Associate ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • $343.5 million allocated by Te Puna Tahua Lottery Grants Board
    Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says $343.5 million in lottery profits have been allocated to New Zealand communities across the country – an increase of around $29.8 million from previous years.  “The distribution of lottery profits can have a significant and enduring impact on the lives of New ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Emergency support for East Coast flooding
    Civil Defence payments are now available for people affected by the severe weather in Hawke’s Bay and Tairāwhiti to help cover some emergency costs, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston has announced. “We want to make sure those communities that are doing it tough because of the latest severe ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Government progressing commitment to reinstate livestock exports by sea
    The coalition Government is progressing its commitment to reinstate livestock exports by sea, with public consultation set to start before September, Associate Minister of Agriculture Hon Andrew Hoggard says. Reinstating livestock exports by sea will require an amendment to the Animal Welfare Act 1999 and strengthened welfare standards will be ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Minister releases Tauranga District Plan decisions
    RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today released his decisions on elements of Tauranga City Council’s Intensification Planning Instrument. Two recommendations were referred to the Minister after the Council rejected two of those made by the Independent Hearings Panel. “I was asked by the Tauranga City Council to reject two ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • High-level political delegation to visit Pacific
    Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters will lead a high-level political delegation to Solomon Islands, Nauru and Niue next week.  "New Zealand's relationships in the Pacific are fundamental to our foreign policy, and we are determined to continue strengthening them,” says Mr Peters.  “We look forward to engaging with ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Wānaka’s first primary birthing unit opened
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon joined Health Minister Dr Shane Reti to officially open a new primary birthing unit in Wānaka today.  Dr Reti says the event demonstrates the Government’s commitment to improving health infrastructure and is particularly special as it will support many families before birth and in the first ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • GPS 2024: Record transport investment to drive economic growth
    The final Government Policy Statement on land transport 2024 (GPS 2024) outlines the Government’s ambitious $22 billion transport plan to boost productivity and support economic growth, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“Upon being elected, the Government was clear that we wanted to make good on our transport promises to New Zealanders ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • King’s Counsel appointments 2024
    Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointments of 19 King’s Counsel.   Also known as a silk, in reference to a gown traditionally worn as part of their robes, the rank of King’s Counsel is awarded to barristers sole who have demonstrated excellence in their careers or, from time to time, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Crime data underpins need for law & order action
    New crime data highlights how critical the Government’s plan is to restore law and order, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “The latest New Zealand Crime and Victims Survey data is shameful, with New Zealanders experiencing 1.88 million incidents of crime between November 2022 and October 2023. “There were 185,000 New ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Independent panel to review methane science and targets appointed
    The Government is delivering on its promise to commence an independent review of the methane science and targets for consistency with no additional warming from agriculture emissions, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay say.  “An independent panel announced today, will report back to the Government by ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Government repeals costly log trade legislation
    The Government today repealed legislation requiring the compulsory registration of log traders and forestry advisers. “The existing legislation fails to deliver outcomes and places unnecessary costs on forest businesses,” Forestry Minister Todd McClay says. “I am confident that voluntary registration through the New Zealand Institute of Forestry is a better ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Build To Rent Bill passes first reading
    The Overseas Investment (Build To Rent and Similar Rental Developments) Amendment Bill has passed its first reading this evening, Housing and Associate Finance Minister Chris Bishop says.“We need to take every option available to increase the supply of housing in New Zealand, and Build to Rent is one of those ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Minister welcomes opening of Brynderwyns
    Transport Minister Simeon Brown welcomes the opening of State Highway 1 through the Brynderwyn Hills from midnight tonight, following four months of closure to complete critical recovery and maintenance works. “Northlanders, local businesses, drivers, and freight operators will be relieved to have this important lifeline open. The Government thanks them ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Secondary legislation drafting toolkit launched
    Attorney-General Judith Collins today welcomed the release of the Parliamentary Counsel Office’s (PCO) Secondary Legislation Drafting Toolkit. "Both businesses and people tell us they find it hard to understand their obligations under secondary legislation,” Ms Collins says. “This toolkit, with its focus on design and content, will help with both ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Tougher sentences coming for criminals
    The Government is reforming sentencing to ensure criminals face serious consequences for crime and victims are prioritised, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith says. "In recent years, there has been a concerning trend where the courts have imposed fewer and shorter prison sentences despite a 33 per cent increase in violent crime. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Improving educational choice for families and students
    The Education and Training Amendment Bill, which will set up charter schools, encourage more early learning centres to open, and provide increased transparency on school attendance, has been introduced for its first reading in Parliament, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. “Every child deserves an education that enables them to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Government receives final report from the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care
    The coalition Government welcomes the presentation of the final report from the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State and Faith-Based Care to the Governor-General. “This marks the end of the largest and most complex public inquiry ever held in New Zealand,” Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Scope of the Northland transmission tower failure review announced
    Energy Minister Simeon Brown has today released the terms of reference for the Electricity Authority’s investigation into the Northland transmission tower failure that occurred on 20 June 2024, causing significant power outages in the region.“What happened in Northland last week was unacceptable, with tens of thousands of consumers left without ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Minister celebrates students’ space success
    Space Minister Judith Collins is applauding students from Canterbury University’s Aerospace Club on their success at the world’s largest inter-collegiate rocket engineering competition, the Spaceport America Cup. “More than 120 teams from 20 countries participated in Spaceport America Cup, with the team from Canterbury University winning in their ‘30,000 Foot’ ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Address – Commemoration of the 74th Anniversary of the Commencement of the Korean War
    Tena koutou.Ki nga kaumatua,Ki nga whanau,Ka maumahara tonu tatou ki a ratou. Greetings.To the elders,To the families,We will remember them. Firstly, a special welcome to all the veterans here this morning and their families.  I want to acknowledge the veterans who are marking this day but cannot be with us ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • New WorkSafe board appointments to address a history of poor financial management
    Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden says three appointments to the WorkSafe board have been made to strengthen the organisation, ensuring it has the skills and expertise it needs to carry out its functions.  “WorkSafe has faced a number of recent challenges, including accumulating an almost $18 million ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Next phase of the Royal Commission into COVID-19
    Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says this coalition Government is delivering on our commitment to expand the terms of reference for the independent Royal Commission into COVID-19 Lessons Learned. “There will be a second phase to the Royal Commission which features new commissioners and an expanded terms of ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Government introduces Three Strikes Bill
    The Government has introduced a Bill today to restore the Three Strikes sentencing law, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee says. “New Zealanders are rightly concerned about violent crime. We are delivering on our commitment to introduce a revised Three Strikes law as one of our key law and order priorities.  ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • New support for agricultural emissions reduction
    The Government and the Bank of New Zealand (BNZ) are together committing an additional $8 million towards AgriZeroNZ to boost New Zealand’s efforts to reduce agricultural emissions. Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says the strength of the New Zealand economy relies on effective and affordable emission reduction solutions for New Zealand’s ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Government actions strengthening Māori success
    Tākina Puanga. Ko Puanga kei runga. Ko Puanga e Rangi. Tākina mai te ara o Puanga nui o te rangi. Tākina ngā pou o te tau. Ki te whai ao ki te ao marama. Puanga or Rigel celebrations reflect a renewed energy across our communities – to acknowledge those who ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Transformative investment in cancer treatments and more new medicines
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    6 days ago

  • More support for drought-affected communities
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  • Job seekers to report on progress after six months from today
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  • New cops means more Police on the beat
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    7 days ago

  • Government takes action to address youth crime
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  • Reserve Bank chair reappointed
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  • School attendance increases
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  • Record investment in public transport services
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  • GDP data shows need to strengthen and grow the economy
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  • Women continue to make up over 50 per cent on public sector boards
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  • Government supporting Māori business success
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