Festive Cheer, Hear Hear !
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8:41 am, December 21st, 2024 - 7 comments
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Happy Christmas, folks.
Here’s an end of year round up of political speeches going into 2025.
Thanks to one and all, including The Standard and its editors, authors, contributors and team who helped me feel welcome.
Mountain Tūī
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- Gisborne gains affordable rental whare
Mahi has begun that will see dozens of affordable rental homes developed in Gisborne - a sign the Government’s partnership with Iwi is enabling more homes where they’re needed most, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. Mr Potaka attended a sod-turning ceremony to mark the start of earthworks for 48 ...1 week ago
- NZ welcomes Israel – Hamas ceasefire deal
New Zealand welcomes the ceasefire deal to end hostilities in Gaza, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “Over the past 15 months, this conflict has caused incomprehensible human suffering. We acknowledge the efforts of all those involved in the negotiations to bring an end to the misery, particularly the US, Qatar ...1 week ago
- Minister hears from Chatham Islands community on shipping solution
The Associate Minster of Transport has this week told the community that work is progressing to ensure they have a secure and suitable shipping solution in place to give the Island certainty for its future. “I was pleased with the level of engagement the Request for Information process the Ministry ...1 week ago
- Patients continue to be prioritised
Associate Health Minister David Seymour says he is proud of the Government’s commitment to increasing medicines access for New Zealanders, resulting in a big uptick in the number of medicines being funded. “The Government is putting patients first. In the first half of the current financial year there were more ...1 week ago
- Trade and investment agreements signed with United Arab Emirates
New Zealand's first-class free trade deal and investment treaty with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have been signed. In Abu Dhabi, together with UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, New Zealand Prime Minister, Christopher Luxon, witnessed the signing of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) and accompanying investment treaty ...1 week ago
- Business confidence highest since 2021
The latest NZIER Quarterly Survey of Business Opinion, which shows the highest level of general business confidence since 2021, is a sign the economy is moving in the right direction, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. “When businesses have the confidence to invest and grow, it means more jobs and higher ...1 week ago
- Strong biosecurity more important than ever
Events over the last few weeks have highlighted the importance of strong biosecurity to New Zealand. Our staff at the border are increasingly vigilant after German authorities confirmed the country's first outbreak of foot and mouth disease (FMD) in nearly 40 years on Friday in a herd of water buffalo ...1 week ago
- Arms Act Public consultation commences
Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee reminds the public that they now have an opportunity to have their say on the rewrite of the Arms Act 1983. “As flagged prior to Christmas, the consultation period for the Arms Act rewrite has opened today and will run through until 28 February 2025,” ...1 week ago
- KO disruptive tenants’ easy ride over
Complaints about disruptive behaviour now handled in around 13 days (down from around 60 days a year ago) 553 Section 55A notices issued by Kāinga Ora since July 2024, up from 41 issued during the same period in the previous year. Of that 553, first notices made up around 83 ...2 weeks ago
- 80% reduction in building determination wait times
The time it takes to process building determinations has improved significantly over the last year which means fewer delays in homes being built, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “New Zealand has a persistent shortage of houses. Making it easier and quicker for new homes to be built will ...2 weeks ago
- Top baby names for 2024
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden is pleased to announce the annual list of New Zealand’s most popular baby names for 2024. “For the second consecutive year, Noah has claimed the top spot for boys with 250 babies sharing the name, while Isla has returned to the most popular ...2 weeks ago
- Enabling works to begin on Westgate Bus Station
Work is set to get underway on a new bus station at Westgate this week. A contract has been awarded to HEB Construction to start a package of enabling works to get the site ready in advance of main construction beginning in mid-2025, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“A new Westgate ...2 weeks ago
- A nationwide shift towards acting together to stop family and sexual violence
Minister for Children and for Prevention of Family and Sexual Violence Karen Chhour is encouraging people to use the resources available to them to get help, and to report instances of family and sexual violence amongst their friends, families, and loved ones who are in need. “The death of a ...2 weeks ago
- Murdoch’s UK newspapers have apologised to Prince Harry. Where does it leave the legally embattled...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Matthew Ricketson, Professor of Communication, Deakin University This week Prince Harry achieved something few before him have: an admission of guilt and unlawful behaviour from the Murdoch media organisation. But he also fell short of his long-stated goal of holding the Murdochs ...1 hour ago - Are public schools really ‘free’? Families can pay hundreds of dollars in voluntary fees
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emma Rowe, Associate Professor in Education, Deakin University As Australian families prepare for term 1, many will receive letters from their public schools asking them to pay fees. While public schools are supposed to be “free”, parents are regularly asked to ...2 hours ago
- Something old, new, borrowed, and blue in PM’s growth plan
Analysis - At first glance the Prime Minister's fresh plan to inject growth in the economy is a hark back to pre-Covid days and the last National government. ...3 hours ago - The US intends to leave the World Health Organization. What happens next?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By C Raina MacIntyre, Professor of Global Biosecurity, NHMRC L3 Research Fellow, Head, Biosecurity Program, Kirby Institute, UNSW Sydney T. Schneider/Shutterstock Donald Trump’s plan to withdraw the United States from the World Health Organization (WHO) has been met with dismay in the ...3 hours ago
- Rubber hits the road for Labour in 2025
Labour Party MPs have kicked off the political year with a spring in their step and fire in their bellies, ready to announce some policies and ramp up the attack strategy.Clad in a casual shirt and jandals, leader Chris Hipkins entered the Distinction Hotel in Palmerston North, guns blazing and ...5 hours ago - Standing for decency: The sermon the President didn’t want to hear
COMMENTARY: By Nick Rockel People get readyThere’s a train a-comingYou don’t need no baggageYou just get on boardAll you need is faithTo hear the diesels hummingDon’t need no ticketYou just thank the Lord Songwriter: Curtis Mayfield You might have seen Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde’s speech at the National Prayer Service ...5 hours ago
- A new wave of filmmakers are exploring motherhood’s discontents. Nightbitch makes this monstrous
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rachel Williamson, Senior Tutor in English, University of Canterbury Disney+ “Motherhood,” the beleaguered stay-at-home mother of Nightbitch tells us in contemplative voice-over, “is probably the most violent experience a human can have aside from death itself”. Increasingly depicted as a ...5 hours ago
- Yes, Trump can rename the Gulf of Mexico – just not for everyone. Here’s how it works
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clive Schofield, Professor, Australian National Centre for Ocean Resources and Security (ANCORS), University of Wollongong Getty Images Among the blizzard of executive orders issued by Donald Trump on his first day back in the Oval Office was one titled Restoring Names ...6 hours ago
- What is PNF stretching, and will it improve my flexibility?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lewis Ingram, Lecturer in Physiotherapy, University of South Australia Undrey/Shutterstock Whether improving your flexibility was one of your new year’s resolutions, or you’ve been inspired watching certain tennis stars warming up at the Australian Open, maybe 2025 has you keen to ...6 hours ago
- PM Christopher Luxon says government will move ‘with pace’ on tourism infrastructure
Christopher Luxon says the government wants tourism "turned on big time internationally" in response to a mayor's call for more funding for the sector. ...6 hours ago
- Taxpayers’ Union Criticism Of Governor-General Unwarranted
The NZTU's OIA request shows that across the Governor-General's six trips to London between June 2022 and May 2023, the Office of Governor-General incurred just over £10000 / $20000 NZ on VIP services for the Governor-General and those travelling ...6 hours ago - ‘Move fast and break things’: Trump’s $500 billion AI project has major risks
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Armin Chitizadeh, Lecturer, School of Computer Science, University of Sydney Collagery/Shutterstock In one of his first moves as the 47th President of the United States, Donald Trump announced a new US$500 billion project called Stargate to accelerate the development of artificial ...7 hours ago
- Why have Joe Biden’s preemptive pardons caused such a stir? A president’s pardoning power has fe...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Hart, Emeritus Faculty, US government and politics specialist, Australian National University On his last day in office, outgoing United States President Joe Biden issued a number of preemptive pardons essentially to protect some leading public figures and members of his own ...7 hours ago
- You can train your nose – and 4 other surprising facts about your sense of smell
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lynn Nazareth, Research Scientist in Olfactory Biology, CSIRO DimaBerlin/Shutterstock Would you give up your sense of smell to keep your hair? What about your phone? A 2022 US study compared smell to other senses (sight and hearing) and personally prized commodities ...7 hours ago
- Trump has withdrawn the US from the Paris Agreement. Here’s why that’s not such a bad thing
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rebekkah Markey-Towler, PhD Candidate, Melbourne Law School, and Research fellow, Melbourne Climate Futures, The University of Melbourne EPA On his first day back in office as United States president, Donald Trump gave formal notice of his nation’s exit from the Paris ...7 hours ago
- Luxon’s ‘going For Growth’ Just Grows The Government Bureaucracy
Taxpayers' Union Spokesman, Jordan Williams, said “the speech was more about feels and repeating old announcements than concrete policy changes to improve New Zealand’s prosperity.” ...7 hours ago
- Taxpayer Victory! Callaghan Innovation Finally For The Scrapheap
Callaghan Innovation has shown itself to be a toxic organisation, with a culture that leads to waste on a wallet-shattering scale, Taxpayers’ Union Spokesman James Ross said. ...7 hours ago
- PM Flags Mining As Critical To Economic Growth
"It is great to see this Government listening to the mining sector and showing a clear understanding of its value to the economy in terms of jobs and investment in communities, as well as export earnings," Vidal says. ...7 hours ago
- Axing Of Callaghan Innovation, Loss Of 500 Jobs Already Makes Mockery Of Latest Reform
The long overdue science reform strategy promises another huge restructure on top of the restructure endured by science agencies to date, creating more uncertainty and worry for thousands of science workers. ...7 hours ago
- Climate crisis: The carbon footprint of the Gaza genocide
SPECIAL REPORT: By Jeremy Rose The International Court of Justice heard last month that after reconstruction is factored in Israel’s war on Gaza will have emitted 52 million tonnes of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. A figure equivalent to the annual emissions of 126 states and territories. It seems ...8 hours ago
- Nature’s comeback tour: 11 wins that prove conservation works
Some feel-good nature wins to start your year. Sure, 2024 wasn’t what you’d call a “feel-good” year for the natural world. But if your heart sank at each new blow to conservation (hello fast track bill, goodbye Jobs for Nature funding, looking at you, conservation and science budget cuts), let ...8 hours ago - Christopher Luxon announces foreign investment agency in state of nation address
"We are going for growth": The prime minister says, announcing a new agency, in his first major speech of the year. ...9 hours ago
- Coalition has lead in most polls as Dutton gains five-point preferred PM lead in Resolve
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 A national Resolve poll for Nine newspapers, conducted January 15–21 from a sample of 1,610, gave the Coalition a 51–49 lead using ...9 hours ago
- Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown has enormous resonance – but doesn’t break with gender stere...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lisa French, Professor & Dean, School of Media and Communication, RMIT University Searchlight Pictures In 1961, aged 19, Bob Dylan left home in Minnesota for New York City and never looked back. Unknown when he arrived, he would later be widely ...9 hours ago
- The Body Shop is dead but our love for its lip balm will live on
Body Shop NZ has been put into voluntary liquidation. We reach out into the Dewberry mists of time to farewell some of our cruelty-free favs. Before Mecca was the mecca, before Sephora sold retinol to tweens and before the internet made beauty content a lucrative career path, there was The ...10 hours ago
- Seizures Of Black Market Tobacco Show Strong Policy Action Needed From Government
According to official Customs information, total interceptions of illegal cigarettes and cigars grew 31.4%, from 4.94 million in 2019–2020 to 6.5 million in 2023–2024. ...10 hours ago
- Local Dolphin Defenders’ Nelson Port Protest Tomorrow 24/01/25
The charity Māui and Hector’s Dolphin Defenders, is calling on Luxon's National-led coalition government for more protection for the dolphins throughout their rang ...10 hours ago
- Be Bold, Mr Luxon
National cannot fall into the habit of simply naming a new Ministerial portfolio and trying to jaw-bone public policy outcomes, says Taxpayers' Union Executive Director Jordan Williams. ...11 hours ago
- Luxon’s Bonfire Of Natural Capital Leaves New Zealand Poorer
Luxon is due to give his State of the Nation speech today which will once again prioritise the War On Nature. These destructive policies, including the fast track law, have become one of the trademarks of his first year in office. ...11 hours ago
- Financial Statements Of The Government Of New Zealand For The Five Months Ended 30 November 2024
The November results are reported against forecasts based on the Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update 2024 (HYEFU 2024), published on 17 December 2024, and the results for the same period for the previous year. ...11 hours ago
- Labour pivots focus to National’s stomping grounds of economy and crime
Labour leader Chris Hipkins has told his caucus the party needs to up its game on the cost of living, crime and the economy. ...11 hours ago
- Why we’re not ready to extend the parliamentary term
Until there is a considerable strengthening of the accountability mechanisms, the parliamentary term should not be extended, argues Brian Easton in this edited excerpt from his latest book In Open Seas: How the New Zealand Labour Government Went Wrong: 2017–2023. A British Lord Chancellor described the British political system as ...12 hours ago
- ‘Decolonise’ aid urgent call from Fiji’s Prasad to face Pacific climate crisis
By Don Wiseman, RNZ Pacific senior journalist Fiji’s Deputy Prime Minister Biman Prasad has told an international conference in Bangkok that some of the most severely debt-stressed countries are the island states of the Pacific. Dr Prasad, who is also a former economic professor, said the harshest impacts of global ...12 hours ago
- Do you feel better off, punk? Well, do ya?
Comment: Labour should not have to be asking whether voters feel better off – but helping them feel that they realistically could be The post Do you feel better off, punk? Well, do ya? appeared first on Newsroom. ...12 hours ago
- Prisons don’t create safer communities, so why is Australia spending billions on building them?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emma Russell, ARC DECRA Associate Professor in Crime, Justice and Legal Studies, La Trobe University Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics show prisoner numbers are growing in every Australian state and territory — except Victoria. Nationally, our per capita imprisonment ...13 hours ago
- The last time it was legal, exports of sea sand destroyed dozens of Indonesian islands. Now, the ban...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Bioantika, PhD Candidate, Global Centre for Mineral Security, Sustainable Minerals Institute, The University of Queensland An excavator dredges sea sand in Lhokseumawe, Sumatra. Mohd Arafat/Shutterstock Over 20 years ago, then Indonesian president Megawati Soekarnoputri banned the export of sea sand from her ...13 hours ago
- Is your child nervous about going back to school? Try asking them what they are looking forward to
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Samantha Vlcek, Lecturer in inclusive education, RMIT University Annie Spratt/Unsplash, CC BY From next week, schools will start to return for term 1. This can be a nervous time for some students, who might be anxious about new teachers, classes and ...13 hours ago
- NZ’s Companies Act is finally being reformed – but will the changes go far enough?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lynn Buckley, Senior Lecturer, Business School, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Reforms to the Companies Act are meant to make Aotearoa New Zealand an easier and safer place to do business. But key gaps in the reforms mean they could fall ...13 hours ago
- Does ‘made with love’ sell? Research reveals who values handmade products the most
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tuba Degirmenci, PhD Candidate School of Advertising, Marketing and Public Relations, Queensland University of Technology Tsuguliev/Shutterstock We’ve all seen the marketing message “handmade with love”. It’s designed to tug at our heartstrings, suggesting extra care and affection went into crafting a ...13 hours ago
- Help Me Hera: Why does every catch-up feel like a job interview?
A lot of my friendships these days feel more like external audits, and it’s making me dread our coffee dates. Want Hera’s help? Email your problem to helpme@thespinoff.co.nz Dear Hera, I am seeking your advice on catch-up friendships. I think most people have friendships that don’t form part of their ...13 hours ago
Kia Ora, MT, you are a welcome addition here at TS.
Clearly you put a lot of time and effort into your posts and they are appreciated, even if I don't comment.
I trust you will take the political break and connect with whanau and friends.
My son has just shifted house and a 22 yr old contemporary of his mentioned Rawiri Waititi and their waiata that is linked to above.
Brilliant!
"Marching on stolen Maori land."
Her mentioning this showed me that despite the leadership in Wellys at the moment our future is in good hands.
Yes. Hear Hear MT. Your posts are well researched an add a great deal to the discussions. I read a lot and digest. So thanks.
Proud to be a supporter Mountain Tui. You draw our attention to their inequities.
Meri kirihimete to you too MT. Very glad you are on board and I appreciate your contributions which are invariably right on the mark.
Not sure without Rawiri I could sleep at night.
God Bless folks.
Festive cheer to you too MT! I enjoyed your posts on Reddit (and still do!), and you've done a great job stepping up from Reddit to here and on Substack.
Brings to mind the (in)famous Kevin Bloody Wilson song "Ho ho f…ng ho".
But seriously, safe and happy Christmas to everyone, and thanks to MT and others who keep this blog rolling.