Heather Du Plessis-Allan wants New Zealand to be more radical

Written By: - Date published: 8:50 am, November 19th, 2017 - 57 comments
Categories: Deep stuff, journalism, Media, the praiseworthy and the pitiful - Tags:

There is an an interesting column written by Heather Du Plessis-Allan in the Herald this morning where she advocates, I think, for New Zealand to be more progressive.

It starts like this:

It’s good to have Australia as our neighbour. Australians make us look good.

Take, for example, this week’s same-sex marriage referendum. Welcome to the club, Australia. We joined it five years ago.

Also this week, the developing humanitarian crisis on Manus Island. How good do we look coming to the rescue and offering to take 150 boat people? How bad does Australia look saying no?

Those are both rhetorical questions. Of course we look better. Australia deserves the judgmental side-eye we’re casting across the ditch.

Amen to that.

This week, former Wallaby turned author Peter FitzSimons rubbed Australia’s collective faces in it even further, penning an opinion piece on how New Zealand is “lapping” Australia.

New Zealand’s record is better, he reckons, because of our vastly superior race relations, refusal to join the invasion of Iraq, embracing of same-sex marriage donkey’s years ago, attempt to ditch the Union Jack and, finally, election of a young woman as Prime Minister. Eat dirt, Straya.

Except, the truth is New Zealand is not as progressive as we like to think.

I take from this that Heather thinks we should be more radical.  To the barricades everyone!

Sure, if you cast your mind back through the years, there is plenty of reason to feel proud: giving women the vote, protesting against South African Apartheid, going nuclear-free, refusing the US request to join the Iraq invasion.

All thanks to progressive Governments, and the last three thanks to Labour Governments.

But, as time has gone on, there are fewer reasons. What have we done in the 14 years since our last big stand, when Helen Clark told George Dubya Bush to take a running jump over Iraq? Not a lot. In fact, we’ve started doing the United States’ bidding again. We’ve since been in both Afghanistan and Iraq.

Nine of those 14 years have been under National.  And Labour opposed going into Iraq, twice.

We were hardly at the vanguard of legalising same-sex marriage. By 2012, when we did it, more than a dozen other countries had. We came to the party 11 years after the first.

And it happened thanks to a Labour back bencher.  Not only that but a majority of National MPs voted against the provision.

She then gets stuck into National’s flawed change the flag vanity project.

Plus, if we were so progressive, we would have changed the flag. Forget all the excuses about the disappointing designs. If we were really into the idea, we would’ve demanded something worth backing and pushed it through.

But strangely she demands that the Government trashes our relationship with our closest neighbour.

We seem to have no intention to follow through on our offer to take 150 refugees. It looks more like a political play by Jacinda Ardern, who knows it resonates well with her core voters without upsetting anyone other voters, because it’ll never happen.

If Ardern meant to take those 150 refugees, she’d appeal directly to Papua New Guinea and to hell with what Australia thinks. But she hasn’t.

And she thinks that we should let the Manus Island refugees starve, just to make a point.  Stalin would have been proud.

Our hands aren’t clean of the Manus Island debacle as it is. We have just pledged $3 million towards keeping the refugees there, perhaps in better circumstances, but still there.

Although she does get stuck into the past treatment of our polynesian brothers and sisters.

And we may dislike Australia’s treatment of Kiwi immigrants, but we have our own chequered history of bullying the citizens of smaller nations. The Dawn Raids are a case in point.

Note to Heather the dawn raids occurred under Robert Muldoon’s National government.

I welcome Heather’s new found radical nature.  She has applauded much of what Labour has done in the past and criticised National for its regressive reactionary ways.

If Heather wants to go full hog and join the Labour Party then this can be done from here.

57 comments on “Heather Du Plessis-Allan wants New Zealand to be more radical ”

  1. If Ardern meant to take those 150 refugees, she’d appeal directly to Papua New Guinea and to hell with what Australia thinks. But she hasn’t.

    Right-wingers are always full of helpful advice on what the left’s politicians should do, almost always with a view to getting them to make some disastrous propaganda-worthy mistake. This one’s no different.

    The pretence at being progressive is another feature – so, so forward-thinkingly progressive, right up until you want to restore public services or help the poor, then the mask drops.

    • Frankie and Benjy 1.1

      I agree there seems to be attempts to manufacture mistakes for the new government from their opponents. Mike Hosking seems very keen for them to spend on all sorts of things, like free ambulance services. He may just have become a more generous soul but I can’t help suspect him of trying to create Steven Joyce’s $11B hole so he can then criticize them for “tax and spend”.

    • Wensleydale 1.2

      Agreed. The whole article seems a thinly veiled excuse to say “We’ve done a whole heap of cool shit… but Labour still sucks.”

  2. Sparky 2

    And I gather not one word on what should I believe be radicalising people across the country the upcoming CP-TPP?

  3. Zorb6 3

    Do she and Soper have a ‘good cop’,’bad cop’ thing going on.HDA=*yawn*.

    • CLEANGREEN 3.1

      Yes of course, Heather should be ignored.
      Most importantly;

      We as members of our community must firstly have a deep analysis of the pros & cons of opening the floodgates to “refugeees” firstly.

      Jacinda has both pledged this “public conversation/input” also.

      This last week Jacinda has sent out to us and many others her letter promising us this.

      • OnceWasTim 3.1.1

        Yep @CG. But Heather would probably counter that you’re just a boring old fart moaning all the time and you need to get with the times.
        The problem is – she’s married to one.
        Maybe its a case of wood and trees, J’accuse and all that.

        Progress to HdP-A is about as profound as an iPhone8 and the gorgeous taste of a hint of pepper on a pear – especially when witnessed by a fawning public.
        I wonder how much she clipped the ticket for those wonderful words of wisdom.

  4. patricia bremner 4

    Heather is shallow is as shallow does. I would call it looking for an angle. It must be galling to see someone like Jacinda, younger? doing so well.

    Many of these media people have just realized the game has changed and their opinions don’t matter so much any more.

    This PM speaks directly to the people using media stands and face book to clearly state her views.

    For those who said she is Peter’s puppet or ruled by a cabal of older men, I say “Really?’

    She is quick articulate and has excellent instincts, and is accorded accolades by those who know or meet her. Peter’s said ‘She is a tough negotiator”

    A few wobbles by some of the newbies is to be expected. Quite a lot has begun in a month. !00 days will be interesting, which is more than we can say about wee Heather.

    • Stunned Mullet 4.1

      HDPA does as her position is wont to do – write a bit of fluff for money to fill a column or two in a paper.

      The game has changed at all and the medias opinions count/don’t count as much as they ever have.

      I would caution Arden against going down the social media route of communication.

      Peter’s said she’s a tough negotiator “snort” well he’s unlikely to say anything derogatroy is he ? At present the jury is out on the PMs negotiating skills as it is on the new government, none of us will really have anything substantive to go on until the delivery of the budget.

    • OnceWasTim 4.2

      Do you happen to remember 60 minuites of a few years ago – many currant and raison affairs programmes tried to emulate.
      “I’m Louise Joyce, I’m in-depth journalist, I’m Max Headroom” as they turn to camera and pout their lips feigning that ‘look of authority’

      I suspect it’s something H ‘doo’ P-A is rather bitter about missing out on.
      Here she is, shacked up with some raspy voiced hack who is becoming about as relevant as a piece of turd on its way to Moa Point NOW advocating radicalism.

      All she reminds me of is the era of bodgies and widgies.

  5. Muttonbird 5

    She extremely muddled of thought in a vain effort to be a balanced external critic and she a very poor writer, a mimic of her mentor, Duncan Garner.

    • greywarshark 5.1

      Dunkin’ Gingernut.

      Where is he to be found when he is home – I don’t have television so miss these powerhouse thinkers?

  6. Ed 6

    HDPA – incoherent

  7. AB 7

    Because her thinking is not anchored in any consistent first principles she tends to lurch all over the place in a self-contradictory fashion. Plenty like this, Garner comes to mind particularly.

    • Muttonbird 7.1

      +1. You find this with centrists. The lack of consistent core principles means they regularly blurt out contradictions.

      • greywarshark 7.1.1

        ‘Blurting out contradictions’ – sounds like farts!

        This reminds me of someone’s story about farts. She helped an elderly lady who was quite crippled, leaning over to manipulate her arms a little but then farted loudly. Her client thought it tremendously funny and said she got more exercise from laughing than from the physiotherapy, calling it ‘internal jogging’.

        Now I think my piece of trivia is more amusing and interesting than HDPA’s.

  8. Philg 8

    The media is not about informing people, it us about entertaining them. Heather is simply trying to keep her job. Quality journalism, or lack thereof, is the issue.

    • Ed 8.1

      She only has a job because she writes what the owners want her to write.
      The same applies to her reactionary husband Barry Soper.
      No independent thinking.
      No real journalism.
      Just write what the establishment wants you to write.
      And collect the cheque.

      • greywarshark 8.1.1

        All of her group have a tea party, and take away the cups to their keyboards to read the tealeaves, and see our future in them.

    • UncookedSelachimorpha 8.2

      “The media is not about informing people, it us about entertaining them.”

      Number One – it is about putting eyeballs in front of marketers.

  9. mauī 9

    We could have demanded a decent flag in our own time, instead we were demanded to accept some dudes red and blue logo piece of sh..

  10. eco maori 10

    Sorry but Jacinda does not waste her time trying to be deceitful like national does.
    I think Jacinda plan to bring climate change refugees to NZ is awesome they can work and buy renewable energy plant and build there house to survive global warming. Or buy here in NZ if that’s the answer. She will teach them how to survive global warming this is better than my idea of gifting solar power as they will appreciate the solar plant and look after it this is what friendly humane naibour do if we don’t act now it will cost US more in the future this is what the good people of OUR WORLD SOCIETY expect of us Ka pai

  11. Kat 11

    Just another example of rock bottom awful writing by someone who is no more than a wannabe celeb journo. A role she fits perfectly.

  12. UncookedSelachimorpha 12

    Hardly a beacon of light.

    Typical of the new right-wing, they are no longer consistently socially conservative and are happy to be socially progressive in places, because that type of progressive doesn’t cost the rich a cent.

  13. Philip Ferguson 13

    The dawn raids began under Labour.

    The link the author makes to the NZ history site actually says this. It then says they *intensified* under National.

    Helen Clark also sent members of the NZ military to iraq – just before the bidding closed for reconstruction projects.

    • mickysavage 13.1

      National made the dawn raids a political weapon, not Labour.

      Helen had only proposed reconstruction forces.

    • greywarshark 13.2

      Philip Ferguson
      I couldn’t see a clear statement that the dawn raids began under Labour in the
      links presented.

      So I went to wikipedia which often concisely shows the way and that agrees with your comment. Here is what they say and some background.
      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Police_raid

      During the late 1960s and early 1970s, New Zealand’s economy had declined due to several international developments: a decline in international wool prices in 1966, Britain joining the European Economic Community in 1973 which deprived NZ of a major market for dairy products, and the 1973 oil crisis. This economic downturn led to increased crime, unemployment and other social ailments, which disproportionately affected the Pacific Islander community.[5]

      In response to these social problems, Prime Minister Kirk created a special police task force in Auckland in 1973 which was tasked with dealing with overstayers. Its powers also included the power to conduct random checks on suspected overstayers. Throughout 1974, the New Zealand Police conducted dawn raids against overstayers which sparked criticism from human rights groups and sections of the press. In response to public criticism, the Labour Immigration Minister Fraser Colman suspended the dawn raids until the government developed a “concerted plan.” In April 1974, Kirk also introduced a two–month amnesty period for overstayers to register themselves with the authorities and be granted with a two–month visa extension. Kirk’s change in policies were criticized by the mainstream press, which highlighted crimes and violence perpetrated by Māori and Pacific Islanders.[6]

      In July 1974, the opposition National Party leader Muldoon promised to reduce immigration and to “get tough” on law and order issues if his party was elected as government. He criticized the Labour government’s immigration policies for contributing to the economic recession and a housing shortage. During the 1975 general elections, the National Party also played a controversial electoral advertisement that was later criticized for stoking negative racial sentiments about Polynesian migrants.[7] Once in power, Muldoon’s government accelerated the Kirk government’s police raids against Pacific overstayers.[3]

      …The Dawn Raids were condemned by different sections of New Zealand society including the Pacific Islander and Māori communities, church groups, employers and workers’ unions, anti-racist groups, and the opposition Labour Party. One Pacific group known as the Polynesian Panthers combated the Dawn Raids by providing legal aid to detainees and staging retaliatory “dawn raids” on several National cabinet ministers including Bill Birch and Frank Gill, the Minister of Immigration. The raids were also criticized by elements of the police and the ruling National Party for damaging race relations with the Pacific Island community.[8]

      [My Note: the protests were against National Party ministers and were made by the opposition Labour Party which had not mounted an offensive against PI, but all overstayers. So National Party misusing law that Labour had instigated.] Critics also alleged that the Dawn Raids unfairly targeted Pacific Islanders since Pacific Islanders only comprised one-third of the overstayers but made up 86% of those arrested and prosecuted for overstaying. The majority of overstayers were from Great Britain, Australia, and South Africa.[2] The Muldoon government’s treatment of overstayers also damaged relations with Pacific countries like Samoa and Tonga, and generated criticism from the South Pacific Forum. By 1979, the Muldoon government terminated the Dawn Raids since the deportation of illegal Pacific overstayers had failed to alleviate the ailing New Zealand economy.[2]

      National Party racist advertisement drawn for them by Hanna Barbera, USA professionals.
      https://teara.govt.nz/en/video/2158/national-party-advertisement

      • greywarshark 13.2.1

        Bit of social history from those who are vulnerable.
        https://teara.govt.nz/en/zoomify/29588/dawn-raids

      • Philip Ferguson 13.2.2

        Micky Savage said this: “Note to Heather the dawn raids occurred under Robert Muldoon’s National government.”

        But the article that Micky Savage linked to said this: “Dawn raids on the homes of alleged overstayers by police had occurred in 1974 but intensified in October 1976.”

        So, the dawn raids clearly *began* under Labour.

        And here’s Te Ara/Encyclopaedia of New Zealand, which is more authoritative than wikipedia:

        “In 1974 the Kirk government clamped down on people overstaying the time allowed by their visas. Pacific Islanders attracted the most attention, with Samoans and Tongans particularly affected, and ‘dawn raids’ by police on the homes of suspected overstayers were introduced in 1974. Immigration policy continued to be tightened under the National government that won power in 1975. Dawn raids ended in the late 1970s after considerable public outcry, including protests by the Polynesian Panthers, a group of New Zealand-born Pacific Islanders influenced by the American Black Panthers movement.”

        Some of us were around at the time and protested dawn raids under *both* Labour and National.

        • greywarshark 13.2.2.1

          Okay but I see that Wikipedia is more informative than Te Ara. Which of course should be authoritative.

          More info from Wikipedia, providing an explanation about overstayer push. With so many centred in Auckland in the PI communities it was a practical place to start, rather than searching round the country for the European oddbods. But the lack of respect shown to the PI overstayers as told in some of the personal anecdotes – when it comes to immigration the authorities can work themselves up into a hostile lather that matches moral outrage.

        • mickysavage 13.2.2.2

          And as I said “National made the dawn raids a political weapon, not Labour.”

  14. Ed 14

    It’s ok to be socially progressive – it’s only threatening the establishment if you challenge the economy and be economically radical.

  15. greywarshark 15

    Ho ho I thought it must be a George Constanza moment (a loser can change their future to positive by doing the exact opposite to usual). But acshually it’s all about ticking boxes that show us up on League Tables for the Best Girls and Boys College at winning prizes. Ha ha we are better than Oz, we did this and they didn’t. So reactive. So lacking in our own set of principles and practices. So style-conscious, it seems. But we are marked to be losers. We need to follow George’s progress, because our country is George, NZ is George!
    Heeere’s George:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwc8omasnEI

    Changes I would like, Morgan Williams, previous P. Commissioner of the Environment discussed, changing a conurbation with social and economic difficulties from the bottom up, giving people amenities where it mattered. Changes wrought by management and infrastructure with positive and helpful outcomes, changes made by people at the bottom end with good outcomes. Bus stop waiting booths, people clearing litter from their own area (each bagful earned 3 eggs or something). Big and little things, rewards available for effort, often done and voila – a change to be proud of. NZ could announce with pride that a country is lifted up by the millions of poor people rising and improving their status. Australia wouldn’t have a shit show in hell of matching that achievement.

    The area making improvements was: Curitiba, Brazil
    Story of cities #37: how radical ideas turned Curitiba into Brazil’s …
    https://www.theguardian.com › World › Cities › Brazil
    May 6, 2016 – As an architect and mayor, Jaime Lerner led the movement that transformed Curitiba into an environmentally friendly ‘laboratory for urban planning’. … A thousand miles to the south in the city of Curitiba, capital of the agricultural state of Paraná, urban planners were hard at …

    I suggest that Auckland seek to become a sister city with Curitiba and get some new and provocative ideas that will make a huge difference. They seek to move forward and confront the present and future. We are scuttling back to our colonial past in the control of thick and mendacious land bankers, pseudo-farmers and wealth-obsessed people with wizened intellects and philosophies, hypnotised by materialism. Stop looking at moribund Australia that is sinking back to becoming a South African model of white smarties, a new sort of wasp that buzzes around in ever decreasing circles, counting success on the number of people it stings.

    The people who have been the Parliamentary Commissioners for Environment are the ones with good ideas that we should listen to and follow. HDPA you aren’t in the same league. Mark – fail.

    Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment – Wikipedia
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parliamentary_Commissioner_for_the_Environment
    The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment is an independent Officer of the New …
    New Zealand’s first three Parliamentary Commissioners for the Environment (from left): Helen Hughes (1987–1997), Dr Morgan Williams (1997–2007), Dr Jan Wright (2007–2017). Agency overview. Jurisdiction, New Zealand.

  16. One Anonymous Bloke 16

    What have we done in the 14 years since our last big stand…?

    That was clever*, to get that one in before the government has had time to introduce its equal pay bill.

    *terms and conditions apply.

    • tracey 16.1

      So her article is really telling Nats and their voters to put out and accept more progressive policies in election 20?

      • One Anonymous Bloke 16.1.1

        I agree with AB’s characterisation at 7: it feels more like she’s blundering around to little purpose.

        Edit: I don’t know why anyone ever expects profound commentary or analysis from journalists. They’re far better at reporting things that happen. Sometimes.

  17. I think her column today and the other fluff column by Stacey Jones in the SST have just finished me with the print media forever. The only good thing are the cartoons.

    • tracey 17.1

      It is so incongrous that I can only think this is her article which is used to point to “balance” in her coverage… 1 to 10 is the ratio I think

    • The Fairy Godmother 17.2

      I enjoy the code cracker, Kakuro and suduko puzzles. I generally do them while I have my morning coffee.

      The other stuff in the paper is pretty lame and it is written for the business class and not ordinary people. This video by Noam Chomsky and Edward Herman is a little blurry and a bit old but still very relevant today. It explains in a devastating way that we don’t have a Liberal media but one that supports the viewpoint of the wealthy. for instance there is a business section in the paper but where is the workers section. Issues like job losses are framed positively if it helps profit making and so on. Issues around democracy are reported in an incredibly biased way. The treatment of the Indonesian elections where there was violence and irregularities resulting in the election of Suharto was mild with much glossed over. The violence of East Timor was ignored. The Nicaraguan elections where the Sandanistas were elected were treated as if they were communist and democracy had failed wheras observers noted little if no irregularities in the democratic process. A real eye-opener and I recommend it. http://www.filmsforaction.org/watch/the-myth-of-the-liberal-media-the-propaganda-model-of-news-1997/

      • greywarshark 17.2.1

        Ordinary people should be reading the business class, as they are the ones affecting the lives of ordinary people AND their elected representatives.
        Everything else is gloss and tinsel and advice on ingrown toenails, and reflux.

        • The Fairy Godmother 17.2.1.1

          I agree but it is the perspective it is from that is important.

          • greywarshark 17.2.1.1.1

            Yes i agree but we have to watch and keep our information intelligence up because so many of these people have ceased to have basic human attributes. We need to watch them with interest to see what is next on their agendas and their distracted minds.

    • Grey Area 17.3

      I think you mean Stacey Kirk (another lightweight like HDPA) rather than the former Worriers halfback. 😀 Kirk is someone who seems to over-reach herself on a regular basis and who also based on past experience I put in the “ignore” basket.

  18. Foreign waka 18

    I watched Q&A and the interview with NZ PM Jacinda.
    She is awesome! Fearless and not pretending that she possess all the answers, making clear that she needs to look at issues and think before taking a step, implying that this will be an inclusive exercise. Hallelujah, the kids have a future.

    I also have read Heather Du Plessis-Allan article and I did not get this feeling of aha, oh, great article at all.
    Seems there are two different worlds, one is real the other is make belief. This was my thought when comparing comments and events.

  19. Paul Campbell 19

    A small historical note – I’m pretty sure I was out there getting arrested during the Springbok Tour under a National govt, not a Labour one – it’s not just governments that do that stuff, sometimes we all have to go into the streets and shame them into it

  20. mary_a 20

    HdPA and hubby Soper are still prickly over the election loss to the Labour/NZF/Greens coalition. So they channel their anger and spite through right wing media (NZH)! Ho hum, very predictable and terribly boring.

    Seems Natz MPs and their equally sour supporter media muppets don’t like it up ’em! They need to suck it up, get over it and get on with it!

  21. lurgee 21

    Psssst, Mickey, she’s not saying we need to be MORE RADICAL, she’s saying we’re not radical and should stop patting ourselves on the back for being not as primitive as Australia. That’s why the column is titled “NZ is not as progressive as we think” not “NZ needs to be more radical.” Nice massaging of words and meaning, though. Though to be honest I think even saying “NZ is not as progressive as we think” is to give NZ far more of a positive gloss than it deserves. This country is not progressive, nor radical, nor leftwing.

    Thus far, our long dreamed of ‘leftwing’ government has failed to do anyting meaningful about 90 day trial employments (“Oh, well set up a tribunal that no-one will use, rather than, you know, scrapping the law”) and signed us up to the TPP under a different name. Way to go. And we’ve still got people tying themselves into knots of ecstacy because we’re got a re-branded rightwing as leftwing.

    • greywarshark 21.1

      Cheer up lurgee, try to get a good sleep each night, and search out your old teddy bear for comfort. We still hope that we can get advances. There was no way the gummint could turn away from TPP and hold our position in the world’s financial markets to which we are exposed in a very full frontal way.

      So bide your time, and keep watching and pushing out the plank bit by bit. Then we may be able to demand something be done or the ticking crocodile will get them.

    • mickysavage 21.2

      That’s why I said “There is an an interesting column written by Heather Du Plessis-Allan in the Herald this morning where she advocates, I think, for New Zealand to be more progressive”.

      And early days. There are still 70 days left of the first 100 days.

  22. eco maori 22

    +100 marina but OUR Coalition government needs check that all of there adviceser don’t have a conflict of interest I.E national and international $$$$$$$ Ka pai I,m going to buy Jimmy Barns book heard its a good yarn. Kia kaha

  23. mosa 23

    The progressive left certainly does not need Heather who lets the wind flap her tongue around and is a total waste of space.

    These people are searching for their next John Key who if i remember rightly never did one thing progressive in foreign relations or humanitarian issues in the wider world or here at home except entertain foreign dignitaries with a round of golf and pose for selfies afterwards while selling out our country.

    What a sickening joke that we have to have people like this writing dribble without actually understanding the any of the facts behind the issues they are reporting on.

    Media cleanout pleeease.

  24. piper 24

    Business is Business,and the coalition understand that,this is why three heads may bounce off one another,and fair social compromise shall prevail, for business and society.

    Du-Plessis Allan,has to fill her column with her right wing party ramblings,as all of them are still smarting from not being in dominating control.How would her column Masters, respond about a positive comment about our coalition government.

    Let them suck on sour grapes, for years to come.

  25. R.P. Mcmurphy 25

    Heather Duplicity-alien is a typical msm liteweight. she arrived from nowhere and now seems to occupy a position where she gets to write whatever bullshit she likes. There is no depth or analysis just kneejerk outbursts that mean bugger all except to wiseacres on skwarkback radio.

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

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