Jacinda Ardern to National – Bring It On
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3:46 pm, November 6th, 2022 - 157 comments
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https://player.vimeo.com/video/767679564?h=fa92ea9271
Tēnā koutou katoa
“Kua tawhiti kē tō mātou haerenga mai, kia kore e haere tonu.
He nui rawa o mahi, kia kore e mahi tonu.”
Kia haere tonu tātou
Welcome!
It’s so fantastic to be here in South Auckland, and it’s so fantastic to be here with all of you.
I want to begin by acknowledging our team here. Our wonderful New Zealand Councillors, our outgoing and incoming President, our excellent Deputy Leader of the Labour Party Kelvin Davis, our caucus and most importantly, our members. Our lifeblood and our engine room.
Last year our conference was a little different to this. We gathered in the manner which was traditional in the year 2021 – Zoom.
There are some distinct advantages to communication from the comfort of your own home. For instance, at last year’s conference speech I was essentially wearing slippers.
Our facial lines all miraculously softened, and then there were the filters which were especially good when they malfunctioned.
And by malfunction, I mean – user error – like the occasion I borrowed my Chief of Staff Raj Nahna’s laptop for a meeting, flicked the make-up function on, and neglected to tell him.
At our next officials meeting complete with senior public servants and ministers I noticed Raj was desperately trying to cover his face and a fetching shade of lipstick and rouge, which, he had no idea how to turn off.
I think it’s fair to say, it’s been a time.
And while no one expects being in Government to be simple, the last few years have not been an easy run.
A global pandemic of a scale not seen since the 1918 global influenza outbreak, followed immediately by an economic downturn the largest in scale since the Great Depression of the 1920s and 30s – twin health and economic crises that no government in New Zealand history has ever had to contend with.
There was no rulebook written.
But what we did have, was a set of values, and the history of past Labour governments.
It wasn’t a rulebook, but it was a guide.
On the 9th floor of the Beehive building in Wellington, sitting directly behind my desk, is a picture of Michael Joseph Savage. You could say he’s on my shoulder but also ever so slightly in my ear.
Of course it was Savage and the first Labour Government that lifted New Zealand out of the depths of the Great Depression. Not by cutting taxes and services, but by investing in jobs, and building a social welfare safety net. They built the country’s first state home. And not long after these social reforms – New Zealand’s living standards were among some of the highest in the world. Not for the few, but for the many.
The Finance Minister who supported Savage, Walter Nash, then led Labour’s second government as it continued to build our nation’s social welfare system, while advocating on the world stage for peace over war after World War 2.
It was Norman Kirk and a Labour government who tilted the country towards a modern future with reforms of trade, health, the arts, and education. They worked hard to foster a renewed national identity and partnership with Maōri – all the while challenging global evil such as apartheid and nuclear testing.
It was a fight David Lange continued, making New Zealand nuclear free, while also righting the wrongs of the past by legalising homosexuality, and fully abolishing the death penalty.
And of course with Helen Clark, the first woman elected our Prime Minister, New Zealand maintained a principled position on the war in Iraq, while leading a fifth Labour government that improved the economic wellbeing of Kiwi families, by setting up KiwiSaver, the Cullen superannuation fund, and Working for Families.
These were all Labour governments that despite what came their way, never lost sight of the things that matter. I believe the same can be said about us.
We are a government that cares for our people.
Their jobs.
Their families.
Their kids and grandkids and the earth that they will inherit.
Yes, managing crisis is an integral part of government – and every Labour government has had their fair share to manage.
For us, the list has been a little longer than you’d hope or even imagine – and the pandemic was especially difficult for everyone.
Did we always get everything right – no.
Could we have done more, or done things differently – yes.
But not every country can claim that over three years they saved more lives and livelihoods and lived with fewer restrictions than nearly anywhere else in the world. And that’s something every single New Zealander can be proud of.
But we’ve done more than manage crises – we’ve made progress despite them.
Before Covid we said we wanted New Zealand to be the best place in the world to be a child.
And so we increased paid parental leave from 18 to 26 weeks.
We created the Best Start payment which restored for the first time in 40 years a universal child payment for families with a newborn.
We increased the Family Tax Credit.
And introduced free lunches, and free period products in schools.
And now, 66,000 children have been lifted out of poverty and all nine measures of child poverty in this country are in decline.
66,000 kids who now have a better shot at school, at getting into work when the time comes, whose parents have the dignity of being able to provide for their children.
We said we wanted to build a mental healthcare system that didn’t just exist in times of crisis.
So we started building services in GP clinics, iwi providers and youth services.
We built and extended Mana Ake, a mental health programme for kids at primary and intermediate.
And we’ve put more counsellors in schools too.
And now, for the first time, we have an early intervention in our mental health system that has provided half a million mental health sessions to Kiwis in need, and over 30,000 counselling hours for kids in schools.
We said every New Zealander should have a warm, dry, affordable home.
And so, we introduced the healthy homes requirements.
Stopped overseas speculators buying residential homes.
Evened up the playing field for first home buyers by closing tax loop holes and extending the bright line test.
Launched the biggest state housing build and Papakāinga investment we’ve seen in decades.
And now, we have helped 65,000 first home buyers with grants to buy their own homes, lifted the share of first home buyers in the market from 20 to 24 percent – the highest since 2016 – and created more than 10,000 public housing places.
In fact, this government has created 13 percent of the total public and community housing stock New Zealand has, in just the past five years.
We said we would tackle climate change.
So we passed the Zero Carbon Act, established the Climate Commission and created an Emissions Reduction Plan.
We banned future oil and gas exploration, and the installation of new coal boilers.
We built incentives and standards which means we have now tripled electric vehicle imports.
And we’re creating a world first regime to make sure we reduce agricultural greenhouse gas emissions, which make up just under half of our emissions profile.
We said we wanted to be a nation where we grew skills, invested in our core services, and where everyone had the opportunity to experience the dignity of work.
And so we invested in and increased apprenticeship numbers by a massive 61 percent.
Supported 5200 rangatahi into work through Mana in Mahi.
Employed 4000 more nurses and nearly 3000 more teachers.
And have now some of the lowest unemployment on record, including for Maori, in the midst of one of the largest social and economic crisis of a generation.
This isn’t a check list. This isn’t a political score card.
Behind every one of those numbers is someone’s life that has been impacted by a Labour government.
The gentleman I met in Hawke’s Bay who told me about his brand new Kāinga Ora home where his moko were finally warm.
The parents of a new autoelectrical apprentice in Gisborne who were so happy their child had stability and certainty.
The single mum who wrote to me to say she can now afford for her family to be warm over winter.
The teacher who told me what a difference lunches in schools was making to their kids and community.
These achievements make us a better country. They make us fairer.
And with economic storm clouds brewing, they form the strong foundation we need to face the future with confidence.
And it is the future I want to talk about today.
We have been through tough times, but global volatility still lies in front of us and 2023 will likely, in many ways, be more difficult than this year. That brings uncertainty and anxiety. I understand that.
So the question next year will be: who is best to help New Zealand navigate these tough times.
Who can provide the security and certainty New Zealanders need to get through, with a plan, with confidence and with optimism.
The answer is Labour.
Because we have been here before.
Because we have the track record and the experience.
Because we can manage a crisis AND make progress.
Because we are not done yet.
And in 2023 we’re not asking for people to take a leap of faith. We’re asking them to look at our record.
That doesn’t mean considering Labour vs perfection. But Labour vs the opposition, which I would argue is quite some way off perfection.
And here’s our record, in a head to head
Despite the biggest economic shock since the Great Depression, the New Zealand economy is bigger now than before Covid – 4.8 percent bigger. That is because of good economic management.
It took nearly five years for National to increase the economy by that level after the GFC.
Wages are up 17 percent since 2019. It took National six years after the GFC to deliver that.
We’ve had record low unemployment in the past year, in facts it’s half of what it was at the GFC and that includes for Maori, for Pacifica and for women.
We’re on track to return to surplus faster.
Our debt is low, with the likes of Australia, the UK, the US and Canada carrying far more.
We have record high prices for our primary sector exports.
We’ve secured new trade agreements with the UK and the EU with more in negotiation.
Tourists and international students are returning, and they are spending.
And our underlying economic position is strong.
That is not by accident, but through thoughtful decision making and an eye on putting people and families at the centre of our recovery.
Here I do want to pay special tribute to Grant Robertson. He is an exceptional Minister of Finance, considered, intelligent and kind. He has taken us through a one in 100 year crisis – managing the books well all the while putting people first in our economy.
Overseeing an upgrade in our infrastructure, in our services, and in our global credit ratings.
The rating agencies see him as an experienced, safe pair of hands, and there is no one I trust more to keep delivering financial security and stability for our economy and for New Zealand families.
If there was one thing Covid taught us, and it schooled us in many ways, it was the need to be nimble. To keep an eye on the horizon and be willing to act when we need to.
Front and centre right now, we have the extraordinary challenges of a cost of living crisis, global in origin but affecting many Kiwis.
We worked quickly to develop a suite of cost of living measures to support Kiwis struggling with rising costs. We introduced the cost of living payment for middle and low income earners, cut fuel excise by 25 cents a litre, halved the price of public transport, and increased Working for Families.
It’s a crisis that is still with the world and so with us too, and clearly more is needed.
Right now, the load for families across New Zealand is a heavy one, and while there are many pressures, we know childcare is the biggest in-work expense for families.
Traditionally, this has been an area where families have had some support. But over a decade ago, during the GFC, the National Government cut childcare assistance so severely, that the number of children supported plummeted by half, from over 50,000 in 2010 to fewer than 25,000 this year.
Conservative estimates show it is New Zealand women in particular who cannot afford to work if they want to – because of childcare costs – and they are forgoing $116 million or more in wages each and every year.
This barrier to work exacerbates a workforce shortage, but more than that, it removes the ability for many New Zealand families to choose what’s best for them.
Why did National take away this choice in 2010?
Only they can answer that.
But I would just note that it was the same year they last cut the top tax rate.
It was a massively short-sighted decision.
Over the next 10 years parents, usually women, were increasingly forced into an economic dilemma.
I want families to have choices. I want them to stay home and be a primary care giver if they choose to. Or work, if they choose to. But increasingly those choices have been removed. And if you are a sole parent, you have even fewer.
We have tried to restore those choices. We extended Paid Parental Leave, brought in the Best Start Payment, restored the Training Incentive Allowance and made changes to the In Work Tax Credit.
Last year we also took the first step of matching income thresholds for the childcare subsidy back to wage growth – ensuring more families didn’t lose out
But more is needed.
Today I can announce that the Labour Government will significantly expand childcare assistance to New Zealand families.
From April we will lift the household income thresholds on our Childcare Assistance subsidies for those with children under 5 in early childhood education, and aged 5 to 13 at an approved before or after school and holiday programme.
Our changes will mean 54 per cent of all New Zealand families with children will now be eligible for subsidised childcare assistance.
Over 10,000 additional children will become eligible for support.
And nearly every sole parent in New Zealand will be eligible for childcare assistance
To give you an example of what this will mean, a family with two parents both working 40 hours per week on $26 per hour with two children under five, who would not have been eligible for childcare assistance previously, will now be eligible for $252 per week.
These changes are on top of the 20 hours of early childcare education provided by the Government for those aged 3 to 5 and are a pre-Budget commitment that will take effect from April next year, at a cost of $48 million a year.
Thousands more children supported into early learning.
Thousands more parents able to enter the workforce.
But perhaps most importantly – thousands of parents given back the choice to do what’s best for their families.
Today I can also share that next year, for the second year in a row, there will be a significant boost to Working For Families payments.
From April 2023, the Family Tax Credit will increase by another $9 a week for the eldest child to $136 a week, and by $7 a week for subsequent children to $111 a week. Best Start too will lift by $4 a week to $69 a week.
Along with previous increases to the Family Tax Credit, a family with two children on a median family income for Working for Families recipients are now receiving over $1300 more a year since we took office.
That climbs to over $3600 for families receiving the Best Start payment.
This kind of targeted support not only reaches those who need it most, it is support we can afford that unlike across the board tax cuts, won’t have a significant impact on inflation and make the problem worse.
You will have heard it said endlessly over the last three years, that it’s been a tough time. And it has. Undeniably.
Sometimes people ask me at a more personal level, how I keep going.
Two reasons. Because of a powerful intervention otherwise known as endless cups of tea.
And because I am an optimist.
We have an amazing country. With incredible people.
And we owe it to those people to keep up our unrelenting focus on what matters most to them.
The dignity of decent work.
The best possible start for kids.
Affordable housing.
Health and education that people can rely on.
And a well-cared for environment.
And while I cannot tell you what might come our way next, because those are predictions I have learnt to stay well away from, I can tell you that Labour is the party who can tackle it head on, and make the progress we need and deserve as a nation.
I’m here for that.
You’re here for that.
So bring it on.
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The NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi are saying that the Government should do the right thing and deliver minimum wage increases that don’t see workers fall further behind, in response to today’s announcement that the minimum wage will only be increased by 1.5%, well short of forecast inflation. “With inflation forecast ...5 days ago
- Crazy ’bout a Sharp-dressed Man
Oh, I weptFor daysFilled my eyesWith silly tearsOh, yeaBut I don'tCare no moreI don't care ifMy eyes get soreSongwriters: Paul Rodgers / Paul Kossoff. Read more ...5 days ago - How much should you worry about a collapse of the Atlantic conveyor belt?
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Bob Henson In this aerial view, fingers of meltwater flow from the melting Isunnguata Sermia glacier descending from the Greenland Ice Sheet on July 11, 2024, near Kangerlussuaq, Greenland. According to the Programme for Monitoring of the Greenland Ice Sheet (PROMICE), the ...5 days ago
- 8% ACT Party Creates One Ring To Rule Them All
In August, I wrote an article about David Seymour1 with a video of his testimony, to warn that there were grave dangers to his Ministry of Regulation:David Seymour's Ministry of Slush Hides Far Greater RisksWhy Seymour's exorbitant waste of taxpayers' money could be the least of concernThe money for Seymour ...5 days ago - When austerity worsens public debt & cuts GDP
Willis is expected to have to reveal the bitter fiscal fruits of her austerity strategy in the HYEFU later today. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/TheKakaMōrena. Long stories short, the six things that matter in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Tuesday, December 17 in The Kākā’s Dawn Chorus podcast ...5 days ago
- Govt to double number of toll roads
On Friday the government announced it would double the number of toll roads in New Zealand as well as make a few other changes to how toll roads are used in the country. The real issue though is not that tolling is being used but the suggestion it will make ...5 days ago
- Luxon’s pre-emptive strike
The Prime Minister yesterday engaged in what looked like a pre-emptive strike designed to counter what is likely to be a series of depressing economic statistics expected before the end of the week. He opened his weekly post-Cabinet press conference with a recitation of the Government’s achievements. “It certainly has ...6 days ago
- Gordon Campbell On The Coalition’s Empty Gestures, And Abortion Refusal As The New Slavery
This whooping cough story from south Auckland is a good example of the coalition government’s approach to social need – spend money on urging people to get vaccinated but only after you’ve cut the funding to where they could get vaccinated. This has been the case all year with public ...6 days ago
- More public service contempt of parliament
Back in 2023 the New Zealand Council for Civil Liberties raised concerns about the inherent conflict of interest involved in public service agencies supporting parliamentary select committees. Our parliament is run on a shoestring, so depends on the public service for advice. But public service agencies work for Ministers, not ...6 days ago
- If There Is A God
And if there is a GodI know he likes to rockHe likes his loud guitarsHis spiders from MarsAnd if there is a GodI know he's watching meHe likes what he seesBut there's trouble on the breezeSongwriter: William Patrick Corgan Read more ...6 days ago - A Lipstick Government
Here’s a quick round up of today’s political news:1. MORE FOOD BANKS, CHARITIES, DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SHELTERS AND YOUTH SOCIAL SERVICES SET TO CLOSE OR SCALE BACK AROUND THE COUNTRY AS GOVT CUTS FUNDINGSome of Auckland's largest foodbanks are warning they may need to close or significantly reduce food parcels after ...6 days ago - NZCTU open letter to Treasury on undue restrictions on restricted briefings
Iain Rennie, CNZMSecretary and Chief Executive to the TreasuryDear Secretary, Undue restrictions on restricted briefings This week, the Treasury barred representatives from four organisations, including the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions Te Kauae Kaimahi, from attending the restricted briefing for the Half-Year Economic and Fiscal Update. We had been ...6 days ago
- Why you won’t hear me advocate for electric cars
This is a guest post by Tim Adriaansen, a community, climate, and accessibility advocate. I won’t shut up about climate breakdown, and whenever possible I try to shift the focus of a climate conversation towards solutions. But you’ll almost never hear me give more than a passing nod to ...6 days ago
- Coalition forced to back down on tolling Pahiatua track
A grassroots backlash has forced a backdown from Brown, but he is still eyeing up plenty of tolls for other new roads. And the pressure is on Willis to ramp up the Government’s austerity strategy. Photo: Getty ImagesMōrena. Long stories short, the six things that matter in Aotearoa’s political economy ...6 days ago
- Thank You
Hi all,I'm pretty overwhelmed by all your messages and emails today; thank you so very much.As much as my newsletter this morning was about money, and we all need to earn money, it was mostly about world domination if I'm honest. 😉I really hate what’s happening to our country, and ...7 days ago - 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #50
A listing of 23 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, December 8, 2024 thru Sat, December 14, 2024. Listing by Category Like last week's summary this one contains the list of articles twice: based on categories and based on ...7 days ago
- Making Gravy
I started writing this morning about Hobson’s Pledge, examining the claims they and their supporters make, basically ripping into them. But I kept getting notifications coming through, and not good ones.Each time I looked up, there was another un-subscription message, and I felt a bit sicker at the thought of ...1 week ago - Nothing here but the shadows
Once, long before there was Harry and Meghan and Dodi and all those episodes of The Crown, they came to spend some time with us, Charles and Diana. Was there anyone in the world more glamorous than the Princess of Wales?Dazzled as everyone was by their company, the leader of ...1 week ago - The United Right: the FSU’s Continued Efforts to Undermine Academia
The collective right have a problem.The entire foundation for their world view is antiscientific. Their preferred economic strategies have been disproven. Their whole neoliberal model faces accusations of corporate corruption and worsening inequality. Climate change not only definitely exists, its rapid progression demands an immediate and expensive response in order ...1 week ago
- Showing the Americans how to do it
Just ten days ago, South Korea's president attempted a self-coup, declaring martial law and attempting to have opposition MPs murdered or arrested in an effort to seize unconstrained power. The attempt was rapidly defeated by the national assembly voting it down and the people flooding the streets to defend democracy. ...1 week ago
- 2 Men, 1 Haircut
Hi,“What I love about New Zealanders is that sometimes you use these expressions that as Americans we have no idea what those things mean!"I am watching a 30-something year old American ramble on about how different New Zealanders are to Americans. It’s his podcast, and this man is doing a ...1 week ago - Chris Penk’s Hate Parade
What Chris Penk has granted holocaust-denier and equal-opportunity-bigot Candace Owens is not “freedom of speech”. It’s not even really freedom of movement, though that technically is the right she has been granted. What he has given her is permission to perform. Freedom of SpeechIn New Zealand, the right to freedom ...1 week ago - Tell me a story
All those tears on your cheeksJust like deja vu flow nowWhen grandmother speaksSo tell me a story (I'll tell you a story)Spell it out, I can't hear (What do you want to hear?)Why you wear black in the morning?Why there's smoke in the air? Songwriter: Greg Johnson.Mōrena all ☀️Something a ...1 week ago - As Our Power Lessens: Accepted
2024 is now officially my best-ever year for short stories. My 1,850-word dark fantasy piece, As Our Power Lessens, has been accepted for the upcoming solstice edition of Eternal Haunted Summer (https://eternalhauntedsummer.com/), thereby making that six published short stories for the calendar year. As always, see the Bibliography page for ...1 week ago
- National’s Greatest Misses 2023-4
National has only been in power for a year, but everywhere you look, its choices are taking New Zealand a long way backwards. In no particular order, here are the National Government's Top 50 Greatest Misses of its first year in power. ...2 days ago - Release: Minister’s plan for tertiary sector a backwards step
Returning to the model that was failing for most polytechnics and Institutes of Technology is not the answer. ...2 days ago
- Release: National buries 1019 planned homes
It’s been revealed that National has cancelled 60 percent of its housing projects planned before mid-2025 amidst housing woes. ...2 days ago
- Release: Rule-Czar bill a right-wing power grab
The Government is quietly undertaking consultation on the dangerous Regulatory Standards Bill over the Christmas period to avoid too much attention. ...2 days ago
- Release: Why not both? Luxon shuns Waitangi celebrations
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon is running away from problems of his own creation, with his decision not to go to Waitangi. ...3 days ago
- Govt’s ‘free speech’ legislation stokes fear, not freedom
The Government’s planned changes to the freedom of speech obligations of universities is little more than a front for stoking the political fires of disinformation and fear, placing teachers and students in the crosshairs. ...3 days ago - Release: Nicola Willis spirals country deeper into recession
The economy shrank 1% this quarter and New Zealand has tumbled into the depths of a recession of Nicola Willis’ making. ...3 days ago
- Release: Hikes for company directors but not ordinary Kiwis
Working people are going backwards while company directors are being given huge pay hikes. ...4 days ago
- ECE no place to cut corners
The Ministry of Regulation’s report into Early Childhood Education (ECE) in Aotearoa raises serious concerns about the possibility of lowering qualification requirements, undermining quality and risking worse outcomes for tamariki, whānau, and kaiako. ...4 days ago
- Release: Strengthening Justice Services for New Zealanders
A Bill to modernise the role of Justices of the Peace (JP), ensuring they remain active in their communities and connected with other JPs, has been put into the ballot. ...4 days ago
- Release: Labour will continue fight against destructive projects
Labour will continue to fight unsustainable and destructive projects that are able to leap-frog environment protection under National’s Fast-track Approvals Bill. ...5 days ago
- Green Government will revoke dodgy fast-track projects
The Green Party has warned that a Green Government will revoke the consents of companies who override environmental protections as part of Fast-Track legislation being passed today. ...5 days ago
- Government for the wealthy keeps pushing austerity
The Green Party says the Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update shows how the Government is failing to address the massive social and infrastructure deficits our country faces. ...5 days ago
- Release: Visa changes let migrant workers be paid less
The Government’s latest move to reduce the earnings of migrant workers will not only hurt migrants but it will drive down the wages of Kiwi workers. ...5 days ago
- Release: Nightmare before Christmas for Nicola Willis
With more debt and a larger deficit, Nicola Willis’ reputation is in tatters after her failure to return the Government’s books to surplus. ...5 days ago
- Warning to Fast-Track Applicants – ‘Exploit the Whenua, Face the Consequences’
Te Pāti Māori has this morning issued a stern warning to Fast-Track applicants with interests in mining, pledging to hold them accountable through retrospective liability and to immediately revoke Fast-Track consents under a future Te Pāti Māori government. This warning comes ahead of today’s third reading of the Fast-Track Approvals ...5 days ago
- Release: Govt cuts wages for lowest paid NZers… again
For the second year running, the government has effectively cut wages for the lowest paid workers in New Zealand. ...5 days ago
- Govt’s miserly 1.5% minimum wage will take workers backwards
The Government’s announcement today of a 1.5 per cent increase to minimum wage is another blow for workers, with inflation projected to exceed the increase, meaning it’s a real terms pay reduction for many. ...5 days ago
- Release: Govt shirking responsibility for rate hikes
All the Government has achieved from its announcement today is to continue to push responsibility back on councils for its own lack of action to help bring down skyrocketing rates. ...5 days ago
- Luxon’s ‘localism’ strikes again
The Government has used its final post-Cabinet press conference of the year to punch down on local government without offering any credible solutions to the issues our councils are facing. ...6 days ago
- Release: Govt breaks promise on EV chargers
The Government has failed to keep its promise to ‘super charge’ the EV network, delivering just 292 chargers - less than half of the 670 chargers needed to meet its target. ...6 days ago
- Greens call for end to subsidies for Methanex
The Green Party is calling for the Government to stop subsidising the largest user of the country’s gas supplies, Methanex, following a report highlighting the multi-national’s disproportionate influence on energy prices in Aotearoa. ...6 days ago
- Govt child poverty targets allow for increase in poverty
The Green Party is appalled with the Government’s new child poverty targets that are based on a new ‘persistent poverty’ measure that could be met even with an increase in child poverty. ...1 week ago
- Release: Four weeks annual leave under threat
The Government’s attack on workers continues with news it is scrapping work on the Holidays Act. ...1 week ago
- Govt’s emissions plan for measly 1% reduction
New independent analysis has revealed that the Government’s Emissions Reduction Plan (ERP) will reduce emissions by a measly 1 per cent by 2030, failing to set us up for the future and meeting upcoming targets. ...1 week ago
- Greens stand in solidarity with Whakaata Māori on sad day
The loss of 27 kaimahi at Whakaata Māori and the end of its daily news bulletin is a sad day for Māori media and another step backwards for Te Tiriti o Waitangi justice. ...1 week ago
- Sanctions regime to create more hardship for families
Yesterday the Government passed cruel legislation through first reading to establish a new beneficiary sanction regime that will ultimately mean more households cannot afford the basic essentials. ...1 week ago
- Govt gifts renters housing anxiety for Christmas
Today's passing of the Government's Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill–which allows landlords to end tenancies with no reason–ignores the voice of the people and leaves renters in limbo ahead of the festive season. ...1 week ago
- Release: National Party urged to support modern slavery legislation
Labour is urging the Prime Minister to walk the talk and support legislation combating modern slavery. ...1 week ago
- Release: Labour has lost confidence in the Speaker
The Speaker of the New Zealand Parliament made an unprecedented decision on the government amendment to the Fast Track Approvals Bill last night. ...1 week ago
- One year on, still no progress on new ferries
Today’s announcement from the Government on its plan for new ferries throws more uncertainty on the future of the country’s rail network. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Nicola Willis’ smaller ferries will cost more
After wasting a year, Nicola Willis has delivered a worse deal for the Cook Strait ferries that will end up being more expensive and take longer to arrive. ...2 weeks ago
- Bill to sanction unlawful occupation of Palestine
Green Party co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick has today launched a Member’s Bill to sanction Israel for its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, as the All Out For Gaza rally reaches Parliament. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Labour fully supports greyhound racing ban
The Government has done the right thing in moving to ban greyhound racing. ...2 weeks ago
- Greyhound racing industry ban marks new era for animal welfare
After years of advocacy, the Green Party is very happy to hear the Government has listened to our collective voices and announced the closure of the greyhound racing industry, by 1 August 2026. ...2 weeks ago
- Rangatahi voices must be centred in Government’s Relationship and Sexuality Education refresh
In response to a new report from ERO, the Government has acknowledged the urgent need for consistency across the curriculum for Relationship and Sexuality Education (RSE) in schools. ...2 weeks ago
- Govt introduces archaic anti-worker legislation
The Green Party is appalled at the Government introducing legislation that will make it easier to penalise workers fighting for better pay and conditions. ...2 weeks ago
- Winston Peters – Kinleith Mill Speech
Thank you for the invitation to speak with you tonight on behalf of the political party I belong to - which is New Zealand First. As we have heard before this evening the Kinleith Mill is proposing to reduce operations by focusing on pulp and discontinuing “lossmaking paper production”. They say that they are currently consulting on the plan to permanently shut ...2 weeks ago - Swarbrick calls on Auckland Mayor to end delay of revival of St James Theatre
Auckland Central MP, Chlöe Swarbrick, has written to Mayor Wayne Brown requesting he stop the unnecessary delays on St James Theatre’s restoration. ...2 weeks ago
- He Ara Anamata: Greens launch Emissions Reduction Plan
Today, the Green Party of Aotearoa proudly unveils its new Emissions Reduction Plan–He Ara Anamata–a blueprint reimagining our collective future. ...2 weeks ago
- Internationally-trained doctors jump at chance to boost health workforce
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says Health New Zealand will move swiftly to support dozens of internationally-trained doctors already in New Zealand on their journey to employment here, after a tripling of sought-after examination places. “The Medical Council has delivered great news for hardworking overseas doctors who want to contribute ...7 hours ago - PM appoints business leader to APEC Business Advisory Council
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has appointed Sarah Ottrey to the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC). “At my first APEC Summit in Lima, I experienced firsthand the role that ABAC plays in guaranteeing political leaders hear the voice of business,” Mr Luxon says. “New Zealand’s ABAC representatives are very well respected and ...2 days ago
- New intelligence oversight appointments
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced four appointments to New Zealand’s intelligence oversight functions. The Honourable Robert Dobson KC has been appointed Chief Commissioner of Intelligence Warrants, and the Honourable Brendan Brown KC has been appointed as a Commissioner of Intelligence Warrants. The appointments of Hon Robert Dobson and Hon ...2 days ago
- New housing developments able to progress more quickly
Improvements in the average time it takes to process survey and title applications means housing developments can progress more quickly, Minister for Land Information Chris Penk says. “The government is resolutely focused on improving the building and construction pipeline,” Mr Penk says. “Applications to issue titles and subdivide land are ...2 days ago
- Actions to speed up air travel delivering results
The Government’s measures to reduce airport wait times, and better transparency around flight disruptions is delivering encouraging early results for passengers ahead of the busy summer period, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Improving the efficiency of air travel is a priority for the Government to give passengers a smoother, more reliable ...2 days ago
- Ending contracted emergency housing in Rotorua
The Government today announced the intended closure of the Apollo Hotel as Contracted Emergency Housing (CEH) in Rotorua, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. This follows a 30 per cent reduction in the number of households in CEH in Rotorua since National came into Government. “Our focus is on ending CEH in the Whakarewarewa area starting ...2 days ago
- Vocational education and training decisions support return to regions
The Government will reshape vocational education and training to return decision making to regions and enable greater industry input into work-based learning Tertiary Education and Skills Minister, Penny Simmonds says. “The redesigned system will better meet the needs of learners, industry, and the economy. It includes re-establishing regional polytechnics that ...2 days ago
- Reducing the environmental impact of synthetic refrigerants
The Government is taking action to better manage synthetic refrigerants and reduce emissions caused by greenhouse gases found in heating and cooling products, Environment Minister Penny Simmonds says. “Regulations will be drafted to support a product stewardship scheme for synthetic refrigerants, Ms. Simmonds says. “Synthetic refrigerants are found in a ...2 days ago
- Ngāruawāhia section of Waikato Expressway back to 4 lanes for Christmas
People travelling on State Highway 1 north of Hamilton will be relieved that remedial works and safety improvements on the Ngāruawāhia section of the Waikato Expressway were finished today, with all lanes now open to traffic, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“I would like to acknowledge the patience of road users ...2 days ago
- Appointments to the ENZ board
Tertiary Education and Skills Minister, Penny Simmonds, has announced a new appointment to the board of Education New Zealand (ENZ). Dr Erik Lithander has been appointed as a new member of the ENZ board for a three-year term until 30 January 2028. “I would like to welcome Dr Erik Lithander to the ...3 days ago
- Government to celebrate Waitangi Day around NZ
The Government will have senior representatives at Waitangi Day events around the country, including at the Waitangi Treaty Grounds, but next year Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has chosen to take part in celebrations elsewhere. “It has always been my intention to celebrate Waitangi Day around the country with different ...3 days ago
- More gangs added to Gangs Act list
Two more criminal gangs will be subject to the raft of laws passed by the Coalition Government that give Police more powers to disrupt gang activity, and the intimidation they impose in our communities, Police Minister Mark Mitchell says. Following an Order passed by Cabinet, from 3 February 2025 the ...3 days ago
- Judicial appointment announced
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Justice Christian Whata as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Whata’s appointment as a Judge of the Court of Appeal will take effect on 1 August 2025 and fill a vacancy created by the retirement of Hon Justice David Goddard on ...3 days ago
- GDP data highlights importance of growth
The latest economic figures highlight the importance of the steps the Government has taken to restore respect for taxpayers’ money and drive economic growth, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Data released today by Stats NZ shows Gross Domestic Product fell 1 per cent in the September quarter. “Treasury and most ...3 days ago
- Strengthening Free Speech in Universities
Tertiary Education and Skills Minister Penny Simmonds and Associate Minister of Education David Seymour today announced legislation changes to strengthen freedom of speech obligations on universities. “Freedom of speech is fundamental to the concept of academic freedom and there is concern that universities seem to be taking a more risk-averse ...3 days ago
- Launch of Emergency Cellular Priority Service
Police Minister, Mark Mitchell, and Internal Affairs Minister, Brooke van Velden, today launched a further Public Safety Network cellular service that alongside last year’s Cellular Roaming roll-out, puts globally-leading cellular communications capability into the hands of our emergency responders. The Public Safety Network’s new Cellular Priority service means Police, Wellington ...3 days ago
- Minister reopens Mangamuka Gorge
State Highway 1 through the Mangamuka Gorge has officially reopened today, providing a critical link for Northlanders and offering much-needed relief ahead of the busy summer period, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“The Mangamuka Gorge is a vital route for Northland, carrying around 1,300 vehicles per day and connecting the Far ...3 days ago
- Funding confirmed for second Ashburton Bridge
The Government has welcomed decisions by the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) and Ashburton District Council confirming funding to boost resilience in the Canterbury region, with construction on a second Ashburton Bridge expected to begin in 2026, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Delivering a second Ashburton Bridge to improve resilience and ...3 days ago
- Government boosts support for avian influenza response
The Government is backing the response into high pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in Otago, Biosecurity Minister Andrew Hoggard says. “Cabinet has approved new funding of $20 million to enable MPI to meet unbudgeted ongoing expenses associated with the H7N6 response including rigorous scientific testing of samples at the enhanced PC3 ...3 days ago
- Levelling the playing field for media advertising
Legislation that will repeal all advertising restrictions for broadcasters on Sundays and public holidays has passed through first reading in Parliament today, Media Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “As a growing share of audiences get their news and entertainment from streaming services, these restrictions have become increasingly redundant. New Zealand on ...4 days ago
- Inspector-General of Defence appointed
Today the House agreed to Brendan Horsley being appointed Inspector-General of Defence, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “Mr Horsley’s experience will be invaluable in overseeing the establishment of the new office and its support networks. “He is currently Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security, having held that role since June 2020. ...4 days ago
- Fire and Emergency New Zealand final levy rates confirmed
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government has agreed to the final regulations for the levy on insurance contracts that will fund Fire and Emergency New Zealand from July 2026. “Earlier this year the Government agreed to a 2.2 percent increase to the rate of levy. Fire ...4 days ago
- More AML relief on the way for Kiwi businesses
The Government is delivering regulatory relief for New Zealand businesses through changes to the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act. “The Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Amendment Bill, which was introduced today, is the second Bill – the other being the Statutes Amendment Bill - that ...4 days ago
- Hawke’s Bay Expressway moving at pace
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed further progress on the Hawke’s Bay Expressway Road of National Significance (RoNS), with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) Board approving funding for the detailed design of Stage 1, paving the way for main works construction to begin in late 2025.“The Government is moving at ...4 days ago
- Government seeks partnerships to plant trees on Crown-owned-land
The Government today released a request for information (RFI) to seeking interest in partnerships to plant trees on Crown-owned land with low farming and conservation value (excluding National Parks) Forestry Minister Todd McClay announced. “Planting trees on Crown-owned land will drive economic growth by creating more forestry jobs in our regions, providing more wood ...4 days ago
- Wide ranging legislation to make justice system more efficient
Court timeliness, access to justice, and improving the quality of existing regulation are the focus of a series of law changes introduced to Parliament today by Associate Minister of Justice Nicole McKee. The three Bills in the Regulatory Systems (Justice) Amendment Bill package each improve a different part of the ...4 days ago
- Diverse skills in community trust appointments
A total of 41 appointments and reappointments have been made to the 12 community trusts around New Zealand that serve their regions, Associate Finance Minister Shane Jones says. “These trusts, and the communities they serve from the Far North to the deep south, will benefit from the rich experience, knowledge, ...4 days ago
- Torture redress for survivors of the Lake Alice Unit
The Government has confirmed how it will provide redress to survivors who were tortured at the Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital Child and Adolescent Unit (the Lake Alice Unit). “The Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care found that many of the 362 children who went through the Lake Alice Unit between 1972 and ...4 days ago
- A busy year in the House
It has been a busy, productive year in the House as the coalition Government works hard to get New Zealand back on track, Leader of the House Chris Bishop says. “This Government promised to rebuild the economy, restore law and order and reduce the cost of living. Our record this ...4 days ago
- Consultation opens on working with engineered stone
“Accelerated silicosis is an emerging occupational disease caused by unsafe work such as engineered stone benchtops. I am running a standalone consultation on engineered stone to understand what the industry is currently doing to manage the risks, and whether further regulatory intervention is needed,” says Workplace Relations and Safety Minister ...4 days ago
- Greater reporting on Treaty settlement commitments
Mehemea he pai mō te tangata, mahia – if it’s good for the people, get on with it. Enhanced reporting on the public sector’s delivery of Treaty settlement commitments will help improve outcomes for Māori and all New Zealanders, Māori Crown Relations Minister Tama Potaka says. Compiled together for the ...4 days ago
- New appointments to the Charities Registration Board
Mr Roger Holmes Miller and Ms Tarita Hutchinson have been appointed to the Charities Registration Board, Community and Voluntary Sector Minister Louise Upston says. “I would like to welcome the new members joining the Charities Registration Board. “The appointment of Ms Hutchinson and Mr Miller will strengthen the Board’s capacity ...4 days ago
- Building consent processing times improve
More building consent and code compliance applications are being processed within the statutory timeframe since the Government required councils to submit quarterly data, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “In the midst of a housing shortage we need to look at every step of the build process for efficiencies ...4 days ago
- Faster access to support through Innovation Fund
Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey is proud to announce the first three recipients of the Government’s $10 million Mental Health and Addiction Community Sector Innovation Fund which will enable more Kiwis faster access to mental health and addiction support. “This fund is part of the Government’s commitment to investing in ...4 days ago
- New Zealand to assist Vanuatu on earthquake response
New Zealand is providing Vanuatu assistance following yesterday's devastating earthquake, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. "Vanuatu is a member of our Pacific family and we are supporting it in this time of acute need," Mr Peters says. "Our thoughts are with the people of Vanuatu, and we will be ...4 days ago
- Government takes steps to reduce card fees for Kiwis
The Government welcomes the Commerce Commission’s plan to reduce card fees for Kiwis by an estimated $260 million a year, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says.“The Government is relentlessly focused on reducing the cost of living, so Kiwis can keep more of their hard-earned income and live a ...4 days ago
- Review recommends ECE regulation shakeup
Regulation Minister David Seymour has welcomed the Early Childhood Education (ECE) regulatory review report, the first major report from the Ministry for Regulation. The report makes 15 recommendations to modernise and simplify regulations across ECE so services can get on with what they do best – providing safe, high-quality care ...4 days ago
- Offshore Renewable Energy Bill passes first reading
The Government‘s Offshore Renewable Energy Bill to create a new regulatory regime that will enable firms to construct offshore wind generation has passed its first reading in Parliament, Energy Minister Simeon Brown says.“New Zealand currently does not have a regulatory regime for offshore renewable energy as the previous government failed ...5 days ago
- Local Government (Water Services) Bill passes first reading
Legislation to enable new water service delivery models that will drive critical investment in infrastructure has passed its first reading in Parliament, marking a significant step towards the delivery of Local Water Done Well, Local Government Minister Simeon Brown and Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly say.“Councils and voters ...5 days ago
- Gene Technology Bill passes first reading
New Zealand is one step closer to reaping the benefits of gene technology with the passing of the first reading of the Gene Technology Bill, Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins says. "This legislation will end New Zealand's near 30-year ban on gene technology outside the lab and is ...5 days ago
- Signs of the hīkoi: More than just ‘words on cardboard’
The placards seen at the Hīkoi mō Te Tiriti conveyed "huge kōrero with immediacy", expert says: "People know the power of the word." ...3 hours ago - A final Ode to .. King Luxon
Cosmic CatastropheThe year draws to a close.King Luxon has grown tired of the long eveningsListening to the dreary squabbling of his Triumvirate.He strolls up to the top floor of the PalaceTo consult with his Astronomer Royal.The Royal Telescope scans the skies,And King Luxon stares up into the heavensFrom the terrestrial ...11 hours ago - A hater and an enthusiast review The Royal Free by Carl Shuker
Spinoff editor Mad Chapman and books editor Claire Mabey debate Carl Shuker’s new novel about… an editor. Claire: Hello Mad, you just finished The Royal Free – overall impressions? Mad: Hi Claire, I literally just put the book down and I would have to say my immediate impression is ...12 hours ago - Survive to 25 (December, that is)
Christmas and its buildup are often lonely, hard and full of unreasonable expectations. Here’s how to make it to Jesus’s birthday and find the little bit of joy we all deserve. Have you found this year relentless? Has the latest Apple update “fucked up your life”? Have you lost two ...12 hours ago
- All I want for Christmas is modern day slavery legislation
Despite overwhelming public and corporate support, the government has stalled progress on a modern day slavery law. That puts us behind other countries – and makes Christmas a time of tragedy rather than joy, argues Shanti Mathias. Picture the scene on Christmas Day. Everyone replete with nice things to eat, ...12 hours ago
- Israeli-American historian describes attacks on Gaza as ‘war of annihilation’
Asia Pacific Report “It looks like Hiroshima. It looks like Germany at the end of World War Two,” says an Israeli-American historian and professor of holocaust and genocide studies at Brown University about the horrifying reality of Gaza. Professor Omer Bartov, has described Israel’s ongoing war on Gaza as an ...15 hours ago - NZ govt plans to make ‘heavy handed’ change to free speech rules for universities
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If you don't have a family your struggles just get worse and worse.
Indexing tax rates would be far more even handed
Indexing tax rates would have just left less money for public services.
Though this package is a bit underwhelming.
What targeted 257 a week underwhelming WOW!! Millsy.
This government has no idea that as a consequence of their MASSIVE tax windfall is being paid in part by households and the rising cost of living. Inflation 7.4% also means that the govt GST take also increases by 7.4%, as wages rise the government takes more of peoples income as they progress further up the PAYE tax thresholds, households retain less and less as costs escalate – THIS CONTRIBUTES and the govts policies HAVE added to the stress on families. And no denying that the government is a cause is true. There is a real need for indexing tax rates, and only a 🤬wit or some nasty person ( I assume the Grant R is not dump ) would not see the need and the simple fix to assist families.
As I said, indexing tax thresholds basically leaves less money for things like schools and hospitals. The public sector needs all the money it can get at the moment.
No it doesn't!! FFS I gather you are not THAT dumb not to understand ?? That the tax take is in part at the expense of households.
And to Patrica I fixed your error “Poor Poll results may decide in the budget to change the thresholds”
Households typically get that money back in public services, like healthcare education, etc. Throwing ethipets at me won't work, the reality is we need public services more than we need tax cuts.
We should be expanding the public sector, not shrinking it.
The government should have nationalised childcare, not poked around with subsidies.
Throwing ethipets at me won't work, the reality is we need public services more than we need tax cuts. – Adjusting PAYE thresholds is NOT A tax cut, and using your logic why then did the govt reduce excise tax and the 3 cost of living payments – Should they not then put that money into govt services using your FAILED logic ??
Households typically get that money back in public services- Tell that to those who are struggling with the current situation?
https://www.salvationarmy.org.nz/news/salvation-army-report-shows-reality-housing-catastrophe-and-cost-living-local-communities
The govt slowed down the road building plan that National drew up, so, seeing as the petrol tax exclusively went on roading, it could afford to reduce aformentioned tax.
Herodotus !!Oh lol!! we will see won't we? There is ONE real poll in 2023.
The tax take has been far higher than expected. Stop wasting so much.
We need to spend money on public services, I dont know why people on this blog are so opposed to those.
Bike bridge $51 million……good investment?
That's only one example. At least consultants have done well out of the extra tax collected.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says the one big idea she would have if money was not a factor would be to make early childhood education completely free.
http://norightturn.blogspot.com/2022/11/labours-morally-indefensible-choices.html
" Another Aussie Bank posting an obscene profit while children go hungry in a land of plenty…
Until we confront the enormous imbalances of excessive greed and profiteering at the expense of many in this economy and change the narrative we will not see any change unless the banks for example are forced by law to contribute fairly there will be only more suffering.
LINO has shown they can act when political expediency requires them to do so.
Randall, that may still come. She said this will be her focus in 2023. Grant may decide in the budget to change the thresholds. Let us accept this first move targets families with children. As the tax take has increased in real terms due to higher employment it would not be inflationary to change the thresholds imo.
Agree. Robertston has been getting dumptrucks more money than Treasury forecast.
There are no new votes for Labour in more child subsidies.
Yep.
I thought it was a brilliant and inspiring speech. Anyone expecting big policy announcements at LP conferences should look back a bit or criticise National Party conferences for making small announcements. We are a Labour Party. We debate policy with members. We don't just make it up on the hoof. And we don't just exist to please the media. This is ONE announcement. What I heard was a true Labour PM with a signal for the government's direction in the future. What I couldn't ignore was the South Auckland vibe. Such a contrast to the men in suits National Party conference.
Lordie what nonsense. When is the last time this government implemented a major policy that came from a conference remit? And indeed how would anyone know?
Did they even have a manifesto in the 2020 election? No they didn't.
Yes they did.
Labour's 2020 Election Manifesto
https://drive.google.com/file/d/13uhcVrn8HUXEoWoPQgkJYjHX_d_Za-O0/view
Where does it explain Three Waters?
It was prior to the 2020 election.
Three Waters Review
"The Review, beginning in mid-2017, ran in parallel to the latter stages of the Government Inquiry into Havelock North Drinking Water, which was set up following the campylobacter outbreak in 2016. Up to 5500 people were ill as a result and four people are thought to have died from associated causes"
https://www.dia.govt.nz/Three-waters-review
"The Three Waters Review was published in January 2019"
"In 2019, the Sixth Labour Government announced plans for regulatory changes in response to the Three Waters Review"
"On 28 January 2020, Nanaia Mahuta, the Minister of Local Government, released Cabinet papers and minutes setting out intentions for reform of service delivery and funding arrangements for the three waters services nationwide"
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Waters_reform_programme
Three Waters Reform Programme
https://www.dia.govt.nz/Three-Waters-Reform-Programme#:~:text=The%20delivery%20of%20drinking%20water,our%20communities%20and%20our%20environment.
Agreed Darien, I watched hopefully, made a little sad at all the negative pre talk, the horrible comments from trolls and general National Act rhetoric. I left thinking..
"Beat that you self interested limo riding nasties People first money second"
A thoughtful speech by Jacinda Ardern, ending on an optimistic note, with policies to help over this hump and set a direction.
I await the Budget with real interest, as we fight the Pandemic fall out and disinformation.
Go Labour Go on with the good work.
Aye Patricia. As usual even in this thread are the white anters eating away at Labour for all their worth. Which aint much.
Cmon Labour. Stand up ! Fight ! Back Jacinda and keep nact's poisonous claws away from NZ
""Beat that you self interested limo riding nasties People first money second""
You've really got in for the members of the current Cabinet don't you? Did you count the number of them who turned up to the Conference in a Crown Limo?
Actually Alwyn, the PM and her people are known for using a van. I was referring to a fellow who would not walk 200 meters.
Heard a few soundbites from Luxon et al.
Basically they say they have the economic plan to fight inflation. The plan is:
Thing is we did open tap economics under Jong Kee and the only people who were happy with that were the wealthy. Low income and no income people will suffer and if that's what Kiwis want so they can afford to go to Fiji once a year then we are a terrible people.
.
Latest Newshub Poll:
Lab … 32.3% (down 5.9)
Greens 9.5% (up 1.1)
Lab + Green 41.8% (down 4.8)
.
Nat … 40.7% (up 0.2)
ACT 10.0% (up 3.6)
Nat + ACT 50.7% (up 3.8)
.
NZF 3.3% (up 1.6)
Maori 1.9% (down 0.6)
TOP 1.2% (up 0.3)
.
Ardern 29.9% (down 6.4)
Luxon 21.5 (down 2.4)
You'll be happy tonight…
.
If it leads to an exodus of simple-minded Woke dogmatists like your goodself … then I'll be ecstatic. You & your fellow numbskull-narcissists may not be the brighest sparks in the toolshed but you do represent a clear & present danger to a large segment of working people if you're allowed anywhere near power.
Obviously your preferred vehicle, the Greens, are beyond help …as one would expect of utopian middle-class hippies, new age crystals in your pockets, utterly divorced from cold, hard social reality.
As for Labour, a once-great party built by people like my grandparents & parents, increasingly transformed into a vanity project for self-interested professional-managerials, inherently elitist & anti-democratic, enforcing a crude, cult-like Critical Theory dogma on to an unwilling public .. core Labour supporters systematically scapegoated & forced into 2nd class citizenship by affluent Woke slobs bereft of ethics & morality, despite all your ludicrous moral posturing.
Time to get back to core Social Democratic principles … universalism, egalitarianism, individual human rights, equality under law, liberal democratic norms, free expression of ideas … the antithesis of crude, top-down ID Politics.
Time to get banalities like you the fuck away from power.
Exodus from where? Where would you send me, Himmler?
I am a working person, which I suspect is something you are not.
Haven't had the pleasure of voting Greens, so far.
How can it be a vanity project for "self interested managerials" to lift wages for low income workers? This government has done more work in this area than any other. I suspect the real issue you have is they have failed to prioritise the white working class over the brown…
Wage increases for low income workers is endemic globally,and has been prior to Covid.The transfer of work aspirations to the service economy (where little is done more measurement then process resolution) has left a shortage of those who actually do make and fix things.
The ultimate irony is the service area is where the greatest retrenchment will occur.
https://twitter.com/LizAnnSonders/status/1512371151904948227?cxt=HHwWhoC-3Zfjgv0pAAAA
"…has left a shortage of those who actually do make and fix things."
aka…traditional Labour supporters….when Labour was the Party of labour.
Anyone who works for an employer is a potential supporter for a party of labour.
But that would have to be a party that acknowledges that there is an inherent contradiction between the desires of waged workers and those that employ them. The party must favour one side.
That sort of analysis may illuminate a number of other contradictions of the status quo though.
It may also highlight something of a misnomer
It is not "us and them" Arkie.
Climate Change brings it down to "us".
We are all at risk.
Getting to grips with that enormity means a huge shift in thinking on an individual level, to collectively working together to survive and survive well.
Infighting won't help. Othering won't help. Decisions not based on science won't help. We need to co-operate to survive. We need each other to avoid destructive choices.
When it comes to Capitalism, Patricia, it is:
Employers want workers to work as long as possible for as little money as possible; Workers want to be paid as much as possible for the fewest hours possible. This is a contradiction, a party can't support labour without opposing capital.
Those currently on top of the Capitalist pile have been hampering and preventing collective action on inequality and climate change for decades, while shareholders and owners continue to get richer and richer, and the planet gets warmer and warmer.
Humanity has a choice; support everybody, or continue the extraction and accumulation of resources enriching a smaller and smaller group of individuals.
What do you think of the apprentice programme then Pat? Plenty of doers there.
Could I possibly get a translation of "little is done more measurement then process resolution"? Thx
For those puzzled this comment comes from Poission
Wage increases for low income workers is endemic globally, and has been prior to Covid.
Wage increases for low income workers is endemic globally,and has been prior to Covid.The transfer of work aspirations to the service economy (where little is done more measurement then process resolution) has left a shortage of those who actually do make and fix things.
The ultimate irony is the service area is where the greatest retrenchment will occur.'
If it is read as follows
(where little is done, there is more measurement than process resolution)
I have my views about this fixation with measuring things (outcomes. widgets) rather than fixing processes but will let Poission comment as it is their post
Those "utopian middle class hippies" you talk about Sword support a workable Wealth Tax that is one of the few policies around that will achieve the goals, such as egalitarianism, you claim to support.
Oh and BTW they also support policies that have a genuine chance of saving the world from CC disaster, unlike the so-called major parties. Not that that seems to matter to you.
On those two grounds alone Party Vote Green sounds pretty damn good.
The gap between Lab/Gr/MP and Nat/Act is 7% in this poll with a year to the election. It’s all to play for.
Good grief. In SF comments there is some good stuff heavily wrapped in insults that hurt my head and eyes to read them. So I won't.
What is the actual point of insulting others from the left side of the spectrum?
The trends are very clear now. The left is losing support.
Why the hell won't they drop these divisive policies, (that NACT will reverse anyway) and get back to core Labour principles?
Fuck this government is a disappointment. So much promise, but pissed away because they prefer to listen to Neale Jones and Clint Smith over the grass roots.
Hopefully our time in opposition allows many to reflect on what truly matters and how we can deliver upon that.
Which are?
Maori. Some people are shit scared of them amounting to anything.
Aye. Theres def a NOT SO hidden racist element in NZ. Only had to look at the despicable cartoons of Nanaia Mahuta etc that Garrick Tremain did for the "anti three water"…. group.
Agree. I don't mind debating it but where were these posters when NZ history was being discussed, and why is the human rights movement seen as being threatening……,
Have the government done a good job of explaining how 3 waters benefits all NZers?
What do you think? Are you not going to explore your views so we all can see them?
So true, so sad.
Party next week at Robbo's place would you say?
Or will the Caucus have given up on him as well and will move on directly to someone like Michael Wood?
More likely to be a Party at Nicola's lol
100% agree Mickey Boyle
A 20% support collapse in 2 years says Labour leader Ardern needs replacing and fast. Only the starry-eyed remain.
Just as Ardern came out of nowhere, so the next one will.
Ardern is now just a communicator of official advice without the policy chops to actually lead a 2-term party.
Rubbish. Are you still promoting Grant Robertson for the role? Dreaming. Labour would have a snowballs chance. Their best is get all the rest of Labour (excepting some standouts like Michael Wood etc) to start working like they want to be in Govt.
"Starry-eyed"? Or … people who have seen many electoral cycles and aren't responding like Pavlov's dog to a poll. Because we have been here before, and often.
Elections are not about approval. They are about preference. Always.
Which is why Johnson beat Corbyn, Biden beat Trump and Macron beat Le Pen. None of the winners were popular. But the voters decided the alternative was worse. That is normal. Most elections, most of the time.
If Luxon is National's leader at the election Ardern will win a 3rd term. Bookmark that.
The bullshit antisemitism campaign and the treacherous vermin that Labour harboured did for Corbyn – it sure as hell wasn't voter inspired.
"Swordfish knows that but failed to be honest about that as he wanted to call out any supporters".
Patricia you seem like the loveliest women, but all Swordfish did was post the figures. If he is pleased with them, he's allowed to be.
He, like me is pissed off with the capture of the party but woke elitists. Both his parents and mine have been strong supporters of Labour when it was worth supporting. I know you will likely disagree with this, but some of us think Labour has been fully captured by identity politics and the Professional Managerial Class elites who have their own interests at heart. Despite being a loyal member of the party for many years, it no longer feels like it is my party, so I am pleased when they do poorly in the polls, because I want them to pause and reflect on where they are going wrong. That of course is not going to happen. Am I bitter? try not to be. I am more profoundly disillusioned.
Anker, who do you want the "managerial people to follow?" Please reflect on that.
The cloth cap era is over. Those folk Swordfish spoke of, educated their children to become the "Managerial" class. They wanted better..not the same.
Swordfish did not mention that those figures might be out as much as they were before the last election owing to biased attitudes and TV3 !!!##@
However, we are all tired and looking for light at the end of the tunnel. It has been a hard 3 years.
I may be all sorts, but I am humble enough to say a number of people here have a far better grasp of events and ability to report on and interpret them. Drowsy M Kram comes to mind.
What do you want or need the Party to do in these times Anker to reassure you?
I cannot bear the phrases such as 'woke elitists'. What does this please?
The word 'woke' means anything a person wants it to mean and so is meaningless. Elitist/s similarly. Who are these people?
I get your disappointment but we have passed the cloth cap stage. Most/many parents' greatest hope is that their children do better than they did, that there no impediments to them doing this.
In the Labour party of old as in many socialist governments there is a concept of a fair go……, each according to his/her needs
This is where issues such as human rights come in. ( you call these identity politics, another buzz word that is a bit of a dog whistle.) Human rights are for all are against racism, sexism, ageism, etc etc.
Rather than harking back to a cloth cap age why not try to envisage the concept of when Maori do well we all do well, replace Maori with Women, people with a disability. When those who feature in the bottom of the wellness and other indicator do well our whole country will do well. There is plenty of scope to do well and to feel as if we are belonging to a party that values those behind the bad indicators and does some thing for them.
Critical Race theory is a strawman introduced here from the right in the US. It no more describes our response to racism than does 'biscuit' describe a 'scone' or bread roll, or diaper a nappy etc etc.
We have no need to see CRT peeking around the corner of every effort we make to improve our indicators. We have NZ-grown ways including human rights legislation that better suit our purpose. Those of us on the sidelines could help by looking at these NZ ways.
‘However, we are all tired and looking for light at the end of the tunnel. It has been a hard 3 years.’ From Patricia …….
100% Stuart Munro. The anti semetic beat up was appalling.
And it couldn't have worked without quislings like Starmer.
Dante had a spot for his kind on the lowest circle of hell.
Wood needs to take over sooner, rather than later.
No. Take a moment to review the success rate of the Headless Chicken Move.
Didn't work for National in opposition to Ardern, didn't work for Labour in opposition to Key, didn't work for Shipley replacing Bolger … when did it work?
Little and Brash were replaced (in very different circumstances) by leaders who featured strongly in the polls: Key and Ardern.
Wood has zero public support. Literally.
Absolutely agree with you. Ardern remains one of Labour's greatest assets. Dropping her (or having her leave) would be an electoral disaster.
The ability to connect with people across the country (call it stardust, if you will) – is a rare political phenomenon. Ardern has it. Key (much though he's disliked by the left) had it. Winston still has it (if NZF is resurrected, it will be entirely due to this). But I can't think of another recent politician who does.
It's not a mandatory requirement for leadership (how could it be) – but the next leader/s coming in after a 'stardust' one, suffer heavily by the contrast.
I think that's why some quarters are urging her ousting as a necessity?
Yes she is, however her stance on CGT, windfall tax, three waters, and tax thresholds is likely to be her demise
Ad it has just reverted to MMP again.
Claire Szabo will be the next Jacinda.
Michael W will most likely lead Labour after the next election (should todays poll results come to pass next year
"river of filth' boy – you must be kidding
Let's face it, anti vaxxers are bascially that.
Why are anti vaxxers a river of filth Millsy? Even Andrea Vance who interviewed some said many were mentally ill.
People have all sorts of odd beliefs (many Greens are alternative medicine). Guess what they are allowed to. Interesting that the vaccine mandates are gone now isn't it.
They opposed vaccines. They also opposed things like LGBT rights, taxation, welfare, public services, BLM, and a lot were bascially bootlickers (a lot of them would have supported the death of George Floyd, for example).
Funny, not that I paid them a lot of attention, but I distinctly remember seeing a guy waving a (trans) Rainbow flag amongst the protestors on at least two occassions and I remember seeing a lesbian couple interviewed (one was a bee keeper who'd lost her job).
But I guess you mean Tamaki re LBGT rights. I think he might have done a U turn on homosexuality (but don't quote me on that).
I am not sure where you get your info that they oppose BLM and support the death of George Floyd. The majority of people there were Labour and Green voters and there was a higher percentage of Maori there (especially the riots at the end). A lot ofpeople oppose taxation, but when they worked they would have had to pay tax.
Because they're germy I guess.
Yes Michael "river of filth boy" Wood. I have never forgotten that either Alan.
Didn't support the protestors, but could see those of them that had lost their jobs because of the mandates (after Ardern had said before the last election there would be no mandate) had a geniune grievance.
All they needed to do was get the jab. Nothing else. Personally I wouldnt want to be treated by a medical professional who didnt belive in vaccines. You might as well have biologists who belive in creationism, etc.
We don't force people to have medical interventions in this country unless they are sectioned under the mental health act.
You probably would accept treatment from someone who didn't believe in vacinnes if your life depended on it. Face it, if you needed urgent, life saving surgery and someone who didn't believe in vacinnes was all there was, I would doubt you would refuse their help, although it would be your choice.
What about Biologists or nurses for that matter who believe that if a man declares he is a women then it must be so? If I had to I would accept treatment from them, but I would know that they were incorrect.
Only a matter of time before you started ripping into the transgenders I guess.
Like Anker, I am appalled by the capture of medical professionals who can no longer distinguish between a man and woman.
It does not bode well for healthcare.
You can call that "ripping into transgendered" if that is your perspective. I consider it another exposure of the lie of "No Impact".
Another one who did not actually read the speech…….I have said before it was Churchillian in its emphasis and spread.
If you read the speech rather than headlines or NZ Herald inspired commentary you will find the difference.
What about Hipkins? He is easily the best performer in Labour. Perhaps he could be leader.
Jester who would do the rest of the work if Hipkins was leader. But he is certainly likeable and can at least apologize (after he claimed two women in Northland with covid were prostitutes
Yes that would be a problem as the talent pool is not deep.
Looking at TV3 and Reid Research history, they were way out in their figures before the last election. Swordfish knows that, but he has become so bitter he failed to be honest about that, as he wanted to call out any supporters. Sad that.
Personally I do not see the Labour group discarding Jacinda Ardern or Grant Robertson. All incumbent Governments are under pressure and the Pandemic made/still makes it tough. imo
Anyone looking at photos of Christopher Luxon sees self satisfaction or calculation, depending on who he is with. His face in repose is cold calculation.
People may want a change, but nearer the time CL is going to be a liability. 12 months is a long time in politics.
"Swordfish knows that but failed to be honest about that as he wanted to call out any supporters".
Patricia you seem like the loveliest women, but all Swordfish did was post the figures. If he is pleased with them, he's allowed to be.
He, like me is pissed off with the capture of the party but woke elitists. Both his parents and mine have been strong supporters of Labour when it was worth supporting. I know you will likely disagree with this, but some of us think Labour has been fully captured by identity politics and the Professional Managerial Class elites who have their own interests at heart. Despite being a loyal member of the party for many years, it no longer feels like it is my party, so I am pleased when they do poorly in the polls, because I want them to pause and reflect on where they are going wrong. That of course is not going to happen. Am I bitter? try not to be. I am more profoundly disillusioned.
Do you really think that all social progress as 'woke'?
When played as a divisive zero sum game – yes.
Please explain. We are trying to pierce and bring down to ordinary unadorned speech words such as woke. This phrase sounds as if a person can substitute a meaning not contemplated by the plain words.
What is your meaning of divisive? Would other see it a righting wrongs?
Thanks REd Logix. Agree.
There you go again that old dog whistle 'woke elitists'.
While no poll is 100% accurate (they all have margins of error)
It seems to me as though the NewsHub Reid Research ones were pretty much as accurate as any prior to the 2020 election.
In the October one, they underestimated Labour by 5%, and over-estimated National by 6% (both within the margin of error – though only just).
But the previous one in Sept was just about bang on for the final Labour result (it also came the closest to the final win margin – though still underestimated)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opinion_polling_for_the_2020_New_Zealand_general_election
All polls in the final 2 months had Labour way ahead – but none approached the final decisive victory totals.
Unless you regard all polls as the equivalent of reading the tea leaves – then I don't see that Reid Research are significantly less accurate than other poll results.
You complaining about people being 'woke' suggests otherwise.
Though, I guess politics over the past 5 years or so has become so incredibily fucked up that nothing means anything anymore.
But you call it 'woke' and 'woke' to me is pejorative. They did not have a common or accepted meaning.
Solution: describe in your own words what you mean rather than using 'woke' or 'elites'.
Next thing you may be talking about the Lizard people and the grassy knoll and man did not get to the moon and 9/11 did not happen.
Next thing I won't be talking about Lizard People etc Shanreigh. Stop assuming what I think. Doing so in that way is an attempt to cast me in a negative light. I don't believe any of that rubbish.
Yes woke is commonly used in a perjoritive way: when people see things through a very narrow lens and through a process known as selective abstraction, pay attention to or filter information/experience to confirm their bias (we all do this, but it is the degree of intensity and also what follows). From there the thing that they set out to find becomes elevated to a cause that must dominate all other way of looking at things, giving the person doing the elevating a sense of moral superiority/purity. They then believe this is the right way to think/speak. Others are morally deficient and must be called out for being so, (rascist, transphobic) and told they must think diffently (I am thinking Kelvin Davis here telling Karen Chhor she was seeing things through a vanilla lens and must travel over the bridge into Te tiri).
So we have a CHCH University musical about Charlie Chaplin being cancelled because of Chaplins dubious relationship with women (over looked he was a complexed character with the most wretched early life and a communist to boot)
We have the Ak School Climate Activists cancelling themselves because they have been told and come to believe they are racist.
We have a witch hunt by other academics after some senior scienctists write to the Listener (including Dr Garth Cooper who is Maori and has taught kaupapa Maori to medical students) to say while Mataraunga Maori is valuable, it isn't science. Yes other academics, who I would describe as woke petitioned for the Royal Society to investigate the Listener 7 for such heresay! The correct thing to do would have been to debate it. Siouxie Wiles (woke) was also pinged for defaming one of the scientists for claiming they wrote to students threatening them.
The transgender issue is another good example of the woke, noticing a "marginalized group, magnifying their marginalisation and elevating their needs above everyone elses and I am sure those authoritarian inclusion and diversity officers (who are costing the tax payers a lot of money and likely earning more than nurses) get a real sense of moral purity and a kick from their authoritarian stance/insistence that people in govt departments must use the right pro nouns.
If you are interested in finding out more read "How the Woke Won, the elitist movement that threatens democracy" By Joanna Williams. You probably won't but that's o.k.
I will continue to use the word woke.
Goodness me there are some strange comments on here. All this "woke" bullshit means nothing to me except a word from both the lazy right and the left to beat others up. And the managerial classes? WTF? Who are you talking about? I am as working class as they come and I will never give up on Labour because if you do, you are giving up on the Labour movement. It takes work to make change and that means on the doorstep, in the workplaces, and on the picket lines. And it means joining the party and working hard there too. I am proud of the changes that have been made that have come directly from years of work with affiliated unions, pushing remits at conference, ensuring they are in the manifesto, getting people out to vote and following up with ministers. I can name them if you want. Fair Pay Agreements anyone? Ten days sick leave? Four weeks holiday? 26 weeks Paid Parental Leave? Minimum wage increases anyone else? If you think these things happen in a vacuum, and raging against "wokeism" will change a thing, you need to have another talk to your computer.
Darien "managerial class" was Swordfishes comment re woke etc.
I was reminding people, children of workers were educated and often ended in those managerial jobs, but kept the values.
Labour have always had these supporters. One I can think of was Hubbard (Breakfast cereals). Many others since, the point being, the world has changed.
Both my sons work all day on a computer and do not get to socialise with their peers much. Work has changed, but advocacy hasn't.
Labour people will always advocate for what is fair.
You have shown some of the gains. Add in Collective Agreements”
(I would add, some here need to get back on board and stop white anting.)
Is it the employer that pays the 26 weeks parental leave, or is this subsidised or paid by the central government?
The reason I ask, is that I was talking to an employer regarding the Domestic Abuse leave provisions, and they pointed out that as a business that employs mostly women, the burden of that provision would fall mainly on businesses that do the same.
I had (unthinkingly) assumed that the central government would provide a central fund to meet this policy, so that employees could access this leave when required. However, the implementation reality is that the cost of this provision is fully borne by employers, while the government takes credit at no cost to themselves.
So, then I considered the 26 paid week parental leave, and belatedly wondered, who bears that cost?
If anyone knows the answer, (and I suspect the answer is the employer), then I appreciate if they could post it here.
Don’t worry, think I’ve found it, in the IRD rather than the Ministry of Social Development.
https://www.ird.govt.nz/paid-parental-leave/payments
“Currently, eligible employees are entitled to 26 weeks of paid parental leave. This leave is paid by the government through Inland Revenue, not by your employer, and weekly payments range from $177-$586 per week.”
Why would it be on the SW site? Or do you think it is a benefit and not a hard fought for human right in employment that gives women/child carers the same rights as men to continue their careers? And then also to give either of the parents the ability to look after their children.
(I looked in the wrong place, and then left the error up in order to be transparent, in case someone had read it, gone to get the link and returned.)
Why would I look in MSD? Because, it is a benefit to working women who meet the criteria for that benefit.
It is not a payment accessible to all NZ women who have children, nor all NZ women who may need financial support.
It is given to the favoured few, working women – who choose to procreate. And then payment is rated accordingly to your perceived working woman value.
Or is this not the case?
So, the use of an IRD payment (- which shows how the Covid payments could have been done at an individual level) provides a suitable institutional distance from the reality this is a benefit.
Moving on, any comment on the financial impact on those employers of women who have to carry the full cost of the progressive Domestic Abuse leave?
Employer pays
https://www.employment.govt.nz/leave-and-holidays/family-violence-leave/rights-and-responsibilities/
And, what the employer has to do from the business side of things (it's not just the leave)
https://www.business.govt.nz/hiring-and-managing/handling-holidays-and-leave/helping-staff-with-domestic-violence-leave/
Thanks, Belladonna.
Yes, the employer I spoke to said this was the case, as I pointed out above.
I had just assumed it would be a central fund, accessed by employers/employees as needed, not an extra cost for employers. The employer I spoke to has 50 employees, all of them women. Statistics mean that she has more likelihood of having to cover the cost of domestic abuse leave, rather than an employer with mainly male employees.
Statistics will also indicate that those whose workforce is more evenly balanced by sex, or predominated by males, will (usually but not always) be employing those who commit the domestic abuse.
Women predominated industries or services are often operating at lower wages and profitability margins, so the financial impact may be exacerbated by that as well.
For those reasons alone, I would have preferred a central fund by government to support this leave.
I am gob-smacked I really am, it is to even up the scales, to encourage women to keep their ties to their workplaces open and to return to those workplaces and their careers, perhaps using the recently enhanced childcare arrangements.
The fact is that many women chose to work, as is their right and many women have to work through economic necessity whether partnered or not. Paid parental leave was fought for in the workplace as a progressive workplace condition, it is not a benefit any more than improving annual leave in the workplace is a benefit.
Not all women get paid annual leave, not all men get paid annual leave…it depends if they are working or not.
Not all working women have children so they do not get it, not all working men have children so they do not get it.
In a workplace I worked at in the 90s we brought in family leave that would help those of the 'sandwich' generation those who had not only to care for children (they could use this to go to sports days or prize givings, children to specialist appointment) but also to arrange the care, go to appts with/for elderly relatives. It also helped those whose children had gone or who had no children but needed to look after elderly relatives. It was 5 days.
This was so that annual leave was not nibbled away and thus depriving working people of a length of annual leave to recharge, explore, blob out. There are studies that show that a day here or a day there is not enough to do this.
https://communitylaw.org.nz/community-law-manual/chapter-21-employment-conditions-and-protections/holidays-and-annual-leave/annual-holidays-annual-leave/
At least two weeks to be taken in a block.
The benefits of taking annual leave
Annual leave is vital to promote good physical and mental health in the workplace and will improve employees work-life balance. It allows individuals to take time to rest and re-energise which can result in stress reduction and improve mood, benefiting staff morale.
https://www.roberthalf.com.au/blog/employers/how-much-unused-annual-leave-does-your-team-have
Reasons to encourage staff to take AL etc.
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/benefits-annual-leave-sarah-mcgavinAustralian write-up on the importance of taking annual leave.
I am finding it more and more difficult to reconcile your pro women views on the idea that women may lose out when others pursue a trans agenda with criticism of these very 'vanilla' as they say arrangements for working women/parents that we have been fighting for what seems to be forever.
I support all the types of leave we have available, and some progressive workplaces have all manner of leave arrangements depending on the makeup of their employees. I do not see them as a social welfare benefit.
In many workplaces, those without children, or who do not have child/grandchild ties chose to let their co-workers take leave during the long Christmas/New year and school holidays. Win-Win really. Parents get time off during school holidays and others don't have to take leave in crowded school holiday times.
I do not know enough of the background/rationale of the domestic abuse leave provisions and where they lie and would prefer not to comment until I do.
"I am finding it more and more difficult to reconcile your pro women views on the idea that women may lose out when others pursue a trans agenda with criticism of these very 'vanilla' as they say arrangements for working women/parents that we have been fighting for what seems to be forever."
You do seem to find it difficult to reconcile any views that are not aligned with yours. In a discussion about maternity leave, you bring in my views on trans ideology, for what purpose? Stick to the topic.
As someone who has a socialist bent, this paid leave entitlement is not progressive for ALL women, so it is fundamentally a divisive one. The children of these working women, receive a financial benefit from central government not afforded to the children of beneficiaries, or non-working women. (Extended to half a year. For each child.)
A whole post can be written on the pros and cons of this policy, which may be an interesting discussion.
I reiterate – I consider a progressive policy – to be one that is accessible to all who have the need, not just the select few.
You consider this a progressive policy because it only goes to those that have earned it. Does that justification seem familiar to you?
“I do not know enough of the background/rationale of the domestic abuse leave provisions and where they lie and would prefer not to comment until I do.”
Thank you for that.
How is it unfair that a workplace entitlement applies to those in workplaces. Many women in workplaces are never eligible for any payments through SW, I worked 40 years and in times of unemployment was never able to claim any sort of benefit. I put this down to cut-offs that would benefit those whose needs were greater than mine. And fair enough.
Many of my colleagues were the same, many had children and had dire years ahead of them. We did go to the McDonalds, the retail jobs etc, the shaky contract jobs with no certainty, some times week to week and little future. Grossly over qualified until we could get back. Some stayed in the PS and endured 12 restructurings between 1987 and 2000 and colossal stress
I am mystified how workplace reforms can be considered wrong. I have not heard of the concept of everyone getting everything.
As one who worked both to survive and because I wanted to I do not consider myself or my female work colleagues ‘a favoured few’ My jobs were often stressful, working long hours and these were the work conditions for both male and female working parents. Yet equal parenting leave you say applies only to the favoured few?
This is a longer conversation than I am prepared to have at the moment.
Your comparison to annual leave as a "workplace entitlement" is flawed, as it works on a pro-rata basis for everyone that is employed, under legislation.
"As one who worked both to survive and because I wanted to I do not consider myself or my female work colleagues ‘a favoured few’ "
Of course you don't. You call it workplace entitlement, and that redirects any criticism away from the fact that this has defined a group of mothers as the ones worthy of governmental financial support, warranting extended accommodation in terms of leave and finances.
This extension of maternity leave comes at a cost, and makes some interesting judgements while doing so.
I had these concerns when the proposal was first mooted by Laila Harre (?) a few years ago. This is not because I don't see the attraction of the scheme, or the benefits to those who use it, but because I believe there is greater need for government attention for mothers and children who don't benefit from this proposal.
It is a boon for the conflicted – but not necessarily struggling – working mothers in NZ. It is not necessarily a progressive recognition of the value of all mothering choices.
It is called parental leave. Covers both male and female who become parents, including becoming adoptive parents.
What is the cost, surely you are not talking $$$$. Every progressive move comes with a cost as we are moving from a status quo.
This extension of parental leave comes at a cost, and makes some interesting judgements while doing so.
Yep, still works with that change.
"Covers both male and female who become parents, including becoming adoptive parents."
Yes, you are right, but when it served your purpose you made it all about the women:
"I am gob-smacked I really am, it is to even up the scales, to encourage women to keep their ties to their workplaces open and to return to those workplaces and their careers, perhaps using the recently enhanced childcare arrangements.
The fact is that many women chose to work, as is their right and many women have to work through economic necessity whether partnered or not. Paid parental leave was fought for in the workplace as a progressive workplace condition, it is not a benefit any more than improving annual leave in the workplace is a benefit."
"I am finding it more and more difficult to reconcile your pro women views on the idea that women may lose out when others pursue a trans agenda with criticism of these very 'vanilla' as they say arrangements for working women/parents that we have been fighting for what seems to be forever."
My critique of this policy, is that it reinforces a division of parents into those that are supported well by the state, and those that are supported not at all, or not as well. As an aside, are there other payments such as this put through IRD?
Are there stats on which parent most often uses the 26 week paid parental leave? Is it split evenly, or as we both have alluded, (you when it suits) a predominantly female utilised provision?
Unlike many, I don't look just at the benefits to myself or others when proposals are made. I don't assume that just because it is labelled with "benefits parents" that it necessarily does what is said on the tin.
I think this leave benefits "some parents" and not necessarily the parents who need the financial support that is provided.
A possible unintended outcome, recognising that women are the ones most likely to use this extended leave. Given that it has now been extended to 6 month after 6 months employment, do you not consider that it may have an impact on young women who are presenting for employment at an age where childbearing is most prevalent?
Yes, I am talking costs: financial and societal in terms of policies that increase or entrench inequality or unequal treatment. In terms of women, might there be hidden costs during employment applications?
Cost to government approx $80 million/yr? How is this not a type of benefit?
https://www.mbie.govt.nz/assets/562330c2ea/qas-questions-answers-extending-paid-parental-leave-26-weeks.pdf
@ Molly. I explained the genesis of the leave which was to ensure that there were no obstacles against women working and having a career. These aspects may not be important to you but from the 1970s they were lightning rod issues.
This then lead the way to men being enabled to to share parental leave…many were not able to. Society evolved and it became more common for men/partners to want to share this.
Many people could not/did not become parents. In the work places I worked we did not see this in the terms you are expounding. ie that we also also should have got something.
Our leave entitlements were continually being looked at as well. One instance that I have given previously is that of family leave that was used in my workplace mainly for helping elderly relatives into care, going to appts with them.
Your critiques seem to lack on the ground experience. Were you in workplaces where there was maternity leave moving on to parental leave where there were problems.
Re treating everyone the same there is an extension of the equity argument that says that treating unequal people equally is unjust
'There is nothing so unequal as treating unequals equally'?
This came from Aristotle originally:
According to Aristotle, “equals should be treated equally and unequals unequally”. This principle of equality states that individuals should be treated the same, unless they differ in ways that are relevant to the situation in which they are involved.
The cost of parental leave argument…hmmmm. red herring I think. The $ aspects were a known consequence that were able to be budgeted for, as I said on the social side, there are huge benefits in the family unit to being able to share care of children.
There are stats. There is also information about the fight that women had to seek equality in employment. This actually started way back with the granting of the franchise.
@Shanreagh
Yes, I read your perspective – again, and find again that it assumes that this approach is better because it's more.
I point out it's failings. You repeat it's PR points – again.
We're done, unless you start listening as well as you opine
Actually you have not mentioned the societal changes/concerns just mentioned that they exist.
Why am I getting two things 'dinging' (I am a bit slow sometimes as I tend to take people at face value for longer than others do and would deem wise)
the first is the Stepford Wives (brilliant film)
the other is that contrary to what I first believed with the trans issue as stated on here, it may not be around the harm of giving human rights to marginalised people but being concerned at the harm that this can do to Women's rights, but some deeply entrenched possibly Christian fundamentalism at play.
Wider reading especially from Helen Joyce and Maya Fortstater with their focus on women and their knowledge of women's issues ie on the ground experience has convinced me of this.
Happy to agree to disagree.
Me too – progressive workplace reforms, while not perfect (what/who is?), are a net good for society, imho.
Re extension of parental leave, it could be more, but 26 weeks shifted Kiwi parents up the table of OECD paid leave entitlements (Table PF2.1.A; PDF]. 'Baby steps.'
Thank you Drowsy.
I want every person to achieve their full worth as a person in terms of education and work. With progressive reforms to do this. Women and Maori in most NZ workplaces were under represented and their participation needed to be boosted.
Up until the late 60s that women who married while in the PS were required to leave. My mother who worked in the PO had to leave on marriage. As she said 'babies were a while coming', they wanted to buy a house and my dad was setting up a business and money was tight, she wanted to keep working to help. My grandmother, who had an almost inexhaustible supply of 5 Pound notes and visited once a week, was a lifeline.
It was only in the 1970s and the result of reforms and clamour from the feminist causes that unjust examples , that were just the way 'we did things around here' were removed. As the breadwinner in my family, my husband had a psychological illness, i was initially denied transfer expenses and access to 'pool' housing because bread-winners were male only. I had to petition the State Service Commissioners, supply all sorts of intrusive social and medical histories and keep supplying them for a period after wards, in case this illness was feigned and this was a ruse to take a house away from a male.
So with a fierce feminist for a mother, being 'an unreconstructed 1970s feminist myself', these happenings then doing a women's studies diploma I am well aware of the need to be socially progressive in all aspects of our life. Plus, and it is a big plus these workplaces that result are much more interesting to work in, challenging and likely to achieve more to break down stereotypes within the workplace and outside.
Often without specific programmes to address under representation of women, people with a disability, Pasifika, Maori we would never achieve things by osmosis. The forces arrayed against these advances and the benefits they bring would sink them without trace.
"Often without specific programmes to address under representation of women, people with a disability, Pasifika, Maori we would never achieve things by osmosis. The forces arrayed against these advances and the benefits they bring would sink them without trace."
Seen to be doing something, is not the same as effectively addressing the impediments.
Many programmes limit themselves to finding a problem, framing that problem, and then solving it in a particular way.
The establishment of a $500 million health authority means nothing in terms of wellbeing outcomes if it is not appropriately managed and funds directed towards the most effective measures.
I have experienced the recent funding efforts regarding Covid vaccines, and have received three identical calls from a funded agency telling me that I can get the extra booster. I thanked the first, asked them to take me off the calling list, and received the second and third within the next fortnight.
When I had young children there was a targeted Māori health oral initiative. I have looked to see what the outcome was, but was unable to find this initiative outcome online. So, I was called by family members who I hadn't seen for fifteen years to sign up to this programme – for which I was to receive nothing – because the recruitment fee they received was $300 per family. (I might be forgetful, they might have offered to send through literature on how to brush my children's teeth.)
Over the years, there have been a few such initiatives that I have been aware of through family involvement which admittedly have a positive effect on Northland employment and funding of health parity schemes, but the health outcomes seem to be a secondary consideration.
So, yes, I am not someone who assumes all "progressive" labels are the best descriptors. I am someone who prefers finding the weaknesses, so that those areas can be mitigated or strengthened.
Couldn't agree more. Same with 'elites'.
When the word are never explained, often stated they become, to me anyway, some thing akin to a dog whistle.
Answered above Darien Fention, so I am not going to repeat myself. I am not right wing. I am a member of the Labour Party and worked my but off and contributed generous amounts of money when you were an MP.
I have outlined what I mean by woke and provided receommended reading.
Can you link back please, don't bother here it is from Anker:
That is a real pity as it means some of your writing will be inaccessible to others who do not have your definition on hand, whatever that it is…….can you summarise what you mean by 'woke' please.
Hopefully it does not mean all things progressive that might make a difference though I very much fear that it does.
.
Corey Humm, I am standing up and applauding you right now. You are so bang on.
Thank you and thank you to Belladonna for the rent stats.
You two have saved me having to answer.
Brilliant Corey, just brilliant
I cannot see any comment by Corey under 11.4.1
Corey did write a brilliant piece at 16.
Presumably you meant that!
Onya Darien ! Yea it defies belief the either short term .."memory" , white anting, or just self destruct minds of some.
Anyway we must Stand up and fight back to keep nact away from power. Under nact NZ will revert back to the bad old days in double quick time. All our gains will..disappear.
Good comment PL.
Sometimes I wonder if people have now decided to turnover stones to see what is there rather than doing their own research in trusted places.
Boy what a lot of push back on this thread. I know it hurts when one's party gets a bad poll.
I acknowledge the fair pay agreements seem good. School lunches yes. minimum wage increase excellent.
Stand back and look at the big picture……Credit Suizze, the wealthy gained the biggest increase in wealth in NZ out of all other countries. (this may look a little different now with plummenting house prices).
People are much worse off in NZ than they were in 2017. Partly to do with the pandemic partly to do with Labour.
What are the particular things that people are worse off in NZ?
I'm in two minds if you can split pandemic and Labour seeing the pandemic response was in essence a Labour response ie it was not a whole of Govt response, the Nats did not cross the floor once to share the response or work side by side with Labour.
If you can split it would be interesting.
That’s such a broad generalisation that it can mean anything or nothing. Better to start with some facts and then go from there to state what you really mean. For example:
https://www.stats.govt.nz/information-releases/household-net-worth-statistics-year-ended-june-2021/
Thanks Incognito.
That was my thought as well and hence my request to the poster to clarify.
My own view is that impact of the Labour Govt's policies all the way through Covid has meant that people are suffering less than they would have had we had a rightist approach to Covid/Govt.
NZ, like its trading partners is suffering from inflation. Hopefully those who bought houses who have seen increases in interest rates will have had their ability to service the loan stress tested by the banks at the time they took out their loans. So they will be able to meet new costs. How much longer though?
I would love for some hurry up on the supermarket competition and a tax change that looked at bracket creep, for the moment, pushing the bands back to those applying say in 2017 relatively speaking.
Your example seems to be entirely around the increased 'value' of property. So people who owned property in 2017 – were indeed notionally better off in 2021.
I say 'notionally' as the increase in value is entirely theoretical unless you either sell the asset, or (possibly) borrow against it. And, if your associated costs (insurance, rates, etc) also increase, you may actually be worse off.
In the meantime, the median rental in NZ went from $400/wk (which was already signalled as unaffordable) in 2017 to nearly $550 in May 2022 (for Auckland, where 1/3 of the population live, it was nearly $600). This is a real fortnightly cost out of people's pay packets.
While there was a significant increase during Covid – the upward trend was strongly marked between 2017 and the end of 2019 (so pre-Covid) as well.
https://figure.nz/chart/azFwYTVvUcrcxT3m-Cn6TyuSQBZ8Kacee
Excellent reply, thank you!
You have demonstrated my point which is that fact-free rants & reckons are a useless waste of oxygen and replying to them is an exercise in futility.
Only once we start with an opinion founded on facts and discernible truth, we can have a constructive debate that includes context and nuance. Alas, too many commenters on this site opt for just ‘feelz’ and conflate their emotional state & response with ‘perception’.
I’ll leave it to others to continue the convo because my job here is done.
Twas only a matter of time before the discursive techniques of the right found their way here, alongside some of their cherished ideas.
Thanks Incognito and Sacha.
Tip: Incognito provided a clickable link to stats from Statistics NZ. These gave a good overview in trying to tease out a response.
The impetus for such a response did not come from me. Also responses as to whether we ie our society are better off cannot be looked at in $$$$$ only.
Shame on you Incognito….17 month old stats in a falling market?
They are no basis for anything, let alone informed debate
Thank you for your contribution to the non-informed debate and missing the point. Please keep up your excellent work here or might I suggest TDB and/or KB as natural habits that might suit you better.
We would appear to be well matched…each thinks the other has missed the point.
The imaginary equivalence is all yours. To put it politely:
One commenter provided a link to primary data source and starting commentary for conversation and counter arguments. (NB this was not the main objective!) The time period was clearly stated both in quoted text in the comment and in the link provided.
The other commenter provided nothing but pot shots and killed off any conversation.
And you provided data so out of date as to be misleading….the equivalence remains
If you feel so misled by a clearly stated time period you could have provided a more recent and up-to-date version of that same data set, which is a continual one, or another counter argument to keep the convo moving along and/or even lift it. That was the obvious objective of the comment, which was explained in a follow-up comment and clearly understood by at least one other commenter, which you missed or decided to ignore & deny.
An intelligent individual such as yourself can be expected to be well aware of conditions post mid last year and to then knowingly post misleading data speaks to a lack of integrity when it comes to debate.
"That represented billions wiped off people savings, with the total value of the 13 funds slipping from $27.4 billion at the end of March to just $23.2b by the end of June, despite people continuing to make contributions."
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/129398002/kiwisaver-updates-to-investors-detail-multibillion-dollar-losses
"Real Estate Institute chief executive Jen Baird said the median price of a New Zealand home had dropped 9.6% in the past six months."
https://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/homed/real-estate/300686323/house-price-drop-over-six-months-biggest-on-record-real-estate-institute-says
Thank you for playing ball.
I’ll leave it to you to make the appropriate comparison(s) with 2017, if you so wish.
FWIW, being time-poor doesn’t always allow for in-depth research on unfamiliar topics. The collective commentariat here on TS generally is a much better resource and vehicle for moving convos along.
I can understand how that bad poll result might be painful to you as "a member of the Labour Party", but cheer up – it's one bad poll.
As for people being "much worse off in NZ than they were in 2017" – yes, many are; not all. Regardless of which party takes over at the next general election, I predict that won't change a lot – deckchairs on the Titanic and all that – hope I'm wrong.
Is it realistic to expect that the effects of global warming, the recent pandemic, and the even more recent Russian invasion of Ukraine could combine to raise living standards for all? Seems unlikely. If your standard of living in 2022 is worse than it was in 2017, just wait until the 2026 general election! And yet there's no place I'd rather be.
I like your approach Drowsy.
Still mulling over the idea of increasing support to Salvation Army etc now. It seems counter intuitive to do this when the theory is with less unemployment etc the need for pick up services should be less. But no…..the need for pickup. helping services is actually more as some who have not been able to get employment may have intractable and long term problems that prevent them from participating. And intractable and long term conditions need more support in terms of $$$$$.
Also as yet the minimum wage is not a living wage.
So thank you for jiggling the old brain cells.
I like the speech, and I like the nod to Savage.
Savage however, made material socioeconomic changes that benefited workers and their families and enriched our country for decades by so doing. The handling of Covid was good, though some of the stimuli handed out during it compounded the increasing inequality we have suffered since the machinations of that quisling, Roger Douglas.
Current inflation, on top of the speculatively driven costs of housing, are making cost of living the major issue for the government to address at this time.
In terms of polls, Three Waters is likely proving costly. I've yet to hear what kind of accountability water consumers will be able to sheet home to Maori boards, and if there are no such processes, well, Maori are no more immune to administrative vices than pakeha.
The point about the quality of the opposition is well made, and it is certainly true that they are unfit for anything but gardening leave. But a good government does not let a pitiful opposition set the standards for their performance, it does instead the very best it can. Years of neoliberal dogma had almost persuaded government that they can do nothing. Finally disabused of that bullshit by Covid, the government can finally do things again – and we're only thirty years behind where we would have been without Roger Douglas.
Never too late!
Five years in and we're still talking about "great first steps" … Its just so disappointing and that's the greatest killer in politics.
Her leadership since the 2020 election, is going to be studied by generations as a case study in what not to do after winning an election.
From most popular pm in history to the walking dead in 24 months. Crazy
Everytime I see her now I wonder what left wing economic reform she's going to "categorically rule out" this time.
How can the left justify her ruling out comparitively popular things like a cgt and refusing to endorse weed reform because it may cost some centerist votes but then allow her and the party to haemorrhage votes on three waters, hate speech and all matter of unpopular social reforms.
The labour party will rule out anything economically radical and screech we're a party of the center but when it comes to social policy there's nothing radical enough.
The center applies to social policy too.
Labour are throwing this govt away over unpopular social shit they didn't campaign on but will rule out doing next to anything economically social democratic because "we didn't campaign on that" utter hypocrisy.
They didn't campaign on radical constitutional reforms and upholding te tiriti over the treaty and if we needed a referendum on weed then we should have a referendum on which version of treaty voters want upheld.
Now she comes to us and says the cost of living crisis that her and the wider left ignored exiated for months while poor people, the canaries in the cold mine were screaming about it last year, now she says it's her top priority 😂😂 just like housing was her top priority them ruled out a capital gains tax 😂
Its been awe inspiring watch this govt piss around in 2022 while it's support bleeds. They should have realized in may that the hate speech and three waters was toxic af and dropped it like a cgt and they should have been throwing everything and the kitchen sink at the cost of living crisis instead of a few tweaks and empathic nods while being interviewed.
The govt should adjust tax rates for inflation, you're pushing people into higher tax brackets ffs!!!
They should have gone harder and faster on supermarkets.
We get this shitty family subsidy that looks like something from the dying days of Helen Clark.
They need to throw everything they have at cost of living and housing and be god damned radical and drop the hate speech and three waters and if Ardern can't do that, drop her and find someone who can.
2023 is an existential threat to the NZ left, it's time the govt realized this and dropped the social policy unless they truly want an economically hard right govt to lay waste to the workers of this country.
Corey Humm, I am standing up and applauding you right now. You are so bang on.
Thank you and thank you to Belladonna for the rent stats.
You two have saved me having to answer.
Brilliant Corey, just brilliant
Thank you Corey
You have stated my thoughts exactly
The so called "left' are no longer…the most disturbing feature of the new progressives is their haste to dismiss democracy.
Self defeating fools
Great post Corey.
I want them to be more radical:
throw everything they have at cost of living and housing and
be god damned radical and dropthe hate speech and three waters.Huge ask perhaps but we have the talented people there.
And I wish the opponents would stop conflating 'hate speech' and 'free speech'. They are not the same, a curb to hate speech does not threaten free speech unless your day to day speech includes racist, sexist, all the phobics type speech ie slanging off at people for characteristics that are immutable.
Who decides what hate speech is Shanreigh. There in lies the problem.
Should probably be decided in court, i.e. a law court, not the court of public opinion. No law can prevent hate speech, just as no law can prevent “a smack as part of good parental correction”, but legislators and courts can be aspirational, even progressive (or ‘woke’, if you prefer), in setting indicative boundaries. If they overstep, then repeal remains an option.
Although that can be an issue, the kind of thing that makes the police prick their ears up, as a probable precursor of violence, is a manageable place to set the bar. The PM evidently gets a lot of that.
It's not the same as merely offending people. That said, heaven only knows where the government mean to draw the line – pronouns maybe.
That is not the problem at all. We have people who decide what is misleading in terms of journalism or advertisements, all facets of discrimination. We have people who make decisions on wrongful actions through courts and tribunals. Extending this with good legislation to hate speech will not be a problem. We need to get the good legislation first. We have people who make decisions about films. I am quite sure we will build a system that works from the legislation.
NB the correct spelling of my name Shanreagh
"We get this shitty family subsidy that looks like something from the dying days of Helen Clark."
Yep, that is what I thought as well.
Anyway, Im picking that this goverment simply decided that it cannot deal with the backlash that it cops from people who are benefiting from the status quo for even the most modest program.
I'm agnostic on the child subsidy – I think there are pros and cons in the policy. And, I'm not keen on further subsidising private businesses (we don't for schools, so why should we for childcare)
But I thought a commenter on The detail tonight was bang on, when they said 'there are no new votes for Labour in this policy'.
It plays to the Labour loyalists – but is unlikely to convince anyone who voted for Ardern in 2020, and has subsequently shifted loyalty to another party, to change their vote.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/programmes/the-detail/story/2018865540/labour-s-to-do-list-and-the-question-of-lasting-reform