John Key’s disdain for democracy

Written By: - Date published: 9:02 am, July 3rd, 2013 - 43 comments
Categories: accountability, capitalism, copyright, greens, john key, national/act government, russel norman, slippery, Spying, telecommunications, us politics - Tags: , ,

Yesterday, hearings began on on the Bill amending the regulations related to the GCSB and surveillance.  John Key showed complete disdain for the process by failing to ask questions and only intervening to hurry people along.  There are good reasons to amend the regulations governing surveillance because their are murky areas.  However, it is a threat to democratic rights and processes to extend GCSB’s powers to spy on New Zelanders, especially in the light of revelations about the extent of invasive spying by NZ’s Echelon partner, the US spy agencies.

Yesterday at the Parliamentary hearing, John Key showed his disdain for democratic process, and exposed the fact that he intends for the Bill to be passed in spite of extensive and valid opposition:

Mr Key chairs parliament’s intelligence and security committee which is hearing from the public on a bill that will make it legal for the Government Communications Security Bureau to spy on New Zealanders on behalf of other agencies.

The committee’s other members are Labour leader David Shearer, Greens co-leader Russel Norman, cabinet minister Tony Ryall and ACT leader John Banks.

On Tuesday, they heard arguments from the Law Society, Human Rights Foundation, Council of Trade Unions, and the Environment and Conservation Organisation, who discussed the public’s privacy expectations, whether the law should extend to companies and whether metadata can be considered private communication.

Mr Key didn’t ask a single question, instead acting only as a timekeeper who told submitters when their speaking time was up, Dr Norman says.

“He was kind of sitting there, grinding his teeth but not engaging … He was just simply going through the motions and waiting for the time to be up,” he told Radio New Zealand.

Russell Norman explained the problem and related issues in a clear and reaosnable way.  Listen to the full  RNZ interview here:

http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/mnr/mnr-20130703-0715-greens_call_for_inquiry_before_gcsb_bills_passage-048.mp3

Yesterday in the NZ Herald, Paul G. Buchanan (“director of 36th Parallel Assessments, a geopolitical and strategic analysis consultancy“), provided a clear and knowledgeable assessment of the proposed Bill.

There is clearly a need to “tidy up” the legal framework governing GCSB activities on home soil because under the current act the role of the GCSB in domestic espionage is murky. But civil libertarians and privacy rights activists have legitimate reason to oppose the GCSB bill in its present form.

He argues against extending the GCSB powers in the terms of this Bill, which contains a dangerously vague definition of “threat to national security”, while providing poor oversight.  Added to this is the fact that the NZ intelligence agencies are over-stretched and It would enable

… mission-creep into common law enforcement and encroachments on individual and group privacy. For example, under the proposed legislation the GCSB could assist the Ministry of Primary Industries to spy on environmental activists on behalf of fishing, logging or mining interests if their protests were deemed injurious to the economic well-being of the nation, which can be construed as a threat to national security under current definition of the term.

Buchanan is also critical of the related Telecommunications (Interception Capability and Security) Bill , which he describes as being “more draconian than similar legislation under the US Patriot Act.”

Buchanan concludes that it is necessary to have a,

…a full inquiry into the New Zealand intelligence community is needed before any reforms are made to its legal architecture […]

There is some anticipation of Kim Dotcom providing a direct face-to-face and well-informed challenge to the PM at today’s hearing.    Gordon Campbell provides some background and 5 possible Dotcom questions to the hearing (as outlined at the link). Campbell explains,

Given the rogue nature of the agency in question, Dotcom might usefully explore some of the GCSB’s existing activities as well as its proposed new powers.

[…]

What I’m getting at is that there are a few matters of substance at stake tomorrow, beyond the sheer personal drama of Dotcom’s confrontation with Key. And yes, it is weird that it should fall to a wealthy German to uphold the kind of freedoms that a previous generation of Kiwis fought to defend between 1939 and 1945. I hope the elderly supporters of Winston Peters get that irony.

On TV3 News last night, it was stated that they will be streaming the hearing live today, and that Kim Dotcom is likely to front at around 5pm.

Will there be fireworks, procedural diversions and/or useful clarifications?

Or will John Key continue to use his slippery, spin-laden, corporate-backed, MSM-enabled, Prime Ministerial power to continue to subvert democracy?

[Update] TV3 Livestream, starts 3.30pm. [h/t CnrJoe]

[update] Kim Dotcom told today’s GCSB hearing that Key knew about him prior to the GCSB spying on him.  TVNZ article:

John Key, sitting as the Parliament’s Secretive Intelligence and Security Committee’s was chairing the meeting today when discussions became heated between the Prime Minister and the internet mogul.

Dotcom told the committee he believed Mr Key knew about him before the GCSB spying, when Mr Key replied, “no I didn’t”.

Dotcom then jibed, “why are you turning red, Prime Minister?”

“Why are you sweating?” Mr Key responded.

Dotcom said it was hot and that he was wearing a scarf.

 TV3 video

Dominion Post: Thursday 4 July 2013, p1:

key dotcom

43 comments on “John Key’s disdain for democracy ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. Rosetinted 1
    3 July 2013 at 10:09 am

    There was an unpleasant message on interview with Veitch on Radionz this a.m. He considers that spying on us is the plan du jour, and will continue to be done to requirements and legislated for later again. This dates back to the lack of readiness in the USA for 9/11. Yet we have heard that there was then and since, so much information that they were drowning in it.

    7.08 Morning Report – Govt urged not to rush spy law because of Dotcom embarrassment.
    http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport/audio/2560755/govt-urged-not-to-rush-spy-law-because-of-dotcom-embarrassment.asx
    An academic specialising in security studies predicts there will be increasing intrusions on people’s privacy.
    Jim Veitch, a defence and security academic, told Morning Report, that if law and order breakdowns in the Middle East move to South East Asia, New Zealand will be have to be prepared to deal with it.
    Centre for Strategic Studies Senior Fellows – School of History …
    http://www.victoria.ac.nz › … › People of the Centre‎
    May 23, 2013 – He regularly lectures at the New Zealand Defence Force Command and Staff College …. to various academic journals and collections in this subject area. … James (Jim) Veitch is Senior Lecturer, Security Studies at Massey …

    Also Newstalk ZB
    http://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/player/ondemand/1592738367-jim-veitch–the-ambiguousness-of–gcsb-laws

    But our authorities may decide to target an individual , or act to repress discussion, meetings, free speech about the political system. Of course we have had SIS burgle Aziz Choudry’s home in 1996. They had perceived some danger or just unhelpful actions from him, so justified their home invastion.
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Zealand_Security_Intelligence_Service
    So we already have the security system, that can effectively operate outside government control, power and the paranoia set for the touch paper.

    So lie back and think of the USA foks, notable Brit Queen Mary said when she died the word Calais would be written on her heart . That may happen here in a modern form. The ultimate in spying would be to have a chip implanted so your sovereign power could check on you at will. Once you give up the idea that you are an individual with a soul and a place and life on this earth, it may be the least problematic way for an individual to manage his or her curtailed life, when the power structures of the world own the right to monitor citizens.

    Incidentally google is featuring Franz Kafka today. Coincidences!

    • Rosetinted 1.1
      3 July 2013 at 10:31 am

      Note micky savage comment at 8.15am No.8 Open Mike on Jim Veitch for more opinion on this interview.

    • Rogue Trooper 1.2
      3 July 2013 at 1:20 pm

      Kafka featured on Wikipedia today also; it’s labyrinthine.

  2. izzy 2
    3 July 2013 at 10:58 am

    Veitch is a poseur and charlatan simply following his employer’s orders. He has fashioned himself first as a terrorism “expert” and now somehow as an intelligence expert but in fact his background is in religious studies (which he taught at Victoria U for several years). He has no background in counter-terorrism, military affairs, much less intelligence. What he did was parlay his interest in Islam after 9/11 into a media presence about Islamic extremism, then terrorism in general and now intelligence and military affairs. Massey hired him a few years ago to direct its Strategic Studies Department, which is funded by the NZDF. He regularly churns out bullshit posing as informed commentary, and his remarks to the Committee and to RNZ are nothing more than that.

    • Rosetinted 2.1
      3 July 2013 at 11:12 am

      izzy
      I was most confused when I looked at Veitch’s present persona as I remember him discussing religious studies matters and sounding sensible and principled combined, now he just sounds pragmatic and embedded. You explain his primrose path well though.

    • Macro_adder 2.2
      3 July 2013 at 12:55 pm

      Well summed up izzy. He is now simply a mouth piece for the Hawks… Sad.

  3. Bearded Git 3
    3 July 2013 at 11:30 am

    Audrey Young is very good here on Key’s pathetic timekeeping.

    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/article.cfm?c_id=466&objectid=10894454

    • Veutoviper 3.1
      3 July 2013 at 11:38 am

      Was just about to put that link up as I was a little surprised at Young’s take on yesterday’s hearing. She is usually so pro-Key.

      This is also the only article I have seen that mentions that Penny Bright also appeared at the hearing.

      Bright started with a lecture about how Key does deals like the Sky City convention centre – “your deals over dinner, deals over the phone – that might be customary practice in how you do things as a foreign exchange dealer or the head of derivatives for Merrill Lynch but that is no way to run a country”.

      On the spy bill, she wanted him to open up all his trust accounts, bank accounts, Swiss bank accounts, tax havens. “Nothing to hide, nothing to fear, come on Prime Minister; you show me yours and I’ll show you mine.”

      Key looked like he really wanted to engage: “Okay Penny, thanks very much. Your time has expired.”

      I laughed at her direct approach – bold above is mine. Good on you, Penny.

    • Huginn 3.2
      3 July 2013 at 10:14 pm

      So-o-o-o-o passive aggressive

  4. Rogue Trooper 4
    3 July 2013 at 1:00 pm

    Thanks karol and Rosetinted; hope that you do not find yourselves “threats to national security”.
    As the paper by the School of Media Studies asserted, JohnKey is a ‘hollow cypher’.

  5. Rogue Trooper 5
    3 July 2013 at 1:02 pm

    within every cloud.

  7. Macro_adder 7
    3 July 2013 at 1:11 pm

    Key is acting like a dictator Napoleonesque in his attitude. When does he intent his coronation? And will he crown himself like his obvious idol?
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coronation_of_Napoleon_I
    Unfortunately for Key – we are not yet a Republic.

    • Winston Smith 7.1
      3 July 2013 at 4:16 pm

      Thats funny, I thought it was the left that wanted NZ to become a republic?

  8. Rosetinted 8
    3 July 2013 at 2:02 pm

    There’s a hole in the bucket dear John dear John
    There’s a hole in the bucket and democracy’s leaking out.

    With what shall I fix it dear Liza dear Liza.
    With a straw dear John dear John, with a straw.

    With what shall I cut it dear Liza dear Liza.
    With an axe dear John dear John.
    What a waste of time dear Liza dear Liza
    It’s an old bucket – I’ll smash it with the axe.

    Then what will we do with our democracy dear John, dear John
    How can we look after our democracy dear John.

    Put the bits on a fire dear Liza dear Liza
    There’s lots of paper in the law library dear Liza dear Liza
    We’ll go digital dear Liza dear Liza
    And we won’t remember democracy at all.

    • Tim 8.1
      3 July 2013 at 2:31 pm

      What’s the chorus line?
      My bet is that it’ll be to do with masses uprising, Mussolini-like icons being strung up from lamp post cross members, and a heap of egotists screaming “it wasn’t me, it wasn’t me”.

      Let it rip – the sooner the better

  9. McFlock 9
    3 July 2013 at 2:06 pm

    John Key might be a totalitarian little sociopath, but the courts seem to be re-enacting (excuse the pun) the friction between the Barons and King John. The issue? Smoking in prisons.

    In order to legitimise the DoCorrections ban on smoking in prisons after it had been declared illegal (sound familiar?), the government passed legislation in February to legalise the illegal practices of a department (sound familiar?), including a declaration that the regulations can’t be challenged in court (sound familiar?).

    But Justice Brewer said there was a public interest in the unlawfulness of the Government’s amendments.

    “The effect, or utility, of this declaration is subject to the Corrections Amendment Act 2013,” he said.

    “I do not in this judgment decide the competing submissions of the parties on how the ouster provisions of the Amendment Act should be interpreted.”

    In other words, Brewer chose to rule only on the actual case rather than just washing his hands of the affair, and if the crown want to go back to court and argue it was a judgement without utility, no worries mate.

    Or in other other words, not being allowed to call john key a dick is a separate issue from whether john key is, in fact, a dick.

  10. Brett Dale 10
    3 July 2013 at 4:22 pm

    I have never felt more embarrassed for a politician yesterday than I did
    for Russell Norman, he reminded me of that little snot face kid in class,
    who thinks he hard done by, and thinks hes making a point by being a
    smart ass, while the rest of the class just roles their eyes.

    Unfortunately there is always one of two people, who love that sort of thing.

    • Yoza 10.1
      3 July 2013 at 6:05 pm

      Yeah, right on Brett. I’m sure practically nobody cares about Key introducing a Stasi style secret-police surveillance apparatus apart from the usual band of left-wing extremists like the New Zealand Law Society.

    • One Anonymous Knucklehead 10.2
      3 July 2013 at 6:13 pm

      Brett, learn to spell roll.

      Oh and, “Lovely, name calling, your (sic) the coolest kid in the 6th grade.” 😆

    • the pigman 10.3
      3 July 2013 at 7:30 pm

      If “one of two people” love it, why does the whole class “role” their eyes?

    • Suitably Clueless 10.4
      3 July 2013 at 8:51 pm

      Is this is general? Or has the hated Dr Watermelon said something else intelligent and reasoned, if so, which particular incident are you referring too?

  11. MrSmith 11
    3 July 2013 at 7:58 pm

    And so the revolution and freedom we thought the internet and technology would bring us has enslaved us and is and will sensor our freedoms, our freedom to speak freely and express our opinions, our freedom to start a revolution.

    We thought we were so smart didn’t we, but again we never gave much thought.

    In the past we were uncomfortable knowing that some will have to die so we can live, but now it seems know-one can die and we can’t live without being watched.

  12. fear all 12
    3 July 2013 at 10:16 pm

    Why the hell is Jo blow Banks on the intelligence committee his party representation in parliament is 1 member ?
    Where is democratic representation -uno -votes
    What a crock of uno what Where’s the military reps in all this and the police or is that undisclosed for security reasons?
    A few questions when we are being asked to lay wide all our personal communication because of the demands of t TPP U THINK

  13. Molly 13
    3 July 2013 at 10:29 pm

    Quis custodiet ipsos custodes? Who watches the watchmen?

    Finally reading Nicky Hager’s “Other people’s wars” alongside this debacle, and I thank Terry Pratchett for introducing me to the phrase above. Seems appropriate for both situations.

    Perhaps a one sentence submission for the GCSB select committee.

    • McFlock 13.1
      3 July 2013 at 10:43 pm

      now you’re just being juvenal. 🙂

      • Molly 13.1.1
        3 July 2013 at 11:00 pm

        Brought me back to earth with a Thud!

        • McFlock 13.1.1.1
          3 July 2013 at 11:07 pm

          I must say that his general vibe of guarding/public safety is spot on with some of my own experiences back in the day – there was even one team where they tried getting a sunday graveyard shift poker game running. Chips & everything.

          Probably from his days as a journo on the police beat.

      • lprent 13.1.2
        4 July 2013 at 7:06 am

        Groan… Please – no Latin satire.. Was bad enough reading those decades ago.

  14. Richard Christie 14
    3 July 2013 at 11:11 pm

    Why did Key lay a complaint over the cup of tea recording?

    Nothing to hide nothing to fear, privacy doesn’t come into it.

  15. Sable 15
    3 July 2013 at 11:29 pm

    Strikes me this is bigger than people think. These kind of totalitarian measures are being put in place in Australia, the UK and even Ireland.

    Makes me wonder if this is not a bloodless (thus far) invasion enacted by a small group of powerful people. I think really we are to become part of the US “Empire” with a Police state put in place to crush dissenters.

  16. Descendant Of Sssmith 16
    4 July 2013 at 6:55 am

    The new Xbox one has a camera so sensitive it can monitor your pulse and heartbeat.

    I feel a Max Headroom moment.

    The series is set in a futuristic dystopia ruled by an oligarchy of television networks. Even the government functions primarily as a puppet state of the network executives, serving mainly to pass laws — such as banning off switches on televisions — that protect and consolidate the networks’ power. Television technology has advanced to the point that viewers’ physical movements and thoughts can be monitored through their television sets; however, almost all non-television technology has been discontinued or destroyed. The only real check on the power of the networks is Edison Carter, a crusading investigative journalist who regularly exposes the unethical practices of his own employer, and the team of allies both inside and outside the system who assist him in getting his reports to air and protecting him from the forces that wish to silence or kill him.

    http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=EcwZxLMFDf0&feature=related

  17. Jenny 17
    4 July 2013 at 6:57 am

    A message aimed at President Obama.

    A message that John Key should heed.

    A message that other autocrats around the world who would set state agencies and spies and armed police and para-military against their own people would also do well to heed.

    A message that is for the people of the US and other Western democracies.

    A message that resonates with the people of Brazil, Egypt, Turkey and Greece beset as they are with elected dictatorships that on gaining office choose to ignore the popular will, in the interests of the powerful and privileged elites.

    “In the end the Obama administration is not afraid of whistleblowers like me, Bradley Manning or Thomas Drake.

    “We are stateless, imprisoned, or powerless. No, the Obama administration is afraid of you. It is afraid of an informed, angry public demanding the constitutional government it was promised — and it should be.”

    Edward Snowden

    • Jenny 17.1
      4 July 2013 at 7:15 am

      The above quote, is destined to become one of “the quotes” of history. Because it encapsulates the general uneasy mood of the time. A time when the legitimacy of the elites and the direction in which the world is heading is being questioned by millions of people.

      The message is universal and repeatable.

      Only Slightly reworded, this message would not be out of place, even on, the lips of an unlikely folk hero like Kim Dotcom.

      “In the end the Key administration is not afraid of people like Kim Dotcom.

      “We are stateless, imprisoned, or powerless. No, the Key administration is afraid of you. It is afraid of an informed, angry public demanding the constitutional government it was promised — and it should be.”

      Kim Dotcom

      (With apologies to Edward Snowden)

  18. Huginn 18
    4 July 2013 at 4:14 pm

    Hi Karol,
    Sorry about the re-post from Open mike, but I thought you might be interested.

    Peter George has raised a concern that the GCSB was used for gathering the communications and security data of Peter Dunne and Andrea Vance.

    ‘And also of extreme concern is what data [to the Henry Investigation] was provided by the GCSB. Appendix Three of the Henry report states that the GCSB provided “substantial assistance, particularly in the gathering of records”.

    That rings alarm bells. What “authority” did Key give the GCSB to gather data? Whatever it takes? And what data did the GCSB gather, and from where?’

    http://yournz.org/2013/07/03/key-gave-henry-inquiry-extraordinary-authority-including-gcsb/

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    Yesterday saw the State Opening of Parliament, the Speech from the Throne, and then Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s dream for Aotearoa in his first address. But first the pomp and ceremony, the arrival of the Governor General.Dame Cindy Kiro arrived on the forecourt outside of parliament to a Māori welcome. ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago

  • National’s new MP; the proud part-Maori boy raised in a state house
    Probably not since 1975 have we seen a government take office up against such a wall of protest and complaint. That was highlighted yesterday, the day that the new Parliament was sworn in, with news that King Tuheitia has called a national hui for late January to develop a ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    3 days ago

  • Climate Adam: Battlefield Earth – How War Fuels Climate Catastrophe
    This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Adam Levy. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). War, conflict and climate change are tearing apart lives across the world. But these aren't separate harms - they're intricately connected. ...
    Skeptical Science
    3 days ago

  • They do not speak for us, and they do not speak for the future
    These dire woeful and intolerant people have been so determinedly going about their small and petulant business, it’s hard to keep up. At the end of the new government’s first woeful week, Audrey Young took the time to count off its various acts of denigration of Te Ao Māori:Review the ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago

  • Another attack on te reo
    The new white supremacist government made attacking te reo a key part of its platform, promising to rename government agencies and force them to "communicate primarily in English" (which they already do). But today they've gone further, by trying to cut the pay of public servants who speak te reo: ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago

  • For the record, the Beehive buzz can now be regarded as “official”
    Buzz from the Beehive The biggest buzz we bring you from the Beehive today is that the government’s official website is up and going after being out of action for more than a week. The latest press statement came  from  Education Minister  Eric Stanford, who seized on the 2022 PISA ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago

  • Climate Change: Failed again
    There was another ETS auction this morning. and like all the other ones this year, it failed to clear - meaning that 23 million tons of carbon (15 million ordinary units plus 8 million in the cost containment reserve) went up in smoke. Or rather, they didn't. Being unsold at ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago

  • Gordon Campbell On The Government’s Assault On Maori
    This isn’t news, but the National-led coalition is mounting a sustained assault on Treaty rights and obligations. Even so, Christopher Luxon has described yesterday’s nationwide protests by Maori as “pretty unfair.” Poor thing. In the NZ Herald, Audrey Young has compiled a useful list of the many, many ways that ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    3 days ago

  • Rising costs hit farmers hard, but  there’s more  positive news  for  them this  week 
    New Zealand’s dairy industry, the mainstay of the country’s export trade, has  been under  pressure  from rising  costs. Down on the  farm, this  has  been  hitting  hard. But there  was more positive news this week,  first   from the latest Fonterra GDT auction where  prices  rose,  and  then from  a  report ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    3 days ago

  • ROB MacCULLOCH:  Newshub and NZ Herald report misleading garbage about ACT’s van Veldon not follo...
    Rob MacCulloch writes –  In their rush to discredit the new government (which our MainStream Media regard as illegitimate and having no right to enact the democratic will of voters) the NZ Herald and Newshub are arguing ACT’s Deputy Leader Brooke van Veldon is not following Treasury advice ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago

  • Top 10 for Wednesday, December 6
    Even many young people who smoke support smokefree policies, fitting in with previous research showing the large majority of people who smoke regret starting and most want to quit. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Here’s my pick of the top 10 news and analysis links elsewhere on the morning of Wednesday, December ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago

  • Eleven years of work.
    Well it didn’t take six months, but the leaks have begun. Yes the good ship Coalition has inadvertently released a confidential cabinet paper into the public domain, discussing their axing of Fair Pay Agreements (FPAs).Oops.Just when you were admiring how smoothly things were going for the new government, they’ve had ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago

  • Why we're missing out on sharply lower inflation
    A wave of new and higher fees, rates and charges will ripple out over the economy in the next 18 months as mayors, councillors, heads of department and price-setters for utilities such as gas, electricity, water and parking ramp up charges. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Just when most ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago

  • How Did We Get Here?
    Hi,Kiwis — keep the evening of December 22nd free. I have a meetup planned, and will send out an invite over the next day or so. This sounds sort of crazy to write, but today will be Tony Stamp’s final Totally Normal column of 2023. Somehow we’ve made it to ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    4 days ago

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

  • New Zealaders  have  high expectations of  new  government:  now let’s see if it can deliver?
    The electorate has high expectations of the  new  government.  The question is: can  it  deliver?    Some  might  say  the  signs are not  promising. Protestors   are  already marching in the streets. The  new  Prime Minister has had  little experience of managing  very diverse politicians  in coalition. The economy he  ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    4 days ago

  • You won't believe some of the numbers you have to pull when you're a Finance Minister
    Nicola of Marsden:Yo, normies! We will fix your cost of living worries by giving you a tax cut of 150 dollars. 150! Cash money! Vote National.Various people who can read and count:Actually that's 150 over a fortnight. Not a week, which is how you usually express these things.And actually, it looks ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 days ago

  • Pushback
    When this government came to power, it did so on an explicitly white supremacist platform. Undermining the Waitangi Tribunal, removing Māori representation in local government, over-riding the courts which had tried to make their foreshore and seabed legislation work, eradicating te reo from public life, and ultimately trying to repudiate ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago

  • Defence ministerial meeting meant Collins missed the Maori Party’s mischief-making capers in Parli...
    Buzz from the Beehive Maybe this is not the best time for our Minister of Defence to have gone overseas. Not when the Maori Party is inviting (or should that be inciting?) its followers to join a revolution in a post which promoted its protest plans with a picture of ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago

  • Threats of war have been followed by an invitation to join the revolution – now let’s see how th...
     A Maori Party post on Instagram invited party followers to ….  Tangata Whenua, Tangata Tiriti, Join the REVOLUTION! & make a stand!  Nationwide Action Day, All details in tiles swipe to see locations.  • This is our 1st hit out and tomorrow Tuesday the 5th is the opening ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago

  • Top 10 for Tuesday, December 4
    The RBNZ governor is citing high net migration and profit-led inflation as factors in the bank’s hawkish stance. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Here’s my pick of the top 10 news and analysis links elsewhere on the morning of Tuesday, December 5, including:Reserve Bank Governor Adrian Orr says high net migration and ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago

  • Nicola Willis' 'show me the money' moment
    Willis has accused labour of “economic vandalism’, while Robertson described her comments as a “desperate diversion from somebody who can't make their tax package add up”. There will now be an intense focus on December 20 to see whether her hyperbole is backed up by true surprises. Photo montage: Lynn ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago

  • CRL costs money but also provides huge benefits
    The City Rail Link has been in the headlines a bit recently so I thought I’d look at some of them. First up, yesterday the NZ Herald ran this piece about the ongoing costs of the CRL. Auckland ratepayers will be saddled with an estimated bill of $220 million each ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    5 days ago

  • And I don't want the world to see us.
    Is this the most shambolic government in the history of New Zealand? Given that parliament hasn’t even opened they’ve managed quite a list of achievements to date.The Smokefree debacle trading lives for tax cuts, the Trumpian claims of bribery in the Media, an International award for indifference, and today the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago

  • Cooking the books
    Finance Minister Nicola Willis late yesterday stopped only slightly short of accusing her predecessor Grant Robertson of cooking the books. She complained that the Half Yearly Economic and Fiscal Update (HYEFU), due to be made public on December 20, would show “fiscal cliffs” that would amount to “billions of ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago

  • Most people don’t realize how much progress we’ve made on climate change
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections The year was 2015. ‘Uptown Funk’ with Bruno Mars was at the top of the music charts. Jurassic World was the most popular new movie in theaters. And decades of futility in international climate negotiations was about to come to an end in ...
    Skeptical Science
    5 days ago

  • Of Parliamentary Oaths and Clive Boonham
    As a heads-up, I am not one of those people who stay awake at night thinking about weird Culture War nonsense. At least so far as the current Maori/Constitutional arrangements go. In fact, I actually consider it the least important issue facing the day to day lives of New ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    5 days ago

  • Bearing True Allegiance?
    Strong Words: “We do not consent, we do not surrender, we do not cede, we do not submit; we, the indigenous, are rising. We do not buy into the colonial fictions this House is built upon. Te Pāti Māori pledges allegiance to our mokopuna, our whenua, and Te Tiriti o ...
    Bowalley Road
    5 days ago

  • You cannot be serious
    Some days it feels like the only thing to say is: Seriously? No, really. Seriously?OneSomeone has used their health department access to share data about vaccinations and patients, and inform the world that New Zealanders have been dying in their hundreds of thousands from the evil vaccine. This of course is pure ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 days ago

  • A promise kept: govt pulls the plug on Lake Onslow scheme – but this saving of $16bn is denounced...
    Buzz from the Beehive After $21.8 million was spent on investigations, the plug has been pulled on the Lake Onslow pumped-hydro electricity scheme, The scheme –  that technically could have solved New Zealand’s looming energy shortage, according to its champions – was a key part of the defeated Labour government’s ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago

  • CHRIS TROTTER: The Maori Party and Oath of Allegiance
    If those elected to the Māori Seats refuse to take them, then what possible reason could the country have for retaining them?   Chris Trotter writes – Christmas is fast approaching, which, as it does every year, means gearing up for an abstruse general knowledge question. “Who was ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago

  • BRIAN EASTON:  Forward to 2017
    The coalition party agreements are mainly about returning to 2017 when National lost power. They show commonalities but also some serious divergencies. Brian Easton writes – The two coalition agreements – one National and ACT, the other National and New Zealand First – are more than policy documents. ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago

  • Climate Change: Fossils
    When the new government promised to allow new offshore oil and gas exploration, they were warned that there would be international criticism and reputational damage. Naturally, they arrogantly denied any possibility that that would happen. And then they finally turned up at COP, to criticism from Palau, and a "fossil ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago

  • GEOFFREY MILLER:  NZ’s foreign policy resets on AUKUS, Gaza and Ukraine
    Geoffrey Miller writes – New Zealand’s international relations are under new management. And Winston Peters, the new foreign minister, is already setting a change agenda. As expected, this includes a more pro-US positioning when it comes to the Pacific – where Peters will be picking up where he ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago

  • Gordon Campbell on the government’s smokefree laws debacle
    The most charitable explanation for National’s behaviour over the smokefree legislation is that they have dutifully fulfilled the wishes of the Big Tobacco lobby and then cast around – incompetently, as it turns out – for excuses that might sell this health policy U-turn to the public. The less charitable ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    6 days ago

  • Top 10 links at 10 am for Monday, December 4
    As Deb Te Kawa writes in an op-ed, the new Government seems to have immediately bought itself fights with just about everyone. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Here’s my pick of the top 10 news and analysis links elsewhere as of 10 am on Monday December 4, including:Palau’s President ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago

  • Be Honest.
    Let’s begin today by thinking about job interviews.During my career in Software Development I must have interviewed hundreds of people, hired at least a hundred, but few stick in the memory.I remember one guy who was so laid back he was practically horizontal, leaning back in his chair until his ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    6 days ago

  • Geoffrey Miller: New Zealand’s foreign policy resets on AUKUS, Gaza and Ukraine
    New Zealand’s international relations are under new management. And Winston Peters, the new foreign minister, is already setting a change agenda. As expected, this includes a more pro-US positioning when it comes to the Pacific – where Peters will be picking up where he left off. Peters sought to align ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    6 days ago

  • Auckland rail tunnel the world’s most expensive
    Auckland’s city rail link is the most expensive rail project in the world per km, and the CRL boss has described the cost of infrastructure construction in Aotearoa as a crisis. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The 3.5 km City Rail Link (CRL) tunnel under Auckland’s CBD has cost ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago

  • First big test coming
    The first big test of the new Government’s approach to Treaty matters is likely to be seen in the return of the Resource Management Act. RMA Minister Chris Bishop has confirmed that he intends to introduce legislation to repeal Labour’s recently passed Natural and Built Environments Act and its ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    6 days ago

  • The Song of Saqua: Volume III
    Time to revisit something I haven’t covered in a while: the D&D campaign, with Saqua the aquatic half-vampire. Last seen in July: https://phuulishfellow.wordpress.com/2023/07/27/the-song-of-saqua-volume-ii/ The delay is understandable, once one realises that the interim saw our DM come down with a life-threatening medical situation. They have since survived to make ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    6 days ago

  • Chris Bishop: Smokin’
    Yes. Correct. It was an election result. And now we are the elected government. ...
    My ThinksBy boonman
    6 days ago

  • 2023 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #48
    A chronological listing of news and opinion articles posted on the Skeptical Science  Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Nov 26, 2023 thru Dec 2, 2023. Story of the Week CO2 readings from Mauna Loa show failure to combat climate change Daily atmospheric carbon dioxide data from Hawaiian volcano more ...
    Skeptical Science
    6 days ago

  • Affirmative Action.
    Affirmative Action was a key theme at this election, although I don’t recall anyone using those particular words during the campaign.They’re positive words, and the way the topic was talked about was anything but. It certainly wasn’t a campaign of saying that Affirmative Action was a good thing, but that, ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    7 days ago

  • 100 days of something
    It was at the end of the Foxton straights, at the end of 1978, at 100km/h, that someone tried to grab me from behind on my Yamaha.They seemed to be yanking my backpack. My first thought was outrage. My second was: but how? Where have they come from? And my ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    7 days ago

  • Look who’s stepped up to champion Winston
    There’s no news to be gleaned from the government’s official website today  – it contains nothing more than the message about the site being under maintenance. The time this maintenance job is taking and the costs being incurred have us musing on the government’s commitment to an assault on inflation. ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 week ago

  • What's The Story?
    Don’t you sometimes wish they’d just tell the truth? No matter how abhorrent or ugly, just straight up tell us the truth?C’mon guys, what you’re doing is bad enough anyway, pretending you’re not is only adding insult to injury.Instead of all this bollocks about the Smokefree changes being to do ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago

  • The longest of weeks
    Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past week’s editions.Friday Under New Management Week in review, quiz style1. Which of these best describes Aotearoa?a. Progressive nation, proud of its egalitarian spirit and belief in a fair go b. Best little country on the planet c. ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 week ago

  • Suggested sessions of EGU24 to submit abstracts to
    Like earlier this year, members from our team will be involved with next year's General Assembly of the European Geosciences Union (EGU). The conference will take place on premise in Vienna as well as online from April 14 to 19, 2024. The session catalog has been available since November 1 ...
    Skeptical Science
    1 week ago

  • Under New Management
    1. Which of these best describes Aotearoa?a. Progressive nation, proud of its egalitarian spirit and belief in a fair go b. Best little country on the planet c. Under New Management 2. Which of these best describes the 100 days of action announced this week by the new government?a. Petulantb. Simplistic and wrongheaded c. ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 week ago

  • While we wait patiently, our new Minister of Education is up and going with a 100-day action plan
    Sorry to say, the government’s official website is still out of action. When Point of Order paid its daily visit, the message was the same as it has been for the past week: Site under maintenance Beehive.govt.nz is currently under maintenance. We will be back shortly. Thank you for your ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 week ago

  • Ministers visit Hawke’s Bay to grasp recovery needs
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon joined Cyclone Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell and Transport and Local Government Minister Simeon Brown, to meet leaders of cyclone and flood-affected regions in the Hawke’s Bay. The visit reinforced the coalition Government’s commitment to support the region and better understand its ongoing requirements, Mr Mitchell says.  ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago

  • New Zealand condemns malicious cyber activity
    New Zealand has joined the UK and other partners in condemning malicious cyber activity conducted by the Russian Government, Minister Responsible for the Government Communications Security Bureau Judith Collins says. The statement follows the UK’s attribution today of malicious cyber activity impacting its domestic democratic institutions and processes, as well ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Disestablishment of Te Pūkenga begins
    The Government has begun the process of disestablishing Te Pūkenga as part of its 100-day plan, Minister for Tertiary Education and Skills Penny Simmonds says.  “I have started putting that plan into action and have met with the chair and chief Executive of Te Pūkenga to advise them of my ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Climate Change Minister to attend COP28 in Dubai
    Climate Change Minister Simon Watts will be leaving for Dubai today to attend COP28, the 28th annual UN climate summit, this week. Simon Watts says he will push for accelerated action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement, deliver New Zealand’s national statement and connect with partner countries, private sector leaders ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • New Zealand to host 2024 Pacific defence meeting
    Defence Minister Judith Collins yesterday announced New Zealand will host next year’s South Pacific Defence Ministers’ Meeting (SPDMM). “Having just returned from this year’s meeting in Nouméa, I witnessed first-hand the value of meeting with my Pacific counterparts to discuss regional security and defence matters. I welcome the opportunity to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Study shows need to remove distractions in class
    The Government is committed to lifting school achievement in the basics and that starts with removing distractions so young people can focus on their learning, Education Minister Erica Stanford says.   The 2022 PISA results released this week found that Kiwi kids ranked 5th in the world for being distracted ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Minister sets expectations of Commissioner
    Today I met with Police Commissioner Andrew Coster to set out my expectations, which he has agreed to, says Police Minister Mark Mitchell. Under section 16(1) of the Policing Act 2008, the Minister can expect the Police Commissioner to deliver on the Government’s direction and priorities, as now outlined in ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • New Zealand needs a strong and stable ETS
    New Zealand needs a strong and stable Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) that is well placed for the future, after emission units failed to sell for the fourth and final auction of the year, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says.  At today’s auction, 15 million New Zealand units (NZUs) – each ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • PISA results show urgent need to teach the basics
    With 2022 PISA results showing a decline in achievement, Education Minister Erica Stanford is confident that the Coalition Government’s 100-day plan for education will improve outcomes for Kiwi kids.  The 2022 PISA results show a significant decline in the performance of 15-year-old students in maths compared to 2018 and confirms ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Collins leaves for Pacific defence meeting
    Defence Minister Judith Collins today departed for New Caledonia to attend the 8th annual South Pacific Defence Ministers’ meeting (SPDMM). “This meeting is an excellent opportunity to meet face-to-face with my Pacific counterparts to discuss regional security matters and to demonstrate our ongoing commitment to the Pacific,” Judith Collins says. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Working for Families gets cost of living boost
    Putting more money in the pockets of hard-working families is a priority of this Coalition Government, starting with an increase to Working for Families, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says. “We are starting our 100-day plan with a laser focus on bringing down the cost of living, because that is what ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Post-Cabinet press conference
    Most weeks, following Cabinet, the Prime Minister holds a press conference for members of the Parliamentary Press Gallery. This page contains the transcripts from those press conferences, which are supplied by Hansard to the Office of the Prime Minister. It is important to note that the transcripts have not been edited ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Lake Onslow pumped hydro scheme scrapped
    The Government has axed the $16 billion Lake Onslow pumped hydro scheme championed by the previous government, Energy Minister Simeon Brown says. “This hugely wasteful project was pouring money down the drain at a time when we need to be reining in spending and focussing on rebuilding the economy and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago

  • NZ welcomes further pause in fighting in Gaza
    New Zealand welcomes the further one-day extension of the pause in fighting, which will allow the delivery of more urgently-needed humanitarian aid into Gaza and the release of more hostages, Foreign Minister Winston Peters said. “The human cost of the conflict is horrific, and New Zealand wants to see the violence ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Condolences on passing of Henry Kissinger
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters today expressed on behalf of the New Zealand Government his condolences to the family of former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, who has passed away at the age of 100 at his home in Connecticut. “While opinions on his legacy are varied, Secretary Kissinger was ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Backing our kids to learn the basics
    Every child deserves a world-leading education, and the Coalition Government is making that a priority as part of its 100-day plan. Education Minister Erica Stanford says that will start with banning cellphone use at school and ensuring all primary students spend one hour on reading, writing, and maths each day. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • US Business Summit Speech – Regional stability through trade
    I would like to begin by echoing the Prime Minister’s thanks to the organisers of this Summit, Fran O’Sullivan and the Auckland Business Chamber.  I want to also acknowledge the many leading exporters, sector representatives, diplomats, and other leaders we have joining us in the room. In particular, I would like ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Keynote Address to the United States Business Summit, Auckland
    Good morning. Thank you, Rosemary, for your warm introduction, and to Fran and Simon for this opportunity to make some brief comments about New Zealand’s relationship with the United States.  This is also a chance to acknowledge my colleague, Minister for Trade Todd McClay, Ambassador Tom Udall, Secretary of Foreign ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • India New Zealand Business Council Speech, India as a Strategic Priority
    Good morning, tēnā koutou and namaskar. Many thanks, Michael, for your warm welcome. I would like to acknowledge the work of the India New Zealand Business Council in facilitating today’s event and for the Council’s broader work in supporting a coordinated approach for lifting New Zealand-India relations. I want to also ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Coalition Government unveils 100-day plan
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has laid out the Coalition Government’s plan for its first 100 days from today. “The last few years have been incredibly tough for so many New Zealanders. People have put their trust in National, ACT and NZ First to steer them towards a better, more prosperous ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • New Zealand welcomes European Parliament vote on the NZ-EU Free Trade Agreement
    A significant milestone in ratifying the NZ-EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA) was reached last night, with 524 of the 705 member European Parliament voting in favour to approve the agreement. “I’m delighted to hear of the successful vote to approve the NZ-EU FTA in the European Parliament overnight. This is ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

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