Justice, provocation, and the media

Written By: - Date published: 9:30 am, July 23rd, 2009 - 38 comments
Categories: crime, Media - Tags:

Provocation is a partial defence to a charge of murder. It reduces murder to manslaughter if the jury accepts that actions of the victim would have caused a ‘reasonable person’ to lose self-control.

The problem is that it is clearly being abused in some circumstances, like the Weatherston trial, to drag the victim’s name through the mud, often with threadbare or no evidence, on the outside hope it might result in a lighter sentence. In light of the, frankly, outrageous behaviour of Weatherston’s defence team it looks like a political consensus is emerging around getting rid of provocation.

Would that end the practice of putting the victim on trial? I don’t think so. There will still be mileage for the defence in trying to make the victim look bad, even if the charge can’t be reduced to manslaughter a lesser sentence might still result if picture of blameworthiness the can be blurred.

I think the media must accept some responsibility for encouraging the defence to indulge in these attacks on the victim. While the media continues to cover trials in ever greater and more gory detail, the lawyers can go home and see those allegations repeated on the TV and hope to swing public opinion behind the accused, which might just influence the jury.

The media has been a pig wallowing in the mud thrown by defence teams using provocation. It’s disgusting, it debases justice, and it encourages defence teams to attack the victim on even the most spurious and insulting grounds. It’s got to stop.

38 comments on “Justice, provocation, and the media ”

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  1. So Bored 1
    23 July 2009 at 9:52 am

    The Bain and Weatherston trials are what this blog describes as “crime porn”. In the latter case two families who had suffered greivous loss (victim dead and offender locked away) had not only to sit through the evidence as presented but had then to see it broadcast into everybodies living room. The media hovered like vampires and sucked dry every sensational titbit it could turning this into the ultimate reality TV show.

    One can only feel total sympathy for the families for the extra distress the media circus created, and for a victim who was defamed by the defense in the public arena, besmirching her memory. One can only hold the media in total contempt and disgust, get the cameras out of the courts.

    Another insult is the political knee jerk by the Minister of Justice to overturn the “provocation” defense on the basis of this case. Political grandstanding, also contemptible.

  2. mickysavage 2
    23 July 2009 at 10:08 am

    I do not want to be considered as defending Weatherston. I think the jury’s decision was completely appropriate and if anything vindicates the retention of provocation as a possible defence. But I think the debate about the “defence” of provocation is missing some important features of the “defence”.

    One feature that is missing is that a murder conviction results pretty well in all cases in life imprisonment. If there was discretion and mitigating matters could be taken into account then guilty pleas would be more likely. As it is the defendant has pretty well nothing to lose by going to trial. There is a chance they may strike a rogue jury and be convicted of a reduced charge. For other offences an early guilty plea can result in the reduction of a sentence by up to a third. Those charged with murder do not have this possibility.

    The other feature is that a finding of provocation results in a conviction of manslaughter. The penalty can be up to life imprisonment but there is judicial discretion. Even if Weatherston was successful I suspect he would have been hammered on sentence given the circumstances of the offending.

    I agree the media has wallowed in these latest cases.

    The debate should not be a simple one of should provocation be retained. It should be about appropriate sentences when an intentional act causes someone to lose their life.

  3. ghostwhowalks 3
    23 July 2009 at 10:09 am

    I remember sitting part way through a multiple murder trial about 12 years ago. It seems to me all the details of murder are revolting and in this situation a person probably the father of one of the victims walked out. It was stomach churning stuff.
    Then of course a dry written account would have appeared in the newspaper.

    What the TV news is trying to do is appear more the drama/ quizz shows that surround it.
    Is it the news or Sensing Murder or CSI or who has walked away with a big prize or lost it all ?

  4. Lew 4
    23 July 2009 at 10:13 am

    Marty, I’d argue (well, I have) that the media were performing their proper function of facilitating public scrutiny of the justice system and its workings. It’s because of the coverage in the Weatherston case, not because of the verdict, that provocation is likely to be abolished as a defence. Previous cases which were not so graphic, not so clearly polarised, have not resulted in widespread impetus for change.

    The ‘crime porn’ of the trial, while harrowing for the Elliot family and a terrible smear on Sophie’s character, is not entirely without benefit. Society will be the better for having seen it, judged it, decided that it was not just, and changed its norms to exclude it.

    The system works.

    L

    • Maynard J 4.1
      23 July 2009 at 10:19 am

      They could have reported on how the provocation defence was being used, instead of reporting the gory and seedy details in labourious and sensationalised detail. If that is the system working, then it could do with some improvement.

      • Bill 4.1.1
        23 July 2009 at 11:09 am

        Agree that if there had been substantive reporting on mechanics of the defence…analytical, thoughtful reporting…then, but hang on. We’re talking about NZ media here. Not going to happen.

        Must remember that we are not meant to engage in a meaningful fashion; that we are not meant to form independent and intelligent opinions; that we must be safeguarded from information that might encourage the forming of intelligent and independent opinion.

        Seems some need to be reminded that thoughtful, independent opinions make for dangerous individuals.

        So give us vacuous sensationalism or sweet sickly sentimentality. Keep us safe beneath an umbrella of dubious entertainment and infotainment. Let our opinions be led by those who are better than us, by those with the professionalism and intelligence to be trusted with anything other than watery swill.

    • So Bored 4.2
      23 July 2009 at 10:46 am

      Lew,

      Your logic reminds me of the Stalin line of you cant make an omelette without cracking eggs.

      If pain is what causes the system to work we are in a bad way.

      • Lew 4.2.1
        23 July 2009 at 11:03 am

        SB,

        Well, ignoring for a moment that you can’t, the point is that society needs to choose: do we prefer occasional exploitative coverage of ugly, unjust crime cases in the media, or do we prefer systems which are unjust and ugly, but which never change because nobody is aware of how unjust and ugly they are?

        I know which I prefer. It seems from their public comments that Ronald Brown’s family and the Elliot family know which they prefer as well.

        L

        • So Bored 4.2.1.1
          23 July 2009 at 11:08 am

          You are assuming that putting this into the medias hands for distribution to the public domain is of any value in framing debate. I doubt that media sensationalism is. You are right that we must not be shielded from the ugly bits, the question is how we air them.

          • Lew 4.2.1.1.1
            23 July 2009 at 11:20 am

            SB, I’m not assuming. I do this for a living.

            There is no other agency which could have transmitted the necessary information to the public for discussion and debate – the courts can’t; the government shouldn’t; the lobby groups and PR teams can’t function without the media. How else are the public to get the information, and how else are the politicians to take their cues from the public?

            How we air this sort of information is a trickier question, and, is likewise a matter to be left to the media (and proto-media such as blogs). Their job is broadly “to give citizens the information they need to be free and self-governing.” They frequently fall short of the ideal, but in this case they have fulfilled the task admirably, and in most cases, the more information available, the better the public is equipped for that task.

            L

        • T 4.2.1.2
          23 July 2009 at 11:13 am

          What about live written coverage, and delayed (until prosecution and defense have completed presenting their case) visual coverage?

          • Lew 4.2.1.2.1
            23 July 2009 at 11:24 am

            T, all you’re talking about is format-shifting. Without compelling video coverage there emerges reconstructions, dramatised serialisation, salaciously-edited transcripts and artists’ impressions. The same content and exploitation, with much less informative value and more opportunity for sensationalist editorialisation.

            It is the vérité quality of courtroom coverage which grants it credibility and requires society to consider it with the proper degree of seriousness and gravity.

            L

            • So Bored 4.2.1.2.1.1
              23 July 2009 at 12:41 pm

              Lew, methinks you as a journalist (I may be assuming that you are) have a greater idea of the importance and utility of the media than I do. As a result of the commercial and political construct of the media I always read in filter mode, the issue of media independence raises its ugly head often.

              I would question that “It is the vérité quality of courtroom coverage which grants it credibility” when it is selective and soundclip style.

              Fortunately the public dissemination of information and resulting debate is something the media does not have a monopoly on. It never ceases to amaze me that the media think that they have a monopoly on our ears and eyes, and that they ARE the story.

            • Lew 4.2.1.2.1.2
              23 July 2009 at 12:51 pm

              SB,

              methinks you as a journalist (I may be assuming that you are) have a greater idea of the importance and utility of the media than I do.

              I’m not a journalist, I’m a media analyst. My sense of the importance and utility of the media comes not from being a part of it, but by spending a very great deal of my time looking at how media coverage interacts with society and politics.

              As a result of the commercial and political construct of the media I always read in filter mode

              But you still read. You’re not outside the loop; you’re part of it.

              I would question that “It is the vérité quality of courtroom coverage which grants it credibility’ when it is selective and soundclip style.

              I’m not arguing that vérité is automagically credible or objective – I’m saying that, all else being equal, it is the most objective, unfiltered source of information. Yes, sound-bites and selective editing and editorialisation are a problem – but they’re more of a problem with other formats. What you ought to be arguing isn’t a ban on vérité, it’s a ban on poor journalism. Good luck with that.

              Fortunately the public dissemination of information and resulting debate is something the media does not have a monopoly on.

              Name one fact about the Weatherston trial which wasn’t first transmitted by the media. Try to do the same for a few other prominent public events of recent times. If you weren’t there, or you don’t personally know someone who was there, chances are you can’t.

              Now try and explain to me how the media don’t have a monopoly on public information.

              L

  5. Brickley Paiste 5
    23 July 2009 at 10:15 am

    Media are plural. The media CONTINUE to cover trials in ever greater and more gory detail and HAVE been a pig wallowing in the mud thrown by defence teams using provocation.

    • Bright Red 5.1
      23 July 2009 at 10:31 am

      while media is the plural of medium, in modern english usage, we also use media to refer to the group of organisations that use various broadcasting systems (or media) to relate news and information to the public – ‘the media’. That’s a singular, like ‘the army’

      “In the 1920s media began to appear as a singular collective noun, sometimes with the plural medias. This singular use is now common in the fields of mass communication and advertising, but it is not frequently found outside them: The media is (or are) not antibusiness” http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/media

  6. Maynard J 6
    23 July 2009 at 10:15 am

    Point the first:

    For all the beat-up about “victims’ rights” from the right (lately, think about the reaction to Elias’ comments that it may not be good for victims of crime to be centre stage in courts – actually really ponder that for a second) there has been a lot of silence over the issue in this case and in the other prominent cases where provocation has been used.

    Would have been nice to see Garrett say something constructive for a change, but since him and his SST cohorts have chosen to stay silent they have just reinforced the obvious conclusion – they do not give a shit about victims, they are only trying to politicise the issue. They are always so damn reticent when there is no anti-left mileage to be made. Scum.

    Point the second:

    It is a difficult issue to try and combat – self-defence is a fairly limited defence, and if there is a good legal reason for provocation as a defence or a mitigant, then we cannot call for its removal simply because we do not like how it is being used. I was talking to Anita and Lew about this on kiwipolitico – they were using the cases where it becomes a defence for killing homosexuals.

    Just because we do not like the specific outcomes, the application of the law, does not mean the law is flawed. I am not sure that is the right argument.

    On the news last night, someone mentioned that the legal test was that if an action would have caused a normal person to react as the defendant did, then provocation can be proven (as per the blog post).

    The question to me is “would a normal person ever be provoked into killing someone” – and remember, self defence applies if there is a direct physical threat, so provocation must be non-life threatening situations by definition. So if that legal description of provocation is in fact accurate, I think that is the real flaw in the defence, from a legal standpoint.

    Point the third:

    The media’s exploitation of the defence is another story. When someone cannot defend their actions because they have been killed by the very person accusing them of provocative actions, and the media broadcasts that, how are they meeting their obligation to be balanced? By definition they can not. And they should bloody well choose not to publicise such an unbalanced view. Also scum.

    phew. ranting.

  7. mickysavage 7
    23 July 2009 at 10:24 am

    One further comment:

    “In light of the, frankly, outrageous behaviour of Weatherston’s defence team it looks like a political consensus is emerging around getting rid of provocation.”

    I suspect the defence lawyers hated having to do what they did and I thought I saw signs of Ablett-Kerr trying to tone things down.

    They were doing a job on instructions from their client. His world view clearly prevented him from accepting blame and no doubt the lawyers had written instructions to run it the way they did.

    The way that self defence was only half heartedly run to me spoke volumes about the defence team’s view of the merits.

    I thought they did their job. In a civilised society lawyers have to be allowed to do so.

    • bill brown 7.1
      23 July 2009 at 10:38 am

      Ah, the good old “I was only following orders” excuse.

      • mickysavage 7.1.1
        23 July 2009 at 10:41 am

        The day lawyers stop defending their clients and start publicly condemning them is the day we should all be very afraid of.

        • bill brown 7.1.1.1
          23 July 2009 at 10:51 am

          A decent person, lawyer or not, would have refused to be the mouthpiece for this guy’s attempt to drag his victim through the mud.

          • Bright Red 7.1.1.1.1
            23 July 2009 at 11:10 am

            I wouldn’t go that far. People have a right to a competent defence but lawyers are also officers of the court, and they shouldn’t do ‘whatever it takes’ to try to get their clients off

      • Maynard J 7.1.2
        23 July 2009 at 10:44 am

        His lawyers were doing nothing unlawful, and while we question the morality of the defence, not having a defence as the defendant chooses is a greater moral hazard.

        • bill brown 7.1.2.1
          23 July 2009 at 10:53 am

          Just because you’re not being unlawful, doesn’t mean you should go ahead and do something that isn’t right anyway.

          • Maynard J 7.1.2.1.1
            23 July 2009 at 10:57 am

            Yes, and not defending a defendant to the full extent of the law, as the defendant has requested, is far worse than the use of the provocation defence. Basically it would be more wrong to refuse to use a defence than it would be to use that defence even defence perceived as wrong.

    • So Bored 7.2
      23 July 2009 at 10:51 am

      I have absolutely no problem with the lawyers defense, you are right, it is what they are there to do if we want justice.

      My issue is the pain that this necessarily causes through being spread by the media as “news”. I suspect more likely to drive ratings revenue.

  8. RedLogix 8
    23 July 2009 at 10:42 am

    I suspect the defence lawyers hated having to do what they did

    Absolutely. I believe that Weatherstone’s barristers ran totally the wrong defence.

    Personally I think that the only mitigating aspect to the case was the probable role that his increased dose of Prozac played. Twice in my life I’ve seen up close and personal the bizzare and frightening effects of this drug. Suddenly, with only the tiniest provocation they suffer a sudden psychotic episode that is both deranged, violent and totally out of character. In many cases they finish up killing themselves.

    Weatherstone is of course a very unlikeable, unstable character, but face it, killing your ex-girlfriend with her mother trying to kick the door down is not a sane act. This guy is highly intelligent, but totally derailed. Something out of the ordinary was going on here.

    And yes, the role of the media has been sickening.

    • mickysavage 8.1
      23 July 2009 at 10:54 am

      Agreed that something out of the ordinary was going on here but obviously there was no diagnosis that allowed insanity to be run as a defence.

      I am absolutely certain that insanity would have been investigated but ruled out.

      There will no doubt be an appeal and this may be one of the grounds.

  9. Ianmac 9
    23 July 2009 at 11:29 am

    Verdict correct. Defence used Provocation as allowed by law at the Judge’s discretion. Fine. Lawful.
    But the anguish felt by the world at large is because of the Media exposure.
    Perhaps we are used to those fun TV crime/trial stories which are really pretty sanitised. Real trials involving real violence are awful and gruesome and go on all the time. Perhaps it is right to get the real life and death story, but frankly I would prefer to remain oblivious, a bit like staying away from doctors, policemen, and lawyers.

    • Lew 9.1
      23 July 2009 at 11:33 am

      Well, you’re entitled to turn the TV off and not read the papers. Some of us want to know the full extent of what’s wrong with our society so we can change it.

      L

      • Ianmac 9.1.1
        23 July 2009 at 11:42 am

        You are right Lew. These days at newstime I soon turn to Prime to watch the Millionaire program. Surely however you would pick your target and apply your energy to things that you can change. Keep the kids in good heart. Stay on the right side of your wife. Help your elderly neighbour. Work to help your Union. Do something helpful towards the next election. No. I wan’t suggesting opting out, just choosy.

  10. travellerev 10
    23 July 2009 at 11:55 am

    To scrap the “provocation” defence is utterly indefensible and a total breach of human rights. Do I think that Weatherston was legit in using the defence?

    I think that he is a psycho and it seems the jury was in agreement with that. He should be in jail for the rest of his life because psycho’s are notoriously difficult to treat but to deny 4 million people the right to use the provocation defence based on the abuse of that defence of one deranged human being is criminal.

    At the risk of being accused of link whoring this is what I think about it.

  11. grumpy 11
    23 July 2009 at 1:35 pm

    The “defence” of provocation has only been used successfully 4 times.

    Twice in the case of battered women and twice by males claiming unwanted sexual molestation from other males.

    The “defence” only goes as far as allowing murder to be reduced to manslaughter, the maximum penalty for both are the same – life imprisonment.

    In the Weatherston case the jury, quite properly, rejected the argument.

    So what’s the issue.

    • Maynard J 11.1
      23 July 2009 at 4:13 pm

      You ignore the blog post and virtually every comment, and then ask “So what’s the issue.”?

      Talk about willful ignorance.

  12. Brett Dale 12
    23 July 2009 at 10:30 pm

    One right verdict and one wrong, the media should be ashamed for their support of Bain.

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  • 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
    4 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
    4 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
    4 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
    4 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
    4 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
    4 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
    5 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
    5 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
    5 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
    5 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
    5 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
    6 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
    6 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
    6 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
    6 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
    6 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
    6 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
    7 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
    7 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
    1 week 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

  • 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
    2 days 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
    3 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
    3 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
    3 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
    4 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
    6 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
    6 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
    6 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
    2 weeks 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
    2 weeks 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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