John beats up on young Mum

Written By: - Date published: 4:27 pm, August 5th, 2009 - 89 comments
Categories: climate change - Tags:

Seems John Key’s been name-dropping Kiwi film stars to business leaders in Brizzie. In today’s NZ Herald Key is quoted slamming actress Keisha Castle-Hughes for speaking out on climate change, saying that she should ‘stick to the acting’.

Remember it’s just a matter of days after public consultation wrapped up over what the Government’s 2020 emissions reduction target should be. The Government was adamant it wanted public input on the issue, but it now seems that when those views aren’t helpful to National’s cause and are picked up widely by both local and international media, its all-inclusive attitude wanes.

Now we know that the Government is rattled by the recent surge in support for strong action on climate change, but to go for the nation’s whale rider in such a patronizing way is a low blow (not to mention a bad move).

It’s a very dangerous thing to suggest (particularly to a 19 year old) that people just sit by and stick to their day jobs while faced with the biggest crisis in history. If the youth of today (young mothers in particular) can’t enter the climate debate, we’re doomed.

There’s a pattern here. The precedent was set by Social development Minister Paula Bennett’s disclosure of an outspoken beneficiary’s details and it now seems a theme that this Government looks down with disdain on those prepared to raise their heads above the parapets and pass comment.

If I were Castle-Hughes I’d point out to John that if perhaps if he’d stick to HIS day job (ie- leading the country on big issues like climate change) then she’d have less of a night-job.

Isn’t Castle-Hughes’ day job first and foremost being a mother? And in that capacity isn’t she totally qualified to express her concerns about the future?

As far as i can tell, she’s not claiming to be a scientist, nor an expert, she’s just claiming to care. And she’s been admonished for it. Perhaps John should stick to being a multi-millionaire.

89 comments on “John beats up on young Mum ”

  1. Pat 1

    When Key speaks at breakfast meetings etc, he tends to flip out a few funnies. I suspect the Castle-Hughes reference was in a tone to get a laugh, rather than “slamming” her. Without hearing the tone of his speech, one can jump to conclusions, such as the vacuous self-righteous drivel of the above post.

    • BLiP 1.1

      Yep – I’m sure Maori across the nation were rolling in the aisles. Maybe Johny should resign and become a stand-up comedian. He’s certainly do a better job than he is now.

      • Pat 1.1.1

        “…Maori across the nation …”

        WTF are you on about?

        • BLiP 1.1.1.1

          When Johnny’s little joke was printed in the papers this morning and, perhaps, appears on tele tonight, do you think Maori people will be chuckling along with his “funnies”?

          I can just see them now . . . ” hahahah, isn’t that champion of the underclass such a dag, making fun of our gal on the international stage – and to think, he could have chosen that more famous pakeha male Rhys Darby, but, no, he chose one of us . . . hahahaha . . . thanks National Inc, we’re lovin’ it”.

          I’m not sure trying the dismiss the racism in his “funnie” as a just a wee joke is going to go down all that well. But, by all means, try your hardest.

      • starboard 1.1.2

        ..keep smokin the good shit man…

    • JustRight 1.2

      What is with the headline “John Key slams young mother” What a load of emotive drivel. If Keisha wants to live by the sword, then she can also die by the sword.

      I remember a McKinsey Consultant & Author who spoke at the Labour Knowledge Wave conference on “Creative Destruction” was dissed by Helen Clark in much the same way. I wonder if that attracted the deadline “Clark slames Middle Age Father” ?

  2. mike 2

    I think his point is wtf does an actress know about climate change – have an opinion great but the why ask to meet with the PM?

    The public are tired of 2-bit celebs trying to grandstand on trendy issues of the day.

    • infused 2.1

      My thoughts exactly Mike. It’s like peta. Stupid celebs who don’t even give a shit.

    • Just to make a point here but what makes slippery John the ex Forex and derivatives trader such an expert on Global climate change.

      All he knows about is how to scam pension funds and investors out of their hard earned cash with those interesting new financial products. Oh, no not those which are now collapsing our financial system. Yes, precisely those.

      Bill can hold a candle to Slippery John as far as scamming goes. He learned from the best. $ 50 mill proves that.

      And to stay with the thread. If John Key is entitled to have an opinion which is deemed worthy because we were stupid enough to vote him in as PM than Castle-Hughes opinion is just as valuable. At least we go and pay to see her act.

      Oh, I forgot we pay John Key too.

      • JustRight 2.2.1

        Unsure quite how much financial literacy you are showing here travellrev. John Key was not involved in the creation of or sale of the financial instruments which led to the current crisis. The record is clear that he was well out of it – he was in Politics while it was all going on.

        • chris 2.2.1.1

          It’s been going on since the 80’s so no, he was not out of it. He was just not directly involved with the catalyst CDO’s etc. etc. Debt fuelled money creation by banks should’ve been stopped by letting a mild depression happen in 87ish, it didn’t we took the brakes off and now we’re fucked and drowned in credit that should never have been created. It’s not John’s fault, god knows he wasn’t high up enough at ML to have that much influence, but he was at least complicit, not that he realises, and not that he’s unique in that. there must be @ least 100 000 maybe more people who’ve worked in these mega-banks since the 80’s, not to mention the de-regulators who created the playing field.

    • Strawberry toes 2.3

      Well said. As soon as some braindead celebrity starts spouting off I switch off.

    • Chris 2.4

      Great point mike. What the fuck does our PM (An investment banker) know about climate change anyway?

  3. aj 3

    No Pat. We are entitled to take this put down as seriously as others slammed Clark for the haters and wreckerw comment. Key is acting like a bully, but thats par for the course now.

  4. Gareth 4

    The point is she dosen’t say she’s an expert (not like Key is one either) but she’s a Kiwi, and a mum who wants a good future for her kids.

    She shouldn’t be told to just stick to her day job. What if Kiwis just stuck at their day jobs and didn’t comment when nuclear ships were still visiting New Zealand, when rugby teams from Apartheid South Africa were playing here or when women didn’t have the vote?

    Good on ya Keisha. Thank God for people like you prepared to stand up and demand we do our bit and reduce emissions in New Zealand and shame on you Mr Key for ridiculing Keisha’s earnest and heartfelt desires for a safe climate for her and her kids. The Prime Minister should stick to HIS day job leadership.

  5. Misleading headline.

    What are you the national enquirer?

    • BLiP 5.1

      A Prime Minister of Aotearoa subjecting a successful young Maori mother to international ridicule is not “beating up” on her?

      • Mike Collins 5.1.1

        What’s being Maori got to do with this again?

        • BLiP 5.1.1.1

          Why not pick on the more famous Rhys Darby – but no, for all his love of the underclass and for all his “celebration of success” – the Goober decides to pick on a young, Maori, sole mother? Classy.

          Neither subject is an acceptable target for John Key’s international ridicule but, you know, just saying . . .

          • Doh 5.1.1.1.1

            oh, The race card again.
            Just lucky she wasn’t Samoan – you know with all those already pissed off samoans about Labour selling Taito down the drain – simply because he was a samoan and all that

          • Mike Collins 5.1.1.1.2

            BLIP – the fact you want to go down the race path suggests more about your paranoia than any concerted agenda to run Maori down. Mind you, it seems you are ready and willing to assume everyone is a victim of something – even if it is your own imagination.

  6. Tom Semmens 6

    Should Keisha stick to acting? Should Paula have stayed on the DPB? Should John have kept to money speculation?

    Questions, questions.

    • Doh 6.1

      should Goff have stayed a freezing worker? (was he any good at that either?)

    • Akldnut 6.2

      Keishas still acting
      Paulas still got lots to do with the DPB (Beware vocal dissenters)
      Jonnies still a speculator (Its just us he’s playing with now)

  7. Mac1 7

    @Mike and I am tired of ad hominem arguments from politicians, and anybody for that matter, where the substance of the issue is not debated but rather the person is attacked.
    In this case, could it be possible that a young female upSTARt actually meets curmudgeonly older alpha male?
    My surmise is as good as yours explaining why Key said what he said. Attempts at humour are not an excuse, Pat, and certainly picking on young females as a COAM is not fair do’s.

  8. Geoff 8

    Misleading headline? Rubbish! Last I heard Keisha was still both young and a mother. I’m glad she’s willing to stick her neck out and say what she thinks. Government asked people to say what kind of target they want and she did. Why not?

  9. exbrethren 9

    Should Melissa Lee have stuck to documentaries?

    Should Lockwood Smith stuck to hosting game shows?

    Should Rodney Hide have stuck to truck driving?

    Should Captain Beaky have stuck his mouth together with glue to stop talking drivel?

    • Pat 9.1

      Should Melissa Lee have stuck to documentaries?
      Yes. But she had greater aspirations, so good on her for following them.

      Should Lockwood Smith stuck to hosting game shows?
      No. Then we would have been denied one of the best and most fairest Speakers we have seen in recent memory.

      Should Rodney Hide have stuck to truck driving?
      No. Parliament would not be the same without him. Nor would Dancing with the Stars.

      Should Captain Beaky ….?
      I suspect you are one of the small minority who don’t like John Key. You are a very rare creature, so you should feel very special.

    • felix 9.2

      eh?

      Lockwood still hosts a game show, doesn’t he?

  10. Ianmac 10

    Good on ya’ Keisha. I wish I was that brave and as Gareth says: “She shouldn’t be told to just stick to her day job. What if Kiwis just stuck at their day jobs and didn’t comment when nuclear ships were still visiting New Zealand, when rugby teams from Apartheid South Africa were playing here or when women didn’t have the vote?”
    So Pat and Mikefor you to be consistent with the PM and Paula and Bill position, stick to your day job and do not have an opinion unless you have a degree on the subject and even then……..

  11. LabourWillBeLiquidated 11

    I like John Key more every day. My message to KCH: “Shut up little girl, get ye back to the kitchen”

    • Derek 11.1

      The ugly face of the right rears its head again. Please leave this one up, Standardistas. People need to see what John Key’s core support looks like.

      • Gordon Shumway 11.1.1

        Take your hand off it, Derek. “Core support” – what do you base that on?

        53% (or thereabouts) support National so that’ll include a fair few dickheads. Even amongst the 30-something percent that will admit to voting Labour, at least some of them are morons too (certainly if some of the posters on this site are in any way indicative).

        • Ron 11.1.1.1

          “53% (or thereabouts) support National so that’ll include a fair few dickheads”…that would be a yes

          • Gordon Shumway 11.1.1.1.1

            Well the swing-voters for starters. They tend to lose the plot occasionally 🙂

  12. Tigger 12

    Pat, this is farce, yes?

    ‘the best and most fairest Speakers’ – he’s the Speaker mate, not Cinderella.

  13. gingercrush 13

    Does anyone else find it uncanny that many on the left share the same delusions as many on the right felt about Helen Clark? Its unnerving how quickly the left has become delusional about John Key.I suspect when John Key’s tenure ends (however long that will be), many on the left will be as bitter about John Key as the far-right still are about Helen Clark.

  14. Blip:

    he said “she should stick to acting.”

    That is not beating up on a young Maori woman, when did her race come into it?

    • BLiP 14.1

      I’m happy to repeat myself, I often find the Right need to have some things explained over and over again – plus its an important point:

      Why not pick on the more famous Rhys Darby but no, for all his love of the underclass and for all his “celebration of success’ the Goober decides to pick on a young, Maori, sole mother? Classy.

      Neither subject is an acceptable target for John Key’s international ridicule but, you know, just saying . . .

      Why am I not surprised you wish to explore the race issue?

      • Gordon Shumway 14.1.1

        BLiP – there is no race issue here, unless in your world you can never criticize someone who’s not a white middle-class male.

        YOU have brought up Keisha’s race, no-one else. You’re the one who’s seen a Maori actor, when everyone else sees just an actor.

        Stop being a santimonious idiot. You’re the only one being racist on this thread.

  15. graham 15

    i as a tory i upset that you would compare ms clark to the great john key.ms clark has never had a job in the private sector in her life .john on the other hand has untill recently been in the real world.now to all you pinko union loving anti john key people it is important because someone has to provide taxes to support the parasites that are the public service and NGOS .i do support actors and artists sticking their heads up to tell me how to run my life it gives me the chance to avoid giving any of my hard earned cash to those losers

    • gobsmacked 15.1

      Graham, I know you’re really one of the Standard’s writers doing a parody, but anyway …

      FYI: those “losers” have done a huge amount for the NZ economy. Hardly anybody outside this country has heard of John Key. Millions more know the films made in and by New Zealand. Actually, for many people, it’s the only thing they know about New Zealand (to quote John Stewart).

      Tourists visit this country because of LOTR, Whale Rider and countless other successful screen exports. The Minister of Tourism should know this. But he prefers cheap shots.

    • John had a job in the real world? You’ve got to be kidding me.

  16. BR 16

    Climate change activism? Acting?

    What’s the damn difference?

    Bill.

  17. John Dalley 17

    Maori Party a bit quite?
    Not in too much of a hurry to defend a young MAORI mother.

    • BLiP 17.1

      Like the rest of them, ducking for cover after the expenses were made public I suspect. Plus, when have the Maori Party ever stood up against something the sons of their colonial oppressors, National Inc, has to say?

      • indiana 17.1.1

        I’m curious, if the PM was Maori and said this to say Rhys Darby, would have called the Maori PM racist?

  18. In his own logic, Key himself should have stuck to financial philandering.

    Graham – Who the hell would want to work in the private sector in New Zealand – it is poorly paid, there are slim to fuckus chances for promotion, and too many employer/owners have their heads in the sand when it comes to issues like capital investment. Even your hero abandoned NZ for that very reason.

    New Zealand’s savings, and therefore its potential for investment is always going to suck while there are low wages. The last government created a pretty favourable climate for economic development, but many businesses stayed right on the margin, the extent of their largesse being forced upon them by rises in the minimum wage. As if the fucking minimum wage was ambitious.

    The economic model of labour supply is inaccurate to the extent that workers have the power to withdraw labour, and that employers cannot lower wages. This has resulted in a significant market failure – something that if it not fixed, will cost NZ taxpayers billions in subsidies of employers of stingy employers.

  19. Blip

    Rhys Darby more famous than Keisha?

    She is an Oscar nominated actress.

    He has a bit part on a cult tv show.

    I would say she is more well known.

    Please tell me the left is not trying to make this a race thing, oh dear.

    • felix 19.1

      He has a bit part on a cult tv show.

      Eh? I think you mean “a major part in an internationally acclaimed HBO tv show”

      Oh and he did that wee film with Jim Carey too. Just sayin.

      Not meaning to knock Keisha’s achievements at all, I just think you’re being a bit unfair to Rhys there.

    • starboard 19.2

      KKH..never heard of her up until this storm in a tea cup..lets keep it that way…

  20. Deciduous 20

    An echo chamber of fools.

    This siite is very very boring and appears to be a battery farm for labour student activists. But who is grooming who?

  21. TC 21

    Whilst KC-H is misguided, at least she has the guts to put her face and name to what she says, unlike the gutless, nameless, faceless writers of the Standard.

  22. Mac1 22

    TC, the nameless TC….. now what were the other two words? Oh yes, faceless and for three in a row…..

    • TC 22.1

      touche

    • TC 22.2

      BTW, I’m not the one running a political blog funded by the labour party and the union movement 🙂

      [lprent: All money for the site has been funded by me for the nearly two years. Over the last month I’ve also gotten a few contributions by people using the PayPal button (thanks folks).

      On the other hand you just hit one of the auto-bans in the policy. Adding you to the spam queue since it is late and I’m annoyed. Think of it as evolution in action in educating idiots why you don’t insult a sysop. ]

  23. Mac1 23

    TC, I can guess you’re not running a political blog funded by the Labour party and the Union movement. Damned be he who says you are. A liar, Sir, a cad, a bounder.

    Who is?

  24. Craig Glen Eden 24

    Oh the right they are a real bloody think tank are they not. No wonder National have no policy, but who needs policy when you have stars like Melissa Lee and John Key?
    Yup Johns a real great leader a real big man.
    What a piece of shit, funny how he didn’t have much to say up in the Bay of Islands,
    wasn’t so tough or funny up there was he?

  25. felix:

    I like Rhys and I love flight of the concords.

    But it is a cult following, it doesn’t have huge ratings and I think Keisha is the bigger star because of her Oscar nod.

    • felix 25.1

      Oscar? Pfft, Rhys was nominated for a Billy T.

      That’d be quite choice wouldn’t it, a Billy T!

  26. No one comes close to the great Billy T James. Funniest New Zealander Ever!

  27. Jared 27

    Keisha has had her 15 minutes of fame, I hardly think she has the star power of Rhys Darby at the moment though. When John Key said he wanted to hear what the public thought about climate change I hardly think it was synonymous with a meeting with Key. Keisha is neither a scientist or an academic with something meaningful to contribute to Key in a one on one interview other than a bleating heart emotional response that fails to take into account reality. And by reality I mean realistic carbon emission cuts rather than the unrealistic 40% as proposed by Greenpeace. Its a nice thought but it would mean the end of civilisation as we know it interms of simple activities like power generation. I think there is merit in the climate change area, that we are having an impact, but lets be rational about whats achievable and what isn’t, and at the moment, 40% is unachievable.

    • lprent 27.1

      Keisha is neither a scientist or an academic with something meaningful to contribute to Key in a one on one interview other than…

      So? Your point is?

      Key is a moron about science who knows nothing much about anything useful in the field. There would have been no point in putting any scientists or academics conversant with the subject in front of a scientifically clueless PM. He wouldn’t have been able to follow the arguments.

      On the other-hand, he is meant to be a politician who if he wants to stay a politician for say a decade will have to understand the concerns of 19 year old mothers when they are 30. So he proved himself to be incapable of understanding that generation – how predicable. Also that he is no politician because alienating kids who are voters for no gain is just stupid – also how predicable.

      40% is achievable. The greens just released a paper showing a few ways to do it. I wouldn’t agree with a lot of their prescription, but it is do-able.

      What you really mean is that it will be uncomfortable. So is having the weather patterns changing rapidly, refugees arriving in boats from the islands, tariff barriers against do-bugger-all nations like ours, and having your bach washed away.

      If you’re serious about tackling climate change then the best place for NZ to start would be to do the R&D on reducing farts. Thats underway… Ummm nope – the NACT’s in their infinite stupidity cut the FastForward fund. They replaced it with – actually nothing. They just re-announced some existing labour initiatives that budget had already been committed to.

      This pathetic set of sad-sacks couldn’t hit 15%. Not because it is unachievable. But because they are a useless set of know-nothing, do-nothing jerks.. Just like their supporters… umm like you?

      • gingercrush 27.1.1

        Like your friends the Labour Party Iprent. Sorry but they had the money, they had the boom and they completely failed.

  28. Draco T Bastard 28

    Jesus, the shear arrogance of this National government is almost unbelievable but, they are RWNJs that aren’t, any way shape or form, connected to reality so I suppose it’s what you’d expect. Bunch of idiots being idiotic and showing their blissful ignorance.

  29. sausage fingers 29

    You mean “sheer” ignorance. “Shear” ignorance is ignorance about wool removal. I guess Draco jus showed us his or her blissful ignorance.

  30. Mac1 30

    Lynn, re my comment at 7.49- that was a questioning of TC at 7.33 who should have been the target of your sysopsian wrath. He crossed that boundary of questioning the funding of the Standard, presumably, as the “political blog funded by the Labour party and the union movement.”
    I grandiloquently chipped him for his BTW comment and then asked, who is (running such a blog) because I know from years of reading this blog that is a serious breach to asseverate that anybody but yourself funds it.
    Refer to my earlier comment at 7.27 where I chipped TC for attacking Standard posters as nameless, faceless, gutless etc. He immediately conceded the point.
    I think you got the wrong man in your sights, Lynn. As you said, it might have been late.

  31. Deciduous 31

    Slightly too obsequeious Mac1.

  32. Mac1 32

    At least I can spell the word, oh leafless one.

  33. gobsmacked 33

    Hat-tip to the Dim-Post, for outing Hayley Westenra as another on Key’s list of Enemies Within …

    http://www.wen.org.uk/general_pages/matrons.htm#HW

    Stick to singing, etc, etc …

  34. Maggie 34

    Keisha’s response to Key’s attack demonstrates she has far more class than he does.

  35. Mac1 35

    Maybe, but at least I can spell the word 😉

  36. SPC 36

    Do we need a list of occupations which entitle one to an opinion on the issue?

    Or is this simply the PM’s way of saying disagree with your PM and go back to your day jobs, coz there is only one PM.

    Maybe he says go back to being Minister of Finance to people in Cabinet who disagree with him too.

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    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    2 days ago
  • Will debt reduction trump abuse in care redress?

    Luxon speaks in Parliament yesterday about the Abuse in Care report. Photo: Hagen Hopkins/Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:PM Christopher Luxon said yesterday in tabling the Abuse in Care report in Parliament he wanted to ‘do the ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Olywhites and Time Bandits

    About a decade ago I worked with a bloke called Steve. He was the grizzled veteran coder, a few years older than me, who knew where the bodies were buried - code wise. Despite his best efforts to be approachable and friendly he could be kind of gruff, through to ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 days ago
  • Why were the 1930s so hot in North America?

    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Jeff Masters and Bob Henson Those who’ve trawled social media during heat waves have likely encountered a tidbit frequently used to brush aside human-caused climate change: Many U.S. states and cities had their single hottest temperature on record during the 1930s, setting incredible heat marks ...
    2 days ago
  • Throwback Thursday – Thinking about Expressways

    Some of the recent announcements from the government have reminded us of posts we’ve written in the past. Here’s one from early 2020. There were plenty of reactions to the government’s infrastructure announcement a few weeks ago which saw them fund a bunch of big roading projects. One of ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    2 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Thursday, July 25

    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Thursday, July 25 are:News: Why Electric Kiwi is closing to new customers - and why it matters RNZ’s Susan EdmundsScoop: Government drops ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • The Possum: Demon or Friend?

    Hi,I felt a small wet tongue snaking through one of the holes in my Crocs. It explored my big toe, darting down one side, then the other. “He’s looking for some toe cheese,” said the woman next to me, words that still haunt me to this day.Growing up in New ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    2 days ago
  • Not a story

    Yesterday I happily quoted the Prime Minister without fact-checking him and sure enough, it turns out his numbers were all to hell. It’s not four kg of Royal Commission report, it’s fourteen.My friend and one-time colleague-in-comms Hazel Phillips gently alerted me to my error almost as soon as I’d hit ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Thursday, July 25

    TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Thursday, July 25, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day were:The Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquiry published its final report yesterday.PM Christopher Luxon and The Minister responsible for ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • A tougher line on “proactive release”?

    The Official Information Act has always been a battle between requesters seeking information, and governments seeking to control it. Information is power, so Ministers and government agencies want to manage what is released and when, for their own convenience, and legality and democracy be damned. Their most recent tactic for ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago
  • 'Let's build a motorway costing $100 million per km, before emissions costs'

    TL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:Transport and Energy Minister Simeon Brown is accelerating plans to spend at least $10 billion through Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) to extend State Highway One as a four-lane ‘Expressway’ from Warkworth to Whangarei ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • Lester's Prescription – Positive Bleeding.

    I live my life (woo-ooh-ooh)With no control in my destinyYea-yeah, yea-yeah (woo-ooh-ooh)I can bleed when I want to bleedSo come on, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)You can bleed when you want to bleedYea-yeah, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)Everybody bleed when they want to bleedCome on and bleedGovernments face tough challenges. Selling unpopular decisions to ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago
  • Casey Costello gaslights Labour in the House

    Please note:To skip directly to the- parliamentary footage in the video, scroll to 1:21 To skip to audio please click on the headphone icon on the left hand side of the screenThis video / audio section is under development. ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    3 days ago
  • Why is the Texas grid in such bad shape?

    This is a re-post from the Climate Brink by Andrew Dessler Headline from 2021 The Texas grid, run by ERCOT, has had a rough few years. In 2021, winter storm Uri blacked out much of the state for several days. About a week ago, Hurricane Beryl knocked out ...
    3 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on a textbook case of spending waste by the Luxon government

    Given the crackdown on wasteful government spending, it behooves me to point to a high profile example of spending by the Luxon government that looks like a big, fat waste of time and money. I’m talking about the deployment of NZDF personnel to support the US-led coalition in the Red ...
    WerewolfBy lyndon
    3 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Wednesday, July 24

    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:40 am on Wednesday, July 24 are:Deep Dive: Chipping away at the housing crisis, including my comments RNZ/Newsroom’s The DetailNews: Government softens on asset sales, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • LXR Takaanini

    As I reported about the city centre, Auckland’s rail network is also going through a difficult and disruptive period which is rapidly approaching a culmination, this will result in a significant upgrade to the whole network. Hallelujah. Also like the city centre this is an upgrade predicated on the City ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    3 days ago
  • Four kilograms of pain

    Today, a 4 kilogram report will be delivered to Parliament. We know this is what the report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care weighs, because our Prime Minister told us so.Some reporter had blindsided him by asking a question about something done by ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Wednesday, July 24

    TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Wednesday, July 24, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Beehive: Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced plans to use PPPs to fund, build and run a four-lane expressway between Auckland ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • Luxon gets caught out

    NewstalkZB host Mike Hosking, who can usually be relied on to give Prime Minister Christopher Luxon an easy run, did not do so yesterday when he interviewed him about the HealthNZ deficit. Luxon is trying to use a deficit reported last year by HealthNZ as yet another example of the ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    3 days ago
  • A worrying sign

    Back in January a StatsNZ employee gave a speech at Rātana on behalf of tangata whenua in which he insulted and criticised the government. The speech clearly violated the principle of a neutral public service, and StatsNZ started an investigation. Part of that was getting an external consultant to examine ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Are we fine with 47.9% home-ownership by 2048?

    Renting for life: Shared ownership initiatives are unlikely to slow the slide in home ownership by much. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:A Deloitte report for Westpac has projected Aotearoa’s home-ownership rate will ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Let's Win This

    You're broken down and tiredOf living life on a merry go roundAnd you can't find the fighterBut I see it in you so we gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsWe gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsAnd I'll rise upI'll rise like the dayI'll rise upI'll rise unafraidI'll rise upAnd I'll ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago
  • Waimahara: The Singing Spirit of Water

    There’s been a change in Myers Park. Down the steps from St. Kevin’s Arcade, past the grassy slopes, the children’s playground, the benches and that goat statue, there has been a transformation. The underpass for Mayoral Drive has gone from a barren, grey, concrete tunnel, to a place that thrums ...
    Greater AucklandBy Connor Sharp
    4 days ago
  • A major milestone: Global climate pollution may have just peaked

    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections Global society may have finally slammed on the brakes for climate-warming pollution released by human fossil fuel combustion. According to the Carbon Monitor Project, the total global climate pollution released between February and May 2024 declined slightly from the amount released during the same ...
    4 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Tuesday, July 23

    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Tuesday, July 23 are:Deep Dive: Penlink: where tolling rhetoric meets reality BusinessDesk-$$$’s Oliver LewisScoop: Te Pūkenga plans for regional polytechs leak out ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Tuesday, July 23

    TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Tuesday, July 23, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Health: Shane Reti announced the Board of Te Whatu Ora- Health New Zealand was being replaced with Commissioner Lester Levy ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • HealthNZ and Luxon at cross purposes over budget blowout

    Health NZ warned the Government at the end of March that it was running over Budget. But the reasons it gave were very different to those offered by the Prime Minister yesterday. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon blamed the “botched merger” of the 20 District Health Boards (DHBs) to create Health ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    4 days ago
  • 2500-3000 more healthcare staff expected to be fired, as Shane Reti blames Labour for a budget defic...

    Long ReadKey Summary: Although National increased the health budget by $1.4 billion in May, they used an old funding model to project health system costs, and never bothered to update their pre-election numbers. They were told during the Health Select Committees earlier in the year their budget amount was deficient, ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    4 days ago
  • Might Kamala Harris be about to get a 'stardust' moment like Jacinda Ardern?

    As a momentous, historic weekend in US politics unfolded, analysts and commentators grasped for precedents and comparisons to help explain the significance and power of the choice Joe Biden had made. The 46th president had swept the Democratic party’s primaries but just over 100 days from the election had chosen ...
    PunditBy Tim Watkin
    5 days ago
  • Solutions Interview: Steven Hail on MMT & ecological economics

    TL;DR: I’m casting around for new ideas and ways of thinking about Aotearoa’s political economy to find a few solutions to our cascading and self-reinforcing housing, poverty and climate crises.Associate Professor runs an online masters degree in the economics of sustainability at Torrens University in Australia and is organising ...
    The KakaBy Steven Hail
    5 days ago
  • Reported back

    The Finance and Expenditure Committee has reported back on National's Local Government (Water Services Preliminary Arrangements) Bill. The bill sets up water for privatisation, and was introduced under urgency, then rammed through select committee with no time even for local councils to make a proper submission. Naturally, national's select committee ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Vandrad the Viking, Christopher Coombes, and Literary Archaeology

    Some years ago, I bought a book at Dunedin’s Regent Booksale for $1.50. As one does. Vandrad the Viking (1898), by J. Storer Clouston, is an obscure book these days – I cannot find a proper online review – but soon it was sitting on my shelf, gathering dust alongside ...
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell On The Biden Withdrawal

    History is not on the side of the centre-left, when Democratic presidents fall behind in the polls and choose not to run for re-election. On both previous occasions in the past 75 years (Harry Truman in 1952, Lyndon Johnson in 1968) the Democrats proceeded to then lose the White House ...
    WerewolfBy lyndon
    5 days ago
  • Joe Biden's withdrawal puts the spotlight back on Kamala and the USA's complicated relatio...

    This is a free articleCoverageThis morning, US President Joe Biden announced his withdrawal from the Presidential race. And that is genuinely newsworthy. Thanks for your service, President Biden, and all the best to you and yours.However, the media in New Zealand, particularly the 1News nightly bulletin, has been breathlessly covering ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    5 days ago
  • Why we have to challenge our national fiscal assumptions

    A homeless person’s camp beside a blocked-off slipped damage walkway in Freeman’s Bay: we are chasing our tail on our worsening and inter-related housing, poverty and climate crises. Photo: Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Existential Crisis and Damaged Brains

    What has happened to it all?Crazy, some'd sayWhere is the life that I recognise?(Gone away)But I won't cry for yesterdayThere's an ordinary worldSomehow I have to findAnd as I try to make my wayTo the ordinary worldYesterday morning began as many others - what to write about today? I began ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • A speed limit is not a target, and yet…

    This is a guest post from longtime supporter Mr Plod, whose previous contributions include a proposal that Hamilton become New Zealand’s capital city, and that we should switch which side of the road we drive on. A recent Newsroom article, “Back to school for the Govt’s new speed limit policy“, ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    5 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Monday, July 22

    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Monday, July 22 are:Today’s Must Read: Father and son live in a tent, and have done for four years, in a million ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Monday, July 22

    TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Monday, July 22, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:US President Joe Biden announced via X this morning he would not stand for a second term.Multinational professional services firm ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #29

    A listing of 32 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, July 14, 2024 thru Sat, July 20, 2024. Story of the week As reflected by preponderance of coverage, our Story of the Week is Project 2025. Until now traveling ...
    6 days ago
  • I'd like to share what I did this weekend

    This weekend, a friend pointed out someone who said they’d like to read my posts, but didn’t want to pay. And my first reaction was sympathy.I’ve already told folks that if they can’t comfortably subscribe, and would like to read, I’d be happy to offer free subscriptions. I don’t want ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    6 days ago
  • For the children – Why mere sentiment can be a misleading force in our lives, and lead to unex...

    National: The Party of ‘Law and Order’ IntroductionThis weekend, the Government formally kicked off one of their flagship policy programs: a military style boot camp that New Zealand has experimented with over the past 50 years. Cartoon credit: Guy BodyIt’s very popular with the National Party’s Law and Order image, ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    6 days ago
  • A friend in uncertain times

    Day one of the solo leg of my long journey home begins with my favourite sound: footfalls in an empty street. 5.00 am and it’s already light and already too warm, almost.If I can make the train that leaves Budapest later this hour I could be in Belgrade by nightfall; ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago
  • The Chaotic World of Male Diet Influencers

    Hi,We’ll get to the horrific world of male diet influencers (AKA Beefy Boys) shortly, but first you will be glad to know that since I sent out the Webworm explaining why the assassination attempt on Donald Trump was not a false flag operation, I’ve heard from a load of people ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago
  • It's Starting To Look A Lot Like… Y2K

    Do you remember Y2K, the threat that hung over humanity in the closing days of the twentieth century? Horror scenarios of planes falling from the sky, electronic payments failing and ATMs refusing to dispense cash. As for your VCR following instructions and recording your favourite show - forget about it.All ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago
  • Bernard’s Saturday Soliloquy for the week to July 20

    Climate Change Minister Simon Watts being questioned by The Kākā’s Bernard Hickey.TL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 20 were:1. A strategy that fails Zero Carbon Act & Paris targetsThe National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government finally unveiled ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Pharmac Director, Climate Change Commissioner, Health NZ Directors – The latest to quit this m...

    Summary:As New Zealand loses at least 12 leaders in the public service space of health, climate, and pharmaceuticals, this month alone, directly in response to the Government’s policies and budget choices, what lies ahead may be darker than it appears. Tui examines some of those departures and draws a long ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    1 week ago
  • Flooding Housing Policy

    The Minister of Housing’s ambition is to reduce markedly the ratio of house prices to household incomes. If his strategy works it would transform the housing market, dramatically changing the prospects of housing as an investment.Leaving aside the Minister’s metaphor of ‘flooding the market’ I do not see how the ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    1 week ago
  • A Voyage Among the Vandals: Accepted (Again!)

    As previously noted, my historical fantasy piece, set in the fifth-century Mediterranean, was accepted for a Pirate Horror anthology, only for the anthology to later fall through. But in a good bit of news, it turned out that the story could indeed be re-marketed as sword and sorcery. As of ...
    1 week ago
  • The Kākā's Chorus for Friday, July 19

    An employee of tobacco company Philip Morris International demonstrates a heated tobacco device. Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy on Friday, July 19 are:At a time when the Coalition Government is cutting spending on health, infrastructure, education, housing ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Friday, July 19

    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 8:30 am on Friday, July 19 are:Scoop: NZ First Minister Casey Costello orders 50% cut to excise tax on heated tobacco products. The minister has ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Weekly Roundup 19-July-2024

    Kia ora, it’s time for another Friday roundup, in which we pull together some of the links and stories that caught our eye this week. Feel free to add more in the comments! Our header image this week shows a foggy day in Auckland town, captured by Patrick Reynolds. ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    1 week ago
  • Weekly Climate Wrap: A market-led plan for failure

    TL;DR : Here’s the top six items climate news for Aotearoa this week, as selected by Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer. A discussion recorded yesterday is in the video above and the audio of that sent onto the podcast feed.The Government released its draft Emissions Reduction ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Tobacco First

    Save some money, get rich and old, bring it back to Tobacco Road.Bring that dynamite and a crane, blow it up, start all over again.Roll up. Roll up. Or tailor made, if you prefer...Whether you’re selling ciggies, digging for gold, catching dolphins in your nets, or encouraging folks to flutter ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago
  • Trump’s Adopted Son.

    Waiting In The Wings: For truly, if Trump is America’s un-assassinated Caesar, then J.D. Vance is America’s Octavian, the Republic’s youthful undertaker – and its first Emperor.DONALD TRUMP’S SELECTION of James D. Vance as his running-mate bodes ill for the American republic. A fervent supporter of Viktor Orban, the “illiberal” prime ...
    1 week ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Friday, July 19

    TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 19, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:The PSA announced the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) had ruled in the PSA’s favour in its case against the Ministry ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago

  • Joint statement from the Prime Ministers of Canada, Australia and New Zealand

    Australia, Canada and New Zealand today issued the following statement on the need for an urgent ceasefire in Gaza and the risk of expanded conflict between Hizballah and Israel. The situation in Gaza is catastrophic. The human suffering is unacceptable. It cannot continue.  We remain unequivocal in our condemnation of ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    17 hours ago
  • AG reminds institutions of legal obligations

    Attorney-General Judith Collins today reminded all State and faith-based institutions of their legal obligation to preserve records relevant to the safety and wellbeing of those in its care. “The Abuse in Care Inquiry’s report has found cases where records of the most vulnerable people in State and faith‑based institutions were ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    20 hours ago
  • More young people learning about digital safety

    Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government’s online safety website for children and young people has reached one million page views.  “It is great to see so many young people and their families accessing the site Keep It Real Online to learn how to stay safe online, and manage ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    20 hours ago
  • Speech to the Conference for General Practice 2024

    Tēnā tātou katoa,  Ngā mihi te rangi, ngā mihi te whenua, ngā mihi ki a koutou, kia ora mai koutou. Thank you for the opportunity to be here and the invitation to speak at this 50th anniversary conference. I acknowledge all those who have gone before us and paved the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    23 hours ago
  • Employers and payroll providers ready for tax changes

    New Zealand’s payroll providers have successfully prepared to ensure 3.5 million individuals will, from Wednesday next week, be able to keep more of what they earn each pay, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Revenue Minister Simon Watts.  “The Government's tax policy changes are legally effective from Wednesday. Delivering this tax ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Experimental vineyard futureproofs wine industry

    An experimental vineyard which will help futureproof the wine sector has been opened in Blenheim by Associate Regional Development Minister Mark Patterson. The covered vineyard, based at the New Zealand Wine Centre – Te Pokapū Wāina o Aotearoa, enables controlled environmental conditions. “The research that will be produced at the Experimental ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Funding confirmed for regions affected by North Island Weather Events

    The Coalition Government has confirmed the indicative regional breakdown of North Island Weather Event (NIWE) funding for state highway recovery projects funded through Budget 2024, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Regions in the North Island suffered extensive and devastating damage from Cyclone Gabrielle and the 2023 Auckland Anniversary Floods, and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Indonesian Foreign Minister to visit

    Indonesia’s Foreign Minister, Retno Marsudi, will visit New Zealand next week, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced.   “Indonesia is important to New Zealand’s security and economic interests and is our closest South East Asian neighbour,” says Mr Peters, who is currently in Laos to engage with South East Asian partners. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Strengthening partnership with Ngāti Maniapoto

    He aha te kai a te rangatira? He kōrero, he kōrero, he kōrero. The government has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the aspirations of Ngāti Maniapoto, Minister for Māori Development Tama Potaka says. “My thanks to Te Nehenehenui Trust – Ngāti Maniapoto for bringing their important kōrero to a ministerial ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Transport Minister thanks outgoing CAA Chair

    Transport Minister Simeon Brown has thanked outgoing Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority, Janice Fredric, for her service to the board.“I have received Ms Fredric’s resignation from the role of Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority,” Mr Brown says.“On behalf of the Government, I want to thank Ms Fredric for ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Test for Customary Marine Title being restored

    The Government is proposing legislation to overturn a Court of Appeal decision and amend the Marine and Coastal Area Act in order to restore Parliament’s test for Customary Marine Title, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says.  “Section 58 required an applicant group to prove they have exclusively used and occupied ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Opposition united in bad faith over ECE sector review

    Regulation Minister David Seymour says that opposition parties have united in bad faith, opposing what they claim are ‘dangerous changes’ to the Early Childhood Education sector, despite no changes even being proposed yet.  “Issues with affordability and availability of early childhood education, and the complexity of its regulation, has led ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Kiwis having their say on first regulatory review

    After receiving more than 740 submissions in the first 20 days, Regulation Minister David Seymour is asking the Ministry for Regulation to extend engagement on the early childhood education regulation review by an extra two weeks.  “The level of interest has been very high, and from the conversations I’ve been ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Government upgrading Lower North Island commuter rail

    The Coalition Government is investing $802.9 million into the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines as part of a funding agreement with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA), KiwiRail, and the Greater Wellington and Horizons Regional Councils to deliver more reliable services for commuters in the lower North Island, Transport Minister Simeon ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Government moves to ensure flood protection for Wairoa

    Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced his intention to appoint a Crown Manager to both Hawke’s Bay Regional and Wairoa District Councils to speed up the delivery of flood protection work in Wairoa."Recent severe weather events in Wairoa this year, combined with damage from Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023 have ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • PM speech to Parliament – Royal Commission of Inquiry’s Report into Abuse in Care

    Mr Speaker, this is a day that many New Zealanders who were abused in State care never thought would come. It’s the day that this Parliament accepts, with deep sorrow and regret, the Report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care.  At the heart of this report are the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Government acknowledges torture at Lake Alice

    For the first time, the Government is formally acknowledging some children and young people at Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital experienced torture. The final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care “Whanaketia – through pain and trauma, from darkness to light,” was tabled in Parliament ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Government acknowledges courageous abuse survivors

    The Government has acknowledged the nearly 2,400 courageous survivors who shared their experiences during the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State and Faith-Based Care. The final report from the largest and most complex public inquiry ever held in New Zealand, the Royal Commission Inquiry “Whanaketia – through ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Half a million people use tax calculator

    With a week to go before hard-working New Zealanders see personal income tax relief for the first time in fourteen years, 513,000 people have used the Budget tax calculator to see how much they will benefit, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis.  “Tax relief is long overdue. From next Wednesday, personal income ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Paid Parental Leave improvements pass first reading

    Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden says a bill that has passed its first reading will improve parental leave settings and give non-biological parents more flexibility as primary carer for their child. The Regulatory Systems Amendment Bill (No3), passed its first reading this morning. “It includes a change ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Rebuilding the economy through better regulation

    Two Bills designed to improve regulation and make it easier to do business have passed their first reading in Parliament, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. The Regulatory Systems (Economic Development) Amendment Bill and Regulatory Systems (Immigration and Workforce) Amendment Bill make key changes to legislation administered by the Ministry ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
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