National are scrambling to block the Left’s popular move on affordable housing.
Over at interest.co.nz this is the general reaction ->
“A little too late I think for Key to now bet againsts Labours’ and Greens’ “$300,000 house and cheap housing for life” offer”
“It’s a bit laughable really….National has been paying lip service to housing affordability over last four years…and they’ve probably just seen some results from polling and focus groups saying it’s a big issue and Labour has the edge”
But even more interesting ->
“I don’t hold out much faith. Had someone call in talkback yesterday saying they were at a trade/investor show in China a month or two ago and there was someone there from the NZ Ministry of Economic Development handing out taxpayer-printed glossy brochures touting to wealthy Chinese to invest their money in NZ. Amongst these, above all else there was alarge section encouraging investment in residential property, basically saying how easy and devoid of risk it was.”
Time to slam the door on immigration. Send most of them back to the 3rd World overcrowded, heavily polluted, corrupt, authoritarian hell holes they come from.
They don’t come here to contribute to our society but to take what they can of our dwindling economic pie.
Multiculturalism is an abject failure as admitted by Germany, France and Britain just recently.
There’s a huge difference between multiculturalism and immigrants who come here to make a better life for themselves and foreign investors who have no real care about what happens in New Zealand apart from the money they can make. So let’s not confuse these two things kiwi_prometheus in some sort of racist diatribe that has no basis in reality.
Immigration in itself is not a bad thing as long as government’s aren’t changing the system to disenfranchise local inhabitants in order to promote it. Immigrants who want to integrate themselves into New Zealand and bring additional skills and culture should be welcomed, because without that we will become even more isolated and backwards.
But I digress… What Eddies’s post highlights for me is the complete hospital pass the media has given National concerning their announcement to “reboot” apprenticeships. There’s been no proper analysis of the propaganda and therefore no journalistic integrity within the MSM. The public is largely left believing that National gives a stuff, when the numbers clearly show they don’t.
“The public is largely left believing that National gives a stuff”
I dunno about that, the comments from interest.co.nz suggest there is a lot of skepticism. The public generally are cynical about politicians motives.
“There’s a huge difference between multiculturalism and immigrants who come here to make a better life for themselves and foreign investors who have no real care…Immigrants who want to integrate themselves into New Zealand and bring additional skills and culture should be welcomed…”
There are way too many getting in. Slam the door shut. The issue with rich Chinese investors given the kind of access that exists no where else in the world is just the latest example of what has been going on – with lots of cheer leading from the Multicults.
We need the skills? Train up our kids – 20% unemployed = GREAT DEPRESSION ERA STATS.
Culture? Give me a break – NZ already has a rich culture and history. It needs to be protected not exposed to Globalisation and the teeming billions looking to escape hell on earth.
A few is ok so don’t call me a racist again. But it has gone way, way to far, but the Multicults are blinded by their own sanctimonious rhetoric.
There are way too many getting in. Slam the door shut.
I’m pretty sure there was no net gain in population due to immigration last year. So the problem is too many Kiwi’s leaving and not having children because of economic repression.
Immigration is currently the only way to ensure our population stays the same and this is important because population has a direct impact on the economy. If our population declines too much so will our economy further decline into another recession.
New Zealand has a rich culture, but it can only be enhanced through diversity and multiculturalism. I think you’ll find most New Zealander’s of ethnic origins will not agree with Chinese investors getting a free pass just because they’re greasing the palms of certain National MPs.
Of course the government should be ensuring people have the opportunities available to train here instead of just bringing in foreign workers. That’s obviously a lose lose situation for New Zealand and its population.
“I’m pretty sure there was no net gain in population”
Sure I know, but that doesn’t change the fact there are too many immigrants, especially from Asia.
“too many Kiwi’s leaving and not having children because of economic repression.”
Yep, need to deal with that.
“Immigration is currently the only way to ensure our population stays the same”
So taken to its end logic, all real NZers will be in Australia, while NZ will be over run with immigrants – mostly Asian. They’ll rename it New Asia or something.
Very stupid reason to flood our society with 3rd worlders.
Take a look at Britain, France, Germany – what an epic failure Multiculturalism is there.
“it can only be enhanced through diversity and multiculturalism.”
Only?
No, we need to preserve our Western heritage – there’s only a few million of us, there are literally billions of Asians.
Is China multicultural?
Is Japan multicultural?
Is Indonesia multicultural?
No, they protect their own cultures. Not that anyone from the West would want to live in those overcrowded, polluted, corrupt, racist, authoritarian places even if they did get a genuine invite.
“India and China are the economic powerhouses of the 21st century mate.”
Even if I accept that is the case, how that justifies flooding NZ with 3rd worlders I don’t know.
These “emerging markets” having been doing just that, “emerging”, for how many decades now? China is flat lining – no more crazy growth, rapidly aging population, vast majority of them still on $2 a day or something.
Yeah China went from not being able to manufacture decent steel 40 years ago to manufacturing a million iPhones and iPads a month. Nothing to see here.
India and China are not the economic powerhouses of the 21st century. You’ll find most scholars find it unlikely that China will be able to reach the status of the USA unless it undergoes huge change. It’s political system, economic system in which the middle and low class are suppressed in favour of the big state owned companies, social inequality which will eventually bring conflict and its shot to its own foot in the form of its one child policy that means it now has a huge number of old people and much less youth, all mean that it will struggle to reach super power status. India perhaps could but it has more than a century of work to go to rid itself of corruption and social issues. The 21st century will see the USA decline but no other power will supersede it and the world will be made up of alliances and regional blocs allied to one another.
Do you know that major group of immigrant is from UK and Australia. Do you still want to slam the door shut. What do we do next once we have shut the door about people who are already here?
Houses are expensive in certain places around the country, that is indeed true.
What Labour is proposing is going to drive the house prices significantly, lots and lots of people who currently own a house aren’t going to be too impressed when their one major asset plummets in value.
According to the last census over 1.5 million people own of partially own their own house, that’s a truck load of votes right there.
To put it that into perspective at the last election only 2.2million people voted, threaten the value of peoples one major asset and Labour will be obliterated.
That’s very arguable, as the types of houses Labour’s plan are to build are firmly in the ‘starter’ home segment which is sort of the bottom quartile of houses, where most of the 1.5m who own their own homes, logically only 25% of them fit into that quartile. Furthermore, many of those 1.5m who own homes would like it if their children would move out and buy their own home, and don’t particularly want to act as guarantors on mortgages, so they would likely welcome an expansion in the lower segment of the market.
Really the people who won’t like it are landlords, not owner-occupiers.
You don’t think chucking an extra 100,000 below market value homes into the housing mix won’t have some effect on house prices.
Just raising another point, who do you think that 25% of home owners that you mentioned would vote for?, I’m guessing Labour voters, hmmm bit of a dilemma that.
Also, landlords
You’d be surprised how many are just Mum and Dad investors, trying to build up a nest egg for their retirement.
“You don’t think chucking an extra 100,000 below market value homes into the housing mix won’t have some effect on house prices.”
I hope it does. For too long people having been living in vastly overvalued homes.
Some may well be in negative equity. They will have to accept the market fucked them.
“Also, landlords
You’d be surprised how many are just Mum and Dad investors, trying to build up a nest egg for their retirement.”
That’s relative. I could just as easily be old and very wise, depending on the reference point.
“So a large chunk of home owners are going to see their one major asset decrease in value over the next 5-10 years.”
That’s what happens when the housing market is filled with speculators seeking tax free profits. It goes boom, it goes bust. People get hurt, hence the need for action by the Greens and Labour.
You can hate the equaliser if you like, but it’s greed and money lust that causes the mess.
“Looks like voter poison to me.”
I guess nobody likes being told they were conned, but like Lennon wrote “I tell them there’s no problem, only solutions”.
A transaction tax would have been taking care of the speculators. Equally, taxing the tax haven of trust accounts. However, the generation with none of these luxuries,going into retirement in 10-15 years will be the hardest hit since WWII. If they get a pension it will be too little to live on and too much to die. Any property (most likely the home the person(s) live in) that is now being made worthless takes also the savings away that was to have a greater ROI as any savings account or shares(yes this is the twice burned generation in regards to that investment). So in other words, you just want to have a slice and the people who have saved and not spent their money on takeaways, fast cars, iphones and pods get shafted – once more.
One wonders why bother at all, don’t you?
The housing policy of both the Labour and Green Party’s have been well signaled along with the unaffordability of both buying and renting homes in the areas that will be targeted to build the bulk of the 100,000 homes in,
There will be a 3-5 year time lag between the start of the build and it’s ultimate INTENDED effect becoming apparent in the housing sector, this intended effect is to lower the cost of buying and renting a home,
It then behooves those who would not have property as an investment if the returns of both rentals and capital gains were not on a continuing upward track to divest themselves of such investments should they no longer like the perceived future returns on such investments…
That all depends on how many ignorant money grubbing scum there are who don’t realise there’s not enough houses to accomodate everyone. Some people might even realise there is a housing crisis but not give a damn because it makes them money. These people are traditionally National and Act voters anyway.
The benefits to reducing overcrowding and homelessness will also have flow on effects to home owners, who by and large understand the cost of having a dysfunctional housing system. The market has simply not delivered, and it is well past time that the government did something about it.
“So a large chunk of home owners are going to see their one major asset decrease in value over the next 5-10 years.”
No, the price of houses will stabilise and stop climbing at such an accelerated pace. It is unlikely that house values will fall because of this policy, it simply isn’t large enough to do that.
What is really going to drop house values is when all of these baby boomers try to cash out on the “nest egg for their retirement” at the same time, thus flooding the market with supply.
The market won’t correct itself properly and we will continue to have falling home ownership levels, more overcrowding, increasing homelessness and inadequate housing charged out at exorbitant rates.
Landlords are overwhelmingly professional investors”
In terms of what, houses owned or people? Because like many areas, there will be a small number that own a lot of houses, but most houses that are rentals will be owned by people for whom it is their only rental.
You haven’t established that there will be any pain through devalued house prices. You also need to take into account people who are trying to purchase a new home, so prices plateauing or decreasing will be good for them, but not so good for our Australian owned banks. There will likely be a rebalance to the economy whereby more investment goes to productive industries. So in effect you’re arguing against New Zealands economic recovery… Are you perhaps a National voter BM?
BM, if you have a better solution, or for that matter even a simple alternative plan, to enable a rebalancing the skewed property market values then please share it, we’re all ears.
The issue with house prices is not the house but with the land.
Free up more land, lower consent costs and you’re 90% of the way there.
in 2000, you could pick up an 800sqm section for 50-70k in a good area, that same section is now 1/4 million+.
This is the issue.
Do you have any evidence that the cost per sqm to build houses hasen’t increased much in the last 10 years BM? Or is this just more uneducated waffling?
With overall construction costs in the order of 15-25% lower in Australia, there is clearly a problem with our supply chain here in New Zealand. Once again it’s a problem the market will not fix on its own.
$1,000 per square metre is now at the very lower end of the scale.
If you get a chance look at the Modul House Price Index book and you will see that $1,000 is very low for what is generally expected.
My quote ball park has risen from approx $1100m2 to $1600 m2 between 2000 and 2010.
Note. Back then I could get a house prefabbed in NZ sourced materials in Australia, ship it over here and still undercut NZ materials prices.
We are ripped off for materials in NZ. Houses in oz are about the same money even though Aussie builders earn twice as much as Kiwi ones.
Havn’t done any building for more than three years now. But I expect $1700 per m2 is realistic at the moment.
That rise has all been in materials and council charges. The labour rate has stayed the same against inflation.
Still makes a 100m2 3 bedroom house, in good standard materials about 160k. Even less if we are doing prefab to the same plan and bulk buying materials.
Not 300k as some seem to think.
Of course it will
I was just pointing out the dangers that labour faces with kiwi build and how people may react to it, not so much about keep house prices inflated.
With kiwi build ,Shearer and labour are going to put themselves directly in the firing line of a large % of pissed off home owners and could get politically slaughtered because of it.
While Nationals plan of freeing up land and lowering consent costs will see the councils cop all the flak and they will come away unscathed.
Or perhaps we could become the Iceland of the South Pacific…..
A country that was in the same position as Greece but just chose a different path to deal with it.
Yeah the evil bankers got told to eat shit when they tried to socialise their ponzi scheme losses.
Awesome!
You know it isn’t a half bad idea – imagine if Keys announced on the 6 news tonight that as of tomorrow there will be a 75% capital gains tax on 2nd properties, Reserve Bank directed to block 100%+ mortgages, massive Govt public housing build, streamline local council BS, slam door on immigrants.
Watch the pandemonium break out followed swiftly by real green shoots economy.
Well like I said before, we can keep kicking the can down the road if you like, a slow steady economic decline and stagnation, punctuated by overnight crises and with the constant risk the whistle is blown from outside NZ on the ponzi scheme confidence game.
Or consciously deal with the problem in a timely, considered manner.
None of us are going to be happy that the price of our largest investment/ retirement nest egg has dropped.
Though most of us will get over it when we find that someone in the next generation can, actually, afford to buy our family home, and that beach retirement house no longer costs 550k.
Even though we know it is necessary both economically and socially that land prices reflect the incomes that can be earned from it. (Agricultural land is overvalued also meaning far too much of our farm earnings head offshore as interest).
That is why both Labour and National will not bite the bullet and make sure house prices drop. Easy enough to do. Limit bank lending ratios, limit foreign ownership and supply state housing.
It is better for their election prospects that they can blame “the market”.
The problem is the “market” incentives are all for banks to push land prices upwards, to make sure they continue to get increasing interest income. While we continue to have, effectively, much lower disposable income, because so much is tied up in land.
And. I agree, a “Labour” party should be talking about re-empowering workers to get a fair share of the wealth they create.
Its the rates, every time a discussion like that ensues there is a reversal further down the line. Mostly by the time the local council is advising on the new rates. If that does not happen, the council will have to get the central govt to bail them out. A typical money go round set up. I like to see a/ capital gains tax, b/ trust funds are being taxed normally and c/ local bodies have a very specific field of activity. This would relate to i.e. water, fresh and storm, rubbish, infrastructure such as roading, parks and street lighting etc., whereby parks should be restricted in size otherwise falling under DOC. Most of all, a transparent system that shows where the moneys are going – in detail.
I think restricting foreign ownership has to be more specific. Surely, a family moving into their home is something different than the large farms buy up of recent times. And you are right, banks should have the same criteria for lending money to a ratio that is sustainable – and this should apply for all loans, private and business. No more bailing out.
Since NZ has an insane car culture (foisted on it by oil companies and heavily promoted by the corrupt NZ media) building more roads is obviously a winner.
Never mind that we are living in post Peak Oil world or that we are in the early stages of Abrupt Climate Change, due in a large part to transport emissions.
The profits of corporations comes ahead of everything (well almost everything: obviously the profits of banks and the maintenance of their Ponzi scheme comes first! Without that there would be no backhanders to opportunists like Key.).
Yes, but the public transport is beyond belief compared to overseas. With the 24/7 economy and people living were they can afford to pay the rent no wonder that cars are the main means of transport. PT works on the schedule of school kids more than anybody else. Increasing the frequency and loops/stops would cost too much money. Look at what a train ticket costs. And to top it all off, the no train, no bus days – for what ever reason – is another issue. As long as there is no reliable service that caters to the majority there will be plenty of cars on the road.
“Labour leader David Shearer has conceded his party’s affordable housing policy will only be able to deliver small apartments or terraced housing in Auckland for the $300,000 price tag – while standalone family homes are more likely to cost up to $550,000.”
I doubt that even a terraced house or apartment is a shitty proposition for someone living and working in Auckland without a snowballs chance in hell of buying a home in the current market.
I imagine to them, this will be a dream come true.
Pretty straightforward illustration of why there’s none of the 170,000 jobs promised in Budget 2011.
Actually 170,000 seems to be one of those sticky numbers with that many unemployed and the only plan is an apprenticeship scheme 12 times smaller than the money already taken out of trades training. Is anyone in the MSM counting?
The road transport lobby group is as good as the Italian mafia in getting money out of the government. When I visited Naples years ago I saw useless highways leading to sports stadia, rarely used, and was told that this was built by the local mafia lobby.
There’s no use in training lots of skilled workers – NACT has managed NZ so there is less and less business. The only business that gets talked about is rebuilding after an earthquake, or housing the unfortunate low wage employed, underemployed or unemployed. Apart from dairy and tourism business, and road transport and making, enterprise cannot flourish.
Further the NACTs insist on wrecking businesses and destroying investment as with their mad Picton ferry rerouting idea. An enterprise-rich, profit centre is to be starved of important numbers of visitors for the sake of road transport saving some costs and having shorter trips.
Picton must be retained as it is. Clifford Bay scheme has involved Chinese financiers, and while it may give a testosterone injection to be dealing with big loans with powerful international moneymen, it is not to our advantage as NZs in this case.
Shell, BP, Mobil etc. run the government…… along with the Rothschilds of course. Whichever party is in power.
Monsanto would like a bigger share of the cake and the bought-and-paid-for liars in parliament are in the process of handing Monsanto a bigger share via the ‘Food Safety’ Bill.
Up and coming are various Chinese corporations.
Spread your legs and get raped NZ, it’s good for you.
My worry is that they’re predominently “bottoms” – lubricant or not. There’s the occasional “top” that emerges from time to time – the trouble is – is that they’re total fuckwits – often called Trev!
Yay, using sexual violence as a metaphor for something which isn’t sexual violence, that’s totally awesome and cool and edgy and not dismissive of real victims! Yaaaaaaaay!
Why not show the amount they have ear marked for welfare, corrections, education, health? Or Len’s $2.2bil train set?
Wouldn’t it be more expensive for south Auckland residents to use the existing route to see their mates out West? Don’t the trucks need to move the goods through Otaki for Wellington to dine on?
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As a child in the 1950s, I thought the British had won the Second World War because that’s what all our comics said. Later on, the films and comics told me that the Americans won the war. In my late teens, I found out that the Soviet Union ...
Open access notablesDiurnal Temperature RangeTrends Differ Below and Above the Melting Point, Pithan & Schatt, Geophysical Research Letters:The globally averaged diurnal temperature range (DTR) has shrunk since the mid-20th century, and climate models project further shrinking. Observations indicate a slowdown or reversal of this trend in recent decades. ...
Photo by Jenny Bess on UnsplashCome and join us for our weekly ‘Hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm.Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream for our chat about the week’s news with special guests:5.00 pm - 5.10 pm - Bernard and ...
I was interviewed by Mike Hosking at NewstalkZB and a few other media outlets about the NZSIS Security Threat Report released recently. I have long advocated for more transparency, accountability and oversight of the NZ Intelligence Community, and although the … Continue reading → ...
Home, home again to a long warm embrace. Plenty of reasons to be glad to be back.But also, reasons for dejection.You, yes you, Simeon Brown, you odious little oik, you bible thumping petrol-pandering ratfucker weasel. You would be Reason Number One. Well, maybe first among equals with Seymour and Of-Seymour ...
The government introduced a pretty big piece of constitutional legislation today: the Parliament Bill. But rather than the contentious constitutional change (four year terms) pushed by Labour, this merely consolidates the existing legislation covering Parliament - currently scattered across four different Acts - into one piece of legislation. While I ...
Synopsis:Nicola Willis is seeking a new Treasury Boss after Dr Caralee McLiesh’s tenure ends this month. She didn’t listen to McLiesh. Will she listen to the new one?And why is Atlas Network’s Taxpayers Union chiming in?Please consider subscribing or supporting my work. Thanks, Tui.About CaraleeAt the beginning of July, Newsroom ...
The golden days of profit continue for the the Foodstuffs (Pak’n’Save and New World) and Woolworths supermarket duopoly. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMōrena. Long stories short; here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Thursday, September 5:The Groceries Commissioner has ...
This is a re-post from The Climate Brink by Andrew DesslerI love thermodynamics. Thermodynamics is like your mom: it may not tell you what you can do, but it damn well tells you what you can’t do. I’ve written a few previous posts that include thermodynamics, like one on air capture of ...
The notion of geopolitical “periphery.” The concept of periphery used here refers strictly to what can be called the geopolitical periphery. Being on the geopolitical periphery is an analytic virtue because it makes for more visible policy reform in response … Continue reading → ...
Fill me up with soundThe world sings with me a million smiles an hourI can see me dancing on my radioI can hear you singing in the blades of grassYellow dandelions on my way to schoolBig Beautiful Sky!Song: Venus Hum.Good morning, all you lovely people, and welcome to the 700th ...
Note: The audio attached to this Webworm compliments today’s newsletter. I collected it as I met people attending a Creed concert. Their opinions may differ to mine. Read more ...
The country has imported literally thousands of nurses over the past few months yet whether they are being employed as nurses is another matter. Just what is going on with HealthNZ and it nurses is, at best, opaque, in that it will not release anything but broad general statistics and ...
Emotional Response: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon addresses mourners at the tangi of King Tuheitia on Turangawaewae Marae on Saturday, 31 August 2024.THE DEATH OF KING TUHEITIA could hardly have come at a worse time for Maoridom. The power of the Kingitanga to unify te iwi Māori was demonstrated powerfully at January’s ...
National's tax cut policies relied on stealing revenue from the ETS (previously used to fund emissions reduction) to fund tax cuts to landlords. So how's that going? Badly. Today's auction failed again, with zero units (of a possible 7.6 million) sold. Which means they have a $456 million hole in ...
A question of size. Small size generally means large vulnerability. The perception of threat is broader and often more immediate for small countries. The feeling of comparative weakness, of exposure to risk, and of potential intimidation by larger powers often … Continue reading → ...
Open to all with kind thanks to all subscribers and supporters.Today, RNZ revealed that despite MFAT advice to Nicola Willis to be very “careful and deliberate” in her communications with the South Korean government, prior to any public announcement on cancelling Kiwirail’s i-Rex, Willis instead told South Korea 26 minutes ...
The Minister of Transport’s speed obsession has this week resulted in two new consultations for 110km/h speed limits, one in Auckland and one in Christchurch. There has also been final approval of the Kapiti Expressway to move to 110km/h following an earlier consultation. While the changes will almost certainly see ...
This guest post is by Tommy de Silva, a local rangatahi and freelance writer who is passionate about making the urban fabric of Tāmaki Makaurau-Auckland more people-focused and sustainable. New Zealand’s March-April 2020 Level 4 Covid response (aka “lockdown”) was somehow both the best and worst six weeks of ...
A heart that's full up like a landfillA job that slowly kills youBruises that won't healYou look so tired, unhappyBring down the governmentThey don't, they don't speak for usI'll take a quiet lifeA handshake of carbon monoxideAnd no alarms and no surprisesThe fabulous English comedian Stewart Lee once wrote a ...
Studies show each $1 of spending on walking and cycling infrastructure produces $13 to $35 of economic benefits from higher productivity, lower healthcare costs, less congestion, lower emissions and lower fossil fuel import costs. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMōrena. Long stories short; here’s my top six things to note ...
Dad turned 99 today.Hell of a lot of candles, eh?He won't be alone for his birthday. He will have the warm attention of my brother, and my sister, and everyone at the rest home, the most thoughtful attentive and considerate people you could ever know. On Saturday there will be ...
This project analyzes security politics in three peripheral democracies (Chile, New Zealand, Portugal) during the 30 years after the end of the Cold War. It argues that changes in the geopolitical landscape and geo-strategic context are interpreted differently by small … Continue reading → ...
When the skies are looking bad my dearAnd your heart's lost all its hopeAfter dawn there will be sunshineAnd all the dust will goThe skies will clear my darlingNow it's time for you to let goOur girl will wake you up in the mornin'With some tea and toastLyrics: Lucy Spraggan.Good ...
The Government’s unveiling of its road-building programme yesterday was ambitious and, many would say, long overdue. But the question will be whether it is too ambitious, whether it is affordable, and, if not, what might be dropped. The big ticket items will be the 17 so-called Roads of National Significance. ...
In the late 2000s-early 2010s I was researching and writing a book titled “Security Politics in Peripheral Democracies: Chile, New Zealand and Portugal.” The book was a cross-regional Small-N qualitative comparison of the security strategies and postures of three small … Continue reading → ...
A few months ago, my fellow countryman, HelloFutureMe, put out a giant YouTube video, dissecting what went wrong with the first season of Rings of Power (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJ6FRUO0ui0&t=8376s). It’s an exceptionally good video, and though it spans some two and a half hours, it is well worth your time. But ...
On Friday the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment released their submission on National's second Emissions Reduction Plan, ripping the shit out of it as a massive gamble based on wishful thinking. One of the specific issues he focused on was National's idea of "least cost" emissions reduction, pointing out that ...
On one hand, the Prime Minister has assured Aotearoa that his party will not support the Treaty Principles Bill beyond first reading, but on the other, his Government has already sought advice on holding a referendum on our founding document. ...
New Zealanders needing aged care support and the people who care for them will be worse off if the Government pushes through a flawed and rushed redesign of dementia and aged care. ...
Hundreds of jobs lost as a result of pulp mill closures in the Ruapehu District are a consequence of government inaction in addressing the shortfalls of our electricity network. ...
National Party Ministers have a majority in Cabinet and can stop David Seymour’s Treaty Principles Bill, which even the Prime Minister has described as “divisive and unhelpful.” ...
The National Government is so determined to hide the list of potential projects that will avoid environmental scrutiny it has gagged Ministry for the Environment staff from talking about it. ...
Labour has complained to the Te Kawa Mataaho Public Service Commission about the high number of non-disclosure agreements that have effectively gagged staff at Te Whatu Ora Health NZ from talking about anything relating to their work. ...
The Green Party is once again urging the Prime Minister to abandon the Treaty Principles Bill as a letter from more than 400 Christian leaders calls for the proposed legislation to be dropped. ...
Councils across the country have now decided where they stand regarding Māori wards, with a resounding majority in favour of keeping them in what is a significant setback for the Government. ...
The National-led government has been given a clear message from the local government sector, as almost all councils reject the Government’s bid to treat Māori wards different to other wards. ...
The Green Party is unsurprised but disappointed by today’s announcement from the Government that will see our Early Childhood Centre teachers undermined and pay parity pushed further out of reach. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to intervene in the supermarket duopoly dominating our supply of groceries following today’s report from the Commerce Commission. ...
Labour backs the call from The Rainbow Support Collective members for mental health funding specifically earmarked for grassroots and peer led community organisations to be set up in a way that they are able to access. ...
As expected, the National Land Transport Programme lacks ambition for our cities and our country’s rail network and puts the majority of investment into roads. ...
Tēnā koutou katoa, Thank you for your warm welcome and for having my colleagues and I here today. Earlier you heard from the Labour Leader, Chris Hipkins, on our vision for the future of infrastructure. I want to build on his comments and provide further detail on some key elements ...
The Green Party says the Government’s new National Land Transport Programme marks another missed opportunity to take meaningful action to fight the climate crisis. ...
The Green Party is calling on the public to support the Ngutu Pare Wrybill not just in this year’s Bird of the Year competition but also in pushing back against policies that could lead to the destruction of its habitat and accelerate its extinction. ...
News that the annual number of building consents granted for new homes fell by more than 20 percent for the year ended July 2024, is bad news for the construction industry. ...
Papā te whatitiri, hikohiko te uira, i kanapu ki te rangi, i whētuki i raro rā, rū ana te whenua e. Uea te pou o tōku whare kia tū tangata he kapua whakairi nāku nā runga o Taupiri. Ko taku kiri ka tōkia ki te anu mātao. E te iwi ...
Today’s Whakaata Māori announcement is yet another colossal failure from Minister Potaka, who has turned his back on te reo Māori, forcing a channel offline, putting whānau out of jobs, and cutting Māori content, says Te Pāti Māori. “A Senior Māori Minister has turned his back on Te Reo Māori. ...
With disability communities still reeling from the diminishing of Whaikaha, a leaked document now reveals another blow with National restricting access to residential care homes. ...
Labour is calling on the Government and Mercury Energy to find a solution to the proposed Winstone Pulp mill closure and save 230 manufacturing jobs. ...
The Green Party has called out the Government for allowing Whakaata Māori to effectively collapse to a shell of its former self as job cuts and programming cuts were announced at the broadcaster today. ...
Today New Zealand First has introduced a Member’s Bill that will restore democratic control over transport management in Auckland City by disestablishing Auckland Transport (AT) and returning control to Auckland Council. The ‘Local Government (Auckland Council) (Disestablishment of Auckland Transport) Amendment Bill’ intends to restore democratic oversight, control, and accountability ...
The failure of the Prime Minister to condemn his Minister for personally attacking the judiciary is another example of this Government riding roughshod over important constitutional rules. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader and Member of Parliament for Waiariki, which includes Rotorua, has written to Rotorua Lakes Councillors requesting they immediately stop sewerage piping works at Lake Rotokākahi in Rotorua. “Mana whenua have been urging Rotorua Lakes Council to stop works and look at alternative plans to protect the ...
Patient care could suffer as a result of further cuts to the health system, which could lose thousands of staff who keep our hospitals and clinics running. ...
The Green Party says the latest statistics on child poverty in this country highlight the callous approach that the Government is taking on this issue of national shame. ...
The Green Party is urging the Government to end the use of solitary confinement within our prisons after new research revealed some prisoners have been held in confinement for more than 900 days. ...
The Government’s moves to enable the import of Liquefied Natural Gas is another step away from the sustainable and affordable energy network that this country needs. ...
The Court of Appeal decision that Uber drivers are entitled to employee rights such as minimum wage, sick leave, holiday pay and collective bargaining is welcome news for the drivers involved and their unions. ...
The coalition Government is driving confidence in reading and writing in the first years of schooling. “From the first time children step into the classroom, we’re equipping them and teachers with the tools they need to be brilliant in literacy. “From 1 October, schools and kura with Years 0-3 will receive ...
Labour’s misinformation about firearms law is dangerous and disappointing, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee says. “Labour and Ginny Andersen have repeatedly said over the past few days that the previous Labour Government completely banned semi-automatic firearms in 2019 and that the Coalition Government is planning to ‘reintroduce’ them. ...
The Government is taking immediate action on a number of steps around New Zealand’s response to mpox, including improving access to vaccine availability so people who need it can do so more easily, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti and Associate Health Minister David Seymour announced today. “Mpox is obviously a ...
Associate Justice Minister David Seymour says Cabinet has agreed to the next steps for the Treaty Principles Bill. “The Treaty Principles Bill provides an opportunity for Parliament, rather than the courts, to define the principles of the Treaty, including establishing that every person is equal before the law,” says Mr Seymour. “Parliament ...
Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins today announced a programme to drive Artificial Intelligence (AI) uptake among New Zealand businesses. “The AI Activator will unlock the potential of AI for New Zealand businesses through a range of support, including access to AI research experts, technical assistance, AI tools and resources, ...
The independent rapid review into the Wairoa flooding event on 26 June 2024 has been released, Environment Minister Penny Simmonds, Local Government Minister Simeon Brown and Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell announced today. “We welcome the review’s findings and recommendations to strengthen Wairoa's resilience against future events,” Ms ...
The Government is sending a clear message to central government agencies that they must prioritise paying invoices in a timely manner, Small Business and Manufacturing Minister Andrew Bayly says. Data released today promotes transparency by publishing the payment times of each central government agency. This data will be published quarterly ...
E te māngai o te Whare Pāremata, kua riro māku te whakaputa i te waka ki waho moana. E te Pirimia tēnā koe.Mr Speaker, it is my privilege to take this adjournment kōrero forward. Prime Minister – thank you for your leadership. Taupiri te maunga Waikato te awa Te Wherowhero ...
Inland Revenue can begin processing GST returns for businesses affected by a historic legislative drafting error, Revenue Minister Simon Watts says. “Inland Revenue has become aware of a legislative drafting error in the GST adjustment rules after changes were made in 2023 which were meant to simplify the process. This ...
More than 80 per cent of New Zealand women being tested have opted for a world-leading self-test for cervical screening since it became available a year ago. Minister of Health Dr Shane Reti and Associate Minister Casey Costello, in her responsibility for Women’s Health, say it’s fantastic to have such ...
Regulation Minister David Seymour welcomes the Ministry for Regulation’s first Strategic Intentions document, which sets out how the Ministry will carry out its work and deliver on its purpose. “I have set up the Ministry for Regulation with three tasks. One, to cut existing red tape with sector reviews. Two, ...
The Education Minister has established a Māori Education Ministerial Advisory Group made up of experienced practitioners to help improve outcomes for Māori learners. “This group will provide independent advice on all matters related to Māori education in both English medium and Māori medium settings. It will focus on the most impactful ways we can lift ...
The Government has welcomed the findings of the recent statutory review into the Guardians of New Zealand Superannuation and the New Zealand Superannuation Fund, Minister of Finance Nicola Willis says. The 5-yearly review, conducted on behalf of Treasury and tabled in Parliament today, found the Guardians of New Zealand Superannuation ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins today welcomed the first of five new C-130J-30 Hercules to arrive in New Zealand at a ceremony at the Royal New Zealand Air Force’s Base Auckland, Whenuapai. “This is an historic day for our New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) and our nation. The new Hercules fleet ...
Today, September 10 is World Suicide Prevention Day, a time to reflect on New Zealand’s confronting suicide statistics, Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey says. “Every death by suicide is a tragedy – a tragedy that affects far too many of our families and communities in New Zealand. We must do ...
Scholarships awarded to 27 health care students is another positive step forward to boost the future rural health workforce, Associate Health Minister Matt Doocey says. “All New Zealanders deserve timely access to quality health care and this Government is committed to improving health outcomes, particularly for the one in five ...
Associate Health Minister with responsibility for Pharmac David Seymour has welcomed the increased availability of medicines for Kiwis resulting from the Government’s increased investment in Pharmac. “Pharmac operates independently, but it must work within the budget constraints set by the Government,” says Mr Seymour. “When our Government assumed office, New ...
Sport & Recreation Minister Chris Bishop has congratulated New Zealand's Paralympic Team at the conclusion of the Paralympic Games in Paris. “The NZ Paralympic Team's success in Paris included fantastic performances, personal best times, New Zealand records and Oceania records all being smashed - and of course, many Kiwis on ...
A Crown Response Office is being established within the Public Service Commission to drive the Government’s response to the Royal Commission into Abuse in Care. “The creation of an Office within a central Government agency was a key recommendation by the Royal Commission’s final report. “It will have the mandate ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says passport processing has returned to normal, and the Department of Internal Affairs [Department] is now advising customers to allow up to two weeks to receive their passport. “I am pleased that passport processing is back at target service levels and the Department ...
Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister has today announced three new appointments and one reappointment to the Financial Markets Authority (FMA) board. Tracey Berry, Nicholas Hegan and Mariette van Ryn have been appointed for a five-year term ending in August 2029, while Chris Swasbrook, who has served as a board member ...
Attorney-General Hon Judith Collins today announced the appointment of two new District Court judges. The appointees, who will take up their roles at the Manukau Court and the Auckland Court in the Accident Compensation Appeal Jurisdiction, are: Jacqui Clark Judge Clark was admitted to the bar in 1988 after graduating ...
Associate Minister of Finance David Seymour is encouraged by significant improvements to overseas investment decision timeframes, and the enhanced interest from investors as the Government continues to reform overseas investment. “There were about as many foreign direct investment applications in July and August as there was across the six months ...
New Zealand has accepted an invitation to join US-led multi-national space initiative Operation Olympic Defender, Defence Minister Judith Collins announced today. Operation Olympic Defender is designed to coordinate the space capabilities of member nations, enhance the resilience of space-based systems, deter hostile actions in space and reduce the spread of ...
Biosecurity Minister Andrew Hoggard says that a new economic impact analysis report reinforces this government’s commitment to ‘stamp out’ any New Zealand foot and mouth disease incursion. “The new analysis, produced by the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research, shows an incursion of the disease in New Zealand would have ...
5 September 2024 The Government is progressing further reforms to financial services to make it easier for Kiwis to access finance when they need it, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says. “Financial services are foundational for economic success and are woven throughout our lives. Without access to finance our ...
As Kiingi Tuheitia Pootatau Te Wherowhero VII is laid to rest today, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has paid tribute to a leader whose commitment to Kotahitanga will have a lasting impact on our country. “Kiingi Tuheitia was a humble leader who served his people with wisdom, mana and an unwavering ...
Forestry Minister Todd McClay today announced proposals to reform the resource management system that will provide greater certainty for the forestry sector and help them meet environmental obligations. “The Government has committed to restoring confidence and certainty across the sector by removing unworkable regulatory burden created by the previous ...
A major shake-up of building products which will make it easier and more affordable to build is on the way, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Today we have introduced legislation that will improve access to a wider variety of quality building products from overseas, giving Kiwis more choice and ...
On the occasion of the official visit by the Right Honourable Prime Minister Christopher Luxon of New Zealand to the Republic of Korea from 4 to 5 September 2024, a summit meeting was held between His Excellency President Yoon Suk Yeol of the Republic of Korea (hereinafter referred to as ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Republic of Korea, Yoon Suk Yeol. “Korea and New Zealand are likeminded democracies and natural partners in the Indo Pacific. As such, we have decided to advance discussions on elevating the bilateral relationship to a Comprehensive ...
Results released today from the International Visitor Survey (IVS) confirm international tourism is continuing to bounce back, Tourism and Hospitality Minister Matt Doocey says. The IVS results show that in the June quarter, international tourism contributed $2.6 billion to New Zealand’s economy, an increase of 17 per cent on last ...
The Government is moving to review and update national level policy directives that impact the primary sector, as part of its work to get Wellington out of farming. “The primary sector has been weighed down by unworkable and costly regulation for too long,” Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says. “That is ...
The first annual grocery report underscores the need for reforms to cut red tape and promote competition, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says. “The report paints a concerning picture of the $25 billion grocery sector and reinforces the need for stronger regulatory action, coupled with an ambitious, economy-wide ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour says the Government has listened to the early childhood education sector’s calls to simplify paying ECE relief teachers. Today two simple changes that will reduce red tape for ECEs are being announced, in the run-up to larger changes that will come in time from the ...
Regulation Minister David Seymour says there has been a strong response to the Ministry for Regulation’s public consultation on the early childhood education regulatory review, affirming the need for action in reducing regulatory burden. “Over 2,320 submissions have been received from parents, teachers, centre owners, child advocacy groups, unions, research ...
“The Government is empowering women in the horticulture industry by funding an initiative that will support networking and career progression,” Associate Minister of Agriculture, Nicola Grigg says. “Women currently make up around half of the horticulture workforce, but only 20 per cent of leadership roles which is why initiatives like this ...
The Government will pause the rollout of freshwater farm plans until system improvements are finalised, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay, Environment Minister Penny Simmonds and Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard announced today. “Improving the freshwater farm plan system to make it more cost-effective and practical for farmers is a priority for this ...
Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety Brooke van Velden says yesterday Cabinet reached another milestone on fixing the Holidays Act with approval of the consultation exposure draft of the Bill ready for release next week to participants. “This Government will improve the Holidays Act with the help of businesses, workers, and ...
Toitū te marae a Tāne Mahuta me Hineahuone, toitū te marae a Tangaroa me Hinemoana, toitū te taiao, toitū te tangata. The Government has introduced clear priorities to modernise Te Papa Atawhai - The Department of Conservation’s protection of our natural taonga. “Te Papa Atawhai manages nearly a third of our ...
Tara Ward power ranks week one of Celebrity Treasure Island. Spring has sprung, the sun is shining and Celebrity Treasure Island is back on our screens. A brand new season of the New Zealand reality series began this week, with 18 brave celebrities washing up on an isolated Coromandel beach ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Six of the National Anti-Corruption Commission’s current investigations involve the conduct of current or former parliamentarians, according to statistics about its work released on Wednesday. While the NACC refers to six corruption investigations, it ...
More than 50 former Olympians signed an open letter where they say principles of fairness and safety in sport have been disrespected by Sports New Zealand's principles on inclusion. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle O’Shea, Senior Lecturer, School of Business, Western Sydney University LightField Studios/Shutterstock Time off work to deal with IVF, menopause, gender transition treatments, vasectomies and other reproductive health issues would be enshrined in all workplace awards if a national union campaign ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emma Shortis, Adjunct Senior Fellow, School of Global, Urban and Social Studies, RMIT University Judging debates usually comes down to picking a winner or loser. Seeking a more nuanced approach to the first presidential debate between Republican Donald Trump and Democrat ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexander Howard, Senior Lecturer, Discipline of English and Writing, University of Sydney Phil Erbacher/Ensemble Theatre Born in East Ayrshire in 1909, the Scottish educator and governess Marion Crawford, who trained as a child psychologist, is best remembered – if she is ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emma Shortis, Adjunct Senior Fellow, School of Global, Urban and Social Studies, RMIT University Emma Shortis is senior researcher in international and security affairs at The Australia Institute, an independent think tank.Matthew Ricketson does not work for, consult, own shares ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Simon Robert Knowles, Associate Professor and Clinical Psychologist, Swinburne University of Technology Queensland Health/Instagram For most people, the daily or near-daily ritual of having a bowel motion is not something we give a great deal of thought to. But for some ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amali Cooray, PhD Candidate in Genetic Engineering and Cancer, WEHI (Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research) Pete Hancock/Shutterstock Catherine, Princess of Wales, has announced she has now completed a course of preventive chemotherapy. The news comes nine months after ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Scott Hamilton, Adjunct associate professor, Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Monash University It’s no secret Australia has abundant and cheap renewable energy, especially wind and solar power. But yes, there are times when the sun doesn’t shine and the wind doesn’t ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ella Plumanns Pouton, Researcher in Ecology, The University of Melbourne Fire is a natural part of Australian ecosystems. Many plants have developed ways to adapt and even thrive after fire. They may store their seeds in the soil, ready to sprout after ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Evangeline Mantzioris, Program Director of Nutrition and Food Sciences, Accredited Practising Dietitian, University of South Australia Even the most casual sports fan would have seen athletes gulping down sports drinks after a contest or even snacking on something like a protein ball ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ferdinand Balfoort, PhD Candidate in Law, Charles Darwin University Recent decisions by the Melbourne City and Sunshine Coast councils to end contracts with operators of shared e-scooters have reignited debate around this form of transport. It ticks many sustainability boxes, yet continues ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonathan Barrett, Associate Professor in Commercial Law and Taxation, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington Labour Party leader Chris Hipkins recently revealed the party is looking once again at it’s tax policy, including a possible wealth tax or a “capital ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Wesley Morgan, Research Associate, Institute for Climate Risk and Response, UNSW Sydney chinasong/Shutterstock It’s now very likely Australia will be announced as the host of the COP31 global climate talks in 2026 alongside Pacific nations. This would be a very big ...
Last weekend, Spark Arena hosted Aotearoa’s largest gaming festival. Sam Brooks attended to see what all the fuss was about.“ALL YOUR LIVES HAVE LED TO THIS.”This slogan was emblazoned across multiple screens inside Spark Arena this past Saturday, as a couple thousand people attended the country’s “largest gaming ...
With similar Israel divestment motions having been passed at City of Sydney and Canterbury/Bankstown Councils, many had expected the motion to pass in what is supposed to be one of the most progressive areas of Sydney. Wendy Bacon reports on what went wrong.INVESTIGATION:By Wendy Bacon Israel’s genocidal war ...
In the midst of the most shocking news event of the 21st century, Shortland Street was trying out one of its most bizarre and ambitious storylines ever. There’s a psychological phenomenon around 9/11, where tonnes of people have misremembered where they were when they first heard that a plane hit ...
By Patrick Decloitre, RNZ Pacific correspondent French Pacific desk New Caledonia’s domestic carrier Air Calédonie is set to launch a biweekly international connection to neighbouring Vanuatu. The new link is set to start operating from October 3 with two return flights, one on Mondays and the other on Thursdays. The ...
AI technology is an increasingly common part of many people’s working lives – but not everyone has the opportunity to benefit equally. Dr Jade Brooks tells Alice Webb Liddall about her research into how workplaces can bridge the digital divide. The vision “that all of us have what we need ...
Sascha Stronach (Kāi Tahu), author of The Dawnhounds and The Sunforge, on fighting US editors on matters of New Zealand slang.I had two knockdown dragout fights with my US publisher:they wanted to call me “a bold and important voice in Māori fiction”; they thought “moggy” sounded like ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By William A. Stoltz, Lecturer and expert Associate, National Security College, Australian National University Jenari/Shutterstock The intensifying great power competition between the People’s Republic of China and the United States has meant the possibility of future war in the Indo-Pacific region has ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amanda Lotz, Professor of Media Studies, Queensland University of Technology Stock-Asso/ShutterstockThis is the third piece in a series on the Future of Australian media. You can read the first piece in the series here and the second piece here. ...
The National Emergency Management Agency has just one person dedicated to working on a short-term fix of the disaster coordination system that let people down during Cyclone Gabrielle. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Teresa Ubide, ARC Future Fellow and Associate Professor in Igneous Petrology/Volcanology, The University of Queensland An eruption at Mt Stromboli in Italy.J Caulfield Imagine you had a crystal ball that revealed when a volcano would next erupt. For the hundreds of ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Tregear, Principal Fellow and Professor of Music, The University of Melbourne Regent Theatre, 1954. State Library Victoria The current Lord Mayor of Melbourne, Nicholas Reece, has said that if re-elected he would sell the City of Melbourne’s majority stake in ...
An incomplete collection of memorable Spinoff articles. In 10 years (and one day) The Spinoff has published 28,691 stories. Features, opinion, satire, profiles, experiential stunts and anything else you can think of. There really is no way to define our work but here is a futile attempt to track The ...
National are scrambling to block the Left’s popular move on affordable housing.
Over at interest.co.nz this is the general reaction ->
“A little too late I think for Key to now bet againsts Labours’ and Greens’ “$300,000 house and cheap housing for life” offer”
“It’s a bit laughable really….National has been paying lip service to housing affordability over last four years…and they’ve probably just seen some results from polling and focus groups saying it’s a big issue and Labour has the edge”
But even more interesting ->
“I don’t hold out much faith. Had someone call in talkback yesterday saying they were at a trade/investor show in China a month or two ago and there was someone there from the NZ Ministry of Economic Development handing out taxpayer-printed glossy brochures touting to wealthy Chinese to invest their money in NZ. Amongst these, above all else there was alarge section encouraging investment in residential property, basically saying how easy and devoid of risk it was.”
Time to slam the door on immigration. Send most of them back to the 3rd World overcrowded, heavily polluted, corrupt, authoritarian hell holes they come from.
They don’t come here to contribute to our society but to take what they can of our dwindling economic pie.
Multiculturalism is an abject failure as admitted by Germany, France and Britain just recently.
How about a website called “Asians To Go”, lol.
There’s a huge difference between multiculturalism and immigrants who come here to make a better life for themselves and foreign investors who have no real care about what happens in New Zealand apart from the money they can make. So let’s not confuse these two things kiwi_prometheus in some sort of racist diatribe that has no basis in reality.
Immigration in itself is not a bad thing as long as government’s aren’t changing the system to disenfranchise local inhabitants in order to promote it. Immigrants who want to integrate themselves into New Zealand and bring additional skills and culture should be welcomed, because without that we will become even more isolated and backwards.
But I digress… What Eddies’s post highlights for me is the complete hospital pass the media has given National concerning their announcement to “reboot” apprenticeships. There’s been no proper analysis of the propaganda and therefore no journalistic integrity within the MSM. The public is largely left believing that National gives a stuff, when the numbers clearly show they don’t.
“The public is largely left believing that National gives a stuff”
I dunno about that, the comments from interest.co.nz suggest there is a lot of skepticism. The public generally are cynical about politicians motives.
“There’s a huge difference between multiculturalism and immigrants who come here to make a better life for themselves and foreign investors who have no real care…Immigrants who want to integrate themselves into New Zealand and bring additional skills and culture should be welcomed…”
There are way too many getting in. Slam the door shut. The issue with rich Chinese investors given the kind of access that exists no where else in the world is just the latest example of what has been going on – with lots of cheer leading from the Multicults.
We need the skills? Train up our kids – 20% unemployed = GREAT DEPRESSION ERA STATS.
Culture? Give me a break – NZ already has a rich culture and history. It needs to be protected not exposed to Globalisation and the teeming billions looking to escape hell on earth.
A few is ok so don’t call me a racist again. But it has gone way, way to far, but the Multicults are blinded by their own sanctimonious rhetoric.
kiwi_prometheus
I’m pretty sure there was no net gain in population due to immigration last year. So the problem is too many Kiwi’s leaving and not having children because of economic repression.
Immigration is currently the only way to ensure our population stays the same and this is important because population has a direct impact on the economy. If our population declines too much so will our economy further decline into another recession.
New Zealand has a rich culture, but it can only be enhanced through diversity and multiculturalism. I think you’ll find most New Zealander’s of ethnic origins will not agree with Chinese investors getting a free pass just because they’re greasing the palms of certain National MPs.
Of course the government should be ensuring people have the opportunities available to train here instead of just bringing in foreign workers. That’s obviously a lose lose situation for New Zealand and its population.
“I’m pretty sure there was no net gain in population”
Sure I know, but that doesn’t change the fact there are too many immigrants, especially from Asia.
“too many Kiwi’s leaving and not having children because of economic repression.”
Yep, need to deal with that.
“Immigration is currently the only way to ensure our population stays the same”
So taken to its end logic, all real NZers will be in Australia, while NZ will be over run with immigrants – mostly Asian. They’ll rename it New Asia or something.
Very stupid reason to flood our society with 3rd worlders.
Take a look at Britain, France, Germany – what an epic failure Multiculturalism is there.
“it can only be enhanced through diversity and multiculturalism.”
Only?
No, we need to preserve our Western heritage – there’s only a few million of us, there are literally billions of Asians.
Is China multicultural?
Is Japan multicultural?
Is Indonesia multicultural?
No, they protect their own cultures. Not that anyone from the West would want to live in those overcrowded, polluted, corrupt, racist, authoritarian places even if they did get a genuine invite.
India and China are the economic powerhouses of the 21st century mate.
Time to sharpen up your Mandarin.
Oh, and ask your dairy farming mates to start using Kiwi workers, that might help too.
“India and China are the economic powerhouses of the 21st century mate.”
Even if I accept that is the case, how that justifies flooding NZ with 3rd worlders I don’t know.
These “emerging markets” having been doing just that, “emerging”, for how many decades now? China is flat lining – no more crazy growth, rapidly aging population, vast majority of them still on $2 a day or something.
Over hyped.
Yeah China went from not being able to manufacture decent steel 40 years ago to manufacturing a million iPhones and iPads a month. Nothing to see here.
lol
You are avoiding the point.
You obviously aren’t bothered to inform yourself on China’s growth predictions, aging population stats etc.
The US economy still dwarfs all others, even after a generation of economic decline.
“flooding NZ with 3rd worlders”
You’ve never seen an actual flood have you?
India and China are not the economic powerhouses of the 21st century. You’ll find most scholars find it unlikely that China will be able to reach the status of the USA unless it undergoes huge change. It’s political system, economic system in which the middle and low class are suppressed in favour of the big state owned companies, social inequality which will eventually bring conflict and its shot to its own foot in the form of its one child policy that means it now has a huge number of old people and much less youth, all mean that it will struggle to reach super power status. India perhaps could but it has more than a century of work to go to rid itself of corruption and social issues. The 21st century will see the USA decline but no other power will supersede it and the world will be made up of alliances and regional blocs allied to one another.
Even less chance for an agreement on co2 emissions then.
You outline a fairly likely scenario.
Go look at the immigration statistics before you spread your yellow peril nonsense.
Sorry to say but “western” are immigrants to NZ, so square that one away.
A few is ok so don’t call me a racist again
lol
A few is ok so don’t call me a racist again.
So, k_p, you think it’s not racist to just hate “too many” people of colour. Interesting.
A homophobe, a sexist, and now a racist as well. Congratulations Prom, you’ve just won the trifecta.
I wish he really was tied to a rock… I laugh every time I see his name and read his posts (with full knowledge of what Prometheus was known for).
You’d have a hard job finding an eagle desperate enough to touch that one’s liver, though.
Do you know that major group of immigrant is from UK and Australia. Do you still want to slam the door shut. What do we do next once we have shut the door about people who are already here?
Houses are expensive in certain places around the country, that is indeed true.
What Labour is proposing is going to drive the house prices significantly, lots and lots of people who currently own a house aren’t going to be too impressed when their one major asset plummets in value.
According to the last census over 1.5 million people own of partially own their own house, that’s a truck load of votes right there.
To put it that into perspective at the last election only 2.2million people voted, threaten the value of peoples one major asset and Labour will be obliterated.
That’s very arguable, as the types of houses Labour’s plan are to build are firmly in the ‘starter’ home segment which is sort of the bottom quartile of houses, where most of the 1.5m who own their own homes, logically only 25% of them fit into that quartile. Furthermore, many of those 1.5m who own homes would like it if their children would move out and buy their own home, and don’t particularly want to act as guarantors on mortgages, so they would likely welcome an expansion in the lower segment of the market.
Really the people who won’t like it are landlords, not owner-occupiers.
You don’t think chucking an extra 100,000 below market value homes into the housing mix won’t have some effect on house prices.
Just raising another point, who do you think that 25% of home owners that you mentioned would vote for?, I’m guessing Labour voters, hmmm bit of a dilemma that.
Also, landlords
You’d be surprised how many are just Mum and Dad investors, trying to build up a nest egg for their retirement.
“You don’t think chucking an extra 100,000 below market value homes into the housing mix won’t have some effect on house prices.”
I hope it does. For too long people having been living in vastly overvalued homes.
Some may well be in negative equity. They will have to accept the market fucked them.
“Also, landlords
You’d be surprised how many are just Mum and Dad investors, trying to build up a nest egg for their retirement.”
Tax free, Scum suckers.
You must be very young.
“You must be very young.”
That’s relative. I could just as easily be old and very wise, depending on the reference point.
“So a large chunk of home owners are going to see their one major asset decrease in value over the next 5-10 years.”
That’s what happens when the housing market is filled with speculators seeking tax free profits. It goes boom, it goes bust. People get hurt, hence the need for action by the Greens and Labour.
You can hate the equaliser if you like, but it’s greed and money lust that causes the mess.
“Looks like voter poison to me.”
I guess nobody likes being told they were conned, but like Lennon wrote “I tell them there’s no problem, only solutions”.
+1
A transaction tax would have been taking care of the speculators. Equally, taxing the tax haven of trust accounts. However, the generation with none of these luxuries,going into retirement in 10-15 years will be the hardest hit since WWII. If they get a pension it will be too little to live on and too much to die. Any property (most likely the home the person(s) live in) that is now being made worthless takes also the savings away that was to have a greater ROI as any savings account or shares(yes this is the twice burned generation in regards to that investment). So in other words, you just want to have a slice and the people who have saved and not spent their money on takeaways, fast cars, iphones and pods get shafted – once more.
One wonders why bother at all, don’t you?
The housing policy of both the Labour and Green Party’s have been well signaled along with the unaffordability of both buying and renting homes in the areas that will be targeted to build the bulk of the 100,000 homes in,
There will be a 3-5 year time lag between the start of the build and it’s ultimate INTENDED effect becoming apparent in the housing sector, this intended effect is to lower the cost of buying and renting a home,
It then behooves those who would not have property as an investment if the returns of both rentals and capital gains were not on a continuing upward track to divest themselves of such investments should they no longer like the perceived future returns on such investments…
So a large chunk of home owners are going to see their one major asset decrease in value over the next 5-10 years.
Looks like voter poison to me.
That all depends on how many ignorant money grubbing scum there are who don’t realise there’s not enough houses to accomodate everyone. Some people might even realise there is a housing crisis but not give a damn because it makes them money. These people are traditionally National and Act voters anyway.
The benefits to reducing overcrowding and homelessness will also have flow on effects to home owners, who by and large understand the cost of having a dysfunctional housing system. The market has simply not delivered, and it is well past time that the government did something about it.
“So a large chunk of home owners are going to see their one major asset decrease in value over the next 5-10 years.”
No, the price of houses will stabilise and stop climbing at such an accelerated pace. It is unlikely that house values will fall because of this policy, it simply isn’t large enough to do that.
What is really going to drop house values is when all of these baby boomers try to cash out on the “nest egg for their retirement” at the same time, thus flooding the market with supply.
Then why add to the crash with kiwi build, let the market correct itself.
The market won’t correct itself properly and we will continue to have falling home ownership levels, more overcrowding, increasing homelessness and inadequate housing charged out at exorbitant rates.
The Market???? This is why we are in the situation in the first place.
There is no housing crisis in Christchurch. The market will sort it out.
you mean like the market is “correcting” itself in Auckland at the moment?
you must be from the “what’s in it for me?” generation.
A fanatsy, have you any real numbers ?
Landlords are overwhelmingly professional investors
“A fanatsy, have you any real numbers ?
Landlords are overwhelmingly professional investors”
In terms of what, houses owned or people? Because like many areas, there will be a small number that own a lot of houses, but most houses that are rentals will be owned by people for whom it is their only rental.
Well that implies a keep kicking the can down the road strategy.
“Houses are expensive in certain places around the country”
Exactly, so the majority of houses won’t see plummeting values, because they are not nearly as inflated to start with.
The positives of a rebalanced economy will outweigh the short term pain.
As long as it’s not you suffering the pain, it’s all good.
You haven’t established that there will be any pain through devalued house prices. You also need to take into account people who are trying to purchase a new home, so prices plateauing or decreasing will be good for them, but not so good for our Australian owned banks. There will likely be a rebalance to the economy whereby more investment goes to productive industries. So in effect you’re arguing against New Zealands economic recovery… Are you perhaps a National voter BM?
BM, if you have a better solution, or for that matter even a simple alternative plan, to enable a rebalancing the skewed property market values then please share it, we’re all ears.
The issue with house prices is not the house but with the land.
Free up more land, lower consent costs and you’re 90% of the way there.
in 2000, you could pick up an 800sqm section for 50-70k in a good area, that same section is now 1/4 million+.
This is the issue.
IMO a large problem is simply how much building materials cost in NZ compared to Australia and other countries.
Cost per sqm to build has hardly changed in the last 10 years, it’s land prices that have risen dramatically.
Do you have any evidence that the cost per sqm to build houses hasen’t increased much in the last 10 years BM? Or is this just more uneducated waffling?
With overall construction costs in the order of 15-25% lower in Australia, there is clearly a problem with our supply chain here in New Zealand. Once again it’s a problem the market will not fix on its own.
10 years ago, the rough price to build a house was around $1000 per square meter.
So you can get me a 300 m2 house built for $300K in Auckland?
Sweet! I got a bit of land and consents all ready to go. Who do I call?
Isn’t that the figure being quoted for Kiwi build.
$1,000 per square metre is now at the very lower end of the scale.
If you get a chance look at the Modul House Price Index book and you will see that $1,000 is very low for what is generally expected.
Wellington region January 2002: $978 – $1061 /Msq
Wellington region July 2012: $1634 – $1795 /Msq
Not true.
My quote ball park has risen from approx $1100m2 to $1600 m2 between 2000 and 2010.
Note. Back then I could get a house prefabbed in NZ sourced materials in Australia, ship it over here and still undercut NZ materials prices.
We are ripped off for materials in NZ. Houses in oz are about the same money even though Aussie builders earn twice as much as Kiwi ones.
Havn’t done any building for more than three years now. But I expect $1700 per m2 is realistic at the moment.
That rise has all been in materials and council charges. The labour rate has stayed the same against inflation.
Still makes a 100m2 3 bedroom house, in good standard materials about 160k. Even less if we are doing prefab to the same plan and bulk buying materials.
Not 300k as some seem to think.
Won’t this also devalue the current housing stock, that was so important to you at 10.00am, or have you changed your mind?
lol
Of course it will
I was just pointing out the dangers that labour faces with kiwi build and how people may react to it, not so much about keep house prices inflated.
With kiwi build ,Shearer and labour are going to put themselves directly in the firing line of a large % of pissed off home owners and could get politically slaughtered because of it.
While Nationals plan of freeing up land and lowering consent costs will see the councils cop all the flak and they will come away unscathed.
“As long as it’s not you suffering the pain, it’s all good.”
Still can’t face the issue can you BM?
Want to keep pretending there is no problem, then NZ becomes the Greece of the South Pacific sooner or later.
There will be plenty of pain then, BM.
Or perhaps we could become the Iceland of the South Pacific…..
A country that was in the same position as Greece but just chose a different path to deal with it.
Yeah the evil bankers got told to eat shit when they tried to socialise their ponzi scheme losses.
Awesome!
You know it isn’t a half bad idea – imagine if Keys announced on the 6 news tonight that as of tomorrow there will be a 75% capital gains tax on 2nd properties, Reserve Bank directed to block 100%+ mortgages, massive Govt public housing build, streamline local council BS, slam door on immigrants.
Watch the pandemonium break out followed swiftly by real green shoots economy.
BM has a fair point, are people going to happy about a loss in value to their home/investment ? No there mostly not.
So easy for National to attack this policy when the time comes. Labour would be far better talking about lifting wages, but are they?
Well like I said before, we can keep kicking the can down the road if you like, a slow steady economic decline and stagnation, punctuated by overnight crises and with the constant risk the whistle is blown from outside NZ on the ponzi scheme confidence game.
Or consciously deal with the problem in a timely, considered manner.
Of course not.
None of us are going to be happy that the price of our largest investment/ retirement nest egg has dropped.
Though most of us will get over it when we find that someone in the next generation can, actually, afford to buy our family home, and that beach retirement house no longer costs 550k.
Even though we know it is necessary both economically and socially that land prices reflect the incomes that can be earned from it. (Agricultural land is overvalued also meaning far too much of our farm earnings head offshore as interest).
That is why both Labour and National will not bite the bullet and make sure house prices drop. Easy enough to do. Limit bank lending ratios, limit foreign ownership and supply state housing.
It is better for their election prospects that they can blame “the market”.
The problem is the “market” incentives are all for banks to push land prices upwards, to make sure they continue to get increasing interest income. While we continue to have, effectively, much lower disposable income, because so much is tied up in land.
And. I agree, a “Labour” party should be talking about re-empowering workers to get a fair share of the wealth they create.
NZLP: NZ Liberal Party (hat tip Puddleglum)
Its the rates, every time a discussion like that ensues there is a reversal further down the line. Mostly by the time the local council is advising on the new rates. If that does not happen, the council will have to get the central govt to bail them out. A typical money go round set up. I like to see a/ capital gains tax, b/ trust funds are being taxed normally and c/ local bodies have a very specific field of activity. This would relate to i.e. water, fresh and storm, rubbish, infrastructure such as roading, parks and street lighting etc., whereby parks should be restricted in size otherwise falling under DOC. Most of all, a transparent system that shows where the moneys are going – in detail.
I think restricting foreign ownership has to be more specific. Surely, a family moving into their home is something different than the large farms buy up of recent times. And you are right, banks should have the same criteria for lending money to a ratio that is sustainable – and this should apply for all loans, private and business. No more bailing out.
Councils must help manage, regulate and protect the commons of their local communities. See latest Greer post 🙂
Since NZ has an insane car culture (foisted on it by oil companies and heavily promoted by the corrupt NZ media) building more roads is obviously a winner.
Never mind that we are living in post Peak Oil world or that we are in the early stages of Abrupt Climate Change, due in a large part to transport emissions.
The profits of corporations comes ahead of everything (well almost everything: obviously the profits of banks and the maintenance of their Ponzi scheme comes first! Without that there would be no backhanders to opportunists like Key.).
Yes, but the public transport is beyond belief compared to overseas. With the 24/7 economy and people living were they can afford to pay the rent no wonder that cars are the main means of transport. PT works on the schedule of school kids more than anybody else. Increasing the frequency and loops/stops would cost too much money. Look at what a train ticket costs. And to top it all off, the no train, no bus days – for what ever reason – is another issue. As long as there is no reliable service that caters to the majority there will be plenty of cars on the road.
“Labour leader David Shearer has conceded his party’s affordable housing policy will only be able to deliver small apartments or terraced housing in Auckland for the $300,000 price tag – while standalone family homes are more likely to cost up to $550,000.”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10861855
Yes, National are ‘scrambling’ to block such a shitty policy from Labour.
Also, amount of money spent != better results.
I doubt that even a terraced house or apartment is a shitty proposition for someone living and working in Auckland without a snowballs chance in hell of buying a home in the current market.
I imagine to them, this will be a dream come true.
As a young Cristchurchian affordable housing would be a dream come true.
Pretty straightforward illustration of why there’s none of the 170,000 jobs promised in Budget 2011.
Actually 170,000 seems to be one of those sticky numbers with that many unemployed and the only plan is an apprenticeship scheme 12 times smaller than the money already taken out of trades training. Is anyone in the MSM counting?
The road transport lobby group is as good as the Italian mafia in getting money out of the government. When I visited Naples years ago I saw useless highways leading to sports stadia, rarely used, and was told that this was built by the local mafia lobby.
There’s no use in training lots of skilled workers – NACT has managed NZ so there is less and less business. The only business that gets talked about is rebuilding after an earthquake, or housing the unfortunate low wage employed, underemployed or unemployed. Apart from dairy and tourism business, and road transport and making, enterprise cannot flourish.
Further the NACTs insist on wrecking businesses and destroying investment as with their mad Picton ferry rerouting idea. An enterprise-rich, profit centre is to be starved of important numbers of visitors for the sake of road transport saving some costs and having shorter trips.
Picton must be retained as it is. Clifford Bay scheme has involved Chinese financiers, and while it may give a testosterone injection to be dealing with big loans with powerful international moneymen, it is not to our advantage as NZs in this case.
Shell, BP, Mobil etc. run the government…… along with the Rothschilds of course. Whichever party is in power.
Monsanto would like a bigger share of the cake and the bought-and-paid-for liars in parliament are in the process of handing Monsanto a bigger share via the ‘Food Safety’ Bill.
Up and coming are various Chinese corporations.
Spread your legs and get raped NZ, it’s good for you.
If we go with one of the Left Wing parties, at least they’ll use lubricant.
If you are a white male they won’t.
My worry is that they’re predominently “bottoms” – lubricant or not. There’s the occasional “top” that emerges from time to time – the trouble is – is that they’re total fuckwits – often called Trev!
Yay, using sexual violence as a metaphor for something which isn’t sexual violence, that’s totally awesome and cool and edgy and not dismissive of real victims! Yaaaaaaaay!
++1
What a fantastic graph, Eddie!
Shouldn’t cuts to trade training be shown in the negatives. The others are all positive spending on policy, that ones a reduction in spending.
Why not show the amount they have ear marked for welfare, corrections, education, health? Or Len’s $2.2bil train set?
Wouldn’t it be more expensive for south Auckland residents to use the existing route to see their mates out West? Don’t the trucks need to move the goods through Otaki for Wellington to dine on?
Key forgot to ask those in the trades if they can afford to take on apprentices…. OOPS…