Making s%*t up

Written By: - Date published: 8:02 am, March 15th, 2023 - 41 comments
Categories: Dr Deborah Russell, making shit up, Media, spin, tax, the praiseworthy and the pitiful, you couldn't make this shit up - Tags:

Is it just me or is Mike Hosking becoming more unbalanced?

An example from earlier this week came to my attention via this tweet from the excellent Lyin Ex Tobacco Lobbyist. It was based on an interview between Hosking and Chris Hipkins where Hosking attacked Hipkins for planning to introduce a top tax rate of 45c in the dollar based on a speech recently given by Associate Revenue Minister Deborah Russell.

I did what Lyin recommended and read the speech.

Nowhere could I find a suggestion that Russell advocated for a top tax rate of 45c in the dollar.  In face nowhere could I even find a reference to a top tax rate of 45c in the dollar.

Hipkins was clearly bemused at the line of questioning and had no idea what Hosking was referring to.  But Hosking chose to continue to badger Hipkins about a tax policy increase which was not actually announced or even hinted at.

The closest that I could find in the speech to a reference to increasing tax was a comment a the need to make sure that the wealthy pay their fair share of tax.  From the speech:

I do worry about the growing gap between the super wealthy and the rest in New Zealand – and around the world. In fact, it’s a global problem.

Some interesting work is being done looking at effective average tax rates paid by different sections of the population, which I understand will be published in the next few months. The High-Wealth Individuals Research Project looks at the amount of tax that they pay on their economic or comprehensive income. By economic income I mean income including non-taxed gains such as capital gains.

As you know, this is purely a research project and is not connected to Inland Revenue’s compliance function.

What will be interesting is to have a better understanding of how much tax is paid by the wealthy relative to their economic income compared with the middle class. The issue here is to better understand if our tax system is fair – that is, are those with more resources paying a similar or even lower rate of tax than those with fewer resources.

I understand this work also takes account of the impact GST as a proportion of income. I think it’ll be interesting analysis for us to reflect upon.

While not all taxes need to be progressive the overall system should not be regressive. The very wealthy should at least pay the rate middle income earners already pay. It should also be fair between taxpayers of similar means.

I’m looking forward to seeing the conclusions of the High-Wealth Individuals Research Project so we get a better understanding of how progressive our tax system actually is.

Hosking is clearly afraid at the Government performing this analysis, no doubt because it will show that the wealthy are not paying their fair share of tax.  But attacking Hipkins over something that his Minister did not say is a new low.

Lyin has lodged a complaint.  It will be interesting to see how this works out.

41 comments on “Making s%*t up ”

  1. Sanctuary 1

    ZB has had it's credibility badly dented recently with reality intruding into their dollar store Tucker Carlson routine, Hosking is probably feeling the heat. Climate change will do that to a man.

  2. Ad 2

    Well sure but why is Russell doing aspeech on tax when it's not her portfolio?

    Did she not understand what happened to Parker?

    • Sanctuary 2.1

      Probably for the same reason she has been utterly supine on representing her Waitakere constituents in the face of the casual bureaucratic indifference of Waka Kotahi/AT – she is an utterly gormless politician.

      I mean honestly – an actual politician would do a bit of political theatre and turn up at the AT HQ with a film crew in tow and demand to speak to the CEO and get some dates on when her constituents will get their roads repaired, that way she might actually increase her vote share instead of presiding over a steady erosion of Labour loyalty until she goes list only and some right wing populist jerk takes over as local MP.

      • mickysavage 2.1.1

        Bit tough. She has no control over AT who is primarily responsible for this. They have been working on the issue and access has improved considerably.

        • Sanctuary 2.1.1.1

          My view on this is doing nothing on the basis of deference to technocratic areas of responsibility is a bad look that cuts no ice with voters. If you don't want to lose to fake right wing populists who lump you in with the swamp they want to drain, then sometimes even middle class ex-academics have to hold their nose and do a bit of retail politics, political theatre ("I am getting into my car in two weeks and taking my dog for a walk and to buy an icecream in Piha, and if the road isn't open I'd like to see AT try and stop me") and bureaucrat bashing. AT is incompetent and incredibly unpopular with the Auckland public so laying into them in election year wouldn't hurt her re-election chances one little bit and might even get some action.

          Call it Chippie’s law of bread and butter politics.

      • Darien Fenton 2.1.2

        Deborah is my local MP. I have no complaints. I am glad to have a Labour person in my rohe after boundary changes in the past meant I was in a National seat. I deliver leaflets for her which I do voluntarily – doubt you do. I am invited to her LEC meetings and kept informed. But then I guess you have to be actively involved to know what is going on rather than making comments like yours Sanctuary. I think our Labour MPS in the rohe and our Labour Councillors have been utterly brilliant and it’s not always about media opps.

        • Sanctuary 2.1.2.1

          Actually, it is always about media opps. If I were a electorate MP I'd turn up to the opening of an envelope. I remember the days when local MPs would call the mayor on your behalf and give them a serve if your planning permission was unaccountably held up. Local nobs would tut tut at political interference and would moan about it to anyone who would listen, and the locals would adore you and return you with massive majorities. Too often these days our MPs come from the same class as the bureaucrats they are meant to be chastising.

          • Darien Fenton 2.1.2.1.1

            If I were an electorate MP in West Auckland, I would turn up in my gumboots to give a helping hand, as indeed our Westie Labour MPs and local Labour Councillors have been doing, And I would be concentrating on ensuring locals get support through btw those "bureaucrats". I wouldn't waste my time calling Wayne Brown.

      • tWiggle 2.1.3

        Sanctuary, Auckland Transport lists more than 20 road closures in West Auckland. Multiply Karekare times five. Each cut-off community wants things done yesterday. But in a large-scale event like this, they do have to be self-reliant. There is just not enough immediate resource for small communities at the ends of long roads. Repairs, rightly, should prioritise key roads and more densely-populated areas.

        Judging from the post you put up, looks like these communities probably aren't working well together to sort out the important stuff for themselves, like carpooling to minimise road traffic, for city workers, kids to school, and ill people to appointments.

        There was also significant flooding in parts of Henderson, a poorer community. Maybe the Waitakere MP is more focused on helping that group, over people likely to have greater personal resources.

    • mickysavage 2.2

      Why is Russell doing a speech on tax when it's not her portfolio?

      She is associate Minister for Revenue and I am sure the speech was vetted.

  3. Hoskin, Luxon and their ilk work on the principle that once the seed of an idea is planted it will grow and fester in the minds of the easily influenced. Totally unprincipled and lacking in integrity, just rabble-rousers.

    • Tricledrown 3.1

      This tactic has backfired everything Hipkins has done so far shows that he is after the soft National vote Thats why National are trying to portray him as extreme but like Simon Bridges ,Judas Collins it has backfired.Luxon's popularity wanes as he is seen as a perpetual whinger.

    • Thinker 3.2

      Someone once said if you tell a lie that's big enough, people will believe it.

      That seems to be the strategy they're adopting.

      'nuff said.

  4. Tiger Mountain 4

    “Mi–cockskin” has to be one of the most degraded media channel figures to ever operate in this country. An employing class mouth for hire, with an obvious element of sadism in there too.

  5. tWiggle 5

    Like Tucker Carlson, the views he peddles aren't necessarily his own. They come from the media company. His father-in-law, the respected former media journalist Jon Hawkesby, said more or less that when asked how he could tolerate his SIL's opinions. On the other hand, Hoskings takes money, and large lumps of it, to sell nastiness and political slant. That puts him on a similar shelf to WhaleOil.

  6. Ad 6

    You can almost do an Obama-style Angry Obama Shadow to Russell here.

    The great majority of kiwis are terrible at discussing policy. So it is really important to track the content of Minister Russell's words as a growing body of evidence that supports strong progressive changes to the tax sources and income tax brackets:

    "I understand this work also takes account of the impact GST as a proportion of income. I think it’ll be interesting analysis for us to reflect upon."

    The government has essentially become addicted to GST income, and it is like a blood cancer on the poor. We know we need to wean government off it.

    "While not all taxes need to be progressive the overall system should not be regressive. The very wealthy should at least pay the rate middle income earners already pay. It should also be fair between taxpayers of similar means."

    We made a big signal with the harder Bright Line Test, and with the work on Trusts, and with the +$180,000 income rise. But make no mistake we were defeated internally on Capital Gains Tax and we are still coming for the rich if we get the numbers.

    "I’m looking forward to seeing the conclusions of the High-Wealth Individuals Research Project so we get a better understanding of how progressive our tax system actually is."

    Lock and load team we have your names and addresses.

  7. tsmithfield 7

    It is interesting though, that I haven't heard any senior Labour politician rule the idea out yet. I would have thought it would be easy to do this if it was a proposal they weren't even considering and had no intention to impliment.

    For instance, if an interviewer asked out of the blue if they were considering implimenting an 80% tax on income over say $100k, I am sure that would be ruled out straight away without any second thought.

    Time will tell I guess…

    • AB 7.1

      All you are saying is that a 45% rate is within the boundaries of the thinkable for Labour politicians. It implies nothing about whether they will actually do it or not.

      If politicians must now rule out everything that is thinkable for them, it leads to some potentially interesting interview questions for Nat politicians:

      • have you ruled out implementing a flat tax of 15%?
      • have you ruled out lowering the age of criminal responsibility to 10?
      • have you ruled out implementing citizens' patrols that can detain all people on the street who look like they might commit a ram raid?
      • Have you ruled out increasing the qualification age for superannuation to 75?
      • Have you ruled out making unemployment benefits time limited to 3 months?
      • Have you ruled out employers being able to fire at will at any stage of an employee's career?
      • Have you ruled out de-funding humanities education at universities?

      And so on and on. It's not bad as a propaganda technique – make the interviewee rule out something you suspect they are capable of thinking. But it's not something an actual journalist would do. And there you have the explanation – ZB is not a news service, it's a propaganda arm of the National/ACT coalition

      • tsmithfield 7.1.1

        It is probably a moot point. It will obviously become clear at the budget.

        Who knows, for all we know, he might have guessed a number that the government is thinking about.

        The examples you give above sort of make my point really. Most of those are so extreme that they would be ruled out immediately I think. And if they definitely are not in the thinking of a potential National government, I would expect those questions to be ruled out straight away.

        • AB 7.1.1.1

          And if they definitely are not in the thinking of a potential National government, I would expect those questions to be ruled out straight away

          We can always fine-tune the questions, but the intellectual dishonesty of the technique remains the same.

          • tsmithfield 7.1.1.1.1

            But I really don't see why something wouldn't be ruled out if it isn't being considered at all. I don't see any downside to that. Not ruling something out doesn't mean it will happen. But it could mean it is being considered as a possibility.

            • Drowsy M. Kram 7.1.1.1.1.1

              "Not ruling something out" "could mean" whatever one wants it to mean wink

              • tsmithfield

                True enough. But ruling something out is definitive, and leaves no room for doubt.

                • Drowsy M. Kram

                  But ruling something out is definitive, and leaves no room for doubt.

                  Do you mean 'no room for doubt' that it won't happen, or 'no room for doubt' that the pollie/party wants voters to believe that it won't happen?

                  PM defensive after video reveals GST flip-flop
                  Prime Minister John Key has come under fire in Parliament this afternoon after a Herald video revealed he had ruled out a GST rise during his election campaign in 2008.

                  Oh! let us never, never doubt
                  What nobody is sure about! – Belloc (1897)

                  Belloc's poem, "The Microbe", might also be relavent to weka's post.

            • Craig H 7.1.1.1.1.2

              For Labour at least, a lot of party policy comes from the party membership via policy committees and conferences. Ruling something out would be awkward if there is actually being work done on it and it appears in the manifesto. Easier just to not buy into that line of questioning at all.

      • Shanreagh 7.1.2

        Yes it is an unprincipled gotcha type of question and that being the case totally expected from Mr H.

        The asking again and again often makes the person answering look shifty or as if they are covering up something when they cannot answer. In courtrooms for instance some Judges rule that this is badgering the witness.

        I don't know who listens to motomouth (demographics) but presumably it is seen by PM/Labour as being important to be there. Noting that in the end PM Ardern did not think it was worth it.

        I follow LETL on Twitter as well.

        I am glad they are taking a complaint.

    • Incognito 7.2

      Hosking used the pig-fucker trick-argument – denying is losing, silence is losing.

  8. SPC 8

    45%

    Australian income tax rates for 2021–22 (residents)

    Income thresholds
    Rate
    $18,201 – $45,000 19%
    $45,001 – $120,000 32.5%
    $120,001 – $180,000 37%
    $180,001 and over 45%

    It’s Mike Hosking’s guilt – maybe he is on more than $180,000, and we have no CGT, a GST that does not exempt food, nor 3-4% stamp duty on property. He knows the haves are in a different class to those who do not own property. And Oz has fairer rules than we do.

    • Tricledrown 8.1

      Hipkins is the ultimate pragmatist and Narissist Hoskings crying Wolf like Fucker Carlson another Narcissist has been found out .Hoskings the Strawman can't keep lying about Hipkins because as we have seen Hipkins has reset Labour so as not to scare the horses ie middle of the road policies because Hoskings is desperate and has no evidence that Hipkins is non other than a devout centerist.Showing Hoskings the Narcissist frajile ego needs attention of any sort to feed his massively over blown ego so he thinks he is relevent.

  9. OMG Hoskings is a toad.

    The only thing I can think of is that there may have been questions after the speech by Hon Russell and some person has got the wrong end of the stick. I have heard this happen say if someone asked 'if a change to the upper tax rate was being looked at would 45c be the upper rate' or if someone misheard.

  10. newsense 10

    Lying has a cousin in the Auckland Mayor’s office now?
    How much is the conservative movement beholden to the tobacco lobby?

    Did notice that Chris Bishop neglected to tell the Spinoff about his tobacco credentials.

    Is the right’s message really so difficult to take they need people who literally sold death to help spread it?

  11. tc 11

    The title of this post could be there marketing slogan just add ' ….since 2002' when music stations started denting their audience and Paul holmes comes to the rescue amongst others.

    A code of conduct with heavy fines on the management is long overdue to put the onus on the broadcaster. They're the ones deliberately misrepresenting things and abusing their right to broadcast. Mikey does as instructed not that he needs much direction on such matters being very experienced in spin.

  12. Leighton 12

    Busy month for ZB's complaints team. I'm waiting for a response to my complaint about Mike and his wife's deliberate undermining and underplaying of expert advice about Cyclone Gabrielle. I suspect I'm not the only complaint they received about that particular day of broadcasting.

  13. tc 13

    Misinformation firm 'NewsGuard' launches here and in Oz.

    It's given Murdoch's 'Australian' , the ABC and guardian Australia full marks in all 9 criteria it applies…..wow full marks.

    Interested to see how granny, tvnz, tv3 and stuff rate. Imagine what ZB's would be with their roster of spin doctor's.

  14. One Day Calmer will bit Hosking like it did to Carlson Ingram and Hannitt. I can't wait for that day. If can happen Carlson it can happen to Hosking. I think Hosking my aggront now than ever. Can't wait for Hosking Mutch McKay from TVNZ who is advising Luxon and Du Plessis Allan to end up like Carlson Ingram and Hannitt. Christopher Luxon is no better than McCarthy in USA

  15. James Simpson 15

    We can only hope that Hosking is correct.

    That sounds like an excellent tax policy

  16. Peter Bradley 16

    Hoskings is a highly skilled commentator and effective advocate for the political right. He doesn't need to be accurate or truthful because his focus is on motivating his listeners and the voter base of the NActional party.

    Complaining will make no difference and he will continue to make claims about Labour raising taxes. Like most center left party's Labour will attempt to make denials and assurances that it won't raise taxes.

    Instead it could make the case for raising taxes and argue that this is a necessity to support building a future for our children and grandchildren. The economic evidence is there and the advocates and supporters for higher taxes and redistribution are also there. Labour should make the appeal to champagne socialists in NZ – the middle class who are comfortable with paying more – we do exist!

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    .“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
    Frankly SpeakingBy Frank Macskasy
    3 days ago
  • Expert Opinion: Ageing Boomers, Laurie & Les, Talk Politics.
    It hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.”THUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
    3 days ago
  • Manufacturing The Truth.
    Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology – the Internet –  is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
    3 days ago
  • A Powerful Sensation of Déjà Vu.
    Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
    3 days ago
  • Can you guess where world attention is focussed (according to Greenpeace)? It’s focussed on an EPA...
    Bob Edlin writes –  And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago
  • Further integrity problems for the Greens in suspending MP Darleen Tana
    Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago
  • Jacqui Van Der Kaay: Greens’ transparency missing in action
    For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    3 days ago
  • Bernard’s Dawn Chorus with six newsey things at 6:46am for Saturday, March 16
    TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ Herald Thomas Coughlan Simeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • How Did FTX Crash?
    What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    4 days ago
  • Elections in Russia and Ukraine
    Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s six stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15
    TL;DR: Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it:  We want our country to be a ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago
  • National’s clean car tax advances
    The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Government funding bailouts
    Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Two offenders, different treatments.
    See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    4 days ago
  • Treaty references omitted
    Ele Ludemann writes  – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • The Ghahraman Conflict
    What was that judge thinking? Peter Williams writes –  That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 15
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop: Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • The day Wellington up-zoned its future
    Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Weekly Roundup 15-March-2024
    It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    4 days ago
  • That Word.
    Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • The Hoon around the week to March 15
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Labour’s policy gap
    It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #11 2024
    Open access notables A Glimpse into the Future: The 2023 Ocean Temperature and Sea Ice Extremes in the Context of Longer-Term Climate Change, Kuhlbrodt et al., Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society: In the year 2023, we have seen extraordinary extrema in high sea surface temperature (SST) in the North Atlantic and in ...
    5 days ago
  • Melissa remains mute on media matters but has something to say (at a sporting event) about economic ...
     Buzz from the Beehive   The text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary.  It can be quickly analysed ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago
  • The return of Muldoon
    For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Will the rental tax cut improve life for renters or landlords?
    Bryce Edwards writes –  Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: What Saudi Arabia’s rapid changes mean for New Zealand
    Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    5 days ago
  • Racism’s double standards
    Questions need to be asked on both sides of the world Peter Williams writes –   The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • It’s not a tax break
    Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • The Plastic Pig Collective and Chris' Imaginary Friends.
    I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • Who is responsible for young offenders?
    Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on National’s fantasy trip to La La Landlord Land
    How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
    5 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 14
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop: The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • No, Prime Minister, rents don’t rise or fall with landlords’ costs
    TL;DR: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Cartoons: ‘At least I didn’t make things awkward’
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
    5 days ago
  • Solving traffic congestion with Richard Prebble
    The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    5 days ago
  • I Think I'm Done Flying Boeing
    Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago
  • Invoking Aristotle: Of Rings of Power, Stones, and Ships
    The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
    6 days ago
  • Van Velden brings free-market approach to changing labour laws – but her colleagues stick to distr...
    Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • Why Newshub failed
    Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • Māori Party on the warpath against landlords and seabed miners – let’s see if mystical creature...
    Bob Edlin writes  –  The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they  follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago

  • Government moves to quickly ratify the NZ-EU FTA
    "The Government is moving quickly to realise an additional $46 million in tariff savings in the EU market this season for Kiwi exporters,” Minister for Trade and Agriculture, Todd McClay says. Parliament is set, this week, to complete the final legislative processes required to bring the New Zealand – European ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 hours ago
  • Positive progress for social worker workforce
    New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    8 hours ago
  • Minister confirms reduced RUC rate for PHEVs
    Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April.  ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    9 hours ago
  • Trade access to overseas markets creates jobs
    Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand.  Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    10 hours ago
  • NZ and Chinese Foreign Ministers hold official talks
    Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    24 hours ago
  • Kāinga Ora instructed to end Sustaining Tenancies
    Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Speech to Auckland Business Chamber: Growth is the answer
    Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Singapore rounds out regional trip
    Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships.      “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Minister van Velden represents New Zealand at International Democracy Summit
    Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Insurance Council of NZ Speech, 7 March 2024, Auckland
    ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland  Acknowledgements and opening  Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho.  Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau  My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Five-year anniversary of Christchurch terror attacks
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says.  “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024
    Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024  Acknowledgements and opening  Morena, Nga Mihi Nui.  Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau  Good morning. It’s a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Early visit to Indonesia strengthens ties
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asia’s most populous country.   “We are in Jakarta so early in our new government’s term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • China Foreign Minister to visit
    Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week.  “We look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealand’s ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Minister opens new Auckland Rail Operations Centre
    Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. “The recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Auckland’s rail agencies work together to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Celebrating 10 years of Crankworx Rotorua
    The Government is proud to support the 10th edition of Crankworx Rotorua as the Crankworx World Tour returns to Rotorua from 16-24 March 2024, says Minister for Economic Development Melissa Lee.  “Over the past 10 years as Crankworx Rotorua has grown, so too have the economic and social benefits that ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Government delivering on tax commitments
    Legislation implementing coalition Government tax commitments and addressing long-standing tax anomalies will be progressed in Parliament next week, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The legislation is contained in an Amendment Paper to the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill issued today.  “The Amendment Paper represents ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Significant Natural Areas requirement to be suspended
    Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard has today announced that the Government has agreed to suspend the requirement for councils to comply with the Significant Natural Areas (SNA) provisions of the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity for three years, while it replaces the Resource Management Act (RMA).“As it stands, SNAs ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Government classifies drought conditions in Top of the South as medium-scale adverse event
    Agriculture Minister Todd McClay has classified the drought conditions in the Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts as a medium-scale adverse event, acknowledging the challenging conditions facing farmers and growers in the district. “Parts of Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts are in the grip of an intense dry spell. I know ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Government partnership to tackle $332m facial eczema problem
    The Government is helping farmers eradicate the significant impact of facial eczema (FE) in pastoral animals, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced.  “A $20 million partnership jointly funded by Beef + Lamb NZ, the Government, and the primary sector will save farmers an estimated NZD$332 million per year, and aims to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • NZ, India chart path to enhanced relationship
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters has completed a successful visit to India, saying it was an important step in taking the relationship between the two countries to the next level.   “We have laid a strong foundation for the Coalition Government’s priority of enhancing New Zealand-India relations to generate significant future benefit for both countries,” says Mr Peters, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Ruapehu Alpine Lifts bailout the last, say Ministers
    Cabinet has agreed to provide $7 million to ensure the 2024 ski season can go ahead on the Whakapapa ski field in the central North Island but has told the operator Ruapehu Alpine Lifts it is the last financial support it will receive from taxpayers. Cabinet also agreed to provide ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Govt takes action to drive better cancer services
    Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Govt takes action to drive better cancer services
    Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Work begins on SH29 upgrades near Tauriko
    Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Work begins on SH29 upgrades near Tauriko
    Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Fresh produce price drop welcome
    Lower fruit and vegetable prices are welcome news for New Zealanders who have been doing it tough at the supermarket, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Stats NZ reported today the price of fruit and vegetables has dropped 9.3 percent in the 12 months to February 2024.  “Lower fruit and vege ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Statement to the 68th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women
    Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all.  Chair, I am honoured to address the sixty-eighth session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Speech to the 68th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW68)
    Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all.  Chair, I am honoured to address the 68th session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Government backs rural led catchment projects
    The coalition Government is supporting farmers to enhance land management practices by investing $3.3 million in locally led catchment groups, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “Farmers and growers deliver significant prosperity for New Zealand and it’s vital their ongoing efforts to improve land management practices and water quality are supported,” ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Speech to Auckland Business Chamber
    Good evening everyone and thank you for that lovely introduction.   Thank you also to the Honourable Simon Bridges for the invitation to address your members. Since being sworn in, this coalition Government has hit the ground running with our 100-day plan, delivering the changes that New Zealanders expect of us. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Commission’s advice on ETS settings tabled
    Recommendations from the Climate Change Commission for New Zealand on the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) auction and unit limit settings for the next five years have been tabled in Parliament, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “The Commission provides advice on the ETS annually. This is the third time the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Government lowering building costs
    The coalition Government is beginning its fight to lower building costs and reduce red tape by exempting minor building work from paying the building levy, says Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk. “Currently, any building project worth $20,444 including GST or more is subject to the building levy which is ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Trustee tax change welcomed
    Proposed changes to tax legislation to prevent the over-taxation of low-earning trusts are welcome, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The changes have been recommended by Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee following consideration of submissions on the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill. “One of the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Minister’s Ramadan message
    Assalaamu alaikum. السَّلَام عليكم In light of the holy month of Ramadan, I want to extend my warmest wishes to our Muslim community in New Zealand. Ramadan is a time for spiritual reflection, renewed devotion, perseverance, generosity, and forgiveness.  It’s a time to strengthen our bonds and appreciate the diversity ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Minister appoints new NZTA Chair
    Former Transport Minister and CEO of the Auckland Business Chamber Hon Simon Bridges has been appointed as the new Board Chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) for a three-year term, Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced today. “Simon brings extensive experience and knowledge in transport policy and governance to the role. He will ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Speech to Life Sciences Summit
    Good morning all, it is a pleasure to be here as Minister of Science, Innovation and Technology.  It is fantastic to see how connected and collaborative the life science and biotechnology industry is here in New Zealand. I would like to thank BioTechNZ and NZTech for the invitation to address ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
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  • Progress continues apace on water storage
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