Mountain Tui: ‘Corruption First’ Strikes Again – Is the National, ACT, and New Zealand Government in tobacco’s pocket?

Written By: - Date published: 3:53 pm, July 18th, 2024 - 10 comments
Categories: chris bishop, Christopher Luxon, corruption, david seymour, nz first, taxpayers union, Tobacco - Tags: , ,

Cross posted from Mountain Tui‘s substack post.

There comes a point in all our lives when we must stop to say, “Enough is enough. We know what’s happening. We are not as stupid or as ignorant as you believe us to be. And making policies that kill or harm our people is not acceptable, Ministers.”

Plausible deniability has long been used by actors to deny the obvious.

“No, I was not having an affair. I was merely passing by late at night to give advice on pecuniary matters. Did you see us touching? How dare you suggest otherwise?”

The National, New Zealand First and ACT Government’s clear and persistent ties, and work, for the tobacco industry (and let’s be honest, anyone with deep enough pockets to entertain them – developers, miners, fossil fuel, and fisheries) has far exceeded the realms of reasonableness. It did a while ago. But they are not even trying to hide it, are they?

Six months ago, when I connected the clear and present dots between our government and Atlas Network – who are simply a front for a group of very rich people with interests in tobacco, fossil fuels, anti-climate and pro-right wing policies – I knew we were in for some trouble.

But never did I imagine they would be so carelessly corrupt about it all.

This is very obviously taking a leaf from the Tory and Republican playbooks – naturally, perhaps, as ‘think tanks’ are merely fronts for co-ordinated networks who share policies and strategies for each other to replicate.

Act as you will, but deny, obfuscate, and attack if need be. We have enough supporters to get away with this, so long as we can control the narrative, cultivate sufficient doubt, and lay out an excuse to do so.

And it’s true. Brexit, Trump, Tory success in the UK – showed this assessment was accurate.

This Government in NZ, I believe, is continued proof that they know they can do what they want – and get away with it.

Chris Bishop reveals it in this interview. Approximately:

Q: ‘What happens if you make a decision that causes unexpected and huge environmental destruction in our country?’ e.g. TTR who was invited by Chris Bishop for Fast-Track and wants to extract ~50 million tonnes of the seabed each year for 35 years. They would then discharge 45 million tonnes of sediment. Rejected by all our courts for over 10 years!

Approximate answer: ‘Oh well, if you don’t like it, just throw us out in three years. We are doing it anyway.’

Today, RNZ continued to earn their badge of journalism by pointing out that Casey Costello had quietly cut excise taxes on certain tobacco products by 50%.

Costello refused to be interviewed by RNZ, of course (the last time she got caught, she dodged all media and only fronted to Newstalk ZB for a soft ball chat), but was caught in a press conference in her other role as Associate Police Minister.

In that conference, she admitted:

This is the first time any New Zealand Government has ever lowered excise for tobacco in our history

How’s that for top marks, Costello?

She then explained it away as an attempt to help desperately addicted tobacco victims. Except, do we even need to go here to point out the inconsistencies. It’s tiring, National / New Zealand First / ACT.

She had already been told by her own Ministry –

“There is no evidence to support their use as a quit smoking tool. We do not recommend liberalising the way HTPs are promoted. This would likely compound existing concerns about youth uptake and addiction to nicotine products.“

Costello – and this Government – once again insults our intelligence, but more than that, disrespects any notion we are in a genuinely democratic system of government, and not one that’s simply been taken over by neo-liberal corporate interests.

RNZ reports:

“Philip Morris has lobbied for a cut to the excise tax on HTPs, telling the Tax Working Group in 2018 that the government should “establish a tax rate for heated tobacco products significantly below the tax rate” for tobacco.”

Casey is doing their bidding.

I had already covered Costello’s shenanigans last week on a more in-depth post where I pointed out Ministers from each Coalition Government party have now broken the law or lied to the public without contrition or consequence – Casey Costello Strikes Again

There has to be consequences to this type of unmitigated, in-sight, shameless corruption in our Government and country.

Let’s be clear though, this is not the work of some rogue Minister of Government.

When Casey Costello first got caught out, begging for clemency and reduced taxes for the tobacco industry in her Ministerial papers in February, and then lying about it to our national broadcaster, Prime Minister Luxon came out in her defence.

Paul Goldsmith came to her aid. David Seymour said the press was being precious and told right wing radio there was no “undue influence.” Chris Bishop, the lobbyist from Phillip Morris, likewise ignored it but said he thought caffeine was harmful like nicotine.

When Labour called for her resignation and asked her who wrote her Ministerial papers (spoiler: Casey says she still doesn’t know), Gerry Brownlee blocked Hipkins from pursuing the inquiry in Parliament!

Of course. As my other post outlined, they are all in on repeating tobacco lobbyist lines.

Is it any surprise?

We even have a Christian faith, Health Minister trying to dance around it and Cabinet Ministers looking appropriately prepared for the questions –

This time will be no different.

But it should.

It’s clear by now that this Government relies on their segments of popularity, and they only keep that through keeping the majority ignorant of the details.

The steady stream of reductivist actions, negatively impactful policies, anti-climate moves, and pro-donor/corporate dances, are only made possible through a media network that shields the obvious.

When Golriz stole a few dressses, she was hounded for a week. Stuff parked in front of her house to stake her out.

When ram raids were coming down last year, the media hyperventilated about it for a whole week, ignoring the trendline of ram raid decreases, that clearly peaked in 2022 and stabilised to its lows by September 2023.

Yet when this deeply entrenched, corrosive, corrupt-to-the-core business occurs, this Government knows – all they need to do is ride it out. All they have to do is throw out lines attacking Labour, based on their very successful attack strategy, painting Labour as backward, incompetent, wasteful, and racist. All they have to do is rely on a weakened media, and strong corporate media/think tank voices that back them to sow division – enough to keep them strong.

Make no mistake – when public perception and opinion is against the Coalition, they do move (think Premier house, cancer drugs, their reaction to the first 1News poll this year showing they’d be out of Government.) They are not as resilient, courageous, or principled as they pretend to be.

i.e. They are principled for their donors, but they are very afraid of electoral awareness.

Casey’s Ministerial Notes

This is a group effort and decision by ACT, New Zealand First and National – a true Coalition of common interests.

Michelle Obama once said, “When they go low, we go high.”

And that was a fine thing to say, but sometimes, it’s appropriate to point, laugh, and demand action.

Kiwis need to wake each other up to this truth.

PS If anyone is under the impression that Costello is cracking down on vaping in good faith, please read her Ministerial papers. She also appears to have a track record of protecting Philip Morris’s vaping products in particular. i.e Chris Bishop’s past employer.

10 comments on “Mountain Tui: ‘Corruption First’ Strikes Again – Is the National, ACT, and New Zealand Government in tobacco’s pocket? ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. Adrian 1
    18 July 2024 at 4:38 pm

    But why is Costello doing it so blatantly, there has to be a motivation that is more than ideology ? Can there be many if any that work for Big Tobacco just because they think everyone would be better off being a gasper, I don’t think so, I think they are there because it pays well, so again why Costello, it’s hard to think of it as merely appeasing an old employer or ideology and now she is already paid very very well so it must be favours or money, big money and secret. Can it really be corruption ?. Follow the money, a very hard job no doubt because it won’t be crossing those bloodied hands in this country, it will be banked in Switzerland or Bermuda or any number of places. I never thought that politics in NZ would stoop to this.

    • thinker 1.1
      18 July 2024 at 5:39 pm

      The best person to answer that is Mr X from Oliver Stone's JFKk move (based on a real person, btw):

      “Well that's the real question, isn't it? Why? The how and the who is just scenery for the public… Keeps 'em guessing like some kind of parlor game, prevents em from asking the most important question, why? …Who benefited? Who has the power to cover it up? Who?”

    • Mountain Tui 1.2
      18 July 2024 at 5:59 pm

      When health practitioners and others urgently asked this Government to declare their links to the tobacco industry earlier in the year, they ignored it.

      Taxpayers Union is backed by big tobacco. A co-founder of TPU was Chris Bishop's father. Nicola Willis came from New Zealand Initiative, another Atlas Network partner. There's more.

  2. PsyclingLeft.Always 2
    18 July 2024 at 7:16 pm

    "I do not think I've ever discussed tobacco matters with Casey Costello. And I can certainly say she didn't have involvement in any of that fundraising or with those industry members."

    Costello was "too humble to fundraise – she wouldn't close the deal," Williams said.

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/517506/jordan-williams-on-why-the-taxpayers-union-went-to-panama-to-debate-vaping

    Casey Costello wiki:

    notes that Costello sent to health officials on reforming smoke free laws make it clear that a proposed freeze on excise tax for tobacco came from her office. The notes made the case that the tobacco industry is in real financial trouble, claiming "The tobacco industry in New Zealand is on its knees" and comparing the harm from nicotine to the harm from coffee, claiming "Nicotine is as harmful as caffeine.

    WTF !?

    In early April 2024, Costello met with founding members of the non-governmental organisation Vape-Free Kids NZ, who were lobbying the Government to take tougher action to regulate vapes including limiting their sale to vape shops. Vape-Free Kids spokeswoman Marnie Wilton said that Costello was more interested in making vapes accessible than protecting children from nicotine addiction.

    I'm certain of that !

    On 11 July 2024, Costello was rebuked by the Chief Ombudsman Judge Peter Boshier and ordered to apologise to public broadcaster RNZ and University of Otago public health professor Janet Hoek for failing to provide them with Official Information Act (OIA) information about the Government's tobacco and vaping policies. Costello had refused to release any documents, citing a clause in the OIA protecting confidential advice tendered by ministers and officials.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casey_Costello

    Yea Ol' Casey has a real problem answering questions. From RNZ in particular…but any really. That needs to be addressed. Cmon Opposition,shine a very bright light on her and her cancerous cronies !

    To paraphrase the old Nixon tshirt…"would you buy a used anything from NACT1 ? "

  3. gsays 3
    18 July 2024 at 8:22 pm

    "‘Corruption First’ Strikes Again – Is The National, ACT, And New Zealand Government In Tobacco’s Pocket?"

    Clearly, yes.

    To state or opine otherwise is to demonstrate a disconnect with reality.

  4. Mike the Lefty 4
    18 July 2024 at 10:04 pm

    I have to admit that I had never even heard of "heated tobacco" so I did some investigating.

    It appears that apart from the lack of second hand smoke, it is just as addictive and dangerous as normal smoking and because it can be easily flavoured, it is just ripe for marketing to kids and young people.

    For the tobacco companies to market the use of heated tobacco as a safer alternative to smoking shows them in their true light.

    • lprent 4.1
      18 July 2024 at 10:38 pm

      Just like filtered cigarettes, mentholated cigarettes, low-tar cigarettes were all meant to be ‘safer’ than predecessors. Each was proven to effectively have the same addictive behaviours and same chances of injuring and killing the addicted – all for profit.

      I don’t expect anything to be different with vaping nicotine, or now heated tobacco products.

      The only question in my mind is just how corrupt is NZ First and/or Casey Costello?

  5. roblogic 5
    18 July 2024 at 11:32 pm

    WTF is wrong with this government. And how many scandals will the public and the MSM continue to ignore, while shitting themselves over the Green Party?

    It’s still ‘poison’: Australia maintains its permanent prohibition of heated tobacco

    “None of the submissions provided have changed my assessment that nicotine presents a severe hazard from repeated use leading to potential addiction and a significant risk of producing irreversible toxicity, which may involve serious, acute or chronic health risks or death. I am not persuaded that HTPs would not attract ‘never smokers’ including youth,” the secretary’s report concludes. […]

    The industry believed in this process as an opportunity to change the legal path in the country and open the door to tobacco-alternative products, as neighbouring countries such as New Zealand 🙄 have been doing.

    • tc 5.1
      19 July 2024 at 11:48 am

      Its not a government its a coalition of assorted paybacks from the dead rats consumed to gain power.

      They dont care how obvious it looks taking a leaf from the tory playbook.

  6. adam 6
    20 July 2024 at 6:25 pm

    No one is acting against them. They have no fear of the average punter. They know they can do anything, and what, a few will moan on web pages, maybe go on a march, or the like.

    Any talk to financially cripple this government, or the system by working people is not even discussed.

    Talk to withdraw ones labour is effectively illegal.

    Any form of protest apart from the sanctioned kind, is demonised.

    We have a main stream press in the hands of the criminally spinless.

    And quite frankly, we are getting what we deserve for being siloed into polite conversation.