National moves to trash RNZ

Written By: - Date published: 11:00 am, February 18th, 2010 - 111 comments
Categories: Media - Tags: ,

So the Nats are attacking National Radio. It had to happen. Last time the wee blighters were in power they tore down RNZ’s building, locked them into an absurdly expensive lease in an inappropriate building, tried to make them a commercial radio station and pushed to close down the newsroom and make RNZ source its news in from commercial suppliers.

Of course National’s interest in beating RNZ down is two-fold. Firstly RNZ is about the only outlet in the country that offers independent in-depth information on a nationwide level and as such represents a serious threat to National’s fact-free governance (think of how many National ministers have been caught out telling porkies on Checkpoint or Morning Report while other stations just regurgitated their media releases). The other is that RNZ has a market share that could be up to 50% of listeners. There’s a lot to be plundered by National’s private sector mates there (and let’s not forget how Steven Joyce made his dosh).

Let’s be clear about this. Cutting news funding undermines quality. We’ve seen it again and again in commercial media. The problem is we rely on quality news to make sense of what’s going on and to cut through the spin so we can make informed choices about big issues like who we want to govern our country.

By cutting and threatening RNZ, National is undermining one of the most important players in New Zealand’s fourth estate and threatening the democratic accountability it forces.

I recall back in 2007 Jonathan Coleman claiming public broadcasting was akin to North Korean totalitarian propaganda. It seems that the minister isn’t above a little political interference with the independent media himself.

111 comments on “National moves to trash RNZ ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. mickysavage 1
    18 February 2010 at 11:06 am

    The dumbing down process continues.

    I was particulary incensed by Coleman having a go at the Board. They get inadequate funding to do the job properly and then it is implied that they are incompetent because they say so and have research backing them up.

  2. ak 2
    18 February 2010 at 11:14 am

    I think this’ll be a far more concerted effort that “a little political interference” if the track record of the rest of the press (including the Listener) since about 2004 is anything to go by. Looks horribly like the final surge of an ongoing, sophisticated and expensive sub-radar “hearts and minds” campaign by the Marketing Party and its backers.

    Worth defending with intensity – and along with National Parks and A-town Democracy, a convenient, clear-cut rallying point for Labour coming into the crucial Local govt elections.

  3. Macro 3
    18 February 2010 at 11:15 am

    Nact and Coleman’s stance is an absolute OUTRAGE.
    It must be resisted at all costs if we are to have any hope of a democratic society.
    The consequences of Coleman’s proposals will be a complete lack of widespread sensible political debate in this country – which of course is exactly what he wants, because they (NAct and co) know that they are have no answers to the problems facing this country.
    An absolute offence against the people of NZ – they should NOT be interfering with PUBLIC broadcasting in this way.

  4. the sprout 4
    18 February 2010 at 11:20 am

    This is one fight that will end up costing National a LOT more votes than the 250,000 regular listeners to RNZ.

    I’d love to know how much this attack is sponsored by former czar of commercial radio Stephen Joyce and his mates, who despise RNZ because of the amount of high-income audience they pull away from the bullshit commercial outlets. Definitely a story in there somewhere.

    • Tigger 4.1
      18 February 2010 at 11:33 am

      Good point sprout. Also, who benefits from a sale of Concert FM? Not just the competitors but the new buyer…who will likely be a NACT supporter no doubt…

  5. Jake Quinn 5
    18 February 2010 at 11:25 am

    You are right Sprout. Radio NZ is the highest rating radio station in rural NZ. National may pay a price in the regions for this.

    Join this group: “Save Radio New Zealand” http://www.facebook.com/pages/Save-Radio-New-Zealand/312651831782

  6. Scribe 6
    18 February 2010 at 11:28 am

    Readingthis story it appears Coleman is asking Radio NZ to look for areas where costs can be saved.

    I would have thought that was a reasonable question, especially if staff numbers have risen by 25% in 10 years when radio listening is on the decline.

    • Macro 6.1
      18 February 2010 at 11:57 am

      The facts are that there has already been an independent audit of RNZ and it is doing as best it can on the pittance the govt is giving it. Coleman’s insistence on reducing funding further is simply tantamount to pulling the plug on a public service.
      result chaos.
      Anti-spam “chaos”

      • Tigger 6.1.1
        18 February 2010 at 12:04 pm

        Scribe – RNZ offer all their programming online and they’re electronically making their archives available online. That definitely has increased their costs in the past few years and, possibly, added to staff numbers. They don’t get extra credit for this even though it is an extra service.

      • Draco T Bastard 6.1.2
        18 February 2010 at 12:13 pm

        Don’t suppose you’ve got a link to that research?

    • Fisiani 6.2
      18 February 2010 at 1:07 pm

      Especially since there is absolutely no talk of CUTS. Simply living within means for the next 5 years.

      • Macro 6.2.1
        18 February 2010 at 1:17 pm

        What planet are you on Fisiani?

        • Fisiani 6.2.1.1
          18 February 2010 at 6:06 pm

          On Planet Earth there is no talk of funding cuts at RNZ. May I politely ask you to Please point out any such proposal.

          • mickysavage 6.2.1.1.1
            18 February 2010 at 6:39 pm

            If you conveniently ignore a few things I guess you could say this.

            The reality is:

            1. RNZ is already significantly underfunded
            2. With no allowances for increases in wages or expenses this will only get worse.
            3. A 5 year freeze is effectively a cut.

            • Fisiani 6.2.1.1.1.1
              18 February 2010 at 6:53 pm

              So three points but still no actual cuts. Must try harder. Get used to it. Why don’t left wingers ever learn economics . We have to live within our means. We cannot borrow 240m 340m nor 500m

              • The Voice of Reason …
                18 February 2010 at 7:19 pm

                Did you read point 3, Fisi? A failure to keep pace with inflation is an effective cut. 5 years of that underfunding is a going to end RNZ as a popular public broadcaster. And being popular is the problem. The Nats hate that something from the public service could be better than its private alternatives.

              • Fisiani …
                18 February 2010 at 11:13 pm

                Constant funding for RNZ in a time of austerity is a luxury. It is effectively a BOOST in funding from the reality cuts that our economic state actually requires.
                Spending more that we do not have means borrowing more. How many more millions each week would we have to borrow and REPAY to provide a gold medal radio service in a country that is already borrowing $240,000,000 every 7 days. That is over 34,000,000 a day. More than a MILLION DOLLARS extra in debt every hour.
                Thank God we have a Government that actually understands this fundamental issue even if the Chicken Littles ” The sky is falling in” do not.
                It is waste of time to call for more spending which simply means more borrowing.

                • lprent …
                  19 February 2010 at 12:02 am

                  Bill English is the master of stupid figures that sound good but are incorrect. Sounds like you’re stupid enough to swallow his bullshit without checking.

                  In this case, a high proportion of the ‘debt’ is in fact the normal rollover of government debt. Bill English had to admit this after Cunliffe called him for bullshitting. Cunliffe reckoned the actual increase in debt was about $120 million per week. English reckoned it to be about $180 million per week.

                  I’d give you a link, but it’d give you some good linking exercise to find one. Hell I may even regard that as showing improvement..

              • Armchair Critic …
                18 February 2010 at 11:35 pm

                “Constant funding for RNZ in a time of austerity is a luxury”
                A DPS escort to get a haircut is a luxury
                Extra funding for private schools is a luxury
                A “party-central” for the RWC is a luxury
                Roads with B/C’s below 1 out of Wellington and Auckland are a luxury.
                Fucking up local government in Auckland is a luxury
                More measuring at the expense of teaching is a luxury.
                A broadcaster with editorial independence, that is not held in thrall by advertisers and sponsors in not a luxury. At least not on this planet. Which leads back to a previous question – what planet are you on, fisiani?

  7. Evidence-Based Practice 7
    18 February 2010 at 11:28 am

    I had assumed that Jim Mora’s panel was stacked with right-wingers like Michelle Boag in order to keep the Nats on side with NATIONAL public radio.

    • Gosman 7.1
      18 February 2010 at 11:50 am

      So people like Gordon Campbell, Gordon McLaughlan, and Martyn Bradbury are now classified as right-wingers in your world?

      • Cnr Joe 7.1.1
        18 February 2010 at 12:35 pm

        don’t be so wilfully stupid Gosman

        • Sonny Blount 7.1.1.1
          18 February 2010 at 1:13 pm

          “Jim Mora’s panel was stacked with right-wingers”

          And this isn’t willfully stupid?

          • Macro 7.1.1.1.1
            18 February 2010 at 1:36 pm

            Yes. Mora has his token few from the left. Not that I bother with listening to any of it anymore. Started to – couldn’t stand it anymore. Absolute rubbish most of it. Twittering on about something they have no understanding of at all! Waste of time.
            The rest of the programme throughout the day is excellent.

  8. gitmo 8
    18 February 2010 at 11:30 am

    I haven’t caught up with this story …. how are the government “moving to trash RNZ” ?

    • lprent 8.1
      18 February 2010 at 11:42 am

      They are cutting the budget that was already too small. From memory, an audit by one of the accounting firms had already identified that the $30 million required to run national radio was $5 million too short.

      Basically if the budget isn’t increased then national radio will fall over. Coleman (with the private radio operator Joyce lurking behind) want to cut the budget in the select committee today.

      • Lew 8.1.1
        18 February 2010 at 11:45 am

        This is being disguised as “adopting a more modern business model” or somesuch. Because that’ll work.

        L

        • Lew 8.1.1.1
          18 February 2010 at 11:49 am

          For reference, the following back-of-the-envelope calculation:

          $38,000,000 / 4,000,000 / 365 = $0.026. Let’s round that up to $0.03.

          That’s how many cents per day it costs you. Three.

          L

          • Gosman 8.1.1.1.1
            18 February 2010 at 11:57 am

            LOL!!!!

            I just love you calculation methods – back of the envelope indeed!

            Let’s apply that calculation to other stuff shall we?

            $9,300 / 4 million = 0.2325 cents per year is how much it costs you to employ Curia at the DIA

            LOL!!!.

            • Lew 8.1.1.1.1.1
              18 February 2010 at 12:00 pm

              And do you see me begrudging that? I think it’s a non-story. DPF can have my two cents.

              L

            • Bright Red 8.1.1.1.1.2
              18 February 2010 at 12:04 pm

              The problem with Farrar’s polling isn’t the expense, it’s the conflict of interests and ‘jobs for the boys’

              • gitmo …
                18 February 2010 at 12:08 pm

                Um have you looked at the appointments to boards amde by governments over the last say fifty years ?

                Troughing and parliamentarians and their mates go together like tomato sauce and chips, nothing will change until both sides of the political cheer leading spectrum fuck over their own side as mercilessly as they do their opponents.

          • gitmo 8.1.1.1.2
            18 February 2010 at 12:00 pm

            If they want to tighten up the spend in public broadcasting I’d pull some of the money out of TV and put it into RNZ, far better bang for buck I would have thought.

          • Bright Red 8.1.1.1.3
            18 February 2010 at 12:05 pm

            Lew, I was going to use that 3 cents a day to buy pop rocks. I’m sick of you socialists taking away my pop rocks.

  9. Bomber 9
    18 February 2010 at 11:33 am

    It is utterly unacceptable to economically strangle the last publicly funded media bastion of critical thought in this country! National are attacking public institutions on a vast front and the last thing they want is the last standing critical media examination their ill-thought out ideological blitzkrieg.

    http://tumeke.blogspot.com/2010/02/national-to-economically-strangle-radio.html

  10. Lew 10
    18 February 2010 at 11:35 am

    Agreed. National Radio is New Zealand’s news of record — the go-to source which is most strongly trusted and feared by everyone from government and corporations to PRs and other media agencies. It has gotten this was by general adherence to firm, traditional news values and standards: hiring and holding on to good staff, giving them a reasonable degree of autonomy and authority, fearlessly criticising the hand that feeds it as well as all the others who rely on it to set and carry the news agenda, and even being critical of itself when the need arises. It does this on a microscopic budget, without having to tune its content to the whims and schedules and ideological needs of advertisers, and it does so 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and 366 on leap years. It is a model public service newscaster, the like of which only a few countries in the world are fortunate enough to have. It keeps the other media honest and requires them to bring their A game (such as it is) if they are to have any credibility — and imagine what a state we would have in our media establishment if that pressure did not exist. It is a national treasure.

    And that’s just the news department — the other sections are of similar importance, and they do all that and a bag of chips on even less money and fewer staff resources than the news section. There’s not a person working at National Radio who does so for the money — most of the staff, and I would say all of the senior presentation, editorial and production staff, could move on to similar roles on better pay, doing less and easier work and generally getting more recognition. That they don’t is predominantly due to their commitment to a healthy media culture in NZ.

    This service is critical to New Zealand’s democracy and its society, and it should be strengthened, not undermined. I’m not sure if National quite knows what a fight they’ve picked with this one. I grew up listening to National Radio, and I’ve mentioned before that my daughter is does the little Morning Report dance whenever she hears the intro music. It’s part of the fabric of NZ life. New Zealanders love their radio station; just like Australians love their ABC network, and just like the British love the BBC. The government which dismantled either of those would find itself in eternal electoral purgatory. May it be thus here.

    L

    • Cnr Joe 10.2
      18 February 2010 at 12:42 pm

      we will make it be thus.
      bloody groundhog day with this lot

    • Lew 10.3
      19 February 2010 at 9:24 am

      And this interview on Morning Report today is the case in point of why we need NatRad: Geoff Robinson tackles the issue head-on as an important matter of the public interest, plays devil’s advocate and at one point when John Boscawen asks him to say whether he thinks there is a lack of funding, tells him “it’s not my job to defend Radio New Zealand, it’s my job to ask questions of both of you”. Goddamned right.

      I just wish they’d got someone more competent than the hapless Sue Kedgley on, just repeating the same assertion over and again. Boscawen had her for breakfast, and he’s not exactly the sharpest tool in the box.

      L

      • Pascal's bookie 10.3.1
        19 February 2010 at 9:34 am

        Of all the Green Party MP’s to have moved on, Kedgley would have been my favorite.

        The phrase “filling a much needed gap” comes to mind.

        • felix 10.3.1.1
          19 February 2010 at 10:29 am

          Fitzsimons gone, Bradford gone, yet Kedgley still walks the earth.

          It’s the Beatles all over again.

    • Phil O'Brien 10.4
      19 February 2010 at 1:13 pm

      Brilliant. Thank you.

  11. Bomber 11
    18 February 2010 at 11:37 am

    It is utterly unacceptable to economically strangle the last publicly funded media bastion of critical thought in this country! National are attacking public institutions on a vast front and the last thing they want is any critical examination of their ill-thought out ideological blitzkrieg.

    http://tumeke.blogspot.com/2010/02/national-to-economically-strangle-radio.html

  12. Daveo 12
    18 February 2010 at 11:37 am

    Scribe, what happened to staff numbers and resourcing at RNZ in the 9 years previous to that under National? Might want to have a look at that before mindlessly repeating National’s lines.

    The PwC report tells us they’re still 20% underfunded for what they’re supposed to be doing, and that there’s no fat to cut.

  13. richard 13
    18 February 2010 at 11:45 am

    Is Jonathan Coleman trying to blow smoke in the face of Radio NZ?

  14. MikeG 14
    18 February 2010 at 12:09 pm

    Bring back the NZBC! – combine TVNZ and RNZ so that they can share the news gathering services etc., only maintain one website, one HR dept, one Finance dept….

  15. Roflcopter 15
    18 February 2010 at 12:39 pm

    I quite like listening to Radio New Zealand. What I’ve really liked is it’s consistent messages and services year after year.

    Why is it then, that they’ve needed to accumulate approximately 70 extra staff in the space of two or three years, to deliver exactly has they have been doing for decades? That 70(ish) staff increase accounts for approximately 25% of their total staffing. And I would guess that almost none of them are earning less than $70K per year.

    • the sprout 15.1
      18 February 2010 at 12:46 pm

      “I would guess that almost none of them are earning less than $70K per year”

      Which would suggest, Rolfcopter, that when it comes to RNZ at least,
      you wouldn’t know shit from chocolate bro.

      • Lew 15.1.1
        18 February 2010 at 12:51 pm

        I was going to lead off with something like this and then thought, you know, s/he might be genuine. But yeah. The figure rather undermines that thesis.

        L

      • Roflcopter 15.1.2
        18 February 2010 at 1:05 pm

        Which is probably why I mistook you for a Picnic Bar.

    • Lew 15.2
      18 February 2010 at 12:49 pm

      The people you hear are the tip of the iceberg. Behind them is an army of researchers, writers, producers, technicians, fact-checkers, editors, sanity-checkers, field staff, administrators and bean-counters. Most important, though, a news medium is a filtering service to tell you what you need to know. As the amount of news grows, the number of people required to figure out what the public needs to know grows with it. You should be happy that the latter doesn’t grow in line with the former, because if it did we’d need half of Wellington working in the media.

      L

  16. tsmithfield 16
    18 February 2010 at 12:47 pm

    If it was such a shit-hot broadcasting service then it wouldn’t need public funding.

    • Lew 16.1
      18 February 2010 at 12:50 pm

      No, TS, it’s such a shit-hot broadcasting service partly because it isn’t dependent on the goodwill of advertisers for its funding.

      L

    • Bright Red 16.2
      18 February 2010 at 12:53 pm

      TS thinks that good broadcasting services get money from pixies at the bottom of the garden.

      • Lew 16.2.1
        18 February 2010 at 12:57 pm

        If it’s that simple, why doesn’t he get his pop-rocks from the pixies instead of asking Radio NZ to pay for them?

        L

    • lprent 16.3
      18 February 2010 at 1:09 pm

      TS – there are no other broadcasting services worth a damn in NZ in my opinion.

      • Commercial radio is as vacuous as a wingnut troll attempting to discuss science.
      • All TV channels have so much advertising that it is really hard to see the program, and the programs are crap – including the news and current affairs which are too variable to be bothered recording.
      • These days we pretty much rely on DVDs both rented locally and purchased via Amazon for video.
      • The less said about some of the idiotic reporting in the newspapers the better

      Through all of this you can generally rely on the National program to give some real information. Which is of course is why NACT would like it gone. I’d cheerfully scrap all of my tax money sunk into the TV channels and for that matter Maori media and dump it all into the National program.

  17. Daveo 17
    18 February 2010 at 12:48 pm

    Roflcopter. I’d be interested to know where you got your figures from. Are these full time equivalents? And is it two-three years like you say or ten years as your Tory mates have been saying? Do you know what they are doing or is this just your right-wing political prejudices showing through?

    I strongly suspect it’s the latter, as anyone who knows anyone who works at Radio NZ (or as a journalist in general actually) knows there would be few staff on more than $70,000 a year. Generally journalists are paid less than factory workers, it’s only the well known presenters and the managers that get the big salaries.

    Are you aware of the PWC report that said they were 20% underfunded for what they’re doing?

    • Roflcopter 17.1
      18 February 2010 at 2:04 pm

      Go talk to a RNZ Journo, they’ll tell you exactly where the money is being sucked up. And it isn’t being spent on improving the lot of the front-line people responsible for delivering meaningful content, or on researchers etc. It’s all getting top-heavy. And can you say “$2M rebrand is cheap” without keeping a straight face?

      • lprent 17.1.1
        18 February 2010 at 2:25 pm

        And can you say “$2M rebrand is cheap’ without keeping a straight face?

        Paula Bennett can – I listened to her on RNZ yesterday getting done by Annette King about a rebranding exercise of existing social programs yesterday. It was costing a damn sight…. I saw a post about it on Red Alert this morning.

    • gitmo 17.2
      18 February 2010 at 2:21 pm

      Their financial statements are on line.

      267 FTE staff paid collectively 21.4 million per annum (ave just over 80k) with 20 staff on over 100k and only the CEO on over 190k.

  18. mickysavage 18
    18 February 2010 at 1:00 pm

    That funny concept that this current mob are incapable of understanding, the law, is interesting.

    Radio NZ is a creature of statute. It’s charter makes for interesting reading. It states:

    Charter
    (1) The functions of the public radio company shall be to provide innovative, comprehensive, and independent broadcasting services of a high standard and, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, to provide—
    (a) Programmes which contribute towards intellectual, scientific, and cultural, spiritual, and ethical development, promote informed debate, and stimulate critical thought; and
    (b) A range of New Zealand programmes, including information, special interest, and entertainment programmes, and programmes which reflect New Zealand’s cultural diversity, including Maori language and culture; and
    (c) Programmes which provide for varied interests and a full range of age groups within the community, including information, educational, special interest, and entertainment programmes; and
    (d) Programmes which encourage and promote the musical, dramatic, and other performing arts, including programmes featuring New Zealand and international composers, performers, and artists; and
    (e) A nationwide service providing programming of the highest quality to as many New Zealanders as possible, thereby engendering a sense of citizenship and national identity; and
    (f) Comprehensive, independent, impartial, and balanced national news services and current affairs, including items with a regional perspective; and
    (g) Comprehensive, independent, impartial and balanced international news services and current affairs;     and
    (ga) an international radio service to the South Pacific (Radio New Zealand International), which may include a range of programmes in English and Pacific languages; and
    (h) Archiving of programmes which are likely to be of historical interest in New Zealand.

  19. chris 19
    18 February 2010 at 1:06 pm

    i’ve started a facebook group here http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=310373544131&ref=ts

    would be good to start swelling the numbers a bit and spreading the word

    happy to make anyone keen an admin

  20. Classical Liberal 20
    18 February 2010 at 2:40 pm

    When the taxpayer pays around $35 million for anything it’s reasonable for their elected representatives to ask hard questions about how well that money is being spent.

    Regardless of what the KPMG review said it appears from the latest annual report that RNZ’s board and management are not doing the job particularly well. In the 2008 year RNZ spent $19,058,000 on personnel costs. For the 2009 year they budgeted $20,010,000 which is a 5% increase but they actually spent $21,417,000 – a 12.4% increase. This is not good enough.

    I agree that RNZ is worth protecting but it is not entitled to spend well above inflation and well above budget without consequences.

    • Bright Red 20.1
      18 February 2010 at 2:53 pm

      They’re not asking ‘hard questions’. They’re just slashing the budget and saying ‘lump it’

      • ak 20.1.1
        18 February 2010 at 3:02 pm

        ….and nine times out of ten the “hard questions” have a perfectly legitimate answer as someone alluded to for this case up-thread.

        Weirdest thing is that this will upset many of their own staunchest stalwarts – as will the attacks on the environment, community boards etc. Many cockies are big Natrad fans, and many rural areas can get nothing else.

        PS phrase du jour for the current slashing seems to be “living within our means”. Like one big happy family “all in this together”; prepare to cringe at this a trillion times in the coming year.

    • Armchair Critic 20.2
      18 February 2010 at 3:11 pm

      So what’s Whanau Ora about, then, CL? Happy with the government’s explanations so far? It’s only an order of magnitude more money than RNZ’s funding.
      I’m quite happy with what RNZ are doing, how it is described, and how well they are doing it. The only thing I want to see changed is an increase to their funding.

      • Classical Liberal 20.2.1
        18 February 2010 at 8:31 pm

        I’m sorry Armchair but the standard playbook won’t work with me. I was responding to a blog on RNZ – not Whanau Ora, not the current administration. And RNZ are not managing their costs well.
        Your predictable response will be either to ignore my post [please] or engage in an ad hominem attack

        • IrishBill 20.2.1.1
          18 February 2010 at 8:40 pm

          RNZ are managing their costs very well. In fact if you compare them to media works they are doing extremely well. In short you are wrong. Factually and quantitatively incorrect. However as a “classical liberal” (a ridiculous term if ever there was one) you are probably applying a system of measurables that fails to account for any benefit outside of narrow profit-orientated parameters. If this is the case I’d suggest you should be commenting over at the visible hand, anti-dismal or one of those other fantasy role-play blogs.

          • Classical Liberal 20.2.1.1.1
            18 February 2010 at 9:04 pm

            Why Irish – the response from the frustrated left is much more fun.
            Although your failure to engage with the facts is just sad. RNZ do not controls their costs when compared to the budget they set themselves – the numbers speak regardless of what spin you put on it.
            And as an ad hominem this is pathetic – Felix would have gone for the jugular [mind you he would have missed]

            IrishBill: you mean “control” not “controls”. Smug and as thick as shit in the neck of a bottle, a classical liberal indeed.

            • Classical Liberal 20.2.1.1.1.1
              19 February 2010 at 7:48 am

              BINGO – IrishBill cannot address the facts and reaches for the tired old ad-hominem attack. Truly pathetic.

              [lprent: We’ve just seen your tired old arguments over and over again. What we have yet to see is any proof that what you’re saying is more than an article of faith held by a flake. Oh and please don’t drop into the kiddie “I won/owned/pwned” speak. It just pisses me off and I start banning. ]

              • wtl …
                19 February 2010 at 8:01 am

                As far as I can see, your original comment was already discredited by Armchair Critic @ 9.56 pm yesterday – they may have overspent one part of the budget but had an overall surplus, making the overspend irrelevant. I see you haven’t addressed that and just keep whinging about ad hominem attacks.

        • Armchair Critic 20.2.1.2
          18 February 2010 at 9:04 pm

          And your predictable response, CL, was to ignore facts and avoid questions about your comment.
          Apart from “Johnathon Coleman says so” you have no evidence that RNZ are not managing their costs well.
          You invited the question about Whanau Ora with your opening statement about questioning significant government spending. The irony of you concern about $35m and apparent lack of concern about a $1b program is therefore fair game. And your “it’s not the subject of the post” line is kind of weak. Go on, stretch your mind, be a rebel, see if the moderators will let you.
          I will save my full contempt for your position until I’ve read your reply.

          • Classical Liberal 20.2.1.2.1
            18 February 2010 at 9:21 pm

            As I said in my earlier post in this thread:
            “Regardless of what the KPMG review said it appears from the latest annual report that RNZ’s board and management are not doing the job particularly well. In the 2008 year RNZ spent $19,058,000 on personnel costs. For the 2009 year they budgeted $20,010,000 which is a 5% increase but they actually spent $21,417,000 a 12.4% increase. This is not good enough.”
            SOURCE Radio NZ annual report NOT Jonathan Coleman – download from this page http://www.radionz.co.nz/about/

            Whanau Ora will be a successful programme ……. for Holden NZ, Air NZ, Holiday Inn etc. etc. Devolving this spend to untried providers will see money wasted on Commodores, Koru Club memberships, business class travel but not Whanau or their Ora. The same types of proposals came up in the Regional Health Authority era and were a complete rort then. Nothing has changed.

            • Armchair Critic 20.2.1.2.1.1
              18 February 2010 at 9:56 pm

              The 2009 AR also states RNZ had an overall surplus. Yes, a very small surplus, but a surplus none the less. Which seems to indicate that they compensated for the increased personnel costs by trimming costs elsewhere. Hardly the sign of a bad board, or poor management.
              The same report also states that with one exception, RNZ achieved all their objectives. The exception was they only partially achieved recruitment and retention of talented staff.
              So, even though RNZ spent over their budget on personnel, they can not meet their recruitment and staff retention objectives. Bit of a contradiction there.

              • mickysavage …
                18 February 2010 at 9:58 pm

                A surplus because they managed to get by with 80% of the money they needed to do the job properly. In other words they could have done the job much better.

    • Macro 20.3
      18 February 2010 at 7:56 pm

      Wow only $35 m to fund RNZ now THAT is doing it on the cheap buddy! – What about the $46 m EXTRA funding to PRIVATE schools – are they going to be asking the hard questions there? Yeah right!

      • big bruv 20.3.1
        18 February 2010 at 8:54 pm

        You mean the tax’s paid by people who send their kids to private schools?

        What is wrong with the parents of kids at private school seeing some of their tax dollars going into the school their child attends?

        If you don’t like that idea then why not let us have tax breaks and we can fund our own kids to the school of our choice?

        Those who are happy with public schools can continue to pay tax at a higher level.

        Seems fair to me.

        • Macro 20.3.1.1
          19 February 2010 at 9:42 am

          Again teenie troll you display a complete lack of understanding of the things you are talking about. Private schools were already heavily subsidised by tax payers the last budget sent more funding in their direction at the expense of schools and education that provided for the public as a whole. People are free to send their children to schools other than public schools if they wish, and as a parent I have. But that is their choice.They should not be expecting the public to fund them.

  21. tc 21
    18 February 2010 at 4:38 pm

    How utterly predictable from the NACT with that logic …
    IF ‘Disagree with govt’ THEN ‘Discredit/Ignore/Dismantle’……JK wants to bridge the gap with Oz eh……quality public broadcasting exists across the ditch and no Aust gov’t would ever be so stupid as to dick with it….last one that tried found that out very quickly.

    just goes to show you how desperate they are to stifle any debate in the hope of repeating the con they pulled off in 2008……the really depressing issue is the MSM will lie down on this hoping their biggest competitor gets wiped out.

    A relentless focus on removing any contrary opinions to ours.

    • Lew 21.1
      18 February 2010 at 4:46 pm

      A relentless focus on closing the gap with Australia by running as fast as possible in the opposite direction, as I’ve often heard it argued around these parts. There’s got to be another post in that, for someone who can be arsed with wonkish policy detail more than I can. Incoherent narratives are vulnerable.

      L

  22. Clarke 22
    18 February 2010 at 4:43 pm

    What appalls me about Coleman’s behaviour is that he’s part of a government that has no hesitation in pissing away public money on utter white elephants – $100 million on the Queens Wharf “party venue”, anyone? For that kind of money we could have both a better-funded RNZ and the return of adult education courses.

  23. Red Rosa 23
    18 February 2010 at 5:41 pm

    $35m seems like a bargain. If they dished out $35m to private schools, $35m to run a broadcaster should be peanuts.

    Maybe we could raise the top tax bracket to match Australia’s. Now that WOULD be a step in the right direction….. might even close the gap a bit….

  24. Zaphod Beeblebrox 24
    18 February 2010 at 8:56 pm

    $35 mill?? You could almost fund that with the travel allowance for MPs for one year. Maybe Key could avoid visiting Europe and Washington for a couple of years? Then rural people can get to keep their radio services.

  25. Jim Nald 25
    19 February 2010 at 1:55 am

    The Govt is getting more bl**dy awful by the day

  26. randal 26
    19 February 2010 at 11:54 am

    how soon do we get ads for erectile dysfunction on the concert programme?

    • felix 26.1
      19 February 2010 at 12:29 pm

      S: “Tell me Geoff, how do function so well in the mornings?”

      G: “Well Sean, it’s all down to Nature Bee. Katherine, on the other hand, sleeps on magnetic deer velvet. And what’s more, her sense of journalistic ethics is back!”

      K: “Yes, well I need it with him around!”

      • Lew 26.1.1
        19 February 2010 at 12:32 pm

        Felix, it rings so true that I pity you, the number of hours you’ve spent listening to those channels.

        L

        • felix 26.1.1.1
          19 February 2010 at 12:55 pm

          I used to listen quite a bit, but now I just pour Wet & Forget all over the radio and let nature do the work.

Links to post

Recent Comments

Recent Posts

  • Stories of varying weight

    Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on anything you may have missed. Share Read more ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 hours ago
  • Balancing External Security and the Economy

    New Zealand is again having to reconcile conflicting pressures from its military and its trade interests. Should we join Pillar Two of AUKUS and risk compromising our markets in China? For a century after New Zealand was founded in 1840, its external security arrangements and external economics arrangements were aligned. ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    18 hours ago
  • Weekly Climate Wrap: The unravelling of the offsets

    The ‘50 Shades of Green’ farmers’ protest in 2019 was heavy on climate change denial, but five years on, scepticism and criticism about the idea that pine forests can save us is growing across the board. File photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Here’s the top six news items of note in climate ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    22 hours ago
  • What makes us tick

    This morning the sky was bright.The birds, in their usual joyous bliss. Nature doesn’t seem to feel the heat of what might angst humans.Their calls are clear and beautiful.Just some random thoughts:MāoriPaul Goldsmith has announced his government will roll back the judiciary’s rulings on Māori Customary Marine Title, which recognises ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    23 hours ago
  • Foreshore and seabed 2.0

    In 2003, the Court of Appeal delivered its decision in Ngati Apa v Attorney-General, ruling that Māori customary title over the foreshore and seabed had not been universally extinguished, and that the Māori Land Court could determine claims and confirm title if the facts supported it. This kicked off the ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    1 day ago
  • Gordon Campbell on the Royal Commission report into abuse in care

    Earlier this week at Parliament, Labour leader Chris Hipkins was applauded for saying that the response to the final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care had to be “bigger than politics.” True, but the fine words, apologies and “we hear you” messages will soon ring ...
    WerewolfBy lyndon
    1 day ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Friday, July 26

    TL;DR: In news breaking this morning:The Ministry of Education is cutting $2 billion from its school building programme so the National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government has enough money to deliver tax cuts; The Government has quietly lowered its child poverty reduction targets to make them easier to achieve;Te Whatu Ora-Health NZ’s ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • Weekly Roundup 26-July-2024

    Kia ora. These are some stories that caught our eye this week – as always, feel free to share yours in the comments. Our header image this week (via Eke Panuku) shows the planned upgrade for the Karanga Plaza Tidal Swimming Steps. The week in Greater Auckland On ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    1 day ago
  • God what a relief

    1. What's not to love about the way the Harris campaign is turning things around?a. Nothingb. Love all of itc. God what a reliefd. Not that it will be by any means easye. All of the above 2. Documents released by the Ministry of Health show Associate Health Minister Casey ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 day ago
  • Trust In Me

    Trust in me in all you doHave the faith I have in youLove will see us through, if only you trust in meWhy don't you, you trust me?In a week that saw the release of the 3,000 page Abuse in Care report Christopher Luxon was being asked about Boot Camps. ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 day ago
  • The Hoon around the week to July 26

    TL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers last night features co-hosts and talking about the Royal Commission Inquiry into Abuse in Care report released this week, and with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent on a UN push to not recognise carbon offset markets and ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Friday, July 26

    TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 26, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Transport: Simeon Brown announced $802.9 million in funding for 18 new trains on the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines, which ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • Radical law changes needed to build road

    The northern expressway extension from Warkworth to Whangarei is likely to require radical changes to legislation if it is going to be built within the foreseeable future. The Government’s powers to purchase land, the planning process and current restrictions on road tolling are all going to need to be changed ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    1 day ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #30 2024

    Open access notables Could an extremely cold central European winter such as 1963 happen again despite climate change?, Sippel et al., Weather and Climate Dynamics: Here, we first show based on multiple attribution methods that a winter of similar circulation conditions to 1963 would still lead to an extreme seasonal ...
    Skeptical Science
    2 days ago
  • First they came for the Māori

    Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedFirst they came for the doctors But I was confused by the numbers and costs So I didn't speak up Then they came for our police and nurses And I didn't think we could afford those costs anyway So I ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    2 days ago
  • Join us for the weekly Hoon on YouTube Live

    Photo by Joshua J. Cotten on UnsplashWe’re back again after our mid-winter break. We’re still with the ‘new’ day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when we have our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm.Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Will the real PM Luxon please stand up?

    Notes: This is a free article. Abuse in Care themes are mentioned. Video is at the bottom.BackgroundYesterday’s report into Abuse in Care revealed that at least 1 in 3 of all who went through state and faith based care were abused - often horrifically. At least, because not all survivors ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    2 days ago
  • Will debt reduction trump abuse in care redress?

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

    Some years ago, I bought a book at Dunedin’s Regent Booksale for $1.50. As one does. Vandrad the Viking (1898), by J. Storer Clouston, is an obscure book these days – I cannot find a proper online review – but soon it was sitting on my shelf, gathering dust alongside ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell On The Biden Withdrawal

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

    As previously noted, my historical fantasy piece, set in the fifth-century Mediterranean, was accepted for a Pirate Horror anthology, only for the anthology to later fall through. But in a good bit of news, it turned out that the story could indeed be re-marketed as sword and sorcery. As of ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    1 week ago
  • The Kākā's Chorus for Friday, July 19

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

    TL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers last night features co-hosts and talking with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent talking about the National-ACT-NZ First Government’s release of its first Emissions Reduction Plan;University of Otago Foreign Relations Professor and special guest Dr Karin von ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #29 2024

    Open access notables Improving global temperature datasets to better account for non-uniform warming, Calvert, Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society: To better account for spatial non-uniform trends in warming, a new GITD [global instrumental temperature dataset] was created that used maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) to combine the land surface ...
    Skeptical Science
    1 week ago

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

    New legislation paves the way for greater competition in sectors such as banking and electricity, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says. “Competitive markets boost productivity, create employment opportunities and lift living standards. To support competition, we need good quality regulation but, unfortunately, a recent OECD report ranked New ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Charity lotteries to be permitted to operate online

    Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says lotteries for charitable purposes, such as those run by the Heart Foundation, Coastguard NZ, and local hospices, will soon be allowed to operate online permanently. “Under current laws, these fundraising lotteries are only allowed to operate online until October 2024, after which ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Accelerating Northland Expressway

    The Coalition Government is accelerating work on the new four-lane expressway between Auckland and Whangārei as part of its Roads of National Significance programme, with an accelerated delivery model to deliver this project faster and more efficiently, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “For too long, the lack of resilient transport connections ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Sir Don to travel to Viet Nam as special envoy

    Sir Don McKinnon will travel to Viet Nam this week as a Special Envoy of the Government, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced.    “It is important that the Government give due recognition to the significant contributions that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made to New Zealand-Viet Nam relations,” Mr ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Grant Illingworth KC appointed as transitional Commissioner to Royal Commission

    Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says newly appointed Commissioner, Grant Illingworth KC, will help deliver the report for the first phase of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into COVID-19 Lessons, due on 28 November 2024.  “I am pleased to announce that Mr Illingworth will commence his appointment as ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • NZ to advance relationships with ASEAN partners

    Foreign Minister Winston Peters travels to Laos this week to participate in a series of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-led Ministerial meetings in Vientiane.    “ASEAN plays an important role in supporting a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific,” Mr Peters says.   “This will be our third visit to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Backing mental health services on the West Coast

    Construction of a new mental health facility at Te Nikau Grey Hospital in Greymouth is today one step closer, Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey says. “This $27 million facility shows this Government is delivering on its promise to boost mental health care and improve front line services,” Mr Doocey says. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • NZ support for sustainable Pacific fisheries

    New Zealand is committing nearly $50 million to a package supporting sustainable Pacific fisheries development over the next four years, Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones announced today. “This support consisting of a range of initiatives demonstrates New Zealand’s commitment to assisting our Pacific partners ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Students’ needs at centre of new charter school adjustments

    Associate Education Minister David Seymour says proposed changes to the Education and Training Amendment Bill will ensure charter schools have more flexibility to negotiate employment agreements and are equipped with the right teaching resources. “Cabinet has agreed to progress an amendment which means unions will not be able to initiate ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Commissioner replaces Health NZ Board

    In response to serious concerns around oversight, overspend and a significant deterioration in financial outlook, the Board of Health New Zealand will be replaced with a Commissioner, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti announced today.  “The previous government’s botched health reforms have created significant financial challenges at Health NZ that, without ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Minister to speak at Australian Space Forum

    Minister for Space and Science, Innovation and Technology Judith Collins will travel to Adelaide tomorrow for space and science engagements, including speaking at the Australian Space Forum.  While there she will also have meetings and visits with a focus on space, biotechnology and innovation.  “New Zealand has a thriving space ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Climate Change Minister to attend climate action meeting in China

    Climate Change Minister Simon Watts will travel to China on Saturday to attend the Ministerial on Climate Action meeting held in Wuhan.  “Attending the Ministerial on Climate Action is an opportunity to advocate for New Zealand climate priorities and engage with our key partners on climate action,” Mr Watts says. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Oceans and Fisheries Minister to Solomons

    Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is travelling to the Solomon Islands tomorrow for meetings with his counterparts from around the Pacific supporting collective management of the region’s fisheries. The 23rd Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Committee and the 5th Regional Fisheries Ministers’ Meeting in Honiara from 23 to 26 July ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago
  • Government launches Military Style Academy Pilot

    The Government today launched the Military Style Academy Pilot at Te Au rere a te Tonga Youth Justice residence in Palmerston North, an important part of the Government’s plan to crackdown on youth crime and getting youth offenders back on track, Minister for Children, Karen Chhour said today. “On the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago
  • Nine priority bridge replacements to get underway

    The Government has welcomed news the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has begun work to replace nine priority bridges across the country to ensure our state highway network remains resilient, reliable, and efficient for road users, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“Increasing productivity and economic growth is a key priority for the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Update on global IT outage

    Acting Prime Minister David Seymour has been in contact throughout the evening with senior officials who have coordinated a whole of government response to the global IT outage and can provide an update. The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet has designated the National Emergency Management Agency as the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • New Zealand, Japan renew Pacific partnership

    New Zealand and Japan will continue to step up their shared engagement with the Pacific, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says.    “New Zealand and Japan have a strong, shared interest in a free, open and stable Pacific Islands region,” Mr Peters says.    “We are pleased to be finding more ways ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • New infrastructure energises BOP forestry towns

    New developments in the heart of North Island forestry country will reinvigorate their communities and boost economic development, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones visited Kaingaroa and Kawerau in Bay of Plenty today to open a landmark community centre in the former and a new connecting road in ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • 'Pacific Futures'

    President Adeang, fellow Ministers, honourable Diet Member Horii, Ambassadors, distinguished guests.    Minasama, konnichiwa, and good afternoon, everyone.    Distinguished guests, it’s a pleasure to be here with you today to talk about New Zealand’s foreign policy reset, the reasons for it, the values that underpin it, and how it ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

Page generated in The Standard by Wordpress at 2024-07-27T00:06:14+00:00