National needs a safe pair of hands: Amy Adams

Written By: - Date published: 9:14 am, July 14th, 2020 - 98 comments
Categories: Amy Adams, Judith Collins, national, same old national, Simon Bridges - Tags:

I realise that National probably won’t appreciate my advice. However I actually would like to have a viable competent opposition. I don’t even want an election to be as much of a pushover as this one is likely to be. If I was a stalwart National supporter or a member of their caucus, I’d be pushing for Amy Adams.

She has stood for the leadership previously, and was heading into retirement before the elevation of the more centrist Todd Muller. So she has already faced the daunting prospect of that position. She was a very competent minister, who actually garnered respect from wide swaths of the political community. She is about the best prospect for a consensus candidate. She would be the best candidate to appeal for votes in the swinging voters as well.

This is unlike Judith Collins whose ministerial posts have been most noticeable for politically poor decisions that catered to a minority of bigoted vindictive National supporters – and distaste in the wider community. Her very name seems to cause intercine warfare inside the National caucus and amongst National party members. I’m sure that her biography won’t have helped matters much. For a political junkie, her biography is as interesting for what she doesn’t mention.

Apart from that, I can only think of Simon Bridges as a viable candidate. I suspect that would not be a particularly happy caucus that made that decision. However until covid-19 came along and revealed that he was tone-deaf to the public mood.

Of course expecting the misogynists inside National to realistically consider a female leader again is probably asking a bit much.

98 comments on “National needs a safe pair of hands: Amy Adams ”

  1. Simeon Brown – your moment may have come!

  2. ianmac 2

    Nicki Kaye has been appointed as interim Leader.

    Listening to the dead voice of Mitchell would kill him as a leader.

    Collins never seemed to be rattled no matter what the problem was. Is she what a sagging Party needs?

  3. Robert Guyton 3

    It's a damn shame Jian Yang scarpered when he did.

    • Stuart Munro 3.1

      More talent than any dozen of the others, but there is the problem of who he was working for. The same might be said of Key.

  4. Just Is 4

    Well the last female PM for National, Dame Shipley wasn't exactly an overwhelming experience.

    Also, she wasn't voted in by an election, it was coo, Bolger was similar to Muller in many ways, not really Leadership material for the National Party.

    Adams is still an attack dog though, and that often suits Nat supporters.

    I don't think it matters much who they throw in, the damage has been done, it's a big hole to climb out of

    • lprent 4.1

      Yeah, but even after the election, it'd be useful to have an effective opposition to do their role. Having someone competent to do it would be a big plus.

      • Andre 4.1.1

        Could they stomach having a leader that just brought them through a humiliating election loss? Surely everyone with enough functioning neurons to make a synapse thinks whoever goes in now will be just a seatwarmer, then they can regroup and choose the real new leader after the election.

        Come to think of it, it might be a good way to rid themselves of someone that's so delusional to think they could actually win this if only he were the chosen leader. Better that than tainting any potential real leader with the big black spot of an ugly loss to start their tenure with.

        • lprent 4.1.1.1

          Labour did that after 1996 with Clark. On the other hand Moore didn't in 1993

          It really depends on the reason for the defeat. In 1996 it was the choice of having residual perceived Rogernome or Clark.

          I'd admit that you'd have to look back a long way for National. They're somewhat feral about failure.

          On the other hand, I can't think of a better reason than the one that Adams or whoever would have.

        • Draco T Bastard 4.1.1.2

          Surely everyone with enough functioning neurons to make a synapse thinks whoever goes in now will be just a seatwarmer, then they can regroup and choose the real new leader after the election.

          Wasn't that supposed to be Muller?

          Everyone already knew that they were going to lose but Muller turned out worse than anyone expected.

      • Just Is 4.1.2

        Agreed, but they need someone not tainted by the last few years of Bridges style of politics, someone the general public will endorse for the very reasons you describe, not an easy task, that's why Muller was pulled out of the hat.

        But his conscience got the better of him, he had to live with himself, I think he believed he had a chance to win on good policy and nature, not something the National Party are renowned for.

    • Phil 4.2

      Bolger was similar to Muller in many ways, not really Leadership material for the National Party.

      Sure, the guy that was PM for 8 years wasn't 'leadership material'. FFS.

      • Just Is 4.2.1

        Yep, but the Nat supporters that I new at that time had been Screaming for someone with a back bone.

        When Shipley finally rolled Bolger, the same people said "I know we needed a new leader, but Shipley is a bulldog"

        Bolger was kept for the second term as he had survived the election, not because he represented what many Nat supporters believed in. The writing had been on the wall for some time before Shipley claimed victory.

        Shipley's tenuure was very short, but she managed to do significant damage to NZ, more retirees left NZ permanently during her reign that anytime previously, or since, the other point that not many are familiar with is that Shipley was Directly responsible for the problems we have today of KIWIs in Australia, the lack of any Rights was a direct result of Shipley's actions.

        It was John Howard who introduced the sanctions on Kiwis in 2000

  5. Anthony Rimell 5

    I agree with your post. I hail from round her way; and though I am unashamedly very left of centre, I too believe we need a viable, effective opposition. Amy is well respected in her electorate, is a hard worker for her constituents, and can string a few sentences together (note to prospective coup leaders in National; that actually is a skill you need to lead a party and a country).

    Plus she has some principles. I dont agree with almost anything she stands for, but at least she stands for something.

  6. observer 6

    Nothing will change because the next National leader will make the same photocopied speech as any other ("great party … team … Ardern weak … shambolic … blah blah). So nobody will listen, except their shrinking cheer squad.

    I would be amazed and delighted if the next leader starts by saying –

    "We get it. We've really screwed up. Including me. Sorry. Sure, we are still right-wing politicians, that's why we're Nats, but there are smart ways to do this job, and we've been stupid and arrogant and destructive and all our problems are self-inflicted. And they didn't start with Todd."

    If they had any awareness at all they'd realize that would win support. But, no.

    • Just Is 6.1

      Do leopards change their spots?

      Certainly agree with your analysis, but I just think the National MPs can't see they've done something wrong, it's the whole internal culture.

      How do you go about changing that in a meaningful way?

      • observer 6.1.1

        I think at least some MPs have some awareness of it – in private. But the default public position is saying "All good! Strong team! United caucus!" etc.

        They think it is weakness to acknowledge any failings publicly. So they just make the credibility gap between them and the voters even wider.

        I mean, most of the caucus lied about supporting Bridges. Then they didn’t.

        • Just Is 6.1.1.1

          "They think it is weakness to acknowledge any failings publicly. So they just make the credibility gap between them and the voters even wider."

          A real LEADER would acknowledge the failings, make a public announcement as to how they intend to remedy it and attempt to change the culture of Negative politics for the good of the country and the Party.

          I'm not going to hold my breath.

  7. swordfish 7

    .
    Cometh the Hour

    Cometh the Man

    https://twitter.com/swordfish7774/status/1281377883873669121

    Smiddy's the kind of hard-drinkin’ no-nonsense Maverick who gets the job done by cutting corners and bucking authority … and if those namby-pamby desk-sucking pen-pushers on the 9th floor of the Beehive don't like it then, Mister, they can just about swivel like a pig on this mid-digit ! Smiddy won’t be chained down.

    Who’s the Oppo MP who doesn’t give a frick
    He’s a love machine to all the chicks ?

    Smiddy ?

    Damn right !!!
    .

    Who’s the cat that won’t cop out when there is danger all about ?

    Smiddy ?

    Right on, Motherfucker !!!

  8. Peter 8

    Adams a safe pair of hands? She'll have to spray tankloads of that sticky stuff sportspeople spray on their hands and arms so they don't drop the ball, or club or axe.

    what with all that slime.

  9. Incognito 9

    Good thesis. My suggestion: Adams- Kaye.

    • Drowsy M. Kram 9.1

      Nice post, and IMHO lprent makes a good point about mysogynist support for National. A woman in the leader and deputy leader positions might be a step too far for some Nat supporters with more 'traditional' beliefs, including the "She's a pretty communist" brigade. It's an unprecented first for any major political party in NZ, and if enough Nats sadly see it as a sign of 'weakness' then party strategists (who will be polling frantically) may be reluctant to promote such a combo (e.g. Adams-Kaye) this election.

      Only someone who truly has the party's interests, as opposed to their own interests, at heart would be prepared to do the top job now.

      • Incognito 9.1.1

        I agree. The Nat Caucus can only shuffle the candidates who will step up to the plank. Internal division is rife with distrust of their own making. The party needs to heal and repair itself but they’re likely to go for status quo because they don’t have the balls to do anything that’s considered radical. It might take three terms to come to terms with that.

  10. observer 10

    In the most recent OneNews poll, Muller was at 13% for preferred PM. Decent start.

    Simon Bridges was 0.4%. Amy Adams 0.2%. Yes, the decimal point is not a typo.

    https://www.colmarbrunton.co.nz/what-we-do/1-news-poll/

    • Peter 10.1

      The stuff about the minute 0.2% leadership poll for Adam is irrelevant. Doesn't mean by October she's going to be or not be PM but if Adams is named as leader tomorrow morning her leadership numbers would rocket up to 8 to 12%.

      • observer 10.1.1

        Not irrelevant.

        John Key and Jacinda Ardern both featured prominently in preferred PM ratings before becoming leaders of their parties.

        e.g. Ardern level with leader Little in 2017.

        Sure, Adams would obviously rate higher if she becomes leader. So would any new National leader. But none have any groundswell of support, except (occasionally) Collins.

  11. Shanreagh 11

    I would love the slogan for any Nat hopeful to be

    'I am standing for a war on sleaze and an end to dirty tricks'

    But that will never happen. It seems to be endemic in that party.

    Sigh

    • Draco T Bastard 11.1

      'I am standing for a war on sleaze and an end to dirty tricks'

      Isn't that what the Trump did?

      And has he, in any way, drained the swamp since?

  12. Byd0nz 12

    Nah, assign them all to the tip and bury the lot, no one needs these shits in our lives in any shape or form.

  13. Ed1 13

    Jim Bolger on RNZ this morning gave a good speech for National – he acknowledged the good response to Covid, and moved straight on to financing the next stage, in effect arguing for higher tax for high earners as he clearly saw that as difficult for the coalition, but avoiding any other policy as that would highlight that National has no such policies.

  14. Dennis Frank 14

    I'm tempted to go for the dark horse candidate. Nats love soldiers. Too old-school? Could be. But has that solidity that appeals to conservatives.

    Wouldn't succeed as leader due to lack of track record in parliamentary performance & low media profile. But amidst a pack of bad options, could be the least bad. Always the possibility he adapts to the top job and becomes comfortable in it.

    His test would be to seem reasonable to centrists. To do that requires the ability to reframe issues from a partisan Nat stance to a non-partisan view. I'm inclined to suspect he can do that. Just a hunch.

    From the perspective of their caucus, it's down to if he bridges the liberal/conservative divide – we'd need a Nat insider view to inform us on that crucial point.

  15. Fireblade 15

    National need someone with experience who can steady the ship, stop the ship sinking, refloat the ship, salvage the ruins.

  16. mac1 16

    Time for the National Party to split between decent conservatives and the unethical right, between those who are truly 'national', and those seeking the advancement only of themselves and their ilk.

    I'm afraid that the split that I have advocated for the right, to have a rural conservative and an urban liberal brace of parties, would not meet the ethical standards that they need to embrace.

    I suggest that post election National splits into its founding coalition parties, to adopt their former labels, Reform and United. Then the reformers could get on with re-establishing ethical political practice and reclaim their party, and the rest can practice their peculiar sense of unity based on mutual aggrandisement.

    Then conservative voters might take the opportunity to show the troughers the door to oblivion, and NZ might get an effective and honourable opposition.

  17. Morrissey 17

    Possible Replacements for Todd Muller
    No. 1: AMY ADAMS

    Positives:
    (1) She seems pleasant and has a nice smile. People would say, “Yes, it’s the Nasty Party, but that Amy Adams has a nice smile. She seems nice.”

    Negatives:
    (1) Even for the National Party, she’s an intellectual lightweight. Notoriously she once said, with a straight face, that private profit-takers should run social welfare, which was, she blithered, “beyond the meagre resources of the government.”

    (2) She even made a dog’s breakfast of the lowly Communications and IT portfolio; her own brother in law condemned her manipulation at the hands of the telecommunications companies.
    http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/8061486/Brother-in-law-slams-ministers-frequency-plans

    (3) She was there, a pleasant-seeming, smiling dummy, throughout the scandal of the Key regime’s filthy politics. She didn’t so much as utter a word of dissent or disapproval.

    • Incognito 17.1

      For some unbiased opinion-free facts on Amy Adams: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amy_Adams_(politician)

      • Morrissey 17.1.1

        Those National Party wikipedia authors are opinion-free and 100 per cent reliable?

        And it’s a grim and undeniable fact that she called the resources of government “meagre.” And it’s also a fact that she did not utter a word of disapproval as the scandal of that brutal smear and defamation campaign was being run out of the Prime Minister’s office.

        But by all means pretend she’s not an airhead.

        • Incognito 17.1.1.1

          It’s all so relative; you’re an airhead, I’m an airhead, we all are airheads. Does it make you feel superior better calling women others airheads? In my perspective, your opinion is light as snowflake whirling gently down the light breeze of irrelevance towards the hard-frozen ground of oblivion.

          • The Al1en 17.1.1.1.1

            your opinion is light as snowflake whirling gently down the light breeze of irrelevance towards the hard-frozen ground of oblivion.

            100 points if in your next comeback you can fit in 'wank stain on the duvet of life'

          • Morrissey 17.1.1.1.2

            “Does it make you feel superior better calling women others airheads?”

            I listed three reasons why she qualifies as an intellectual lightweight and a person lacking in moral fortitude. I supplied evidence to back up each of those reasons. You can pretend that my providing that evidence constitutes something "light as snowflake, etc." if you like, but something more serious and substantial would serve you better, I think.

            • Incognito 17.1.1.1.2.1

              Your reckons are like an empty bucket in deep space bombarded by cosmic radiation. Amy Adams has achieved more in politics than you have and ever will and whether you agree with her politically or ideologically is irrelevant. But feel free to call her airhead and dummy and I feel free to point out to you that you’re mostly playing the woman instead of the ball. Of course, Amy Adams is an easy target here because she’s a Nat MP.

              Can you do some proper analysis of her pros & cons as a possible Nat Leader? I think it is beyond your intellectual capabilities and you may need to hire a bulldozer to move that enormous ego of yours out of the way but you could prove me wrong. Your comment @ 17 read like a misogynistic rant by somebody who’s prematurely run out of Viagra.

              • Morrissey

                Amy Adams has achieved more in politics than you have….

                ?

                Could you provide an example of one of those "achievements"? Thanks in anticipation.

                After that, could you justify your contention that my comment @ 17 "read like a misogynistic rant"? Again, thanks in anticipation.

                • McFlock

                  Quite a few bills passed with her listed as "member in charge".

                  Whereas you write angry letters and frequently-inaccurate recollections of radio shows.

                  • Drowsy M. Kram

                    I've found some of Morrissey's rough transcripts of radio shows amusing – they're just in a different category to real politics.

                  • Morrissey

                    Dear old McFlock, trying his best. Good to see a trier trying.

                    Quite a few bills passed….

                    Nothing of substance. Can you recall her ever saying anything memorable, in the House or elsewhere? The only thing I've heard her say, other than anodyne vacuous comments about various issues, is her utterly vapid assertion that the social welfare system should be handed over to private companies because it was “beyond the meagre resources of the government.”

                    Whereas you write angry letters…

                    Witty letters, you mean. That's why Kim Hill almost always reads out anything I send in. Although, speaking of anger, she almost choked on bile a few years ago when I pointed out to her that the singer Bobby Brown was, for all his crimes, a far better human being than Bill Clinton. That was anger, my friend. Learn to tell the difference.

                    and frequently-inaccurate recollections of radio shows.

                    That tired and unfair criticism has been invalid for several years now; as you and any other follower of the Breen oeuvre will know perfectly well, I have pretty much abandoned my old technique of rush transcripts from hasty transcripts by pencil or pen and replaced it with verbatim transcripts.

                    • McFlock

                      Nothing of substance.

                      lol.

                      Check out the link. Many of the bills are decribed as "substantive amendments" lol

                      But ok. According to you, none of the hundreds or parliamentary records were of any substance. I'm sure your "witty" letters will be recorded in history for far longer than Hansard.

                    • Morrissey

                      I'm sure your "witty" letters will be recorded in history for far longer than Hansard.

                      You can be sure of that, my friend: this writer's epistolary wars with (to name just a few) Brian Edwards, Michael Laws and Ms Kerre ohoWmad will still be amusing people long after the dreary speeches of undistinguished MPs are forgotten.

                    • McFlock

                      I also understand that some people read Charles Pooter's diary to this day.

                    • Morrissey

                      Ouch. Now THAT was mean, man.

                • Incognito

                  Already have. I gave you clear hints re. your put-downs of Amy Adams and you may want to re-read your own comment @ 17. I’ve also provided you with a Wiki link in which you can find info on Amy Adams’ 12-year career in politics. You could take study leave and come back when you have intellectually digested it all. Don’t choke on the heavy bits. To avoid any distraction, you may want to leave your keyboard alone for a while because I don’t think you’re any good at multi-tasking and you seem to be scouring the internet for male torsos. This is TS not TikTok.

      • Had a role in housing twice… well well.. that is problematic.

        • Morrissey 17.1.2.1

          Under Adams and Bennett, it was a role in something more accurately called "unhousing." How many thousand state houses did Adams and her cronies sell?

    • Adrian Thornton 17.2

      Nice analysis of Adams there Morrissey, of course and like clockwork the usual band of liberal tools display their complete lack of humour with their unprovoked attacks.

      • Incognito 17.2.1

        Whom do you call a “liberal tool”? Are you another lazy stickler for bumper stickers and lachrymatory labels to show off your imaginary virtues to your puerile peers?

      • Morrissey 17.2.2

        I don't think "liberal" is quite the word to use for their behaviour here, Adrian. And, to be fair, their attacks were due to my provoking them by pointing out that someone they had invested time in praising—for whatever hard-to-fathom strategic reason—was in fact nothing more than a shallow and flawed National Party team player. The bizarre accusation of misogyny is of course risible, and carries as much weight as our friend Andre’s recent claim that John Pilger, Glenn Greenwald and Jeremy Scahill are “useful idiots.”

        • Incognito 17.2.2.1

          You don’t know the difference between an observation and praise. The only praise in this deplorable thread is your self-praise together with your over-inflated view of self-importance, e.g. @ 7:18 PM. Your idiosyncratic put-downs of others, usually because of an alleged defect in their intellect with a bit of sexism thrown in when it suits you or because of websites or journalists they read in the present or in the past, are starting to wear very thin with me. Just saying.

  18. Draco T Bastard 18

    I realise that National probably won’t appreciate my advice. However I actually would like to have a viable competent opposition.

    Yeah, ATM, National and competent simply don't go together and that won't change no matter who they put up as leader. There's too many of them who are there simply for their own aggrandisement and the rorting of the public for their own well being and that of their funders.

  19. Stuart Munro 19

    Personally I think they should put up Brownlee or Smith. Let the deadwood prove their value by leading in this crisis, or retire gracefully into obscurity and let National rebuild a bit of credibility with the public.

    From his talk of intelligence it seems Brownlee is involved in or committed to the black ops style of campaign, that draws invidious comparisons when Labour is led by the likes of an Ardern.

    I don't of course expect them to do anything of the sort – they will plaster over their self-inflicted wounds and pretend their is no rot beneath the new facade. They will lose the election and squander the opportunity for reflection another term in opposition gives them. They will offer no informed critique of coalition policy or performance and voters will be obliged to wonder for what we are paying these vestigial members.

  20. Dennis Frank 20

    Gordon Campbell is onto it: http://werewolf.co.nz/2020/07/gordon-campbell-on-the-todd-muller-resignation/

    Basicalyly…there has been serious cognitive dissonance between National’s chosen messaging, and the actual experience of the New Zealand public.

    Similarlylyly, it could be said that framing either suits the circumstance or doesn't, and the public have noticed that the Nats got that wrong. Under both recent leaders.

    So the Nat caucus tonight is likely to seem like a flock of sheep rotating in the middle of the room bleating, each one thinking "I can't hear any sheepdog barking. How long is this gonna go on?" As long as it takes for one of the sheep to morph into a sheepdog.

    But will the chosen dog know the gate to the electorate was the wrong one?? 🤔

    National thought that all it had to do was to change the messenger, when the more serious problem lay with its message. As a consequence, Muller always looked more like the captive of the caucus hierarchy than like someone with the vision and ability to chart a fresh direction for the party.

    Quite so. Then poor old Gordon drives straight off the rails:

    The Gang of Four who hatched the privacy leak and promoted it loudly to the public (Michelle Boag, Michael Woodhouse, Hamish Walker and Muller himself) ended up trying to depict their efforts as the product of a rogue operation, despite ample evidence of shared guilt.

    If chosen, Collins would offer the added advantage to National of sealing the fate of New Zealand First, whose reactionaries would love her.

    It rather boggles the mind that he could so misread these two political contexts. Sure, we could blame the warping effect of life in the leftist bubble, but it seems an insufficient cause to produce such an effect.

  21. Just Is 21

    Here's a reasonable response from RNZ to the affair.

    Peter Wilson I think

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/421181/national-party-leadership-who-gets-the-hospital-pass

  22. observer 22

    I don't want Amy Adams because when you Google her to find out the lastest Nat blunder, you get the movie star (who I actually like, she's been in some very good films).

    But whoever the roulette wheel lands on, could they please just make it the last one? It's hard to get work done and the price of popcorn is rising.

  23. gsays 23

    Something is not adding up.

    Muller spent time in the PMs office under Bulger. Muller has spent two terms in and around parliament. The stress and pressure would not be new to him.

    Clearly, it is a thankless job being leader of the opposition. Rogue Boag can't have helped.

    Seeing him get caught in a lie the other night on tele, obviously made him uncomfortble.

    My reckons say that there is something behind the scenes that hasn't come out yet, and that is what has made his position untenable. He is too decent to tolerate the dodgy shenanagins his fellow politicians get up to.

    • Cinny 23.1

      My reckons say that there is something behind the scenes that hasn't come out yet

      Absolutely agree. There's more to this, am not sure what, but there's more.

      Edit…. muller isn’t immune to dirty politics. After all he sneaked around for months rallying nat MP’s behind simon’s back before rolling him.

  24. Robert Guyton 24

    "She says the most important thing right now is Mr Muller's welfare."

    Nikki Kaye.

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/421155/live-blog-todd-muller-resigns-as-national-party-leader

    Really? National voters across the land think, "…the most important thing right now is Mr Muller's welfare."

    With an election looming?

  25. Robert Guyton 25

    The Voice of Reason – Sarah Dowie

    "Outgoing National MP Sarah Dowie says the party's leadership coup in May was a mistake and Simon Bridges should've remained as leader."

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/421155/live-blog-todd-muller-resigns-as-national-party-leader

  26. Robert Guyton 26

    "Gerry Brownlee wouldn't say who he is supporting to take over the top job.

    The MP for Ilam says he respects Muller's reasons for stepping down.

    He says the situation the party has found itself in isn't very pleasant. "

    "Isn't very pleasant"

    He has a light touch, their Gerry.

  27. Robert Guyton 28

    "“I’m feeling very sorry for Todd Muller actually, he’s been a delight to work for,” Collins said."

    A "delight"?

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/300056749/todd-muller-resignation-judith-collins-nikki-kaye-and-simon-bridges-wont-rule-out-runs-at-national-leader

  28. Robert Guyton 29

    "Honest Todd Barclay" – "Page not found" – that's very good, Morrisey!

  29. Pat 30

    AmyAdams is not the next Nat leader…she offers nothing more than Muller potentially offered….my pick is Judith, assuming she will take the job at this time…which may be her last chance

    • swordfish 30.1

      .
      Collins is pretty consistently the most popular Nat after the Party Leader … as controversial as she is, she's probably their best bet … would quickly stem the free-flowing desertion to ACT … & if she goes full-on anti-Woke Culture Wars in the Election Campaign – and manages it in a shrewd Wedge Politics manner (informed by a close reading of public opinion) – she might just galvanise & polarise enough voters to avoid the humiliating defeat they're probably otherwise hurtling towards at breakneck speed.(although – starved of Polling data – we're currently only making informed guesses at the moment).

      The counter-argument, of course, is that this misreads the current zeitgeist – the bulk of voters full of gratitude to the Govt for their COVID-19 response & imbued with an associated sense of national unity … but it might just be the only way to win back a segment of Nat-to-Lab deserters, albeit nowhere near enough for anything approaching victory.

      They need a colourful combative polariser (in the Muldoon mould) as a circuit-breaker. Anyone else will be seen as dull as dishwater. We’re talking, after all, about shoring-up National’s core support rather than aiming for victory.

      • Pat 30.1.1

        The real question is whether she will put herself forward for an almost certain defeat….as said it may be her last opportunity but she may not want the loss…but it would look ok on the CV

  30. georgecom 31

    What was Bill English muttering after the last election, something about a 'moral mandate' to govern?

    [Fixed the same error in user name again]

  31. rrm 32

    No Lynn

    National does not need a weak, insipid, generic, bland moderate who will lead them further down the weak, cucked, labour-lite path of SJW-appeasement that John Key set them on 12 years ago.

    At this point National needs a leader with balls, who will horrify the permanently offended wet left. OMG DID SHE just say that?!? She can't say that!! Wait…. can she say that??

    • lprent 32.1

      Look, I really don’t mind if National refuses the center and goes the way fo the Nutbar Party (formally known as Act). That just leaves more room for Labour and the Greens, and possibly even NZF to occupy.

      The problem for nutbar political parties is that they find it extremely hard to drag enough voters their way to actually win a fair election.

    • rrm 32.2

      And it's Crusher. Game on. 😎

  32. barry 33

    Maureen Pugh?

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    Inspirational: The Family of Man is a glorious hymn to human equality, but, more than that, it is a clarion call to human freedom. Because equality, unleavened by liberty, is a broken piano, an unstrung harp; upon which the songs of fraternity will never be played. “Somebody must have been telling lies about ...
    2 hours ago
  • Don’t run your business like a criminal enterprise
    The Detail this morning highlights the police's asset forfeiture case against convicted business criminal Ron Salter, who stands to have his business confiscated for systemic violations of health and safety law. Business are crying foul - but not for the reason you'd think. Instead of opposing the post-conviction punishment and ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    2 hours ago
  • Misremembering Justinian’s Taxes.
    Tax Lawyer Barbara Edmonds vs Emperor Justinian I - Nolo Contendere: False historical explanations of pivotal events are very far from being inconsequential.WHEN BARBARA EDMONDS made reference to the Roman Empire, my ears pricked up. It is, lamentably, very rare to hear a politician admit to any kind of familiarity ...
    3 hours ago
  • Bryce Edwards: Scoring 4.6 out of 10, the new Government is struggling in the polls
    It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just show a minimal amount of flux in public support for the various parties in ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    4 hours ago
  • Bishop scores headlines with crackdown on unwelcome tenants – but Peters scores, too, as tub-thump...
    Buzz from the Beehive Housing Minister Chris Bishop delivered news – packed with the ingredients to enflame political passions – worthy of supplanting Winston Peters in headline writers’ priorities. He popped up at the post-Cabinet press conference to promise a crackdown on unruly and antisocial state housing tenants. His ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 hours ago
  • Will it make the boat go faster?
    Ele Ludemann writes – The Reserve Bank is advertising for a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion advisor. The Bank has one mandate – to keep inflation between one and three percent. It has failed in that and is only slowly getting inflation back down to the upper limit. Will it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    7 hours ago
  • Bryce Edwards: Is Simon Bridges’ NZTA appointment a conflict of interest?
    Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi The fact that a ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    8 hours ago
  • Is Simon Bridges’ NZTA appointment a conflict of interest?
    Bryce Edwards writes – Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    8 hours ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' at 10:10am on Tuesday, March 19
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Gavin Jacobson talks to Thomas Piketty 10 years on from Capital in the 21st Century The SalvoLocal scoop: Green MP’s business being investigated over migrant exploitation claims Stuff Steve KilgallonLocal deep-dive: The commercial contractors making money from School ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    8 hours ago
  • Bernard's six newsy things on Tuesday, March 19
    It’s a home - but Kāinga Ora tenants accused of “abusing the privilege” may lose it. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Government announced a crackdown on Kāinga Ora tenants who were unruly and/or behind on their rent, with Housing Minister Chris Bishop saying a place in a state ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    9 hours ago
  • New Life for Light Rail
    This is a guest post by Connor Sharp of Surface Light Rail  Light rail in Auckland: A way forward sooner than you think With the coup de grâce of Auckland Light Rail (ALR) earlier this year, and the shift of the government’s priorities to roads, roads, and more roads, it ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    10 hours ago
  • Why Are Bosses Nearly All Buffoons?
    Note: As a paid-up Webworm member, I’ve recorded this Webworm as a mini-podcast for you as well. Some of you said you liked this option - so I aim to provide it when I get a chance to record! Read more ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    12 hours ago
  • Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6.06 pm on March 18
    TL;DR: In my ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Monday, March 18:IKEA is accused of planting big forests in New Zealand to green-wash; REDD-MonitorA City for People takes a well-deserved victory lap over Wellington’s pro-YIMBY District Plan votes; A City for PeopleSteven Anastasiou takes a close look at the sticky ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • Peters holds his ground on co-governance, but Willis wriggles on those tax cuts and SNA suspension l...
    Buzz from the Beehive Here’s hoping for a lively post-cabinet press conference when the PM and – perhaps – some of his ministers tell us what was discussed at their meeting today. Until then, Point of Order has precious little Beehive news to report after its latest monitoring of the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 day ago
  • Labour’s final report card
    David Farrar writes –  We now have almost all 2023 data in, which has allowed me to update my annual table of how  went against its promises. This is basically their final report card. The promise The result Build 100,000 affordable homes over 10 ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago
  • “Drunk Uncle at a Wedding”
    I’m a bit worried that I’ve started a previous newsletter with the words “just when you think they couldn’t get any worse…” Seems lately that I could begin pretty much every issue with that opening. Such is the nature of our coalition government that they seem to be outdoing each ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 day ago
  • Wang Yi’s perfectly-timed, Aukus-themed visit to New Zealand
    Geoffrey Miller writes – Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago
  • Gordon Campbell on Dune 2, and images of Islam
    Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture ...
    1 day ago
  • New Rail Operations Centre Promises Better Train Services
    Last week Transport Minster Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre. The new train control centre will see teams from KiwiRail, Auckland Transport and Auckland One Rail working more closely together to improve train services across the city. The Auckland Rail Operations Centre in ...
    1 day ago
  • Bernard's six newsy things at 6.36am on Monday, March 18
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson said in an exit interview with Q+A yesterday the Government can and should sustain more debt to invest in infrastructure for future generations. Elsewhere in the news in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 6:36am: Read more ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: Wang Yi’s perfectly-timed, Aukus-themed visit to New Zealand
    Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. It is more than just a happy ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    1 day ago
  • The Kaka’s diary for the week to March 25 and beyond
    TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to March 18 include:China’s Foreign Minister visiting Wellington today;A post-cabinet news conference this afternoon; the resumption of Parliament on Tuesday for two weeks before Easter;retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson gives his valedictory speech in Parliament; ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Bitter and angry; Winston First
    New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters’s state-of-the-nation speech on Sunday was really a state-of-Winston-First speech. He barely mentioned any of the Government’s key policies and could not even wholly endorse its signature income tax cuts. Instead, he rehearsed all of his complaints about the Ardern Government, including an extraordinary claim ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    2 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
    2 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
    2 days ago
  • Out of Touch.
    “I’ve been internalising a really complicated situation in my head.”When they kept telling us we should wait until we get to know him, were they taking the piss? Was it a case of, if you think this is bad, wait till you get to know the real Christopher, after the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • The bewildering world of Chris Luxon – Guns for all, not no lunch for kids
    .“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
    Frankly SpeakingBy Frank Macskasy
    3 days ago
  • Expert Opinion: Ageing Boomers, Laurie & Les, Talk Politics.
    It hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.”THUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
    3 days ago
  • Manufacturing The Truth.
    Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology – the Internet –  is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
    3 days ago
  • A Powerful Sensation of Déjà Vu.
    Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
    3 days ago
  • Can you guess where world attention is focussed (according to Greenpeace)? It’s focussed on an EPA...
    Bob Edlin writes –  And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago
  • Further integrity problems for the Greens in suspending MP Darleen Tana
    Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago
  • Jacqui Van Der Kaay: Greens’ transparency missing in action
    For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    3 days ago
  • Bernard’s Dawn Chorus with six newsey things at 6:46am for Saturday, March 16
    TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ Herald Thomas Coughlan Simeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • How Did FTX Crash?
    What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    4 days ago
  • Elections in Russia and Ukraine
    Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s six stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15
    TL;DR: Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it:  We want our country to be a ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago
  • National’s clean car tax advances
    The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Government funding bailouts
    Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Two offenders, different treatments.
    See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    4 days ago
  • Treaty references omitted
    Ele Ludemann writes  – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • The Ghahraman Conflict
    What was that judge thinking? Peter Williams writes –  That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 15
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop: Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • The day Wellington up-zoned its future
    Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Weekly Roundup 15-March-2024
    It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    4 days ago
  • That Word.
    Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago
  • The Hoon around the week to March 15
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Labour’s policy gap
    It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #11 2024
    Open access notables A Glimpse into the Future: The 2023 Ocean Temperature and Sea Ice Extremes in the Context of Longer-Term Climate Change, Kuhlbrodt et al., Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society: In the year 2023, we have seen extraordinary extrema in high sea surface temperature (SST) in the North Atlantic and in ...
    5 days ago
  • Melissa remains mute on media matters but has something to say (at a sporting event) about economic ...
     Buzz from the Beehive   The text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary.  It can be quickly analysed ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago
  • The return of Muldoon
    For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Will the rental tax cut improve life for renters or landlords?
    Bryce Edwards writes –  Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: What Saudi Arabia’s rapid changes mean for New Zealand
    Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    5 days ago
  • Racism’s double standards
    Questions need to be asked on both sides of the world Peter Williams writes –   The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • It’s not a tax break
    Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • The Plastic Pig Collective and Chris' Imaginary Friends.
    I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • Who is responsible for young offenders?
    Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on National’s fantasy trip to La La Landlord Land
    How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
    5 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 14
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop: The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • No, Prime Minister, rents don’t rise or fall with landlords’ costs
    TL;DR: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Cartoons: ‘At least I didn’t make things awkward’
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
    5 days ago
  • Solving traffic congestion with Richard Prebble
    The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    5 days ago
  • I Think I'm Done Flying Boeing
    Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago
  • Invoking Aristotle: Of Rings of Power, Stones, and Ships
    The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
    6 days ago
  • Van Velden brings free-market approach to changing labour laws – but her colleagues stick to distr...
    Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • Why Newshub failed
    Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • Māori Party on the warpath against landlords and seabed miners – let’s see if mystical creature...
    Bob Edlin writes  –  The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they  follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • There’s a name for this
    Every year, in the Budget, Parliament forks out money to government agencies to do certain things. And every year, as part of the annual review cycle, those agencies are meant to report on whether they have done the things Parliament gave them that money for. Agencies which consistently fail to ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    6 days ago
  • Echoes of 1968 in 2024?  Pocock on the repetitive problems of the New Left
    Mike Grimshaw writes – Recent events in American universities point to an underlying crisis of coherent thinking, an issue that increasingly affects the progressive left across the Western world. This of course is nothing new as anyone who can either remember or has read of the late ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago

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

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