National’s fundamentals

Written By: - Date published: 7:15 am, November 6th, 2019 - 87 comments
Categories: Christopher Luxon, election 2020, national - Tags: ,

I’m trying to avoid thinking about National as much as possible at the moment, but this grabbed my attention on twitter last night from the discussion about National parachuting in their FJK replacement Christopher Luxon joining the National Party and becoming the candidate for Botany.

Luxon is the former CEO of Air New Zealand, and he’s also an evangelical Christian. Background in Micky’s posts here (June) and here (October).

Russell Brown’s twitter thread,

I had a look at The Upper Room, the Newmarket evangelical church that Christopher Luxon attends. I like the church’s focus on community and much of its mission work is creditable. But this recent sermon by founder Craig Heilman is … a bit weird.

The Upper Room https://upperroom.org.nz/sermons/from-darkness-to-light/

It tries (I think) to make a case that it is our experience of “the darkness” that ultimately brings us close to God, referencing Psalm 88 and Greta Thunberg. But it’s studded with tropes from far-right conspiracies: Soros, Saul Alinsky, et al.

Heilmann tells his congregation that Thunberg has an “eco-coach” funded by Soros. This is a straight-up conspiracy theory originally aired on the website Europe Reloaded, which rails against “globalists” and the climate change “hoax”. Fact-checkers have found this theory wanting.

Heilmann tries to be even-handed (there’s nothing wrong with protest, etc), but the fact he’s quoting this kind of thing seems notable. It’s an interesting environment for a prospective Prime Minister to emerge from.

Update: just browsed Heilmann’s twitter. He thinks Brexit and MAGA are “really good”, that Trump is the victim of a conspiracy by “the administrative state” and climate change isn’t real. Frets about “globalist” Clinton-Soros plans for a “one world order”. Etc, etc. Crikey.

He also retweets some pretty scary accounts, including True Pundit, source of some really ghastly fabricated news stories, including the claim that NYPD seized Hilary’s emails as part of child sex trafficking investigation. Loves Tulsi Gabbard.

Various people were also commenting on the removal of Heilmann’s twitter account, and pages from his church’s website, including the one Brown linked to.

There’s an issue here about whether a politician (or political party leader) can be closely tied to the beliefs of the pastor of the church they attend. Which is fair enough in a reasonable world and New Zealand is fortunate in being largely immune to the influence of churches in politics. We also tend to be live and let live when it comes to people’s religion. My problem here is twofold.

One is that if there are no direct political connections between Luxon and his church or pastor, what do we make of the removal of Pastor Heilmann’s twitter account and the Upper Room website content on the same day that Luxon’s candidacy for Botany is announced? We could get really speculative and wonder how close the timing of the removal was to say Brown’s tweets, or why the National Party’s office was so slack that they didn’t think to organise this months ago.

The other problem is that who the fuck trusts National to have any ethics here? It’s not like the party is full of fundamentalist Christians, but I have zero doubts that the power-holders in National will make use of Luxon as they need to. Whether this is just another smart parachuting move that includes enough vote catching nods to the religious conservatives, or whether National already intend to go the whole Trumpian, climate-denying, trash-the-country-for-power path, who knows. Given the last decade, the latter seems just as likely as the former, so best we are prepared.

Maybe Brown highlighting the community and ministry aspects of Luxon’s church and congregation is right, and the points about not holding this against him remain true. Or maybe this is how it happens in New Zealand, the tainting of NZ politics with fundamentalist religion for political gain is manufactured with a smile and a wave.

All of which is to say that I know bugger all about Luxon, and in a vacuum I won’t be the only one tempted to judge him by the company he keeps (maybe the Pastor, but definitely National). In which case,


In the interests of transparency, here are some of the archived pages from The Upper Room’s website. Grab them while you can.

https://web.archive.org/web/*/https://upperroom.org.nz/wp-content/uploads//*

The sermon that Russel Brown’s thread is about.

https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:XSg1kTu2FpcJ:https://upperroom.org.nz/sermons/from-darkness-to-light/

 

87 comments on “National’s fundamentals ”

  1. Sabine 1

    why yes, it seems so.

    but then surely all those that said that the shit that went down in the US can't happen here, will reassure us that it won't happen here, right?

    And besides, its only women, children and all other non white non heterosexual men that will have their rights curtailed should this (or any other incarnation) come to pass. So why worry, Right?

  2. mauī 2

    " ….that Trump is the victim of a conspiracy by “the administrative state”"

    "Loves Tulsi Gabbard."

    With him there, so it's not all bad.

    • Alice Tectonite 2.1

      Not content with licking Putin's, Trump's & Assad's boots, mauī starts eyeing up Luxton's boots…

      • mauī 2.1.2

        It's good for a bit of thought diversity. We can't have everyone towing the msm or Russell Brown line…

        • Anne 2.1.2.1

          Only if the 'thought diversity' is based on sanity and lucidity. What we've seen thus far is anything but sane and lucid.

          • Paddington 2.1.2.1.1

            "based on sanity and lucidity"

            As defined by whom? It could be argued that much political discourse is neither sane nor lucid. In QT yesterday, Poto Williams was asked a series of questions to which her answers were most certainly not lucid (https://www.parliament.nz/en/watch-parliament/ondemand?itemId=209610). Yet Poto is no fool.

            Diversity isn't only a good thing when people agree with you.

            • McFlock 2.1.2.1.1.1

              Diversity of thought isn't always a good thing if the minority opinion is stark raving bonkers.

              • Andre

                Even worse when the stark raving bonkers minority manages to elect a president.

              • Paddington

                As defined by whom? The majority?

                • McFlock

                  What's more likely: that everyone around you is insane because they can't see the pink elephants, or that you're insane because you're seeing pink elephants?

                  • Paddington

                    When you find some one who believes in pink elephants, let me know. In the meantime, there are many issues that attract conflicting viewpoints, some of which you and I may both find neither sane nor lucid, yet those viewpoints are a legitimate part of public discourse. That is, after all, how humanity progresses.

                    • McFlock

                      Whether a viewpoint conflicts with one's own is irrelevant to whether it's stone cold bonkers.

                      And there's a continuum between "known fact" and "totally bonkers delusion", incorporating such levels as "a likely theory based on experience", "fair possibility, but let's wait and see", "long bow to draw", and "an extrapolated supposition based on a two hour youtube video from some guy who has a vibe I like".

                      A good indicator of nutbar syndrome is taking some of those other levels and regarding them as "known facts".

                      And I've encountered one or two people who look at the oompah-loompah and see a good POTUS. I've never yet seen them manage to strain the interpretation of presidential objectives into actually demonstrating that assessment, though. Seeing pink elephants and demonstrating sanity would be more likely.

                    • Paddington

                      "A good indicator of nutbar syndrome is taking some of those other levels and regarding them as "known facts". "

                      Not every conversation is based on "known facts".

                      "And there's a continuum between "known fact" and "totally bonkers delusion" "

                      Yes, true, however we may well disagree about where an issue fits on that continuum. We will, I'm confident, agree about pink elephants. We may well disagree about many other issues. Trying to shut down a point of view simply because we personally find it bonkers is not healthy.

                    • McFlock

                      Again, if yojimbo says something I think is bonkers (be it pink elephants or that Russia isn't murdering dissidents and defectors), I need to allow for the possibility that I am missing a fundamental piece of information or am indeed bonkers myself.

                      But if yojimbo says something I think is bonkers, specialists in the area think his proposition is bonkers, other apparently reasonable people think his idea is bonkers, the evidence yojimbo points to seems to fit a more simple explanation than the apparently bonkers theory, and the few people who support yojimbo also seem to be bonkers in other aspects, then I'm pretty cool with a general assessment that yojimbo’s theory is stark raving bonkers.

                  • Paddington

                    So that would qualify at the "totally bonkers delusion" end of the continuum. So we refute it, and maybe learn or educate as we go.

                    But many arguments are far more nuanced than the existence of pink elephants.

                    • McFlock

                      Oh, most definitely.

                      But there are more than a few stone cold bonkers theories on the internet, even on this website, being lobbied for attention and respect just because "diversity", and they tend to get in the way of discussions about the more nuanced and reasonable theories, "diverse" and "mainstream" alike.

                      Sometimes it's even intentional, like throwing a dead cat on the table.

                    • Paddington

                      On that, we can certainly agree. Thanks for the convo.

        • Sacha 2.1.2.2

          What 'line' would that be – something about transparency being a good thing? #gasp

      • marty mars 2.1.3

        + 1 that guy's not a brainbox that's for sure lol

      • Andre 2.1.4

        It's not boots that maui's been licking and eyeing up.

        • weka 2.1.4.1

          [Ok, enough everyone. If you can't make a political point and just want to be shit to a fellow commenter, then consider this a warning I'm putting my mod hat on – weka]

  3. Dukeofurl 3

    South Auckland seats for National are becoming a hot bed of the fundamentalists, who target seats that are likely to have new MPs.

    Pakuranga changed from the liberal Williamson( who retired) to fundamentalist Simeon Brown and now Botany.

    • mac1 3.1

      There is a constituency that the 'no friends' party is targeting with the inclusion of candidates who reflect that constituency.

      With the continued failure of conservative, religiously-influenced parties of the Right to negotiate the MMP 5% barrier- parties which do themselves no benefit by putting up some seriously flawed individuals who end up in the courts- I believe National is now attempting to attract that conservative constituency vote.

      There is a problem for National in that opponents will be galvanised by the prospect of a National party in the hands of such fundamentalists.

      They may also be damned by liberal voters for that association along the lines of, "I won't go near National as they're a bunch of religious nutters." Just as the Greens suffered by having anti-science pro-homeopathy advocates aka nutters.

      Labour wore a long sense of grievance from lefties who could not tolerate the rise of neo-liberalsim in the 80s. That grievance is still voiced by some.

      This brings me to my final point. The pre-MMP Labour party was subjected to the rise into predomination of a right-wing neo-liberal faction. The post-MMP National party is still a coalition of urban liberal conservatives and more rural and less liberal groupings. The rise of Luxon and Simeon Brown with others of that ilk within National tells me that it has not undergone a post-MMP shedding of single-issue faddists and fringeists.

      Instead National seeks consciously or otherwise to keep its status as NZ's largest party by welcoming a diversity which includes the religiously conservative, the corporate, the minority-bashing intolerants, the haters and the bigots.

      it may see benefit in that, electorally.

      I hope that enough Kiwis will see the inherent danger in a National party that is in danger of losing the control of its policy and practice to such a take-over by ultimately dangerous factions just as Labour faced with its neo-liberals.

      If we are the fair-minded and decent people we believe ourselves to be……………

  4. Peter 4

    National’s fundamentals? Fundamentally they're a pack of fundamental orifices.

    The comment might upset the tender sensitivities of some and be condemned as destructive and negative and not adding to healthy, erudite debate but before you wander out into the world it is best to survey the landscape to get the lay of the land.

  5. ianmac 5

    We do know that Luxon is:

    Pro-life, anti abortion

    Anti legalising cannabis

    Against euthanasia

    Pro medicinal cannabis

    Entitled to his opinions but being more right than English or Bridges does not bode well for a Liberal Democratic NZ.
    PS I think he is denial over Climate Change.

    • Sabine 5.1

      does his pro-life stance allow for birth control? Does it allow for abortion in case of incest, rape, or when the life of the mother is at stake? if he does not, then he is not pro – life but pro forced birth.

      against euthanasia – well the aged care sector is the last profit centre that still exist, and that applies to anyone else who can pay for health care – all others can die in a ditch as slow as it will be just without the right to decide their own passing. Again – not pro-life.

      against canabis, but for medicinal cannabis, cause hey i would like to control how you treat yourself, and again if you can't afford a doctor etc etc etc then you get to suffer. Again, not really pro -life.

      denial of climate change – not pro – life.

      yeah, he sounds like a right far right christian nut case that will never ever suffer the consequences of his believes.

  6. As the world lurches (or moves even quicker) into climate crisis which threatens an end to human life, expect more of these fundamentalist views to become more mainstream.

    People will become bewildered and overcome by the sheer enormity of the catastrophe and many will turn to rapture-preaching fruitcakes.

    Luxon may well be just the advance guard of a legion of beyond the darkness apostles.

  7. UncookedSelachimorpha 7

    Rich Christians in an age of poverty and need.

    Wouldn't be surprised if there was an element of 'prosperity gospel' going on as well.

    Yuk.

    Wonder how old Luxon reckons the earth is?

  8. Anne 8

    Whether this is just another smart parachuting move that includes enough vote catching nods to the religious conservatives, or whether National already intend to go the whole Trumpian, climate-denying, trash-the-country-for-power path, who knows. Given the last decade, the latter seems just as likely as the former, so best we are prepared.

    When you look back on the so-called "pragmatic" decisions made by the Key government then it is clear the latter pathway is the one they have chosen to take. The National Party will change their core principles and policies in a flash if they see personal advantage in doing so.

    Once his court case is over and done with, I'm sure Winston Peters will be on to this one boots n'all. But he needs the back-up of Labour and the Greens. I hope he gets it.

  9. tc 9

    I'm not seeing any issue here. National is the party of priviledge white entitlement, climate denial, bene bashing, cronyism etc. Luxon's a perfect fit.

    Their pockets are deep enough to top CL up between his highly paid AirNZ gig and his next CEO gig, that of the national parliamentary party.

    I'm enjoying Soimon defending his replacement whilst foaming at the mouth dog whistling. If he wins Botany it will be CL's second gig in a row employed in an area he's got zero experience in, classic cronyism/national party.

  10. Macro 10

    Just as a precautionary aside I post this tweet which looks at Trump's "Spiritual Adviser" in the White House. We must never allow this sort of thing to happen here.

    https://twitter.com/Alyssa_Milano/status/1191560809933103105

    • Anne 10.1

      Playing straight into Trump's malignant narcissism.

      • Sabine 10.1.1

        its good for the bank account.

        • Phil 10.1.1.1

          Only if Donny's not the one paying the bill.

          • Sabine 10.1.1.1.1

            churches are tax exempt and if you call yourself Donnie you want in on all of the tax exempt tithing of the faithful.

            As for the shitface not paying bills, his voters knew that and they are ok with it. Same as with the divorces., the 5 children to three mommas, the playboy bunny, the porn star, the oogling of under age girls in dressing rooms, the creepy photographs of him and his underage daughter, and so on and so forth.

            So yeah, the shitface loves himself some prosperty gospel and if his voters so far approve of his shitshow.

    • Dukeofurl 10.2

      I dont think from the Comments about Paula White you dont quite get what her job is , its what we would call a Comms Advisor

      as described by Washington Post

      "Florida televangelist Paula White, who has served as a spiritual adviser to President Trump, will join his administration in an official capacity, according to a senior administration official and another person familiar with the move.

      White, who already helps coordinate Trump’s evangelical outreach to key leaders, will be a religious adviser in the Office of Public Liaison, the part of the White House overseeing outreach to groups seen as part of Trump’s base."

      She was/still ? is a tele-evangalist so seems a good fit for spreading the message to Trump loving bible bashers

      • Macro 10.2.1

        Actually I'm well aware of what her job in the White House is – it is the way that she acts as a vehicle to unify the lunatic fundamental religious right that is the terrifying aspect I hoped to show.

    • Andre 10.3

      Can't stomach sitting through 4 1/2 minutes of that shite. Does it mention where she was going to set up a "prosperity gospel" megachurch with the stable genius grifter to fleece some more from the gullible?

      https://www.salon.com/2019/11/01/president-trump-wanted-to-build-a-megachurch-with-prosperity-gospel-preacher-paula-white_partner/

      • Macro 10.3.1

        No I could only stomach 2 minutes before I had to turn it off. Its about the way she performs – her "beliefs" heresies actually. eg Trump is appointed by god and to defy him is to defy god. etc etc. She is walking on hallowed ground – because for some apparent reason she is a vector for the holy spirit. And of course tRump loves it.

    • tc 10.4

      Spiritual adviser eh. No whiskey before 5, a vodka only zone up till then.

    • Lettuce 10.5

      She looks a bit like an older Stormy actually. How long till we find out Trump's been banging her too?

  11. Stuart Munro. 11

    What we're really seeing is the triumph of low-church mysticism, over the better informed scholarly churches, at least among the undeserving rich. Scholarship is often disquieting – if one asks real questions the answers are wont to be unflattering of human egos. So no informed understanding of what the books are all about, just another reiteration of the parochialism that had churchmen on both sides support most of the wars in history.

    Fiat Luxton is neither a new beginning nor an act of creation – they might as well stick with Bridges – except perhaps for the purpose of extracting funding from credulous conservatives.

    • weka 11.1

      thanks for that, I hadn't quite understood the low-church/scholarly church thing before. I'm sure there are issues the other way too (class, elitism), but it's a good one to think about.

      • Stuart Munro. 11.1.1

        I don't really do it justice, but it was a big deal to my father – a theologian.

        • weka 11.1.1.1

          I can imagine.

          • greywarshark 11.1.1.1.1

            Would Lloyd Geering have been scholarly? He fits into the disquieting group.

            • Ad 11.1.1.1.1.1

              Hell yes. One of our best and most challenging.

            • Stuart Munro. 11.1.1.1.1.2

              Yes – and not alone in growing beyond his original institution. If one isn't self-critical one can't be much of a scholar, and difficult though it may be with low-end reporters constantly cruising for clickbait, I think the same is true of politicians.

              The best lack all conviction, while the worst

              Are full of passionate intensity.

              "Get some guts!" Key shouted, like a contestant in a jingoism contest.

        • Ad 11.1.1.2

          Good to see that background.

          What were his theological fields?

    • Ad 11.2

      Pretty easy to think of this government as "low church".

      – No ideological framework

      – Substitutes lists for achievements

      – Faint but growing eschatological drive

      – Can memorise verses but not meanings

      – Great rhetorical flourishes, poor on-ground execution

      – Perpetually delayed gratification

      – Hundreds of Bible studies/working groups, with no result

      – Active Youth Group (Greens), but actually run by Elders (NZFirst).

      – Achieves power and survives on charisma alone

      – Holds good conversion rallies

      • greywarshark 11.2.1

        I hope Labour reads that Ad. There would be much to discuss in private, with no cellphones or sneaks around, while everyone examined the state of their beliefs and achievements.

      • Stuart Munro. 11.2.2

        To me, the low church problem is its susceptibility to certain predictable vices, especially egotistical or ill-informed leadership. Where they prosper is on the emphasis of an individual religiosity, the antidote to some institutional ills. So, while I agree with your list, I tend to critique in quality assurance terms.

        Is it reform, or satisficing?

        Are the benefits of funding reaching those they are designed to assist?

        Is the overall pattern of rapidly rising inequality and declining quality of life being meaningfully addressed?

        The answers are negative, but parts of the coalition will survive as being infinitely less awful than National – for a time.

  12. veutoviper 12

    I am not usually a fan of RNZ National's The Panel show but yesterday's show included an interesting 10 minute segment with Wallace Chapman and the two panelist of the day, Paula Penfold (Stuff Circuit investigative journalis) and Mike Rehu (sports and media commentator) discussing Christopher Luxon's selection as Nat candidate for Botany. They were also joined by Ben Thomas, former Nat Party staffer.

    Paula Penfold led off (after being called 'Paula Bennett' by Wallace!) with some good insightful points about Luxon's performance in his interview with Suzie Ferguson being less than spectacular. Mike Rehu then countered with a generous view that both Key and Luxon may have a "genuine sense of wanting to give back", but then Ben Thomas was a bit of a surprise as I fully expected him to come in as a cheerleader for Luxon. Instead he was much more along the lines of Paula's comments, and came across as a little bit embarassed to be doing so.

    Well worth a 10 minute listen IMHO.

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/thepanel/audio/2018720828/the-panel-with-paula-penfold-and-mike-rehu-part-1

    For the time being, I personally am sticking with the view that I expressed yesterday on OM that "IMHO Luxon stands out as Jamie Whyte 2.0 – not Key 2.0. In looks as well as in his views. My money (Nil) is on him not lasting long – and possibly not even until next year's election."

    • Anne 12.1

      My money (Nil) is on him not lasting long – and possibly not even until next year's election.

      If more weirdo stuff comes out about this non-mainstream church he belongs to, I think you could be right vv.

      • Sacha 12.1.1

        That will play well amongst some of the Nat base, especially in that electorate. Expect the PR buffing of Luxon to continue.

  13. Ken 13

    Even the Nats won't support a religious whackjob who takes his advice from a guy who's floating around in the sky…….will they?????

    Please tell me they won't.

    How happy must the poor long suffering Nat MPs be who started at the bottom and took years to rise up the ranks, only to have this guy come from nowhere and gazump them?

    • Sabine 13.1

      if they want the tax cut bad enough they will vote for them, and with them those that would like to ban abortion, those that would like to dismantle some rules and regulations they don't like, those that would just like to own the libs and so on and so on and so on.

      Don't ever think that the fundies of Gloriavale or the Brethren don't vote, they do and their wifes do to. See the US for inspiration if need be. 🙂

    • Herodotus 13.2

      I look forward to those on the left then taking over the many aspects that is happening under the name of this guy floating around, opps that will not happen as so much that the govt defaults to other is compensated by those who act under his name or what he represents.

      Those with no knowledge need to invest some time into the history or our Labour party.

  14. Ad 14

    Jacinda Ardern was brought up in a fundamentalist household.

    Then went on to be global president of International Socialist Youth.

    No shortage of low-church hysterics there.

    Turned out fine.

  15. Ad 15

    Quite apart from this obvious contribution to the common good, the NZ Labour Party was founded in large part by Christians. Evangelicals and non-conformists formed the backbone of the Party, alongside Anglicans and Catholics, as it came into being at the dawn of the 20th Century. The Women's Temperance Union was a fully Christian drive.

    The argument of which power is the Head of State's true allegiance has a good going-over during John F Kennedy's election.

    But even stronger than that, they can serve both, successfully:

    – John Bani. President and head of State of Vanuatu. Anglican Priest.

    – Walter Lini. Founding President of Vanuatu. Anglican Priest.

    – Scott Morrison. Prime Minister of Australia. Devout member of Horizon Pentecostal Church.

    – Kjell Bondevik. Prime Minister of Norway. Lutheran Minister.

    – Canaan Banana. First President of Zimbabwe. Priest and theologian.

    – Arnold Nordmyer. New Zealand Prime Minister. Presbyterian Minister

    – David Clark. Minister of Health. Presbyterian Minister.

    • Stuart Munro. 15.1

      Institutions being what they are, religion is unreliable as a prediction of good governance. But it generally possesses, though not necessarily uses, a body of traditional knowledge or insights into the human condition that are valuable. Ideally it includes prospering communities also.

      Savage called his version of socialism Applied Christianity, and Popper recognized it as being significantly better than the governing norms of Austria. But the churches in general are in decline. It is predominantly the ethnochurches and the gospel of Mammon that are keeping their heads above water. I venture we shall wait a long time for a church like Waddell's to shake up our slumbering national consciences again.

      https://www.odt.co.nz/lifestyle/magazine/waging-good-fight

  16. Graeme 16

    I'm intrigued by his departure from Air New Zealand. From what I hear from staff there it hasn't been a happy place under Luxon, compared to Fyfe's management, but that was a hard act to follow.

    Could his departure have been similar to Don Brash's departure form the Reserve Bank, "If you want to change the world, go into politics" evidently from Michael Cullen. Similar sentiment expressed by John Key?

    Saw a Luxon decision reversed this week, Air New Zealand has reinstated a Queenstown CBD travel office after pulling out of town in 2013. Expecting a lot of other 'cost cuttings' to be reversed in favour of customer service as our airline undoes the damage inflicted.

    • Anne 16.1

      From what I hear from staff there it hasn't been a happy place under Luxon,..

      I have a close relative married to an Air NZ pilot and he made similar noises. It definitely was not a happy place! Woe betide NZ if he ever becomes PM. He would make Rogernomics and Ruthanasia look like a Sunday School picnic.

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    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
    10 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
    22 hours 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
    1 day 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
    1 day 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 ...
    1 day 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 ...
    1 day 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
    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
    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
    2 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
    4 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
    4 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
    5 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
  • Two bar blues
    The thing about life’s little victories is that they can be followed by a defeat.Reader Darryl told me on Monday night:Test again Dave. My “head cold” last week became COVID within 24 hours, and is still with me. I hear the new variants take a bit longer to show up ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 13
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Angus Deaton on rethinking his economics IMFLocal scoop: The people behind Tamarind, the firm that left a $500m cleanup bill for taxpayers at Taranaki’s Tui oil well, are back operating in Taranaki under a different company name. Jonathan ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • AT Need To Lift Their Game
    Normally when we talk about accessing public transport it’s about improving how easy it is to get to, such as how easy is it to cross roads in a station/stop’s walking catchment, is it possible to cycle to safely, do bus connections work, or even if are there new routes/connections ...
    6 days ago
  • Christopher's Whopper.
    Politicians are not renowned for telling the truth. Some tell us things that are verifiably not true. They offer statements that omit critical pieces of information. Gloss over risks, preferring to offer the best case scenario.Some not truths are quite small, others amusing in their transparency. There are those repeated ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    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
    4 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
    6 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
    7 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
    20 hours ago
  • Kāinga Ora instructed to end Sustaining Tenancies
    Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Speech to Auckland Business Chamber: Growth is the answer
    Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Singapore rounds out regional trip
    Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships.      “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Minister van Velden represents New Zealand at International Democracy Summit
    Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Insurance Council of NZ Speech, 7 March 2024, Auckland
    ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland  Acknowledgements and opening  Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho.  Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau  My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Five-year anniversary of Christchurch terror attacks
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says.  “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024
    Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024  Acknowledgements and opening  Morena, Nga Mihi Nui.  Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau  Good morning. It’s a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Early visit to Indonesia strengthens ties
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asia’s most populous country.   “We are in Jakarta so early in our new government’s term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • China Foreign Minister to visit
    Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week.  “We look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealand’s ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Minister opens new Auckland Rail Operations Centre
    Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. “The recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Auckland’s rail agencies work together to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
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  • Celebrating 10 years of Crankworx Rotorua
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