National's Policy Machine is a thing to behold

Written By: - Date published: 12:06 pm, May 16th, 2023 - 99 comments
Categories: act, Economy, national, same old national, tax, treasury - Tags:

Yesterday National set the local political scene alight by coming up with the latest policy proposal that will set the local political scene on fire and the effects of which will no doubt be visible in the next polls.

The policy is …

Wait this is really good …

You will be amazed …

The plan to print out and send to taxpayers information about how the Government’s money is spent and how much tax they paid.

You may ask why this is such a good idea and why the information is not readily available.

You could but there would be a problem.  The information on how much the Government spends is readily available as long as you know how to use google.

For instance you could google “how is New Zealand Government money spent” and it will provide you with this link.

You could ask Chat GPT “where can I find breakdown on how much New Zealand Government spends each year”.

It will tell you:

To find a breakdown of how much the New Zealand Government spends each year, you can refer to the official government sources and budget documents. Here are a few key sources where you can find this information:

  1. New Zealand Treasury: The New Zealand Treasury website provides comprehensive information on the government’s finances, including budget documents, reports, and economic updates. You can visit their website at https://treasury.govt.nz/ to access the latest budget information and expenditure breakdowns.
  2. New Zealand Government Budget: The annual budget outlines the government’s revenue and expenditure plans for the upcoming fiscal year. The budget documents include detailed breakdowns of spending by different sectors, such as health, education, infrastructure, social welfare, and more. The budget is usually released in May each year, and you can find it on the New Zealand Treasury website or the government’s official budget website.
  3. New Zealand Parliament: The New Zealand Parliament’s website provides access to parliamentary debates, committee reports, and other relevant documents. You can explore the Parliament’s website at https://www.parliament.nz/ to find information on government spending and budgetary matters.
  4. New Zealand Statistics: Statistics New Zealand collects and publishes data on various aspects of the economy, including government finances. Their website, https://www.stats.govt.nz/, offers a wealth of economic and financial data, which may include information on government spending.

Remember that these sources provide the most reliable and up-to-date information on government expenditure in New Zealand. It’s recommended to consult these official sources for accurate and detailed breakdowns of government spending.

But no, National thinks that a report should be sent out.

The tax information is available anyway.  Just log onto MyIRD.

And National continues on with its barrage of “cut unnecessary spending” without telling the country what it will actually cut.

Which allows Act to fill in the policy vacuum with its alternative budget.  In the absence of anything meaningful from National this is all the electorate has to rely on.

The proposal is usual right wing Ayn Rand wet dream stuff.  Tax cuts for the wealthy and a tax increase for the poor masked by gutting the Emissions Trading Scheme and by a tax credit, for how long who knows.

Other policies include:

  • Gutting collective teacher contracts.
  • More spending on Defence.
  • Incentives for Councils to allow Urban Sprawl.
  • More prisons.
  • 200 new beds in secure Corrections facilities for youth criminals.  This is a dramatic increase.
  • Reduction in eligibility for the Winter Energy Payment and Kiwisaver subsidies.
  • 14,000 fewer Public Servants.
  • Abolition of the Human Rights Commission.

At least Act has policies that it has announced and that we can debate.  National’s proposal is that lacking in detail and that superficial that you have to wonder what its vaunted Policy Machine is actually up to.

99 comments on “National's Policy Machine is a thing to behold ”

  1. Reality 1

    The PM's moments of speechlessness on hearing about the certificate said it all! It's not often he is without an immediate response. As he said it would be like the old bank statements going out. And then Nicola Willis thinks it could be done with AI. Nutty.

  2. Peter 2

    The real NatFans will be invigorated by the stroke of Luxon/Willis genius and off on some ‘holding the bastards accountable’ euphoria fix.

    Meanwhile we can be certain of the message for consumers: “No brain cells were used in the production of this policy.”

  3. PsyclingLeft.Always 3

    Tax cuts for the wealthy and a tax increase for the poor

    National : its a given.

    But this on the Standard saying NZ needs more …multimillionaires?!

    15 May 2023 at 10:22 am …..3.1

    And after all the exposing of how…little tax the rich pay. The "Trickle down" lie revisited…

    https://natlib.govt.nz/records/37118919

    • arkie 3.1

      An expression of faith in Economism:

      …the misleading application of basic lessons from Economics 101 to real-world problems, creating the illusion of consensus and reducing a complex topic to a simple, open-and-shut case.

      https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2017/01/economism-and-the-minimum-wage/513155/

      • PsyclingLeft.Always 3.1.1

        Aye for sure. And re multi millionaires. I have worked for some ..millionaires. Everything they spent on..was scrutinised/micromanaged to a ridiculous … even be laughable, if it wasnt the poor worker/tradie/shop being fucked over A tighter bunch of tightwads would be hard to imagine…

        The "trickle down" BS. I ..and many others, know it to be so true.

        • Micro managing must be part of being wealthy!!

          We have relatives like that.

          Questioning every expense is normal, and expecting discounts, freebies or add -ons as part of any exchange, regular.

          Refunds are demanded for trivial reasons.

          It is incessant "are we getting the most for that dollar"

          Generosity is kept for their own, and seen as profligate in others.

          This is part of “tax” is my money, not the Government “funding a functioning society”

          • PsyclingLeft.Always 3.1.1.1.1

            Firstly, Good Morn Patricia. : ). Seems to have been…a while. Hope you are well and allgood ? You are def "on the money" there. FYI certainly understand people on "Struggle Street" who HAVE to watch every cent… (sadly been there : (

            But as you vouch….these wealthy…(and as I say, millionaire) types…are never going to "trickle down" much of anything…

            And, unsurprisingly, nearly always Nact types.

            They have the policies that best support them and their ilk…

            IMO much better that all can..

            "From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs"

            NZ could be..that Paradise….ON Earth : )

            • Patricia Bremner 3.1.1.1.1.1

              We are good thank yousmiley donating our little fortnightly amount to try to counter the "big boys end of town" (a bit sexist as there are now a few "Big Girls" as well. )

              I hope that all who are able, are supporting Labour's 2 for 1 fund raiser Hayden Munroe is running for us as donations will be matched $ for $. (Trying to counter Nats' 5 mill.)

              Yes, we are fortunate to be in this part of the world. The stresses we are having following the pandemic/storms fall out are at least recognised by this Govt.

              The events which have been beyond their control have been extraordinary, and we are all tired. However as James said, we still need to demand better for those who are falling through the cracks.

              Things are tight for business. We went to one to buy a bed which will help us get in and out, (raise the foot or head) for our real old age devil.

              The lady serving us said we had "made her day" as things have really slowed here, and added both her children had been made redundant in Australia so she felt pleased to have a job.

              We told her Grant is having an operation tomorrow on the Gold Coast, and the bed was meant to be our trip!! We found the airport horrible last year, and "carbon" guilt set in. We video call often, so feel instantly updated connected as past generations never could for so little cost.

              Thanks for reaching out PLAyes All the best.

  4. Tiger Mountain 4

    For the sake of all that is good in Aotearoa NZ, and what could be better…please, please, Natzos retain the services of Baldrick Mark Luxon as your leader into the 2023 General Election!

  5. tsmithfield 5

    I don't think anyone said anything about mailing information out. That is soo last century.

    But, I don't have any problem with people knowing how their taxes are being spent. I would be surprised if anyone here does either.

    I think one of the reasons why people get pissed off about the amount of taxes they pay is because it seems almost the same as giving money to an alcoholic. Most people likely would not mind paying taxes if they thought the money was being well spent.

    Case in point, look at how much money has been wasted on investigating and progress costs in the various programs and projects the government has scrapped recently. And, some of those ideas were highly dubious in the first place. For instance, the TVNZ/RNZ merger.

    • Good to see you doubling down on this idiotic policy tsmith. It will never be heard of again.

    • SPC 5.2

      Case in point, look at how much money has been wasted on investigating and progress costs in the various programs and projects the government has scrapped recently. And, some of those ideas were highly dubious in the first place. For instance, the TVNZ/RNZ merger.

      You are aware that National wants Treasury to do this with all government programmes each and every year.

      Has this policy been costed?

    • bwaghorn 5.3

      Tax surly goes into a pool so any government spending is likely to have a %of your tax in it, I'm quit sure luxoffs recipt will tell me exactly where my tax went.

      Fuckers are loons

      • Nic the NZer 5.3.1

        There is no pool of cash sitting around inside the IRD, or the RBNZ. Its mostly electronic and the RBNZ has the authority to put what ever numbers are needed into the government account (or the commercial banks accounts) to clear payments.

    • Craig H 5.4

      Would you rather government agencies stopped doing business cases and other investigative work?

    • Mike B 5.5

      The Labour supporters are very quick to bring up the potential costs of a supposed statement that will spell out what the government has spent tax dollars on. But they do not want to hear about the billions wasted by the current government. Just this week, thousands of certificates have been printed and posted out to all those involved with COVID work! How much did that cost?

      [please supply some details about the certificates so we know what you are talking about – weka]

  6. Ngungukai 6

    Tax cuts, tax cuts, tax cuts, tax …,,, ????

  7. AB 7

    You are right to note that the information provided to taxpayers under this NACT policy is trivial, uninformative or meaningless at the individual level, and relatively easily obtained elsewhere. But that's not the point of the policy – it's a cultural stake in the ground.

    The intention is to change the notion of taxation that people have in their heads. To move it away from a generalised sense that society has to function and I'm obliged to contribute my share because I can earn what I do only because a functional society exists in the first place. They want to shift the thinking towards an individuated, transactional mindset of "what am I getting for my money that you forcibly take from me?" It's the crudest repeat of 1980's and 1990's – a doubling-down on the most regressive ideology of that period , which is all the really lies behind Luxon's fake bonhomie and corporate blather.

    • tsmithfield 7.1

      They want to shift the thinking towards an individuated, transactional mindset of "what am I getting for my money that you forcibly take from me?

      I don't think that is the right way of looking at it. My way of looking at tax is that it should be spent in the best way to benefit society as a whole. And, hopefully gain economies of scale by being able to bulk purchase for the whole country (e.g. as in Pharmac).

      But, when money is tipped down the toilet continually on ideas that were bad in the first place, and then get abandoned anyway after huge amounts were spent on them, it is not surprising that people get resentful about how their tax money is spent.

      • arkie 7.1.1

        It's not 'tax payers money' if it is owed as tax:

        Richard Murphy, one of the founders of the UK’s Tax Justice Network and author of The Joy of Tax, explains that “taxpayers’ money” is the money left in our pockets after we have paid taxes that are legally due. Money payable through taxes is the government’s property.

        This is quite easy to prove — try not paying your income tax and see if the courts will enforce government property rights in that money.

        If the government is the legal owner of its funds, then, does it hold tax revenue in trust for taxpayers? Not at all. Subject to the rule of law, governments can do what they choose with their money.

        https://theconversation.com/government-funds-are-not-taxpayer-money-media-and-politicians-should-stop-confusing-the-two-153195

        • Liberty Belle 7.1.1.1

          Tax is money taken lawfully from those who have earned it, that is tax payers. The government becomes the legal owner of those monies, by their ability to legislate for taxes. But who is the government? In a democracy they are the representatives of the people. The government may be legally able to spend the money on what they want, but they are at least ethically/morally bound to exercise prudence and careful judgement. Successive governments have failed in various ways to achieve that.

          • arkie 7.1.1.1.1

            our actionable right as electors is to vote a wasteful government out of office. The electorate as a whole, rather than an ideological interest group, determines the size of government we should have.

            Unlike trust beneficiaries, we do not have an equitable interest in the government’s money. If it were otherwise, groups of taxpayers might have some claim on the government to spend or not spend its money in particular ways. (my bold)

            https://theconversation.com/government-funds-are-not-taxpayer-money-media-and-politicians-should-stop-confusing-the-two-153195

            • Liberty Belle 7.1.1.1.1.1

              "Unlike trust beneficiaries, we do not have an equitable interest in the government’s money. "

              In strict legal terms, no. In ethical terms, absolutely we do. Taxpayers fund the government, and as such any responsible government has the obligation to spend our money wisely.

              • arkie

                And within the institution of representative democracy, electors (read: us taxpayers) are obligated to vote out governments we deem irresponsible. Receiving a 'receipt' each year gives the false impression that we have any control over the individual line items of government spending. We don't, it's a daft and likely expensive gimmick designed to hamper progressive government.

                • Liberty Belle

                  "Receiving a 'receipt' each year gives the false impression that we have any control over the individual line items of government spending. "

                  No, it gives information about how our money is being spent. No more, no less.

                  • arkie

                    All of which is already available.

                    And, once again, it's not 'our' money.

                    • Liberty Belle

                      So you're opposed to transparency? And yes, it is our money.

                    • lprent []

                      So you’re opposed to transparency?

                      All that they have to do is to put it up on the net. That is transparent. And guess what, it is already up on the net.

                      Can’t see any point in wasting money and resources in sending it out by snail-mail or any other personalised process – a process that is essentially obsolete.

                      This appears to be a policy made by a technical illiterate. Sounds like Chris Luxon or Chris Bishop.

                      And yes, it is our money.

                      So you approve of a wasting money and not just using the technically cheap solution? Perhaps you should explain why you’re wanting to grab cash and burn it for no purpose (apart from a stupid electioneering slogan).

                    • Incognito []

                      None is so blind as those who don’t want to see. I trust that you won’t be following Budget-2023 at all in the media because this would be the only way you can maintain your absurd partisan stance.

                      https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/489949/national-s-christopher-luxon-unveils-trio-of-fiscal-transparency-policies

                  • Liberty Belle

                    "All that they have to do is to put it up on the net. That is transparent. And guess what, it is already up on the net."

                    No. Transparency is not just about access, it is about ease to access.

          • Incognito 7.1.1.1.2

            The government may be legally able to spend the money on what they want

            Yes, in North Korea. However, in NZ the government is subject to public accountability and oversight – if the media do their job properly – and subject to legal and statutory limitations of which the former can only be changed through new legislation that requires a (winning) vote in Parliament.

            but they are at least ethically/morally bound to exercise prudence and careful judgement.

            Different governments may have different ethical or moral standards, or may face different political or economic pressures that influence their spending decisions, as we have seen in the government responses to the Covid-19 pandemic and natural disasters, for example. In any case, prudence and careful judgement are subjective and relative terms, i.e., who decides and on whose terms?

            Successive governments have failed in various ways to achieve that.

            Again, this is subjective and a matter of opinion and perspective that cannot be objectively verified or falsified. Different governments may have different priorities or goals in spending the tax money, with different outcomes or impacts. You and I may agree or disagree with these decisions or outcomes, but this does not necessarily mean that they are failures or successes, as you incorrectly assert.

            The only thing on which I agree with you is not matter of opinion but simply a fact, which is that the government is the legal owner of tax monies collected through its ability to legislate for taxes. Do you suggest we change this?

            And no, it is not ‘our money’, as you have already stated, correctly, that the government becomes the owner of those monies.

        • Shanreagh 7.1.1.2

          Yes you are correct Arkie and this is never more stark when we see the shenanigans that some firms get up with PAYE.

          They should be collecting the tax on behalf of the Government, it does not belong at that stage to the person who has earned it as they have 'agreed' to pay the tax they owe on a time payment system (Pay As You Earn), instead of at year's end. It does not belong to the firm either. The firms have collected the money on behalf to hold until the correct time to pass it on to IRD.

          Once the funds are in the coffers of the Govt then the punter can look via elections etc, budgets etc to see which party makes use or will make use and how they make use of the funds collected from taxation and other sources. We long ago (King John & the Robber Barons) handed over our (if we were a baron) ability to do things that govts now do such as tax or levy, raise armies, imprison someone etc.

          Individuals don't have a ring fenced amount that they can track.

      • Stuart Munro 7.1.2

        Tax isn't the biggest thing that is being wasted here. The National Party are a waste of time and space in Parliament – and the stunts they pull to enrich their cronies are very expensive, though often they destroyed capital value, as was the case of Solid Energy, or human potential as was the case of everything they ever did to education or the civil service.

        If we're going to start accounting for costs, I've a few markers to call in from the Gnats – and entirely too many from the post-Douglas Labour Party – shameful creatures that they are.

      • bwaghorn 7.1.3

        If you want it spent in the best possible way, you .use be distraught that we're paying luxon to come up with nothing useful as leader of the opposition

        • Ngungukai 7.1.3.1

          When are National going to retease some actual policies ?

          • Incognito 7.1.3.1.1

            On Friday the 13th, i.e. Black Friday, at 5 pm, National will dump a shitload of bullet points. In October.

          • Corey 7.1.3.1.2

            When are Labour going to announce any policies?

            2020 was virtually bereft of any policies from the major parties and 2023 is looking to be even worse.

            The country is falling apart and our political leaders are telling us "don't worry we got this , we'll let you know later ”

            Releasing policy manifestos two weeks out from the election is disgraceful in the era of early voting, we must know what your policies are before the first vote is cast.

            • logie97 7.1.3.1.2.1

              Your comments would be worth reading if you stopped the hyperbole.

              The country is not falling apart. That line has been trotted out since nations existed. In New Zealand we get it chanted every three years leading up to and then from immediately after each election by opposition parties of all hues.

              The general thread of government policy might not suit your persuasion, but year on year, where is the evidence that the New Zealand economy is crashing compared with the previous year/government/decade/century.

            • Anne 7.1.3.1.2.2

              When are Labour going to announce any policies?

              One more sleep to go.

    • Mac1 7.2

      AB, very well put and so true.

      I’m obliged to contribute my share because I can earn what I do only because a functional society exists in the first place.”

    • Incognito 7.3

      100%!

      It is intrinsically divisive in trying to move away from a collective mindset to a self-serving ‘what’s-in-it-for-me’ individualistic attitude.

      ACT will love it!

    • Liberty Belle 7.4

      "To move it away from a generalised sense that society has to function and I'm obliged to contribute my share because I can earn what I do only because a functional society exists in the first place."

      The problem is not funding a functional society. The problem is this government have taken wasting money to a whole new level.

      "They want to shift the thinking towards an individuated, transactional mindset of "what am I getting for my money that you forcibly take from me?""

      Or perhaps it's facilitating a much-needed conversation about what governments spend our money on, and how that provides benefits to society as a whole, as opposed to consultants in beaurecrats.

      • Stuart Munro 7.4.1

        I like the idea of beaurecrats – an aesthetic or romantic touch to humanize the legions of whey-faced assassins of joy could only be an improvement.

        • Liberty Belle 7.4.1.1

          Bureaucrats cost money. If they are providing essential services, they are useful.

          But then there's the 46% increase on comms staff (Government blames COVID-19 for 46 percent increase in communications staff | Newshub), the $24m spent on renovating KO offices (Revealed: Kāinga Ora spent over $24m of taxpayer money in four years on its own office renovations | Newshub) the spending of $1m on houses ready to be demolised (Government spends nearly $1m renovating homes that could soon be demolished – NZ Herald), the extravagant opening of Transmission Gully (Billion-dollar Transmission Gully opening ceremony cost $337,000 | Stuff.co.nz)…the list of waste is long.

          • Stuart Munro 7.4.1.1.1

            Yeah – it has a lot to do with fending off a corrupt Murdoch-style media that gives constant life-support to unattractive offerings like Key and Luxon. You know, the kind of asinine aggression that pushed out the best PM in my lifetime with threats of violence because the Gnats could not imagine any even remotely plausible policy arguments.

            National of course employed no such spin merchants – Jason Ede and the Oily Orca's Orifice must've been spontaneously generated by a benignant providence to keep that corrupt hoser in power.

            • Liberty Belle 7.4.1.1.1.1

              Seriously, if you think Jacinda was the best PM in your lifetime, and if you think she was pushed out by anything other than her own failure, then I have an old car to sell you.

              "it has a lot to do with fending off a corrupt Murdoch-style media that gives constant life-support to unattractive offerings like Key and Luxon."

              This is a claim the left constantly makes, but it doesn;t stand any scrutiny, as this study shows. MediaBias: Home

              • Stuart Munro

                Well you're obviously wildly credulous as well as misinformed – I've seen Chinese infomercials with better graphics, and with no examinable data, your aptly named 'mediabias' is slightly less credible than you.

                Here is a longform explanation of some of the innumerable failings of your authority of choice. Enjoy.

                • Liberty Belle

                  Nah. Mark just doesn't like being confronted with the outcome.

                  But if you don't like that one, here's another. Worlds of Journalism Study 2.0. Journalists in Aotearoa/ New Zealand. (farmersweekly.co.nz)

                  • Stuart Munro

                    We know you only care about the outcome – that's why you built a fake tool. You worked back from your desired reports and built a system to report that.

                    It's essentially the same rort as iPredict – another RW folly to create the illusion that your barking inanity has an ever so tenuous link to objective reality.

                    It doesn't.

                    • LibertyBelle

                      I didn’t build any tool, or any system. I’ve given 2 studies that both show left wing media bias in NZ. It really shouldn’t be a surprise.

                  • Stuart Munro

                    It's not a surprise – you're a raging far-right buffoon with no respect for the truth whatsoever.

                    An AI sort is not a study.

                    No parameters given – no veracity to be expected – garbage in, garbage out. And the list of results make it abundantly clear that its parameters are nonsense.

                    The Harold a leftwing rag? Not in your craziest cryptofascist fantasies.

                  • Stuart Munro

                    You're in complete denial if you think NZ media is not slanted left.

                    Your sanity seems to be as fragile as your integrity on this issue.

                    But of course you don't understand the concept of bias, so of course you are unable to find plausible support for your whack-jobbery. NZ media may indeed, for the moment, be making more positive mentions of the Left than of the Right. That however does not constitute bias. For it to be bias, any positive mentions would need to be disproportionate, unbalanced, or untrue. As you struggle with the simple difference between truth and fiction (and indeed reality), this is probably not obvious to you.

                    We are not having a debate here – you have asserted a fatuous lie, and you would need considerably more than a marginal study or an outright AI fiction to make good upon your assertions.

                  • Drowsy M. Kram

                    RIP centrism: Why Stuff is gradually moving left while the Herald inches right [19 November 2021]
                    What also happens the world over is that publishers are rewarded for dividing and provoking audiences. It’s that dynamic that is now beginning in earnest in NZ media.

                    Is The Media Biased? [10 October 2022]
                    As our economy becomes increasingly digital, and media industries become increasingly desperate for funds, Dr. Plaut questions whether the real media bias is moving toward “holding attention… giving people whatever will keep them online?

                    That worries me as much as anything else.

                    Mediawatch: Turning off the news? [9 April 2023]
                    We noticed that there's 14,500 journalists in Finland – and about 2500 here. It does actually speak to what you can offer people. I think in New Zealand we're rushing the news. I'm not blaming journalists for that, because that same stuff has to be covered with fewer resources, but you're inevitably going to get thinner coverage,” Dr Treadwell said.

                    The WoJ Study 2.0 preliminary results reported in "Table 8: NZ journalists' political views" ['Table' 8 is actually a bar graph], show that of the 359 journalists who responded (to the ~1200 invitations sent), one journalist self-identified as "Right", two as "Hard right", and one as "Extreme right" – perhaps Counterspin Media founder, director and programme host Kelvyn Alp?

                    As the bar chart below shows, there are very few strongly right-wing journalists, but a substantial number of moderately or strongly left-wingers.

                    The corresponding left-wing numbers are ~78 "Left", ~52 "Hard left", and ~20 "Extreme left" journalists. Amazingly, there was no mention of these 'political views' results in the WoJ 'Highlights' section on page 2.

                    What a tribute to the professionalism (or laziness) of these abundant journalists with left-wing views (out-numbering the four right-wing journalists about 38-to-one) that media coverage of NZ politics in toto doesn't have an obvious bias.

                    While still committed to the traditional non-biased neutral observer role, journalists now feel their most important role is no longer letting people express their views, but educating the public.

                    One question – did the journalists in the Table 8 "00" category prefer not to answer? Can't wait for the final results for all countries in 2024.

                    • Liberty Belle

                      "that media coverage of NZ politics in toto doesn't have an obvious bias."

                      Well that's all about perception. And we'll see that in different and subjective ways.

                  • Drowsy M. Kram

                    Well that's all about perception. And we'll see that in different and subjective ways.

                    yes Perception is individual, and reality avoidance is real.

                    http://encyclopedia.uia.org/en/problem/avoidance-reality

                    "You can avoid reality, but you cannot avoid the consequences of avoiding reality." – Ayn Rand

                    How might Rand have responded to the reality of global warming?

                    https://www.quora.com/What-would-Ayn-Rands-solution-for-climate-change-be

                    https://viewpointvancouver.ca/2014/06/09/quote-making-ayn-rand-furious/

                    • Liberty Belle

                      I'll take the independent research over subjective reckons. With media bias and climate science.

        • Shanreagh 7.4.1.2

          They would also be highly thought of as well as aesthetically pleasing or handsome. Perhaps also with a connection to a Southerner who led the attack on Fort Sumpter, thus starting the American Civil War, or is all this a bit cryptic SM?

      • Shanreagh 7.4.2

        Or perhaps it's facilitating a much-needed conversation about what governments spend our money on, and how that provides benefits to society as a whole, as opposed to consultants in beaurecrats.

        Indeed. But to have a conversation what is the benefit of having it when people don't understand that the Govt is not spending their money. The Govt is spending its money.

        And also when one of the results is as Incognito says

        move (s) away from a collective mindset to a self-serving ‘what’s-in-it-for-me’ individualistic attitude.

        And from Arkie

        And within the institution of representative democracy, electors (read: us taxpayers) are obligated to vote out governments we deem irresponsible.

        Aside from educating ourselves about what the Govts policies are and how much they are costing, our greatest efforts as voters is to look at records of spending, look at proposed policies, systems of financial management and then VOTE.

        The truism is that elections are not so much a vote for a party as against a party and that is Arkie's voting out of a government in action.

        • Liberty Belle 7.4.2.1

          "But to have a conversation what is the benefit of having it when people don't understand that the Govt is not spending their money. The Govt is spending its money."

          This is a philisophical divide. Any money the government derives is legally theirs by virtue of them deriving it by act of law. But that doesn't make it 'their' money. Morally that money belongs to taxpayers to be used by the government of their choice in a way that benefits NZ society. When a government wastes that money on a succession of failed policy intiatives, they breach that moral obligation.

          • Descendant Of Smith 7.4.2.1.1

            What a load of horseshit.

            Morally the money belongs to the government because that is the system we collectively choose to live under – not some wild west company town nor some non-government Randian nightmare.

            We live in a democracy where we elect people to represent us and to make decisions on our behalf and if we don't like the decisions they make we vote them out.

            At the same time it isn't unfettered decision making there are plenty of rules and restrictions e.g. budget cycles, publishing accounts, etc.

            Commonsense as well as research will also tell you that not everything tried will work – the classic example being bootcamps. The stupidest example I can think of was the flag referendum.

            It is interesting that you talk about failure as an indicator because three of the biggest policy failures by successive governments are:

            1. Selling income earning assets so that the states income is far more dependent on tax payers than revenue producing consumables such as electricity which us as consumers still pay for but revenues go to the well off instead of the state – even to the extent of us paying through our power bills for shareholders to get more in dividends than is paid in profits.
            2. increasing GDP through mass immigration without increasing the volumes of state housing to match resulting in a housing crisis
            3. Not putting sufficient aside for the well known and forecast future expense of NZ superannuation for the baby boomer population and increasing the age knowing full well that many Maori and pacific island and blue collar workers will not live long enough to get it.
            • LibertyBelle 7.4.2.1.1.1

              “Morally the money belongs to the government because that is the system we collectively choose to live under “

              Says who? Governments only derive tax income through their ability to legislate, which is only theirs because we allow it.

  8. Thinker 8

    Assuming this gets National elected and the policy implemented, it will make a great taxpayer-funded electioneering pamphlet, come 2026…

    IMHO, if the present government had implemented it, Luxon would be all over it, citing a waste of government spending in a recession and financial crisis, when what's printed and mailed out could easily be posted on a Beehive website page.

  9. SPC 9

    How about National Party do a Scandinavia and let people see how much others earn and how much tax they pay?

    And how much assets they own (including shares in trusts) and thus their wealth as well.

  10. tsmithfield 10

    Back to the wasted spending theme I started earlier, another issue is the wasted spending that occurs due to changes of government. For instance, if National gets elected this time around, they are likely going to scrap some of the stuff that Labour has invested taxpayer funds into. And the same again in three years time if Labour gets back in.

    And, I don't what to do about that issue other than changing the way we elect governments entirely.

    So, taking everything together, I don't think tax payers actually get very good value for the taxes they pay. Either because governments spend huge amounts on projects and programs with dubious value, or that get discontinued after having vast amounts spent on them, or get canned by incoming governments.

    I think taking everything together, the churn would be enourmous.

    So, I think that the analogy of tax being akin to giving money to an alcholic is actually not that far from the truth.

    The question is, what can be done to improve the value for taxpayers as a whole.

    • tc 10.1

      Good point as this lack of a bi-partisan approach burns money as nact go if labour then bad so it must be reversed.

      This ideological approach sees us with poor infrastructure, leaky buildings, flogged assets etc to name just a few of the outcomes.

      • tsmithfield 10.1.1

        And I am not blaming Labour. I think it happens which ever government is in power.

        I have a suggestion to solve it below. Though, I doubt much will come of it.

    • Incognito 10.2

      The question is, what can be done to improve the value for taxpayers as a whole.

      Ultimately, and arguably, lowering the 5% electoral threshold. Not doing so is wasting time & money, as you allege.

    • Drowsy M. Kram 10.3

      So, I think that the analogy of tax being akin to giving money to an alcholic is actually not that far from the truth.

      Can't trust 'em with 'our' money, eh? Talk about 'giving' money to an alcoholic!

      Bank profits 'costing New Zealanders $2000 a year each' [3 March 2023]
      Other things that should be investigated are bank lobbying power, and the move straight from Parliament to banks some ministers have made, including Sir John Key (to ANZ) and Simon Power (to Westpac).

      NZ govts (some more than others) continue to 'treat' major trauma by applying band-aids at the bottom of cliffs, and the devil take the hindmost. Taxation is a public good; for example when it's used to fund services dealing with alcohol-related harm.

      Cost of alcohol to society
      In 2020, alcohol contributed $1.193 billion of government revenue in the form of excise tax.
      In contrast, alcohol misuse is estimated to cost New Zealand society $7.85 billion each year. This includes costs resulting from lost productivity, unemployment, as well as justice, health, ACC, welfare costs, etc. Costs of alcohol harm exceed that of other drug harm.

      In a random coincidence, the 2020 difference ($6.66 billion) between the cost of alcohol misuse, and alcohol excise tax, is similar to 2022 bank profits ($7.2 billion).

      It seems impossibly difficult to implement many of the recomendations of expert reports on reducing alcohol-related harm in Aotearoa NZ. Why might that be?

      Evidence-based alcohol policies: Building a fairer and healthier future for Aotearoa New Zealand [November 2020; PDF]
      We recognise the endless possibilities for our county with less alcohol harm. Everything we care about will start to improve – better mental wellbeing, reduced suicide, safer roads and communities, less family harm, improved child wellbeing and better physical health (e.g. fewer injuries and cancers.)

      The evidence-base is extensive, strong and consistent. In the past decade, recommendations for stronger legislative action have been repeatedly made – by the Law Commission, Ministerial Forum on Alcohol Advertising and Sponsorship and the Mental Health and Addiction Inquiry Panel.

      Btw, of the seven happiest countries (all OECD members) in 2021, six had higher Tax-to-GDP ratios than Aotearoa NZ (ranked 9th for happiness) – go figure.

      Tax compliance, public spending and happiness in Europe
      [16 December 2021]
      The design of policies aimed at improving individual, corporate and the well-being of nations needs them to incorporate elements of tax compliance as an objective that has economic and social implications. Individuals and corporates contribute to a fairer and more equitable society through compliance with tax obligations.

  11. Phillip ure 11

    Receipts:..what a wheeze..!

    There is a pattern with our current crop of right-wing leaders..

    The male leader issues a major brain-fart…and their female deputy comes out to try and clean up the ensuing/inevitable mess..

    Both luxon and brown have that as their modus-operandi..

    (And will luxon wear those coronation-trou again…?…please say it is so..!)

  12. Hunter Thompson II 12

    Too right about the wasteful spending issue.

    National really has taken a wrong turn here, 'cos on Thursday a man called Robertson who does Finance Minister impressions will reveal all on proposed government revenues and outlays.

  13. Adrian 13

    Just read Gordon Campbell on Luxon On Receipt Of the Century and a very good read it is, and its on this page. It occurred to me that if every one gets a tally of everything thats been spent on them then that information is inevitably available to everyone else. How long is it going to take before those with a nefarious mind set start leaking that info, how long before those with ongoing health and mental issues get their expenses available for all to see and at what cost to their health?

    Labour have to go after these brainless dickheads hard, highlighting the Stasi-like approach that the Nats are embarking on. Labour needs a mongrel arsehole to lead the attack from the trenches. Pass my name on anyone who knows it, I'd loved to get right up the bastards.

  14. Tiger Mountain 14

    The report we should see: the penetration of private capital into the NZ state in all respects…and the profits extracted from infrastructure that working class people literally built or paid for.
    –power generation & supply
    –education
    –forestry
    –agriculture & horticulture
    –rail and shipping
    –health care
    –road construction & maintenance
    –public service
    –tele communications & post

  15. tsmithfield 15

    Here is my suggestion for eliminating the churn associated with poor spending, and waste that occurs due to policies being canned after changes of government etc:

    1. Abandon the adverserial party system.

    2. Go to voting for roles instead of parties. Similar to what happens in council elections now.

    3. Set minimum standards to qualify for roles. So, for instance, someone wanting to be minister of finance would have to have a background in public finance at a high level.

    4. The person voted to each role gets to appoint their own team to administer the role. This would minimise the number of roles that need to be voted for.

    Ideally we would end up with a system that has say 10 roles that are voted for. A key advantage is that there would be a lot of ability and experience in the government in relevant areas. And there would likely be a lot less chopping and changing.

    • Adrian 15.1

      That would eliminate just about every past National Finance Minister at a stroke even the small town accountants who couldn't count the change in their pockets.

  16. alwyn 16

    I started reading this post with its argument that getting all this information by an individual taxpayer was very easy to do. It was suggested that anyone could do it and that it was therefore a total waste of time and money for it to be bundled up and passed to the taxpayer by the Government.

    Then I took a short break to go and collect that ancient old snail-mail that people here are telling me is obsolete. What did I find? Surprise, surprise. A letter, in an envelope, from Chippie. He wanted to tell me how kind he, and his party, were by increasing my superannuation payment. He didn't tell me it was because his Government had lost control of their budget and of the inflation rate which is now worse than it has been for about 35 years. It was because he loved me (and incidentally he wants my vote).

    Wow. What a surprise. It was as if this was something new that I hadn't realised was happening. I suppose it has been sent to every person in the country who is getting National Super. That is about 850,000 people. The envelope was marked as being post paid. At $1.70 for the standard postage that is about $1,500,000 for posting it out. We won't look at what it cost to print and mail. It is already far to much to tolerate.

    Well, if ever there was something I knew about it was this. I have already been told about it by the Department. I have had that information repeated in a mailout by my local MP, who happens to be the Minister of Finance. Now I get the PM repeating the message.

    What a total waste of taxpayer's money And it is taxpayer's money. It may be Labour Party election advertising in fact but they aren't paying for it. The taxpayer is. The HoR crest on the envelope is the give-away.

    Well frankly I would rather get the National Party proposed information. That is something that would require some effort for me to obtain and I doubt if they are going to send out three letters repeating the stuff.

    Why aren't you complaining about Chippies' extravagance?

    • lprent 16.1

      I got that same one from Chippie. I'm coming up for superannuation in a little over a year. So it is directly kind of pointless for me at present and is likely to remain so for some time (I have no interest in stopping work).

      However, like many of my age, it is of interest to me because my aged father is not working and does receive those benefits. I pay taxes to make sure that he and those like him can live a reasonable life without fear of freezing or starving. Same for the various nieces, nephews, and the generations after them now starting get skilled. Just as my grandparents and parents did.

      More to the point we get exactly the same kind of guff from National's MPs funded through the same sources. Just with less accuracy and of less interest. Why do I care if they feel hard done by. Now we have National wanting to do more of it.

      For that matter I’d expect to see National wasting their cash stockpile pushing junk usually false ‘facts’ and outright lies throughout the campaign period.

      Act and their dickhead offshoots like ‘Taxpayers Union’ already are. I had fun responding to one the other day pointing out that the taxpayers union wouldn’t recognise an log-term efficiency if it was right in front of them. There certainly is no recognition of downstream costs in anything that they have advocated in the past 5 years. “Short-term and stupid” has to be their motto…

      Why aren't you complaining about their extravagance?

      • alwyn 16.1.1

        "I’d expect to see National wasting their cash stockpile".

        If a party wants to spend their own money on this sort of thing I haven't the slightest objection.

        It is when they use taxpayer's money to run stuff that is purely election campaigning that I object. In this case it cannot, I think, be presented as something people need to be told about again. Anyone who is entitled to it was told about it by the department, in distinctly less political terms.

        And I do object to any party running stuff like this using taxpayer's money. I don't, on the other hand, worry about them promoting that an electorate MP has an office where you can get help or is holding and open forum where people can ask questions. That is a reasonable use of taxpayers money. This isn't.

  17. roy cartland 17

    I think that what the NP understands is that within the constant barrage of (dis/mis)information, there will be a sizeable chunk who just want to be told what they want to hear. We have discussed the poor (and lack of positive) messaging and comms from the GOV on this site several times: around their covid strategies, around their achievements and progress.

    The NP aren't completely stupid – they're betting on the 'fed up and time for a change' faction, and I think there are scarily plenty of those. I'm one, in a few respects.

    All power to the good writers on this site and others who can provide the counter to the negativity, and remind us how far we've come, you are more valuable now than ever.

  18. Weasel 18

    I could have been blown over by Wellington's non-existent wind of yesterday when I heard National Party leader Chris Luxon saying after the Loafers Lodge Hostel fire tragedy that he's all in favour of regulation.
    Interviewed on RNZ's Morning Report he said: "I'm all for strengthening regulations. If we need to strengthen regulations we'd definitely do that…. I make no apology for strengthening regulations if it saves lives – that's a bigger priority than anything else." This is from the man who rails against "Wellington" as the creator of regulations. This is from the party that conducted a deregulation conflagration that culminated in the Pike River tragedy that killed 29 men. If, fate forbid, Luxon becomes prime minister in October, it will do well to remember his words and hold him to account as National inevitably attempts to dismantle rules and regulations put in place to save lives.

    • roy cartland 18.1

      As much as I don't trust or even believe the guy, I agree with him. I reckon it's a good thing that the NATs are saying this. Using the R-word must have hurt a lot, for some of them in that party.

  19. Mike B 19

    Funny how you clowns won't allow the truth posted here. Show some balls and let the truth be posted. You know like all the wasted spending by this government etc. But I know you do not have the balls to allow this so enjoy your selected posts. As long as you have a warm and fuzzy feeling, all is well.

    [funny how some clowns change their username or email address when commenting, get caught in the spam filter because the system thinks they’re a new commenter, and then blames TS mods for not publishing their comments because of politics, when all that has is happened is the comment has to be released manually. – weka]

    • weka 19.1

      mod note.

    • Mike the Lefty 19.2

      What wasteful spending is that Mike B?

      Really, I would like to know.

    • tsmithfield 19.3

      As a right winger who posts here fairly regularly, I think you need to up the quality of your posts a lot.

      If you want wasted government spending highlighted, then you need to do it. Provide evidence to back up the claim. Then be prepared to enter into reasoned discussion about it.

      While I often disagree with others here for obvious reasons, I find people are generally fair and polite if you post in the same way.

  20. Mike the Lefty 20

    With National it will be more like misinformation,.

Recent Comments

Recent Posts

  • At a glance – Does CO2 always correlate with temperature?
    On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
    2 hours ago
  • Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6.06 pm on Tuesday, March 19
    TL;DR: In today’s ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Tuesday, March 19:Kāinga Ora’s dry rot The Spinoff DailyBill McKibben on ‘Climate Superfunds’ making Big Oil pay for climate damage The Crucial YearsPreston Mui on returning to 1980s-style productivity growth NoahpinionAndy Boenau on NIMBYs needing unusual bedfellows Urbanism SpeakeasyNed Resnikoff's case ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 hours ago
  • Relentlessly negative
    Negative yesterday, negative today. Negative all year, according to one departing reader telling me I’ve grown strident and predictable. Fair enough. If it’s any help, every time I go to write about a certain topic that begins with C and ends with arrrrs, I do brace myself and ask: Again? Are ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 hours ago
  • Scoring 4.6 out of 10, the new Government is struggling in the polls
    Bryce Edwards writes –  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 ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 hours ago
  • Promiscuous Empathy: Chris Trotter Replies To His Critics.
    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 ...
    6 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
    6 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 ...
    6 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
    7 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
    8 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
    11 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
    11 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
    11 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
    12 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
    13 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
    14 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
    16 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 ...
    2 days 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
    2 days 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
    2 days 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
    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s Dawn Chorus with six newsey things at 6:46am for Saturday, March 16
    TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ Herald Thomas Coughlan Simeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • How Did FTX Crash?
    What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    4 days ago
  • Elections in Russia and Ukraine
    Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s six stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15
    TL;DR: Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it:  We want our country to be a ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago
  • National’s clean car tax advances
    The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Government funding bailouts
    Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Two offenders, different treatments.
    See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    4 days ago
  • Treaty references omitted
    Ele Ludemann writes  – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • The Ghahraman Conflict
    What was that judge thinking? Peter Williams writes –  That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 15
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop: Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • The day Wellington up-zoned its future
    Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 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
    5 days ago
  • That Word.
    Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • The Hoon around the week to March 15
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Labour’s policy gap
    It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #11 2024
    Open access notables A Glimpse into the Future: The 2023 Ocean Temperature and Sea Ice Extremes in the Context of Longer-Term Climate Change, Kuhlbrodt et al., Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society: In the year 2023, we have seen extraordinary extrema in high sea surface temperature (SST) in the North Atlantic and in ...
    5 days ago
  • Melissa remains mute on media matters but has something to say (at a sporting event) about economic ...
     Buzz from the Beehive   The text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary.  It can be quickly analysed ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago
  • The return of Muldoon
    For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Will the rental tax cut improve life for renters or landlords?
    Bryce Edwards writes –  Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: What Saudi Arabia’s rapid changes mean for New Zealand
    Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    5 days ago
  • Racism’s double standards
    Questions need to be asked on both sides of the world Peter Williams writes –   The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • It’s not a tax break
    Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • The Plastic Pig Collective and Chris' Imaginary Friends.
    I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • Who is responsible for young offenders?
    Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on National’s fantasy trip to La La Landlord Land
    How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
    5 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 14
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop: The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • No, Prime Minister, rents don’t rise or fall with landlords’ costs
    TL;DR: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 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 ...
    6 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
    6 days ago
  • I Think I'm Done Flying Boeing
    Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago
  • Invoking Aristotle: Of Rings of Power, Stones, and Ships
    The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
    6 days ago
  • Van Velden brings free-market approach to changing labour laws – but her colleagues stick to distr...
    Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • Why Newshub failed
    Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • Māori Party on the warpath against landlords and seabed miners – let’s see if mystical creature...
    Bob Edlin writes  –  The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they  follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago

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

Page generated in The Standard by Wordpress at 2024-03-19T08:49:53+00:00