National’s use of the dog whistle and its hatred of UN conventions

Written By: - Date published: 9:22 am, May 10th, 2021 - 52 comments
Categories: International, Judith Collins, national, racism, same old national, treaty settlements, United Nations - Tags:

Who would be leader of the opposition?

It is quite a unique position in New Zealand politics.

You are handed a bull horn.  Comments are sought from you daily about all sorts of positions and the media convention is that agreement with the proposal will get you nowhere.  You have to have an opposition statement ready.  Otherwise you are not newsworthy.

And after an election spanking you have to repair your party and talk to the base.

Whether Wellington likes it or not it is the rank and file members of a party that hold it together.  Without them the party will fade into irrelevancy.

And so there is a tendency for parties to talk to their base and respect their views early on in the election cycle.

For the Labour Party this is fine.  Our base is interested in solving child poverty, doing something about climate change, creating a better, more inclusive education system, and redressing attacks on the Trade Union movement that have contributed so significantly to poverty.

For National different issues arise.  They do not like ethnic diversity, they have always thought the Treaty of Waitangi was a hindrance to good farming practices and they have a hatred of the United Nations.

Their MPs buy into this quite often.

There was a startling example two years ago when National set up a petition against the UN Global Compact on Migration.

Three months later the Christchurch Mosque massacre happened.  One of the motivations for the killer was an intense hatred of migrants.  Shortly after it happened an emotional junior staffer took the petition down.  Clearly he had a conscience.  But National tried to manufacture a false narrative that it had already taken the petition down but to their embarrassment this was quickly disproven.

And more recently Judith Collins has used the bull horn of the opposition leader’s office to amplify a well honed dog whistle.  There was her effort a week ago to try and claim that te Tiriti o Waitangi was nothing more than a restatement of National’s pro business principles.

Yesterday she responded to trenchant criticism by repeating the same racist trype.  Judith really believes in giving back double.

Her speech to the Lower North Island Regional Conference contained these gems all apparently because of the He Puapua report:

  • “The Government plans to give the separate Māori Health Authority the power of veto over the national health system.”
  • “The Government’s freshwater reforms have embedded Te Mana o te Wai as a ‘fundamental concept’.”
  • “The Government is consulting on a New Zealand history curriculum for students aged five to 15. The proposed curriculum is shaped around the study of the consequences of colonisation and the effects of power.”
  • “The Government has, without consultation and against official advice, passed a law allowing councils to urgently create Māori wards for the 2022 local government elections.”
  • “The Prime Minister and David Parker met with five iwi organisations and the Labour Māori Caucus in December, and at this meeting a commitment was made for the Government to work with iwi on freshwater and resource management reform.”
  • “The Waitangi Tribunal has, in just in the past few weeks, made a decision that we must have a separate child welfare service for Māori in order to comply with Article 2 of the Treaty. Kelvin Davis is now considering this.”
  • “The Department of Conservation is currently undertaking a review of how it can give effect to the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi. DOC is having hui with iwi on draft recommendations.”

What is this He Puapua report?

It is a report setting out a panel’s view of what is required to implement the UN convention on the Rights of Indigenous People.

When did New Zealand sign up to this clearly communist inspired takeover of the Western world?

April 2010.

This is where it gets really interesting.  The fifth Labour Government did not want to sign the treaty.  In 2007 then Minister of Maori Affairs Parekura Horomia said this:

There are four provisions we have problems with, which make the declaration fundamentally incompatible with New Zealand’s constitutional and legal arrangements.” Article 26 in particular, he said, “appears to require recognition of rights to lands now lawfully owned by other citizens, both indigenous and non-indigenous. This ignores contemporary reality and would be impossible to implement.”

But National reversed the decision and supported the convention.  At the UN Maori Party leader and part of Government Pita Sharples said this:

New Zealand’s support for the Declaration represents an opportunity to acknowledge and restate the special cultural and historical position of Maori as the original inhabitants – the tangata whenua – of New Zealand. It reflects our continuing endeavours to work together to find solutions and underlines the importance of the relationship between Maori and the Crown under the Treaty of Waitangi. Its affirmation of longstanding rights supports and safeguards that ongoing relationship and its proclamation of new aspirations gives us all encouragement and inspiration for the future.

I sense a pattern here.  In 2016 National agreed to the precursor of the UN Global Compact on Migration.  Then when it saw a political opportunity to engage in racist grandstanding it did so.  The same with the He Puapua report.  Except even more strongly so.

The bull horn of the opposition leader’s office should be used carefully and respectfully.  Judith shows no inclination of doing either.

52 comments on “National’s use of the dog whistle and its hatred of UN conventions ”

  1. Foreign Waka 1

    There is obviously something to hide otherwise we would have been told about this report. To implement anything in a democracy, you need to put this to the wider public. The more open and transparent….The UN has not got a mandate to interfere into NZ. Did they interfere into the question of Chinas Muslim community? no. You could get the same answer in many instances. So perhaps its time to have an honest discussion. I don’t think there is a hatred of the UN convention but there is certainly some clandestine going on’s that never make good reading if you use transparency on your banner. We all just heard about his because Judith Collins made it public.

    • WeTheBleeple 1.1

      I've had since 2007 to read UNDRIP I'd hardly call it a bolt from the blue, or stealth, or a surprise. NZ signed up in 2010. Twelve years to read a report.

      Plenty of angry ACTers in the social media landscape today. Apparently they're all being undermined by socialist agendas. Apparently National are commies too.

      Perhaps next time a heads up of fifty years, give them a chance to polish their reading glasses and sharpen their pitchforks.

      • Tricledrown 1.1.1

        ACT could have vetoed National in 2010.

        Trumpism is Nationals desperate attempts to gain traction in the poles.

        Quoting Collins on Simon Bridges and Michael Woodhouse's covid lies."why keep digging yourself into hole.

        Looks like Collins can't help herself.

    • lprent 1.2

      We all just heard about his because Judith Collins made it public

      I guess you have been living under a rock with the other arthropods since 2007.

      Bigots- just as stupid in their myth-making as ever

      • alwyn 1.2.1

        When did you first see the Te Puapua report?

        It appears to have been produced, and provided to the Government, in 2019. I first saw it just recently when it was released under OIA requirements. Were you on the inside and got shown it back around 2019? Given the implications of the proposals shouldn't the rest of us have also been told about it then?

        • David 1.2.1.1

          I think that’s the most remarkable thing. This report has secretly been sitting with the government for nearly two years. Meanwhile a growing list of recommendations in the report are finding their way into Government policy with absolutely zero public consultation. Why?

      • RedLogix 1.2.2

        It would help if you drew a distinction between signing onto the broad principles of a UN Convention and this Cabinet Document purporting to give it detailed effect. While obviously related, they do seem to be two different things.

      • Foreign Waka 1.2.3

        lprent – I was just waiting for that response. Yes, we all read policy papers all day long because we have nothing else to do, especially to those papers not really available to the ordinary folk. Unless your profession demands this of you, the paper is actual news to MOST NZlanders. But hey, not important. The unwashed do not need any explanations. We just work like there is no tomorrow to make ends meet and follow the leader without any questions.

        As for calling people bigots, I think you don't know me and hence I will give you the benefit of the doubt. Suffice to say using offensive language does not justify a stance that does not let any room for discussions. Democracy does not work like that, where you just shut people up by calling them a name. Have a good day.

        • WeTheBleeple 1.2.3.1

          15 years is still long enough for hard working souls, concerned about all this 'sudden and unexpected' commitment to historical commitments, to read a document.

          Now we have a new document, looking at local scenarios under the umbrella of UNDRIP. This will take some time to be read and understood. Unlike the dog-whistling, which took no time at all.

          Seems some people don't want to read, they just want to shout at things.

          • Foreign Waka 1.2.3.1.1

            So the wider public knows more than that paper that sits with government since 2 years, never to be discussed or made public. And rest assured, there are plenty of people on the right, left, middle etc. who feel railroaded and blindsided. No one has voted the last time to sign off anything. But hey, lets have this play out. Shall we.

            And by the way, my leaning is left at any time. But shenanigans like that will make me a protest voter.

            • WeTheBleeple 1.2.3.1.1.1

              RL has a good point above (1.2.2). I don't know that this has all been so secret squirrel as you try to make it out to be. Sure, we could all do with reading both documents now so much shit is being talked about this. If there is scumfuckery bring it to light.

              What is new that we haven't signed up for? What is signed up on?

              I don't see people feeling blindsided in social media, except certain pages that have always been a bit rabid. They go from 0-10 in a sound bite because that and being beaten with a switch are the only things that get them hard.

              My friends are talking about the comedy festival, their breakfasts, their Mothers day. Only in no-facts land is the sky indeed falling.

        • mickysavage 1.2.3.2

          Ever read article 2 of the treaty and wonder what it means? Blaming a discussion paper for treaty inspired changes is somewhat strange.

          • Gosman 1.2.3.2.1

            Ever read Article 3 and wonder how Maori could become British Subjects while not being subject to the British Sovereign?

            • mickysavage 1.2.3.2.1.1

              Article 3 is subservient to article 2. And besides when did becoming a British Citizen require all your possessions and things of value being ripped off?

              • Gosman

                There is no reason to think Article 3 is subservient to Article 2. On what basis do you make that claim?

                • mickysavage

                  In consideration thereof Her Majesty the Queen of England extends to the Natives of New Zealand Her royal protection and imparts to them all the Rights and Privileges of British Subjects”.

                  Clearly Maori became citizens on the basis they ceded governance of Aotearoa to the Crown but still kept their taonga.

                  • Gosman

                    There was no way that Maori could become British Subjects without ceding sovereignty. The name Subject itself is evidence to this. Someone is subject to something else. In this case it is the British Monarch or Crown. Unless you are trying to argue that the Treaty set up something that was unique at the time and that the British never repeated anywhere else in their entire empire in which they gave away British Subject status but did not acquire sovereignty. Hobson had no authority to create such a new legal status such as this and neither would his superiors in London have allowed him to do so if that was what he was aiming for.

                    • Tricledrown

                      Gosman since Cromwell invaded Ireland Britain now the UK did what it pleased they took a different approach in each colony war ,treaties rarely enforced,buying off the opposition.all three options were used in NZ .land wars buying off on tribe to fight another.

                      Ireland was used as template to find out what worked for colonization to be successful.disposess indegeonous people of their land by fair means or fowl. Take away their culture and language ,feed them their colonial religion to turn the other cheek so they give every thing up without a fight ,cheaper than paying soldiers to maintain peace.buy some of the leaders off and give them some of the confiscated land and wealth to help suppress any uprising!

                  • Gosman

                    In consideration of the fact the Maori had ceded sovereignty over the country (Article 1) not in consideration of Article 2 which was a guarantee the Crown gave to protect the rights of Maori. You don't offer something in return for your promise to look after someone's rights. It would be like offering another gift because you just gave someone a gift.

                    • mickysavage

                      They did not cede sovereignty. Read any one of multiple articles on the matter.

              • Gosman

                Being subject to the Crown means you are subject to the Crown’s law which can very well include losing wealth. That is the basis of taxation.

                • mickysavage

                  Call me old fashioned but I think if the Crown sign up to a contract it should stick to the terms of that contract.

                  • Gosman

                    Unfortunately for us all the Crown can change the nature of it's relationship with any of us with little regard to our own personal feelings or even reference to it's previous agreements with us. That is the nature of our form of government. This impacts Maori and non-Maori alike.

                    • Incognito

                      According to the deterministic worldview, everything is fixed in and by nature. In other words, what is done cannot be undone. What is destined to happen will happen. Everything is fixed and follows a prescribed pattern of logic and order, natural order. Many share this worldview. In other words, you are in ‘good’ company of like-minded brethren and, of course, you feel very comfortable with your thoughts and beliefs. Nothing shall you cause you doubt. You will defend your beliefs with vengeance and till death. Resistance is futile; this is how it is and shall be, forever.

                      In a nutshell …

                • Tricledrown

                  Gosman stealing Maori land illegaly has nothing to do with taxes.

                  The treaty guaranteed the rights of British citizens including Maori ,But Maori were denied access to proper legal representation, the colonisers new this fact and exploited this fully.

                  Now Maori have access to legal redress racists don't like it.

                  • Gosman

                    Where is you evidence Maori were denied access to proper legal representation?

                    • Tricledrown

                      Sir Apirana Ngata was the first Maori to get a degree in 1897 ,57 years after the TOW.

                      It happened to be a degree in law.

                      Maori were deliberately kept ignorant of their rights and by many different mechanisms of dehumanizing belittling of Maori making Maori out as inferior human beings .Gosman you are part of the disenfranchisement of Maori.Racism is a learnt behaviour that is hard to change from.Just following Cromwells machievalian processes which are part of breaking down resistance of the idigegenous population.

          • Gosman 1.2.3.2.2

            I've looked in to this. There are no legal principles I can find which state in interpreting a Treaty (or even statute) one sub section or article is deemed subservient to another based on the fact that it is displayed numerically after it. You are a lawyer. You should know this.

            • mickysavage 1.2.3.2.2.1

              See above.

            • Tricledrown 1.2.3.2.2.2

              Gosman maybe time for you to read the history of NewZealand Belich,Sinclair etc I have read all literature on NZ history and all NZ's economic history including all economic data kept by stats NZ going back to their beginning.

              Luckily I am a speed reader and can read vast volumes as I have read the economic history of mankind going back to the beginnings of records and prior to what archeology has revealed about the beginning of civilization

    • Michael 1.3

      Your paranoia is showing. He Puapua is just one of many reports the govt commissions. The Nats signed the UN Convention; one of many successive gots agree to all the time. NZ signs international legal conventions because it believes in the value of rules-based international order (now under serious strain). FWIW, I hope the govt implements every one of He Puapua's recommendations, not only because doing so will improve the shameful poisiton of tangata whenua, but because it will make racist rednecks like you froth and rant. And you sound ridiculous when you do that.

      [Please ditch the unhelpful attack labels that are misplaced and do nothing but flame and create other hostile comments, thanks – Incognito]

      • Incognito 1.3.1

        See my Moderation note @ 12:44 pm.

      • Foreign Waka 1.3.2

        I think you make assumptions that really shows that some just want to have their agenda pushed through. Democracy is not a convenient proposition, it is hard work and demands honesty and forthright showing of hands from everybody involved. I am certain everybody agrees that something needs to be done to lift ALL people regardless of race, gender, age etc. out of the health problems, poverty, homelessness and sometimes outright deprivation that besets this country.

        I want to tell you that this is the truly shameful side in NZ that needs addressing. It hasn't been done for the longest time and this government has not shown that they will make any progress either. Separating the funding to create another set of nose in the trough layer will not get the funds to where they are needed. Or do you honestly suggest that Maori are immune to this tendency? You find those who invent agendas to suck the money out of the system everywhere. And whilst we are talking about funds…who is going to pay for all of this? NZ is is in deficit with billions of dollars. This is as much a question of principle as it is of funding.

        To call me a redneck is just uncalled for as you assume on my race/gender/skin color. At no time are you applying reason and honesty to the conversation. I will not pay back in kind because I am open to be convinced otherwise. But the argument has to stick. This is the challenge, instead of having emotive name calling.

        I say this full knowing what the reaction will be. So if you can eliminate the concerns of Mr. and Mrs. NZlander up and down the country without blinkers and some honesty to the situation at hand please do.

  2. RedLogix 2

    I guess the question that arises here is, does this Labour govt endorse this notion of 'separate development' for Maori? Given their policy actions so far the answer appears to be yes.

    And if so – who is going to fund this?

  3. Enough is Enough 3

    Its a debate that needs to be had. There is absolutley nothing wrong with talking about the points that Judith has raised.

    New Zealand as a nation has moved on from the days of Brash. We can and should be telling Judith where she is 100% wrong.

    • tc 3.1

      The electorate will tell them again in 2023 like it did in 2020 IMO

      Especially if Judith 'Empathy' Collins is still there reminding everyone what national really stand for.

  4. gsays 4

    Despite being Leader of the Opposition, 'Crushed' Collins us doing a great job of highlighting the progress the government has made.

    Go Judith.

    What is good for Maori is good for all of us.

  5. Stuart Munro 5

    The issue might be, that many citizens have their own political concerns and priorities. When a raft of new measures are introduced, that clearly serve some other agenda, they are inclined to wonder when or if those concerns will ever be addressed, and, by what process these ones in particular secured priority.

    So, if this is indeed the product of an agreement signed twelve years ago, and a panel report produced a year ago, that, together with the recommendations, needs to be out there for discussion. Presumably panel recommendations will be somewhat pragmatic attempts to meet obligations and will mostly withstand public scrutiny on their merits.

  6. Ad 6

    +100 good conclusion

  7. Poission 7

    For National different issues arise. They do not like ethnic diversity, they have always thought the Treaty of Waitangi was a hindrance to good farming practices and they have a hatred of the United Nations.

    Very Strangelove if you luv the UNHRC.

    https://twitter.com/MaxAbrahms/status/1389428680779354113

    • Macro 7.1

      Your tweet above gives a very selective and distorted view of UN Human Rights Council.

      The Council consists of 47 members, elected yearly by the General Assembly for staggered three-year terms. Members are selected via the basis of equitable geographic rotation using the United Nations regional grouping system. Members are eligible for re-election for one additional term, after which they must relinquish their seat.[18]

      The seats are distributed along the following lines:[11]

      • 13 for the African Group
      • 13 for the Asia-Pacific Group
      • 6 for the Eastern European Group
      • 8 for the Latin American and Caribbean Group
      • 7 for the Western European and Others Group

      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Human_Rights_Council
      The current 47 members of the UNHRC are given below the above quote

  8. Jackel 8

    I really don't see what the problem is with the ToW. I would think only good things could come from it.

  9. Mark Thiele 9

    National's only mistake was signing up to the convention on indigenous peoples in the first place and giving indigenous rights any credence

    • Tricledrown 9.1

      The National Party had the Maori Party in their wider coalition when John Key was their leader.Given the Maori Party have 2 MPs and could end up with more you would think National would be trying to court partners in an MMP environment.

      Collins is not anywhere near the same league as John Key .Collins the wicked witch of the west while John Key was well liked because he was pragmatic .

      [spurious letter removed from user name]

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    “I’ve been internalising a really complicated situation in my head.”When they kept telling us we should wait until we get to know him, were they taking the piss? Was it a case of, if you think this is bad, wait till you get to know the real Christopher, after the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • The bewildering world of Chris Luxon – Guns for all, not no lunch for kids
    .“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
    Frankly SpeakingBy Frank Macskasy
    3 days ago
  • Expert Opinion: Ageing Boomers, Laurie & Les, Talk Politics.
    It hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.”THUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
    3 days ago
  • Manufacturing The Truth.
    Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology – the Internet –  is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
    3 days ago
  • A Powerful Sensation of Déjà Vu.
    Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
    3 days ago
  • Can you guess where world attention is focussed (according to Greenpeace)? It’s focussed on an EPA...
    Bob Edlin writes –  And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago
  • Further integrity problems for the Greens in suspending MP Darleen Tana
    Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago
  • Jacqui Van Der Kaay: Greens’ transparency missing in action
    For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    3 days ago
  • Bernard’s Dawn Chorus with six newsey things at 6:46am for Saturday, March 16
    TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ Herald Thomas Coughlan Simeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • How Did FTX Crash?
    What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    4 days ago
  • Elections in Russia and Ukraine
    Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s six stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15
    TL;DR: Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it:  We want our country to be a ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago
  • National’s clean car tax advances
    The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Government funding bailouts
    Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Two offenders, different treatments.
    See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    4 days ago
  • Treaty references omitted
    Ele Ludemann writes  – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • The Ghahraman Conflict
    What was that judge thinking? Peter Williams writes –  That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 15
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop: Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • The day Wellington up-zoned its future
    Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Weekly Roundup 15-March-2024
    It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    4 days ago
  • That Word.
    Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago
  • The Hoon around the week to March 15
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Labour’s policy gap
    It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #11 2024
    Open access notables A Glimpse into the Future: The 2023 Ocean Temperature and Sea Ice Extremes in the Context of Longer-Term Climate Change, Kuhlbrodt et al., Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society: In the year 2023, we have seen extraordinary extrema in high sea surface temperature (SST) in the North Atlantic and in ...
    5 days ago
  • Melissa remains mute on media matters but has something to say (at a sporting event) about economic ...
     Buzz from the Beehive   The text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary.  It can be quickly analysed ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago
  • The return of Muldoon
    For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Will the rental tax cut improve life for renters or landlords?
    Bryce Edwards writes –  Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: What Saudi Arabia’s rapid changes mean for New Zealand
    Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    5 days ago
  • Racism’s double standards
    Questions need to be asked on both sides of the world Peter Williams writes –   The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • It’s not a tax break
    Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • The Plastic Pig Collective and Chris' Imaginary Friends.
    I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • Who is responsible for young offenders?
    Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on National’s fantasy trip to La La Landlord Land
    How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
    5 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 14
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop: The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • No, Prime Minister, rents don’t rise or fall with landlords’ costs
    TL;DR: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Cartoons: ‘At least I didn’t make things awkward’
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
    5 days ago
  • Solving traffic congestion with Richard Prebble
    The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    5 days ago
  • I Think I'm Done Flying Boeing
    Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    5 days ago
  • Invoking Aristotle: Of Rings of Power, Stones, and Ships
    The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
    6 days ago
  • Van Velden brings free-market approach to changing labour laws – but her colleagues stick to distr...
    Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • Why Newshub failed
    Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • Māori Party on the warpath against landlords and seabed miners – let’s see if mystical creature...
    Bob Edlin writes  –  The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they  follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • There’s a name for this
    Every year, in the Budget, Parliament forks out money to government agencies to do certain things. And every year, as part of the annual review cycle, those agencies are meant to report on whether they have done the things Parliament gave them that money for. Agencies which consistently fail to ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    6 days ago
  • Echoes of 1968 in 2024?  Pocock on the repetitive problems of the New Left
    Mike Grimshaw writes – Recent events in American universities point to an underlying crisis of coherent thinking, an issue that increasingly affects the progressive left across the Western world. This of course is nothing new as anyone who can either remember or has read of the late ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago

  • Positive progress for social worker workforce
    New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 hours ago
  • Minister confirms reduced RUC rate for PHEVs
    Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April.  ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    8 hours ago
  • Trade access to overseas markets creates jobs
    Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand.  Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    8 hours ago
  • NZ and Chinese Foreign Ministers hold official talks
    Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    22 hours ago
  • Kāinga Ora instructed to end Sustaining Tenancies
    Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Speech to Auckland Business Chamber: Growth is the answer
    Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Singapore rounds out regional trip
    Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships.      “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Minister van Velden represents New Zealand at International Democracy Summit
    Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Insurance Council of NZ Speech, 7 March 2024, Auckland
    ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland  Acknowledgements and opening  Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho.  Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau  My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
    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
    7 days 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
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  • Government lowering building costs
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