No smoking gun

Written By: Steve Pierson - Date published: 10:09 am, October 30th, 2008 - 152 comments
Categories: john key, labour, Media - Tags: h-fee

It turns out the Herald’s story about John Key’s H-fee involvement is a bust. Aside from Key not being straight with the dates he worked at Elders there isn’t anything firm to tie him to the actual fraud.

That’s not the story I expected given the Herald had decided to lead with this story on their website yesterday afternoon and hinted at a ‘smoking gun’. The reason it wasn’t the story I expected is because about a month ago we had material anonymously emailed to us that gave the background to the H-fee and included a series of posts outlining the issue. We ran the first of these posts but after trawling through the story and checking as much as we could we decided there simply wasn’t enough substance to run with. It now looks like we weren’t the only ones who were receiving this information.

There are still questions to be answered about this story, such as why did John get his dates wrong with the inoculation he took to the Herald in 2007 and why was the Herald promising audio of the 2007 interview yesterday and treating the story like a scoop when it knew there was no hard evidence?

But I expect these questions will be lost in the mishandling of the issue. My advice to Labour? Make sure you’ve got your ducks lined up before you go to the media, and when National is releasing stuff like their appalling prison policy don’t waste your time on blind alley stories like this one.

152 comments on “No smoking gun ”

Comments are now closed

Monty 1

30 October 2008 at 10:20 am

baaaawhaaaa – the fizzer – just the headline Clark wanted the week before the election – Labour have been made to look the fool – and it certainly is a well deserved description.

The real questions that need to be asked is how much did the trip of Mike Williams and the Labour Party but taxpayer funded researchers to Australia cost. Who paid (The taxpayer I suspect) and when will the cost be refunded back to the tax-payer.

I have a feeling that the electorate will react badly to labour’s constant smear compaign and in 9 days Labour will be punished in the poll that counts.
Rod 2

30 October 2008 at 10:20 am

The double standard, and that’s all I need to say.
Tim Ellis 3

30 October 2008 at 10:21 am

I think the answer why Labour did it when they did is quite simple. They were desperately trying to distract from the revelations about what Peters really knew, and how he actually advocated on behalf of Owen Glenn for the honorary consulship; and what Helen Clark knew and suspected about the matter, and whether she really did believe Winston did not receive a donation from Glenn, despite saying she took him at his word.

SP, you have surprised me this morning. I did not expect you to be this candid. You, SP, bought into this hysteria. I would go as far as to say that the suggestions you made, and the suggestions many other commenters made alleging corruption on John Key’s part, were deeply defamatory. You might want to consider apologising to Key. I really do think it was reckless on your part to buy into such a smear without asking for evidence.

The smoking gun has shot Labour’s campaign to pieces, quite frankly. It was desperate stuff, and will no doubt dominate the news for the next several days at least. It is my belief that Labour had counted on the existence of this neutron bomb since the beginning. It does not, and has never existed. Helen Clark will be defending for several days what she knew and when she knew, of Labour’s dirty tricks campaign against Key.

The media were all led down the garden path by Labour and the Research Unit. They were promised something really explosive. It didn’t happen.

The media, for their part, have shown the big difference between proper media and blogging. They don’t rush into print with defamatory allegations unless there’s real evidence. You might want to think about being a bit more careful in the future too, SP.
vto 4

30 October 2008 at 10:26 am

SP, is it possible that the left were purposely led up the garden path over this? Or rather, once on that path it was enhanced by thine enemies?

It is a similar possibility to Owen Glenn and Winston Peters. Glenn and ‘others’ stacked up a nice long line of traps over several years with this final general aim in mind.

Gotta love conspiracies – so much fun and impossible to answer.
william 5

30 October 2008 at 10:28 am

What a bunch of bloody hypocrits you lot are.
Sarah 6

30 October 2008 at 10:29 am

This site should be brought down for defaming Mr Key, by implying that he knowingly provided false information to the SFO and did other fraudulent acts.

That was very very wrong. And it is typical of the individuals on this site to rush to these sort of judgments without actually looking at all the evidence at hand. That was one of the most ignorant posts you have ever written yesterday Clinton, by ignroing the well known fact that the first H-Fee was in Australia. Even Farrar got it right. And that says alot.

Key can win the election today if he deals with this whole issue right. Alot of voters will be put off by the fact that instead of the Labour party dealing with policy matters and the credit crunch, they were off trolling through Key’s past.

[lprent: defaming me is capital offense.]
ghostwhowalks 7

30 October 2008 at 10:30 am

I dont get the bit where two people at Elders , who had different names, ended up with the same signature ?

And one of those people is John Key.

And funny how the SFO clears Key so no blame on him, but when it clears Peters there are allways more questions.
insider 8

30 October 2008 at 10:31 am

The standard’s credulity on this puts you and Labour alongside whaleoil and the infamous west coast rape emails that you mocked so strongly.
insider 9

30 October 2008 at 10:32 am

The standard’s credulity on this puts you and Labour alongside slater and the infamous west coast emails that you mocked so strongly.

capcha did slightly (almost says it all…)

IrishBill: we looked at the story and dropped it because we didn’t think there was enough evidence. The Herald was headlining it yesterday so we assumed there was new evidence. In fact Tane even finished his post with skepticism about the story stacking up. If that’s your bar for credulous then I’m assuming your standard is omniscience.
Billy 10

30 October 2008 at 10:32 am

Well done, ghostwhowalks. The Standardistas have abandoned this. Mike Williams has abandoned it. Hell, Helen Clark is pretending she was never involved.

But, by all means, you march on regardless.
higherstandard 11

30 October 2008 at 10:34 am

Well there’s the issue of Winston being a complete arse GWW.
Anita 12

30 October 2008 at 10:34 am

Does anyone know for sure who gave this to The Herald?
Billy 13

30 October 2008 at 10:36 am

Anita, my guess is Ev. We’ll know if the informant overused “LOL”.
higherstandard 14

30 October 2008 at 10:37 am

Depends who Batman is Anita and the Standard should defer to their privacy policy and not release his/her details.

[lprent: We don’t intend to – besides I have no idea myself. That is how the site is designed.]
insider 15

30 October 2008 at 10:38 am

gww

it appears that the SFO never actually investigated Key. It interviewed him as a potential witness but found his knowledge so tangential that he was not called. It’s like saying you were a suspect in a bank robbery because you saw someone running away from a building.
dave 16

30 October 2008 at 10:38 am

My advice to Labour? Make sure you’ve got your ducks lined up before you go to the media
My advice to The Standard – don’t believe the Labour research unit when Mike WIlliams calls the shots..
travellerev 17

30 October 2008 at 10:39 am

Check the email Steve,

I send you a pressy that will make up for the crap journalism we witnessed today.

Cheers
Pixie 18

30 October 2008 at 10:46 am

I agree. For God’s sake Labour, drop this issue like the proverbial combustible spud.

It’s also time to realise that there’s only so far that you push the “slippery John” line. The fact is that 80% of the time John Key comes across as Honest John and the more the public is acquainted with him, the more this becomes apparent. The “rabbit eyes” in the Transrail and Lord Ashcroft incidents are newsworthy only because they are the exception, not the norm. Fact is, he is a crap liar and (I suspect) only gets into these scrapes because he relies on dodgy advice which goes against his best instincts.

The thing is, if JK truly was in charge, National would be unstoppable, as he does offer a different face and approach from the past. The fact that National’s support appears to be slipping, I believe, is due to the weight of the dead wood that refuses to let go its hold on the party. And therein lies the real “key” to attacking National – that we simply cannot be confident that John Key is the organ grinder.

So, in summary, rather than trying too hard to rhyme “John Key” with “Shonky”, why not try “Monkey” instead.
Tim Ellis 19

30 October 2008 at 10:46 am

it appears that the SFO never actually investigated Key. It interviewed him as a potential witness but found his knowledge so tangential that he was not called. It’s like saying you were a suspect in a bank robbery because you saw someone running away from a building.

That’s exactly right HS. I gave written evidence in a murder trial several years ago, after I had signed pay cheques for the victim, which happened to have been cashed by the accused the week before the victim went missing. The accused was convicted, and I was never a suspect.
randal 20

30 October 2008 at 10:49 am

so please refresh my memory.
the nats released this story so it would take the heat of their prisons policy
can they be arrested for this?
vto 21

30 October 2008 at 10:57 am

no randal, but people can be arrested for perjury… go winnie?
Roflcopter 22

30 October 2008 at 11:08 am

Randal, did you write that on the plane back from Melbourne?
Ianmac 23

30 October 2008 at 11:13 am

Underlying all this is still a residual doubt in the minds of many that John can be hazy about detail. He does dress up his replies with a great deal of rhetoric which obscure and lead to mis-understandings. Whoever a Prime Minister is you would expect unequivocal clarity of expression and then there would be no need to examine what he really meant.
I really think that the issue is a Herald story. Nothing much on Radio or TV from Labour. (A great deal from John Key which his advisers should have told him to avoid?) After all there is a great deal of “digging” on Peters which has to be paid for by some-one apart from Farrar and co. Unique to Labour? Doubt it.
randal 24

30 October 2008 at 11:13 am

oooops….look like the nats have got their underpants pulled up tight on this one!
Ianmac 25

30 October 2008 at 11:16 am

Pixie said:”The fact is that 80% of the time John Key comes across as Honest John and the more the public is acquainted with him, the more this becomes apparent.”
Thats what I think Pixie. 80% looking like Honest John is not a good look for a PM???
Ianmac 26

30 October 2008 at 11:19 am

Roflcopter: Randal couldn’t write that on the plane on the way back because they made him come inside and sit in a seat!
Billy 27

30 October 2008 at 11:19 am

Ianmac,

Let me get this straight: yesterday this was going to be a story about John Key’s personal involvement in a notorious international fraud. And today, it is a story about John Key’s clarity of expression.

Well, I s’pose you’ve got to run with what you’ve got.

And I am willing to bet anyone a pork and fennell sausage roll that Ev’s “story” never makes it to the Standard. Steve is not stupid.
Matthew Pilott 28

30 October 2008 at 11:27 am

“…bet anyone a pork and fennell sausage roll that…

No. I had one, and it was not pleasant.

“You might want to consider apologising to Key.”

And ‘deeply defamatory’? Mmm, saying the Herald has a story, apparently, man, that’s a big call. Especially when the Herald says…ah…it has a story.
Gustavo Trellis 29

30 October 2008 at 11:29 am

I can understand where Labour was coming from. Last time it was emails about the Bretheren, so it makes sense that they’d look for something again this time. They just didn’t get it quite right.
coge 30

30 October 2008 at 11:32 am

Billy, you mean Ev thinks Key was behind the collapse of building seven?
r0b 31

30 October 2008 at 11:35 am

The smoking gun has shot Labour’s campaign to pieces, quite frankly.

Ahh no. The campaign has always been about the policies that matter to people, and the credibility to deliver on them. Fair tax cuts, the future of KiwiSaver and KiwiBank – that sort of thing. This sort of side show amuses us political tragics, but on the ground the real campaign goes on as it always has.
Chris G 32

30 October 2008 at 11:38 am

Sarah up to her usual tricks: “This site should be brought down for defaming Mr Key”

Should Whaleoil be brought down for the constant derogatory remarks about Clarks appearance?

What sort of free speech campaign are you running Sarah?

captcha: Juror condemn oooohh spooky.
Tim Ellis 33

30 October 2008 at 11:49 am

Ahh no. The campaign has always been about the policies that matter to people, and the credibility to deliver on them. Fair tax cuts, the future of KiwiSaver and KiwiBank – that sort of thing. This sort of side show amuses us political tragics, but on the ground the real campaign goes on as it always has.

No it hasn’t r0b. Labour has spent all year focusing on attacking John Key and smearing him. Labour has been obsessed with him the whole time. The trust theme, the John vs John ads, the obsession with which side John Key supported during the Springbok Tour when he was 19, the depiction of Key as “slippery”, almost all the commentary from the Labour Party has been about John Key, and how to demonise him. The same can be said of the reporting here at the Standard. For weeks Labour has been promising a neutron bomb on John Key. Didn’t happen. Didn’t exist.

Nice spin though.
Sarah 34

30 October 2008 at 11:50 am

Exactly r0b, the campaign has always been about the policies that matter to people. So why exactly was Mike Williams and the Labour strategy team in Melbourne focusing on Key’s past instead of dealing with policy matters like they should be? You can’t have it both ways. National has been focusing on policy matters the entire campaign instead of deliving into these desperate smear campaigns.

Btw, is National’s unemployment grant policy out today?
Steve Pierson 35

30 October 2008 at 11:53 am

Sarah. Mike Williams doesn’t do policy, he’s the party president – they are responsible for things like organising and fundraising.
Sarah 36

30 October 2008 at 11:54 am

Chris G: The site accused John Key of having committted perjury when he did not. If you don’t understand how that might be considered as defamation then that’s your problem.

[lprent: You lied again. That is why you are banned]

Criticising Helen’s appearance is stupid and immature, but is nothing in comparison to what the standard did yesterday. Far as I know, it’s not illegal.
travellerev 37

30 October 2008 at 11:55 am

Sarah,

This site should be brought down for defaming Mr Key, by implying that he knowingly provided false information to the SFO and did other fraudulent acts.

Yes, funny that. John Key and National are all over journalists and news providers if anything detrimental threatens to come out and they even contacted this blog over a quote which was taken out of context but here we are calling John key a lying banking scumbag and not a peep. Makes you wonder eh?

Hey guys,

Did you know that Proctor & Gamble lost US $ 157 million dollars in a the year 1993 when the entered into the Currency Derivatives trade with Bankers Trust and did you know that every telephone conversation was recorded and that it was clear that the banksters and currency traders
were actively and knowingly ripping and off their customers. Hell, they even had a name for it. ROF (Rip of Factor) the Bank lost all it’s customers and collapsed due to that scandal. And P&G was by no means the only one to loose their money.

What you reckon the chances are of JK staying squeaky clean in what was deemed (by the judge) a pervasive culture of corruption.
He only left the bank when it collapsed or in his own words “when it all went to shit”.(NZH unauthorised biography 19 July 2008) in 1995 so it wasn’t like he left when it was glaringly obvious that the bank was up to it’s fingers in someone else’s cooky jar.

LOL

And Billy they would never want me as an informer I could have given them much better info. It was very clear JK could not have been involved in the h-fee scandal if they had just googled Andrew Krieger and Banking Trust.

This by the way is a challenge to John Key and his team to show us the records that will prove that he left the Elders bank in somewhere between June 1988 and August 1988 and to explain to us how he could have worked with Andrew Krieger for Bankers Trust when Andrew Krieger left the Bankers Trust in February 1988 and trading altogether in June 1988 while he still had to do three months of gardening (grace period) to go.
Sarah 38

30 October 2008 at 12:03 pm

Clinton, I heard reports stating that he took along with him members of the research department. Surely they could have focused on better things (like policy)than looking into Key’s past?

And how does digging up dirt on his opponent fit into Mike’s job description of “organising and fundraising”?
Daveski 39

30 October 2008 at 12:03 pm

Sorry r0b, but SP – whose line of attack down to words has mimicked Labour’s started off many months ago on the “where’s you policy” line at a time when no one expected National to release them.

Ever since then, the line of attack has been personalised and it would seem to be that Labour’s long-term strategy has been to discredit Key. It’s been a negative strategy and it appears to have failed.

Given that Labour has made this about trust, it is totally ironic it has backfired so much. Indeed, the smoking gun is now with labour’s strategists and to a lesser extent with the Standardistas who appeared content to play along with this and are now furiously backtracking.
Chris G 40

30 October 2008 at 12:04 pm

Tim Ellis:
“Labour has spent all year focusing on attacking John Key and smearing him. Labour has been obsessed with him the whole time. The trust theme, the John vs John ads, the obsession with which side John Key supported during the Springbok Tour when he was 19, the depiction of Key as “slippery’, almost all the commentary from the Labour Party has been about John Key, and how to demonise him. The same can be said of the reporting here at the Standard. For weeks Labour has been promising a neutron bomb on John Key. Didn’t happen. Didn’t exist.”

If you run a presidential style campaign like the Nats are, then you should expect to get attacked like one does in a presidential campaign (eg. in the US the amount of vetting that gets done of each candidate. The Nats ARE running a presidential style campaign, billboards for local candidates contain his face also, hes placarded over all brochures. eg. the family one: about 5 or 6 times.

The nats Dont want to run a campaign focused on their party because people will remember that its the same old pricks who messed up the country in the 90s.
Tim Ellis 41

30 October 2008 at 12:07 pm

Trav, when you’re in a hole, stop digging.

There’s a quite clear test for evidence. You have to have direct evidence specifically linking a person to an action. You don’t have any specific links. You are throwing dirt and hoping it sticks, just as SP did last night, and just as the Labour Party have been doing for weeks. It is totally irresponsible behaviour. Abusing people by calling them “scumbags” doesn’t help your cause.

Find an audit trail and follow it. This is not an audit trail. You are looking for strands of circumstance in order to lead to your eventual conclusion, that John Key is a crook. That is not a case.

John Key doesn’t owe you an explanation. If you can come up with real evidence that he was involved in criminal or fraudulent activity–the sort of evidence that would hold up in court–then we should expect him to respond. You haven’t done that. You aren’t doing your cause any good.
travellerev 42

30 October 2008 at 12:09 pm

Sarah,

Lying is lying whether you do it in front of a judge or a country you want to run. It’s bad.
I’m sure that Nat’s bullyboys are watching this site like a hawk so perhaps they are a tad worried about coming out with their guns blazing.

Sorry lost link y’all here it is June 1988
Sarah 43

30 October 2008 at 12:09 pm

travellerev – this site accused John Key of having committed perjury. It once again does not matter if John Key and his advisors are all over news outlets, as that unless you can provide evidence is not illegal. What the Standard did however was insinuate that he lied to the SFO, a fact that was not true. That is called defamation. Hence why the Standard should apologise to Mr Key. Though i’m not holding my breath.

[lprent: Utter crap. There was one post by a guest that outlined the background to H-Fee and highlighted some inconsistencies in John Key’s timings. There was a couple of posts outlining a NZ Herald story.
However you have just lied about this site. Banned for 2 weeks and read the policy.]
insider 44

30 October 2008 at 12:10 pm

Sorry Steve I don’t think it is credible to say Williams is not involved in policy given the policy role presidents have played in previous Labour governments, and his placement on boards of a number of SOEs, which is effectively to ensure implementation of Labour policy.
Felix 45

30 October 2008 at 12:12 pm

Billy,

No-one wants your pork and fennel sausage rolls.

The only way to bet with them would surely be to have the loser eat one.
r0b 46

30 October 2008 at 12:17 pm

Too much in transit today for individual replies to those above, but I have rather more to do with Labour’s campaign on the ground than those of you who are critiquing it! Take a look at the billboards (KiwiBank KiwiSaver KiwiRail). Take a look at the pamphlets appearing in your letter boxes. Issues that matter.

The “two faced John” adds are not random attacks on Key, they are highlighting his duplicity on the issues that matter. Labour would have to be stupid to base a campaign on the random hope of one killer issue, and they aren’t, so they didn’t.

There’s lots of rightie spin here about Labour touting a “neutron bomb” for weeks, but I’d be interested if anyone can find a public Labour reference to such a thing. Labour has been campaigning on the issues, because that’s where elections are won and lost.
higherstandard 47

30 October 2008 at 12:24 pm

Eve

“I’m sure that Nat’s bullyboys are watching this site like a hawk so perhaps they are a tad worried about coming out with their guns blazing.”

Or alternatively they’ve got more important things on at the moment and they don’t really care what’s printed on this blog.
travellerev 48

30 October 2008 at 12:27 pm

Tim Ellis,

Giving clear cross references refuting JK’s official timeline is not grasping at straws.

So far we have only had the story the John Key told as per translated by the journo’s whereas I can refute their drivel with facts. In fact this some of the worst journalism I have seen. An accused person gets to tell his story without any follow up of the journo’s and we are expected to just take his word for it. Get real.

Fact. John Key could not have worked with Andrew Krieger while working for the Bankers Trust in 1988 since Andrew Krieger as verified here and here had left the Bankers trust and trading altogether in June 1988.

So if it’s all the same to you I think it is you who has a problem.
I see a great big misrepresentation of the truth here and I would really like for JK to clarify with his “records” how he could have worked with Andrew Krieger. If he can’t or won’t than I out it to you he’s probably lying. And since he’s been caught lying a great many times I call him a lying scumbag as I don with anyone I catch lying multiple times. Moreover since most of his lies have to do with his banking career and money I call him a lying banking scumbag.

Oh, here is another one of Bankers Trust’s victims
travellerev 49

30 October 2008 at 12:30 pm

HS,

So true.
Phil 50

30 October 2008 at 12:33 pm

Labour has been campaigning on the issues

No r0b, Labour has been campaigning on its record. The strategy can be summed up as you’ve had it good for nine years, now give us your vote you ungrateful bastards.
Daveski 51

30 October 2008 at 12:33 pm

r0b

Indeed you are right – much of the comments on blogs tend towards the bald generalisation and you are right.

I would go as far to say that Labour would have benefited from focussing on policy and I have repeated said so in response to SP’s attacks on Key over the past months.

Given you have some inside knowledge, it would be interesting to hear your critique on why Labour strategists have chosen this line of attack. I don’t mean the flip flops because any politican can be proven to speak with forked tongue – see KB today.

Apparentely, Trevor Mallard used the H-Fee line last year so it does appear to have been a long term line of attack, contrary to your view.

Regardless, I think this has proved to have been an error of judgement and given Williams involved the error has happened at the highest level. Laboru would have benefited from staying on policy debate but their line of attack was differnet
higherstandard 52

30 October 2008 at 12:39 pm

Eve – don’t get all reasonable on me now – you’ll ruin all my preconceived opinions of you 🙂
Ianmac 53

30 October 2008 at 12:40 pm

Williams did his research in Melbourne at his own expense.
I was surprised that it was the Herald which broke the “story,” and wondered if they would spike it today and they did. Lack of “evidence” or clever media?
leftrightout 54

30 October 2008 at 12:41 pm

This was a tactical move by the Herald (aka publishing arm of the National Party). They generated a possible scandal and then switched the attention to ‘a desperate Labour smear campaign’, probably because the gap in the polls is closing and National needs all the help it can get. Pathetic.
Daveski 55

30 October 2008 at 12:50 pm

Nice work LRO

The problem for you (and the Standard) is that “Batman” posted a thread on this some weeks ago which has now been cleansed.

Some people in Labour are obviously concerned about how they’ve got this wrong and you can blame Granny all you like but this was a Labour decision and they have no one else to blame but themselves.
travellerev 56

30 October 2008 at 12:52 pm

HS,

Don’t worry, I just couldn’t be bothered. LOL

leftrightout

Yep I reckon.
Anita 57

30 October 2008 at 12:55 pm

Daveski,

The problem for you (and the Standard) is that ?Batman? posted a thread on this some weeks ago which has now been cleansed

http://www.thestandard.org.nz/the-road-to-lonsdale-street-part-1 ? what do you mean “has now been cleansed”?

[lprent: What Daveski is referring to is that on the day that the post went up, there was a bit of discussion internally about who’d given access to batman. When that finished, on the same day it was changed to a Guest post and a note was appended. We now have better agreement about how and when people are given post access.]
r0b 58

30 October 2008 at 12:56 pm

No r0b, Labour has been campaigning on its record. The strategy can be summed up as you’ve had it good for nine years, now give us your vote you ungrateful bastards.

Ohh please. And National has been campaigning on being Labour Lite – summed up as “you’ve had it good for nine years so we won’t change anything important now give us your vote you dim witted suckers”.

At the campaign launches it was Labour who had concrete plans for dealing with the financial crisis, and National who had nothing to offer. Here’s John Armstrong summing up (excerpts):

If actions speak louder than words, Labour was the winner on Day One of the official election campaign – game, set and match.

Key’s earlier speech at National’s campaign opening in Auckland’s SkyCity Convention Centre said nothing new on economic policy. In fact, it said nothing new about anything.

If that was not bad enough, Labour was getting ready to lay out something really meaty just a few blocks away in the Auckland Town Hall.

There, Helen Clark trumped Key by delivering the recovery package he had been demanding, including contingency plans to save jobs and the promise of a mini-budget in December.

The upshot was that Labour looked like it was governing; National looked complacent and flat-footed.

Here’s Gordon Campbell:

If so, it is now up to Key and his team to provide some content to back up last night’s impression that he is of prime ministerial timber. Because to date, the battle on content has been no contest at all. On successive days, the government has announced the bank desposit security scheme, universal student allowances and an economic stimulation package complete with a December mini-Budget – to carry the economy through the deflationary months ahead, as the effects of the global meltdown reach our shoes. By contrast, National’s package of short run, consumption driven benefits tax cuts, reform of the RMA, the reductions to Kiwisaver, science and research and climate change policy and oh, a billion dollar broadband package were all flagged before the financial crisis even began.

So I’ll say it once again, Labour is the one planning for the future and offering concrete constructive policy.

Given you have some inside knowledge

I claim no inside knowledge except that of an ordinary campaign volunteer on the ground.
Matthew Pilott 59

30 October 2008 at 12:58 pm

“Laboru” Is this the Romanian Branch, daveski? Just like Liabour is the Italian one? heh

Ianmac – that’s an interesting point, for all the ‘mud-slinging’ done lately – what has Labour actually presented to the media?

As Colin Espiner mentioned today, reading the article last night, all he could see was The Herald making the accusations, not Labour. I guess he is one of the few reasonable enough to make that point.
Billy 60

30 October 2008 at 1:00 pm

I see leftrightout. You just know there must be a conspiracy. If it wasn’t John Key it just must have been the Herald. Explain how the Herald managed to involve Mike Williams in their web of deception.
Pixie 61

30 October 2008 at 1:02 pm

Ianmac said:
“Thats what I think Pixie. 80% looking like Honest John is not a good look for a PM???”

Ianmac, I think you underestimate the public’s cynicism of politicians generally. Remember the old joke – how do you know when politicians are lying? They open their mouths.

In which case, 80% is a very high score!

During the Leader’s debate, I thought that John Key was at his best when he talked about his background and why he wanted to be PM. Because this was true for him and he was able to speak with some substance.

He was at his Hollow Man worst when he spoke in “slogans” without supporting them with any details. For example, he kept saying, “I am ambitious for NZ” but did not elaborate on what that means for him.

HC on the other hand, did not talk of ambition but spoke of her vision for NZ to turn the whole climate change threat into an economic opportunity by, for example leveraging off its clean, green brand, investing in green technology, R&D etc.

JK’s response was to be a “fast follower”, which somehow lacks congruity with the “ambitious” slogan. Especially when it’s clear that eco-business will shortly be the only game in town (apparently even Coca Cola are currently rebranding themselves so as to convey a more “green” image)

What a shame HC didn’t begin and/or end with something like, “I’m ambitious for NZ too, and here’s where I see our future prosperity…”
Pixie 62

30 October 2008 at 1:02 pm

PS, please, please, please Helen Clark, at the next Leader’s debate, resist all temptation to go for the cheap shots and rise above the gladiatorial pit. Model the dignified and gracious leader that you are. If JK tries to shout you down, simply stop talking and make him look immature and petty. Don’t shout over him, but do insist on having your turn. Make the moderator work for his money.

The “grace and grit” strategy may mean that John Key gets to sound off more this time. However, you can get the upper hand simply by parroting back every one of his slogans (ambitious for NZ – tick, prosperity – tick, economic growth – tick, safe societies – tick) and then linking each one to Labour’s own policies. In other words, “I’ll see your form and raise you some substance.”
Robinsod 63

30 October 2008 at 1:08 pm

Hey Billy – long time no see! I don’t think it was a Herald set-up but I’ve never ever seen a newspaper headline a story and then do a bait and switch like the Herald did. It was a very weird way to run a story…

With no smoking gun it’s traditional to not write a story. At a pinch I could see them doing a look how desperate labour is story but to build up a story about Key and then deliver one about Labour? Never seen anything like it…
Tim Ellis 64

30 October 2008 at 1:10 pm

Trav, I ask you this question at the risk of you going off on a wild, abusive tangent. But since BT did not have a forex arm in New Zealand until John Key went there to set it up, what makes you think that John Key would have to have worked in the same company as Andrew Krieger for Krieger to have been a client of Key’s?

I know you are obsessed with this stuff, but you have made one enormous assumption this whole time. If what you say is correct, then Key and Krieger didn’t work in the same company. What is stopping them being involved in trades together, working for different companies?

Oh, and none of your links say that Andrew Krieger left trading altogether in June 1988, despite you saying that it does. Does this mean that you are telling lies? By your own definition, it does. Or maybe you were just mistaken. Is it possible that if you are sometimes mistaken and confused about very minor details, then other people might occasionally be confused and mistaken about very minor details?

And while it’s nice of you to link to one of BT’s “victims”, there isn’t any direct link to John Key in that link, is there? Or are you just committing further guilt by association?
Daveski 65

30 October 2008 at 1:12 pm

MP – actually, given my moniker I should know more about Romania. Actually, nice touch too – a GSOH during a robust discussion sets the right tone. Cheers

Anita – I’m not trolling but there are issues that need some explanation. As I understand it (from KB), the original post was not by a Guest but a named contributed Batman. The post has since been cleansed.

It could of course be a coincidence that someone called Batman posted the thread on the H-Fee and somone called Batman delivered the docs to the Dom Post (there goes the NZH theory too).

It does cause problems for the Standard given the strident denials of links to Labour. I happily accept those from LP who appears highly opinionated, politically motivated, but will total integrity. He is open about his affiliations and points out that many people post at the Standard and it’s not a machine and have your read the About page 🙂

However, this does leave a smoking gun which I hope LP will clear for us all.

IrishBill: as I have pointed out several times in comments the reason “batman” was used as a user name instead of “guest post” was that one of our crew thought that was appropriate for the series of posts emailed to us. After consulting amongst ourselves we decided that that was not appropriate and Steve changed it to a guest post on the same day it was first published. We also decided not to continue the series because we didn’t think it had enough substance.

[lprent: It was exactly what Irish said. There was a certain amount of ‘dialogue’ going on around the mailgroup about who put up the batman post. I was mainly concerned because the style of the poster was quite different to usual, and I’d prefer guest posts while people figure out how to write for this medium.]
insider 66

30 October 2008 at 1:20 pm

Tim

Don’t encourage her…
travellerev 67

30 October 2008 at 1:29 pm

Sarah,

I wonder what is more morally reprehensible. Lying to a judge to save your own sorry arse of lying to about 1 million people whom you want to vote for you and make you their new PM.
gomango 68

30 October 2008 at 1:37 pm

I had two days of dialog with travellerev on another post here on the Standard. Its like fighting jello. Everytime you unequivocally refute one of her allegations or point out the falsity of her “associations by proximity”, she ignores that , rearranges the remaining facts and has another go. You end up in a continuous spiral of FACT!!!!! “Um no, not really, here’s why.” She comes back……. FACT!!!!!! “Um no, not really here’s why”. We started talking about why what a lot of what she believes about Key, BT, Merrills, sub-prime etc is incorrect (I quoted third party facts, plus understanding the cuture through 18 years of working in investment banks – never at the same firm as Key, or even aware of his existence until I returned to NZ 5 years ago). And I end up getting lectured about WTC7…….

For the raving mad conspiracy theorists amongst u, I’ll repost this from wikipedia which is the basic checklist anyone should start with when discovering what clearly looks like a massive conspiracy of shadowy forces (iluminati, freemasons, jewish bankers, CIA etc) looking to control global wealth for themselves (ie like John Key):

– Occam’s razor – does the alternative story explain more of the evidence than the mainstream story, or is it just a more complicated and therefore less useful explanation of the same evidence?
– Logic – Do the proofs offered follow the rules of logic, or do they employ Fallacies of logic?
– Methodology – are the proofs offered for the argument well constructed, i.e., using sound methodology? Is there any clear standard to determine what evidence would prove or disprove the theory?
– Whistleblowers – how many people â€” and what kind â€” have to be loyal conspirators?
– Falsifiability – Is it possible to demonstrate that specific claims of the theory are false, or are they “unfalsifiable”?

travellerev seems to assume that the lack of evidence of a conspiracy is clear evidence that a succesful conspiracy exists. Pretty hard to argue with the logic really…….
Pat 69

30 October 2008 at 1:43 pm

Irishbill and SP have said they did not continue Batman’s posts because they thought they had no substance.

Another reason could be that Labour strategists wanted to release the story later in the campaign to have more impact, and The Standard did not want to defuse the timer on the neutron bomb.

Only problem was that the signiture on the cheque turned out to not be that of John Key, as previously thought.
Wellingtonian 70

30 October 2008 at 1:43 pm

LRO

“This was a tactical move by the Herald (aka publishing arm of the National Party). They generated a possible scandal and then switched the attention to â€˜a desperate Labour smear campaign’, probably because the gap in the polls is closing and National needs all the help it can get. Pathetic.”

your a sick, deluded, little creature.

a.) your conspiracy theory is laughable. your good friend batman leaked a story to the herald promising more to come. Hodgson then backs this up. The herald then runs the story… and it is a story that could of gone two ways and was always going to be of interest to the public: a.)key implicated ,or, b)secret squirrel labour games. pity for you it was the later.

b.)national is desperate? they are not the ones sending their party president overseas looking thru thousands of documents for signatures like a sleazy little P.I. sifting through rubbish bins. they are not the ones who have leaked teasers for a ‘big skeleton in keys closet’ to the media and bloggers.

face it; the mud raking and personal attacks aren’t working. The campaign strategy is turning off swing voters

this ones about trust indeed.
Wellingtonian 71

30 October 2008 at 1:46 pm

R0b – why then, if labour is campaigning on policy, am i getting letters in the mail from labour attacking key?
NeillR 72

30 October 2008 at 1:49 pm

I’m picking Dunedin is the big clue to finding out who “Batman” is. But don’t be assuming “he’s” male.
vidiot 73

30 October 2008 at 1:54 pm

NeillR – are you implying that the MP formerly known as ‘the ball man’ could have put down his racket and picked up a bat these days ?

I find that hard to swallow.
Wellingtonian 74

30 October 2008 at 1:58 pm

travellerev

“wonder what is more morally reprehensible. Lying to a judge to save your own sorry arse of lying to about 1 million people whom you want to vote for you and make you their new PM.”

i dont know, why dont you ask helen, re:

*paintergate
*prime ministerial motorcade to rugby game
*peters donations saga – lies x5
*i have nothing to do with mike williams going to aus
*”we never had any intention of telling you how much water you could have in the shower” – after labour mp is on closeup defending it
*”absolutely not, i think your trying to defy human nature” – then votes for anti smacking bill
*pledge card cluster fuck
*”tax cuts are a path to inequality” – then cuts taxes….
travellerev 75

30 October 2008 at 1:59 pm

Tim,

I checked my links and it appears I linked to the same article twice. So here is an additional link

This is from the NYTimes 1988 (online archive)

However, there were times, particularly in some of the more obscure currencies, ”that Mr. Krieger was the market,” one financial industry executive said. That would have made it especially difficult for financial auditors at the bank to have been able to identify whether an option was priced at the market rate. Moreover, Mr. Krieger used complex trading strategies would have been hard for the auditors to follow or question. Mr. Krieger left the bank in February.

The obscure currency they were talking about was the NZ dollar. And he was the only one dealing in it in 1997 (read the rest of the article it appears AK did some creative bookkeeping)

This is from another archived article from 1990 see above link:

LEAD: Andrew J. Krieger, who earned a formidable reputation as a currency options trader by making $300 million for the Bankers Trust Company in 1987, is re-entering the market after a few years of doing mostly advisory work.

From the same article:

Mr. Krieger has been running his own firm in Englewood Cliffs, N.J., since 1988.

”It was largely an advisory service,” he said yesterday. ”I wasn’t doing much trading.” Capital Holdings, he said, ”offers us substantial funds to manage.”

And it continues

Mr. Krieger joined Salomon Brothers and traded there for two years before leaving for Bankers Trust, where he scored big in 1987. But he quit Bankers Trust at the end of 1987, disappointed with a bonus of only $3 million of the $300 million he earned for the bank.

And this is from a third article from the same archives in which he announces that he will start his own trading company on 7th of June 1988 and will leave Soros to do so.

Andrew J. Krieger, the successful young currency trader whose departure from the Bankers Trust Company in February set the Wall Street rumor mill buzzing, is quitting his second job this year. Mr. Krieger, who joined Soros Fund Management Inc. in April as senior portfolio manager, announced yesterday that he would form his own trading company, Krieger & Associates

Judging by the interview with AK he changed his mind and wanted a change of lifestyle and he started his own advisory business.

Mr. Krieger has been running his own firm in Englewood Cliffs, N.J., since 1988.
”It was largely an advisory service,” he said yesterday. ”I wasn’t doing much trading.”

If John Key left Elders on June 29 1988 he missed Andrew Krieger’s last trading days with Soros by 23 days and that was not even counting his three month grace period.

If he worked with Krieger and he was his sole account manager and dealing in huge sums he must have done so in 1987.

This from the Sunday Star Times

He formed what was to be a lucrative relationship with 32-year-old currency trader Andy Krieger, based at Bankers Trust in New York, who began putting hundreds of millions of dollars of business through Key’s dealing room.

Case closed.

Captcha sive taxpayers. A vision of things to come under national?
randal 76

30 October 2008 at 2:00 pm

we haven’t seen much hooton lately
where’s hooton
whats he go to say about it
eh?
travellerev 77

30 October 2008 at 2:04 pm

gomango,

Funny you should say that I thought the same about you. I hope that the quotes and the links for Tim meet your standards.
Seems like a fairly conclusive timeline to me but than you behaved a bit like jello too. LOL.
Pat 78

30 October 2008 at 2:05 pm

Bill Ralston wrote in his Stuff blog on 12 September:

“There is one other factor. The government have long been rumoured to have a couple of “neutron bomb’ type scandals ready to throw back at the Nats and it wants these to be carefully timed to attract most media attention during the election campaign itself when voters are more likely to be swayed and the Peters scandal is receding in peoples’ memories.”
Billy 79

30 October 2008 at 2:09 pm

You know you have lost when your only remaining champions are Ev and randal.
higherstandard 80

30 October 2008 at 2:09 pm

Ouch !

Bill English applying the boot.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz-election-2008/news/video.cfm?c_id=1501799&gal_objectid=10540101&gallery_id=103193
higherstandard 81

30 October 2008 at 2:11 pm

And Vlad the Impaler the Billy please don’t forget Vlad
Tim Ellis 82

30 October 2008 at 2:17 pm

Trav,

That is not case closed. That is a whole lot of unrelated information about Andrew Krieger, which have nothing to do with John Key, backed up by a whole lot of factual errors on your part.

The obscure currency they were talking about was the NZ dollar.

The NZ dollar is not obscure. It is the tenth most traded currency in the world.

And he was the only one dealing in it in 1997

Hang on. You said Krieger stopped trading in 1988. Or is it possible you got your date wrong? Goodness me, does that make you a liar? Or can it be that you made a very minor mistake, as John Key clearly did when he said he’d left Elders in 1987, three months before the NZ H Fee transaction took place, when clearly he meant he left in 1988, three months before the Elders NZ H Fee transaction?

And Krieger wasn’t the only one dealing in the NZ dollar in 1987. That is just a ridiculous statement which you’ve got no evidence to back up.

Trav, this is not a case. This is a pointless conspiracy theory because you want to smear John Key. Much of it is defamatory. I don’t know, if in your country, it is acceptable to go around telling malicious lies about people, but it certainly isn’t acceptable here.
Billy 83

30 October 2008 at 2:17 pm

Do I know Vlad?
jo zinny 84

30 October 2008 at 2:19 pm

EV,

you wrote (the judge said) “a pervasive culture of corruption”

was this about BT or P&G, or both.??? which judge, what court.?
Ianmac 85

30 October 2008 at 2:22 pm

Wellingtonian said: “i dont know, why dont you ask helen, re:
*paintergate
*prime ministerial motorcade to rugby game
*peters donations saga – lies x5
*i have……..etc etc”
You have just given a list of what John Key would call “digging dirt” Funny that. Of course your list is important in the National Interest to investigate.
Now where on you list would you put “checking the integrity of an MP by checking discrepancies in his published story “?
You are not being a bit hypocritical are you John’s mate.
Wellingtonian 86

30 October 2008 at 2:27 pm

lanmac: ‘helengrad supporter #1’ tried to deliver a cunning jibe that someone who wants to lead the country shouldnt lie – i merely cited examples of where clark was shown to lie.

examples uncovered by the press, not by the national party president on a fact finding mission to foriegn pastures.
higherstandard 87

30 October 2008 at 2:29 pm

– the impaler

Started posting yesterday screeching about Key and doing much “lol”ing
travellerev 88

30 October 2008 at 2:32 pm

Hi Zin as far as I’m concerned they are both as bad as each other. LOL.

No Tim,

It is not unrelated it sets a timeline. AK left bankers trust in February 1988, went to work for Soros from March in some and in the latest link I gave its from April to June after which according to himself in 1990 he which he turned his back on currency trading and started a consultancy. According to Eugene Bingham John Key did not leave Elders until 29 June 1988 after which he had to his contractual three month grace period. Allowing him to start work for Bankers trust somewhere in late September making working with AK and the many millions he traded for him an impossibility.

Trust me Tim in 1987 the NZ dollar was an obscure currency. Now it’s an obscure overvalued currency and something the big boys like to speculate with. Give it a couple of weeks and you’ll see what I mean.

it’s a good thing most people here check for themselves.

AK stopped trading in June 1988.

Dick
travellerev 89

30 October 2008 at 2:36 pm

Tim,

AK being the only one dealing from Bankers trust in the NZ currency was a quote from a bloody article from 1988 the NYT.

JK being solely responsible for AK’s account was a quote form the bloody NZH.

You know what I’m tired of this I’m going to do some conspicuous consuming and leave you to it for awhile. maybe you can keep yourself entertained with with the inanities of HS, Billy and the other trolls
higherstandard 90

30 October 2008 at 2:45 pm

There we go back to the normal old Eve we know and love. LOL
Billy 91

30 October 2008 at 2:52 pm

LOL.
randal 92

30 October 2008 at 2:56 pm

*ROFLMAO*
jo zinny 93

30 October 2008 at 3:02 pm

gomango,

Though of course tis true is it not that the absence of evidence is not evidence of absence..heh (ex: Carl Sagan i think)

vto and all other winston wobblers..

heavens above when will you get the fact of 2 July 2008.. in the matter of why JK must – and so very promptly and pointedly – go after your idol or obsession (whichever is the greater) – in the Parliamentary Privileges Committee. His offsider hider having by now stuffed two time-consuming and unwanted expense of false allegations into the SFO and EC..!

of course, there’s nothing like your own party chairman on the PC, and an avowed belief in an entrusted powerful and wealthy witness.. whose rewards shall be earthly.. to say the least. All distractable.. even entertaining.. though whatever nothing like the Parliamentary Q&A written words:

“Hello, Government; we’re the buyer.’; and can she confirm that Mr Key’s company at the time facilitated that arrangement, which did not go to the market and did not go to tender but was just made with that Government’s corrupt mates in Fay Richwhite?

Couldn’t possibly work with someone like that post-Election. No way, and especially if the “mates” of ’93 are the mates of 2008-10.. and beyond.
Billy 94

30 October 2008 at 3:06 pm

ROTFLMAOAPIMP
randal 95

30 October 2008 at 3:09 pm

yeah its all geting a bit crummy at the moment
all bleatway rubbish at the moment cause the press is too lazy to go and dig up some decent stories with juice
meanwhile the fish wriggles
tee hee
Billy 96

30 October 2008 at 3:18 pm

ROTFLMAOSTCIIHO
Robinsod 97

30 October 2008 at 3:33 pm

Yeah – I’m more of a dog kind of a guy too…
Ianmac 98

30 October 2008 at 3:37 pm

Wellingtonian: You are dreaming if you think that politicians did not lend a hand against those in your list.
It was the Herald who published the Key story yesterday/today not the Labour Party. True Williams did some checking at his own expense but it was Herald story from an anonymous tip-off as with the Dom. The difference is…ummm
Felix 99

30 October 2008 at 3:41 pm

Billy,

I was with you at “PIMP” but “STCIIHO” goes over my head.

I hope I haven’t just made a disgusting pun.
Robin Grieve 100

30 October 2008 at 3:42 pm

Ianmac If it was at Mike Williams own expense does that make it a donation that should be declared. Were there any other staffes involved and who paid their expenses?
Wellingtonian 101

30 October 2008 at 3:49 pm

lanmac: not the labour party? haha. just who do you think batman is, and how did he get amongst that info?

and was it not the herald who published the stories i cited above
jo zinny 102

30 October 2008 at 3:49 pm

felix,

Rolling on the Floor Laughing My Ass Off Scaring the Cat If I Had One

sayeth the freedictionary – somebody trying outsmart slogans.. 😉
rave 103

30 October 2008 at 3:54 pm

Big ups for Eve.

So what was stopping Krieger dealing with Key in the 1987 run on the NZ$ when Key was working for Elders in Auckland?
Does Key ever say that they were both in BT when they got to know each other?
Has anybody talked to Krieger about when it was that he asked Key for information on the NZ economy?
Key denies that he was involved in the NZ$ run. Where is the evidence?
Dom 104

30 October 2008 at 3:56 pm

Why did the Herald beat up this story salaciously last night then dump Labour in it today? Yesterday their ‘follow up’ line was practically an orgasm and today it was all ‘Labour is evil’.

Far better is the Greens asking Key why Nat MPs are telling farmers one thing while he is telling us all another…honestly NZ, vote for Key and you’ll get what you deserve…not what I deserve but what you deserve definitely…
Matthew Pilott 105

30 October 2008 at 4:05 pm

Robin, how is Williams’ research an electoral advertisment? Where is his press release or advertising about it? Oh, wait, nowhere, the Herald ran it. Send them your little bill.
higherstandard 106

30 October 2008 at 4:10 pm

Rave

On the contrary

1. Where is the evidence Key was involved in the run on the $NZ
2. So what if he was – floating currencies go up and down depending on who’s buying and selling and regardless you’ll always have someone whining no matter which direction they’re heading in.
Ianmac 107

30 October 2008 at 4:31 pm

Wellingtonian: Batman was not a Labour Party member. But David Farrar is active for National(e-mails on Peters) as is Bill Bias Ralston, the independent media trainer for John Key.
You might also ask how did Wodney get in amongst the dirt on Peters, and how did National get its info to feed to Wodney to ask during Question time?
Williams went to do research in Aussie. So too did the Herald as said on Nat radio at 4:20 today. Herald announces the “bomb” but when it fails passed the blame to Williams. Williams did not go to the press. His research was very recent, Batman was weeks old. Give up??
rave 108

30 October 2008 at 4:36 pm

HS

That says all we need to hear I think. Not that I was wondering.
You, like Key don’t care about the consequences of money trading for profit.
That by my definition is parasitism. And that is why Key is keen to avoid any association with Krieger at that particular time. He and you many not care, but the ‘punters’ do.

Evidence? Eve has done stirling work on this. Key has now confirmed that he was in NZ in 1987 working for Elders at the time of the attack on the dollar and not on ‘gardening leave’ and on the way to meet Krieger at BT. And we know that he advised Krieger on the NZ economy. Key led us to believe his advice came later while at BT.

Eve has shown that Key couldnt have worked with Krieger at BT, so when did he advise him on the NZ economy?

Key should prove that he was not advising him on that particular attack on the NZ$ in 1987.
higherstandard 109

30 October 2008 at 4:47 pm

You’re welcome to your opinion Rave but it’s one of the many I don’t share with you.

If you take your opinion on money trading for profit to it’s logical conclusion then all trading for profit is in your eyes a form of parasitism but I s’pose that would possibly be a good fir with the views of the Communist Workers’ Group of Aotearoa/New Zealand who are committed to building a new communist international to lead workers to the revolutionary overthrow of global capitalism.
travellerev 110

30 October 2008 at 5:27 pm

HS,

In a not to distant past usury was condemned by Christians as sinful. Asking interest was a sin. Making money with money was a sin. Why? Because it extracted money from real wealth and contracted too much power into few hands.

It was the one thing Jesus ever became violent about when he kicked the money changers out of the temple. Go figure I’m not even a Christian but I sure can see what he meant.

In the next couple of months you will find out exactly what that means.
But just to give you an idea: It means that poor people all over the world will loose whatever they managed to scrimp and save while the Money Masters bask in obscene opulence. It means that cities all over the world will starve and that includes the inner cities of Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch and while I think that New Zealand can do pretty well since we have lot’s of land and the ability to grow vast amounts of food for our own population this will not be the case in America or China. It means that the Money Masters can pay mercenaries to protect themselves while their servants starve.

Exchanging goods to maintain yourself and your family and your community with the aid of a currency and to lend each other funds so that the other might prosper too is one thing but what you are going to see in the months to come has nothing to do with maintaining and prospering in you community.

We’ll be lucky to end up like say the Amish, living frugally of the land, very lucky.
But I wager you that in America it’s going to be more like a mad max movie.
higherstandard 111

30 October 2008 at 5:44 pm

Eve and I’ll wager you America is not going to be like a Mad Max movie and nor are 99% of their population are going to be living in abject poverty as you have asserted previously.
Pat 112

30 October 2008 at 6:37 pm

Is Eve employed by The Standard to derail Bad News Threads with her doomsday and/or conspiracy theories?

I only hope my taxes aren’t paying her wages.
travellerev 113

30 October 2008 at 6:37 pm

HS,

We’ll see. Tell you what if you ever need a meal because you didn’t see it coming I bet ya I’ll be able to spare you one. How’s that?

And I’ll try not to say, “I told you so.” LOL.

In the mean time: Wall street is dropping again.
travellerev 114

30 October 2008 at 7:00 pm

Pat,

I don’t get paid by anyone. My husband and I live on one income and I double it by growing our own veggies, keeping chickens, baking our own bread making our own booze, cheese and whatever you name it I do it.

I don’t know any of the moderators and in fact five months ago the were thinking of banning me. In fact suggesting the Standard would employ someone to help them divert bad new makes you sound like a CT.

Why don’t you give a couple of suckers some loans they can’t pay back before you loose your job too.

You sad cow.
RedLogix 115

30 October 2008 at 7:09 pm

HS,

Incontrovertable evidence has been provided that Key’s story about having worked closely with Krieger at either Bankers Trust cannot be true if Key left Elders in June 1988 and only started with BT 3 months later. These dates have been independently verified with linked articles that state Kreiger left BT in Febuary 1988 (in one case to an archived NYTimes article dated 28th Feb 1988).

Yet both Key and Krieger have clearly stated the trading relationship at BT existed.

By itself this is not proof of wrong-doing on Key’s part, but does mean that at least part of the story Key has given about his career MUST be wrong.

The question is, which part? And why ?
higherstandard 116

30 October 2008 at 7:10 pm

Eve

Thanks for the offer Eve but if things pack up to the extent you predict I’ll just depart to the farm and live there for a few years in between my other responsibilities.

Re Wall St meh – stock markets go up stock markets go down companies come and go.

Ps Pat may be a bloke – hence that would be “sad bull”
higherstandard 117

30 October 2008 at 7:15 pm

Redlogix

FFS who apart from those people with some kind of bizarre fixation on Key really cares ?

If he had been involved in any wrong doing let alone being the devil incarnate we would know by now as numerous of his political opponents have been sifting the dirt on him for some time just as they do on Helen with no joy.

Despite the crappola that’s spouted about both of them they’re both disturbingly dull on the scandal front.
RedLogix 118

30 October 2008 at 7:19 pm

HS,

So you cannot, nor care not to explain this major discrepancy?

Would you employ someone, if you found a major hole like this in his CV?

There is something not right with his timeline, and you know it.
higherstandard 119

30 October 2008 at 7:24 pm

Redlogix

Read my previous comment.

“FFS who apart from those people with some kind of bizarre fixation on Key really cares ”

hence I don’t care.
RedLogix 120

30 October 2008 at 7:28 pm

You do not care that John Key’s CV contains an impossible story. Thats OK .. we now all know exactly what your standard really is.

By your own admission.
higherstandard 121

30 October 2008 at 7:41 pm

Red all we may conclude is that you have some kind of bizarre fixation on Key.

The impossible story is a creation of that bizarre fixation of yours if he said he worked with or without Krieger I’m prepared to take him at his word – it is both ancient history and completely bloody irrelevant to the current election campaign.
John 122

30 October 2008 at 7:44 pm

Travellerev you are so full of it.
Proctor + Gamble lost money on interest rate derivatives, not currency derivatives as you are trying to insinuate. They bought (knowingly) interest rate instruments that blew up on them . These instruments were sold out of the New York branch of Bankers Trust. You are blatantly lying by saying that they lost money on currency derivatives.
As for Krieger, every FX dealer in New Zealand at every bank would have dealt with him including DFC who were very active in NZD currency options. He acted alone and used the banks to facilitate his own trading strategy. Although he worked at Bankers Trust he was a maverick who worked alone. I know this because I worked at Bankers trust in London at the time and he tried to crucify me in a transaction. Senior management then annulled the trade.
A pseudo-academic indeed with Helen Clark’s capacity for twisting the facts.
Chris 123

30 October 2008 at 7:44 pm

Can we please get rid of williams now? Everytime he tries something he fucks it up. At the convention it was just stupid, the owen glenn thing though? Fucking DUMB! This??? Fire him now!! not tomorrow, now because he just lost the election. How many mistakes were they going to tolerate?

Honestly at least national don’t piss their donors off enough to have them take time out of their schedule and fly halfway round the world just to make them look shit. Fuck sakes, where did they find him and why is he still employed?
slightlyrighty 124

30 October 2008 at 7:53 pm

Helen Clark is on record as saying that this was not a story she was handling at all.

But today we have this!

http://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/newsdetail1.asp?storyID=147118

And she is campaigning on trust? Be honest here lefties, If John Key had behaved in this manner you would have been all over him like a swarm of killer bees, just like you were with the Tranzrail share issue, which should now be seen for the petty politics it was.

As if to underline the fact. toady we have this!

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=10540230

A portent I hear you say? Or is the last vestige of the Labour campaign relying on putting the pressure on Key because he could not recall who paid for lunch 20 years ago.

This is desperate politics from a party bereft of direction, and this time, it shows!
RedLogix 125

30 October 2008 at 8:10 pm

HS,

The impossible story is a creation of that bizarre fixation of yours if he said he worked with or without Krieger I’m prepared to take him at his word

It is not a matter of taking the man at his word or not; the simple facts appear to contradict him.

1: Andrew Krieger left BT in Febuary 1988.

2: John Key joined BT in August 1988 at the earliest.

3: They have both independently claimed to have worked together while at BT.

Surely you can spot the problem here.

We have not created this. These items are independently documented in several different places. We have provided authoratative links.

Can you offer any sort of credible explanation for what we are talking about? Because on the face of it there is none.
Ross Miller 126

30 October 2008 at 8:26 pm

Here I am watching Labour self-destruct. Thought the leaders debate and the fall-out from that was the seminal moment in the campaign but no, bull in the china shop Williams comes galloping to the rescue to trump that one and the nightmare day ends with that TV shot of Hulun falling flat on her face.

The imagery was priceless and better than any election advert.

And to compound the problem you plonkers can’t even get your story right about who picked up the tab for the trip.

Hulun … Mike did.

Mike … Labour (code for taxpayer) did.

Its called shooting yourselves in the foot and mouth disease.
Pascal's bookie 127

30 October 2008 at 8:27 pm

‘sod said:

I don’t think it was a Herald set-up but I’ve never ever seen a newspaper headline a story and then do a bait and switch like the Herald did. It was a very weird way to run a story

With no smoking gun it’s traditional to not write a story. At a pinch I could see them doing a look how desperate labour is story but to build up a story about Key and then deliver one about Labour? Never seen anything like it

Me neither. It really is weird, and I guess we’ll never get the story of why they did it without slippping some E into someone’s beer, waiting for a bit and steering the conversation. I can’t be arsed doing that, and it’d be a waste of good drugs so spekulatin will have to suffice.

It appears that ‘batman’ was shopping the story around, that much is clear. As well as The Standard, the Dom got it, the Herald got it, and Mike Williams got it.

The Standard put up the teaser piece and didn’t run anymore.

The MSM sources seemed to be investigating it, as did Williams.

The Herald ran their teaser piece online yesterday, promising more in today’s print edition.

In today’s print edition they do an about face and the story is about Williams investigating the story. The story arc that was promised got abandoned for some reason. If we assume that there was a story written that followed the promised arc, why didn’t they run it? What changed between yesterday arvo and 4AM, and why wasn’t that change in circumstances mentioned in today’s story?

I can’t think of a plausible answer to the italicised question. Anyone?

One possible answer (with only a small amount of tinfoil required) is that there wasn’t a story written that followed the initial story arc. The Herald knew how much the story panned out but didn’t know who else knew.

Publishing the teaser may have been an attempt to get the other people (Williams and media) who were investigating ‘batman’s’ claims to come forward with what they had.

If the Herald was confident they had the story right, and someone else announced something different the Herald would have looked ever so clever when their final story came out. (complete with a recap of the late breaking changes, developing, ‘other media taken in by caped figurine’, ‘politicians in shooting off at the mouthgate’).
mike 128

30 October 2008 at 8:41 pm

Ouch – you lefties got that sinking feeling in your gut?

Are any of youse going to give mike and the research unit a hand to go through 24 kgs of paper work looking for JK’s credit card reciept for that lunch 20 years ago…. 🙂

captcha “pinkola in” -not after todays double face plant
Robinsod 129

30 October 2008 at 8:58 pm

Hey Mike – I know that useless drunk cunt Williams has given y’all something to cling to but mate – you’re still in for some real disappointment come election day…
GordonF 130

30 October 2008 at 9:16 pm

Mike, can you provide an answer to ReLogix post at 8.10?
Nah? thought not.
rave 131

30 October 2008 at 9:44 pm

HS

Glad you mentioned communism. Its coming back into fashion.

Seems that what we have now is socialism for the rich and private penury for the poor. Need to reverse that.

At least Labour is coming up with some policies that will help tide people over in the coming months and years. That’s a good platform from which to fight the rich socialists from plundering our wages, taxes, and wealth, and natures resources, so that we can socialise them and survive off them ourselves.

If its good enough for them, its good enough for us.

Tax the bastards, shove the RMA up them, nationalise their booty, outlaw the banksters, make them sweat for carbon credits, force them to ride on Kiwirail, and I havent even started.
higherstandard 132

30 October 2008 at 10:19 pm

Rave

I recommend an enema followed by a good sleep.

Sod – I agree Williams appears to be an inept buffoon but remember the Nat’s Boag (hopeless) the list goes on and on – you should start listing the useless twat politicians and party presidents from all the political parties at your blog – I suspect by the time were finished we’d be lucky to have more than a couple of dozen who pass muster. Feck I despair of our politicians and political parties at times.
Daveski 133

30 October 2008 at 10:32 pm

LP et al

I appreciate the opportunity to ask uncomfortable questions and get replies. Frankly, given the blurred lines between the party and party members, this type of issue had to happen some time. Ha ha ha … this indeed is Lynn’s point that the Standard is not the individuals … but we only see the thought of individuals.

I genuinely hope that the Standard can retain some semblance of independence. There is a role in NZ for robust discussion and beyond that fostering an interest in politics and politicking.

It’s a pity that there isn’t a drinking for liberals meeting – it would be fascinating to have a beer or two.

Ok, on to the next issue 🙂
Robinsod 134

30 October 2008 at 10:45 pm

HS – that’s two enema recommendations in as many weeks? I figure you’re either a midwife or a dude with some serious psycho sexual development issues…

And Williams is an outstanding fuck-up. Even amongst the pantheon of fuck-ups that is NZ’s political scene…
milo 135

31 October 2008 at 2:28 am

Robinsod: in Williams defence he is beyond satire, and beyond caricature. He is creating a whole new genre of his own. It’s like watching Bart before the Simpsons were released. There’s something weird there, but just what the hell is it? I don’t think we have the context to understand Mike Williams. And we probably never will.
travellerev 136

31 October 2008 at 7:59 am

Hi John,

The term currency derivatives did not come from me but from the article I linked to.
I’m not a derivatives trader and took their word for it, that’s hardly lying.

Lying is when you tell people you have no conflict of interest while you damn well know that you do like oh, the amount of shares you own in transrail.

Lying is when you tell people in one article you left Elders in early 1987 and in another in 1988 in order to avoid an unsavoury connection. John Key anyone?

I fail to understand the difference between currency and interest derivatives though. They both deal with a derivative based on money and we don’t know what interest and from which currency’s. A couple of swaps and futures down the road and who knows what you’re betting on.
What we do know is that there were rumours in the months before these derivatives were sold was that Alan Greenspan was going to change the rules and it was those changes which caused the losses.

P & G may or may not have known but Bankers Trust surely did and yet it’s bankers sold the derivatives to P & G anyway.

I’m sure Proctor & Gamble’s finance guys are as complicit as the Bankers from Bankers Trust. They would have been too smart not to have been but I did not speak in defence of P & G. The Bankers Trust tapes did show a callous mentality with regards to the truth and they did show the way the Bankers Trust CEO’s encouraged a greedy dishonest mentality in it’s Bankers. I mean the term ROF or Rip of Factor is hardly a testimony to the Bankers Trust Banksters integrity is it?

As one of the articles I link to states:

However, there were times, particularly in some of the more obscure currencies, ‘that Mr. Krieger was the market,’

From which it follows that although for the Bankers Trust Key was the sole trader for Bankers trust, the Bankers Trust would not have been the only bank Krieger traded with.

If Krieger was the market on the Bankers Trust side than yes, he most probably dealt with more banks in NZ. The point I was trying to make is that if John Key was the sole dealer who was responsible for every trade Krieger made with the Bankers Trust he can’t have done so in late August 1988 because at that time Krieger wasn’t trading with anyone anywhere.

John Key is in other words lying. That’s the point I’m trying to make OK?

Judging from this link he was not a very nice person indeed. He apparently bulldozed public parkland because his son “needed” a tennis court.
So hey, in Andrew Krieger’s i.e. John Key’s high flying banking world you just bulldoze several hundred trees from a publicly owned park.

And yes, he was very much a maverick. All super greedy, megalomaniac massively egotistical assholes invariably are and I’m not at all surprised to hear he was happy to try and crucify you.

So what does it tell you about John Key if he can get along spiffingly with such an obvious asshole and is happy to lie about his relationship with him?

There is one big difference though between Andrew Krieger and John Key.

Andrew Krieger, a scholar in Sanskrit before he became a banker was once married to Indian woman. He lived in India and developed a passion.

A real passion, not like Jon Key who professes a passion for NZ but whose actions and lying give to no credence to that professed passion, he fell in love with India and it’s people and with that came compassion and the true need to help that country.
So what did he do? Become a Nationalised Indian and try to become the president so he could lead that Nation to greatness like John Key wants to do?

No, he actually began to spend his money on the poor and the neglected. He organised schooling and jobs for those same people and when the Tsunami hit his organisation provided thousands of thatched roofs and fishing nets and kitchen utensils and supplies within weeks so people could go back to providing for their families as quick as possible.

Catch my drift John? Andrew Krieger became a humanitarian philanthropist while John Key remained greedy and power hungry and is prepared to lie to get to were he wants to go.

By the way Krieger actually apologised for the damage he caused after he was fined a huge sum of money to repay for the damage he caused in the public park.

Captcha: specially friend. Hmmm.
higherstandard 137

31 October 2008 at 8:13 am

Sod

Think Jack Nicholson – “this town needs an enema” I thought wit the Batman fiasco it was appropriate.

Re Williams – I disagree I think it’s just more of the same bunch of political dunderheads we’ve been subjected to on all sides for decades.
lprent 138

31 October 2008 at 8:37 am

Daveski: It is pleasant getting asked questions rather than the usual round of accusations. It means that we can be pleasant rather than irritated.
rave 139

31 October 2008 at 3:56 pm

HS

I’d offer you the same advice, except you’d still be full of it.

What did you think of National’s latest attempt at socialism for the middle class?
jo zinny 140

31 October 2008 at 5:23 pm

John,
“Proctor + Gamble lost money on interest rate derivatives, not currency derivatives as you are trying to insinuate. They bought (knowingly) interest rate instruments that blew up on them ”

Correct: On currency deals we know of the particular BT dealers enabled the PG CFO make money off the peso. In terms of the BT strategy to get a line into this corporate treasury – which only recently at the time had triggered trader interest by establishing itself as a profit center – a relatively simple and trust-making peso trade or two were run. Still, as PG were ultra-conservative and one can reasonably presume its new, albeit ambitious, CFO needed to ask around what the BT guys were talking to him about, nothing happened for a while.

Interesting from the time, however, were suspicions that those currency deals were sweeteners. For suckers, if we are to make rational sense of taped BT evidence. And by this I mean to have us (today) understand the considerable aggression evident back then in dealers’ jargon, attitudes, competitiveness and so on. Understand, too, how corporates like PG were looking for corporate structures similar to their ownâ€”not sole traders or individuals. Even tho there was a good deal of money to made by individuals what mattered to PG was that soloists played, as it were, the corporate bow..

I am saying am I not that there are two sides at least to business dealings.

As to the financial instruments that “blew up on them”, as you put it, there would be firm contention as to PG buying them “knowingly”. Given sellers’ gain contingent only upon the sale and not consequences arising, we could fairly and honestly say how not explaining those sales satisfactorily (or even adequately) was in the sellers’ interest/s.

No, I’ve no intent whatsoever of assuming devil’s advocate for a substantial ‘soap maker’ as numerous reports circa 1994 were to call PG. Arguable at the time and since has been well, one corporate against another. Both big enough to look after themselves. Looked at now though – and all the fuss today about ‘don’t understand these swaps and derivatives’ etc – shouldn’t we declare how that precedent has enabled the lack of corporate self-regulation to evolve. Big time!

Yet in the court proceedings against BT by a number of its victims in in these matters we see majority settlements against the bank.

Eve has linked to several to enable folks confirm this.

BT exercised a right to not admit culpability and there matters appear to rest. Well, not quite, a corporate doubtless pressed its own aggrieved purpose among the American corporate community and voila! BT ambitions were curtailed.

But goodonem for the tapes.. and their specific value in enabling many of us to figure out just how those interest rate instruments came to operate and slam PG’s ‘profit center’ policy for USD150+mn. And tell how callous those self-justifying BT dealers were. How slack BT management was for allowing it.

What has this got to do with JK..? Remains to be seen.
Ianmac 141

31 October 2008 at 5:41 pm

Travellrev and Jo Zinny: I cannot follow much of your discussion but believe you need a big thankyou for your efforts. May it all turn to Gold.
travellerev 142

31 October 2008 at 7:27 pm

Ianmac,

It’s for people like you that I do what I do.

Peace to you.
higherstandard 143

31 October 2008 at 7:42 pm

So it’s Ianmac’ s fault.
jo zinny 144

31 October 2008 at 8:29 pm

Naughty naughty HS!

Thanks Ianmac, maybe some day soon i can help a little in overcoming those hard to get points of understanding.. i admit they can appear the proverbial ‘blur’, but that’s up to me and finding a way… heh.
Ianmac 145

31 October 2008 at 9:24 pm

I can’t find who pointed to this from Anne Else on Scoop where she writes on all the many contradictions on What John Key has said to different audiences. No wonder his credibility is so shaky. Actually I feel a bit shaky when I consider the enormity of it!!!

http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0810/S00433.htm
Macian 146

31 October 2008 at 9:28 pm

I can’t find who pointed to this from Anne Else on Scoop where she writes on all the many contradictions on What John Key has said to different audiences. No wonder his credibility is so shaky. Actually I feel a bit shaky when I consider the enormity of it!!!

http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0810/S00433.htm
I can’t send this blocked by whom???
rave 147

31 October 2008 at 10:21 pm

Anne Else says:
“In 2007 I heard John Key tell the Dominion Post that in 1987, “three months before any of those deals got decided [the H-fee deals, of $39 million on 11 January 1988 and $27 million on 7 September 1988, that put Allan Hawkins of Equiticorp in jail], I had left Elders. I never did the deals, I never knew about the deals, and wasn’t involved in them.” ”

I take it this means that Anne Else is putting in the parenthesis and it isnt another example of John Key changing his mind about when he found out about the first H-fee deal – like 20 years later.
travellerev 148

1 November 2008 at 1:38 am

HS,

You can get so fucked. Your not even funny anymore. I really have had it up to the whazoo with you.

You may not like what I write here, But I’m honest and committed and compassionate and that’s a whole lot more than I can say of you.

[lprent: Then don’t listen to him. ]
higherstandard 149

1 November 2008 at 7:31 am

Now now no need for that kind of un-civil attack.

Can I also please assure all readers that Eve has not and will never have it up the wahzoo from me.

[lprent: I’ve observed that you do needle her. Perhaps you get what you deserve?]
Felix 150

1 November 2008 at 8:34 am

I’m not even sure what a wahzoo is.
higherstandard 151

2 November 2008 at 11:03 am

Felix

Re – Wahzoo – I’ve just been informed it’s a male phallus of eight inches or more – bizarre !

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Karl du Fresne writes – There’s a crisis in the news media and the media are blaming it on everyone except themselves. Culpability is being deflected elsewhere – mainly to the hapless Minister of Communications, Melissa Lee, and the big social media platforms that are accused of hoovering ...
Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
2 days ago

Newshub is Dead.
I don’t normally send out two newsletters in a day but I figured I’d say something about… the news. If two newsletters is a bit much then maybe just skip one, I don’t want to overload people. Alternatively if you’d be interested in sometimes receiving multiple, smaller updates from me, ...
Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
2 days ago

Seymour is chuffed about cutting early-learning red tape – but we hear, too, that Jones has loose...
Buzz from the Beehive David Seymour and Winston Peters today signalled that at least two ministers of the Crown might be in Wellington today. Seymour (as Associate Minister of Education) announced the removal of more red tape, this time to make it easier for new early learning services to be ...
Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
2 days ago

Bryce Edwards: Will politicians let democracy die in the darkness?
Politicians across the political spectrum are implicated in the New Zealand media’s failing health. Either through neglect or incompetent interventions, successive governments have failed to regulate, foster, and allow a healthy Fourth Estate that can adequately hold politicians and the powerful to account. Our political system is suffering from the ...
Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
2 days ago

Was Hawkesby entirely wrong?
David Farrar writes – The Broadcasting Standards Authority ruled: Comments by radio host Kate Hawkesby suggesting Māori and Pacific patients were being prioritised for surgery due to their ethnicity were misleading and discriminatory, the Broadcasting Standards Authority has found. It is a fact such patients are prioritised. ...
Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
2 days ago

PRC shadow looms as the Solomons head for election
PRC and its proxies in Solomons have been preparing for these elections for a long time. A lot of money, effort and intelligence have gone into ensuring an outcome that won’t compromise Beijing’s plans. Cleo Paskall writes – On April 17th the Solomon Islands, a country of ...
Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
2 days ago

Climate Change: Criminal ecocide
We are in the middle of a climate crisis. Last year was (again) the hottest year on record. NOAA has just announced another global coral bleaching event. Floods are threatening UK food security. So naturally, Shane Jones wants to make it easier to mine coal: Resources Minister Shane Jones ...
No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
2 days ago

Is saving one minute of a politician's time worth nearly $1 billion?
Is speeding up the trip to and from Wellington airport by 12 minutes worth spending up more than $10 billion? Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The six news items that stood out to me in the last day to 8:26 am today are:The Lead: Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced ...
The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
2 days ago

Long Tunnel or Long Con?
Yesterday it was revealed that Transport Minister had asked Waka Kotahi to look at the options for a long tunnel through Wellington. State Highway 1 (SH1) through Wellington City is heavily congested at peak times and while planning continues on the duplicate Mt Victoria Tunnel and Basin Reserve project, the ...
Greater AucklandBy Matt L
3 days ago

Smoke And Mirrors.
You're a fraud, and you know itBut it's too good to throw it all awayAnyone would do the sameYou've got 'em goingAnd you're careful not to show itSometimes you even fool yourself a bitIt's like magicBut it's always been a smoke and mirrors gameAnyone would do the sameForty six billion ...
Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
3 days ago

What is Mexico doing about climate change?
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections The June general election in Mexico could mark a turning point in ensuring that the country’s climate policies better reflect the desire of its citizens to address the climate crisis, with both leading presidential candidates expressing support for renewable energy. Mexico is the ...
Skeptical Science
3 days ago

State of humanity, 2024
2024, it feels, keeps presenting us with ever more challenges, ever more dismay.Do you give up yet? It seems to ask.No? How about this? Or this?How about this?When I say 2024 I really mean the state of humanity in 2024.Saturday night, we watched Civil War because that is one terrifying cliff we've ...
More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
3 days ago

Govt’s Wellington tunnel vision aims to ease the way to the airport (but zealous promoters of cycl...
Buzz from the Beehive A pet project and governmental tunnel vision jump out from the latest batch of ministerial announcements. The government is keen to assure us of its concern for the wellbeing of our pets. It will be introducing pet bonds in a change to the Residential Tenancies Act ...
Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
3 days ago

The case for cultural connectedness
A recent report generated from a Growing Up in New Zealand (GUiNZ) survey of 1,224 rangatahi Māori aged 11-12 found: Cultural connectedness was associated with fewer depression symptoms, anxiety symptoms and better quality of life. That sounds cut and dry. But further into the report the following appears: Cultural connectedness is ...
Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
3 days ago

Useful context on public sector job cuts
David Farrar writes – The Herald reports: From the gory details of job-cuts news, you’d think the public service was being eviscerated. While the media’s view of the cuts is incomplete, it’s also true that departments have been leaking the particulars faster than a Wellington ...
Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
3 days ago

Gordon Campbell On When Racism Comes Disguised As Anti-racism
Remember the good old days, back when New Zealand had a PM who could think and speak calmly and intelligently in whole sentences without blustering? Even while Iran’s drones and missiles were still being launched, Helen Clark was live on TVNZ expertly summing up the latest crisis in the Middle ...
Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
3 days ago

Govt ignored economic analysis of smokefree reversal
Costello did not pass on analysis of the benefits of the smokefree reforms to Cabinet, emphasising instead the extra tax revenues of repealing them. Photo: Hagen Hopkins, Getty Images TL;DR: The six news items that stood out to me at 7:26 am today are:The Lead: Casey Costello never passed on ...
The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
4 days ago

True Blue.
True loveYou're the one I'm dreaming ofYour heart fits me like a gloveAnd I'm gonna be true blueBaby, I love youI’ve written about the job cuts in our news media last week. The impact on individuals, and the loss to Aotearoa of voices covering our news from different angles.That by ...
Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
4 days ago

Who is running New Zealand’s foreign policy?
While commentators, including former Prime Minister Helen Clark, are noting a subtle shift in New Zealand’s foreign policy, which now places more emphasis on the United States, many have missed a key element of the shift. What National said before the election is not what the government is doing now. ...
PolitikBy Richard Harman
4 days ago

2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #15
A listing of 31 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 7, 2024 thru Sat, April 13, 2024. Story of the week Our story of the week is about adults in the room setting terms and conditions of ...
Skeptical Science
4 days ago

Feline Friends and Fragile Fauna The Complexities of Cats in New Zealand’s Conservation Efforts
Cats, with their independent spirit and beguiling purrs, have captured the hearts of humans for millennia. In New Zealand, felines are no exception, boasting the highest national cat ownership rate globally [definition cat nz cat foundation]. An estimated 1.134 million pet cats grace Kiwi households, compared to 683,000 dogs ...
Gareth’s WorldBy admin
4 days ago

Or is that just they want us to think?
Nice guy, that Peter Williams. Amiable, a calm air of no-nonsense capability, a winning smile. Everything you look for in a TV presenter and newsreader.I used to see him sometimes when I went to TVNZ to be a talking head or a panellist and we would yarn. Nice guy, that ...
More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
5 days ago

Fact Brief – Did global warming stop in 1998?
Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. This fact brief was written by Sue Bin Park in collaboration with members from our Skeptical Science team. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Did global warming stop in ...
Skeptical Science
5 days ago

Arguing over a moot point.
I have been following recent debates in the corporate and social media about whether it is a good idea for NZ to join what is known as “AUKUS Pillar Two.” AUKUS is the Australian-UK-US nuclear submarine building agreement in which … Continue reading → ...
KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
5 days ago

No Longer Trusted: Ageing Boomers, Laurie & Les, Talk Politics.
Turning Point: “What has turned me away from the mainstream news media is the very strong message that its been sending out for the last few years.” “And what message might that be?” “That the people who own it, the people who run it, and the people who provide its content, really don’t ...
Bowalley Road
5 days ago

Mortgage rates at 10% anyone?
No – nothing about that in PM Luxon’s nine-point plan to improve the lives of New Zealanders. But beyond our shores Jamie Dimon, the long-serving head of global bank J.P. Morgan Chase, reckons that the chances of a goldilocks soft landing for the economy are “a lot lower” than the ...
Point of OrderBy xtrdnry
5 days ago

Sad tales from the left
Michael Bassett writes – Have you noticed the odd way in which the media are handling the government’s crackdown on surplus employees in the Public Service? Very few reporters mention the crazy way in which State Service numbers rocketed ahead by more than 16,000 during Labour’s six years, ...
Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
5 days ago

In Whose Best Interests?
On The Spot: The question Q+A host, Jack Tame, put to the Workplace & Safety Minister, Act’s Brooke van Velden, was disarmingly simple: “Are income tax cuts right now in the best interests of lowering inflation?”JACK TAME has tested another MP on his Sunday morning current affairs show, Q+A. Minister for Workplace ...
Bowalley Road
5 days ago

Don’t Question, Don’t Complain.
It has to start somewhereIt has to start sometimeWhat better place than here?What better time than now?So it turns out that I owe you all an apology.It seems that all of the terrible things this government is doing, impacting the lives of many, aren’t necessarily ‘bad’ per se. Those things ...
Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
5 days ago

Auckland faces 25% water inflation shock
Three Waters became a focus of anti-Government protests under Labour, but its dumping by the new Government hasn’t solved councils’ funding problems and will eventually hit the back pockets of everyone. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTL;DR: The six news items that stood out to me at 8:06 am today are:The Government ...
The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
5 days ago

Small accomplishments and large ironies
Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past week’s editions.Share Read more ...
More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
6 days ago

The Song of Saqua: Volume VII
In order to catch up to the actual progress of the D&D campaign, I present you with another couple of sessions. These were actually held back to back, on a Monday and Tuesday evening. Session XV Alas, Goatslayer had another lycanthropic transformation… though this time, he ran off into the ...
A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
6 days ago

Accelerating the Growth Rate?
There is a constant theme from the economic commentariat that New Zealand needs to lift its economic growth rate, coupled with policies which they are certain will attain that objective. Their prescriptions are usually characterised by two features. First, they tend to be in their advocate’s self-interest. Second, they are ...
PunditBy Brian Easton
6 days ago

The only thing we have to fear is tenants themselves
1. Which of these acronyms describes the experience of travelling on a Cook Strait ferry?a. ROROb. FOMOc. RAROd. FMLAramoana, first boat ever boarded by More Than A Feilding, four weeks after the Wahine disaster2. What is the acronym for the experience of watching the government risking a $200 million break ...
More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
6 days ago

Peters talks of NZ “renewing its connections with the world” – but who knew we had been discon...
Buzz from the Beehive The thrust of the country’s foreign affairs policy and its relationship with the United States have been addressed in four statements from the Beehive over the past 24 hours. Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters somewhat curiously spoke of New Zealand “renewing its connections with a world ...
Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
6 days ago

Muldoonism, solar farms, and legitimacy
NewsHub had an article yesterday about progress on Aotearoa's largest solar farm, at "The Point" in the Mackenzie Country. 420MW, right next to a grid connection and transmission infrastructure, and next to dams - meaning it can work in tandem with them to maximise water storage. Its exactly the sort ...
No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
6 days ago

NZTA does not know how much it spends on cones
Barrie Saunders writes – Astonishing as it may seem NZTA does not know either how much it spends on road cones as part of its Temporary Traffic Management system, or even how many companies it uses to supply and manage the cones. See my Official Information Act request ...
Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
6 days ago

If this is Back on Track – let's not.
I used to want to plant bombs at the Last Night of the PromsBut now you'll find me with the baby, in the bathroom,With that big shell, listening for the sound of the sea,The baby and meI stayed in bed, alone, uncertainThen I met you, you drew the curtainThe sun ...
Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
6 days ago

Release: Dark day for Kiwi kids as a third of Govt cuts affect them
News that 1000 jobs at the Ministry of Education and Oranga Tamariki could go is devastating for future generations of New Zealanders. ...
Labour Blog
1 day ago

Release: Alarm as Government signals further blow to school lunches
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
Labour Blog
1 day ago

Release: Quick, submit – stop Govt’s dodgy approvals bill
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Labour Blog
2 days ago

Government throws coal on the climate crisis fire
The Government’s policy announced today to ease consenting for coal mining will have a lasting impact across generations. ...
Greens
2 days ago

Release: Public transport costs to double as National looks at unaffordable roading project instead
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
Labour Blog
3 days ago

Release: Cost of living in Auckland still not a priority
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Labour Blog
3 days ago

Greens look to fast-track submissions on harmful law
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
Greens
6 days ago

Release: Govt should stop making people’s lives harder and build more homes
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Labour Blog
1 week ago

Release: Melissa Lee missing in action on media
The action Melissa Lee promised to protect democracy and the media sector is missing, Media and Communications spokesperson Willie Jackson said. ...
Labour Blog
1 week ago

Landlord Government leaves little hope for renters
The Government’s announcement on tenancy rules prove that it does not care about renters. ...
Greens
1 week ago

Opportunity to build a more sustainable economy
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
Greens
1 week ago

Significant step forward in fixing cruel and unjust past
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
Greens
1 week ago

Missed opportunity but NZ will surely one day recognise the right to a sustainable environment
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Greens
1 week ago

Release: Don’t cut our lunches – clear message sent to Government
Tens of thousands of people are demanding the Government commits to fully funding free and healthy school lunches. ...
Labour Blog
1 week ago

Release: Govt makes U-turn on Suicide Prevention Office
Labour welcomes the Government’s U-turn on the closure of the Suicide Prevention Office, says Labour Mental Health spokesperson Ingrid Leary. ...
Labour Blog
1 week ago

CCC issues warning over further climate delay
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Greens
1 week ago

Luxon targets lame and lousy example of leadership
If talk is cheap, Chris Luxon’s “targets” are bankrupt. ...
Greens
1 week ago

Luxon targets are lousy example of leadership
If talk is cheap, Chris Luxon’s “targets” are bankrupt. ...
Greens
1 week ago

Release: Commitment to disability communities missing from Govt priorities
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
Labour Blog
1 week ago

Methane target review is dangerous duplication
The Government’s newly announced review of methane emissions reduction targets hints at its desire to delay Aotearoa New Zealand’s urgent transition to a climate safe future, the Green Party said. ...
Greens
2 weeks ago

Release: Government must commit to school building project for disabled students
The Government must commit to the Maitai School building project for students with high and complex needs, to ensure disabled students from the top of the South Island have somewhere to learn. ...
Labour Blog
2 weeks ago

Release: National must take mental health seriously
Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey and his Government colleagues have made a meal of their mental health commitments, showing how flimsy their efforts to champion the issue truly are, says Labour Mental Health spokesperson Ingrid Leary. ...
Labour Blog
2 weeks ago

Referendums for Māori wards a racist step backwards
The Government's imposed referendum on Māori wards is a racist step backwards for Māori representation, and disregards Te Tiriti o Waitangi. ...
Greens
2 weeks ago

Release: Job losses at Health not worth it for tax cuts
New Zealand will feel the harm of the National Government’s reckless cuts to jobs at the health ministry for generations, says Ayesha Verrall. ...
Labour Blog
2 weeks ago

Press release: No Māori initiatives in Government’s nothing plan
Māori are yet to see anything from this Government except cuts, reversals and taking our people backwards, Māori Development spokesperson Willie Jackson said. ...
Labour Blog
2 weeks ago

Thirty six point PR spin
The Government’s ‘36 point’ plan for the next three months is as pointless as it is hollow. ...
Greens
2 weeks ago

Thirty six point PR spin
The Government’s ‘36 point’ plan for the next three months is as pointless as it is hollow. ...
Greens
2 weeks ago

Thirty six point PR spin
The Government’s ‘36 point’ plan for the next three months is as pointless as it is hollow. ...
Greens
2 weeks ago

Release: Social housing off Government’s to-do list
The Coalition Government’s refusal to commit to ongoing funding for social housing is seeing the sector pull back on developments and families watch their dreams of securing a home fade away, says Labour Housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty. ...
Labour Blog
2 weeks ago

Release: Less money in most people’s pockets this April
Changes to minimum wage and benefit indexation means many New Zealanders will get less this year, as the Government gives a big tax break to landlords instead. ...
Labour Blog
3 weeks ago

Government commits $20m to Westport flood protection
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
3 hours ago

Taupō takes pole position
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
4 hours ago

Cost of living support for low-income homeowners
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
6 hours ago

Government backing mussel spat project
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
7 hours ago

Government focused on getting people into work
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
10 hours ago

Clean energy key driver to reducing emissions
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
11 hours ago

Earthquake-prone buildings review brought forward
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
15 hours ago

Thailand and NZ to agree to Strategic Partnership
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 day ago

Government consults on extending coastal permits for ports
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 day ago

Inflation coming down, but more work to do
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 day ago

School attendance restored as a priority in health advice
Refreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 day ago

Unnecessary bureaucracy cut in oceans sector
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 day ago

Patterson promoting NZ’s wool sector at International Congress
Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson is speaking at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide, promoting New Zealand wool, and outlining the coalition Government’s support for the revitalisation the sector. "New Zealand’s wool exports reached $400 million in the year to 30 June 2023, and the coalition Government ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
2 days ago

Removing red tape to help early learners thrive
The Government is making legislative changes to make it easier for new early learning services to be established, and for existing services to operate, Associate Education Minister David Seymour says. The changes involve repealing the network approval provisions that apply when someone wants to establish a new early learning service, ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
2 days ago

RMA changes to cut coal mining consent red tape
Changes to the Resource Management Act will align consenting for coal mining to other forms of mining to reduce barriers that are holding back economic development, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The inconsistent treatment of coal mining compared with other extractive activities is burdensome red tape that fails to acknowledge ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
3 days ago

McClay reaffirms strong NZ-China trade relationship
Trade, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Todd McClay has concluded productive discussions with ministerial counterparts in Beijing today, in support of the New Zealand-China trade and economic relationship. “My meeting with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao reaffirmed the complementary nature of the bilateral trade relationship, with our Free Trade Agreement at its ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
3 days ago

Prime Minister Luxon acknowledges legacy of Singapore Prime Minister Lee
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today paid tribute to Singapore’s outgoing Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Meeting in Singapore today immediately before Prime Minister Lee announced he was stepping down, Prime Minister Luxon warmly acknowledged his counterpart’s almost twenty years as leader, and the enduring legacy he has left for Singapore and South East ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
3 days ago

PMs Luxon and Lee deepen Singapore-NZ ties
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. While in Singapore as part of his visit to South East Asia this week, Prime Minister Luxon also met with Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and will meet with Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
3 days ago

Antarctica New Zealand Board appointments
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has made further appointments to the Board of Antarctica New Zealand as part of a continued effort to ensure the Scott Base Redevelopment project is delivered in a cost-effective and efficient manner. The Minister has appointed Neville Harris as a new member of the Board. Mr ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
3 days ago

Finance Minister travels to Washington DC
Finance Minister Nicola Willis will travel to the United States on Tuesday to attend a meeting of the Five Finance Ministers group, with counterparts from Australia, the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. “I am looking forward to meeting with our Five Finance partners on how we can work ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
3 days ago

Pet bonds a win/win for renters and landlords
The coalition Government has today announced purrfect and pawsitive changes to the Residential Tenancies Act to give tenants with pets greater choice when looking for a rental property, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Pets are important members of many Kiwi families. It’s estimated that around 64 per cent of New ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
3 days ago

Long Tunnel for SH1 Wellington being considered
State Highway 1 (SH1) through Wellington City is heavily congested at peak times and while planning continues on the duplicate Mt Victoria Tunnel and Basin Reserve project, the Government has also asked NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) to consider and provide advice on a Long Tunnel option, Transport Minister Simeon Brown ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
4 days ago

New Zealand condemns Iranian strikes
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Foreign Minister Winston Peters have condemned Iran’s shocking and illegal strikes against Israel. “These attacks are a major challenge to peace and stability in a region already under enormous pressure," Mr Luxon says. "We are deeply concerned that miscalculation on any side could ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
4 days ago

Huge interest in Government’s infrastructure plans
Hundreds of people in little over a week have turned out in Northland to hear Regional Development Minister Shane Jones speak about plans for boosting the regional economy through infrastructure. About 200 people from the infrastructure and associated sectors attended an event headlined by Mr Jones in Whangarei today. Last ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
6 days ago

Health Minister thanks outgoing Health New Zealand Chair
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti has today thanked outgoing Health New Zealand – Te Whatu Ora Chair Dame Karen Poutasi for her service on the Board. “Dame Karen tendered her resignation as Chair and as a member of the Board today,” says Dr Reti. “I have asked her to ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
6 days ago

Roads of National Significance planning underway
The NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has signalled their proposed delivery approach for the Government’s 15 Roads of National Significance (RoNS), with the release of the State Highway Investment Proposal (SHIP) today, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Boosting economic growth and productivity is a key part of the Government’s plan to ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
6 days ago

Navigating an unstable global environment
New Zealand is renewing its connections with a world facing urgent challenges by pursuing an active, energetic foreign policy, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “Our country faces the most unstable global environment in decades,” Mr Peters says at the conclusion of two weeks of engagements in Egypt, Europe and the United States. “We cannot afford to sit back in splendid ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
6 days ago

NZ welcomes Australian Governor-General
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced the Australian Governor-General, His Excellency General The Honourable David Hurley and his wife Her Excellency Mrs Linda Hurley, will make a State visit to New Zealand from Tuesday 16 April to Thursday 18 April. The visit reciprocates the State visit of former Governor-General Dame Patsy Reddy ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
6 days ago

Pseudoephedrine back on shelves for Winter
Associate Health Minister David Seymour has announced that Medsafe has approved 11 cold and flu medicines containing pseudoephedrine. Pharmaceutical suppliers have indicated they may be able to supply the first products in June. “This is much earlier than the original expectation of medicines being available by 2025. The Government recognised ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
6 days ago

NZ and the US: an ever closer partnership
New Zealand and the United States have recommitted to their strategic partnership in Washington DC today, pledging to work ever more closely together in support of shared values and interests, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The strategic environment that New Zealand and the United States face is considerably more ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
7 days ago

Joint US and NZ declaration
April 11, 2024 Joint Declaration by United States Secretary of State the Honorable Antony J. Blinken and New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs the Right Honourable Winston Peters We met today in Washington, D.C. to recommit to the historic partnership between our two countries and the principles that underpin it—rule ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
7 days ago

NZ and US to undertake further practical Pacific cooperation
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced further New Zealand cooperation with the United States in the Pacific Islands region through $16.4 million in funding for initiatives in digital connectivity and oceans and fisheries research. “New Zealand can achieve more in the Pacific if we work together more urgently and ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
7 days ago

Government redress for Te Korowai o Wainuiārua
The Government is continuing the bipartisan effort to restore its relationship with iwi as the Te Korowai o Wainuiārua Claims Settlement Bill passed its first reading in Parliament today, says Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith. “Historical grievances of Te Korowai o Wainuiārua relate to 19th century warfare, land purchased or taken ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 week ago

Focus on outstanding minerals permit applications
New Zealand Petroleum and Minerals is working to resolve almost 150 outstanding minerals permit applications by the end of the financial year, enabling valuable mining activity and signalling to the sector that New Zealand is open for business, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “While there are no set timeframes for ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 week ago

Applications open for NZ-Ireland Research Call
The New Zealand and Irish governments have today announced that applications for the 2024 New Zealand-Ireland Joint Research Call on Agriculture and Climate Change are now open. This is the third research call in the three-year Joint Research Initiative pilot launched in 2022 by the Ministry for Primary Industries and Ireland’s ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 week ago

Tenancy rules changes to improve rental market
The coalition Government has today announced changes to the Residential Tenancies Act to encourage landlords back to the rental property market, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “The previous Government waged a war on landlords. Many landlords told us this caused them to exit the rental market altogether. It caused worse ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 week ago

Boosting NZ’s trade and agricultural relationship with China
Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay will visit China next week, to strengthen relationships, support Kiwi exporters and promote New Zealand businesses on the world stage. “China is one of New Zealand’s most significant trade and economic relationships and remains an important destination for New Zealand’s products, accounting for nearly 22 per cent of our good and ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 week ago

Freshwater farm plan systems to be improved
The coalition Government intends to improve freshwater farm plans so that they are more cost-effective and practical for farmers, Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay have announced. “A fit-for-purpose freshwater farm plan system will enable farmers and growers to find the right solutions for their farm ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 week ago

New Fast Track Projects advisory group named
The coalition Government has today announced the expert advisory group who will provide independent recommendations to Ministers on projects to be included in the Fast Track Approvals Bill, say RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Regional Development Minister Shane Jones. “Our Fast Track Approval process will make it easier and ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 week ago

Pacific and Gaza focus of UN talks
Foreign Minister Winston Peters says his official talks with the United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in New York today focused on a shared commitment to partnering with the Pacific Islands region and a common concern about the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza. “Small states in the Pacific rely on collective ...
BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
1 week ago

Crown lawyers attempt to block Waitangi Tribunal summons to Minister for Children
The Tribunal had called on Minister for Children Karen Chhour to provide evidence at an urgent inquiry into the repeal of Section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act. ...
Radio NZ – political
2 hours ago

Luxon refuses to guarantee public consultation on AUKUS Pillar 2
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says it's "far too premature" to be confirming whether the public would be consulted on joining AUKUS Pillar 2. ...
Radio NZ – political
3 hours ago

Visualising the 1800s or designing wedding invitations: 6 ways you can use AI beyond generating text
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By T.J. Thomson, Senior Lecturer in Visual Communication & Digital Media, RMIT University Midjourney image by T.J. Thomson As more than half of Australian office workers report using generative artificial intelligence (AI) for work, we’re starting to see this technology affect every ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
3 hours ago

Falls, fractures and self-harm: 4 charts on how kids’ injury risk changes over time and differs fo...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lisa Nicole Sharwood, Injury epidemiologist | Expert Witness, UNSW Sydney Sergey Novikov/Shutterstock Injuries are the leading cause of disability and death among Australian children and adolescents. At least a quarter of all emergency department presentations during childhood are injury-related. Injuries can ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
3 hours ago

Choice and control: will NDIS reforms mean people with disability don’t get to decide who they liv...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Di Winkler, Adjunct Associate Professor, Living with Disability Research Centre, La Trobe University Shutterstock/Ground Picture Many Australians with disability feel on the edge of a precipice right now. Recommendations from the disability royal commission and the NDIS review were released late ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
3 hours ago

Asbestos in playground mulch: how to avoid a repeat of this circular economy scandal
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Salman Shooshtarian, Senior Lecturer, School of Property, Construction and Project Management, RMIT University Salman Shooshtarian Asbestos has been found in mulch used for playgrounds, schools, parks and gardens across Sydney and Melbourne. Local communities naturally fear for the health of their ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
3 hours ago

Could Albanese’s bet on homegrown green industries be the boost our regions deserve?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Madeline Taylor, Senior Lecturer, Macquarie University Cloudy Designs/Shutterstock Right now, there’s a global race underway. The goal: bring back manufacturing and energy jobs as the energy transition speeds up. In 2022, America launched its mammoth Inflation Reduction Act and the ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
3 hours ago

Watch: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon won't say if government will consult public on joining ...
Asked multiple times if the public will be consulted on joining the defence pact, Luxon repeatedly said that was yet to be worked through. ...
Radio NZ – political
4 hours ago

Watch live: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon speaks in Philippines
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon is speaking to reporters on the third leg of his Southeast Asia trip, from Manila in the Philippines. ...
Radio NZ – political
4 hours ago

Māori lawyers call Shane Jones' Waitangi Tribunal comments 'inappropriate'
The Māori Law Society says his comments breach the principle of the separation of powers and the Cabinet Manual. ...
Radio NZ – political
5 hours ago

Abortions Increase 25% Since Law Change
Family First says that the latest abortion statistics make grim and upsetting reading, with a 25% increase in abortions since the decriminalisation of abortion in March 2020. According to an Official Information Act request received by Right to Life ...
Scoop politics
5 hours ago

Over Half Of New Zealanders Feel That The Country Is In Decline And That Our Society Is Broken
Ipsos New Zealand's inaugural participation in a global study on populism reveals a pervasive sense of societal and economic decline among New Zealanders. MORE DETAILS AND FULL REPORT HERE Ipsos New Zealand's inaugural participation in a global study ...
Scoop politics
6 hours ago

Australia’s new defence strategy is big on ideas, but lacks one key ingredient: well-trained soldi...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Layton, Visiting Fellow, Strategic Studies, Griffith University There have been a lot of defence announcements recently about buying new equipment, building up Australia’s manufacturing capabilities, creating local jobs, new legislation to support AUKUS and even a new defence chief. In ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
6 hours ago

What does Steve Smith’s Stateside signing mean for cricket in the US – and Australia?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Harcourt, Industry Professor and Chief Economist, University of Technology Sydney Steve Smith, one of this generation’s finest batters, has conquered much of the cricketing world during his career, and he now has set his sights on a new frontier: the United ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
6 hours ago

A love letter to Wellington: when i open the shop by romesh dissanayake, reviewed
Madeleine Ballard reviews the debut novel from romesh dissanayake. when I open the shop, the debut novel by Naarm-based Aotearoa writer romesh dissanayake (Sri Lankan, Koryo Saram), is a narrative of grief. Devendra loses his mother, opens a noodle shop on The Terrace, grieves, and emerges changed. But just as ...
The SpinoffBy Madeleine Ballard
6 hours ago

Minister Concedes Contractors Will Be Hired To Do Work Of Axed Ministry Of Education Staff
The PSA can’t believe that the Minister of Education is happy for her ministry to hire contractors at the same time it is dismissing 565 workers. ...
Scoop politics
6 hours ago

Attempt to bar diplomat from Myanmar military junta fails
Myanmar community members applied to the courts to bar the diplomat from attending the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. ...
Radio NZ – political
7 hours ago

LGNZ Welcomes Govt Earthquake-prone Buildings Decision
LGNZ has advocated for this decision as part of a remit led by Manawatū District Council. ...
Scoop politics
7 hours ago

AUKUS Pillar 2 a 'fragrant, methane-wrapped bull***' – Bob Carr
The former Australian Foreign Minister has continued to warn New Zealand against joining the defence pact. ...
Radio NZ – political
7 hours ago

Enforceable undertaking issued to abc accounting services limited after continued non-compliance.
The Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) has accepted an enforceable undertaking agreement from ABC Accounting Services Limited (ABC) under section 81 of the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act 2009 (AML/CFT Act). ...
Scoop politics
8 hours ago

REVEALED: RNZ’s Hypocrisy Over Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill
The Taxpayers’ Union can reveal that Radio New Zealand (RNZ) spent $71,842.53 on Facebook advertising over the past 12 months, despite earlier this year coming out in support of the Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill , which would force the likes ...
Scoop politics
8 hours ago

Police rejected 'very good offer' – Mark Mitchell
Police Minister Mark Mitchell says the pay offer rejected by police was the best the government could put forward under difficult financial circumstances. ...
Radio NZ – political
8 hours ago

How can we have truth-telling without the Voice? Our research shows a way forward
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Heidi Norman, Professor, Faculty of Arts, Design and Architecture, Convenor: Indigenous Land & Justice Research Group, UNSW Sydney Shutterstock The Uluru Statement from the Heart set out the aspirations of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples for “Voice, Treaty, Truth”, in ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
8 hours ago

NZ education scores must improve – but another polarising ideological pivot isn’t the answer
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Bronwyn E Wood, Associate Professor in Education, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington Getty Images You don’t need to look hard right now to see concerns about Aotearoa New Zealand’s education system. Declining performance in international testing has been ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
8 hours ago

An updated tally of the public sector job cuts
The coalition government has made it well known it expects departments to cut roles. We break down the numbers as they currently stand. Updated: 12pm, April 18 Before last year’s election, both National and Act made it clear that the public service was squarely in their crosshairs. Both parties, now ...
The SpinoffBy Stewart Sowman-Lund
8 hours ago

Confessions of an unlikely petrolhead
Checkered Flag director Natalie Wilson on her lifelong love of motorsport, and the allure of Pukekohe Park Raceway. One childhood summer when my world revolved around winning stuff off the radio, I bagged tickets to Western Springs Speedway and then to Waikaraka Park in what was a dream season for ...
The SpinoffBy Natalie Wilson
8 hours ago

'Ambitious' trade pledge headlines Luxon's Thailand stop
The Prime has announced a commitment to triple two-way trade with Thailand by 2045, but it only requires maintaining current growth. ...
Radio NZ – political
9 hours ago

‘The right person’: What did Solomon Islanders vote for?
By Koroi Hawkins, RNZ Pacific editor in Honiara After a relatively well organised and peaceful day of voting in Solomon Islands yesterday, the electoral commission is working with donor partners to safely transport ballot boxes from polling stations all over the country to centrally located counting venues. It is a ...
Evening ReportBy Asia Pacific Report
9 hours ago

What it’s like to be made redundant by the Ministry of Education
I was one of hundreds of people who lost my government job this week. Here’s exactly how it played out. It is a Friday. I’m in the middle of an online Teams hui working out the finer details of a series of workshops we’ll be presenting next week. It’s a ...
The SpinoffBy Anonymous
10 hours ago

What are ‘Ozempic babies’? Can the drug really increase your chance of pregnancy?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Karin Hammarberg, Senior Research Fellow, Global and Women’s Health, School of Public Health & Preventive Medicine, Monash University Joshua Rodriguez/Unsplash Hundreds of thousands of people worldwide are taking drugs like Ozempic to lose weight. But what do we actually know about ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
11 hours ago

Why the kookaburra’s iconic laugh is at risk of being silenced
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Diana Kuchinke, Lecturer in Ecology, Federation University Australia Linda Robertus/Shutterstock Once, while teaching a class of environmental science students in China’s Hebei University of Science and Technology, I asked who knew what a laughing kookaburra was. There were many blank faces. ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
11 hours ago

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Claire Breen, Professor of Law, University of Waikato smolaw11/Getty Images School truancy has been a concern across the political spectrum for years. But proposed solutions have largely failed to address the core reasons for unexplained school absences. Despite the apparent ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
11 hours ago

‘Listening is the most important part’: 10 things students with disability and their families wa...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Melissa Cain, Senior Lecturer in Inclusive Education and Arts Education, Australian Catholic University Agence Olloweb/Unsplash, CC BY About 90% of Australian students with disability attend mainstream schools. Equitable access and participation in education is a fundamental human right. But as last ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
11 hours ago

Will global oil supply be at risk if Iran and Israel pull the Middle East into war?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Flavio Macau, Associate Dean – School of Business and Law, Edith Cowan University Tensions in the Middle East have escalated following Iran’s weekend missile and drone attacks on Israel, heightening concerns of a wider conflict. As with the Russian invasion of Ukraine, ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
11 hours ago

No, getting your boyfriend to peel an orange won’t prove his loyalty. Why TikTok relationship ‘t...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Edith Jennifer Hill, Associate Lecturer, Learning & Teaching Innovation, Flinders University Shutterstock Have you ever wondered if your partner really loves you? Well apparently so have thousands of TikTok users, who are testing their theories for the world to see. In ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
11 hours ago

New Zealand’s Annual Emissions Fell In 2022, For Third Successive Year
This is the third successive decrease year-on-year. New Zealand’s gross emissions for 2022 were 78.4 Mt CO2-e. ...
Scoop politics
11 hours ago

Oranga Tamariki job cuts: 'We can't establish what their endgame is'
Oranga Tamariki has failed to explain how hundreds of job cuts will achieve a better outcome for children, a children's advocate says. ...
Radio NZ – political
11 hours ago

Help Me Hera: My parents won’t help out with my kids
They pressured me to have children, and I had two. Now they won’t lift a finger. Want Hera’s help? Email your problem to helpme@thespinoff.co.nz Hi Hera, I suspect it’s a familiar pattern. Back in the day, as a single gal, I was plagued with questions from my parents about when I would find ...
The SpinoffBy Hera Lindsay Bird
11 hours ago

Care Workers Call For Fairness On Pay Equity Anniversary
“The Government has an opportunity here to really correct the course for the care and support workforce, and the people they look after. This cannot be just another area left in the cold, we need real leadership to ensure the proper quality of care ...
Scoop politics
12 hours ago

First evidence of ancient human occupation found in giant lava tube cave in Saudi Arabia
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mathew Stewart, Research Fellow, Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution, Griffith University The western passage of the Umm Jirsan lava tube. Green Arabia Project If you look from above, you can see thousands of stone structures dotting the landscape of the Arabian ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
12 hours ago

Teachers worry about curriculum, NCEA changes amid staff cuts
More than 500 jobs are likely to be cut at the Education Ministry with concerns about how the curriculum and NCEA changes will now be managed. ...
Radio NZ – political
12 hours ago

Government IT systems need a $800m overhaul
The government is facing a bill of more than $800 million to overhaul back-office IT systems, and attempts to lessen its impact have hit delays. ...
Radio NZ – political
12 hours ago

Over 3,000 public service jobs now proposed to go
The Ministry of Education confirmed a proposal to reduce headcount by 565, while Oranga Tamariki’s proposal would result in a loss of 447 jobs, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. Ministry of ...
The SpinoffBy Anna Rawhiti-Connell
12 hours ago

Kāinga Ora delays building projects ahead of review
Kāinga Ora is unable to say how many new KiwiBuild developments have been delayed as it waits for the outcome of the government's independent review of the state housing agency. ...
Radio NZ – political
13 hours ago

Owners of earthquake prone buildings given four extra years to complete strengthening
A review into the regulations was also being brought forward. ...
Radio NZ – political
13 hours ago

Corrections Accepts Recommendations Following Auckland Prison Inspection
The Inspectorate made three overarching recommendations following the inspection, all of which have been accepted in full by Corrections. ...
Scoop politics
13 hours ago

Auckland’s dumped Commonwealth Games bid has lessons for Christchurch
The crippling cost and complexity of Christchurch’s Commonwealth Games ambitions have become clearer The post Auckland’s dumped Commonwealth Games bid has lessons for Christchurch appeared first on Newsroom. ...
NewsroomBy David Williams
14 hours ago

Oranga Tamariki services for at-risk children will get better after job cuts, minister says
"We need to make sure that every dollar we're spending is actually for the benefit of our young people," says Children's Minister Karen Chhour. ...
Radio NZ – political
14 hours ago

How the coalition plans to replace the quickly scrapped Māori Health Authority
The coalition government got rid of the Māori Health Authority in a hurry. What is it doing now instead? ...
Radio NZ – political
15 hours ago

How to tell if your child is well enough to go to school or is in fact sick
David Seymour announced new guidelines this week for sending your kids to school with symptoms. Emily Writes sums them up. Parents knee deep in snotty tissues and buckets of vomit were granted a much-welcome reprieve by associate education minister David Seymour on Wednesday with the announcement that he will advise ...
The SpinoffBy Emily Writes
15 hours ago

We’re asking the wrong questions about treaty settlements
When the Crown is the self-appointed ultimate authority over a process to deal with Crown misconduct, we run into big issues, writes Tina Ngata. “What’s it going to take for Ngā Puhi to settle” was the headliner statement on Q&A last weekend, as Ngā Puhi chair Mana Tahere was interviewed ...
The SpinoffBy Tina Ngata
15 hours ago

Luxon spreads his wings in Thailand
Luxon touched down in Thailand late on Tuesday night, before launching into a packed day of business breakfasts and bilateral meetings in the kingdom’s capital. The visit to Thailand comes after Luxon’s Singapore swing – somewhat of a love-in for the Kiwi Prime Minister, where he shmoozed high-net worth individuals, ...
NewsroomBy Laura Walters
15 hours ago

New Zealand’s crisis of confidence
Three in five New Zealanders say our country is in decline and our society is broken, exclusive new polling reveals The post New Zealand’s crisis of confidence appeared first on Newsroom. ...
NewsroomBy Marc Daalder
15 hours ago

Daily crossword, Thursday 18 April
The post Daily crossword, Thursday 18 April appeared first on Newsroom. ...
NewsroomBy Newsroom Puzzles
15 hours ago

New Zealand broken and in decline, Kiwis say
A global wave of disillusionment and disenfranchisement has not spared New Zealand, with a majority of respondents to a survey here agreeing that New Zealand society is broken and the country is in decline. Ipsos New Zealand asked 1001 Kiwis about their hopes for the future and their views of ...
NewsroomBy Marc Daalder
15 hours ago

Labour all at sea against Govt’s legislative blitzkrieg
Opinion: The embittered negativity of Labour’s prominent spokespeople is preventing political exploitation of rapid Government change The post Labour all at sea against Govt’s legislative blitzkrieg appeared first on Newsroom. ...
NewsroomBy Peter Dunne
15 hours ago

Staff shortages key to Auckland Prison’s failure to uphold inmates’ rights
Opinion: At a time when government departments are shedding workers to fund budgetary cuts, the news that staff shortages have caused prisoners to be in solitary confinement for periods longer than eight months is frightening. This revelation is one of several in the Prison Inspectorate’s most recent report, published ...
NewsroomBy Christine McCarthy
15 hours ago

Newsroom daily quiz, Thursday 18 April
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[quiz],DIV[quiz],A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp'); Got a good quiz question? Send Newsroom your questions. The post Newsroom daily quiz, Thursday 18 April appeared first on Newsroom. ...
NewsroomBy Newsroom Puzzles
15 hours ago

Police briefings show finances at ‘tipping point’
There is a forecast deficit of $120m only brought down to $56m through cost-cutting measures The post Police briefings show finances at ‘tipping point’ appeared first on Newsroom. ...
NewsroomBy Emma Hatton
15 hours ago

Pharmac and the keys to the drug cupboard
Close to 3,500,000 prescriptions for paracetamol are written in New Zealand every year. It’s just one of the treatments funded by Pharmac, the drug agency that barters with pharmaceutical companies to get medicines for us at the lowest cost possible. Currently its yearly budget is about $1.5 billion, but apparently ...
NewsroomBy Davina Zimmer
15 hours ago

Book of the Week: Mothering in late-stage capitalism
I think a capitalist patriarchy that relies on monogamous heterosexuality and gender essentialism is the worst system to ensure the survival of our species. Just watch an episode of MAFS Australia. I don’t think there’s anything natural or normal about this system, instead I think it’s a construct kept in ...
NewsroomBy Pip Adam
15 hours ago

A montage of West Papuan everyday life from hip-hop to protest songs
I came to this evening of short films not sure what to expect. I have a history with West Papua (here referring to the Indonesian part of the island of New Guinea, which comprises five provinces, one named “West Papua”) from my days fronting the legendary West Papuan band Black ...
Evening ReportBy Asia Pacific Report
20 hours ago

Ministry of Education plans to cut 565 roles
It makes the proposal the biggest single slash to a public service agency so far. ...
Radio NZ – political
24 hours ago

Oranga Tamariki proposes to cut more than 400 jobs
About 1900 roles would be affected overall - either changed or disestablished - in the "scope of restructuring work". ...
Radio NZ – political
24 hours ago

Politics with Michelle Grattan: Independent MP Dai Le on the church attack in her electorate
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra After the stabbing of Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel in an Assyrian Orthodox Church in Wakeley on Monday, and the killings in Bondi Junction shopping centre just two days earlier, many people in Sydney and in ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
1 day ago

Government issues guidelines for when sick children should be kept home from school
Covid-19? Symptoms including fever, vomiting, diarrhoea or head lice? Your children should be at home, new government guidelines say. ...
Radio NZ – political
1 day ago

Australia’s long-sought stronger environmental laws just got indefinitely deferred. It’s back to...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Euan Ritchie, Professor in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, School of Life & Environmental Sciences, Deakin University We’ve long known Australia’s main environmental protection laws aren’t doing their job, and we know Australians want better laws. Labor was elected promising to fix them. ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
1 day ago

AI is making smart devices – watches, speakers, doorbells – easier to hack. Here’s how to stay...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Chao Chen, Deputy Director, Enterprise AI and Data Analytics Hub, RMIT Univeristy, RMIT University Ivan Bandura/Unsplash From asking our smart speakers for the weather to receiving personalised advice from smartwatches, devices powered by artificial intelligence (AI) are increasingly streamlining our routines ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
1 day ago

Police Association members reject latest government pay offer
Police Association says members are looking for a sincere effort by the government to address the cost of living crisis and recognise the increasing dangers officers faced. ...
Radio NZ – political
1 day ago

Global coral bleaching caused by global warming demands a global response
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Britta Schaffelke, Manager International Partnerships and Co-ordinator of the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network (GCRMN), Australian Institute of Marine Science Bleached coral at the Keppel Islands in the southern Great Barrier Reef in early March 2024. © AIMS | Eoghan Aston ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
1 day ago

The beginnings of modern science shaped how philosophers saw alien life – and how we understand it...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Philip C. Almond, Emeritus Professor in the History of Religious Thought, The University of Queensland Wikipedia Speculation about extraterrestrials is not all that new. There was a vibrant debate in 17th-century Europe about the existence of life on other planets. ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
1 day ago

Families including someone with mental illness can experience deep despair. They need support
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amanda Cole, Lead, Mental Health, Edith Cowan University In the aftermath of the tragic Bondi knife attack, Joel Cauchi’s parents have spoken about their son’s long history of mental illness, having been diagnosed with schizophrenia at age 17. They said they were ...
Evening ReportBy The Conversation
1 day ago

How Fast-track Consenting Might Impact The Environment – Expert Reaction
Submissions on the Fast-track Approvals Bill close at the end of Friday. The law would allow major infrastructure projects to bypass lengthy resource consenting processes – being assessed instead by an expert panel , with Ministers ultimately having ...
Scoop politics
1 day ago

Changes To ECE Regulations
In QPEC's view, the Coalition changes to ECE announced mid-April are exactly the opposite of what is needed The Issue David Seymour is loosening regulations and qualifications for Early Childhood Centres, removing government signoff for new ...
Scoop politics
1 day ago

NZDSN Opinion: Organisations Must Do Better For Disabled New Zealanders
We at New Zealand Disability Support Network applaud the Commerce Commission for filing proceedings against One NZ for their latest failure on 111 Contact Code. It doesn’t take much to think of harmful or fatal scenarios for people with disabilities ...
Scoop politics
1 day ago

No smoking gun

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