Key Apologises for Wasting Police Time in Teapot Saga
Prime Minister John Key says he misused his authority when he complained to Police after a tape of a semi-private conversation with ACT Leader, John Banks was given to the media. A microphone was left on the coffee table during a staged ‘cup of tea’ media event in which Mr Key publicly endorsed the ACT Party’s Epsom candidate in the last days of last year’s election campaign. This week Police decided not to lay charges against the the taper, Bradley Ambrose, and Mr Ambrose still maintains that the taping was accidental….
It is clear now that the Government has effectively cut the income tax rate and paid for it by borrowing money overseas, in large part from China. It is an act of economic treason and generational selfishness when a government has decided an already-wealthy part of the population deserves higher incomes paid for by loading foreign debt on future generations of taxpayers.
The charts reveal the results of the cut in the income tax rate from 39 to 33 cents, which was in theory partly paid for by an increase in the GST rate from 12.5 to 15 per cent. They also reveal a massive reversal in a decade-long trend of improvement in New Zealand’s public debt position.
darn you got there before me đ it’s a good april fool’s from JS – mind you the idea of ‘jonkey’ and ‘apology for’ do go together in a number of ways
It certainly seems to me that the Herald on Sunday has decided that the years-long honeymoon for Key and his merry band of neo-lib control freaks is over. Good on them.
Imagine reading the editorial getting stuck into Key’s abuse of the paper for short term political advantage, and all of these reports actually looking beyond the spin and into the facts, a couple of years ago. Wouldn’t have happened.
And is it just me, or is there a change in the photos of Key that many papers tend to run on page two? Gone are the smiley, puppy-holding, baby-kissing, prole-comforting pictures; now we see Key frowning, sweaty, looking worried, just like he has something to hide…..
Gotta admit – I have been enjoying the past few months!!
it’s a funny bug that. one incorrectly written bit of code and the italics carries on through all the comments. it even made the editing buttons in the back of the side italicised.
David Shearer has issued a statement requesting all MPs start setting an example of positive leadership, and has asked all Labour MPs and staffers to set an example of putting the good of the country first, and to stop petty political attacks. Shearer in strong show of leadership.
SOEs Minister Tony Ryall refused to be interviewed about the concerns. But in a written statement he said successful private companies maintained “strong relationships with their stakeholders and customers” because it was “good business”.
Which explains why they had to write a social responsibility clause in the first place. Someone should make Ryall watch Alan Greenspan’s Congressional testimony until he gets it through numb skull that he is talking shit.
Why isn’t there a requirement in the cabinet manual that ministers statements should not be demonstrably deceitful?
Typical of this lot to avoid interviews – another minister diving away, leaving some junior in the media department to knock out a quick statement that says “don’t worry – the market incentives will look after that for us – now stop bothering the minister with things below his super-strategic view”.
It is going to be fun watching the developments at Narrow Neck beach in Auckland. Looks like iwi are about get some prime waterfront land back. So far as I can see, the dispute is about rich capitalist whities, pointing to how “poor” they were in the nineties and in a desperate act of ingenuine socialist solidarity, trying to align themselves with an imaginary aggrieved public. If that doesn’t catch, they then point to the slippery slope argument that marine park fish will be endangered by treaty settlement land on top of a cliff. The consultation process wasn’t transparent enough, they claim. Jesus, they are pretty transparent themsleves. They complain they were hoodwinked by the people they voted into government, even though they knew those people used the same measure of self interest as their lifestyles and attitudes hold dear. Can’t risk maori building “cheap in-fill housing” on prime land, one woman said on TV last night. I assume that’s because we all know how maori and cheap go together… don’t we? No sir, it should be whities doing that, building exclusive residences, keeping the tone of the neighbourhood clean, you know, like they did over the harbour in Okahu bay all those years ago. So a few maori got burned out of their homes, couldn’t they understand the City had a raffle running? Even poor old The-Law-is-Complicated Len has found his voice and come out saying a private consulation “…doesn’t cut the mustard”. Ooh, steady on there Len, your masters will get twitchy! The irony is that after almost 175 years of maori learning the hard way how to be good colonialists, rich whities are being out-whitied by rich maori and can no longer choose their neighbours. Gee, that must sting.
But, those uppity Devonport activists seem to have got the wrong end of the stick and assumed Ngati Whatua have the same motives for acquiring prime coastal real estate:….
Ngati Whatua spokesman Ngarimu Blair said there is a misconception the deal involves the coastal area, sports field and surrounding reserve.
“We’re not buying that. We never were. We’re only talking about the navy barracks, the sheds, carpark areas and building which we are purchasing and is set well back from the coast.”
The RNZ Navy, which leases the land, will be offered a minimum lease of 15 years under the agreement.
Adjoining Takapuna Reserve and Narrow Neck Beach â totalling 11.9ha and covering the shoreline â remains in the public’s possession and unaffected by the deal.
Plans are also under way to formalise a public walkway on the eastern strip of the base. Currently the navy can revoke access at three months’ notice.
“We’re the last people to restrict public access to great pieces of land on the harbour or river. We did the same thing for our land at Bastion Point,” Blair said. “We’re very sensitive to these issues.”
Having been on the periphery of the previous stoush in the late 1990s involviing former environment minister, Nick Smith, I think most people expected the land presently covered by buildings and a car-park would be added to the reserve once the Navy abandoned their barracks. Indeed from memory we were given to understand by the Shipley govt. that is what would happen. Anyone who knows the area intimately can appreciate the significance such an enlarged reserve would have for the whole of Auckland. It has the potential to be a sparkling jewel in our ‘maritime reserve’ crown with magnificent views of the harbour and gulf. The uppity Devonport activists fought a costly court battle to stop all but a very narrow strip along the top of the cliff being sold off to speculators and turned into a rich man’s paradise and they won. I can tell you Nick Smith and his (then) colleagues were thoroughly pissed off with us at the time.
The fact that this latest deal was done behind closed doors without the knowledge of the local community and the community board, hasn’t gone down well and I’m not surprised. I have no wish to deprive Ngati Whatua of their rightful heritage, but I want to know one hell of a lot more about what plans they have for the land once it comes into their possession. Like North Head, it is a very special place with a fascinating history – both Maori and Pakeha.
One small error. We were certainly given to understand that the reserve would be extended after the departure of the Navy but I doubt it came from the govt. of the day. We were not on their Xmas card list. đ
There is another part of that article that also deserves mention
Shortly after the Treaty was signed the Crown purchased 3000 acres of what is now downtown Auckland for 281. Within six months, it had on-sold 90 acres of that land for 24,500.
I don’t often agree with finlayson but I do when he says
In a letter to the community paper, Finlayson called on residents to remember how Maori suffered significant land losses in Auckland and this needs to be addressed. “There is no way the scale of redress to Ngati Whatua Orakei can be anything like what they lost.”
The upset residents should take some time to consider those quotes and the quotes that Carol has put up too. What is the actual fear and where does it spring from? At the moment it seems not far off what uturn has written.
You are talking a load of crap Uturn. Rich capitalist whities? Bullshit! If they hadn’t done their dash nobody would have the land now including Ngati Whatua. It would be covered in dirty great mansions belonging to rich capitalist whities.
Ngati Whatua and the Devonport Trust (which was set up to protect the reserve) worked together last time and I’m sure they will end up doing so again. To categorise Devonport activists and by inference residents – most of whom are behind them – as a bunch of self serving, racist capalist pigs (yep, that’s what you’re saying) just shows up your ignorance of both them and the past and present situation.
Lucky ol’ whitey and his self interest came to Ngati Whatuas aid, huh? People not familiar with Auckland’s North Shore and specifically the area in question will be surprised by the raft of rich man’s mansions on both sides of the land in question – just keeping the land safe, that is, “for all of Auckland” – and the neighbourhood in general. How bewildered visitors will be to find the diversity you suggest exists. I know I was warmly accepted into the multicultural egalitarian environment when I lived there. Then again, I am white. I don’t mind calling my own out as racists and hypocrites, when they are. Like you, they really hate it, though.
“People not familiar with Aucklandâs North Shore and specifically the area in question will be surprised by the raft of rich manâs mansions on both sides of the land in question”
Yeah that’s the point. It is prime awesome land, it would be best for every kiwi if it remained in the public commons. If Ngati Whatua doesn’t guarentee it will be turned into a park for ALL to share, then it will inevitably become more ‘rich man’s’ mansions.
I’ve lived near Narrow Neck Beach since I was born (50 years) had my first swim in a rock pool there. So I claim it as my local beach. I have strong ties here and I sure don’t vote National or Act! All the people who live here have a right to a say, for themselves, their children, their grandchildren, because many people brought up here stay here all their lives. Why are Ngati Whatua the only important ones here? Surely there is other land that can be sold. That land was safe, or so we thought, for future generations as permanent reserve. I can certainly understand that the wealthier residents of the Shore who obviously voted National, especially Devonport, are pretty irate , as am I, and I don’t think that will die down easily. So Maggie Barry, be warned! No seat is safe if you do the dirty on your electorate!
The Brits panic-buying fuel due to a strike that hadn’t been called was encouraged by the government – “re-fuel before it gets too low”, they said, “store petrol in a jerry-can in the garage” one said.
After hours-long queues for days, empty petrol stations and a serious burns incident it’s found to have all been a pre-planned ‘Thatcher Moment’ to break the union. Note that it this news was broken by the Daily Telegraph aka the Torygraph.
But now that I have heard the Conservativesâ private explanation, which is being handed down to constituency associations by MPs, I begin to feel angry.
The private message is as follows. âThis is our Thatcher moment. In order to defeat the coming minersâ strike, she stockpiled coal. When the strike came, she weathered it, and the Labour Party, tarred by the strike, was humiliated. In order to defeat the coming fuel driversâ strike, we want supplies of petrol stockpiled. Then, if the strike comes, we will weather it, and Labour, in hock to the Unite union, will be blamed.â
Absolute contempt is what I have for the people who have engineered this state of affairs.
Looks like someone has threatened Slater with consequences if he doesn’t pull his head in and allow a ceasefire in the Nats’ civil war:
“Thatâs it!
by Whaleoil
Iâm over them. National that isâŚcuddling up to Boag.
I think I will join the Labour party. They seem to be having so much more fun right now.
Plus, since they are the nasty party they should welcome my particular skills.”
Slater, your particular skills are having a mad blog that Lusk sometimes puts interesting things on (which you promptly bury with trash – 4 posts in 2 hours so far, it’s Sunday dude!)
Or is his post his idea of a 1 April joke although it would not surprise me if he had been told to pull his head in. However, that sort of advice usually seems to provoke certain types of people to do the opposite.
When I looked just before seeing your post here, he was up to 5 posts and its not yet 9am.
Ditto – am still interested in the statement in one of yesterday’s posts which appears to claim to have had the Sovereign letter before Close Up in terms of where it may have been leaked from. Here is my earlier comment on this – http://thestandard.org.nz/slaterlusk-goes-off-the-deep-end/#comment-453506
Agreed Rosy. These utterly manipulative scumbags governing the UK only considered how they could turn public opinion against the union – before the union had even voted whether to take action. The result was a public run on fuel; artificially created shortages; worries that emergency services wouldn’t be able to find fuel in an emergency; people storing petrol without understanding the hazards; a woman severely burnt because while decanting petrol for her daughter who had run out of fuel. What do these people stand for? Do they give a damn about the people they are supposed to be governing?
“Often the district health board would also rent back a substantial number of the car parks for its medical staff, on long-term contracts with regular rent reviews, providing a built-in lift in revenue…”
So the upshot is that for a sugar rush of $15.3million the DHB gave away income of at least $2.36million per year for twenty years, plus incurred higher costs for staff parking. We’ve got some real financial wizards in charge of the DHB. A taste of what’s to come methinks.
Yes parking is a juicy earner, especially with a captive market that has nowhere to go. Always was easy money as the structures are concrete shells, require little maintenance, need virtually no staff and you just keep raising the cost.
Parkings been Auckland airports juiciest plum for years and again shows what an ideological lemming Ryall is on top of his lies about doctors and nurse numbers is a nasty and evasive dude…..perfect NACT material.
Are there any escalation clauses or do they just charge what they like?
Don’t know, I’d have thought the hospitals would have some say in the parking levies but maybe not, look at Auck hospitals outrageous charges;
“The car park charges visitors to the hospital $18 for stays of 6-8 hours….”
The main point is the hospital (and other) car parks are publicly owned assets being signed over to profiteering private businesses for twenty year leases when there is no commercial or financial justification for such lengthy terms. The owners, ie us the public, are also losing very substantial sums in income from the asset.
true but NACT consider any public asset ripe for their business mates to profit at the public’s expense, sick and vulnerable even easier kaching.
Ryall’s doing long term damage in health and it goes pretty much unoticed, of of the darkest lords quietly going about the hollowmans business.
As annoying as they are, I guess they promote more efficient public transport in a way.
Of course it is unavoidable when you do need a car, but mostly I think parking charges and tickets are mostly a rich persons tax.
We still have it way better than most parts of the world. In the UK 10pd+ per hour was pretty standard in CBD type areas. Even in the suburbs you needed a ‘pass’ that verified you as a resident or you risked being towed. So pretty much your mates had to pay for temporary passes to park there, even outside YOUR flat. We are nowhere near that bad here.
Even in the suburbs you needed a âpassâ that verified you as a resident or you risked being towed. So pretty much your mates had to pay for temporary passes to park there, even outside YOUR flat. We are nowhere near that bad here.
That is what we have just down the road from me in Grey Lynn.
We all too often forget or don’t know about such people, who are the real leaders of this world albeit in a small way in the overall scheme of things. Leaders is not quite the right word, but brain is not yet functioning fully.
A truly inspiring article – recommend it to other Standard readers.
Thank God for people like Lyn Lusi, who selflessly defied the darkness in the heart of man and brought healing and light to those maimed by human wickedness.Such a heart warming and uplifting life to aspire to.
Rest in eternal peace Lyn Lusi knowing that you faithfully fought the good fight and I thank you for it.
Love the acronym H.E.A.L. standing for health,education, action and love. I wish we could put this into action for our poverty stricken children. Thank you so much for this link lprent, stirring stuff.
Questions of ”cheque book legislation” again arose at Parliaments question time when both Brownlee and Joyce were questioned on whether Skycity had given any favor of any sort to either of the Ministers in the Slippery Sleaze administration,
The method by which Brownlee replied was slightly enlightening, complaining to the House Speaker Lockwood Smith that such a question from the Opposition should not have included the word ”corruption”,
Brownlee once put in His place answered a no to the question as to whether He had ever recieved favor or cash from Skycity as did Joyce,
A forensic psychologist tho would have been all over Joyce as when He rose to answer in the negative to the question of ever having recieved cash or favor from Skycity the first few words of His reply in the negative only managed to escape the constriction in His throat as a girlish squeak,
The real question that should be asked of Joyce in particular is has He set His business interests into a ”blind trust” with no knowledge to him management by others thus giving Joyce the perception of freedom from conflict of interest as a Minister of the Crown and would He be surprised if such a ”managed blind trust” held an amount of Skycity shares???…
Indeed, Jackal. Greg Boyd did surprisingly well, and even Shane Taurima managed to make Key look less confident than he used to be. (Though more to do with the end of the Media Honeymoon, methinks. Just about to blog on it…)
The episode seemed more professional; less show-ponyish; and dealth with the issues (the issues! Oh no, say it ain’t so, ma!)
Just how wide-spread is this little bit of inspired Public/Private business???
It appears that Housing New Zealand Ltd has a contracted out inspection service where once a year tenants are visited by Housing New Zealand,s privately contracted building inspectors to check on issues of maintainence and/or tenant damage to the property,
It would further appear,and we have as yet not ascertained the numbers,that at least one tenant has had 2 new smoke alarms installed despite the 3 already at the property being in perfect un-damaged working condition,
The tenants in this particular piece of work are not asked for their consent nor are they told that they will be billed for the installation,
3 months later Housing New Zealand sends the tenants an invoice for ”damage” to the property with a claim that the smoke alarms were installed as ”replacements” for damaged alarms supposedly already at the property,
Tenants are given 7 days to pay for this little rort and we wonder just how many of Housing New Zealand,s tenants are being rorted in this manner and how many have meekly paid up thinking that ”they have to”….
Housing NZ Ltd for what should be a government service department. And then this outsourcing of real work to robot arms so that at the centre is just an ugly alien with giant eyes and a flaming mouth, the horror fantasy films come to reality.
We have posted twice here this morning and not wanting to hog the page we are off to spend a little energy on the chores,
What we have posted tho has as an afterthought to us addressed a somewhat intertwined issue that has effects at the top end of society as it does the bottom,
In reality we have simply addressed the issue of the supposed public/private partnership and that reality simply shows us that such a relationship is rotten at its core and should such a dissolution of the line between the role of Public business and Private business continue the rotten core will begin to give off a stench all of its own…
The National led government have in fact increased government debt by over 190% since they gained power in 2008, and such economic bungling will undoubtedly cause problems for New Zealand for decades to come…
I am still trying to figure out what the PM meant with his spiel on Q+A this am, when comparing 2 billion borrowed by National compared to 12 billion from Labour ???
Was he trying to say Nats have only borrowed 2 billion in the first three years ?
Rather disturbing story about a teenager trying to go all Equus on his Dad’s business in the Herald. It’s accompanied by a graphic picture of a dead horse. What caught my eye was the juxtaposition of that photo with one immediately to its right, which illustrates the difficulty a young Philippino woman is having getting bikini shots published on facebook. I think there may be a feminist on the sub’s bench trying to make an obscure point.
Mike Hoskings doing a ‘cash for comments’ deal with a major corporate with an image problem looking for concessions from government is following in a well worn track. See the John Laws link below. Laws’ people went out to recruit a corporate ‘with a big PR problem’: at that time it was the banks, who were in the middle of a major rarking up of fees. So: wonder who esle might be paying off our celebs and shock jocks? Aussie Banks here? ASB bank? Offshore owned utility companies? Super market duopolies?? Mind boggles: suggestions please!!! http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/johnlaws.htmhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cash_for_comment_affair
It looks like Boag and Pullar have been utilizing their associations in the National party for personal gain and it is likely that very senior members of the National party (including Key) are implicated in the stand-over tactics of a private insurer and a government department…
It looks like you are trying to utilise old accusations backed by little or nothing. Pullar and Boag have been trying to utilise their National associations, but without much success.
The private insurer said their name drop overkill harmed rtaher than aided their claim there. They could see the “support team” was nonsensical, as could anyone with half a clue.
Nick Smith stuffed up but for nothing, things still haven’t been resolved at ACC so there doesn’t look like any personal gain there.
Key has adamantly discounted any involvement and that seems credible with facts the facts that are known and common sense.
Did you happen to see Q+A this morning Pete George? Fran O’Sullivan disagrees with your and John Keys argument.
I can count the number of times I’ve agreed with O’Sullivan on an amputees hand, but I happen to agree with her that undue influence is wrong even when it’s not successful.
Is a bank robber not a criminal when he doesn’t get away with any money Pete George?
Could you link to where Sovereign Insurance said the support and advocate people listed in the leaked letter was nonsensical?
Wayne Mapp on tv said he organised meeting(s) with pullar’s support people regarding
the claim from soverign insurance,the claim for $14 mil.
She also got closer to the $3 mil amount
according to a tv report.
WTF!!? How can National still be rising in the polls? Even as a strong National supporter, I can’t believe they have escaped so unscathed from all the shit that has gone down.
The problem is that even a damaged National Party still looks more attractive to most voters than Labour. Voters are looking at National in turmoil and still ticking their box. If that’s not a signal that Labour needs to up its game dramatically, then I don’t know what is.
Or change it’s game. A few here Labourites here could take note.
When will they realise that they need to worry less about trying to make Key and National worse (they’ll do that themselves over time), and more effort making Shearer and Labour better?
One news released a poll tonight showing the three big parties up and NZ1 back down to 3% (lols – that’s what they said before the election đ ). Not on the CB site yet.
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On the plus side, that’s 51% all up for the nats government. Error-level shite, and not a spike.
Mostly the poll shows no change. Except this, which puzzled me most:
Voters were also surveyed on their views on the economy, with 50% having an positive outlook, up six percentage points. 32% remain pessimistic, with the reminder believing there will be no change.
 I get annoyed at the constant drone from greenies about everyone getting out cars and biking because its so good for the planet. Yes. But for the individual, it can be very unsafe and some on bikes donât seem to have the cautionary control of a toddler
What angers me most is that they don’t frickin’ wear helmets! A good example of the sheer selfish nature of some cyclists is the 35 year old man who came whizzing, helmetless, across Carrington Road outside Unitec, and down the street on the footpath, missing me by millimetres as he zoomed past me. I called out “idiot!” and he turned around, poked his tongue, screamed an insult about old ladies clogging up the footpath, ‘flipped me the bird’ as I believe the American expression is, and rode on laughing.
Cycles are not legally allowed on footpaths. Many cyclists have told me that the law says they are allowed to not wear helmets if they ride on the footpath. So I made a point of checking with the police. (Who won’t enforce their own law even if an offender is pointed out to them as they are just too damned lazy).
   * Cycling on footpaths is illegal.
   * Riding helmetless is illegal.
   * There is a cycle path on Carrington Road! There’s a big brass plaque pointing that fact out. It’s still ignored even by the Greenie tarts on bikes (I mean frocks on bikes isn’t it? One of them cycles around here, too proud of her expensive hair-do to wear a helmet.)
   * Footpaths are for pedestrians, and with the Segar Ave residence for people with cerebral palsy and Rehab + for brain injured people both off Carrington Road, wheel chair users.
(I put this on the 31.03 Open Mike, and it ended up promptly in moderation. Therefore this is an expoeriment to see if I can find out why. I end up in moderation about once every 2-3 days, and have yet to understand or to be told why.)
Yes, in moderation… one day I may find out why. In the meantime, I get the hint, I have nothing more to say about anything – but you can’t stop me thinking it!
Just watched the 60 minutes on Tv3. The Casino deal was in the gun. Guyon Espiner in good form questioning Joyce over the sweet deal. Joyce unable to answer some fundamental questions and I bet he will be unwilling to face up again. (Guyon said that in Adelaide the same Casino chain sought special privileges in exchange for law change. The Government response there? “You must be dreaming!” Joyce knew nothing about this – and he should have.)
Stuff reported on the Adelaide comparison in August last year. That explains how Joyce had never heard of it: he was lying.
Slippery has also been running the lie about casinos being “safer” despite having no evidence.
Joyce oozes corruption from every pore – he doesn’t even try to hide it. How anyone can imagine that he would make a good party leader is beyond me.
OAB’s policy suggestion: require that Sky City’s owners build the convention centre for free, then confiscate their assets and drive them out of the country.
Requiring 10 year olds on bikes to mix with traffic in Auckland while there is a, mostly unused, footpath available is totally stupid.
Of course if you would rather a cyclist got killed than a pedestrian injured?
Never heard of any pedestrians getting major injuries or killed by cyclists on footpaths.
Many deaths from cyclists being forced to bike on the roads, in places like Petone and Tamaki drive.
Tauranga has mixed bike and footpaths with a speed limit for bikes. Works fine.
Nelson and Mt Maunganui bike lanes would be alright if they did not put you right in the path of opening car doors.
Personally I think that law should be changed.
+1. Even if it means narrowing some roads to widen shared paths for bikes and pedestrians. Works extremely well where I live. Shared paths are probably not suitable for speed-training cyclists, but for commuting, shopping trips etc, they’re spot-on.
Many cyclists have told me that the law says they are allowed to not wear helmets if they ride on the footpath
They’re correct (however they wreck their case by illegally riding on designated footpaths)The law states that helmets must be worn when cycling on roads.
A person must not ride, or be carried on, a bicycle on a road unless the person is wearing a safety helmet of an approved standard that is securely fastened.
I like the idea on the Tauranga Mt bridge. The mixed path has a speed limit for bikes.
So. If you want to ride safely on the bike/pedestrian path you go at a speed that is not too dangerous for pedestrians.
Kids and late middle age cyclists can stay safe while the members of the lycra brigade, that want to ride fast, have the choice of mixing it with the cars.
There’s a few shared paths in Auckland, too. The path labelled as the North Western cyclway is actually a shared path. There’s loads of signs telling people to keep left. But I’ve come across a minority of pedestrians who think that it is for walkers only. They spread across the path in a group, blocking the way for cyclists.
This also happens on the split pedestrian/cycleway over the southern motorway on Symonds Street, with people walking in both the pedestrian lane and cycle lane at the same time, blocking the way for cyclists.
I’ve also come across a guy walking his dog without a leash on the north western cycleway. This is scary for a cyclist because you don’t know which direction the dog might run.
Theyâre correct (however they wreck their case by illegally riding on designated footpaths)The law states that helmets must be worn when cycling on roads.
So, that means that if they cycle on the footpath, they don’t need helmets? That is not what two police officers told me… I fear that you have interpreted the law the way you want it to be, Rosy.
You should hang around Auckland for a while. (I know you’re overseas atm, but still). People who wear helmets are in the minority, and most of those who don’t are kids whose Daddy has told them to ignore Helen’s nanny state law, (my son was at school with many of those) or kids who whinge that they can’t afford a helmet (when they’re riding expensive bikes, of a like that we could never afford) or 30 somethings who respond with libertarian arguments, or more usually, insults.
I have taught and cared for people with brain injuries, and the Brain Injury trust man was actually in tears, when I spoke to him about this. I could not care less about the well-dressed idiot who nearly hit me, or the ex-colleague who claimed that he couldn’t afford a helmet, (he lied of course, and when I offered him Leon’s old one, had a well of excuses why he wouldn’t accept it. Ironically, I lost my job, he kept his – I can hardly afford to eat, and him?? Little barsteward. Brain damage might make him a nicer man, though I doubt it.) Howebver, I do worry very much about the kids. Even if their libertarian parents are morons, the kids don’t deserve brain damage.
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Requiring 10 year olds on bikes to mix with traffic in Auckland while there is a, mostly unused, footpath available is totally stupid.
Are you responding to my (moderated) post about cyclists and footpaths? (I don’t even know if it left moderation.) Because if you are, you seriously missed my point, which is that footpaths are not unused! Especially not here – Pt Chevalier near Unitec. Rehab + and Segar Ave (residence for people with cerebral palsy), a day care centre and several schools are all in the area. The idiot cyclist I referred to missed me by millimetres, and could easily have bowled a child, an actually old person or a person whose walking is, because of their disability, very unsteady. So, don’t be so stinking selfish! The 10 year olds use the cycle path – only the helmetless teenagers and 30 somethings, use the footpath. (Some actual children use the footpath, infrequently, but I don’t begrudge that as they are careful.)
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Never heard of any pedestrians getting major injuries or killed by cyclists on footpaths.
That you have never heard of it doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen.
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You are right that such accidents do happen, V32. In this case it was the cyclist that came off worse, but it could easily have been the pedestrians. Not even a busy path, either, but a fatal collision none the less.
Oh yes. None that I know of have happened here *, but my own near miss shows that they easily could – and the footpath is always thronged with people in manual and power chairs, and a cyclist would not be guaranteed to be the winner if they hit someone in a power chair (I am told by my son the health professional that the term ‘electric wheelchair’ is seriously banned! :D)
Many people at Rehab + are out on their own in manual wheelchairs for the first or one of the first times – I see that even I, a slow and small pedestrian, make them nervous, especially if they’re survivors of disabling car accidents!
That story you linked to is very sad.Â
* Although I do know of many children from Gladstone school who have been killed or injured by motorists nearby. These things are apparently so common that they never make the newspaper, but my son used to go to Gladstone school, and his teachers told me…
Just watched TV1 news, you know the one that has won the Qantas Best News Award (hate to see the losers) News item, says Donkey is still top of the hit parade. Two questions
a, Are the general public thick or,
b, Is it the usual spin and bullshit put out by the right wing MSM. The reason why I ask is, the people I talk to including ones who confess that they voted National, say completely different to what that pathetic news channel called TVNZ One news says.
a) for sure as swinging voters love the beads and coloured glass the nats sprinkle about, we’ve don’t have an electorate that can remember broken promises or actually show up and vote.
b) TVNZ is very NACT friendly, always has been since early 08 when it know they were on the way in, Holmes/Hosking/Sainsbury etc and the endless stream of kid reporters are to serious journalism what chalk is to cheese.
Most of the lines come from high up, they’ll be going flat out to smudge the latest in NACT’s impressive corruption resume.
The nats use carrott/stick very well with those relying on govt funding….just look at the police.
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
TL;DR: In today’s ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Tuesday, March 19:Kāinga Ora’s dry rot The Spinoff DailyBill McKibben on ‘Climate Superfunds’ making Big Oil pay for climate damage The Crucial YearsPreston Mui on returning to 1980s-style productivity growth NoahpinionAndy Boenau on NIMBYs needing unusual bedfellows Urbanism SpeakeasyNed Resnikoff's case ...
Negative yesterday, negative today. Negative all year, according to one departing reader telling me I’ve grown strident and predictable. Fair enough. If it’s any help, every time I go to write about a certain topic that begins with C and ends with arrrrs, I do brace myself and ask: Again? Are ...
Bryce Edwards writes –Â Itâs been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its âFirst 100 Day programmeâ. During this period thereâs been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just show a minimal amount of flux in public support ...
Inspirational: The Family of Man is a glorious hymn to human equality, but, more than that, it is a clarion call to human freedom. Because equality, unleavened by liberty, is a broken piano, an unstrung harp; upon which the songs of fraternity will never be played.âSomebody must have been telling lies about ...
Tax Lawyer Barbara Edmonds vs Emperor Justinian I- Nolo Contendere: False historical explanations of pivotal events are very far from being inconsequential.WHEN BARBARA EDMONDS made reference to the Roman Empire, my ears pricked up. It is, lamentably, very rare to hear a politician admit to any kind of familiarity ...
Itâs been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its âFirst 100 Day programmeâ. During this period thereâs been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just show a minimal amount of flux in public support for the various parties in ...
Buzz from the Beehive Housing Minister Chris Bishop delivered news â packed with the ingredients to enflame political passions â worthy of supplanting Winston Peters in headline writersâ priorities. He popped up at the post-Cabinet press conference to promise a crackdown on unruly and antisocial state housing tenants. His ...
Ele Ludemann writes – The Reserve Bank is advertising for a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion advisor. The Bank has one mandate â to keep inflation between one and three percent. It has failed in that and is only slowly getting inflation back down to the upper limit. Will it ...
Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlanâs article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency Waka KotahiThe fact that a ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlanâs article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Gavin Jacobson talks to Thomas Piketty 10 years on from Capital in the 21st CenturyThe SalvoLocal scoop: Green MP’s business being investigated over migrant exploitation claims StuffSteve KilgallonLocal deep-dive: The commercial contractors making money from School ...
It’s a home - but Kāinga Ora tenants accused of “abusing the privilege” may lose it. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Government announced a crackdown on Kāinga Ora tenants who were unruly and/or behind on their rent, with Housing Minister Chris Bishop saying a place in a state ...
This is a guest post by Connor Sharp of Surface Light Rail Light rail in Auckland: A way forward sooner than you think With the coup de grâce of Auckland Light Rail (ALR) earlier this year, and the shift of the government’s priorities to roads, roads, and more roads, it ...
Note: As a paid-up Webworm member, I’ve recorded this Webworm as a mini-podcast for you as well. Some of you said you liked this option - so I aim to provide it when I get a chance to record! Read more ...
TL;DR: In my ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Monday, March 18:IKEA is accused of planting big forests in New Zealand to green-wash; REDD-MonitorA City for People takes a well-deserved victory lap over Wellington’s pro-YIMBY District Plan votes; A City for PeopleSteven Anastasiou takes a close look at the sticky ...
Buzz from the Beehive Hereâs hoping for a lively post-cabinet press conference when the PM and â perhaps â some of his ministers tell us what was discussed at their meeting today. Until then, Point of Order has precious little Beehive news to report after its latest monitoring of the ...
David Farrar writes – We now have almost all 2023 data in, which has allowed me to update my annual table of how labour went against its promises. This is basically their final report card. The promiseThe result Build 100,000 affordable homes over 10 ...
I’m a bit worried that I’ve started a previous newsletter with the words “just when you think they couldn’t get any worse…” Seems lately that I could begin pretty much every issue with that opening. Such is the nature of our coalition government that they seem to be outdoing each ...
Geoffrey Miller writes – Timing is everything. And from Chinaâs perspective, this weekâs visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. ...
Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture ...
Last week Transport Minster Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre. The new train control centre will see teams from KiwiRail, Auckland Transport and Auckland One Rail working more closely together to improve train services across the city. The Auckland Rail Operations Centre in ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson said in an exit interview with Q+A yesterday the Government can and should sustain more debt to invest in infrastructure for future generations. Elsewhere in the news in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 6:36am: Read more ...
Timing is everything. And from Chinaâs perspective, this weekâs visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. It is more than just a happy ...
TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to March 18 include:China’s Foreign Minister visiting Wellington today;A post-cabinet news conference this afternoon; the resumption of Parliament on Tuesday for two weeks before Easter;retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson gives his valedictory speech in Parliament; ...
New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters’s state-of-the-nation speech on Sunday was really a state-of-Winston-First speech. He barely mentioned any of the Governmentâs key policies and could not even wholly endorse its signature income tax cuts. Instead, he rehearsed all of his complaints about the Ardern Government, including an extraordinary claim ...
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
“I’ve been internalising a really complicated situation in my head.”When they kept telling us we should wait until we get to know him, were they taking the piss? Was it a case of, if you think this is bad, wait till you get to know the real Christopher, after the ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
.“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
âIt hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.âTHUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology â the Internet â is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the âglory daysâ of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
Bob Edlin writes – And what is the world watching todayâŚ? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trumpâs hush-money case ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the partyâs decision to ...
For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ HeraldThomas CoughlanSimeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for âFutures Exchangeâ) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
TL;DR:Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it:Â We want our country to be a ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
Peter Dunne writes – This weekâs government bailout â the fifth in the last eighteen months â of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The governmentâs stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading → ...
Ele Ludemann writes – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
What was that judge thinking?Peter Williams writes –Â That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop:Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labourâs caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
 Buzz from the Beehive  The text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the governmentâs official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary. It can be quickly analysed ...
For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
Bryce Edwards writes –Â Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? Thatâs the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Governmentâs removal ...
Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
Questions need to be asked on both sides of the worldPeter Williams writes –Â Â The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ârock solidâ $2.1 billion cost he was ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop:The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
TL;DR:Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
Bob Edlin writes – The MÄori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
The Government has accepted Labourâs change to the Road User Charge (RUC) discount for hybrid vehicles, meaning there will still be some incentive for people to buy greener vehicles. ...
Kicking the most vulnerable people out of state housing and pushing them towards homelessness will result in a proliferation of poverty and trauma across our most vulnerable communities. ...
Te PÄti MÄori co-leader and MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi has penned a letter asking MPs to support his members bill to remove GST from all food. The bill is expected to go through its first reading in parliament this Wednesday. âIâm calling on all political parties to support my ...
This year is about getting real with Kiwis and discussing the tough issues, as the National Government exacerbates inequality and divides New Zealand, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said ...
The Government adding Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) to its already roaring environmental policy bonfire is an assault on the future of wildlife that makes Aotearoa unique. ...
After 12 years of fighting to protect our moana we are finding ourselves back at square one and back at court. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is sitting in Hawera to reconsider an application from Trans-Tasman Resources to dig up 50 million tonnes of the seabed in South Taranaki. This ...
Minister Shane Jonesâ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Governmentâs fast-track legislation. ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Governmentâs miscalculation saga continues as it has forgotten an eyewatering $90 million gap in its interest deductibility cost figures, say Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds and Revenue Spokesperson Deborah Russell. ...
He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission has today released advice that says if the Government doesnât act now New Zealand is at risk of not meeting its climate goals. ...
The Coalition Government has today confirmed it is abandoning first home buyers who are struggling to get ahead, says Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds. ...
The New Zealand public voted for a change in direction at the 2023 general election and that is exactly what this coalition government has been delivering in its first 100 days. There was an immediate focus on the economy, easing the cost of living, cracking down on law and order ...
The Government has left the health system as an afterthought, announcing half-baked targets at the last minute of their 100-day plan, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
Kiwis are still waiting for their promised cost of living support after 100 days of a National Government that is taking us backwards, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own â and itâs hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
100 days of National taking NZ backwardsThe National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own â and itâs hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
The Government must commit to funding free and healthy school lunches, as thousands of people sign the petition to keep them, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti says. ...
If the Government was serious about moving families into public housing, they would build more houses so there is actually somewhere for people to go. ...
The free and healthy school lunches programme feeds our kids, helps them to learn, and saves families money â but it is at risk under this Government, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
The Governmentâs proposed changes to Firearms Prohibition Orders (FPO) add almost nothing new and are merely an attempt to distract from its plans to loosen gun laws, police spokesperson Ginny Andersen and justice spokesperson Dr Duncan Webb said. ...
The great Victorian era English politician Lord Macauley stood in the British House of Parliament and said, "The gallery in which the reporters sit has become a fourth estate of the realm". He understood and outlined even way back then, the significant role and influence media have in a democracy. ...
"The Government is moving quickly to realise an additional $46 million in tariff savings in the EU market this season for Kiwi exporters,â Minister for Trade and Agriculture, Todd McClay says. Parliament is set, this week, to complete the final legislative processes required to bring the New Zealand â European ...
New Zealandâs social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. âI want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealandâs social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. âTo coincide with World ...
Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April. ...
Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that todayâs opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand. Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. âIt was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealandâs relationship with China, including trade, ...
KÄinga Ora â Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. âEarlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of KÄinga Ora. ...
TÄna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealandâs indispensable strategic partnerships. Â Â Â âSingapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland Acknowledgements and opening MĹrena, ngÄ mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Good morning, itâs a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. âMarch 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,â Mr Luxon says. âToday we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024 Acknowledgements and opening Morena, Nga Mihi Nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau Good morning. Itâs a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asiaâs most populous country. Â âWe are in Jakarta so early in our new governmentâs term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week. âWe look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealandâs ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. âThe recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Aucklandâs rail agencies work together to ...
The Government is proud to support the 10th edition of Crankworx Rotorua as the Crankworx World Tour returns to Rotorua from 16-24 March 2024, says Minister for Economic Development Melissa Lee. âOver the past 10 years as Crankworx Rotorua has grown, so too have the economic and social benefits that ...
Legislation implementing coalition Government tax commitments and addressing long-standing tax anomalies will be progressed in Parliament next week, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The legislation is contained in an Amendment Paper to the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023â24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill issued today. âThe Amendment Paper represents ...
Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard has today announced that the Government has agreed to suspend the requirement for councils to comply with the Significant Natural Areas (SNA) provisions of the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity for three years, while it replaces the Resource Management Act (RMA).âAs it stands, SNAs ...
Agriculture Minister Todd McClay has classified the drought conditions in the Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts as a medium-scale adverse event, acknowledging the challenging conditions facing farmers and growers in the district. âParts of Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts are in the grip of an intense dry spell. I know ...
The Government is helping farmers eradicate the significant impact of facial eczema (FE) in pastoral animals, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. âA $20 million partnership jointly funded by Beef + Lamb NZ, the Government, and the primary sector will save farmers an estimated NZD$332 million per year, and aims to ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has completed a successful visit to India, saying it was an important step in taking the relationship between the two countries to the next level.  âWe have laid a strong foundation for the Coalition Governmentâs priority of enhancing New Zealand-India relations to generate significant future benefit for both countries,â says Mr Peters, ...
Cabinet has agreed to provide $7 million to ensure the 2024 ski season can go ahead on the Whakapapa ski field in the central North Island but has told the operator Ruapehu Alpine Lifts it is the last financial support it will receive from taxpayers. Cabinet also agreed to provide ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Governmentâs commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says itâs a great example of taking ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Governmentâs commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says itâs a great example of taking ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Governmentâs plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. âThe SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Governmentâs plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. âThe SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Lower fruit and vegetable prices are welcome news for New Zealanders who have been doing it tough at the supermarket, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Stats NZ reported today the price of fruit and vegetables has dropped 9.3 percent in the 12 months to February 2024. âLower fruit and vege ...
TÄnÄ koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the 68th session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
TÄnÄ koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the sixty-eighth session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
The coalition Government is supporting farmers to enhance land management practices by investing $3.3 million in locally led catchment groups, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. âFarmers and growers deliver significant prosperity for New Zealand and itâs vital their ongoing efforts to improve land management practices and water quality are supported,â ...
Good evening everyone and thank you for that lovely introduction.  Thank you also to the Honourable Simon Bridges for the invitation to address your members. Since being sworn in, this coalition Government has hit the ground running with our 100-day plan, delivering the changes that New Zealanders expect of us. ...
Recommendations from the Climate Change Commission for New Zealand on the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) auction and unit limit settings for the next five years have been tabled in Parliament, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. âThe Commission provides advice on the ETS annually. This is the third time the ...
The coalition Government is beginning its fight to lower building costs and reduce red tape by exempting minor building work from paying the building levy, says Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk. âCurrently, any building project worth $20,444 including GST or more is subject to the building levy which is ...
Proposed changes to tax legislation to prevent the over-taxation of low-earning trusts are welcome, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The changes have been recommended by Parliamentâs Finance and Expenditure Committee following consideration of submissions on the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023â24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill. âOne of the ...
Assalaamu alaikum. اŮŘłŮŮŮŮا٠ؚŮŮŮŮ In light of the holy month of Ramadan, I want to extend my warmest wishes to our Muslim community in New Zealand. Ramadan is a time for spiritual reflection, renewed devotion, perseverance, generosity, and forgiveness. Itâs a time to strengthen our bonds and appreciate the diversity ...
Former Transport Minister and CEO of the Auckland Business Chamber Hon Simon Bridges has been appointed as the new Board Chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) for a three-year term, Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced today. âSimon brings extensive experience and knowledge in transport policy and governance to the role. He will ...
Good morning all, it is a pleasure to be here as Minister of Science, Innovation and Technology. It is fantastic to see how connected and collaborative the life science and biotechnology industry is here in New Zealand. I would like to thank BioTechNZ and NZTech for the invitation to address ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says he is looking forward to the day when three key water projects in Northland are up and running, unlocking the full potential of land in the region. Mr Jones attended a community event at the site of the Otawere reservoir near Kerikeri on Friday. ...
Associate Finance Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government has agreed to restore deductibility for mortgage interest on residential investment properties. âHelp is on the way for landlords and renters alike. The Governmentâs restoration of interest deductibility will ease pressure on rents and simplify the tax code,â says ...
Sport and Recreation Minister Chris Bishop will travel to Switzerland today to attend an Executive Committee meeting and Symposium of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Mr Bishop will then travel on to London where he will attend a series of meetings in his capacity as Infrastructure Minister. âNew Zealanders believe ...
Pacific Media Watch Earthwise hosts Lois and Martin Griffiths. Earthwise presenters Lois and Martin Griffiths on Plains FM 96.9 community radio talk to Dr David Robie, a New Zealand author, independent journalist and media educator with a passion for the Asia-Pacific region. David talks about the struggle to raise awareness ...
Pacific Media Watch Ismail al-Ghoul, an Al Jazeera Arabic correspondent who was held for 12 hours at Gazaâs al-Shifa hospital, says Israeli forces rounded up Palestinian journalists at the facility and made them kneel on the ground for hours, while naked and blindfolded. âThe occupation forces handcuffed and blindfolded us ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tony Wood, Program Director, Energy, Grattan Institute chinasong, Shutterstock Electricity customers in four Australian states can breathe a sigh of relief. After two years in a row of 20% price increases, power prices have finally stabilised. In many places theyâre ...
Chumbawamba have reportedly issued the deputy PM a cease-and-desist notice after he used their song 'Tubthumping' before his state of the nation speech. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Deborah Lupton, SHARP Professor, Vitalities Lab, Centre for Social Research in Health and Social Policy Centre, and the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society, UNSW Sydney kitzcorner/Shutterstock The assertion from Queenslandâs chief health officer John Gerrard that ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Martin, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University Shutterstock Why are musicians so keen to get played on the radio? It canât be because of the money. In Australia they are paid at rates so low they ...
"Farmers make a point not to tell our urban cousins how to live, yet ChlĂśe from central Auckland is hell-bent on having her say about farmers," says ACT Rural Communities spokesman Mark Cameron. âOn her first day in the House as Green ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards – Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. Itâs been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its âFirst 100 Day programmeâ. During this period thereâs been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Curran, Associate Professor of Ecology, Lincoln University, New Zealand Getty Images/Gerald Corsi In the latest move to reform environmental laws in New Zealand, the coalition government has introduced a bill to fast-track consenting processes for projects deemed to ...
Uber has argued it does not have as much control over drivers as the unions suggest, and wants a judgment ruling that drivers are employees and not contractors set aside and sent back to the Employment Court. The 2022 ruling followed a three-week hearing in which four drivers sought to ...
What can and canât be purchased by disabled people or their carers has been slashed in an effort by the Ministry of Disabled People Whaikaha to save money. The purchasing guidelines, a set of rules that sets out what can be purchased using the various streams of Government disability funding, ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Tod Wright and Hien Nguyen, Fiscal incidence in New Zealand: The effects of taxes and benefits on household incomes in tax year 2018/19 . Analyses of the distributional impact of taxation and government ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Cory Davis, Boston Hart and Benjamin Stubbing, Household cost-of-living impacts from the Emissions Trading Scheme and using transfers to mitigate regressive outcomes . This Analytical Note ...
A coalition of public transport and climate organisations, united as âTransport for Allâ, is actively opposing the governmentâs transport proposals. The draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) includes plans for higher fares for public transport, ...
Greater Wellington is inviting feedback on proposed changes to its Revenue and Financing Policy. The Revenue and Financing Policy covers the Councilâs various sources of funding, and how the cost of services is shared across the region. This includes ...
Labour has conceded it could have done more to deal with disruptive state housing tenants while in government but says the current coalition is going too far. ...
The band has asked their record label to issue a cease and desist to stop the NZ First leader using their 1997 hit to support his âmisguided political viewsâ. âI get knocked down, but I get up again,â blared through the speakers on Sunday as Winston Peters took the stage ...
By Lydia Lewis, RNZ Pacific journalist Food rationing is underway in remote areas in Papua New Guineaâs Highlands following torrential rain and flash flooding. More than 20 people have been reported dead in Chimbu Province. In nearby Enga Province, the centre of last monthâs massacre, a 15-year-old boy has been ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Hughes, Lecturer, Research School of Management, Australian National University After months of debate and intrigue, the AFLâs 19th and newest team, the Tasmania Devils, finally launched its jumper, logo and colours in Devonport this week. The Devils will wear green, ...
Brannavan Gnanalingam reviews the debut novel by Saraid de Silva.One of the most baffling things for children who move to a new country is what their parentsâ (or grandparentsâ) lives were like prior to moving â for kids in particular, theyâre too busy trying to fit in in their ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Gaunson, Associate Professor in Cinema Studies, RMIT University Narelle Portanier/Binge âIf you donât know who your mob are, you donât know who you are,â Detective Andrea âAndieâ Whitford (played by Leah Purcell) is told early into the new crime ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Elise Klein, Associate professor, Australian National University Itâs commonly accepted that women do the vast majority of caregiving in Australian society. But less appreciated is that Indigenous women do larger amounts of unpaid care than any other group. Working with the Aboriginal ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne Joe Biden and Donald Trump have both secured their partiesâ nominations for the November 5 United States general election by winning a ...
Comment: There has been a striking contrast in trans-Tasman interest about Chinese foreign minister Wang Yiâs visit to New Zealand and Australia. While the Australian press has been full of articles about the visit â including his curious decision to meet with former prime minister and China booster Paul Keating ...
After years of pressuring banks and other institutions to stop investing in fossil fuels, climate campaigners are making some progress. So how does divestment work?For years, climate activists have been pushing banks and other big institutions to divest from fossil fuels. New research from climate advocacy group 350 Aotearoa ...
For Boba, Ethan and Ashley, K-pop is a place to belong, a way to express themselves, and a bridge to connect with others. The three young Polynesians are part of a K-pop fan community in TÄmaki Makaurau. Itâs one of many that have sprung up worldwide as K-pop has gone ...
For Boba, Ethan and Ashley, K-pop is a place to belong, a way to express themselves, and a bridge to connect with others. This one-off documentary presents three intimate portraits of young Polynesians who are pulled into a Korean cultural phenomenon. K-POLYS is directed by Litia Tuiburelevu, Produced by Hex ...
Thereâs ample evidence demonstrating free school lunch programmes provide wide benefits across schools, households and communities according to public health researchers. ACT Minister David Seymour wants to reduce the spending on Aotearoa New Zealandâs ...
By Wata Shaw in Suva Fiji is facing an exodus of Fijians as many are leaving for overseas seeking employment and education and others are migrating, says Opposition MP Viliame Naupoto. Speaking in Parliament, he said: âHis Excellencyâs speech (Ratu Wiliame Katonivere) comes after a little over one year of ...
The Taxpayersâ Union is welcoming comments from Christopher Luxon this morning recommitting to âno new taxesâ as part of Budget 2024. âMr Luxonâs refusal at the Post-Cabinet press conference yesterday to repeat the âno new taxesâ promise ...
SAFE is urgently calling on the Environment Committee to reject the Governmentâs Fast-Track Approvals Bill, and is urging New Zealanders to rally behind the call. The proposed Bill, currently under consideration with the Environment select committee, ...
Teammates who spend all their time picking fights with spectators are only helpful for the other team, writes Madeleine Chapman. Anyone who has ever played a team sport competitively, particularly as a child and particularly, for some reason, basketball, will know that thereâs a lot of politics involved. While there ...
The long-running Wellington music festival is too focused on the Jim Beam-ness and not enough on the Homegrown-ness.There is something about Homegrown thatâs difficult to place. A barely perceptible-ness. Like feeling a ghost is watching you from the corner of the room but when you look, thereâs nothing there. ...
The latest Ipsos New Zealand Issues Monitor reveals that fewer New Zealanders believe crime / law and order is one of the top issues facing our country. In 2018, Ipsos New Zealand started tracking the key issues facing New Zealand. In this wave ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Griffiths, Deputy Program Director, Budgets and Government, Grattan Institute Australiaâs political donations rules are woefully inadequate, but donations reform is finally on the agenda. The federal government has signalled its interest in reform and will soon begin briefing MPs on its ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Patrick Taylor, Chief Environmental Scientist, EPA Victoria; Honorary Professor, School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University Naiyana Somchitkaeo/Shutterstock A recent study published in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine has linked microplastics with risk to human health. The study ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Albert Van Dijk, Professor, Water and Landscape Dynamics, Fenner School of Environment & Society, Australian National University Global climate records were shattered in 2023, from air and sea temperatures to sea-level rise and sea-ice extent. Scores of countries recorded their hottest year ...
As part of our series exploring how New Zealanders live and our relationship with money, a teacher explains why he and his partner are in frugal mode â and how theyâre making it work. Gender: Male Age: 35Ethnicity: PÄkehÄ Role: I am an intermediate school teacher and my partner is ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Bendall, Senior Lecturer, Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences, Australian Catholic University Binge Mary & George, the new British television drama series, depicts the real-life story of Mary Villiers and her son George, and their social climbing at the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jason Nassios, Associate Professor, Centre of Policy Studies, Victoria University This article is part of The Conversationâs series examining the housing crisis. Read the other articles in the series here. Australian state and federal governments spend money in many ways to ...
The finance minister is denying that thereâs a $5.6b shortfall in paying for the governmentâs campaign promises, including tax cuts. At his post-cabinet press conference yesterday, the PM refused to rule out new taxes to pay for the cuts, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoffâs ...
KÄinga Ora tenants abused by their neighbours are doubting the government's crackdown on disruptive tenants will make a difference on their behaviour. ...
KÄinga Ora is New Zealandâs biggest residential landlord, housing more than 180,000 vulnerable people in more than 67,000 properties. Yesterday the government announced a crackdown on its tenants who fall behind on rent. One longtime KÄinga Ora tenant shares her experience.For 18 years I lived in a 1960s standalone ...
Why does this myth persist, and whatâs the real reason our skin is suffering?Itâs one of the biggest international grievances New Zealanders hold, up there with the sinking of the Rainbow Warrior and 1981âs underarm incident. Weâre quick to tell international travellers that the worldâs pollution led to the ...
When the Criminal Proceeds (Recovery) Act was introduced in 2009 it was firmly targeted at gangs and drugs. The legislation means police no longer need a conviction to seize assets that criminals can’t prove were paid for legitimately, as long as their alleged offences are punishable by more than a ...
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, Tuesday 19 March appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Bobâs relationship with certain members of Lincolnâs academic staff continued to deteriorate in the 1990s. Others supported him publicly, though articles such as Roland Clarkâs 1993 piece in Growing Today cannot have pleased the university management. Clark wrote that Bob was selling onions from the Biological Husbandry Unit to a ...
SailGPâs races feature in-your-face action, with agile, hydro-foiling catamarans tacking and jibing for the title over several days. However, public comments ahead of the global seriesâ return to New Zealand have left this past yearâs controversy in the shadows, as a key appointment attracts criticism from dolphin advocates. A year ...
Opinion: We are fast approaching a fundamental change in prisons. As the number of people on custodial remand looks set to overtake the number of sentenced prisoners, the main function of prisons in New Zealand may become incarcerating un-sentenced people who may not be guilty of offending. We have already ...
A huge seven months lies in store for the White Ferns, beginning this week with the visit of England and culminating with the T20 World Cup in Bangladesh in September and October. Starting on Tuesday in Dunedin, the world ranked No. 2 visitors will play five T20s and three ODIs, ...
Opinion: In a move that has shocked road safety advocates across the country, the new Minister of Transport, Simeon Brown, is poised to abandon the previous government’s speed limit reduction policy, particularly around schools. Even more alarmingly, he wants school speed limits to be variable rather than full-time, arguing ...
Auckland Council is opposing a fast-track development backed by Sir John Kirwan and Spark NZ, because it doesn’t meet stringent new climate adaptation requirements The post Surf-data centre faces new 3.8C climate warming rules appeared first on Newsroom. ...
The letters, which were published last week, were addressed to Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) Chairperson Megawati Sukarnoputri, National Democrat Party (NasDem) Chairperson Surya Paloh, National Awakening Party (PKB) Chairperson Muhaimin Iskandar, Justice and Prosperity Party (PKS) President Ahmad Syaikhu and United Development Party (PPP) Chairperson Muhammad Mardiono. In ...
Evicting more people from state housing is ignorant to the consequences of poverty, the Greens say, but the Housing Minister says it's a privilege that can be taken away if abused. ...
Evicting more people from state housing is ignorant to the consequences of poverty, the Greens say, but the Housing Minister says it's a privilege that can be taken away if abused. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emerald L King, Lecturer in Humanities, University of Tasmania IMDB Between Netflixâs 2023 live-action version of One Piece, and its latest take on Avatar: The Last Airbender, fans are once again asking: why are live-action anime adaptations so tricky to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emerald L King, Lecturer in Humanities, University of Tasmania IMDB Between Netflixâs 2023 live-action version of One Piece, and its latest take on Avatar: The Last Airbender, fans are once again asking: why are live-action anime adaptations so tricky to ...
The government says it still intends to deliver tax cuts by July, but will not lock them in until they have got them past their coalition partners. ...
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/
Key Apologises for Wasting Police Time in Teapot Saga
Prime Minister John Key says he misused his authority when he complained to Police after a tape of a semi-private conversation with ACT Leader, John Banks was given to the media. A microphone was left on the coffee table during a staged ‘cup of tea’ media event in which Mr Key publicly endorsed the ACT Party’s Epsom candidate in the last days of last year’s election campaign. This week Police decided not to lay charges against the the taper, Bradley Ambrose, and Mr Ambrose still maintains that the taping was accidental….
I’m not entirely sure if this is supposed to be a joke or not, since the link just goes to the herald and I can’t find any such story there. There is this though: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=10795827.
I also found this interesting (and damning):
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=10795790
First, moderators I think I neglected to turn off the italics in my comment above. It’s beyond my editing window, but it needs turned off.
Lanth, check the date.
[Fixed..RL]
Good one JS
Ah. For some reason I was thinking it was the 31st.
Indeed… http://fmacskasy.wordpress.com/2012/03/31/ross-dependency-4-sale/
I’m told that one person on a social media thought it was real. And went on to suggest it might be a good thing… *rolls eyes*
darn you got there before me đ it’s a good april fool’s from JS – mind you the idea of ‘jonkey’ and ‘apology for’ do go together in a number of ways
good link Lanth – Bernard Hickey right on the button
Yes some excellent reading in todays HoS
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/article.cfm?c_id=466&objectid=10795827
Brilliant well stated summary of events of the teacup saga.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/headlines.cfm?c_id=466
Give credit where credit due…Labour getting some good press.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/article.cfm?c_id=466&objectid=10795790
Always great to have the tax cuts for the wealthy revisited and results exposed!
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/article.cfm?c_id=466&objectid=10795811
Another person puzzling over and trying to make sense of the whole ACC saga
Read these all before realsing the date! Please tell me the HoS isn’t in on it too!
Thanks Lyn. Read ’em all though Coddington is a bit mean- as usual.
It certainly seems to me that the Herald on Sunday has decided that the years-long honeymoon for Key and his merry band of neo-lib control freaks is over. Good on them.
Imagine reading the editorial getting stuck into Key’s abuse of the paper for short term political advantage, and all of these reports actually looking beyond the spin and into the facts, a couple of years ago. Wouldn’t have happened.
And is it just me, or is there a change in the photos of Key that many papers tend to run on page two? Gone are the smiley, puppy-holding, baby-kissing, prole-comforting pictures; now we see Key frowning, sweaty, looking worried, just like he has something to hide…..
Gotta admit – I have been enjoying the past few months!!
just saying’s comment seems to have caused everything to slant to the right.
[Fixed…all straight again. RL]
best comment you’ve ever made pete –
for people who read this after the italics are fixed…. pg cracked a funny!
đ
đ (y)
My first attempt to use emoticons…
mmmm the y is meant to be a thumbs up!
it’s a funny bug that. one incorrectly written bit of code and the italics carries on through all the comments. it even made the editing buttons in the back of the side italicised.
[Fixed…all straight again. RL]
Straight down the middle now, great!
David Shearer has issued a statement requesting all MPs start setting an example of positive leadership, and has asked all Labour MPs and staffers to set an example of putting the good of the country first, and to stop petty political attacks. Shearer in strong show of leadership.
Latest document to be leaked from the donkey’s office.
http://www.lynchs.com/cat–Costumes-For-Clowns–clowncostumes12.html
Maybe “Lynchs” is going a bit far?
What are the chances this is an April Fools Day prank?
It’s fun to watch the civil war within the National Party. The National Party’s civil war on New Zealand? Not so much.
No ‘social responsibility’ clause. That’s good, innit? Wonder how many ‘earth hours’ electricity companies will claim credit for?
Which explains why they had to write a social responsibility clause in the first place. Someone should make Ryall watch Alan Greenspan’s Congressional testimony until he gets it through numb skull that he is talking shit.
Why isn’t there a requirement in the cabinet manual that ministers statements should not be demonstrably deceitful?
Typical of this lot to avoid interviews – another minister diving away, leaving some junior in the media department to knock out a quick statement that says “don’t worry – the market incentives will look after that for us – now stop bothering the minister with things below his super-strategic view”.
It is going to be fun watching the developments at Narrow Neck beach in Auckland. Looks like iwi are about get some prime waterfront land back. So far as I can see, the dispute is about rich capitalist whities, pointing to how “poor” they were in the nineties and in a desperate act of ingenuine socialist solidarity, trying to align themselves with an imaginary aggrieved public. If that doesn’t catch, they then point to the slippery slope argument that marine park fish will be endangered by treaty settlement land on top of a cliff. The consultation process wasn’t transparent enough, they claim. Jesus, they are pretty transparent themsleves. They complain they were hoodwinked by the people they voted into government, even though they knew those people used the same measure of self interest as their lifestyles and attitudes hold dear. Can’t risk maori building “cheap in-fill housing” on prime land, one woman said on TV last night. I assume that’s because we all know how maori and cheap go together… don’t we? No sir, it should be whities doing that, building exclusive residences, keeping the tone of the neighbourhood clean, you know, like they did over the harbour in Okahu bay all those years ago. So a few maori got burned out of their homes, couldn’t they understand the City had a raffle running? Even poor old The-Law-is-Complicated Len has found his voice and come out saying a private consulation “…doesn’t cut the mustard”. Ooh, steady on there Len, your masters will get twitchy! The irony is that after almost 175 years of maori learning the hard way how to be good colonialists, rich whities are being out-whitied by rich maori and can no longer choose their neighbours. Gee, that must sting.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10792849
But, those uppity Devonport activists seem to have got the wrong end of the stick and assumed Ngati Whatua have the same motives for acquiring prime coastal real estate:….
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/6673729/Angry-residents-threaten-to-take-over-naval-base
Having been on the periphery of the previous stoush in the late 1990s involviing former environment minister, Nick Smith, I think most people expected the land presently covered by buildings and a car-park would be added to the reserve once the Navy abandoned their barracks. Indeed from memory we were given to understand by the Shipley govt. that is what would happen. Anyone who knows the area intimately can appreciate the significance such an enlarged reserve would have for the whole of Auckland. It has the potential to be a sparkling jewel in our ‘maritime reserve’ crown with magnificent views of the harbour and gulf. The uppity Devonport activists fought a costly court battle to stop all but a very narrow strip along the top of the cliff being sold off to speculators and turned into a rich man’s paradise and they won. I can tell you Nick Smith and his (then) colleagues were thoroughly pissed off with us at the time.
The fact that this latest deal was done behind closed doors without the knowledge of the local community and the community board, hasn’t gone down well and I’m not surprised. I have no wish to deprive Ngati Whatua of their rightful heritage, but I want to know one hell of a lot more about what plans they have for the land once it comes into their possession. Like North Head, it is a very special place with a fascinating history – both Maori and Pakeha.
One small error. We were certainly given to understand that the reserve would be extended after the departure of the Navy but I doubt it came from the govt. of the day. We were not on their Xmas card list. đ
There is another part of that article that also deserves mention
I don’t often agree with finlayson but I do when he says
The upset residents should take some time to consider those quotes and the quotes that Carol has put up too. What is the actual fear and where does it spring from? At the moment it seems not far off what uturn has written.
Man that’s a solid wall of words Uturn. l
You are talking a load of crap Uturn. Rich capitalist whities? Bullshit! If they hadn’t done their dash nobody would have the land now including Ngati Whatua. It would be covered in dirty great mansions belonging to rich capitalist whities.
Ngati Whatua and the Devonport Trust (which was set up to protect the reserve) worked together last time and I’m sure they will end up doing so again. To categorise Devonport activists and by inference residents – most of whom are behind them – as a bunch of self serving, racist capalist pigs (yep, that’s what you’re saying) just shows up your ignorance of both them and the past and present situation.
Lucky ol’ whitey and his self interest came to Ngati Whatuas aid, huh? People not familiar with Auckland’s North Shore and specifically the area in question will be surprised by the raft of rich man’s mansions on both sides of the land in question – just keeping the land safe, that is, “for all of Auckland” – and the neighbourhood in general. How bewildered visitors will be to find the diversity you suggest exists. I know I was warmly accepted into the multicultural egalitarian environment when I lived there. Then again, I am white. I don’t mind calling my own out as racists and hypocrites, when they are. Like you, they really hate it, though.
“People not familiar with Aucklandâs North Shore and specifically the area in question will be surprised by the raft of rich manâs mansions on both sides of the land in question”
Yeah that’s the point. It is prime awesome land, it would be best for every kiwi if it remained in the public commons. If Ngati Whatua doesn’t guarentee it will be turned into a park for ALL to share, then it will inevitably become more ‘rich man’s’ mansions.
(my emphasis)
How would it be best for NgÄti WhÄtua?
Why not get some of the ‘rich men’ to turn their mansions into parks for all to share?
The second question is rhetorical of course – we know the answer to that one – we know the system we live within and where the privilege is held.
Actually, it was Ngati Whatua who came to ol’ whitey’s aid. You would do well to remove that chip on your shoulder mate.
I’ve lived near Narrow Neck Beach since I was born (50 years) had my first swim in a rock pool there. So I claim it as my local beach. I have strong ties here and I sure don’t vote National or Act! All the people who live here have a right to a say, for themselves, their children, their grandchildren, because many people brought up here stay here all their lives. Why are Ngati Whatua the only important ones here? Surely there is other land that can be sold. That land was safe, or so we thought, for future generations as permanent reserve. I can certainly understand that the wealthier residents of the Shore who obviously voted National, especially Devonport, are pretty irate , as am I, and I don’t think that will die down easily. So Maggie Barry, be warned! No seat is safe if you do the dirty on your electorate!
http://promos.airnz.co.nz/gas/straightup/
Airnz promo
The Brits panic-buying fuel due to a strike that hadn’t been called was encouraged by the government – “re-fuel before it gets too low”, they said, “store petrol in a jerry-can in the garage” one said.
After hours-long queues for days, empty petrol stations and a serious burns incident it’s found to have all been a pre-planned ‘Thatcher Moment’ to break the union. Note that it this news was broken by the Daily Telegraph aka the Torygraph.
Absolute contempt is what I have for the people who have engineered this state of affairs.
Looks like someone has threatened Slater with consequences if he doesn’t pull his head in and allow a ceasefire in the Nats’ civil war:
“Thatâs it!
by Whaleoil
Iâm over them. National that isâŚcuddling up to Boag.
I think I will join the Labour party. They seem to be having so much more fun right now.
Plus, since they are the nasty party they should welcome my particular skills.”
Slater, your particular skills are having a mad blog that Lusk sometimes puts interesting things on (which you promptly bury with trash – 4 posts in 2 hours so far, it’s Sunday dude!)
Or is his post his idea of a 1 April joke although it would not surprise me if he had been told to pull his head in. However, that sort of advice usually seems to provoke certain types of people to do the opposite.
When I looked just before seeing your post here, he was up to 5 posts and its not yet 9am.
Time for a shower.
I’m keeping closer tabs on wo through rss than normal because of the nats civil war. the sheer quantity of dross is amazing. ten posts in 4 hours
Ditto – am still interested in the statement in one of yesterday’s posts which appears to claim to have had the Sovereign letter before Close Up in terms of where it may have been leaked from. Here is my earlier comment on this – http://thestandard.org.nz/slaterlusk-goes-off-the-deep-end/#comment-453506
Agreed Rosy. These utterly manipulative scumbags governing the UK only considered how they could turn public opinion against the union – before the union had even voted whether to take action. The result was a public run on fuel; artificially created shortages; worries that emergency services wouldn’t be able to find fuel in an emergency; people storing petrol without understanding the hazards; a woman severely burnt because while decanting petrol for her daughter who had run out of fuel. What do these people stand for? Do they give a damn about the people they are supposed to be governing?
Decanting petrol in the kitchen while cooking…
Nope, they only care about themselves and the power and wealth that they can accumulate using the rules that they’ve put in place over the centuries.
yeah sunday should be an amphetamine free day over at the whaleweightstation.
Go Winston! This is fantastic! http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/christchurch-earthquake/6673678/Winston-Peters-takes-up-red-zone-cause
I bet if Jim Anderton were in parliament, or mayor, he’d be on this case too.
More privatisation madness that’s slipped under the radar
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/6673557/Car-parking-The-ticket-for-returns
Get this bit….
“Often the district health board would also rent back a substantial number of the car parks for its medical staff, on long-term contracts with regular rent reviews, providing a built-in lift in revenue…”
So the upshot is that for a sugar rush of $15.3million the DHB gave away income of at least $2.36million per year for twenty years, plus incurred higher costs for staff parking. We’ve got some real financial wizards in charge of the DHB. A taste of what’s to come methinks.
Yes parking is a juicy earner, especially with a captive market that has nowhere to go. Always was easy money as the structures are concrete shells, require little maintenance, need virtually no staff and you just keep raising the cost.
Parkings been Auckland airports juiciest plum for years and again shows what an ideological lemming Ryall is on top of his lies about doctors and nurse numbers is a nasty and evasive dude…..perfect NACT material.
Are there any escalation clauses or do they just charge what they like?
Don’t know, I’d have thought the hospitals would have some say in the parking levies but maybe not, look at Auck hospitals outrageous charges;
“The car park charges visitors to the hospital $18 for stays of 6-8 hours….”
The main point is the hospital (and other) car parks are publicly owned assets being signed over to profiteering private businesses for twenty year leases when there is no commercial or financial justification for such lengthy terms. The owners, ie us the public, are also losing very substantial sums in income from the asset.
true but NACT consider any public asset ripe for their business mates to profit at the public’s expense, sick and vulnerable even easier kaching.
Ryall’s doing long term damage in health and it goes pretty much unoticed, of of the darkest lords quietly going about the hollowmans business.
As annoying as they are, I guess they promote more efficient public transport in a way.
Of course it is unavoidable when you do need a car, but mostly I think parking charges and tickets are mostly a rich persons tax.
We still have it way better than most parts of the world. In the UK 10pd+ per hour was pretty standard in CBD type areas. Even in the suburbs you needed a ‘pass’ that verified you as a resident or you risked being towed. So pretty much your mates had to pay for temporary passes to park there, even outside YOUR flat. We are nowhere near that bad here.
That is what we have just down the road from me in Grey Lynn.
Bespoke custom pets – just press print.
http://www.economist.com/node/21551450?frsc=dg%7Ca
Ah I was almost half way through before I realized the date.
There was a great obituary as well
http://www.economist.com/node/21551439?frsc=dg%7Ca
Which wasn’t a joke.
Well worth reading, thanks for the link.
We all too often forget or don’t know about such people, who are the real leaders of this world albeit in a small way in the overall scheme of things. Leaders is not quite the right word, but brain is not yet functioning fully.
A truly inspiring article – recommend it to other Standard readers.
Ditto Very inspiring
Thank God for people like Lyn Lusi, who selflessly defied the darkness in the heart of man and brought healing and light to those maimed by human wickedness.Such a heart warming and uplifting life to aspire to.
Rest in eternal peace Lyn Lusi knowing that you faithfully fought the good fight and I thank you for it.
Love the acronym H.E.A.L. standing for health,education, action and love. I wish we could put this into action for our poverty stricken children. Thank you so much for this link lprent, stirring stuff.
Questions of ”cheque book legislation” again arose at Parliaments question time when both Brownlee and Joyce were questioned on whether Skycity had given any favor of any sort to either of the Ministers in the Slippery Sleaze administration,
The method by which Brownlee replied was slightly enlightening, complaining to the House Speaker Lockwood Smith that such a question from the Opposition should not have included the word ”corruption”,
Brownlee once put in His place answered a no to the question as to whether He had ever recieved favor or cash from Skycity as did Joyce,
A forensic psychologist tho would have been all over Joyce as when He rose to answer in the negative to the question of ever having recieved cash or favor from Skycity the first few words of His reply in the negative only managed to escape the constriction in His throat as a girlish squeak,
The real question that should be asked of Joyce in particular is has He set His business interests into a ”blind trust” with no knowledge to him management by others thus giving Joyce the perception of freedom from conflict of interest as a Minister of the Crown and would He be surprised if such a ”managed blind trust” held an amount of Skycity shares???…
Wasn’t Q+A better without Holmes, and Fran O’Sullivan even made some sense for once… I’m almost lost for words.
Indeed, Jackal. Greg Boyd did surprisingly well, and even Shane Taurima managed to make Key look less confident than he used to be. (Though more to do with the end of the Media Honeymoon, methinks. Just about to blog on it…)
The episode seemed more professional; less show-ponyish; and dealth with the issues (the issues! Oh no, say it ain’t so, ma!)
Just how wide-spread is this little bit of inspired Public/Private business???
It appears that Housing New Zealand Ltd has a contracted out inspection service where once a year tenants are visited by Housing New Zealand,s privately contracted building inspectors to check on issues of maintainence and/or tenant damage to the property,
It would further appear,and we have as yet not ascertained the numbers,that at least one tenant has had 2 new smoke alarms installed despite the 3 already at the property being in perfect un-damaged working condition,
The tenants in this particular piece of work are not asked for their consent nor are they told that they will be billed for the installation,
3 months later Housing New Zealand sends the tenants an invoice for ”damage” to the property with a claim that the smoke alarms were installed as ”replacements” for damaged alarms supposedly already at the property,
Tenants are given 7 days to pay for this little rort and we wonder just how many of Housing New Zealand,s tenants are being rorted in this manner and how many have meekly paid up thinking that ”they have to”….
Housing NZ Ltd for what should be a government service department. And then this outsourcing of real work to robot arms so that at the centre is just an ugly alien with giant eyes and a flaming mouth, the horror fantasy films come to reality.
We have posted twice here this morning and not wanting to hog the page we are off to spend a little energy on the chores,
What we have posted tho has as an afterthought to us addressed a somewhat intertwined issue that has effects at the top end of society as it does the bottom,
In reality we have simply addressed the issue of the supposed public/private partnership and that reality simply shows us that such a relationship is rotten at its core and should such a dissolution of the line between the role of Public business and Private business continue the rotten core will begin to give off a stench all of its own…
I see Airnz has new strap hanging stand-up-straight cheap offers going. Maybe just for 1st April.
National’s economic treason
The National led government have in fact increased government debt by over 190% since they gained power in 2008, and such economic bungling will undoubtedly cause problems for New Zealand for decades to come…
It always seems strange that Bill English’s litany of, “All Labour does is borrow and spend.”
But who has been borrowing us into huge debt since 2008?
I am still trying to figure out what the PM meant with his spiel on Q+A this am, when comparing 2 billion borrowed by National compared to 12 billion from Labour ???
Was he trying to say Nats have only borrowed 2 billion in the first three years ?
Rather disturbing story about a teenager trying to go all Equus on his Dad’s business in the Herald. It’s accompanied by a graphic picture of a dead horse. What caught my eye was the juxtaposition of that photo with one immediately to its right, which illustrates the difficulty a young Philippino woman is having getting bikini shots published on facebook. I think there may be a feminist on the sub’s bench trying to make an obscure point.
Mike Hoskings doing a ‘cash for comments’ deal with a major corporate with an image problem looking for concessions from government is following in a well worn track. See the John Laws link below. Laws’ people went out to recruit a corporate ‘with a big PR problem’: at that time it was the banks, who were in the middle of a major rarking up of fees. So: wonder who esle might be paying off our celebs and shock jocks? Aussie Banks here? ASB bank? Offshore owned utility companies? Super market duopolies?? Mind boggles: suggestions please!!! http://www.multiline.com.au/~johnm/johnlaws.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cash_for_comment_affair
Full independent inquiry required
It looks like Boag and Pullar have been utilizing their associations in the National party for personal gain and it is likely that very senior members of the National party (including Key) are implicated in the stand-over tactics of a private insurer and a government department…
It looks like you are trying to utilise old accusations backed by little or nothing. Pullar and Boag have been trying to utilise their National associations, but without much success.
The private insurer said their name drop overkill harmed rtaher than aided their claim there. They could see the “support team” was nonsensical, as could anyone with half a clue.
Nick Smith stuffed up but for nothing, things still haven’t been resolved at ACC so there doesn’t look like any personal gain there.
Key has adamantly discounted any involvement and that seems credible with facts the facts that are known and common sense.
Did you happen to see Q+A this morning Pete George? Fran O’Sullivan disagrees with your and John Keys argument.
I can count the number of times I’ve agreed with O’Sullivan on an amputees hand, but I happen to agree with her that undue influence is wrong even when it’s not successful.
Is a bank robber not a criminal when he doesn’t get away with any money Pete George?
Could you link to where Sovereign Insurance said the support and advocate people listed in the leaked letter was nonsensical?
Wayne Mapp on tv said he organised meeting(s) with pullar’s support people regarding
the claim from soverign insurance,the claim for $14 mil.
She also got closer to the $3 mil amount
according to a tv report.
WTF!!? How can National still be rising in the polls? Even as a strong National supporter, I can’t believe they have escaped so unscathed from all the shit that has gone down.
Have ask TS. Which poll are you writing about?
TV One – “poll kick in the pants for Labour”
http://tvnz.co.nz/politics-news/tim-watkin-poll-kick-in-pants-labour-4810215
http://tvnz.co.nz/politics-news/national-s-popularity-undented-in-new-poll-4810211
Tim Watkin says:
Or change it’s game. A few here Labourites here could take note.
When will they realise that they need to worry less about trying to make Key and National worse (they’ll do that themselves over time), and more effort making Shearer and Labour better?
The day the labour party needs popularity advice from UF would be the day it should shut up shop.
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One news released a poll tonight showing the three big parties up and NZ1 back down to 3% (lols – that’s what they said before the election đ ). Not on the CB site yet.
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On the plus side, that’s 51% all up for the nats government. Error-level shite, and not a spike.
It was the colmar brunton poll,what the hell is wrong with people,it was taken in the
midst of the acc debacle too,i give up.
Mostly the poll shows no change. Except this, which puzzled me most:
Sorry, folks, but no – National is not as high up in the polls as what Colmar Brunton would have us believe. It’s more BS polling, and the math is quite simple; http://fmacskasy.wordpress.com/2012/04/01/bugger-the-polls/
Colmar Brunton is trying to pull a fast one – the same BS figures they gave us last year.
My money is on a change of government in 2014 (if not earlier).
Yes, in moderation… one day I may find out why. In the meantime, I get the hint, I have nothing more to say about anything – but you can’t stop me thinking it!
Just watched the 60 minutes on Tv3. The Casino deal was in the gun. Guyon Espiner in good form questioning Joyce over the sweet deal. Joyce unable to answer some fundamental questions and I bet he will be unwilling to face up again. (Guyon said that in Adelaide the same Casino chain sought special privileges in exchange for law change. The Government response there? “You must be dreaming!” Joyce knew nothing about this – and he should have.)
Hope some clever Standardista can follow this up?
Stuff reported on the Adelaide comparison in August last year. That explains how Joyce had never heard of it: he was lying.
Slippery has also been running the lie about casinos being “safer” despite having no evidence.
Joyce oozes corruption from every pore – he doesn’t even try to hide it. How anyone can imagine that he would make a good party leader is beyond me.
OAB’s policy suggestion: require that Sky City’s owners build the convention centre for free, then confiscate their assets and drive them out of the country.
Personally I think that law should be changed.
Requiring 10 year olds on bikes to mix with traffic in Auckland while there is a, mostly unused, footpath available is totally stupid.
Of course if you would rather a cyclist got killed than a pedestrian injured?
Never heard of any pedestrians getting major injuries or killed by cyclists on footpaths.
Many deaths from cyclists being forced to bike on the roads, in places like Petone and Tamaki drive.
Tauranga has mixed bike and footpaths with a speed limit for bikes. Works fine.
Nelson and Mt Maunganui bike lanes would be alright if they did not put you right in the path of opening car doors.
Personally I think that law should be changed.
+1. Even if it means narrowing some roads to widen shared paths for bikes and pedestrians. Works extremely well where I live. Shared paths are probably not suitable for speed-training cyclists, but for commuting, shopping trips etc, they’re spot-on.
Many cyclists have told me that the law says they are allowed to not wear helmets if they ride on the footpath
They’re correct (however they wreck their case by illegally riding on designated footpaths)The law states that helmets must be worn when cycling on roads.
I like the idea on the Tauranga Mt bridge. The mixed path has a speed limit for bikes.
So. If you want to ride safely on the bike/pedestrian path you go at a speed that is not too dangerous for pedestrians.
Kids and late middle age cyclists can stay safe while the members of the lycra brigade, that want to ride fast, have the choice of mixing it with the cars.
There’s a few shared paths in Auckland, too. The path labelled as the North Western cyclway is actually a shared path. There’s loads of signs telling people to keep left. But I’ve come across a minority of pedestrians who think that it is for walkers only. They spread across the path in a group, blocking the way for cyclists.
This also happens on the split pedestrian/cycleway over the southern motorway on Symonds Street, with people walking in both the pedestrian lane and cycle lane at the same time, blocking the way for cyclists.
I’ve also come across a guy walking his dog without a leash on the north western cycleway. This is scary for a cyclist because you don’t know which direction the dog might run.
So, that means that if they cycle on the footpath, they don’t need helmets? That is not what two police officers told me… I fear that you have interpreted the law the way you want it to be, Rosy.
You should hang around Auckland for a while. (I know you’re overseas atm, but still). People who wear helmets are in the minority, and most of those who don’t are kids whose Daddy has told them to ignore Helen’s nanny state law, (my son was at school with many of those) or kids who whinge that they can’t afford a helmet (when they’re riding expensive bikes, of a like that we could never afford) or 30 somethings who respond with libertarian arguments, or more usually, insults.
I have taught and cared for people with brain injuries, and the Brain Injury trust man was actually in tears, when I spoke to him about this. I could not care less about the well-dressed idiot who nearly hit me, or the ex-colleague who claimed that he couldn’t afford a helmet, (he lied of course, and when I offered him Leon’s old one, had a well of excuses why he wouldn’t accept it. Ironically, I lost my job, he kept his – I can hardly afford to eat, and him?? Little barsteward. Brain damage might make him a nicer man, though I doubt it.) Howebver, I do worry very much about the kids. Even if their libertarian parents are morons, the kids don’t deserve brain damage.
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Yet another helmetless cyclist… Typical of the breed? (The headline is misleading, but that’s not unusual.)
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Are you responding to my (moderated) post about cyclists and footpaths? (I don’t even know if it left moderation.) Because if you are, you seriously missed my point, which is that footpaths are not unused! Especially not here – Pt Chevalier near Unitec. Rehab + and Segar Ave (residence for people with cerebral palsy), a day care centre and several schools are all in the area. The idiot cyclist I referred to missed me by millimetres, and could easily have bowled a child, an actually old person or a person whose walking is, because of their disability, very unsteady. So, don’t be so stinking selfish! The 10 year olds use the cycle path – only the helmetless teenagers and 30 somethings, use the footpath. (Some actual children use the footpath, infrequently, but I don’t begrudge that as they are careful.)
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That you have never heard of it doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen.
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You are right that such accidents do happen, V32. In this case it was the cyclist that came off worse, but it could easily have been the pedestrians. Not even a busy path, either, but a fatal collision none the less.
http://www.wanganuichronicle.co.nz/news/cyclist-dies-in-freak-accident/1112431/
Oh yes. None that I know of have happened here *, but my own near miss shows that they easily could – and the footpath is always thronged with people in manual and power chairs, and a cyclist would not be guaranteed to be the winner if they hit someone in a power chair (I am told by my son the health professional that the term ‘electric wheelchair’ is seriously banned! :D)
Many people at Rehab + are out on their own in manual wheelchairs for the first or one of the first times – I see that even I, a slow and small pedestrian, make them nervous, especially if they’re survivors of disabling car accidents!
That story you linked to is very sad.Â
* Although I do know of many children from Gladstone school who have been killed or injured by motorists nearby. These things are apparently so common that they never make the newspaper, but my son used to go to Gladstone school, and his teachers told me…
Just watched TV1 news, you know the one that has won the Qantas Best News Award (hate to see the losers) News item, says Donkey is still top of the hit parade. Two questions
a, Are the general public thick or,
b, Is it the usual spin and bullshit put out by the right wing MSM. The reason why I ask is, the people I talk to including ones who confess that they voted National, say completely different to what that pathetic news channel called TVNZ One news says.
about 5% bias for b, and a bit of a.
a) for sure as swinging voters love the beads and coloured glass the nats sprinkle about, we’ve don’t have an electorate that can remember broken promises or actually show up and vote.
b) TVNZ is very NACT friendly, always has been since early 08 when it know they were on the way in, Holmes/Hosking/Sainsbury etc and the endless stream of kid reporters are to serious journalism what chalk is to cheese.
Most of the lines come from high up, they’ll be going flat out to smudge the latest in NACT’s impressive corruption resume.
The nats use carrott/stick very well with those relying on govt funding….just look at the police.