Well put, was listening to the whining on RNZ this morning, nothing funny at all about family and animal lives being disrupted…but, I have not heard the air raid siren wind up like that since Auckland Chamber of Commerce rep Michael Barnett and Queenstown business reps performances during COVID lockdowns.
A debate over transport included an emotional speech from Dunedin’s non-driving mayor Aaron Hawkins as he spoke about the impact of the Canterbury floods on people's lives…..
….In a nod to his own non-driving, Hawkins admitted it was inconvenient not to drive.
But that was less inconvenient than being separated from family, friends, business and social connections by the sort of weather events witnessed in Canterbury over recent days.
“Oh God, sorry,” the mayor said, visibly emotional,
He wanted to acknowledge those flood-affected communities, “because that is what we are talking about when we talk about seeing more frequent and more intense extreme weather events as a result of having a less stable climate”.
…..The projects in the 10-year-plan include park and ride facilities at Mosgiel and Burnside ($10.3 million), a parking management and guidance system ($9.5m), a harbour arterial route ($16.6m), a bus lane for Princes St ($6.6m), and bike hubs ($2.5m)
Worsening climate is baked in now whatever Hawkins does at a local level about emissions reduction. No reason not to do it of course – but a lot of money will have to go into mitigation and retreat. Otherwise we will have a social disaster as people can no longer afford insurance and are wiped out financially, physically and emotionally by floods, droughts, etc.
Hawkins popularity has gone right down because people don't like the reality of changing habits to mitigate climate change such as giving up heavy reliance on cars .
Most people are complaining about congestion and lack of car parks many who supported Hawkins just to keep the ultra right Vandervis out have now changed their allegiance.
Vandervis continues to play the victim in his obsessive drive to become mayor by being anti everything pulling every publicity stunt he can.
No it's because I know his politics his connections.Lee wants to sell off all council owned companies.
His over the top complaints cost rate payers millions in Deltas unauthorized developments in Queenstown and Christchurch forcing the council to sell of those developments at fire sale prices.
Don't know about "ultra right", but here's Dunedin city councillor and mayoral candidate Lee Vandervis on climate change (in 2013).
Dunedin Mayoral Hopefuls Do The (Climate) Denial Twist
Lee Vandervis couldn’t wait to show me his graph that explained the cyclic nature of global temperature patterns stretched out over 5 million years. “What we really should be worried about”, he said gravely, “is global freezing.”
People (and the climate) can change. Maybe Cr Vandervis is just misunderstood?
I know many hundreds of dunedinites from dunners and the mood has definitely changed.I have been involved in dunedin politics probably longer than you have been a live.
I’ll have to take your word for it and even though yours is a ‘ironclad argument’, it is in dire want and need of factual evidence to replace your anecdotal hearsay.
If you follow the news down here,that is what many folk are thinking.Hawkins is not up too it,may well move into central politics(Green party)with even less affect. As for Lee I think that boat has sailed,to disruptive.Their will be a new mayor and Deputy after next elections.
Give us a link with something more substantial, please. A poll, a survey, something a little more tangible. I have no idea what I should imagine with “many folk”; tens, hundreds, thousands, some, a few?
Google is your friend,their is plenty over the last couple of years,by the way when did a many become a few, do I have to school you about local body politics. But my point is my view and as I have little data per month* I wont be bothering to link,an further to that I'm not good at it,so mute point,sorry.
*.. only cell phone tethering.Oh I'm trying to learn,computers do my head in,so as stated above"sorry"
No , Google is not my friend; I can find whatever I like, based on all the info Google has on me. You didn’t give any helpful hints either to start a search.
I like to draw attention to the fact that stories, messages, memes and what have are started and spread on the internet by people with an agenda and/or personal bias. For this reason, I cannot take personal anecdote from an anonymous commenter seriously and nor should I or anybody else here, for that matter.
If someone wants to spout a personal opinion on Hawkins, they are free to do so, within the rules of this site. However, they cannot speak for or on behalf of others or make unsubstantiated claims about a ‘change of personal opinion’ as if these are facts!
Not sure Hawkins popularity has changed much. The water thing was a bit of a hit, but the griping about carparks from VdV and a couple of other councillors isn't making a dent.
I suspect Hawkins will do another term as mayor (to prove it wasn't luck) then go to central government.
"Good to hear a personal view……..I'm not going to get into an argument with (comment/mod),only too say read what was said and have a look at links already provided by others.
……..from somebody who actually lives in Dunners. Is that right
edit
Exactly right AB. Oh hell, can some authorities really grasp the enormity of problems, and make plans to help the unfortunates to make reasoned withdrawal plans? Some of these people's houses on low lying areas need to be used as rentals now, while the owners seek permanent places on higher ground, and prepare for a loss on their lower house when it must be abandoned.
The local councils could build expertise in helping larger houses be converted to two or three sub-units, build granny flats at rear, subdivide or cross lease larger sections.
But most of all check with Master Builders or other reliable source on your choice of builder. They are dropping out leaving people in deep trauma. I suggest have a small basic plan that allows for built-on rooms side or over, with Council approval so that foundations are secure. Think about privacy from close neighbours too, Council might not care.
It is notable that the Southland floods were preceded by months of drought, a phenomonen, which in the link you provided, is called the 'Noah Effect', but which I suspect will soon become to be called the 'New Normal'.
By ‘Noah Effect’ we designate the observation that extreme precipitation can be very extreme indeed, and by ‘Joseph Effect’ the finding that a long period of unusual (high or low) precipitation can be extremely long.
The government has been warned that closing down the country's only oil refinery could expose New Zealand to fuel security risks.
The Energy Minister said these risks are not significant, but a consultant's report to the government says the opposite.
The risks centre on reconfigured supply chain, meaning the country would hold significantly less fuel because it held no crude awaiting processing.
Let's NOT go for a system based on 'best practice', best efficiency, and without unexpected outcomes not allowed for, and a childish belief that everything will turn out all right if we just rely on our allies, friends and regular friendly business partners. Here is another opportunity to abandon the country's best interests gummint – leave us wide open as you so often do, no probs, we'll manage, the Little Smart Country with a big mouth!?
For us more risk averse older types, jettisoning the capability for local refining is a big step. The refinery will be decommissioned with various cleanups needed and no quick route back to refining crude. I am close to Marsden Pt by geography and personal contacts. Operators knew something was up last year when fresh catalyst vital to the process, and worth millions was not re-ordered. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catalytic_reforming
One of Muldoon’s Think Big projects is basically going to be a storage unit with a pipe to Auckland. Marsden B was never fully commissioned, and the last recent Refining NZ CEO buggered off because the Board would not entertain revising B into solar and other green energy.
The retail petrol companies have certainly done well out of Refining NZ–gifted to them by one Roger Douglas and friends.
How we deal with roading will also be interesting… where will our bitumen come from?
Personally I believe it's a mistake as is stopping natural gas production.
What we should do is look to ban imports and have very tight nationalized production here with world leading environmental standards at the ability to use price control to reduce usage.
Stopping local production is effectively just 'off shoring' our emissions looks good on paper here globally speaking at absolute best neutral at worst we start importing say coal on a bunker oil burning ship…
Marsden Point's closure fits very well with the Government's climate change policies.
We will be entirely at the mercy of international markets and prices for all kinds of petroleum products from kerosene, aviation fuel, the different petrols, diesel, bunker oil, and all the way to plastics and tar. And TBF that's a good thing: those regular crises will be largely unhedged apart from some overseas reserve contracts – contracts which mean little in a genuine crisis a we've seen from the Covid vaccine distributions.
So every time there's an oil supply crisis or price spike, those combustion engine alternative debates get fresh alerts in neon lights.
We're in a completely different context to Think Big, which was all about increased energy self sufficiency following the oil spikes of the late 1970s.
Most Tier 1 construction companies are replacing their light truck fleets to prepare for the Climate Commission targets. Won't happen all this year, but they know that if they don't demonstrate they are going Net Zero, they just aren't going to win the next job.
Those are the people that use the trucks to transport those great wind farm components. I'm building one at the moment.
So no, your causal chain doesn't have any bearing on the reality on the ground.
Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said on Tuesday night that the virus was moving "faster than any other strain we've dealt with".
"We're seeing transmissions in settings and circumstances we've never seen before," he said.
His comments came as a new positive case was identified in a Victorian who had travelled to New South Wales and back again, prompting a whole raft of new exposure sites.
For the first time, health officials have seen four or five cases where people were infected by strangers by casual contacts.
Victoria's Covid-19 testing commander Jeroen Weimar said the interactions were "very fleeting contact" and quite different to what Australia is used to seeing…
"What we're seeing now clearly is people who are, they're brushing past each other in a small shop, they're going around a display home, they're looking at phones in a Telstra shop," he said.
So. if money supply tightened then inflation might go up? And might inflation being low be part cause of those without personal debt having a field day and those with debt in 'credit' cards, be most subject to the other inflation rise in housing and food?
It can be important to understand that terms may have different meanings in different contexts. As that piece explains the RBNZ has done a lot of spending to help make the govts deficit spending happen fluidly. This is called a cost, but in practice its only the RBNZ which issues these monies anyway. If you understand the RBNZ spending as the countries house hold chore roster, then that cost here means it has recorded more chores being completed recently. That should also align with the temporary decision to purchase a lot of output in the form of a wage subsidy, while the govt budget is typically mostly focused on buying public goods. The salient point for why this analogy is a better understanding of 'cost' here is that people understand that recording too many items on their chore roster doesn't bankrupt them into being unable to record additional chores.
In terms of inflation its going to be important to understand its a phenomenon of general price increases and not of relative changes in the price of different goods and services. Yes, this makes it contentious how to measure inflation as the aggregate price of which identified bundle of goods.
But it seems reasonable to expect inflation to go up only once the level of spending starts to push on productive capacity to deliver. At that point businesses might increase prices or they might further if wage increases cause a loss of their margins. The salient point being inflation will be caused by something which causes many businesses to decide to put their prices up.
It just doesn't seem that businesses pay much attention to the money supply when adjusting their prices.
Its more important to understand that the RBNZs bond purchases dont directly add money to the economy…and that any 'cost' depends upon what happens offshore and the relationship between the NZD and the major tradeable currencies…if and when those actions impact the cost of debt financing in the future are largely out of our hands.
"Its more important to understand that the RBNZs bond purchases dont directly add money to the economy…"
In what sense? These are the transactions,
1) the govt (usually the DMO) sells bonds to primary dealers, removing money from the economy in exchange for a bond and allowing the buyer to specify a price at which they buy.
2) the RBNZ buys these bonds on the secondary market, using its intrinsic spending capacity, and providing that money back to the bond seller. This usually happens at a small capital loss to the RBNZ so the primary dealers get a small profit for acting as intermediaries here.
3) At some similar time the treasury will spend the borrowed funds. If that happened before 1 then potentially the same funds were used for step 1 (in some sense).
But the point is that the RBNZ bond purchase directly put spending ability in the economies hands including a net profit on the DMO's initial borrowing.
Nic theNzer Could the Reserve Bank set up its own system for supplying credits to a government department or agency providing cheap housing loans to specific young adults rather than trying to influence banks in certain ways to do this. It is indirect and not very effectual. As the banks do not find it a good market, there is market failure here, and could the RB step up with a limited amount of capital to start to fill this gap?
Yes absolutely. I believe there are still provisions in the act where the finance minister can demand the RBNZ provides loans to the govt directly, for 6 months time frame. That the govt was not doing this was highlighted by Grant Robertson before QE was initiated.
Further with some changes in legislation the RBNZ could alternatively provide treasury with an unlimited overdraft on its account in the payments system.
But banks and other primary dealers seem quite willing to participate in this given the miniscule risk small profit terms.
Thats in terms of govt spending.
In terms of housing loans, yes, thats basically how student loans work. Though the govt would probably need to look at the credit conditions it lends on a lot closer. As the BNZ bank failure showed there should be an independent regulator somewhere in the mix.
The bond purchases are from institutional investors and increases their collateral but not their spending ability as that collateral remains within the RBNZ reserve accounts…the only spending capacity that leaks into the system is through the minimal commissions to the approved traders and increased private bank lending promoted by the reduced interest rates…assuming the economy can service the additional lending and has a purpose for it and the banks are confident their capital is not at risk.
On the Government side (fiscal) the increased borrowing capacity theoretically will lead to greater government spending into the economy but we know how slow that spending is getting out the door….especially when you have one eye on interest rates and debt serviceability.
And meanwhile you are reducing the spending capacity of savers with the reduced interest earnings on investment
So its in a M3 vs M1 sense. But even in this case those payments all increase spending power. If at step 2 the institution sells for a depositor then there is a credit to their M3 account. If its for the institution then that institution holds more cleared funds eventually if they are not spent that becomes profit to be paid out.
And of course 3 is crediting accounts also raising M3.
Finally M1 is a component of M3 anyway.
So your statement which I quoted is simply incorrect.
Sure along with money in circulation. But thats simply irrelevant to your claim. When the RBNZ makes a bond purchase the digital equivalent of cash becomes property of a non-government institution and its spending ability goes up. This refutes your statement.
Except as collateral in the reserve accounts it is not available to inject into the market.
You refute nothing….the RBNZ has bought approximately 50 billion in bonds in just over a year (roughly 15% of GDP) …..where is it? It is not circulating in the economy, it is sitting within the RBNZ reserve accounts….an asset swap, as the RBNZ themselves stated. Collateral.
Your being confused by monetary aggregates not behaving in the economy as expected. The turnover rate of money can and does change. For obvious reasons in the last year savings rates went up significantly and that is where the govt income boost ended up. It turned out in net that the balance was about right and there has only been a small decrease in employment. But knowing how these transactions work its absolutely clear non-govt institutions spending power went up. Just because your idea about how spending works is wrong doesn't mean the aggregates are wrong.
Thanks Nic the NZer. I'll read that a number of times, and pick up different points each time, and finally I won't see through the glass darkly as the saying goes.
If housing Cost's were put back in the CPI inflation would measured at 3 to 4% and the Reserve bank would have to put interest rates up to counter the oversupply of money.But then in an anaemic world economy it would make it harder for NZ to trade as our $ would go up as well. Making exports dearer.
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Winston Peters’ headline-making actions over the past week may have been a show of political power intended to strengthen his hand in Budget negotiations. It was no accident that his State of the Nation speech was as it was. He made it as New Zealand First Leader, not as Deputy ...
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:Former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson bowed out of politics this week, giving a series of exit ...
Graham Adams writes — If you love the law or sausages, as the saying goes, best not to look too closely at how they are made. And after watching the orgy of self-pity when Newshub’s closure was announced on February 28, television journalism should definitely be added to the list of those ...
Venerable New Zealand political commentator, Chris Trotter (https://bowalleyroad.blogspot.com/), is a sad creature these days. Once one of the most reliable Leftist writers out there – Economic Left at that – Trotter seems to have absorbed the worldview of Auckland culture-war obsessives. It is not for me to categorise what he ...
The cruelty of short-term memory loss is that each time you ask where she is, you get the fresh shock and grief of the news. That was Dad's day yesterday.Comfortingly, it seems to be less so today. Last night he looked crumpled, today he seems more settled. There's a card ...
Photo by Alvan Nee on UnsplashIt’s that new day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when and I co-host our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm. Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream for our chat about the week’s news ...
Buzz from the Beehive One minister is talking tough while a colleague – whose ministry had acted tough and drawn a barrage of flak – has shown an official softening. Some ministers are doing what Labour was good at, which is distributing public funds to causes regarded as worthy or ...
A ballot for 4 Member's Bills was held today, and the following bills were drawn: Insurance Contracts Bill (Duncan Webb) Income Tax (Clean Transport FBT Exclusion) Amendment Bill (Julie Anne Genter) Crimes (Increased Penalties for Slavery Offences) Amendment Bill (Greg Fleming) Pae Ora (Healthy Futures) ...
One of the strongest narratives about "our" spy agencies is that they are basically institutional traitors, working for foreign powers (or just themselves), without any control or oversight by the elected government. And today, we have yet another report from the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security which explicitly confirms this. ...
“It is often said that behind every great man is a great woman”. This is the pitch by the National Party Botany electorate branch to attend their “Ladies Afternoon Tea with Amanda Luxon”. For $110 including GST, you can turn up on Saturday 20 April to meet the Prime Minister’s ...
The Coalition Government’s plan to ‘get Auckland moving’ is a cuts cover-up that will ultimately cost Aucklanders more to move around the city, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Slashing the Ministry of Pacific Peoples by 40% will have a devastating impact on pacific communities and further highlights how little this government cares about anything other than cutting taxes for the wealthiest few. ...
Labour has proposed an urgent inquiry to investigate the ever-increasing profits of supermarkets, aiming to lower costs for shoppers and food producers alike, says Labour Spokesperson for Commerce and Consumer Affairs Arena Williams and Primary Production Spokesperson Cushla Tangaere-Manuel. ...
With 14% of jobs on the line at the Ministry for Ethnic Communities, the responsible Minister Melissa Lee is failing to stand up for the very communities she’s meant to be representing. ...
COURT OF APPEAL: TRIFECTA OF VICTORY FOR NZ FIRST, TRIFECTA OF FAILURE FOR OPPONENTS For the third time since April 2020, New Zealand First has defeated the Serious Fraud Office and all those complicit in a malicious attack against a political party going about its lawful business in a lawful ...
The Green Party stands with people who live in public housing, people in dire housing need, experts and advocates in demanding better than the Government’s archaic approach to housing those who need our support the most. ...
New Zealand has recently lost the hosting rights of some major international sporting events including the America’s Cup, the Rugby Championship, Netball World Cup, and the Wellington Sevens. We are now at a huge risk of losing SailGP as well. And it won’t stop there. The recent issues with SailGP ...
A Member’s Bill drawn this week would modernise insurance law and make things fairer and more transparent for consumers, Christchurch Central MP Duncan Webb said. ...
The Minister for Disability Issues has confirmed she was aware of funding issues in mid-December and did nothing to stop it. On 14 March, she signed off on changes that were announced and implemented on 18 March without any consultation with disability communities. ...
Green Party MP Julie Anne Genter says her members' bill is an opportunity for the coalition government to plug the gap in electric vehicle incentives. ...
The National Government continues to talk about irresponsible tax cuts that will only drive up inflation, despite the country entering a technical recession. ...
The Minister for Disability Issues must act urgently to reinstate flexibility around the funding for disability support and apologise to disabled carers. ...
This story has been initiated by a leftie shill reporter who proactively sought to call a member of a former band, which disbanded twelve years ago, give their biased appraisal of what was said in my speech, and concocted a ham-fisted attempt at a story that does nothing but show ...
The Government has accepted Labour’s change to the Road User Charge (RUC) discount for hybrid vehicles, meaning there will still be some incentive for people to buy greener vehicles. ...
Many in the mainstream media have taken what was said in New Zealand First’s State of the Nation Speech in Palmerston North on Sunday and deliberately, deceitfully, and ignorantly misrepresented what I said and why I said it. The headlines and commentary on the news stated that I compared ‘co-governance ...
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 Pāti Māori 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. “I’m calling on all political parties to support my ...
Good afternoon. Thank you for, in your very busy lives, turning up to this meeting today. On October 14th last year New Zealanders overwhelmingly voted for change. That is exactly what this new government is bringing. New Zealand First campaigned to ‘take back our country’ and stop the disastrous economic ...
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 Jones’ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Government’s 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 publicservice 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 publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Government’s 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 doesn’t 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. ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed the passing of legislation to move light electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) into the road user charges system from 1 April. “It was always intended that EVs and PHEVs would be exempt from road user charges until they reached two ...
New Zealand is strengthening its ability to combat illegal fishing outside its domestic waters and beef up regulation for its own commercial fishers in international waters through a Bill which had its first reading in Parliament today. The Fisheries (International Fishing and Other Matters) Amendment Bill 2023 sets out stronger ...
Economists Carl Hansen and Professor Prasanna Gai have been appointed to the Reserve Bank Monetary Policy Committee, Finance Minister Nicola Willis announced today. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is the independent decision-making body that sets the Official Cash Rate which determines interest rates. Carl Hansen, the executive director of Capital ...
Apartment owners and buyers will soon have greater protections as further changes to the law on unit titles come into effect, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “The Unit Titles (Strengthening Body Corporate Governance and Other Matters) Amendment Act had already introduced some changes in December 2022 and May 2023, and ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters will travel to Egypt and Europe from this weekend. “This travel will focus on a range of New Zealand’s traditional diplomatic and security partnerships while enabling broad engagement on the urgent situation in Gaza,” Mr Peters says. Mr Peters will attend the NATO Foreign ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown is encouraging all road users to stay safe, plan their journeys ahead of time, and be patient with other drivers while travelling around this Easter long weekend. “Road safety is a responsibility we all share, and with increased traffic on our roads expected this Easter we ...
About 1.4 million New Zealanders will receive cost of living relief through increased government assistance from April 1 909,000 pensioners get a boost to Superannuation, including 5000 veterans 371,000 working-age beneficiaries will get higher payments 45,000 students will see an increase in their allowance Over a quarter of New Zealanders ...
Ensuring social housing is being provided to those with the greatest needs is front of mind as the Government restarts social housing tenancy reviews, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. “Our relentless focus on building a strong economy is to ensure we can deliver better public services such as social ...
The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary will not go ahead, with Cabinet deciding to stop work on the proposed reserve and remove the Bill that would have established it from Parliament’s order paper. “The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary Bill would have created a 620,000 sq km economic no-go zone,” Oceans and Fisheries Minister ...
Dam safety regulations are being amended so that smaller dams won’t be subject to excessive compliance costs, Minister for Building and Construction Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on reducing costs and removing unnecessary red tape so we can get the economy back on track. “Dam safety regulations ...
The coalition Government is expanding the medium-scale adverse event classification to parts of the North Island as dry weather conditions persist, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced today. “I have made the decision to expand the medium-scale adverse event classification already in place for parts of the South Island to also cover the ...
The passing of legislation giving effect to coalition Government tax commitments has been welcomed by Finance Minister Nicola Willis. “The Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill will help place New Zealand on a more secure economic footing, improve outcomes for New Zealanders, and make our tax system ...
Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins and Tertiary Education and Skills Minister Penny Simmonds today announced plans to transform our science and university sectors to boost the economy. Two advisory groups, chaired by Professor Sir Peter Gluckman, will advise the Government on how these sectors can play a greater ...
The Budget will deliver urgently-needed tax relief to hard-working New Zealanders while putting the government’s finances back on a sustainable track, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The Finance Minister made the comments at the release of the Budget Policy Statement setting out the Government’s Budget objectives. “The coalition Government intends ...
The coalition Government will look at options to address a zoning issue that limits how much financial support Queenstown residents can get for accommodation. Cabinet has agreed on a response to the Petitions Committee, which had recommended the geographic information MSD uses to determine how much accommodation supplement can be ...
Cabinet has agreed to a short extension to the final reporting timeframe for the Royal Commission into Abuse in Care from 28 March 2024 to 26 June 2024, Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden says. “The Royal Commission wrote to me on 16 February 2024, requesting that I consider an ...
The coalition Government is delivering an $18 million boost to New Zealanders needing to travel for specialist health treatment, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says. “These changes are long overdue – the National Travel Assistance (NTA) scheme saw its last increase to mileage and accommodation rates way back in 2009. ...
The Government is recognising the innovative and rising talent in New Zealand’s growing space sector, with the Prime Minister and Space Minister Judith Collins announcing the new Prime Minister’s Prizes for Space today. “New Zealand has a growing reputation as a high-value partner for space missions and research. I am ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has confirmed New Zealand’s concerns about cyber activity have been conveyed directly to the Chinese Government. “The Prime Minister and Minister Collins have expressed concerns today about malicious cyber activity, attributed to groups sponsored by the Chinese Government, targeting democratic institutions in both New ...
Independent Reviewers appointed for School Property Inquiry Education Minister Erica Stanford today announced the appointment of three independent reviewers to lead the Ministerial Inquiry into the Ministry of Education’s School Property Function. The Inquiry will be led by former Minister of Foreign Affairs Murray McCully. “There is a clear need ...
State Highway 1 across the Brynderwyns will be open for Easter weekend, with work currently underway to ensure the resilience of this critical route being paused for Easter Weekend to allow holiday makers to travel north, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Today I visited the Brynderwyn Hills construction site, where ...
Introduction Good morning to you all, and thanks for having me bright and early today. I am absolutely delighted to be the Minister for Infrastructure alongside the Minister of Housing and Resource Management Reform. I know the Prime Minister sees the three roles as closely connected and he wants me ...
New Zealand stands with the United Kingdom in its condemnation of People’s Republic of China (PRC) state-backed malicious cyber activity impacting its Electoral Commission and targeting Members of the UK Parliament. “The use of cyber-enabled espionage operations to interfere with democratic institutions and processes anywhere is unacceptable,” Minister Responsible for ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Defence Minister Judith Collins today announced New Zealand will provide logistics support for the upcoming Solomon Islands election. “We’re sending a team of New Zealand Defence Force personnel and two NH90 helicopters to provide logistics support for the election on 17 April, at the request ...
The European Union Free Trade Agreement Legislation Amendment Bill received Royal Assent today, completing the process for New Zealand’s ratification of its free trade agreement with the European Union. “I am pleased to announce that today, in a small ceremony at the Beehive, New Zealand notified the European Union ...
Public consultation on the terms of reference for the Royal Commission into COVID-19 Lessons has concluded, Internal Affairs Minister Hon Brooke van Velden says. “I have been advised that there were over 11,000 submissions made through the Royal Commission’s online consultation portal.” Expanding the scope of the Royal Commission of ...
Hardworking families are set to benefit from a new credit to help them meet their early childcare education (ECE) costs, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. From 1 July, parents and caregivers of young children will be supported to manage the rising cost of living with a partial reimbursement of their ...
A specialised Independent Technical Advisory Group (ITAG) tasked with preparing and publishing independent non-binding advice on the design of a "green" (sustainable finance) taxonomy rulebook is being established, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “Comprising experts and market participants, the ITAG's primary goal is to deliver comprehensive recommendations to the ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins has thanked the Chief of Army, Major General John Boswell, DSD, for his service as he leaves the Army after 40 years. “I would like to thank Major General Boswell for his contribution to the Army and the wider New Zealand Defence Force, undertaking many different ...
25 March 2024 Minister to meet Australian counterparts and Manufacturing Industry Leaders Small Business, Manufacturing, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly will travel to Australia for a series of bi-lateral meetings and manufacturing visits. During the visit, Minister Bayly will meet with his Australian counterparts, Senator Tim Ayres, Ed ...
Government commits almost $3 million for period products in schools The Coalition Government has committed $2.9 million to ensure intermediate and secondary schools continue providing period products to those who need them, Minister of Education Erica Stanford announced today. “This is an issue of dignity and ensuring young women don’t ...
Good morning, it’s great to be here. First, I would like to acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of Building Surveyors and thank you for the opportunity to be here this morning. I would like to use this opportunity to outline the Government’s ambitious plan and what we hope to ...
Minister for Pacific Peoples Dr Shane Reti has announced the Government’s commitment to the Auckland Secondary Schools Māori and Pacific Islands Cultural Festival, more commonly known as Polyfest. “The Ministry for Pacific Peoples is a longtime supporter of Polyfest and, as it celebrates 49 years in 2024, I’m proud to ...
Before moving onto the substance of today’s address, I want to recognise the very significant and ongoing contribution the Breast Cancer Foundation makes to support the lives of New Zealand women and their families living with breast cancer. I very much enjoy working with you. I also want to recognise ...
New Zealand has notched up a first with the launch of University of Canterbury research to the International Space Station, Science, Innovation and Technology and Space Minister Judith Collins says. The hardware, developed by Dr Sarah Kessans, is designed to operate autonomously in orbit, allowing scientists on Earth to study ...
Introduction Thank you for inviting me to speak with you today and I’m sorry I can’t be there in person. Yesterday I started in Wellington for Breakfast TV, spoke to a property conference in Auckland, and finished the day speaking to local government in Christchurch, so it would have been ...
The Coalition Government is contributing more than $1 million to support the establishment of an emergency multi-agency coordination centre in Northland. Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell announced the contribution today during a visit of the Whangārei site where the facility will be constructed. “Northland has faced a number ...
New Zealanders have enjoyed a broader range of voices telling the story of Aotearoa thanks to the creation of Whakaata Māori 20 years ago, says Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka. The minister spoke at a celebration marking the national indigenous media organisation’s 20th anniversary at their studio in Auckland on ...
Commercial catch limits for some fisheries have been increased following a review showing stocks are healthy and abundant, Ocean and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The changes, along with some other catch limit changes and management settings, begin coming into effect from 1 April 2024. "Regular biannual reviews of fish ...
By Anneke Smith, RNZ News political reporter A petition urging the New Zealand government to provide urgent humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian people has been tabled in the House. More than 200 people gathered on Parliament’s forecourt today and they were met by MPs from Labour, the Greens and Te ...
Pacific Media Watch The Paris-based global media freedom watchdog RSF (Reporters Without Borders) has appealed for information about the “disappearance” of Palestinian journalist Bayan Abusultan. She was reportedly last seen on March 19 among people “sequestered” in this week’s raid and siege of Al Shifa hospital by Israeli troops in ...
EDITORIAL:The Jakarta Post It happens again and again; indigenous Papuans fall victim to Indonesian soldiers. This time, we have photographic evidence for the brutality, with videos on social media showing a Papuan man being tortured by a group of plainclothes men alleged to be the Indonesian Military (TNI) members. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robyn J. Whitaker, Director of the Wesley Centre for Theology, Ethics, and Public Policy & Associate Professor, New Testament, Pilgrim Theological College, University of Divinity A strange and eclectic range of activities takes place across these few weeks of the year. Some ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Panizza Allmark, Professor Visual & Cultural Studies, Edith Cowan University It’s Easter weekend, which means many of us will be kicking back with the greatest hits on repeat. But whether you’re a boomer, or an ‘80s or ’90s kid, you might be ...
RNZ Pacific Fiji’s Acting Public Prosecutor has filed an appeal against the sentences of former prime minister Voreqe Bainimarama and suspended police chief Sitiveni Qiliho in their corruption case. Bainimarama was granted an absolute discharge for attempting to pervert the course of justice while Qiliho received a conditional discharge with ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Arosha Weerakoon, Senior Lecturer and General Dentist, School of Dentistry, The University of Queensland Casezy idea/Shutterstock How does toothpaste work? What did people use before toothpaste was invented? – Amelia, age 7, Meanjin (Brisbane) Thanks for your ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brett Hallam, Associate professor, UNSW Sydney IM Imagery/Shutterstock Solar SunShot is well named. The Australian government announced today it would plough A$1 billion into bringing back solar manufacturing to Australia, boosting energy security, swapping coal and gas jobs for those ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Dix, Research Fellow in Nutrition & Dietetics, The University of Queensland Easter is the time for chocolate. The shops are full of fantastically packaged and shiny chocolates in all shapes and sizes, making trips to the supermarket with children more challenging ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emma Felton, Adjunct Senior Researcher, University of South Australia Even in a stubborn cost-of-living crisis, it seems there’s one luxury most Australians won’t sacrifice – their daily cup of coffee. Coffee sales have largely remained stable, even as financial pressures have ...
Mining company Trans-Tasman Resources has unexpectedly withdrawn its application for a consent to suck the valuable metals vanadium and titanium from the Taranaki seafloor, as it apparently wagers on the Government’s new fast-track process. It had spent two-and-a-half days putting its case to the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision-making committee, at ...
Contrary to the Associate Minister of Education’s claims, analysis of Healthy School Lunches Programme - Ka Ora, Ka Ako assessments has revealed it provides excellent value for the taxpayer dollar, as a groundswell of public opposition to Government ...
Greenpeace says wannabe Taranaki seabed miner Trans-Tasman Resources is likely banking on Christopher Luxon’s fast-track process to side-step proper scrutiny of its Taranaki seabed mining proposal by bailing out of the Environmental Protection Agency hearing ...
Kiwis Against Seabed mining today slammed Australian owned would-be seabed miner Trans Tasman Resources (TTR) for abandoning its application to the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) to mine the seabed of the South Taranaki Bight. The company ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katie Attwell, Associate Professor, School of Social Sciences, The University of Western Australia Ground Picture/Shutterstock Months after COVID vaccines were introduced in 2021, governments and private organisations mandated them for various groups. Health and aged care workers were among the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Dzurak, Scientia Professor Andrew Dzurak, CEO and Founder of Diraq, UNSW Sydney Diraq For decades, the pursuit of quantum computing has struggled with the need for extremely low temperatures, mere fractions of a degree above absolute zero (0 Kelvin or ...
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 A national Essential poll, conducted March 20–24 from a sample of 1,150, gave the Coalition a 50–44 lead including undecided, a reversal ...
The Taxpayers’ Union has today made a formal request under the Regulations of the People’s Republic of China on Open Government Information () for information held about how New Zealand Members of Parliament are spending taxpayer ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robert Nelson, Honorary Principal Fellow, The University of Melbourne A Byzantine depiction of the Eucharist in Saint Sophia Cathedral, Kyiv.Jacek555/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA A nasty quarrel arose in the 11th century over what kind of bread should be used in holy ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Patrick Hesp, Professor, Flinders University Patrick Hesp In some parts of Australia, coastal dunes are retreating from the ocean at an alarming rate, as waves carve up the beach and wind blows the sand inland. But coastal communities are largely ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Luke Heemsbergen, Senior Lecturer, Digital, Political, Media, Deakin University With an impressive 60% of the US smartphone market, Apple is undeniably big, but not a clear monopoly. Yet, years of innovation by Apple have effectively given the company its own exclusive ...
Whether you’re facing layoffs or are just an emotional junior staffer, it’s always a good idea to scout out a good crying place before you need it. It’s an incredibly hard time for Wellington. Across the city, thousands of public servants are hearing tough news about redundancies and layoffs. Government ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James Miller-Jones, Professor, Curtin University Nuclear explosions on a neutron star feed its jets. Danielle Futselaar and Nathalie Degenaar, Anton Pannekoek Institute, University of Amsterdam, CC BY-SA How fast can a neutron star drive powerful jets into space? The answer, it ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Daryl Adair, Associate Professor of Sport Management, University of Technology Sydney Earlier this week, independent MP Andrew Wilkie accused the AFL of conducting “off the books” illicit drug testing to identify players using substances of abuse, then inappropriately withdrawing them from matches ...
The Government’s announcement that it will scrap plans for a vast marine sanctuary around the Kermadec Islands is ‘shameful’ and will make it impossible for Aotearoa New Zealand to meet its international commitments, says the World Wide Fund for Nature ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Quiggin, Professor, School of Economics, The University of Queensland Shutterstock The federal government has bowed to pressure from the car industry, announcing it will relax proposed emissions rules for utes and vans and delay enforcement of the new standards ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Suzanne Rutland, Professor Emerita, University of Sydney In his latest book, Jewish Life in Medieval Spain, Jonathan Ray focuses on the tumult of the 14th century in Spain – a time of the plague, civil strife and war between the two largest ...
While creating a slate of world-class shows, Whakaata Māori also developed a generation of world-class creatives. Television is an odd word. It mixes the Ancient Greek and Latin languages, and its most literal meaning is “far-off sight”. In the contemporary and living language of te reo Māori, “whakaata” as a ...
Yesterday the UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Israel’s war on Gaza. This significant step and the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza prompted an urgent debate in the New Zealand Parliament. Leader ...
The Government’s decision to reduce access to continuous glucose monitors (CGM) not only threatens the lives of children with type 1 diabetes and increases the potential for ‘Dead in Bed’ syndrome, but also threatens the health of their parents an ...
Apples are available year-round, but the wide variety on offer involves intensive scientific research – and large-scale commercialisation. What’s beautiful, red, sweet and crunchy? Tony Martin’s favourite kind of apple: Sassy. The CEO of apple and pear breeding organisation Prevar, Martin’s fondness for Sassy represents professional success as well as ...
Family violence specialist service Shine is calling on employers to stop asking for proof of domestic violence in order for employees to access domestic violence leave. The call comes five years after the introduction of the Domestic Violence ...
The Deputy Chairperson of the Finance and Expenditure Committee is calling for public submissions on the Budget Policy Statement 2024. The Budget Policy Statement 2024 (BPS) sets out the Government's priorities for the 2024 Budget. It explains the approach ...
Brutal government spending cuts that will see the size of the Ministry for Pacific Peoples slashed by 40% will hit Pasifika communities hard, the PSA says. The Ministry has told staff that it is seeking voluntary redundancies, and to redeploy and reassign ...
I live with five people I mostly love, but our different ideas about generosity are starting to really irk me.Want Hera’s help? Email your problem to helpme@thespinoff.co.nzDear Hera,This is a bit of a random one but here goes. I’m 22 and work an OK job (OK meaning I get paid ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Maria Nicholas, Senior Lecturer in Language and Literacy Education, Deakin University Earlier this month, the New South Wales government announced it would roll out programs for gifted students in every public school in the state. This comes amid concerns gifted school ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christopher Rudge, Law lecturer, University of Sydney Massachusetts General Hospital In a world first, we heard last week that US surgeons had transplanted a kidney from a gene-edited pig into a living human. News reports said the procedure was a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Tombs, Howard Paterson Chair of Theology and Public Issues, University of Otago The 5th-century Maskell panel showing Jesus in a loincloth.British Museum, CC BY-NC-SA When Jesus is shown on the cross, he is almost always depicted wearing a loincloth around ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Panizza Allmark, Professor Visual & Cultural Studies, Edith Cowan University Shutterstock When you think about a red object, you might picture a red carpet, or the massive ruby in the Queen’s crown. Indeed, Western monarchies and marketing from brands such ...
COMMENTARY:Jewish Voice for Peace The UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza on Monday — and for the first time since the beginning of the Israeli military’s genocide of Palestinians, the United States abstained rather than vetoing it. Security Council resolutions are legally binding, ...
Asia Pacific Report A New Zealand investigative journalist and author says the US spy system hosted by the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) appears to be a controversial intelligence system used in global capture-kill operations. Writing a commentary for RNZ News today, Nicky Hager, author of Secret Power, a 1996 ...
While Nicola Willis wouldn’t give any details on its size, she said a package of tax cuts is definitely still coming in this year’s budget, writes Catherine McGregor in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. ...
The Taxpayers’ Union is welcoming the investigation into the Department of Internal Affairs after it was revealed that the Department’s Chief Executive personally reached out to expedite a DJs passport application. Taxpayers’ Union Campaigns ...
Finance minister Nicola Willis delivers her first budget statement, and unwittingly helps Joel MacManus save his relationship. Nicola Willis strode into the Beehive Theatrette. Around me, on the green foldout seats, were the country’s top business and political journalists. They were all here to see her announce the Budget Policy ...
Twenty years ago today, Māori Television launched after much controversy. Jamie Tahana looks back on its survival and impact across two decades. Chad Chambers stepped onto the stage, the brim of his cap casting a shadow across his face. His smile beamed as bright as his white freezing works gumboots, ...
Tauranga, Rotorua, Wellsford, Onehunga, Westhaven marina – Gavin Strawhan walks the meanish streets of New Zealand in his entertaining debut novel The Call, almost sure to roar into the number 1 position on the Nielsen bestseller chart, its front cover bearing a rave from somebody: “A really good and genuinely ...
On a Thursday in February, at Wellington’s Conservation House, the Conservation Authority, a statutory body advising the eponymous department and minister, Tama Potaka, opened its 195th meeting. Under consideration that afternoon was an agenda item written by Tim Bamford, chief advisor in the Department of Conservation’s biodiversity, heritage and visitors ...
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A lengthy response to the recently released draft Government policy statement on transport will soon be delivered from Auckland Council to Minister of Transport Simeon Brown. A submission raising concerns about funding distribution and the plan’s treatment of Auckland passed through the council’s transport committee on Wednesday, despite some councillors ...
The unidentified foreign intelligence operation discussed in a scathing report by New Zealand’s Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security (IGIS) last week appears to be a controversial United States intelligence system. The IGIS report said the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) decision to host a foreign system from 2012-2020 was “improper” ...
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I guess thats it.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/125308161/andrew-little-rejects-pike-river-families-plan-to-recover-more-evidence
No it clearly is not. The next steps will be to drill the bore holes and analyse the evidence.
So sorry… "should have added within the mine."
The Emperor has no clothes
https://www.newsroom.co.nz/political-beliefs-masquerading-as-science
That is a very penetrating article. Thanks.
Some related reading,
http://bilbo.economicoutlook.net/blog/?p=47506
Paul Krugman presents mainstream hubris.
http://bilbo.economicoutlook.net/blog/?p=47555
Why the present mainstream view still presents only a very narrow perspective on deficit hawks.
http://bilbo.economicoutlook.net/blog/?p=47579
What do deficit hawks think about criticism of their policy failures?
Interesting indeed.
More than interesting….fundamental.
IF confidence is lost there is nothing else to maintain that which underpins society
Waiting for the first Canterbury farmer to refuse ,"Socialistic" handouts from the ,"pretty socialist".
Waiting…..
Well put, was listening to the whining on RNZ this morning, nothing funny at all about family and animal lives being disrupted…but, I have not heard the air raid siren wind up like that since Auckland Chamber of Commerce rep Michael Barnett and Queenstown business reps performances during COVID lockdowns.
Wonder how those plains formed in the first place.
O yeah been happening for centuries.
Aren't they good stout English plains brought from Merrie England by good stout English Yeomen gentleman farmers then?
Internet comment of the day.
Though to be fair, there is going to have to be huge amounts spent on flood protection and proofing in the years ahead.
Maybe they could reinstate some of those wetlands that were drained…
Wonder who gets to pay for that..
Free market insurance companies will refuse to cover flood prone areas as they have done in the past
KJT, Lol Lol.
For every time there is a purpose under heaven,
A time to cry
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/local-government/300322473/oh-god-sorry-dunedin-mayor-gets-emotional-on-climate-change-and-floods
Dunedin 's cycleways around the harbour from Port Chalmers all the way around to Portobello are outstanding assets for its citizens.
Not if they get inundated by water as most of the cycle way is low laying.
They have been built up for sea level change this century.
You have a look at how high the tide gets around the harbour now it just needs a moderate wind and parts are covered at higher tides.
No cyclists on the road during those times.
I'm there tomorrow I'll have a look.
How much did they raise the path? High tide and the right wind used to see waves coming over the top at Mac Bay.
The rebuild looked like it was over a metre from the original.
I could just ask Fulton Hogan I guess.
I’d love to know. It was such a great thing to build, and am curious what they decided was optimal height.
Worsening climate is baked in now whatever Hawkins does at a local level about emissions reduction. No reason not to do it of course – but a lot of money will have to go into mitigation and retreat. Otherwise we will have a social disaster as people can no longer afford insurance and are wiped out financially, physically and emotionally by floods, droughts, etc.
Hawkins popularity has gone right down because people don't like the reality of changing habits to mitigate climate change such as giving up heavy reliance on cars .
Most people are complaining about congestion and lack of car parks many who supported Hawkins just to keep the ultra right Vandervis out have now changed their allegiance.
Vandervis continues to play the victim in his obsessive drive to become mayor by being anti everything pulling every publicity stunt he can.
Dunedin has ample car parking, and both the consultant who measured it and the Council are in agreement over that.
https://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/council-backs-parking-consultant
Everyone who cares about climate change has to be prepared to fight their councils on it, often for years at a time.
What is “ultra right” supposed to mean here? Is that a lazy term you use for people whom you dislike and/or disagree with?
No it's because I know his politics his connections.Lee wants to sell off all council owned companies.
His over the top complaints cost rate payers millions in Deltas unauthorized developments in Queenstown and Christchurch forcing the council to sell of those developments at fire sale prices.
Lee is all about Lee no one else
That does not qualify him as "ultra right", which tends to mean something quite different and altoegther more dubious.
Don't know about "ultra right", but here's Dunedin city councillor and mayoral candidate Lee Vandervis on climate change (in 2013).
People (and the climate) can change. Maybe Cr Vandervis is just misunderstood?
Councillors united against Vandervis
Outspoken councillor costs own council $94,000 – in part down to a $12 parking ticket
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/dunedin-city-councillor-lee-vandervis-walks-out-of-meeting-over-lying-accusation/CSX4S2JB3VGB42B62Q7RJACOO4/
Any links about that?
Sacha Purely annecdotal from a very well connected Dunedinite.
In other words, unsubstantiated innuendo AKA fake news.
I know many hundreds of dunedinites from dunners and the mood has definitely changed.I have been involved in dunedin politics probably longer than you have been a live.
[fixed typo in user name again]
I’ll have to take your word for it and even though yours is a ‘ironclad argument’, it is in dire want and need of factual evidence to replace your anecdotal hearsay.
If you follow the news down here,that is what many folk are thinking.Hawkins is not up too it,may well move into central politics(Green party)with even less affect. As for Lee I think that boat has sailed,to disruptive.Their will be a new mayor and Deputy after next elections.
Give us a link with something more substantial, please. A poll, a survey, something a little more tangible. I have no idea what I should imagine with “many folk”; tens, hundreds, thousands, some, a few?
Google is your friend,their is plenty over the last couple of years,by the way when did a many become a few, do I have to school you about local body politics. But my point is my view and as I have little data per month* I wont be bothering to link,an further to that I'm not good at it,so mute point,sorry.
*.. only cell phone tethering.Oh I'm trying to learn,computers do my head in,so as stated above"sorry"
No , Google is not my friend; I can find whatever I like, based on all the info Google has on me. You didn’t give any helpful hints either to start a search.
I like to draw attention to the fact that stories, messages, memes and what have are started and spread on the internet by people with an agenda and/or personal bias. For this reason, I cannot take personal anecdote from an anonymous commenter seriously and nor should I or anybody else here, for that matter.
If someone wants to spout a personal opinion on Hawkins, they are free to do so, within the rules of this site. However, they cannot speak for or on behalf of others or make unsubstantiated claims about a ‘change of personal opinion’ as if these are facts!
I live in dunners.
Not sure Hawkins popularity has changed much. The water thing was a bit of a hit, but the griping about carparks from VdV and a couple of other councillors isn't making a dent.
I suspect Hawkins will do another term as mayor (to prove it wasn't luck) then go to central government.
Good to hear a personal view from somebody who actually lives in Dunners.
"Good to hear a personal view……..I'm not going to get into an argument with (comment/mod),only too say read what was said and have a look at links already provided by others.
……..from somebody who actually lives in Dunners. Is that right
edit
Exactly right AB. Oh hell, can some authorities really grasp the enormity of problems, and make plans to help the unfortunates to make reasoned withdrawal plans? Some of these people's houses on low lying areas need to be used as rentals now, while the owners seek permanent places on higher ground, and prepare for a loss on their lower house when it must be abandoned.
The local councils could build expertise in helping larger houses be converted to two or three sub-units, build granny flats at rear, subdivide or cross lease larger sections.
But most of all check with Master Builders or other reliable source on your choice of builder. They are dropping out leaving people in deep trauma. I suggest have a small basic plan that allows for built-on rooms side or over, with Council approval so that foundations are secure. Think about privacy from close neighbours too, Council might not care.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/125261794/nelson-builder-disappears-leaving-clients-thousands-of-dollars-in-the-lurch
Apr2016 https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/78954925/christchurch-couple-left-reeling-after-stonewood-mortgage-deal
Council could assist with plans and info. for building sturdy units on steep ground:
https://fraemohs.co.nz/building-on-slope/
https://designeverest.com/blog/hillside-home-projects-their-challenges/
Look at the Finnish designs we were trialling in the 1960s before we ran out of individual initiative.
https://www.designboom.com/architecture/rare-futuro-ufo-house-hits-the-market-new-zealand-11-05-2020/
https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2012/may/10/futuro-ideal-home-wasnt The oil crisis of 1973, which tripled the price of plastic, was the final nail in the coffin. And there went another piece of 1960s utopianism.
For every time there is a purpose under heaven,
What has been is been,what has done is done,there is nothing new under the sun.
https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1029/WR004i005p00909
Hi Poisson, (great name by the way)
It is notable that the Southland floods were preceded by months of drought, a phenomonen, which in the link you provided, is called the 'Noah Effect', but which I suspect will soon become to be called the 'New Normal'.
What will the government do with this piece of hard fact that can't be dithered around?
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/443869/marsden-point-closure-could-expose-nz-to-fuel-security-risks-report-says
The government has been warned that closing down the country's only oil refinery could expose New Zealand to fuel security risks.
The Energy Minister said these risks are not significant, but a consultant's report to the government says the opposite.
The risks centre on reconfigured supply chain, meaning the country would hold significantly less fuel because it held no crude awaiting processing.
Let's NOT go for a system based on 'best practice', best efficiency, and without unexpected outcomes not allowed for, and a childish belief that everything will turn out all right if we just rely on our allies, friends and regular friendly business partners. Here is another opportunity to abandon the country's best interests gummint – leave us wide open as you so often do, no probs, we'll manage, the Little Smart Country with a big mouth!?
For us more risk averse older types, jettisoning the capability for local refining is a big step. The refinery will be decommissioned with various cleanups needed and no quick route back to refining crude. I am close to Marsden Pt by geography and personal contacts. Operators knew something was up last year when fresh catalyst vital to the process, and worth millions was not re-ordered.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catalytic_reforming
One of Muldoon’s Think Big projects is basically going to be a storage unit with a pipe to Auckland. Marsden B was never fully commissioned, and the last recent Refining NZ CEO buggered off because the Board would not entertain revising B into solar and other green energy.
The retail petrol companies have certainly done well out of Refining NZ–gifted to them by one Roger Douglas and friends.
Can we buy it for $1?
How we deal with roading will also be interesting… where will our bitumen come from?
Personally I believe it's a mistake as is stopping natural gas production.
What we should do is look to ban imports and have very tight nationalized production here with world leading environmental standards at the ability to use price control to reduce usage.
Stopping local production is effectively just 'off shoring' our emissions looks good on paper here globally speaking at absolute best neutral at worst we start importing say coal on a bunker oil burning ship…
Marsden Point's closure fits very well with the Government's climate change policies.
We will be entirely at the mercy of international markets and prices for all kinds of petroleum products from kerosene, aviation fuel, the different petrols, diesel, bunker oil, and all the way to plastics and tar. And TBF that's a good thing: those regular crises will be largely unhedged apart from some overseas reserve contracts – contracts which mean little in a genuine crisis a we've seen from the Covid vaccine distributions.
So every time there's an oil supply crisis or price spike, those combustion engine alternative debates get fresh alerts in neon lights.
We're in a completely different context to Think Big, which was all about increased energy self sufficiency following the oil spikes of the late 1970s.
I hope that the next step isn't to take up Breatharianism.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inedia
Our export sectors are already remarkably comparatively efficient in terms of petroleum inputs.
Our cities however are our sinkholes of inefficiency, which is why it's worth all the dreary effort to make private cars less attractive.
Oh can we expect private cars to be treated like tobacco and priced higher and higher and made more difficult to obtain can we?
The entire electrification process is fueled by fossil fuel … without security of supply the process simply cannot be brought to fruition.
No Diesel => no transport => no wind farms => no more hydro capacity built => no more rail network => no more FOOD
Most Tier 1 construction companies are replacing their light truck fleets to prepare for the Climate Commission targets. Won't happen all this year, but they know that if they don't demonstrate they are going Net Zero, they just aren't going to win the next job.
Those are the people that use the trucks to transport those great wind farm components. I'm building one at the moment.
So no, your causal chain doesn't have any bearing on the reality on the ground.
Someone may have noted this but just in case … We may have to deflate the Transtasman bubble.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/world/443849/victoria-authorities-consider-extending-covid-19-lockdown-over-rapid-virus-spread
The state reported six new locally acquired coronavirus cases on Wednesay taking the outbreak to 60 cases.
Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said on Tuesday night that the virus was moving "faster than any other strain we've dealt with".
"We're seeing transmissions in settings and circumstances we've never seen before," he said.
His comments came as a new positive case was identified in a Victorian who had travelled to New South Wales and back again, prompting a whole raft of new exposure sites.
For the first time, health officials have seen four or five cases where people were infected by strangers by casual contacts.
Victoria's Covid-19 testing commander Jeroen Weimar said the interactions were "very fleeting contact" and quite different to what Australia is used to seeing…
"What we're seeing now clearly is people who are, they're brushing past each other in a small shop, they're going around a display home, they're looking at phones in a Telstra shop," he said.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/business/443894/rbnz-to-wear-cost-of-monetary-policies-and-economic-support
So. if money supply tightened then inflation might go up? And might inflation being low be part cause of those without personal debt having a field day and those with debt in 'credit' cards, be most subject to the other inflation rise in housing and food?
It can be important to understand that terms may have different meanings in different contexts. As that piece explains the RBNZ has done a lot of spending to help make the govts deficit spending happen fluidly. This is called a cost, but in practice its only the RBNZ which issues these monies anyway. If you understand the RBNZ spending as the countries house hold chore roster, then that cost here means it has recorded more chores being completed recently. That should also align with the temporary decision to purchase a lot of output in the form of a wage subsidy, while the govt budget is typically mostly focused on buying public goods. The salient point for why this analogy is a better understanding of 'cost' here is that people understand that recording too many items on their chore roster doesn't bankrupt them into being unable to record additional chores.
In terms of inflation its going to be important to understand its a phenomenon of general price increases and not of relative changes in the price of different goods and services. Yes, this makes it contentious how to measure inflation as the aggregate price of which identified bundle of goods.
But it seems reasonable to expect inflation to go up only once the level of spending starts to push on productive capacity to deliver. At that point businesses might increase prices or they might further if wage increases cause a loss of their margins. The salient point being inflation will be caused by something which causes many businesses to decide to put their prices up.
It just doesn't seem that businesses pay much attention to the money supply when adjusting their prices.
Seeing it now, 7-13 % across the board in my industry with reviews in 3-6 months
Its more important to understand that the RBNZs bond purchases dont directly add money to the economy…and that any 'cost' depends upon what happens offshore and the relationship between the NZD and the major tradeable currencies…if and when those actions impact the cost of debt financing in the future are largely out of our hands.
"Its more important to understand that the RBNZs bond purchases dont directly add money to the economy…"
In what sense? These are the transactions,
1) the govt (usually the DMO) sells bonds to primary dealers, removing money from the economy in exchange for a bond and allowing the buyer to specify a price at which they buy.
2) the RBNZ buys these bonds on the secondary market, using its intrinsic spending capacity, and providing that money back to the bond seller. This usually happens at a small capital loss to the RBNZ so the primary dealers get a small profit for acting as intermediaries here.
3) At some similar time the treasury will spend the borrowed funds. If that happened before 1 then potentially the same funds were used for step 1 (in some sense).
But the point is that the RBNZ bond purchase directly put spending ability in the economies hands including a net profit on the DMO's initial borrowing.
Nic theNzer Could the Reserve Bank set up its own system for supplying credits to a government department or agency providing cheap housing loans to specific young adults rather than trying to influence banks in certain ways to do this. It is indirect and not very effectual. As the banks do not find it a good market, there is market failure here, and could the RB step up with a limited amount of capital to start to fill this gap?
Yes absolutely. I believe there are still provisions in the act where the finance minister can demand the RBNZ provides loans to the govt directly, for 6 months time frame. That the govt was not doing this was highlighted by Grant Robertson before QE was initiated.
Further with some changes in legislation the RBNZ could alternatively provide treasury with an unlimited overdraft on its account in the payments system.
But banks and other primary dealers seem quite willing to participate in this given the miniscule risk small profit terms.
Thats in terms of govt spending.
In terms of housing loans, yes, thats basically how student loans work. Though the govt would probably need to look at the credit conditions it lends on a lot closer. As the BNZ bank failure showed there should be an independent regulator somewhere in the mix.
The bond purchases are from institutional investors and increases their collateral but not their spending ability as that collateral remains within the RBNZ reserve accounts…the only spending capacity that leaks into the system is through the minimal commissions to the approved traders and increased private bank lending promoted by the reduced interest rates…assuming the economy can service the additional lending and has a purpose for it and the banks are confident their capital is not at risk.
On the Government side (fiscal) the increased borrowing capacity theoretically will lead to greater government spending into the economy but we know how slow that spending is getting out the door….especially when you have one eye on interest rates and debt serviceability.
And meanwhile you are reducing the spending capacity of savers with the reduced interest earnings on investment
So its in a M3 vs M1 sense. But even in this case those payments all increase spending power. If at step 2 the institution sells for a depositor then there is a credit to their M3 account. If its for the institution then that institution holds more cleared funds eventually if they are not spent that becomes profit to be paid out.
And of course 3 is crediting accounts also raising M3.
Finally M1 is a component of M3 anyway.
So your statement which I quoted is simply incorrect.
M3 includes money NOT in circulation….for the reason outlined above
Sure along with money in circulation. But thats simply irrelevant to your claim. When the RBNZ makes a bond purchase the digital equivalent of cash becomes property of a non-government institution and its spending ability goes up. This refutes your statement.
Except as collateral in the reserve accounts it is not available to inject into the market.
You refute nothing….the RBNZ has bought approximately 50 billion in bonds in just over a year (roughly 15% of GDP) …..where is it? It is not circulating in the economy, it is sitting within the RBNZ reserve accounts….an asset swap, as the RBNZ themselves stated. Collateral.
Your being confused by monetary aggregates not behaving in the economy as expected. The turnover rate of money can and does change. For obvious reasons in the last year savings rates went up significantly and that is where the govt income boost ended up. It turned out in net that the balance was about right and there has only been a small decrease in employment. But knowing how these transactions work its absolutely clear non-govt institutions spending power went up. Just because your idea about how spending works is wrong doesn't mean the aggregates are wrong.
Thanks Nic the NZer. I'll read that a number of times, and pick up different points each time, and finally I won't see through the glass darkly as the saying goes.
If housing Cost's were put back in the CPI inflation would measured at 3 to 4% and the Reserve bank would have to put interest rates up to counter the oversupply of money.But then in an anaemic world economy it would make it harder for NZ to trade as our $ would go up as well. Making exports dearer.
The link covers what is and isn't counted in CPI measures.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.rnz.co.nz/article/9fbc0eaa-f571-46b2-bd19-fd6c1304babe
If its a case of putting back in these items at which time was CPI 'correctly' measured?
While 3-4% would be high if the RBNZ could get inflation inside the 2-3% band it would be meeting its present inflation targets.