Another day in John Key’s neo-liberal nightmare.
We have become a cruel, ugly and selfish nation under his wretched leadership.
The New Zealand prison population increases to nearly 10 000 citizens.
The cost of our prisons increases to nearly $1 billion a year.
Our rate of imprisonment is now the 2nd highest in the world.
A billion to imprison people.
Yet not enough to house the citizens of this country.
What an abject failure this neo-liberal experiment has been since 1984.
Today this government shows terminal symptoms of Strategic Arse Elbow (SAE).
Going in the one direction, this morning at 10am the Prime Minister launches construction of the City Rail Link. New Zealand’s largest-ever infrastructure project, it’s going to revolutionize rail travel in Auckland, and provide a massive boost to high-density residential and commercial investment and city living.
Going in precisely the other direction, two hours later the government will release its National Housing Statement, which it has forecast will loosen Auckland’s growth belt so fast its trousers will fall down. This policy directive provides the government with explicit powers to undo the Auckland Plan and Draft Unitary Plan’s clear direction towards rail travel, other public transport, and higher density residential and commercial investment and city living.
No agency in central government can provide as clear and coherent advice about the future growth of Auckland, and clearly no-one in government is. Indeed forming that coherence is precisely what the Auckland Council is for. This government is today forcing the most massive policy and programme contradiction seen in a lifetime. John Key does not know his policy Arse from his execution Elbow.
It was 5 degrees in Auckland last night.
It was 4 degrees in Dunedin last night.
It was 1 degrees in Christchurch last night.
Not very warm to be sleeping in a car.
Not very warm to be sleeping in a container.
Not very warm to be sleeping in a garage.
Not very warm to be sleeping on the street.
Our shameful treatment of the most vulnerable in our society is being publicised in Britain. The world is being introduced to John Key’s cruel, ugly and selfish New Zealand.
There’s an elephant in this particular room. Has anyone asked the question of the young mum why did she have another baby while living rough? And where is the dad? If she was thinking of wee Mereana she should have told HNZ. The baby’s place is with the mum. It would not be taken from her without good reason. Baby first.
Eraic
“Baby first”. That ignores the parent, has no care for the mother, and refuses to see her as vulnerable just like her child, and a worthy individual, but just as one of a mating human pair. All mothers are more than that, they are worthy people in their own right and have responsibilities that are weighty and should be treated with respect and helped to cope with those tasks and needs.
No – sex first, then baby. You ask why would a young woman conceive a baby while living rough Eraic? Can you conceive of the circumstances of living rough. There aren’t protections from the rough life, the lack of privacy and safety, being handled rough, being treated rough, from feeling weak and cold and unable to find comfort or happiness, from wanting change from feeling roughness all around and seeking friendship or a type of affection, some warmth for a while.
And knowing that with living rough there will be no condoms for sex with the other person or persons involved who are also living rough, yet both might have some pleasure for a moment, or perhaps sex could have been forced on her.
And she knows too that she will not likely receive compassion from prating people who have no love of the agape sort (Greek for general love of humanity.This type of love was further explained by Thomas Aquinas as “to will the good of another.”)[5]
Did you know that the ancient Greeks had four words for different forms of love? Have a look at the Wikipedia entry and see if you have experienced any of them. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greek_words_for_love
Very good comment greywarshark, whenever I see this kind of comment from our less emphatic compatriots (“why do they have babies if they are poor/homeless/not me?”) I am reminded of this little clip from 30 Rock https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCYPqrmLwqs
Initially thought this was going to be about global warming.
We still haven’t had a frost this year in Christchurch. Usually the first one is in April. Next few nights have forecast minimums of 0C, so we might get a frost.
From the linked article…It is estimated there are about 35,000 ‘moving between temporary and insecure accommodation’ in New Zealand.
I’m picking that’s a massive under estimate. Many, many rental situations (most) are anything but secure and a million light years away from anything that might be considered even semi-permanent.
You would think any government would always be looking at how successful countries deal with its issues, but no, in good old in zid we just copy the fucking U S of A
Legalising cannabis. A government that is serious about promoting R&D and science. A few cities have good urban design with multiple transport options.
Look, at the end of the day. it’s the free market and frankly, who cares about the safety of infrastructure being built and the people’s lives if it collapses. As long as we can do it on the cheap and for profit!
I heard that woman from the Transport Agency on RNZ this morning too, she was half-witted and sounded doped up and was a disgrace to the Agency. So we now “have to let the free market prevail and no, we are not interested in who the providers of the steel were, its up to the suppliers to sort that out”. What is it going to take, a massive bridge collapse or a high-rise to collapse before this Government will take ownership of any responsibility for our safety. I have never heard such a disgraceful interview from a Government Agency quite like it – so its going to be the same old same old, who will want to drive through to Hamilton from now on wards, god knows what sort of construction strength these bridges will be and heaven help people who buy into these new apartment buildings in the city. How low can this Government go, they are bloody useless.
Panama Papers NZ – A 2014 email sent by Mossack Fonseca’s New Zealand representative lays out exactly how the company uses foreign trusts in this country.
An investigation into the Panama Papers – an unprecedented leak of 11.5 million files from the database of the world’s fourth largest offshore law firm, Mossack Fonseca – by RNZ,One News and investigative journalist Nicky Hager has lifted the lid on how New Zealand is part of a tangled web of secretive shelf companies and obscure trusts. It has also raised questions over the country’s foreign tax rules, including its disclosure requirements.
Now, an email sent by Mossack Fonseca New Zealand’s Daniel Leon has revealed – in his own words – the measures clients can take if they do not want their names to appear on the public paperwork.
The email was in response to an enquiry on behalf of Juan Fernandez Methol from Studio Damiani, a Uruguayan firm offering legal and accountancy services to provide inheritance and tax “financial solutions”.
If this guy was a bene or a greenie it would be all over the news about how he’s bringing the country into disrepute with twisted values, taxpayers $$$ etc. etc.
But he’s just a dude – salesman – trying to make a buck and had a few problems that led him astray. He cost the country $37m. Probably will get home detention. He doesn’t even rate the front page.
Yep, giving them housing will save money in the long term, but that is not the point- it should not be about saving money – but decency of a society to say we do not tolerate homelessness!
Sadly we have reached the point where the decency of society argument falls on deaf ears. It’s only the dollars argument that might filter through. Sometimes.
I think it was John Campbell’s marvelous work on the destitute people forced to pay $1300 a week THAT HAD TO BE PAID BACK that has finally caused the housing issue to blow up in the face of the government.
Issues that are easy to understand and that are manifestly unjust are the ones that resonate with the public.
Bearded Git
I think this part of your comment is one that should be borne in mind all the time by politicians and activists, and particularly in the run up to 2017 elections.
Issues that are easy to understand and that are manifestly unjust are the ones that resonate with the public.
lprent
I had an unusual message come up while I was trying to place the above comment – something about this web site is not encrypted …something.
My Firefox has not been updated for a while and that might be the reason.
(It illustrates how this new boon to mankind of the internet is constantly being challenged by various factors so that it is not as wonderful as could have been.)
Leaving aside that that is a truly weird article, I think this is another example of the Hoskin Approach. We don’t need experts. The people that shot the gorilla were wrong because. Despite them being an actual dangerous animals response team ie experts.
Definitely a really weird one, I see no author put a name to it either.. It seems to be one of those lets keep the PM in the media, any publicity is good publicity stories.
On the gorilla, I find it interesting the story is that the gorilla was throwing the child against the wall. This goes against what an Ape expert said the other day that it would be in more a protective mode. Also, if you just shot a gorilla, wouldnt it be a great cover to say the gorilla was being extremely violent so it had to be done.
The first footage they had on TV made it look like the ape was being protective, the more extended footage made me think they had no choice but to shoot.
but also yo if you are tweaking about this gorilla being shot i’ve got a story about this kid named tamir rice that will BLOW YOUR MIND
1:02 PM – 31 May 2016
As another Facebook post — this one by Emily Bingham — put it:
All my fellow Ohio people enraged about the senseless killing of a gorilla. Boy do I have a WILD story for you about a little boy named Tamir Rice.
And the good news in the US is…. (sarc).. thanks failed neoliberalism
“The winners have taken all: Middle class incomes are plummeting — with no relief in sight
The staggering reality is that half of America is in financial distress and at risk of falling deeper into debt”
P.s I put the US articles in, because similar things are happening in NZ, but we don’t have a MSM that will report them or a government that keeps politically neutral statistics to measure the change …
Meanwhile things are going swimmingly in socialist Venezula, Cuba, North Korea, Europe.,………….. As they did in Eastern Europe pre breakup of Soviet Union , 1970s Uk etc
I see trotter has put the boot into the clumsy so called labour green MOU, arguing it’s nothing like the successful alliance and labour tie up, more the dance of the desperate. Give trotter his dues, he is one astute bloke
Yeah, nah. He appears to be saying that he thinks they went about it the wrong way.
But whatever else I may be, I am not a cheerleader. If I believe the Labour and Green parties have announced their new “Understanding” far too soon; without preparing the electorate or priming the news media; without securing real and valuable gains for both partners; without carefully gauging the reaction of both their members and their voters; and without having straightforward answers to journalists’ straightforward (and entirely predictable) questions; then I reserve the right to speak bluntly and critically about these deficiencies.
And yet if he’d articulated an opinion that didn’t so conveniently align with your own, you’d no doubt be calling him a pretentious socialist arsehole who doesn’t know his arse from his elbow.
” without preparing the electorate or priming the news media;” sounds to me like Chris Trotter is more than a bit miffed that he wasn’t tipped off the news beforehand, Weka.
” without preparing the electorate or priming the news media;” sounds to me like Chris Trotter is more than a bit miffed that he wasn’t tipped off the news beforehand, Weka.
That’s a rather uncharitable interpretation.
A more professional one is that Labour didn’t do the ground work needed to get the most PR and media mileage from this announcement.
actually, “uncharitable” is to single out Labour for perceived failings in a joint presentation.
What “groundwork” did the Greens do to “get the most PR and media mileage from this announcement” (and other safely vague and unsubstantive accusations)?
“… the Labour and Green parties have announced their new “Understanding” far too soon;”
How so? It’s just as easy to argue that this is a good amount of time, it allows the electorate to see the relationship in action well before the pressures of an election year. By the time the election campaign proper starts, lots will have been ironed out and people will have gotten used to the idea. It also means they are prepared if Key calls the election early.
“without preparing the electorate or priming the news media;”
I liked this. I’m especially impressed that there were no leaks from Labour. That’s a good sign. What prepation of the electorate should have happened? What priming of the media?
“without securing real and valuable gains for both partners”
The gains are very obvious to me. What is Trotter referring to?
“without carefully gauging the reaction of both their members and their voters”
I can see this both ways. I don’t have a problem as a GP member with this having been done in secret, because I’m pretty sure that most GP members have been wanting this to happen for a long time. If it had been done publicly we would have had months of MSM beat ups. I think how they did it was preferable.
“and without having straightforward answers to journalists’ straightforward (and entirely predictable) questions”
What? Paddy rabid terrier Gower’s questions about NZF? The question was asked and answered. L/G are going to change the govt, and both are very open to working with NZF or any party that shares their aim.
I didn’t see Trotter’s original bit on tv, so maybe he made a better argument there, but his piece on TDB is all puff.
National’s War on Dunedin (or is that “War on the Regions” in general?) continues: Agresearch Invermay facility confirmed to lose 56 jobs in a bloody stupid decision.
What I can’t understand about this Government is – why it doesn’t want to govern this country, it is doing nothing. These large metropolitan cities do not promote unfettered immigrants to come to this country, nor do they ask them to live in these cities. The Gov. is not prepared to help out with the infrastructure needed to implement these new outer-city subdivisions and is putting the burden on the councils. It also will not allow these councils to raise funds from its citizens to get on with the infrastructure and public transport, with tools like road tolling to help pay for the roads.
The Government also will not bring in policies to slow the housing market, like a CGT or making immigrants build new homes, reducing the number of homes a person or trust can own in Auckland, a penalty for leaving homes empty for any length of time. They are absolutely sitting on their backsides and leaving these councils hamstrung and making the rate payers bankrupt themselves – don’t they pay enough taxes as it is. If they are not prepared to spend tax payer’s money, then they could at least enact legislation which miserly Double Dipper won’t have an excuse to hug the purse strings over. For the love of God, does this Government actually do anything at all?
How can these neo-liberals who love this Government see anything worthwhile in their governing, it just isn’t logical at all.
Every time I see someone complain that the opposition offers no credible alternative, I find myself wondering how the current govt offers anything credible whatsoever.
Voters want to see a clear alternative to National’s laissez faire hands of the wheel style of management.
Is Labour going to stop foreigners buying houses? Is Labour going to exit NZ out of the TPP? Is Labour going to bring back the CGT? Is Labour going to end land banking? Is Labour going to end property investors who own a dozen or more houses?
Can you say yes to any of the above?
If not, that’s probably why people don’t see Labour offering a clear alternative, merely a watered down one.
CV, the subject of my comment was the credibility of the current govt. I neither made nor invited any comment on that of the opposition. So while you are of course free to rant/vent about whatever you like, I’ll pass on your questions.
BUSINESS
In caps because it needs our scrutiny more.
Fonterra
Ag Research
Steel
$133m AgResearch restructure gets go-ahead
The government has given AgResearch the go-ahead for a controversial major restructure that will cost $33 million more than first proposed. http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/305405/$133m-agresearch-restructure-gets-go-ahead
(NZ has a conservative government that doesn’t follow it’s own basic precepts ‘that if it ain’t broke, then don’t fix it.’ This is a useful taonga but only Maori have the nous to defend and protect taonga, the rest of us have been hypnotised by a $50 note waved in front of our eyes, with TINA and tax cuts repeated monotonously.
his disruption to Agresearch shows the desire to invest less in things of importance to the country’s future, and bleed most of its resources to cash up the nation while it’s still apparently alive.)
(Youtube has numbers of vids of roads where huge holes have appeared. No doubt they’re traceable to bad design, construction and implementation. We’ll end up with the same if corrupt practices become regularised here. But government isn’t exercised and won’t investigate. Who cares? Well we do.) http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/305427/govt-won%27t-investigate-weak-steel
and
Transport Agency unsure where bad steel came from
6:38 AM.The Transport Agency doesn’t know where 16-hundred tonnes of bad Chinese steel for new highway bridges came from, and says it won’t be asking. http://www.radionz.co.nz/audio/player/201802984 2+m.
and
Contractors who imported steel warned (Fulton & Hogan? Listen and find out.)
8:19 AM.The contractors who imported 16-hundred tonnes of substandard steel for new highway bridges were warned the deal was too good to be true. http://www.radionz.co.nz/audio/player/201803012
NZ economy performs well
(However – this from the bureau that facilitates the spread of economic fashion styles for the season – the winter of our discontent and other three seasons as well.) http://www.radionz.co.nz/audio/player/201802990 ..49s
6:58 AM.New Zealand is expected to be one of the stronger growing economies in the world in the coming year according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development..
And Fonterra http://www.radionz.co.nz/audio/player/201802998
The interviewee stated that Fonterra is right to be moving to value added product and away from the dried milk staple. And that marketers will be accenting NZ grass fed quality and good animal practices etc. All the things that have been put into jeopardy by profit oriented, milk rush overstocking and imported palm kernel feed with extra insects or pests of some sort or other.
NZ – tops in cupidity and stupidity in a wide range of fields and paddocks – 100%!
Yeah what the hay, hey. I too thought about that long time lead.. I remember before the last or the one before last appointment, of the top Udder, commenters were saying that he was mostly experienced in commodities and didn’t have the background that would take us into value added.
So now we are forced to accept a ‘new’ idea, after half destroying the countryside and the country’s variety of exports, and dairy farmers being given the greatest subsidy of all, preferential access to natural rivers and aquifers. The loss of the Canterbury Plains grain growth in favour of watering it for bigger profits from dairy exports of mainly one product furthers the loss to the country’s food stability and reserves.
Then the wiping out of our protective duties against imports, enabling our domestic economy to live and not be undermined by the vast industry of the rest of the world and its slave employees has led to the extreme impoverishment in the towns.
All this for dairy farmers, who have often leveraged themselves into multiple farms which they didn’t want to work themselves, and so installed either IT so they didn’t have to get cowpats on their shiny shoes, or overworked, underpaid employees. Or they sold the productive land to foreigners for a bit fat once-off profit to them, and a drain on our export returns for ever probably. And the government has planned all this. And they have the gall to sneer at Chinese five year plans, and how planned economies pick winners and don’t let the market developments show which way to go. What’s happened here under National is just the same, except they have too much guile to admit it.
As I said before NZ tops in the developed world for cupidity and stupidity, 100% pure.
His take on media seems fair enough from a quick perusal. But a one party state requires that there be no choice of political parties to vote for. And that’s most definitely not the case in NZ. Even when and if one party dominates the political landscape, that’s still not a ‘one party state’. Shame he uses such rhetoric and even seeks to defend it.
Among Thor’s main advantages is its low price tag and high reusability. Unlike conventional UAVs, which can cost hundreds of thousands and even millions of dollars, the total cost of the printed parts that make up Airbus’ newest creation is around €25,000.
As I’ve said before – 3D Manufacturing is the future and it removes all the false economies of scale that gets large factories in China working. With this type of manufacturing capability international trade in products disappears. The only thing left to trade will be information and information trade really only works when it freely shared without the artificial barriers of copyright and patents to get in the way.
yes I wondered about that claim of jonkey…maybe he should become a real estate agent….i am sure there will be a BIG run on these houses now, especially as there are so few of them and there are so many needing affordable houses in Auckland ( not that just under $500,000 for these little out of the way places is reasonable price)
and of course the homeless won’t be able to afford them!
This is worth a watch if you’ve a spare half an hour. Vice TV did a kind of ‘fly on the wall’ short docu on Jeremy Corbyn covering two months prior to the recent local elections in England and Wales.
Buzz from the Beehive Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters was bound to win headlines when he set out his thinking about AUKUS in his speech to the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. The headlines became bigger when – during an interview on RNZ’s Morning Report today – he criticised ...
The Post reports on how the government is refusing to release its advice on its corrupt Muldoonist fast-track law, instead using the "soon to be publicly available" refusal ground to hide it until after select committee submissions on the bill have closed. Fast-track Minister Chris Bishop's excuse? “It's not ...
As pressure on it grows, the livestock industry’s approach to the transition to Net Zero is increasingly being compared to that of fossil fuel interests. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / Getty ImagesTL;DR: Here’s the top five news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa-NZ this week, and a discussion above ...
The New Zealand Herald reports – Stats NZ has offered a voluntary redundancy scheme to all of its workers as a way to give staff some control over their “future” amidst widespread job losses in the public sector. In an update to staff this morning, seen by the Herald, Statistics New Zealand ...
On Werewolf/Scoop, I usually do two long form political columns a week. From now on, there will be an extra column each week about music and movies. But first, some late-breaking political events:The rise in unemployment numbers for the March quarter was bigger than expected – and especially sharp ...
David Farrar writes – The Herald reports: TVNZ says it is dealing with about 50 formal complaints over its coverage of the latest 1News-Verian political poll, with some viewers – as well as the Prime Minister and a former senior Labour MP – critical of the tone of the 6pm report. ...
Muriel Newman writes – When Meridian Energy was seeking resource consents for a West Coast hydro dam proposal in 2010, local Maori “strenuously” objected, claiming their mana was inextricably linked to ‘their’ river and could be damaged. After receiving a financial payment from the company, however, the Ngai Tahu ...
Alwyn Poole writes – “An SEP,’ he said, ‘is something that we can’t see, or don’t see, or our brain doesn’t let us see, because we think that it’s somebody else’s problem. That’s what SEP means. Somebody Else’s Problem. The brain just edits it out, it’s like a ...
Our trust in our political institutions is fast eroding, according to a Maxim Institute discussion paper, Shaky Foundations: Why our democracy needs trust. The paper – released today – raises concerns about declining trust in New Zealand’s political institutions and democratic processes, and the role that the overuse of Parliamentary urgency ...
This article was prepared for publication yesterday. More ministerial announcements have been posted on the government’s official website since it was written. We will report on these later today …. Buzz from the BeehiveThere we were, thinking the environment is in trouble, when along came Jones. Shane Jones. ...
New Zealand now has the fourth most depressed construction sector in the world behind China, Qatar and Hong Kong. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 8:46am on Thursday, May 2:The Lead: ...
Hi,I am just going to state something very obvious: American police are fucking crazy.That was a photo gracing the New York Times this morning, showing New York City police “entering Columbia University last night after receiving a request from the school.”Apparently in America, protesting the deaths of tens of thousands ...
Winston Peters’ much anticipated foreign policy speech last night was a work of two halves. Much of it was a standard “boilerplate” Foreign Ministry overview of the state of the world. There was some hardening up of rhetoric with talk of “benign” becoming “malign” and old truths giving way to ...
Graham Adams assesses the fallout of the Cass Review — The press release last Thursday from the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls didn’t make the mainstream news in New Zealand but it really should have. The startling title of Reem Alsalem’s statement — “Implementation of ‘Cass ...
This open-for-business, under-new-management cliché-pockmarked government of Christopher Luxon is not the thing of beauty he imagines it to be. It is not the powerful expression of the will of the people that he asserts it to be. It is not a soaring eagle, it is a malodorous vulture. This newest poll should make ...
The latest labour market statistics, showing a rise in unemployment. There are now 134,000 unemployed - 14,000 more than when the National government took office. Which is I guess what happens when the Reserve Bank causes a recession in an effort to Keep Wages Low. The previous government saw a ...
Three opinion polls have been released in the last two days, all showing that the new government is failing to hold their popular support. The usual honeymoon experienced during the first year of a first term government is entirely absent. The political mood is still gloomy and discontented, mainly due ...
National's Finance Minister once met a poor person.A scornful interview with National's finance guru who knows next to nothing about economics or people.There might have been something a bit familiar if that was the headline I’d gone with today. It would of course have been in tribute to the article ...
Rob MacCulloch writes – Throughout the pandemic, the new Vice-Chancellor-of-Otago-University-on-$629,000 per annum-Can-you-believe-it-and-Former-Finance-Minister Grant Robertson repeated the mantra over and over that he saved “lives and livelihoods”.As we update how this claim is faring over the course of time, the facts are increasingly speaking differently. NZ ...
Chris Trotter writes – IT’S A COMMONPLACE of political speeches, especially those delivered in acknowledgement of electoral victory: “We’ll govern for all New Zealanders.” On the face of it, the pledge is a strange one. Why would any political leader govern in ways that advantaged the huge ...
Bryce Edwards writes – The list of former National Party Ministers being given plum and important roles got longer this week with the appointment of former Deputy Prime Minister Paula Bennett as the chair of Pharmac. The Christopher Luxon-led Government has now made key appointments to Bill ...
TL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 10:06am on Wednesday, May 1:The Lead: Business confidence fell across the board in April, falling in some areas to levels last seen during the lockdowns because of a collapse in ...
Over the past 36 hours, Christopher Luxon has been dong his best to portray the centre-right’s plummeting poll numbers as a mark of virtue. Allegedly, the negative verdicts are the result of hard economic times, and of a government bravely set out on a perilous rescue mission from which not ...
Auckland Transport have started rolling out new HOP card readers around the network and over the next three months, all of them on buses, at train stations and ferry wharves will be replaced. The change itself is not that remarkable, with the new readers looking similar to what is already ...
Completed reads for April: The Difference Engine, by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling Carnival of Saints, by George Herman The Snow Spider, by Jenny Nimmo Emlyn’s Moon, by Jenny Nimmo The Chestnut Soldier, by Jenny Nimmo Death Comes As the End, by Agatha Christie Lord of the Flies, by ...
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 ...
Have a story to share about St Paul’s, but today just picturesPopular novels written at this desk by a young man who managed to bootstrap himself out of father’s imprisonment and his own young life in a workhouse Read more ...
The list of former National Party Ministers being given plum and important roles got longer this week with the appointment of former Deputy Prime Minister Paula Bennett as the chair of Pharmac. The Christopher Luxon-led Government has now made key appointments to Bill English, Simon Bridges, Steven Joyce, Roger Sowry, ...
Newsroom has a story today about National's (fortunately failed) effort to disestablish the newly-created Inspector-General of Defence. The creation of this agency was the key recommendation of the Inquiry into Operation Burnham, and a vital means of restoring credibility and social licence to an agency which had been caught lying ...
Holding On To The Present:The moment a political movement arises that attacks the whole idea of social progress, and announces its intention to wind back the hands of History’s clock, then democracy, along with its unwritten rules, is in mortal danger.IT’S A COMMONPLACE of political speeches, especially those delivered in ...
Stuck In The Middle With You:As Christopher Luxon feels the hot breath of Act’s and NZ First’s extremists on the back of his neck and, as he reckons with the damage their policies are already inflicting upon a country he’s described as “fragile”, is there not some merit in reaching out ...
The unpopular coalition government is currently rushing to repeal section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act. The clause is Oranga Tamariki's Treaty clause, and was inserted after its systematic stealing of Māori children became a public scandal and resulted in physical resistance to further abductions. The clause created clear obligations ...
Buzz from the Beehive The government’s official website – which Point of Order monitors daily – not for the first time has nothing much to say today about political happenings that are grabbing media headlines. It makes no mention of the latest 1News-Verian poll, for example. This shows National down ...
It Takes A Train To Cry:Surely, there is nothing lonelier in all this world than the long wail of a distant steam locomotive on a cold Winter’s night.AS A CHILD, I would lie awake in my grandfather’s house and listen to the traffic. The big wooden house was only a ...
Packing A Punch: The election of the present government, including in its ranks politicians dedicated to reasserting the rights of the legislature in shaping and determining the future of Māori and Pakeha in New Zealand, should have alerted the judiciary – including its anomalous appendage, the Waitangi Tribunal – that its ...
Dead Woman Walking: New Zealand’s media industry had been moving steadily towards disaster for all the years Melissa Lee had been National’s media and communications policy spokesperson, and yet, when the crisis finally broke, on her watch, she had nothing intelligent to offer. Christopher Luxon is a patient man - but he’s not ...
Chris Trotter writes – New Zealand politics is remarkably easy-going: dangerously so, one might even say. With the notable exception of John Key’s flat ruling-out of the NZ First Party in 2008, all parties capable of clearing MMP’s five-percent threshold, or winning one or more electorate seats, tend ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Polling shows that Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau has the lowest approval rating of any mayor in the country. Siting at -12 per cent, the proportion of constituents who disapprove of her performance outweighs those who give her the thumbs up. This negative rating is ...
Luxon will no doubt put a brave face on it, but there is no escaping the pressure this latest poll will put on him and the government. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political ...
This is a re-post from The Climate Brink by Andrew Dessler In the wake of any unusual weather event, someone inevitably asks, “Did climate change cause this?” In the most literal sense, that answer is almost always no. Climate change is never the sole cause of hurricanes, heat waves, droughts, or ...
Something odd happened yesterday, and I’d love to know if there’s more to it. If there was something which preempted what happened, or if it was simply a throwaway line in response to a journalist.Yesterday David Seymour was asked at a press conference what the process would be if the ...
Hi,From time to time, I want to bring Webworm into the real world. We did it last year with the Jurassic Park event in New Zealand — which was a lot of fun!And so on Saturday May 11th, in Los Angeles, I am hosting a lil’ Webworm pop-up! I’ve been ...
Education Minister Erica Standford yesterday unveiled a fundamental reform of the way our school pupils are taught. She would not exactly say so, but she is all but dismantling the so-called “inquiry” “feel good” method of teaching, which has ruled in our classrooms since a major review of the New ...
Exactly where are we seriously going with this government and its policies? That is, apart from following what may as well be a Truss-Lite approach on the purported economic “plan“, and Victorian-era regression when it comes to social policy.Oh it’ll work this time of course, we’re basically assured, “the ...
Hey Uncle Dave, When the Poms joined the EEC, I wasn't one of those defeatists who said, Well, that’s it for the dairy job. And I was right, eh? The Chinese can’t get enough of our milk powder and eventually, the Poms came to their senses and backed up the ute ...
Polling shows that Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau has the lowest approval rating of any mayor in the country. Siting at -12 per cent, the proportion of constituents who disapprove of her performance outweighs those who give her the thumbs up. This negative rating is higher than for any other mayor ...
Buzz from the Beehive Pharmac has been given a financial transfusion and a new chair to oversee its spending in the pharmaceutical business. Associate Health Minister David Seymour described the funding for Pharmac as “its largest ever budget of $6.294 billion over four years, fixing a $1.774 billion fiscal cliff”. ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government is trying to achieve and its ...
TL;DR: Here’s my top 10 ‘pick ‘n’ mix of links to news, analysis and opinion articles as of 10:10am on Monday, April 29:Scoop: The children's ward at Rotorua Hospital will be missing a third of its beds as winter hits because Te Whatu Ora halted an upgrade partway through to ...
span class=”dropcap”>As hideous as David Seymour can be, it is worth keeping in mind occasionally that there are even worse political figures (and regimes) out there. Iran for instance, is about to execute the country’s leading hip hop musician Toomaj Salehi, for writing and performing raps that “corrupt” the nation’s ...
Yesterday marked 10 years since the first electric train carried passengers in Auckland so it’s a good time to look back at it and the impact it has had. A brief history The first proposals for rail electrification in Auckland came in the 1920’s alongside the plans for earlier ...
Right now, in Aotearoa-NZ, our ‘animal spirits’ are darkening towards a winter of discontent, thanks at least partly to a chorus of negative comments and actions from the Government Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on ...
You make people evil to punish the paststuck inside a sequel with a rotating castThe following photos haven’t been generated with AI, or modified in any way. They are flesh and blood, human beings. On the left is Galatea Young, a young mum, and her daughter Fiadh who has Angelman ...
April has been a quiet month at A Phuulish Fellow. I have had an exceptionally good reading month, and a decently productive writing month – for original fiction, anyway – but not much has caught my eye that suggested a blog article. It has been vaguely frustrating, to be honest. ...
A listing of 31 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 21, 2024 thru Sat, April 27, 2024. Story of the week Anthropogenic climate change may be the ultimate shaggy dog story— but with a twist, because here ...
Hi,I spent about a year on Webworm reporting on an abusive megachurch called Arise, and it made me want to stab my eyes out with a fork.I don’t regret that reporting in 2022 and 2023 — I am proud of it — but it made me angry.Over three main stories ...
The new Victoria University Vice-Chancellor decided to have a forum at the university about free speech and academic freedom as it is obviously a topical issue, and the Government is looking at legislating some carrots or sticks for universities to uphold their obligations under the Education and Training Act. They ...
Do you remember when Melania Trump got caught out using a speech that sounded awfully like one Michelle Obama had given? Uncannily so.Well it turns out that Abraham Lincoln is to Winston Peters as Michelle was to Melania. With the ANZAC speech Uncle Winston gave at Gallipoli having much in ...
She was born 25 years ago today in North Shore hospital. Her eyes were closed tightly shut, her mouth was silently moving. The whole theatre was all quiet intensity as they marked her a 2 on the APGAR test. A one-minute eternity later, she was an 8. The universe was ...
Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. This fact brief was written by Sue Bin Park in collaboration with members from our Skeptical Science team. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Is Antarctica gaining land ice? ...
Images of US students (and others) protesting and setting up tent cities on US university campuses have been broadcast world wide and clearly demonstrate the growing rifts in US society caused by US policy toward Israel and Israel’s prosecution of … Continue reading → ...
Barrie Saunders writes – Dear Paul As the new Minister of Media and Communications, you will be inundated with heaps of free advice and special pleading, all in the national interest of course. For what it’s worth here is my assessment: Traditional broadcasting free to air content through ...
Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government is trying to achieve and its arguments for such a bold reform. ...
Peter Dunne writes – The great nineteenth British Prime Minister, William Gladstone, once observed that “the first essential for a Prime Minister is to be a good butcher.” When a later British Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan, sacked a third of his Cabinet in July 1962, in what became ...
Ele Ludemann writes – New Zealanders had the OECD’s second highest tax increase last year: New Zealanders faced the second-biggest tax raises in the developed world last year, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) says. The intergovernmental agency said the average change in personal income tax ...
We all know something’s not right with our elections. The spread of misinformation, people being targeted with soundbites and emotional triggers that ignore the facts, even the truth, and influence their votes.The use of technology to produce deep fakes. How can you tell if something is real or not? Can ...
This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Simon Clark. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). This year you will be lied to! Simon Clark helps prebunk some misleading statements you'll hear about climate. The video includes ...
It is all very well cutting the backrooms of public agencies but it may compromise the frontlines. One of the frustrations of the Productivity Commission’s 2017 review of universities is that while it observed that their non-academic staff were increasing faster than their academic staff, it did not bother to ...
Buzz from the Beehive Two speeches delivered by Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters at Anzac Day ceremonies in Turkey are the only new posts on the government’s official website since the PM announced his Cabinet shake-up. In one of the speeches, Peters stated the obvious: we live in a troubled ...
1. Which of these would you not expect to read in The Waikato Invader?a. Luxon is here to do business, don’t you worry about thatb. Mr KPI expects results, and you better believe itc. This decisive man of action is getting me all hot and excitedd. Melissa Lee is how ...
The Government is again adding to New Zealand’s growing unemployment, this time cutting jobs at the agencies responsible for urban development and growing much needed housing stock. ...
With Minister Karen Chhour indicating in the House today that she either doesn’t know or care about the frontline cuts she’s making to Oranga Tamariki, we risk seeing more and more of our children falling through the cracks. ...
The Labour Party is saddened to learn of the death of Sir Robert Martin, a globally renowned disability advocate who led the way for disability rights both in New Zealand and internationally. ...
Labour is calling for the Government to urgently rethink its coalition commitment to restart live animal exports, Labour animal welfare spokesperson Rachel Boyack said. ...
Today’s Financial Stability Report has once again highlighted that poverty and deep inequality are political choices - and this Government is choosing to make them worse. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to do more for our households in most need as unemployment rises and the cost of living crisis endures. ...
Unemployment is on the rise and it’s only going to get worse under this Government, Labour finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds said. Stats NZ figures show the unemployment rate grew to 4.3 percent in the March quarter from 4 percent in the December quarter. “This is the second rise in unemployment ...
The New Zealand Labour Party welcomes the entering into force of the European Union and New Zealand free trade agreement. This agreement opens the door for a huge increase in trade opportunities with a market of 450 million people who are high value discerning consumers of New Zealand goods and ...
The National-led Government continues its fiscal jiggery pokery with its Pharmac announcement today, Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall says. “The government has increased Pharmac funding but conceded it will only make minimal increases in access to medicine”, said Ayesha Verrall “This is far from the bold promises made to fund ...
This afternoon’s interim Waitangi Tribunal report must be taken seriously as it affects our most vulnerable children, Labour children’s spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime. ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
Te Pāti Māori is disgusted at the confirmation that hundreds are set to lose their jobs at Oranga Tamariki, and the disestablishment of the Treaty Response Unit. “This act of absolute carelessness and out of touch decision making is committing tamariki to state abuse.” Said Te Pāti Māori Oranga Tamariki ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi, and Mema Paremata mō Tāmaki-Makaurau, Takutai Tarsh Kemp, will travel to the Gold Coast to strengthen ties with Māori in Australia next week (15-21 April). The visit, in the lead-up to the 9th Australian National Kapa haka Festival, will be an opportunity for both ...
The Government is modernising insurance law to better protect Kiwis and provide security in the event of a disaster, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly announced today. “These reforms are long overdue. New Zealand’s insurance law is complicated and dated, some of which is more than 100 years old. ...
The coalition Government is refreshing its approach to supporting pay equity claims as time-limited funding for the Pay Equity Taskforce comes to an end, Public Service Minister Nicola Willis says. “Three years ago, the then-government introduced changes to the Equal Pay Act to support pay equity bargaining. The changes were ...
Structured literacy will change the way New Zealand children learn to read - improving achievement and setting students up for success, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “Being able to read and write is a fundamental life skill that too many young people are missing out on. Recent data shows that ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay says Canada’s refusal to comply in full with a CPTPP trade dispute ruling in our favour over dairy trade is cynical and New Zealand has no intention of backing down. Mr McClay said he has asked for urgent legal advice in respect of our ‘next move’ ...
The rights of our children and young people will be enhanced by changes the coalition Government will make to strengthen oversight of the Oranga Tamariki system, including restoring a single Children’s Commissioner. “The Government is committed to delivering better public services that care for our most at-risk young people and ...
The Government is making it easier for minor changes to be made to a building consent so building a home is easier and more affordable, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on making it easier and cheaper to build homes so we can ...
New Zealand lost a true legend when internationally renowned disability advocate Sir Robert Martin (KNZM) passed away at his home in Whanganui last night, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. “Our Government’s thoughts are with his wife Lynda, family and community, those he has worked with, the disability community in ...
Good evening – Before discussing the challenges and opportunities facing New Zealand’s foreign policy, we’d like to first acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. You have contributed to debates about New Zealand foreign policy over a long period of time, and we thank you for hosting us. ...
From today, passengers travelling internationally from Auckland Airport will be able to keep laptops and liquids in their carry-on bags for security screening thanks to new technology, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Creating a more efficient and seamless travel experience is important for holidaymakers and businesses, enabling faster movement through ...
People with an interest in the health of Northland’s marine ecosystems are invited to a public meeting to discuss how to deal with kina barrens, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones will lead the discussion, which will take place on Friday, 10 May, at Awanui Hotel in ...
Kiwi exporters are $100 million better off today with the NZ EU FTA entering into force says Trade Minister Todd McClay. “This is all part of our plan to grow the economy. New Zealand's prosperity depends on international trade, making up 60 per cent of the country’s total economic activity. ...
There are heartening signs that the extractive sector is once again becoming an attractive prospect for investors and a source of economic prosperity for New Zealand, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The beginnings of a resurgence in extractive industries are apparent in media reports of the sector in the past ...
The return of the historic Ō-Rākau battle site to the descendants of those who fought there moved one step closer today with the first reading of Te Pire mō Ō-Rākau, Te Pae o Maumahara / The Ō-Rākau Remembrance Bill. The Bill will entrust the 9.7-hectare battle site, five kilometres west ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has announced 25 new high-speed EV charging hubs along key routes between major urban centres and outlined the Government’s plan to supercharge New Zealand’s EV infrastructure. The hubs will each have several chargers and be capable of charging at least four – and up to 10 ...
The coalition Government will not proceed with the previous Government’s plans to regulate residential property managers, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “I have written to the Chairperson of the Social Services and Community Committee to inform him that the Government does not intend to support the Residential Property Managers Bill ...
The Government has announced an independent review into the disability support system funded by the Ministry of Disabled People – Whaikaha. Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston says the review will look at what can be done to strengthen the long-term sustainability of Disability Support Services to provide disabled people and ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith has attended the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva and outlined the Government’s plan to restore law and order. “Speaking to the United Nations Human Rights Council provided us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while responding to issues and ...
The Government and Rotorua Lakes Council are committed to working closely together to end the use of contracted emergency housing motels in Rotorua. Associate Minister of Housing (Social Housing) Tama Potaka says the Government remains committed to ending the long-term use of contracted emergency housing motels in Rotorua by the ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay heads overseas today for high-level trade talks in the Gulf region, and a key OECD meeting in Paris. Mr McClay will travel to Riyadh to meet with counterparts from Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). “New Zealand’s goods and services exports to the Gulf region ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford has outlined six education priorities to deliver a world-leading education system that sets Kiwi kids up for future success. “I’m putting ambition, achievement and outcomes at the heart of our education system. I want every child to be inspired and engaged in their learning so they ...
The new NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) App is a secure ‘one stop shop’ to provide the services drivers need, Transport Minister Simeon Brown and Digitising Government Minister Judith Collins say. “The NZTA App will enable an easier way for Kiwis to pay for Vehicle Registration and Road User Charges (RUC). ...
Whānau with tamariki growing up in emergency housing motels will be prioritised for social housing starting this week, says Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka. “Giving these whānau a better opportunity to build healthy stable lives for themselves and future generations is an essential part of the Government’s goal of reducing ...
Racing Minister Winston Peters has paid tribute to an icon of the industry with the recent passing of Dave O’Sullivan (OBE). “Our sympathies are with the O’Sullivan family with the sad news of Dave O’Sullivan’s recent passing,” Mr Peters says. “His contribution to racing, initially as a jockey and then ...
Assalaamu alaikum, greetings to you all. Eid Mubarak, everyone! I want to extend my warmest wishes to you and everyone celebrating this joyous occasion. It is a pleasure to be here. I have enjoyed Eid celebrations at Parliament before, but this is my first time joining you as the Minister ...
Associate Health Minister David Seymour has announced Pharmac’s largest ever budget of $6.294 billion over four years, fixing a $1.774 billion fiscal cliff. “Access to medicines is a crucial part of many Kiwis’ lives. We’ve committed to a budget allocation of $1.774 billion over four years so Kiwis are ...
Hon Paula Bennett has been appointed as member and chair of the Pharmac board, Associate Health Minister David Seymour announced today. "Pharmac is a critical part of New Zealand's health system and plays a significant role in ensuring that Kiwis have the best possible access to medicines,” says Mr Seymour. ...
Hundreds of New Zealand families affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) will benefit from a new Government focus on prevention and treatment, says Health Minister Dr Shane Reti. “We know FASD is a leading cause of preventable intellectual and neurodevelopmental disability in New Zealand,” Dr Reti says. “Every day, ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones today attended the official opening of Kaikohe’s new $14.7 million sports complex. “The completion of the Kaikohe Multi Sports Complex is a fantastic achievement for the Far North,” Mr Jones says. “This facility not only fulfils a long-held dream for local athletes, but also creates ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters’ engagements in Türkiye this week underlined the importance of diplomacy to meet growing global challenges. “Returning to the Gallipoli Peninsula to represent New Zealand at Anzac commemorations was a sombre reminder of the critical importance of diplomacy for de-escalating conflicts and easing tensions,” Mr Peters ...
Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service. It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
Distinguished guests - It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders. Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia. Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is today travelling to Europe where he’ll update the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s work to restore law and order. “Attending the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva provides us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while ...
Associate Agriculture Minister, Mark Patterson, formally reopened the world’s largest wool processing facility today in Awatoto, Napier, following a $50 million rebuild and refurbishment project. “The reopening of this facility will significantly lift the economic opportunities available to New Zealand’s wool sector, which already accounts for 20 per cent of ...
Recent extreme weather events showed the importance of a well-functioning insurance system, says Commerce and Consumer Affairs minister Andrew Bayly. ...
By Jo Moir, RNZ News political editor, and Craig McCulloch, deputy political editor New Zealand’s Labour Party is demanding Winston Peters be stood down as Foreign Minister for opening up the government to legal action over his “totally unacceptable” attack on a prominent AUKUS critic. In an interview on RNZ’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christian Brakenridge, Postdoctoral research fellow at Swinburne University, Centre for Urban Transitions, Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute The Conversation, Gorodenkoff/Shutterstock People have a pretty intuitive sense of what is healthy – standing is better than sitting, exercise is great for overall ...
The Wellington-based Reserve Force soldier is now almost three years into his New Zealand Army career with 5th/7th Battalion, Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment. ...
"The Government needs to release the review immediately as this reckless approach to change risks disjointed decision making and creates more distress and uncertainty for staff," Fitzsimons said. ...
By Koroi Hawkins, RNZ Pacific editor Jeremiah Manele has been elected Prime Minister of Solomon Islands, polling 31 votes to 18 over rival candidate and former opposition leader Mathew Wale with one abstention. The final result of the election by secret ballot was announced by the Governor-General, Sir David Vunagi, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Priestley Habru, PhD candidate, public diplomacy, University of Adelaide Former foreign minister Jeremiah Manele has been elected the next prime minister of Solomon Islands, defeating the opposition leader, Matthew Wale, in a vote in parliament. The result is a mixed bag for ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Shaun Eaves, Senior Lecturer in Physical Geography, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington Jamey Stutz, CC BY-SA How often do mountains collapse, volcanoes erupt or ice sheets melt? For Earth scientists, these are important questions as we try ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Flood, Professor of Sociology, Queensland University of Technology Shutterstock Most young adult men in Australia reject traditional ideas of masculinity that endorse aggression, stoicism and homophobia. Nonetheless, the ongoing influence of those ideas continues to harm men and the people ...
The NZQA proposal released to staff today would involve a net loss of 35 roles. There are 66 roles being disestablished with 13 of those currently vacant, and 31 new roles proposed, said Fleur Fitzsimons Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga ...
Alex Casey talks to Loren Taylor, the writer, director and star of new film The Moon is Upside Down, about assembling her dream ensemble cast, toilet paper pads and turning literal dreams into reality. There’s a moment in The Moon is Upside Down where frazzled anaesthetist Briar (Loren Taylor) gets ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Cassy Dittman, Senior Lecturer/Head of Course (Undergraduate Psychology), Research Fellow, Manna Institute, CQUniversity Australia With winter sports swinging into action, adults around the country have volunteered or been volunteered by others (humorously known as being “volun-told”) to coach junior sports teams. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Karleen Gribble, Adjunct Associate Professor, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Western Sydney University richardernestyap/Shutterstock Parents are often advised to burp their babies after feeding them. Some people think burping after feeding is important to reduce or prevent discomfort crying, or to ...
Workers at a major ASB contact centre in Auckland have voted to take strike action and withdraw their labour following disappointing pay negotiations with the employer and an "offer" to workers that would leave them worse off than the previous year. ...
As the government tries to get the country back on track with a school phone ban, Tara Ward has an idea for where they should turn their attention to next.New Zealand students returned to school on Monday morning, but their cellphones did not. The government’s new phone ban began ...
The Labour Party is demanding Peters be stood down, saying "he's embarrassed the country" with a "totally unacceptable" attack on a prominent AUKUS critic. ...
The Inter-Parliamentary Alliance, whose members were victims of a China-backed cyber attack, is discussing forming a standing committee to deal with foreign influence. ...
The PSA is concerned that the voluntary redundancies being offered to staff by Stats NZ will impact on the agency’s ability to deliver on its core functions. ...
Results ranged from surprisingly yum to soul-destroying. I love cooking. The kitchen is a hearth of culinary creation, of sensory delights, of gastronomic poetry. I also can’t afford anything nice. Why does a pack of instant noodles and some milk cost ten bucks? I love you, Aotearoa, but I miss ...
By Koroi Hawkins, RNZ Pacific editor Police in Solomon Islands are on high alert ahead of the election of the prime minister today. The two candidates for the top job are former foreign affairs minister Jeremiah Manele at the head of the Coalition for National Unity and Transformation, which is ...
He’s fine but it feels like I’m losing a friend and it’s making me bitter. How do I say ‘enough is enough’? Want Hera’s help? Email your problem to helpme@thespinoff.co.nzHey Hera,I’ve recently moved in with a girlfriend, her partner Steve, and his friend. We all live in a lovely little house. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Nick Chartres, Senior Research Fellow, Faculty of Medicine & Health, University of Sydney shutterstockAhmet Misirligul/Shutterstock You go to the gym, eat healthy and walk as much as possible. You wash your hands and get vaccinated. You control your health. This is ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jacqueline Hendriks, Research Fellow and Lecturer, Curtin University Children and young people may be seeing news headlines about men murdering women or footage of people rallying to call for action. Perhaps they or their friends have even gone to the protests. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jessica Balanzategui, Senior Lecturer in Media, RMIT University ABC “Bluey mania” shows no sign of abating. Bluey’s season finale, The Sign, was the most viewed ABC program of all time on iView. A “hidden” follow-up episode, aptly named The Surprise, created ...
Labour market figures came in softer than the Reserve Bank had forecast, but they won’t be enough to move the needle on interest rates, 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. Unemployment ...
The campaign will engage the community and encourage submissions on the bill to the New Zealand government by the closing submission deadline of Friday 31st of May 2024 4pm. ...
The paper raises concerns about declining trust in New Zealand's political institutions and democratic processes, and the role that the overuse of Parliamentary urgency plays in that. ...
The Urban Habitat Collective was an attempt to built an innovative new form of apartment building in Wellington. Here’s why it failed, and why the idea could still work, writes co-founder Bronwen Newton. When we started the Urban Habitat Collective in November 2018, we thought we were starting a revolution, ...
Two decades ago this week, a controversial law that attempted to define ownership of the foreshore and seabed prompted a formidable display of outrage and kōtahitanga as 15,000 marched to parliament. Jamie Tahana looks back.‘Hīkoi, hīkoi,” they chanted by the thousands as the biggest Māori march in a generation ...
A Labour Party Member’s Bill aims to plug a culpability gap between manslaughter and health and safety breaches The post New push for corporate killing laws appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Terence O’Brien had the rare and no doubt undesired distinction of rising to one of the most exalted positions in New Zealand diplomacy, then being unceremoniously recalled to Wellington without explanation just when his career was at its zenith. What is perhaps more surprising is that he appears to have ...
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A,DIV,A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp'); Got a good quiz question?Send Newsroom your questions. The post Newsroom daily quiz, Thursday 2 May appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Why has New Zealand slipped from third to 12th on Quality of Death Indexes over the past decade or so? Hospice New Zealand Chief Executive Wayne Naylor has a list of reasons. “We don’t have a current national strategy – the Government hasn’t renewed our 2001 strategy, so we don’t ...
While women’s sport is exploding in Aotearoa and around the world, you still don’t hear a lot of talk about athletes and their periods, RED-S, breastfeeding and visible panty-lines. SASS (Suze and Sez Sports)Talk isn’t afraid to have that kōrero.LockerRoom founder Suzanne McFadden and Olympian broadcaster Sarah ...
On an unusually hot night in January 2019, a little boy’s lifeless body was found face up in a small town’s sewage oxidation pond. To the police, it was an open and shut case: three-year-old Lachlan Jones had run away from his home in the Southland town of Gore, climbed ...
Rongotai MP Julie Anne Genter has apologised in Parliament after National accused her of intimidating and attacking one of its ministers in the House. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The Prime Minister and state and territory leaders met on Wednesday as the national cabinet to discuss a crisis gripping Australia – the horrific number of women murdered this year. The killings have shocked ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Radhika Raghav, Teaching Fellow, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Otago Netflix Indian director Sanjay Leela Bhansali is known for his big-budget Bollywood production, featuring grand sets, star casts, meticulously choreographed dance sequences and lavish costumes, jewellery and furnishings. ...
Sir Robert devoted his life to disability rights after living in institutions in his younger years, says Kaihautū Tika Hauātanga | Disability Rights Commissioner Prudence Walker. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anastasia Powell, Professor, Family and Sexual Violence, RMIT University Violence against women is not a women’s problem to solve, it is a whole of society problem to solve; and men in particular have to take responsibility. Those were the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jessica Allen, Senior Lecturer in Chemical and Renewable Energy Engineering, University of Newcastle Snapshot freddy/ShutterstockPlans to revive an old coal-fired power station using bioenergy are being considered in the Hunter region of New South Wales. Similar plans for the station ...
Responding to the long-awaited release of judges’ special allowances, including free air travel and hotels for spouses, generous sabbaticals, and access to limousines, Taxpayers’ Union spokesman Alex Murphy said: “In what world does your employer ...
Analysis - The United States has unveiled plans to boost the weapons trade with Australia and the UK, on the same day that Winston Peters is expected to sketch NZ's position on AUKUS. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrea Carson, Professor of Political Communication, Department of Politics, Media and Philosophy, La Trobe University Since Australia’s First Nations Voice to Parliament referendum in October 2023, diverse commentaries have sought to explain why it failed. But what does an analysis of media ...
Another day in John Key’s neo-liberal nightmare.
We have become a cruel, ugly and selfish nation under his wretched leadership.
The New Zealand prison population increases to nearly 10 000 citizens.
The cost of our prisons increases to nearly $1 billion a year.
Our rate of imprisonment is now the 2nd highest in the world.
A billion to imprison people.
Yet not enough to house the citizens of this country.
What an abject failure this neo-liberal experiment has been since 1984.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11649023
Gotta give their backers at serco some growth to go with the wet bus ticket routine when they get caught out.
How breakable are these prison management contracts or is that ‘commercially sensitive’ detail the people don’t get to know ?
And how many are inside for little offences like Marijuana.
[Good comment Ad. I will convert to a post – MS]
Today this government shows terminal symptoms of Strategic Arse Elbow (SAE).
Going in the one direction, this morning at 10am the Prime Minister launches construction of the City Rail Link. New Zealand’s largest-ever infrastructure project, it’s going to revolutionize rail travel in Auckland, and provide a massive boost to high-density residential and commercial investment and city living.
Going in precisely the other direction, two hours later the government will release its National Housing Statement, which it has forecast will loosen Auckland’s growth belt so fast its trousers will fall down. This policy directive provides the government with explicit powers to undo the Auckland Plan and Draft Unitary Plan’s clear direction towards rail travel, other public transport, and higher density residential and commercial investment and city living.
No agency in central government can provide as clear and coherent advice about the future growth of Auckland, and clearly no-one in government is. Indeed forming that coherence is precisely what the Auckland Council is for. This government is today forcing the most massive policy and programme contradiction seen in a lifetime. John Key does not know his policy Arse from his execution Elbow.
Moronic.
Shamubeel Eaqub sums it up in one word.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/305315/pm's-housing-plan-moronic-economist
It was 5 degrees in Auckland last night.
It was 4 degrees in Dunedin last night.
It was 1 degrees in Christchurch last night.
Not very warm to be sleeping in a car.
Not very warm to be sleeping in a container.
Not very warm to be sleeping in a garage.
Not very warm to be sleeping on the street.
Our shameful treatment of the most vulnerable in our society is being publicised in Britain. The world is being introduced to John Key’s cruel, ugly and selfish New Zealand.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3618883/Homeless-parents-living-16-day-old-baby-fear-taken-child-services-New-Zealand.html
There’s an elephant in this particular room. Has anyone asked the question of the young mum why did she have another baby while living rough? And where is the dad? If she was thinking of wee Mereana she should have told HNZ. The baby’s place is with the mum. It would not be taken from her without good reason. Baby first.
Eraic
“Baby first”. That ignores the parent, has no care for the mother, and refuses to see her as vulnerable just like her child, and a worthy individual, but just as one of a mating human pair. All mothers are more than that, they are worthy people in their own right and have responsibilities that are weighty and should be treated with respect and helped to cope with those tasks and needs.
No – sex first, then baby. You ask why would a young woman conceive a baby while living rough Eraic? Can you conceive of the circumstances of living rough. There aren’t protections from the rough life, the lack of privacy and safety, being handled rough, being treated rough, from feeling weak and cold and unable to find comfort or happiness, from wanting change from feeling roughness all around and seeking friendship or a type of affection, some warmth for a while.
And knowing that with living rough there will be no condoms for sex with the other person or persons involved who are also living rough, yet both might have some pleasure for a moment, or perhaps sex could have been forced on her.
And she knows too that she will not likely receive compassion from prating people who have no love of the agape sort (Greek for general love of humanity.This type of love was further explained by Thomas Aquinas as “to will the good of another.”)[5]
Did you know that the ancient Greeks had four words for different forms of love? Have a look at the Wikipedia entry and see if you have experienced any of them.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greek_words_for_love
Very good comment greywarshark, whenever I see this kind of comment from our less emphatic compatriots (“why do they have babies if they are poor/homeless/not me?”) I am reminded of this little clip from 30 Rock https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCYPqrmLwqs
Initially thought this was going to be about global warming.
We still haven’t had a frost this year in Christchurch. Usually the first one is in April. Next few nights have forecast minimums of 0C, so we might get a frost.
From the linked article…It is estimated there are about 35,000 ‘moving between temporary and insecure accommodation’ in New Zealand.
I’m picking that’s a massive under estimate. Many, many rental situations (most) are anything but secure and a million light years away from anything that might be considered even semi-permanent.
You just know Judith Collins is spinning when she compares NZ imprisonment rates with New South Wales instead of Australia… or Scotland… or Finland… even England or whatever European country except the US.
Or Norway
http://www.theguardian.com/society/2013/feb/25/norwegian-prison-inmates-treated-like-people
http://www.businessinsider.com/why-norways-prison-system-is-so-successful-2014-12
You would think any government would always be looking at how successful countries deal with its issues, but no, in good old in zid we just copy the fucking U S of A
Aw c’mon b, be fair. We just copy the dumb American ideas that make things worse, not the good ideas that make things better. Yes, they do have a few.
Like?
Legalising cannabis. A government that is serious about promoting R&D and science. A few cities have good urban design with multiple transport options.
Look, at the end of the day. it’s the free market and frankly, who cares about the safety of infrastructure being built and the people’s lives if it collapses. As long as we can do it on the cheap and for profit!
‘The contractors who imported 1600 tonnes of substandard steel for new highway bridges were warned the deal was too good to be true.’ http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/305400/contractors-told-weak-steel-price-'too-low‘
I heard that woman from the Transport Agency on RNZ this morning too, she was half-witted and sounded doped up and was a disgrace to the Agency. So we now “have to let the free market prevail and no, we are not interested in who the providers of the steel were, its up to the suppliers to sort that out”. What is it going to take, a massive bridge collapse or a high-rise to collapse before this Government will take ownership of any responsibility for our safety. I have never heard such a disgraceful interview from a Government Agency quite like it – so its going to be the same old same old, who will want to drive through to Hamilton from now on wards, god knows what sort of construction strength these bridges will be and heaven help people who buy into these new apartment buildings in the city. How low can this Government go, they are bloody useless.
agree why didn’t she reveal the supplier maybe this is sensitive information good job that what happens when you go cheap
PM John Key still saying New Zealand is not a tax haven?
“How Mossack Fonseca used NZ – in its own words | Radio New Zealand News
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/305300/how-mossack-fonseca-used-nz-in-its-own-words
Panama Papers NZ – A 2014 email sent by Mossack Fonseca’s New Zealand representative lays out exactly how the company uses foreign trusts in this country.
An investigation into the Panama Papers – an unprecedented leak of 11.5 million files from the database of the world’s fourth largest offshore law firm, Mossack Fonseca – by RNZ,One News and investigative journalist Nicky Hager has lifted the lid on how New Zealand is part of a tangled web of secretive shelf companies and obscure trusts. It has also raised questions over the country’s foreign tax rules, including its disclosure requirements.
Now, an email sent by Mossack Fonseca New Zealand’s Daniel Leon has revealed – in his own words – the measures clients can take if they do not want their names to appear on the public paperwork.
The email was in response to an enquiry on behalf of Juan Fernandez Methol from Studio Damiani, a Uruguayan firm offering legal and accountancy services to provide inheritance and tax “financial solutions”.
…..”
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
If this guy was a bene or a greenie it would be all over the news about how he’s bringing the country into disrepute with twisted values, taxpayers $$$ etc. etc.
But he’s just a dude – salesman – trying to make a buck and had a few problems that led him astray. He cost the country $37m. Probably will get home detention. He doesn’t even rate the front page.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/crime/news/article.cfm?c_id=30&objectid=11648954
Who’da thunk it? Turns out it’s cheaper in the long run to look after the homeless than just turf them out onto the streets.
http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2016/06/01/3783768/san-francisco-homeless-housing/
At $1300 per week that should be obvious to anyone.
But we are dealing with ideologues.
Yep, giving them housing will save money in the long term, but that is not the point- it should not be about saving money – but decency of a society to say we do not tolerate homelessness!
Sadly we have reached the point where the decency of society argument falls on deaf ears. It’s only the dollars argument that might filter through. Sometimes.
I think it was John Campbell’s marvelous work on the destitute people forced to pay $1300 a week THAT HAD TO BE PAID BACK that has finally caused the housing issue to blow up in the face of the government.
Issues that are easy to understand and that are manifestly unjust are the ones that resonate with the public.
Bearded Git
I think this part of your comment is one that should be borne in mind all the time by politicians and activists, and particularly in the run up to 2017 elections.
lprent
I had an unusual message come up while I was trying to place the above comment – something about this web site is not encrypted …something.
My Firefox has not been updated for a while and that might be the reason.
(It illustrates how this new boon to mankind of the internet is constantly being challenged by various factors so that it is not as wonderful as could have been.)
+100 Bearded Git…John Campbell did a terrific job
The PM would go 12 rounds with Harumbe the gorilla until he found out that the little boys mum was actually on a benefit paying back a motel debt for the next few decades, then he be like yeah..naaa.
http://i.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/80655729/Prime-Minister-John-Key-would-not-have-killed-Harambe-the-gorilla
Leaving aside that that is a truly weird article, I think this is another example of the Hoskin Approach. We don’t need experts. The people that shot the gorilla were wrong because. Despite them being an actual dangerous animals response team ie experts.
Definitely a really weird one, I see no author put a name to it either.. It seems to be one of those lets keep the PM in the media, any publicity is good publicity stories.
On the gorilla, I find it interesting the story is that the gorilla was throwing the child against the wall. This goes against what an Ape expert said the other day that it would be in more a protective mode. Also, if you just shot a gorilla, wouldnt it be a great cover to say the gorilla was being extremely violent so it had to be done.
True, although I think it’s almost impossible to assess the story from this distance. It will be interesting to see if better video footage shows up.
The first footage they had on TV made it look like the ape was being protective, the more extended footage made me think they had no choice but to shoot.
I can never see Hoskin as more than the fruit and vege man…he was marvellous at this
That’s a relief….
/
This one tweet sums it up perfectly:
As another Facebook post — this one by Emily Bingham — put it:
https://www.romper.com/p/this-one-tweet-about-harambe-the-gorilla-makes-the-outrage-more-disturbing-11535
And the good news in the US is…. (sarc).. thanks failed neoliberalism
“The winners have taken all: Middle class incomes are plummeting — with no relief in sight
The staggering reality is that half of America is in financial distress and at risk of falling deeper into debt”
http://www.salon.com/2016/06/01/the_winners_have_taken_all_income_among_the_middle_class_is_plummeting_partner/
P.s I put the US articles in, because similar things are happening in NZ, but we don’t have a MSM that will report them or a government that keeps politically neutral statistics to measure the change …
Meanwhile things are going swimmingly in socialist Venezula, Cuba, North Korea, Europe.,………….. As they did in Eastern Europe pre breakup of Soviet Union , 1970s Uk etc
Yep, I know Cuba has very high literacy and health care…
Yep, the war in the middle east by the US has really helped Europe with it’s refugee’s….
Many of us name John Key as our ‘dear leader’ like Kim Jong in his popular totalitarian state.
+100 save nz….and this is really a very sobering view from the USA…
https://www.rt.com/shows/keiser-report/344891-episode-max-keiser-921/
…a change is gonna come
I see trotter has put the boot into the clumsy so called labour green MOU, arguing it’s nothing like the successful alliance and labour tie up, more the dance of the desperate. Give trotter his dues, he is one astute bloke
Trotter hasn’t got a green bone in his body.
Socialist’s can hate the environment as much as hard Righties.
Yeah, nah. He appears to be saying that he thinks they went about it the wrong way.
But whatever else I may be, I am not a cheerleader. If I believe the Labour and Green parties have announced their new “Understanding” far too soon; without preparing the electorate or priming the news media; without securing real and valuable gains for both partners; without carefully gauging the reaction of both their members and their voters; and without having straightforward answers to journalists’ straightforward (and entirely predictable) questions; then I reserve the right to speak bluntly and critically about these deficiencies.
Pretty easy to refute all those points anyway.
http://thedailyblog.co.nz/2016/06/01/unconvinced-why-chris-trotter-is-so-sceptical-about-the-labour-green-understanding/
It will end in tears, has not been thought through, I guess time will tell
Or it has been thought through and you and Trotter don’t understand the strategy.
Red d-read Toby Manhire in the Herald today. he gets it right, as did Keith Locke on Morning Report.
And yet if he’d articulated an opinion that didn’t so conveniently align with your own, you’d no doubt be calling him a pretentious socialist arsehole who doesn’t know his arse from his elbow.
” without preparing the electorate or priming the news media;” sounds to me like Chris Trotter is more than a bit miffed that he wasn’t tipped off the news beforehand, Weka.
I found the financial and membership claims to be the most important part of the piece.
And the fact the vaulted labour war chest is now mythology, the left should go after electorate seats, especially off neo-con laborites.
I thought that Trotter’s comments about the poor political lead up and PR planning around this announcement was particularly telling.
If Trotter is correct, there will be fuck all political follow up from this partnership over the next month or two.
That’s a rather uncharitable interpretation.
A more professional one is that Labour didn’t do the ground work needed to get the most PR and media mileage from this announcement.
actually, “uncharitable” is to single out Labour for perceived failings in a joint presentation.
What “groundwork” did the Greens do to “get the most PR and media mileage from this announcement” (and other safely vague and unsubstantive accusations)?
“… the Labour and Green parties have announced their new “Understanding” far too soon;”
How so? It’s just as easy to argue that this is a good amount of time, it allows the electorate to see the relationship in action well before the pressures of an election year. By the time the election campaign proper starts, lots will have been ironed out and people will have gotten used to the idea. It also means they are prepared if Key calls the election early.
“without preparing the electorate or priming the news media;”
I liked this. I’m especially impressed that there were no leaks from Labour. That’s a good sign. What prepation of the electorate should have happened? What priming of the media?
“without securing real and valuable gains for both partners”
The gains are very obvious to me. What is Trotter referring to?
“without carefully gauging the reaction of both their members and their voters”
I can see this both ways. I don’t have a problem as a GP member with this having been done in secret, because I’m pretty sure that most GP members have been wanting this to happen for a long time. If it had been done publicly we would have had months of MSM beat ups. I think how they did it was preferable.
“and without having straightforward answers to journalists’ straightforward (and entirely predictable) questions”
What? Paddy rabid terrier Gower’s questions about NZF? The question was asked and answered. L/G are going to change the govt, and both are very open to working with NZF or any party that shares their aim.
I didn’t see Trotter’s original bit on tv, so maybe he made a better argument there, but his piece on TDB is all puff.
I thought the MOU release worked well as a an ‘out of the blue” coup. It certainly got plenty of media coverage and debate going.
National’s War on Dunedin (or is that “War on the Regions” in general?) continues: Agresearch Invermay facility confirmed to lose 56 jobs in a bloody stupid decision.
Still smarting over Hillside, I see its still empty, what a freakin’ waste!
What I can’t understand about this Government is – why it doesn’t want to govern this country, it is doing nothing. These large metropolitan cities do not promote unfettered immigrants to come to this country, nor do they ask them to live in these cities. The Gov. is not prepared to help out with the infrastructure needed to implement these new outer-city subdivisions and is putting the burden on the councils. It also will not allow these councils to raise funds from its citizens to get on with the infrastructure and public transport, with tools like road tolling to help pay for the roads.
The Government also will not bring in policies to slow the housing market, like a CGT or making immigrants build new homes, reducing the number of homes a person or trust can own in Auckland, a penalty for leaving homes empty for any length of time. They are absolutely sitting on their backsides and leaving these councils hamstrung and making the rate payers bankrupt themselves – don’t they pay enough taxes as it is. If they are not prepared to spend tax payer’s money, then they could at least enact legislation which miserly Double Dipper won’t have an excuse to hug the purse strings over. For the love of God, does this Government actually do anything at all?
How can these neo-liberals who love this Government see anything worthwhile in their governing, it just isn’t logical at all.
Every time I see someone complain that the opposition offers no credible alternative, I find myself wondering how the current govt offers anything credible whatsoever.
Voters want to see a clear alternative to National’s laissez faire hands of the wheel style of management.
Is Labour going to stop foreigners buying houses? Is Labour going to exit NZ out of the TPP? Is Labour going to bring back the CGT? Is Labour going to end land banking? Is Labour going to end property investors who own a dozen or more houses?
Can you say yes to any of the above?
If not, that’s probably why people don’t see Labour offering a clear alternative, merely a watered down one.
CV, the subject of my comment was the credibility of the current govt. I neither made nor invited any comment on that of the opposition. So while you are of course free to rant/vent about whatever you like, I’ll pass on your questions.
+100 CV
BUSINESS
In caps because it needs our scrutiny more.
Fonterra
Ag Research
Steel
$133m AgResearch restructure gets go-ahead
The government has given AgResearch the go-ahead for a controversial major restructure that will cost $33 million more than first proposed.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/305405/$133m-agresearch-restructure-gets-go-ahead
(NZ has a conservative government that doesn’t follow it’s own basic precepts ‘that if it ain’t broke, then don’t fix it.’ This is a useful taonga but only Maori have the nous to defend and protect taonga, the rest of us have been hypnotised by a $50 note waved in front of our eyes, with TINA and tax cuts repeated monotonously.
his disruption to Agresearch shows the desire to invest less in things of importance to the country’s future, and bleed most of its resources to cash up the nation while it’s still apparently alive.)
Steel –
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/305386/importer-of-weak-highway-steel-revealed
NZ Steel and Tube, long term business here, but being undermined by the cheap efficiency thing of free markets.
(Youtube has numbers of vids of roads where huge holes have appeared. No doubt they’re traceable to bad design, construction and implementation. We’ll end up with the same if corrupt practices become regularised here. But government isn’t exercised and won’t investigate. Who cares? Well we do.)
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/305427/govt-won%27t-investigate-weak-steel
and
Transport Agency unsure where bad steel came from
6:38 AM.The Transport Agency doesn’t know where 16-hundred tonnes of bad Chinese steel for new highway bridges came from, and says it won’t be asking.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/audio/player/201802984 2+m.
and
Contractors who imported steel warned (Fulton & Hogan? Listen and find out.)
8:19 AM.The contractors who imported 16-hundred tonnes of substandard steel for new highway bridges were warned the deal was too good to be true.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/audio/player/201803012
NZ economy performs well
(However – this from the bureau that facilitates the spread of economic fashion styles for the season – the winter of our discontent and other three seasons as well.)
http://www.radionz.co.nz/audio/player/201802990 ..49s
6:58 AM.New Zealand is expected to be one of the stronger growing economies in the world in the coming year according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development..
And Fonterra
http://www.radionz.co.nz/audio/player/201802998
The interviewee stated that Fonterra is right to be moving to value added product and away from the dried milk staple. And that marketers will be accenting NZ grass fed quality and good animal practices etc. All the things that have been put into jeopardy by profit oriented, milk rush overstocking and imported palm kernel feed with extra insects or pests of some sort or other.
NZ – tops in cupidity and stupidity in a wide range of fields and paddocks – 100%!
Only 10 plus years late but what the hey.
Yeah what the hay, hey. I too thought about that long time lead.. I remember before the last or the one before last appointment, of the top Udder, commenters were saying that he was mostly experienced in commodities and didn’t have the background that would take us into value added.
So now we are forced to accept a ‘new’ idea, after half destroying the countryside and the country’s variety of exports, and dairy farmers being given the greatest subsidy of all, preferential access to natural rivers and aquifers. The loss of the Canterbury Plains grain growth in favour of watering it for bigger profits from dairy exports of mainly one product furthers the loss to the country’s food stability and reserves.
Then the wiping out of our protective duties against imports, enabling our domestic economy to live and not be undermined by the vast industry of the rest of the world and its slave employees has led to the extreme impoverishment in the towns.
All this for dairy farmers, who have often leveraged themselves into multiple farms which they didn’t want to work themselves, and so installed either IT so they didn’t have to get cowpats on their shiny shoes, or overworked, underpaid employees. Or they sold the productive land to foreigners for a bit fat once-off profit to them, and a drain on our export returns for ever probably. And the government has planned all this. And they have the gall to sneer at Chinese five year plans, and how planned economies pick winners and don’t let the market developments show which way to go. What’s happened here under National is just the same, except they have too much guile to admit it.
As I said before NZ tops in the developed world for cupidity and stupidity, 100% pure.
+100 greywarshark and CV
I like reading most anything from Wayne Hope.
This piece is great and he aces it.
http://thedailyblog.co.nz/2016/06/01/one-party-media/
His take on media seems fair enough from a quick perusal. But a one party state requires that there be no choice of political parties to vote for. And that’s most definitely not the case in NZ. Even when and if one party dominates the political landscape, that’s still not a ‘one party state’. Shame he uses such rhetoric and even seeks to defend it.
Wayne, does write with tongue in cheek a bit Bill.
Airbus showcases 3D-printed drone at Aerospace expo in Berlin
As I’ve said before – 3D Manufacturing is the future and it removes all the false economies of scale that gets large factories in China working. With this type of manufacturing capability international trade in products disappears. The only thing left to trade will be information and information trade really only works when it freely shared without the artificial barriers of copyright and patents to get in the way.
http://thespinoff.co.nz/politics-media/02-06-2016/john-key-suggested-we-google-trademe-for-homes-under-500000-so-we-did-and-here-they-are/
Cute fact check piece.
That was brilliant. Thanks emergency mike
yes I wondered about that claim of jonkey…maybe he should become a real estate agent….i am sure there will be a BIG run on these houses now, especially as there are so few of them and there are so many needing affordable houses in Auckland ( not that just under $500,000 for these little out of the way places is reasonable price)
and of course the homeless won’t be able to afford them!
( so thanks, but no thanks jonkey)
This is worth a watch if you’ve a spare half an hour. Vice TV did a kind of ‘fly on the wall’ short docu on Jeremy Corbyn covering two months prior to the recent local elections in England and Wales.
Thanks for pointing that out, Bill.
Reminds me of the relentless attack against another party leader in another country.
Thanks Bill. He/We have an uphill battle.