Amenities and Infrastructure Maintenance Services (AIMS) is the last council-owned company in a decreasing number of firms which do council work such as cleaning public toilets and mowing public parks.
If the price is right, the council will sell it without needing to consult with the public. The firm is now no longer a big enough player to trigger the “significance” criteria. Except for the significance to its 320 workers and their loved ones.
In short, it is being sold to cut costs. Somewhere. But that is not the language the council uses in the latest step in its “Shaping our future programme”, under the subheading “Optimise our service outcomes”.
The council, in a self-written article in the general news section of its Our Auckland website said: “AIMS is performing well but lacks scale to realise its full potential and a new owner could develop and grow the business while providing career opportunities for AIMS staff.”
A person drives a car on the M-way and listens to the traffic report that warns of a km-long queue of very slow and crawling traffic on the exact some stretch of road going in the exact same direction. The driver exclaims “LOL!” and shakes their head in disbelief at the stupidity and ignorance of the traffic reporters because the road in front of them has been clear all the way and friendly oncoming cars have been flashing their lights warning the driver of hidden speed cameras and cops ahead. The driver thinks that they’ll never be caught for speeding because they’re going extra slow as precaution.
Just so we’re clear, cooling the housing market isn’t an actual solution to the housing crisis. Labour want investment housing to continue just not as fast. We will never catch up via building houses or increasing minimum wages.
The devil will be in the detail….what level of DTI, how and to who it applies, and when, but this has potential to have real impact on affordability (over time)….the fear is palpable.
The Reserve Bank is most concerned about the stability of the financial system and the over-exposure of banks to risky lending. That's the problem they're trying to solve – not housing affordability for everyone. Everyone has pretty much given up on the latter point because it can't be solved with existing tools. Nor will it be solved by an uncontrolled crash in house prices – as investors will 'buy the dip' and cream it even more excessively as prices claw their way back up again.
Time to see housing as an essential service or piece of social infrastructure that has to be taken out of the market altogether (or at least partially so) – like justice, police, education and health. That won't happen though.
thanks. I was talking about Labour more than the RB. Labour have the tools (eg political capital and the hands on government), but as you say, they won't use them.
Stability and affordability are linked….especially with the level of bank credit that is tied up in one asset class.
While it is true the RBNZs primary function is the stability of the financial system they are also required to have consideration of the Govs policy intentions.
Why would anyone think that 2 hours of cyclists revolting over the bridge was worth the political price of the massive nationwide blowback the government got from the decision?
The tenor of Robertson's comments tell me that the 9% poll fall has hurt them, and they are reacting.
Of course they are concerned about the latest poll. We are now suddenly able to let workers in from the islands, it's now looking like the bike bridge will not go ahead. What next? No light rail now that Michael Cullen has said they shouldn't do it?
But cyclists are the best people in the world and what they do is the answer to all the worlds problems? how could the government move away from supporting that position?
Roughly, they already have the cyclist vote in the bag, and they need to get the driver vote back. And there's a lot more of the driver vote than the cyclist vote (though they of course mostly intersect).
If you, or I, publicly stated, 'people are wanting to "bottle" the leader of the opposition, Judith Collins'. How could it possibly be misunderstood what we meant?
National leader Judith Collins says a comment she made about people wanting to "bottle" Police Minister Poto Williams has been taken out of context in a "nasty" way……
…..”I think a lot of people want to bottle her,” Collins said
Clearly, like summer peaches, Collins thinks Williams is so desirable she needs to be bottled so can be enjoyed in the off-season.
Or… Collins shot her mouth off, in front of a non critical crowd and now has to make shit up because a filthy journalist had the gall to report her words. Not the first lapse of judgement from Collins, maybe she will be preying for forgiveness in the near future.
I, at least, would assume you meant it in exactly the way Collins says. I don't see how anyone could misinterpret you.
But then I don't have quite the fervid, (or should it be fetid?) imagination of some commenters on sundry political commentary sites on this "inter-web thingy" as I've heard it referred to.
Poto Williams daughter is not going to get far in this world if she is this fragile……"feels unsafe after hearing the National Party leader say her mother needed to be "bottled"."
[Many people would like snarky little trolls to be kicked back under their bridge. It appears that you haven’t read your own link, which is characteristic of trolls. In your next comment in this thread below, you berate the press of bringing the MP’s family into it, which is exactly what you did in your stupid troll move and most likely because the MP mentioned it. I lose patience fast with dickhead trolls such as you and I can’t wait till kick you back under your bridge – Incognito]
Personally speaking, I find it terribly offensive, for anyone to suggest violence be committed against anyone, even as a joke.
Suggesting violence be committed against a democratically elected representative, is an attack on our democracy, and therefore an attack on all of us.
Bottled can mean put into a bottle such as when perserving fruit. Collins did not mean that.
Bottle is another word for courage but is not used for this meaning in the past tense 'bottled' so Collins did not mean that.
Bottled can mean being hit with a bottle. In the context especially of discussing gangs this meaning is definitely available for interpretation as such.
I have never heard of someone needing to be bottled like a 'genie' in this or any context except that of folk lore. Genies are taken out of bottles, not put into them in colloquial speech, meaning to allow actions with unalterable consequences.
Collins may have intended to create a new usage of 'bottled'. I doubt it. She would have enlarged on her new usage to be clear.
She is trained as a lawyer, and should know how to use language clearly.
This, to my mind, is a fudging of an attack upon the Minister of Police to say it referred to a genie. That is her attempt to weasel out of a most inappropriate use of language.
At best, it has a double meaning should we allow the genie bottling explanation. The meaning it doubles with is to assault someone with a deadly weapon.
A double meaning word play with this degree of violent interpretation is plain wrong in any context.
Collins has crushed herself with this one in a vice of her own making.
This, to my mind, is a fudging of an attack upon the Minister of Police to say it referred to a genie. That is her attempt to weasel out of a most inappropriate use of language.
You're on to it I reckon – the 'genie defense' sounds like something Woodhouse might have dreamed up; have they found his homeless mystery man yet?
And what would Collins wish for, I wonder, if a genie was to grant her three wishes? An little outbreak of Covid-19 (preferably the Delta variant), or maybe some personal strife in the PM's life, à la Lees-Galloway.
Yes, they're busy little (and big) bees, those opposition National party MPs – fomenting trouble and strife for the benefit of all NZers.
Btw, wasn't that an excellent apology speech by PM Ardern on Sunday – showed some bottle I reckon.
I haven't read the speech. Drowsy M Kram, but her use of the offended culture's processes of apology to make amends is outstanding. Not 'cultural appropriation' but appropriate deference to another cultural symbolism. To respect and defer to another cultural tradition is truly meaningful and even game-changing behaviour.
On a different not, I think I discovered the nerdiest way to watch sports. The Olympic weightlifting scorebord had live updates just to the numbers (declared, and then the outcome).
Absolutely fascinating: getting three tries to achieved declared weights obviously introduces a massive headgame into things – e.g.Li Wenwen declared 175kg, then when the closest competitor finished at 161 the declaration immediately popped down to 162kg. She finished with an Olympic record 180, but how much of the original 175 was a realistic start-out as opposed to making everyone else go "oh, shiiiiit…".
So, yeah, deducing tactics and tension by watching the scoreboard get updated and swapped. lol
I saw that and thought much the same thing, there's some serious mind-games going on there. I wonder if a subtle rule change would make it more interesting – whatever your stated lift weight is, that's where you start. No going down in weight if you've psyched the others out – you said you could lift that weight – please proceed!
Realistically, how many lifts, even at weights below their maximum, can a lifter make without affecting their performance at the top of the range/end of the contest weights?
Part of the fun of it, I guess. She did finish higher than that weight, and the reduction to 162 might have been automatic (just to confirm she could beat it).
Hubbard failing 120 and then going up to 125 looked like a tactical decision, too.
I feel a bit sorry for the smaller lifters in that class, though. The gold medallist was lifting twice their bodyweight (I think a couple of them were only 90-odd kg). How often does someone beat an opponent 30-50kg bigger?
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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 ...
Hon Andrew Bayly, Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing At the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective (SOREC) Summit, 18 April, Dunedin Ngā mihi nui, Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Ko Whanganui aho Good Afternoon and thank you for inviting me to open your summit today. I am delighted ...
The Government is delivering on its commitment to bring back the Three Strikes legislation, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee announced today. “Our Government is committed to restoring law and order and enforcing appropriate consequences on criminals. We are making it clear that repeat serious violent or sexual offending is not ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today announced four new diplomatic appointments for New Zealand’s overseas missions. “Our diplomats have a vital role in maintaining and protecting New Zealand’s interests around the world,” Mr Peters says. “I am pleased to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the ...
New Zealand is contributing NZ$7 million to support communities affected by severe food insecurity and other urgent humanitarian needs in Ethiopia and Somalia, Foreign Minister Rt Hon Winston Peters announced today. “Over 21 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance across Ethiopia, with a further 6.9 million people ...
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Paul Goldsmith is congratulating Mataaho Collective for winning the Golden Lion for best participant in the main exhibition at the Venice Biennale. "Congratulations to the Mataaho Collective for winning one of the world's most prestigious art prizes at the Venice Biennale. “It is good ...
The Government is reforming financial services to improve access to home loans and other lending, and strengthen customer protections, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly and Housing Minister Chris Bishop announced today. “Our coalition Government is committed to rebuilding the economy and making life simpler by cutting red tape. We are ...
“China remains a strong commercial opportunity for Kiwi exporters as Chinese businesses and consumers continue to value our high-quality safe produce,” Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says. Mr McClay has returned to New Zealand following visits to Beijing, Harbin and Shanghai where he met ministers, governors and mayors and engaged in trade and agricultural events with the New ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
Refreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...
Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson is speaking at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide, promoting New Zealand wool, and outlining the coalition Government’s support for the revitalisation the sector. "New Zealand’s wool exports reached $400 million in the year to 30 June 2023, and the coalition Government ...
The Government is making legislative changes to make it easier for new early learning services to be established, and for existing services to operate, Associate Education Minister David Seymour says. The changes involve repealing the network approval provisions that apply when someone wants to establish a new early learning service, ...
Changes to the Resource Management Act will align consenting for coal mining to other forms of mining to reduce barriers that are holding back economic development, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The inconsistent treatment of coal mining compared with other extractive activities is burdensome red tape that fails to acknowledge ...
Trade, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Todd McClay has concluded productive discussions with ministerial counterparts in Beijing today, in support of the New Zealand-China trade and economic relationship. “My meeting with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao reaffirmed the complementary nature of the bilateral trade relationship, with our Free Trade Agreement at its ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today paid tribute to Singapore’s outgoing Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Meeting in Singapore today immediately before Prime Minister Lee announced he was stepping down, Prime Minister Luxon warmly acknowledged his counterpart’s almost twenty years as leader, and the enduring legacy he has left for Singapore and South East ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. While in Singapore as part of his visit to South East Asia this week, Prime Minister Luxon also met with Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and will meet with Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon ...
A leaked document shows the Canterbury/Waitaha arm of health agency Te Whatu Ora is scurrying to save $13.3 million by July. The “financial sustainability target”, which was “allocated” to Waitaha, is consistent with what’s happening in other districts, says Sarah Dalton, executive director of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists. ...
A look at the state of the previous government’s affordable housing scheme, and what could come next.Remind me: What’s KiwiBuild again?First announced in 2012, KiwiBuild was a flagship policy of the Labour Party heading into both its 2014 and 2017 election campaigns. With Jacinda Ardern as prime minister, ...
Labour in opposition will be shocked to learn which party had six years in power but squandered any chance to make real change. Grant Robertson’s valedictory speech was a predictably entertaining trip down memory lane. The acid-tongued incoming Otago University chancellor administered a sick burn to the coalition government. He ...
After more than two sleepless days, running through savage terrain, Greig Hamilton didn’t know if he was going to finish one of the most gruelling psychological assaults in sport. He was metres away from the finish line, a yellow gate made famous in a Netflix documentary; a race he’d dreamed ...
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[quiz],DIV[quiz],A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp'); Got a good quiz question?Send Newsroom your questions. The post Newsroom daily quiz, Wednesday 24 April appeared first on Newsroom. ...
The following interview with former Green Party MP Sue Kedgley came about because she features in the new memoir Hine Toa by activist Ngāhuia te Awekōtuku; the two knew each other at the University of Auckland in the early 70s, when they were both took on leadership roles in the ...
Taiwan’s semiconductor industry is seen some as its ‘silicon shield’ against invasion – but how will overseas expansion affect that protection? The post The state of Taiwan’s silicon shield appeared first on Newsroom. ...
There’s relief for building owners bending under the weight of earthquake strengthening rules – and costs – that came into force seven years ago. Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk has announced a scheduled 2027 review of the earthquake-prone building regulations will now start this year. Owners will also get ...
Opinion: It has been announced that nine percent of roles at Oranga Tamariki will be disestablished, presumably to help fund the tax cuts promised by the coalition Government. I am reminded of the graphics used to illustrate pandemic events, where five thousand people are standing in a field and then ...
COMMENTARY:By Murray Horton New Zealand needs to get tough with Israel. It’s not as if we haven’t done so before. When NZ authorities busted a Mossad operation in Auckland 20 years ago, the government didn’t say: “Oh well, Israel has the right to defend itself.” No, it arrested, prosecuted, ...
NEWSMAKERS:By Vijay Narayan, news director of FijiVillage Blessed to be part of the University of Fiji (UniFiji) faculty to continue to teach and mentor those who want to join our noble profession, and to stand for truth and justice for the people of the country. I was privileged to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Martin, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University Three weeks from now, some of us will be presented with a mountain of budget papers, and just about all of us will get to hear about them on radio, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Dan Lowry, Ice Sheet & Climate Modeller, GNS Science Hugh Chittock/Antarctica New Zealand, CC BY-SA As the climate warms and Antarctica’s glaciers and ice sheets melt, the resulting rise in sea level has the potential to displace hundreds of millions of ...
The government's plan to reintroduce a three strikes regime is being strongly opposed by lawyers, who argue there is no evidence it reduces crime or helps people rehabilitate. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Dan Jerker B. Svantesson, Professor specialising in Internet law, Bond University Do Australian courts have the right to decide what foreign citizens, located overseas, view online on a foreign-owned platform? Anyone inclined to answer “yes” to this question should perhaps also ask ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Giovanni E Ferreira, NHMRC Emerging Leader Research Fellow, Institute of Musculoskeletal Health, University of Sydney Last week in a post on X, owner of the platform Elon Musk recommended people look into disc replacement if they’re experiencing severe neck or back pain. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Hayward, Emeritus Professor of Public Policy, RMIT University anek.soowannaphoom/Shutterstock NSW Treasurer Daniel Mookhey caught the headlines yesterday, courtesy of a blistering speech condemning the latest GST carve-up. New South Wales, he claimed, would be A$11.9 billion worse off over the ...
While police are "broadly in favour", the government's proposed anti-gang laws are facing pushback from lawyers, rights groups and former gang members. ...
While police are "broadly in favour", the government's proposed anti-gang laws are facing pushback from lawyers, rights groups and former gang members. ...
By Miriam Zarriga in Port Moresby Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has arrived at Kokoda Station, Northern province, at the start of his state visit to Papua New Guinea. Both Albanese and Prime Minister James Marape will meet with the locals and the Northern Provincial government before they begin their ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Chris Wallace, Professor, School of Politics Economics & Society, Faculty of Business Government & Law, University of Canberra Shutterstock An important principle was invoked by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese last week in defence of the government’s Future Made in Australia industry ...
By Patrick Decloitre, RNZ Pacific correspondent French Pacific desk Security forces reinforcements were sent from France ahead of two rival marches in the capital Nouméa today, at the same time and only two streets away one from the other. One march, called by Union Calédonienne party (a component of the ...
A poll last August found that just 16% of New Zealanders oppose bringing back the ‘Three Strikes’ law. The nationwide poll of 1,000 New Zealanders was commissioned by Family First NZ and carried out by Curia Market Research. ...
The solo show from Ana Scotney is both sprawling and intimate, and a must-see, writes Mad Chapman. In the opening moments of Scattergun: After the Death of Rūaumoko, writer and performer Ana Scotney lays out the groundwork, literally. Silently moving around the square stage, Scotney is not so much dancing ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Burridge, Professor of Linguistics, Monash University Who makes the words? Why are trees called trees and why are shoes called shoes and who makes the names? – Elliot, age 5, Eltham, Victoria Good question Elliot! Let’s start with ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Duckett, Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne at amRawpixel.com/Shutterstock Roles of health professionals are still unfortunately often stuck in the past. That is, before the ...
COMMENTARY:By Malcolm Evans Last week’s leaked New York Times staff directive, as to what words can and cannot be used to describe the carnage Israel is raining on Palestinians, is proof positive, since those reports are published verbatim here in New Zealand, that our understanding of the conflict is ...
In the case of New Zealand, the results confirm that there is no popular support for the vicious austerity program being imposed by the National Party-led government, which is backed in all fundamental respects by the opposition Labour Party. ...
The ‘Vampire’ singer has never visited our part of the world, but that might all be about to change. We assess the evidence.Olivia Rodrigo’s Guts World Tour is pulling in massive crowds as it whips around the US and Europe, even helping to catapult regular supporting act Chappell Roan ...
Testing of drinking water in rural Canterbury over the weekend by Greenpeace revealed that several public town supplies were reaching levels of nitrate above 5 mg/L - the threshold which a growing body of scientific evidence has linked to increased ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rohan Fisher, Information Technology for Development Researcher, Charles Darwin University It may come as a surprise to hear 2023 was Australia’s biggest bushfire season in more than a decade. Fires burned across an area eight times as big as the 2019–20 Black ...
Responding to the Government’s announcement of changes to resource management laws, Taxpayers’ Union Executive Director, Jordan Williams, said: “These changes are a step in the right direction in terms of removing ideological and unworkable ...
More than two years after the Human Rights Council called for the establishment of a national human rights commission, such a body has yet to be formed. ...
Comment:An emergency management system with wide variations in performance, significant capability gaps, funding shortfalls and above all a setup that is not meeting the needs of New Zealanders at times of crisis. The Government’s inquiry into the response to Cyclone Gabrielle and other severe weather events in the North ...
Welcome to the whirring wonders of one brain trying to align its actions with its beliefs within a system it thinks is evil. My brain has been spiralling in a woke conundrum ever since I found out a bookshop I’ve never been to was shutting down. Good Books, a bookshop ...
We repeat our call for criminal justice policy to be based on evidence, something the three strikes regime neglects to recognise – with no evidence that it either reduces crime or assists with rehabilitation. ...
By Koroi Hawkins, RNZ Pacific editor in Honiara With only four more seats in the 50-member Parliament yet to be officially declared, there is no outright winner in the Solomon Islands elections. As of Monday, the two largest blocs in the winner’s circle, independents and the incumbent Prime Minister Manasseh ...
Two/fiftyseven is a multi-purpose space hidden in the heart of Wellington that is paving a way for sustainable building and responsible landlording in Aotearoa and beyond.By 2060 the world is predicted to double its entire building stock, which equates to building an entire New York City every 34 days, ...
Popstars wasn’t just a reality television revolution, it was also a huge moment for Y2K fashion.It’s 25 years since girl group TrueBliss was formed on New Zealand national television, breaking new ground for both the reality television industry and the shiny clothing industry. With the first episode on NZ ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christopher Pepping, Associate Professor in Clinical Psychology, Griffith University Marvin / Shutterstock Are all single people insecure? When we think about people who have been single for a long time, we may assume it’s because single people have insecurities that make ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By William Geary, Lecturer in Quantitative Ecology & Biodiversity Conservation, The University of Melbourne Trismegist san, Shutterstock Landscapes that have escaped fire for decades or centuries tend to harbour vital structures for wildlife, such as tree hollows and large logs. But these ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rebecca Gladstone-Gallagher, Lecturer in Marine Science, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Shutterstock/S Curtis Why are we crossing ecological boundaries that affect Earth’s fundamental life-supporting capacity? Is it because we don’t have enough information about how ecosystems respond to change? Or ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Matthew Crocker, PhD Student in Economics, Deakin University Here’s something for the board of the Reserve Bank of Australia to ponder as it meets next month to set interest rates. It has pushed up rates on 13 occasions since it began its ...
As part of our series exploring how New Zealanders live and our relationship with money, a charity director outlines how she’s saving for retirement and buying secondhand. Want to be part of The Cost of Being? Fill out the questionnaire here.Gender: Female Age: 45 Ethnicity: Pākehā Role: Charity director, mum of ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sophie Yates, Research Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University Many Australians with disability feel on the edge of a precipice right now. Recommendations from the disability royal commission and the NDIS review were released late last year. Now a ...
It’s been called a failed experiment and a judicial straightjacket but the government says the revised three strikes law will be a more workable regime, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. Three ...
New Zealand’s Palestinian community and Palestinian Youth Aotearoa are voicing alarm and disappointment with the lack of factual rigour present during the Israeli Ambassador’s appearance as a guest on TVNZ’s Q+A With Jack Tame Sunday (21/04). ...
Both ACT leader David Seymour, who played a key role in drawing up the assisted dying law, and hospice leaders say it's time the legislation was changed. ...
Public submissions on proposed gang control laws are being heard today. Rising gang membership has been cited as rationale for a crackdown – but what do we actually know about how many people belong to gangs in New Zealand?What’s all this then?A rise in the number of gang ...
Climate activists are setting their sights on an unpopular target, and hoping to bring lots of the public with them. It’s hard to miss the Majestic Princess: the enormous cruise ship, docked at Auckland’s Prince’s Wharf, looms over the nearby buildings. The ship, which can fit nearly 6,000 people, ...
Opinion: Making sure developers, local and central government, and landowners are all on the same page makes sense The post A new kind of city deal appeared first on Newsroom. ...
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The following korero between Ngāhuia te Awekōtuku, author of the newly published memoir Hine Toa, one of the year’s most important books, and Dale Husband from e-tangata, was first published in October. It traverses her involvement with the activist group Ngā Tamatoa at Auckland University in the early 1970s, her ...
In the 16 years since it was bought by the government for $690 million, KiwiRail has had several overhauls and turnaround plans worth billions of dollars. Its ambitions as a successful, profitable operator of tourism, freight and ferries have often been derailed by disasters from earthquakes to cyclones, mine explosions ...
Black Ferns trailblazer Kendra Cocksedge was on the verge of tears when her young protégé, Hannah King, unassumingly broke the news. Three-time Rugby World Cup winner Cocksedge and Lincoln agriculture student King meet every few weeks over a hot chocolate, in an enduring mentorship that’s spanned years. “Before we even ...
Opinion: We’ve kicked the tyres on the perception NZ’s economy is in a parlous state compared to Australia. We take a quick tour of relative trends in GDP, housing markets, labour markets, trade, the fiscal situation, and the outlooks for inflation and interest rates. We find the cyclical positions of ...
By Russell Palmer, RNZ News digital political journalist New Zealand’s Foreign Minister Winston Peters is putting off recognition of Palestine as a state, despite opposition Labour’s formal request that he make the move. Peters said diplomatic recognition of Palestine was a matter of “when not if”, but doing so now ...
The opposition has laid into the government's plan to reintroduce a "three strikes" regime, saying it's inequitable and there's very little evidence it works. ...
Auckland Council sells its park workers' jobs. Good discussion by Todd Niall. https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/local-government/125927769/for-sale-320-auckland-council-workers-jobs–but-why
I don't get it, We're already using Australian and 1 Christchurch owned firm.
They are in business to make profit and said profits represent money sucked out of our communities.
I guess the mayor always was a Rogernome so no real suprise.
Dang that is crazy. This cult thinking that only private enterprise can deliver quality services is so wrong.
Quality has nothing to do with it, removing public pressures however….
the Auckland Council is a cult?
Are you an illiterate or just acting like one?
You did fall spectacularly for that spin too.
SSDD
i must be all of that, hence why i asked.
Good morning Incognito, i truly hope that you have a blessed day.
…a blessed day. Under His Eye
+1
women and daughters need'nt apply 🙂
All they need to do is to pass a CAPTCHA. It is that simple, but some fail in a spectacular and mindboggling fashion
A person drives a car on the M-way and listens to the traffic report that warns of a km-long queue of very slow and crawling traffic on the exact some stretch of road going in the exact same direction. The driver exclaims “LOL!” and shakes their head in disbelief at the stupidity and ignorance of the traffic reporters because the road in front of them has been clear all the way and friendly oncoming cars have been flashing their lights warning the driver of hidden speed cameras and cops ahead. The driver thinks that they’ll never be caught for speeding because they’re going extra slow as precaution.
Maybe in the fatherland, the cults are all ISO-accredited?
The QC at hinterland cults is exceptional.
Every cult needs a good lawyer.
Quality Control
Just so we’re clear, cooling the housing market isn’t an actual solution to the housing crisis. Labour want investment housing to continue just not as fast. We will never catch up via building houses or increasing minimum wages.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/business/448328/govt-and-reserve-bank-agree-on-new-moves-to-tighten-mortgage-lending
The devil will be in the detail….what level of DTI, how and to who it applies, and when, but this has potential to have real impact on affordability (over time)….the fear is palpable.
Affordability for the investor classes. How will it help homeless people, those on social housing waiting lists, low income renters?
Do you think it will drop house prices?
Affordability in general…potentially. as stated the devil is in the detail.
The DTIs are likely to come in at a still unaffordable rate but I expect over time they will decrease….whether that forestalls a crash is unknown.
State/social housing will still need to be expanded.
The Reserve Bank is most concerned about the stability of the financial system and the over-exposure of banks to risky lending. That's the problem they're trying to solve – not housing affordability for everyone. Everyone has pretty much given up on the latter point because it can't be solved with existing tools. Nor will it be solved by an uncontrolled crash in house prices – as investors will 'buy the dip' and cream it even more excessively as prices claw their way back up again.
Time to see housing as an essential service or piece of social infrastructure that has to be taken out of the market altogether (or at least partially so) – like justice, police, education and health. That won't happen though.
thanks. I was talking about Labour more than the RB. Labour have the tools (eg political capital and the hands on government), but as you say, they won't use them.
Stability and affordability are linked….especially with the level of bank credit that is tied up in one asset class.
While it is true the RBNZs primary function is the stability of the financial system they are also required to have consideration of the Govs policy intentions.
Minister of Finance Grant Robertson just cast serious shade over the Auckland cycle bridge, and wants the full harbour crossing tunnel accelerated.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/auckland-traffic-grant-robertson-wants-to-speed-up-second-harbour-crossing-considers-scrapping-cycle-bridge/ANVSK25QIRMQGXOOEHZSW3BDZM/
Why would anyone think that 2 hours of cyclists revolting over the bridge was worth the political price of the massive nationwide blowback the government got from the decision?
The tenor of Robertson's comments tell me that the 9% poll fall has hurt them, and they are reacting.
Of course they are concerned about the latest poll. We are now suddenly able to let workers in from the islands, it's now looking like the bike bridge will not go ahead. What next? No light rail now that Michael Cullen has said they shouldn't do it?
The government needs to reposition itself: now that it has lost tens of thousands of centre voters, it has to figure how to get some of them back.
They will be fully aware that they have a brace of massive policy proposals, and will have to dump some of them.
Remember too that in the next year they will be opening the fully Hamilton bypass, and Transmission Gully.
But cyclists are the best people in the world and what they do is the answer to all the worlds problems? how could the government move away from supporting that position?
Roughly, they already have the cyclist vote in the bag, and they need to get the driver vote back. And there's a lot more of the driver vote than the cyclist vote (though they of course mostly intersect).
If you, or I, publicly stated, 'people are wanting to "bottle" the leader of the opposition, Judith Collins'. How could it possibly be misunderstood what we meant?
Clearly, like summer peaches, Collins thinks Williams is so desirable she needs to be bottled so can be enjoyed in the off-season.
Or… Collins shot her mouth off, in front of a non critical crowd and now has to make shit up because a filthy journalist had the gall to report her words. Not the first lapse of judgement from Collins, maybe she will be preying for forgiveness in the near future.
I, at least, would assume you meant it in exactly the way Collins says. I don't see how anyone could misinterpret you.
But then I don't have quite the fervid, (or should it be fetid?) imagination of some commenters on sundry political commentary sites on this "inter-web thingy" as I've heard it referred to.
https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=bottled
Isn't language (or at least slang) an odd beast. I've always thought 'bottle' meant courage.
A 'courageous' interpretation of Collins' intent; there's much fortune in your future.
Plenty of people want to bottle the Gypsy – a ‘top’ vintage, by some accounts.
I haven't tried that little drop. At that price, I probably never will!
Yes I have heard it used as meaning courage before.
Poto Williams daughter is not going to get far in this world if she is this fragile……"feels unsafe after hearing the National Party leader say her mother needed to be "bottled"."
Talk about making a mountain out of a mole hill.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/police-minister-poto-williams-family-distressed-over-judith-collins-bottled-comment/AO6MV3KRHPWQXSGHA4EIUYM5IY/
[Many people would like snarky little trolls to be kicked back under their bridge. It appears that you haven’t read your own link, which is characteristic of trolls. In your next comment in this thread below, you berate the press of bringing the MP’s family into it, which is exactly what you did in your stupid troll move and most likely because the MP mentioned it. I lose patience fast with dickhead trolls such as you and I can’t wait till kick you back under your bridge – Incognito]
You really are a pathetic little apologist for the least fit for leader that national have had, .
It's so obviously twisted and blown out of proportion it's not funny. Press should not even bring MP's family in to things like this.
Lucky I'm not as fragile as them and can take your insults on the chin and move on. I'm sure you feel better now!
Collins should be taken out the back and shot shouldn't she Jimmy. Pregnant pause. In close up of course, to capture her radiant smile.
Personally speaking, I find it terribly offensive, for anyone to suggest violence be committed against anyone, even as a joke.
Suggesting violence be committed against a democratically elected representative, is an attack on our democracy, and therefore an attack on all of us.
Urban Dictionary "bottled" top definition
Hand on heart( if you've got one) do you think collins is fit to lead a country, she comes across as slightly deranged when ever I see her on the tv .
Bottled can mean put into a bottle such as when perserving fruit. Collins did not mean that.
Bottle is another word for courage but is not used for this meaning in the past tense 'bottled' so Collins did not mean that.
Bottled can mean being hit with a bottle. In the context especially of discussing gangs this meaning is definitely available for interpretation as such.
I have never heard of someone needing to be bottled like a 'genie' in this or any context except that of folk lore. Genies are taken out of bottles, not put into them in colloquial speech, meaning to allow actions with unalterable consequences.
Collins may have intended to create a new usage of 'bottled'. I doubt it. She would have enlarged on her new usage to be clear.
She is trained as a lawyer, and should know how to use language clearly.
This, to my mind, is a fudging of an attack upon the Minister of Police to say it referred to a genie. That is her attempt to weasel out of a most inappropriate use of language.
At best, it has a double meaning should we allow the genie bottling explanation. The meaning it doubles with is to assault someone with a deadly weapon.
A double meaning word play with this degree of violent interpretation is plain wrong in any context.
Collins has crushed herself with this one in a vice of her own making.
You're on to it I reckon – the 'genie defense' sounds like something Woodhouse might have dreamed up; have they found his homeless mystery man yet?
And what would Collins wish for, I wonder, if a genie was to grant her three wishes? An little outbreak of Covid-19 (preferably the Delta variant), or maybe some personal strife in the PM's life, à la Lees-Galloway.
Yes, they're busy little (and big) bees, those opposition National party MPs – fomenting trouble and strife for the benefit of all NZers.
Btw, wasn't that an excellent apology speech by PM Ardern on Sunday – showed some bottle I reckon.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/aug/02/jacinda-ardern-apologises-for-new-zealand-dawn-raids-on-pasifika-people-in-1970s
I haven't read the speech. Drowsy M Kram, but her use of the offended culture's processes of apology to make amends is outstanding. Not 'cultural appropriation' but appropriate deference to another cultural symbolism. To respect and defer to another cultural tradition is truly meaningful and even game-changing behaviour.
See my kind Moderation note @ 4:17 pm.
Vintage Collins really.
In unrelated news, Sky TV have canned their 'Vintage' movies channel – about time?
'Canned' and not 'bottled"?
Movies/films used to go in the can when they were finished – not sure where vintage Collins would go, but she does have Dame Shipley as an exemplar.
We need better politicians
On a different not, I think I discovered the nerdiest way to watch sports. The Olympic weightlifting scorebord had live updates just to the numbers (declared, and then the outcome).
Absolutely fascinating: getting three tries to achieved declared weights obviously introduces a massive headgame into things – e.g.Li Wenwen declared 175kg, then when the closest competitor finished at 161 the declaration immediately popped down to 162kg. She finished with an Olympic record 180, but how much of the original 175 was a realistic start-out as opposed to making everyone else go "oh, shiiiiit…".
So, yeah, deducing tactics and tension by watching the scoreboard get updated and swapped. lol
I saw that and thought much the same thing, there's some serious mind-games going on there. I wonder if a subtle rule change would make it more interesting – whatever your stated lift weight is, that's where you start. No going down in weight if you've psyched the others out – you said you could lift that weight – please proceed!
Realistically, how many lifts, even at weights below their maximum, can a lifter make without affecting their performance at the top of the range/end of the contest weights?
Part of the fun of it, I guess. She did finish higher than that weight, and the reduction to 162 might have been automatic (just to confirm she could beat it).
Hubbard failing 120 and then going up to 125 looked like a tactical decision, too.
I feel a bit sorry for the smaller lifters in that class, though. The gold medallist was lifting twice their bodyweight (I think a couple of them were only 90-odd kg). How often does someone beat an opponent 30-50kg bigger?
Lisa Carrington and the women's paddlers are awesome.
Yes they are amazing.
The grim yet hilarious sight of a fertile mind fertilising at full capacity
Yes, "Sir" Robert Jones is at it again.
Funniest quote from this masterpiece:
https://nopunchespulled.com/2021/07/20/colonialism-nonsense/
More hilarity involving Sir Robert Jones:
https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-18072013/#comment-664471