I don't know, maybe I am being negative but when there are not enough homes and waiting lists for urgent life saving hospital treatments Couldn't 760 million could be better used somewhere else?
You noticed the $800m duplicate road to Whangaparaoa in the same package? Or the $1500m duplicate road to Levin. Unlike nursing salaries, they come from the same budget.
NZTA are likely to be playing silly buggers anyway by proposing a built solution that is way over 20x the original price, with a #LiberateTheLane trial coming soon.
Or we could take the opportunity to build much needed pollution reducing infrastructure, for the future, giving an economic stimulus, while interest rates are low.
Pedestrian and biking infrastructure, public transport, rail links and coastal shipping.
And use the extra taxes generated to give overdue pay rises. To cleaners, orderlies and Teacher aides as well as those who make the most noise.
Now that's an idea! Or they could put some platforms underneath so people could sleep under it. /sarc
Just what are the priorities of this Govt? A bridge for a few thousand entitled people or looking after the 40 thousand homeless and rough sleepers?
Running 12 ferries carrying 100 @ 10 minute intervals from 3 different sites would be far less expensive, and more convenient for walkers and cyclists. The HMNZS Tui used batteries for propulsion when minesweeping in WW2. So the ferries could also be similarly powered.
You are absolutely right Macro, I just googled it, there are already battery powered ferries operating around the world. Some of them are huge. And could easily get thousands of bicycle riders across the harbour.
But that is not what this is about, outspoken cycling enthusiast Emma McInnes exposes her motive for the new bridge.
"I think we're underestimating the fact that people will use it just for the joy of being able to walk over the water, to stop in the middle of the bridge, take photos, to go over on a jog in the morning, walk their dog, take their kids over… I think people are underestimating how popular a bridge like that would be."
"I think we're underestimating the fact that people will use it just for the joy of being able to walk over the water, to stop in the middle of the bridge, take photos, to go over on a jog in the morning, walk their dog, take their kids over… I think people are underestimating how popular a bridge like that would be."
Cyclist and urban designer Emma McInnes
What Jenny quoted above is a fine example of the thoughts of the movers and shakers in society from the middle class. From shared pathways where they can ride their expensive bikes on footpaths where people want to walk. Where they have sufficient money to enjoy life, and presumably have friends and family also, and perhaps weekends and regular work for them to have a personal life, they have no real consideration for anything but themselves and their class. Shops with stylish furniture and expensive jeans that come already slashed – they are needs not wants and all their group are wearing them!
Don't anyone say that class is defunct; those without money and options for the future are truly declasse'!
From the most pleasant and expensive suburbs to the slightly less expensive but no less pleasant suburbs, a place to ride expensive bikes in pleasant weather
" And could easily get thousands of bicycle riders across the harbour."
That might be a bit difficult to do. Where are you going to get the thousands of cyclists from?
According to a recent report in the Herald Fullers carried 12,000 cycles on a total of 2,600 ferry trips in a 4 week period. That works our at an average of 4 or 5 per trip, and more significantly an average of about 430/day. Assuming that these are generally return trips that is only about 215 individuals who used the service each day.
I'm not from Auckland so there might be other ferry operators but I don't know of any significant operations except the Fuller ones. Are there any which might affect my calculations to any degree?
Where are the thousands of cyclists going to come from?
An unfortunate additional calculation is that it would seem our all knowing Government is planning to spend about $3 million per regular cyclist who currently takes their bike across from the North Shore to Auckland. I wonder if the ones who go from Devonport would actually cycle all the way around to the bridge if one was built? Should we assume $4 million? Or perhaps $5 million? That's for the ones who might actually use the bridge.
Perhaps some of them could be those who are presently dissuaded from using their bike because they can never be sure if they'll actually be allowed to travel with their bike!
That's what that article on Stuff (not the Herald) you linked to is actually about.
Sure it was. However when you read it you discover that there were 53 out of 12,000 who had to wait for the next ferry. Like NZ cyclists everywhere they complained bitterly and at length.
Well tough luck. They would have missed that ferry anyway if they had had a puncture wouldn't they? There is no form of transport I am aware of that guarantees that everyone who turns up, unbooked, for a particular trip is 100% sure to get on. I remember one occasion in Wellington when the local Green Party members, about 200 of them from memory, were going to hold a weekend conference in the Wairarapa. They all turned up at the Wellington Railway Station to board the train. This they did, as soon as the train was at the platform.
They were not at all popular with the regular passengers who had to stand for the whole trip. The Greens of course hadn't considered the fact that they could have warned the Railways that there would be a lot of extra people and that more carriages could be provided to cater for them.
"Like NZ cyclists everywhere they complained bitterly and at length."
My observation, especially after last Sunday on the Harbour Bridge, is that it's motorists that complain bitterly and at length.
There's an interesting contradiction in your comment above where firstly you say
"There is no form of transport I am aware of that guarantees that everyone who turns up, unbooked, for a particular trip is 100% sure to get on."
and then regarding the possibly apocryphal story about the Wairarapa line you say
"They were not at all popular with the regular passengers who had to stand for the whole trip."
At least they weren't left to wait for the next trip, which you regard as perfectly acceptable. Or is this just you 'complaining bitterly and at length' about not only cyclists but also Green Party members?
" And could easily get thousands of bicycle riders across the harbour."
That might be a bit difficult to do. Where are you going to get the thousands of cyclists from?…..
We won't get them.
Despite those that think cycling is a serious alternative way of commuting for the 20,000 commuters displaced by the cycle lane.
Of course this is not really about crossing the harbour at all, but more about indulging the leisure activity of bike enthusiasts who want the experience of crossing the Harbour Bridge
I was just trying to show these diehards that there are alternatives at much less cost, that is if they really want to take the bicycle to Takapuna beach.
Ferries account for nearly 7 per cent of Auckland’s public transport journeys, but their large diesel engines produce 20.5 per cent of all public transport emissions in the city.
For transporting people, sea transport actually seems to end up being quite energy inefficient and emissions intensive. Every instance I've looked at previously has turned out that way.
I'll take a guess that the inefficiency and high emissions is because for ferries, passenger ships etc, the actual cargo (humans) is a tiny tiny portion of the mass getting moved around. Whereas for any kind of non-human cargo, the payload is a decent fraction of the total mass getting moved, so the efficiency is much higher for shipping non-human cargo.
I also very strongly suspect that the passenger km per litre for Auckland's current bus fleet probably isn't that great compared to passenger km per litre for private car transport. It wasn't in the 80's when I saw some actual numbers as part of engineering coursework, and it wasn't when I managed to find actual numbers for some US bus public transport systems. (It's probably going to be very hard to get numbers for Orcland's current bus transport system, because it's done by private operators and commercial sensitivity). This inefficiency and high emissions is largely due to a lot of bus movements happening with very few or zero passengers.
The only emissions standout for public transport is when it's electrified, like Orcland's trains. Or electrified bus fleets that are happening elsewhere (shamefully not NZ).
None of this is an argument against public transport. There's the strong social good which makes a good public transport system a necessity for a reasonably livable city. Vehicle efficiency is also only a small part of overall efficiency, there's also the demands on public infrastructure to consider. That's where public transport tends to do much better, and overcomes its usually poor energy efficiency and emissions performance.
Well Auckland is a tale of two types of ferries, where higher speed Waiheke boats are a category all their own.
I presume they will be going only after the smaller cross harbour ferries for electrification.
'Heavy problem' is going to be a lot worse if they bring in batteries, and like planes the drag is greater from weight alone, so they need more power and bigger batteries….
As well I would question the 20% emissions claim made by a self interested party. Are they talking about kg of CO2 per unit volume of diesel engines…which wouldnt change for diesel used in buses or ferries or other emissions from by product of combustion.
Then theres is the hype over something that is always just around the corner
It's more exciting watching jugs heating up than watching Toyota for technical developments. Toyota tend to keep technical developments very close to their chest until they're pretty much at the point of releasing them.
So Toyota may yet surprise us, but they haven't yet demonstrated in-house battery prowess. Their supplies come from the usual suspects – Panasonic, CATL etc.
So I'm finding it really hard to form an opinion on whether the mutterings about Toyota solid-state batteries are something real, or a dead-end like their hydrogen efforts.
Power densities for batteries arent increasing as much as many like to think from lab results. However the process still requires a large number of individual cells within their own 'package' to scale up to something usable. What looks to be a larger battery for the new Ford F150 electric ute even requires an internal liquid cooling system.
A further note on Auckland ferries, the half moon bay run for cars and trucks uses 3 quite large ferries ( large compared to the very small one that goes to the CBD). Not many passengers who arent in cars or trucks for that service but it would consume a lot of diesel, this service is essential for Waihekes supplies – on one run they had such heavy trucks carrying road asphalt that water was around the cars and trucks tires!. A freight service also runs to Great Barrier
It is both extraordinary luck and good management that this Wednesday the Climate Commission plan comes out just as central government is remaking our public service and our economy.
Optimum moment to achieve good policy changes.
Very much the transformational moment to engage through.
Yep, too much for the bus passengers – that Stuff article says it was pushy pedestrians who tried to lend a hand. When will do-gooders learn?
A group of pedestrians decided to try and push start the bus, but were not able to do so, the spokeswoman said.
One of my earliest (hazy) memories (as a very young bus passenger) was of an (electric) trolleybus driver (in Auckland) scrambling to re-attach power couplings to overhead lines using some kind of (presumably well-insulated?) stick. They didn't, and still don't pay bus drivers enough, imho.
The trolleys had long cords at the back of the bus which the driver which use to raise and lower the power poles. No risk to them from that. Trams had previously the same system for their poles
It's a ‘memory of a memory’ from my preschool years (~1960) – I had/have the impression that the 'powerpoles' had accidentally detached (dewired) from the overhead powerlines, that the driver appeared to be using a stick-like implement to help reattach (guide/push) them back into place, and that it was taking him longer than he expected/wanted.
Thinking on it, I can't imagine how I might have had a good view of this incident from inside the trolleybus (presumably I was in the company of a parent or grandparent), but as I said it's a hazy recollection, and Auckland is only the most likely location. Still, whatever I saw it certainly made a lasting impression.
Whoops! During a test run on Friday afternoon, No. 3 spectacularly dewired near the Heritage Park office. Society Editor Alastair was despatched to repole, but even though he was able to unsnarl the trolley ropes, Alan still had to get out and teach Alastair not only how to reset the two trolley retrievers, but also to correct his attempts to put one of the poles on the wire. Alastair hadn’t been anywhere near the wire—he had the pole somewhere between the two and was raising it higher in the hopes that it was near where it should be. Oh dear! http://ferrymeadtramway.org.nz/downloads/tracts_oct17.pdf
For what it's worth the Russians discovered a very long time ago that by strongly tapering the trolley poles and keeping the effective tip mass to a minimum they could virtually eliminate de-lining as was so common in the fleet we were operating.
I noticed this when I was working there and asked about it at the time. In the city I was in trolley busses were very common and I never once saw a de-lining.
but in saying that it would be smart use of space and i doubt that the new class of architects would even be able to bend their mind around 'smart use of space'.
Dammit you are right, middle class protesters instead of demanding a cycleway on the Harbour Bridge, should be demanding that one lane of the Harbour Bridge be given over to housing. Maybe we could have a three month trial of that?
And after three months if the houses on the Bridge are not successful in easing traffic congestion just throw them over the side.
hahahahah, indeed. and in three hundred years there would be something to look at for tourists. In saying that, some of these bridges are just quite brilliant.
It certainly wouldn't be a new idea would it. In about 1600 the "Old" London Bridge was covered in dwellings in which, apparently, about 500 people lived.
In a speech to the President's Club in 1999, Bruce Herschensohn, former deputy special assistant to President Richard Nixon, alleged that he was executed 14 days later; other sources alleged he was executed by firing squad a few months after the Tiananmen Square protests.
Can someone explain why it's going to take a year to phase in welfare increases? The govt said on budget day that increasing benefits creates an economic stimulation because beneficiaries spend and spend locally, what I don't understand is why wait a year to phase in needed economic stimulation when people need the help now and businesses who will benefit from increased spending need the stimulation now , some won't survive a year.
Is it because our Bureaucrats are unable to work fast, or because the govt wants to ensure the increases won't be clawed back by deductions from other top up benefits of is it because the govt doesn't wanna increase payments while the winter energy payment is in effect (heaven forbid people had a few bucks extra)
An economic stimulus works only if they get the cash out quickly. This is not quick.
I also don't understand the $30-50 , why isn't everyone getting the much needed $50 ESPECIALLY people on disability benefits.
Phasing in $20 in July then waiting till next year seems …. Pathetic and unlikely to increase spending and stimulate the economy as much as giving everyone on welfare $50 next month.
Surely it's not that hard to legislate that msd can't deduct from other payments…. Surely it doesn't take a bloody year
A group of anti-poverty campaigners has called on the Government to implement its Budget benefit plans on 1 July, rather than staggering increases across 1 July 2021 and 1 April 2022, as announced last week.
The Government announced, as part of Budget 2021, that core benefit levels would increase by $20 per week on 1 July, with additional increases to bring it up to $55 in total on 1 April 2022.
But the Government has given no reason why these increases have been staggered.
“People are suffering unnecessarily. We are just one of many groups who have been calling for significant and urgent increases to benefit levels for years now,” said Caitlin Neuwelt-Kearns, Researcher at the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG). CPAG is part of the Fairer Future collaboration of groups, which is calling for liveable incomes for all.
The orginization Fairer Futures' website has a Key Information page which clearly outlines the history of social support in New Zealand and reminds those who would forget that we have gone from providing decent support up to the 1980s to being the third worst in the OECD just prior to Te Virus.
Drip feeding is just cruel, but I guess some folk just like to see others beg.
The environmental and reproductive epidemiologist predicts most couples might need assisted reproduction by 2045. ..
In 2017, Swan and her team of researchers completed a major study that found over the past four decades sperm levels among men in Western countries had dropped by more than 50 percent. The study involved examining 185 studies involving close to 45,000 healthy men.,,
"Sperm concentration was close to 100 million per millilitre, but now it's dropped to 47," Swan said…
Lifestyle factors affecting sperm health and fertility include exposure to smoking, excessive drinking, lack of exercise, poor diet, and stress. Adopting a healthier lifestyle could improve sperm health, Swan said.
Endocrine-disrupting chemicals, which impact on our bodies' hormones, and other chemicals found in the environment were also taking a toll on sperm health, she said…
Swan has studied phthalates, which make plastics soft and flexible, act as fragrances in personal care products, and are found in foods. "What they can do is lower testosterone. This has been shown in the laboratory."…
The rise of gender fluidity and increasing numbers of transgender people could also be related to chemicals impacting on human hormones. Swan said when a breeding animal was exposed to phthalates, their male offspring sometimes had "incomplete genitals". The same could occur in human children, with risks of phthalate exposure highest in early pregnancy, she said.
"How those boys are born with those smaller genitals, that is a lifetime effect and it actually is linked to them having lower sperm count."
Phthalates were found around the planet and also impacted on the fertility of wildlife, Swan said.
“Many studies have linked exposure to these chemicals to declines in litter size and endangerment of multiple species.”
Watch out men (and women). Maybe you should stop drenching yourselves in nice smellies and go back to the 'sweet summer sweat' that they sing about in Hotel California.
They have had this before. They know it happens after prolonged drought. In an organised farming community they would be super-vigilant because of past records about these outbreaks, and how to prevent them. Dont we learn – whats the use of education?
Open access notables A survey of interventions to actively conserve the frozen North, van Wijngaarden et al., Climatic Change:The frozen elements of the high North are thawing as the region warms much faster than the global mean. The dangers of sea level rise due to melting glacier ice, increased ...
Bryce Edwards writes – New Zealand’s biggest-ever political donations scandal is finally at an end. But what is the conclusion? No one can really be sure. The Court of Appeal released its judgement on Tuesday about the Serious Fraud Office case against the NZ First Foundation. On ...
In 2015, then-Prime Minister John Key announced plans for a huge ocean sanctuary around the Kermadec Islands, banning fishing and mining from 15% of Aotearoa's EEZ. It was bold, it was ambitious, and it suggested that National might actually care about the environment. Except they fucked it up: Key failed ...
1. Who has just been given the accolade New Zealander of the Year?a. The Kokakob. The Cook Strait Ferryc. Fair God. Dr Jim Salinger 2. Which of these is an affront to decent society?a. Dame Edna Everageb. Mrs Doubtfire c. Dr. Frank-N-Furterd. Brian 3. Who is Penny Simmonds?a. The aspiring actress in Big ...
New Zealand’s biggest-ever political donations scandal is finally at an end. But what is the conclusion? No one can really be sure.The Court of Appeal released its judgement on Tuesday about the Serious Fraud Office case against the NZ First Foundation. On the face of it, the court found ...
Buzz from the Beehive Waves of rain are set to lash much of the North Island during Easter Weekend as a low-pressure system forms east of New Zealand, according to a weather forecast published in the past day or so. Niwa was warning of a “moisture-laden” long weekend, with rain expected ...
Look around us…Nicola Willis’ promises of balancing the books, of cutting spending without reducing services, and of delivering game changing tax cuts are disappearing before her eyes.Everyday we see stories of violent crime ending in horrific injuries, or worse. The cost of living worsens, whereas the PM claimed renters would ...
TL;DR: My top six news of note on the morning of Thursday, March 28 include:The Government will have to borrow between $10 billion to $15 billion more than previously expected in order to make up for a slowing economy and to pay for $14.9 billion of tax cuts, according to ...
This story by Naveena Sadasivam and Kate Yoder was originally published by Grist and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. The long-awaited jobs board for the American Climate Corps, promised early in the Biden administration, will open next month, according to details shared exclusively ...
Should landlords be able to deduct the interest on the loans they take out to bankroll their property speculation? The US Senate Budget Committee and Bloomberg News don’t think this is a good idea, for reasons set out below. Regardless, our coalition government has been burning through a ton of ...
Treasury’s first report on the economy since the change of government presents a damning indictment of Labour’s economic management. The problem for National is that it is so damning that logically, coupled with a rapidly slowing economy, Finance Minister Nicola Willis should respond to it by postponing or even cancelling ...
Budget tensions are becoming evident within the Coalition Government. Winston Peters made numerous political points in his speech to the NZF annual conference. But the attack on his own government’s fiscal policies raised issues of substance. ‘Today in the Sunday Star Times, journalist and former advisor to the Labour ...
Buzz from the Beehive The media – sure enough – have been binging on Finance Minister Nicola Willis’ release of the Budget Policy Statement and a statement headed Government announces Budget priorities This assures us – or rather, this parrots the Luxon team mantra – that the Budget “will deliver ...
The Ides of March brought me COVID followed by a bereavement. No wonder they tell you to be careful of them.I’m home now and have resumed the interrupted recuperation. Very much looking forward to getting back to regular things. Meanwhile, some thoughts…OneThis new Prime Minister guy just keeps getting more dire. ...
News that the Chinese ATP 40 cyber-hacking unit penetrated parliamentary internet networks in 2021 has renewed concerns about the PRC’s malign intentions in Aotearoa. But is the hack that significant given the length of time that has passed since its … Continue reading → ...
When Parliament passed the Intelligence and security Act in 2017, they assured us all that it was full of safeguards. Any intrusive surveillance of New Zealanders would be subject to a "triple lock", requiring the approval of the Minister and (supposedly independent) Commissioner of Intelligence Warrants, as well as post-facto ...
Eric Crampton writes – Richard Harman’s Politik newsletter provides a bit of the context that ought to have been showing up in other media reports on potential reductions in public service staffing. Media has been reporting on staffing cuts on the order of about 7%. Is that ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – It’s becoming increasingly apparent that many perceive free speech to have become the preserve of the politically right wing, the religiously conservative, the libertarian fringe, the anti-trans, the anti-Māori and…. well, just fill in with whatever groups or individuals you don’t like and don’t ...
Don Brash writes – As everybody who is not blind and deaf is aware, there is a huge political preoccupation with climate change at the moment, a widespread (though by no means unanimous) belief that global temperatures are rising mainly as a result of the greenhouse gases created ...
TL;DR: My six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy on Wednesday, March 27 include:Chris Bishop laid out his vision for filling Aotearoa-NZ’s $100 billion infrastructure deficit in a speech yesterday, emphasising user pays and private funding, but failed to say how to achieve bipartisanship on population, public borrowing and ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Former Finance Minister Grant Robertson and former Prime Minister Chris Hipkins have been conveying how unhappy they are with the tax system. Last week in his valedictory speech, Robertson called for the introduction of a wealth or capital gains tax. And this week Hipkins ...
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 ...
Buzz from the Beehive China has loomed large in Beehive considerations over the past 24 hours, largely because of that country’s mischief-making in the cyber espionage department. Two media statements emerged on that subject hard on the heels of the PM baulking at questions put to him on RNZ’s Morning ...
Chris Trotter writes – WHY IS THE NATIONAL PARTY doing so much for landlords, property developers, trucking, and construction companies, and so little for everybody who isn’t already pretty well-off? It’s as if protecting landlords’ investments and building apartments and roads now constitute the whole of National’s ...
Bryce Edwards writes – When she was campaigning to be Minister of Finance last year, Nicola Willis pledged that she would resign from the job if she failed to deliver tax cuts in her first Budget. Now, it’s that pledge, along with Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s ...
Robert MacCulloch writes – The Reserve Bank has doubled staff numbers in five years to 510, with personnel costs rising to $80 million in 2023 from $32 million in 2018 – up by a whopping 150%. I guess when you print $50 billion and flood markets with liquidity, ...
The furore. In case you didn’t notice there was a controversy in the weekend involving dolphins in a little town off the South Island. Don’t panic, they haven’t declared independence and resumed whaling, this was simply a sailing event.The problem began when racing was cancelled on the opening day of ...
For 20 years or more, the case for a meaningful capital tax gains has been mulled over and analysed to death, including by the tax working group chaired by Sir Michael Cullen. More than once, the International Monetary Fund has said a CGT would be a good idea for New ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: The Public Health Communications Centre (PHCC) call for urgent preventive action and a risk assessment survey of long covid in this briefing noteLocal scoop: NZ road deaths surpass OECD rates, so why is the govt reversing safety plans? ...
This story was originally published by Grist and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. This story is part of a collaboration with Grist and WABE to demystify the Georgia Public Service Commission, the small but powerful state-elected board that makes critical decisions about everything from raising ...
This is a guest post from Robert McLachlan Global warming is accelerating; 2023 was off the charts. We need to stop burning fossil fuels. In New Zealand, transport accounts for half of all fossil fuels burnt. In the Emissions Reduction Plan, transport emissions fall 41% by 2035. As the ...
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TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to April 2 include:Today, Parliament resumes sitting at 2pm for the second week of a two-week session. Officials for SIS and GCSB report their annual reviews in public to the Intelligence and Security Select Committee from 5.10pm.Tomorrow, ...
Faced with a barrage of criticism over the promised tax cuts from usually supportive commentators, Finance Minister Nicola Willis yesterday reaffirmed her intention to include them in this year’s Budget. The Government is up against it over the cuts just about every way it turns. Commentators like Fran O’Sullivan, Matthew ...
Here’s my pick of today’s substack posts as of 6:26pm on Monday, March 25: writes via his substack that Market-rate housing will make your city cheaper writes via his substack about the problems talking to double-cab ute (truck) drivers about their vehicles. today about moments of radicalisation in ...
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My sister Belinda asked Dad yesterday what one word would describe Mum best. He said: vivacious.If you only knew her from the photos on the slideshow we've made for today,you might wonder about that, because the camera tended to lie with Mum.If ever she saw a camera pointed at her, she ...
There are two major public consultations closing in the next week, Auckland Council’s Long Term Plan (LTP), and the draft Government Policy Statement on Land Transport (GPS). Closing dates and times: LTP closes Thursday 28 February, at 11.59pm – a minute to midnight! GPS closes Tuesday 2 April, at 12pm noon – note that’s ...
From Kiwiblog’s David Farrar – Bryce Wilkinson writes: Senior Fellow Bryce Wilkinson’s analysis reveals that since March 2009, New Zealand has spent $158 billion more overseas than it has earned, but its NIIP has only fallen by $32 billion.Statistics New Zealand shows that receipts from overseas reinsurers have ...
Is she hinting that the Coalition Government will have to back down on key promises it made in Opposition? Brian Easton writes – The Minister of Finance, Nicola Willis, is telling an evolving story about her fiscal challenges. In Opposition she was confident that she could ...
Dear Nicola Willis,Right now you’ve probably got lots of competing demands coming at you. Ministers who’ve inherited quite a mess, or so you’ve told us, looking for money in the budget to improve things. I imagine that’s why they came to parliament - to make things better.You’ll have to make ...
The Local Government, Transport and Auckland Minister hasthreatened councils with intervention if they don’t merge water assets to take them off balance sheet, just as the now-repealed Three Waters plan directed. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My six things of note this morning for Monday, March 25 include:Simeon ...
A listing of 36 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 17, 2024 thru Sat, March 23, 2024. Story of the week Thanks to John Mason having the stamina to sit down to watch "Climate - the Movie" ...
This morning the Q&A programme had Simeon Brown on to talk about National’s replacement for Three Waters. In case anyone’s forgotten the three are - drinking water, waste water, and sewerage. It’s quite important not to get them mixed up. In much the same way that you wouldn’t want to ...
Today’s newsletter comes with a mini-podcast conversation between me and my buddy Liv Tennet, talking about her time as a child actor in Lord of the Rings. It’s a conversation with a lot of giggles as she talks about falling off a horse, and becoming a meme. Read ...
The Desmog Climate Disinformation Database documents, "individuals and organisations that have helped to delay and distract the public and our elected leaders from taking needed action to reduce greenhouse gas pollution and fight global warming." It's a who's who of the organised climate change denial movement, in other words. In ...
Bob Edlin writes – A High Court judge has decided miscreants who have mana – or who claim to have mana – should be treated differently from miscreants who have none. It’s a ruling that suggests indigenous law-breakers have a better chance of securing a discharge without conviction ...
Welcome to the first, and possibly last, edition of Brickbats, Bouquets and Bull’s Wool. In which I’ll take a look at the events of the last week or so, and rate them.In such ratings the numbers usually have more to do with the opinions of the reviewer, than the actual ...
Roger Partridge writes – My earlier column this month, New Zealand’s highest court could be facing a turning point, prompted a flood of feedback from business readers and lawyers alike. A common query was what Parliament can do to restrain an overreaching judiciary. This week I discuss two steps Parliament ...
TL;DR: In today’s ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.16pm on Friday, March 22: writes about New Zealand's Building Boom—And What the World Must Learn From It over at his substack. challenges the Auckland Council’s use of a 3.8 degrees of warming forecast to oppose a wave-park and data centre project ...
Is she hinting that the Coalition Government will have to back down on key promises it made in Opposition?The Minister of Finance, Nicola Willis, is telling an evolving story about her fiscal challenges. In Opposition she was confident that she could deliver her promised income tax cuts. Appointed minister, she ...
Buzz from the Beehive Ministers of the Crown have drawn attention to one sector of the science sector which is unlikely to be subjected to heavy spending cuts, a state-funded broadcaster which is doing nicely, thank you, and a sporting event that had $5.4 million from the public purse puffed ...
Abbott’s Freestyle Libre sensors allow continuous glucose monitoring (CGM). The sensor is applied to the back of the patient’s arm, with a thin filament under the skin measuring glucose levels constantly. But it costs around $100 per sensor and must be replaced once every 14 days. Photo by BSIP/Universal Images ...
The Inspector General of Intelligence and Security (IGIS) recently released a report in which he exposes the existence of a foreign intelligence partner-controlled technological “capability” inside the headquarters of the GCSB, NZ’s 5 Eyes-affiliated signals intelligence collection and analysis agency. … Continue reading → ...
Peter Dunne writes – Nearly three decades after the introduction of MMP and multiparty governments there should be a greater level of understanding about their finer points than often appears to be the case. The reaction to the despicable outburst from the Deputy Prime Minister at the weekend highlights ...
The sweet kisses from fruit of summerHave slowly been turning dullerYou say, "those times"And "remember the daysWhen we went outside and there still was the shade?"Taking no reason into play…Autumn. Clear, blue days shortening to longer nights, growing colder. Aotearoa.That’s us. The temperature dropping, the looming car crash - so ...
Bryce Edwards writes – “It is often said that behind every great man is a great woman”. This is the pitch by the National Party Botany electorate branch to attend their “Ladies Afternoon Tea with Amanda Luxon”. For $110 including GST, you can turn up on Saturday 20 April ...
David Farrar writes – The Electoral Commission has published the expense returns for political parties for the 2023 election. I’ve put them in a table with how many votes a party got so we can see the spend per vote. National only spent $3.34 for every vote they got, almost ...
Winston Peters’ headline-making actions over the past week may have been a show of political power intended to strengthen his hand in Budget negotiations. It was no accident that his State of the Nation speech was as it was. He made it as New Zealand First Leader, not as Deputy ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:Former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson bowed out of politics this week, giving a series of exit ...
Graham Adams writes — If you love the law or sausages, as the saying goes, best not to look too closely at how they are made. And after watching the orgy of self-pity when Newshub’s closure was announced on February 28, television journalism should definitely be added to the list of those ...
Venerable New Zealand political commentator, Chris Trotter (https://bowalleyroad.blogspot.com/), is a sad creature these days. Once one of the most reliable Leftist writers out there – Economic Left at that – Trotter seems to have absorbed the worldview of Auckland culture-war obsessives. It is not for me to categorise what he ...
The cruelty of short-term memory loss is that each time you ask where she is, you get the fresh shock and grief of the news. That was Dad's day yesterday.Comfortingly, it seems to be less so today. Last night he looked crumpled, today he seems more settled. There's a card ...
Photo by Alvan Nee on UnsplashIt’s that new day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when and I co-host our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm. Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream for our chat about the week’s news ...
Buzz from the Beehive One minister is talking tough while a colleague – whose ministry had acted tough and drawn a barrage of flak – has shown an official softening. Some ministers are doing what Labour was good at, which is distributing public funds to causes regarded as worthy or ...
A ballot for 4 Member's Bills was held today, and the following bills were drawn: Insurance Contracts Bill (Duncan Webb) Income Tax (Clean Transport FBT Exclusion) Amendment Bill (Julie Anne Genter) Crimes (Increased Penalties for Slavery Offences) Amendment Bill (Greg Fleming) Pae Ora (Healthy Futures) ...
One of the strongest narratives about "our" spy agencies is that they are basically institutional traitors, working for foreign powers (or just themselves), without any control or oversight by the elected government. And today, we have yet another report from the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security which explicitly confirms this. ...
“It is often said that behind every great man is a great woman”. This is the pitch by the National Party Botany electorate branch to attend their “Ladies Afternoon Tea with Amanda Luxon”. For $110 including GST, you can turn up on Saturday 20 April to meet the Prime Minister’s ...
The Coalition Government’s plan to ‘get Auckland moving’ is a cuts cover-up that will ultimately cost Aucklanders more to move around the city, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Slashing the Ministry of Pacific Peoples by 40% will have a devastating impact on pacific communities and further highlights how little this government cares about anything other than cutting taxes for the wealthiest few. ...
Labour has proposed an urgent inquiry to investigate the ever-increasing profits of supermarkets, aiming to lower costs for shoppers and food producers alike, says Labour Spokesperson for Commerce and Consumer Affairs Arena Williams and Primary Production Spokesperson Cushla Tangaere-Manuel. ...
With 14% of jobs on the line at the Ministry for Ethnic Communities, the responsible Minister Melissa Lee is failing to stand up for the very communities she’s meant to be representing. ...
COURT OF APPEAL: TRIFECTA OF VICTORY FOR NZ FIRST, TRIFECTA OF FAILURE FOR OPPONENTS For the third time since April 2020, New Zealand First has defeated the Serious Fraud Office and all those complicit in a malicious attack against a political party going about its lawful business in a lawful ...
The Green Party stands with people who live in public housing, people in dire housing need, experts and advocates in demanding better than the Government’s archaic approach to housing those who need our support the most. ...
New Zealand has recently lost the hosting rights of some major international sporting events including the America’s Cup, the Rugby Championship, Netball World Cup, and the Wellington Sevens. We are now at a huge risk of losing SailGP as well. And it won’t stop there. The recent issues with SailGP ...
A Member’s Bill drawn this week would modernise insurance law and make things fairer and more transparent for consumers, Christchurch Central MP Duncan Webb said. ...
The Minister for Disability Issues has confirmed she was aware of funding issues in mid-December and did nothing to stop it. On 14 March, she signed off on changes that were announced and implemented on 18 March without any consultation with disability communities. ...
Green Party MP Julie Anne Genter says her members' bill is an opportunity for the coalition government to plug the gap in electric vehicle incentives. ...
The National Government continues to talk about irresponsible tax cuts that will only drive up inflation, despite the country entering a technical recession. ...
The Minister for Disability Issues must act urgently to reinstate flexibility around the funding for disability support and apologise to disabled carers. ...
This story has been initiated by a leftie shill reporter who proactively sought to call a member of a former band, which disbanded twelve years ago, give their biased appraisal of what was said in my speech, and concocted a ham-fisted attempt at a story that does nothing but show ...
The Government has accepted Labour’s change to the Road User Charge (RUC) discount for hybrid vehicles, meaning there will still be some incentive for people to buy greener vehicles. ...
Many in the mainstream media have taken what was said in New Zealand First’s State of the Nation Speech in Palmerston North on Sunday and deliberately, deceitfully, and ignorantly misrepresented what I said and why I said it. The headlines and commentary on the news stated that I compared ‘co-governance ...
Kicking the most vulnerable people out of state housing and pushing them towards homelessness will result in a proliferation of poverty and trauma across our most vulnerable communities. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader and MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi has penned a letter asking MPs to support his members bill to remove GST from all food. The bill is expected to go through its first reading in parliament this Wednesday. “I’m calling on all political parties to support my ...
Good afternoon. Thank you for, in your very busy lives, turning up to this meeting today. On October 14th last year New Zealanders overwhelmingly voted for change. That is exactly what this new government is bringing. New Zealand First campaigned to ‘take back our country’ and stop the disastrous economic ...
This year is about getting real with Kiwis and discussing the tough issues, as the National Government exacerbates inequality and divides New Zealand, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said ...
The Government adding Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) to its already roaring environmental policy bonfire is an assault on the future of wildlife that makes Aotearoa unique. ...
After 12 years of fighting to protect our moana we are finding ourselves back at square one and back at court. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is sitting in Hawera to reconsider an application from Trans-Tasman Resources to dig up 50 million tonnes of the seabed in South Taranaki. This ...
Minister Shane Jones’ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Government’s fast-track legislation. ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Government’s miscalculation saga continues as it has forgotten an eyewatering $90 million gap in its interest deductibility cost figures, say Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds and Revenue Spokesperson Deborah Russell. ...
He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission has today released advice that says if the Government doesn’t act now New Zealand is at risk of not meeting its climate goals. ...
The Coalition Government has today confirmed it is abandoning first home buyers who are struggling to get ahead, says Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds. ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed the passing of legislation to move light electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) into the road user charges system from 1 April. “It was always intended that EVs and PHEVs would be exempt from road user charges until they reached two ...
New Zealand is strengthening its ability to combat illegal fishing outside its domestic waters and beef up regulation for its own commercial fishers in international waters through a Bill which had its first reading in Parliament today. The Fisheries (International Fishing and Other Matters) Amendment Bill 2023 sets out stronger ...
Economists Carl Hansen and Professor Prasanna Gai have been appointed to the Reserve Bank Monetary Policy Committee, Finance Minister Nicola Willis announced today. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is the independent decision-making body that sets the Official Cash Rate which determines interest rates. Carl Hansen, the executive director of Capital ...
Apartment owners and buyers will soon have greater protections as further changes to the law on unit titles come into effect, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “The Unit Titles (Strengthening Body Corporate Governance and Other Matters) Amendment Act had already introduced some changes in December 2022 and May 2023, and ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters will travel to Egypt and Europe from this weekend. “This travel will focus on a range of New Zealand’s traditional diplomatic and security partnerships while enabling broad engagement on the urgent situation in Gaza,” Mr Peters says. Mr Peters will attend the NATO Foreign ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown is encouraging all road users to stay safe, plan their journeys ahead of time, and be patient with other drivers while travelling around this Easter long weekend. “Road safety is a responsibility we all share, and with increased traffic on our roads expected this Easter we ...
About 1.4 million New Zealanders will receive cost of living relief through increased government assistance from April 1 909,000 pensioners get a boost to Superannuation, including 5000 veterans 371,000 working-age beneficiaries will get higher payments 45,000 students will see an increase in their allowance Over a quarter of New Zealanders ...
Ensuring social housing is being provided to those with the greatest needs is front of mind as the Government restarts social housing tenancy reviews, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. “Our relentless focus on building a strong economy is to ensure we can deliver better public services such as social ...
The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary will not go ahead, with Cabinet deciding to stop work on the proposed reserve and remove the Bill that would have established it from Parliament’s order paper. “The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary Bill would have created a 620,000 sq km economic no-go zone,” Oceans and Fisheries Minister ...
Dam safety regulations are being amended so that smaller dams won’t be subject to excessive compliance costs, Minister for Building and Construction Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on reducing costs and removing unnecessary red tape so we can get the economy back on track. “Dam safety regulations ...
The coalition Government is expanding the medium-scale adverse event classification to parts of the North Island as dry weather conditions persist, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced today. “I have made the decision to expand the medium-scale adverse event classification already in place for parts of the South Island to also cover the ...
The passing of legislation giving effect to coalition Government tax commitments has been welcomed by Finance Minister Nicola Willis. “The Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill will help place New Zealand on a more secure economic footing, improve outcomes for New Zealanders, and make our tax system ...
Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins and Tertiary Education and Skills Minister Penny Simmonds today announced plans to transform our science and university sectors to boost the economy. Two advisory groups, chaired by Professor Sir Peter Gluckman, will advise the Government on how these sectors can play a greater ...
The Budget will deliver urgently-needed tax relief to hard-working New Zealanders while putting the government’s finances back on a sustainable track, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The Finance Minister made the comments at the release of the Budget Policy Statement setting out the Government’s Budget objectives. “The coalition Government intends ...
The coalition Government will look at options to address a zoning issue that limits how much financial support Queenstown residents can get for accommodation. Cabinet has agreed on a response to the Petitions Committee, which had recommended the geographic information MSD uses to determine how much accommodation supplement can be ...
Cabinet has agreed to a short extension to the final reporting timeframe for the Royal Commission into Abuse in Care from 28 March 2024 to 26 June 2024, Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden says. “The Royal Commission wrote to me on 16 February 2024, requesting that I consider an ...
The coalition Government is delivering an $18 million boost to New Zealanders needing to travel for specialist health treatment, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says. “These changes are long overdue – the National Travel Assistance (NTA) scheme saw its last increase to mileage and accommodation rates way back in 2009. ...
The Government is recognising the innovative and rising talent in New Zealand’s growing space sector, with the Prime Minister and Space Minister Judith Collins announcing the new Prime Minister’s Prizes for Space today. “New Zealand has a growing reputation as a high-value partner for space missions and research. I am ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has confirmed New Zealand’s concerns about cyber activity have been conveyed directly to the Chinese Government. “The Prime Minister and Minister Collins have expressed concerns today about malicious cyber activity, attributed to groups sponsored by the Chinese Government, targeting democratic institutions in both New ...
Independent Reviewers appointed for School Property Inquiry Education Minister Erica Stanford today announced the appointment of three independent reviewers to lead the Ministerial Inquiry into the Ministry of Education’s School Property Function. The Inquiry will be led by former Minister of Foreign Affairs Murray McCully. “There is a clear need ...
State Highway 1 across the Brynderwyns will be open for Easter weekend, with work currently underway to ensure the resilience of this critical route being paused for Easter Weekend to allow holiday makers to travel north, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Today I visited the Brynderwyn Hills construction site, where ...
Introduction Good morning to you all, and thanks for having me bright and early today. I am absolutely delighted to be the Minister for Infrastructure alongside the Minister of Housing and Resource Management Reform. I know the Prime Minister sees the three roles as closely connected and he wants me ...
New Zealand stands with the United Kingdom in its condemnation of People’s Republic of China (PRC) state-backed malicious cyber activity impacting its Electoral Commission and targeting Members of the UK Parliament. “The use of cyber-enabled espionage operations to interfere with democratic institutions and processes anywhere is unacceptable,” Minister Responsible for ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Defence Minister Judith Collins today announced New Zealand will provide logistics support for the upcoming Solomon Islands election. “We’re sending a team of New Zealand Defence Force personnel and two NH90 helicopters to provide logistics support for the election on 17 April, at the request ...
The European Union Free Trade Agreement Legislation Amendment Bill received Royal Assent today, completing the process for New Zealand’s ratification of its free trade agreement with the European Union. “I am pleased to announce that today, in a small ceremony at the Beehive, New Zealand notified the European Union ...
Public consultation on the terms of reference for the Royal Commission into COVID-19 Lessons has concluded, Internal Affairs Minister Hon Brooke van Velden says. “I have been advised that there were over 11,000 submissions made through the Royal Commission’s online consultation portal.” Expanding the scope of the Royal Commission of ...
Hardworking families are set to benefit from a new credit to help them meet their early childcare education (ECE) costs, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. From 1 July, parents and caregivers of young children will be supported to manage the rising cost of living with a partial reimbursement of their ...
A specialised Independent Technical Advisory Group (ITAG) tasked with preparing and publishing independent non-binding advice on the design of a "green" (sustainable finance) taxonomy rulebook is being established, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “Comprising experts and market participants, the ITAG's primary goal is to deliver comprehensive recommendations to the ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins has thanked the Chief of Army, Major General John Boswell, DSD, for his service as he leaves the Army after 40 years. “I would like to thank Major General Boswell for his contribution to the Army and the wider New Zealand Defence Force, undertaking many different ...
25 March 2024 Minister to meet Australian counterparts and Manufacturing Industry Leaders Small Business, Manufacturing, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly will travel to Australia for a series of bi-lateral meetings and manufacturing visits. During the visit, Minister Bayly will meet with his Australian counterparts, Senator Tim Ayres, Ed ...
Government commits almost $3 million for period products in schools The Coalition Government has committed $2.9 million to ensure intermediate and secondary schools continue providing period products to those who need them, Minister of Education Erica Stanford announced today. “This is an issue of dignity and ensuring young women don’t ...
Good morning, it’s great to be here. First, I would like to acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of Building Surveyors and thank you for the opportunity to be here this morning. I would like to use this opportunity to outline the Government’s ambitious plan and what we hope to ...
Minister for Pacific Peoples Dr Shane Reti has announced the Government’s commitment to the Auckland Secondary Schools Māori and Pacific Islands Cultural Festival, more commonly known as Polyfest. “The Ministry for Pacific Peoples is a longtime supporter of Polyfest and, as it celebrates 49 years in 2024, I’m proud to ...
Before moving onto the substance of today’s address, I want to recognise the very significant and ongoing contribution the Breast Cancer Foundation makes to support the lives of New Zealand women and their families living with breast cancer. I very much enjoy working with you. I also want to recognise ...
New Zealand has notched up a first with the launch of University of Canterbury research to the International Space Station, Science, Innovation and Technology and Space Minister Judith Collins says. The hardware, developed by Dr Sarah Kessans, is designed to operate autonomously in orbit, allowing scientists on Earth to study ...
Introduction Thank you for inviting me to speak with you today and I’m sorry I can’t be there in person. Yesterday I started in Wellington for Breakfast TV, spoke to a property conference in Auckland, and finished the day speaking to local government in Christchurch, so it would have been ...
The Coalition Government is contributing more than $1 million to support the establishment of an emergency multi-agency coordination centre in Northland. Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell announced the contribution today during a visit of the Whangārei site where the facility will be constructed. “Northland has faced a number ...
New Zealanders have enjoyed a broader range of voices telling the story of Aotearoa thanks to the creation of Whakaata Māori 20 years ago, says Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka. The minister spoke at a celebration marking the national indigenous media organisation’s 20th anniversary at their studio in Auckland on ...
Commercial catch limits for some fisheries have been increased following a review showing stocks are healthy and abundant, Ocean and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The changes, along with some other catch limit changes and management settings, begin coming into effect from 1 April 2024. "Regular biannual reviews of fish ...
By Anneke Smith, RNZ News political reporter A petition urging the New Zealand government to provide urgent humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian people has been tabled in the House. More than 200 people gathered on Parliament’s forecourt today and they were met by MPs from Labour, the Greens and Te ...
Pacific Media Watch The Paris-based global media freedom watchdog RSF (Reporters Without Borders) has appealed for information about the “disappearance” of Palestinian journalist Bayan Abusultan. She was reportedly last seen on March 19 among people “sequestered” in this week’s raid and siege of Al Shifa hospital by Israeli troops in ...
EDITORIAL:The Jakarta Post It happens again and again; indigenous Papuans fall victim to Indonesian soldiers. This time, we have photographic evidence for the brutality, with videos on social media showing a Papuan man being tortured by a group of plainclothes men alleged to be the Indonesian Military (TNI) members. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robyn J. Whitaker, Director of the Wesley Centre for Theology, Ethics, and Public Policy & Associate Professor, New Testament, Pilgrim Theological College, University of Divinity A strange and eclectic range of activities takes place across these few weeks of the year. Some ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Panizza Allmark, Professor Visual & Cultural Studies, Edith Cowan University It’s Easter weekend, which means many of us will be kicking back with the greatest hits on repeat. But whether you’re a boomer, or an ‘80s or ’90s kid, you might be ...
RNZ Pacific Fiji’s Acting Public Prosecutor has filed an appeal against the sentences of former prime minister Voreqe Bainimarama and suspended police chief Sitiveni Qiliho in their corruption case. Bainimarama was granted an absolute discharge for attempting to pervert the course of justice while Qiliho received a conditional discharge with ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Arosha Weerakoon, Senior Lecturer and General Dentist, School of Dentistry, The University of Queensland Casezy idea/Shutterstock How does toothpaste work? What did people use before toothpaste was invented? – Amelia, age 7, Meanjin (Brisbane) Thanks for your ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brett Hallam, Associate professor, UNSW Sydney IM Imagery/Shutterstock Solar SunShot is well named. The Australian government announced today it would plough A$1 billion into bringing back solar manufacturing to Australia, boosting energy security, swapping coal and gas jobs for those ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Dix, Research Fellow in Nutrition & Dietetics, The University of Queensland Easter is the time for chocolate. The shops are full of fantastically packaged and shiny chocolates in all shapes and sizes, making trips to the supermarket with children more challenging ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emma Felton, Adjunct Senior Researcher, University of South Australia Even in a stubborn cost-of-living crisis, it seems there’s one luxury most Australians won’t sacrifice – their daily cup of coffee. Coffee sales have largely remained stable, even as financial pressures have ...
Mining company Trans-Tasman Resources has unexpectedly withdrawn its application for a consent to suck the valuable metals vanadium and titanium from the Taranaki seafloor, as it apparently wagers on the Government’s new fast-track process. It had spent two-and-a-half days putting its case to the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision-making committee, at ...
Contrary to the Associate Minister of Education’s claims, analysis of Healthy School Lunches Programme - Ka Ora, Ka Ako assessments has revealed it provides excellent value for the taxpayer dollar, as a groundswell of public opposition to Government ...
Greenpeace says wannabe Taranaki seabed miner Trans-Tasman Resources is likely banking on Christopher Luxon’s fast-track process to side-step proper scrutiny of its Taranaki seabed mining proposal by bailing out of the Environmental Protection Agency hearing ...
Kiwis Against Seabed mining today slammed Australian owned would-be seabed miner Trans Tasman Resources (TTR) for abandoning its application to the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) to mine the seabed of the South Taranaki Bight. The company ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katie Attwell, Associate Professor, School of Social Sciences, The University of Western Australia Ground Picture/Shutterstock Months after COVID vaccines were introduced in 2021, governments and private organisations mandated them for various groups. Health and aged care workers were among the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Dzurak, Scientia Professor Andrew Dzurak, CEO and Founder of Diraq, UNSW Sydney Diraq For decades, the pursuit of quantum computing has struggled with the need for extremely low temperatures, mere fractions of a degree above absolute zero (0 Kelvin or ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne A national Essential poll, conducted March 20–24 from a sample of 1,150, gave the Coalition a 50–44 lead including undecided, a reversal ...
The Taxpayers’ Union has today made a formal request under the Regulations of the People’s Republic of China on Open Government Information () for information held about how New Zealand Members of Parliament are spending taxpayer ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robert Nelson, Honorary Principal Fellow, The University of Melbourne A Byzantine depiction of the Eucharist in Saint Sophia Cathedral, Kyiv.Jacek555/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA A nasty quarrel arose in the 11th century over what kind of bread should be used in holy ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Patrick Hesp, Professor, Flinders University Patrick Hesp In some parts of Australia, coastal dunes are retreating from the ocean at an alarming rate, as waves carve up the beach and wind blows the sand inland. But coastal communities are largely ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Luke Heemsbergen, Senior Lecturer, Digital, Political, Media, Deakin University With an impressive 60% of the US smartphone market, Apple is undeniably big, but not a clear monopoly. Yet, years of innovation by Apple have effectively given the company its own exclusive ...
Whether you’re facing layoffs or are just an emotional junior staffer, it’s always a good idea to scout out a good crying place before you need it. It’s an incredibly hard time for Wellington. Across the city, thousands of public servants are hearing tough news about redundancies and layoffs. Government ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James Miller-Jones, Professor, Curtin University Nuclear explosions on a neutron star feed its jets. Danielle Futselaar and Nathalie Degenaar, Anton Pannekoek Institute, University of Amsterdam, CC BY-SA How fast can a neutron star drive powerful jets into space? The answer, it ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Daryl Adair, Associate Professor of Sport Management, University of Technology Sydney Earlier this week, independent MP Andrew Wilkie accused the AFL of conducting “off the books” illicit drug testing to identify players using substances of abuse, then inappropriately withdrawing them from matches ...
The Government’s announcement that it will scrap plans for a vast marine sanctuary around the Kermadec Islands is ‘shameful’ and will make it impossible for Aotearoa New Zealand to meet its international commitments, says the World Wide Fund for Nature ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Quiggin, Professor, School of Economics, The University of Queensland Shutterstock The federal government has bowed to pressure from the car industry, announcing it will relax proposed emissions rules for utes and vans and delay enforcement of the new standards ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Suzanne Rutland, Professor Emerita, University of Sydney In his latest book, Jewish Life in Medieval Spain, Jonathan Ray focuses on the tumult of the 14th century in Spain – a time of the plague, civil strife and war between the two largest ...
While creating a slate of world-class shows, Whakaata Māori also developed a generation of world-class creatives. Television is an odd word. It mixes the Ancient Greek and Latin languages, and its most literal meaning is “far-off sight”. In the contemporary and living language of te reo Māori, “whakaata” as a ...
Yesterday the UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Israel’s war on Gaza. This significant step and the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza prompted an urgent debate in the New Zealand Parliament. Leader ...
The Government’s decision to reduce access to continuous glucose monitors (CGM) not only threatens the lives of children with type 1 diabetes and increases the potential for ‘Dead in Bed’ syndrome, but also threatens the health of their parents an ...
Apples are available year-round, but the wide variety on offer involves intensive scientific research – and large-scale commercialisation. What’s beautiful, red, sweet and crunchy? Tony Martin’s favourite kind of apple: Sassy. The CEO of apple and pear breeding organisation Prevar, Martin’s fondness for Sassy represents professional success as well as ...
Family violence specialist service Shine is calling on employers to stop asking for proof of domestic violence in order for employees to access domestic violence leave. The call comes five years after the introduction of the Domestic Violence ...
The Deputy Chairperson of the Finance and Expenditure Committee is calling for public submissions on the Budget Policy Statement 2024. The Budget Policy Statement 2024 (BPS) sets out the Government's priorities for the 2024 Budget. It explains the approach ...
Brutal government spending cuts that will see the size of the Ministry for Pacific Peoples slashed by 40% will hit Pasifika communities hard, the PSA says. The Ministry has told staff that it is seeking voluntary redundancies, and to redeploy and reassign ...
I live with five people I mostly love, but our different ideas about generosity are starting to really irk me.Want Hera’s help? Email your problem to helpme@thespinoff.co.nzDear Hera,This is a bit of a random one but here goes. I’m 22 and work an OK job (OK meaning I get paid ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Maria Nicholas, Senior Lecturer in Language and Literacy Education, Deakin University Earlier this month, the New South Wales government announced it would roll out programs for gifted students in every public school in the state. This comes amid concerns gifted school ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christopher Rudge, Law lecturer, University of Sydney Massachusetts General Hospital In a world first, we heard last week that US surgeons had transplanted a kidney from a gene-edited pig into a living human. News reports said the procedure was a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Tombs, Howard Paterson Chair of Theology and Public Issues, University of Otago The 5th-century Maskell panel showing Jesus in a loincloth.British Museum, CC BY-NC-SA When Jesus is shown on the cross, he is almost always depicted wearing a loincloth around ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Panizza Allmark, Professor Visual & Cultural Studies, Edith Cowan University Shutterstock When you think about a red object, you might picture a red carpet, or the massive ruby in the Queen’s crown. Indeed, Western monarchies and marketing from brands such ...
COMMENTARY:Jewish Voice for Peace The UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza on Monday — and for the first time since the beginning of the Israeli military’s genocide of Palestinians, the United States abstained rather than vetoing it. Security Council resolutions are legally binding, ...
Asia Pacific Report A New Zealand investigative journalist and author says the US spy system hosted by the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) appears to be a controversial intelligence system used in global capture-kill operations. Writing a commentary for RNZ News today, Nicky Hager, author of Secret Power, a 1996 ...
While Nicola Willis wouldn’t give any details on its size, she said a package of tax cuts is definitely still coming in this year’s budget, writes Catherine McGregor in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. ...
The Taxpayers’ Union is welcoming the investigation into the Department of Internal Affairs after it was revealed that the Department’s Chief Executive personally reached out to expedite a DJs passport application. Taxpayers’ Union Campaigns ...
Finance minister Nicola Willis delivers her first budget statement, and unwittingly helps Joel MacManus save his relationship. Nicola Willis strode into the Beehive Theatrette. Around me, on the green foldout seats, were the country’s top business and political journalists. They were all here to see her announce the Budget Policy ...
Twenty years ago today, Māori Television launched after much controversy. Jamie Tahana looks back on its survival and impact across two decades. Chad Chambers stepped onto the stage, the brim of his cap casting a shadow across his face. His smile beamed as bright as his white freezing works gumboots, ...
Tauranga, Rotorua, Wellsford, Onehunga, Westhaven marina – Gavin Strawhan walks the meanish streets of New Zealand in his entertaining debut novel The Call, almost sure to roar into the number 1 position on the Nielsen bestseller chart, its front cover bearing a rave from somebody: “A really good and genuinely ...
On a Thursday in February, at Wellington’s Conservation House, the Conservation Authority, a statutory body advising the eponymous department and minister, Tama Potaka, opened its 195th meeting. Under consideration that afternoon was an agenda item written by Tim Bamford, chief advisor in the Department of Conservation’s biodiversity, heritage and visitors ...
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I don't know, maybe I am being negative but when there are not enough homes and waiting lists for urgent life saving hospital treatments Couldn't 760 million could be better used somewhere else?
Howsabout giving the Nurses their pay rise?
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/125130360/dhb-nurses-vote-to-strike-over-pay-horrific-and-unsafe-staffing.
You noticed the $800m duplicate road to Whangaparaoa in the same package? Or the $1500m duplicate road to Levin. Unlike nursing salaries, they come from the same budget.
NZTA are likely to be playing silly buggers anyway by proposing a built solution that is way over 20x the original price, with a #LiberateTheLane trial coming soon.
https://twitter.com/CriticalMassAKL/status/1400551137174978562
"Howsabout giving the Nurses their pay rise?"
Those on $80-90k are doing Ok, its the ones down $50-60K who should be looked after and would be.
Sheeesh the sense of entitlement from highly paid people
Or we could take the opportunity to build much needed pollution reducing infrastructure, for the future, giving an economic stimulus, while interest rates are low.
Pedestrian and biking infrastructure, public transport, rail links and coastal shipping.
And use the extra taxes generated to give overdue pay rises. To cleaners, orderlies and Teacher aides as well as those who make the most noise.
Maybe the new bridge could solve the cycling crisis and the housing crisis.
circa-1800-a-watercolour-by-j-varley-after-a-print-of-1787-of-london-picture-id3271422 (1024×523) (gettyimages.com)
Now that's an idea! Or they could put some platforms underneath so people could sleep under it. /sarc
Just what are the priorities of this Govt? A bridge for a few thousand entitled people or looking after the 40 thousand homeless and rough sleepers?
Running 12 ferries carrying 100 @ 10 minute intervals from 3 different sites would be far less expensive, and more convenient for walkers and cyclists. The HMNZS Tui used batteries for propulsion when minesweeping in WW2. So the ferries could also be similarly powered.
You are absolutely right Macro, I just googled it, there are already battery powered ferries operating around the world. Some of them are huge. And could easily get thousands of bicycle riders across the harbour.
But that is not what this is about, outspoken cycling enthusiast Emma McInnes exposes her motive for the new bridge.
Danfoss powers up the world’s strongest electric ferry Ellen – YouTube
Sure it would be popular for those that are near it, and can access it, but would it be good spending?
Who cares, in the end our overlords will spend the public dime any which way they like.
"I think we're underestimating the fact that people will use it just for the joy of being able to walk over the water, to stop in the middle of the bridge, take photos, to go over on a jog in the morning, walk their dog, take their kids over… I think people are underestimating how popular a bridge like that would be."
Cyclist and urban designer Emma McInnes
What Jenny quoted above is a fine example of the thoughts of the movers and shakers in society from the middle class. From shared pathways where they can ride their expensive bikes on footpaths where people want to walk. Where they have sufficient money to enjoy life, and presumably have friends and family also, and perhaps weekends and regular work for them to have a personal life, they have no real consideration for anything but themselves and their class. Shops with stylish furniture and expensive jeans that come already slashed – they are needs not wants and all their group are wearing them!
Don't anyone say that class is defunct; those without money and options for the future are truly declasse'!
From the most pleasant and expensive suburbs to the slightly less expensive but no less pleasant suburbs, a place to ride expensive bikes in pleasant weather
" And could easily get thousands of bicycle riders across the harbour."
That might be a bit difficult to do. Where are you going to get the thousands of cyclists from?
According to a recent report in the Herald Fullers carried 12,000 cycles on a total of 2,600 ferry trips in a 4 week period. That works our at an average of 4 or 5 per trip, and more significantly an average of about 430/day. Assuming that these are generally return trips that is only about 215 individuals who used the service each day.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/300316440/full-auckland-ferries-turn-away-53-cyclists-in-four-weeks#:~:text=Data%20from%20Fullers%20showed%20there,over%20the%20past%20four%20weeks.
I'm not from Auckland so there might be other ferry operators but I don't know of any significant operations except the Fuller ones. Are there any which might affect my calculations to any degree?
Where are the thousands of cyclists going to come from?
An unfortunate additional calculation is that it would seem our all knowing Government is planning to spend about $3 million per regular cyclist who currently takes their bike across from the North Shore to Auckland. I wonder if the ones who go from Devonport would actually cycle all the way around to the bridge if one was built? Should we assume $4 million? Or perhaps $5 million? That's for the ones who might actually use the bridge.
Perhaps some of them could be those who are presently dissuaded from using their bike because they can never be sure if they'll actually be allowed to travel with their bike!
That's what that article on Stuff (not the Herald) you linked to is actually about.
Sure it was. However when you read it you discover that there were 53 out of 12,000 who had to wait for the next ferry. Like NZ cyclists everywhere they complained bitterly and at length.
Well tough luck. They would have missed that ferry anyway if they had had a puncture wouldn't they? There is no form of transport I am aware of that guarantees that everyone who turns up, unbooked, for a particular trip is 100% sure to get on. I remember one occasion in Wellington when the local Green Party members, about 200 of them from memory, were going to hold a weekend conference in the Wairarapa. They all turned up at the Wellington Railway Station to board the train. This they did, as soon as the train was at the platform.
They were not at all popular with the regular passengers who had to stand for the whole trip. The Greens of course hadn't considered the fact that they could have warned the Railways that there would be a lot of extra people and that more carriages could be provided to cater for them.
"Like NZ cyclists everywhere they complained bitterly and at length."
My observation, especially after last Sunday on the Harbour Bridge, is that it's motorists that complain bitterly and at length.
There's an interesting contradiction in your comment above where firstly you say
"There is no form of transport I am aware of that guarantees that everyone who turns up, unbooked, for a particular trip is 100% sure to get on."
and then regarding the possibly apocryphal story about the Wairarapa line you say
"They were not at all popular with the regular passengers who had to stand for the whole trip."
At least they weren't left to wait for the next trip, which you regard as perfectly acceptable. Or is this just you 'complaining bitterly and at length' about not only cyclists but also Green Party members?
We won't get them.
Despite those that think cycling is a serious alternative way of commuting for the 20,000 commuters displaced by the cycle lane.
Of course this is not really about crossing the harbour at all, but more about indulging the leisure activity of bike enthusiasts who want the experience of crossing the Harbour Bridge
I was just trying to show these diehards that there are alternatives at much less cost, that is if they really want to take the bicycle to Takapuna beach.
I'm sorry. Yes you were doing exactly that and I misinterpreted your comment. I should have read what you said more carefully before responding.
EV Maritime are already advanced in design for construction for fully electric 200 passenger ferries for Auckland.
That would bring down the carbon production from public transport by 20%.
It's just one of the post-combustion projects this government has underway.
Any sort of public transport is more efficient than cars and rail and shipping is even better again, by a huge amount.
Doing electric ferries first is about the worst idea around.
For transporting people, sea transport actually seems to end up being quite energy inefficient and emissions intensive. Every instance I've looked at previously has turned out that way.
eg https://thestandard.org.nz/maybe-we-shouldnt-take-the-plane/#comment-1644247
and https://thestandard.org.nz/maybe-we-shouldnt-take-the-plane/#comment-1644247
I'll take a guess that the inefficiency and high emissions is because for ferries, passenger ships etc, the actual cargo (humans) is a tiny tiny portion of the mass getting moved around. Whereas for any kind of non-human cargo, the payload is a decent fraction of the total mass getting moved, so the efficiency is much higher for shipping non-human cargo.
I also very strongly suspect that the passenger km per litre for Auckland's current bus fleet probably isn't that great compared to passenger km per litre for private car transport. It wasn't in the 80's when I saw some actual numbers as part of engineering coursework, and it wasn't when I managed to find actual numbers for some US bus public transport systems. (It's probably going to be very hard to get numbers for Orcland's current bus transport system, because it's done by private operators and commercial sensitivity). This inefficiency and high emissions is largely due to a lot of bus movements happening with very few or zero passengers.
The only emissions standout for public transport is when it's electrified, like Orcland's trains. Or electrified bus fleets that are happening elsewhere (shamefully not NZ).
None of this is an argument against public transport. There's the strong social good which makes a good public transport system a necessity for a reasonably livable city. Vehicle efficiency is also only a small part of overall efficiency, there's also the demands on public infrastructure to consider. That's where public transport tends to do much better, and overcomes its usually poor energy efficiency and emissions performance.
Make that second link back to comments here on TS https://thestandard.org.nz/maybe-we-shouldnt-take-the-plane/#comment-1644274
Well Auckland is a tale of two types of ferries, where higher speed Waiheke boats are a category all their own.
I presume they will be going only after the smaller cross harbour ferries for electrification.
'Heavy problem' is going to be a lot worse if they bring in batteries, and like planes the drag is greater from weight alone, so they need more power and bigger batteries….
As well I would question the 20% emissions claim made by a self interested party. Are they talking about kg of CO2 per unit volume of diesel engines…which wouldnt change for diesel used in buses or ferries or other emissions from by product of combustion.
Then theres is the hype over something that is always just around the corner
https://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/111751235/auckland-could-have-electric-ferries-in-time-for-2021-americas-cup
Wellington was supposed to have electric buses without wires to replace the trolleys…just around the corner.
Energy per battery gram is increasing density annually, and thankfully the electric car tech is quickly transferring to marine.
Toyota is the one to watch re Solid State.
Our convergence of policy goals with international post-combistion tech is fortuitous.
Next to watch is whole corporate and rental vehicle fleets transforming, driving the secondary market.
It's more exciting watching jugs heating up than watching Toyota for technical developments. Toyota tend to keep technical developments very close to their chest until they're pretty much at the point of releasing them.
So Toyota may yet surprise us, but they haven't yet demonstrated in-house battery prowess. Their supplies come from the usual suspects – Panasonic, CATL etc.
So I'm finding it really hard to form an opinion on whether the mutterings about Toyota solid-state batteries are something real, or a dead-end like their hydrogen efforts.
Power densities for batteries arent increasing as much as many like to think from lab results. However the process still requires a large number of individual cells within their own 'package' to scale up to something usable. What looks to be a larger battery for the new Ford F150 electric ute even requires an internal liquid cooling system.
A further note on Auckland ferries, the half moon bay run for cars and trucks uses 3 quite large ferries ( large compared to the very small one that goes to the CBD). Not many passengers who arent in cars or trucks for that service but it would consume a lot of diesel, this service is essential for Waihekes supplies – on one run they had such heavy trucks carrying road asphalt that water was around the cars and trucks tires!. A freight service also runs to Great Barrier
It is both extraordinary luck and good management that this Wednesday the Climate Commission plan comes out just as central government is remaking our public service and our economy.
Optimum moment to achieve good policy changes.
Very much the transformational moment to engage through.
All transport off our settled islands is public.
If Auckland can require carbon-free ferries, so can Wellington, Stewart Island, Abel Tasman sea shuttles, Kawau, and the rest.
And just like fake meat, fake cheese, organic vegetables and almond milk, yup again its the remaining midle class leading the way.
Accelerated electric bus fleet replacement is also budgeted for and underway through AT.
They reversed it in Wellington.
The passengers thought that having to push the bus was a little fetch.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/109249341/passengers-push-start-bus-after-it-gets-stuck-in-central-wellington
Yep, too much for the bus passengers – that Stuff article says it was pushy pedestrians who tried to lend a hand. When will do-gooders learn?
One of my earliest (hazy) memories (as a very young bus passenger) was of an (electric) trolleybus driver (in Auckland) scrambling to re-attach power couplings to overhead lines using some kind of (presumably well-insulated?) stick. They didn't, and still don't pay bus drivers enough, imho.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trolleybuses_in_Auckland
Stick ?
The trolleys had long cords at the back of the bus which the driver which use to raise and lower the power poles. No risk to them from that. Trams had previously the same system for their poles
Thanks for that.
It's a ‘memory of a memory’ from my preschool years (~1960) – I had/have the impression that the 'powerpoles' had accidentally detached (dewired) from the overhead powerlines, that the driver appeared to be using a stick-like implement to help reattach (guide/push) them back into place, and that it was taking him longer than he expected/wanted.
Thinking on it, I can't imagine how I might have had a good view of this incident from inside the trolleybus (presumably I was in the company of a parent or grandparent), but as I said it's a hazy recollection, and Auckland is only the most likely location. Still, whatever I saw it certainly made a lasting impression.
For what it's worth the Russians discovered a very long time ago that by strongly tapering the trolley poles and keeping the effective tip mass to a minimum they could virtually eliminate de-lining as was so common in the fleet we were operating.
I noticed this when I was working there and asked about it at the time. In the city I was in trolley busses were very common and I never once saw a de-lining.
This has been done all over europe and still exists and is in use.
https://www.amusingplanet.com/2016/05/shopping-over-water-bridges-that-carry.html
but in saying that it would be smart use of space and i doubt that the new class of architects would even be able to bend their mind around 'smart use of space'.
Dammit you are right, middle class protesters instead of demanding a cycleway on the Harbour Bridge, should be demanding that one lane of the Harbour Bridge be given over to housing. Maybe we could have a three month trial of that?
And after three months if the houses on the Bridge are not successful in easing traffic congestion just throw them over the side.
hahahahah, indeed. and in three hundred years there would be something to look at for tourists. In saying that, some of these bridges are just quite brilliant.
It certainly wouldn't be a new idea would it. In about 1600 the "Old" London Bridge was covered in dwellings in which, apparently, about 500 people lived.
https://www.countrylife.co.uk/architecture/living-thames-history-london-bridge-one-celebrated-lost-landmarks-205294
You can't read the full story but this is what it looked like.
A sky pool and poor doors and they'll be in business.
https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2021/feb/02/penthouses-poor-doors-nine-elms-battersea-london-luxury-housing-development
Sounds all right. Can you get some government funding and call for volunteers with skills to help. We might get something done then.
Thirty two years ago.
That really makes me feel old. It does seem just like yesterday.
I wonder whatever happened to the man who stopped the tanks?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YeFzeNAHEhU
There's a film or two about it:
The Tank Man (full film) | FRONTLINE – YouTube
Official Trailer (imdb.com)
From a google search
In a speech to the President's Club in 1999, Bruce Herschensohn, former deputy special assistant to President Richard Nixon, alleged that he was executed 14 days later; other sources alleged he was executed by firing squad a few months after the Tiananmen Square protests.
But maybe,
I am reminded of a comment in an Alistair Cooke Letter from America when Duke Ellington died. Cooke finished it with something like.
"Duke Ellington died last week, but I don't have to believe it if I don't want to"
You are probably quite right and he is dead. I don't want to believe it though. I'll believe the last two words. "But maybe".
Can someone explain why it's going to take a year to phase in welfare increases? The govt said on budget day that increasing benefits creates an economic stimulation because beneficiaries spend and spend locally, what I don't understand is why wait a year to phase in needed economic stimulation when people need the help now and businesses who will benefit from increased spending need the stimulation now , some won't survive a year.
Is it because our Bureaucrats are unable to work fast, or because the govt wants to ensure the increases won't be clawed back by deductions from other top up benefits of is it because the govt doesn't wanna increase payments while the winter energy payment is in effect (heaven forbid people had a few bucks extra)
An economic stimulus works only if they get the cash out quickly. This is not quick.
I also don't understand the $30-50 , why isn't everyone getting the much needed $50 ESPECIALLY people on disability benefits.
Phasing in $20 in July then waiting till next year seems …. Pathetic and unlikely to increase spending and stimulate the economy as much as giving everyone on welfare $50 next month.
Surely it's not that hard to legislate that msd can't deduct from other payments…. Surely it doesn't take a bloody year
There was an earlier rise in April 1 of 3%…have you forgotten already ?
https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/main-benefits-increase-line-wages
Politically they know that people quickly forget like you have, and stretch it for those reasons
Coupled with the Winter energy payment, every bit helps. Budget announcements generally kick in the following year, on April 1st.
coreyjhumm…take heart mate, you are not alone in your frustration.
https://www.cpag.org.nz/news/
A group of anti-poverty campaigners has called on the Government to implement its Budget benefit plans on 1 July, rather than staggering increases across 1 July 2021 and 1 April 2022, as announced last week.
The Government announced, as part of Budget 2021, that core benefit levels would increase by $20 per week on 1 July, with additional increases to bring it up to $55 in total on 1 April 2022.
But the Government has given no reason why these increases have been staggered.
“People are suffering unnecessarily. We are just one of many groups who have been calling for significant and urgent increases to benefit levels for years now,” said Caitlin Neuwelt-Kearns, Researcher at the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG). CPAG is part of the Fairer Future collaboration of groups, which is calling for liveable incomes for all.
The orginization Fairer Futures' website has a Key Information page which clearly outlines the history of social support in New Zealand and reminds those who would forget that we have gone from providing decent support up to the 1980s to being the third worst in the OECD just prior to Te Virus.
Drip feeding is just cruel, but I guess some folk just like to see others beg.
edit
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/saturday/audio/2018798565/prof-shanna-swan-how-our-modern-world-is-threatening-sperm-counts
The environmental and reproductive epidemiologist predicts most couples might need assisted reproduction by 2045. ..
In 2017, Swan and her team of researchers completed a major study that found over the past four decades sperm levels among men in Western countries had dropped by more than 50 percent. The study involved examining 185 studies involving close to 45,000 healthy men.,,
"Sperm concentration was close to 100 million per millilitre, but now it's dropped to 47," Swan said…
Lifestyle factors affecting sperm health and fertility include exposure to smoking, excessive drinking, lack of exercise, poor diet, and stress. Adopting a healthier lifestyle could improve sperm health, Swan said.
Endocrine-disrupting chemicals, which impact on our bodies' hormones, and other chemicals found in the environment were also taking a toll on sperm health, she said…
Swan has studied phthalates, which make plastics soft and flexible, act as fragrances in personal care products, and are found in foods.
"What they can do is lower testosterone. This has been shown in the laboratory."…
The rise of gender fluidity and increasing numbers of transgender people could also be related to chemicals impacting on human hormones.
Swan said when a breeding animal was exposed to phthalates, their male offspring sometimes had "incomplete genitals". The same could occur in human children, with risks of phthalate exposure highest in early pregnancy, she said.
"How those boys are born with those smaller genitals, that is a lifetime effect and it actually is linked to them having lower sperm count."
Phthalates were found around the planet and also impacted on the fertility of wildlife, Swan said.
“Many studies have linked exposure to these chemicals to declines in litter size and endangerment of multiple species.”
Watch out men (and women). Maybe you should stop drenching yourselves in nice smellies and go back to the 'sweet summer sweat' that they sing about in Hotel California.
Then there is this: https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/444119/hui-tackles-decline-of-sea-life-off-coromandel-peninsula
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/afternoons/audio/2018798465/nsw-mouse-plague-spreads-to-waterways-around-the-state
They have had this before. They know it happens after prolonged drought. In an organised farming community they would be super-vigilant because of past records about these outbreaks, and how to prevent them. Dont we learn – whats the use of education?