Can I urge Standarnistas to follow Petey’s advice and ignore the link. Don’t click on it. I did and it burns, it burns …
There is one minor problem Petey with your analysis. You neglected to mention that Banks has allegedly made a false declaration, told someone how to make an anonymous declaration, thanked the person’s aide after it was made, then told a few porkies to try and hide the face. He may just be on the right side of this legally but it smells to high heaven. This is not the “high ethical standards” we were promised.
This is relevant doncha think? I am intrigued that you should not mention it as it is the centre of this scandal.
+1 Micky. My reaction too. We should just ignore unethical and possibly illegal behaviour by Banks because to raise it and probe is a bit *nasty* and offends Pete’s delicate sensibilities. Having been up in Auckland the last few days and in the company of some right wingers with views normally far removed from my own I hasten to suggest Pete has misjudged the mood of the electorate to this issue as well. Everyone seems universally disgusted with Banks and not that impressed with Key’s refusal to deal with him either (and this from some usually diehard Key supporters).
I agree that the alleged false accusation of a false declaration deserves proper attention.
However that has been overshadowed by a campaign of fishing for more hits that are detracting from the key questions – and add to the gutter reputation of politicians and currently of Labour.
I didn’t mention that in this post because it’s a different issue. It’s common for blog posts not to deal with every related part of an issue, but instead to focus on one aspect.
I happen to think it’s a wider and more important aspect overall – Banks may or may not last the distance, that to me is minor in the whole scheme of things, but the quality of all of our politics and democracy is something I feel strongly about, I have done for years, it’s what has attracted me to become more involved.
I agree Pete. Labour has laid a complaint with the police over the Dotcom and Sky City donations. IMHO, they would be far better now to wait for things to take their course, rather than dredging up distractions which Mr Mallard is not prepared to discuss outside the House. Labour runs the risk of over-egging the pudding, and turning public sentiment back towards Banks if they keep banging on about peripheral issues.
Micky question for you Do higher Ethical Standards,and Trevor Mallards gutter politics go hand in hand, and sit well with the Labour supporters? It certainly doesn’t sit well with most of the voting public, and Labour better hope like hell that both Willams ,and Malllard don’t get found guilty in their court case brought against them by Collins. Other wise everything that Mallard is saying now which is false will come back to bite Labour again. New Zealand voters are turned off by this sort of politics, and unethical standards
Te Reo
You don’t get it Mallard being like by Labour supporters is your problem its an ever diminishing pond. The problem is Mallard isn’t like by those whom you want to attract to vote Labour. New Zealanders don’t like the way he operates he operates in the gutter, this disenfranchises him from the majority of voters
Felix
Believe it not myself ,and my family voted Labour for years before it lost it way,and moved from its core values to a party that became a mouth piece for every political activist pushing their own ,and not the party agenda. I still believe it has a problem transitioning itself back to its core values ,and keeping all of the factions under control
Felix
I thank you for your very genuine concern for both me and my family the journey hasn’t been too hard. Its been quite enlightening once you take your blinkers off
Comprehension fail, Pete. By the way, how did you go in your attempt to win political office? Oh, that’s right, you drove the UF party and candidate vote down.
Te Reo
So we can take it by your comments and unfettered support for Mallard you support his style of Politics? Even a lot of the writers on The Standard actually find him cringe worthy
I would have thought you’d have spotted by now that writers on the Standard have a wide variety of opinions. But then, as you are a racist and a homophobe, I imagine you aren’t all that keen on diversity anyway.
You think Te Reo Putake? Trevor Mallard was Labour’s chief strategist last year, and his strategies were so successful that Labour got its worst election result in 60 years. I’d hardly call that a resounding endorsement of Trevor Mallard.
Mallard interview on Q+A – weak answers, nothing of substance on his allegations, the only actual hits claimed have been gotchas on the aftermath of his allegations.
It’s notable that so far, apart from a bit of the usual abuse, grizzles and diversion to Banks, no one is questioning the damage Mallard keeps doing to the public perception of Labour, and no support for Shearer’s promotion of non-gotcha politics.
Is the post an attack on Trevor Mallard? No, it’s holding him to account. The media and David Shearer don’t seem to want to do it.
Are the media likely to bite the hand that feeds it scandals? Maybe not.
Is Shearer likely to cut off the festering sore that keeps preventing a Labour recovery? It doesn’t look like it – I don’t know whether that is due to impotence or hypocrisy.
No Pete, the only thing damaged by Mallard is your perception of the Labour party. You trot around the blogs peddling your perception but the only place you appear to have anyone agreeing with you is the sewer.
He may not be your cuppa Pete but among my mob of working gals and gents the general consensus is that Mallard is on the right track and as far as I’m aware people are quite happy with the notion that the oppositions job is to light fires and then stand back and watch the roaches crawl out.
Rapidly losing patience with this Pete George thing. Mildly tolerable as the farcical parody of a barely-litrate parasite in the rectum of an elderly, traitorous, narcisstic dung beetle with dementia – but now so very passe. Supporting Judas and smearing others – beyond lunacy. Piss off back to the arsehole, blowfoly.
My problem is that he is a troll. He’s only here to take issue with either specific points raised or the general leaning of the site. The more he posts the less I frequent this site. It’s like going to the public pool and finding someone taking a dump in there.
I disagree, I don’t think the “general leaning of the site” is to attack politics – only some commenters seem to openly support gutter politics rather than discussing valid issues.
And “troll” has just become a generic term of abuse that’s meaingless. I introduce topical issues that are of interest to me, I’m prepared to discuss them, mostly within the stated terms of the blog.
But you must notice that some commenters (I’ll exlude you) seem mainly to mainly abuse rather than discuss, and some openly support attack politics as an essentialm part of the game.
I guess you don’t really care if Labour self destruct. I do – I prefer that we have as strong parties and MPs as possible, including Labour. I’m very disappointed they wasted last term, and are on target to fail to regroup and rebuild this term too.
I think there’s a couple of things there we can agree on – I too am disappointed by Labour’s waste of the last term (and possibly this one). All this leadership stuff should’ve been sorted out when Helen left, not 4-5 years later.
And I also don’t want to see them self destruct. I even hope they can convince me to vote for them one day.
Where we probably disagree is on what they should be doing about it.
Hard to say. I think he’s probably not doing much to help Labour’s cause, but that’s not to say he isn’t doing some important work by by exposing the likes of Banks to public scrutiny.
His hit rate is quite low though – he has tried a string of speculations, he admitted they were speculation and didn’t provide any substance on Q+A, just vague stamenmts like “it could look bad”.
That’s not so much exposing, more like trying to generate mistakes. That’s an old political strategy (dirty trick) based on the adage that it’s not the initial issue that causes the damage, it’s how it’s dealt with.
I’m sure there are other MPs who would buckle under sustained pressure and suprious accusations. Should all MPs be scrutinised to this degeree? Or should they be putting more effort into doing something for the country as our representatives?
I’m not sure what you think would constitute a “hit”.
I imagine the objective is to expose Banks’ shonkey dealings and general incompetence, thereby calling into question Key’s judgement in allowing him several ministerial warrants.
“The more he posts the less I frequent this site.”
Pete would see that as a victory, Tigger, so please keep visiting. Trolls are just about the only weapon the Tories have left in the armoury as the economy tanks, the country is being abandoned by our best and brightest and their economic policies appear to be based on bullying, corruption and cant.
I’m quite sure more is not better in terms of the discussion you promote – with a couple of thoughtful exceptions the discussions you promote are snide swiping at everyone with a political leaning to the left of you.
Wrong. All you do is promote wibbling, Pete. You are the black hole of discussion, sucking all the energy and light out of any topic that comes up with pointless questions, meaningless attributions and conservative assumptions.
PG does at least pretend to maintain a “higher standard” (sorry HS) with which to hold everyone else to. He also does a great job pretending that he lives up to the kind of politics that all NZers want more of. Well, according to him anyway.
‘Pete the pest’ is what some in the ‘trade’ might call a squiggler. Being an opportunist (no I am not going to supply a definition) means you are never wrong, and fortunately also never correct.
Pete’s comments are more often than not obsequious waffle in my opinion, but he manages to slide in under the Standard site’s limbo behaviour stick, so I just skate over his posts as I see fit.
Wrong. All you do is promote wibbling, Pete. You are the black hole of discussion, sucking all the energy and light out of any topic that comes up with pointless questions, meaningless attributions and conservative assumptions.
*******
Maybe TRP, but from what I can see it’s the people replying to him ad nauseum that are creating the problem 😉
What would he know? I’d say a fair bit about communication.
I haven’t seen the piece yet, but I’m going to hazard a guess that Edwards was talking about how well Key performed to the viewers of the program. Yeah?
And if he reckons he did good at that, he’s probably right. About half of NZ seems to find him believable most of the time, and that interview was probably no different in that respect.
But he didn’t convince Campbell, and he didn’t convince me either.
“And if he reckons he did good at that, he’s probably right. About half of NZ seems to find him believable most of the time, and that interview was probably no different in that respect”
— Yup and thats “democracy” in action right there…just gotta keep a working number of them dumb enough, and in the pocket to keep control, jusk like how you can control a parliament!
The interview was a farce, in so far as the number of lies that were not only told/not told by words, but that his body gave him away, despite the fact he was clearly trying to keep control of himself!
Best thing about it was what appeared to be the penny dropping live on Campbells face!
And here we are at comment number 4 so all the other comments have been wasted by everyone being sucked in by Petey’s bullshit. And guess what you all fell for it. To disrupt and obfuscate, that’s Petey’s goal and he’s winning judging by all the wasted timer on here this morning..
Exactly. I try to not respond to PG comments to avoid encouraging him.
I rarely visit Kiwiblog but did a quick look there a few minutes ago. PG filed the same comments there on General Debate that he did at 1 and 1.3 above ( his “anti-Mallard day” ones) and interestingly, unless I missed any in the very quick scroll I did, not a single response to his comments. They were just ignored.
I think you need to watch the closing sequence again. Campbell felt that the interview was particularly revealing. I think he appeared to be quite happy with how Key opened up and there will surely be more … come into my parlour said the spider to the fly.
In Farrars recent post about ECan there is a small paragraph that deserves further comment:
“This is not a reason to keep the Commissioners on beyond the 2013 elections, but it is a reminder that local government is the creation of Parliament, and Parliament has the ability to intervene if they fail.”
This statement show an attitude that is far worse than any nanny state that the right claimed we had under Labour – how far do we take the ‘creation of Parliament’ aspect, as every law is a creation of Parliament? It seems that if things are not going Nationals way they will ride rough-shod over any other democratic process to get their own way, justified by that one statement – ‘Parliament has the ability to intervene if they fail’. Disturbing.
Inspired, HS? A good choice of word. Since it seems so far out of sync with my appreciation of the Anglican church, partly as “the National Party at prayer” but more kindly as a generally conservative church, the appointment is unusual to say the least.
I’m old enough to remember James K Baxter in his latter years preaching in ChCh cathedral, barefoot with an old parka, long hair and big beard. This decision- I hope inspired- resonates with that image.
Since it seems so far out of sync with my appreciation of the Anglican church, partly as “the National Party at prayer” but more kindly as a generally conservative church, the appointment is unusual to say the least.
I think it really depends on where you are! In the BOP and Auckland, the Anglican church is pretty conservative, but not in Welly! My priest in Welly was Richard Randerson (St Peter’s in Willis Street, in 1987-90). He was pretty radical I thought, I really enjoyed him!
The performance of Government drug buying agency Pharmac appears to get a big tick with this country paying less for the 30 most commonly prescribed drugs than any of the other countries covered.
Yep. Those Commonwealth Fund reports go back aways – they’re designed for measuring the US. health system against other developed nations – hence the US-centric title. I’ve been taking note of them since 2002.
NZ has performed as well as or better than most countries in almost all healthcare measures compared over the years, especially given our low spending on health . Two measures where we are notably worse (though not compared to the U.S – their system is dire in terms of population health) are the upfront cost of primary care and access to new high cost medicines.
Labour made some good progress in improving primary care access, not so much in the high cost meds. It’ll be interesting to see how these measure up in the next couple of reports.
“Lower provider incomes could reduce the quality of applicants choosing a career in medicine”
Take out or reduce the income incentive and you could find the quality of applicants increases.
There is no research I am aware of that shows the personality traits desirable in good health professionals are linked to a drive to earn more money than others.
When we’re talking about surgeons and the like, personality traits would tend to take a backseat in favour of competence and accuracy of diagnosis etc.
True, and competence and accuracy of diagnosis are as far as I can tell more often found in self-aware, broad-minded, patient people able to learn the right lessons from their experience and make decisive decisions based on that and on evidence-based practices.
The promise of a higher income does not to my mind foster competence and accuracy of diagnosis
Admittedly though, charlatans on high incomes are rarely exposed and I take that as a reassuring sign of their rarity.
Not quite sure how that is US centric – it’s a comparison and one that’s been true for a long time. It’s only inaccurate so far as it doesn’t have per capita on the end.
Quoting article:-
The study questioned why the US spent so much more on health than any other countries.
That higher spending was likely to be largely due to higher prices and perhaps more readily accessible technology and greater obesity, the study said.
LOL, just failed to mention the huge profits and the spending on advertising which probably has more effect than anything else.
and then it finishes with the standard ode to the market
“Inevitably, efforts to control healthcare spending involve trade-offs, and many such efforts – whether restricting access or regulating prices – come with a cost.”
Lower drug prices may lead to less research and development and, consequently, fewer pharmaceutical breakthroughs. Lower provider incomes could reduce the quality of applicants choosing a career in medicine.
Despite the fact that the countries whose health services isn’t market dominated are cheaper and just as good if not better than those which are. This denial of reality is a major issue and highlights the problems with blind faith in market economics.
It’s bizarrely US-centric because US was the most expensive of all of the countries. Singling NZ out as being cheaper than the US is odd, because we’re also cheaper than all of the others except Japan.
Better headlines would have been:
“NZ amongst cheapest for healthcare” or
“US healthcare most expensive”
Anyone with any inkling of how the health systems of both countries work would go “duh” at a headline that said NZ was cheaper than the US, so the headline itself isn’t telling us anything.
It seems that key went to sleep one night and woke up one morning to find that he had been given a country to play with.His absolute disdain and dismissal of the people of “his country”is not only believable but frightening.For him to stand there and state that against the will of the country he is going to do what he wants to do no matter what is appalling.Is this dictatorship?It must be very close.Watching him on Campbell was very enlightening. He had obviously spent some time learning his lines because if J C tried to change tack a little bit key got rattled and said he couldn’t answer that and then reverted pretty much on to the sentence he had been interrupted on.He also had his lying face on.Closed face and dead eyes.If anyone believes that he did not know that the raid was going to happen is deluded.Although he seemed to think the overkill was warranted because the place was full of armed and dangerous criminal with masses of weapons lalala. Never mind that it was also housing women and children who would have been terrified for their lives. I don’t know what Brian Edwards saw or heard but I agree totally with JC. The way key treated the interview was cynically farcical.
I haven’t heard/seen Brian Edwards on Key/Campbell on The Nation but I imagine his interest would be in the technical disposition of Key. That is that he sat well, faced Campbell, mostly answered questions, make-up, suit, dropped the hill-billy aww shucks persona Key usually adopts and so on.
The Conservative Party has emerged as a possible alternative support partner for National as pressure mounts on under-fire Act leader John Banks.
Back in 1994 the former Association of Consumers and Taxpayers (later shortened to ACT) was picked up by a small bunch of wealthy business tycoons (Alan Gibbs and Craig Heatley led the charge) and turned into a political party for the specific purpose of being an MMP partner for National. Nothing wrong with that, but they clothed the new party in a cloak of forging political honesty ‘we are here to make sure both major parties are honest and transparent’ was the battle cry, and they never let the real aim of the exercise be known. It took a while for the penny to drop because MMP was still in its infancy.
Now it’s happening all over again only this time with the Conservative Party. Even the timing is the same… two years out from the next election. Will the same wealthy business tycoons be throwing their not inconsiderable weight behind it? Judging by the huge spend up (second to National) at the 2011 election, they have already started.
Is it worth noting that Craig Heatley is New Zealand’s best friend with Rupert Murdoch ?? Amusing this week to watch ACT’s slow dissolve to black at same time as Murdoch was king-hit by Parliamment in London. Whoever is agitating to investigate possibilities ( probabilities?) of Murdoch influence in NZ need look no further than this connect imho.
I think he may be Craig Heatley’s nephew but don’t quote me on that. It could be wrong.
Interesting comment yeshe.
These moguls, no matter what their core business and where they officially reside, seem inextricably linked. I suspect there’s a massive story yet to be told that will leave “The Hollow Men” for dead. Perhaps even the Murdoch scandal.
As far as Colin Craig is concerned: we have seen how easily principles can change for the sake of political ambition and expediency. By the time the Cons. become Nat’s official support partner, I think the Asset sales will be done and dusted and we will be advised by our Tory ‘friends’ to move on… nothing more to see.
A lot of folk on the left have talked about Labour needing to rapidly cut off the dead wood and rediscover itself post 2011. Q & A this morning was case in point. Trevor Mallard, looking hungover dithering on the Banks saga – Holmes asked what his “leader” Helen Clark would do? Joyce effortlessly convinces us to stop training doctors and start nailing graduates – just because he is a spin master. Mallard, not only cant articulate what Banks has done wrong, but the mere presence of this dinosaur causes Holmes to timewarp back to yesterday’s Labour. Mallard should have known better than to refer to how Helen would have handled it and quickly seized the opportunity to talk about Shearer’s leadership, his moral code, his ethical standards. Shearer, FFS – keep Mallard away from the public and get your MP’s some decent media training.
Well said Salsy some one that isn’t afraid to speak what every one else is thinking. I watched it to, it reminded me of a punch drunk fighter who had stepped into the ring to many times it was quite pitiful really. The best thing Shearer could do is totally hide Mallard from anything to do with the Media he does not paint New Labour in the best light
“:keep Mallard away from the public and get your MP’s some decent media training.”
Think you have a point here as Trevor mumbled and stumbled about Banks on Closeup last week too. However he always seems to do well in Parliament, especially when he asked the rather clever “Russian Doll like” question about whether Banks had set up a charter school in Skycity. http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL1205/S00021/scoop-links-wrap-of-john-banks-coverage.htm
Perhaps studios, cameras/lights and TV interviews get to him; hence as you say media training is very necessary.
The disgusting state-sponsored bullying of Bradley Ambrose seems to have finally stopped, with the announcement that he will not be pursued for $14,000 in court costs:
Now that he has been roundly defamed and Key has moved on, I guess someone just ties up the loose ends and sweeps Ambrose under the carpet.
“I became completely disillusioned with the people running the country. And that’s coming from someone who’s been a National voter for 18 years.” – Bradley Ambrose.
The Herald seems all over the place on it’s political views these days, just as you think it’s beginning to shed the tory cloak it’s back to business as usual. This article here is full of flaws and frankly just ideological claptrap;
Nearly all of the ‘cost’ of student loans exists only on paper. They apply interest and then write it off, creating a debit in the accounts. The truth is that student loans are now mostly self-funding; loan repayments fund new loans. The only real cost is inflation & population increases which necessitates increasing the size of the loan pool.
Claiming that we’re losing on the ‘opportunity cost’ of interest foregone is specious bullshit, the same argument could be applied to all of the Crowns assets which don’t return a dividend. Following their argument we should sell our national parks & other assets because they’re not collecting rent. A very poor effort from the Herald.
Looking at neighbours and relatives, we are pandering too much to students. (50 years ago) I went university for one year. When I did not produce the results Dad closed his cheque book. I spent the next year doing Compulsory Military Training then pouring concrete. I like to think that I matured considerably with that experience. The next year I started on a carreer I was passionate about and never looked back.
“Life is difficult ! Once we truly understand and accept this then life is no longer difficult. We transcent the difficulties.” Life has a series of problems for everyone. Once we have faced these problems we can move on and enjoy some of what is offered.
Problems call forth our courage and our wisdom. It is usually because problems that we grow mentally and spritually.
You’re so right, John, we should have a society entirely built around military-trained concrete-pourers … I mean, fuck’s sake, even economically that makes no sense.
But hey, you played at going to varsity 50 years ago in a country where pouring concrete was probably a viable lifelong career decision, so carry on talking out your ass while expecting the next generation to burden themselves with debt in order to fund your super.
I’m with John on this one. When you are older you know you got through times when life did not seem worth living. This can be reassuring and inspiring to younger people.
What utter bullshit. John wasn’t trying to “reassure” anyone, he was saying – as someone who never had to take on debt to get a necessary university degree – that we “pander” too much to students.
And I swear to God anyone who wants to say “but but but Bill Gates!” can fuck off and die. Bill Gates and Albert Einstein are not representative of the general no-university-degree population.
I’m sorry, John, just to be clear (because I’d hate to be accused of “looking” for things to be offended by again) that was a dig at my terribly unladylike language, wasn’t it?
Nah, the sole focus on two naughty words out of a hundred or so describes the reader
OK. I focused on the rest of QoT’s words as well, but at the same time the unnecessary effing and blinding is just childish. It’s time QoT learned that sweariness gets him/her the wrong kind of attention. The bleat about misogyny as a defence is equally juvenile. Foul language demeans both men and women.
I used to work all through the school holidays. In summer, shifts and overtime was available and always worked fully, for the money. Dad had been a Plumber, but died a couple of years after I left home, after a long illness. Life is difficult.
Could the Government police the student loans so carefully?
There is plenty of adventure in life, but at the end of the day, it was cycling to work day after day, year after year, Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter, that put a meal on the table for the family.
Maybe so John but that doesn’t address the issue of interest on student loans. The only effect that interest has is to increase the amount the student has to pay back. The student loans aren’t free remember, they’re loans they have to be repaid whether they have interest on them or not.
As things stand the taxpayer has ponied up some $10billion as a loan pool. We didn’t borrow it and we’re not paying interest on it, we paid for that loans kitty with our taxes. It’s an asset on the Crown books just like any other asset and it pays dividends in the form of educated graduates who should go on to pay lots of lovely tax. The question is whether we need to make a cash dividend, ie profit, from that loan pool or if the existing dividend is sufficient. That’s a no-brainer to me.
About the only reasonable argument for interest I can see is to make the system totally self-funding; charge a very low interest of maybe 0.5 – 1% to cover the administrative costs of running the scheme and other costs such as loan defaults etc. In practice however we’d see the interest rate creep up as beancounters got their disgusting greedy mitts on it so I’d rather not see even that.
My youngest son has a BA in History and Political Studies and has a huge Loan. He is working in the building Supply Industry on a modest wage and not a high flying job. He has organised his budget to allow for the repayment of his loan. He resents the increase as apparently a response to defaulters who are not repaying Loans.
He also comments that the money loaned will get close to equilibrium of money repaid. The total is about $12billion but should stay at that as loans go out and get repaid.
I think the $12billion includes interest & may not be the actual capital invested or lent out. The beancounters charge interest on the loans and each year write some of it off. All of that occurs only on paper of course, but that has the effect of increasing the value of the asset on the books before they write some of the interest off as an expense each year.
Not that it matters, the nett cash is still just an asset and isn’t costing us anything like some people claim. We fronted up the dosh & now it’s being put to a good use. Shit we get it back and then someone else can use it, what’s wrong with that?
The only real cost is inflation & population increases which necessitates increasing the size of the loan pool.
And there was Matthew Hooten on Radio NZ this morning moaning about the fact that the ‘middle classes’ can’t get student allowances, only the poor and the rich. Of course people like him hate the idea of the poor going to university. That’s what the 4 year limit is all about, we can’t have poor people becoming doctors for goodness’ sake!
My son got an allowance because his rich father agreed to never have anything to do with him! That was utterly painful and humiliating. Josie Pagani redeemed herself by stating her support for totally free tertiary education, which was good because all her other remarks were pretty right wing. In my day, (the early 1980s) student allowances were universal, so I got one, and I’d like to see a return to that!
Crown lawyers acting for the United States knew before seizing Kim Dotcom’s fortune and property that they were using an unlawful court order.
The High Court file has revealed Crown prosecutor Anne Toohey realised there was a paperwork problem on the morning of the January raid.
The Solicitor-General at the time, David Collins, was alerted to the error but told the mistake didn’t alter the lawful nature of the order allowing the seizure of Dotcom’s wealth.
The advice was wrong – Justice Judith Potter later ruled the restraining order “null and void” and having “no legal effect”.
Lawyers making up the rules as they go along – actions that are anathema to a free-state.
Depends what for. Judicial review time is of the essence even though strictly no time limit. Bill of Rights Act unreasonable search and seizure no time limit but again Courts prefer you not to sit on your hands if your rights are breached.
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The Post reports on how the government is refusing to release its advice on its corrupt Muldoonist fast-track law, instead using the "soon to be publicly available" refusal ground to hide it until after select committee submissions on the bill have closed. Fast-track Minister Chris Bishop's excuse? “It's not ...
As pressure on it grows, the livestock industry’s approach to the transition to Net Zero is increasingly being compared to that of fossil fuel interests. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / Getty ImagesTL;DR: Here’s the top five news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa-NZ this week, and a discussion above ...
The New Zealand Herald reports – Stats NZ has offered a voluntary redundancy scheme to all of its workers as a way to give staff some control over their “future” amidst widespread job losses in the public sector. In an update to staff this morning, seen by the Herald, Statistics New Zealand ...
On Werewolf/Scoop, I usually do two long form political columns a week. From now on, there will be an extra column each week about music and movies. But first, some late-breaking political events:The rise in unemployment numbers for the March quarter was bigger than expected – and especially sharp ...
David Farrar writes – The Herald reports: TVNZ says it is dealing with about 50 formal complaints over its coverage of the latest 1News-Verian political poll, with some viewers – as well as the Prime Minister and a former senior Labour MP – critical of the tone of the 6pm report. ...
Muriel Newman writes – When Meridian Energy was seeking resource consents for a West Coast hydro dam proposal in 2010, local Maori “strenuously” objected, claiming their mana was inextricably linked to ‘their’ river and could be damaged. After receiving a financial payment from the company, however, the Ngai Tahu ...
Alwyn Poole writes – “An SEP,’ he said, ‘is something that we can’t see, or don’t see, or our brain doesn’t let us see, because we think that it’s somebody else’s problem. That’s what SEP means. Somebody Else’s Problem. The brain just edits it out, it’s like a ...
Our trust in our political institutions is fast eroding, according to a Maxim Institute discussion paper, Shaky Foundations: Why our democracy needs trust. The paper – released today – raises concerns about declining trust in New Zealand’s political institutions and democratic processes, and the role that the overuse of Parliamentary urgency ...
This article was prepared for publication yesterday. More ministerial announcements have been posted on the government’s official website since it was written. We will report on these later today …. Buzz from the BeehiveThere we were, thinking the environment is in trouble, when along came Jones. Shane Jones. ...
New Zealand now has the fourth most depressed construction sector in the world behind China, Qatar and Hong Kong. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 8:46am on Thursday, May 2:The Lead: ...
Hi,I am just going to state something very obvious: American police are fucking crazy.That was a photo gracing the New York Times this morning, showing New York City police “entering Columbia University last night after receiving a request from the school.”Apparently in America, protesting the deaths of tens of thousands ...
Winston Peters’ much anticipated foreign policy speech last night was a work of two halves. Much of it was a standard “boilerplate” Foreign Ministry overview of the state of the world. There was some hardening up of rhetoric with talk of “benign” becoming “malign” and old truths giving way to ...
Graham Adams assesses the fallout of the Cass Review — The press release last Thursday from the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls didn’t make the mainstream news in New Zealand but it really should have. The startling title of Reem Alsalem’s statement — “Implementation of ‘Cass ...
This open-for-business, under-new-management cliché-pockmarked government of Christopher Luxon is not the thing of beauty he imagines it to be. It is not the powerful expression of the will of the people that he asserts it to be. It is not a soaring eagle, it is a malodorous vulture. This newest poll should make ...
The latest labour market statistics, showing a rise in unemployment. There are now 134,000 unemployed - 14,000 more than when the National government took office. Which is I guess what happens when the Reserve Bank causes a recession in an effort to Keep Wages Low. The previous government saw a ...
Three opinion polls have been released in the last two days, all showing that the new government is failing to hold their popular support. The usual honeymoon experienced during the first year of a first term government is entirely absent. The political mood is still gloomy and discontented, mainly due ...
National's Finance Minister once met a poor person.A scornful interview with National's finance guru who knows next to nothing about economics or people.There might have been something a bit familiar if that was the headline I’d gone with today. It would of course have been in tribute to the article ...
Rob MacCulloch writes – Throughout the pandemic, the new Vice-Chancellor-of-Otago-University-on-$629,000 per annum-Can-you-believe-it-and-Former-Finance-Minister Grant Robertson repeated the mantra over and over that he saved “lives and livelihoods”.As we update how this claim is faring over the course of time, the facts are increasingly speaking differently. NZ ...
Chris Trotter writes – IT’S A COMMONPLACE of political speeches, especially those delivered in acknowledgement of electoral victory: “We’ll govern for all New Zealanders.” On the face of it, the pledge is a strange one. Why would any political leader govern in ways that advantaged the huge ...
Bryce Edwards writes – The list of former National Party Ministers being given plum and important roles got longer this week with the appointment of former Deputy Prime Minister Paula Bennett as the chair of Pharmac. The Christopher Luxon-led Government has now made key appointments to Bill ...
TL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 10:06am on Wednesday, May 1:The Lead: Business confidence fell across the board in April, falling in some areas to levels last seen during the lockdowns because of a collapse in ...
Over the past 36 hours, Christopher Luxon has been dong his best to portray the centre-right’s plummeting poll numbers as a mark of virtue. Allegedly, the negative verdicts are the result of hard economic times, and of a government bravely set out on a perilous rescue mission from which not ...
Auckland Transport have started rolling out new HOP card readers around the network and over the next three months, all of them on buses, at train stations and ferry wharves will be replaced. The change itself is not that remarkable, with the new readers looking similar to what is already ...
Completed reads for April: The Difference Engine, by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling Carnival of Saints, by George Herman The Snow Spider, by Jenny Nimmo Emlyn’s Moon, by Jenny Nimmo The Chestnut Soldier, by Jenny Nimmo Death Comes As the End, by Agatha Christie Lord of the Flies, by ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
Have a story to share about St Paul’s, but today just picturesPopular novels written at this desk by a young man who managed to bootstrap himself out of father’s imprisonment and his own young life in a workhouse Read more ...
The list of former National Party Ministers being given plum and important roles got longer this week with the appointment of former Deputy Prime Minister Paula Bennett as the chair of Pharmac. The Christopher Luxon-led Government has now made key appointments to Bill English, Simon Bridges, Steven Joyce, Roger Sowry, ...
Newsroom has a story today about National's (fortunately failed) effort to disestablish the newly-created Inspector-General of Defence. The creation of this agency was the key recommendation of the Inquiry into Operation Burnham, and a vital means of restoring credibility and social licence to an agency which had been caught lying ...
Holding On To The Present:The moment a political movement arises that attacks the whole idea of social progress, and announces its intention to wind back the hands of History’s clock, then democracy, along with its unwritten rules, is in mortal danger.IT’S A COMMONPLACE of political speeches, especially those delivered in ...
Stuck In The Middle With You:As Christopher Luxon feels the hot breath of Act’s and NZ First’s extremists on the back of his neck and, as he reckons with the damage their policies are already inflicting upon a country he’s described as “fragile”, is there not some merit in reaching out ...
The unpopular coalition government is currently rushing to repeal section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act. The clause is Oranga Tamariki's Treaty clause, and was inserted after its systematic stealing of Māori children became a public scandal and resulted in physical resistance to further abductions. The clause created clear obligations ...
Buzz from the Beehive The government’s official website – which Point of Order monitors daily – not for the first time has nothing much to say today about political happenings that are grabbing media headlines. It makes no mention of the latest 1News-Verian poll, for example. This shows National down ...
It Takes A Train To Cry:Surely, there is nothing lonelier in all this world than the long wail of a distant steam locomotive on a cold Winter’s night.AS A CHILD, I would lie awake in my grandfather’s house and listen to the traffic. The big wooden house was only a ...
Packing A Punch: The election of the present government, including in its ranks politicians dedicated to reasserting the rights of the legislature in shaping and determining the future of Māori and Pakeha in New Zealand, should have alerted the judiciary – including its anomalous appendage, the Waitangi Tribunal – that its ...
Dead Woman Walking: New Zealand’s media industry had been moving steadily towards disaster for all the years Melissa Lee had been National’s media and communications policy spokesperson, and yet, when the crisis finally broke, on her watch, she had nothing intelligent to offer. Christopher Luxon is a patient man - but he’s not ...
Chris Trotter writes – New Zealand politics is remarkably easy-going: dangerously so, one might even say. With the notable exception of John Key’s flat ruling-out of the NZ First Party in 2008, all parties capable of clearing MMP’s five-percent threshold, or winning one or more electorate seats, tend ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Polling shows that Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau has the lowest approval rating of any mayor in the country. Siting at -12 per cent, the proportion of constituents who disapprove of her performance outweighs those who give her the thumbs up. This negative rating is ...
Luxon will no doubt put a brave face on it, but there is no escaping the pressure this latest poll will put on him and the government. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political ...
This is a re-post from The Climate Brink by Andrew Dessler In the wake of any unusual weather event, someone inevitably asks, “Did climate change cause this?” In the most literal sense, that answer is almost always no. Climate change is never the sole cause of hurricanes, heat waves, droughts, or ...
Something odd happened yesterday, and I’d love to know if there’s more to it. If there was something which preempted what happened, or if it was simply a throwaway line in response to a journalist.Yesterday David Seymour was asked at a press conference what the process would be if the ...
Hi,From time to time, I want to bring Webworm into the real world. We did it last year with the Jurassic Park event in New Zealand — which was a lot of fun!And so on Saturday May 11th, in Los Angeles, I am hosting a lil’ Webworm pop-up! I’ve been ...
Education Minister Erica Standford yesterday unveiled a fundamental reform of the way our school pupils are taught. She would not exactly say so, but she is all but dismantling the so-called “inquiry” “feel good” method of teaching, which has ruled in our classrooms since a major review of the New ...
Exactly where are we seriously going with this government and its policies? That is, apart from following what may as well be a Truss-Lite approach on the purported economic “plan“, and Victorian-era regression when it comes to social policy.Oh it’ll work this time of course, we’re basically assured, “the ...
Hey Uncle Dave, When the Poms joined the EEC, I wasn't one of those defeatists who said, Well, that’s it for the dairy job. And I was right, eh? The Chinese can’t get enough of our milk powder and eventually, the Poms came to their senses and backed up the ute ...
Polling shows that Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau has the lowest approval rating of any mayor in the country. Siting at -12 per cent, the proportion of constituents who disapprove of her performance outweighs those who give her the thumbs up. This negative rating is higher than for any other mayor ...
Buzz from the Beehive Pharmac has been given a financial transfusion and a new chair to oversee its spending in the pharmaceutical business. Associate Health Minister David Seymour described the funding for Pharmac as “its largest ever budget of $6.294 billion over four years, fixing a $1.774 billion fiscal cliff”. ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government is trying to achieve and its ...
TL;DR: Here’s my top 10 ‘pick ‘n’ mix of links to news, analysis and opinion articles as of 10:10am on Monday, April 29:Scoop: The children's ward at Rotorua Hospital will be missing a third of its beds as winter hits because Te Whatu Ora halted an upgrade partway through to ...
span class=”dropcap”>As hideous as David Seymour can be, it is worth keeping in mind occasionally that there are even worse political figures (and regimes) out there. Iran for instance, is about to execute the country’s leading hip hop musician Toomaj Salehi, for writing and performing raps that “corrupt” the nation’s ...
Yesterday marked 10 years since the first electric train carried passengers in Auckland so it’s a good time to look back at it and the impact it has had. A brief history The first proposals for rail electrification in Auckland came in the 1920’s alongside the plans for earlier ...
Right now, in Aotearoa-NZ, our ‘animal spirits’ are darkening towards a winter of discontent, thanks at least partly to a chorus of negative comments and actions from the Government Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on ...
You make people evil to punish the paststuck inside a sequel with a rotating castThe following photos haven’t been generated with AI, or modified in any way. They are flesh and blood, human beings. On the left is Galatea Young, a young mum, and her daughter Fiadh who has Angelman ...
April has been a quiet month at A Phuulish Fellow. I have had an exceptionally good reading month, and a decently productive writing month – for original fiction, anyway – but not much has caught my eye that suggested a blog article. It has been vaguely frustrating, to be honest. ...
A listing of 31 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 21, 2024 thru Sat, April 27, 2024. Story of the week Anthropogenic climate change may be the ultimate shaggy dog story— but with a twist, because here ...
Hi,I spent about a year on Webworm reporting on an abusive megachurch called Arise, and it made me want to stab my eyes out with a fork.I don’t regret that reporting in 2022 and 2023 — I am proud of it — but it made me angry.Over three main stories ...
The new Victoria University Vice-Chancellor decided to have a forum at the university about free speech and academic freedom as it is obviously a topical issue, and the Government is looking at legislating some carrots or sticks for universities to uphold their obligations under the Education and Training Act. They ...
Do you remember when Melania Trump got caught out using a speech that sounded awfully like one Michelle Obama had given? Uncannily so.Well it turns out that Abraham Lincoln is to Winston Peters as Michelle was to Melania. With the ANZAC speech Uncle Winston gave at Gallipoli having much in ...
The Government is again adding to New Zealand’s growing unemployment, this time cutting jobs at the agencies responsible for urban development and growing much needed housing stock. ...
With Minister Karen Chhour indicating in the House today that she either doesn’t know or care about the frontline cuts she’s making to Oranga Tamariki, we risk seeing more and more of our children falling through the cracks. ...
The Labour Party is saddened to learn of the death of Sir Robert Martin, a globally renowned disability advocate who led the way for disability rights both in New Zealand and internationally. ...
Labour is calling for the Government to urgently rethink its coalition commitment to restart live animal exports, Labour animal welfare spokesperson Rachel Boyack said. ...
Today’s Financial Stability Report has once again highlighted that poverty and deep inequality are political choices - and this Government is choosing to make them worse. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to do more for our households in most need as unemployment rises and the cost of living crisis endures. ...
Unemployment is on the rise and it’s only going to get worse under this Government, Labour finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds said. Stats NZ figures show the unemployment rate grew to 4.3 percent in the March quarter from 4 percent in the December quarter. “This is the second rise in unemployment ...
The New Zealand Labour Party welcomes the entering into force of the European Union and New Zealand free trade agreement. This agreement opens the door for a huge increase in trade opportunities with a market of 450 million people who are high value discerning consumers of New Zealand goods and ...
The National-led Government continues its fiscal jiggery pokery with its Pharmac announcement today, Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall says. “The government has increased Pharmac funding but conceded it will only make minimal increases in access to medicine”, said Ayesha Verrall “This is far from the bold promises made to fund ...
This afternoon’s interim Waitangi Tribunal report must be taken seriously as it affects our most vulnerable children, Labour children’s spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime. ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
Te Pāti Māori is disgusted at the confirmation that hundreds are set to lose their jobs at Oranga Tamariki, and the disestablishment of the Treaty Response Unit. “This act of absolute carelessness and out of touch decision making is committing tamariki to state abuse.” Said Te Pāti Māori Oranga Tamariki ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi, and Mema Paremata mō Tāmaki-Makaurau, Takutai Tarsh Kemp, will travel to the Gold Coast to strengthen ties with Māori in Australia next week (15-21 April). The visit, in the lead-up to the 9th Australian National Kapa haka Festival, will be an opportunity for both ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop today released his decision on four recommendations referred to him by the Western Bay of Plenty District Council, opening the door to housing growth in the area. The Council’s Plan Change 92 allows more homes to be built in existing and new ...
Thank you, John McKinnon and the New Zealand China Council for the invitation to speak to you today. Thank you too, all members of the China Council. Your effort has played an essential role in helping to build, shape, and grow a balanced and resilient relationship between our two ...
The Government is modernising insurance law to better protect Kiwis and provide security in the event of a disaster, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly announced today. “These reforms are long overdue. New Zealand’s insurance law is complicated and dated, some of which is more than 100 years old. ...
The coalition Government is refreshing its approach to supporting pay equity claims as time-limited funding for the Pay Equity Taskforce comes to an end, Public Service Minister Nicola Willis says. “Three years ago, the then-government introduced changes to the Equal Pay Act to support pay equity bargaining. The changes were ...
Structured literacy will change the way New Zealand children learn to read - improving achievement and setting students up for success, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “Being able to read and write is a fundamental life skill that too many young people are missing out on. Recent data shows that ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay says Canada’s refusal to comply in full with a CPTPP trade dispute ruling in our favour over dairy trade is cynical and New Zealand has no intention of backing down. Mr McClay said he has asked for urgent legal advice in respect of our ‘next move’ ...
The rights of our children and young people will be enhanced by changes the coalition Government will make to strengthen oversight of the Oranga Tamariki system, including restoring a single Children’s Commissioner. “The Government is committed to delivering better public services that care for our most at-risk young people and ...
The Government is making it easier for minor changes to be made to a building consent so building a home is easier and more affordable, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on making it easier and cheaper to build homes so we can ...
New Zealand lost a true legend when internationally renowned disability advocate Sir Robert Martin (KNZM) passed away at his home in Whanganui last night, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. “Our Government’s thoughts are with his wife Lynda, family and community, those he has worked with, the disability community in ...
Good evening – Before discussing the challenges and opportunities facing New Zealand’s foreign policy, we’d like to first acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. You have contributed to debates about New Zealand foreign policy over a long period of time, and we thank you for hosting us. ...
From today, passengers travelling internationally from Auckland Airport will be able to keep laptops and liquids in their carry-on bags for security screening thanks to new technology, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Creating a more efficient and seamless travel experience is important for holidaymakers and businesses, enabling faster movement through ...
People with an interest in the health of Northland’s marine ecosystems are invited to a public meeting to discuss how to deal with kina barrens, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones will lead the discussion, which will take place on Friday, 10 May, at Awanui Hotel in ...
Kiwi exporters are $100 million better off today with the NZ EU FTA entering into force says Trade Minister Todd McClay. “This is all part of our plan to grow the economy. New Zealand's prosperity depends on international trade, making up 60 per cent of the country’s total economic activity. ...
There are heartening signs that the extractive sector is once again becoming an attractive prospect for investors and a source of economic prosperity for New Zealand, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The beginnings of a resurgence in extractive industries are apparent in media reports of the sector in the past ...
The return of the historic Ō-Rākau battle site to the descendants of those who fought there moved one step closer today with the first reading of Te Pire mō Ō-Rākau, Te Pae o Maumahara / The Ō-Rākau Remembrance Bill. The Bill will entrust the 9.7-hectare battle site, five kilometres west ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has announced 25 new high-speed EV charging hubs along key routes between major urban centres and outlined the Government’s plan to supercharge New Zealand’s EV infrastructure. The hubs will each have several chargers and be capable of charging at least four – and up to 10 ...
The coalition Government will not proceed with the previous Government’s plans to regulate residential property managers, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “I have written to the Chairperson of the Social Services and Community Committee to inform him that the Government does not intend to support the Residential Property Managers Bill ...
The Government has announced an independent review into the disability support system funded by the Ministry of Disabled People – Whaikaha. Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston says the review will look at what can be done to strengthen the long-term sustainability of Disability Support Services to provide disabled people and ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith has attended the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva and outlined the Government’s plan to restore law and order. “Speaking to the United Nations Human Rights Council provided us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while responding to issues and ...
The Government and Rotorua Lakes Council are committed to working closely together to end the use of contracted emergency housing motels in Rotorua. Associate Minister of Housing (Social Housing) Tama Potaka says the Government remains committed to ending the long-term use of contracted emergency housing motels in Rotorua by the ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay heads overseas today for high-level trade talks in the Gulf region, and a key OECD meeting in Paris. Mr McClay will travel to Riyadh to meet with counterparts from Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). “New Zealand’s goods and services exports to the Gulf region ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford has outlined six education priorities to deliver a world-leading education system that sets Kiwi kids up for future success. “I’m putting ambition, achievement and outcomes at the heart of our education system. I want every child to be inspired and engaged in their learning so they ...
The new NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) App is a secure ‘one stop shop’ to provide the services drivers need, Transport Minister Simeon Brown and Digitising Government Minister Judith Collins say. “The NZTA App will enable an easier way for Kiwis to pay for Vehicle Registration and Road User Charges (RUC). ...
Whānau with tamariki growing up in emergency housing motels will be prioritised for social housing starting this week, says Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka. “Giving these whānau a better opportunity to build healthy stable lives for themselves and future generations is an essential part of the Government’s goal of reducing ...
Racing Minister Winston Peters has paid tribute to an icon of the industry with the recent passing of Dave O’Sullivan (OBE). “Our sympathies are with the O’Sullivan family with the sad news of Dave O’Sullivan’s recent passing,” Mr Peters says. “His contribution to racing, initially as a jockey and then ...
Assalaamu alaikum, greetings to you all. Eid Mubarak, everyone! I want to extend my warmest wishes to you and everyone celebrating this joyous occasion. It is a pleasure to be here. I have enjoyed Eid celebrations at Parliament before, but this is my first time joining you as the Minister ...
Associate Health Minister David Seymour has announced Pharmac’s largest ever budget of $6.294 billion over four years, fixing a $1.774 billion fiscal cliff. “Access to medicines is a crucial part of many Kiwis’ lives. We’ve committed to a budget allocation of $1.774 billion over four years so Kiwis are ...
Hon Paula Bennett has been appointed as member and chair of the Pharmac board, Associate Health Minister David Seymour announced today. "Pharmac is a critical part of New Zealand's health system and plays a significant role in ensuring that Kiwis have the best possible access to medicines,” says Mr Seymour. ...
Hundreds of New Zealand families affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) will benefit from a new Government focus on prevention and treatment, says Health Minister Dr Shane Reti. “We know FASD is a leading cause of preventable intellectual and neurodevelopmental disability in New Zealand,” Dr Reti says. “Every day, ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones today attended the official opening of Kaikohe’s new $14.7 million sports complex. “The completion of the Kaikohe Multi Sports Complex is a fantastic achievement for the Far North,” Mr Jones says. “This facility not only fulfils a long-held dream for local athletes, but also creates ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters’ engagements in Türkiye this week underlined the importance of diplomacy to meet growing global challenges. “Returning to the Gallipoli Peninsula to represent New Zealand at Anzac commemorations was a sombre reminder of the critical importance of diplomacy for de-escalating conflicts and easing tensions,” Mr Peters ...
Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service. It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
Distinguished guests - It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders. Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia. Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
Dame Susan Devoy takes us through her life in television, including late night ER debriefs, her proudest CTI moment and the show she watches in secret. Quite aside from her four world champion squash titles, Dame Susan Devoy will likely go down in history as one of the best Celebrity ...
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Some of you won’t like what I have to say, but you can choose to skip it and ignore it – don’t follow the link!
It’s about a political disgrace – Labour’s Mallardy, Parliament’s malady
Can I urge Standarnistas to follow Petey’s advice and ignore the link. Don’t click on it. I did and it burns, it burns …
There is one minor problem Petey with your analysis. You neglected to mention that Banks has allegedly made a false declaration, told someone how to make an anonymous declaration, thanked the person’s aide after it was made, then told a few porkies to try and hide the face. He may just be on the right side of this legally but it smells to high heaven. This is not the “high ethical standards” we were promised.
This is relevant doncha think? I am intrigued that you should not mention it as it is the centre of this scandal.
+1 Micky. My reaction too. We should just ignore unethical and possibly illegal behaviour by Banks because to raise it and probe is a bit *nasty* and offends Pete’s delicate sensibilities. Having been up in Auckland the last few days and in the company of some right wingers with views normally far removed from my own I hasten to suggest Pete has misjudged the mood of the electorate to this issue as well. Everyone seems universally disgusted with Banks and not that impressed with Key’s refusal to deal with him either (and this from some usually diehard Key supporters).
I’m so disgusted with Banks that I actually feel sorry for the disgusting ACT people.
I agree that the alleged false accusation of a false declaration deserves proper attention.
However that has been overshadowed by a campaign of fishing for more hits that are detracting from the key questions – and add to the gutter reputation of politicians and currently of Labour.
I didn’t mention that in this post because it’s a different issue. It’s common for blog posts not to deal with every related part of an issue, but instead to focus on one aspect.
I happen to think it’s a wider and more important aspect overall – Banks may or may not last the distance, that to me is minor in the whole scheme of things, but the quality of all of our politics and democracy is something I feel strongly about, I have done for years, it’s what has attracted me to become more involved.
I agree Pete. Labour has laid a complaint with the police over the Dotcom and Sky City donations. IMHO, they would be far better now to wait for things to take their course, rather than dredging up distractions which Mr Mallard is not prepared to discuss outside the House. Labour runs the risk of over-egging the pudding, and turning public sentiment back towards Banks if they keep banging on about peripheral issues.
Micky question for you Do higher Ethical Standards,and Trevor Mallards gutter politics go hand in hand, and sit well with the Labour supporters? It certainly doesn’t sit well with most of the voting public, and Labour better hope like hell that both Willams ,and Malllard don’t get found guilty in their court case brought against them by Collins. Other wise everything that Mallard is saying now which is false will come back to bite Labour again. New Zealand voters are turned off by this sort of politics, and unethical standards
Mallard is well liked by Labour supporters, Jim Jim. Winning all those elections is a bit of a clue, don’t you think?
“New Zealand voters are turned off by this sort of politics, and unethical standards”
Yep, totally agree. The public is definitely getting tired of Key’s dirty politics and unethical standards. Well spotted.
Te Reo
You don’t get it Mallard being like by Labour supporters is your problem its an ever diminishing pond. The problem is Mallard isn’t like by those whom you want to attract to vote Labour. New Zealanders don’t like the way he operates he operates in the gutter, this disenfranchises him from the majority of voters
“The problem is Mallard isn’t like by those whom you want to attract to vote Labour”
People like you, jimmie? I don’t think Labour’s chasing your vote.
Felix
Believe it not myself ,and my family voted Labour for years before it lost it way,and moved from its core values to a party that became a mouth piece for every political activist pushing their own ,and not the party agenda. I still believe it has a problem transitioning itself back to its core values ,and keeping all of the factions under control
The only honest word in that comment is ‘Felix’.
I’m very sorry to hear about your family losing its way and moving from its core values.
I wish you the best in dealing with your transitioning problem, and hope you’re able to bring the factions in your family together again.
Felix
I thank you for your very genuine concern for both me and my family the journey hasn’t been too hard. Its been quite enlightening once you take your blinkers off
Felix won’t be doing that anytime soon.
Felix is a good illustration of why the election is National’s to lose.
Actually Mallard is exactly the sort of liability this country should not be paying for, but have done and will be until he leaves this world!
“Mallard is well liked by Labour supporters, Jim Jim. Winning all those elections is a bit of a clue, don’t you think?”
I presume you’re not referring to the elections Mallard was a major player in, losing 2008 and 2011 (with a significantly reduced vote).
Trying the same thing even more is not usually recommended if you want to reverse failures.
Comprehension fail, Pete. By the way, how did you go in your attempt to win political office? Oh, that’s right, you drove the UF party and candidate vote down.
Te Reo
So we can take it by your comments and unfettered support for Mallard you support his style of Politics? Even a lot of the writers on The Standard actually find him cringe worthy
I would have thought you’d have spotted by now that writers on the Standard have a wide variety of opinions. But then, as you are a racist and a homophobe, I imagine you aren’t all that keen on diversity anyway.
You think Te Reo Putake? Trevor Mallard was Labour’s chief strategist last year, and his strategies were so successful that Labour got its worst election result in 60 years. I’d hardly call that a resounding endorsement of Trevor Mallard.
Nor did I.
“It’s about a political disgrace ”
That’s odd, i didn’t see anything about Peter Dunne in the article
Mallard interview on Q+A – weak answers, nothing of substance on his allegations, the only actual hits claimed have been gotchas on the aftermath of his allegations.
I followed the link and once again you manage to show that you’re a sycophantic arse Pete. But hey, you’ve got a fan in the Whanganui baby farmer.
It’s notable that so far, apart from a bit of the usual abuse, grizzles and diversion to Banks, no one is questioning the damage Mallard keeps doing to the public perception of Labour, and no support for Shearer’s promotion of non-gotcha politics.
Is the post an attack on Trevor Mallard? No, it’s holding him to account. The media and David Shearer don’t seem to want to do it.
Are the media likely to bite the hand that feeds it scandals? Maybe not.
Is Shearer likely to cut off the festering sore that keeps preventing a Labour recovery? It doesn’t look like it – I don’t know whether that is due to impotence or hypocrisy.
No Pete, the only thing damaged by Mallard is your perception of the Labour party. You trot around the blogs peddling your perception but the only place you appear to have anyone agreeing with you is the sewer.
He may not be your cuppa Pete but among my mob of working gals and gents the general consensus is that Mallard is on the right track and as far as I’m aware people are quite happy with the notion that the oppositions job is to light fires and then stand back and watch the roaches crawl out.
See, no abuse, grizzles or diversions.
Rapidly losing patience with this Pete George thing. Mildly tolerable as the farcical parody of a barely-litrate parasite in the rectum of an elderly, traitorous, narcisstic dung beetle with dementia – but now so very passe. Supporting Judas and smearing others – beyond lunacy. Piss off back to the arsehole, blowfoly.
My problem is that he is a troll. He’s only here to take issue with either specific points raised or the general leaning of the site. The more he posts the less I frequent this site. It’s like going to the public pool and finding someone taking a dump in there.
I disagree, I don’t think the “general leaning of the site” is to attack politics – only some commenters seem to openly support gutter politics rather than discussing valid issues.
And “troll” has just become a generic term of abuse that’s meaingless. I introduce topical issues that are of interest to me, I’m prepared to discuss them, mostly within the stated terms of the blog.
And I don’t resort to abuse as some critics do.
What constitutes a “valid issue” though Pete?
Isn’t it possible that your measure of validity is entirely different from someone else’s?
I’m sure it will be. I haven’t seen any requirement by The Standard that any measure of validity of an issue be entirely the same as everyone else.
I never suggested there was any such requirement. You said:
“only some commenters seem to openly support gutter politics rather than discussing valid issues.”
So who decides what a “valid issue is”?
That’s up to each individual.
But you must notice that some commenters (I’ll exlude you) seem mainly to mainly abuse rather than discuss, and some openly support attack politics as an essentialm part of the game.
I guess you don’t really care if Labour self destruct. I do – I prefer that we have as strong parties and MPs as possible, including Labour. I’m very disappointed they wasted last term, and are on target to fail to regroup and rebuild this term too.
I think there’s a couple of things there we can agree on – I too am disappointed by Labour’s waste of the last term (and possibly this one). All this leadership stuff should’ve been sorted out when Helen left, not 4-5 years later.
And I also don’t want to see them self destruct. I even hope they can convince me to vote for them one day.
Where we probably disagree is on what they should be doing about it.
They don’t seem to be able to agree about that amongst themselves either, hence their ongoing problems.
Do you think Mallard is helping their cause, or is he an old millstone still grinding away?
Hard to say. I think he’s probably not doing much to help Labour’s cause, but that’s not to say he isn’t doing some important work by by exposing the likes of Banks to public scrutiny.
His hit rate is quite low though – he has tried a string of speculations, he admitted they were speculation and didn’t provide any substance on Q+A, just vague stamenmts like “it could look bad”.
That’s not so much exposing, more like trying to generate mistakes. That’s an old political strategy (dirty trick) based on the adage that it’s not the initial issue that causes the damage, it’s how it’s dealt with.
I’m sure there are other MPs who would buckle under sustained pressure and suprious accusations. Should all MPs be scrutinised to this degeree? Or should they be putting more effort into doing something for the country as our representatives?
I’m not sure what you think would constitute a “hit”.
I imagine the objective is to expose Banks’ shonkey dealings and general incompetence, thereby calling into question Key’s judgement in allowing him several ministerial warrants.
Well, speaking as a Labour voter, which I am, I have to say that I like Mallard! 🙂 I don’t think he’s a disgrace or whatever you say he is…
Yes Vicky, I think the much-touted public dislike of the man is very much confined to a very small group of political insiders.
“The more he posts the less I frequent this site.”
Pete would see that as a victory, Tigger, so please keep visiting. Trolls are just about the only weapon the Tories have left in the armoury as the economy tanks, the country is being abandoned by our best and brightest and their economic policies appear to be based on bullying, corruption and cant.
Wrong. One of the things I promote is more and better discussion, The more the better, especially if it’s reasonable discussion and fair criticism.
I’m quite sure more is not better in terms of the discussion you promote – with a couple of thoughtful exceptions the discussions you promote are snide swiping at everyone with a political leaning to the left of you.
Wrong. All you do is promote wibbling, Pete. You are the black hole of discussion, sucking all the energy and light out of any topic that comes up with pointless questions, meaningless attributions and conservative assumptions.
PG does at least pretend to maintain a “higher standard” (sorry HS) with which to hold everyone else to. He also does a great job pretending that he lives up to the kind of politics that all NZers want more of. Well, according to him anyway.
‘Pete the pest’ is what some in the ‘trade’ might call a squiggler. Being an opportunist (no I am not going to supply a definition) means you are never wrong, and fortunately also never correct.
Pete’s comments are more often than not obsequious waffle in my opinion, but he manages to slide in under the Standard site’s limbo behaviour stick, so I just skate over his posts as I see fit.
@TigerM 10.28am
“so I just skate over his posts as I see fit.”
Likewise, especially today as they were too tedious for words.
When a “squiggler” produces “wibble” after “wibble” after “wibble” ….. “skate over” as fast as you can and don’t look back!
Te Reo Putake 2.1.2.1.2
6 May 2012 at 10:01 am
Wrong. All you do is promote wibbling, Pete. You are the black hole of discussion, sucking all the energy and light out of any topic that comes up with pointless questions, meaningless attributions and conservative assumptions.
*******
Maybe TRP, but from what I can see it’s the people replying to him ad nauseum that are creating the problem 😉
… explain how.
Interesting that Brian Edwards on The Nation praising John Key’s performance on Campbell on Friday night. But what would he know.
Well yeah it showed his genius in the art of dissembling that’s for sure. He’s peerless in NZ in that regard.
What would he know? I’d say a fair bit about communication.
I haven’t seen the piece yet, but I’m going to hazard a guess that Edwards was talking about how well Key performed to the viewers of the program. Yeah?
And if he reckons he did good at that, he’s probably right. About half of NZ seems to find him believable most of the time, and that interview was probably no different in that respect.
But he didn’t convince Campbell, and he didn’t convince me either.
“And if he reckons he did good at that, he’s probably right. About half of NZ seems to find him believable most of the time, and that interview was probably no different in that respect”
— Yup and thats “democracy” in action right there…just gotta keep a working number of them dumb enough, and in the pocket to keep control, jusk like how you can control a parliament!
The interview was a farce, in so far as the number of lies that were not only told/not told by words, but that his body gave him away, despite the fact he was clearly trying to keep control of himself!
Best thing about it was what appeared to be the penny dropping live on Campbells face!
Have you ever heard the phrase “damning with faint praise”, PG?
And here we are at comment number 4 so all the other comments have been wasted by everyone being sucked in by Petey’s bullshit. And guess what you all fell for it. To disrupt and obfuscate, that’s Petey’s goal and he’s winning judging by all the wasted timer on here this morning..
To, my goal here was to see how much the elephanatidae in the room is ignored or avoided here.
Your one and only object is to disrupt and obfuscate, so stop with the lying… Nasty little Troll.
Exactly. I try to not respond to PG comments to avoid encouraging him.
I rarely visit Kiwiblog but did a quick look there a few minutes ago. PG filed the same comments there on General Debate that he did at 1 and 1.3 above ( his “anti-Mallard day” ones) and interestingly, unless I missed any in the very quick scroll I did, not a single response to his comments. They were just ignored.
Pete G. was also anti- Mallarding in the Herald today. He certainly has a bee in his bonnet.
I think you need to watch the closing sequence again. Campbell felt that the interview was particularly revealing. I think he appeared to be quite happy with how Key opened up and there will surely be more … come into my parlour said the spider to the fly.
In Farrars recent post about ECan there is a small paragraph that deserves further comment:
“This is not a reason to keep the Commissioners on beyond the 2013 elections, but it is a reminder that local government is the creation of Parliament, and Parliament has the ability to intervene if they fail.”
This statement show an attitude that is far worse than any nanny state that the right claimed we had under Labour – how far do we take the ‘creation of Parliament’ aspect, as every law is a creation of Parliament? It seems that if things are not going Nationals way they will ride rough-shod over any other democratic process to get their own way, justified by that one statement – ‘Parliament has the ability to intervene if they fail’. Disturbing.
Congratulations to the Anglican church on an inspired choice.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10803617
Inspired, HS? A good choice of word. Since it seems so far out of sync with my appreciation of the Anglican church, partly as “the National Party at prayer” but more kindly as a generally conservative church, the appointment is unusual to say the least.
I’m old enough to remember James K Baxter in his latter years preaching in ChCh cathedral, barefoot with an old parka, long hair and big beard. This decision- I hope inspired- resonates with that image.
I think it really depends on where you are! In the BOP and Auckland, the Anglican church is pretty conservative, but not in Welly! My priest in Welly was Richard Randerson (St Peter’s in Willis Street, in 1987-90). He was pretty radical I thought, I really enjoyed him!
Ignoring the bizarrely US-centric headline, this article is interesting:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/6861476/NZ-spends-much-less-on-healthcare-than-US
Of particular note:
Yep. Those Commonwealth Fund reports go back aways – they’re designed for measuring the US. health system against other developed nations – hence the US-centric title. I’ve been taking note of them since 2002.
NZ has performed as well as or better than most countries in almost all healthcare measures compared over the years, especially given our low spending on health . Two measures where we are notably worse (though not compared to the U.S – their system is dire in terms of population health) are the upfront cost of primary care and access to new high cost medicines.
Labour made some good progress in improving primary care access, not so much in the high cost meds. It’ll be interesting to see how these measure up in the next couple of reports.
“Lower provider incomes could reduce the quality of applicants choosing a career in medicine”
Take out or reduce the income incentive and you could find the quality of applicants increases.
There is no research I am aware of that shows the personality traits desirable in good health professionals are linked to a drive to earn more money than others.
When we’re talking about surgeons and the like, personality traits would tend to take a backseat in favour of competence and accuracy of diagnosis etc.
True, and competence and accuracy of diagnosis are as far as I can tell more often found in self-aware, broad-minded, patient people able to learn the right lessons from their experience and make decisive decisions based on that and on evidence-based practices.
The promise of a higher income does not to my mind foster competence and accuracy of diagnosis
Admittedly though, charlatans on high incomes are rarely exposed and I take that as a reassuring sign of their rarity.
Isn’t the USA Supreme Court about to overturn the Public Health Scheme recently introduced by Obama? A tragedy if they do can it.
It was very dodgy bill passed in a very dodgy way poorly communicated ,and costed it deserves to be thrown out
By your reasoning, the Supreme Court should have ordered the troops back from Afghanistan and Iraq years ago….
Not quite sure how that is US centric – it’s a comparison and one that’s been true for a long time. It’s only inaccurate so far as it doesn’t have per capita on the end.
Quoting article:-
LOL, just failed to mention the huge profits and the spending on advertising which probably has more effect than anything else.
and then it finishes with the standard ode to the market
Despite the fact that the countries whose health services isn’t market dominated are cheaper and just as good if not better than those which are. This denial of reality is a major issue and highlights the problems with blind faith in market economics.
It’s bizarrely US-centric because US was the most expensive of all of the countries. Singling NZ out as being cheaper than the US is odd, because we’re also cheaper than all of the others except Japan.
Better headlines would have been:
“NZ amongst cheapest for healthcare” or
“US healthcare most expensive”
Anyone with any inkling of how the health systems of both countries work would go “duh” at a headline that said NZ was cheaper than the US, so the headline itself isn’t telling us anything.
The best would have been a combination of those two:
NZ 2nd most efficient healthcare, US the least efficient
Another interesting article: http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/6867602/Key-to-lock-in-PMs-perks
Seems that Key is getting his ducks lined up before he’s turfed out.
As usual, the tory commitment to cutting social welfare spending only goes so far…
Yep, he’s done an analysis of how much collecting handouts for the next 25 years will net him, and he wants to make sure he gets it all.
He’s making a lifestyle choice.
Finally another interesting story:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/6867584/Craig-could-be-Nats-new-act
It seems that key went to sleep one night and woke up one morning to find that he had been given a country to play with.His absolute disdain and dismissal of the people of “his country”is not only believable but frightening.For him to stand there and state that against the will of the country he is going to do what he wants to do no matter what is appalling.Is this dictatorship?It must be very close.Watching him on Campbell was very enlightening. He had obviously spent some time learning his lines because if J C tried to change tack a little bit key got rattled and said he couldn’t answer that and then reverted pretty much on to the sentence he had been interrupted on.He also had his lying face on.Closed face and dead eyes.If anyone believes that he did not know that the raid was going to happen is deluded.Although he seemed to think the overkill was warranted because the place was full of armed and dangerous criminal with masses of weapons lalala. Never mind that it was also housing women and children who would have been terrified for their lives. I don’t know what Brian Edwards saw or heard but I agree totally with JC. The way key treated the interview was cynically farcical.
I haven’t heard/seen Brian Edwards on Key/Campbell on The Nation but I imagine his interest would be in the technical disposition of Key. That is that he sat well, faced Campbell, mostly answered questions, make-up, suit, dropped the hill-billy aww shucks persona Key usually adopts and so on.
However I doubt that the content of Key’s answers would be regarded by Edwards as any more credible that the words of Banks. Hidden agenda. See Hooton in NBR.
http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/key-forced-protect-banks-now-118018#comment-375541
Totally agree Chris. Loved it when JC said “Farcical” at one point. Felt he certainly had his finger on the pulse.
The Conservative Party has emerged as a possible alternative support partner for National as pressure mounts on under-fire Act leader John Banks.
Back in 1994 the former Association of Consumers and Taxpayers (later shortened to ACT) was picked up by a small bunch of wealthy business tycoons (Alan Gibbs and Craig Heatley led the charge) and turned into a political party for the specific purpose of being an MMP partner for National. Nothing wrong with that, but they clothed the new party in a cloak of forging political honesty ‘we are here to make sure both major parties are honest and transparent’ was the battle cry, and they never let the real aim of the exercise be known. It took a while for the penny to drop because MMP was still in its infancy.
Now it’s happening all over again only this time with the Conservative Party. Even the timing is the same… two years out from the next election. Will the same wealthy business tycoons be throwing their not inconsiderable weight behind it? Judging by the huge spend up (second to National) at the 2011 election, they have already started.
Interesting indeed.
But where does that leave Colin Craig and his staunch opposition to asset sales as a general principle?
Or is he disposable?
Is it worth noting that Craig Heatley is New Zealand’s best friend with Rupert Murdoch ?? Amusing this week to watch ACT’s slow dissolve to black at same time as Murdoch was king-hit by Parliamment in London. Whoever is agitating to investigate possibilities ( probabilities?) of Murdoch influence in NZ need look no further than this connect imho.
Any relation to Phil Heatley?
Not as far as I know .. certainly not close family .. and certainly not as close at Rupert …
I think he may be Craig Heatley’s nephew but don’t quote me on that. It could be wrong.
Interesting comment yeshe.
These moguls, no matter what their core business and where they officially reside, seem inextricably linked. I suspect there’s a massive story yet to be told that will leave “The Hollow Men” for dead. Perhaps even the Murdoch scandal.
As far as Colin Craig is concerned: we have seen how easily principles can change for the sake of political ambition and expediency. By the time the Cons. become Nat’s official support partner, I think the Asset sales will be done and dusted and we will be advised by our Tory ‘friends’ to move on… nothing more to see.
A lot of folk on the left have talked about Labour needing to rapidly cut off the dead wood and rediscover itself post 2011. Q & A this morning was case in point. Trevor Mallard, looking hungover dithering on the Banks saga – Holmes asked what his “leader” Helen Clark would do? Joyce effortlessly convinces us to stop training doctors and start nailing graduates – just because he is a spin master. Mallard, not only cant articulate what Banks has done wrong, but the mere presence of this dinosaur causes Holmes to timewarp back to yesterday’s Labour. Mallard should have known better than to refer to how Helen would have handled it and quickly seized the opportunity to talk about Shearer’s leadership, his moral code, his ethical standards. Shearer, FFS – keep Mallard away from the public and get your MP’s some decent media training.
Well said Salsy some one that isn’t afraid to speak what every one else is thinking. I watched it to, it reminded me of a punch drunk fighter who had stepped into the ring to many times it was quite pitiful really. The best thing Shearer could do is totally hide Mallard from anything to do with the Media he does not paint New Labour in the best light
@Salsy11.06am
“:keep Mallard away from the public and get your MP’s some decent media training.”
Think you have a point here as Trevor mumbled and stumbled about Banks on Closeup last week too. However he always seems to do well in Parliament, especially when he asked the rather clever “Russian Doll like” question about whether Banks had set up a charter school in Skycity.
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL1205/S00021/scoop-links-wrap-of-john-banks-coverage.htm
Perhaps studios, cameras/lights and TV interviews get to him; hence as you say media training is very necessary.
The disgusting state-sponsored bullying of Bradley Ambrose seems to have finally stopped, with the announcement that he will not be pursued for $14,000 in court costs:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=10803811
Now that he has been roundly defamed and Key has moved on, I guess someone just ties up the loose ends and sweeps Ambrose under the carpet.
“I became completely disillusioned with the people running the country. And that’s coming from someone who’s been a National voter for 18 years.” – Bradley Ambrose.
Bradley Ambrose – Aspirational.
The Herald seems all over the place on it’s political views these days, just as you think it’s beginning to shed the tory cloak it’s back to business as usual. This article here is full of flaws and frankly just ideological claptrap;
“Loan debt is costing too much”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=10803740
Nearly all of the ‘cost’ of student loans exists only on paper. They apply interest and then write it off, creating a debit in the accounts. The truth is that student loans are now mostly self-funding; loan repayments fund new loans. The only real cost is inflation & population increases which necessitates increasing the size of the loan pool.
Claiming that we’re losing on the ‘opportunity cost’ of interest foregone is specious bullshit, the same argument could be applied to all of the Crowns assets which don’t return a dividend. Following their argument we should sell our national parks & other assets because they’re not collecting rent. A very poor effort from the Herald.
Looking at neighbours and relatives, we are pandering too much to students. (50 years ago) I went university for one year. When I did not produce the results Dad closed his cheque book. I spent the next year doing Compulsory Military Training then pouring concrete. I like to think that I matured considerably with that experience. The next year I started on a carreer I was passionate about and never looked back.
“Life is difficult ! Once we truly understand and accept this then life is no longer difficult. We transcent the difficulties.” Life has a series of problems for everyone. Once we have faced these problems we can move on and enjoy some of what is offered.
Problems call forth our courage and our wisdom. It is usually because problems that we grow mentally and spritually.
You’re so right, John, we should have a society entirely built around military-trained concrete-pourers … I mean, fuck’s sake, even economically that makes no sense.
But hey, you played at going to varsity 50 years ago in a country where pouring concrete was probably a viable lifelong career decision, so carry on talking out your ass while expecting the next generation to burden themselves with debt in order to fund your super.
I’m with John on this one. When you are older you know you got through times when life did not seem worth living. This can be reassuring and inspiring to younger people.
What utter bullshit. John wasn’t trying to “reassure” anyone, he was saying – as someone who never had to take on debt to get a necessary university degree – that we “pander” too much to students.
And I swear to God anyone who wants to say “but but but Bill Gates!” can fuck off and die. Bill Gates and Albert Einstein are not representative of the general no-university-degree population.
The vocabulary describes the Author.
I’m sorry, John, just to be clear (because I’d hate to be accused of “looking” for things to be offended by again) that was a dig at my terribly unladylike language, wasn’t it?
Nah, the sole focus on two naughty words out of a hundred or so describes the reader.
Quick, someone find vto so zie can lecture me once more about how this is nothing to do with misogyny!
Now that’s quite true.
OK. I focused on the rest of QoT’s words as well, but at the same time the unnecessary effing and blinding is just childish. It’s time QoT learned that sweariness gets him/her the wrong kind of attention. The bleat about misogyny as a defence is equally juvenile. Foul language demeans both men and women.
I used to work all through the school holidays. In summer, shifts and overtime was available and always worked fully, for the money. Dad had been a Plumber, but died a couple of years after I left home, after a long illness. Life is difficult.
Could the Government police the student loans so carefully?
There is plenty of adventure in life, but at the end of the day, it was cycling to work day after day, year after year, Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter, that put a meal on the table for the family.
Wasted on a POS like you…
“POS”?
More perceptive commentary there…
WTF? Who are you insulting, bad12? It seems very childish and nasty of you. Shame.
+1 QoT @ 6.22pm You’ve called it as it is.
Maybe so John but that doesn’t address the issue of interest on student loans. The only effect that interest has is to increase the amount the student has to pay back. The student loans aren’t free remember, they’re loans they have to be repaid whether they have interest on them or not.
As things stand the taxpayer has ponied up some $10billion as a loan pool. We didn’t borrow it and we’re not paying interest on it, we paid for that loans kitty with our taxes. It’s an asset on the Crown books just like any other asset and it pays dividends in the form of educated graduates who should go on to pay lots of lovely tax. The question is whether we need to make a cash dividend, ie profit, from that loan pool or if the existing dividend is sufficient. That’s a no-brainer to me.
About the only reasonable argument for interest I can see is to make the system totally self-funding; charge a very low interest of maybe 0.5 – 1% to cover the administrative costs of running the scheme and other costs such as loan defaults etc. In practice however we’d see the interest rate creep up as beancounters got their disgusting greedy mitts on it so I’d rather not see even that.
My youngest son has a BA in History and Political Studies and has a huge Loan. He is working in the building Supply Industry on a modest wage and not a high flying job. He has organised his budget to allow for the repayment of his loan. He resents the increase as apparently a response to defaulters who are not repaying Loans.
He also comments that the money loaned will get close to equilibrium of money repaid. The total is about $12billion but should stay at that as loans go out and get repaid.
I think the $12billion includes interest & may not be the actual capital invested or lent out. The beancounters charge interest on the loans and each year write some of it off. All of that occurs only on paper of course, but that has the effect of increasing the value of the asset on the books before they write some of the interest off as an expense each year.
Not that it matters, the nett cash is still just an asset and isn’t costing us anything like some people claim. We fronted up the dosh & now it’s being put to a good use. Shit we get it back and then someone else can use it, what’s wrong with that?
Thanks DH. Well said.
And there was Matthew Hooten on Radio NZ this morning moaning about the fact that the ‘middle classes’ can’t get student allowances, only the poor and the rich. Of course people like him hate the idea of the poor going to university. That’s what the 4 year limit is all about, we can’t have poor people becoming doctors for goodness’ sake!
My son got an allowance because his rich father agreed to never have anything to do with him! That was utterly painful and humiliating. Josie Pagani redeemed herself by stating her support for totally free tertiary education, which was good because all her other remarks were pretty right wing. In my day, (the early 1980s) student allowances were universal, so I got one, and I’d like to see a return to that!
It just gets better and better:-
Lawyers making up the rules as they go along – actions that are anathema to a free-state.
What I found of interest was that “Justice Potter upheld the restraining order although she said Dotcom could sue over Crown Law’s mistake.”
A judge holding Crown Law to account for not following the correct legal process on a operation which required careful planning.
Were Dotcom to sue Crown Law could this be used by the police to delay their investigation into Banks mayoral donations?
What is the time limit for Dotcom being able to sue Crown Law?
Depends what for. Judicial review time is of the essence even though strictly no time limit. Bill of Rights Act unreasonable search and seizure no time limit but again Courts prefer you not to sit on your hands if your rights are breached.
And now Dotcom gets Rodney Hide on his side despite Rodney helping pass the legislation that is being used against Dotcom.
I wonder if being such a flake is endemic to being a libertarian…
Here’s another reason for why the rest of the world should tell America to fuck off.
After this morning’s interview on Q & A, imagine Joyce in a head to head debate with Shearer.
Notwithstanding the rights or wrongs of his arguments, but his eloquence in stating his case would result in a slaughter.
http://localbodies-bsprout.blogspot.co.nz/2012/05/dont-sell-our-assets-mr-key.html