NZTA broke health and safety laws, spent over 200 grand of taxpayers money on lawyers, threatened us if my wife continued her case against them they would ruin her career,
threatened suppliers with loss of work if they employed my wife, using unsigned contracts.
[Snip. Im sorry Gerald but these comments are potentially defamatory and best that they be removed now. The link to the judgement remains and I recommend that people read it to see what has happened – MS]
we have been visited by police several times from false accusations made ba a nzta employee, one accusation was , "she was running around in the paddock doing a chicken dance", when they made this accusation against my wife, she was 600km away. haha. when presented with the evidence they just threw it away and said they didnt believe us.
NZTA legendary status for being able to do this to someone and get away scott free.
Increase their funding i say (sarc)
[lprent: I see that MS has already looked at this.
I have also deleted the names at the top. A brief scan of the judgement showed that one was misspelt and I couldn’t find one of the others. Possibly referred to in the judgement as A or B. Generally if you want to refer to people or events, then use what is already in the public record, or what you can directly and truthfully testify to yourself.
Please remember that if legal action is taken over comments made on this site, then I am also in the legal firing line as well. I will act accordingly to protect my time. ]
"She took NZTA to the Employment Relations Authority which dismissed her claims. Byrne then went to the Employment Court" and "Employment Court rules NZTA breached confidentiality clause".
So the ERA is a bullshit scheme? Or did it lack authority to dispense justice? Definitely indicates something seriously wrong somewhere…
Hi Gerard…I wish I could say i'm surprised, but sadly I'm not. I'm in the centre of an issue currently with Auckland Council that involves behaviour ranging from incompetence to downright nastiness. And all on the ratepayers. I'm glad your wife fought on. Go well.
Crikey that's a long time for Mrs Byrne's name to be cleared. Good to see her reputation clearer and a clear direction for costs for her.
That also names a lot of lower-order names within NZTA.
And a lot of HR processes gone drastically wrong in a lot of detail.
I know a lot about NZTA's internal culture, and concur with the judge.
As we are about to see with the Transmission Gully PPP failure, a government organisation with this amount of power in society truly wrecks things when it goes wrong.
If my experience as an ece teacher (now retired) coming from Auckland to Whangarei is anything to go by this sort of prejudice towards newcomers is all too common in the north
Hi Ad , unfortunately the awarding of costs doesn't cover the expenses incurred while fight the extremely pitbull type nature of the lawyers from NZTA on the taxpayers money
Hey Ad, check this out from the court finding: " [27] NZTA had engaged WSP Opus as principal advisors/consultants of the Northland Bridges Project (the Project).The Project related to three sites where one-lane bridges were to be replaced with two-lane bridges. WSP Opus was responsible for the business case of the Project, procurement of design and construction, and contract management. [28] There was no signed or final contract between those parties, although there was a draft document." https://www.employmentcourt.govt.nz/assets/Documents/Decisions/2019-NZEmpC-187-Byrne-v-NZ-Transport-Agency-jud-131219.pdf
So the NZTA hired them to build the bridges without signing a contract! That's so dodgy you'd suspect Bridges (Simon) authorised the deal! "They're all hicks from the sticks up there, nobody will notice."
Hard to tell, but from my experience it's not necessarily dodgy for work to commence before a final contract is signed … especially where there is an ongoing professional relationship between the parties.
And both parties might well want to see some preliminary investigation and design work done in order to fully understand the scope and risks before signing the dotted line. Whenever you are dealing with groundworks of any kind, there is real potential for nasty surprises.
I've just finished scanning the judgement. It's clear NZTA have acted very poorly in this matter and thoroughly deserved to lose this case. It reflects very badly on someone's judgement that they allowed a non-work related disagreement between neighbours to escalate into this kind of debacle.
In my 35 yrs in the engineering /tech field I've been close to similar problems of a breakdown in trust between professional colleagues a few times. It's never easy, and rarely ends well. I'm sorry you and your wife have gone through this, because I know exactly how it feels.
Having said that, I note that at least one small part of the story involved you disparaging NZTA on various blogs (sec 136 -138) which probably didn't help matters.
The judge clearly notes (sec 116 and 117) that both parties allowed their judgement to be clouded by personal animosity.
My advice to people caught up in this kind of legal battle is to always keep in mind what their ideal outcome would be once it is all over. You certainly want resolution, but you also need to be able to live life without this becoming a perpetual burden on you and everyone else. You need to get to a redemption of some kind. And you certainly want to do everything in your power to avoid walking into this kind of mess ever again.
there was no civil dispute between the parties until my wife lodged her complaint, then over 130 accusations were made against me and my wife to paint a picture of a certain behaviour.
after two years of being videod by nzta all they have is me giving their employee the fingers once.
you will find that i didnt disparage the nzta in any blogs, as they tried to get an order against me for my comments, but had to withdraw it because no untruths were told.
my advice to people getting into anything with the nzta is expect to be defamed, ridiculed, visited by police on several occasions, laws will be broken to ruin you, they will spy on you , use their employees to threaten your employer,
even after an outcome you will still be spied on and visited by police, which is happening to us even during lockdown!
the nzta employee who we have the civil dispute with is now in another with a 77 yr old man, and has had several disputes with other neighbours.
they just dont like the truth being told about them.
Not a particular problem – just a learning issue for you.
For the moderators, you have to state some facts explicitly if you want to use them and there might potentially be a problem for us. In this case just saying that "these names/events are all in the judgement" or words to that effect would probably have been sufficient. That shifts the liability to you, and if we find them to be incorrect, we will ban you from the site and point the liability to you.
You also need to be accurate when dealing with issues that are potentially legal issues. Imagine if you by accident managed to get the incorrect name – that was in fact correct for some other real person – you effectively just accused someone of a deed that they didn't do.
We don't have much time to read everything and we'll take the approach that if something isn't clear and potentially a legal issue for us – then it gets zapped.
In this case I literally scanned the whole judgment in 10 minutes while eating breakfast. It wouldn't surprise me if I missed a name or two. I'd noted that you'd misspelled a name for one, checked your comment history and found that it was limited. ie we don't have a history for you that leads us to trust what you write based on our experience. That was already way too much time for me to spend on a comment. Re-reading it again would have been a waste of my time.
So separately, MS and I exercised our default moderator option – excise the potentially liable parts of the comment.
Besides it helps you learn good habits about what you can do on the site. BTW: read the policy.
I know exactly what your wife has been through Gerard Byrne.
A long time ago I had similar experiences of spying activity plus serious bullying, intimidation and under-mining tactics by a couple of former senior Public Service managers who were attempting to gather 'evidence' against me for unfounded misdemeanours. They never succeeded because the evidence didn't exist. I took the matter to my superiors and other 'powers that be' but they all chose to believe the perpetrators who naturally denied everything. I resigned from my position – my trust and faith in senior officialdom destroyed forever.
It is sad to see that kind of deplorable behaviour – usually against female colleagues – is still occurring but I'm glad your wife knocked the bastards off their pedestal.
i do sympathise with you as that is ezactly what happened to my wife. unfortunately after she resigned the nzta literally tried to ruin her employment future in nz
unfortunately in NZ there are too many senior females who are only too willing to jump into the old boys club and destroy others careers.
….there are too many senior females who are only too willing to jump into the old boys club and destroy others careers.
Yes that element existed in my case too. The female concerned was not a public servant let alone a senior one. But she had contacts she could use to spread wild claims about individuals she decided she wanted to destroy. Successful women – or reasonably successful as in my case – were her prime targets. I think they call it jealousy. 🙂
The whole ERA is a joke from woo to go – its there to protect the powerful.
By definition -a organisation that punches down.
Glad you won, but the fact it was so long and drawn, is just another example of power differentials within the whole structure. And like WINZ a broken system which needs to be radically changed or removed.
There was a piece on the TVNZ news last night about the impact of COVID-19 on Pacific populations in the USA. According to the report, in the US Pacific peoples are dying at twelve times the rate of the general population. They were to polite to say so, but research is now clear that PIs are in general far more vulnerable due to their generally poorer health statistics. Co-morbidities that are lethal in combination with COVID-19 like obesity, diabetes, hypertension and cardio-vascular dissease are much more prevalent in poor PI communities.
Twelve times the death rate = around 14-15% based on our current death rate of 1.2%, so if one in three Pasifika got the virus – 100,000 Pacifika infected – the expected death rate (based on this US information) is going to be 14,000-15,000 people.
Simon Bridges has not bothered to summon a single brown face to his committee for advice. He'd rather abuse his position to make unsubstantiated attacks on Ashley Bloomfield. His demands to prematurely reopen the economy is the casual institutional racism of the white settler elite that he represents writ large.
This radionz story about difficulty getting help from a Samoan, partly from their reserve and not being assertive enough illustrates the problem they face with covid-19.
Trotter tries to make binary thinking seem sensible, fails. "If Canberra chooses Washington over Beijing, then the Australian economy will tank. If it chooses Beijing over Washington, then Australia will be plunged into a profound identity crisis." http://bowalleyroad.blogspot.com/
ScoMo will refrain from making either of these unpalatable choices. Trotter thinks the situation in Oz will become critical and force the choice – yet offers no persuasive reason why he believes that.
"In geostrategic terms, a US-aligned Australasia is crucial to Washington’s new “Indo-Pacific” plan for containing China’s ambitious “Belt and Road” project. It has become a matter of some urgency, therefore, to facilitate a decisive shift in New Zealand foreign policy towards Washington and away from Beijing."
Since when has any US Secretary of State fronted as a competent facilitator? Kissinger, perhaps. Dunno why Trotter discounts our post-ANZUS independent foreign policy. You'd think a 35-yr track record of success is sufficiently substantial for expectations of perseverance to be reasonable. Normal, even.
"In conformity with the maxim that it is shameful to let a good crisis go to waste, the pro-Washington faction within New Zealand’s foreign policy establishment has persuaded the University of Canterbury to oversee a “pop-up” think tank dedicated to assisting the New Zealand Government “devise a resilience strategy that will ensure New Zealand’s independence and sovereignty are protected during the Covid-19 pandemic and after.”"
Yeah? As if in response to what threat?? Apparently "our very own Professor Anne-Marie Brady." Gosh. She must be Superwoman.
"Professor Brady is not, however, without powerful friends in high places. Not the least of whom is New Zealand’s Foreign Minister, Winston Peters." Ah, the `enemy within' thesis. Trotter follows up with nothing substantial & his attempt to beat up a molehill into a mountain limps to a lame end.
I agree – Trotter's biggest problem is he has stopped trying to understand the world he lives in. He has retreated to just yearning for one that is gone, and interpreting the world from an armchair there. It doesn't mean sometimes he isn't correct in his observation – but he is more and more just plain out of touch.
If this Transmission Gully project PPP collapses, it will signal the largest commercial failure of the government since the late 1990s. Doesn't matter which team were in power at the time. This is a multi-generational scale work and is now a terminal case:
"Officials acknowledged on Sunday the already-delayed Transmission Gully project would be delayed until 2021. This has the potential to blow out costs by yet-more hundreds of millions of dollars. NZTA said in February the project’s estimated costs would over-run by $190m to $1b and the completion date had been extended from May to December this year.
An NZTA spokesman said on Sunday the project would now not be completed until some time in 2021 and the agency was in urgent negotiations again with the PPP’s contractor CPB HEB about the project. He would not comment on the fears of those close to the project that the contractor was days away from pulling out completely and dumping the project uncompleted back on the taxpayer. The project was suspended during the Level 4 lockdown, but failed to resume with all its workers as expected last week.
Several sources told Newsroom large numbers of subcontractors were permanently let go last week. One source said over 600 people had been cut from the project's workforce and a large amount of construction equipment had been removed from the site."
I thought the way a PPP was supposed to work was the private party secured the funding, then built and operated the asset (while the public retained ownership), in exchange for a set income stream once the asset was complete and operating.
So doesn't that mean we the public should not have yet paid anything for this since it is not yet complete and operating? Doesn't that mean the private part of this is wearing all the sunk costs to date?
If the private party walks away now, wouldn't we the public be able to just pay for what's left to do to complete it, and then we end up with the whole thing on the cheap without having to pay all the future fees we would have had to if the private party had actually completed the job?
Or were the original contract terms dramatically different to what that Treasury document says they should have been for a PPP?
There are more could-as, should-as, and would-as on Transmission Gully's PPP than there are deadweight list MPs.
Since it's not tolled, it's fee-for-access+long term maintenance. NZTA have already paid multiple times to the contractor to the PPP for over-runs.
I don't think anyone yet really knows what would happen with your second question. Plenty of major jobs consulted their insurers after Level 4. NZTA will be fighting hard to keep this one out of court: imagine how such a case would play in the run-up to the election. Even the NZTA Board can figure that one.
I'm not privy to the contractual terms on Transmission Gully, but I suspect a lot of New Zealand will be in the next few months.
NZTA have already paid multiple times to the contractor to the PPP for over-runs.
Looking at how PPPs were sold to us for how they should work, the cost overruns should have been compensated by increased payments after the job was completed and operating. Not by up-front extra payments: those are the old-skool conventional model.
NZTA will be fighting hard to keep this one out of court
Yeah, the firefighters with their high-powered pumping equipment will be getting called into big law firms to clean up all the anticipatory salivation going on over this one. What with the questions around the exact legality of the lockdown orders that massively added increased costs and delays, and all that.
The real concern is why NZTA awarded the Transmission Gully contract to CPB with no experience of New Zealand conditions but very good experience of making sure contract risks were put on the NZ government.
It's less to do with it being a PPP as such, more NZTA's naivety at the time of going for the lowest cost operator regardless of contractual conditions.
Compare with Puhoi to Warkworth where the risk sits with the Fletcher led consortium who are wearing the cost increases.
That's what would have happened under a conventional procurement, yes.
But the selling proposition for a PPP is that the private contractor wears the costs and the risks until the job is done and operating, at which point they start getting paid. Not before.
Yes. Devil meet details. Because if you are right and the private contractor is walking this late in the job, with this much sunk cost, then it's logical to guess they've decided the cost of completing is even greater than anyone wants to talk about in public just yet.
Or the whole PPP thing is just a smoke and mirrors job that really doesn't transfer any extra risks and responsibilities to the contractor in exchange for the extra long term margin they expect to make out of it.
"…NZTA said in February the project’s estimated costs would over-run by $190m to $1b…"
That is a difference of $810 million, which makes that a total wild guess of a number.
It looks to me like CPB massively underbid to get the work and/or underestimated the complexity and are now trying to blackmail the government by threatening to pull the pin. Another legacy of the genius of the minister for everything, Steven Joyce. And National like to go on how they are better managers of the economy!
NZTA are spineless and utterly committed to roads. They’ll want to fold in a jiffy. the question is – will the government take their advice to fold?
It transfers all the risks to the State, while any upsides go to the private contractor, in return for keeping the liability off the Government books. Until it turns to shit, as so many have around the world.
We should have looked at the glaring examples from the UK, in particular.
The other problem is that the expertise to manage, assess and cost projects, has been lost from NZTA, with that being left to private firms.
Rest homes will be the next to come under the spotlight.
Whoops. I was going to comment on this the day before yesterday when it was first noted, but deleted it because it wasn't too clear to me from the info linked to just how serious the problems were.
I recall debating this project back when Steven Joyce announced it back in 2009. There was considerable opposition at the time, including groups like Option 3 making the case that the whole damned thing wasn't necessary.
Having lived in the immediate area for some years I was always a bit skeptical of the original price, it was always going to be challenging terrain to build a modern road through and the costs were always going to blow out. In the end it was plain that Joyce only sold it on the basis of a lowball bid.
Well I'd like to think all the poor bastards who've had to work on this job did their best, but it looks like they're only going to prove the critics of the project right.
NZTA will see the upside if the Transmission Gully PPP even gets close to failure because they will see it damaging the NZInfra PPP light rail proposal, and in effect supporting their own non-PPP light rail proposal.
Of course it's not the only big roading PPP they've got going at the moment: Puhoi-Warkworth SH1 is still ongoing. I haven't heard any trouble there (other than Covid-19 infections and stoppages).
But for the super-major jobs I could easily foresee NZTA preferring Alliance-type contracts over the fully commercially independent PPP forms.
I'm intrigued by what might be hidden by those big bits of black. Especially since a quick skim of the visible bits didn't catch anything about disengagement before opening the works.
All of that means we wait even longer for the Manawatu Gorge replacement road.
I understand 800 workers will be moving to in and around Palmy for the project. It will be a welcomed boost to the district's involved- Manawatu and Tararua.
At the same time this becomes an obvious task for change in govt – first catch your MOW and then treat it right so it flourishes – find our indigenous ancient govt depts and breed 'em strong and good, check for efficiency and enjoy effectiveness.
Highly doubtful seeing he couldn't even be the best in his chosen field and, unless you count being an insufferable shock jock for effect, fails on tv as the biggest tool on the home renno show, not to mention making cricket unlistenable with pathetic analysis and obnoxious wittering.
There may be a piss up in a brewery he could organise, but I wouldn’t bet on it.
Careful, mate. If you carry on like that there'll be a puff piece in Stuff about poor Mark Richardson being bullied by horrible internet trolls and how his kids cry themselves to sleep at night. It's been a while since the last one.
Ah but is he going to put his money where his mouth is? Stand as candidate for the Nats, I mean. Hosking's too scared. Talk is cheap but folks make character judgments on actions, not talk.
So. Under Level 2 those pathetic bastards who have been pining for attention from their hairdresser can be comforted that the Orders from Above have dictated that masks must be worn.
Because, I guess, it's a tad difficult to faff with some narcissist's locks from a safe distance.
Cast your minds back just a wee while to when Uncle Bleeding Ashley was steadfast in his determination that those providing homebased care for frail elderly and disabled need only wear a mask if the person being cared for was a confirmed or probable Covid 19 case.
While I know this suggestion may raise yr hackles…
I would like to see all in-home carers/assistants etc bought back under the DHB umbrella, rather than working for all the various middle-men, ticket clipping parasite companies. Companies that are seeking to make a profit from the allocation of the health budget that provides care for the elderly, disabled etc.
This has been the call for years…those needing support services being caught in the middle of the pissing contests between the MOH, DHBs and ACC and the various contracted providers.
None of that lot ever, ever put the needs of those requiring care to the front.
And it's only very recently that the guidelines for PPE use have been updated.
Healthcare workers at all levels were crying out for masks and 'permission' to use them for weeks. Having some bureaucrat repeatedly state that wearing even the basic surgeons mask was unnecessary unless there was disease present has done real damage to the relationship between frontline healthcare workers and those at the top who set the rules.
I guess it comes down to the personal experience of the politician or bureaucrat (or the science communicator du jour).
Clearly they have a much better understanding of proximity issues for hairdressers than they do of the same for frontline healthcare workers.
Today Grant Robertson said that the government is to walk back its planned 2020 budget focus on redirection of the economy as to global warming because of the extra debt and a priority of focus on economic growth.
He notes the higher debt in Europe and USA and his rationale provides them reason to do little more than they are. It's a blame the GFC, and or the pandemic, for limited goverrnment will/capacity to deal with GW.
Positive – it should provide the oxygen for the Greens to return to parliament.
Negative – the government is wedded to the capitalist debt model and will be complicit in using this as an excuse for continued poverty, homelessness and a second rate health care/welfare/aged care system.
This is exactly the wrong decision. The New Zealand economy (despite reasonable support during lock-down) is going to emerge in a highly depressed (high unemployment) state. In this state there are more real resources available to be put to use implementing the economic redirection (and lower employment in the status quo parts of the economy).
The financing (how you pay the people many who desperately want the work anyway) is particularly irrelevant in this case, it neither restrains the governments ability to employ people towards its initiative or negatively impacts how the economy performs while implementing these reforms.
No doubt Robertson was got to by treasury boffins and its a real shame. He needs to be well enough informed to put them (and their ideology) in their place when this happens rather than undermining the government and their ability to implement public policy.
"The government was focused not only on rebuilding the economy, but on rebuilding it better, he added.
"In the midst of the crisis and our desire to return to a sense of normality, we should all acknowledge that things weren't perfect before Covid-19 hit us.
"There are few times in life when the clock is reset. Now is the time we should address these long-term issues. It is a privilege many countries won't have. It's not one we should squander," he said."
Thank you so much Water Care, our Mayor and council – It is MAY and we are now told there is to be a water restriction put into place. How we are not well served by some of our leaders. Goff is all smile and wave. "We have had a long, hot summer with less than half of our normal rainfall, which means our storage dams have fallen to around 46.5 per cent, well below the 76 per cent average for this time of year." So we act NOW
Did you not know the water restrictions were coming? It’s been signposted for months. We were told weeks ago that restrictions were almost certainly likely but imposition of them had been delayed while the level 4 lockdown was in place in order not to put anyone under extra stress.
Why wasn't this in place in February graduated in implementation e.g. turn of tap when brushing teeth, toilets only flush when its brown, water gardens by hand held hoses, no washing of cars, etc
In August 2019 we had this August Average 89% Aug 19 73%. And then we had "Auckland: Record-breaking low summer rainfall. Depending on which rain gauge you look at, summer 2019/20 was the driest, 2nd-driest or 3rd-driest summer on record." yes with all this preceding our current situation I call it Incompetence some may try to argue with the FACTS.
I think you unreasonably expect perfection…the hoped for summer rain hasnt eventuated and there has been a call to restrict use for a month ..
"Under usual circumstances restrictions would kick in at about 51 per cent during autumn, Jaduram said.
Amid a dry start to the month and on the back of a summer that saw just 35 per cent of average rainfall, the city's storage dams on Thursday dropped to 49.7 per cent – the first time they'd fallen below 50 per cent since the drought of 1993/1994, when storage levels got down to a frightening 36 per cent.
The historical average for this time of year is about 77 per cent."
You could increase storage capacity but I suspect youd object to the rate increase to fund it…..but given CC I expect youll have plenty of opportunity in the not too distant future.
25 Feb "Auckland's longest dry spell on record was finally broken last weekend, with Saturday's rainfall marking the first time there's been more than 1mm of rain in 47 days. " add this to what I liked from August 19 position- So we had a record dry period in Feb and No action from Watercare. I think action was required. And comparing to 1993 Auckland then did not have the Waikato river available as a water source IMO is nothing more than diversion tactics, and that Watercare was nothing more than Hoping the Weather would cover for inaction !!!
Agreed pat. Judging exactly when to bring in water restrictions is a tricky business to get right.
I saw the process happening in Wellington one year, and it was fascinating just how much care and judgement was put into it. In the end we were saved by decent rain that arrived with less than 48hrs to spare.
The big issue is that if Watercare was not pumping Waikato water for all it was worth for the past few months Auckland would be in an absolutely chronic position.
micky, are you privy to information you can share off the top of your head on the status of Watercare's efforts to increase how much it can take from the Waikato at higher flow times?
I haven't found anything definitive online, but I get the impression it's still tied up in the consenting process.
You get some good hints here in the request for Crown intervention in the consenting application process from this Stuff article from February this year:
It's on Parker's desk, and I betcha it's a good case for waiting for the RMA reforms that will enable a whole bunch more major work accelerations.
As well as the majority of Auckland's water already coming from outside the Auckland region, Watercare took over management of the Waikato District water system a couple of years ago.
When the government announces its massive list of the "shovel ready" projects, I have a sneaking suspicion that Watercare will be called upon to be the central procurement agency for the water-focused infrastructure.
Then why as per my above comment was the August 19 storage 73% vs an average of 89%. Not sure how starting with a storage level 16% below the average with what has transpired over this summer is Forward warning of risk ?? that requires urgent action now- To me someone has been missing in action. I understand you are not of recent vintage from reading your contributions but I can recall 1993 and calls such as: placing a 2l bottle of water/brick in the cistern of a toilet to save water and the flush it if its brown, and the need to take action of a leaky tap and more. Such calls have been lacking under the current situation- We have been saved by the Waikato river uptake this time.
And in Feb Watercare requested govt to take more from the Waikato https://www.stuff.co.nz/environment/119610027/calls-for-crown-intervention-as-aucklands-waikato-river-water-application-stagnates
Seems like quite a different system to Whangarei. Your "Stage 1" restriction says no domestic hose use. Whangarei went to "Level 2" on February 26 which banned sprinklers and irrigation systems. Then we went to "Level 3" on April 16 which bans hose use, gardens can still be watered with a bucket.
In another move aimed at consolidating control over policy and messaging, the Trump administration is sending a White House loyalist to serve in a key Defense Department policy role that officials are worried is aimed at weeding out civilians not loyal to the president, Foreign Policy has learned.
Michael Cutrone, who has been detailed as Vice President Mike Pence’s top national security aide for South Asia, is set to arrive at the Pentagon to serve in a behind-the-scenes role vetting Defense Department officials for loyalty to the president, according to two current administration officials.
Listening to the National Party over the last two weeks, I was under the impression Australia was almost 'business as usual' and achieving the same results as New Zealand. Not if this report is correct.
The negative impacts of prolonged unemployment on mental and physical health has been long recognised, and unemployment could emerge as the major public health crisis from COVID-19.
Barry Soper’s Shock! Horror! Government Bombshell! ‘They Had No Right To Lock Us Up!’ Column from this arvo has has undergone quite a substantial re-write on the online Herald after the A-G released a statement saying that the so-called leaked advice from Crown Law that Soper received was just a draft report and not the final advice given to the government.
I really can't get excited about this from Soper. So what? Did they want to be right but dead? Or have a loved one die? I'd certainly support some retrospective legislation to stop the money hungry suing the government for money. Other than that yawn!
As Rationalist nation say – we need a UBI and we need to keep a lid on this. Corona ant going away and a mad push to get back to work will undo all we have done.
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Hi,It’s almost Christmas Day which means it is almost my birthday, where you will find me whimpering in the corner clutching a warm bottle of Baileys.If you’re out of ideas for presents (and truly desperate) then it is possible to gift a full Webworm subscription to a friend (or enemy) ...
This morning’s six standouts for me at 6.30am include:Rachel Helyer Donaldson’s scoop via RNZ last night of cuts to maternity jobs in the health system;Maddy Croad’s scoop via The Press-$ this morning on funding cuts for Christchurch’s biggest food rescue charity;Benedict Collins’ scoop last night via 1News on a last-minute ...
A listing of 25 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, December 15, 2024 thru Sat, December 21, 2024. Based on feedback we received, this week's roundup is the first one published soleley by category. We are still interested in ...
Well, I've been there, sitting in that same chairWhispering that same prayer half a million timesIt's a lie, though buried in disciplesOne page of the Bible isn't worth a lifeThere's nothing wrong with youIt's true, it's trueThere's something wrong with the villageWith the villageSomething wrong with the villageSongwriters: Andrew Jackson ...
ACT would like to dictate what universities can and can’t say. We knew it was coming. It was outlined in the coalition agreement and has become part of Seymour’s strategy of “emphasising public funding” to prevent people from opposing him and his views—something he also uses to try and de-platform ...
Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. This fact brief was written by Sue Bin Park from the Gigafact team in collaboration with members from our team. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Are we heading ...
So the Solstice has arrived – Summer in this part of the world, Winter for the Northern Hemisphere. And with it, the publication my new Norse dark-fantasy piece, As Our Power Lessens at Eternal Haunted Summer: https://eternalhauntedsummer.com/issues/winter-solstice-2024/as-our-power-lessens/ As previously noted, this one is very ‘wyrd’, and Northern Theory of Courage. ...
The Natural Choice: As a starter for ten percent of the Party Vote, “saving the planet” is a very respectable objective. Young voters, in particular, raised on the dire (if unheeded) warnings of climate scientists, and the irrefutable evidence of devastating weather events linked to global warming, vote Green. After ...
The Government cancelled 60% of Kāinga Ora’s new builds next year, even though the land for them was already bought, the consents were consented and there are builders unemployed all over the place. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMōrena. Long stories short, the six things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political ...
Photo by CHUTTERSNAP on UnsplashEvery morning I get up at 3am to go around the traps of news sites in Aotearoa and globally. I pick out the top ones from my point of view and have been putting them into my Dawn Chorus email, which goes out with a podcast. ...
Over on Kikorangi Newsroom's Marc Daalder has published his annual OIA stats. So I thought I'd do mine: 82 OIA requests sent in 2024 7 posts based on those requests 20 average working days to receive a response Ministry of Justice was my most-requested entity, ...
Welcome to the December 2024 Economic Bulletin. We have two monthly features in this edition. In the first, we discuss what the Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update from Treasury and the Budget Policy Statement from the Minister of Finance tell us about the fiscal position and what to ...
The NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi have submitted against the controversial Treaty Principles Bill, slamming the Bill as a breach of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and an attack on tino rangatiratanga and the collective rights of Tangata Whenua. “This Bill seeks to legislate for Te Tiriti o Waitangi principles that are ...
I don't knowHow to say what's got to be saidI don't know if it's black or whiteThere's others see it redI don't get the answers rightI'll leave that to youIs this love out of fashionOr is it the time of yearAre these words distraction?To the words you want to hearSongwriters: ...
Our economy has experienced its worst recession since 1991. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMōrena. Long stories short, the six things that matter in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Friday, December 20 in The Kākā’s Dawn Chorus podcast above and the daily Pick ‘n’ Mix below ...
Twas the Friday before Christmas and all through the week we’ve been collecting stories for our final roundup of the year. As we start to wind down for the year we hope you all have a safe and happy Christmas and new year. If you’re travelling please be safe on ...
The podcast above of the weekly ‘Hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers on Thursday night features co-hosts & talking about the year’s news with: on climate. Her book of the year was Tim Winton’s cli-fi novel Juice and she also mentioned Mike Joy’s memoir The Fight for Fresh Water. ...
The Government can head off to the holidays, entitled to assure itself that it has done more or less what it said it would do. The campaign last year promised to “get New Zealand back on track.” When you look at the basic promises—to trim back Government expenditure, toughen up ...
Open access notables An intensification of surface Earth’s energy imbalance since the late 20th century, Li et al., Communications Earth & Environment:Tracking the energy balance of the Earth system is a key method for studying the contribution of human activities to climate change. However, accurately estimating the surface energy balance ...
Photo by Mauricio Fanfa on UnsplashKia oraCome and join us for our weekly ‘Hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm today.Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream for our chat about the week’s news with myself , plus regular guests and , ...
“Like you said, I’m an unreconstructed socialist. Everybody deserves to get something for Christmas.”“ONE OF THOSE had better be for me!” Hannah grinned, fascinated, as Laurie made his way, gingerly, to the bar, his arms full of gift-wrapped packages.“Of course!”, beamed Laurie. Depositing his armful on the bar-top and selecting ...
Data released by Statistics New Zealand today showed a significant slowdown in the economy over the past six months, with GDP falling by 1% in September, and 1.1% in June said CTU Economist Craig Renney. “The data shows that the size of the economy in GDP terms is now smaller ...
One last thing before I quitI never wanted any moreThan I could fit into my headI still remember every single word you saidAnd all the shit that somehow came along with itStill, there's one thing that comforts meSince I was always caged and now I'm freeSongwriters: David Grohl / Georg ...
Sparse offerings outside a Te Kauwhata church. Meanwhile, the Government is cutting spending in ways that make thousands of hungry children even hungrier, while also cutting funding for the charities that help them. It’s also doing that while winding back new building of affordable housing that would allow parents to ...
It is difficult to make sense of the Luxon Coalition Government’s economic management.This end-of-year review about the state of economic management – the state of the economy was last week – is not going to cover the National Party contribution. Frankly, like every other careful observer, I cannot make up ...
This morning I awoke to the lovely news that we are firmly back on track, that is if the scale was reversed.NZ ranks low in global economic comparisonsNew Zealand's economy has been ranked 33rd out of 37 in an international comparison of which have done best in 2024.Economies were ranked ...
Remember those silent movies where the heroine is tied to the railway tracks or going over the waterfall in a barrel? Finance Minister Nicola Willis seems intent on portraying herself as that damsel in distress. According to Willis, this country’s current economic problems have all been caused by the spending ...
Similar to the cuts and the austerity drive imposed by Ruth Richardson in the 1990’s, an era which to all intents and purposes we’ve largely fiddled around the edges with fixing in the time since – over, to be fair, several administrations – whilst trying our best it seems to ...
String-Pulling in the Dark: For the democratic process to be meaningful it must also be public. WITH TRUST AND CONFIDENCE in New Zealand’s politicians and journalists steadily declining, restoring those virtues poses a daunting challenge. Just how daunting is made clear by comparing the way politicians and journalists treated New Zealanders ...
Dear Nicola Willis, thank you for letting us know in so many words that the swingeing austerity hasn't worked.By in so many words I mean the bit where you said, Here is a sea of red ink in which we are drowning after twelve months of savage cost cutting and ...
The Open Government Partnership is a multilateral organisation committed to advancing open government. Countries which join are supposed to co-create regular action plans with civil society, committing to making verifiable improvements in transparency, accountability, participation, or technology and innovation for the above. And they're held to account through an Independent ...
Today I tuned into something strange: a press conference that didn’t make my stomach churn or the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. Which was strange, because it was about the torture of children. It was the announcement by Erica Stanford — on her own, unusually ...
This is a must watch, and puts on brilliant and practical display the implications and mechanics of fast-track law corruption and weakness.CLICK HERE: LINK TO WATCH VIDEOOur news media as it is set up is simply not equipped to deal with the brazen disinformation and corruption under this right wing ...
NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi Acting Secretary Erin Polaczuk is welcoming the announcement from Minister of Workplace Relations and Safety Brooke van Velden that she is opening consultation on engineered stone and is calling on her to listen to the evidence and implement a total ban of the product. “We need ...
The Government has announced a 1.5% increase in the minimum wage from 1 April 2025, well below forecast inflation of 2.5%. Unions have reacted strongly and denounced it as a real terms cut. PSA and the CTU are opposing a new round of staff cuts at WorkSafe, which they say ...
The decision to unilaterally repudiate the contract for new Cook Strait ferries is beginning to look like one of the stupidest decisions a New Zealand government ever made. While cancelling the ferries and their associated port infrastructure may have made this year's books look good, it means higher costs later, ...
Hi there! I’ve been overseas recently, looking after a situation with a family member. So apologies if there any less than focused posts! Vanuatu has just had a significant 7.3 earthquake. Two MFAT staff are unaccounted for with local fatalities.It’s always sad to hear of such things happening.I think of ...
Today is a special member's morning, scheduled to make up for the government's theft of member's days throughout the year. First up was the first reading of Greg Fleming's Crimes (Increased Penalties for Slavery Offences) Amendment Bill, which was passed unanimously. Currently the House is debating the third reading of ...
We're going backwardsIgnoring the realitiesGoing backwardsAre you counting all the casualties?We are not there yetWhere we need to beWe are still in debtTo our insanitiesSongwriter: Martin Gore Read more ...
Willis blamed Treasury for changing its productivity assumptions and Labour’s spending increases since Covid for the worsening Budget outlook. Photo: Getty ImagesMōrena. Long stories short, the six things that matter in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, December 18 in The Kākā’s Dawn Chorus podcast above ...
Today the Auckland Transport board meet for the last time this year. For those interested (and with time to spare), you can follow along via this MS Teams link from 10am. I’ve taken a quick look through the agenda items to see what I think the most interesting aspects are. ...
Hi,If you’re a New Zealander — you know who Mike King is. He is the face of New Zealand’s battle against mental health problems. He can be loud and brash. He raises, and is entrusted with, a lot of cash. Last year his “I Am Hope” charity reported a revenue ...
Probably about the only consolation available from yesterday’s unveiling of the Half-Yearly Economic and Fiscal Update (HYEFU) is that it could have been worse. Though Finance Minister Nicola Willis has tightened the screws on future government spending, she has resisted the calls from hard-line academics, fiscal purists and fiscal hawks ...
The right have a stupid saying that is only occasionally true:When is democracy not democracy? When it hasn’t been voted on.While not true in regards to branches of government such as the judiciary, it’s a philosophy that probably should apply to recently-elected local government councillors. Nevertheless, this concept seemed to ...
Long story short: the Government’s austerity policy has driven the economy into a deeper and longer recession that means it will have to borrow $20 billion more over the next four years than it expected just six months ago. Treasury’s latest forecasts show the National-ACT-NZ First Government’s fiscal strategy of ...
Come and join myself and CTU Chief Economist for a pop-up ‘Hoon’ webinar on the Government’s Half Yearly Economic and Fiscal Update (HYEFU) with paying subscribers to The Kākā for 30 minutes at 5 pm today.Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream to watch our chat. Don’t worry if ...
In 1998, in the wake of the Paremoremo Prison riot, the Department of Corrections established the "Behaviour Management Regime". Prisoners were locked in their cells for 22 or 23 hours a day, with no fresh air, no exercise, no social contact, no entertainment, and in some cases no clothes and ...
New data released by the Treasury shows that the economic policies of this Government have made things worse in the year since they took office, said NZCTU Economist Craig Renney. “Our fiscal indicators are all heading in the wrong direction – with higher levels of debt, a higher deficit, and ...
At the 2023 election, National basically ran on a platform of being better economic managers. So how'd that turn out for us? In just one year, they've fucked us for two full political terms: The government's books are set to remain deeply in the red for the near term ...
AUSTERITYText within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedMy spreadsheet insists This pain leads straight to glory (File not found) Read more ...
The NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi are saying that the Government should do the right thing and deliver minimum wage increases that don’t see workers fall further behind, in response to today’s announcement that the minimum wage will only be increased by 1.5%, well short of forecast inflation. “With inflation forecast ...
Oh, I weptFor daysFilled my eyesWith silly tearsOh, yeaBut I don'tCare no moreI don't care ifMy eyes get soreSongwriters: Paul Rodgers / Paul Kossoff. Read more ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Bob HensonIn this aerial view, fingers of meltwater flow from the melting Isunnguata Sermia glacier descending from the Greenland Ice Sheet on July 11, 2024, near Kangerlussuaq, Greenland. According to the Programme for Monitoring of the Greenland Ice Sheet (PROMICE), the ...
In August, I wrote an article about David Seymour1 with a video of his testimony, to warn that there were grave dangers to his Ministry of Regulation:David Seymour's Ministry of Slush Hides Far Greater RisksWhy Seymour's exorbitant waste of taxpayers' money could be the least of concernThe money for Seymour ...
Willis is expected to have to reveal the bitter fiscal fruits of her austerity strategy in the HYEFU later today. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/TheKakaMōrena. Long stories short, the six things that matter in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Tuesday, December 17 in The Kākā’s Dawn Chorus podcast ...
On Friday the government announced it would double the number of toll roads in New Zealand as well as make a few other changes to how toll roads are used in the country. The real issue though is not that tolling is being used but the suggestion it will make ...
The Prime Minister yesterday engaged in what looked like a pre-emptive strike designed to counter what is likely to be a series of depressing economic statistics expected before the end of the week. He opened his weekly post-Cabinet press conference with a recitation of the Government’s achievements. “It certainly has ...
This whooping cough story from south Auckland is a good example of the coalition government’s approach to social need – spend money on urging people to get vaccinated but only after you’ve cut the funding to where they could get vaccinated. This has been the case all year with public ...
And if there is a GodI know he likes to rockHe likes his loud guitarsHis spiders from MarsAnd if there is a GodI know he's watching meHe likes what he seesBut there's trouble on the breezeSongwriter: William Patrick Corgan Read more ...
National has only been in power for a year, but everywhere you look, its choices are taking New Zealand a long way backwards. In no particular order, here are the National Government's Top 50 Greatest Misses of its first year in power. ...
The Government is quietly undertaking consultation on the dangerous Regulatory Standards Bill over the Christmas period to avoid too much attention. ...
The Government’s planned changes to the freedom of speech obligations of universities is little more than a front for stoking the political fires of disinformation and fear, placing teachers and students in the crosshairs. ...
The Ministry of Regulation’s report into Early Childhood Education (ECE) in Aotearoa raises serious concerns about the possibility of lowering qualification requirements, undermining quality and risking worse outcomes for tamariki, whānau, and kaiako. ...
A Bill to modernise the role of Justices of the Peace (JP), ensuring they remain active in their communities and connected with other JPs, has been put into the ballot. ...
Labour will continue to fight unsustainable and destructive projects that are able to leap-frog environment protection under National’s Fast-track Approvals Bill. ...
The Green Party has warned that a Green Government will revoke the consents of companies who override environmental protections as part of Fast-Track legislation being passed today. ...
The Green Party says the Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update shows how the Government is failing to address the massive social and infrastructure deficits our country faces. ...
The Government’s latest move to reduce the earnings of migrant workers will not only hurt migrants but it will drive down the wages of Kiwi workers. ...
Te Pāti Māori has this morning issued a stern warning to Fast-Track applicants with interests in mining, pledging to hold them accountable through retrospective liability and to immediately revoke Fast-Track consents under a future Te Pāti Māori government. This warning comes ahead of today’s third reading of the Fast-Track Approvals ...
The Government’s announcement today of a 1.5 per cent increase to minimum wage is another blow for workers, with inflation projected to exceed the increase, meaning it’s a real terms pay reduction for many. ...
All the Government has achieved from its announcement today is to continue to push responsibility back on councils for its own lack of action to help bring down skyrocketing rates. ...
The Government has used its final post-Cabinet press conference of the year to punch down on local government without offering any credible solutions to the issues our councils are facing. ...
The Government has failed to keep its promise to ‘super charge’ the EV network, delivering just 292 chargers - less than half of the 670 chargers needed to meet its target. ...
The Green Party is calling for the Government to stop subsidising the largest user of the country’s gas supplies, Methanex, following a report highlighting the multi-national’s disproportionate influence on energy prices in Aotearoa. ...
The Green Party is appalled with the Government’s new child poverty targets that are based on a new ‘persistent poverty’ measure that could be met even with an increase in child poverty. ...
New independent analysis has revealed that the Government’s Emissions Reduction Plan (ERP) will reduce emissions by a measly 1 per cent by 2030, failing to set us up for the future and meeting upcoming targets. ...
The loss of 27 kaimahi at Whakaata Māori and the end of its daily news bulletin is a sad day for Māori media and another step backwards for Te Tiriti o Waitangi justice. ...
Yesterday the Government passed cruel legislation through first reading to establish a new beneficiary sanction regime that will ultimately mean more households cannot afford the basic essentials. ...
Today's passing of the Government's Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill–which allows landlords to end tenancies with no reason–ignores the voice of the people and leaves renters in limbo ahead of the festive season. ...
After wasting a year, Nicola Willis has delivered a worse deal for the Cook Strait ferries that will end up being more expensive and take longer to arrive. ...
Green Party co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick has today launched a Member’s Bill to sanction Israel for its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, as the All Out For Gaza rally reaches Parliament. ...
After years of advocacy, the Green Party is very happy to hear the Government has listened to our collective voices and announced the closure of the greyhound racing industry, by 1 August 2026. ...
In response to a new report from ERO, the Government has acknowledged the urgent need for consistency across the curriculum for Relationship and Sexuality Education (RSE) in schools. ...
The Green Party is appalled at the Government introducing legislation that will make it easier to penalise workers fighting for better pay and conditions. ...
Thank you for the invitation to speak with you tonight on behalf of the political party I belong to - which is New Zealand First. As we have heard before this evening the Kinleith Mill is proposing to reduce operations by focusing on pulp and discontinuing “lossmaking paper production”. They say that they are currently consulting on the plan to permanently shut ...
Auckland Central MP, Chlöe Swarbrick, has written to Mayor Wayne Brown requesting he stop the unnecessary delays on St James Theatre’s restoration. ...
Kiwis planning a swim or heading out on a boat this summer should remember to stop and think about water safety, Sport & Recreation Minister Chris Bishop and ACC and Associate Transport Minister Matt Doocey say. “New Zealand’s beaches, lakes and rivers are some of the most beautiful in the ...
The Government is urging Kiwis to drive safely this summer and reminding motorists that Police will be out in force to enforce the road rules, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“This time of year can be stressful and result in poor decision-making on our roads. Whether you are travelling to see ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says Health New Zealand will move swiftly to support dozens of internationally-trained doctors already in New Zealand on their journey to employment here, after a tripling of sought-after examination places. “The Medical Council has delivered great news for hardworking overseas doctors who want to contribute ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has appointed Sarah Ottrey to the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC). “At my first APEC Summit in Lima, I experienced firsthand the role that ABAC plays in guaranteeing political leaders hear the voice of business,” Mr Luxon says. “New Zealand’s ABAC representatives are very well respected and ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced four appointments to New Zealand’s intelligence oversight functions. The Honourable Robert Dobson KC has been appointed Chief Commissioner of Intelligence Warrants, and the Honourable Brendan Brown KC has been appointed as a Commissioner of Intelligence Warrants. The appointments of Hon Robert Dobson and Hon ...
Improvements in the average time it takes to process survey and title applications means housing developments can progress more quickly, Minister for Land Information Chris Penk says. “The government is resolutely focused on improving the building and construction pipeline,” Mr Penk says. “Applications to issue titles and subdivide land are ...
The Government’s measures to reduce airport wait times, and better transparency around flight disruptions is delivering encouraging early results for passengers ahead of the busy summer period, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Improving the efficiency of air travel is a priority for the Government to give passengers a smoother, more reliable ...
The Government today announced the intended closure of the Apollo Hotel as Contracted Emergency Housing (CEH) in Rotorua, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. This follows a 30 per cent reduction in the number of households in CEH in Rotorua since National came into Government. “Our focus is on ending CEH in the Whakarewarewa area starting ...
The Government will reshape vocational education and training to return decision making to regions and enable greater industry input into work-based learning Tertiary Education and Skills Minister, Penny Simmonds says. “The redesigned system will better meet the needs of learners, industry, and the economy. It includes re-establishing regional polytechnics that ...
The Government is taking action to better manage synthetic refrigerants and reduce emissions caused by greenhouse gases found in heating and cooling products, Environment Minister Penny Simmonds says. “Regulations will be drafted to support a product stewardship scheme for synthetic refrigerants, Ms. Simmonds says. “Synthetic refrigerants are found in a ...
People travelling on State Highway 1 north of Hamilton will be relieved that remedial works and safety improvements on the Ngāruawāhia section of the Waikato Expressway were finished today, with all lanes now open to traffic, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“I would like to acknowledge the patience of road users ...
Tertiary Education and Skills Minister, Penny Simmonds, has announced a new appointment to the board of Education New Zealand (ENZ). Dr Erik Lithander has been appointed as a new member of the ENZ board for a three-year term until 30 January 2028. “I would like to welcome Dr Erik Lithander to the ...
The Government will have senior representatives at Waitangi Day events around the country, including at the Waitangi Treaty Grounds, but next year Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has chosen to take part in celebrations elsewhere. “It has always been my intention to celebrate Waitangi Day around the country with different ...
Two more criminal gangs will be subject to the raft of laws passed by the Coalition Government that give Police more powers to disrupt gang activity, and the intimidation they impose in our communities, Police Minister Mark Mitchell says. Following an Order passed by Cabinet, from 3 February 2025 the ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Justice Christian Whata as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Whata’s appointment as a Judge of the Court of Appeal will take effect on 1 August 2025 and fill a vacancy created by the retirement of Hon Justice David Goddard on ...
The latest economic figures highlight the importance of the steps the Government has taken to restore respect for taxpayers’ money and drive economic growth, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Data released today by Stats NZ shows Gross Domestic Product fell 1 per cent in the September quarter. “Treasury and most ...
Tertiary Education and Skills Minister Penny Simmonds and Associate Minister of Education David Seymour today announced legislation changes to strengthen freedom of speech obligations on universities. “Freedom of speech is fundamental to the concept of academic freedom and there is concern that universities seem to be taking a more risk-averse ...
Police Minister, Mark Mitchell, and Internal Affairs Minister, Brooke van Velden, today launched a further Public Safety Network cellular service that alongside last year’s Cellular Roaming roll-out, puts globally-leading cellular communications capability into the hands of our emergency responders. The Public Safety Network’s new Cellular Priority service means Police, Wellington ...
State Highway 1 through the Mangamuka Gorge has officially reopened today, providing a critical link for Northlanders and offering much-needed relief ahead of the busy summer period, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“The Mangamuka Gorge is a vital route for Northland, carrying around 1,300 vehicles per day and connecting the Far ...
The Government has welcomed decisions by the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) and Ashburton District Council confirming funding to boost resilience in the Canterbury region, with construction on a second Ashburton Bridge expected to begin in 2026, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Delivering a second Ashburton Bridge to improve resilience and ...
The Government is backing the response into high pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in Otago, Biosecurity Minister Andrew Hoggard says. “Cabinet has approved new funding of $20 million to enable MPI to meet unbudgeted ongoing expenses associated with the H7N6 response including rigorous scientific testing of samples at the enhanced PC3 ...
Legislation that will repeal all advertising restrictions for broadcasters on Sundays and public holidays has passed through first reading in Parliament today, Media Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “As a growing share of audiences get their news and entertainment from streaming services, these restrictions have become increasingly redundant. New Zealand on ...
Today the House agreed to Brendan Horsley being appointed Inspector-General of Defence, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “Mr Horsley’s experience will be invaluable in overseeing the establishment of the new office and its support networks. “He is currently Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security, having held that role since June 2020. ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government has agreed to the final regulations for the levy on insurance contracts that will fund Fire and Emergency New Zealand from July 2026. “Earlier this year the Government agreed to a 2.2 percent increase to the rate of levy. Fire ...
The Government is delivering regulatory relief for New Zealand businesses through changes to the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act. “The Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Amendment Bill, which was introduced today, is the second Bill – the other being the Statutes Amendment Bill - that ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed further progress on the Hawke’s Bay Expressway Road of National Significance (RoNS), with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) Board approving funding for the detailed design of Stage 1, paving the way for main works construction to begin in late 2025.“The Government is moving at ...
The Government today released a request for information (RFI) to seeking interest in partnerships to plant trees on Crown-owned land with low farming and conservation value (excluding National Parks) Forestry Minister Todd McClay announced. “Planting trees on Crown-owned land will drive economic growth by creating more forestry jobs in our regions, providing more wood ...
Court timeliness, access to justice, and improving the quality of existing regulation are the focus of a series of law changes introduced to Parliament today by Associate Minister of Justice Nicole McKee. The three Bills in the Regulatory Systems (Justice) Amendment Bill package each improve a different part of the ...
A total of 41 appointments and reappointments have been made to the 12 community trusts around New Zealand that serve their regions, Associate Finance Minister Shane Jones says. “These trusts, and the communities they serve from the Far North to the deep south, will benefit from the rich experience, knowledge, ...
The Government has confirmed how it will provide redress to survivors who were tortured at the Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital Child and Adolescent Unit (the Lake Alice Unit). “The Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care found that many of the 362 children who went through the Lake Alice Unit between 1972 and ...
It has been a busy, productive year in the House as the coalition Government works hard to get New Zealand back on track, Leader of the House Chris Bishop says. “This Government promised to rebuild the economy, restore law and order and reduce the cost of living. Our record this ...
“Accelerated silicosis is an emerging occupational disease caused by unsafe work such as engineered stone benchtops. I am running a standalone consultation on engineered stone to understand what the industry is currently doing to manage the risks, and whether further regulatory intervention is needed,” says Workplace Relations and Safety Minister ...
Mehemea he pai mō te tangata, mahia – if it’s good for the people, get on with it. Enhanced reporting on the public sector’s delivery of Treaty settlement commitments will help improve outcomes for Māori and all New Zealanders, Māori Crown Relations Minister Tama Potaka says. Compiled together for the ...
Mr Roger Holmes Miller and Ms Tarita Hutchinson have been appointed to the Charities Registration Board, Community and Voluntary Sector Minister Louise Upston says. “I would like to welcome the new members joining the Charities Registration Board. “The appointment of Ms Hutchinson and Mr Miller will strengthen the Board’s capacity ...
More building consent and code compliance applications are being processed within the statutory timeframe since the Government required councils to submit quarterly data, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “In the midst of a housing shortage we need to look at every step of the build process for efficiencies ...
Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey is proud to announce the first three recipients of the Government’s $10 million Mental Health and Addiction Community Sector Innovation Fund which will enable more Kiwis faster access to mental health and addiction support. “This fund is part of the Government’s commitment to investing in ...
New Zealand is providing Vanuatu assistance following yesterday's devastating earthquake, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. "Vanuatu is a member of our Pacific family and we are supporting it in this time of acute need," Mr Peters says. "Our thoughts are with the people of Vanuatu, and we will be ...
The Government welcomes the Commerce Commission’s plan to reduce card fees for Kiwis by an estimated $260 million a year, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says.“The Government is relentlessly focused on reducing the cost of living, so Kiwis can keep more of their hard-earned income and live a ...
Regulation Minister David Seymour has welcomed the Early Childhood Education (ECE) regulatory review report, the first major report from the Ministry for Regulation. The report makes 15 recommendations to modernise and simplify regulations across ECE so services can get on with what they do best – providing safe, high-quality care ...
The Government‘s Offshore Renewable Energy Bill to create a new regulatory regime that will enable firms to construct offshore wind generation has passed its first reading in Parliament, Energy Minister Simeon Brown says.“New Zealand currently does not have a regulatory regime for offshore renewable energy as the previous government failed ...
Asia Pacific ReportSilent Night is a well-known Christmas carol that tells of a peaceful and silent night in Bethlehem, referring to the first Christmas more than 2000 years ago. It is now 2024, and it was again a silent night in Bethlehem last night, reports Al Jazeera’s Nisa Ibrahim. ...
Summer resissue: Has the country changed all that much in three decades? Loveni Enari compares his two New Zealands. The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open letter and sign up to be a member ...
Summer reissue: Alex Casey goes on a killer journey aboard the Tormore Express.The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read our open letter and sign up to be a member today.It was a dark and ...
Summer reissue: Speed puzzling is like a marathon for the mind – intense, demanding, surprisingly exhausting. But does turning it into a sport destroy it as a relaxing pastime? The Spinoff needs to double the number of paying members we have to continue telling these kinds of stories. Please read ...
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good onya NZTA, give yourself legendary status.
[deleted], all legenday nzta employees who tried to ruin my wifes career.
https://www.employmentcourt.govt.nz/assets/Documents/Decisions/2019-NZEmpC-187-Byrne-v-NZ-Transport-Agency-jud-131219.pdf
NZTA broke health and safety laws, spent over 200 grand of taxpayers money on lawyers, threatened us if my wife continued her case against them they would ruin her career,
threatened suppliers with loss of work if they employed my wife, using unsigned contracts.
[Snip. Im sorry Gerald but these comments are potentially defamatory and best that they be removed now. The link to the judgement remains and I recommend that people read it to see what has happened – MS]
we have been visited by police several times from false accusations made ba a nzta employee, one accusation was , "she was running around in the paddock doing a chicken dance", when they made this accusation against my wife, she was 600km away. haha. when presented with the evidence they just threw it away and said they didnt believe us.
NZTA legendary status for being able to do this to someone and get away scott free.
Increase their funding i say (sarc)
[lprent: I see that MS has already looked at this.
I have also deleted the names at the top. A brief scan of the judgement showed that one was misspelt and I couldn’t find one of the others. Possibly referred to in the judgement as A or B. Generally if you want to refer to people or events, then use what is already in the public record, or what you can directly and truthfully testify to yourself.
Please remember that if legal action is taken over comments made on this site, then I am also in the legal firing line as well. I will act accordingly to protect my time. ]
sorry forgot the short version
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/employment/news/article.cfm?c_id=11&objectid=12296643
That's gobsmacking.
"She took NZTA to the Employment Relations Authority which dismissed her claims. Byrne then went to the Employment Court" and "Employment Court rules NZTA breached confidentiality clause".
So the ERA is a bullshit scheme? Or did it lack authority to dispense justice? Definitely indicates something seriously wrong somewhere…
Hi Dennis Frank,
thank you for your comment
yes you hit the nail on the head. NZTA made many untrue allegations providing no evidence and all of their witnesses didnt have to appear.
even more the ERA granted nzta extra security for their staff who were afraid of my 5'4" wife.
they also awarded nzta extra costs
Hi Gerard…I wish I could say i'm surprised, but sadly I'm not. I'm in the centre of an issue currently with Auckland Council that involves behaviour ranging from incompetence to downright nastiness. And all on the ratepayers. I'm glad your wife fought on. Go well.
thanks paddington, if you hang in there (its bloody hard) sometimes justice does actually prevail for us plebs
Crikey that's a long time for Mrs Byrne's name to be cleared. Good to see her reputation clearer and a clear direction for costs for her.
That also names a lot of lower-order names within NZTA.
And a lot of HR processes gone drastically wrong in a lot of detail.
I know a lot about NZTA's internal culture, and concur with the judge.
As we are about to see with the Transmission Gully PPP failure, a government organisation with this amount of power in society truly wrecks things when it goes wrong.
If my experience as an ece teacher (now retired) coming from Auckland to Whangarei is anything to go by this sort of prejudice towards newcomers is all too common in the north
A good outcome eventually Gerard. Hope your wife gains peace.
Hi Ianmac,
yes she has thank you and her faith in the NZ Justice system is restored.
bit hard to get peace when nzta employee is still calling the cops on us and videoing us, but meh to them.
Hi Ad , unfortunately the awarding of costs doesn't cover the expenses incurred while fight the extremely pitbull type nature of the lawyers from NZTA on the taxpayers money
True. I won't minimise that straight financial cost.
But the exposure of NZTA's processes and people in the decision is pretty strong in the scales. That looks like it counts for something.
Hey Ad, check this out from the court finding: " [27] NZTA had engaged WSP Opus as principal advisors/consultants of the Northland Bridges Project (the Project).The Project related to three sites where one-lane bridges were to be replaced with two-lane bridges. WSP Opus was responsible for the business case of the Project, procurement of design and construction, and contract management. [28] There was no signed or final contract between those parties, although there was a draft document." https://www.employmentcourt.govt.nz/assets/Documents/Decisions/2019-NZEmpC-187-Byrne-v-NZ-Transport-Agency-jud-131219.pdf
So the NZTA hired them to build the bridges without signing a contract! That's so dodgy you'd suspect Bridges (Simon) authorised the deal! "They're all hicks from the sticks up there, nobody will notice."
Hard to tell, but from my experience it's not necessarily dodgy for work to commence before a final contract is signed … especially where there is an ongoing professional relationship between the parties.
And both parties might well want to see some preliminary investigation and design work done in order to fully understand the scope and risks before signing the dotted line. Whenever you are dealing with groundworks of any kind, there is real potential for nasty surprises.
no signed contract after at least 18 months and then using that to wield the power stick to pursue personal agendas?
dodgy as in any third world country mate, let our 2.9th world here in NZ
I've just finished scanning the judgement. It's clear NZTA have acted very poorly in this matter and thoroughly deserved to lose this case. It reflects very badly on someone's judgement that they allowed a non-work related disagreement between neighbours to escalate into this kind of debacle.
In my 35 yrs in the engineering /tech field I've been close to similar problems of a breakdown in trust between professional colleagues a few times. It's never easy, and rarely ends well. I'm sorry you and your wife have gone through this, because I know exactly how it feels.
Having said that, I note that at least one small part of the story involved you disparaging NZTA on various blogs (sec 136 -138) which probably didn't help matters.
The judge clearly notes (sec 116 and 117) that both parties allowed their judgement to be clouded by personal animosity.
My advice to people caught up in this kind of legal battle is to always keep in mind what their ideal outcome would be once it is all over. You certainly want resolution, but you also need to be able to live life without this becoming a perpetual burden on you and everyone else. You need to get to a redemption of some kind. And you certainly want to do everything in your power to avoid walking into this kind of mess ever again.
Best wishes.
there was no civil dispute between the parties until my wife lodged her complaint, then over 130 accusations were made against me and my wife to paint a picture of a certain behaviour.
after two years of being videod by nzta all they have is me giving their employee the fingers once.
you will find that i didnt disparage the nzta in any blogs, as they tried to get an order against me for my comments, but had to withdraw it because no untruths were told.
my advice to people getting into anything with the nzta is expect to be defamed, ridiculed, visited by police on several occasions, laws will be broken to ruin you, they will spy on you , use their employees to threaten your employer,
even after an outcome you will still be spied on and visited by police, which is happening to us even during lockdown!
the nzta employee who we have the civil dispute with is now in another with a 77 yr old man, and has had several disputes with other neighbours.
they just dont like the truth being told about them.
the team in northland do need to be audited at the very least.
One of them is also involved in the waikato expressway fiasco.
He also has a little black book that was presented in court that has very disturbing observations in it.
Hi lprent and MS,
my apologies but the names mentioned are all named in the document.
witness A and B were not any of them, they are two other nzta employees.
there is nothing untrue in the allegations and can all be proved with evidence
Not a particular problem – just a learning issue for you.
For the moderators, you have to state some facts explicitly if you want to use them and there might potentially be a problem for us. In this case just saying that "these names/events are all in the judgement" or words to that effect would probably have been sufficient. That shifts the liability to you, and if we find them to be incorrect, we will ban you from the site and point the liability to you.
You also need to be accurate when dealing with issues that are potentially legal issues. Imagine if you by accident managed to get the incorrect name – that was in fact correct for some other real person – you effectively just accused someone of a deed that they didn't do.
We don't have much time to read everything and we'll take the approach that if something isn't clear and potentially a legal issue for us – then it gets zapped.
In this case I literally scanned the whole judgment in 10 minutes while eating breakfast. It wouldn't surprise me if I missed a name or two. I'd noted that you'd misspelled a name for one, checked your comment history and found that it was limited. ie we don't have a history for you that leads us to trust what you write based on our experience. That was already way too much time for me to spend on a comment. Re-reading it again would have been a waste of my time.
So separately, MS and I exercised our default moderator option – excise the potentially liable parts of the comment.
Besides it helps you learn good habits about what you can do on the site. BTW: read the policy.
thank you
I know exactly what your wife has been through Gerard Byrne.
A long time ago I had similar experiences of spying activity plus serious bullying, intimidation and under-mining tactics by a couple of former senior Public Service managers who were attempting to gather 'evidence' against me for unfounded misdemeanours. They never succeeded because the evidence didn't exist. I took the matter to my superiors and other 'powers that be' but they all chose to believe the perpetrators who naturally denied everything. I resigned from my position – my trust and faith in senior officialdom destroyed forever.
It is sad to see that kind of deplorable behaviour – usually against female colleagues – is still occurring but I'm glad your wife knocked the bastards off their pedestal.
thank you very much anne for your comments.
i do sympathise with you as that is ezactly what happened to my wife. unfortunately after she resigned the nzta literally tried to ruin her employment future in nz
unfortunately in NZ there are too many senior females who are only too willing to jump into the old boys club and destroy others careers.
Yes that element existed in my case too. The female concerned was not a public servant let alone a senior one. But she had contacts she could use to spread wild claims about individuals she decided she wanted to destroy. Successful women – or reasonably successful as in my case – were her prime targets. I think they call it jealousy. 🙂
The whole ERA is a joke from woo to go – its there to protect the powerful.
By definition -a organisation that punches down.
Glad you won, but the fact it was so long and drawn, is just another example of power differentials within the whole structure. And like WINZ a broken system which needs to be radically changed or removed.
TVNZ breakfast political panel: Shane Jones + Paula Bennett. Must be trying to alienate their audience. 🙄
It is a circuit of the same tired shrieking skulls.
Spinoff has a good report on the downside of public/private partnerships (roadbuilding). I always thought them sensible in principle but the trend seems to be that they play out as a recipe for incompetence. Lack of operational oversight of project management by a suitable govt authority seems evident. https://thespinoff.co.nz/politics/07-05-2020/the-transmission-gully-fiasco-should-call-time-on-the-folly-of-ppps/
There was a piece on the TVNZ news last night about the impact of COVID-19 on Pacific populations in the USA. According to the report, in the US Pacific peoples are dying at twelve times the rate of the general population. They were to polite to say so, but research is now clear that PIs are in general far more vulnerable due to their generally poorer health statistics. Co-morbidities that are lethal in combination with COVID-19 like obesity, diabetes, hypertension and cardio-vascular dissease are much more prevalent in poor PI communities.
Twelve times the death rate = around 14-15% based on our current death rate of 1.2%, so if one in three Pasifika got the virus – 100,000 Pacifika infected – the expected death rate (based on this US information) is going to be 14,000-15,000 people.
Simon Bridges has not bothered to summon a single brown face to his committee for advice. He'd rather abuse his position to make unsubstantiated attacks on Ashley Bloomfield. His demands to prematurely reopen the economy is the casual institutional racism of the white settler elite that he represents writ large.
This radionz story about difficulty getting help from a Samoan, partly from their reserve and not being assertive enough illustrates the problem they face with covid-19.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/in-depth/413980/covid-19-testing-i-was-angry-about-the-process
Trotter tries to make binary thinking seem sensible, fails. "If Canberra chooses Washington over Beijing, then the Australian economy will tank. If it chooses Beijing over Washington, then Australia will be plunged into a profound identity crisis." http://bowalleyroad.blogspot.com/
ScoMo will refrain from making either of these unpalatable choices. Trotter thinks the situation in Oz will become critical and force the choice – yet offers no persuasive reason why he believes that.
"In geostrategic terms, a US-aligned Australasia is crucial to Washington’s new “Indo-Pacific” plan for containing China’s ambitious “Belt and Road” project. It has become a matter of some urgency, therefore, to facilitate a decisive shift in New Zealand foreign policy towards Washington and away from Beijing."
Since when has any US Secretary of State fronted as a competent facilitator? Kissinger, perhaps. Dunno why Trotter discounts our post-ANZUS independent foreign policy. You'd think a 35-yr track record of success is sufficiently substantial for expectations of perseverance to be reasonable. Normal, even.
"In conformity with the maxim that it is shameful to let a good crisis go to waste, the pro-Washington faction within New Zealand’s foreign policy establishment has persuaded the University of Canterbury to oversee a “pop-up” think tank dedicated to assisting the New Zealand Government “devise a resilience strategy that will ensure New Zealand’s independence and sovereignty are protected during the Covid-19 pandemic and after.”"
Yeah? As if in response to what threat?? Apparently "our very own Professor Anne-Marie Brady." Gosh. She must be Superwoman.
"Professor Brady is not, however, without powerful friends in high places. Not the least of whom is New Zealand’s Foreign Minister, Winston Peters." Ah, the `enemy within' thesis. Trotter follows up with nothing substantial & his attempt to beat up a molehill into a mountain limps to a lame end.
I agree – Trotter's biggest problem is he has stopped trying to understand the world he lives in. He has retreated to just yearning for one that is gone, and interpreting the world from an armchair there. It doesn't mean sometimes he isn't correct in his observation – but he is more and more just plain out of touch.
If this Transmission Gully project PPP collapses, it will signal the largest commercial failure of the government since the late 1990s. Doesn't matter which team were in power at the time. This is a multi-generational scale work and is now a terminal case:
"Officials acknowledged on Sunday the already-delayed Transmission Gully project would be delayed until 2021. This has the potential to blow out costs by yet-more hundreds of millions of dollars. NZTA said in February the project’s estimated costs would over-run by $190m to $1b and the completion date had been extended from May to December this year.
An NZTA spokesman said on Sunday the project would now not be completed until some time in 2021 and the agency was in urgent negotiations again with the PPP’s contractor CPB HEB about the project. He would not comment on the fears of those close to the project that the contractor was days away from pulling out completely and dumping the project uncompleted back on the taxpayer. The project was suspended during the Level 4 lockdown, but failed to resume with all its workers as expected last week.
Several sources told Newsroom large numbers of subcontractors were permanently let go last week. One source said over 600 people had been cut from the project's workforce and a large amount of construction equipment had been removed from the site."
https://www.newsroom.co.nz/economic-recovery/2020/05/03/1155823/unreal-turn-for-transmission-gully
I thought the way a PPP was supposed to work was the private party secured the funding, then built and operated the asset (while the public retained ownership), in exchange for a set income stream once the asset was complete and operating.
So doesn't that mean we the public should not have yet paid anything for this since it is not yet complete and operating? Doesn't that mean the private part of this is wearing all the sunk costs to date?
If the private party walks away now, wouldn't we the public be able to just pay for what's left to do to complete it, and then we end up with the whole thing on the cheap without having to pay all the future fees we would have had to if the private party had actually completed the job?
Or were the original contract terms dramatically different to what that Treasury document says they should have been for a PPP?
There are more could-as, should-as, and would-as on Transmission Gully's PPP than there are deadweight list MPs.
Since it's not tolled, it's fee-for-access+long term maintenance. NZTA have already paid multiple times to the contractor to the PPP for over-runs.
I don't think anyone yet really knows what would happen with your second question. Plenty of major jobs consulted their insurers after Level 4. NZTA will be fighting hard to keep this one out of court: imagine how such a case would play in the run-up to the election. Even the NZTA Board can figure that one.
I'm not privy to the contractual terms on Transmission Gully, but I suspect a lot of New Zealand will be in the next few months.
NZTA have already paid multiple times to the contractor to the PPP for over-runs.
Looking at how PPPs were sold to us for how they should work, the cost overruns should have been compensated by increased payments after the job was completed and operating. Not by up-front extra payments: those are the old-skool conventional model.
NZTA will be fighting hard to keep this one out of court
Yeah, the firefighters with their high-powered pumping equipment will be getting called into big law firms to clean up all the anticipatory salivation going on over this one. What with the questions around the exact legality of the lockdown orders that massively added increased costs and delays, and all that.
The real concern is why NZTA awarded the Transmission Gully contract to CPB with no experience of New Zealand conditions but very good experience of making sure contract risks were put on the NZ government.
It's less to do with it being a PPP as such, more NZTA's naivety at the time of going for the lowest cost operator regardless of contractual conditions.
Compare with Puhoi to Warkworth where the risk sits with the Fletcher led consortium who are wearing the cost increases.
https://www.greaterauckland.org.nz/2020/05/06/times-up-for-ppps/
And the twist: who was Minister of Transport at the time this went through Cabinet? Was it Simon Bridges by chance?
I'd assume the private contractor has been paid out on progress so far.
I hope they release the Treasury Gateway Reviews for this one.
That's what would have happened under a conventional procurement, yes.
But the selling proposition for a PPP is that the private contractor wears the costs and the risks until the job is done and operating, at which point they start getting paid. Not before.
Yes. Devil meet details. Because if you are right and the private contractor is walking this late in the job, with this much sunk cost, then it's logical to guess they've decided the cost of completing is even greater than anyone wants to talk about in public just yet.
Or the whole PPP thing is just a smoke and mirrors job that really doesn't transfer any extra risks and responsibilities to the contractor in exchange for the extra long term margin they expect to make out of it.
If you pop over to Greater Auckland you will see that they fully agree with you.
Whoa,
"…NZTA said in February the project’s estimated costs would over-run by $190m to $1b…"
That is a difference of $810 million, which makes that a total wild guess of a number.
It looks to me like CPB massively underbid to get the work and/or underestimated the complexity and are now trying to blackmail the government by threatening to pull the pin. Another legacy of the genius of the minister for everything, Steven Joyce. And National like to go on how they are better managers of the economy!
NZTA are spineless and utterly committed to roads. They’ll want to fold in a jiffy. the question is – will the government take their advice to fold?
The previous government was happy to knowingly accept woefully underbid tenders. Then construction companies started going under.
If I'm correct, it's one of the things this government has changed.
This government must make sure the blame is sheeted home to where it belongs. In Simon Bridges' lap.
"…This government must make sure the blame is sheeted home to where it belongs. In Simon Bridges' lap…"
Just as long as once they've drawn the picture, they don't give the crayons to Simon. He'll probably just try and eat them.
I've never liked the PPP model.
It transfers all the risks to the State, while any upsides go to the private contractor, in return for keeping the liability off the Government books. Until it turns to shit, as so many have around the world.
We should have looked at the glaring examples from the UK, in particular.
The other problem is that the expertise to manage, assess and cost projects, has been lost from NZTA, with that being left to private firms.
Rest homes will be the next to come under the spotlight.
Whoops. I was going to comment on this the day before yesterday when it was first noted, but deleted it because it wasn't too clear to me from the info linked to just how serious the problems were.
I recall debating this project back when Steven Joyce announced it back in 2009. There was considerable opposition at the time, including groups like Option 3 making the case that the whole damned thing wasn't necessary.
Having lived in the immediate area for some years I was always a bit skeptical of the original price, it was always going to be challenging terrain to build a modern road through and the costs were always going to blow out. In the end it was plain that Joyce only sold it on the basis of a lowball bid.
Well I'd like to think all the poor bastards who've had to work on this job did their best, but it looks like they're only going to prove the critics of the project right.
And slam one big nail into the PPP concept.
NZTA will see the upside if the Transmission Gully PPP even gets close to failure because they will see it damaging the NZInfra PPP light rail proposal, and in effect supporting their own non-PPP light rail proposal.
Of course it's not the only big roading PPP they've got going at the moment: Puhoi-Warkworth SH1 is still ongoing. I haven't heard any trouble there (other than Covid-19 infections and stoppages).
But for the super-major jobs I could easily foresee NZTA preferring Alliance-type contracts over the fully commercially independent PPP forms.
The stakes are now in the multiple billions.
Some background as to the parties involved and in particular section 19 "Disengagement".
Wellington Gateway Partnership
https://www.nzta.govt.nz/projects/wellington-northern-corridor/transmission-gully-motorway/partnerships/#wgp
https://www.nzta.govt.nz/assets/projects/transmission-gully/docs/schedule-19.pdf
I'm intrigued by what might be hidden by those big bits of black. Especially since a quick skim of the visible bits didn't catch anything about disengagement before opening the works.
All of that means we wait even longer for the Manawatu Gorge replacement road.
I understand 800 workers will be moving to in and around Palmy for the project. It will be a welcomed boost to the district's involved- Manawatu and Tararua.
At the same time this becomes an obvious task for change in govt – first catch your MOW and then treat it right so it flourishes – find our indigenous ancient govt depts and breed 'em strong and good, check for efficiency and enjoy effectiveness.
I'm all for a reboot of MOW. Even with those accusations of inefficiency. benean
There is a lot to be said for a state agency that does trades training.
Farrar watch:
Dutifully, and following on from Simon's attack on Ashley Bloomfield yesterday, David has begun his attack on the DG of Health.
What one does the other does. It's a two pronged attack.
Scary times in Russia, especially for medicos. I'spose defenestration is easier and quicker than polonium tea.
https://www.vox.com/2020/5/6/21248553/coronavirus-russia-doctors-windows-death
Gosh Andre !
Thats shocking .I have no doubt Putin is behind it all, and most probably thosw US medics who commit suicide every year
Even before the pandemic, about 60% of emergency physicians experienced burnout in their career, according to the American College of Emergency Physicians. About 400 physicians commit suicide each year.
He's highly likely to be involved in these European nurses deaths too
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/31/trez-m31.html
And in NY
https://www.businessinsider.com.au/coronavirus-pandemic-doctor-ambulance-worker-suicides-how-to-help-2020-4?r=US&IR=T
Ya reckon Pootee dunnit? Wow, he's got his pedipalps everywhere!
Maybe they were part time journalists and/or opposition politicians.
Plenty more where they came from.
/
https://twitter.com/MoscowTimes/status/1255829254878576643
Should have asked the Cubans
https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/latenightlive/cuban-doctors-battling-covid-19-around-the-globe/12217896
So apparently the knobhead on the tv3 breakfast show thinks he'd do a better job at running the country than the much vaunted JA
Mark Richardson slams Government, says he'd do a better job as Prime Minister
Highly doubtful seeing he couldn't even be the best in his chosen field and, unless you count being an insufferable shock jock for effect, fails on tv as the biggest tool on the home renno show, not to mention making cricket unlistenable with pathetic analysis and obnoxious wittering.
There may be a piss up in a brewery he could organise, but I wouldn’t bet on it.
Maybe he's angry because The Block just got canned for this year.
The worth of TV3's schedule has grown exponentially.
The rampant egotism of these media morons is incredible.
Careful, mate. If you carry on like that there'll be a puff piece in Stuff about poor Mark Richardson being bullied by horrible internet trolls and how his kids cry themselves to sleep at night. It's been a while since the last one.
Ah but is he going to put his money where his mouth is? Stand as candidate for the Nats, I mean. Hosking's too scared. Talk is cheap but folks make character judgments on actions, not talk.
Talk is cheap? I suspect he's paid many times the income of an essential worker.
Murica
https://www.tiktok.com/@shawn_quinn/video/6821873859562605830
So. Under Level 2 those pathetic bastards who have been pining for attention from their hairdresser can be comforted that the Orders from Above have dictated that masks must be worn.
Because, I guess, it's a tad difficult to faff with some narcissist's locks from a safe distance.
Cast your minds back just a wee while to when Uncle Bleeding Ashley was steadfast in his determination that those providing homebased care for frail elderly and disabled need only wear a mask if the person being cared for was a confirmed or probable Covid 19 case.
What the fucking fuck?
Good point, Rosemary.
While I know this suggestion may raise yr hackles…
I would like to see all in-home carers/assistants etc bought back under the DHB umbrella, rather than working for all the various middle-men, ticket clipping parasite companies. Companies that are seeking to make a profit from the allocation of the health budget that provides care for the elderly, disabled etc.
Everything under the DHB is a profoundly depressing thought, although I agree about the ticket clippers.
Maybe a compromise is non-profit NGOs?
Non profit NGOs could work. Anything to get away from the race-to-the-bottom/tiered essential services.
This has been the call for years…those needing support services being caught in the middle of the pissing contests between the MOH, DHBs and ACC and the various contracted providers.
None of that lot ever, ever put the needs of those requiring care to the front.
The commodification of the sick, elderly and disabled has be a utter disaster.
There was a reason social democracy created and used the social model in the area of health care.
Because the monetary model has never worked in health. Only dullards and ideological purists think their business model in health works.
jesus fucking christ.
Did they say if it's workers only or customers as well? (it's not clear from the MSM).
"Jesus fucking christ"
Yep..and a few more expletive.
It was Ardern. She said…'….masks, masks for the hairdressers '. At the one pm stand up.
I went a bit apoplectic.
I hope her ears caught fire.
Metaphorically speaking that is.
And it's only very recently that the guidelines for PPE use have been updated.
Healthcare workers at all levels were crying out for masks and 'permission' to use them for weeks. Having some bureaucrat repeatedly state that wearing even the basic surgeons mask was unnecessary unless there was disease present has done real damage to the relationship between frontline healthcare workers and those at the top who set the rules.
I guess it comes down to the personal experience of the politician or bureaucrat (or the science communicator du jour).
Clearly they have a much better understanding of proximity issues for hairdressers than they do of the same for frontline healthcare workers.
Did a report on the problems with homecare and PPEs come out today? (haven't caught up yet).
I am just loving this Lincoln Project work against Trump.
This time they undo the Trump family relationship with China:
They aren't just going after the Fourth Dorkman of the Shitpocalypse, they're going after his remoras too.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5JYjrKeHLY
Today Grant Robertson said that the government is to walk back its planned 2020 budget focus on redirection of the economy as to global warming because of the extra debt and a priority of focus on economic growth.
He notes the higher debt in Europe and USA and his rationale provides them reason to do little more than they are. It's a blame the GFC, and or the pandemic, for limited goverrnment will/capacity to deal with GW.
Positive – it should provide the oxygen for the Greens to return to parliament.
Negative – the government is wedded to the capitalist debt model and will be complicit in using this as an excuse for continued poverty, homelessness and a second rate health care/welfare/aged care system.
This is exactly the wrong decision. The New Zealand economy (despite reasonable support during lock-down) is going to emerge in a highly depressed (high unemployment) state. In this state there are more real resources available to be put to use implementing the economic redirection (and lower employment in the status quo parts of the economy).
The financing (how you pay the people many who desperately want the work anyway) is particularly irrelevant in this case, it neither restrains the governments ability to employ people towards its initiative or negatively impacts how the economy performs while implementing these reforms.
No doubt Robertson was got to by treasury boffins and its a real shame. He needs to be well enough informed to put them (and their ideology) in their place when this happens rather than undermining the government and their ability to implement public policy.
"The government was focused not only on rebuilding the economy, but on rebuilding it better, he added.
"In the midst of the crisis and our desire to return to a sense of normality, we should all acknowledge that things weren't perfect before Covid-19 hit us.
"There are few times in life when the clock is reset. Now is the time we should address these long-term issues. It is a privilege many countries won't have. It's not one we should squander," he said."
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/416076/grant-robertson-budget-2020-will-be-far-from-business-as-usual
Not sure where you draw that conclusion from….might pay to wait until next week.
Looks like most of the restrictions in the first 10 Days of Level 4 lockdown were not legal. Oops!
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12330349
Why does it matter. All but a few idiots complied with them voluntarily, because they made sense.
Thank you so much Water Care, our Mayor and council – It is MAY and we are now told there is to be a water restriction put into place. How we are not well served by some of our leaders. Goff is all smile and wave. "We have had a long, hot summer with less than half of our normal rainfall, which means our storage dams have fallen to around 46.5 per cent, well below the 76 per cent average for this time of year." So we act NOW
TOTAL INCOMPETENCE
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12330268
Did you not know the water restrictions were coming? It’s been signposted for months. We were told weeks ago that restrictions were almost certainly likely but imposition of them had been delayed while the level 4 lockdown was in place in order not to put anyone under extra stress.
Why wasn't this in place in February graduated in implementation e.g. turn of tap when brushing teeth, toilets only flush when its brown, water gardens by hand held hoses, no washing of cars, etc
In August 2019 we had this August Average 89% Aug 19 73%. And then we had "Auckland: Record-breaking low summer rainfall. Depending on which rain gauge you look at, summer 2019/20 was the driest, 2nd-driest or 3rd-driest summer on record." yes with all this preceding our current situation I call it Incompetence some may try to argue with the FACTS.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/environment/climate-news/119936610/northland-drought-whangrei-records-driest-summer-since-wwii
https://www.stuff.co.nz/environment/115144382/auckland-water-shortage-storage-dams-remain-lower-than-last-year
so you are now demanding water restrictions from when exactly?….mid 2019?
January, with increasing severity of restrictions, as the drough continued Is that good enough for you !!
Another who challenges others, OK then what about your thoughts/contribution then ?? was Mat the correct time then ??
I think you unreasonably expect perfection…the hoped for summer rain hasnt eventuated and there has been a call to restrict use for a month ..
"Under usual circumstances restrictions would kick in at about 51 per cent during autumn, Jaduram said.
Amid a dry start to the month and on the back of a summer that saw just 35 per cent of average rainfall, the city's storage dams on Thursday dropped to 49.7 per cent – the first time they'd fallen below 50 per cent since the drought of 1993/1994, when storage levels got down to a frightening 36 per cent.
The historical average for this time of year is about 77 per cent."
https://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/news/auckland/auckland-under-voluntary-water-restrictions-as-dam-levels-sink-below-50-per-cent/
You could increase storage capacity but I suspect youd object to the rate increase to fund it…..but given CC I expect youll have plenty of opportunity in the not too distant future.
25 Feb "Auckland's longest dry spell on record was finally broken last weekend, with Saturday's rainfall marking the first time there's been more than 1mm of rain in 47 days. " add this to what I liked from August 19 position- So we had a record dry period in Feb and No action from Watercare. I think action was required. And comparing to 1993 Auckland then did not have the Waikato river available as a water source IMO is nothing more than diversion tactics, and that Watercare was nothing more than Hoping the Weather would cover for inaction !!!
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2020/02/weather-new-zealand-s-drought-set-to-be-broken-as-march-spells-increased-rain.html
Agreed pat. Judging exactly when to bring in water restrictions is a tricky business to get right.
I saw the process happening in Wellington one year, and it was fascinating just how much care and judgement was put into it. In the end we were saved by decent rain that arrived with less than 48hrs to spare.
Forward planning is incompetence now??
The nil rainfall is the lowest for 4 months ever recorded for Auckland.
It is not the current low water level so much as the forward warnings that Auckland's summer supply is at risk.
So said the Head of Watercare.
The big issue is that if Watercare was not pumping Waikato water for all it was worth for the past few months Auckland would be in an absolutely chronic position.
micky, are you privy to information you can share off the top of your head on the status of Watercare's efforts to increase how much it can take from the Waikato at higher flow times?
I haven't found anything definitive online, but I get the impression it's still tied up in the consenting process.
You get some good hints here in the request for Crown intervention in the consenting application process from this Stuff article from February this year:
https://www.stuff.co.nz/environment/119610027/calls-for-crown-intervention-as-aucklands-waikato-river-water-application-stagnates
It's on Parker's desk, and I betcha it's a good case for waiting for the RMA reforms that will enable a whole bunch more major work accelerations.
As well as the majority of Auckland's water already coming from outside the Auckland region, Watercare took over management of the Waikato District water system a couple of years ago.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/112886576/aucklands-watercare-to-take-over-waikato-district-services
When the government announces its massive list of the "shovel ready" projects, I have a sneaking suspicion that Watercare will be called upon to be the central procurement agency for the water-focused infrastructure.
Then why as per my above comment was the August 19 storage 73% vs an average of 89%. Not sure how starting with a storage level 16% below the average with what has transpired over this summer is Forward warning of risk ?? that requires urgent action now- To me someone has been missing in action. I understand you are not of recent vintage from reading your contributions but I can recall 1993 and calls such as: placing a 2l bottle of water/brick in the cistern of a toilet to save water and the flush it if its brown, and the need to take action of a leaky tap and more. Such calls have been lacking under the current situation- We have been saved by the Waikato river uptake this time.
And in Feb Watercare requested govt to take more from the Waikato
https://www.stuff.co.nz/environment/119610027/calls-for-crown-intervention-as-aucklands-waikato-river-water-application-stagnates
They put that application in to the Waikato Regional Council 7 years ago.
The request in February was for direct call-in from the Minister since they'd been dicked around for so long.
Seems like quite a different system to Whangarei. Your "Stage 1" restriction says no domestic hose use. Whangarei went to "Level 2" on February 26 which banned sprinklers and irrigation systems. Then we went to "Level 3" on April 16 which bans hose use, gardens can still be watered with a bucket.
He’s dead set on starting a war.
https://twitter.com/nycsouthpaw/status/1258144806028685318
In another move aimed at consolidating control over policy and messaging, the Trump administration is sending a White House loyalist to serve in a key Defense Department policy role that officials are worried is aimed at weeding out civilians not loyal to the president, Foreign Policy has learned.
Michael Cutrone, who has been detailed as Vice President Mike Pence’s top national security aide for South Asia, is set to arrive at the Pentagon to serve in a behind-the-scenes role vetting Defense Department officials for loyalty to the president, according to two current administration officials.
https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/05/06/trump-pence-pentagon-point-man-disloyal/
'It's fantastic': MP thrilled flights to Queenstown resuming"
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/416104/it-s-fantastic-mp-thrilled-flights-to-queenstown-resuming
Yep…might be when the taxpayer is paying for your ticket….there might be a different response from the public when the fares are released
Listening to the National Party over the last two weeks, I was under the impression Australia was almost 'business as usual' and achieving the same results as New Zealand. Not if this report is correct.
Scott Morrison wants Australia to get back on the job. But what does a Covid-safe workplace look like?
I'd already thought it must be closer to us, if this was true
Barry Soper’s Shock! Horror! Government Bombshell! ‘They Had No Right To Lock Us Up!’ Column from this arvo has has undergone quite a substantial re-write on the online Herald after the A-G released a statement saying that the so-called leaked advice from Crown Law that Soper received was just a draft report and not the final advice given to the government.
I really can't get excited about this from Soper. So what? Did they want to be right but dead? Or have a loved one die? I'd certainly support some retrospective legislation to stop the money hungry suing the government for money. Other than that yawn!
Latest Stunt:
David Parker is going to ask the Speaker to refer Simon Bridges to the privileges committee:
https://i.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/121452782/coronavirus-government-escalates-stoush-over-lockdown-legal-advice-refers-national-leader-simon-bridges-to-the-privileges-committee
A left wing solution to a mutation. Those who know more than me can explain the findings from the report in this LA Times piece.
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-05-05/mutant-coronavirus-has-emerged-more-contagious-than-original
As Rationalist nation say – we need a UBI and we need to keep a lid on this. Corona ant going away and a mad push to get back to work will undo all we have done.