Until we see the text of the TPPA, we won’t know the extent of its impact on our health, environment and sovereignty.
However, we do know we didn’t get any magic beans for our cow.
Thats true Paul. And without knowing any of the details of the deal, in full, we can’t organise protest and action around the very worst aspects of the deal.
Mind you, will a political shitstorm in the States while they are full swing into election campaigning, actually provide the people of the 12 nations with a glimmer of hope that the deal won’t be ratified? (See TPP Roundup post).
The lives of NZer’s and the protections of our environment are beyond our control and are now in the hands of the Americans. They decide, not us. We are now at their mercy.
“Thats true Paul. And without knowing any of the details of the deal, in full, we can’t organise protest and action around the very worst aspects of the deal.”
Without knowing the details – how will you know there is anything to protest about?
Oh thats right. The TPP is a totally benign deal that will in no way affect the citizens of the countries involved in any detrimental way at all.
Thats why we don’t have groups like Doctors For Healthy Trade, It’s Our Future and Action Stations and respected academics like Jane Kelsey spending the last few years…………..oh yeah, there might be a problem with the TPP. And those thousands that tuned out in the streets to protest. Just “rent a crowd” eh?
Well one thing we know already James is that under the TPP NZ can’t ban the sale of NZ property to investors from any of the countries signed to the TPP. So, the action that the OIO took in blocking the sale of the Lochivar Station to overseas buyers wouldn’t be allowed to happen once the TPP is ratified.
A massive free for all NZ land grab by wealthy overseas investors. You OK with that? that whole “tenant in our own land” buzz?
Hi Rosie, could you please give me specific examples of how my life and the protection of my environment is no longer to be within my control? How am I personally now to be at the mercy of the Americans?
Groan. I can’t give you specific examples of how your life will be affected because as yet, we don’t have access to the full text of the deal. Hence my initial comment to Paul re planning protest and action. No plans without knowledge of the text.
Our future as NZer’s is at the mercy of the Americans as they are the ones that trigger the TPP being signed off once they ratify it. It’s out of our hands.
In the meantime maybe don’t plan to buy a house in Auckland or get cancer in the next few years.
Yes, I read it that way too. I was winding music4menz up – the comment made was kind of a smart ar*e one. He/she is asking for definites when there aren’t any, especially without knowing what part of the social hierarchy they fit into, and how vulnerable or not they may be the effects of the TPP, further down the track, should it be ratified.
Also, everyone I know who is into music is a lot cooler than that.
Farrell: “this ruling will lead to new pressures to limit the kinds of indiscriminate surveillance against citizens that many countries — not just the United States — have engaged in over the last 15 years. “
Guyon Espiner this morning has gone up in my estimation. Wouldn’t let Joyce away with turning a TPP interview into an anti labour (‘it’s their fault) rant or trying ‘Look!-The point is…blah blah….’diversions. (Only just stopped short of calling him a liar.)
Or how novopay is going….relax he’ll be back to giving him a spongebath and shaitsu in a few months as Gluon’s just a more subtle govt cheerleader than the likes of Hoskins/Henry etc
@Rodel Agreed. Espiner can be very good with his questioning despite his right-leaning views.
The best part was when he got Joyce to admit that the policy that is in force in Australia, where only permanent residents can buy a house and where overseas people investing in housing must build a house, is allowable under TPPA. So Labour can stick to this policy.
My understanding is a new government can renegotiate the whole thing. Labour has said it will not be bound by some parts of the agreement, if it ever comes into force.
@Pat Not quite that simple. Grant Robertson has explained Labour’s position here (from the Herald today):
“The Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) includes a non-discrimination provision which would prevent the New Zealand Government banning foreign nations from buying property in New Zealand.
This provision went against of Labour’s bottom lines for supporting the deal.
Mr Robertson said: “We will take a good look at the agreement and we are reserving the right to review and renegotiate.
“There is always the scope to review them, there are just consequences if we make a law, there are consequences if we go against the agreement.
“We will have to look into what all of those are and balance that up.”
The TPP also includes provisions which allow investors to seek compensation from the Government if it breaches its investment obligations.
This meant if a Government banned foreign investment in housing it could face a legal challenge from overseas investors or companies.”
Any legal challenge to a law made by Parliament would take years.
It’s a trade agreement rather than a treaty. Not sure if they have the same status. But if other signatories have get-outs, as Australia appears to have on housing, then would NZ not be able to argue that should apply here too?
Who exactly would sue NZ in the situation where it changed legislation on housing?
Australia have EXISTING restrictions….it is the change that opens the possibility of the ISDS provisions being enacted.
Am not a lawyer but i imagine a case could be made by say a large real estate company ( or even an investment fund) that has a substantial proportion of its commissions (or portfolio) paid by overseas investors in say the Auckland market if offshore investment in the NZ property market was banned……whether this would be successful or not is irrelevant as it would cost the Gov to defend and even before the policy was made the possibility would have to be considered…am sure sharper minds than mine could come up with a myriad of potential scenarios.
Attention all aficionados of mondo bizarro television:
Jamie “Lock Up His Sisters” Whyte is on Paul Henry this morning!
TV3, Wednesday 7 October 2015
At 7:55 this morning, after a ridiculous interview with “Boobs on Bikes” organiser Steve Crow, Paul Henry made an ominous announcement: “Coming up after the news, the daily panel, today featuring Mary Lambie and Jamie Whyte.”
Mary Lambie is Jim Mora’s wife, and can be relied on for saying something anodyne and unmemorable. So she is about as dependable a guest as it is possible to get.
Jamie “Lock Up His Sisters” Whyte, however, is another can of worms entirely. He is the disgraced former ACT leader who managed in his brief few months in that rôle to come across as the worst ACT leader of them all, displaying an embarrassing level of ignorance about nearly everything and, memorably, positioning ACT as the pro-incest party.
So it’s high quality commentary as usual on Paul Henry’s show!
How does Mary Lambie get a spot on a political panel?
Because she is Mora’s wife?
The fact she is seen as a welcome guest on Henry’s show demonstrates the political bias within the Mora household.
No wonder he gets away with hat awful show the Panel. The Tories must love him.
And hasn’t he ruined Checkpoint?
I agree but hopefully he will be almost gone soon. Once the new programme format starts Mora will be reduced to 1 hour 3-4 pm. Which sort of suits me I do not like the current host/format of 1-4 so switch to BBC. I am in a little quandy with Checkpoint as by taking Campbell on board we lose Mary who IMHO is one of the best talents RNZ have. I don’t see Campbell ever being a strong interviewer and as much as I like him for the Human Interest story we need strong personalities when interviewing people that need to be held to account. Checkpoint is not necessarily the best use of his talent. Which is probably why he got the job.
This past fortnight makes me realise just how good it is to have Kim available she can actually think on her feet and if the subject tries to fluff around she zeros in and kills them.
No wonder he gets away with that awful show the Panel. The Tories must love him.
And hasn’t he ruined Checkpoint?
No, there’s a difference. David Cundliffe was without any doubt, for whatever reason, a failure. By contrast, Whyte’s catastrophic command of ACT, that doomed ferry of the damned, was a disgrace. Someone who progresses instantly from anonymity to being the butt of public ridicule, without achieving even a modicum of respect in between, has been disgraced.
Right from his disastrously inept first public appearance last year, Whyte was obviously the least eloquent and the least informed of all the political leaders on display. He then, almost incredibly, compounded his dire public image by stating his tolerance for incest.
Only the sort of bewildered souls who voted for ACT would countenance “philosophical exploration” about incest.*
Whyte’s performance on Paul Henry this morning confirmed that impression of intellectual mediocrity. He even, foolishly, quoted Margaret Thatcher’s ideological quip about any man of thirty who travels on public transport being a failure, then undermined himself by admitting he travelled by train in London.
* The question must be asked: how far have the people who propound and/or defend such “philosophical explorations” of incest taken these “philosophical explorations”?
Well, I have to admit that I haven’t ever seriously contemplated taking my sister or my mother as a wife. That sort of philosophical exploration is best left to the broader, subtler, more refined type of intellect that is instinctually drawn to the party of Hide, Garrett, Whyte and Seymour.
For God’s sake why do you waste your time. Stop watching/listening to anything on MediaWorks. Choose something with a modicum of intelligence to follow.
I stopped the day Campbell left. And when RNZ start doing much the same on some of their programmes I limit my time there. Thanks goodness for the BBC World Service.
At 7:55 this morning, after a ridiculous interview with “Boobs on Bikes” organiser Steve Crow, Paul Henry made an ominous announcement: “Coming up after the news, the daily panel, today featuring Mary Lambie and Jamie Whyte.”
Sorry, Ron, but the BBC is even worse, more ideologically biased and politically controlled, than TV3 and Radio New Zealand.
You perhaps are thinking of the good BBC, which brought us such gems as Dad’s Army. Since Alastair Campbell and Tony Blair took an axe to it when it dared to tell the truth, briefly, in 2004, it has more than ever become the British state broadcaster—about as trustworthy and independent as Pravda, XinWa or Fox News.
Nope I was thinking of the BBC World Service that is broadcast in Auckland.
I am not worrying about the political side of things but the articles on World Service are very good. Way ahead of anything we get on RNZ.
Morrissey. I worry about you watching Henry. Its pollutant stuff.
Hope you’re taking medication or preventative therapy.
I cant grab the remote fast enough when he appears.
Actually yes I can with practice, but I did hear his manic
child-cackle for a millisecond last night… couldn’t sleep for hours.
so now jonkey nact has signed the corporate takeover of New Zealand via TPPA… (unless good Americans with a social conscience stop TPPA in its tracks)
….i guess we need an new corporate flag to match our new corporate controlled country …Red Peak anyone? ( afterall this is jonkey’s and James Shaw’s favourite choice)
“the Red Peak flag was created by a Xero product design director (Dustin), has had its online campaign coordinated by another Xero associate (Simpson), and was included in the top 40 while the Xero CEO (Drury) was one of the dozen on the selection panel; perhaps we should ask how has the Greens relationship with that company changed recently?
Two years ago:
Norman issued a media release yesterday questioning whether Palantir, a firm co-founded by wealthy US technology investor and Xero shareholder Peter Thiel, had been hired by the Government to spy on New Zealanders…”
LOL’s the ultimate slap down of NZ citizens, to have an electronic security and surveillance company logo as it’s own branded flag.
I never got excited about the red peak design. I could never see it as something real and meaningful to consider as long as Key was in control of the flag “process”. Maybe if the flag process had been led by the people instead, it might have been different.
I also couldn’t take it seriously when I spend days staring out the window to a sea of new buildings that make up the relentless suburban sprawl of North Wellington, and all I see is the red peak design in the Tekton logo on the building wrap:
I know it’s not the same but it blurs together if you let your mind enter a numb zone, a zone that lets you slip away from the pain of what has become of our country in recent years.
+100 Rosie…and not another vacuous , ubiquitous Red Peak!..maybe you could take up stained glass window making( books in the library, also do- it- yourself kits)…and design yourself a beautiful colourful window to block the bloody thing out …a maidenhair fern in front of a stained glass window which lets in the refracted light could be just the thing to block out the Tekton red peak logo
Gosh that description of the stain glass window with the maidenhair fern on the windowsill took me right back to the memory of sitting in someones villa restoration in the eighties. A pleasant enough memory 🙂
It’s an environmental wasteland up here on The Development. We have responded by planting native trees and shrubs on our borders. That should block out the sight of the sprawl in a few years and bring life to the area by attracting birds and insects. (+ purple flowers to attract the bees)
If Morning Report is going to discuss significant topics, such as a difference in pay between men and women, why can’t they interview people who are actually talking about the subject rather than an entirely different matter?
This morning the first person spoken to about lower pay for women than men came out with the following –
“A school librarian, who asked not to be identified, said gender bias was unmistakable at her work.
“I have been employed as a teacher in a school and I’m now employed as support staff at a school – I feel like I’m the same person with the same abilities and skills and qualifications and work ethic, but the way I’m treated is significantly different.””
What on earth does her complaint have to do with gender bias? It is solely about the fact that in a school the frontline, teaching, staff were treated differently than people in support roles. It doesn’t have anything at all to do with her sex. If it had we wouldn’t be this complaint at all as she wouldn’t be treated any differently as a female support worker than she was as a female teacher.
Don’t the people trying to produce Morning Report understand that interviews on a topic should have something to do with that topic?
+100…what a hero…enjoyed the tv series Wallander ….must watch out for his books
…”Mankell was known for his rights activisim, and joined the 2010 flotilla trying to break the Israeli blockade on the Gaza Strip…
“He said he wanted to create a situation where “Palestinians are not treated like second-class citizens in their own country, a sort of apartheid system.”
Mankell’s collection of dark novels about the Swedish police inspector Wallander brought the author international fame after it was made into a television series by the BBC starring Oscar-nominated actor and director Kenneth Branagh.”
I have just read the front page of the Herald ,Top story the romance of Key’s son Max.No wonder the Herald is giving the paper away free for a few weeks, Wh the hell would pay money for the trash. Once the largest daily paper in NZ it is now reduced to local gossip and Tory propaganda Oh fpo the days when the daily newspaper . was something to look forward too. However at least we have the Standard . Which is not to be missed on any day.
+1 – by the way – my theory is that Max Key (does he even work?) is being groomed to collect the 18 – 29 year old votes next election for Pops. The herald is the propaganda site for the grooming to the public.
( nice for some: thinking here about high suicide rate amongst Maori youth, NZ unemployed and top New Zealand graduates who cant afford to carry on and do university postgrad studies in their own country , even although invited to by their professors , because they are already overburdened with student debt….not to mention the fact that nactional has cut postgrad student loans)
Yeah, and to watch the ejaculate smeared all over TVOne News tonight re The Ponce Key’s top secret trip to Afghanistan…….well, you’d think he’d flown a Tiger Moth low over the mountains of Bamyan, touched down and single-handedly slain 40 baddies……
‘The War-Hero Ponce Key !’ what ? Jeezuz ! TV “Boys’ Own” One !
Just to have ago at Sirdom while we all live in Serfdom
Every time I see JK as initials for the PM i cant help but see Sir John Kirwan in there so to avoid any further unnecessary confusion I propose the PM become the patron of what ever depression group Sir JK is promoting as a way of atoning for his constant alcoholic depressed rhetoric because most of it isnt believed by the real world that the majority of the population live with
Anyone who can smile for the camera and speak the bs he does is really out of it and expect to be believed and if it is the truth well God help us all to 2017
Joins the search…..in a suit ? Hope for the sake of the boy and family and friends we’re not to be reminded of Pike River politics ? Hope it’s not a case of 0800CrosbyTextorDisasterLine. Couldn’t be……there are depths even they wouldn’t plumb, aren’t there ?
“Hope it’s not a case of 0800CrosbyTextorDisasterLine. Couldn’t be……there are depths even they wouldn’t plumb, aren’t there ?”.
Oh God. Quite possibly.
I don’t know a single person in Horowhenua who didn’t vote for Nathan Guy. Then again, I don’t know a single person in Horowhenua who has a good hard think about anything……………… Although I think there is a small smattering of TS readers up that way. No offence intended towards our comrades in the Horowhenua.
Just been talking to a mate of mine in Auckland……senior union office-holder……(constantly having to check him about his ever more frequent sorties into the Koru Club !)……his comment on The Ponce Key War Hero’s vile Americanism, “……a God-Damn awful place !” re Iraq. My mate’s response – “Who made it a God-Damn awful place FFS ? True that !
The Times UK
“The newspaper reported that the soft drinks giant, a major sponsor of the Olympics, the Fifa World Cup and the Rugby World Cup, has financial links to more than a dozen British scientists, including government health advisers and others who cast doubt on the commonly accepted link between sugary drinks and the obesity crisis.” http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/health/news/article4581174.ece
This video includes personal musings and conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Adam Levy. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). Wherever you look, you'll hear headlines claiming we've passed 1.5 degrees of global warming. And while 2024 saw ...
Photo by Heather M. Edwards on UnsplashHere’s the key news, commentary, reports and debate around Aotearoa’s politics and economy in the week to Feb 10 below. That’s ahead of live chats on the Substack App and The Kākā’s front page on Substack at 5pm with: on his column in The ...
Is there anyone in the world the National Party loves more than a campaign donor? Why yes, there is! They will always have the warmest hello and would you like to slip into something more comfortable for that great god of our age, the High Net Worth Individual.The words the ...
Waste and fraud certainly exist in foreign aid programs, but rightwing celebration of USAID’s dismantling shows profound ignorance of the value of soft power (as opposed to hard power) in projecting US influence and interests abroad by non-military/coercive means (think of “hearts and minds,” “hugs, not bullets,” “honey versus vinegar,” ...
Health New Zealand is proposing to cut almost half of its data and digital positions – more than 1000 of them. The PSA has called on the Privacy Commissioner to urgently investigate the cuts due to the potential for serious consequences for patients. NZNO is calling for an urgent increase ...
We may see a few more luxury cars on Queen Street, but a loosening of rules to entice rich foreigners to invest more here is unlikely to “turbocharge our economic growth”. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate ...
Let us not dance daintily around the elephant in the room. Our politicians who serve us in the present are not honest, certainly not as honest as they should be, and while the right are taking out most of the trophies for warping narratives and literally redefining “facts”, the kiwi ...
A few weeks ago I took a look at public transport ridership in 2024. In today’s post I’m going to be looking a bit deeper at bus ridership. Buses make up the vast majority of ridership in Auckland with 70 million boardings last year out of a total of 89.4 ...
Oh, you know I did itIt's over and I feel fineNothing you could say is gonna change my mindWaited and I waited the longest nightNothing like the taste of sweet declineSongwriters: Chris Shiflett / David Eric Grohl / Nate Mendel / Taylor Hawkins.Hindsight is good, eh?The clarity when the pieces ...
Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on UnsplashHere’s what we’re watching in the week to February 16 and beyond in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty:Monday, February 10The Kākā’s weekly wrap-up of news about politics and the economy is due at midday, followed by webinar for paying subscribers in Substack’s ...
A listing of 23 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, February 2, 2025 thru Sat, February 8, 2025. This week's roundup is again published soleley by category. We are still interested in feedback to hone the categorization, so if ...
Today, I stumbled across a Twitter Meme: the ending of The Lord of the Rings as a Chess scenario: https://x.com/mellon_heads/status/1887983845917564991 It gets across the basic gist. Aragorn and Gandalf offering up ‘material’ at the Morannon allows Frodo and Samwise to catch Sauron unawares – fair enough. But there are a ...
Last week, Kieran McAnulty called out Chris Bishop and Nicola Willis for their claims that Kāinga Ora’s costs were too high.They had claimed Kāinga Ora’s cost were 12% higher than market i.e. private devlopersBut Kāinga Ora’s Chair had already explained why last year:"We're not building to sell, so we'll be ...
Stuff’s Political Editor Luke Malpass - A Fellow at New Zealand IniativeLast week I half-joked that Stuff / The Post’s Luke Malpass1 always sounded like he was auditioning for a job at the New Zealand Initiative.Mountain Tui is a reader-supported publication. For a limited time, subscriptions are 20% off. Thanks ...
At a funeral on Friday, there were A4-sized photos covering every wall of the Dil’s reception lounge. There must have been 200 of them, telling the story in the usual way of the video reel but also, by enlargement, making it more possible to linger and step in.Our friend Nicky ...
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. Is methane the ...
The Government’s idea is that the private sector and Community Housing Providers will fund, build and operate new affordable housing to address our housing crisis. Meanwhile, the Government does not know where almost half of the 1,700 children who left emergency housing actually went. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong ...
Oh, home, let me come homeHome is wherever I'm with youOh, home, let me come homeHome is wherever I'm with youSongwriters: Alexander Ebert / Jade Allyson CastrinosMorena,I’m on a tight time frame this morning. In about an hour and a half, I’ll need to pack up and hit the road ...
This is a post about the Mountain Tui substack, and small tweaks - further to the poll and request post the other day. Please don’t read if you aren’t interested in my personal matters. Thank you all.After oohing-and-aahing about how to structure the Substack model since November, including obtaining ...
This transcript of a recent conversation between the Prime Minister and his chief economic adviser has not been verified.We’ve announced we are the ‘Yes Government’. Do you like it?Yes, Prime Minister.Dreamed up by the PR team. It’s about being committed to growth. Not that the PR team know anything about ...
The other day, Australian Senator Nick McKim issued a warning in the Australian Parliement about the US’s descent into fascim.And of course it’s true, but I lament - that was true as soon as Trump won.What we see is now simply the reification of the intention, planning, and forces behind ...
Among the many other problems associated with Musk/DOGE sending a fleet of teenage and twenty-something cultists to remove, copy and appropriate federal records like social security, medicaid and other supposedly protected data is the fact that the youngsters doing the data-removal, copying and security protocol and filter code over-writing have ...
Jokerman dance to the nightingale tuneBird fly high by the light of the moonOh, oh, oh, JokermanSong by Bob Dylan.Morena folks, I hope this fine morning of the 7th of February finds you well. We're still close to Paihia, just a short drive out of town. Below is the view ...
It’s been an eventful week as always, so here’s a few things that we have found interesting. We also hope everyone had a happy and relaxing Waitangi Day! This week in Greater Auckland We’re still running on summer time, but provided two chewy posts: On Tuesday, a guest ...
Queuing on Queen St: the Government is set to announce another apparently splashy growth policy on Sunday of offering residence visas to wealthy migrants. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in our political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Friday, February 7:PM Christopher ...
The fact that Waitangi ended up being such a low-key affair may mark it out as one of the most significant Waitangi Days in recent years. A group of women draped in “Toitu Te Tiriti” banners who turned their backs on the politicians’ powhiri was about as rough as it ...
Hi,This week’s Flightless Bird episode was about “fake seizure guy” — a Melbourne man who fakes seizures in order to get members of the public to sit on him.The audio documentary (which I have included in this newsletter in case you don’t listen to Flightless Bird) built on reporting first ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Karin Kirk The 119th Congress comes with a price tag. The oil and gas industry gave about $24 million in campaign contributions to the members of the U.S. House and Senate expected to be sworn in January 3, 2025, according to a ...
Early morning, the shadows still long, but you can already feel the warmth building. Our motel was across the road from the historic homestead where Henry Williams' family lived. The evening before, we wandered around the gardens, reading the plaques and enjoying the close proximity to the history of the ...
Thanks folks for your feedback, votes and comments this week. I’ll be making the changes soon. Appreciate all your emails, comments and subscriptions too. I know your time is valuable - muchas gracias.A lot is happening both here and around the world - so I want to provide a snippets ...
Data released today by Statistics NZ shows that unemployment rose to 5.1%, with 33,000 more people out of work than last year said NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi Economist Craig Renney. “The latest data shows that employment fell in Aotearoa at its fastest rate since the GFC. Unemployment rose in 8 ...
The December labour market statistics have been released, showing yet another increase in unemployment. There are now 156,000 unemployed - 34,000 more than when National took office. And having thrown all these people out of work, National is doubling down on cruelty. Because being vicious will somehow magically create the ...
Boarded up homes in Kilbirnie, where work on a planned development was halted. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in our political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, February 5 are;Housing Minister Chris Bishop yesterday announcedKāinga Ora would be stripped of ...
This week Kiwirail and Auckland Transport were celebrating the completion of the summer rail works that had the network shut or for over a month and the start of electric trains to Pukekohe. First up, here’s parts of the press release about the shutdown works. Passengers boarding trains in Auckland ...
Through its austerity measures, the coalition government has engineered a rise in unemployment in order to reduce inflation while – simultaneously – cracking down harder and harder on the people thrown out of work by its own policies. To that end, Social Development Minister Louise Upston this week added two ...
This year, we've seen a radical, white supremacist government ignoring its Tiriti obligations, refusing to consult with Māori, and even trying to legislatively abrogate te Tiriti o Waitangi. When it was criticised by the Waitangi Tribunal, the government sabotaged that body, replacing its legal and historical experts with corporate shills, ...
Poor old democracy, it really is in a sorry state. It would be easy to put all the blame on the vandals and tyrants presently trashing the White House, but this has been years in the making. It begins with Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan and the spirit of Gordon ...
The new school lunches came in this week, and they were absolutely scrumptious.I had some, and even though Connor said his tasted like “stodge” and gave him a sore tummy, I myself loved it!Look at the photos - I knew Mr Seymour wouldn’t lie when he told us last year:"It ...
The tighter sanctions are modelled on ones used in Britain, which did push people off ‘the dole’, but didn’t increase the number of workers, and which evidence has repeatedly shown don’t work. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in our political economy around housing, ...
Catching you up on the morning’s global news and a quick look at the parallels -GLOBALTariffs are backSharemarkets in the US, UK and Europe have “plunged” in response to Trump’s tariffs. And while Mexico has won a one month reprieve, Canada and China will see their respective 25% and 10% ...
This post by Nicolas Reid was originally published on Linked in. It is republished here with permission. Gondolas are often in the news, with manufacturers of ropeway systems proposing them as a modern option for mass transit systems in New Zealand. However, like every next big thing in transport, it’s hard ...
This is a re-post from The Climate BrinkBoth 2023 and 2024 were exceptionally warm years, at just below and above 1.5C relative to preindustrial in the WMO composite of surface temperature records, respectively. While we are still working to assess the full set of drivers of this warmth, it is clear that ...
Hi,I woke up feeling nervous this morning, realising that this weekend Flightless Bird is going to do it’s first ever live show. We’re heading to a sold out (!) show in Seattle to test the format out in front of an audience. If it works, we’ll do more. I want ...
From the United-For-Now States of America comes the thrilling news that a New Zealander may be at the very heart of the current coup. Punching above our weight on the world stage once more! Wait, you may be asking, what New Zealander? I speak of Peter Thiel, made street legal ...
Even Stevens: Over the 33 years between 1990 and 2023 (and allowing for the aberrant 2020 result) the average level of support enjoyed by the Left and Right blocs, at roughly 44.5 percent each, turns out to be, as near as dammit, identical.WORLDWIDE, THE PARTIES of the Left are presented ...
Back in 2023, a "prominent political figure" went on trial for historic sex offences. But we weren't allowed to know who they were or what political party they were "prominent" in, because it might affect the way we voted. At the time, I said that this was untenable; it was ...
I'm going, I'm goingWhere the water tastes like wineI'm going where the water tastes like wineWe can jump in the waterStay drunk all the timeI'm gonna leave this city, got to get awayI'm gonna leave this city, got to get awayAll this fussing and fighting, man, you know I sure ...
Waitangi Day is a time to honour Te Tiriti o Waitangi and stand together for a just and fair Aotearoa. Across the motu, communities are gathering to reflect, kōrero, and take action for a future built on equity and tino rangatiratanga. From dawn ceremonies to whānau-friendly events, there are ...
Subscribe to Mountain Tūī ! Where you too can learn about exciting things from a flying bird! Tweet.Yes - I absolutely suck at marketing. It’s a fact.But first -My question to all readers is:How should I set up the Substack model?It’s been something I’ve been meaning to ask since November ...
Here’s the key news, commentary, reports and debate around Aotearoa’s political economy on politics and in the week to Feb 3:PM Christopher Luxon began 2025’s first day of Parliament last Tuesday by carrying on where left off in 2024, letting National’s junior coalition partner set the political agenda and dragging ...
The PSA have released a survey of 4000 public service workers showing that budget cuts are taking a toll on the wellbeing of public servants and risking the delivery of essential services to New Zealanders. Economists predict that figures released this week will show continued increases in unemployment, potentially reaching ...
The Prime Minister’s speech 10 days or so ago kicked off a flurry of commentary. No one much anywhere near the mainstream (ie excluding Greens supporters) questioned the rhetoric. New Zealand has done woefully poorly on productivity for a long time and we really need better outcomes, and the sorts ...
President Trump on the day he announced tariffs against Mexico, Canada and China, unleashing a shock to supply chains globally that is expected to slow economic growth and increase inflation for most large economies. Photo: Getty ImagesLong stories short, the top six things in our political economy around housing, climate ...
Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on UnsplashHere’s what we’re watching in the week to February 9 and beyond in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty:Monday, February 3Politics: New Zealand Government cabinet meeting usually held early afternoon with post-cabinet news conference possible at 4 pm, although they have not been ...
Trump being Trump, it won’t come as a shock to find that he regards a strong US currency (bolstered by high tariffs on everything made by foreigners) as a sign of America’s virility, and its ability to kick sand in the face of the world. Reality is a tad more ...
A listing of 24 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, January 26, 2025 thru Sat, February 1, 2025. This week's roundup is again published soleley by category. We are still interested in feedback to hone the categorization, so if ...
What seems to be the common theme in the US, NZ, Argentina and places like Italy under their respective rightwing governments is what I think of as “the politics of cruelty.” Hate-mongering, callous indifference in social policy-making, corporate toadying, political bullying, intimidation and punching down on the most vulnerable with ...
If you are confused, check with the sunCarry a compass to help you alongYour feet are going to be on the groundYour head is there to move you aroundSo, stand in the place where you liveSongwriters: Bill Berry / Michael Mills / Michael Stipe / Peter Buck.Hot in the CityYesterday, ...
Shane Jones announced today he would be contracting out his thinking to a smarter younger person.Reclining on his chaise longue with a mouth full of oysters and Kina he told reporters:Clearly I have become a has-been, a palimpsest, an epigone, a bloviating fossil. I find myself saying such things as: ...
Warning: This post contains references to sexual assaultOn Saturday, I spent far too long editing a video on Tim Jago, the ACT Party President and criminal, who has given up his fight for name suppression after 2 years. He voluntarily gave up just in time for what will be a ...
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. Is global warming ...
Our low-investment, low-wage, migration-led and housing-market-driven political economy has delivered poorer productivity growth than the rest of the OECD, and our performance since Covid has been particularly poor. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in our political economy around housing, climate and poverty this ...
..Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.As far as major government announcements go, a Three Ministers Event is Big. It can signify a major policy development or something has gone Very Well, or an absolute Clusterf**k. When Three Ministers assemble ...
One of those blasts from the past. Peter Dunne – originally neoliberal Labour, then leader of various parties that sought to work with both big parties (generally National) – has taken to calling ...
Completed reads for January: I Am Legend, by Richard Matheson The Black Spider, by Jeremias Gotthelf The Spider and the Fly (poem), by Mary Howitt A Noiseless Patient Spider (poem), by Walt Whitman August Heat, by W.F. Harvey Charlotte’s Web, by E.B. White The Shrinking Man, by Richard Matheson ...
Do its Property Right Provisions Make Sense?Last week I pointed out that it is uninformed to argue that the New Zealand’s apparently poor economic performance can be traced only to poor regulations. Even were there evidence they had some impact, there are other factors. Of course, we should seek to ...
Richard Wagstaff It was incredibly jarring to hear the hubris from the Prime Minister during his recent state of the nation address. I had just spent close to a week working though the stories and thoughts shared with us by nearly 2000 working people as part of our annual Mood ...
Odd fact about the Broadcasting Standards Authority: for the last few years, they’ve only been upholding about 5% of complaints. Why? I think there’s a range of reasons. Generally responsible broadcasters. Dumb complaints. Complaints brought under the wrong standard. Greater adherence to broadcasters’ rights to freedom of expression in the ...
And I said, "Mama, mama, mama, why am I so alone"'Cause I can't go outside, I'm scared I might not make it homeWell I'm alive, I'm alive, but I'm sinking inIf there's anyone at home at your place, darlingWhy don't you invite me in?Don't try to feed me'Cause I've been ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ star is on the rise, having just added the Energy, Local Government and Revenue portfolios to his responsibilities - but there is nothing ambitious about the Government’s new climate targets. Photo: SuppliedLong stories short, the top six things in our political economy around housing, climate ...
New Zealand First has introduced a Member’s Bill aimed at preventing banks from refusing their services to businesses because of the current “Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Framework”. “This Bill ensures fairness and prevents ESG standards from perpetuating woke ideology in the banking sector being driven by unelected, globalist, climate ...
Erica Stanford has reached peak shortsightedness if today’s announcement is anything to go by, picking apart immigration settings piece by piece to the detriment of the New Zealand economy. ...
Our originating document, theTreaty of Waitangi, was signed on February 6, 1840. An agreement between Māori and the British Crown. Initially inked by Ngā Puhi in Waitangi, further signatures were added as it travelled south. The intention was to establish a colony with the cession of sovereignty to the Crown, ...
Te Whatu Ora Chief Executive Margie Apa leaving her job four months early is another symptom of this government’s failure to deliver healthcare for New Zealanders. ...
The Green Party is calling for the Prime Minister to show leadership and be unequivocal about Aotearoa New Zealand’s opposition to a proposal by the US President to remove Palestinians from Gaza. ...
The latest unemployment figures reveal that job losses are hitting Māori and Pacific people especially hard, with Māori unemployment reaching a staggering 9.7% for the December 2024 quarter and Pasifika unemployment reaching 10.5%. ...
Waitangi 2025: Waitangi Day must be community and not politically driven - Shane Jones Our originating document, theTreaty of Waitangi, was signed on February 6, 1840. An agreement between Māori and the British Crown. Initially inked by Ngā Puhi in Waitangi, further signatures were added as it travelled south. ...
Despite being confronted every day with people in genuine need being stopped from accessing emergency housing – National still won’t commit to building more public houses. ...
The Green Party says the Government is giving up on growing the country’s public housing stock, despite overwhelming evidence that we need more affordable houses to solve the housing crisis. ...
Before any thoughts of the New Year and what lies ahead could even be contemplated, New Zealand reeled with the tragedy of Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming losing her life. For over 38 years she had faithfully served as a front-line Police officer. Working alongside her was Senior Sergeant Adam Ramsay ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson will return to politics at Waitangi on Monday the 3rd of February where she will hold a stand up with fellow co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick. ...
Te Pāti Māori is appalled by the government's blatant mishandling of the school lunch programme. David Seymour’s ‘cost-saving’ measures have left tamariki across Aotearoa with unidentifiable meals, causing distress and outrage among parents and communities alike. “What’s the difference between providing inedible food, and providing no food at all?” Said ...
The Government is doubling down on outdated and volatile fossil fuels, showing how shortsighted and destructive their policies are for working New Zealanders. ...
Green Party MP Steve Abel this morning joined Coromandel locals in Waihi to condemn new mining plans announced by Shane Jones in the pit of the town’s Australian-owned Gold mine. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to strengthen its just-announced 2030-2035 Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement and address its woeful lack of commitment to climate security. ...
Today marks a historic moment for Taranaki iwi with the passing of the Te Pire Whakatupua mō Te Kāhui Tupua/Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Bill in Parliament. "Today, we stand together as descendants of Taranaki, and our tūpuna, Taranaki Maunga, is now formally acknowledged by the law as a living tūpuna. ...
Labour is relieved to see Children’s Minister Karen Chhour has woken up to reality and reversed her government’s terrible decisions to cut funding from frontline service providers – temporarily. ...
It is the first week of David Seymour’s school lunch programme and already social media reports are circulating of revolting meals, late deliveries, and mislabelled packaging. ...
The Green Party says that with no-cause evictions returning from today, the move to allow landlords to end tenancies without reason plunges renters, and particularly families who rent, into insecurity and stress. ...
The Government’s move to increase speed limits substantially on dozens of stretches of rural and often undivided highways will result in more serious harm. ...
In her first announcement as Economic Growth Minister, Nicola Willis chose to loosen restrictions for digital nomads from other countries, rather than focus on everyday Kiwis. ...
The Government’s commitment to get New Zealand’s roads back on track is delivering strong results, with around 98 per cent of potholes on state highways repaired within 24 hours of identification every month since targets were introduced, Transport Minister Chris Bishop says. “Increasing productivity to help rebuild our economy is ...
The former Cadbury factory will be the site of the Inpatient Building for the new Dunedin Hospital and Health Minister Simeon Brown says actions have been taken to get the cost overruns under control. “Today I am giving the people of Dunedin certainty that we will build the new Dunedin ...
From today, Plunket in Whāngarei will be offering childhood immunisations – the first of up to 27 sites nationwide, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. The investment of $1 million into the pilot, announced in October 2024, was made possible due to the Government’s record $16.68 billion investment in health. It ...
New Zealand’s strong commitment to the rights of disabled people has continued with the response to an important United Nations report, Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston has announced. Of the 63 concluding observations of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), 47 will be progressed ...
Resources Minister Shane Jones has launched New Zealand’s national Minerals Strategy and Critical Minerals List, documents that lay a strategic and enduring path for the mineral sector, with the aim of doubling exports to $3 billion by 2035. Mr Jones released the documents, which present the Coalition Government’s transformative vision ...
Firstly I want to thank OceanaGold for hosting our event today. Your operation at Waihi is impressive. I want to acknowledge local MP Scott Simpson, local government dignitaries, community stakeholders and all of you who have gathered here today. It’s a privilege to welcome you to the launch of the ...
Racing Minister, Winston Peters has announced the Government is preparing public consultation on GST policy proposals which would make the New Zealand racing industry more competitive. “The racing industry makes an important economic contribution. New Zealand thoroughbreds are in demand overseas as racehorses and for breeding. The domestic thoroughbred industry ...
Business confidence remains very high and shows the economy is on track to improve, Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis says. “The latest ANZ Business Outlook survey, released yesterday, shows business confidence and expected own activity are ‘still both very high’.” The survey reports business confidence fell eight points to +54 ...
Enabling works have begun this week on an expanded radiology unit at Hawke’s Bay Fallen Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital which will double CT scanning capacity in Hawke’s Bay to ensure more locals can benefit from access to timely, quality healthcare, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. This investment of $29.3m in the ...
The Government has today announced New Zealand’s second international climate target under the Paris Agreement, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand will reduce emissions by 51 to 55 per cent compared to 2005 levels, by 2035. “We have worked hard to set a target that is both ambitious ...
Nine years of negotiations between the Crown and iwi of Taranaki have concluded following Te Pire Whakatupua mō Te Kāhui Tupua/the Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Bill passing its third reading in Parliament today, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “This Bill addresses the historical grievances endured by the eight iwi ...
As schools start back for 2025, there will be a relentless focus on teaching the basics brilliantly so all Kiwi kids grow up with the knowledge, skills and competencies needed to grow the New Zealand of the future, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “A world-leading education system is a key ...
Housing Minister Chris Bishop and Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson have welcomed Kāinga Ora’s decision to re-open its tender for carpets to allow wool carpet suppliers to bid. “In 2024 Kāinga Ora issued requests for tender (RFTs) seeking bids from suppliers to carpet their properties,” Mr Bishop says. “As part ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today visited Otahuhu College where the new school lunch programme has served up healthy lunches to students in the first days of the school year. “As schools open in 2025, the programme will deliver nutritious meals to around 242,000 students, every school day. On ...
Minister for Children Karen Chhour has intervened in Oranga Tamariki’s review of social service provider contracts to ensure Barnardos can continue to deliver its 0800 What’s Up hotline. “When I found out about the potential impact to this service, I asked Oranga Tamariki for an explanation. Based on the information ...
A bill to make revenue collection on imported and exported goods fairer and more effective had its first reading in Parliament, Customs Minister Casey Costello said today. “The Customs (Levies and Other Matters) Amendment Bill modernises the way in which Customs can recover the costs of services that are needed ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Department of Internal Affairs [the Department] has achieved significant progress in completing applications for New Zealand citizenship. “December 2024 saw the Department complete 5,661 citizenship applications, the most for any month in 2024. This is a 54 per cent increase compared ...
Reversals to Labour’s blanket speed limit reductions begin tonight and will be in place by 1 July, says Minister of Transport Chris Bishop. “The previous government was obsessed with slowing New Zealanders down by imposing illogical and untargeted speed limit reductions on state highways and local roads. “National campaigned on ...
Finance Minister Nicola Willis has announced Budget 2025 – the Growth Budget - will be delivered on Thursday 22 May. “This year’s Budget will drive forward the Government’s plan to grow our economy to improve the incomes of New Zealanders now and in the years ahead. “Budget 2025 will build ...
For the Government, 2025 will bring a relentless focus on unleashing the growth we need to lift incomes, strengthen local businesses and create opportunity. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today laid out the Government’s growth agenda in his Statement to Parliament. “Just over a year ago this Government was elected by ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour welcomes students back to school with a call to raise attendance from last year. “The Government encourages all students to attend school every day because there is a clear connection between being present at school and setting yourself up for a bright future,” says Mr ...
The Government is relaxing visitor visa requirements to allow tourists to work remotely while visiting New Zealand, Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis, Immigration Minister Erica Stanford and Tourism Minister Louise Upston say. “The change is part of the Government’s plan to unlock New Zealand’s potential by shifting the country onto ...
The opening of Kāinga Ora’s development of 134 homes in Epuni, Lower Hutt will provide much-needed social housing for Hutt families, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “I’ve been a strong advocate for social housing on Kāinga Ora’s Epuni site ever since the old earthquake-prone housing was demolished in 2015. I ...
Trade and Investment Minister Todd McClay will travel to Australia today for meetings with Australian Trade Minister, Senator Don Farrell, and the Australia New Zealand Leadership Forum (ANZLF). Mr McClay recently hosted Minister Farrell in Rotorua for the annual Closer Economic Relations (CER) Trade Ministers’ meeting, where ANZLF presented on ...
A new monthly podiatry clinic has been launched today in Wairoa and will bring a much-needed service closer to home for the Wairoa community, Health Minister Simeon Brown says.“Health New Zealand has been successful in securing a podiatrist until the end of June this year to meet the needs of ...
The Judicial Conduct Commissioner has recommended a Judicial Conduct Panel be established to inquire into and report on the alleged conduct of acting District Court Judge Ema Aitken in an incident last November, Attorney-General Judith Collins said today. “I referred the matter of Judge Aitken’s alleged conduct during an incident ...
Students who need extra help with maths are set to benefit from a targeted acceleration programme that will give them more confidence in the classroom, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “Last year, significant numbers of students did not meet the foundational literacy and numeracy level required to gain NCEA. To ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters has announced three new diplomatic appointments. “Our diplomats play an important role in ensuring New Zealand’s interests are maintained and enhanced across the world,” Mr Peters says. “It is a pleasure to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and ...
Ki te kahore he whakakitenga, ka ngaro te Iwi – without a vision, the people will perish. The Government has achieved its target to reduce the number of households in emergency housing motels by 75 per cent five years early, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. The number of households ...
The opening of Palmerston North’s biggest social housing development will have a significant impact for whānau in need of safe, warm, dry housing, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. The minister visited the development today at North Street where a total of 50 two, three, and four-bedroom homes plus a ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced the new membership of the Public Advisory Committee on Disarmament and Arms Control (PACDAC), who will serve for a three-year term. “The Committee brings together wide-ranging expertise relevant to disarmament. We have made six new appointments to the Committee and reappointed two existing members ...
Ka nui te mihi kia koutou. Kia ora, good morning, talofa, malo e lelei, bula vinaka, da jia hao, namaste, sat sri akal, assalamu alaikum. It’s so great to be here and I’m ready and pumped for 2025. Can I start by acknowledging: Simon Bridges – CEO of the Auckland ...
The Government has unveiled a bold new initiative to position New Zealand as a premier destination for foreign direct investment (FDI) that will create higher paying jobs and grow the economy. “Invest New Zealand will streamline the investment process and provide tailored support to foreign investors, to increase capital investment ...
Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins today announced the largest reset of the New Zealand science system in more than 30 years with reforms which will boost the economy and benefit the sector. “The reforms will maximise the value of the $1.2 billion in government funding that goes into ...
Turbocharging New Zealand’s economic growth is the key to brighter days ahead for all Kiwis, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says. In the Prime Minister’s State of the Nation Speech in Auckland today, Christopher Luxon laid out the path to the prosperity that will affect all aspects of New Zealanders’ lives. ...
The latest set of accounts show the Government has successfully checked the runaway growth of public spending, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. “In the previous government’s final five months in office, public spending was almost 10 per cent higher than for the same period the previous year. “That is completely ...
The Government’s welfare reforms are delivering results with the number of people moving off benefits into work increasing year-on-year for six straight months. “There are positive signs that our welfare reset and the return consequences for job seekers who don't fulfil their obligations to prepare for or find a job ...
Jon Kroll and Aimee McCammon have been appointed to the New Zealand Film Commission Board, Arts Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “I am delighted to appoint these two new board members who will bring a wealth of industry, governance, and commercial experience to the Film Commission. “Jon Kroll has been an ...
Finance Minister Nicola Willis has hailed a drop in the domestic component of inflation, saying it increases the prospect of mortgage rate reductions and a lower cost of living for Kiwi households. Stats NZ reported today that inflation was 2.2 per cent in the year to December, the second consecutive ...
Two new appointed members and one reappointed member of the Employment Relations Authority have been announced by Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden today. “I’m pleased to announce the new appointed members Helen van Druten and Matthew Piper to the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) and welcome them to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Danielle Mazza, Director, SPHERE NHMRC Centre of Research Excellence in Women’s Sexual and Reproductive Health in Primary Care and Professor and Head of the Department of General Practice, Monash University PeopleImages.com – Yuri A/Shutterstock Ahead of the government’s response this week ...
COMMENTARY:By Eugene Doyle It generally ends badly. An old tyrant embarks on an ill-considered project that involves redrawing maps. They are heedless to wise counsel and indifferent to indigenous interests or experience. Before they fail, are killed, deposed or otherwise disposed of, these vicious old men can cause immense ...
The Cook Islands PM is in Beijing to sign an agreement with China - but the government says he failed to consult with NZ on the matter, as is required. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katinka van de Ven, Alcohol and other drug specialist, UNSW Sydney Fewer young Australians are drinking. And when they do drink, they are drinking less and less often than previous generations at the same age. It’s a trend happening all around the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Flavio Macau, Associate Dean – School of Business and Law, Edith Cowan University Hitra/Shutterstock Coles is reducing its product range by at least 10%, a move that has sparked public backlash and renewed discussions about the role of supermarkets in the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jacinta Humphrey, Research Fellow in Urban Ecology, RMIT University Golf courses are sometimes seen as harmful to the environment. According to the popular notion, the grass soaks up too much water, is cut too short and sprayed with dangerous chemicals. But in ...
New Zealand has long championed a fair, stable, and resilient global order. As a nation with deep ties to the Pacific and beyond, we cannot afford to be passive in the face of these shifts. ...
Things are going to look a little different this year. Here’s what to expect.Good news, Shortland Street fans: after a well-earned summer holiday, New Zealand’s longest running drama returns to TVNZ2 and TVNZ+ tonight. Ahead of us is a fresh year of living, loving and laughing in the nation’s ...
The poll, conducted between 02 and 04 February, shows National up 2.3 points to 31.9 percent, while Labour has risen 0.4 points from last month to 31.3 percent. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katrina McFerran, Professor and Head of Creative Arts and Music Therapy Research Unit; Director of Researcher Development Unit, The University of Melbourne New York Public Library Many of us take pleasure in listening to music. Music accompanies important life events and ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katrina McFerran, Professor and Head of Creative Arts and Music Therapy Research Unit; Director of Researcher Development Unit, The University of Melbourne New York Public Library Many of us take pleasure in listening to music. Music accompanies important life events and ...
The Cook Islands finds itself in a precarious dance — one between the promises of foreign investments and the integrity of our own sovereignty. As the country sways between partners China and Aotearoa New Zealand, the Cook Islands News asks: “Do we continue to haka with the Taniwha, our constitutional ...
A diplomatic scuffle with the Cook Islands. Plus: What went down at Waitangi. The Cook Islands prime minister, Mark Brown, has provoked the wrath of the New Zealand foreign minister with his decision to head to China to sign a new strategic deal. By failing to consult on the ...
The deputy chairperson of the Australasian College of Emergency Medicine, Dr Michael Connelly, said simply setting targets without "resourcing" them was a pointless exercise, as the number of patients - and their acuity - continuing to grow. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Suvradip Maitra, PhD Student, Australian National University Tero Vesalainen/Shutterstock Late last year, ChatGPT was used by a Victorian child protection worker to draft documents. In a glaring error, ChatGPT referred to a “doll” used for sexual purposes as an “age-appropriate toy”. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Niven Winchester, Professor of Economics, Auckland University of Technology Getty Images Donald Trump has already made good on his threat to impose an additional 10% tax on Chinese goods, and is due to announce a 25% tariff on all steel and ...
Diplomatic tension between the Cook Islands and New Zealand is growing. Here's what it's about about, what China has to do with it, and why it matters. ...
Sick of human reality TV? Alex Casey has found a perfect solution in David Attenborough’s latest. I’m know I’m not alone when I say this: humans are bleaking me out at the moment. Turn on the news for the bleakest updates imaginable. Try to numb the pain with Married at ...
The Director of Public Health is a statutory role providing public health leadership across the Public Health Agency, within the Ministry of Health, and the National Public Health Service within Health NZ. ...
Zachary Forbes, a maths teacher from Whanganui, has started an unusual initiative on videogame streaming service Twitch. Shanti Mathias interviews him. “The people want First Samuel,” says the man who calls himself Brother Zac. Brown hair, headphones on, a wall behind him, he pauses and reflects on the comments he’s ...
Endless New Zealand politicians, including the present government, have pointed to our support for a rules-based international system, says PSNA National Chair John Minto. ...
In January, the reversals to speed limit reductions on the state highway network began. Councils have been asked to reverse all reduced speed limits since 2020 by July. A retired rural healthcare worker found something missing from the conversation – a maths equation she learned in high school. As told ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Natarsha McPherson, PhD Candidate in Spatial Ecology, University of Adelaide Rob D / Shutterstock On the vast expanse of the Nullarbor Plain in South Australia, two very different creatures live side by side – but not always peacefully. One is ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John White, Associate Professor in Wildlife and Conservation Biology, Deakin University Fire broke out in the Grampians National Park (Gariwerd) in December and raged for weeks. Then lightning strikes ignited fresh blazes late last month, which merged to form a mega-fire that’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Karley Beckman, Senior Lecturer in Digital Technologies for Learning, University of Wollongong If you are a parent of a school student, you may have received a form seeking permission to use your child’s image on school social media accounts. It’s very ...
Until we see the text of the TPPA, we won’t know the extent of its impact on our health, environment and sovereignty.
However, we do know we didn’t get any magic beans for our cow.
Thats true Paul. And without knowing any of the details of the deal, in full, we can’t organise protest and action around the very worst aspects of the deal.
Mind you, will a political shitstorm in the States while they are full swing into election campaigning, actually provide the people of the 12 nations with a glimmer of hope that the deal won’t be ratified? (See TPP Roundup post).
The lives of NZer’s and the protections of our environment are beyond our control and are now in the hands of the Americans. They decide, not us. We are now at their mercy.
and relying on Congress is fraught as the corporates have the deepest pockets
Yep, they’ll be chucking millions of $$$ at targeted candidates to keep their agenda on track.
“Thats true Paul. And without knowing any of the details of the deal, in full, we can’t organise protest and action around the very worst aspects of the deal.”
Without knowing the details – how will you know there is anything to protest about?
Oh thats right. The TPP is a totally benign deal that will in no way affect the citizens of the countries involved in any detrimental way at all.
Thats why we don’t have groups like Doctors For Healthy Trade, It’s Our Future and Action Stations and respected academics like Jane Kelsey spending the last few years…………..oh yeah, there might be a problem with the TPP. And those thousands that tuned out in the streets to protest. Just “rent a crowd” eh?
Well one thing we know already James is that under the TPP NZ can’t ban the sale of NZ property to investors from any of the countries signed to the TPP. So, the action that the OIO took in blocking the sale of the Lochivar Station to overseas buyers wouldn’t be allowed to happen once the TPP is ratified.
A massive free for all NZ land grab by wealthy overseas investors. You OK with that? that whole “tenant in our own land” buzz?
Hi Rosie, could you please give me specific examples of how my life and the protection of my environment is no longer to be within my control? How am I personally now to be at the mercy of the Americans?
Groan. I can’t give you specific examples of how your life will be affected because as yet, we don’t have access to the full text of the deal. Hence my initial comment to Paul re planning protest and action. No plans without knowledge of the text.
Our future as NZer’s is at the mercy of the Americans as they are the ones that trigger the TPP being signed off once they ratify it. It’s out of our hands.
In the meantime maybe don’t plan to buy a house in Auckland or get cancer in the next few years.
No music4womenz?
All a matter of how you read it Rosie. Could be ‘music 4 me nz’.. 🙂
Yes, I read it that way too. I was winding music4menz up – the comment made was kind of a smart ar*e one. He/she is asking for definites when there aren’t any, especially without knowing what part of the social hierarchy they fit into, and how vulnerable or not they may be the effects of the TPP, further down the track, should it be ratified.
Also, everyone I know who is into music is a lot cooler than that.
The European Court of Justice finds that US surveillance breaches the fundamental rights of European citizens: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/monkey-cage/wp/2015/10/06/heres-how-the-facebook-case-has-just-transformed-the-surveillance-debate/
Farrell: “this ruling will lead to new pressures to limit the kinds of indiscriminate surveillance against citizens that many countries — not just the United States — have engaged in over the last 15 years. “
+1
Guyon Espiner this morning has gone up in my estimation. Wouldn’t let Joyce away with turning a TPP interview into an anti labour (‘it’s their fault) rant or trying ‘Look!-The point is…blah blah….’diversions. (Only just stopped short of calling him a liar.)
Did he ask Joyce about the loss of our sovereignty?
Or how novopay is going….relax he’ll be back to giving him a spongebath and shaitsu in a few months as Gluon’s just a more subtle govt cheerleader than the likes of Hoskins/Henry etc
@Rodel Agreed. Espiner can be very good with his questioning despite his right-leaning views.
The best part was when he got Joyce to admit that the policy that is in force in Australia, where only permanent residents can buy a house and where overseas people investing in housing must build a house, is allowable under TPPA. So Labour can stick to this policy.
except they cannot as it is not an already in force policy
My understanding is a new government can renegotiate the whole thing. Labour has said it will not be bound by some parts of the agreement, if it ever comes into force.
afraid not…confirmed this morning by a number of international treaty experts….and admitted by joyce this morning
@Pat Not quite that simple. Grant Robertson has explained Labour’s position here (from the Herald today):
“The Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) includes a non-discrimination provision which would prevent the New Zealand Government banning foreign nations from buying property in New Zealand.
This provision went against of Labour’s bottom lines for supporting the deal.
Mr Robertson said: “We will take a good look at the agreement and we are reserving the right to review and renegotiate.
“There is always the scope to review them, there are just consequences if we make a law, there are consequences if we go against the agreement.
“We will have to look into what all of those are and balance that up.”
The TPP also includes provisions which allow investors to seek compensation from the Government if it breaches its investment obligations.
This meant if a Government banned foreign investment in housing it could face a legal challenge from overseas investors or companies.”
Any legal challenge to a law made by Parliament would take years.
[lprent: Use a link please. ]
yes there are consequences…ISDS… http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/286302/labour-told-tpp-property-provision-here-to-stay
It’s a trade agreement rather than a treaty. Not sure if they have the same status. But if other signatories have get-outs, as Australia appears to have on housing, then would NZ not be able to argue that should apply here too?
Who exactly would sue NZ in the situation where it changed legislation on housing?
Australia have EXISTING restrictions….it is the change that opens the possibility of the ISDS provisions being enacted.
Am not a lawyer but i imagine a case could be made by say a large real estate company ( or even an investment fund) that has a substantial proportion of its commissions (or portfolio) paid by overseas investors in say the Auckland market if offshore investment in the NZ property market was banned……whether this would be successful or not is irrelevant as it would cost the Gov to defend and even before the policy was made the possibility would have to be considered…am sure sharper minds than mine could come up with a myriad of potential scenarios.
Attention all aficionados of mondo bizarro television:
Jamie “Lock Up His Sisters” Whyte is on Paul Henry this morning!
TV3, Wednesday 7 October 2015
At 7:55 this morning, after a ridiculous interview with “Boobs on Bikes” organiser Steve Crow, Paul Henry made an ominous announcement: “Coming up after the news, the daily panel, today featuring Mary Lambie and Jamie Whyte.”
Mary Lambie is Jim Mora’s wife, and can be relied on for saying something anodyne and unmemorable. So she is about as dependable a guest as it is possible to get.
Jamie “Lock Up His Sisters” Whyte, however, is another can of worms entirely. He is the disgraced former ACT leader who managed in his brief few months in that rôle to come across as the worst ACT leader of them all, displaying an embarrassing level of ignorance about nearly everything and, memorably, positioning ACT as the pro-incest party.
So it’s high quality commentary as usual on Paul Henry’s show!
How does Mary Lambie get a spot on a political panel?
Because she is Mora’s wife?
The fact she is seen as a welcome guest on Henry’s show demonstrates the political bias within the Mora household.
No wonder he gets away with hat awful show the Panel. The Tories must love him.
And hasn’t he ruined Checkpoint?
I agree but hopefully he will be almost gone soon. Once the new programme format starts Mora will be reduced to 1 hour 3-4 pm. Which sort of suits me I do not like the current host/format of 1-4 so switch to BBC. I am in a little quandy with Checkpoint as by taking Campbell on board we lose Mary who IMHO is one of the best talents RNZ have. I don’t see Campbell ever being a strong interviewer and as much as I like him for the Human Interest story we need strong personalities when interviewing people that need to be held to account. Checkpoint is not necessarily the best use of his talent. Which is probably why he got the job.
This past fortnight makes me realise just how good it is to have Kim available she can actually think on her feet and if the subject tries to fluff around she zeros in and kills them.
Its all very utterly utter, pip pip, what what,and please dont get upset Fuck MARYS LEAVING now we really are in the last days
Can’t tell if you’re being satirical or actually showing that level of rabid ignorance.
Whyte was never “disgraced” as far as i know. “Failed” perhaps.
And i would hope you can tell the difference between a philosophical exploration of an idea, and an actual policy platform.
Yes, you’re quite right. Poor hopeless ignorant delusional Jamie is just misunderstood.
No, there’s a difference. David Cundliffe was without any doubt, for whatever reason, a failure. By contrast, Whyte’s catastrophic command of ACT, that doomed ferry of the damned, was a disgrace. Someone who progresses instantly from anonymity to being the butt of public ridicule, without achieving even a modicum of respect in between, has been disgraced.
Right from his disastrously inept first public appearance last year, Whyte was obviously the least eloquent and the least informed of all the political leaders on display. He then, almost incredibly, compounded his dire public image by stating his tolerance for incest.
Only the sort of bewildered souls who voted for ACT would countenance “philosophical exploration” about incest.*
Whyte’s performance on Paul Henry this morning confirmed that impression of intellectual mediocrity. He even, foolishly, quoted Margaret Thatcher’s ideological quip about any man of thirty who travels on public transport being a failure, then undermined himself by admitting he travelled by train in London.
* The question must be asked: how far have the people who propound and/or defend such “philosophical explorations” of incest taken these “philosophical explorations”?
Shit politician perhaps. But he has a broader mind than yours.
Shit politician perhaps.
Shit politician, shit thinker, shit philosopher.
But he has a broader mind than yours.
Well, I have to admit that I haven’t ever seriously contemplated taking my sister or my mother as a wife. That sort of philosophical exploration is best left to the broader, subtler, more refined type of intellect that is instinctually drawn to the party of Hide, Garrett, Whyte and Seymour.
Small things amuse and misuse a small mind a right ridiculous and waste of time and space
For God’s sake why do you waste your time. Stop watching/listening to anything on MediaWorks. Choose something with a modicum of intelligence to follow.
I stopped the day Campbell left. And when RNZ start doing much the same on some of their programmes I limit my time there. Thanks goodness for the BBC World Service.
Sorry, Ron, but the BBC is even worse, more ideologically biased and politically controlled, than TV3 and Radio New Zealand.
You perhaps are thinking of the good BBC, which brought us such gems as Dad’s Army. Since Alastair Campbell and Tony Blair took an axe to it when it dared to tell the truth, briefly, in 2004, it has more than ever become the British state broadcaster—about as trustworthy and independent as Pravda, XinWa or Fox News.
Nope I was thinking of the BBC World Service that is broadcast in Auckland.
I am not worrying about the political side of things but the articles on World Service are very good. Way ahead of anything we get on RNZ.
Morrissey. I worry about you watching Henry. Its pollutant stuff.
Hope you’re taking medication or preventative therapy.
I cant grab the remote fast enough when he appears.
Actually yes I can with practice, but I did hear his manic
child-cackle for a millisecond last night… couldn’t sleep for hours.
so now jonkey nact has signed the corporate takeover of New Zealand via TPPA… (unless good Americans with a social conscience stop TPPA in its tracks)
….i guess we need an new corporate flag to match our new corporate controlled country …Red Peak anyone? ( afterall this is jonkey’s and James Shaw’s favourite choice)
RED PEAK the logo for Active Security Group
http://www.activesecuritygroup.co.uk/
“the Red Peak flag was created by a Xero product design director (Dustin), has had its online campaign coordinated by another Xero associate (Simpson), and was included in the top 40 while the Xero CEO (Drury) was one of the dozen on the selection panel; perhaps we should ask how has the Greens relationship with that company changed recently?
Two years ago:
Norman issued a media release yesterday questioning whether Palantir, a firm co-founded by wealthy US technology investor and Xero shareholder Peter Thiel, had been hired by the Government to spy on New Zealanders…”
Sharp observation Chooky!!!
LOL’s the ultimate slap down of NZ citizens, to have an electronic security and surveillance company logo as it’s own branded flag.
I never got excited about the red peak design. I could never see it as something real and meaningful to consider as long as Key was in control of the flag “process”. Maybe if the flag process had been led by the people instead, it might have been different.
I also couldn’t take it seriously when I spend days staring out the window to a sea of new buildings that make up the relentless suburban sprawl of North Wellington, and all I see is the red peak design in the Tekton logo on the building wrap:
http://tektonproducts.com/images/Tekton-WPS-Logo-333×99.png
I know it’s not the same but it blurs together if you let your mind enter a numb zone, a zone that lets you slip away from the pain of what has become of our country in recent years.
+100 Rosie…and not another vacuous , ubiquitous Red Peak!..maybe you could take up stained glass window making( books in the library, also do- it- yourself kits)…and design yourself a beautiful colourful window to block the bloody thing out …a maidenhair fern in front of a stained glass window which lets in the refracted light could be just the thing to block out the Tekton red peak logo
Gosh that description of the stain glass window with the maidenhair fern on the windowsill took me right back to the memory of sitting in someones villa restoration in the eighties. A pleasant enough memory 🙂
It’s an environmental wasteland up here on The Development. We have responded by planting native trees and shrubs on our borders. That should block out the sight of the sprawl in a few years and bring life to the area by attracting birds and insects. (+ purple flowers to attract the bees)
good on you Rosie…hope those native trees and shrubs grow fast for you
Yes what say should be highlighted to the max more corporate abuse of our democracy
If Morning Report is going to discuss significant topics, such as a difference in pay between men and women, why can’t they interview people who are actually talking about the subject rather than an entirely different matter?
This morning the first person spoken to about lower pay for women than men came out with the following –
“A school librarian, who asked not to be identified, said gender bias was unmistakable at her work.
“I have been employed as a teacher in a school and I’m now employed as support staff at a school – I feel like I’m the same person with the same abilities and skills and qualifications and work ethic, but the way I’m treated is significantly different.””
What on earth does her complaint have to do with gender bias? It is solely about the fact that in a school the frontline, teaching, staff were treated differently than people in support roles. It doesn’t have anything at all to do with her sex. If it had we wouldn’t be this complaint at all as she wouldn’t be treated any differently as a female support worker than she was as a female teacher.
Don’t the people trying to produce Morning Report understand that interviews on a topic should have something to do with that topic?
The Herald seems to have removed all signs of John Armstrong. I had heard that he has been unwell but…
[lprent: He is quite unwell at present. ]
Okay MS. Wish him well.
http://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/oct/06/worried-imf-world-economic-outlook-report
…no mystery here…too much in the hands of too few
Following on from our low business confidence and our record suicide rates comes the GOOD NEWS.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/72767992/nz-third-best-place-to-die
NZ Third Best Place To Die!!!!!
Thirds good. Gets a medal.
+1
Jeremy Corbyn is not the only decent man to draw the ire of the haters
This sneering piece in the far right wing Times of Israel tries but fails to denigrate the late, great Henning Mankell…..
http://www.timesofisrael.com/swedish-crime-writer-henning-mankell-dies-at-67/
+100…what a hero…enjoyed the tv series Wallander ….must watch out for his books
…”Mankell was known for his rights activisim, and joined the 2010 flotilla trying to break the Israeli blockade on the Gaza Strip…
“He said he wanted to create a situation where “Palestinians are not treated like second-class citizens in their own country, a sort of apartheid system.”
Mankell’s collection of dark novels about the Swedish police inspector Wallander brought the author international fame after it was made into a television series by the BBC starring Oscar-nominated actor and director Kenneth Branagh.”
Great news about soft drinks: they’re good for you.
According to the General Manager of Coca-Cola New Zealand
“We need to stop demonizing sugar, and Coca Cola can be part of a balanced lifestyle.”
—-Paul Fitzgerald, General Manager of Coca-Cola New Zealand
Balanced in favour of increasing CocA-Colas profits is about all it will do to you
David Cameron being roasted in an interview over human rights here (1min 22s).
https://www.facebook.com/Channel4News/videos/10153264721241939/
Why oh why have we not got a journalist in NZ who will hold Key to account in the same way?
Because all the ones that are left in the MSM support everything that Key and National do no psychopathic it is.
Greatest trademe auction in history.
October 21 2015 (usa) October 22 2015 (Nzl)
http://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/Listing.aspx?id=960950905&permanent=0
Pledge to march
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/72767069/prices-up-99-per-cent-at-fonterra-globaldairytrade-auction
Thats 9.9% not 99% but still not bad, thats four increases in a row since Mr Andrew Little declared a crisis
And are volumes up as well?
I have just read the front page of the Herald ,Top story the romance of Key’s son Max.No wonder the Herald is giving the paper away free for a few weeks, Wh the hell would pay money for the trash. Once the largest daily paper in NZ it is now reduced to local gossip and Tory propaganda Oh fpo the days when the daily newspaper . was something to look forward too. However at least we have the Standard . Which is not to be missed on any day.
The media has gotten so bad you have to wonder if its end days are not far away.
+1 – by the way – my theory is that Max Key (does he even work?) is being groomed to collect the 18 – 29 year old votes next election for Pops. The herald is the propaganda site for the grooming to the public.
re “Max Key (does he even work?)”…this is what he does:
‘Max Key – I’ll get you into Harvard: Prime Minister’s son gets top consulting role’
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11513568
http://www.scout.co.nz/Max-Key-grooms-students-for-Ivy-League/tabid/511/articleID/5617/Default.aspx
‘Auckland’s extravagant, young, elite society you need to know about’
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/news/article.cfm?c_id=6&objectid=11471687
( nice for some: thinking here about high suicide rate amongst Maori youth, NZ unemployed and top New Zealand graduates who cant afford to carry on and do university postgrad studies in their own country , even although invited to by their professors , because they are already overburdened with student debt….not to mention the fact that nactional has cut postgrad student loans)
hear hear
Yeah, and to watch the ejaculate smeared all over TVOne News tonight re The Ponce Key’s top secret trip to Afghanistan…….well, you’d think he’d flown a Tiger Moth low over the mountains of Bamyan, touched down and single-handedly slain 40 baddies……
‘The War-Hero Ponce Key !’ what ? Jeezuz ! TV “Boys’ Own” One !
John Key has just been so brave. “Prime Minister John Key’s secret trip to Iraq.”
Was he looking for pandas?
Weird story here, but some great journalism, http://thespinoff.co.nz/07-10-2015/media-a-bargain-from-the-block-the-curious-case-of-julie-christies-mansion/
+1
Why did Dan News have to get involved with Glucinas new outfit? I used to like Dan news…
5:07 and all’s well.
Yeah.
My pet theory is that it was a ploy by someone to get easier access to high-demand books held on close reserve 🙂
Fiendish! So all we have to do is round up everyone who borrowed a book yesterday…
Just to have ago at Sirdom while we all live in Serfdom
Every time I see JK as initials for the PM i cant help but see Sir John Kirwan in there so to avoid any further unnecessary confusion I propose the PM become the patron of what ever depression group Sir JK is promoting as a way of atoning for his constant alcoholic depressed rhetoric because most of it isnt believed by the real world that the majority of the population live with
Anyone who can smile for the camera and speak the bs he does is really out of it and expect to be believed and if it is the truth well God help us all to 2017
Missing boy in Levin has National MP, Nathan Guy, joining the search.
http://www.3news.co.nz/nznews/search-for-missing-boy-continues-near-levin-2015100707?ref=video#axzz3nr5UtXfc
Nathan Guy being there will go down well with locals.
Where is Rob McCann?
Joins the search…..in a suit ? Hope for the sake of the boy and family and friends we’re not to be reminded of Pike River politics ? Hope it’s not a case of 0800CrosbyTextorDisasterLine. Couldn’t be……there are depths even they wouldn’t plumb, aren’t there ?
No. In his running gear.
“Hope it’s not a case of 0800CrosbyTextorDisasterLine. Couldn’t be……there are depths even they wouldn’t plumb, aren’t there ?”.
Oh God. Quite possibly.
I don’t know a single person in Horowhenua who didn’t vote for Nathan Guy. Then again, I don’t know a single person in Horowhenua who has a good hard think about anything……………… Although I think there is a small smattering of TS readers up that way. No offence intended towards our comrades in the Horowhenua.
Just been talking to a mate of mine in Auckland……senior union office-holder……(constantly having to check him about his ever more frequent sorties into the Koru Club !)……his comment on The Ponce Key War Hero’s vile Americanism, “……a God-Damn awful place !” re Iraq. My mate’s response – “Who made it a God-Damn awful place FFS ? True that !
+100
The Times UK
“The newspaper reported that the soft drinks giant, a major sponsor of the Olympics, the Fifa World Cup and the Rugby World Cup, has financial links to more than a dozen British scientists, including government health advisers and others who cast doubt on the commonly accepted link between sugary drinks and the obesity crisis.”
http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/health/news/article4581174.ece