So while Eddie is banging on about the “substantive’ issue of Melissa Lee’s NZOA funding the Labour party is tearing itself apart. It seems Key could carry out a ritualistic sacrifice of his first born live on air and still be more electable than Phil-in.
micky, which of the quotes of Mr Little and Mr Goff’s spokesman do you think are untrue? If they are not untrue, don’t you think it destabilises Mr Goff’s leadership to have the party president criticise him for his policy decisions?
“There has been a range of reaction to the speech amongst the party membership and these reactions have been fully canvassed at last weekend’s New Zealand Council meeting. Like any major speech on a controversial issue there will continue to be discussion and reactions which is what needs to happen on these two crucial issues.
I support the stance taken by Phil in the speech and encourage ongoing discussion and debate about the issues that matter to New Zealanders.”
I think that you call this vindication.
Like I said, never trust anything you read in the Herald.
Mr Little said he supported the stance in raising the issue of relitigating treaty settlements Felix.
Mr Little was very careful with his words. He didn’t come out and say: “I give a ringing endorsement of Mr Goff’s speech. It was a great speech, and I approve of everything in it, and have no concerns with any of the issues or how they were raised. I particularly approve of the way Mr Goff titled his speech “Nationhood”.”
Mr Little in fact damned the speech by failing to endorse it. It says a lot about the power relationship between the president and the leader that Mr Little has to clarify a point on whether or not he has personal concerns with the leader’s speech, yet very craftily says he it is rightly Mr Goff’s position to question the government on two points, as if it is Mr Little’s job to approve policy positions announced by the Leader.
Mr Little certainly didn’t point out in his press release that at the last Labour conference he called the foreshore and seabed legislation a mistake, yet Mr Goff’s speech was a slap in the face to the position that Mr Little took at Labour’s conference.
Time will tell in the next couple of days just how much heat is aired at tomorrow’s caucus meeting I suppose.
So now TV3, radiolive, and TVNZ are running the same story Micky noting Mr Robertson’s discontent, Mr Ltitle’s critical comments of Mr Goff, and that it will be discussed as a point of contention in caucus tomorrow Micky. It seems to me not all is well in the Labour caucus at the moment, and you can’t blame it all on the Herald.
It seems to me that both Mr Little and Mr Robertson see themselves as Labour’s future leader, but they know their best chance is for Mr Cunliffe to take the reins going into the 2011 election and be blamed for the loss.
No it is a beat up. There is no mood to replace Goff as leader. There is discussion about his speech. No parliamentarian that I know of it has any concerns about the speech itself. Some members do but that is the left for you. We actually allow each other to have different beliefs and views and consider this to be healthy.
Some are worried that the right are spinning it to suggest that Goff is playing the race card. IMHO we should not allow the right to set the agenda or to apply their view of reality on us.
So what do you think of Mr Little’s comments, Micky? How is it that Mr Little has “personal concerns” with Mr Goff’s speech? That sounds to me that he does have concerns. Granted Mr Little is not a member of caucus, but he is a very senior and influential person in the party.
How about Mr Robertson? Does he have concerns about the speech? Reports suggest he does. Is this a beat up also?
It doesn’t sound like the right are setting the agenda re Mr Goff playing the race card. It sounds like Mr Robertson and Mr Little are fuelling the agenda.
Sounds to me like he’s a living breathing human being with his own opinions rather than an autominon who spends his days mindlessly parroting NACT talking points.
A living breathing human being who is the party president on the one hand, and a caucus member on the other, criticising the party leader. That puts a lie to Micky’s statement that no Labour MP has had concerns with Mr Goff’s speech.
I realize that the Nats are an autocracy and therefore have frequent back-room palace coups.
However Labour MPs are expected to hold their own opinions, but to follow due process. This is a more civilized process that is somewhat less feudal than the one that the tories cling to.
I prefer our process.
I commented on that rule yesterday. It has to be there in each parties rules because of the nature of MMP. If the Nats had any sense they’d use it on Melissa Lee who clearly lied to someone, probably John Key.
However you avoided my comment on the handling of dissent (ie not behaviour) in National and Labour respectively – which is a wholly different topic. I asserted that National acted like an antique autocratic feudalism, and Labour was more civilised and tolerated open dissent more easily.
You seem to avoid discussions that you’re not controlling the topic as much as TR did the other day. Not particularly healthy on the net. It usually means that someone is either a nutter or a PR hack. Which one are you?
On the Melissa Lee topic LP, there isn’t evidence of lying. I see you didn’t wade into the debate to counter my claims. Eddie gave up defending his position on it.
As for handling of dissent, there is a long history of it in the National Party as you know LP. Your statements on it really just are tribal nonsense.
Yes yes Tim – didn’t your doctor tell you not to get excited and stressed out. I’m sure that someone somewhere agrees with at least one of your points, and the others who don’t would accept that its time to agree to disagree.
Why don’t you give yourself a break from blogging for a whole day before it becomes an obsession that squeezes the joy of life out of you and twists your mind and wrenches your soul from its moorings etc.
What about this Federated Farmers approved application to run dairy-factory-farming? Jeanette Fitzsimons says in reply to the remark that there is shed farming in the south, that in fact these are shelters providing a place for cows to stay and keep warm and dry.
The applications to Canterbury Environment would be for 18,000 cows in stalls for 18hours 8 months a year, and the rest for 12hours. Feed would have to be brought to them, their effluent would be resprayed on the fields at optimum times. Industrial farming at its worst and the type of farming approach that led to the foot and mouth outbreak in Britain.
We have sold ourselves to the world on raising our stock on green pastures in a climate that other countries don’t enjoy. This would be seen as a drop in quality and image and we open ourselves to attack on transport miles if our produce is no different than what is available close to our sales locations. Our major export, that we have sacrificed most of our manufacturing work-rich jobs for, would be put under threat, and we would be allowing the cold-blooded types who are the same as the financiers we have learned to despise, take this factory approach, probably using newly developed technology which allows operations handled from a distant site, the swivel chair farmers! The type was exemplified in the case where a manager died of overwork, he was thinking he would be a sharemilker and build up a herd of his own, but his bosses laid so much on him that there weren’t enough hours in his day to handle their animals as well as his own.
I feel its the scale of what they are proposing that is the problem, rather than what they are proposing. I’d have a hard time believing that they would be able to hire enough qualified animal handlers capable of caring for that many very large animals in such a small space. The animal welfare implications would be mind blowing.
My suggestion for the proponents would be to start small and demonstrate you can do it humanely and in an environmentally responsible manner before trying to ramp up to such large numbers.
What about growing whatever in a suitable climate?
Sheep may be better for the cold south and more work done to improve that market than just milk rush after the fast dollar at the expense of animal welfare.
The bottom line, as ever, is profit. Regardless of the animal welfare issues or damage to New Zealand’s reputation these operations will make money for the people running them and apply price-pressures to anyone continuing the ‘old-fashioned’ way, forcing them to compete by squeezing more milk from more cows for even less cost. The inevitable herd-health, environmental and perceptual problems are ten years in the future, by which time the ones setting this up will have made their money, sold up and moved on leaving a hundred similar operations on the same slippery slope to the same problems and disasters.
New Zealand agriculture has shot itself in the head rather than the foot this way over the years but seems incapable of learning – i heard the President of New Zealand farmers on radio this morning blaming environmentalists for forcing farmers to adopt these practices.
British Labour Mp talking on Nat Radio this morning. Some are asking Gordon Brown to stand down as the belief is that if he remains, a Conservative govt will get in and be able to stay in for decades.
Interesting because I thought that is what happened with Helen Clark. A good leader but it seemed that only losing would get the Party to look for another and her to stand down. Now we have National which we all knew would be a disaster for the country. Now we have talk of privatising school property. Every time the right come in they push the jigsaw off the table and start doing it again, their own way. How useful is that to the country, expensive too.
think that we need to have a control system on leaders that they can’t serve more than two consecutive terms. The present system does not encourage new leaders to be nurtured. Leaders don’t like competition, it is regarded as disloyal. Muldoon managed to stand on Tallboys (and another’s) fingers.
You know, I am no greenie by a long stretch. I eat meat and I don’t believe, for instance, that trying to reduce carbon output (Kyoto, Copenhagen) has a hope in hell of saving the planet from global warming. I believe the only way to do that is use technology to sequester carbon and reduce the number of humans on the planet.
But I hate gratuitous cruelty to animals, I loathe treating creatures with intelligence as simple production tools. A cow – or a pig – is not a form of industrial robot.
The McKenzie country is high, cold, arid and infertile tussock country. It is a fragile environment not suitable for dairy farming. Factory farming cows in the McKenzie country is simply immoral greed writ appalllingly large from an industry that is not used to being told “no”. I cannot believe we would even consider this, buut then again Federated Farmers under the glogal warming denying, neo-liberal fanaticism that characterises the leadership of Don Nicolson appears to be heading down the Greg O’Conner route of irresponsibility.
I would go out of my way to boycott milk produced in such a way. Of course, Fonterra will go out of its way to try and make sure I don’t know where the milk is sourced from. I am lucky in that I live near a charming couple who run their own organic dairy unit, so I can get “happy” milk anytime. But even then, why should I have to go to such trouble to simply source ethically and sustainably produced dairy produce??
The only solution is to make quite clear to Nicholson and the rest of his hateful, cruel big-farm mates that there will be direct action against their farms, and plenty of New Zealanders will be calling for an international boycott of our dairy industry if this is the only way to the march of immoral greed in our farming industry.
With you all the way on animal cruelty, I have never ceased to be amazed at how some stock are treated by farmers, its so variable between those who care and those who dont.
On the dairy issue, the whole industry is highly reliant on energy, to pump water, milk cows, move milk long distance etc, not to mention the energy input costs of maintaining marginal land as feedstock for animals. If the price of energy were to spike upwards even a minor amount the whole economic viability of production in remote or marginal areas would collapse quickly. I can assure you this will happen, hopefully before your concerns with animal welfare are realised. Its just another one of the elephants in the room that we prefer not to see, its called peak oil.
Fonterra appointed a new top guy a wee while ago and the comment was made that he was a commodity trader rather than a brand supporter or developer of value-added products. The result of these very large dairy farms will be to increase the supply of milk but run the risk of dirtying the brand that is our crown jewel.
Then there is the water needed. These big businesses are pretty cold-eyed, they will try to get water rights for long terms. Even if others can’t get the water they need in the future, they will have supplies sewn up legally. Australia is running out of water, why wouldn’t some of their capital come here and find a way to utilise this asset of ours as well. There are long-term contracts already being made that will give some rich guys great advantage. Environment Canterbury I am pretty sure, said about water and the environment, that it didn’t want to grant too many rights for tree planting at the heads of catchments because that would reduce the amount available downstream. A queer attitude from a practical environmental perspective.
Lastly, in early colonial days the govt stepped in to prevent a few wealthy men getting large tracts of land so they could not follow the path of British aristocratic land grabbing and become squatters here.
But that is actually what is happening now, the small dairy farmer is being squeezed out. And the Crayfurs and the Gillespies are examples of the greedy being able to leverage their way onto farms they couldn’t afford or manage properly, but causing the land price to rise because of demand from such financial gamers.
Yes Sanctuary, the Feds are big and snide, and pretend that they are trying to make environmental changes to improve their pollution, but will need strong disapproval to stop them marching on in the way they prefer. Many farmers are planting flax along streams etc. but the big ones I don’t think have such ideas in their business plans that will squeeze out the most profit for them.
One idea for using pollution from cowyards was to harness it for energy use from methane produced. I wonder if that has proved to provide useful power with low wastes.
There are presently troubles for some farmers trying to stop thefts from their farms with cables for remote cameras being cut etc. I would think that such things may be done to harrass the factory and polluting farmers if they are allowed to continue ‘creaming’ the country. They are worse than foul-mouthed politicians and those trying dodgy methods to increase their salaries.
Since this post has a lot of people on the left saying that the left are good at handling dissenting views, GC, I doubt I’ll be banned for putting forward a contrary opinion.
[lprent: No. We don’t ban for contrary opinions. We usually ban for trolling and other attacks on the operation of this site.
Since much of the time the authors of posts don’t agree between themselves that wouldn’t be a particularly effective way to run a site.
I think you’ve been banned twice by Irish (the second time I’d have banned you as well if he hadn’t done it first). Both times were for personally attacking the authors of posts for what they wrote rather than what they were writing about. That is something the moderators do not allow.]
Just because people get tired of going around in circles with you about imaginary points you’ve pulled out of your arse doesn’t mean that anyone “gave up defending his position”.
In fact there are a lot of responses to all of your claims on that thread, most of which you haven’t even bothered to address. Does that mean you “gave up defending your position” too, Tim?
Yes I’ve noticed that too PB. The front page seems to miss the first post for a while and the posts frequently go to a different page thing.
[lprent: That is probably the super-cache. It stores generated pages and will sometimes serve up old pages when the system is under load.
Looks like we’re having another spamming attack *sigh*. There was one on friday evening as well (actually pulled down the server for a couple of 10 minute stints). It is a bloody noisy environment and every so often we get a string of attacks that amount to denial of service attacks. ]
Ok. Looks like I pushed down the limits on simultaneous connections too far on fridays attacks. Pushed it back up again. That should let through the css files that were failing to be loaded where the client side didn’t have them cached.
I need a better mechanism for defeating the multiple-connection spam attacks.
Interesting collection of Paul Krugman quotes talking about the need to lower interest rates for a housing led recovery back in 2001 precipitating the housing bubble in the US and people still listen to these Keynesians. Krugman Did Cause the Housing Bubble.
To fight this recession the Fed needs more than a snapback; it needs soaring household spending to offset moribund business investment. And to do that, as Paul McCulley of Pimco put it, Alan Greenspan needs to create a housing bubble to replace the Nasdaq bubble.
All this stupid talk about leadership change reminds me of the time when Helen Clark was on 2% . Remember how Banks refered to HC as miss 2% every day on his talk back show. Wake up people the Right will always have the upper hand regarding publicity . How long ago since we had a Left Wing Paper, Left Wing TV channel, or a talk back show. The only way the Left can get its message across is by direct involvement or Union activity.
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Mazda, a Japanese automotive manufacturer with a rich history of innovation and engineering excellence, has emerged as a formidable player in the global car market. Known for its reputation of producing high-quality, fuel-efficient, and driver-oriented vehicles, Mazda has consistently garnered praise from industry experts and consumers alike. In this article, ...
Struts are an essential part of a car’s suspension system. They are responsible for supporting the weight of the car and damping the oscillations of the springs. Struts are typically made of steel or aluminum and are filled with hydraulic fluid. How Do Struts Work? Struts work by transferring the ...
Car registration is a mandatory process that all vehicle owners must complete annually. This process involves registering your car with the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and paying an associated fee. The registration process ensures that your vehicle is properly licensed and insured, and helps law enforcement and other authorities ...
Zoom is a video conferencing service that allows you to share your screen, webcam, and audio with other participants. In addition to sharing your own audio, you can also share the audio from your computer with other participants. This can be useful for playing music, sharing presentations with audio, or ...
Building your own computer can be a rewarding and cost-effective way to get a high-performance machine tailored to your specific needs. However, it also requires careful planning and execution, and one of the most important factors to consider is the time it will take. The exact time it takes to ...
Sleep mode is a power-saving state that allows your computer to quickly resume operation without having to boot up from scratch. This can be useful if you need to step away from your computer for a short period of time but don’t want to shut it down completely. There are ...
Introduction Computer-Assisted Translation (CAT) has revolutionized the field of translation by harnessing the power of technology to assist human translators in their work. This innovative approach combines specialized software with human expertise to improve the efficiency, accuracy, and consistency of translations. In this comprehensive article, we will delve into the ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
Te Pāti Māori is disgusted at the confirmation that hundreds are set to lose their jobs at Oranga Tamariki, and the disestablishment of the Treaty Response Unit. “This act of absolute carelessness and out of touch decision making is committing tamariki to state abuse.” Said Te Pāti Māori Oranga Tamariki ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi, and Mema Paremata mō Tāmaki-Makaurau, Takutai Tarsh Kemp, will travel to the Gold Coast to strengthen ties with Māori in Australia next week (15-21 April). The visit, in the lead-up to the 9th Australian National Kapa haka Festival, will be an opportunity for both ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
Hundreds of New Zealand families affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) will benefit from a new Government focus on prevention and treatment, says Health Minister Dr Shane Reti. “We know FASD is a leading cause of preventable intellectual and neurodevelopmental disability in New Zealand,” Dr Reti says. “Every day, ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones today attended the official opening of Kaikohe’s new $14.7 million sports complex. “The completion of the Kaikohe Multi Sports Complex is a fantastic achievement for the Far North,” Mr Jones says. “This facility not only fulfils a long-held dream for local athletes, but also creates ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters’ engagements in Türkiye this week underlined the importance of diplomacy to meet growing global challenges. “Returning to the Gallipoli Peninsula to represent New Zealand at Anzac commemorations was a sombre reminder of the critical importance of diplomacy for de-escalating conflicts and easing tensions,” Mr Peters ...
Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service. It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
Distinguished guests - It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders. Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia. Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is today travelling to Europe where he’ll update the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s work to restore law and order. “Attending the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva provides us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while ...
Associate Agriculture Minister, Mark Patterson, formally reopened the world’s largest wool processing facility today in Awatoto, Napier, following a $50 million rebuild and refurbishment project. “The reopening of this facility will significantly lift the economic opportunities available to New Zealand’s wool sector, which already accounts for 20 per cent of ...
Hon Andrew Bayly, Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing At the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective (SOREC) Summit, 18 April, Dunedin Ngā mihi nui, Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Ko Whanganui aho Good Afternoon and thank you for inviting me to open your summit today. I am delighted ...
The Government is delivering on its commitment to bring back the Three Strikes legislation, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee announced today. “Our Government is committed to restoring law and order and enforcing appropriate consequences on criminals. We are making it clear that repeat serious violent or sexual offending is not ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today announced four new diplomatic appointments for New Zealand’s overseas missions. “Our diplomats have a vital role in maintaining and protecting New Zealand’s interests around the world,” Mr Peters says. “I am pleased to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the ...
New Zealand is contributing NZ$7 million to support communities affected by severe food insecurity and other urgent humanitarian needs in Ethiopia and Somalia, Foreign Minister Rt Hon Winston Peters announced today. “Over 21 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance across Ethiopia, with a further 6.9 million people ...
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Paul Goldsmith is congratulating Mataaho Collective for winning the Golden Lion for best participant in the main exhibition at the Venice Biennale. "Congratulations to the Mataaho Collective for winning one of the world's most prestigious art prizes at the Venice Biennale. “It is good ...
The Government is reforming financial services to improve access to home loans and other lending, and strengthen customer protections, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly and Housing Minister Chris Bishop announced today. “Our coalition Government is committed to rebuilding the economy and making life simpler by cutting red tape. We are ...
“China remains a strong commercial opportunity for Kiwi exporters as Chinese businesses and consumers continue to value our high-quality safe produce,” Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says. Mr McClay has returned to New Zealand following visits to Beijing, Harbin and Shanghai where he met ministers, governors and mayors and engaged in trade and agricultural events with the New ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards, Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)New Zealand Government’s Fast Track legislation. Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government ...
Tara Ward talks to presenter Naomi Toilalo about the new TV show that turns food waste into a three course feast. Naomi Toilalo is standing in the warehouse at Good Neighbour Tauranga, helping unpack the two-and-a-half tonnes of rejected food that will arrive at the community support hub that day. ...
Scout is our latest Dog of the Month. This feature was offered as a reward during our What’s Eating Aotearoa PledgeMe campaign. Thank you to Scout’s human, Avril, for her support. Dog name: Scout (named after the little girl in To Kill a Mockingbird – she inherited the independent spirit ...
Megan Alatini takes us through her life in TV, including ‘terrible’ daytime TV, the class of Carol Hirschfeld and her most embarrassing TrueBliss moment. When she responded to a vague newspaper ad asking “do you have what it takes to be a popstar?” 25 years ago, Megan Alatini never guessed ...
A new exhibition in Wellington showcases the faces behind your local goods and services. Back in 1977, when I was a fine arts student at the University of Canterbury, I took a series of photographs of Christchurch shopkeepers. The photos were for a calendar – a project for my end ...
Toomaj and his resistance to tyranny through his songs have become an icon for the youth of Iran, so his sentence has hit the nation hard. Toomaj Salehi is not the first artist to pay the price for standing with the people. ...
My cousin Dylan and I spotted these big eels under the bridge that summer. We watched them lounging under the dark weed, facing into the flow of water, their mouths frozen open. Dylan and I couldn’t stop thinking about those eels. The night we went down to the creek, we ...
Newsroom, home of satire. My long-running weekly satirical series The Secret Diary has moved to Newsroom and will appear every Saturday, with Victor Billot’s wildly popular satirical Odes continuing to appear every Sunday. Diaries, Odes – while serious political columnists toil at meaningful opinions and stroke their chins to an ...
Tara Ward unravels the many nuanced layers of a cartoon about talking dogs.This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. It’s not often an episode of a children’s cartoon has adults sobbing into their sleeves, but that’s exactly what happened this week when ...
Working as a doctor in developing countries to help communities achieve better health outcomes is nothing short of a life goal for Jessica Tater. The University of Otago medical student has her sights firmly set on joining the international humanitarian organisation Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) when she qualifies ...
There’s an island in the far reaches of Auckland’s territory, sitting off the tip of the Coromandel Peninsula, 30 minutes by air from the city or four hours on the slow boat. Aotea Great Barrier is off-grid, it has a population of fewer than a thousand people … and most ...
Asia Pacific Report An Australian author and advocate, Jim Aubrey, today led a national symbolic one minute’s silence to mark the “blood debt” owed to Papuan allies during the Second World War indigenous resistance against the invading Japanese forces. “A promise to most people is a promise,” Aubrey said in ...
Asia Pacific Report The Freedom Flotilla is ready to sail to Gaza, reports Kia Ora Gaza. All the required paperwork has been submitted to the port authority, and the cargo has been loaded and prepared for the humanitarian trip to the besieged enclave. However, organisers received word of an “administrative ...
Pacific Media Watch Palestine solidarity protesters today demonstrated at the Auckland headquarters of Television New Zealand, accusing the country’s major TV network of broadcasting “propaganda” backing Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza. About 50 protesters targeted the main entrance to the TVNZ building near Sky Tower and also picketed a side ...
Opinion by Lynley Hood. Forty years on from my 1985 Fulbright Grant, my disquiet over the war in Gaza evoked some troubling questions. The answer to my first question – What is the primary purpose of the Fulbright Programme? – was on the Fulbright NZ website. It says: US Senator, ...
The ministers responsible for green-lighting major projects need to be open about potential conflicts of interest, says Transparency International. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anastasia Powell, Professor, Family and Sexual Violence, RMIT University It has been a particularly distressing start to the year. There is little that can ease the current grief of individuals, families and communities who have needlessly lost a loved one to men’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gregory Moore, Senior Research Associate, School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences, The University of Melbourne Lichen, the first described example of symbiosis.AdeJ Artventure/Shutterstock Once known only to those studying biology, the word symbiosis is now widely used. Symbiosis is the intimate ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kim Hemsley, Head, Childhood Dementia Research Group, Flinders Health and Medical Research Institute, College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University Olena Ivanova/Shutterstock “Childhood” and “dementia” are two words we wish we didn’t have to use together. But sadly, around 1,400 ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Whiteford, Professor, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University The government’s Economic Inclusion Advisory Committee has just published its second report. It was set up by Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Minister for Social Services Amanda Rishworth in 2022 to provide: ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne The Queensland state election will be held in October. A YouGov poll for The Courier Mail, conducted April 9–17 from a sample ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amin Naeni, PhD candidate at Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation, Deakin University There’s been much talk in recent months about what a possible second Donald Trump presidency in the United States could mean for Europe, Russia’s war in Ukraine, the ...
A brief round-up of submissions on the controversial proposed law. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week, submissions on the controversial Fast-track Approvals Bill closed just hours after the government released a list of stakeholder organisations who were sent letters advising how they could ...
A poem from Robin Peace’s new collection Detritus of Empire: feather / grass / rock. Cereal giving I see a woman’s hands, see her curious hands break a stalk as she walks through the tall prairie, the savannah, the steppe, wherever it was. See her idly bite the grass that ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Hemingway’s Goblet by Dermot Ross (Mary Egan Publishing, $38)A handsomely produced (debossed cover, lovely ...
The Commissioner's decision validates the longstanding efforts of the local community and ensures that Awataha Marae will be managed to serve the needs of the local community, particularly for hosting tangihanga. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tristan Salles, Associate professor, University of Sydney Examples of Australian landscapes.Unsplash Seventy thousand years ago, the sea level was much lower than today. Australia, along with New Guinea and Tasmania, formed a connected landmass known as Sahul. Around this time – ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Felicity Castagna, Lecturer, Creative Writing, Western Sydney University Day Day Market, ParramattaPhoto: Garry Trinh I live on the edge of Parramatta, Australia’s fastest-growing city, on the kind of old-fashioned suburban street that has 1950s fibros constructed in the post-war housing boom, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Ryan, Teaching Fellow in Economics, University of Waikato GettyImagesfatido/Getty Images There is an ongoing global debate over whether the high inflation seen in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic can be lowered without a recession. New Zealand is not ...
The ‘Wicked Game’ heartthrob is in his late 60s now. That didn’t stop him putting on a lively, goofy and very sparkly show. Apart from ‘Wicked Game’, which graces a sultry playlist of mine simply called 💋, my last sustained Chris Isaak listening session took place when I was about ...
Analysis - Two ministers were stripped of portfolios in a warning to Cabinet, drama broke out at the Waitangi Tribunal, and the gang patch ban bill ran into opposition. ...
Tara Ward makes an impassioned plea for some vital pop culture merch. In April 1999, I became obsessed with a new reality television show called Popstars. Every Tuesday night, five strangers transformed into music royalty before my very eyes as Joe, Keri, Carly, Erika and Megan were chosen to form ...
PNG Post-Courier In the early hours of ANZAC Day, aerial photographs captured an impressive gathering of Australians and Papua New Guineans at Isurava in the Northern (Oro) Province. The solemn dawn service yesterday was held at a site steeped in history, where some of the fiercest battles of World War ...
The PSA is shocked that Oranga Tamariki has used the cost cutting drive to downgrade its commitment to Te Ao Māori and remove many specialist Māori roles. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Kemish, Adjunct Professor, School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry, The University of Queensland There can be no more powerful symbol of the relationship between Australia and Papua New Guinea than the prime ministers of these neighbouring countries walking together on the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sharon Robinson, Distinguished Professor and Deputy Director of ARC Securing Antarctica’s Environmental Future (SAEF), University of Wollongong, University of Wollongong Andrew Netherwood Over the last 25 years, the ozone hole which forming over Antarctica each spring has started to shrink. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Viktoria Kahui, Senior Lecturer in Environmental Economics, University of Otago Getty Images/Amy Toensing Biodiversity is declining at rates unprecedented in human history. This suggests the ways we currently use to manage our natural environment are failing. One emerging concept focuses on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Timothy Colin Bednall, Associate Professor in Management, Swinburne University of Technology marvent/Shutterstock Finding the best person to fill a position can be tough, from drafting a job ad to producing a shortlist of top interview candidates. Employers typically consider information from ...
Wondering where to host your next BYO? Whether its a small gathering or a massive party, we’ve got some recommendations. I was first introduced to the concept of BYOs at Dunedin’s India Gardens, a legendary but sadly defunct establishment, which purveyed enormous quantities of mango chicken to Aotearoa’s drunkest future ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Julien Cooper, Honorary Lecturer, Department of History and Archaeology, Macquarie University Julien Cooper The hyper-arid desert of Eastern Sudan, the Atbai Desert, seems like an unlikely place to find evidence of ancient cattle herders. But in this dry environment, my new ...
The sector says it’s hopeful her replacement Paul Goldsmith will be able to throw it a lifeline, after six months with a minister deemed missing in action, writes Catherine McGregor in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign ...
The government can't just rely on axing public sector jobs and has to do more to cut spending, says the chief economist at a free market think tank. ...
Rock The Vote NZ, known for its advocacy for minor party unity and its role within the Freedoms NZ Coalition during the 2023 General Election, celebrates this merger as a strategic enhancement of its operational strength and outreach. ...
Nearly everyone has experienced the frustration of something you use breaking and being difficult or expensive to fix. Proposed legislation could change that. It’s been raining on and off all Sunday afternoon but people are lining up outside a building in a corner of Gribblehirst Park in Sandringham, Auckland. In ...
What does a forever relationship look like when you don’t believe in marriage? And how do you celebrate it? This essay is part of our Sunday Essay series, made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.I’m going to do it, right now. I’m going to say ...
It’s not that long ago Eliza McCartney was seriously wondering if the Paris Olympics would be her pole vaulting swansong. After years of being hounded by injury after injury, the Rio Olympics bronze medallist was still confident she would compete at her second Olympics in Paris in July, unless something ...
FICTION 1 Take Two by Danielle Hawkins (Allen & Unwin, $36.99) There’s commercial fiction, like this book, and then there’s quality fiction, quality writers, quality literature; the forthcoming Auckland Writers Festival is full of quality, and ReadingRoom has two tickets to give away to the following events: Paul Lynch (Dublin ...
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You can’t have missed the Gallipoli story as the movies, documentaries, essays and books capture what it was like for New Zealand troops in their eight-month campaign on the Peninsula. But this Anzac Day the Auckland War Memorial Museum has published a book that sheds light on a little-known aspect of the ...
The Prime Minister has committed to resuming direct flights to Thailand. But it’s not a promise he will be able to deliver on anytime soon. The post Prime Minister jumps the gun in Thailand appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra In the free-for-all between the Australian government and Big Tech boss Elon Musk this week, the government had to be on a winner. Most people would have little sympathy with Musk’s vociferous opposition to ...
Asia Pacific Report Chief Mandla Mandela, a member of the National Assembly of South Africa and Nelson Mandela’s grandson, has joined the Freedom Flotilla in istanbul as the ships prepare to sail for Gaza, reports Kia Ora Gaza. Mandela is also the ambassador for the Global Campaign to Return to ...
Pacific Media Watch Journalists who report on environmental issues are encountering growing difficulties in many parts of the world, reports Reporters Without Borders. According to the tally kept by RSF, 200 journalists have been subjected to threats and physical violence, including murder, in the past 10 years because they were ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards, Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has surprised everyone with his ruthlessness in sacking two of his ministers from their crucial portfolios. Removing ministers for poor performance after only five months in the job just doesn’t normally happen in ...
I wonder what the political motive is for this play by Andrew ?
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10613894
So while Eddie is banging on about the “substantive’ issue of Melissa Lee’s NZOA funding the Labour party is tearing itself apart. It seems Key could carry out a ritualistic sacrifice of his first born live on air and still be more electable than Phil-in.
Surely Jones or Cunliffe are working the numbers?
Sorry Seti
From long practice I have learned that you should not believe everything that you read in the Herald.
micky, which of the quotes of Mr Little and Mr Goff’s spokesman do you think are untrue? If they are not untrue, don’t you think it destabilises Mr Goff’s leadership to have the party president criticise him for his policy decisions?
Tim
Straight from the Horse’s mouth.
In particular,
“There has been a range of reaction to the speech amongst the party membership and these reactions have been fully canvassed at last weekend’s New Zealand Council meeting. Like any major speech on a controversial issue there will continue to be discussion and reactions which is what needs to happen on these two crucial issues.
I support the stance taken by Phil in the speech and encourage ongoing discussion and debate about the issues that matter to New Zealanders.”
I think that you call this vindication.
Like I said, never trust anything you read in the Herald.
Micky Mr Little’s press release is more important in what it doesn’t say than what it does. It doesn’t say that Mr Little was happy with the speech.
Just as an aside there seems to be a quote mark in your link that shouldn’t be there, perhaps a moderator can edit it so that it works properly.
[Fixed.]
“I support the stance taken by Phil in the speech and encourage ongoing discussion and debate about the issues that matter to New Zealanders.’
Will there be anything else, my petulant child?
Mr Little said he supported the stance in raising the issue of relitigating treaty settlements Felix.
Mr Little was very careful with his words. He didn’t come out and say: “I give a ringing endorsement of Mr Goff’s speech. It was a great speech, and I approve of everything in it, and have no concerns with any of the issues or how they were raised. I particularly approve of the way Mr Goff titled his speech “Nationhood”.”
Mr Little in fact damned the speech by failing to endorse it. It says a lot about the power relationship between the president and the leader that Mr Little has to clarify a point on whether or not he has personal concerns with the leader’s speech, yet very craftily says he it is rightly Mr Goff’s position to question the government on two points, as if it is Mr Little’s job to approve policy positions announced by the Leader.
Mr Little certainly didn’t point out in his press release that at the last Labour conference he called the foreshore and seabed legislation a mistake, yet Mr Goff’s speech was a slap in the face to the position that Mr Little took at Labour’s conference.
Time will tell in the next couple of days just how much heat is aired at tomorrow’s caucus meeting I suppose.
That’s it mickey – denial is the best course when the truth is unbearable.
This is a sad end to Goffs long but pretty boring life in politics..
So now TV3, radiolive, and TVNZ are running the same story Micky noting Mr Robertson’s discontent, Mr Ltitle’s critical comments of Mr Goff, and that it will be discussed as a point of contention in caucus tomorrow Micky. It seems to me not all is well in the Labour caucus at the moment, and you can’t blame it all on the Herald.
Those are interesting points Seti.
It seems to me that both Mr Little and Mr Robertson see themselves as Labour’s future leader, but they know their best chance is for Mr Cunliffe to take the reins going into the 2011 election and be blamed for the loss.
No it is a beat up. There is no mood to replace Goff as leader. There is discussion about his speech. No parliamentarian that I know of it has any concerns about the speech itself. Some members do but that is the left for you. We actually allow each other to have different beliefs and views and consider this to be healthy.
Some are worried that the right are spinning it to suggest that Goff is playing the race card. IMHO we should not allow the right to set the agenda or to apply their view of reality on us.
So what do you think of Mr Little’s comments, Micky? How is it that Mr Little has “personal concerns” with Mr Goff’s speech? That sounds to me that he does have concerns. Granted Mr Little is not a member of caucus, but he is a very senior and influential person in the party.
How about Mr Robertson? Does he have concerns about the speech? Reports suggest he does. Is this a beat up also?
It doesn’t sound like the right are setting the agenda re Mr Goff playing the race card. It sounds like Mr Robertson and Mr Little are fuelling the agenda.
Sounds to me like he’s a living breathing human being with his own opinions rather than an autominon who spends his days mindlessly parroting NACT talking points.
A living breathing human being who is the party president on the one hand, and a caucus member on the other, criticising the party leader. That puts a lie to Micky’s statement that no Labour MP has had concerns with Mr Goff’s speech.
News Flash!
Labour MP’s hold own opinions
must be a fucking slow news day.
News flash, Mr Brown. Mr Goff is at five percent in the polls, and his colleagues are openly criticising him. Can’t see his leadership lasting long.
I realize that the Nats are an autocracy and therefore have frequent back-room palace coups.
However Labour MPs are expected to hold their own opinions, but to follow due process. This is a more civilized process that is somewhat less feudal than the one that the tories cling to.
I prefer our process.
Rule 242 LP, plus just yesterday Mr Mallard was gloating about the ease by which Labour leaders can dump list MPs from Parliament.
Gloating about the ease or explaining that there was a process for doing so?
I commented on that rule yesterday. It has to be there in each parties rules because of the nature of MMP. If the Nats had any sense they’d use it on Melissa Lee who clearly lied to someone, probably John Key.
However you avoided my comment on the handling of dissent (ie not behaviour) in National and Labour respectively – which is a wholly different topic. I asserted that National acted like an antique autocratic feudalism, and Labour was more civilised and tolerated open dissent more easily.
You seem to avoid discussions that you’re not controlling the topic as much as TR did the other day. Not particularly healthy on the net. It usually means that someone is either a nutter or a PR hack. Which one are you?
On the Melissa Lee topic LP, there isn’t evidence of lying. I see you didn’t wade into the debate to counter my claims. Eddie gave up defending his position on it.
As for handling of dissent, there is a long history of it in the National Party as you know LP. Your statements on it really just are tribal nonsense.
Yes yes Tim – didn’t your doctor tell you not to get excited and stressed out. I’m sure that someone somewhere agrees with at least one of your points, and the others who don’t would accept that its time to agree to disagree.
Why don’t you give yourself a break from blogging for a whole day before it becomes an obsession that squeezes the joy of life out of you and twists your mind and wrenches your soul from its moorings etc.
Hi Tim. Got any plans for the rest of the day?
Reminder: must complain to Red Alert for banning Tim Ellis so that he feels the need to post here a billion times a day…
Trevor had the same complaint when Timmeh was banned from here.
You are misquoting me. I was referring to the words of the speech themselves. Of course the speech and subsequent commentary has invoked discussion.
Now how about a discussion about some really big issues such as global warming or corruption in New Zealand?
While Goldman Sachs guys are arming themselves in fear of populist outrage, Morgan Stanley VC says ‘bring it on’…
http://trueslant.com/matttaibbi/2009/12/03/the-ultimate-vanity-plate/
What about this Federated Farmers approved application to run dairy-factory-farming? Jeanette Fitzsimons says in reply to the remark that there is shed farming in the south, that in fact these are shelters providing a place for cows to stay and keep warm and dry.
The applications to Canterbury Environment would be for 18,000 cows in stalls for 18hours 8 months a year, and the rest for 12hours. Feed would have to be brought to them, their effluent would be resprayed on the fields at optimum times. Industrial farming at its worst and the type of farming approach that led to the foot and mouth outbreak in Britain.
We have sold ourselves to the world on raising our stock on green pastures in a climate that other countries don’t enjoy. This would be seen as a drop in quality and image and we open ourselves to attack on transport miles if our produce is no different than what is available close to our sales locations. Our major export, that we have sacrificed most of our manufacturing work-rich jobs for, would be put under threat, and we would be allowing the cold-blooded types who are the same as the financiers we have learned to despise, take this factory approach, probably using newly developed technology which allows operations handled from a distant site, the swivel chair farmers! The type was exemplified in the case where a manager died of overwork, he was thinking he would be a sharemilker and build up a herd of his own, but his bosses laid so much on him that there weren’t enough hours in his day to handle their animals as well as his own.
I feel its the scale of what they are proposing that is the problem, rather than what they are proposing. I’d have a hard time believing that they would be able to hire enough qualified animal handlers capable of caring for that many very large animals in such a small space. The animal welfare implications would be mind blowing.
My suggestion for the proponents would be to start small and demonstrate you can do it humanely and in an environmentally responsible manner before trying to ramp up to such large numbers.
What about growing whatever in a suitable climate?
Sheep may be better for the cold south and more work done to improve that market than just milk rush after the fast dollar at the expense of animal welfare.
The bottom line, as ever, is profit. Regardless of the animal welfare issues or damage to New Zealand’s reputation these operations will make money for the people running them and apply price-pressures to anyone continuing the ‘old-fashioned’ way, forcing them to compete by squeezing more milk from more cows for even less cost. The inevitable herd-health, environmental and perceptual problems are ten years in the future, by which time the ones setting this up will have made their money, sold up and moved on leaving a hundred similar operations on the same slippery slope to the same problems and disasters.
New Zealand agriculture has shot itself in the head rather than the foot this way over the years but seems incapable of learning – i heard the President of New Zealand farmers on radio this morning blaming environmentalists for forcing farmers to adopt these practices.
You obviously have little faith in the government who are supposed to police the Animal Welfare Act and Resource Management Act.
Given the pitiful amount of resources MAF puts into policing animal welfare that is not without some justification.
British Labour Mp talking on Nat Radio this morning. Some are asking Gordon Brown to stand down as the belief is that if he remains, a Conservative govt will get in and be able to stay in for decades.
Interesting because I thought that is what happened with Helen Clark. A good leader but it seemed that only losing would get the Party to look for another and her to stand down. Now we have National which we all knew would be a disaster for the country. Now we have talk of privatising school property. Every time the right come in they push the jigsaw off the table and start doing it again, their own way. How useful is that to the country, expensive too.
think that we need to have a control system on leaders that they can’t serve more than two consecutive terms. The present system does not encourage new leaders to be nurtured. Leaders don’t like competition, it is regarded as disloyal. Muldoon managed to stand on Tallboys (and another’s) fingers.
You know, I am no greenie by a long stretch. I eat meat and I don’t believe, for instance, that trying to reduce carbon output (Kyoto, Copenhagen) has a hope in hell of saving the planet from global warming. I believe the only way to do that is use technology to sequester carbon and reduce the number of humans on the planet.
But I hate gratuitous cruelty to animals, I loathe treating creatures with intelligence as simple production tools. A cow – or a pig – is not a form of industrial robot.
The McKenzie country is high, cold, arid and infertile tussock country. It is a fragile environment not suitable for dairy farming. Factory farming cows in the McKenzie country is simply immoral greed writ appalllingly large from an industry that is not used to being told “no”. I cannot believe we would even consider this, buut then again Federated Farmers under the glogal warming denying, neo-liberal fanaticism that characterises the leadership of Don Nicolson appears to be heading down the Greg O’Conner route of irresponsibility.
I would go out of my way to boycott milk produced in such a way. Of course, Fonterra will go out of its way to try and make sure I don’t know where the milk is sourced from. I am lucky in that I live near a charming couple who run their own organic dairy unit, so I can get “happy” milk anytime. But even then, why should I have to go to such trouble to simply source ethically and sustainably produced dairy produce??
The only solution is to make quite clear to Nicholson and the rest of his hateful, cruel big-farm mates that there will be direct action against their farms, and plenty of New Zealanders will be calling for an international boycott of our dairy industry if this is the only way to the march of immoral greed in our farming industry.
With you all the way on animal cruelty, I have never ceased to be amazed at how some stock are treated by farmers, its so variable between those who care and those who dont.
On the dairy issue, the whole industry is highly reliant on energy, to pump water, milk cows, move milk long distance etc, not to mention the energy input costs of maintaining marginal land as feedstock for animals. If the price of energy were to spike upwards even a minor amount the whole economic viability of production in remote or marginal areas would collapse quickly. I can assure you this will happen, hopefully before your concerns with animal welfare are realised. Its just another one of the elephants in the room that we prefer not to see, its called peak oil.
Fonterra appointed a new top guy a wee while ago and the comment was made that he was a commodity trader rather than a brand supporter or developer of value-added products. The result of these very large dairy farms will be to increase the supply of milk but run the risk of dirtying the brand that is our crown jewel.
Then there is the water needed. These big businesses are pretty cold-eyed, they will try to get water rights for long terms. Even if others can’t get the water they need in the future, they will have supplies sewn up legally. Australia is running out of water, why wouldn’t some of their capital come here and find a way to utilise this asset of ours as well. There are long-term contracts already being made that will give some rich guys great advantage. Environment Canterbury I am pretty sure, said about water and the environment, that it didn’t want to grant too many rights for tree planting at the heads of catchments because that would reduce the amount available downstream. A queer attitude from a practical environmental perspective.
Lastly, in early colonial days the govt stepped in to prevent a few wealthy men getting large tracts of land so they could not follow the path of British aristocratic land grabbing and become squatters here.
But that is actually what is happening now, the small dairy farmer is being squeezed out. And the Crayfurs and the Gillespies are examples of the greedy being able to leverage their way onto farms they couldn’t afford or manage properly, but causing the land price to rise because of demand from such financial gamers.
Yes Sanctuary, the Feds are big and snide, and pretend that they are trying to make environmental changes to improve their pollution, but will need strong disapproval to stop them marching on in the way they prefer. Many farmers are planting flax along streams etc. but the big ones I don’t think have such ideas in their business plans that will squeeze out the most profit for them.
One idea for using pollution from cowyards was to harness it for energy use from methane produced. I wonder if that has proved to provide useful power with low wastes.
There are presently troubles for some farmers trying to stop thefts from their farms with cables for remote cameras being cut etc. I would think that such things may be done to harrass the factory and polluting farmers if they are allowed to continue ‘creaming’ the country. They are worse than foul-mouthed politicians and those trying dodgy methods to increase their salaries.
I asserted that National acted like an antique autocratic feudalism,
cf Richard Worth, who was drummed out of parliament for making the king look bad.
So it’s not just me then.
Lynn, the comments seem to be out of sequence.
Oh Timmy you’ll end up banned again.
Since this post has a lot of people on the left saying that the left are good at handling dissenting views, GC, I doubt I’ll be banned for putting forward a contrary opinion.
[lprent: No. We don’t ban for contrary opinions. We usually ban for trolling and other attacks on the operation of this site.
Since much of the time the authors of posts don’t agree between themselves that wouldn’t be a particularly effective way to run a site.
I think you’ve been banned twice by Irish (the second time I’d have banned you as well if he hadn’t done it first). Both times were for personally attacking the authors of posts for what they wrote rather than what they were writing about. That is something the moderators do not allow.]
No, you’ll probably get banned for being an obnoxious troll as you usually do.
Then you’ll complain that you were really banned because of your contrary opinions, as all trolls do.
I dunno Tim, I saw the thread about Lee.
Just because people get tired of going around in circles with you about imaginary points you’ve pulled out of your arse doesn’t mean that anyone “gave up defending his position”.
In fact there are a lot of responses to all of your claims on that thread, most of which you haven’t even bothered to address. Does that mean you “gave up defending your position” too, Tim?
Seems comments are being inserted to the thread almost at random?
Or izzat jus me?
[lprent: Odd. I’ll have a peek at the SQL server. ]
Yes I’ve noticed that too PB. The front page seems to miss the first post for a while and the posts frequently go to a different page thing.
[lprent: That is probably the super-cache. It stores generated pages and will sometimes serve up old pages when the system is under load.
Looks like we’re having another spamming attack *sigh*. There was one on friday evening as well (actually pulled down the server for a couple of 10 minute stints). It is a bloody noisy environment and every so often we get a string of attacks that amount to denial of service attacks. ]
fair enough LP, a system administrators job is never done!
Ok. Looks like I pushed down the limits on simultaneous connections too far on fridays attacks. Pushed it back up again. That should let through the css files that were failing to be loaded where the client side didn’t have them cached.
I need a better mechanism for defeating the multiple-connection spam attacks.
Interesting collection of Paul Krugman quotes talking about the need to lower interest rates for a housing led recovery back in 2001 precipitating the housing bubble in the US and people still listen to these Keynesians. Krugman Did Cause the Housing Bubble.
An even better Krugman quote here:
Keynesian FAIL.
All this stupid talk about leadership change reminds me of the time when Helen Clark was on 2% . Remember how Banks refered to HC as miss 2% every day on his talk back show. Wake up people the Right will always have the upper hand regarding publicity . How long ago since we had a Left Wing Paper, Left Wing TV channel, or a talk back show. The only way the Left can get its message across is by direct involvement or Union activity.
[lprent: we try as well…]
Interesting reading brought to you from beyond the grave from Isaac Asimov (one of my favorite writers of all time).
Credit to PZ Myers linking to an essay by him in his blog on the fuzzy nature of right and wrong when it comes to knowing things.
http://chem.tufts.edu/AnswersInScience/RelativityofWrong.htm