Every post here since Key’s announcement on Monday has been boo-Key and boo-National.
National are vulnerable. The public will have an extra look to see who they think can run Government competently. But I see mostly see Opposition mud flying, still. It seems like a stupid first impression post-Key to present to the public.
If opposition parties, and supporting online forums like The Standard, want to take advantage of National’s vulnerability surely they can at least try to look better, rather than worse.
This blog and others from the right or left of politics are not the face of a political bloc in NZ – they are the venting and ravings of a few signifying nothing. Most voters will look at those they are voting for and the respective party leaders when casting their vote at the general election not the standard where all authors and the vast majority of commenters have decided how they will vote years out from the election usually due to their entrenched views and personal prejudices
Pete, maybe you would prefer to read the thoughts of one of the Herald writers on Keys departure… ?
“I could have chosen to dress up my column today with all sorts of nuanced, insightful, and charitable words about John Key’s departure. It’d be akin to going to someone’s funeral that you consistently bagged – both publicly and privately. Tacky”
The opposition parties were on fire in Parliament yesterday, and I for one am extremely proud of how they have approached this shocking news.
The statesman like response from the future PM of NZ aka Alpha Andy and Grant Robertson on the day Key announced his resignation spoke volumes. A stark contrast to the negative little personal put downs from the PM whom has quit.
How about starting the day singing praises about the opposition parties rather than whining about Keys resignation and the fact that the national party is in tatters. Where are your positive stories about the outgoing government in the last few days Pete?
What a stream of negativity, and what could be more negative than lying about the Opposition’s response to Key’s resignation:
On behalf of Metiria, the Green Party MPs and the Party, I would like to thank John Key for his eight years of service as Prime Minister,” said Green Party Co-leader James Shaw.
“No matter your political allegiance, you have to respect someone who chooses to make the personal sacrifices required to be our country’s Prime Minister.”
John Key has served New Zealand generously and with dedication. Although we may have had our policy differences over the years, I respect the Prime Minister’s decision to stand down.
“I can empathise with his reasons. Politics requires much sacrifice. We may all be politicians, but not all our lives are politics.
“The Prime Minister has served New Zealand through times of considerable global instability, and will leave politics proud of his achievements. I wish him and his family the best for the future.
“Labour is ready and willing to contest the 2017 general election. We will present a credible choice for people and look forward to the opportunity to contest the election on our values and vision for New Zealand.”
Why does Petty George tell so many desperate unoriginal lies? Does anyone care?
“On behalf of Metiria”
Did he talk to Metria before he came out with this statement? It certainly isn’t the approach that Turei was expounding in her mean spirited little contribution in Parliament yesterday.
Have they decided to play “good cop (Shaw) bad cop (Turei)”?
The political parties in the Opposition are crazy. They should learn from the way Key behaved after Helen Clark was defeated and stood down after the 2008 election.
She was defeated. She didn’t matter any more. He didn’t waste even a moment kicking a relic of the past on the side of the road because there was absolutely nothing to be gained.
Why are Labour and the Green MPs continuing the fight with someone who is retiring. All they do is exhibit their bitter little approach to life. Wait till there is a new National leader, and Prime Minister, and attack them. That is what Key did. He forgot Clark and aimed his fire at the new leader from that moment on. Staying on a path that attacks Key is stupid.
It doesn’t matter for people who contribute to this website, just as it didn’t matter to people who contributed to attacks on Clark on other sites after she had stood down. They were not MPs and nobody really cared about the mad ravings of a pack of loons, then against Clark or now against Key.
It is MPs who have to avoid looking like idiots.
Hi Alwyn, were you watching yesterday? I noticed a very cohesive group of opposition MP’s in the house yesterday, concentrating their questions on possible nat party leaders.
3. ANDREW LITTLE to the Minister of Finance: Does he stand by his statement that “the prices you pay for a house are ridiculous”, given New Zealand house prices have risen by over 50 percent since he made that statement? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b09iWjnarLE
4. Hon ANNETTE KING to the Minister of Health: Does he expect an estimated 533,000 New Zealanders who did not visit a GP due to cost in the last year to continue to wait for primary care reform which might “form part of a future Budget”, possibly under a different health Minister as stated by him? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUg1JikLdLg
7. PHIL TWYFORD to the Minister for Social Housing: Does she stand by her statement, “look I can’t guarantee that”, when asked if anyone living in a car can go to a Government agency today and get a roof over their head tonight? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bksgViHJ1MM
9. DAVID CLENDON to the Minister of Finance: Does he stand by his statement to this House that “having surpluses does not mean that the Government can go spending more money on ineffective public services or infrastructure that may not be needed”? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bqvLUqaRuWA
11. STUART NASH to the Minister of Police: Does she think there is any correlation between the closure of over 20 Community Policing Centres and the 13,000 increase in victimisations in the last 12 months; if not, why not? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMfQ7MtdWkk
However the debate that followed gave way for all to vent or praise the outgoing PM or in the case of Crusher, Coca Coleman and Dippy a chance to push their own agendas. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGgIWCeyHiA
Currently the outgoing government are infighting flat out with a leadership war. And the choices are so sad, I almost feel sorry for Nat voters, almost
The questions, except for Turei’s one to John Key were the MPs being sensible. They were focussing on now, not on something that has passed
The speeches in the debate were not. He’s gone. Give up. You couldn’t lay a glove on him while he was PM and there is simply no point in trying to do it now. Have a read of Turei’s speech yesterday in that debate. The words of a bitter twisted woman who is still trying to fight what is yesterday’s war. https://www.parliament.nz/en/pb/hansard-debates/rhr/document/HansS_20161206_056100000/turei-metiria
As for your dream of there being a leadership war. Forget it. The National Party hasn’t had a real war since Muldoon came to be leader and even that wasn’t really out in the open.
It isn’t quite the word I would use but still.
He was, as Chris Trotter pointed out once, the cleverest politician of our generation. He was vastly ahead of anyone else of his time.
I remember looking at that list of stories blip used to link to. He claimed they were Key’s “lies”. When I checked some of them I found they weren’t lies at all. They may have been carefully composed statements that people “thought” were lies but they weren’t. People tended to read into the things he said meanings that simply weren’t there.
If you didn’t like him you might say “slippery”. If you did like him, and clearly most New Zealanders do, you would simply say he was a master of his art. The only one in my lifetime who was in the same class was Keith Holyoake.
Actually, we are on the cusp of something special and at the end of the day I’m relaxed and comfortable about that.
Is that positive enough for you Pete? Not that this implies in any way or form that I am or speak for “the left” because that’s typically just a lovely meme for people that grapple with reality.
Pete, if that’s all you can see then you a blinded by the “light”.
Now let us get on with the rejoicing – because the “evil one” has gone.
And yes he is evil. Some may think the sun shines from his posterior – but for many* he brought nothing, but hardship and suffering. He was appointed by the people to care for them, (that is the primary role of Government), but like the Levite, he simply walked by on the other side.
*
40,000 more unemployed
41,000 homeless
300,000 children living in poverty
foodbank cupboards around the country are now under severe threat of becoming empty as the number of parcels isssued this year doubles.
Emergency shelters are permanently overflowing.
the cost of providing shelter for oneself, or ones family, has doubled.
Wages have risen barely 10% in the same period (if your lucky enough to earn a full time wage) – or stayed the same. Key on the other hand receives twice the renumeration for the “job” as does the British PM.
Mental health services run down to such an extent, they can no longer care for the vulnerable.
Our DHBs have been held to the same funding for almost a decade despite rising costs, and can now barely provide critical services, let alone “elective” surgery; and patients are pushed off, or kept off, “waiting” lists to make the statistics look good.
Schools have been forced from providing education to children and are now mere training centres for a National testing regime that sees our children’s ability falling in comparison with children from other countries. But never mind soon there will be COOL, and they can stay at home and do nothing.
And those are only the Social Justice Issues of the day.
Key has overseen the embeggarment of future generations. His largesse to the wealthy has come at the expense of every one else, and the failure to provide for future generations will see him held responsible for a deriliction of duty. NZ’s GHG emmissions have continued to increase as he trashed the ETS, and removed all incentives for saving energy. Our rivers are now cess pits for the dairy industry. Our seas are denuded of their fish, and marine life, and the Tasman Sea is a garbage dump of plastic and flotsum endangering the lives of 50% of sea birds that breed on our Islands. There is virtually nothing that he has not seen deteriorate under his watch, except the bank balances of his mates.
About the only thing “good” I can say is “GOOD RIDDANCE”
Sacha
That was such a good story too. And you spoil it with the facts!
And Pete George fertilises the post and I think 15 comments grew up in his shadow.. He certainly is stimulating. Like an electric shock, he can jerk everybody into a response. Some of them are very detailed and no doubt informative. So that is a positive result.
Russia is primarily concerned with supporting Assad. All his opponents are therefore fair game so far as the Russians are concerned.
As someone who is far from an expert on the subject – indeed I am normally among the populace who leave such complex discussions to those who know what they’re talking about – I am nevertheless sure your premise that Russia is primarily concerned with supporting Assad is correct. But I will go further and posit the theory that their support has less to do with Assad himself, and more to do with the desire to gain dominance of the Middle East oil supply chain. And of course America’s basic premise for being so intimately involved in the region is exactly the same. That is, both sides are fighting to gain dominance over the same supply chain.
The above will be seen by some as simplistic, but I venture to suggest that the moment technology produces an acceptable and easily produced alternative fuel hey presto… both sides will clear out of the Middle East and leave them to their own devices which is precisely what most of the M.E countries want to see happen.
Syria is the wrong country to choose if you want to dominate the oil trade; it has no significant oil and, while close to Iraq, is not on a major oil trade route. Also Russia is a major producer in its own right so could influence the market more effectively by altering its production. As could the US.
However, Syria has long provided a Mediterranean port and two airbases to Russia. Without these, Russia’s presence in the Middle East and the Med would be very much reduced.
Russia is generally hemmed in by geography. All the ‘Stans and deserts to the South. Mostly hostile Europeans to the West. Ice to the North and a bleak Pacific coast on the East.
The Black Sea is their easiest access to much of the world and Syria figures in that. Less about oil, more about centuries old geo-politics.
Fair enough Wayne but lets balance the situation. Whilst America has oil wells of it’s own, it is also dependent upon M.E. oil to cover the balance of it’s needs. That is my understanding anyway.
I read an analysis by Robert Kennedy Jr. a month or two ago where he talked of a major pipe-line still on the drawing board which both East and West are currently attempting to gain control over by way of the proposed route it will take. I can’t remember the exact details but it certainly brought home to me the fundamental essence of most of the warring factions… and it is really all about oil.
It is the Kurdish population that is playing a major role in the alliances chosen by Russia, Turkey and the US.
This is a comment by Dr Ismail Besikci:
“why did the British and the French decided to erase Kurdistan from the map and deny the Kurds existence by parting Kurdistan into four between Turkey, Iran, Iraq and Syria?”
This is as much about access to the Mediteranian as it is about a deal that has a Kurdistan to be kept from forming (Kurds refer to their ancestry back in 600BC, Arabs mentioned Kurds in the 7th century as nomadic people) Turkey plays a big role in that.
And then most of the time it’s the Kurd’s doing the hard yards on the ground.
I read recently, and can’t find the piece. That Russia is mainly avoiding ISIS so as not to rack up the Muslim at home. Chechnya has been, and still is a major thorn for Russia.
I don’t think the Chinese will be viewing Trump’s agenda as isolationist, not after the “Fuck you” messages he’s been sending them the last week. Still, the fact they’re not chuffed with him might also explain that veto.
Political broadcast brought to you via exiting entertainer Paul Henry interviewing Judith this morning…
Crusher says….
She will make Pike a memorial tomb.
She will suck up to Winny, says he is one of the best politicians who has ever been in Parliament and wants more options with support parties.
She’s not into English, he’s been preventing an increase in the police force apparently
Has no faith in Coleman
With a wavering voice says she wants more police
IMHO she doesn’t appear to be very confident in her chances. If her leadership bid fails will she form a breakaway party? Interesting times ahead.
PS Merry Christmas Paddy, maybe the Nation should do a special episode in the weekend, you’ll be bumming a bit that last week was your Christmas final. And you thought the Trump election was the highlight of your year lololol been thinking of you, happy for you, i don’t like you, but i’m happy for you. What a year huh?
Rachel Stewart pulls no punches in saying honestly what she thinks of John key. She tells of voting Nats for Key’s first term – I’m constantly surprised that people couldn’t tell Key was slippery as from the getgo.
Stewart fell out of support for Key over water quality, and it was all down hill from there, through rising inequality to tasteless media stunts and women being relegated to cheerleaders.
A good money man? Key’s bold and brassy belief that he managed the Global Financial Crisis well is, shall we say, deluded. He got lucky. Pure and simple.
I’ll wager that within the next 12 months, and well before the 2017 election, our economy will match the global outlook perfectly. It’ll be munted. He is less an economic guru and more a tinny bastard, frankly.
I say this in complete awe at Key’s uncanny ability to ride the rollercoaster of pure providence. Despite the poor getting poorer, and the rich getting richer, he somehow managed to convince the wider electorate that he was a financial whizz – as opposed to the money trading gambler he ultimately is.
1. Destruction of waterways and lack of care for the environment.
2. Mismanagement of the economy so we have become a very unequal society.
3. His gutter behaviour towards women.
This – “He seemed to me to care only for running New Zealand like a huge corporation by squeezing every last dollar out of it – no matter the downstream consequences.”
A country isn’t a corporation and shouldn’t be run like one. Hell, even a corporation shouldn’t be run like corporations are run these days. Every business should care about the environment and about the people it employs and their well being.
Do the Nat MP’s ask their constituents whom they feel would be the best choice in the race for leader of the national party and then vote accordingly?
Or do the MP’s vote according to their own wants and needs?
It just doesn’t seem very democratic to me, I’d be a bit pissy i think if i was a nat party member and did not have a say in whom the leader of the party i belong to should be.
Leader
82.
(a) The Parliamentary Section shall appoint its Leader as soon as
practicable after each General Election.
(b) If at any time the leadership of the Parliamentary Section falls vacant,
the Parliamentary Section shall appoint a Leader to fill such vacancy.
Notwithstanding Rule 82 (a), the Parliamentary Section may at any
time between General Elections confirm or change its Leader.
(c) The Leader of the Parliamentary Section shall, upon receiving the
approval of the Board, become the Leader of the Party. The Board shall
consider such approval as soon as practicable after the appointment
by the Parliamentary Section of its Leader.
As the rules indicate it is the MP’s who decide. Otherwise how could it be done in a week.
However, I am pretty sure the MP’s will be thinking who will be the most effective in the next election and will be taking more than a few soundings on that very point.
I hope that some of those people who voted for John Key will reflect on what he actually did or didn’t do for NZ and start to consider the pressing issues facing this country and the world. That so many people could fail to see past the fawning MSM smokescreen for 8 years has never failed to amaze me. I also hope that those journalists who were “seduced’ by Key’s “friendliness” will take the opportunity to look back at their own contribution to the distraction he provided for a government that failed to deal with the pressing issues apart from a few superficial interventions. An alternative government could have made quite a difference to the current housing situation, reduced the foreign ownership of land, removed the tax haven status and worked with the Pike River families in a more compassionate manner had not the “show us the money” , the dirty politics/Ede/Slater feeding of MSM clouded the public’s view of the real issues.
How fake news has trashed the old idea of checking facts before publishing and tried to replace it with the idea that any kind of nutso raving is truth until someone else proves it wrong (to the nutso raver’s standards).
This backgrounder makes Comet Ping Pong sound like an interesting place. Also explains why malicious kooks would want to use it as a centrepiece of a fake news story.
Murtaza Hussain @MazMHussain 23h23 hours ago
2003: Rifle-toting Americans barge into Iraq after reading viral Fake News story about weapons of mass destruction.
Yep, more right wingers creating fake news with disastrous consequences. With not enough attention being paid to Hans Blix and his inspection team fact-checking and saying there’s nothing there.
Bill English will be the next PM but it will be close, very close with Jude so close in fact that I wouldn’t be at all surprised if theres a coup a year or so into Englishs reign, obviously it will be much earlier if English loses the next election
Having said that I wouldn’t be surprised at all if Jude managed to take the leadership of English
If I could pick I’d pick Coleman as he’s the freshest (or least most unknown) face and being a medical doctor is not exactly a bad thing to have on ones CV but he won’t get near the leadership
Prediction time?
Cut’n’run Key will be seen as shallower and shallower as time passes.
Cigar-smoke Coleman will be unable to hide his arrogance.
Crusher Collins will be unable to shake off the Slater on her back.
Boring Bill will fail to rid himself of his Double-Dipton title.
You must feel bereft, Pucky, and appalled by the present state of affairs.
Its not ideal but lets say National lose 7-8% over Key leaving, that leaves National on approx. 40%, I’d suggest NZFirst might gain as much as 3-4% of that which puts NZFirst well and truly over 10%
Jude would have no issues working with Winston and, probably, vice versa so the most logical outcome is a National/NZFirst government in 2017 and every other party on the outside unless Winston wants them in
Not sure how Winston and English get on though so its certainly made the upcoming election more interesting
No. It’s not ideal for the likes of you and other Key-adorers. In fact, it’s THE WORST POSSIBLE THING, and that’s, as you say, not ideal. For you. For others, myself included, this is High Humour and Pure Oxygen to the Soul 🙂 Now, you are reduced to trying to build something from a pile of fetid goop, relatively speaking, given that previously, you (believed) you were spinning with gold. How quickly that precious metal turned to straw. You must feel betrayed, as indeed you were. Key’s smiled as he assassinated National and the hopes of his sycophants such as your pucky self. These are dark days for you, Pucky, and all you can do now is try to make purses from sow’s ears. Good luck, ol’ chappy!
“These are dark days for you, Pucky, and all you can do now is try to make purses from sow’s ears”
Yes its this exactly, we could sit around and go into mourning and think the worst has happened and we should all just give up but that won’t achieve anything and would almost certainly guarantee an election loss
Or we could see what we’re left with and go from there and it looks like there’s now no real impediment to National and Winston combining that that’s a…positive I guess
Its not what I (or anyone) would have wanted but sometimes you have to play the hand you’re dealt and National did manage to win one or two elections without John Key and I dare say they’ll be able to do it again
I suppose if ones trying to look positive I’d say that John Key has the left the party in the high 40s and there won’t be a bye-election needed, which is something a certain ex-Labour leader maybe should have looked at doing
Sitting around, mourning…yes, there’ll be a lot of that going on, Pucky, and more of it to come for your horrid crew who over the past 8 years have been crowing from the top of the dunghill you now discover is all thart remains for you. You had a merry trickster as your star and he’s dumped on you all from his great height – what treachery! How neatly and heartlessly he’s slid his dagger into the heart of his party and his supporters! Smiling Assassin indeed – did you think you were exempt? What I see now, is Mr Little, solid and trustworthy, established and supported, generously suppressing his delight at Key’s feckless knee-capping of the Right, eyes fixed on his up-coming win in 2017 – Little’s played it perfectly, as he’s played you and your gutted team. A marvelous week for the Left, Pucky, and the first of many.
Well leaving National in the high 40s and with the door fully open for NZFirst is not a bad position to be in
I know you don’t like my predictions but I predict that after the next general election National will still be in power and I think its now going to be National/NZFirst
Who do you think will make up the next government?
“trying to build something from a pile of fetid goop, ”
Like the golem…
“In Jewish folklore, a golem (/ˈɡoʊləm/ goh-ləm; Hebrew: גולם) is an animated anthropomorphic being that is magically created entirely from inanimate matter (specifically clay or mud). The word was used to mean an amorphous, unformed material in Psalms and medieval writing.[1]
The most famous golem narrative involves Judah Loew ben Bezalel, the late-16th-century rabbi of Prague. There are many tales differing on how the golem was brought to life and afterwards controlled.”
Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series features allusions to many beliefs and weaves them into his stories. The golems appear particularly in Feet of Clay. The ideas about them seem to have been carried further into the thinking about how robots could be limited in their free will by Asimov.
Good to talk with you Rosemary. Yes Terry P was a good and funny writer and man. Also I have started reading Ellis Peters who wrote a series around Cadfael the monk who was sort of an ideal man that I think some women writers like to bring to life and imagine stories around. He lives in the 1100s and she writes vividly about that time and I think has the historical background and the culture of that time probably well covered.
While we are in these dire straits in the world I am interested in what people are, under all our layers of civilisation and poncy clothes and cars and high-heeled shoes. I’m looking for nobility and soul and clever use of our machiavellian minds and love and fascination with and for each other. Things I have never bothered thinking about before but now I see clearly how humans have trouble learning from past errors and am brought to the question of what did my birth father die for in 1944 WW2, which we don’t seem to have transcended, then what are we? It seems to me that there is an insect brain in us, along with other primitive inherent cognition.
This is a bit heavy but when one starts looking into the void as is happening now, then it makes ya think doesn’t it.
(Funny just as I was closing off – Puckish Rogue’s astute comment dame up Sounds more like Frankensteins monster in that case
“she has no new policy idea’s apart from more police”.
Don’t say that Cinny.
If you give her the credit Little, Andrew will have a hissy fit. He’ll be tearing up the carpet and complaining that it was HIS idea and that she is stealing it.
I can hear the wails from here. “Tt’s not fair, it’s not fair, it’s not fair ……..”
Please, spare me. Some things just shouldn’t have to be thought of.
However, have you ever heard Winston laugh? He lasts about 2 seconds and then ends wheezing furiously. Far too many cigarettes to manage a laugh any more.
Bombers got some great descriptions on the Nat candidates on TDB – (he sadly holds back on Collins however, the worst candidate in my view a mash up of Trump, Hitler, Imelda Marcos and Thatcher with the Enron accountants, rolled into one body )
BILL ENGLISH – A RELIGIOUS FANATIC
“I wouldn’t be surprised if he whips himself to sleep nightly. English desperately needed Key because English has all the charm and personal warmth of a road accident. Key was the smiling vacant face while English spent time privatising state housing, expanding the neoliberal welfare state and pushing for mass surveillance of beneficiaries.”
COLEMAN – DALEK
“The Minister of Wheeze, Dr Croak has a voice honied by years of cigarettes and stepping on poor peoples dreams. Possibly the most hopeless Minister ever, he did a shit job with Broadcasting and he’s a joke in Health. He wouldn’t publicly eat the cheap slop he was forcing hospital patients to eat and had the audacity to privately eat it and tweet about how yummy it was.”
Nope Collins will just kick out English as PM when she sees her chance – no break away party for the Natz – they are too lazy to break away and too clueless to start a party from scratch.
I have been wondering just how deep the divisions within the National Party are over the issue of legalising euthanasia.
There have been numerous attempts by from both left and right over the years to facilitate assisted dying. This year has seen a high profile court case and a continuing exhaustive select committee hearing with over 20,000 submissions.
Despite my personal well founded reservations, I honestly thought that this time the issue would get over the line and the syringes would sharpened and extra stocks of ‘blue juice’ ordered.
But no…despite having fully supported Lecretia Seales, John Key announced a month ago that…
“There is zero chance of Government introducing legislation to legalise euthanasia even if an inquiry strongly recommends it, ”
The reason given…”Key said he personally supported euthanasia. He would not take the step himself, but he believed others should be able to.
However, there was strong opposition to it within the National caucus, he said.
Senior members of the Cabinet such as Bill English and Gerry Brownlee have previously voted against bills which would have made euthanasia legal.”
There is a real taste for physician assisted dying and the loud protagonists, although they dismiss the concerns of those who would be most at risk from misuse of such a facility, seemed to be winning.
So why the sudden back off from Key…who’s fair physiognomy dominated the Seales’ campaign page?
The politicians are too afraid of thinking deeply about anything because it just creates a precedent, and why fiddle while everything is going their way. So euthanasia, assisted dying, whatever has no chance with these peabrains.
And physician-assisted doesn’t have to come into it. If people have signed a document that they wish to do so, gone through legal measures of ensuring they have a will, left messages with a functionary with solicitor’s background if they don’t want to explain it to their children as is the best way, then they should have the right to do so. A proper procedure should be established in compliance with what older people who have thought through the process have decided and worked through with the pollies. Then there will be a peace of mind that life can be lived to the full and not in the end interfered with by forcing it to continue because of others’ beliefs and rigid principles.
At present there is this shameful and excessive watchfulness trying to prevent people even thinking or hearing about means of death. Police raids, disgusting. Politicians on top of the money heap and controlling, being the gatekeepers against those who wish to determine their own length of incapacity, they are a disgrace to their ‘profession’, incompetents and shallow. And the religious and hospices should stop trying to be Burkes in reverse.
It is people who make other people suffer. Their ego, and dependence of being constantly appreciated. Hang on…. mostly male I think. Yep, looking around the world and it adds up.
I don’t know if he harasses waitresses or fondles the hair of little girls, but this bloke is a real piece of work.
The Sunday Star Times reported yesterday that Dr Coleman had been punched after he allegedly blew his cigar smoke at a woman. Dr Coleman said there were two sides to every story, but he did not intend to press charges over the incident.
Coca Cole-man, calls himself a Dr, but refuses to tackle the sugar issue even though across the globe other countries are tackling it and identifying it as so harmful. We have a public health system, why would he stretch it further by not addressing sugar?
Obesity and diabetes rates are obscene in NZ, sugar is an issue. Coleman would rather push through RMA changes and dump fluoride in our water than tackle the sugar issue. By adopting this mind set he shows himself as a Dr of Death.
We have a public health system, why would he stretch it further by not addressing sugar?
Probably because he’s a MD and can identify this wailing about sugar as the kind of simplistic thinking that results in bad policy and unforeseen consequences. Obesity and diabetes are problems of carbohydrates in general, not sucrose in particular, and any minister wanting to deal with them walks into a political minefield – if Coleman doesn’t fancy using his feet as mine detectors, that’s hardly surprising.
Psycho, Coca Coleman is a fortune seeker, and not a good listener…
“A Herald poll last month suggested an overwhelming public desire to introduce a sugar tax, with more than 80% of 11,700 voters in favour of new legislation.”
“More than 84 per cent of GPs responding to the latest New Zealand Doctor/IMS fax poll believe a sugar tax should be introduced in this country.
And nearly 70 per cent reject health minister Jonathan Coleman’s view of the effect a tax would have on consumption of sugary drinks.”
To whom? If the answer is “Evidence,” yes I do want a PM who listens. If it’s “Opinion polls,” then meh, not so much. (Not that I want a Nat PM either way, mind.)
“A Herald poll last month suggested an overwhelming public desire to introduce a sugar tax, with more than 80% of 11,700 voters in favour of new legislation.” “Don’t you want a PM that listens?”
You just had one for the past 8 years and he was berated for being poll driven. Do you want him back already?
“More than 84 per cent of GPs responding to the latest New Zealand Doctor/IMS fax poll believe a sugar tax should be introduced in this country.
And nearly 70 per cent reject health minister Jonathan Coleman’s view of the effect a tax would have on consumption of sugary drinks.”
How many of those GP’s also have an MBA? Interesting that you think they would have a better understanding on the effect taxation on consumption and the wider effects of such a tax (does it just cover sucrose? what about glucose? what if Coke just switched to a fructose based sweetener, do we have to tax fruit then? Would it include pure fruit juices? What about reconstituted fruit juices? All sugars are linked to diabetes, so do we tax everything with any trace of sugar like beer and wine? It would clearly have to cover Balsamic Vinaigrette, Almond Butter, yogurt) than a GP MP with an MBA…
Need more evidence? Scandinavian countries have such a tax, as does, Mexico, France, Hungary, Britain ..
Recent evidence further suggests an association between sugar-sweetened beverage consumption and preventable mortality from diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and cancer, with the majority of deaths occurring in low and middle-income countries.. says the WHO.. so why on earth would we not want to do something about this? Something sensible, something that works, just like tobacco tax. Or do you think people will start holding up their local dairy for a red bull?
Now Coca Coleman is promising more funding for health if he gets the new job.. is that just some kind of excuse for his short comings in looking after the Health Ministry?
Lots of questions, so let’s make it easy…. A sugary drinks tax or soda tax is a tax or surcharge designed to reduce consumption of drinks with added sugar. Drinks covered under a soda tax often include, carbonated drinks, uncarbonated drinks, sports drinks and energy drinks
The way I see it is any against such a tax are just pro big business aka big sugar profits, and we all know they make more than enough as it is.
Let’s be pro the NZ Health System that our taxes pay for, lets look after the people.
Need more evidence? Scandinavian countries have such a tax, as does, Mexico, France, Hungary, Britain ..
Other countries implementing simplistic policies based on noise from lobbyists isn’t “evidence” – except, maybe, evidence that weak politicians are prey for noisy lobbyists.
Recent evidence further suggests an association between sugar-sweetened beverage consumption and preventable mortality from diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and cancer…
Sugar-sweetened beverage consumption and a shitload of other things that are probably more important factors. But instead of looking at the actual causes of obesity and diabetes (which come down to “foods that raise blood glucose levels rapidly”) and seeing what can be done about them, let’s tax sugary drinks because left-wingers hate the Coca Cola corporation. Why, oh why, isn’t Coleman on board with that, I wonder?
Lots of questions, so let’s make it easy…. A sugary drinks tax or soda tax is a tax or surcharge designed to reduce consumption of drinks with added sugar.
To serve what purpose? If the purpose is to reduce rates of obesity and diabetes in the population, a sugary-drinks tax is not fit for purpose for several reasons (the tax would have to be very high to actually suppress consumption, there’s extensive scope for unintended consequences, and singling out sugary drinks is pointless – if you look at the glycemic index, white bread and various other foods are actually worse than sucrose for making you fat and diabetic). The actual purpose of such a tax would be to make hand-wringers feel like they were doing something useful, which is not a good justification for new taxes.
Would you apply the same logic to a doctor that drinks alcohol? Ethanol is a Group 1 carcinogen also, not to mention processed meat, would you not trust a doctor that drinks beer or eats pepperoni pizza?
To answer your question, I would trust a doctor that smokes, or drinks, or eats pepperoni pizza.
Labour – I guess I’m from the little-known “surly curmudgeon” faction. That was the first time since 1987, though – was an Alliance voter, then Green, then fuck-who-can-a-left-libertarian-vote-for-now, then back to Labour again on the basis that these days they’re the underdog and need some support. Proud to say I’ve never voted Winston First, although to my shame I did vote ACT once – at the time, they and the Greens were the only ones backing liberty when it came to drugs, anti-terrorism over-reach laws etc and the Greens were anti-science, so I swallowed a big dead rat. Never again…
You don’t think a tax on sugary drinks would achieve anything? I disagree, it would do something to help, it would not solve the whole problem, but it would be a factor in that solution.
The tax does not appear to have dented sales in Mexico, the government is collecting tax from it that can be used in the health sector, for other factors of obesity, maybe it could be used to encourage more people into physical activity or something, maybe the tax could be enough to cover dental care for the whole population? I don’t see any loses with this kind of tax from either side.
It’s long been clear that you lack one, Pucky, as your hero-to-zero, John Key lacks anything resembling one, but I didn’t want to make an issue of it. I can see now, why you favour Collins for your next empty-vessel leader.
Actually I favour Coleman because he’s a fresher (or unknown) face whereas English, though talented, can’t really claim to be renewing and Jude has been unfortunately hamstrung by nasty lefties that fear her talent, hard work and charisma
No one will win in this race of the losers, Pucky, least of all you and silly-billies like you who believed in Key. You’ve been slam-dunked, abandoned, short-changed and abused. I’m leaving you to your stranded-fish gaspings today as I’ve got fun things to do and this is miserable stuff.
Unless you are more ignorant than I think you are, my friend, you will realize that Hager’s book was very successful. As he pointed out in this morning’s interview, the book led to Judith Collins losing her cabinet seat.
And the sordid parts of his book are the revelations of what Collins, Slater, Jordan Williams, Jason Eade and co. were doing. You’re muddle-headed to confuse the journalist with the things he reveals.
Ok its true that in my opinion the purpose of the book was to swing the election the lefts way which means it was a failure, National was re-elected, John Key was still popular and the left was still stagnating
According to Hager – and despite the right’s claims to the contrary he is a thoroughly honest person – the timing of the publication of the book just before the election was coincidental. He had hoped it would be ready for publication early in 2014 but it didn’t work out that way. Having said that, I’m sure he did want to see it published before the 2014 election.
Hager does not make claims about anybody without solid evidence to back them up. And that is precisely what happened with “Dirty Politics”. That it did not have an effect on the election is an indictment on the voters – the vast majority of whom were too glassy eyed and lazy to bother to read the book and/or digest the information that was widely reported and it’s inherent ramifications.
I recall Hager being quite open about the fact he wanted to publish the book before the election because he believed it was important that voters were aware of the dirty political machinations (Ede, Slater, Odgers, Lusk and Carrick Graham in particular) that were occurring. It was also deplorable that it was being coordinated from within “the PM’s office” and it defies logic Key didn’t know what was going on as he subsequently claimed.
Hager intended to publish much sooner but there were various delays and it ended up coming only a month before the election. Too late to have much affect on the election.
“the vast majority of whom were too glassy eyed and lazy to bother to read the book and/or digest the information that was widely reported and it’s inherent ramifications.” One of whom is you eh Pluckliss Rogue.
But it’s a great go-to for another insight and possible leads, that index.. fantastico.
GOsh it’s super exciting really… a race when you can’t stand any of the candidates, it’s like the USA presidential election all over again post Bernie of course.
Bridges I love oil is about to throw his hat in the ring too…. let the circus begin.. lmfaooooo best reality show in some time this is.
Really? One of the better selling NZ books, I would have thought.
Positive feedback for Nicky Hager’s book, Dirty Politics, keeps on coming.
“I can’t go anywhere, like the supermarket, without people coming up and thanking me for writing it – it’s like no experience I’ve had before,” he says.
The Wellington-based journalist says he intended the book to be a small sequel to The Hollow Men. “But this one really struck a chord; it’s been amazing.”
Dirty Politics has sold 18,000 copies, which is huge for New Zealand. Normally, best sellers clock up about 2000 in sales.
I thought it was telling that in that interview Collins claimed she doesn’t hold grudges but spent the entire time attacking Nicky Hager, and deliberately mispronouncing his name. She came across as vindictive and bullying – so quite accurate really.
First Policy out from The Opportunities Party. Gareth Morgan.
“The current tax regime favours owners of capital and unjustly burdens wage earners. This is not only inequitable, it results in poor utilisation of capital and lower than necessary income and employment. ”
“It addresses issues of rising inequality, housing affordability, foreign debt and poor levels of business investment. The end result will be more jobs, more businesses growth and tax cuts that leave 80% of the population better off.”
(I am watching with cautious interest.) http://www.top.org.nz/top1?utm_campaign=top1_members&utm_medium=email&utm_source=garethmorgan
“In case you missed it, I repeat
– under this policy NOT ONE
ADDITIONAL DOLLAR OF TAX
WILL BE COLLECTED. What
will happen is that some of
us will pay more (in mine and
John Key’s case, a lot more) and
for the great majority of people
they will either be unaffected
or pay significantly less. ”
It is closing a tax loop hole, not a new tax, nor an attack on the poorest on society. Quite smart really.
Being a “cash-poor homeowner” is a piss poor reason to expect tax exemptions. There are a lot of hard working people getting heavily taxed and will never own a home. What happened to a fair go?
Exactly. The idea that owning a home is somehow a special burden needs to be put to rest.
I get tired of home owners who endlessly bang on about ‘how hard it is to pay the mortgage’, as if somehow paying rent with absolutely no benefit or gain or security, till the day you die, is the easy ‘option’.
Some work to pay the rent, some work to pay the mortgage. The renter is the one left well behind in that equation.
We need some fairness in our financial and taxation systems.
A lot of kiwi homeowners think they are entitled to some kind of special privileges and tax breaks that renters never get. They are very sensitive to anything that threatens their inflated asset value
What about the older folks? They ones who have saved all their lives, survived wars and worked hard raising their families in a home as apartments obviously were not in vogue. But you could also look to the older folks that have to fork out 16 Mil for repair bills of apartments not so long ago build.
The core of it is that instead of getting off on envy and bashing people who have worked hard, work on a fairer system. This would certainly not include any tax cuts but rather have progressive tax applied.
You didn’t read Gareth Morgan’s piece didja? His proposal seems eminently fair. Taxing the top few % who are asset rich and using accounting tricks to hide their income from capital gains. Why should people who work for a living have to pay all the tax and people in million dollar houses pay none, while gaining (at least) 70K per year tax free.
You refereed to “a lot of Kiwi homeowners” – a lot? Many, many older folks are asset rich (if one could say that) because they have paid off the mortgage for the roof over their heads. With the 350 bucks a week to survive I doubt that you can add another tax.
As to your assertion of “entitlement” – there is no such thing. There is however, fairness in distribution which has never played out as for every mentioning of a group getting a share someone will put a veto in. This is what greed is all about, measuring entitlements.
Corrections Minister Judith Collins has also announced she’ll seek the leadership of the party – and the nation – but is potentially less able to relate to the financial struggles of ordinary kiwis.
Collins has no money, but purchases all her goods by silently staring people down until they cave.
Outgoing Prime Minister John Key has been tipped as a potential candidate to head the International Monetary Fund – an appointment signed off by US President Barack Obama.
Someone must be getting upset with all the research that the IMF has done recently that proves the present socio-economic system that’s been rammed down our throats, often via the IMF, doesn’t work.
With the mess he has made of promoting high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reducing poverty in New Zealand he has no hope of accomplishing the stated goals of the IMF. The IMF seeks to facilitate trade as well, but that trade is meant to be fair and balanced trade. The type of trade he has sort to facilitate but luckily has failed so far has been to give the big internationals all the power to bully the little guys and small countries with anonymous international courts paid for, staffed by and beholden to those same big internationals.
This is of course going to happen if Jonathon “We’ll have to agree to disagree” Coleman gets one of the two Top Spots.
and to confirm my earlier assertion that he could be The Man…
“‘I think [Dr Coleman] glosses over the serious plight the public health system is in, and I don’t think he sufficiently gets it.
”At our last conference he annoyed the delegates a lot, because when somebody would express a different view to his, he had a stock answer of simply saying: ‘We’ll have to agree to disagree’.””
Sounds like Someone Else doesn’t it? Not getting it and glossing over the problems….but I guess that to achieve such a constant state of ‘relaxedness’ you’d have to be that way inclined.
Has the NZ Herald published the real reason Key has resigned?
Did he get a tap on the shoulder from President Obama in his last days in office and wants an even bigger stage for his ego?
John Key named as ideal candidate to head IMF http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11762219
We will have to wait and see.
A lot of the things that job is meant to accomplish are things he has totally failed at in New Zealand. QUOTE: The IMF seeks to facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world.
He has only ever focused on one of those things in his time as NZ PM and the last 3 have got worse every year for us here under his government. He shrugged off as to hard reducing poverty here, imagine the mess with him in that role.
Now that makes sense at last! Hearing Key say he doesn’t know what he will do next…..casually throwing in “maybe the speaking circuit..” He has had a game plan since being a ten year old, deciding he would learn golf, because rich people play golf, so who is he trying yo kid?
LMFAO !!!!!! That headline caught my eye and i was like, nah who cares, as long as he fucks off from here, i won’t read that.
And it’s a year old, and Herald is running it today… bahahahaha. Thanks for letting us all know.
Sad, real sad, looking for click bait are we? Well it aint john the pm who quit key, any headline with his name in it is now yesterdays news or in this case yester-years news
Excellent opinion piece on Key in the Grauniad today. Includes thought-provoking discussion of the need for the political opposition to produce a viable counter-narrative.
“In this regard, Key was like a Tony Blair of the South Seas: a certain level of personal charisma and a socially inclusive façade allowed both Key and Blair to sell the nasty side of neoliberalism.”
“Like Blair, Key had the Teflon gene. Despite ignoring public preferences not to privatise state-owned enterprises (2-1 against in a referendum), increasing the GST during the global financial crisis, and more or less ignoring New Zealand’s chronic child poverty because he blames the victims, none of it stuck.”
What a brilliant summary of the PR image (not the actual human being) that was our Prime Minister.
When Labour-voting women were asked what kind of husband they imagined Key would be, they saw him as having so much social and economic capital that they would be prepared to tolerate multiple breaches of trust in the relationship before considering severing it. Such was the appeal of Key’s persona.
But the money story central to neoliberalism and so crucial to Key’s success is built on a false analogy that can be killed off with the correct mix of branding and narrative.
For a start, it is necessary to assert that we live in a society, not an economy. The national budget is not like a household budget and anyone who tells you it is, is hiding something from you. Households don’t indulge quantitative easing (ie printing money); make decisions about what levels of social inequality are tolerable; set tax levels; or decide what scale of deficits will be run in order to redistribute income, feed the poor, educate our children or, heaven forbid, help them get well (for free!) when they are sick.
These are all social decisions that determine our approach to fiscal management, rather than economic imperatives that determine our values as society. We don’t decide to starve our children until the mortgage has been paid off.
If you want to unseat the neoliberal elites, be they the Trump-style authoritarians, or the Key and Blair style charlatans of social inclusion, you have to unpick their story of fiscal morality. And you need charismatic and popular champions to tell your story about creating a society that is caring and just.
Why doesnt the entire opposition call for a VOTE OF NO CONFIDENCE in the government led by English
That will trigger an early GENERAL ELECTION so we can all be part of who runs our country instead of having yet another money lusting chauvenistic bully forced on us!!!
That way we dont need an expensive by election for Shearers seat if he goes.
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A homicide in Ponsonby, a manhunt with a killer on the run. The nation’s leader stands before a press conference reassuring a frightened nation that he’ll sort it out, he’ll keep them safe, he’ll build some new prison spaces.Sorry what? There’s a scary dude on the run with a gun ...
Hi,I know it’s been awhile since there’s been any Webworm merch — and today that all changes!Over the last four months, I’ve been working with New Zealand artist Jess Johnson to create a series of t-shirts, caps and stickers that are infused with Webworm DNA — and as of right ...
The OECD’s chief economist yesterday laid it on the line for the new Government: bring the deficit under control or face higher Reserve Bank interest rates for longer. And to bring the deficit under control, she meant not borrowing for tax cuts. But there was more. Without policy changes—introducing a ...
After a hiatus of over four months Selwyn Manning and I finally got it together to re-start the “A View from Afar” podcast series. We shall see how we go but aim to do 2 episodes per month if possible. … Continue reading → ...
In 2008, the UK Parliament passed the Climate Change Act 2008. The law established a system of targets, budgets, and plans, with inbuilt accountability mechanisms; the aim was to break the cycle of empty promises and replace it with actual progress towards emissions reduction. The law was passed with near-universal ...
Buzz from the Beehive Local Water Done Well – let’s be blunt – is a silly name, but the first big initiative to put it into practice has gone done well. This success is reflected in the headline on an RNZ report:District mayors welcome Auckland’s new water deal with ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate ConnectionsA farmworker cleans the solar panels of a solar water pump in the village of Jagadhri, Haryana Country, India. (Photo credit: Prashanth Vishwanathan/ IWMI) Decisions made in India over the next few years will play a key role in global ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – The Children’s Minister, Karen Chhour, intends to repeal Section 7AA from the Oranga Tamariki Act 1989 because it creates conflict between claimed Crown Treaty obligations and the child’s best interests. In her words, “Oranga Tamariki’s governing principles and its act should be colour ...
Geoffrey Miller writes – The gloves are off. That might seem to be the undertone of surprisingly tough talk from New Zealand’s foreign and trade ministers. Winston Peters, the foreign minister, may be facing legal action after making allegations about former Australian foreign minister Bob Carr on Radio New Zealand. ...
Brian Easton writes – This is about the time that the Treasury will be locking up its economic forecasts to be published in the 2024 Budget Economic and Fiscal Update (BEFU) on budget day, 30 May. I am not privy to what they will be (I will report on them ...
TL;DR:Winston Peters is reported to have won a budget increase for MFAT. David Seymour wanted his Ministry of Regulation to be three times bigger than the Productivity Commission. Simeon Brown is appointing a Crown Monitor to Watercare to protect the Claytons Crown Guarantee he had to give ratings agencies ...
The gloves are off. That might seem to be the undertone of surprisingly tough talk from New Zealand’s foreign and trade ministers. Winston Peters, the foreign minister, may be facing legal action after making allegations about former Australian foreign minister Bob Carr on Radio New Zealand. Carr had made highly ...
Today New Zealand First will introduce a Member’s Bill that will protect women’s spaces. The ‘Fair Access to Bathrooms Bill’ will require, primarily in the interest and safety of women and girls, that all new non-domestic publicly accessible buildings provide separate, clearly demarcated, unisex and single sex bathrooms. This Bill ...
The Green Party is welcoming Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ continuation of Hon. James Shaw’s cross-party work on climate adaptation, now in the form of a Finance and Expenditure Committee Inquiry. ...
The National Government plans to cut 390 jobs at ACC, including roles in the areas of prevention of sexual violence, road safety and workplace safety. ...
The Government has been caught in opposition to evidence once again as it looks to usher in tried, tested and failed work seminar obligations for job-seeking beneficiaries. ...
The Green Party is welcoming the announcement by the Minister Responsible for RMA Reform Chris Bishop to approve most of the Wellington City Council’s District Plan recommendations. ...
David Seymour has failed to get the sweeping cuts he wanted to the free and healthy school lunch programme, Labour education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
Hon Willie Jackson has been invited by the Oxford Union to debate the motion “This House Believes British Museums are not Very British’ on May 23rd. ...
Green Party MP Hūhana Lyndon says her Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill is an opportunity to right some past wrongs around the alienation of Māori land. ...
A senior, highly respected King’s Counsel with decades of experience in our law courts, Gary Judd KC, has filed a complaint about compulsory tikanga Māori studies for law students - highlighting the utter depths of absurdity this woke cultural madness has taken our society. The tikanga regulations will compel law ...
The Government needs to be clear with the people of the Nelson Marlborough region about the changes it is considering for the Nelson Hospital rebuild, Labour health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall said. ...
Ministers must front up about which projects it will push through under its Fast Track Approvals legislation, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
The Government is again adding to New Zealand’s growing unemployment, this time cutting jobs at the agencies responsible for urban development and growing much needed housing stock. ...
With Minister Karen Chhour indicating in the House today that she either doesn’t know or care about the frontline cuts she’s making to Oranga Tamariki, we risk seeing more and more of our children falling through the cracks. ...
The Labour Party is saddened to learn of the death of Sir Robert Martin, a globally renowned disability advocate who led the way for disability rights both in New Zealand and internationally. ...
Labour is calling for the Government to urgently rethink its coalition commitment to restart live animal exports, Labour animal welfare spokesperson Rachel Boyack said. ...
Today’s Financial Stability Report has once again highlighted that poverty and deep inequality are political choices - and this Government is choosing to make them worse. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to do more for our households in most need as unemployment rises and the cost of living crisis endures. ...
Unemployment is on the rise and it’s only going to get worse under this Government, Labour finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds said. Stats NZ figures show the unemployment rate grew to 4.3 percent in the March quarter from 4 percent in the December quarter. “This is the second rise in unemployment ...
The New Zealand Labour Party welcomes the entering into force of the European Union and New Zealand free trade agreement. This agreement opens the door for a huge increase in trade opportunities with a market of 450 million people who are high value discerning consumers of New Zealand goods and ...
The National-led Government continues its fiscal jiggery pokery with its Pharmac announcement today, Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall says. “The government has increased Pharmac funding but conceded it will only make minimal increases in access to medicine”, said Ayesha Verrall “This is far from the bold promises made to fund ...
This afternoon’s interim Waitangi Tribunal report must be taken seriously as it affects our most vulnerable children, Labour children’s spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime. ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
New Zealand voted in favour of a resolution broadening Palestine’s participation at the United Nations General Assembly overnight, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The resolution enhances the rights of Palestine to participate in the work of the UN General Assembly while stopping short of admitting Palestine as a full ...
Introduction Good morning. It’s a great privilege to be here at the 2024 Infrastructure Symposium. I was extremely happy when the Prime Minister asked me to be his Minister for Infrastructure. It is one of the great barriers holding the New Zealand economy back from achieving its potential. Building high ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins today announced the upcoming Budget will include new funding of $571 million for Defence Force pay and projects. “Our servicemen and women do New Zealand proud throughout the world and this funding will help ensure we retain their services and expertise as we navigate an increasingly ...
New Zealand’s ability to cope with climate change will be strengthened as part of the Government’s focus to build resilience as we rebuild the economy, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “An enduring and long-term approach is needed to provide New Zealanders and the economy with certainty as the climate ...
Jobseeker beneficiaries who have work obligations must now meet with MSD within two weeks of their benefit starting to determine their next step towards finding a job, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “A key part of the coalition Government’s plan to have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker ...
A new standalone Social Investment Agency will power-up the social investment approach, driving positive change for our most vulnerable New Zealanders, Social Investment Minister Nicola Willis says. “Despite the Government currently investing more than $70 billion every year into social services, we are not seeing the outcomes we want for ...
Check against delivery Good morning. It is a pleasure to be with you to outline the Coalition Government’s approach to our first Budget. Thank you Mark Skelly, President of the Hutt Valley Chamber of Commerce, together with your Board and team, for hosting me. I’d like to acknowledge His Worship ...
Your Excellency Ambassador Meredith, Members of the Diplomatic Corps and Ambassadors from European Union Member States, Ministerial colleagues, Members of Parliament, and other distinguished guests, Thank you everyone for joining us. Ladies and gentlemen - In diplomacy, we often speak of ‘close’ and ‘long-standing’ relations. ...
The Therapeutic Products Act (TPA) will be repealed this year so that a better regime can be put in place to provide New Zealanders safe and timely access to medicines, medical devices and health products, Associate Health Minister Casey Costello announced today. “The medicines and products we are talking about ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop, today released his decision on twenty recommendations referred to him by the Wellington City Council relating to its Intensification Planning Instrument, after the Council rejected those recommendations of the Independent Hearings Panel and made alternative recommendations. “Wellington notified its District Plan on ...
Rape Awareness Week (6-10 May) is an important opportunity to acknowledge the continued effort required by government and communities to ensure that all New Zealanders can live free from violence, say Ministers Karen Chhour and Louise Upston. “With 1 in 3 women and 1 in 8 men experiencing sexual violence ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government will be delivering a more efficient Healthy School Lunches Programme, saving taxpayers approximately $107 million a year compared to how Labour funded it, by embracing innovation and commercial expertise. “We are delivering on our commitment to treat taxpayers’ money ...
New research on the impacts of extreme weather on coastal marine habitats in Tairāwhiti and Hawke’s Bay will help fishery managers plan for and respond to any future events, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. A report released today on research by Niwa on behalf of Fisheries New Zealand ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters will lead a broad political delegation on a five-stop Pacific tour next week to strengthen New Zealand’s engagement with the region. The delegation will visit Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, and Tuvalu. “New Zealand has deep and ...
There has been a material decline in gas production according to figures released today by the Gas Industry Co. Figures released by the Gas Industry Company show that there was a 12.5 per cent reduction in gas production during 2023, and a 27.8 per cent reduction in gas production in the ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins tonight announced the recipients of the Minister of Defence Awards of Excellence for Industry, saying they all contribute to New Zealanders’ security and wellbeing. “Congratulations to this year’s recipients, whose innovative products and services play a critical role in the delivery of New Zealand’s defence capabilities, ...
Welcome to you all - it is a pleasure to be here this evening.I would like to start by thanking Greg Lowe, Chair of the New Zealand Defence Industry Advisory Council, for co-hosting this reception with me. This evening is about recognising businesses from across New Zealand and overseas who in ...
It is a pleasure to be speaking to you as the Minister for Digitising Government. I would like to thank Akolade for the invitation to address this Summit, and to acknowledge the great effort you are making to grow New Zealand’s digital future. Today, we stand at the cusp of ...
New Zealand is urging both Israel and Hamas to agree to an immediate ceasefire to avoid the further humanitarian catastrophe that military action in Rafah would unleash, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The immense suffering in Gaza cannot be allowed to worsen further. Both sides have a responsibility to ...
A new online data dashboard released today as part of the Government’s school attendance action plan makes more timely daily attendance data available to the public and parents, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. The interactive dashboard will be updated once a week to show a national average of how ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced Rosemary Banks will be New Zealand’s next Ambassador to the United States of America. “Our relationship with the United States is crucial for New Zealand in strategic, security and economic terms,” Mr Peters says. “New Zealand and the United States have a ...
The Government is considering creating a new tier of minerals permitting that will make it easier for hobby miners to prospect for gold. “New Zealand was built on gold, it’s in our DNA. Our gold deposits, particularly in regions such as Otago and the West Coast have always attracted fortune-hunters. ...
Minister for Trade Todd McClay today announced that New Zealand and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will commence negotiations on a free trade agreement (FTA). Minister McClay met with his counterpart UAE Trade Minister Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi in Dubai, where they announced the launch of negotiations on a ...
New Zealand Sign Language Week is an excellent opportunity for all Kiwis to give the language a go, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. This week (May 6 to 12) is New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) Week. The theme is “an Aotearoa where anyone can sign anywhere” and aims to ...
Six tertiary students have been selected to work on NASA projects in the US through a New Zealand Space Scholarship, Space Minister Judith Collins announced today. “This is a fantastic opportunity for these talented students. They will undertake internships at NASA’s Ames Research Center or its Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), where ...
New Zealanders will be safer because of a $1.9 billion investment in more frontline Corrections officers, more support for offenders to turn away from crime, and more prison capacity, Corrections Minister Mark Mitchell says. “Our Government said we would crack down on crime. We promised to restore law and order, ...
The OECD’s latest report on New Zealand reinforces the importance of bringing Government spending under control, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The OECD conducts country surveys every two years to review its members’ economic policies. The 2024 New Zealand survey was presented in Wellington today by OECD Chief Economist Clare Lombardelli. ...
The Government has delivered on its election promise to provide a financially sustainable model for Auckland under its Local Water Done Well plan. The plan, which has been unanimously endorsed by Auckland Council’s Governing Body, will see Aucklanders avoid the previously projected 25.8 per cent water rates increases while retaining ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters discussed the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and enhanced cooperation in the Pacific with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock during her first official visit to New Zealand today. "New Zealand and Germany enjoy shared interests and values, including the rule of law, democracy, respect for the international system ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop today released his decision on four recommendations referred to him by the Western Bay of Plenty District Council, opening the door to housing growth in the area. The Council’s Plan Change 92 allows more homes to be built in existing and new ...
Thank you, John McKinnon and the New Zealand China Council for the invitation to speak to you today. Thank you too, all members of the China Council. Your effort has played an essential role in helping to build, shape, and grow a balanced and resilient relationship between our two ...
The Government is modernising insurance law to better protect Kiwis and provide security in the event of a disaster, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly announced today. “These reforms are long overdue. New Zealand’s insurance law is complicated and dated, some of which is more than 100 years old. ...
The coalition Government is refreshing its approach to supporting pay equity claims as time-limited funding for the Pay Equity Taskforce comes to an end, Public Service Minister Nicola Willis says. “Three years ago, the then-government introduced changes to the Equal Pay Act to support pay equity bargaining. The changes were ...
Structured literacy will change the way New Zealand children learn to read - improving achievement and setting students up for success, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “Being able to read and write is a fundamental life skill that too many young people are missing out on. Recent data shows that ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay says Canada’s refusal to comply in full with a CPTPP trade dispute ruling in our favour over dairy trade is cynical and New Zealand has no intention of backing down. Mr McClay said he has asked for urgent legal advice in respect of our ‘next move’ ...
The rights of our children and young people will be enhanced by changes the coalition Government will make to strengthen oversight of the Oranga Tamariki system, including restoring a single Children’s Commissioner. “The Government is committed to delivering better public services that care for our most at-risk young people and ...
The Government is making it easier for minor changes to be made to a building consent so building a home is easier and more affordable, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on making it easier and cheaper to build homes so we can ...
New Zealand lost a true legend when internationally renowned disability advocate Sir Robert Martin (KNZM) passed away at his home in Whanganui last night, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. “Our Government’s thoughts are with his wife Lynda, family and community, those he has worked with, the disability community in ...
Good evening – Before discussing the challenges and opportunities facing New Zealand’s foreign policy, we’d like to first acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. You have contributed to debates about New Zealand foreign policy over a long period of time, and we thank you for hosting us. ...
From today, passengers travelling internationally from Auckland Airport will be able to keep laptops and liquids in their carry-on bags for security screening thanks to new technology, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Creating a more efficient and seamless travel experience is important for holidaymakers and businesses, enabling faster movement through ...
PNG Post-Courier New Zealand High Commissioner Peter Zwart and PNG Defence Minister Dr Billy Joseph welcomed a C-130 Hercules to Port Moresby this week to support Papua New Guinea’s response to the March 24 earthquake and recent severe flooding. “Papua New Guinea has requested New Zealand’s assistance to transport emergency ...
Grub Street King Luxon rode through the streets Of King’s Landing, and was troubled By the sight of hungry urchins in the mud. “Who would be the best of my Lords To deal with this negative optic?” He pondered. The answer came to him instantly. “Seymour!” he said to himself. ...
“The Bill does not provide environmental protection, good quality decision making, certainty, public participation or speed. It should be withdrawn.” ...
RNZ News Television New Zealand has breached its collective agreement with the E tū union when deciding on discontinuing programmes, the Employment Relations Authority has ruled. It was announced in March that 68 staff members who work for news programmes Midday and Tonight, consumer justice programme Fair Go, current affairs ...
Asia Pacific Report Barangay New Zealand’s Rene Molina has interviewed the country’s first Filipino Green MP Francisco Hernandez who was sworn into Parliament yesterday as the party’s latest member. This is the first interview with Hernandez who replaces former Green Party co-leader James Shaw after his retirement from politics to ...
An Australian Strategic Policy Institute report says Pillar Two could raise the industry to state of the art capability - or "crush" it "under the weight of the globe's biggest player". ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Marlene Longbottom, Associate Professor, Indigenous Education & Research Centre, James Cook University ShutterstockThis article contains information on deaths in custody and the violence experienced by First Nations people in encounters with the Australian carceral system. It also contains references to ...
“Instead of following along countries that are investing in death and better ways of killing people faster, we need to invest in life and in making Aotearoa a fair, just and equitable place where everyone has what they need for a dignified life.” ...
MARIAMENO KAPA-KINGI, TPM MP FOR TAI TOKERAU This Government will not waver in its mission to exterminate Māori. CHRISTOPHER LUXON Oh well look you know I don’t think that hard-working Kiwis want to hear language like that. It’s just really unhelpful rhetoric. My Government is genuinely committed to advancing outcomes ...
The body positivity movement started with women confronting the unrealistic expectations and unrepresentative portrayals of them in media and advertising. Men weren’t part of it … their bodies hadn’t been sexualised to the same extremes and they didn’t really need it. But now that’s changed. And in a warped sort ...
The New Zealand comedy legend takes us through her life in television, including the time she hugged Elton John and the unshakeable legacy of a girl named Lyn. In 1981, Ginette McDonald stood on the stage of Auckland’s St James Theatre and directly addressed Queen Elizabeth II. It was a ...
An essay by Lily Duval from the just-released anthology Otherhood: Essays on being childless, childfree and child adjacent.I was 22 when my friend Alice gave birth in the living room of our pokey Addington flat. She laboured in the blow-up pool for hours. Garish fish swam along the inflated ...
Ella Borrie on the best books about motherhood she’s come across so far. Over the past few years I’ve been drawn to books about motherhood. I’m fascinated by the joys and horrors of becoming a parent. The question of children also feels more pressing than it used to. It’s like ...
Out of gift ideas for mum? You can’t go wrong with a bottle of toilet cleaner and a new squeegee. Emily Writes is the writer and editor of Emily Writes Weekly. This week marks five years since I published a post on The Spinoff about Mother’s Day marketing titled ‘A ...
My husband is posted overseas for 12 months and I’m armed with an expensive, newfangled vibrator. Will I miss him? The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.A few days after my husband leaves, a new sex toy arrives at the front door. Nestled ...
Jaimie Baird’s new book Here Today Gone Tomorrow is a record of four decades of graffiti and street art in Wellington, told through more than 1,200 photographs. He spoke with Joel MacManus about what inspired the book. How did you first get interested in photographing street art? I remember ...
Editor Madeleine Chapman looks back at a busy week where food of all political leanings dominated. Sometimes you’re just going about your week thinking you’ve got a good handle on what might be coming as far as news topics and then someone (usually a politician) says something so ridiculous that ...
In a week of cold rain and frost, the climate in courtroom four upstairs at the Invercargill courthouse was simmering with restrained indignation. At times it felt like the famous Mexican standoff scene from Reservoir Dogs, or, as someone watching the proceedings described it, there was so much throwing of ...
A banner notification alerts me to the fact that I’ve received an Instagram message from @felicity.loves. She always comments on my posts. I shouldn’t have opened the message, but clicked on the notification before rationalising this. OMG! Are you in Wellys? X I debate not replying, but Instagram will inform ...
In Melbourne’s hardscrabble western suburbs where AFL – Aussie rules football – is a state religion, Callum Donaldson has been quietly grafting away, four months into an odyssey that he hopes will take him to another promised land: the NRL. It was a solid 2023 for the softly spoken 20-year-old ...
Pacific Media Watch Television New Zealand Pacific correspondent Barbara Dreaver has been made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to investigative journalism and Pacific communities in a ceremony at Government House, reports 1News. She has been the Pacific correspondent for 1News since 2002, breaking many ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Tuesday’s budget will respond to the deepening public agitation over Australia’s housing shortages by pouring new money into crisis accommodation for women and children, social housing and infrastructure. A specially-convened national cabinet late Friday ticked ...
By Kaneta Naimatu in Suva Journalists in the Pacific region play an important role as the “eyes and ears on the ground” when it comes to reporting the climate crisis, says the European Union’s Pacific Ambassador Barbara Plinkert. Speaking at The University of the South Pacific (USP) on World Press ...
Aldora Itunu is back in the Black Ferns squad after a three-year absence. The last of her 24 internationals was an underwhelming loss to France (7-29) in Castres to conclude the disastrous 2021 Northern Tour. The powerhouse prop won a Rugby World Cup in 2017 and thought she was done. ...
The fight to control major transport policy and projects in Auckland has burst into the open again, with councillors rejecting Mayor Wayne Brown’s latest attempt to steer things more under his influence. Councillors from the left and right broke ranks on the mayor’s bid to control Auckland Transport more directly ...
Exhausted by the general election campaign, horrified by the twilight zone of coalition negotiations, distracted by the silly season and waiting for the honeymoon to begin, Raw Politics has been in hibernation since October. From today, we’re back. Our weekly political video show and podcast returns for ...
By Patrick Decloitre, RNZ Pacific correspondent French Pacific desk Authorities in the small town of Boulouparis have commemorated Armistice Day on May 8 with a new memorial honouring New Zealand soldiers who were stationed in New Caledonia during World War II. The ceremony took place in the township on the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sara Dehm, Senior lecturer, international migration and refugee law, University of Technology Sydney The High Court unanimously ruled today that the Australian government can keep asylum seekers in immigration detention indefinitely in cases where they do not “voluntarily” cooperate with their own ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kim Munro, Lecturer, Creative Industries and Digital Media, University of South Australia Twenty-four hours after the release of Macklemore’s pro-Palestine protest song Hind’s Hall on social media on May 7, the video had already notched up over 24 million views. In ...
Failing to anticipate the complexity of the consenting system is being cited as the the current builder's shortcomings, an Infrastructure Commission review says. ...
Failing to anticipate the complexity of the consenting system is being cited as the the current builder's shortcomings, an Infrastructure Commission review says. ...
350 Aotearoa is calling the Environment Select Committee’s decision to allow oral submissions from just 40% of individual, unique submitters who asked to speak to the committee ‘a disgraceful blight to democracy’. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James Helal, Assistant Dean (Sustainability), The University of Melbourne Dubai skylineAleksandarPasaric/Pexels Since ancient times, people have built structures that reach for the skies – from the steep spires of medieval towers to the grand domes of ancient cathedrals and mosques. Today ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Edward Musole, PhD Law Student, University of New England Girts Ragelis/ShutterstockRecent trends show Australians are increasingly buying wearables such as smartwatches and fitness trackers. These electronics track our body movements or vital signs to provide data throughout the day, with ...
Papua New Guinea experienced a significant earthquake on 24 March in East Sepik and there has also been recent flooding there and in surrounding provinces. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Yousuf Mohammed, Dermatology researcher, The University of Queensland Maridav/Shutterstock You wake up, stagger to the bathroom and gaze into the mirror. No, you’re not imagining it. You’ve developed face wrinkles overnight. They’re sleep wrinkles. Sleep wrinkles are temporary. But as your ...
The Environment Select Committee has just announced that 60 percent of individuals who asked to speak at the hearings will not be heard. This equates to almost 700 people who made individual submissions and more than 1000 more who made a form submission. ...
The Royal New Zealand Ballet is performing Swan Lake around the country. What kind of dream does the ballet sell?Before going to see the Royal New Zealand Ballet perform Swan Lake, I had about as much familiarity with the plot of this ballet as could be expected from having ...
A new poem by Auckland poet Eamonn Tee. High Tide at Local Maxima It is only going to get worse. The streams will be narrow and fickle. The week will bend and buckle like a pot-bellied waist. You will make it to the weekend with one ...
The New Zealand entrepreneur behind beauty business Ethique is gearing up to launch a new eco-venture. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Our thirst for a tasty bevvy is insatiable, but it comes with a hefty plastic price for the planet: 580 billion ...
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 James by Percival Everett (Mantle, $38) A retelling of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from ...
By Kamna Kumar in Suva Pacific Islands Forum Secretary-General Henry Puna stressed the importance of media freedom and its link to the climate and environmental crisis at the 2024 World Press Freedom Day event organised by the University of the South Pacific’s journalism programme. Under the theme “A Planet for ...
Tara Ward previews a new local TV series offering alternative visions of motherhood. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. A woman is clambering up the side of her two-story house, clinging desperately to a drainpipe. Nearby, her child is perched on the ...
Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ) is supportive of the cross-party approach to climate adaptation announced by the Minister of Climate Change today. ...
The Sustainable Business Council (SBC) and Climate Leaders Coalition (CLC) welcome today’s announcement from Government around a bipartisan inquiry into an enduring climate adaptation framework for New Zealand. ...
The Free Speech Union welcomes the decision by the Department of Internal Affairs, and Minister Brooke Van Velden, to abandon proposals to further regulate online speech. ...
Its new building in Wellington will not be nearly big enough for all its records, and it has also run out of money to build its new storage facility in Levin. ...
BusinessNZ is congratulating the Minister of Climate Change for his work in achieving cross-party consensus for a way forward on climate adaptation. ...
Recent research reveals the repeal of smokefree measures is not only bad for our health, but also the economy. The Government has repealed various smokefree measures to ensure it keeps collecting $1.2 billion a year in tobacco taxes, in order to pay for tax cuts already being delivered to ...
The club’s surprisingly good season is built on the desire to prove a random A-League YouTuber wrong… and a few other factors.“There’s no way that Wellington Phoenix play finals this year. I can’t see it happening at all.” Those are the words of Lachlan Raeside, an Australian football content ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By César Albarrán-Torres, Senior Lecturer, Department of Media and Communication, Swinburne University of Technology Apple TV+ As one of billions of bilingual individuals in the world, it disappoints me when a film or TV show with characters of a non-English-speaking background is ...
The under-utilised course is a waste of space, and with a little political will, it could be turned into something better. For the duration of her stay in Wellington, my long-suffering cousin listened to me rant about golf courses. They’re bad for the environment: water intensive and pesticide heavy. They ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Leah Ruppanner, Professor of Sociology and Founding Director of The Future of Work Lab, Podcast at MissPerceived, The University of Melbourne Shutterstock A recent report from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows US fertility rates dropped 2% in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amy Corderoy, Medical doctor and PhD candidate studying involuntary psychiatric treatment, School of Psychiatry, UNSW Sydney shop_py/Shutterstock Picture two people, both suffering from a serious mental illness requiring hospital admission. One was born in Australia, the other in Asia. Hopefully, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Treby, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, RMIT University P.j.Hickox, Shutterstock Peatlands store more carbon per square metre than any other ecosystem on Earth. These waterlogged, mossy bogs beat even dense rainforests for their ability to act as carbon reservoirs. Under the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Goss, Adjunct Associate Professor, Health Research Institute, University of Canberra Government spending on health has been growing so rapidly that a decade ago the then health minister Peter Dutton called it “unmanageable” and “unsustainable”. Health spending grew in real terms by ...
New Zealand's largest electricity distributor is warning the country to hurry up with controls around charging electric vehicles or face unnecessary bills running into the billions. ...
New Zealanders have been asked to conserve energy this morning to combat a possible electricity shortfall, writes Stewart Sowman-Lund in this extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. A call to conserve power New Zealand is facing a possible electricity shortfall, with people up ...
Writer Rebecca K Reilly breaks down the national book awards. What are the Ockhams?The Ockham New Zealand Book Awards are our annual national awards for books published for adults, and have existed in this form since 2016. There are four categories: Fiction, Poetry, General Non-fiction and Illustrated Non-fiction. There ...
Every post here since Key’s announcement on Monday has been boo-Key and boo-National.
National are vulnerable. The public will have an extra look to see who they think can run Government competently. But I see mostly see Opposition mud flying, still. It seems like a stupid first impression post-Key to present to the public.
If opposition parties, and supporting online forums like The Standard, want to take advantage of National’s vulnerability surely they can at least try to look better, rather than worse.
Is the left capable of being positive?
This blog and others from the right or left of politics are not the face of a political bloc in NZ – they are the venting and ravings of a few signifying nothing. Most voters will look at those they are voting for and the respective party leaders when casting their vote at the general election not the standard where all authors and the vast majority of commenters have decided how they will vote years out from the election usually due to their entrenched views and personal prejudices
@Stunned mullet – yet you still post in to ts….
Until Key’s resignation, most voters had already made their minds up.
He has unsettled both the commercial and political markets sufficiently for the polis to pause and reconsider.
Pete, maybe you would prefer to read the thoughts of one of the Herald writers on Keys departure… ?
“I could have chosen to dress up my column today with all sorts of nuanced, insightful, and charitable words about John Key’s departure. It’d be akin to going to someone’s funeral that you consistently bagged – both publicly and privately. Tacky”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=11761381
The opposition parties were on fire in Parliament yesterday, and I for one am extremely proud of how they have approached this shocking news.
The statesman like response from the future PM of NZ aka Alpha Andy and Grant Robertson on the day Key announced his resignation spoke volumes. A stark contrast to the negative little personal put downs from the PM whom has quit.
How about starting the day singing praises about the opposition parties rather than whining about Keys resignation and the fact that the national party is in tatters. Where are your positive stories about the outgoing government in the last few days Pete?
What a stream of negativity, and what could be more negative than lying about the Opposition’s response to Key’s resignation:
Why does Petty George tell so many desperate unoriginal lies? Does anyone care?
He does it for attention and no one cares because he is a very shallow thinker.
“On behalf of Metiria”
Did he talk to Metria before he came out with this statement? It certainly isn’t the approach that Turei was expounding in her mean spirited little contribution in Parliament yesterday.
Have they decided to play “good cop (Shaw) bad cop (Turei)”?
The political parties in the Opposition are crazy. They should learn from the way Key behaved after Helen Clark was defeated and stood down after the 2008 election.
She was defeated. She didn’t matter any more. He didn’t waste even a moment kicking a relic of the past on the side of the road because there was absolutely nothing to be gained.
Why are Labour and the Green MPs continuing the fight with someone who is retiring. All they do is exhibit their bitter little approach to life. Wait till there is a new National leader, and Prime Minister, and attack them. That is what Key did. He forgot Clark and aimed his fire at the new leader from that moment on. Staying on a path that attacks Key is stupid.
It doesn’t matter for people who contribute to this website, just as it didn’t matter to people who contributed to attacks on Clark on other sites after she had stood down. They were not MPs and nobody really cared about the mad ravings of a pack of loons, then against Clark or now against Key.
It is MPs who have to avoid looking like idiots.
Hi Alwyn, were you watching yesterday? I noticed a very cohesive group of opposition MP’s in the house yesterday, concentrating their questions on possible nat party leaders.
3. ANDREW LITTLE to the Minister of Finance: Does he stand by his statement that “the prices you pay for a house are ridiculous”, given New Zealand house prices have risen by over 50 percent since he made that statement?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b09iWjnarLE
4. Hon ANNETTE KING to the Minister of Health: Does he expect an estimated 533,000 New Zealanders who did not visit a GP due to cost in the last year to continue to wait for primary care reform which might “form part of a future Budget”, possibly under a different health Minister as stated by him?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUg1JikLdLg
7. PHIL TWYFORD to the Minister for Social Housing: Does she stand by her statement, “look I can’t guarantee that”, when asked if anyone living in a car can go to a Government agency today and get a roof over their head tonight?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bksgViHJ1MM
8. RON MARK to the Minister of Finance: Does he stand by all his statements?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FNnms6R6T8
9. DAVID CLENDON to the Minister of Finance: Does he stand by his statement to this House that “having surpluses does not mean that the Government can go spending more money on ineffective public services or infrastructure that may not be needed”?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bqvLUqaRuWA
11. STUART NASH to the Minister of Police: Does she think there is any correlation between the closure of over 20 Community Policing Centres and the 13,000 increase in victimisations in the last 12 months; if not, why not?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMfQ7MtdWkk
However the debate that followed gave way for all to vent or praise the outgoing PM or in the case of Crusher, Coca Coleman and Dippy a chance to push their own agendas.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGgIWCeyHiA
Currently the outgoing government are infighting flat out with a leadership war. And the choices are so sad, I almost feel sorry for Nat voters, almost
The questions, except for Turei’s one to John Key were the MPs being sensible. They were focussing on now, not on something that has passed
The speeches in the debate were not. He’s gone. Give up. You couldn’t lay a glove on him while he was PM and there is simply no point in trying to do it now. Have a read of Turei’s speech yesterday in that debate. The words of a bitter twisted woman who is still trying to fight what is yesterday’s war.
https://www.parliament.nz/en/pb/hansard-debates/rhr/document/HansS_20161206_056100000/turei-metiria
As for your dream of there being a leadership war. Forget it. The National Party hasn’t had a real war since Muldoon came to be leader and even that wasn’t really out in the open.
“couldn’t lay a glove on him…”
’cause, slippery.
It isn’t quite the word I would use but still.
He was, as Chris Trotter pointed out once, the cleverest politician of our generation. He was vastly ahead of anyone else of his time.
I remember looking at that list of stories blip used to link to. He claimed they were Key’s “lies”. When I checked some of them I found they weren’t lies at all. They may have been carefully composed statements that people “thought” were lies but they weren’t. People tended to read into the things he said meanings that simply weren’t there.
If you didn’t like him you might say “slippery”. If you did like him, and clearly most New Zealanders do, you would simply say he was a master of his art. The only one in my lifetime who was in the same class was Keith Holyoake.
Well you know – the more you complain – the longer god lets you live 😈
Actually, we are on the cusp of something special and at the end of the day I’m relaxed and comfortable about that.
Is that positive enough for you Pete? Not that this implies in any way or form that I am or speak for “the left” because that’s typically just a lovely meme for people that grapple with reality.
Is the left capable of being positive?
Have you stopped beating your wife?
M’eh, its a left aligned political website so what do you expect? It’d be a pretty dull place if everyone played nice all of the time.
Pete, if that’s all you can see then you a blinded by the “light”.
Now let us get on with the rejoicing – because the “evil one” has gone.
And yes he is evil. Some may think the sun shines from his posterior – but for many* he brought nothing, but hardship and suffering. He was appointed by the people to care for them, (that is the primary role of Government), but like the Levite, he simply walked by on the other side.
*
40,000 more unemployed
41,000 homeless
300,000 children living in poverty
foodbank cupboards around the country are now under severe threat of becoming empty as the number of parcels isssued this year doubles.
Emergency shelters are permanently overflowing.
the cost of providing shelter for oneself, or ones family, has doubled.
Wages have risen barely 10% in the same period (if your lucky enough to earn a full time wage) – or stayed the same. Key on the other hand receives twice the renumeration for the “job” as does the British PM.
Mental health services run down to such an extent, they can no longer care for the vulnerable.
Our DHBs have been held to the same funding for almost a decade despite rising costs, and can now barely provide critical services, let alone “elective” surgery; and patients are pushed off, or kept off, “waiting” lists to make the statistics look good.
Schools have been forced from providing education to children and are now mere training centres for a National testing regime that sees our children’s ability falling in comparison with children from other countries. But never mind soon there will be COOL, and they can stay at home and do nothing.
And those are only the Social Justice Issues of the day.
Key has overseen the embeggarment of future generations. His largesse to the wealthy has come at the expense of every one else, and the failure to provide for future generations will see him held responsible for a deriliction of duty. NZ’s GHG emmissions have continued to increase as he trashed the ETS, and removed all incentives for saving energy. Our rivers are now cess pits for the dairy industry. Our seas are denuded of their fish, and marine life, and the Tasman Sea is a garbage dump of plastic and flotsum endangering the lives of 50% of sea birds that breed on our Islands. There is virtually nothing that he has not seen deteriorate under his watch, except the bank balances of his mates.
About the only thing “good” I can say is “GOOD RIDDANCE”
That’s very negative of you thanks Pete
Sacha
That was such a good story too. And you spoil it with the facts!
And Pete George fertilises the post and I think 15 comments grew up in his shadow.. He certainly is stimulating. Like an electric shock, he can jerk everybody into a response. Some of them are very detailed and no doubt informative. So that is a positive result.
Check out that UN Security Council resolution for a Syrian ceasefire: blocked by both Russia and China.
Interesting tag team.
I think Russia and China are viewing Trumps isolationist election as a signal to rapidly accelerate their territorial ambition.
Bullshit Ad. They are trying to rout ISIS ,which is more than the stupid Yanks could do with their ratbag bunch of unorganised mish mash factions.
The resolution was seeking a ceasefire and was well supported across the Council.
“They are trying to rout ISIS..”
Or not
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-russia-strikes-idUSKCN0SF24L20151021
garibaldi,
To believe that you have to believe the insurgents in Aleppo are ISIS. There is precious little evidence of that.
In fact Russia virtually ignores ISIS and leaves them to the western coalition.
Russia is primarily concerned with supporting Assad. All his opponents are therefore fair game so far as the Russians are concerned.
As someone who is far from an expert on the subject – indeed I am normally among the populace who leave such complex discussions to those who know what they’re talking about – I am nevertheless sure your premise that Russia is primarily concerned with supporting Assad is correct. But I will go further and posit the theory that their support has less to do with Assad himself, and more to do with the desire to gain dominance of the Middle East oil supply chain. And of course America’s basic premise for being so intimately involved in the region is exactly the same. That is, both sides are fighting to gain dominance over the same supply chain.
The above will be seen by some as simplistic, but I venture to suggest that the moment technology produces an acceptable and easily produced alternative fuel hey presto… both sides will clear out of the Middle East and leave them to their own devices which is precisely what most of the M.E countries want to see happen.
Syria is the wrong country to choose if you want to dominate the oil trade; it has no significant oil and, while close to Iraq, is not on a major oil trade route. Also Russia is a major producer in its own right so could influence the market more effectively by altering its production. As could the US.
inspider,
Agreed about Syria and oil.
However, Syria has long provided a Mediterranean port and two airbases to Russia. Without these, Russia’s presence in the Middle East and the Med would be very much reduced.
Russia is generally hemmed in by geography. All the ‘Stans and deserts to the South. Mostly hostile Europeans to the West. Ice to the North and a bleak Pacific coast on the East.
The Black Sea is their easiest access to much of the world and Syria figures in that. Less about oil, more about centuries old geo-politics.
Fair enough Wayne but lets balance the situation. Whilst America has oil wells of it’s own, it is also dependent upon M.E. oil to cover the balance of it’s needs. That is my understanding anyway.
I read an analysis by Robert Kennedy Jr. a month or two ago where he talked of a major pipe-line still on the drawing board which both East and West are currently attempting to gain control over by way of the proposed route it will take. I can’t remember the exact details but it certainly brought home to me the fundamental essence of most of the warring factions… and it is really all about oil.
It is the Kurdish population that is playing a major role in the alliances chosen by Russia, Turkey and the US.
This is a comment by Dr Ismail Besikci:
“why did the British and the French decided to erase Kurdistan from the map and deny the Kurds existence by parting Kurdistan into four between Turkey, Iran, Iraq and Syria?”
This is as much about access to the Mediteranian as it is about a deal that has a Kurdistan to be kept from forming (Kurds refer to their ancestry back in 600BC, Arabs mentioned Kurds in the 7th century as nomadic people) Turkey plays a big role in that.
And then most of the time it’s the Kurd’s doing the hard yards on the ground.
I read recently, and can’t find the piece. That Russia is mainly avoiding ISIS so as not to rack up the Muslim at home. Chechnya has been, and still is a major thorn for Russia.
I don’t think the Chinese will be viewing Trump’s agenda as isolationist, not after the “Fuck you” messages he’s been sending them the last week. Still, the fact they’re not chuffed with him might also explain that veto.
China has a shot at a regional trade agreement in 2017 excluding all the environmental and labour controls of TPPA such as they were.
China gets Trump as the US eclipse it is, and is making its own space fast.
Keep watching MSNBC and CNN Ad, Hillary cant lose from here and there’s russian airplanes just off the coast.
Not quite sure your meaning there.
Political broadcast brought to you via exiting entertainer Paul Henry interviewing Judith this morning…
Crusher says….
She will make Pike a memorial tomb.
She will suck up to Winny, says he is one of the best politicians who has ever been in Parliament and wants more options with support parties.
She’s not into English, he’s been preventing an increase in the police force apparently
Has no faith in Coleman
With a wavering voice says she wants more police
IMHO she doesn’t appear to be very confident in her chances. If her leadership bid fails will she form a breakaway party? Interesting times ahead.
PS Merry Christmas Paddy, maybe the Nation should do a special episode in the weekend, you’ll be bumming a bit that last week was your Christmas final. And you thought the Trump election was the highlight of your year lololol been thinking of you, happy for you, i don’t like you, but i’m happy for you. What a year huh?
Rachel Stewart pulls no punches in saying honestly what she thinks of John key. She tells of voting Nats for Key’s first term – I’m constantly surprised that people couldn’t tell Key was slippery as from the getgo.
Stewart fell out of support for Key over water quality, and it was all down hill from there, through rising inequality to tasteless media stunts and women being relegated to cheerleaders.
Stewart’s column: John Key era one giant facepalm”
Her three reasons for disliking Key’s government.
1. Destruction of waterways and lack of care for the environment.
2. Mismanagement of the economy so we have become a very unequal society.
3. His gutter behaviour towards women.
This – “He seemed to me to care only for running New Zealand like a huge corporation by squeezing every last dollar out of it – no matter the downstream consequences.”
A country isn’t a corporation and shouldn’t be run like one. Hell, even a corporation shouldn’t be run like corporations are run these days. Every business should care about the environment and about the people it employs and their well being.
Questions please
Do the Nat MP’s ask their constituents whom they feel would be the best choice in the race for leader of the national party and then vote accordingly?
Or do the MP’s vote according to their own wants and needs?
It just doesn’t seem very democratic to me, I’d be a bit pissy i think if i was a nat party member and did not have a say in whom the leader of the party i belong to should be.
From the the National Party Rules
Thank you Carolyn much appreciated
As the rules indicate it is the MP’s who decide. Otherwise how could it be done in a week.
However, I am pretty sure the MP’s will be thinking who will be the most effective in the next election and will be taking more than a few soundings on that very point.
Interesting listening to talk back, some are ringing concerned at the procedure, fascinating talk back this week.
I hope that some of those people who voted for John Key will reflect on what he actually did or didn’t do for NZ and start to consider the pressing issues facing this country and the world. That so many people could fail to see past the fawning MSM smokescreen for 8 years has never failed to amaze me. I also hope that those journalists who were “seduced’ by Key’s “friendliness” will take the opportunity to look back at their own contribution to the distraction he provided for a government that failed to deal with the pressing issues apart from a few superficial interventions. An alternative government could have made quite a difference to the current housing situation, reduced the foreign ownership of land, removed the tax haven status and worked with the Pike River families in a more compassionate manner had not the “show us the money” , the dirty politics/Ede/Slater feeding of MSM clouded the public’s view of the real issues.
The purpose of journalism is thus to provide citizens with the information they need to make the best possible decisions about their lives, their communities, their societies, and their governments.
https://www.americanpressinstitute.org/journalism-essentials/what-is-journalism/purpose-journalism/
i hope for similar – but its been a cult of personality for years.
And with all cults, when your in it, its hard to see it from the outside
How fake news has trashed the old idea of checking facts before publishing and tried to replace it with the idea that any kind of nutso raving is truth until someone else proves it wrong (to the nutso raver’s standards).
https://thinkprogress.org/the-most-dangerous-thing-about-fake-news-sites-is-not-what-they-say-but-how-they-say-it-f7bd89501028#.tl759hzes
This backgrounder makes Comet Ping Pong sound like an interesting place. Also explains why malicious kooks would want to use it as a centrepiece of a fake news story.
http://www.slate.com/blogs/outward/2016/12/06/comet_ping_pong_is_a_haven_for_weirdos_and_now_a_target.html
Fake News-
Murtaza Hussain @MazMHussain 23h23 hours ago
2003: Rifle-toting Americans barge into Iraq after reading viral Fake News story about weapons of mass destruction.
Yep, more right wingers creating fake news with disastrous consequences. With not enough attention being paid to Hans Blix and his inspection team fact-checking and saying there’s nothing there.
+100
Had the same thought, but not the energy to be as succinct as you. Thanks for doing so.
‘Fake News’ is repackaged ‘Conspiracy Theory’ for the catch and dispatch crew
Nothing more!
Which of your ‘reliable sources’ influenced you most to parrot the latest narrative for them, Andre?
The ego explores the progressive expansion of self-knowledge.
Ok so prediction time
Bill English will be the next PM but it will be close, very close with Jude so close in fact that I wouldn’t be at all surprised if theres a coup a year or so into Englishs reign, obviously it will be much earlier if English loses the next election
Having said that I wouldn’t be surprised at all if Jude managed to take the leadership of English
If I could pick I’d pick Coleman as he’s the freshest (or least most unknown) face and being a medical doctor is not exactly a bad thing to have on ones CV but he won’t get near the leadership
Prediction time?
Cut’n’run Key will be seen as shallower and shallower as time passes.
Cigar-smoke Coleman will be unable to hide his arrogance.
Crusher Collins will be unable to shake off the Slater on her back.
Boring Bill will fail to rid himself of his Double-Dipton title.
You must feel bereft, Pucky, and appalled by the present state of affairs.
Its not ideal but lets say National lose 7-8% over Key leaving, that leaves National on approx. 40%, I’d suggest NZFirst might gain as much as 3-4% of that which puts NZFirst well and truly over 10%
Jude would have no issues working with Winston and, probably, vice versa so the most logical outcome is a National/NZFirst government in 2017 and every other party on the outside unless Winston wants them in
Not sure how Winston and English get on though so its certainly made the upcoming election more interesting
“Its not ideal”
Ha ha ha ha ha!
No. It’s not ideal for the likes of you and other Key-adorers. In fact, it’s THE WORST POSSIBLE THING, and that’s, as you say, not ideal. For you. For others, myself included, this is High Humour and Pure Oxygen to the Soul 🙂 Now, you are reduced to trying to build something from a pile of fetid goop, relatively speaking, given that previously, you (believed) you were spinning with gold. How quickly that precious metal turned to straw. You must feel betrayed, as indeed you were. Key’s smiled as he assassinated National and the hopes of his sycophants such as your pucky self. These are dark days for you, Pucky, and all you can do now is try to make purses from sow’s ears. Good luck, ol’ chappy!
I thought you might appreciate that 🙂
“These are dark days for you, Pucky, and all you can do now is try to make purses from sow’s ears”
Yes its this exactly, we could sit around and go into mourning and think the worst has happened and we should all just give up but that won’t achieve anything and would almost certainly guarantee an election loss
Or we could see what we’re left with and go from there and it looks like there’s now no real impediment to National and Winston combining that that’s a…positive I guess
Its not what I (or anyone) would have wanted but sometimes you have to play the hand you’re dealt and National did manage to win one or two elections without John Key and I dare say they’ll be able to do it again
I suppose if ones trying to look positive I’d say that John Key has the left the party in the high 40s and there won’t be a bye-election needed, which is something a certain ex-Labour leader maybe should have looked at doing
Sitting around, mourning…yes, there’ll be a lot of that going on, Pucky, and more of it to come for your horrid crew who over the past 8 years have been crowing from the top of the dunghill you now discover is all thart remains for you. You had a merry trickster as your star and he’s dumped on you all from his great height – what treachery! How neatly and heartlessly he’s slid his dagger into the heart of his party and his supporters! Smiling Assassin indeed – did you think you were exempt? What I see now, is Mr Little, solid and trustworthy, established and supported, generously suppressing his delight at Key’s feckless knee-capping of the Right, eyes fixed on his up-coming win in 2017 – Little’s played it perfectly, as he’s played you and your gutted team. A marvelous week for the Left, Pucky, and the first of many.
Well leaving National in the high 40s and with the door fully open for NZFirst is not a bad position to be in
I know you don’t like my predictions but I predict that after the next general election National will still be in power and I think its now going to be National/NZFirst
Who do you think will make up the next government?
“trying to build something from a pile of fetid goop, ”
Like the golem…
“In Jewish folklore, a golem (/ˈɡoʊləm/ goh-ləm; Hebrew: גולם) is an animated anthropomorphic being that is magically created entirely from inanimate matter (specifically clay or mud). The word was used to mean an amorphous, unformed material in Psalms and medieval writing.[1]
The most famous golem narrative involves Judah Loew ben Bezalel, the late-16th-century rabbi of Prague. There are many tales differing on how the golem was brought to life and afterwards controlled.”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golem
Jewish folklore is spattered with tales of golem failing to obey the will of their controllers and running amok….creating havoc and disorder…
Shalom.
Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series features allusions to many beliefs and weaves them into his stories. The golems appear particularly in Feet of Clay. The ideas about them seem to have been carried further into the thinking about how robots could be limited in their free will by Asimov.
This is from wiki –
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golems_%28Discworld%29
http://wiki.lspace.org/mediawiki/Golems
Yes…some may cast doubt upon the value of fiction and folklore, but they both have their roots in the vast arena of human experience over the ages.
I’ve always seen golem as a metaphor for the potential of one’s creation to go beyond one’s control.
Especially when the quality of raw material for that creation is less than optimal.
When I have the time I will read my way through Pratchett’s work, perhaps there is a good starting point?
Sounds more like Frankensteins monster in that case
“Sounds more like Frankensteins monster in that case”
Variations on the theme PR, variations on the theme…
True true
Good to talk with you Rosemary. Yes Terry P was a good and funny writer and man. Also I have started reading Ellis Peters who wrote a series around Cadfael the monk who was sort of an ideal man that I think some women writers like to bring to life and imagine stories around. He lives in the 1100s and she writes vividly about that time and I think has the historical background and the culture of that time probably well covered.
While we are in these dire straits in the world I am interested in what people are, under all our layers of civilisation and poncy clothes and cars and high-heeled shoes. I’m looking for nobility and soul and clever use of our machiavellian minds and love and fascination with and for each other. Things I have never bothered thinking about before but now I see clearly how humans have trouble learning from past errors and am brought to the question of what did my birth father die for in 1944 WW2, which we don’t seem to have transcended, then what are we? It seems to me that there is an insect brain in us, along with other primitive inherent cognition.
This is a bit heavy but when one starts looking into the void as is happening now, then it makes ya think doesn’t it.
(Funny just as I was closing off – Puckish Rogue’s astute comment dame up Sounds more like Frankensteins monster in that case
Crusher is promoting working with NZ First, what is the general feeling within the outgoing government towards working with Winny?
Is she wanting to work with Winny because she has no new policy idea’s apart from more police?
Probably guarantees another two terms.
How’s that make you feel another 7 years of National?
http://iforce.co.nz/i/oxzgglw5.1rg.jpg
Dear BM… what can I say but…
http://68.media.tumblr.com/a9e157e5b1b96078d1e7f41e93296e9f/tumblr_nk2pf5Z2qY1s7uqdjo4_250.gif
“she has no new policy idea’s apart from more police”.
Don’t say that Cinny.
If you give her the credit Little, Andrew will have a hissy fit. He’ll be tearing up the carpet and complaining that it was HIS idea and that she is stealing it.
I can hear the wails from here. “Tt’s not fair, it’s not fair, it’s not fair ……..”
I can hear Winston laughing hard at her attempts to seduce him
“attempts to seduce him”.
Please, spare me. Some things just shouldn’t have to be thought of.
However, have you ever heard Winston laugh? He lasts about 2 seconds and then ends wheezing furiously. Far too many cigarettes to manage a laugh any more.
Exactly alwyn. Don’t rely on Winston being up to it… a year is a long time when you have his self imposed health problems.
Bombers got some great descriptions on the Nat candidates on TDB – (he sadly holds back on Collins however, the worst candidate in my view a mash up of Trump, Hitler, Imelda Marcos and Thatcher with the Enron accountants, rolled into one body )
BILL ENGLISH – A RELIGIOUS FANATIC
“I wouldn’t be surprised if he whips himself to sleep nightly. English desperately needed Key because English has all the charm and personal warmth of a road accident. Key was the smiling vacant face while English spent time privatising state housing, expanding the neoliberal welfare state and pushing for mass surveillance of beneficiaries.”
COLEMAN – DALEK
“The Minister of Wheeze, Dr Croak has a voice honied by years of cigarettes and stepping on poor peoples dreams. Possibly the most hopeless Minister ever, he did a shit job with Broadcasting and he’s a joke in Health. He wouldn’t publicly eat the cheap slop he was forcing hospital patients to eat and had the audacity to privately eat it and tweet about how yummy it was.”
“Judith Collins – the crypto-fascist”
http://thedailyblog.co.nz/2016/12/07/a-religious-fanatic-a-crypto-fascist-and-a-dalek-these-are-our-choices-for-prime-minister-of-nz/
Okies I predict, English will get it and National will lose next election and Judith might possibly create a break away party.
Nope Collins will just kick out English as PM when she sees her chance – no break away party for the Natz – they are too lazy to break away and too clueless to start a party from scratch.
Well well well. That was taken down quick yesterday.
Must be something in those “conspiracy theories”.
?
????
Yes.
It looks dodgy as.
I have been wondering just how deep the divisions within the National Party are over the issue of legalising euthanasia.
There have been numerous attempts by from both left and right over the years to facilitate assisted dying. This year has seen a high profile court case and a continuing exhaustive select committee hearing with over 20,000 submissions.
Despite my personal well founded reservations, I honestly thought that this time the issue would get over the line and the syringes would sharpened and extra stocks of ‘blue juice’ ordered.
But no…despite having fully supported Lecretia Seales, John Key announced a month ago that…
“There is zero chance of Government introducing legislation to legalise euthanasia even if an inquiry strongly recommends it, ”
The reason given…”Key said he personally supported euthanasia. He would not take the step himself, but he believed others should be able to.
However, there was strong opposition to it within the National caucus, he said.
Senior members of the Cabinet such as Bill English and Gerry Brownlee have previously voted against bills which would have made euthanasia legal.”
http://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/news/politics/john-key-no-chance-of-govt-legalising-euthanasia/
There is a real taste for physician assisted dying and the loud protagonists, although they dismiss the concerns of those who would be most at risk from misuse of such a facility, seemed to be winning.
So why the sudden back off from Key…who’s fair physiognomy dominated the Seales’ campaign page?
The politicians are too afraid of thinking deeply about anything because it just creates a precedent, and why fiddle while everything is going their way. So euthanasia, assisted dying, whatever has no chance with these peabrains.
And physician-assisted doesn’t have to come into it. If people have signed a document that they wish to do so, gone through legal measures of ensuring they have a will, left messages with a functionary with solicitor’s background if they don’t want to explain it to their children as is the best way, then they should have the right to do so. A proper procedure should be established in compliance with what older people who have thought through the process have decided and worked through with the pollies. Then there will be a peace of mind that life can be lived to the full and not in the end interfered with by forcing it to continue because of others’ beliefs and rigid principles.
At present there is this shameful and excessive watchfulness trying to prevent people even thinking or hearing about means of death. Police raids, disgusting. Politicians on top of the money heap and controlling, being the gatekeepers against those who wish to determine their own length of incapacity, they are a disgrace to their ‘profession’, incompetents and shallow. And the religious and hospices should stop trying to be Burkes in reverse.
In a word Rosemary…. Religion. God wants everyone to suffer apparently.
It is people who make other people suffer. Their ego, and dependence of being constantly appreciated. Hang on…. mostly male I think. Yep, looking around the world and it adds up.
MEET THE CANDIDATES
No. 2: Dr. Jonathan Coleman
I don’t know if he harasses waitresses or fondles the hair of little girls, but this bloke is a real piece of work.
Coca Cole-man, calls himself a Dr, but refuses to tackle the sugar issue even though across the globe other countries are tackling it and identifying it as so harmful. We have a public health system, why would he stretch it further by not addressing sugar?
Obesity and diabetes rates are obscene in NZ, sugar is an issue. Coleman would rather push through RMA changes and dump fluoride in our water than tackle the sugar issue. By adopting this mind set he shows himself as a Dr of Death.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/287782/the-sugar-filled-elephant-in-the-room
We have a public health system, why would he stretch it further by not addressing sugar?
Probably because he’s a MD and can identify this wailing about sugar as the kind of simplistic thinking that results in bad policy and unforeseen consequences. Obesity and diabetes are problems of carbohydrates in general, not sucrose in particular, and any minister wanting to deal with them walks into a political minefield – if Coleman doesn’t fancy using his feet as mine detectors, that’s hardly surprising.
Psycho, Coca Coleman is a fortune seeker, and not a good listener…
“A Herald poll last month suggested an overwhelming public desire to introduce a sugar tax, with more than 80% of 11,700 voters in favour of new legislation.”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11615519
“More than 84 per cent of GPs responding to the latest New Zealand Doctor/IMS fax poll believe a sugar tax should be introduced in this country.
And nearly 70 per cent reject health minister Jonathan Coleman’s view of the effect a tax would have on consumption of sugary drinks.”
http://www.nzdoctor.co.nz/news/2016/april-2016/14/sour-on-obesity,-gps-at-odds-with-coleman-over-introducing-a-sugar-tax.aspx
Don’t you want a PM that listens?
To whom? If the answer is “Evidence,” yes I do want a PM who listens. If it’s “Opinion polls,” then meh, not so much. (Not that I want a Nat PM either way, mind.)
“A Herald poll last month suggested an overwhelming public desire to introduce a sugar tax, with more than 80% of 11,700 voters in favour of new legislation.” “Don’t you want a PM that listens?”
You just had one for the past 8 years and he was berated for being poll driven. Do you want him back already?
“More than 84 per cent of GPs responding to the latest New Zealand Doctor/IMS fax poll believe a sugar tax should be introduced in this country.
And nearly 70 per cent reject health minister Jonathan Coleman’s view of the effect a tax would have on consumption of sugary drinks.”
How many of those GP’s also have an MBA? Interesting that you think they would have a better understanding on the effect taxation on consumption and the wider effects of such a tax (does it just cover sucrose? what about glucose? what if Coke just switched to a fructose based sweetener, do we have to tax fruit then? Would it include pure fruit juices? What about reconstituted fruit juices? All sugars are linked to diabetes, so do we tax everything with any trace of sugar like beer and wine? It would clearly have to cover Balsamic Vinaigrette, Almond Butter, yogurt) than a GP MP with an MBA…
Need more evidence? Scandinavian countries have such a tax, as does, Mexico, France, Hungary, Britain ..
Recent evidence further suggests an association between sugar-sweetened beverage consumption and preventable mortality from diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and cancer, with the majority of deaths occurring in low and middle-income countries.. says the WHO.. so why on earth would we not want to do something about this? Something sensible, something that works, just like tobacco tax. Or do you think people will start holding up their local dairy for a red bull?
Now Coca Coleman is promising more funding for health if he gets the new job.. is that just some kind of excuse for his short comings in looking after the Health Ministry?
Lots of questions, so let’s make it easy…. A sugary drinks tax or soda tax is a tax or surcharge designed to reduce consumption of drinks with added sugar. Drinks covered under a soda tax often include, carbonated drinks, uncarbonated drinks, sports drinks and energy drinks
The way I see it is any against such a tax are just pro big business aka big sugar profits, and we all know they make more than enough as it is.
Let’s be pro the NZ Health System that our taxes pay for, lets look after the people.
https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2016/mar/16/will-a-sugar-tax-actually-work-budget
Need more evidence? Scandinavian countries have such a tax, as does, Mexico, France, Hungary, Britain ..
Other countries implementing simplistic policies based on noise from lobbyists isn’t “evidence” – except, maybe, evidence that weak politicians are prey for noisy lobbyists.
Recent evidence further suggests an association between sugar-sweetened beverage consumption and preventable mortality from diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and cancer…
Sugar-sweetened beverage consumption and a shitload of other things that are probably more important factors. But instead of looking at the actual causes of obesity and diabetes (which come down to “foods that raise blood glucose levels rapidly”) and seeing what can be done about them, let’s tax sugary drinks because left-wingers hate the Coca Cola corporation. Why, oh why, isn’t Coleman on board with that, I wonder?
Lots of questions, so let’s make it easy…. A sugary drinks tax or soda tax is a tax or surcharge designed to reduce consumption of drinks with added sugar.
To serve what purpose? If the purpose is to reduce rates of obesity and diabetes in the population, a sugary-drinks tax is not fit for purpose for several reasons (the tax would have to be very high to actually suppress consumption, there’s extensive scope for unintended consequences, and singling out sugary drinks is pointless – if you look at the glycemic index, white bread and various other foods are actually worse than sucrose for making you fat and diabetic). The actual purpose of such a tax would be to make hand-wringers feel like they were doing something useful, which is not a good justification for new taxes.
PM – Out of interest, do you mind sharing who you voted for at the last election (party vote)?
I have just flicked through your comments on OM and I cannot get a read on you. I am guessing either Winston First or ACT…?
Just a question on Coleman. Who would trust a doctor that smokes?
I agree with you there Garibaldi
Would you apply the same logic to a doctor that drinks alcohol? Ethanol is a Group 1 carcinogen also, not to mention processed meat, would you not trust a doctor that drinks beer or eats pepperoni pizza?
To answer your question, I would trust a doctor that smokes, or drinks, or eats pepperoni pizza.
Labour – I guess I’m from the little-known “surly curmudgeon” faction. That was the first time since 1987, though – was an Alliance voter, then Green, then fuck-who-can-a-left-libertarian-vote-for-now, then back to Labour again on the basis that these days they’re the underdog and need some support. Proud to say I’ve never voted Winston First, although to my shame I did vote ACT once – at the time, they and the Greens were the only ones backing liberty when it came to drugs, anti-terrorism over-reach laws etc and the Greens were anti-science, so I swallowed a big dead rat. Never again…
Thanks PM, that all makes perfect sense and I learnt something new, I wasn’t previously aware of Labour’s “surly curmudgeon” faction!
Unfortunately I held my nose and voted Winston First in 2005, so I know what that dead rat tastes like.
You don’t think a tax on sugary drinks would achieve anything? I disagree, it would do something to help, it would not solve the whole problem, but it would be a factor in that solution.
The tax does not appear to have dented sales in Mexico, the government is collecting tax from it that can be used in the health sector, for other factors of obesity, maybe it could be used to encourage more people into physical activity or something, maybe the tax could be enough to cover dental care for the whole population? I don’t see any loses with this kind of tax from either side.
https://www.ft.com/content/e4f36a0e-6485-11e6-8310-ecf0bddad227
“Nicky Hager is trying to scaremonger and make himself relevant again.”
What someone collapsing under pressure looks like
She’s already losing her temper and calling people names….
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/319800/collins-hager-is-trying-to-scaremonger
Sour grapes on Hagers part, his sordid little book failed and now he’s trying to flog a dead horse
You choice of words reflects the state of your soul right now, Pucky. You’re lashing out. You are bitter, thanks to John Key, and you are right to be.
I’m an atheist so the soul doesn’t exist 🙂
It’s long been clear that you lack one, Pucky, as your hero-to-zero, John Key lacks anything resembling one, but I didn’t want to make an issue of it. I can see now, why you favour Collins for your next
empty-vesselleader.Actually I favour Coleman because he’s a fresher (or unknown) face whereas English, though talented, can’t really claim to be renewing and Jude has been unfortunately hamstrung by nasty lefties that fear her talent, hard work and charisma
I just don’t think Coleman will win
No one will win in this race of the losers, Pucky, least of all you and silly-billies like you who believed in Key. You’ve been slam-dunked, abandoned, short-changed and abused. I’m leaving you to your stranded-fish gaspings today as I’ve got fun things to do and this is miserable stuff.
Aww its sweet you’re trying to do that thing where you try to bring someone from the opposite political spectrum down
I mean it won’t work because the probability of a National/NZFirst government has increased but I appreciate the effort 🙂
Dude you didn’t hear Sanso interview Crusher then Winny this morning?
Oh dang, sorries to burst your bubble. For reals it does not look good for a coalition with Sir Winston if that’s what you are excited about.
http://www.radiolive.co.nz/Winston-Peters-on-Judith-Collins-calling-him-the-real-leader-of-the-opposition/tabid/506/articleID/133814/Default.aspx
If you asked him about what he said the next day he’d deny he ever said it
Jonky resigned Puckish, stop projecting.
Fixed.
Unless you are more ignorant than I think you are, my friend, you will realize that Hager’s book was very successful. As he pointed out in this morning’s interview, the book led to Judith Collins losing her cabinet seat.
And the sordid parts of his book are the revelations of what Collins, Slater, Jordan Williams, Jason Eade and co. were doing. You’re muddle-headed to confuse the journalist with the things he reveals.
Ok its true that in my opinion the purpose of the book was to swing the election the lefts way which means it was a failure, National was re-elected, John Key was still popular and the left was still stagnating
According to Hager – and despite the right’s claims to the contrary he is a thoroughly honest person – the timing of the publication of the book just before the election was coincidental. He had hoped it would be ready for publication early in 2014 but it didn’t work out that way. Having said that, I’m sure he did want to see it published before the 2014 election.
Hager does not make claims about anybody without solid evidence to back them up. And that is precisely what happened with “Dirty Politics”. That it did not have an effect on the election is an indictment on the voters – the vast majority of whom were too glassy eyed and lazy to bother to read the book and/or digest the information that was widely reported and it’s inherent ramifications.
“the timing of the publication of the book just before the election was coincidental”
and if you believe that do I have a deal for you: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=i%20have%20a%20bridge%20to%20sell%20you
C,mon PR. Read what I said.
I recall Hager being quite open about the fact he wanted to publish the book before the election because he believed it was important that voters were aware of the dirty political machinations (Ede, Slater, Odgers, Lusk and Carrick Graham in particular) that were occurring. It was also deplorable that it was being coordinated from within “the PM’s office” and it defies logic Key didn’t know what was going on as he subsequently claimed.
Hager intended to publish much sooner but there were various delays and it ended up coming only a month before the election. Too late to have much affect on the election.
“the vast majority of whom were too glassy eyed and lazy to bother to read the book and/or digest the information that was widely reported and it’s inherent ramifications.” One of whom is you eh Pluckliss Rogue.
That’s Mr Puckish Rogue Esq. if you please 🙂
But it’s a great go-to for another insight and possible leads, that index.. fantastico.
GOsh it’s super exciting really… a race when you can’t stand any of the candidates, it’s like the USA presidential election all over again post Bernie of course.
Bridges I love oil is about to throw his hat in the ring too…. let the circus begin.. lmfaooooo best reality show in some time this is.
The contents certainly were sordid, but that was down to the participants being quoted (including Collins), not Hager.
Really? One of the better selling NZ books, I would have thought.
My bold, heh.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/taranaki-daily-news/lifestyle/70871949/Endless-praise-for-Nicky-Hagers-book-Dirty-Politics
I thought it was telling that in that interview Collins claimed she doesn’t hold grudges but spent the entire time attacking Nicky Hager, and deliberately mispronouncing his name. She came across as vindictive and bullying – so quite accurate really.
Exactly what struck me, too, Karen. Watching her self-destruct over the next few weeks will be a diverting if ugly spectacle.
She came across as vindictive and bullying – so quite accurate really.
The problem for National in a Collins leadership, summed up nicely.
test.
Hi Mod I have two stuck – one meant for Open Mike and one for Barbecue Season. When and if you have time could you release. Ta
First Policy out from The Opportunities Party. Gareth Morgan.
“The current tax regime favours owners of capital and unjustly burdens wage earners. This is not only inequitable, it results in poor utilisation of capital and lower than necessary income and employment. ”
“It addresses issues of rising inequality, housing affordability, foreign debt and poor levels of business investment. The end result will be more jobs, more businesses growth and tax cuts that leave 80% of the population better off.”
(I am watching with cautious interest.)
http://www.top.org.nz/top1?utm_campaign=top1_members&utm_medium=email&utm_source=garethmorgan
He should really exempt the family home. Taxing cash-poor homeowners is not the way to go to fix our problems.
millsy, This from the full policy.
“In case you missed it, I repeat
– under this policy NOT ONE
ADDITIONAL DOLLAR OF TAX
WILL BE COLLECTED. What
will happen is that some of
us will pay more (in mine and
John Key’s case, a lot more) and
for the great majority of people
they will either be unaffected
or pay significantly less. ”
It is closing a tax loop hole, not a new tax, nor an attack on the poorest on society. Quite smart really.
He doesn’t want poor people to own houses.
Being a “cash-poor homeowner” is a piss poor reason to expect tax exemptions. There are a lot of hard working people getting heavily taxed and will never own a home. What happened to a fair go?
Exactly. The idea that owning a home is somehow a special burden needs to be put to rest.
I get tired of home owners who endlessly bang on about ‘how hard it is to pay the mortgage’, as if somehow paying rent with absolutely no benefit or gain or security, till the day you die, is the easy ‘option’.
Some work to pay the rent, some work to pay the mortgage. The renter is the one left well behind in that equation.
We need some fairness in our financial and taxation systems.
A lot of kiwi homeowners think they are entitled to some kind of special privileges and tax breaks that renters never get. They are very sensitive to anything that threatens their inflated asset value
What about the older folks? They ones who have saved all their lives, survived wars and worked hard raising their families in a home as apartments obviously were not in vogue. But you could also look to the older folks that have to fork out 16 Mil for repair bills of apartments not so long ago build.
The core of it is that instead of getting off on envy and bashing people who have worked hard, work on a fairer system. This would certainly not include any tax cuts but rather have progressive tax applied.
You didn’t read Gareth Morgan’s piece didja? His proposal seems eminently fair. Taxing the top few % who are asset rich and using accounting tricks to hide their income from capital gains. Why should people who work for a living have to pay all the tax and people in million dollar houses pay none, while gaining (at least) 70K per year tax free.
You refereed to “a lot of Kiwi homeowners” – a lot? Many, many older folks are asset rich (if one could say that) because they have paid off the mortgage for the roof over their heads. With the 350 bucks a week to survive I doubt that you can add another tax.
As to your assertion of “entitlement” – there is no such thing. There is however, fairness in distribution which has never played out as for every mentioning of a group getting a share someone will put a veto in. This is what greed is all about, measuring entitlements.
Interesting, once again Labour gives it to a meek and compliant Greens, please sir may I have another
http://www.kiwiblog.co.nz/2016/12/labour_backs_down_on_nelson_greens_furious.html
When will the Greens learn that being a doormat means you won’t get any respect from Labour…
Bless ’em 🙂
http://www.thecivilian.co.nz/english-and-colemans-inspiring-stories-how-they-came-from-money-and-stayed-there/
Corrections Minister Judith Collins has also announced she’ll seek the leadership of the party – and the nation – but is potentially less able to relate to the financial struggles of ordinary kiwis.
Collins has no money, but purchases all her goods by silently staring people down until they cave.
And now Key’s been tipped to head the IMF:
Someone must be getting upset with all the research that the IMF has done recently that proves the present socio-economic system that’s been rammed down our throats, often via the IMF, doesn’t work.
Well that won’t please wify
With the mess he has made of promoting high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reducing poverty in New Zealand he has no hope of accomplishing the stated goals of the IMF. The IMF seeks to facilitate trade as well, but that trade is meant to be fair and balanced trade. The type of trade he has sort to facilitate but luckily has failed so far has been to give the big internationals all the power to bully the little guys and small countries with anonymous international courts paid for, staffed by and beholden to those same big internationals.
Well that wouldn’t really be a surprise seeing Key is part of the oneworld group. in fact it’s just an extension of his burning desire for the TPP.
And Michael “Beware of the Worms!” Woodhouse is tipped to be Minister of Health.
Please Goddess, end the misery now.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11762144
This is of course going to happen if Jonathon “We’ll have to agree to disagree” Coleman gets one of the two Top Spots.
and to confirm my earlier assertion that he could be The Man…
“‘I think [Dr Coleman] glosses over the serious plight the public health system is in, and I don’t think he sufficiently gets it.
”At our last conference he annoyed the delegates a lot, because when somebody would express a different view to his, he had a stock answer of simply saying: ‘We’ll have to agree to disagree’.””
Sounds like Someone Else doesn’t it? Not getting it and glossing over the problems….but I guess that to achieve such a constant state of ‘relaxedness’ you’d have to be that way inclined.
Has the NZ Herald published the real reason Key has resigned?
Did he get a tap on the shoulder from President Obama in his last days in office and wants an even bigger stage for his ego?
John Key named as ideal candidate to head IMF
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11762219
We will have to wait and see.
A lot of the things that job is meant to accomplish are things he has totally failed at in New Zealand.
QUOTE: The IMF seeks to facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world.
He has only ever focused on one of those things in his time as NZ PM and the last 3 have got worse every year for us here under his government. He shrugged off as to hard reducing poverty here, imagine the mess with him in that role.
Yeah.
Fucker finally got a bigger gig and bailed on his mates lol.
Now that makes sense at last! Hearing Key say he doesn’t know what he will do next…..casually throwing in “maybe the speaking circuit..” He has had a game plan since being a ten year old, deciding he would learn golf, because rich people play golf, so who is he trying yo kid?
Oh look, corruption and cronyism working hand in hand with old small hands. Nothing changes, poor C.V. must be feeling quite sick at this point.
Lyndon Hood from Scoop NZ points out the ‘IMF wants Key’ story our local media are recycling now is actually a year old: http://www.mscnewswire.co.nz/reporters-desk/item/1019-nz-premier-john-key-imf-managing-director-prospect.html
LMFAO !!!!!! That headline caught my eye and i was like, nah who cares, as long as he fucks off from here, i won’t read that.
And it’s a year old, and Herald is running it today… bahahahaha. Thanks for letting us all know.
Sad, real sad, looking for click bait are we? Well it aint john the pm who quit key, any headline with his name in it is now yesterdays news or in this case yester-years news
Excellent opinion piece on Key in the Grauniad today. Includes thought-provoking discussion of the need for the political opposition to produce a viable counter-narrative.
“In this regard, Key was like a Tony Blair of the South Seas: a certain level of personal charisma and a socially inclusive façade allowed both Key and Blair to sell the nasty side of neoliberalism.”
“Like Blair, Key had the Teflon gene. Despite ignoring public preferences not to privatise state-owned enterprises (2-1 against in a referendum), increasing the GST during the global financial crisis, and more or less ignoring New Zealand’s chronic child poverty because he blames the victims, none of it stuck.”
What a brilliant summary of the PR image (not the actual human being) that was our Prime Minister.
Why doesnt the entire opposition call for a VOTE OF NO CONFIDENCE in the government led by English
That will trigger an early GENERAL ELECTION so we can all be part of who runs our country instead of having yet another money lusting chauvenistic bully forced on us!!!
That way we dont need an expensive by election for Shearers seat if he goes.