Yeah, Winnie has something, and he at least thinks it is big. He must have proof that Bill was party to the agreement, knew about it and used ministerial limos to ferry people around in Southland to get the agreement done.
Give Winnie a week to allow the furor around the Greens to die and he will nail Bill. He might wait a little longer to see if he can skewer anyone else, or if he sees a way to eek out some more support from it, but it is coming….
Old bill english must be so scared now – likely 2 time loser, sad texts about to come out – oh the shame is coming, no policy, tired weak team of backstabbers and nobodies. More big bangs to come for Bill as he goes down and keeps going down until all his energy is spent – that’ll be early next week
@ScottGN (1) … I agree. Winston needs to step up now, if he’s in possession of the texts. In typical form, he’s treating the issue as a game, which doesn’t do him or NZF any favours.
I watched a recent online video of Winston being questioned about the texts. He would not give a straight answer and when pushed, he began attacking the journalists concerned! It was like a replay of his mentor Muldoon in action, when journalists put the pressure on him! The similarities in response was quite eerie!
However the old cynic in me is thinking maybe Winston could be using the English texts as a form of blackmail (for want of a better word), attempting to see what a Natz (via English) deal will come up with for him, post election.
after the election they’ll be worthless, as will any promises made because of them.
If he has them and they are really bad for blinglish, Winston will expect light treatment from the nats during the campaign. No muckraking from farrar, hoots, or Jizzpaste McSweaty. No seeking out family members. Otherwise, a couple of weeks out, Peters will drop ’em.
She’s probably aiming for a spot on The Nation or Q+A panels as a rent-a-voice
She’s by no means the worst of them but they do engage in binary ‘yes or no’ thinking at times
Well said, Ffloyd. Calculated interruptions which both disrupt the flow of the interviewee and prevent the listener from hearing the reply. Some replies are worthless evasion – but to Susie, any answer is fair game. Unless it is a high-ranking National politician of course.
For the last decade or so I’ve more and more hated being a New Zealander, being on the receiving end of everything my “alleged” Government (and most of the opposition) has to throw at me, their overt hatred for my existence- for the simple reason I’m unable to work due to illness and need a benefit to survive. Yes, you could extend that back 30 years, but the extreme extreme cruelty kicked in more recently.
And of course, one has to admire the success of the divide and conquer campaign of the last 30 years (also revved up more recently) which has led us to now.
My Government openly despises me.
Labour don’t give a damn but they won’t say it out loud. Their actions during their last reign and silence in opposition since make that pretty clear.
A significant group of my fellow compatriates have been somehow brainwashed by politicians and the media into despising me. Maybe not as many as it feels like and it’s just a well coordinated media campaign that makes them sound like they represent the majority, but it still hurts.
I don’t believe it’s an exaggeration to say there’s a lot of people here who genuinely couldn’t give two hoots if I died under a bridge. As a beneficiary in NZ, our status on the pecking order is just above an incarcerated prisoner, if not on a par. Of course, we are all now by default guilty of something until proven innocent.
Yesterday for the first time ever I openly cried over what happened to a politician, for the simple reason I never had any reason to give a damn what happened to one before, and the sustained attacks on MT were also attacks on every beneficiary in the country and while we weren’t their target at times we might as well have been. I was close to joining to non-voter ranks, especially after the Greens seemed to go very quite on welfare for a couple of years- I’ve always voted but now fully understand why people give up on the process. When literally no politician will speak out for you then you’re not being represented.
Greens, please don’t push your welfare policy into the background now that the topic’s finally being talked about publicly. In between all the horrible stuff there’s been some reality checks come through in some MSM and the public can’t be allowed to forget.
I’m hearing you Kay and full solidarity on all that.
As far as I can tell the Greens aren’t going to abandon beneficiaries, last night Shaw again committed to *ending poverty* in NZ and positioned the Greens as the only party willing to do that. But I can see that they need now to prove this to supporters and beneficiaries so I hope they do this in the next while.
I hear you Kay, being on the bottom rung of the so called ladder is no fun at all.
I too have been in your situation & feel your frustration with the system.
You will get more compassion under an inclusive Labour Led Govt. than anything that is currently being offered.
I hope u don’t loose faith in the broken system we have to deal with, because voting is the only way to try and change that.Miturea has fallen on her sword sadly, but has done NZ a favour by opening this can of worms.
It won’t go away now.
Don’t give up #letsdothis
Courage Kay, many Labour voters and members like me are sending clear signals about how we feel about the situation sickness beneficiaries and the unemployed find themselves in.
I too, shed tears for Metiria and those she represented.
Yes, REPRESENTED,
This is the role of parliamentarians and those seeking office.
To be representatives.
Humility kindness empathy, and most of all truthfulness have been in short supply.
Paul Goldsmith;s racial comments and entitled view just an example.
Those voters who want change, support the greens, as we want to keep Labour honest and on track not to be Nat Lite.
Kay, all for you and speaking for you as much as possible. You are right, remember that. The nonsense of present nonsense–like Jim Bolger when he was PM for 7 and a half years–is, anything but materially, nothing. What remains is you are right. NZ’s heart is in the under- dog, or nowhere.
Wows. Thanks for the link, appears that even Thiel believed it was a dodgy deal, if he didn’t his lawyers would not have requested that the information to be withheld.
“Thiel avoided usual requirements when then-Minister Nathan Guy invoked a little-used “exceptional circumstances” clause of the Citizenship Act, citing Thiel’s philanthropy and venture-capital investments in this country.”
Also more than hinted at by RNZ. It may have been in response to questions, so the context is needed. But Shaw sounds like he’s trying to be diplomatic and to avoid bening damning of Graham.
He also suggested the door could be open for Dr Graham and Mr Clendon to return, now Mrs Turei had gone.
Mr Clendon had no intention of returning but his understanding was that Dr Graham had been talking to the national executive.
“It’s a matter for the party executive [but] I think it would be very tough for either Dave or Kennedy to come back into caucus at the moment – there’s a lot of raw feeling about the events of Monday.”
He had “tremendous respect” for Dr Graham and his climate change expertise, but there were others who would take on that issue, he said.
I just listened and here is what I heard James Shaw say (my paraphrasing):
– Clendon doesn’t want back in.
– Graham might
– it’s up to the Party to sort that out, and the appropriate staff (national executive) are looking at it.
– Shaw himself can’t see how it would work because of the raw feelings in the caucus from what Graham and Clendon did only a few days ago.
– Graham is hugely experienced on climate change and Shaw has a lot of respect for him
– the party is bigger than any one person
– the party has a number of people very experienced on climate change
The thing to understand about the GP is that the leader doesn’t get to dictate stuff. There are processes to work through and it’s not Shaw’s place to pre-determine what that will be.
My own feeling is that Graham should do what Norman and Hague did and go get himself a kick arse NGO job that allows him to be political on CC. I hope the party say not to having him back because of the betrayal and because of the message it would send to Māori and poor people.
I really wish people would start trusting the Greens more and listen to what they say. I know this is hard, but mostly everything that the MSM say is based on them not really understand the kaupapa.
Trust them to be pragmatic? Always the problem –
pragmatism and idealism. I’m idealistic. I heard all that on the radio and understand the process and role of the leader – no issue with Shaw for me but can’t say the same about even CONSIDERING this decision – the people inspired today will be uninspired tomorrow of that I’m certain.
Well, of course it has to be considered. There’s a process to go through.
And I’m pretty sure that any reasonable process would thoroughly and impartially examine the situation, take into account all relevant factors, and then courteously but firmly tell him to fuck off.
You don’t get to shit on your friends like that and then swan back into the circle when the one you don’t like leaves to have a shower.
“Trust them to be pragmatic? Always the problem –
pragmatism and idealism.”
No, I meant trust their own words rather than relying on what the MSM interpretations, because IME the Greens are honest in their communication, and if what they say doesn’t make sense there’s usually a good reason for that related to not understanding them on their own terms. And that the MSM and many commentators often end up with interpretations based on really not understanding what the Greens are doing. This is a serious issue for the Greens, a long standing one, I don’t know what the solution is.
I don’t know what the internal processes are, and I think it’s valid for people to be nervous, all I’m suggesting is that people give the Greens the benefit of the doubt about process because they’re good at this stuff, and also, tweet, email, FB, phone them and let them know what you think 😈
Oh how I laughed, reading this on the same day I was pleading with my specialist to write me a letter so the medication I get in Europe would be available to me when I get back to NZ. It’s not that it’s not available in NZ (do not be fobbed off with the “but it’s available” line), it’s that the criteria for approval is too high.
By noting Legatum and the US as envious of the NZ health system, Coleman is not looking beyond his own ideological blinkers when making that statement either.
One point he made that I did agree with is that approvals and access should be Pharmac decisions, not political decisions. From my point of view, both John Key (herceptin) and Andrew Little (keytruda) were both guilty of politicising medicines decisions. It is, however the job of politicians to ensure Pharmac is adequately (and for fairness sake) publicly funded. Coleman should be working on that.
Meanwhile
According to data from Medicines NZ, the country ranks 19th of 20 comparable countries in the OECD when it comes to waiting times for funding all new medicines and innovative treatments, and in some cases funds no medicines for specific cancers.
Which pretty much contradicts Coleman’s claims of a health system that’s the envy of the world – (well, at least the countries NZ likes to compare itself with in all those ‘best of’ lists).
This is an interesting issue. There some research around rural women’s access to breast cancer treatment and the difficult considerations they must weigh up before embarking on a course of treatment, so I can see how important this treatment appears to be, especially for these women but also others. It’s not a surprise that Dr.Erica Whinery Kelly has highlighted Mid-Central DHB .
If the evidence shows a treatment is effective, then of course politicians like Seymour should be asking the question about funding. It seems a no-brainer if IORT is cheaper and just as effective for traditional therapies (a quick look at recent papers suggests funding approval might be a confirmation of appropriate use issue?)
Generally though, as much as I respect the right of politicians to highlight treatment options and the funding of them, it’s the politicians making decisions about treatment that disturbs me (as Key did with making herceptin funding an election promise).
I’d also respect these lobbying politicians much more if they insisted on adequate funding for DHBs and Pharmac – to provide them with the resources to ensure all New Zealanders have equitable and timely access to good and effective treatment options. I doubt Seymour or Coleman are that sort of politician.
Nearly every dairy farm in the Selwyn district would need to be shut down for a polluted lake to meet national water quality standards, Environment Canterbury (ECan) has told the Government.
The resulting $300 million annual loss in the district’s operating surplus would fundamentally change its economic and social fabric, it said.
It would likely lead to a reduction in employment, depopulation, and bankruptcies. They were the findings of a business case analysis prepared by ECan for the Ministry for the Environment and obtained by Stuff. It has not yet been publicly released…
…The lake is expected to become more polluted over time. Its nitrogen load of 3200 tonne is projected to increase to 5600t, partly due to the Central Plains Water irrigation scheme.
ECan hoped to limit the increase to 4800t by 2037 – still an increase of 50 per cent of current levels.
ECan councillor Lan Pham said funding clean-ups was pointless in such a case.
“We’re just throwing our money away if we’re not actually addressing the sources of the pollution.”
The priorities in this report goes all the way back to the 2010 anti-democratic decision by the National Government to sack ECan Councillors and replace them with commissioners. I don’t hold out much hope for Te Waihora/Lake Ellesmere unless we change the government.
Yes this needs to be talked about more often, that move at Evan was doctoral to say the least.
The Nats only know one way, that’s Divide and rule!! And they call the other side Communists! Hypocracy !!!
Just read that Bob Jones’s is going to build the tallest wooden office building in the world it’s good to see that some business people are getting on the sustainability train
Did any one watch Hillary Barry read that TXT this morning on Metiria that was a national troll anyone could see that the stories were all fake!!!! to damage the greens image
At Bowalley Road Chris Trotter looks at Metiria’s desire to stand down completely from Parliament. He is thinking apparently that politics is basically the art of achieving the possible. If virtue is achieved by being too pure and idealistic and nothing else can be accepted then politics is getting into dangerous territory and refer to the Jacobins and how their virtuous tide got tarnished by being taken beyond the extremes and flipped back on itself.
So should Metiria step down? She has won many people’s admiration, mine amongst them. The strength of the attack from the self-centred and those hostile to human rights, except theirs, indicates she has pierced the skin of complacent, uncaring, money-mad NZ. She is more than disappointed, and she is drained from holding herself erect while the barrage sweeps round her.
For that reason she shouldn’t go, just go back on the List. Change your mind Metiria. We need you, the Greens have to put little figures on their model landscape, we are needy animals wanting the proper treatment for our condition of die-back too. So don’t whisk Metiria away, she has brought you up to a higher level, which can result you gaining new adherents and bring you to 18% from 8% back to 10-12% with people joining from the ranks of those with nothing to lose and a life to gain.
This is what Chris said in Bowalley: http://bowalleyroad.blogspot.co.nz/
Thus does History instruct us. That any political movement which abandons the reasonable pursuit of achievable objectives and embraces instead a regime dedicated to the imposition and enforcement of a universal and uncompromising “republic of virtue”, may begin by executing its enemies, but it will end by making enemies of, and executing, its friends. Freedom can never be secured by coercion. Every revolutionary movement which tried has ended up devouring itself.
If the Greens have indeed entered their Jacobin phase, it is likely to be their last.
” if it would turn out he’s a fair weather friend.”
I f you mean a friend of the Green Party I think you would wrong to think of him as a friend, fair weather or foul.
Chris is, and I think has always been, a friend of the Labour Party. He doesn’t give a damn about any other party I would think except so far as they can damage Labour’s enemies.
He is rather fun to read though. Can you imagine any other commentator who would talk about a “sibilant kiss” as he did here.
“Robespierre, himself, was declared an “enemy of the people” and laid open to Madame Guillotine’s sibilant kiss”.
To my mind Chris has a great knowledge of history, and what he has learned from that is what he is most loyal to. (Including good writing. History depends upon good writers!)
Labour cops plenty of his criticism, but others who have small historical knowledge rush to slate him whenever he writes something unfavourable for their particular political clique. He ends up being attacked from all quarters – but I always eagerly click on his articles. And I don’t think he is entirely serious about the Greens being in the Jacobin phase. The analogy is almost ironic.
But it seems applicable at the moment in some ways..
And yet in another recent post he talked up the virtues of remaining true to your core policies even if it meant working from outside parliament
I sometimes think he’s trying too hard to shoehorn his latest reading matter in to current politics
And lets not forget that anti apartheid protestors, anti slavers and suffragettes were all deemed to be either terrorists or dangerous nutters.They didn’t prevail by pandering to the less brave
And we’ll see how the Greens deal with their two dissenters, if I know the Greens it’ll be anything but Jacobinist
Agree. But with Chris I don’t think it is just his latest reading matter. My impression is that he remembers just about all he has read, which few of us can do. He shoehorns when he sees it as relevant.
I think Chris opens his mind to other possibilities than would be considered by a focussed person with the view that their thinking is The One Way. So he tries to present different scenarios. It’s amazing that we all don’t think the same isn’t it. Never mind all will be explained by a clear and well modulated AI voice in the future and disagreement will be futile.
IT WAS SHORTLY AFTER MARAMA DAVIDSON’S impassioned appeal to Metiria Turei’s devastated supporters, that the “Avenge Metiria” meme made its first appearance. No one’s entirely sure who started it, but pretty soon it was all over social media. Then the ideas for action started pouring in to the Green Party HQ. Though expressed in a multitude of ways, the message was clear: “If Metiria is to be avenged, then we have to get her supporters to the polls!”
There has been a series of investigation of cops removing kids under care and protection orders.
Some of the video is horrific
AND there has been no reaction in MSM,I have seen.
This needs a wider distribution.
Police show up unannounced, during the night, at the home of a 5-year-old girl’s mother. They have a warrant, issued by a Family Court judge, for the removal of the child, by force if necessary – and it is clear the police are not leaving without her.
The child screams, cries for her mother, and tries to escape the officers by hiding behind a couch. Inevitably, she’s caught, lifted into the air and carried through the living room, kicking and wailing. Her mother films the scene, as the girl’s grandfather pleads with police not to hurt her. One of the officers calls the grandfather an “idiot” and as the girl is taken into the night she screams: “I’m going to vomit”.
Circumstances would suggest the girl was in grievous danger. Why else would three uniformed officers show up in the night and whisk a child into a police car?
Justice Minister Amy Adams says no changes are planned to the law covering Family Court ‘uplift’ warrants where children can be taken from parents by police without notice – even when a child is not at immediate risk.
While she felt judges should decline to order such warrants if they “considered they didn’t have enough information”and said the government was concerned to ensure protections for children are “sufficient and appropriate” she said no improvements were planned to the Care of Children Act.
There will be times that there is a need to remove kids from a nasty situation.
BUT Adams view seems willfully blind. Sort of like that min of health.
Gabby, follow the links. There is a discussion about the family situation.
But dragging a screaming 5 year old away from her mother doesnt seem to be the best way.
If you take time to watch the fifteen minute video in the first linked article, it will give you some background to the situation.
The mother went to put the child on the plane to return them to the custodial parent, but the child reacted so strongly to leaving her mother that Air New Zealand refused to put her on the plane.
The mother contacted the father to say that she was not able to get on the flight, and they would attempt the seven-hour drive to return her the next day.
Due to the ongoing distress of the child, the mother also contacted the child’s lawyer, and the local GP to ensure that the child was well. She also contacted CYFS to make them aware that they had missed the return of the child on the contracted date. They told her they would be in touch.
She also contacted the police. Unbeknownst to her, the decision to get a judge to give an “uplift” warrant had already begun.
She was still awaiting contact from CYFS, when the police arrived to return the child to the father.
The warrant was issued – not because of concern about the wellbeing of the child – but because of the failure to return the child at the appropriate time.
In terms of child trauma, this response is inappropriate.
Why doesn’t the child want to be with the father?
The father must have lied to get this action from the police.
The police obviously didn’t talk to either themselves or to CYFS first. And I’d say that the father bypassed process as well.
By the sounds of things, the mother did everything right.
“Why doesn’t the child want to be with the father?”
I wouldn’t know. I would think that thought lead to the mother making an appointment with the GP to determine that all was OK. Anything else is only further speculation.
“The father must have lied to get this action from the police.”
No. Apparently the system is set up so that failure to comply with a court order for custody or visitation – and in this case it was failure to return the child on the stipulated date – gives automatic heft to a compliance order, which may result in an uplift order enacted by the police.
“The police obviously didn’t talk to either themselves or to CYFS first.”
Even if they did, they would act in accordance with the uplift order. Rightly or wrongly.
“And I’d say that the father bypassed process as well.
I’d say he acted within the system. But the result would have been traumatic for his child. My personal response would be to arrange to pick up the child myself, and have support staff available for pickup but that is a process that requires time, effort and exemplary social department resources.
“By the sounds of things, the mother did everything right.”
And many would agree with you. Myself included. But our concern is for the child’s wellbeing, not compliance with a system that is flawed and often deeply traumatising. It is hard to watch the video of the 14 yr old boy without empathising with his distress. And it is impossible to imagine that his mother would agree with such actions if she was to witness what an uplift order meant for her child. Not if she truly had his wellbeing at heart.
I was asking more in the lines of: There is something seriously wrong here if the child doesn’t want to go back, is anybody looking?
No. Apparently the system is set up so that failure to comply with a court order for custody or visitation – and in this case it was failure to return the child on the stipulated date – gives automatic heft to a compliance order, which may result in an uplift order enacted by the police.
I assume that the only way for the police to know about it is if the father told them and he had been contacted by the mother telling him what was happening and knowing the child would be returned next day. For the police to act as they did and as fast as they did he must have told them that the mother had said that she’s not returning the child at all.
I’d say he acted within the system.
Probably but did he go to the child’s lawyer first? Surely that would be the first thing to do to ensure that communications aren’t bypassing each other.
“I was asking more in the lines of: There is something seriously wrong here if the child doesn’t want to go back, is anybody looking?”
Yes, I understood that. But I also understand that a child can behave quite dramatically to situations that do not warrant further investigations. The mother understandably took the child to a local GP, who found no indication of physical harm (psychological and mental harm is much harder to identify).
I would suggest that a two-day visit to a loving mother and doting grandparents after a long hiatus, may have just passed too quickly for a small child. If the drive to return is seven hours, then it is unlikely it is a frequent occurrence. That is a possible explanation, given no evidence or concern has been identified.
“I assume that the only way for the police to know about it is if the father told them and he had been contacted by the mother telling him what was happening and knowing the child would be returned next day. For the police to act as they did and as fast as they did he must have told them that the mother had said that she’s not returning the child at all.”
The child’s lawyer will not make recommendations to either parent. They are supposed to be completely separate in order to ensure they act in the best interests of the child. I believe that is the response given to the mother when she got in contact with her. The mother herself contacted the police.
The video is worth watching because of the commentary given by the advocate and the professor. They believe that if the judges granting the uplift warrants, and the parents requesting them actually viewed the consequences this situation would not be happening.
The current system for non-compliance makes the use of uplift warrants as a means to ensure compliance a common one.
It seems that the child is just a pawn in a very nasty case of hijacking a child yet it is legal. Here is a case of a law being followed with extreme harm to the child and family instead of the protection it is supposed to provide. Metiria has to diddle her receipts from boarders or flatmates so she can finish her schooling and achieve something in her life but she couldn’t have been spoken of more harshly if she had been a child beater.
If she didn’t have a job and salary would the police not also be likely to come to her home because some timetable set to suit the adults concerned was not adhered to, and the mother did all the right things but still there was police brutality. Children are traumatised for life by one event like this. The whole thing is disgraceful.
I was talking to a health worker tonight who I met while we waited for a pizza. We agreed that NZrs won’t complain and will accept substandard outcomes, don’t stand up for themselves to get right and fair treatment, we are prepared to put up with shoddy everything. At work she finds forms not filled in properly and systems not carried out efficiently.
It seems that the country has been trained to accept third best for citizens. This sort of disgraceful treatment of children is how the National Party consider is right for those who aren’t of the right class, or who have problems. If you do, then the police will thump you somehow, somewhere but if you’re on the right side the problems will just go away.
I have a very good friend, whose daughter was a child placed with her from CYFS.
The siblings who had been removed, spoke once of their memories. The boy has a very traumatic memory of playing with his siblings outside in the sun with the hose and laughing, and hearing a car pull up and the police were there and took the children – still in their togs and wet – away.
The trauma of this incident remained with them all. And although such actions are sometimes necessary, the resources needed to aid them through such unexpected separation is not available.
To remove children is sometimes necessary. But just as important, is appropriate care and support after that removal.
That being said, I don’t think the case above was about removal for the wellbeing of the child. It appears to be something that is unfortunately becoming common as a result of non-compliance of custody orders. The trauma for the child must be immense, and it is hard to see any caring parent wanting their children to go through this for that reason alone.
Interesting Molly.
It is a disgraceful case of a hypocritical government lacking in any integrity making play with being the big I am over a legal decision about a child involving the child and caregivers.
If the police were ordered to pick up stolen property, capture a dog that was of value, they might behave in exactly the way that they did with this poor child.
You give the picture – this from your comment; in this case it was failure to return the child on the stipulated date – gives automatic heft to a compliance order, which may result in an uplift order enacted by the police.
and from you at 12.1.2
The mother went to put the child on the plane to return them to the custodial parent, but the child reacted so strongly to leaving her mother that Air New Zealand refused to put her on the plane.
The mother then did: The mother contacted the father to say that she was not able to get on the flight, and they would attempt the seven-hour drive to return her the next day.
She also did: Due to the ongoing distress of the child, the mother also contacted the child’s lawyer, and the local GP to ensure that the child was well. She also contacted CYFS to make them aware that they had missed the return of the child on the contracted date. They told her they would be in touch.
She also did: She also contacted the police. Unbeknownst to her, the decision to get a judge to give an “uplift” warrant had already begun.
Note: She was still awaiting contact from CYFS, when the police arrived to return the child to the father.
Cold impersonal callous punitive-type law: The warrant was issued – not because of concern about the wellbeing of the child – but because of the failure to return the child at the appropriate time.
In terms of child trauma, this response is inappropriate.
Perhaps we should appeal to the SPCA. (The British version of the SPCA was started before there was an agency for helping children, I think the NSPCC!)
I haven’t watched the video but knowing your reasoned style, you have explained the steps and the whole situation.
It is disgraceful law, with the government making no allowance for the good and kind care of vulnerable children they always say they regard as very important. The law should be changed. And very soon.
And further there should be a panel of citizens who can step in at times like this, and get draconian laws abated, conduct our own enquiry into its performance and ensure it meets all psychological and physical needs of the child and caregivers with the emphasis being on the child’s short term happiness, and then attention given to assist long term happiness.
yes yes the sheep think that the police are the protectors of the public and that they would never break NZ law SORRY THEY ARE JUST LIKE THERE MASTER FOR 9 YEARS
NATIONAL BEND AND BREAK ANY LAW AND SIT BACK AND SAY PROVE IT
@ Carolyn_nth (14) … quite believable really, considering Hosking is part of the despicable msm, the scum which put pressure on Metiria to step down, thereby depriving NZ’s vulnerable of a true champion to speak on their behalf!
This decision by TVNZ proves the intelligence level at the network, must be severely lacking, if Hosking is the best it has to host the debates!
POSTED BY VANESSA COLE 52SC ON AUGUST 10, 2017
Auckland Action Against Poverty would like to send our support to Metiria Turei for making a stand for beneficiaries and unemployed workers facing the cold face of neoliberal capitalism.
“The resignation of Metiria is a symbol that our political parties support the votes and desires of the wealthy over the poor,” says Vanessa Cole, Co-ordinator of Auckland Action Against Poverty.
“The treatment of Metiria by the media and glorified public opinion is emblematic of the way we treat the poor and unemployed in this country.
“The sustained attack on social welfare over the last 40 years enables people to blame the poor for their situation and justifies punitive policies which place people in further financial hardship.
“The wealthy have to justify poverty by blaming the unemployed for unemployment in order to mask the reality that the wealthy profit from poverty.
“Poverty is not an individual behaviour or choice. It is, however, a political and economic choice by the rich who continue to accumulate wealth at the expense of those who actually produce it.
“Sole mothers are workers, underpaid and under-resourced, and we should be outraged that they are being punished by a system which is supposed to protect them.
“People are forced into poverty through low benefit rates, precarious work, inadequate state housing supply and punitive policies imposed by the toxic culture of Work & Income.
“For the unemployed workers who come to see us seeking advocacy, having to choose between food and rent is not a real choice when the threat of eviction is looming over their heads.
“Metiria’s treatment shows what happens to people who break the silence on this war against the poor, and AAAP thank her for taking this stand at great personal cost.
“The struggle for a welfare system which provides enough income and support for people to live with dignity will continue beyond the ballot box.
“This is a war on the poor, and we must stand up and fight back together.”
YES IT IS A WAR ON THE POOR IF YOU ARE WORRIED WERE THE NEXT MEAL IS COMING FROM THEY WILL NOT BOTHER TO VOTE . WHEN LABOR GET ELECTED THEY SHOULD MAKE COMPULSORY TO VOTE THAT WILL CHANGE THINGS AND KEEP THE POLITICIANS LOOKING AFTER THE PEOPLE
Estimated time before all the iron sands off of Taranaki are all gone? 35 years:
Under the Crown Minerals Act, TTRL has obtained a mining licence for 20 years, which expires in 2034. It is seeking a marine consents and marine discharge consents under the EEZ Act, with a duration of 35 years.
This is not a sustainable way to run the economy. We’re extracting the resources as if there’s no end to them despite the fact that we know that there is an to them.
The end result is that we’ll be poor because we’ll no longer have the resources necessary to support us.
So has Kim got nukes and needs to show off one… …Will Trump be rolled… ..did Trump know the right put Penne on the ticket, that’s why Trump is burning Presidential influence so Penne is a lameduck having gained power on Trumps ticket. Kim’s going to blow something up soon and Trump is too weak or so Kim thinks.
Trump should sack Pence, it’s obvious he was the wrong carryon, a president needs someone that isn’t more appealing to congress waiting in the wings. Rookie mistake.
I agree with you Draco we have to change the way we use things at least its starting to happen but it is to slow things will change when National are kicked out
Just in case you wondered where the opposition to all the commie talk about welfare and rivers is, get ready for the next marketing push from National’s funders at Barfoot&Thompson, plus of course the retail banks: People who vote according to property.
“Auckland’s house prices could skyrocket again in one to two years driven in part by the public’s view of property as a money-making asset in a market where stocks are limited.
New academic research suggested recent changes to the loan-to-value ratio restrictions that eased pressure on the market by reducing low-deposit loans would not keep the prices at bay for long.”
Titled Catch Animal Spirits in Auction: Evidence from New Zealand Property Market, it showed house prices had increased more than 50 per cent between 2013 and 2015.
At this late stage in the Electoral cycle we have lost 2 Leaders.
Would it be a hat-trick if the Leader of the National Party was dismasted by Winston’s revelations, or his Deputy Leader having to face DPB revelations and forced to quit?.
Nikki Kaye beaming out from the Herald online. The Good Fairy is bringing us more presents by way of new classrooms in Auckland. Spare me!
The bloody population of the city is going up like crazy and she’s being little Miss Wonderful by simply catering for the growth by providing rooms?! I can see a Damehood just around the corner for services to mankind.
Just picked up this from Checkpoint. Fascinating. It appears both Glenys Dickson and Stuart Davies of Barclay Affair fame are now members of another political party. Would that be NZ First? If so, then it is highly likely Winston Peters does have copies of the 450 texts English sent to Dickson around 18 months ago.
In case you haven’t spotted this from No Right Turn:
Another sign of the decay in transparency under National: the Department of Internal Affairs unlawfully allowed lawyers for foreign vampire capitalist Peter Thiel to veto what was released about him under the OIA: An Official Information Act request by the .. http://norightturn.blogspot.co.nz/2017/08/public-servants-should-work-for-us-not.html
WTF
And there is another piece on a housing warrant of fitness.
I’m too weary to read them but both will push buttons. Ding, ding.
Images of US students (and others) protesting and setting up tent cities on US university campuses have been broadcast world wide and clearly demonstrate the growing rifts in US society caused by US policy toward Israel and Israel’s prosecution of … Continue reading → ...
Barrie Saunders writes – Dear Paul As the new Minister of Media and Communications, you will be inundated with heaps of free advice and special pleading, all in the national interest of course. For what it’s worth here is my assessment: Traditional broadcasting free to air content through ...
Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government is trying to achieve and its arguments for such a bold reform. ...
Peter Dunne writes – The great nineteenth British Prime Minister, William Gladstone, once observed that “the first essential for a Prime Minister is to be a good butcher.” When a later British Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan, sacked a third of his Cabinet in July 1962, in what became ...
Ele Ludemann writes – New Zealanders had the OECD’s second highest tax increase last year: New Zealanders faced the second-biggest tax raises in the developed world last year, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) says. The intergovernmental agency said the average change in personal income tax ...
We all know something’s not right with our elections. The spread of misinformation, people being targeted with soundbites and emotional triggers that ignore the facts, even the truth, and influence their votes.The use of technology to produce deep fakes. How can you tell if something is real or not? Can ...
This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Simon Clark. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). This year you will be lied to! Simon Clark helps prebunk some misleading statements you'll hear about climate. The video includes ...
It is all very well cutting the backrooms of public agencies but it may compromise the frontlines. One of the frustrations of the Productivity Commission’s 2017 review of universities is that while it observed that their non-academic staff were increasing faster than their academic staff, it did not bother to ...
Buzz from the Beehive Two speeches delivered by Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters at Anzac Day ceremonies in Turkey are the only new posts on the government’s official website since the PM announced his Cabinet shake-up. In one of the speeches, Peters stated the obvious: we live in a troubled ...
1. Which of these would you not expect to read in The Waikato Invader?a. Luxon is here to do business, don’t you worry about thatb. Mr KPI expects results, and you better believe itc. This decisive man of action is getting me all hot and excitedd. Melissa Lee is how ...
…it has a restricted jurisdiction which must not be abused: it is not an inquisitionNOTE – this article was published before the High Court ruled that Karen Chhour does not have to appear before the Waitangi Tribunal Gary Judd writes – The High Court ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – One of reasons Oranga Tamariki exists is to prevent child neglect. But could the organisation itself be guilty of the same?Oranga Tamariki’s statistics show a decrease in the number and age of children in care. “There are less children ...
David Farrar writes: Graeme Edgeler wrote in 2017: In the first five years after three strikes came into effect 5248 offenders received a ‘first strike’ (that is, a “stage-1 conviction” under the three strikes sentencing regime), and 68 offenders received a ‘second strike’. In the five years prior to ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has surprised everyone with his ruthlessness in sacking two of his ministers from their crucial portfolios. Removing ministers for poor performance after only five months in the job just doesn’t normally happen in politics. That’s refreshing and will be extremely ...
TL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the two days to 6:06am on Thursday, April 25:Politics: PM Christopher Luxon has set up a dual standard for ministerial competence by demoting two National Cabinet ministers while leaving also-struggling ...
Hi,Today I mainly want to share some of your thoughts about the recent piece I wrote about success and failure, and the forces that seemingly guide our lives. But first, a quick bit of housekeeping: I am doing a Webworm popup in Los Angeles on Saturday May 11 at 2pm. ...
It is hard to see what Melissa Lee might have done to “save” the media. National went into the election with no public media policy and appears not to have developed one subsequently. Lee claimed that she had prepared a policy paper before the election but it had been decided ...
Open access notablesIce acceleration and rotation in the Greenland Ice Sheet interior in recent decades, Løkkegaard et al., Communications Earth & Environment:In the past two decades, mass loss from the Greenland ice sheet has accelerated, partly due to the speedup of glaciers. However, uncertainty in speed derived from satellite products ...
Buzz from the Beehive A statement from Children’s Minister Karen Chhour – yet to be posted on the Government’s official website – arrived in Point of Order’s email in-tray last night. It welcomes the High Court ruling on whether the Waitangi Tribunal can demand she appear before it. It does ...
Mr Bombastic:Ironically, the media the academic experts wanted is, in many ways, the media they got. In place of the tyrannical editors of yesteryear, advancing without fear or favour the interests of the ruling class; the New Zealand news media of today boasts a troop of enlightened journalists dedicated to ...
It's hard times try to make a livingYou wake up every morning in the unforgivingOut there somewhere in the cityThere's people living lives without mercy or pityI feel good, yeah I'm feeling fineI feel better then I have for the longest timeI think these pills have been good for meI ...
In 1974, the US Supreme Court issued its decision in United States v. Nixon, finding that the President was not a King, but was subject to the law and was required to turn over the evidence of his wrongdoing to the courts. It was a landmark decision for the rule ...
Every day now just seems to bring in more fresh meat for the grinder.In their relentlessly ideological drive to cut back on the “excessive bloat” (as they see it) of the previous Labour-led government, on the mountains of evidence accumulated in such a short period of time do not ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Megan Valére SosouMarket gardening site of the Itchèléré de Itagui agricultural cooperative in Dassa-Zoumè (Image credit: Megan Valère Sossou) For the residents of Dassa-Zoumè, a city in the West African country of Benin, choosing between drinking water and having enough ...
Buzz from the Beehive Melissa Lee – as may be discerned from the screenshot above – has not been demoted for doing something seriously wrong as Minister of ...
Morning in London Mother hugs beloved daughter outside the converted shoe factory in which she is living.Afternoon in London Travelling writer takes himself and his wrist down to A&E, just to be sure. Read more ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – The recent announcement of the University Advisory Group, chaired by Sir Peter Gluckman, makes very clear where the Government’s focus and priorities lie. The remit of the Advisory Group is that Group members will consider challenges and opportunities for improvement in the university sector including: ...
Eric Crampton writes – The Reserve Bank of New Zealand desperately wants to find reasons to have workstreams in climate change. It makes little sense. They’ve run another stress test on the banks looking to see if they could find a prudential regulation case. They couldn’t. They ...
Rob MacCullough writes – Pundits from the left and the right are arguing that National’s Fast Track Bill that is designed to speed up infrastructure decisions could end up becoming mired in a cesspool of corruption. Political commentator ...
Looking at the headlines this morning it’s hard to feel anything other than pessimistic about the future of humanity.Note that I’m not speaking about the future of mankind, but the survival of our humanity. The values that we believe in seem to be ebbing away, by the day.Perhaps every generation ...
Swabbing mixed breed baby chicks to test for avian influenzaUh oh. Bird flu – often deadly to humans – is not only being transmitted from infected birds to dairy cows, but is now travelling between dairy cows. As of last Friday, Bloomberg News reports, there were 32 American dairy herds ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
What is it with the mining industry? Its not enough for them to pillage the earth - they apparently can't even be bothered getting resource consent to do so: The proponent behind a major mine near the Clutha River had already been undertaking activity in the area without a ...
Photo # 1 I am a huge fan of Singapore’s approach to housing, as described here two years ago by copying and pasting from The ConversationWhat Singapore has that Australia does not is a public housing developer, the Housing Development Board, which puts new dwellings on public and reclaimed land, ...
Buzz from the Beehive Reactions to news of the government’s readiness to make urgent changes to “the resource management system” through a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) suggest a balanced approach is being taken. The Taxpayers’ Union says the proposed changes don’t go far enough. Greenpeace says ...
I’m starting to wonder if Anna Burns-Francis might be the best political interviewer we’ve got. That might sound unlikely to you, it came as a bit of a surprise to me.Jack Tame can be excellent, but has some pretty average days. I like Rebecca Wright on Newshub, she asks good ...
Chris Trotter writes – Willie Jackson is said to be planning a “media summit” to discuss “the state of the media and how to protect Fourth Estate Journalism”. Not only does the Editor of The Daily Blog, Martyn Bradbury, think this is a good idea, but he has also ...
Graeme Edgeler writes – This morning [April 21], the Wellington High Court is hearing a judicial review brought by Hon. Karen Chhour, the Minister for Children, against a decision of the Waitangi Tribunal. This is unusual, judicial reviews are much more likely to brought against ministers, rather than ...
Both of Parliament’s watchdogs have now ripped into the Government’s Fast-track Approvals Bill. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMy pick of the six newsey things to know from Aotearoa’s political economy and beyond on the morning of Tuesday, April 23 are:The Lead: The Auditor General,John Ryan, has joined the ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Sarah SpengemanPeople wait to board an electric bus in Pune, India. (Image credit: courtesy of ITDP) Public transportation riders in Pune, India, love the city’s new electric buses so much they will actually skip an older diesel bus that ...
The infrastructure industry yesterday issued a “hurry up” message to the Government, telling it to get cracking on developing a pipeline of infrastructure projects.The hiatus around the change of Government has seen some major projects cancelled and others delayed, and there is uncertainty about what will happen with the new ...
Hi,Over the weekend I revisited a podcast I really adore, Dead Eyes. It’s about a guy who got fired from Band of Brothers over two decades ago because Tom Hanks said he had “dead eyes”.If you don’t recall — 2001’s Band of Brothers was part of the emerging trend of ...
Buzz from the Beehive The 180 or so recipients of letters from the Government telling them how to submit infrastructure projects for “fast track” consideration includes some whose project applications previously have been rejected by the courts. News media were quick to feature these in their reports after RMA Reform Minister Chris ...
It would not be a desirable way to start your holiday by breaking your back, your head, or your wrist, but on our first hour in Singapore I gave it a try.We were chatting, last week, before we started a meeting of Hazel’s Enviro Trust, about the things that can ...
Calling all journalists, academics, planners, lawyers, political activists, environmentalists, and other members of the public who believe that the relationships between vested interests and politicians need to be scrutinised. We need to work together to make sure that the new Fast-Track Approvals Bill – currently being pushed through by the ...
Feel worried. Shane Jones and a couple of his Cabinet colleagues are about to be granted the power to override any and all objections to projects like dams, mines, roads etc even if: said projects will harm biodiversity, increase global warming and cause other environmental harms, and even if ...
Bryce Edwards writes- The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. ...
Michael Bassett writes – If you think there is a move afoot by the radical Maori fringe of New Zealand society to create a parallel system of government to the one that we elect at our triennial elections, you aren’t wrong. Over the last few days we have ...
Without a corresponding drop in interest rates, it’s doubtful any changes to the CCCFA will unleash a massive rush of home buyers. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: The six things that stood out to me in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, poverty and climate on Monday, April 22 included:The Government making a ...
Sunday was a lazy day. I started watching Jack Tame on Q&A, the interviews are usually good for something to write about. Saying the things that the politicians won’t, but are quite possibly thinking. Things that are true and need to be extracted from between the lines.As you might know ...
In our Weekly Roundup last week we covered news from Auckland Transport that the WX1 Western Express is going to get an upgrade next year with double decker electric buses. As part of the announcement, AT also said “Since we introduced the WX1 Western Express last November we have seen ...
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to April 29 include:PM Christopher Luxon is scheduled to hold a post-Cabinet news conference at 4 pm today. Stats NZ releases its statutory report on Census 2023 tomorrow.Finance Minister Nicola Willis delivers a pre-Budget speech at ...
A listing of 29 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 14, 2024 thru Sat, April 20, 2024. Story of the week Our story of the week hinges on these words from the abstract of a fresh academic ...
The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. The Government says this will ...
This is a column to say thank you. So many of have been in touch since Mum died to say so many kind and thoughtful things. You’re wonderful, all of you. You’ve asked how we’re doing, how Dad’s doing. A little more realisation each day, of the irretrievable finality of ...
Identifying the engine type in your car is crucial for various reasons, including maintenance, repairs, and performance upgrades. Knowing the specific engine model allows you to access detailed technical information, locate compatible parts, and make informed decisions about modifications. This comprehensive guide will provide you with a step-by-step approach to ...
Introduction: The allure of racing is undeniable. The thrill of speed, the roar of engines, and the exhilaration of competition all contribute to the allure of this adrenaline-driven sport. For those who yearn to experience the pinnacle of racing, becoming a race car driver is the ultimate dream. However, the ...
Introduction Automobiles have become ubiquitous in modern society, serving as a primary mode of transportation and a symbol of economic growth and personal mobility. With countless vehicles traversing roads and highways worldwide, it begs the question: how many cars are there in the world? Determining the precise number is a ...
Maintaining a safe and reliable vehicle requires regular inspections. Whether it’s a routine maintenance checkup or a safety inspection, knowing how long the process will take can help you plan your day accordingly. This article delves into the factors that influence the duration of a car inspection and provides an ...
Mazda Motor Corporation, commonly known as Mazda, is a Japanese multinational automaker headquartered in Fuchu, Aki District, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. The company was founded in 1920 as the Toyo Cork Kogyo Co., Ltd., and began producing vehicles in 1931. Mazda is primarily known for its production of passenger cars, but ...
Your car battery is an essential component that provides power to start your engine, operate your electrical systems, and store energy. Over time, batteries can weaken and lose their ability to hold a charge, which can lead to starting problems, power failures, and other issues. Replacing your battery before it ...
In most states, you cannot register a car without a valid driver’s license. However, there are a few exceptions to this rule. Exceptions to the RuleIf you are under 18 years old: In some states, you can register a car in your name even if you do not ...
Mazda, a Japanese automotive manufacturer with a rich history of innovation and engineering excellence, has emerged as a formidable player in the global car market. Known for its reputation of producing high-quality, fuel-efficient, and driver-oriented vehicles, Mazda has consistently garnered praise from industry experts and consumers alike. In this article, ...
Struts are an essential part of a car’s suspension system. They are responsible for supporting the weight of the car and damping the oscillations of the springs. Struts are typically made of steel or aluminum and are filled with hydraulic fluid. How Do Struts Work? Struts work by transferring the ...
Car registration is a mandatory process that all vehicle owners must complete annually. This process involves registering your car with the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and paying an associated fee. The registration process ensures that your vehicle is properly licensed and insured, and helps law enforcement and other authorities ...
Zoom is a video conferencing service that allows you to share your screen, webcam, and audio with other participants. In addition to sharing your own audio, you can also share the audio from your computer with other participants. This can be useful for playing music, sharing presentations with audio, or ...
Building your own computer can be a rewarding and cost-effective way to get a high-performance machine tailored to your specific needs. However, it also requires careful planning and execution, and one of the most important factors to consider is the time it will take. The exact time it takes to ...
Sleep mode is a power-saving state that allows your computer to quickly resume operation without having to boot up from scratch. This can be useful if you need to step away from your computer for a short period of time but don’t want to shut it down completely. There are ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
Te Pāti Māori is disgusted at the confirmation that hundreds are set to lose their jobs at Oranga Tamariki, and the disestablishment of the Treaty Response Unit. “This act of absolute carelessness and out of touch decision making is committing tamariki to state abuse.” Said Te Pāti Māori Oranga Tamariki ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi, and Mema Paremata mō Tāmaki-Makaurau, Takutai Tarsh Kemp, will travel to the Gold Coast to strengthen ties with Māori in Australia next week (15-21 April). The visit, in the lead-up to the 9th Australian National Kapa haka Festival, will be an opportunity for both ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
Hundreds of New Zealand families affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) will benefit from a new Government focus on prevention and treatment, says Health Minister Dr Shane Reti. “We know FASD is a leading cause of preventable intellectual and neurodevelopmental disability in New Zealand,” Dr Reti says. “Every day, ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones today attended the official opening of Kaikohe’s new $14.7 million sports complex. “The completion of the Kaikohe Multi Sports Complex is a fantastic achievement for the Far North,” Mr Jones says. “This facility not only fulfils a long-held dream for local athletes, but also creates ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters’ engagements in Türkiye this week underlined the importance of diplomacy to meet growing global challenges. “Returning to the Gallipoli Peninsula to represent New Zealand at Anzac commemorations was a sombre reminder of the critical importance of diplomacy for de-escalating conflicts and easing tensions,” Mr Peters ...
Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service. It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
Distinguished guests - It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders. Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia. Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is today travelling to Europe where he’ll update the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s work to restore law and order. “Attending the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva provides us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while ...
Associate Agriculture Minister, Mark Patterson, formally reopened the world’s largest wool processing facility today in Awatoto, Napier, following a $50 million rebuild and refurbishment project. “The reopening of this facility will significantly lift the economic opportunities available to New Zealand’s wool sector, which already accounts for 20 per cent of ...
Hon Andrew Bayly, Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing At the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective (SOREC) Summit, 18 April, Dunedin Ngā mihi nui, Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Ko Whanganui aho Good Afternoon and thank you for inviting me to open your summit today. I am delighted ...
The Government is delivering on its commitment to bring back the Three Strikes legislation, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee announced today. “Our Government is committed to restoring law and order and enforcing appropriate consequences on criminals. We are making it clear that repeat serious violent or sexual offending is not ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today announced four new diplomatic appointments for New Zealand’s overseas missions. “Our diplomats have a vital role in maintaining and protecting New Zealand’s interests around the world,” Mr Peters says. “I am pleased to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the ...
New Zealand is contributing NZ$7 million to support communities affected by severe food insecurity and other urgent humanitarian needs in Ethiopia and Somalia, Foreign Minister Rt Hon Winston Peters announced today. “Over 21 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance across Ethiopia, with a further 6.9 million people ...
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Paul Goldsmith is congratulating Mataaho Collective for winning the Golden Lion for best participant in the main exhibition at the Venice Biennale. "Congratulations to the Mataaho Collective for winning one of the world's most prestigious art prizes at the Venice Biennale. “It is good ...
The Government is reforming financial services to improve access to home loans and other lending, and strengthen customer protections, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly and Housing Minister Chris Bishop announced today. “Our coalition Government is committed to rebuilding the economy and making life simpler by cutting red tape. We are ...
“China remains a strong commercial opportunity for Kiwi exporters as Chinese businesses and consumers continue to value our high-quality safe produce,” Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says. Mr McClay has returned to New Zealand following visits to Beijing, Harbin and Shanghai where he met ministers, governors and mayors and engaged in trade and agricultural events with the New ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
Asia Pacific Report From France to Australia, university pro-Palestine protests in the United States have now spread to several countries with students pitching on-campus camps. And students at Columbia and other US universities remain defiant as campuses have witnessed the biggest protests since the anti-Vietnam war and anti-apartheid eras in ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards, Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)New Zealand Government’s Fast Track legislation. Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government ...
Tara Ward talks to presenter Naomi Toilalo about the new TV show that turns food waste into a three course feast. Naomi Toilalo is standing in the warehouse at Good Neighbour Tauranga, helping unpack the two-and-a-half tonnes of rejected food that will arrive at the community support hub that day. ...
Scout is our latest Dog of the Month. This feature was offered as a reward during our What’s Eating Aotearoa PledgeMe campaign. Thank you to Scout’s human, Avril, for her support. Dog name: Scout (named after the little girl in To Kill a Mockingbird – she inherited the independent spirit ...
Megan Alatini takes us through her life in TV, including ‘terrible’ daytime TV, the class of Carol Hirschfeld and her most embarrassing TrueBliss moment. When she responded to a vague newspaper ad asking “do you have what it takes to be a popstar?” 25 years ago, Megan Alatini never guessed ...
A new exhibition in Wellington showcases the faces behind your local goods and services. Back in 1977, when I was a fine arts student at the University of Canterbury, I took a series of photographs of Christchurch shopkeepers. The photos were for a calendar – a project for my end ...
Toomaj and his resistance to tyranny through his songs have become an icon for the youth of Iran, so his sentence has hit the nation hard. Toomaj Salehi is not the first artist to pay the price for standing with the people. ...
My cousin Dylan and I spotted these big eels under the bridge that summer. We watched them lounging under the dark weed, facing into the flow of water, their mouths frozen open. Dylan and I couldn’t stop thinking about those eels. The night we went down to the creek, we ...
Newsroom, home of satire. My long-running weekly satirical series The Secret Diary has moved to Newsroom and will appear every Saturday, with Victor Billot’s wildly popular satirical Odes continuing to appear every Sunday. Diaries, Odes – while serious political columnists toil at meaningful opinions and stroke their chins to an ...
Tara Ward unravels the many nuanced layers of a cartoon about talking dogs.This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. It’s not often an episode of a children’s cartoon has adults sobbing into their sleeves, but that’s exactly what happened this week when ...
Working as a doctor in developing countries to help communities achieve better health outcomes is nothing short of a life goal for Jessica Tater. The University of Otago medical student has her sights firmly set on joining the international humanitarian organisation Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) when she qualifies ...
There’s an island in the far reaches of Auckland’s territory, sitting off the tip of the Coromandel Peninsula, 30 minutes by air from the city or four hours on the slow boat. Aotea Great Barrier is off-grid, it has a population of fewer than a thousand people … and most ...
Asia Pacific Report An Australian author and advocate, Jim Aubrey, today led a national symbolic one minute’s silence to mark the “blood debt” owed to Papuan allies during the Second World War indigenous resistance against the invading Japanese forces. “A promise to most people is a promise,” Aubrey said in ...
Asia Pacific Report The Freedom Flotilla is ready to sail to Gaza, reports Kia Ora Gaza. All the required paperwork has been submitted to the port authority, and the cargo has been loaded and prepared for the humanitarian trip to the besieged enclave. However, organisers received word of an “administrative ...
Pacific Media Watch Palestine solidarity protesters today demonstrated at the Auckland headquarters of Television New Zealand, accusing the country’s major TV network of broadcasting “propaganda” backing Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza. About 50 protesters targeted the main entrance to the TVNZ building near Sky Tower and also picketed a side ...
Opinion by Lynley Hood. Forty years on from my 1985 Fulbright Grant, my disquiet over the war in Gaza evoked some troubling questions. The answer to my first question – What is the primary purpose of the Fulbright Programme? – was on the Fulbright NZ website. It says: US Senator, ...
The ministers responsible for green-lighting major projects need to be open about potential conflicts of interest, says Transparency International. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anastasia Powell, Professor, Family and Sexual Violence, RMIT University It has been a particularly distressing start to the year. There is little that can ease the current grief of individuals, families and communities who have needlessly lost a loved one to men’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gregory Moore, Senior Research Associate, School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences, The University of Melbourne Lichen, the first described example of symbiosis.AdeJ Artventure/Shutterstock Once known only to those studying biology, the word symbiosis is now widely used. Symbiosis is the intimate ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kim Hemsley, Head, Childhood Dementia Research Group, Flinders Health and Medical Research Institute, College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University Olena Ivanova/Shutterstock “Childhood” and “dementia” are two words we wish we didn’t have to use together. But sadly, around 1,400 ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Whiteford, Professor, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University The government’s Economic Inclusion Advisory Committee has just published its second report. It was set up by Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Minister for Social Services Amanda Rishworth in 2022 to provide: ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne The Queensland state election will be held in October. A YouGov poll for The Courier Mail, conducted April 9–17 from a sample ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amin Naeni, PhD candidate at Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation, Deakin University There’s been much talk in recent months about what a possible second Donald Trump presidency in the United States could mean for Europe, Russia’s war in Ukraine, the ...
A brief round-up of submissions on the controversial proposed law. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week, submissions on the controversial Fast-track Approvals Bill closed just hours after the government released a list of stakeholder organisations who were sent letters advising how they could ...
A poem from Robin Peace’s new collection Detritus of Empire: feather / grass / rock. Cereal giving I see a woman’s hands, see her curious hands break a stalk as she walks through the tall prairie, the savannah, the steppe, wherever it was. See her idly bite the grass that ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Hemingway’s Goblet by Dermot Ross (Mary Egan Publishing, $38)A handsomely produced (debossed cover, lovely ...
The Commissioner's decision validates the longstanding efforts of the local community and ensures that Awataha Marae will be managed to serve the needs of the local community, particularly for hosting tangihanga. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tristan Salles, Associate professor, University of Sydney Examples of Australian landscapes.Unsplash Seventy thousand years ago, the sea level was much lower than today. Australia, along with New Guinea and Tasmania, formed a connected landmass known as Sahul. Around this time – ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Felicity Castagna, Lecturer, Creative Writing, Western Sydney University Day Day Market, ParramattaPhoto: Garry Trinh I live on the edge of Parramatta, Australia’s fastest-growing city, on the kind of old-fashioned suburban street that has 1950s fibros constructed in the post-war housing boom, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Ryan, Teaching Fellow in Economics, University of Waikato GettyImagesfatido/Getty Images There is an ongoing global debate over whether the high inflation seen in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic can be lowered without a recession. New Zealand is not ...
The ‘Wicked Game’ heartthrob is in his late 60s now. That didn’t stop him putting on a lively, goofy and very sparkly show. Apart from ‘Wicked Game’, which graces a sultry playlist of mine simply called 💋, my last sustained Chris Isaak listening session took place when I was about ...
Analysis - Two ministers were stripped of portfolios in a warning to Cabinet, drama broke out at the Waitangi Tribunal, and the gang patch ban bill ran into opposition. ...
Tara Ward makes an impassioned plea for some vital pop culture merch. In April 1999, I became obsessed with a new reality television show called Popstars. Every Tuesday night, five strangers transformed into music royalty before my very eyes as Joe, Keri, Carly, Erika and Megan were chosen to form ...
PNG Post-Courier In the early hours of ANZAC Day, aerial photographs captured an impressive gathering of Australians and Papua New Guineans at Isurava in the Northern (Oro) Province. The solemn dawn service yesterday was held at a site steeped in history, where some of the fiercest battles of World War ...
The PSA is shocked that Oranga Tamariki has used the cost cutting drive to downgrade its commitment to Te Ao Māori and remove many specialist Māori roles. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Kemish, Adjunct Professor, School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry, The University of Queensland There can be no more powerful symbol of the relationship between Australia and Papua New Guinea than the prime ministers of these neighbouring countries walking together on the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sharon Robinson, Distinguished Professor and Deputy Director of ARC Securing Antarctica’s Environmental Future (SAEF), University of Wollongong, University of Wollongong Andrew Netherwood Over the last 25 years, the ozone hole which forming over Antarctica each spring has started to shrink. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Viktoria Kahui, Senior Lecturer in Environmental Economics, University of Otago Getty Images/Amy Toensing Biodiversity is declining at rates unprecedented in human history. This suggests the ways we currently use to manage our natural environment are failing. One emerging concept focuses on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Timothy Colin Bednall, Associate Professor in Management, Swinburne University of Technology marvent/Shutterstock Finding the best person to fill a position can be tough, from drafting a job ad to producing a shortlist of top interview candidates. Employers typically consider information from ...
Wondering where to host your next BYO? Whether its a small gathering or a massive party, we’ve got some recommendations. I was first introduced to the concept of BYOs at Dunedin’s India Gardens, a legendary but sadly defunct establishment, which purveyed enormous quantities of mango chicken to Aotearoa’s drunkest future ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Julien Cooper, Honorary Lecturer, Department of History and Archaeology, Macquarie University Julien Cooper The hyper-arid desert of Eastern Sudan, the Atbai Desert, seems like an unlikely place to find evidence of ancient cattle herders. But in this dry environment, my new ...
The sector says it’s hopeful her replacement Paul Goldsmith will be able to throw it a lifeline, after six months with a minister deemed missing in action, writes Catherine McGregor in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign ...
The government can't just rely on axing public sector jobs and has to do more to cut spending, says the chief economist at a free market think tank. ...
Rock The Vote NZ, known for its advocacy for minor party unity and its role within the Freedoms NZ Coalition during the 2023 General Election, celebrates this merger as a strategic enhancement of its operational strength and outreach. ...
Nearly everyone has experienced the frustration of something you use breaking and being difficult or expensive to fix. Proposed legislation could change that. It’s been raining on and off all Sunday afternoon but people are lining up outside a building in a corner of Gribblehirst Park in Sandringham, Auckland. In ...
What does a forever relationship look like when you don’t believe in marriage? And how do you celebrate it? This essay is part of our Sunday Essay series, made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.I’m going to do it, right now. I’m going to say ...
The Prime Minister has committed to resuming direct flights to Thailand. But it’s not a promise he will be able to deliver on anytime soon. The post Prime Minister jumps the gun in Thailand appeared first on Newsroom. ...
It’s not that long ago Eliza McCartney was seriously wondering if the Paris Olympics would be her pole vaulting swansong. After years of being hounded by injury after injury, the Rio Olympics bronze medallist was still confident she would compete at her second Olympics in Paris in July, unless something ...
FICTION 1 Take Two by Danielle Hawkins (Allen & Unwin, $36.99) There’s commercial fiction, like this book, and then there’s quality fiction, quality writers, quality literature; the forthcoming Auckland Writers Festival is full of quality, and ReadingRoom has two tickets to give away to the following events: Paul Lynch (Dublin ...
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[quiz],DIV[quiz],A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp'); Got a good quiz question?Send Newsroom your questions. The post Newsroom daily quiz, Friday 26 April appeared first on Newsroom. ...
You can’t have missed the Gallipoli story as the movies, documentaries, essays and books capture what it was like for New Zealand troops in their eight-month campaign on the Peninsula. But this Anzac Day the Auckland War Memorial Museum has published a book that sheds light on a little-known aspect of the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra In the free-for-all between the Australian government and Big Tech boss Elon Musk this week, the government had to be on a winner. Most people would have little sympathy with Musk’s vociferous opposition to ...
Asia Pacific Report Chief Mandla Mandela, a member of the National Assembly of South Africa and Nelson Mandela’s grandson, has joined the Freedom Flotilla in istanbul as the ships prepare to sail for Gaza, reports Kia Ora Gaza. Mandela is also the ambassador for the Global Campaign to Return to ...
If Winston has the Barclay texts it might be a good time to stop pussy-footing around…
Winston is the master of drip feed, all in good time.
Once the Greens are out of the gossipy news cycle, then I suspect Winston will tell us more.
Yesterdays question in Parliament was very telling, it’s far from over.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bk4y5_wcYcw
At the end of Winston’s questioning of Bill he remarked, “They are going to miss you.” Ominous?
Yeah, Winnie has something, and he at least thinks it is big. He must have proof that Bill was party to the agreement, knew about it and used ministerial limos to ferry people around in Southland to get the agreement done.
Give Winnie a week to allow the furor around the Greens to die and he will nail Bill. He might wait a little longer to see if he can skewer anyone else, or if he sees a way to eek out some more support from it, but it is coming….
Bye bye Bill.
Hello Winston.
Basil Brush falls apart – YouTube
▶ 0:45
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BjWk6jdxMg
Old bill english must be so scared now – likely 2 time loser, sad texts about to come out – oh the shame is coming, no policy, tired weak team of backstabbers and nobodies. More big bangs to come for Bill as he goes down and keeps going down until all his energy is spent – that’ll be early next week
@ScottGN (1) … I agree. Winston needs to step up now, if he’s in possession of the texts. In typical form, he’s treating the issue as a game, which doesn’t do him or NZF any favours.
I watched a recent online video of Winston being questioned about the texts. He would not give a straight answer and when pushed, he began attacking the journalists concerned! It was like a replay of his mentor Muldoon in action, when journalists put the pressure on him! The similarities in response was quite eerie!
However the old cynic in me is thinking maybe Winston could be using the English texts as a form of blackmail (for want of a better word), attempting to see what a Natz (via English) deal will come up with for him, post election.
after the election they’ll be worthless, as will any promises made because of them.
If he has them and they are really bad for blinglish, Winston will expect light treatment from the nats during the campaign. No muckraking from farrar, hoots, or Jizzpaste McSweaty. No seeking out family members. Otherwise, a couple of weeks out, Peters will drop ’em.
Could anyone be more annoying than Susie Ferguson? Why doesn’t she just answer her own questions and be done with it.
She’s probably aiming for a spot on The Nation or Q+A panels as a rent-a-voice
She’s by no means the worst of them but they do engage in binary ‘yes or no’ thinking at times
Well said, Ffloyd. Calculated interruptions which both disrupt the flow of the interviewee and prevent the listener from hearing the reply. Some replies are worthless evasion – but to Susie, any answer is fair game. Unless it is a high-ranking National politician of course.
Yes yes she annoys the heck out of me for that too
For the last decade or so I’ve more and more hated being a New Zealander, being on the receiving end of everything my “alleged” Government (and most of the opposition) has to throw at me, their overt hatred for my existence- for the simple reason I’m unable to work due to illness and need a benefit to survive. Yes, you could extend that back 30 years, but the extreme extreme cruelty kicked in more recently.
And of course, one has to admire the success of the divide and conquer campaign of the last 30 years (also revved up more recently) which has led us to now.
My Government openly despises me.
Labour don’t give a damn but they won’t say it out loud. Their actions during their last reign and silence in opposition since make that pretty clear.
A significant group of my fellow compatriates have been somehow brainwashed by politicians and the media into despising me. Maybe not as many as it feels like and it’s just a well coordinated media campaign that makes them sound like they represent the majority, but it still hurts.
I don’t believe it’s an exaggeration to say there’s a lot of people here who genuinely couldn’t give two hoots if I died under a bridge. As a beneficiary in NZ, our status on the pecking order is just above an incarcerated prisoner, if not on a par. Of course, we are all now by default guilty of something until proven innocent.
Yesterday for the first time ever I openly cried over what happened to a politician, for the simple reason I never had any reason to give a damn what happened to one before, and the sustained attacks on MT were also attacks on every beneficiary in the country and while we weren’t their target at times we might as well have been. I was close to joining to non-voter ranks, especially after the Greens seemed to go very quite on welfare for a couple of years- I’ve always voted but now fully understand why people give up on the process. When literally no politician will speak out for you then you’re not being represented.
Greens, please don’t push your welfare policy into the background now that the topic’s finally being talked about publicly. In between all the horrible stuff there’s been some reality checks come through in some MSM and the public can’t be allowed to forget.
I’m hearing you Kay and full solidarity on all that.
As far as I can tell the Greens aren’t going to abandon beneficiaries, last night Shaw again committed to *ending poverty* in NZ and positioned the Greens as the only party willing to do that. But I can see that they need now to prove this to supporters and beneficiaries so I hope they do this in the next while.
I hear you Kay, being on the bottom rung of the so called ladder is no fun at all.
I too have been in your situation & feel your frustration with the system.
You will get more compassion under an inclusive Labour Led Govt. than anything that is currently being offered.
I hope u don’t loose faith in the broken system we have to deal with, because voting is the only way to try and change that.Miturea has fallen on her sword sadly, but has done NZ a favour by opening this can of worms.
It won’t go away now.
Don’t give up #letsdothis
Have a look at the Green pages on facebook. And take heart.
The leaders and the party are more determined than ever to address both social and environmental progress.
I don’t see anything on the GP FB since Turei’s registration. Where’s Davidson’s live chat last night on FB that some on twitter have mentioned?
Courage Kay, many Labour voters and members like me are sending clear signals about how we feel about the situation sickness beneficiaries and the unemployed find themselves in.
I too, shed tears for Metiria and those she represented.
Yes, REPRESENTED,
This is the role of parliamentarians and those seeking office.
To be representatives.
Humility kindness empathy, and most of all truthfulness have been in short supply.
Paul Goldsmith;s racial comments and entitled view just an example.
Those voters who want change, support the greens, as we want to keep Labour honest and on track not to be Nat Lite.
Kia kaha Kay.
Marama Davidson will be a very strong advocate for welfare reform in the next government. This is not going to go away.
https://thestandard.org.nz/green-mp-marama-davidson-on-keeping-the-faith/
Kay, all for you and speaking for you as much as possible. You are right, remember that. The nonsense of present nonsense–like Jim Bolger when he was PM for 7 and a half years–is, anything but materially, nothing. What remains is you are right. NZ’s heart is in the under- dog, or nowhere.
The scummy behaviour of National doesn’t ever seem to bite them on the bum.
“Citizen Thiel material wrongly withheld at billionaires’ request”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11900954
Wows. Thanks for the link, appears that even Thiel believed it was a dodgy deal, if he didn’t his lawyers would not have requested that the information to be withheld.
“Thiel avoided usual requirements when then-Minister Nathan Guy invoked a little-used “exceptional circumstances” clause of the Citizenship Act, citing Thiel’s philanthropy and venture-capital investments in this country.”
Excellent journalism by Matt Nippert
Will Nathan Guy be around to explain this?
I hope they tell him to fuck right off.
It’s just been hinted on newshub that Kennedy Grahame wants to go back on the greens list.
I hope they tell him to fuck right off.
Could just be fake news to help them with ratings.
nothing would surprise me nowdays – political maneuvering blindsided just about every day at the moment
Newshub that literally made up the news the other night? Probably not the best source of information or political analysis.
Shaw has ruled it out.
I think that Shaw said that it was a decision for the Executive. He appeared neutral.
Also more than hinted at by RNZ. It may have been in response to questions, so the context is needed. But Shaw sounds like he’s trying to be diplomatic and to avoid bening damning of Graham.
RadioNZ reporting this possibility too now in the 9am news bulletin.
Graham should be old enough to realise that things dont work like that,
Hi Cinny (5) … I also heard on RNZ this morning that James Shaw suggested the door is open for Kennedy Graham to return!
What’s going on there?
I am a Green supporter, but after hearing that, I’m having some WTF moments about the party!
I just do not get this either – I am officially worried about this.
I just listened and here is what I heard James Shaw say (my paraphrasing):
– Clendon doesn’t want back in.
– Graham might
– it’s up to the Party to sort that out, and the appropriate staff (national executive) are looking at it.
– Shaw himself can’t see how it would work because of the raw feelings in the caucus from what Graham and Clendon did only a few days ago.
– Graham is hugely experienced on climate change and Shaw has a lot of respect for him
– the party is bigger than any one person
– the party has a number of people very experienced on climate change
The thing to understand about the GP is that the leader doesn’t get to dictate stuff. There are processes to work through and it’s not Shaw’s place to pre-determine what that will be.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/political/336863/greens-tough-week-entirely-recoverable-shaw Relevant bit starts at 30 secs.
My own feeling is that Graham should do what Norman and Hague did and go get himself a kick arse NGO job that allows him to be political on CC. I hope the party say not to having him back because of the betrayal and because of the message it would send to Māori and poor people.
I really wish people would start trusting the Greens more and listen to what they say. I know this is hard, but mostly everything that the MSM say is based on them not really understand the kaupapa.
Trust them to be pragmatic? Always the problem –
pragmatism and idealism. I’m idealistic. I heard all that on the radio and understand the process and role of the leader – no issue with Shaw for me but can’t say the same about even CONSIDERING this decision – the people inspired today will be uninspired tomorrow of that I’m certain.
I hope the vegreens don’t pack on me now lol
Well, of course it has to be considered. There’s a process to go through.
And I’m pretty sure that any reasonable process would thoroughly and impartially examine the situation, take into account all relevant factors, and then courteously but firmly tell him to fuck off.
You don’t get to shit on your friends like that and then swan back into the circle when the one you don’t like leaves to have a shower.
“Trust them to be pragmatic? Always the problem –
pragmatism and idealism.”
No, I meant trust their own words rather than relying on what the MSM interpretations, because IME the Greens are honest in their communication, and if what they say doesn’t make sense there’s usually a good reason for that related to not understanding them on their own terms. And that the MSM and many commentators often end up with interpretations based on really not understanding what the Greens are doing. This is a serious issue for the Greens, a long standing one, I don’t know what the solution is.
I don’t know what the internal processes are, and I think it’s valid for people to be nervous, all I’m suggesting is that people give the Greens the benefit of the doubt about process because they’re good at this stuff, and also, tweet, email, FB, phone them and let them know what you think 😈
A health system that’s the envy of the world according to Johnathan Coleman, when he spoke to a conglomerate of cancer charities.
Oh how I laughed, reading this on the same day I was pleading with my specialist to write me a letter so the medication I get in Europe would be available to me when I get back to NZ. It’s not that it’s not available in NZ (do not be fobbed off with the “but it’s available” line), it’s that the criteria for approval is too high.
By noting Legatum and the US as envious of the NZ health system, Coleman is not looking beyond his own ideological blinkers when making that statement either.
One point he made that I did agree with is that approvals and access should be Pharmac decisions, not political decisions. From my point of view, both John Key (herceptin) and Andrew Little (keytruda) were both guilty of politicising medicines decisions. It is, however the job of politicians to ensure Pharmac is adequately (and for fairness sake) publicly funded. Coleman should be working on that.
Meanwhile
Which pretty much contradicts Coleman’s claims of a health system that’s the envy of the world – (well, at least the countries NZ likes to compare itself with in all those ‘best of’ lists).
Envy of the neoliberal world. Fify
Probably stumped as to why the US only ranks 31st in life expectancy when it spends so much more on health than any other country.
Some here may not like anyone supporting David Seymour, yet he has become a strong supporter for this Intraoperative Therapy, and Dr.Erica Whinery Kelly should be commended for all her efforts in progressing this form of treatment
This interview is IMO well worth listening to.
http://www.95bfm.com/bcast/david-seymour-presents-an-alternative-treatment-for-breast-cancer-patients
And as a support person for someone who has been treated both by: the traditional 5 week radio therapy treatment and this IORT. I cannot see why both the government and those within the health industry are so opposed to this.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/81143167/calls-for-public-funding-of-new-oneoff-breast-cancer-treatment
This is an interesting issue. There some research around rural women’s access to breast cancer treatment and the difficult considerations they must weigh up before embarking on a course of treatment, so I can see how important this treatment appears to be, especially for these women but also others. It’s not a surprise that Dr.Erica Whinery Kelly has highlighted Mid-Central DHB .
If the evidence shows a treatment is effective, then of course politicians like Seymour should be asking the question about funding. It seems a no-brainer if IORT is cheaper and just as effective for traditional therapies (a quick look at recent papers suggests funding approval might be a confirmation of appropriate use issue?)
Generally though, as much as I respect the right of politicians to highlight treatment options and the funding of them, it’s the politicians making decisions about treatment that disturbs me (as Key did with making herceptin funding an election promise).
I’d also respect these lobbying politicians much more if they insisted on adequate funding for DHBs and Pharmac – to provide them with the resources to ensure all New Zealanders have equitable and timely access to good and effective treatment options. I doubt Seymour or Coleman are that sort of politician.
wow just wow – and they are not good wow’s
https://www.stuff.co.nz/environment/95610302/improving-lake-to-national-standard-would-have-severe-social-and-economic-consequences
Yep they would let Te Waihora/Lake Ellesmere die before doing anything.
I really hope they tell them to fuck right off!
The priorities in this report goes all the way back to the 2010 anti-democratic decision by the National Government to sack ECan Councillors and replace them with commissioners. I don’t hold out much hope for Te Waihora/Lake Ellesmere unless we change the government.
Yes this needs to be talked about more often, that move at Evan was doctoral to say the least.
The Nats only know one way, that’s Divide and rule!! And they call the other side Communists! Hypocracy !!!
#letsdothis
Can’t they, like, fine polluting farms? Or even say hey guys stop the polluting?
Then that’s what needs to happen.
Just read that Bob Jones’s is going to build the tallest wooden office building in the world it’s good to see that some business people are getting on the sustainability train
Stephen Mills on Morning Report this morning suggesting there are rumours that Curia’s tracking poll for National has the Greens sliding below 5%?
Did any one watch Hillary Barry read that TXT this morning on Metiria that was a national troll anyone could see that the stories were all fake!!!! to damage the greens image
At Bowalley Road Chris Trotter looks at Metiria’s desire to stand down completely from Parliament. He is thinking apparently that politics is basically the art of achieving the possible. If virtue is achieved by being too pure and idealistic and nothing else can be accepted then politics is getting into dangerous territory and refer to the Jacobins and how their virtuous tide got tarnished by being taken beyond the extremes and flipped back on itself.
So should Metiria step down? She has won many people’s admiration, mine amongst them. The strength of the attack from the self-centred and those hostile to human rights, except theirs, indicates she has pierced the skin of complacent, uncaring, money-mad NZ. She is more than disappointed, and she is drained from holding herself erect while the barrage sweeps round her.
For that reason she shouldn’t go, just go back on the List. Change your mind Metiria. We need you, the Greens have to put little figures on their model landscape, we are needy animals wanting the proper treatment for our condition of die-back too. So don’t whisk Metiria away, she has brought you up to a higher level, which can result you gaining new adherents and bring you to 18% from 8% back to 10-12% with people joining from the ranks of those with nothing to lose and a life to gain.
This is what Chris said in Bowalley:
http://bowalleyroad.blogspot.co.nz/
Thus does History instruct us. That any political movement which abandons the reasonable pursuit of achievable objectives and embraces instead a regime dedicated to the imposition and enforcement of a universal and uncompromising “republic of virtue”, may begin by executing its enemies, but it will end by making enemies of, and executing, its friends. Freedom can never be secured by coercion. Every revolutionary movement which tried has ended up devouring itself.
If the Greens have indeed entered their Jacobin phase, it is likely to be their last.
no idea wtf he is on about, but I’ve been wondering if it would turn out he’s a fair weather friend.
” if it would turn out he’s a fair weather friend.”
I f you mean a friend of the Green Party I think you would wrong to think of him as a friend, fair weather or foul.
Chris is, and I think has always been, a friend of the Labour Party. He doesn’t give a damn about any other party I would think except so far as they can damage Labour’s enemies.
He is rather fun to read though. Can you imagine any other commentator who would talk about a “sibilant kiss” as he did here.
“Robespierre, himself, was declared an “enemy of the people” and laid open to Madame Guillotine’s sibilant kiss”.
To my mind Chris has a great knowledge of history, and what he has learned from that is what he is most loyal to. (Including good writing. History depends upon good writers!)
Labour cops plenty of his criticism, but others who have small historical knowledge rush to slate him whenever he writes something unfavourable for their particular political clique. He ends up being attacked from all quarters – but I always eagerly click on his articles. And I don’t think he is entirely serious about the Greens being in the Jacobin phase. The analogy is almost ironic.
But it seems applicable at the moment in some ways..
Chris has dark moments when his analysis suffers – he penned an anti-Corbyn piece a couple of months back – he’d bought the negative media mood.
And yet in another recent post he talked up the virtues of remaining true to your core policies even if it meant working from outside parliament
I sometimes think he’s trying too hard to shoehorn his latest reading matter in to current politics
And lets not forget that anti apartheid protestors, anti slavers and suffragettes were all deemed to be either terrorists or dangerous nutters.They didn’t prevail by pandering to the less brave
And we’ll see how the Greens deal with their two dissenters, if I know the Greens it’ll be anything but Jacobinist
Agree. But with Chris I don’t think it is just his latest reading matter. My impression is that he remembers just about all he has read, which few of us can do. He shoehorns when he sees it as relevant.
I think Chris opens his mind to other possibilities than would be considered by a focussed person with the view that their thinking is The One Way. So he tries to present different scenarios. It’s amazing that we all don’t think the same isn’t it. Never mind all will be explained by a clear and well modulated AI voice in the future and disagreement will be futile.
If I weren’t so old as to be unable to wait much, I would say that I can hardly wait. But I agree with your first two sentences.
Then there’s this little flight of inspiring fantasy on The Daily Blog today.
There has been a series of investigation of cops removing kids under care and protection orders.
Some of the video is horrific
AND there has been no reaction in MSM,I have seen.
This needs a wider distribution.
https://www.newsroom.co.nz/2017/08/07/41459/taken-by-the-state
Hard to say. Can you give any background on the family situation?
Gabby, follow the links. There is a discussion about the family situation.
But dragging a screaming 5 year old away from her mother doesnt seem to be the best way.
If you take time to watch the fifteen minute video in the first linked article, it will give you some background to the situation.
The mother went to put the child on the plane to return them to the custodial parent, but the child reacted so strongly to leaving her mother that Air New Zealand refused to put her on the plane.
The mother contacted the father to say that she was not able to get on the flight, and they would attempt the seven-hour drive to return her the next day.
Due to the ongoing distress of the child, the mother also contacted the child’s lawyer, and the local GP to ensure that the child was well. She also contacted CYFS to make them aware that they had missed the return of the child on the contracted date. They told her they would be in touch.
She also contacted the police. Unbeknownst to her, the decision to get a judge to give an “uplift” warrant had already begun.
She was still awaiting contact from CYFS, when the police arrived to return the child to the father.
The warrant was issued – not because of concern about the wellbeing of the child – but because of the failure to return the child at the appropriate time.
In terms of child trauma, this response is inappropriate.
Why doesn’t the child want to be with the father?
The father must have lied to get this action from the police.
The police obviously didn’t talk to either themselves or to CYFS first. And I’d say that the father bypassed process as well.
By the sounds of things, the mother did everything right.
AND YET Adams says no problem!!!!
“Why doesn’t the child want to be with the father?”
I wouldn’t know. I would think that thought lead to the mother making an appointment with the GP to determine that all was OK. Anything else is only further speculation.
“The father must have lied to get this action from the police.”
No. Apparently the system is set up so that failure to comply with a court order for custody or visitation – and in this case it was failure to return the child on the stipulated date – gives automatic heft to a compliance order, which may result in an uplift order enacted by the police.
“The police obviously didn’t talk to either themselves or to CYFS first.”
Even if they did, they would act in accordance with the uplift order. Rightly or wrongly.
“And I’d say that the father bypassed process as well.
I’d say he acted within the system. But the result would have been traumatic for his child. My personal response would be to arrange to pick up the child myself, and have support staff available for pickup but that is a process that requires time, effort and exemplary social department resources.
“By the sounds of things, the mother did everything right.”
And many would agree with you. Myself included. But our concern is for the child’s wellbeing, not compliance with a system that is flawed and often deeply traumatising. It is hard to watch the video of the 14 yr old boy without empathising with his distress. And it is impossible to imagine that his mother would agree with such actions if she was to witness what an uplift order meant for her child. Not if she truly had his wellbeing at heart.
I was asking more in the lines of: There is something seriously wrong here if the child doesn’t want to go back, is anybody looking?
I assume that the only way for the police to know about it is if the father told them and he had been contacted by the mother telling him what was happening and knowing the child would be returned next day. For the police to act as they did and as fast as they did he must have told them that the mother had said that she’s not returning the child at all.
Probably but did he go to the child’s lawyer first? Surely that would be the first thing to do to ensure that communications aren’t bypassing each other.
“I was asking more in the lines of: There is something seriously wrong here if the child doesn’t want to go back, is anybody looking?”
Yes, I understood that. But I also understand that a child can behave quite dramatically to situations that do not warrant further investigations. The mother understandably took the child to a local GP, who found no indication of physical harm (psychological and mental harm is much harder to identify).
I would suggest that a two-day visit to a loving mother and doting grandparents after a long hiatus, may have just passed too quickly for a small child. If the drive to return is seven hours, then it is unlikely it is a frequent occurrence. That is a possible explanation, given no evidence or concern has been identified.
“I assume that the only way for the police to know about it is if the father told them and he had been contacted by the mother telling him what was happening and knowing the child would be returned next day. For the police to act as they did and as fast as they did he must have told them that the mother had said that she’s not returning the child at all.”
The child’s lawyer will not make recommendations to either parent. They are supposed to be completely separate in order to ensure they act in the best interests of the child. I believe that is the response given to the mother when she got in contact with her. The mother herself contacted the police.
The video is worth watching because of the commentary given by the advocate and the professor. They believe that if the judges granting the uplift warrants, and the parents requesting them actually viewed the consequences this situation would not be happening.
The current system for non-compliance makes the use of uplift warrants as a means to ensure compliance a common one.
It seems that the child is just a pawn in a very nasty case of hijacking a child yet it is legal. Here is a case of a law being followed with extreme harm to the child and family instead of the protection it is supposed to provide. Metiria has to diddle her receipts from boarders or flatmates so she can finish her schooling and achieve something in her life but she couldn’t have been spoken of more harshly if she had been a child beater.
If she didn’t have a job and salary would the police not also be likely to come to her home because some timetable set to suit the adults concerned was not adhered to, and the mother did all the right things but still there was police brutality. Children are traumatised for life by one event like this. The whole thing is disgraceful.
I was talking to a health worker tonight who I met while we waited for a pizza. We agreed that NZrs won’t complain and will accept substandard outcomes, don’t stand up for themselves to get right and fair treatment, we are prepared to put up with shoddy everything. At work she finds forms not filled in properly and systems not carried out efficiently.
It seems that the country has been trained to accept third best for citizens. This sort of disgraceful treatment of children is how the National Party consider is right for those who aren’t of the right class, or who have problems. If you do, then the police will thump you somehow, somewhere but if you’re on the right side the problems will just go away.
I have a very good friend, whose daughter was a child placed with her from CYFS.
The siblings who had been removed, spoke once of their memories. The boy has a very traumatic memory of playing with his siblings outside in the sun with the hose and laughing, and hearing a car pull up and the police were there and took the children – still in their togs and wet – away.
The trauma of this incident remained with them all. And although such actions are sometimes necessary, the resources needed to aid them through such unexpected separation is not available.
To remove children is sometimes necessary. But just as important, is appropriate care and support after that removal.
That being said, I don’t think the case above was about removal for the wellbeing of the child. It appears to be something that is unfortunately becoming common as a result of non-compliance of custody orders. The trauma for the child must be immense, and it is hard to see any caring parent wanting their children to go through this for that reason alone.
Interesting Molly.
It is a disgraceful case of a hypocritical government lacking in any integrity making play with being the big I am over a legal decision about a child involving the child and caregivers.
If the police were ordered to pick up stolen property, capture a dog that was of value, they might behave in exactly the way that they did with this poor child.
You give the picture – this from your comment;
in this case it was failure to return the child on the stipulated date – gives automatic heft to a compliance order, which may result in an uplift order enacted by the police.
and from you at 12.1.2
The mother went to put the child on the plane to return them to the custodial parent, but the child reacted so strongly to leaving her mother that Air New Zealand refused to put her on the plane.
The mother then did: The mother contacted the father to say that she was not able to get on the flight, and they would attempt the seven-hour drive to return her the next day.
She also did: Due to the ongoing distress of the child, the mother also contacted the child’s lawyer, and the local GP to ensure that the child was well. She also contacted CYFS to make them aware that they had missed the return of the child on the contracted date. They told her they would be in touch.
She also did: She also contacted the police. Unbeknownst to her, the decision to get a judge to give an “uplift” warrant had already begun.
Note: She was still awaiting contact from CYFS, when the police arrived to return the child to the father.
Cold impersonal callous punitive-type law: The warrant was issued – not because of concern about the wellbeing of the child – but because of the failure to return the child at the appropriate time.
In terms of child trauma, this response is inappropriate.
Perhaps we should appeal to the SPCA. (The British version of the SPCA was started before there was an agency for helping children, I think the NSPCC!)
I haven’t watched the video but knowing your reasoned style, you have explained the steps and the whole situation.
It is disgraceful law, with the government making no allowance for the good and kind care of vulnerable children they always say they regard as very important. The law should be changed. And very soon.
And further there should be a panel of citizens who can step in at times like this, and get draconian laws abated, conduct our own enquiry into its performance and ensure it meets all psychological and physical needs of the child and caregivers with the emphasis being on the child’s short term happiness, and then attention given to assist long term happiness.
yes yes the sheep think that the police are the protectors of the public and that they would never break NZ law SORRY THEY ARE JUST LIKE THERE MASTER FOR 9 YEARS
NATIONAL BEND AND BREAK ANY LAW AND SIT BACK AND SAY PROVE IT
UNBELIEVABLE!
Hosking to present TVNZ election debate again – up on Stuff in the last half hour.
Predictable and intersting to see if he tempers his nat fanboy approach hedging his bets for potential new paymasters
@ Carolyn_nth (14) … quite believable really, considering Hosking is part of the despicable msm, the scum which put pressure on Metiria to step down, thereby depriving NZ’s vulnerable of a true champion to speak on their behalf!
This decision by TVNZ proves the intelligence level at the network, must be severely lacking, if Hosking is the best it has to host the debates!
Labour and the Greens should just say “No. We will not participate in such a debate.” and favour the other channel’s debates instead.
Meanwhile, behind the Whitehouse….
Statement from Auckland Action Against Poverty, which I agree with:
YES IT IS A WAR ON THE POOR IF YOU ARE WORRIED WERE THE NEXT MEAL IS COMING FROM THEY WILL NOT BOTHER TO VOTE . WHEN LABOR GET ELECTED THEY SHOULD MAKE COMPULSORY TO VOTE THAT WILL CHANGE THINGS AND KEEP THE POLITICIANS LOOKING AFTER THE PEOPLE
Hey mate, just a heads up if you write in capital letters you will probably cop a ban from moderators for “shouting text” on this blog.
Estimated time before all the iron sands off of Taranaki are all gone? 35 years:
This is not a sustainable way to run the economy. We’re extracting the resources as if there’s no end to them despite the fact that we know that there is an to them.
The end result is that we’ll be poor because we’ll no longer have the resources necessary to support us.
So has Kim got nukes and needs to show off one… …Will Trump be rolled… ..did Trump know the right put Penne on the ticket, that’s why Trump is burning Presidential influence so Penne is a lameduck having gained power on Trumps ticket. Kim’s going to blow something up soon and Trump is too weak or so Kim thinks.
Trump’s mullah declares a holy war against the nation’s enemy.
http://www.slate.com/blogs/xx_factor/2017/08/09/robert_jeffress_says_god_approves_trump_taking_out_kim_jong_un.html
Trump should sack Pence, it’s obvious he was the wrong carryon, a president needs someone that isn’t more appealing to congress waiting in the wings. Rookie mistake.
I agree with you Draco we have to change the way we use things at least its starting to happen but it is to slow things will change when National are kicked out
Just in case you wondered where the opposition to all the commie talk about welfare and rivers is, get ready for the next marketing push from National’s funders at Barfoot&Thompson, plus of course the retail banks: People who vote according to property.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11901728
“Auckland’s house prices could skyrocket again in one to two years driven in part by the public’s view of property as a money-making asset in a market where stocks are limited.
New academic research suggested recent changes to the loan-to-value ratio restrictions that eased pressure on the market by reducing low-deposit loans would not keep the prices at bay for long.”
Titled Catch Animal Spirits in Auction: Evidence from New Zealand Property Market, it showed house prices had increased more than 50 per cent between 2013 and 2015.
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1540-6229.12206/full
This election isn’t going to be about welfare.
It’s going to be about whether National can scare enough people that under Labour they will lose great chunks of their equity in property.
Simon Bridges in the House proving again his parents spelt Slimin’ wrong.
At this late stage in the Electoral cycle we have lost 2 Leaders.
Would it be a hat-trick if the Leader of the National Party was dismasted by Winston’s revelations, or his Deputy Leader having to face DPB revelations and forced to quit?.
Nikki Kaye beaming out from the Herald online. The Good Fairy is bringing us more presents by way of new classrooms in Auckland. Spare me!
The bloody population of the city is going up like crazy and she’s being little Miss Wonderful by simply catering for the growth by providing rooms?! I can see a Damehood just around the corner for services to mankind.
Where is Daily Review!
Just picked up this from Checkpoint. Fascinating. It appears both Glenys Dickson and Stuart Davies of Barclay Affair fame are now members of another political party. Would that be NZ First? If so, then it is highly likely Winston Peters does have copies of the 450 texts English sent to Dickson around 18 months ago.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/checkpoint/audio/201854299/pm-staying-quiet-on-450-texts-to-todd-barclay-s-staff-member
The segment begins at 4:28 mins.
It’s up now 🙂 Feel free to copy your comment across.
In case you haven’t spotted this from No Right Turn:
Another sign of the decay in transparency under National: the Department of Internal Affairs unlawfully allowed lawyers for foreign vampire capitalist Peter Thiel to veto what was released about him under the OIA: An Official Information Act request by the ..
http://norightturn.blogspot.co.nz/2017/08/public-servants-should-work-for-us-not.html
WTF
And there is another piece on a housing warrant of fitness.
I’m too weary to read them but both will push buttons. Ding, ding.
sectarian war in Saudi Arabia
http://www.dw.com/en/is-saudi-arabia-waging-war-on-its-shia-minority/a-40045513