Note the personal attack on them by David Seymour for betraying their class.
Anyone who did not realise that Seynour and NACT are engaged in class war against those who do not have wealth/own property should be awakening from their sleep.
And David Seymour has really let this one 'zoooom' straight over. I can see why Seymour has framed it this way though as ACT likes its govt small.
My reading is that they wanted the tax arrangements to be such that they were taxed properly and so the funds went into the funds of Govt to add to the funds used by Govt for public services. Nothing to do with philanthropy etc.
Dear Joe90, please would you consider using the alternative title option when posting links without a descriptor in the web address? I like to know what I'm jumping to. That link was worth a read when I got there, though.
Once again, Labour shows it's poor on sound-bite messaging. You can present a rational argument in the background for those who read, but to drag the electorate your way you need two or three snappy slogans. Ram-raids, uppity Maoris and over-regulation are the only drums Luxon's banging.
From the article in the link, attack the richy-richy may not be the best strategy, I'm thinking. Attack no-tax/lo-tax company structures is a larger target, and would hoover up rich tax evaders as well. Now for the killer sound-bite.
Based on the Key/English efforts, no guarantee that it will actually deliver the tax switch being advertised. In this particular case, the concern would be that retailers (like supermarkets) wouldn't pass on all of the savings.
ACT represents those who have an overwhelming sense of entitlement.
The entitlement comes from the historical association of wealth and power.
Wealth means success, and success entitles them to have power.
The only things ACT supporters care about is the size of their bank accounts and nothing, but nothing, should get in the way of any exponential growth of these.
If ACT gets its way, the rich will be a whole heap richer and those at the bottom will be left to fight over the few crumbs that trickle down.
It is a disgusting irony that Federated Farmers Andrew Hoggard is standing for a party whose policies are almost identical to those of the the great Rogernome in the 1980s, and were responsible for so many suicides in the rural sector.
And what would Labour use the money for? They already use the taxpayer funds to pat for their campaign advertising. I received, with yesterdays mail, a leaflet from the PM saying how wonderful Labour is. In the smallest possible font the House of Representatives Crest was present to show that the taxpayer and not the Party was paying for it. I imagine it has probably been sent to every household in the country.
Why should the taxpayer have to pay for something that is purely a political ad?
parties are funded by a combination of state funds (aka taxpayer money) and private donations.
…
State funding is all the money political parties are allocated by the government (shout out to the taxpayer). Some state funding is through the Budget. Political parties are given sizable sums each year so that they can afford to employ people and keep thinking up new policies and ways to fix our problems.
Other state funding comes through the Electoral Commission. This is the independent crown entity that manages everything to do with elections (their mascot is the weird orange guy). They put aside a lump of cash that each party can only spend on media advertising. The parties don’t actually get this money in the hand, it’s kind of like a media voucher.
The National Party may start election year with a $2.3 million war chest raised from 24 big donors in 2022, while Labour has declared just $150,000 in large donations, according to Electoral Commission records.
I've already said how I think parties ought to be funded. No more than a small amount once annually from members, and every election voters at the polling station get given two vouchers with, say, $10 or $20 value. They then simply deposit one into the party donation box of their choice and they get to keep the other as a thank you for voting.
I would also make election day a mid-week public holiday, unpaid if you don't vote and paid if you do. That way, if you don't bother to vote on the day off and you earn, say, $35 an hour, it is the equivalent of a $280 dollar fine.
It is an interesting idea and I can see the first part of it working. As far as the payment for voting goes though it would seem to impose a massive penalty on those people who aren't eligible to vote.
“Sorry fella. You are here on a visa that allows you to work but not vote so you have to take a day off without pay.”
Meh – NZ is uniquely round-heeled when it comes to pissing away our citizens' franchise – they only need to be here for six months and they get to vote anyway. Something to do with the major parties, knowing they have alienated voters, looking for new marks potential supporters among those who have yet to experience their inadequacy.
Indeed why should the taxpayer pay for political ads?
My National MP who spend thousands over a couple of years, who was backed by the twisted logic and benign rulings of the system I dealt with in Wellington, in the end got to the insurmountable argument: “It’s legal.”
The bastard lost in the election. All the money he spent, our money, would’ve been well used by our local schools.
When I see these kinds of words being used, I see them as a form of self-reflection.
Is Willis resentful, jealous and envious of Labour being in government?
She wants the power.
That is why we get from National already the fear and envy tactics, the hyperbole and the cherry-picking of facts, the partial quotes, the accusations of secrecy and improper motivation.
That "late John Armstrong" was a lying user of a poisonous pen. He used his power to repeat untrue stories, especially one about a non-existent gift. He played a dirty power game for National.
Jealousy, envy, resentment. "… the accusations of secrecy and improper motivation"
At a personal level it can extend to stalking the individual, breaking into the individual's home, reporting the individual to the authorities for misdemeanors never committed and setting the person up by way of covert hoaxes. In the more serious cases it can also iclude violence to pets and damage to property.
Yep. It happened to me 30 plus years ago. All of it.
But because the perpetrator had links to high places including a high ranked sibling, she was shielded by the 'establishment' and never brought to justice.
Translate that story into politics and you have the same kind of behaviour occurring by National and ACT including the law breaking. Remember the DP years. Slater was never charged and sentenced by the police for his law breaking and nefarious conduct. But one of the victims was. Nicky Hagar. Slater knew people in high places and had a well metaphoricalplaced father.
Jealousy, envy and resentment. No difference whether it be personal or political – or a mix of both.
But if you know the ‘right’ people, you get off with not even the metaphorical wet bus ticket.
it's probably both. But Seymour misses the point that no matter how good an infrastructure fix we do now, it won't be enough if we don't massively and immediately mitigate the climate crisis.
Its a sub tropical low which is expected to form off the coast of Brisbane. Shouldn't pack the same punch as Gabrielle and looks like it will cross over the country quite quickly. Fingers crossed. 😮
Time for the Green Party display some recognition to its voters- As they are about to lose 1.
I for 1 did not give my party vote so that 1 of "their" MP's can leave the party and sit as an independent. I gave them my vote as they were more focused on the environment than any of the alternatives. As TGP has displayed an attitude of contempt to a voter as you have reduced your say in parliament by 10%. (I note that EK was pictured in some committee that was hearing on vaping as an independent yet was placed there as TGP allocation !!!!)
Regarding the allegations regarding Elizabeth Kerekere, if held true what were you doing to miss seeing and then reacting to these. If untrue then you are no better (Some could say that TGP is the worst example of a political party) than any other party in your manipulation into actively remove EK from parliament.
the GP took a stand a long time ago on waka jumping, on principles, and they can't toss that aside now for convenience sake because it would undermine their integrity and kaupapa. It would also be suicide in election year.
2. wait to see what the final list is like. Fingers crossed there are more overt environmentalists in the top ten. At that point, everyone's vote matters if truly you want strong environmentalists in parliament. Here's the interim list, imo it's worth voting Green to get Abel and Pham into parliament,
(had EK been forced to leave parliament via waka jumping, Abel would now be an MP, being next on the list. I'm annoyed he's not, but this is on EK as much as anyone. Look at the reasons for the GP not supporting waka jumping law if you want ot understand this better).
3. Shaw and Davidson have both said, many times, that there were patterns of behaviour from EK predating the cry baby message, but they were unable to act on them because people were afraid to come forward. Once EK hoisted herself on her own petard, people felt more able to speak up. The impression I have is that JS and MD knew there was a problem but didn't have any hard details or people willing to speak, which they needed for a formal investigation. It's too their credit that they waited for firm evidence before proceeding.
4. The process was decided by the whole of caucus, including EKm last year, in the wake of the report on bullying in parliament. I've not seen anything that shows JS and MD subverted or manipulated that process.
It's completely the wrong focus worrying about candidates before the list is set. There ought to be drama in selection.
What we need is a fully on fire Greens in the political arena scoring even better points than Act, so that Greens can grind back up to 10%. The focus needs to stay on policy not the usual pre-selection games.
Minor handbag squabble compared to the Labour list bloodbath through June and July as about 20 existing MPs realise they don't have jobs in 4 months and rapidly jump ship.
20 is optimistic. I smell zero sense of urgency from Labour, let alone the Greens.
Labour itself needs to tilt the political discourse since the Greens aren't able to. Budget 2023 is yet to do that job.
hopefully they're gearing up in private for the election campaign proper, but the year does seem to be getting on. Other elections the Greens have started early.
The same could be said of this EK issue until we have anything of substance, I am sure with EK’s departure the need for anything to be aired could now be viewed as redundant, so the issue goes away, and in the eyes of those concerned guilt is passed. Either her behaviour is beyond what is acceptable or she has been targeted for personal gain of others. I am trying to not be condemning to either side until there is more to support one of the claims. I note that this was reported 6 April of the txt how long can it take if there was some motivation to sort this out ???
I'd definitely like to know if the process they are using, that was established last year, is in the public domain. Someone could look that up I expect.
Either her behaviour is beyond what is acceptable or she has been targeted for personal gain of others.
Or there were some issues that needed to be investigated that were survivable for EK and she bailed before that process was completed. I'm sure there are other interpretations as well.
My reading of it, based on what I've seen MD and JS say, and the reporting from credible and relatively unbiased sources, is that there was a pattern of behaviour and the co-leaders decided to act now because it was going to be terrible for election year if they didn't.
Certainly from the outside, EK looks to me like a loose unit. Her behaviour during the BDMRR select committee raised red flags, but that could have been a one off and it wasn't like she was the only MP that displayed bias. But when you have multiple examples and people too afraid to speak, I think it's reasonable for the party to act from self preservation especially given the GP's history with election campaigns (something that EK seems to not take very seriously). Even the way she handled the call with members and how she resigned raised another set of red flags. Doesn't look like a team player or someone who has the interests of the party at heart.
I also think that if the issues around behaviour weren't real or weren't of a meaningful level, that JS and MD wouldn't have taken the positions they did. I trust them in that, especially JS because of how he behaved in the 2017 election campaign during the fallout from Turei's speech. It's not too hard to read between the lines in what he has and hasn't said, without going deeper into the kind of speculation that Edwards is doing.
I'll also say this. The gender/sex war has the potential to wreck the election. That could cost the Greens big time, and possible the left the election overall. If that sounds like hyperbole, it's based on watching what has happened in the UK, where in the end Labour had to accept that women have sex based rights. Because most people draw a line at saying people can literally change sex and society should be based around that.
In the local body elections, in Brighton, one of the most strongly identity politics places in the UK, Green councillors just lost their seats (to Labour). Anyone not paying attention to this is missing something really important. Many people rightly believe that trans people should have the same human rights as others, but aren't ok with the excesses of gender ideology.
I have no idea where the GP sit on the real politik of that, but if the election turns on 'what is a woman?' (and the right may indeed go down that track), then it has the potential to get nasty and I'm not sure the left has the capacity atm to parse what is going on with that because of the ideology. I hope it doesn't go down this track, but the potential is there. EK being out of the GP is a relief, because now at least is she goes off on one about genderism, the focus can be on her not the Greens.
Edwards typically pulls together a variety of opinion, and then draws his own conclusions.
In this piece, Edwards cites "long-time Green Party commentator Gordon Campbell", "leftwing political commentator Steven Cowan", "The Herald’s Thomas Coughlan", and of course the one and only "Leftwing blogger and Green voter Martyn Bradbury".
You could say this is 'informed' rather than 'unevidenced' speculation.
None of the people you name are Green Party people. MB regularly slags off the Greens, over a long period of time. I would guess Cowan has some anti-Green bias. I've read Campbell's piece, it was interesting. But when Edwards says things like this,
Activists within the Green Left Network, together with the Rainbow Greens, were keen to undermine and replace Shaw, seeing him as too conservative and the wrong demographic. And this year they’ve managed to force him to step aside from his long-held candidacy in the Wellington Central electorate, in favour of city councillor Tamatha Paul.
Where is the actual evidence that these assertions are true?
Weka, it isn't necessary to be a green party person to have inside information on what is happening within the party. The people Edwards quotes from are far from disconnected from Green Party politics.
As for Edwards assertions, what we do know, is that there was an attempt to dump James Shaw as leader of the party in mid 2022, and that followed the Greens voting to:
"remove the male co-leadership requirement from its constitution. It now requires a woman and one person of any gender (providing leadership pathways for non-binary and intersex)."
Regardless of the conclusions Edwards comes to, he is right about this:
The current policy environment is also highly favourable to the Greens. Voters say that they are especially concerned with issues which the Greens have the ability to campaign strongly on: climate change, housing, inequality, tax reform, and the cost of living.
Some tighter focus on the issues which matter to the electorate (and some party discipline over going off message) – should pay dividends for the GP.
I think they could definitely do well if they focused on those, but I'm less convinced they can break out of the 10% ghetto, and that is what is needed if we are to make serious efforts on climate and ecology. I hope they can pull something out of the bag. While I think Edwards was overstating the case and as I said, unevidenced, I do think the perception of the GP as too woke is a potentially a problem and I;m not sure if they know how to deal with that.
I disagree – on this matter he seems remarkably in tune with the feelings I, and many of my associates who have voted Green in the past, have expressed recently. I really think they need to give up the green brand, and maybe pitch as the rainbow party, social justice party, or something else – the environment really isn't a priority for them now, based on their actions over the last few years.
I'm sorry you have that impression because it's simply not true. Look at their policy. Scroll through their press releases, and SM. Yes, social justice is featured, but environmental issues are too. Do they have the balance between the two right. I don't think so. But I don't see the point in throwing the baby out with the bathwater.
National did what they did to manipulate those unable to handle simple complexity to cause disdain for the Greens among their own supporters.
Because National think they are so clever they can do this.
Rather than encourage them to think their strategy is working, how about just pondering this?
How much money can be spent in one year when it is allocated over 4 years and the first year is for the design of the programme in which the money is spent?
That question was clearly answered.
The second question is why not allocate the money to existing programmes.
She said the new programmes were set up because of liason with providers of existing programmes, as they saw a need to supplement them with new ones.
That question was clearly answered.
The third question was regarding the 200 16-17 year olds in motels and whether the new programmes would deal with this. She responded and Bishop intervened and said he did not want some list of spending allocations in response (related to existing programmes dealing with this particular matter) and the Speaker chimed in with his line, he was almost afraid to have the Minister answer the question again and then intervened when she began to after Bishop re-asked the question.
KNOWN FACT. National did not want the new programmes being set up to deal with housing delivery.
I would suggest you look at the programmes and see if you can find any relationship to this direction and things like Maori Health and National's opposition to that.
I thought the Speaker let her off very lightly. She should have been instructed to answer the question, or ejected from the House until she was prepared to do so.
All Ministers take the opportunity to add a little fluff of the question-that-they-really-want-to-answer to an official response – but they are required to actually answer the question as presented.
The $75M was allocated over 4 years for new initiatives.
2. The first part of the process was design and the money for them was to come in from July 2023
3. Existing programmes have their own funding allocations.
Bishop and his fans here are working to promote contempt for Greens and to overall question delivery by nit picking about new programmes set up to operate in the 2023-2026 period that a National victory would block.
The Speaker was inept, or deliberately hostile to the Minister. The explanation was obvious.
If I were the Greens and there was any continuance of it, not support the Speakers re-appointment.
National did what they did to manipulate those unable to handle simple complexity to cause disdain for the Greens among their own supporters.
Because National and their supporters think they are so clever they can do this.
REALITY CHECK.
How much money can be spent in one year when it is allocated over 4 years and the first year is for the design of the programme in which the money is spent?
That question was clearly answered.
The second question is why not allocate the money to existing programmes.
She said the new programmes were set up because of liason with providers of existing programmes, as they saw a need to supplement them with new ones.
That question was also clearly answered.
The third question was regarding the 200 16-17 year olds in motels and whether the new programmes would deal with this.
She responded and Bishop intervened and said he did not want some list of spending allocations in response (related to existing programmes dealing with this particular matter) and the Speaker chimed in with his line, he was almost afraid to have the Minister answer the question again and then intervened when she began to after Bishop re-asked the question.
"SPEAKER: That was a lot of information, but it didn't actually address the basic part of the question. Mr Bishop, do you want another question, or do you want to ask that one again?"
"SPEAKER: That still doesn't answer the question. I'm going to give the member an additional question."
SPEAKER: Yeah, I'm sure there is, but I'm on my feet and I'm about to make a ruling. Just simply reading out a long list of expenditure doesn't actually address the question that's being asked. The question was very clear around young people and transitional homes. I'm almost afraid to ask the member to say more, but I'll leave it to Mr Bishop, if he wants to ask that question again.
Doctor, Doctor I need you to give your insight on the politics of the left wing parties, for those of the right are perfection, except occasionally C. Luxon over whom some of even more angelic form have doubts.
From the Dottore who thought it important in the fires on the lawn of parliament to point out that a couple of people once said mean things about John Key too. These were equivalent and so Jacinda was just a whining big girls blouse, unlike Bill English or John Key who were real politician men.
There’s a reason the regular ACT aligned philosopher of a commenter introduced it.
So far however the only significant pre-budget announcement has been for Defence.
I am struggling to see the benefits from all those consultants that bullshit agencies like Education Review Office, Ministry of Pacific Peoples, Ministry for Culture and Hertitage and others are blowing out, when it's the basics of Police Education and Health that are begging for more salaried frontline staff.
If this government were a retail store I think I'd probably go ask for a refund.
Unless Robertson has an almighty trick up his sleeve as the Albanese government just pulled in the Australian budget this week, Labour are just not going to move the dial dial upwards.
While they keep insisting on doing these pre-Budget announcements to a 'business audience' it is apparent who they are most concerned about and it's certainly not workers, frontline or otherwise:
Speaking to a business audience at Parliament on Thursday morning, Grant Robertson said ministers were told if they wanted to progress particular opportunities, they had to look for savings opportunities within their ministries' existing budgets.
To be fair, most of the budget details uses complex figures and forecasts that would be way over the heads of the average Joe and Jill Bloggs and only the suits would understand them.
In case this wasn't a sarcastic response I would say speaking over the heads of laypeople represents a communication failure by a government that is supposedly for all, those besuited titans of industry and us mere mortals both. If we can have law written in plain language then there is no reason the pre-Budget announcement should be mostly business jargon.
Try and explain anything complex and it will go over the heads of most people, my kids lost me at the Masters level. I used to just sit there nodding, no wonder they nicknamed me Homer.
Perhaps they could adequately fund the Dunedin hospital to allow what was specified to be built. How they are a bunch of #%^ers to pull this and now we find there was $4BILLION that is now out there to be spent. How we have been let down by words and NO action. On this issue of the hospital they have funded this to fail the local community – A strong labour community at that !!!
Was so weak to see Labour MP Rachel Brooking defend the cuts in the ODT, then nek minnit Labour Minister of Health Verral 'restores' $70 million of the cuts …
… and still forget to tell us that the redesign would cost the whole project a year, which of course costs programme and redesign costs.
That MoH Major Capital team are just a law unto themselves.
I think Robertson has been excellent as a Finance Minister and he is a superb performer in the house.
But I agree with you here Herod. When he can find four thousand million dollars in his back pocket the penny-pinching on 100 million or so on the oh-so-politically sensitive and oh-so-needed Dunedin hospital looks stupid.
Unhappily, NZ's finance ministers have been almost universally lousy. Cullen would be the only one to rate above the international average, and he was no Keynes. The rest have been distinctly sub-par – as is reflected in national productivity and the largely unchallenged follies coming out of Treasury.
We are supposed to be a democracy – not a dictatorship of useless far-right economic pretenders stymying every plausible policy initiative. Our country is being left to rot.
Wow! Ginny just made Mercenary Mitchell look like a plodding, incompetent fool in the house again today! Either she's very good, or he's an idiot. [Probably both!]
Do they know what his excuses are for both enabling one of the top ten polluters in nz (according to stuff) the glenbrook steel mill..to just carry on in that role..for the foreseeable future..when he could have done differently..?
And now for doing nothing to stop deep sea mining..?
Parker/labour: putting the 'rad' in environmental-degradation..
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This is a guest post by George Weeks, reviewing a book called ‘How to Fly a Horse’ by Kevin AshtonBook review: ‘How to Fly a Horse’ by Kevin Ashton (2015) – and what it means for Auckland. The title of this article might unnerve any Greater Auckland ...
This story was originally published by Capital & Main and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. Within just a week, the sheer devastation of the Los Angeles wildfires has pushed to the fore fundamental questions about the impact of the climate crisis that have been ...
In this world, it's just usYou know it's not the same as it wasSongwriters: Harry Edward Styles / Thomas Edward Percy Hull / Tyler Sam JohnsonYesterday, I received a lovely message from Caty, a reader of Nick’s Kōrero, that got me thinking. So I thought I’d share it with you, ...
In past times a person was considered “unserious” or “not a serious” person if they failed to grasp, behave and speak according to the solemnity of the context in which they were located. For example a serious person does not audibly pass gas at Church, or yell “gun” at a ...
Long stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Thursday, February 13 are:The coalition Government’s early 2024 ‘fiscal emergency’ freeze on funding, planning and building houses, schools, local roads and hospitals helped extend and deepen the economic and jobs recession through calendar ...
For obvious reasons, people feel uneasy when the right to be a citizen is sold off to wealthy foreigners. Even selling the right to residency seems a bit dubious, when so many migrants who are not millionaires get turned away or are made to jump through innumerable hoops – simply ...
A new season of White Lotus is nearly upon us: more murder mystery, more sumptuous surroundings, more rich people behaving badly.Once more we get to identify with the experience of the pampered tourist or perhaps the poorly paid help; there's something in White Lotus for all New Zealanders.And unlike the ...
In 2016, Aotearoa shockingly plunged to fourth place in the Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index. Nine years later, and we're back there again: New Zealand has seen a further slip in its global ranking in the latest Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI). [...] In the latest CPI New Zealand's score ...
1. You’ve started ranking your politicians on how much they respect the rule of law2. You’ve stopped paying attention to those news publications3. You’ve developed a sudden interest in a particular period of history4. More and more people are sounding like your racist, conspiracist uncle.5. Someone just pulled a Nazi ...
Transforming New Zealand: Brian EastonBrian Easton will discuss the above topic at 2/57 Willis Street, Wellington at 5:30pm on Tuesday 26 February at 2/57 Willis Street, WellingtonThe sub-title to the above is "Why is the Left failing?" Brian Easton's analysis is based on his view that while the ...
Salvation Army’s State of the Nation 2025 report highlights falling living standards, the highest unemployment rates since the 1990s and half of all Pacific children going without food. There are reports of hundreds if not thousands of people are applying for the same jobs in the wake of last year’s ...
Mountain Tui is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Correction: On the article The Condundrum of David Seymour, Luke Malpass conducted joint reviews with Bryce Wilkinson, the architect of the Regulatory Standards Bill - not Bryce Edwards. The article ...
Tomorrow the council’s Transport, Resilience and Infrastructure Committee meet and agenda has a few interesting papers. Council’s Letter of Expectation to Auckland Transport Every year the council provide a Letter of Expectation to Auckland Transport which is part of the process for informing AT of the council’s priorities and ...
All around in my home townThey're trying to track me down, yeahThey say they want to bring me in guiltyFor the killing of a deputyFor the life of a deputySongwriter: Robert Nesta Marley.Support Nick’s Kōrero today with a 20% discount on a paid subscription to receive all my newsletters directly ...
Hi,I think all of us have probably experienced the power of music — that strange, transformative thing that gets under our skin and helps us experience this whole life thing with some kind of sanity.Listening and experiencing music has always been such a huge part of my life, and has ...
Business frustration over the stalled economy is growing, and only 34% of voters are confidentNicola Willis can deliver. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, February 12 are:Business frustration is growing about a ...
I have now lived long enough to see a cabinet minister go both barrels on their Prime Minister and not get sacked.It used to be that the PM would have a drawer full of resignations signed by ministers on the day of their appointment, ready for such an occasion. But ...
This session will feature Simon McCallum, Senior Lecturer in Engineering and Computer Science (VUW) and recent Labour Party candidate in the Southland Electorate talking about some of the issues around AI and how this should inform Labour Party policy. Simon is an excellent speaker with a comprehensive command of AI ...
The proposed Waimate garbage incinerator is dead: The company behind a highly-controversial proposal to build a waste-to-energy plant in the Waimate District no longer has the land. [...] However, SIRRL director Paul Taylor said the sales and purchase agreement to purchase land from Murphy Farms, near Glenavy, lapsed at ...
The US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act has been a vital tool in combatting international corruption. It forbids US companies and citizens from bribing foreign public officials anywhere in the world. And its actually enforced: some of the world's biggest companies - Siemens, Hewlett Packard, and Bristol Myers Squibb - have ...
December 2024 photo - with UK Tory Boris Johnson (Source: Facebook)Those PollsFor hours, political poll results have resounded across political hallways and commentary.According to the 1News Verizon poll, 50% of the country believe we are heading in the “wrong direction”, while 39% believe we are “on the right track”.The left ...
A Tai Rāwhiti mill that ran for 30 years before it was shut down in late 2023 is set to re-open in the coming months, which will eventually see nearly 300 new jobs in the region. A new report from Massey University shows that pensioners are struggling with rising costs. ...
As support continues to fall, Luxon also now faces his biggest internal ructions within the coalition since the election, with David Seymour reacting badly to being criticised by the PM. File photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate ...
Not since 1988 when Richard Prebble openly criticised David Lange have we seen such a challenge to a Prime Minister as that of David Seymour to Christopher Luxon last night. Prebble suggested Lange had mental health issues during a TV interview and was almost immediately fired. Seymour hasn’t gone quite ...
Three weeks in, and the 24/7 news cycle is not helping anyone feel calm and informed about the second Trump presidency. One day, the US is threatening 25% trade tariffs on its friends and neighbours. The reasons offered by the White House are absurd, such as stopping fentanyl coming in ...
This video includes personal musings and conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Adam Levy. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). Wherever you look, you'll hear headlines claiming we've passed 1.5 degrees of global warming. And while 2024 saw ...
Photo by Heather M. Edwards on UnsplashHere’s the key news, commentary, reports and debate around Aotearoa’s politics and economy in the week to Feb 10 below. That’s ahead of live chats on the Substack App and The Kākā’s front page on Substack at 5pm with: on his column in The ...
Is there anyone in the world the National Party loves more than a campaign donor? Why yes, there is! They will always have the warmest hello and would you like to slip into something more comfortable for that great god of our age, the High Net Worth Individual.The words the ...
Waste and fraud certainly exist in foreign aid programs, but rightwing celebration of USAID’s dismantling shows profound ignorance of the value of soft power (as opposed to hard power) in projecting US influence and interests abroad by non-military/coercive means (think of “hearts and minds,” “hugs, not bullets,” “honey versus vinegar,” ...
Health New Zealand is proposing to cut almost half of its data and digital positions – more than 1000 of them. The PSA has called on the Privacy Commissioner to urgently investigate the cuts due to the potential for serious consequences for patients. NZNO is calling for an urgent increase ...
We may see a few more luxury cars on Queen Street, but a loosening of rules to entice rich foreigners to invest more here is unlikely to “turbocharge our economic growth”. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate ...
Let us not dance daintily around the elephant in the room. Our politicians who serve us in the present are not honest, certainly not as honest as they should be, and while the right are taking out most of the trophies for warping narratives and literally redefining “facts”, the kiwi ...
A few weeks ago I took a look at public transport ridership in 2024. In today’s post I’m going to be looking a bit deeper at bus ridership. Buses make up the vast majority of ridership in Auckland with 70 million boardings last year out of a total of 89.4 ...
Oh, you know I did itIt's over and I feel fineNothing you could say is gonna change my mindWaited and I waited the longest nightNothing like the taste of sweet declineSongwriters: Chris Shiflett / David Eric Grohl / Nate Mendel / Taylor Hawkins.Hindsight is good, eh?The clarity when the pieces ...
Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on UnsplashHere’s what we’re watching in the week to February 16 and beyond in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty:Monday, February 10The Kākā’s weekly wrap-up of news about politics and the economy is due at midday, followed by webinar for paying subscribers in Substack’s ...
A listing of 23 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, February 2, 2025 thru Sat, February 8, 2025. This week's roundup is again published soleley by category. We are still interested in feedback to hone the categorization, so if ...
Today, I stumbled across a Twitter Meme: the ending of The Lord of the Rings as a Chess scenario: https://x.com/mellon_heads/status/1887983845917564991 It gets across the basic gist. Aragorn and Gandalf offering up ‘material’ at the Morannon allows Frodo and Samwise to catch Sauron unawares – fair enough. But there are a ...
Last week, Kieran McAnulty called out Chris Bishop and Nicola Willis for their claims that Kāinga Ora’s costs were too high.They had claimed Kāinga Ora’s cost were 12% higher than market i.e. private devlopersBut Kāinga Ora’s Chair had already explained why last year:"We're not building to sell, so we'll be ...
The Government's sudden cancellation of the tertiary education funding increase is a reckless move that risks widespread job losses and service reductions across New Zealand's universities. ...
National’s cuts to disability support funding and freezing of new residential placements has resulted in significant mental health decline for intellectually disabled people. ...
The hundreds of jobs lost needlessly as a result of the Kinleith Mill paper production closure will have a devastating impact on the Tokoroa community - something that could have easily been avoided. ...
Today Te Pāti Māori MP for Te Tai Tokerau, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi, released her members bill that will see the return of tamariki and mokopuna Māori from state care back to te iwi Māori. This bill will establish an independent authority that asserts and protects the rights promised in He Whakaputanga ...
The Whangarei District Council being forced to fluoridate their local water supply is facing a despotic Soviet-era disgrace. This is not a matter of being pro-fluoride or anti-fluoride. It is a matter of what New Zealanders see and value as democracy in our country. Individual democratically elected Councillors are not ...
Nicola Willis’ latest supermarket announcement is painfully weak with no new ideas, no real plan, and no relief for Kiwis struggling with rising grocery costs. ...
Half of Pacific children sometimes going without food is just one of many heartbreaking lowlights in the Salvation Army’s annual State of the Nation report. ...
The Salvation Army’s State of the Nation report is a bleak indictment on the failure of Government to take steps to end poverty, with those on benefits, including their children, hit hardest. ...
New Zealand First has today introduced a Member’s Bill which would restore decision-making power to local communities regarding the fluoridation of drinking water. The ‘Fluoridation (Referendum) Legislation Bill’ seeks to repeal the Health (Fluoridation of Drinking Water) Amendment Act 2021 that granted centralised authority to the Direct General of Health ...
New Zealand First has introduced a Member’s Bill aimed at preventing banks from refusing their services to businesses because of the current “Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Framework”. “This Bill ensures fairness and prevents ESG standards from perpetuating woke ideology in the banking sector being driven by unelected, globalist, climate ...
Erica Stanford has reached peak shortsightedness if today’s announcement is anything to go by, picking apart immigration settings piece by piece to the detriment of the New Zealand economy. ...
Our originating document, theTreaty of Waitangi, was signed on February 6, 1840. An agreement between Māori and the British Crown. Initially inked by Ngā Puhi in Waitangi, further signatures were added as it travelled south. The intention was to establish a colony with the cession of sovereignty to the Crown, ...
Te Whatu Ora Chief Executive Margie Apa leaving her job four months early is another symptom of this government’s failure to deliver healthcare for New Zealanders. ...
The Green Party is calling for the Prime Minister to show leadership and be unequivocal about Aotearoa New Zealand’s opposition to a proposal by the US President to remove Palestinians from Gaza. ...
The latest unemployment figures reveal that job losses are hitting Māori and Pacific people especially hard, with Māori unemployment reaching a staggering 9.7% for the December 2024 quarter and Pasifika unemployment reaching 10.5%. ...
Waitangi 2025: Waitangi Day must be community and not politically driven - Shane Jones Our originating document, theTreaty of Waitangi, was signed on February 6, 1840. An agreement between Māori and the British Crown. Initially inked by Ngā Puhi in Waitangi, further signatures were added as it travelled south. ...
Despite being confronted every day with people in genuine need being stopped from accessing emergency housing – National still won’t commit to building more public houses. ...
The Green Party says the Government is giving up on growing the country’s public housing stock, despite overwhelming evidence that we need more affordable houses to solve the housing crisis. ...
Before any thoughts of the New Year and what lies ahead could even be contemplated, New Zealand reeled with the tragedy of Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming losing her life. For over 38 years she had faithfully served as a front-line Police officer. Working alongside her was Senior Sergeant Adam Ramsay ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson will return to politics at Waitangi on Monday the 3rd of February where she will hold a stand up with fellow co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick. ...
Te Pāti Māori is appalled by the government's blatant mishandling of the school lunch programme. David Seymour’s ‘cost-saving’ measures have left tamariki across Aotearoa with unidentifiable meals, causing distress and outrage among parents and communities alike. “What’s the difference between providing inedible food, and providing no food at all?” Said ...
The Government is doubling down on outdated and volatile fossil fuels, showing how shortsighted and destructive their policies are for working New Zealanders. ...
Green Party MP Steve Abel this morning joined Coromandel locals in Waihi to condemn new mining plans announced by Shane Jones in the pit of the town’s Australian-owned Gold mine. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to strengthen its just-announced 2030-2035 Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement and address its woeful lack of commitment to climate security. ...
Today marks a historic moment for Taranaki iwi with the passing of the Te Pire Whakatupua mō Te Kāhui Tupua/Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Bill in Parliament. "Today, we stand together as descendants of Taranaki, and our tūpuna, Taranaki Maunga, is now formally acknowledged by the law as a living tūpuna. ...
Labour is relieved to see Children’s Minister Karen Chhour has woken up to reality and reversed her government’s terrible decisions to cut funding from frontline service providers – temporarily. ...
The Government’s commitment to get New Zealand’s roads back on track is delivering strong results, with around 98 per cent of potholes on state highways repaired within 24 hours of identification every month since targets were introduced, Transport Minister Chris Bishop says. “Increasing productivity to help rebuild our economy is ...
The former Cadbury factory will be the site of the Inpatient Building for the new Dunedin Hospital and Health Minister Simeon Brown says actions have been taken to get the cost overruns under control. “Today I am giving the people of Dunedin certainty that we will build the new Dunedin ...
From today, Plunket in Whāngarei will be offering childhood immunisations – the first of up to 27 sites nationwide, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. The investment of $1 million into the pilot, announced in October 2024, was made possible due to the Government’s record $16.68 billion investment in health. It ...
New Zealand’s strong commitment to the rights of disabled people has continued with the response to an important United Nations report, Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston has announced. Of the 63 concluding observations of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), 47 will be progressed ...
Resources Minister Shane Jones has launched New Zealand’s national Minerals Strategy and Critical Minerals List, documents that lay a strategic and enduring path for the mineral sector, with the aim of doubling exports to $3 billion by 2035. Mr Jones released the documents, which present the Coalition Government’s transformative vision ...
Firstly I want to thank OceanaGold for hosting our event today. Your operation at Waihi is impressive. I want to acknowledge local MP Scott Simpson, local government dignitaries, community stakeholders and all of you who have gathered here today. It’s a privilege to welcome you to the launch of the ...
Racing Minister, Winston Peters has announced the Government is preparing public consultation on GST policy proposals which would make the New Zealand racing industry more competitive. “The racing industry makes an important economic contribution. New Zealand thoroughbreds are in demand overseas as racehorses and for breeding. The domestic thoroughbred industry ...
Business confidence remains very high and shows the economy is on track to improve, Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis says. “The latest ANZ Business Outlook survey, released yesterday, shows business confidence and expected own activity are ‘still both very high’.” The survey reports business confidence fell eight points to +54 ...
Enabling works have begun this week on an expanded radiology unit at Hawke’s Bay Fallen Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital which will double CT scanning capacity in Hawke’s Bay to ensure more locals can benefit from access to timely, quality healthcare, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. This investment of $29.3m in the ...
The Government has today announced New Zealand’s second international climate target under the Paris Agreement, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand will reduce emissions by 51 to 55 per cent compared to 2005 levels, by 2035. “We have worked hard to set a target that is both ambitious ...
Nine years of negotiations between the Crown and iwi of Taranaki have concluded following Te Pire Whakatupua mō Te Kāhui Tupua/the Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Bill passing its third reading in Parliament today, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “This Bill addresses the historical grievances endured by the eight iwi ...
As schools start back for 2025, there will be a relentless focus on teaching the basics brilliantly so all Kiwi kids grow up with the knowledge, skills and competencies needed to grow the New Zealand of the future, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “A world-leading education system is a key ...
Housing Minister Chris Bishop and Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson have welcomed Kāinga Ora’s decision to re-open its tender for carpets to allow wool carpet suppliers to bid. “In 2024 Kāinga Ora issued requests for tender (RFTs) seeking bids from suppliers to carpet their properties,” Mr Bishop says. “As part ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today visited Otahuhu College where the new school lunch programme has served up healthy lunches to students in the first days of the school year. “As schools open in 2025, the programme will deliver nutritious meals to around 242,000 students, every school day. On ...
Minister for Children Karen Chhour has intervened in Oranga Tamariki’s review of social service provider contracts to ensure Barnardos can continue to deliver its 0800 What’s Up hotline. “When I found out about the potential impact to this service, I asked Oranga Tamariki for an explanation. Based on the information ...
A bill to make revenue collection on imported and exported goods fairer and more effective had its first reading in Parliament, Customs Minister Casey Costello said today. “The Customs (Levies and Other Matters) Amendment Bill modernises the way in which Customs can recover the costs of services that are needed ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Department of Internal Affairs [the Department] has achieved significant progress in completing applications for New Zealand citizenship. “December 2024 saw the Department complete 5,661 citizenship applications, the most for any month in 2024. This is a 54 per cent increase compared ...
Reversals to Labour’s blanket speed limit reductions begin tonight and will be in place by 1 July, says Minister of Transport Chris Bishop. “The previous government was obsessed with slowing New Zealanders down by imposing illogical and untargeted speed limit reductions on state highways and local roads. “National campaigned on ...
Finance Minister Nicola Willis has announced Budget 2025 – the Growth Budget - will be delivered on Thursday 22 May. “This year’s Budget will drive forward the Government’s plan to grow our economy to improve the incomes of New Zealanders now and in the years ahead. “Budget 2025 will build ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ella Barclay, Senior Lecturer, School of Art and Design, Australian National University Despite the perceived outrage at Khaled Sabsabi’s depiction of Hassan Nasrallah in his 2007 work You, Australian art has long made subjects of outlaws and questionable figures. And it is ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Louise Pryke, Honorary Research Associate, Department of Classics and Ancient History, University of Sydney Lisa Tomasetti/Opera Australia “It’s an old song”, Hermes (Christine Anu) sings at the opening of Hadestown, but “we’re gonna sing it again and again”. Based on a ...
An additional $13 million will be invested in tourism infrastructure, including upgrading huts and resolving the backlog in Milford Sound concessions. ...
The reality is that we have no obligation to tolerate the intolerant. They are using violence to shut down and silence others. The result of tolerating intolerant views is the loss of everyone’s freedom of speech except for the one who most effectively ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robert Davis, Associate Professor in Conservation, Edith Cowan University Adwo/Shutterstock Humans have been poisoning rodents for centuries. But fast-breeding rats and mice have evolved resistance to earlier poisons. In response, manufacturers have produced second generation anticoagulant rodenticides such as bromadiolone, widely ...
Alex Casey unearths Simon Court’s full sales pitch for how menstrual cups could end poverty. On Friday last week, Act MP Simon Court was accused of “mansplaining” during a parliamentary committee hearing about benefit sanctions. After submitter Rachel Dibble shared her concerns about period poverty and the impact that sanctions ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexander Gillespie, Professor of Law, University of Waikato It’s an unfortunate fact that bad people sometimes want guns. And while laws are designed to prevent guns falling into the wrong hands, the determined criminal can be highly resourceful. There are three main ...
Asia Pacific Report Two independent Jewish Voices groups in Aotearoa New Zealand have written an open letter to the government condemning the Zionist “colonisation” project leading to genocide and criticising the role of the NZ Jewish Council for its “unelected” and “uncritical support” for Israel. The groups, Alternative Jewish Voices ...
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 A national Newspoll, conducted February 10–14 from a sample of 1,244, gave the Coalition a 51–49 lead, unchanged from the previous Newspoll, ...
We round up everything coming to streaming services this week, including Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+, Apple TV+, ThreeNow, Neon and TVNZ+. If you enjoy whip-smart satire: The White Lotus (Neon, February 17) HBO’s award-winning The White Lotus is back for what critics are calling “an absolutely exquisite third ...
NZPF called for a slowdown of the curriculum change, asking for one subject at a time, so that teachers and principals could be fully trained and feel confident and competent to implement the changes, New Zealand Principals’ Federation (NZPF) President ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By T.J. Thomson, Senior Lecturer in Visual Communication & Digital Media, RMIT University Indonesia’s TVOne launched an AI news presenter in 2023.T.J. Thomson Generative artificial intelligence (AI) has taken off at lightning speed in the past couple of years, creating disruption in ...
Many of the young vapers interviewed by a team of public health researchers said they felt unable to resist the pro-vaping environment that surrounded them. New Zealand’s smokefree law was hailed around the world for creating a smokefree generation that would have lifelong protection from smoking’s harms. The smokefree ...
Analysis: While most Wellingtonians enjoyed a rare but unbeatable sunny day on Saturday, some New Zealand diplomats will have been briefly shocked by a screenshot making the rounds on social media showing US President Donald Trump calling us a “third world country”.The image, it appears, was a fake – certainly a ...
ActionStation Director, Kassie Hartendorp says that the Treaty Principles Bill has galvanised the biggest movement in support of Te Tiriti in modern history. ...
While it is in the interests of Wellington ratepayers to sell off this subsidy for the rich, it is unfortunate that it has come to this point. The council should have never spent a penny on this programme, and the $3.4 million spent is a flagrant abuse ...
A search for the person behind a social media account ridiculing Māori.Last week, while scrolling Facebook, I came across a post shared to the New Zealand Centre for Political Research group. The post began, “From Matua Kahurangi on X”, before pasting his critique of iwi leadership – particularly Ngāpuhi ...
On the heels of The White Lotus season three, Tara Ward travels to Koh Samui, Thailand, to live her best life as a five-star wannabe. I’ve never been one for luxury travel. Despite religiously watching TV shows like Luxury Escapes: World’s Best Holidays and harbouring grand dreams of one day ...
The Treaty Principles Bill submission hearings continue at Parliament today with a range of submitters expected including councils, iwi, community organisations and individuals. ...
It’s become of one of Christchurch’s most famous landmarks online, but why? Alex Casey steps through the portal of the brutalist Timezone. Ask anyone what Christchurch’s most iconic building is and you might expect to hear some of the dusty old classics like the Cathedral, or the Town Hall, or ...
New Zealand’s alignment with the White House is further underscored by its refusal to oppose Trump’s sanctions against the International Criminal Court (ICC). ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amin Saikal, Emeritus Professor of Middle Eastern and Central Asian Studies, Australian National University The dismantling of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) is a serious blow to the soft power of the United States and disastrous for many poor countries ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Janet Hoek, Professor in Public Health, University of Otago Shutterstock/Aliaksandr Barouski New Zealand’s smokefree law was hailed around the world for creating a smokefree generation that would have lifelong protection from smoking’s harms. The smokefree generation would have ended sales of ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By George Disney, Research Fellow, Social Epidemiology, The University of Melbourne Edwin Tan/Getty Images When the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) was established in 2013, one of its driving aims was to make disability services and support systems fairer. However, our new ...
The resignation of the director general of health is the latest departure in what Labour is calling a ‘purge’ of health leadership. Another day, another health resignation It’s a dangerous time to be a top health executive. On Friday, Dr Diana Sarfati announced her resignation as director general of health ...
Labour and the Greens say the government should focus spending on tourism infrastructure like tracks, toilets and protection of nature instead of more advertising. ...
Hundreds of people called the former prime minister vile and dehumanising things online. Internet safety agencies did nothing - then called in the lawyers. ...
Hundreds of people called the former prime minister vile and dehumanising things online. Internet safety agencies did nothing - then called in the lawyers. ...
After a morning spent calf marking, Flock Hill Station manager Richard Hill headed up Bridge Hill – about 100km from Christchurch on the way to the West Coast – to check on a fire near the station’s boundary.It was December 5 last year, and the Craigieburn area had experienced three ...
It can’t be much of a surprise that a relatively inexperienced Act MP, handed the workplace relations portfolio, doesn’t want to entertain the country’s biggest union in her office.But it still astonishes the head of that union, the CTU’s president, Richard Wagstaff.After all, he’s met regularly with ministers of all ...
Late 21st century Christchurch will be unrecognisable when compared with Christchurch today.Flooding will prompt retreat from all eastern and many northern suburbs. These areas, together with land near the Heathcote and Avon Rivers, are in a fifty-year flood zone. Fifty-year floods can happen more than once every fifty years; there ...
https://i.stuff.co.nz/business/132001093/wealthy-new-zealanders-say-they-want-to-pay-more-tax
Imagine a world where the wealthy were proud of how much tax the contributed, not of how much they avoided
Note the personal attack on them by David Seymour for betraying their class.
Anyone who did not realise that Seynour and NACT are engaged in class war against those who do not have wealth/own property should be awakening from their sleep.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/kushlan-sugathapala-questioning-our-extremely-unfair-tax-system-is-not-being-envious/CIOF3JGJBBALPO2YCWZND6I3PE/
Can anyone provide a link without paywall?
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/kushlan-sugathapala-questioning-our-extremely-unfair-tax-system-is-not-being-envious/CIOF3JGJBBALPO2YCWZND6I3PE/
And David Seymour has really let this one 'zoooom' straight over. I can see why Seymour has framed it this way though as ACT likes its govt small.
My reading is that they wanted the tax arrangements to be such that they were taxed properly and so the funds went into the funds of Govt to add to the funds used by Govt for public services. Nothing to do with philanthropy etc.
https://archive.li/0pfz9
Dear Joe90, please would you consider using the alternative title option when posting links without a descriptor in the web address? I like to know what I'm jumping to. That link was worth a read when I got there, though.
Once again, Labour shows it's poor on sound-bite messaging. You can present a rational argument in the background for those who read, but to drag the electorate your way you need two or three snappy slogans. Ram-raids, uppity Maoris and over-regulation are the only drums Luxon's banging.
From the article in the link, attack the richy-richy may not be the best strategy, I'm thinking. Attack no-tax/lo-tax company structures is a larger target, and would hoover up rich tax evaders as well. Now for the killer sound-bite.
I wonder what a tax trade-off of GST on food for a tax on capital gains will do?
(a la the Key & English – income tax & GST trade-off)
Based on the Key/English efforts, no guarantee that it will actually deliver the tax switch being advertised. In this particular case, the concern would be that retailers (like supermarkets) wouldn't pass on all of the savings.
Archive version from 10/5/23 https://archive.is/0pfz9
ACT represents those who have an overwhelming sense of entitlement.
The entitlement comes from the historical association of wealth and power.
Wealth means success, and success entitles them to have power.
The only things ACT supporters care about is the size of their bank accounts and nothing, but nothing, should get in the way of any exponential growth of these.
If ACT gets its way, the rich will be a whole heap richer and those at the bottom will be left to fight over the few crumbs that trickle down.
It is a disgusting irony that Federated Farmers Andrew Hoggard is standing for a party whose policies are almost identical to those of the the great Rogernome in the 1980s, and were responsible for so many suicides in the rural sector.
So much for caring about farmers!
Yip act/seymour belive in no taxs or benifits, wealth sharing should only be done by the wealthy choosing to donate.
Well, hiow about donating to Labour and Greens the difference?
And what would Labour use the money for? They already use the taxpayer funds to pat for their campaign advertising. I received, with yesterdays mail, a leaflet from the PM saying how wonderful Labour is. In the smallest possible font the House of Representatives Crest was present to show that the taxpayer and not the Party was paying for it. I imagine it has probably been sent to every household in the country.
Why should the taxpayer have to pay for something that is purely a political ad?
https://www.renews.co.nz/i-dont-know-anything-about-politics-where-do-parties-get-all-their-money-from/
Meanwhile:
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/national-raises-unprecedented-23m-war-chest-from-richlist-donors-before-election-year/77GGZL32JRDMRNAEFJ7B4TGAUI/
I've already said how I think parties ought to be funded. No more than a small amount once annually from members, and every election voters at the polling station get given two vouchers with, say, $10 or $20 value. They then simply deposit one into the party donation box of their choice and they get to keep the other as a thank you for voting.
I would also make election day a mid-week public holiday, unpaid if you don't vote and paid if you do. That way, if you don't bother to vote on the day off and you earn, say, $35 an hour, it is the equivalent of a $280 dollar fine.
It is an interesting idea and I can see the first part of it working. As far as the payment for voting goes though it would seem to impose a massive penalty on those people who aren't eligible to vote.
“Sorry fella. You are here on a visa that allows you to work but not vote so you have to take a day off without pay.”
Meh – NZ is uniquely round-heeled when it comes to pissing away our citizens' franchise – they only need to be here for six months and they get to vote anyway. Something to do with the major parties, knowing they have alienated voters, looking for
new markspotential supporters among those who have yet to experience their inadequacy.War chest is an appropriate description for a party that loves dreaming up imaginary wars.
Indeed why should the taxpayer pay for political ads?
My National MP who spend thousands over a couple of years, who was backed by the twisted logic and benign rulings of the system I dealt with in Wellington, in the end got to the insurmountable argument: “It’s legal.”
The bastard lost in the election. All the money he spent, our money, would’ve been well used by our local schools.
To avoid having only the ads that are paid for by the rich. Think of it as having the taxpayer paying for democracy.
So a better regulation might cap political advertising spends – then we could mostly ignore the wretched self-aggrandizing numpties.
Some say that, while others donate heavily to ACT and similar, to avoid doing any such thing….
Imagine a world where politicians did what they promised, not whatever was necessary to get re-elected
Imagine a world where those who did not could not hang their heads in shame, because robust public processes dealt with them expeditiously.
"Jealousy", "envy", "resentment". The words used by Nicola Willis to describe a capital gains tax she says is being secretly prepared.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/nationals-nicola-willis-claims-labour-cooking-up-a-secret-capital-gains-tax-plan-from-labour
When I see these kinds of words being used, I see them as a form of self-reflection.
Is Willis resentful, jealous and envious of Labour being in government?
She wants the power.
That is why we get from National already the fear and envy tactics, the hyperbole and the cherry-picking of facts, the partial quotes, the accusations of secrecy and improper motivation.
can you cut and paste a couple of paras mac? I wont pay for the Herald.
No paywall there on that article, BG. Go get it for free.
Thanks….when I hit your link it blocked me…but when I searched for the article at the NZH site it was fine, as you said.
She is talking bollocks anyway.
As political journalist the late John Armstrong said:
“Never forget that politics boils down to power – winning it and, just as importantly, retaining it.
“The fascination comes in watching how politicians play the game.”
All politicians want to get their hands on the levers of power. Some want unbridled power. That's why the ordinary citizen must be vigilant.
That "late John Armstrong" was a lying user of a poisonous pen. He used his power to repeat untrue stories, especially one about a non-existent gift. He played a dirty power game for National.
The factors that are most important are why and how they use power and for whom.
Jealousy, envy, resentment. "… the accusations of secrecy and improper motivation"
At a personal level it can extend to stalking the individual, breaking into the individual's home, reporting the individual to the authorities for misdemeanors never committed and setting the person up by way of covert hoaxes. In the more serious cases it can also iclude violence to pets and damage to property.
Yep. It happened to me 30 plus years ago. All of it.
But because the perpetrator had links to high places including a high ranked sibling, she was shielded by the 'establishment' and never brought to justice.
Translate that story into politics and you have the same kind of behaviour occurring by National and ACT including the law breaking. Remember the DP years. Slater was never charged and sentenced by the police for his law breaking and nefarious conduct. But one of the victims was. Nicky Hagar. Slater knew people in high places and had a well metaphoricalplaced father.
Jealousy, envy and resentment. No difference whether it be personal or political – or a mix of both.
But if you know the ‘right’ people, you get off with not even the metaphorical wet bus ticket.
A CGT being secretly prepared?
We wish.
Typical National scaremongering.
Labour will no more implement a CGT tax than National will nationalize Air New Zealand.
It's not the fucking drains, Rimmer.
Michael Field
@MichaelFieldNZ
Global Forecasting Systems – which has accurately predicted Auckland's storms – is projecting this in eight days.
https://twitter.com/MichaelFieldNZ/status/1656016744639778816
it's probably both. But Seymour misses the point that no matter how good an infrastructure fix we do now, it won't be enough if we don't massively and immediately mitigate the climate crisis.
Wow, that is scary.
Its a sub tropical low which is expected to form off the coast of Brisbane. Shouldn't pack the same punch as Gabrielle and looks like it will cross over the country quite quickly. Fingers crossed. 😮
https://www.windy.com/?-30.468,178.682,5
For an idea of the rain intensity hit the rain/thunderstorm icon at top right.
Time for the Green Party display some recognition to its voters- As they are about to lose 1.
I for 1 did not give my party vote so that 1 of "their" MP's can leave the party and sit as an independent. I gave them my vote as they were more focused on the environment than any of the alternatives. As TGP has displayed an attitude of contempt to a voter as you have reduced your say in parliament by 10%. (I note that EK was pictured in some committee that was hearing on vaping as an independent yet was placed there as TGP allocation !!!!)
Regarding the allegations regarding Elizabeth Kerekere, if held true what were you doing to miss seeing and then reacting to these. If untrue then you are no better (Some could say that TGP is the worst example of a political party) than any other party in your manipulation into actively remove EK from parliament.
2. wait to see what the final list is like. Fingers crossed there are more overt environmentalists in the top ten. At that point, everyone's vote matters if truly you want strong environmentalists in parliament. Here's the interim list, imo it's worth voting Green to get Abel and Pham into parliament,
https://www.greens.org.nz/2023_candidates
(had EK been forced to leave parliament via waka jumping, Abel would now be an MP, being next on the list. I'm annoyed he's not, but this is on EK as much as anyone. Look at the reasons for the GP not supporting waka jumping law if you want ot understand this better).
3. Shaw and Davidson have both said, many times, that there were patterns of behaviour from EK predating the cry baby message, but they were unable to act on them because people were afraid to come forward. Once EK hoisted herself on her own petard, people felt more able to speak up. The impression I have is that JS and MD knew there was a problem but didn't have any hard details or people willing to speak, which they needed for a formal investigation. It's too their credit that they waited for firm evidence before proceeding.
4. The process was decided by the whole of caucus, including EKm last year, in the wake of the report on bullying in parliament. I've not seen anything that shows JS and MD subverted or manipulated that process.
Thanks for that weka…and well said.
cheers BG.
It's completely the wrong focus worrying about candidates before the list is set. There ought to be drama in selection.
What we need is a fully on fire Greens in the political arena scoring even better points than Act, so that Greens can grind back up to 10%. The focus needs to stay on policy not the usual pre-selection games.
Bryce Edwards has a piece published on TDB (Dr Bryce Edwards Political Roundup: The Civil war in the Greens | The Daily Blog) that set's out the internal warfare going on in the Greens. I genuinely hope the environmental arm win out. I genuinely doubt they will.
Minor handbag squabble compared to the Labour list bloodbath through June and July as about 20 existing MPs realise they don't have jobs in 4 months and rapidly jump ship.
20 is optimistic. I smell zero sense of urgency from Labour, let alone the Greens.
Labour itself needs to tilt the political discourse since the Greens aren't able to. Budget 2023 is yet to do that job.
hopefully they're gearing up in private for the election campaign proper, but the year does seem to be getting on. Other elections the Greens have started early.
Edwards is doing a hell of a lot of unevidenced speculation there.
The same could be said of this EK issue until we have anything of substance, I am sure with EK’s departure the need for anything to be aired could now be viewed as redundant, so the issue goes away, and in the eyes of those concerned guilt is passed. Either her behaviour is beyond what is acceptable or she has been targeted for personal gain of others. I am trying to not be condemning to either side until there is more to support one of the claims. I note that this was reported 6 April of the txt how long can it take if there was some motivation to sort this out ???
I'd definitely like to know if the process they are using, that was established last year, is in the public domain. Someone could look that up I expect.
Or there were some issues that needed to be investigated that were survivable for EK and she bailed before that process was completed. I'm sure there are other interpretations as well.
My reading of it, based on what I've seen MD and JS say, and the reporting from credible and relatively unbiased sources, is that there was a pattern of behaviour and the co-leaders decided to act now because it was going to be terrible for election year if they didn't.
Certainly from the outside, EK looks to me like a loose unit. Her behaviour during the BDMRR select committee raised red flags, but that could have been a one off and it wasn't like she was the only MP that displayed bias. But when you have multiple examples and people too afraid to speak, I think it's reasonable for the party to act from self preservation especially given the GP's history with election campaigns (something that EK seems to not take very seriously). Even the way she handled the call with members and how she resigned raised another set of red flags. Doesn't look like a team player or someone who has the interests of the party at heart.
I also think that if the issues around behaviour weren't real or weren't of a meaningful level, that JS and MD wouldn't have taken the positions they did. I trust them in that, especially JS because of how he behaved in the 2017 election campaign during the fallout from Turei's speech. It's not too hard to read between the lines in what he has and hasn't said, without going deeper into the kind of speculation that Edwards is doing.
I'll also say this. The gender/sex war has the potential to wreck the election. That could cost the Greens big time, and possible the left the election overall. If that sounds like hyperbole, it's based on watching what has happened in the UK, where in the end Labour had to accept that women have sex based rights. Because most people draw a line at saying people can literally change sex and society should be based around that.
In the local body elections, in Brighton, one of the most strongly identity politics places in the UK, Green councillors just lost their seats (to Labour). Anyone not paying attention to this is missing something really important. Many people rightly believe that trans people should have the same human rights as others, but aren't ok with the excesses of gender ideology.
I have no idea where the GP sit on the real politik of that, but if the election turns on 'what is a woman?' (and the right may indeed go down that track), then it has the potential to get nasty and I'm not sure the left has the capacity atm to parse what is going on with that because of the ideology. I hope it doesn't go down this track, but the potential is there. EK being out of the GP is a relief, because now at least is she goes off on one about genderism, the focus can be on her not the Greens.
Edwards typically pulls together a variety of opinion, and then draws his own conclusions.
In this piece, Edwards cites "long-time Green Party commentator Gordon Campbell", "leftwing political commentator Steven Cowan", "The Herald’s Thomas Coughlan", and of course the one and only "Leftwing blogger and Green voter Martyn Bradbury".
You could say this is 'informed' rather than 'unevidenced' speculation.
None of the people you name are Green Party people. MB regularly slags off the Greens, over a long period of time. I would guess Cowan has some anti-Green bias. I've read Campbell's piece, it was interesting. But when Edwards says things like this,
Where is the actual evidence that these assertions are true?
Weka, it isn't necessary to be a green party person to have inside information on what is happening within the party. The people Edwards quotes from are far from disconnected from Green Party politics.
As for Edwards assertions, what we do know, is that there was an attempt to dump James Shaw as leader of the party in mid 2022, and that followed the Greens voting to:
Green Party James Shaw co-leadership: MP Elizabeth Kerekere 'considering options' on challenge – NZ Herald
Whether Edwards is correct as to the motives behind this, only those involved can confirm.
Or selective and self serving depending on what he has chosen.
Regardless of the conclusions Edwards comes to, he is right about this:
Some tighter focus on the issues which matter to the electorate (and some party discipline over going off message) – should pay dividends for the GP.
I think they could definitely do well if they focused on those, but I'm less convinced they can break out of the 10% ghetto, and that is what is needed if we are to make serious efforts on climate and ecology. I hope they can pull something out of the bag. While I think Edwards was overstating the case and as I said, unevidenced, I do think the perception of the GP as too woke is a potentially a problem and I;m not sure if they know how to deal with that.
I disagree – on this matter he seems remarkably in tune with the feelings I, and many of my associates who have voted Green in the past, have expressed recently. I really think they need to give up the green brand, and maybe pitch as the rainbow party, social justice party, or something else – the environment really isn't a priority for them now, based on their actions over the last few years.
I'm sorry you have that impression because it's simply not true. Look at their policy. Scroll through their press releases, and SM. Yes, social justice is featured, but environmental issues are too. Do they have the balance between the two right. I don't think so. But I don't see the point in throwing the baby out with the bathwater.
Bryce Edwards is really starting to piss me off across a number of topics. I should do a Post this weekend to counter his biased pieces.
Yes please Incognito.!!
👍
Effing hell..!
Edwards reports on davidson's dismal record as minister for the homeless.
She was allocated$75 million to help the homeless..and she has failed to even spend $1 million…
W.t.f…!
Has davidson ever been asked about this epic fail on her part…?
I have voted green since forever..
The above has me thinking tpm..
I am sure both of them would have used that $75 million..
Seriously ..!..I am banging my head against the wall over this..
What excuses could davidson possibly offer..?
Yes, she was challenged in the House on 3rd May about this. Her responses were farcical. Three times the Speaker had to intervene.
Parliament TV On Demand – Parliament On Demand
Thank you for that…
Bluff/bluster/bullshit on a stick from davidson…
She explained nothing..
National did what they did to manipulate those unable to handle simple complexity to cause disdain for the Greens among their own supporters.
Because National think they are so clever they can do this.
Rather than encourage them to think their strategy is working, how about just pondering this?
How much money can be spent in one year when it is allocated over 4 years and the first year is for the design of the programme in which the money is spent?
That question was clearly answered.
The second question is why not allocate the money to existing programmes.
She said the new programmes were set up because of liason with providers of existing programmes, as they saw a need to supplement them with new ones.
That question was clearly answered.
The third question was regarding the 200 16-17 year olds in motels and whether the new programmes would deal with this. She responded and Bishop intervened and said he did not want some list of spending allocations in response (related to existing programmes dealing with this particular matter) and the Speaker chimed in with his line, he was almost afraid to have the Minister answer the question again and then intervened when she began to after Bishop re-asked the question.
KNOWN FACT. National did not want the new programmes being set up to deal with housing delivery.
I would suggest you look at the programmes and see if you can find any relationship to this direction and things like Maori Health and National's opposition to that.
If anyone wants to evaluate for themselves, both the questions and answers, as well as the Speaker's interventions – the link is here.
https://www.parliament.nz/en/pb/hansard-debates/rhr/document/HansS_20230503_051240000/6-question-no-6-housing-homelessness
Well, thank you! I tend to lean towards SPC.
I thought the Speaker let her off very lightly. She should have been instructed to answer the question, or ejected from the House until she was prepared to do so.
All Ministers take the opportunity to add a little fluff of the question-that-they-really-want-to-answer to an official response – but they are required to actually answer the question as presented.
2. The first part of the process was design and the money for them was to come in from July 2023
3. Existing programmes have their own funding allocations.
Bishop and his fans here are working to promote contempt for Greens and to overall question delivery by nit picking about new programmes set up to operate in the 2023-2026 period that a National victory would block.
The Speaker was inept, or deliberately hostile to the Minister. The explanation was obvious.
If I were the Greens and there was any continuance of it, not support the Speakers re-appointment.
The Speaker held her to account for being entirely unable to provide anything approaching a coherent reply. He was remarkably patient.
National did what they did to manipulate those unable to handle simple complexity to cause disdain for the Greens among their own supporters.
Because National and their supporters think they are so clever they can do this.
REALITY CHECK.
How much money can be spent in one year when it is allocated over 4 years and the first year is for the design of the programme in which the money is spent?
That question was clearly answered.
The second question is why not allocate the money to existing programmes.
She said the new programmes were set up because of liason with providers of existing programmes, as they saw a need to supplement them with new ones.
That question was also clearly answered.
The third question was regarding the 200 16-17 year olds in motels and whether the new programmes would deal with this.
She responded and Bishop intervened and said he did not want some list of spending allocations in response (related to existing programmes dealing with this particular matter) and the Speaker chimed in with his line, he was almost afraid to have the Minister answer the question again and then intervened when she began to after Bishop re-asked the question.
The Speaker, someone with both dignity and mana, disagrees with you. 3 times.
So you claim. But you can make no case for it being a reasonable one.
I'll let the speaker do that:
Three separate responses to three questions.
Hansard. 6. Question No. 6—Housing (Homelessness) – New Zealand Parliament (www.parliament.nz)
Yet the questions were answered.
The Speaker was wrong three times.
Perhaps you should write to him and tell him that. I'm sure he'll be very keen to hear from you.
I'd regard his admission of regret a personal matter.
Have a good evening, SPC,
Doctor, Doctor I need you to give your insight on the politics of the left wing parties, for those of the right are perfection, except occasionally C. Luxon over whom some of even more angelic form have doubts.
From the Dottore who thought it important in the fires on the lawn of parliament to point out that a couple of people once said mean things about John Key too. These were equivalent and so Jacinda was just a whining big girls blouse, unlike Bill English or John Key who were real politician men.
There’s a reason the regular ACT aligned philosopher of a commenter introduced it.
The good doctor is a political commentator. Do you have anything to say about what he actually said, or just about what you think about him?
Well fine Minister Robertson can find $4 billion to reprioritise for the upcoming budget.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/grant-robertson-to-reveal-size-of-savings-in-budget-2023/XQNO5BOK3RAARA5OHSR3LNPZUA/#:~:text=The%20Government%20has%20found%20%244,day%20spending%20for%20this%20Budget.
So far however the only significant pre-budget announcement has been for Defence.
I am struggling to see the benefits from all those consultants that bullshit agencies like Education Review Office, Ministry of Pacific Peoples, Ministry for Culture and Hertitage and others are blowing out, when it's the basics of Police Education and Health that are begging for more salaried frontline staff.
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2022/07/government-s-billion-dollar-spend-on-consultants-under-attack-from-national.html
If this government were a retail store I think I'd probably go ask for a refund.
Unless Robertson has an almighty trick up his sleeve as the Albanese government just pulled in the Australian budget this week, Labour are just not going to move the dial dial upwards.
While they keep insisting on doing these pre-Budget announcements to a 'business audience' it is apparent who they are most concerned about and it's certainly not workers, frontline or otherwise:
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/489670/watch-finance-minister-grant-robertson-makes-pre-budget-speech
To be fair, most of the budget details uses complex figures and forecasts that would be way over the heads of the average Joe and Jill Bloggs and only the suits would understand them.
In case this wasn't a sarcastic response I would say speaking over the heads of laypeople represents a communication failure by a government that is supposedly for all, those besuited titans of industry and us mere mortals both. If we can have law written in plain language then there is no reason the pre-Budget announcement should be mostly business jargon.
Try and explain anything complex and it will go over the heads of most people, my kids lost me at the Masters level. I used to just sit there nodding, no wonder they nicknamed me Homer.
That wasn't the audience of the speech.
They were the dedicated government-watchers and government-analysts.
Perhaps they could adequately fund the Dunedin hospital to allow what was specified to be built. How they are a bunch of #%^ers to pull this and now we find there was $4BILLION that is now out there to be spent. How we have been let down by words and NO action. On this issue of the hospital they have funded this to fail the local community – A strong labour community at that !!!
100%
Was so weak to see Labour MP Rachel Brooking defend the cuts in the ODT, then nek minnit Labour Minister of Health Verral 'restores' $70 million of the cuts …
… and still forget to tell us that the redesign would cost the whole project a year, which of course costs programme and redesign costs.
That MoH Major Capital team are just a law unto themselves.
I think Robertson has been excellent as a Finance Minister and he is a superb performer in the house.
But I agree with you here Herod. When he can find four thousand million dollars in his back pocket the penny-pinching on 100 million or so on the oh-so-politically sensitive and oh-so-needed Dunedin hospital looks stupid.
It will cost votes if not rectified.
Unhappily, NZ's finance ministers have been almost universally lousy. Cullen would be the only one to rate above the international average, and he was no Keynes. The rest have been distinctly sub-par – as is reflected in national productivity and the largely unchallenged follies coming out of Treasury.
We are supposed to be a democracy – not a dictatorship of useless far-right economic pretenders stymying every plausible policy initiative. Our country is being left to rot.
My understanding is that when washed up the albanese budget over promised (remind u of any other labour parties/leaders..)..
And turned out to be just another outing for neoliberal-incrementalism…
So yes…that is what we can expect from robertson/labour..
It has always been thus..since the time of douglas..
And of course this version of labour is echoed in other labour parties..in their bows in unison to the demands of the right/neoliberals..
And that poxy excuse for an ideology.. neoliberal-incrementalism..is what has got us all up shit-creek.. without a paddle..
“For the many not the few” is anathema to the neo Blairists of the NZ Labour Caucus.
Aotearoa NZ will not move forward until Rogernomics and Ruthanasia are retired for good by the new gens.
Maybe 'bullshit' agencies like Education Review Office will be got rid of with Act as a big part of the next government.
Anyone see them getting rid of that monitoring of schools? And if that model goes what replaces it? Or do they have none?
Wow! Ginny just made Mercenary Mitchell look like a plodding, incompetent fool in the house again today! Either she's very good, or he's an idiot. [Probably both!]
She's very good. One of Labour's better performers.
Is there something fundamentally wrong with local government?
Tauranga, Invercargill, Gore, and now West Coast.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/489694/fiery-talk-at-west-coast-council-not-a-wellington-issue-internal-affairs-says
Kaipara District Council, Wellington, Dunedin….
Any parker fanboys/girls out there..?
Do they know what his excuses are for both enabling one of the top ten polluters in nz (according to stuff) the glenbrook steel mill..to just carry on in that role..for the foreseeable future..when he could have done differently..?
And now for doing nothing to stop deep sea mining..?
Parker/labour: putting the 'rad' in environmental-degradation..
I said in a post a couple of weeks ago that Parker supports wind-farms being located in Outstanding Natural Landscape.
Like Chris Trotter, and many others, he is old school Labour without a green bone in his body.