The Green Party policies of higher tax on wealth to fund a guaranteed minimum income are excellent, and would transform NZ for the better. Would make a massive dent in poverty and reduce our collective NZ love of hammering on the poor. This makes the Green Party one of the very few parties with policies that actually address inequality, the greatest scourge currently plaguing NZ in my opinion.
I'm a bit interested in whether the Bomber at Daily Blog will agree – he has been calling for our massive inequality / class issues to be dealt with, rather than focus on identity politics (and I agree), and at last the Greens are looking a bit more like that.
Seems a good move. Marama (from your link): "The Income Guarantee means families will always have enough kai, or to buy the shoes and warm clothes that children need. Students will no longer have to skip meals to make ends meet and can focus on their study. And if something happens that stops people from working, there is a guaranteed income that's enough to live on." Applied socialism, huh?
They'll be too scared to admit that, I suspect. However issuing a policy that implies the intent to achieve a UBI outcome without calling it UBI will work in proportion to the number of voters who get the subtle message.
Simulating often works as well as being authentic. Some would argue the clever simulation of this policy is a pointer to their authenticity. Paradox often rules politics!
The Greens are not proposing a land tax as such, they’re proposing a wealth tax that will leave most New Zealanders untouched. Only rabid RWNJs and trolls would object to this with their usual froth & hot air.
Why should the Greens make a wealth tax non-negotiable? Because you think it is good policy and you would support it and you would vote for any party that would support this? If not, why not?
No need for a calculator, Jack. I already know I’d very likely be better off, money-wise, under a NACT government. The very wealthy will be, for sure. However, any children might not be. Many other people might not be.
Do what’s best for you, Jack, and let us know how much better you’ll be off under NACT.
The Greens now have a clearly articulated tax policy to take to the election. This is to be welcomed. It should now flush Labour out to come clean on their tax policy too. Do they agree with their coalition partner or not?
Fair enough. Some people think we should cull the Social Welfare system and most if not all benefits.
One question for you though: what to do about those people & children already trapped in poverty? Let them eat cake? Let them swim? Let them learn some valuable life-lessons about making good personal choices?
A tired slogan, not actual information – and in fact the exact opposite of the truth.
Multiple studies show that versions of guaranteed minimum incomes do the exact opposite – they free people from poverty, give massive improvements in wellbeing and result in higher participation in employment.
I tend to agree – although both cases can be true at the same time. Conventional welfare handouts that are conditional and constrain a person's opportunities and agency are I believe prone to trapping people in poverty. There is a fair bit of evidence to support this idea.
But the core aspect of a GMI – or better still a fully tax integrated UBI – is that it is unconditional and the impact is quite different for exactly the reasons you lay out.
I applaud the invitation from the electoral review chair for constructive criticism and participation in the review process. However, I think the timing is a little off and there’s little appetite among the people and parties to really get stuck into this. Thus, this seems yet another review that will be archived and a wasted opportunity, which is a real shame.
There were no accusations of bias from the leaders of Labour and National, but they were at best muted; aside from the Greens, who cheered the review’s ideas and called for cross-party cooperation, there was little in the way of enthusiasm.
Some people seem more interested in gotcha politics and chasing trivialities in the greater scheme of things. There’s some evidence that all this negativity and adversarial (and unreasonably tribal & partisan) politics can reduce voter turnout, especially among less-informed or less-partisan voters, by increasing cynicism, apathy or confusion.
I can't understand why the Greens want a wealth tax of 2.5% on $2m+ , but tax trusts over $2m at 1.5% ??? Doesn't that just encourage more transfer to trusts??
The trust tax will be on all assets in private trusts without the $2M/person threshold. Therefore, it would not make sense to move money to trusts to avoid a wealth tax, at least not up to the threshold, but also not beyond up to $5M/person (by my calculations).
The main impact is that wealth per se will be taxed more than at present, to a degree. Of course, any (personal) income generated through investments, for example, will be taxed as such (i.e. as income).
Of course the local wingnut/cooker brigade have been pushing this.
Pinpointing an exact point of origin for the fictional stories is difficult, but media coverage of the school litter box hoax goes back to at least as early as 2021 in Canada. Similar rumours began to swirl in Michigan in December that year, in the wake of a video showing a board of education meeting in which a speaker claimed that litter boxes were placed in student bathrooms for those who identify as “furries”. The existence of both child “furries” and litter boxes in bathrooms was debunked the next month by Reuters but similar stories continued to spread among schools in other states. Ahead of the 2022 US elections, various prominent Republican politicians and media personalities continued to propagate the hoax. Despite there being no confirmed instances of schools providing litter boxes for students, social media has helped to amplify the tale
Parents with students in Jeffco Public Schools may have seen some interesting items on their back-to-school shopping lists this year, including buckets and kitty litter.
That’s because more teachers are opting to include “go buckets” in their classroom, to be used by students as toilets during prolonged lockdowns.
“I think it’s a weird idea,” said parent Michelle Gebers. “But I guess if you’re in a lockdown situation, it’s not something every parent is thinking about.”
The idea was first brought up a few years ago, when students at Alameda High School were stuck in lockdown for more than four hours.
Just to be clear, you think that because the far right are using Kellie Jay Keen's centrist, populist women's rights movement that seeks to retain women's sex based rights and protect children from overmedicalisation, and they are using that to direct hatred at trans people, that Kellie Jay Keen deserves death threats?
I'd like to know when exactly you decided that directing violence at women speaking up about their politics was acceptable. And why. Because I remember a brief point in history when the left condemned this. Those days are gone, now protecting women from violence is no longer a fundamental principles, instead it depends on the women being subservient to someone's political views.
Posie Parker is a provocateur. Among the GC political views and misinformation she pushes, she also includes abhorrent, violent ideas. Parker has been recorded as saying: that trans men should be sterilised; that men with guns should go into and patrol womens' toilets, ie, she sanctions gun violence against trans women; and that trans women are sexual perverts who are also pedophiles.
She is a disseminator of lies and hate speech, which incite and inflame attacks on the trans community for merely existing, as seen by the huge uptick in hateful and violent social media speech in NZ around her visit against trans people. What goes around comes around is a fair description. Should Parker be able to run to the protection of a law she does not follow herself?
Do I think hateful and violent speech is a good thing? No, from anyone. Parker does not get immunity for her violent, inciting speech because she is 'defending women'. She certainly does not defend women who find her extreme views dangerous and wrong. She has said we will be 'annhilated'.
she is a provocateur, that's not unusual in political movements.
Among the GC political views and misinformation she pushes, she also includes abhorrent, violent ideas. Parker has been recorded as saying: that trans men should be sterilised;
From memory, the context was that TM taking cross sex hormones shouldn't get pregnant. Do you disagree with this?
that men with guns should go into and patrol womens' toilets, ie, she sanctions gun violence against trans women;
This was in a US context, and afaik she didn't say to shoot TW. It's still abhorrent, and stupid, but it's also normal in the US context.
and that trans women are sexual perverts who are also pedophiles.
Citation please. Link, quote and an explanation. I know the two other examples you are referring to, but this one is vague so I'd like some clarity and context.
She is a disseminator of lies and hate speech, which incite and inflame attacks on the trans community for merely existing
her main purpose is women's sex based rights. She's not doing this to incite attacks on trans community for merely existing. I'm sure she'd much rather be getting on with her life.
, as seen by the huge uptick in hateful and violent social media speech in NZ around her visit against trans people.
Yes. But, we don't actually know what that is, because the people tracking it haven't said or shown, they've only told. We know that some people consider saying TW are male is a violence against trans people, so the details actuall matter. I have no doubt that the FR are now more focused on hating trans people, and we know that the VFF crowd are on board with GC issues now (kind of), but I don't see the kind of abuse you are talking about in their FB groups.
What goes around comes around is a fair description. Should Parker be able to run to the protection of a law she does not follow herself?
Ok, thanks for confirming you sanction violence against women. This is what I was pointing to.
I'm no longer surprised by the failure of some to condemn clear directed threats of violence, so I post this just to ensure you – and others – know what and who your reflexive comment defends.
Ironically, it may get worse because Elon Musk seems to be wary of AI developments, at least some – perhaps a case of ‘when I do it, it’s perfectly ok, but when somebody else does it, it’s bad’.
They're from Molly's comment above that, although I've made changes to the html in hers, and in my comments I had to download and then upload the images into TS to get them to work at all.
nothing I did worked in Safari. In Firefox width= worked on the TS images in my comments, but not the twitter images in Molly's comment. I replaced her URLs with the TS ones.
But below are my twitter tests with results noted. Firefox. Will retest in Safari shortly.
Fixed a failing 4Tb drive in the archive array. manufacture date 14Nov2021. Now looking for the invoice because I'm pretty sure that Seagate had a 3 warranty on Ironwolf. zfs is replacing it in the array.
Finally added the spare 1Tb SSD for the mdadm array for the standard. Brought it months ago, but this is the first time I have opened the case for a while.
Pulled out the remaining 12Gb SSDs for various old arrays.
Realized after I started up again that I'd left the backup_scratch (creates the hourly offshore backups for TS) in the fstab. It was causing startup issues. Booted up on a USB, and fixed it. Reset the backup system to a logical volume off the /home ssd.
Coffee time.. while I wait for the full backup to complete and ship.
any maths bods around? I need to calculate the net minimum wage hourly rate from $22.70 gross. Tax: 10.5% on the first $14,000, then 17.5% on the remaining. I get a net minimum wage of $19.20. Is that right?
(I'm writing a post on the Greens Guaranteed Min Income)
Should I include ACC? In the Greens' GMI for disabled people, they would get 80% of the minimum wage. But the GMI is tax free and presumably no ACC levies?
Generally income is exempt from ACC if it will be paid regardless of injuries as there's no point insuring it, so benefits and Super, for example, are exempt. Based on that principle, agree that increasing disability benefits will not attract ACC levies so net rates should just be after tax.
I had a look at the policy document and it didn't define "full-time" which is awkward, because most legislative things e.g. Stats NZ, Immigration, Working for Families consider full-time to be 30 paid hours per week but obviously most voters would see it as some range between 37.5 and 40 paid hours per week.
BD, I wish my cat would just pat the screen instead of walking all over the keyboard pressing keys that have got me doing all sorts of weird formatting and a couple of strange equations and 'something' where I had to ring the broadband company for help as he froze the whole works.
Then there is the sitting on the keyboard, plonk, and anguished As and Zs and /s dance all over the page.
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to May 19 include:PM Christopher Luxon is expected to hold his weekly post-cabinet news conference at 4:00pm on Monday.Parliament is not sitting this week. It resumes next week for a two-week sitting session up to and ...
Hi,Thanks to all the beautiful Worms who came to the LA Webworm popup on Saturday.It was a way to celebrate the online store we launched last week — and it was super special.As I talk about a lot, I really value our community here — and it was a BLAST ...
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, May 5, 2024 thru Sat, May 11, 2024. (Unfortunate) Story of the week "Grief that stops at despair is an ending that I and many others, most notably ...
Last night the largest solar storm in decades resulted in Aurorae being seen across Aotearoa, causing many to ask why?Why was the sky pink? What was all this stuff about the power grid? Have we, as so many have wondered since the election, reached the end of days?I had a ...
We have been on the road in England, squeezing down narrow lanes, flying up the M6, loving hedgerows and villages and cathedrals, liking the 21st century less.There have been moments when it’s felt like a movie trope. The pub in Exford, lovely seventeenth century bar, almost more dogs than people, ...
There’s a solar-storm on at the moment, and since the South Island is having a day and night with clear skies, that means Aurorae. I have just got back from a midnight visit to Tunnel Beach – southwards-looking over the Sea, and without the light pollution. Quite a few others ...
Michael Bassett writes – I’m not sure that it’s much comfort to anyone to know that the post-Covid surge in violent crimes, gang activity, ram raids, random shootings, thuggery and stabbings is occurring in other countries as well as New Zealand. These days, wagging school, out-of-control welfare and ...
Oliver Hartwich writes – Cast your mind back to mid-December. A new Prime Minister had just been sworn in, the new Government started its 100-day programme, and Christmas was only days away.Amid all the haste, a report landed that would have deserved our attention.I am talking about the ...
TL;DR: An unseasonally early icy blast at the same time as some long-overdue maintenance almost caused Aotearoa-NZ’s electricity system to black out this week. That’s because a quadropoly of gentailers1 have prioritised paying dividends from their rising profits and adding debt over investing in 1.5 GigaWatts of new wind farms ...
Hi,Before we crack into today’s Webworm, I wanted to acknowledge the fact that Israel is pushing into Rafah. Over 100,000 Palestinians are now attempting to flee the one place that was deemed “safe”.Trouble is, the place they’re fleeing to is already destroyed. Total annihilation is the end goal here.“Israel is ...
‘It has been said that figures rule the world. Maybe. I am quite sure that it is figures which show us whether it is being ruled well or badly.’ GoetheI was struck at a recent conference on equity for the elderly, how many presenters implicitly relied upon Statistics New Zealand. ...
Buzz from the BeehiveReporting on defence spending late last year, RNZ said the coalition government will have to make some tough calls this term to help the force address staff shortages and ageing infrastructure. “These are huge, huge amounts of government spending. It’s a significant proportion of the government’s ...
Peter Dunne writes – I am always wary when I hear that the Controller and Auditor-General has commented on or made recommendations to the government about an issue of public policy that does not relate strictly to public expenditure. According to the legislation, the role of the Controller ...
How Labour’s and National’s failure to move beyond neoliberalism has brought NZ to the brink of economic and cultural chaos Chris Trotter writes – TO START LOSING, so soon after you won, requires a special kind of political incompetence. At the heart of this Coalition ...
And why did the Crown not challenge the Tribunal’s jurisdiction? Gary Judd writes – Retired District Court Judge, David Harvey, has posted on his A Halflings View Substack an excellent summary of Justice Isacs’ judgment declining to uphold the witness summons issued by the Waitangi Tribunal ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Do you believe New Zealand runs its general elections fairly and competently? As a voter, can you be confident that the votes on your ballot will be counted towards the final result?As a political scientist, I’ve been asked these questions many times and ...
Macklemore isn’t someone I’d usually think about. Sure I liked his big hit from a few years back, everybody did it was catchy and cool with some memorable lines. But if I was going to think of artists who might speak out on political matters or world events, he wouldn’t ...
Another week goes by in the Luxon government’s efforts to roll back the past 70 years of social progress. The school lunches programme is to be downgraded by $107 million, and women need bother their heads no longer about pay equity, let alone expect ACC to provide adequate sexual violence ...
Brrr, the first cold snap of the year. Hope you’re rugged up nice and warm. Here are some stories that caught our eye this week… This Week on Greater Auckland On Monday, we had a post from a new contributor, Connor Sharp, who dug into the public feedback ...
Almost all of the Wellington City Council’s recommended zoning changes to allow many more apartments and townhouses in its inner-suburbs have been approved.Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for subscribers features co-hosts and , along with regular guest on geopolitics, ...
Open access notablesA Global Increase in Nearshore Tropical Cyclone Intensification, Balaguru et al., Earth's Future:Tropical Cyclones (TCs) inflict substantial coastal damages, making it pertinent to understand changing storm characteristics in the important nearshore region. Past work examined several aspects of TCs relevant for impacts in coastal regions. However, ...
Do you believe New Zealand runs its general elections fairly and competently? As a voter, can you be confident that the votes on your ballot will be counted towards the final result? As a political scientist, I’ve been asked these questions many times and always answered “yes”, with very few ...
Thus far May has followed on from a quiet April in the blogging department, but in fairness, it has been another case of doing what I am supposed to be doing, namely writing original fiction. Plus reading. So don’t worry – I have been productive. But in order to reassure ...
Buzz from the Beehive A new government agency will open for business on July 1 – the Social Investment Agency. As a new standalone central agency effective from 1 July, it will lead the development of social investment across Government, helping ministers understand who they need to invest in, what ...
Bryce Edwards writes – “Follow the money” is the classic directive to journalists trying to understand where power and influence lie in society. In terms of uncovering who influences various New Zealand political parties and governments, it therefore pays to look at who is funding them. The ...
Alwyn Poole writes – After being elected to Parliament in 2008 the maiden speech of Hipkins was substantially around education policy. He was Labour’s spokesperson for education 2011 – 2017. He was Minister for Education from 2017 until February 2023. This is approximately 88% of the time Labour ...
Eric Crampton writes – A fashion industry group is lobbying for protections. They make the usual arguments and a newer one. None of it makes sense. An industry group says it pumped $7.8 billion into the economy last year – that’s 1.9 percent of New Zealand’s GDP. ...
In December 2006, Fiji's military leader Voreqe Bainimarama overthrew the elected government in a coup. He ruled Fiji for the next 16 years, first as dictator, then as "elected" Prime Minister. But now, he's finally been sent to jail where he belongs. Sadly, this isn't for his real crime of ...
Don't like National's corrupt Muldoonist "fast-track" law? Aotearoa's environmental NGO's - Greenpeace, Forest & Bird, WWF, Coromandel Watchdog, Coal Action Network Aotearoa, Kiwis Against Seabed Mining, and others - have announced a joint march against it in Auckland in June: When: 13:00, 8 June, 2024 Where: Aotea Square, Auckland You ...
Seymour describes sushi as too woke for school meals. There are no fish sushi meals recommended by the School Lunches programme. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / Getty ImagesTL;DR: The Government will swap out hot meals for packaged sandwiches to save $107 million on school lunches for poor kids. MSD has pulled ...
I don't mind stealin' bread from the mouths of decadenceBut I can't feed on the powerless when my cup's already overfilled, yeahBut it's on the table, the fire's cookin'And they're farmin' babies, while slaves are workin'The blood is on the table and the mouths are chokin'But I'm goin' hungry, yeahSome ...
The Ardern Government’s chickens came home to roost yesterday with the news that the country is short of natural gas. In 2018, Labour banned offshore petroleum exploration, and industry executives say that the attendant loss of confidence by the industry impacted overall investment in onshore gas fields. Energy Resources Minister ...
Hi,If you’ve been digging through the newly launched Webworm store (orders are being dispatched worldwide as I type!) you’ll have noticed the best model we had was Calvin.This is Calvin.Calvin.Calvin is 7, and is the son of my producer over on Flightless Bird, Rob — aka “Wobby Wob”. Rob also ...
This video includes 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). Climate change is everywhere. And when something's everywhere it can feel like it's nowhere. So how do we get our heads ...
Its a law like gravity: whenever a right-wing government is elected, they start attacking democracy. And now, after talking to their Republican and Tory and Fidesz chums at the International Democracy Union forum in Wellington, National is doing it here, announcing plans to remove election-day enrolment. Or, to put it ...
Yesterday Winston Peters focussed his attention on the important matter at hand. Tweeting. Like the former, and quite possibly next, orange POTUS, from whom he takes much of his political strategy, Winston is an avid X’er.His message didn’t resemble an historic address this time. In fact it was more reminiscent ...
Buzz from the Beehive A significant decline in natural gas production has given Resources Minister Shane Jones an opportunity to reiterate his enthusiasm for the mining and burning of coal. For good measure, he has praised an announcement from Genesis Energy that it will resume importing coal. He and Energy ...
“Follow the money” is the classic directive to journalists trying to understand where power and influence lie in society. In terms of uncovering who influences various New Zealand political parties and governments, it therefore pays to look at who is funding them. The political parties are legally obliged to make ...
Rob MacCullough writes – Here is my subjective ranking on a “most-left” to “most-right” scale of most of our major NZ Universities, with some anecdotal (and at times amusing) evidence to back up the claim.Extreme Left Auckland University of TechnologyEvidenceThe ...
Eric Crampton writes – I hadn’t thought about this one until a helpful email showed up in my inbox.It’s pretty obvious that income tax thresholds should automatically index with inflation – whether to anchor the thresholds in percentiles of the income distribution, or to anchor against a real ...
Jacqui Van Der Kaay writes – Parliament’s speaker had no option but to refer Green MP Julie Anne Genter to the Privileges Committee for her behaviour in the House last Wednesday evening. The incident, in which she crossed the floor to wave a book and yell at National ...
Gary Judd writes – The Dean of the law school at the Auckland University of Technology is someone called Khylee Quince. I have been sent her social media posting in which she has, over the LawNews headline “Senior King’s Counsel files complaint about compulsory tikanga Maori studies for ...
Cleo Paskal writes – WASHINGTON, D.C.: ‘Many of us have received phone calls from [the opposing camp] telling them if they join the camp they will be given projects for their wards and $300,000 [around US$35,000] each’, says former Malaita Premier Daniel Suidani. The elections in Solomon Islands aren’t ...
With hindsight, it was inevitable that (a) Hamas would agree to the ceasefire deal brokered by Egypt and Qatar and that ( b) Israel would then immediately launch attacks on Rafah, regardless. We might have hoped the concessions made by Hamas would cause Israel to desist from slaughtering thousands more ...
Placards and mourners outside the Kilbirnie Mosque following the Christchurch terror attack: MSD has terminated the Kaiwhakaoranga service, which has been used by 415 families since the attacks. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: The Government’s pledge to only cut ‘back office’ staff rather than ‘frontline’ services is on increasingly shaky ground, with ...
There’s been a few smaller public transport announcements over the last week or so that I thought I’d cover in a single post. Fareshare I’ve long called for Auckland Transport to offer a way to enable employer-subsidised public transport options. The need for this took on even more importance ...
Parliament’s speaker had no option but to refer Green MP Julie Anne Genter to the Privileges Committee for her behaviour in the House last Wednesday evening. The incident, in which she crossed the floor to wave a book and yell at National Minister Matt Doocey, reflects poorly on Genter and ...
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 ...
Who likes being sneered at? Nobody. Worse yet, when the sneerer has their facts all wrong, and might well be an idiot.The sneer in question is The adults are in charge now, and it is a sneer offered in retort to criticism of this new Government, no matter how well ...
When in government, Labour pushed to extend the Parliamentary term to four years, to reduce accountability and our ability to vote out a bad government. And now, they're trying to do it through the member's ballot, with a Four-Year Parliamentary Term Legislation Bill. The bill at least requires a referendum ...
A ballot for a single Member's Bill was held today, and the following bill was drawn: Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill (Hūhana Lyndon) The bill would prevent the government from stealing Māori land in breach of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. It ...
Simeon Brown, alongside Wayne Brown, is favouring a political figleaf now in exchange for loading up tens of millions in extra interest costs on Auckland ratepayers. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Ratings agency Standard & Poor’s is pushing back hard at suggestions from Local Government Minister Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown ...
Buzz from the Beehive One headline-grabber from the Beehive yesterday was the OECD’s advice that the government must bring the Budget deficit under control or face higher interest rates. Another was the announcement of a $1.9 billion “investment” in Corrections over the next four years. In the best interests of ...
Chris Trotter writes – Had Zheng He’s fleet sailed east, not west, in the early Fifteenth Century, how different our world would be. There is little reason to suppose that the sea-going junks of the Ming Dynasty, among the largest and most sophisticated sailing vessels ever constructed, would have failed ...
David Farrar writes – Two articles give a useful contrast in balance. Both seek to be neutral explainer articles. This one in the Herald on Social Investment covers the pros and cons nicely. It links to critical pieces and talks about aspects that failed and aspects that are more ...
The tikanga regulations will compel law students to be taught that a system which does not conform with the rule of law is nevertheless law which should be observed and applied…Gary Judd KC writes – I have made a complaint to Parliament’s Regulation ...
The future of Te Huia, the train between Hamilton and Auckland, has been getting a lot of attention recently as current funding for it is only in place till the end of June. The government initially agreed to a five year trial, through to April 2026, but that was subject ...
TL;DR: Hamas has just agreed to Israel’s ceasefire plan. Nelson hospital’s rebuild has been cut back to save money. The OECD suggests New Zealand break up network monopolies, including in electricity. PM Christopher Luxon’s news conference on a prison expansion announcement last night was his messiest yet.Here’s my top six ...
A homicide in Ponsonby, a manhunt with a killer on the run. The nation’s leader stands before a press conference reassuring a frightened nation that he’ll sort it out, he’ll keep them safe, he’ll build some new prison spaces.Sorry what? There’s a scary dude on the run with a gun ...
Hi,I know it’s been awhile since there’s been any Webworm merch — and today that all changes!Over the last four months, I’ve been working with New Zealand artist Jess Johnson to create a series of t-shirts, caps and stickers that are infused with Webworm DNA — and as of right ...
The OECD’s chief economist yesterday laid it on the line for the new Government: bring the deficit under control or face higher Reserve Bank interest rates for longer. And to bring the deficit under control, she meant not borrowing for tax cuts. But there was more. Without policy changes—introducing a ...
After a hiatus of over four months Selwyn Manning and I finally got it together to re-start the “A View from Afar” podcast series. We shall see how we go but aim to do 2 episodes per month if possible. … Continue reading → ...
In 2008, the UK Parliament passed the Climate Change Act 2008. The law established a system of targets, budgets, and plans, with inbuilt accountability mechanisms; the aim was to break the cycle of empty promises and replace it with actual progress towards emissions reduction. The law was passed with near-universal ...
Buzz from the Beehive Local Water Done Well – let’s be blunt – is a silly name, but the first big initiative to put it into practice has gone done well. This success is reflected in the headline on an RNZ report:District mayors welcome Auckland’s new water deal with ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate ConnectionsA farmworker cleans the solar panels of a solar water pump in the village of Jagadhri, Haryana Country, India. (Photo credit: Prashanth Vishwanathan/ IWMI) Decisions made in India over the next few years will play a key role in global ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – The Children’s Minister, Karen Chhour, intends to repeal Section 7AA from the Oranga Tamariki Act 1989 because it creates conflict between claimed Crown Treaty obligations and the child’s best interests. In her words, “Oranga Tamariki’s governing principles and its act should be colour ...
Geoffrey Miller writes – The gloves are off. That might seem to be the undertone of surprisingly tough talk from New Zealand’s foreign and trade ministers. Winston Peters, the foreign minister, may be facing legal action after making allegations about former Australian foreign minister Bob Carr on Radio New Zealand. ...
Brian Easton writes – This is about the time that the Treasury will be locking up its economic forecasts to be published in the 2024 Budget Economic and Fiscal Update (BEFU) on budget day, 30 May. I am not privy to what they will be (I will report on them ...
Te Pāti Māori is showing extreme concern over the Environment Select Committees adoption of a lucky dip draw to determine hearings for the Fast Track Approvals bill. Of the 27,000 submissions, 2,900 requested to present. All organisations will be heard; however, the remaining 2,350 submitters will be subject to a ...
Today New Zealand First will introduce a Member’s Bill that will protect women’s spaces. The ‘Fair Access to Bathrooms Bill’ will require, primarily in the interest and safety of women and girls, that all new non-domestic publicly accessible buildings provide separate, clearly demarcated, unisex and single sex bathrooms. This Bill ...
The Green Party is welcoming Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ continuation of Hon. James Shaw’s cross-party work on climate adaptation, now in the form of a Finance and Expenditure Committee Inquiry. ...
The National Government plans to cut 390 jobs at ACC, including roles in the areas of prevention of sexual violence, road safety and workplace safety. ...
The Government has been caught in opposition to evidence once again as it looks to usher in tried, tested and failed work seminar obligations for job-seeking beneficiaries. ...
The Green Party is welcoming the announcement by the Minister Responsible for RMA Reform Chris Bishop to approve most of the Wellington City Council’s District Plan recommendations. ...
David Seymour has failed to get the sweeping cuts he wanted to the free and healthy school lunch programme, Labour education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
Hon Willie Jackson has been invited by the Oxford Union to debate the motion “This House Believes British Museums are not Very British’ on May 23rd. ...
Green Party MP Hūhana Lyndon says her Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill is an opportunity to right some past wrongs around the alienation of Māori land. ...
A senior, highly respected King’s Counsel with decades of experience in our law courts, Gary Judd KC, has filed a complaint about compulsory tikanga Māori studies for law students - highlighting the utter depths of absurdity this woke cultural madness has taken our society. The tikanga regulations will compel law ...
The Government needs to be clear with the people of the Nelson Marlborough region about the changes it is considering for the Nelson Hospital rebuild, Labour health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall said. ...
Ministers must front up about which projects it will push through under its Fast Track Approvals legislation, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
The Government is again adding to New Zealand’s growing unemployment, this time cutting jobs at the agencies responsible for urban development and growing much needed housing stock. ...
With Minister Karen Chhour indicating in the House today that she either doesn’t know or care about the frontline cuts she’s making to Oranga Tamariki, we risk seeing more and more of our children falling through the cracks. ...
The Labour Party is saddened to learn of the death of Sir Robert Martin, a globally renowned disability advocate who led the way for disability rights both in New Zealand and internationally. ...
Labour is calling for the Government to urgently rethink its coalition commitment to restart live animal exports, Labour animal welfare spokesperson Rachel Boyack said. ...
Today’s Financial Stability Report has once again highlighted that poverty and deep inequality are political choices - and this Government is choosing to make them worse. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to do more for our households in most need as unemployment rises and the cost of living crisis endures. ...
Unemployment is on the rise and it’s only going to get worse under this Government, Labour finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds said. Stats NZ figures show the unemployment rate grew to 4.3 percent in the March quarter from 4 percent in the December quarter. “This is the second rise in unemployment ...
The New Zealand Labour Party welcomes the entering into force of the European Union and New Zealand free trade agreement. This agreement opens the door for a huge increase in trade opportunities with a market of 450 million people who are high value discerning consumers of New Zealand goods and ...
The National-led Government continues its fiscal jiggery pokery with its Pharmac announcement today, Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall says. “The government has increased Pharmac funding but conceded it will only make minimal increases in access to medicine”, said Ayesha Verrall “This is far from the bold promises made to fund ...
This afternoon’s interim Waitangi Tribunal report must be taken seriously as it affects our most vulnerable children, Labour children’s spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime. ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
A high-level New Zealand political delegation in Honiara today congratulated the new Government of Solomon Islands, led by Jeremiah Manele, on taking office. “We are privileged to meet the new Prime Minister and members of his Cabinet during his government’s first ten days in office,” Deputy Prime Minister and ...
New Zealand voted in favour of a resolution broadening Palestine’s participation at the United Nations General Assembly overnight, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The resolution enhances the rights of Palestine to participate in the work of the UN General Assembly while stopping short of admitting Palestine as a full ...
Introduction Good morning. It’s a great privilege to be here at the 2024 Infrastructure Symposium. I was extremely happy when the Prime Minister asked me to be his Minister for Infrastructure. It is one of the great barriers holding the New Zealand economy back from achieving its potential. Building high ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins today announced the upcoming Budget will include new funding of $571 million for Defence Force pay and projects. “Our servicemen and women do New Zealand proud throughout the world and this funding will help ensure we retain their services and expertise as we navigate an increasingly ...
New Zealand’s ability to cope with climate change will be strengthened as part of the Government’s focus to build resilience as we rebuild the economy, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “An enduring and long-term approach is needed to provide New Zealanders and the economy with certainty as the climate ...
Jobseeker beneficiaries who have work obligations must now meet with MSD within two weeks of their benefit starting to determine their next step towards finding a job, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “A key part of the coalition Government’s plan to have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker ...
A new standalone Social Investment Agency will power-up the social investment approach, driving positive change for our most vulnerable New Zealanders, Social Investment Minister Nicola Willis says. “Despite the Government currently investing more than $70 billion every year into social services, we are not seeing the outcomes we want for ...
Check against delivery Good morning. It is a pleasure to be with you to outline the Coalition Government’s approach to our first Budget. Thank you Mark Skelly, President of the Hutt Valley Chamber of Commerce, together with your Board and team, for hosting me. I’d like to acknowledge His Worship ...
Your Excellency Ambassador Meredith, Members of the Diplomatic Corps and Ambassadors from European Union Member States, Ministerial colleagues, Members of Parliament, and other distinguished guests, Thank you everyone for joining us. Ladies and gentlemen - In diplomacy, we often speak of ‘close’ and ‘long-standing’ relations. ...
The Therapeutic Products Act (TPA) will be repealed this year so that a better regime can be put in place to provide New Zealanders safe and timely access to medicines, medical devices and health products, Associate Health Minister Casey Costello announced today. “The medicines and products we are talking about ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop, today released his decision on twenty recommendations referred to him by the Wellington City Council relating to its Intensification Planning Instrument, after the Council rejected those recommendations of the Independent Hearings Panel and made alternative recommendations. “Wellington notified its District Plan on ...
Rape Awareness Week (6-10 May) is an important opportunity to acknowledge the continued effort required by government and communities to ensure that all New Zealanders can live free from violence, say Ministers Karen Chhour and Louise Upston. “With 1 in 3 women and 1 in 8 men experiencing sexual violence ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government will be delivering a more efficient Healthy School Lunches Programme, saving taxpayers approximately $107 million a year compared to how Labour funded it, by embracing innovation and commercial expertise. “We are delivering on our commitment to treat taxpayers’ money ...
New research on the impacts of extreme weather on coastal marine habitats in Tairāwhiti and Hawke’s Bay will help fishery managers plan for and respond to any future events, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. A report released today on research by Niwa on behalf of Fisheries New Zealand ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters will lead a broad political delegation on a five-stop Pacific tour next week to strengthen New Zealand’s engagement with the region. The delegation will visit Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, and Tuvalu. “New Zealand has deep and ...
There has been a material decline in gas production according to figures released today by the Gas Industry Co. Figures released by the Gas Industry Company show that there was a 12.5 per cent reduction in gas production during 2023, and a 27.8 per cent reduction in gas production in the ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins tonight announced the recipients of the Minister of Defence Awards of Excellence for Industry, saying they all contribute to New Zealanders’ security and wellbeing. “Congratulations to this year’s recipients, whose innovative products and services play a critical role in the delivery of New Zealand’s defence capabilities, ...
Welcome to you all - it is a pleasure to be here this evening.I would like to start by thanking Greg Lowe, Chair of the New Zealand Defence Industry Advisory Council, for co-hosting this reception with me. This evening is about recognising businesses from across New Zealand and overseas who in ...
It is a pleasure to be speaking to you as the Minister for Digitising Government. I would like to thank Akolade for the invitation to address this Summit, and to acknowledge the great effort you are making to grow New Zealand’s digital future. Today, we stand at the cusp of ...
New Zealand is urging both Israel and Hamas to agree to an immediate ceasefire to avoid the further humanitarian catastrophe that military action in Rafah would unleash, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The immense suffering in Gaza cannot be allowed to worsen further. Both sides have a responsibility to ...
A new online data dashboard released today as part of the Government’s school attendance action plan makes more timely daily attendance data available to the public and parents, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. The interactive dashboard will be updated once a week to show a national average of how ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced Rosemary Banks will be New Zealand’s next Ambassador to the United States of America. “Our relationship with the United States is crucial for New Zealand in strategic, security and economic terms,” Mr Peters says. “New Zealand and the United States have a ...
The Government is considering creating a new tier of minerals permitting that will make it easier for hobby miners to prospect for gold. “New Zealand was built on gold, it’s in our DNA. Our gold deposits, particularly in regions such as Otago and the West Coast have always attracted fortune-hunters. ...
Minister for Trade Todd McClay today announced that New Zealand and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will commence negotiations on a free trade agreement (FTA). Minister McClay met with his counterpart UAE Trade Minister Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi in Dubai, where they announced the launch of negotiations on a ...
New Zealand Sign Language Week is an excellent opportunity for all Kiwis to give the language a go, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. This week (May 6 to 12) is New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) Week. The theme is “an Aotearoa where anyone can sign anywhere” and aims to ...
Six tertiary students have been selected to work on NASA projects in the US through a New Zealand Space Scholarship, Space Minister Judith Collins announced today. “This is a fantastic opportunity for these talented students. They will undertake internships at NASA’s Ames Research Center or its Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), where ...
New Zealanders will be safer because of a $1.9 billion investment in more frontline Corrections officers, more support for offenders to turn away from crime, and more prison capacity, Corrections Minister Mark Mitchell says. “Our Government said we would crack down on crime. We promised to restore law and order, ...
The OECD’s latest report on New Zealand reinforces the importance of bringing Government spending under control, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The OECD conducts country surveys every two years to review its members’ economic policies. The 2024 New Zealand survey was presented in Wellington today by OECD Chief Economist Clare Lombardelli. ...
The Government has delivered on its election promise to provide a financially sustainable model for Auckland under its Local Water Done Well plan. The plan, which has been unanimously endorsed by Auckland Council’s Governing Body, will see Aucklanders avoid the previously projected 25.8 per cent water rates increases while retaining ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters discussed the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and enhanced cooperation in the Pacific with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock during her first official visit to New Zealand today. "New Zealand and Germany enjoy shared interests and values, including the rule of law, democracy, respect for the international system ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop today released his decision on four recommendations referred to him by the Western Bay of Plenty District Council, opening the door to housing growth in the area. The Council’s Plan Change 92 allows more homes to be built in existing and new ...
Thank you, John McKinnon and the New Zealand China Council for the invitation to speak to you today. Thank you too, all members of the China Council. Your effort has played an essential role in helping to build, shape, and grow a balanced and resilient relationship between our two ...
The Government is modernising insurance law to better protect Kiwis and provide security in the event of a disaster, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly announced today. “These reforms are long overdue. New Zealand’s insurance law is complicated and dated, some of which is more than 100 years old. ...
The coalition Government is refreshing its approach to supporting pay equity claims as time-limited funding for the Pay Equity Taskforce comes to an end, Public Service Minister Nicola Willis says. “Three years ago, the then-government introduced changes to the Equal Pay Act to support pay equity bargaining. The changes were ...
Structured literacy will change the way New Zealand children learn to read - improving achievement and setting students up for success, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “Being able to read and write is a fundamental life skill that too many young people are missing out on. Recent data shows that ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay says Canada’s refusal to comply in full with a CPTPP trade dispute ruling in our favour over dairy trade is cynical and New Zealand has no intention of backing down. Mr McClay said he has asked for urgent legal advice in respect of our ‘next move’ ...
The rights of our children and young people will be enhanced by changes the coalition Government will make to strengthen oversight of the Oranga Tamariki system, including restoring a single Children’s Commissioner. “The Government is committed to delivering better public services that care for our most at-risk young people and ...
The Government is making it easier for minor changes to be made to a building consent so building a home is easier and more affordable, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on making it easier and cheaper to build homes so we can ...
New Zealand lost a true legend when internationally renowned disability advocate Sir Robert Martin (KNZM) passed away at his home in Whanganui last night, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. “Our Government’s thoughts are with his wife Lynda, family and community, those he has worked with, the disability community in ...
Good evening – Before discussing the challenges and opportunities facing New Zealand’s foreign policy, we’d like to first acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. You have contributed to debates about New Zealand foreign policy over a long period of time, and we thank you for hosting us. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tracey Clement, Lecturer in Visual Art and McGlade Gallery Director, Australian Catholic University Tracey Clement, Impossible Numbers.Tracey Clement I slip the needle through a small loop of black thread, pull it tight and snip. Done. I have just tied off the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jochen Kaempf, Associate Professor of Natural Sciences (Oceanography), Flinders University Gonzalo Buzonni/Shutterstock From around 1996 to 2010, Australia was gripped by the millennium drought. As water shortages bit hard, most of Australia’s capital cities built large seawater desalination plants – Sydney, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Maria O’Sullivan, Associate Professor of Law, Deakin Law School, Deakin University Students have been protesting on university campuses across Australia for several weeks now, calling on their institutions to cut ties with weapons manufacturers supplying arms to Israel. Some have noted their ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Steven Hail, Adjunct Associate Professor, Torrens University Australia Wolfilser/ShutterstockThis article is part one of The Conversation’s “Business Basics” series where we ask leading experts to discuss key concepts in business, economics and finance. For the most part, economists continue ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Erin O’Brien, Associate Professor, School of Government and International Relations, Griffith University University campuses around the world have become the site of tiny tent cities in recent weeks, with student activists protesting the ongoing conflict in Gaza. Though the protests on ...
In this extract from The Bulletin, Stewart Sowman-Lund looks at the proposed law and the ongoing concern about it. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. Where we’re at with the fast-track ...
The revamped school lunch programme is budgeting $3 per lunch, rather than the current $8. But is it really so simple to cut costs? Shanti Mathias investigates. Last week, associate education minister and Act Party leader David Seymour announced the government’s revamped school lunch programme, which will provide food to ...
Exactly 100 years ago, on the eve of another Paris Olympics, young Kiwi Gwitha Shand was the talk of the swimming world. The 19-year-old from Christchurch had broken the world record in the 440-yard freestyle multiple times leading up to the 1924 Olympics, and was described in newspapers as one ...
The New Zealand book trade is still reeling after the shock news that Penguin has axed its head of publishing. The redundancy comes just as the biggest week of the year in New Zealand literature is set to take place. The winners of the Ockham national book awards are announced ...
A rest home with a concierge, iced tea fountain, hybrid Jaguars to drive, and caviar on the menu. That’s not imaginary or from some far-flung country – it’s reality here in Aotearoa. Oceania Healthcare just officially opened ‘The Helier’ – a retirement apartment and aged-care complex in the Auckland suburb ...
The USA and China are beefing, Winston Peters is getting sued by some Australian guy, and Helen Clark and Don Brash are friends now? Here’s everything you need to know about Aukus but were too afraid to ask. What is Aukus?Aukus, which stands for Australia, the United Kingdom, and ...
Opinion: The cold weather and spikes in power demand have been well handled by the electricity system The post No need to shock with a fake crisis appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A,DIV,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, Monday 13 May appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Asia Pacific Report About 1000 people in Aotearoa New Zealand gathered for a two-hour rally in central Auckland today and marched down Queen Street and returned to Aotea Square to mark the Nakba three days early — and protest over Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza. They called for an immediate ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra As it looks to an election next year when holding up Labor’s female vote will be vital, Treasurer Jim Chalmers has declared Tuesday will bring “a budget for mums and middle Australia”. “The primary ...
By Repeka Nasiko in Suva “Justice has won,” says Fiji’s acting Director of Public Prosecutions John Rabuku following the sentencing of former prime minister Voreqe Bainimarama and former police commissioner Sitiveni Qiliho. Speaking to The Fiji Times, Rabuku said that while they welcomed the judgment by acting Chief Justice Salesi ...
The foreign affairs minister has landed in Solomon Islands for the first leg of his Pacific tour, and an audience with the newly elected Prime Minister. ...
On an unusually hot night in January 2019, a little boy’s lifeless body was found face up in a small town’s sewage oxidation pond. To the police, it was an open and shut case: three-year-old Lachlan Jones had run away from his home in the Southland town of Gore, climbed ...
PNG Post-Courier New Zealand High Commissioner Peter Zwart and PNG Defence Minister Dr Billy Joseph welcomed a C-130 Hercules to Port Moresby this week to support Papua New Guinea’s response to the March 24 earthquake and recent severe flooding. “Papua New Guinea has requested New Zealand’s assistance to transport emergency ...
Grub Street King Luxon rode through the streets Of King’s Landing, and was troubled By the sight of hungry urchins in the mud. “Who would be the best of my Lords To deal with this negative optic?” He pondered. The answer came to him instantly. “Seymour!” he said to himself. ...
“The Bill does not provide environmental protection, good quality decision making, certainty, public participation or speed. It should be withdrawn.” ...
RNZ News Television New Zealand has breached its collective agreement with the E tū union when deciding on discontinuing programmes, the Employment Relations Authority has ruled. It was announced in March that 68 staff members who work for news programmes Midday and Tonight, consumer justice programme Fair Go, current affairs ...
Asia Pacific Report Barangay New Zealand’s Rene Molina has interviewed the country’s first Filipino Green MP Francisco Hernandez who was sworn into Parliament yesterday as the party’s latest member. This is the first interview with Hernandez who replaces former Green Party co-leader James Shaw after his retirement from politics to ...
An Australian Strategic Policy Institute report says Pillar Two could raise the industry to state of the art capability - or "crush" it "under the weight of the globe's biggest player". ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Marlene Longbottom, Associate Professor, Indigenous Education & Research Centre, James Cook University ShutterstockThis article contains information on deaths in custody and the violence experienced by First Nations people in encounters with the Australian carceral system. It also contains references to ...
“Instead of following along countries that are investing in death and better ways of killing people faster, we need to invest in life and in making Aotearoa a fair, just and equitable place where everyone has what they need for a dignified life.” ...
MARIAMENO KAPA-KINGI, TPM MP FOR TAI TOKERAU This Government will not waver in its mission to exterminate Māori. CHRISTOPHER LUXON Oh well look you know I don’t think that hard-working Kiwis want to hear language like that. It’s just really unhelpful rhetoric. My Government is genuinely committed to advancing outcomes ...
The body positivity movement started with women confronting the unrealistic expectations and unrepresentative portrayals of them in media and advertising. Men weren’t part of it … their bodies hadn’t been sexualised to the same extremes and they didn’t really need it. But now that’s changed. And in a warped sort ...
The New Zealand comedy legend takes us through her life in television, including the time she hugged Elton John and the unshakeable legacy of a girl named Lyn. In 1981, Ginette McDonald stood on the stage of Auckland’s St James Theatre and directly addressed Queen Elizabeth II. It was a ...
An essay by Lily Duval from the just-released anthology Otherhood: Essays on being childless, childfree and child adjacent.I was 22 when my friend Alice gave birth in the living room of our pokey Addington flat. She laboured in the blow-up pool for hours. Garish fish swam along the inflated ...
Ella Borrie on the best books about motherhood she’s come across so far. Over the past few years I’ve been drawn to books about motherhood. I’m fascinated by the joys and horrors of becoming a parent. The question of children also feels more pressing than it used to. It’s like ...
Out of gift ideas for mum? You can’t go wrong with a bottle of toilet cleaner and a new squeegee. Emily Writes is the writer and editor of Emily Writes Weekly. This week marks five years since I published a post on The Spinoff about Mother’s Day marketing titled ‘A ...
My husband is posted overseas for 12 months and I’m armed with an expensive, newfangled vibrator. Will I miss him? The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.A few days after my husband leaves, a new sex toy arrives at the front door. Nestled ...
Jaimie Baird’s new book Here Today Gone Tomorrow is a record of four decades of graffiti and street art in Wellington, told through more than 1,200 photographs. He spoke with Joel MacManus about what inspired the book. How did you first get interested in photographing street art? I remember ...
Editor Madeleine Chapman looks back at a busy week where food of all political leanings dominated. Sometimes you’re just going about your week thinking you’ve got a good handle on what might be coming as far as news topics and then someone (usually a politician) says something so ridiculous that ...
In a week of cold rain and frost, the climate in courtroom four upstairs at the Invercargill courthouse was simmering with restrained indignation. At times it felt like the famous Mexican standoff scene from Reservoir Dogs, or, as someone watching the proceedings described it, there was so much throwing of ...
A banner notification alerts me to the fact that I’ve received an Instagram message from @felicity.loves. She always comments on my posts. I shouldn’t have opened the message, but clicked on the notification before rationalising this. OMG! Are you in Wellys? X I debate not replying, but Instagram will inform ...
In Melbourne’s hardscrabble western suburbs where AFL – Aussie rules football – is a state religion, Callum Donaldson has been quietly grafting away, four months into an odyssey that he hopes will take him to another promised land: the NRL. It was a solid 2023 for the softly spoken 20-year-old ...
Pacific Media Watch Television New Zealand Pacific correspondent Barbara Dreaver has been made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to investigative journalism and Pacific communities in a ceremony at Government House, reports 1News. She has been the Pacific correspondent for 1News since 2002, breaking many ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Tuesday’s budget will respond to the deepening public agitation over Australia’s housing shortages by pouring new money into crisis accommodation for women and children, social housing and infrastructure. A specially-convened national cabinet late Friday ticked ...
By Kaneta Naimatu in Suva Journalists in the Pacific region play an important role as the “eyes and ears on the ground” when it comes to reporting the climate crisis, says the European Union’s Pacific Ambassador Barbara Plinkert. Speaking at The University of the South Pacific (USP) on World Press ...
Aldora Itunu is back in the Black Ferns squad after a three-year absence. The last of her 24 internationals was an underwhelming loss to France (7-29) in Castres to conclude the disastrous 2021 Northern Tour. The powerhouse prop won a Rugby World Cup in 2017 and thought she was done. ...
The fight to control major transport policy and projects in Auckland has burst into the open again, with councillors rejecting Mayor Wayne Brown’s latest attempt to steer things more under his influence. Councillors from the left and right broke ranks on the mayor’s bid to control Auckland Transport more directly ...
Exhausted by the general election campaign, horrified by the twilight zone of coalition negotiations, distracted by the silly season and waiting for the honeymoon to begin, Raw Politics has been in hibernation since October. From today, we’re back. Our weekly political video show and podcast returns for ...
By Patrick Decloitre, RNZ Pacific correspondent French Pacific desk Authorities in the small town of Boulouparis have commemorated Armistice Day on May 8 with a new memorial honouring New Zealand soldiers who were stationed in New Caledonia during World War II. The ceremony took place in the township on the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sara Dehm, Senior lecturer, international migration and refugee law, University of Technology Sydney The High Court unanimously ruled today that the Australian government can keep asylum seekers in immigration detention indefinitely in cases where they do not “voluntarily” cooperate with their own ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kim Munro, Lecturer, Creative Industries and Digital Media, University of South Australia Twenty-four hours after the release of Macklemore’s pro-Palestine protest song Hind’s Hall on social media on May 7, the video had already notched up over 24 million views. In ...
Failing to anticipate the complexity of the consenting system is being cited as the the current builder's shortcomings, an Infrastructure Commission review says. ...
Failing to anticipate the complexity of the consenting system is being cited as the the current builder's shortcomings, an Infrastructure Commission review says. ...
350 Aotearoa is calling the Environment Select Committee’s decision to allow oral submissions from just 40% of individual, unique submitters who asked to speak to the committee ‘a disgraceful blight to democracy’. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James Helal, Assistant Dean (Sustainability), The University of Melbourne Dubai skylineAleksandarPasaric/Pexels Since ancient times, people have built structures that reach for the skies – from the steep spires of medieval towers to the grand domes of ancient cathedrals and mosques. Today ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Edward Musole, PhD Law Student, University of New England Girts Ragelis/ShutterstockRecent trends show Australians are increasingly buying wearables such as smartwatches and fitness trackers. These electronics track our body movements or vital signs to provide data throughout the day, with ...
Papua New Guinea experienced a significant earthquake on 24 March in East Sepik and there has also been recent flooding there and in surrounding provinces. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Yousuf Mohammed, Dermatology researcher, The University of Queensland Maridav/Shutterstock You wake up, stagger to the bathroom and gaze into the mirror. No, you’re not imagining it. You’ve developed face wrinkles overnight. They’re sleep wrinkles. Sleep wrinkles are temporary. But as your ...
The Environment Select Committee has just announced that 60 percent of individuals who asked to speak at the hearings will not be heard. This equates to almost 700 people who made individual submissions and more than 1000 more who made a form submission. ...
The Royal New Zealand Ballet is performing Swan Lake around the country. What kind of dream does the ballet sell?Before going to see the Royal New Zealand Ballet perform Swan Lake, I had about as much familiarity with the plot of this ballet as could be expected from having ...
A new poem by Auckland poet Eamonn Tee. High Tide at Local Maxima It is only going to get worse. The streams will be narrow and fickle. The week will bend and buckle like a pot-bellied waist. You will make it to the weekend with one ...
Deepfake AI has its upsides, including endless cultural cross-referencing.
Star Wars in German. Watch out for the triangular battleship.
oh dear
@JoshShiaman
Tried using Text-to-Video AI to generate a @BlueJays commercial and it…um…did not go well….
https://twitter.com/JoshShiaman/status/1666615968024391686
A new vacancy.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/jun/10/unabomber-ted-kaczynski-81-dies-in-us-prison-cell
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ted_Kaczynski
The Green Party policies of higher tax on wealth to fund a guaranteed minimum income are excellent, and would transform NZ for the better. Would make a massive dent in poverty and reduce our collective NZ love of hammering on the poor. This makes the Green Party one of the very few parties with policies that actually address inequality, the greatest scourge currently plaguing NZ in my opinion.
I'm a bit interested in whether the Bomber at Daily Blog will agree – he has been calling for our massive inequality / class issues to be dealt with, rather than focus on identity politics (and I agree), and at last the Greens are looking a bit more like that.
Seems a good move. Marama (from your link): "The Income Guarantee means families will always have enough kai, or to buy the shoes and warm clothes that children need. Students will no longer have to skip meals to make ends meet and can focus on their study. And if something happens that stops people from working, there is a guaranteed income that's enough to live on." Applied socialism, huh?
They'll be too scared to admit that, I suspect. However issuing a policy that implies the intent to achieve a UBI outcome without calling it UBI will work in proportion to the number of voters who get the subtle message.
Simulating often works as well as being authentic. Some would argue the clever simulation of this policy is a pointer to their authenticity. Paradox often rules politics!
Let’s work towards a Labour/Green coalition. And the Greens make a wealth/land tax a non negotiable.
Yes, please, please make it non negotiable and poor old chippie receives another kick in the guts regarding re election.
The Greens are not proposing a land tax as such, they’re proposing a wealth tax that will leave most New Zealanders untouched. Only rabid RWNJs and trolls would object to this with their usual froth & hot air.
Like I said, please make it non negotiable.
Why should the Greens make a wealth tax non-negotiable? Because you think it is good policy and you would support it and you would vote for any party that would support this? If not, why not?
No, because it will ensure a change of government
So, you don’t think it is good policy? Why not?
Yep. IMO this would be transformational. And under $125,000 ?
That surely must be most of NZ ?
Looks good to me : )
Shouldn’t be too long before someone has a tax calculator up and running to see if you are better off with tax cuts under National or the Greens.
No need for a calculator, Jack. I already know I’d very likely be better off, money-wise, under a NACT government. The very wealthy will be, for sure. However, any children might not be. Many other people might not be.
Do what’s best for you, Jack, and let us know how much better you’ll be off under NACT.
The Greens now have a clearly articulated tax policy to take to the election. This is to be welcomed. It should now flush Labour out to come clean on their tax policy too. Do they agree with their coalition partner or not?
Na , not keen on ubi, tax wealth by all means but use it to give world class health, education, infrastructure.
Giving money away is a bad idea.
Who’s giving money away?
I want some too!
What else does "gaurenteed minimum income mean"
Nothing like handouts to trap one in poverty, .
Fair enough. Some people think we should cull the Social Welfare system and most if not all benefits.
One question for you though: what to do about those people & children already trapped in poverty? Let them eat cake? Let them swim? Let them learn some valuable life-lessons about making good personal choices?
It's a terrible knife edge balance imo.
But build a shit load of state house for you're solo parents feed kids at school, dacare etc,
There will always need to be benefits, but people need to left in no doubt that we pull the net as one, and they are required to do their bit.
Australia has a similar system, with the first $18000 tax free. “trapped in poverty??”
"Nothing like handouts to trap one in poverty, ."
A tired slogan, not actual information – and in fact the exact opposite of the truth.
Multiple studies show that versions of guaranteed minimum incomes do the exact opposite – they free people from poverty, give massive improvements in wellbeing and result in higher participation in employment.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-09-28/for-more-than-20-guaranteed-income-projects-the-data-is-in
https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/public-and-social-sector/our-insights/an-experiment-to-inform-universal-basic-income
Poverty tends to trap people in poverty, as does a lack of opportunity due to lack of resources.
I tend to agree – although both cases can be true at the same time. Conventional welfare handouts that are conditional and constrain a person's opportunities and agency are I believe prone to trapping people in poverty. There is a fair bit of evidence to support this idea.
But the core aspect of a GMI – or better still a fully tax integrated UBI – is that it is unconditional and the impact is quite different for exactly the reasons you lay out.
people with disabilities who can't work would starve without 'handouts'
100% UncookedSelachimorpha.
I applaud the invitation from the electoral review chair for constructive criticism and participation in the review process. However, I think the timing is a little off and there’s little appetite among the people and parties to really get stuck into this. Thus, this seems yet another review that will be archived and a wasted opportunity, which is a real shame.
https://thespinoff.co.nz/politics/10-06-2023/i-would-like-to-hear-from-all-those-people-electoral-review-chair-responds-to-critics
Some people seem more interested in gotcha politics and chasing trivialities in the greater scheme of things. There’s some evidence that all this negativity and adversarial (and unreasonably tribal & partisan) politics can reduce voter turnout, especially among less-informed or less-partisan voters, by increasing cynicism, apathy or confusion.
A low voter turnout favours the right, does it not?
Generally, yes. In fact, I almost wrote a Post about this last night!
I would be very interested in reading it, should you decide to post it.
I can't understand why the Greens want a wealth tax of 2.5% on $2m+ , but tax trusts over $2m at 1.5% ??? Doesn't that just encourage more transfer to trusts??
The trust tax will be on all assets in private trusts without the $2M/person threshold. Therefore, it would not make sense to move money to trusts to avoid a wealth tax, at least not up to the threshold, but also not beyond up to $5M/person (by my calculations).
The main impact is that wealth per se will be taxed more than at present, to a degree. Of course, any (personal) income generated through investments, for example, will be taxed as such (i.e. as income).
That’s my take on it.
Heh just watched Jack Tame, torture luxon, the anger was boiling just under the surface from luxon, I've seen that ugly in him a few times.
He didn't convince me on gmo.
He looked hopelessly conflicted on housing policy,
Bloody brilliant!!
Of course the local wingnut/cooker brigade have been pushing this.
https://thespinoff.co.nz/society/08-06-2023/no-whangarei-girls-high-school-students-are-not-identifying-as-cats
The reality.
https://kdvr.com/news/local/half-of-jeffco-schools-now-have-kitty-litter-filled-buckets-for-lockdowns/
https://www.theargus.co.uk/news/23580324.portslade-arrest-online-threats-kill-anti-trans-campaigner/
violent vile threat to Posie Parker from a male who identifies as a trans woman.
what comes around goes around
Just to be clear, you think that because the far right are using Kellie Jay Keen's centrist, populist women's rights movement that seeks to retain women's sex based rights and protect children from overmedicalisation, and they are using that to direct hatred at trans people, that Kellie Jay Keen deserves death threats?
I'd like to know when exactly you decided that directing violence at women speaking up about their politics was acceptable. And why. Because I remember a brief point in history when the left condemned this. Those days are gone, now protecting women from violence is no longer a fundamental principles, instead it depends on the women being subservient to someone's political views.
Posie Parker is a provocateur. Among the GC political views and misinformation she pushes, she also includes abhorrent, violent ideas. Parker has been recorded as saying: that trans men should be sterilised; that men with guns should go into and patrol womens' toilets, ie, she sanctions gun violence against trans women; and that trans women are sexual perverts who are also pedophiles.
She is a disseminator of lies and hate speech, which incite and inflame attacks on the trans community for merely existing, as seen by the huge uptick in hateful and violent social media speech in NZ around her visit against trans people. What goes around comes around is a fair description. Should Parker be able to run to the protection of a law she does not follow herself?
Do I think hateful and violent speech is a good thing? No, from anyone. Parker does not get immunity for her violent, inciting speech because she is 'defending women'. She certainly does not defend women who find her extreme views dangerous and wrong. She has said we will be 'annhilated'.
she is a provocateur, that's not unusual in political movements.
From memory, the context was that TM taking cross sex hormones shouldn't get pregnant. Do you disagree with this?
This was in a US context, and afaik she didn't say to shoot TW. It's still abhorrent, and stupid, but it's also normal in the US context.
Citation please. Link, quote and an explanation. I know the two other examples you are referring to, but this one is vague so I'd like some clarity and context.
her main purpose is women's sex based rights. She's not doing this to incite attacks on trans community for merely existing. I'm sure she'd much rather be getting on with her life.
Yes. But, we don't actually know what that is, because the people tracking it haven't said or shown, they've only told. We know that some people consider saying TW are male is a violence against trans people, so the details actuall matter. I have no doubt that the FR are now more focused on hating trans people, and we know that the VFF crowd are on board with GC issues now (kind of), but I don't see the kind of abuse you are talking about in their FB groups.
Ok, thanks for confirming you sanction violence against women. This is what I was pointing to.
Thank you, weka.
The patient addressing of each concern, care and clarity in your response is appreciated.
thanks Molly. I saw you do this the other day too. I think it's useful just to break it down each time, as much as we are able (and have the time to).
From the article:
Interesting that the paper only partially reported the last tweet which I saw when the account was still active.
Screenshots are posted here:
https://reduxx.info/trans-identified-male-who-avoided-prison-on-violent-charge-now-threatening-to-brutally-kill-womens-rights-activists/
Helen Joyce is also targeted by the same man. Unlike the out-of-context claims regarding her views, there is no lack of clarity here:
I'm no longer surprised by the failure of some to condemn clear directed threats of violence, so I post this just to ensure you – and others – know what and who your reflexive comment defends.
Apologies for size of images.
I thought I'd adjusted, but I somehow haven't saved.
I've resized them finally. Ignore my now deleted reply if you read it earlier.
I really need to write a tutorial post. Some notes for me as much as anything,
to embed twitter images, control click to open any twitter image in a new tab, then use that URL. URL should look like this https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FyOLTHDXoAAtli-?format=jpg&name=medium
Thanks, weka.
I've copied and saved
Are you against sacrificing animals for scientific research?
Are you against sacrificing humans for Tesla’s development and bottom line?
https://www.stuff.co.nz/motoring/news/300902739/teslas-autopilot-involved-in-far-more-crashes-than-previously-known
Ironically, it may get worse because Elon Musk seems to be wary of AI developments, at least some – perhaps a case of ‘when I do it, it’s perfectly ok, but when somebody else does it, it’s bad’.
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/27/technology/elon-musk-ai-openai.html
Google’s Bard AI generates plausible misinformation on 78 of 100 controversial topics
You wouldn’t trust Bard with your car, would you?
Here’s in informed opinion with a few mentions of Tesla:
https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/news/2023/05/23/limits-of-ai-and-why-it-matters.html
Archaic laws are bad, right?
It depends on who you ask and about which laws.
For example, ACT wants to scrap ‘archaic GE laws’.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/491773/national-would-end-genetic-modification-ban-if-elected
On the other hand, proposals to bring archaic laws around media regulation into the present are dismissed as ‘hate speech laws 2.0’.
https://thespinoff.co.nz/live-updates/01-06-2023/hate-speech-laws-2-0-act-wants-to-kill-proposed-online-safety-rules
can you please look at these images and see if you can resize them? I've tried width= in the html, and putting 500 in the width box. Neither worked.
.https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-11-06-2023/#comment-1953658
They're from Molly's comment above that, although I've made changes to the html in hers, and in my comments I had to download and then upload the images into TS to get them to work at all.
ah. Was using Safari. Just logged in on Firefox and it works fine. Might also be my slowish internet and the slow TS loading times today.
hmm, nope, still can’t get the images in Molly’s comment to resize. I don’t even know how she got twitter images in, I didn’t think they worked.
this is the html that Molly was using, for reference because I’m replacing the image with the TS URL ones.
img alt=”” src=”https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FyDpd71XwAIntMM?format=jpg&name=small” />
They seem of the right size now; somebody (you?) set width="60%".
I generally use width="100%" but for these images 60% is fine …
nothing I did worked in Safari. In Firefox width= worked on the TS images in my comments, but not the twitter images in Molly's comment. I replaced her URLs with the TS ones.
But below are my twitter tests with results noted. Firefox. Will retest in Safari shortly.
Repairs today on the server.
Replaced a dead chassis fan.
Fixed a failing 4Tb drive in the archive array. manufacture date 14Nov2021. Now looking for the invoice because I'm pretty sure that Seagate had a 3 warranty on Ironwolf. zfs is replacing it in the array.
Finally added the spare 1Tb SSD for the mdadm array for the standard. Brought it months ago, but this is the first time I have opened the case for a while.
Pulled out the remaining 12Gb SSDs for various old arrays.
Realized after I started up again that I'd left the backup_scratch (creates the hourly offshore backups for TS) in the fstab. It was causing startup issues. Booted up on a USB, and fixed it. Reset the backup system to a logical volume off the /home ssd.
Coffee time.. while I wait for the full backup to complete and ship.
Must be an inauspicious planet conjunction for mechanical fans, lprent: the fan on my rangehood died today, too…
any maths bods around? I need to calculate the net minimum wage hourly rate from $22.70 gross. Tax: 10.5% on the first $14,000, then 17.5% on the remaining. I get a net minimum wage of $19.20. Is that right?
(I'm writing a post on the Greens Guaranteed Min Income)
Yes
ta
I suggest adding ACC to that (1.53%) since PAYE is both income tax and ACC levies. Net minimum wage after PAYE is $18.85.
Should I include ACC? In the Greens' GMI for disabled people, they would get 80% of the minimum wage. But the GMI is tax free and presumably no ACC levies?
Generally income is exempt from ACC if it will be paid regardless of injuries as there's no point insuring it, so benefits and Super, for example, are exempt. Based on that principle, agree that increasing disability benefits will not attract ACC levies so net rates should just be after tax.
I had a look at the policy document and it didn't define "full-time" which is awkward, because most legislative things e.g. Stats NZ, Immigration, Working for Families consider full-time to be 30 paid hours per week but obviously most voters would see it as some range between 37.5 and 40 paid hours per week.
This is a useful tool:
https://www.paye.net.nz/calculator/
very good.
doesn't let me calculate without ACC levies though.
You’ll need to go to the ACC tab (third from the left) and change the default figure to zero.
is there a trick to getting it to stick?
never mind, I got it!
they got $19.25 and I got $19.20, probably close enough.
Not sure what you mean. It stays [at] zero for me until I change it (back) or refresh the webpage.I was expecting to see it change to zero before I did the next thing.
need one with 6 brackets now, to run the GP plan calcs. If you have one handy.
https://twitter.com/BrianBoruNZ/status/1667770594103025664
I think they said on the TV that the 385/week was a net figure.
yes, that's why I want the net minimum wage to compare.
Can we please factor in the GST costs when talking about how much disposable income us peasants have
test
that's me setting the width box to 500
that's me leaving the width box at the default for the image (around 830)
test 3
post comment at default, then editing to add width="60%"
Safari tests: default image size
setting width box to 500
default image size, then editing to add width="60%"
I like the pictures — and so does my cat! She perked right up and started patting at the screen when they came up…. 🙂
BD, I wish my cat would just pat the screen instead of walking all over the keyboard pressing keys that have got me doing all sorts of weird formatting and a couple of strange equations and 'something' where I had to ring the broadband company for help as he froze the whole works.
Then there is the sitting on the keyboard, plonk, and anguished As and Zs and /s dance all over the page.
Patting sounds quite civilised by comparison.
PS Weka I love the cat pics too.
we need more cat pics!
https://twitter.com/Six_Stinky_Cats/status/1650765720697942016
The Curse of the Fly.
I shouldn't laugh but I did.
Great "end of the day" for cat lovers.