These business people need to grow up and play by market rules. Put the wages up. Try $30 hour, or $35 hour, or heaven forbid $40 hour. See what happens. They are happy to take advantage of market conditions when it works in their favour, but when it works against them its all wah wah wah cry to nanny state. Pathetic children.
The bullshit is thick in the air. Workers have no sympathy for them. They are authors of their own demise.
I wish they would stfu – tired of hearing and reading this issue.
Did you notice that the majority of people actually didn't want the Rogernomic adjustments that brought in the present model of capitalism?
There's a point where have to accept that the only reason why we have the system that we have is because our democratically elected officials went against our wishes and that they're still doing it.
Yes, we support the system that's in place but that's because have no choice because we're not a democratic country and then we get used to it.
Rogernomics did not create the demand (it did impact the distribution) and to state that we have no choice highlights the systemic nature….there is choice ,just not one we are prepared to take.
I still remember it. Most did not want the Rogernomic reforms. 4th Labour's second term came about because people still didn't trust National and still didn't truly appreciate just what Labour were up to.
4th National got in because they implied, pretty heavily, that they were going to undo Rogernomics and then they went harder.
If we didn't have FPP in 1993 National would have been out but all the wasted votes ensured that they got back in.
Then we went to our first MMP election and people voted in NZFirst because they implied that they were going to go with Labour and would undo the reforms. Except, once they got in, they went with National. They did slow National down somewhat but the reforms continued.
It goes on. Our democratic government is littered with it not doing what the people wanted and voting for change achieving no change at all.
We are not a democracy, never have been and, until we take power from government and govern ourselves, we never will be.
Completely agree. They offer less than $4/h more than the living wage (which is the absolute minimum needed for a basic life in nz) and think workers should be flocking to them. Pay more!
It's not just the hourly rates. I went to one of the hiring sites out of curiosity and the expectation seemed to be 60 hours plus a week and accommodation that you could pay for out of the minimum wages. Plus all of these people desperately wanting labour basically had a job ad that said jobs available contact XYZ. No mention of location type of work estimated starting date hourly rate etc just nothing.
It has also as far as I can see suffered from the outsourcing model. Once the individual grower paid the workers direct and they organised it around an area. Now it is a lot of corporate orchards, gangmasters etc and this overhead has to be paid for out of the picker wages essentially.
Plus the fruit picking looks like an industry that has invested zero in any form of improvement apart from maybe espaliered apple trees. Rather than people running around with huge carrying weights – dropping fruit onto soft touch collecting services temporary walk ways – there must be plenty of ideas out there.
And some of these areas could well invest in all of the year multi skilled workforces that went from pruning to picking etc etc.
Maybe to start with a backstop arrangement for an area through maybe welfare that gave permanent employment with the individual growers taking on paying into the scheme and training according to their needs. Then gradually turning the worker co operative over to the workers in an area.
Actually the growers could design such a scheme for themselves to give better employment and maybe get a little support to implement. Anything would be better than the current whining which is moving from pruning to calving to picking etc
Because last time I saw this in the papers it was a contract rate per very large container of apples picked. Somebody not used to it isn't going to make minimum wage no matter how hard they work.
And, being contract, they then have to work out their taxes and expenses and other legal stuff. Once that happens the minimum wage is far gone.
That wage depends on how much per box the global market for our horticulture products is prepared to pay for them.
We're a low-wage, low-productivity, low R&D economy. Have been for two centuries.
Many of our horticultural lines do make global margins. But under our model we're always going to need low wage workers to harvest our commodity lines.
We're a low-wage, low-productivity, low R&D economy. Have been for two centuries.
No, we used to do serious R&D. As I said a few weeks ago – HMS Achilles had NZ developed RADAR installed on it. It just never got the support that it needed to become successful in developing product lines. Too much focus on low pay, low return farming.
But under our model we're always going to need low wage workers to harvest our commodity lines.
Then it can only be said that its time to dump that failed model.
True. I recall teaching in a school that looked at a NZ designed colour computer system in the 80s. Killed by the Apple 2e which was offered in bulk at prices NZ product couldn't compete with.
But the NZ designed computer was streets ahead at that time.
If that's the case then the income has to be allocated not as direct wages but through the 'social wage' (free at the point of use healthcare, tertiary education, subsidised state-built housing … whatever). It will still have to be paid for – and pretty much by the same sorts of people as those who are offering low wages. The very definition of a free lunch is when the brutalities of 'market discipline' get imposed on one group, while another escapes them.
It's a shame there wasn't any joined-up thinking there.
Massive rent increases, the product of allowing capital to inflate our property markets, means workers would make a net loss if they stayed cheap and cheerful.
I'd prefer to see orchardists invest in robotic harvesting. Get rid of low wage workers for horticulture as much as possible.
Every job that can be done by robot should be done by robot. That's pretty much all the low wage jobs gone.
Question: Why are business people still building retail stores? Haven't they heard of the internet?
Now, what do we replace it with?
My suggestion is going full R&D with a full 25% of the working age population in it. Of course, that would mean making education free (again) and that government would be pushing massive amounts into that R&D so that we even end up with robotic manufacturing from our own resources.
It's lovely as a free floating idea, but we don't have the commercial culture that will do that. Regrettably.
Our university robotics and mechatronics courses are full to the gills, but there's limited opportunities for those graduates here. There are more than there use to be.
Even our most advanced companies with some success in this field, like Dunedin's Scott Technologies, got bought out.
Our university robotics and mechatronics courses are full to the gills, but there's limited opportunities for those graduates here.
And that is why the government should be stepping in. Make that R&D happen. It would develop our economy so that we were competitive and it would develop our local talent.
Even our most advanced companies with some success in this field, like Dunedin's Scott Technologies, got bought out.
All our successful tech companies are as the capitalists strive for an ever greater oligarchy and less competition.
It's also proof that the government needs to ban offshore sales and/or stamp harder on anti-competitive practices such as buying up the competition.
Like a lot of other automation projects, unless the grower is the IT guy, he's held to ransom by them, so no net gain.
One of the things they tried at Sealord back in the day was a waterknife – a bit like a laser cutter, but for filleting fish. It wasn’t a bad idea as such, but it needed constant adjustment to get decent yield, and the IT cost of that meant they really had no gain over manual filleters. Could’ve worked if there were ten or so waterknives in the area to justify a pair of full time techs.
Much filleting is done by machine these days, especially in farmed fish. Uses robotic mechnical blades, the best machines consistently give higher fillet yield than the best manual filleters.
If you go to a fish processing factory in Norway (I’ve been to a few) – high degree of automation with people doing a lot of checking and maintenance, rather than bulk manual work. They all get a high quality free lunch, high wages and moderate hours etc. The cars in the carpark are of high quality and the profits made by the companies are high.
Go to a comparable factory in NZ (also been to a few) – lots of people doing manual work, old bombs of cars in the carparks, lots of staff needing dental work and earning the absolute bare minimum with no other benefits. Company profits are variable but certainly not consistently higher than in Norway.
The efficiency of automated filleting has much to do with a standardized feedstock, so it's a natural fit for aquaculture – up to a point.
Before NZ is ready for comparable automation it needs a relative abundance of capable engineers – we don't have them.
The poverty of our workers is more to do with greed and incompetence higher up than the relative efficiency of filleting machinery – manual filleters continue to build skill and rate for years, so a well run bare space factory can compete quite well with an overcapitalised machine heavy space – a lesson Detroit is still losing money from failing to learn in autoassembly.
NZ churns out fillet block when, were our fisheries even vaguely competent, they'd produce a greater proportion of higher value cuts. But it's a colonial fishery – it basically doesn't support the local market at all, so it struggles to test market anything that isn't as basic as dirt. Our per kilo returns are rubbish, and per kilo of wild biomass they are execrable.
You can't build a valid quality marque running slave ships – but our companies are dumb enough to try, and our regulators ineffectual enough to let them.
The other angle to this exploitation is WINZ/MSD need to drop stand downs, sanctions and abatement rates, so NZers can move seamlessly between work and income support.
Dropping the inquisitions, providing travel and accom assistance, along with living wage, would likely see all the pickers these clowns would ever need become available for seasonal work.
What a great practical and realistic line to this thread. Good ideas. I suggest that people copy it and look at it regularly for an example of how much better NZ could be if we had participatory democracy, with people with knowledge and desire for a prosperous, enterprising country where we put our heads and muscles together for the good of a well-run country that made provision for all at their various levels.
Ad does say 'But under our model we're always going to need low wage workers to harvest our commodity lines.' So as AB suggests along with the others ideas, we need some better thought out ways. I think that is the trouble – neolib is like rote learning, it's learn and follow – like a cult really.
Well when people lose their jobs they are told it is an opportunity for them to do some thing different and BTW don't expect any government support.
Shouldn't these employers face the same barrage of advice?
But These employers are wanting student loan reductions, visa's issued, wanting quarantine used (if they say they want to pay for that then pay higher wages) plus a photo of two paid! managers. Anything but looking at themselves
The headings look good Ad, I hope the content provides a practical level of help – real social investment, not like National's banner waving, for the business approach mainly.
Our Plan to Get New Zealand Working – National Party
Jul 9, 2020 – And we developed the social investment, or actuarial approach, to help analyse which types of government spending and investment will in fact …
Vote Green if you want any real welfare reform and improvement. Labour has shown almost no interest in making any material changes in their first term – ignoring almost everything the WEAG recommended.
Carmel Sepuloni agreed to roughly 1 percent of the welfare report's recommendations by cost.
when you are on contract and have to pay your own acc levies and other associated self employment costs$ 25 per hour wont be $25 per hour. its a bullshit headline. and you will only get that rate IF you are very good at the job, and work flat out.
Pretty sure fruit pickers don't have to pay their own ACC levies etc.
But it is a piece-work rate, so only the fastest pickers working the best conditions can get that rate. Slower workers, or if you're picking trees that have already been picked once, you won't be able to achieve that hourly rate.
"How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds, & Shape Our Futures" – Kim Hill interviews the author this morning at 10.05
“Entangled Life is a dazzling, vibrant, vision-changing book. Sentence after sentence stopped me short. I ended it wonderstruck at the fungal world and the earth-shaking, hierarchy-breaking implications of Sheldrake's argument.”
— Robert Macfarlane, author of Underland
Merlin is a scientist with the imagination of a poet and a beautiful writer… This is a book that, by the virtue of the power of its writing, shifts your sense of the Human… it will inspire a generation to enter mycology."
— Michael Pollan, author of How to Change Your Mind
The natural world is more fantastic than any fantasy, so long as you have the means to perceive it. This book provides the means."
— Jaron Lanier, author of You Are Not A Gadget
Within 24 hours of finishing “Entangled Life” I had ordered an oyster mushroom-growing kit. I started scrutinizing the lichens that hug the damp concrete in the yard. This book may not be a psychedelic — and unlike Sheldrake, I haven’t dared to consume my copy (yet) — but reading it left me not just moved but altered, eager to disseminate its message of what fungi can do.”
I haven't checked it out yet but the reviews suggest he's illuminating a dimension of our relationship with nature profoundly. His father (Rupert) was a biochemist, and originator of the theory of morphic resonance. A couple of deep thinkers about our Green world, showing how to reconnect…
This is my field, Dennis; the reading, the listening-to, the watching (McFarlane, Sheldrake, Stamets, McKenna et al) , as well as the foraging, cultivating (Shaggy Parasols, Velvet Shanks, oysters, Birch boletes etc. etc.) You might enjoy Stephen Harrod Buhner (Plant Intelligence and the Imaginal Realm), Monica Gagliano (Thus spoke the plant) and Natasha "Planthropocene" Myers and the paintings of Pablo Picasso
"Stephen Harrod Buhner is the senior researcher for the Foundation for Gaian Studies." I hadn't heard of him, but have been writing about the Gaian view sporadically since attending the Gaia Conference at the University of Auckland in 1989. I had been an avid consumer of Lovelock's books before that.
Sue Bradford also was there, and in the aftermath a working group was formed which she & I joined to brainstorm the formation of a new political party on the basis of Gaia. I have a folder of notes from the meetings of that group in the following months.
Eventually that group joined with the residue of the Values Party and a couple of others to form the Green Party, but by then I had been alienated by the tedium induced by discourse with pedestrian leftist mainstreamers pretending to be alternative and had to stop attending those meetings. When they got 7% at the next election I decided to try & be more tolerant…
The bit I liked best was the evidence around distributed intelligence in a brainless network organism. So it's not as if there's no hope for National or Labour – so long as they operate more like network than org or hierarchy…
The brain is a brainless network too. The network does not have a brain, it is a brain. On that note, you may want to ‘meditate’ on the ‘3.5% rule’ that you are so sceptical about.
Hey Wayne, if you are around I totally agree with your views re- the use of the military from the start of the pandemic scare.
In 1987 I was sent to Whenuapiai Air Base to fill-in for a colleague who was on long service leave. I was there when Cyclone Bola wreaked havoc in the Hawkes Bay and Taranaki regions. For the first time I saw the military in action and was very impressed. They were up and running at full throttle in less than 24 hrs. The management of the rescue effort followed by the aftermath clean up was superb. So much so, I applied for a permanent position at Whenuapai and ended up spending nearly 4 years on that base.
Thanks for that link. It seems Dr Miller has transcribed the entire interview, which was done on Skype (sound only) on Thursday morning. I didn't appreciate that TVNZ picked up these interviews.
As for a future Cold War, it is very uncertain. But I don't like the portents. It seems to me the China US relationship will get worse before it gets better. The US doesn't know how to accommodate a rising power, and China seems to be going out of its way to be bellicose.
As for a future Cold War, it is very uncertain. But I don't like the portents.
Can't say I like them either and, to my mind, its got a good chance of being a hot war rather than cold. Especially, as you say, China seems to be going out of its way to be bellicose and hard nosed. They seem to be getting more intransigent on the Indian border and the SCS.
In NZ we need more imagination on this issue.
We need to build up our defence forces so that they're actually capable of defending us and we need to check out existing and possible allies that will stand with us (I'm pretty sure that at least a couple of traditional allies won't).
…we need to check out existing and possible allies that will stand with us (I'm pretty sure that at least a couple of traditional allies won't)
I think we are more likely to have other Asian countries standing with us – or us standing with them. It would seem to me our future is becoming more aligned with Asia both in an economical as well as a geo-political sense than our traditional allies.
I have grave doubts about the over-all sanity of the Brits these days. 🙄
Ron Mark will be the only NZ First MP I will miss. I think he has done the best job of any defence minister in 20 years. Marks has made sure that the NZDF are pandemic ready compared to security guards. As well Marks has ensured operational equipment is being sourced.
From first to last the seaman’s thoughts are very much concerned with his anchors. It is not so much that the anchor is a symbol of hope as that it is the heaviest object that he has to handle on board his ship at sea in the usual routine of his duties. The beginning and the end of every passage are marked distinctly by work about the ship’s anchors. Joseph Conrad
It may be that this anchor denotes the end of the passage.
edit
I think Shane Jones fitted the persona that many ordinary blokes wanted, not one clipped onto the political beltway, a lawyer, professional with theories about everything, but his own man, with experience on the ground etc. That perhaps was the feeling that similar USA punters got from Trump. Now that people have seen this type in action, given them a go, perhaps they will be able to let them go and see a different type of representative is needed to advance our nation's aims and 'make us great again'.
I'm not sure he ever resonated much with anyone really. A lot of folk wanted him to, but he was more beltway selection than dignity of labour, and his rhetorical skills… might be there in Maori, but aren't being quoted in English. Bit of a fugazi really.
Martin does not quite make the grade for me. In saying this she is the next best performer and then Peters.
This election is going to be all about the Labour and National Party. Probably like first past the post days. Televised debate is going to indicate the survival of the minor parties.
I heard Jane Fonda mention this rule to Kim Hill about 20 mins ago:
“There weren’t any campaigns that had failed after they had achieved 3.5% participation during a peak event,” says Chenoweth – a phenomenon she has called the “3.5% rule”. Besides the People Power movement, that included the Singing Revolution in Estonia in the late 1980s and the Rose Revolution in Georgia in the early 2003.
Erica Chenoweth, a political scientist at Harvard University, confirms that civil disobedience is not only the moral choice; it is also the most powerful way of shaping world politics – by a long way.
Consider me a sceptic. Protests rarely work nowadays. If the prof is correct, she has measured a critical threshold that transitions a protest movement into a viable political force. We need corroboration, but it would be gamechanger in politics if the rule does get established. All FPP democratic systems would be threatened by the potential.
thinking now of NZ contexts where it might apply. 10,000 people marching in Dunedin stopped the move of the hospital neurology department to Chch (in the context of a campaign). That's 7% of the population.
Clever enough to apply postmodern framing. Perception driven by lack of reality. Is not applying both/and logic stupid? Would be unfair to assent. I bet teachers still can't teach the generic form – merely conforming to convention in teaching the application to maths & computing only.
If you apply the version most seen in physics (Schrodinger's cat) then you need to actually measure the ratio between protests that did change govt policy and those that didn't. The measurement collapses the wave function.
Twenty years into the new millennium is time enough for that testing. My guess is that failure would come in around 95-98% of the total.
2: it's always so damned noisy, with the usual suspects on megaphones yelling the same shit. What do I want? Shut the fuck up for a few minutes, please.
3: The proximity of so many people is disconcerting. I suspect my personal space is measured in light years.
"If Labour's Claytons tax policy gave the finger to those who want progressive taxation, National's Infrastructure Bank seems designed as a deep betrayal of those who value genuine fiscal responsibility.
Labour strategists are thrilled by the far left's negative reaction to Jacinda Ardern and Grant Robertson's promise to leave the tax system basically as it is.
The Government's big two confirmed there will be no shift away from taxing good things like wages, salaries and profits, to taxing allegedly bad things such as capital gains, inherited wealth, carbon and consumption.
Through a social democrat or environmental lens, John Key and Bill English's 2010 tax switch, which paid for tax cuts on low incomes by increasing taxes on consumption, was to the left of what Labour unveiled on Wednesday.
In fact, Labour unveiled almost nothing at all. Its so-called tax "policy" consisted of just a single measure — the restoration of Helen Clark and Michael Cullen's 39 per cent marginal income tax rate, but only on earnings above $180,000 a year.
Whereas Clark and Cullen risked whacking the top 5 per cent of income earners — those earning the equivalent of $113,366 in today's money — Ardern and Robertson have targeted just the top 2 per cent.
Even Don Brash was more progressive, proposing in 2005 that the 39 per cent rate kick in at $157,468 in today's money. This is not what Labour activists signed up for."
I hate to say it, but I agree with Hooton. Party Vote Green is the answer, as usual.
it doesn't matter if it's pay walled, you still have to link (some people have access). If you quote-google search then you will get the link. It's not that hard 🙂
Hooton lied about the GST increase delivering a tax cut to those on lower incomes – they did cut income taxes, but those on lower incomes would have spent more in GST than they got in reduced income taxes.
Those who had spare income to save/invest benefited from the change. And they are/were not those on lower incomes.
An increase in GST is an increase in a regressive tax.
Hooton's object is never up front. In this instance it is to slip this little whopper under the radar.
Through a social democrat or environmental lens, John Key and Bill English's 2010 tax switch, which paid for tax cuts on low incomes by increasing taxes on consumption, was to the left of what Labour unveiled on Wednesday.
Key and English's GST increases were of course steeply regressive, but Hooton wants his false 'fact' out there muddying the waters of conversations about tax fairness.
I saw that SPC and Stuart….couldn't agree more….complete bollocks of course…..that is the problem with Hooton. He can make a great deal of sense until his pro-National bias kicks in then he leaves reality behind.
Through a social democrat or environmental lens, John Key and Bill English's 2010 tax switch, which paid for tax cuts on low incomes by increasing taxes on consumption, was to the left of what Labour unveiled on Wednesday.
No, it wasn't as it:
Didn't pay for the tax cuts for low incomes – it put the taxes on low incomes up as GST is regressive
Gave the rich an actual tax cut
Increased the deficit as the amount of government income from taxes went down
Hooton actually knows all that and so he must be lying.
"Goldsmith's first strategy to get the numbers right has been to target failed programmes like fees-free tertiary education and KiwiBuild, and the universal Baby Bonus — but even these are small change in the context of his ambitious target.
His second strategy is not so robust — stopping contributions to the Super Fund."
Now that is truly nasty. Goldsmith is well to the right in the National caucus; it will be scary times if he becomes finance minister.
He was nominated by some alt-right populist in Sweden – one of around 300 or so people that have also been nominated. Chances of him winning are pretty much zero.
Laura Leebrick, a manager at Rogue Disposal & Recycling in southern Oregon, is standing on the end of its landfill watching an avalanche of plastic trash pour out of a semitrailer: containers, bags, packaging, strawberry containers, yogurt cups.
None of this plastic will be turned into new plastic things. All of it is buried.
"To me that felt like it was a betrayal of the public trust," she said. "I had been lying to people … unwittingly."
[…]
But it's not valuable, and it never has been. And what's more, the makers of plastic — the nation's largest oil and gas companies — have known this all along, even as they spent millions of dollars telling the American public the opposite.
NPR and PBS Frontline spent months digging into internal industry documents and interviewing top former officials. We found that the industry sold the public on an idea it knew wouldn't work — that the majority of plastic could be, and would be, recycled — all while making billions of dollars selling the world new plastic.
The industry's awareness that recycling wouldn't keep plastic out of landfills and the environment dates to the program's earliest days, we found. "There is serious doubt that [recycling plastic] can ever be made viable on an economic basis," one industry insider wrote in a 1974 speech.
Yet the industry spent millions telling people to recycle, because, as one former top industry insider told NPR, selling recycling sold plastic, even if it wasn't true.
If it isn't recycled it should be burned – at a decent temperature it's no worse than its precursor petroleum. Burying it is just begging it to make its way into the food chain.
It can be done to advantage – Seoul generates electricity from household waste – better than landfilling it. You need a disposal system even if you recycle – some plastics are invariably mixed or contaminated.
As with a lot of such issues, it's a matter of finding a sensible integrated solution – Seoul has a lot of paper trash as well, and burning the mix keeps the temperature in a respectable range. Lack of space means landfill was not an option.
I'm quietly interested in using waste plastic to fire a pottery kiln – there's plenty of it about, and the high temperature burning is a necessary part of another process.
which is used as packaging around tv's, fridges, etc etc. Impact/compression resistant cardboard would provide exactly the same, without the consequential pollution/disposal effects.
The scale of plastic pollution…and its adverse effect on our Earth? Frightening
Further to @Ad (1.5.3) note the emphasis on work, even when referencing those with disabilities. Yet again, lets ignore the highly inconvenient fact there are are group of people with disabilities who will never be able to participate in the paid workforce no matter how much they want to. That's just reality.
But by acknowledging that, their plight will have to be admitted to so lets just not even mention they exist ergo the problem doesn't exist and we don't have to admit how badly the seriously ill and disabled in NZ are treated by all governments, because, not politically palatable.
”Work will set you free” as iron gateway signs announced at certain Nazi WWII Concentration Camps.
Neo liberals similarly misuse “work” in a way that obscures what is really going on in our society.
Maybe, the Covid unemployed newbies will react to the built in sadism of WINZ/MSD with calls for the obvious-increase benefit levels, individualise benefits, drop sanctions, abatement levels, and stand downs.
Really IRD should handle a streamlined income support including a Basic Income. Disband WINZ, and set up a new Social Security Agency for special needs groups-disabled, sick, ACC etc. Base it on no inquisitions, just pay and support citizens with what they reasonably need to have some sort of life.
Next Saturday would have been the election. I need to look at how all of the political parties are polling today. I would like to see a poll for next Saturday for the election which has been redated.
Possibly there are people out there who think there is an election next week. Those who have the election bottle of wine in the fridge will need to wait a bit longer. I reckon I will need a wine or two by election day.
This time 3 years ago I had my exit plan worked out in the event of a 4th-term National Government, as did others I knew, personally and anecdotally, things had become that unbearable. Annoying as NZF have been, it's safe to say Winston's decision literally saved a lot of lives. Citizens should not have to live in genuine fear of the outcome of General Elections.
This week the Government was able to borrow at a negative interest rate for the first time. Ever.
That means the funder of the govt gets to pay a transaction fee for the privilege of lending us their money. Rather nice of the capitalists, eh? "Guys, we got so much spare money we're dead keen to pay you to use it for a few years."
That means there are fund managers out there this week with so few places to put their money and so afraid of the future that they are willing to pay more than $1m for a piece of paper that guarantees they will get $1m back in 20 years time.
And just think of how effed they'd be if the government wasn't willing to do so because they simply don't need to do so. A government can create all the money that it needs.
The NZ government can create money and they can buy stuff with it. Yes, they can even buy stuff from offshore with it. They can do that because that money allows those people offshore to buy product from NZ.
b)they were unable to get it somewhere else or make it themselves
c) the price was right
and then there is the ratio of available of NZD in relation to goods….you can make as many NZD as you like but you cannot create the unlimited goods you hope they represent nor the unlimited desire to hold them.
ALL of our major exports are freely available from a multitude of suppliers
Im sure Boeing and Airbus or Phizer will be falling over themselves to trade their products for NZD (or the wine and cheese they can buy with them)
But think about it in context of the rich person who has so much money and nowhere to spend it. They've got millions and millions of dollars, nowhere to spend it and if they put it in the bank the banks will charge fees on it because they don't have anywhere to put it either.
That's why they're so keen to buy NZ bonds with such a low negative interest rate – because it would cost them more to put it in the bank.
As I say, the government creating money can really fuckup the capitalists as they'd lose their bludging and they'd lose the ability to say, 'see, you need us', because we simply don't.
And the deflation the negative rate is indicating does not bode well for demand for trade in the real economy…indeed it indicates the lack of confidence in the real economy to maintain its functionality.
The bond purchases are no indication of offshore desire for NZD unless the purchasers are from offshore.
No, they're a sign the the wealthy are looking for anyway to protect their money from decreasing as it would upon the open market or even if they just kept it under the mattress.
I'm saying that the government shouldn't be giving them that security.
And it doesn't matter if there's any demand from offshore or not. Chances are that people offshore would still accept it as payment knowing that they could buy product from NZ at any time if the government used it to buy from offshore. The government can spend locally as well and that would, in many cases, be better for the economy and NZers.
indeed it indicates the lack of confidence in the real economy to maintain its functionality.
And government spending can maintain and increase that functionality which, really, is my whole point and they don't need to sell bonds to rich people so as to protect those rich people's wealth to do it.
which takes us back to the beginning….the Gov can do as it wishes with the NZD but that is of little use when most of what we need to maintain our economy (and by extension society) is traded in currencies other than the NZD.
Stuff reports a gathering of Jamie-Lee-Ross supporters in Auckland to march against the lockdown.
At least one busload of them went up from Bethlehem/Tauranga. I haven't noticed too many being restricted or disadvantaged in The Bay area at Level 2. What did Muldoon call them? Rent a crowd"?
Should at least end the misguided view among some (on here) that JLR is the good guy in Botany, simply by not being National. He's signed up to the Q-anon madness, and embraces the far right. Luxon is bad, but not worse.
Fortunately Ross only has another month in the job, and his nasty party will find out their true level of support. Good riddance.
Yes. Muldoon called them a Rent a Crowd but he was lying. They ranged from young students to the elderly and they were genuine. There were plenty of good reasons to protest during the Muldoon era and time proved the protesters were right.
Can't say the same about today's motley crowd in Queen St. If they have bused people to Auckland from other part of the North Island then they're suspect and could be described as a Rent a Crowd.
I'd love to know who's paying for it all, bussing people from all over the place wouldn't be cheap, and I can't see his fb followers doing it unless it's free
Loved the bit about Billy The Kreep getting the quarantine breaker out of prison after seven days. Dumb shit is so thick he didn't know she was eligible for release after serving half of her sentence. Gives some indication of the intellect of his gang of 'protesters'.
Seems helping citizens with generous support payments to avoid prematurely opening up the economy is a winner.
TORONTO (Reuters) – Canada reported zero COVID-19 deaths in the past 24 hours for the first time since March 15, according to public health agency data released late on Friday.
With most provinces easing lockdown restrictions and as schools reopen for in-person classes, Canada’s infections have seen a mild pick-up in recent days. Authorities have been on high alert to avoid fresh outbreaks, and provinces including British Columbia have imposed new curbs to tackle the spread of the virus.
I feel that our international knowledge is low and shows a lack of understanding of the workings in politics elsewhere. The National Library has acted pragmatically and is making room for more NZ books by passing rarely used books to other libraries. That is an indication of a lack in us, and insularity.
Insular and unempathetic, materialistic, possessed by desire for consumerism, superior possessions and lifestyle, sentimentally moved by populist tragedies, valueless about others' plight? NZ'RUs? Brave New World?
I ran across a recent essay from The Brothers Krynn, which attempts to map common horror monsters onto the Seven Deadly Sins: https://canadianculturecorner.substack.com/p/horror-monsters-and-vice My interest, however, is not in the meat of the piece, but rather the opening paragraph: It is an interesting fact that in recent decades, Vampires have ...
Buzz from the Beehive Transport Minister Simeon Brown dutifully issued advice to all road users to keep safe on our roads during the Easter weekend. He encouraged them to stay safe, plan their journeys ahead of time, and be patient with other drivers while travelling around this Easter long weekend. ...
Oliver Hartwich writes – New Zealanders recently learned about a new feature film. It will be about former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern – and taxpayers will subsidise it to the tune of NZ$800,000. Ardern had nothing personally to do with either the film or the subsidy. But her government’s ...
TL;DR: Here’s the top six news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa-NZ this week, and a discussion above that was recorded yesterday afternoon above between and The Kākā’s climate correspondent : An independent review panel into the emergency response to Cyclone Gabrielle in Hawkes Bayconcluded “that ...
There are now only a few days left to give feedback on the Draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) on Land Transport 2024-34 (see our earlier post this week on GPS submission guides). As we’ve reported, the GPS is a disaster for Local Government, so we were particularly interested to hear ...
Willis has pledged to go ahead with the debt-funded tax cuts, despite growing opposition from her own supporters worried about appearing fiscally irresponsible. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for ...
Open access notables A survey of interventions to actively conserve the frozen North, van Wijngaarden et al., Climatic Change:The frozen elements of the high North are thawing as the region warms much faster than the global mean. The dangers of sea level rise due to melting glacier ice, increased ...
Bryce Edwards writes – New Zealand’s biggest-ever political donations scandal is finally at an end. But what is the conclusion? No one can really be sure. The Court of Appeal released its judgement on Tuesday about the Serious Fraud Office case against the NZ First Foundation. On ...
In 2015, then-Prime Minister John Key announced plans for a huge ocean sanctuary around the Kermadec Islands, banning fishing and mining from 15% of Aotearoa's EEZ. It was bold, it was ambitious, and it suggested that National might actually care about the environment. Except they fucked it up: Key failed ...
1. Who has just been given the accolade New Zealander of the Year?a. The Kokakob. The Cook Strait Ferryc. Fair God. Dr Jim Salinger 2. Which of these is an affront to decent society?a. Dame Edna Everageb. Mrs Doubtfire c. Dr. Frank-N-Furterd. Brian 3. Who is Penny Simmonds?a. The aspiring actress in Big ...
New Zealand’s biggest-ever political donations scandal is finally at an end. But what is the conclusion? No one can really be sure.The Court of Appeal released its judgement on Tuesday about the Serious Fraud Office case against the NZ First Foundation. On the face of it, the court found ...
Buzz from the Beehive Waves of rain are set to lash much of the North Island during Easter Weekend as a low-pressure system forms east of New Zealand, according to a weather forecast published in the past day or so. Niwa was warning of a “moisture-laden” long weekend, with rain expected ...
Look around us…Nicola Willis’ promises of balancing the books, of cutting spending without reducing services, and of delivering game changing tax cuts are disappearing before her eyes.Everyday we see stories of violent crime ending in horrific injuries, or worse. The cost of living worsens, whereas the PM claimed renters would ...
TL;DR: My top six news of note on the morning of Thursday, March 28 include:The Government will have to borrow between $10 billion to $15 billion more than previously expected in order to make up for a slowing economy and to pay for $14.9 billion of tax cuts, according to ...
This story by Naveena Sadasivam and Kate Yoder was originally published by Grist and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. The long-awaited jobs board for the American Climate Corps, promised early in the Biden administration, will open next month, according to details shared exclusively ...
Should landlords be able to deduct the interest on the loans they take out to bankroll their property speculation? The US Senate Budget Committee and Bloomberg News don’t think this is a good idea, for reasons set out below. Regardless, our coalition government has been burning through a ton of ...
Treasury’s first report on the economy since the change of government presents a damning indictment of Labour’s economic management. The problem for National is that it is so damning that logically, coupled with a rapidly slowing economy, Finance Minister Nicola Willis should respond to it by postponing or even cancelling ...
Budget tensions are becoming evident within the Coalition Government. Winston Peters made numerous political points in his speech to the NZF annual conference. But the attack on his own government’s fiscal policies raised issues of substance. ‘Today in the Sunday Star Times, journalist and former advisor to the Labour ...
Buzz from the Beehive The media – sure enough – have been binging on Finance Minister Nicola Willis’ release of the Budget Policy Statement and a statement headed Government announces Budget priorities This assures us – or rather, this parrots the Luxon team mantra – that the Budget “will deliver ...
The Ides of March brought me COVID followed by a bereavement. No wonder they tell you to be careful of them.I’m home now and have resumed the interrupted recuperation. Very much looking forward to getting back to regular things. Meanwhile, some thoughts…OneThis new Prime Minister guy just keeps getting more dire. ...
News that the Chinese ATP 40 cyber-hacking unit penetrated parliamentary internet networks in 2021 has renewed concerns about the PRC’s malign intentions in Aotearoa. But is the hack that significant given the length of time that has passed since its … Continue reading → ...
When Parliament passed the Intelligence and security Act in 2017, they assured us all that it was full of safeguards. Any intrusive surveillance of New Zealanders would be subject to a "triple lock", requiring the approval of the Minister and (supposedly independent) Commissioner of Intelligence Warrants, as well as post-facto ...
Eric Crampton writes – Richard Harman’s Politik newsletter provides a bit of the context that ought to have been showing up in other media reports on potential reductions in public service staffing. Media has been reporting on staffing cuts on the order of about 7%. Is that ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – It’s becoming increasingly apparent that many perceive free speech to have become the preserve of the politically right wing, the religiously conservative, the libertarian fringe, the anti-trans, the anti-Māori and…. well, just fill in with whatever groups or individuals you don’t like and don’t ...
Don Brash writes – As everybody who is not blind and deaf is aware, there is a huge political preoccupation with climate change at the moment, a widespread (though by no means unanimous) belief that global temperatures are rising mainly as a result of the greenhouse gases created ...
TL;DR: My six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy on Wednesday, March 27 include:Chris Bishop laid out his vision for filling Aotearoa-NZ’s $100 billion infrastructure deficit in a speech yesterday, emphasising user pays and private funding, but failed to say how to achieve bipartisanship on population, public borrowing and ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Former Finance Minister Grant Robertson and former Prime Minister Chris Hipkins have been conveying how unhappy they are with the tax system. Last week in his valedictory speech, Robertson called for the introduction of a wealth or capital gains tax. And this week Hipkins ...
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 ...
Buzz from the Beehive China has loomed large in Beehive considerations over the past 24 hours, largely because of that country’s mischief-making in the cyber espionage department. Two media statements emerged on that subject hard on the heels of the PM baulking at questions put to him on RNZ’s Morning ...
Chris Trotter writes – WHY IS THE NATIONAL PARTY doing so much for landlords, property developers, trucking, and construction companies, and so little for everybody who isn’t already pretty well-off? It’s as if protecting landlords’ investments and building apartments and roads now constitute the whole of National’s ...
Bryce Edwards writes – When she was campaigning to be Minister of Finance last year, Nicola Willis pledged that she would resign from the job if she failed to deliver tax cuts in her first Budget. Now, it’s that pledge, along with Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s ...
Robert MacCulloch writes – The Reserve Bank has doubled staff numbers in five years to 510, with personnel costs rising to $80 million in 2023 from $32 million in 2018 – up by a whopping 150%. I guess when you print $50 billion and flood markets with liquidity, ...
The furore. In case you didn’t notice there was a controversy in the weekend involving dolphins in a little town off the South Island. Don’t panic, they haven’t declared independence and resumed whaling, this was simply a sailing event.The problem began when racing was cancelled on the opening day of ...
For 20 years or more, the case for a meaningful capital tax gains has been mulled over and analysed to death, including by the tax working group chaired by Sir Michael Cullen. More than once, the International Monetary Fund has said a CGT would be a good idea for New ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: The Public Health Communications Centre (PHCC) call for urgent preventive action and a risk assessment survey of long covid in this briefing noteLocal scoop: NZ road deaths surpass OECD rates, so why is the govt reversing safety plans? ...
This story was originally published by Grist and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. This story is part of a collaboration with Grist and WABE to demystify the Georgia Public Service Commission, the small but powerful state-elected board that makes critical decisions about everything from raising ...
This is a guest post from Robert McLachlan Global warming is accelerating; 2023 was off the charts. We need to stop burning fossil fuels. In New Zealand, transport accounts for half of all fossil fuels burnt. In the Emissions Reduction Plan, transport emissions fall 41% by 2035. As the ...
Labour productivity has been receding rapidly over the past two years, reversing a post-lockdown rise. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy as at 6:26am on Tuesday, March 26 include:Workers have been treading water in output per hour worked for 12 years, ...
TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to April 2 include:Today, Parliament resumes sitting at 2pm for the second week of a two-week session. Officials for SIS and GCSB report their annual reviews in public to the Intelligence and Security Select Committee from 5.10pm.Tomorrow, ...
Faced with a barrage of criticism over the promised tax cuts from usually supportive commentators, Finance Minister Nicola Willis yesterday reaffirmed her intention to include them in this year’s Budget. The Government is up against it over the cuts just about every way it turns. Commentators like Fran O’Sullivan, Matthew ...
Here’s my pick of today’s substack posts as of 6:26pm on Monday, March 25: writes via his substack that Market-rate housing will make your city cheaper writes via his substack about the problems talking to double-cab ute (truck) drivers about their vehicles. today about moments of radicalisation in ...
Buzz from the Beehive Just before Christmas, Finance Minister Nicola Willis delivered something that was pitched as a mini-budget and brayed about the decisive action being taken to repair the Government books and support income tax relief in Budget 2024. In a statement headed Fiscal repair job underway. she introduced ...
My sister Belinda asked Dad yesterday what one word would describe Mum best. He said: vivacious.If you only knew her from the photos on the slideshow we've made for today,you might wonder about that, because the camera tended to lie with Mum.If ever she saw a camera pointed at her, she ...
There are two major public consultations closing in the next week, Auckland Council’s Long Term Plan (LTP), and the draft Government Policy Statement on Land Transport (GPS). Closing dates and times: LTP closes Thursday 28 February, at 11.59pm – a minute to midnight! GPS closes Tuesday 2 April, at 12pm noon – note that’s ...
From Kiwiblog’s David Farrar – Bryce Wilkinson writes: Senior Fellow Bryce Wilkinson’s analysis reveals that since March 2009, New Zealand has spent $158 billion more overseas than it has earned, but its NIIP has only fallen by $32 billion.Statistics New Zealand shows that receipts from overseas reinsurers have ...
Is she hinting that the Coalition Government will have to back down on key promises it made in Opposition? Brian Easton writes – The Minister of Finance, Nicola Willis, is telling an evolving story about her fiscal challenges. In Opposition she was confident that she could ...
Dear Nicola Willis,Right now you’ve probably got lots of competing demands coming at you. Ministers who’ve inherited quite a mess, or so you’ve told us, looking for money in the budget to improve things. I imagine that’s why they came to parliament - to make things better.You’ll have to make ...
The Local Government, Transport and Auckland Minister hasthreatened councils with intervention if they don’t merge water assets to take them off balance sheet, just as the now-repealed Three Waters plan directed. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My six things of note this morning for Monday, March 25 include:Simeon ...
A listing of 36 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 17, 2024 thru Sat, March 23, 2024. Story of the week Thanks to John Mason having the stamina to sit down to watch "Climate - the Movie" ...
This morning the Q&A programme had Simeon Brown on to talk about National’s replacement for Three Waters. In case anyone’s forgotten the three are - drinking water, waste water, and sewerage. It’s quite important not to get them mixed up. In much the same way that you wouldn’t want to ...
Today’s newsletter comes with a mini-podcast conversation between me and my buddy Liv Tennet, talking about her time as a child actor in Lord of the Rings. It’s a conversation with a lot of giggles as she talks about falling off a horse, and becoming a meme. Read ...
The Desmog Climate Disinformation Database documents, "individuals and organisations that have helped to delay and distract the public and our elected leaders from taking needed action to reduce greenhouse gas pollution and fight global warming." It's a who's who of the organised climate change denial movement, in other words. In ...
Bob Edlin writes – A High Court judge has decided miscreants who have mana – or who claim to have mana – should be treated differently from miscreants who have none. It’s a ruling that suggests indigenous law-breakers have a better chance of securing a discharge without conviction ...
Welcome to the first, and possibly last, edition of Brickbats, Bouquets and Bull’s Wool. In which I’ll take a look at the events of the last week or so, and rate them.In such ratings the numbers usually have more to do with the opinions of the reviewer, than the actual ...
Roger Partridge writes – My earlier column this month, New Zealand’s highest court could be facing a turning point, prompted a flood of feedback from business readers and lawyers alike. A common query was what Parliament can do to restrain an overreaching judiciary. This week I discuss two steps Parliament ...
TL;DR: In today’s ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.16pm on Friday, March 22: writes about New Zealand's Building Boom—And What the World Must Learn From It over at his substack. challenges the Auckland Council’s use of a 3.8 degrees of warming forecast to oppose a wave-park and data centre project ...
Is she hinting that the Coalition Government will have to back down on key promises it made in Opposition?The Minister of Finance, Nicola Willis, is telling an evolving story about her fiscal challenges. In Opposition she was confident that she could deliver her promised income tax cuts. Appointed minister, she ...
Buzz from the Beehive Ministers of the Crown have drawn attention to one sector of the science sector which is unlikely to be subjected to heavy spending cuts, a state-funded broadcaster which is doing nicely, thank you, and a sporting event that had $5.4 million from the public purse puffed ...
Abbott’s Freestyle Libre sensors allow continuous glucose monitoring (CGM). The sensor is applied to the back of the patient’s arm, with a thin filament under the skin measuring glucose levels constantly. But it costs around $100 per sensor and must be replaced once every 14 days. Photo by BSIP/Universal Images ...
The Inspector General of Intelligence and Security (IGIS) recently released a report in which he exposes the existence of a foreign intelligence partner-controlled technological “capability” inside the headquarters of the GCSB, NZ’s 5 Eyes-affiliated signals intelligence collection and analysis agency. … Continue reading → ...
Peter Dunne writes – Nearly three decades after the introduction of MMP and multiparty governments there should be a greater level of understanding about their finer points than often appears to be the case. The reaction to the despicable outburst from the Deputy Prime Minister at the weekend highlights ...
The sweet kisses from fruit of summerHave slowly been turning dullerYou say, "those times"And "remember the daysWhen we went outside and there still was the shade?"Taking no reason into play…Autumn. Clear, blue days shortening to longer nights, growing colder. Aotearoa.That’s us. The temperature dropping, the looming car crash - so ...
Bryce Edwards writes – “It is often said that behind every great man is a great woman”. This is the pitch by the National Party Botany electorate branch to attend their “Ladies Afternoon Tea with Amanda Luxon”. For $110 including GST, you can turn up on Saturday 20 April ...
David Farrar writes – The Electoral Commission has published the expense returns for political parties for the 2023 election. I’ve put them in a table with how many votes a party got so we can see the spend per vote. National only spent $3.34 for every vote they got, almost ...
Winston Peters’ headline-making actions over the past week may have been a show of political power intended to strengthen his hand in Budget negotiations. It was no accident that his State of the Nation speech was as it was. He made it as New Zealand First Leader, not as Deputy ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:Former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson bowed out of politics this week, giving a series of exit ...
Graham Adams writes — If you love the law or sausages, as the saying goes, best not to look too closely at how they are made. And after watching the orgy of self-pity when Newshub’s closure was announced on February 28, television journalism should definitely be added to the list of those ...
Venerable New Zealand political commentator, Chris Trotter (https://bowalleyroad.blogspot.com/), is a sad creature these days. Once one of the most reliable Leftist writers out there – Economic Left at that – Trotter seems to have absorbed the worldview of Auckland culture-war obsessives. It is not for me to categorise what he ...
The Coalition Government’s plan to ‘get Auckland moving’ is a cuts cover-up that will ultimately cost Aucklanders more to move around the city, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Slashing the Ministry of Pacific Peoples by 40% will have a devastating impact on pacific communities and further highlights how little this government cares about anything other than cutting taxes for the wealthiest few. ...
Labour has proposed an urgent inquiry to investigate the ever-increasing profits of supermarkets, aiming to lower costs for shoppers and food producers alike, says Labour Spokesperson for Commerce and Consumer Affairs Arena Williams and Primary Production Spokesperson Cushla Tangaere-Manuel. ...
With 14% of jobs on the line at the Ministry for Ethnic Communities, the responsible Minister Melissa Lee is failing to stand up for the very communities she’s meant to be representing. ...
COURT OF APPEAL: TRIFECTA OF VICTORY FOR NZ FIRST, TRIFECTA OF FAILURE FOR OPPONENTS For the third time since April 2020, New Zealand First has defeated the Serious Fraud Office and all those complicit in a malicious attack against a political party going about its lawful business in a lawful ...
The Green Party stands with people who live in public housing, people in dire housing need, experts and advocates in demanding better than the Government’s archaic approach to housing those who need our support the most. ...
New Zealand has recently lost the hosting rights of some major international sporting events including the America’s Cup, the Rugby Championship, Netball World Cup, and the Wellington Sevens. We are now at a huge risk of losing SailGP as well. And it won’t stop there. The recent issues with SailGP ...
A Member’s Bill drawn this week would modernise insurance law and make things fairer and more transparent for consumers, Christchurch Central MP Duncan Webb said. ...
The Minister for Disability Issues has confirmed she was aware of funding issues in mid-December and did nothing to stop it. On 14 March, she signed off on changes that were announced and implemented on 18 March without any consultation with disability communities. ...
Green Party MP Julie Anne Genter says her members' bill is an opportunity for the coalition government to plug the gap in electric vehicle incentives. ...
The National Government continues to talk about irresponsible tax cuts that will only drive up inflation, despite the country entering a technical recession. ...
The Minister for Disability Issues must act urgently to reinstate flexibility around the funding for disability support and apologise to disabled carers. ...
This story has been initiated by a leftie shill reporter who proactively sought to call a member of a former band, which disbanded twelve years ago, give their biased appraisal of what was said in my speech, and concocted a ham-fisted attempt at a story that does nothing but show ...
The Government has accepted Labour’s change to the Road User Charge (RUC) discount for hybrid vehicles, meaning there will still be some incentive for people to buy greener vehicles. ...
Many in the mainstream media have taken what was said in New Zealand First’s State of the Nation Speech in Palmerston North on Sunday and deliberately, deceitfully, and ignorantly misrepresented what I said and why I said it. The headlines and commentary on the news stated that I compared ‘co-governance ...
Kicking the most vulnerable people out of state housing and pushing them towards homelessness will result in a proliferation of poverty and trauma across our most vulnerable communities. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader and MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi has penned a letter asking MPs to support his members bill to remove GST from all food. The bill is expected to go through its first reading in parliament this Wednesday. “I’m calling on all political parties to support my ...
Good afternoon. Thank you for, in your very busy lives, turning up to this meeting today. On October 14th last year New Zealanders overwhelmingly voted for change. That is exactly what this new government is bringing. New Zealand First campaigned to ‘take back our country’ and stop the disastrous economic ...
This year is about getting real with Kiwis and discussing the tough issues, as the National Government exacerbates inequality and divides New Zealand, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said ...
The Government adding Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) to its already roaring environmental policy bonfire is an assault on the future of wildlife that makes Aotearoa unique. ...
After 12 years of fighting to protect our moana we are finding ourselves back at square one and back at court. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is sitting in Hawera to reconsider an application from Trans-Tasman Resources to dig up 50 million tonnes of the seabed in South Taranaki. This ...
Minister Shane Jones’ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Government’s fast-track legislation. ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Government’s miscalculation saga continues as it has forgotten an eyewatering $90 million gap in its interest deductibility cost figures, say Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds and Revenue Spokesperson Deborah Russell. ...
He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission has today released advice that says if the Government doesn’t act now New Zealand is at risk of not meeting its climate goals. ...
The Coalition Government has today confirmed it is abandoning first home buyers who are struggling to get ahead, says Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds. ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed the passing of legislation to move light electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) into the road user charges system from 1 April. “It was always intended that EVs and PHEVs would be exempt from road user charges until they reached two ...
New Zealand is strengthening its ability to combat illegal fishing outside its domestic waters and beef up regulation for its own commercial fishers in international waters through a Bill which had its first reading in Parliament today. The Fisheries (International Fishing and Other Matters) Amendment Bill 2023 sets out stronger ...
Economists Carl Hansen and Professor Prasanna Gai have been appointed to the Reserve Bank Monetary Policy Committee, Finance Minister Nicola Willis announced today. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is the independent decision-making body that sets the Official Cash Rate which determines interest rates. Carl Hansen, the executive director of Capital ...
Apartment owners and buyers will soon have greater protections as further changes to the law on unit titles come into effect, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “The Unit Titles (Strengthening Body Corporate Governance and Other Matters) Amendment Act had already introduced some changes in December 2022 and May 2023, and ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters will travel to Egypt and Europe from this weekend. “This travel will focus on a range of New Zealand’s traditional diplomatic and security partnerships while enabling broad engagement on the urgent situation in Gaza,” Mr Peters says. Mr Peters will attend the NATO Foreign ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown is encouraging all road users to stay safe, plan their journeys ahead of time, and be patient with other drivers while travelling around this Easter long weekend. “Road safety is a responsibility we all share, and with increased traffic on our roads expected this Easter we ...
About 1.4 million New Zealanders will receive cost of living relief through increased government assistance from April 1 909,000 pensioners get a boost to Superannuation, including 5000 veterans 371,000 working-age beneficiaries will get higher payments 45,000 students will see an increase in their allowance Over a quarter of New Zealanders ...
Ensuring social housing is being provided to those with the greatest needs is front of mind as the Government restarts social housing tenancy reviews, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. “Our relentless focus on building a strong economy is to ensure we can deliver better public services such as social ...
The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary will not go ahead, with Cabinet deciding to stop work on the proposed reserve and remove the Bill that would have established it from Parliament’s order paper. “The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary Bill would have created a 620,000 sq km economic no-go zone,” Oceans and Fisheries Minister ...
Dam safety regulations are being amended so that smaller dams won’t be subject to excessive compliance costs, Minister for Building and Construction Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on reducing costs and removing unnecessary red tape so we can get the economy back on track. “Dam safety regulations ...
The coalition Government is expanding the medium-scale adverse event classification to parts of the North Island as dry weather conditions persist, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced today. “I have made the decision to expand the medium-scale adverse event classification already in place for parts of the South Island to also cover the ...
The passing of legislation giving effect to coalition Government tax commitments has been welcomed by Finance Minister Nicola Willis. “The Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill will help place New Zealand on a more secure economic footing, improve outcomes for New Zealanders, and make our tax system ...
Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins and Tertiary Education and Skills Minister Penny Simmonds today announced plans to transform our science and university sectors to boost the economy. Two advisory groups, chaired by Professor Sir Peter Gluckman, will advise the Government on how these sectors can play a greater ...
The Budget will deliver urgently-needed tax relief to hard-working New Zealanders while putting the government’s finances back on a sustainable track, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The Finance Minister made the comments at the release of the Budget Policy Statement setting out the Government’s Budget objectives. “The coalition Government intends ...
The coalition Government will look at options to address a zoning issue that limits how much financial support Queenstown residents can get for accommodation. Cabinet has agreed on a response to the Petitions Committee, which had recommended the geographic information MSD uses to determine how much accommodation supplement can be ...
Cabinet has agreed to a short extension to the final reporting timeframe for the Royal Commission into Abuse in Care from 28 March 2024 to 26 June 2024, Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden says. “The Royal Commission wrote to me on 16 February 2024, requesting that I consider an ...
The coalition Government is delivering an $18 million boost to New Zealanders needing to travel for specialist health treatment, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says. “These changes are long overdue – the National Travel Assistance (NTA) scheme saw its last increase to mileage and accommodation rates way back in 2009. ...
The Government is recognising the innovative and rising talent in New Zealand’s growing space sector, with the Prime Minister and Space Minister Judith Collins announcing the new Prime Minister’s Prizes for Space today. “New Zealand has a growing reputation as a high-value partner for space missions and research. I am ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has confirmed New Zealand’s concerns about cyber activity have been conveyed directly to the Chinese Government. “The Prime Minister and Minister Collins have expressed concerns today about malicious cyber activity, attributed to groups sponsored by the Chinese Government, targeting democratic institutions in both New ...
Independent Reviewers appointed for School Property Inquiry Education Minister Erica Stanford today announced the appointment of three independent reviewers to lead the Ministerial Inquiry into the Ministry of Education’s School Property Function. The Inquiry will be led by former Minister of Foreign Affairs Murray McCully. “There is a clear need ...
State Highway 1 across the Brynderwyns will be open for Easter weekend, with work currently underway to ensure the resilience of this critical route being paused for Easter Weekend to allow holiday makers to travel north, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Today I visited the Brynderwyn Hills construction site, where ...
Introduction Good morning to you all, and thanks for having me bright and early today. I am absolutely delighted to be the Minister for Infrastructure alongside the Minister of Housing and Resource Management Reform. I know the Prime Minister sees the three roles as closely connected and he wants me ...
New Zealand stands with the United Kingdom in its condemnation of People’s Republic of China (PRC) state-backed malicious cyber activity impacting its Electoral Commission and targeting Members of the UK Parliament. “The use of cyber-enabled espionage operations to interfere with democratic institutions and processes anywhere is unacceptable,” Minister Responsible for ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Defence Minister Judith Collins today announced New Zealand will provide logistics support for the upcoming Solomon Islands election. “We’re sending a team of New Zealand Defence Force personnel and two NH90 helicopters to provide logistics support for the election on 17 April, at the request ...
The European Union Free Trade Agreement Legislation Amendment Bill received Royal Assent today, completing the process for New Zealand’s ratification of its free trade agreement with the European Union. “I am pleased to announce that today, in a small ceremony at the Beehive, New Zealand notified the European Union ...
Public consultation on the terms of reference for the Royal Commission into COVID-19 Lessons has concluded, Internal Affairs Minister Hon Brooke van Velden says. “I have been advised that there were over 11,000 submissions made through the Royal Commission’s online consultation portal.” Expanding the scope of the Royal Commission of ...
Hardworking families are set to benefit from a new credit to help them meet their early childcare education (ECE) costs, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. From 1 July, parents and caregivers of young children will be supported to manage the rising cost of living with a partial reimbursement of their ...
A specialised Independent Technical Advisory Group (ITAG) tasked with preparing and publishing independent non-binding advice on the design of a "green" (sustainable finance) taxonomy rulebook is being established, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “Comprising experts and market participants, the ITAG's primary goal is to deliver comprehensive recommendations to the ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins has thanked the Chief of Army, Major General John Boswell, DSD, for his service as he leaves the Army after 40 years. “I would like to thank Major General Boswell for his contribution to the Army and the wider New Zealand Defence Force, undertaking many different ...
25 March 2024 Minister to meet Australian counterparts and Manufacturing Industry Leaders Small Business, Manufacturing, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly will travel to Australia for a series of bi-lateral meetings and manufacturing visits. During the visit, Minister Bayly will meet with his Australian counterparts, Senator Tim Ayres, Ed ...
Government commits almost $3 million for period products in schools The Coalition Government has committed $2.9 million to ensure intermediate and secondary schools continue providing period products to those who need them, Minister of Education Erica Stanford announced today. “This is an issue of dignity and ensuring young women don’t ...
Good morning, it’s great to be here. First, I would like to acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of Building Surveyors and thank you for the opportunity to be here this morning. I would like to use this opportunity to outline the Government’s ambitious plan and what we hope to ...
Minister for Pacific Peoples Dr Shane Reti has announced the Government’s commitment to the Auckland Secondary Schools Māori and Pacific Islands Cultural Festival, more commonly known as Polyfest. “The Ministry for Pacific Peoples is a longtime supporter of Polyfest and, as it celebrates 49 years in 2024, I’m proud to ...
Before moving onto the substance of today’s address, I want to recognise the very significant and ongoing contribution the Breast Cancer Foundation makes to support the lives of New Zealand women and their families living with breast cancer. I very much enjoy working with you. I also want to recognise ...
New Zealand has notched up a first with the launch of University of Canterbury research to the International Space Station, Science, Innovation and Technology and Space Minister Judith Collins says. The hardware, developed by Dr Sarah Kessans, is designed to operate autonomously in orbit, allowing scientists on Earth to study ...
Introduction Thank you for inviting me to speak with you today and I’m sorry I can’t be there in person. Yesterday I started in Wellington for Breakfast TV, spoke to a property conference in Auckland, and finished the day speaking to local government in Christchurch, so it would have been ...
The Coalition Government is contributing more than $1 million to support the establishment of an emergency multi-agency coordination centre in Northland. Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell announced the contribution today during a visit of the Whangārei site where the facility will be constructed. “Northland has faced a number ...
New Zealanders have enjoyed a broader range of voices telling the story of Aotearoa thanks to the creation of Whakaata Māori 20 years ago, says Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka. The minister spoke at a celebration marking the national indigenous media organisation’s 20th anniversary at their studio in Auckland on ...
Commercial catch limits for some fisheries have been increased following a review showing stocks are healthy and abundant, Ocean and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The changes, along with some other catch limit changes and management settings, begin coming into effect from 1 April 2024. "Regular biannual reviews of fish ...
COMMENTARY:By Ronny Kareni Since the atrocious footage of the suffering of an indigenous Papuan man reverberates in the heart of Puncak by the brute force of Indonesia’s army in early February, shocking tactics deployed by those in power to silence critics has been unfolding. Nowhere is this more evident ...
Analysis - Nicola Willis is holding firm on tax cuts despite the economic outlook being worse than forecast and critics urging her to wait, writes Peter Wilson for The Week In Politics. ...
Opposition MPs and unions are criticising a proposal by New Zealand’s Ministry of Pacific Peoples to cut staff by 40 percent. The country’s largest trade union — The Public Service Association — says the ministry has informed staff that it is looking to shed 63 of 156 positions. Opposition MPs ...
A poem by Poetry Aotearoa Yearbook 2024 featured poet Carin Smeaton. Daughtr of the 90s when she gets promoted to usherette a baby blu eel carries her all the way up to mothership she’s hovering high she lets the underaged in to see keanu reeves she lets the only lonely ...
Analysis by Keith Rankin. Keith Rankin, trained as an economic historian, is a retired lecturer in Economics and Statistics. He lives in Auckland, New Zealand. My earlier article – Can ‘Good’ be the Greater Evil? – looked at the issue of how wars should end, and how Good versus Evil ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 AMMA by Saraid de Silva (Moa Press, $38)A stunning debut novel reviewed by Brannavan ...
From Steve Martin to Ricky Stanicky, a pick’n’mix of things worth watching and listening to this long weekend. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. If you’re at a loss for something to occupy yourself with this Easter, don’t panic: The Spinoff’s got ...
Jesus had dinner with his 12 disciples right before he died. Noted historian Madeleine Chapman finds out who really deserved to be there.First published in 2018 but let’s be honest, the subject is timeless. As you sit on your couch this Easter Sunday, eating a chocolate egg you know ...
The newly-promoted Northern League club is on a mission to return to the National League for the first time in two decades. Plenty about domestic football in New Zealand has changed in that time – but the sense that this amateur competition is not an entirely level playing field remains. ...
Comment: Every year on February 2, a dozen men in tuxedos and top hats approach the burrow of a groundhog in Gobbler’s Knob, Pennsylvania and entice the beaver-like rodent to emerge and predict the weather. If the groundhog, named Punxsutawney Phil, sees its own shadow when it is summoned, legend ...
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Auckland Council has put a deadline on new weather-impacted property owners applying for categorisation as government funding looks set to run out. Councillors have voted to support a deadline of September 30 for property owners who haven’t accessed support to come forward and engage with the council’s recovery office. It ...
NONFICTION 1 BBQ Economics by Liam Dann (Penguin Random House, $40) “It’s official,” wrote Dann nine days ago in the Herald, where he works as business editor at large, “we’re in recession.” Yeah, great. He delivered the bad stats: “GDP fell 0.1 percent in the December 2023 quarter, compared with ...
By Anneke Smith, RNZ News political reporter A petition urging the New Zealand government to provide urgent humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian people has been tabled in the House. More than 200 people gathered on Parliament’s forecourt today and they were met by MPs from Labour, the Greens and Te ...
Pacific Media Watch The Paris-based global media freedom watchdog RSF (Reporters Without Borders) has appealed for information about the “disappearance” of Palestinian journalist Bayan Abusultan. She was reportedly last seen on March 19 among people “sequestered” in this week’s raid and siege of Al Shifa hospital by Israeli troops in ...
EDITORIAL:The Jakarta Post It happens again and again; indigenous Papuans fall victim to Indonesian soldiers. This time, we have photographic evidence for the brutality, with videos on social media showing a Papuan man being tortured by a group of plainclothes men alleged to be the Indonesian Military (TNI) members. ...
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RNZ Pacific Fiji’s Acting Public Prosecutor has filed an appeal against the sentences of former prime minister Voreqe Bainimarama and suspended police chief Sitiveni Qiliho in their corruption case. Bainimarama was granted an absolute discharge for attempting to pervert the course of justice while Qiliho received a conditional discharge with ...
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Contrary to the Associate Minister of Education’s claims, analysis of Healthy School Lunches Programme - Ka Ora, Ka Ako assessments has revealed it provides excellent value for the taxpayer dollar, as a groundswell of public opposition to Government ...
Greenpeace says wannabe Taranaki seabed miner Trans-Tasman Resources is likely banking on Christopher Luxon’s fast-track process to side-step proper scrutiny of its Taranaki seabed mining proposal by bailing out of the Environmental Protection Agency hearing ...
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Apologies for repeating this but it just keeps getting repeated doesn't it…
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/122741361/this-just-cannot-happen-95-billion-at-risk-as-horticulture-sector-struggles-to-fill-25anhour-jobs
These business people need to grow up and play by market rules. Put the wages up. Try $30 hour, or $35 hour, or heaven forbid $40 hour. See what happens. They are happy to take advantage of market conditions when it works in their favour, but when it works against them its all wah wah wah cry to nanny state. Pathetic children.
The bullshit is thick in the air. Workers have no sympathy for them. They are authors of their own demise.
I wish they would stfu – tired of hearing and reading this issue.
It is the most bullshit issue in the land
There is sympathy to be had for them (and theirs)..they will be victims of the dysfunctional model as much as the rest of us
It's a dysfunctional model that they've been championing for 40 years, so, no sympathy for them.
'They' are us….the model has been supported by everyone in one form or another.
Not all of us have been championing capitalism.
if you read what I wrote you will note I said 'supporting in one form or another'….not championing.
Have you always bought local?seasonal?
Are you are user of the health system?
Do you make your purchasing decisions on price?
Do you only use/consume that which you can make yourself?
Have you ever had credit, or expected a return on savings?
The problem is systemic, and unless you are a hermit living in a cave somewhere your actions/decisions support it even if you ignore political action.
We can (justifiably) complain about the distribution of that which we produce but not how much we demand by our actions.
Did you notice that the majority of people actually didn't want the Rogernomic adjustments that brought in the present model of capitalism?
There's a point where have to accept that the only reason why we have the system that we have is because our democratically elected officials went against our wishes and that they're still doing it.
Yes, we support the system that's in place but that's because have no choice because we're not a democratic country and then we get used to it.
Rogernomics did not create the demand (it did impact the distribution) and to state that we have no choice highlights the systemic nature….there is choice ,just not one we are prepared to take.
Did you notice that the majority of people actually didn't want the Rogernomic adjustments that brought in the present model of capitalism?
No we didn't notice that. We did notice, however, that they were given a second term.
I still remember it. Most did not want the Rogernomic reforms. 4th Labour's second term came about because people still didn't trust National and still didn't truly appreciate just what Labour were up to.
4th National got in because they implied, pretty heavily, that they were going to undo Rogernomics and then they went harder.
If we didn't have FPP in 1993 National would have been out but all the wasted votes ensured that they got back in.
Then we went to our first MMP election and people voted in NZFirst because they implied that they were going to go with Labour and would undo the reforms. Except, once they got in, they went with National. They did slow National down somewhat but the reforms continued.
It goes on. Our democratic government is littered with it not doing what the people wanted and voting for change achieving no change at all.
We are not a democracy, never have been and, until we take power from government and govern ourselves, we never will be.
Completely agree. They offer less than $4/h more than the living wage (which is the absolute minimum needed for a basic life in nz) and think workers should be flocking to them. Pay more!
That $25.00 per hour is probably based on the bin rate certainly not achievable by all
It's not just the hourly rates. I went to one of the hiring sites out of curiosity and the expectation seemed to be 60 hours plus a week and accommodation that you could pay for out of the minimum wages. Plus all of these people desperately wanting labour basically had a job ad that said jobs available contact XYZ. No mention of location type of work estimated starting date hourly rate etc just nothing.
It has also as far as I can see suffered from the outsourcing model. Once the individual grower paid the workers direct and they organised it around an area. Now it is a lot of corporate orchards, gangmasters etc and this overhead has to be paid for out of the picker wages essentially.
Plus the fruit picking looks like an industry that has invested zero in any form of improvement apart from maybe espaliered apple trees. Rather than people running around with huge carrying weights – dropping fruit onto soft touch collecting services temporary walk ways – there must be plenty of ideas out there.
And some of these areas could well invest in all of the year multi skilled workforces that went from pruning to picking etc etc.
Maybe to start with a backstop arrangement for an area through maybe welfare that gave permanent employment with the individual growers taking on paying into the scheme and training according to their needs. Then gradually turning the worker co operative over to the workers in an area.
Actually the growers could design such a scheme for themselves to give better employment and maybe get a little support to implement. Anything would be better than the current whining which is moving from pruning to calving to picking etc
Moderately surprised they still employ pickers. Thinning is a bit of an art, but picking isn't so much.
Nut harvesters just shake the tree. No reason that couldn't be adapted to a hopper system.
Bruising fruit might be a problem, but possibly not enough to offset the productivity increase from one driver.
Then there's coffee harvesting.
Apple picking More Apple
I have NFI what happened to the Kiwifruit picker. But you'd think, after more than 10 years, that there'd be some around by now.
Picking by hand is an endangered occupation – as it should be.
How's that's $25/hour worked out?
Because last time I saw this in the papers it was a contract rate per very large container of apples picked. Somebody not used to it isn't going to make minimum wage no matter how hard they work.
And, being contract, they then have to work out their taxes and expenses and other legal stuff. Once that happens the minimum wage is far gone.
That wage depends on how much per box the global market for our horticulture products is prepared to pay for them.
We're a low-wage, low-productivity, low R&D economy. Have been for two centuries.
Many of our horticultural lines do make global margins. But under our model we're always going to need low wage workers to harvest our commodity lines.
No, we used to do serious R&D. As I said a few weeks ago – HMS Achilles had NZ developed RADAR installed on it. It just never got the support that it needed to become successful in developing product lines. Too much focus on low pay, low return farming.
Then it can only be said that its time to dump that failed model.
We did a bit, and that era lasted about 20 years.
I don't see any party likely to get into Parliament that will turn us into a high-tech, high productivity, low-mass, high wage economy.
Neither do I despite the fact that becoming a high tech economy is what we need to do.
"… becoming a high tech economy is what we need to do."
Agree. I've always had the idea that cap. gains be applied for houses but offset with tax incentives for R&D
True. I recall teaching in a school that looked at a NZ designed colour computer system in the 80s. Killed by the Apple 2e which was offered in bulk at prices NZ product couldn't compete with.
But the NZ designed computer was streets ahead at that time.
If that's the case then the income has to be allocated not as direct wages but through the 'social wage' (free at the point of use healthcare, tertiary education, subsidised state-built housing … whatever). It will still have to be paid for – and pretty much by the same sorts of people as those who are offering low wages. The very definition of a free lunch is when the brutalities of 'market discipline' get imposed on one group, while another escapes them.
It's a shame there wasn't any joined-up thinking there.
Massive rent increases, the product of allowing capital to inflate our property markets, means workers would make a net loss if they stayed cheap and cheerful.
So, fix it, government, or watch the fruit rot.
I'd prefer to see orchardists invest in robotic harvesting. Get rid of low wage workers for horticulture as much as possible.
We're getting into it, but uptake is slow.
https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/robotic-apple-picker-takes-over-hawkes-bay-fruit-harvest-in-world-first
Every job that can be done by robot should be done by robot. That's pretty much all the low wage jobs gone.
Question: Why are business people still building retail stores? Haven't they heard of the internet?
Now, what do we replace it with?
My suggestion is going full R&D with a full 25% of the working age population in it. Of course, that would mean making education free (again) and that government would be pushing massive amounts into that R&D so that we even end up with robotic manufacturing from our own resources.
It's lovely as a free floating idea, but we don't have the commercial culture that will do that. Regrettably.
Our university robotics and mechatronics courses are full to the gills, but there's limited opportunities for those graduates here. There are more than there use to be.
Even our most advanced companies with some success in this field, like Dunedin's Scott Technologies, got bought out.
And that is why the government should be stepping in. Make that R&D happen. It would develop our economy so that we were competitive and it would develop our local talent.
All our successful tech companies are as the capitalists strive for an ever greater oligarchy and less competition.
It's also proof that the government needs to ban offshore sales and/or stamp harder on anti-competitive practices such as buying up the competition.
Like a lot of other automation projects, unless the grower is the IT guy, he's held to ransom by them, so no net gain.
One of the things they tried at Sealord back in the day was a waterknife – a bit like a laser cutter, but for filleting fish. It wasn’t a bad idea as such, but it needed constant adjustment to get decent yield, and the IT cost of that meant they really had no gain over manual filleters. Could’ve worked if there were ten or so waterknives in the area to justify a pair of full time techs.
Much filleting is done by machine these days, especially in farmed fish. Uses robotic mechnical blades, the best machines consistently give higher fillet yield than the best manual filleters.
If you go to a fish processing factory in Norway (I’ve been to a few) – high degree of automation with people doing a lot of checking and maintenance, rather than bulk manual work. They all get a high quality free lunch, high wages and moderate hours etc. The cars in the carpark are of high quality and the profits made by the companies are high.
Go to a comparable factory in NZ (also been to a few) – lots of people doing manual work, old bombs of cars in the carparks, lots of staff needing dental work and earning the absolute bare minimum with no other benefits. Company profits are variable but certainly not consistently higher than in Norway.
The efficiency of automated filleting has much to do with a standardized feedstock, so it's a natural fit for aquaculture – up to a point.
Before NZ is ready for comparable automation it needs a relative abundance of capable engineers – we don't have them.
The poverty of our workers is more to do with greed and incompetence higher up than the relative efficiency of filleting machinery – manual filleters continue to build skill and rate for years, so a well run bare space factory can compete quite well with an overcapitalised machine heavy space – a lesson Detroit is still losing money from failing to learn in autoassembly.
NZ churns out fillet block when, were our fisheries even vaguely competent, they'd produce a greater proportion of higher value cuts. But it's a colonial fishery – it basically doesn't support the local market at all, so it struggles to test market anything that isn't as basic as dirt. Our per kilo returns are rubbish, and per kilo of wild biomass they are execrable.
You can't build a valid quality marque running slave ships – but our companies are dumb enough to try, and our regulators ineffectual enough to let them.
The other angle to this exploitation is WINZ/MSD need to drop stand downs, sanctions and abatement rates, so NZers can move seamlessly between work and income support.
Dropping the inquisitions, providing travel and accom assistance, along with living wage, would likely see all the pickers these clowns would ever need become available for seasonal work.
What a great practical and realistic line to this thread. Good ideas. I suggest that people copy it and look at it regularly for an example of how much better NZ could be if we had participatory democracy, with people with knowledge and desire for a prosperous, enterprising country where we put our heads and muscles together for the good of a well-run country that made provision for all at their various levels.
Ad does say 'But under our model we're always going to need low wage workers to harvest our commodity lines.' So as AB suggests along with the others ideas, we need some better thought out ways. I think that is the trouble – neolib is like rote learning, it's learn and follow – like a cult really.
Well when people lose their jobs they are told it is an opportunity for them to do some thing different and BTW don't expect any government support.
Shouldn't these employers face the same barrage of advice?
But These employers are wanting student loan reductions, visa's issued, wanting quarantine used (if they say they want to pay for that then pay higher wages) plus a photo of two paid! managers. Anything but looking at themselves
Labour has just released its welfare policy and it includes a good lowering of abatement rates. As you asked for.
https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA2009/S00104/labour-helps-families-get-ahead.htm
The headings look good Ad, I hope the content provides a practical level of help – real social investment, not like National's banner waving, for the business approach mainly.
Our Plan to Get New Zealand Working – National Party
http://www.national.org.nz › our-plan-to-get-new-zealand-working
Jul 9, 2020 – And we developed the social investment, or actuarial approach, to help analyse which types of government spending and investment will in fact …
Honestly Labour's announcements could and should have been implemented already.
They are not earth shatteringly bold, shall we say.
And she hasn't answered the core question of benefit levels.
The Green Party policy is much stronger here.
Vote Green if you want any real welfare reform and improvement. Labour has shown almost no interest in making any material changes in their first term – ignoring almost everything the WEAG recommended.
In 1977 I did apple packing and I could earn $100 a week for 40 hours.
What is that in today's money?
800-900 bucks a week. But was that in the hand or after tax?
In the hand.
I would get a BNZ cash check on a Friday and I would need to take it to the bank before 4 pm closing to cash it. No weekend opening of banks then.
Thanks for the amount to those who replied.
Wages of $100.00 in quarter 3 of 1977 = $971.88 in quarter 2 of 2020
https://www.rbnz.govt.nz/monetary-policy/inflation-calculator
Since when has 25 bucks an hour been bad money for a labouring job?
when you are on contract and have to pay your own acc levies and other associated self employment costs$ 25 per hour wont be $25 per hour. its a bullshit headline. and you will only get that rate IF you are very good at the job, and work flat out.
Pretty sure fruit pickers don't have to pay their own ACC levies etc.
But it is a piece-work rate, so only the fastest pickers working the best conditions can get that rate. Slower workers, or if you're picking trees that have already been picked once, you won't be able to achieve that hourly rate.
"How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds, & Shape Our Futures" – Kim Hill interviews the author this morning at 10.05
“Entangled Life is a dazzling, vibrant, vision-changing book. Sentence after sentence stopped me short. I ended it wonderstruck at the fungal world and the earth-shaking, hierarchy-breaking implications of Sheldrake's argument.”
— Robert Macfarlane, author of Underland
Merlin is a scientist with the imagination of a poet and a beautiful writer… This is a book that, by the virtue of the power of its writing, shifts your sense of the Human… it will inspire a generation to enter mycology."
— Michael Pollan, author of How to Change Your Mind
The natural world is more fantastic than any fantasy, so long as you have the means to perceive it. This book provides the means."
— Jaron Lanier, author of You Are Not A Gadget
Within 24 hours of finishing “Entangled Life” I had ordered an oyster mushroom-growing kit. I started scrutinizing the lichens that hug the damp concrete in the yard. This book may not be a psychedelic — and unlike Sheldrake, I haven’t dared to consume my copy (yet) — but reading it left me not just moved but altered, eager to disseminate its message of what fungi can do.”
— Jennifer Szalai, THE NEW YORK TIMES
https://www.merlinsheldrake.com/
I haven't checked it out yet but the reviews suggest he's illuminating a dimension of our relationship with nature profoundly. His father (Rupert) was a biochemist, and originator of the theory of morphic resonance. A couple of deep thinkers about our Green world, showing how to reconnect…
This is my field, Dennis; the reading, the listening-to, the watching (McFarlane, Sheldrake, Stamets, McKenna et al) , as well as the foraging, cultivating (Shaggy Parasols, Velvet Shanks, oysters, Birch boletes etc. etc.) You might enjoy Stephen Harrod Buhner (Plant Intelligence and the Imaginal Realm), Monica Gagliano (Thus spoke the plant) and Natasha "Planthropocene" Myers and the paintings of Pablo Picasso
"Stephen Harrod Buhner is the senior researcher for the Foundation for Gaian Studies." I hadn't heard of him, but have been writing about the Gaian view sporadically since attending the Gaia Conference at the University of Auckland in 1989. I had been an avid consumer of Lovelock's books before that.
Sue Bradford also was there, and in the aftermath a working group was formed which she & I joined to brainstorm the formation of a new political party on the basis of Gaia. I have a folder of notes from the meetings of that group in the following months.
Eventually that group joined with the residue of the Values Party and a couple of others to form the Green Party, but by then I had been alienated by the tedium induced by discourse with pedestrian leftist mainstreamers pretending to be alternative and had to stop attending those meetings. When they got 7% at the next election I decided to try & be more tolerant…
Merlin Sheldrake on Kim Hill RNZ this morning. What a wonderful name!
An excellent interview.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/saturday/20200912
The bit I liked best was the evidence around distributed intelligence in a brainless network organism. So it's not as if there's no hope for National or Labour – so long as they operate more like network than org or hierarchy…
that was my favourite bit too. Time to get past our big brain (but obv not quite big enough) bias.
The brain is a brainless network too. The network does not have a brain, it is a brain. On that note, you may want to ‘meditate’ on the ‘3.5% rule’ that you are so sceptical about.
And the eating!
Hey Wayne, if you are around I totally agree with your views re- the use of the military from the start of the pandemic scare.
In 1987 I was sent to Whenuapiai Air Base to fill-in for a colleague who was on long service leave. I was there when Cyclone Bola wreaked havoc in the Hawkes Bay and Taranaki regions. For the first time I saw the military in action and was very impressed. They were up and running at full throttle in less than 24 hrs. The management of the rescue effort followed by the aftermath clean up was superb. So much so, I applied for a permanent position at Whenuapai and ended up spending nearly 4 years on that base.
https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/government-way-too-slow-in-using-nzdf-assist-covid-19-ex-defence-minister-says
Hi Anne,
Thanks for that link. It seems Dr Miller has transcribed the entire interview, which was done on Skype (sound only) on Thursday morning. I didn't appreciate that TVNZ picked up these interviews.
As for a future Cold War, it is very uncertain. But I don't like the portents. It seems to me the China US relationship will get worse before it gets better. The US doesn't know how to accommodate a rising power, and China seems to be going out of its way to be bellicose.
In NZ we need more imagination on this issue.
Can't say I like them either and, to my mind, its got a good chance of being a hot war rather than cold. Especially, as you say, China seems to be going out of its way to be bellicose and hard nosed. They seem to be getting more intransigent on the Indian border and the SCS.
We need to build up our defence forces so that they're actually capable of defending us and we need to check out existing and possible allies that will stand with us (I'm pretty sure that at least a couple of traditional allies won't).
I think we are more likely to have other Asian countries standing with us – or us standing with them. It would seem to me our future is becoming more aligned with Asia both in an economical as well as a geo-political sense than our traditional allies.
I have grave doubts about the over-all sanity of the Brits these days. 🙄
Ron Mark will be the only NZ First MP I will miss. I think he has done the best job of any defence minister in 20 years. Marks has made sure that the NZDF are pandemic ready compared to security guards. As well Marks has ensured operational equipment is being sourced.
Tracy Martin has been more competent than most ministers as well.
But I’d never write NZF off in elections, even if they have burdened themselves with the Shane Jones anchor.
From first to last the seaman’s thoughts are very much concerned with his anchors. It is not so much that the anchor is a symbol of hope as that it is the heaviest object that he has to handle on board his ship at sea in the usual routine of his duties. The beginning and the end of every passage are marked distinctly by work about the ship’s anchors. Joseph Conrad
It may be that this anchor denotes the end of the passage.
edit
I think Shane Jones fitted the persona that many ordinary blokes wanted, not one clipped onto the political beltway, a lawyer, professional with theories about everything, but his own man, with experience on the ground etc. That perhaps was the feeling that similar USA punters got from Trump. Now that people have seen this type in action, given them a go, perhaps they will be able to let them go and see a different type of representative is needed to advance our nation's aims and 'make us great again'.
I'm not sure he ever resonated much with anyone really. A lot of folk wanted him to, but he was more beltway selection than dignity of labour, and his rhetorical skills… might be there in Maori, but aren't being quoted in English. Bit of a fugazi really.
So eloquent re the anchor. The sharks are circling. Marooned out at sea another 4 weeks.
Watch this space, will NZF be rescued?
Martin does not quite make the grade for me. In saying this she is the next best performer and then Peters.
This election is going to be all about the Labour and National Party. Probably like first past the post days. Televised debate is going to indicate the survival of the minor parties.
I heard Jane Fonda mention this rule to Kim Hill about 20 mins ago:
Consider me a sceptic. Protests rarely work nowadays. If the prof is correct, she has measured a critical threshold that transitions a protest movement into a viable political force. We need corroboration, but it would be gamechanger in politics if the rule does get established. All FPP democratic systems would be threatened by the potential.
It's one of the keys to XR's strategy. I wrote a post about the theory in 2019
https://thestandard.org.nz/another-world-is-possible/
thinking now of NZ contexts where it might apply. 10,000 people marching in Dunedin stopped the move of the hospital neurology department to Chch (in the context of a campaign). That's 7% of the population.
We've had a few good wins from the streets over the last three decades.
Yes, but if you ignore the occasions on which protests do work, then they rarely work.
lol, can't tell if you are being clever or stupid there.
Clever enough to apply postmodern framing. Perception driven by lack of reality. Is not applying both/and logic stupid? Would be unfair to assent. I bet teachers still can't teach the generic form – merely conforming to convention in teaching the application to maths & computing only.
If you apply the version most seen in physics (Schrodinger's cat) then you need to actually measure the ratio between protests that did change govt policy and those that didn't. The measurement collapses the wave function.
Twenty years into the new millennium is time enough for that testing. My guess is that failure would come in around 95-98% of the total.
Your writing Dennis, often reminds of a fictional headstone from one of those Brian Edwards tiny books…
”Here lies a defeatist-he predicted it would end this way…”
The wins from the street are seldom but they are great fun win or lose, and sometimes you win and it makes it all worth it.
I fucking hate marching.
1: it's walking. Never a fan.
2: it's always so damned noisy, with the usual suspects on megaphones yelling the same shit. What do I want? Shut the fuck up for a few minutes, please.
3: The proximity of so many people is disconcerting. I suspect my personal space is measured in light years.
Still, has to be done every so often.
The left's Statler and Waldorf
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14njUwJUg1I
There might be a passing resemblance.
35 days
Test from iPhone, desktop view
reply from same
reply from mobile view
Test iPhone desktop
I've had alot of trouble with mobile, gave to switch to desktop view to read some posts and reply hasn't worked most of the time. Samsung A20
have you checked since late morning today? Lynn did some tinkering and it seems to be working again (maybe not on a tablet).
This is an excerpt from Hooton's latest effort:
"If Labour's Claytons tax policy gave the finger to those who want progressive taxation, National's Infrastructure Bank seems designed as a deep betrayal of those who value genuine fiscal responsibility.
Labour strategists are thrilled by the far left's negative reaction to Jacinda Ardern and Grant Robertson's promise to leave the tax system basically as it is.
The Government's big two confirmed there will be no shift away from taxing good things like wages, salaries and profits, to taxing allegedly bad things such as capital gains, inherited wealth, carbon and consumption.
Through a social democrat or environmental lens, John Key and Bill English's 2010 tax switch, which paid for tax cuts on low incomes by increasing taxes on consumption, was to the left of what Labour unveiled on Wednesday.
In fact, Labour unveiled almost nothing at all. Its so-called tax "policy" consisted of just a single measure — the restoration of Helen Clark and Michael Cullen's 39 per cent marginal income tax rate, but only on earnings above $180,000 a year.
Whereas Clark and Cullen risked whacking the top 5 per cent of income earners — those earning the equivalent of $113,366 in today's money — Ardern and Robertson have targeted just the top 2 per cent.
Even Don Brash was more progressive, proposing in 2005 that the 39 per cent rate kick in at $157,468 in today's money. This is not what Labour activists signed up for."
I hate to say it, but I agree with Hooton. Party Vote Green is the answer, as usual.
please link, everytime. Mods are getting grumpy. If you can cut and past then you can link.
by which I mean please provide a link now.
Weka-can't sorry.
It is paywalled and sent to me by a friend via email with no link address. It is dated/appeared on 11 September and I think Hooton writes for the NBR.
it doesn't matter if it's pay walled, you still have to link (some people have access). If you quote-google search then you will get the link. It's not that hard 🙂
Understood…will do that next time.
thanks, it will be much appreciated.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=12363880
Hooton lied about the GST increase delivering a tax cut to those on lower incomes – they did cut income taxes, but those on lower incomes would have spent more in GST than they got in reduced income taxes.
Those who had spare income to save/invest benefited from the change. And they are/were not those on lower incomes.
An increase in GST is an increase in a regressive tax.
Agree SPC…see below
"Hooton lied"
Petty much describes it.
The number of people I argued with explaining that the tax cut value was less than the increase in GST paid, but hey, vote National anyway.
Hooton's object is never up front. In this instance it is to slip this little whopper under the radar.
Through a social democrat or environmental lens, John Key and Bill English's 2010 tax switch, which paid for tax cuts on low incomes by increasing taxes on consumption, was to the left of what Labour unveiled on Wednesday.
Key and English's GST increases were of course steeply regressive, but Hooton wants his false 'fact' out there muddying the waters of conversations about tax fairness.
I saw that SPC and Stuart….couldn't agree more….complete bollocks of course…..that is the problem with Hooton. He can make a great deal of sense until his pro-National bias kicks in then he leaves reality behind.
No, it wasn't as it:
Hooton actually knows all that and so he must be lying.
True.
Also from Hooton:
"Goldsmith's first strategy to get the numbers right has been to target failed programmes like fees-free tertiary education and KiwiBuild, and the universal Baby Bonus — but even these are small change in the context of his ambitious target.
His second strategy is not so robust — stopping contributions to the Super Fund."
Now that is truly nasty. Goldsmith is well to the right in the National caucus; it will be scary times if he becomes finance minister.
Meanwhile, in the Idiocracy..
https://twitter.com/ryanbeckwith/status/1304364238815797249
there's a B missing.
Why is the LE there?
I'm pretty sure that lots of people were nominated – if he actually got it is the more important aspect.
He was nominated by some alt-right populist in Sweden – one of around 300 or so people that have also been nominated. Chances of him winning are pretty much zero.
Norwegian, not Swedish.
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/world/2020/09/us-president-donald-trump-nominated-for-nobel-peace-prize-by-norwegian-lawmaker.html
Close enough
I'd give Trump the Nobel Peace Prize if he left the Whitehouse tomorrow.
Surprise surprise, big oil lies.
Laura Leebrick, a manager at Rogue Disposal & Recycling in southern Oregon, is standing on the end of its landfill watching an avalanche of plastic trash pour out of a semitrailer: containers, bags, packaging, strawberry containers, yogurt cups.
None of this plastic will be turned into new plastic things. All of it is buried.
"To me that felt like it was a betrayal of the public trust," she said. "I had been lying to people … unwittingly."
[…]
But it's not valuable, and it never has been. And what's more, the makers of plastic — the nation's largest oil and gas companies — have known this all along, even as they spent millions of dollars telling the American public the opposite.
NPR and PBS Frontline spent months digging into internal industry documents and interviewing top former officials. We found that the industry sold the public on an idea it knew wouldn't work — that the majority of plastic could be, and would be, recycled — all while making billions of dollars selling the world new plastic.
The industry's awareness that recycling wouldn't keep plastic out of landfills and the environment dates to the program's earliest days, we found. "There is serious doubt that [recycling plastic] can ever be made viable on an economic basis," one industry insider wrote in a 1974 speech.
Yet the industry spent millions telling people to recycle, because, as one former top industry insider told NPR, selling recycling sold plastic, even if it wasn't true.
https://www.npr.org/2020/09/11/897692090/how-big-oil-misled-the-public-into-believing-plastic-would-be-recycled
Recycling is always viable on an economic basis. Its just not always viable on a financial one especially when the finances have been screwed with.
If it isn't recycled it should be burned – at a decent temperature it's no worse than its precursor petroleum. Burying it is just begging it to make its way into the food chain.
Yes, burning it at such a temperature is actually expensive.
And thus we have proof of the unregulated market failing again as the costs were not properly applied which results in poor management of resources.
National, and Labour, go on about how red tape costs but getting rid of those costs is what brings about market failure.
It can be done to advantage – Seoul generates electricity from household waste – better than landfilling it. You need a disposal system even if you recycle – some plastics are invariably mixed or contaminated.
https://www.bettermeetsreality.com/pros-cons-of-burning-incinerating-plastic/
As with a lot of such issues, it's a matter of finding a sensible integrated solution – Seoul has a lot of paper trash as well, and burning the mix keeps the temperature in a respectable range. Lack of space means landfill was not an option.
I'm quietly interested in using waste plastic to fire a pottery kiln – there's plenty of it about, and the high temperature burning is a necessary part of another process.
Indeed…kinda unsurprising the similarity to Big Tobacco's lies and denialism, when they KNEW for years…
https://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Tobacco_smoking#Dirty_tricks_played_by_cigarette_manufacturers
Anyway, back to plastic and Big Oil. Polystyrene is one of my particular hates. Here is a toxic byproduct of Big Oil ,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polystyrene#Non-biodegradable
which is used as packaging around tv's, fridges, etc etc. Impact/compression resistant cardboard would provide exactly the same, without the consequential pollution/disposal effects.
The scale of plastic pollution…and its adverse effect on our Earth? Frightening
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2018/06/plastic-planet-waste-pollution-trash-crisis/
(on another..liked your Suicidal Tendencies vid…not seen that one. Know some of their Tracks. Back in the Day…: )
Further to @Ad (1.5.3) note the emphasis on work, even when referencing those with disabilities. Yet again, lets ignore the highly inconvenient fact there are are group of people with disabilities who will never be able to participate in the paid workforce no matter how much they want to. That's just reality.
But by acknowledging that, their plight will have to be admitted to so lets just not even mention they exist ergo the problem doesn't exist and we don't have to admit how badly the seriously ill and disabled in NZ are treated by all governments, because, not politically palatable.
”Work will set you free” as iron gateway signs announced at certain Nazi WWII Concentration Camps.
Neo liberals similarly misuse “work” in a way that obscures what is really going on in our society.
Maybe, the Covid unemployed newbies will react to the built in sadism of WINZ/MSD with calls for the obvious-increase benefit levels, individualise benefits, drop sanctions, abatement levels, and stand downs.
Really IRD should handle a streamlined income support including a Basic Income. Disband WINZ, and set up a new Social Security Agency for special needs groups-disabled, sick, ACC etc. Base it on no inquisitions, just pay and support citizens with what they reasonably need to have some sort of life.
Next Saturday would have been the election. I need to look at how all of the political parties are polling today. I would like to see a poll for next Saturday for the election which has been redated.
Possibly there are people out there who think there is an election next week. Those who have the election bottle of wine in the fridge will need to wait a bit longer. I reckon I will need a wine or two by election day.
This time 3 years ago I had my exit plan worked out in the event of a 4th-term National Government, as did others I knew, personally and anecdotally, things had become that unbearable. Annoying as NZF have been, it's safe to say Winston's decision literally saved a lot of lives. Citizens should not have to live in genuine fear of the outcome of General Elections.
Peters being in a coalition with Labour deserves praise and yes it was a lucky escape from a forth term National government.
I would like to see what a Labour Green coalition would be like.
Bernard Hickey reports history being made:
That means the funder of the govt gets to pay a transaction fee for the privilege of lending us their money. Rather nice of the capitalists, eh? "Guys, we got so much spare money we're dead keen to pay you to use it for a few years."
And just think of how effed they'd be if the government wasn't willing to do so because they simply don't need to do so. A government can create all the money that it needs.
The government can create all of its own money that it needs…and none of anyone elses.
How much wine and cheese do you need?
That fails to make any sense.
http://www.worldstopexports.com/new-zealands-top-10-exports/
http://www.worldstopexports.com/new-zealands-top-10-imports/
Still makes no sense.
The NZ government can create money and they can buy stuff with it. Yes, they can even buy stuff from offshore with it. They can do that because that money allows those people offshore to buy product from NZ.
That's basic market operation.
They could if
a) we had something they wanted
b)they were unable to get it somewhere else or make it themselves
c) the price was right
and then there is the ratio of available of NZD in relation to goods….you can make as many NZD as you like but you cannot create the unlimited goods you hope they represent nor the unlimited desire to hold them.
ALL of our major exports are freely available from a multitude of suppliers
Im sure Boeing and Airbus or Phizer will be falling over themselves to trade their products for NZD (or the wine and cheese they can buy with them)
Yes, that's how the market works.
But think about it in context of the rich person who has so much money and nowhere to spend it. They've got millions and millions of dollars, nowhere to spend it and if they put it in the bank the banks will charge fees on it because they don't have anywhere to put it either.
That's why they're so keen to buy NZ bonds with such a low negative interest rate – because it would cost them more to put it in the bank.
As I say, the government creating money can really fuckup the capitalists as they'd lose their bludging and they'd lose the ability to say, 'see, you need us', because we simply don't.
Im sure you recognise the irony of using a broken disconnected market to describe how 'markets work'
The bond purchases are no indication of offshore desire for NZD unless the purchasers are from offshore.
https://www.rbnz.govt.nz/statistics/e1
And the deflation the negative rate is indicating does not bode well for demand for trade in the real economy…indeed it indicates the lack of confidence in the real economy to maintain its functionality.
No, they're a sign the the wealthy are looking for anyway to protect their money from decreasing as it would upon the open market or even if they just kept it under the mattress.
I'm saying that the government shouldn't be giving them that security.
And it doesn't matter if there's any demand from offshore or not. Chances are that people offshore would still accept it as payment knowing that they could buy product from NZ at any time if the government used it to buy from offshore. The government can spend locally as well and that would, in many cases, be better for the economy and NZers.
And government spending can maintain and increase that functionality which, really, is my whole point and they don't need to sell bonds to rich people so as to protect those rich people's wealth to do it.
which takes us back to the beginning….the Gov can do as it wishes with the NZD but that is of little use when most of what we need to maintain our economy (and by extension society) is traded in currencies other than the NZD.
Advance Party anti-covid demo: Advance them into the clink and ban that Party as a terrorist organisation
Stuff reports a gathering of Jamie-Lee-Ross supporters in Auckland to march against the lockdown.
At least one busload of them went up from Bethlehem/Tauranga. I haven't noticed too many being restricted or disadvantaged in The Bay area at Level 2. What did Muldoon call them? Rent a crowd"?
Should at least end the misguided view among some (on here) that JLR is the good guy in Botany, simply by not being National. He's signed up to the Q-anon madness, and embraces the far right. Luxon is bad, but not worse.
Fortunately Ross only has another month in the job, and his nasty party will find out their true level of support. Good riddance.
Unfortunately there may have been carriers in today's march. And given that there was a scarcity of masks, we could see a "Melbourne" very easily.
Yes. Muldoon called them a Rent a Crowd but he was lying. They ranged from young students to the elderly and they were genuine. There were plenty of good reasons to protest during the Muldoon era and time proved the protesters were right.
Can't say the same about today's motley crowd in Queen St. If they have bused people to Auckland from other part of the North Island then they're suspect and could be described as a Rent a Crowd.
I'd love to know who's paying for it all, bussing people from all over the place wouldn't be cheap, and I can't see his fb followers doing it unless it's free
Wonder if the drivers got PPE.
Loved the bit about Billy The Kreep getting the quarantine breaker out of prison after seven days. Dumb shit is so thick he didn't know she was eligible for release after serving half of her sentence. Gives some indication of the intellect of his gang of 'protesters'.
Seems helping citizens with generous support payments to avoid prematurely opening up the economy is a winner.
TORONTO (Reuters) – Canada reported zero COVID-19 deaths in the past 24 hours for the first time since March 15, according to public health agency data released late on Friday.
With most provinces easing lockdown restrictions and as schools reopen for in-person classes, Canada’s infections have seen a mild pick-up in recent days. Authorities have been on high alert to avoid fresh outbreaks, and provinces including British Columbia have imposed new curbs to tackle the spread of the virus.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-canada/canada-reports-zero-covid-19-deaths-for-first-time-since-march-idUSKBN26301J
I feel that our international knowledge is low and shows a lack of understanding of the workings in politics elsewhere. The National Library has acted pragmatically and is making room for more NZ books by passing rarely used books to other libraries. That is an indication of a lack in us, and insularity.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/425885/national-library-in-middle-of-first-major-cull-of-international-books
Insular and unempathetic, materialistic, possessed by desire for consumerism, superior possessions and lifestyle, sentimentally moved by populist tragedies, valueless about others' plight? NZ'RUs? Brave New World?
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/in-depth/425647/prolonged-confinement-of-prisoners-could-prompt-legal-action-against-corrections
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/in-depth/425401/punitive-culture-at-new-zealand-s-largest-women-s-prison-internal-corrections-review-says