The Taliban have announced that women in Afghanistan will be allowed to study at university.
Speaking at a press conference, higher education minister, Abdul Baqi Haqqani, said women would be allowed to continue their university education, but it would be compulsory to wear a hijab. It was unclear if this meant a headscarf or that women’s faces would have to be covered completely.
… men and women would have to be taught in separate classrooms. “We will not allow boys and girls to study together,” said Haqqani. “We will not allow co-education.”
Female students will also only be allowed to be taught by women. Haqqani also said the subjects being taught at universities would be reviewed.
…
In a recent interview on the TV channel Tolo News, Taliban spokesman Sayed Zekrullah Hashimi said the role of women was to give birth and raise children, adding that it was “not necessary that women be in the cabinet”.
…
Before the fall of Kabul…universities across Afghanistan had been co-educational and women did not have to conform to any dress code. The number of female students in further education had reached record highs, and institutions such as Herat University and Ghalib University in Kabul had boasted more female students than male.
…
Heather Barr, co-director of the women’s rights division at Human Rights Watch said the approach of the Taliban was one “where women are, in theory, allowed to continue some of their day-to-day functions, but only under constraints that essentially make them operate in a world that’s almost entirely separate from boys and men”.
She said: “For many universities, and for many women and girls, it’s not going to be feasible, on a financial level and logistical level, to put these things in place. So the consequence will not be just gender segregation, it will be the exclusion of women and girls. Unfortunately I think that’s probably fine with the Taliban.”
Doesn't sound promising. Either the Taliban leadership are not co-ordinating thinking with each other, or they are connivingly talking out of both sides of their mouths at the same time. Most likely the latter.
Yes. I was thinking of phone in if she didn't have internet, but it's just occurred to me there may be an issue paying at the door if it's supposed to be a socially distant, contactless delivery. Possibly not an issue though if she has gloves and/or hand-sanitises before paying.
Whatever, either way they should have displayed a little humanity and figured out a solution for a long term, aged customer.
Some elderly folk want to go to the supermarket. For many it might be the only time they get to have a legitimate outing during a lock-down. I have joked that my trips to the local sm are the highlight of my week – a demonstration how grim it is under a lengthy lockdown 4.
My current gripe is how many people are ignoring the distancing rules inside the supermarket. The main culprits are entitled late 20s to early 40s Mums (got a lot of them in my neck of the woods) who think everybody should get out of their way.
I have a cure for that. Position yourself in front of them if you can and pretend to be concentrating on the shelf merchandise – or the waist height fridges – then move backwards straight into their overloaded trolleys. With a bit of luck some of their produce will fall out onto the floor. They soon get out of your way albeit with sullen looks n'all.
Best to ensure you are well padded around the rear so as not to injure yourself in the process.
Its in no way the same, but I was once followed around a supermarket by security on account of bringing reuseable bags and placing items in them. I made a point of taking them to the checkout and getting the clerk to see the empty bags while repacking (asking because the security supposedly thought I would shop lift).
Unsurprisingly it never happened again, though I shopped at the same store with the same guard working.
Interestingly, whenever I read or hear of poor treatment of customers concerning covid behaviour it is always Countdown. Do you think it could have anything to do with it being an Australian company and therefore not quite on board with the way we do it here?
I/m in Tawa, North Welly. I mainly shop at the local New World because it's closest and I find the staff & supervisors generally more chatty & friendly. I get on well with one of the owners, used to phone her to hold made up deli meals for me.
It's smaller than Countdown, so has a bit more of a village store feel to it. Only downside is they're not always cheaper, and they soon dispense with stock items that don't sell quickly in volume.
Countdown operation's much larger, so I'll go there for those items. I find it a bit more impersonal & the staff not quite so friendly, but their regulars may have a different take on that.
“Each Thursday for the last two decades she has caught a bus to shop at Countdown in central Dunedin.”
…
I took it that dv was mainly concerned she may not have a car, & possibly has no one to shop for her.
We get it all the time from outfits like the Taxpayers' Union about the PM employing a thousand communications staff. They're needed – to attend to the mindless stuff like the Slater request.
They were on a bicycle ride. You are allowed to go on bicycle rides up to a 5 km radius from your home. That is exactly what Wiles did. It has been demonstrated by Ashley Bloomfield and others that she broke no rules.
Its my view the PM's office should refuse to supply the information on the grounds of it being prejudicial to national security. Now that would up the stakes enormously and we could enjoy the spectacle of a monumental Slater meltdown from our Lockdown 4 sofas – popcorn optional.
"Its my view the PM's office should refuse to supply the information on the grounds of it being prejudicial to national security".
What would you suggest when an appeal is made to the Ombudsman who then ruled, as he probably would, that there was no matter of National Security involved and ordered that the information should be released?
That would simply leave the PM up for claims of a cover- up. What on earth is the gain in that? Why make a big story out of nothing?
You could probably try that Robert, but I'm not sure if it is a valid reason for a refusal to release the material.
You will probably get a rap over the knuckles by the Ombudsman though and that is something politicians never win.. It is rather like getting an adverse opinion from the Auditor-General. You may think you are in the right, as Helen Clark apparently did with the pledge card, but the public always sides with the Ombudsman or the AG and believes that there was something dreadfully smelly being done by the pollie.
Withholding info in this case would only seem to be possible under 9 (2) (f) or (g), and that isn't your ground for doing so.
Meh – OIA requests were taking up to a year under Key, and coming out heavily redacted at that. Those manicured knuckles never got many of their richly deserved smacks.
The information may be fully released, but it needn't be on Whaleoil's dirt unit's timetable.
Perhaps you are right. You might think I am being too fastidious but I have never found anything humorous at all in the idea that our Government should even consider breaking the law. I consider it to be completely unforgiveable and find people remarking on it being acceptable, even if they claim that they are joking quite appalling.
To each her own I suppose. If you make it into a position of such power I hope you will change your mind though.
I think you are being simplistic by thinking of "the government" as a single united entity. its not, and never will be. go and watch the brilliant film"brazil". a single dead fly leads to total anarchy and chaos.
On my daily walk up Mt Eden this morning I was somewhat surprised to see unmasked workman cutting the grass.
We're in level 4 I just dont see how this can be considered an essential service. The grass isnt overly long its not a fire risk and if its ok does that mean the local mowing contractor can work under level 4?
That is true, but businesses and/or management have had a year and a half to work out protocols and manning under different levels. If someone is working in a public place unmasked, there has been a failure somewhere.
The virus doesn't stop transmission just because the worker prefers to work unmasked for comfort. Either accept reduced productivity or increase manning.
I dont get why grass cutting is even considered essential under level 4. Makes a mockery of the 'essential' bit especially when say a butcher cant open contractors cant mow grass on private property etc its the lack of consistancy that gets me.
" If someone is working in a public place unmasked, there has been a failure somewhere.". Suppose we simply drop the word "working" from this sentence. It really makes no difference to the logic of your complaint and simply leaves you describing Siouxsie Wiles. A beach is a public place after all.
Now, are you joining the people who are complaining that Dr Wiles should have been taking her own advice and been wearing a mask at the beach?
If you see some difference between the situations perhaps you can tell me what is is. It certainly won't be a matter of proximity. People who do lawn mowing for a living are extremely careful about keeping very well clear of onlookers.
Yes, but all I am asking is what is the difference between that and someone mowing lawns? Treat them both equally, since their situation is equal.
If you think that Siouxsie was behaving acceptably then you should feel the same way about the person doing the mowing. If you regard the mowing gentleman as being at fault you should say the Dr Wiles was as well.
I am asking Molly whether she is being consistent in her views.
As you know, I was talking about the responsibility of businesses and employers to ensure their staff, and those they interact with are kept safe, when they are permitted to operate within levels.
You have instead gone off again on your voyeuristic obsession with two women meeting on a beach within bubble rules.
Deliberately off topic, and somewhat stalkerish. Unfortunately, I don't think that observation will stop you doing it again. Don't worry, you are still rising to meet my low expectation of your replies.
heavy physical work makes it difficult to wear a mask.
Dunno about this. I'm sure I've seen workers on building sites in North Welly wearing masks.
And before Covid hit us I sometimes wore a surgical mask when we had Welly's infernal northerlies blowing pollen off the hills into my face when I was out mowing the lawns with my trusty push-mower for exercise.
Masks are actually pretty common in a range of trades, for dust especially, handling potting mix is another often very physical work invloved breaking or cutting concrete… no excuse really
Well, how many people want to be within a few metres of someone cutting grass? Largely a solitary activity, in my experience.
So the mask issue isn't really a go-er. Sure, if you're walking down the street, or might be loitering within a few metres in a park or at the beach, but if you're the only ones in the area masking isn't an issue.
Going to the depot, loggin in/out, getting equipment – that's where the procedures for contactless transactions and masking needs to be practised.
As for the cutting itself – yeah, there's probably a fair bit of "essential? really?" in that. But then, if one waits until it actually is a fire hazard, one can't necessarily mow everywhere at once. So keeping all of it trimmed regularly could stop any of the backlog after lockdown becoming a hazard.
I didn't even think of the chimnny effect when looking at the top of it – was more thinking that a decent flush would act like a piston, especially for the flats below.
The other thng that came to mind was that some places have phased out s-bend traps and gone with p-traps. A bit of information that came about when dealing with a particularly obstreperous sink blockage .
lol apparently onenews had some yank on doing the usual chicken little line: NZ's covid policy is unsustainable, yadda yadda, we're not vaxxing quickly enough.
Actual interview sounds fairly pointless, but a twitter response had a nice chart for all the local doomsayers. "If these trends continue", lol
Do you have any good reason to explain why you think New Zealand will have a vaccination rate that will continue to accelerate after passing 50% when every other country apparently slows down? Why are we so distinctive, in your opinion.
Note I say "every other country" without having really checked all of them. Perhaps Luxembourg is different.
Well, uk/usa seemed to have a slowdown at 45%, and we pretty much skipped that.
But more to the point, my comment was about how doom and gloom merchants at the start of the pandemic were like "ohmagerd we're all screwed", but with other trends they, like you, are more cautious about extrapolating optimism therefrom.
But hey, I guess we'll see. I do find the relative differences in curves quite interesting, when NZ is measured against the two apparently main countries of origin of tweets concerned about NZ's freedoms, economy, "natural immunity", and other such bullshit.
Possibly our vaccination rate has not slowed down because of the higher levels of trust and confidence shown in our government's handling of this pandemic.
The August 2021 Guardian article cited above canvasses this issue in some detail.
This level of trust has increased whereas countries with lower levels of trust in their government have seen those levels fall further, presumably along with their government's standards of good stewardship and resultant poorer outcomes.
I suspect what McFlock mentions above as the gloom and doom merchants have a large measure of their disgruntlement as a result of seeing a small, socially cohesive society well governed by an empathetic and left wing government which pays due attention to scientific advice from a credible civil service and trusted public health system.
I have been in the last decade well served by this health service with several serious issues. I have trust and confidence.
So does my age cohort as I have been involved with a telephone campaign contacting seniors during lockdown and the responses showed high levels of satisfaction with current practice.
A confidence rating reaching at its peak in excess of 80% as the Guardian article cites is exceptional globally.
Cultural factors may help us be a relatively high performer – though this is a guess obviously. Things like:
The level of shared commitment to elimination in 2020 was unusual. Although "team of 5 million" is a bit cringeworthy, if there wasn't an element of truth to it the phrase wouldn't exist. We also saw that politicians who misread that mood and wanted to elevate some undefined and suspiciously self-interested notion of "the economy" above public health, got badly punished
The desire to punch above our weight. Yeah another cliche – but we are tiny and mostly ignored and the desire to be the best at something/anything is strong
Some faded remnant of our egalitarian past in which everyone mattered. In real material terms this egalitarianism was trashed from the 1980's. But there are behavioural aspects that I feel linger in the way that people at different levels of the economic and employment hierarchy interact personally.
Willingness to listen to and engage with the organisations that represent the interests of the most marginalised – essentially Pacific and Maori people. These are also the people most likely to not get vaccinated for various reasons.
Lack of a virulent far-right. We have a very strong (for want of a better phrase) "establishment right" who are determined not to let any socialist principles in the front door. But they are not conspiracist nutters – and in fact they actually want everyone vaccinated so the normal processes of capital accumulation for their benefit can continue undisturbed.
In regards to the team of 5 million, I thought it was mildly derivative of the 'stadium of 5 (4?) million' that was used here in the 2015 Rugby World Cup.
I'd add to that the oral tradition of Maori who well remember their losses from the Spanish influenza epidemic and both the sheer volume of people (60% in some hapu) that were lost – plus all the handed down unwritten knowledge that went with them. Their fast, quick, collective and empathic response this time around laid part of the bed rock for New Zealand's response.
This was much more a lived response and a collective interest one. Sure their are shades of similar experience in many of our European communities as well – miners, unionism, etc but you can't beat the personal.
Maori ways of thinking are embedded in our culture – often without us realising it. As Lorde noted with her latest release in Te Reo.
"Lorde acknowledged in a statement that while she is not Māori, one of her main realizations while making the album is that much of her value system around "caring for and listening to the natural world" comes from traditional Māori principles."
Our history of high uptakes of vaccines and the fact we have kept Covid out longer than most countries people know that to have those freedoms we need high rates of vaccination and we are seeing people aren't afraid of vaccines in this country.
Auckland is doing it tough at the moment with the low rate of testing the govt should hand out food vouchers and food parcels when they roll up to be tested and vaccinated.
Grant Robertson get the cheque book out. Also Auckland should be given a $ billion for council and another top up for businesses as well as those who have lost their jobs.
Hope for National – instead of trying to make a new leader out of the odd assemblage of troughers and sow's ears the party has left, they can have a new, smart, attractive leader, and they won't even have to pay her.
Aspects of her remind me of Data, of Star Trek Next Generation.
Actually, aspects of Mark Zuckerberg do the same.
Dunno where AI learning evolution is going to eventually take us, but one hopes intelligent robots never get to a point where we rely on them to protect our environment & they figure out that at our worst we can be like a plague. 😮
A good read. Welly gets a mention or two. Wellington's got excellent commuter rail services from outer suburbs to the CBD (I took the train to & from work for about 30 years).
Don't know if the inner-suburban bus services are all that crash-hot these days. They were frequent & reliable when I first moved to Te Whanganui-a-Tara from Taranaki in 1974 & flatted initially in Mt Victoria & then Brooklyn, before moving to the Northern Suburbs (Tawa).
A couple of decades back there were quite a lot of conversions of vacant office blocks into private apartments in places like The Terrace. I expect there are new apartment blocks still going up in the city & the views from most will be good.
Only problem at the moment is there are a few places I wouldn't even go in daylight in the City Centre because of well-reported issues with abuse of the public & general public misbehaviour of some of the residents recently given inner city emergency housing in the city.
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As pressure on it grows, the livestock industry’s approach to the transition to Net Zero is increasingly being compared to that of fossil fuel interests. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / Getty ImagesTL;DR: Here’s the top five news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa-NZ this week, and a discussion above ...
The New Zealand Herald reports – Stats NZ has offered a voluntary redundancy scheme to all of its workers as a way to give staff some control over their “future” amidst widespread job losses in the public sector. In an update to staff this morning, seen by the Herald, Statistics New Zealand ...
On Werewolf/Scoop, I usually do two long form political columns a week. From now on, there will be an extra column each week about music and movies. But first, some late-breaking political events:The rise in unemployment numbers for the March quarter was bigger than expected – and especially sharp ...
David Farrar writes – The Herald reports: TVNZ says it is dealing with about 50 formal complaints over its coverage of the latest 1News-Verian political poll, with some viewers – as well as the Prime Minister and a former senior Labour MP – critical of the tone of the 6pm report. ...
Muriel Newman writes – When Meridian Energy was seeking resource consents for a West Coast hydro dam proposal in 2010, local Maori “strenuously” objected, claiming their mana was inextricably linked to ‘their’ river and could be damaged. After receiving a financial payment from the company, however, the Ngai Tahu ...
Alwyn Poole writes – “An SEP,’ he said, ‘is something that we can’t see, or don’t see, or our brain doesn’t let us see, because we think that it’s somebody else’s problem. That’s what SEP means. Somebody Else’s Problem. The brain just edits it out, it’s like a ...
Our trust in our political institutions is fast eroding, according to a Maxim Institute discussion paper, Shaky Foundations: Why our democracy needs trust. The paper – released today – raises concerns about declining trust in New Zealand’s political institutions and democratic processes, and the role that the overuse of Parliamentary urgency ...
This article was prepared for publication yesterday. More ministerial announcements have been posted on the government’s official website since it was written. We will report on these later today …. Buzz from the BeehiveThere we were, thinking the environment is in trouble, when along came Jones. Shane Jones. ...
New Zealand now has the fourth most depressed construction sector in the world behind China, Qatar and Hong Kong. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 8:46am on Thursday, May 2:The Lead: ...
David Seymour has failed to get the sweeping cuts he wanted to the free and healthy school lunch programme, Labour education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
Hon Willie Jackson has been invited by the Oxford Union to debate the motion “This House Believes British Museums are not Very British’ on May 23rd. ...
Green Party MP Hūhana Lyndon says her Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill is an opportunity to right some past wrongs around the alienation of Māori land. ...
A senior, highly respected King’s Counsel with decades of experience in our law courts, Gary Judd KC, has filed a complaint about compulsory tikanga Māori studies for law students - highlighting the utter depths of absurdity this woke cultural madness has taken our society. The tikanga regulations will compel law ...
The Government needs to be clear with the people of the Nelson Marlborough region about the changes it is considering for the Nelson Hospital rebuild, Labour health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall said. ...
Ministers must front up about which projects it will push through under its Fast Track Approvals legislation, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
The Government is again adding to New Zealand’s growing unemployment, this time cutting jobs at the agencies responsible for urban development and growing much needed housing stock. ...
With Minister Karen Chhour indicating in the House today that she either doesn’t know or care about the frontline cuts she’s making to Oranga Tamariki, we risk seeing more and more of our children falling through the cracks. ...
The Labour Party is saddened to learn of the death of Sir Robert Martin, a globally renowned disability advocate who led the way for disability rights both in New Zealand and internationally. ...
Labour is calling for the Government to urgently rethink its coalition commitment to restart live animal exports, Labour animal welfare spokesperson Rachel Boyack said. ...
Today’s Financial Stability Report has once again highlighted that poverty and deep inequality are political choices - and this Government is choosing to make them worse. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to do more for our households in most need as unemployment rises and the cost of living crisis endures. ...
Unemployment is on the rise and it’s only going to get worse under this Government, Labour finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds said. Stats NZ figures show the unemployment rate grew to 4.3 percent in the March quarter from 4 percent in the December quarter. “This is the second rise in unemployment ...
The New Zealand Labour Party welcomes the entering into force of the European Union and New Zealand free trade agreement. This agreement opens the door for a huge increase in trade opportunities with a market of 450 million people who are high value discerning consumers of New Zealand goods and ...
The National-led Government continues its fiscal jiggery pokery with its Pharmac announcement today, Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall says. “The government has increased Pharmac funding but conceded it will only make minimal increases in access to medicine”, said Ayesha Verrall “This is far from the bold promises made to fund ...
This afternoon’s interim Waitangi Tribunal report must be taken seriously as it affects our most vulnerable children, Labour children’s spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime. ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government will be delivering a more efficient Healthy School Lunches Programme, saving taxpayers approximately $107 million a year compared to how Labour funded it, by embracing innovation and commercial expertise. “We are delivering on our commitment to treat taxpayers’ money ...
New research on the impacts of extreme weather on coastal marine habitats in Tairāwhiti and Hawke’s Bay will help fishery managers plan for and respond to any future events, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. A report released today on research by Niwa on behalf of Fisheries New Zealand ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters will lead a broad political delegation on a five-stop Pacific tour next week to strengthen New Zealand’s engagement with the region. The delegation will visit Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, and Tuvalu. “New Zealand has deep and ...
There has been a material decline in gas production according to figures released today by the Gas Industry Co. Figures released by the Gas Industry Company show that there was a 12.5 per cent reduction in gas production during 2023, and a 27.8 per cent reduction in gas production in the ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins tonight announced the recipients of the Minister of Defence Awards of Excellence for Industry, saying they all contribute to New Zealanders’ security and wellbeing. “Congratulations to this year’s recipients, whose innovative products and services play a critical role in the delivery of New Zealand’s defence capabilities, ...
Welcome to you all - it is a pleasure to be here this evening.I would like to start by thanking Greg Lowe, Chair of the New Zealand Defence Industry Advisory Council, for co-hosting this reception with me. This evening is about recognising businesses from across New Zealand and overseas who in ...
It is a pleasure to be speaking to you as the Minister for Digitising Government. I would like to thank Akolade for the invitation to address this Summit, and to acknowledge the great effort you are making to grow New Zealand’s digital future. Today, we stand at the cusp of ...
New Zealand is urging both Israel and Hamas to agree to an immediate ceasefire to avoid the further humanitarian catastrophe that military action in Rafah would unleash, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The immense suffering in Gaza cannot be allowed to worsen further. Both sides have a responsibility to ...
A new online data dashboard released today as part of the Government’s school attendance action plan makes more timely daily attendance data available to the public and parents, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. The interactive dashboard will be updated once a week to show a national average of how ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced Rosemary Banks will be New Zealand’s next Ambassador to the United States of America. “Our relationship with the United States is crucial for New Zealand in strategic, security and economic terms,” Mr Peters says. “New Zealand and the United States have a ...
The Government is considering creating a new tier of minerals permitting that will make it easier for hobby miners to prospect for gold. “New Zealand was built on gold, it’s in our DNA. Our gold deposits, particularly in regions such as Otago and the West Coast have always attracted fortune-hunters. ...
Minister for Trade Todd McClay today announced that New Zealand and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will commence negotiations on a free trade agreement (FTA). Minister McClay met with his counterpart UAE Trade Minister Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi in Dubai, where they announced the launch of negotiations on a ...
New Zealand Sign Language Week is an excellent opportunity for all Kiwis to give the language a go, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. This week (May 6 to 12) is New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) Week. The theme is “an Aotearoa where anyone can sign anywhere” and aims to ...
Six tertiary students have been selected to work on NASA projects in the US through a New Zealand Space Scholarship, Space Minister Judith Collins announced today. “This is a fantastic opportunity for these talented students. They will undertake internships at NASA’s Ames Research Center or its Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), where ...
New Zealanders will be safer because of a $1.9 billion investment in more frontline Corrections officers, more support for offenders to turn away from crime, and more prison capacity, Corrections Minister Mark Mitchell says. “Our Government said we would crack down on crime. We promised to restore law and order, ...
The OECD’s latest report on New Zealand reinforces the importance of bringing Government spending under control, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The OECD conducts country surveys every two years to review its members’ economic policies. The 2024 New Zealand survey was presented in Wellington today by OECD Chief Economist Clare Lombardelli. ...
The Government has delivered on its election promise to provide a financially sustainable model for Auckland under its Local Water Done Well plan. The plan, which has been unanimously endorsed by Auckland Council’s Governing Body, will see Aucklanders avoid the previously projected 25.8 per cent water rates increases while retaining ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters discussed the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and enhanced cooperation in the Pacific with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock during her first official visit to New Zealand today. "New Zealand and Germany enjoy shared interests and values, including the rule of law, democracy, respect for the international system ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop today released his decision on four recommendations referred to him by the Western Bay of Plenty District Council, opening the door to housing growth in the area. The Council’s Plan Change 92 allows more homes to be built in existing and new ...
Thank you, John McKinnon and the New Zealand China Council for the invitation to speak to you today. Thank you too, all members of the China Council. Your effort has played an essential role in helping to build, shape, and grow a balanced and resilient relationship between our two ...
The Government is modernising insurance law to better protect Kiwis and provide security in the event of a disaster, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly announced today. “These reforms are long overdue. New Zealand’s insurance law is complicated and dated, some of which is more than 100 years old. ...
The coalition Government is refreshing its approach to supporting pay equity claims as time-limited funding for the Pay Equity Taskforce comes to an end, Public Service Minister Nicola Willis says. “Three years ago, the then-government introduced changes to the Equal Pay Act to support pay equity bargaining. The changes were ...
Structured literacy will change the way New Zealand children learn to read - improving achievement and setting students up for success, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “Being able to read and write is a fundamental life skill that too many young people are missing out on. Recent data shows that ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay says Canada’s refusal to comply in full with a CPTPP trade dispute ruling in our favour over dairy trade is cynical and New Zealand has no intention of backing down. Mr McClay said he has asked for urgent legal advice in respect of our ‘next move’ ...
The rights of our children and young people will be enhanced by changes the coalition Government will make to strengthen oversight of the Oranga Tamariki system, including restoring a single Children’s Commissioner. “The Government is committed to delivering better public services that care for our most at-risk young people and ...
The Government is making it easier for minor changes to be made to a building consent so building a home is easier and more affordable, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on making it easier and cheaper to build homes so we can ...
New Zealand lost a true legend when internationally renowned disability advocate Sir Robert Martin (KNZM) passed away at his home in Whanganui last night, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. “Our Government’s thoughts are with his wife Lynda, family and community, those he has worked with, the disability community in ...
Good evening – Before discussing the challenges and opportunities facing New Zealand’s foreign policy, we’d like to first acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. You have contributed to debates about New Zealand foreign policy over a long period of time, and we thank you for hosting us. ...
From today, passengers travelling internationally from Auckland Airport will be able to keep laptops and liquids in their carry-on bags for security screening thanks to new technology, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Creating a more efficient and seamless travel experience is important for holidaymakers and businesses, enabling faster movement through ...
People with an interest in the health of Northland’s marine ecosystems are invited to a public meeting to discuss how to deal with kina barrens, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones will lead the discussion, which will take place on Friday, 10 May, at Awanui Hotel in ...
Kiwi exporters are $100 million better off today with the NZ EU FTA entering into force says Trade Minister Todd McClay. “This is all part of our plan to grow the economy. New Zealand's prosperity depends on international trade, making up 60 per cent of the country’s total economic activity. ...
There are heartening signs that the extractive sector is once again becoming an attractive prospect for investors and a source of economic prosperity for New Zealand, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The beginnings of a resurgence in extractive industries are apparent in media reports of the sector in the past ...
The return of the historic Ō-Rākau battle site to the descendants of those who fought there moved one step closer today with the first reading of Te Pire mō Ō-Rākau, Te Pae o Maumahara / The Ō-Rākau Remembrance Bill. The Bill will entrust the 9.7-hectare battle site, five kilometres west ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has announced 25 new high-speed EV charging hubs along key routes between major urban centres and outlined the Government’s plan to supercharge New Zealand’s EV infrastructure. The hubs will each have several chargers and be capable of charging at least four – and up to 10 ...
The coalition Government will not proceed with the previous Government’s plans to regulate residential property managers, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “I have written to the Chairperson of the Social Services and Community Committee to inform him that the Government does not intend to support the Residential Property Managers Bill ...
The Government has announced an independent review into the disability support system funded by the Ministry of Disabled People – Whaikaha. Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston says the review will look at what can be done to strengthen the long-term sustainability of Disability Support Services to provide disabled people and ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith has attended the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva and outlined the Government’s plan to restore law and order. “Speaking to the United Nations Human Rights Council provided us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while responding to issues and ...
The Government and Rotorua Lakes Council are committed to working closely together to end the use of contracted emergency housing motels in Rotorua. Associate Minister of Housing (Social Housing) Tama Potaka says the Government remains committed to ending the long-term use of contracted emergency housing motels in Rotorua by the ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay heads overseas today for high-level trade talks in the Gulf region, and a key OECD meeting in Paris. Mr McClay will travel to Riyadh to meet with counterparts from Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). “New Zealand’s goods and services exports to the Gulf region ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford has outlined six education priorities to deliver a world-leading education system that sets Kiwi kids up for future success. “I’m putting ambition, achievement and outcomes at the heart of our education system. I want every child to be inspired and engaged in their learning so they ...
RNZ News As Israel presses ahead with strikes in Rafah and seizing the Rafah crossing from Egypt, aid agencies are sounding the alarm of a “catastrophic humanitarian situation”. Rafah was “significant” because it was the only part in Gaza that had not been terribly damaged by the conflict, United Nations ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anna Cooke, Honorary Fellow, School of the Environment, The University of Queensland We feel ecological grief when we lose places, species or ecosystems we value and love. These losses are a growing threat to mental health and wellbeing globally. We all see ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Shauna Brail, Associate Professor, Institute for Management & Innovation, University of Toronto A shift to hybrid and remote work continues to affect worker presence in Toronto’s downtown.(Shutterstock) Downtown Toronto, the core of Canada’s largest city, continues to reel from the lingering ...
Responding to an Auditor-General's report slamming failures in the administration of the 2023 General Election, Taxpayers’ Union Policy and Public Affairs Manager, James Ross, said: ...
The Taxpayers’ Union says the Beehive need to lead by example, following reports of more than $50,000 spent upgrading video conferencing equipment and furniture in the Prime Minister’s office. Taxpayers’ Union Campaign Manager, Connor Molloy, ...
An objective list of the 50 most powerful people in New Zealand, as judged by the Spinoff Editorial Board. It’s power list season, baby, and we want in on the action. Sure, there’s the rich list and the powerful “c-suite” list and the young people with power (hmmm) but here, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Thalia Anthony, Professor of Law, University of Technology Sydney ShutterstockThis article contains information on deaths in custody and the names of deceased people, and describes ongoing colonial violence towards Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. First Nations people in Australia ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alex Simpson, Senior Lecturer in Criminology, Macquarie University Netflix Baby Reindeer’s phenomenal success has much to do with its writer and lead, Richard Gadd, who plays Donny in a tender semi-autobiographical account of sexual abuse, harassment and stalking. Gadd’s story has ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Collins, Laureate Professor in Nutrition and Dietetics, University of Newcastle KarolinaGrabowska/Pexels If you didn’t have food allergies as a child, is it possible to develop them as an adult? The short answer is yes. But the reasons why are much ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Paul Moon, Professor of History, Auckland University of Technology Ans Westra, self-portrait, c. 1963. National Library ref AWM-0705-F They try but invariably fail – those writers who believe they are capable of encapsulating in prose or verse the essence of ...
Stewart Sowman-Lund looks at the growing concern around the world in this extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. What’s all this? When Covid-19 arrived on our shores in early 2020, some argued we were too slow, or crucially, ill-prepared for a pandemic. So ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Franco Montalto, Professor of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering and Director, Sustainable Water Resource Engineering Laboratory, Drexel University Water runs into a storm drain in a Los Angeles alley on Aug. 19, 2023, during Tropical Storm Hilary.Citizen of the Planet/Universal Images ...
The inquest into the death of Gore toddler Lachlan Jones has turned up a new witness who says he saw two teenagers and a small child in a high vis vest in the area where the boy’s body was found the day he died. Lachie’s body was discovered face up ...
Stories from the tenancy trenches, featuring spider infestations, cupboard rats and same-sex discrimination. Lucy’s brother was living in a damp 1930s building in Mt Eden where “he had to tie the cupboard doors closed so the rats didn’t get in”. Although he shared custody of his six-year-old son, his property ...
Simeon Brown, Chris Luxon, and Wayne Brown climbed into a hole and announced a plan to solve Auckland’s water woes. This is how it’ll work. New Zealand’s pipes are munted. They’re cracked and leaking, and struggling to handle all the extra poos excreted by our rising population. It’s a big, ...
Opinion: “As time passes, knowledge of the circumstances of the August 2016 outbreak will fade and its immediate impact will be lost.” This statement is from the 2017 report of the Official Inquiry into the Havelock North campylobacteriosis outbreak. The then National-led government established the inquiry after the outbreak left ...
Opinion: Nicholas Khoo looks at two key points in the high-stakes foreign policy pact debate – and asks if NZ can engage with as little drama as possible. The post Where to next for the Aukus ruckus? appeared first on Newsroom. ...
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Opinion: ‘Reference-class forecasting’ is at the heart of improving pricing a project and identifying the expected timeframe but it doesn’t appear to be in use here The post ‘Think fast and act slowly’ is failing big projects appeared first on Newsroom. ...
What do a sombrero in Argentina and cognitive driving tests have in common? Don’t worry, we’re not setting up a bad joke. Hinengaro Clinic dementia clinician Gregory Winkelman has the answer on today’s episode of The Detail. “We ask a patient’s spouse or son or daughter: If you went to ...
Wellington long jumper Phoebe Edwards is back and she’s having fun again. Until this year, Edwards, a top athlete in her teens, had never competed as a senior athlete in New Zealand. In March, the 26-year-old won a national long jump title in a lifetime best of 6.28m after ...
After replacing a fifth of their caucus in just four months, the Greens’ opportunity to reset, reshuffle and refocus on the Government is quickly slipping away The post Persistent Green Party scandals delay caucus reset appeared first on Newsroom. ...
I knew Taika Waititi quite well when he was a kid. His mother lived in a tall narrow house in Aro St, and my youngest sister had a similar house two doors along. They were both single mums, they each had a son aged seven. Taika and my nephew Stepan ...
ANALYSIS:By Olli Hellmann, University of Waikato When New Zealanders commemorate Anzac Day today on April 25, it’s not only to honour the soldiers who lost their lives in World War I and subsequent conflicts, but also to mark a defining event for national identity. The battle of Gallipoli against ...
By Robin Martin, RNZ News reporter A New Zealand local authority, Whanganui District Council, has passed a motion calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, condemnation of all acts of violence and terror against civilians on both sides of the conflict and the immediate return of hostages. It comes as ...
Asia Pacific Report The Aotearoa chapter of the Women’s International league for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) has appealed to the New Zealand government to call out Israel over the “cruel and barbaric use of force” in Gaza and demand a permanent ceasefire. The league’s open letter was sent to Prime ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The Albanese government will invest $566 million over a decade on data, maps and other tools to promote exploration and development in Australia’s resources industry. The project will fund “the first comprehensive map of what’s ...
Asia Pacific Report Following an open letter by Auckland University academics speaking out in support of their students’ right to protest against the genocidal Israeli war on Gaza, a group of academics at Otago University have today also called on New Zealand academic institutions to “repair colonial violence” and end ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Linda J. Graham, Professor and Director of the Centre for Inclusive Education, Queensland University of Technology Ryan Tauss/ Unsplash, CC BY Two male students have been expelled from a Melbourne private school for their involvement in a list ranking female students. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Martin, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University The Reserve Bank is now assuming Australians will see no interest rate cuts this year – and quite possibly none before the next federal election, due next May. That’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Hayward, Emeritus Professor of Public Policy, RMIT University The Victorian budget offered more of the same on Tuesday, with the only change being how the budget papers were packaged. The usual shrink wrap was gone, hinting at savings in the pages ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The Coalition is demanding extensive amendments to the government’s legislation targeting non-citizens who refuse to co-operate with their removal. In a dissenting report to the senate inquiry into the legislation, the Coalition says it ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Vanita Yadav, Senior Research Fellow, Urban Transformations Research Centre, Western Sydney University Brett Boardman/Belvoir The complex and grappling issue of violence against women takes centre stage in the soul-stirring solo dance drama Nayika: A Dancing Girl. During a dinner conversation ...
Disruption to patient care from a nationwide junior doctors strike is bordering on unsafe, a senior doctor claims, despite what health officials say. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Diepstraten, Senior Research Officer, Blood Cells and Blood Cancer Division, Walter and Eliza Hall Institute Ground Picture/Shutterstock The anti-cancer drug abemaciclib (also known as Vernezio) has this month been added to the Australian Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) to treat certain ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Dominic McAfee, Postdoctoral researcher, marine ecology, University of Adelaide Robbie Porter, OzFish Unlimited Around Australia, hundreds of people are coming together to help a once-prized, but decimated and largely forgotten marine ecosystem. They’re busy restoring Australia’s native oyster and mussel reefs. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sara Webb, Lecturer, Centre for Astrophysics and Supercomputing, Swinburne University of Technology Austin Human/Unsplash How does Earth stop meteors from hitting Earth and hurting people? –Asher, 6 years 11 months, New South Wales Alright, let’s embark on a meteor ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rory Mulcahy, Associate Professor of Marketing, University of the Sunshine Coast Professional sports organisations regularly promote and develop initiatives to support diversity, equity and inclusion. While sport has the power to change attitudes by sparking conversations about political issues and social ...
Comment: The weekly Monday post-Cabinet press conference is a useful forum for observing Christopher Luxon and how he is developing into the job of Prime Minister. He attempts to convey the impression of a man of action, speaking fast, delivering memorised National Party strategies in a connect-the-slogans kind of way, ...
Double votes, missing ballot boxes, tired tech and stressed staff: how tick-tallying went astray at last year’s election. Cast your mind back to November 2023, that bleary-eyed post-election period duringwhichwewaited, andwaited, for a coalition deal to be hammered out. A distraction from the hotel-hopping of our ...
International audiences are starting to discover what New Zealand already knew about After the Party.When After the Party aired in New Zealand last year, the response was fast and furious. In his preview for Rec Room, Duncan Greive said it was a “gritty, wrenching and highly confronting” series. By ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Shahram Akbarzadeh, Convenor of the Middle East Studies Forum (MESF), and Acting Director the Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation, Deakin University Iran’s leadership has been a direct beneficiary of the months-long war in Gaza. With every missile that Israel fires ...
Claire Mabey reviews the haunting and sexy debut novel from Sinéad Gleeson, who is about to touch down in Aotearoa for a string of live events.When Irish writer Sinéad Gleeson was in Aotearoa in 2018 with her spectacular collection of essays, Constellations, she told me she was working on ...
PNG Post-Courier Bougainville Affairs Minister Manasseh Makiba has described the Post-Courier’s front page story yesterday regarding a meeting between Bougainville and national government leaders as “sensationalised” and without substance. The Autonomous Bougainville Government (AGB) had warned it might use “other avenues to gain its independence” should the PNG government “continue ...
Where some saw the worst press conference given by the government to date, Anna Rawhiti-Connell recognised girl maths game.Nicola Willis, recently exasperated by comparisons to Ruth Richardson, said she was “a bit sick of being compared with every female finance minister that’s ever been out there.”Some think that’s ...
The March results are reported against forecasts based on the Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update 2023 (HYEFU 2023), published on 20 December 2023 and the results for the same period for the previous year. ...
Jamie Arbuckle, the district councillor who became an MP but decided to keep getting paid for both roles, will instead donate one salary to charity. ...
Adding gender to the Human Rights Act would simply make the implicit explicit. So why is it so controversial? Paul Thistoll explain. At present, Aotearoa’s 1993 Human Rights Act (HRA) includes sex, marital status, religious belief, ethical belief (meaning a lack of religious belief), colour, race, ethnicity or national origin, ...
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The Taliban have announced that women in Afghanistan will be allowed to study at university.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/sep/12/afghan-women-university-female-only-classrooms-taliban-say
Doesn't sound promising. Either the Taliban leadership are not co-ordinating thinking with each other, or they are connivingly talking out of both sides of their mouths at the same time. Most likely the latter.
lol I see Cathy Odgers blog has been taken down; can we assume she has gone to join Jordon, Ani and Cameron in LOTO's office?
She's even worse than Judith. A total psychopath. Judith at least has the odd moment of empathy for others – albeit very selective.
Ah, "Leader Of The Opposition", aka "Lord Of The Oafs" 🙂
There was a piece in stuff abt 70 woman who had a medical mask exemption. Cant find the link now)
She was denied access to Countdown.
What struck me was the lack of help/solutions for her to get her food.
No one suggested shopping on line and getting food delivered (15$, which is probably bus fare as she travelled on a bus to the store)
(Yea i know 70, no internet/cards etc)
This it?
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/300404515/shocked-and-suffocated–woman-who-cannot-wear-a-mask-told-she-was-not-welcome-at-dunedin-supermarket
Thanks Gezza.
(Hang my head in shame for an hr)
For heaven's sake. Why? Happens to me sometimes. No harm done.
Point is, you spotted it & you cared. If I see something similar happen I might step in with your suggestion. 👍🏼
And the other thing they could have considered is perhaps invite her to phone her orders in in future. Cash or Eftpos on delivery.
We need to look after our kaumatua better than this !
There are also local groups who shop for people – all it takes sometimes is connecting them up.
Yes. I was thinking of phone in if she didn't have internet, but it's just occurred to me there may be an issue paying at the door if it's supposed to be a socially distant, contactless delivery. Possibly not an issue though if she has gloves and/or hand-sanitises before paying.
Whatever, either way they should have displayed a little humanity and figured out a solution for a long term, aged customer.
Some elderly folk want to go to the supermarket. For many it might be the only time they get to have a legitimate outing during a lock-down. I have joked that my trips to the local sm are the highlight of my week – a demonstration how grim it is under a lengthy lockdown 4.
My current gripe is how many people are ignoring the distancing rules inside the supermarket. The main culprits are entitled late 20s to early 40s Mums (got a lot of them in my neck of the woods) who think everybody should get out of their way.
I have a cure for that. Position yourself in front of them if you can and pretend to be concentrating on the shelf merchandise – or the waist height fridges – then move backwards straight into their overloaded trolleys. With a bit of luck some of their produce will fall out onto the floor. They soon get out of your way albeit with sullen looks n'all.
Best to ensure you are well padded around the rear so as not to injure yourself in the process.
Looks like a poor decision by the manager.
Its in no way the same, but I was once followed around a supermarket by security on account of bringing reuseable bags and placing items in them. I made a point of taking them to the checkout and getting the clerk to see the empty bags while repacking (asking because the security supposedly thought I would shop lift).
Unsurprisingly it never happened again, though I shopped at the same store with the same guard working.
Interestingly, whenever I read or hear of poor treatment of customers concerning covid behaviour it is always Countdown. Do you think it could have anything to do with it being an Australian company and therefore not quite on board with the way we do it here?
I/m in Tawa, North Welly. I mainly shop at the local New World because it's closest and I find the staff & supervisors generally more chatty & friendly. I get on well with one of the owners, used to phone her to hold made up deli meals for me.
It's smaller than Countdown, so has a bit more of a village store feel to it. Only downside is they're not always cheaper, and they soon dispense with stock items that don't sell quickly in volume.
Countdown operation's much larger, so I'll go there for those items. I find it a bit more impersonal & the staff not quite so friendly, but their regulars may have a different take on that.
Mine was not in a NZ supermarket, and I would hardly expect to see it here.
Just highlighting sometimes another way of dealing with dumb rules is to make it absolutely clear your following them.
Hang on dv. There's plenty of us over 70 who are internet savvy, have cars and cards etc.
Yea I know, but just trying head off some idiot agent commenters
“Each Thursday for the last two decades she has caught a bus to shop at Countdown in central Dunedin.”
…
I took it that dv was mainly concerned she may not have a car, & possibly has no one to shop for her.
Yes that is a good deduction.
Does this read like a guy impaired after a major stroke?
https://twitter.com/coughlthom/status/1437151588313755653
Yours faithfully
Yea right
And how many hours will be needed for such and essential task in the midst of a crisis.
We get it all the time from outfits like the Taxpayers' Union about the PM employing a thousand communications staff. They're needed – to attend to the mindless stuff like the Slater request.
Probably no time as there maybe no communication other than health related.
Slater is trying to make himself look like a political mover and shaker again.
This steaming pile, assembled in grotesque mockery of the human form, Mr Slater, is back again–seriously?
No. It looks like a guy temporarily impaired for a probably very short time after a minor stroke from which he has now recovered completely.
This is sick and ridiculous. Seems no matter how low & despicable he gets, there's always scope for deterioration.
Going by his previous behavior it wont suprise me if his spy has footage of them leaving Judges bay via car.
He's sitting on it for now hoping to catch the govt out most damage possible…
They were on a bicycle ride. You are allowed to go on bicycle rides up to a 5 km radius from your home. That is exactly what Wiles did. It has been demonstrated by Ashley Bloomfield and others that she broke no rules.
Its my view the PM's office should refuse to supply the information on the grounds of it being prejudicial to national security. Now that would up the stakes enormously and we could enjoy the spectacle of a monumental Slater meltdown from our Lockdown 4 sofas – popcorn optional.
National security Yep that's a good idea.
"Its my view the PM's office should refuse to supply the information on the grounds of it being prejudicial to national security".
What would you suggest when an appeal is made to the Ombudsman who then ruled, as he probably would, that there was no matter of National Security involved and ordered that the information should be released?
That would simply leave the PM up for claims of a cover- up. What on earth is the gain in that? Why make a big story out of nothing?
Better grounds is vexacious nonsense during a significant national emergency. Transcripts supplied some weeks after lockdown ends.
Yes.
You could probably try that Robert, but I'm not sure if it is a valid reason for a refusal to release the material.
You will probably get a rap over the knuckles by the Ombudsman though and that is something politicians never win.. It is rather like getting an adverse opinion from the Auditor-General. You may think you are in the right, as Helen Clark apparently did with the pledge card, but the public always sides with the Ombudsman or the AG and believes that there was something dreadfully smelly being done by the pollie.
Withholding info in this case would only seem to be possible under 9 (2) (f) or (g), and that isn't your ground for doing so.
https://www.corrections.govt.nz/resources/policy_and_legislation/Prison-Operations-Manual/Public-RL/C.05.Res.01-Grounds-for-refusing-external-parties-request-for-information
Meh – OIA requests were taking up to a year under Key, and coming out heavily redacted at that. Those manicured knuckles never got many of their richly deserved smacks.
The information may be fully released, but it needn't be on Whaleoil's dirt unit's timetable.
Yes, the godkey was often in no rush to respond to OIAs, and according to Nicky Hager’s “Dirty Politics” sometimes Mr Slater got an early peek via Key’s Office…
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/257009/pm-admits-govt-uses-delaying-tactics
alwyn, your SoH needs a clean and polish.
Perhaps you are right. You might think I am being too fastidious but I have never found anything humorous at all in the idea that our Government should even consider breaking the law. I consider it to be completely unforgiveable and find people remarking on it being acceptable, even if they claim that they are joking quite appalling.
To each her own I suppose. If you make it into a position of such power I hope you will change your mind though.
I think you are being simplistic by thinking of "the government" as a single united entity. its not, and never will be. go and watch the brilliant film"brazil". a single dead fly leads to total anarchy and chaos.
Why make a big story out of nothing? Don't know the answer to that. I'll have to ask Cameron and Judith.
He's heading towards a cliff, just like last time, the same cliff Judith Collins is hell-bent on throwing herself over.
Hope the assignee is heading for his assets..
On my daily walk up Mt Eden this morning I was somewhat surprised to see unmasked workman cutting the grass.
We're in level 4 I just dont see how this can be considered an essential service. The grass isnt overly long its not a fire risk and if its ok does that mean the local mowing contractor can work under level 4?
I think you will find that heavy physical work makes it difficult to wear a mask.
Sure, but we're in level 4 in Auckland right?
So long as they are a safe distance thats not going to pose a risk.keeping grass short stops vermin.
It does. But if people loading trucks, trains and ships can wear them………
That is true, but businesses and/or management have had a year and a half to work out protocols and manning under different levels. If someone is working in a public place unmasked, there has been a failure somewhere.
The virus doesn't stop transmission just because the worker prefers to work unmasked for comfort. Either accept reduced productivity or increase manning.
I dont get why grass cutting is even considered essential under level 4. Makes a mockery of the 'essential' bit especially when say a butcher cant open contractors cant mow grass on private property etc its the lack of consistancy that gets me.
Also an injury risk. I don't get it either.
If someone is working in a public place unmasked, there has been a failure somewhere.
It’s all about risk. If you can go to the beach sans mask at level 4, then the risk would be similar to working outdoors.
Ralaxing on the beach well away from others, compared to workers on the same truck? Sure.
" If someone is working in a public place unmasked, there has been a failure somewhere.". Suppose we simply drop the word "working" from this sentence. It really makes no difference to the logic of your complaint and simply leaves you describing Siouxsie Wiles. A beach is a public place after all.
Now, are you joining the people who are complaining that Dr Wiles should have been taking her own advice and been wearing a mask at the beach?
If you see some difference between the situations perhaps you can tell me what is is. It certainly won't be a matter of proximity. People who do lawn mowing for a living are extremely careful about keeping very well clear of onlookers.
Alwynger She was wearing a mask and only took it off when no one was anywhere near who wasn't in her bubble.
Yes, but all I am asking is what is the difference between that and someone mowing lawns? Treat them both equally, since their situation is equal.
If you think that Siouxsie was behaving acceptably then you should feel the same way about the person doing the mowing. If you regard the mowing gentleman as being at fault you should say the Dr Wiles was as well.
I am asking Molly whether she is being consistent in her views.
That's a stretch, Alwyn.
As you know, I was talking about the responsibility of businesses and employers to ensure their staff, and those they interact with are kept safe, when they are permitted to operate within levels.
You have instead gone off again on your voyeuristic obsession with two women meeting on a beach within bubble rules.
Deliberately off topic, and somewhat stalkerish. Unfortunately, I don't think that observation will stop you doing it again. Don't worry, you are still rising to meet my low expectation of your replies.
Oh well.
What else should I have expected?
Voyeuristic? Obsession? stalkerish?
Realistic self-knowledge is a good start. Well done!
It was a bit weird, you turning the topic to Wiles at the beach.
Alwyns Conspiracy Theories =Association of Conspiracy Theorist's.
Flinging dirt trying to make it stick when it bounces back the minions have to mansplain their masters blow back .
heavy physical work makes it difficult to wear a mask.
Dunno about this. I'm sure I've seen workers on building sites in North Welly wearing masks.
And before Covid hit us I sometimes wore a surgical mask when we had Welly's infernal northerlies blowing pollen off the hills into my face when I was out mowing the lawns with my trusty push-mower for exercise.
Masks are actually pretty common in a range of trades, for dust especially, handling potting mix is another often very physical work invloved breaking or cutting concrete… no excuse really
Just on why they're doing it – it's windy & pouring with rain again in Welly. That'll be heading North pretty fast.
My lawns have been left for well over a month and they now look like prairies – grass is getting nearly a foot long in places.
Maybe they're just trying to get in before this latest dump of nature's irrigation system arrives? Gonna be a major challenge for a lawnmower here.
Nah just Kikuyu on the side of a hill with weed eaters not growing that quick cause its still a touch cold…
Not causing or close to causing an hazard either…
Plenty of ppl wearing masks down here in Dunedin, including workers, heavy & light, & ppl just walking outside with no one near them.
Prairies, what’s next? Gophers?😀
So much data!
https://informationisbeautiful.net/visualizations/covid-19-coronavirus-infographic-datapack/
https://infobeautiful4.s3.amazonaws.com/2020/03/Coronavirus-COVID19-riskiest-activities-03.png
I guess that lawn mowing is closest to outdoor exercise. That is seemingly safer than going to the beach, at least according to this diagram.
Watch for shared condiments though. 🙂
Well, how many people want to be within a few metres of someone cutting grass? Largely a solitary activity, in my experience.
So the mask issue isn't really a go-er. Sure, if you're walking down the street, or might be loitering within a few metres in a park or at the beach, but if you're the only ones in the area masking isn't an issue.
Going to the depot, loggin in/out, getting equipment – that's where the procedures for contactless transactions and masking needs to be practised.
As for the cutting itself – yeah, there's probably a fair bit of "essential? really?" in that. But then, if one waits until it actually is a fire hazard, one can't necessarily mow everywhere at once. So keeping all of it trimmed regularly could stop any of the backlog after lockdown becoming a hazard.
Well its not cutting the grass that is so problematic,it is wiping the ass.
https://twitter.com/DrEricDing/status/1342325491093614592
That's intriguing.
I didn't even think of the chimnny effect when looking at the top of it – was more thinking that a decent flush would act like a piston, especially for the flats below.
The other thng that came to mind was that some places have phased out s-bend traps and gone with p-traps. A bit of information that came about when dealing with a particularly obstreperous sink blockage .
Interesting. L4 saw no let up in the top dressing activity which I thought had significant risks.
Plane take offs/landing's trucks about with fertilizer etc appears essential. Seemed odd.
Hopefully you stayed well clear like a responsible citizen.
Jude palin' around with a white nationalist.
Not surprising, Collins is targeting that demographic.
Hmmm wasn't sure that was:
A: palin' – as in being very pale i.e. white
B: palin as in Sarah Palin
C: palin' as being friendly with
D: All of the above
Had a similar initial reaction but concluded it couldn’t be B as lower case.
(I also wondered if it should've been pallin' & decided I was over-thinking it.)
B & C
(couldn't be arsed editing on a tablet)
https://www.denverpost.com/2008/10/04/palin-says-obama-palling-around-with-terrorists/
lol apparently onenews had some yank on doing the usual chicken little line: NZ's covid policy is unsustainable, yadda yadda, we're not vaxxing quickly enough.
Actual interview sounds fairly pointless, but a twitter response had a nice chart for all the local doomsayers. "If these trends continue", lol
https://twitter.com/GodlessLib_CB/status/1437177342779174912/photo/2
Do you have any good reason to explain why you think New Zealand will have a vaccination rate that will continue to accelerate after passing 50% when every other country apparently slows down? Why are we so distinctive, in your opinion.
Note I say "every other country" without having really checked all of them. Perhaps Luxembourg is different.
Well, uk/usa seemed to have a slowdown at 45%, and we pretty much skipped that.
But more to the point, my comment was about how doom and gloom merchants at the start of the pandemic were like "ohmagerd we're all screwed", but with other trends they, like you, are more cautious about extrapolating optimism therefrom.
But hey, I guess we'll see. I do find the relative differences in curves quite interesting, when NZ is measured against the two apparently main countries of origin of tweets concerned about NZ's freedoms, economy, "natural immunity", and other such bullshit.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/aug/30/even-as-new-zealand-battles-covid-trust-in-government-bucks-global-trend
Possibly our vaccination rate has not slowed down because of the higher levels of trust and confidence shown in our government's handling of this pandemic.
The August 2021 Guardian article cited above canvasses this issue in some detail.
This level of trust has increased whereas countries with lower levels of trust in their government have seen those levels fall further, presumably along with their government's standards of good stewardship and resultant poorer outcomes.
I suspect what McFlock mentions above as the gloom and doom merchants have a large measure of their disgruntlement as a result of seeing a small, socially cohesive society well governed by an empathetic and left wing government which pays due attention to scientific advice from a credible civil service and trusted public health system.
I have been in the last decade well served by this health service with several serious issues. I have trust and confidence.
So does my age cohort as I have been involved with a telephone campaign contacting seniors during lockdown and the responses showed high levels of satisfaction with current practice.
A confidence rating reaching at its peak in excess of 80% as the Guardian article cites is exceptional globally.
"Why are we so distinctive, in your opinion?"
Cultural factors may help us be a relatively high performer – though this is a guess obviously. Things like:
So here's hoping.
Nice analysis. 👍🏼
+100
In regards to the team of 5 million, I thought it was mildly derivative of the 'stadium of 5 (4?) million' that was used here in the 2015 Rugby World Cup.
I'd add to that the oral tradition of Maori who well remember their losses from the Spanish influenza epidemic and both the sheer volume of people (60% in some hapu) that were lost – plus all the handed down unwritten knowledge that went with them. Their fast, quick, collective and empathic response this time around laid part of the bed rock for New Zealand's response.
This was much more a lived response and a collective interest one. Sure their are shades of similar experience in many of our European communities as well – miners, unionism, etc but you can't beat the personal.
Maori ways of thinking are embedded in our culture – often without us realising it. As Lorde noted with her latest release in Te Reo.
"Lorde acknowledged in a statement that while she is not Māori, one of her main realizations while making the album is that much of her value system around "caring for and listening to the natural world" comes from traditional Māori principles."
Our history of high uptakes of vaccines and the fact we have kept Covid out longer than most countries people know that to have those freedoms we need high rates of vaccination and we are seeing people aren't afraid of vaccines in this country.
So by the mid october we will be at 60% fully vaccinated and 90% with a single jab. Amazing
we-ell that's a big call, but the general gist is that we seem to be catching up quicker as they slow down.
Where is our roadmap to freedom then?
At this stage, still on the track that was announced mid-August.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/news/300403541/vaccine-passports-this-year-pm-says-no-change-to-2022-border-opening
https://www.scribd.com/document/519808209/Reconnecting-New-Zealanders-to-the-World#fullscreen&from_embed
https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/government-sets-out-plan-reconnect-new-zealanders-world
Auckland is doing it tough at the moment with the low rate of testing the govt should hand out food vouchers and food parcels when they roll up to be tested and vaccinated.
Grant Robertson get the cheque book out. Also Auckland should be given a $ billion for council and another top up for businesses as well as those who have lost their jobs.
Can't say much agin getting the chequebook out, for sure.
Hope for National – instead of trying to make a new leader out of the odd assemblage of troughers and sow's ears the party has left, they can have a new, smart, attractive leader, and they won't even have to pay her.
Open the caucus room doors Sophia.
I'm afraid I can't do that Simon.
Like that Stuart NICE
I find that robot kinda creepy.
Aspects of her remind me of Data, of Star Trek Next Generation.
Actually, aspects of Mark Zuckerberg do the same.
Dunno where AI learning evolution is going to eventually take us, but one hopes intelligent robots never get to a point where we rely on them to protect our environment & they figure out that at our worst we can be like a plague. 😮
Why we should all care about how our cities are “designed.”
https://www.greaterauckland.org.nz/2021/09/13/everyone-should-care-about-urbanism-and-heres-why/
A good read. Welly gets a mention or two. Wellington's got excellent commuter rail services from outer suburbs to the CBD (I took the train to & from work for about 30 years).
Don't know if the inner-suburban bus services are all that crash-hot these days. They were frequent & reliable when I first moved to Te Whanganui-a-Tara from Taranaki in 1974 & flatted initially in Mt Victoria & then Brooklyn, before moving to the Northern Suburbs (Tawa).
A couple of decades back there were quite a lot of conversions of vacant office blocks into private apartments in places like The Terrace. I expect there are new apartment blocks still going up in the city & the views from most will be good.
Only problem at the moment is there are a few places I wouldn't even go in daylight in the City Centre because of well-reported issues with abuse of the public & general public misbehaviour of some of the residents recently given inner city emergency housing in the city.