"President Biden pledged during the election campaign: "I guarantee you we’re going to end fossil fuels."
The same President Biden today has – much to the angst of conservationists – authorized a giant ConocoPhillips oil project in northwest Alaska.
The authorization represents one of the most significant climate decisions yet for Biden
Christy Goldfuss, a former Obama White House official who now is a policy chief at the Natural Resources Defense Council, said she was “deeply disappointed'' at Biden's decision to approve Willow, which NRDC estimates would generate planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to more than 1 million homes.
Willow is projected to output 180,000 barrels of oil per day, or around 1.5 percent of total American oil production.
Over its 30-year lifespan, Willow is expected to produce over 600 million barrels of oil while contributing up to $17 billion in revenues for state and federal governments as well as local communities."
Here is a great video that explains very simply how the banking fractional reserve system works and how a run on a bank is almost certain to sink it. In relation to the bank that went down in the US the other day.
This guy manages finance portfolios and also is ex army so comments on the Ukraine situation. But what he says here about banking is really good.
Probably explains in part why banks need large profits. Because, they are doing that through really high leverage which is incredibly risky if it goes wrong.
BTW, you can make depositors whole while still prosecuting any fraud and replacing the management involved. Unless its the bank (as in the business entity) rather than the bank management causing the problems this seems appropriate.
In the 1930s FDR sought solutions, to the bank run problem, from the economics profession. Chicago University offered the 'chicago plan' which would have entailed imposing a 100% reserve ratio on banks. The problem with this would have been that all monetary expansion would have to have come from government. This would have been difficult to manage unless all banks became government owned 'public utilities'. I suppose this would have been unacceptable in a 'free enterprise' economy like America's, albeit that it seems to work very well in China, where their banking system is owned by government.
Deposit insurance and full reserve protocols are the same. Either the state guarantees that you will be able to withdraw the insured sum, or that that sum is $ for $ held by the bank at all times. Its the same in either case.
The actual important parts of the Chicago plan for preventing bank collapses were implemented, including the Glass Stegall act which at the time separated retail and commercial lending and meant deposits were not put at risk by backing highly leveraged lending. That worked for a long time, but US banking practice has since moved on in ways where these became combined again.
The problem is that the bank is not solvent any more and will not repay all its liabilities (including deposits) without a bailout. Likely that's because there was a bunch of fraudulent lending occurred by the bank. Putting that all down to a run on deposits, a very natural reaction when people discover their deposits were loaned out fraudulently, is a bit simplistic.
Your absolutely right there, they are the same up to the insured limit.
Since they are the same, they encourage reckless lending to the same degree. But the actual thing which discourages reckless lending is the effective regulation.
SVB shareholders were wiped out BTW, while depositors are being largely made whole. What happens to the bank executives will depend on any prosecutions which occur of anything they did wrong.
Yes, it says $250K which is low if its a business account, but watch what actually happens. There are apparently payroll firms within the accounts and they won't be left short to pay people.
If you think about it, the banking system is legalised fraud. In fact, it started out as fraud in the days of gold merchants who stored gold for clients. They would write a certificate for the clients stating that they were holding x amount of gold for them which the clients could then use as collateral.
The gold merchants worked out that they could lend out the gold, and effectively write out fraudulent certificates. So long as all of the clients didn't ask for their money back at once they were ok.
Since at least Roman lending practices its always been the case that deposits are repaid in kind. You get back the same amount but not the same deposits made and this has always been a part of a legal definition for how deposits work.
The government had scrambled to try and sell Silicon Valley Bank to a private company and finding a purchaser is still a possibility. But a Treasury official said Sunday that regulators ultimately decided to move forward with the plan to make depositors whole, in part because it was proving to be challenging for a potential buyer to vet the bank’s books by Monday.
The Treasury official emphasized that the actions should not be considered to be a “bailout,” because the company’s shareholders and those who own its debt would be wiped out.
A trust owned by Silicon Valley Bank Chief Executive Officer Greg Becker sold $3.6 million worth of shares in his bank last week, days before the bank disclosed a $1.8 billion loss that triggered a fatal run on the bank, according to company filings.
On Feb. 27, the trust sold $3.6 million worth of shares while acquiring options worth $1.3 million. The trades were scheduled on Jan. 26 through an SEC rule that allows insiders to schedule sales ahead of time to allay suspicions of trading on insider information.
Right wing venture capitalist Peter Theil involved in SVB collapse…
“What finally doomed SVB was that the resulting losses prompted a panic among depositors. This was in no small part thanks to far-right billionaire Peter Thiel’s VC firm Founders Fund, which, after finding out its investors were having trouble transferring money to its SVB accounts, ordered them to send them to other banks and had withdrawn all of its cash by the time the bank started melting down late last week. ”
In the case of SVB, regulators allowed it to make risky bets with its deposits (while the bank’s executives insisted that the bets weren’t risky). More generally, SVB and other banks are often not required to maintain enough of a financial cushion to withstand a crisis. Financial cushions — effectively, cash or other forms of insurance — tend to reduce banks’ profits, which is why bankers resist them. But without a healthy cushion, a bank can collapse during a crisis, and taxpayers must sometimes bail it out. When that happens, the bankers and their investors often emerged unscathed.
Once SVB began to falter, financial industry executives and investors again began clamoring for government help. In the short term, the government may indeed need to step in to avoid a spreading crisis. But the less immediate questions may be uncomfortable for the bankers: How can the people who caused this crisis bear financial responsibility for it? And how can the U.S. economy end this cycle of booms that benefit banks and busts that hurt everyone else?
Silicon Valley Bank on Friday paid out annual bonuses to eligible U.S. employees, just hours before the bank was seized by the U.S. government, Axios has learned from multiple sources.
A cost of living increase in superannuitants' income is seen by those voters as 'business as usual' for a government. They certainly won't be expecting a regime change to result in sinking-lid pensions. So don't count that as pork-barrelling. However, they may be in for a nasty surprise. Means-testing, anyone?
A cost of living increase in superannuitants' income is seen by those voters as 'business as usual' for a government.
Also raises in benefits. Please don't let this be an election policy or touted as something special that this Govt has done, because it is not. To continue with fair policies developed over many years should not be thrown into the pot. By all means have in house policy reviews to improve these as all effeicient bodies should do.
If we do want to look at benefits etc why not have a look at the WEAG report and move on with innovative ideas that we are not doing now.
The Nats etc will have all sorts of ideas such as raising the age & means testing. Let us look at these and fight them for what they are.
Not every single thing that this Govt has done, including the BAU ones should be lauded. Otherwise we will find ourselves fighting things on efficiency grounds rather than true policy grounds.
So called 'Efficiency' arguments always plays into the Nats hands. A better idea is to ensure that the business of govt is well funded, departments are well staffed and impediments to BAU are stripped away.
From years in the PS I can hand on heart say that the biggest impediment to efficient delivery of both policy and BAU is any sort of wholesale restructuring, realignment, right sizing or any other weasel or waffle words you want to call it.
My thoughts are that the restruscturings of the late 1980s/1990s put a blight on service delivery by Govt that lasted into the 2000s and may still be felt in some Govt Depts. Productivity was slashed as people fought for their jobs, depts had to retool in policy brains etc.
Its been quoted here before, but bears repeating: restructuring as a solution is as old as government, and solves very little!
“We trained hard—but it seemed that every time we were beginning to form up into teams we were reorganized. I was to learn later in life that we tend to meet any new situation by reorganising, and what a wonderful method it can be for creating the illusion of progress while actually producing confusion, inefficiency, and demoralisation.”
Section 16 says min of 66% national average wage (NAW)
As the 66% generally holds the actual increase in Super is the NAW increase. But this year CPI was higher so the % of NAW will be above 66% and so no top up above CPI.
It doesn't seem like any politicians know how it works (worrying) as it's being sold as a extra benefit to pensioners (nope, just what they're entitled to, nothing more) by the Govt and the opposition hasn't pointed it out.
Yes agree with this….continuing with BAU is an expectation not something new. To claim it as 'rah, rah something we have done as a Govt' is spurious and hopefully it is not being done. They should claim for additions/improvements to the lot of everyone or particular people but not for standing still or for meeting legal entitlements. COL increases are not an extra entitlement.
It doesn't seem like any politicians know how it works (worrying) as it's being sold as a extra benefit to pensioners (nope, just what they're entitled to, nothing more) by the Govt and the opposition hasn't pointed it out.
I don't see it as pork barreling, I see it as good ideas, means testing is ridiculously expensive and complicated and the people you're targeting most will dodge it anyway,
Pension means testing works for Oz. And UK. You need to declare income regularly, ie, a pension is not a basic entitlement, but something you continually reapply for. And if your assets are too much, you fund your own retirement.
Some people will find any excuse to do the barest minimum possible.
I suggested if the government removed GST from food to help address the cost of living crisis and replaced it with an FTT and windfall tax, and could win the election in a landslide.
"Government just raised super and the benifits, got rid of mostly stupid policies, they gonna win any way"bwaghorn
If Labour can just scrape in, why should they do more?
Maybe, because it's the right thing to do?
Labour could form a government with the support of the Greens and Te Pāti Māori, according to the latest 1News Kantar Public Poll.
But the two main parties are still neck and neck, with just two points separating National and Labour.
please forget about taking gst off food. its a logistical nightmare for small businesses to piss around and run two different sets of accounts. they do this in aus and its a real pain in the arse. cooked chicken= gst, raw chicken = no gst etc,etc. just forget it. the one good thing about our gst, sales tax ,vat is that it applies at the same rate to all goods and services. before the pedants get here, Im aware that there are exceptions. but it is still the easiest system for a small business to work.
"…its a logistical nightmare for small businesses to piss around and run two different sets of accounts. they do this in aus and its a real pain in the arse. cooked chicken= gst, raw chicken = no gst etc,etc. just forget it."woodart
I didn't say take GST off some food. Taking GST off some food would definitely act to make it complicated. That would be stupid.
There have been many specious excuses made why this shouldn't be done, this is just one of them.
I have been reliably informed by an accountant that making all food GST free is a simple one off change to accounting software. That's it, simple.
The specious complexity argument is demonstrated in an opinion piece by Stephen Hickson of The Conversation who writes 'Some bad ideas never go away'
(I might add, no matter how much some people wish it would)
….It's an idea that voters like. A recent poll suggests 76 percent of New Zealanders support removing GST from food. But regardless of the support, removing GST on food always was, and still is, a bad idea….
…..As inflation increases to levels not seen for 30 years, the main reason given now is to ease the cost of living stress on those struggling to keep up….
…..Removing GST on food, or some types of food – for example, "healthy food" – makes that system more complex and costly.
There are a number of potential complications.
Let's start with the obvious – what would count as "food"? Is milk powder food? Probably yes, so what about milk? Or flavoured milk? Oranges are food, so what about 100 percent natural orange juice? A broad definition of "food" would include lollies, potato chips, McDonalds and KFC, but many would object to removing GST from these on health grounds….
….n Australia, the question of whether an "oven baked Italian flat bread" is a bread (so not subject to GST) or a cracker (subject to GST) went to court, and involved flying a bread certification expert from Italy to testify….
….In Ireland, the court was required to rule on whether Subway was serving "bread" or "confectionery or fancy baked goods" due to the difference in GST treatment.
In the UK, guidance on how GST on food is applied runs to 40 pages with 130 example categories; in Australia, an 87-page document covers some 1500 food types…
….The 2018 Tax Working Group (TWG) didn't support removing GST on food. It emphasised how such exemptions lead to "complex and often arbitrary boundaries", particularly when trying to target specific types of food such as "healthy food".
They also stated that such exemptions are a "poorly targeted instrument for achieving distributional aims".
This is important given the current push to help New Zealanders, particularly those on low incomes, with the cost of living.
All this specious argument really boils down to, is that we shouldn't go down the complex, some foods and not other foods, exemption route. GST off food no exceptions! We don't need experts and courts to tell us what food is, we all know what food is.
GST is a regressive flat tax, that neoliberals love because it targets those whose incomes go mostly on paying for their cost of living, whereas wealthy people with excess income above their cost of living, can invest and bank a lot of that income, these investments and returns do not attract GST. GST allows the rich to keep a lot more of their excess wealth. Neoliberal philosophy is based on the idea that if rich people become richer, society becomes richer. It was no coincidence that after GST was introduced by the notoriously neoliberal fourth Labour Government that it was quickly followed by income tax cuts on the highest earners.
Labour's commitment to the 'Purity' of GST is symptomatic of Labour's continuing commitment to neoliberalism.
. none of that screed changes the fact that having two different tax rates makes more work. yr accountant friend doesnt do the donkey work at the coal face of small business. when youve got to be an expert on ALL aspects of business, not just the books, any extra complication is not welcome.Im NOT a fan of gst, having experienced it as a business owner, and customer, but if we have it, lets not complicate it further.
Labour's commitment to the 'Purity' of GST is symptomatic of Labour's continuing commitment to neoliberalism.
Labour's commitment to the 'purity of GST' is a symptom of their commitment to common sense. Adjustment of income tax rates would be a better means of redistribution.
If we wished to monkey around with GST, we would want to distinguish between healthy foods and unhealthy foods, and maintain GST on the latter. This would cause enormous complications.
"If we wished to monkey around with GST, we would want to distinguish between healthy foods and unhealthy foods, and maintain GST on the latter. This would cause enormous complications." mikesh
Which makes me wonder why would countries like Australia, And Britain and Ireland follow such a stupid practice?
My view is that the partial removal of GST from food was probably the result of a last ditch effort by neoliberal lobbyists to try and keep GST on as many food items as possible, no matter how impossibly complex it makes the GST system..
Of course the partial removal of GST off food would create 'enormous complications'. Which is probably what the neoliberals wanted.
Neoliberalism is a faith based science. Challenge the faith, and the neoliberals will fight you all the way to keep as many food items as possible inside the GST regime and things will deliberately be made to be very complicated as a result.
"Labour's commitment to the 'purity of GST' is a symptom of their commitment to common sense." mikesh
There is no alternative.
Tina, There Is No Alternative was coined by Roger Douglas the founder of the far right Backbone Club lobby group inside the 4th Labour government caucus that tried to get that government to enact even more extreme right wing measures, including the privatisation of the public health system, as set out in the infamous Gibbs Report on Health.
David Lange's call for a 'Cup Of Tea' breather to halt this proposed neoliberal dismantling of the Social Welfare health system caused a split inside the Labour caucus between the Backbone Club and the supporters of Lange. This split led to the breakaway formation of the far right Act party.
Of course there was an alternative – tax the rich more. Douglas a millionaire himself wouldn't have a bar of it, but not only out of self interest, but because it went against his belief in his theory of 'Trickle Down'.
Trickle Down being a neoliberal concept that making the rich richer makes society richer.
The following is a slobbering corporate hym in praise of GST.
GST, making New Zealand a low income tax paradise for millionaires. by PwC Partner Eugen Trombitas.
Celebrating 30 years of GST – New Zealand’s best export
Eugen Trombitas
Partner at PwC
August 18 2016
….the most significant tax reform in New Zealand throughout the entire 20th century. It’s also one of our best exports to the world – along with the All Blacks….
….The speed of execution of the GST policy, after the July 1984 snap election, was remarkable. It took everyone by surprise and involved a lot of political courage, as well as fine minds to execute the plan….
…..Our effective GST helps keep our personal income tax rates lower across the board than comparable OECD countries.nnual GST take is more than $17 billion and contributes about 30% to overall tax revenue….
No it isn't. TINA is a Thatcher catchcry erroneously attributed to Roger Douglas because people felt there was a similarity in the pair's respective outlooks.
All this specious argument really boils down to, is that we shouldn't go down the complex, some foods and not other foods, exemption route. GST off food no exceptions!
That sort of argument would be valid for abolishing GST altogether, an option I would support since GST seems to have no useful purpose. I think it was introduced originally as a tax which could not be legally dodged for tax avoidance purposes. However it's questionable whether this is a justification for it given its regressiveness.
However if we are going to have a GST anyway I don't think there is any reason why food should be excluded. The poor can be helped, through the tax system, in other ways.
PS: I thought that GST was not payable on second hand goods. However, when I bought my most recent car, which was second hand, the dealer charged GST. I assume this is normal, but it does seem to be an anomaly. The rationale for exempting second hand goods would be that GST would have been paid on the the item when it was first purchased new. In other words GST can be paid many times on the same vehicle if it changes hands many times through a dealer.
"Labour's commitment to the 'purity of GST' is a symptom of their commitment to common sense." mikesh
Mikesh, you oppose GST being taken off food because it would destroy the 'purity' of GST. But you support it being taken off second hand goods?
Am I right in presuming that the reason second hand goods are exempt from GST is because poorer people who tend to spend proportionately more on buying second hand goods more than rich folk?
Why can't the same 'commitment to common sense' be applied to food?
Afterall poorer people pay proportionately more of their income on food than rich people do.
Following unprecedented solidarity action by fellow presenters and public pressure.
In a massive victory for free speech Gary Lineka returned to Match of the Day,
Gary Lineker is BACK! Match of the Day host to return following backlash with BBC set to allow him to tweet without restrictions
Chris Burton
|13 Mar 2023
WHAT HAPPENED? The former England international found himself caught up in a social media storm after comparing language used in the British government’s asylum policy to that which could be found in 1930s Germany. He was ordered by the BBC to apologise for his actions, and was stood down from presenting duties after refusing to do so. A show of unity from Lineker’s fellow presenters delivered an unprecedented wave of walkouts and there was no commentary or punditry on offer across the BBC’s weekend football coverage.
Indeed. When it comes to free speech the world has a long way to go.
A Russian sports presenter who tweeted нет войне would be imprisoned. (and sacked)
A sign or tweet with “нет войне” can earn up to 15yrs in prison. And over 14,000 Russians have been arrested for saying exactly that.
Yes they (Labour Govt) are all over the place with what these Govt appointees to boards etc are expected to do, able to do. It is perhaps lucky that the Nats are similarly bewildered.
They have allowed a level of imprecision in language to explain what is usually a very careful and distinct category of people/what they do/how they are described/how they are 'governed'
People like Rob Campbell, Steve Maharey and Ruth Dyson in their roles as Govt appointees on Boards are not Public Servants…….aaaaaaaaaagh tears hair out including eyebrows!
Do we really have to accept this dumbing down in case it frightens the horses or something or is it just slap dash, we can't be bothered educating people…move on to the next lot of Govt business that we can deliver something slap dash on.
I asked before if Hipkins has employed some of the lesser lights such as Luxon did with the 'Hawaii is really Te Puke' snafu.
Very disappointed as it has not put to bed anything, public servants, the real ones are now being lumped into some category of not being impartial in the delivery of Govts policies by News media.
The Westminister tradition is that public servants are voiceless and defended, if need be, by their Ministers or the Govt.
It speaks for itself, oh! does it run counter to the narrative you like to share on here? Zelensky is admitting to Nazis being in charge and American mercenaries in Ukraine in 2014, an inconvenient truth. Is that explanation enough?
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If you want to keep your commenting privileges here this Election Year, you need to lift your game. This is your only warning – Incognito]
Well I'm sure it's great for Adelaide ship-building teams, but no I'm not particularly impressed by nuclear-armed submarines in the South Pacific, whether they are run by Australia or not.
Our nations have made clear commitments to meet these objectives, including that:
As a non-nuclear-weapon state, Australia does not – and will not – seek to acquire nuclear weapons;
Australia will not enrich uranium or reprocess spent fuel as part of this program;
Australia will not produce its own nuclear fuel for its SSNs;
Though the rotational force may be problematic:
Submarine Rotational Forces. As early as 2027, the United Kingdom and the United States plan to establish a rotational presence of one UK Astute class submarine and up to four U.S. Virginia class submarines at HMAS Stirling near Perth, Western Australia.
Guess we will just have to look for Aussie flags flying from the periscope?
The point is to extend the range of their subs – now basically a coast guard, to take out any foreign military ships trying to land.
Nuclear powered ones can be at sea for longer (thus more at the same time), and thus participate in any engagement further afield.
There purpose is the containment of Chinese military/navy (to the sea off China-Taiwan) kept away from ASEAN and Japan/South Korea (protect other trade routes if there are sanctions on China).
The need for them diminishes (rather than ends) if there is a deal over the future of Taiwan (say formally recognised as part of China from 2049, and only before then if Taipei and Beijing agree to terms over autonomy).
The P8's & the Frigates is always has been Trade Protection which is a wee bit hard to train for in Peacetime as Shipping Companies, Unions & Freight Forwarding services etc don't like getting bossed by the military to do Convoy (Trade Protection) Exercises.
So they practise their respective skill sets within various Allied Surface Battle, Escort & Support Groups.
P8's might get a tad more busy as the various Subs run along in the kermadec trench, which btw is being mapped by the Chinese courtesy of Joint NZ MFAT Funding arrangement!
Going to be some need to review what kind of Navy that NZ wants in future, considering that NZ's economy is an export led & is heavily dependent on have freedom of navigation IRT the various Sea Lanes of Communications to those Export Countries & same same in reverse for all those imports the NZ relies on to keep the economy ticking.
Some very hard questions need to be asked now! At political, defence, economic, trade & foreign affairs level at where NZ goes now?
Or else NZ will get sucked into to this shit sandwich weather it wants too or not & I doubt many here would have the guts or prepared to sacrifice something for Armed Neutrality which "might" avoid NZ from sucked into this vortex of this impending shit sandwich heading this way?
Is it the Australian government and armed forces intention to respect New Zealand laws?
Is it the Australian government and armed forces intention to keep Australian nuclear powered vessels out of New Zealand administered waters?
Will the Australian government and armed forces publicly agree to keep all non-New Zealand devices and installations, as defined in the relevant New Zealand legislation, out of New Zealand.
Will the Australian government publicly agree not to disregard New Zealand's Nuclear Free laws?
In line with a lawful request of the New Zealand authorities, if specifically asked, whether or not the Australian government and armed forces are operating any nuclear vessel in New Zealand waters, will the Australian authorities agree to provide the New Zealand authorities an answer?
In line with the neither confirm nor deny nuclear policy of both your US and UK AUKUS partners – if specifically asked, will you neither confirm nor deny if you operating any nuclear vessels in New Zealand waters?
Continental Shelf Act 1964
…..every act or omission which takes place on or under or above or about any installation or device (whether permanent or temporary) constructed, erected, placed, or used in, on, or above the continental shelf in connection with the exploration of the continental shelf or the exploitation of its natural resources shall be deemed to take place in New Zealand; and
(b)
every such installation or device shall be deemed to be situated in New Zealand….
(c)
every court in New Zealand which would have jurisdiction (whether civil or criminal) in respect of that act or omission if it had taken place in New Zealand shall have jurisdiction accordingly; and
(d)
every power of arrest or of entry or search or seizure or other power that could be exercised under any enactment (whether passed before or after the passing of this Act) or under any rule of law in respect of any such act or omission or suspected act or omission if it had taken place or was suspected to have taken place in New Zealand may be exercised on or in respect of any such installation or device as if the installation or device were in New Zealand; and
(e)
without limiting the provisions of the Customs Acts (as defined in the Customs Act 1966), every installation or device, and any materials or parts used in the construction of an installation or device, which are brought into the waters above the continental shelf from parts beyond the seas shall be deemed to have been imported into New Zealand…..
A real chewy and entertaining discussion between Katherin Ryan and Patrick Smellie, starting at 12 min. It's on the gap between recent aspirational government planning documents and the reality of implementation. Katherine mentions wider comments as a mix of critique, with a kind of regret for the old Public Service.
Morning Report often brings analytical depth that is missing conspicuously elsewhere. It's due 90% to Ryan's energetic curiosity, without the barbs of Kim Hill, but certainly with a bigger breadth of topic. Her poor brain at night, when does it rest? Whereas one can imagine Kim easily switching off with a stiff G&T.
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David Farrar writes – We now have almost all 2023 data in, which has allowed me to update my annual table of how labour went against its promises. This is basically their final report card. The promiseThe result Build 100,000 affordable homes over 10 ...
I’m a bit worried that I’ve started a previous newsletter with the words “just when you think they couldn’t get any worse…” Seems lately that I could begin pretty much every issue with that opening. Such is the nature of our coalition government that they seem to be outdoing each ...
Geoffrey Miller writes – Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. ...
Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture ...
Last week Transport Minster Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre. The new train control centre will see teams from KiwiRail, Auckland Transport and Auckland One Rail working more closely together to improve train services across the city. The Auckland Rail Operations Centre in ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson said in an exit interview with Q+A yesterday the Government can and should sustain more debt to invest in infrastructure for future generations. Elsewhere in the news in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 6:36am: Read more ...
Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. It is more than just a happy ...
TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to March 18 include:China’s Foreign Minister visiting Wellington today;A post-cabinet news conference this afternoon; the resumption of Parliament on Tuesday for two weeks before Easter;retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson gives his valedictory speech in Parliament; ...
New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters’s state-of-the-nation speech on Sunday was really a state-of-Winston-First speech. He barely mentioned any of the Government’s key policies and could not even wholly endorse its signature income tax cuts. Instead, he rehearsed all of his complaints about the Ardern Government, including an extraordinary claim ...
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
“I’ve been internalising a really complicated situation in my head.”When they kept telling us we should wait until we get to know him, were they taking the piss? Was it a case of, if you think this is bad, wait till you get to know the real Christopher, after the ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
.“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
“It hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.”THUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology – the Internet – is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
Bob Edlin writes – And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ HeraldThomas CoughlanSimeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
TL;DR:Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it: We want our country to be a ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading → ...
Ele Ludemann writes – The government is omitting general Treaty references from 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 public service on Treaty ...
What was that judge thinking?Peter Williams writes – That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop:Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
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:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
Buzz from the BeehiveThe text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary. It can be quickly analysed ...
For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
Questions need to be asked on both sides of the worldPeter Williams writes – The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop:The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
TL;DR:Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
Bob Edlin writes – The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
Every year, in the Budget, Parliament forks out money to government agencies to do certain things. And every year, as part of the annual review cycle, those agencies are meant to report on whether they have done the things Parliament gave them that money for. Agencies which consistently fail to ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – Recent events in American universities point to an underlying crisis of coherent thinking, an issue that increasingly affects the progressive left across the Western world. This of course is nothing new as anyone who can either remember or has read of the late ...
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. ...
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 ...
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. ...
The New Zealand public voted for a change in direction at the 2023 general election and that is exactly what this coalition government has been delivering in its first 100 days. There was an immediate focus on the economy, easing the cost of living, cracking down on law and order ...
The Government has left the health system as an afterthought, announcing half-baked targets at the last minute of their 100-day plan, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
Kiwis are still waiting for their promised cost of living support after 100 days of a National Government that is taking us backwards, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
100 days of National taking NZ backwardsThe National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
The Government must commit to funding free and healthy school lunches, as thousands of people sign the petition to keep them, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti says. ...
If the Government was serious about moving families into public housing, they would build more houses so there is actually somewhere for people to go. ...
The free and healthy school lunches programme feeds our kids, helps them to learn, and saves families money – but it is at risk under this Government, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
The Government’s proposed changes to Firearms Prohibition Orders (FPO) add almost nothing new and are merely an attempt to distract from its plans to loosen gun laws, police spokesperson Ginny Andersen and justice spokesperson Dr Duncan Webb said. ...
The great Victorian era English politician Lord Macauley stood in the British House of Parliament and said, "The gallery in which the reporters sit has become a fourth estate of the realm".He understood and outlined even way back then, the significant role and influence media have in a democracy. ...
The government’s attack on Māori health this week is committing tangata-whenua to a premature death, says Te Pāti Māori. “The government have begun their onslaught on Māori health with the abolishment of the Māori Health Authority and smokefree laws in the same day” said health spokesperson and co-leader, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. ...
New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April. ...
Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand. Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships. “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland Acknowledgements and opening Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says. “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024 Acknowledgements and opening Morena, Nga Mihi Nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau Good morning. It’s a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asia’s most populous country. “We are in Jakarta so early in our new government’s term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week. “We look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealand’s ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. “The recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Auckland’s rail agencies work together to ...
The Government is proud to support the 10th edition of Crankworx Rotorua as the Crankworx World Tour returns to Rotorua from 16-24 March 2024, says Minister for Economic Development Melissa Lee. “Over the past 10 years as Crankworx Rotorua has grown, so too have the economic and social benefits that ...
Legislation implementing coalition Government tax commitments and addressing long-standing tax anomalies will be progressed in Parliament next week, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The legislation is contained in an Amendment Paper to the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill issued today. “The Amendment Paper represents ...
Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard has today announced that the Government has agreed to suspend the requirement for councils to comply with the Significant Natural Areas (SNA) provisions of the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity for three years, while it replaces the Resource Management Act (RMA).“As it stands, SNAs ...
Agriculture Minister Todd McClay has classified the drought conditions in the Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts as a medium-scale adverse event, acknowledging the challenging conditions facing farmers and growers in the district. “Parts of Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts are in the grip of an intense dry spell. I know ...
The Government is helping farmers eradicate the significant impact of facial eczema (FE) in pastoral animals, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “A $20 million partnership jointly funded by Beef + Lamb NZ, the Government, and the primary sector will save farmers an estimated NZD$332 million per year, and aims to ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has completed a successful visit to India, saying it was an important step in taking the relationship between the two countries to the next level. “We have laid a strong foundation for the Coalition Government’s priority of enhancing New Zealand-India relations to generate significant future benefit for both countries,” says Mr Peters, ...
Cabinet has agreed to provide $7 million to ensure the 2024 ski season can go ahead on the Whakapapa ski field in the central North Island but has told the operator Ruapehu Alpine Lifts it is the last financial support it will receive from taxpayers. Cabinet also agreed to provide ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Lower fruit and vegetable prices are welcome news for New Zealanders who have been doing it tough at the supermarket, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Stats NZ reported today the price of fruit and vegetables has dropped 9.3 percent in the 12 months to February 2024. “Lower fruit and vege ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the sixty-eighth session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the 68th session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
The coalition Government is supporting farmers to enhance land management practices by investing $3.3 million in locally led catchment groups, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “Farmers and growers deliver significant prosperity for New Zealand and it’s vital their ongoing efforts to improve land management practices and water quality are supported,” ...
Good evening everyone and thank you for that lovely introduction. Thank you also to the Honourable Simon Bridges for the invitation to address your members. Since being sworn in, this coalition Government has hit the ground running with our 100-day plan, delivering the changes that New Zealanders expect of us. ...
Recommendations from the Climate Change Commission for New Zealand on the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) auction and unit limit settings for the next five years have been tabled in Parliament, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “The Commission provides advice on the ETS annually. This is the third time the ...
The coalition Government is beginning its fight to lower building costs and reduce red tape by exempting minor building work from paying the building levy, says Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk. “Currently, any building project worth $20,444 including GST or more is subject to the building levy which is ...
Proposed changes to tax legislation to prevent the over-taxation of low-earning trusts are welcome, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The changes have been recommended by Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee following consideration of submissions on the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill. “One of the ...
Assalaamu alaikum. السَّلَام عليكم In light of the holy month of Ramadan, I want to extend my warmest wishes to our Muslim community in New Zealand. Ramadan is a time for spiritual reflection, renewed devotion, perseverance, generosity, and forgiveness. It’s a time to strengthen our bonds and appreciate the diversity ...
Former Transport Minister and CEO of the Auckland Business Chamber Hon Simon Bridges has been appointed as the new Board Chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) for a three-year term, Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced today. “Simon brings extensive experience and knowledge in transport policy and governance to the role. He will ...
Good morning all, it is a pleasure to be here as Minister of Science, Innovation and Technology. It is fantastic to see how connected and collaborative the life science and biotechnology industry is here in New Zealand. I would like to thank BioTechNZ and NZTech for the invitation to address ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says he is looking forward to the day when three key water projects in Northland are up and running, unlocking the full potential of land in the region. Mr Jones attended a community event at the site of the Otawere reservoir near Kerikeri on Friday. ...
Associate Finance Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government has agreed to restore deductibility for mortgage interest on residential investment properties. “Help is on the way for landlords and renters alike. The Government’s restoration of interest deductibility will ease pressure on rents and simplify the tax code,” says ...
Sport and Recreation Minister Chris Bishop will travel to Switzerland today to attend an Executive Committee meeting and Symposium of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Mr Bishop will then travel on to London where he will attend a series of meetings in his capacity as Infrastructure Minister. “New Zealanders believe ...
This year’s Pacific Language Weeks celebrate regional unity and the contribution of Pacific communities to New Zealand culture, says Minister for Pacific Peoples Dr Shane Reti. Dr Reti announced dates for the 2024 Pacific Language Weeks during a visit to the Pasifika festival in Auckland today and says there’s so ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Curran, Associate Professor of Ecology, Lincoln University, New Zealand Getty Images/Gerald Corsi In the latest move to reform environmental laws in New Zealand, the coalition government has introduced a bill to fast-track consenting processes for projects deemed to ...
Uber has argued it does not have as much control over drivers as the unions suggest, and wants a judgment ruling that drivers are employees and not contractors set aside and sent back to the Employment Court. The 2022 ruling followed a three-week hearing in which four drivers sought to ...
What can and can’t be purchased by disabled people or their carers has been slashed in an effort by the Ministry of Disabled People Whaikaha to save money. The purchasing guidelines, a set of rules that sets out what can be purchased using the various streams of Government disability funding, ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Tod Wright and Hien Nguyen, Fiscal incidence in New Zealand: The effects of taxes and benefits on household incomes in tax year 2018/19 . Analyses of the distributional impact of taxation and government ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Cory Davis, Boston Hart and Benjamin Stubbing, Household cost-of-living impacts from the Emissions Trading Scheme and using transfers to mitigate regressive outcomes . This Analytical Note ...
A coalition of public transport and climate organisations, united as ‘Transport for All’, is actively opposing the government’s transport proposals. The draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) includes plans for higher fares for public transport, ...
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This is why zerohedge is so useful a source.
and the development will do far more damage than a few burping cows down under ….
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/biden-gives-go-ahead-giant-alaska-oil-project-greens-furious
"President Biden pledged during the election campaign: "I guarantee you we’re going to end fossil fuels."
The same President Biden today has – much to the angst of conservationists – authorized a giant ConocoPhillips oil project in northwest Alaska.
The authorization represents one of the most significant climate decisions yet for Biden
Christy Goldfuss, a former Obama White House official who now is a policy chief at the Natural Resources Defense Council, said she was “deeply disappointed'' at Biden's decision to approve Willow, which NRDC estimates would generate planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to more than 1 million homes.
Willow is projected to output 180,000 barrels of oil per day, or around 1.5 percent of total American oil production.
Over its 30-year lifespan, Willow is expected to produce over 600 million barrels of oil while contributing up to $17 billion in revenues for state and federal governments as well as local communities."
Well spotted Maurice. Biden is old school "drill baby drill".
Even Starmer in the UK has said he will not allow any more oil/gas drilling licences in the UK if he becomes PM.
Here is a great video that explains very simply how the banking fractional reserve system works and how a run on a bank is almost certain to sink it. In relation to the bank that went down in the US the other day.
This guy manages finance portfolios and also is ex army so comments on the Ukraine situation. But what he says here about banking is really good.
Probably explains in part why banks need large profits. Because, they are doing that through really high leverage which is incredibly risky if it goes wrong.
Why are there not mechanisms to prevent a run on banks. It seems to be a fatal flaw in the capitalist system.
John Key's mate, Jamie Beaton of Crimson Education was involved in the run on SVB and therefore contributed to its downfall.
There are, deposit insurance.
Privatising profit, socialising cost.
Or don't and wipe out depositors.
BTW, you can make depositors whole while still prosecuting any fraud and replacing the management involved. Unless its the bank (as in the business entity) rather than the bank management causing the problems this seems appropriate.
In the 1930s FDR sought solutions, to the bank run problem, from the economics profession. Chicago University offered the 'chicago plan' which would have entailed imposing a 100% reserve ratio on banks. The problem with this would have been that all monetary expansion would have to have come from government. This would have been difficult to manage unless all banks became government owned 'public utilities'. I suppose this would have been unacceptable in a 'free enterprise' economy like America's, albeit that it seems to work very well in China, where their banking system is owned by government.
Deposit insurance and full reserve protocols are the same. Either the state guarantees that you will be able to withdraw the insured sum, or that that sum is $ for $ held by the bank at all times. Its the same in either case.
The actual important parts of the Chicago plan for preventing bank collapses were implemented, including the Glass Stegall act which at the time separated retail and commercial lending and meant deposits were not put at risk by backing highly leveraged lending. That worked for a long time, but US banking practice has since moved on in ways where these became combined again.
The problem is that the bank is not solvent any more and will not repay all its liabilities (including deposits) without a bailout. Likely that's because there was a bunch of fraudulent lending occurred by the bank. Putting that all down to a run on deposits, a very natural reaction when people discover their deposits were loaned out fraudulently, is a bit simplistic.
Deposit insurance and full reserve protocols are the same.
The two are not the same. There is an upper limit to how much deposit insurance will pay out. Deposit insurance also encourages reckless lending.
Your absolutely right there, they are the same up to the insured limit.
Since they are the same, they encourage reckless lending to the same degree. But the actual thing which discourages reckless lending is the effective regulation.
SVB shareholders were wiped out BTW, while depositors are being largely made whole. What happens to the bank executives will depend on any prosecutions which occur of anything they did wrong.
To a max of $250k only in US, acording to Guardian. Not much good if your company has millions in there.
Yes, it says $250K which is low if its a business account, but watch what actually happens. There are apparently payroll firms within the accounts and they won't be left short to pay people.
If you think about it, the banking system is legalised fraud. In fact, it started out as fraud in the days of gold merchants who stored gold for clients. They would write a certificate for the clients stating that they were holding x amount of gold for them which the clients could then use as collateral.
The gold merchants worked out that they could lend out the gold, and effectively write out fraudulent certificates. So long as all of the clients didn't ask for their money back at once they were ok.
Since at least Roman lending practices its always been the case that deposits are repaid in kind. You get back the same amount but not the same deposits made and this has always been a part of a legal definition for how deposits work.
Look at the definition of the word mutuum.
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/mutuum
Can't trust these bankers:
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/12/business/janet-yellen-silicon-valley-bank.html
Except:
https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/stock-market-news-today-03-10-2023/card/silicon-valley-bank-ceo-sold-3-6-million-in-shares-days-before-fatal-loss-disclosed-6re8L8VDWjk956bOLaDD
Right wing venture capitalist Peter Theil involved in SVB collapse…
“What finally doomed SVB was that the resulting losses prompted a panic among depositors. This was in no small part thanks to far-right billionaire Peter Thiel’s VC firm Founders Fund, which, after finding out its investors were having trouble transferring money to its SVB accounts, ordered them to send them to other banks and had withdrawn all of its cash by the time the bank started melting down late last week. ”
https://jacobin.com/2023/03/silicon-valley-bank-collapse-financial-regulations-2008-bailout?mc_cid=33c409f89e&mc_eid=5a2883fd7c
Some more explanatory detail, my bold:
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/13/briefing/silicon-valley-bank.html
and a cherry on the top:
https://www.axios.com/2023/03/11/silicon-valley-bank-paid-bonuses-fdic
The biggest annual rise in the cost of living in over 30 years.
The cost of living becomes leading election issue..
Government removes GST off food and wins in a landslide.
Government brings in a FTT and windfall tax that more than covers the GST off food, allowing the government to deliver on all their other policies.
Vs.
Government does nothing.
Opposition wins treasury benches
Scraps climate mitigation.
New government begins massive austerity program.
Inequality, social and biosphere decay all increase.
Crime goes up, leading to dystopian repressive policing and enforcement and punishment,
Government just raised super and the benifits, got rid of mostly stupid policies, they gonna win any way
A cost of living increase in superannuitants' income is seen by those voters as 'business as usual' for a government. They certainly won't be expecting a regime change to result in sinking-lid pensions. So don't count that as pork-barrelling. However, they may be in for a nasty surprise. Means-testing, anyone?
Also raises in benefits. Please don't let this be an election policy or touted as something special that this Govt has done, because it is not. To continue with fair policies developed over many years should not be thrown into the pot. By all means have in house policy reviews to improve these as all effeicient bodies should do.
If we do want to look at benefits etc why not have a look at the WEAG report and move on with innovative ideas that we are not doing now.
https://www.weag.govt.nz/weag-report/
The Nats etc will have all sorts of ideas such as raising the age & means testing. Let us look at these and fight them for what they are.
Not every single thing that this Govt has done, including the BAU ones should be lauded. Otherwise we will find ourselves fighting things on efficiency grounds rather than true policy grounds.
So called 'Efficiency' arguments always plays into the Nats hands. A better idea is to ensure that the business of govt is well funded, departments are well staffed and impediments to BAU are stripped away.
From years in the PS I can hand on heart say that the biggest impediment to efficient delivery of both policy and BAU is any sort of wholesale restructuring, realignment, right sizing or any other weasel or waffle words you want to call it.
My thoughts are that the restruscturings of the late 1980s/1990s put a blight on service delivery by Govt that lasted into the 2000s and may still be felt in some Govt Depts. Productivity was slashed as people fought for their jobs, depts had to retool in policy brains etc.
Its been quoted here before, but bears repeating: restructuring as a solution is as old as government, and solves very little!
“We trained hard—but it seemed that every time we were beginning to form up into teams we were reorganized. I was to learn later in life that we tend to meet any new situation by reorganising, and what a wonderful method it can be for creating the illusion of progress while actually producing confusion, inefficiency, and demoralisation.”
― Petronius Arbiter
100%
Cost of living increase for NZ Super is business as usual. All the Government does is confirm the increase by Order in Council.
See https://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/2001/0084/latest/whole.html#DLM113924
Section 15 says increase auto by CPI
Section 16 says min of 66% national average wage (NAW)
As the 66% generally holds the actual increase in Super is the NAW increase. But this year CPI was higher so the % of NAW will be above 66% and so no top up above CPI.
It doesn't seem like any politicians know how it works (worrying) as it's being sold as a extra benefit to pensioners (nope, just what they're entitled to, nothing more) by the Govt and the opposition hasn't pointed it out.
Yes agree with this….continuing with BAU is an expectation not something new. To claim it as 'rah, rah something we have done as a Govt' is spurious and hopefully it is not being done. They should claim for additions/improvements to the lot of everyone or particular people but not for standing still or for meeting legal entitlements. COL increases are not an extra entitlement.
I don't see it as pork barreling, I see it as good ideas, means testing is ridiculously expensive and complicated and the people you're targeting most will dodge it anyway,
Pension means testing works for Oz. And UK. You need to declare income regularly, ie, a pension is not a basic entitlement, but something you continually reapply for. And if your assets are too much, you fund your own retirement.
Some people will find any excuse to do the barest minimum possible.
I suggested if the government removed GST from food to help address the cost of living crisis and replaced it with an FTT and windfall tax, and could win the election in a landslide.
"Government just raised super and the benifits, got rid of mostly stupid policies, they gonna win any way" bwaghorn
If Labour can just scrape in, why should they do more?
Maybe, because it's the right thing to do?
please forget about taking gst off food. its a logistical nightmare for small businesses to piss around and run two different sets of accounts. they do this in aus and its a real pain in the arse. cooked chicken= gst, raw chicken = no gst etc,etc. just forget it. the one good thing about our gst, sales tax ,vat is that it applies at the same rate to all goods and services. before the pedants get here, Im aware that there are exceptions. but it is still the easiest system for a small business to work.
"…its a logistical nightmare for small businesses to piss around and run two different sets of accounts. they do this in aus and its a real pain in the arse. cooked chicken= gst, raw chicken = no gst etc,etc. just forget it." woodart
I didn't say take GST off some food. Taking GST off some food would definitely act to make it complicated. That would be stupid.
There have been many specious excuses made why this shouldn't be done, this is just one of them.
I have been reliably informed by an accountant that making all food GST free is a simple one off change to accounting software. That's it, simple.
The specious complexity argument is demonstrated in an opinion piece by Stephen Hickson of The Conversation who writes 'Some bad ideas never go away'
(I might add, no matter how much some people wish it would)
All this specious argument really boils down to, is that we shouldn't go down the complex, some foods and not other foods, exemption route. GST off food no exceptions! We don't need experts and courts to tell us what food is, we all know what food is.
GST is a regressive flat tax, that neoliberals love because it targets those whose incomes go mostly on paying for their cost of living, whereas wealthy people with excess income above their cost of living, can invest and bank a lot of that income, these investments and returns do not attract GST. GST allows the rich to keep a lot more of their excess wealth. Neoliberal philosophy is based on the idea that if rich people become richer, society becomes richer. It was no coincidence that after GST was introduced by the notoriously neoliberal fourth Labour Government that it was quickly followed by income tax cuts on the highest earners.
Labour's commitment to the 'Purity' of GST is symptomatic of Labour's continuing commitment to neoliberalism.
. none of that screed changes the fact that having two different tax rates makes more work. yr accountant friend doesnt do the donkey work at the coal face of small business. when youve got to be an expert on ALL aspects of business, not just the books, any extra complication is not welcome.Im NOT a fan of gst, having experienced it as a business owner, and customer, but if we have it, lets not complicate it further.
Labour's commitment to the 'Purity' of GST is symptomatic of Labour's continuing commitment to neoliberalism.
Labour's commitment to the 'purity of GST' is a symptom of their commitment to common sense. Adjustment of income tax rates would be a better means of redistribution.
If we wished to monkey around with GST, we would want to distinguish between healthy foods and unhealthy foods, and maintain GST on the latter. This would cause enormous complications.
Yeah we get it.
Australians can manage it, but NZ tax officials are shambling morons that could not find their bottoms with both hands and a searchlight.
Australia exempts:
It's just so advanced NZ public servants could never handle it.
"If we wished to monkey around with GST, we would want to distinguish between healthy foods and unhealthy foods, and maintain GST on the latter. This would cause enormous complications." mikesh
Which makes me wonder why would countries like Australia, And Britain and Ireland follow such a stupid practice?
My view is that the partial removal of GST from food was probably the result of a last ditch effort by neoliberal lobbyists to try and keep GST on as many food items as possible, no matter how impossibly complex it makes the GST system..
Of course the partial removal of GST off food would create 'enormous complications'. Which is probably what the neoliberals wanted.
Neoliberalism is a faith based science. Challenge the faith, and the neoliberals will fight you all the way to keep as many food items as possible inside the GST regime and things will deliberately be made to be very complicated as a result.
Which makes me wonder why would countries like Australia, And Britain and Ireland follow such a stupid practice?
Political pressure, probably.
"Labour's commitment to the 'purity of GST' is a symptom of their commitment to common sense." mikesh
There is no alternative.
Tina, There Is No Alternative was coined by Roger Douglas the founder of the far right Backbone Club lobby group inside the 4th Labour government caucus that tried to get that government to enact even more extreme right wing measures, including the privatisation of the public health system, as set out in the infamous Gibbs Report on Health.
http://www.eastonbh.ac.nz/1997/07/the_health_reforms_and_the_blitzkreig/
David Lange's call for a 'Cup Of Tea' breather to halt this proposed neoliberal dismantling of the Social Welfare health system caused a split inside the Labour caucus between the Backbone Club and the supporters of Lange. This split led to the breakaway formation of the far right Act party.
Of course there was an alternative – tax the rich more. Douglas a millionaire himself wouldn't have a bar of it, but not only out of self interest, but because it went against his belief in his theory of 'Trickle Down'.
Trickle Down being a neoliberal concept that making the rich richer makes society richer.
The following is a slobbering corporate hym in praise of GST.
GST, making New Zealand a low income tax paradise for millionaires. by PwC Partner Eugen Trombitas.
Tina, There Is No Alternative was coined by Roger Douglas
TINA, there is no alternative was first coined by Margaret Thatcher.
It's attributed to Herbert Spencer's mid 19th C book Social Statics.
True. But these days it is associated mainly with Margaret Thatcher.
Except in New Zealand where it is associated mainly with Roger Douglas.
No it isn't. TINA is a Thatcher catchcry erroneously attributed to Roger Douglas because people felt there was a similarity in the pair's respective outlooks.
All this specious argument really boils down to, is that we shouldn't go down the complex, some foods and not other foods, exemption route. GST off food no exceptions!
That sort of argument would be valid for abolishing GST altogether, an option I would support since GST seems to have no useful purpose. I think it was introduced originally as a tax which could not be legally dodged for tax avoidance purposes. However it's questionable whether this is a justification for it given its regressiveness.
However if we are going to have a GST anyway I don't think there is any reason why food should be excluded. The poor can be helped, through the tax system, in other ways.
PS: I thought that GST was not payable on second hand goods. However, when I bought my most recent car, which was second hand, the dealer charged GST. I assume this is normal, but it does seem to be an anomaly. The rationale for exempting second hand goods would be that GST would have been paid on the the item when it was first purchased new. In other words GST can be paid many times on the same vehicle if it changes hands many times through a dealer.
"Labour's commitment to the 'purity of GST' is a symptom of their commitment to common sense." mikesh
Mikesh, you oppose GST being taken off food because it would destroy the 'purity' of GST. But you support it being taken off second hand goods?
Am I right in presuming that the reason second hand goods are exempt from GST is because poorer people who tend to spend proportionately more on buying second hand goods more than rich folk?
Why can't the same 'commitment to common sense' be applied to food?
Afterall poorer people pay proportionately more of their income on food than rich people do.
And now some good news.
Following unprecedented solidarity action by fellow presenters and public pressure.
In a massive victory for free speech Gary Lineka returned to Match of the Day,
Excellent – now let's see the govt. walk back the equally ill-considered sacking of Rob Campbell.
Indeed. When it comes to free speech the world has a long way to go.
A Russian sports presenter who tweeted нет войне would be imprisoned. (and sacked)
A sign or tweet with “нет войне” can earn up to 15yrs in prison. And over 14,000 Russians have been arrested for saying exactly that.
https://twitter.com/Adbusters/status/1503798461619060736
Yes they (Labour Govt) are all over the place with what these Govt appointees to boards etc are expected to do, able to do. It is perhaps lucky that the Nats are similarly bewildered.
They have allowed a level of imprecision in language to explain what is usually a very careful and distinct category of people/what they do/how they are described/how they are 'governed'
People like Rob Campbell, Steve Maharey and Ruth Dyson in their roles as Govt appointees on Boards are not Public Servants…….aaaaaaaaaagh tears hair out including eyebrows!
Do we really have to accept this dumbing down in case it frightens the horses or something or is it just slap dash, we can't be bothered educating people…move on to the next lot of Govt business that we can deliver something slap dash on.
I asked before if Hipkins has employed some of the lesser lights such as Luxon did with the 'Hawaii is really Te Puke' snafu.
Very disappointed as it has not put to bed anything, public servants, the real ones are now being lumped into some category of not being impartial in the delivery of Govts policies by News media.
The Westminister tradition is that public servants are voiceless and defended, if need be, by their Ministers or the Govt.
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[What is your intention with dumping YT clips here without any commentary or clear (political) point? Lift your game – Incognito]
Mod note
It speaks for itself, oh! does it run counter to the narrative you like to share on here? Zelensky is admitting to Nazis being in charge and American mercenaries in Ukraine in 2014, an inconvenient truth. Is that explanation enough?
[If you dump links or YT clips here without any added commentary or point of your own, it is highly likely that you will be considered a troll. Trolls often whine that ‘it speaks for itself’, which is s typical lazy troll argument.
If you make up stuff about the contents and/or meaning of material, it is highly likely that you will be considered a troll with an agenda.
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If you want to keep your commenting privileges here this Election Year, you need to lift your game. This is your only warning – Incognito]
Mod note
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Well I'm sure it's great for Adelaide ship-building teams, but no I'm not particularly impressed by nuclear-armed submarines in the South Pacific, whether they are run by Australia or not.
Biden To Announce Deal For Australia Nuclear-Powered Attack Submarines | HuffPost Latest News
It obviously asks what role our new Poseidons will have in this.
I sure don't feel the need to be a Peacenik but WTF to the proliferation of nuclear arms into Australasia.
Biden himself has reiterated that the Aussie subs will be nuclear powered but NOT nuclear armed.
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/03/13/fact-sheet-trilateral-australia-uk-us-partnership-on-nuclear-powered-submarines/
Our nations have made clear commitments to meet these objectives, including that:
Though the rotational force may be problematic:
Guess we will just have to look for Aussie flags flying from the periscope?
The point is to extend the range of their subs – now basically a coast guard, to take out any foreign military ships trying to land.
Nuclear powered ones can be at sea for longer (thus more at the same time), and thus participate in any engagement further afield.
There purpose is the containment of Chinese military/navy (to the sea off China-Taiwan) kept away from ASEAN and Japan/South Korea (protect other trade routes if there are sanctions on China).
The need for them diminishes (rather than ends) if there is a deal over the future of Taiwan (say formally recognised as part of China from 2049, and only before then if Taipei and Beijing agree to terms over autonomy).
The P8's & the Frigates is always has been Trade Protection which is a wee bit hard to train for in Peacetime as Shipping Companies, Unions & Freight Forwarding services etc don't like getting bossed by the military to do Convoy (Trade Protection) Exercises.
So they practise their respective skill sets within various Allied Surface Battle, Escort & Support Groups.
P8's might get a tad more busy as the various Subs run along in the kermadec trench, which btw is being mapped by the Chinese courtesy of Joint NZ MFAT Funding arrangement!
Going to be some need to review what kind of Navy that NZ wants in future, considering that NZ's economy is an export led & is heavily dependent on have freedom of navigation IRT the various Sea Lanes of Communications to those Export Countries & same same in reverse for all those imports the NZ relies on to keep the economy ticking.
Some very hard questions need to be asked now! At political, defence, economic, trade & foreign affairs level at where NZ goes now?
Or else NZ will get sucked into to this shit sandwich weather it wants too or not & I doubt many here would have the guts or prepared to sacrifice something for Armed Neutrality which "might" avoid NZ from sucked into this vortex of this impending shit sandwich heading this way?
Well said as ever Scud.
Questions for the Australian government;
Is it the Australian government and armed forces intention to respect New Zealand laws?
Is it the Australian government and armed forces intention to keep Australian nuclear powered vessels out of New Zealand administered waters?
Will the Australian government and armed forces publicly agree to keep all non-New Zealand devices and installations, as defined in the relevant New Zealand legislation, out of New Zealand.
Will the Australian government publicly agree not to disregard New Zealand's Nuclear Free laws?
In line with a lawful request of the New Zealand authorities, if specifically asked, whether or not the Australian government and armed forces are operating any nuclear vessel in New Zealand waters, will the Australian authorities agree to provide the New Zealand authorities an answer?
In line with the neither confirm nor deny nuclear policy of both your US and UK AUKUS partners – if specifically asked, will you neither confirm nor deny if you operating any nuclear vessels in New Zealand waters?
A real chewy and entertaining discussion between Katherin Ryan and Patrick Smellie, starting at 12 min. It's on the gap between recent aspirational government planning documents and the reality of implementation. Katherine mentions wider comments as a mix of critique, with a kind of regret for the old Public Service.
RNZ Katherine Ryan interview discussing government transformation policies
Morning Report often brings analytical depth that is missing conspicuously elsewhere. It's due 90% to Ryan's energetic curiosity, without the barbs of Kim Hill, but certainly with a bigger breadth of topic. Her poor brain at night, when does it rest? Whereas one can imagine Kim easily switching off with a stiff G&T.
Sorry, Nine to Noon
Published in the Guardian about the UK. It equally applies here.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/mar/13/britain-cost-of-living-crisis-bosses-profits-shareholders-workers?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other