Democrats have rebelled on the TPP/fast track, and its passing is looking less and less likely. Nancy Pelosi, House Democratic leader is not supportive. Hopefully Democrats retain some backbone, which is a bit less likely…
It’s a bit funny how Democrats are almost unanimously opposing Obama. Pretty embarrasing for him – even the Republican Party can’t garner full support because Tea Party Republicans don’t want to give Obama more power.
… activists are celebrating a pyrrhic victory today as Fast Track was apparently blocked in the House of Representatives by a coalition of Democrats and Republicans.
The truth is that only its companion bill, the Trade Adjustment Assistance bill (TAA), was defeated in the House. The Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), i.e. the Fast Track legislation, was passed by a small margin of votes (219-211). But, due to the fact that these two bills were passed as one bill in the Senate, both need to be passed in the House before either becomes law. Fast Track has been sidelined for now, but it will be back soon to bite us.
What isn’t being widely disseminated is that it is likely that the TAA will be voted on again next week. This vote (or one further down the road) will decide whether or not the TAA is passed and if Fast Track will be the means by which the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) will be voted on in Congress once Obama finishes negotiating the deal with his counterparts.
More at http://us6.camp aign-archive1.com/?u=ffdc278104b5964bb04b4251e&id=eb83cb3a87&e=f36be083ee
still time for some dissenters to be bought off, like a few weeks ago, when those changing their minds miraculously received donations for their upcoming re-election campaigns.i
The following is purported to be an excerpt from Hooten’s latest NBR article. It concerns the Think Tank named “Progress” to be set up by Pagani, Leggett, Quinn and co. If the ‘quote’ is accurate (comes from blubber boy’s site which we don’t link to here) then it means someone has YET AGAIN leaked… this time last week’s caucus meeting:
To discuss their idea, Mr Leggett and Ms Pagani met Mr Little, his deputy Annette King and Labour’s political director Neale Jones. Shortly after, word was put out that Ms Pagani was “stroppy.” According to the leader’s office, Ms King had taken particular offence to Ms Pagani while the leader himself said relatively little.
Having observed how Ms Clark had responded to her own attempt to roll her in 1996, Ms King acted quickly to arrange a confrontation at Tuesday’s caucus meeting. Ms King, Mr Robertson, Te Atatu MP Phil Twyford and chief whip Chris Hipkins made clear to MPs suspected of being involved with Progress that they should have nothing further to do with it.
The head of the Rainbow faction, Louisa Wall, supported by Wigram MP Megan Woods, even urged that those involved be expelled from the party altogether. As he had largely done in the original meeting, Mr Little kept his own counsel. Mr Shearer and Mr Parker also knew to stay above the fray. Progress now seems to be going nowhere.
Setting aside Hooten’s snide dig at Annette King (he can’t help himself and it will bring him down one day) this is becoming an intolerable situation. I’m inclined to agree with Louisa Wall and Megan Woods….
In the leaked electoral review document it talked about the “harsher” kind of discipline that could also be summed up as “Mr.Little kept his own counsel”. Anything Hooten says, implies or incites that Labour is, or should do, is wrong.
There will be leaks. There will be problems. Labour will do everything except change their name to The Lational Party in order to lose voter support between now and 2017. It isn’t intolerable. Don’t be fooled. Support the positive message of the important socially-cohesive issues.
Charles, I’m not supporting anything Hooten says/implies Labour should say or do. I long ago saw through his often spurious commentary. But if this is what happened then someone has leaked confidential caucus matters and it has ended up in Hooten’s hands. Whoever it was, did so with spiteful intent. It IS intolerable and caucus must stamp out this leaking forthwith. Every time it happens it gives the Nats and their media acolytes another chance to consolidate the perception Labour is a party racked with division. The truth is that under Little it is now a very united caucus but clearly there is still at least one maverick present.
I have no qualms about Little keeping his own counsel. In matters of a similar nature Helen Clark did the same thing. That is, keep the leader as free as possible from controversy and let other senior caucus personnel do the talking.
I read somewhere that Nash was approached by the Pagani/Quin group but he turned down any involvement in the project. But who knows what the truth really is…
The leaker in this instance is the party who walked away from the meeting unhappy, namely Pagani and co, who coincidentally have very strong connections to Hooten, Slater, and Farrar and it is those people who continually quote Quin and Pagani and Nash and Davis as the divine way forward for the centre, centre left in New Zealand.
All the other leak problems within Labour have come from this same right-of-left group of people who have ambition but no power (the only power they weald is the ability to squeal to Cameron Slater when they don’t get their way).
The question is, are these people still useful? If so then something will have to be done to include them and create one message. Otherwise, expel them. Out of the current crop of leaders, Little seems the most likely to be able to achieve it.
Let’s see … Pagani would have been quite happy that it leaked so that she and her project get more publicity? And the leaker’s ambition exceeds his/her own power or influence (or intelligence) and is aiming at creating more mischief and damage?
and so the recent revelations of problems in National’s caucus have faded away to be replaced by LP problems… and who is helping fan that fire? Why Hooton and WO…
And Phil Quin and Josie Pagani have been adding extra fuel. Don’t forget WO’s links to Pagani, and Stuart Nash’s links to Simon Lush. Quin was a major part of the anti Cunliffe movement.
The reality is Tracey Labour has not been so unified since the Clark days. I’m 90% sure the right wing Nat. hump of mischief-makers have been egging the Pagani/Quin crowd on. I’d go so far as to say that Pagani and co. spend more time socialising with them than they do with anyone from the L.P.
It sounds like Annette King took intense umbridge with whatever Pagani was saying when the LP leadership met her and Leggett recently. In 2013/14 whenever Pagani was on TV or radio slagging off the LP membership, I wanted to swipe her across the face I felt so angry and insulted. I think it might have happened to Annette only she was able to curb any temptation to do the same. 🙂
Hooton just said that all parties have factions within them… you wouldn’t know it from the media or other things he writes.
So who in the Nat caucus is the women faction, the gay faction, the left faction, the right faction, the whatever faction?
I have to agree with Hooton (well, I don’t have to, I choose to). Annette King has probably done her dash. not cos of her age but her roots and connection to the old days… OTOH she does seem to ably represent those of middle NZ that Hooton and Williams say LP needs back… so Hoots also kind of contradicts himself.
Update on global push for a cashless society – need to keep people informed about this and how it can be used to steal from the population. This particular update is from Chris Martenson, one of the most rational futurists around.
“…In a recent speech widely regarded as a curtain-raiser to the encyclical, Turkson said: “Much of the world remains in poverty, despite abundant resources, while a privileged global elite controls the bulk of the world’s wealth and consumes the bulk of its resources.”
The Argentinian pontiff is expected to repeat calls for a change in attitudes to poverty and nature. “An economic system centred on the god of money needs to plunder nature to sustain the frenetic rhythm of consumption that is inherent to it,” he told a meeting of social movements last year. “I think a question that we are not asking ourselves is: isn’t humanity committing suicide with this indiscriminate and tyrannical use of nature? Safeguard creation because, if we destroy it, it will destroy us. Never forget this.”’
Pope Francis will call for an ethical and economic revolution to prevent catastrophic climate change and growing inequality in a letter to the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics on Thursday.
In an unprecedented encyclical on the subject of the environment, the pontiff is expected to argue that humanity’s exploitation of the planet’s resources has crossed the Earth’s natural boundaries, and that the world faces ruin without a revolution in hearts and minds. The much-anticipated message, which will be sent to the world’s 5,000 Catholic bishops, will be published online in five languages on Thursday and is expected to be the most radical statement yet from the outspoken pontiff.
More locally, according to NewstalkZB, James Shaw is about to announce some new GP initiatives around CC today.
The pope is “aiming at a change of heart. What will save us is not technology or science. What will save us is the ethical transformation of our society,” said Carmelite Father Eduardo Agosta Scarel, a climate scientist who teaches at the Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina in Buenos Aires.
This.
Ironic that it’s coming from one of the more conservative parts of society.
My favourite irony at the moment, is the republicans running in the primaries who call themselves catholics – they are having extreme difficulty connecting with the majority of catholic in the USA. Indeed some church leaders have asked, some very difficult questions – it’s been great.
It’s not for nothing that we lapsed catholics call him the PR Pope.
It’s just another strategy designed to revive a degraded institution; other examples are the United States presidency and the royal family.
The truth is that only its companion bill, the Trade Adjustment Assistance bill (TAA), was defeated in the House. The Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), i.e. the Fast Track legislation, was passed by a small margin of votes (219-211). But, due to the fact that these two bills were passed as one bill in the Senate, both need to be passed in the House before either becomes law. Fast Track has been sidelined for now, but it will be back soon to bite us.
What isn’t being widely disseminated is that it is likely that the TAA will be voted on again next week. This vote (or one further down the road) will decide whether or not the TAA is passed and if Fast Track will be the means by which the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) will be voted on in Congress once Obama finishes negotiating the deal with his counterparts.
[lprent: Please don’t put up near identical comments, especially under different handles. It makes me immediately think that you are an astroturfer. Nobody likes them, especially me. I fixed up your link. ]
[They were both stuck in span and I released both and intended to then delete one but didn’t get round to it – MS]
The server will have been slightly more sluggish this morning. Added two more disks to the main TS array. Means that the cache both locally (memcache) and overseas (CDN) got flushed. It will be rebuilding this morning as people requested static data from various browsers and devices. It usually takes 3-4 hours of NZ day traffic to get to steady state again.
We are experiencing the delicious irony that Maori now make by far the best stuff on TV while Pakeha, with all their supposed knowledge and hugely superior resources, mostly make total crap.
Next Maori will be out-thinking Pakeha on the battlefield…..oh I forgot they’ve already done that.
Gorgeous photo of Gerry Brownlee on Stuff. Obviously dashed over to rally the troops. Cap, check. Dashing shades, check. FLAK JACKET! Check. A copy will be going on my wall for when I need a good belly(pun intended) laugh. The article is on obesity in the forces. Oh, the irony! Mr Brownlee declined to comment. His mouth was full of doughnut at the time. When I first read this the article commented that Admiral Brownlee had an above average BMI himself (think HUGE) but this has been deleted. Would his flak jacket have had to be especially made? If so, at what cost.?
Gerry doesn’t need a flak jacket because he can dodge Airport Security and bullets better than Neo in The Matrix. The pièce de résistance is, of course, the little white Kiwi on his cap [fully intentional pun]. Aren’t all National MPs made of Teflon and Kevlar but not of blood & bones?
Phil Twyford @PhilTwyford 1h1 hour ago
“Nick Smith won’t debate me on @NZQandA but demands unchallenged right of reply after my interview.
He’s under pressure.”
Just saw this tweet. How come Smith is allowed to dictate the terms for an appearance on a current affairs show?
When it’s available I’ll put the link up but shorter – former domestic violence perpetrator and alleged harasser of women shows true self when confronted by a woman.
So longer – when Miriama Kamo took Fox to task about irregularities and lack of transparency in Te Kōhanga Reo National Trust he became quite confrontational.
But when he was challenged about his defence of the irregularities and lack of transparency he reacted with such hostility I was half expecting him to lose whatever self control he had left and vault the desk.
Of course another crash is coming. Nothings been done to change the financial system from the failure it was in 2008 so it was inevitable that it would fail again and inevitable that it would be another housing crisis that triggered it.
If I can paraphrase Peter Schiff, we haven’t had the real crash yet, but it is coming. He also talks about a US dollar crisis. Once other countries lose faith in the US dollar and stop lending them money (because they know the US is in so much debt they won’t be able to pay the money back) then they really are in trouble. China is already moving away from the US dollar.
Following the ratings crash at TV3, Jay Wintrob the CEO of Oaktree Capital (the company poised to take 100% ownership of MediaWorks) and Jonas Mitzschke (also of Oaktree Capital) are in New Zealand to find out what has been going on at MediaWorks New Zealand. They’ll be making a review of the decisions that have led to this steady decline in ratings for their network. [1] [2]
This could be our chance to bring back Campbell Live. Will you take 2 minutes to send a quick email to these US bosses asking them to consider bringing back our favourite show?
Click here to send a quick email to Jay Wintrob and Jonas Mitzschke, Mark Weldon (CEO of MediaWorks) and Julie Christie (Board of Directors at MediaWorks).
Together we can show them that if they are serious about saving the network they need to bring back John Campbell and Campbell Live. Some people have asked, would John and his team really want to go back to the channel that has treated them so poorly? We can’t speak for John Campbell or his team, but we have spoken to some of them to ensure this isn’t a terrible idea. In fact, we think if there was a big enough shake up at TV3, they may well be happy to return. Wouldn’t that be bloody marvellous?
Let’s stand together once again and show our commitment to quality, public interest, investigative journalism for the people of NZ.
All new legislation would be subject to a “climate change test” if a Green Party bill is passed.
Today new Green Party co-leader James Shaw announced a new private members bill, which would require official documents assessing the impact of new legislation to include a section about the impact on the environment.
The Climate Impact Disclosure Statement Bill will require all new legislation introduced to Parliament to be accompanied by a Climate Impact Disclosure Statement that “outlines what impact, if any, the new legislation would be likely to have on New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions”.
Already new legislation is subject to Regulatory Impact Statements and Bill of Rights Act Reports.
“Climate change is impacting almost every aspect of our lives. This bill will ensure that the government considers climate change in everything it does,” Shaw said.
“This bill will mean that government can’t ignore how their decisions impact on our climate.”
Shaw announced the bill at the Asia-Pacific Green Federation Congress in Lower Hutt on Sunday, where Green politicians from 16 countries are meeting.
The environmental impact assessment wouldn’t prevent Parliament from voting through any piece of legislation Shaw said, but would give politicians and the public the opportunity to asses it.
I was working for PriceWaterhouseCoopers. It’s a global consultancy firm.
At the time there was this fake debate in politics and in the media, about whether climate change was real or a hoax.
You had all these scientists debating energy lobbyists who were pretending to be scientists.
Politicians were saying ‘Well, we just don’t know who to believe. The science is disputed.’
But some businesses had to take climate change seriously because their profits depended on scientific modelling and long term forecasts.
Like insurance companies, which rely on accurate actuarial forecasts.
I read this report commissioned by the insurance industry on the long terms effects of climate change.
It did some projections based on the available data and it was all very calm and methodical.
And it concluded that the cumulative impact of extreme weather events and flooding caused by climate change would cause such catastrophic damage to property and loss of lives over the upcoming decades that it would bankrupt the entire insurance industry by the year 2050.
That report was commissioned by ReMunich (by the way one of the largest reinsurers in the business) and they have been actively pursing policies to combat AGW ever since because they realise that if BAU continues the insurance industry is stuffed – people will not be able to bear the cost of insuring – so no insurance companies anymore. Essentially they are right. Report released today on Scientific American notes we are already committed to 5m of SLR. 🙁
That is a little weird, Greens cannot introduce any bills unless they suddenly become a government. I presume what he is saying is that they will submit a private members bill into the ballot system. it will sit there until such time as it gets drawn which may never happen. Lot of other bills in there and when they are drawn it depends on the government whether the bill proceeds. This bill would require expenditure so most unlikely to happen.
Ensuring every new piece of legislation acknowledges the reality and costs of climate change.
Green Party Co-leader James Shaw has released a Member’s Bill to require all Government legislation to have a Climate Impact Disclosure Statement – a report, prepared by the Ministry for the Environment, that outlines the likely impact of the legislation on the climate.
This means that when a bill is introduced, all MPs, and the public, will get to learn the likely implications of the legislation on New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions and/or New Zealand’s ability to meet its international greenhouse gas reduction target. It will also detail any relationship between the legislation and the Climate Change Response Act.
It’s a way to ensure that in the development of legislation, climate is a key consideration. It will also give opposition parties good information to hold the Government to account on climate issues.
Climate change is the biggest issue. We need to be thinking about it when we’re introducing new laws. We need to know the cost of legislation on our climate.
By ensuring every new piece of legislation acknowledges the reality and costs of climate change, we will see a cumulative, gradual effect – having parliament thinking about our climate all of the time.
If every bill requires a disclosure statement about Climate effect then whom are you supposing will provide that research at no charge. If it requires a government department or even non government service to provide a service that requires money then the bill is immediately defeated as only ministers can introduce bills that require expenditure.
Also to introduce a bill into parliament when you are not a minister requires the bill to be submitted to the ballot. The bills can only be debated on Wednesday’s and only 8 bills can be in the ballot on any Wednesday. Bills are withdrawn from the box by ballot and if a bill wins the ballot it can then be debated. Until such time as Government outvotes the bill then it dies.
You can read about bills here http://www.parliament.nz/en-nz/pb/legislation/proposed-bills
All this could be avoided if National decided to adopt the bill and I guess it is possible that Greens and National have agreed to do this.
Re the disclosure statements, read the links, it’s explained there.
This is win/win for the GP. It continues their agenda of raising awareness of CC. If the Bill gets selected, then there are a whole bunch of opportunities to raise awareness whether National support it or not. We’re past the point where government can ignore this, too many people are waking up to reality.
Have read and in the first line it states it will require the Ministry of Environment to provide the disclosure. That surely requires them to spend money and it is not permissible for a bill to proceed if it requires expenditure unless the government picks up the bill and take it over.
Basically it seems like grandstanding to enter a bill into the ballot with the knowledge that it would be ruled out as soon as the government want to.
This is despite the rules that govern private members bills. Read the parliamentary url I gave you and you will see there is little chance of it getting near the ballot. Of course maybe some of those Green bills already in the system could be withdrawn that might help.
Its in your previous comment but here it is again from the actual Green media release. It requires a government department to prepare a report for every piece of Government Legislation.
I dont know if you have ever worked for a State Department but that report will cost a lot of money. They do not have staff sitting around just waiting for work. It would require a lot of research and that would mean staff needing to travel possibly and hours of work to pull it together.
I asked you before who do you think will pay for that. If you are suggesting that it will just be picked up by the department then it is expenditure and is not allowed in a members private bill.
Green Party Co-leader James Shaw has released a Member’s Bill to require all Government legislation to have a Climate Impact Disclosure Statement – a report, prepared by the Ministry for the Environment, that outlines the likely impact of the legislation on the climate.
“I asked you before who do you think will pay for that. If you are suggesting that it will just be picked up by the department then it is expenditure and is not allowed in a members private bill.”
I’m not suggesting it, James Shaw is stating it.
I’m asking for a citation that a bill like this won’t be allowed because of expenditure.
Sheeezus, the government of the day funds Ministeries and Departments to carry out their statutory duties via the Budget. The funding is not defined in the bloody legislation.
Good grief Do they not teach anything in schools these days. The Parliamentary system requires that only governments can commit expenditure. It would be chaos of it was otherwise. Why do you think we have a budget? And then a budget debate. Governments expend opositions critique.
If a government cannot get a finance bill past parliament they effectively resign.
Don’t take my word go do some research I just hope that the Greens are not as naive as some of its supporters.
Having pasted the interview with Dame Sylvia Cartwright, (Inside Story A9 Herald Saturday- David Fisher) in my scrapbook I then had a bit of a browse and came across this clipping from Finlay MacDonald SST 2009
Still makes interesting reading in 2015, nothing changes.
Cut the waffle and answer the question | Stuff.co.nz
Jul 19, 2009 … For those readers who missed John Key’s speech last week about New Zealand’s economy, here’s a quick summary: Bla bla bla productivity … http://tinyurl.com/n9b3eke
Great to see Helen Clark interviewed at length by Oksana Boyko on Worlds Apart-RT television,Sunday night. Her depth of intellect, sincerity and grasp of the issues is such a contrast to our current PM.
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 27 were:1. The Minister for Ford Rangers strikes againTransport Minister Simeon Brown was again the busiest of the Cabinet ministers this week, announcing an ...
You got a fast carAnd I want a ticket to anywhereMaybe we make a dealMaybe together we can get somewhereAny place is betterYesterday’s newsletter, Trust In Me, on the report of abuse in state care, and by religious organisations, between 1950 and 2019, coupled with the hypocrisy of Christopher Luxon ...
New Zealand is again having to reconcile conflicting pressures from its military and its trade interests. Should we join Pillar Two of AUKUS and risk compromising our markets in China? For a century after New Zealand was founded in 1840, its external security arrangements and external economics arrangements were aligned. ...
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This morning the sky was bright.The birds, in their usual joyous bliss. Nature doesn’t seem to feel the heat of what might angst humans.Their calls are clear and beautiful.Just some random thoughts:MāoriPaul Goldsmith has announced his government will roll back the judiciary’s rulings on Māori Customary Marine Title, which recognises ...
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Earlier this week at Parliament, Labour leader Chris Hipkins was applauded for saying that the response to the final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care had to be “bigger than politics.” True, but the fine words, apologies and “we hear you” messages will soon ring ...
TL;DR: In news breaking this morning:The Ministry of Education is cutting $2 billion from its school building programme so the National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government has enough money to deliver tax cuts; The Government has quietly lowered its child poverty reduction targets to make them easier to achieve;Te Whatu Ora-Health NZ’s ...
Kia ora. These are some stories that caught our eye this week – as always, feel free to share yours in the comments. Our header image this week (via Eke Panuku) shows the planned upgrade for the Karanga Plaza Tidal Swimming Steps. The week in Greater Auckland On ...
1. What's not to love about the way the Harris campaign is turning things around?a. Nothingb. Love all of itc. God what a reliefd. Not that it will be by any means easye. All of the above 2. Documents released by the Ministry of Health show Associate Health Minister Casey ...
Trust in me in all you doHave the faith I have in youLove will see us through, if only you trust in meWhy don't you, you trust me?In a week that saw the release of the 3,000 page Abuse in Care report Christopher Luxon was being asked about Boot Camps. ...
TL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers last night features co-hosts and talking about the Royal Commission Inquiry into Abuse in Carereport released this week, and with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent on a UN push to not recognise carbon offset markets and ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 26, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Transport: Simeon Brown announced$802.9 million in funding for 18 new trains on the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines, which ...
The northern expressway extension from Warkworth to Whangarei is likely to require radical changes to legislation if it is going to be built within the foreseeable future. The Government’s powers to purchase land, the planning process and current restrictions on road tolling are all going to need to be changed ...
Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedFirst they came for the doctors But I was confused by the numbers and costs So I didn't speak up Then they came for our police and nurses And I didn't think we could afford those costs anyway So I ...
Photo by Joshua J. Cotten on UnsplashWe’re back again after our mid-winter break. We’re still with the ‘new’ day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when we have our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm.Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream ...
Notes: This is a free article. Abuse in Care themes are mentioned. Video is at the bottom.BackgroundYesterday’s report into Abuse in Care revealed that at least 1 in 3 of all who went through state and faith based care were abused - often horrifically. At least, because not all survivors ...
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About a decade ago I worked with a bloke called Steve. He was the grizzled veteran coder, a few years older than me, who knew where the bodies were buried - code wise. Despite his best efforts to be approachable and friendly he could be kind of gruff, through to ...
Some of the recent announcements from the government have reminded us of posts we’ve written in the past. Here’s one from early 2020. There were plenty of reactions to the government’s infrastructure announcement a few weeks ago which saw them fund a bunch of big roading projects. One of ...
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I live my life (woo-ooh-ooh)With no control in my destinyYea-yeah, yea-yeah (woo-ooh-ooh)I can bleed when I want to bleedSo come on, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)You can bleed when you want to bleedYea-yeah, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)Everybody bleed when they want to bleedCome on and bleedGovernments face tough challenges. Selling unpopular decisions to ...
Please note:To skip directly to the- parliamentary footage in the video, scroll to 1:21 To skip to audio please click on the headphone iconon the left hand side of the screenThis video / audio section is under development. ...
Given the crackdown on wasteful government spending, it behooves me to point to a high profile example of spending by the Luxon government that looks like a big, fat waste of time and money. I’m talking about the deployment of NZDF personnel to support the US-led coalition in the Red ...
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As I reported about the city centre, Auckland’s rail network is also going through a difficult and disruptive period which is rapidly approaching a culmination, this will result in a significant upgrade to the whole network. Hallelujah. Also like the city centre this is an upgrade predicated on the City ...
Today, a 4 kilogram report will be delivered to Parliament. We know this is what the report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care weighs, because our Prime Minister told us so.Some reporter had blindsided him by asking a question about something done by ...
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Back in January a StatsNZ employee gave a speech at Rātana on behalf of tangata whenua in which he insulted and criticised the government. The speech clearly violated the principle of a neutral public service, and StatsNZ started an investigation. Part of that was getting an external consultant to examine ...
Renting for life: Shared ownership initiatives are unlikely to slow the slide in home ownership by much. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:A Deloittereport for Westpac has projected Aotearoa’s home-ownership rate will ...
You're broken down and tiredOf living life on a merry go roundAnd you can't find the fighterBut I see it in you so we gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsWe gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsAnd I'll rise upI'll rise like the dayI'll rise upI'll rise unafraidI'll rise upAnd I'll ...
There’s been a change in Myers Park. Down the steps from St. Kevin’s Arcade, past the grassy slopes, the children’s playground, the benches and that goat statue, there has been a transformation. The underpass for Mayoral Drive has gone from a barren, grey, concrete tunnel, to a place that thrums ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections Global society may have finally slammed on the brakes for climate-warming pollution released by human fossil fuel combustion. According to the Carbon Monitor Project, the total global climate pollution released between February and May 2024 declined slightly from the amount released during the same ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Tuesday, July 23 are:Deep Dive: Penlink: where tolling rhetoric meets reality BusinessDesk-$$$’sOliver LewisScoop:Te Pūkenga plans for regional polytechs leak out ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Tuesday, July 23, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Health: Shane Reti announcedthe Board of Te Whatu Ora-Health New Zealand was being replaced with Commissioner Lester Levy ...
Health NZ warned the Government at the end of March that it was running over Budget. But the reasons it gave were very different to those offered by the Prime Minister yesterday. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon blamed the “botched merger” of the 20 District Health Boards (DHBs) to create Health ...
Long ReadKey Summary: Although National increased the health budget by $1.4 billion in May, they used an old funding model to project health system costs, and never bothered to update their pre-election numbers. They were told during the Health Select Committees earlier in the year their budget amount was deficient, ...
As a momentous, historic weekend in US politics unfolded, analysts and commentators grasped for precedents and comparisons to help explain the significance and power of the choice Joe Biden had made. The 46th president had swept the Democratic party’s primaries but just over 100 days from the election had chosen ...
TL;DR: I’m casting around for new ideas and ways of thinking about Aotearoa’s political economy to find a few solutions to our cascading and self-reinforcing housing, poverty and climate crises.Associate Professor runs an online masters degree in the economics of sustainability at Torrens University in Australia and is organising ...
The Finance and Expenditure Committee has reported back on National's Local Government (Water Services Preliminary Arrangements) Bill. The bill sets up water for privatisation, and was introduced under urgency, then rammed through select committee with no time even for local councils to make a proper submission. Naturally, national's select committee ...
Some years ago, I bought a book at Dunedin’s Regent Booksale for $1.50. As one does. Vandrad the Viking (1898), by J. Storer Clouston, is an obscure book these days – I cannot find a proper online review – but soon it was sitting on my shelf, gathering dust alongside ...
History is not on the side of the centre-left, when Democratic presidents fall behind in the polls and choose not to run for re-election. On both previous occasions in the past 75 years (Harry Truman in 1952, Lyndon Johnson in 1968) the Democrats proceeded to then lose the White House ...
This is a free articleCoverageThis morning, US President Joe Biden announced his withdrawal from the Presidential race. And that is genuinely newsworthy. Thanks for your service, President Biden, and all the best to you and yours.However, the media in New Zealand, particularly the 1News nightly bulletin, has been breathlessly covering ...
A homeless person’s camp beside a blocked-off slipped damage walkway in Freeman’s Bay: we are chasing our tail on our worsening and inter-related housing, poverty and climate crises. Photo: Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy ...
What has happened to it all?Crazy, some'd sayWhere is the life that I recognise?(Gone away)But I won't cry for yesterdayThere's an ordinary worldSomehow I have to findAnd as I try to make my wayTo the ordinary worldYesterday morning began as many others - what to write about today? I began ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Monday, July 22 are:Today’s Must Read: Father and son live in a tent, and have done for four years, in a million ...
TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Monday, July 22, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:US President Joe Biden announced via X this morning he would not stand for a second term.Multinational professional services firm ...
A listing of 32 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, July 14, 2024 thru Sat, July 20, 2024. Story of the week As reflected by preponderance of coverage, our Story of the Week is Project 2025. Until now traveling ...
This weekend, a friend pointed out someone who said they’d like to read my posts, but didn’t want to pay. And my first reaction was sympathy.I’ve already told folks that if they can’t comfortably subscribe, and would like to read, I’d be happy to offer free subscriptions. I don’t want ...
National: The Party of ‘Law and Order’ IntroductionThis weekend, the Government formally kicked off one of their flagship policy programs: a military style boot camp that New Zealand has experimented with over the past 50 years. Cartoon credit: Guy BodyIt’s very popular with the National Party’s Law and Orderimage, ...
Day one of the solo leg of my long journey home begins with my favourite sound: footfalls in an empty street. 5.00 am and it’s already light and already too warm, almost.If I can make the train that leaves Budapest later this hour I could be in Belgrade by nightfall; ...
Do you remember Y2K, the threat that hung over humanity in the closing days of the twentieth century? Horror scenarios of planes falling from the sky, electronic payments failing and ATMs refusing to dispense cash. As for your VCR following instructions and recording your favourite show - forget about it.All ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts being questioned by The Kākā’s Bernard Hickey.TL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 20 were:1. A strategy that fails Zero Carbon Act & Paris targetsThe National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government finally unveiled ...
Summary:As New Zealand loses at least 12 leaders in the public service space of health, climate, and pharmaceuticals, this month alone, directly in response to the Government’s policies and budget choices, what lies ahead may be darker than it appears. Tui examines some of those departures and draws a long ...
The Minister of Housing’s ambition is to reduce markedly the ratio of house prices to household incomes. If his strategy works it would transform the housing market, dramatically changing the prospects of housing as an investment.Leaving aside the Minister’s metaphor of ‘flooding the market’ I do not see how the ...
As previously noted, my historical fantasy piece, set in the fifth-century Mediterranean, was accepted for a Pirate Horror anthology, only for the anthology to later fall through. But in a good bit of news, it turned out that the story could indeed be re-marketed as sword and sorcery. As of ...
An employee of tobacco company Philip Morris International demonstrates a heated tobacco device. Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy on Friday, July 19 are:At a time when the Coalition Government is cutting spending on health, infrastructure, education, housing ...
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 8:30 am on Friday, July 19 are:Scoop: NZ First Minister Casey Costello orders 50% cut to excise tax on heated tobacco products. The minister has ...
Kia ora, it’s time for another Friday roundup, in which we pull together some of the links and stories that caught our eye this week. Feel free to add more in the comments! Our header image this week shows a foggy day in Auckland town, captured by Patrick Reynolds. ...
TL;DR : Here’s the top six items climate news for Aotearoa this week, as selected by Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer. A discussion recorded yesterday is in the video above and the audio of that sent onto the podcast feed.The Government released its draft Emissions Reduction ...
Save some money, get rich and old, bring it back to Tobacco Road.Bring that dynamite and a crane, blow it up, start all over again.Roll up. Roll up. Or tailor made, if you prefer...Whether you’re selling ciggies, digging for gold, catching dolphins in your nets, or encouraging folks to flutter ...
Waiting In The Wings:For truly, if Trump is America’s un-assassinated Caesar, then J.D. Vance is America’s Octavian, the Republic’s youthful undertaker – and its first Emperor.DONALD TRUMP’S SELECTION of James D. Vance as his running-mate bodes ill for the American republic. A fervent supporter of Viktor Orban, the “illiberal” prime ...
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 19, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:The PSAannounced the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) had ruled in the PSA’s favour in its case against the Ministry ...
Te Rangi e tu nei (The sky above us) Te Papa e takoto nei (The land beneath us) Tatou katoa te hunga ora (To us all the living) Tena koutou katoa (Greetings) ...
A late change to charter school legislation will cheat educators out of fair pay and negotiating power proving charter schools are just a vehicle to make profit out of our education system. ...
In 2004 te iwi Māori rallied against the Crown’s attempt to confiscate our coastlines and moana with the Foreshore and Seabed Act. This led to the largest hīkoi of a generation and the birth of Te Pāti Māori. 20 years later, history is repeating itself. Today the government has announced ...
It has been five and a half years since the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care was established to investigate the abuse of children, young people, and vulnerable adults within state and faith-based institutions. Yesterday, the final report - Whanaketia through pain and trauma, from darkness to light ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to take action off the back of the International Court of Justice ruling on Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine. ...
On Friday the International Court of Justice reaffirmed what Palestinian’s have been telling us for decades: that the occupation and colonisation of Palestinian lands by Israel is illegal and must end immediately. They also called for reparations for Palestinian’s who have lived under Israeli occupation since it began in 1967. ...
Labour calls on the Government to act after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian Territories is illegal. ...
The 53.7 percent rise in benefit sanctions over the last year is more proof of this Government’s disdain for our communities most in need of support. ...
Aotearoa could be a country where every child grows up feeling safe, loved and with a sense of belonging in their whānau and community. But for some of our children, this is far from reality. Instead, they are trapped in a maze of intergenerational harm that they can’t escape on ...
Te Pāti Māori are calling for David Seymour to resign as Associate Health Minister in response to his call for Pharmac to ignore the Treaty of Waitangi. “This announcement is just another example of the government’s anti-Tiriti, anti-Māori agenda.” Said Co-leader and spokesperson for health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. “Seymour thinks it ...
The soaring price of renting is driving the rise of inflation in this country - with latest figures from Stats NZ showing rents are up 4.8 per cent on average while annual inflation is at 3.3 per cent. ...
National’s Emissions Reduction Plan will take New Zealand further from the economy we need to ensure the next generation has a stable climate and secure livelihoods. ...
Following consultation with named parties and thorough consideration of privacy interests, the Green Party is in a position to release the Executive Summary of the final report from the independent investigation into Darleen Tana. ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon should be asking serious questions of his Minister for Resources Shane Jones now it’s been revealed he misled the public about a dinner with mining companies that he didn’t declare and said wasn’t pre-arranged. ...
Te Pāti Māori have submitted to the Justice Select Committee against the Sentencing (Reinstating Three Strikes) Amendment Bill. The bill will further entrench racism in our justice system and fails to focus on rehabilitation. “Reinstating Three Strikes will empower a systematically racist system and exacerbate the overrepresentation of Māori in ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee is set to make a determination on the Residential Tenancies Amendment (RTA) Bill in the coming weeks. “This legislation will give landlords the power to kick our whānau out onto the street for no reason” said Housing spokesperson, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “Their solution to the housing ...
“National’s campaign was about tackling crime and the best they can do is a two-year long Ministerial Advisory Group,” Labour justice spokesperson Duncan Webb said. ...
“There are more examples of charter schools failing their students than there are success stories. The coalition Government is driving to dismantle our public school system and instead promote a privatised, competitive structure that puts profits before kids,” Jan Tinetti said. ...
“This government is choosing to deliberately mislead and withhold information, keeping our people in the dark about this government’s agenda and the future of our mokopuna,” said co-leader and spokesperson for Health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. The call comes after the demand from the Chief Ombudsman that Associate Minister of Health, Casey ...
“Today’s climate announcement by Simon Watts makes clear the National Government is simply paying lip service to meeting its climate change targets,” Megan Woods said. ...
National is choosing to make life harder for workers by taking away the rights our communities have fought hard for. Here's how they’re taking workers backwards. ...
Australia, Canada and New Zealand today issued the following statement on the need for an urgent ceasefire in Gaza and the risk of expanded conflict between Hizballah and Israel. The situation in Gaza is catastrophic. The human suffering is unacceptable. It cannot continue. We remain unequivocal in our condemnation of ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today reminded all State and faith-based institutions of their legal obligation to preserve records relevant to the safety and wellbeing of those in its care. “The Abuse in Care Inquiry’s report has found cases where records of the most vulnerable people in State and faith‑based institutions were ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government’s online safety website for children and young people has reached one million page views. “It is great to see so many young people and their families accessing the site Keep It Real Online to learn how to stay safe online, and manage ...
Tēnā tātou katoa, Ngā mihi te rangi, ngā mihi te whenua, ngā mihi ki a koutou, kia ora mai koutou. Thank you for the opportunity to be here and the invitation to speak at this 50th anniversary conference. I acknowledge all those who have gone before us and paved the ...
New Zealand’s payroll providers have successfully prepared to ensure 3.5 million individuals will, from Wednesday next week, be able to keep more of what they earn each pay, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Revenue Minister Simon Watts. “The Government's tax policy changes are legally effective from Wednesday. Delivering this tax ...
An experimental vineyard which will help futureproof the wine sector has been opened in Blenheim by Associate Regional Development Minister Mark Patterson. The covered vineyard, based at the New Zealand Wine Centre – Te Pokapū Wāina o Aotearoa, enables controlled environmental conditions. “The research that will be produced at the Experimental ...
The Coalition Government has confirmed the indicative regional breakdown of North Island Weather Event (NIWE) funding for state highway recovery projects funded through Budget 2024, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Regions in the North Island suffered extensive and devastating damage from Cyclone Gabrielle and the 2023 Auckland Anniversary Floods, and ...
Indonesia’s Foreign Minister, Retno Marsudi, will visit New Zealand next week, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. “Indonesia is important to New Zealand’s security and economic interests and is our closest South East Asian neighbour,” says Mr Peters, who is currently in Laos to engage with South East Asian partners. ...
He aha te kai a te rangatira? He kōrero, he kōrero, he kōrero. The government has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the aspirations of Ngāti Maniapoto, Minister for Māori Development Tama Potaka says. “My thanks to Te Nehenehenui Trust – Ngāti Maniapoto for bringing their important kōrero to a ministerial ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has thanked outgoing Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority, Janice Fredric, for her service to the board.“I have received Ms Fredric’s resignation from the role of Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority,” Mr Brown says.“On behalf of the Government, I want to thank Ms Fredric for ...
The Government is proposing legislation to overturn a Court of Appeal decision and amend the Marine and Coastal Area Act in order to restore Parliament’s test for Customary Marine Title, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “Section 58 required an applicant group to prove they have exclusively used and occupied ...
Regulation Minister David Seymour says that opposition parties have united in bad faith, opposing what they claim are ‘dangerous changes’ to the Early Childhood Education sector, despite no changes even being proposed yet. “Issues with affordability and availability of early childhood education, and the complexity of its regulation, has led ...
After receiving more than 740 submissions in the first 20 days, Regulation Minister David Seymour is asking the Ministry for Regulation to extend engagement on the early childhood education regulation review by an extra two weeks. “The level of interest has been very high, and from the conversations I’ve been ...
The Coalition Government is investing $802.9 million into the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines as part of a funding agreement with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA), KiwiRail, and the Greater Wellington and Horizons Regional Councils to deliver more reliable services for commuters in the lower North Island, Transport Minister Simeon ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced his intention to appoint a Crown Manager to both Hawke’s Bay Regional and Wairoa District Councils to speed up the delivery of flood protection work in Wairoa."Recent severe weather events in Wairoa this year, combined with damage from Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023 have ...
Mr Speaker, this is a day that many New Zealanders who were abused in State care never thought would come. It’s the day that this Parliament accepts, with deep sorrow and regret, the Report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care. At the heart of this report are the ...
For the first time, the Government is formally acknowledging some children and young people at Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital experienced torture. The final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care “Whanaketia – through pain and trauma, from darkness to light,” was tabled in Parliament ...
The Government has acknowledged the nearly 2,400 courageous survivors who shared their experiences during the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State and Faith-Based Care. The final report from the largest and most complex public inquiry ever held in New Zealand, the Royal Commission Inquiry “Whanaketia – through ...
With a week to go before hard-working New Zealanders see personal income tax relief for the first time in fourteen years, 513,000 people have used the Budget tax calculator to see how much they will benefit, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis. “Tax relief is long overdue. From next Wednesday, personal income ...
Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden says a bill that has passed its first reading will improve parental leave settings and give non-biological parents more flexibility as primary carer for their child. The Regulatory Systems Amendment Bill (No3), passed its first reading this morning. “It includes a change ...
Two Bills designed to improve regulation and make it easier to do business have passed their first reading in Parliament, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. The Regulatory Systems (Economic Development) Amendment Bill and Regulatory Systems (Immigration and Workforce) Amendment Bill make key changes to legislation administered by the Ministry ...
New legislation paves the way for greater competition in sectors such as banking and electricity, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says. “Competitive markets boost productivity, create employment opportunities and lift living standards. To support competition, we need good quality regulation but, unfortunately, a recent OECD report ranked New ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says lotteries for charitable purposes, such as those run by the Heart Foundation, Coastguard NZ, and local hospices, will soon be allowed to operate online permanently. “Under current laws, these fundraising lotteries are only allowed to operate online until October 2024, after which ...
The Coalition Government is accelerating work on the new four-lane expressway between Auckland and Whangārei as part of its Roads of National Significance programme, with an accelerated delivery model to deliver this project faster and more efficiently, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “For too long, the lack of resilient transport connections ...
Sir Don McKinnon will travel to Viet Nam this week as a Special Envoy of the Government, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. “It is important that the Government give due recognition to the significant contributions that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made to New Zealand-Viet Nam relations,” Mr ...
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says newly appointed Commissioner, Grant Illingworth KC, will help deliver the report for the first phase of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into COVID-19 Lessons, due on 28 November 2024. “I am pleased to announce that Mr Illingworth will commence his appointment as ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters travels to Laos this week to participate in a series of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-led Ministerial meetings in Vientiane. “ASEAN plays an important role in supporting a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific,” Mr Peters says. “This will be our third visit to ...
Construction of a new mental health facility at Te Nikau Grey Hospital in Greymouth is today one step closer, Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey says. “This $27 million facility shows this Government is delivering on its promise to boost mental health care and improve front line services,” Mr Doocey says. ...
New Zealand is committing nearly $50 million to a package supporting sustainable Pacific fisheries development over the next four years, Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones announced today. “This support consisting of a range of initiatives demonstrates New Zealand’s commitment to assisting our Pacific partners ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour says proposed changes to the Education and Training Amendment Bill will ensure charter schools have more flexibility to negotiate employment agreements and are equipped with the right teaching resources. “Cabinet has agreed to progress an amendment which means unions will not be able to initiate ...
In response to serious concerns around oversight, overspend and a significant deterioration in financial outlook, the Board of Health New Zealand will be replaced with a Commissioner, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti announced today. “The previous government’s botched health reforms have created significant financial challenges at Health NZ that, without ...
Minister for Space and Science, Innovation and Technology Judith Collins will travel to Adelaide tomorrow for space and science engagements, including speaking at the Australian Space Forum. While there she will also have meetings and visits with a focus on space, biotechnology and innovation. “New Zealand has a thriving space ...
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts will travel to China on Saturday to attend the Ministerial on Climate Action meeting held in Wuhan. “Attending the Ministerial on Climate Action is an opportunity to advocate for New Zealand climate priorities and engage with our key partners on climate action,” Mr Watts says. ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is travelling to the Solomon Islands tomorrow for meetings with his counterparts from around the Pacific supporting collective management of the region’s fisheries. The 23rd Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Committee and the 5th Regional Fisheries Ministers’ Meeting in Honiara from 23 to 26 July ...
The Government today launched the Military Style Academy Pilot at Te Au rere a te Tonga Youth Justice residence in Palmerston North, an important part of the Government’s plan to crackdown on youth crime and getting youth offenders back on track, Minister for Children, Karen Chhour said today. “On the ...
The Government has welcomed news the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has begun work to replace nine priority bridges across the country to ensure our state highway network remains resilient, reliable, and efficient for road users, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“Increasing productivity and economic growth is a key priority for the ...
Acting Prime Minister David Seymour has been in contact throughout the evening with senior officials who have coordinated a whole of government response to the global IT outage and can provide an update. The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet has designated the National Emergency Management Agency as the ...
New Zealand and Japan will continue to step up their shared engagement with the Pacific, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “New Zealand and Japan have a strong, shared interest in a free, open and stable Pacific Islands region,” Mr Peters says. “We are pleased to be finding more ways ...
New developments in the heart of North Island forestry country will reinvigorate their communities and boost economic development, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones visited Kaingaroa and Kawerau in Bay of Plenty today to open a landmark community centre in the former and a new connecting road in ...
President Adeang, fellow Ministers, honourable Diet Member Horii, Ambassadors, distinguished guests. Minasama, konnichiwa, and good afternoon, everyone. Distinguished guests, it’s a pleasure to be here with you today to talk about New Zealand’s foreign policy reset, the reasons for it, the values that underpin it, and how it ...
Last summer when Matairangi burned, Ginny and Tom stood at the window of their lounge, watching kākā shoot skyward from the burning trees. From the distance, they looked to Ginny like pages torn from books and thrown into a bonfire. It was Tom, voice tight, who told her it was ...
Opinion: The Canadian short story writer Alice Munro – winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2013 – died in May at the age of 92. Her work was about “the damage people inflict on one another in the name of love”, Deborah Treisman wrote in the New Yorker. ...
This month marks two years since the most powerful telescope ever built sent its first pictures back to earth. From its lofty vantage point, beyond the moon in orbit around the sun, the James Webb Space Telescope was tuned to observe the first stars and galaxies being born soon after ...
Comment: After Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ preview several weeks ago, I had some optimism about the Government’s emissions reduction plan. Now I’ve read the discussion document, that hope has been dashed. How can the Government propose a plan that wants to take New Zealand taxpayers’ hard-earned money, and spend ...
Christopher Luxon: hurdles The little man from National jumps hurdles in his sleep. He’s quite good at it in his dreams and even though the reality doesn’t quite match up you have to give him credit for getting up every morning and crashing into the very first hurdle of the ...
Comment: It was a good two hours into the conversation when Tyrone Marks raised the most basic of questions when I first spoke to him in 2017. “They didn’t explain the things they did to me. They never told me why. And they still haven’t. There’s no explanation for it. ...
Madeleine Chapman rounds out Death Week on The Spinoff with a final recommendation. You can read all of our Death Week coverage here. Nothing forces you to reflect on your life and relationships quite like proximity to death. For those whose nearest and dearest have died, there are reasonably obvious ...
Whitney Greene takes us through her life in television, including the TV character she’d like to plan a funeral for and her cow lung catastrophe on The Traitors NZ. “If the phone rings, I have to answer it,” Whitney Greene from The Traitors NZ warns as we begin our My ...
Maddie Ballard reviews the debut essay collection of Pōneke writer Flora Feltham.In ‘The Raw Material’, the longest essay in Flora Feltham’s dazzling debut collection, the author heads out for a run after hours of weaving and sees the world turn to textile. “Pounding along the Parade, I saw the ...
Andy Christiansen, one half of the experimental rock-pop duo TRiPS, shares the tunes inspiring the band’s perfect weekend and new release. “Good speakers, good food, good music, no distractions”: that’s all you need to enjoy the psychedelic stylings of TRiPS, a new band formed by Fly My Pretties’ Barnaby Weir ...
Celebrating our quadrennial opportunity to become experts in a bunch of sports we never normally watch.The games of the XXXIII Olympiad are upon us. Paris will host this year’s showcase of sporting and athletic prowess, which means some late-night and early-morning viewing for us in Aotearoa.But what sports ...
The photograph is striking and beautiful, but also disturbing – a reminder that my love for John was often entangled in shame.The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.In the spring of 1980, in Dunedin, shortly before his death, someone took a photograph ...
Get to know Babushka, our latest Dog of the Month. This feature was offered as a reward during our What’s Eating Aotearoa PledgeMe campaign. Thank you to Babu’s humans, Jo and Isabel, for their support. Dog name: Babushka (Babu for short) Age: 2Breed: Border Collie X poodleIf rescued, ...
Pacific Media Watch A Lebanese photojournalist who was severely wounded during an Israeli air strike in south Lebanon carried the Olympic torch in Paris this week in honour of her peers who have been wounded and killed in the field — especially in Gaza and Lebanon. Christina Assi of Agence ...
The first report in a five-part web series focused on the 15th Triennial Conference of Pacific Women taking place in the Marshall Islands this week.SPECIAL REPORT:By Netani Rika in Majuro Women continue to fight for justice 70 years after the first nuclear tests by the United States caused ...
Christopher Luxon has joined with Australia and Canada's leaders in voicing support for US President Joe Biden's ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The 2022 election brought the “teal wave” into parliament. The next election will test whether teals, who occupy what were Liberal seats, and other independents can maintain their momentum. Joining us on the Podcast ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Musgrave, Senior lecturer in Pharmacology, University of Adelaide Pixavri/Shutterstock A major Federal Court class action has been dismissed this week after Justice Michael Lee ruled there was not enough evidence to prove the weedkiller Roundup causes cancer. Plaintiff Kelvin ...
In The Week in Politics: politicians have to decide what to do about child abuse, Health NZ is booked in for major surgery and Darleen Tana returns. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Corbould, Associate Professor, Contemporary Histories Research Group, Deakin University Mainstream media are surprisingly muted at the prospect of the world’s most powerful nation being led for the first time by a woman – specifically a woman of colour, Vice President Kamala ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rebecca Bennett, PhD Student, Associate Research Fellow, Deakin University Last week, a drone delivery company called Wing (owned by Google’s parent company, Alphabet) started operating in Melbourne. Some 250,000 residents in parts of the city’s eastern suburbs can now order food from ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonathan Foo, Lecturer, Physiotherapy, Monash University pikselstock/Shutterstock In the next 40 years in Australia, it’s predicted the number of Australians aged 65 and over will more than double, while the number of people aged 85 and over will more than triple. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katrina Grant, Research Associate, Power Institute for Arts and Visual Culture, University of Sydney Jonas Åkerström’s 1790 work, Session of the Accademia dell’Arcadia on August 17 1788.Nationalmuseum/Cecilia Heisser Ever wondered whether you’d have a better chance at winning an Olympic gold ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexandra Jones, Program Lead, Food Governance, George Institute for Global Health wavebreakmedia/Shutterstock On Thursday, Australian and New Zealand food ministers at state, federal and national levels met to thrash out what’s next for health star ratings on packaged foods. Now, after ...
The Abuse in Care report found many Pacific survivors lost their connections to their culture and language, resulting in trauma that has been carried from generation to generation. ...
In the regulatory review, ECC intends to suggest that ERO focus on curriculum delivery reviews rather than the Ministry, because it’s not efficient or effective to have two agencies with radically different approaches climbing over each other. ...
Te Rūnanga Nui o Ngā Kura Kaupapa Māori invites the current government to work in partnership with them to develop a pathway forward, including the development of a parallel pathway and meaningful policy and strategy for Kura Kaupapa Māori ...
If you haven’t started watching yet, Tara Ward begs you to reconsider. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. In the world of New Zealand reality television, we have many gems in our crown. There’s the delicious second season of the Celebrity Treasure ...
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http://www.salon.com/2015/06/12/the_democrats_tpp_rebellion_just_drew_blood_everything_you_need_to_know_about_todays_shocking_vote/
Democrats have rebelled on the TPP/fast track, and its passing is looking less and less likely. Nancy Pelosi, House Democratic leader is not supportive. Hopefully Democrats retain some backbone, which is a bit less likely…
It’s a bit funny how Democrats are almost unanimously opposing Obama. Pretty embarrasing for him – even the Republican Party can’t garner full support because Tea Party Republicans don’t want to give Obama more power.
… activists are celebrating a pyrrhic victory today as Fast Track was apparently blocked in the House of Representatives by a coalition of Democrats and Republicans.
The truth is that only its companion bill, the Trade Adjustment Assistance bill (TAA), was defeated in the House. The Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), i.e. the Fast Track legislation, was passed by a small margin of votes (219-211). But, due to the fact that these two bills were passed as one bill in the Senate, both need to be passed in the House before either becomes law. Fast Track has been sidelined for now, but it will be back soon to bite us.
What isn’t being widely disseminated is that it is likely that the TAA will be voted on again next week. This vote (or one further down the road) will decide whether or not the TAA is passed and if Fast Track will be the means by which the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) will be voted on in Congress once Obama finishes negotiating the deal with his counterparts.
More at
http://us6.camp aign-archive1.com/?u=ffdc278104b5964bb04b4251e&id=eb83cb3a87&e=f36be083ee
still time for some dissenters to be bought off, like a few weeks ago, when those changing their minds miraculously received donations for their upcoming re-election campaigns.i
Only an increase in campaign donations required to pass this. It’s always about the money.
Reposted from OM – late last night:
The following is purported to be an excerpt from Hooten’s latest NBR article. It concerns the Think Tank named “Progress” to be set up by Pagani, Leggett, Quinn and co. If the ‘quote’ is accurate (comes from blubber boy’s site which we don’t link to here) then it means someone has YET AGAIN leaked… this time last week’s caucus meeting:
Setting aside Hooten’s snide dig at Annette King (he can’t help himself and it will bring him down one day) this is becoming an intolerable situation. I’m inclined to agree with Louisa Wall and Megan Woods….
In the leaked electoral review document it talked about the “harsher” kind of discipline that could also be summed up as “Mr.Little kept his own counsel”. Anything Hooten says, implies or incites that Labour is, or should do, is wrong.
There will be leaks. There will be problems. Labour will do everything except change their name to The Lational Party in order to lose voter support between now and 2017. It isn’t intolerable. Don’t be fooled. Support the positive message of the important socially-cohesive issues.
Charles, I’m not supporting anything Hooten says/implies Labour should say or do. I long ago saw through his often spurious commentary. But if this is what happened then someone has leaked confidential caucus matters and it has ended up in Hooten’s hands. Whoever it was, did so with spiteful intent. It IS intolerable and caucus must stamp out this leaking forthwith. Every time it happens it gives the Nats and their media acolytes another chance to consolidate the perception Labour is a party racked with division. The truth is that under Little it is now a very united caucus but clearly there is still at least one maverick present.
I have no qualms about Little keeping his own counsel. In matters of a similar nature Helen Clark did the same thing. That is, keep the leader as free as possible from controversy and let other senior caucus personnel do the talking.
If looking for leaks from caucus I’d first look at the MP linked with the Pagani/Quin group, and that is Stuart Nash.
I read somewhere that Nash was approached by the Pagani/Quin group but he turned down any involvement in the project. But who knows what the truth really is…
This continual leaking needs to dealt with. Find the leaker and expel them from the party. No if’s, No but’s, No amnesties!
The leaker in this instance is the party who walked away from the meeting unhappy, namely Pagani and co, who coincidentally have very strong connections to Hooten, Slater, and Farrar and it is those people who continually quote Quin and Pagani and Nash and Davis as the divine way forward for the centre, centre left in New Zealand.
All the other leak problems within Labour have come from this same right-of-left group of people who have ambition but no power (the only power they weald is the ability to squeal to Cameron Slater when they don’t get their way).
The question is, are these people still useful? If so then something will have to be done to include them and create one message. Otherwise, expel them. Out of the current crop of leaders, Little seems the most likely to be able to achieve it.
Let’s see … Pagani would have been quite happy that it leaked so that she and her project get more publicity? And the leaker’s ambition exceeds his/her own power or influence (or intelligence) and is aiming at creating more mischief and damage?
Spot on Kiwiri.
and she gets portrayed as victimised, which seems to be a perpetual broken record mantra
and so the recent revelations of problems in National’s caucus have faded away to be replaced by LP problems… and who is helping fan that fire? Why Hooton and WO…
Those doyens of truth and justice.
🙄
And Phil Quin and Josie Pagani have been adding extra fuel. Don’t forget WO’s links to Pagani, and Stuart Nash’s links to Simon Lush. Quin was a major part of the anti Cunliffe movement.
The reality is Tracey Labour has not been so unified since the Clark days. I’m 90% sure the right wing Nat. hump of mischief-makers have been egging the Pagani/Quin crowd on. I’d go so far as to say that Pagani and co. spend more time socialising with them than they do with anyone from the L.P.
It sounds like Annette King took intense umbridge with whatever Pagani was saying when the LP leadership met her and Leggett recently. In 2013/14 whenever Pagani was on TV or radio slagging off the LP membership, I wanted to swipe her across the face I felt so angry and insulted. I think it might have happened to Annette only she was able to curb any temptation to do the same. 🙂
Hooton just said that all parties have factions within them… you wouldn’t know it from the media or other things he writes.
So who in the Nat caucus is the women faction, the gay faction, the left faction, the right faction, the whatever faction?
I have to agree with Hooton (well, I don’t have to, I choose to). Annette King has probably done her dash. not cos of her age but her roots and connection to the old days… OTOH she does seem to ably represent those of middle NZ that Hooton and Williams say LP needs back… so Hoots also kind of contradicts himself.
Update on global push for a cashless society – need to keep people informed about this and how it can be used to steal from the population. This particular update is from Chris Martenson, one of the most rational futurists around.
Not even a lapsed Catholic, but this current Pope is making my day with his latest papal letter, due to be released on Thursday: Explosive Intervention by Pope set to transform climate change debate.
Incredible.
Pope Francis will call for an ethical and economic revolution to prevent catastrophic climate change and growing inequality in a letter to the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics on Thursday.
In an unprecedented encyclical on the subject of the environment, the pontiff is expected to argue that humanity’s exploitation of the planet’s resources has crossed the Earth’s natural boundaries, and that the world faces ruin without a revolution in hearts and minds. The much-anticipated message, which will be sent to the world’s 5,000 Catholic bishops, will be published online in five languages on Thursday and is expected to be the most radical statement yet from the outspoken pontiff.
More locally, according to NewstalkZB, James Shaw is about to announce some new GP initiatives around CC today.
The pope is “aiming at a change of heart. What will save us is not technology or science. What will save us is the ethical transformation of our society,” said Carmelite Father Eduardo Agosta Scarel, a climate scientist who teaches at the Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina in Buenos Aires.
This.
Ironic that it’s coming from one of the more conservative parts of society.
Whilst there are many conservative catholics.
There are many radicals also… https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dorothy_Day
A powerful group within catholicism at this point, is this group.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberation_theology
My favourite irony at the moment, is the republicans running in the primaries who call themselves catholics – they are having extreme difficulty connecting with the majority of catholic in the USA. Indeed some church leaders have asked, some very difficult questions – it’s been great.
It’s not for nothing that we lapsed catholics call him the PR Pope.
It’s just another strategy designed to revive a degraded institution; other examples are the United States presidency and the royal family.
Re. TPP
The truth is that only its companion bill, the Trade Adjustment Assistance bill (TAA), was defeated in the House. The Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), i.e. the Fast Track legislation, was passed by a small margin of votes (219-211). But, due to the fact that these two bills were passed as one bill in the Senate, both need to be passed in the House before either becomes law. Fast Track has been sidelined for now, but it will be back soon to bite us.
What isn’t being widely disseminated is that it is likely that the TAA will be voted on again next week. This vote (or one further down the road) will decide whether or not the TAA is passed and if Fast Track will be the means by which the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) will be voted on in Congress once Obama finishes negotiating the deal with his counterparts.
http://us6.campaign-archive1.com/?u=ffdc278104b5964bb04b4251e&id=eb83cb3a87&e=f36be083ee
[lprent: Please don’t put up near identical comments, especially under different handles. It makes me immediately think that you are an astroturfer. Nobody likes them, especially me. I fixed up your link. ]
[They were both stuck in span and I released both and intended to then delete one but didn’t get round to it – MS]
Aargh .. double post. Apologies ..
Thanks .. good to see are up. I posted an apology which did not appear.
Too much caffeine in my system, and on-screen responsiveness seemed slow.
It’s might be the old laptop I’m using at the moment.
The server will have been slightly more sluggish this morning. Added two more disks to the main TS array. Means that the cache both locally (memcache) and overseas (CDN) got flushed. It will be rebuilding this morning as people requested static data from various browsers and devices. It usually takes 3-4 hours of NZ day traffic to get to steady state again.
White Man Behind A Desk was on Media Take last week. Starts at 14 mins, but the whole show is worth a watch for its look at NZ satire and news.
http://www.maoritelevision.com/tv/shows/media-take/S02E012/media-take-series-2-episode-12
Thanks Weka-excellent.
We are experiencing the delicious irony that Maori now make by far the best stuff on TV while Pakeha, with all their supposed knowledge and hugely superior resources, mostly make total crap.
Next Maori will be out-thinking Pakeha on the battlefield…..oh I forgot they’ve already done that.
Gorgeous photo of Gerry Brownlee on Stuff. Obviously dashed over to rally the troops. Cap, check. Dashing shades, check. FLAK JACKET! Check. A copy will be going on my wall for when I need a good belly(pun intended) laugh. The article is on obesity in the forces. Oh, the irony! Mr Brownlee declined to comment. His mouth was full of doughnut at the time. When I first read this the article commented that Admiral Brownlee had an above average BMI himself (think HUGE) but this has been deleted. Would his flak jacket have had to be especially made? If so, at what cost.?
Gerry doesn’t need a flak jacket because he can dodge Airport Security and bullets better than Neo in The Matrix. The pièce de résistance is, of course, the little white Kiwi on his cap [fully intentional pun]. Aren’t all National MPs made of Teflon and Kevlar but not of blood & bones?
Oh hell NZ’s version of the Bacon Sandwich
Phil Twyford @PhilTwyford 1h1 hour ago
“Nick Smith won’t debate me on @NZQandA but demands unchallenged right of reply after my interview.
He’s under pressure.”
Just saw this tweet. How come Smith is allowed to dictate the terms for an appearance on a current affairs show?
Because Dr Smith was born to rule and everybody else was born to be ruled.
Because political coverage is unbiased in NZ
Derek Fox’s appearance on this mornings Marae was a fucking disgrace.
what did he do?
When it’s available I’ll put the link up but shorter – former domestic violence perpetrator and alleged harasser of women shows true self when confronted by a woman.
ta.
The Miriama Kamo interview with Fox.
https://www.tvnz.co.nz/ondemand/marae/14-06-2015/series-2015-episode-16
Ondemand now requires registration so that TVNZ can sell your details to its advertisers:
So, not watched.
Same.
So longer – when Miriama Kamo took Fox to task about irregularities and lack of transparency in Te Kōhanga Reo National Trust he became quite confrontational.
But when he was challenged about his defence of the irregularities and lack of transparency he reacted with such hostility I was half expecting him to lose whatever self control he had left and vault the desk.
Thanks got it running in the background and yes he is a disgrace.
Worth watching
http://renegadeinc.com/another-economic-crash-is-coming-how-did-this-happen/#autoplay
Of course another crash is coming. Nothings been done to change the financial system from the failure it was in 2008 so it was inevitable that it would fail again and inevitable that it would be another housing crisis that triggered it.
in fact the Too Big To Fail banks are today even more massive and more over leveraged, than they were in 2008
If I can paraphrase Peter Schiff, we haven’t had the real crash yet, but it is coming. He also talks about a US dollar crisis. Once other countries lose faith in the US dollar and stop lending them money (because they know the US is in so much debt they won’t be able to pay the money back) then they really are in trouble. China is already moving away from the US dollar.
This from an Action Station email a few days ago,
Why would JC even bother with TV3 after the way they treated him. We want hin on Radio NZ 9-noon slot.
Some recent additions, hopefully of interest, on Redline blog:
The West on the rampage (1997, but highly relevant): https://rdln.wordpress.com/2015/06/13/from-the-vaults-the-wet-on-the-rampage-1997/
Review of New Zealand and the New World (Dis)Order: https://rdln.wordpress.com/2015/06/12/from-the-vaults-new-zealand-and-the-new-world-disorder-reviewe1997/
New Zealand nationalism, racism and the immigration non-debate: https://rdln.wordpress.com/2015/06/11/nz-nationalism-racism-and-the-immigration-non-debate/
Ireland: “the class struggle is the source of the national struggle” – interview with eirigi general-secretary Brendan Mac Cionnaith: https://rdln.wordpress.com/2015/06/12/ireland-the-class-struggle-is-the-source-of-the-national-struggle/
And an excellent piece by James Heartfield on the postmodern abyss from a quarter of a century ago: https://rdln.wordpress.com/2015/06/10/from-the-vaults-staring-into-the-postmodern-abyss-1990/
James Shaw:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/69371923/green-party-wants-climate-test-for-new-laws
That is a great idea.
I think so.
Here’s the full speech transcript.
https://www.greens.org.nz/news/speeches/green-party-co-leader-james-shaw%E2%80%99s-speech-asia-pacific-green-federation-congress
I was working for PriceWaterhouseCoopers. It’s a global consultancy firm.
At the time there was this fake debate in politics and in the media, about whether climate change was real or a hoax.
You had all these scientists debating energy lobbyists who were pretending to be scientists.
Politicians were saying ‘Well, we just don’t know who to believe. The science is disputed.’
But some businesses had to take climate change seriously because their profits depended on scientific modelling and long term forecasts.
Like insurance companies, which rely on accurate actuarial forecasts.
I read this report commissioned by the insurance industry on the long terms effects of climate change.
It did some projections based on the available data and it was all very calm and methodical.
And it concluded that the cumulative impact of extreme weather events and flooding caused by climate change would cause such catastrophic damage to property and loss of lives over the upcoming decades that it would bankrupt the entire insurance industry by the year 2050.
That report was commissioned by ReMunich (by the way one of the largest reinsurers in the business) and they have been actively pursing policies to combat AGW ever since because they realise that if BAU continues the insurance industry is stuffed – people will not be able to bear the cost of insuring – so no insurance companies anymore. Essentially they are right. Report released today on Scientific American notes we are already committed to 5m of SLR. 🙁
That’s a bloody good speech.
This is the essence of Green government: smart, strategic policies that slowly but surely lead to transformational change.
That is a little weird, Greens cannot introduce any bills unless they suddenly become a government. I presume what he is saying is that they will submit a private members bill into the ballot system. it will sit there until such time as it gets drawn which may never happen. Lot of other bills in there and when they are drawn it depends on the government whether the bill proceeds. This bill would require expenditure so most unlikely to happen.
If you read either the Stuff link or the speech, they both talk about a Private Members Bill.
What expenditure?
Climate Impact Disclosure Statement
Ensuring every new piece of legislation acknowledges the reality and costs of climate change.
Green Party Co-leader James Shaw has released a Member’s Bill to require all Government legislation to have a Climate Impact Disclosure Statement – a report, prepared by the Ministry for the Environment, that outlines the likely impact of the legislation on the climate.
This means that when a bill is introduced, all MPs, and the public, will get to learn the likely implications of the legislation on New Zealand’s greenhouse gas emissions and/or New Zealand’s ability to meet its international greenhouse gas reduction target. It will also detail any relationship between the legislation and the Climate Change Response Act.
It’s a way to ensure that in the development of legislation, climate is a key consideration. It will also give opposition parties good information to hold the Government to account on climate issues.
Climate change is the biggest issue. We need to be thinking about it when we’re introducing new laws. We need to know the cost of legislation on our climate.
By ensuring every new piece of legislation acknowledges the reality and costs of climate change, we will see a cumulative, gradual effect – having parliament thinking about our climate all of the time.
https://www.greens.org.nz/policy/cleaner-environment/climate-impact-disclosure-statement
If every bill requires a disclosure statement about Climate effect then whom are you supposing will provide that research at no charge. If it requires a government department or even non government service to provide a service that requires money then the bill is immediately defeated as only ministers can introduce bills that require expenditure.
Also to introduce a bill into parliament when you are not a minister requires the bill to be submitted to the ballot. The bills can only be debated on Wednesday’s and only 8 bills can be in the ballot on any Wednesday. Bills are withdrawn from the box by ballot and if a bill wins the ballot it can then be debated. Until such time as Government outvotes the bill then it dies.
You can read about bills here http://www.parliament.nz/en-nz/pb/legislation/proposed-bills
All this could be avoided if National decided to adopt the bill and I guess it is possible that Greens and National have agreed to do this.
Re the disclosure statements, read the links, it’s explained there.
This is win/win for the GP. It continues their agenda of raising awareness of CC. If the Bill gets selected, then there are a whole bunch of opportunities to raise awareness whether National support it or not. We’re past the point where government can ignore this, too many people are waking up to reality.
Have read and in the first line it states it will require the Ministry of Environment to provide the disclosure. That surely requires them to spend money and it is not permissible for a bill to proceed if it requires expenditure unless the government picks up the bill and take it over.
Basically it seems like grandstanding to enter a bill into the ballot with the knowledge that it would be ruled out as soon as the government want to.
This is despite the rules that govern private members bills. Read the parliamentary url I gave you and you will see there is little chance of it getting near the ballot. Of course maybe some of those Green bills already in the system could be withdrawn that might help.
Can you please link to the bit about expenditure?
Its in your previous comment but here it is again from the actual Green media release. It requires a government department to prepare a report for every piece of Government Legislation.
I dont know if you have ever worked for a State Department but that report will cost a lot of money. They do not have staff sitting around just waiting for work. It would require a lot of research and that would mean staff needing to travel possibly and hours of work to pull it together.
I asked you before who do you think will pay for that. If you are suggesting that it will just be picked up by the department then it is expenditure and is not allowed in a members private bill.
“I asked you before who do you think will pay for that. If you are suggesting that it will just be picked up by the department then it is expenditure and is not allowed in a members private bill.”
I’m not suggesting it, James Shaw is stating it.
I’m asking for a citation that a bill like this won’t be allowed because of expenditure.
Sheeezus, the government of the day funds Ministeries and Departments to carry out their statutory duties via the Budget. The funding is not defined in the bloody legislation.
Good grief Do they not teach anything in schools these days. The Parliamentary system requires that only governments can commit expenditure. It would be chaos of it was otherwise. Why do you think we have a budget? And then a budget debate. Governments expend opositions critique.
If a government cannot get a finance bill past parliament they effectively resign.
Don’t take my word go do some research I just hope that the Greens are not as naive as some of its supporters.
All I’m asking is that you explain what you are talking about. You obviously can’t do that, and now just look like someone trying to undermine the GP.
How is this Bill any different than other Members’ bills that would require expenditure?
The GP have been in parliament a very long time. Stop being a trole and address the issues.
The New Medical Cannabis based charitable trust has just been registered, and is seeking donations.
Please donate and spread the word if you support legal access to safe, effective and afforable cannabis derived medicines.
http://unitedincompassion.org.nz/2015/06/13/united-in-compassion-is-officially-registered-and-seeking-donations/
Having pasted the interview with Dame Sylvia Cartwright, (Inside Story A9 Herald Saturday- David Fisher) in my scrapbook I then had a bit of a browse and came across this clipping from Finlay MacDonald SST 2009
Still makes interesting reading in 2015, nothing changes.
Cut the waffle and answer the question | Stuff.co.nz
Jul 19, 2009 … For those readers who missed John Key’s speech last week about New Zealand’s economy, here’s a quick summary: Bla bla bla productivity …
http://tinyurl.com/n9b3eke
Great to see Helen Clark interviewed at length by Oksana Boyko on Worlds Apart-RT television,Sunday night. Her depth of intellect, sincerity and grasp of the issues is such a contrast to our current PM.
Link for the above interview
http://rt.com/shows/worlds-apart-oksana-boyko/ Helen Clark
Holy crap thanks very much for the link; and I like Oksana Boyko too.