Open mike 14/10/2015

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, October 14th, 2015 - 140 comments
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140 comments on “Open mike 14/10/2015 ”

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  1. Paul 1
    14 October 2015 at 6:13 am

    The boycott of TV3 after the political axing of John Campbell is working.
    Stuff, however, fail to mention this once in their reporting.
    The MSM lies.

    http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/tv-radio/72981663/3-news-sees-lowest-ratings-in-four-years

    • David H 1.1
      14 October 2015 at 10:48 am

      But it’s all over the Comments.

    • alwyn 1.2
      14 October 2015 at 12:22 pm

      John Campbell would hardly be relevant to this story surely?
      It is about the SUNDAY news program being the lowest for years.
      I may be wrong as I never watched him, or either news program actually, but wasn’t he limited to weekdays?
      It wouldn’t matter anyway as it is the lead-in program that affects the one after it, not the other way round. An unpopular news program would have affected Campbell but a dud Campbell wouldn’t have affected the news audience.

  2. vto 2
    14 October 2015 at 6:16 am

    John Key on the 1981 tour: “sorry, no can’t recall”

    John Key on Whaleoil: “sorry, no can’t recall”

    John Key’s most famous line to come out of his political career: “sorry I can’t recall”

    Well, as expected, this has caught on out in the real world now and everybody is running this line when in strife. It is as if the whole of NZ now considers lying about what you recall somehow acceptable. It is becoming more and more common as John Key’s poor and lowly character traits are picked up by others for less than quality purposes.

    Current example:
    Chris Cairns cheating trial in UK at the moment. Lou Vincent in the dock yesterday…. check it out ….. “The phrase “I can’t recall” was used so often in response to questions, it was possible Vincent raised a century of them.” http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/cricket/72991117/chris-cairns-trial-daryl-tuffey-was-furious-over-non-payment-court-told

    How apt – in a trial about cheating and lying, the participants use John Key’s most used line “I can’t recall”

    It would be funny if it weren’t so sad

    • Srylands 2.1
      14 October 2015 at 7:09 am

      Maybe that is because they can’t recall. John Key was 20 years old in 1981. I was born in the same year as John Key. All I remember about 1981 is a lot of study, girls and beer. So when JK says he can’t recall events from 1981 you are deluded to go looking for some whacko explanation. He was focussed on Bronagh and his third year accountancy exams. In what time he had left he was working as a stable hand.

      • Paul 2.1.1
        14 October 2015 at 7:15 am

        You were a University student in the early 80s and can’t remember the Springbok tour.
        Yeah, right.

      • vto 2.1.2
        14 October 2015 at 7:16 am

        ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

        sad

      • mickysavage 2.1.3
        14 October 2015 at 7:26 am

        I was also born in the same year as Key. I can remember every protest, the escalation of police violence, the introduction of the red squad, the thwack thwack of batons. The only way you could not recall anything about the tour is if you lived on the moon at the time.

        • Grant 2.1.3.1
          14 October 2015 at 8:02 am

          Exactly. SpRaYglands is not credible on this or any other issue. The entire nation was thinking of nothing else for weeks. Possible exceptions, hermits who’d gone bush for a few months and the mentally incompetent. Even the crew wintering over in Antarctica were probably divided on the issue.

          • savenz 2.1.3.1.1
            14 October 2015 at 8:26 am

            We all know JK would have supported the racism in 1981 – that is why he can’t recall anything.

            • North 2.1.3.1.1.1
              14 October 2015 at 6:11 pm

              Every pose Key takes is a Crosby Textor thing. No heart, no philosophy. Just a Crosby Textor thing. Oh except perhaps for that extraordinarily weird very possibly intoxicated “Gerrr Sarrrm Garrrds ” dance. Crosby Textor says deny having a position……”Right you are !”

          • Naki man 2.1.3.1.2
            14 October 2015 at 11:19 am

            Fuckin bullshit Grant, The only people getting all bent out of shape about the tour were the protesters. All I remember was seeing some nutter dropping flour bombs out of a plane and hearing some wankers had put razor blades on a rugby field.

            • marty mars 2.1.3.1.2.1
              14 October 2015 at 11:34 am

              so you admit you were aware of it – pity key still lies through his teeth about it – shows how weak he is.

              • Naki man …
                14 October 2015 at 12:25 pm

                I was only interested in piss, girls and surfing at the time.
                If I hadn’t seen the news I wouldn’t have known about it.
                Teenagers just want to have a good time and don’t know or care about politics.

                • Grant …
                  14 October 2015 at 12:46 pm

                  And yet the protest marches and opposing rugby crowds were full of teenagers. Funny that.

                  • Naki man …
                    14 October 2015 at 1:59 pm

                    “And yet the protest marches and opposing rugby crowds were full of teenagers. Funny that.”

                    Not every teenager has a parent who is protester and some teenagers have interests other than rugby. Actually most of them.

                    • Grant …
                      14 October 2015 at 2:15 pm

                      You can say what you like but the vast majority of teenagers in 1981 would have been well aware of the tour, would have heard adults arguing and expressing opinions and would probably have formed an opinion or been prepared to parrot someone else’s. Key was scarcely even a teenager. He turned twenty that year (I turned 23). He was at Uni and the Uni’s were hot-beds of discussion and debate about the tour and focal points for organising marches and rallies. No one who lived through that time and was Key’s age, lived in a university city and had a functioning intelligence believe’s him when he claims to not remember what his opinion was at the time. It stretches incredulity way beyond breaking point.

                • McFlock …
                  14 October 2015 at 12:52 pm

                  So you did know about it. And people told you the stories about the razorblades, so obviously you discussed it. And you remember thinking about protestors as “nutters” and “wankers”.

                  No clues there about whether you thought the tour was ok to go ahead in NZ or not?

                  • Grant …
                    14 October 2015 at 1:04 pm

                    Heh..

                  • Naki man …
                    14 October 2015 at 2:15 pm

                    McFlock
                    No I said I saw it on the news and I said people who put razor blades on rugby fields are wankers and obviously anyone who endangers peoples lives dropping bags of flour on them from a plane is a nutter. I have no problem with peaceful protest but there was a few violent shitheads amongst them.
                    I like most people had no interest in rugby and don’t agree with mixing sport and politics.

                    • McFlock …
                      14 October 2015 at 2:26 pm

                      I […] don’t agree with mixing sport and politics.

                      Oh look, another clue…

                    • Grindlebottom …
                      14 October 2015 at 3:15 pm

                      I like most people had no interest in rugby and don’t agree with mixing sport and politics.

                      So, actually what you are saying is you knew about the tour and you had an opinion. The issue was should the government have allowed the 1981 SA team to tour.

                      Those opposed argued “No, apartheid has no place in sport, that is mixing sport and politics”.

                      Those not opposed to the tour proceeding argued “You shouldn’t mix sport and politics”. And refused to acknowledge that a racially selected team was already mixing politics with sport. Racial segregation is political.

                      And John Key also bloody well knew about it and had a position on it I bet. I’ll bet he believed you shouldn’t mix sport and politics, and even if he didn’t care, he wasn’t opposed. That’s a position. He’d know if he’d been opposed.

                • whateva next? …
                  14 October 2015 at 4:20 pm

                  and am I surprised you are a National supporter?

            • Grant 2.1.3.1.2.2
              14 October 2015 at 12:10 pm

              Naki man: “All I remember …..”
              As I mentioned, hermits and the mentally incompetent may have been uninterested or unaware.

          • McFlock 2.1.3.1.3
            14 October 2015 at 12:38 pm

            I don’t remember my opinion of the tour.

            But then I wasn’t even in school yet, so the news was before my bedtime and I think we only had one TV channel in our location.

        • tc 2.1.3.2
          14 October 2015 at 5:08 pm

          No mickey he’s on planet key which he’s shown again and again he prefers to the real world and the truth.

          Given GST hike, Pike River, Fletcher at GCSB, ponytails, SCF, no more asset sales, Dirty politics etc etc (Blip’s list) it just consolidates his dishonest nature further in voters minds.

          He could’ve been honest and I don’t believe it would’ve done him any harm at the polls but it just doesn’t seem to be in his nature.

      • vto 2.1.4
        14 October 2015 at 7:48 am

        Imagine if John Key ever ended up on trial…

        Where were you on the night of blah blah?
        “…sorry can’t recall”

        What age were you then?
        “… sorry can’t recall”

        What was your opinion on Rob Muldoon’s wage and price freeze?
        “… sorry can’t recall”

        How much did the cricket fixers pay you?
        “… sorry can’t recall”

        How much did Merrill Lynch pay you under clause 32.2 of the subordinate loan agreement dated 22.2.96, amended 14 oct?
        “… 4,552,221.34 less the deductions for x,y,z of $1,211.06 but that was only after Mr Dunderhead and the 3 foreign officials of YCorp collated their previous proposals under the DDD Scheme, which was interesting because blah blah on and on”

        John Key is famous for being New Zealand’s biggest bald-faced liar

      • nadis 2.1.5
        14 October 2015 at 8:33 am

        Its not credible to have no memory of the tour, I was 17 at the time and have very clear memories. From a provincial, rugby mad environment I was pro-tour until after the fact, though at the time I didn’t view it from a political or human rights perspective. But from the time I went on to University just a year or two later, I would and have had a very different view. I did go to the Bay of Plenty game in Rotorua, and threw half a pie at the protestors who were pulling down a fence. At the time it all seemed like a bit of a laugh.

        One thing we forget about a bit now is how at the time it was framed for many New Zealanders – and this was in a time when the only source of information for a family like mine – was a local paper, the herald and TVNZ news. Nothing else. My parents were inclined to be against the tour but because all the framing we saw was as a law and order issue, communist agitators trying to destroy NZ institutions etc, a huge number of people who might have been against the tour, were not prepared to do so.

        • GregJ 2.1.5.1
          14 October 2015 at 9:44 am

          100% with you nadis.

          I was 14, in a similar small-town Waikato environment. Rugby was king (and I played rugby as well as Cricket) and the framing of the discussion was very much about law and order rather than about the moral issues around apartheid.

          My views were altered when I had a History teacher who was one of the protesters on the field at Hamilton. He came to school the following Monday with a cut on his head from where he had been hit by a beer can. It was a brave stand in a conservative town – more so because he was local, an old-boy of the school who had been a member of the 1st XV and captain of the 1st XI. He changed the views of many of us I suspect.

          Key would could have quite simply say he supported the tour but in hindsight and in the balance of history he was wrong as many other New Zealanders have subsequently realised they were to. (Assuming he did support the tour).

          To claim he doesn’t remember is just bullshit.

      • grumpystilskin 2.1.6
        14 October 2015 at 9:49 am

        I was 11 in ’81 and remember even in the school playground kids were divided into pro & anti tour, influenced by parents obviously.
        To say an adult of 20yo at uni can’t remember what side they were on during that time is so improbable, it’s laughable.

      • mary_a 2.1.7
        14 October 2015 at 11:18 am

        @ Srylands (2.1)

        Pathetic!

      • lprent 2.1.8
        14 October 2015 at 12:37 pm

        I think I was 21 years old at the time. I remember it, both in the initial arguments about the tour in 1980 and when i happened in 1981.

        You’d have had to have been living in a glass bottle not to have an opinion by the time the tour started. You have a big test tube?

        • alwyn 2.1.8.1
          14 October 2015 at 9:16 pm

          “I think I was 21 years old at the time”

          Really? You only “think” you were 21?
          If someone can’t remember how old they were in any particular year I would have serious doubts about anything else they might claim to remember. Now are you sure that you remember the demonstrations?

          On the other hand there is the famous quote from my generation –
          “If you can remember the 1960s, you weren’t really there.”
          The problem with that quote is that there is an enormous dispute about who said it. After all those of us who were there can’t remember clearly.

          Perhaps you had a really good time when you were at University and can be forgiven for not remembering how old you were..

    • Grant 2.2
      14 October 2015 at 8:13 am

      Yeahbut, at least Vincent has a viable excuse for poor memory, given that he was, by his own admission, suffering depression and doing a fair bit of substance abuse at the time.

      Key? No excuse.

    • Lanthanide 2.3
      14 October 2015 at 10:45 am

      John Key was in the Accounting school at the University of Canterbury during the Springbok tour.

      I have family acquaintances who were at Canterbury at the same time. The accounting school were, as a group, supporters of the tour. They can’t say anything about Key specifically however, but it’s pretty easy to see how peer pressure works in a conservative and ‘elite’ area of study such as that.

  3. Paul 3
    14 October 2015 at 6:22 am

    Russia back in the news as source of MH17 downing; how opportune that the final report is released now….

    Once upon a time I believed western propaganda …and then they told me about weapons of mass destruction in 2003 and invaded Iraq.

    No more lies for war.

    • nadis 3.1
      14 October 2015 at 8:14 am

      You don’t give the Dutch Safety Board any chance of being honest?

      Your comment is actually a really good example of the bad behaviour you accuse others of – a knee jerk ideological reaction.

      If you had actually read any news reports you would see that the report is very neutral in not drawing conclusions where there is no clear evidence. It doesn’t for instance, blame rebels for the downing (although I personally believe it was russian backed rebels but they thought they were attacking a military plane not a civilian airliner).

      And why do you see a conspiracy around timing of the release?

      • maui 3.1.1
        14 October 2015 at 11:09 am

        I think the only reason the authority is not pointing blame is because it’s not their job, they’re only supposed to find out why it crashed.

        There are still a lot of murky details though, as Dmitry Orlov points out:

        The black box recordings, the air traffic control records, the satellite surveillance photos—where are they? They have been hidden away.

        Another point is why was Ukraine included in the team of countries to investigate the crash, alongside the Dutch, Australians, Malaysians. While Russia was not invited, seems a little odd doesn’t it?

        Great write up by respected journalist Robert Parry who also talks about neo-Nazis running Ukraine’s national security and western media repeating their side of the story:
        https://consortiumnews.com/2014/07/20/what-did-us-spy-satellites-see-in-ukraine/

        Also have a look at who had the greater motive for the attack.
        http://cluborlov.blogspot.co.nz/2014/07/fact-free-zone.html

        • nadis 3.1.1.1
          14 October 2015 at 12:32 pm

          Well the reason was included in the crash is because under international law it is their responsibility to be lead investigator – it happened on their territory. Ukraine actually gave up their role to the Dutch.

          • Colonial Viper 3.1.1.1.1
            15 October 2015 at 1:28 pm

            speaking of “international law” (international norms) many of the air accident reporting standards normally expected in an incident like this were not met by the Dutch.

            • nadis 3.1.1.1.1.1
              15 October 2015 at 1:39 pm

              Like? Can list them?

              Perhaps some of those norms weren’t followed because they didnt get access to much of the crash site for the better part of a year.

              ICAO rules (a UN organisation) govern the procedures to be followed. Havent seen any complaints to ICAO about the dishonesty of the Dutch.

              • Colonial Viper …
                15 October 2015 at 2:16 pm

                Perhaps some of those norms weren’t followed because they didnt get access to much of the crash site for the better part of a year.

                The crash site was open and accessible from the start, albeit there were security concerns

                ICAO rules (a UN organisation) govern the procedures to be followed. Havent seen any complaints to ICAO about the dishonesty of the Dutch.

                It is ICAO standards which were not followed, including the preparation, timing and release of the preliminary investigation report.

  4. North 4
    14 October 2015 at 6:32 am

    How about this for a piece of grand nonsense from the commenter “Once Duped” in response to Kelsey’s article in the Herald yesterday…….it’s that or it’s a wicked send-up –

    “Noone doubts your sincerity, but in a democracy we each get to decide what weight we should put on any public person’s opinion.

    Because you have been denied access to any of the negotiation documents, you have little specific information above what a normal informed member of society would have.

    Notwithstanding, you have adopted a position of unwavering opposition to the TPPA. However much that opposition may in fact be justified by scholarly analysis, the reality is that the majority of people have accepted it as a free expression of political views untarnished by academic objectivity.”

    “……..untarnished by academic objectivity” ?????

    Talk about contradictions in terms. I smell a Hosking, maybe a wag.

    • Paul 4.1
      14 October 2015 at 6:36 am

      The Herald buried the story of her victory in court.
      An inconvenient story in face of their daily pro-TPP brainwashing.

    • vto 4.2
      14 October 2015 at 6:44 am

      Ha ha, sometimes ignorance in people is funny.. and the more ignorant the funnier it is ….

      That person’s view right there is a classic because under their opinion about opinions, an opinion that the grass is not green has equal validity…

      “… untarnished by academic objectivity …”

      that is a clanger that reflects back on the writer (who is it?)

      Or actually maybe it reflects more on the general ignorant public who believe, like this person, that everybody’s opinions are equal. Certainly John Key believes he can just go and get another scientific ‘opinion’ whenever he likes to support or oppose whatever he likes……
      …. just like my comment above, John Key’s lowly traits are catching on and it is not a good thing.

      it would be funny if it weren’t so sad

      • Grindlebottom 4.2.1
        14 October 2015 at 3:38 pm

        That person’s view right there is a classic because under their opinion about opinions, an opinion that the grass is not green has equal validity…

        Only if “…the majority of people have accepted it… untarnished by academic objectivity”. 🙂

        (Actually when I read that commenter’s whole sentence again it’s so confused and ambiguous it’s meaningless.)

  5. Rosemary McDonald 5
    14 October 2015 at 7:49 am

    Finally, finally, this scummy reality for those battling serious health issues has floated to the top of the news bulletin….on Natrad anyway.

    http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/286914/jobseeker-benefit-for-cancer-patients-'ludicrous‘

    “One woman, who does not want to be identified, applied for a benefit when she was diagnosed with breast cancer.
    She was put on Jobseeker Support, which replaced the sickness benefit after the 2013 welfare reforms.
    She said she had to pay for a medical certificate every month to prove she could not work – even though her surgeon insisted she would be off for much longer.
    “The letter from the hospital wasn’t sufficient. I then had to go back and get a doctor’s note to keep them happy, just to prove the fact that I was going in for surgery,” she said.
    “Then I also had to, on the day of my surgery, get someone from the hospital to fax through that I had been operated on”

    Anne -Where Did I leave My Heart- Tolley …

    “…admitted that having to provide monthly medical certificates in the early stages of cancer was difficult, but said the government had to draw a line somewhere.
    She said cancer patients could not expect special treatment, because then everyone would want it.
    “Where you draw the line is always the issue,” she said.
    “You start creating a whole lot of layers and there would be, I’m sure, other groups of people that would come forward and say, ‘we need special consideration too’.”

    This is the “Crawling Out of The Woodwork” argument the Government used against the family carers of high needs disabled NZ citizens during the Atkinson Human Rights Review Tribunal hearing.

    Bastards.

    (Can anyone else hear the rail cars clanking as they pull into the sidings….?)

    • Rosemary McDonald 5.1
      14 October 2015 at 7:55 am

      BUT….you will have a choice….

      http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/72984566/david-seymours-voluntary-euthanasia-bill-to-be-lodged-in-parliament

      Rather not have your illness or disability drag you and your family into financial despair????

    • savenz 5.2
      14 October 2015 at 8:23 am

      +1 Rosemary

      By the way as well as the incredibly heartless stance on Cancer there is also the absolute waste of taxpayers money on getting all those medical reports which are subsidised as well as the waste of time for the doctors and medical staff to supply such ridiculous level of documentation.

      Oh I have cancer, lets let the state know MONTHLY if I still have it. Disgusting on all levels.

      Sorry our hospitals are not so good as they cure cancer every month.

    • Mike the Savage One 5.3
      14 October 2015 at 8:40 am

      You beat me to it, I see, thanks for posting this comment!

      Indeed, what a disgrace, it takes the Cancer Society and terminal cancer sufferers to suddenly raise this OVER TWO YEARS after this was passed and introduced, and about three years since the submission process started:
      http://www.parliament.nz/en-nz/pb/legislation/bills/00DBHOH_BILL11634_1/social-security-benefit-categories-and-work-focus-amendment

      It appears that the Cancer Society did not present a submission then, probably because most felt they would never be affected by a draconian, inhumane benefit regime. But not all have working partners, or savings and other resources to fall back on when serious poor health hits them.

      And it was again only Radio NZ National that reported on it this morning, as far as I could hear it. Paul Henry was busy cracking silly jokes and relishing in rubbishing Andrew Little and Labour again (with the help of Paddy Gower).

      http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/national/286914/jobseeker-benefit-for-cancer-patients-'ludicrous‘

      Indeed, this new approach, to look rather at what people can (hypothetically) do, rather than what they cannot, which was brought in from the UK, and had been thought out by their “experts” like Mansel Aylward et al, from one ‘Centre for Psychosocial and Disability Research’ at Cardiff Uni, once generously “sponsored” by UNUM Provident (that nobody likes to mention these days), is insane and open to abuse by MSD and WINZ.

      And Carmel Sepuloni had nothing more to say, than she had “anecdotally” heard of such cases, where seriously sick were expected to jump through hoops to “prove” they are too sick to work. What have you been doing as opposition spokesperson on social security then? Perhaps more should get out of the comfort zone and talk to people directly affected? But I fear most are so pressured and fearful now, they dare not rock the boat, and rather “harden up”, before the final day comes, and try and struggle, also with mental illness and what else some have that is now considered not so serious anymore.

      As I remember, all this had been raised before:
      http://nzsocialjusticeblog2013.wordpress.com/2013/09/02/medical-and-work-capability-assessments-based-on-the-controversial-bio-psycho-social-model/

      http://nzsocialjusticeblog2013.wordpress.com/2013/12/28/designated-doctors-used-by-work-and-income-some-also-used-by-acc-the-truth-about-them/

      http://nzsocialjusticeblog2013.wordpress.com/2014/06/21/work-ability-assessments-done-for-work-and-income-a-revealing-fact-study-part-a/

      Radio NZ National presented an interview on this topic also some time ago:
      http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon/audio/2592666/winz-expands-scheme-to-support-unemployed-with-illness-issues

      A post with some transcripts and comments on that one:
      http://nzsocialjusticeblog2013.wordpress.com/2014/06/22/work-ability-assessments-done-for-work-and-income-a-revealing-fact-study-part-d/

      And they have even changed the process they use for the Medical Appeals Board hearings some time ago, bringing in a “presenter” from MSD or WINZ to have an extra player in appeal hearings, supporting their new approaches:
      https://nzsocialjusticeblog2013.wordpress.com/2015/03/17/the-medical-appeal-board-how-msd-and-winz-have-secretely-changed-the-process-disadvantaging-beneficiaries/

      Have the MSM been fast asleep for two years, to not come across other stories of people being expected to look for work while being seriously sick or disabled?

      • Kay 5.3.1
        14 October 2015 at 10:04 am

        Mike @5.3 The MSM haven’t been fast asleep. We’re just not on their radar, why should we be? Unless of course we’re sprung for benefit fraud, now THAT’S good copy. Is my cynicism showing? I’ve been following the UK system with great fear, as you obviously have been. Note it’s only the left-wing papers (Guardian, Independent)that are reporting the ATOS and welfare reform tragedies going on there- it doesn’t even get a mention on the “impartial” BBC.

        I honestly thought in NZ, with our 1.5-2 degrees of separation, everyone really does know someone with some sort of long term disability, many of whom can’t work, there would be more of the general public who cared, but there aren’t, until it happens to them. And there’s noone who can say that they’ve never known someone who’s had cancer and have some idea what the treatment entails. That would include our beloved Minister; her response only confirms the psychopathy, ie incapable of empathy.

        As for Carmel Sepaloni- good that she’s bringing these things to the public’s attention but as happened with her pointing out the 18 years of benefit underpayments, Guyon couldn’t get her to say that she thinks we should be reimbursed. She was political point scoring off our backs, and just going along labour’s anti-benefit policy. So don’t expect any real work done on our behalf by her.

        • Chris 5.3.1.1
          14 October 2015 at 10:28 am

          “She was political point scoring off our backs, and just going along labour’s anti-benefit policy. So don’t expect any real work done on our behalf by her.”

          Totally. Labour hates beneficiaries. I don’t know what’s happened with the possibility of retrospective legislation papering over that one day of benefit payment thing, but it wouldn’t surprise if Labour votes with the government on it. That’s where things are at the moment – the first question when it comes to social welfare benefits and attacks on the poor is “will Labour vote with the government on this.” It’s quite incredible to think that’s where things have got to.

          • Rosemary McDonald 5.3.1.1.1
            14 October 2015 at 11:43 am

            “Labour hates beneficiaries. ”

            Now there’s a very interesting comment.

            (Which I agree with BTW, and add to beneficiaries ….non ACC disabled and others with long term medical conditions….the ‘incurables’)

            Considering the huff and puff from many on the Left about the Right’s attitude to “the poor” and “beneficiaries”…. it boggles the mind that when an example is presented about a specific group impacted by government policy, the usual flay brigade remain silent.

            Non-ACC disabled and those too sick to work have been treated like shit by various governments.

            Can’t see this changing any time soon.

            • Chris 5.3.1.1.1.1
              14 October 2015 at 9:34 pm

              The non-ACC disabled are reduced to living on a benefit for the whole of their lives because of something they cannot change. The NZ Disability Strategy and other core government documents sanction the idea of “an ordinary life” for all disabled people. Surely that must translate into rejecting the notion that disabled people must be reduced/forced/expected to live on a welfare benefit until they die? Surely this group must be treated differently and, perhaps, be given the equivalent of, say, at least the minimum wage? A percentage of the average wage? The average wage? Whatever the figure to condemn the non-ACC disabled to a life of poverty disgusts me.

              • Rosemary McDonald …
                15 October 2015 at 8:45 am

                “Surely that must translate into rejecting the notion that disabled people must be reduced/forced/expected to live on a welfare benefit until they die? Surely this group must be treated differently and, perhaps, be given the equivalent of, say, at least the minimum wage? A percentage of the average wage? The average wage? Whatever the figure to condemn the non-ACC disabled to a life of poverty disgusts me.”

                Going into WINZ as a person on the Supported Living Payment with your partner who is on the same benefit even though she provides you with all the care you have been assessed as needing is a humiliating and demoralising experience. You are scum, and treated like scum. (There is the odd WINZ employee who treats you like a human and gets that the system sucks, but they are rare)

                Then you go to WINZ to transition to National Super.

                And OMG…there is a separate waiting area (apart from the hoipolloi), and its all smiles, respect and congratulations.

                We eschewed the special seating…we know where we belong.

                Chris…the NZ Disability Strategy, along with the Carers Strategy and the UN Convention are the foundation documents for the so called advocacy organisations who happily accept $millions from the government for a pantomime of representation.

                • Chris …
                  15 October 2015 at 11:13 am

                  “…the NZ Disability Strategy, along with the Carers Strategy and the UN Convention are the foundation documents for the so called advocacy organisations who happily accept $millions from the government for a pantomime of representation.”

                  I’ve got a niece with an intellectual disability who used to live in an IHC residence. She had an average sort of an existence which is why my sister took her out of there. But I was always intrigued by IHC management people, probably from their head office, who you’d hear on the radio talking about this unfairness or that unfairness. Something never quite rang true. It was as if they didn’t really know what they were talking about or that they didn’t really ever want anything to change. I don’t know exactly what it is. But this post on The Daily Blog and some of the comments, particularly this one, get as close as I’ve seen to explaining it.

                  http://thedailyblog.co.nz/2015/09/28/ihc-helping-national-abandon-vulnerable-families/#comment-306664

            • Chris 5.3.1.1.1.2
              14 October 2015 at 9:44 pm

              Labour didn’t always hate beneficiaries but it does now. Labour’s always been “the party for workers”, or so it says. Labour still says that. It’s just that its idea of who the workers are has changed. It used to be the “pool of labour”. Now it’s only those with a job, the employed, the workers. And that explains why Labour’s quite happy voting with Key’s government for legislation that attacks beneficiaries, and how its managed to shift its view of beneficiaries and the poor to one of hatred towards them, without too many people noticing.

          • Kay 5.3.1.1.2
            14 October 2015 at 12:24 pm

            Chris @5.3.1.1- I emailed Ms Sepaloni to her parliament address the day of that interview, both thanking her for bringing the matter to our attention, but also to express my disappointment in her response to Guyons questioning. 4 weeks later not even an acknowledgement my email was received, or a bounced back email. So it got there alright, but I’m guessing I can add myself to the list of voters who are having their emails ignored by MPs if they don’t like the subject matter. Seems to be a growing trend from what I’m hearing.
            I was toying with the idea of re-sending it and asking for an update on the situation but I suspect that email will conviniently not make it either.

            And Labour wonder where so many of their votes went after 1999? Ask the beneficiary bloc.

            • Mike the Savage One 5.3.1.1.2.1
              14 October 2015 at 4:42 pm

              Now there would be about close to 300 thousand potential votes, or say, at least 100 to 200 thousand, going by a conservative estimate. If they would be more honest, and trustworthy, and also explain to the other voters they want to attract, that social justice and fairness must come first, and that it is in our all interest, they may even be able to “harvest” votes in that “centre” and from beneficiaries.

              So far a gigantic FAIL by Labour, simply ignoring so many potential voters, also other disillusioned. Look at Sanders in the US, putting pressure on Clinton, at 74 years of age, attracting many students and other young voters, look at Corbyn in the UK, when do Labour damned wake up? It can be done!

              • Chris …
                14 October 2015 at 9:25 pm

                Beneficiaries in NZ are too busy doing everything they can to feed their families. Benefits aren’t enough to do that so way more time is taken up dealing with that problem, including trying to avoid being kicked off the benefit in the first place.

        • Rosemary McDonald 5.3.1.2
          14 October 2015 at 11:53 am

          @Kay 5.3.1

          “I honestly thought in NZ, with our 1.5-2 degrees of separation, everyone really does know someone with some sort of long term disability, many of whom can’t work, there would be more of the general public who cared, but there aren’t, until it happens to them. And there’s noone who can say that they’ve never known someone who’s had cancer and have some idea what the treatment entails. That would include our beloved Minister; her response only confirms the psychopathy, ie incapable of empathy.”

          Deserves to be repeated that…spot on.

          Every last word.

      • Rosemary McDonald 5.3.2
        14 October 2015 at 11:48 am

        Yep…same old same old isn’t it Mike TSO.

        Scream it from the highest rooftop in the loudest voice and those who will not listen won’t.

        If there was anything approaching an Opposition Party in NZ, they would be screaming “unfuckingacceptable!!!”.

        Yet…watch the cross- Party accord on Voluntary Euthanasia.

        • Mike the Savage One 5.3.2.1
          14 October 2015 at 4:34 pm

          Rosemary, the problem we face is much greater than even many insiders are aware of. Even the Health and Disability Commissioner, same as the Office of Ombudsmen, seem to take a very dim view of the fate of some of those with permanent sickness and disability, especially if it involves mental health conditions. Strangely medical practitioners seem to be given more “credit” when it comes to complaints:

          https://nzsocialjusticeblog2013.wordpress.com/2015/10/04/how-the-n-z-health-and-disability-commissioner-let-off-a-biased-designated-doctor/

          Hence I and a few friends celebrated Jane Kelsey’s and her friends’ win at court yesterday, it really exposed how useless the Ombudsmen (and other Officers of Parliament) have been, at least in some cases:
          http://thestandard.org.nz/congratulations-jane-kelsey/#comment-1082082

          So while I have great reservations about the Taxpayers’ Union, they make a valid point also, re Beverley Wakem and some of her decisions, and the general disgusting situation of the OIA process having become farcical. Our democracy has been under threat for a while, this has never been shown so damned clearly.

          • Rosemary McDonald 5.3.2.1.1
            14 October 2015 at 5:31 pm

            “Hence I and a few friends celebrated Jane Kelsey’s and her friends’ win at court yesterday,”

            Yes. One of those occasions when a cry of triumph cannot be contained.

            (Even if passersby thought we had lost the plot.)

            Its well past time for Kiwis to demand a stop to this…yet so many are locked into the mindless drivel that passes for ‘news’ and ‘journalism’.

            How do we get the attention of those who would care if only they had the information???

            • Mike the Savage One 5.3.2.1.1.1
              14 October 2015 at 7:13 pm

              My message is clear: Persist, keep it up, send the messages, remind them all out there, do NEVER stop telling and sharing the truth, the truth will prevail in the end, comment on all blogs there are, even on Kiwiblog, that is as long as we stand for the truth, and in that I HAVE NO DOUBT!

      • left for deadshark 5.3.3
        14 October 2015 at 2:34 pm

        I’ve just popped in for a visit, Good post MTS one. 🙂

      • left for deadshark 5.3.4
        14 October 2015 at 2:44 pm

        Just popped in, Good post MST one. 🙂

    • Chris 5.4
      14 October 2015 at 10:22 am

      I remember hearing about someone refused the invalid’s benefit because their condition wasn’t going to last for two years or more. They had cancer and about six months to live. The condition wasn’t likely to last for two years or more because they weren’t going to last for two years or more! I think that’s been fixed up now, but the fact it happened illustrates the attitude.

    • Jo 5.5
      14 October 2015 at 1:00 pm

      Just like the young lady from Crewe
      who once found a mouse in her stew.
      Said the waiter, “Don’t shout
      and wave it about,
      or the others will all want one too.”

      • One Anonymous Bloke 5.5.1
        14 October 2015 at 4:12 pm

        But that didn’t bother the lady,
        Brought up in an orphanage shady,
        “From where I’m sittin’,
        I don’t mind it shittin’,
        So long as it doesn’t have rabies.”

    • Sacha 5.6
      14 October 2015 at 7:43 pm

      “Can anyone else hear the rail cars clanking as they pull into the sidings…”

      Quite. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Action_T4
      Most people have no idea this happened.

  6. savenz 6
    14 October 2015 at 8:17 am

    Yahya Hassan gives his baby daughter a last kiss goodbye. The 3 year old girl was killed by an Israeli airstrike on Gaza last night. Their house collapsed on them while they slept. Her mother Nour who was 5 months pregnant was also killed in the blast.

    https://kiaoragaza.wordpress.com/2015/10/12/a-fathers-last-kiss-goodbye/

  9. millsy 9
    14 October 2015 at 8:51 am

    I think more and more people will take up income protection insurance to avoid the clutches of WINZ when they fall sick. Can’t say I would blame them.At least the insurance company would leave you with enough money to pay bills and buy food after you pay rent/mortgage.

    I dont know why people think that people live a caviar and champagne lifestyle on a benefit.

    • Chris 9.1
      14 October 2015 at 11:18 am

      Yeah, just look at all those malingerers, choosing to be poor. It’s a disgrace.

    • savenz 9.2
      14 October 2015 at 1:13 pm

      @Millsy

      I would read the fine print if I was you because a lot of those policies sold to the poor do not kick in, until you qualify for unemployment benefit. If you can’t get that then you don’t get the pay out.

    • Sacha 9.3
      14 October 2015 at 7:46 pm

      Hey it worked for a certain Mr Slater, for a while.

    • Lanthanide 9.4
      15 October 2015 at 9:07 am

      Yeah, cause private insurers are such an upstanding bunch, always doing the best for their clients and never trying to weasel out of their obligations. As the people of Christchurch found out.

  10. Wairua 10
    14 October 2015 at 9:25 am

    Re the Rugby World Cup obsession .. I have a simple solution.

    Put the champion of Islamic State (al-Baghdadi ?) together with his counterpart (Vladimir ?) in a spare Roman ampitheatre and to the victor go the spoils.

    Think of the ratings.

  11. marty mars 11
    14 October 2015 at 9:53 am

    this ones for you doc

    “Opponents of government aid to the poor often argue that the poor are not really poor. The evidence they are fond of is often an inappropriate comparison, usually with people in other countries: “Thus we can say that by global standards there are no poor people in the US at all: the entire country is at least middle class or better” (Tim Worstall in Forbes). Sometimes the comparison is with earlier times, as in this quote from Heritage’s Robert Rector: “‘Poor’ Americans today are better housed, better fed, and own more property than did the average US citizen throughout much of the 20th Century.””

    http://thesocietypages.org/socimages/2015/10/13/arent-the-poor-comparatively-rich-the-fallacy-of-faulty-comparison/

  12. Draco T Bastard 12
    14 October 2015 at 10:45 am

    The Real Secrets to Grand Fortune

    Too Much: Behind every great fortune, Honoré de Balzac quipped back in the 19th century, lies a great crime. How might you edit that aphorism for today?

    Sam Wilkin: Balzac was onto something. Most of the best wealth secrets from back in the age of the “robber barons” — Rockefeller, Carnegie, Morgan — would today be illegal.

    The vast fortune of the Rockefeller clan, to somewhat oversimplify a fascinating story, was arguably built on cartels — not illegal at the time, but made illegal shortly thereafter. Pierpont Morgan’s “money trust,” which helped make Andrew Carnegie the world’s richest man, was constructed in part via interlocking directorships that were, shortly thereafter, outlawed.

    The new monopolists like to claim that they face competition when really they don’t.

    A lot of what went on in the modern banking sector in the 2000s, and that to some extent still goes on today, probably won’t be legal five to ten years from now.

    So, to update Balzac: “Behind every great fortune lies something that was not a crime when it happened, but probably should have been.”

    Most definitely an interesting interview.

  13. Chooky 13
    14 October 2015 at 11:27 am

    The other side of the story:

    ‘MH17 shot with BUK missile, Ukraine failed to close airspace’

    https://www.rt.com/news/318536-mh17-investigation-dutch-report/

    ‘BUK producer detonates missiles next to pilot’s cockpit in real-life MH17 experiment (VIDEO)’

    https://www.rt.com/news/318505-almaz-antey-video-simulation/

    • Chooky 13.1
      14 October 2015 at 3:55 pm

      and ‘MH17 report’

      https://www.rt.com/shows/crosstalk/318603-mh17-report-investigation-results/

      ‘Fifteen months after the tragic loss of MH17 over war-torn Ukraine the Dutch Safety Board has presented the results of its investigation. From the very beginning the explicit aim of this probe was to determine why the plane was destroyed in midair. Will we ever learn the “who” and “why” parts of this tragedy?CrossTalking with John Laughland, Alexander Mercouris, and Dmitry Babich.”

    • Psycho Milt 13.2
      14 October 2015 at 9:17 pm

      ‘BUK producer detonates missiles next to pilot’s cockpit in real-life MH17 experiment (VIDEO)’

      Take the damage shown in the video and figure out exactly how it would be amplified if the missile and aircraft had a closing speed of a couple of thousand kph and the aircraft cabin was pressurised way above the outside atmosphere. You can’t? That’s why the video is completely useless, except for propaganda purposes.

  14. Puckish Rogue 14
    14 October 2015 at 11:48 am

    David Seymour is doing some good work in the house as of late…might have to start thinking about changing my party vote again

    • Naki man 14.1
      14 October 2015 at 12:01 pm

      Did you like his recent comment that “the French love the cock”

    • Grant 14.2
      14 October 2015 at 12:03 pm

      says the man who claims he’s a centrist.

      • Puckish Rogue 14.2.1
        14 October 2015 at 12:40 pm

        I am so I’d like a centrist party in power (National) but National will still need support partners and maybe if Act get more seats then Peter Dunne can get the boot

        • Grant 14.2.1.1
          14 October 2015 at 2:21 pm

          “I am so I’d like a centrist party in power (National)..”
          Lying again…
          http://www.politicalcompass.org/nz2014

          • Puckish Rogue 14.2.1.1.1
            14 October 2015 at 2:46 pm

            Those questions were a bit skewed towards the left 🙂

            • Grant 14.2.1.1.1.1
              14 October 2015 at 4:10 pm

              No they weren’t.
              It’s Ok, don’t feel shy.
              I can understand why you’d be embarrassed to admit your desire to vote for Act or National, the extreme right parties of NZ politics.

              • Puckish Rogue …
                14 October 2015 at 4:28 pm

                I was also working at the same time so my concentration was on other things!

                • McFlock …
                  14 October 2015 at 4:58 pm

                  lol

                  ah, the “I can’t remember my opinion” defence.

                • Grant …
                  14 October 2015 at 5:16 pm

                  You still haven’t looked at the political compass which shows the relative positions of the political parties have you?

                  Even though several commenters have linked to it for you? See the link at my comment 14.2.1.1: It shows that National and Act are furthest to the authoritarian right on the spectrum of NZ politics. You can claim that you made a hash of filling out your personal compass, but you can’t deny your self expressed preference for those two parties.

                  Ergo, you are not a centrist. In NZ terms you are an extreme rightist.

                  Also if it’s fair enough to call the Greens “hard left” as many of your fellow travelers like Wayne Mapp do, then it is equally fair to call National voters such as yourself “hard right”, is it not?

                  It is pitiable that I am still trying to get an intellectually honest answer from you so long into the conversation.

    • millsy 14.3
      16 October 2015 at 6:01 am

      I have to admit that Seymour has been greatly underestimated by the left. He will probably be more effective at articulating ACT policies than Prebble, Hide, Banks, Brash and Whyte ever have/will.

  15. Naki man 15
    14 October 2015 at 11:52 am

    There is a very interesting article on three news….

    “Labour is swallowing an enormous, filthy, stinking, rotten, maggot-infested dead rat called the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).”

    Read more: http://www.3news.co.nz/opinion/opinion-labour-swallowing-tppa-rats-2015101316#ixzz3oUVXNHqw

  16. joe90 16
    14 October 2015 at 12:34 pm

    The ultimate irony – it’s getting cold, can we please move south.

    The second study, meanwhile, seeks to explain the Younger Dryas, a cold period that began abruptly 12,900 years ago, as the planet was actually coming out of a glacial period and entering the present interglacial. Suddenly, though, temperatures swung back and became quite cold again for more than a thousand years, leading glaciers and ice sheets to rebuild. And once again, a change in Atlantic ocean circulation has long been a leading suspect in causing this dramatic, sudden event.

    “The start of the Younger Dryas was in a couple of years, really five years or so,” says Hans Renssen of VU University Amsterdam in the Netherlands, who led the research, along with scientists from Belgium, France, the United Kingdom, Norway and Switzerland.

    http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2015/10/12/why-the-earths-past-has-scientists-so-worried-about-the-atlantic-oceans-circulation/

  17. Stuart Munro 17
    14 October 2015 at 1:53 pm

    Awesome performance by Bill English, delivering a technical surplus after only seven years. His government has always been a day late and a dollar short, but Bill is seven years late and $101 billion short.

    The gibbering incompetence of far-right neo con ideologues is virtually infinite, being compromised of the second most abundant thing in the universe – 1 being hydrogen & 2 being stupidity.

    • Pat 18.1
      14 October 2015 at 2:57 pm

      if it were a poll this surplus would be within the margin of error……

    • Stuart Munro 18.2
      14 October 2015 at 4:22 pm

      Yes indeed

      worse than useless – nothing can make amends for the damage they have done to the NZ economy – but confiscating all their property and imprisoning them for life would be a good place to start.

      Useless treacherous wasters.

      • One Anonymous Bloke 18.2.1
        14 October 2015 at 6:10 pm

        The law allows Cabinet Club and other examples of money-laundering. The National Party is merely filling a gap in the market.

        Get the money out of politics.

      • Sacha 18.2.2
        14 October 2015 at 8:43 pm

        “imprisoning them for life would be a good place to start.”

        I for one welcome such trials.

        • Stuart Munro 18.2.2.1
          14 October 2015 at 10:09 pm

          Yeah – better keep the trials short I think – some people mistake notoriety for fame – Gower, Slater, Key for a start.

    • DoublePlusGood 18.3
      14 October 2015 at 4:44 pm

      When the national debt is something like $100 billion, this surplus is basically irrelevant.

    • leftie 18.4
      14 October 2015 at 5:34 pm

      @Puckish Rogue

      For what? a pseudo surplus? Or the unprecedented level of debt National are clocking up?

      • Stuart Munro 18.4.1
        15 October 2015 at 1:07 am

        It actually shows how feudal the ‘right’ are in NZ that folk like Hooten aren’t all over this maladministration for non-performance. Real growth – ex Christchurch & migration – at under 0.5% – if growth is their policy object they’re failures of truly awesome proportions. Screwups have no friends, left or right.

  19. Macro 19
    14 October 2015 at 2:20 pm

    Will Michael Woodhouse resign?
    Documents clearly show that Woodhouse not only lied to the people but also to Parliament when he said that he had not intervened and the exclusion of Dairy as a High Risk Industry wasn’t deliberate, but based on an the risks.
    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=11528604

    I’m not holding my breath – just watch this sort of corruptness go whoooooosh over the heads of the sheeple – their house prices are still making more than them.

    • ianmac 19.1
      14 October 2015 at 4:03 pm

      Question 10 today from IAIN LEES-GALLOWAY to the Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety was answered by not Woodhouse, but the “enthusiastic Dr Smith who argued quite differently.
      http://www.inthehouse.co.nz/video/40020
      When Woodhouse is in a hole he hides. Smith will and has dug him out of the hole – sort of.
      It would have been a Cabinet decision to protect farmers and Woodhouse would have just been following orders – perhaps.

      • Macro 19.1.1
        14 October 2015 at 4:24 pm

        The relationship between Smith and the truth of the matter, is somewhat strained at best.

        It would have been a Cabinet decision to protect farmers and Woodhouse would have just been following orders

        No doubt about it.
        So Woodhouse avoids telling porkies in Parliament again, and has someone else do it for him.. Lovely!

  20. SPC 20
    14 October 2015 at 3:01 pm

    Does the Labour Party have a problem with a more open and democratic process for candidate selection – something that has been developed for leadership races?

    Is there a problem with people forming organised lobby groups within the party membership to agitate for this change?

    And if so, who with/for – unions, groups that have managed to secure quotas for themselves (the national organisations involvement in selecting local candidates)?

    • Sacha 20.1
      14 October 2015 at 8:51 pm

      “Is there a problem with people forming organised lobby groups within the party membership to agitate for this change?”

      Pagani/Nash et al?

  21. ianmac 21
    14 October 2015 at 4:12 pm

    “The man arrested in connection with the disappearance of Alex Fisher is his older brother Eric McIsaac.”
    Note that the Judge asked for a Psychiatric report. Pretty awful for so many reasons.
    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11529097

    • Anne 21.1
      14 October 2015 at 7:27 pm

      It was pretty obvious from the start that the man arrested for burglary was Alex Fisher’s brother. Otherwise we would have heard from him because he was the last person the young lad was seen with. Deeply sad for all concerned.

      • Morrissey 21.1.1
        14 October 2015 at 9:08 pm

        Let’s just hope that the Sensible Sentencing Trust, that gang of callous publicity seekers and vultures that feed off human misery, are nowhere to be seen in the inevitable media coverage of this tragedy.

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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 ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 days ago
  • Why were the 1930s so hot in North America?

    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Jeff Masters and Bob Henson Those who’ve trawled social media during heat waves have likely encountered a tidbit frequently used to brush aside human-caused climate change: Many U.S. states and cities had their single hottest temperature on record during the 1930s, setting incredible heat marks ...
    Skeptical Science
    2 days ago
  • Throwback Thursday – Thinking about Expressways

    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 ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    2 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Thursday, July 25

    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 Thursday, July 25 are:News: Why Electric Kiwi is closing to new customers - and why it matters RNZ’s Susan EdmundsScoop: Government drops ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • The Possum: Demon or Friend?

    Hi,I felt a small wet tongue snaking through one of the holes in my Crocs. It explored my big toe, darting down one side, then the other. “He’s looking for some toe cheese,” said the woman next to me, words that still haunt me to this day.Growing up in New ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    2 days ago
  • Not a story

    Yesterday I happily quoted the Prime Minister without fact-checking him and sure enough, it turns out his numbers were all to hell. It’s not four kg of Royal Commission report, it’s fourteen.My friend and one-time colleague-in-comms Hazel Phillips gently alerted me to my error almost as soon as I’d hit ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Thursday, July 25

    TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Thursday, July 25, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day were:The Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquiry published its final report yesterday.PM Christopher Luxon and The Minister responsible for ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • A tougher line on “proactive release”?

    The Official Information Act has always been a battle between requesters seeking information, and governments seeking to control it. Information is power, so Ministers and government agencies want to manage what is released and when, for their own convenience, and legality and democracy be damned. Their most recent tactic for ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago
  • 'Let's build a motorway costing $100 million per km, before emissions costs'

    TL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:Transport and Energy Minister Simeon Brown is accelerating plans to spend at least $10 billion through Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) to extend State Highway One as a four-lane ‘Expressway’ from Warkworth to Whangarei ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • Lester's Prescription – Positive Bleeding.

    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 ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago
  • Casey Costello gaslights Labour in the House

    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 icon on the left hand side of the screenThis video / audio section is under development. ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    3 days ago
  • Why is the Texas grid in such bad shape?

    This is a re-post from the Climate Brink by Andrew Dessler Headline from 2021 The Texas grid, run by ERCOT, has had a rough few years. In 2021, winter storm Uri blacked out much of the state for several days. About a week ago, Hurricane Beryl knocked out ...
    Skeptical Science
    3 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on a textbook case of spending waste by the Luxon government

    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 ...
    WerewolfBy lyndon
    3 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Wednesday, July 24

    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 7:40 am on Wednesday, July 24 are:Deep Dive: Chipping away at the housing crisis, including my comments RNZ/Newsroom’s The DetailNews: Government softens on asset sales, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • LXR Takaanini

    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 ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    3 days ago
  • Four kilograms of pain

    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 ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Wednesday, July 24

    TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Wednesday, July 24, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Beehive: Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced plans to use PPPs to fund, build and run a four-lane expressway between Auckland ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • Luxon gets caught out

    NewstalkZB host Mike Hosking, who can usually be relied on to give Prime Minister Christopher Luxon an easy run, did not do so yesterday when he interviewed him about the HealthNZ deficit. Luxon is trying to use a deficit reported last year by HealthNZ as yet another example of the ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    3 days ago
  • A worrying sign

    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 ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Are we fine with 47.9% home-ownership by 2048?

    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 Deloitte report for Westpac has projected Aotearoa’s home-ownership rate will ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Let's Win This

    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 ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago
  • Waimahara: The Singing Spirit of Water

    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 ...
    Greater AucklandBy Connor Sharp
    4 days ago
  • A major milestone: Global climate pollution may have just peaked

    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 ...
    Skeptical Science
    4 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Tuesday, July 23

    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-$$$’s Oliver LewisScoop: Te Pūkenga plans for regional polytechs leak out ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Tuesday, July 23

    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 announced the Board of Te Whatu Ora- Health New Zealand was being replaced with Commissioner Lester Levy ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • HealthNZ and Luxon at cross purposes over budget blowout

    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 ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    4 days ago
  • 2500-3000 more healthcare staff expected to be fired, as Shane Reti blames Labour for a budget defic...

    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, ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    4 days ago
  • Might Kamala Harris be about to get a 'stardust' moment like Jacinda Ardern?

    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 ...
    PunditBy Tim Watkin
    5 days ago
  • Solutions Interview: Steven Hail on MMT & ecological economics

    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 KakaBy Steven Hail
    5 days ago
  • Reported back

    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 ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Vandrad the Viking, Christopher Coombes, and Literary Archaeology

    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 ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell On The Biden Withdrawal

    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 ...
    WerewolfBy lyndon
    5 days ago
  • Joe Biden's withdrawal puts the spotlight back on Kamala and the USA's complicated relatio...

    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 ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    5 days ago
  • Why we have to challenge our national fiscal assumptions

    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 ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Existential Crisis and Damaged Brains

    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 ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • A speed limit is not a target, and yet…

    This is a guest post from longtime supporter Mr Plod, whose previous contributions include a proposal that Hamilton become New Zealand’s capital city, and that we should switch which side of the road we drive on. A recent Newsroom article, “Back to school for the Govt’s new speed limit policy“, ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    5 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Monday, July 22

    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 ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Monday, July 22

    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 ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #29

    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 ...
    Skeptical Science
    6 days ago
  • I'd like to share what I did this weekend

    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 ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    6 days ago
  • For the children – Why mere sentiment can be a misleading force in our lives, and lead to unex...

    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 Order image, ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    6 days ago
  • A friend in uncertain times

    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; ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago
  • The Chaotic World of Male Diet Influencers

    Hi,We’ll get to the horrific world of male diet influencers (AKA Beefy Boys) shortly, but first you will be glad to know that since I sent out the Webworm explaining why the assassination attempt on Donald Trump was not a false flag operation, I’ve heard from a load of people ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago
  • It's Starting To Look A Lot Like… Y2K

    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 ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago
  • Bernard’s Saturday Soliloquy for the week to July 20

    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 ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Pharmac Director, Climate Change Commissioner, Health NZ Directors – The latest to quit this m...

    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 ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    1 week ago
  • Flooding Housing Policy

    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 ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    1 week ago
  • A Voyage Among the Vandals: Accepted (Again!)

    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 ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    1 week ago
  • The Kākā's Chorus for Friday, July 19

    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 ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Friday, July 19

    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 ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Weekly Roundup 19-July-2024

    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. ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    1 week ago
  • Weekly Climate Wrap: A market-led plan for failure

    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 ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Tobacco First

    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 ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago
  • Trump’s Adopted Son.

    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 ...
    Bowalley Road
    1 week ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Friday, July 19

    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 PSA announced the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) had ruled in the PSA’s favour in its case against the Ministry ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • The Hoon around the week to July 19

    TL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers last night features co-hosts and talking with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent talking about the National-ACT-NZ First Government’s release of its first Emissions Reduction Plan;University of Otago Foreign Relations Professor and special guest Dr Karin von ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #29 2024

    Open access notables Improving global temperature datasets to better account for non-uniform warming, Calvert, Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society: To better account for spatial non-uniform trends in warming, a new GITD [global instrumental temperature dataset] was created that used maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) to combine the land surface ...
    Skeptical Science
    1 week ago

  • Joint statement from the Prime Ministers of Canada, Australia and New Zealand

    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    17 hours ago
  • AG reminds institutions of legal obligations

    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    20 hours ago
  • More young people learning about digital safety

    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    20 hours ago
  • Speech to the Conference for General Practice 2024

    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    22 hours ago
  • Employers and payroll providers ready for tax changes

    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    24 hours ago
  • Experimental vineyard futureproofs wine industry

    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Funding confirmed for regions affected by North Island Weather Events

    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Indonesian Foreign Minister to visit

    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. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Strengthening partnership with Ngāti Maniapoto

    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Transport Minister thanks outgoing CAA Chair

    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Test for Customary Marine Title being restored

    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Opposition united in bad faith over ECE sector review

    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Kiwis having their say on first regulatory review

    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Government upgrading Lower North Island commuter rail

    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Government moves to ensure flood protection for Wairoa

    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • PM speech to Parliament – Royal Commission of Inquiry’s Report into Abuse in Care

    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Government acknowledges torture at Lake Alice

    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Government acknowledges courageous abuse survivors

    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Half a million people use tax calculator

    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Paid Parental Leave improvements pass first reading

    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 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
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  • Rebuilding the economy through better regulation

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