Turns out the gun for hire who wrote the piece forgot to note that the French wealth tax was recently modified and now resembles that which the Greens propose.
(new) Labour + National two side of the same Liberal coin….
Interesting that the only time the beloved Ardern loses her much touted pragmatism and draws a firm line in the sand is when it comes to NOT having capital gains tax and NOT taxing the super wealthy…but I guess when you come from the Tony Blair side of the Labour ideology this should come as no surprise.
Internal Green Party polling provided to The Spinoff suggests that the massive number of advance votes are running against legalising cannabis, but it’s likely to be close. The poll, conducted between October 9-12, asked people if the election was held tomorrow how they would vote on the Cannabis Legalisation and Control bill.
The poll did not ask any of the respondents how they had voted. However, out of the 1,286 people asked, 278 people said they had already voted. Of that second group, 50% said they did not support the bill, compared to 47% in favour. In the other group of 1,008 people who had not yet voted, 45% supported the bill, 41% were opposed, and 14% were undecided.
I think it's amusing that Collins keeps trying to scare voters off Labour by using the wealth tax – poll tonight will show if paranoia is that contagious. She needs a 5% shift.
Had a bunch of commentators here yesterday riled by my reference to the tax being designed to help losers. Telling the truth seems non-pc to some. I just think they are being weak in yielding to that sociopathic attitude.
Obviously the system was set up to divide the electorate into winners and losers: representative democracy has always been based on binary division and competition. The winner gets to be govt, the loser doesn't. The ruling class always wins, the lower class never wins. That's why Labour doesn't want the wealth tax. Wannabe winners.
Trying to pretend that history never happened just makes those commentators delusional. They ought to spit the dummy & get real.
Had to laugh at Emma Mellow jumping on the bandwagon.
Surely Auckland Central is the last place National want to drive votes from the Greens to Labour.
Then I went in search of what Mellow's place on the list is and found this (15/10/2020, 12pm):
In the 2020 election Mellow defeated Helen White of the Labour Party and Chlöe Swarbrick of the Green Party in a tight three-way race.
Misrepresenting other commenters is not getting you any closer to the truth and is thus an act of delusion.
Name-calling is your MO to lay down the truth as you see it and silence anybody who disagrees with you. Deliberately using language that rubs people the wrong way and demeans others is neither constructive nor inclusive, believing it so is delusional.
Stubbornly sticking to your guns and putting your own truth above that of others is delusional and does not make for positive debate.
This site encourages robust debate and your obtrusive commenting style and egotistic attitude are counter-productive.
The Wealth Tax won't shift people from greens to labour, it has been around long enough that there would be a very small number of green supporters that don't like the wealth tax or what it represents. Talking it up by the Greens may pull more left voters from Labour to the Greens.
Judith is trying to push some labour voters to NZF, but not too many (enough to take them to 4.95%), and thus wasting them. That drops labour to midish 40's, which may be close enough if Greens do dip under 5%
Nothing about talking up the wealth tax by Greens or National drops the green vote
The optics of making the rich pay their fair share is what is important here, and it is the sort of optics that The Greens need to push harder…cos Labour sure as hell are not going to.
Sweet Mary mother of Jesus, the Greens are such a fucking political liability.
Would they kindly just STFU and stop constantly talking about their wealth tax TWO DAYS OUT FROM A POTENTIALLY HISTORIC CENTRE LEFT WIN?
What a bunch of morons.
Their ill-thought out and high handed approach to the anti-smacking legislation cost Labour nine years in opposition and by the look of things they haven't learnt a single thing.
I hope Labour can govern alone and those political idiots in the Greens get to see their party drop below the threshold so they can spend three years thinking about how being a bunch of political dilettantes cost them their place in parliament.
Yes Sanctuary let us all just go along with Labour's steady as she goes asinine policies where the top 5% continue to hold more and more of the wealth while 235,000 kids are living in poverty.
Labour's 39% tax on over $180k raises bugger all-$500m. The Greens' WT raises SIXTEEN times that to alleviate poverty-that is transformative. And 94% are totally unaffected by the WT.
Personally I think the Green WT should be modified to target the top 4% rather than the top 6% but it is the Labour pro-establishment centrists who need to STFU.
I'm not against some sort of wealth tax. Geez… just look what the wine-boxers got away with back in the 90s.
But having made sure everyone knows they plan to push for such a tax – or a derivation of it – just shut up and stop giving Collins more opportunities to spread false information. All its doing is causing unnecessary panic among the voters.
The Greens will be the losers because many voters are vulnerable to misinformation when they are lead to believe a policy is going to negatively affect them.
Not sure if anyone is listening any more to the bollocks, sorry misinformation, that Collins is spouting. I guess we will find out on Saturday. The poll tonight may give us a pointer.
A few journalists have been repeating it, instead of doing their jobs. All over bar the shouting anyway – those who trust JC, or JA, are unlikely to change their minds in time absent a significant event.
A government serious about increasing tax revenue could do worse than to patch up some of the deliberately formed loopholes that let people pretend that they, or their money are really somewhere else.
A centre-left win that delivers nothing (to be fair – will deliver a better outcome than more active wrecking by NAct)? We need to deal with corrosive inequality and child poverty – and we need to stop a handful of rich people controlling our government and society. The Green's wealth tax is a step in the right direction and creates discussion on what really needs to be fixed.
yes, time the greens looked at the big picture, and that picture is, if you want change, you need power, to get power, you have to play the political game, which is, when you have a scab, someone else will pick it.
In assembling her unbeatable electoral coalition, and holding it together, Jacinda has had to give an explicit promise not to enact the sort of urgent fiscal programme the country requires.
This will be the new government’s dilemma. How to do what needs to be done without breaking its word, and without breaking up the cross-class alliance of voters that brought it to power.
To overcome this dilemma, the prospective Labour-Green Government will have to devise some way of persuading its working-class, middle-class and ruling-class supporters to pursue change together.
Creating a common-ground basis for a Labour-Green Government is an intellectual challenge in an era where intellectuals are deemed irrelevant. Muddling has pushed its way to the forefront of the political scrum. Common interests of those three classes? Players will be consternated. Eyes will glaze over. An heroic saga awaits…
They're not keen on Covid – so they're united against a common enemy. But the reigning economic narrative of the last few decades has led them up the garden path.
Avoiding a violent revolution might be a common interest. Better a negotiated one if you face the prospect of your backs against the wall. And less messy and fatal all round for the rest of us.
The numbed sensibilities of the oligarchs that benefited from the great Rogergnomic ripoff cannot be protected forever – however desperately the liars trying to peddle it as success pretend otherwise.
Plenty of common interests, if you look at them from an individuals perspective.
That my children get good education. That my housing is warm, dry, and affordable. That my water is clean. That my air is clean. That my food is healthy. That I have amenities to enjoy. That I have opportunity. That I have a place in my community.
No class divide in that lot. Just that for some, much of the list is simply assumed.
To be part of something greater than ourselves. Actual progress and working toward a better world. Only one class of people don't want that: they're called assholes. You can find assholes in trailer parks, leafy suburbs, and boardrooms.
I could be wrong, but I always thought that was the american version of the english term (but both have currency here).
I like your identification of common ground elements. Resonates as common sense, I suspect. Although people do say common sense ain't all that common these days…
The main class problem is that the Greens get the great majority of their votes from central city Auckland and Wellington – the areas most affected by the Green wealth tax because of expensive housing.
So Ardern signalling that the tax is dead on arrival is doing the Green voters in those areas a huge favour.
And of course also signaling that the really rich will pay more tax. Which is as it should be.
Other than that they want just slightly more than Labour on most things. It's going to be the easiest coalition discussion we've ever had.
It's going to be the easiest coalition discussion we've ever had.
Strikes me the numbers will hinge on the perception problem. No amount of calm dispassionate advocacy of the policy by James & Marama can prevail against the wilful reluctance of many in the target market to do the math.
They presented well with Garner this morning. He's anti, but seemed respectful & quite muted in his sceptical questioning, and seemed to be listening.
A Land Tax might be easier to gain acceptance for and implement than a Wealth Tax….though we could have both.
The problem is the farmers who have a lot of land that, while it is much much less valuable per hectare than Ponsonby, a LT would arguably unfairly impinge on them and their profits. A lower rate for land above (say) 20 hectares in size might be the solution.
Exactly BG. Most agricultural land is valued at a far higher rate than its income generating value. It's value in NZ is often dictated by it's desirability as very wealthy persons bolthole. A Land Tax on a sheep or beef farmer could be many times ( to be worth collecting ) its real income so is counter productive if forcing on-sale to someone who really doesn't give a shit about about a 1 or2 % tax.
A lot, lot more work goes into the implications of taxes than wish fulfilment, just look at Piggy's dopey booze fueled reactionary tax ideas in the early 80s. His 20% tax on "luxury" NZ made goods that he plucked out of his arse proves the point. A lot of businesses went under and it failed to bring in anything because it killed the producers off including my own small boat building one. In fact it cost him money in higher unemployment. What he failed to realise was that the vast amount of customers were ordinary working class grafters saving a little bit a week to own a boat or home built car kit. They just said "Fuck you Piggy "and didn't buy anything
The last thing you want is a Land Tax that leads to even faster corporate ownership of our productive land.
Land taxes lead to better use of land as those who are land banking have to make an income to pay the tax.That would help urban land use but farming is very cyclical with no guaranteed income from year to year a Capital gains tax would be a better way of land tax for rural farming to become more productive and profitable .
But you would need to reduce income taxes by an equivalent amount for these type of taxes to be accepted.
CGT is very complicated to implement and the income raised is unpredictable.
That goes for any new tax.
All the 'easy' taxes are in place already, and those that aren't are because they are very complicated to implement and the income raised is unpredictable.
At least with a CGT you have an objective transaction to buy the asset and another to sell it. Where it gets complicated is deductions for expenses incurred between buying and selling, so privately held assets have to be treated like a business which gets into a huge can of worms.
Wealth taxes are completely subjective, and dependant on market conditions at the time. How do you value a business that could be overtaken by a new idea tomorrow, especially smaller businesses that are totally dependant on the owner's skills and knowledge. The art market verges on a scam and even property and shares are only a loss of confidence away from their value becoming meaningless.
The records and paperwork needed for a CGT are very similar to what is required for a wealth tax. But for a CGT you only need to sort it out and file it when you sell a liable asset which would be a rare event for most, whereas for the proposed wealth tax you would need to do it all every. single. fucking. year.
Yeah, and you'll be going through that valuation and return process every year from a point well below the threshold to prove you don't owe anything. And with the complexities of valuing businesses and art, probably requiring professional input, so a good addition to your costs for very little, if any tax paid.
I can see that you are warming towards a WT Andre. At least it has boosted the Greens profile to 8% (9.5% in Roy Morgan). Some people obviously like it.
A Land Tax is probably the easiest option to administer, with predictable and high revenue outcomes. Lower LT rates would be needed for genuine farming operations above 20 hectares.
The thing would be to implement CGT in stages – on housing, on small businesses, on farming, on trading and investment.
The complexities of each area not compromising the approach to others, so that small businesses are not taxed on goodwill they have developed, but are on land value appreciation for instance. Dividing the introduction would also divide the opposition to the tax, and let the public consider the issues in more detail.
It's value in NZ is often dictated by it's desirability as very wealthy persons bolthole.
This suggests that a risk-free-rate-of-return tax as suggested by Gareth Morgan could be appropriate – perhaps, but not necessarily, alongside a much lower land tax.
Exactly what I mean than more complicated and intricate than wish fulfilment would have you believe. For every clever or mostly not so clever bugger devising taxes there are 10 more working on getting around it. Simplicity is key.
Say what you like about Roger Douglas but when he was questioned about GST on food he said that he upped the benefits by the amount of GST on essentials but he had been to enough dinner parties in Remuera where the food cost $500 ( read $1500 today ) so fuck'em they can pay.
A very cleavour and articulate person on a very dangerous topic – And I do recommend all watch this
"Without aid from a teleprompter, he explains to whites that their privilege isn’t "saying your life hasn’t been hard – it’s saying your skin color hasn’t contributed to the difficulty."
One needs to be a little careful generalizing from the US to NZ – there is significant employer prejudice against kiwis here – access to cheap exploitable foreign labour has made it abundant.
I may have read you comments wrong if so excuse.me. What I meant was that this topic is so divisive and to hear anyone articulate these so well and thoughtfully with passion – It moved me and brought me to understanding and counter what has been peddled from those "against" this e.g. The counter to "All/White lives also matter" and why an African American can use Negr* and why others shouldn't and not even sing along using it. And I was first made aware of Emmanuel from a ESPN doco on American Football.
Judith Collins just interviewed on RNZ (will be available online in about 30 mins)….I have never heard a candidate forPM with so much ill informed vague policy 'reckons' in my life…think it safe to conclude that Nationals 'plan' is minimal involvement and oversight of the NZ economy and let the chips fall where they may.
What summed Collins up for me (amongst other things she said) was her casual, almost contemptuous dismissal of the doctors' union. 'Oh, union.'
She has no sympathy or understanding with or of the people uniting to achieve a goal. Even a well-heeled 'union' like the doctors. God help the poorer people.
Yes – I pricked up my ears when she said that Labour 'stopped' them from doing it when the previous National Govt. wanted to modify (destroy) the MRA. My memory is blank on this – can anyone explain how Labour 'stopped' them when the National Govt + ACT had a parliamentary majority and could simply outvote Labour whenever they wanted to?
Is this yet another example of Judith being 'less than honest'?
Yes as I understand it Nats and Act had enough MPs to have passed any legislation they wanted between 2008 and 2011 and again between 2014 and 2017. From 2011 to 2014 I think they would have needed votes from either Peter Dunne or the Maori Party.
Pat, Mum had lunch with some friends earlier this week, there were two ladies there who are true blue, they admitted they are so embarrassed of judith collins that they will NOT be voting national for the first time ever.
Blue women are turning off judith in droves, Mum is not the first person who has said such in recent weeks.
Fishing used to be a widespread occupation with considerable operator independence. The QMS, aside from having no merit as resource protection, granted a monopoly to quota holders, chiefly three or four companies, who exercise disproportionate power over the lives of their workers. Ostensibly independent contractors (to allow the companies to sidestep ACC), kiwi employees nevertheless can't even have a can of beer at the end of a shift, because it does not suit the whims of the oligarchs.
As for the slave fishermen – any pretense of progressive values by government is auto-debunked by them.
Okay, so with the fishing industry, vessels have to carry crew with certain qualifications who have done a certain amount of sea time in order to sail, especially on deep sea trawlers. Sure factory staff don't have to be qualified, but all the officers do.
Nelson has the only fishing school in NZ, it takes years to get qualifications for certain sea going roles.
Sealord have used and exploited foreign crew for years. Iwi are responsible for those decisions and for not using local workers. Sealord is half owned by Iwi and half owned by offshore interests. 20 yrs ago the exhusband worked as an officer on Sealord vessels, even he was surprised at the time of the amount of foreign workers onboard.
There was an attempt last century to open up places for Maori by having a quota of trainees to be Maori which was being encouraged by government. When Nelson Polytechnic tried to do this they were threatened with a legal challenge by Sanford. So the big companies were not encouraging the participation of Maori in fishing as was hoped for. The challenge was against reverse discrimination I think it was called. I felt that Sanfords felt that Maori were being advantaged and wanted to put a stop to it.
you missed the end of the sentence – at the dreadful wages and conditions offered.
Time to stop discrimination against New Zealand employees and Labour should have extracted a decent plan out of the companies to replace the labour force with kiwis . Starting this summer.
Some one is a little upset there. The right wing are feeling threatened?
What it is telling us is that the RW fear that Jacinda now she has the space will go for bolder policies and show that the neo lib settings are basically stuffed. At which point countries like Australia and the Uk may be wanting more of what we have.
I am inherently lazy and enjoy successes that I could easily surpass if I tried harder. And yet, I feel that merely not having Judith Collins as PM, feels like setting the bar at a subterranean level.
Thanks for that Observer. As far as I can tell no government has moved up from the early 60% Confidence – until this year with this Government in the 70% range. Thanks for pointing that out as well.
Auckland University certainly doing right by their Vice Chancellor, 5 mill for a superior Parnell house, 1 thou a week in rent. They'll be pretty keen to get those foreign students back in I guess.
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Chris Bishop’s bill has stirred up a hornets nest of opposition. Photo: Lynn Grieveson for The KākāTL;DR: The six things that stood out to me in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, poverty and climate from the last day included:A crescendo of opposition to the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill is ...
Monday left me brokenTuesday, I was through with hopingWednesday, my empty arms were openThursday, waiting for love, waiting for loveThe end of another week that left many of us asking WTF? What on earth has NZ gotten itself into and how on earth could people have voluntarily signed up for ...
Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past week’s editions.State of humanity, 20242024, it feels, keeps presenting us with ever more challenges, ever more dismay.Do you give up yet? It seems to ask.No? How about this? Or this?How about this?Full story Share ...
Determining the hardest sport in the world is a subjective matter, as the difficulty level can vary depending on individual abilities, physical attributes, and experience. However, based on various factors including physical demands, technical skills, mental fortitude, and overall accomplishment, here is an exploration of some of the most challenging ...
The allure of sport transcends age, culture, and geographical boundaries. It captivates hearts, ignites passions, and provides unparalleled entertainment. Behind the spectacle, however, lies a fascinating world of financial investment and expenditure. Among the vast array of competitive pursuits, one question looms large: which sport carries the hefty title of ...
Introduction Pickleball, a rapidly growing paddle sport, has captured the hearts and imaginations of millions around the world. Its blend of tennis, badminton, and table tennis elements has made it a favorite among players of all ages and skill levels. As the sport’s popularity continues to surge, the question on ...
Abstract: Soccer, the global phenomenon captivating millions worldwide, has a rich history that spans centuries. Its origins trace back to ancient civilizations, but the modern version we know and love emerged through a complex interplay of cultural influences and innovations. This article delves into the fascinating journey of soccer’s evolution, ...
Tinting car windows offers numerous benefits, including enhanced privacy, reduced glare, UV protection, and a more stylish look for your vehicle. However, the cost of window tinting can vary significantly depending on several factors. This article provides a comprehensive guide to help you understand how much you can expect to ...
The pungent smell of gasoline in your car can be an alarming and potentially dangerous problem. Not only is the odor unpleasant, but it can also indicate a serious issue with your vehicle’s fuel system. In this article, we will explore the various reasons why your car may smell like ...
Tree sap can be a sticky, unsightly mess on your car’s exterior. It can be difficult to remove, but with the right techniques and products, you can restore your car to its former glory. Understanding Tree Sap Tree sap is a thick, viscous liquid produced by trees to seal wounds ...
The amount of paint needed to paint a car depends on a number of factors, including the size of the car, the number of coats you plan to apply, and the type of paint you are using. In general, you will need between 1 and 2 gallons of paint for ...
Jump-starting a car is a common task that can be performed even in adverse weather conditions like rain. However, safety precautions and proper techniques are crucial to avoid potential hazards. This comprehensive guide will provide detailed instructions on how to safely jump a car in the rain, ensuring both your ...
Graham Adams writes about the $55m media fund — When Patrick Gower was asked by Mike Hosking last week what he would say to the many Newstalk ZB callers who allege the Labour government bribed media with $55 million of taxpayers’ money via the Public Interest Journalism Fund — and ...
Note: this blog post has been put together over the course of the week I followed the happenings at the conference virtually. Should recordings of the Great Debates and possibly Union Symposia mentioned below, be released sometime after the conference ends, I'll include links to the ones I participated in. ...
The following was my submission made on the “Fast Track Approvals Bill”. This potential law will give three Ministers unchecked powers, un-paralled since the days of Robert Muldoon’s “Think Big” projects.The submission is written a bit tongue-in-cheek. But it’s irreverent because the FTAB is in itself not worthy of respect. ...
One Could Reduce Child Poverty At No Fiscal CostFollowing the Richardson/Shipley 1990 ‘redesign of the welfare state’ – which eliminated the universal Family Benefit and doubled the rate of child poverty – various income supplements for families have been added, the best known being ‘Working for Families’, introduced in 2005. ...
Buzz from the Beehive A few days ago, Point of Order suggested the media must be musing “on why Melissa is mute”. Our article reported that people working in the beleaguered media industry have cause to yearn for a minister as busy as Melissa Lee’s ministerial colleagues and we drew ...
1. What was The Curse of Jim Bolger?a. Winston Peters b. Soon after shaking his hand, world leaders would mysteriously lose office or shuffle off this mortal coilc. Could never shake off the Mother of All Budgetsd. Dandruff2. True or false? The Chairman of a Kiwi export business has asked the ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
The Government’s newly announced review of methane emissions reduction targets hints at its desire to delay Aotearoa New Zealand’s urgent transition to a climate safe future, the Green Party said. ...
The Government must commit to the Maitai School building project for students with high and complex needs, to ensure disabled students from the top of the South Island have somewhere to learn. ...
Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey and his Government colleagues have made a meal of their mental health commitments, showing how flimsy their efforts to champion the issue truly are, says Labour Mental Health spokesperson Ingrid Leary. ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is today travelling to Europe where he’ll update the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s work to restore law and order. “Attending the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva provides us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while ...
Associate Agriculture Minister, Mark Patterson, formally reopened the world’s largest wool processing facility today in Awatoto, Napier, following a $50 million rebuild and refurbishment project. “The reopening of this facility will significantly lift the economic opportunities available to New Zealand’s wool sector, which already accounts for 20 per cent of ...
Hon Andrew Bayly, Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing At the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective (SOREC) Summit, 18 April, Dunedin Ngā mihi nui, Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Ko Whanganui aho Good Afternoon and thank you for inviting me to open your summit today. I am delighted ...
The Government is delivering on its commitment to bring back the Three Strikes legislation, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee announced today. “Our Government is committed to restoring law and order and enforcing appropriate consequences on criminals. We are making it clear that repeat serious violent or sexual offending is not ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today announced four new diplomatic appointments for New Zealand’s overseas missions. “Our diplomats have a vital role in maintaining and protecting New Zealand’s interests around the world,” Mr Peters says. “I am pleased to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the ...
New Zealand is contributing NZ$7 million to support communities affected by severe food insecurity and other urgent humanitarian needs in Ethiopia and Somalia, Foreign Minister Rt Hon Winston Peters announced today. “Over 21 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance across Ethiopia, with a further 6.9 million people ...
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Paul Goldsmith is congratulating Mataaho Collective for winning the Golden Lion for best participant in the main exhibition at the Venice Biennale. "Congratulations to the Mataaho Collective for winning one of the world's most prestigious art prizes at the Venice Biennale. “It is good ...
The Government is reforming financial services to improve access to home loans and other lending, and strengthen customer protections, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly and Housing Minister Chris Bishop announced today. “Our coalition Government is committed to rebuilding the economy and making life simpler by cutting red tape. We are ...
“China remains a strong commercial opportunity for Kiwi exporters as Chinese businesses and consumers continue to value our high-quality safe produce,” Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says. Mr McClay has returned to New Zealand following visits to Beijing, Harbin and Shanghai where he met ministers, governors and mayors and engaged in trade and agricultural events with the New ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
Refreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...
Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson is speaking at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide, promoting New Zealand wool, and outlining the coalition Government’s support for the revitalisation the sector. "New Zealand’s wool exports reached $400 million in the year to 30 June 2023, and the coalition Government ...
The Government is making legislative changes to make it easier for new early learning services to be established, and for existing services to operate, Associate Education Minister David Seymour says. The changes involve repealing the network approval provisions that apply when someone wants to establish a new early learning service, ...
Changes to the Resource Management Act will align consenting for coal mining to other forms of mining to reduce barriers that are holding back economic development, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The inconsistent treatment of coal mining compared with other extractive activities is burdensome red tape that fails to acknowledge ...
Trade, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Todd McClay has concluded productive discussions with ministerial counterparts in Beijing today, in support of the New Zealand-China trade and economic relationship. “My meeting with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao reaffirmed the complementary nature of the bilateral trade relationship, with our Free Trade Agreement at its ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today paid tribute to Singapore’s outgoing Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Meeting in Singapore today immediately before Prime Minister Lee announced he was stepping down, Prime Minister Luxon warmly acknowledged his counterpart’s almost twenty years as leader, and the enduring legacy he has left for Singapore and South East ...
How will the recent wave of job cuts impact ethnic diversity in the media? In November last year, I was working a very busy day in the newsroom of a large online news site, interviewing whānau about their concerns over the imminent closure of one of the few puna reo ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ruth Knight, Researcher, Queensland University of Technology Have you ever felt sick at work? Perhaps you had food poisoning or the flu. Your belly hurt, or you felt tired, making it hard to concentrate and be productive. How likely would you be ...
Despite heavy criticism and an ongoing select committee process, the Police Minister says the Government will forge ahead with a ban on gang patches. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sam Whiting, Lecturer – Creative Industries, University of South Australia Shutterstock Everyone has a favourite band, or a favourite composer, or a favourite song. There is some music which speaks to you, deeply; and other music which might be the current ...
A new survey says ‘outlook not great’ for those charged with building infrastructure, while RMA changes delight farmers and depress environmentalists, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. First RMA changes announced ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Olli Hellmann, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Waikato Getty Images When New Zealanders commemorate Anzac Day on April 25, it’s not only to honour the soldiers who lost their lives in World War I and subsequent conflicts, but also ...
A leaked document shows the Canterbury/Waitaha arm of health agency Te Whatu Ora is scurrying to save $13.3 million by July. The “financial sustainability target”, which was “allocated” to Waitaha, is consistent with what’s happening in other districts, says Sarah Dalton, executive director of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists. ...
A look at the state of the previous government’s affordable housing scheme, and what could come next.Remind me: What’s KiwiBuild again?First announced in 2012, KiwiBuild was a flagship policy of the Labour Party heading into both its 2014 and 2017 election campaigns. With Jacinda Ardern as prime minister, ...
Labour in opposition will be shocked to learn which party had six years in power but squandered any chance to make real change. Grant Robertson’s valedictory speech was a predictably entertaining trip down memory lane. The acid-tongued incoming Otago University chancellor administered a sick burn to the coalition government. He ...
Taiwan’s semiconductor industry is seen some as its ‘silicon shield’ against invasion – but how will overseas expansion affect that protection? The post The state of Taiwan’s silicon shield appeared first on Newsroom. ...
There’s relief for building owners bending under the weight of earthquake strengthening rules – and costs – that came into force seven years ago. Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk has announced a scheduled 2027 review of the earthquake-prone building regulations will now start this year. Owners will also get ...
Opinion: It has been announced that nine percent of roles at Oranga Tamariki will be disestablished, presumably to help fund the tax cuts promised by the coalition Government. I am reminded of the graphics used to illustrate pandemic events, where five thousand people are standing in a field and then ...
After more than two sleepless days, running through savage terrain, Greig Hamilton didn’t know if he was going to finish one of the most gruelling psychological assaults in sport. He was metres away from the finish line, a yellow gate made famous in a Netflix documentary; a race he’d dreamed ...
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The following interview with former Green Party MP Sue Kedgley came about because she features in the new memoir Hine Toa by activist Ngāhuia te Awekōtuku; the two knew each other at the University of Auckland in the early 70s, when they were both took on leadership roles in the ...
COMMENTARY:By Murray Horton New Zealand needs to get tough with Israel. It’s not as if we haven’t done so before. When NZ authorities busted a Mossad operation in Auckland 20 years ago, the government didn’t say: “Oh well, Israel has the right to defend itself.” No, it arrested, prosecuted, ...
NEWSMAKERS:By Vijay Narayan, news director of FijiVillage Blessed to be part of the University of Fiji (UniFiji) faculty to continue to teach and mentor those who want to join our noble profession, and to stand for truth and justice for the people of the country. I was privileged to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Martin, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University Three weeks from now, some of us will be presented with a mountain of budget papers, and just about all of us will get to hear about them on radio, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Dan Lowry, Ice Sheet & Climate Modeller, GNS Science Hugh Chittock/Antarctica New Zealand, CC BY-SA As the climate warms and Antarctica’s glaciers and ice sheets melt, the resulting rise in sea level has the potential to displace hundreds of millions of ...
The government's plan to reintroduce a three strikes regime is being strongly opposed by lawyers, who argue there is no evidence it reduces crime or helps people rehabilitate. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Dan Jerker B. Svantesson, Professor specialising in Internet law, Bond University Do Australian courts have the right to decide what foreign citizens, located overseas, view online on a foreign-owned platform? Anyone inclined to answer “yes” to this question should perhaps also ask ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Giovanni E Ferreira, NHMRC Emerging Leader Research Fellow, Institute of Musculoskeletal Health, University of Sydney Last week in a post on X, owner of the platform Elon Musk recommended people look into disc replacement if they’re experiencing severe neck or back pain. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Hayward, Emeritus Professor of Public Policy, RMIT University anek.soowannaphoom/Shutterstock NSW Treasurer Daniel Mookhey caught the headlines yesterday, courtesy of a blistering speech condemning the latest GST carve-up. New South Wales, he claimed, would be A$11.9 billion worse off over the ...
While police are "broadly in favour", the government's proposed anti-gang laws are facing pushback from lawyers, rights groups and former gang members. ...
While police are "broadly in favour", the government's proposed anti-gang laws are facing pushback from lawyers, rights groups and former gang members. ...
By Miriam Zarriga in Port Moresby Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has arrived at Kokoda Station, Northern province, at the start of his state visit to Papua New Guinea. Both Albanese and Prime Minister James Marape will meet with the locals and the Northern Provincial government before they begin their ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Chris Wallace, Professor, School of Politics Economics & Society, Faculty of Business Government & Law, University of Canberra Shutterstock An important principle was invoked by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese last week in defence of the government’s Future Made in Australia industry ...
By Patrick Decloitre, RNZ Pacific correspondent French Pacific desk Security forces reinforcements were sent from France ahead of two rival marches in the capital Nouméa today, at the same time and only two streets away one from the other. One march, called by Union Calédonienne party (a component of the ...
A poll last August found that just 16% of New Zealanders oppose bringing back the ‘Three Strikes’ law. The nationwide poll of 1,000 New Zealanders was commissioned by Family First NZ and carried out by Curia Market Research. ...
The solo show from Ana Scotney is both sprawling and intimate, and a must-see, writes Mad Chapman. In the opening moments of Scattergun: After the Death of Rūaumoko, writer and performer Ana Scotney lays out the groundwork, literally. Silently moving around the square stage, Scotney is not so much dancing ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Burridge, Professor of Linguistics, Monash University Who makes the words? Why are trees called trees and why are shoes called shoes and who makes the names? – Elliot, age 5, Eltham, Victoria Good question Elliot! Let’s start with ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Duckett, Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne at amRawpixel.com/Shutterstock Roles of health professionals are still unfortunately often stuck in the past. That is, before the ...
COMMENTARY:By Malcolm Evans Last week’s leaked New York Times staff directive, as to what words can and cannot be used to describe the carnage Israel is raining on Palestinians, is proof positive, since those reports are published verbatim here in New Zealand, that our understanding of the conflict is ...
In the case of New Zealand, the results confirm that there is no popular support for the vicious austerity program being imposed by the National Party-led government, which is backed in all fundamental respects by the opposition Labour Party. ...
The ‘Vampire’ singer has never visited our part of the world, but that might all be about to change. We assess the evidence.Olivia Rodrigo’s Guts World Tour is pulling in massive crowds as it whips around the US and Europe, even helping to catapult regular supporting act Chappell Roan ...
Testing of drinking water in rural Canterbury over the weekend by Greenpeace revealed that several public town supplies were reaching levels of nitrate above 5 mg/L - the threshold which a growing body of scientific evidence has linked to increased ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rohan Fisher, Information Technology for Development Researcher, Charles Darwin University It may come as a surprise to hear 2023 was Australia’s biggest bushfire season in more than a decade. Fires burned across an area eight times as big as the 2019–20 Black ...
Responding to the Government’s announcement of changes to resource management laws, Taxpayers’ Union Executive Director, Jordan Williams, said: “These changes are a step in the right direction in terms of removing ideological and unworkable ...
More than two years after the Human Rights Council called for the establishment of a national human rights commission, such a body has yet to be formed. ...
Comment:An emergency management system with wide variations in performance, significant capability gaps, funding shortfalls and above all a setup that is not meeting the needs of New Zealanders at times of crisis. The Government’s inquiry into the response to Cyclone Gabrielle and other severe weather events in the North ...
Welcome to the whirring wonders of one brain trying to align its actions with its beliefs within a system it thinks is evil. My brain has been spiralling in a woke conundrum ever since I found out a bookshop I’ve never been to was shutting down. Good Books, a bookshop ...
We repeat our call for criminal justice policy to be based on evidence, something the three strikes regime neglects to recognise – with no evidence that it either reduces crime or assists with rehabilitation. ...
By Koroi Hawkins, RNZ Pacific editor in Honiara With only four more seats in the 50-member Parliament yet to be officially declared, there is no outright winner in the Solomon Islands elections. As of Monday, the two largest blocs in the winner’s circle, independents and the incumbent Prime Minister Manasseh ...
Two/fiftyseven is a multi-purpose space hidden in the heart of Wellington that is paving a way for sustainable building and responsible landlording in Aotearoa and beyond.By 2060 the world is predicted to double its entire building stock, which equates to building an entire New York City every 34 days, ...
Popstars wasn’t just a reality television revolution, it was also a huge moment for Y2K fashion.It’s 25 years since girl group TrueBliss was formed on New Zealand national television, breaking new ground for both the reality television industry and the shiny clothing industry. With the first episode on NZ ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christopher Pepping, Associate Professor in Clinical Psychology, Griffith University Marvin / Shutterstock Are all single people insecure? When we think about people who have been single for a long time, we may assume it’s because single people have insecurities that make ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By William Geary, Lecturer in Quantitative Ecology & Biodiversity Conservation, The University of Melbourne Trismegist san, Shutterstock Landscapes that have escaped fire for decades or centuries tend to harbour vital structures for wildlife, such as tree hollows and large logs. But these ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rebecca Gladstone-Gallagher, Lecturer in Marine Science, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Shutterstock/S Curtis Why are we crossing ecological boundaries that affect Earth’s fundamental life-supporting capacity? Is it because we don’t have enough information about how ecosystems respond to change? Or ...
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https://i.stuff.co.nz/business/opinion-analysis/300132298/tax-the-wealthy-i-dont-think-so
Turns out the French tried a wealth tax and guess what it didnt work .
The wealthy dodged it .
Let this dog of policy go .
yeah, lets only tax the poor
ffs
the plot has been lost
Turns out the gun for hire who wrote the piece forgot to note that the French wealth tax was recently modified and now resembles that which the Greens propose.
https://www.moore-global.com/insights/articles/french-wealth-tax-for-non-residents
The vested interests arnt going to roll over and pay without a fight….they dont even care who runs things as long as they get the settings they want.
Exactly.
They're quite happy that governments around the world keep rewarding them for being bludgers.
(new) Labour + National two side of the same Liberal coin….
Interesting that the only time the beloved Ardern loses her much touted pragmatism and draws a firm line in the sand is when it comes to NOT having capital gains tax and NOT taxing the super wealthy…but I guess when you come from the Tony Blair side of the Labour ideology this should come as no surprise.
Liberalism and Fascism: Partners in Crime
https://www.counterpunch.org/2020/10/14/liberalism-and-fascism-partners-in-crime/
The correct response isn't to drop the policy but make sure that people can't dodge it.
Polls are oscillating but the race is tight:
Good wishes Barfly.
Thanks
I think it's amusing that Collins keeps trying to scare voters off Labour by using the wealth tax – poll tonight will show if paranoia is that contagious. She needs a 5% shift.
Had a bunch of commentators here yesterday riled by my reference to the tax being designed to help losers. Telling the truth seems non-pc to some. I just think they are being weak in yielding to that sociopathic attitude.
Obviously the system was set up to divide the electorate into winners and losers: representative democracy has always been based on binary division and competition. The winner gets to be govt, the loser doesn't. The ruling class always wins, the lower class never wins. That's why Labour doesn't want the wealth tax. Wannabe winners.
Trying to pretend that history never happened just makes those commentators delusional. They ought to spit the dummy & get real.
Stop complaining and find a more popular policy.
Collins is trying to scare votes from Greens to Labour.
And everyone else is wrong about you.
Had to laugh at Emma Mellow jumping on the bandwagon.
Surely Auckland Central is the last place National want to drive votes from the Greens to Labour.
Then I went in search of what Mellow's place on the list is and found this (15/10/2020, 12pm):
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:WikiProject_New_Zealand/politics/New_MPs/Emma_Mellow
So all is good ahaha
Heh. Wonder how many other righties are declaring success while they can?
the phrase 'winners and losers' disappeared (publicly) with Key….it was starting to have the opposite to its desired effect
Misrepresenting other commenters is not getting you any closer to the truth and is thus an act of delusion.
Name-calling is your MO to lay down the truth as you see it and silence anybody who disagrees with you. Deliberately using language that rubs people the wrong way and demeans others is neither constructive nor inclusive, believing it so is delusional.
Stubbornly sticking to your guns and putting your own truth above that of others is delusional and does not make for positive debate.
This site encourages robust debate and your obtrusive commenting style and egotistic attitude are counter-productive.
if we dont have a wealth tax
does that mean
we are left only with poor taxes?
think about it
reduce the poor taxes I say
talk about the poor tax
poor tax
poor tax
poor tax
Oh horseshit.
Our most regressive tax is GST. They could bring that back to 5%.
The Greens insisting on this "discussion" is just pushing votes from them to Labour.
Yep, not strategic enough to see what Collins wants. Zipping it now would be the smart move.
The Wealth Tax won't shift people from greens to labour, it has been around long enough that there would be a very small number of green supporters that don't like the wealth tax or what it represents. Talking it up by the Greens may pull more left voters from Labour to the Greens.
Judith is trying to push some labour voters to NZF, but not too many (enough to take them to 4.95%), and thus wasting them. That drops labour to midish 40's, which may be close enough if Greens do dip under 5%
Nothing about talking up the wealth tax by Greens or National drops the green vote
Right on ! @you_fool
The optics of making the rich pay their fair share is what is important here, and it is the sort of optics that The Greens need to push harder…cos Labour sure as hell are not going to.
The game Monopoly has pay a poor tax but not pay a rich tax.
The winner always ends up with all the properties as well.
In the Sixties we played socialist Monopoly. At the end of the game, all profits were divided equally amongst all the players.
We also played cards, gambling for money, and the winners were the ones who got the fast food in.
Sounds like fun nights at yours….our games of Monopoly usually ended in some sort of ugly fracas!
Yup, always one ended up having the pip, usually not the ‘winner’.
Sweet Mary mother of Jesus, the Greens are such a fucking political liability.
Would they kindly just STFU and stop constantly talking about their wealth tax TWO DAYS OUT FROM A POTENTIALLY HISTORIC CENTRE LEFT WIN?
What a bunch of morons.
Their ill-thought out and high handed approach to the anti-smacking legislation cost Labour nine years in opposition and by the look of things they haven't learnt a single thing.
I hope Labour can govern alone and those political idiots in the Greens get to see their party drop below the threshold so they can spend three years thinking about how being a bunch of political dilettantes cost them their place in parliament.
Yes Sanctuary let us all just go along with Labour's steady as she goes asinine policies where the top 5% continue to hold more and more of the wealth while 235,000 kids are living in poverty.
https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2020/10/11/new-zealand-elections-4/?fbclid=IwAR1B_srPjVuVDMsvLhDbS1q7QdlCxit16urBhl5yOo3DNlJRL-bRw6jNefo
Labour's 39% tax on over $180k raises bugger all-$500m. The Greens' WT raises SIXTEEN times that to alleviate poverty-that is transformative. And 94% are totally unaffected by the WT.
Personally I think the Green WT should be modified to target the top 4% rather than the top 6% but it is the Labour pro-establishment centrists who need to STFU.
Timing.
So a political party should keep quiet about its key policies during an election campaign Sacha. Brilliant; just brilliant.
Easily goaded?
No Bearded Git.
I'm not against some sort of wealth tax. Geez… just look what the wine-boxers got away with back in the 90s.
But having made sure everyone knows they plan to push for such a tax – or a derivation of it – just shut up and stop giving Collins more opportunities to spread false information. All its doing is causing unnecessary panic among the voters.
The Greens will be the losers because many voters are vulnerable to misinformation when they are lead to believe a policy is going to negatively affect them.
Look at Trump Land.
Not sure if anyone is listening any more to the
bollocks, sorrymisinformation, that Collins is spouting. I guess we will find out on Saturday. The poll tonight may give us a pointer.Hope you're right but there's some pretty thick creatures out there who will believe anything.
A few journalists have been repeating it, instead of doing their jobs. All over bar the shouting anyway – those who trust JC, or JA, are unlikely to change their minds in time absent a significant event.
A government serious about increasing tax revenue could do worse than to patch up some of the deliberately formed loopholes that let people pretend that they, or their money are really somewhere else.
I put up a post about it.
https://thestandard.org.nz/about-the-greens/
Why should they shut up? They're a political organization with their own policies that they believe will be to the betterment of NZ.
Surely they aren't just there to be Labour lapdogs.
Timing.
OK, let's look at that.
If JuCo goes berserk about communism and Labour tanks to, say, 46%, Labour would probably need the Greens, so more leverage for Green policies.
Worst case, Labour get a boost from nats who are scared of Greens.
If polling is at all relevant, a NACT government is an extremely slim possibility.
If anything, with half of votes already cast, the Greens should have gone "People's Flag" a couple of weeks back and kept the momentum up, lol.
Hey welcome back Sanctuary.
Make sure you come along to the westie Labour party with me on Saturday night.
We are going out to a posh hotel and spa/dinner package on Saturday but we could pop in 🙂
A centre-left win that delivers nothing (to be fair – will deliver a better outcome than more active wrecking by NAct)? We need to deal with corrosive inequality and child poverty – and we need to stop a handful of rich people controlling our government and society. The Green's wealth tax is a step in the right direction and creates discussion on what really needs to be fixed.
yes, time the greens looked at the big picture, and that picture is, if you want change, you need power, to get power, you have to play the political game, which is, when you have a scab, someone else will pick it.
Trotter nails the conundrum looming: http://bowalleyroad.blogspot.com/2020/10/lets-make-jacinda-break-her-promises.html
Creating a common-ground basis for a Labour-Green Government is an intellectual challenge in an era where intellectuals are deemed irrelevant. Muddling has pushed its way to the forefront of the political scrum. Common interests of those three classes? Players will be consternated. Eyes will glaze over. An heroic saga awaits…
Creating the common ground goes hand in hand with political engagement…and we know the propensity to vote correlates with having something to lose.
Common interests of those three classes?
They're not keen on Covid – so they're united against a common enemy. But the reigning economic narrative of the last few decades has led them up the garden path.
Avoiding a violent revolution might be a common interest. Better a negotiated one if you face the prospect of your backs against the wall. And less messy and fatal all round for the rest of us.
Poverty, for some, is violence already.
The numbed sensibilities of the oligarchs that benefited from the great Rogergnomic ripoff cannot be protected forever – however desperately the liars trying to peddle it as success pretend otherwise.
Arguably, the ruling-class has benefitted from Covid. Home ownership doesn’t seem to have suffered much either.
I imagine construction of new housing paused significantly with the lockdowns. Those with less than robust circumstances won't have saved much either.
Plenty of common interests, if you look at them from an individuals perspective.
That my children get good education. That my housing is warm, dry, and affordable. That my water is clean. That my air is clean. That my food is healthy. That I have amenities to enjoy. That I have opportunity. That I have a place in my community.
No class divide in that lot. Just that for some, much of the list is simply assumed.
To be part of something greater than ourselves. Actual progress and working toward a better world. Only one class of people don't want that: they're called assholes. You can find assholes in trailer parks, leafy suburbs, and boardrooms.
only one thing to disagree with there….the spelling of 'assholes'
I've always liked that version of the word as it has connotations of donkeys.
According to Webster's it's correct.
I could be wrong, but I always thought that was the american version of the english term (but both have currency here).
I like your identification of common ground elements. Resonates as common sense, I suspect. Although people do say common sense ain't all that common these days…
according to Websters it would be…but then Webster was a cowboy
The main class problem is that the Greens get the great majority of their votes from central city Auckland and Wellington – the areas most affected by the Green wealth tax because of expensive housing.
So Ardern signalling that the tax is dead on arrival is doing the Green voters in those areas a huge favour.
And of course also signaling that the really rich will pay more tax. Which is as it should be.
Other than that they want just slightly more than Labour on most things. It's going to be the easiest coalition discussion we've ever had.
It's going to be the easiest coalition discussion we've ever had.
Strikes me the numbers will hinge on the perception problem. No amount of calm dispassionate advocacy of the policy by James & Marama can prevail against the wilful reluctance of many in the target market to do the math.
They presented well with Garner this morning. He's anti, but seemed respectful & quite muted in his sceptical questioning, and seemed to be listening.
If a Wealth Tax is a third rail option, what about a Land Tax?
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/118373157/should-new-zealand-just-tax-land
A Land Tax might be easier to gain acceptance for and implement than a Wealth Tax….though we could have both.
The problem is the farmers who have a lot of land that, while it is much much less valuable per hectare than Ponsonby, a LT would arguably unfairly impinge on them and their profits. A lower rate for land above (say) 20 hectares in size might be the solution.
Exactly BG. Most agricultural land is valued at a far higher rate than its income generating value. It's value in NZ is often dictated by it's desirability as very wealthy persons bolthole. A Land Tax on a sheep or beef farmer could be many times ( to be worth collecting ) its real income so is counter productive if forcing on-sale to someone who really doesn't give a shit about about a 1 or2 % tax.
A lot, lot more work goes into the implications of taxes than wish fulfilment, just look at Piggy's dopey booze fueled reactionary tax ideas in the early 80s. His 20% tax on "luxury" NZ made goods that he plucked out of his arse proves the point. A lot of businesses went under and it failed to bring in anything because it killed the producers off including my own small boat building one. In fact it cost him money in higher unemployment. What he failed to realise was that the vast amount of customers were ordinary working class grafters saving a little bit a week to own a boat or home built car kit. They just said "Fuck you Piggy "and didn't buy anything
The last thing you want is a Land Tax that leads to even faster corporate ownership of our productive land.
Agreed Adrian…farming is a major contributor to the economy (unlike rising house prices) and needs to be fostered, sustainably of course.
Land taxes lead to better use of land as those who are land banking have to make an income to pay the tax.That would help urban land use but farming is very cyclical with no guaranteed income from year to year a Capital gains tax would be a better way of land tax for rural farming to become more productive and profitable .
But you would need to reduce income taxes by an equivalent amount for these type of taxes to be accepted.
CGT is very complicated to implement and the income raised is unpredictable.
That goes for any new tax.
All the 'easy' taxes are in place already, and those that aren't are because they are very complicated to implement and the income raised is unpredictable.
At least with a CGT you have an objective transaction to buy the asset and another to sell it. Where it gets complicated is deductions for expenses incurred between buying and selling, so privately held assets have to be treated like a business which gets into a huge can of worms.
Wealth taxes are completely subjective, and dependant on market conditions at the time. How do you value a business that could be overtaken by a new idea tomorrow, especially smaller businesses that are totally dependant on the owner's skills and knowledge. The art market verges on a scam and even property and shares are only a loss of confidence away from their value becoming meaningless.
The records and paperwork needed for a CGT are very similar to what is required for a wealth tax. But for a CGT you only need to sort it out and file it when you sell a liable asset which would be a rare event for most, whereas for the proposed wealth tax you would need to do it all every. single. fucking. year.
Yeah, and you'll be going through that valuation and return process every year from a point well below the threshold to prove you don't owe anything. And with the complexities of valuing businesses and art, probably requiring professional input, so a good addition to your costs for very little, if any tax paid.
I can see that you are warming towards a WT Andre. At least it has boosted the Greens profile to 8% (9.5% in Roy Morgan). Some people obviously like it.
A Land Tax is probably the easiest option to administer, with predictable and high revenue outcomes. Lower LT rates would be needed for genuine farming operations above 20 hectares.
Does this work for you Andre?
The thing would be to implement CGT in stages – on housing, on small businesses, on farming, on trading and investment.
The complexities of each area not compromising the approach to others, so that small businesses are not taxed on goodwill they have developed, but are on land value appreciation for instance. Dividing the introduction would also divide the opposition to the tax, and let the public consider the issues in more detail.
It's value in NZ is often dictated by it's desirability as very wealthy persons bolthole.
This suggests that a risk-free-rate-of-return tax as suggested by Gareth Morgan could be appropriate – perhaps, but not necessarily, alongside a much lower land tax.
Personally I'd like to tax the bolt hole premium at say 100% per annum but might be difficult to implement.
I’m all ears for a wine cellar tax.
Exempt agricultural land then. Limit it to res and comm zoned.
I think you would find that plenty of one hectare lifestyle lots would suddenly be growing a few onions and peaches and claiming agricultural status.
Exactly what I mean than more complicated and intricate than wish fulfilment would have you believe. For every clever or mostly not so clever bugger devising taxes there are 10 more working on getting around it. Simplicity is key.
Say what you like about Roger Douglas but when he was questioned about GST on food he said that he upped the benefits by the amount of GST on essentials but he had been to enough dinner parties in Remuera where the food cost $500 ( read $1500 today ) so fuck'em they can pay.
Can I change my zoning by growing vege?
A very cleavour and articulate person on a very dangerous topic – And I do recommend all watch this
"Without aid from a teleprompter, he explains to whites that their privilege isn’t "saying your life hasn’t been hard – it’s saying your skin color hasn’t contributed to the difficulty."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=share&v=h8jUA7JBkF4&app=desktop
https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/2020/06/05/emmanuel-acho-viral-video-george-floyd-eagles-texas-sam-white-black/3152632001/
One needs to be a little careful generalizing from the US to NZ – there is significant employer prejudice against kiwis here – access to cheap exploitable foreign labour has made it abundant.
just an aside, and curious this keeps popping up, https://newsone.com/3785854/stereotype-black-people-articulate-obama-cleveland-councilman-kevin-conwell/amp/
I'm sure it's an unconscious thing and I can't be bothered arguing with RL again but it needs repeating as it gets noticed. Rock on!
I may have read you comments wrong if so excuse.me. What I meant was that this topic is so divisive and to hear anyone articulate these so well and thoughtfully with passion – It moved me and brought me to understanding and counter what has been peddled from those "against" this e.g. The counter to "All/White lives also matter" and why an African American can use Negr* and why others shouldn't and not even sing along using it. And I was first made aware of Emmanuel from a ESPN doco on American Football.
Cheers Herodotus, that is the best 9 minutes I have had in a long time.
Why not using the n word, white privilege, BLM… lotsa learnings.
Judith Collins just interviewed on RNZ (will be available online in about 30 mins)….I have never heard a candidate forPM with so much ill informed vague policy 'reckons' in my life…think it safe to conclude that Nationals 'plan' is minimal involvement and oversight of the NZ economy and let the chips fall where they may.
I'm alright Jack personified
Any chance she'll be PM after the weekend? Well, since I ask:
FAT CHANCE
is an 'obese chance' less likely than a 'fat chance'?
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon/audio/2018768450/election-2020-national-leader-judith-collins
For my sins, I listened to the full interview!
What summed Collins up for me (amongst other things she said) was her casual, almost contemptuous dismissal of the doctors' union. 'Oh, union.'
She has no sympathy or understanding with or of the people uniting to achieve a goal. Even a well-heeled 'union' like the doctors. God help the poorer people.
Yes – I pricked up my ears when she said that Labour 'stopped' them from doing it when the previous National Govt. wanted to modify (destroy) the MRA. My memory is blank on this – can anyone explain how Labour 'stopped' them when the National Govt + ACT had a parliamentary majority and could simply outvote Labour whenever they wanted to?
Is this yet another example of Judith being 'less than honest'?
Yes as I understand it Nats and Act had enough MPs to have passed any legislation they wanted between 2008 and 2011 and again between 2014 and 2017. From 2011 to 2014 I think they would have needed votes from either Peter Dunne or the Maori Party.
I think Peter Dunne refused to support it.
Not often I hear good of Peter Dunne, but Bravo if this is true.
Pat, Mum had lunch with some friends earlier this week, there were two ladies there who are true blue, they admitted they are so embarrassed of judith collins that they will NOT be voting national for the first time ever.
Blue women are turning off judith in droves, Mum is not the first person who has said such in recent weeks.
I've heard similar comments myself
"Is this yet another example of Judith being 'less than honest'?"
Is she ever anything else?
How did that advert start? "Let me be straight with you" Lol Lol haha really Judith?
Too little too late!!
Well looks like we can say goodbye to Labour focusing on training locals and demanding that companies have concrete plans to hire and train locals.
Border exemptions for several hundred machinery drivers and 500 hundred fishing boat crew. The fishing industry has made a promise to:
In return, the industry has promised to remove barriers to employing New Zealanders.
Where is the plan not just an empty promise – or didn't Labour insist on one.
These are visas for close to a 1000 adult jobs.
https://www.ruralnewsgroup.co.nz/rural-news/rural-general-news/the-calvary-arrives-finally
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/123082031/russians-jet-in-to-save-new-zealands-beleaguered-deepsea-fishing-industry
[Fixed errors in e-mail address]
The barriers are the industry themselves.
Fishing used to be a widespread occupation with considerable operator independence. The QMS, aside from having no merit as resource protection, granted a monopoly to quota holders, chiefly three or four companies, who exercise disproportionate power over the lives of their workers. Ostensibly independent contractors (to allow the companies to sidestep ACC), kiwi employees nevertheless can't even have a can of beer at the end of a shift, because it does not suit the whims of the oligarchs.
As for the slave fishermen – any pretense of progressive values by government is auto-debunked by them.
Okay, so with the fishing industry, vessels have to carry crew with certain qualifications who have done a certain amount of sea time in order to sail, especially on deep sea trawlers. Sure factory staff don't have to be qualified, but all the officers do.
Nelson has the only fishing school in NZ, it takes years to get qualifications for certain sea going roles.
Sealord have used and exploited foreign crew for years. Iwi are responsible for those decisions and for not using local workers. Sealord is half owned by Iwi and half owned by offshore interests. 20 yrs ago the exhusband worked as an officer on Sealord vessels, even he was surprised at the time of the amount of foreign workers onboard.
There was an attempt last century to open up places for Maori by having a quota of trainees to be Maori which was being encouraged by government. When Nelson Polytechnic tried to do this they were threatened with a legal challenge by Sanford. So the big companies were not encouraging the participation of Maori in fishing as was hoped for. The challenge was against reverse discrimination I think it was called. I felt that Sanfords felt that Maori were being advantaged and wanted to put a stop to it.
Used to be that you only got a job on a fishing boat if the cops were after you. Another job that Kiwis don't really want to do.
you missed the end of the sentence – at the dreadful wages and conditions offered.
Time to stop discrimination against New Zealand employees and Labour should have extracted a decent plan out of the companies to replace the labour force with kiwis . Starting this summer.
You must be joking – plenty of folk never wanted to do anything else.
Wow, Aussie 'journalist' Greg Sheridan certainly has a bee in his bonnet – is he simply bitter and twisted, harbouring a bad hangover, or perhaps he's part of ScoMo's comms team. https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/election-2020-australian-columnist-greg-sheridan-criticises-jacinda-ardern-as-shabby-fraudulent/LCQMA6LQGXRPR5CFAEJCOVNQBQ/
He's a Murdoch man through and through. Almost even too right wing for many Aussies.
Thanks for that Prickles – it had occurred to me after posting that he could well be a Murdoch man. Sensitive wee sausage.
Some one is a little upset there. The right wing are feeling threatened?
What it is telling us is that the RW fear that Jacinda now she has the space will go for bolder policies and show that the neo lib settings are basically stuffed. At which point countries like Australia and the Uk may be wanting more of what we have.
Shedders invented a halo just so he could take potshots at it. Why can't she be a petball like our ScMofo?
I am inherently lazy and enjoy successes that I could easily surpass if I tried harder. And yet, I feel that merely not having Judith Collins as PM, feels like setting the bar at a subterranean level.
another 150k voted yesterday…now total 1,565,421
And 2,630,173 to catch 2017 total. 2,630,173 – 1,565,421 = 1,064,752 to go in 3 days + Specials. Wow!
The new Morgan poll will have a very short shelf life … overtaken by 6 pm today
But anyway – usual caveats, minor parties over-rated, scroll down for the real story: confidence rating. No mood for change.
http://www.roymorgan.com/findings/8543-nz-national-voting-intention-september-2020-202010142349
Thanks for that Observer. As far as I can tell no government has moved up from the early 60% Confidence – until this year with this Government in the 70% range. Thanks for pointing that out as well.
Auckland University certainly doing right by their Vice Chancellor, 5 mill for a superior Parnell house, 1 thou a week in rent. They'll be pretty keen to get those foreign students back in I guess.
Saw this book on trademe bwaghorn and wondered if you had read it.
Its called – Dining with the cats: An autobiography of a farm worker.
He's spent a lot of time in the high country.
https://www.trademe.co.nz/books/nonfiction/new-zealand/listing-2817458925.htm?rsqid=rmlwn-59d65d243f5b4b408c197b976c28ac63-001
An uncareful strong argument for reality can cruise for many a long mile through the bullsh fictive the strong rely on to manufacture consent to them.