The Capital and Coast DHB confirms that of its roughly 61 full-time staff, 17 positions are vacant – nearly a third of its midwifery workforce.
One midwife said not a single application was made for eight new graduate positions funded for the region.
A serious shortage of midwives at Capital and Coast DHB has seen the maternity service go into "code black" three times recently – meaning it cannot look after any more women.
An experienced midwife at the DHB said staff were at breaking point.
Both my children were born at home and I have a deep respect for midwives as a profession. Their pay and resourcing in no way reflects their onerous, life critical responsibilities, and successive govts have ignored this slow burning issue.
Time for a Labour govt – headed by a mother no less – to step up and make the difference.
She said the working conditions weren't sustainable, and believed this could result in a breach of Covid-19 at the border.
"The big concern is always that it's going to get out into the community, and that standards of infection control practices are going to slip, because everyone is exhausted. Really exhausted. We're going to get sloppy, because we're tired and stressed."
She said nurses were leaving en masse, resulting in huge gaps in their rosters.
"I've done two 24-hour shifts, where you work a day and there was nobody to cover the night, so I stayed on and worked through until the next morning. There's literally nobody, literally nobody.
However, the Word from the Very Top is…
In response, Hipkins said they had "no evidence" of these claims. He said extended shifts would be on an on-call basis only.
Way to go Hipkins. Call your frontline medical staff liars.
"There is a provision in the contract where you can work a shift and you can be 'on-call', so basically staying overnight. That's part of their collective contract agreement and there are people who have done that, but there's no evidence of anyone having worked a 24-hour shift."
One nurse has provided a timesheet to RNZ showing that she was rostered on for a 21.5-hour shift.
Another nurse said they worked three 24-hour shifts.
They detailed an occasion where they were 'on-call', which involved actively working for 19 hours with a rest period of about five hours.
The New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) is urging Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to invest time into hearing real stories from frontline MIQ nurses and other health workers.
The Prime Minister has stated publicly that frontline MIQ workers are being prioritised, but NZNO believes the Government is not listening to nurses’ voices so there is little trust on the part of these health workers.
Trust? Hmm…could that in any way be related to "truth", or its counterpart "lies"?
Do you perhaps think that there is any relationship between Hipkins stating there was no evidence and the NZNO going over his head and appealing to the PM?
"Elites and their courtiers who trumpet their moral superiority by damning and silencing those who do not linguistically conform to politically correct speech are the new Jacobins."
I like this bit…
“When the town Campbell lived in decided the Klan should not be permitted to have a float in the Fourth of July parade Campbell did not object, as long as the gas and electric company was also barred. It was not only white racists who inflicted suffering on the innocent and the vulnerable, but institutions that place the sanctity of profit before human life.
“People can’t pay their gas and electric bills, the heat gets turned off and they freeze and sometimes die, especially if they are elderly,” he said. “This, too, is an act of terrorism.”
I don't know, but I do know that NZ Labour will have spent all it's credibility and good will with New Zealand's workers, students and disenfranchised by the time Adern's time is up..the Centrist ponzi scheme that they try and pass off for an economic ideology has quite plainly run it's course, and they have nothing else left to offer that I can see…tough times ahead for a large percentage of us, that much you can take for granted.
It's just Mitchell saying stuff and taking a punt. It's just stuff said and soon forgotten .
BUT if the worst happens and there is a community outbreak of significance he will loud and long be in, "I told you so, I was right" mode. Hosking will be all, "Why didn't we listen to the genius? He could be National's new leader."
Not just ACC. Likewise with settlements after successful claims on other government departments. All payments from MSD during the period of the claim are deducted.
Be interested to hear if there is a way of finding out if the $$$ are actually paid back to MSD hence leaving a null balance on a claimant's MSD record for that time.
I can't through to the paywalled article but I would like to think that the ACC settlement is for eligible wages (net or gross ? looks like around $30k p.a) plus interest plus any other costs ACC would have paid medical etc plus legal fees if any plus some thing for the general mucking around.
Unlike ACC weekly payments to compensate for wages I assume this settlement is free of income tax.
I expect the benefits claw back should have been net of any thing like accommodation supplement that can be claimed by earners or anyone on earners compensation.
But beyond that I don't get the level of outrage. The MSD benefits ( even though they are inadequate – a separate but important issue) are the fall back we have as a society and unless the criteria is met they cannot be claimed whilst earning other income.
So I don't see the outrage at double dipping being fixed even if retrospective. Others cannot do it.
this is not outrage at having to refund winz – we are way past that.
this is an outrage at ACC forcing someone back to work who had 8 vertrebrae broken during the earthquake and was declared fit to work while clearly not.
this is an outrage because she found it easier to deal with Winz in her situation, despite having a valid claim with ACC.
this is an outrage because ACC while paying her 230.000 NZD in lost payments declares it has done nothing wrong, when clearly they did, see the payment of 230.000 NZD.
this is an outrage because now WINZ wants to claim and successfully has claimed 130.000 of the settlement.
Nevermindd that in order to get anything in NZ via WINZ one has to put up with a lot of bullshit and emotional abuse – kinder and gentler only applies to the WINZ Drones and other Government 'servants', never to those that need help.
It is an outrage because if she would have received was she was entitled to – medical care, accident compensation so as to be able to heal fully, she might have found a way back to employment much earlier.
But its ok that you don't see the outrage that someone who by virtue of luck survived a bloody earthquake and was fucked about by healthy wealthy people in government employment for shits n giggles and gets to pay for it too.
Even if you believe that weekly compensation for lost earnings is akin to a social security benefit (unlike other income a beneficiary may receive, weekly compensation reduces benefits dollar-for-dollar instead of the gradual abatement brought by other income) there are two further inequities that everyone should be outraged by.
The first is that the level of backdated weekly compensation the person receives is reduced by the gross amount of benefit received, not the net, even though the person has only received the net rate of benefit. So what's repaid is in fact more than what was received.
The second is that the backdated weekly compensation is taxed in the single year it's received, therefore is more likely to include a higher tax rate. So again, the amount received is less than what would've been received had the weekly compensation been assessed and paid correctly in the first place.
These problems are compounded by the fact that the Court of Appeal has said in no uncertain terms that this is what the legislation says, regardless of how unfair it might be. The heinousness of this is that the problems have been with us for years including the conclusions reached by the CA, yet no government, national or labour, has had the balls to do anything about it. Lees-Galloway put his head in the sand whenever these issues arose. Total piece of work. Thank goodness he's fucked off.
Carmel Sepuloni is nothing more then a big fat waste of taxpayers funds. But then i guess she is simply Paula Benefit but in red. Owes her life to decent social assistance – in more then one aspect – but now that they could do something to help those that are being screwed over by the dear civil servants of the country, they are too busy collecting a pay check and lecturing people about the 'value of work'.
I don't believe that weekly compensation for lost earnings is akin to a social security benefit but it is there to provide wages compensation after the right to sue was removed.
So it basically should prevent people having to use the social welfare net of last resort.
I take your point about the tax and timing effects and have absolutely no issue with taking aim at ACC and the government over that where law changes are needed.
Yes ACC does appear to misuse its power around complainants but the story headline ( It's paywalled so I can't read the rest) focuses on the benefit repayment. The story must be at variance to this.
As to the way ACC uses it powers – I don't know who the board are or when they where appointed but the Nact government spent time revamping ACC in little slices.
Maybe labour need to take better control of the board members and the rules they are using – it looks like it may be well overdue.
I actually think Labour has been slow to appoint new people to a lot of entities. My pet beef is the privacy commissioner where they reappointed the incumbent who is rather too business friendly for my taste.
"I don't believe that weekly compensation for lost earnings is akin to a social security benefit but it is there to provide wages compensation after the right to sue was removed.
"So it basically should prevent people having to use the social welfare net of last resort."
I'm not saying that you or anyone else believes this. The fact is that the legislation is based on that assumption by requiring a main benefit to be reduced by weekly compensation dollar-for-dollar. Most other income a person receives affects the benefit rate by way of gradual abatement. From 1 April, for example, a person receiving the unemployment benefit will be able earn up to $160 a week without affecting the benefit.
The two further issues I outlined, which no government has ever shown an interest in fixing, involves situations where weekly compensation is initially refused, but then granted later on following review or appeal of that initial refusal. It's how back-dated weekly compensation affects benefit payments that’s the problem, not so much the payments themselves (although there's still the dollar-for-dollar issue). So when you say that social security benefits should act as a safety net of last resort, well, that's not the issue here because the need for the social welfare benefit has come about because of ACC's initial refusal to grant weekly compensation.
You also say that the government needs to take more control of who is appointed to the ACC board. Yes, it does – there have been three recent appointments made: a lawyer from Russell McVeigh, an accountant and an insurance boffin. (It needs to be noted, also, that ACC uses Russell McVeigh to defend its decisions in the courts when they’re appealed.) Wider representation is needed, for claimants, advocates etc. But the source of the problems here is the legislation. Better representation on the board may help with putting pressure on government to fix the legislation, but ultimately it's government, or more precisely Parliament, that has the responsibility to sort this complete and utter shambles out.
Anyway, the reality is, like most issues affecting the poor, very few people give a fuck, until it affects them, of course. So you can bet your house on nothing changing on this front any time soon.
I have had clients in a similar situation and a large pay out calculated ; MSD payments were deducted before the final payment to client. One client even received a large extra payment of interest on the pay out. It seems there is no consistency in their decision making.
Be wary of this man. I think a study has been done that shows that people who will carry out cruel practices on animals will be likely to have little moral consideration when it comes to treating vulnerable humans compassionately. This man is 59 and likely to have behaved in this manner before in his life.
The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) was tipped off to the abuse by a member of the public in July last year, investigated, and told 59-year-old Alastair Robert Kane Hughes to feed his cattle double what he had been giving them.
MPI animal welfare and NAIT compliance regional manager Brendon Mikkelsen said charges were laid after Hughes was non-compliant with the order.
"After the first visit, Mr Hughes continued to underfeed his cattle, providing them approximately half of their daily feed requirements resulting in the cattle continuing to lose weight.
"Four of those cattle required urgent attention to improve their body condition."
In a little announcement from Joe Biden, he committed to changing the entire Federal vehicle fleet to electric. That's 645,000 vehicles, with 225,000 of those being owned by the independent US Postal Service.
No timetable, but promised that they would be made in the US.
Nice little challenge for James Shaw there while he's got those draft Commission recommendations in front of him A lot of our Postal Service neighbourhood deliveries are electric already, but their courier vans aren't. Would be a neat addition to the Transport GPS though.
Yep, China has changed it’s Rules of Engagement (ROE) and it’s Orders For Opening Fire (OFOF) for its Coastguard a few weeks ago and I believe it may also include it Military as well.
Weather China has a crack at Taiwan, the Senkakus Islands or in the SCS it will be the Asia- Pacific Region’s Rhineland Moment. At how we respond to that will telling as it was when Hitler cross into the Rhineland and the world did SFA which lit the slow burning fuse off for WW2.
Didn’t see you supporting the protest against Mike Smiths sinophile blog post. Is the disallowance of a single enemy of the west a tragedy while the genocide of a whole minority muslim Population a statistic to you?
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
For the small minority of people who incubate the virus beyond 14 days, this can be related to underlying conditions, especially those that weaken a person’s immune response.
Over the weekend, NSW began testing returned travellers on day 16 — that is, two days after they finish hotel quarantine. This is how the latest case in NSW was detected.
The test is not compulsory and if the person doesn’t have symptoms, they don’t need to isolate until receiving their result.
This day 16 test is designed to pick up infections that may develop after the expected maximum 14-day incubation period on which Australia’s quarantine period is based.
Other states are reported to be considering implementing this measure too. This is a good safety net because, not only could it pick up the very rare case where a person might incubate the virus for longer, it could also catch missed cases of the virus being contracted in quarantine.
This is not based on anything I have read. Perhaps using the words appears to would have been better. I wanted MIQ to be extended to 21 days as I felt 14 days was not enough for more infectious variants.
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Having written, taught and worked for the US government on issues involving unconventional warfare and terrorism for 30-odd years, two things irritate me the most when the subject is discussed in public. The first is the Johnny-come-lately academics-turned-media commentators who … Continue reading → ...
Eric Crampton writes – Kainga Ora is the government’s house building agency. It’s been building a lot of social housing. Kainga Ora has its own (but independent) consenting authority, Consentium. It’s a neat idea. Rather than have to deal with building consents across each different territorial authority, Kainga Ora ...
Muriel Newman writes – The Coalition Government says it is moving with speed to deliver campaign promises and reverse the damage done by Labour. One of their key commitments is to “defend the principle that New Zealanders are equal before the law.” To achieve this, they have pledged they “will not advance ...
Chris Trotter writes – The absence of anything resembling a fightback from the public servants currently losing their jobs is interesting. State-sector workers’ collective fatalism in the face of Coalition cutbacks indicates a surprisingly broad acceptance of impermanence in the workplace. Fifty years ago, lay-offs in the thousands ...
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. ...
Māori are yet to see anything from this Government except cuts, reversals and taking our people backwards, Māori Development spokesperson Willie Jackson said. ...
The Coalition Government’s refusal to commit to ongoing funding for social housing is seeing the sector pull back on developments and families watch their dreams of securing a home fade away, says Labour Housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty. ...
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 ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. While in Singapore as part of his visit to South East Asia this week, Prime Minister Luxon also met with Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and will meet with Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has made further appointments to the Board of Antarctica New Zealand as part of a continued effort to ensure the Scott Base Redevelopment project is delivered in a cost-effective and efficient manner. The Minister has appointed Neville Harris as a new member of the Board. Mr ...
Finance Minister Nicola Willis will travel to the United States on Tuesday to attend a meeting of the Five Finance Ministers group, with counterparts from Australia, the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. “I am looking forward to meeting with our Five Finance partners on how we can work ...
The coalition Government has today announced purrfect and pawsitive changes to the Residential Tenancies Act to give tenants with pets greater choice when looking for a rental property, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Pets are important members of many Kiwi families. It’s estimated that around 64 per cent of New ...
State Highway 1 (SH1) through Wellington City is heavily congested at peak times and while planning continues on the duplicate Mt Victoria Tunnel and Basin Reserve project, the Government has also asked NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) to consider and provide advice on a Long Tunnel option, Transport Minister Simeon Brown ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Foreign Minister Winston Peters have condemned Iran’s shocking and illegal strikes against Israel. “These attacks are a major challenge to peace and stability in a region already under enormous pressure," Mr Luxon says. "We are deeply concerned that miscalculation on any side could ...
Hundreds of people in little over a week have turned out in Northland to hear Regional Development Minister Shane Jones speak about plans for boosting the regional economy through infrastructure. About 200 people from the infrastructure and associated sectors attended an event headlined by Mr Jones in Whangarei today. Last ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti has today thanked outgoing Health New Zealand – Te Whatu Ora Chair Dame Karen Poutasi for her service on the Board. “Dame Karen tendered her resignation as Chair and as a member of the Board today,” says Dr Reti. “I have asked her to ...
The NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has signalled their proposed delivery approach for the Government’s 15 Roads of National Significance (RoNS), with the release of the State Highway Investment Proposal (SHIP) today, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Boosting economic growth and productivity is a key part of the Government’s plan to ...
New Zealand is renewing its connections with a world facing urgent challenges by pursuing an active, energetic foreign policy, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “Our country faces the most unstable global environment in decades,” Mr Peters says at the conclusion of two weeks of engagements in Egypt, Europe and the United States. “We cannot afford to sit back in splendid ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced the Australian Governor-General, His Excellency General The Honourable David Hurley and his wife Her Excellency Mrs Linda Hurley, will make a State visit to New Zealand from Tuesday 16 April to Thursday 18 April. The visit reciprocates the State visit of former Governor-General Dame Patsy Reddy ...
Associate Health Minister David Seymour has announced that Medsafe has approved 11 cold and flu medicines containing pseudoephedrine. Pharmaceutical suppliers have indicated they may be able to supply the first products in June. “This is much earlier than the original expectation of medicines being available by 2025. The Government recognised ...
New Zealand and the United States have recommitted to their strategic partnership in Washington DC today, pledging to work ever more closely together in support of shared values and interests, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The strategic environment that New Zealand and the United States face is considerably more ...
April 11, 2024 Joint Declaration by United States Secretary of State the Honorable Antony J. Blinken and New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs the Right Honourable Winston Peters We met today in Washington, D.C. to recommit to the historic partnership between our two countries and the principles that underpin it—rule ...
By Koroi Hawkins, RNZ Pacific editor in Honiara Solomon Islands’ incumbent prime minister Manasseh Sogavare has been re-elected in the East Choiseul constituency. It is the opening move in the political chess match to form the country’s next government. Returning officer Christopher Makoni made the declaration late last night after ...
Headline: The moment of friction. – 36th Parallel Assessments In strategic studies “friction” is a term that it is used to describe the moment when military action encounters adversary resistance. “Friction” is one of four (along with an unofficial fifth) “F’s” in military strategy, which includes force (kinetic mass), ...
The Fast-track Bill, if passed, would allow three Ministers, unchallenged and unchecked, to approve the immediate extraction and exhaustion of one-off resources. ...
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 iamharin/Shutterstock For many people, the term “bulk billed” refers to a GP visit they don’t have to pay ...
Emmas Hislop, Sidnam and Wehipeihana discuss what’s in a name. Emma Sidnam: Hello Emmas! Thank you so much for agreeing to do this with me. My first question for you is related to what’s been on my mind for a while. It’s very important. You see we’ve recently had some ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Sievers, Research Fellow, Global Wetlands Project, Australia Rivers Institute, Griffith University Chris Brown Humans love the coast. But we love it to death, so much so we’ve destroyed valuable coastal habitat – in the case of some types of habitat, ...
Josh Thomson on the 80s milk ad jingle he can’t stop singing, the beauty of The Simpsons, why Jersey Shore is as good as Shakespeare and more. For someone who spends a lot of time on our screens, popping up in everything from 7 Days to Taskmaster, Educators to Good ...
In apparent defiance of the Biden administration, the Netanyahu government has now initiated missile strikes against Iran. Last Saturday night (Sunday morning in New Zealand) Iran launched more than 300 drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles against Israeli military targets. With the assistance of US, UK and possibly French forces, ...
Māori representation brings a perspective that encompasses not only the interests of Māori communities but also a broader, holistic approach to environmental stewardship and community well-being, principles deeply embedded in Te Ao Māori (the Māori ...
This week in Auckland, a group of young people took over the microphone at a ministerial press conference, to explain why they oppose the Fast-Track Approvals Bill. One young woman said, ‘We’re here because we love Aotearoa New Zealand. We want to raise our children in an environment that’s thriving, ...
The summer was wonderful. Evie was wonderful, too; finally a teenager, finally worthy of long, hot days. She shaved her legs for the first time and bought cut-off shorts from the op-shop that made them look long. She got a Warehouse singlet so tight on her new shape that her ...
When Thomas James was on his solo camp as part of Outward Bound, the keen outdoorsman didn’t find it too challenging, as others often do. In what might just be the perfect illustration of his character, he saw it as a great opportunity to solve a few problems. “I thought, ...
From the unstable and drippy to the hi-tech and pretty, here’s our ranking of all the tunnels you can drive through in this country. The first tunnel seems to have been built in 2200BC in Babylonia, kicking off a global phenomenon for digging holes in order to get places more ...
Lucinda Bennett on the art of being greedy but resourceful. This is an excerpt from our weekly food newsletter, The Boil Up. When I picture the market, it is always this time of year. Crisp air, dripping nose, counting coins with cold fingers. Sunlight pale, filtered through specks of dew still ...
Zoë Colling’s favourite piece in the ‘That’s So Last Century’ collection is a lubrication chart for a sewing machine from the ’60s. It’s about the size of a postcard, and carefully maintained. “I like it that this piece of ephemera highlights that manual and technical side of the skill involved ...
Kia Ora Gaza A passionate haka reverberated through Auckland International Airport as a medical team of three New Zealand doctors received an emotional farewell from a big crowd of supporters before flying to Turkey to join the international Freedom Flotilla to Gaza. The doctors, who left Auckland yesterday, hope to ...
With submissions closing today, Macassey-Pickard says groups around the country have been supporting a huge range of people to make their submissions. ...
Our response to the new legislation is informed by targeted conversations with practitioners working in the system and through an implementation lens. ...
The new ‘Fast-track Approvals Bill’ would give just three Ministers the power to approve or deny development projects. They would avoid the usual checks and balances that are in place to protect rivers, land, the ocean, and communities. ...
COMMENTARY:By Eugene Doyle Helen Clark, how I miss you. The former New Zealand Prime Minister — the safest pair of hands this country has had in living memory — gave a masterclass on the importance of maintaining an independent foreign policy when she spoke at an AUKUS symposium held ...
The government's released the list of organisations provided with information on how to apply - just hours before public submissions on the bill close. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Milton Speer, Visiting Fellow, School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, University of Technology Sydney Before climate change really got going, eastern Australia’s flash floods tended to concentrate on our coastal regions, east of the Great Dividing Range. But that’s changing. Now ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Elizabeth Finkel, Vice-Chancellor’s Fellow, La Trobe University Sia Duff / South Australian Museum In February, the South Australian Museum “re-imagined” itself. In the face of rising costs and inadequate government funds, CEO David Gaimster, who took the reins last June, declared ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alan Pearce, Professor, School of Allied Heath, Human Services & Sport, La Trobe University, La Trobe University This week, Collingwood AFL player Nathan Murphy announced his retirement, brought on by his concussion history and ongoing issues. The 24-year-old’s seemingly sudden retirement, ...
The Mental Health Foundation provides support and resources for those facing the loss of their job, so it’s wrong in the very week the Government adds another 1000 jobs to its tally of cuts, that this is happening. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexander Howard, Senior Lecturer, Discipline of English and Writing, University of Sydney Daniel Boud/Sydney Theatre Company Decay, terror, revulsion. These are three of the central themes of Thomas Bernhard’s rarely performed play The President. The Austrian is one of the greatest ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ye In (Jane) Hwang, Postdoctoral Research Associate at School of Population Health, UNSW Sydney Shutterstock You’d be hard pressed to find any aspect of daily life that doesn’t require some form of digital literacy. We need only to look back ten ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says threats by ministers Shane Jones and David Seymour to reform or close down the Waitangi Tribunal were “ill-considered”, as legal experts say the ministers may have breached Cabinet Manual conventions. “I think those comments are ill-considered and we expect all ministers to actually exercise good ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rob Newton, Professor of Exercise Medicine, Edith Cowan University Pexels/RDNE stock project You’re not in your 20s or 30s anymore and you know regular health checks are important. So you go to your GP. During the appointment they measure your waist. ...
A new poem by Evangeline Riddiford Graham. Mitochondrial Problem I. It was long drive to Kansas for the man and his dog but you have to understand he said She doesn’t fly. Which calls to mind not carsick shitting barking or whining but a dog who chooses not to as ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Hemingway’s Goblet by Dermot Ross (Mary Egan Publishing, $38)Hot off the press, this debut ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laura Wajnryb McDonald, PhD candidate in Criminology, University of Sydney Less than 24 hours after Ashlee Good was murdered in Bondi Junction, her family released a statement requesting the media take down photographs they had reproduced of Ashlee and her family without ...
Chief executive Shaun Robinson said it has not had any government funding cut, but government-funded contracts have not kept pace with rising costs. ...
The Ministry of Health has delayed the release of its evidence brief on the safety, reversibility and mental health and wellbeing outcomes for puberty blockers. While we wait, Julia de Bres speaks to those with firsthand experience. Best practice gender-affirming healthcare is based on trans people’s self-determination and agency. The ...
Barcelona’s city streets have gone from traffic-clogged to pedestrian-friendly. How? Superblocks. Ellen Rykers explains. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week I read a great interview with renowned urbanist Janette Sadik-Khan by The Spinoff’s Wellington editor Joel MacManus: “You can reimagine streets, ...
Student groups ‘Climate Action VUW’, Schools Strike 4 Climate and VUWSA will be on the street in Wellington today, the last day for submissions on the Fast-track Approvals Bill, with a message that the fight against the Government’s ‘War on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sofia Ammassari, Research Fellow, Griffith University Since 2014, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popularity has grown exponentially – and so has the formidable organisational machine of his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). These two factors will be key to delivering the BJP a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brendon Hyndman, Associate Professor of Education (Adjunct) & Senior Manager (BCE), Charles Sturt University During COVID almost all Australian students and their families experienced online learning. But while schools have long since gone back to in-person teaching, online learning has not gone ...
Yes, they’re better for the environment. No, that’s not a good enough reason for me to use them. Once every 26 days or so, my period arrives, and if struck by an act of God, I am caught red-crotched without products. How, after 17 years of this, do I still ...
“It will cause significant harm to our environment and communities. It is completely at odds with New Zealanders’ relationship with nature and our need for a low-carbon, sustainable economic future." ...
The Chair of the National Maori Authority, Matthew Tukaki, has warned a Parliamentary Select Committee that fast-tracking legislation is a perilous practice that undermines the core tenets of democracy, transparency, and accountability. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Tenbensel, Associate Professor, Health Policy, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Getty Images Since coming into power, the coalition government has adopted a simple but shrewd see-how-fast-we-can-move political strategy. However, in the health sector this need for speed entails ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anastasia Hronis, Clinical Psychologist, University of Technology Sydney Darya Sannikova/Pexels Whether you’re watching TV, attending a footy game, or eating a meal at your local pub, gambling is hard to escape. Although the rise of gambling is not unique to Australia, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Wong, Forrest Fellow, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia Have you ever wondered if there are more insects out at night than during the day? We set out to answer this question by combing through the scientific ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Carol T Kulik, Research Professor, University of South Australia IR Stone/Shutterstock In Australia, it’s not the done thing to know – let alone ask – what our colleagues are paid. Yet, it’s easy to see how pay transparency can make pay ...
The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) is sounding a warning to migrants, that running foul of the law may see them leaving the country prematurely. ...
The government’s plan to get 50,000 people off jobseeker support by 2030 has had a rocky start, writes Catherine McGregor in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. Beneficiary numbers are up – and so are ...
Raglan Roast is a staple of Wellington coffee culture. But with five branches across the capital, which one is the best? I am a die-hard Raglan Roast fan. It’s consistently the most affordable cafe in Wellington, and one of the only places you can get a coffee after 3pm. So, ...
Residents of University of Auckland halls are being urged to withhold their accommodation fees from May 1, in a bid to force the university to take student concerns over rent hikes seriously.The University of Auckland is facing a strike from students over the cost of on-campus accommodation. The Students ...
Opinion: The famed American architect and urban designer Daniel Burnham once said, “Make no little plans. They have no magic to stir men’s blood!” Burnham wouldn’t have been referring to the transport plans in Aotearoa New Zealand over the past five years; projects so big they hadn’t the credibility to ...
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Opinion: With maths understanding at 42 percent for Year 8 students, there’s no doubt something has to be done. But how? The post Financial literacy should be on all of us appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Hineaupounamu ‘Missy’ Nuku has been scaling mountains in Canada for her college basketball team, the Lakeland Rustlers. Alberta is currently home for the 20-year-old point guard, who is in her first year of a scholarship at Lakeland College, where she is studying for a business degree. She has certainly made ...
Since when has it been a crime to insult the King of Spain?
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/world/2021/02/spanish-rapper-accused-of-insulting-king-arrested-after-siege.html
https://twitter.com/MarkGraham_Akl/status/1361030184623693824
but t'is a rooster….
We need to apply gender neutral language
And a rooster is an adult male chicken – So it is still a chicken 😉 ??
its a Cock to be sure and best served in white wine.
As twitter replies noted, yes. Any fowl in a storm..
Can we please have some adults in the room pay attention to this?
Both my children were born at home and I have a deep respect for midwives as a profession. Their pay and resourcing in no way reflects their onerous, life critical responsibilities, and successive govts have ignored this slow burning issue.
Time for a Labour govt – headed by a mother no less – to step up and make the difference.
These women will be treated in the same way as the nurses in MIQ.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/covid-19-coronavirus-stressed-miq-nurses-warn-theyre-going-to-get-sloppy/LNDXBRMA65M2YMKOGSADOFVF3E/
She said the working conditions weren't sustainable, and believed this could result in a breach of Covid-19 at the border.
"The big concern is always that it's going to get out into the community, and that standards of infection control practices are going to slip, because everyone is exhausted. Really exhausted. We're going to get sloppy, because we're tired and stressed."
She said nurses were leaving en masse, resulting in huge gaps in their rosters.
"I've done two 24-hour shifts, where you work a day and there was nobody to cover the night, so I stayed on and worked through until the next morning. There's literally nobody, literally nobody.
However, the Word from the Very Top is…
In response, Hipkins said they had "no evidence" of these claims. He said extended shifts would be on an on-call basis only.
Way to go Hipkins. Call your frontline medical staff liars.
"There is a provision in the contract where you can work a shift and you can be 'on-call', so basically staying overnight. That's part of their collective contract agreement and there are people who have done that, but there's no evidence of anyone having worked a 24-hour shift."
One nurse has provided a timesheet to RNZ showing that she was rostered on for a 21.5-hour shift.
Another nurse said they worked three 24-hour shifts.
They detailed an occasion where they were 'on-call', which involved actively working for 19 hours with a rest period of about five hours.
Yup. This is definitely a concern where a bit of basic activism and political pressure can and should make a difference.
And Hipkins is making a fool of himself here blindly taking the word of his senior advisors without doing some checking.
No, he did not. Does this make you a liar too?
So. How are we to interpret "…they had no evidence of these claims."
You are free to “interpret” it as you see fit, of course. Point is, Hipkins didn’t call them “liars”, did he now? You made that up.
I read it as: I don’t know about this but I will look into it and if there’s a problem then I’ll make sure it gets dealt with ASAP.
I read it as: I don’t know about this but I will look into it and if there’s a problem then I’ll make sure it gets dealt with ASAP.
But he didn't say that, did he?
Some irony here as the nurses had (perhaps in anticipation of their honesty being called into question?) provided evidence of having worked ..
One nurse has provided a timesheet to RNZ showing that she was rostered on for a 21.5-hour shift.
…and to explain the three and a half hour shortfall…
They detailed an occasion where they were 'on-call', which involved actively working for 19 hours with a rest period of about five hours.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/covid-19/436079/no-evidence-of-nurses-working-24-hour-shifts-at-miq-facilities-hipkins
And the latest plea from the sector…
https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/GE2102/S00053/prime-minister-jacinda-ardern-must-hear-nurses-on-their-own-terms.htm
The New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) is urging Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to invest time into hearing real stories from frontline MIQ nurses and other health workers.
The Prime Minister has stated publicly that frontline MIQ workers are being prioritised, but NZNO believes the Government is not listening to nurses’ voices so there is little trust on the part of these health workers.
Trust? Hmm…could that in any way be related to "truth", or its counterpart "lies"?
Do you perhaps think that there is any relationship between Hipkins stating there was no evidence and the NZNO going over his head and appealing to the PM?
Of course not. I'm just making shit up.
I’d like to think that the first four words gave it away but you’re so wedded to your own narrative that all I can say is: SSDD.
Bye
I urge anyone who has an opinion about rampant 'cancel culture' that is dividing the Left, to read this piece by Chris Hedges.
Chris Hedges: Cancel Culture, Where Liberalism Goes to Die
"Elites and their courtiers who trumpet their moral superiority by damning and silencing those who do not linguistically conform to politically correct speech are the new Jacobins."
I like this bit…
“When the town Campbell lived in decided the Klan should not be permitted to have a float in the Fourth of July parade Campbell did not object, as long as the gas and electric company was also barred. It was not only white racists who inflicted suffering on the innocent and the vulnerable, but institutions that place the sanctity of profit before human life.
“People can’t pay their gas and electric bills, the heat gets turned off and they freeze and sometimes die, especially if they are elderly,” he said. “This, too, is an act of terrorism.”
Jonathan Pie gets it.
https://youtu.be/e5TVLEaqqdI
An amazing and pertinent story. I don't know how the US will back down from its political polarization.
I don't know, but I do know that NZ Labour will have spent all it's credibility and good will with New Zealand's workers, students and disenfranchised by the time Adern's time is up..the Centrist ponzi scheme that they try and pass off for an economic ideology has quite plainly run it's course, and they have nothing else left to offer that I can see…tough times ahead for a large percentage of us, that much you can take for granted.
Turn Labour Left!
When are we going to stop locking unwell people up?
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/124255711/collapse-jail-ptsd-and-drug-abuse–the-struggles-of-ctv-survivor-topi-emery
When we start funding mental healthcare to the needs of the country rather then the needs of the book keepers.
What is Mark Mitchell playing at here? Is this his genuine opinion or is he working an angle? https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/covid-19-coronavirus-prime-minister-jacinda-arderns-cabinet-decides-today-on-lockdown-alert-levels/TVHHMUH7NORGEQUDEZCI624WXE/
It's just Mitchell saying stuff and taking a punt. It's just stuff said and soon forgotten .
BUT if the worst happens and there is a community outbreak of significance he will loud and long be in, "I told you so, I was right" mode. Hosking will be all, "Why didn't we listen to the genius? He could be National's new leader."
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/christchurch-quake-victim-gets-236k-in-backdated-acc-more-than-half-taken-to-repay-benefits-she-needed-to-survive/3AYOPS7C44YDQRXCWOGGOQPIDI/
love the headline
Christchurch quake victim gets $236K in backdated ACC – more than half taken to 'repay' benefits she needed to survive
Not just ACC. Likewise with settlements after successful claims on other government departments. All payments from MSD during the period of the claim are deducted.
Be interested to hear if there is a way of finding out if the $$$ are actually paid back to MSD hence leaving a null balance on a claimant's MSD record for that time.
Considering the benefit is set at subsistence levels, the losing Government department in a claim should be paying an extra 30% (the averaged amount the WEAG suggested benefits should be raised by. https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO2001/S00009/weag-benefit-increases-urgently-needed-budgeting-expert.htm ) as a way of acknowledging the harm.
I can't through to the paywalled article but I would like to think that the ACC settlement is for eligible wages (net or gross ? looks like around $30k p.a) plus interest plus any other costs ACC would have paid medical etc plus legal fees if any plus some thing for the general mucking around.
Unlike ACC weekly payments to compensate for wages I assume this settlement is free of income tax.
I expect the benefits claw back should have been net of any thing like accommodation supplement that can be claimed by earners or anyone on earners compensation.
But beyond that I don't get the level of outrage. The MSD benefits ( even though they are inadequate – a separate but important issue) are the fall back we have as a society and unless the criteria is met they cannot be claimed whilst earning other income.
So I don't see the outrage at double dipping being fixed even if retrospective. Others cannot do it.
this is not outrage at having to refund winz – we are way past that.
this is an outrage at ACC forcing someone back to work who had 8 vertrebrae broken during the earthquake and was declared fit to work while clearly not.
this is an outrage because she found it easier to deal with Winz in her situation, despite having a valid claim with ACC.
this is an outrage because ACC while paying her 230.000 NZD in lost payments declares it has done nothing wrong, when clearly they did, see the payment of 230.000 NZD.
this is an outrage because now WINZ wants to claim and successfully has claimed 130.000 of the settlement.
Nevermindd that in order to get anything in NZ via WINZ one has to put up with a lot of bullshit and emotional abuse – kinder and gentler only applies to the WINZ Drones and other Government 'servants', never to those that need help.
It is an outrage because if she would have received was she was entitled to – medical care, accident compensation so as to be able to heal fully, she might have found a way back to employment much earlier.
But its ok that you don't see the outrage that someone who by virtue of luck survived a bloody earthquake and was fucked about by healthy wealthy people in government employment for shits n giggles and gets to pay for it too.
Even if you believe that weekly compensation for lost earnings is akin to a social security benefit (unlike other income a beneficiary may receive, weekly compensation reduces benefits dollar-for-dollar instead of the gradual abatement brought by other income) there are two further inequities that everyone should be outraged by.
The first is that the level of backdated weekly compensation the person receives is reduced by the gross amount of benefit received, not the net, even though the person has only received the net rate of benefit. So what's repaid is in fact more than what was received.
The second is that the backdated weekly compensation is taxed in the single year it's received, therefore is more likely to include a higher tax rate. So again, the amount received is less than what would've been received had the weekly compensation been assessed and paid correctly in the first place.
These problems are compounded by the fact that the Court of Appeal has said in no uncertain terms that this is what the legislation says, regardless of how unfair it might be. The heinousness of this is that the problems have been with us for years including the conclusions reached by the CA, yet no government, national or labour, has had the balls to do anything about it. Lees-Galloway put his head in the sand whenever these issues arose. Total piece of work. Thank goodness he's fucked off.
Carmel Sepuloni is nothing more then a big fat waste of taxpayers funds. But then i guess she is simply Paula Benefit but in red. Owes her life to decent social assistance – in more then one aspect – but now that they could do something to help those that are being screwed over by the dear civil servants of the country, they are too busy collecting a pay check and lecturing people about the 'value of work'.
I don't believe that weekly compensation for lost earnings is akin to a social security benefit but it is there to provide wages compensation after the right to sue was removed.
So it basically should prevent people having to use the social welfare net of last resort.
I take your point about the tax and timing effects and have absolutely no issue with taking aim at ACC and the government over that where law changes are needed.
Yes ACC does appear to misuse its power around complainants but the story headline ( It's paywalled so I can't read the rest) focuses on the benefit repayment. The story must be at variance to this.
As to the way ACC uses it powers – I don't know who the board are or when they where appointed but the Nact government spent time revamping ACC in little slices.
Maybe labour need to take better control of the board members and the rules they are using – it looks like it may be well overdue.
I actually think Labour has been slow to appoint new people to a lot of entities. My pet beef is the privacy commissioner where they reappointed the incumbent who is rather too business friendly for my taste.
"I don't believe that weekly compensation for lost earnings is akin to a social security benefit but it is there to provide wages compensation after the right to sue was removed.
"So it basically should prevent people having to use the social welfare net of last resort."
I'm not saying that you or anyone else believes this. The fact is that the legislation is based on that assumption by requiring a main benefit to be reduced by weekly compensation dollar-for-dollar. Most other income a person receives affects the benefit rate by way of gradual abatement. From 1 April, for example, a person receiving the unemployment benefit will be able earn up to $160 a week without affecting the benefit.
The two further issues I outlined, which no government has ever shown an interest in fixing, involves situations where weekly compensation is initially refused, but then granted later on following review or appeal of that initial refusal. It's how back-dated weekly compensation affects benefit payments that’s the problem, not so much the payments themselves (although there's still the dollar-for-dollar issue). So when you say that social security benefits should act as a safety net of last resort, well, that's not the issue here because the need for the social welfare benefit has come about because of ACC's initial refusal to grant weekly compensation.
You also say that the government needs to take more control of who is appointed to the ACC board. Yes, it does – there have been three recent appointments made: a lawyer from Russell McVeigh, an accountant and an insurance boffin. (It needs to be noted, also, that ACC uses Russell McVeigh to defend its decisions in the courts when they’re appealed.) Wider representation is needed, for claimants, advocates etc. But the source of the problems here is the legislation. Better representation on the board may help with putting pressure on government to fix the legislation, but ultimately it's government, or more precisely Parliament, that has the responsibility to sort this complete and utter shambles out.
Anyway, the reality is, like most issues affecting the poor, very few people give a fuck, until it affects them, of course. So you can bet your house on nothing changing on this front any time soon.
I have had clients in a similar situation and a large pay out calculated ; MSD payments were deducted before the final payment to client. One client even received a large extra payment of interest on the pay out. It seems there is no consistency in their decision making.
Be wary of this man. I think a study has been done that shows that people who will carry out cruel practices on animals will be likely to have little moral consideration when it comes to treating vulnerable humans compassionately. This man is 59 and likely to have behaved in this manner before in his life.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/436574/morrinsville-farmer-fined-after-starving-26-cows
The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) was tipped off to the abuse by a member of the public in July last year, investigated, and told 59-year-old Alastair Robert Kane Hughes to feed his cattle double what he had been giving them.
MPI animal welfare and NAIT compliance regional manager Brendon Mikkelsen said charges were laid after Hughes was non-compliant with the order.
"After the first visit, Mr Hughes continued to underfeed his cattle, providing them approximately half of their daily feed requirements resulting in the cattle continuing to lose weight.
"Four of those cattle required urgent attention to improve their body condition."
They should have fined him a lot more than that! He has to pay less than $5k! Talk about the wet bus ticket.
In a little announcement from Joe Biden, he committed to changing the entire Federal vehicle fleet to electric. That's 645,000 vehicles, with 225,000 of those being owned by the independent US Postal Service.
https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/biden-replace-entire-federal-fleet-electric-vehicles/story?id=75488441
No timetable, but promised that they would be made in the US.
Nice little challenge for James Shaw there while he's got those draft Commission recommendations in front of him A lot of our Postal Service neighbourhood deliveries are electric already, but their courier vans aren't. Would be a neat addition to the Transport GPS though.
Yet another attempt by China to provoke a military reaction and play the victim card and so rally the people behind the CCP:
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2021/02/16/national/china-senkakus-armed-ship/
Xi plays it straight from the Nazi play book. Step by step towards war.
Yep, China has changed it’s Rules of Engagement (ROE) and it’s Orders For Opening Fire (OFOF) for its Coastguard a few weeks ago and I believe it may also include it Military as well.
Weather China has a crack at Taiwan, the Senkakus Islands or in the SCS it will be the Asia- Pacific Region’s Rhineland Moment. At how we respond to that will telling as it was when Hitler cross into the Rhineland and the world did SFA which lit the slow burning fuse off for WW2.
[Fixed error with user name]
So does Hong Kong count as the Austrian Occupation then?
No analogy lasts more than 3 measures.
Yes, totally forgot Anschluss Ad and i will send myself to the naughty corner.
Many thanks for providing the opportunity to subscribe. Are there any more subscriber-only pages you could direct me to?
Further obscenity – what a family.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/124256558/fletcher-building-lifts-firsthalf-profit-48-pays-dividend
They’ve just held their second Science and Policy International Symposium. As long as we’re in a pandemic, they’ll be around.
Playing footsie with loons.
https://twitter.com/byroncclark/status/1361145794477236224
There is a class action proceeding against slaving chocolate companies. Mars, Nestlé and Hershey to face child slavery lawsuit in US | Global development | The Guardian Roll on the day NZ fishing companies are in the dock for their similar crimes.
Didn’t see you supporting the protest against Mike Smiths sinophile blog post. Is the disallowance of a single enemy of the west a tragedy while the genocide of a whole minority muslim Population a statistic to you?
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
I am not optimistic about the level changes going down. More contact tracing and retesting required at this stage.
The UK B.1.1.7 strain seems to have a long incubation period.
I agree. Not convinced at all.
Michael Baker and Professor Nick Wilson share our concerns.
Michael Baker seemed ok about the level change on TV3 News
genuine question, where did you read this?
This might be of interest to you.
https://theconversation.com/yes-a-16-day-incubation-period-for-covid-is-possible-but-its-extremely-rare-155027
This is not based on anything I have read. Perhaps using the words appears to would have been better. I wanted MIQ to be extended to 21 days as I felt 14 days was not enough for more infectious variants.