In the 1970s and early 1980s the Muldoon govt, began the process of cutting back the School Dental Service. Two successive governments continued this process and in the 1990s they were phased out altogether.
The system that was put in its place was not as efficient nor did it cover the full spectrum of NZ children so many thousands missed out altogether. Add to that, the education school dental nurses regularly conducted in the classrooms disappeared which had been helpful for the kids and their parents.
The only positive of the last few decades is the fluoridation of the drinking water – something my generation never had – but it has to be backed up with education and regular checks.
Spot on Anne. The destruction if the school dental service was a travesty. Going back there would be an amazing move, but a mammoth, and probably insurmountable task.
My mum worked at the murder house too, from the early 50’s until pretty much the end
Your mum lasted much longer than me. I did my five years "moral obligation" after graduating then shot off to greener pastures and to see the world. When I returned joined the Meteorological Service.
Funny thing… once a SDN always a SDN. Bet you've got well cared for teeth. 😀
A media that doesn't regurgitate every distraction National have would be a start. The average punter probably doesn't give a F as to which suit sits at the top of the OECD club.
Collins shambolic performance, the 'fat' comments and the fact that she is still leading National is the story IMO and shows how owned the media are.
Look at the interview with Liddell with Jack Tame on Sunday morning. I didn't give him the time of day until I watched that. He may have been the only sane person in the room and held on because leaving would have left the White House in an even bigger mess as I think he thought he could modify the worst aspects of what could have happened.
The OECD head needs to be an organiser not a dreamer.
Many people would balk at [checks notes] kidnapping children with no way of returning them to their parents, and making toddlers defendants in court cases.
I do not condone that sort of behaviour. It would have taken more than Liddell to stop such a brutal policy. I would have a different opinion if it was a policy from Liddell.
The dude was in the room. He can leave that workplace at any time. He knew what was going on, and even if he spoke out against it he's still happy to work there.
He's not a cook. He's part of the shitgibbon's regime. You don't get to have the words "Deputy white house chief of staff for policy" in your title and claim innocence about what the white house does.
Edit: and I mean “claim innocence” even in the meaning that the people who were in any way involved in some of those policies, not to mention the negligent homicide of a quarter of a million people, should go to gaol. I doubt they will, but they bloody should.
If Liddell is found to have been lying this will not go unnoticed when it comes to selection for a top job. Liddell has to live with the choices he made.
The biggest swamp has been the White House under Trump and Biden has to drain it.
Does that actually show that Liddell is good at anything more than self-promotion and ducking anything inconvenient to his narrative? Y'know, the usual traits for a corporate ladder-climber?
The fact he did not walk when children were separated from their parents, that families have such limited access to loved ones separated because of the wall, that he congratulated himself on "not losing his soul" , his credibility… not so much imo.
To be fair, Patricia, he did say he disagreed with that policy and acted to put a stop to it. If you can do something to change bad stuff maybe it is more ethical to stay
He may claim he acted to stop the policy. That's certainly a convenient claim to make right now. But I'm not aware of any evidence for any slowdown in the policy due to his claimed actions.
To me, that interview with Tane was more like an interview for the top job at the OECD.
Yes, he's sane which is in his favour but I agree with Patricia Bremner. He aligned himself to a corrupt president and a corrupt regime yet he did not admit they were corrupt. Tells me he can't be trusted.
Edit: There was an article in the Herald today (can’t find it online) about how Trump and his team planned all along to attack the integrity of the election going back to 2016, and you can’t tell me Liddell didn’t know what was going on.
Lol I think it's been mentioned here once or twice.
But then that was 20 years ago, and who knows whether she knew they were lies (if Powell didn't, for example).
The dude is still working for the Orange Child-Stealer right now, and knew what was going on. And the best he can say is that if there had been a vote, he wouldn't have voted for it.
I seem to remember the basis of the accusations that blair is a war-criminal..' are ‘cos he knew bush jnr was peddling lies…and yet he played right along…w.m.d.'s..?..anyone..?
And even if true, I'm not sure it's alleged Ardern was at a meeting of eleven Downing St officials where the topic "let's start a war on Iraq even though we're pretty sure they don't have WMDs" and the best thing she can say in her defence is "but if they had asked for a show of hands, I don't think I would have voted in favour of it".
Trump has always surrounded himself with sycophants and loyalists and more so in recent times. What bothers me slightly about Liddell is that he still has his job with the Don. This suggests that he’s either an extremely smooth and skilled political operator, he’s a very convincing actor or he’s a true Trumpian loyalist.
Don't think so Chris. "what a tiny cog she would be – "we were in a unit of 80, and we were one of many units" – and that the connection to Blair was zilch.
She says it herself if you look at her own archived bio on Labours website.
[Please provide the link to “her own archived bio on Labours website” that Jacinda Ardern was “a senior policy advisor to him” or face the usual consequence for making up stuff, thanks – Incognito]
DO you have a link because I can't find anything that says anything of the sort
Ardern moved to London where she became a senior policy adviser in an 80-person policy unit of then-British prime minister Tony Blair. (She did not meet Blair in London, but later at an event in New Zealand in 2011 she questioned him about the invasion of Iraq." Ardern was also seconded to the Home Office to help with a review of policing in England and Wales.
"She then moved overseas to London, where she worked as a senior policy advisor for British Prime Minister Tony Blair in the UK Cabinet Office. She was also seconded to the Home Office to assist with a review of policing in England and Wales."
Thank you for the links. You said she was an advisor to Blair, your links dont say that, specifically mentions "London" and "uk cabinet office" which if you had read the article I linked to, Jacinda said "she never met Blair in person at that time – " the Cabinet Office is massive" and as Rapunzel pointed out, her wiki page said she was part of an "80-person policy unit"
I'm very happy with that it clarifies it perfectly as the Labour one by Ardern herself makes no mention of Blair at all and the 2nd is a 3rd person account from Waikato uni. She is not responsible as to why it was termed like that by the person who compiled it. They are Not the Same at all Chris.
[Thank you for providing the links. However, your first link doesn’t state what you claimed @ 3.3.1.2 and 3.3.1.2.2.1:
“My time working abroad as a Senior Policy Advisor in London and as President of an International Youth organisation, has shown me how much we’ve achieved relative to other countries.”
In other words, your assertion was made up. If you want to avoid being moderated for these seemingly trivial offences then at least you should include a link and quote literally rather than paraphrasing and ‘massaging’ the words and meanings to suit your narrative – Incognito]
No Chris T, she was nearer the bottom of the hierarchy – more like a junior assistant to a senior policy adviser. I recall her saying that she didn't even work in the same building and never actually met Blair.
Ardern isn't particularly keen to support him to head the OECD, but then again, based on her pre-PM CV I wouldn't hire her for more than a policy advisor.
Agreed. Spotlight on him and he plays nice. Look who he's in bed with. I knew a mobster once who always came across as a 'good guy', till his gang told him to do heinous things and he obeyed.
Thinking about Russian fishermen and industry relations between them and NZ. Which reminded me of the 1986 sinking of the Mikhail Lermontov (named after a Russian poet, so they had some feeling for this ship.) This from wikipedia:
The Picton pilot, Don Jamison (who was also a Picton harbourmaster), piloted the ship out of Picton. His presence, and his knowledge of the area, should have assured the safety of MS Mikhail Lermontov.
The resulting legal actions seemed comparatively low-key considering the magnitude of the damage and the wilful negligence of a supposed senior experienced mariner.
Passengers brought cases against the parties and in Wikipedia there is an explanation of the legal aspects of one which would thrill the socks off of legal beagles I should expect. This is one part: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MS_Mikhail_Lermontov#Court_case
The now-abolished forms of action cast a long shadow: a claim for money had and received evolved from the writ of indebitatus assumpsit, a legal fiction that the parties had an implied agreement that upon discharge for breach or frustration that the subject matter of the original agreement would be returned.
Interestingly, though he was asked to give up his pilot's licence, and did, within two years he had an executive position in the company that took over from the harbour board. Not bad for a pom bringing a wrecking ball skill to us. He became harbourmaster and general manager of Port Marlborough Ltd in October 1988, when the company took over the commercial operation of the port from the previous harbour board. https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/lermontov-pilot-retires/IBMQZZQLLOYER6TVZG27E7VKUI/
https://www.stuff.co.nz/marlborough-express/4664013/25-years-on-ship-pilot-still-silent
The Ministry of Transport held a preliminary inquiry immediately after the sinking, led by Captain Steve Ponsford. The Express reported on March 7, 1986, that the inquiry found Mr Jamison was responsible, but Mr Ponsford would not say what explanation Mr Jamison gave him for trying to take the ship through the passage.,,,
The Marlborough Harbour Board and the ship's owners came to an out-of-court settlement for damages…
Mr Prebble said on the 20th anniversary of the sinking that he had written to the Russians to offer an inquiry, but was told it was not necessary.
(The ministry also wrote to Mr Jamison and suggested "very strongly" that he surrender his pilot's licence, which he did.)
Mr Jamison was not charged because New Zealand-registered pilots working on foreign ships could not be prosecuted. The law has since been changed.
Mr Ponsford recommended that no formal investigation be held, which was backed by then transport minister Richard Prebble.
Mr Prebble said on the 20th anniversary of the sinking that he had written to the Russians to offer an inquiry, but was told it was not necessary…
Mr Jamison later applied for and was re-issued his pilot's licence. He worked for Strait Shipping for a decade before retiring in 2001.
The Mikhail Lermontov's captain, Vladislav Vorobyov, who was not on the bridge when the ship hit the rocks, was given a suspended four-year jail sentence after an inquiry in the former Soviet Union.
We would never have heard the end of it if it was an Australian, UK or USA ship. It was such a stupendous boob that a conspiracy with the USA to confound Russia by organising this mishap seems wild but not improbable. Alternatively Jamison had some medication in him that upset his equilibrium.
This item shows how government can't hive off everything to bloody private business who treat us like casualties to cast aside when the business charity goes under for some reason or many.
The barbarians responsible for this shit should get the triple-whammy, courts martial, criminal prosecution and then off to The Hague with the pricks.
When Dr Crompvoets warned Lieutenant General Campbell in early 2016 that special forces insiders were disclosing to her abhorrent war crimes allegations, he urged her to keep digging and “write it all down”.
“We're not talking about a couple of fog of war events that were, you know, perhaps confusing to understand," Dr Crompvoets recalls. "This is deliberate repeated patterns of behaviour.”
It could have gone another way. Two generals, Lieutenant General Campbell and Jeff Sengelman, had in 2015 commissioned Dr Crompvoets to examine cultural failings in the special forces, especially the poor relations between the nation’s two elite fighting arms, the SAS and the Commandos.
[…]
Dr Crompvoets' April 2016 report to generals Campbell and Sengelman described conduct that the military insiders she spoke to likened to the Abu Ghraib affair, the Iraq prisoner torture scandal that enveloped the US military in 2004. The crimes disclosed in her interviews with Australian special forces included alleged "competition killing and blood lust" and "the inhumane and unnecessary treatment of prisoners".
In her interview with The Age, the Herald and 60 Minutes, she says some allegedly unlawful behaviour, such as summary executions, were “celebrated and normalised, and almost a rite of passage for some people”.
Some of the men she spoke to, such as a soldier who described two unarmed teens having their throats allegedly slit and their bodies disposed of in a river, were in mental anguish. Others were emotionless as they explained how the mistreatment of prisoners became routine as small groups of special forces began writing their own rules of war.
Yeah – though that might reinforce the self-protective mechanism of mythologising it as exceptional, 'bad apples', etc. When in fact it was completely predictable from the day the planes hit the towers on 9/11, and culturally-speaking, as Australian as barbecued prawns.
Scud would have some interesting anecdotes and points about that. The people carrying out brutality are also attacking their own sense of values, their own worth. When they surface and look at themselves they will not believe they could do that, or they just wear their actions like an armour and play the hard man for the rest of their lives. 'Mental anguish' or 'emotionless', their bodies have survived but has their unique mind? They are just fodder for the generals. But it might be the only job they can get in the future
Yep, they're now ruined individuals. Those perpetuating the culture of callousness and murder should most definitely be on trial. Destroying lives is not a matter of duty.
They include strengthening Brand New Zealand, prioritising sustainability, and more partnership between government and industry.
Nash said too often ratepayers and taxpayers have picked up the bill of the impact of tourism on infrastructure and the environment.
He said the full cost of tourism needs to be priced into the visitor experience.
…
"We must attract high value and high spending visitors who buy into our own vision of sustainability. We must therefore deliver high quality visitor experiences and exceed our visitors expectations," he said.
Big talk from a pollie. He is describing something that is similar to what citizens hope they’ll get from government. Better pollies who exceed the citizens expectations. I think their remuneration is adequate though – now just perform you luvvies.
Poor areas may not be able to attract the higher-paying tourists. The government may have to step in with infrastructure not just take taxes from the takings and make them the pot of gold that the locals go to for needed amenities.
Pretty blunt language from Nash, and the day after industry darling Jucy went tits up.
Jucy being the anthesis of everything Nash was talking about. But Nash was also describing a very large part if the industry at all levels that try to provide good quality, socially responsible tourism experiences.
We’re not sorry to see Jucy go, and hope the rest of that end of the industry follows them, and very pleased to see the minister spelling it out.
I think you are wrong because the influx of young people, generally just out of Uni is a huge benefit to our and their understanding of our culture and we theirs.
They are also the future return visitors when they have more money and will spend more, as they almost without exception fall in love with NZ and NZers.
If we are to discourage and make it difficult for them to do their OE then the reverse applies, young Kiwis not being able to affordably travel. To say you can only come here if you pay the outlandish fucking prices resorts and hotels charge then we have fallen into the elitist realm, which is not the Kiwi way.
I think Nash was also referring to the side of the industry where about the only spending in NZ$ is the diesel that goes into the bus and the rates and electricity on the hotel. Everything else goes directly to, or through, the overseas owned inbound operator.
It may turn out to be a self limiting situation any way, who is going to want to be crammed into a low-cost airliner, tour coach or cruise ship once this is all over. Doubtful this end of tourism has a business any more. It's going to be a long time before anything like the low cost travel we've enjoyed in the last 10 years, if ever. Insurance availability and price will slow international travel for a long time too, even with a vaccine.
So the international visitors we see will be paying a lot more to get here, hence will tend to be wealthier and will probably prefer to stay in a flasher hotel or lodge than a packpacker van. Same will apply to outbound NZ tourism, it will be harder and more expensive, so there will be less.
The minister was as much spelling out reality to the industry as stating policy.
Were Jucy adding any value to NZ or cannibalising the industry and country. They've gone under, other more responsible operators are still going and in some cases quite well, Wayfare (Real Journeys / Fiordland Travel), Tourism Holdings, Skyline, Trojan.
Bottom line, everyone in the industry should have known it was going to stop soon for whatever reason, pandemic, good old recession or whatever. Some had the business planning to adapt and keep going, others were caught with their pants down.
And what about ordinary Kiwis who just want to go on an average holiday, but can't afford it any more because they can't compete with overblown tourist prices and events?
…what about ordinary Kiwis …. Indeed. Made an overnight trip to Whangarei, so we required a reasonably wheelchair accessible motel unit.
Tentatively booked one by phone and promised to call in before noon to pay….just as well as the unit was pokey and the parking completely unsuitable. Office person argued with me and proceeded to tell me that she could have let that room three times and 'we a late cancellation fee policy'…despite it being barely noon when we arrived.
We left…figuring this is a Monday night how busy can they be?…and became increasingly alarmed as every motel sported a No Vacancy sign. Apart from Casa Grot…for which we forked out 145 bucks for the night.
Any sympathy I may have had for motel accommodation providers has evaporated. They are doing so well they don't even have to try and maintain standards.
The new coronavirus resurged again and again in the body of an infected man, eventually killing him while showing evidence of fast-paced evolution.
Manuela Cernadas and Jonathan Li at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts, and their colleagues followed the course of COVID-19 in a 45-year-old man with a long-standing autoimmune disorder, who was on a medication regimen that included powerful immunosuppressants (B. Choi et al. N. Engl. J. Med. https://doi.org/fhv8; 2020). Roughly 40 days after the man first tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, follow-up tests indicated that the virus was dwindling — but it surged back, despite antiviral treatment.
The man’s infection subsided and then returned twice more before he died, five months after his first COVID-19 diagnosis. Genomic analysis showed that the man had not been infected multiple times. Instead, the virus had lingered and quickly mutated in his body.
Labours motto looks set to become "let's do this but not till after we leave office"
Ardern was defending Rogernomics today while ruling out any intervention in house prices or the reserve bank calling both muldoonist is just…. I wanna smash my keyboard.
I criticize her a lot but I've been defending her lately hoping beyond hope that a majority labour govt would surprise us all but at this point the list of things she's ruling out is getting so long Peter Jacksons probably going to turn it into a 9 part film series. I'm starting to think Labour was the handbreak on NZF and The Greens (in a way those two parties have more in common with each other than they do with labour ie building up the state, abolishing neoliberalism)
This is going to be long term bad for labour and the left, like Obama she excited an entire generation and promised transformation but unlike obama she told us capitalism had failed. We've seen what happens when you get peoples hopes up and then give them the finger once in power they get angry or stay home.
Ardern and Labour/ National are really giving the next generation of voters the middle finger atm and I think long term both parties are going to suffer the consequences for it unless they start acting, which I hope if enough pressure is applied that they will see the sense and get the political will to do so especially on housing and poverty but it's increasingly unlikely. We're not asking for much just basic center left tweaks to benefit rates and restrictions and reforms in the housing market.
Labours the party of reform , people flock to labour when the system needs correcting not because they want them to keep everything the same.
How on Earth can the Government interfere in house prices? By freezing them ? That turned out really well under Muldoon with prices and wages, eh.
What you are asking for is a command economy and they are disasterous, particulary for the less well off.
Doing what they are doing, by building a lot more public housing and assisting the young into their own homes is about all that can be done to achieve the goals we want. Maybe you want Labour to forcibly buy rentals off landlords and sell them at half price to those needing housing. Instead of critisising come up with some solutions that aren't pie in the sky and ridiculously unworkable.
Regulating one product is not the same as an across the board regulation of all wages and prices.
Building more public housing is indeed what they should be doing. But price controls on houses would make ghost houses less attractive as an investment. Once those go back on the rental market, should help the housing crisis.
Tune in 25th Nov, you will get the summary of intent in the speech from the throne delivered by the Governor General on behalf of the Prime Minister.
Then Jacinda and her family will shortly after have a Christmas break. I hope she is not begrudged that after such a turbulent year.
The Pandemic is not over, in fact it is surging out of control in many areas of the world, and we are fortunate to have dodged that.
There will be side affects caused by the Pandemic and the monetary policy, as Jacinda Ardern said, "This did not come with a manual, and we must be ready to pivot and to listen to the science."
Frustration at the pace of change is real, but so is a battle for stability in an unstable world.
Dude on The Panel just now suggested that stamp duty on second properties, introduced at a week's notice, would help the housing crisis. Can someone please explain how?
Apparently you have to pay Stamp Duty when you buy the house but at 2% money it's not much of a handbrake. Oh God ,2% money, thats what my parents had in 1948 with State advances, when my wife and I bought 35 years later it only took months to rocket to over 20%. FFS stop complaining about cheap money, remember 20% is all the deposit needed to buy a first home now, not a years mortgage every bloody year.
That seems to show the bigger picture, it isn't just the price of the houses, our shamefully low wage, non-unionised, casualised work force is part of the picture.
A couple of other ideas I have seen on TS, property investors should be limited to new builds and/or 30 or 40% deposit for folk who are not going to reside in the dwelling.
can you please explain this argument? The PM and Ministers are making policy decisions every day and announcing them. Why should we not critique those?
Can somebody please tell the PM and her freshly anointed Ministers that they are no longer the Caretaker Government and that it’s ok to get moving with the mandate? Thank you so much.
Yep just more fuel on the fire, this govt is already showing it is at best status quo and likely to preside over one of the largest jumps in house prices and private debt bubbles in NZ history.
Its a long way from the first Lab govt and Jacinda aint no Mickey Savage or Norm Kirk.
Instead of pouring cheap credit into the banks (inevitability to be lent on property) im sure the aforementioned Labour leaders would have been announcing additional payments to beneficiaries and the working poor.
Technically the Gov hasnt poured cheap credit into the banks. thats monetary policy and independent but they havnt done anything to offset the impact to their shame…and yes they could increase benefits especially in light of the increased minimum wage
We're are the authorities when you need them people trying to run me off the road every day O that's right it the spy's and under cover cops trying to run me off the roads and pulling a lot of other BULLSHIT against me and my Whanau.
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The latest labour market statistics, showing a rise in unemployment. There are now 134,000 unemployed - 14,000 more than when the National government took office. Which is I guess what happens when the Reserve Bank causes a recession in an effort to Keep Wages Low. The previous government saw a ...
Three opinion polls have been released in the last two days, all showing that the new government is failing to hold their popular support. The usual honeymoon experienced during the first year of a first term government is entirely absent. The political mood is still gloomy and discontented, mainly due ...
National's Finance Minister once met a poor person.A scornful interview with National's finance guru who knows next to nothing about economics or people.There might have been something a bit familiar if that was the headline I’d gone with today. It would of course have been in tribute to the article ...
Rob MacCulloch writes – Throughout the pandemic, the new Vice-Chancellor-of-Otago-University-on-$629,000 per annum-Can-you-believe-it-and-Former-Finance-Minister Grant Robertson repeated the mantra over and over that he saved “lives and livelihoods”.As we update how this claim is faring over the course of time, the facts are increasingly speaking differently. NZ ...
Chris Trotter writes – IT’S A COMMONPLACE of political speeches, especially those delivered in acknowledgement of electoral victory: “We’ll govern for all New Zealanders.” On the face of it, the pledge is a strange one. Why would any political leader govern in ways that advantaged the huge ...
Bryce Edwards writes – The list of former National Party Ministers being given plum and important roles got longer this week with the appointment of former Deputy Prime Minister Paula Bennett as the chair of Pharmac. The Christopher Luxon-led Government has now made key appointments to Bill ...
TL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 10:06am on Wednesday, May 1:The Lead: Business confidence fell across the board in April, falling in some areas to levels last seen during the lockdowns because of a collapse in ...
Over the past 36 hours, Christopher Luxon has been dong his best to portray the centre-right’s plummeting poll numbers as a mark of virtue. Allegedly, the negative verdicts are the result of hard economic times, and of a government bravely set out on a perilous rescue mission from which not ...
Auckland Transport have started rolling out new HOP card readers around the network and over the next three months, all of them on buses, at train stations and ferry wharves will be replaced. The change itself is not that remarkable, with the new readers looking similar to what is already ...
Completed reads for April: The Difference Engine, by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling Carnival of Saints, by George Herman The Snow Spider, by Jenny Nimmo Emlyn’s Moon, by Jenny Nimmo The Chestnut Soldier, by Jenny Nimmo Death Comes As the End, by Agatha Christie Lord of the Flies, by ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
Have a story to share about St Paul’s, but today just picturesPopular novels written at this desk by a young man who managed to bootstrap himself out of father’s imprisonment and his own young life in a workhouse Read more ...
The list of former National Party Ministers being given plum and important roles got longer this week with the appointment of former Deputy Prime Minister Paula Bennett as the chair of Pharmac. The Christopher Luxon-led Government has now made key appointments to Bill English, Simon Bridges, Steven Joyce, Roger Sowry, ...
Newsroom has a story today about National's (fortunately failed) effort to disestablish the newly-created Inspector-General of Defence. The creation of this agency was the key recommendation of the Inquiry into Operation Burnham, and a vital means of restoring credibility and social licence to an agency which had been caught lying ...
Holding On To The Present:The moment a political movement arises that attacks the whole idea of social progress, and announces its intention to wind back the hands of History’s clock, then democracy, along with its unwritten rules, is in mortal danger.IT’S A COMMONPLACE of political speeches, especially those delivered in ...
Stuck In The Middle With You:As Christopher Luxon feels the hot breath of Act’s and NZ First’s extremists on the back of his neck and, as he reckons with the damage their policies are already inflicting upon a country he’s described as “fragile”, is there not some merit in reaching out ...
The unpopular coalition government is currently rushing to repeal section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act. The clause is Oranga Tamariki's Treaty clause, and was inserted after its systematic stealing of Māori children became a public scandal and resulted in physical resistance to further abductions. The clause created clear obligations ...
Buzz from the Beehive The government’s official website – which Point of Order monitors daily – not for the first time has nothing much to say today about political happenings that are grabbing media headlines. It makes no mention of the latest 1News-Verian poll, for example. This shows National down ...
It Takes A Train To Cry:Surely, there is nothing lonelier in all this world than the long wail of a distant steam locomotive on a cold Winter’s night.AS A CHILD, I would lie awake in my grandfather’s house and listen to the traffic. The big wooden house was only a ...
Packing A Punch: The election of the present government, including in its ranks politicians dedicated to reasserting the rights of the legislature in shaping and determining the future of Māori and Pakeha in New Zealand, should have alerted the judiciary – including its anomalous appendage, the Waitangi Tribunal – that its ...
Dead Woman Walking: New Zealand’s media industry had been moving steadily towards disaster for all the years Melissa Lee had been National’s media and communications policy spokesperson, and yet, when the crisis finally broke, on her watch, she had nothing intelligent to offer. Christopher Luxon is a patient man - but he’s not ...
Chris Trotter writes – New Zealand politics is remarkably easy-going: dangerously so, one might even say. With the notable exception of John Key’s flat ruling-out of the NZ First Party in 2008, all parties capable of clearing MMP’s five-percent threshold, or winning one or more electorate seats, tend ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Polling shows that Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau has the lowest approval rating of any mayor in the country. Siting at -12 per cent, the proportion of constituents who disapprove of her performance outweighs those who give her the thumbs up. This negative rating is ...
Luxon will no doubt put a brave face on it, but there is no escaping the pressure this latest poll will put on him and the government. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political ...
This is a re-post from The Climate Brink by Andrew Dessler In the wake of any unusual weather event, someone inevitably asks, “Did climate change cause this?” In the most literal sense, that answer is almost always no. Climate change is never the sole cause of hurricanes, heat waves, droughts, or ...
Something odd happened yesterday, and I’d love to know if there’s more to it. If there was something which preempted what happened, or if it was simply a throwaway line in response to a journalist.Yesterday David Seymour was asked at a press conference what the process would be if the ...
Hi,From time to time, I want to bring Webworm into the real world. We did it last year with the Jurassic Park event in New Zealand — which was a lot of fun!And so on Saturday May 11th, in Los Angeles, I am hosting a lil’ Webworm pop-up! I’ve been ...
Education Minister Erica Standford yesterday unveiled a fundamental reform of the way our school pupils are taught. She would not exactly say so, but she is all but dismantling the so-called “inquiry” “feel good” method of teaching, which has ruled in our classrooms since a major review of the New ...
Exactly where are we seriously going with this government and its policies? That is, apart from following what may as well be a Truss-Lite approach on the purported economic “plan“, and Victorian-era regression when it comes to social policy.Oh it’ll work this time of course, we’re basically assured, “the ...
Hey Uncle Dave, When the Poms joined the EEC, I wasn't one of those defeatists who said, Well, that’s it for the dairy job. And I was right, eh? The Chinese can’t get enough of our milk powder and eventually, the Poms came to their senses and backed up the ute ...
Polling shows that Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau has the lowest approval rating of any mayor in the country. Siting at -12 per cent, the proportion of constituents who disapprove of her performance outweighs those who give her the thumbs up. This negative rating is higher than for any other mayor ...
Buzz from the Beehive Pharmac has been given a financial transfusion and a new chair to oversee its spending in the pharmaceutical business. Associate Health Minister David Seymour described the funding for Pharmac as “its largest ever budget of $6.294 billion over four years, fixing a $1.774 billion fiscal cliff”. ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government is trying to achieve and its ...
TL;DR: Here’s my top 10 ‘pick ‘n’ mix of links to news, analysis and opinion articles as of 10:10am on Monday, April 29:Scoop: The children's ward at Rotorua Hospital will be missing a third of its beds as winter hits because Te Whatu Ora halted an upgrade partway through to ...
span class=”dropcap”>As hideous as David Seymour can be, it is worth keeping in mind occasionally that there are even worse political figures (and regimes) out there. Iran for instance, is about to execute the country’s leading hip hop musician Toomaj Salehi, for writing and performing raps that “corrupt” the nation’s ...
Yesterday marked 10 years since the first electric train carried passengers in Auckland so it’s a good time to look back at it and the impact it has had. A brief history The first proposals for rail electrification in Auckland came in the 1920’s alongside the plans for earlier ...
Right now, in Aotearoa-NZ, our ‘animal spirits’ are darkening towards a winter of discontent, thanks at least partly to a chorus of negative comments and actions from the Government Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on ...
The Government is again adding to New Zealand’s growing unemployment, this time cutting jobs at the agencies responsible for urban development and growing much needed housing stock. ...
With Minister Karen Chhour indicating in the House today that she either doesn’t know or care about the frontline cuts she’s making to Oranga Tamariki, we risk seeing more and more of our children falling through the cracks. ...
The Labour Party is saddened to learn of the death of Sir Robert Martin, a globally renowned disability advocate who led the way for disability rights both in New Zealand and internationally. ...
Labour is calling for the Government to urgently rethink its coalition commitment to restart live animal exports, Labour animal welfare spokesperson Rachel Boyack said. ...
Today’s Financial Stability Report has once again highlighted that poverty and deep inequality are political choices - and this Government is choosing to make them worse. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to do more for our households in most need as unemployment rises and the cost of living crisis endures. ...
Unemployment is on the rise and it’s only going to get worse under this Government, Labour finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds said. Stats NZ figures show the unemployment rate grew to 4.3 percent in the March quarter from 4 percent in the December quarter. “This is the second rise in unemployment ...
The New Zealand Labour Party welcomes the entering into force of the European Union and New Zealand free trade agreement. This agreement opens the door for a huge increase in trade opportunities with a market of 450 million people who are high value discerning consumers of New Zealand goods and ...
The National-led Government continues its fiscal jiggery pokery with its Pharmac announcement today, Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall says. “The government has increased Pharmac funding but conceded it will only make minimal increases in access to medicine”, said Ayesha Verrall “This is far from the bold promises made to fund ...
This afternoon’s interim Waitangi Tribunal report must be taken seriously as it affects our most vulnerable children, Labour children’s spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime. ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
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. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
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. ...
Te Pāti Māori is disgusted at the confirmation that hundreds are set to lose their jobs at Oranga Tamariki, and the disestablishment of the Treaty Response Unit. “This act of absolute carelessness and out of touch decision making is committing tamariki to state abuse.” Said Te Pāti Māori Oranga Tamariki ...
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. ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters discussed the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and enhanced cooperation in the Pacific with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock during her first official visit to New Zealand today. "New Zealand and Germany enjoy shared interests and values, including the rule of law, democracy, respect for the international system ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop today released his decision on four recommendations referred to him by the Western Bay of Plenty District Council, opening the door to housing growth in the area. The Council’s Plan Change 92 allows more homes to be built in existing and new ...
Thank you, John McKinnon and the New Zealand China Council for the invitation to speak to you today. Thank you too, all members of the China Council. Your effort has played an essential role in helping to build, shape, and grow a balanced and resilient relationship between our two ...
The Government is modernising insurance law to better protect Kiwis and provide security in the event of a disaster, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly announced today. “These reforms are long overdue. New Zealand’s insurance law is complicated and dated, some of which is more than 100 years old. ...
The coalition Government is refreshing its approach to supporting pay equity claims as time-limited funding for the Pay Equity Taskforce comes to an end, Public Service Minister Nicola Willis says. “Three years ago, the then-government introduced changes to the Equal Pay Act to support pay equity bargaining. The changes were ...
Structured literacy will change the way New Zealand children learn to read - improving achievement and setting students up for success, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “Being able to read and write is a fundamental life skill that too many young people are missing out on. Recent data shows that ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay says Canada’s refusal to comply in full with a CPTPP trade dispute ruling in our favour over dairy trade is cynical and New Zealand has no intention of backing down. Mr McClay said he has asked for urgent legal advice in respect of our ‘next move’ ...
The rights of our children and young people will be enhanced by changes the coalition Government will make to strengthen oversight of the Oranga Tamariki system, including restoring a single Children’s Commissioner. “The Government is committed to delivering better public services that care for our most at-risk young people and ...
The Government is making it easier for minor changes to be made to a building consent so building a home is easier and more affordable, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on making it easier and cheaper to build homes so we can ...
New Zealand lost a true legend when internationally renowned disability advocate Sir Robert Martin (KNZM) passed away at his home in Whanganui last night, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. “Our Government’s thoughts are with his wife Lynda, family and community, those he has worked with, the disability community in ...
Good evening – Before discussing the challenges and opportunities facing New Zealand’s foreign policy, we’d like to first acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. You have contributed to debates about New Zealand foreign policy over a long period of time, and we thank you for hosting us. ...
From today, passengers travelling internationally from Auckland Airport will be able to keep laptops and liquids in their carry-on bags for security screening thanks to new technology, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Creating a more efficient and seamless travel experience is important for holidaymakers and businesses, enabling faster movement through ...
People with an interest in the health of Northland’s marine ecosystems are invited to a public meeting to discuss how to deal with kina barrens, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones will lead the discussion, which will take place on Friday, 10 May, at Awanui Hotel in ...
Kiwi exporters are $100 million better off today with the NZ EU FTA entering into force says Trade Minister Todd McClay. “This is all part of our plan to grow the economy. New Zealand's prosperity depends on international trade, making up 60 per cent of the country’s total economic activity. ...
There are heartening signs that the extractive sector is once again becoming an attractive prospect for investors and a source of economic prosperity for New Zealand, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The beginnings of a resurgence in extractive industries are apparent in media reports of the sector in the past ...
The return of the historic Ō-Rākau battle site to the descendants of those who fought there moved one step closer today with the first reading of Te Pire mō Ō-Rākau, Te Pae o Maumahara / The Ō-Rākau Remembrance Bill. The Bill will entrust the 9.7-hectare battle site, five kilometres west ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has announced 25 new high-speed EV charging hubs along key routes between major urban centres and outlined the Government’s plan to supercharge New Zealand’s EV infrastructure. The hubs will each have several chargers and be capable of charging at least four – and up to 10 ...
The coalition Government will not proceed with the previous Government’s plans to regulate residential property managers, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “I have written to the Chairperson of the Social Services and Community Committee to inform him that the Government does not intend to support the Residential Property Managers Bill ...
The Government has announced an independent review into the disability support system funded by the Ministry of Disabled People – Whaikaha. Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston says the review will look at what can be done to strengthen the long-term sustainability of Disability Support Services to provide disabled people and ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith has attended the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva and outlined the Government’s plan to restore law and order. “Speaking to the United Nations Human Rights Council provided us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while responding to issues and ...
The Government and Rotorua Lakes Council are committed to working closely together to end the use of contracted emergency housing motels in Rotorua. Associate Minister of Housing (Social Housing) Tama Potaka says the Government remains committed to ending the long-term use of contracted emergency housing motels in Rotorua by the ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay heads overseas today for high-level trade talks in the Gulf region, and a key OECD meeting in Paris. Mr McClay will travel to Riyadh to meet with counterparts from Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). “New Zealand’s goods and services exports to the Gulf region ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford has outlined six education priorities to deliver a world-leading education system that sets Kiwi kids up for future success. “I’m putting ambition, achievement and outcomes at the heart of our education system. I want every child to be inspired and engaged in their learning so they ...
The new NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) App is a secure ‘one stop shop’ to provide the services drivers need, Transport Minister Simeon Brown and Digitising Government Minister Judith Collins say. “The NZTA App will enable an easier way for Kiwis to pay for Vehicle Registration and Road User Charges (RUC). ...
Whānau with tamariki growing up in emergency housing motels will be prioritised for social housing starting this week, says Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka. “Giving these whānau a better opportunity to build healthy stable lives for themselves and future generations is an essential part of the Government’s goal of reducing ...
Racing Minister Winston Peters has paid tribute to an icon of the industry with the recent passing of Dave O’Sullivan (OBE). “Our sympathies are with the O’Sullivan family with the sad news of Dave O’Sullivan’s recent passing,” Mr Peters says. “His contribution to racing, initially as a jockey and then ...
Assalaamu alaikum, greetings to you all. Eid Mubarak, everyone! I want to extend my warmest wishes to you and everyone celebrating this joyous occasion. It is a pleasure to be here. I have enjoyed Eid celebrations at Parliament before, but this is my first time joining you as the Minister ...
Associate Health Minister David Seymour has announced Pharmac’s largest ever budget of $6.294 billion over four years, fixing a $1.774 billion fiscal cliff. “Access to medicines is a crucial part of many Kiwis’ lives. We’ve committed to a budget allocation of $1.774 billion over four years so Kiwis are ...
Hon Paula Bennett has been appointed as member and chair of the Pharmac board, Associate Health Minister David Seymour announced today. "Pharmac is a critical part of New Zealand's health system and plays a significant role in ensuring that Kiwis have the best possible access to medicines,” says Mr Seymour. ...
Hundreds of New Zealand families affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) will benefit from a new Government focus on prevention and treatment, says Health Minister Dr Shane Reti. “We know FASD is a leading cause of preventable intellectual and neurodevelopmental disability in New Zealand,” Dr Reti says. “Every day, ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones today attended the official opening of Kaikohe’s new $14.7 million sports complex. “The completion of the Kaikohe Multi Sports Complex is a fantastic achievement for the Far North,” Mr Jones says. “This facility not only fulfils a long-held dream for local athletes, but also creates ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters’ engagements in Türkiye this week underlined the importance of diplomacy to meet growing global challenges. “Returning to the Gallipoli Peninsula to represent New Zealand at Anzac commemorations was a sombre reminder of the critical importance of diplomacy for de-escalating conflicts and easing tensions,” Mr Peters ...
Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service. It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
Distinguished guests - It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders. Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia. Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
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 ...
Genterwocky After a hard days marching, Sir Doocey calls in at the Village Tavern For a pint of ale and a pork pie. The grim villagers stare at him. “Do not be travelling on the forest road,” warns a crusty old beak. “And why is that, antique peasant?” Grins Sir ...
Political conferences after a party returns to power are usually a chance for some healthy, even unhealthy backslapping. Yet National Party president Sylvia Wood’s address to its mainland representatives on Saturday hardly contained the unalloyed delight that one might have expected following National’s escape from the wilderness of opposition. Yes, ...
Comment: Almost half the world is voting in national elections this year and artificial intelligence is the elephant in the room. There are genuine fears AI-generated or AI-edited deepfakes will potentially manipulate election outcomes not just in the US and UK, but critically in countries such as India. For that ...
Ahead of the reality franchise’s return to New Zealand, allow us to introduce the eight brides and grooms. Chuck on a veil and tie back your man bun, because it’s time to say “I do” to a new season of Married at First Sight NZ. The reality TV “social experiment” ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Norton, Professor in the Practice of Higher Education Policy, Australian National University Every year on June 1, student debt in Australia is indexed to inflation. In 2023, high inflation pushed the indexation rate to 7.1%, the highest since 1990. This ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Changes in the May 14 budget will cut the student debt of more than three million people, wiping more than $3 billion from what people owe. The government will cap the HELP indexation rate ...
Asia Pacific Report The prosecutor’s office at the International Criminal Court (ICC) has appealed for an end to what it calls intimidation of its staff, saying such threats could constitute an offence against the “administration of justice” by the world’s permanent war crimes court. The Hague-based office of ICC Prosecutor ...
By Patrick Decloitre, RNZ Pacific correspondent French Pacific desk A women’s union in New Caledonia has staged a sit-in protest this week to support senior Kanak indigenous journalist Thérèse Waia, who works for public broadcaster Nouvelle-Calédonie la Première, after a smear attack by critics. The peaceful demonstration was held on ...
New Zealand Food Safety is monitoring overseas recalls of Indian packaged spice products manufactured by MDH and Everest due to concerns over a cancer-causing pesticide. ...
By Stephen Wright and Stefan Armbruster of BenarNews Fiji’s ranking in a global press freedom index has jumped into the top tier of countries with free or mostly free media after its government last year repealed a draconian law that threatened journalists with prison for doing their jobs. Fiji’s improvement ...
We might be in Invercargill but all anyone can talk about is Gore. Specifically, Salford Street. That’s where three-year-old Lachlan Jones lived, south of the centre of town, between the A&P Showgrounds and the Mataura River. Roughly 1.2 km away from the single level home he lived in with his ...
MONDAY I lined up the latest round of civil servants from city hall against the wall, and signalled for the firing squad to drop their rifles. I stepped up onto a wooden crate to look at the office workers in the eye. But that didn’t feel right, so I found ...
Keen hiker and second-year MSc student Liam Hewson wears two hats when he’s in the great outdoors. “The scientist in me appreciates nature and goes, ‘Oh, there’s that thing and there’s another thing,’ but then the tramper and the outdoorsy person in me thinks, ‘Cool bush.’” Born and bred in ...
After a long and illustrious career as a goal kicker, Dan Carter’s favourite way to unwind is… kicking goals. Why can’t he get enough of it? And what it’s like to watch him do it for an hour straight? A semicircle of people wielding cameras and phones has formed in ...
Dame Susan Devoy takes us through her life in television, including late night ER debriefs, her proudest CTI moment and the show she watches in secret. Quite aside from her four world champion squash titles, Dame Susan Devoy will likely go down in history as one of the best Celebrity ...
Hera Lindsay Bird reveals the best places in Ōtepoti to score more for your apocalypse-prep book hoard.Sometimes I get the feeling I’ve been killed in a car crash, and this second half of my life is just the brain unspooling itself, like one of those episodes of a hospital ...
ThreeNow’s new murder mystery series takes us on a dark, damp journey into the Australian wilderness.This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. High Country is ThreeNow’s new Australian eight-part crime drama, set in a remote part of the Victorian highlands. It tells ...
Introducing a new way to read The Spinoff every weekend. After nearly 10 years of being an online magazine, we’re finally embracing the weekend liftout. Despite our best efforts to convince you otherwise, writers and editors at The Spinoff don’t work weekend. It is through the sheer power of technology ...
Tip one: let yourself be nurtured by this big old man. Tip two: don’t ask him to adopt you. So, you’ve arrived at your first session with a new therapist. He tells you to make yourself comfortable and you opt for the tweed armchair, hoping it makes you look like ...
I didn’t know books could open you back up; that there were books that stayed with you, where reading was like a chemical event. I knew nothing.The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.Not too long ago, I was listening to the American ...
Former Olympic swimmer James Magnussen has already started training for the Enhanced games, though says he won’t start taking performance enhancing substances until about nine months out from the competition. The Australian world champion was the first athlete to be announced by Enhanced, but he says the organisation has had ...
Everyone thinks he’s dead. Every day they expect his body to be washed up along the coast. Most likely up Karitane way, the way the tide’s running. But nobody’ll be too surprised if his body’s never found. Even in death he wouldn’t have wished for such attention. He would have ...
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2. Are parents to busy to be able to take children to a dental appointment if the the dental service does not go to a school?
3. Does the dental model need to change with access to treatment?
4. Is oral hygiene not being learned in the home, the importance of brushing teeth and not over doing the sugar?
I can give you the short answer but if you want the long answer:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5534465/
It will take you most of the day to read it.
In the 1970s and early 1980s the Muldoon govt, began the process of cutting back the School Dental Service. Two successive governments continued this process and in the 1990s they were phased out altogether.
The system that was put in its place was not as efficient nor did it cover the full spectrum of NZ children so many thousands missed out altogether. Add to that, the education school dental nurses regularly conducted in the classrooms disappeared which had been helpful for the kids and their parents.
The only positive of the last few decades is the fluoridation of the drinking water – something my generation never had – but it has to be backed up with education and regular checks.
Yes, I was a School Dental Nurse in the 1960s.
I will read the link.
I can see why you would have an interest in the delivery of dental care.
Spot on Anne. The destruction if the school dental service was a travesty. Going back there would be an amazing move, but a mammoth, and probably insurmountable task.
My mum worked at the murder house too, from the early 50’s until pretty much the end
Your mum lasted much longer than me. I did my five years "moral obligation" after graduating then shot off to greener pastures and to see the world. When I returned joined the Meteorological Service.
Funny thing… once a SDN always a SDN. Bet you've got well cared for teeth. 😀
Collins saying the govt should be supporting Chris Liddell to chair the OECD.
Collins would though a Trump yes man fuelled by the Coal and Oil industries a Conservative.
We need new ideas not old lacķy's who will no doubt promote a Conservative agenda.
Not sure what your issue with Liddell is.
Jealousy?
Liddell seems like a good bloke. Maybe guilt by association – what was he thinking?
A media that doesn't regurgitate every distraction National have would be a start. The average punter probably doesn't give a F as to which suit sits at the top of the OECD club.
Collins shambolic performance, the 'fat' comments and the fact that she is still leading National is the story IMO and shows how owned the media are.
Look at the interview with Liddell with Jack Tame on Sunday morning. I didn't give him the time of day until I watched that. He may have been the only sane person in the room and held on because leaving would have left the White House in an even bigger mess as I think he thought he could modify the worst aspects of what could have happened.
The OECD head needs to be an organiser not a dreamer.
Yeah, saw that. Comes across as just a decent, intelligent, sane bloke.
Massive environmentalist as well apparently.
Liddell survived 4 years of Trump, the man has guts this is why I would give Liddell a go at being chair of the OECD.
guts but no principles.
Not many people with principles anywhere now days.
Many people would balk at [checks notes] kidnapping children with no way of returning them to their parents, and making toddlers defendants in court cases.
I do not condone that sort of behaviour. It would have taken more than Liddell to stop such a brutal policy. I would have a different opinion if it was a policy from Liddell.
The dude was in the room. He can leave that workplace at any time. He knew what was going on, and even if he spoke out against it he's still happy to work there.
He's not a cook. He's part of the shitgibbon's regime. You don't get to have the words "Deputy white house chief of staff for policy" in your title and claim innocence about what the white house does.
Edit: and I mean “claim innocence” even in the meaning that the people who were in any way involved in some of those policies, not to mention the negligent homicide of a quarter of a million people, should go to gaol. I doubt they will, but they bloody should.
If Liddell is found to have been lying this will not go unnoticed when it comes to selection for a top job. Liddell has to live with the choices he made.
The biggest swamp has been the White House under Trump and Biden has to drain it.
All of which counts against Liddell as deserving any public role, especially one involving multilateralism, ever again.
Does that actually show that Liddell is good at anything more than self-promotion and ducking anything inconvenient to his narrative? Y'know, the usual traits for a corporate ladder-climber?
The fact he did not walk when children were separated from their parents, that families have such limited access to loved ones separated because of the wall, that he congratulated himself on "not losing his soul" , his credibility… not so much imo.
To be fair, Patricia, he did say he disagreed with that policy and acted to put a stop to it. If you can do something to change bad stuff maybe it is more ethical to stay
He may claim he acted to stop the policy. That's certainly a convenient claim to make right now. But I'm not aware of any evidence for any slowdown in the policy due to his claimed actions.
To me, that interview with Tane was more like an interview for the top job at the OECD.
Yes, he's sane which is in his favour but I agree with Patricia Bremner. He aligned himself to a corrupt president and a corrupt regime yet he did not admit they were corrupt. Tells me he can't be trusted.
Edit: There was an article in the Herald today (can’t find it online) about how Trump and his team planned all along to attack the integrity of the election going back to 2016, and you can’t tell me Liddell didn’t know what was going on.
Yea….not too sure about this guy. He was certainly quite ok with Trump…did he tell himself everything was cool? Or just go with the "flow"…
Reminds me of "others" in the past..who were only following orders…and apparently didnt "know"
https://www.newsroom.co.nz/will-nz-back-chris-liddell-for-oecds-top-job
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/immigration/trump-cabinet-officials-voted-2018-white-house-meeting-separate-migrant-n1237416
@ Jan m..I think that defence was tried at nuremberg..it didn't work then either..
Ardern worked as a senior policy advisor to Blair after his invasion of Iraq which was based on lies.
I take it you are just as critical of her?
Lol I think it's been mentioned here once or twice.
But then that was 20 years ago, and who knows whether she knew they were lies (if Powell didn't, for example).
The dude is still working for the Orange Child-Stealer right now, and knew what was going on. And the best he can say is that if there had been a vote, he wouldn't have voted for it.
I seem to remember the basis of the accusations that blair is a war-criminal..' are ‘cos he knew bush jnr was peddling lies…and yet he played right along…w.m.d.'s..?..anyone..?
And even if true, I'm not sure it's alleged Ardern was at a meeting of eleven Downing St officials where the topic "let's start a war on Iraq even though we're pretty sure they don't have WMDs" and the best thing she can say in her defence is "but if they had asked for a show of hands, I don't think I would have voted in favour of it".
Trump has always surrounded himself with sycophants and loyalists and more so in recent times. What bothers me slightly about Liddell is that he still has his job with the Don. This suggests that he’s either an extremely smooth and skilled political operator, he’s a very convincing actor or he’s a true Trumpian loyalist.
Don't think so Chris. "what a tiny cog she would be – "we were in a unit of 80, and we were one of many units" – and that the connection to Blair was zilch.
"I was working alongside small businesses"
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/96123508/jacinda-ardern-i-didnt-want-to-work-for-tony-blair
She was one of his senior policy advisors.
She says it herself if you look at her own archived bio on Labours website.
[Please provide the link to “her own archived bio on Labours website” that Jacinda Ardern was “a senior policy advisor to him” or face the usual consequence for making up stuff, thanks – Incognito]
You are wrong Chris. btw these are Jacinda's words that I quoted.
See my Moderation note @ 10:37 PM.
DO you have a link because I can't find anything that says anything of the sort
Ardern moved to London where she became a senior policy adviser in an 80-person policy unit of then-British prime minister Tony Blair. (She did not meet Blair in London, but later at an event in New Zealand in 2011 she questioned him about the invasion of Iraq." Ardern was also seconded to the Home Office to help with a review of policing in England and Wales.
1) Her own bio
https://web.archive.org/web/20081223024509/http://labourparty.org.nz/people/
2) Her uni
"She then moved overseas to London, where she worked as a senior policy advisor for British Prime Minister Tony Blair in the UK Cabinet Office. She was also seconded to the Home Office to assist with a review of policing in England and Wales."
https://www.waikato.ac.nz/study/success-stories/jacinda-ardern
Do you want more?
Thank you for the links. You said she was an advisor to Blair, your links dont say that, specifically mentions "London" and "uk cabinet office" which if you had read the article I linked to, Jacinda said "she never met Blair in person at that time – " the Cabinet Office is massive" and as Rapunzel pointed out, her wiki page said she was part of an "80-person policy unit"
I'm very happy with that it clarifies it perfectly as the Labour one by Ardern herself makes no mention of Blair at all and the 2nd is a 3rd person account from Waikato uni. She is not responsible as to why it was termed like that by the person who compiled it. They are Not the Same at all Chris.
I have done. Please see below.
[Thank you for providing the links. However, your first link doesn’t state what you claimed @ 3.3.1.2 and 3.3.1.2.2.1:
“My time working abroad as a Senior Policy Advisor in London and as President of an International Youth organisation, has shown me how much we’ve achieved relative to other countries.”
In other words, your assertion was made up. If you want to avoid being moderated for these seemingly trivial offences then at least you should include a link and quote literally rather than paraphrasing and ‘massaging’ the words and meanings to suit your narrative – Incognito]
See my Moderation note @ 12:08 AM.
No Chris T, she was nearer the bottom of the hierarchy – more like a junior assistant to a senior policy adviser. I recall her saying that she didn't even work in the same building and never actually met Blair.
She was a senior policy advisor to him.
No she wasn't Chris.
https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-17-11-2020/#comment-1766923
That's not what Liddel's CV says and you know it.
Ardern isn't particularly keen to support him to head the OECD, but then again, based on her pre-PM CV I wouldn't hire her for more than a policy advisor.
You're right, it's not what his CV says.
It's what glib self-serving interview answers about the cheeto-tinged skidmark smeared down his CV tells us about him.
Agreed. Spotlight on him and he plays nice. Look who he's in bed with. I knew a mobster once who always came across as a 'good guy', till his gang told him to do heinous things and he obeyed.
A dirtbag is a dirtbag. Lidell is culpable.
Two self-absorbed psychopaths scrap it out. Fantastic stuff. Keep going!
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/300160252/jamilee-and-billys-divorce-who-gets-the-money
The original story on Newsroom even has a photo of JLRs new beard, very entertaining read indeed!
https://www.newsroom.co.nz/jami-lee-and-billys-nasty-divorce?utm_source=Friends+of+the+Newsroom&utm_campaign=97d029e67e-Daily+Briefing+17.11.2020&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_71de5c4b35-97d029e67e-95522233
Thinking about Russian fishermen and industry relations between them and NZ. Which reminded me of the 1986 sinking of the Mikhail Lermontov (named after a Russian poet, so they had some feeling for this ship.) This from wikipedia:
The Picton pilot, Don Jamison (who was also a Picton harbourmaster), piloted the ship out of Picton. His presence, and his knowledge of the area, should have assured the safety of MS Mikhail Lermontov.
The resulting legal actions seemed comparatively low-key considering the magnitude of the damage and the wilful negligence of a supposed senior experienced mariner.
Passengers brought cases against the parties and in Wikipedia there is an explanation of the legal aspects of one which would thrill the socks off of legal beagles I should expect. This is one part: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MS_Mikhail_Lermontov#Court_case
The now-abolished forms of action cast a long shadow: a claim for money had and received evolved from the writ of indebitatus assumpsit, a legal fiction that the parties had an implied agreement that upon discharge for breach or frustration that the subject matter of the original agreement would be returned.
Interestingly, though he was asked to give up his pilot's licence, and did, within two years he had an executive position in the company that took over from the harbour board. Not bad for a pom bringing a wrecking ball skill to us. He became harbourmaster and general manager of Port Marlborough Ltd in October 1988, when the company took over the commercial operation of the port from the previous harbour board. https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/lermontov-pilot-retires/IBMQZZQLLOYER6TVZG27E7VKUI/
https://www.stuff.co.nz/marlborough-express/4664013/25-years-on-ship-pilot-still-silent
The Ministry of Transport held a preliminary inquiry immediately after the sinking, led by Captain Steve Ponsford. The Express reported on March 7, 1986, that the inquiry found Mr Jamison was responsible, but Mr Ponsford would not say what explanation Mr Jamison gave him for trying to take the ship through the passage.,,,
The Marlborough Harbour Board and the ship's owners came to an out-of-court settlement for damages…
Mr Prebble said on the 20th anniversary of the sinking that he had written to the Russians to offer an inquiry, but was told it was not necessary.
(The ministry also wrote to Mr Jamison and suggested "very strongly" that he surrender his pilot's licence, which he did.)
Mr Jamison was not charged because New Zealand-registered pilots working on foreign ships could not be prosecuted. The law has since been changed.
Mr Ponsford recommended that no formal investigation be held, which was backed by then transport minister Richard Prebble.
Mr Prebble said on the 20th anniversary of the sinking that he had written to the Russians to offer an inquiry, but was told it was not necessary…
Mr Jamison later applied for and was re-issued his pilot's licence. He worked for Strait Shipping for a decade before retiring in 2001.
The Mikhail Lermontov's captain, Vladislav Vorobyov, who was not on the bridge when the ship hit the rocks, was given a suspended four-year jail sentence after an inquiry in the former Soviet Union.
We would never have heard the end of it if it was an Australian, UK or USA ship. It was such a stupendous boob that a conspiracy with the USA to confound Russia by organising this mishap seems wild but not improbable. Alternatively Jamison had some medication in him that upset his equilibrium.
Chant – 'War, war what's it good for?'
This item shows how government can't hive off everything to bloody private business who treat us like casualties to cast aside when the business charity goes under for some reason or many.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/430774/laura-fergusson-trust-accused-of-bias-in-membership-applicationsIt is widely speculated that the Laura Fergusson Trust will sell its Greenlane site to recoup losses.Those trying to save the site say membership applications are being rejected for suspect reasons.
Before its closure in August, Laura Fergusson Rehabilitation in Greenlane cared for thousands of Aucklanders with disabilities.
The barbarians responsible for this shit should get the triple-whammy, courts martial, criminal prosecution and then off to The Hague with the pricks.
When Dr Crompvoets warned Lieutenant General Campbell in early 2016 that special forces insiders were disclosing to her abhorrent war crimes allegations, he urged her to keep digging and “write it all down”.
“We're not talking about a couple of fog of war events that were, you know, perhaps confusing to understand," Dr Crompvoets recalls. "This is deliberate repeated patterns of behaviour.”
It could have gone another way. Two generals, Lieutenant General Campbell and Jeff Sengelman, had in 2015 commissioned Dr Crompvoets to examine cultural failings in the special forces, especially the poor relations between the nation’s two elite fighting arms, the SAS and the Commandos.
[…]
Dr Crompvoets' April 2016 report to generals Campbell and Sengelman described conduct that the military insiders she spoke to likened to the Abu Ghraib affair, the Iraq prisoner torture scandal that enveloped the US military in 2004. The crimes disclosed in her interviews with Australian special forces included alleged "competition killing and blood lust" and "the inhumane and unnecessary treatment of prisoners".
In her interview with The Age, the Herald and 60 Minutes, she says some allegedly unlawful behaviour, such as summary executions, were “celebrated and normalised, and almost a rite of passage for some people”.
Some of the men she spoke to, such as a soldier who described two unarmed teens having their throats allegedly slit and their bodies disposed of in a river, were in mental anguish. Others were emotionless as they explained how the mistreatment of prisoners became routine as small groups of special forces began writing their own rules of war.
https://www.theage.com.au/national/killings-of-afghans-happened-all-the-time-20201115-p56erx.html?
"…off to The Hague with the pricks"
Yeah – though that might reinforce the self-protective mechanism of mythologising it as exceptional, 'bad apples', etc. When in fact it was completely predictable from the day the planes hit the towers on 9/11, and culturally-speaking, as Australian as barbecued prawns.
Scud would have some interesting anecdotes and points about that. The people carrying out brutality are also attacking their own sense of values, their own worth. When they surface and look at themselves they will not believe they could do that, or they just wear their actions like an armour and play the hard man for the rest of their lives. 'Mental anguish' or 'emotionless', their bodies have survived but has their unique mind? They are just fodder for the generals. But it might be the only job they can get in the future
Yep, they're now ruined individuals. Those perpetuating the culture of callousness and murder should most definitely be on trial. Destroying lives is not a matter of duty.
#16
https://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-13-11-2020/#comment-1766168
An interesting speech from Stuart Nash on the future of tourism:
Big talk from a pollie. He is describing something that is similar to what citizens hope they’ll get from government. Better pollies who exceed the citizens expectations. I think their remuneration is adequate though – now just perform you luvvies.
Poor areas may not be able to attract the higher-paying tourists. The government may have to step in with infrastructure not just take taxes from the takings and make them the pot of gold that the locals go to for needed amenities.
Pretty blunt language from Nash, and the day after industry darling Jucy went tits up.
Jucy being the anthesis of everything Nash was talking about. But Nash was also describing a very large part if the industry at all levels that try to provide good quality, socially responsible tourism experiences.
We’re not sorry to see Jucy go, and hope the rest of that end of the industry follows them, and very pleased to see the minister spelling it out.
I think you are wrong because the influx of young people, generally just out of Uni is a huge benefit to our and their understanding of our culture and we theirs.
They are also the future return visitors when they have more money and will spend more, as they almost without exception fall in love with NZ and NZers.
If we are to discourage and make it difficult for them to do their OE then the reverse applies, young Kiwis not being able to affordably travel. To say you can only come here if you pay the outlandish fucking prices resorts and hotels charge then we have fallen into the elitist realm, which is not the Kiwi way.
I think Nash was also referring to the side of the industry where about the only spending in NZ$ is the diesel that goes into the bus and the rates and electricity on the hotel. Everything else goes directly to, or through, the overseas owned inbound operator.
It may turn out to be a self limiting situation any way, who is going to want to be crammed into a low-cost airliner, tour coach or cruise ship once this is all over. Doubtful this end of tourism has a business any more. It's going to be a long time before anything like the low cost travel we've enjoyed in the last 10 years, if ever. Insurance availability and price will slow international travel for a long time too, even with a vaccine.
So the international visitors we see will be paying a lot more to get here, hence will tend to be wealthier and will probably prefer to stay in a flasher hotel or lodge than a packpacker van. Same will apply to outbound NZ tourism, it will be harder and more expensive, so there will be less.
The minister was as much spelling out reality to the industry as stating policy.
Were local companies other than Jucy innovating with capsule hotels etc?
Were Jucy adding any value to NZ or cannibalising the industry and country. They've gone under, other more responsible operators are still going and in some cases quite well, Wayfare (Real Journeys / Fiordland Travel), Tourism Holdings, Skyline, Trojan.
Bottom line, everyone in the industry should have known it was going to stop soon for whatever reason, pandemic, good old recession or whatever. Some had the business planning to adapt and keep going, others were caught with their pants down.
And what about ordinary Kiwis who just want to go on an average holiday, but can't afford it any more because they can't compete with overblown tourist prices and events?
…what about ordinary Kiwis …. Indeed. Made an overnight trip to Whangarei, so we required a reasonably wheelchair accessible motel unit.
Tentatively booked one by phone and promised to call in before noon to pay….just as well as the unit was pokey and the parking completely unsuitable. Office person argued with me and proceeded to tell me that she could have let that room three times and 'we a late cancellation fee policy'…despite it being barely noon when we arrived.
We left…figuring this is a Monday night how busy can they be?…and became increasingly alarmed as every motel sported a No Vacancy sign. Apart from Casa Grot…for which we forked out 145 bucks for the night.
Any sympathy I may have had for motel accommodation providers has evaporated. They are doing so well they don't even have to try and maintain standards.
Good luck to them attracting those big spenders…
Fine talk but what leverage is the Crown putting onto AirNZ.
And further from local governments to ports taking cruises.
And further on Immigration.
Thats the source of cheap bulk tours.
Not another year of failure to execute thanks Nash.
Not too flash for the millions afflicted with autoimmune disorders, though.
https://twitter.com/BillHanage/status/1328437557953241089
The new coronavirus resurged again and again in the body of an infected man, eventually killing him while showing evidence of fast-paced evolution.
Manuela Cernadas and Jonathan Li at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts, and their colleagues followed the course of COVID-19 in a 45-year-old man with a long-standing autoimmune disorder, who was on a medication regimen that included powerful immunosuppressants (B. Choi et al. N. Engl. J. Med. https://doi.org/fhv8; 2020). Roughly 40 days after the man first tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, follow-up tests indicated that the virus was dwindling — but it surged back, despite antiviral treatment.
The man’s infection subsided and then returned twice more before he died, five months after his first COVID-19 diagnosis. Genomic analysis showed that the man had not been infected multiple times. Instead, the virus had lingered and quickly mutated in his body.
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-00502-w
I would like to know the outcome if a person did not take immunosuppressant medication.
As for the mutation what actually caused it I would like to know and whether it just affected a particular autoimmune condition.
One of New Zealands covid deaths was a woman (50's?) on immunosuppressants for Lupus.
Labours motto looks set to become "let's do this but not till after we leave office"
Ardern was defending Rogernomics today while ruling out any intervention in house prices or the reserve bank calling both muldoonist is just…. I wanna smash my keyboard.
I criticize her a lot but I've been defending her lately hoping beyond hope that a majority labour govt would surprise us all but at this point the list of things she's ruling out is getting so long Peter Jacksons probably going to turn it into a 9 part film series. I'm starting to think Labour was the handbreak on NZF and The Greens (in a way those two parties have more in common with each other than they do with labour ie building up the state, abolishing neoliberalism)
This is going to be long term bad for labour and the left, like Obama she excited an entire generation and promised transformation but unlike obama she told us capitalism had failed. We've seen what happens when you get peoples hopes up and then give them the finger once in power they get angry or stay home.
Ardern and Labour/ National are really giving the next generation of voters the middle finger atm and I think long term both parties are going to suffer the consequences for it unless they start acting, which I hope if enough pressure is applied that they will see the sense and get the political will to do so especially on housing and poverty but it's increasingly unlikely. We're not asking for much just basic center left tweaks to benefit rates and restrictions and reforms in the housing market.
Labours the party of reform , people flock to labour when the system needs correcting not because they want them to keep everything the same.
How on Earth can the Government interfere in house prices? By freezing them ? That turned out really well under Muldoon with prices and wages, eh.
What you are asking for is a command economy and they are disasterous, particulary for the less well off.
Doing what they are doing, by building a lot more public housing and assisting the young into their own homes is about all that can be done to achieve the goals we want. Maybe you want Labour to forcibly buy rentals off landlords and sell them at half price to those needing housing. Instead of critisising come up with some solutions that aren't pie in the sky and ridiculously unworkable.
Regulating one product is not the same as an across the board regulation of all wages and prices.
Building more public housing is indeed what they should be doing. But price controls on houses would make ghost houses less attractive as an investment. Once those go back on the rental market, should help the housing crisis.
Tune in 25th Nov, you will get the summary of intent in the speech from the throne delivered by the Governor General on behalf of the Prime Minister.
Then Jacinda and her family will shortly after have a Christmas break. I hope she is not begrudged that after such a turbulent year.
The Pandemic is not over, in fact it is surging out of control in many areas of the world, and we are fortunate to have dodged that.
There will be side affects caused by the Pandemic and the monetary policy, as Jacinda Ardern said, "This did not come with a manual, and we must be ready to pivot and to listen to the science."
Frustration at the pace of change is real, but so is a battle for stability in an unstable world.
Can't have stability with an out of control housing crisis, or widening gap between ok and not ok in terms of standard of living.
Well said Patricia
ditto
Dude on The Panel just now suggested that stamp duty on second properties, introduced at a week's notice, would help the housing crisis. Can someone please explain how?
Apparently you have to pay Stamp Duty when you buy the house but at 2% money it's not much of a handbrake. Oh God ,2% money, thats what my parents had in 1948 with State advances, when my wife and I bought 35 years later it only took months to rocket to over 20%. FFS stop complaining about cheap money, remember 20% is all the deposit needed to buy a first home now, not a years mortgage every bloody year.
Some people would complain etc….
In the 90s, a 20% deposit was all that was needed and you could buy a house for $100,000 and beneficiaries could afford the mortgage.
That seems to show the bigger picture, it isn't just the price of the houses, our shamefully low wage, non-unionised, casualised work force is part of the picture.
A couple of other ideas I have seen on TS, property investors should be limited to new builds and/or 30 or 40% deposit for folk who are not going to reside in the dwelling.
This Labour govt seems to be looking more like the Fourth Labour govt than the First with every passing week…
The House isn't sitting yet!!
Sure, but given the tone so far tell me im wrong…
can you please explain this argument? The PM and Ministers are making policy decisions every day and announcing them. Why should we not critique those?
It's not the House you need to worry about.
It's a functioning Cabinet that's actually showing it's achieving stuff.
The trade deal they announced this week was began under National and driven by MFAT, and for which Labour in government played passenger.
Currently looks like this government won't actually get underway until February. That's a third of a year wasted since getting elected.
And even when they start, the legislative programme is negligible.
Ardern it's time to actually show you can execute real policy. Not just fold like origami every time there's something hard to do.
why won't they get underway until Feb?
Can somebody please tell the PM and her freshly anointed Ministers that they are no longer the Caretaker Government and that it’s ok to get moving with the mandate? Thank you so much.
Re j.ardern talking about house deposits.
I think we should steel ourselves for some more middle-class welfare..
quite possibly…sadly any gov assistance for deposit provision is likely to fuel property inflation even more
Yep just more fuel on the fire, this govt is already showing it is at best status quo and likely to preside over one of the largest jumps in house prices and private debt bubbles in NZ history.
Its a long way from the first Lab govt and Jacinda aint no Mickey Savage or Norm Kirk.
Instead of pouring cheap credit into the banks (inevitability to be lent on property) im sure the aforementioned Labour leaders would have been announcing additional payments to beneficiaries and the working poor.
Technically the Gov hasnt poured cheap credit into the banks. thats monetary policy and independent but they havnt done anything to offset the impact to their shame…and yes they could increase benefits especially in light of the increased minimum wage
We're are the authorities when you need them people trying to run me off the road every day O that's right it the spy's and under cover cops trying to run me off the roads and pulling a lot of other BULLSHIT against me and my Whanau.
Ka kite Ano