Open mike 18/06/2021

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, June 18th, 2021 - 76 comments
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76 comments on “Open mike 18/06/2021 ”

  1. Jimmy 1

    This is good news that the government incentives are encouraging more to look at EV's.

    'Mad rush' as EV sales surge in Auckland, but limited stock could hike prices | Stuff.co.nz

    Hopefully the supply chain is good and can handle the extra demand so price doesn't increase and offset tax credit.

    Only negative is there is also a surge in ute sales with people trying to get in before the price increase (especially Ford Rangers and Isuzu at the Field Days).

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/125470270/farmers-flock-to-buy-utes-before-clean-car-feebate-scheme-begins

    • Ad 1.1

      The ute surge will continue as business fleets push to renew before the tax changes.

    • ghostwhowalksnz 1.2

      The subsidy means the retail price will increase. Increased demand means prices rise as for any product. My porridge goes up in price in winter , along with soups. Its the same business rules from the low end to the top end. Reports in media confirm the dealers are raising prices even ahead of any subsidy coming in.

    • Red Blooded One 1.3

      That is great news. It highlights how the farming community are not being economically crushed by this Government despite all the "pretty Communist" attitudes from rural NZ. If they can still afford to be buying brand new Utes with gay abandon life must be pretty sweet. It also highlights the fact that there isn't a ban on buying Utes at this stage despite the rhetoric of Nat/Act and some of the commentators here who love to "foment mischief"

      Hopefully the Car Manufacturers step up with the alternatives by the time these latest sales are passed their use-by date.

      • Jimmy 1.3.1

        Utes are not being banned. Just being made more expensive once the tax is added on to them. Lets hope they are wrong about EV's also being increased in price due to the tax credit else it becomes a bit like the petrol stations advertising "petrol at 10c off a litre on Wednesday", when they have already increased the price to compensate.

        • Red Blooded One 1.3.1.1

          I'm agreeing with you Jimmy.Quite a few people are talking as if they are being banned, that was my point, great that people will still have the choice and hopefully the naysayers like National Party Stalwart David Farrar, as one example, stop misrepresenting the situation. Re prices, they will only be as valuable as people are prepared to pay. If they try and charge too much, someone will come in with a cheaper option. That's how we are told Market Forces are supposed to work. They'll soon drop the prices if the vehicles stay on the shop floor.

      • GreenBus 1.3.2

        Agree RBO how many of us can buy a new car let alone a overpriced ute? The floodgates will soon open pouring EV's and especially utes into this country just because Toyota is in denial about there overrated product doesn't mean the rest of the manufacturers will hold back. Car dealers live in the same shark pool as real estate agents and will do there utmost to rip us off.

  2. Adrian Thornton 2

    One of New Zealand's most original artists and musicians passed away yesterday, my good mate Fane Flaws…Fane was always a willing comrade in any and all hair brained action or event I went to him with, he was one of the most beautiful, madly creative and generous humans I have ever meet…we are all really going to miss him and his extraordinary exuberant energy…so long pal.

    • I Feel Love 2.1

      He picked me up hitch hiking once, he was surprised I knew who he was, I was a fan of Jesus on a Stick and the RWP animation. Sorry to hear of his death and your and your friends loss.

      • Adrian Thornton 2.1.1

        Thanks,luckily he left us all with a huge amount of great songs and art to remember him by which helps soften the blow somewhat.

  3. Incognito 3

    An interesting alleged link between pests and carbon sequestration of native ecosystems.

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/444985/pests-destroying-native-ecosystems-ability-to-store-carbon-forest-and-bird

    It is the numbers that make the pest [paraphrasing Paracelsus].

    It appears that the F&B report was released not so long ago. It would be so helpful if articles in MSM would provide a link to original documents and sources, for further reading if desired. It almost looks as if there is a policy of not linking off and away from the MSM website …

    https://www.forestandbird.org.nz/resources/climate-change-and-introduced-browsers

    • Graeme 3.1

      Will be interesting to see farmer’s response to this.

      On one hand it’s presenting an opportunity to decrease emissions without having to make large reductions in stock numbers.

      On the other it’s taking away their toys, since most farmers are keen hunters, or aspire to be

      • mac1 3.1.1

        I'd have thought that it is an invitation to first of all be a hunter in helping reduce the number of pests and providing sport, recreation and food.

        In the longer run, since these pests won't be totally eradicated, the result will be more challenging hunting; the reward being a sense of achievement rather than a quick slaughter of wild goats or whatever.

        The other reward will be in the vegetative growth and beauty as the bush regenerates, for hunter, tramper, bush bathers alike, with carbon emissions decreased as a bonus.

        My hunting cousin years ago welcomed deer culling as it provided a much better trophy as a result of lower numbers.

  4. Herodotus 4

    After yesterdays announcement regarding the roll out of Covid 19, and the age bands and timing. Why was there no comment that I can find as to why the roll out should not be on a geography basis, or at leats focused initially towards the Auckland region ? Auckland has experienced all the shutdowns due to outbreaks, so why not protect the entranceway to the country and fan out from there ? Just an alternative outlook

    • Andre 4.1

      Setting up the resources needed (vaccinators, vaccination sites, logistics of vaccine supply) for each area then managing the throughput so get an even workflow seems to me to be a better way to do it than trying to do it region by region where everything would have to be moved for massive and disruptive vaccination surges in each region.

    • AB 4.2

      One could argue that vaccinating border-facing workers and their families was already Auckland-centric in effect, if not intent. So what you are suggesting has actually occurred but in a somewhat more targeted way?

      And a different alternative idea on how the vaccine rollout should proceed popped up on Garner's show this morning. He suggested that young people should get done first rather than last because they ‘travel the world’. We don’t know whether vaccinated people can transmit the virus, but we do know that some will catch it. So his suggestion opens the possibility of young people coming home from overseas hotspots to infect their unvaccinated elders. His speculation provided an opening for Des Gorman to (as usual) piss all over the efforts of everyone who has done a good job of keeping us safe in the last 15 months. The bitter, catastrophising and consistently wrong Gorman augmented the disgracefulness of Garner's stupidity rather well.

      • GreenBus 4.2.1

        Does Garner remember Climate Change? Gas guzzling planes polluting the sky and young people angry about it. Covid19 is rampant overseas and who would want to travel to those places. Young people are not as irresponsible as he thinks, in fact it's quite the reverse.

    • ghostwhowalksnz 4.3

      The virus finds the missing link if you erect barriers elsewhere, but its a good point.

  5. Jimmy 5

    How many people does this guy have to kill before they stop him driving. So judge has banned him from driving until August 2022, what's the bet he's back behind the wheel next month?

    Dunedin court gives repeat drink-driver home detention for latest offence – NZ Herald

    • greywarshark 5.1

      Drink-drivers are just unfortunate individuals who cannot be leg-roped like the out of control animals they are; in fact all alcohol drinkers are well treated in law, compared to those committing the misdemeanour of growing cannabis.

      Alcohol is great (and pollies and business leaders like it for their drug of choice and it brings in lots of taxes) – it is the enthusiastic, fun-loving members of the public who go OTT that are the problem.

      • ghostwhowalksnz 5.1.1

        "misdemeanour of growing cannabis."

        A tiny number each year convicted , for ONLY a charge a growing/supply because they were dealers and suppliers.

        Its in the 200 per year range from the police annual statistics , ie cannabis only numbers

        The rest of the cannabis charges are because they were criminals often get all the charges possible when arrested for something else. Thats how police charging works, have all the possibilities as separate charges even though there may be only one primary charge for which they came to attention of police.

        The classic case some years back, in a slightly different situation, a man was sent to jail for walking into a gallery and walking out with a valuable painting. Not mentioned his primary charge in the prison sentence was armed robber, and both were heard at the same time

        examples
        https://www.stuff.co.nz/timaru-herald/news/125311399/timaru-woman-gets-discharge-and-conviction-for-cultivating-cannabis
        ‘According to the summary of facts, police went to Laurie’s address in Albury on January 10, 2021, for a welfare check.
        “When police arrived at the address, they were threatened with the use of a firearm by an unknown occupant,” the summary says..

        and
        https://www.stuff.co.nz/timaru-herald/news/124810986/timaru-man-fined-200-for-cannabis-possession
        ‘Police found 13g of cannabis plant split between multiple jars, scales, and $800 in Humphris’ vehicle during the traffic stop.
        McDonald said, when questioned by police, Humphris stated the cannabis was for personal use and the money was to purchase the drug for a friend.”
        So a firearm presented to police at one place …hmmm
        Another person in a traffic stop has scales , jars and lots of cash…hmmm

        Theres been a lot of rain in South island but they think w came down in last shower when its ‘personal use’

  6. greywarshark 6

    Australia and Britain have signed a deal for trade that is mini in terms of $, but large in terms of acceptance of goods not complying with Brit environmental standards.

    Australian farming allows the use of 71 highly hazardous substances and thousands more types of pesticides that are currently banned in the UK, including neonicotinoids, which harm the pollinators at the root of our food system, such as bees. The environmental standards of some foods produced in Australia are so far below the standards upheld by UK farmers that these products shouldn’t be sold in the UK at all, let alone given open access to UK markets with a zero tariff, zero quota trade deal. This isn’t simply about free trade versus protectionism. It is about delivering the best results and most sustainable approach for people and the planet….

    https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL2106/S00050/on-britains-pathetic-trade-deal-with-australia.htm

  7. greywarshark 7

    What's going on down with our public radio committed to faction-free reporting of truth and facts.

    https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL2106/S00052/rnzs-magna-charter-part-3.htm

    The utter shambles that has developed under Labour’s Broadcasting and Media Minister Kris Faafoi, a former TVNZ political reporter, is revealed in correspondence between his office and the Ministry of Culture and Heritage obtained under the Official Information Act….

    The aide-memoire, dated Wednesday 17 February, fulfils its function by reminding the minister of his plan to report to Cabinet on the viability of “a new public media entity” in October. It then reveals something new:

    “Legislation to establish a new public media entity will also disestablish TVNZ and RNZ. This legislation will also include a Charter for the new entity.”

    There had been a change of plan. What had begun as the development of a business case based on merging TVNZ and RNZ had morphed into something else. It had been assumed that a merger of the two broadcasters would extend only to their news rooms, management and governance and that public radio would retain its separate structure, purpose and operations governed by its charter, newly reviewed and good for another five years.

    • Stuart Munro 7.1

      It does seem odd, to be ditching RNZ and retaining the hapless clowns of TVNZ. Like many here I've given up on TV – life's too short for unmitigated tripe larded with inane advertising.

      RNZ still retains a few shreds of dignity and professionalism – if anything it should be them taking over and restructuring the useless tv arm.

      • Bearded Git 7.1.1

        +100 Stuart

      • ghostwhowalksnz 7.1.2

        Combining the two will just drive up costs as , anyone on TV expects $50-$100k per year more .

        The RNZ stories are usually of a longer format , a few minutes say , while TV is addicted to sound bites of 30 sec and an inane back and forth with the studio 'talent' along the lines 'what more can you tell us …..'

    • Ad 7.2

      MCH simply lost this initiative in the 2021/22 budget round, and decide to do a scold of their Minister.

      What kids they are.

      They should instead ask why they got rolled by Treasury in the bid process, again.

  8. Jimmy 8

    Would there be as much out rage if they decided to make a film about the Pike River mine?

    [TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]

  9. Red Blooded One 9

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/programmes/matangireia/story/2018791588/series-2-episode-6-denise-roche-matangireia

    Denise Roche doesn't hold back on her opinion of Nationals last shining light. He really did get away with some nasty stuff couched in his jokey blokey shallowness.

    • When asked to sum up John Key in one word, she replied 'Prick!'

      Well said!

      • greywarshark 9.1.1

        edit
        John Key asked his thoughts on the above said airily 'Well I'm rich, so I must be right most of the time. What are you – just envious pricks?’

        And he might be right – look at how Labour acted when there was opportunity – went for the money over principle or commitment to good conditions for all – shallow, not water-tight like the leaky homes we have as one of their modern-day legacies/

  10. alwyn 10

    Winston has returned. It seems odd that he has been quiet for so long but he now seems to have found the thing he has been looking for.

    The Vaccination campaign is well into the too little, too late category and the public are recognising it. Winston has an attack meme and he is going, in his inimitable style, to use it.

    "the 76-year-old doyen of Kiwi politics has used it [an interview on Australian television] to slam the government's COVID-19 vaccine rollout, deriding as "too late" and leaving NZ open to potential tragedy."

    "We're half way through the vaccine year and we've done about a tenth of the job. That's the problem," he said.

    "It's months too late. A lot of the strands right now are real dangerous. If (an outbreak) would happen we could see a tragedy again."

    NZ is ranked 120th in the world for vaccine doses administered per capita – last in the developed world."

    He is right of course and people in New Zealand are beginning to realise it. The rubbish about being at the front of the queue is being widely seen by the New Zealand public as a lie. Instead we are "last in the developed world".

    I wonder what coverage this will get in the New Zealand media? I see the ODT is covering it but will Stuff and the Herald try and pretend it doesn't exist?

    The story seems to be headline news in the Australian papers.

    https://au.news.yahoo.com/peters-slams-arderns-nz-vaccine-010146638.html

    • Drowsy M. Kram 10.1

      Instead we are "last in the developed world".

      Says who (apart from Peters)? Are we last on a per capita basis?

      https://www.newsroom.co.nz/charting-new-zealands-vaccine-rollout

      "We've got to get our rollout going much faster," Mr Peters said.

      Any suggestions as to how? Placebo vaccinations?

      • alwyn 10.1.1

        I suggest you can check the claim here.

        Hint. We are way way done the list. I didn't bother to check whether we were precisely 120th because they include places that aren't really countries but I am prepared to believe the value of 120 may be near enough. We are in about 140th place on the percentage with at least 1 vaccination. Our latest date is more recent than most so that would tend to push us up the list.

        https://ourworldindata.org/covid-vaccinations

        • ghostwhowalksnz 10.1.1.1

          But wait theres more

          According to that article, Our World in Data, an online research publication run by Oxford University researchers, ranked Australia "113th among the world's countries for total doses per 100 residents, falling behind Kazakhstan, Cambodia and Seychelles".

          So we are about the same level as Australia?

          One World data, is a bit rough and ready, as like Australia NZ is using Astra Zeneca which requires 2 does per person, while other vaccines are one dose.

          As we have seen last week when the claim was orchestrated by |national and echoed by Hooton that we were 'running out of vaccines'… but 1 million more early next month

          We are dependent on vaccine supply , and its politics over who does or doesnt get – Europe especially preventing does leaving for 'less deserving ststes'

    • Red Blooded One 10.2

      Of course The Vaccination campaign is "NOT" well into the too little, too late category and the public are "NOT" recognizing it. It is on track, the new Vaccines are arriving on schedule, many of us have been lucky to be Vaccinated and everyone who wants to get Vaccinated will get their turn. Rather than your relentless negativity of every issue what the Majority of the Public see is the headlines like Stuff today, of how we continue to be safe with the real headlines …

      http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/300336505/covid19-one-new-case-in-managed-isolation-stewart-island-test-results-due-back

      One case in Managed Isolation, none in the Community.

      …unlike the headlines you and Winston are offering "If (an outbreak) would…" "we could see a tragedy…"

      Sure Winston, like you, is entitled to voice his opinion but life in NZ is not the Land of the Long Black Cloud. It's actually pretty darn good, and THAT is what people see. IMHO

      • alwyn 10.3.1

        Hint. The topic Winston was talking about, and that I commented on, was the failure of the vaccine campaign.

        You may be right about what Stuff covers. They, like the Herald aren't news outlets. They are bought and paid for Jacindamania freaks.

        I found it interesting though that the majority of the comments Morning Report broadcast this morning on the vaccination program were disapproving. I imagine the people producing that program will have had a blast from their superiors to keep to the story line that the PM is a Saint and has saved us.

        • alwyn 10.3.1.1

          Well. I can see another reason why the PM wanted to get vaccinated.

          Not even a bloody test for the Air New Zealand crews. How long would you give it before we have another outbreak?

          https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/300336892/covid19-all-vaccinated-air-nz-crew-now-exempt-from-isolation

          • Incognito 10.3.1.1.1

            How long would you give it before we have another outbreak?

            Another 111 days, at least.

            • alwyn 10.3.1.1.1.1

              Sydney had been doing quite well for a decent length of time hadn't it?

              And then this happened.

              https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/covid-19-coronavirus-new-restrictions-in-sydney-new-community-case/543PA4ADYNBWEHAH57H4YUGLZ4/

              Wouldn't it be nice if we could get vaccinations for at least the people who are most at risk from catching it. Which doesn't include healthy 40 year old people as far as I know.

              • Incognito

                You’re a tough negotiator. I’ll take 11 days off my earlier offer, so it’ll be 100 days, at least cheeky

                Jacinda will (have to) save us again from our lack of compliance and vigilance wink

              • swordfish

                Elderly have been badly let down.

                We just have to hope the dangerous new variants – Delta, Vietnam & so on – don't take us by surprise in the way they have in a few other previously successful Countries where political elites complacently assumed that dodging the bullet in 2020 was the end of the matter.

                The lesson that apparently still hasn't managed to penetrate among the political establishment here is that you don't play around, presume to 'control' or negotiate with this virus. You don't get to have your cake & eat it.

                Travel Bubble with Oz was always too early IMO.

          • McFlock 10.3.1.1.2

            lol

            just keep reaching for that rainbow, eh.

        • Red Blooded One 10.3.1.2

          Bloody hell. Someone better tell Mike Hoskings that the Herald is a paid for Jacindamania freak. He won't have a Happy Day. Haha. Hint… Vaccine rollout I assume is part of a countries resilience of which NZ was voted number one a month ago.

        • Incognito 10.3.1.3

          Alwyn, do you actually read anything or just the stuff that fits with your narrative?

          If you read the link provided by Red Blooded One, you’ll see a nice wee table in which NZ ranks at the top despite the relatively poor vaccination performance as shown in the right column of the table.

          • alwyn 10.3.1.3.1

            Of course I saw it. So what? Winston was talking about, and I was commenting on, the vaccination performance. It isn't just "relatively poor".

            It is IMHO bloody terrible.

            • Incognito 10.3.1.3.1.1

              Of course, you did cheeky

              If NZ is “bloody terrible”, what are the words to describe all the lower ranked countries, the rest of the World, in fact? Bloody shambolic?

              • greywarshark

                I think the entrance to Alwyn's mind requires a carefully cut Yale key with all angles sharply defined to ensure fit.

                He talks like a relative of mine who is an alcoholic, and when away from the chateau cardboard can talk apparently lucidly criticising the useless politicians and how they can’t get anything right – ‘Projection’.

            • Drowsy M. Kram 10.3.1.3.1.2

              "We've got to get our rollout going much faster," Mr Peters said.

              Any suggestions as to how? Placebo vaccinations? Maybe ask Bishop, Bridges, and Collins? She might have a few contacts. Sinovac anyone – alwyn?

            • Red Blooded One 10.3.1.3.1.3

              Are you personally scared you might catch Covid Alwyn, can we help you ease your fears in some way?

              • alwyn

                A couple of vaccinations would be nice. But I'm only in Group 3 and am being ignored. I should have been a Cabinet Minister. A bunch of them were vaccinated back in March.

                And don't tell me not to worry. My sister was infected in the first outbreak.

                • Incognito

                  I think it is ok to worry a little but some attacks on the Government are utterly irrational, IMHO.

                  As long as the MIQ barrier holds and prevents community outbreaks it’ll be steady as she goes.

                  Even Taiwan’s success ended abruptly. So, yes, some fears are justified.

                • Anne

                  "My sister was infected in the first outbreak."

                  Fair enough mate.

                  I'm Group 3. I received my email invite to book a week ago. All good.

                  My understanding is the invites are still being rolled out so maybe yours is still in the pipeline. I'm in Auckland so maybe they gave us priority because we had the privilege of having more draconian lockdowns than the rest of the country.

                  • DukeEll

                    Don't live in northland then do you anne? Ruakaka locals have to drive to kaitaia to get a jab any time in the next month. just the first one by the way.

                    Otherwise it's some time in august for Maori and over 50, september for non maori and over 50.

                    Supposedly a targeted area because of the deprivation. I'm sure a 200km+ round trip will help with the "Access" and will "alleviate" the deprivation

                • Andre

                  You may want to get in touch with these people:

                  https://www.anxiety.org.nz/

                • Red Blooded One

                  You're not being ignored, even if you feel it feels that way, the roll out is happening and while the country stays safe, thanks to a strict countries response we are at a position of it being very unlikely you could come into contact with someone affected. That first outbreak would have been frightening, I hope your sister has recovered fully. I am very greatful as an over 60 year old, living in the Far North to have been able to have my two jabs, but I truly believe those of you who haven't had it yet are quite safe until your jab arrives. Meantime keep scanning wherever you go, I still do, knowing that we will keep on top of this bloody Covid. This Government may not be your choice to run the country but they have kept us safe despite the criticisms. Best wishes to you Alwyn, I hope you can eventually see the silver lining that our Covid Response has given us.

  11. Pete 11

    Apparently there's a shortage of nurses. Apparently nurses are run off their feet. Tell you what, we'll get every nurse in the country to stop what they're doing and go into getting five million vaccinated. How would that go?

    We bitched about lockdowns, we bitched about travel being off, we bitched about having to wear masks, we bitched about someone in MIQ stuffing up, we bitched about someone in MIQ being an idiot, we bitched about having to go into MIQ, we bitched that we didn't do what Taiwan did, or Sweden did, or Singapore did or Australia did, we bitched about there not being five million vaccines straight off, we're bitching about everyone not being vaccinated right now.

    I remember the bitching about how terrible life was last year when the world was going to end because we were in lockdown. We were facing a life no others had faced, a suffering unimaginable and indescribable.

    I wonder how our grandparents and great grandparents regarded the hellish lives we were forced to live? You know, the ones who went to the other side of the world and literally fought in the trenches in WW1. You know the ones who were in a World War for six bloody years.

    Most of those finding anything they can to bitch about re vaccinations should look at themselves in the mirror and wonder that in the stuff-up, the oversight, the schemozzle, the disaster, at least one prick made it through.

  12. greywarshark 12

    This on who controls our country eventually, after certain procedures have been traversed. How can we get needed and thoughtful change when there is such a jiggery-pokery political system? (Allow 30 mins for reading and thinking!)

    https://phuulishfellow.wordpress.com/2021/06/18/writing-the-rights-no-right-turn-is-wrong/

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  • Peters holds his ground on co-governance, but Willis wriggles on those tax cuts and SNA suspension l...
    Buzz from the Beehive Here’s hoping for a lively post-cabinet press conference when the PM and – perhaps – some of his ministers tell us what was discussed at their meeting today. Until then, Point of Order has precious little Beehive news to report after its latest monitoring of the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 day ago
  • Labour’s final report card
    David Farrar writes –  We now have almost all 2023 data in, which has allowed me to update my annual table of how  went against its promises. This is basically their final report card. The promise The result Build 100,000 affordable homes over 10 ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago
  • “Drunk Uncle at a Wedding”
    I’m a bit worried that I’ve started a previous newsletter with the words “just when you think they couldn’t get any worse…” Seems lately that I could begin pretty much every issue with that opening. Such is the nature of our coalition government that they seem to be outdoing each ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 day ago
  • Wang Yi’s perfectly-timed, Aukus-themed visit to New Zealand
    Geoffrey Miller writes – Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago
  • Gordon Campbell on Dune 2, and images of Islam
    Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture ...
    1 day ago
  • New Rail Operations Centre Promises Better Train Services
    Last week Transport Minster Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre. The new train control centre will see teams from KiwiRail, Auckland Transport and Auckland One Rail working more closely together to improve train services across the city. The Auckland Rail Operations Centre in ...
    1 day ago
  • Bernard's six newsy things at 6.36am on Monday, March 18
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson said in an exit interview with Q+A yesterday the Government can and should sustain more debt to invest in infrastructure for future generations. Elsewhere in the news in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 6:36am: Read more ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: Wang Yi’s perfectly-timed, Aukus-themed visit to New Zealand
    Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. It is more than just a happy ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    1 day ago
  • The Kaka’s diary for the week to March 25 and beyond
    TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to March 18 include:China’s Foreign Minister visiting Wellington today;A post-cabinet news conference this afternoon; the resumption of Parliament on Tuesday for two weeks before Easter;retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson gives his valedictory speech in Parliament; ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • Bitter and angry; Winston First
    New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters’s state-of-the-nation speech on Sunday was really a state-of-Winston-First speech. He barely mentioned any of the Government’s key policies and could not even wholly endorse its signature income tax cuts. Instead, he rehearsed all of his complaints about the Ardern Government, including an extraordinary claim ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    1 day ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
    1 day ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
    1 day ago
  • Out of Touch.
    “I’ve been internalising a really complicated situation in my head.”When they kept telling us we should wait until we get to know him, were they taking the piss? Was it a case of, if you think this is bad, wait till you get to know the real Christopher, after the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • The bewildering world of Chris Luxon – Guns for all, not no lunch for kids
    .“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
    Frankly SpeakingBy Frank Macskasy
    3 days ago
  • Expert Opinion: Ageing Boomers, Laurie & Les, Talk Politics.
    It hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.”THUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
    3 days ago
  • Manufacturing The Truth.
    Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology – the Internet –  is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
    3 days ago
  • A Powerful Sensation of Déjà Vu.
    Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
    3 days ago
  • Can you guess where world attention is focussed (according to Greenpeace)? It’s focussed on an EPA...
    Bob Edlin writes –  And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago
  • Further integrity problems for the Greens in suspending MP Darleen Tana
    Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago
  • Jacqui Van Der Kaay: Greens’ transparency missing in action
    For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    3 days ago
  • Bernard’s Dawn Chorus with six newsey things at 6:46am for Saturday, March 16
    TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ Herald Thomas Coughlan Simeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • How Did FTX Crash?
    What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    4 days ago
  • Elections in Russia and Ukraine
    Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s six stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15
    TL;DR: Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it:  We want our country to be a ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago
  • National’s clean car tax advances
    The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Government funding bailouts
    Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Two offenders, different treatments.
    See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    4 days ago
  • Treaty references omitted
    Ele Ludemann writes  – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • The Ghahraman Conflict
    What was that judge thinking? Peter Williams writes –  That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 15
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop: Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • The day Wellington up-zoned its future
    Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Weekly Roundup 15-March-2024
    It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    4 days ago
  • That Word.
    Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago
  • The Hoon around the week to March 15
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Labour’s policy gap
    It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    4 days ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #11 2024
    Open access notables A Glimpse into the Future: The 2023 Ocean Temperature and Sea Ice Extremes in the Context of Longer-Term Climate Change, Kuhlbrodt et al., Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society: In the year 2023, we have seen extraordinary extrema in high sea surface temperature (SST) in the North Atlantic and in ...
    5 days ago
  • Melissa remains mute on media matters but has something to say (at a sporting event) about economic ...
     Buzz from the Beehive   The text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary.  It can be quickly analysed ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago
  • The return of Muldoon
    For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Will the rental tax cut improve life for renters or landlords?
    Bryce Edwards writes –  Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: What Saudi Arabia’s rapid changes mean for New Zealand
    Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    5 days ago
  • Racism’s double standards
    Questions need to be asked on both sides of the world Peter Williams writes –   The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • It’s not a tax break
    Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • The Plastic Pig Collective and Chris' Imaginary Friends.
    I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • Who is responsible for young offenders?
    Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on National’s fantasy trip to La La Landlord Land
    How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
    5 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 14
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop: The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • No, Prime Minister, rents don’t rise or fall with landlords’ costs
    TL;DR: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Cartoons: ‘At least I didn’t make things awkward’
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
    5 days ago
  • Solving traffic congestion with Richard Prebble
    The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    5 days ago
  • I Think I'm Done Flying Boeing
    Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    5 days ago
  • Invoking Aristotle: Of Rings of Power, Stones, and Ships
    The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
    6 days ago
  • Van Velden brings free-market approach to changing labour laws – but her colleagues stick to distr...
    Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • Why Newshub failed
    Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • Māori Party on the warpath against landlords and seabed miners – let’s see if mystical creature...
    Bob Edlin writes  –  The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they  follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • There’s a name for this
    Every year, in the Budget, Parliament forks out money to government agencies to do certain things. And every year, as part of the annual review cycle, those agencies are meant to report on whether they have done the things Parliament gave them that money for. Agencies which consistently fail to ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    6 days ago
  • Echoes of 1968 in 2024?  Pocock on the repetitive problems of the New Left
    Mike Grimshaw writes – Recent events in American universities point to an underlying crisis of coherent thinking, an issue that increasingly affects the progressive left across the Western world. This of course is nothing new as anyone who can either remember or has read of the late ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • Two bar blues
    The thing about life’s little victories is that they can be followed by a defeat.Reader Darryl told me on Monday night:Test again Dave. My “head cold” last week became COVID within 24 hours, and is still with me. I hear the new variants take a bit longer to show up ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 13
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Angus Deaton on rethinking his economics IMFLocal scoop: The people behind Tamarind, the firm that left a $500m cleanup bill for taxpayers at Taranaki’s Tui oil well, are back operating in Taranaki under a different company name. Jonathan ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • AT Need To Lift Their Game
    Normally when we talk about accessing public transport it’s about improving how easy it is to get to, such as how easy is it to cross roads in a station/stop’s walking catchment, is it possible to cycle to safely, do bus connections work, or even if are there new routes/connections ...
    6 days ago
  • Christopher's Whopper.
    Politicians are not renowned for telling the truth. Some tell us things that are verifiably not true. They offer statements that omit critical pieces of information. Gloss over risks, preferring to offer the best case scenario.Some not truths are quite small, others amusing in their transparency. There are those repeated ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    6 days ago

  • Positive progress for social worker workforce
    New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 hours ago
  • Minister confirms reduced RUC rate for PHEVs
    Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April.  ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 hours ago
  • Trade access to overseas markets creates jobs
    Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand.  Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 hours ago
  • NZ and Chinese Foreign Ministers hold official talks
    Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    19 hours ago
  • Kāinga Ora instructed to end Sustaining Tenancies
    Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    24 hours ago
  • Speech to Auckland Business Chamber: Growth is the answer
    Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Singapore rounds out regional trip
    Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships.      “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Minister van Velden represents New Zealand at International Democracy Summit
    Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Insurance Council of NZ Speech, 7 March 2024, Auckland
    ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland  Acknowledgements and opening  Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho.  Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau  My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Five-year anniversary of Christchurch terror attacks
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says.  “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024
    Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024  Acknowledgements and opening  Morena, Nga Mihi Nui.  Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau  Good morning. It’s a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Early visit to Indonesia strengthens ties
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asia’s most populous country.   “We are in Jakarta so early in our new government’s term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • China Foreign Minister to visit
    Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week.  “We look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealand’s ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Minister opens new Auckland Rail Operations Centre
    Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. “The recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Auckland’s rail agencies work together to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Celebrating 10 years of Crankworx Rotorua
    The Government is proud to support the 10th edition of Crankworx Rotorua as the Crankworx World Tour returns to Rotorua from 16-24 March 2024, says Minister for Economic Development Melissa Lee.  “Over the past 10 years as Crankworx Rotorua has grown, so too have the economic and social benefits that ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Government delivering on tax commitments
    Legislation implementing coalition Government tax commitments and addressing long-standing tax anomalies will be progressed in Parliament next week, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The legislation is contained in an Amendment Paper to the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill issued today.  “The Amendment Paper represents ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Significant Natural Areas requirement to be suspended
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