Open mike 18/12/2011

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, December 18th, 2011 - 124 comments
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124 comments on “Open mike 18/12/2011 ”

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  1. Pete George 1
    18 December 2011 at 8:22 am

    Matt McCarten didn’t quite get his revolution through Occupy. And he didn’t get it through the election. So he looks at how to advance it in his latest column.

    His Anti Asset Sales protest revival seems to be yet another attempt at socialist revolution?

    Matt McCarten didn’t quite get his revolution through Occupy. And he didn’t get it through the election. So he looks at how to advance it in his latest column.

    His Anti Asset Sales protest revival seems to be yet another attempt at socialist revolution?

    With those that ‘aren’t worthy’ of course.

    “Those people who feel voting is beneath them can now prove they are worthy citizens”. Yeah, join Matt’s class war.

    • Colonial Viper 1.1
      18 December 2011 at 8:48 am

      I wouldn’t be so quick to pigeonhole Matt McCarten, he creates good, socially relevant critique, and has done a lot politically over many years.

      And we do need media commentary which underlines the importance of getting out and voting in a responsible social democracy.

      • Jenny 1.1.2
        18 December 2011 at 9:18 am

        At my Christmas break up, the talk at our table wandered onto the elections. A younger work colleague of mine, though saying he had voted, said he was not really interested in politics, and most people aren’t he said. But recalling a vacation he had in America last year, he said everywhere, everyone was talking politics. He compared this to New Zealand where he said nobody talks about politics.

        I told him of the low voter turn out in America, a fact that he was unaware of, and which surprised him.

        http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0781453.html

        The accepted wisdom is, American citizens are to boorish to vote (compared of course to our enlightened selves).

        But maybe this is a misunderstanding.

        At a time when things in the US and the world desperately need to be changed, just maybe the average American man and woman in the street are unconvinced of the the efficacy of elections in affecting that change.

        So though it may not be reflected in their voter patterns, my young colleague’s view that Americans are deeply concerned about politics is only anecdotal, maybe it is no accident that the OWS movement started in the US.

        • rosy 1.1.2.1
          18 December 2011 at 9:51 am

          ” maybe it is no accident that the OWS movement started in the US.”

          As much as I admire the OWS protests, they didn’t start in the U.S. as such. That’s just when anti-corporate protests became noticed in a serious way. The Spaniards 15M movement began in town squares across Spain in May and included the occupation of Madrid’s Puerta del Sol on 15 May.

          The previous weekend, 250,000 people had taken to the Barcelona streets as part of the global protest against the financial system. Unlike traditional demonstrations, there was no platform at the end with speeches to the assembled masses. Participants were instead encouraged to join assemblies on the three focal themes – housing, education and health – and underground debates focused on what would happen next.

          – and along with the Middle-East uprisings are the examples for OWS.

          In a July 13, 2011 blog post, the Canadian-based Adbusters Foundation, best known for its advertisement-free anti-consumerist magazine Adbusters, proposed a peaceful occupation of Wall Street to protest corporate influence on democracy, the absence of legal repercussions for the bankers behind the recent global financial crisis, and a growing disparity in wealth. They sought to combine the symbolic location of the 2011 protests in Tahrir Square with the consensus decision making of the 2011 Spanish protests. Adbusters’ senior editor Micah White said they had suggested the protest via their email list and it “was spontaneously taken up by all the people of the world.

          The motto of the Spanish indignados is “We are going slowly, because we are going far.”

          Next steps if OWS follows a process similar to that of the Indignados…

          The general assemblies of the encampments they held in the summer are now devolved to local neighbourhoods; the occupied buildings are being used to hold assemblies through the winter months and house those evicted through mortgage defaults.

    • Jenny 1.2
      18 December 2011 at 8:57 am

      “Don’t Let the banks get away with it”, OWS cardboard sign

      The banks and the rating agencies have become the dictators of the West. Like the Mubaraks and Ben Alis, the banks believed – and still believe – they are owners of their countries. The elections which give them power have – through the gutlessness and collusion of governments – become as false as the polls to which the Arabs were forced to troop decade after decade to anoint their own national property owners. Goldman Sachs and the Royal Bank of Scotland became the Mubaraks and Ben Alis of the US and the UK, each gobbling up the people’s wealth in bogus rewards and bonuses for their vicious bosses on a scale infinitely more rapacious than their greedy Arab dictator-brothers could imagine.

      Robert Fisk

      http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/12/11-0

      Democracy is more than voting.

      City Councils heavily influenced by unelected local Chambers of Commerce and the owners of central city real estate, gear up, to evict and arrest our own OWS protesters with as much violence as is necessary to achieve the task.

      We have to ask is this all the democracy we are allowed?

      • Pete George 1.2.1
        18 December 2011 at 9:06 am

        What sort of democracy do you want? The sort the delivers you the results you want?

        Some people don’t seem to understand that democracy doesn’t guarantee that everyone will agree with them.

        • felix 1.2.1.1
          18 December 2011 at 9:37 am

          Yes, the people who don’t seem to understand this are the people who want activists and protesters to stay home and keep quiet.

          • Draco T Bastard 1.2.1.1.1
            18 December 2011 at 10:58 am

            +1

          • Pete George 1.2.1.1.2
            18 December 2011 at 6:26 pm

            Who wants to do that?

            Who has tried to hound off and shut down different views here?

            • McFlock 1.2.1.1.2.1
              18 December 2011 at 6:49 pm

              Oh please.
                
              Who complained about occupy the octagon?

              • Pete George …
                18 December 2011 at 7:40 pm

                You’re confusing disagreements with trying to shut down opposing views. I didn’t agree with some things going on there (like many people), I exercised my freedom to speak, then backed off – but was then invited to a significant meeting at the cathedral which I atended, praised, and picked up support from for my propsals.

                And I’m communicating with them still (last time yesterday), looking at what may be worked on together. Someone jumped in to diss me without bothering to read what I was saying (sound familiar?) and someone else saw the positives. We can build on that.

      • LynW 1.2.2
        18 December 2011 at 9:19 am

        +100 Jenny. Democracy is indeed about so much more than just voting!

    • millsy 1.3
      18 December 2011 at 9:13 am

      Would you agree that the National party closing dozens of hospitals and schools around the country to pay for tax cuts for the rich be ‘class war’ then?

      What about the closure and sale of council amnemites such as pools, libaries, parks, etc to cut rates for the rich?

      Surely closing down things that are used by low and middle income people to make savings for the rich to enjoy is also class war?

      What about the sale of State Houses? That is war on the poor to ensure a good income stream to landlords?

      • Higherstandard 1.3.1
        18 December 2011 at 9:56 am

        Which dozens of hospitals are these millsy ?

        And which council amenities – I’m genuinely interested to know as there hasn’t been any such sales and closures up my way.

        • millsy 1.3.1.1
          18 December 2011 at 12:53 pm

          “Which dozens of hospitals are these millsy ?”

          National closed 38 hospitals in NZ to pay for Bill English’s tax cuts, and dozens more schools. Some of these were specialist institutions that provided niche services, such as veterans homes and the likes.

          “And which council amenities – I’m genuinely interested to know as there hasn’t been any such sales and closures up my way.”

          Hamilton city council is launching a huge austerity program (largely because it went into debt funding professional sporting bodies), not to mention wellington.

          Halls, pensioner flats, are being sold all over the country.

          • Treetop 1.3.1.1.1
            18 December 2011 at 2:13 pm

            It’s not just the closing of hospitals, it is the down sizing of national programmes. Just this week the National Breast Screening Programme is not delivering as it once did, due to many top level resignations and this is due to positions being cut (think from 9 to 6).

            http://topnews.net.nz/content/220582-national-screening-unit-under-scanner

            If anything the programme needs to be improved e.g. a person can be recalled under the programme to have an ultrasound due to the mammogram being unsure. Only the breast which shows up the abnormality is ultrasounded even though there may have been follow up on a previous mammogram for the other breast. It makes better sense to ultrasound both breasts as when a mammogram is done both breasts are imaged.

          • higherstandard 1.3.1.1.2
            18 December 2011 at 2:59 pm

            Seriously Millsy which hospitals were closed to pay for tax cuts.

            • millsy 1.3.1.1.2.1
              18 December 2011 at 3:26 pm

              Ummm…

              Oakley
              Mangere
              Kingseat
              Paeroa
              Marton
              Tokanui
              Lake Alice
              Napier
              Jubilee
              Balcutha
              Gore
              Waitaki
              Oamaru
              etc…

              • higherstandard …
                18 December 2011 at 3:32 pm

                None of those mental health institutions were closed recently nor were any of them closed to pay for tax cuts.

                Many of the others such as Napier were in such a state of disrepair that a sensible decision was taken to amalgamate the services with close by hospitals were a better and safer service could be offered – I also note that many of those sensible decisions were taken by the last labour government.

                • millsy …
                  18 December 2011 at 3:36 pm

                  the hospitals could have been upgraded.

                  But Bill Birch wanted to cut taxes in 1996. Tax cuts that benefited the rich.

                  • higherstandard …
                    18 December 2011 at 5:29 pm

                    No it would have been an inordinate waste of money and of no benefit to the health system which is far better served today than it was with these dinosaur like and decrepit institutions.

                    • Colonial Viper …
                      18 December 2011 at 5:37 pm

                      than it was with these dinosaur like and decrepit institutions.

                      That’s why millsy said they needed to be upgraded. Duh.

                      And all through that period of turbulence, our health system did way more than the Americans, for way less. So not too bad at all, in fact something to be proud of.

                    • millsy …
                      18 December 2011 at 5:39 pm

                      So you would rather mental health patients rot in the prison system or on the streets?

                      Would you rather small communities lose their health services?

                    • higherstandard …
                      18 December 2011 at 6:55 pm

                      Millsy perhaps you should read the Mason report and then consider the overwhelming support for the move away from locking away those with mental health issues in the monstrosities that were Oakley, Kingseat etc.

                      CV don’t embarrass yourself trying to comment on issues about which you haven’t the faintest idea -oh that’s right you’ve made a a habit out of it on blogs over the last few years.

                      Millsy I do not want small communities to loose their health services they should all have access to a general practice and emergency triage. Neither do I want small communities to have health services such as complex surgical and medical services which are more competently and efficiently serviced in larger base hospitals and centres of excellence

                    • Colonial Viper …
                      18 December 2011 at 7:06 pm

                      Millsy I do not want small communities to loose their health services they should all have access to a general practice and emergency triage. Neither do I want small communities to have health services such as complex surgical and medical services which are more competently and efficiently serviced in larger base hospitals and centres of excellence

                      You want lots of things but the fact of the matter is that far too often, police cells pass for emergency triage for people with mental health disturbances.

                      And please explain to me how taking a patient with mental illness away from familiar and comfortable surroundings, their local community and their immediate family and centralising them in a big city “centre of excellence” is helpful.

                      CV don’t embarrass yourself trying to comment on issues about which you haven’t the faintest idea -oh that’s right you’ve made a a habit out of it on blogs over the last few years.

                      😎

                    • fender …
                      18 December 2011 at 7:41 pm

                      As an impartial observer I sure as hell place CV’s opinions above your own, if only you could deserve the name you use rather than the lower version more suitable to the consistantly lower standard you excrete.

                    • Pete George …
                      18 December 2011 at 7:56 pm

                      As another ‘impartial observer’ I find your claims of impartiality funny.

                    • fender …
                      18 December 2011 at 8:07 pm

                      Pete you are just a propaganda blogger for The Hair and his party leader Key.
                      Impartial you will never be. Your love for OverDunne is pathetic and a waste of your love as he’s too selfish to return your love.

    • felix 1.4
      18 December 2011 at 9:25 am

      Pete George didn’t get any validation for his “no ideas” style of politics in the blogosphere, and he certainly didn’t get any in the election. So he reverts to type in his latest post.

      His Anti-Politics stance seems to be yet another attempt to shut down criticism of the governing party.

      Matt wants people who oppose the govt to make their voices heard. Pete would rather they didn’t. Yet according to Pete, only one of these positions represents class warfare.

      • logie97 1.4.1
        18 December 2011 at 9:32 am

        Anyone here surveyed just how many OpenMike entries by the United-Future-National-Party-apologist George over the last year. Wouldn’t mind betting it is more than the hits he gets on his own blog. And of those, how many were at the top of/first entry for the day.

      • Pete George 1.4.2
        18 December 2011 at 9:42 am

        I haven’t said they shouldn’t be heard, have I.

        And I haven’t tried to shut down criticism of the governing party – I criticise it myself when I see fit.

        And I have as much right as Matt or anyone to speak, haven’t I? Despite a few here (and in the past on Kiwiblog) trying to shut me up or shut me out. I’m on the receiving end of a lot of attack the messenger shit here devoid of argument.

        Free speech and freedom to protest is for everyone, right?

        • Colonial Viper 1.4.2.1
          18 December 2011 at 9:46 am

          Come on, you’re saying that you have every right to be an apologist for The Hair and for the National Government? Well you do, but it doesn’t mean it’s going to win you any credit – or votes.

        • kriswgtn 1.4.2.2
          18 December 2011 at 5:34 pm

          all u do is slag the Left off day after day after day

          Show me you do to the Right– you know the side your master is on

          you remind me of Rev Kane from the Poltergeist movies

          on aND ON and on aND ON

        • Vicky32 1.4.2.3
          18 December 2011 at 6:45 pm

          Free speech and freedom to protest is for everyone, right?

          As I have found on Friday, and today, the answer is that here on the Standard, speech is free only if you agree with the majority! 😀 Otherwise the insults start flying like faecal matter at the chimpanzee enclosure. 
          A thread became all about dissing me, and then one boy decided to cap it all by accusing me of having made it all about me! That would be hilarious if it wasn’t so creepy..

          • McFlock 1.4.2.3.1
            18 December 2011 at 7:10 pm

            sigh.
              
            Insults are included in free speech. As are comments which disagree with comments that disagree with the majority.
             

            • Pete George 1.4.2.3.1.1
              18 December 2011 at 7:49 pm

              McFlock, the mob here often tries to shout down and abuse down alternate views. Attacking the messenger is rife.

              You try and post some of your opinion on Kiwiblog or Whaleoil and you might understand what Vicky is talking about, but it probably won’t be as bad as the swarms of snarkiness can be here.

              • McFlock …
                18 December 2011 at 8:20 pm

                “snarkiness” is one thing, and can be part of a robust exchange if someone is being a stupid dick. If you don’t want snarkiness, don’t be a moron. That’s not the same as suggesting violence against people, or other waysof curbing someone else’s freedom of speech.
                 

              • fender …
                18 December 2011 at 8:22 pm

                Dream on Dunny water drinker, the redneck brigade on kiwi and whale are the lowest forms of bloggers available. Thats the place to go to encounter the most bigoted people in NZ whose abuse knows no limits.

    • Sam 1.5
      18 December 2011 at 9:39 am

      We always have to remember that Matt speaks as a Mana Party member.
      He is denigrating all those who did not vote and then to invite these non-voters to “spill blood” like in the Arab world is crazy.

      • felix 1.5.1
        18 December 2011 at 9:46 am

        That looks as if you’re quoting Matt saying “spill blood”.

        Got a link for that?

        • Colonial Viper 1.5.1.1
          18 December 2011 at 9:51 am

          I wonder if Sam realises that the blood spilling during the Arab Spring uprisings was generally perpertrated by the powers that be, against the underclasses and dispossessed.

          • Jenny 1.5.1.1.1
            18 December 2011 at 12:12 pm

            …..the blood spilling during the Arab Spring uprisings was generally perpertrated by the powers that be, against the underclasses and dispossessed.

            Colonial Viper

            Indeed CV. It seems that for right wingers democracy is alright, up to a point.

            At the beginning of this thread, Pete George has challenged me to tell him what sort of democracy we want.

            http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-18122011/#comment-418943

            Short answer: We want real democracy.

            But for Right Wingers like Pete George, we’re going way too far, when we demand that the wealthy minority elites at the top of society who are dictating all our futures, should submit to the majority will.

            What sort of democracy do you want? The sort the delivers you the results you want?

            Some people don’t seem to understand that democracy doesn’t guarantee that everyone will agree with them.

            Pete George

            It is interesting that Pete George was raising his objections to calls for greater democracy by the OWS protesters.

            To Pete George I would say, I fully accept that democracy doesn’t guarantee the results everyone wants.

            The majority decide.

            This in fact is the definition of democracy. If Pete doesn’t believe in this, then he doesn’t believe in democracy.

            I would submit that the OWS protesters have a lot more faith in democracy, than the apologists for the rule of the wealthy elites like Pete George has.

            In fact these elites have a reason to fear democracy, in that, un-what they are used to, they might not be able to continue getting everything thing they want.

            In answer to Pete George’s question “What sort of democracy do you want?”

            I want a democracy where a wealthy minority have zero power over the majority. In fact I want the opposite – I want the majority to dictate to that wealthy minority.

            Put bluntly; democracy is the dictatorship of the majority over the minority.

            For myself: I accept that under democracy, I mightn’t get everything I might personally want from majority rule, but I have faith in my fellow brother and sister citizens to confidently come to the best decisions for the most of us.

            Further: Any system where a minority get to have sway over a greater number of others is not democracy.

            A society in which a minority of unelected plutocrats have more say than the majority of other citizens, is by it’s very definition not a democracy.
            (No matter how much it claims the title).

            • Pete George 1.5.1.1.1.1
              18 December 2011 at 7:54 pm

              Jenny, I have talked to people from Occupy from early on about how we may do better democracy in Dunedin, we have similar ambitions in many ways and I expect to pick up on this more next year with htose from Occupy who are prepared to work together rather than name call and achieve nothing.

              “Right Winger” – very funny.

              • MrSmith …
                18 December 2011 at 8:49 pm

                “Right Winger” – very funny.”
                 
                But Pete you voted for ACT in the past so don’t be surprised if people judge you on your actions. Talk is cheap Pete as you well know!

                • Pete George …
                  18 December 2011 at 8:57 pm

                  I’ve never voted for Act, and there’s never been any indicatiion that I have as far as I’m aware.I guess it’s a mistake, but it’s worthless claim.

                  I voted Labour as recently as 2005, how cheap is that?

                  • fender …
                    18 December 2011 at 9:08 pm

                    Be careful what you imply regarding your partner/s in crimes coalition partners happy bed pals petey piper in a pickle party

                  • millsy …
                    18 December 2011 at 10:53 pm

                    The views you have espoused on here have been pretty right wing IMO.

                    • Colonial Viper …
                      18 December 2011 at 11:05 pm

                      Given that PG will not raise a voice or even a whimper against the right wing initiated and led privatisation of strategic public assets, that is the only conclusion.

              • felix …
                19 December 2011 at 1:23 am

                FFS Pete.

                Supporting the National/ACT govt means you ARE a right-winger. By definition.

                • fender …
                  19 December 2011 at 2:07 am

                  No it’s not true in the case of UF. They have a floating manifesto so they can up anchor and sail to new waters in order to reap the baubles of office.
                  Someone on here the other day described Dunne as the “malleable plasticine man” and I had to laugh cos its just so accurate.

                • Pete George …
                  19 December 2011 at 6:46 am

                  Funny felix, that’s a nonsensical claim. Half of the voters in New Zealand are not ‘right wingers”.

                  We don’t have a two sided divide in politics, despite what a few extremists on either side of the spectrum wish to portray. Most people are closer to varying shades of centre of the centre occupied by both National and Labour.

                  Even much of the increase in Green support could be atrributed to their deliberate appeal to the centre. And I don’t see NZ First being labelled as a left wing party.

                  • felix …
                    19 December 2011 at 8:54 am

                    Half the voters in NZ voted for right-wing parties.

                    In our democracy, voting is where the rubber meets the road. It’s where the image you project and the things you say meet concrete, actionable reality.

                    If you vote for a right wing party, thus supporting right-wing policy, thus shifting society in a right-wing direction, you are by definition a right winger whether you label yourself one or not.

                    The same applies in parliament. You can give as many impassioned speeches against right-wing policies as you like, but if you turn around and vote for them that’s that.

                    In the final analysis you’re not what you say, Pete, you’re what you do.

                    • Pete George …
                      19 December 2011 at 9:27 am

                      One major problem with your analysis – National is not a right wing party, it’s a CENTRE right party with most emphasis on the centre.

                      Much of Labour and National policy overlaps in practice. For example National didn’t change student loans or Working For Families. The only difference is that National can tend to some slightly more rightish policies and Labour tends to some slightly more leftish policies, but there’s much more in common than not.

                      And I’m mostly centre-ish across National and Labour centres, having supported both parties at different times.

                      Some people are obsessed with name calling people they disagree with (I’ve been called a leftie as often as I’ve been called a rightie) but it has no relationship to the reality of modern politics in New Zealand.

                    • felix …
                      19 December 2011 at 10:06 am

                      Yawn.

                      So your entire argument comes down to “but they’re not that right-wing”.

                      So what? So they’re only “right-wing” relative to most of the rest? And? What did you think I was comparing them to? Some hypothetical political field in another universe?

                      No-one cares what you call yourself Pete. This isn’t about you. You’ve rendered yourself irrelevant by throwing in your lot with a man who rendered himself irrelevant by throwing in his lot with whoever the largest party on the day might happen to be (car and salary permitting, obviously), which this time happens to be the relatively right-wing party supported by the extremist right-wing party.

                      And that, whether it fits your image or not, is what your efforts have wrought.

                      That, as they say, is the cap.

  2. higherstandard 2
    18 December 2011 at 8:26 am

    Shouldn’t there be an investigation into what appears to be fraud ?

    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10773840

    Kiely revealed 425 declared votes were disallowed – nine were dual votes, 393 ineligible votes and 12 were not authorised by a witness.

    “Those 393, not only were they not on the roll in Waitakere, but they weren’t enrolled anywhere.”

    • Colonial Viper 2.1
      18 December 2011 at 8:37 am

      I wonder how those 393 not registered got counted as eligible votes. and not as “informal votes”. Part of the system is set up to determine that, so it’s just wrong they slipped through. Concerning to say the least. If the election night margin had been by say a solid 200 votes, none of this would have been revealed.

      • Pete George 2.1.1
        18 December 2011 at 8:43 am

        It’s quite likely there’s always a few errors and bad votes, they just don’t matter unless it’s close so they are usually not worth spending much time on.

        My guess is that most of the bad votes are just mistakes or people not knowing correct procedures.

        • Reality Bytes 2.1.1.1
          18 December 2011 at 1:06 pm

          On the contrary, 425 is significant enough to highlight some serious failures in the current system. 425 might even be a low outlier for this electorate, for all we know the average ‘error/fraud-rate’ could be far higher in other electorates as the same systemic faults could exist, but we only have a sample of one electorate so we’ll never know.

          Basically what we know is errors/frauds slipped through the initial count, and yet were somehow capable of being detected on the recount, then why wasn’t the original count up to the same standard as the recount?

          The important questions that need to be answered are:
          Why were the frauds/errors not detected the first time?
          What different ‘better’ systems were used to detect these errors/frauds on recount?
          Will the ‘better’ systems and checks be implemented in the future INITIAL counts?

          I firmly believe aiming for ZERO errors is something we should be striving for. If we can learn some lessons from this recount on how to do that, then great, we should NOT accept errors/frauds as inevitable.

          Assuming this is the average error rate per electorate, we’re looking at 850×70 errors, 59500 fraudulent/erroneous votes (850 because the entire voting form is invalid, the MMP part included).

          That’s enough votes to have some serious concerns about imo. I’m actually quite surprised you’re not also concerned about it Pete, those are the sort of numbers that could make a real difference to a micro-party such as yours.

          • Granny 2.1.1.1.1
            18 December 2011 at 1:28 pm

            They were; the total vote went up by 10 in the judicial recount.

          • Jackal 2.1.1.1.2
            18 December 2011 at 6:40 pm

            Exactly Reality Bytes. How can we trust an electoral process with so many errors and why the hell weren’t the frauds/errors picked up the first time the Waitakere ballot was counted?

            I thought of electoral fraud when David Garrett was caught stealing the identity of a dead baby… what else would he want a fake ID for?

            • Reality Bytes 2.1.1.1.2.1
              20 December 2011 at 7:23 pm

              Well at least it’s not as bad as the ballot stuffing and other dubious behavior in Russia (et al.) I guess.
              Where they simply say: ‘Meh, it happens a bit, it’s insignificant, who cares. Nothing to see here, move along, actually it’s all Hillary Clinton’s fault really, excuses, excuses bla bla bla etc…’

              In-spite of our relatively very good democratic system, we should still be constantly striving to minimize and eliminate the possibility of anti-democratic frauds&errors imo.

    • mickysavage 2.2
      18 December 2011 at 8:45 am

      The reporting is wonky.  This is not evidence of widespread fraud.

      There were 393 people who went to cast a vote and did not find themselves on the roll.  They then cast a special vote thinking their vote might count.  The staff then checked the rolls, including the 2008 rolls and could find no trace of them anywhere or an enrollment form filed after the date of the close of the rolls but before election day.  This is why these votes were disallowed.

      The 12 votes disallowed for not having a witness on the special vote form is just sloppy form filling.  The 9 dual votes can have a number of reasons for this happening.

      None of these votes would have appeared in any tally.

      • Reality Bytes 2.2.1
        18 December 2011 at 1:18 pm

        True, it may be mostly just honest mistakes and not fraud, but the fact such errors can slip through the initial count means that there is greater possibility real cases of fraud could slip through.

        Don’t get me wrong I think the people that work on the polls and the scrutineers do a fantastic job, I just think we should always be learning lessons and striving to make the system even better and even more error free. Every vote should count. The tight race in the Waitaks really shows that.

  3. dv 3
    18 December 2011 at 8:47 am

    >>Kiely and said some changes came about because votes allowed on election night might have had a mark in the box rather than a tick

    If that is so, Peters won the Ticks/crosses argument in the 80’s.

    I thought it was along as the voters intention was clear?

    • mickysavage 3.1
      18 December 2011 at 8:51 am

      Aye it is and I am not sure Kiely intended to say this.  My understanding is that the changes were because of miscounts rather than anything else.

      • Tiger Mountain 3.1.1
        18 December 2011 at 9:55 am

        In general the lower the turnout the more likely the ‘flaws’ in the system are to emerge. Year after year people that should be told to go away by polling booth staff are allowed to take a special declaration vote that they (staff) should know is going to be later excluded. Because it is easier for staff to do so. My partner has done polling duty and says that staff have often said “just give him a special…” to move someone along rather than try and explain/argue that they are not enrolled.

        So the timewasting just gets moved down the chain. The stats show the thousands of such invalid wasted votes each election. As for Waitakere, the experts will make a call I guess on winnability for Sepuloni. Imho if there is a hint of “voters intention unclear” involved go for a petition.

        • Ed 3.1.1.1
          18 December 2011 at 11:41 am

          It is not just ‘easier’ – it is the only option that polling booth staff had. This year polling booths were not issued with rolls for all electorates. They would ask questions to decide which electorate the person should be voting in – they had a list of streets to assist with that, and they then got the person to fill out a declaration – because it was signed they did not require ID.

          There were quite a few people who had changed address and advised registration too late for the printed rolls – or at least that is what they said. Some from Christchurch were not sure where they were eligible to vote; I would hope that if they were still legitimately enrolled in a Christchurch electorate their votes were still valid, but some who have been away for more than 3 months may have tried to cast a vote in the place they are temporarily living until they can get back to Christchurch.

          The law should make it as easy as possible for everyone who is entitled to vote to cast a vote – and the forms should be seen as assisting that goal, not a tool to deny the young and transient from casting a vote.

  4. LynW 4
    18 December 2011 at 8:57 am

    Matt McCarten: Our most valuable asset is the right to protest

    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/headlines.cfm?c_id=466

    I whole heartedly agree. Well said Matt. And I was also very pleased to see Time magazine’s Person of the Year awarded to the protestor. Very much in touch with ground swell of public feeling towards social issues.

    • Pete George 4.1
      18 December 2011 at 9:09 am

      A right to protest doesn’t guarantee his causes are worthy of everyone’s support, like those who he thinks that voting is beneath them.

      • felix 4.1.1
        18 December 2011 at 9:32 am

        So he should just keep quiet and leave the govt alone.

        Whereas Pete, who has spectacularly failed to gain any public support for his ideas at all…

        • Colonial Viper 4.1.1.1
          18 December 2011 at 9:39 am

          Maybe Pete is angling for Matt McCarten’s job on the pages of the NZ Herald? Wouldn’t surprise me.

          • felix 4.1.1.1.1
            18 December 2011 at 9:58 am

            Perhaps Pete could have a bit in the middle of the page.

            Right in the middle, on the fold. About 0.6% of the page.

            Should be enough room for a little National Party logo.

    • oftenpuzzled 4.2
      18 December 2011 at 2:48 pm

      There was a documentary on democracy some time recently maybe 18months ago titled something like the big idea (yes found http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poO5BgU2PZo ) where Tony Benn says something along the line that the change for all only comes from below and we need to get together as united groups to protest for change. An interesting series of 5 youtube clips worth watching, although based on British changes in understanding of democracy it still speaks of our roots and the diffculties facing us today

  5. Salsy 5
    18 December 2011 at 9:07 am

    So the wider implcations of asset sales is beginning to play out. Not only are the govt avoiding any legislation to keep shares in kiwi “mums and dads” hand as Key clearly promised, but its emerging that they actually legally cannot- in doing so would contravene a number of FTA’s…

    Cabinet has agreed to go ahead with the partial sales provided there is “significant participation” of New Zealand investors. But trade deals New Zealand is signed up to, including the Closer Economic Agreement with Australia and the Free Trade Agreement with China, require citizens of those countries to receive the same treatment as New Zealanders.

    Victoria University lecturer Jason Young said it was uncharted territory and he had never heard of a similar situation.

    “There’ll be a lot of people that will be interested to know how it will play out,” he said.

    Dr Young is an expert on the FTA with China, but said the United States, Netherlands, Australia and United Kingdom all invested more heavily in New Zealand than China and would be watching developments closely.

    http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/6148359/No-law-stopping-foreign-investors-buying-assets

    • Colonial Viper 5.1
      18 December 2011 at 9:42 am

      The way it will play out is the National Government quietly announcing a couple of days after Christmas that its not practical to try and limit where the shares go and so, there will be no limits placed.

      Another example of the insidious sovereignty stripping rules set up by the globalised free trade cartel working alongside the 100-200 most powerful corporations in the world.

      • prism 5.1.1
        18 December 2011 at 9:56 am

        The people trying to live in the grasping environment of the super-wealthy corporations are all connected to the Tunisian man who set himself on fire. On the world news this morning on radionz was the story about a memorial held to him attended by a notable political leader.

        The man was trying to support a family of ten I think and refused to pay bribes to three officials. So they confiscated all his goods and I think threw his family out of their housing.

        f he was in the USA he might have taken a gun and killed dozens of people, but he couldn’t afford a gun I imagine, so he just took his own precious life. Very sad, and the conditions he was struggling under are increasing horizontally in the poorer classes and being replicated vertically to the middle classes as well. Marx said that getting a bit of money, perhaps running a small business, doesn’t take people out of the lower classes.

  6. Sam 6
    18 December 2011 at 9:45 am

    I am neither a Labour or National supporter, I voted Conservative.
    The worry about the partial asset sales is that there will not be a great demand for them, so the price will go down.
    Will assets be sold regardless of who pays what? I can see them being sold off at bargain basement prices and we lose twice that way – no assets and little money to show for them.

    • Higherstandard 6.1
      18 December 2011 at 10:00 am

      The share offers will be over subscribed.

      • Colonial Viper 6.1.1
        18 December 2011 at 10:09 am

        Yep. Plenty of freshly minted USD sloshing around the world’s financial system looking for a safe home.

        We’re the fools for exchanging pallets of printed linen for our strategic hard assets of course, but c’est la vie.

        • prism 6.1.1.1
          18 December 2011 at 10:27 am

          After all our hard assets which are income earning to the country are sold some officials will enjoy their bribes (commissions) while some people leaving university will find the economy doesn’t provide a job or even a living income and can set themselves on fire and start a New Zealand spring.

    • felix 6.2
      18 December 2011 at 10:07 am

      Well it’s either a good deal for buyers or it’s a good deal for the state.

      Bill wants us to believe it’s both simultaneously, but that little cocksnot doesn’t even know where his fucking house is.

  7. prism 7
    18 December 2011 at 10:13 am

    Further to my recent comment. I have got a link to the Tunisian story, with accurate details.

    It was one year ago that Mohammed Bouazizi set himself on fire in front of the Sidi Bouzid town hall after he was publicly slapped and humiliated by a policewoman reprimanding him for selling his vegetables without a license. He suffered full-body burns, and died soon afterward.

    Until then, he had spent his days pushing around a cart to sell his vegetables, but when his wares were confiscated and his pleas for restitution ignored by town officials, something snapped and a young man who had never left Tunisia transformed the Middle East.
    Don’t know what is happening to links I tried to set up sorry.

    • Vicky32 7.1
      18 December 2011 at 7:03 pm

      after he was publicly slapped and humiliated by a policewoman reprimanding him for selling his vegetables without a license. He suffered full-body burns, and died soon afterward.

      That is so incredibly sad! It’s dreadful that he believed he had no alternative… and he didn’t really…

  8. prism 8
    18 December 2011 at 10:23 am

    Drug companies and post 1980s money and profit oriented only research. Interesting and informative interview on radionz this morning on why poor countries and wealthy ones can not get the drugs that are needed. This gives answers to many questions that often arise. Sad and shocking.

    10:06 Harriet Washington – The Corporate Takeover of Life Itself

    Medical ethicist Harriet Washington’s latest book is an exposé of the rush to own and exploit the raw materials of life—including human tissue. The US Patent Office has either granted patents, or has them pending, on more than 500,000 genes or DNA sequences. Hospital patients are often made to sign away ownership rights to their excised tissues – which then become the property of pharmaceutical companies. Harriet tells Jeremy the biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies patenting these genes are more concerned with profit than with the health or medical needs of patients.
    Deadly Monopolies: The Shocking Corporate Takeover of Life Itself—And the Consequences for Your Health and Our Medical Future, by Harriet Washington, is published by Random House.

    • Colonial Viper 8.1
      18 December 2011 at 4:13 pm

      Interesting, thanks.

    • jim 8.2
      18 December 2011 at 8:38 pm

      There was a real interesting documentary on a company called Genetic Technologies (the guy Malcom Simmons who did the research is a kiwi) who control access to 95% of the DNA of every creature on earth. I cant find the video but the homepage has a transcript of the docco

      http://www.abc.net.au/catalyst/stories/s898887.htm

      A brief google also comes up with this nature article

      “Simons first cottoned on to the value of non-coding DNA some 15 years ago, while studying the immune system’s genes. Afterwards, he successfully applied for several patents involving access to the information that is embedded in the non-coding DNA of all species.”

      http://www.nature.com/drugdisc/news/articles/423105a.html

  9. Salsy 9
    18 December 2011 at 10:31 am

    More needs to be understood about the FTA we have with China. I dont see shares in Chinese power companies being offered to mum and dad kiwi investors – or am i missing something? Jeanette Fitzimmons also points out how much more sinister the asset sales picture is, than the simple loss of a dividend stream – In partcular Solid Energy and lignite:

    If a Chinese company invests in New Zealand, and the New Zealand government sometime in the future then changes the law, in a way that disadvantages that company, they can sue us at a secret tribunal outside New Zealand and get compensation for their losses from the NZ taxpayer. So if any future New Zealand government wanted to have a sensibilbe cliamte change policy, put a real decent price on carbon – the Chinse investor would be able to sue future NZers- our children…

    So in a nutshell, selling our state assets means we lose the dividends, power prices will undoubtably surge for both business and home users, but worse still, any initial profits could all be lost due to potential legal action. And to top it all off, we lose our ability to legislate as an independant nation. This is so absurd its almost laughable.

  10. dave brown 10
    18 December 2011 at 10:39 am

    Parliamentary politics is on the way out. It only survives propped up by the police (eg OWS evictions) and the army (eg Egypt). NZ will catch up slowly but the shit hits the fan during this NACT regime’s second term.
    As Zizek has popularised (Marx discovered that fact) capitalism is incompatible with democracy. The only viable model for capitalism today is China. And as we can see right now that is very vulnerable to 100s of millions of peasants and workers revolting.
    That means that the fight for, and to defend, democracy will today inevitably bring down a totalitarian suppression of basic rights and a further upsurge or resistance that will be met by fascism.
    So we are facing a future of ecocide, barbarism and destruction, or, revolution.
    Wake up 20th century sheeples, this is class war and you have to decide which side you are on.

  11. headlessrd 11
    18 December 2011 at 10:45 am

    A blog post on animal rights issues within ACT. Did you know John Banks is opposed to factory farming? Weird. Also Stephen Franks (ex-ACT MP) was also abit outspoken on animal rights issues. 😛

    http://savefactoryfarming.wordpress.com/2011/12/16/acts-pro-animal-rights-agenda/

  12. Chris Oden 12
    18 December 2011 at 10:46 am

    Have just had a squiz at a Paula Bennett Facebook.She lists her interests as “Backing Johyn Key” and “NZ National Party” Is that it? The sum total of her interests?! The media should be looking at the quality of the people who now have portfolios(did Simon Bridges get one?)Some of them seem to be cannon fodder.There to put their heads above the parapets to guage the mood of the people when key wants to see if what he wants is going to make him smile or frown. If their head gets shot off its “nah, just looking at it” or head stays on “lets pass it”.Anne Tolley is just a laugh!Paula Bennett”yes john,anything you say dear” Everyone knew she would retain her seat.Sad!

  13. Carol 13
    18 December 2011 at 11:00 am

    The majority decide.

    This in fact is the definition of democracy. If you don’t believe in this, then you don’t believe in democracy.

    Actually this is a definition of representative democracy.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy#Representative

    True democracy is a form of direct democracy where all citizens ave a say in governing the country.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Direct_democracy

    OWS aims for a version of this with everybody participating in decision-making.

    Representative democracy is employed to get quicker results than direct democracy and can result in the tyranny of the majority – eg over the non-white, disabled, non-heterosexual etc.

    PS: Damn, not sure now where the post is that I thought I was replying to?

    • Jenny 13.1
      18 December 2011 at 12:40 pm

      PS: Damn, not sure now where the post is that I thought I was replying to?

      Carol

      Sorry about that Carol.

      Here it is.

      http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-18122011/#comment-419014

      (I edited it a little bit, from my clumsy first attempt)

      • Carol 13.1.1
        18 December 2011 at 1:36 pm

        OK, thanks, Jenny.

        I think your focus on minority may be a bit misleading. You are talking about the effective dictatorship of a wealthy and powerful minority, that mostly manages to convince an electoral majority to vote in their interests – as is happening in our representative democracy. They also manage to marginalise a selection of repressed, oppressed or disenfranchised minorities.

        In fact, OWS aims for a more participatory democracy, a form of direct democracy, where all are encouraged to have their say in a move towards more consensual decision-making – and where less powerful minorities are, hopefully, not marginalised.

  14. Tiger Mountain 14
    18 December 2011 at 11:09 am

    Dave Brown is ultimately right, it is just easier to carry on with incrementalist reformist politics because most of us have not had our doors kicked in, been batoned, tasered or bank accounts and superschemes rendered worthless….yet. Denial and hope are easier for most in kiwiland, but will not suffice for much longer.

    ‘The clampdown’ is likely to proceed further under Key as the tax take goes down and with it the remnants of the ‘social wage’. Wholesale state sector sackings and the demise of WFF may finally wake up the middle income groups (I hestitate to call them a class). NZ despite what some bloggers say is full of working class people, they just don’t mostly all hang out together in large factories making stuff anymore. Service, food, farming, tourism, media, entertainment and logistics industries, precarious part time jobs, independent contractors, dependent contractors, free lancers, SMEs etc. Self employed usually turn out to be ‘employed’ by or beholden to finance capital. Be your own boss, -Tui.

    The objective factors for revolution have existed for a long time, the subjective factors (peoples world view, political understanding and organisation) the missing link. It is going to get ugly alright, you will need more than a vege garden to survive what is coming. But there is hope in political organisation rather than submitting to some crappy sub ‘Matrix’ future.

    • Uturn 14.1
      18 December 2011 at 12:48 pm

      The definition of “working class” as it relates to any form of revolution needs to be understood. The proletariat (people who have little more than their own families) could be of those you describe, but the defining feature is they must want to create revolution, bringing down capitalism, to move towards a classless society. Some of the subgroups you mention would simply want to redesign capitalism with themselves at the top of the hierachy. For example, those who support a centre left party. Understand that revolution is not just a reshuffle of existing cards. The old game ends, completely, or revolution fails.

      Despite occasional proletariat anger, NZ lacks a revolutionary spirit. Easy, swift, change can only happen here, as you say, under the stress of a disintergrating establishment that happens suddenly and to effect hundreds of thousands of people. Either that, or there would have to be a large overseas war that heavily taxed our ability to supply current consumer demands – almost isolation. The idea that middle classes will willingly give up their credit cards, cars, boats, and other assets to reform society where they’ll work on the front line for an idea of a responsible collective existence just isn’t going to catch on. Until the idea of Getting Ahead is utterly and totally destroyed, and then some, it’s no dice.

      Organising NZ’s proletariat to push the middle class into civil war, on one side or the other, seems somewhat unrealistic in today’s modern comfort. While no small gesture, the closest anyone is likely to come is some form of civil disobedience or principled stand of personal cost.

      • Tiger Mountain 14.1.1
        18 December 2011 at 2:07 pm

        Sure many kiwis despite being hard done by in various ways, are generally the last lot that would enthusiastically call for revolution, people I know that possess arms would be more likely to turn them on lefties before bosses at this stage.

        Oppression and exploitation obviously do not automatically equate to resistance and push back on some convenient time frame, but they do eventually, as world history shows. I am alluding to the NZ version ‘aspirational, it is all about ME’ bubble likely being popped by coming global and local events and previously comfortable people (in numbers) actually missing that one direct credit that usually fended off personal disaster.

        Who knows what people with no history of collective action will do-join authoritarian right wingers, end it all, live rough, or consider some sort of left movement. But they will have to do something when the lights go out and the party is over.

  15. aj 15
    18 December 2011 at 11:55 am

    If $100m in fees is going to go to ‘advisors’ for the first asset sale, do we stump up similar amounts for each successive asset that gets sold? One gift of that size makes me blink but surely kiwi’s would choke if the number grows x2, x3, x4

    • Colonial Viper 15.1
      18 December 2011 at 2:55 pm

      The fee is 2% of the nominal $5B total the assets are supposed to fetch. I suppose if the assets fetch $7B as English hopes, the fee might be as high as $140M. As usual, capital is valued in the financial economy, labour is not.

  18. Jellytussle 18
    18 December 2011 at 1:00 pm

    Am I understanding right? Is
    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10773840
    saying that votes were disallowed because some………….” might have had a mark in the box rather than a tick.”

    • chris73 18.1
      18 December 2011 at 1:55 pm

      Yes thats my understanding so I’d allow those to be counted for whatever party they voted for (even though the instructions are quite clear) but more importantly was this little quote:

      “Those 393, not only were they not on the roll in Waitakere, but they weren’t enrolled anywhere.”

      • Jellytussle 18.1.1
        18 December 2011 at 2:18 pm

        Have just caught up with mickeysavage above who reckons that the tick / mark issue might not be the case. I can’t see any figures that suggest it’s the case anyway.

        The 393 is certainly a worry I agree. There’s no reason for it at all as far as I can see. So what if people need to enrol or make special votes on election day, don’t we want as many votes as possible? I have been disenfranchised myself in a previous election through being told I could cast a special vote when in fact it was disallowed.

        • Ant 18.1.1.1
          18 December 2011 at 2:23 pm

          I received my enrollment confirmation just the other day, I presume I voted due to my old address on the roll from when I was registered for local body elections.

          This is from sending in a change of details/enrollment form 2 weeks before the election…

          I’m hoping that these invalid votes aren’t due to processing errors meaning they weren’t enrolled.

  19. Jellytussle 19
    18 December 2011 at 2:36 pm

    Moderator Sir……….Isn’t the discussion about disqualified votes worthy of a post of it’s own? Can’t you gather all the comments about the issue into one spot?

  20. Treetop 20
    18 December 2011 at 3:03 pm

    Have I got this right?

    When it came to the recount for Waitakere and Christchurch Central, two Labour list seats would convert to two Labour electorate seats had Labour won the electoral seats?

    If Carmel wins the electorial petition Bennett has to leave Parliament and National lose a tail end list seat so National then only have 58 seats and not 59?

  21. logie97 21
    18 December 2011 at 7:26 pm

    So the Catholic Action group are so exercised that they feel the need to
    vandalise a piece of thought provoking artwork.

    Presumably this same group and other adherents will picket their own St Patricks cathedral with their strongest voices until they get an absolute assurance that their own faith has cleansed itself of instances of child abuse.

    http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/dec/16/children-dutch-catholic-institutions-abused?newsfeed=true

    … Ah, there’s none so blind as those who will not see…

  22. randal 22
    18 December 2011 at 7:48 pm

    hi ho hi ho its off to work I go.
    we work all day for f*ck all pay.
    hi ho hi ho hi ho.

    • In Vino Veritas 22.1
      19 December 2011 at 9:53 am

      Then go find another job that pays better randal, like most people do. Don’t sit on your arse and whine.

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    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Thursday, July 25 are:News: Why Electric Kiwi is closing to new customers - and why it matters RNZ’s Susan EdmundsScoop: Government drops ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • The Possum: Demon or Friend?

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

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

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

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

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

    I live my life (woo-ooh-ooh)With no control in my destinyYea-yeah, yea-yeah (woo-ooh-ooh)I can bleed when I want to bleedSo come on, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)You can bleed when you want to bleedYea-yeah, come on (woo-ooh-ooh)Everybody bleed when they want to bleedCome on and bleedGovernments face tough challenges. Selling unpopular decisions to ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago
  • Casey Costello gaslights Labour in the House

    Please note:To skip directly to the- parliamentary footage in the video, scroll to 1:21 To skip to audio please click on the headphone icon on the left hand side of the screenThis video / audio section is under development. ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    3 days ago
  • Why is the Texas grid in such bad shape?

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

    Given the crackdown on wasteful government spending, it behooves me to point to a high profile example of spending by the Luxon government that looks like a big, fat waste of time and money. I’m talking about the deployment of NZDF personnel to support the US-led coalition in the Red ...
    WerewolfBy lyndon
    3 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Wednesday, July 24

    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:40 am on Wednesday, July 24 are:Deep Dive: Chipping away at the housing crisis, including my comments RNZ/Newsroom’s The DetailNews: Government softens on asset sales, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • LXR Takaanini

    As I reported about the city centre, Auckland’s rail network is also going through a difficult and disruptive period which is rapidly approaching a culmination, this will result in a significant upgrade to the whole network. Hallelujah. Also like the city centre this is an upgrade predicated on the City ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    3 days ago
  • Four kilograms of pain

    Today, a 4 kilogram report will be delivered to Parliament. We know this is what the report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care weighs, because our Prime Minister told us so.Some reporter had blindsided him by asking a question about something done by ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Wednesday, July 24

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

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

    Back in January a StatsNZ employee gave a speech at Rātana on behalf of tangata whenua in which he insulted and criticised the government. The speech clearly violated the principle of a neutral public service, and StatsNZ started an investigation. Part of that was getting an external consultant to examine ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Are we fine with 47.9% home-ownership by 2048?

    Renting for life: Shared ownership initiatives are unlikely to slow the slide in home ownership by much. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy today are:A Deloitte report for Westpac has projected Aotearoa’s home-ownership rate will ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Let's Win This

    You're broken down and tiredOf living life on a merry go roundAnd you can't find the fighterBut I see it in you so we gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsWe gonna walk it outAnd move mountainsAnd I'll rise upI'll rise like the dayI'll rise upI'll rise unafraidI'll rise upAnd I'll ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago
  • Waimahara: The Singing Spirit of Water

    There’s been a change in Myers Park. Down the steps from St. Kevin’s Arcade, past the grassy slopes, the children’s playground, the benches and that goat statue, there has been a transformation. The underpass for Mayoral Drive has gone from a barren, grey, concrete tunnel, to a place that thrums ...
    Greater AucklandBy Connor Sharp
    4 days ago
  • A major milestone: Global climate pollution may have just peaked

    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections Global society may have finally slammed on the brakes for climate-warming pollution released by human fossil fuel combustion. According to the Carbon Monitor Project, the total global climate pollution released between February and May 2024 declined slightly from the amount released during the same ...
    Skeptical Science
    4 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Tuesday, July 23

    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Tuesday, July 23 are:Deep Dive: Penlink: where tolling rhetoric meets reality BusinessDesk-$$$’s Oliver LewisScoop: Te Pūkenga plans for regional polytechs leak out ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Tuesday, July 23

    TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Tuesday, July 23, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:Health: Shane Reti announced the Board of Te Whatu Ora- Health New Zealand was being replaced with Commissioner Lester Levy ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • HealthNZ and Luxon at cross purposes over budget blowout

    Health NZ warned the Government at the end of March that it was running over Budget. But the reasons it gave were very different to those offered by the Prime Minister yesterday. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon blamed the “botched merger” of the 20 District Health Boards (DHBs) to create Health ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    4 days ago
  • 2500-3000 more healthcare staff expected to be fired, as Shane Reti blames Labour for a budget defic...

    Long ReadKey Summary: Although National increased the health budget by $1.4 billion in May, they used an old funding model to project health system costs, and never bothered to update their pre-election numbers. They were told during the Health Select Committees earlier in the year their budget amount was deficient, ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    4 days ago
  • Might Kamala Harris be about to get a 'stardust' moment like Jacinda Ardern?

    As a momentous, historic weekend in US politics unfolded, analysts and commentators grasped for precedents and comparisons to help explain the significance and power of the choice Joe Biden had made. The 46th president had swept the Democratic party’s primaries but just over 100 days from the election had chosen ...
    PunditBy Tim Watkin
    5 days ago
  • Solutions Interview: Steven Hail on MMT & ecological economics

    TL;DR: I’m casting around for new ideas and ways of thinking about Aotearoa’s political economy to find a few solutions to our cascading and self-reinforcing housing, poverty and climate crises.Associate Professor runs an online masters degree in the economics of sustainability at Torrens University in Australia and is organising ...
    The KakaBy Steven Hail
    5 days ago
  • Reported back

    The Finance and Expenditure Committee has reported back on National's Local Government (Water Services Preliminary Arrangements) Bill. The bill sets up water for privatisation, and was introduced under urgency, then rammed through select committee with no time even for local councils to make a proper submission. Naturally, national's select committee ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Vandrad the Viking, Christopher Coombes, and Literary Archaeology

    Some years ago, I bought a book at Dunedin’s Regent Booksale for $1.50. As one does. Vandrad the Viking (1898), by J. Storer Clouston, is an obscure book these days – I cannot find a proper online review – but soon it was sitting on my shelf, gathering dust alongside ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell On The Biden Withdrawal

    History is not on the side of the centre-left, when Democratic presidents fall behind in the polls and choose not to run for re-election. On both previous occasions in the past 75 years (Harry Truman in 1952, Lyndon Johnson in 1968) the Democrats proceeded to then lose the White House ...
    WerewolfBy lyndon
    5 days ago
  • Joe Biden's withdrawal puts the spotlight back on Kamala and the USA's complicated relatio...

    This is a free articleCoverageThis morning, US President Joe Biden announced his withdrawal from the Presidential race. And that is genuinely newsworthy. Thanks for your service, President Biden, and all the best to you and yours.However, the media in New Zealand, particularly the 1News nightly bulletin, has been breathlessly covering ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    5 days ago
  • Why we have to challenge our national fiscal assumptions

    A homeless person’s camp beside a blocked-off slipped damage walkway in Freeman’s Bay: we are chasing our tail on our worsening and inter-related housing, poverty and climate crises. Photo: Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Existential Crisis and Damaged Brains

    What has happened to it all?Crazy, some'd sayWhere is the life that I recognise?(Gone away)But I won't cry for yesterdayThere's an ordinary worldSomehow I have to findAnd as I try to make my wayTo the ordinary worldYesterday morning began as many others - what to write about today? I began ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • A speed limit is not a target, and yet…

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

    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Monday, July 22 are:Today’s Must Read: Father and son live in a tent, and have done for four years, in a million ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Monday, July 22

    TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Monday, July 22, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:US President Joe Biden announced via X this morning he would not stand for a second term.Multinational professional services firm ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #29

    A listing of 32 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, July 14, 2024 thru Sat, July 20, 2024. Story of the week As reflected by preponderance of coverage, our Story of the Week is Project 2025. Until now traveling ...
    Skeptical Science
    6 days ago
  • I'd like to share what I did this weekend

    This weekend, a friend pointed out someone who said they’d like to read my posts, but didn’t want to pay. And my first reaction was sympathy.I’ve already told folks that if they can’t comfortably subscribe, and would like to read, I’d be happy to offer free subscriptions. I don’t want ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    6 days ago
  • For the children – Why mere sentiment can be a misleading force in our lives, and lead to unex...

    National: The Party of ‘Law and Order’ IntroductionThis weekend, the Government formally kicked off one of their flagship policy programs: a military style boot camp that New Zealand has experimented with over the past 50 years. Cartoon credit: Guy BodyIt’s very popular with the National Party’s Law and Order image, ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    6 days ago
  • A friend in uncertain times

    Day one of the solo leg of my long journey home begins with my favourite sound: footfalls in an empty street. 5.00 am and it’s already light and already too warm, almost.If I can make the train that leaves Budapest later this hour I could be in Belgrade by nightfall; ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago
  • The Chaotic World of Male Diet Influencers

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

    Do you remember Y2K, the threat that hung over humanity in the closing days of the twentieth century? Horror scenarios of planes falling from the sky, electronic payments failing and ATMs refusing to dispense cash. As for your VCR following instructions and recording your favourite show - forget about it.All ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago
  • Bernard’s Saturday Soliloquy for the week to July 20

    Climate Change Minister Simon Watts being questioned by The Kākā’s Bernard Hickey.TL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 20 were:1. A strategy that fails Zero Carbon Act & Paris targetsThe National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government finally unveiled ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Pharmac Director, Climate Change Commissioner, Health NZ Directors – The latest to quit this m...

    Summary:As New Zealand loses at least 12 leaders in the public service space of health, climate, and pharmaceuticals, this month alone, directly in response to the Government’s policies and budget choices, what lies ahead may be darker than it appears. Tui examines some of those departures and draws a long ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    1 week ago
  • Flooding Housing Policy

    The Minister of Housing’s ambition is to reduce markedly the ratio of house prices to household incomes. If his strategy works it would transform the housing market, dramatically changing the prospects of housing as an investment.Leaving aside the Minister’s metaphor of ‘flooding the market’ I do not see how the ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    1 week ago
  • A Voyage Among the Vandals: Accepted (Again!)

    As previously noted, my historical fantasy piece, set in the fifth-century Mediterranean, was accepted for a Pirate Horror anthology, only for the anthology to later fall through. But in a good bit of news, it turned out that the story could indeed be re-marketed as sword and sorcery. As of ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    1 week ago
  • The Kākā's Chorus for Friday, July 19

    An employee of tobacco company Philip Morris International demonstrates a heated tobacco device. Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy on Friday, July 19 are:At a time when the Coalition Government is cutting spending on health, infrastructure, education, housing ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Friday, July 19

    TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 8:30 am on Friday, July 19 are:Scoop: NZ First Minister Casey Costello orders 50% cut to excise tax on heated tobacco products. The minister has ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Weekly Roundup 19-July-2024

    Kia ora, it’s time for another Friday roundup, in which we pull together some of the links and stories that caught our eye this week. Feel free to add more in the comments! Our header image this week shows a foggy day in Auckland town, captured by Patrick Reynolds. ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    1 week ago
  • Weekly Climate Wrap: A market-led plan for failure

    TL;DR : Here’s the top six items climate news for Aotearoa this week, as selected by Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer. A discussion recorded yesterday is in the video above and the audio of that sent onto the podcast feed.The Government released its draft Emissions Reduction ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Tobacco First

    Save some money, get rich and old, bring it back to Tobacco Road.Bring that dynamite and a crane, blow it up, start all over again.Roll up. Roll up. Or tailor made, if you prefer...Whether you’re selling ciggies, digging for gold, catching dolphins in your nets, or encouraging folks to flutter ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago
  • Trump’s Adopted Son.

    Waiting In The Wings: For truly, if Trump is America’s un-assassinated Caesar, then J.D. Vance is America’s Octavian, the Republic’s youthful undertaker – and its first Emperor.DONALD TRUMP’S SELECTION of James D. Vance as his running-mate bodes ill for the American republic. A fervent supporter of Viktor Orban, the “illiberal” prime ...
    Bowalley Road
    1 week ago
  • The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Friday, July 19

    TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 19, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:The PSA announced the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) had ruled in the PSA’s favour in its case against the Ministry ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago

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

    Australia, Canada and New Zealand today issued the following statement on the need for an urgent ceasefire in Gaza and the risk of expanded conflict between Hizballah and Israel. The situation in Gaza is catastrophic. The human suffering is unacceptable. It cannot continue.  We remain unequivocal in our condemnation of ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    18 hours ago
  • AG reminds institutions of legal obligations

    Attorney-General Judith Collins today reminded all State and faith-based institutions of their legal obligation to preserve records relevant to the safety and wellbeing of those in its care. “The Abuse in Care Inquiry’s report has found cases where records of the most vulnerable people in State and faith‑based institutions were ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    21 hours ago
  • More young people learning about digital safety

    Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government’s online safety website for children and young people has reached one million page views.  “It is great to see so many young people and their families accessing the site Keep It Real Online to learn how to stay safe online, and manage ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    21 hours ago
  • Speech to the Conference for General Practice 2024

    Tēnā tātou katoa,  Ngā mihi te rangi, ngā mihi te whenua, ngā mihi ki a koutou, kia ora mai koutou. Thank you for the opportunity to be here and the invitation to speak at this 50th anniversary conference. I acknowledge all those who have gone before us and paved the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    23 hours ago
  • Employers and payroll providers ready for tax changes

    New Zealand’s payroll providers have successfully prepared to ensure 3.5 million individuals will, from Wednesday next week, be able to keep more of what they earn each pay, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Revenue Minister Simon Watts.  “The Government's tax policy changes are legally effective from Wednesday. Delivering this tax ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Experimental vineyard futureproofs wine industry

    An experimental vineyard which will help futureproof the wine sector has been opened in Blenheim by Associate Regional Development Minister Mark Patterson. The covered vineyard, based at the New Zealand Wine Centre – Te Pokapū Wāina o Aotearoa, enables controlled environmental conditions. “The research that will be produced at the Experimental ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Funding confirmed for regions affected by North Island Weather Events

    The Coalition Government has confirmed the indicative regional breakdown of North Island Weather Event (NIWE) funding for state highway recovery projects funded through Budget 2024, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Regions in the North Island suffered extensive and devastating damage from Cyclone Gabrielle and the 2023 Auckland Anniversary Floods, and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Indonesian Foreign Minister to visit

    Indonesia’s Foreign Minister, Retno Marsudi, will visit New Zealand next week, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced.   “Indonesia is important to New Zealand’s security and economic interests and is our closest South East Asian neighbour,” says Mr Peters, who is currently in Laos to engage with South East Asian partners. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Strengthening partnership with Ngāti Maniapoto

    He aha te kai a te rangatira? He kōrero, he kōrero, he kōrero. The government has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the aspirations of Ngāti Maniapoto, Minister for Māori Development Tama Potaka says. “My thanks to Te Nehenehenui Trust – Ngāti Maniapoto for bringing their important kōrero to a ministerial ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Transport Minister thanks outgoing CAA Chair

    Transport Minister Simeon Brown has thanked outgoing Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority, Janice Fredric, for her service to the board.“I have received Ms Fredric’s resignation from the role of Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority,” Mr Brown says.“On behalf of the Government, I want to thank Ms Fredric for ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Test for Customary Marine Title being restored

    The Government is proposing legislation to overturn a Court of Appeal decision and amend the Marine and Coastal Area Act in order to restore Parliament’s test for Customary Marine Title, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says.  “Section 58 required an applicant group to prove they have exclusively used and occupied ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Opposition united in bad faith over ECE sector review

    Regulation Minister David Seymour says that opposition parties have united in bad faith, opposing what they claim are ‘dangerous changes’ to the Early Childhood Education sector, despite no changes even being proposed yet.  “Issues with affordability and availability of early childhood education, and the complexity of its regulation, has led ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Kiwis having their say on first regulatory review

    After receiving more than 740 submissions in the first 20 days, Regulation Minister David Seymour is asking the Ministry for Regulation to extend engagement on the early childhood education regulation review by an extra two weeks.  “The level of interest has been very high, and from the conversations I’ve been ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Government upgrading Lower North Island commuter rail

    The Coalition Government is investing $802.9 million into the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines as part of a funding agreement with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA), KiwiRail, and the Greater Wellington and Horizons Regional Councils to deliver more reliable services for commuters in the lower North Island, Transport Minister Simeon ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Government moves to ensure flood protection for Wairoa

    Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced his intention to appoint a Crown Manager to both Hawke’s Bay Regional and Wairoa District Councils to speed up the delivery of flood protection work in Wairoa."Recent severe weather events in Wairoa this year, combined with damage from Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023 have ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • PM speech to Parliament – Royal Commission of Inquiry’s Report into Abuse in Care

    Mr Speaker, this is a day that many New Zealanders who were abused in State care never thought would come. It’s the day that this Parliament accepts, with deep sorrow and regret, the Report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care.  At the heart of this report are the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Government acknowledges torture at Lake Alice

    For the first time, the Government is formally acknowledging some children and young people at Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital experienced torture. The final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care “Whanaketia – through pain and trauma, from darkness to light,” was tabled in Parliament ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Government acknowledges courageous abuse survivors

    The Government has acknowledged the nearly 2,400 courageous survivors who shared their experiences during the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State and Faith-Based Care. The final report from the largest and most complex public inquiry ever held in New Zealand, the Royal Commission Inquiry “Whanaketia – through ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Half a million people use tax calculator

    With a week to go before hard-working New Zealanders see personal income tax relief for the first time in fourteen years, 513,000 people have used the Budget tax calculator to see how much they will benefit, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis.  “Tax relief is long overdue. From next Wednesday, personal income ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Paid Parental Leave improvements pass first reading

    Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden says a bill that has passed its first reading will improve parental leave settings and give non-biological parents more flexibility as primary carer for their child. The Regulatory Systems Amendment Bill (No3), passed its first reading this morning. “It includes a change ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Rebuilding the economy through better regulation

    Two Bills designed to improve regulation and make it easier to do business have passed their first reading in Parliament, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. The Regulatory Systems (Economic Development) Amendment Bill and Regulatory Systems (Immigration and Workforce) Amendment Bill make key changes to legislation administered by the Ministry ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • ‘Open banking’ and ‘open electricity’ on the way

    New legislation paves the way for greater competition in sectors such as banking and electricity, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says. “Competitive markets boost productivity, create employment opportunities and lift living standards. To support competition, we need good quality regulation but, unfortunately, a recent OECD report ranked New ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Charity lotteries to be permitted to operate online

    Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says lotteries for charitable purposes, such as those run by the Heart Foundation, Coastguard NZ, and local hospices, will soon be allowed to operate online permanently. “Under current laws, these fundraising lotteries are only allowed to operate online until October 2024, after which ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Accelerating Northland Expressway

    The Coalition Government is accelerating work on the new four-lane expressway between Auckland and Whangārei as part of its Roads of National Significance programme, with an accelerated delivery model to deliver this project faster and more efficiently, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “For too long, the lack of resilient transport connections ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Sir Don to travel to Viet Nam as special envoy

    Sir Don McKinnon will travel to Viet Nam this week as a Special Envoy of the Government, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced.    “It is important that the Government give due recognition to the significant contributions that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made to New Zealand-Viet Nam relations,” Mr ...
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