Another day in John Key’s neo-liberal nightmare.
We have become a cruel, greedy, uncaring and selfish nation under his wretched leadership.
Uncaring.
Anyone who voted this government in.
A large proportion of New Zealand teenagers are living in poverty, a study has revealed.
The research from Auckland University showed almost one in five secondary school students and nearly half of all Pacific students were struggling.
Significant differences between ethnicities were highlighted, with about one third of Maori students living in households experiencing poverty.
Published in the International Journal for Equity in Health, the study used data from the Youth 2012 study of 8500 students.
It grouped students by household poverty based on nine indicators of deprivation:
* No car
* No phone
* No computer
* Parental worry about not having enough food
* More than two people sharing a bedroom
* No holidays with family
* Moving home more than twice a year
* Garages or living rooms used as bedrooms
* No parent at home with employment.
Students needed to report two or more indicators before being classed as experiencing poverty, while researchers also examined the interaction between household deprivation and depressive symptoms, smoking and obesity.
Senior lecturer and co-author of the report Dr Terry Fleming said some results mirrored those found by the Ministry of Social Development and the Child Poverty Action Group.
But the suggestion such a large proportion of Pacific youth were living in poverty was worrying.
“When you start excluding a community or ethnic group to that extent that’s pretty harmful.”
If children reported that their household was missing 2 of nine factors, then that was a hardship analog for poverty.
I might have no car, but I don’t have to get kids to school or sports practise.
I might have no holidays with family, but I can take a holiday any time.
I might have no computer at home, but this will not impact on my education.
I have a bedroom, but I only need one – I don’t have someone sleeping in my living room.
As soon as it’s not just about me, but about the kids I’m responsible for as well, then some of those indicators aren’t quite so easy to scoff at.
I see some quite poor people, never seen one without a phone! If no car is a sign of poverty then we must be a rich Nation. Haven’t we one of the highest rates of car ownership in the OECD> So if you dont have all 9 your not in poverty? I am not sure what your saying!
Your regular contributions to this site only confirm the point I make.
We have become a cruel, greedy, uncaring and selfish nation under Key’s wretched leadership
Yeah, this is a pretty silly set of indicators to use in such a blunt fashion, as clearly No car, No phone, No computer and no family holidays have other explanations than “poverty” as being the cause of them.
Instead it should be a points system, where you have to get 40 points to be considered in poverty, and things like no phone would score 10 points, whereas things like “garages or living rooms used as bedrooms” would count as 25 points.
I’m not sure that I’d want to raise kids without a phone or a car or a computer or even a family holiday for a week or so with relatives.
Me? I can do without three of those standing on my head. But if I were raising kids, they’re more important for the child’s education and socialisation.
1. Maybe you live very close to a library, and your child isn’t obsessed with screens so they don’t need constant access to a computer / internet.
2. Maybe you don’t have any relatives in the country to visit.
3. Maybe your family doesn’t have anyone who can or needs to drive a car, and your child is encouraged to use their own bike to get everywhere.
4. Maybe you just don’t need a phone, because you get on really closely with your neighbors and you just use theirs.
I’ll admit that #4 is a bit grasping, but the others aren’t too unreasonable.
My point is that not having 2 of those particular 4 things shouldn’t put you in to “poverty”. If you had 3 of those things, or 2 of those things + one of the other more important ones? Fine. But that’s why a more sophisticated scoring system should be used. I’m sure it wouldn’t take more than a few hours to come up with a system than it is better than simply “2 strikes and you’re out”.
The list conspicuously doesn’t mention anything about electricity being cut off or limited use of heating during winter due to prices, which are pretty good indicators as well. Better than “do you go on family holidays”.
Growing up, my family seldom went on holidays, because my parents were saving all their extra money to take us on a 5-week overseas holiday when I turned 12. Turns out they only needed 1/3rd of the money they eventually saved up, so when we came back they bought a car, a new computer and put an extension on the house. But we weren’t in poverty – it was just a choice my parents made.
You can put together a maybe about any of those factors. That doesn’t make it likely or reasonable. For example, these days “computer at home” is equivalent to “has school text books”.
The list mentions long term things that the kids would be aware of, because it’s the kids being surveyed. They wouldn’t know that, for example, a friend of mine turns off all home heating during winter whenever her kids are out.
But if you really want to critique the research, go read it rather than basing your criticism off a news report. And yes, some reasonably complex analyses are used to arrive at the deceptively simple “2 strikes” level reported in the news stories.
well anyone whithout a mobile phone would have an issue finding a job and may even could not keep a job if not ‘available’ on the ring of the bell.
anyone without a car especially rural or semi rural areas would have an issue finding a job, take kids to school or doctor or just go to the next supermarket – and would then be futher taxed by having to buy at a local dairy at a higher price
anyone without a computer or access to a computer and internet would have an issue finding a job or doing study / homework especially in rural semi rural areas where there may be a shortage of libraries that offer access to computer/printer/internet for free
anyone who can’t offer their children a holiday programme or can afford to take time of during school holidays (or even is permitted to do so) and need help from whanau to not leave children unsupervised during 8 weeks of summer holiday may want to disagree with you.
I think we need to see Point 1 – 9 not so much as luxury items. This is not the seventies anymore, people in this day and age can not well function without these items. Btw. I don’t have a mobile phone, but then i am 10 hours a day in my business and I have a landline. Not having a phone means literally that one is invisible and non existent.
Seriously what is poor for you? Half starved in a ditch?
I see some quite poor people, never seen one without a phone! If no car is a sign of poverty then we must be a rich Nation. Haven’t we one of the highest rates of car ownership in the OECD;
Your perceptions aren’t reality though, if you want reality talk to people from the Mission, Food banks and charities who see what’s going on every day.
All Russian sport to be banned from the Olympics due to doping.
Russian hooligans turn up in Marseille during Euro 2016
Anyone else think all this is just a bit too convenient given the war games NATO is playing in the Baltic, Poland and Ukraine at the moment?
Why, of course, the people don’t want war. Why would some poor slob on a farm want to risk his life in a war when the best that he can get out of it is to come back to his farm in one piece. Naturally, the common people don’t want war; neither in Russia nor in England nor in America, nor for that matter in Germany. That is understood. But, after all, it is the leaders of the country who determine the policy and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy or a fascist dictatorship or a Parliament or a Communist dictatorship…
Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same way in any country.
Russians banned from the Olympics? All the more medals for NZ.
So USA banned from the Olympics? Even more medals for NZ.
And ban Africa, Canada, Australia… 🙂
The media is the problem.
Propaganda about Corbyn, Syria, the Ukraine, Iraq…
Feed the plebs with stories about Instagram postings by celebrities.
The decline and fall of Rome had many similarities.
For the last 12 months I have had a $200 sub for an online Ancestory research program. It was OK, as it found a family 19 generations back. But watch out.
I had apparently ticked a box 12 months ago which said it would automatically roll over for another year. Which it did yesterday to the tune of $333. But I had gone as far as I wanted. Stop. I say stop and desist. They said I couldn’t stop. Committed! A phone call last night from I think the Philippines, and a fierce defence of my right to withdraw, and I may have had the contract cancelled.
My point is beware of what you sign up for!
The same goes for Adobe. I bought a month’s subscription to Photoshop a while ago to edit an add for the shop, my old version wouldn’t open the file so had to get the current one. Thought I’d selected all the right options for a single month, non-renewing subscription, but no. A month later Adobe are trying to take another month out of my card.
Unfortunately (for Adobe) they weren’t getting anywhere as I’d used a burner debit card (Loaded Card) that I use for online purchases. I transfer the required amount onto immediately prior to use and generally all’s good.
The upshot with Adobe is that they tried to get the payment for 21 days and then gave up. Adobe’s conditions turned out to be that subscriptions could only be canceled when the subscription was current, or would automatically renew. Adobe did say they would refund if it was canceled within a short time (10 days?). That all came out after the obligatory chat with the robot.
Moral of the story, try and read, and comprehend the conditions when you buy from these online outfits, and expect inertia marketing. It’s an insidious practice but how these globalised pricks roll.
But the process is pretty sneaky Graeme. I wonder how many people get caught out and are unable to know how to argue to cancel. Its a bit like the single phrase buried in pages of Insurance policies as opposed to key rules in big print. I think I will assume that they are all out to get me.
“I wonder how many people get caught out and are unable to know how to argue to cancel. ”
The answer to this is unfortunately a significant amount. Often the amounts aren’t that large, so cardholders don’t bother following up odd small transactions, then spending hours arguing with a robot or $2/hr call centre. A lot of card fraud also works like this, lots of small innocuous transactions adding up to a huge amount.
On the consumer protection side they give lip service and will try and negotiate the best deal for them that they can. The call centre location / robot algorithm is set up to maximise their opportunity. So you’ll end up arguing with someone from a culture with inherent negotiating abilities, and incentivised to get the best deal. The only moderation now is the power of social media, once their practices start to hurt them, they back off or run out of customers.
Another aspect to the online wide boys is taxation. Generally these purchases don’t attract any sales tax anywhere, and profits get a bit amorphous, so no income tax, anywhere.
Unfortunately (for Adobe) they weren’t getting anywhere as I’d used a burner debit card (Loaded Card) that I use for online purchases. I transfer the required amount onto immediately prior to use and generally all’s good.
The first three poverty factors of Paul’s survey are a joke when I think back on my life…. no car … cars were too expensive ….no phone …. even today I only need a phone to connect to the web …. No computer …. they were only in universities and Sinclair had not brought out the ZX80.
OK I know things change but perhaps people need to get a grip on what things really matter in life and starting out. Some of the other factors are suspect too like sleeping in the living-room and bedroom numbers. Well into ‘life’ I was living in a converted stable with just power and cold water, outside privy … maybe that was poverty but it was adequate and cheap …. I had been sleeping in the firm’s darkroom before somebody found a better place to live with her husband and passed the stable onto me.
You didn’t have a Sinclair ZX80 therefore there is no poverty in New Zealand. Do you even believe the shit you type?
OK, OK, I know that your entire sense of self-worth hangs on complete drivel, and examining it makes you uncomfortable, and it’s easier to simply regurgitate the lies you were spoonfed, but seriously; is that the best you can do?
As for the Auckland University study, I note your feeble attempt to belittle its provenance says lots about you and nothing at all about the study.
When I was young I had to walk uphill in bare feet both ways to get to the salt mines, kids today with their fancy shoes & smart phones don’t know how lucky they are, sarc.
1. Our cities have been designed to be car dependent making it essential to own a car. It’s not optional any more.
2. Did you know that it was a requirement to get the unemployment benefit to own a phone? WINZ don’t pay for the phone of course.
3. Computers to have become mandatory. They encase many things including schooling, political engagement, research and many other things that are part and parcel of today’s society.
If we followed your logic the Industrial Revolution would never have happened as nobody would have learned maths because back in my day we didn’t need it.
Draco …. Your points merely confirm my opinion of how society has gone on a wrong materialistic path …. I gather some call it Neoliberalism … a fancy word for a lack of common sense.
The first point was all about making profit. A car in each driveway produces far more profit than the entire number of buses needed to move a city. It’s actually a large part of the proof that the profit motive brings about the worst possible outcome rather than the best as our economists and RWNJs tell us.
The second point has to do with being contactable to get a job.
Those are the only two to do with neo-liberalism.
The third one has to do with being able to access the information needed to govern. Sure, a lot of people don’t use it for that but I’m also sure that that will change over time. It’s a large part of democracy.
And the only thing that can be said about common sense that old saw Common sense isn’t. Most of what’s passed off as ‘common sense’ is simply wrong.
“Governor Graeme Wheeler has today released proposed new urgent restrictions that will mean property investors across the country will need a deposit of at least 40 per cent….”
But that won’t stop investors will it? The equity in existing houses become the deposit for the next. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11677196
Really well planned?
Turkish officials would say that.
Organising a coup at 9.30 p.m. isn’t the best planning I can think of.
More and more people are questioning the reliability of the Guardian as a source after its pro-establishment line over Scotland, Brexit, Ukraine and Corbyn.
I note that you love to close down debate and discussion on many issues by using the words “conspiracy theories’. Is that by design?
Gwynne Dyer is an expert political commentator. He doesn’t buy the well planned argument.
It wasn’t a very competent coup attempt. The first rule of coup-making is: arrest or kill the person you are trying to overthrow. The coup leaders should have been able to grab Erdogan, who was on holiday at the seaside resort of Marmaris, but they didn’t.
They didn’t shut down the internet and social media either, so Erdogan was able to use his cellphone to get a message out on FaceTime, calling on his supporters to defy the soldiers on the streets of Istanbul and Ankara. They didn’t even shut down the broadcast media that sent Erdogan’s call out to the public.
It was three hours before they occupied the offices of TRT, the state broadcaster, and they were chased out again by Erdogan less than an hour later. They didn’t ever try to shut down the private television networks, which have a much bigger audience.
The second rule of coup-making is: act as if you mean it. This usually means that you have to be willing to kill people—but the colonels behind the coup (the generals were all vetted by Erdogan’s people) were reluctant to use large amounts of lethal force.
I like Rachel Stewart’s take.
”I’m pretty convinced that Turkey’s “coup” was about as staged as Milli Vanilli’s singing.”
Everyone has noticed how Erdogan already had purge lists of thousands of people drawn up and ready to go.
Next to be gone is 7000 police officers. (And the police stayed loyal to Erdogan during the coup).
One of the best theories I have seen is that what Ad references as a “well organised coup” was actually a parallel coup. Some military officials got wind that Erdogan was about to launch a massive purge which would catch thousands of them and other officials.
So they quickly organised and launched a rapid, pre-emptive coup ahead of Erdogan.
And failed.
So instead of being removed from their offices, now they are going to be shot.
(I think Erdogan will follow through with his threat to bring back civil capital punishment. Not that that’s an impediment to military tribunal capital punishment.)
This “really well planned coup” let CNN Turkey stay on the air, and let Erdogan do a Facetime appeal on the channel to hundreds of thousands of supporters to come out on the streets.
Then it appears that only a minority of military units took part in the coup, and most of them declined to use the force required to do their jobs. In fact, many coup soldiers looked bewildered and said that they had simply been told that they were on an exercise.
And Erdogan’s personal jet kept its transponder turned on up in the air for over an hour, and it wasn’t shot down even though the coup had interceptors in the air!
Ad, you do know Coup’s are by their very nature, are generally organised by a group of people, in secret. Or if you will, a secret group conspiring to overthrow a government?
So by definition it is a conspiracy, and like most conspiracies, it takes a long time to unravel them. So at present, the case put forward by the guardian, is just another conspiracy theory along with the rest.
All I know is the Kurds I know are freaking out. This is bad for them because Erdogan has reignited the civil war with them, he will use this as excuse to hurt the Kurds more. This is what we should be talking about. Not how a conspiracy has played out, because frankly, that is for historians.
Other home buyers will still need at least a 20% deposit.
But this time all the rules apply nationwide.
“A sharp correction in house prices is a key risk to the financial system, and there are clear signs that this risk is increasing across the country.”
-Graeme Wheeler, Governor of the Reserve bank of New Zealand.
Hopefully this has more effect than the last lot of measures.
CV is right. It is defiantly helping foreign investors and richer people a lot more than Kiwi Mums n Dads owning a 2nd property.
Everything this government does seems to be geared to help non residents and those paying no taxes here rather than people who live here. It is uncanny.
The Treasury has heavily criticised the government’s drug policy. It said (paraphrasing) “that instead of spending $400m a year on trying (and failing) to enforce the illegality of using cannabis it should instead legalise it such that it would gain $150m from taxes on its use.”
This is groundbreaking. Treasury, no less, are saying legalise cannabis. This will bring a gain of $550m to the public purse. Looks like a good policy option for Labour and Greens now that this has Treasury backing.
Well bombings in Brussels, trucks in Nice, ax attacks in Berlin, shootings in Paris, mass sex attacks in Cologne so yeah I think NZ is a better place at the moment
McClay admitted he received new information, while speaking with media on a trade trip to Indonesia.
“I’ve checked overnight and when I was in China I did receive some information from the embassy that an industry body made contact with a New Zealand company in China raising some concerns.
McClay using the old ‘didn’t get the email’ defence when he mis-spoke before.
and no we can’t expect the current National Party led government to do better cause free market, money needs to be made and surely Labour did it too at some stage over the last 100 years of its existence. so all is good in NZ.
+100…she was slagging off Mike Lee because he had an opinion on Auckland airport transport options. Apparently you have to agree with everything or resign. Complete bollocks. She has spent too much time talking to Key’s sheep in parliament….sorry “MP’s”.
Then someone texted in and asked that she declare her interest in supporting Bill Ralston to council. And boy, did she go off.
As usual, Mora and Edwards were utterly ineffective.
Commons votes for Trident renewal by majority of 355
Over half Labour MPs but not Jeremy Corbyn back motion after Theresa May says she would order nuclear strike
TL;DR: Here’s the top six news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa-NZ this week, and a discussion above that was recorded yesterday afternoon above between and The Kākā’s climate correspondent : An independent review panel into the emergency response to Cyclone Gabrielle in Hawkes Bayconcluded “that ...
There are now only a few days left to give feedback on the Draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) on Land Transport 2024-34 (see our earlier post this week on GPS submission guides). As we’ve reported, the GPS is a disaster for Local Government, so we were particularly interested to hear ...
Willis has pledged to go ahead with the debt-funded tax cuts, despite growing opposition from her own supporters worried about appearing fiscally irresponsible. 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 ...
Open access notables A survey of interventions to actively conserve the frozen North, van Wijngaarden et al., Climatic Change:The frozen elements of the high North are thawing as the region warms much faster than the global mean. The dangers of sea level rise due to melting glacier ice, increased ...
Bryce Edwards writes – New Zealand’s biggest-ever political donations scandal is finally at an end. But what is the conclusion? No one can really be sure. The Court of Appeal released its judgement on Tuesday about the Serious Fraud Office case against the NZ First Foundation. On ...
In 2015, then-Prime Minister John Key announced plans for a huge ocean sanctuary around the Kermadec Islands, banning fishing and mining from 15% of Aotearoa's EEZ. It was bold, it was ambitious, and it suggested that National might actually care about the environment. Except they fucked it up: Key failed ...
1. Who has just been given the accolade New Zealander of the Year?a. The Kokakob. The Cook Strait Ferryc. Fair God. Dr Jim Salinger 2. Which of these is an affront to decent society?a. Dame Edna Everageb. Mrs Doubtfire c. Dr. Frank-N-Furterd. Brian 3. Who is Penny Simmonds?a. The aspiring actress in Big ...
New Zealand’s biggest-ever political donations scandal is finally at an end. But what is the conclusion? No one can really be sure.The Court of Appeal released its judgement on Tuesday about the Serious Fraud Office case against the NZ First Foundation. On the face of it, the court found ...
Buzz from the Beehive Waves of rain are set to lash much of the North Island during Easter Weekend as a low-pressure system forms east of New Zealand, according to a weather forecast published in the past day or so. Niwa was warning of a “moisture-laden” long weekend, with rain expected ...
Look around us…Nicola Willis’ promises of balancing the books, of cutting spending without reducing services, and of delivering game changing tax cuts are disappearing before her eyes.Everyday we see stories of violent crime ending in horrific injuries, or worse. The cost of living worsens, whereas the PM claimed renters would ...
TL;DR: My top six news of note on the morning of Thursday, March 28 include:The Government will have to borrow between $10 billion to $15 billion more than previously expected in order to make up for a slowing economy and to pay for $14.9 billion of tax cuts, according to ...
This story by Naveena Sadasivam and Kate Yoder was originally published by Grist and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. The long-awaited jobs board for the American Climate Corps, promised early in the Biden administration, will open next month, according to details shared exclusively ...
Should landlords be able to deduct the interest on the loans they take out to bankroll their property speculation? The US Senate Budget Committee and Bloomberg News don’t think this is a good idea, for reasons set out below. Regardless, our coalition government has been burning through a ton of ...
Treasury’s first report on the economy since the change of government presents a damning indictment of Labour’s economic management. The problem for National is that it is so damning that logically, coupled with a rapidly slowing economy, Finance Minister Nicola Willis should respond to it by postponing or even cancelling ...
Budget tensions are becoming evident within the Coalition Government. Winston Peters made numerous political points in his speech to the NZF annual conference. But the attack on his own government’s fiscal policies raised issues of substance. ‘Today in the Sunday Star Times, journalist and former advisor to the Labour ...
Buzz from the Beehive The media – sure enough – have been binging on Finance Minister Nicola Willis’ release of the Budget Policy Statement and a statement headed Government announces Budget priorities This assures us – or rather, this parrots the Luxon team mantra – that the Budget “will deliver ...
The Ides of March brought me COVID followed by a bereavement. No wonder they tell you to be careful of them.I’m home now and have resumed the interrupted recuperation. Very much looking forward to getting back to regular things. Meanwhile, some thoughts…OneThis new Prime Minister guy just keeps getting more dire. ...
News that the Chinese ATP 40 cyber-hacking unit penetrated parliamentary internet networks in 2021 has renewed concerns about the PRC’s malign intentions in Aotearoa. But is the hack that significant given the length of time that has passed since its … Continue reading → ...
When Parliament passed the Intelligence and security Act in 2017, they assured us all that it was full of safeguards. Any intrusive surveillance of New Zealanders would be subject to a "triple lock", requiring the approval of the Minister and (supposedly independent) Commissioner of Intelligence Warrants, as well as post-facto ...
Eric Crampton writes – Richard Harman’s Politik newsletter provides a bit of the context that ought to have been showing up in other media reports on potential reductions in public service staffing. Media has been reporting on staffing cuts on the order of about 7%. Is that ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – It’s becoming increasingly apparent that many perceive free speech to have become the preserve of the politically right wing, the religiously conservative, the libertarian fringe, the anti-trans, the anti-Māori and…. well, just fill in with whatever groups or individuals you don’t like and don’t ...
Don Brash writes – As everybody who is not blind and deaf is aware, there is a huge political preoccupation with climate change at the moment, a widespread (though by no means unanimous) belief that global temperatures are rising mainly as a result of the greenhouse gases created ...
TL;DR: My six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy on Wednesday, March 27 include:Chris Bishop laid out his vision for filling Aotearoa-NZ’s $100 billion infrastructure deficit in a speech yesterday, emphasising user pays and private funding, but failed to say how to achieve bipartisanship on population, public borrowing and ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Former Finance Minister Grant Robertson and former Prime Minister Chris Hipkins have been conveying how unhappy they are with the tax system. Last week in his valedictory speech, Robertson called for the introduction of a wealth or capital gains tax. And this week Hipkins ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
Buzz from the Beehive China has loomed large in Beehive considerations over the past 24 hours, largely because of that country’s mischief-making in the cyber espionage department. Two media statements emerged on that subject hard on the heels of the PM baulking at questions put to him on RNZ’s Morning ...
Chris Trotter writes – WHY IS THE NATIONAL PARTY doing so much for landlords, property developers, trucking, and construction companies, and so little for everybody who isn’t already pretty well-off? It’s as if protecting landlords’ investments and building apartments and roads now constitute the whole of National’s ...
Bryce Edwards writes – When she was campaigning to be Minister of Finance last year, Nicola Willis pledged that she would resign from the job if she failed to deliver tax cuts in her first Budget. Now, it’s that pledge, along with Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s ...
Robert MacCulloch writes – The Reserve Bank has doubled staff numbers in five years to 510, with personnel costs rising to $80 million in 2023 from $32 million in 2018 – up by a whopping 150%. I guess when you print $50 billion and flood markets with liquidity, ...
The furore. In case you didn’t notice there was a controversy in the weekend involving dolphins in a little town off the South Island. Don’t panic, they haven’t declared independence and resumed whaling, this was simply a sailing event.The problem began when racing was cancelled on the opening day of ...
For 20 years or more, the case for a meaningful capital tax gains has been mulled over and analysed to death, including by the tax working group chaired by Sir Michael Cullen. More than once, the International Monetary Fund has said a CGT would be a good idea for New ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: The Public Health Communications Centre (PHCC) call for urgent preventive action and a risk assessment survey of long covid in this briefing noteLocal scoop: NZ road deaths surpass OECD rates, so why is the govt reversing safety plans? ...
This story was originally published by Grist and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. This story is part of a collaboration with Grist and WABE to demystify the Georgia Public Service Commission, the small but powerful state-elected board that makes critical decisions about everything from raising ...
This is a guest post from Robert McLachlan Global warming is accelerating; 2023 was off the charts. We need to stop burning fossil fuels. In New Zealand, transport accounts for half of all fossil fuels burnt. In the Emissions Reduction Plan, transport emissions fall 41% by 2035. As the ...
Labour productivity has been receding rapidly over the past two years, reversing a post-lockdown rise. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy as at 6:26am on Tuesday, March 26 include:Workers have been treading water in output per hour worked for 12 years, ...
TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to April 2 include:Today, Parliament resumes sitting at 2pm for the second week of a two-week session. Officials for SIS and GCSB report their annual reviews in public to the Intelligence and Security Select Committee from 5.10pm.Tomorrow, ...
Faced with a barrage of criticism over the promised tax cuts from usually supportive commentators, Finance Minister Nicola Willis yesterday reaffirmed her intention to include them in this year’s Budget. The Government is up against it over the cuts just about every way it turns. Commentators like Fran O’Sullivan, Matthew ...
Here’s my pick of today’s substack posts as of 6:26pm on Monday, March 25: writes via his substack that Market-rate housing will make your city cheaper writes via his substack about the problems talking to double-cab ute (truck) drivers about their vehicles. today about moments of radicalisation in ...
Buzz from the Beehive Just before Christmas, Finance Minister Nicola Willis delivered something that was pitched as a mini-budget and brayed about the decisive action being taken to repair the Government books and support income tax relief in Budget 2024. In a statement headed Fiscal repair job underway. she introduced ...
My sister Belinda asked Dad yesterday what one word would describe Mum best. He said: vivacious.If you only knew her from the photos on the slideshow we've made for today,you might wonder about that, because the camera tended to lie with Mum.If ever she saw a camera pointed at her, she ...
There are two major public consultations closing in the next week, Auckland Council’s Long Term Plan (LTP), and the draft Government Policy Statement on Land Transport (GPS). Closing dates and times: LTP closes Thursday 28 February, at 11.59pm – a minute to midnight! GPS closes Tuesday 2 April, at 12pm noon – note that’s ...
From Kiwiblog’s David Farrar – Bryce Wilkinson writes: Senior Fellow Bryce Wilkinson’s analysis reveals that since March 2009, New Zealand has spent $158 billion more overseas than it has earned, but its NIIP has only fallen by $32 billion.Statistics New Zealand shows that receipts from overseas reinsurers have ...
Is she hinting that the Coalition Government will have to back down on key promises it made in Opposition? Brian Easton writes – The Minister of Finance, Nicola Willis, is telling an evolving story about her fiscal challenges. In Opposition she was confident that she could ...
Dear Nicola Willis,Right now you’ve probably got lots of competing demands coming at you. Ministers who’ve inherited quite a mess, or so you’ve told us, looking for money in the budget to improve things. I imagine that’s why they came to parliament - to make things better.You’ll have to make ...
The Local Government, Transport and Auckland Minister hasthreatened councils with intervention if they don’t merge water assets to take them off balance sheet, just as the now-repealed Three Waters plan directed. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My six things of note this morning for Monday, March 25 include:Simeon ...
A listing of 36 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 17, 2024 thru Sat, March 23, 2024. Story of the week Thanks to John Mason having the stamina to sit down to watch "Climate - the Movie" ...
This morning the Q&A programme had Simeon Brown on to talk about National’s replacement for Three Waters. In case anyone’s forgotten the three are - drinking water, waste water, and sewerage. It’s quite important not to get them mixed up. In much the same way that you wouldn’t want to ...
Today’s newsletter comes with a mini-podcast conversation between me and my buddy Liv Tennet, talking about her time as a child actor in Lord of the Rings. It’s a conversation with a lot of giggles as she talks about falling off a horse, and becoming a meme. Read ...
The Desmog Climate Disinformation Database documents, "individuals and organisations that have helped to delay and distract the public and our elected leaders from taking needed action to reduce greenhouse gas pollution and fight global warming." It's a who's who of the organised climate change denial movement, in other words. In ...
Bob Edlin writes – A High Court judge has decided miscreants who have mana – or who claim to have mana – should be treated differently from miscreants who have none. It’s a ruling that suggests indigenous law-breakers have a better chance of securing a discharge without conviction ...
Welcome to the first, and possibly last, edition of Brickbats, Bouquets and Bull’s Wool. In which I’ll take a look at the events of the last week or so, and rate them.In such ratings the numbers usually have more to do with the opinions of the reviewer, than the actual ...
Roger Partridge writes – My earlier column this month, New Zealand’s highest court could be facing a turning point, prompted a flood of feedback from business readers and lawyers alike. A common query was what Parliament can do to restrain an overreaching judiciary. This week I discuss two steps Parliament ...
TL;DR: In today’s ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.16pm on Friday, March 22: writes about New Zealand's Building Boom—And What the World Must Learn From It over at his substack. challenges the Auckland Council’s use of a 3.8 degrees of warming forecast to oppose a wave-park and data centre project ...
Is she hinting that the Coalition Government will have to back down on key promises it made in Opposition?The Minister of Finance, Nicola Willis, is telling an evolving story about her fiscal challenges. In Opposition she was confident that she could deliver her promised income tax cuts. Appointed minister, she ...
Buzz from the Beehive Ministers of the Crown have drawn attention to one sector of the science sector which is unlikely to be subjected to heavy spending cuts, a state-funded broadcaster which is doing nicely, thank you, and a sporting event that had $5.4 million from the public purse puffed ...
Abbott’s Freestyle Libre sensors allow continuous glucose monitoring (CGM). The sensor is applied to the back of the patient’s arm, with a thin filament under the skin measuring glucose levels constantly. But it costs around $100 per sensor and must be replaced once every 14 days. Photo by BSIP/Universal Images ...
The Inspector General of Intelligence and Security (IGIS) recently released a report in which he exposes the existence of a foreign intelligence partner-controlled technological “capability” inside the headquarters of the GCSB, NZ’s 5 Eyes-affiliated signals intelligence collection and analysis agency. … Continue reading → ...
Peter Dunne writes – Nearly three decades after the introduction of MMP and multiparty governments there should be a greater level of understanding about their finer points than often appears to be the case. The reaction to the despicable outburst from the Deputy Prime Minister at the weekend highlights ...
The sweet kisses from fruit of summerHave slowly been turning dullerYou say, "those times"And "remember the daysWhen we went outside and there still was the shade?"Taking no reason into play…Autumn. Clear, blue days shortening to longer nights, growing colder. Aotearoa.That’s us. The temperature dropping, the looming car crash - so ...
Bryce Edwards writes – “It is often said that behind every great man is a great woman”. This is the pitch by the National Party Botany electorate branch to attend their “Ladies Afternoon Tea with Amanda Luxon”. For $110 including GST, you can turn up on Saturday 20 April ...
David Farrar writes – The Electoral Commission has published the expense returns for political parties for the 2023 election. I’ve put them in a table with how many votes a party got so we can see the spend per vote. National only spent $3.34 for every vote they got, almost ...
Winston Peters’ headline-making actions over the past week may have been a show of political power intended to strengthen his hand in Budget negotiations. It was no accident that his State of the Nation speech was as it was. He made it as New Zealand First Leader, not as Deputy ...
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:Former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson bowed out of politics this week, giving a series of exit ...
Graham Adams writes — If you love the law or sausages, as the saying goes, best not to look too closely at how they are made. And after watching the orgy of self-pity when Newshub’s closure was announced on February 28, television journalism should definitely be added to the list of those ...
Venerable New Zealand political commentator, Chris Trotter (https://bowalleyroad.blogspot.com/), is a sad creature these days. Once one of the most reliable Leftist writers out there – Economic Left at that – Trotter seems to have absorbed the worldview of Auckland culture-war obsessives. It is not for me to categorise what he ...
The cruelty of short-term memory loss is that each time you ask where she is, you get the fresh shock and grief of the news. That was Dad's day yesterday.Comfortingly, it seems to be less so today. Last night he looked crumpled, today he seems more settled. There's a card ...
Photo by Alvan Nee on UnsplashIt’s that new day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when and I co-host our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm. Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream for our chat about the week’s news ...
Buzz from the Beehive One minister is talking tough while a colleague – whose ministry had acted tough and drawn a barrage of flak – has shown an official softening. Some ministers are doing what Labour was good at, which is distributing public funds to causes regarded as worthy or ...
The Coalition Government’s plan to ‘get Auckland moving’ is a cuts cover-up that will ultimately cost Aucklanders more to move around the city, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Slashing the Ministry of Pacific Peoples by 40% will have a devastating impact on pacific communities and further highlights how little this government cares about anything other than cutting taxes for the wealthiest few. ...
Labour has proposed an urgent inquiry to investigate the ever-increasing profits of supermarkets, aiming to lower costs for shoppers and food producers alike, says Labour Spokesperson for Commerce and Consumer Affairs Arena Williams and Primary Production Spokesperson Cushla Tangaere-Manuel. ...
With 14% of jobs on the line at the Ministry for Ethnic Communities, the responsible Minister Melissa Lee is failing to stand up for the very communities she’s meant to be representing. ...
COURT OF APPEAL: TRIFECTA OF VICTORY FOR NZ FIRST, TRIFECTA OF FAILURE FOR OPPONENTS For the third time since April 2020, New Zealand First has defeated the Serious Fraud Office and all those complicit in a malicious attack against a political party going about its lawful business in a lawful ...
The Green Party stands with people who live in public housing, people in dire housing need, experts and advocates in demanding better than the Government’s archaic approach to housing those who need our support the most. ...
New Zealand has recently lost the hosting rights of some major international sporting events including the America’s Cup, the Rugby Championship, Netball World Cup, and the Wellington Sevens. We are now at a huge risk of losing SailGP as well. And it won’t stop there. The recent issues with SailGP ...
A Member’s Bill drawn this week would modernise insurance law and make things fairer and more transparent for consumers, Christchurch Central MP Duncan Webb said. ...
The Minister for Disability Issues has confirmed she was aware of funding issues in mid-December and did nothing to stop it. On 14 March, she signed off on changes that were announced and implemented on 18 March without any consultation with disability communities. ...
Green Party MP Julie Anne Genter says her members' bill is an opportunity for the coalition government to plug the gap in electric vehicle incentives. ...
The National Government continues to talk about irresponsible tax cuts that will only drive up inflation, despite the country entering a technical recession. ...
The Minister for Disability Issues must act urgently to reinstate flexibility around the funding for disability support and apologise to disabled carers. ...
This story has been initiated by a leftie shill reporter who proactively sought to call a member of a former band, which disbanded twelve years ago, give their biased appraisal of what was said in my speech, and concocted a ham-fisted attempt at a story that does nothing but show ...
The Government has accepted Labour’s change to the Road User Charge (RUC) discount for hybrid vehicles, meaning there will still be some incentive for people to buy greener vehicles. ...
Many in the mainstream media have taken what was said in New Zealand First’s State of the Nation Speech in Palmerston North on Sunday and deliberately, deceitfully, and ignorantly misrepresented what I said and why I said it. The headlines and commentary on the news stated that I compared ‘co-governance ...
Kicking the most vulnerable people out of state housing and pushing them towards homelessness will result in a proliferation of poverty and trauma across our most vulnerable communities. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader and MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi has penned a letter asking MPs to support his members bill to remove GST from all food. The bill is expected to go through its first reading in parliament this Wednesday. “I’m calling on all political parties to support my ...
Good afternoon. Thank you for, in your very busy lives, turning up to this meeting today. On October 14th last year New Zealanders overwhelmingly voted for change. That is exactly what this new government is bringing. New Zealand First campaigned to ‘take back our country’ and stop the disastrous economic ...
This year is about getting real with Kiwis and discussing the tough issues, as the National Government exacerbates inequality and divides New Zealand, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said ...
The Government adding Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) to its already roaring environmental policy bonfire is an assault on the future of wildlife that makes Aotearoa unique. ...
After 12 years of fighting to protect our moana we are finding ourselves back at square one and back at court. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is sitting in Hawera to reconsider an application from Trans-Tasman Resources to dig up 50 million tonnes of the seabed in South Taranaki. This ...
Minister Shane Jones’ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Government’s fast-track 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 publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
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 publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Government’s miscalculation saga continues as it has forgotten an eyewatering $90 million gap in its interest deductibility cost figures, say Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds and Revenue Spokesperson Deborah Russell. ...
He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission has today released advice that says if the Government doesn’t act now New Zealand is at risk of not meeting its climate goals. ...
The Coalition Government has today confirmed it is abandoning first home buyers who are struggling to get ahead, says Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds. ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed the passing of legislation to move light electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) into the road user charges system from 1 April. “It was always intended that EVs and PHEVs would be exempt from road user charges until they reached two ...
New Zealand is strengthening its ability to combat illegal fishing outside its domestic waters and beef up regulation for its own commercial fishers in international waters through a Bill which had its first reading in Parliament today. The Fisheries (International Fishing and Other Matters) Amendment Bill 2023 sets out stronger ...
Economists Carl Hansen and Professor Prasanna Gai have been appointed to the Reserve Bank Monetary Policy Committee, Finance Minister Nicola Willis announced today. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is the independent decision-making body that sets the Official Cash Rate which determines interest rates. Carl Hansen, the executive director of Capital ...
Apartment owners and buyers will soon have greater protections as further changes to the law on unit titles come into effect, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “The Unit Titles (Strengthening Body Corporate Governance and Other Matters) Amendment Act had already introduced some changes in December 2022 and May 2023, and ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters will travel to Egypt and Europe from this weekend. “This travel will focus on a range of New Zealand’s traditional diplomatic and security partnerships while enabling broad engagement on the urgent situation in Gaza,” Mr Peters says. Mr Peters will attend the NATO Foreign ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown is encouraging all road users to stay safe, plan their journeys ahead of time, and be patient with other drivers while travelling around this Easter long weekend. “Road safety is a responsibility we all share, and with increased traffic on our roads expected this Easter we ...
About 1.4 million New Zealanders will receive cost of living relief through increased government assistance from April 1 909,000 pensioners get a boost to Superannuation, including 5000 veterans 371,000 working-age beneficiaries will get higher payments 45,000 students will see an increase in their allowance Over a quarter of New Zealanders ...
Ensuring social housing is being provided to those with the greatest needs is front of mind as the Government restarts social housing tenancy reviews, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. “Our relentless focus on building a strong economy is to ensure we can deliver better public services such as social ...
The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary will not go ahead, with Cabinet deciding to stop work on the proposed reserve and remove the Bill that would have established it from Parliament’s order paper. “The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary Bill would have created a 620,000 sq km economic no-go zone,” Oceans and Fisheries Minister ...
Dam safety regulations are being amended so that smaller dams won’t be subject to excessive compliance costs, Minister for Building and Construction Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on reducing costs and removing unnecessary red tape so we can get the economy back on track. “Dam safety regulations ...
The coalition Government is expanding the medium-scale adverse event classification to parts of the North Island as dry weather conditions persist, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced today. “I have made the decision to expand the medium-scale adverse event classification already in place for parts of the South Island to also cover the ...
The passing of legislation giving effect to coalition Government tax commitments has been welcomed by Finance Minister Nicola Willis. “The Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill will help place New Zealand on a more secure economic footing, improve outcomes for New Zealanders, and make our tax system ...
Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins and Tertiary Education and Skills Minister Penny Simmonds today announced plans to transform our science and university sectors to boost the economy. Two advisory groups, chaired by Professor Sir Peter Gluckman, will advise the Government on how these sectors can play a greater ...
The Budget will deliver urgently-needed tax relief to hard-working New Zealanders while putting the government’s finances back on a sustainable track, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The Finance Minister made the comments at the release of the Budget Policy Statement setting out the Government’s Budget objectives. “The coalition Government intends ...
The coalition Government will look at options to address a zoning issue that limits how much financial support Queenstown residents can get for accommodation. Cabinet has agreed on a response to the Petitions Committee, which had recommended the geographic information MSD uses to determine how much accommodation supplement can be ...
Cabinet has agreed to a short extension to the final reporting timeframe for the Royal Commission into Abuse in Care from 28 March 2024 to 26 June 2024, Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden says. “The Royal Commission wrote to me on 16 February 2024, requesting that I consider an ...
The coalition Government is delivering an $18 million boost to New Zealanders needing to travel for specialist health treatment, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says. “These changes are long overdue – the National Travel Assistance (NTA) scheme saw its last increase to mileage and accommodation rates way back in 2009. ...
The Government is recognising the innovative and rising talent in New Zealand’s growing space sector, with the Prime Minister and Space Minister Judith Collins announcing the new Prime Minister’s Prizes for Space today. “New Zealand has a growing reputation as a high-value partner for space missions and research. I am ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has confirmed New Zealand’s concerns about cyber activity have been conveyed directly to the Chinese Government. “The Prime Minister and Minister Collins have expressed concerns today about malicious cyber activity, attributed to groups sponsored by the Chinese Government, targeting democratic institutions in both New ...
Independent Reviewers appointed for School Property Inquiry Education Minister Erica Stanford today announced the appointment of three independent reviewers to lead the Ministerial Inquiry into the Ministry of Education’s School Property Function. The Inquiry will be led by former Minister of Foreign Affairs Murray McCully. “There is a clear need ...
State Highway 1 across the Brynderwyns will be open for Easter weekend, with work currently underway to ensure the resilience of this critical route being paused for Easter Weekend to allow holiday makers to travel north, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Today I visited the Brynderwyn Hills construction site, where ...
Introduction Good morning to you all, and thanks for having me bright and early today. I am absolutely delighted to be the Minister for Infrastructure alongside the Minister of Housing and Resource Management Reform. I know the Prime Minister sees the three roles as closely connected and he wants me ...
New Zealand stands with the United Kingdom in its condemnation of People’s Republic of China (PRC) state-backed malicious cyber activity impacting its Electoral Commission and targeting Members of the UK Parliament. “The use of cyber-enabled espionage operations to interfere with democratic institutions and processes anywhere is unacceptable,” Minister Responsible for ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Defence Minister Judith Collins today announced New Zealand will provide logistics support for the upcoming Solomon Islands election. “We’re sending a team of New Zealand Defence Force personnel and two NH90 helicopters to provide logistics support for the election on 17 April, at the request ...
The European Union Free Trade Agreement Legislation Amendment Bill received Royal Assent today, completing the process for New Zealand’s ratification of its free trade agreement with the European Union. “I am pleased to announce that today, in a small ceremony at the Beehive, New Zealand notified the European Union ...
Public consultation on the terms of reference for the Royal Commission into COVID-19 Lessons has concluded, Internal Affairs Minister Hon Brooke van Velden says. “I have been advised that there were over 11,000 submissions made through the Royal Commission’s online consultation portal.” Expanding the scope of the Royal Commission of ...
Hardworking families are set to benefit from a new credit to help them meet their early childcare education (ECE) costs, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. From 1 July, parents and caregivers of young children will be supported to manage the rising cost of living with a partial reimbursement of their ...
A specialised Independent Technical Advisory Group (ITAG) tasked with preparing and publishing independent non-binding advice on the design of a "green" (sustainable finance) taxonomy rulebook is being established, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “Comprising experts and market participants, the ITAG's primary goal is to deliver comprehensive recommendations to the ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins has thanked the Chief of Army, Major General John Boswell, DSD, for his service as he leaves the Army after 40 years. “I would like to thank Major General Boswell for his contribution to the Army and the wider New Zealand Defence Force, undertaking many different ...
25 March 2024 Minister to meet Australian counterparts and Manufacturing Industry Leaders Small Business, Manufacturing, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly will travel to Australia for a series of bi-lateral meetings and manufacturing visits. During the visit, Minister Bayly will meet with his Australian counterparts, Senator Tim Ayres, Ed ...
Government commits almost $3 million for period products in schools The Coalition Government has committed $2.9 million to ensure intermediate and secondary schools continue providing period products to those who need them, Minister of Education Erica Stanford announced today. “This is an issue of dignity and ensuring young women don’t ...
Good morning, it’s great to be here. First, I would like to acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of Building Surveyors and thank you for the opportunity to be here this morning. I would like to use this opportunity to outline the Government’s ambitious plan and what we hope to ...
Minister for Pacific Peoples Dr Shane Reti has announced the Government’s commitment to the Auckland Secondary Schools Māori and Pacific Islands Cultural Festival, more commonly known as Polyfest. “The Ministry for Pacific Peoples is a longtime supporter of Polyfest and, as it celebrates 49 years in 2024, I’m proud to ...
Before moving onto the substance of today’s address, I want to recognise the very significant and ongoing contribution the Breast Cancer Foundation makes to support the lives of New Zealand women and their families living with breast cancer. I very much enjoy working with you. I also want to recognise ...
New Zealand has notched up a first with the launch of University of Canterbury research to the International Space Station, Science, Innovation and Technology and Space Minister Judith Collins says. The hardware, developed by Dr Sarah Kessans, is designed to operate autonomously in orbit, allowing scientists on Earth to study ...
Introduction Thank you for inviting me to speak with you today and I’m sorry I can’t be there in person. Yesterday I started in Wellington for Breakfast TV, spoke to a property conference in Auckland, and finished the day speaking to local government in Christchurch, so it would have been ...
The Coalition Government is contributing more than $1 million to support the establishment of an emergency multi-agency coordination centre in Northland. Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell announced the contribution today during a visit of the Whangārei site where the facility will be constructed. “Northland has faced a number ...
New Zealanders have enjoyed a broader range of voices telling the story of Aotearoa thanks to the creation of Whakaata Māori 20 years ago, says Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka. The minister spoke at a celebration marking the national indigenous media organisation’s 20th anniversary at their studio in Auckland on ...
Commercial catch limits for some fisheries have been increased following a review showing stocks are healthy and abundant, Ocean and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The changes, along with some other catch limit changes and management settings, begin coming into effect from 1 April 2024. "Regular biannual reviews of fish ...
Analysis by Keith Rankin. Keith Rankin, trained as an economic historian, is a retired lecturer in Economics and Statistics. He lives in Auckland, New Zealand. My earlier article – Can ‘Good’ be the Greater Evil? – looked at the issue of how wars should end, and how Good versus Evil ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 AMMA by Saraid de Silva (Moa Press, $38)A stunning debut novel reviewed by Brannavan ...
From Steve Martin to Ricky Stanicky, a pick’n’mix of things worth watching and listening to this long weekend. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. If you’re at a loss for something to occupy yourself with this Easter, don’t panic: The Spinoff’s got ...
Jesus had dinner with his 12 disciples right before he died. Noted historian Madeleine Chapman finds out who really deserved to be there.First published in 2018 but let’s be honest, the subject is timeless. As you sit on your couch this Easter Sunday, eating a chocolate egg you know ...
The newly-promoted Northern League club is on a mission to return to the National League for the first time in two decades. Plenty about domestic football in New Zealand has changed in that time – but the sense that this amateur competition is not an entirely level playing field remains. ...
Comment: Every year on February 2, a dozen men in tuxedos and top hats approach the burrow of a groundhog in Gobbler’s Knob, Pennsylvania and entice the beaver-like rodent to emerge and predict the weather. If the groundhog, named Punxsutawney Phil, sees its own shadow when it is summoned, legend ...
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[quiz],DIV[quiz],A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp'); Got a good quiz question?Send Newsroom your questions. The post Newsroom daily quiz, Friday 29 March appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Auckland Council has put a deadline on new weather-impacted property owners applying for categorisation as government funding looks set to run out. Councillors have voted to support a deadline of September 30 for property owners who haven’t accessed support to come forward and engage with the council’s recovery office. It ...
NONFICTION 1 BBQ Economics by Liam Dann (Penguin Random House, $40) “It’s official,” wrote Dann nine days ago in the Herald, where he works as business editor at large, “we’re in recession.” Yeah, great. He delivered the bad stats: “GDP fell 0.1 percent in the December 2023 quarter, compared with ...
By Anneke Smith, RNZ News political reporter A petition urging the New Zealand government to provide urgent humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian people has been tabled in the House. More than 200 people gathered on Parliament’s forecourt today and they were met by MPs from Labour, the Greens and Te ...
Pacific Media Watch The Paris-based global media freedom watchdog RSF (Reporters Without Borders) has appealed for information about the “disappearance” of Palestinian journalist Bayan Abusultan. She was reportedly last seen on March 19 among people “sequestered” in this week’s raid and siege of Al Shifa hospital by Israeli troops in ...
EDITORIAL:The Jakarta Post It happens again and again; indigenous Papuans fall victim to Indonesian soldiers. This time, we have photographic evidence for the brutality, with videos on social media showing a Papuan man being tortured by a group of plainclothes men alleged to be the Indonesian Military (TNI) members. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robyn J. Whitaker, Director of the Wesley Centre for Theology, Ethics, and Public Policy & Associate Professor, New Testament, Pilgrim Theological College, University of Divinity A strange and eclectic range of activities takes place across these few weeks of the year. Some ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Panizza Allmark, Professor Visual & Cultural Studies, Edith Cowan University It’s Easter weekend, which means many of us will be kicking back with the greatest hits on repeat. But whether you’re a boomer, or an ‘80s or ’90s kid, you might be ...
RNZ Pacific Fiji’s Acting Public Prosecutor has filed an appeal against the sentences of former prime minister Voreqe Bainimarama and suspended police chief Sitiveni Qiliho in their corruption case. Bainimarama was granted an absolute discharge for attempting to pervert the course of justice while Qiliho received a conditional discharge with ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Arosha Weerakoon, Senior Lecturer and General Dentist, School of Dentistry, The University of Queensland Casezy idea/Shutterstock How does toothpaste work? What did people use before toothpaste was invented? – Amelia, age 7, Meanjin (Brisbane) Thanks for your ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brett Hallam, Associate professor, UNSW Sydney IM Imagery/Shutterstock Solar SunShot is well named. The Australian government announced today it would plough A$1 billion into bringing back solar manufacturing to Australia, boosting energy security, swapping coal and gas jobs for those ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Dix, Research Fellow in Nutrition & Dietetics, The University of Queensland Easter is the time for chocolate. The shops are full of fantastically packaged and shiny chocolates in all shapes and sizes, making trips to the supermarket with children more challenging ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emma Felton, Adjunct Senior Researcher, University of South Australia Even in a stubborn cost-of-living crisis, it seems there’s one luxury most Australians won’t sacrifice – their daily cup of coffee. Coffee sales have largely remained stable, even as financial pressures have ...
Mining company Trans-Tasman Resources has unexpectedly withdrawn its application for a consent to suck the valuable metals vanadium and titanium from the Taranaki seafloor, as it apparently wagers on the Government’s new fast-track process. It had spent two-and-a-half days putting its case to the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision-making committee, at ...
Contrary to the Associate Minister of Education’s claims, analysis of Healthy School Lunches Programme - Ka Ora, Ka Ako assessments has revealed it provides excellent value for the taxpayer dollar, as a groundswell of public opposition to Government ...
Greenpeace says wannabe Taranaki seabed miner Trans-Tasman Resources is likely banking on Christopher Luxon’s fast-track process to side-step proper scrutiny of its Taranaki seabed mining proposal by bailing out of the Environmental Protection Agency hearing ...
Kiwis Against Seabed mining today slammed Australian owned would-be seabed miner Trans Tasman Resources (TTR) for abandoning its application to the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) to mine the seabed of the South Taranaki Bight. The company ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katie Attwell, Associate Professor, School of Social Sciences, The University of Western Australia Ground Picture/Shutterstock Months after COVID vaccines were introduced in 2021, governments and private organisations mandated them for various groups. Health and aged care workers were among the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Dzurak, Scientia Professor Andrew Dzurak, CEO and Founder of Diraq, UNSW Sydney Diraq For decades, the pursuit of quantum computing has struggled with the need for extremely low temperatures, mere fractions of a degree above absolute zero (0 Kelvin or ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne A national Essential poll, conducted March 20–24 from a sample of 1,150, gave the Coalition a 50–44 lead including undecided, a reversal ...
The Taxpayers’ Union has today made a formal request under the Regulations of the People’s Republic of China on Open Government Information () for information held about how New Zealand Members of Parliament are spending taxpayer ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robert Nelson, Honorary Principal Fellow, The University of Melbourne A Byzantine depiction of the Eucharist in Saint Sophia Cathedral, Kyiv.Jacek555/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA A nasty quarrel arose in the 11th century over what kind of bread should be used in holy ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Patrick Hesp, Professor, Flinders University Patrick Hesp In some parts of Australia, coastal dunes are retreating from the ocean at an alarming rate, as waves carve up the beach and wind blows the sand inland. But coastal communities are largely ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Luke Heemsbergen, Senior Lecturer, Digital, Political, Media, Deakin University With an impressive 60% of the US smartphone market, Apple is undeniably big, but not a clear monopoly. Yet, years of innovation by Apple have effectively given the company its own exclusive ...
Whether you’re facing layoffs or are just an emotional junior staffer, it’s always a good idea to scout out a good crying place before you need it. It’s an incredibly hard time for Wellington. Across the city, thousands of public servants are hearing tough news about redundancies and layoffs. Government ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James Miller-Jones, Professor, Curtin University Nuclear explosions on a neutron star feed its jets. Danielle Futselaar and Nathalie Degenaar, Anton Pannekoek Institute, University of Amsterdam, CC BY-SA How fast can a neutron star drive powerful jets into space? The answer, it ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Daryl Adair, Associate Professor of Sport Management, University of Technology Sydney Earlier this week, independent MP Andrew Wilkie accused the AFL of conducting “off the books” illicit drug testing to identify players using substances of abuse, then inappropriately withdrawing them from matches ...
The Government’s announcement that it will scrap plans for a vast marine sanctuary around the Kermadec Islands is ‘shameful’ and will make it impossible for Aotearoa New Zealand to meet its international commitments, says the World Wide Fund for Nature ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Quiggin, Professor, School of Economics, The University of Queensland Shutterstock The federal government has bowed to pressure from the car industry, announcing it will relax proposed emissions rules for utes and vans and delay enforcement of the new standards ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Suzanne Rutland, Professor Emerita, University of Sydney In his latest book, Jewish Life in Medieval Spain, Jonathan Ray focuses on the tumult of the 14th century in Spain – a time of the plague, civil strife and war between the two largest ...
While creating a slate of world-class shows, Whakaata Māori also developed a generation of world-class creatives. Television is an odd word. It mixes the Ancient Greek and Latin languages, and its most literal meaning is “far-off sight”. In the contemporary and living language of te reo Māori, “whakaata” as a ...
Yesterday the UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Israel’s war on Gaza. This significant step and the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza prompted an urgent debate in the New Zealand Parliament. Leader ...
The Government’s decision to reduce access to continuous glucose monitors (CGM) not only threatens the lives of children with type 1 diabetes and increases the potential for ‘Dead in Bed’ syndrome, but also threatens the health of their parents an ...
Apples are available year-round, but the wide variety on offer involves intensive scientific research – and large-scale commercialisation. What’s beautiful, red, sweet and crunchy? Tony Martin’s favourite kind of apple: Sassy. The CEO of apple and pear breeding organisation Prevar, Martin’s fondness for Sassy represents professional success as well as ...
Family violence specialist service Shine is calling on employers to stop asking for proof of domestic violence in order for employees to access domestic violence leave. The call comes five years after the introduction of the Domestic Violence ...
The Deputy Chairperson of the Finance and Expenditure Committee is calling for public submissions on the Budget Policy Statement 2024. The Budget Policy Statement 2024 (BPS) sets out the Government's priorities for the 2024 Budget. It explains the approach ...
Brutal government spending cuts that will see the size of the Ministry for Pacific Peoples slashed by 40% will hit Pasifika communities hard, the PSA says. The Ministry has told staff that it is seeking voluntary redundancies, and to redeploy and reassign ...
I live with five people I mostly love, but our different ideas about generosity are starting to really irk me.Want Hera’s help? Email your problem to helpme@thespinoff.co.nzDear Hera,This is a bit of a random one but here goes. I’m 22 and work an OK job (OK meaning I get paid ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Maria Nicholas, Senior Lecturer in Language and Literacy Education, Deakin University Earlier this month, the New South Wales government announced it would roll out programs for gifted students in every public school in the state. This comes amid concerns gifted school ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christopher Rudge, Law lecturer, University of Sydney Massachusetts General Hospital In a world first, we heard last week that US surgeons had transplanted a kidney from a gene-edited pig into a living human. News reports said the procedure was a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Tombs, Howard Paterson Chair of Theology and Public Issues, University of Otago The 5th-century Maskell panel showing Jesus in a loincloth.British Museum, CC BY-NC-SA When Jesus is shown on the cross, he is almost always depicted wearing a loincloth around ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Panizza Allmark, Professor Visual & Cultural Studies, Edith Cowan University Shutterstock When you think about a red object, you might picture a red carpet, or the massive ruby in the Queen’s crown. Indeed, Western monarchies and marketing from brands such ...
COMMENTARY:Jewish Voice for Peace The UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza on Monday — and for the first time since the beginning of the Israeli military’s genocide of Palestinians, the United States abstained rather than vetoing it. Security Council resolutions are legally binding, ...
Asia Pacific Report A New Zealand investigative journalist and author says the US spy system hosted by the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) appears to be a controversial intelligence system used in global capture-kill operations. Writing a commentary for RNZ News today, Nicky Hager, author of Secret Power, a 1996 ...
While Nicola Willis wouldn’t give any details on its size, she said a package of tax cuts is definitely still coming in this year’s budget, writes Catherine McGregor in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. ...
The Taxpayers’ Union is welcoming the investigation into the Department of Internal Affairs after it was revealed that the Department’s Chief Executive personally reached out to expedite a DJs passport application. Taxpayers’ Union Campaigns ...
Finance minister Nicola Willis delivers her first budget statement, and unwittingly helps Joel MacManus save his relationship. Nicola Willis strode into the Beehive Theatrette. Around me, on the green foldout seats, were the country’s top business and political journalists. They were all here to see her announce the Budget Policy ...
Twenty years ago today, Māori Television launched after much controversy. Jamie Tahana looks back on its survival and impact across two decades. Chad Chambers stepped onto the stage, the brim of his cap casting a shadow across his face. His smile beamed as bright as his white freezing works gumboots, ...
Tauranga, Rotorua, Wellsford, Onehunga, Westhaven marina – Gavin Strawhan walks the meanish streets of New Zealand in his entertaining debut novel The Call, almost sure to roar into the number 1 position on the Nielsen bestseller chart, its front cover bearing a rave from somebody: “A really good and genuinely ...
On a Thursday in February, at Wellington’s Conservation House, the Conservation Authority, a statutory body advising the eponymous department and minister, Tama Potaka, opened its 195th meeting. Under consideration that afternoon was an agenda item written by Tim Bamford, chief advisor in the Department of Conservation’s biodiversity, heritage and visitors ...
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[quiz],DIV[quiz],A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp'); Got a good quiz question?Send Newsroom your questions. The post Newsroom daily quiz, Thursday 28 March appeared first on Newsroom. ...
A lengthy response to the recently released draft Government policy statement on transport will soon be delivered from Auckland Council to Minister of Transport Simeon Brown. A submission raising concerns about funding distribution and the plan’s treatment of Auckland passed through the council’s transport committee on Wednesday, despite some councillors ...
The unidentified foreign intelligence operation discussed in a scathing report by New Zealand’s Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security (IGIS) last week appears to be a controversial United States intelligence system. The IGIS report said the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) decision to host a foreign system from 2012-2020 was “improper” ...
Another day in John Key’s neo-liberal nightmare.
We have become a cruel, greedy, uncaring and selfish nation under his wretched leadership.
Uncaring.
Anyone who voted this government in.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/82211556/half-of-all-new-zealand-pacific-teenagers-living-in-poverty-study-claims
http://thewireless.co.nz/articles/one-in-five-young-kiwis-live-in-poverty
So you could have no car and no holidays with the family and be classed as living in poverty………
I never knew I was so poor.
NOPE 9 factors NOT 2
I think the article states that if you miss 2 of the 9 factors then you are classed as living in poverty.
Not quite.
If children reported that their household was missing 2 of nine factors, then that was a hardship analog for poverty.
I might have no car, but I don’t have to get kids to school or sports practise.
I might have no holidays with family, but I can take a holiday any time.
I might have no computer at home, but this will not impact on my education.
I have a bedroom, but I only need one – I don’t have someone sleeping in my living room.
As soon as it’s not just about me, but about the kids I’m responsible for as well, then some of those indicators aren’t quite so easy to scoff at.
OOps!!!
I see some quite poor people, never seen one without a phone! If no car is a sign of poverty then we must be a rich Nation. Haven’t we one of the highest rates of car ownership in the OECD> So if you dont have all 9 your not in poverty? I am not sure what your saying!
You’re not sure what other people are saying, and you cut and paste your confusion in two comments.
Your regular contributions to this site only confirm the point I make.
We have become a cruel, greedy, uncaring and selfish nation under Key’s wretched leadership
‘Inhumane’ Auckland city businesses drenching homeless with water
https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/-inhumane-auckland-city-businesses-drenching-homeless-with-water-q01872
Yeah, this is a pretty silly set of indicators to use in such a blunt fashion, as clearly No car, No phone, No computer and no family holidays have other explanations than “poverty” as being the cause of them.
Instead it should be a points system, where you have to get 40 points to be considered in poverty, and things like no phone would score 10 points, whereas things like “garages or living rooms used as bedrooms” would count as 25 points.
I’m not sure that I’d want to raise kids without a phone or a car or a computer or even a family holiday for a week or so with relatives.
Me? I can do without three of those standing on my head. But if I were raising kids, they’re more important for the child’s education and socialisation.
1. Maybe you live very close to a library, and your child isn’t obsessed with screens so they don’t need constant access to a computer / internet.
2. Maybe you don’t have any relatives in the country to visit.
3. Maybe your family doesn’t have anyone who can or needs to drive a car, and your child is encouraged to use their own bike to get everywhere.
4. Maybe you just don’t need a phone, because you get on really closely with your neighbors and you just use theirs.
I’ll admit that #4 is a bit grasping, but the others aren’t too unreasonable.
My point is that not having 2 of those particular 4 things shouldn’t put you in to “poverty”. If you had 3 of those things, or 2 of those things + one of the other more important ones? Fine. But that’s why a more sophisticated scoring system should be used. I’m sure it wouldn’t take more than a few hours to come up with a system than it is better than simply “2 strikes and you’re out”.
The list conspicuously doesn’t mention anything about electricity being cut off or limited use of heating during winter due to prices, which are pretty good indicators as well. Better than “do you go on family holidays”.
Growing up, my family seldom went on holidays, because my parents were saving all their extra money to take us on a 5-week overseas holiday when I turned 12. Turns out they only needed 1/3rd of the money they eventually saved up, so when we came back they bought a car, a new computer and put an extension on the house. But we weren’t in poverty – it was just a choice my parents made.
Good for you, I guess.
You can put together a maybe about any of those factors. That doesn’t make it likely or reasonable. For example, these days “computer at home” is equivalent to “has school text books”.
The list mentions long term things that the kids would be aware of, because it’s the kids being surveyed. They wouldn’t know that, for example, a friend of mine turns off all home heating during winter whenever her kids are out.
But if you really want to critique the research, go read it rather than basing your criticism off a news report. And yes, some reasonably complex analyses are used to arrive at the deceptively simple “2 strikes” level reported in the news stories.
well anyone whithout a mobile phone would have an issue finding a job and may even could not keep a job if not ‘available’ on the ring of the bell.
anyone without a car especially rural or semi rural areas would have an issue finding a job, take kids to school or doctor or just go to the next supermarket – and would then be futher taxed by having to buy at a local dairy at a higher price
anyone without a computer or access to a computer and internet would have an issue finding a job or doing study / homework especially in rural semi rural areas where there may be a shortage of libraries that offer access to computer/printer/internet for free
anyone who can’t offer their children a holiday programme or can afford to take time of during school holidays (or even is permitted to do so) and need help from whanau to not leave children unsupervised during 8 weeks of summer holiday may want to disagree with you.
I think we need to see Point 1 – 9 not so much as luxury items. This is not the seventies anymore, people in this day and age can not well function without these items. Btw. I don’t have a mobile phone, but then i am 10 hours a day in my business and I have a landline. Not having a phone means literally that one is invisible and non existent.
Seriously what is poor for you? Half starved in a ditch?
I see some quite poor people, never seen one without a phone! If no car is a sign of poverty then we must be a rich Nation. Haven’t we one of the highest rates of car ownership in the OECD;
Your perceptions aren’t reality though, if you want reality talk to people from the Mission, Food banks and charities who see what’s going on every day.
Get out more then.
All Russian sport to be banned from the Olympics due to doping.
Russian hooligans turn up in Marseille during Euro 2016
Anyone else think all this is just a bit too convenient given the war games NATO is playing in the Baltic, Poland and Ukraine at the moment?
Hermann Goering
https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2016/jul/17/banned-russian-athletes-smear-campaign-documentary-rio-olympics-2016
http://www.globalresearch.ca/smearing-russia-in-the-eyes-of-public-opinion-politics-propaganda-and-the-weaponization-of-the-rio-olympics/5532250
Russians banned from the Olympics? All the more medals for NZ.
So USA banned from the Olympics? Even more medals for NZ.
And ban Africa, Canada, Australia… 🙂
I’m not sure about that. Aren’t they only sending people who have a chance of a medal anyway? The ones who would have benefited aren’t getting sent.
Eddie the Eagle would win Gold if he was the only entry. 🙂
Yes clearly a plot by the reverse vampires in cahoots with the lizard people.
Fool that is exactly what the real rulers, the praying mantis elite alien advance flottila, want you to believe ☺
Maaaaaybe Russia shouldn’t have had a massive state doping programme then. That might have helped their case to be in the Olympic games a bit.
Too obvious, no one would fall for that.
Do you accept the results of the Chilcott inquiry?
The media is the problem.
Propaganda about Corbyn, Syria, the Ukraine, Iraq…
Feed the plebs with stories about Instagram postings by celebrities.
The decline and fall of Rome had many similarities.
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=5fbvquHSPJU
For the last 12 months I have had a $200 sub for an online Ancestory research program. It was OK, as it found a family 19 generations back. But watch out.
I had apparently ticked a box 12 months ago which said it would automatically roll over for another year. Which it did yesterday to the tune of $333. But I had gone as far as I wanted. Stop. I say stop and desist. They said I couldn’t stop. Committed! A phone call last night from I think the Philippines, and a fierce defence of my right to withdraw, and I may have had the contract cancelled.
My point is beware of what you sign up for!
The same goes for Adobe. I bought a month’s subscription to Photoshop a while ago to edit an add for the shop, my old version wouldn’t open the file so had to get the current one. Thought I’d selected all the right options for a single month, non-renewing subscription, but no. A month later Adobe are trying to take another month out of my card.
Unfortunately (for Adobe) they weren’t getting anywhere as I’d used a burner debit card (Loaded Card) that I use for online purchases. I transfer the required amount onto immediately prior to use and generally all’s good.
The upshot with Adobe is that they tried to get the payment for 21 days and then gave up. Adobe’s conditions turned out to be that subscriptions could only be canceled when the subscription was current, or would automatically renew. Adobe did say they would refund if it was canceled within a short time (10 days?). That all came out after the obligatory chat with the robot.
Moral of the story, try and read, and comprehend the conditions when you buy from these online outfits, and expect inertia marketing. It’s an insidious practice but how these globalised pricks roll.
But the process is pretty sneaky Graeme. I wonder how many people get caught out and are unable to know how to argue to cancel. Its a bit like the single phrase buried in pages of Insurance policies as opposed to key rules in big print. I think I will assume that they are all out to get me.
“I wonder how many people get caught out and are unable to know how to argue to cancel. ”
The answer to this is unfortunately a significant amount. Often the amounts aren’t that large, so cardholders don’t bother following up odd small transactions, then spending hours arguing with a robot or $2/hr call centre. A lot of card fraud also works like this, lots of small innocuous transactions adding up to a huge amount.
On the consumer protection side they give lip service and will try and negotiate the best deal for them that they can. The call centre location / robot algorithm is set up to maximise their opportunity. So you’ll end up arguing with someone from a culture with inherent negotiating abilities, and incentivised to get the best deal. The only moderation now is the power of social media, once their practices start to hurt them, they back off or run out of customers.
Another aspect to the online wide boys is taxation. Generally these purchases don’t attract any sales tax anywhere, and profits get a bit amorphous, so no income tax, anywhere.
Clever. One to remember.
Yes. Me too Graeme re the burner debit card.
The first three poverty factors of Paul’s survey are a joke when I think back on my life…. no car … cars were too expensive ….no phone …. even today I only need a phone to connect to the web …. No computer …. they were only in universities and Sinclair had not brought out the ZX80.
OK I know things change but perhaps people need to get a grip on what things really matter in life and starting out. Some of the other factors are suspect too like sleeping in the living-room and bedroom numbers. Well into ‘life’ I was living in a converted stable with just power and cold water, outside privy … maybe that was poverty but it was adequate and cheap …. I had been sleeping in the firm’s darkroom before somebody found a better place to live with her husband and passed the stable onto me.
You didn’t have a Sinclair ZX80 therefore there is no poverty in New Zealand. Do you even believe the shit you type?
OK, OK, I know that your entire sense of self-worth hangs on complete drivel, and examining it makes you uncomfortable, and it’s easier to simply regurgitate the lies you were spoonfed, but seriously; is that the best you can do?
As for the Auckland University study, I note your feeble attempt to belittle its provenance says lots about you and nothing at all about the study.
Your contributions above only confirms the point I make.
We have become a cruel, greedy, uncaring and selfish nation under Key’s wretched leadership.
Are you happy to live in a country where this happens?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLjVc-zNcNQ
Would’ve been a palace to us!
When I was young I had to walk uphill in bare feet both ways to get to the salt mines, kids today with their fancy shoes & smart phones don’t know how lucky they are, sarc.
Yes, things have changed.
1. Our cities have been designed to be car dependent making it essential to own a car. It’s not optional any more.
2. Did you know that it was a requirement to get the unemployment benefit to own a phone? WINZ don’t pay for the phone of course.
3. Computers to have become mandatory. They encase many things including schooling, political engagement, research and many other things that are part and parcel of today’s society.
If we followed your logic the Industrial Revolution would never have happened as nobody would have learned maths because back in my day we didn’t need it.
Draco …. Your points merely confirm my opinion of how society has gone on a wrong materialistic path …. I gather some call it Neoliberalism … a fancy word for a lack of common sense.
The first point was all about making profit. A car in each driveway produces far more profit than the entire number of buses needed to move a city. It’s actually a large part of the proof that the profit motive brings about the worst possible outcome rather than the best as our economists and RWNJs tell us.
The second point has to do with being contactable to get a job.
Those are the only two to do with neo-liberalism.
The third one has to do with being able to access the information needed to govern. Sure, a lot of people don’t use it for that but I’m also sure that that will change over time. It’s a large part of democracy.
And the only thing that can be said about common sense that old saw Common sense isn’t. Most of what’s passed off as ‘common sense’ is simply wrong.
Would you be glad to raise kids in a stable??
With starting initials of JC you never know! lol
“Governor Graeme Wheeler has today released proposed new urgent restrictions that will mean property investors across the country will need a deposit of at least 40 per cent….”
But that won’t stop investors will it? The equity in existing houses become the deposit for the next.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11677196
A pretty thrilling account of how close the recent Turkish coup came to succeeding:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jul/18/military-coup-was-well-planned-and-very-nearly-succeeded-say-turkish-officials
As more of these accounts come out, it will help put aside silly conspiracy stories about how it was all just a giant stunt by Erdogan.
Really well planned?
Turkish officials would say that.
Organising a coup at 9.30 p.m. isn’t the best planning I can think of.
More and more people are questioning the reliability of the Guardian as a source after its pro-establishment line over Scotland, Brexit, Ukraine and Corbyn.
I note that you love to close down debate and discussion on many issues by using the words “conspiracy theories’. Is that by design?
Gwynne Dyer is an expert political commentator. He doesn’t buy the well planned argument.
I like Rachel Stewart’s take.
”I’m pretty convinced that Turkey’s “coup” was about as staged as Milli Vanilli’s singing.”
http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/commentary/20160718/gwynne-dyer-half-hearted-coup
https://twitter.com/RFStew/status/755141011693633536
Everyone has noticed how Erdogan already had purge lists of thousands of people drawn up and ready to go.
Next to be gone is 7000 police officers. (And the police stayed loyal to Erdogan during the coup).
One of the best theories I have seen is that what Ad references as a “well organised coup” was actually a parallel coup. Some military officials got wind that Erdogan was about to launch a massive purge which would catch thousands of them and other officials.
So they quickly organised and launched a rapid, pre-emptive coup ahead of Erdogan.
And failed.
So instead of being removed from their offices, now they are going to be shot.
(I think Erdogan will follow through with his threat to bring back civil capital punishment. Not that that’s an impediment to military tribunal capital punishment.)
This “really well planned coup” let CNN Turkey stay on the air, and let Erdogan do a Facetime appeal on the channel to hundreds of thousands of supporters to come out on the streets.
Then it appears that only a minority of military units took part in the coup, and most of them declined to use the force required to do their jobs. In fact, many coup soldiers looked bewildered and said that they had simply been told that they were on an exercise.
And Erdogan’s personal jet kept its transponder turned on up in the air for over an hour, and it wasn’t shot down even though the coup had interceptors in the air!
Really weird shit.
Well planned as defined by ‘Turkish Officials’ not included on the pre coup ‘purge lists’
“Thrilling account” is a term better used for a fictional movie production or bed time story.
The Monty Python esque coup attempt by a military with a strong history of successful coups to its credit, doesn’t qualify as, ‘thrilling’
Ad, you do know Coup’s are by their very nature, are generally organised by a group of people, in secret. Or if you will, a secret group conspiring to overthrow a government?
So by definition it is a conspiracy, and like most conspiracies, it takes a long time to unravel them. So at present, the case put forward by the guardian, is just another conspiracy theory along with the rest.
All I know is the Kurds I know are freaking out. This is bad for them because Erdogan has reignited the civil war with them, he will use this as excuse to hurt the Kurds more. This is what we should be talking about. Not how a conspiracy has played out, because frankly, that is for historians.
Breaking news:
New Zealand property investors will need a 40% deposit, according to new Reserve bank rules.
https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/2995161/ReserveBankConsultationPaper.pdf
Other home buyers will still need at least a 20% deposit.
But this time all the rules apply nationwide.
“A sharp correction in house prices is a key risk to the financial system, and there are clear signs that this risk is increasing across the country.”
-Graeme Wheeler, Governor of the Reserve bank of New Zealand.
Hopefully this has more effect than the last lot of measures.
Foreign Chinese cash buyers will be happy with these changes.
thats racist dude
It’s a pure economic analysis. Nothing racist about it. It takes local Kiwi competition out of the market and gives cash buyers like them a clear run.
nah its only racist when Labour says it. 🙂
Should you not change “Foreign Chinese cash buyers” to those cashed up the the People’s Liberation Army?
OK not all, like those trying to get the hell out of Hong Kong, and Macau.
CV is right. It is defiantly helping foreign investors and richer people a lot more than Kiwi Mums n Dads owning a 2nd property.
Everything this government does seems to be geared to help non residents and those paying no taxes here rather than people who live here. It is uncanny.
Greenpeace having fun with teh ‘leave and we put 350 million to the NHS Bus”. The bought it.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/greenpeace-bus-nhs-brexit-vote-leave-350-million-repainting-messages-outside-parliament-a7142451.html
RSA Animate: Ha-Joon Chong
Video, autoplays.
Just reported on RNZ.
The Treasury has heavily criticised the government’s drug policy. It said (paraphrasing) “that instead of spending $400m a year on trying (and failing) to enforce the illegality of using cannabis it should instead legalise it such that it would gain $150m from taxes on its use.”
This is groundbreaking. Treasury, no less, are saying legalise cannabis. This will bring a gain of $550m to the public purse. Looks like a good policy option for Labour and Greens now that this has Treasury backing.
Great stuff.
Or at least de-criminalise cannabis.
Yes but better to legalise, then there can be the $150m tax revenue.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11677179
NZ has its problems but still a lot better then Europe at the moment
What are NZs problems?
PR means the Natz
Nothing that can’t be forgotten when reading about an axe attack in Germany.
Well bombings in Brussels, trucks in Nice, ax attacks in Berlin, shootings in Paris, mass sex attacks in Cologne so yeah I think NZ is a better place at the moment
I prefer not to use other peoples’ misery to make myself feel better.
Good for you
That come 2020 there’ll probably be a Labour/Green government 🙂
nah mate by then we will be flying the chinese flag. 🙂
Well it could be worse
true that we could have had that ugly flag that was not the hypno flag.
I did like hypno flag. t’was a good flag for the country, so suiting to the mind set of many.
In the latest ‘major backdown’ by the government…
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/82236173/nz-gets-new-assurances-from-chinese-embassy-over-trade-war-fears
McClay using the old ‘didn’t get the email’ defence when he mis-spoke before.
serco…the gift that keeps on giving.
and no we can’t expect the current National Party led government to do better cause free market, money needs to be made and surely Labour did it too at some stage over the last 100 years of its existence. so all is good in NZ.
we now officially don’t give a shit anymore.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/82241264/prison-operator-serco-slammed-over-treatment-of-inmate-at-mt-eden-prison
Michelle Boag on the Panel with no rebuttal from either Mora or Edwards.
Ghastly.
+100…she was slagging off Mike Lee because he had an opinion on Auckland airport transport options. Apparently you have to agree with everything or resign. Complete bollocks. She has spent too much time talking to Key’s sheep in parliament….sorry “MP’s”.
Then someone texted in and asked that she declare her interest in supporting Bill Ralston to council. And boy, did she go off.
As usual, Mora and Edwards were utterly ineffective.
Commons votes for Trident renewal by majority of 355
Over half Labour MPs but not Jeremy Corbyn back motion after Theresa May says she would order nuclear strike
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/jul/18/mps-vote-in-favour-of-trident-renewal-nuclear-deterrent?utm_source=esp&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=GU+Today+main+NEW+H+categories&utm_term=182262&subid=13842748&CMP=EMCNEWEML6619I2
Yes – some of us ARE having an anti-TPPA protest against USA Vice-President Joe Biden.
(It’s Our Future Auckland have called this protest.)
WHEN: Wed 20 July 2016
WHERE: Cnr George Bolt Memorial Drive / Tom Pearce Drive (in front of Z petrol station)
Near Auckland airport.
TIME: 3 – 5.30pm
(It gets HEAPS of traffic!)
Want to ‘stand up and be counted’?
(You may need an umbrella 🙂
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.