One presumes they intend KO to sell at a loss and not build.
In that regard one should note their not so secret plan to change the rules the OIO operates by – to allow foreign property companies to provide residential housing.
Yes. I shall miss his tirades. I was on the receiving end once but forgotten what for – no big deal. I love the way he always manages to get his well thought through opinions across.
Hope he will continue to contribute as a commenter from time to time.
That's great news Weka – I thought I may have to go back to The Daily Blog and have had a look at it for the past couple of days. My reaction was simply 'yeah, nah'.
That is good news, weka. The Standard has been part of my daily life for fifteen years and I would miss it as I miss some of the contributors over the years (felix, pascal's bookie amongst many others). I suspect lprent is not one for fulsome praise but I would miss his incisive and always intelligent contributions so I hope like ianmac and Anne that he continues to contribute even more in these columns. My thanks to all who awhi this blog.
Any tax on mortgage loans imposed on banks, would be immediately passed on to customers (with a firm explanation that the rise is entirely due to the government tax)
Adding an tax on mortgage loans in the current environment, is going to make any party unelectable.
Not sure what you count as a 'windfall profit' but if it's only going to get 300M in taxation it's almost certainly not worth collecting.
There is no increase in the amount paid by homeowners because a surcharge allows a lower OCR rate.
Apart from the increased revenue collected by government (see the budget forecasts for the coming decades) it also increases returns to exporters (and thus tax paid by them).
The Americans once had progressive tax on companies, so larger ones paid a higher rate. It's very easy to collect.
Also deliberately missing the point. If the OCR goes down and the surcharge goes up, there is no change to mortgage rate – and borrowers both notice and complain (OCR has gone down, why is my mortgage still high?)
Banks will absolutely inform them this is because of a government tax.
If you think that people with mortgages aren't obsessively watching the Reserve Bank rate – you don't know many people with mortgages.
They watch the rate, because it impacts on their mortgage cost.
If a 1% mortgage surcharge allows a 1% OCR cut they pay no more but government gets the funds required to afford health funding and infrastructure. Its over $3B a year.
They watch the rate to make sure that their own mortgage rate goes down when the OCR goes down. If that's not happening, you bet your bottom dollar that they'll be asking questions of their bank.
So you think homeowners do not care about a well-funded government?
You conflate (lie) a win win scenario – where at no extra mortgage cost to homeowners there was $3Bpa more in government funding – with handwavium.
Tell it to those whose children are in rundown school buildings, those who need access to primary health care and those facing rate increases because of lack of government support for infrastructure.
That is just nonsense. They cannot operate if they have no power, or cannot make a profit because of the cost of it in a dry year.
The easiest way to reduce power cost is to reduce take off the grid by homes and business (their use of solar) and otherwise to take their solar power surplus onto the grid and store this such energy in a battery (for use in a dry year).
There is no difficulty placing power onto the grid from a battery.
I think you're misunderstanding the usage of battery farms – this is short term storage (e.g. from the heat of the day when solar is widely available, to the evening, when peak demand arises)
They are not intended to be substitutes for hydro-electricity generation in a dry year.
A business operating off hydro from the grid, then not able to afford the spot price in a dry year.
In the dry year we have Comalco using less power, and Methanex supplying gas to the Huntly power station (if the price is right for both parties or otherwise coal) – which has a higher and higher cost as per 2050.
There is the Onslow dam and battery storage to cope with the dry year otherwise. A battery can hold power for years. How many and how large to provide a useful level of storage for dry years is that issue.
More businesses should look at being less dependent on the hydro supply, perhaps taking power from local solar and wind into a local battery system for their daily use.
We know that in a continuity use system battery storage makes renewable power reliable and this lowers power cost.
This is one way for a community to protect a local businesses (solar panels on homes and business roofs and wind farms).
But the C of C has no plan to realise even this. It's lack of focus on solar generation and battery use is, given the South Australia success in this area is inexplicable.
All the current government has as an answer – import gas, and blame the power companies for using a market system (price to manage demand), one that has been used for years. These companies were set up to act for shareholders, not the national interest, by the government of John Key.
Billionaire Peter Thiel eyes possible permanent move to New Zealand
Bolthole abandoned…(well, for the moment )
Last month it was revealed that the tech billionaire appeared to have abandoned his plans to build a 330m-long luxury lodge overlooking Lake Wānaka.
Theil had envisaged a private residential estate set against mountains, covered by tussocks and shrubs.
The building would have accommodated up to 30 guests and supported between 15 and 30 staff.
Support for JD Vance
Thiel injected tens of millions of dollars into the senate campaign of JD Vance, the man just selected as Donald Trump's running mate in the upcoming US presidential elections.
Thiel has been officially affiliated with the Republican Party since 2017, the same year he hired the 32-year-old Vance to work at his venture capital firm.
Thiel then went on to be a major financial backer for Vance's 2022 tilt as the Republican candidate for the Senate.
And Matt Nippert ( IMO a good Reporter) reveals some of Citizen Peter Thiel….
Citizen
Thiel
Peter Thiel is an internet oligarch who believes in a stateless world free of regulation or limits on human endeavour. He made millions on PayPal, and billions on Facebook.
He lobbied New Zealand Cabinet ministers and public servants, presenting himself as our exceptional angel of venture capital.
Don’t forget Mr freedom, individual responsibility and small Govt made a tidy sum via the NZ taxpayer from the NZVIF–Venture Investment Fund–launched by Steven Joyce in 2012. He exercised a buy back option to cream millions of dollars after the Govt. matched his initial investment and more. Even Joyce admitted the buy back plus deal did not look good “on the face of it”.
The invidiousness of corporate welfare (a symptom of fully-matured capitalism) is very well explained in Vulture Capitalism by economist and political journalist Grace Blakeley. The link is Blakely's RNZ interview. The book is an excellent mash-up of socialsit and economic theory.
Oh yea..just earlier read that . Its maybe a sad fact…that (many?) people have…either no, or little, idea of what goes on in the sad lives of the unlucky.
He met his case manager at WINZ last week, within the five-day window before the cut was due to kick in.
"He said that he'd already looked into it and that he's put me back on green and that my benefit won't be reduced."
He said knowing his benefit would not be cut was a relief – but it caused unnecessary worry.
"National will save millions of dollars but at the cost of, potentially, human lives. Whether it's directly from people no being able to afford food or indirectly from mental health issues."
And as the ex Accountant alludes, there are other costs. The myopic/purblind shits of NACT1….never factor those in. Unfortunately some..will pay. Pain and suffering. It will cost..us dearly.
I'm (almost) enjoying that all these people are suddenly experiencing the joys of W & I. Especially if they voted for one of the CoC, then zero sympathy.
I saw it during covid, the poor things suddenly having to deal with the welfare system, whining to the media that they had 'no idea' benefits paid so little (even though they were getting a special increased rate and no relationship rules). I guess there was never any concern for the perilous conditions many of their fellow citizens have to endure beforehand. It's not as if a quick google would give them that info.
I naively thought now that the middle class have been affected, they might develop some empathy. Yeah, right.
This story is so full of holes I'm surprised they published it. It took two weeks to get appointment, but 8 weeks to reduce benefit to nil. If he had actually attended the appointment after first deduction to 80%, there would be no further deductions to nil. He will probably struggle to get another job with the attitude of ignoring two reminder texts to attend a meeting. Would he be able to turn up to a job interview? Now he's gone to the media he looks like an even bigger fool.
In which case, he'll have no problem turning up the the WINZ appointments – since he'll have nothing else to do.
I also think that it's a poor example.
The original one (where someone claims that he never received the message about the appointment, and subsequently was notified his payments would be cut), is a much better one.
WINZ systems aren't perfect (no organization's ones are) and to have a benefit cut with no cross-checks seems to be a highly-risky strategy.
Doubling down on the dumb as a rock response.
If you're so busy 'working' that you can't engage your intellect, perhaps you should stop engaging your typing fingers.
This story is so full of holes I'm surprised they published it.
Just sounds to me like you know fuck-all about the way that WINZ and the MSD operate. It rings true to me. WINZ is more chaotic as anything I have ever seen. I include a pile of poorly run entrepreneurial businesses, charities, NGOs and the military experience in there.
Anyone who has and is used to normal business operations would be unused to dealing with WINZ operations and the stupid limitations that various fuckwit Ministers, mostly National ones, have imposed on them over decades.
I have only dealt with WINZ twice.
Once back in the GFC in 2009 when I got dumped out of a contract job a month after starting because their pitch to the customer failed. I contacted them and applied for the dole after a couple of months of job hunting when the cash and food started to run low. They organised me to have to attend a session about how to write a CV two weeks later, and told me that I would be required to attend it before they'd look signing me up. FFS I have an MBA, my CV was spotless and I used to run courses on how to write CVs….
My most recent brief experience of WINZ was this year after my redundancy/holiday pay ran out and before I hit 65 after a unexpected redundancy when the company shuttered itself after poor US sales. WINZ has updated itself a little. Now they will 'organise' everything without telling you. Or telling you poorly. Or telling you late. Not telling you at all seems all too likely too – especially if it is posted.
I have had a phone call from WINZ, that I could see was from WINZ because I'd tagged it as WINZ from a previous call on my phone. Couldn't see anything on MyMSD, so went to the local WINZ/MSD office to get them to look it up. They didn't know anything about it. Whoever had called me hadn't logged it.
By then I'd developed a habit of watching MyMSD, just in case. That was after receiving a letter that turned up the day before the appointment dated 2 weeks earlier, and that had arrived on last possible delivery out of the 2 postal deliveries a week.
In my month of getting job seeker, before getting on to super, they'd also informed me by letter on MyMSD, that I would be getting nett $178 per fortnight out of a nett ~$300 entitlement. That was because I would be paying off of a debt to MSD.
First that I'd heard of any debt. MyMSD didn't show any debts. My guess it was the first payment that they'd made before I received that letter.
I (mostly) trust them on the delivery of superannuation because it is hard to screwup a computer program without human access requirements. Plus I now have my Kiwisaver accessible.
Because I don't trust the MSD or WINZ to do their processes properly or to communicate clearly, I have a large dollop of cash in the bank on a lower interest rate than I'd like. That is solely so that it can be accessed immediately. I also have a rather large untouched overdraft facility available that is backed by term deposits.
Would he be able to turn up to a job interview?
Almost certainly. Potential employers who are worth working for are always clear. They typically communicate digitally with ICS attachments to go into your calendar. Usually after talking to you on cellphones. They also text and email. I haven't had one for decades that used paper or the snail mail system.
Perhaps you shouldn't write about things you clearly don't know about. You sound like a National party minister attempting to sound competent. You come across as a ignorant pretentious twat.
I forgot the real job interview that I had to move because WINZ wanted me at an appointment on short notice. Turns out that you can't contact them to move it. I had to contact the company I was going to do a google meet with.
In the month that I dealt with WINZ on jobseeker, they were bloody irritation. I was doing 2-3 job interviews a week and pushing out about 8-10 application a week. Yet WINZ appeared to think that they had first call on my time for $178 per fortnight.
The irritating thing about it is that WINZ is as clearly understaffed and over micro-managed at the Ministry of Labour was back in 1992 when my then partner worked for them.
Actually I have had dealings with Winz a couple of times this year in helping someone get an accommodation allowance. They asked for information that we duly provided, and I thought they were pretty good in phoning when they said they would. I guess if we had ignored their phone calls and not provided the information (or ignored texts like the bloke in the above example even when his benefit had reduced to 80%!), the accommodation allowance would not have been received. We wouldn't have run to the media complaining though as then you look like a fool.
Regarding your situation:
"I have a large dollop of cash in the bank on a lower interest rate than I'd like. That is solely so that it can be accessed immediately. I also have a rather large untouched overdraft facility available that is backed by term deposits."
You may want to speak to someone regarding budgeting advice and the best way to structure your funds for your situation.
You may want to speak to someone regarding budgeting advice and the best way to structure your funds for your situation.
Idiot. Lets assume that you are aware of the current inflation rate is.
It is structured exactly for my short-term requirements. Those are to make sure that there is money readily available around when it is required. Not only for MSD (or employers) not paying on time. But also for emergencies or things that need immediate resources. I had a heart attack 13 years ago and have a stent. My father is 85. Acts of god like having my car being drowned last year in the floods.
Having a small % of my investment money sitting on 4.55% interest with immediate access rather than the 6.x% on term loans is just prudent. It can take a few days to untangle term loans and longer to pull money from investment accounts.
Having a rolling credit facility that I don't need to use allows me or my partner to draw down copious money immediately if something serious happens. There is a price associated with it, but only if I exercise it.
Having money that is on call means that we can cover the rolling credit within a short period.
I guess that you just like sounding like you know what you're doing. But as I said – you invariably sound like a ignorant pretentious twat.
Well that is very good to hear that you are not "a ignorant pretentious twat" as you put it, or an idiot, and you are good with financial planning and have obviously planned well for your future and retirement.
However having said that, why would you even need to contact WINZ for job seeker benefit earlier this year if your financial planning is so successful? Surely you had planned for a rainy day or unexpected expense (or redundancy), and hopefully now that you are 65 and receiving super, that is not your only income.
Surely you had planned for a rainy day or unexpected expense (or redundancy),
Umm worth replying to that, if only to point out what to watch for when heading to super.
It was very unexpected to wind up being made redundant at the end of Jan. Bit annoying as well as we'd just finished paying almost every single debt off, including the tail of the mortgage in 2023. Just had a small overdraft and a credit line for emergencies. Also had a large inaccessible kiwisaver. If I needed it I could tap into
Basically getting ready for super + kiwisaver and a probable change of pace in early June. Didn't want to mortgage the apartment again.
With what was on-hand, 2 months notice paid out, and 6 weeks of holiday pay I had roughly 4 months of cash available. Had already booked a holiday in Feb. Pre-paid the 6 months of body corporate and rates, my partners outstanding tax, and the remaining debt, and then started cutting costs
Which left about 3 months cash available which could be stretched. Some went on hotel bills and the holiday in Feb. Couldn't can that as it was organised with some US guests.
I figured that I could either get a job within 5 months or I'd get early kiwisaver which was where all of the investment money was or I would last until super + kiwisaver got accessed at the start of June.
I'm pretty picky about work usually. Especially now that I don't have a mortgage and an upcoming source of income from super and kiwisaver. I don't require much income, and super covers most of my running expenses.
WFH was something that employers were wanting to not have past the pandemic. But I'm uninterested in long daily commuting unless employers were willing pay for it. I'm uninterested in doing managerial or team lead work. So I am only willing to do straight programming in engineering applications preferably for export.
Turns out jobs I was interested in were mostly not available within my limits. I wasn't interested in working in Albany/Rosedale or East Tamaki because most of the interesting engineering work is there. But neither have effective public transport from where I live.
Got turned down for the local jobs that I was interested in, and that .
I usually get about 1 in 20 of the jobs I apply for simply because I have been old as a programmer for decades, and I make sure that HR and employers have many good reasons to reject me. It saves me from having to put up with jobs with lousy employers whilst getting a project finished. I wind up on projects that either have good employers or that they actually want completion on projects (typically after someone else has hit their limits).
Could have easily gotten a off-target job to pay bills and probably would have if I'd actually needed to. But doing a pointless short-term job that cost me time and money to get to wasn't worth doing. I didn't need to once I got super and the large pile of kiwisaver.
Plus I have a lot of re-education to do. It'd been nearly 15 years since I'd last had time to sit down and do some serious playing with code outside of work. That is a lot of time to coast on previous skill updating or what you pick up on in the projects you're working on.
Pretty well did stretch it out. But had a few extra bills on the way as usually happens. Mostly physio for fixing and bike finger and knee injuries that I'd had in November. ACC paid most of it. But the weekly bills for the rest mounted up. Had a nasty large bill from cloudflare for some attacks on this site in March. Went from $25 per month to a month with over $600. Which is why this site now uses bunny.net for the CDN.
Realised at the end of April that I could run short of money between my birthday on June 4th and the first full super payment on June 19th. It pays to look at when that fortnightly payment falls when looking forward to super. Also that it was really hard to extract kiwisaver early (don't count on that ever!), and it'd probably take a couple of weeks to get kiwisaver after my birthday.
So I had roughly two-three weeks to cover. So at the start of May, I prepaid some bills and did a few other things to get enough resources to cover eating and freezing.
Then applied for jobseeker as I was entitled to do, as much to see what would happen as anything else. While also organising a covering loan of a few thousand from family if I needed it.
Jobseeker and WINZ was just as bad as I expected. But it did garner about a thousand. Used about a thousand from family loan. Then first super payment and kiwisaver dropped into my account so I paid the latter.
So notice.. no additional debt after 5 months off work apart from about $1k. I didn't need any other money apart from the money paid out by my previous employer and didn't have to tap into any assets or resources apart from trying jobseeker. Had a holiday. Paid for additional medical treatment. Paid for an large unexpected bill.
The big advantage about doing the stretch is that we're now set up with expenditures slightly above revenue from super + my partners business after a lot of cost-trimming – which we would have wanted to do anyway.
The annual difference is roughly about $5000 per year – the body corporate + some rates. A large stash of ex-kiwisaver accessible and earning income so the excess is easily paid by revenues from investments if nothing else.
We have everything we need after I brought a 2 bike rack and towbar for the car after I got kiwisaver, and paid for a few computer updates for both out systems. Just need to keep an eye out from a (??!!) updated second hand macbook for my apple obsessed partner.
I now have complete freedom to idle if I feel like it, take a job if one shows up meeting my criteria, just start writing and selling things on net, just play with writing code that interests me fro open source, get involved in politics with time to do it, or (do something stupid) like try to boost my partners business. I can help out of other peoples projects if I choose to.
Since I hate having holidays or idling, working on what interests me is the most likely.
It is really kind of nice to have the choices. Which is what was intended fro this stage in my life.
Apart from the unexpected redundancy, everything was pre-planned. Even that was a contingency. I just like doing things with the minimal use of resources. Like this site does.
I'm one of those people who always has a lot of contingency planning going on in my head and always has pathways to what I want to do via multiple routes or multiple potential objectives that can be reached from my current path.
Douglas was an early and enthusiastic promoter of the government's plans for a compulsory contributory superannuation scheme that would supplement the old age pension. In 1972, while still in opposition, he introduced a private member's bill that provided for a form of compulsory superannuation. In Cabinet, Rowling, who was then Minister of Finance, and Douglas were largely responsible for a 1973 White Paper setting out the government's proposals for superannuation. As well as augmenting individual provision for retirement, the scheme was intended to be a source of capital for investment in the domestic economy.[13] The scheme became law in the form of the New Zealand Superannuation Act 1974.
Muldoon destroyed it for both political and fiscal reasons. It helped him win the 1975 election and in effect it allowed him to raid the funds of the existing pensions schemes when he introduced National Superannuation.
As the mainstay, curator, funder, and lead on this valuable site for so many years, spending that much time on an arrogant, blow-in troll without binning them.
I'm semi-retired these days. I have more of my own time because I'm not getting my contractor level hourly rates on a salary and the obligations of progress that go with it.
Besides I'm stuck on a problem in a new language working on a new editor right now and having to think up a whole new way to approach fixing the problem. Doing something mindless like replying to Jimmy about something I already thought about and solved helps.
It frees up the intuitive part of my brain to nibble at the edges of the problem looking for a innovative solution while my fingers are occupied with typing.
I usually only bin trolls if they can’t write coherently or get repetitive and I don’t have time to educate them. Jimmy does pretty well on the first two counts
Copy that. I'm still working and distracted. I would like to make more detailed and reasoned comments and even write some pieces but am unable because of work and family duties.
I've mentioned to moderators here this disadvantage ordinary, socially conscious, working people have when commenting on forums. Lefties should be better understood here but are sometimes moderatered against because of the brevity of their comments.
FFS, I do NOT believe you Nicola Willis ! And didnt we have that BS with the Electricity giveaway selldown? And what happened to those Mum and Dad shares?
What shemeans..and what she means are very possibly..different things. And shown many times. And didnt I say Electricity Mum and Dad shares ?
From the past.
Today's acknowledgement that companies trusts and investment institutions were able to buy shares in the retail offer "is a further nail in the coffin of National's myth that it was selling shares to ordinary Kiwi 'mums and dads'," Green Party Co-leader Russel Norman said.
Once Kiwibank is infected by the pernicious* doctrine of maximising private** shareholder value, it will behave odiously, just like the other banks that we loathe so much. Presumably Willis (or her ventriloquist) knows this.
*pernicious when applied to natural monopolies or to the essentials of daily life. Possibly pernicious under all circumstances, though this latter is contentious.
** note however that even with the government as the 100% shareholder, Kiwibank can be forced into similarly bad behaviour under the governance of odious regimes like the CoC
MBIE electricity generation shows this best. In 2023 NZ generated 43,000 GWH of electricity – the same as in 2010. Our population increased by 888,000 during this time and Nominal GDP doubled. Yet no new electricity. The market has failed year after year.
Even Republicans are standing up against Trump and his lunacy yet NZ's so-called respectable right are quite openly wanting a Trump presidency. Shows just how close we are to normalising Trumpesque ideas, the Treaty principles debacle and the associated attacks on all things Maori being the most obvious example.
Many of us economists are bald. One reason for this is that for the last 40 years we've been tearing our hair out whenever politicians liken government finances to those of a household. Although Thatcher popularized this woeful analogy … Rachel Reeves' claims that "there's not a huge amount of money there" and (inverting Keynes) that "if we cannot afford it, we cannot do it" both appeal to it.
You all know this analogy is wrong. For one thing, households can cut their spending without cutting their income but governments sometimes cannot do so because cuts in public spending depress economic activity and hence tax revenues. And for another, governments (in the UK if not euro zone) can print money, and so there is always "a huge amount of money there". The constraint on public spending is real resources – doctors, builders, management skill – not money.
For NZ this was debunked in 1986 when the RBNZ stopped targeting the quantity of money. It was thoroughly discredited in the UK at the time when the Thatcher administration found their whole scale destruction of their economy attempting to quantity target the pound was wildly unpopular. The Fed in the US denied ever practicing quantity targeting.
The short answer is all of them. This is because your model for how money works doesnt apply to any real world economy.
First up money as measured comes in several forms. These include reserve money (what the government and banks transact) and bank deposits (what the public transacts). Which of these are you proposing to be in excess?
We can assume that is the reserve money your discussing here maybe, at least thats the quantity governments influence directly. Problem with that however is there is no fixed relationship between reserve money quantities and broad money quantities. In fact the RBNZ is ready to lend (create) as much reserve money as demanded for commercial banks to clear payments (those loans being made at the OCR of the day). This was the RBNZ 1986 change to give up targeting quantities (because targeting those quantities didn't constrain the quantity of money the public transacts in anyway).
So its going to be difficult to find the example you seek as A) the quantity which is excessive is not determined anywhere.
B) this quantity your asking about doesn't even constrain the broad money supply anyway (let alone inflation).
USA (and many other countries + the Eurozone) began QE closer to 2010. What you have identified there is a coincidence, not a cause.
and if the USA lifted sanctions of Venezuela a large part of its inflation issues would abate. Most times really serious inflation spells occur they were proceeded by USA enforced economic sanctions.
Well knock me over with a feather! Entitlement much..
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That is despite the coalition pledging to slash back-office spending across the public sector and attacking the former government for creating massive bureaucracies.
The anti-red tape department is overseen by ACT leader David Seymour, who secured its creation during coalition negotiations last year.
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Years of hard work finally paid off last week as the country’s biggest and most important transport project, the City Rail Link reached a major milestone with the first test train making its way slowly though the tunnels for the first time. This is a fantastic achievement and it is ...
Engineers are pleading for the Government to free up funds to restart stalled projects. File Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Monday, February 17 are:Engineering New Zealand CEO Richard Templer said yesterday hundreds of ...
It’s one of New Zealand’s great sustaining myths: the spirit of ANZAC, our mates across the ditch, the spirit of Earl’s Court, Antipodeans united against the world. It is also a myth; it is not reality. That much was clear from a series of speakers, including a former Australian Prime ...
Many people have been unsatisfied for years that things have not improved for them, some as individuals, many more however because their families are clearly putting in more work, for less money – and certainly far less purchase on society. This general discontent has grown exponentially since the GFC. ...
A listing of 34 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, February 9, 2025 thru Sat, February 15, 2025. This week's roundup is again published soleley by category. We are still interested in feedback to hone the categorization, so if ...
The Salvation Army’s State of the Nation report shows worsening food poverty and housing shortages mean more than 400,000 people now need welfare support, the highest level since the 1990s. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in our political economy around housing, climate and ...
You're just too too obscure for meOh you don't really get through to meAnd there's no need for you to talk that wayIs there any less pessimistic things to say?Songwriters: Graeme DownesToday, I thought we’d take a look at some of the most cringe-inducing moments from last week, but don’t ...
Please note: I’ve delayed my “What can we do?” article for this video.The video above shows Destiny Church members assaulting staff and librarians as they pushed through to a room of terrified parents and young children.It was posted to social media last night.But if you read Sinead Boucher’s Stuff, you ...
Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Is sea level rise exaggerated? Sea levels are rising at an accelerating rate, not stagnating or decreasing. Warming global temperatures cause land ice ...
Here is a scenario, but first a historical parallel. Hitler and the Nazis could well have accomplished everything that they wanted to do within German borders, including exterminating Jews, so long as they confined their ambitious to Germany itself. After all, the world pretty much sat and watched as the ...
I’ve spent the last couple of days in Hamilton covering Waikato University’s annual NZ Economics Forum, where (arguably) three of the most influential people in our political economy right now laid out their thinking in major speeches about the size and role of Government, their views on for spending, tax ...
Simeon Brown’s Ideology BentSimeon Brown once told Kiwis he tries to represent his deep sense of faith by interacting “with integrity”.“It’s important that there’s Christians in Parliament…and from my perspective, it’s great to be a Christian in Parliament and to bring that perspective to [laws, conversations and policies].”And with ...
Severe geological and financial earthquakes are inevitable. We just don’t know how soon and how they will play out. Are we putting the right effort into preparing for them?Every decade or so the international economy has a major financial crisis. We cannot predict exactly when or exactly how it will ...
Questions1. How did Old Mate Grabaseat describe his soon-to-be-Deputy-PM’s letter to police advocating for Philip Polkinghorne?a.Ill-advisedb.A perfect letterc.A letter that will live in infamyd.He had me at hello2. What did Seymour say in response?a.What’s ill-advised is commenting when you don’t know all the facts and ...
NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi President Richard Wagstaff has called on OJI Fibre Solutions to work with the government, unions, and the community before closing the Kinleith Paper Mill. “OJI has today announced 230 job losses in what will be a devastating blow for the community. OJI needs to work with ...
NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi President Richard Wagstaff is sounding the alarm about the latest attack on workers from Minister of Workplace Relations and Safety Brooke van Velden, who is ignoring her own officials to pursue reckless changes that would completely undermine the personal grievance system. “Brooke van Velden’s changes will ...
Hi,When I started writing Webworm in 2020, I wrote a lot about the conspiracy theories that were suddenly invading our Twitter timelines and Facebook feeds. Four years ago a reader, John, left this feedback under one of my essays:It’s a never ending labyrinth of lunacy which, as you have pointed ...
And if you said this life ain't good enoughI would give my world to lift you upI could change my life to better suit your moodBecause you're so smoothAnd it's just like the ocean under the moonOh, it's the same as the emotion that I get from youYou got the ...
Aotearoa remains the minority’s birthright, New Zealand the majority’s possession. WAITANGI DAY commentary see-saws manically between the warmly positive and the coldly negative. Many New Zealanders consider this a good thing. They point to the unexamined patriotism of July Fourth and Bastille Day celebrations, and applaud the fact that the ...
The podcast above of the weekly ‘Hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers on Thursday night features co-hosts & talking about the week’s news with regular and special guests, including: and on the week in geopolitics, including the latest from Donald Trump’s administration over Gaza and Ukraine; on the ...
Up until now, the prevailing coalition view of public servants was that there were simply too many of them. But yesterday the new Public Service Commissioner, handpicked by the Luxon Government, said it was not so much numbers but what they did and the value they produced that mattered. Sir ...
In a moment we explore the question: What is Andrew Bayly wanting to tell ACC, and will it involve enjoying a small wine tasting and then telling someone to fuck off? But first, for context, a broader one: What do we look for in a government?Imagine for a moment, you ...
As expected, Donald Trump just threw Ukraine under the bus, demanding that it accept Russia's illegal theft of land, while ruling out any future membership of NATO. Its a colossal betrayal, which effectively legitimises Russia's invasion, while laying the groundwork for the next one. But Trump is apparently fine with ...
A ballot for a single member's bill was held today, and the following bill was drawn: Employment Relations (Collective Agreements in Triangular Relationships) Amendment Bill (Adrian Rurawhe) The bill would extend union rights to employees in triangular relationships, where they are (nominally) employed by one party, but ...
This is a guest post by George Weeks, reviewing a book called ‘How to Fly a Horse’ by Kevin AshtonBook review: ‘How to Fly a Horse’ by Kevin Ashton (2015) – and what it means for Auckland. The title of this article might unnerve any Greater Auckland ...
This story was originally published by Capital & Main and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. Within just a week, the sheer devastation of the Los Angeles wildfires has pushed to the fore fundamental questions about the impact of the climate crisis that have been ...
In this world, it's just usYou know it's not the same as it wasSongwriters: Harry Edward Styles / Thomas Edward Percy Hull / Tyler Sam JohnsonYesterday, I received a lovely message from Caty, a reader of Nick’s Kōrero, that got me thinking. So I thought I’d share it with you, ...
In past times a person was considered “unserious” or “not a serious” person if they failed to grasp, behave and speak according to the solemnity of the context in which they were located. For example a serious person does not audibly pass gas at Church, or yell “gun” at a ...
Long stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Thursday, February 13 are:The coalition Government’s early 2024 ‘fiscal emergency’ freeze on funding, planning and building houses, schools, local roads and hospitals helped extend and deepen the economic and jobs recession through calendar ...
For obvious reasons, people feel uneasy when the right to be a citizen is sold off to wealthy foreigners. Even selling the right to residency seems a bit dubious, when so many migrants who are not millionaires get turned away or are made to jump through innumerable hoops – simply ...
A new season of White Lotus is nearly upon us: more murder mystery, more sumptuous surroundings, more rich people behaving badly.Once more we get to identify with the experience of the pampered tourist or perhaps the poorly paid help; there's something in White Lotus for all New Zealanders.And unlike the ...
In 2016, Aotearoa shockingly plunged to fourth place in the Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index. Nine years later, and we're back there again: New Zealand has seen a further slip in its global ranking in the latest Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI). [...] In the latest CPI New Zealand's score ...
1. You’ve started ranking your politicians on how much they respect the rule of law2. You’ve stopped paying attention to those news publications3. You’ve developed a sudden interest in a particular period of history4. More and more people are sounding like your racist, conspiracist uncle.5. Someone just pulled a Nazi ...
Transforming New Zealand: Brian EastonBrian Easton will discuss the above topic at 2/57 Willis Street, Wellington at 5:30pm on Tuesday 26 February at 2/57 Willis Street, WellingtonThe sub-title to the above is "Why is the Left failing?" Brian Easton's analysis is based on his view that while the ...
Salvation Army’s State of the Nation 2025 report highlights falling living standards, the highest unemployment rates since the 1990s and half of all Pacific children going without food. There are reports of hundreds if not thousands of people are applying for the same jobs in the wake of last year’s ...
Mountain Tui is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Correction: On the article The Condundrum of David Seymour, Luke Malpass conducted joint reviews with Bryce Wilkinson, the architect of the Regulatory Standards Bill - not Bryce Edwards. The article ...
Tomorrow the council’s Transport, Resilience and Infrastructure Committee meet and agenda has a few interesting papers. Council’s Letter of Expectation to Auckland Transport Every year the council provide a Letter of Expectation to Auckland Transport which is part of the process for informing AT of the council’s priorities and ...
All around in my home townThey're trying to track me down, yeahThey say they want to bring me in guiltyFor the killing of a deputyFor the life of a deputySongwriter: Robert Nesta Marley.Support Nick’s Kōrero today with a 20% discount on a paid subscription to receive all my newsletters directly ...
Hi,I think all of us have probably experienced the power of music — that strange, transformative thing that gets under our skin and helps us experience this whole life thing with some kind of sanity.Listening and experiencing music has always been such a huge part of my life, and has ...
Business frustration over the stalled economy is growing, and only 34% of voters are confidentNicola Willis can deliver. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, February 12 are:Business frustration is growing about a ...
I have now lived long enough to see a cabinet minister go both barrels on their Prime Minister and not get sacked.It used to be that the PM would have a drawer full of resignations signed by ministers on the day of their appointment, ready for such an occasion. But ...
This session will feature Simon McCallum, Senior Lecturer in Engineering and Computer Science (VUW) and recent Labour Party candidate in the Southland Electorate talking about some of the issues around AI and how this should inform Labour Party policy. Simon is an excellent speaker with a comprehensive command of AI ...
The proposed Waimate garbage incinerator is dead: The company behind a highly-controversial proposal to build a waste-to-energy plant in the Waimate District no longer has the land. [...] However, SIRRL director Paul Taylor said the sales and purchase agreement to purchase land from Murphy Farms, near Glenavy, lapsed at ...
The US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act has been a vital tool in combatting international corruption. It forbids US companies and citizens from bribing foreign public officials anywhere in the world. And its actually enforced: some of the world's biggest companies - Siemens, Hewlett Packard, and Bristol Myers Squibb - have ...
December 2024 photo - with UK Tory Boris Johnson (Source: Facebook)Those PollsFor hours, political poll results have resounded across political hallways and commentary.According to the 1News Verizon poll, 50% of the country believe we are heading in the “wrong direction”, while 39% believe we are “on the right track”.The left ...
A Tai Rāwhiti mill that ran for 30 years before it was shut down in late 2023 is set to re-open in the coming months, which will eventually see nearly 300 new jobs in the region. A new report from Massey University shows that pensioners are struggling with rising costs. ...
As support continues to fall, Luxon also now faces his biggest internal ructions within the coalition since the election, with David Seymour reacting badly to being criticised by the PM. File photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short, the top six things in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate ...
Not since 1988 when Richard Prebble openly criticised David Lange have we seen such a challenge to a Prime Minister as that of David Seymour to Christopher Luxon last night. Prebble suggested Lange had mental health issues during a TV interview and was almost immediately fired. Seymour hasn’t gone quite ...
Three weeks in, and the 24/7 news cycle is not helping anyone feel calm and informed about the second Trump presidency. One day, the US is threatening 25% trade tariffs on its friends and neighbours. The reasons offered by the White House are absurd, such as stopping fentanyl coming in ...
This video includes personal musings and conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Adam Levy. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). Wherever you look, you'll hear headlines claiming we've passed 1.5 degrees of global warming. And while 2024 saw ...
“The ACT Party can’t be bothered putting an MP on one of the Justice subcommittees hearing submissions on their own Treaty Principles Bill,” Labour Justice Spokesperson Duncan Webb said. ...
The Government’s newly announced funding for biodiversity and tourism of $30-million over three years is a small fraction of what is required for conservation in this country. ...
The Government's sudden cancellation of the tertiary education funding increase is a reckless move that risks widespread job losses and service reductions across New Zealand's universities. ...
National’s cuts to disability support funding and freezing of new residential placements has resulted in significant mental health decline for intellectually disabled people. ...
The hundreds of jobs lost needlessly as a result of the Kinleith Mill paper production closure will have a devastating impact on the Tokoroa community - something that could have easily been avoided. ...
Today Te Pāti Māori MP for Te Tai Tokerau, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi, released her members bill that will see the return of tamariki and mokopuna Māori from state care back to te iwi Māori. This bill will establish an independent authority that asserts and protects the rights promised in He Whakaputanga ...
The Whangarei District Council being forced to fluoridate their local water supply is facing a despotic Soviet-era disgrace. This is not a matter of being pro-fluoride or anti-fluoride. It is a matter of what New Zealanders see and value as democracy in our country. Individual democratically elected Councillors are not ...
Nicola Willis’ latest supermarket announcement is painfully weak with no new ideas, no real plan, and no relief for Kiwis struggling with rising grocery costs. ...
Half of Pacific children sometimes going without food is just one of many heartbreaking lowlights in the Salvation Army’s annual State of the Nation report. ...
The Salvation Army’s State of the Nation report is a bleak indictment on the failure of Government to take steps to end poverty, with those on benefits, including their children, hit hardest. ...
New Zealand First has today introduced a Member’s Bill which would restore decision-making power to local communities regarding the fluoridation of drinking water. The ‘Fluoridation (Referendum) Legislation Bill’ seeks to repeal the Health (Fluoridation of Drinking Water) Amendment Act 2021 that granted centralised authority to the Direct General of Health ...
New Zealand First has introduced a Member’s Bill aimed at preventing banks from refusing their services to businesses because of the current “Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Framework”. “This Bill ensures fairness and prevents ESG standards from perpetuating woke ideology in the banking sector being driven by unelected, globalist, climate ...
Erica Stanford has reached peak shortsightedness if today’s announcement is anything to go by, picking apart immigration settings piece by piece to the detriment of the New Zealand economy. ...
Our originating document, theTreaty of Waitangi, was signed on February 6, 1840. An agreement between Māori and the British Crown. Initially inked by Ngā Puhi in Waitangi, further signatures were added as it travelled south. The intention was to establish a colony with the cession of sovereignty to the Crown, ...
Te Whatu Ora Chief Executive Margie Apa leaving her job four months early is another symptom of this government’s failure to deliver healthcare for New Zealanders. ...
The Green Party is calling for the Prime Minister to show leadership and be unequivocal about Aotearoa New Zealand’s opposition to a proposal by the US President to remove Palestinians from Gaza. ...
The latest unemployment figures reveal that job losses are hitting Māori and Pacific people especially hard, with Māori unemployment reaching a staggering 9.7% for the December 2024 quarter and Pasifika unemployment reaching 10.5%. ...
Waitangi 2025: Waitangi Day must be community and not politically driven - Shane Jones Our originating document, theTreaty of Waitangi, was signed on February 6, 1840. An agreement between Māori and the British Crown. Initially inked by Ngā Puhi in Waitangi, further signatures were added as it travelled south. ...
Despite being confronted every day with people in genuine need being stopped from accessing emergency housing – National still won’t commit to building more public houses. ...
The Green Party says the Government is giving up on growing the country’s public housing stock, despite overwhelming evidence that we need more affordable houses to solve the housing crisis. ...
Before any thoughts of the New Year and what lies ahead could even be contemplated, New Zealand reeled with the tragedy of Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming losing her life. For over 38 years she had faithfully served as a front-line Police officer. Working alongside her was Senior Sergeant Adam Ramsay ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson will return to politics at Waitangi on Monday the 3rd of February where she will hold a stand up with fellow co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick. ...
Te Pāti Māori is appalled by the government's blatant mishandling of the school lunch programme. David Seymour’s ‘cost-saving’ measures have left tamariki across Aotearoa with unidentifiable meals, causing distress and outrage among parents and communities alike. “What’s the difference between providing inedible food, and providing no food at all?” Said ...
The Government is doubling down on outdated and volatile fossil fuels, showing how shortsighted and destructive their policies are for working New Zealanders. ...
Green Party MP Steve Abel this morning joined Coromandel locals in Waihi to condemn new mining plans announced by Shane Jones in the pit of the town’s Australian-owned Gold mine. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to strengthen its just-announced 2030-2035 Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement and address its woeful lack of commitment to climate security. ...
The Government’s commitment to get New Zealand’s roads back on track is delivering strong results, with around 98 per cent of potholes on state highways repaired within 24 hours of identification every month since targets were introduced, Transport Minister Chris Bishop says. “Increasing productivity to help rebuild our economy is ...
The former Cadbury factory will be the site of the Inpatient Building for the new Dunedin Hospital and Health Minister Simeon Brown says actions have been taken to get the cost overruns under control. “Today I am giving the people of Dunedin certainty that we will build the new Dunedin ...
From today, Plunket in Whāngarei will be offering childhood immunisations – the first of up to 27 sites nationwide, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. The investment of $1 million into the pilot, announced in October 2024, was made possible due to the Government’s record $16.68 billion investment in health. It ...
New Zealand’s strong commitment to the rights of disabled people has continued with the response to an important United Nations report, Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston has announced. Of the 63 concluding observations of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), 47 will be progressed ...
Resources Minister Shane Jones has launched New Zealand’s national Minerals Strategy and Critical Minerals List, documents that lay a strategic and enduring path for the mineral sector, with the aim of doubling exports to $3 billion by 2035. Mr Jones released the documents, which present the Coalition Government’s transformative vision ...
Firstly I want to thank OceanaGold for hosting our event today. Your operation at Waihi is impressive. I want to acknowledge local MP Scott Simpson, local government dignitaries, community stakeholders and all of you who have gathered here today. It’s a privilege to welcome you to the launch of the ...
Racing Minister, Winston Peters has announced the Government is preparing public consultation on GST policy proposals which would make the New Zealand racing industry more competitive. “The racing industry makes an important economic contribution. New Zealand thoroughbreds are in demand overseas as racehorses and for breeding. The domestic thoroughbred industry ...
Business confidence remains very high and shows the economy is on track to improve, Economic Growth Minister Nicola Willis says. “The latest ANZ Business Outlook survey, released yesterday, shows business confidence and expected own activity are ‘still both very high’.” The survey reports business confidence fell eight points to +54 ...
Enabling works have begun this week on an expanded radiology unit at Hawke’s Bay Fallen Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital which will double CT scanning capacity in Hawke’s Bay to ensure more locals can benefit from access to timely, quality healthcare, Health Minister Simeon Brown says. This investment of $29.3m in the ...
The Government has today announced New Zealand’s second international climate target under the Paris Agreement, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand will reduce emissions by 51 to 55 per cent compared to 2005 levels, by 2035. “We have worked hard to set a target that is both ambitious ...
Nine years of negotiations between the Crown and iwi of Taranaki have concluded following Te Pire Whakatupua mō Te Kāhui Tupua/the Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Bill passing its third reading in Parliament today, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “This Bill addresses the historical grievances endured by the eight iwi ...
As schools start back for 2025, there will be a relentless focus on teaching the basics brilliantly so all Kiwi kids grow up with the knowledge, skills and competencies needed to grow the New Zealand of the future, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “A world-leading education system is a key ...
Housing Minister Chris Bishop and Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson have welcomed Kāinga Ora’s decision to re-open its tender for carpets to allow wool carpet suppliers to bid. “In 2024 Kāinga Ora issued requests for tender (RFTs) seeking bids from suppliers to carpet their properties,” Mr Bishop says. “As part ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today visited Otahuhu College where the new school lunch programme has served up healthy lunches to students in the first days of the school year. “As schools open in 2025, the programme will deliver nutritious meals to around 242,000 students, every school day. On ...
Minister for Children Karen Chhour has intervened in Oranga Tamariki’s review of social service provider contracts to ensure Barnardos can continue to deliver its 0800 What’s Up hotline. “When I found out about the potential impact to this service, I asked Oranga Tamariki for an explanation. Based on the information ...
Comment: The recent attack by Destiny Church front groups on a Drag science show at Te Atatū library crossed a line. This wasn’t the first time that Brian Tamaki, the multimillionaire self-appointed ‘apostle’, has ordered acts of aggression against the queer community. Last year, Drag Story Time events were targeted, ...
Martina Salmon is well versed in the fast-paced action on a netball court, but even she was caught by surprise with the speed at which her career changed tack last year.Staying in the fast lane is only part of her drive this season.Fresh off a nine-day camp in Sydney with ...
Last night I may as well have been in Taihape. Or, closer to home, for me at least, somewhere in the Wairarapa. Or Tūrangi, even – which is near where we used to spend the summer when I was a child. For there was that same gorgeous small town feeling ...
Having Auckland’s food scraps dumped onto your rural backyard sounds scandalous, but in the North Island town of Reporoa there’s no fuss about the thousands of tonnes carted here every week.From the same site as one truck drops the waste, another truck picks up fertiliser to spread on local sheep ...
Negotiating rights over freshwater in Treaty settlement negotiations could have extended negotiations a decade, a Ngāi Tahu leader says.Tribal leaders, and its umbrella body, Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu, have taken the Attorney-General to court in a bid to have the Crown recognise its rangatiratanga (chiefly authority) over wai māori ...
Analysis: Poor safeguarding of New Zealanders’ data could be a widespread practice within the public service and certainly within the health system, according to the findings of an independent inquiry into allegations of misused census and Covid-19 vaccination information.The Public Service Commission’s review, led by consultant Pania Gray and former ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jennifer Stone, Principal Research Fellow, School of Population and Global Health, The University of Western Australia Gorodenkoff/Shutterstock Having dense breasts is a clear risk factor for breast cancer. It can also make cancers hard to spot on mammograms. Yet you ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The National Anti-Corruption Commission will finally investigate whether six people referred to it by the royal commission into Robodebt engaged in corrupt conduct. This follows an independent reconsideration by former High Court judge Geoffrey ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Blaxland, Professor, Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, Australian National University Last week in Europe, the United States sent some very strong messages it is prepared to upend the established global order. US Vice President JD Vance warned a stunned Munich ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The Reserve Bank has delivered the expected modest rate cut of a quarter of a percentage point, and we’re set for the predictable frenzy of speculation about an April election. The cut is unlikely to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Hawkins, Senior Lecturer, Canberra School of Politics, Economics and Society, University of Canberra The Reserve Bank cut official interest rates on Tuesday, the first decrease in four years, saying inflationary pressures are easing “a little more quickly than expected”. However, the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The Reserve Bank has delivered the expected modest rate cut of a quarter of a percentage point, and we’re set for the predictable frenzy of speculation about an April election. The cut is unlikely to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Allan Fels, Professor Allan Fels, Professor of Law, Economics and Business at the University of Melbourne and Monash University., The University of Melbourne Australia is creeping towards adding a divestiture power to its Competition and Consumer Act. Under such a law, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Arjen Vaartjes, PhD Student, Quantum Physics, UNSW Sydney Dmitriy Rybin / Shutterstock What makes something quantum? This question has kept a small but dedicated fraction of the world’s population – most of them quantum physicists – up at night for decades. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mary Anne Kenny, Associate Professor, School of Law, Murdoch University Australia’s minister for home affairs announced on Sunday that the federal government has struck a deal with Nauru to “resettle” three non-citizens from what’s come to be known as the “NZYQ cohort”. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Matt Fitzpatrick, Professor in International History, Flinders University (From left to right): Neville Chamberlain, Édouard Daladier, Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, and Italian Foreign Minister Galeazzo Ciano before signing the Munich Agreement, which gave the Sudetenland to Germany.German Federal Archives/Wikimedia Commons Ukraine ...
The purpose was to establish the facts and provide an independent assessment of government agency activity in relation to allegations that personal data may have been misused during the 2023 General Election. ...
Privacy Commissioner Michael Webster said he is carefully reviewing the referrals raised in the two reports. That work will be done in the context the Privacy Act and the need to ensure individuals’ rights to privacy is protected and respected. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Bhavna Middha, ARC DECRA Senior Research Fellow, Centre for Urban Research, RMIT University The average Australian household size has decreased from 4.5 people per household in 1911 to 2.5 people in 2024. At the same time, the average house size has increased, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Catherine Page Jeffery, Lecturer in Media and Communications, University of Sydney suriyachan/Shutterstock When the Australian government passed legislation in November last year banning young people under 16 from social media, it included exemptions for platforms “that are primarily for the purposes ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Leslie Roberson, Postdoctoral research fellow, Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Science, The University of Queensland If you’ve ever been stopped by quarantine officers at the airport, you might think Australia’s international border is locked down like a fortress. But when it comes ...
Duncan Sarkies’ latest novel, Star Gazers, is about the collapse of democracy in a society of alpaca breeders. Here are some things his intensive research revealed. 1 How greed works, psychologicallyYes, I guess I already understood greed, but I could never understand why people who already have everything they ...
The proposed cuts would see only two full time Telehealth data and digital roles, and one Planning, Funding and Outcomes (PFO) role remain, reduced from 17 Telehealth support roles (including vacant roles). Roles proposed to be cut include Telehealth ...
The Taxpayers’ Union is calling for Ministers to end funding for Te Kurahuna programmes and workshop grifters that have received millions in taxpayer funding, despite the Government’s supposed focus on cutting costs. ...
By Caleb Fotheringham, RNZ Pacific journalist, in Avarua, Rarotonga More than 400 people have taken to the streets to protest against Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown’s recent decisions, which have led to a diplomatic spat with New Zealand. The protest, led by Opposition MP and Cook Islands United Party ...
In the second episode, Brynley Stent and Kura Forrester unearth some truths about dating on a dance floor in South Canterbury. Bryn & Ku’s Singles Club is a brand new documentary series for The Spinoff following award-winning comedians and friends Brynley Stent and Kura Forrester as they embark ...
The first half of a billion-dollar pipe that will drastically reduce wastewater overflows in the Auckland isthmus is now in operation. As I biked south, I thought about all the poo sloshing beneath my wheels. Tubes of it disgorging from U-bends, into wastewater pipes laid under our streets that become ...
The vulnerability continues as the pair head to the Hunt Ball in South Canterbury in search of a rich farmer, before getting some sage relationship advice from Brynley’s Dad and Oma. Bryn & Ku’s Singles Club follows comedians Brynley Stent and Kura Forrester as they head out on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Joel Garrett, Lecturer in Exercise Science and Physiology, Griffith University Australia’s love affair with the major football codes – the Australian Football League (AFL) and National Rugby League (NRL) – is well documented. However, one aspect that stands out to many observers, ...
The White Lotus is back for season three. Here’s what we made of episode one. The third White Lotus season rinses and repeats – and thank God for that. Turns out there is enough comedic and dramatic juice in resort-set ensemble satires on privilege in the modern world, ...
The C of C response to KO buying land at the market peak in 2021 is to stall housing development because of the economics.
Holding land unused is making things worse, and development costs go up with the delay.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/350379972/kainga-ora-owned-land-near-wellingtons-basin-reserve-still-empty-despite
One presumes they intend KO to sell at a loss and not build.
In that regard one should note their not so secret plan to change the rules the OIO operates by – to allow foreign property companies to provide residential housing.
KO will just invite development proposals.
Market will take time to respond because Wellington real estate market has collapsed for 2024.
With the standard ending as a site at the end of the month what happens to the millions of comments stored in the clouds some where?
I'd like b Waghorn to be erased please sir ,thankyou.
hey b
It's not ending. It's going to be hosted on a new server, and the history will be preserved. Things still being worked out.
That is good news Weka.
Oh OK, algood,
Great news, thanks Weka!
Good news Weka. A bit sad that Mr Prentice is to be leading the way no longer though.
Yes. I shall miss his tirades. I was on the receiving end once but forgotten what for – no big deal. I love the way he always manages to get his well thought through opinions across.![😉](https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.0.3/svg/1f609.svg)
Hope he will continue to contribute as a commenter from time to time.
Ditto. I am new here, and value lprent and others, but would be sad to see him go in any capacity.
Excellent news….even a stripped-down version would be good provided the interchange of views and (especially) information is retained.
That's great news Weka – I thought I may have to go back to The Daily Blog and have had a look at it for the past couple of days. My reaction was simply 'yeah, nah'.
That is good news, weka. The Standard has been part of my daily life for fifteen years and I would miss it as I miss some of the contributors over the years (felix, pascal's bookie amongst many others). I suspect lprent is not one for fulsome praise but I would miss his incisive and always intelligent contributions so I hope like ianmac and Anne that he continues to contribute even more in these columns. My thanks to all who awhi this blog.
Banking …
https://www.stuff.co.nz/home-property/350384266/could-commerce-commissions-banking-sector-recommendations-lower-your
We need loan insurance to reduce the cost of business finance. We need equity for Kiwi Bank and money for infrastructure.
1. Windfall profits taxation (28-33cents) – about $300M
2. A 1% decline in the OCR and a 1% surcharge on mortgage loans.
The result would be a lower value to the dollar (higher exports – tradeable inflation is low atm) and revenue of $3.4B pa.
The big 4 banks make $6B a year. Ideally 5 banks make about a $B average profit.
Any tax on mortgage loans imposed on banks, would be immediately passed on to customers (with a firm explanation that the rise is entirely due to the government tax)
Adding an tax on mortgage loans in the current environment, is going to make any party unelectable.
Not sure what you count as a 'windfall profit' but if it's only going to get 300M in taxation it's almost certainly not worth collecting.
There is no increase in the amount paid by homeowners because a surcharge allows a lower OCR rate.
Apart from the increased revenue collected by government (see the budget forecasts for the coming decades) it also increases returns to exporters (and thus tax paid by them).
The Americans once had progressive tax on companies, so larger ones paid a higher rate. It's very easy to collect.
If the surcharge reduces bank profits, you can absolutely guarantee this will result in increased charges to borrowers.
Deliberately missing the point.
If the OCR goes down by 1%, banks reduce their mortgage rate accordingly.
So there is no change in the amount paid by the homeowner with a 1% surcharge if the two were applied at the same time.
But the government gets the revenue it needs.
Also deliberately missing the point. If the OCR goes down and the surcharge goes up, there is no change to mortgage rate – and borrowers both notice and complain (OCR has gone down, why is my mortgage still high?)
Banks will absolutely inform them this is because of a government tax.
If you think that people with mortgages aren't obsessively watching the Reserve Bank rate – you don't know many people with mortgages.
They watch the rate, because it impacts on their mortgage cost.
If a 1% mortgage surcharge allows a 1% OCR cut they pay no more but government gets the funds required to afford health funding and infrastructure. Its over $3B a year.
They watch the rate to make sure that their own mortgage rate goes down when the OCR goes down. If that's not happening, you bet your bottom dollar that they'll be asking questions of their bank.
It's just another tax.
As I said, an unelectable policy.
You are a piece of work. Are you really incapable of comprehending that a mortgage surcharge would enable a lower OCR?
Are you really incapable of comprehending that people with mortgages care about what they have to pay – not what % goes to the government in tax.
In your example, despite the OCR going down, the government takes all of that as tax, so their mortgage repayment remains the same.
Or do you have some other handwavium solution to propose?
So you think homeowners do not care about a well-funded government?
You conflate (lie) a win win scenario – where at no extra mortgage cost to homeowners there was $3Bpa more in government funding – with handwavium.
Tell it to those whose children are in rundown school buildings, those who need access to primary health care and those facing rate increases because of lack of government support for infrastructure.
Businesses facing a problem with high temporary prices and or a rising cost to renewing their longer term supply contracts.
One way to lower the cost of supply is investment in battery storage. Possibly taking spare solar power off business and homes for this purpose.
As a dry year reserve to supplement the arrangements with Comalco and Methanex.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/350385023/power-price-pinch-sees-indefinite-closure-two-mills-hundreds-jobs-could-go
I doubt that any industrial complex can operate off battery storage.
California runs fine on huge amounts of battery storage
That is just nonsense. They cannot operate if they have no power, or cannot make a profit because of the cost of it in a dry year.
The easiest way to reduce power cost is to reduce take off the grid by homes and business (their use of solar) and otherwise to take their solar power surplus onto the grid and store this such energy in a battery (for use in a dry year).
There is no difficulty placing power onto the grid from a battery.
I think you're misunderstanding the usage of battery farms – this is short term storage (e.g. from the heat of the day when solar is widely available, to the evening, when peak demand arises)
They are not intended to be substitutes for hydro-electricity generation in a dry year.
Why not? The role of battery storage is a developing one.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battery_storage_power_station
Because battery duration is measured in hours – not months.
There are two aspects to this.
A business operating off hydro from the grid, then not able to afford the spot price in a dry year.
In the dry year we have Comalco using less power, and Methanex supplying gas to the Huntly power station (if the price is right for both parties or otherwise coal) – which has a higher and higher cost as per 2050.
There is the Onslow dam and battery storage to cope with the dry year otherwise. A battery can hold power for years. How many and how large to provide a useful level of storage for dry years is that issue.
More businesses should look at being less dependent on the hydro supply, perhaps taking power from local solar and wind into a local battery system for their daily use.
We know that in a continuity use system battery storage makes renewable power reliable and this lowers power cost.
This is one way for a community to protect a local businesses (solar panels on homes and business roofs and wind farms).
But the C of C has no plan to realise even this. It's lack of focus on solar generation and battery use is, given the South Australia success in this area is inexplicable.
All the current government has as an answer – import gas, and blame the power companies for using a market system (price to manage demand), one that has been used for years. These companies were set up to act for shareholders, not the national interest, by the government of John Key.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/525747/ridiculously-high-power-prices-threatening-manufacturers-shane-jones
“I am happy to say categorically that I have found no other country that aligns more with my view of the future than New Zealand,” Thiel wrote.
Not that we needed reminding who this coalition serves Peter.
What he likes a country with no GPs and Businesses shutting up shop because we can't keep the lights on!!!
He likes to whinge about paying too much tax as the article in granny had a dig at California's tax regime.
The sense of entitlement knows no boundaries.
Bolthole abandoned…(well, for the moment )
Also he is NOT, repeat NOT a vampire…(as far as we know..)
And Matt Nippert ( IMO a good Reporter) reveals some of Citizen Peter Thiel….
Also Toby and Toby…Insight and Cartoons : )
And..a Citizen Thiel quote ..(well, he'd fit right in with NACT1)
Don’t forget Mr freedom, individual responsibility and small Govt made a tidy sum via the NZ taxpayer from the NZVIF–Venture Investment Fund–launched by Steven Joyce in 2012. He exercised a buy back option to cream millions of dollars after the Govt. matched his initial investment and more. Even Joyce admitted the buy back plus deal did not look good “on the face of it”.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/billionaire-peter-thiel-makes-fortune-after-sweetheart-deal-with-government/B22JSOU3762DJCI53XCR4MLRHU/
Aye TM. Had forgotten that one. (and there are probably many more : (
Socialism for those creeps ..is also taking a good bite of the peoples taxpayer …profits.
We need Thiel ?….yet another self interested mega rich leech on our Society
(oh yea, and was another good Matt Nippert story)
The invidiousness of corporate welfare (a symptom of fully-matured capitalism) is very well explained in Vulture Capitalism by economist and political journalist Grace Blakeley. The link is Blakely's RNZ interview. The book is an excellent mash-up of socialsit and economic theory.
Yep..Corporate Welfare..just another tentacle of the Corporates in the Warfare they continuously wage..including, on us.
He's been talking to Rimmer?
https://www.news24.com/fin24/international/apartheid-works-billionaire-paypal-founder-and-trump-backer-peter-thiel-said-book-claims-20211115
Yep, Minds alike an all. Some Great, some..not so much.
Middle class folk meet W and I, wonder at the human cost to those less able to cope with the new C of C regime.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/525742/benefit-cut-after-one-missed-appointment-former-public-servant-says
Oh yea..just earlier read that . Its maybe a sad fact…that (many?) people have…either no, or little, idea of what goes on in the sad lives of the unlucky.
And as the ex Accountant alludes, there are other costs. The myopic/purblind shits of NACT1….never factor those in. Unfortunately some..will pay. Pain and suffering. It will cost..us dearly.
I'm (almost) enjoying that all these people are suddenly experiencing the joys of W & I. Especially if they voted for one of the CoC, then zero sympathy.
I saw it during covid, the poor things suddenly having to deal with the welfare system, whining to the media that they had 'no idea' benefits paid so little (even though they were getting a special increased rate and no relationship rules). I guess there was never any concern for the perilous conditions many of their fellow citizens have to endure beforehand. It's not as if a quick google would give them that info.
I naively thought now that the middle class have been affected, they might develop some empathy. Yeah, right.
This story is so full of holes I'm surprised they published it. It took two weeks to get appointment, but 8 weeks to reduce benefit to nil. If he had actually attended the appointment after first deduction to 80%, there would be no further deductions to nil. He will probably struggle to get another job with the attitude of ignoring two reminder texts to attend a meeting. Would he be able to turn up to a job interview? Now he's gone to the media he looks like an even bigger fool.
FFS Jimmy what jobs? This lot have tanked the economy.
In which case, he'll have no problem turning up the the WINZ appointments – since he'll have nothing else to do.
I also think that it's a poor example.
The original one (where someone claims that he never received the message about the appointment, and subsequently was notified his payments would be cut), is a much better one.
WINZ systems aren't perfect (no organization's ones are) and to have a benefit cut with no cross-checks seems to be a highly-risky strategy.
You are such a right wing troll.
Ah, yes, your usual standard of insightful commentary.
If you can't attack the comment – let's abuse the person.
And what great intellectual discussion is to be had when you troll people who are not working?
So if the ad hominem fits…
Doubling down on the dumb as a rock response.
If you're so busy 'working' that you can't engage your intellect, perhaps you should stop engaging your typing fingers.
…
Just sounds to me like you know fuck-all about the way that WINZ and the MSD operate. It rings true to me. WINZ is more chaotic as anything I have ever seen. I include a pile of poorly run entrepreneurial businesses, charities, NGOs and the military experience in there.
Anyone who has and is used to normal business operations would be unused to dealing with WINZ operations and the stupid limitations that various fuckwit Ministers, mostly National ones, have imposed on them over decades.
I have only dealt with WINZ twice.
Once back in the GFC in 2009 when I got dumped out of a contract job a month after starting because their pitch to the customer failed. I contacted them and applied for the dole after a couple of months of job hunting when the cash and food started to run low. They organised me to have to attend a session about how to write a CV two weeks later, and told me that I would be required to attend it before they'd look signing me up. FFS I have an MBA, my CV was spotless and I used to run courses on how to write CVs….
My most recent brief experience of WINZ was this year after my redundancy/holiday pay ran out and before I hit 65 after a unexpected redundancy when the company shuttered itself after poor US sales. WINZ has updated itself a little. Now they will 'organise' everything without telling you. Or telling you poorly. Or telling you late. Not telling you at all seems all too likely too – especially if it is posted.
I have had a phone call from WINZ, that I could see was from WINZ because I'd tagged it as WINZ from a previous call on my phone. Couldn't see anything on MyMSD, so went to the local WINZ/MSD office to get them to look it up. They didn't know anything about it. Whoever had called me hadn't logged it.
By then I'd developed a habit of watching MyMSD, just in case. That was after receiving a letter that turned up the day before the appointment dated 2 weeks earlier, and that had arrived on last possible delivery out of the 2 postal deliveries a week.
In my month of getting job seeker, before getting on to super, they'd also informed me by letter on MyMSD, that I would be getting nett $178 per fortnight out of a nett ~$300 entitlement. That was because I would be paying off of a debt to MSD.
First that I'd heard of any debt. MyMSD didn't show any debts. My guess it was the first payment that they'd made before I received that letter.
I (mostly) trust them on the delivery of superannuation because it is hard to screwup a computer program without human access requirements. Plus I now have my Kiwisaver accessible.
Because I don't trust the MSD or WINZ to do their processes properly or to communicate clearly, I have a large dollop of cash in the bank on a lower interest rate than I'd like. That is solely so that it can be accessed immediately. I also have a rather large untouched overdraft facility available that is backed by term deposits.
Almost certainly. Potential employers who are worth working for are always clear. They typically communicate digitally with ICS attachments to go into your calendar. Usually after talking to you on cellphones. They also text and email. I haven't had one for decades that used paper or the snail mail system.
Perhaps you shouldn't write about things you clearly don't know about. You sound like a National party minister attempting to sound competent. You come across as a ignorant pretentious twat.
I forgot the real job interview that I had to move because WINZ wanted me at an appointment on short notice. Turns out that you can't contact them to move it. I had to contact the company I was going to do a google meet with.
In the month that I dealt with WINZ on jobseeker, they were bloody irritation. I was doing 2-3 job interviews a week and pushing out about 8-10 application a week. Yet WINZ appeared to think that they had first call on my time for $178 per fortnight.
The irritating thing about it is that WINZ is as clearly understaffed and over micro-managed at the Ministry of Labour was back in 1992 when my then partner worked for them.
Actually I have had dealings with Winz a couple of times this year in helping someone get an accommodation allowance. They asked for information that we duly provided, and I thought they were pretty good in phoning when they said they would. I guess if we had ignored their phone calls and not provided the information (or ignored texts like the bloke in the above example even when his benefit had reduced to 80%!), the accommodation allowance would not have been received. We wouldn't have run to the media complaining though as then you look like a fool.
Regarding your situation:
"I have a large dollop of cash in the bank on a lower interest rate than I'd like. That is solely so that it can be accessed immediately. I also have a rather large untouched overdraft facility available that is backed by term deposits."
You may want to speak to someone regarding budgeting advice and the best way to structure your funds for your situation.
Idiot. Lets assume that you are aware of the current inflation rate is.
It is structured exactly for my short-term requirements. Those are to make sure that there is money readily available around when it is required. Not only for MSD (or employers) not paying on time. But also for emergencies or things that need immediate resources. I had a heart attack 13 years ago and have a stent. My father is 85. Acts of god like having my car being drowned last year in the floods.
Having a small % of my investment money sitting on 4.55% interest with immediate access rather than the 6.x% on term loans is just prudent. It can take a few days to untangle term loans and longer to pull money from investment accounts.
Having a rolling credit facility that I don't need to use allows me or my partner to draw down copious money immediately if something serious happens. There is a price associated with it, but only if I exercise it.
Having money that is on call means that we can cover the rolling credit within a short period.
I guess that you just like sounding like you know what you're doing. But as I said – you invariably sound like a ignorant pretentious twat.
Well that is very good to hear that you are not "a ignorant pretentious twat" as you put it, or an idiot, and you are good with financial planning and have obviously planned well for your future and retirement.
However having said that, why would you even need to contact WINZ for job seeker benefit earlier this year if your financial planning is so successful? Surely you had planned for a rainy day or unexpected expense (or redundancy), and hopefully now that you are 65 and receiving super, that is not your only income.
Umm worth replying to that, if only to point out what to watch for when heading to super.
It was very unexpected to wind up being made redundant at the end of Jan. Bit annoying as well as we'd just finished paying almost every single debt off, including the tail of the mortgage in 2023. Just had a small overdraft and a credit line for emergencies. Also had a large inaccessible kiwisaver. If I needed it I could tap into
Basically getting ready for super + kiwisaver and a probable change of pace in early June. Didn't want to mortgage the apartment again.
With what was on-hand, 2 months notice paid out, and 6 weeks of holiday pay I had roughly 4 months of cash available. Had already booked a holiday in Feb. Pre-paid the 6 months of body corporate and rates, my partners outstanding tax, and the remaining debt, and then started cutting costs
Which left about 3 months cash available which could be stretched. Some went on hotel bills and the holiday in Feb. Couldn't can that as it was organised with some US guests.
I figured that I could either get a job within 5 months or I'd get early kiwisaver which was where all of the investment money was or I would last until super + kiwisaver got accessed at the start of June.
I'm pretty picky about work usually. Especially now that I don't have a mortgage and an upcoming source of income from super and kiwisaver. I don't require much income, and super covers most of my running expenses.
WFH was something that employers were wanting to not have past the pandemic. But I'm uninterested in long daily commuting unless employers were willing pay for it. I'm uninterested in doing managerial or team lead work. So I am only willing to do straight programming in engineering applications preferably for export.
Turns out jobs I was interested in were mostly not available within my limits. I wasn't interested in working in Albany/Rosedale or East Tamaki because most of the interesting engineering work is there. But neither have effective public transport from where I live.
Got turned down for the local jobs that I was interested in, and that .
I usually get about 1 in 20 of the jobs I apply for simply because I have been old as a programmer for decades, and I make sure that HR and employers have many good reasons to reject me. It saves me from having to put up with jobs with lousy employers whilst getting a project finished. I wind up on projects that either have good employers or that they actually want completion on projects (typically after someone else has hit their limits).
Could have easily gotten a off-target job to pay bills and probably would have if I'd actually needed to. But doing a pointless short-term job that cost me time and money to get to wasn't worth doing. I didn't need to once I got super and the large pile of kiwisaver.
Plus I have a lot of re-education to do. It'd been nearly 15 years since I'd last had time to sit down and do some serious playing with code outside of work. That is a lot of time to coast on previous skill updating or what you pick up on in the projects you're working on.
Pretty well did stretch it out. But had a few extra bills on the way as usually happens. Mostly physio for fixing and bike finger and knee injuries that I'd had in November. ACC paid most of it. But the weekly bills for the rest mounted up. Had a nasty large bill from cloudflare for some attacks on this site in March. Went from $25 per month to a month with over $600. Which is why this site now uses bunny.net for the CDN.
Realised at the end of April that I could run short of money between my birthday on June 4th and the first full super payment on June 19th. It pays to look at when that fortnightly payment falls when looking forward to super. Also that it was really hard to extract kiwisaver early (don't count on that ever!), and it'd probably take a couple of weeks to get kiwisaver after my birthday.
So I had roughly two-three weeks to cover. So at the start of May, I prepaid some bills and did a few other things to get enough resources to cover eating and freezing.
Then applied for jobseeker as I was entitled to do, as much to see what would happen as anything else. While also organising a covering loan of a few thousand from family if I needed it.
Jobseeker and WINZ was just as bad as I expected. But it did garner about a thousand. Used about a thousand from family loan. Then first super payment and kiwisaver dropped into my account so I paid the latter.
So notice.. no additional debt after 5 months off work apart from about $1k. I didn't need any other money apart from the money paid out by my previous employer and didn't have to tap into any assets or resources apart from trying jobseeker. Had a holiday. Paid for additional medical treatment. Paid for an large unexpected bill.
The big advantage about doing the stretch is that we're now set up with expenditures slightly above revenue from super + my partners business after a lot of cost-trimming – which we would have wanted to do anyway.
The annual difference is roughly about $5000 per year – the body corporate + some rates. A large stash of ex-kiwisaver accessible and earning income so the excess is easily paid by revenues from investments if nothing else.
We have everything we need after I brought a 2 bike rack and towbar for the car after I got kiwisaver, and paid for a few computer updates for both out systems. Just need to keep an eye out from a (??!!) updated second hand macbook for my apple obsessed partner.
I now have complete freedom to idle if I feel like it, take a job if one shows up meeting my criteria, just start writing and selling things on net, just play with writing code that interests me fro open source, get involved in politics with time to do it, or (do something stupid) like try to boost my partners business. I can help out of other peoples projects if I choose to.
Since I hate having holidays or idling, working on what interests me is the most likely.
It is really kind of nice to have the choices. Which is what was intended fro this stage in my life.
Apart from the unexpected redundancy, everything was pre-planned. Even that was a contingency. I just like doing things with the minimal use of resources. Like this site does.
I'm one of those people who always has a lot of contingency planning going on in my head and always has pathways to what I want to do via multiple routes or multiple potential objectives that can be reached from my current path.
Well done for having the cash available for the 3/4 months cover (contingency fund for the unexpected). It always good to plan for if you can.
As I've said on here before, Kiwi Saver is one of the best things IMO, any government has done.
Agreed. It was essentially what Rowling and Douglas were after in 1973
Muldoon destroyed it for both political and fiscal reasons. It helped him win the 1975 election and in effect it allowed him to raid the funds of the existing pensions schemes when he introduced National Superannuation.
I don't know how you do it, LP.
As the mainstay, curator, funder, and lead on this valuable site for so many years, spending that much time on an arrogant, blow-in troll without binning them.
I'm semi-retired these days. I have more of my own time because I'm not getting my contractor level hourly rates on a salary and the obligations of progress that go with it.
Besides I'm stuck on a problem in a new language working on a new editor right now and having to think up a whole new way to approach fixing the problem. Doing something mindless like replying to Jimmy about something I already thought about and solved helps.
It frees up the intuitive part of my brain to nibble at the edges of the problem looking for a innovative solution while my fingers are occupied with typing.
I usually only bin trolls if they can’t write coherently or get repetitive and I don’t have time to educate them. Jimmy does pretty well on the first two counts
Copy that. I'm still working and distracted. I would like to make more detailed and reasoned comments and even write some pieces but am unable because of work and family duties.
I've mentioned to moderators here this disadvantage ordinary, socially conscious, working people have when commenting on forums. Lefties should be better understood here but are sometimes moderatered against because of the brevity of their comments.
Did the appointment notification go to his spam folder? Happens all the time.
My spam folder received a few of them there. I had to firmly tell gmail and thunderbird that WINZ, MSD, and the IRD were not spam.
Gee wouldn't it be great if New Zealand had an energy strategy, and the sovereignty to make it happen?
From the : Of course they would say that file…..
As Its obvious, stupid…
It all sounds so reasonable. Hmm, right.
Have to say I am also not falling for Nicola icecream and movies Willis, and her blather about Kiwibank and Mum and Dad Investors
FFS, I do NOT believe you Nicola Willis ! And didnt we have that BS with the Electricity
giveawayselldown? And what happened to those Mum and Dad shares?What she means is listing a minority share of Kiwibank on the sharemarket.
Does anyone remember what happened to our power companies?
What she means..and what she means are very possibly..different things. And shown many times. And didnt I say Electricity Mum and Dad shares ?
From the past.
And from The Standard….History aye ?
Yes that was my point
Ah yes, allgood : )
Once Kiwibank is infected by the pernicious* doctrine of maximising private** shareholder value, it will behave odiously, just like the other banks that we loathe so much. Presumably Willis (or her ventriloquist) knows this.
*pernicious when applied to natural monopolies or to the essentials of daily life. Possibly pernicious under all circumstances, though this latter is contentious.
** note however that even with the government as the 100% shareholder, Kiwibank can be forced into similarly bad behaviour under the governance of odious regimes like the CoC
What happened to our power companies.
.
Craig Renney
@CLRenney
MBIE electricity generation shows this best. In 2023 NZ generated 43,000 GWH of electricity – the same as in 2010. Our population increased by 888,000 during this time and Nominal GDP doubled. Yet no new electricity. The market has failed year after year.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GVYF7wZaMAQLQVx?format=png&name=large
https://x.com/CLRenney/status/1825659043064717473
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/what-new-zealand-can-tell-america-about-their-election-richard-prebble/HNNABLIFGRGHHIDDVJGTN66KZU/
Even Republicans are standing up against Trump and his lunacy yet NZ's so-called respectable right are quite openly wanting a Trump presidency. Shows just how close we are to normalising Trumpesque ideas, the Treaty principles debacle and the associated attacks on all things Maori being the most obvious example.
Some thoughts for Nicola Willis to ignore
And that's the attitude that fuels inflation.
I doubt your economist can give a single real-life example of a country who printed excess money without triggering inflation.
For NZ this was debunked in 1986 when the RBNZ stopped targeting the quantity of money. It was thoroughly discredited in the UK at the time when the Thatcher administration found their whole scale destruction of their economy attempting to quantity target the pound was wildly unpopular. The Fed in the US denied ever practicing quantity targeting.
So your example of a nation that routinely prints excess money without triggering inflation is?
The short answer is all of them. This is because your model for how money works doesnt apply to any real world economy.
First up money as measured comes in several forms. These include reserve money (what the government and banks transact) and bank deposits (what the public transacts). Which of these are you proposing to be in excess?
We can assume that is the reserve money your discussing here maybe, at least thats the quantity governments influence directly. Problem with that however is there is no fixed relationship between reserve money quantities and broad money quantities. In fact the RBNZ is ready to lend (create) as much reserve money as demanded for commercial banks to clear payments (those loans being made at the OCR of the day). This was the RBNZ 1986 change to give up targeting quantities (because targeting those quantities didn't constrain the quantity of money the public transacts in anyway).
So its going to be difficult to find the example you seek as A) the quantity which is excessive is not determined anywhere.
B) this quantity your asking about doesn't even constrain the broad money supply anyway (let alone inflation).
USA
USA quantitative easing in 2020 (and early 21)- followed by inflation rates of 7% in 2021 and 6.5% in 2022.
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/q/quantitative-easing.asp
https://www.usinflationcalculator.com/inflation/current-inflation-rates/
QE *can* be a tool for reinvigorating an economy, but it's one with inherent risks.
Countries which routinely print money to get themselves out of a fiscal hole – end up like Venezuela.
USA (and many other countries + the Eurozone) began QE closer to 2010. What you have identified there is a coincidence, not a cause.
and if the USA lifted sanctions of Venezuela a large part of its inflation issues would abate. Most times really serious inflation spells occur they were proceeded by USA enforced economic sanctions.
Nothing to do with the USA deliberately "squeezing Venezuala's economy until it bleeds" of course!
All of them. "Routinely prints excess money". That is how a National currency comes into being.
Well knock me over with a feather! Entitlement much..
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/525769/new-ministry-paying-staff-average-salary-of-150k-despite-public-sector-job-cuts
Just wondering – how many of the 90 high paying jobs are members of the Act party?
It would be interesting to find out!
Jailed for 9 years and 9 months. This almost needs a disclaimer before reading it's so bad.
(actually Stuff did put one)
Child abuser who left toddler victim with ‘injuries worse than some fatalities we see’ jailed | Waikato Times (stuff.co.nz)