If things are as bad for the residential landlord class as claims Andrew King, chief executive of the New Zealand Property Investors Federation – in Auckland $250 plus down EVERY week of the year – one wonders that anyone risks their financial future by becoming one.
I mean these are meant to be canny lads and lasses right into the Brighter Future a la their idol Mr Gauche. Altruism usually takes the back burner when doom is in the offing so there’s obviously an upside which King is fully aware of but dishonestly withholds.
the property is not bought as a rental. It is bought as a speculation object, and in the mean time is rented. It does actually not matter if it covers the mortgage or not.
And why should rent cover mortgage, considering that the ‘rental’ will bring in money of many many decades.
One of the houses that sold in my street was rented to one lady and her kids for over 20 years. She never managed to save enough to buy a house (min wage, no extra income, etc) she did make enough to spend over 300.000 $ in rent during the time she lived there. In that time nothing was done to the interior, which is the reason the house in the end sold for 200.000 $ less than the next house which was build at the same time and got renovated before sales. $ 690.000 unrenovated – build in the 1980 vs 890.000 renovated – build at the same time.
So if you consider that maybe the houses/land in westie land would have been about 100.000 initially, one could say that the property owner (well the son who inherited it) made a good profit on it. Did the rent initially cover the mortgage, probably not. Did the rent cover the mortgage and then some in the end. Yes it did
So Andrew King, chief executive of the New Zealand Property Investors Federation IS dishonest. And possessed by a nasty sense of entitlement. Thought as much.
King wouldn’t also be an ACToid, or would he ? This is why I ask – from the article – King, (complainingly) – “Insulation in rental properties is to be compulsory……” – wait for it – “……. whether the tenant wants it or not.”
It is not that he is dishonest, he is just very flexible with the truth.
If I buy a rental today as an investment, and want to hold on to it throughout my retirment an maybe leave it in the family then clearly it is a ‘rental’. If i buy a rental today with the intention to rent it until the market has provided enough incentive to sell it, then it is an object of speculation, which is what we are currently seeing.
the rental object will be in my family for 30 – 50 – 150 years maybe (consider that in europe many of the old houses are still in the hands of the same families, have been modified to accommodate more people, renovated, upgraded etc). Now initially the rent will not cover monthly or weekly mortgage payment, but at some stage the mortgage is paid and the rent becomes income and gain.
Consider also that lets say a mortgage of $ 600 per week might be the honest price for a property. But would $ 750 be an honest rental price for the same property? (and yes i added $ 150 to cover costs of admin, rates, n leaky roof)? Depends, what stage is the house in? How old is the carpet, fixings n trimmings?
So you see the mortgage of 600 is fine, after all one gets a property n stuff – an investment that even might be worth double or triple in the future, but the maximum rent for the same property due to its state might only be worth $ 360, and voila the rent does not cover the mortgage.
So at best the good man is paid to be a misleading shill and won’t somebody please think of the poor and misunderstood property owners and their staff in the the property industry.
IMO the big lie is the sly insinuation they paid latest price for their properties, they always talk about the costs of a house bought at the current price. In truth they largely charge today’s rents for yesterday’s houses, their own costs are much less than they infer.
He’s sure got some chutzpah. Whining about his business not being allowed to claim depreciation while he pays no tax on his property’s massive appreciation. Life is so unfair isn’t it, poor guy.
His whine about depreciation is easily fixed … Allow depreciation BUT then tax all capital gains, and the depreciation that was claimed on sale will be recovered so it is only a timing matter. Sure the property owner gets some small tax relief but pays this back, and the govt books benefit from all capital gains achieved.
I wish Andrew King was correct in saying “Andrew King: Rental prices in NZ are actually quite reasonable” If they were and kiwis were paid a reasonable wage then there would be no necessity for an Accommodation Supplement. As in 2011 we were paying out $1.2b, take this away then the rental market has $1.2b less to spend on accommodation and rentals should fall. Unfortunately the world does not operate under “market driven basis”, 🙁 http://www.interest.co.nz/property/60426/govt-reviewing-accommodation-supplement-rent-subsidy-housing-minister-heatley-says
“In this episode of the Keiser Report, Max Keiser and Stacy Herbert discuss what the price of sardines teaches us about disintermediation. They also discuss the strange email from Sidney Blumenthal to Hillary Clinton about the real reason for France’s invasion of Libya. In the second half, Max continues his interview with Reggie Middleton about Pathogenic Finance: The autonomous, anti-fragile, trustless paradigm shift transforming banking, brokerage, securities and insurance.
That segment on Pathogenic Finance with Reggie Middleton is brilliant . That’s a game changer that would do to the financial sector what peer-to-peer file sharing did to the music and film industries. I can see the full force of Wall Street pushing back on that idea.
With the proposed signing of the TPP looming, there seems to be more people interested in e accessing information about it. I recommend the following link https://tpplegal.wordpress.com
As well as expert analysis on 3 papers, there are excellent articles in the commentary section.
This is another on Māori and TPP – you may already have put it up
Expert paper on TPPA & Treaty of Waitangi: government fails to meet obligations to Maori
The third in a series of expert peer reviewed papers on the implications of the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement for Aotearoa New Zealand was posted on the tpplegal website today.
The paper was co-authored by Carwyn Jones, a senior lecturer in law from Victoria University, and Andrew Erueti, Associate Professor Claire Charters and Professor Jane Kelsey from the University of Auckland law faculty. The peer reviewer was lawyer Moana Jackson from Ngati Porou and Ngati Kahungunu.
‘Maori have long-standing concerns about law and policy relating to issues such as traditional knowledge, biodiversity and environmental management’, says Carwyn Jones, who wrote that section of the paper. ‘The TPPA will hamper the ability of future governments to develop Treaty of Waitangi-consistent law and policy in these areas.’
‘It is extremely disappointing that the Government would enter into such an agreement without securing effective protection for Maori, which the “Treaty of Waitangi Exception” fails to do.’
‘All New Zealanders ought to be concerned that the TPPA is moving us further and further away from effective recognition of rights guaranteed under the Treaty of Waitangi, putting another obstacle in the way of reconciliation and the resolution of grievances.’
Do you know if anything happened in Japan regarding the last story?
I notice that it is dated 4 September 2015 and that all the comments are from about four months ago.
That is a very interesting write up, thanks. It’s a good example of why non-rapist men need to step up and end rape culture. Women are doing what they can, and some men, but if the only way that that situation with the publicist could be dealt with was via twitter there is something very wrong (not that that’s news). I’m very glad that those women used twitter in this way, and I’m disgusted that they had to and that the people in the culture they live and work within are all pretty much ignoring and/or supporting rape culture.
…authentic human identity is only available to those who insist on being something more than the means to someone else’s end. Who we are now, and what we may yet become: both conditions drive us forward….
Very profound and true. I often wonder why people become super competitive – that is, to the extent that they just HAVE to be better/outdo the next man/woman. we’re constantly told that should be what drives us.
I used to wonder about that amongst musicians (guitarists for example who strove and claim to be better than say Clapton, rather than simply trying to improve themselves; or dealing room wideboys competing to outdo their colleagues). That seems to be simply an exercise in stroking ones own ego.
We’re constantly told the competitive spirit and ambition = good. I’ve seen some pretty devastated people with those attributes when a bit of shit hits the fan – as in they totally can’t cope and spend their days beating themselves up.
I guess we might be in for quite a few people jumping out of Wall Street windows in the not too distant
Competition in the right place can be a good spur. I wouldn’t mind at all if NZ pollies aimed to keep us up with the other countries with innovative, future thinking measures say about the environment, or to bring recidivism from crims down etc.
Not aim for the top, just achievable ashperashuns. But no. Lazy Maysie and Co. are off on holiday.
yep, however I’m not sure they need to ‘compete’ necessarily, but just like the 4th Estate ….. they just need to do their fucking jobs and act with a bit of principle and a few ethics.
Narrowing, managing, controlling: isn’t that the story of the last thirty years?
Listen both National and Labour while they tell us that we can’t do what’s needed to make our society better. It’s all about keeping us in a very narrow mindset of profit for the rich.
We have, over the last thirty years, allowed ourselves to be straight-jacketed into being what the oligarchs want us to be.
“Labour thought that because the Conservatives did not win 2010, when they had Gordon Brown as their leader and the economy was in the toilet, the Tories would be unable to win [in 2015] and all they had to do was sit on the horse and hang on,” says Crosby. “They never said sorry for their mishaps, they never really did an honest review of their policies, they never had a story about the future for the British people. They just did not do the work. They were intellectually lazy and thought themselves intellectually superior.”
lol
Tory whose campaign strategy revolves around “brevity, relentlessness, focus on and leverage of public preconceptions” suggests that Labour should have done more policy debating and public confessionals. Cheers for the advice, Lynton…
Assuming O’Sullivan’s correct about the SkyCity venue ……. would say it all really. And tacky tacky tacky ! Let’s pray the sounds won’t be down to New Camelot Max.
I was told by a friend that the signing in AKL is only for the press. The official signing with dignitaries n such could be at a more formal site. Signing of the TPPa at Waitangi anyone? lol….interesting times.
A report by the Sustainability Council shows that under the TPPA, the Investors will be able to sue governments especially in matters relating to the environment.
I think it was Paxman I heard say, “An informed society is a healthy society”. Weldon’s vision for NZ society seems to be going in the opposite direction, unsurprisingly.
Oh but better and bigger Muttonbird. Now TV3 Newshub at 6pm.
“The service will provide the latest news and in-depth analysis, with a dedicated, state-of-the-art app and website and TV and radio news bulletins across MediaWorks’ channels – as well as fuelling news content across other programmes such asPaul Henry.”
So a reverse of Checkpoint on RNZ – or something?
TV3 News flash to our great Newshub media team –
Let’s all join hands and play American Whispers along the chain (not Chinese now they are our friends) which will ensure stories go across all Mediawork channels. Sometimes we’ll start the story at one end and it will finish up with Paul Henry, and sometimes the other way round.
We will add to our reports spice, verve, topicality, tons of amusing opinion, and plenty of room for surmise and prophetic announcements. All participants will bear their own slander legal fees, and compulsory insurance should be entered into pronto
So before anything too controversial or about serial litigants, check with the legal team.
/sarc edited
dontcha just lerv the lingo – there goes the Mark of a total bullshit artist. A Key player in the new media vironmint (going forwid)
Ekshully, there’s been a series on the National Geographic Channel (such as that travesty to the name is – it’s founders are busy rolling in their graves) looking at the 80’s, then the 90’s,and now the 00’s.
It’d be interesting to look back on this decade from the future – it won’t be pretty.
Mark and Joolie (all kitted out with stetson). It’ll look something like the Class of 87.
stick a match to it CV – better to do it now than later. It’s all paper anyway…..and total crapola. There are better uses for paper – like things more meaningful to societies.
why put people through constructs (such as ‘austerity’) when in the end the inevitable will happen?
I ‘spose its because it makes money (as opposed to ‘currency’).
Roll on the crash I say – the sooner the better!
China doesn’t like too much nitrite in it’s water…can’t think why.
“”To class water as ‘spring or artesian’ for the New Zealand market the maximum level of the naturally occurring nitrite is 0.2mg/L while the Chinese maximum level is 0.005mg/L. Unfortunately the levels of nitrite were higher than the Chinese standard hence the product was returned,” she said.
Roderick Brodie, University of Auckland marketing professor, said the Chinese requirements were stringent.
But he said the concern was that a rejection on the basis of nitrite could be read as being linked to excessive use of fertiliser.
“The Hawke’s Bay bottling company needs to come out with a very strong press release to counter this, so that we don’t have anyone saying we’re not a clean and green country.”
He said Fertiliser might not have anything to do with it, but that was the risk that was run.”
Picky beggars those Chinese…what’s a bit of nitrite between friends?
So this is what effing Bennett has spent her holiday cooking up. Regional centres have enough on their plates without having to deal with her relocated Aucklanders.
Workers Now is a new slate of candidates contesting this year’s general election. James Robb and Don Franks are the people behind this initiative and they are hoping to put the spotlight on working people’s interests. Both are seasoned activists who have campaigned for workers’ rights over many decades. Here is ...
Buzz from the Beehive Politicians keen to curry favour with Māori tribal leaders have headed north for Waitangi weekend. More than a few million dollars of public funding are headed north, too. Not all of this money is being trumpeted on the Beehive website, the Government’s official website. ...
Insurers face claims of over $500 million for cars, homes and property damaged in the floods. They are already putting up premiums and pulling insurance from properties deemed at high risk of flooding. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR: This week in the podcast of our weekly hoon webinar for paying subscribers, ...
Our Cranky Uncle Game can already be played in eight languages: English, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish and Swedish. About 15 more languages are in the works at various stages of completion or have been offered to be done. To kick off the new year, we checked with how ...
The (new) Prime Minister said nobody understands what co-governance means, later modified to that there were so many varying interpretations that there was no common understanding.Co-governance cannot be derived from the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. It does not use the word. It refers to ‘government’ on ...
It’s that time of the week again when and I co-host our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kaka. Jump on this link for our chat about the week’s news with special guests Auckland Central MP Chloe Swarbrick and Auckland City Councillor Julie Fairey, including:Auckland’s catastrophic floods, which ...
In March last year, in a panic over rising petrol prices caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the government made a poor decision, "temporarily" cutting fuel excise tax by 25 cents a litre. Of course, it turned out not to be temporary at all, having been extended in May, July, ...
This month’s open thread for climate related topics. Please be constructive, polite, and succinct. The post Unforced variations: Feb 2023 first appeared on RealClimate. ...
Buzz from the Beehive Two fresh press releases had been posted when we checked the Beehive website at noon, both of them posted yesterday. In one statement, in the runup to Waitangi Day, Maori Crown Relations Minister Kelvin Davis drew attention to happenings on a Northland battle site in 1845. ...
It’s that time of the week again when I’m on the site for an hour for a chat in an Ask Me Anything with paying subscribers to The Kaka. Jump in for a chat on anything, including:Auckland’s catastrophic floods, which are set to cost insurers and the Government well over ...
Australia’s Treasurer Jim Chalmers (left) has published a 6,000 word manifesto called ‘Capitalism after the Crises’ arguing for ‘values-based capitalism’. Yet here in NZ we hear the same stale old rhetoric unchanged from the 1990s and early 2000s. Photo: Getty ImagesTLDR: The rest of the world is talking about inflation ...
A couple of weeks ago, after NCEA results came out, my son’s enrolment at Auckland Uni for this year was confirmed - he is doing a BSc majoring in Statistics. Well that is the plan now, who knows what will take his interest once he starts.I spent a bit of ...
Kia ora. What a week! We hope you’ve all come through last weekend’s extreme weather event relatively dry and safe. Header image: stormwater ponds at Hobsonville Point. Image via Twitter. The week in Greater Auckland There’s been a storm of information and debate since the worst of the flooding ...
Hi,At 4.43pm yesterday it arrived — a cease and desist letter from the guy I mentioned in my last newsletter. I’d written an article about “WEWE”, a global multi-level marketing scam making in-roads into New Zealand. MLMs are terrible for many of the same reasons megachurches are terrible, and I ...
Time To Call A Halt: Chris Hipkins knows that iwi leaders possess the means to make life very difficult for his government. Notwithstanding their objections, however, the Prime Minister’s direction of travel – already clearly signalled by his very public demotion of Nanaia Mahuta – must be confirmed by an emphatic ...
Open access notables Via PNAS, Ceylan, Anderson & Wood present a paper squarely in the center of the Skeptical Science wheelhouse: Sharing of misinformation is habitual, not just lazy or biased. The signficance statement is obvious catnip: Misinformation is a worldwide concern carrying socioeconomic and political consequences. What drives ...
Mark White from the Left free speech organisation Plebity looks at the disturbing trend of ‘book burning’ on US campuses In the abstract, people mostly agree that book banning is a bad thing. The Nazis did us the favor of being very clear about it and literally burning books, but ...
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has undergone a stern baptisim of fire in his first week in his new job, but it doesn’t get any easier. Next week, he has a vital meeting in Canberra with his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese, where he has to establish ...
As PM Chris Hipkins says, it’s a “no brainer” to extend the fuel tax cut, half price public subsidy and the cut to the road user levy until mid-year. A no braoner if the prime purpose is to ease the burden on people struggling to cope with the cost of ...
Buzz from the Beehive Cost-of-living pressures loomed large in Beehive announcements over the past 24 hours. The PM was obviously keen to announce further measures to keep those costs in check and demonstrate he means business when he talks of focusing his government on bread-and-butter issues. His statement was headed ...
Poor Mike Hosking. He has revealed himself in his most recent diatribe to be one of those public figures who is defined, not by who he is, but by who he isn’t, or at least not by what he is for, but by what he is against. Jacinda’s departure has ...
New Zealand is the second least corrupt country on earth according to the latest Corruption Perception Index published yesterday by Transparency International. But how much does this reflect reality? The problem with being continually feted for world-leading political integrity – which the Beehive and government departments love to boast about ...
TLDR: Including my pick of the news and other links in my checks around the news sites since 4am. Paying subscribers can see them all below the fold.In Aotearoa’s political economyBrown vs Fish Read more ...
TLDR: Including my pick of the news and other links in my checks around the news sites since 4am. Paying subscribers can see them all below the fold.In Aotearoa’s political economyBrown vs Fish Read more ...
In other countries, the target-rich cohorts of swinging voters are given labels such as ‘Mondeo Man’, ‘White Van Man,’ ‘Soccer Moms’ and ‘Little Aussie Battlers.’ Here, the easiest shorthand is ‘Ford Ranger Man’ – as seen here parked outside a Herne Bay restaurant, inbetween two SUVs. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / ...
In other countries, the target-rich cohorts of swinging voters are given labels such as ‘Mondeo Man’, ‘White Van Man,’ ‘Soccer Moms’ and ‘Little Aussie Battlers.’ Here, the easiest shorthand is ‘Ford Ranger Man’ – as seen here parked outside a Herne Bay restaurant, inbetween two SUVs. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / ...
Transport Minister and now also Minister for Auckland, Michael Wood has confirmed that the light rail project is part of the government’s policy refocus. Wood said the light rail project was under review as part of a ministerial refocus on key Government projects. “We are undertaking a stocktake about how ...
Sometime before the new Prime Minister Chris Hipkins announced that this year would be about “bread and butter issues”, National’s finance spokesperson Nicola Willis decided to move from Wellington Central and stand for Ohariu, which spreads across north Wellington from the central city to Johnsonville and Tawa. It’s an ...
They say a week is a long time in politics. For Mayor Wayne Brown, turns out 24 hours was long enough for many of us to see, quite obviously, “something isn’t right here…”. That in fact, a lot was going wrong. Very wrong indeed.Mainly because it turns ...
One of the most effective, and successful, graphics developed by Skeptical Science is the escalator. The escalator shows how global surface temperature anomalies vary with time, and illustrates how "contrarians" tend to cherry-pick short time intervals so as to argue that there has been no recent warming, while "realists" recognise ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTLDR: Here’s a quick roundup of the news today for paying subscribers on a slightly frantic, very wet, and then very warm day. In Aotearoa’s political economy today Read more ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTLDR: Here’s a quick roundup of the news today for paying subscribers on a slightly frantic, very wet, and then very warm day. In Aotearoa’s political economy today Read more ...
Tomorrow we have a funeral, and thank you all of you for your very kind words and thoughts — flowers, even.Our friend Michèle messaged: we never get to feel one thing at a time, us grownups, and oh boy is that ever the truth. Tomorrow we have the funeral, and ...
Lynn and I have just returned from a news conference where Hipkins, fresh from visiting a relief centre in Mangere, was repeatedly challenged to justify the extension of subsidies to create more climate emissions when the effects of climate change had just proved so disastrous. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The ...
Lynn and I have just returned from a news conference where Hipkins, fresh from visiting a relief centre in Mangere, was repeatedly challenged to justify the extension of subsidies to create more climate emissions when the effects of climate change had just proved so disastrous. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The ...
A new Prime Minister, a revitalised Cabinet, and possibly revised priorities – but is the political and, importantly, economic landscape much different? Certainly some within the news media were excited by the changes which Chris Hipkins announced yesterday or – before the announcement – by the prospect of changes in ...
Currently the government's strategy for reducing transport emissions hinges on boosting vehicle fuel-efficiency, via the clean car standard and clean car discount, and some improvements to public transport. The former has been hugely successful, and has clearly set us on the right path, but its also not enough, and will ...
Buzz from the Beehive Before he announced his Cabinet yesterday, Prime Minister Chris Hipkins announced he would be flying to Australia next week to meet that country’s Prime Minister. And before Kieran McAnulty had time to say “Three Waters” after his promotion to the Local Government portfolio, he was dishing ...
The quarterly labour market statistics were released this morning, showing that unemployment has risen slightly to 3.4%. There are now 99,000 people unemployed - 24,000 fewer than when Labour took office. So, I guess the Reserve Bank's plan to throw people out of work to stop wage rises "inflation", and ...
Another night of heavy rain, flooding, damage to homes, and people worried about where the hell all this water is going to go as we enter day twenty two of rain this year.Honestly if the government can’t sell Three Waters on the back of what has happened with storm water ...
* Dr Bryce Edwards writes – Prime Minister Chris Hipkins continues to be the new broom in Government, re-setting his Government away from its problem areas in his Cabinet reshuffle yesterday, and trying to convince voters that Labour is focused on “bread and butter” issues. The ministers responsible for unpopular ...
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins continues to be the new broom in Government, re-setting his Government away from its problem areas in his Cabinet reshuffle yesterday, and trying to convince voters that Labour is focused on “bread and butter” issues. The ministers responsible for unpopular reforms in water and DHB centralisation ...
Hi,It’s weird to me that in 2023 we still have people falling for multi-level marketing schemes (MLMs for short). There are Netflix documentaries about them, countless articles, and last year we did an Armchaired and Dangerous episode on them.Then you check a ticketing website like EventBrite and see this shit ...
Nanaia Mahuta fell the furthest in the Cabinet reshuffle. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR: PM Chris Hipkins unveiled a Cabinet this afternoon he hopes will show wavering voters that a refreshed Labour Government is focused on ‘bread and butter cost of living’ issues, rather than the unpopular, unwieldy and massively centralising ...
Nanaia Mahuta fell the furthest in the Cabinet reshuffle. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR: PM Chris Hipkins unveiled a Cabinet this afternoon he hopes will show wavering voters that a refreshed Labour Government is focused on ‘bread and butter cost of living’ issues, rather than the unpopular, unwieldy and massively centralising ...
Shortly, the absolute state of Wayne Brown. But before that, something I wrote four years ago for the council’s own media machine. It was a day-in-the-life profile of their many and varied and quite possibly unnoticed vital services. We went all over Auckland in 48 hours for the story, the ...
Completed reads for January Lilith, by George MacDonald The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (poem), by Samuel Taylor Coleridge Christabel (poem), by Samuel Taylor Coleridge The Saga of Ragnar Lodbrok, by Anonymous The Lay of Kraka (poem), by Anonymous 1066 and All That, by W.C. Sellar and R.J. ...
Pity the poor Brits. They just can’t catch a break. After years of reporting of lying Boris Johnson, a change to a less colourful PM in Rishi Sunak has resulted in a smooth media pivot to an end-of-empire narrative. The New York Times, no less, amplifies suggestions that Blighty ...
On that day all the springs of the great deep burst forth, and the floodgates of the heavens were opened. And rain fell on the earth.Genesis 6:11-12THE TORRENTIAL DOWNPOURS that dumped a record-breaking amount of rain on Auckland this anniversary weekend will reoccur with ever-increasing frequency. The planet’s atmosphere is ...
Buzz from the Beehive There has been plenty to keep the relevant Ministers busy in flood-stricken Auckland over the past day or two. But New Zealand, last time we looked, extends north of Auckland into Northland and south of the Bombay Hills all the way to the bottom of the ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Jeff Masters When early settlers came to the confluence of the Sacramento and American Rivers before the California Gold Rush, Indigenous people warned them that the Sacramento Valley could become an inland sea when great winter rains came. The storytellers described water filling the ...
Wayne Brown managed a smile when meeting with Remuera residents, but he was grumpy about having to deal with “media drongos”. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR: In my pick of the news links found in my rounds since 4am for paying subscribers below the paywall:Wayne Brown moans about the media and ...
Wayne Brown managed a smile when meeting with Remuera residents, but he was grumpy about having to deal with “media drongos”. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR: In my pick of the news links found in my rounds since 4am for paying subscribers below the paywall:Wayne Brown moans about the media and ...
Dr Bryce Edwards writes – Last night’s opinion polls answered the big question of whether a switch of prime minister would really be a gamechanger for election year. The 1News and Newshub polls released at 6pm gave the same response: the shift from Jacinda Ardern to Chris Hipkins ...
Hipkins’ aim this year will be to present a ‘low target’ for those seeking to attack Labour’s policies and spending. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR: Anyone dealing with Government departments and councils who wants some sort of big or long-term decision out of officials or politicians this year should brace for ...
Hipkins’ aim this year will be to present a ‘low target’ for those seeking to attack Labour’s policies and spending. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR: Anyone dealing with Government departments and councils who wants some sort of big or long-term decision out of officials or politicians this year should brace for ...
Last night’s opinion polls answered the big question of whether a switch of prime minister would really be a gamechanger for election year. The 1News and Newshub polls released at 6pm gave the same response: the shift from Jacinda Ardern to Chris Hipkins has changed everything, and Labour is back ...
Over the last few years, it’s seemed like city after city around the world has become subject to extreme flooding events that have been made worse by impacts from climate change. We’ve highlighted many of them in our Weekly Roundup series. Sadly, over the last few days it’s been Auckland’s ...
And so the first month of the year draws to a close. It rained in Auckland on 21 out of the 31 days in January. Feels like summer never really happened this year. It’s actually hard to believe there were 10 days that it didn’t rain. Was it any better where ...
A ‘small target’ strategy is not going to cut it anymore if National want to win the upcoming election. The game has changed and the game plan needs to change as well. Jacinda Ardern’s abrupt departure from the 9th floor has the potential to derail what looked to be an ...
When Grant Robertson talks about how the economy might change post-covid, one of the things he talks about is what he calls an unsung but interesting white paper on science. “It’s really important,” he says. The Minister in charge of the White Paper — Te Ara Paerangi, Future Pathways ...
The clean up has begun but more rain is on the way. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR: Auckland’s floods over the last three days are turning into a macroeconomic event, with losses from Aotearoa’s biggest-ever climate event estimated at around $500 million and Auckland’s schools all closed for a week until ...
The clean up has begun but more rain is on the way. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR: Auckland’s floods over the last three days are turning into a macroeconomic event, with losses from Aotearoa’s biggest-ever climate event estimated at around $500 million and Auckland’s schools all closed for a week until ...
The news media were at one ceremony by the looks of things. The Governor-General, the Prime Minister and his deputy were at another. The news media were at a swearing-in ceremony. The country’s leaders were at an appointment ceremony. The New Zealand Gazette record of what transpired says: Appointment of ...
I n some alternative universe, Auckland mayor Efeso Collins readily grasped the scale of Friday’s deluge, and quickly made the emergency declaration that enabled central government to immediately throw its resources behind the rescue and remediation effort. As Friday evening became night, Mayor Collins seemed to be everywhere: talking with ...
They called it an “atmospheric river”, the weather bombardment which hit NZ’s northern region at the weekend. It exacted a terrible toll on metropolitan Auckland and the rest of the region. Few living there may have noted a statement from electricity generator Mercury Energy labelled “WET, WET, WET!” This was ...
I know, that is a pretty corny title but given the circumstances here in the Auckland region, I just had to say it. The more oblique reference embedded in the title is to the leadership failures exhibited by Mayor Wayne Brown and his so-called leadership team when confronted by the ...
How much confidence should the public have in authorities managing natural disasters? Not much, judging by the farcical way in which the civil defence emergence in Auckland has played out. The way authorities dealt with Auckland’s extreme weather on Friday illustrated how hit-and-miss our civil defence emergency system is. In ...
TLDR: Here’s the key news links and useful longer reads I’ve spotted since 4 am this morning, including:calls for a more ‘spongey’ urban infrastructure after Auckland’s floods;demands for an inquiry into Auckland Council’s communications failure;the latest on Chris Hipkins’ plans for Three Waters; inside the PR trainwreck that is Wayne ...
TLDR: Here’s the key news links and useful longer reads I’ve spotted since 4 am this morning, including:calls for a more ‘spongey’ urban infrastructure after Auckland’s floods;demands for an inquiry into Auckland Council’s communications failure;the latest on Chris Hipkins’ plans for Three Waters; inside the PR trainwreck that is Wayne ...
Mayor Wayne Brown, under fire for his communication failures, quietly visited the scene of the fatal Remuera slip on Sunday, with his staff taking photos for social media updates. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR: The cleanup and the post-mortem have begun, even though the rain just keeps falling in Auckland after ...
We’ve just announced a massive infrastructure investment to kick-start new housing developments across New Zealand. Through our Infrastructure Acceleration Fund, we’re making sure that critical infrastructure - like pipes, roads and wastewater connections - is in place, so thousands more homes can be built. ...
The Green Party is joining more than 20 community organisations to call for an immediate rent freeze in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, after reports of landlords intending to hike rents after flooding. ...
When Chris Hipkins took on the job of Prime Minister, he said bread and butter issues like the cost of living would be the Government’s top priority – and this week, we’ve set out extra support for families and businesses. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to provide direct support to low-income households and to stop subsidising fossil fuels during a climate crisis. ...
The tools exist to help families with surging costs – and as costs continue to rise it is more urgent than ever that we use them, the Green Party says. ...
Over $10 million infrastructure funding to unlock housing in Whangārei The purchase of a 3.279 hectare site in Kerikeri to enable 56 new homes Northland becomes eligible for $100 million scheme for affordable rentals Multiple Northland communities will benefit from multiple Government housing investments, delivering thousands of new homes for ...
A memorial event at a key battle site in the New Zealand land wars is an important event to mark the progress in relations between Māori and the Crown as we head towards Waitangi Day, Minister for Te Arawhiti Kelvin Davis said. The Battle of Ohaeawai in June 1845 saw ...
More Police officers are being deployed to the frontline with the graduation of 54 new constables from the Royal New Zealand Police College today. The graduation ceremony for Recruit Wing 362 at Te Rauparaha Arena in Porirua was the first official event for Stuart Nash since his reappointment as Police ...
The Government is unlocking an additional $700,000 in support for regions that have been badly hit by the recent flooding and storm damage in the upper North Island. “We’re supporting the response and recovery of Auckland, Waikato, Coromandel, Northland, and Bay of Plenty regions, through activating Enhanced Taskforce Green to ...
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has welcomed the announcement that Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal, Princess Anne, will visit New Zealand this month. “Princess Anne is travelling to Aotearoa at the request of the NZ Army’s Royal New Zealand Corps of Signals, of which she is Colonel in Chief, to ...
A new Government and industry strategy launched today has its sights on growing the value of New Zealand’s horticultural production to $12 billion by 2035, Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor said. “Our food and fibre exports are vital to New Zealand’s economic security. We’re focussed on long-term strategies that build on ...
25 cents per litre petrol excise duty cut extended to 30 June 2023 – reducing an average 60 litre tank of petrol by $17.25 Road User Charge discount will be re-introduced and continue through until 30 June Half price public transport fares extended to the end of June 2023 saving ...
The strong economy has attracted more people into the workforce, with a record number of New Zealanders in paid work and wages rising to help with cost of living pressures. “The Government’s economic plan is delivering on more better-paid jobs, growing wages and creating more opportunities for more New Zealanders,” ...
The Government is providing a further $1 million to the Mayoral Relief Fund to help communities in Auckland following flooding, Minister for Emergency Management Kieran McAnulty announced today. “Cabinet today agreed that, given the severity of the event, a further $1 million contribution be made. Cabinet wishes to be proactive ...
The new Cabinet will be focused on core bread and butter issues like the cost of living, education, health, housing and keeping communities and businesses safe, Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has announced. “We need a greater focus on what’s in front of New Zealanders right now. The new Cabinet line ...
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins will travel to Canberra next week for an in person meeting with Australian Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese. “The trans-Tasman relationship is New Zealand’s closest and most important, and it was crucial to me that my first overseas trip as Prime Minister was to Australia,” Chris Hipkins ...
The Government is providing establishment funding of $100,000 to the Mayoral Relief Fund to help communities in Auckland following flooding, Minister for Emergency Management Kieran McAnulty announced. “We moved quickly to make available this funding to support Aucklanders while the full extent of the damage is being assessed,” Kieran McAnulty ...
As the Mayor of Auckland has announced a state of emergency, the Government, through NEMA, is able to step up support for those affected by flooding in Auckland. “I’d urge people to follow the advice of authorities and check Auckland Emergency Management for the latest information. As always, the Government ...
Ka papā te whatitiri, Hikohiko ana te uira, wāhi rua mai ana rā runga mai o Huruiki maunga Kua hinga te māreikura o te Nota, a Titewhai Harawira Nā reira, e te kahurangi, takoto, e moe Ka mōwai koa a Whakapara, kua uhia te Tai Tokerau e te kapua pōuri ...
Carmel Sepuloni, Minister for Social Development and Employment, has activated Enhanced Taskforce Green (ETFG) in response to flooding and damaged caused by Cyclone Hale in the Tairāwhiti region. Up to $500,000 will be made available to employ job seekers to support the clean-up. We are still investigating whether other parts ...
The 2023 General Election will be held on Saturday 14 October 2023, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced today. “Announcing the election date early in the year provides New Zealanders with certainty and has become the practice of this Government and the previous one, and I believe is best practice,” Jacinda ...
Jacinda Ardern has announced she will step down as Prime Minister and Leader of the Labour Party. Her resignation will take effect on the appointment of a new Prime Minister. A caucus vote to elect a new Party Leader will occur in 3 days’ time on Sunday the 22nd of ...
The Government is maintaining its strong trade focus in 2023 with Trade and Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor visiting Europe this week to discuss the role of agricultural trade in climate change and food security, WTO reform and New Zealand agricultural innovation. Damien O’Connor will travel tomorrow to Switzerland to attend the ...
The Government has extended its medium-scale classification of Cyclone Hale to the Wairarapa after assessing storm damage to the eastern coastline of the region. “We’re making up to $80,000 available to the East Coast Rural Support Trust to help farmers and growers recover from the significant damage in the region,” ...
By Jamie Tahana, RNZ News Te Ao Māori journalist at Waitangi, and Russell Palmer, digital political journalist Iwi leaders in Aotearoa New Zealand have accused opposition parties National and ACT of “fanning the flames of racism”, urging the prime minister to be brave and not walk away from partnership on Three ...
By Phoebe Gwangilo in Port Moresby Higher Education Minister Don Polye has condemned a decision by the administration of the University of Papua New Guinea to treat a PNG-born and bred grade 12 school leaver as an “international” student. Roselyn Alog, 19, whose parents are Filipinos, was born and raised ...
RNZ Pacific Fiji’s former Elections Supervisor Mohammed Saneem is under investigation by the country’s anti-corruption agency for alleged abuse of office and has been stopped from fleeing the country. The Fijian Elections Office (FEO) said Saneem was alleged to have “on numerous occasions . . . unlawfully authorised payments of ...
Labour's position has alternated over the past few days: first Prime Minister Chris Hipkins would speak, then he wouldn't, and then he would again. ...
Te Pāti Māori Co-leaders Rawiri Waititi and Debbie Ngarewa-Packer are announcing a transformative defence and foreign affairs policy which asserts the Mana Māori Motuhake and Tino Rangatiratanga of tangata whenua in Aotearoa at their Party’s ...
The Prime Minister will no longer speak at Waitangi commemorations after the organising trust moved the political leaders to a panel away from the main event The Waitangi National Trust wrote to political parties last month saying they didn’t want political leaders to speak at the pōwhiri held on the eve ...
The Prime Minister once again has a speaking slot at the pōwhiri in Waitangi after earlier on Saturday saying he would respect the wishes of the trust organisers by not doing so The Waitangi National Trust has given the green light for Chris Hipkins and other political leaders to speak ...
It’s been exactly a decade since Seven Sharp first appeared on our screens. Remember the first episode? We’ve unearthed the tapes. On this day in 2013, a bombshell was thrown into the New Zealand television landscape. “Time for us to make way, because you’re here to see what everyone’s talking ...
MetService meteorologist Lewis Ferris has fronted endless media requests and live crosses this week. Is he getting it right? Lewis Ferris is trying to find his weather map. “This week’s been so insane” he mutters as he closes multiple tabs on the three screens across his Wellington desk. He’s ...
After four years, executive director Max Tweedie has stepped down from Auckland Pride. He tells Sam Brooks about shepherding the festival through a tumultuous few years, and where he’s going from here.This year’s Auckland Pride Festival is set to be the biggest one yet. Over the course of more ...
A flailing mayor was only the public face of a multifaceted flooding communications failure. Duncan Greive examines the mess, and asks what can be done to improve it.It’s a chilling timeline. Stuff’s Kelly Dennett catalogued, beat-by-beat, the 12 hours in which Auckland was pummelled by a catastrophic deluge, interspersing ...
The Dunedin branch of the Green Party has selected Francisco Hernandez as its candidate for the Dunedin electorate in this year’s general election. Francisco Hernandez was the Otago University Students Association President in 2013. He has held a number ...
Waitangi organisers are trying to push political leaders to the side at Sunday's pōwhiri, but Labour's deputy leader says it's not for them to decide who speaks. Te Tai Tokerau MP and Labour’s deputy leader, Kelvin Davis, says the Prime Minister will speak at Sunday’s pōwhiri at Waitangi, in defiance of local ...
Every weekday, The Detail makes sense of the big news stories. This week, we spoke to an aid worker who had made the trip to the war zone in Ukraine, looked at why Carmel Sepuloni was picked to be the new deputy prime minister, visited the flood-torn streets of Titirangi in West ...
Schools play an integral but often unrecognised and unacknowledged role in helping communities respond to and recover from disastersOpinion: Schools in Auckland and other flood-affected areas are about to re-open after a delayed start to the new school year. Students will return to school having experienced wide-ranging impacts. While some ...
A very short story for Waitangi weekend The pā is a lonely place nowadays. Gorse has marched on it like the British troops of old, consuming the hills and leaving the marae looking a bald patch on the head of the earth mother herself. Even the roads have worn thin, ...
This is The Detail's Long Read - one in-depth story read by us every weekend. This week, it's The School Away From School written by Bill Morris and published in NZ Geographic's January/February 2023 issue. You can find the entire article, with photos from Lottie Hedley, on the NZ Geographic website. One hundred years since its ...
COMMENTARY:By Kayt Davies in Perth I wasn’t good at French in my final year of high school. My classmates had five years of language studies behind them. I had three. As a result of my woeful grip on the language, I wrote a terribly bad essay in my final ...
RNZ Pacific Journalist Victor Mambor, who is the chief editor of the West Papuan newspaper and websiteJubi, has received the Oktovianus Pogau Award from the Indonesian-based Pantau Foundation for courage in journalism. The foundation’s Andreas Harsono said Mambor’s decision to return to his father’s homeland and defend the rights ...
RNZ News Green Party MP Chlöe Swarbrick is brushing off concerns a temporary rent freeze in flood-hit Auckland would just see landlords hike rents even more when the controls were lifted — arguing they should stay permanently. More than 20 organisations have signed a letter urging Minister for Auckland Michael ...
Iwi leaders have accused National and ACT of "fanning the flames of racism", urging the prime minister to be brave and not walk away from partnership on three waters. ...
About this time last week it had become apparent that Auckland was in for a bit more than just a wet Friday. While the state of emergency remains in place for another seven days, it appears the worst should now be behind us. Last night, Niwa shared a fascinating thread ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Hawkins, Senior Lecturer, Canberra School of Politics, Economics and Society, University of Canberra ShutterstockIndigenous Australians are respectfully advised that the following includes the names and images of some people who are now deceased. The Reserve Bank of Australia ...
The government has confirmed the money will be spent in Northland, including unlocking greenfields land and transport upgrades like a new bridge in Kamo. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gabrielle Appleby, Professor, UNSW Law School, UNSW Sydney Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has confirmed that sometime between August and November this year, the Australian people will go to a referendum for the first time since 1999. We’ll be asked whether we support ...
Viewers across the United States were today shown a slice of New Zealand, with a reporter for Good Morning America broadcasting live from Rotorua. Robin Roberts, a co-anchor for the popular morning TV show, has been touring the country this week. During her visit to Rotorua’s Te Puia centre, she ...
They can be environmentally unsound and are a symbol used to shame millennials, but everyone still loves an avo. I love avocados, always have, always will. The buttery golden-green flesh from a perfectly ripe avocado is a culinary blessing. Today I’d love to simply wax poetic about twisting open a ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin (Penguin Press, $50) The beautiful ...
A new poem by Robin Peace. To the kahikatea I see from my bed Thinking inside the square, the ellipse, the round of what life is, I only see the trees. Not only as if that were the only thing I see, but only as if the tree matters more. ...
A week ago, Elton John’s first Auckland show was called off at the last minute. What was it like getting there, being there, and trying to return home afterwards?Elton John has long been a blessing for our ears, but in recent years his Auckland shows have been cursed. His ...
For Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown, sorry seems to be the hardest word to say The mayoral chains must have been heavy this week for Auckland’s Wayne Brown, as his response to last week’s flood garnered its own veritable torrent of scandals and media scrutiny. Almost exactly one week on from ...
For Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown, sorry seems to be the hardest word to say The mayoral chains must have been heavy this week for Auckland’s Wayne Brown, as his response to last week’s flood garnered its own veritable torrent of scandals and media scrutiny. Almost exactly one week on from ...
Ours Not Mines is cautiously excited about reporting that the Government is drafting legislation to ban new mines on conservation land. The anti-mining group's spokesperson, Morgan Donoghue says: "The Government has been promising us some action for ...
People who enjoy the outdoors for recreation, fishing and hunting will lose rights under the Natural and Built Environments Bill. Fish & Game New Zealand chief executive Corina Jordan says the proposed replacement for the Resource Management ...
Auckland mayor Wayne Brown has conceded he “dropped the ball” during last Friday’s major flooding event. The state of emergency in the super city has today been extended for a further seven days, though Brown said he expects it will be lifted early. After a week of defensiveness over his ...
As the reality TV juggernaut returns for a new season, Tara Ward steps into the minds of the show’s relationship experts to assess the compatibility of this year’s brides and grooms. Married at First Sight: Australia returns on Monday night, and by season ten, you’d think the show’s relationship experts ...
Auckland’s state of emergency is expected to be extended for another seven days, according to the Herald. It was due to expire overnight after being declared a week ago, the day of the worst flooding in the super city. While weather conditions have improved, the city is continuing to experience ...
Proposed pay equity claim settlements for school librarians and science technicians have been reached between the Ministry of Education and NZEI Te Riu Roa, Secretary for Education, Iona Holsted and NZEI Te Riu Roa president, Mark Potter, announced ...
Members of NZEI Te Riu Roa negotiating on behalf of school librarians, library assistants and science technicians are excited to announce that proposed pay equity settlements are ready to be voted on by their colleagues. They include pay increases of up to ...
The Public Transport Users Association (PTUA) is calling for Michael Wood, the Minister of Transport, and now Auckland, to cancel the light rail project immediately. Auckland Light Rail was never going to happen, as our group has repeatedly said dozens of ...
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has been asked to intervene following confirmation today that the Government plans to implement a ban on all extractive sector activities on the conservation estate. Wayne Scott, CEO of the Aggregate and Quarry Association, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexander Gillespie, Professor of Law, University of Waikato Getty Images The heated (and often confused) debate about “co-governance” in Aotearoa New Zealand inevitably leads back to its source, Te Tiriti o Waitangi. But, as its long-contested meanings demonstrate, very little ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Hunter, Lecturer in Art and Performance, Deakin University Jodie Hutchinson/Red StitchReview: Wittenoom, directed by Susie Dee, Red Stitch Deep in the remote Pilbara region of Western Australia, the town of Wittenoom lies empty, desolate … and contaminated. Wittenoom ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Oliver Bown, Postdoctoral fellow, UNSW Sydney Shutterstock The past few years have seen an explosion in applications of artificial intelligence to creative fields. A new generation of image and text generators is delivering impressiveresults. Now AI has also found ...
New Zealand’s egg shortage is hitting cruise ships too – forcing the crew of one vessel to hatch a poaching plan. This story was first published on Stuff. On the hunt for eggs, a crew from a luxury cruise ship got cracking and hatched a cunning plan. Earlier this week, Stuff ...
Now demolished, the First Church of Christ Scientist was a masterclass of architectural imagination. Kate Linzey visits the site on which it once stood, to learn more. The object is delicate and small. Small enough to sit in the palm of my hand and weighing less than 300 grams. It ...
When your food parcel arrives before the emergency alert, you know something’s not working properly.This is an excerpt from our weekly food newsletter, The Boil Up. I’ve spent the last week desperately and at times fruitlessly attempting to drain and then sweep my whānau home of knee-deep water, pull up ...
Drongo-gate continues for another day with the Herald reporting that Auckland’s mayor has been caught out using the slang term for a second time. It comes this time from a former minor mayoral candidate, Mike Kampkes, who said he received a message from Brown in response to a media release ...
How does Aotearoa stop relying so heavily on agriculture to prop up our economy? Online tax and accounting service Hnry just raised $35m to grow its software on-demand service across the globe. Bernard Hickey talks with AirTree partner Jackie Vullinghs about how venture capitalists are funding Aotearoa’s fastest growing, least-polluting ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adam Guastella, Professor and Clinical Psychologist, Michael Crouch Chair in Child and Youth Mental Health, University of Sydney Shutterstock With childcare and schools starting the new year, parents might be anxiously wondering how their child will adapt in a new ...
I am delighted to announce the appointment of John Price ONZM as the new Director Civil Defence Emergency Management and Deputy Chief Executive Emergency Management for the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA). John has been a member of the ...
Coromandel Watchdog of Hauraki are calling on the new Prime Minister and new Minister of Conservation Willow Jean Prime to immediately implement the 2017 promise to ban new mining activity on conservation lands. “ The mining industry group Straterra ...
How does Aotearoa stop relying so heavily on agriculture to prop up our economy? Online tax and accounting service Hnry just raised $35m to grow its software on-demand service across the globe. In the latest episode of When the Facts Change, Bernard Hickey talks with AirTree partner Jackie Vullinghs about how ...
There’s a fear that highlighting menopause will undermine women, especially at work. But what have centuries of secrecy achieved for us? Are you sick of hearing about menopause? Kim Hill is. The living legend of Aotearoa broadcasting told actor Robyn Malcolm (also a legend) on her Saturday Morning show on RNZ ...
Dunedin city council has reached an agreement to save Foulden Maar from commercial mining. The maar is the site of a crater lake from 23 million years ago with the diatomite of the lake preserving fossils and a climate record covering 100,000 years from that period. It is fantastic news for Otago University ...
Some are speculating whether the Auckland Mayor's leadership is circling the drain. James Elliott hopes they're right. There’s never been a week quite like it. It was the week when the rains came. All of them. Even the rain from Spain that was supposed to fall mainly on the plain, came. ...
The Bus and Coach Association supports the Government’s decision to continue half-price fares on public transport services. The fare reduction was set to expire on 31 March 2023, but will now continue to 30 June 2023. “Half-price fares have cost ten-times ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards. Political Roundup: Hipkins’ bread and butter reshufflePolitical scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. Prime Minister Chris Hipkins continues to be the new broom in Government, re-setting his Government away from its problem areas in his Cabinet reshuffle yesterday, and trying to convince voters that Labour is focused ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards. Political Roundup: Chris Hipkins hires a lobbyist to run the BeehiveNew Zealand Prime Minister, Chris Hipkins, speaking when Minister of Education, at NZEI Te Riu Roa strike rally on the steps of the New Zealand Parliament, 15th August 2018. Image; Wiki Commons. New Zealand is ...
New Zealand Politics Daily is a collation of the most prominent issues being discussed in New Zealand. It is edited by Dr Bryce Edwards of The Democracy Project. Items of interest and importance todayCO-GOVERNANCE, WAITANGI, THREE WATERS Chris Trotter (Daily Blog): Blowing Off The Froth: Why Chris Hipkins Must Ditch ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brian Tweed, Senior lecturer, Massey University Shutterstock/Renata Apanaviciene As we approach another Waitangi Day, we should be thinking again about what Te Tiriti o Waitangi means. As the late Moana Jackson commented, the meaning of Te Tiriti will be ...
Even prime ministers get caught in bad weather. It’s a week on from the devastating flooding that hit Auckland and Northland and Chris Hipkins has been forced to drive north for the start of Waitangi weekend commemorations after his plan was turned away from Kerikeri airport (twice). Today will see ...
Less than a year ago, co-governance had a future, at least as potentially accepted terminology. Now some iwi leaders want the label removed and replaced, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. ...
“The decision by the Reserve Bank of Australia to not replace the late Queen with Charles on the Aussie $5 note should indicate to our Reserve Bank that it’s time to change the NZ $20 note” said Lewis Holden, campaign chair of New ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christian Wolf, Associate Professor, Astronomy & Astrophysics, Australian National University Somchat Parkaythong/Shutterstock Black holes are bizarre things, even by the standards of astronomers. Their mass is so great, it bends space around them so tightly that nothing can escape, even ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laura Revell, Associate Professor in Environmental Physics, University of Canterbury Getty Images The ozone layer is on track to heal within four decades, according to a recent UN report, but this progress could be undone by an upsurge in rocket ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Clune, Honorary Associate, Government and International Relations, University of Sydney At the New South Wales election on March 25 a 12-year-old Coalition government will be seeking re-election. Hoping to return as premier is Liberal leader Dominic Perrottet – a political conservative ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James Trauer, Associate Professor, Monash University Anastelfy/Shutterstock The XBB.1.5 subvariant, known informally as “Kraken”, is the latest in a menagerie of Omicron subvariants to dominate the headlines, following increasing detection in the United States and United Kingdom. But there ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Madeline Combe, Doctoral student, University of Technology Sydney Shutterstock As the economist Herman Daly pithily said, the economy is a wholly owned subsidiary of the environment – not the reverse. Nature makes our lives possible through what scientists call ecosystem ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Jefferson, Lecturer in Education, Edith Cowan University Shutterstock Grit. Don’t quit. That’s the mantra many parents may have in mind when they, like me, spend what feels like years ferrying children to a seemingly endless variety of sports and ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Humphery-Jenner, Associate Professor of Finance, UNSW Sydney Sam Shere/Wikimedia Commons A few weeks ago, Gautam Adani was indisputably India’s richest man. Now his fortune is slipping away as the stocks of his many companies crash, thanks to the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Divna Haslam, Senior Research Fellow, Queensland University of Technology Shutterstock Have you ever found yourself scrolling through social media and noticed you felt a bit down? Maybe a little envious? Why aren’t you on a yacht? Running a startup? Looking ...
If things are as bad for the residential landlord class as claims Andrew King, chief executive of the New Zealand Property Investors Federation – in Auckland $250 plus down EVERY week of the year – one wonders that anyone risks their financial future by becoming one.
I mean these are meant to be canny lads and lasses right into the Brighter Future a la their idol Mr Gauche. Altruism usually takes the back burner when doom is in the offing so there’s obviously an upside which King is fully aware of but dishonestly withholds.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11575770
Will someone who knows ‘stuff’ comment here please. Maybe many already have given King’s bleat is dated 18/1/16.
+1. Greed & dishonesty.
the property is not bought as a rental. It is bought as a speculation object, and in the mean time is rented. It does actually not matter if it covers the mortgage or not.
And why should rent cover mortgage, considering that the ‘rental’ will bring in money of many many decades.
One of the houses that sold in my street was rented to one lady and her kids for over 20 years. She never managed to save enough to buy a house (min wage, no extra income, etc) she did make enough to spend over 300.000 $ in rent during the time she lived there. In that time nothing was done to the interior, which is the reason the house in the end sold for 200.000 $ less than the next house which was build at the same time and got renovated before sales. $ 690.000 unrenovated – build in the 1980 vs 890.000 renovated – build at the same time.
So if you consider that maybe the houses/land in westie land would have been about 100.000 initially, one could say that the property owner (well the son who inherited it) made a good profit on it. Did the rent initially cover the mortgage, probably not. Did the rent cover the mortgage and then some in the end. Yes it did
So Andrew King, chief executive of the New Zealand Property Investors Federation IS dishonest. And possessed by a nasty sense of entitlement. Thought as much.
King wouldn’t also be an ACToid, or would he ? This is why I ask – from the article – King, (complainingly) – “Insulation in rental properties is to be compulsory……” – wait for it – “……. whether the tenant wants it or not.”
Ah……that fine old piece of ACToid delusion……”choice”. It’s way preferable to avoidance of ill health, any fool can see that. Besides…..all their tenants tell them so. http://www.ehinz.ac.nz/indicators/indoor-environment/health-conditions-related-to-cold-and-damp-houses/
It is not that he is dishonest, he is just very flexible with the truth.
If I buy a rental today as an investment, and want to hold on to it throughout my retirment an maybe leave it in the family then clearly it is a ‘rental’. If i buy a rental today with the intention to rent it until the market has provided enough incentive to sell it, then it is an object of speculation, which is what we are currently seeing.
the rental object will be in my family for 30 – 50 – 150 years maybe (consider that in europe many of the old houses are still in the hands of the same families, have been modified to accommodate more people, renovated, upgraded etc). Now initially the rent will not cover monthly or weekly mortgage payment, but at some stage the mortgage is paid and the rent becomes income and gain.
Consider also that lets say a mortgage of $ 600 per week might be the honest price for a property. But would $ 750 be an honest rental price for the same property? (and yes i added $ 150 to cover costs of admin, rates, n leaky roof)? Depends, what stage is the house in? How old is the carpet, fixings n trimmings?
So you see the mortgage of 600 is fine, after all one gets a property n stuff – an investment that even might be worth double or triple in the future, but the maximum rent for the same property due to its state might only be worth $ 360, and voila the rent does not cover the mortgage.
So at best the good man is paid to be a misleading shill and won’t somebody please think of the poor and misunderstood property owners and their staff in the the property industry.
Shoot, what’s the world coming to when you can’t even trust a real estate agent’s spin doctor? 👿
It’s not hard to pull apart his argument.
IMO the big lie is the sly insinuation they paid latest price for their properties, they always talk about the costs of a house bought at the current price. In truth they largely charge today’s rents for yesterday’s houses, their own costs are much less than they infer.
He’s sure got some chutzpah. Whining about his business not being allowed to claim depreciation while he pays no tax on his property’s massive appreciation. Life is so unfair isn’t it, poor guy.
His whine about depreciation is easily fixed … Allow depreciation BUT then tax all capital gains, and the depreciation that was claimed on sale will be recovered so it is only a timing matter. Sure the property owner gets some small tax relief but pays this back, and the govt books benefit from all capital gains achieved.
I wish Andrew King was correct in saying “Andrew King: Rental prices in NZ are actually quite reasonable” If they were and kiwis were paid a reasonable wage then there would be no necessity for an Accommodation Supplement. As in 2011 we were paying out $1.2b, take this away then the rental market has $1.2b less to spend on accommodation and rentals should fall. Unfortunately the world does not operate under “market driven basis”, 🙁
http://www.interest.co.nz/property/60426/govt-reviewing-accommodation-supplement-rent-subsidy-housing-minister-heatley-says
This is interesting on Hillary Clinton’s adviser Sidney Blumenthal and France’s real reasons for supporting the invasion of Libya.
https://www.rt.com/shows/keiser-report/329404-episode-max-keiser-864/
“In this episode of the Keiser Report, Max Keiser and Stacy Herbert discuss what the price of sardines teaches us about disintermediation. They also discuss the strange email from Sidney Blumenthal to Hillary Clinton about the real reason for France’s invasion of Libya. In the second half, Max continues his interview with Reggie Middleton about Pathogenic Finance: The autonomous, anti-fragile, trustless paradigm shift transforming banking, brokerage, securities and insurance.
That segment on Pathogenic Finance with Reggie Middleton is brilliant . That’s a game changer that would do to the financial sector what peer-to-peer file sharing did to the music and film industries. I can see the full force of Wall Street pushing back on that idea.
With the proposed signing of the TPP looming, there seems to be more people interested in e accessing information about it. I recommend the following link
https://tpplegal.wordpress.com
As well as expert analysis on 3 papers, there are excellent articles in the commentary section.
Thanks for those links and the Tiriti one in the other thread.
Kia ora TMM
This is another on Māori and TPP – you may already have put it up
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1601/S00106/expert-paper-on-tppa-treaty-of-waitangi.htm
+1 TMM
Good article
The TPP Hands Control Over Trade To The World’s Wealthiest
http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/sujata-dey/the-transplutocratic-agre_b_9009970.html
Japanese group sues to stop TPP talks
http://www.capitalpress.com/Nation_World/Nation/20150904/japanese-group-sues-to-stop-tpp-talks
Do you know if anything happened in Japan regarding the last story?
I notice that it is dated 4 September 2015 and that all the comments are from about four months ago.
Might be of interest to some people here, a sexual harassment shitstorm unravelling in the american indie music world, http://jezebel.com/how-women-on-twitter-brought-down-a-music-publicist-acc-1753964374
That is a very interesting write up, thanks. It’s a good example of why non-rapist men need to step up and end rape culture. Women are doing what they can, and some men, but if the only way that that situation with the publicist could be dealt with was via twitter there is something very wrong (not that that’s news). I’m very glad that those women used twitter in this way, and I’m disgusted that they had to and that the people in the culture they live and work within are all pretty much ignoring and/or supporting rape culture.
And in standing up be prepared for paying the same price that women do who speak up – or who turn down such advances.
Threats of dismissal, overlooked for promotion, spoken about behind your back, and so on and so on.
Having been through this quite a few times it’s an interesting experience to be sure.
Wouldn’t never not do it though.
Living with yourself is in my view much much better than living with the abusers.
+1
I liked this from Chris Trotters Bowalley Road article.
http://bowalleyroad.blogspot.co.nz/2016/01/not-by-bread-and-butter-alone-making.html
Very profound and true. I often wonder why people become super competitive – that is, to the extent that they just HAVE to be better/outdo the next man/woman. we’re constantly told that should be what drives us.
I used to wonder about that amongst musicians (guitarists for example who strove and claim to be better than say Clapton, rather than simply trying to improve themselves; or dealing room wideboys competing to outdo their colleagues). That seems to be simply an exercise in stroking ones own ego.
We’re constantly told the competitive spirit and ambition = good. I’ve seen some pretty devastated people with those attributes when a bit of shit hits the fan – as in they totally can’t cope and spend their days beating themselves up.
I guess we might be in for quite a few people jumping out of Wall Street windows in the not too distant
Competition in the right place can be a good spur. I wouldn’t mind at all if NZ pollies aimed to keep us up with the other countries with innovative, future thinking measures say about the environment, or to bring recidivism from crims down etc.
Not aim for the top, just achievable ashperashuns. But no. Lazy Maysie and Co. are off on holiday.
Love it! 100%.
yep, however I’m not sure they need to ‘compete’ necessarily, but just like the 4th Estate ….. they just need to do their fucking jobs and act with a bit of principle and a few ethics.
“…we might be in for quite a few people jumping out of Wall Street windows…”
They’ve been doing that for a while now…
http://www.valuewalk.com/2015/01/bankers-suicide-conspiracy/
Listen both National and Labour while they tell us that we can’t do what’s needed to make our society better. It’s all about keeping us in a very narrow mindset of profit for the rich.
We have, over the last thirty years, allowed ourselves to be straight-jacketed into being what the oligarchs want us to be.
For the political tragics:
http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/jan/20/lynton-crosby-and-dead-cat-won-election-conservatives-labour-intellectually-lazy
lol
Tory whose campaign strategy revolves around “brevity, relentlessness, focus on and leverage of public preconceptions” suggests that Labour should have done more policy debating and public confessionals. Cheers for the advice, Lynton…
something we are likely to hear more about this year…particularly now JC has a platform back…a brief overview of the real recovery
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/125997072/Article%20North%20%20South%20Nov%202015.pdf
Bernie at the 4th Democratic debate.
Assuming O’Sullivan’s correct about the SkyCity venue ……. would say it all really. And tacky tacky tacky ! Let’s pray the sounds won’t be down to New Camelot Max.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11577333
we live in intersting times.
I was told by a friend that the signing in AKL is only for the press. The official signing with dignitaries n such could be at a more formal site. Signing of the TPPa at Waitangi anyone? lol….interesting times.
A report by the Sustainability Council shows that under the TPPA, the Investors will be able to sue governments especially in matters relating to the environment.
http://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/news/politics/confirmed-investors-can-sue-govt-under-tppa/
#FlushTheTPPA
Weldon has canned 3 News. Oh dear.
Explain please.
TV3 news has been canned.
It’s now a current affairs thing called newshub. Last throw of the dice by media works before removing news and analysis althogether.
I think it was Paxman I heard say, “An informed society is a healthy society”. Weldon’s vision for NZ society seems to be going in the opposite direction, unsurprisingly.
Mark Weldon ex nz stock exchange resigned mid 2012 and a year or so later went to channel 3 and has been showing how it can make more money in any way it can.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/67676498/Mark-Weldon-MediaWorks-man-of-the-moment
He left the NZ Stock Exchange :
http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/5741679/Mark-Weldon-to-leave-NZX
His career parallels that of John Key, though Weldon has specialised in law and business mergers and acquisitions.
He took up various other things, and then went to TV3
http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/diligent-nabs-weldon-board-role-wb-118726
Oh but better and bigger Muttonbird. Now TV3 Newshub at 6pm.
“The service will provide the latest news and in-depth analysis, with a dedicated, state-of-the-art app and website and TV and radio news bulletins across MediaWorks’ channels – as well as fuelling news content across other programmes such asPaul Henry.”
So a reverse of Checkpoint on RNZ – or something?
TV3 News flash to our great Newshub media team –
Let’s all join hands and play American Whispers along the chain (not Chinese now they are our friends) which will ensure stories go across all Mediawork channels. Sometimes we’ll start the story at one end and it will finish up with Paul Henry, and sometimes the other way round.
We will add to our reports spice, verve, topicality, tons of amusing opinion, and plenty of room for surmise and prophetic announcements. All participants will bear their own slander legal fees, and compulsory insurance should be entered into pronto
So before anything too controversial or about serial litigants, check with the legal team.
/sarc edited
dontcha just lerv the lingo – there goes the Mark of a total bullshit artist. A Key player in the new media vironmint (going forwid)
Ekshully, there’s been a series on the National Geographic Channel (such as that travesty to the name is – it’s founders are busy rolling in their graves) looking at the 80’s, then the 90’s,and now the 00’s.
It’d be interesting to look back on this decade from the future – it won’t be pretty.
Mark and Joolie (all kitted out with stetson). It’ll look something like the Class of 87.
Euthanasia.
Interesting discussion on Pundit. Especially the refuting by Andrew Geddis, of misleading stats used by the writer Matthew Jansen.
http://www.pundit.co.nz/content/assisted-suicide-is-not-a-progressive-issue
And a sad article by Hugh Thorpe and his dilemma over his wife Rhona’s dementia in relation to the case for euthanasia.
http://www.pundit.co.nz/content/euthanasia-my-personal-opinion
The Roger ‘Peoples Choice’ Award
Have a look – all of the world’s money markets in one visualisation, it’s staggering:
http://money.visualcapitalist.com/all-of-the-worlds-money-and-markets-in-one-visualization/
To help us comprehend the massive numbers (billions, trillions, quadrillions), this 5-minute video ‘How much is a trillion dollars’ is useful:
http://www.peakprosperity.com/video/85844/playlist/92161/crash-course-chapter-12-how-much-trillion
stick a match to it CV – better to do it now than later. It’s all paper anyway…..and total crapola. There are better uses for paper – like things more meaningful to societies.
why put people through constructs (such as ‘austerity’) when in the end the inevitable will happen?
I ‘spose its because it makes money (as opposed to ‘currency’).
Roll on the crash I say – the sooner the better!
Dizzy times ahead for bottled ‘100% Pure NZ’ water.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/76117504/hawkes-bay-companys-first-shipment-of-drinking-water-rejected-by-china
China doesn’t like too much nitrite in it’s water…can’t think why.
“”To class water as ‘spring or artesian’ for the New Zealand market the maximum level of the naturally occurring nitrite is 0.2mg/L while the Chinese maximum level is 0.005mg/L. Unfortunately the levels of nitrite were higher than the Chinese standard hence the product was returned,” she said.
Roderick Brodie, University of Auckland marketing professor, said the Chinese requirements were stringent.
But he said the concern was that a rejection on the basis of nitrite could be read as being linked to excessive use of fertiliser.
“The Hawke’s Bay bottling company needs to come out with a very strong press release to counter this, so that we don’t have anyone saying we’re not a clean and green country.”
He said Fertiliser might not have anything to do with it, but that was the risk that was run.”
Picky beggars those Chinese…what’s a bit of nitrite between friends?
Who owns New Zealand’s water?
http://www.3news.co.nz/tvshows/campbelllive/who-owns-new-zealands-water-2015041518#axzz3xrFYeoaP
“Less than one per cent of the wealth created since 2000 has gone to the poorest 50 per cent of the world’s population, new research has revealed.”
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/politics/rich-have-only-got-richer-since-2000-davos-a6823281.html
“‘Dumping ground’ fears over paying state house applicants to leave Auckland”
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/76099297/dumping-ground-fears-over-paying-state-house-applicants-to-leave-auckland
So this is what effing Bennett has spent her holiday cooking up. Regional centres have enough on their plates without having to deal with her relocated Aucklanders.
Pricks are still at it.
.
Brianna Wu
@Spacekatgal
The morning, my college reached out to me. Gamergate has been impersonating me attempting to get copies of my college transcripts to release
Brianna Wu @Spacekatgal Jan 19
It’s been a harassment shit show like this for several weeks. As @JessicaValenti said, Gamergate didn’t end, we just forgot about it.
https://twitter.com/Spacekatgal/status/689552337417965569