Open mike 22/05/2021

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, May 22nd, 2021 - 53 comments
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53 comments on “Open mike 22/05/2021 ”

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  1. Jenny how to get there 1
    22 May 2021 at 8:21 am

    "From the Cradle To the Grave"

    Social Welfare for Landlords

    Too Big To Fail?

    Accommodation supplement propping up rental market by $30m a week

    Susan Edmunds 05:00, May 22 2021

    The amount of money spent on accommodation supplements to help struggling tenants pay rent has doubled in recent years but there are warnings there is no easy way to redesign the system…..

    • Sacha 1.1
      22 May 2021 at 9:13 am

      Can you include a link please.

    • Pat 1.2
      22 May 2021 at 10:34 am

      “The accommodation supplement is not a long-term fix, it’s very expensive, it doesn’t increase housing supply. But it will tide us over until we find a more long-term solution. It’s very hard to increase housing supply quickly.”

      https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/125195278/accommodation-supplement-propping-up-rental-market-by-30m-a-week

      "In 1991 the National government introduced one of the most radical reforms in the history of state housing: the removal of income-related rents and the establishment of a government accommodation supplement. "

      https://nzhistory.govt.nz/culture/we-call-it-home/the-state-steps-in-and-out#:~:text=In%201991%20the%20National%20government,of%20a%20government%20accommodation%20supplement.&text=It%20would%20also%20encourage%20state,state%20for%20their%20accommodation%20needs.

      Now I dont know about Zollner but my idea of "tiding over" dosnt run for 30 years….it was a deliberate policy to facilitate credit (debt) growth in a low wage economy,,,,and in that respect it has been successful….shame about the side effects.

    • KSaysHi 1.3
      22 May 2021 at 2:10 pm

      It was originally introduced so that low income earners would have a choice between market rentals vs HNZ. Now market rents are nearly impossible it's doing virtually nothing for tenants stuck outside social housing apart from keeping a transitional roof over their heads. Painful stuff.

      Ideas
      – change the defintion of “market rate” so that rather than peg rent increases to other properties in the area it is pegged to what someone working 60 hours (one and a half parents) could afford without subsidy.
      – pay the deposit for disabled who are unable to find suitable rentals that won’t harm their condition
      – penalize all those who own more that two properties and don’t rent the others out

      • Pat 1.3.1
        22 May 2021 at 2:20 pm

        If you read the link it was bought in to enable the introduction of market rents in HNZ tenancies…..to level the playing field between state and private rentals as the Gov considered those in state housing were receiving additional support.

        A flow on effect was the ability to then sell off state housing to the private sector….and create additional mortgages for the private banks.

        • Graeme 1.3.1.1
          22 May 2021 at 2:57 pm

          It also increased the book value of the HNZ stock, "to bring them in line with privately held properties"

          Cunning little play by the then Nat finance minister, ifrc did quite a lot for the budget that year….

          And as you say, paved the way for the future sale of much of the HNZ stock.

          • Pat 1.3.1.1.1
            22 May 2021 at 4:55 pm

            The origins of the current mess…and implemented shortly after the BNZ bailout and before the subsequent sale.

            Never let a good crisis go to waste.

        • Patricia Bremner 1.3.1.2
          22 May 2021 at 4:27 pm

          100% correct Pat.

        • KSaysHi 1.3.1.3
          22 May 2021 at 6:45 pm

          That’s how they sold it, I recall

    • gsays 1.4
      22 May 2021 at 6:49 pm

      Redesign the rort sysyem by saying as of next year the supplement will half, followed by halving the next year and be gone the following year.

      Job done.

      • Jenny how to get there 1.4.1
        22 May 2021 at 11:02 pm

        I suggest a small tweak to the accomodation benefit legislation.

        Any landlord who has had their rental income "propped up" by the benefit can not by law evict a tenant without first paying the subsidy back to the government.

        Same for the banks. Any bank which has benefitted by having their mortgage income 'propped up' by the accomodation benefit. Can not force a morgagee sale without first paying back the subsidy to the government.

        Sound fair?

        Landlords and banks would be a lot less keen on evictions and mortgagee sales.

        Such a tweak would act also to cool the housing investor market, helping first home buyers trying to compete with investors.
        Benefitting the people who actually want to buy a house to live in. Instead of investors thinking of buying a house for a rental income.

        The taxpayers union would approve, surely?

        Unless that is they are vile hypcrites

  2. Jenny how to get there 2
    22 May 2021 at 8:49 am

    After 4 failed UN resolutions and 11 days of refusing to agree to call for a ceasefire, Joe Biden, under pressure from the left of his party, picks up the phone to Netanyahu, and what-d'-ya-know.

  3. weka 3
    22 May 2021 at 10:35 am

    Will be interesting to see now that gay men are being told they can’t state sexual preference if anything changes. Lesbians have had years of being ostracised and told they transphobic for saying they will only date biological women. And this largely being ignored or actively sanctioned by liberals.

    https://twitter.com/edibletom/status/1395782144732041222

    • Rosemary McDonald 3.1
      22 May 2021 at 11:50 am

      I don't do Twitter or Faceache, but will follow a thread if recommended by a sensible person.

      From your link, I wandered down and found this…. that really resonates.

      https://twitter.com/ViburnumCatapus/status/1395708782185943045

      • weka 3.1.1
        22 May 2021 at 12:03 pm

        That’s a worry. Whatever issues I have with the politics of trans activism at least I understand it it. NB worries me because some of it appears to be based in the idea that we can opt out of sexed bodies and that has implications far beyond personal choice .

        then there is this, which makes me understand the NB position more:

        https://twitter.com/lettoysbetoys/status/1395012007892508674

      • gsays 3.1.2
        22 May 2021 at 7:05 pm

        I have an acquaintance who's oldest son (19) has announced he wants to be a girl. The new name has been chosen by which they wish to be known, henceforth.

        There seems to be some unresolved grief from the youngster as Dad left the family unit 2 years ago and the oldest spent a bit of time living with Dad but that didn't go well.

        Mum, (the acquaintance)now primary caregiver with 2 other younger children, seems stoked. They went along to a Trans Support Group meeting but that was disrupted by some local feminists protesting.

        I give thanks for my simple life.

  4. Jenny how to get there 4
    22 May 2021 at 10:39 am

    The pandemic and lockdown lifted the scab off exposing to view the cruelty and greed, and yes, racism, that underlies our migrant worker system.

    …the Government doesn’t want to suddenly deprive capacity-constrained businesses of a huge number of workers, but it also doesn’t want those workers to stay.

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/opinion-analysis/125173118/a-once-in-a-generation-opportunity-to-throw-migrant-workers-under-the-bus

    Seems that migrant workers are essential, yet disposable, good enough to slave away for us in our orchards and aged care facilities, but not good enough to live with us.

    • Pat 4.1
      22 May 2021 at 11:10 am

      The reason is obvious….once they are residents or citizens the ability to be exploited disappears (or at least diminishes considerably)…..to keep the scheme running requires an ever changing cohort of vulnerable hopefuls.

  5. Muttonbird 5
    22 May 2021 at 12:35 pm

    Interesting article here on the supposed victimisation of the privileged and the myth of modern day cancel culture:

    To those accustomed to privilege, equality can feel like oppression.

    National pollster David Farrar touted cancel culture as a vote winner at a meeting with National Party faithful, although he had, first, to ask his Twitter followers to dig up examples of this rampant scourge. “To save me looking up all the worst examples, can people share them here?” he tweeted on the day of his speech.

    “There’s no suggestion,” wrote Ben Thomas later in The Spinoff, apparently with a straight face, “that [Farrar’s idea] was backed up by polling, or research”.

    Denunications of cancel culture undermine fair protest, lack empathy, and miss the point. They are also routinely made, without irony, by those who rail against the press. Donald Trump is a good example.

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/opinion/125192337/to-those-accustomed-to-privilege-equality-can-feel-like-oppression

  6. Incognito 6
    22 May 2021 at 12:58 pm

    Martin van Beynen has written an excellent goodbye piece covering his views on life, Left vs. Right, character [flaws] forming opinion, and being privileged as an opinion writer, among other things. It wouldn’t surprise me at all if it resonates with at least few Standardistas. Highly recommended.

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/opinion/125205470/columnist-dubbed-thinking-mans-redneck-bows-out-after-17-years

    Opinion writing requires an element of certainty, authority, expertise and conviction. I am becoming more aware of my shortcomings, an affliction which doesn’t seem to affect many other opinion writers.

    • Sacha 6.1
      22 May 2021 at 1:33 pm

      Just found that parting piece of self-servingness myself.

      I don't like being told I'm to blame. I don't like zealots and young know-nothings telling me what to do. I don't like wokeness or virtue signalling or cancelling people for some trivial perceived infringement of current sensibilities. I don't like being told I'm privileged or that I had it too good because of being pale and male. I don't like tailoring my views to suit a new zeitgeist.

      …

      And yet I realise that society moves on and a new generation taking over will always seem naive and dogmatic to old-timers like me.

      …

      The right wing is usually closer to the views of the silent majority.

      Yes, it's those young lefties who are dogmatic, Martin..

      Agree it is worth reading though, for a glimpse at the mindset.

  7. greywarshark 7
    22 May 2021 at 1:37 pm

    Thank goodness for this Bill Going Down! We don't need more punitive measures in coping with social problems – that is the autocratic and inhuman way of doing things.

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/443113/children-s-commissioner-welcomes-demise-of-youth-justice-bill

    …National Party MP Mark Mitchell was in charge of the bill after picking it up from former New Zealand First MP Darroch Ball…

    The Oranga Tamariki (Youth Justice Demerits Points) Amendment Bill sought to reduce repeat reoffending through a demerit points system.
    Points would have been assigned based on the gravity of an offence, and there would have been different consequences for varying levels of demerits.
    High level offending, which was 100 points or more, would have seen charges filed in the District Court, rather than the Youth Court.

    Judge Andrew Becroft said it would have criminalised more children and young people, particularly impacting those who are Māori, care experienced or disabled.

    We need understanding, intelligent, firm approaches with building of goals, empathy, and self-respect and good outcomes enabled for the young people. If in a cycle of bad behaviour and outcomes, punitive measures are just more of the same. What were they thinking? Silly question, they weren't thinking – just reacting with disdain and irritation.

  8. Incognito 8
    22 May 2021 at 1:46 pm

    Two articles on Covid in NZ. When the scientific data have come in and been analysed, some interesting conclusions can be drawn.

    New Zealand was the only country in the OECD to have fewer deaths than expected in pandemic-hit 2020, a new analysis has found.

    https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2021/05/coronavirus-some-probable-covid-19-nz-cases-probably-not-covid-19-at-all-study.html

    https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2021/05/coronavirus-nz-only-oecd-country-to-have-fewer-deaths-than-expected-in-2020-study.html

  9. Muttonbird 9
    22 May 2021 at 2:50 pm

    Another white supremacist held to account:

    Dairy company Synlait investigates employee over extreme views.

    Dairy company Synlait has launched an investigation into one of its employees after allegations of white supremacist statements.

    Worker Lee Williams, who is based in Canterbury, indecision, runs a YouTube channel that posts far right content.

    Does Christchurch get a bad rap, unfairly? I don’t think so.

    The move comes after an online petition was launched earlier this week calling on Synlait to stop employing Williams.

    The petition labels Williams as a "white supremacist" and reads that the undersigned "are deeply concerned" that he is employed by Synlait.

    "Lee has been responsible for disseminating extreme white supremacist material, and has consistently been reported for creating objectionable and racist media for his channel," the petition said.

    "More recently he has taken to directly attacking Māori MPs, Rawiri Waititi and Hon. Willie Jackson, using blatantly racist rhetoric and is actively and deliberately stoking public fear in response to the He Puapua report."

    In response to today's events, Williams posted a video on his YouTube channel this afternoon, saying he had been suspended from his job.

    He said he would go back to the country of his origin, the United Kingdom, indecisionindecision on a holiday to visit his father.

    How about fudge off and don't come back, arsehole.

    Williams claims he is a victim of "cancel culture".

    "Well done to the proud antifa warriors and I have no doubt the very prominent Māori for coming for my job."

    Of course Lee Williams is the victim here!

    https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/dairy-company-synlait-investigates-employee-over-extreme-views/MCISTZL5FCYRRANJPKCTE7JU5U/

  10. Incognito 10
    22 May 2021 at 3:39 pm

    Personally, I think the title of this Editorial is inaccurate and misleading but who am I to comment here about this?

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/opinion/125205787/good-science-matters-more-than-ever

  11. Incognito 11
    22 May 2021 at 3:56 pm

    The Stuff headline writers must need a holiday. Anyway, here ‘s an opinion piece on the complex faces of cancel culture, with podcast interview with Peter Singer at the top (for good measure?). I found it oddly written but the topic is important enough to read it even though there’s no shortage of opinions and what have you on and about cancel culture.

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/opinion/125192337/to-those-accustomed-to-privilege-equality-can-feel-like-oppression

  13. greywarshark 13
    22 May 2021 at 5:15 pm

    As the man says – This shouldn't happen. Start listening to suggestions for small pilots and fund them when they are practical and ready, while you wait for the magic bullet Labour.

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/afternoons/audio/2018796438/personal-account-of-becoming-homeless-while-on-the-wait-list

  14. joe90 14
    22 May 2021 at 6:29 pm

    A super-spreader event in the making.

    TOKYO (AP) — As she struggled to breathe, Shizue Akita had to wait more than six hours while paramedics searched for a hospital in Osaka that would treat her worsening COVID-19.

    When she finally got to one that wasn’t overwhelmed with other patients, doctors diagnosed severe pneumonia and organ failure and sedated her. Akita, 87, was dead two weeks later.

    “Osaka’s medical systems have collapsed,” said her son, Kazuyuki Akita. He has watched from his home north of Tokyo as three other family members in Osaka have dealt with the virus, and with inadequate health care. “It’s like hell.”

    Hospitals in Osaka, Japan’s third-biggest city and only 2 1/2 hours by bullet train from Summer Olympics host Tokyo, are overflowing with coronavirus patients. About 35,000 people nationwide — twice the number of those in hospitals — must stay at home with the disease, often becoming seriously ill and sometimes dying before they can get medical care.

    https://apnews.com/article/japan-coronavirus-pandemic-business-olympic-games-2020-tokyo-olympics-72cc0b10127e8bab06406a6ec6bcedd6

    • Sacha 14.1
      22 May 2021 at 7:02 pm

      Just watch the silly old men in charge insist their sportsing business is more important.

    • Jenny how to get there 14.2
      22 May 2021 at 7:04 pm

      What price for our sport infotainment industry?

      If the Olmpics does become a super-spreader event.

      This will be an Olympics that is measured by lives lost, not by gold medals won.

  15. greywarshark 15
    22 May 2021 at 8:41 pm

    I've been reading a bit of the book In Defence of Lost Causes by Slavoj Zizek. He discusses why it is hard to pass an honest criticism in a society that wants to appear to be perfect. In Stalin's time the Soviet Media were not permitted any 'down' reports – on crime, prostitution, workers' or other public protests. His comes up with some interesting thoughts and observations on the present.

    He says there is a 'prohibition of prohibitions' in today's permissive capitalism. A "postmodern" boss insists that he is not a master but just a coordinator of our joint creative efforts, the first among equals… For instance, the boss is so friendly there should be no 'formalities', you use his 'nickname', he shares a dirty joke with us…but during all this, he remains our master.

    …relations of domination function through their denial….We are not only obliged to obey our masters, we are also obliged to act as if we were free and equal…which of course makes the situation even more humiliating. Paradoxically, in such a situation, the first act of liberation is to demand from the master that he act like one: ..insist that he treat us with cold distance,.

    (The same goes for patriarchal domination over women in modern societies, this domination is no longer admitted as such – which is why one of the subversive tactics of feminine resistance is mockingly to act as if subordinated . . .)

  16. Ovid 16
    22 May 2021 at 10:08 pm

    There is a coup underway in Samoa. Their head of state has proclaimed that parliament won’t open on Monday, even though their constitution requires it meet within 45 days of the election – and Monday is 45 days after their 9 April election.

    Samoa Observer

    Stuff

    Section 52 of the Samoan Constitution

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

    Sir Don McKinnon will travel to Viet Nam this week as a Special Envoy of the Government, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced.    “It is important that the Government give due recognition to the significant contributions that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made to New Zealand-Viet Nam relations,” Mr ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Grant Illingworth KC appointed as transitional Commissioner to Royal Commission

    Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says newly appointed Commissioner, Grant Illingworth KC, will help deliver the report for the first phase of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into COVID-19 Lessons, due on 28 November 2024.  “I am pleased to announce that Mr Illingworth will commence his appointment as ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • NZ to advance relationships with ASEAN partners

    Foreign Minister Winston Peters travels to Laos this week to participate in a series of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-led Ministerial meetings in Vientiane.    “ASEAN plays an important role in supporting a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific,” Mr Peters says.   “This will be our third visit to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Backing mental health services on the West Coast

    Construction of a new mental health facility at Te Nikau Grey Hospital in Greymouth is today one step closer, Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey says. “This $27 million facility shows this Government is delivering on its promise to boost mental health care and improve front line services,” Mr Doocey says. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • NZ support for sustainable Pacific fisheries

    New Zealand is committing nearly $50 million to a package supporting sustainable Pacific fisheries development over the next four years, Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones announced today. “This support consisting of a range of initiatives demonstrates New Zealand’s commitment to assisting our Pacific partners ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Students’ needs at centre of new charter school adjustments

    Associate Education Minister David Seymour says proposed changes to the Education and Training Amendment Bill will ensure charter schools have more flexibility to negotiate employment agreements and are equipped with the right teaching resources. “Cabinet has agreed to progress an amendment which means unions will not be able to initiate ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Commissioner replaces Health NZ Board

    In response to serious concerns around oversight, overspend and a significant deterioration in financial outlook, the Board of Health New Zealand will be replaced with a Commissioner, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti announced today.  “The previous government’s botched health reforms have created significant financial challenges at Health NZ that, without ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Minister to speak at Australian Space Forum

    Minister for Space and Science, Innovation and Technology Judith Collins will travel to Adelaide tomorrow for space and science engagements, including speaking at the Australian Space Forum.  While there she will also have meetings and visits with a focus on space, biotechnology and innovation.  “New Zealand has a thriving space ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Climate Change Minister to attend climate action meeting in China

    Climate Change Minister Simon Watts will travel to China on Saturday to attend the Ministerial on Climate Action meeting held in Wuhan.  “Attending the Ministerial on Climate Action is an opportunity to advocate for New Zealand climate priorities and engage with our key partners on climate action,” Mr Watts says. ...
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    5 days ago
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