I have to wonder what govt has to do when NZ hears today that despite what some people claimed was "impossible" only 6 farms out of 230 farms are left with Mycco Bovis saving $1.3 billion in exports Many in the affected sector still seems to have issues with the far-sighted approach by govt surely working with them has been proven to be the best was y forward for them & NZ
Once again, Jacinda and c/o listening to the science. Great results we are having from that. Expecting the various parties to be thankful? Well some are, but some … just the recalcitrant few diehards want to "Do it their way". Farmers are now leaning on their own to use NAIT . National Animal Identification Tracing.
Dilara’s entire family are model citizens. Her parents are also fluent Chinese speakers – slightly unusual for Uighurs of their generation. During the 1990s, they were among the only Uighurs working at a big, state-owned utility in Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang.
Her mother had landed the coveted position because she was the top student at her school, which was almost entirely Han. Dilara grew up amongst Han Chinese, in a modern apartment complex in a desirable part of town. Like her mother, she was the top student in school, and attended a prestigious university on China’s east coast.
But then Dilara made a mistake. She moved to Turkey with her husband in 2015.Her mother came to visit, staying a year to help care for their newborn baby. When her mother returned to China in early 2018, she was told she needed “education”. Her passport was confiscated and she was imprisoned in an internment campfor nearly a year.
Since 2017, up to 1.8 million Uighurs and other Muslims have been held in what researcher Adrian Zenz calls “probably the largest incarceration of an ethno-religious minority since the Holocaust”. Many have been interned for reasons as trivial as wearing headscarves or long beards, declining to eat pork, or in the case of Dilara’s mother, having travelled abroad.Many of them, according to Dilara, have also had their assets seized.
Human rights investigators say an outright genocide is taking place. As Uighur men have disappeared into prison or forced labor compounds while mosques and other religious sites have been demolished, Uighur women are being forcibly sterilised, given abortions and IUDs. Many Uighurs abroad fear that speaking out will incur retaliation against their family members back home. For that reason, Dilara asked to use only her first name. Lawyers have filed evidence to the international criminal court calling on it to investigate senior Chinese officials, including Xi Jinping, for genocide and crimes against humanity.
As 2018 dragged on with no word of her mother’s whereabouts, Dilara’s anxiety mounted. Her relatives deleted her from their phones and a Han Chinese stranger moved into her 85-year-old grandmother’s house, part of a surveillance campaign that has sent more than a million Chinese citizens to occupy Uighur households. Her grandmother, Dilara learned later, would curse the man every day in Uighur, a language he couldn’t understand. “She wasn’t afraid, because she’s so old,” Dilara said.
Finally, after close to a year, Dilara received a message from an aunt: “She’s out.” Dilaraand her husband worked for Chinese companies in Turkey who had sent letters on the family’s behalf, “telling them we love China, we’re not bad people, and we’re not terrorists”.
What is most upsetting to Dilara – and what compels her to speak out – is that none of her Han Chinese friends know what is happening. During the year her mother was interned, she tried to tell her colleagues about the camps, but “they would always say, ‘No you must be wrong, that can’t be.’”. Her company paid for return trips to China every few months, and each time, her colleagues would ask why she wasn’t coming home too. “I kept telling them, we can’t go back, but they don’t believe me,” she said. To this day, Dilara thinks of herself as both Uighur and Chinese; the identities are not mutually exclusive.
Thanks for that info Dennis F. I had heard that something bad was going on but hadn't seen details. If enough people wrote to the Chinese asking why they don't let the people live freely as long as they are living good lives, would sheer weight of numbers have an affect I wonder? Like Amnesty International have done for years. It is so sad that people everywhere are so inventive in ways of being inhuman, and the leaders decide inhumanity is the most efficient way to treat other humans – but not themselves.
No, almost zero chance of any effect. The problem is a collective mentality combined with hegemony. Imperialism being recycled via communist ideology. Conformity is required by the system.
In ecosystems, biodiversity normally prevails and stabilises the system via mutual interactions. Hierarchies in nature are bounded by that holistic context. Our problem is the UN fails at such operational holism, allowing the monoculture in China to suppress biodiversity.
Our problem is the UN fails at such operational holism
The problem is that the UN and the international law it represents is voluntary and so some countries simply both even if they've signed on to being part of the UN.
But can you imagine the outcry from the US/China/Russia and permanent members of the UNSC if the UN was made mandatory and with the teeth to enforce international law? They all have, in one way or another, been breaking international law for decades.
It's a press release from the company developing the treatment, not a peer-reviewed independent report, and the sample size of 100 is small. But the claimed improvements in outcomes are much stronger than any other treatments, and delivering it as an aerosol (more or less like an inhaler) sounds simple and easy. So it's definitely one to watch.
That is what I'd expect to see first out of gate – a series of treatments to alleviate severe symptoms and death rates.
The front-leading vaccines are currently completing phase II testing. That is small trials testing that the vaccine candidate isn't immediately toxic, and that there are signs it may have something of the desired effect. Now they have the slower statistical study on efficiacy.
Clinical development is a three-phase process. During Phase I, small groups of people receive the trial vaccine. In Phase II, the clinical study is expanded and vaccine is given to people who have characteristics (such as age and physical health) similar to those for whom the new vaccine is intended. In Phase III, the vaccine is given to thousands of people and tested for efficacy and safety.
Many vaccines undergo Phase IV formal, ongoing studies after the vaccine is approved and licensed.
As Treetop says, the Oxford crowd appear to be getting particularly close.
The Phase III issue I'm most curious about is whether anybody jumps into the ethical minefield of doing challenge trials to accelerate finding out how effective their vaccine actually is. Then what the reaction might be if a group somewhere say in China or Russia 'proved' their vaccine was safe and effective using -ahem- involuntary challenge trials.
Well,well,well. Judith has been sent info from somebody accusing a Labour MP of SOMETHING, possibly INNAPROPRIATE She had passed info to Jacinda for her deal with. Cough. And so it begins.
The key exchange happens at around the seven minute mark., The question about Labour comes completely out of the blue. There was no reason to ask it unless he knew the answer would be "yes". Collins is not surprised or phased by the question at all and doesn't miss a beat before answering. Garner does not seem surprised or phased at all by the answer given. If you believe Garner wasn't told to ask that question, I have a bridge to sell you.
She was going to be heavily attacked today about the 'mental health' line both Falloon and herself peddled on Monday. It was a clear attempt to deceive in order to minimise the damage, but the media didn't agree and were to continue to question her on it.
Collin's says "I am not going to be indulging in any attacks on Labour on these things.” The hyppcrisy beggars belief. If the media doesn't pick up on this there's something extremely wrong.
Judith Collins told the media on the Monday (after receiving the info. from the PM’s Office the previous Friday) by way of announcing Falloon was stepping down at the election for mental health reasons. It subsequently changed when she learned the extent of his behaviour and he was effectively sacked.
There are some people who have mental consequences because of how serious historical complaints were not cleared up when a person took their complaint to their then MP, the then police minister, the then PM or the then minister of justice and the then police commissioners were incompetent.
This is not to say that the issue is serious and needs to be dealt with.
What is obvious, is the tactics have changed. Instead of tipping off a bottom feeding blogger, they are peddling dirt to a sympathetic, cash strapped TV show.
AND, Collins had to defend the observation she is putting it in the public domain. 'I was asked a question and I answered it…' type shenanagins.
I would like to know the date of the alleged incident and what action was taken by the complainant and if no action taken then there could be a reason e.g. loss of income, protecting family, a he said I said situation.
I would not hesitate in going to the PM or the current police commissioner with a current issue as I think they are honest and serving the public is a core belief.
Is this a credible allegation of “something or another”? If it is not a genuine case, Labour should not turn the other cheek yet again. The Boag, Woodhouse and ‘whites only’ Walker Covid playbook, surely has got the point through to Labour HQ–the Nats ARE out to get you!
The NZ National dirty tricks dept. never sleeps–it will be operating on twin turbo boost with nitrous until it exhumes or manufactures something that will stick.
Mrs Collins has been humiliated with a backbencher’s behaviour so egregious, and proven, as to be undeniable–she will not let that go–she will attempt to “pay back double” with lashings of caustic interest.
Nigel Latta needs to do a special episode of Beyond the Darklands dediciated to Collins. Her many disorders makes her closer to evil than anyone Latta's studied.
If Collins is really clever, she will have something that is substantiated, but will have no intention of letting the Prime Minister know what it is. Note that she has simply arranged to have some unspecified third party get in touch with Ardern. As to whether that person has any intention of doing so, or whether they even exist… who knows? At some point closer to the election, Collins could arrange to have some proxy release the information, and then say, "Remember when I said weeks ago that someone got hold of me with some information on a Labour minister? This was it, and look, the Prime Minister knew way back then, and she's done nothing about it." When the inevitable objection is raised that Ardern is only proven to have heard that there was something, but not what or in connection with whom, Collins could rejoin, "Well, I told her what I knew, if she's so incompetent or her ministers so untrustworthy that she can't get to the bottom of it, that's nothing to do with me."
If Collins were to pull that off convincingly, and the media were to play along, it wouldn't even really matter how serious the allegation was. The smear on the Prime Minister would stick. Of course, if Collins were too transparent about it, she would end up looking like as much of a dickhead as Boag, Falloon or Walker.
I have noticed Collins reactions to this whole saga are swinging back and forth. First it was a mental health issue and we must be respectful and back off. Then it was, he is a liar and I'm angry. Today, it's back to being a health issue and we were extremely concerned for his well being.
The inconsistency is shameful. What is being manipulated is shameful.
Collins was asked a direct question? Could she have confirmed in a better way without raising further questions?
Of course she could. She could have said that, as an electorate MP and National front-bencher, she is in constant receipt of various allegations, but that it is important always to do due diligence on the credibility of any claim before making it public in any way, and that it's seldom her place to put anything in the public domain unless it is directly related to government business or concerns members of her own caucus.
As above, my strong suspicion is that Garner was tipped off in advance about what the answer would be if he happened to ask that question. Stripped of any background context, it was a bizarre question to ask in circumstances where Collins has been leader of the National Party for less than a week. She would have been rightly left fuming if she had been asked that question out of the blue and had to answer "no".
If being an apologist for unacceptable practices is your thing, why not work for tobacco companies?
There are 100 ways for a seasoned MP to answer that question and shut down the line of enquiry. E.g., the time when Collins was being grilled about her time in China, trips to airports, sly visits etc
That is, IF the seasoned politician wanted to shut it down….
I'm not apologising for anyone, and I have always been staunchly against tobacco use (both my parents died of smoking related illnesses, emphysema and cancer and both deterred me from smoking) so that's an offensive comment.
There are a hundred ways for determined journalists to persist and to expose any half answers.
It's unsubstantiated speculation that Collins set up the question.
The Latin American countries of Ecuador and Uruguay, for example, have been pioneers of media reform in the 21st Century. These countries launched programs of media reform that challenged their previously corporatized and overwhelmingly right-leaning press. As a result, new community-based media thrived and the public square benefited from a greater diversity of points of views.
If media reform is possible in Latin America, then one can only wonder why it’s never been attempted in the US or UK, especially during previous Democratic or Labour party governments. The answer to this is that recent presidents and prime ministers from these parties (particularly Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, and Tony Blair) were ideologically in support of neoliberal domestic policies and neoconservative foreign policies.
But guys, the reason leftist govts in western countries don't do media reform is because they want to defend the establishment against progress. If that isn't obvious to you by now, you really are a bunch of slow learners.
Ruling and exploiting society is only any good if the society remains functional to some extent. Trump is taking it too far even for the likes of our capitalist rulers.
Collins publicly passing on allegations. Fuck she is toxic and undeniably delving into Dirty Politics. Isn’t Brownlee head of their newSecret Service disinformation division?
So now I can send the leader of the opposition a letter alleging something about the behaviour of one of her MPs, tell leaders of other parties I've done that, let one media person know and it's all on?
Yeah I get that there will be some shit thrown back at Labour, and of course Collins is going to publicise it being the dick she is. However there is a principle of not being there in the first place. – ie keeping above the level and genuine integrity. Hopefully it is not substantiated but I will be seriously pissed off with any Labour MP who thinks they are so entitled that they think they can get away with stuff. FFS they have one job – to keep their noses clean and carry on doing the good work they are doing and support their awesome leader and not give her any frigging shit to deal with
That is true. There can be and will be MP's on the lefter side of politics who do the wrong thing – and let progressives everywhere down in the process. As individuals we can control that and reduce our exposure to dirty dealings of the right.
Lenore I suggest that you don't emote about something before you know it has happened, and get full details of it. There is plenty to be concerned about that is definitely happening. Try reading Dennis Frank's comment on the Chinese treatment of Uighurs at 2 above. Now that breaks my heart and should also concern you. So why not think about the real problems in the world. Labour being called out for some possibly slanderous infraction should not be a reason to create negativity about the Party which is doing well in trying times.
This is a dead cat on the table moment no doubt organised by Crosby Textor and Topham Guerin to take away the blow-torch which was on Judith for the deceitful way she treated the Andrew Fallon mental health claim.
Yesterday even Duplicity-Allen didn’t buy that story.
This is National Party Dirty Politics continuing apace. It never really stopped, did it.
I would say it was cooked up by some Nat lackeys who arranged for someone to report something directly to Collins who would have been left out of the loop to enable plausible deniability when the shit hit the fan.
I'm picking Chris Bish or M Woodhouse to be secret informer. Followed by Homeless Man, who seems to be quite sneaky. If none of the above has to be a Young Nat.
There’s a chronic leaker in Dunedin. Apparently, somebody tipped off Judith Collins that David Clark allegedly has been spotted riding a bike in his backyard wearing lycra.
"I have complete faith in my officials" They come across as really nice people.
Oh shit, maybe I shouldn't have unquestioning faith in my officials:
"That message should have been brought to my attention. It wasn't. That does not meet my expectations and I've made that clear." ….. not withstanding previous examples such as all those "scummy" people; demographic spreadsheets; "we have enough Labour Inspectors"; under-resourcing; "Kaiser Smol"; curvy screens; failed restructures, etc., etc…….
Never mind! Once again, Jacinda to the rescue:
"What I can assure anyone potentially involved in a case is regardless of whether they are present or not we have a track record of pursuing cases where there is exploitation of workers regardless of whether or not they are able to testify in court."
(That's of course if we decide to pursue a case in the first place)
Great to hear all your thoughts about this. Just listening to RNZ feedback and people saying that this is dirty politics and the difference about Jacinda not going public and Judith mentioning it in the media.
How come this scuttlebutt becomes top priority? We have plenty of other things concerning us. The country can't be put on hold every time someone is accused of an obscene gesture, or says something inappropriate.
James identifies their tactic of `ankle-tapping'. But if you have a political party that was designed as reactionary, why wouldn't they default to reacting? Being pro-active in signalling their response at the start of policy development is ideal, and I see James as coming from that position, but I recall checking out the NZF website a long time ago and not encountering any policy. Conservatives just defend the status quo!
On Farrar's blog on Sunday he was suppressing a few posts and later posters & from the gleeful tone of the tiny bits that were left it did not seem to be about the Falloon upheaval.
Sounded more like an unsubstantiated 'scandal'/dirt or what qualifies as dirt in Nats' eyes, to do with Labour. Mind you with them it is a bit of shock horror still to have an PM who was pregnant and gave birth while still being PM.
What was Falloon doing in 2014? How many of those young nats of 2014 are now in parliament? If they got away with that behaviour then, they must surely believe they can do it now.
This is an old comment but has anything really changed? When national mps try to tell me that Falloon’s behaviour is not their party’s values or mps’ values or their favoured bloggers’ values, they are spinning.
I must read Dirty Politics again – renew my understanding of something I hoped might not be happening in 2020.
Judith Collins has not changed her attack culture. Good to see that proved. New Zealanders need to see it anew. Nat acquaintances now saying they forgot her history; I remind them. And now, so is Judith Collins.
"There is speculation that Lees-Galloway has already resigned. He has deleted his Twitter account."
Jacinda appears to be acting quickly. That is good. If the "crime" is serious then he will not stand at the next election. Wonder if these behaviours have always been in Parliament but out of sight?
There has been "speculation" for a while. Rumours both true and false
JA has handled this well. extremely well
There are further questions of course …… such as how the matter has been handled with "the agency" itself, and whether or not the incident has had any effect on the way they operate 'ethically'.
Jacinda did a brilliant job. May be we should question whether men should be in politics at all, they do let their hormones run away with them. I do worry when I get on a plane with a male pilot – will they be ok? Men have historically had a great difficulty dealing with complexity and I know we are all for equal rights, but scientific studies do show… 🙂
He he I've wondered that myself. Plus should they pay higher tax to offset the costs of police, corrections, justice which are consumed pretty much by males?
Not only should there be a cabinet manual, but probably a cabinet crib sheet. It could include various 'demographic profiles' like
1. If you are a male who is possibly going through your mid-life crisis ………..
Various DOs and DONT's like
– get a prostitute and pay well (not on the taxpayer), or if you don't fit the 'straight' profile, then go to the Tory Street Temple (because what plays in Vegas, stays in Vegas – unless there's a fire alarm, in which case all bets are off)
– Never get a taxi with your bit of fluff, and if you do need transport, better a friend or even an UBER or OLA because chances are it'll all be kept within the community, even though you have been a party to allowing most of them to be ripped off.
– etc.
2. If you are a male who has campaigned on the importance of "the family"……..
-etc.
I'm not sure I'm an expert though. I seem to be the only person I know that wasn't "shocked" and horrified at Todd Muller's resignation (after having witnessed his managerial brilliance) in the Bay of Plentyness.
The senior ranks of the Public Service of course would need something similar.
Collins did not manage her first as Leader in Question very well yesterday.
Today she will try to embarrass Jacinda with this question:
1. Hon JUDITH COLLINS to the Prime Minister: Does she stand by her statement that “when we’re talking about infrastructure, it’s not just about the projects we in the Government are responsible for, we also have the opportunity to partner with communities, with iwi and local government. That’s what the $2.6 billion worth of shovel-ready projects we announced earlier this week were all about”?
JC , like a jack-in-the-box, will run to the media again with a new thought tomorrow, pose with her flirty "finger guns" and announce a new ' tough on crime' policy….. the stoning of adulterers
Speaking to reporters outside the House, Seymour said Peters was simply repeating "sleazy, baseless innuendo saying things that never happened" in the House.
"I categorically deny involvement in that leak – I had nothing to do with it."
He said that Morton did not give him information and he did not pass on any information, as alleged by Peters in the House.
"The reason this accusation is being made is we're in a personal relationship – he's abusing that fact and I think that's a new low for New Zealand politics."
Seymour said Peters is struggling in the polls and is "finished and is now trying to drag other people down with him".
"Winston Peters is a desperate man making it up and in this case, telling lies."
He said he didn't know anything about Peters superannuation payments until they hit headlines.
As I understand the legal process he may struggle to use new information on an appeal. Especially as here he seems to be claiming that someone other than the five people he took to court were guilty – that effectively would confirm he got his original case wrong.
He could take Morton and Seymour and Watkins and Farrar to court in a separate case perhaps. but I think all Peters is targeting at the moment is the election.
If the appeal is part of the election campaign it could be the most expensive after National’s ‘Lose Yourself’ one. How stupid naive is WP when it comes to legal affairs, in your opinion?
I don't know in general, but he seems to have really botched his legal action against Bennett, Tolley, Hughes, Boyle and the Ministry of Social Development.
Even if he somehow manages to successfully appeal the $320k costs he can't recover what it has cost him directly.
He has admitted he had the wrong people in court.
And I'm sure he can't substitute five defendants for another however many people he claims were actually guilty in an appeal. If he proves it was someone else it proves his original court action was flawed.
He will be able to argue that the level of costs is overstated, and that ultimately the MSD was responsible for the information being leaked due to their negligence in providing the information outside of the allowed usage. Basically the MSD should pay much of the costs for the consequences of their actions as a legal entity. Offhand I think that he has a far better case against the costs than he had in trying to identify the perpetrator of the leak.
I suspect that there are quite a lot of grounds to argue on. Especially as this is a civil rather than a criminal case and one that has a high public interest component. I don’t know about you, but if I had someone leaking any private information about me from the MSD of IRD or MOH or anywhere, then I’d start by considering how to abolish that part of the public service and making everyone there unemployable – then I’d work down to how I could run the vendetta to get close to that objective.
There is essentially no difference between this and Hager winning a case against the banks for passing out information to the police without going through the mandated procedures like getting a production order from the court.
and that ultimately the MSD was responsible for the information being leaked due to their negligence in providing the information outside of the allowed usage.
MSD has played a large part in this whole business.
I'm not sure that Peters has a great chance of success on the appeal – the evidential difficulties in proving who leaked the information to news media remain. There remains some hope for Peters, the High Court judge was very close to finding that even release of Peters' name to the ministers by the relevant departmental chief executives was improper, but determined that in the circumstances of the case, with close proximity to an investigation of another Member of Parliament, Metiria Turei, there was a heightened need for the minister to be informed.
He addresses another issue:
But there is another aspect of this case that concerns me today. Peters lost and as usually happens when someone loses a civil claim in New Zealand, the Court ordered that the party that lost make a contribution towards the legal fees of the party that succeeded. In this case, Peters was ordered to pay around $320,000. He wasn't ordered to pay all of the defendants' costs, which are likely to have been substantially higher.
This is an utterly ridiculous sum. The numbers don't surprise me: I know that litigation is expensive, but the legal system should be embarrassed that a claim of this nature, even one that was ultimately unsuccessful, could result in the losing party being ordered to pay so exorbitant a sum.
Now, Peters' claim was probably more complex than most civil claims. There were five defendants and three sets of lawyers. And while it's well short of the most complex commercial disputes, an eight-day civil trial is relatively lengthy. But still. $320,000 in costs covering only some of the expense incurred in defending the claim shows how expensive legal action has become. A $320,000 bill would be ruinous for most people, without even taking account of the costs of taking the action, and given the finding that Peters' privacy was breached, and the Court accepts it was (albeit Peters was unable to prove by whom).
Equally, of course, people defending claims shouldn't be put in the position where they have to spend ruinously large sums either (although, in this case, the defence was government-funded).
The court system should not be so hideously expensive that it is beyond the reach of ordinary people. And it clearly is. This isn't the only case where this is apparent.
You know how expensive court cases can be when someone pursues an agenda with an absence of adequate evidence.
Peters may have also been using the cost of litigation as a way of punishing those he thought responsible.
There is another way he could have tried to fix the no surprises problem.
There is another option, of course: the no surprises principle isn't "law" – it's simply stated in the Cabinet Manual, which Cabinet could change. Peters is the deputy prime minister, and a member of Cabinet: and as he didn't have success in the Courts in vindicating his rights, he could push for it to be changed for the rest of us. That wouldn't fix the breach of privacy that occurred in his case, but it would hopefully make similar breaches less likely in the future.
That would be for the good of the country, but Peters seems more intent on his own good regardless of the costs to the country.
Peters may have also been using the cost of litigation as a way of punishing those he thought responsible.
Unlikely, as far as I am aware all of the parties apart from Peters were lawyer-ed up using the taxpayer as the funding agency. It would appear that the only person at risk of financial damage was Peters. Which makes the premise of your argument look ridiculous.
Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters must pay the Crown $317,818 in legal costs connected to his failed privacy case against top public servants, a ministry and two former National ministers.
The High Court has ordered Peters to pay close to the full amount sought by the Crown on a scale of costs used by the courts – but it is understood the full bill to the taxpayer is around $1.07 million.
And the New Zealand First leader's debt to the Crown is higher than it might have been because he had turned down an offer from Crown lawyers to end his action against the two top public servants, State Services Commissioner Peter Hughes and former Ministry of Social Development chief executive Brendan Boyle.
The point is that the disclosure of the private information appears to have only had one source – it was disclosed from the MSD. Almost certainly leaked through ministerial disclosures one way or another.
That means that the MSD violated its commitments. I'm pretty sure that the crown isn't allowed to do that for any reason that isn't part of legislation – which none of this appears to have been. Needless to say there has been no-one held accountable for this breach. Indeed, so far the courts appear to have been giving a license for public servants to disclose whatever information that they wish, without being given explicit permission to do so – provided there is a minister in the route.
I'm pretty sure that the supreme court will have some issues with that. I know that I damn well do.
I'd be very surprised given that Collins referred the supplier of information to Ardern.
And I'd be very surprised if Collins does anything that would directly connect her to Slater now. That would be political madness, and I think she's smart enough to know that. As far as I have observed she's kept a distance at least on political matters since 2014.
By the sound of things the information about ILG could have come from any number of sources, given how it seems to have been common knowledge in journalist circles for months.
I've seen it mentioned but can't remember where.
Do you think that Ardern nor her office knew nothing about it until alerted by Collins?
"I'd be very surprised given that Collins referred the supplier of information to Ardern."
Don't you think this is just part of Collins trying to look uninvolved and completely blameless? How do you explain Garner's patsy question? How can you "observe" whether Collins and Slater haven't been communicating since 2014? There's no way they wouldn't be communicating and every reason for them to hide that commincation. These people aren't the type to be scared off by Hager's book. Regardless of anything they will continue to do exactly what they do, and the only thing that changes are their methods of attempting to remain undetected and to look squeaky clean.
I think Slater would easily have masked his involvement in this issue; after all, he's well-practiced in deception, as you know. Collins and Slater are besties; their relationship won't have ended because the muggles got a sniff of it, Pete! Or do you reckon they're playing fair now
Do you think that Ardern only found out about it when advised by Collins this week? Surely senior MPs would keep her informed of possible problems in the ranks.
It now appears that Collins has played politics timed for effect, but Ardern may also be guilty of that.
Please tell me which iconic PM came in to Government and instantly dismissed all MPs in their party who were known to be having illicit sex.
Your attempt at equating Jacinda and Judith fails. Jacinda has obviously tried to do the minimum, and refrain. Judith appears to have introduced old material at the time she wanted, and used a patsy question from Garner to publicise the thing in a way that Jacinda did not. Judith could have told Garner that it was not appropriate for her to give any details, which I believe Jacinda would have done. But Judith did not.
It may well be that Garner was primed, that's very common in politics. It happened to me in one of my first political interviews (a lame attempt to embarrass me on local TV by Te Reo Putake as it happens).
But it really didn't make any difference. Ardern says she had already dumped ILG the day before. So why had she not advised the public? Organising PR and timing to suit her? She seems to have been playing the public as much as Collins.
Lame? It worked a treat! You looked like a possum in the headlights, Pete.
However, as I believe I said at the time, you at least had the courage of your convictions and put yourself forward for election. That's very much to your credit.
Didn't John Key steal a pebble from Antarctica and pretend he had forgotten he picked it up? Like the rest of his past and current stable of 'privileged' mps and pretend bipartisan supporters, no morals, no integrity.
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How Labour’s and National’s failure to move beyond neoliberalism has brought NZ to the brink of economic and cultural chaos Chris Trotter writes – TO START LOSING, so soon after you won, requires a special kind of political incompetence. At the heart of this Coalition ...
And why did the Crown not challenge the Tribunal’s jurisdiction? Gary Judd writes – Retired District Court Judge, David Harvey, has posted on his A Halflings View Substack an excellent summary of Justice Isacs’ judgment declining to uphold the witness summons issued by the Waitangi Tribunal ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Do you believe New Zealand runs its general elections fairly and competently? As a voter, can you be confident that the votes on your ballot will be counted towards the final result?As a political scientist, I’ve been asked these questions many times and ...
Macklemore isn’t someone I’d usually think about. Sure I liked his big hit from a few years back, everybody did it was catchy and cool with some memorable lines. But if I was going to think of artists who might speak out on political matters or world events, he wouldn’t ...
Another week goes by in the Luxon government’s efforts to roll back the past 70 years of social progress. The school lunches programme is to be downgraded by $107 million, and women need bother their heads no longer about pay equity, let alone expect ACC to provide adequate sexual violence ...
Brrr, the first cold snap of the year. Hope you’re rugged up nice and warm. Here are some stories that caught our eye this week… This Week on Greater Auckland On Monday, we had a post from a new contributor, Connor Sharp, who dug into the public feedback ...
Almost all of the Wellington City Council’s recommended zoning changes to allow many more apartments and townhouses in its inner-suburbs have been approved.Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for subscribers features co-hosts and , along with regular guest on geopolitics, ...
Open access notablesA Global Increase in Nearshore Tropical Cyclone Intensification, Balaguru et al., Earth's Future:Tropical Cyclones (TCs) inflict substantial coastal damages, making it pertinent to understand changing storm characteristics in the important nearshore region. Past work examined several aspects of TCs relevant for impacts in coastal regions. However, ...
Do you believe New Zealand runs its general elections fairly and competently? As a voter, can you be confident that the votes on your ballot will be counted towards the final result? As a political scientist, I’ve been asked these questions many times and always answered “yes”, with very few ...
Thus far May has followed on from a quiet April in the blogging department, but in fairness, it has been another case of doing what I am supposed to be doing, namely writing original fiction. Plus reading. So don’t worry – I have been productive. But in order to reassure ...
Buzz from the Beehive A new government agency will open for business on July 1 – the Social Investment Agency. As a new standalone central agency effective from 1 July, it will lead the development of social investment across Government, helping ministers understand who they need to invest in, what ...
Bryce Edwards writes – “Follow the money” is the classic directive to journalists trying to understand where power and influence lie in society. In terms of uncovering who influences various New Zealand political parties and governments, it therefore pays to look at who is funding them. The ...
Alwyn Poole writes – After being elected to Parliament in 2008 the maiden speech of Hipkins was substantially around education policy. He was Labour’s spokesperson for education 2011 – 2017. He was Minister for Education from 2017 until February 2023. This is approximately 88% of the time Labour ...
Eric Crampton writes – A fashion industry group is lobbying for protections. They make the usual arguments and a newer one. None of it makes sense. An industry group says it pumped $7.8 billion into the economy last year – that’s 1.9 percent of New Zealand’s GDP. ...
In December 2006, Fiji's military leader Voreqe Bainimarama overthrew the elected government in a coup. He ruled Fiji for the next 16 years, first as dictator, then as "elected" Prime Minister. But now, he's finally been sent to jail where he belongs. Sadly, this isn't for his real crime of ...
Don't like National's corrupt Muldoonist "fast-track" law? Aotearoa's environmental NGO's - Greenpeace, Forest & Bird, WWF, Coromandel Watchdog, Coal Action Network Aotearoa, Kiwis Against Seabed Mining, and others - have announced a joint march against it in Auckland in June: When: 13:00, 8 June, 2024 Where: Aotea Square, Auckland You ...
Seymour describes sushi as too woke for school meals. There are no fish sushi meals recommended by the School Lunches programme. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / Getty ImagesTL;DR: The Government will swap out hot meals for packaged sandwiches to save $107 million on school lunches for poor kids. MSD has pulled ...
I don't mind stealin' bread from the mouths of decadenceBut I can't feed on the powerless when my cup's already overfilled, yeahBut it's on the table, the fire's cookin'And they're farmin' babies, while slaves are workin'The blood is on the table and the mouths are chokin'But I'm goin' hungry, yeahSome ...
The Ardern Government’s chickens came home to roost yesterday with the news that the country is short of natural gas. In 2018, Labour banned offshore petroleum exploration, and industry executives say that the attendant loss of confidence by the industry impacted overall investment in onshore gas fields. Energy Resources Minister ...
Hi,If you’ve been digging through the newly launched Webworm store (orders are being dispatched worldwide as I type!) you’ll have noticed the best model we had was Calvin.This is Calvin.Calvin.Calvin is 7, and is the son of my producer over on Flightless Bird, Rob — aka “Wobby Wob”. Rob also ...
This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Adam Levy. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). Climate change is everywhere. And when something's everywhere it can feel like it's nowhere. So how do we get our heads ...
Its a law like gravity: whenever a right-wing government is elected, they start attacking democracy. And now, after talking to their Republican and Tory and Fidesz chums at the International Democracy Union forum in Wellington, National is doing it here, announcing plans to remove election-day enrolment. Or, to put it ...
Yesterday Winston Peters focussed his attention on the important matter at hand. Tweeting. Like the former, and quite possibly next, orange POTUS, from whom he takes much of his political strategy, Winston is an avid X’er.His message didn’t resemble an historic address this time. In fact it was more reminiscent ...
Buzz from the Beehive A significant decline in natural gas production has given Resources Minister Shane Jones an opportunity to reiterate his enthusiasm for the mining and burning of coal. For good measure, he has praised an announcement from Genesis Energy that it will resume importing coal. He and Energy ...
“Follow the money” is the classic directive to journalists trying to understand where power and influence lie in society. In terms of uncovering who influences various New Zealand political parties and governments, it therefore pays to look at who is funding them. The political parties are legally obliged to make ...
Rob MacCullough writes – Here is my subjective ranking on a “most-left” to “most-right” scale of most of our major NZ Universities, with some anecdotal (and at times amusing) evidence to back up the claim.Extreme Left Auckland University of TechnologyEvidenceThe ...
Eric Crampton writes – I hadn’t thought about this one until a helpful email showed up in my inbox.It’s pretty obvious that income tax thresholds should automatically index with inflation – whether to anchor the thresholds in percentiles of the income distribution, or to anchor against a real ...
Jacqui Van Der Kaay writes – Parliament’s speaker had no option but to refer Green MP Julie Anne Genter to the Privileges Committee for her behaviour in the House last Wednesday evening. The incident, in which she crossed the floor to wave a book and yell at National ...
Gary Judd writes – The Dean of the law school at the Auckland University of Technology is someone called Khylee Quince. I have been sent her social media posting in which she has, over the LawNews headline “Senior King’s Counsel files complaint about compulsory tikanga Maori studies for ...
Cleo Paskal writes – WASHINGTON, D.C.: ‘Many of us have received phone calls from [the opposing camp] telling them if they join the camp they will be given projects for their wards and $300,000 [around US$35,000] each’, says former Malaita Premier Daniel Suidani. The elections in Solomon Islands aren’t ...
With hindsight, it was inevitable that (a) Hamas would agree to the ceasefire deal brokered by Egypt and Qatar and that ( b) Israel would then immediately launch attacks on Rafah, regardless. We might have hoped the concessions made by Hamas would cause Israel to desist from slaughtering thousands more ...
Placards and mourners outside the Kilbirnie Mosque following the Christchurch terror attack: MSD has terminated the Kaiwhakaoranga service, which has been used by 415 families since the attacks. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: The Government’s pledge to only cut ‘back office’ staff rather than ‘frontline’ services is on increasingly shaky ground, with ...
There’s been a few smaller public transport announcements over the last week or so that I thought I’d cover in a single post. Fareshare I’ve long called for Auckland Transport to offer a way to enable employer-subsidised public transport options. The need for this took on even more importance ...
Parliament’s speaker had no option but to refer Green MP Julie Anne Genter to the Privileges Committee for her behaviour in the House last Wednesday evening. The incident, in which she crossed the floor to wave a book and yell at National Minister Matt Doocey, reflects poorly on Genter and ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
Who likes being sneered at? Nobody. Worse yet, when the sneerer has their facts all wrong, and might well be an idiot.The sneer in question is The adults are in charge now, and it is a sneer offered in retort to criticism of this new Government, no matter how well ...
When in government, Labour pushed to extend the Parliamentary term to four years, to reduce accountability and our ability to vote out a bad government. And now, they're trying to do it through the member's ballot, with a Four-Year Parliamentary Term Legislation Bill. The bill at least requires a referendum ...
A ballot for a single Member's Bill was held today, and the following bill was drawn: Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill (Hūhana Lyndon) The bill would prevent the government from stealing Māori land in breach of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. It ...
Simeon Brown, alongside Wayne Brown, is favouring a political figleaf now in exchange for loading up tens of millions in extra interest costs on Auckland ratepayers. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Ratings agency Standard & Poor’s is pushing back hard at suggestions from Local Government Minister Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown ...
Buzz from the Beehive One headline-grabber from the Beehive yesterday was the OECD’s advice that the government must bring the Budget deficit under control or face higher interest rates. Another was the announcement of a $1.9 billion “investment” in Corrections over the next four years. In the best interests of ...
Chris Trotter writes – Had Zheng He’s fleet sailed east, not west, in the early Fifteenth Century, how different our world would be. There is little reason to suppose that the sea-going junks of the Ming Dynasty, among the largest and most sophisticated sailing vessels ever constructed, would have failed ...
David Farrar writes – Two articles give a useful contrast in balance. Both seek to be neutral explainer articles. This one in the Herald on Social Investment covers the pros and cons nicely. It links to critical pieces and talks about aspects that failed and aspects that are more ...
The tikanga regulations will compel law students to be taught that a system which does not conform with the rule of law is nevertheless law which should be observed and applied…Gary Judd KC writes – I have made a complaint to Parliament’s Regulation ...
The future of Te Huia, the train between Hamilton and Auckland, has been getting a lot of attention recently as current funding for it is only in place till the end of June. The government initially agreed to a five year trial, through to April 2026, but that was subject ...
TL;DR: Hamas has just agreed to Israel’s ceasefire plan. Nelson hospital’s rebuild has been cut back to save money. The OECD suggests New Zealand break up network monopolies, including in electricity. PM Christopher Luxon’s news conference on a prison expansion announcement last night was his messiest yet.Here’s my top six ...
A homicide in Ponsonby, a manhunt with a killer on the run. The nation’s leader stands before a press conference reassuring a frightened nation that he’ll sort it out, he’ll keep them safe, he’ll build some new prison spaces.Sorry what? There’s a scary dude on the run with a gun ...
Hi,I know it’s been awhile since there’s been any Webworm merch — and today that all changes!Over the last four months, I’ve been working with New Zealand artist Jess Johnson to create a series of t-shirts, caps and stickers that are infused with Webworm DNA — and as of right ...
The OECD’s chief economist yesterday laid it on the line for the new Government: bring the deficit under control or face higher Reserve Bank interest rates for longer. And to bring the deficit under control, she meant not borrowing for tax cuts. But there was more. Without policy changes—introducing a ...
After a hiatus of over four months Selwyn Manning and I finally got it together to re-start the “A View from Afar” podcast series. We shall see how we go but aim to do 2 episodes per month if possible. … Continue reading → ...
In 2008, the UK Parliament passed the Climate Change Act 2008. The law established a system of targets, budgets, and plans, with inbuilt accountability mechanisms; the aim was to break the cycle of empty promises and replace it with actual progress towards emissions reduction. The law was passed with near-universal ...
Buzz from the Beehive Local Water Done Well – let’s be blunt – is a silly name, but the first big initiative to put it into practice has gone done well. This success is reflected in the headline on an RNZ report:District mayors welcome Auckland’s new water deal with ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate ConnectionsA farmworker cleans the solar panels of a solar water pump in the village of Jagadhri, Haryana Country, India. (Photo credit: Prashanth Vishwanathan/ IWMI) Decisions made in India over the next few years will play a key role in global ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – The Children’s Minister, Karen Chhour, intends to repeal Section 7AA from the Oranga Tamariki Act 1989 because it creates conflict between claimed Crown Treaty obligations and the child’s best interests. In her words, “Oranga Tamariki’s governing principles and its act should be colour ...
Geoffrey Miller writes – The gloves are off. That might seem to be the undertone of surprisingly tough talk from New Zealand’s foreign and trade ministers. Winston Peters, the foreign minister, may be facing legal action after making allegations about former Australian foreign minister Bob Carr on Radio New Zealand. ...
Brian Easton writes – This is about the time that the Treasury will be locking up its economic forecasts to be published in the 2024 Budget Economic and Fiscal Update (BEFU) on budget day, 30 May. I am not privy to what they will be (I will report on them ...
TL;DR:Winston Peters is reported to have won a budget increase for MFAT. David Seymour wanted his Ministry of Regulation to be three times bigger than the Productivity Commission. Simeon Brown is appointing a Crown Monitor to Watercare to protect the Claytons Crown Guarantee he had to give ratings agencies ...
The gloves are off. That might seem to be the undertone of surprisingly tough talk from New Zealand’s foreign and trade ministers. Winston Peters, the foreign minister, may be facing legal action after making allegations about former Australian foreign minister Bob Carr on Radio New Zealand. Carr had made highly ...
I could be a florist'Round the corner from Rye LaneI'll be giving daisies to craziesBut, baby, I'll wrap you up real safe Oh, I can give you flowers At the end of every dayFor the center of your table, a rainbowIn case you have people 'round to stay Depending on ...
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to May 12 include:PM Christopher Luxon is scheduled to hold a post-Cabinet news conference at 4 pm today. Finance Minister Nicola Willis will give a pre-budget speech on Thursday.Parliament sits from Question Time at 2pm on ...
The price of the foreign affairs “reset” is now becoming apparent, with Defence set to get a funding boost in the Budget. Finance Minister Nicola Willis has confirmed that it will be one of the few votes, apart from Health and Education and possibly Police, which will get an increase ...
A listing of 26 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 28, 2024 thru Sat, May 4, 2024. Story of the week "It’s straight out of Big Tobacco’s playbook. In fact, research by John Cook and his colleagues ...
Yesterday I received come lovely feedback following my Star Wars themed newsletter. A few people mentioned they’d enjoyed reading the personal part at the beginning.I often begin newsletters with some memories, or general thoughts, before commencing the main topic. This hopefully sets the mood and provides some context in which ...
April 30 was going to be the day we’d be calling Mum from London to wish her a happy birthday. Then it became the day we would be going to St. Paul's at Evensong to remember her. The aim of the cathedral builders was to find a way to make their ...
Rob MacCulloch writes – Can’t remember the last book by a Kiwi author you read? Think the NZ government should spend less on the arts in favor of helping the homeless? If so, as far as Newsroom is concerned, you probably deserve to be called a cultural ignoramus ...
Today New Zealand First will introduce a Member’s Bill that will protect women’s spaces. The ‘Fair Access to Bathrooms Bill’ will require, primarily in the interest and safety of women and girls, that all new non-domestic publicly accessible buildings provide separate, clearly demarcated, unisex and single sex bathrooms. This Bill ...
The Green Party is welcoming Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ continuation of Hon. James Shaw’s cross-party work on climate adaptation, now in the form of a Finance and Expenditure Committee Inquiry. ...
The National Government plans to cut 390 jobs at ACC, including roles in the areas of prevention of sexual violence, road safety and workplace safety. ...
The Government has been caught in opposition to evidence once again as it looks to usher in tried, tested and failed work seminar obligations for job-seeking beneficiaries. ...
The Green Party is welcoming the announcement by the Minister Responsible for RMA Reform Chris Bishop to approve most of the Wellington City Council’s District Plan recommendations. ...
David Seymour has failed to get the sweeping cuts he wanted to the free and healthy school lunch programme, Labour education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
Hon Willie Jackson has been invited by the Oxford Union to debate the motion “This House Believes British Museums are not Very British’ on May 23rd. ...
Green Party MP Hūhana Lyndon says her Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill is an opportunity to right some past wrongs around the alienation of Māori land. ...
A senior, highly respected King’s Counsel with decades of experience in our law courts, Gary Judd KC, has filed a complaint about compulsory tikanga Māori studies for law students - highlighting the utter depths of absurdity this woke cultural madness has taken our society. The tikanga regulations will compel law ...
The Government needs to be clear with the people of the Nelson Marlborough region about the changes it is considering for the Nelson Hospital rebuild, Labour health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall said. ...
Ministers must front up about which projects it will push through under its Fast Track Approvals legislation, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
The Government is again adding to New Zealand’s growing unemployment, this time cutting jobs at the agencies responsible for urban development and growing much needed housing stock. ...
With Minister Karen Chhour indicating in the House today that she either doesn’t know or care about the frontline cuts she’s making to Oranga Tamariki, we risk seeing more and more of our children falling through the cracks. ...
The Labour Party is saddened to learn of the death of Sir Robert Martin, a globally renowned disability advocate who led the way for disability rights both in New Zealand and internationally. ...
Labour is calling for the Government to urgently rethink its coalition commitment to restart live animal exports, Labour animal welfare spokesperson Rachel Boyack said. ...
Today’s Financial Stability Report has once again highlighted that poverty and deep inequality are political choices - and this Government is choosing to make them worse. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to do more for our households in most need as unemployment rises and the cost of living crisis endures. ...
Unemployment is on the rise and it’s only going to get worse under this Government, Labour finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds said. Stats NZ figures show the unemployment rate grew to 4.3 percent in the March quarter from 4 percent in the December quarter. “This is the second rise in unemployment ...
The New Zealand Labour Party welcomes the entering into force of the European Union and New Zealand free trade agreement. This agreement opens the door for a huge increase in trade opportunities with a market of 450 million people who are high value discerning consumers of New Zealand goods and ...
The National-led Government continues its fiscal jiggery pokery with its Pharmac announcement today, Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall says. “The government has increased Pharmac funding but conceded it will only make minimal increases in access to medicine”, said Ayesha Verrall “This is far from the bold promises made to fund ...
This afternoon’s interim Waitangi Tribunal report must be taken seriously as it affects our most vulnerable children, Labour children’s spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime. ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
Introduction Good morning. It’s a great privilege to be here at the 2024 Infrastructure Symposium. I was extremely happy when the Prime Minister asked me to be his Minister for Infrastructure. It is one of the great barriers holding the New Zealand economy back from achieving its potential. Building high ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins today announced the upcoming Budget will include new funding of $571 million for Defence Force pay and projects. “Our servicemen and women do New Zealand proud throughout the world and this funding will help ensure we retain their services and expertise as we navigate an increasingly ...
New Zealand’s ability to cope with climate change will be strengthened as part of the Government’s focus to build resilience as we rebuild the economy, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “An enduring and long-term approach is needed to provide New Zealanders and the economy with certainty as the climate ...
Jobseeker beneficiaries who have work obligations must now meet with MSD within two weeks of their benefit starting to determine their next step towards finding a job, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “A key part of the coalition Government’s plan to have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker ...
A new standalone Social Investment Agency will power-up the social investment approach, driving positive change for our most vulnerable New Zealanders, Social Investment Minister Nicola Willis says. “Despite the Government currently investing more than $70 billion every year into social services, we are not seeing the outcomes we want for ...
Check against delivery Good morning. It is a pleasure to be with you to outline the Coalition Government’s approach to our first Budget. Thank you Mark Skelly, President of the Hutt Valley Chamber of Commerce, together with your Board and team, for hosting me. I’d like to acknowledge His Worship ...
Your Excellency Ambassador Meredith, Members of the Diplomatic Corps and Ambassadors from European Union Member States, Ministerial colleagues, Members of Parliament, and other distinguished guests, Thank you everyone for joining us. Ladies and gentlemen - In diplomacy, we often speak of ‘close’ and ‘long-standing’ relations. ...
The Therapeutic Products Act (TPA) will be repealed this year so that a better regime can be put in place to provide New Zealanders safe and timely access to medicines, medical devices and health products, Associate Health Minister Casey Costello announced today. “The medicines and products we are talking about ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop, today released his decision on twenty recommendations referred to him by the Wellington City Council relating to its Intensification Planning Instrument, after the Council rejected those recommendations of the Independent Hearings Panel and made alternative recommendations. “Wellington notified its District Plan on ...
Rape Awareness Week (6-10 May) is an important opportunity to acknowledge the continued effort required by government and communities to ensure that all New Zealanders can live free from violence, say Ministers Karen Chhour and Louise Upston. “With 1 in 3 women and 1 in 8 men experiencing sexual violence ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government will be delivering a more efficient Healthy School Lunches Programme, saving taxpayers approximately $107 million a year compared to how Labour funded it, by embracing innovation and commercial expertise. “We are delivering on our commitment to treat taxpayers’ money ...
New research on the impacts of extreme weather on coastal marine habitats in Tairāwhiti and Hawke’s Bay will help fishery managers plan for and respond to any future events, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. A report released today on research by Niwa on behalf of Fisheries New Zealand ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters will lead a broad political delegation on a five-stop Pacific tour next week to strengthen New Zealand’s engagement with the region. The delegation will visit Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, and Tuvalu. “New Zealand has deep and ...
There has been a material decline in gas production according to figures released today by the Gas Industry Co. Figures released by the Gas Industry Company show that there was a 12.5 per cent reduction in gas production during 2023, and a 27.8 per cent reduction in gas production in the ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins tonight announced the recipients of the Minister of Defence Awards of Excellence for Industry, saying they all contribute to New Zealanders’ security and wellbeing. “Congratulations to this year’s recipients, whose innovative products and services play a critical role in the delivery of New Zealand’s defence capabilities, ...
Welcome to you all - it is a pleasure to be here this evening.I would like to start by thanking Greg Lowe, Chair of the New Zealand Defence Industry Advisory Council, for co-hosting this reception with me. This evening is about recognising businesses from across New Zealand and overseas who in ...
It is a pleasure to be speaking to you as the Minister for Digitising Government. I would like to thank Akolade for the invitation to address this Summit, and to acknowledge the great effort you are making to grow New Zealand’s digital future. Today, we stand at the cusp of ...
New Zealand is urging both Israel and Hamas to agree to an immediate ceasefire to avoid the further humanitarian catastrophe that military action in Rafah would unleash, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The immense suffering in Gaza cannot be allowed to worsen further. Both sides have a responsibility to ...
A new online data dashboard released today as part of the Government’s school attendance action plan makes more timely daily attendance data available to the public and parents, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. The interactive dashboard will be updated once a week to show a national average of how ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced Rosemary Banks will be New Zealand’s next Ambassador to the United States of America. “Our relationship with the United States is crucial for New Zealand in strategic, security and economic terms,” Mr Peters says. “New Zealand and the United States have a ...
The Government is considering creating a new tier of minerals permitting that will make it easier for hobby miners to prospect for gold. “New Zealand was built on gold, it’s in our DNA. Our gold deposits, particularly in regions such as Otago and the West Coast have always attracted fortune-hunters. ...
Minister for Trade Todd McClay today announced that New Zealand and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will commence negotiations on a free trade agreement (FTA). Minister McClay met with his counterpart UAE Trade Minister Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi in Dubai, where they announced the launch of negotiations on a ...
New Zealand Sign Language Week is an excellent opportunity for all Kiwis to give the language a go, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. This week (May 6 to 12) is New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) Week. The theme is “an Aotearoa where anyone can sign anywhere” and aims to ...
Six tertiary students have been selected to work on NASA projects in the US through a New Zealand Space Scholarship, Space Minister Judith Collins announced today. “This is a fantastic opportunity for these talented students. They will undertake internships at NASA’s Ames Research Center or its Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), where ...
New Zealanders will be safer because of a $1.9 billion investment in more frontline Corrections officers, more support for offenders to turn away from crime, and more prison capacity, Corrections Minister Mark Mitchell says. “Our Government said we would crack down on crime. We promised to restore law and order, ...
The OECD’s latest report on New Zealand reinforces the importance of bringing Government spending under control, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The OECD conducts country surveys every two years to review its members’ economic policies. The 2024 New Zealand survey was presented in Wellington today by OECD Chief Economist Clare Lombardelli. ...
The Government has delivered on its election promise to provide a financially sustainable model for Auckland under its Local Water Done Well plan. The plan, which has been unanimously endorsed by Auckland Council’s Governing Body, will see Aucklanders avoid the previously projected 25.8 per cent water rates increases while retaining ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters discussed the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and enhanced cooperation in the Pacific with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock during her first official visit to New Zealand today. "New Zealand and Germany enjoy shared interests and values, including the rule of law, democracy, respect for the international system ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop today released his decision on four recommendations referred to him by the Western Bay of Plenty District Council, opening the door to housing growth in the area. The Council’s Plan Change 92 allows more homes to be built in existing and new ...
Thank you, John McKinnon and the New Zealand China Council for the invitation to speak to you today. Thank you too, all members of the China Council. Your effort has played an essential role in helping to build, shape, and grow a balanced and resilient relationship between our two ...
The Government is modernising insurance law to better protect Kiwis and provide security in the event of a disaster, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly announced today. “These reforms are long overdue. New Zealand’s insurance law is complicated and dated, some of which is more than 100 years old. ...
The coalition Government is refreshing its approach to supporting pay equity claims as time-limited funding for the Pay Equity Taskforce comes to an end, Public Service Minister Nicola Willis says. “Three years ago, the then-government introduced changes to the Equal Pay Act to support pay equity bargaining. The changes were ...
Structured literacy will change the way New Zealand children learn to read - improving achievement and setting students up for success, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “Being able to read and write is a fundamental life skill that too many young people are missing out on. Recent data shows that ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay says Canada’s refusal to comply in full with a CPTPP trade dispute ruling in our favour over dairy trade is cynical and New Zealand has no intention of backing down. Mr McClay said he has asked for urgent legal advice in respect of our ‘next move’ ...
The rights of our children and young people will be enhanced by changes the coalition Government will make to strengthen oversight of the Oranga Tamariki system, including restoring a single Children’s Commissioner. “The Government is committed to delivering better public services that care for our most at-risk young people and ...
The Government is making it easier for minor changes to be made to a building consent so building a home is easier and more affordable, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on making it easier and cheaper to build homes so we can ...
New Zealand lost a true legend when internationally renowned disability advocate Sir Robert Martin (KNZM) passed away at his home in Whanganui last night, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. “Our Government’s thoughts are with his wife Lynda, family and community, those he has worked with, the disability community in ...
Good evening – Before discussing the challenges and opportunities facing New Zealand’s foreign policy, we’d like to first acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. You have contributed to debates about New Zealand foreign policy over a long period of time, and we thank you for hosting us. ...
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The Royal New Zealand Ballet is performing Swan Lake around the country. What kind of dream does the ballet sell?Before going to see the Royal New Zealand Ballet perform Swan Lake, I had about as much familiarity with the plot of this ballet as could be expected from having ...
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I have to wonder what govt has to do when NZ hears today that despite what some people claimed was "impossible" only 6 farms out of 230 farms are left with Mycco Bovis saving $1.3 billion in exports Many in the affected sector still seems to have issues with the far-sighted approach by govt surely working with them has been proven to be the best was y forward for them & NZ
Once again, Jacinda and c/o listening to the science. Great results we are having from that. Expecting the various parties to be thankful? Well some are, but some … just the recalcitrant few diehards want to "Do it their way". Farmers are now leaning on their own to use NAIT . National Animal Identification Tracing.
The RNZ vox pops about Collins yesterday said "we will always vote National here, we're farmers", & that is that. Well I thank Labour on their behalf.
Guardian provides an insight into China's concentration camps: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jul/21/the-perfect-uighur-outgoing-and-hard-working-but-still-not-safe-from-chinas-camps
Thanks for that info Dennis F. I had heard that something bad was going on but hadn't seen details. If enough people wrote to the Chinese asking why they don't let the people live freely as long as they are living good lives, would sheer weight of numbers have an affect I wonder? Like Amnesty International have done for years. It is so sad that people everywhere are so inventive in ways of being inhuman, and the leaders decide inhumanity is the most efficient way to treat other humans – but not themselves.
No, almost zero chance of any effect. The problem is a collective mentality combined with hegemony. Imperialism being recycled via communist ideology. Conformity is required by the system.
In ecosystems, biodiversity normally prevails and stabilises the system via mutual interactions. Hierarchies in nature are bounded by that holistic context. Our problem is the UN fails at such operational holism, allowing the monoculture in China to suppress biodiversity.
The problem is that the UN and the international law it represents is voluntary and so some countries simply both even if they've signed on to being part of the UN.
But can you imagine the outcry from the US/China/Russia and permanent members of the UNSC if the UN was made mandatory and with the teeth to enforce international law? They all have, in one way or another, been breaking international law for decades.
This shit has been on liveleak and other sites (reddit) for years. Not sure why it's coming to light now when no one cared before.
Because China is now regarded as bad whereas before they were seen as the engine of the world by world leaders.
It isn't that China has changed but that the view of the world leaders has.
Possible progress on treating COVID and reducing the number of moderate cases that become severe or deadly cases:
https://www.sciencealert.com/promising-new-covid-19-treatment-slashed-death-risk-in-randomised-trial
It's a press release from the company developing the treatment, not a peer-reviewed independent report, and the sample size of 100 is small. But the claimed improvements in outcomes are much stronger than any other treatments, and delivering it as an aerosol (more or less like an inhaler) sounds simple and easy. So it's definitely one to watch.
This is the sort of break through which is required. Also the Oxford vaccine is looking the most promising.
The UK appears to be the front runner in treatment and a vaccine.
That is what I'd expect to see first out of gate – a series of treatments to alleviate severe symptoms and death rates.
The front-leading vaccines are currently completing phase II testing. That is small trials testing that the vaccine candidate isn't immediately toxic, and that there are signs it may have something of the desired effect. Now they have the slower statistical study on efficiacy.
American CDC says it more concisely..
As Treetop says, the Oxford crowd appear to be getting particularly close.
The Phase III issue I'm most curious about is whether anybody jumps into the ethical minefield of doing challenge trials to accelerate finding out how effective their vaccine actually is. Then what the reaction might be if a group somewhere say in China or Russia 'proved' their vaccine was safe and effective using -ahem- involuntary challenge trials.
https://sptnkne.ws/DcUX
Russias on the verge
Here's a really good overview of rare-earth elements – what they are, what they do, where they are found, recycling challenges …
https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/07/are-we-ready-to-recycle-the-rare-earths-behind-an-energy-revolution/
Well,well,well. Judith has been sent info from somebody accusing a Labour MP of SOMETHING, possibly INNAPROPRIATE She had passed info to Jacinda for her deal with. Cough. And so it begins.
That was inevitable. Tit for tat response.
Note: Judith Collins puts it out into the public arena. Jacinda Ardern did not do that.
Who is the leader with integrity?
Spot on, Anne.
Collins trying to have her cake and eat it too.
Copying the Prime Ministers actions… but couldn't help herself and has to Blah Blah during her media rounds.
Feels very familiar, seemingly arms distance from the story enough but up to her eyeballs in it.
Dirty Politics 2.0.
Yep. Collins clearly dealing in Dirty Politics here. Fed the line to Garner who obliged for the sake of his ratings.
Despite her protestations she would not get involved, she already is in the thick of it.
Watch the whole interview here. – https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2020/07/nz-election-2020-judith-collins-claims-to-have-received-tip-off-about-labour-minister-passed-to-prime-minister.html
The key exchange happens at around the seven minute mark., The question about Labour comes completely out of the blue. There was no reason to ask it unless he knew the answer would be "yes". Collins is not surprised or phased by the question at all and doesn't miss a beat before answering. Garner does not seem surprised or phased at all by the answer given. If you believe Garner wasn't told to ask that question, I have a bridge to sell you.
The rest of the media need to be asking serious questions of Mr Garner.
Hopefully he'll be looking for work soon.
Watched it. Ugh. She couldn’t even brush the hair out of her eyes.
Garner says “ministers” first, then corrects himself to include MPs…
The whole thing was staged, Collins was humiliated yesterday in Parliament by Adern, the whole house erupted into laughter, Collins was not impressed
Payback time from Collins.
We'll have to wait and see if there's any substance to her claims
She's in a very risky situation if it's found to be baseless.
Is she just digging a deeper hole for herself and the party..
She was going to be heavily attacked today about the 'mental health' line both Falloon and herself peddled on Monday. It was a clear attempt to deceive in order to minimise the damage, but the media didn't agree and were to continue to question her on it.
So, time for the dead cat.
Collin's says "I am not going to be indulging in any attacks on Labour on these things.” The hyppcrisy beggars belief. If the media doesn't pick up on this there's something extremely wrong.
How did the Falloon story reach the media?
Judith Collins told the media on the Monday (after receiving the info. from the PM’s Office the previous Friday) by way of announcing Falloon was stepping down at the election for mental health reasons. It subsequently changed when she learned the extent of his behaviour and he was effectively sacked.
But I think you know this EiE so why ask?
Thanks Anne
A case of pay back double?
Depends what the allegation is???
There are some people who have mental consequences because of how serious historical complaints were not cleared up when a person took their complaint to their then MP, the then police minister, the then PM or the then minister of justice and the then police commissioners were incompetent.
This is not to say that the issue is serious and needs to be dealt with.
What is obvious, is the tactics have changed. Instead of tipping off a bottom feeding blogger, they are peddling dirt to a sympathetic, cash strapped TV show.
AND, Collins had to defend the observation she is putting it in the public domain. 'I was asked a question and I answered it…' type shenanagins.
This is the sort of break through which is required. Also the Oxford vaccine is looking the most promising.
The UK appears to be the front runner in treatment and a vaccine.
Please remove 5.2.1.1 as a duplicate. Error at my end which I do not fully understand.
What for the National Party recalibrating the campaign agenda & moving on from Falloon ?
And you’re suggesting the best way for the Nats to sooth voter concerns about Falloon’s behaviour is via the upcoming Oxford vaccine ?
I would like to know the date of the alleged incident and what action was taken by the complainant and if no action taken then there could be a reason e.g. loss of income, protecting family, a he said I said situation.
I would not hesitate in going to the PM or the current police commissioner with a current issue as I think they are honest and serving the public is a core belief.
Is this a credible allegation of “something or another”? If it is not a genuine case, Labour should not turn the other cheek yet again. The Boag, Woodhouse and ‘whites only’ Walker Covid playbook, surely has got the point through to Labour HQ–the Nats ARE out to get you!
The NZ National dirty tricks dept. never sleeps–it will be operating on twin turbo boost with nitrous until it exhumes or manufactures something that will stick.
Mrs Collins has been humiliated with a backbencher’s behaviour so egregious, and proven, as to be undeniable–she will not let that go–she will attempt to “pay back double” with lashings of caustic interest.
Nigel Latta needs to do a special episode of Beyond the Darklands dediciated to Collins. Her many disorders makes her closer to evil than anyone Latta's studied.
I’ve heard they caught a homeless Labour MP man staying in a quarantine hotel for a holiday! Woodhouse told me.
Here's the link.
Collins has failed already by telling the media
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12349898
If Stuff reports this I'll withdrawl my funding, I don't want my hard earned going towards DP.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/300062623/judith-collins-claims-to-have-tipoff-about-labour-minister
IFL Thats where I read the first story, and then checked other news outlets and all the RW media are spreading it like the Corona virus
Yeah stuff 'em, I work too hard to pay for that crap.
If Collins is really clever, she will have something that is substantiated, but will have no intention of letting the Prime Minister know what it is. Note that she has simply arranged to have some unspecified third party get in touch with Ardern. As to whether that person has any intention of doing so, or whether they even exist… who knows? At some point closer to the election, Collins could arrange to have some proxy release the information, and then say, "Remember when I said weeks ago that someone got hold of me with some information on a Labour minister? This was it, and look, the Prime Minister knew way back then, and she's done nothing about it." When the inevitable objection is raised that Ardern is only proven to have heard that there was something, but not what or in connection with whom, Collins could rejoin, "Well, I told her what I knew, if she's so incompetent or her ministers so untrustworthy that she can't get to the bottom of it, that's nothing to do with me."
If Collins were to pull that off convincingly, and the media were to play along, it wouldn't even really matter how serious the allegation was. The smear on the Prime Minister would stick. Of course, if Collins were too transparent about it, she would end up looking like as much of a dickhead as Boag, Falloon or Walker.
I have noticed Collins reactions to this whole saga are swinging back and forth. First it was a mental health issue and we must be respectful and back off. Then it was, he is a liar and I'm angry. Today, it's back to being a health issue and we were extremely concerned for his well being.
The inconsistency is shameful. What is being manipulated is shameful.
Collins was asked a direct question? Could she have confirmed in a better way without raising further questions? Hard to see how.
Or should she have lied?
If it was later revealed she had been informed and lied about it publicly she would probably have been damned as well.
Of course she could. She could have said that, as an electorate MP and National front-bencher, she is in constant receipt of various allegations, but that it is important always to do due diligence on the credibility of any claim before making it public in any way, and that it's seldom her place to put anything in the public domain unless it is directly related to government business or concerns members of her own caucus.
As above, my strong suspicion is that Garner was tipped off in advance about what the answer would be if he happened to ask that question. Stripped of any background context, it was a bizarre question to ask in circumstances where Collins has been leader of the National Party for less than a week. She would have been rightly left fuming if she had been asked that question out of the blue and had to answer "no".
If being an apologist for unacceptable practices is your thing, why not work for tobacco companies?
There are 100 ways for a seasoned MP to answer that question and shut down the line of enquiry. E.g., the time when Collins was being grilled about her time in China, trips to airports, sly visits etc
That is, IF the seasoned politician wanted to shut it down….
I'm not apologising for anyone, and I have always been staunchly against tobacco use (both my parents died of smoking related illnesses, emphysema and cancer and both deterred me from smoking) so that's an offensive comment.
There are a hundred ways for determined journalists to persist and to expose any half answers.
It's unsubstantiated speculation that Collins set up the question.
It looks like we may find out more at 11 am.
Her bloody comment has so far been unsubstantiated! Hence the bouncing cat.
Any reasonably intelligent person can see that was a set up.
You are being wilfully blind to body-language and context here.
I haven't seen body language, only verbal and printed reports.
I'm aware that body language perceptions in politics can be affected by partisan bias.
Perhaps you'd better take a look at it. Impartially if at all possible.
I took the time to.
It would only be an offensive comment if gsays knew the background of your parents but he/she didn't know so it is not offensive.
Indeed. Pete George doesn't have the right to be offended by that one.
I think I have a right to be offended by whatever offends me.
Having a right and being right are still two completely different things, Pete. You’re a tad unreasonable.
With rights, come responsibilities.
Perhaps, if you are truly offended by my comments, maybe you have a responsibility to not participate in discussions playing devil's advocate.
Neocons for Biden! The Canary muses upon Rupert Murdoch's heir donating to the Dem. https://www.thecanary.co/us/us-analysis/2020/07/18/murdoch-family-mobilizes-behind-joe-biden-and-its-not-the-first-time-pseudo-progressives-have-courted-the-corporate-media/
But guys, the reason leftist govts in western countries don't do media reform is because they want to defend the establishment against progress. If that isn't obvious to you by now, you really are a bunch of slow learners.
Ruling and exploiting society is only any good if the society remains functional to some extent. Trump is taking it too far even for the likes of our capitalist rulers.
Collins publicly passing on allegations. Fuck she is toxic and undeniably delving into Dirty Politics. Isn’t Brownlee head of their newSecret Service disinformation division?
The PM did the right thing over the Falloon issue, ignoring it was not an option.
I have it from an impeccable source that Jucov’s informant is the homeless man.
So now I can send the leader of the opposition a letter alleging something about the behaviour of one of her MPs, tell leaders of other parties I've done that, let one media person know and it's all on?
In best Judith tone: "Just saying."
Yeah I get that there will be some shit thrown back at Labour, and of course Collins is going to publicise it being the dick she is. However there is a principle of not being there in the first place. – ie keeping above the level and genuine integrity. Hopefully it is not substantiated but I will be seriously pissed off with any Labour MP who thinks they are so entitled that they think they can get away with stuff. FFS they have one job – to keep their noses clean and carry on doing the good work they are doing and support their awesome leader and not give her any frigging shit to deal with
What 'stuff' is this Labour Minister supposed to have gotten away with?
That is true. There can be and will be MP's on the lefter side of politics who do the wrong thing – and let progressives everywhere down in the process. As individuals we can control that and reduce our exposure to dirty dealings of the right.
Lenore I suggest that you don't emote about something before you know it has happened, and get full details of it. There is plenty to be concerned about that is definitely happening. Try reading Dennis Frank's comment on the Chinese treatment of Uighurs at 2 above. Now that breaks my heart and should also concern you. So why not think about the real problems in the world. Labour being called out for some possibly slanderous infraction should not be a reason to create negativity about the Party which is doing well in trying times.
Did National leak the allegation to Mediaworks ?
They certainly did.
This is a dead cat on the table moment no doubt organised by Crosby Textor and Topham Guerin to take away the blow-torch which was on Judith for the deceitful way she treated the Andrew Fallon mental health claim.
Yesterday even Duplicity-Allen didn’t buy that story.
This is National Party Dirty Politics continuing apace. It never really stopped, did it.
I would say it was cooked up by some Nat lackeys who arranged for someone to report something directly to Collins who would have been left out of the loop to enable plausible deniability when the shit hit the fan.
She was very sure of her answer. Almost scripted. She's good, but not that good.
No proof they did obviously, but the proposition that Garner decided to ask that question apropros of nothing off his own bat is very hard to believe.
Druncan needs to be asked directly.
On second thoughts it would be better if thousands contacted all party leaders with accusations.
I was contacted recently about an MP and his attitude. I can't say anything more about who it was or the behaviour……….
Walks out the door…….
I'm picking Chris Bish or M Woodhouse to be secret informer. Followed by Homeless Man, who seems to be quite sneaky. If none of the above has to be a Young Nat.
Precisely. Whoever it is would've been waiting for Collins' call: "I'm ready for that tip-off now, cheers, JC."
Oh yes lets do that.
Dear Judith
My mother's brother's cousin's uncle's mechanic told of some stuff about a Labour MP
You want?
Lotsa love etc
p.s.
What're you paying?
There’s a chronic leaker in Dunedin. Apparently, somebody tipped off Judith Collins that David Clark allegedly has been spotted riding a bike in his backyard wearing lycra.
That's stretching it.
Excellent!
Can't be Mamil – he's now based in Nelson.
Episode 4: ‘We are black … we are human beings’
https://www.newsroom.co.nz/we-are-blackwe-are-human-beings
"I have complete faith in my officials"
"I have complete faith in my officials"
"I have complete faith in my officials" They come across as really nice people.
Oh shit, maybe I shouldn't have unquestioning faith in my officials:
"That message should have been brought to my attention. It wasn't. That does not meet my expectations and I've made that clear." ….. not withstanding previous examples such as all those "scummy" people; demographic spreadsheets; "we have enough Labour Inspectors"; under-resourcing; "Kaiser Smol"; curvy screens; failed restructures, etc., etc…….
Never mind! Once again, Jacinda to the rescue:
"What I can assure anyone potentially involved in a case is regardless of whether they are present or not we have a track record of pursuing cases where there is exploitation of workers regardless of whether or not they are able to testify in court."
(That's of course if we decide to pursue a case in the first place)
Great to hear all your thoughts about this. Just listening to RNZ feedback and people saying that this is dirty politics and the difference about Jacinda not going public and Judith mentioning it in the media.
The PM is calling an unexpected news conference re the allegation about a Labour Minister. How do we know where/when that will be?
How come this scuttlebutt becomes top priority? We have plenty of other things concerning us. The country can't be put on hold every time someone is accused of an obscene gesture, or says something inappropriate.
If the allegation turns out to be nothing Collins will be really in the pooh.
If it is serious then it will be a distraction away from Collins. The PM calling a conference means she will front it and deal with it straight away.
In a four-minute interview, Hosking discusses `working with NZF' with Greens co-leader: https://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/video.cfm?c_id=280&gal_cid=280&gallery_id=222293
James identifies their tactic of `ankle-tapping'. But if you have a political party that was designed as reactionary, why wouldn't they default to reacting? Being pro-active in signalling their response at the start of policy development is ideal, and I see James as coming from that position, but I recall checking out the NZF website a long time ago and not encountering any policy. Conservatives just defend the status quo!
TV, radio or other?
Kathryn said that they will broadcast it on RNZ. May be on TV as well?
Channel 50 is my pick as it is the RNZ channel.
If its a press conference it will include all of them.
On Farrar's blog on Sunday he was suppressing a few posts and later posters & from the gleeful tone of the tiny bits that were left it did not seem to be about the Falloon upheaval.
Sounded more like an unsubstantiated 'scandal'/dirt or what qualifies as dirt in Nats' eyes, to do with Labour. Mind you with them it is a bit of shock horror still to have an PM who was pregnant and gave birth while still being PM.
Hmmmm. So my reading between the lines Farrar's concern on Sunday was about Labour and not Nat upheaval.
All sides need to get together with their leaders and say is there anything you need to let us know.
This is distracting from the release and discussion of policies.
Barry Soper just said on ZB that he understands the minister is iain lees galloway
Looking forward to 11am
Do you need a bib, James?
Annnnnd he’s gone.
Bye bye iain
as reported by one news on Twitter.
Rapidly cauterized, that.
Yep, he passed his used-by date around 18 months ago. A disaster just waiting to happen. Will be missed about as much as that other incompetent Clark.
Just leaves Twyford the remaining dead wood to be cleared out.
So Barry Soper is a Judith Collins gnome. Thanks for that.
http://thehandmirror.blogspot.com/2014/08/national-party-alleged-rape-culture.html
What was Falloon doing in 2014? How many of those young nats of 2014 are now in parliament? If they got away with that behaviour then, they must surely believe they can do it now.
This is an old comment but has anything really changed? When national mps try to tell me that Falloon’s behaviour is not their party’s values or mps’ values or their favoured bloggers’ values, they are spinning.
I must read Dirty Politics again – renew my understanding of something I hoped might not be happening in 2020.
Judith Collins has not changed her attack culture. Good to see that proved. New Zealanders need to see it anew. Nat acquaintances now saying they forgot her history; I remind them. And now, so is Judith Collins.
Jacinda appears to be acting quickly. That is good. If the "crime" is serious then he will not stand at the next election. Wonder if these behaviours have always been in Parliament but out of sight?
There has been "speculation" for a while. Rumours both true and false
JA has handled this well. extremely well
There are further questions of course …… such as how the matter has been handled with "the agency" itself, and whether or not the incident has had any effect on the way they operate 'ethically'.
Episode 5 ………
Jacinda did a brilliant job. May be we should question whether men should be in politics at all, they do let their hormones run away with them. I do worry when I get on a plane with a male pilot – will they be ok? Men have historically had a great difficulty dealing with complexity and I know we are all for equal rights, but scientific studies do show… 🙂
Lenore, ha! & the PM has set the bar very high…
He he I've wondered that myself. Plus should they pay higher tax to offset the costs of police, corrections, justice which are consumed pretty much by males?
Not only should there be a cabinet manual, but probably a cabinet crib sheet. It could include various 'demographic profiles' like
1. If you are a male who is possibly going through your mid-life crisis ………..
Various DOs and DONT's like
– get a prostitute and pay well (not on the taxpayer), or if you don't fit the 'straight' profile, then go to the Tory Street Temple (because what plays in Vegas, stays in Vegas – unless there's a fire alarm, in which case all bets are off)
– Never get a taxi with your bit of fluff, and if you do need transport, better a friend or even an UBER or OLA because chances are it'll all be kept within the community, even though you have been a party to allowing most of them to be ripped off.
– etc.
2. If you are a male who has campaigned on the importance of "the family"……..
-etc.
I'm not sure I'm an expert though. I seem to be the only person I know that wasn't "shocked" and horrified at Todd Muller's resignation (after having witnessed his managerial brilliance) in the Bay of Plentyness.
The senior ranks of the Public Service of course would need something similar.
It generally takes two to tango!
At this rate the male politician will become an extinct species. Then, they'll be demanding a male quota…
You're saying that like it's a bad thing.
Collins did not manage her first as Leader in Question very well yesterday.
Today she will try to embarrass Jacinda with this question:
Sounds like a Yes to me.
JC , like a jack-in-the-box, will run to the media again with a new thought tomorrow, pose with her flirty "finger guns" and announce a new ' tough on crime' policy….. the stoning of adulterers
"
"People had become so “casual” about their relationship with cars and vans they had forgotten it was one and a half tonne of unforgiving steel.
“It can mash you like a bug instantly."
Don't try to stop your car's progress with your puny human strength!
https://www.stuff.co.nz/motoring/news/122209011/death-of-woman-hit-by-her-own-van-not-as-uncommon-an-accident-as-you-might-think-expert-says
am now mentally reviewing all those times as a young woman push starting a car with the drivers door open and jumping in one the car started rolling.
lol, i had a mini..
Or pushing one car with another with a 4×2 between them.
Shudder
Did Winston drop a bomb in the house today when, under parliamentary privilege, he named the source of the leak of his superannuation mistake?
He certainly got up the noses of both Seymour and Bishop!
https://twitter.com/RachelMortonNZ/status/1285791307743424512
Peters doing dirty under parliamentary privilege?
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12350174
I'll bet it is true but Peters might have got some of the detail wrong and they're using it to deny it is true.
No wonder Tova baby seems to be getting so much insider info.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12350174
$317k double or nothing.
As I understand the legal process he may struggle to use new information on an appeal. Especially as here he seems to be claiming that someone other than the five people he took to court were guilty – that effectively would confirm he got his original case wrong.
He could take Morton and Seymour and Watkins and Farrar to court in a separate case perhaps. but I think all Peters is targeting at the moment is the election.
Dirty deeds in desperate times.
Labour should rule out doing anything with him.
If the appeal is part of the election campaign it could be the most expensive after National’s ‘Lose Yourself’ one. How
stupidnaive is WP when it comes to legal affairs, in your opinion?I don't know in general, but he seems to have really botched his legal action against Bennett, Tolley, Hughes, Boyle and the Ministry of Social Development.
Even if he somehow manages to successfully appeal the $320k costs he can't recover what it has cost him directly.
He has admitted he had the wrong people in court.
And I'm sure he can't substitute five defendants for another however many people he claims were actually guilty in an appeal. If he proves it was someone else it proves his original court action was flawed.
He will be able to argue that the level of costs is overstated, and that ultimately the MSD was responsible for the information being leaked due to their negligence in providing the information outside of the allowed usage. Basically the MSD should pay much of the costs for the consequences of their actions as a legal entity. Offhand I think that he has a far better case against the costs than he had in trying to identify the perpetrator of the leak.
I suspect that there are quite a lot of grounds to argue on. Especially as this is a civil rather than a criminal case and one that has a high public interest component. I don’t know about you, but if I had someone leaking any private information about me from the MSD of IRD or MOH or anywhere, then I’d start by considering how to abolish that part of the public service and making everyone there unemployable – then I’d work down to how I could run the vendetta to get close to that objective.
There is essentially no difference between this and Hager winning a case against the banks for passing out information to the police without going through the mandated procedures like getting a production order from the court.
I think that Peters was remarkably restrained.
Yes got it in one.
MSD has played a large part in this whole business.
Graeme Edgeler (an actual lawyer):
He addresses another issue:
You know how expensive court cases can be when someone pursues an agenda with an absence of adequate evidence.
Peters may have also been using the cost of litigation as a way of punishing those he thought responsible.
There is another way he could have tried to fix the no surprises problem.
That would be for the good of the country, but Peters seems more intent on his own good regardless of the costs to the country.
Unlikely, as far as I am aware all of the parties apart from Peters were lawyer-ed up using the taxpayer as the funding agency. It would appear that the only person at risk of financial damage was Peters. Which makes the premise of your argument look ridiculous.
https://www.newsroom.co.nz/peters-must-pay-up-in-privacy-case
The point is that the disclosure of the private information appears to have only had one source – it was disclosed from the MSD. Almost certainly leaked through ministerial disclosures one way or another.
That means that the MSD violated its commitments. I'm pretty sure that the crown isn't allowed to do that for any reason that isn't part of legislation – which none of this appears to have been. Needless to say there has been no-one held accountable for this breach. Indeed, so far the courts appear to have been giving a license for public servants to disclose whatever information that they wish, without being given explicit permission to do so – provided there is a minister in the route.
I'm pretty sure that the supreme court will have some issues with that. I know that I damn well do.
More like 5% or nothing.
Seymour’s odds were always better: 0.50% and one Seat in Parliament.
Pete – do you reckon Slater supplied Collins with the dirt on Galloway?
I'd be very surprised given that Collins referred the supplier of information to Ardern.
And I'd be very surprised if Collins does anything that would directly connect her to Slater now. That would be political madness, and I think she's smart enough to know that. As far as I have observed she's kept a distance at least on political matters since 2014.
By the sound of things the information about ILG could have come from any number of sources, given how it seems to have been common knowledge in journalist circles for months.
I've seen it mentioned but can't remember where.
Do you think that Ardern nor her office knew nothing about it until alerted by Collins?
"I'd be very surprised given that Collins referred the supplier of information to Ardern."
Don't you think this is just part of Collins trying to look uninvolved and completely blameless? How do you explain Garner's patsy question? How can you "observe" whether Collins and Slater haven't been communicating since 2014? There's no way they wouldn't be communicating and every reason for them to hide that commincation. These people aren't the type to be scared off by Hager's book. Regardless of anything they will continue to do exactly what they do, and the only thing that changes are their methods of attempting to remain undetected and to look squeaky clean.
I think Slater would easily have masked his involvement in this issue; after all, he's well-practiced in deception, as you know. Collins and Slater are besties; their relationship won't have ended because the muggles got a sniff of it, Pete! Or do you reckon they're playing fair now
I wouldn't trust Slater on anything.
I'd be very surprised if Collins would risk doing anything that could be linked back to Slater.
There seems to have been quite a few possible sources of the information.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12350209
Do you think that Ardern only found out about it when advised by Collins this week? Surely senior MPs would keep her informed of possible problems in the ranks.
It now appears that Collins has played politics timed for effect, but Ardern may also be guilty of that.
Pete
Please tell me which iconic PM came in to Government and instantly dismissed all MPs in their party who were known to be having illicit sex.
Your attempt at equating Jacinda and Judith fails. Jacinda has obviously tried to do the minimum, and refrain. Judith appears to have introduced old material at the time she wanted, and used a patsy question from Garner to publicise the thing in a way that Jacinda did not. Judith could have told Garner that it was not appropriate for her to give any details, which I believe Jacinda would have done. But Judith did not.
Big difference, Pete.
It may well be that Garner was primed, that's very common in politics. It happened to me in one of my first political interviews (a lame attempt to embarrass me on local TV by Te Reo Putake as it happens).
But it really didn't make any difference. Ardern says she had already dumped ILG the day before. So why had she not advised the public? Organising PR and timing to suit her? She seems to have been playing the public as much as Collins.
Lame? It worked a treat! You looked like a possum in the headlights, Pete.
However, as I believe I said at the time, you at least had the courage of your convictions and put yourself forward for election. That's very much to your credit.
What about this one then … needs to be addressed by Winston Peters in his capacity as Antarctica minister.
… https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/300062674/winston-peters-friends-went-to-antarctica-on-taxpayer
Peters giving wealthy friends the opportunity to visit Antarctica courtesy of us, the taxpayer!
https://i.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/122211917/winston-peters-i-was-trying-to-shake-antarctica-nz-from-its-torpor
I trust Winston Peters’ friends donated those $50 million Antarctica NZ was looking for.
Or how much did they actually donate?
Didn't John Key steal a pebble from Antarctica and pretend he had forgotten he picked it up? Like the rest of his past and current stable of 'privileged' mps and pretend bipartisan supporters, no morals, no integrity.
Kia Ora
Newshub.
That's is sad sharks becoming extinct around the world.
Those construction companies will have to change their testing system so they are not biased against weed.
The progressive home ownership fund looks great.
Ka kite Ano
Kia Ora
Te Ao Maori Marama.
That's a good looking trophy.
Teno pai to the fund for mahi in rual comunitys.
I think building dams to store water for the dry season is good but not for irrigating 24 7.
Ka kite Ano
Kia Ora.
Newshub.
That's is good $25 million for the regions to help the health system cope with PEE.
That's is cool mammoth bones find.
Its great to see rear flax being preserved weavers make Awsome art with flax.
Awsome looking Waka.
Ka kite Ano
https://youtu.be/qQfetkoGrpU
Kia Ora
Newshub.
Cool $30 million study for Pumped hydro electricity storage. That's the way of the future Green energy.
Ka kite Ano.
Kia Ora
Te Ao Maori Marama.
That's is cool Waikato Tainui looking into providing a better health service for their people in their rohi.
Good to see wananga teaching people about the Maori God's and traditions in their district.
Ka kite Ano.