Hi, Rosie. I was in a large airport, which has a central staircase leading up to to the viewing area and the Koru lounge, which is where I presume he and his entourage were going. At the top of the stairs, he turned and looked out at the arrival hall, presumably hoping to see crowds of adoring fans looking and pointing at the Dear Leader. I’m not sure if he saw my friendly one fingered salute, but the nice thing was that everyone else seemed to be ignoring him.
It was a really cringeworthy moment in some ways and for me, emblematic of how out of touch he’s getting. OK, it’s only a small thing, and I don’t want to over egg it. It certainly wasn’t Nixon getting into the chopper on the White House lawn, but it was kinda sad in its own right.
It’s also nice that we’re small enough a country that you can bump into the PM. I also met Muldoon in cafes in Welly a couple of times. He didn’t need four security guards to make him feel safe. If I’d given him any grief, I’m sure he’d have just thumped me himself. I also once shook Don Brash’s hand, but that memory just makes me feel icky.
Muldoon used to just walk down to the beach at Hatfields, my Gran had a batch there & we would see him all the time over summer, just on his own or with his wife in his shorts, jandals & singlet. I remember once swimming & he was just having a quick dip in the waves & when I came out my grandma said “I hope you gave him a couple good kicks”, I was too young to really understand but knew everyone called him ‘piggy’.
Thanks for the story. Your observation of the PM’s loss of public acknowledgement is interesting – fits quite well with his diminishing approval rating. Remember all that booing in February? That wouldn’t have happened, even a year ago. There will come a time when people will be embarrassed that they ever took a selfie with him and put it on the fb page.
I’m sure your small and solitary act of expressing disapproval was witnessed by plenty of others, and that’s a good thing, it tells others they don’t have to take it either, quite encouraging. Good on you for being a good influence!
Re Muldoon. As a kid I witnessed his getting around the countryside in a typical NZ low key way, unhindered by body guards. I remember my National voting parents being thrilled that he sat in the row in front of us on a domestic flight in the South Island.
Sorry about your interaction with Don “my wife’s from Singapore” Brash. Hope it washed off.
The Brash meeting had a mortifying postscript, Rosie. It was during the election campaign and that night’s news led with reports on what campaigning Clark and Brash had been up to that day.
They chose to lead with Brash, and bugger me, there was I shaking his hand.
I had some serious grovelling to do to the local Labour MP when we went out door knocking that weekend and I still get grief about it to this day from other party members, who never tire of reminding me of the day I shook Don Brash’s hand.
For my part, I claim that I was putting a hex on him, which clearly worked, and therefore the 2005 election result is all down to me.
Awesome work TRP. The power of your hex was profound! Maybe you should hang around airports more often and wait for the PM to show up and shake his hand…………… 😀
Now for some time the tendency has been, climate change ignoring….
Corrupt politicians who don’t want to be openly drawn out in public on their support for the fossil fuel companies, or alternatively, otherwise good politicians too gutless to challenge the status quo, but who still don’t want to look like complete idiots by publicly denying climate change. These are the usual offenders, but they are not the only ones…
The NZ Herald gives us one of the most egregious examples yet….
This news feed from Scientific American from 24 hours ago is probably where the Herald got their story, before they mangled it. Notice the unflinching use of the words “climate change”.
Read the whole article and it’s clear that Messrs Bolton and Dell talk irrelevant, indulgent shit. Much like the stupid Michelle Boag who likes to shrewishly claim the whole thing’s down to first home buyers wanting to start off in Remuera or St Mary’s Bay.
“John Bolton, chief executive and founder of Squirrel Home Loans, and someone who benefits from ever-increasing prices said many people were on good incomes but refused to give up on the latest and flashiest possessions meeting rising basic living expenses (eg. rent and power) in order to save for their first home.
“You’ve got to be disciplined. You don’t need the $17,000 car new fangled transport options … There’s nothing wrong with a $3000 car. walking fifteen miles in the mud with cardboard soles to get to your income plateaued place of employment.
“It’s so frustrating when you see people with enough money in KiwiSaver because that is taken out of their hands before they get their profligate ways with it but their ability to save is atrocious possibly due to the fact that not only are costs rising, and incomes remaining static, Kiwisaver has just taken another cut . They’ve got heaps of consumer finance debt because there is no other way they can survive on their income and have some semblance of a balanced life. We have to tell them to pay down some of that debt before they buy a house but unless they are in the position to utilise our services, we won’t waste our time on helping with their budget. So that allows us to ignore those currently drowning in debt due to static incomes and rising costs.”
Mr Bolton said many people seemed to regard items such as Sky TV going to the doctor or dentist as required as necessities, instead of luxuries.
“I do tell people to do without Sky healthcare when it’s appropriate. When you go through people’s expenditure it’s amazing where the money goes and when people get sick or have toothache, they buy less takeaways, and sometimes stop eating altogether.
“People have to learn that borrowing for these things doesn’t give them assets. The TV Healthcare is not an asset. The sound system WOF or registration is not an asset. The new sofa Paying your bills is not an asset. (I’ve just looked up the definition of assets and I’m pretty clear on this … liabilities and operating expenses next week… however, I’ll give it a go…) They’re liabilities – because the people who bought them didn’t have the money to begin with.
What I am saying is. I have no concern with rising costs of houses because it benefits me. My nominal take increases as the amount borrowed does. I don’t care about issues such as stable housing or levelled incomes because… I don’t care. I have nothing to offer those who find themselves increasingly living a precarious financial life due to rising living costs, but will be happy to berate those who are on the cusp of getting a mortgage with me as long as they get out of their contract with Sky, and buy a used Toyota. Yes, I can see the flying pigs – but bubble, what bubble?”
I am heartily sick of the commentators who have limited perspective being given column inches in our national paper.
This article has made a good job of articulating the difference between Clinton and Sanders, which reflects something of what is happening on the left everywhere. The idea is that we are not talking about A being more left wing or right wing than B, but about continuing with things as they are or trying to bring about a paradigm shift. Articles like this are important because both the right and the BAU left like to minimise the real difference and muddy the waters around it. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/benjamin-studebaker/bernie-vs-hillary-matters-more-than-people-think_b_9209940.htm
Big Pharma Slams New Zealand Plan To Implement TPP Patent Term Extension
;U.S. and foreign brand-name drug companies are blasting New Zealand’s proposal to implement its Trans-Pacific Partnership obligation to provide patent term extensions on the grounds that it would limit the length of the extensions they could receive, saying it does not reflect the intent of the agreement and deviates from the systems other major economies have put in place.
unable to read due to paywall but suspect they are pissed that we are proposing to implement the disputed 5 year data period, whereas they believe it is 8 years plus….and them being pissed doesn’t equate to good news but rather is an indication what we have been sold is not as clear cut as they would like you to believe…itwould also make the already poor analysis even more inaccurate.
That’s how I read it too. NZ wants to legislate a loose limit whereas Big Pharma believes that the TPP (which they wrote) indicates that there should be no limit.
If the papers involved in the TPP negotiations were released as requested by Jane Kelsey, then maybe the intent of the agreement might become apparent.
I thought the intent of a FTA was to remove tariffs, not INCREASE patent or copyright periods.
Of course the the decision was welcomed by the pork industry. It also gave an opportunity to reiterate their lies about inhumane conditions sows and piglets are kept in:
“NZPork chairman Ian Carter welcomed NAWAC’s decision.
“Farmers care for their animals. We know that our specialist farrowing systems are the best way to look after the welfare of sows and piglets around the time the piglets are born and up until weaning,” he said.”
Nothing to see here, Odd that the small faction which have taken over the national party a so willing to sell us out to the corporations. Feels a little like Roger Douglas era all over again, running faster and further than anyone to prove how loyal we are to a very odd ideology.
Sometimes it feels like we’re running in the opposite direction of other countries at times. They are demanding change and we are silent.
It’s not like we have nothing to protest. Our biggest demand should be the resignation of Key on the grounds that he promoted the law change in 2011 which opened our country up to be a tax haven and for refusing to be honest about his own financial arrangements. The Icelandic people ousted their PM for a lesser moral failing.
If the opposition parties truly had this country’s best intentions at heart they would be urgently convening a meeting of Labour, Greens and New Zealand First right now, nutting out over the next couple of months some really good platform policies, renaming themselves into a new solidified one party, forget their petty oneupmanship selfishness and agree for once in their lives that this country is in the real shit – forget about who wants to be leader, have a democratic party where all the minds share their best ideas and get someone in the party to be the mouth piece – someone who can articulate what half, at least, of this country desperately need – fairness for everybody, not just the middle classes and the 1%. Michael Wood stands to mind, never have heard him not say something which wasn’t worth listening to.
Is it ever going to happen, never – too many people full of their own importance and too craven to make the hard decisions, we once used to do this and didn’t we all stand proud in our little place in the world. Now we are just shabby yes men who bow and scrape to anything which smells of money. Its pathetic how this country allows such standover tactics – allowing our land to be sold, our jobs taken over by foreigners, our natural resources plundered,bribery with funds for the flag it just goes on and on on a daily basis. What a laughing stock we must be to the world. Its soul destroying what is happening to this country.
renaming themselves into a new solidified one party
but that’s not the MMP way.
Besides, a single party requires more policy compromise from the membership, even if you could imagine the Greens trading getting their environmental policies recognised by accepting Ron Prosser’s latest ideas on immigration. But then all that would happen is the largest sub-party would exercise the most control over policy, anyway.
But I do like the idea of parties demonstrating that they can work together, not even necessarily at ithe policy level – the opposition parties have joined together to protest the shitty food at Dunedin Public Hospital since the outsourcing, that’s a good example of something that should be replicated in electorates across the country. Local issues, root-level cooperation as a demonstration that coalition negotiations can be undertaken in good faith.
Little may have “united” the factions, but that seems to have meant putting the worst on the front bench. Hardly a solution, more like solipsism or appeasement. The party still has its head up its arse and it’s not getting traction because is spokescreatures just aren’t doing the hard work of getting to know their portfolios and need to get out of their own self-imposed confines and listen to people. Instead, they seem self-entitled, shallow and desperate and haven’t done their research. Labour’s members still think of their portfolios as sinecures or tokens of status.
Negative comparisons are made with Tony Ryall and Paula Bennett. When you suffer in comparison with those two, something’s very wrong.
Kelvin Davis is noted as an exception. He’s not on the front bench, Captain Mumblefuck is.
Repeat after me: “Government in waiting, government in waiting, government in waiting…” Do you look like a government in waiting? No. Attacking personalities and cooking up scandals won’t work if you’ve got nothing of SUBSTANCE to offer as an ALTERNATIVE. DUH.
Also, re UN, Yes, Clark is an impressive politician, but Maori have a surprisingly low incidence of amnesia. Privilege is when you say “Get over it.”
ANZAC day is an occasion for extensive coverage of Gallipoli and WW1 in all media. I just listened to a good RNZ program on the popular Gallipoli exhibit in Te Papa. An ever increasing number of Kiwi youth travel to the commemorations in Turkey and many more attend the Dawn Services around the country.
There is relatively very little interest shown by these youth in other New Zealand history. The Musket Wars, The Land Wars, The Gold Rushes, the mass migrations into NZ and inside NZ are very reverent to modern NZ.
Do our youth blind themselves to a deeper and more relevant engagement with our past and with what shapes our present by focusing on events at that cove far far away?
“”. I just listened to a good RNZ program on the popular Gallipoli exhibit in Te Papa. “”
How about getting off you’re arses te papa staff and opening at 8 am in the school holidays so people have more of a chance of getting to see the Gallipoli exhibition. Opening at 10 am WTF
A possible explanation is that Gallipoli and Anzac story is incorporated into primary school syllabus. ……gold rush emphasis would be much less and the other topics haphazardly discussed.
So I’m guessing we will get another sickening anzac day, when we won’t talk about the Northland war, the Taranaki War, nor the invasion of the Waikato.
Just more filth about how losing at anzac cover made a nation. Nothing about the suppression of the anti-war movement. The curtailment of civil liberties. That the PM Massey declared war without parliament.
Jack about the Pioneer Maori Unit, and the abject racism which meant they spent the bulk of the war moving boxes.
Nothing about Archibald Baxter – A National Treasure.
Media NZ and Wellington politicos promote an Anglo centric culture. A common comment during the flag referendum was “….died for the flag”. The daily feed of royal family tripe, the daily use of London news-sources, the deference towards titles: these are all markers that ignore the varied background of the people of Aotearoa.
The gooey predictable coverage of ANZAC day is a limited way to explore what makes modern NZ.
I heard NZ had 67,000 long term/permanent immigrants in the last month of number taking(?) If that kept up we would see a doubling of the population in less than 6 years.
2009 – 2010 wasn’t that long ago, 6 years isn’t very long.
A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, May 5, 2024 thru Sat, May 11, 2024. (Unfortunate) Story of the week "Grief that stops at despair is an ending that I and many others, most notably ...
Last night the largest solar storm in decades resulted in Aurorae being seen across Aotearoa, causing many to ask why?Why was the sky pink? What was all this stuff about the power grid? Have we, as so many have wondered since the election, reached the end of days?I had a ...
We have been on the road in England, squeezing down narrow lanes, flying up the M6, loving hedgerows and villages and cathedrals, liking the 21st century less.There have been moments when it’s felt like a movie trope. The pub in Exford, lovely seventeenth century bar, almost more dogs than people, ...
There’s a solar-storm on at the moment, and since the South Island is having a day and night with clear skies, that means Aurorae. I have just got back from a midnight visit to Tunnel Beach – southwards-looking over the Sea, and without the light pollution. Quite a few others ...
Michael Bassett writes – I’m not sure that it’s much comfort to anyone to know that the post-Covid surge in violent crimes, gang activity, ram raids, random shootings, thuggery and stabbings is occurring in other countries as well as New Zealand. These days, wagging school, out-of-control welfare and ...
Oliver Hartwich writes – Cast your mind back to mid-December. A new Prime Minister had just been sworn in, the new Government started its 100-day programme, and Christmas was only days away.Amid all the haste, a report landed that would have deserved our attention.I am talking about the ...
TL;DR: An unseasonally early icy blast at the same time as some long-overdue maintenance almost caused Aotearoa-NZ’s electricity system to black out this week. That’s because a quadropoly of gentailers1 have prioritised paying dividends from their rising profits and adding debt over investing in 1.5 GigaWatts of new wind farms ...
Hi,Before we crack into today’s Webworm, I wanted to acknowledge the fact that Israel is pushing into Rafah. Over 100,000 Palestinians are now attempting to flee the one place that was deemed “safe”.Trouble is, the place they’re fleeing to is already destroyed. Total annihilation is the end goal here.“Israel is ...
‘It has been said that figures rule the world. Maybe. I am quite sure that it is figures which show us whether it is being ruled well or badly.’ GoetheI was struck at a recent conference on equity for the elderly, how many presenters implicitly relied upon Statistics New Zealand. ...
Buzz from the BeehiveReporting on defence spending late last year, RNZ said the coalition government will have to make some tough calls this term to help the force address staff shortages and ageing infrastructure. “These are huge, huge amounts of government spending. It’s a significant proportion of the government’s ...
Peter Dunne writes – I am always wary when I hear that the Controller and Auditor-General has commented on or made recommendations to the government about an issue of public policy that does not relate strictly to public expenditure. According to the legislation, the role of the Controller ...
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 ...
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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 ...
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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 ...
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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 ...
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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 ...
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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 ...
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. ...
A high-level New Zealand political delegation in Honiara today congratulated the new Government of Solomon Islands, led by Jeremiah Manele, on taking office. “We are privileged to meet the new Prime Minister and members of his Cabinet during his government’s first ten days in office,” Deputy Prime Minister and ...
New Zealand voted in favour of a resolution broadening Palestine’s participation at the United Nations General Assembly overnight, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The resolution enhances the rights of Palestine to participate in the work of the UN General Assembly while stopping short of admitting Palestine as a full ...
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. ...
Asia Pacific Report About 1000 people in Aotearoa New Zealand gathered for a two-hour rally in central Auckland today and marched down Queen Street and returned to Aotea Square to mark the Nakba three days early — and protest over Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza. They called for an immediate ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra As it looks to an election next year when holding up Labor’s female vote will be vital, Treasurer Jim Chalmers has declared Tuesday will bring “a budget for mums and middle Australia”. “The primary ...
By Repeka Nasiko in Suva “Justice has won,” says Fiji’s acting Director of Public Prosecutions John Rabuku following the sentencing of former prime minister Voreqe Bainimarama and former police commissioner Sitiveni Qiliho. Speaking to The Fiji Times, Rabuku said that while they welcomed the judgment by acting Chief Justice Salesi ...
The foreign affairs minister has landed in Solomon Islands for the first leg of his Pacific tour, and an audience with the newly elected Prime Minister. ...
PNG Post-Courier New Zealand High Commissioner Peter Zwart and PNG Defence Minister Dr Billy Joseph welcomed a C-130 Hercules to Port Moresby this week to support Papua New Guinea’s response to the March 24 earthquake and recent severe flooding. “Papua New Guinea has requested New Zealand’s assistance to transport emergency ...
Grub Street King Luxon rode through the streets Of King’s Landing, and was troubled By the sight of hungry urchins in the mud. “Who would be the best of my Lords To deal with this negative optic?” He pondered. The answer came to him instantly. “Seymour!” he said to himself. ...
“The Bill does not provide environmental protection, good quality decision making, certainty, public participation or speed. It should be withdrawn.” ...
RNZ News Television New Zealand has breached its collective agreement with the E tū union when deciding on discontinuing programmes, the Employment Relations Authority has ruled. It was announced in March that 68 staff members who work for news programmes Midday and Tonight, consumer justice programme Fair Go, current affairs ...
Asia Pacific Report Barangay New Zealand’s Rene Molina has interviewed the country’s first Filipino Green MP Francisco Hernandez who was sworn into Parliament yesterday as the party’s latest member. This is the first interview with Hernandez who replaces former Green Party co-leader James Shaw after his retirement from politics to ...
An Australian Strategic Policy Institute report says Pillar Two could raise the industry to state of the art capability - or "crush" it "under the weight of the globe's biggest player". ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Marlene Longbottom, Associate Professor, Indigenous Education & Research Centre, James Cook University ShutterstockThis article contains information on deaths in custody and the violence experienced by First Nations people in encounters with the Australian carceral system. It also contains references to ...
“Instead of following along countries that are investing in death and better ways of killing people faster, we need to invest in life and in making Aotearoa a fair, just and equitable place where everyone has what they need for a dignified life.” ...
MARIAMENO KAPA-KINGI, TPM MP FOR TAI TOKERAU This Government will not waver in its mission to exterminate Māori. CHRISTOPHER LUXON Oh well look you know I don’t think that hard-working Kiwis want to hear language like that. It’s just really unhelpful rhetoric. My Government is genuinely committed to advancing outcomes ...
The body positivity movement started with women confronting the unrealistic expectations and unrepresentative portrayals of them in media and advertising. Men weren’t part of it … their bodies hadn’t been sexualised to the same extremes and they didn’t really need it. But now that’s changed. And in a warped sort ...
The New Zealand comedy legend takes us through her life in television, including the time she hugged Elton John and the unshakeable legacy of a girl named Lyn. In 1981, Ginette McDonald stood on the stage of Auckland’s St James Theatre and directly addressed Queen Elizabeth II. It was a ...
An essay by Lily Duval from the just-released anthology Otherhood: Essays on being childless, childfree and child adjacent.I was 22 when my friend Alice gave birth in the living room of our pokey Addington flat. She laboured in the blow-up pool for hours. Garish fish swam along the inflated ...
Ella Borrie on the best books about motherhood she’s come across so far. Over the past few years I’ve been drawn to books about motherhood. I’m fascinated by the joys and horrors of becoming a parent. The question of children also feels more pressing than it used to. It’s like ...
Out of gift ideas for mum? You can’t go wrong with a bottle of toilet cleaner and a new squeegee. Emily Writes is the writer and editor of Emily Writes Weekly. This week marks five years since I published a post on The Spinoff about Mother’s Day marketing titled ‘A ...
My husband is posted overseas for 12 months and I’m armed with an expensive, newfangled vibrator. Will I miss him? The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.A few days after my husband leaves, a new sex toy arrives at the front door. Nestled ...
Jaimie Baird’s new book Here Today Gone Tomorrow is a record of four decades of graffiti and street art in Wellington, told through more than 1,200 photographs. He spoke with Joel MacManus about what inspired the book. How did you first get interested in photographing street art? I remember ...
Editor Madeleine Chapman looks back at a busy week where food of all political leanings dominated. Sometimes you’re just going about your week thinking you’ve got a good handle on what might be coming as far as news topics and then someone (usually a politician) says something so ridiculous that ...
A banner notification alerts me to the fact that I’ve received an Instagram message from @felicity.loves. She always comments on my posts. I shouldn’t have opened the message, but clicked on the notification before rationalising this. OMG! Are you in Wellys? X I debate not replying, but Instagram will inform ...
In Melbourne’s hardscrabble western suburbs where AFL – Aussie rules football – is a state religion, Callum Donaldson has been quietly grafting away, four months into an odyssey that he hopes will take him to another promised land: the NRL. It was a solid 2023 for the softly spoken 20-year-old ...
In a week of cold rain and frost, the climate in courtroom four upstairs at the Invercargill courthouse was simmering with restrained indignation. At times it felt like the famous Mexican standoff scene from Reservoir Dogs, or, as someone watching the proceedings described it, there was so much throwing of ...
Pacific Media Watch Television New Zealand Pacific correspondent Barbara Dreaver has been made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to investigative journalism and Pacific communities in a ceremony at Government House, reports 1News. She has been the Pacific correspondent for 1News since 2002, breaking many ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Tuesday’s budget will respond to the deepening public agitation over Australia’s housing shortages by pouring new money into crisis accommodation for women and children, social housing and infrastructure. A specially-convened national cabinet late Friday ticked ...
By Kaneta Naimatu in Suva Journalists in the Pacific region play an important role as the “eyes and ears on the ground” when it comes to reporting the climate crisis, says the European Union’s Pacific Ambassador Barbara Plinkert. Speaking at The University of the South Pacific (USP) on World Press ...
Aldora Itunu is back in the Black Ferns squad after a three-year absence. The last of her 24 internationals was an underwhelming loss to France (7-29) in Castres to conclude the disastrous 2021 Northern Tour. The powerhouse prop won a Rugby World Cup in 2017 and thought she was done. ...
The fight to control major transport policy and projects in Auckland has burst into the open again, with councillors rejecting Mayor Wayne Brown’s latest attempt to steer things more under his influence. Councillors from the left and right broke ranks on the mayor’s bid to control Auckland Transport more directly ...
Exhausted by the general election campaign, horrified by the twilight zone of coalition negotiations, distracted by the silly season and waiting for the honeymoon to begin, Raw Politics has been in hibernation since October. From today, we’re back. Our weekly political video show and podcast returns for ...
By Patrick Decloitre, RNZ Pacific correspondent French Pacific desk Authorities in the small town of Boulouparis have commemorated Armistice Day on May 8 with a new memorial honouring New Zealand soldiers who were stationed in New Caledonia during World War II. The ceremony took place in the township on the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sara Dehm, Senior lecturer, international migration and refugee law, University of Technology Sydney The High Court unanimously ruled today that the Australian government can keep asylum seekers in immigration detention indefinitely in cases where they do not “voluntarily” cooperate with their own ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kim Munro, Lecturer, Creative Industries and Digital Media, University of South Australia Twenty-four hours after the release of Macklemore’s pro-Palestine protest song Hind’s Hall on social media on May 7, the video had already notched up over 24 million views. In ...
Failing to anticipate the complexity of the consenting system is being cited as the the current builder's shortcomings, an Infrastructure Commission review says. ...
Failing to anticipate the complexity of the consenting system is being cited as the the current builder's shortcomings, an Infrastructure Commission review says. ...
350 Aotearoa is calling the Environment Select Committee’s decision to allow oral submissions from just 40% of individual, unique submitters who asked to speak to the committee ‘a disgraceful blight to democracy’. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James Helal, Assistant Dean (Sustainability), The University of Melbourne Dubai skylineAleksandarPasaric/Pexels Since ancient times, people have built structures that reach for the skies – from the steep spires of medieval towers to the grand domes of ancient cathedrals and mosques. Today ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Edward Musole, PhD Law Student, University of New England Girts Ragelis/ShutterstockRecent trends show Australians are increasingly buying wearables such as smartwatches and fitness trackers. These electronics track our body movements or vital signs to provide data throughout the day, with ...
Papua New Guinea experienced a significant earthquake on 24 March in East Sepik and there has also been recent flooding there and in surrounding provinces. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Yousuf Mohammed, Dermatology researcher, The University of Queensland Maridav/Shutterstock You wake up, stagger to the bathroom and gaze into the mirror. No, you’re not imagining it. You’ve developed face wrinkles overnight. They’re sleep wrinkles. Sleep wrinkles are temporary. But as your ...
The Environment Select Committee has just announced that 60 percent of individuals who asked to speak at the hearings will not be heard. This equates to almost 700 people who made individual submissions and more than 1000 more who made a form submission. ...
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 ...
A new poem by Auckland poet Eamonn Tee. High Tide at Local Maxima It is only going to get worse. The streams will be narrow and fickle. The week will bend and buckle like a pot-bellied waist. You will make it to the weekend with one ...
The New Zealand entrepreneur behind beauty business Ethique is gearing up to launch a new eco-venture. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Our thirst for a tasty bevvy is insatiable, but it comes with a hefty plastic price for the planet: 580 billion ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 James by Percival Everett (Mantle, $38) A retelling of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from ...
By Kamna Kumar in Suva Pacific Islands Forum Secretary-General Henry Puna stressed the importance of media freedom and its link to the climate and environmental crisis at the 2024 World Press Freedom Day event organised by the University of the South Pacific’s journalism programme. Under the theme “A Planet for ...
Tara Ward previews a new local TV series offering alternative visions of motherhood. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. A woman is clambering up the side of her two-story house, clinging desperately to a drainpipe. Nearby, her child is perched on the ...
Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ) is supportive of the cross-party approach to climate adaptation announced by the Minister of Climate Change today. ...
The Sustainable Business Council (SBC) and Climate Leaders Coalition (CLC) welcome today’s announcement from Government around a bipartisan inquiry into an enduring climate adaptation framework for New Zealand. ...
The Free Speech Union welcomes the decision by the Department of Internal Affairs, and Minister Brooke Van Velden, to abandon proposals to further regulate online speech. ...
Its new building in Wellington will not be nearly big enough for all its records, and it has also run out of money to build its new storage facility in Levin. ...
BusinessNZ is congratulating the Minister of Climate Change for his work in achieving cross-party consensus for a way forward on climate adaptation. ...
Recent research reveals the repeal of smokefree measures is not only bad for our health, but also the economy. The Government has repealed various smokefree measures to ensure it keeps collecting $1.2 billion a year in tobacco taxes, in order to pay for tax cuts already being delivered to ...
The club’s surprisingly good season is built on the desire to prove a random A-League YouTuber wrong… and a few other factors.“There’s no way that Wellington Phoenix play finals this year. I can’t see it happening at all.” Those are the words of Lachlan Raeside, an Australian football content ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By César Albarrán-Torres, Senior Lecturer, Department of Media and Communication, Swinburne University of Technology Apple TV+ As one of billions of bilingual individuals in the world, it disappoints me when a film or TV show with characters of a non-English-speaking background is ...
The under-utilised course is a waste of space, and with a little political will, it could be turned into something better. For the duration of her stay in Wellington, my long-suffering cousin listened to me rant about golf courses. They’re bad for the environment: water intensive and pesticide heavy. They ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Leah Ruppanner, Professor of Sociology and Founding Director of The Future of Work Lab, Podcast at MissPerceived, The University of Melbourne Shutterstock A recent report from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows US fertility rates dropped 2% in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amy Corderoy, Medical doctor and PhD candidate studying involuntary psychiatric treatment, School of Psychiatry, UNSW Sydney shop_py/Shutterstock Picture two people, both suffering from a serious mental illness requiring hospital admission. One was born in Australia, the other in Asia. Hopefully, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Treby, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, RMIT University P.j.Hickox, Shutterstock Peatlands store more carbon per square metre than any other ecosystem on Earth. These waterlogged, mossy bogs beat even dense rainforests for their ability to act as carbon reservoirs. Under the ...
Party over, oops out of time.
http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/prince-dead-at-57-20160421
purple tears today for Prince fans
great guitarist, several people I know are still raving about his Auckland shows and extra glad they attended
What a shocking start to the morning, as well as an earworm for the day.
btw, TRP, did you really give the PM the middle finger salute the other day? Did he see? Or was he staring off into the distance dreaming of Hawaii?
Hi, Rosie. I was in a large airport, which has a central staircase leading up to to the viewing area and the Koru lounge, which is where I presume he and his entourage were going. At the top of the stairs, he turned and looked out at the arrival hall, presumably hoping to see crowds of adoring fans looking and pointing at the Dear Leader. I’m not sure if he saw my friendly one fingered salute, but the nice thing was that everyone else seemed to be ignoring him.
It was a really cringeworthy moment in some ways and for me, emblematic of how out of touch he’s getting. OK, it’s only a small thing, and I don’t want to over egg it. It certainly wasn’t Nixon getting into the chopper on the White House lawn, but it was kinda sad in its own right.
It’s also nice that we’re small enough a country that you can bump into the PM. I also met Muldoon in cafes in Welly a couple of times. He didn’t need four security guards to make him feel safe. If I’d given him any grief, I’m sure he’d have just thumped me himself. I also once shook Don Brash’s hand, but that memory just makes me feel icky.
Muldoon used to just walk down to the beach at Hatfields, my Gran had a batch there & we would see him all the time over summer, just on his own or with his wife in his shorts, jandals & singlet. I remember once swimming & he was just having a quick dip in the waves & when I came out my grandma said “I hope you gave him a couple good kicks”, I was too young to really understand but knew everyone called him ‘piggy’.
Thanks for the story. Your observation of the PM’s loss of public acknowledgement is interesting – fits quite well with his diminishing approval rating. Remember all that booing in February? That wouldn’t have happened, even a year ago. There will come a time when people will be embarrassed that they ever took a selfie with him and put it on the fb page.
I’m sure your small and solitary act of expressing disapproval was witnessed by plenty of others, and that’s a good thing, it tells others they don’t have to take it either, quite encouraging. Good on you for being a good influence!
Re Muldoon. As a kid I witnessed his getting around the countryside in a typical NZ low key way, unhindered by body guards. I remember my National voting parents being thrilled that he sat in the row in front of us on a domestic flight in the South Island.
Sorry about your interaction with Don “my wife’s from Singapore” Brash. Hope it washed off.
The Brash meeting had a mortifying postscript, Rosie. It was during the election campaign and that night’s news led with reports on what campaigning Clark and Brash had been up to that day.
They chose to lead with Brash, and bugger me, there was I shaking his hand.
I had some serious grovelling to do to the local Labour MP when we went out door knocking that weekend and I still get grief about it to this day from other party members, who never tire of reminding me of the day I shook Don Brash’s hand.
For my part, I claim that I was putting a hex on him, which clearly worked, and therefore the 2005 election result is all down to me.
Awesome work TRP. The power of your hex was profound! Maybe you should hang around airports more often and wait for the PM to show up and shake his hand…………… 😀
Good idea! Probably pay to hang around the airport he uses most frequently … Honalulu, here I come!
Kahului would be better….
You’ll never be able to wash that shite off.
.
Seen this?
http://www.vox.com/2016/4/21/11421966/panama-papers-nine-questions-embarrassed-to-ask
9 questions you were too embarrassed to ask about the Panama Papers
Penny Bright
2016 Auckland Mayoral candidate.
Interesting Penny.
So the USA has plenty of tax havens in the USA. Await further disclosures.
Luckily NZ has no tax havens in NZ???
We had climate change denial….
Now for some time the tendency has been, climate change ignoring….
Corrupt politicians who don’t want to be openly drawn out in public on their support for the fossil fuel companies, or alternatively, otherwise good politicians too gutless to challenge the status quo, but who still don’t want to look like complete idiots by publicly denying climate change. These are the usual offenders, but they are not the only ones…
The NZ Herald gives us one of the most egregious examples yet….
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11626557
The NZ Herald seem to be having some trouble getting these two little words out.
Let me spell it out slowly one letter at a time so that the Herald reporters and sub-editors can understand it:
C-L-I-M-A-T-E… C-H-A-N-G-E
This news feed from Scientific American from 24 hours ago is probably where the Herald got their story, before they mangled it. Notice the unflinching use of the words “climate change”.
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/bleaching-hits-93-percent-of-the-great-barrier-reef/
Read the whole article and it’s clear that Messrs Bolton and Dell talk irrelevant, indulgent shit. Much like the stupid Michelle Boag who likes to shrewishly claim the whole thing’s down to first home buyers wanting to start off in Remuera or St Mary’s Bay.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/personal-finance/news/article.cfm?c_id=12&objectid=11626666
“John Bolton, chief executive and founder of Squirrel Home Loans, and someone who benefits from ever-increasing prices said many people were on good incomes but refused to give up on
the latest and flashiest possessionsmeeting rising basic living expenses (eg. rent and power) in order to save for their first home.“You’ve got to be disciplined. You don’t need the
$17,000 carnew fangled transport options … There’s nothing wrong witha $3000 car.walking fifteen miles in the mud with cardboard soles to get to your income plateaued place of employment.“It’s so frustrating when you see people with enough money in KiwiSaver because that is taken out of their hands before they get their profligate ways with it but their ability to save is atrocious possibly due to the fact that not only are costs rising, and incomes remaining static, Kiwisaver has just taken another cut . They’ve got heaps of consumer finance debt because there is no other way they can survive on their income and have some semblance of a balanced life. We have to tell them to pay down some of that debt before they buy a house but unless they are in the position to utilise our services, we won’t waste our time on helping with their budget. So that allows us to ignore those currently drowning in debt due to static incomes and rising costs.”
Mr Bolton said many people seemed to regard items such as
Sky TVgoing to the doctor or dentist as required as necessities, instead of luxuries.“I do tell people to do without
Skyhealthcare when it’s appropriate. When you go through people’s expenditure it’s amazing where the money goes and when people get sick or have toothache, they buy less takeaways, and sometimes stop eating altogether.“People have to learn that borrowing for these things doesn’t give them assets.
The TVHealthcare is not an asset.The sound systemWOF or registration is not an asset.The new sofaPaying your bills is not an asset. (I’ve just looked up the definition of assets and I’m pretty clear on this … liabilities and operating expenses next week… however, I’ll give it a go…) They’re liabilities – because the people who bought them didn’t have the money to begin with.What I am saying is. I have no concern with rising costs of houses because it benefits me. My nominal take increases as the amount borrowed does. I don’t care about issues such as stable housing or levelled incomes because… I don’t care. I have nothing to offer those who find themselves increasingly living a precarious financial life due to rising living costs, but will be happy to berate those who are on the cusp of getting a mortgage with me as long as they get out of their contract with Sky, and buy a used Toyota. Yes, I can see the flying pigs – but bubble, what bubble?”
I am heartily sick of the commentators who have limited perspective being given column inches in our national paper.
Nice correction Molly.
The perfect riposte to Mr Bolton and other baby boomers who say it just requires hard work to buy a house.
It’s not the same as before.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11626989
This article has made a good job of articulating the difference between Clinton and Sanders, which reflects something of what is happening on the left everywhere. The idea is that we are not talking about A being more left wing or right wing than B, but about continuing with things as they are or trying to bring about a paradigm shift. Articles like this are important because both the right and the BAU left like to minimise the real difference and muddy the waters around it. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/benjamin-studebaker/bernie-vs-hillary-matters-more-than-people-think_b_9209940.htm
Along related lines, Martyn Bradbury has suggested that Labour adopt the policy platform of a “new social contract.” Such an idea would be meaningful only if it involved a paradigm shift along Sanders lines (even if it didn’t go as far to the left in terms of policy) and a great bore if it turned out to be just another round of framing. http://thedailyblog.co.nz/2016/04/21/exclusive-inside-internal-party-research-the-dangers-for-key-the-clues-for-labour/
Just up on World Trade online.
Big Pharma Slams New Zealand Plan To Implement TPP Patent Term Extension
https://insidetrade.com/
If big pharma is against something in the TPP it suggests that at least one thing in it must be worthwhile.
unable to read due to paywall but suspect they are pissed that we are proposing to implement the disputed 5 year data period, whereas they believe it is 8 years plus….and them being pissed doesn’t equate to good news but rather is an indication what we have been sold is not as clear cut as they would like you to believe…itwould also make the already poor analysis even more inaccurate.
That’s how I read it too. NZ wants to legislate a loose limit whereas Big Pharma believes that the TPP (which they wrote) indicates that there should be no limit.
You read that wrong. They’re not against the TPP – they’re saying that the NZ government isn’t implementing it hard enough for their liking.
I should’ve made my sarcasm more explicit.
If the papers involved in the TPP negotiations were released as requested by Jane Kelsey, then maybe the intent of the agreement might become apparent.
I thought the intent of a FTA was to remove tariffs, not INCREASE patent or copyright periods.
Muppets, i rest my case 🙂
RIP
Business as usual for farmed animal cruelty:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/79073855/pig-farrowing-crates-to-remain-in-spite-of-animal-welfare-concerns
Of course the the decision was welcomed by the pork industry. It also gave an opportunity to reiterate their lies about inhumane conditions sows and piglets are kept in:
“NZPork chairman Ian Carter welcomed NAWAC’s decision.
“Farmers care for their animals. We know that our specialist farrowing systems are the best way to look after the welfare of sows and piglets around the time the piglets are born and up until weaning,” he said.”
Something about having to keep them in cages to prohibit flying.
Its unbearable to think about if you have any kind of empathy.
Totally. The person who made that statement above about crates being the best system is just as much a sociopath as people like FJK.
If you have not seen this well worth it – Democracy Spring.
Thanks for the update adam. That was a good listen. When do we get a turn?
The French are resisting, the British are resisting, the Americans are resisting. What are we doing?
Nothing to see here, Odd that the small faction which have taken over the national party a so willing to sell us out to the corporations. Feels a little like Roger Douglas era all over again, running faster and further than anyone to prove how loyal we are to a very odd ideology.
Sometimes it feels like we’re running in the opposite direction of other countries at times. They are demanding change and we are silent.
It’s not like we have nothing to protest. Our biggest demand should be the resignation of Key on the grounds that he promoted the law change in 2011 which opened our country up to be a tax haven and for refusing to be honest about his own financial arrangements. The Icelandic people ousted their PM for a lesser moral failing.
I have to agree.
The Icelandic people told the banks and the international banking system as a whole to fuck off post 2008 GFC.
They also extended some protection to Wikileaks and Assange.
NZers did little in this vein.
I’m sure this is called fixing an election
If the opposition parties truly had this country’s best intentions at heart they would be urgently convening a meeting of Labour, Greens and New Zealand First right now, nutting out over the next couple of months some really good platform policies, renaming themselves into a new solidified one party, forget their petty oneupmanship selfishness and agree for once in their lives that this country is in the real shit – forget about who wants to be leader, have a democratic party where all the minds share their best ideas and get someone in the party to be the mouth piece – someone who can articulate what half, at least, of this country desperately need – fairness for everybody, not just the middle classes and the 1%. Michael Wood stands to mind, never have heard him not say something which wasn’t worth listening to.
Is it ever going to happen, never – too many people full of their own importance and too craven to make the hard decisions, we once used to do this and didn’t we all stand proud in our little place in the world. Now we are just shabby yes men who bow and scrape to anything which smells of money. Its pathetic how this country allows such standover tactics – allowing our land to be sold, our jobs taken over by foreigners, our natural resources plundered,bribery with funds for the flag it just goes on and on on a daily basis. What a laughing stock we must be to the world. Its soul destroying what is happening to this country.
but that’s not the MMP way.
Besides, a single party requires more policy compromise from the membership, even if you could imagine the Greens trading getting their environmental policies recognised by accepting Ron Prosser’s latest ideas on immigration. But then all that would happen is the largest sub-party would exercise the most control over policy, anyway.
But I do like the idea of parties demonstrating that they can work together, not even necessarily at ithe policy level – the opposition parties have joined together to protest the shitty food at Dunedin Public Hospital since the outsourcing, that’s a good example of something that should be replicated in electorates across the country. Local issues, root-level cooperation as a demonstration that coalition negotiations can be undertaken in good faith.
“never have heard him not say something which wasn’t worth listening to. ”
That’s an outstanding triple negative there. What did you actually mean?
The Spinoff’s politics podcast. Topics, Panama Papers, Labour’s extended trainwreck, Helen Clack as UN Sec Gen.
It’s a good cold shower for Clark and Labour supporters (it’s the old Presbyterian in me that finds resonance with this):
http://thespinoff.co.nz/20-04-2016/politics-podcast-key-and-nz-as-tax-haven-labours-woes-and-helen-clark-un-bid/
Summary:
Little may have “united” the factions, but that seems to have meant putting the worst on the front bench. Hardly a solution, more like solipsism or appeasement. The party still has its head up its arse and it’s not getting traction because is spokescreatures just aren’t doing the hard work of getting to know their portfolios and need to get out of their own self-imposed confines and listen to people. Instead, they seem self-entitled, shallow and desperate and haven’t done their research. Labour’s members still think of their portfolios as sinecures or tokens of status.
Negative comparisons are made with Tony Ryall and Paula Bennett. When you suffer in comparison with those two, something’s very wrong.
Kelvin Davis is noted as an exception. He’s not on the front bench, Captain Mumblefuck is.
Repeat after me: “Government in waiting, government in waiting, government in waiting…” Do you look like a government in waiting? No. Attacking personalities and cooking up scandals won’t work if you’ve got nothing of SUBSTANCE to offer as an ALTERNATIVE. DUH.
Also, re UN, Yes, Clark is an impressive politician, but Maori have a surprisingly low incidence of amnesia. Privilege is when you say “Get over it.”
ANZAC day is an occasion for extensive coverage of Gallipoli and WW1 in all media. I just listened to a good RNZ program on the popular Gallipoli exhibit in Te Papa. An ever increasing number of Kiwi youth travel to the commemorations in Turkey and many more attend the Dawn Services around the country.
There is relatively very little interest shown by these youth in other New Zealand history. The Musket Wars, The Land Wars, The Gold Rushes, the mass migrations into NZ and inside NZ are very reverent to modern NZ.
Do our youth blind themselves to a deeper and more relevant engagement with our past and with what shapes our present by focusing on events at that cove far far away?
“”. I just listened to a good RNZ program on the popular Gallipoli exhibit in Te Papa. “”
How about getting off you’re arses te papa staff and opening at 8 am in the school holidays so people have more of a chance of getting to see the Gallipoli exhibition. Opening at 10 am WTF
A possible explanation is that Gallipoli and Anzac story is incorporated into primary school syllabus. ……gold rush emphasis would be much less and the other topics haphazardly discussed.
So I’m guessing we will get another sickening anzac day, when we won’t talk about the Northland war, the Taranaki War, nor the invasion of the Waikato.
Just more filth about how losing at anzac cover made a nation. Nothing about the suppression of the anti-war movement. The curtailment of civil liberties. That the PM Massey declared war without parliament.
Jack about the Pioneer Maori Unit, and the abject racism which meant they spent the bulk of the war moving boxes.
Nothing about Archibald Baxter – A National Treasure.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archibald_Baxter
Nope just more cheap jingoist crap, whilst we send more men and women to fight a meaningless war in the middle east.
Media NZ and Wellington politicos promote an Anglo centric culture. A common comment during the flag referendum was “….died for the flag”. The daily feed of royal family tripe, the daily use of London news-sources, the deference towards titles: these are all markers that ignore the varied background of the people of Aotearoa.
The gooey predictable coverage of ANZAC day is a limited way to explore what makes modern NZ.
I heard NZ had 67,000 long term/permanent immigrants in the last month of number taking(?) If that kept up we would see a doubling of the population in less than 6 years.
2009 – 2010 wasn’t that long ago, 6 years isn’t very long.