reading the comments on the daily review about the guy who 'only left his room to take the elevator to go to the smoking box' but he did as he told?
Question: how can one keep 2 meters distance in an elevator and in a smokers box?
And how can leaving your room be considered 'doing as i was told' or are we to believe that they were told that mingling in elevators and tiny rooms is akin to 'keeping two meters distance at all times'? (and as an ex smoker myself i spend my fair share in 'smokes cubicles' there is no way he could have maintained safe distance)
Maybe you know, its not the government so much as really it is entitled kiwis coming back not giving a shit?
Seriously, i am happy to complain about the government (irrespective of the party who runs it), but this to me is more an issue of people blatantly ingnoring the rules, behaving irresponsibly, and heck i am at this point where really can the government hand the handling and managing of returning kiwis and quarantine requirement over to the Military? They have the resources to build temporary housing (tent stylez i don't care), have cooks and mobile kitchens, have doctors and nurses at hand and so on and so forth and surely no one would manage to leave the premises, not even for a smoke. Granted it ain't the Ibis but it seems that so far they don't seem to be happy with that either?
I'm just amazed at this, during lockdown while shopping people were avoiding each other as best we could, there was no police or army telling us what to do, yet these new arrivals need their hands held. Maybe education needs to be ramped up?
Surely they were given advise on how to behave, they were told to 'self manage' as responsible adults / parents should/ would and they gave no shits, and now are complaining that the government did not lock them into their rooms with a guard on the outside.
Fuck, build the quarantine tents, put them up, and let the Military take care of them. Then they will have something to complain about.
But they actually endangered others to get a smoke, a drink or some outside action. Fuck em.
The way I see it, there are basically three categories of people of unequal size:
People who don’t like to be told asked what to do, who often feel patronised, e.g. by a young(er) woman person, and who will often do the opposite of the request even if it is to their own detriment and/or that of others.
People who need to be given clear guidance what to do and who will do their best to follow that guidance, especially when it comes from an authoritative source.
People who don’t need to be asked and who will use sound judgement and do the appropriate thing under the circumstances with proper consideration of others too.
People who have got their heads stuck somewhere in a deep and dark bubble with weird echoing sounds and a cone of silence and denial to keep out facts and inconvenient information.
I recall being taught in primary school that "four into three doesn't go". 😉 However your fourth category does seem remarkably like National supporters!
I like the notion that the public can be subdivided into behavioural categories for the purpose of policy implementation. It would make govt operations more sophisticated than the `one plan fits all approach' – if it works in practice.
Your forgetting absentminded fools who want to do the right thing but are capable of getting to fridge and have know idea why! So need nice big signs and lots of reminders on what behaviors are needed.
Too true bwaghorn about reverting to default. Ever meant to go somewhere and pick up/drop off something away from the usual route, and go right by the turnoff? What a turn-off. So allowing for reminders to be up and about all the time will be necessary. There is an aspect to my mind which will 'remember' things in a faulty fashion, that suits my preference – the appointment was at 9am not 9.30 etc.
No. 3 of ianmac needs to include good information and explanation provided then —people use their sound judgment (that is necessary as explained), and do the appropriate thing.
I like to know why myself, not just to be herded, in the normal way. Thinking about returning kiwis, they probably left with the belief that NZ was backward and they being bright, were leaving for better opportunities. They might want to kick up now they are back, and not at first realise that we have lots of good practices for which they need to be thankful. And then conform to requirements of the country and community where they have returned to seek sanctuary.
Theyactually need to humble themselves and be grateful and willing to fit into the community, these smart alises/aleks (the letter changed to avoid personal identification). And realise that the cutthroat economic system that they have been operating under overse they will experience here. Most of us will have lost part of our heritage of a decent life in a pleasant country with opportunities for social mobility for all, through the workings of the neolib/freemarket economy that has churned out wealth from its machine-minds at great cost to many.
It was never touted as a cure but as a preventative. I would stick to your daily dose of 300 G & Ts because you’re almost guaranteed to not catch the virus through encounters with others.
There are also the people who will mingle with other smokers for two weeks, knowing thatisolation cohorts are mixing in the smokers room even though the lifts are controlled, but not raise it with anyone that there's a hole in the system.
Stupidity needs to be accounted for – double-fence accessible exercise areas, with the separation distance between the fences.
Have a small smoking area for each cohort. Make it a room on each floor if you have to – covid is a far bigger hazard than passive smoking at this stage. No lifts, no excuse to leave the floor without a scheduled appointment or exercise session.
Smoking is known to affect brain function and is thought to play a role in cerebral atherosclerosis. There are also studies that have shown an inverse correlation between smoking and IQ although it is unclear whether this points to a causative relationship and, if so, in what direction.
lol if only "notice, and bitch about, obvious hazard, but never report it to anyone in a position to deal with that hazard" was restricted to smokers.
Had that in a security job – folks had to provide their own footwear (we were arguing this with bosses), chap stepped on a board and a nail went through his shoe (just missed his toes). Bitched about it a few days later, I asked "did you file a hazard?" Nope. Guy almost had a nail through his foot, but never told anyone in management or OSH or HR even though he bitched about it in the tearoom.
They got a bit better after a few months – someone slipped on ice, filed a report, everyone had company-bought yaktraks the next day.
But they actually endangered others to get a smoke, a drink or some outside action. Fuck em.
Absolutely.
Let's not lose perspective though. Thousands have gone through this process without crying to the National Party, the Media, or anyone else that would listen. So we are left with a relatively small number of complete plonkers who fall into the first and fourth category in Incognito's concise summary at 1.1.1.1
Some in the media are using the term 'hostility' when writing about kiwi's attitude to returning nationals. No, it's not that. It's "Kia ora and welcome home. Please do as you are told and follow instructions to the letter. Don't sweat the small stuff. Do your time and enjoy it. See you on the other side"
Shaw said it was ironic that a party that supposedly cared so much about contract law – a reference to NZ First pulling its support for a bill on corporate rent – was so happy to breach its agreement with Labour. "I do find it ironic that a party that has been using the cover of the sanctity of contract law to protect property investors from small businesses can't even uphold its coalition agreement."
Light rail is not included in the arrangement between Labour and NZ First, but there is a reference to NZ First working in good faith to honour the other agreement making up the Government – the confidence and supply agreement with the Greens. "New Zealand First and Labour agree that they will each act in good faith to allow any other agreements to be complied with," the coalition agreement between NZ First and Labour reads.
Light rail is mentioned in the agreement between the Greens and Labour, specifically a line stating that: "Work will begin on light rail from the city to the airport in Auckland."
NZ First leader Winston Peterssaid it was his reading of the clause that his party would act in good faith with the Greens, but did not actually bind his agreement to theirs. "It asks us to act in good faith using our best information to make judgements on matters," Peters said. Pushed on this point Peters asked that the reporter go to the Human Rights Commission to get an interpretation of the clause.
Weasel words, Winston! Claiming that a contract commitment says something different to what it actually says may be standard practice for a lawyer, but is unlikely to impress the average kiwi.
Shaw said he was pleased that light rail would be able to progress following the election, as the decision announced on Wednesday didn't change the fact that money had been allocated for light rail through the National Land Transport Fund – something NZ First had voted for. "NZ First themselves voted for the Auckland light rail – it's part of the Government Policy Statement 2018 that they voted for," Shaw said. "They might have forgotten that they voted for it, but they did."
This week Peters, who is also NZ First leader, seemed to cast the project's future into further doubt just hours after Transport Minister Phil Twyford said the Government was "highly motivated" to progress.
But asked about the project, Peters said there had been massive cost blowouts.
"It's not going to happen in the immediate term," he said.
"We've always been for heavy rail around this country. Our programme is on target, as you know, and light rail has been suspended in terms of planning for the immediate future."
But NZ Infra director Will Goodwin dismissed a costs blowout – though he wouldn't be drawn on specifics.
"We've seen speculation of costings blowing out to as much as $10b. While we cannot get into specifics about what the cost of our proposal will be, we've previously said this speculation is substantially wide of the mark.
"Costs incurred to date are commercially sensitive and confidential."
He would not say how much money NZ Infra had sunk into it so far, but he remained committed to the project and supported Twyford's view that Cabinet would look at the issue soon.
i mean, heck , a billion here a billion there and sure you are talking about shitloads of petty cash that the taxpayer has to come up with.
to boot a slow effn train to the airport? there are already trains going to Mangere so essentially we only needed to build an extention to the Airport from Mangere. Or is that too easy and not sexy enough.
Maybe the issue is not so much Winston Peters and the points that he raised for a while now, but rather that the government over promised on something not too many are keen other then the people who most likely will never use the 'slow train' aka the polititians.
Also in this current climate where tourists might not be coming anytime soon, and we have different more pressing needs for the money taxpayers can actually raise this is a pure vanity project that serves no one.
As for the greens, sorry dudes – lets hold a referendum about this – let the people of NZ vote if they want to provide the funds to build a Tram to the Airport at a cost of somewhere 6 – 10 billion plus. Without any added Gummibears.
added, if a heavy train station / stop at the airport were to be build that could then also service trains coming from Hamilton etc, or are we next gonna build a Tram to the airport from Hamilton? Or is that future thinking and that is also not something we want to discuss right now?
The issue is: No plan only vested interests. Clear to see if anyone wants to look.
I actually will vote for Winston this election if he stands as he is at the moment – very surprisingly – the only sane voice I hear.
Otherwise, a lot of molly cotton political correct BS, or stirring the proverbial is all that is on offer right now.
No plan, no idea how to get a frame work in place that gets businesses attracted and bound to rules, environmental issues considered, future proof (science, facts) for production, farming implemented and for once haunt this in the same way as remiss beneficiaries. Instead we have major issues such as Auckland running out of water – I am curious, is someone pumping the aquifer for exporting water? This would lower the table and in the end may rise salinity. Now there is a thought.
As for rail, get all the trucks off the road and onto rail, you will be surprised at the cost factor and environmental positive impact. This is a proven concept, but hay – did I mention vested interests?
the principle of ministerial responsibility does not magically exclude “operational matters”. A 2013 Labour Party press release from then shadow leader of the house and now speaker Trevor Mallard welcomed a speaker’s ruling on parliamentary questions with the headline, “Ministers are responsible for operational matters”.
Jeez, who knew?? We've had years of National/Labour ministers claiming the opposite. Okay, they'd all dismiss Mallard as just being Mallard, but what if he's right??
Individual ministerial responsibility is a constitutional convention. Members of cabinet are individually responsible in three main ways:
they are accountable for decisions that they take in relation to their portfolio responsibilities
they are responsible for their own professional and personal conduct
they are responsible for decisions and actions (and the consequences that follow) of individuals and organisations for which they have ministerial responsibility, whether or not they were party to or knew of those actions. This is known as vicarious ministerial responsibility. https://teara.govt.nz/en/cabinet-government/page-6
I suspect that, when he was supposed to attend the training session in which he was to be taught how to be vicarious, he was off mountain-biking.
So why has only one PM resigned (Lange) because they have lost confidence in their Ministers ability to do the right thing.
After all resigning because of vicarious responsibility is really because of loss of trust in those in the ministry to provide operational delivery.
In this instance Clark had confidence in Bloomfield to sort it (albeit it involving transfer of facility oversight to the Housing Minister – as in procurement of accommodation)
Perhaps Lange was honourable & the others not? But what the govt web-page neglects is an explanation how those responsibilities are enacted. Elsewhere? Or left to the discretion of the ministers themselves? I suspect the latter.
So it's just another left/right sham, probably. Traditional establishment collusion to hoodwink the public. Pretend to do the right thing, then evade the necessity…
I looked at Clark being interviewed and I think he didn't look to be in a good place. Yes he should have taken responsibility but his credit is very low at the moment and he probably fears calls for his head.
I was the first to denonce his actions when he breached lockdown. But I posted earlier that he has got a lot of gains for health. Cancer agency and new radiology machines, hospital site for Dunedin and project office (after god knows how many years of nothing). increasing budget for Pharmac. And billions of dollars for mental health. Also if he should be taking responsibility for the operational failing, then he must be due some credit for the success of our Covid response………it must work both ways. After I posted the above gains on an earlier postt Ad provided me with some links about health outcomes. Maybe its me but it didn't quite seem relevant. I then looked on the Dept of stats website and I couldnt't see health outcome material that would relate to the vast number of improvements this govt has made. The reality is improving health outcomes has a very, very long tail and things like mental health may not show much improvement at all in the context of Covid and mass unemployment.
I am sick of the beat up on Clark. He paid his penalty for the lockdown breach. I agree he should have taken responsibility for the stuff up at the border. But he looks to be a man under extraordinary pressure. And if he should take responsibility for the stuff up then he also deserves credit and high praise for how the Covid response has gone.
I think this govt is carrying a massive burden at the moment and the hysterical attempt by the National Party to wins votes only adds to the pressure. I hope NZders see through them
Yes. It is a part of the overall strategy of attack, attack, attack and no matter the consequences or even whether the claims are true. We're seeing it on a daily basis now and its hard to see them being able to keep it up for the next 90 days.
I watched live the segment of the inquiry where Clark responded to a question from Woodhouse, and I was not left with the impression he was… passing the buck to Bloomfield.
It could have been better expressed, but all he did was briefly reiterate what happened and pointed out Bloomfield had apologised. Which is true.
Newshub and O'Brien are doing their usual… playing gotcha politics.
You can't be responsible for things you can't control, otherwise any bloodyminded pisswit underling could force a resignation by acting like a perverse fukcknuckle.
I have never seen a politician appear on my twitter feed more than what I saw David Clark last night. The right were ripping into him, but the left were almost as equally outraged with his approach.
Regardless of the rights or wrongs about what he was saying regarding responsibility, the guy is fucking clueless with how his words were going to play out politically.
Clark has only been in the headlines during the covid crisis for the wrong reasons. Ashley has been the face that all kiwis tuned into on a daily basis because we all trusted him and his professional, non political, way of dealing with things. Clark humiliating Ashley was a disgrace
Clark is a political liability and Jacinda needs to remove him.
He was set up to answer those questions with Bloomfield alongside him.
Total set up.
Then the media use Twitter response to this set up to have another go.
It’s a lynch mob demonstrating their power to manipulate the public.
It's revenge for being unpopular when Ardern and Bloomfield were the go to people. Now they are leveraging support for Bloomfield to get people angry at Clark – a National target. To take the PM down a peg or two, and glorify themsleves as the new heroes of the peoples safety. Just as National is doing. Talk about a corrupt alliance of glee club with dirty tricks reboot.
It's going to be hard to mistake MSM pretentiousness for responsibility after this. Maybe the future of the media estate should be with new start ups.
PS The whole scandal/operational failure issue is that officials did not apply it to those arriving before June 9. So the whole story is about how the media and government became aware of this – and so it was ultimately applied from June 16th, rather than the June 23rd track officials were on.
The "scandal" is the despicable attempt by the Opposition to use the pandemic as a political football without a jot of consideration for the people caught in the middle. I refer to the health workers and all the other sectors in society doing their best to keep Covid 19 out of the community, as well as the vast bulk of citizens doing their best to follow the rules and keep themselves safe.
Those in the media who are aiding and abetting the Nats are equally as obnoxious.
Personally, I would like to see Jacinda Ardern and co. deliver blistering attacks on their modus operandi and expose them for the self seeking irresponsible assholes they are proving to be.
I saw it this morning: Trotter & Sherson in accord all the way through. So refreshing when politicos cut the crap & tell it like it is. Viewers will be seriously impressed I bet (partisans will go straight into denial).
Will the PM tolerate her dead albatross health minister much longer? Not if she knows what's good for her. The stink has probably reached critical threshold. He's now making the Minister of Non-Delivery (Twyford) look good by comparison.
The PM, and a handful of very competent senior Ministers (Robertson, Woods) is carrying the others (Clark, Twyford, Lees-Galloway). Something has to give.
The Herald's early story is about 1000 people leaving managed isolation after their 14 days without being tested. This between June 9 and June 16.
And they add from yestersays Radio with Mike the agreement of Gorman with the Husk's own agreement with Muller their might be community transmission.
Be afraid is the mantra, feel threatened because the officials on the ground essentially at first interpreted the change from June 9, to only to apply to those who arrived after June 9.
However around 1000 people also left isolation between June 1 and June9 – when no testing was required and in those days Muller was saying go to Level 1 now there is no community spread.
"She said the country was ready, now 40 days since the last recorded case of community transmission, 26 days after entering alert level 2, 17 days since a new case, and less than 24 hours since having zero active cases recorded.
Ardern said New Zealanders did something "remarkable" by uniting in the fight against Covid-19, and had achieved one of the lowest rates per capita in the world.
"Now under level 1 you can if you want go back to your place of work." "
On that basis, the last recorded case of community transmission was on 29 April, now 57 days ago.
Now as I understand it, the aim of our border controls is to ensure that we do not get any further cases of community transmission.
Given that, do I care if over-worked and stressed employees of the Ministry of Health cannot tell me within an hour the number of visa holders in different categories who have entered New Zealand in the last 10 days, do I care if the taxpayer Onion have published Mullers master plan for the National Party under the heading of a Covid plan?
57 days of success? Yes I do care about that, but it would be nice to know that is is a valid number.
Are there any other key measures of success we have forgotten to tell people about?
Ed 1 key measures of success. I think the real evidence re community transmission is no one popping up in hospital/ICU. Even more than testing in the community this is where Covid in the community would appear……..I did a bit of research and the figure given was 20% of people with Covid need hospital care. Of course this can't be a definitive figure, but a useful guide. If NZ has community transmission we should have seen or will be seeing very soon hospital admissions
anker, I see community infection as not being the same as someone arriving with an infection, or catching the infection from their "bubble" while in quarantine. Yes some will need to be hospitalised, but I believe a key goal is to make sure that no-one catches covid19 from a person out in the community. There is a clear danger for staff and guards at quarantine properties – Victoria in Australia has apparently suffered from that, but if we get community transmission we may well have to go back to Level 2 (as Melbourne has done). So no, someone being admitted to hospital is almost expected from the thousands arriving in New Zealand from countries with infections at a higher level that here.
My question is whether we can celebrate 57 days without community infection?
There is no community spread, we are two weeks into Level 1 if it was going to happen considering half the country went to the pub and a million went to sporting events and farmers markets and the movies victims would have presented by now.
I liked your comment last night Adrian, you are so right, NZ has (so far) successfully fought the spread of covid, people are scrambling to get back here because of this, the rest of us sucked it up for weeks, these newcomers should too.
Thanks IFL, but its just me reflecting the opinions of others I have spoken to recently from surprisingly, both sides of the political spectrum and as a long time arsehole it doesn't take much to arc me up when others arseholery becomes evident. I think it is going to quieten down pretty soon when the media realises they are on the wrong side of the Oh Woe Is Me faction.
The poll out tonight on TV1 will probably show a swing downwards for the Government but the Nat/media must take "credit" for any loss of confidence. Arseholery indeed.
I was just getting used to not dreading the next poll after about 11 years of depressing polls. I wonder how many people have forgotten over the last week what has been achieved and who by.
eg a friend, Southland farmer, retired, union-hating blue-blue-blue through and through, full of praise for govt response and will probably vote for Jacinda this time round. Scathing of the behaviour of some returnees and constant bagging of Bloomfield et al
What is interesting at present (from the people I've been talking to) is that it feels like voters are making their minds up a whole lot earlier this election cycle.
Lots of time to reflect during the lockdowns? More interest in what is going on. The example of Trump, Johnson and other leaders dithering and blundering badly when under load.
I suspect that the reality that covid-19 brought is going to do nasty things to some kinds of populists. Those poll figures in the US are brutal (looks them up)
Trump prophecy and statues to dead white people – and the reckons of white men who did not go to college. Too many of one and not enough of the other to save the Donald
Lots of time to reflect during the lockdowns? More interest in what is going on.
I've been saying for years that the biggest problem with our democracy is that most people just don't have enough time to engage in it as they're too busy/tired from going to work. So, perhaps you're right. The lockdown has given more people the time to engage, time to think.
With some people, no matter how much time they’re given, it never lifts the quality of their thinking, as Chris Penk demonstrated with exquisite clarity.
I agree regarding opinions of others, just listening in to others in the staffroom people are pissed off with the people breaking the rules and whining, not the Govt.
people are pissed off with the people breaking the rules and whining, not the Govt.
That's the feeling around these parts too, some tory work colleagues share the same sentiment.
One of mum's tory friends even told her they are with-holding their annual generous donation this election because of the lack of leadership in the national party. Mum almost fell off her seat, because her friend is blue to the core.
The Herald and Newshub are gunning for the Health Minister Clark for stating a fact they do not like.
He said that the head of the Health Ministry Bloomfield had accepted responsibility for the release of people from managed isolation without testing post June 9 (as he has as head of the ministry). Apparently saying this in front of Bloomfield was supposed to be brutal – Tova O’B and spineless according to some anonymous Herald headline writer (now that is cowardly).
Then the intellectual affront to the left Chris Trotter says the PM has 24 hours to rid herself of the Minister – why because we are in a post truth age?
It seems Trotter is the go to guy for backing up every media beat-up going round, Hooton will be loving his stooge brother in arms.
Instead, he’s shifted blame to director-general of health Ashley Bloomfield. On Wednesday, Clark continued to blame Bloomfield, even while Bloomfield was in the room.
How exactly, the head of the ministry had already taken repsonsibility for it himself (the accusation in the quote is unattributed – no name to the story).
Do we have a MSM or just National attack blogs?
Was any National Minister asked to resign for the P homes lying empty and the cost of mitigation that was totally unneccesary?
Instead, he’s shifted blame to director-general of health Ashley Bloomfield. On Wednesday, Clark continued to blame Bloomfield, even while Bloomfield was in the room.
This is what Trotter says. He is not into being kind to Labour Ministers who can help to lose the election. We do want Labour to get in don't we or are some of us not up to facing truthand hard political reality (how many days till the election?)?.
Left-wing leaning political commentator Chris Trotter told The AM Show that the border bungle had hurt the Government.
"The one thing they had, the one shining moment in three years, was their handling of the COVID crisis and the last week, I cannot see how that hasn't put a massive dent in their public standing," he said.
Trotter then hit out at Clark and said Ardern shouldn't simply stand by.
"I thought the behaviour of David Clark in relation to Ashley Bloomfield was just shameful, absolutely shameful. I am sorry Jacinda, but if you let that stand for the next 24 hours, then it's going to come back on you, because a person like that should not be in his job."
Chris is given the opportunity to appear on these shows because he will bag the left. Sure, he will try to nuance it in a way that suggests he wants Labour to do more and be more radical – but the the only thing that survives his flowery over-elaborations is the initial bagging. A truly left commentator with an uncompromising analysis of how money power actually works, won't get near these shows.
If you don’t get the whole of NZ is laughing and Clark and his gutless incompetence you and others here never will. Trotter is a realist not a blinkered fool. His political honesty is welcome after the politically blind comments as seen here.
Some of us are more easily manipulated than others.
Personally I regard Muller as auditioning for a role as a commentator on the Muppets – 4 weeks of people leaving their managed isolation without being tested under Level 2. His opinion then – there was no evidence of communty transmission so why are we not at Level 1 already.
One further week of people leaving without beign tested, and his belief is that there is community transmission.
He is no longer credible.
Pretending to believe there is suddently some sort of risk, to pander to crisis climate is not the service to the public but to himself and his party.
If he was a decent man, he is now Hooton's creature.
During the covid lockdown or other health emergency the Director of Health outranks even the Minister as he has more power at the behest of Government/Parliament not the minister directly. That is the understanding that I heard when he was elevated.
Dr Bloomfield and his team did a brilliant job.
As an aside, if you want to know who the arsehole is leaking bullshit and innuendo to the Opposition look no further than whoever it was who thought he/she was entitled to the job when Ashley was appointed DoH. Unfortunate acronym that.
In the 15th it looks like Ritchie Torres is going to take it, with Ruben Diaz Sr coming 3rd(who would fit better in the troglodyte faction of the Repugs). Sadly, this race yet again illustrates the far left's ability to abandon reason and attempt self-sabotage, but fortunately didn't succeed this time.
In Kentucky, Amy McGrath looks comfortably ahead of Charlie Booker in the race to take on Bitch the Mean-age Mutant MAGA Turtle. Sure Booker is definitely left and McGrath is moderate, but c'mon far lefties, this is Kentucky we're talking about here. McGrath is a long shot as it is, d'ya really think someone like Booker has even a fart's chance in a thunderstorm?
40 000 tested No community transmission. All those resources used and overloaded roads parking and laboratories. Thanks Muller and Woodhouse, yelling "Wolf" did that.
I wonder what the next "Urban Myth" from Woodhouse will be? "Baited breath!!" NOT!!
Someone could draw Muller’s attention to “We don’t know how lucky we are” by John Clarke.
Yes Patricia, and not a single word from the 2 main media outlets, stuff and The Herald who made the loudest noise over the homeless person, $100k spent on the investigation by the tax payer with no evidence of any homeless person being in the hotel, Woodhouse looked embarrassed on the TV when asked for some evidence to support the allegation and then Muller says he stands behind his minister, Woodhouse, so Muller disagrees with the outcome of the $100K investigation yet has zero evidence to discredit it.
This is a much bigger story than anything else circulating in the media today, yet, crickets.
With the TVNZ poll out tonight, let's look back at the last one, from May. Just for fun, here's a Quick Quiz:
10 people got 0.1% support (the lowest possible to be recorded in the poll) as preferred PM. Can you name any of these people (without looking them up)?
Clues: 4 of them are not in Parliament. 3 women, 7 men. Any guesses?
The Justice Department announced on Wednesday that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been charged in a superseding indictment for recruiting and conspiring with computer hackers, including those affiliated with the hacking groups LulzSec and "Anonymous."
Why it matters: The new indictment does not add new counts to the 18-count indictment filed against Assange under the Espionage Act last year, but it does "broaden the scope of the conspiracy surrounding alleged computer intrusions with which Assange was previously charged," according to the DOJ.
(Sounds as if they are trying to treat Assange as a nuisance, commercially motivated, hostile hacker against nation/s, rather than for revealing wrongs done – important difference.)
.
Assange didn’t appear via video link for his most recent court matter in London’s Westminster Magistrates’ Court in early June.
His defence team had emailed court that their client had “had respiratory problems for some time”, the court heard.
WikiLeaks confirmed Assange had been advised against going to the video conferencing room in Belmarsh prison by his doctors and was at high risk of contracting COVID-19 due to an underlying lung condition.
Assange is next scheduled to appear in court on June 29 for a routine call over.
“He’s very unwell and I’m very concerned about his ability to survive this,” Ms Moris said.
He’s not a criminal. He’s not a dangerous person. He’s a gentle intellectual, a thinker.”
Ms Moris, 37, said Assange was being kept alone in a tiny room and was “very depressed.
I was hoping that those who have daily connections with a cross-section of people might be able to tell me what the feeling for Government's handling of the crisis is. I have read all the comments above thanks everyone. Any others?
My staffroom is always interesting, broad cross section of ages and backgrounds, I mentioned above, but I had a giggle listening in they were livid about Woodhouse (I'm in Dunedin) & someone mentioned how Hosking is all over the place, "he just says any old crap".
These clowns are prepared to exploit one of the very few concessions an able world grants to those with disabilities.
Says it all, really.
The SLO County Public Health Department is warning residents that various cards claiming to exempt the holder from California’s face covering ordinance are fraudulent and not endorsed by the U.S. Department of Justice.
In a “rumor alert” posted to the department’s Facebook page on June 22, county staff linked to a recent press release posted by the U.S. Department of Justice, which says that various printouts of face covering exemption cards, many of which include the U.S. Department of Justice seal, are floating around the internet.
click to enlarge
SCREENSHOT FROM FACEBOOK
EXEMPT? Fraudulent cards claiming to exempt the holder from California’s face covering ordinance are floating around SLO County Facebook groups.
“These postings were not issued by the department and are not endorsed by the department,” the press release reads. “The department urges the public not to rely on the information contained in these postings and to visit ada.gov for ADA [Americans with Disabilities Act] information issued by the Department.”
I support your emphasis on this important point because Nats & media aren't acknowledging it sufficiently. They need to get real asap. Valid to expose the quarantine shambles, but we're moving on from that. If they keep banging the drum regardless, it will piss everyone else off big-time.
Incidentally I am thinking we need a change in honorific/title treatment – and Doctor should be followed by two letter code ie MD. Well they do it elsewhere I think. I think of doctor as being medical doctor, so I would like to know what sort of professional I am listening to. Could have a Dr PR and that would be very useful to know.
Yeah I saw on the breakfast news a report that 26 US states are showing a sudden surge, and that up-swing is evident in your daily figures. Brazil's supreme court has ordered Balsonaro to wear a mask. Trump will be wondering how much longer he can do his King Canute act…
Dr custard aka nick smith was kicked out, for his usual problem… out of line interjecting.
Unfortunately for him he had a question to ask later on.
" Hon Dr NICK SMITH to the Minister of Justice: Is his Electoral (Registration of Sentenced Prisoners) Amendment Bill, as passed through its third reading under urgency last night, good law? "
Then ole entitled gerry wanted Dr custard's question to be reinstated and asked by another MP. A bit of argey bargey later with Trevor; because, let's face it, ole entitled gerry won't back down even if he is wrong. Nek minute, ole entitled gerry was kicked out too.
The results of the Colmar Brunton Poll tonight will be a very good indicator of just how influential the media is.
With relentless attacks on the Coalition, everything from bungling incompetence to conflicts within the Coalition, none of which are supported by any substantiating evidence apart from media releases of which are headed with 'Opinion'.
A very large swing against the Govt will give everyone something to be concerned about.
Correct, but there's always an extent of influence, something that can be guaged, which is a good indicator of wether the public agree with the media sentiment or have personally chosen to disagree.
In the end the only poll that matters is in 88 days, a lot water to go under the bridge yet though.
The Poll result doesn't appear to have been influenced by the last few days of hyperbole, Muller was expected to get high support after his predecessor and the rusted on supporters, Nat voters showing their support, NZF though, are probably the biggest losers but we know that at election day they usually do much better.
Labour could govern alone on 50%, the Greens back at 5%, NZF on 2%
National on 36%, Act on 4%
Pretty much the result you would expect after the removal of Bridges, restoration of support from the party faithfull.
Just Is, A great deal depends on how people react to Woodhouse's "story".
I think everyone found that a "Stretch'
Muller will appeal to old time National more than Bridges did, but people won't thank him for playing on their fears. We live in interesting times.
As you say, the media have played this like a violin chorus, wailing in the pits, becoming a little too shrill…… waiting….. Just hope people recognise genuine mahi.
Roger Partridge writes – When the Coalition Government took office last October, it inherited a country on a precipice. With persistent inflation, decades of insipid productivity growth and crises in healthcare, education, housing and law and order, it is no exaggeration to suggest New Zealand’s first-world status was ...
Rob MacCulloch writes – In 2022, the Curriculum Centre at the Ministry of Education employed 308 staff, according to an Official Information Request. Earlier this week it was announced 202 of those staff were being cut. When you look up “The New Zealand Curriculum” on the Ministry of ...
Chris Bishop’s bill has stirred up a hornets nest of opposition. Photo: Lynn Grieveson for The KākāTL;DR: The six things that stood out to me in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, poverty and climate from the last day included:A crescendo of opposition to the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill is ...
Monday left me brokenTuesday, I was through with hopingWednesday, my empty arms were openThursday, waiting for love, waiting for loveThe end of another week that left many of us asking WTF? What on earth has NZ gotten itself into and how on earth could people have voluntarily signed up for ...
Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past week’s editions.State of humanity, 20242024, it feels, keeps presenting us with ever more challenges, ever more dismay.Do you give up yet? It seems to ask.No? How about this? Or this?How about this?Full story Share ...
Determining the hardest sport in the world is a subjective matter, as the difficulty level can vary depending on individual abilities, physical attributes, and experience. However, based on various factors including physical demands, technical skills, mental fortitude, and overall accomplishment, here is an exploration of some of the most challenging ...
The allure of sport transcends age, culture, and geographical boundaries. It captivates hearts, ignites passions, and provides unparalleled entertainment. Behind the spectacle, however, lies a fascinating world of financial investment and expenditure. Among the vast array of competitive pursuits, one question looms large: which sport carries the hefty title of ...
Introduction Pickleball, a rapidly growing paddle sport, has captured the hearts and imaginations of millions around the world. Its blend of tennis, badminton, and table tennis elements has made it a favorite among players of all ages and skill levels. As the sport’s popularity continues to surge, the question on ...
Abstract: Soccer, the global phenomenon captivating millions worldwide, has a rich history that spans centuries. Its origins trace back to ancient civilizations, but the modern version we know and love emerged through a complex interplay of cultural influences and innovations. This article delves into the fascinating journey of soccer’s evolution, ...
Tinting car windows offers numerous benefits, including enhanced privacy, reduced glare, UV protection, and a more stylish look for your vehicle. However, the cost of window tinting can vary significantly depending on several factors. This article provides a comprehensive guide to help you understand how much you can expect to ...
The pungent smell of gasoline in your car can be an alarming and potentially dangerous problem. Not only is the odor unpleasant, but it can also indicate a serious issue with your vehicle’s fuel system. In this article, we will explore the various reasons why your car may smell like ...
Tree sap can be a sticky, unsightly mess on your car’s exterior. It can be difficult to remove, but with the right techniques and products, you can restore your car to its former glory. Understanding Tree Sap Tree sap is a thick, viscous liquid produced by trees to seal wounds ...
The amount of paint needed to paint a car depends on a number of factors, including the size of the car, the number of coats you plan to apply, and the type of paint you are using. In general, you will need between 1 and 2 gallons of paint for ...
Jump-starting a car is a common task that can be performed even in adverse weather conditions like rain. However, safety precautions and proper techniques are crucial to avoid potential hazards. This comprehensive guide will provide detailed instructions on how to safely jump a car in the rain, ensuring both your ...
Graham Adams writes about the $55m media fund — When Patrick Gower was asked by Mike Hosking last week what he would say to the many Newstalk ZB callers who allege the Labour government bribed media with $55 million of taxpayers’ money via the Public Interest Journalism Fund — and ...
Note: this blog post has been put together over the course of the week I followed the happenings at the conference virtually. Should recordings of the Great Debates and possibly Union Symposia mentioned below, be released sometime after the conference ends, I'll include links to the ones I participated in. ...
The following was my submission made on the “Fast Track Approvals Bill”. This potential law will give three Ministers unchecked powers, un-paralled since the days of Robert Muldoon’s “Think Big” projects.The submission is written a bit tongue-in-cheek. But it’s irreverent because the FTAB is in itself not worthy of respect. ...
One Could Reduce Child Poverty At No Fiscal CostFollowing the Richardson/Shipley 1990 ‘redesign of the welfare state’ – which eliminated the universal Family Benefit and doubled the rate of child poverty – various income supplements for families have been added, the best known being ‘Working for Families’, introduced in 2005. ...
Buzz from the Beehive A few days ago, Point of Order suggested the media must be musing “on why Melissa is mute”. Our article reported that people working in the beleaguered media industry have cause to yearn for a minister as busy as Melissa Lee’s ministerial colleagues and we drew ...
1. What was The Curse of Jim Bolger?a. Winston Peters b. Soon after shaking his hand, world leaders would mysteriously lose office or shuffle off this mortal coilc. Could never shake off the Mother of All Budgetsd. Dandruff2. True or false? The Chairman of a Kiwi export business has asked the ...
Jack Vowles writes – New Zealand is said to be suffering from ‘serious populist discontent’. An IPSOS MORI survey has reported that we have an increasing preference for strong leaders, think that the economy is rigged toward the rich and powerful, and political elites are ignoring ‘hard-working people’. ...
Chris Trotter writes – MELISSA LEE should be deprived of her ministerial warrant. Her handling – or non-handling – of the crisis engulfing the New Zealand news media has been woeful. The fate of New Zealand’s two linear television networks, a question which the Minister of Broadcasting, Communications ...
TL;DR: The podcast above features co-hosts and , along with regular guests Robert Patman on Gaza and AUKUS II, and on climate change.The six things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the ...
Policymakers rarely wish to make plain or visible their desire to dismantle environmental policy, least of all to the young. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Here’s the top five news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa-NZ this week, and a discussion above between Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent ...
I like to keep an eye on what’s happening in places like the UK, the US, and over the ditch with our good mates the Aussies. Let’s call them AUKUS, for want of a better collective term. More on that in a bit.It used to be, not long ago, that ...
TL;DR: The global economy will be one fifth smaller than it would have otherwise been in 2050 as a result of climate damage, according to a new study by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) and published in the journal Nature. (See more detail and analysis below, and ...
New Zealand is said to be suffering from ‘serious populist discontent’. An IPSOS MORI survey has reported that we have an increasing preference for strong leaders, think that the economy is rigged toward the rich and powerful, and political elites are ignoring ‘hard-working people’. The data is from February this ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters is understood to be planning a major speech within the next fortnight to clear up the confusion over whether or not New Zealand might join the AUKUS submarine project. So far, there have been conflicting signals from the Government. RNZ reported the Prime Minister yesterday in ...
Life throws curveballs, and sometimes, those curveballs necessitate wiping your iPhone clean and starting anew. Whether you’re facing persistent software glitches, preparing to sell your device, or simply wanting a fresh start, knowing how to factory reset iPhone without a computer is a valuable skill. While using a computer with ...
Gone are the days when communication was limited to landline phones and physical proximity. Today, computers have become powerful tools for connecting with people across the globe through voice and video calls. But with a plethora of applications and methods available, how to call someone on a computer might seem ...
Open access notables Glacial isostatic adjustment reduces past and future Arctic subsea permafrost, Creel et al., Nature Communications:Sea-level rise submerges terrestrial permafrost in the Arctic, turning it into subsea permafrost. Subsea permafrost underlies ~ 1.8 million km2 of Arctic continental shelf, with thicknesses in places exceeding 700 m. Sea-level variations over glacial-interglacial cycles control ...
The operating system (OS) is the heart and soul of a computer, orchestrating every action and interaction between hardware and software. But have you ever wondered where on a computer is the operating system generally stored? The answer lies in the intricate dance between hardware and software components, particularly within ...
Laptops have become essential tools for work, entertainment, and communication, offering portability and functionality. However, with rising energy costs and growing environmental concerns, understanding a laptop’s power consumption is more important than ever. So, how many watts does a laptop use? The answer, unfortunately, isn’t straightforward. It depends on several ...
Screen recording has become an essential tool for various purposes, such as creating tutorials, capturing gameplay footage, recording online meetings, or sharing information with others. Fortunately, Dell laptops offer several built-in and external options for screen recording, catering to different needs and preferences. This guide will explore various methods on ...
A cracked or damaged laptop screen can be a frustrating experience, impacting productivity and enjoyment. Fortunately, laptop screen repair is a common service offered by various repair shops and technicians. However, the cost of fixing a laptop screen can vary significantly depending on several factors. This article delves into the ...
Gaming laptops represent a significant investment for passionate gamers, offering portability and powerful performance for immersive gaming experiences. However, a common concern among potential buyers is their lifespan. Unlike desktop PCs, which allow for easier component upgrades, gaming laptops have inherent limitations due to their compact and integrated design. This ...
The annual inventory report of New Zealand's greenhouse gas emissions has been released, showing that gross emissions have dropped for the third year in a row, to 78.4 million tons: All-told gross emissions have decreased by over 6 million tons since the Zero Carbon Act was passed in 2019. ...
Experiencing a locked computer can be frustrating, especially when you need access to your files and applications urgently. The methods to unlock your computer will vary depending on the specific situation and the type of lock you encounter. This guide will explore various scenarios and provide step-by-step instructions on how ...
While the world has largely transitioned to digital communication, faxing still holds relevance in certain industries and situations. Fortunately, gone are the days of bulky fax machines and dedicated phone lines. Today, you can easily send and receive faxes directly from your computer, offering a convenient and efficient way to ...
In our increasingly digital world, home computers have become essential tools for work, communication, entertainment, and more. However, this increased reliance on technology also exposes us to various cyber threats. Understanding these threats and taking proactive steps to protect your home computer is crucial for safeguarding your personal information, finances, ...
In the ever-evolving world of technology, server-based computing has emerged as a cornerstone of modern digital infrastructure. This article delves into the concept of server-based computing, exploring its various forms, benefits, challenges, and its impact on the way we work and interact with technology. Understanding Server-Based Computing: At its core, ...
The absolute brass neck of this guy.We want more medical doctors, not more spin doctors, Luxon was saying a couple of weeks ago, and now we’re told the guy has seven salaried adults on TikTok duty. Sorry, doing social media. The absolute brass neck of it. The irony that the ...
Buzz from the Beehive Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones relishes spatting and eagerly takes issue with environmentalists who criticise his enthusiasm for resource development. He relishes helping the fishing industry too. And so today, while the media are making much of the latest culling in the public service to ...
Having written, taught and worked for the US government on issues involving unconventional warfare and terrorism for 30-odd years, two things irritate me the most when the subject is discussed in public. The first is the Johnny-come-lately academics-turned-media commentators who … Continue reading → ...
Eric Crampton writes – Kainga Ora is the government’s house building agency. It’s been building a lot of social housing. Kainga Ora has its own (but independent) consenting authority, Consentium. It’s a neat idea. Rather than have to deal with building consents across each different territorial authority, Kainga Ora ...
Muriel Newman writes – The Coalition Government says it is moving with speed to deliver campaign promises and reverse the damage done by Labour. One of their key commitments is to “defend the principle that New Zealanders are equal before the law.” To achieve this, they have pledged they “will not advance ...
Chris Trotter writes – The absence of anything resembling a fightback from the public servants currently losing their jobs is interesting. State-sector workers’ collective fatalism in the face of Coalition cutbacks indicates a surprisingly broad acceptance of impermanence in the workplace. Fifty years ago, lay-offs in the thousands ...
Mariupol, on the Azov Sea coast, was one of the first cities to suffer almost complete destruction after the start of the Ukraine War started in late February 2022. We remember the scenes of absolute destruction of the houses and city structures. The deaths of innocent civilians – many of ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – Ten years ago, I wrote the following in a Listener column: Every year around one in five new-born babies will be reliant on their caregivers benefit by Christmas. This pattern has persisted from at least 1993. For Maori the number jumps to over one in three. ...
Climate change is expected to generate more and more extreme events, delivering a sort of structural shock to inflation that central banks will have to react to as if they were short-term cyclical issues. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMy pick of the six newsey things to know from Aotearoa’s ...
It’s a simple deal. We pay taxes in order to finance the social services we want and need. The carnage now occurring across the public sector though, is breaking that contract. Over 3,000 jobs have been lost so far. Many are in crucial areas like Education where the impact of ...
Hi,A friend had their 40th over the weekend and decided to theme it after Curb Your Enthusiasm fashion icon Susie Greene. Captured in my tiny kitchen before I left the house, I ending up evoking a mix of old lesbian and Hillary Clinton — both unintentional.Me vs Hillary ClintonIf you’re ...
This is a re-post from Andrew Dessler at the Climate Brink blogIn 2023, the Earth reached temperature levels unprecedented in modern times. Given that, it’s reasonable to ask: What’s going on? There’s been lots of discussions by scientists about whether this is just the normal progression of global warming or if something ...
The schools are on holiday and the sun is shining in the seaside village and all day long I have been seeing bunches of bikes; Mums, Dads, teens and toddlers chattering, laughing, happy, having a bloody great time together. Cheers, AT, for the bits of lane you’ve added lately around the ...
Today in our National-led authoritarian nightmare: Shane Jones thinks Ministers should be above the law: New Zealand First MP Shane Jones is accusing the Waitangi Tribunal of over-stepping its mandate by subpoenaing a minister for its urgent hearing on the Oranga Tamariki claim. The tribunal is looking into the ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Politicians across the political spectrum are implicated in the New Zealand media’s failing health. Either through neglect or incompetent interventions, successive governments have failed to regulate, foster, and allow a healthy Fourth Estate that can adequately hold politicians and the powerful to account. ...
Citizen Science writes – Last week saw two significant developments in the debate over the treatment of trans-identifying children and young people – the release in Britain of the final report of Dr Hilary Cass’s review into gender healthcare, and here in New Zealand, the news that the ...
One night while sleeping in my bed I had a beautiful dreamThat all the people of the world got together on the same wavelengthAnd began helping one anotherNow in this dream, universal love was the theme of the dayPeace and understanding and it happened this wayAfter such an eventful day ...
This is a guest post by Oscar Simms who is a housing activist, volunteer for the Coalition for More Homes, and was the Labour Party candidate for Auckland Central at the last election. ...
Turning what Labour called the “holiday highway” into a four-lane expressway from Auckland to Whangarei could bring at least an economic benefit of nearly two billion a year for Northland each year. And it could help bring an end to poverty in one of New Zealand’s most deprived regions. The ...
Tonight’s six-stack includes: launching his substack with a bunch of his previous documentaries, including this 1992 interview with Dame Whina Cooper. and here crew give climate activists plenty to do, including this call to submit against the Fast Track Approvals bill. writes brilliantly here on his substack ...
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 ...
You're in the mall when you hear it: some kind of popping sound in the distance, kids with fireworks, maybe. But then a moment of eerie stillness is followed by more of the fireworks sound and there’s also screaming and shrieking and now here come people running for their lives.Does ...
Karl du Fresne writes – There’s a crisis in the news media and the media are blaming it on everyone except themselves. Culpability is being deflected elsewhere – mainly to the hapless Minister of Communications, Melissa Lee, and the big social media platforms that are accused of hoovering ...
I don’t normally send out two newsletters in a day but I figured I’d say something about… the news. If two newsletters is a bit much then maybe just skip one, I don’t want to overload people. Alternatively if you’d be interested in sometimes receiving multiple, smaller updates from me, ...
Buzz from the Beehive David Seymour and Winston Peters today signalled that at least two ministers of the Crown might be in Wellington today. Seymour (as Associate Minister of Education) announced the removal of more red tape, this time to make it easier for new early learning services to be ...
Politicians across the political spectrum are implicated in the New Zealand media’s failing health. Either through neglect or incompetent interventions, successive governments have failed to regulate, foster, and allow a healthy Fourth Estate that can adequately hold politicians and the powerful to account. Our political system is suffering from the ...
David Farrar writes – The Broadcasting Standards Authority ruled: Comments by radio host Kate Hawkesby suggesting Māori and Pacific patients were being prioritised for surgery due to their ethnicity were misleading and discriminatory, the Broadcasting Standards Authority has found. It is a fact such patients are prioritised. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
The Government’s newly announced review of methane emissions reduction targets hints at its desire to delay Aotearoa New Zealand’s urgent transition to a climate safe future, the Green Party said. ...
The Government must commit to the Maitai School building project for students with high and complex needs, to ensure disabled students from the top of the South Island have somewhere to learn. ...
Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey and his Government colleagues have made a meal of their mental health commitments, showing how flimsy their efforts to champion the issue truly are, says Labour Mental Health spokesperson Ingrid Leary. ...
Māori are yet to see anything from this Government except cuts, reversals and taking our people backwards, Māori Development spokesperson Willie Jackson said. ...
The Coalition Government’s refusal to commit to ongoing funding for social housing is seeing the sector pull back on developments and families watch their dreams of securing a home fade away, says Labour Housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty. ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
Refreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...
Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson is speaking at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide, promoting New Zealand wool, and outlining the coalition Government’s support for the revitalisation the sector. "New Zealand’s wool exports reached $400 million in the year to 30 June 2023, and the coalition Government ...
The Government is making legislative changes to make it easier for new early learning services to be established, and for existing services to operate, Associate Education Minister David Seymour says. The changes involve repealing the network approval provisions that apply when someone wants to establish a new early learning service, ...
Changes to the Resource Management Act will align consenting for coal mining to other forms of mining to reduce barriers that are holding back economic development, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The inconsistent treatment of coal mining compared with other extractive activities is burdensome red tape that fails to acknowledge ...
Trade, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Todd McClay has concluded productive discussions with ministerial counterparts in Beijing today, in support of the New Zealand-China trade and economic relationship. “My meeting with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao reaffirmed the complementary nature of the bilateral trade relationship, with our Free Trade Agreement at its ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today paid tribute to Singapore’s outgoing Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Meeting in Singapore today immediately before Prime Minister Lee announced he was stepping down, Prime Minister Luxon warmly acknowledged his counterpart’s almost twenty years as leader, and the enduring legacy he has left for Singapore and South East ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. While in Singapore as part of his visit to South East Asia this week, Prime Minister Luxon also met with Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and will meet with Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has made further appointments to the Board of Antarctica New Zealand as part of a continued effort to ensure the Scott Base Redevelopment project is delivered in a cost-effective and efficient manner. The Minister has appointed Neville Harris as a new member of the Board. Mr ...
Finance Minister Nicola Willis will travel to the United States on Tuesday to attend a meeting of the Five Finance Ministers group, with counterparts from Australia, the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. “I am looking forward to meeting with our Five Finance partners on how we can work ...
The coalition Government has today announced purrfect and pawsitive changes to the Residential Tenancies Act to give tenants with pets greater choice when looking for a rental property, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Pets are important members of many Kiwi families. It’s estimated that around 64 per cent of New ...
State Highway 1 (SH1) through Wellington City is heavily congested at peak times and while planning continues on the duplicate Mt Victoria Tunnel and Basin Reserve project, the Government has also asked NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) to consider and provide advice on a Long Tunnel option, Transport Minister Simeon Brown ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Foreign Minister Winston Peters have condemned Iran’s shocking and illegal strikes against Israel. “These attacks are a major challenge to peace and stability in a region already under enormous pressure," Mr Luxon says. "We are deeply concerned that miscalculation on any side could ...
Hundreds of people in little over a week have turned out in Northland to hear Regional Development Minister Shane Jones speak about plans for boosting the regional economy through infrastructure. About 200 people from the infrastructure and associated sectors attended an event headlined by Mr Jones in Whangarei today. Last ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti has today thanked outgoing Health New Zealand – Te Whatu Ora Chair Dame Karen Poutasi for her service on the Board. “Dame Karen tendered her resignation as Chair and as a member of the Board today,” says Dr Reti. “I have asked her to ...
The NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has signalled their proposed delivery approach for the Government’s 15 Roads of National Significance (RoNS), with the release of the State Highway Investment Proposal (SHIP) today, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Boosting economic growth and productivity is a key part of the Government’s plan to ...
New Zealand is renewing its connections with a world facing urgent challenges by pursuing an active, energetic foreign policy, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “Our country faces the most unstable global environment in decades,” Mr Peters says at the conclusion of two weeks of engagements in Egypt, Europe and the United States. “We cannot afford to sit back in splendid ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced the Australian Governor-General, His Excellency General The Honourable David Hurley and his wife Her Excellency Mrs Linda Hurley, will make a State visit to New Zealand from Tuesday 16 April to Thursday 18 April. The visit reciprocates the State visit of former Governor-General Dame Patsy Reddy ...
Associate Health Minister David Seymour has announced that Medsafe has approved 11 cold and flu medicines containing pseudoephedrine. Pharmaceutical suppliers have indicated they may be able to supply the first products in June. “This is much earlier than the original expectation of medicines being available by 2025. The Government recognised ...
New Zealand and the United States have recommitted to their strategic partnership in Washington DC today, pledging to work ever more closely together in support of shared values and interests, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The strategic environment that New Zealand and the United States face is considerably more ...
April 11, 2024 Joint Declaration by United States Secretary of State the Honorable Antony J. Blinken and New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs the Right Honourable Winston Peters We met today in Washington, D.C. to recommit to the historic partnership between our two countries and the principles that underpin it—rule ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Duckett, Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne iamharin/Shutterstock For many people, the term “bulk billed” refers to a GP visit they don’t have to pay ...
Emmas Hislop, Sidnam and Wehipeihana discuss what’s in a name. Emma Sidnam: Hello Emmas! Thank you so much for agreeing to do this with me. My first question for you is related to what’s been on my mind for a while. It’s very important. You see we’ve recently had some ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Sievers, Research Fellow, Global Wetlands Project, Australia Rivers Institute, Griffith University Chris Brown Humans love the coast. But we love it to death, so much so we’ve destroyed valuable coastal habitat – in the case of some types of habitat, ...
Josh Thomson on the 80s milk ad jingle he can’t stop singing, the beauty of The Simpsons, why Jersey Shore is as good as Shakespeare and more. For someone who spends a lot of time on our screens, popping up in everything from 7 Days to Taskmaster, Educators to Good ...
In apparent defiance of the Biden administration, the Netanyahu government has now initiated missile strikes against Iran. Last Saturday night (Sunday morning in New Zealand) Iran launched more than 300 drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles against Israeli military targets. With the assistance of US, UK and possibly French forces, ...
Māori representation brings a perspective that encompasses not only the interests of Māori communities but also a broader, holistic approach to environmental stewardship and community well-being, principles deeply embedded in Te Ao Māori (the Māori ...
This week in Auckland, a group of young people took over the microphone at a ministerial press conference, to explain why they oppose the Fast-Track Approvals Bill. One young woman said, ‘We’re here because we love Aotearoa New Zealand. We want to raise our children in an environment that’s thriving, ...
The summer was wonderful. Evie was wonderful, too; finally a teenager, finally worthy of long, hot days. She shaved her legs for the first time and bought cut-off shorts from the op-shop that made them look long. She got a Warehouse singlet so tight on her new shape that her ...
When Thomas James was on his solo camp as part of Outward Bound, the keen outdoorsman didn’t find it too challenging, as others often do. In what might just be the perfect illustration of his character, he saw it as a great opportunity to solve a few problems. “I thought, ...
From the unstable and drippy to the hi-tech and pretty, here’s our ranking of all the tunnels you can drive through in this country. The first tunnel seems to have been built in 2200BC in Babylonia, kicking off a global phenomenon for digging holes in order to get places more ...
Lucinda Bennett on the art of being greedy but resourceful. This is an excerpt from our weekly food newsletter, The Boil Up. When I picture the market, it is always this time of year. Crisp air, dripping nose, counting coins with cold fingers. Sunlight pale, filtered through specks of dew still ...
Zoë Colling’s favourite piece in the ‘That’s So Last Century’ collection is a lubrication chart for a sewing machine from the ’60s. It’s about the size of a postcard, and carefully maintained. “I like it that this piece of ephemera highlights that manual and technical side of the skill involved ...
Kia Ora Gaza A passionate haka reverberated through Auckland International Airport as a medical team of three New Zealand doctors received an emotional farewell from a big crowd of supporters before flying to Turkey to join the international Freedom Flotilla to Gaza. The doctors, who left Auckland yesterday, hope to ...
With submissions closing today, Macassey-Pickard says groups around the country have been supporting a huge range of people to make their submissions. ...
Our response to the new legislation is informed by targeted conversations with practitioners working in the system and through an implementation lens. ...
The new ‘Fast-track Approvals Bill’ would give just three Ministers the power to approve or deny development projects. They would avoid the usual checks and balances that are in place to protect rivers, land, the ocean, and communities. ...
COMMENTARY:By Eugene Doyle Helen Clark, how I miss you. The former New Zealand Prime Minister — the safest pair of hands this country has had in living memory — gave a masterclass on the importance of maintaining an independent foreign policy when she spoke at an AUKUS symposium held ...
The government's released the list of organisations provided with information on how to apply - just hours before public submissions on the bill close. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Milton Speer, Visiting Fellow, School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, University of Technology Sydney Before climate change really got going, eastern Australia’s flash floods tended to concentrate on our coastal regions, east of the Great Dividing Range. But that’s changing. Now ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Elizabeth Finkel, Vice-Chancellor’s Fellow, La Trobe University Sia Duff / South Australian Museum In February, the South Australian Museum “re-imagined” itself. In the face of rising costs and inadequate government funds, CEO David Gaimster, who took the reins last June, declared ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alan Pearce, Professor, School of Allied Heath, Human Services & Sport, La Trobe University, La Trobe University This week, Collingwood AFL player Nathan Murphy announced his retirement, brought on by his concussion history and ongoing issues. The 24-year-old’s seemingly sudden retirement, ...
The Mental Health Foundation provides support and resources for those facing the loss of their job, so it’s wrong in the very week the Government adds another 1000 jobs to its tally of cuts, that this is happening. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexander Howard, Senior Lecturer, Discipline of English and Writing, University of Sydney Daniel Boud/Sydney Theatre Company Decay, terror, revulsion. These are three of the central themes of Thomas Bernhard’s rarely performed play The President. The Austrian is one of the greatest ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says threats by ministers Shane Jones and David Seymour to reform or close down the Waitangi Tribunal were “ill-considered”, as legal experts say the ministers may have breached Cabinet Manual conventions. “I think those comments are ill-considered and we expect all ministers to actually exercise good ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ye In (Jane) Hwang, Postdoctoral Research Associate at School of Population Health, UNSW Sydney Shutterstock You’d be hard pressed to find any aspect of daily life that doesn’t require some form of digital literacy. We need only to look back ten ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rob Newton, Professor of Exercise Medicine, Edith Cowan University Pexels/RDNE stock project You’re not in your 20s or 30s anymore and you know regular health checks are important. So you go to your GP. During the appointment they measure your waist. ...
A new poem by Evangeline Riddiford Graham. Mitochondrial Problem I. It was long drive to Kansas for the man and his dog but you have to understand he said She doesn’t fly. Which calls to mind not carsick shitting barking or whining but a dog who chooses not to as ...
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 Hemingway’s Goblet by Dermot Ross (Mary Egan Publishing, $38)Hot off the press, this debut ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laura Wajnryb McDonald, PhD candidate in Criminology, University of Sydney Less than 24 hours after Ashlee Good was murdered in Bondi Junction, her family released a statement requesting the media take down photographs they had reproduced of Ashlee and her family without ...
Chief executive Shaun Robinson said it has not had any government funding cut, but government-funded contracts have not kept pace with rising costs. ...
The Ministry of Health has delayed the release of its evidence brief on the safety, reversibility and mental health and wellbeing outcomes for puberty blockers. While we wait, Julia de Bres speaks to those with firsthand experience. Best practice gender-affirming healthcare is based on trans people’s self-determination and agency. The ...
Barcelona’s city streets have gone from traffic-clogged to pedestrian-friendly. How? Superblocks. Ellen Rykers explains. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week I read a great interview with renowned urbanist Janette Sadik-Khan by The Spinoff’s Wellington editor Joel MacManus: “You can reimagine streets, ...
Student groups ‘Climate Action VUW’, Schools Strike 4 Climate and VUWSA will be on the street in Wellington today, the last day for submissions on the Fast-track Approvals Bill, with a message that the fight against the Government’s ‘War on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sofia Ammassari, Research Fellow, Griffith University Since 2014, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popularity has grown exponentially – and so has the formidable organisational machine of his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). These two factors will be key to delivering the BJP a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brendon Hyndman, Associate Professor of Education (Adjunct) & Senior Manager (BCE), Charles Sturt University During COVID almost all Australian students and their families experienced online learning. But while schools have long since gone back to in-person teaching, online learning has not gone ...
Yes, they’re better for the environment. No, that’s not a good enough reason for me to use them. Once every 26 days or so, my period arrives, and if struck by an act of God, I am caught red-crotched without products. How, after 17 years of this, do I still ...
“It will cause significant harm to our environment and communities. It is completely at odds with New Zealanders’ relationship with nature and our need for a low-carbon, sustainable economic future." ...
The Chair of the National Maori Authority, Matthew Tukaki, has warned a Parliamentary Select Committee that fast-tracking legislation is a perilous practice that undermines the core tenets of democracy, transparency, and accountability. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Tenbensel, Associate Professor, Health Policy, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau Getty Images Since coming into power, the coalition government has adopted a simple but shrewd see-how-fast-we-can-move political strategy. However, in the health sector this need for speed entails ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anastasia Hronis, Clinical Psychologist, University of Technology Sydney Darya Sannikova/Pexels Whether you’re watching TV, attending a footy game, or eating a meal at your local pub, gambling is hard to escape. Although the rise of gambling is not unique to Australia, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Wong, Forrest Fellow, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia Have you ever wondered if there are more insects out at night than during the day? We set out to answer this question by combing through the scientific ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Carol T Kulik, Research Professor, University of South Australia IR Stone/Shutterstock In Australia, it’s not the done thing to know – let alone ask – what our colleagues are paid. Yet, it’s easy to see how pay transparency can make pay ...
The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) is sounding a warning to migrants, that running foul of the law may see them leaving the country prematurely. ...
The government’s plan to get 50,000 people off jobseeker support by 2030 has had a rocky start, writes Catherine McGregor in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. Beneficiary numbers are up – and so are ...
Raglan Roast is a staple of Wellington coffee culture. But with five branches across the capital, which one is the best? I am a die-hard Raglan Roast fan. It’s consistently the most affordable cafe in Wellington, and one of the only places you can get a coffee after 3pm. So, ...
Residents of University of Auckland halls are being urged to withhold their accommodation fees from May 1, in a bid to force the university to take student concerns over rent hikes seriously.The University of Auckland is facing a strike from students over the cost of on-campus accommodation. The Students ...
The thousands of government “back-office” job cuts are causing widespread pain in the capital city. In today’s episode of The Detail, we speak to three journalists and a think tank researcher, looking at the larger picture around the cuts and what effect it will have on Wellington, a city that’s ...
Opinion: The famed American architect and urban designer Daniel Burnham once said, “Make no little plans. They have no magic to stir men’s blood!” Burnham wouldn’t have been referring to the transport plans in Aotearoa New Zealand over the past five years; projects so big they hadn’t the credibility to ...
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[quiz],DIV[quiz],A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp'); Got a good quiz question?Send Newsroom your questions. The post Newsroom daily quiz, Friday 19 April appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Opinion: With maths understanding at 42 percent for Year 8 students, there’s no doubt something has to be done. But how? The post Financial literacy should be on all of us appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Hineaupounamu ‘Missy’ Nuku has been scaling mountains in Canada for her college basketball team, the Lakeland Rustlers. Alberta is currently home for the 20-year-old point guard, who is in her first year of a scholarship at Lakeland College, where she is studying for a business degree. She has certainly made ...
New Zealand and the Philippines have signed a new maritime security agreement and stated their concerns over activity in the South China Sea, as Chinese vessels continue to flout international law. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Philippines President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos committed to signing a Mutual Logistics Supporting Arrangement by ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra When ASIO boss Mike Burgess delivered his annual threat assessment earlier this year, he stressed the rising danger posed by espionage and foreign interference. “In 2024, threats to our way of life have surpassed ...
reading the comments on the daily review about the guy who 'only left his room to take the elevator to go to the smoking box' but he did as he told?
Question: how can one keep 2 meters distance in an elevator and in a smokers box?
And how can leaving your room be considered 'doing as i was told' or are we to believe that they were told that mingling in elevators and tiny rooms is akin to 'keeping two meters distance at all times'? (and as an ex smoker myself i spend my fair share in 'smokes cubicles' there is no way he could have maintained safe distance)
Maybe you know, its not the government so much as really it is entitled kiwis coming back not giving a shit?
Seriously, i am happy to complain about the government (irrespective of the party who runs it), but this to me is more an issue of people blatantly ingnoring the rules, behaving irresponsibly, and heck i am at this point where really can the government hand the handling and managing of returning kiwis and quarantine requirement over to the Military? They have the resources to build temporary housing (tent stylez i don't care), have cooks and mobile kitchens, have doctors and nurses at hand and so on and so forth and surely no one would manage to leave the premises, not even for a smoke. Granted it ain't the Ibis but it seems that so far they don't seem to be happy with that either?
Time for some tough love?
I'm just amazed at this, during lockdown while shopping people were avoiding each other as best we could, there was no police or army telling us what to do, yet these new arrivals need their hands held. Maybe education needs to be ramped up?
yes, that is my issue i have.
Surely they were given advise on how to behave, they were told to 'self manage' as responsible adults / parents should/ would and they gave no shits, and now are complaining that the government did not lock them into their rooms with a guard on the outside.
Fuck, build the quarantine tents, put them up, and let the Military take care of them. Then they will have something to complain about.
But they actually endangered others to get a smoke, a drink or some outside action. Fuck em.
The way I see it, there are basically three categories of people of unequal size:
toldasked what to do, who often feel patronised, e.g. by a young(er)womanperson, and who will often do the opposite of the request even if it is to their own detriment and/or that of others.I recall being taught in primary school that "four into three doesn't go". 😉 However your fourth category does seem remarkably like National supporters!
I like the notion that the public can be subdivided into behavioural categories for the purpose of policy implementation. It would make govt operations more sophisticated than the `one plan fits all approach' – if it works in practice.
Your forgetting absentminded fools who want to do the right thing but are capable of getting to fridge and have know idea why! So need nice big signs and lots of reminders on what behaviors are needed.
Too true bwaghorn about reverting to default. Ever meant to go somewhere and pick up/drop off something away from the usual route, and go right by the turnoff? What a turn-off. So allowing for reminders to be up and about all the time will be necessary. There is an aspect to my mind which will 'remember' things in a faulty fashion, that suits my preference – the appointment was at 9am not 9.30 etc.
No. 3 of ianmac needs to include good information and explanation provided then —people use their sound judgment (that is necessary as explained), and do the appropriate thing.
I like to know why myself, not just to be herded, in the normal way. Thinking about returning kiwis, they probably left with the belief that NZ was backward and they being bright, were leaving for better opportunities. They might want to kick up now they are back, and not at first realise that we have lots of good practices for which they need to be thankful. And then conform to requirements of the country and community where they have returned to seek sanctuary.
Theyactually need to humble themselves and be grateful and willing to fit into the community, these smart alises/aleks (the letter changed to avoid personal identification). And realise that the cutthroat economic system that they have been operating under overse they will experience here. Most of us will have lost part of our heritage of a decent life in a pleasant country with opportunities for social mobility for all, through the workings of the neolib/freemarket economy that has churned out wealth from its machine-minds at great cost to many.
That’s why I highly recommend a separate beer & wine fridge with a big sign: Take Three Times Daily. I usually lose count at three.
I forgot to ask: now that hydroxychloroquine isn't the miracle cure anymore, can I ease back my G&Ts from 300 a day?
It was never touted as a cure but as a preventative. I would stick to your daily dose of 300 G & Ts because you’re almost guaranteed to not catch the virus through encounters with others.
Good thinking.
Cheers
Incognito, Mine is a wine. Usually two, but if the poll is good for Labour and the Greens I may indulge
There are also the people who will mingle with other smokers for two weeks, knowing thatisolation cohorts are mixing in the smokers room even though the lifts are controlled, but not raise it with anyone that there's a hole in the system.
Stupidity needs to be accounted for – double-fence accessible exercise areas, with the separation distance between the fences.
Have a small smoking area for each cohort. Make it a room on each floor if you have to – covid is a far bigger hazard than passive smoking at this stage. No lifts, no excuse to leave the floor without a scheduled appointment or exercise session.
Smoking is known to affect brain function and is thought to play a role in cerebral atherosclerosis. There are also studies that have shown an inverse correlation between smoking and IQ although it is unclear whether this points to a causative relationship and, if so, in what direction.
lol if only "notice, and bitch about, obvious hazard, but never report it to anyone in a position to deal with that hazard" was restricted to smokers.
Had that in a security job – folks had to provide their own footwear (we were arguing this with bosses), chap stepped on a board and a nail went through his shoe (just missed his toes). Bitched about it a few days later, I asked "did you file a hazard?" Nope. Guy almost had a nail through his foot, but never told anyone in management or OSH or HR even though he bitched about it in the tearoom.
They got a bit better after a few months – someone slipped on ice, filed a report, everyone had company-bought yaktraks the next day.
Absolutely.
Let's not lose perspective though. Thousands have gone through this process without crying to the National Party, the Media, or anyone else that would listen. So we are left with a relatively small number of complete plonkers who fall into the first and fourth category in Incognito's concise summary at 1.1.1.1
(which is 1st class in every sense)
Some in the media are using the term 'hostility' when writing about kiwi's attitude to returning nationals. No, it's not that. It's "Kia ora and welcome home. Please do as you are told and follow instructions to the letter. Don't sweat the small stuff. Do your time and enjoy it. See you on the other side"
James challenges Winston's credibility (rather well): https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/300041542/james-shaw-says-nz-first-are-breaching-their-coalition-agreement-by-axing-light-rail-plan
Weasel words, Winston! Claiming that a contract commitment says something different to what it actually says may be standard practice for a lawyer, but is unlikely to impress the average kiwi.
diclaimer: i have never voted NZFirst and don't plan on it.
but from March this year:
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12336167
Last year Peters also raised concerns about cost blowouts for the project, which has been estimated to cost $6 billion.
i mean, heck , a billion here a billion there and sure you are talking about shitloads of petty cash that the taxpayer has to come up with.
to boot a slow effn train to the airport? there are already trains going to Mangere so essentially we only needed to build an extention to the Airport from Mangere. Or is that too easy and not sexy enough.
Maybe the issue is not so much Winston Peters and the points that he raised for a while now, but rather that the government over promised on something not too many are keen other then the people who most likely will never use the 'slow train' aka the polititians.
Also in this current climate where tourists might not be coming anytime soon, and we have different more pressing needs for the money taxpayers can actually raise this is a pure vanity project that serves no one.
As for the greens, sorry dudes – lets hold a referendum about this – let the people of NZ vote if they want to provide the funds to build a Tram to the Airport at a cost of somewhere 6 – 10 billion plus. Without any added Gummibears.
added, if a heavy train station / stop at the airport were to be build that could then also service trains coming from Hamilton etc, or are we next gonna build a Tram to the airport from Hamilton? Or is that future thinking and that is also not something we want to discuss right now?
I prefer the rail extension to the airport and light rail for Dominion Road where it is needed.
That would make sense.
The ariport needs heavy rail to actually allow others to travel there by train rather then car.
So maybe Winston has a point, and that is what upsets the others suits so.
The issue is: No plan only vested interests. Clear to see if anyone wants to look.
I actually will vote for Winston this election if he stands as he is at the moment – very surprisingly – the only sane voice I hear.
Otherwise, a lot of molly cotton political correct BS, or stirring the proverbial is all that is on offer right now.
No plan, no idea how to get a frame work in place that gets businesses attracted and bound to rules, environmental issues considered, future proof (science, facts) for production, farming implemented and for once haunt this in the same way as remiss beneficiaries. Instead we have major issues such as Auckland running out of water – I am curious, is someone pumping the aquifer for exporting water? This would lower the table and in the end may rise salinity. Now there is a thought.
As for rail, get all the trucks off the road and onto rail, you will be surprised at the cost factor and environmental positive impact. This is a proven concept, but hay – did I mention vested interests?
Toby Manhire's editorial view of David Clark: https://thespinoff.co.nz/politics/25-06-2020/david-clark-is-not-responsible/
Jeez, who knew?? We've had years of National/Labour ministers claiming the opposite. Okay, they'd all dismiss Mallard as just being Mallard, but what if he's right??
I suspect that, when he was supposed to attend the training session in which he was to be taught how to be vicarious, he was off mountain-biking.
So why has only one PM resigned (Lange) because they have lost confidence in their Ministers ability to do the right thing.
After all resigning because of vicarious responsibility is really because of loss of trust in those in the ministry to provide operational delivery.
In this instance Clark had confidence in Bloomfield to sort it (albeit it involving transfer of facility oversight to the Housing Minister – as in procurement of accommodation)
Perhaps Lange was honourable & the others not? But what the govt web-page neglects is an explanation how those responsibilities are enacted. Elsewhere? Or left to the discretion of the ministers themselves? I suspect the latter.
So it's just another left/right sham, probably. Traditional establishment collusion to hoodwink the public. Pretend to do the right thing, then evade the necessity…
I looked at Clark being interviewed and I think he didn't look to be in a good place. Yes he should have taken responsibility but his credit is very low at the moment and he probably fears calls for his head.
I was the first to denonce his actions when he breached lockdown. But I posted earlier that he has got a lot of gains for health. Cancer agency and new radiology machines, hospital site for Dunedin and project office (after god knows how many years of nothing). increasing budget for Pharmac. And billions of dollars for mental health. Also if he should be taking responsibility for the operational failing, then he must be due some credit for the success of our Covid response………it must work both ways. After I posted the above gains on an earlier postt Ad provided me with some links about health outcomes. Maybe its me but it didn't quite seem relevant. I then looked on the Dept of stats website and I couldnt't see health outcome material that would relate to the vast number of improvements this govt has made. The reality is improving health outcomes has a very, very long tail and things like mental health may not show much improvement at all in the context of Covid and mass unemployment.
I am sick of the beat up on Clark. He paid his penalty for the lockdown breach. I agree he should have taken responsibility for the stuff up at the border. But he looks to be a man under extraordinary pressure. And if he should take responsibility for the stuff up then he also deserves credit and high praise for how the Covid response has gone.
I think this govt is carrying a massive burden at the moment and the hysterical attempt by the National Party to wins votes only adds to the pressure. I hope NZders see through them
Yes. It is a part of the overall strategy of attack, attack, attack and no matter the consequences or even whether the claims are true. We're seeing it on a daily basis now and its hard to see them being able to keep it up for the next 90 days.
I watched live the segment of the inquiry where Clark responded to a question from Woodhouse, and I was not left with the impression he was… passing the buck to Bloomfield.
It could have been better expressed, but all he did was briefly reiterate what happened and pointed out Bloomfield had apologised. Which is true.
Newshub and O'Brien are doing their usual… playing gotcha politics.
You can't be responsible for things you can't control, otherwise any bloodyminded pisswit underling could force a resignation by acting like a perverse fukcknuckle.
You put it remarkably succinctly. 😉
100% Gabby "you can't be responsible for something you have no control"
If only Clark would show a bit of gumption and say that, but less diplomatically.
+1 esp. "And if he should take responsibility for the stuff up then he also deserves credit and high praise for how the Covid response has gone"
I have never seen a politician appear on my twitter feed more than what I saw David Clark last night. The right were ripping into him, but the left were almost as equally outraged with his approach.
Regardless of the rights or wrongs about what he was saying regarding responsibility, the guy is fucking clueless with how his words were going to play out politically.
Clark has only been in the headlines during the covid crisis for the wrong reasons. Ashley has been the face that all kiwis tuned into on a daily basis because we all trusted him and his professional, non political, way of dealing with things. Clark humiliating Ashley was a disgrace
Clark is a political liability and Jacinda needs to remove him.
Meh.
He was set up to answer those questions with Bloomfield alongside him.
Total set up.
Then the media use Twitter response to this set up to have another go.
It’s a lynch mob demonstrating their power to manipulate the public.
It's revenge for being unpopular when Ardern and Bloomfield were the go to people. Now they are leveraging support for Bloomfield to get people angry at Clark – a National target. To take the PM down a peg or two, and glorify themsleves as the new heroes of the peoples safety. Just as National is doing. Talk about a corrupt alliance of glee club with dirty tricks reboot.
It's going to be hard to mistake MSM pretentiousness for responsibility after this. Maybe the future of the media estate should be with new start ups.
PS The whole scandal/operational failure issue is that officials did not apply it to those arriving before June 9. So the whole story is about how the media and government became aware of this – and so it was ultimately applied from June 16th, rather than the June 23rd track officials were on.
The old vast right wing conspiracy – riiiight got ya.
Vast? No, just the right ppl in the right places.
Well explained. Thanks SPC.
The "scandal" is the despicable attempt by the Opposition to use the pandemic as a political football without a jot of consideration for the people caught in the middle. I refer to the health workers and all the other sectors in society doing their best to keep Covid 19 out of the community, as well as the vast bulk of citizens doing their best to follow the rules and keep themselves safe.
Those in the media who are aiding and abetting the Nats are equally as obnoxious.
Personally, I would like to see Jacinda Ardern and co. deliver blistering attacks on their modus operandi and expose them for the self seeking irresponsible assholes they are proving to be.
The bloke is completely clueless and it makes the govt look weak he still has portfolios.
You just have to look at his interviews.
It is like Twyford on steroids.
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2020/06/health-minister-david-clark-definition-of-non-essential-worker-humiliated-ashley-bloomfield-todd-muller.html
Watch Chris Trotters comments from around 4:30. It's brutal.
I saw it this morning: Trotter & Sherson in accord all the way through. So refreshing when politicos cut the crap & tell it like it is. Viewers will be seriously impressed I bet (partisans will go straight into denial).
Will the PM tolerate her dead albatross health minister much longer? Not if she knows what's good for her. The stink has probably reached critical threshold. He's now making the Minister of Non-Delivery (Twyford) look good by comparison.
The PM, and a handful of very competent senior Ministers (Robertson, Woods) is carrying the others (Clark, Twyford, Lees-Galloway). Something has to give.
Interesting to hear the odious Gyles Beckford on RNZ this morning…
About what exactly – for being alive? Give us a hint please.
The Herald's early story is about 1000 people leaving managed isolation after their 14 days without being tested. This between June 9 and June 16.
And they add from yestersays Radio with Mike the agreement of Gorman with the Husk's own agreement with Muller their might be community transmission.
Be afraid is the mantra, feel threatened because the officials on the ground essentially at first interpreted the change from June 9, to only to apply to those who arrived after June 9.
However around 1000 people also left isolation between June 1 and June9 – when no testing was required and in those days Muller was saying go to Level 1 now there is no community spread.
On 8 June, the Prime Minister announced we were going to level 1:
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/418524/prime-minister-jacinda-ardern-reveals-move-to-level-1-from-midnight
"She said the country was ready, now 40 days since the last recorded case of community transmission, 26 days after entering alert level 2, 17 days since a new case, and less than 24 hours since having zero active cases recorded.
Ardern said New Zealanders did something "remarkable" by uniting in the fight against Covid-19, and had achieved one of the lowest rates per capita in the world.
"Now under level 1 you can if you want go back to your place of work." "
On that basis, the last recorded case of community transmission was on 29 April, now 57 days ago.
Now as I understand it, the aim of our border controls is to ensure that we do not get any further cases of community transmission.
Given that, do I care if over-worked and stressed employees of the Ministry of Health cannot tell me within an hour the number of visa holders in different categories who have entered New Zealand in the last 10 days, do I care if the taxpayer Onion have published Mullers master plan for the National Party under the heading of a Covid plan?
57 days of success? Yes I do care about that, but it would be nice to know that is is a valid number.
Are there any other key measures of success we have forgotten to tell people about?
Ed 1 key measures of success. I think the real evidence re community transmission is no one popping up in hospital/ICU. Even more than testing in the community this is where Covid in the community would appear……..I did a bit of research and the figure given was 20% of people with Covid need hospital care. Of course this can't be a definitive figure, but a useful guide. If NZ has community transmission we should have seen or will be seeing very soon hospital admissions
anker, I see community infection as not being the same as someone arriving with an infection, or catching the infection from their "bubble" while in quarantine. Yes some will need to be hospitalised, but I believe a key goal is to make sure that no-one catches covid19 from a person out in the community. There is a clear danger for staff and guards at quarantine properties – Victoria in Australia has apparently suffered from that, but if we get community transmission we may well have to go back to Level 2 (as Melbourne has done). So no, someone being admitted to hospital is almost expected from the thousands arriving in New Zealand from countries with infections at a higher level that here.
My question is whether we can celebrate 57 days without community infection?
Hi Ed 1 …..I meant no one in the hospital from the community. Eventually some of the border cases will need hospitalization
There is no community spread, we are two weeks into Level 1 if it was going to happen considering half the country went to the pub and a million went to sporting events and farmers markets and the movies victims would have presented by now.
I liked your comment last night Adrian, you are so right, NZ has (so far) successfully fought the spread of covid, people are scrambling to get back here because of this, the rest of us sucked it up for weeks, these newcomers should too.
Thanks IFL, but its just me reflecting the opinions of others I have spoken to recently from surprisingly, both sides of the political spectrum and as a long time arsehole it doesn't take much to arc me up when others arseholery becomes evident. I think it is going to quieten down pretty soon when the media realises they are on the wrong side of the Oh Woe Is Me faction.
The poll out tonight on TV1 will probably show a swing downwards for the Government but the Nat/media must take "credit" for any loss of confidence. Arseholery indeed.
I was just getting used to not dreading the next poll after about 11 years of depressing polls. I wonder how many people have forgotten over the last week what has been achieved and who by.
Yes achieved by THE Team of 5m. I hope you were not referring to a smaller sub team ?👍
For the Nats, any way that isn't straight down is a win right now.
I'd expect a few points up, below 35%, and Labour close to and probably no longer over 50%.
I'm mostly interested in what it does for the other party support.
What utter pants.
Any down swing with the Labour coalition will be through incompetence.
The whole country made a huge sacrifice for where we are only for the officials to cock-up their end.
And no amount of throwing workers under the bus with blame, changes the fact ultimately it is the coalitions responsibility.
eg a friend, Southland farmer, retired, union-hating blue-blue-blue through and through, full of praise for govt response and will probably vote for Jacinda this time round. Scathing of the behaviour of some returnees and constant bagging of Bloomfield et al
What is interesting at present (from the people I've been talking to) is that it feels like voters are making their minds up a whole lot earlier this election cycle.
Lots of time to reflect during the lockdowns? More interest in what is going on. The example of Trump, Johnson and other leaders dithering and blundering badly when under load.
I suspect that the reality that covid-19 brought is going to do nasty things to some kinds of populists. Those poll figures in the US are brutal (looks them up)
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/24/us/politics/trump-biden-poll-nyt-upshot-siena-college.html
Drat the numbers didn’t show
Biden 50%, Trump 36%, Other 14%
Dang, that's a helluva lead at this stage in their cycle.
Dukakis led the Elder Bush by 17 points in July 88.
Trump prophecy and statues to dead white people – and the reckons of white men who did not go to college. Too many of one and not enough of the other to save the Donald
The Economist has done some work on this too:
I think that it is 4-5 months out from the election there (November 3rd). Ummm here. 131 days.
I'm pretty sure that the probability of Clinton winning was pretty damn high then as well.
Look at the interactive chart from 538 down a bit on this page.
Not even going to mention the US Senate. The US system is seriously broken, ineffective, and just damn archaic.
"pretty sure that the probability of Clinton winning was pretty damn high"
True.
Much depends on whether much of Trump's support, which was previously off conventional radar, has since been identified.
I've been saying for years that the biggest problem with our democracy is that most people just don't have enough time to engage in it as they're too busy/tired from going to work. So, perhaps you're right. The lockdown has given more people the time to engage, time to think.
With some people, no matter how much time they’re given, it never lifts the quality of their thinking, as Chris Penk demonstrated with exquisite clarity.
I agree regarding opinions of others, just listening in to others in the staffroom people are pissed off with the people breaking the rules and whining, not the Govt.
That's the feeling around these parts too, some tory work colleagues share the same sentiment.
One of mum's tory friends even told her they are with-holding their annual generous donation this election because of the lack of leadership in the national party. Mum almost fell off her seat, because her friend is blue to the core.
The Herald and Newshub are gunning for the Health Minister Clark for stating a fact they do not like.
He said that the head of the Health Ministry Bloomfield had accepted responsibility for the release of people from managed isolation without testing post June 9 (as he has as head of the ministry). Apparently saying this in front of Bloomfield was supposed to be brutal – Tova O’B and spineless according to some anonymous Herald headline writer (now that is cowardly).
Then the intellectual affront to the left Chris Trotter says the PM has 24 hours to rid herself of the Minister – why because we are in a post truth age?
It seems Trotter is the go to guy for backing up every media beat-up going round, Hooton will be loving his stooge brother in arms.
Stuff is no better
Instead, he’s shifted blame to director-general of health Ashley Bloomfield. On Wednesday, Clark continued to blame Bloomfield, even while Bloomfield was in the room.
How exactly, the head of the ministry had already taken repsonsibility for it himself (the accusation in the quote is unattributed – no name to the story).
Do we have a MSM or just National attack blogs?
Was any National Minister asked to resign for the P homes lying empty and the cost of mitigation that was totally unneccesary?
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/300041875/david-clark-throws-ashley-bloomfield-under-the-bus-while-bloomfield-looks-on#comments
FFS, the MSM have yet to work out the reason why the officials were not testing those who arrived before June 9.
This
should have been quote form.
I think Bloomfield has explained this in recent pressers but it's too complicated for the reporters to understand and/or doesn't fit their narrative.
This is what Trotter says. He is not into being kind to Labour Ministers who can help to lose the election. We do want Labour to get in don't we or are some of us not up to facing truth and hard political reality (how many days till the election?)?.
Left-wing leaning political commentator Chris Trotter told The AM Show that the border bungle had hurt the Government.
"The one thing they had, the one shining moment in three years, was their handling of the COVID crisis and the last week, I cannot see how that hasn't put a massive dent in their public standing," he said.
Trotter then hit out at Clark and said Ardern shouldn't simply stand by.
"I thought the behaviour of David Clark in relation to Ashley Bloomfield was just shameful, absolutely shameful. I am sorry Jacinda, but if you let that stand for the next 24 hours, then it's going to come back on you, because a person like that should not be in his job."
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2020/06/health-minister-david-clark-s-behaviour-shameful-jacinda-ardern-needs-to-act-commentators.html
Trotter's judgement is unreliable.
Anyone who is so easily manipulated like an ordinary joe by that sort of media set up is way out of their depth on matters of political advice.
Chris is given the opportunity to appear on these shows because he will bag the left. Sure, he will try to nuance it in a way that suggests he wants Labour to do more and be more radical – but the the only thing that survives his flowery over-elaborations is the initial bagging. A truly left commentator with an uncompromising analysis of how money power actually works, won't get near these shows.
AB + 100. & the media really do take themselves quite seriously.
SPC
If you don’t get the whole of NZ is laughing and Clark and his gutless incompetence you and others here never will. Trotter is a realist not a blinkered fool. His political honesty is welcome after the politically blind comments as seen here.
Some of us are more easily manipulated than others.
Personally I regard Muller as auditioning for a role as a commentator on the Muppets – 4 weeks of people leaving their managed isolation without being tested under Level 2. His opinion then – there was no evidence of communty transmission so why are we not at Level 1 already.
One further week of people leaving without beign tested, and his belief is that there is community transmission.
He is no longer credible.
Pretending to believe there is suddently some sort of risk, to pander to crisis climate is not the service to the public but to himself and his party.
If he was a decent man, he is now Hooton's creature.
If Clark gets moved it gives the repeaters a win. Coming in after 3 terms of national was always the proverbial hospital pass even before covid.
Geez it's gonna be a fugly campaign based on the bs people are swallowing out there in godzone.
Granny has an uncredited piece which refers to Tova, Twitter and is clickbaited with 'stabbed in the back'.
Grans new role in the social media spectrum.
During the covid lockdown or other health emergency the Director of Health outranks even the Minister as he has more power at the behest of Government/Parliament not the minister directly. That is the understanding that I heard when he was elevated.
Dr Bloomfield and his team did a brilliant job.
As an aside, if you want to know who the arsehole is leaking bullshit and innuendo to the Opposition look no further than whoever it was who thought he/she was entitled to the job when Ashley was appointed DoH. Unfortunate acronym that.
Director-General of Health.
D-Gof H, Of course, writing while drinking tea not a good idea.
Add more sugar.
Too much sugar!
Yes Adrian, a case of "Shoulda been me" by Gorm less. "Nuff said!!"
Great to see Caruso-Cabrera get smashed by AOC for the 14th Congressional district.
All that big Wall Street money got glug-glugged by massive popular support.
Wake up and liberalise, Democrats!
Hang tough AOC.
That seat is now hers for as long as she wants it.
Jamaal Bowman is well ahead of 30 year incumbent Eliot "if I didn't have a primary, I wouldn't care" Engel.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/jamaal-bowman-eliot-engel-new-york-16th-district-democratic-primary-election/
Good.
In the 15th it looks like Ritchie Torres is going to take it, with Ruben Diaz Sr coming 3rd(who would fit better in the troglodyte faction of the Repugs). Sadly, this race yet again illustrates the far left's ability to abandon reason and attempt self-sabotage, but fortunately didn't succeed this time.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/ritchie-torres-wins-new-york-democratic-primary-15th-congressional-district_n_5ef2713bc5b609fdb728b767
In Kentucky, Amy McGrath looks comfortably ahead of Charlie Booker in the race to take on Bitch the Mean-age Mutant MAGA Turtle. Sure Booker is definitely left and McGrath is moderate, but c'mon far lefties, this is Kentucky we're talking about here. McGrath is a long shot as it is, d'ya really think someone like Booker has even a fart's chance in a thunderstorm?
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/kentucky-senate-primary-race-decide-who-challenges-mitch-mcconnell-too-n1231961
40 000 tested No community transmission. All those resources used and overloaded roads parking and laboratories. Thanks Muller and Woodhouse, yelling "Wolf" did that.
I wonder what the next "Urban Myth" from Woodhouse will be? "Baited breath!!" NOT!!
Someone could draw Muller’s attention to “We don’t know how lucky we are” by John Clarke.
Let's hope labour grows a pair and takes woodhouse and the nats games apart here…nice and methodically.
Show the NZ public the value they're creating in these challenging times. Fit for govt material ?
If only we had some journalists to do some reporting.
Yes Patricia, and not a single word from the 2 main media outlets, stuff and The Herald who made the loudest noise over the homeless person, $100k spent on the investigation by the tax payer with no evidence of any homeless person being in the hotel, Woodhouse looked embarrassed on the TV when asked for some evidence to support the allegation and then Muller says he stands behind his minister, Woodhouse, so Muller disagrees with the outcome of the $100K investigation yet has zero evidence to discredit it.
This is a much bigger story than anything else circulating in the media today, yet, crickets.
On a lighter note …
With the TVNZ poll out tonight, let's look back at the last one, from May. Just for fun, here's a Quick Quiz:
10 people got 0.1% support (the lowest possible to be recorded in the poll) as preferred PM. Can you name any of these people (without looking them up)?
Clues: 4 of them are not in Parliament. 3 women, 7 men. Any guesses?
How's Julian Assange getting on I wondered?
https://www.axios.com/julian-assange-wikileaks-anonymous-fdf2f45a-06e3-4743-b685-97d9984ba2da.html
The Justice Department announced on Wednesday that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been charged in a superseding indictment for recruiting and conspiring with computer hackers, including those affiliated with the hacking groups LulzSec and "Anonymous."
Why it matters: The new indictment does not add new counts to the 18-count indictment filed against Assange under the Espionage Act last year, but it does "broaden the scope of the conspiracy surrounding alleged computer intrusions with which Assange was previously charged," according to the DOJ.
(Sounds as if they are trying to treat Assange as a nuisance, commercially motivated, hostile hacker against nation/s, rather than for revealing wrongs done – important difference.)
.
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-issues-new-indictment-against-wikileaks-founder-julian-assange-2020-06-24
https://thenewdaily.com.au/news/2020/06/21/julian-assange-fiancee-plea/
Assange didn’t appear via video link for his most recent court matter in London’s Westminster Magistrates’ Court in early June.
His defence team had emailed court that their client had “had respiratory problems for some time”, the court heard.
WikiLeaks confirmed Assange had been advised against going to the video conferencing room in Belmarsh prison by his doctors and was at high risk of contracting COVID-19 due to an underlying lung condition.
Assange is next scheduled to appear in court on June 29 for a routine call over.
“He’s very unwell and I’m very concerned about his ability to survive this,” Ms Moris said.
He’s not a criminal. He’s not a dangerous person. He’s a gentle intellectual, a thinker.”
Ms Moris, 37, said Assange was being kept alone in a tiny room and was “very depressed.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/419793/hawke-s-bay-water-rules-watered-down-despite-disagreement
Shades of Flint and money before public service. Decisions influenced by advancement for whom?
On Flint's fight for decent government provision and the dire response to obvious problems and health damage because of bad water policies.
See my earlier – https://thestandard.org.nz/daily-review-23-06-2020/#comment-1722123 from 23 June.
.
Recent 4 June 2020 developments from adam, thanks. https://statuscoup.com/category/people-planet/flint-water-crisis/
I was hoping that those who have daily connections with a cross-section of people might be able to tell me what the feeling for Government's handling of the crisis is. I have read all the comments above thanks everyone. Any others?
My staffroom is always interesting, broad cross section of ages and backgrounds, I mentioned above, but I had a giggle listening in they were livid about Woodhouse (I'm in Dunedin) & someone mentioned how Hosking is all over the place, "he just says any old crap".
FB lunacy is winning.
https://twitter.com/majorityfm/status/1275867327825920005
https://twitter.com/RexChapman/status/1275912010555932672
Terrifying Joe!
These clowns are prepared to exploit one of the very few concessions an able world grants to those with disabilities.
Says it all, really.
The SLO County Public Health Department is warning residents that various cards claiming to exempt the holder from California’s face covering ordinance are fraudulent and not endorsed by the U.S. Department of Justice.
In a “rumor alert” posted to the department’s Facebook page on June 22, county staff linked to a recent press release posted by the U.S. Department of Justice, which says that various printouts of face covering exemption cards, many of which include the U.S. Department of Justice seal, are floating around the internet.
click to enlarge
“These postings were not issued by the department and are not endorsed by the department,” the press release reads. “The department urges the public not to rely on the information contained in these postings and to visit ada.gov for ADA [Americans with Disabilities Act] information issued by the Department.”
https://www.newtimesslo.com/SLOthevirus/archives/2020/06/23/slo-county-public-health-department-warns-of-fake-face-covering-exemption-cards
Covid Update:
Over 10,000 tests conducted yesterday. Community transfer: zero. Not one case. After 16 days at level 4.
Dr Todd Muller was not available for comment.
Community transfer: zero
I support your emphasis on this important point because Nats & media aren't acknowledging it sufficiently. They need to get real asap. Valid to expose the quarantine shambles, but we're moving on from that. If they keep banging the drum regardless, it will piss everyone else off big-time.
That's how I see it DF, let the media bleat on, eventually they'll be ignored because they're plain wrong and delusional.
Dr Todd Mull er – is he doc of anything?
Incidentally I am thinking we need a change in honorific/title treatment – and Doctor should be followed by two letter code ie MD. Well they do it elsewhere I think. I think of doctor as being medical doctor, so I would like to know what sort of professional I am listening to. Could have a Dr PR and that would be very useful to know.
You mean level 1?
US covid new cases 39k yesterday Thats a record i think
31k and 36k in the 2 days before that.
Yeah I saw on the breakfast news a report that 26 US states are showing a sudden surge, and that up-swing is evident in your daily figures. Brazil's supreme court has ordered Balsonaro to wear a mask. Trump will be wondering how much longer he can do his King Canute act…
Predicting that the whole health system will be overwhelmed in 2 weeks, I read today. I have friends in Washington and Arizona, at their wits end.
ditto friends in Arkansas, New Mexico, Tennesee and family in Georgia.
All staying home, wearing masks when leaving the house and putting up with abuse because they do it.
One day someone is gonna shoot a whole bunch o people simply because they wear a mask, gloves and use hand sanitizer.
I saw a photo someone posted with signs on restaurant condiments "this is not hand sanitizer".
Little wonder.
https://twitter.com/lolonghi/status/1275849452486615040
https://twitter.com/Sessal4/status/1275915376870580225
Only becasue Brazil numbers are be massaged beyond belief. Brazil is bad, very bad and we have no real idea how bad.
33 new cases in the Australian state of Victoria today.
https://www.twitter.com/covidliveau/status/1275954575397154817
https://thespinoff.co.nz/politics/25-06-2020/david-clark-is-not-responsible/
This is one very good summation of the clark stumble
It’s by Toby Manhire and is correctly labeled “opinion”
altho as usual the sub heading is false (toby makes no reference to creating “a problem for Jacinda Ardern”)
Surprised that Tuesday 30 July is the last day of the House sitting.
Crikey, Qtime is a bit meows today.
Dr custard aka nick smith was kicked out, for his usual problem… out of line interjecting.
Unfortunately for him he had a question to ask later on.
" Hon Dr NICK SMITH to the Minister of Justice: Is his Electoral (Registration of Sentenced Prisoners) Amendment Bill, as passed through its third reading under urgency last night, good law? "
Then ole entitled gerry wanted Dr custard's question to be reinstated and asked by another MP. A bit of argey bargey later with Trevor; because, let's face it, ole entitled gerry won't back down even if he is wrong. Nek minute, ole entitled gerry was kicked out too.
Good job Mr Speaker
It's around 3.22 on this clip
https://ondemand.parliament.nz/parliament-tv-on-demand/?itemId=213438
Thanks for the heads up Cinny.
Q2. The start of the barney is worth a listen. Winston Peters is doing what he does so well – tosses the ball back in the Oppo's court.
https://ondemand.parliament.nz/parliament-tv-on-demand/?itemId=213431
I think the Speakaer has had a gutsful of the current Oppo tactics.
Winston did very well
The results of the Colmar Brunton Poll tonight will be a very good indicator of just how influential the media is.
With relentless attacks on the Coalition, everything from bungling incompetence to conflicts within the Coalition, none of which are supported by any substantiating evidence apart from media releases of which are headed with 'Opinion'.
A very large swing against the Govt will give everyone something to be concerned about.
No point of opinion polls if no media megaphone to opine on public opinion.
Correct, but there's always an extent of influence, something that can be guaged, which is a good indicator of wether the public agree with the media sentiment or have personally chosen to disagree.
In the end the only poll that matters is in 88 days, a lot water to go under the bridge yet though.
The Poll result doesn't appear to have been influenced by the last few days of hyperbole, Muller was expected to get high support after his predecessor and the rusted on supporters, Nat voters showing their support, NZF though, are probably the biggest losers but we know that at election day they usually do much better.
Labour could govern alone on 50%, the Greens back at 5%, NZF on 2%
National on 36%, Act on 4%
Pretty much the result you would expect after the removal of Bridges, restoration of support from the party faithfull.
Just Is, A great deal depends on how people react to Woodhouse's "story".
I think everyone found that a "Stretch'
Muller will appeal to old time National more than Bridges did, but people won't thank him for playing on their fears. We live in interesting times.
As you say, the media have played this like a violin chorus, wailing in the pits, becoming a little too shrill…… waiting….. Just hope people recognise genuine mahi.
"We live in interesting times"
Yes, the era of Fake News, sadly, people believe the News, corporate owned media outlets manipuate opportunities that suit there narrative.
Why sadly? Truth is truth N'est-ce pas?
Sadly, there are too many people that believe the Fake news due to number of reasons
Lisa Owen has a bit of an apology fetish apparently. She seems to feel obliged to reorganise the Cabinet as well.