Open mike 25/10/2021

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, October 25th, 2021 - 38 comments
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38 comments on “Open mike 25/10/2021 ”

  1. Ad 1

    That Electricity Authority review into the wholesale electricity market and spot prices comes out on Wednesday. At some point the Minister of Energy will have to respond.

    Presumably no Minister is expecting a recommendation that the state will require Meridian to divest the Manapouri generation system.

    Presumably no Minister will suggest that Manapouri is such a powerful risk in the Southland economy that the state itself should buy it, in order to gain control over that risk (and opportunity!)

    Presumably no Minister will suggest that the Electricity Authority should be screwed up and thrown away because is just an ideologically driven tool of an absurd form of usurous capitalism that obviously doesn't keep the lights on, nor encourage Transpower or key generators to keep the lights on.

    Presumably no Minister would have the imagination to re-accrete electricity supply governance away from "market" ideologues.

    Presumably no Minister would use the moment of the climate crisis negotiations to announce that it will put Transpower, Manapouri, its 51% stake in key generators, and the ownership of the new 'battery dam' into a new state entity that would drive line and generation costs down and national security up.

    I'll wait until Wednesday's report release, but I'm not holding my breath.

    • Foreign waka 1.1

      Meridian Energy, Genesis Energy and Mercury Energy are 51% majority owned by the Government. Contact and Trustpower are 100% publicly traded companies.

      I think this means the Government (all of us) own 51% of Meridian, Genesis and Mercury. A lot of Kiwis invested in Mercury when the shares came to the market.

      If the Government really wants to make a difference, than Power, Food and Rates should not have GST put on it. For 51% of power and especially on rates, its a tax on the tax. Don't call it a fee or any other eccentric name, its a tax on the tax.

      Here is my prediction: the government will increase GST if re elected. Because someone has to repay all the billions and if wont be the Corporations that took a large slice of the 16 Billions and made a runner. Power prices will not get any lower, neither will rates. Quite the opposite.

      • Ed1 1.1.1

        Dividends from the 51% owned companies are a return on investment to all shareholders. I don't see it as a tax on tax at all – could you explain?

  2. I like your 'presumables' much better than many peoples' 'reckons', ad.
    Real, constructive ‘socialism’ from this government?

    We can but live in hope, but like you, I'm not holding my breath.

  3. Dennis Frank 3

    Phillida Bunkle examines hidden agendas in the memoirs of Margaret Wilson: Margaret Wilson's apparently boring book Activism, Feminism, Politics and Parliament is actually a story of friendship betrayed and cool revenge. https://www.newsroom.co.nz/readingroom/book-of-the-week-margaret-wilsons-revenge

    “History will be kind to me – for I will write it” – Sir Winston Churchill

    Phillida, herself a distinguished feminist and Alliance MP, doesn't just present a book review – her lengthy dissertation on the nexus of feminist politics, neoliberalism, and the Labour Party ought to be required reading for history students!

    Those in search of an honest account of how the great political battle of our lifetimes changed an energetic and intelligent feminist deeply committed to the welfare of workers will be enthralled.

    Wilson has an outstanding record of achievement. She was not only the first woman Dean of a New Zealand law school but also first woman President of the New Zealand Labour Party, first woman Attorney General, and first woman Speaker of the House of Representatives.

    She also served on the Board of the Reserve Bank. Somehow Wilson also fitted in an impressive parliamentary career as a Minister for Labour, Commerce, Treaty Negotiations, The Parliamentary Service, and Associate Minister of Justice with responsibilities for both the Courts and for Corrections.

    At 16, cancer entailed the amputation of a leg above the knee leaving her with excruciating lifelong pain periodically exacerbated by ulceration from her prosthesis. It took a severely disciplined mind to accept her disability and determine that it was “part of me…but did not define me”.

    Pain isolates. It cannot be shared. Wilson developed an air of guarded solitariness.

    I think that last point warrants an essay in itself. Interesting how the loner can sometimes play a key role in the group. I've played it. Eisenhower famously said Patton was better inside the tent pissing out than outside pissing in. Patton directed the tank charge that routed the Wehrmacht after D-Day. Few can win battles at the top end like that. Lesson for Labour: keep your feisty dissidents on board if you can!

    • alwyn 3.1

      " Eisenhower famously said Patton was better inside the tent pissing out than outside pissing in"

      I'll wager you can't find any record of Eisenhower saying that. It was said by Johnson about Edgar Hoover but he was a couple of Presidents after Ike.

      I'm afraid that your comment about her Parliamentary career is equally fallacious. Her performance with Treaty Settlements was pretty much zero. Cullen had to be put into the job before anything at all was achieved. She was, as a Parliamentarian, a total failure. Some people are like that. They have great careers before entering Parliament and then are total failures once they reach the house. Marion Hobbs was another example.

      • Dennis Frank 3.1.1

        Interesting. I've seen that Eisenhower quote in more than one book in the past but since Google can't confirm it you may be right.

        Re "your comment about her Parliamentary career", that was actually a quote from Bunkle as indicated by the quote mark & inset…

        I'm agnostic re her parliamentary career but perhaps she served as Speaker for several years due to being a "total failure"? Fairly normal for the parliamentary Speaker to at least simulate such, even when not actually exhibiting such, regardless of which party appointed them (Hunt probably exception to that rule).

        • alwyn 3.1.1.1

          "that was actually a quote from Bunkle". Yes of course it is. Sorry to attribute it to you.

          I think that Wilson was put into the Speaker's job because she had, I suspect, been talked into going into Parliament by Helen Clark with the promise of a senior job. When being a Cabinet Minister didn't work out being Speaker was the one position that had the status but not the work of a Minister.

  4. dv 4

    My mother caused problems with neighbors over tv being too loud.

    She had a hearing test, and found she was partially deaf!!!

    Hearing aid sorted it.

    I wonder if that is the issue with his case.

    The offending property in Avondale's Eastdale Rd has amassed a staggering 72 noise complaints to Auckland Council since the female tenant moved in in March.

    https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/rowdy-avondale-state-house-triggers-72-auckland-council-noise-complaints-in-just-seven-months/27M6MWAGNHHZWWM34RTA3DHK64/

  5. dv 5

    Re the set shooting.

    Surely the assistant dirrector must be charged with some offence relating to the death.

    WHY can't they have an electronic device in the gun that sends a signal to the camera when the gun is fired to record a gun shot?

    Why was there live ammunition any where near the set?

    Apparently there were previous complaints

    A crew member in the US says she raised safety concerns in the past about the assistant director who authorities say unwittingly handed actor Alec Baldwin the prop gun that killed a cinematographer on a New Mexico film set.

    Crew member Maggie Goll said in a statement that she filed an internal complaint with the executive producers of Hulu’s Into the Dark series in 2019 over concerns about assistant director Dave Halls' behaviour on set.

    Goll said in an email on Sunday (local time) that Halls disregarded safety protocols for weaponsand pyrotechnics and tried to continue filming after a crew member had “slipped into a diabetic fugue state”.

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/film/300437725/assistant-director-who-gave-alec-baldwin-loaded-gun-was-subject-of-prior-complaint

  6. Dennis Frank 6

    Guardian has an interesting report on substantial ethnic divisions within the Inuit, involving a significant territorial claim.

    Under Canada’s constitution, Indigenous groups have the right to self-govern and enter into negotiations with the federal government over land claims…

    Two years ago, the NunatuKavut community council [NCC] signed a memorandum of understanding with Canada’s federal government that established their Inuit identity, effectively laying the groundwork for myriad benefits and paving the way for future negotiations over land claims. Controversially, their claimed territory lies outside the borders of Inuit Nunangat.

    Canada’s largest Inuit organization has rejected the claims as “fraudulent” and in a recent letter called on the prime minister, Justin Trudeau, to halt all negotiations with the group. The escalating row has raised thorny questions over identity, ancestry – and who speaks for Indigenous peoples.

    The 6,000 members of NCC live in the rocky, coastal region of southern Labrador. While most have lost their connection to the Inuktitut language, they nonetheless claim a strong cultural tie to the region, defined by cultural protocols, an emphasis on kinship ties and a deep connection to the land, said Debbie Martin, a professor at Dalhousie University and a member of the NunatuKavut. “I’ve studied and tried to understand why our people have never had their rights recognized,” she said, adding that residents have “never wavered in their deep and lasting ancestral ties to the territory”.

    But the two Indigenous groups in the area, the Nunatsiavut government and the Innu Nation, both reject NunatuKavut’s claim… Obed said his concern was not with any one individual’s claim to Inuit ancestry. Instead, he worried that NunatuKavut identifies as an Inuit collective – even though no other Inuit organization has validated those claims.

    “We are quite concerned about the ability for a newly formed collective to then demand rights and compensation and overlapping claims for areas that have been identified Inuit lands under modern treaties,” said Obed, who represents more than 65,000 Inuit in Canada.

    https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/oct/24/canada-inuit-nunatukavut

    So if indigenous people won't recognise other indigenous people as being such, we have a task for govt to undertake, I guess, and/or the courts.

    there is no formal arbiter in Canada over who is rightfully granted Indigenous status as a collective, and who gets to speak for those groups.

  7. garibaldi 7

    Here we go again.

    Todays headline on al Jazeera news……Israel to build 1300 new West Bank settler homes. Israeli Housing Minister Zeev Elkin says 'strengthening Jewish presence in the West Bank is essential to 'Zionist vision'.’

    Why ,Why, Why does the World continually cower to the bloody Zionists? Why can’t the good Jews in this world stop them? Why can’t the USA contain them at all?

    • Probably part of a deal that got the latest even-more-right-wing-than-Bibi lot elected.

      The 2 state solution is dead. The Palestinians should call their bluff and ask for a one state solution called Israel-Palestine, with equal rights for all.

    • Ross 8.1

      You get the feeling that David is preaching to the converted. That's a shame because a more nuanced approach might have produced something more meaningful and insightful.

      He uses the c-word without explanation. A conspiracy is a "secret plot by two or more powerful actors".

      “Conspiracy theories” are attempts to explain the ultimate causes of significant social and political events and circumstances with claims of secret plots by two or more powerful actors. … It is important for scholars to define what they mean by “conspiracy theorist” and “conspiracy theory” because—by signalling irrationality—these terms can neutralize valid concerns and delegitimize people. … Politicians sometimes use these terms to deflect criticism because it turns the conversation back onto the accuser rather than the accused.

      It's not at all obvious that David's actors are all conspiracy theorists. Some of them may believe in secret plots by powerful actors, but I'm more inclined to think they simply disagree with the prevailing orthodoxy.

      The associate editor of the British Medical Journal, Peter Doshi, has suggested that the efficacy of the Pfizer vaccine might be as low as 19% (although he seems to think it's unlikely to be that low). I suppose he could be a conspiracy theorist, but if you read his critiques, you will see he is nothing of the sort. He is simply taking Pfizer to task for the quality of information that the company has released, or not released.

      One can oppose the prevailing orthodoxy without being a conspiracy theorist.

      https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/pops.12568

      https://blogs.bmj.com/bmj/2021/01/04/peter-doshi-pfizer-and-modernas-95-effective-vaccines-we-need-more-details-and-the-raw-data/

      https://blogs.bmj.com/bmj/2021/02/05/clarification-pfizer-and-modernas-95-effective-vaccines-we-need-more-details-and-the-raw-data/

      • joe90 8.1.1

        If any of the conspiratorial loons profiled had the creds of someone like Doshi, you may have a point.

        /

        • Shanreagh 8.1.1.1

          Agree Joe90. One boss I had who had a high public profile called them 'Nutters' and we had a series of Nutters files. They had nothing like the reach then hey have now with the internet.

          I saw this from the American Psychologists Assn

          https://www.apa.org/research/action/speaking-of-psychology/conspiracy-theories

          Ross, I don't think it is the ideas so much. Many people understand and accept a forward thinker. Acceptance also is easier when they use accepted modes and ways of reasoning to get their message across. Obviously this works for people who can think critically.

          Then a fellow poster on another board has offered this up as a bit of a point of difference and it is all about the company you keep when you join one of these groups.

          'One of the many ways to know you are on the wrong side of an issue, look around, at your compatriots, do they seem more than a bit…off.

          Are they raving at all? Permanently sad? Confused perhaps, more than is reasonable. Key point there, do they understand "reasonable" as a general concept?

          Do they lack basic skills in rational and/or sceptical thinking. Do they feel the need to play old videos of their former "greatness" before saying what it is they may have to say? (I watched one, a tragedy in slow mo) Are they concerned with "the devil" and it's earthly representatives on a regular, say weekly, schedule?

          Elvis? Hitler? Communists? … the FBI!"

          So when you look at the Loony list, the reading above and the APA link you will see that these people are not the forward thinkers or questioners, mostly they are mired in the past or in cahoots with other fringes, often far right (with this present lot) links. The loony lot that invaded a MB I frequent, followers of Liz Gunn, are now calling to 'rise up' and similar phrasing. Now that is taken directly from the playbook / memes of similar groups in the US.

          • Ross 8.1.1.1.1

            I take your point, but am not completely convinced.

            You might be too young to remember but some doctors once promoted smoking as a healthy option, and that it really was OK to put lead in petrol. Also, it was once thought that asking young children suggestive and leading questions was acceptable because asking such questions was necessary to obtain disclosures of abuse. We know the dangers of each.

            Experts have testified in court with devastating effect. Sally Clark’s case is tragic, wrongly convicted after an expert wrongly claimed that the probability of two babies dying from natural causes in an affluent family were 1 in 73 million.

            https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1470496/

            https://www.theguardian.com/society/2007/mar/17/childrensservices.uknews

            • Shanreagh 8.1.1.1.1.1

              At my age (70) it seems very, or mildly flattering (mustn't get too carried away!) to have the possibility of being 'too young to remember……'

              I do remember the anti smoking campaign from a very young age, urging my very occasionally smoking father not to smoke and of course remember the change to unleaded petrol. The people who urged these changes I would not class as conspiracy theorists.

              My point is that I don't think that many of the scientists or the people you are putting up are what they would call conspiracy thinkers.

              The recovered memory people I was sceptical about all along and thought they were conspiracy thinkers (would not have called them that at the time) from the time these court cases came about. That the Courts were taken in by so-called experts is horrifying. NZ then though was a place where generally experts, and possibly overseas experts, were not openly challenged but revered in some circles. Our Emperor has no clothes' senses were not as opened as they are now.

              The Sally Clark case is tragic. The anti people in her case mmmmm don't know if I'd class them as conspiracy thinkers. Or just plain wrong. Scientists advising while not keeping an open mind. Just plain wrong like the people in the 'Unfortunate Experiment.' Perhaps not actuated by actual individual malice but unable to see that at the end of their medical reckons/ideas/views was a person. And of course a degree of 'you cannot question me as I know more than you do in my field' or 'I am senior to you'. Hence the growth in ethics and more rigorous peer review.

              Conspiracy thinkers are very different. There is a degree of general nuttiness, singlemindedness and OTT fervour. You cannot reason with them. By the time they get to the evangelising stage they are well-involved and know all the play-book responses. Thye usually have a track record of misinterpreting the science or at worst manipulating the science. Thye are fast moving and if you do tackle them you will no get a considered response. More along the lines 'so you are happy for people to be raped by having the vaccine'. By the time you've picked yourself off the floor and you've spluttered coffee all over the place, then got out all the info to try to demolish the argument they moved on and you will get a responses urging you in caps 'TO THINK"

              Some of the conspiracy thinkers in NZ have been involved in 'shock. horror' let's manipulate the statistics and the public for years. They float from issue to issue.

              The colleague from another board said

              'One of the many ways to know you are on the wrong side of an issue, look around, at your compatriots, do they seem more than a bit…off.'

              You can flip this around and put yourself in as a member of any of these groups to assess their validity.

  8. Anker 9

    https://medium.com/@rebeccarc/margaret-atwood-and-the-trans-activists-a-story-in-screenshots-bd61ed7575ce

    Response to Margaret Atwood exercising her right to free speech. She’s an elderly lady for gods sake

    • Sabine 9.1

      well, what was Margaret thinking?

      Every times these 'Trans rights Activists' show their faces it becomes more and more clear that maybe this has got nothing to do with Trans rights at all, but rather is more a free for all bog standard Misogyny hiding its ugly face behind a call to diversity and inclusivity of men being women to the extend where women either submit to being bullshitted or they get threatened with all sorts of sexual violence, and frankly, what screams more 'I am a women' then threatening someone with rape, murder and the forced sucking of Lady dick, or ass.

      • francesca 9.1.1

        Agree. the male style misogyny is very telling. Do these men want to be women in order to trash them in some way.The womanface version of blackface.I think they would dearly love to take women's reproductive alchemy for their own too. There's a coarse vaudeville parody of womanhood with these hostile aggressive transwomen .Something other going on that's not a tender longing to be the other sex at all.

  9. Dennis Frank 10

    On One News just now a reporter named Laura was telling us that some folk are using the identity of others to get jabs for them. Of course, there's always irrational people in the community but if this is an actual trend, the authorities will have to watch it carefully.

    That's because irrational behaviour itself can easily snowball in a pressure situation. People aren't thinking clearly and may be trying to create the false impression to boost numbers up to 90% so that restrictions will ease. Jeez, what next?? 😒

  10. Andre 11

    Just in case anyone was wondering, the new case breakdown for last week was:

    there were 311 eligible but unvaccinated new cases, there were 30 eligible but unvaccinated new hospitalisations. Cumulative totals in August outbreak are 1443 cases, 168 hospitalisations

    there were 139 new cases in under 12s (ineligible for vax), and one new hospitalisation of an under 12. Cumulative totals in August outbreak are 541 cases, 8 hospitalisations

    there were 60 new cases that had received one dose less than 14 days before being reported as a case, there were 6 new hospitalisations in that group. Cumulative totals in August outbreak are 205 cases, 25 hospitalisations

    there were 99 new cases that had received one dose more than 14 days before being reported as a case, there were 4 new hospitalisations in that group. Cumulative totals in August outbreak are 290 cases, 17 hospitalisations

    there were 29 new cases that had received their second dose less than 14 days before being reported as a case, there were 2 new hospitalisations in that group. Cumulative totals in August outbreak are 66 cases, 3 hospitalisations

    there were 45 new cases that had received their second dose more than 14 days before being reported as a case, and zero new hospitalisations in that group. Cumulative totals in August outbreak are 136 cases, 3 hospitalisations

    data from:https://www.health.govt.nz/our-work/diseases-and-conditions/covid-19-novel-coronavirus/covid-19-data-and-statistics/covid-19-case-demographics

    I haven't yet found where the MoH publishes all the past week-by-week info, so I'm just taking a photo every week to get the weekly new cases.

    It's kinda stark, the difference between vaccinated and unvaccinated rates. Especially now that strong majorities have been vaccinated, even in the DHB areas where the cases are occurring.

    • chris T 11.1

      "there were 311 eligible but unvaccinated new cases, there were 30 eligible but unvaccinated new hospitalisations. Cumulative totals in August outbreak are 1443 cases, 168 hospitalisations"

      "there were 45 new cases that had received their second dose more than 14 days before being reported as a case, and zero new hospitalisations in that group. Cumulative totals in August outbreak are 136 cases, 3 hospitalisations"

      Kind of telling really……(He says having put off his second because I am a wimp and not doing it till this Friday 🙂

      3 weeks and should be sweet, unless catch it earlier.

      Think those stats should be put on a t-shirt and waved in front of vax hesitant peoples faces.

      • Andre 11.1.1

        I'll let you in on a secret:

        I've had somewhere around 80 vaccinations in my life. In my life, getting vaccinated is just what you do when you might get exposed to a disease and there's a vaccine for it. Vaccination is just a normal routine every-year part of my life.

        I'm still an abject craven coward when it comes to actually getting one. At least part of it is I fully expect to feel like shit for a day or three afterwards.

        • chris T 11.1.1.1

          Yeah. Have decided it is just one of those "Chris. Bite the bullet. Man up. You might feel crap for a day or so. Get over yourself!" things. Lol

          • mac1 11.1.1.1.1

            Join the three million fully vaxxed, Chris T. Welcome aboard. Felt a bit jaded going up a hill after the second dose- nothing worse than that. Could have been lack of condition, too….

      • Patricia Bremner 11.1.2

        Good for you Chris T .smiley Buy yourself a treat to have when you feel A1 again.

    • Poission 11.2

      Its updated daily,for fully vaccinated the rate if infection vs total population has increased from 4.65 to over 5%,what is concerning is the rate of infection with the partially vaccinated at around 20% suggesting that some are relaxing health constraints.

      • Andre 11.2.1

        The vaccinated/unvaccinated case breakdowns have only been updated weekly, unlike most of the other data on that page which is mostly updated daily.

        Sorry, I can't make heads nor tails of what you're trying to say with the rest of your comment.

        • Poission 11.2.1.1

          The rate of infection with the partially vaccinated is around 20% of all cases.The questions that arise are

          Are they relaxing the new social norms (thinking they are protected)? such as expanding their social contacts etc,

          and will the rate of infection in a partially vaccinated increase the risk of breakthrough infection?

          • McFlock 11.2.1.1.1

            I suspect you might be overworking the numbers.

            These numbers aren't perfectly precise, they are essentially approximations: false positives and negatives in the tests, record keeping or injection errors in the vaccination status, and so on. A shift of 0.5% in distribution could just be today's tally had a different community sample testing positive. Tomorrow it might shift back 0.1%. It doesn't necessarily reflect a change in exposure or efficacy.

            The most vulnerable group remains the unvaccinated. Cross the other bridges if the confidence intervals call them unusually high.

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    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago
  • Peters holds his ground on co-governance, but Willis wriggles on those tax cuts and SNA suspension l...
    Buzz from the Beehive Here’s hoping for a lively post-cabinet press conference when the PM and – perhaps – some of his ministers tell us what was discussed at their meeting today. Until then, Point of Order has precious little Beehive news to report after its latest monitoring of the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 day ago
  • Labour’s final report card
    David Farrar writes –  We now have almost all 2023 data in, which has allowed me to update my annual table of how  went against its promises. This is basically their final report card. The promise The result Build 100,000 affordable homes over 10 ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago
  • “Drunk Uncle at a Wedding”
    I’m a bit worried that I’ve started a previous newsletter with the words “just when you think they couldn’t get any worse…” Seems lately that I could begin pretty much every issue with that opening. Such is the nature of our coalition government that they seem to be outdoing each ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 day ago
  • Wang Yi’s perfectly-timed, Aukus-themed visit to New Zealand
    Geoffrey Miller writes – Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago
  • Gordon Campbell on Dune 2, and images of Islam
    Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture ...
    2 days ago
  • New Rail Operations Centre Promises Better Train Services
    Last week Transport Minster Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre. The new train control centre will see teams from KiwiRail, Auckland Transport and Auckland One Rail working more closely together to improve train services across the city. The Auckland Rail Operations Centre in ...
    2 days ago
  • Bernard's six newsy things at 6.36am on Monday, March 18
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson said in an exit interview with Q+A yesterday the Government can and should sustain more debt to invest in infrastructure for future generations. Elsewhere in the news in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy at 6:36am: Read more ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: Wang Yi’s perfectly-timed, Aukus-themed visit to New Zealand
    Timing is everything. And from China’s perspective, this week’s visit by its foreign minister to New Zealand could be coming at just the right moment. The visit by Wang Yi to Wellington will be his first since 2017. Anniversaries are important to Beijing. It is more than just a happy ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    2 days ago
  • The Kaka’s diary for the week to March 25 and beyond
    TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to March 18 include:China’s Foreign Minister visiting Wellington today;A post-cabinet news conference this afternoon; the resumption of Parliament on Tuesday for two weeks before Easter;retiring former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson gives his valedictory speech in Parliament; ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Bitter and angry; Winston First
    New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters’s state-of-the-nation speech on Sunday was really a state-of-Winston-First speech. He barely mentioned any of the Government’s key policies and could not even wholly endorse its signature income tax cuts. Instead, he rehearsed all of his complaints about the Ardern Government, including an extraordinary claim ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    2 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
    2 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A listing of 35 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 10, 2024 thru Sat, March 16, 2024. Story of the week This week we'll give you a little glimpse into how we collect links to share and ...
    2 days ago
  • Out of Touch.
    “I’ve been internalising a really complicated situation in my head.”When they kept telling us we should wait until we get to know him, were they taking the piss? Was it a case of, if you think this is bad, wait till you get to know the real Christopher, after the ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    3 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • Bring out your Dad
    Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • The bewildering world of Chris Luxon – Guns for all, not no lunch for kids
    .“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
    Frankly SpeakingBy Frank Macskasy
    3 days ago
  • Expert Opinion: Ageing Boomers, Laurie & Les, Talk Politics.
    It hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.”THUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
    3 days ago
  • Manufacturing The Truth.
    Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology – the Internet –  is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
    3 days ago
  • A Powerful Sensation of Déjà Vu.
    Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
    3 days ago
  • Can you guess where world attention is focussed (according to Greenpeace)? It’s focussed on an EPA...
    Bob Edlin writes –  And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago
  • Further integrity problems for the Greens in suspending MP Darleen Tana
    Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago
  • Jacqui Van Der Kaay: Greens’ transparency missing in action
    For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s Dawn Chorus with six newsey things at 6:46am for Saturday, March 16
    TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ Herald Thomas Coughlan Simeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • How Did FTX Crash?
    What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    4 days ago
  • Elections in Russia and Ukraine
    Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
    4 days ago
  • Bernard’s six stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15
    TL;DR: Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it:  We want our country to be a ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago
  • National’s clean car tax advances
    The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago
  • Government funding bailouts
    Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Two offenders, different treatments.
    See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    4 days ago
  • Treaty references omitted
    Ele Ludemann writes  – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • The Ghahraman Conflict
    What was that judge thinking? Peter Williams writes –  That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 15
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop: Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • The day Wellington up-zoned its future
    Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Weekly Roundup 15-March-2024
    It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    5 days ago
  • That Word.
    Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • The Hoon around the week to March 15
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Labour’s policy gap
    It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago
  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #11 2024
    Open access notables A Glimpse into the Future: The 2023 Ocean Temperature and Sea Ice Extremes in the Context of Longer-Term Climate Change, Kuhlbrodt et al., Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society: In the year 2023, we have seen extraordinary extrema in high sea surface temperature (SST) in the North Atlantic and in ...
    5 days ago
  • Melissa remains mute on media matters but has something to say (at a sporting event) about economic ...
     Buzz from the Beehive   The text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary.  It can be quickly analysed ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago
  • The return of Muldoon
    For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Will the rental tax cut improve life for renters or landlords?
    Bryce Edwards writes –  Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Geoffrey Miller: What Saudi Arabia’s rapid changes mean for New Zealand
    Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    5 days ago
  • Racism’s double standards
    Questions need to be asked on both sides of the world Peter Williams writes –   The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • It’s not a tax break
    Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • The Plastic Pig Collective and Chris' Imaginary Friends.
    I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • Who is responsible for young offenders?
    Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago
  • Gordon Campbell on National’s fantasy trip to La La Landlord Land
    How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
    6 days ago
  • Bernard's Top 10 @ 10 'pick 'n' mix' for March 14
    TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop: The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • No, Prime Minister, rents don’t rise or fall with landlords’ costs
    TL;DR: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    6 days ago
  • Cartoons: ‘At least I didn’t make things awkward’
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
    6 days ago
  • Solving traffic congestion with Richard Prebble
    The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    6 days ago
  • I Think I'm Done Flying Boeing
    Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago
  • Invoking Aristotle: Of Rings of Power, Stones, and Ships
    The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
    6 days ago
  • Van Velden brings free-market approach to changing labour laws – but her colleagues stick to distr...
    Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago
  • Why Newshub failed
    Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago
  • Māori Party on the warpath against landlords and seabed miners – let’s see if mystical creature...
    Bob Edlin writes  –  The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they  follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago

  • Government moves to quickly ratify the NZ-EU FTA
    "The Government is moving quickly to realise an additional $46 million in tariff savings in the EU market this season for Kiwi exporters,” Minister for Trade and Agriculture, Todd McClay says. Parliament is set, this week, to complete the final legislative processes required to bring the New Zealand – European ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 hours ago
  • Positive progress for social worker workforce
    New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    10 hours ago
  • Minister confirms reduced RUC rate for PHEVs
    Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April.  ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    12 hours ago
  • Trade access to overseas markets creates jobs
    Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand.  Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    13 hours ago
  • NZ and Chinese Foreign Ministers hold official talks
    Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Kāinga Ora instructed to end Sustaining Tenancies
    Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Speech to Auckland Business Chamber: Growth is the answer
    Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Singapore rounds out regional trip
    Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships.      “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Minister van Velden represents New Zealand at International Democracy Summit
    Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Insurance Council of NZ Speech, 7 March 2024, Auckland
    ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland  Acknowledgements and opening  Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho.  Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau  My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Five-year anniversary of Christchurch terror attacks
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says.  “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024
    Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024  Acknowledgements and opening  Morena, Nga Mihi Nui.  Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau  Good morning. It’s a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago
  • Early visit to Indonesia strengthens ties
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asia’s most populous country.   “We are in Jakarta so early in our new government’s term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • China Foreign Minister to visit
    Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week.  “We look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealand’s ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Minister opens new Auckland Rail Operations Centre
    Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. “The recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Auckland’s rail agencies work together to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Celebrating 10 years of Crankworx Rotorua
    The Government is proud to support the 10th edition of Crankworx Rotorua as the Crankworx World Tour returns to Rotorua from 16-24 March 2024, says Minister for Economic Development Melissa Lee.  “Over the past 10 years as Crankworx Rotorua has grown, so too have the economic and social benefits that ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Government delivering on tax commitments
    Legislation implementing coalition Government tax commitments and addressing long-standing tax anomalies will be progressed in Parliament next week, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The legislation is contained in an Amendment Paper to the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill issued today.  “The Amendment Paper represents ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago
  • Significant Natural Areas requirement to be suspended
    Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard has today announced that the Government has agreed to suspend the requirement for councils to comply with the Significant Natural Areas (SNA) provisions of the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity for three years, while it replaces the Resource Management Act (RMA).“As it stands, SNAs ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Government classifies drought conditions in Top of the South as medium-scale adverse event
    Agriculture Minister Todd McClay has classified the drought conditions in the Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts as a medium-scale adverse event, acknowledging the challenging conditions facing farmers and growers in the district. “Parts of Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts are in the grip of an intense dry spell. I know ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Government partnership to tackle $332m facial eczema problem
    The Government is helping farmers eradicate the significant impact of facial eczema (FE) in pastoral animals, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced.  “A $20 million partnership jointly funded by Beef + Lamb NZ, the Government, and the primary sector will save farmers an estimated NZD$332 million per year, and aims to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • NZ, India chart path to enhanced relationship
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters has completed a successful visit to India, saying it was an important step in taking the relationship between the two countries to the next level.   “We have laid a strong foundation for the Coalition Government’s priority of enhancing New Zealand-India relations to generate significant future benefit for both countries,” says Mr Peters, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Ruapehu Alpine Lifts bailout the last, say Ministers
    Cabinet has agreed to provide $7 million to ensure the 2024 ski season can go ahead on the Whakapapa ski field in the central North Island but has told the operator Ruapehu Alpine Lifts it is the last financial support it will receive from taxpayers. Cabinet also agreed to provide ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Govt takes action to drive better cancer services
    Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Govt takes action to drive better cancer services
    Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Work begins on SH29 upgrades near Tauriko
    Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Work begins on SH29 upgrades near Tauriko
    Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Fresh produce price drop welcome
    Lower fruit and vegetable prices are welcome news for New Zealanders who have been doing it tough at the supermarket, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Stats NZ reported today the price of fruit and vegetables has dropped 9.3 percent in the 12 months to February 2024.  “Lower fruit and vege ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Statement to the 68th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women
    Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all.  Chair, I am honoured to address the sixty-eighth session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Speech to the 68th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW68)
    Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all.  Chair, I am honoured to address the 68th session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago
  • Government backs rural led catchment projects
    The coalition Government is supporting farmers to enhance land management practices by investing $3.3 million in locally led catchment groups, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “Farmers and growers deliver significant prosperity for New Zealand and it’s vital their ongoing efforts to improve land management practices and water quality are supported,” ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago
  • Speech to Auckland Business Chamber
    Good evening everyone and thank you for that lovely introduction.   Thank you also to the Honourable Simon Bridges for the invitation to address your members. Since being sworn in, this coalition Government has hit the ground running with our 100-day plan, delivering the changes that New Zealanders expect of us. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Commission’s advice on ETS settings tabled
    Recommendations from the Climate Change Commission for New Zealand on the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) auction and unit limit settings for the next five years have been tabled in Parliament, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “The Commission provides advice on the ETS annually. This is the third time the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Government lowering building costs
    The coalition Government is beginning its fight to lower building costs and reduce red tape by exempting minor building work from paying the building levy, says Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk. “Currently, any building project worth $20,444 including GST or more is subject to the building levy which is ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Trustee tax change welcomed
    Proposed changes to tax legislation to prevent the over-taxation of low-earning trusts are welcome, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The changes have been recommended by Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee following consideration of submissions on the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill. “One of the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Minister’s Ramadan message
    Assalaamu alaikum. السَّلَام عليكم In light of the holy month of Ramadan, I want to extend my warmest wishes to our Muslim community in New Zealand. Ramadan is a time for spiritual reflection, renewed devotion, perseverance, generosity, and forgiveness.  It’s a time to strengthen our bonds and appreciate the diversity ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Minister appoints new NZTA Chair
    Former Transport Minister and CEO of the Auckland Business Chamber Hon Simon Bridges has been appointed as the new Board Chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) for a three-year term, Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced today. “Simon brings extensive experience and knowledge in transport policy and governance to the role. He will ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Speech to Life Sciences Summit
    Good morning all, it is a pleasure to be here as Minister of Science, Innovation and Technology.  It is fantastic to see how connected and collaborative the life science and biotechnology industry is here in New Zealand. I would like to thank BioTechNZ and NZTech for the invitation to address ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Progress continues apace on water storage
    Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says he is looking forward to the day when three key water projects in Northland are up and running, unlocking the full potential of land in the region. Mr Jones attended a community event at the site of the Otawere reservoir near Kerikeri on Friday. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Government agrees to restore interest deductions
    Associate Finance Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government has agreed to restore deductibility for mortgage interest on residential investment properties. “Help is on the way for landlords and renters alike. The Government’s restoration of interest deductibility will ease pressure on rents and simplify the tax code,” says ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago
  • Minister to attend World Anti-Doping Agency Symposium
    Sport and Recreation Minister Chris Bishop will travel to Switzerland today to attend an Executive Committee meeting and Symposium of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Mr Bishop will then travel on to London where he will attend a series of meetings in his capacity as Infrastructure Minister. “New Zealanders believe ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

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