Open mike 25/12/2019
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- Winston Peters: The Architect Of Political Decay
Winston Peters, New Zealand’s 80-year-old Deputy Prime Minister, has once again proven himself unfit for office and a complete hypocrite by dragging political discourse into the gutter while preaching decorum. Last week, Peters lamented declining standards in the House, only to hurl a homophobic slur at Chris Hipkins, calling him ...2 hours ago - Member’s Day
Today is a Member's Day. Unusually, its not starting with bills; instead there will be two debates, the first on ACT MP Joseph Mooney's disallowance motion for the tikanga provisions in the Professional Examinations in Law Regulations 2008, and the second to authorise a select committee inquiry into online harm. ...4 hours ago - Australia should establish a unit dedicated to financial warfare capabilities
In an age of great-power competition, the next major conflict may be waged not in the skies over the Indo-Pacific or in the South China Sea, but through sanctions regimes, targeted financial disruptions and coercive ...5 hours ago - Parliamentary privilege is a threat to all of us
People are rightly outraged about psycho fascist Parmjeet Parmar "inquiring" about using the privileges committee to arbitrarily imprison her political opponents. As Chris Hipkins said yesterday, that is the sort of thing which happens in tinpot dictatorships, undemocratic and wrong, and a permanent stain on our Parliament. But its worse ...6 hours ago
- Imprisoning Māori For Doing The Haka?
The ACT Party floating the idea of imprisoning Te Pāti Māori MPs for performing a haka in Parliament isn’t just a shameful overreach; it’s a chilling glimpse into a fascist mindset that seeks to silence indigenous voices through state power. According to RNZ, ACT MP Parmjeet Parmar asked the Privileges ...6 hours ago
- Overloaded EDs send patients back to after-hours clinics
‘Lucky’ patients who have made it to a trolley in a corridor. Now many others are being redirected to private urgent care clinics due to ED overloading. Photo: Getty ImagesThe six key news items from Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, May 21 are: Emergency departments ...6 hours ago - Australia must rethink cybercrime to tackle it effectively
Let’s face it: Australia is seen as a soft target for cybercriminals. Its fragmented cybercrime response makes both individuals and institutions more vulnerable. Australia’s cybercrime framework must be informed by diverse perspectives, and it must ...8 hours ago
- Yellow Mellow
Yellow mellow, yellow mellowHello, hello, yellow mellowYellow mellow, yellow mellowOh, marmaladeSongwriters: Baden Jack Donegal / Nicholas Paul Blom / Mitchell Kenneth Galbraith / Lachlan George Galbraith / Thomas Patrick O'Brien / Angus Owen Goodwin.What a mad day in politics. In yesterday’s newsletter, I expressed hope that politicians from the left ...9 hours ago - China’s geopolitical dominance game in the South China Sea
For all the talk about the South China Sea’s complexity as a security issue, its geopolitical significance to China is simple: China wants to condition Southeast Asian states to subordinate status. Southeast Asian countries would ...23 hours ago
- Chris Hipkins’ Passionate Speech During Te Pati Māori Penalty Debate
Immediately after Hipkins’ speech, National House Leader Chris Bishop rose to defer the debate, without giving the opposition notice.This means no other opposition members were allowed to speak, despite the government scheduling the debate for today.A shortened clip of 3 minutes for those short on time:Tin-Pot DemocracyI was right in ...23 hours ago - 65
Today my heart attack turns 38 and I turn 65. It's now way older than I was when it grabbed me in a hotel bar at ten in the morning on my 27th birthday and squeezed.So many things I think of as just the other day turn out to be ...23 hours ago - Indonesia has good reasons to reject Russian aircraft basing
Indonesia has plenty of reason to reject basing of Russian aircraft at its air force base on Biak, an island north of New Guinea at 1,400 km from Darwin. From Russia’s point of view, keeping ...1 day ago
- A desperate delay
So, that was a bit of a damp squib. Everyone having geared up for an epic filibuster battle which would upset the government's legislative program for at least the day, National has now abused its parliamentary majority to adjourn the debate on its outrageous and anti-democratic punishment of Te Pāti ...1 day ago
- Reported back
The Justice Committee has reported back on the Crimes (Countering Foreign Interference) Amendment Bill. The bill as introduced was a tyrannical law which threatened to outlaw protest and ordinary democratic activity in Aotearoa on the basis of government conspiracy theories and fantasies about its motivations. The good news is that ...1 day ago
- Hard to believe really
Take a scenario, just as a thought experiment for now. A new government gets elected, amid a lot of rhetoric about excessive increases in government spending and public service numbers. They pretty quickly move to require government departments – typically funded by Parliament through annual appropriations – to cut their ...1 day ago - Submission on Industry Skills Boards’ Coverage
This submission to the TEC outlines the NZCTU’s concerns about the ongoing reforms to vocational education and training, and our views on the coverage and membership of the new Industry Skills Boards.NZCTU submission – ISBs, 20 May 2025Download The post Submission on Industry Skills Boards’ Coverage appeared ...1 day ago- Pay Equity Explainers
It took less than two days for the Government to announce their changes to the Equal Pay Act, and then make those changes. Because things happened this fast, a huge amount of information about pay equity has sprung up in a really short time-frame—which can be pretty confusing for anyone ...1 day ago- Tuesday 21 May
Unions are pointing out that changes to the pay equity system have made it “virtually impossible” for new claims to succeed. The government will spend more than $600 million to upgrade the country’s rail network as part of this year’s Budget. Cabinet has signed off on introducing the Regulatory Standards ...1 day ago- OECD Debt Comparisons For NZ Are Wrong
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand recently patted itself on the back, claiming our government debt-to-GDP ratio of around 44.3% in 2024 was "low" compared to OECD peers like the US (113%) or Japan (242%). Sounds comforting, right? Wrong! This smug comparison glosses over a critical reality: New Zealand’s geographic ...1 day ago- Which side are you on, Labour?
Today will see an unprecedented moment in Parliament. A racist government whose leader opposes the "Maorification" of New Zealand is using its parliamentary majority to suspend opposition MPs from the House for being Māori, silencing them and the people they represent for up to 21 days. It is outrageous and ...1 day ago- Federalism could torpedo AUKUS
AUKUS is under pressure, not from adversaries abroad but from state governments at home. While Canberra drives the security pact forward, Australian states are the ones that that hold the constitutional levers over the land ...1 day ago- Luxon’s Anti-Māori Mask Slips Again
New Zealand’s Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has once again stocked the fire a racial disharmony, this time with a damning comment that reeks of anti-Māori sentiment. In a recent Newstalk ZB interview with Mike Hosking, Luxon responded to a question about the “Māorification of this country” by saying, “Well where ...1 day ago- How do you stop a pitchfork?
Last night, I put up a video where Luxon said he would not back down on the 21 day penalty for Te Pāti Māori MPs.Then came the pitchforks:“Boot them out. No compromise.”“Why debate....boot them....rules are rules!!!!”There were outwardly racist comments too.It’s hard to explain to an angry mob that there ...1 day ago- Monday 19 May
The PSA says mediation has failed to resolve its conflict with the government over working from home, with the case now heading to the ERA. Food prices have risen at their fastest pace in more than a year driven by more expensive dairy products, hinting that inflation pressures are gathering ...1 day ago- May AMA (+ Webworm Updates)
Hi,One of my favourite things on Webworm is doing these semi-regular AMAs — which I’ve been doing for four years now!In some ways they are daunting — I want to respond to questions with some thought and nuance, but also it can be fun just going with more unguarded-train-of-consciousness responses ...1 day ago- The Coalition’s Disinformation Undermining Our Democracy
The New Zealand government, National, ACT, and NZ First, has been very busy recently earning its moniker: the Coalition of Chaos. This unholy trinity seems hell-bent on trying to rewrite reality, peddling lies that erode public trust in politics, and flouting the rules of decorum in an orchestrated attack on ...1 day ago- The Green Budget: Cutting Through Right-Wing Spin
You might not have heard that the Green Party’s 2025 Alternative Budget is a bold blueprint for a fairer, greener Aotearoa. That's because right-wing spin merchants are twisting its intent and manipulating the narrative with predictable ferocity. From National’s Nicola Willis labeling it “clown show economics” to NZ Herald’s Thomas ...1 day ago- Reuniting ASIO and the AFP under Home Affairs is the right move to address intensifying threats
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s decision to return policy responsibility for the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation and the Australian Federal Police to the Department of Home Affairs is more than a machinery-of-government change; it’s a long-term ...1 day ago- Volcanic cooling
This is a re-post from the Climate Brink The climate has warmed by around 1.4C over the past 170 years as a result of human emissions of CO2 and other GHGs that have accumulated in the atmosphere. However, GHGs are not the only thing that has an impact on the climate system. Major ...1 day ago- Why Did 1 News Downplay Two By Twos Pedophilia?
1 day ago- ‘Weaponise rates to drive housing intensification’
Should Auckland Council set higher higher rates to densify housing around the stations on the City Rail Link, where low-rise warehouses and housing currently predominate? Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāThe six key news items from Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Tuesday, May 20 are: Apartment ...1 day ago- Nasty
Catch catch the horror taxiI fell in love with a video nastyCatch catch the horror trainFreeze frame gonna drive you insaneWriters: Raymond Burns, Christopher John Millar, David Vanian, Roman Paul Jug, Bryn Merrick.Speak English.Yesterday, the Prime Minister of our country appeared on the Mike Hosking show to beat the anti-woke ...1 day ago- Nasty
Catch catch the horror taxiI fell in love with a video nastyCatch catch the horror trainFreeze frame gonna drive you insaneWriters: Raymond Burns, Christopher John Millar, David Vanian, Roman Paul Jug, Bryn Merrick.Speak English.Yesterday, the Prime Minister of our country appeared on the Mike Hosking show to beat the anti-woke ...1 day ago- Gordon Campbell On NZ’s Silence Over Gaza, And Creeping Health Privatisation
Since last Thursday, intensified Israeli air strikes on Gaza have killed over 500 Palestinians, and a prolonged Israeli aid blockade has led to widespread starvation among the territory’s two million residents. Belatedly, Israel is letting in a token amount of food aid that UN under-secretary Tom Fletcher has called a ...2 days ago- The Pacific needs to upgrade regional intelligence cooperation
Strengthening regional partnerships can help Pacific intelligence capabilities overcome rising challenges. The Pacific should establish a centralised intelligence hub alongside or through the expansion of the existing Pacific Fusion Centre to deliver greater intelligence capabilities ...2 days ago- There goes the neighbourhood, there goes my loafer
So, a funny thing happened last Friday. I had just dropped a couple of tabs and I was lining up side four of Tales from Topographic Oceans when out of nowhere I had this incredible vision.It got me so damn excited I wrote the whole thing down and put it ...2 days ago- From customer to catalyst: anchoring Australia’s northern marine industry through government procu...
To turn northern Australia’s marine potential into performance, the Australian government must stop acting as a passive regulator and start acting as an active customer. Procurement is power, and in thin, undercapitalised markets such as ...2 days ago- Chipping away at National’s gang-patch ban
National's racist gang-patch was clearly intended to humiliate gangs and allow them to be punished for being seen in public, and police have taken on that mission with enthusiasm, attacking funerals and kicking in doors to seize banned clothing (meanwhile, they've also abandoned domestic violence and mental health callouts, in ...2 days ago- The Coalition of Chaos: Democracy Be Damned
The New Zealand coalition government, a Frankenstein’s monster of National, ACT, and NZ First, has once again shown its utter contempt for our democracy. This time it's the Ministry for Regulation, who didn’t even bother to read thousands of submissions on the Regulatory Standards Bill, a piece of legislation so ...2 days ago- Assault From All Sides
The majority of the 23,000 submissions for the Regulatory Standards Bill consultation weren’t even read.According to Marc Daalder1 David Seymour said ‘there just weren’t that many’ worthwhile ideas in the submissions.But how does he know when his new $76 million Ministry, with some of the highest paid public servants in ...2 days ago- National’s Blogger David Farrar Smears Senior Doctors
2 days ago- Climate Change: Now what?
When National came to power in 2023, one of its first acts was to repeal all useful climate change policy. When they finally released their amended emissions reduction plan, it relied on a single project using a fantasy technology for the bulk of its reductions. And now, that project has ...2 days ago- Fiscal starting points
Not that long ago, New Zealand’s fiscal balances looked pretty good by advanced country standards. Sure, the fiscal pressures from longer life expectancies were beginning to build – as they were in most of the advanced world – but in absolute and relative terms New Zealand still looked in pretty ...2 days ago- Jack Tame vs. Chlöe Swarbrick: Q+A’s Double Standards
Jack Tame’s Q+A interviews are often a litmus test for political discourse in Aotearoa, but his recent frost-fest with Green Party co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick exposed a troubling bias that contrasts sharply with his kid-gloves treatment of other politicians, such as ACT’s Brooke van Velden in prior appearances. The disparity in ...2 days ago- Ensuring Australia’s defence through complex interdependence
Australia’s defence thinking is based on outdated grand strategies. Adopting a complex interdependence grand strategy could create robust connections with many countries, enhancing national resilience to strategic, economic, technological and societal shocks. Specifically, Defence would ...2 days ago- Govt announces fixing mess it probably created…
..Yesterday (18 May), Ministers Simeon Brown and Matt Doocey released statements announcing $164 million over four years to “expand” urgent and after-hours healthcare services throughout Aotearoa New Zealand.Minister Brown said:“This means 98 per cent of New Zealanders will be able to receive in-person urgent care within one hour’s drive of ...2 days ago- Prabowo chooses ambiguity in South China Sea policy
Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto’s South China Sea policy has many contradictions and inconsistencies, particularly regarding China’s nine-dash line. In separate joint statements Indonesia has shown an inconsistent stance on China’s maritime claims. Indonesia’s parliament is ...2 days ago- Turning the Page
Your love is my turning pageWhere only the sweetest words remainEvery kiss is a cursive lineEvery touch is a redefining phraseSongwriter: Ryan O'NealMorena folks, today I’d like to share a little about the Writers Festival we’ve just had in Tamaki Makaurau and where my mind went as I listened to ...2 days ago- Gentailers threaten 25% power price hikes
The six key news items from Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Monday, May 19 are: The lobby group for the big electricity gentailers has warned the Electricity Authority that consumer power prices could rise 25% if the market is reformed to force Meridian, Contact, Genesis & ...2 days ago- Taking back political sanity in Aotearoa can be done, but don’t underestimate the work ahead
An article in The Conversation this week, titled “A ‘Trump slump’ has lifted the left in Canada and now Australia – what are the lessons for NZ?“ poses some interesting challenges for our Left as a whole right now, and it’s worth considering at least some of the questions it raises ...3 days ago- 2025 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #20
A listing of 29 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, May 11, 2025 thru Sat, May 17, 2025. Plugging the Weather & Climate Livestream planned to start on May 28 During the past week and thanks to Andrew Dessler's ClimateBrink ...3 days ago- Nikki ‘Noboats’ Willis has 200+ Guests turn up at her Electorate Office
..As most of the mainstream media was meeting behind school sheds, sniggering as Act Minister Brooke Van Velden uttered the word ‘cunt’ in Parliament, adults around the country were continuing the struggle for pay equity in industries that have been traditionally under-valued, under-paid, and undertaken by women.For many families, this ...3 days ago- Privileges Committee delivers racist decision
Many MPs stand and support the hakaThere is no other credible interpretation of what has influenced the Privileges Committee decision regarding the penalties for performing a haka in the house other than pure racism. The broader context for this cannot be ignored and supports a view that Te Pāti Māori have ...3 days ago- Judith Collins – Arsehole Of The Week
In a move that reeks of authoritarianism, Judith Collins, as chair of Parliament’s Privileges Committee, has overseen the unprecedented suspension of three Te Pāti Māori MPs...Rawiri Waititi, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer, and Hana-Rāwhiti Maipi-Clarke...for performing a haka in protest against the divisive Treaty Principles Bill. This 21-day suspension for the co-leaders and ...3 days ago- Coalition’s Climate Chaos: Selling Out To Big Polluters
Climate Change Minister Simon WattsYou may have noticed that climate change has largely dropped off the radar, even though many people are still dealing with the long laborious task of recovering after unprecedented storms decimated many parts of New Zealand. So what is the National-led government doing about this existential ...3 days ago- Hope and Dreams
Big wheels roll through fieldsWhere sunlight streamsOh meet me in a land of hope and dreamsMeet me in a land of hope and dreamsSong: Bruce Springsteen. Read more ...3 days ago- As big as our problems are, the possibilities are bigger
Let me be blunt, says Nicola Willis to a room of people in suits, it's not the easiest time to be putting together a Budget.Let me be blunt: that's the only line in the speech with even the hint of a pulse.The rest is utterly bland and predictable. It's the ...3 days ago- Has this country’s media lost its collective mind?
..To re-cap:Tuesday 6 May - Workplace Minister, and member of the Act Party which won only 8.64% of the vote, Brooke van Velden, announced that she had unilaterally scrapped thirty-three equal pay agreements.Minister Van Velden explained:"Claims have been able to progress without strong evidence of undervaluation and there have been ...4 days ago- Fact brief – Did Viking settlers enjoy a warm beach climate in Greenland?
Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Did Viking settlers enjoy a warm beach climate in Greenland? While Greenland’s southern coast supported some vegetation in the Medieval warm period (950-1250 ...4 days ago- A return to Nature.
Thomas Hobbes wrote his seminal work Leviathan in 1651. In it he describes the world system as it was then as being in “a state of nature,” something that some have interpreted as anarchy. However, anarchy has order and purpose. It is not chaos. In fact, if we think of ...4 days ago- Bernard’s Saturday Soliloquy for the week to May 17
Labour’s Finance Spokesperson Barbara Edmonds (left) committed to the same Government net debt cap of 50% of GDP and the same aspiration of returning the budget to surplus by 2028/29 as National, which would severe limit the ability of any future Labour-led government to fix the unmeasured infrastructure, housing, health, ...4 days ago- National Has Increased The Child Suicide Rate
The latest UNICEF Innocenti Report Card 19, Fragile Gains - Child Wellbeing at Risk in an Unpredictable World, should be a wake up call for the New Zealand government. Ranking us 32nd out of 36 OECD and EU countries for child wellbeing, it lays bare a shameful truth: our kids ...4 days ago- Energy security needs pipelines, not promises
Few issues are as urgent and as poorly understood as Australia’s energy policy. While we build up renewable energy to replace an ageing and increasingly uneconomic coal fleet, we are more dependent on gas to ...5 days ago- Catholic Theology on the Economy
While many of the world’s Christian religions seem preoccupied with personal issues that Jesus, their founder, barely touched upon, they must engage with economic issues too. Robert Prevost, chose the name Leo on becoming the 267th Bishop of Rome – the Pope – in homage to Leo XIII (in office ...5 days ago- Making fact briefs available as videos on Youtube
Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending harmfully misleading claims, produced primarily for use by thinly-resourced newswrooms but also directly available to the general public. We announced this (renewed) collaboration in April 2024 in a blog post and have published more than 30 ...5 days ago- Maybe Little should actually win the election first?
So, Andrew Little thinks the Wellington City Council should cancel its plans for the Golden Mile, because there's an election in five months: Andrew Little told Nine to Noon he'd be disappointed to see the council march ahead with the plan, given local body elections are to be held ...5 days ago- Showcasing the economic benefits of AUKUS—today
To convince the public of AUKUS’s value, government and industry messaging should focus on how the program can provide benefits in the near term—not in 20 years. AUKUS is a megaproject that will define the ...5 days ago- Friday 16 May
The Council of Trade Unions met with Brooke van Velden and demanded that she reversed the recent pay equity changes. Remaining staff members at polytech UCOL may be expected to pick up some of the work of colleagues made redundant if a proposed restructure goes ahead. Health NZ on Thursday ...5 days ago- The Haka. The Cheering. Then The Bite.
IMPORTANT: Even if next week’s debate lessens the severe penalty onTe Pāti Māori, the punishment has been timed to ice their leaders out of Budget 2025, and the introduction of the anti Treaty of Waitangi Regulatory Standards Bill.When Te Pāti Māori stood up to perform a historic haka in the ...5 days ago- How to help the US Navy as it helps us: build a joint submarine facility
There’s a way for Australia to strengthen its case for the US presidential certification it will need for acquiring Virginia-class submarines. It should do so by accelerating construction of a planned shipyard in Western Australia ...5 days ago- Why Hasn’t Nicole McKee Registered Her Firearms?
In a stunning display of hypocrisy, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee, who also oversees firearms policy, has admitted she hasn’t registered her own firearms on New Zealand’s Firearms Registry, despite the legal requirement for all licensed firearms owners to do so.This isn’t just a minor oversight; it’s a slap in ...5 days ago- The Hoon around the week to May 16
The podcast above of the weekly ‘Hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers on Thursday night features co-hosts & talking about the week’s news with regular and special guests, including: on news about climate change. about the latest news from Trump and others on Gaza, Kashmir, Ukraine and much more. ...5 days ago- Your Place
What do you do when you're in your placeWhat's going through your whirling mindI wish I could see inside of your placeIt looks like a better place than mineNumbers divineYou have to findSongwriters: Henry Binns / Sam Hardaker.Today’s newsletter is about the injustice and racism of the suspensions faced by ...5 days ago- Bernard’s Pick ‘n’ Mix & Daily Chorus for Friday, May 16
Briefly in the news from Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Friday, May 16:Auditor General John Ryan issued a scathing report yesterday into Oranga Tamariki’s abrupt and surprising cancellation and clawback last year of $60 million of funding for social services organisations, describing the agency’s (virtually nil) ...5 days ago- How A Creative Sector Dies
Art is inevitable, eternal, inexhaustible, unsuppressable. It comes from a place deep within ourselves; it comes from the spaces deep between ourselves, and it connects us like a tether. Even when it’s silly or funny or rude or violent or immature or enigmatic or conventional or bad. (Name a filmmaking ...5 days ago - Pay Equity Explainers
- Release: Govt risks hospice care by cutting women’s pay
The Government’s decision to cut women’s pay could result in an exodus of palliative care nurses from the profession. ...1 day ago - Release: Govt leaves sexual abuse survivors out in the cold
The Government is quietly cutting more services for women, this time it’s ACC support for survivors of sexual abuse and pausing the expansion of a major sexual violence prevention programme. ...1 day ago
- Report shows Govt’s callous lack of support for system at breaking point
A new report from Aotearoa Educators’ Collective, released today, has confirmed what teachers, students, and whanau have been calling out for years–our learning support system is overstretched, underfunded, and simply not working. ...1 day ago - Prime Minister must scrap the Regulatory Standards Bill
The Green Party is urging the Prime Minister to get rid of the Regulatory Standards Bill after the Waitangi Tribunal found that the Bill breaches the Crown’s Tiriti o Waitangi obligations. ...2 days ago
- Release: Women in funded sector unlikely to get pay equity
The Government is unlikely to fund pay equity for hospice and Plunket nurses, care and support workers and other workforces made up of mostly women. ...2 days ago
- Chris Hipkins Speech Auckland regional conference
Tēnā koutou katoa. It’s fantastic to be here with you all—grassroots campaigners, organisers, union members, councillors, MPs, and Labour whānau. ...4 days ago
- Release: Minister’s rash orders fail frontline providers
The Auditor-General has found serious failings in the Government’s review of frontline providers such as counselling and prevention services. ...5 days ago
- Release: Prices keep rising while National cuts women’s pay
Prices for essentials, like milk, butter and electricity continue to get more expensive under National, at the same time as the Government takes money from women’s pockets to save their budget. ...5 days ago
- Te Pāti Māori Condemns Fast-Track Approval of Seabed Mining
Te Pāti Māori is gravely concerned by the Government’s approval of the Trans-Tasman Resources (Taranaki VTM) seabed mining project under its fast-track regime. This marks the first time a commercial shallow seabed mining operation has been approved anywhere in the world- pushed through with no transparency, no public input, and ...5 days ago
- Social Security Amendment Bill pushes poverty on people
The Government’s just-passed Social Security Amendment Bill is set to create more benefit sanctions that will push families deeper into poverty. ...6 days ago
- Report exposes damage of rushed cuts to Oranga Tamariki
Today’s report into last year’s Oranga Tamariki contract procurement process confirms the Government’s brutal cuts were rushed, poorly managed, and made with no concern for the impact on tamariki. ...6 days ago
- 210,000 Māori Silenced: Committee Delivers Harshest Punishment in Parliament History
Today the Privileges Committee handed down a severe punishment. Te Pāti Māori Co-leaders Rawiri Waititi and Debbie Ngarewa-Packer have been suspended for 21 days, and MP for Hauraki-Waikato Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke has been suspended for 7 days. ...6 days ago
- Release: Govt finally admits 180,000 in line for a pay cut
The Government finally admitted late last night that roughly 180,000 people will be affected by its decision to halt pay equity claims. ...1 week ago
- Release: Admin nearly a quarter of entire FamilyBoost spend
Nearly a quarter of the money spent on the Government’s flagship FamilyBoost policy has gone to administration, not to families to help with childcare. ...1 week ago
- Green Budget for a country worth fighting for
The Green Budget shows how much better our lives could be under a Green Government, instead of one dominated by corporate greed. ...1 week ago
- Green Budget: Early Childhood Education for Everyone
The Green Party has unveiled its new plan to make Early Childhood Education (ECE) free. ...1 week ago
- Green Budget delivers for Māori
The Green Party is delivering for Māori with its Green Budget. ...1 week ago
- Green Budget: Free GPs for all
The Green Party has launched its plan for Free GPs as part of its Green Budget. ...1 week ago
- Chris Hipkins: Pre-Budget speech
Tēnā koutou katoa. Good morning. I read recently that one of the keys to success in life is to do the hard stuff first thing in the morning. ...1 week ago
- Release; Budget should not be paid for by working women
The Government must do three things in Budget 2025 if it is genuinely going to turn things around for New Zealanders. ...1 week ago
- Release: Peeni Henare takes over foreign affairs
Labour’s Peeni Henare will pick up the foreign affairs portfolio, following David Parker’s departure from Parliament. ...1 week ago
- Release: Govt better at crushing women’s rights than cars
Rehashing old laws around boy racers is not going to make our communities safer, or distract New Zealanders from the appalling decision to cut women’s pay. ...1 week ago
- No Justice for State Abuse Survivors- Kapa-Kingi
Te Pāti Māori MP for Te Tai Tokerau calls out the government’s decision to keep funding state abuse, turning their backs on justice and real change for abuse in care survivors. “The government has committed to throwing $744 million down the drain, reinforcing a violent regime of disrespect against the ...2 weeks ago
- Govt’s War on Te Tiriti Continues as Review of Treaty Act Announced
Te Pāti Māori is absolutely disgusted by the Government’s announcement to review the Waitangi Tribunal- a deliberate and dangerous escalation in its ongoing campaign to undermine Te Tiriti o Waitangi and silence tangata whenua. “The Government’s onslaught against Te Tiriti continues with this latest move to review the Treaty of ...2 weeks ago
- Tribunal review an attack on Te Tiriti o Waitangi
The Government’s plans to limit the powers and scope of the Waitangi Tribunal is a disgrace. ...2 weeks ago
- Tribunal review an attack on Te Tiriti o Waitangi
The Government’s plans to limit the powers and scope of the Waitangi Tribunal is a disgrace. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Labour asks why Govt is silent on Gaza
Labour is asking the Government why it is silent on Israel’s deliberate use of starvation as a weapon of war in Gaza, saying New Zealand should be speaking out. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Govt ignores the voices of survivors
Survivors of abuse in state care have a right to feel disappointed and sidelined by the Government. ...2 weeks ago
- Redress announcement leaves little justice for survivors
The Green Party is appalled by the Government’s decision to severely underfund financial compensation for survivors of abuse in state care. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Bill launched to stop tobacco industry lobbying
Labour is launching a members’ bill to stop the Government from putting tobacco industry interests ahead of public health. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Labour fights for firefighters
The Labour Party backs volunteer firefighters who are currently not covered by ACC for workplace disease and mental injury and is drafting policy to put this right when the party wins the election in 2026. ...2 weeks ago
- Wildlife law change a deep betrayal of public trust
The Green Party is appalled by the Government’s use of urgency to rewrite the Wildlife Act–without consultation, without an impact statement, and in direct response to a court ruling in favour of protecting wildlife. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: National cuts women’s pay
National has forced through a law change that will take money out of women’s pockets. ...2 weeks ago
- ‘Govt’s Pay Bill Entrenches Discrimination Against Women’ – Kemp
Te Pāti Māori stands in staunch and emotional opposition to the Government’s so-called Equal Pay Amendment Bill, calling it a calculated attack on working women and a cruel betrayal of the generations who have fought for pay equity in Aotearoa. “This bill doesn’t just undermine equal pay — it completely ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Fewer jobs and opportunities for Māori, again
In the last 12 months life has only got worse for Māori under Christopher Luxon’s Government. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: More than one in 10 Pacific people unemployed under National
There are more Pacific people unemployed as the rate increases to a staggering 10.8% under National. ...2 weeks ago
- Release: Unemployment remains high under National
Job losses remain stubbornly high under National, as their attack on jobs, wages, and women rages on. ...2 weeks ago
- Govt for the rich is failing the unemployed
The latest job market statistics show that unemployed people are being failed by a Government more focused on punishing the poor than creating jobs. ...2 weeks ago
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Have a great Xmas everyone. All the best for 2020 folks.
Happy holidays!
Had a great xmas gift this morning.
UK rental car agency informed me of a fine and charged me 40 pounds admin fee to tell me.
Looks like the 100 pound parking fine was cancelled (it was part of my accomadation). But I wasted an hour writing a email to elicit confirmation that it was cancelled and that there were no other fines floating around for the other 10 days I was there.
Reminds me why I try to ride a e-bike as much as possible. Cars are just a eternal waste of time and resources.
Happy holidays every one, drive safe and obey that speed limit.
Hmmmm …
Meri kirihimete to all Standardistas and your whanau.
A very Merry Christmas to you particularly, MS.
Your efforts over and above your regular work in law and in local politics are much appreciated by many including the silent minority which you speak for.
Please keep up your great work representing those without a voice.
Thank you Mickysavage, same to you and yours.
Lets hope it isnt the last Christmas under a Labour government. Though looking at the polls, it could end up that way.
I found this amusing, i am sure wag would like it
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12291069
Hoof up looking for the dashboard – sheep is one laidback mofo.
I ate too much.
I'm slothing about watching Desk Set.
So did I.
AND I read your post from yesterday on the Future of Capitalism and the excellent discussion it provoked,
AND then Incogs on Democratisation, Soshul Media et all. If I had the energy, I'd be totally illuminated
All up in the scheme of things, I've decided it might just be easier to become a numbnut and professional victim, or alternatively hibernate for two or three years .
Burp.
Blaargh – fine food wasted on gluttons, most of the day spent drinking in the garden and spouting bullshit at family members. Fine modern traditional NZ Christmas, in other words.
Me too. Mind you some of the bullshit coming back at me was worse.
Quite Crass when you think about it eh @ PM. Such is the nature though of how things have evolved amongst supposedly intelligent human beings.
Merry Christmas all.
Had a good day, kids opened presents, entertained the family, etc.
One lowlight was asking a racist RWNJ friend if he'd be watching the Prime Minister's Goodnight Kiwi reading at 8:05 on TV2.
He replied, "I hate that bitch".
This is the invective of the regular near and far right in New Zealand at the moment. It must be outed and fought at every possible opportunity.
I did the JA and smiled at my friend's hatred…
Time to let your mate go.
Anyone want to see Australia burn?
I do.
Why? It could be our turn next.
Lot of innocent people losing their houses and possesions though.
From what I am hearing a lot of the greenies and environmentalists are copping the blame because they have opposed controlled burnoffs.
Well … climate change deniers like Barnaby Joyce says it's the "greenies" fault.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/nov/12/is-there-really-a-green-conspiracy-to-stop-bushfire-hazard-reduction
Why do you want to see Australia burn?
You like the idea of all that extra CO2 in the atmosphere?
You like seeing further destruction of already scarce wild places?
You like pushing endangered species even closer to the edge through further habitat destruction?
Are you under the delusion that these fires are in any slightest way causing suffering or inducing a rethink among those responsible for the Australian government's current deliberate climate and environmental vandalism? If that's the case, seek help. Seriously.
Yeah, this was what I was getting at.
I'll seek help.
And see several million Australians rock up in New Zealand seeking a better place to live, because they can. And we can't do a thing about it.
Just think about the consequences of that happening.
not to mention half a million+ expat kiwis who currently live there…and the link between those population flows and trade
There's the start of it around Central Otago, but with more of a political motivation, we're seen as better governed, but climate response is part of that.
Friend's I've got over there are split, some very green by Aussie standards, some very denialist, also by Aussie standards. We could see a dramatic change in our politics, along with a social, employment and housing crisis of un-imaginable proportions.
and that change may be made from without and beyond our control/influence
I don't think anyone that full of hate is capable of a logical reasoned thought process.
Wow, that would have to be the most stupid comment i have seen on here for a very long time. I hope the law keeps a close eye on you. Do you have no shame?
Merry Christmas, snowflake!
Kirwee pub burns down last night.
Seems to be a lot of these old country pubs burning down lately. One wonders if the owners are putting a match to them to claim the insurance…
I've watched the demise and subsequent immolation of several old country pubs and in all cases the place was a fire waiting to happen. They were old, poorly maintained and managed, and had a severe barfly infestation. Sooner or later someone dropped a fag, or the rats chewed the wrong wire, and away they went. And old pubs, like old fish and chip shops, tend to be rather combustible.