Not just NZ government but also opposition MPs?
And include spying on their personal and sex lives, social and community interactions, side businesses, etc. Then pass on that info to be used against them.
I would not be cheerleading to this news as it is not great for National. It shows Jimmy Shaw has hit a high note with the public, up to 13% and expect this to grow, outstanding result for a new co leader.
I guess National can come out with an endorsement of future partner Colin Craig’s Conservatives. Alas the Nats won’t have the support of the Maori-Mana Party and of course Dunne will retire end of this term.
Weep and you weep alone, smile 🙂 and the whole world smiles with you coobah!
Rogue I’ve excepted Labour will be stuck in the 20’s along as tthey go into elections with the same line up of MP’s, I just wish they would. So its the status quo till Key goes. All bets are off if say he had the misfortune of walking out of a cafe daydreaming of fondlying the waitress’s hair straight into a bus and killed.
Yes in other words Labour needs to be Labour and the front people the MP’s representing the party need to be in on this or out. I can think of 10 at first blush that don’t measure up. The problem is plying them out for the collective good of the party. How is this achieved, its not like Little can swing the axe, one whiff of this and they will start undermining him then try rolling him.
@ PR…I dont think the Queen likes jonkey nactional( too much of a social climber and her son is a Greenie)…jonkey may not himself get a knighthood ( if Labour has anything to do with it)…and he may be out next Election…so Winnie is in with a chance
We’ll see, I’m willing to wait for the other companie’s polls and if they show the same thing I’ll wait for the ones after that, and so on and so on, heh.
It’s the “reputation” bit that concerns me: yes, it might cover revenge porn, but depending on the nuances of the wording they might just have recriminalised libel with no defense as to whether it’s true.
e.g. “weird hairtugging liar john key” might pick up a fine…
Because rather than deal with the issues brought up by the Roast Busters issue. It is appears to be nothing more than censorship, at worst. Or legislation to stop criticism of the government, at best.
You can always expect the Tory scum to manipulate public opinion to suit their agenda.
Plus, and I think this is the kicker – it just makes criminals of people over bugger all, but does not really deal with the issues Roast Busters raised.
It’s difficult to know what the party stands for when they express significant concern, yet go ahead and support the opposition’s bill.
Furthermore, doing so implies Labour doesn’t plan to overrule the concerning legislation if elected. Leaving voters questioning why vote Labour when they are largely the same?
Furthermore, doing so implies Labour doesn’t plan to overrule the concerning legislation if elected.
If they think such a bill is a good idea (which I do BTW) then it’s going to be easier to amend afterwards especially with all of the fuckups that’s going to happen under Nationals’ heavy handed, unthought out legislation.
So, support it now but highlight, loudly, how it should be changed and then, when in government, change it with consideration to previous concerns and based on what’s actually happened.
It could be several years before Labour are in Government again, which may come back to voters not perceiving a significant difference to bother changing allegiance.
To be fair, some of that “abuse” is just colourful opinion. “Dribbler” and “half-inflated balloon” or “supporting psychopathic climate change deniers”, come on. If that’s the best tweeters can do to politicians that actively try to kill people with policy, we could probably cut the numbers of NZ police because people are just too damn polite to violent maniacs and pose little threat to anyone else.
The horse teeth comments, that would be something that needs looking into – as she points out, there is a theme. You have to consider the cultural context and the gender of the person. Call Winston a dribbler in real life and he might laugh, but he’d immediately give back five times worse, too. The description of half-inflated balloon bouncing around lamely and unexpectly … that isn’t gender specific, or physically specific enough, so fails the test.
I’d be more concerned with private citizens recieving those sorts of text/online comments from strangers on a regular basis (that related to something they can’t change in themselves or an act of free-will that isn’t a crime), people who didn’t ask for public attention, weren’t trying to kill other people, and who weren’t engaged in politics. Many people get worse during smoko from employers and “workmates”, and much much worse from their own families and friends while they grow up. There might be a basis for investigating “the crimes of emotional abuse” but to ask anyone around the political traps, now, to do it, I just don’t think anyone’s up to it. They can’t even grasp the basics of writing good laws, and this sort of thing is a bit involved.
John Key, with the support of the Speaker, has reduced our Parliamentary question time to a shameful farce. The Speaker has metaphorically cut the tendons of the opposition to immobilise them before their inhumane slaughter by ensuring that the unredacted cabinet document that proves John Key is lying as usual is not table.
Shame.
Healthline a very useful and helpful service which we have had occasion to use several times over the last few years is to be replaced by a new service run by two doctors companies for the next 10 years.
Healthline has been a Health department service but the Nats.
have decided it needs to be privatised.
I find it depressing that no-one questions these lengthy contracts, IMO any Govt contract longer than 5yrs should immediately trigger a full investigation by the audit office. Labour and other opposition should be absolutely hammering into these rorts, they appear either fraudulent or intended to prevent future Governments from reversing privatisations.
The main justification for using private sector contractors is the competitive pricing achieved through tendering. By handing out such unacceptably long contracts these people are effectively immediately cancelling the tenders and annulling any alleged advantage gained from privatisation.
Contracts for services should be really be no longer than about 3-5yrs. The encumbent usually wants to retain the business and re-tendering keeps them honest. 10yr contracts are just gold plated retirement schemes for a favoured few, they’re totally unacceptable.
The long tenders are to cut down on the costs, for both government and the private sector, of the tendering. Both parties know that the costs of the tender process make it so that it would have simply been cheaper, easier and better for the government to simply do it themselves.
As I say – competition increases costs and for all government services doesn’t produce any more value. In fact, it usually reduces the quality of the service as well as making it cost more.
End result is that we end up with a monopoly private provider that will gouge the taxpayer for everything they can and the government will actually have to protect that monopoly providers’ profits else the whole lot will collapse. Basically, it’s guaranteed income for the private provider with the possibility of gouging even more from the government. Just look to Telecom/Chorus getting the government subsidy to install fibre to the home.
New Mosque in Taihape – sanctuary for weary travellers
“
Before the centre was established in 2014, Muslims used to pray by the train station or behind the main public toilets. The mosque serves the general population of the South Island as they travel State Highway One – Constable Saifudin Abu, Taihape
Ah, PR failed to include the Green’s salient point:
The last review of prison food was in 2009. It found that rations were adequate, but would need to increase if Corrections wanted prisoners to do more physical activity.
Mr Clendon said servings should increase now that all prisons were being converted into working prisons.
I agree. If that’s what the review said, then it should be abided by.
Ah yes, Otago Daily Times of the Waitaki electorate… that hotbed of Greens support: running at about a 5th of what was given to National last election. Co-incidence?
Don’t read the link if you’re a National supporter or crim-buster. Don’t want cognitive dissonance spooging all over the place… don’t you do it! …I warned you!
”The Ombudsman reported recently that “Prisoners continue to complain that the national menus implemented by the Department do not consider the specific health needs of prisoners, especially diabetics.”
Former Corrections Minister Judith Collins responded to these concerns with this churlish comment: “Stay out of jail if you don’t like the food.” The police seem equally uninterested in providing a healthy diet for prisoners. The Wairarapa Times recently reported that a young man who spent a weekend in the police cells was given nothing but noodles and cold water.
So in addition to the prospects of various physical assaults, seems National also is happy to condemn diabetic criminals to near-death situations. Nice.
From the inside, prison food ain’t so great it seems, and isn’t even close to the ambiguously satisfying “sample menu” offered by ODT. Last food review was in 2009, and the news says no new review due any time soon, so this 2012 posting is still theoretically current. As for ODT and their Green-snarking… Go back to your parsnips.
Speaking of adequate meals, the Defence Force has announced it will restrict sugary fizzy drinks and deep fried food as it emerges more than a quarter of its personnel are ‘obese’.
Hillary Clinton is trying to masquerade as “the people’s candidate”. The $US2.5 billion “people’s candidate”, says Glen Ford of Black Agenda Report, who notes that the Democrats and Republicans are essentially the same.
“Young Australian author Adam Schwartz with practical advice for parents of children with depression based on his own experience.
Adam Schwartz was just 10 when he first became depressed. He refused to go to school, he was prone to bouts of destruction and contemplated suicide. For the next seven years, he and his parents tried an endless round of therapies and treatments in New South Wales, where they live. Adam is now 24, back in study in healthy and has written a book about what it is like to be a child and teenager suffering from depression. It’s called mum, I wish I was dead and he wants it to give hope to both sufferers and their parents.”
“The EU has drafted a plan to counter what it sees as “Russian disinformation activities” calling for the promotion of EU policies in the post-Soviet space and the implementation of measures against Russian media, including RT.
The nine-page paper drafted by the EU Foreign Service and obtained by EUobserver was prepared ahead of the June 25-26 summit and is set to be voted on by EU leaders on Thursday.
The plan is aimed at tackling Russia’s “use and misuse of communication tools” and the “promotion of EU policies” in former Soviet states as well as support for “independent media” and “increased public awareness of disinformation activities by external actors,” the report says.
It specifically mentions RT, which according to the report broadcasts “fabrications and hate speech from their bureaus in EU cities.”…
“Winning the battlefield called public opinion has never been so important nor so divisive. The western media’s assault on Russia approaches sensory overload, but is it effective? There is a vast ongoing propaganda war being played out – whose propaganda should we be worried about?
To all the narrow minded bigots who are anti-papist, and are happy to blame all their woes on the church. Please don’t read this. Or respond – because your disgraceful display the other day, was bloody demoralising.
If you don’t mind, stretching one’s mind – I think Chris raises some good points.
“The Catholic church in Sydney has sent letters to at least two companies that publicly support same-sex marriage, to express its “grave concern” and accuse them of “overstepping their purpose”.
The companies said the letter did not change their stance on same-sex marriage.
Guardian Australia has seen the letter addressed to Steve Walsh, the chairman of law firm Maurice Blackburn, sent by the business manager of the Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney, Michael Digges.
In the letter, Digges writes the church is a “significant user of goods and services from many corporations, both local and international” and reminds the firm that many of its “employees, customers, partners, suppliers” would belong to the Catholic faith….
(another attempt by the Catholic Church to run rough shod their brand of morality over people in secular society….weird hypocrisy because everyone knows that the Catholic Church and its clergy are full of wooly woofters…and we could say more …about Catholic Church priest sexual abuse, cover ups and “disgraceful” behaviour)
I do agree with adam on one point – that it is not really fair for the catholics to be singled out from amongst the many deviations contained within Christendom.
After everything that’s happened it sort of amazes me the catholic church has the gall to lecture another organisation about ”overstepping their purpose”, when it has been demonstrably neglectful of its own responsibilities as an organisation.
“I wonder whether you have questioned whether it is the role of a corporation such as yours to be participating in such an important matter that impacts all of Australian society now and into the future.”
After everything that’s happened it sort of amazes me the catholic church has the gall to lecture another organisation about ”overstepping their purpose”
Not ‘lecturing to another organisation’; more like preaching. It’s the Catholic Church after all.
ER +100…gall and hypocrisy…and power and control ( descriptors)…this church of deviant weirdos and oppression has been responsible for an awful lot of bigotry and suffering
….and they have the gall to try and interfere and impose themselves into the private lives of those outside their church …and in secular democratic states
Thanks weka. I try, sheesh I know the church is far, far, far from perfect. I find it’s power structures really not to my liking. Plus I disagree on its stance on sexuality and the role of women. That said, I agree on a lot of issues too.
And quite frankly, I’m not seeing secular society doing much to help the poor and suffering. Under this government, secular society seems smug, and willing to put the boot in. So I’d rather deal with people, whose morals I disagree with on a couple of points. Than deal with people who have no morals at all.
That was what I thought – it’ll put huge pressure on less well off households and on those who rent who will no doubt have the landlords pass costs on.
if this is what a Labour mayor and his supporters in council deliver can we please have the option of a good Green mayor or anyone else, rather than the continuing parade of jesters, capitalists and cronies that have little to offer to anyone apart from themselves and their mates.
THE KILLING SEASON is Sarah Ferguson’s gripping three-part examination of the forces that shaped Labor during the Kevin Rudd / Julia Gillard leadership years. It is a documentary series like no other. Visually striking, scripted like the best political dramas, The Killing Season is an enthralling account of one of the most turbulent periods of Australian political history.
A comprehensive cast of the main players – including many of those still in parliament – speak frankly, providing a dramatic portrait of a party at war with itself.
You can watch all three episodes of The Killing Season on ABC iview and for international viewers abc.net.au/killingseason. Available for a limited period only.
“You just ring your hands in despair, don’t you.”
Jim Mora sighs deeply to show how troubled he is. The Panel, Radio NZ National, Wednesday 24 June 2015
Jim Mora, Liz Bowen-Clewley, Finlay Macdonald, Zara Potts
In today’s preshow segment, after a few anodyne comments about the death of James Horner, the Panelists engage in some extended banter about the latest Global Peace Index ratings. Out of 162 countries in the survey, apparently the five safest places are Iceland, Denmark, Austria, New Zealand and Switzerland; the United States is only the 94th safest country. The most unsafe: Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, South Sudan.
ZARA POTTS: Syria is so dangerous, of course, in large part due to IS. And they are now blowing up the ancient shrines near Palmyra. JIM MORA:[gravely, in a tone of deep concern] They’ve got going on that, have they? …. Well what can you say? …. [heartfelt sigh] …. You just ring your hands in despair, don’t you.
et cetera, ad nauseam….
Masochists may like to see further instances of Jim Mora sighing deeply and empathetically….
Aint it just great Keyjerks reactionary media army dragging the protest on parliament buildings into a fear mongering security risk trying to make the activist look like terrorists
I suppose there will be a new bill jerked into parliament under urgency thats if Gerry aint to worn out finding the energy to get of his backside to complete the process of alarming the country as defence minister
Maybe these fascists will declare their full intention cause i would put anything past this Keyjerk reactionary with the TPPA NEW SYSTEM of world govt about to be enacted Protest for breakfast anyone
Katie Bradford even signed off by saying that the Government will be most worried about “copy cat attacks”. I could not see anyone attacking anyone… Both One and 3 News did as little as they could to cover what the protestors were actually protesting about. 3 was a little bit better in that sense, but Tova O’Brien chimed in with her opinion that it was all about the security. Distract, dstract, distract…
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
TL;DR: In today’s ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Tuesday, March 19:Kāinga Ora’s dry rot The Spinoff DailyBill McKibben on ‘Climate Superfunds’ making Big Oil pay for climate damage The Crucial YearsPreston Mui on returning to 1980s-style productivity growth NoahpinionAndy Boenau on NIMBYs needing unusual bedfellows Urbanism SpeakeasyNed Resnikoff's case ...
Negative yesterday, negative today. Negative all year, according to one departing reader telling me I’ve grown strident and predictable. Fair enough. If it’s any help, every time I go to write about a certain topic that begins with C and ends with arrrrs, I do brace myself and ask: Again? Are ...
Bryce Edwards writes – It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just show a minimal amount of flux in public support ...
Inspirational: The Family of Man is a glorious hymn to human equality, but, more than that, it is a clarion call to human freedom. Because equality, unleavened by liberty, is a broken piano, an unstrung harp; upon which the songs of fraternity will never be played.“Somebody must have been telling lies about ...
Tax Lawyer Barbara Edmonds vs Emperor Justinian I- Nolo Contendere: False historical explanations of pivotal events are very far from being inconsequential.WHEN BARBARA EDMONDS made reference to the Roman Empire, my ears pricked up. It is, lamentably, very rare to hear a politician admit to any kind of familiarity ...
It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just show a minimal amount of flux in public support for the various parties in ...
Buzz from the Beehive Housing Minister Chris Bishop delivered news – packed with the ingredients to enflame political passions – worthy of supplanting Winston Peters in headline writers’ priorities. He popped up at the post-Cabinet press conference to promise a crackdown on unruly and antisocial state housing tenants. His ...
Ele Ludemann writes – The Reserve Bank is advertising for a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion advisor. The Bank has one mandate – to keep inflation between one and three percent. It has failed in that and is only slowly getting inflation back down to the upper limit. Will it ...
Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency Waka KotahiThe fact that a ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Last week former National Party leader Simon Bridges was appointed by the Government as the new chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). You can read about the appointment in Thomas Coughlan’s article, Simon Bridges to become chair of NZ Transport Agency ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: Gavin Jacobson talks to Thomas Piketty 10 years on from Capital in the 21st CenturyThe SalvoLocal scoop: Green MP’s business being investigated over migrant exploitation claims StuffSteve KilgallonLocal deep-dive: The commercial contractors making money from School ...
It’s a home - but Kāinga Ora tenants accused of “abusing the privilege” may lose it. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Government announced a crackdown on Kāinga Ora tenants who were unruly and/or behind on their rent, with Housing Minister Chris Bishop saying a place in a state ...
This is a guest post by Connor Sharp of Surface Light Rail Light rail in Auckland: A way forward sooner than you think With the coup de grâce of Auckland Light Rail (ALR) earlier this year, and the shift of the government’s priorities to roads, roads, and more roads, it ...
Note: As a paid-up Webworm member, I’ve recorded this Webworm as a mini-podcast for you as well. Some of you said you liked this option - so I aim to provide it when I get a chance to record! Read more ...
TL;DR: In my ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.06pm on Monday, March 18:IKEA is accused of planting big forests in New Zealand to green-wash; REDD-MonitorA City for People takes a well-deserved victory lap over Wellington’s pro-YIMBY District Plan votes; A City for PeopleSteven Anastasiou takes a close look at the sticky ...
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 ...
David Farrar writes – We now have almost all 2023 data in, which has allowed me to update my annual table of how labour went against its promises. This is basically their final report card. The promiseThe result Build 100,000 affordable homes over 10 ...
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 ...
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. ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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; ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
“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 ...
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, ...
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, ...
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.“$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 ...
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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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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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 ...
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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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 → ...
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 ...
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 ...
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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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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. ...
Buzz from the BeehiveThe 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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
Questions need to be asked on both sides of the worldPeter 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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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, ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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, ...
The Government has accepted Labour’s change to the Road User Charge (RUC) discount for hybrid vehicles, meaning there will still be some incentive for people to buy greener vehicles. ...
Kicking the most vulnerable people out of state housing and pushing them towards homelessness will result in a proliferation of poverty and trauma across our most vulnerable communities. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader and MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi has penned a letter asking MPs to support his members bill to remove GST from all food. The bill is expected to go through its first reading in parliament this Wednesday. “I’m calling on all political parties to support my ...
This year is about getting real with Kiwis and discussing the tough issues, as the National Government exacerbates inequality and divides New Zealand, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said ...
The Government adding Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) to its already roaring environmental policy bonfire is an assault on the future of wildlife that makes Aotearoa unique. ...
After 12 years of fighting to protect our moana we are finding ourselves back at square one and back at court. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is sitting in Hawera to reconsider an application from Trans-Tasman Resources to dig up 50 million tonnes of the seabed in South Taranaki. This ...
Minister Shane Jones’ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Government’s fast-track 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 publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
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 publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Government’s miscalculation saga continues as it has forgotten an eyewatering $90 million gap in its interest deductibility cost figures, say Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds and Revenue Spokesperson Deborah Russell. ...
He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission has today released advice that says if the Government doesn’t act now New Zealand is at risk of not meeting its climate goals. ...
The Coalition Government has today confirmed it is abandoning first home buyers who are struggling to get ahead, says Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds. ...
The New Zealand public voted for a change in direction at the 2023 general election and that is exactly what this coalition government has been delivering in its first 100 days. There was an immediate focus on the economy, easing the cost of living, cracking down on law and order ...
The Government has left the health system as an afterthought, announcing half-baked targets at the last minute of their 100-day plan, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
Kiwis are still waiting for their promised cost of living support after 100 days of a National Government that is taking us backwards, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
100 days of National taking NZ backwardsThe National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
The Government must commit to funding free and healthy school lunches, as thousands of people sign the petition to keep them, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti says. ...
If the Government was serious about moving families into public housing, they would build more houses so there is actually somewhere for people to go. ...
The free and healthy school lunches programme feeds our kids, helps them to learn, and saves families money – but it is at risk under this Government, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
The Government’s proposed changes to Firearms Prohibition Orders (FPO) add almost nothing new and are merely an attempt to distract from its plans to loosen gun laws, police spokesperson Ginny Andersen and justice spokesperson Dr Duncan Webb said. ...
The great Victorian era English politician Lord Macauley stood in the British House of Parliament and said, "The gallery in which the reporters sit has become a fourth estate of the realm".He understood and outlined even way back then, the significant role and influence media have in a democracy. ...
The government’s attack on Māori health this week is committing tangata-whenua to a premature death, says Te Pāti Māori. “The government have begun their onslaught on Māori health with the abolishment of the Māori Health Authority and smokefree laws in the same day” said health spokesperson and co-leader, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. ...
"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 ...
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 ...
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. ...
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 ...
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, ...
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. ...
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 ...
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 ...
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, ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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, ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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,” ...
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. ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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. ...
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 ...
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 ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Deborah Lupton, SHARP Professor, Vitalities Lab, Centre for Social Research in Health and Social Policy Centre, and the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society, UNSW Sydney kitzcorner/Shutterstock The assertion from Queensland’s chief health officer John Gerrard that ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Martin, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University Shutterstock Why are musicians so keen to get played on the radio? It can’t be because of the money. In Australia they are paid at rates so low they ...
"Farmers make a point not to tell our urban cousins how to live, yet Chlöe from central Auckland is hell-bent on having her say about farmers," says ACT Rural Communities spokesman Mark Cameron. “On her first day in the House as Green ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards – Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Curran, Associate Professor of Ecology, Lincoln University, New Zealand Getty Images/Gerald Corsi In the latest move to reform environmental laws in New Zealand, the coalition government has introduced a bill to fast-track consenting processes for projects deemed to ...
Uber has argued it does not have as much control over drivers as the unions suggest, and wants a judgment ruling that drivers are employees and not contractors set aside and sent back to the Employment Court. The 2022 ruling followed a three-week hearing in which four drivers sought to ...
What can and can’t be purchased by disabled people or their carers has been slashed in an effort by the Ministry of Disabled People Whaikaha to save money. The purchasing guidelines, a set of rules that sets out what can be purchased using the various streams of Government disability funding, ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Tod Wright and Hien Nguyen, Fiscal incidence in New Zealand: The effects of taxes and benefits on household incomes in tax year 2018/19 . Analyses of the distributional impact of taxation and government ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Cory Davis, Boston Hart and Benjamin Stubbing, Household cost-of-living impacts from the Emissions Trading Scheme and using transfers to mitigate regressive outcomes . This Analytical Note ...
A coalition of public transport and climate organisations, united as ‘Transport for All’, is actively opposing the government’s transport proposals. The draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) includes plans for higher fares for public transport, ...
Greater Wellington is inviting feedback on proposed changes to its Revenue and Financing Policy. The Revenue and Financing Policy covers the Council’s various sources of funding, and how the cost of services is shared across the region. This includes ...
Labour has conceded it could have done more to deal with disruptive state housing tenants while in government but says the current coalition is going too far. ...
The band has asked their record label to issue a cease and desist to stop the NZ First leader using their 1997 hit to support his ‘misguided political views’. “I get knocked down, but I get up again,” blared through the speakers on Sunday as Winston Peters took the stage ...
By Lydia Lewis, RNZ Pacific journalist Food rationing is underway in remote areas in Papua New Guinea’s Highlands following torrential rain and flash flooding. More than 20 people have been reported dead in Chimbu Province. In nearby Enga Province, the centre of last month’s massacre, a 15-year-old boy has been ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Hughes, Lecturer, Research School of Management, Australian National University After months of debate and intrigue, the AFL’s 19th and newest team, the Tasmania Devils, finally launched its jumper, logo and colours in Devonport this week. The Devils will wear green, ...
Brannavan Gnanalingam reviews the debut novel by Saraid de Silva.One of the most baffling things for children who move to a new country is what their parents’ (or grandparents’) lives were like prior to moving – for kids in particular, they’re too busy trying to fit in in their ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Gaunson, Associate Professor in Cinema Studies, RMIT University Narelle Portanier/Binge “If you don’t know who your mob are, you don’t know who you are,” Detective Andrea “Andie” Whitford (played by Leah Purcell) is told early into the new crime ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Elise Klein, Associate professor, Australian National University It’s commonly accepted that women do the vast majority of caregiving in Australian society. But less appreciated is that Indigenous women do larger amounts of unpaid care than any other group. Working with the Aboriginal ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne Joe Biden and Donald Trump have both secured their parties’ nominations for the November 5 United States general election by winning a ...
Comment: There has been a striking contrast in trans-Tasman interest about Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi’s visit to New Zealand and Australia. While the Australian press has been full of articles about the visit – including his curious decision to meet with former prime minister and China booster Paul Keating ...
After years of pressuring banks and other institutions to stop investing in fossil fuels, climate campaigners are making some progress. So how does divestment work?For years, climate activists have been pushing banks and other big institutions to divest from fossil fuels. New research from climate advocacy group 350 Aotearoa ...
For Boba, Ethan and Ashley, K-pop is a place to belong, a way to express themselves, and a bridge to connect with others. The three young Polynesians are part of a K-pop fan community in Tāmaki Makaurau. It’s one of many that have sprung up worldwide as K-pop has gone ...
For Boba, Ethan and Ashley, K-pop is a place to belong, a way to express themselves, and a bridge to connect with others. This one-off documentary presents three intimate portraits of young Polynesians who are pulled into a Korean cultural phenomenon. K-POLYS is directed by Litia Tuiburelevu, Produced by Hex ...
There’s ample evidence demonstrating free school lunch programmes provide wide benefits across schools, households and communities according to public health researchers. ACT Minister David Seymour wants to reduce the spending on Aotearoa New Zealand’s ...
By Wata Shaw in Suva Fiji is facing an exodus of Fijians as many are leaving for overseas seeking employment and education and others are migrating, says Opposition MP Viliame Naupoto. Speaking in Parliament, he said: “His Excellency’s speech (Ratu Wiliame Katonivere) comes after a little over one year of ...
The Taxpayers’ Union is welcoming comments from Christopher Luxon this morning recommitting to ‘no new taxes’ as part of Budget 2024. “Mr Luxon’s refusal at the Post-Cabinet press conference yesterday to repeat the ‘no new taxes’ promise ...
SAFE is urgently calling on the Environment Committee to reject the Government’s Fast-Track Approvals Bill, and is urging New Zealanders to rally behind the call. The proposed Bill, currently under consideration with the Environment select committee, ...
Teammates who spend all their time picking fights with spectators are only helpful for the other team, writes Madeleine Chapman. Anyone who has ever played a team sport competitively, particularly as a child and particularly, for some reason, basketball, will know that there’s a lot of politics involved. While there ...
The long-running Wellington music festival is too focused on the Jim Beam-ness and not enough on the Homegrown-ness.There is something about Homegrown that’s difficult to place. A barely perceptible-ness. Like feeling a ghost is watching you from the corner of the room but when you look, there’s nothing there. ...
The latest Ipsos New Zealand Issues Monitor reveals that fewer New Zealanders believe crime / law and order is one of the top issues facing our country. In 2018, Ipsos New Zealand started tracking the key issues facing New Zealand. In this wave ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kate Griffiths, Deputy Program Director, Budgets and Government, Grattan Institute Australia’s political donations rules are woefully inadequate, but donations reform is finally on the agenda. The federal government has signalled its interest in reform and will soon begin briefing MPs on its ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Mark Patrick Taylor, Chief Environmental Scientist, EPA Victoria; Honorary Professor, School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University Naiyana Somchitkaeo/Shutterstock A recent study published in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine has linked microplastics with risk to human health. The study ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Albert Van Dijk, Professor, Water and Landscape Dynamics, Fenner School of Environment & Society, Australian National University Global climate records were shattered in 2023, from air and sea temperatures to sea-level rise and sea-ice extent. Scores of countries recorded their hottest year ...
As part of our series exploring how New Zealanders live and our relationship with money, a teacher explains why he and his partner are in frugal mode – and how they’re making it work. Gender: Male Age: 35Ethnicity: Pākehā Role: I am an intermediate school teacher and my partner is ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Bendall, Senior Lecturer, Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences, Australian Catholic University Binge Mary & George, the new British television drama series, depicts the real-life story of Mary Villiers and her son George, and their social climbing at the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jason Nassios, Associate Professor, Centre of Policy Studies, Victoria University This article is part of The Conversation’s series examining the housing crisis. Read the other articles in the series here. Australian state and federal governments spend money in many ways to ...
The finance minister is denying that there’s a $5.6b shortfall in paying for the government’s campaign promises, including tax cuts. At his post-cabinet press conference yesterday, the PM refused to rule out new taxes to pay for the cuts, writes Anna Rawhiti-Connell in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s ...
Kāinga Ora tenants abused by their neighbours are doubting the government's crackdown on disruptive tenants will make a difference on their behaviour. ...
Kāinga Ora is New Zealand’s biggest residential landlord, housing more than 180,000 vulnerable people in more than 67,000 properties. Yesterday the government announced a crackdown on its tenants who fall behind on rent. One longtime Kāinga Ora tenant shares her experience.For 18 years I lived in a 1960s standalone ...
Why does this myth persist, and what’s the real reason our skin is suffering?It’s one of the biggest international grievances New Zealanders hold, up there with the sinking of the Rainbow Warrior and 1981’s underarm incident. We’re quick to tell international travellers that the world’s pollution led to the ...
Auckland Council is opposing a fast-track development backed by Sir John Kirwan and Spark NZ, because it doesn’t meet stringent new climate adaptation requirements The post Surf-data centre faces new 3.8C climate warming rules appeared first on Newsroom. ...
When the Criminal Proceeds (Recovery) Act was introduced in 2009 it was firmly targeted at gangs and drugs. The legislation means police no longer need a conviction to seize assets that criminals can’t prove were paid for legitimately, as long as their alleged offences are punishable by more than a ...
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Bob’s relationship with certain members of Lincoln’s academic staff continued to deteriorate in the 1990s. Others supported him publicly, though articles such as Roland Clark’s 1993 piece in Growing Today cannot have pleased the university management. Clark wrote that Bob was selling onions from the Biological Husbandry Unit to a ...
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Opinion: In a move that has shocked road safety advocates across the country, the new Minister of Transport, Simeon Brown, is poised to abandon the previous government’s speed limit reduction policy, particularly around schools. Even more alarmingly, he wants school speed limits to be variable rather than full-time, arguing ...
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Evicting more people from state housing is ignorant to the consequences of poverty, the Greens say, but the Housing Minister says it's a privilege that can be taken away if abused. ...
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He’s bringing ‘Sophie’ back, yeah. Goodshirt’s ‘Sophie’ music video is one of the most instantly recognisable New Zealand music videos of all time. Featuring a woman listening to the song on headphones while her entire house is burgled behind her, the video won the New Zealand music award for Best ...
First (?!) Germany, now France. NZ government has probably been spied upon by the US too
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-06-24/angry-and-embarrassed-france-calls-us-spying-unacceptable-demands-us-repair-damage-r
Not just NZ government but also opposition MPs?
And include spying on their personal and sex lives, social and community interactions, side businesses, etc. Then pass on that info to be used against them.
nah the US don’t need to spy on us, John Key has given them open access.
lol
Why would the US need to spy on the NZ government considering that the NZ government is, effectively, a branch office of the US administration?
http://www.roymorgan.com/findings/6300-roy-morgan-new-zealand-voting-intention-june-2015-201506240227
Oh noes Nationals support drops to 49.5%, its a calamity 🙂
But seriously it looks like business as usual…is that the sound of G. Robertson sharpening some knives 😉
I would not be cheerleading to this news as it is not great for National. It shows Jimmy Shaw has hit a high note with the public, up to 13% and expect this to grow, outstanding result for a new co leader.
I guess National can come out with an endorsement of future partner Colin Craig’s Conservatives. Alas the Nats won’t have the support of the Maori-Mana Party and of course Dunne will retire end of this term.
Weep and you weep alone, smile 🙂 and the whole world smiles with you coobah!
I do admire the optimism of the left, in spite of everything that happens the left still believe
Its cute 🙂
Rogue I’ve excepted Labour will be stuck in the 20’s along as tthey go into elections with the same line up of MP’s, I just wish they would. So its the status quo till Key goes. All bets are off if say he had the misfortune of walking out of a cafe daydreaming of fondlying the waitress’s hair straight into a bus and killed.
or gets a US based promotion.
Yes true there is nothing left for him in New Zealand political terms. Something financially beefy in New York.
Yep, they need to be more than National Lite and that won’t change while they’ve still got National Lite MPs and candidates.
Yes in other words Labour needs to be Labour and the front people the MP’s representing the party need to be in on this or out. I can think of 10 at first blush that don’t measure up. The problem is plying them out for the collective good of the party. How is this achieved, its not like Little can swing the axe, one whiff of this and they will start undermining him then try rolling him.
I don’t think Dunne will retire. He is only 60. There will be no change of leadership by Labour before the next election. End of.
i suspect Winnie has one more gen election in him.
hope Winnie stays
Likewise.
Why??
They think (hope) winny will go with Labour and the Greens which he may, of course, however hes not likely to get his knighthood going with the left
As long as my Arse! points to the ground there is no way there will be a labour /greens /nzf government.
so ummm…is your Arse going horizontal or skyward?
Definitely still south at the mo
@ PR…I dont think the Queen likes jonkey nactional( too much of a social climber and her son is a Greenie)…jonkey may not himself get a knighthood ( if Labour has anything to do with it)…and he may be out next Election…so Winnie is in with a chance
Maybe; but mostly because he brings a style and bite to Parliament and to politics hardly anyone else does.
I suspect Winnie will die on the debating floor – in his nineties.
Ha!
@ absolutely Marvellous
Dunne will have to be ousted by Greens and Labour working strategically and cooperatively In Ohariu…NEXT TIME….God willing he will be out!
…and out and out he MUST go!
@ Skinny …yes good result for the GREENS!
… and steady- as- she- goes backbone Green lefty Metiria Turei
….and JIMMY SHAW…he hasnt put a foot wrong…he was the best choice for Green New Zealand male co-leader!
Give Mr Robertson a few more months (of lowly polls) before he makes a move about his leadership bid.
Nope, nothing will happen this side of the 2017 election.
True true
I don’t know why people are being so mean about Robertson. Look at the wonderful thing he did for Dunedin, my beloved home town – he left!
Now if he’d do the same for Wellington to search for fresh lattes elsewhere I’d be really grateful to him.
heh
Nothing will happen till 2016, if anything were to happen (which I doubt).
Little hasn’t appointed a permanent Deputy Leader yet.
You’re celebrating National dropping -4.5% since the May poll? 😉
More like celebrating a poll thats probably quite accurate
We’ll see, I’m willing to wait for the other companie’s polls and if they show the same thing I’ll wait for the ones after that, and so on and so on, heh.
the tide is turning….imperceptible to begin with ….but the seepage is on the way out for jonkey nact
🙂
You’re right, it is a calamity – NZ is still fucked by selfish, greedy arse-holes.
Why oh why?
Labour say the party still has significant concerns, yet they plan to support the legislation?
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/69683161/mps-read-mean-tweets
Thoughts?
Would this legislation be away of stopping the attacks on people that come from whale oil?
If questionable, comments may be removed.
If deemed to cause harm or distress, commentators will be prosecuted after comments are made.
It’s the “reputation” bit that concerns me: yes, it might cover revenge porn, but depending on the nuances of the wording they might just have recriminalised libel with no defense as to whether it’s true.
e.g. “weird hairtugging liar john key” might pick up a fine…
I share your concern.
Furthermore, for some, a fine may simply become another cost in financing an attack – i.e. dirty politics.
“Would this legislation be away of stopping the attacks on people that come from whale oil?”
Well I can see why Labour would vote for the legislation, but am thinking more of a certain left wing blog 😈
Because rather than deal with the issues brought up by the Roast Busters issue. It is appears to be nothing more than censorship, at worst. Or legislation to stop criticism of the government, at best.
You can always expect the Tory scum to manipulate public opinion to suit their agenda.
Plus, and I think this is the kicker – it just makes criminals of people over bugger all, but does not really deal with the issues Roast Busters raised.
Again, Tory legislation which is a pigs ear.
Tory legislation, yes. But why are Labour planning to support it when they have significant concerns?
Maybe because parliamentary labour is full of Tory’s.
Labour has a habit of doing this, which IMO is costing the party support.
Like supporting Key’s anti-terrorism spying legislation
Indeed.
It’s difficult to know what the party stands for when they express significant concern, yet go ahead and support the opposition’s bill.
Furthermore, doing so implies Labour doesn’t plan to overrule the concerning legislation if elected. Leaving voters questioning why vote Labour when they are largely the same?
most of those people have just decided to stop voting full stop.
If they think such a bill is a good idea (which I do BTW) then it’s going to be easier to amend afterwards especially with all of the fuckups that’s going to happen under Nationals’ heavy handed, unthought out legislation.
So, support it now but highlight, loudly, how it should be changed and then, when in government, change it with consideration to previous concerns and based on what’s actually happened.
It could be several years before Labour are in Government again, which may come back to voters not perceiving a significant difference to bother changing allegiance.
yep
and fuck supporting bad legislation if you don’t believe in it
this bizarre positioning by Labour has all the finger prints of typical Thorndon Bubble risk management (risk averse) attitudes
Exactly.
Anything which can be used to target political dissent must be viewed with suspicion.
Indeed, it’s why I loath this little chestnut from the Tory pillocks.
And the ‘mean’ tweets were not even mean. And here’s me thinking that Politicians had thick skin.
are the greens supporting it?
Gareth Hughes is in the video.
lol at the Hughes tweet in the vid. Typical, people can’t find anything really nasty to say about the GP.
To be fair, some of that “abuse” is just colourful opinion. “Dribbler” and “half-inflated balloon” or “supporting psychopathic climate change deniers”, come on. If that’s the best tweeters can do to politicians that actively try to kill people with policy, we could probably cut the numbers of NZ police because people are just too damn polite to violent maniacs and pose little threat to anyone else.
The horse teeth comments, that would be something that needs looking into – as she points out, there is a theme. You have to consider the cultural context and the gender of the person. Call Winston a dribbler in real life and he might laugh, but he’d immediately give back five times worse, too. The description of half-inflated balloon bouncing around lamely and unexpectly … that isn’t gender specific, or physically specific enough, so fails the test.
I’d be more concerned with private citizens recieving those sorts of text/online comments from strangers on a regular basis (that related to something they can’t change in themselves or an act of free-will that isn’t a crime), people who didn’t ask for public attention, weren’t trying to kill other people, and who weren’t engaged in politics. Many people get worse during smoko from employers and “workmates”, and much much worse from their own families and friends while they grow up. There might be a basis for investigating “the crimes of emotional abuse” but to ask anyone around the political traps, now, to do it, I just don’t think anyone’s up to it. They can’t even grasp the basics of writing good laws, and this sort of thing is a bit involved.
John Key, with the support of the Speaker, has reduced our Parliamentary question time to a shameful farce. The Speaker has metaphorically cut the tendons of the opposition to immobilise them before their inhumane slaughter by ensuring that the unredacted cabinet document that proves John Key is lying as usual is not table.
Shame.
+++++++
Healthline a very useful and helpful service which we have had occasion to use several times over the last few years is to be replaced by a new service run by two doctors companies for the next 10 years.
Healthline has been a Health department service but the Nats.
have decided it needs to be privatised.
If it ai’nt broke don’t fix it ?????
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11470638
I find it depressing that no-one questions these lengthy contracts, IMO any Govt contract longer than 5yrs should immediately trigger a full investigation by the audit office. Labour and other opposition should be absolutely hammering into these rorts, they appear either fraudulent or intended to prevent future Governments from reversing privatisations.
The main justification for using private sector contractors is the competitive pricing achieved through tendering. By handing out such unacceptably long contracts these people are effectively immediately cancelling the tenders and annulling any alleged advantage gained from privatisation.
Contracts for services should be really be no longer than about 3-5yrs. The encumbent usually wants to retain the business and re-tendering keeps them honest. 10yr contracts are just gold plated retirement schemes for a favoured few, they’re totally unacceptable.
The long tenders are to cut down on the costs, for both government and the private sector, of the tendering. Both parties know that the costs of the tender process make it so that it would have simply been cheaper, easier and better for the government to simply do it themselves.
As I say – competition increases costs and for all government services doesn’t produce any more value. In fact, it usually reduces the quality of the service as well as making it cost more.
End result is that we end up with a monopoly private provider that will gouge the taxpayer for everything they can and the government will actually have to protect that monopoly providers’ profits else the whole lot will collapse. Basically, it’s guaranteed income for the private provider with the possibility of gouging even more from the government. Just look to Telecom/Chorus getting the government subsidy to install fibre to the home.
Labour leaks everything else, so why not just leak it?
The media have already seen the unredacted version. So it’s only hollow point scoring at this point.
New Mosque in Taihape – sanctuary for weary travellers
“
Before the centre was established in 2014, Muslims used to pray by the train station or behind the main public toilets. The mosque serves the general population of the South Island as they travel State Highway One – Constable Saifudin Abu, Taihape
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/voices/20150622
Poor cop. He hasn’t even figured out yet that Taihape is NOT in the South Island.
Here’s an article I followed from Twitter. very informative, and a little scary at the mind set of a typical Nat.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/taranaki-daily-news/opinion/69534585/rachel-stewart-you-think-sheep-are-dumb
Sounds more like the ravings of your average poster on here (not all posters of course)
Troll
http://www.odt.co.nz/news/national/346883/greens-want-better-food-inmates
Sample menu for a male prisoner
Breakfast – two Weetbix with milk, three slices of toast with spread and a cup of tea.
Lunch – three sandwiches, a piece of fruit and tea.
Dinner – sausages with gravy, potatoes and two seasonal vegetables, a piece of fruit and tea.
(Source: Corrections Department)
– Sounds like the prisoners get adequate meals to me
really?
I was considering committing a mid-range crime so I’d lose weight for six months or so. No self discipline.
I can think of better ways to lose weight but each to their own 🙂
Where’s the coffee?
I’d imagine they can buy it out of the $70 per week they can spend
Seems perfectly adequate to me.
Ah, PR failed to include the Green’s salient point:
I agree. If that’s what the review said, then it should be abided by.
Ah.
It all becomes clear…
Only for prisoners that’re working, not ones in working prisons that arn’t working
Ah yes, Otago Daily Times of the Waitaki electorate… that hotbed of Greens support: running at about a 5th of what was given to National last election. Co-incidence?
Don’t read the link if you’re a National supporter or crim-buster. Don’t want cognitive dissonance spooging all over the place… don’t you do it! …I warned you!
http://brookingblog.com/2012/06/24/prison-protesters-all-they-need-is-a-decent-meal/
”The Ombudsman reported recently that “Prisoners continue to complain that the national menus implemented by the Department do not consider the specific health needs of prisoners, especially diabetics.”
Former Corrections Minister Judith Collins responded to these concerns with this churlish comment: “Stay out of jail if you don’t like the food.” The police seem equally uninterested in providing a healthy diet for prisoners. The Wairarapa Times recently reported that a young man who spent a weekend in the police cells was given nothing but noodles and cold water.
So in addition to the prospects of various physical assaults, seems National also is happy to condemn diabetic criminals to near-death situations. Nice.
From the inside, prison food ain’t so great it seems, and isn’t even close to the ambiguously satisfying “sample menu” offered by ODT. Last food review was in 2009, and the news says no new review due any time soon, so this 2012 posting is still theoretically current. As for ODT and their Green-snarking… Go back to your parsnips.
The problem is most of the population won’t give two flying figs for this
we will continue to push until Banquet Time Collins sees the light of day
The Green imbeciles should direct their efforts to a worthier cause.
Speaking of adequate meals, the Defence Force has announced it will restrict sugary fizzy drinks and deep fried food as it emerges more than a quarter of its personnel are ‘obese’.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/69218840/defence-force-staff-carrying-extra-pounds
Hillary Clinton is trying to masquerade as “the people’s candidate”. The $US2.5 billion “people’s candidate”, says Glen Ford of Black Agenda Report, who notes that the Democrats and Republicans are essentially the same.
https://rdln.wordpress.com/2015/06/25/hillary-clinton-the-us2-5-billion-peoples-candidate/
This from Kathryn Ryan on Ninetonoon radio nz is very good on teenage depression. She is invariably a brilliant and compassionate interviewer.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon/audio/201759853/parenting-teen-depression
“Young Australian author Adam Schwartz with practical advice for parents of children with depression based on his own experience.
Adam Schwartz was just 10 when he first became depressed. He refused to go to school, he was prone to bouts of destruction and contemplated suicide. For the next seven years, he and his parents tried an endless round of therapies and treatments in New South Wales, where they live. Adam is now 24, back in study in healthy and has written a book about what it is like to be a child and teenager suffering from depression. It’s called mum, I wish I was dead and he wants it to give hope to both sufferers and their parents.”
SHAME : Fascism returns to puppet Europe …at the behest of USA..
.(.Why are they so scared of open discussion and the TRUTH…and why are they lying?…pathetic! …surely they have learned from the past!?) –
‘EU drafts plan to counter Russian media ‘disinformation’, targeting RT’
http://rt.com/news/269509-eu-plan-counter-russia/
“The EU has drafted a plan to counter what it sees as “Russian disinformation activities” calling for the promotion of EU policies in the post-Soviet space and the implementation of measures against Russian media, including RT.
The nine-page paper drafted by the EU Foreign Service and obtained by EUobserver was prepared ahead of the June 25-26 summit and is set to be voted on by EU leaders on Thursday.
The plan is aimed at tackling Russia’s “use and misuse of communication tools” and the “promotion of EU policies” in former Soviet states as well as support for “independent media” and “increased public awareness of disinformation activities by external actors,” the report says.
It specifically mentions RT, which according to the report broadcasts “fabrications and hate speech from their bureaus in EU cities.”…
And from RT on the propaganda war :-
‘Dangerous propaganda’
http://rt.com/shows/crosstalk/267628-dangerous-propaganda-western-media/
“Winning the battlefield called public opinion has never been so important nor so divisive. The western media’s assault on Russia approaches sensory overload, but is it effective? There is a vast ongoing propaganda war being played out – whose propaganda should we be worried about?
To all the narrow minded bigots who are anti-papist, and are happy to blame all their woes on the church. Please don’t read this. Or respond – because your disgraceful display the other day, was bloody demoralising.
If you don’t mind, stretching one’s mind – I think Chris raises some good points.
http://bowalleyroad.blogspot.co.nz/2015/06/praise-be-for-pope-francis.html
@ Adam….whose bigotry?
‘Catholic church writes to companies that support same-sex marriage’
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jun/24/catholic-church-writes-to-companies-who-support-same-sex-marriage
“The Catholic church in Sydney has sent letters to at least two companies that publicly support same-sex marriage, to express its “grave concern” and accuse them of “overstepping their purpose”.
The companies said the letter did not change their stance on same-sex marriage.
Guardian Australia has seen the letter addressed to Steve Walsh, the chairman of law firm Maurice Blackburn, sent by the business manager of the Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney, Michael Digges.
In the letter, Digges writes the church is a “significant user of goods and services from many corporations, both local and international” and reminds the firm that many of its “employees, customers, partners, suppliers” would belong to the Catholic faith….
(another attempt by the Catholic Church to run rough shod their brand of morality over people in secular society….weird hypocrisy because everyone knows that the Catholic Church and its clergy are full of wooly woofters…and we could say more …about Catholic Church priest sexual abuse, cover ups and “disgraceful” behaviour)
I do agree with adam on one point – that it is not really fair for the catholics to be singled out from amongst the many deviations contained within Christendom.
After everything that’s happened it sort of amazes me the catholic church has the gall to lecture another organisation about ”overstepping their purpose”, when it has been demonstrably neglectful of its own responsibilities as an organisation.
“I wonder whether you have questioned whether it is the role of a corporation such as yours to be participating in such an important matter that impacts all of Australian society now and into the future.”
Not ‘lecturing to another organisation’; more like preaching. It’s the Catholic Church after all.
ER +100…gall and hypocrisy…and power and control ( descriptors)…this church of deviant weirdos and oppression has been responsible for an awful lot of bigotry and suffering
….and they have the gall to try and interfere and impose themselves into the private lives of those outside their church …and in secular democratic states
But you’re ok with the state doing that Chooky??
Did you read my link?
disgraceful bigotry?…and meddling in the rights of gays in a secular society
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-06-24/catholic-church-attacks-businesses-over-gay-marriage-support/6570082
Silly question – do you feel the same about the police?
Thanks adam. I’ve been appreciating yours and Macro’s informed comments on this recently.
Thanks weka. I try, sheesh I know the church is far, far, far from perfect. I find it’s power structures really not to my liking. Plus I disagree on its stance on sexuality and the role of women. That said, I agree on a lot of issues too.
And quite frankly, I’m not seeing secular society doing much to help the poor and suffering. Under this government, secular society seems smug, and willing to put the boot in. So I’d rather deal with people, whose morals I disagree with on a couple of points. Than deal with people who have no morals at all.
Can anyone enlighten me whether the proposed average 10% rate hike in Auckland over the next ten years is year on year or over the whole period.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11470889
No way it would be 10% over the whole period, that would be far less than inflation
That was what I thought – it’ll put huge pressure on less well off households and on those who rent who will no doubt have the landlords pass costs on.
if this is what a Labour mayor and his supporters in council deliver can we please have the option of a good Green mayor or anyone else, rather than the continuing parade of jesters, capitalists and cronies that have little to offer to anyone apart from themselves and their mates.
For those bored with television and who were engaged with Aussie recent political history …this could be interesting
‘The Killing Season’
http://www.abc.net.au/news/programs/killing-season/
THE KILLING SEASON is Sarah Ferguson’s gripping three-part examination of the forces that shaped Labor during the Kevin Rudd / Julia Gillard leadership years. It is a documentary series like no other. Visually striking, scripted like the best political dramas, The Killing Season is an enthralling account of one of the most turbulent periods of Australian political history.
A comprehensive cast of the main players – including many of those still in parliament – speak frankly, providing a dramatic portrait of a party at war with itself.
You can watch all three episodes of The Killing Season on ABC iview and for international viewers abc.net.au/killingseason. Available for a limited period only.
Episode 1 – The Prime Minister and his Loyal Deputy (2006-2009)
http://www.abc.net.au/news/programs/killing-season/episode-1/
Episode 2 – Great Moral Challenge (2009 – 2010)
http://www.abc.net.au/news/programs/killing-season/episode-2/
Episode 3 – The Long Shadow (2010-2013)
http://www.abc.net.au/news/programs/killing-season/episode-3/
“You just ring your hands in despair, don’t you.”
Jim Mora sighs deeply to show how troubled he is.
The Panel, Radio NZ National, Wednesday 24 June 2015
Jim Mora, Liz Bowen-Clewley, Finlay Macdonald, Zara Potts
In today’s preshow segment, after a few anodyne comments about the death of James Horner, the Panelists engage in some extended banter about the latest Global Peace Index ratings. Out of 162 countries in the survey, apparently the five safest places are Iceland, Denmark, Austria, New Zealand and Switzerland; the United States is only the 94th safest country. The most unsafe: Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, South Sudan.
ZARA POTTS: Syria is so dangerous, of course, in large part due to IS. And they are now blowing up the ancient shrines near Palmyra.
JIM MORA: [gravely, in a tone of deep concern] They’ve got going on that, have they? …. Well what can you say? …. [heartfelt sigh] …. You just ring your hands in despair, don’t you.
et cetera, ad nauseam….
Masochists may like to see further instances of Jim Mora sighing deeply and empathetically….
http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-25102014/#comment-916568
http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-05082014/#comment-861110
http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-09122013/#comment-741884
http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-22102013-2/#comment-714772
http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-21102013/#comment-714200
Aint it just great Keyjerks reactionary media army dragging the protest on parliament buildings into a fear mongering security risk trying to make the activist look like terrorists
I suppose there will be a new bill jerked into parliament under urgency thats if Gerry aint to worn out finding the energy to get of his backside to complete the process of alarming the country as defence minister
Maybe these fascists will declare their full intention cause i would put anything past this Keyjerk reactionary with the TPPA NEW SYSTEM of world govt about to be enacted Protest for breakfast anyone
Katie Bradford even signed off by saying that the Government will be most worried about “copy cat attacks”. I could not see anyone attacking anyone… Both One and 3 News did as little as they could to cover what the protestors were actually protesting about. 3 was a little bit better in that sense, but Tova O’Brien chimed in with her opinion that it was all about the security. Distract, dstract, distract…