The TVNZ poll last night would have to be a concern for Labour. Sure, Labour only dropped 1%, well within the margin of error. However, of more concern will be the drop in support for the Greens.
The reason why this would be a concern, is that it is probably reasonable to assume that the drop in support for the Greens will have mainly resulted in those potential votes migrating to Labour.
Hence, the drop for the overall left vote is what is of main concern. So, a 5% drop for the combined left is quite a big drop. Contrast that with the 3% uptick for the right, and that is an 8% swing in favour of the right.
And DPF gives quite an interesting analysis of the leadership ratings:
Turns out that Luxon is the fourth most popular opposition leader for this time in the election cycle and Hipkins is the fourth most unpopular leader, according to the analysis.
Hence, comparisions of relative popularity are missing this point.
Your choice of a te reo alias is interesting, given you're quoting National lines, when their increase in support appears predicated on a platform of kicking Maori back down to a position of political non-representation.
[Please correct your e-mail address in your next comment, thanks – Incognito]
Hold up, you realize loads more Maori vote National than vote fot the Maori party right?
Many, many Maori don't agree with Labour, The Greens or the Maori partys interpretation of the treaty or want co-governance.
Many Maori are farmers and vote National or NZ First . In fact it's a total mistake that the Tory's and NZ First don't run candidates in the Maori electorates anymore, because with the left splitting their votes between lab, tpm and the Greens National or NZf could sneak in, national have held Maori seats before and NZF once held all of them.
Golly, if lefties think all Maori are left wing, some people are going to be shook, especially if the right ever seriously goes after the Maori seats again.
If National managed to sneak a couple Maori seats by vote splitting, the meltdowns on election night from pakeha liberals would be entertaining af.
National's underlying theme in this election year is not the cost of living or the supposed rise in crime – or indeed the climate crisis. It is all about racism.
The cost of living is rising. Blame it on the Labour government who are giving all our money to the 'Mowries'.
Ram raids and burglaries are increasing. Definitely the 'Mowries'.
All other problems as they arise – well if the 'Mowries' weren't being given special treatment we'd be okay.
Racism, racism and more racism. Middle income earners and old age pensioners are the primary culprits. Not all of them, but a substantial number are politically ignorant and feed off the likes of Hosking, HDPA and the rest of the ZB gang of Maori haters… along with the Hootons and Prebbles and that smarmy piece of work, David Seymour.
I don't know what you do about it, but you don't fall into the trap Michael Wood fell into the other day. Has he forgotten the outburst fanned by the Nats in 2008 when Helen Clark made a similar plea to voters?
Here's what was said in a very recent National newsletter. It seem that we are "driven by the influence of woke socialists who seek to advance their own agenda'. They are the problem, being racists……
"Infiltrating institutions and leveraging race-related issues in the current environment is a frighteningly easy path to take, as few are willing to risk being labelled a racist. It is crucial that we all oppose this agenda as those that hurl the racist label about are the racists. If we choose to look the other way New Zealand will be a racially divided nation which will undoubtedly bring on civil unrest."
I have a feeling I have somehow been side-shuffled into an Orwellian-style dystopian universe where newspeak replaces logic and facts.
And Winston also promoting the same message according to your (and my) Stuff citation. It contains this quote "the NZ First leader took aim at bilingualism and “woke social engineering” to laughter and cheers from the Grey Power congregation."
I think to blame racism for Labour being behind ignores a lot of other relevant factors that are contributing to the decline for Laboujr. For instance, the cost of living and the rampant crime at the moment.
Personally, I think the government has to take a lot of blame for any perceived racism in that they have handled the whole co-governance question really badly, and have not communicated at all well what is meant by that. This has meant a lot of the population have felt quite threatened.
Plus, the radical demands from TMP such as revoking full and final treaty settlements and establishing a Maori parliament are naturally going to cause a lot of resistance amongst the general population.
Note I said "underlying" theme tsmithfield. I don't deny other factors are at play but for many I believe it boils down to racism. I am mindful of family members whenever political subjects are introduced into a conversation… it always ends with a rant about 'mowries'.
When I throw it back in their faces I get left off the social calendar for a bit.
In any sort of area, not only race, we tend to view people in an outgroup negatively and with suspicion. We also tend to view them as very similar in their characteristics. That is because we tend to notice the common traits of members of outgroups, and not notice their differences so much. This is a fairly universal, almost subconscious effect that we find it hard to get away from.
I know a lot of my attitudes have been challenged being on the board of Crossroads Youth with a Future which works in one of the poorest areas of Christchurch which has a fairly high Maori and Polynesian population.
I realised, after becoming friends with a number of wonderful Maori people through my role in the trust that I could no longer justify holding general negative attitudes towards Maori people. That is, because I realised that if I was going to hold general negative attitudes towards Maori people, I was also holding those attitudes about people I very much liked.
So, I think that is a good way to overcome some of those negative attitudes. That is, to actually get to know some of the people in the group that might be an outgroup at the moment.
Unfortunately, a lot of people who hold these attitudes often are living in a completely different world, and have little contact with Maori people. Hence, they see Maori people as very much part of an outgroup.
Ts, yet Act want to stop the gun register and allow some awful weapons. They are a larger party than the Maori Party… why not target that proposition? rather than thinking 3 people have exaggerated influence? Surely the Act Party are at greater risk of shifting the norms?
I am not an ACT voter personally. But, I think a lot of these sorts of policies arise from frustration a voting base feels due to the fact that the existing system doesn't function properly.
I know my son was wanting to get into hunting. He had an impeccable record, but had to wait several years before his gun licence came through.
Also, I guess there is frustration because, despite the changes the government made to gun laws that were supposed to make it harder for criminals to get guns, gun violence seemed to have been increasing.
And, also, it seemed that the changes made to gun laws were targeting people who weren't causing the problem.
So, I can understand why ACT might be pushing for relaxation of some of the gun laws. Though, it isn't something I have given a lot of thought to as it isn't really an area that affects me personally.
Hunters don't need assault weapons. So what is the problem with having a gun register and tighter gun control laws? If you are a law-abiding citizen, it should not be a problem, right?
Posted this before, but the Police are very keen on the gun registry. Since monitoring guns in crimes after Mosque shooting, they found that the guns come mostly from legal gun licence holders who onsell to middle-men servicing crims.
You can see how a gun registry would close down this lucrative legal-to-illegal movement of guns (and maybe ammo).
Labour never campaigned on the issue of co-governance, so it is little wonder many people are objecting to the government's efforts to implement it in the new water legislation and the revised RMA rules. It really amounts to a covert attack on democracy.
Some outside the government think they can see which way the wind is blowing. There is an attempt by someone in the NZ Law Society to subject lawyers to the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi.
That might make sense if we all agreed on what those principles are, but as far as I can see no-one can define them because there has been no open debate.
Ok but what about the many many Maori, pasifica, indian and asian voters who are angry with labour, the greens and find the idea of adding TPM to the mix toxic?
Because of the ethnic make up of NZ, a lot of brown people are voting for Nat/act/NZf, (more than vote for the Maori party and the greens combined) and I don't think they are voting for the right because they are racist.
More like they are sick of prices going out of control, noone being able to afford a house to rent and they live in the areas with all the crime and they are god damned sick of it.
A lot of maori are disgusted with the left atm, when watching the news with my whanau and hearing life long Maori labour voters shout "racist" and change the channel when Marama comes on was eye opening.
White people and may have appreciated Maramas comments but noone else did and considering they insulted about 30+% of their own voters …sheesh
A lot of maori support the lefts position on Maori issues, but just as many support nationals position on the treaty.
Heads would explode on the left if national actually ran in all the Maori seats, cos they'd win a couple.
The poll shows that Greens actually performing is critical to a left victory at the election.
Fortunately, the troublemaking Green faction that seems full of the same malcontents, defeatists and saboteurs that flocked to, and destroyed, the parties of the Alliance before decamping to Internet/Mana and then heading off to the mad hatter faction of the Green party appear to have been dealt a severe blow if the Green party list is anything to go by.
Having dealt with the distraction, the Green party is on notice to pull finger and get out there and do it's job. No more excuses.
It wouldn't surprise me if the Greens get their votes back. But, the point I was making, is that the votes they recover will likely be mainly at the expense of Labour. So, the overall left block may not be much better off as a result.
Saint Swarbrick will keep the Greens alive at worst.
The critical difference between this election campaign and the 2005 election when Labour were in a similar position, is that Dr Cullen was prepared to pull out a major populist policy deep into the campaign.
But there's no sign that Robertson has that in the tank.
The lesson of multiple post-2005 campaigns is that the Greens fuck up and Labour has to pull themselves up to win government.
Ad, I have always thought that the Greens would be much stronger if they could move away from the far left stuff, and become more centrist economically, and focus more on environmental issues. And also more effective.
Given history shows that right wing parties have been in power the the majority of time since 1950., then they would be in a position to have a postive effect on Green outcomes, regardless of which of the major parties was in power. And, in my mind, the ability to achieve positive change for the environment trumps any ideological political stuff.
Heck, even I could be tempted to vote Greens in that situation. Probably not with my party vote, to be fair. But, I could well vote for a Greens electorate candidate.
And, in my mind, the ability to achieve positive change for the environment trumps any ideological political stuff.
That is my view too. We need a party with an unabashed focus on the environment.
Hopefully the Greens have the time to pull away from 'weirdo', to me, causes aand focus on the environment, climate change, putting people in the equation for low cost housing/housing. This sector is crying out for new ideas, a focus etc.
There has been a bit of hysteria on twitter with Russian trolls claiming that Commander in Chief of the Ukrainian Army, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, was killed or badly injured in a Russian missile strike, and that the Ukrainians have been covering it up for PR reasons. This has been fuelled by the fact that Zaluhnyi hasn't been seen in public for awhile.
Well today, the Ukrainians put out this video. Hilarious trolling of the Russians. Lol.
Muldoon is a famous ex-old boy of Mt Albert Grammar, the school in the article. A friend said he was in sixth form there when Prime Minister Muldoon came to speak at his old school. This was a little after the Springbok tour. My friend stood up and threw a meat pie at Muldoon, hitting him square on. Boys being boys, the assembly burst out laughing.
While my friend wasn't expelled for his action, he was shunned, and left the school a little later.
I have a vague memory of that incident having grown up in Mt Albert.
Another facet of the Muldoon years was – and still is – under wraps. He was not averse to having anyone he perceived as an enemy (whether they were or not) being ostracised, covertly harassed and intimidated – and their careers destroyed.
He was the arsehole of arseholes and should have been publicly outed for his conduct but instead he was shielded by those who should have known better – but didn't.
I went to a school up the road from Parliament, and we certainly knew in fourth form that Muldoon slept around with women looking to add a notch to their bedposts.
Wellington was the sort of town where political gossip zipped round pretty quick. The mistresses goss came up when he rushed legislation for no-fault divorce, and back-dated it so that he was no longer cited as co-respondent in the architect Athfield's divorce. Blatant misuse of the legislature, although the end product was a plus to NZ society.
All this was local knowledge, but of course suppressed in the media. It's not so much the personal morality, it's the back-dating that made Muldoon a corrupt politician.
You clearly know about some of Muldoon's nefarious activities so you will remember the Colin Moyle Affair.
In 1975 while working late in his ministerial office, Moyle received an anonymous phone call from someone claiming to possess documents that proved corruption of some sort occurring inside the Defence Force. The caller (male) arranged to meet Moyle on an inner city street corner to pass over the documents. Moyle went to the rendezvous but the caller never turned up. Instead along came a police patrol car and he was taken in for questioning for suspected homosexual activity. (Homosexuality as it was called then was illegal.)
While Muldoon was not involved in the original set-up, he got to hear about it and he used the information to destroy Moyle's political career. Moyle was being tipped as a future Labour leader. Moyle kept quiet about the phone call – presumably because he knew he would not be believed.
Years later I came to know the identity of the anonymous caller and that is another interesting story. He eventually fled to Australia in strange circumstances where he remained for the rest of his life. He and a close associate (whom I knew well) had been conducting all manner of political pranks and hoaxes – a few of them amusing which were boasted about – but others had a sinister aspect to them. The Moyle Affair was the latter.
It provides a little sunlight into what was going on behind the scenes throughout the Muldoon years in particular.
Hi Anne. How are you? Well, from the small amount you have put on The Standard over the time I have read…you have certainly had some "interesting" (right word? ) life experience. I hope you have come out of it all ok?
No book in a future time?
I rate your comments here pretty highly. FYI I stopped posting on The Standard for quite a while (you prob know why..the sad loss of some awesome posters : (
But there are a few still that make it worthwhile : )
Yes, I nearly parted company permanently with TS over the toxic atmosphere being created. I hope some of those driven away will eventually return.
The plight I found myself engulfed in left their mark. I suffered PTSD for a few years but that is in the past.
It still upsets me though that the culprits were never brought to justice. A lot of people were adversely affected by the appalling behaviour which included among them a few well known cases.
The latest poll showing Nat/ACT can just form a government should be seen in this context where the rolling average shows Lab/Gr/TMP could form a government.
I am not sure of all this so I am seeking information from those who might know.
The recent Horizon poll was a large one with 1500 respondents and a 10% don't know. Also, and most importantly (?), the respondents were those on the roll and practising voters. And again, was the Horizon poll comparable in its methodology- on-line, cell phones , land lines, etc?
Gives info about political polling, which is independent and uncommissioned by any political party, and tries to balance across NZ geography and demography. However, they do solicit for survey members on their website (might sign up!), so they may be polling the same population of respondents. There is a contact email there, so you could always ask them directly.
Yes soliciting survey members creates bias. Horizon's results have usually been different to the main pollsters over many years. I mean while I would love to believe that National is polling 26% per their latest poll, I find this hard to believe.
Crammer's piece on the defunding of DoC is a fucker:
Following last week’s budget, alarm bells have been rung by the Department of Conservation. Just after 5pm on Wednesday, Deputy Director-General for Operations, Mike Tully, sent an email to senior staff advising them of discussions that took place on Monday with the senior leadership team relating to the 2023/24 financial baseline information for the department.
In the leaked email Tully stated, “In summary, it did not paint the desired picture we might have hoped for. To be transparent, the initial view shows that we do not have sufficient funding to cover our basic running costs.”
“There is now alot of urgent work underway to seek clarity on our position,” he wrote.
The immediate effect, as set out in the email, is the introduction of a hiring freeze and a review by Deputy Director-Generals in the department to identify, “how fixed operating cost commitments fit within available funding before budget envelopes are confirmed”.
….
In a NZ Herald article in February, Audrey Young wrote, “Māori hate the Department of Conservation, MPs on the Māori affairs select committee were told this morning by former Conservation Minister Poto Williams.
She said that was what she had been told by Māori Crown Relations Minister Kelvin Davis last year when she was first appointed minister in charge of the Department of Conservation.
“One of the first things that Minister Davis said to me was that Māori hate DoC,” she told the committee.
“‘They have a really poor relationship with the department so good luck to you sister,” he had said.
Which in my mind confirms that Labour are complicit in the now obvious plan to privatise the Conservation Estate entirely into the hands of a tiny ticket clipping elite.
The idea of nefarious Maori is simply Cranmer on message. Part of the GA orbit towards The Platform and the Wright brothers circling over white children like crows on the cradle.
Do you have an argument? Or just a 'shoot the messenger'?
Is the quoted article wrong in any fashion? Is DoC funding actually increasing? And given the Maori caucus's obviously cosy relationship with TMP – is there any doubt that the plan to privatise the Conservation Estate is still shuffling forwards?
Because if that was the plan, then this relentless defunding of DoC would be an obvious step along the way.
As for the seabed and foreshore – what fraction of that was held by foreign overseas private owners? Compared to say the fraction of New Zealand that would be privatised if we lost public control of the Conservation Estate?
I'd simply point out that most budgets got limited increases (part from for wage increases to staff) for the year ahead. Conservation was/is no exception.
To try and connect that to some conspiracy theory with a bit of gossip is hardly a serious case. It's peddling a dubious narrative because it suits an agenda.
Some people are susceptible to that, some are not.
You made the claim of relentless defunding – on what basis?
In the leaked email Tully stated, “In summary, it did not paint the desired picture we might have hoped for. To be transparent, the initial view shows that we do not have sufficient funding to cover our basic running costs.”
“There is now alot of urgent work underway to seek clarity on our position,” he wrote.
All the evidence this is the end point of a process that has been going on for a lot longer than just this year:
The department is known to have been chronically underfunded for years but it has now reached crisis point as the government has required DoC to deliver on an increasing number of core programmes and take responsibility for the maintenance of a third of New Zealand’s total land, whilst not matching the annual increases in wages and inflation.
A reality confirmed by my own connections with the hunting and tramping community who report an obvious rundown of many backcountry huts, especially those that do not have a local community looking after them.
And it is not a lack of money that seems to be the problem:
Jobs for Nature is unaffected by this current squeeze as its funding is ring-fenced. The controversial programme is described by the government as a $1.2 billion programme that manages funding across multiple government agencies, including the Department of Conservation, to benefit the environment, people and the regions. It is part of the Covid-19 recovery package. The programme was created in 2020 and is intended to run for four years.
That raises an obvious question – if $1.2b is not enough to keep DoC's core functions going – exactly where is this money going? And into whose pockets?
To read the full article, I would have top pay "Cranmer" $100.
The article stating the "underfunding has been going on for years" – is not evidence.
A lot of ECE's also report a problem with lack of funding – some fund-raise to get around that.
It's likely a lot of the huts came from the community in the first place.
And it is not a lack of money that seems to be the problem:
It is, if the Department cannot perform core functions because of a lack of it. But this appears to be a new problem for the year ahead.
The Jobs for Nature programme was for job creation in local communities to prevent unemployment from COVID. It has no connection to DOC core function funding.
They have a diverse history originating over time from within tramping and hunting clubs, the old NZFS, the National Park Service and so on. But they are now all legally owned by DoC. Some huts continue to be looked after by local clubs or in some cases just groups of individuals who put their own time and sometimes funds into looking after them. DoC will usually create some kind of 'management plan' with this group.
I cannot put an exact fraction that are maintained in this manner, but I would hazard a guess that it is less than 200 nationally.
You can see the contrast in the Tararua's. Huts such as Blue Range, Mitre Flats and Roaring Stag that are community maintained are doing well – even when they're 70yrs old like Blue Range. By contrast the DoC maintained Tarn Ridge which is just a few km deeper into the range and was built in 2003 is now listed as unsafe by DoC :
Water damaged in a storm three years ago – recently I spotted a YT clip that briefly revealed serious mold and water damage. DoC clearly aren't able to fix this.
And this is just one representative glimpse of a much larger problem Anyone who has any knowledge of the situation on the ground recognises DoC has been underfunded for ages. But what we're seeing now is a government with senior Ministers expressing open hostility toward it – to the point where even it's core functions are under threat.
And yes why was Jobs for Nature separated out in the first place? $1.2b is a lot of money – and now COVID is over and NZ is running short on labour the justification has evaporated. Exactly where is this ‘ring-fenced’ four year funding going to?
the initial view shows that we do not have sufficient funding to cover our basic running costs.
and the problem of historic lack of funding
The new hut in 2003 indicates an extension of provision while Clark was PM and United was a support partner.
The DOC budget pressure 2023-2024 appears to be a new development, unrelated to problems in maintaining DOC assets.
Presumably DOC focuses on maintaining assets used by tourists and the cost of this is going up (pressure of numbers) and the constant creation of new walks for such purposes and also locals adds new costs. It may be that consequent from that resources for existing huts (tramper and hunter use) are becoming more limited.
The new hut in 2003 indicates an extension of provision while Clark was PM and United was a support partner.
My bad – I misread an entry on Hutbagger – the actual date was 1993. By contrast similarly exposed Blue Range – the two huts are almost within sight of each other – was built in 1954 and is still in good nick having been looked after all that time by a local tramping club.
It doesn't take too much, just a couple of guys with basic building and handyman skills to fix leaks, broken doors, windows and fireplaces. Done it myself a few times. DoC being a govt dept does tend to overcook these things, but then that's govt for you.
Tarn Ridge was perfectly fine when I was last there in 2011 when I was stuck there on my own for three nights in relentlessly bad weather. But clearly storm damage in 2020 has not been fixed and the place is going downhill fast. This is a well used hut that sees thousands of people annually; three years later and still nothing. It's diagnostic of a problem under this govt.
Under this government? Historic underfunding did not occur 2008-2017?
There are two ways of managing the problem of funding maintenance of DOC assets
1 contract out the job to a an agency working for DOC – the contract specifies an obligation to fund the bill for the maintenance services (based on need, such as damage by weather). The work is then not dependent on there being available finance.
2 DOC actively seeks out "community" partners to assist in managing huts used by hunters and trampers.
Well at least we both agree DoC has been chronically underfunded by a series of govts – except I would say under Helen Clark whose well known love for our outdoors might well have made a difference.
But the evidence is there that under this Labour govt there is downright hostility toward DoC and that a chronically poor situation has now become critically bad.
And I have focused on hut maintenance because I am moderately familiar with this aspect – but DoC have a much wider remit than this. What other wheels are falling off the DoC machine that we are not seeing? What other programs are being quietly shelved or wound down in ways that are not obvious to the public?
All the while $1.2b of funding is being thrown at a temporary make work scheme, which might well be doing some short term good, but no-one can tell us whether it was good value or not.
I don't accept that there is downright, or any other, hostility to DOC.
Costs of maintenance are clearly going up (worker costs and regulatory) and weather events are worse, and in that environment budget constraint is problematic.
That then exposes long held concerns about resourcing to a new level – what is called a critical moment in time. That is either resolved by the public service doing an internal administration review or a political party does it for them.
At the moment, it would seem that isolated huts (or where there are two only one is kept up to standard) are being left to die on the vine because they cost more than the others to maintain.
Tarn Ridge is not 'isolated' – it has long been a well used, important point of safety for three decades. As I said when I was there in 2011 and it was 20yrs old it was perfectly fine – and was absolutely instrumental in saving my life on that occasion. Letting it 'die on the vine' makes no sense whatsoever to anyone slightly familiar with the context.
That after three years DoC have not been able to fix water leaks caused by a storm three years ago before they go on to cause serious and much more expensive damage, is diagnostic of a much wider problem. This is basic stuff any asset manager knows how to deal with in the normal course of events; there will be a R&M budget for exactly this work.
But now it seems there is not. And that is not normal at all.
It is hard to know, but it is likely there was no immediate response at Tarn Ridge because of the pandemic. That would have led to a subsequent greater cost. The budget would still be there, but if there is a budget under stress and if one can do 4 other huts for the major cost at one, guess what happens.
At some point someone will make the case that Tarn Ridge and X, Y and Z damaged in 2020 were not fixed because of the pandemic and make a case for extra funding. Or otherwise wait for community activism to help them out of a hole.
Well that is well and good, but senior public servants do not write emails saying this when things are normal:
Following last week’s budget, alarm bells have been rung by the Department of Conservation. Just after 5pm on Wednesday, Deputy Director-General for Operations, Mike Tully, sent an email to senior staff advising them of discussions that took place on Monday with the senior leadership team relating to the 2023/24 financial baseline information for the department.
In the leaked email Tully stated, “In summary, it did not paint the desired picture we might have hoped for. To be transparent, the initial view shows that we do not have sufficient funding to cover our basic running costs.”
“There is now alot of urgent work underway to seek clarity on our position,” he wrote.
It's obvious from this an already thin and stretched Department is going to be once again gutted of skilled and capable staff. Damage that might take a decade to recover from – if ever.
Given that we know the problem is not a lack of govt funding they're willing to spend in this area – the obvious question is why is this govt apparently determined to strangle DoC to the point of failure?
Nah – we've seen all of this before. Certain Ministers in this govt are laying the conditions for the Conservation Estate to be privatised.
Given that we know the problem is not a lack of govt funding they're willing to spend in this area – the obvious question is why is this govt apparently determined to strangle DoC to the point of failure?
The COVID spending was not evidence of that, if there had been previous under funding (no compensation for higher regulatory costs?) over decades – multiple administrations.
Nah – we've seen all of this before.Certain Ministers in this govt are laying the conditions for the Conservation Estate to be privatised.
What is the connection between what we have seen before and certain Ministers in the current government – you've only named one and based your opinion on a singular meaning of what was reportedly said?
The last time a two term Labour administration went into an election, National under the leadership of the future ACT leader, Brash, ran the iwi or Kiwi campaign – to get into power and allocate surpluses out as tax cuts (and under invest in infrastructure – delayed to 2008 – and so here we are).
This time it's the threat of privatising the Conservation Estate or Maori co-governance of public assets – both cannot be true can they?
This time it's the threat of privatising the Conservation Estate or Maori co-governance of public assets – both cannot be true can they?
Co-governance is a trojan horse. The most cursory examination of what is being openly said is that the goal is to privatise the entire estate into the hands of the tribal elites.
The issue is then based on Labour preferring co-governance arrangements (as a convenience to balance sheet separation – which allows easier and cheaper finance and also plays its part in meeting indigenous rights obligations – UN Declaration) and ambition among Maori to recover public land assets to iwi.
And by linking one to the other, re-visit Iwi or Kiwi. Because TPM would prefer a co-governance partner in government to National.
However if National do get in, do not be surprised if they do a co-governance arrangement themselves – they signed the UN Declaration, they set up whanau ora, they reversed the F and S legislation.
As one involved a million years ago with the environmental restructuring in 1987 it was well known that back then DoC started out with a basic underfunding and has had to work with this and addtional underfunding since then.
DoC has been under constant watch/fear of losing more funding, of losing staff, etc etc. This has manifested itself in constant restructruings, pulling back from regular maintenance so that yearly plans become two yearly plans. DoC have had staff who have worked had and been nimble in their actions to get/keep a presence.
I would venture that the old settler mentality of using everything is alive and well in NZ. So the concept of national parks, of ecological reserves, empty spaces ete, the Conservation estate, the lungs of NZ's world, is not known or appreciated.
I think it would be instructive if we could get some of the old stagers to advise on the 1987 underfunding and bring it forward through to the present day.
I would agree with much of this. DoC have always been a bit of a Cinderella Dept.
So the concept of national parks, of ecological reserves, empty spaces ete, the Conservation estate, the lungs of NZ's world, is not known or appreciated.
The same cannot be said for the hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders and the even larger numbers of visitors to this country – who deeply and passionately value the Conservation Estate. I agree we could do so much better than we are.
So how galling would it have been for DoC watch $1.2b of funding get dished out – all over the place it seems – while the peak body responsible for conservation in this country seems to have gotten only crumbs?
No more galling than for health and education workers wanting a wage increase or those who wanted a house at income related rent.
Cranmer and National want to discredit the continuance of 4 year Jobs for Nature and other COVID spending programmes because they want the money to fund their tax cuts. They do not intend to place the money with DOC.
Why should this Jobs for Nature scheme be immune to scrutiny? It was a lot of ding that has clearly come at a cost to DoC who are in principle the long-term manager of the estate.
Or maybe some Ministers in this govt are happy to see them fail.
Clearly it's not possible to convince someone, who wants to believe in a conspiracy theory, that it is not true.
All I can do is identify the motives of those who created it, and what their purpose is.
The provision of COVID money was for temporary use, not the funding of longer term government programmes. It is either spent for that purpose, or not spent at all. It does not get re-allocated.
National understands that point, even if you do not.
Ring fencing funds is an entirely political decision. Clearly the original justification for the fund – a make work scheme under supposedly emergency conditions – is now well passed.
If the "Jobs for Nature" funds are not spent, no-one piles up a stack of $100 notes and sets fire to them. The funds might not be 're-allocated' in a direct sense, but the General Fund that is now better off can readily re-use the funds elsewhere.
The money not used is for debt repayment or general economic purpose – such as post COVID inflation cost management. The chance of it being placed into department spending (funded out of annual finance resources) is zero. At best a capital project, or now to flood damage assistance.
I am quite aware that govt Budgets are subject to arcane, complex and intentionally confounding processes – but ultimately it is a political decision to starve DoC of funds.
Yes agree…..'Maori elite' to me means that they've well and truly quaffed the Koolaid from sources like Brash, Hide, Julian Batchelor….maybe the same ones that are having trouble finding Govt Depts to complain too because they have all got 'Mowree' names now.
Not too sure what you are meaning RL. But the numbering seems to be a criticism of my view of the RW trope of the so-called Maori Elite. I view this as an attempt to be divisive/smearing.
Time at a marae, does not come into it.
Of course the Maori who want to use Treaty payouts to feed the family now and in the future are always going to get bad press from the ones who would rather have it now and spend it now……always have, always will.
Why not? If memory serves me it was about 9 different marae in very rural settings spread over the King Country, Urewera and the East Coast. Probably every third weekend or so over most of a decade in the 80's.
Usually stayed the Friday and Saturday night, longer if it was a tangi. Many important memories and experiences, and much of what I learned shaped the views I am expressing here.
Like being vehemently told off by a kaumatua for trying to pretend to be something I was not. A part of me still smarts a bit typing that out.
It is staggering that DoC hasn't absorbed the massive private sector efforts for conservation when private individuals of means are clearly able to put up serious money to do so.
There's the Tasti Products guy retoring 24,000 hectares:
DoC's engagement with conservation and maintenance oriented communities has been a bit hit and miss. For the most part local staff seem to have been very receptive – but Head Office syndrome seems to be the handbrake all too often.
So yes it makes sense that where they had the resources some groups have struck out on their own. But then again without the long-term backing and security of the state you have to wonder how many of these fine efforts will still be around in 100 yrs time?
The point you make about a lack of coordination is a good one, but this conversation goes back decades. Hell groups like Permolat were founded sometime in the early 2000's – the real question here is the evident hostility toward DoC from senior Ministers in this govt who seem quite happy for DoC to be seen to fail.
Well if you had been reading the thread – the quote above mentions Kelvin Davis for one. Of course we could speculate on the context , but the underlying hostility seems plain enough.
The warning can be taken in more ways from one. PW has Cook Island ancestry and was informed that Maori electorate MP's worked with local iwi and their relationships with DOC made the Minister's position more complicated when Labour was in government, more so since TPM was around as competition.
One of the problems is the red tape. There are plenty of eager volunteers wanting to help, but because of Health and Safety they must be supervised and there must be RAMS for each job, the cost of staff to do this must be found out of budget.
Yes. This is a long standing challenge – the interface between well-meaning people wanting to do the right thing and a govt department that has legal and public accountability is naturally full of tensions.
I can have some understanding for DoC – imagine the horrendous blowback on them if as a result of some poorly controlled volunteer work something catastrophic happened. Think something like Cave Creek. Looking back that was a pivotal moment that forever swept away a lot of the old school – get in, get it done, she'll be right attitude that made the old NZFS such a legend for those of us old enough to remember them.
But then again govts never quite seem to be able to apply commonsense to these matters, which is why you get the ludicrous spectacle of prominent "Fire Exit" signs in tiny bivs with just two bunks and one door just a few paces away.
Maybe someone should form a national trust for the purposes of supporting various campaigns – information about the legal issues and red tape and access to legal and other support provided free of charge.
You have railed against the Urewera settlement as privatisation. But that was considered through the tribunal process to be a fair settlement for a much larger loss of traditional lands, and assorted skullduggery by Seddon's government in nabbing the Urewera estate in the first place.
"The Crown apologises to Tūhoe for past dealings that breached the Crown’s obligations under the Treaty of Waitangi. These include:
indiscriminate raupatu, wrongful killings, and years of scorched earth warfare
denying Tūhoe the right of a self governing Urewera Reserve by subverting the Urewera District Native Reserve Act 1896
excluding Tūhoe from the establishment of Te Urewera National Park over their homelands
wrongly treating Lake Waikaremoana as Crown property for many years. "
'Privatisation' or 'return to rightful owners'. My bet's on the second.
Yes. It took medicine about 300 years to properly recognise the impact of Vitamin C in eliminating scurvy. These days the pace seems only a little quicker.
Royal Navy surgeon James Lind was the first westerner to join the dots.
Since antiquity in some parts of the world, and since the 17th century in England, it had been known that citrus fruit had an antiscorbutic effect. John Woodall (1570–1643), an English military surgeon of the British East India Company recommended them[7] but their use did not become widespread. John Fryer (1650–1733) too noted in 1698 the value of citrus fruits in curing sailors of scurvy.[8] Although Lind was not the first to suggest citrus as a cure for scurvy, he was the first to study its effect by a systematic experiment in 1747.[9] It was one of the first reported, controlled, clinical experiments in history, particularly because of its use of control groups.[2]
At some point the return to apprenticeships will include public service worker training, if only to ensure the capability to deliver services.
In the meantime, I would end the requirement to repay TL to those working in Enzed health and education (this maintains the incentive to work here after training) – that with increasing wages to the Oz level (and keeping housing costs to no higher or less than that across the ditch).
In a global shortage environment we have to focus on maintaining first world society standards.
The shortage has been artificially accentuated by removing 4-5 years of productive working life from the future workforce…all based on some theoretical increase in our bodies ability to work to an ever expanding timeframe. That functional working life (for the overwhelming majority) is around 40 years…or 80,000 hours…and we chose to reduce it in many instances by around 10-12%.
Tertiary trainee nurses get a lot of in-hospital training especially in years 2 and 3, the main difference is that they dont get paid for it but the hospitals get money for having them there as it soaks up a bit of "buddy "time from full time nurses guiding them along. Young nurses used to be used as arse wipers and cleaner uppers but a lot of that appears to be done by nurse aids now. Year 1 is a lot of getting them up to speed on the maths and science. Nurses now do quite a bit of the care that doctors used to do hence the requirement for a high level of competency in the science etc.
The ability for those with the desire and ability to expand their 'qualifications' existed under the in house regime and senior nursing staff were able to lighten the load of more "qualified' medical professionals…as it ever was.
It did and does make sense to move to use nurse aides and cleaners rather than nurse interns. That said, it did allow the interns some paid work/free board in hostels during their training period.
The CEO has cost the council a lot of money getting rid of staff – so they could call the cost of his removal an investment to improve the council as place to work.
"One of the men at the centre of the stand-off at Gore District Council was given a two-year contract extension just two days before the new council was elected"
Gore is intent on outing itself as an urban hovel run by incumbents who are incompetent.
A secret decision before the election to renew the contract that was not due for renewal until September this year … this is the sort of thing that occurs when corrupt things have been swept under the carpet and they do not want anyone to find out. That, or the CEO is a sociopath and has them all cowered.
"the council issued a statement to Newsroom in Parry's name confirming it had paid $413,000 in severance payments to around 20 staff between 2005 and 2022"
"in late 2007 Parry made a surprise visit to the London home of one of the complainants, former chief financial officer Doug Walker. It resulted in Walker seeking a restraining order against Parry for threatening behaviour"
Bad blood feud as well, in that small-town way. The new Mayor's mother was one of the senior council staff who left/was pushed out in the previous term. It is highly likely she encouraged her son to run, and past events possibly spoiled the chance for a professional working relationship from the start.
Read a little further into the article you link to for the very reasonable reason why government did not agree to Spark's diversion of $24 mi from rapid 5G roll-out to weather-proofing existing plant.
"Digital Economy and Communications Minister Ginny Andersen said the Government did not want to upset the three linked contracts – with Spark, 2degrees and One NZ (formerly Vodafone) – to improve provincial and rural connectivity.
“To re-open negotiations with all three telcos to consider Spark’s proposal would have held up the acceleration of 5G rollout and other important rural connectivity initiatives,” she said in a statement on Thursday."
Perhaps Spark should cough up a little more of its own money for future-proofing equipment?
Waka Kotahi contract out local road maintenance, and clearly this contractual relationship is breaking down, in part probably due to increased rainfall in many regions.
Ues for gods sake that rapist is no woman. I really feel for his victim, a man, who endured a sadistic rape. And now his attacker/rapist is referred to as a she.
The polls are so close and are constantly within the margin of error they could go either way but this feels like a throw the bums out election.
Its too close and the lefts voters, especially young people are notoriously bad at showing up to vote and Hipkins is not a popular, Luxon is actually doing ok as an opposition leader, they never poll well, but Hipkins as an incumbent? Awful.
If labour wanted an everyman working class bloke, they should have gone with Kieren McNulty, who is insanely likeable and real and doesn't seem like an ai robot calculating a response whenever asked a question like Chris.
And then you've got the fact labour has delivered bugger all in two terms, with a majority so noone young believes a damn thing will change if they get a third term so there's no passion at all in campaigning or turning out the vote.
Annnnd a labour/green govt having to rely on the votes of a separatist radical party like TPM is going to make people stay home, protest vote or hold their noses and privately vote for the Tory's while they publicly say they voted Lab/green.
I hope TOP and NZF both win and electorate, I hope National has to rely on them both to form a govt to moderate Act…and I think both have a place in parliament…
I also hope …one day…. We can get a party that represents workers and renters and the poor cos all we currently have a parties that represent upper middle class urban liberals and upper middle class rural moderate conservative liberals
Michael Bassett writes – I’m not sure that it’s much comfort to anyone to know that the post-Covid surge in violent crimes, gang activity, ram raids, random shootings, thuggery and stabbings is occurring in other countries as well as New Zealand. These days, wagging school, out-of-control welfare and ...
Oliver Hartwich writes – Cast your mind back to mid-December. A new Prime Minister had just been sworn in, the new Government started its 100-day programme, and Christmas was only days away.Amid all the haste, a report landed that would have deserved our attention.I am talking about the ...
TL;DR: An unseasonally early icy blast at the same time as some long-overdue maintenance almost caused Aotearoa-NZ’s electricity system to black out this week. That’s because a quadropoly of gentailers1 have prioritised paying dividends from their rising profits and adding debt over investing in 1.5 GigaWatts of new wind farms ...
Hi,Before we crack into today’s Webworm, I wanted to acknowledge the fact that Israel is pushing into Rafah. Over 100,000 Palestinians are now attempting to flee the one place that was deemed “safe”.Trouble is, the place they’re fleeing to is already destroyed. Total annihilation is the end goal here.“Israel is ...
‘It has been said that figures rule the world. Maybe. I am quite sure that it is figures which show us whether it is being ruled well or badly.’ GoetheI was struck at a recent conference on equity for the elderly, how many presenters implicitly relied upon Statistics New Zealand. ...
Buzz from the BeehiveReporting on defence spending late last year, RNZ said the coalition government will have to make some tough calls this term to help the force address staff shortages and ageing infrastructure. “These are huge, huge amounts of government spending. It’s a significant proportion of the government’s ...
Peter Dunne writes – I am always wary when I hear that the Controller and Auditor-General has commented on or made recommendations to the government about an issue of public policy that does not relate strictly to public expenditure. According to the legislation, the role of the Controller ...
How Labour’s and National’s failure to move beyond neoliberalism has brought NZ to the brink of economic and cultural chaos Chris Trotter writes – TO START LOSING, so soon after you won, requires a special kind of political incompetence. At the heart of this Coalition ...
And why did the Crown not challenge the Tribunal’s jurisdiction? Gary Judd writes – Retired District Court Judge, David Harvey, has posted on his A Halflings View Substack an excellent summary of Justice Isacs’ judgment declining to uphold the witness summons issued by the Waitangi Tribunal ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Do you believe New Zealand runs its general elections fairly and competently? As a voter, can you be confident that the votes on your ballot will be counted towards the final result?As a political scientist, I’ve been asked these questions many times and ...
Macklemore isn’t someone I’d usually think about. Sure I liked his big hit from a few years back, everybody did it was catchy and cool with some memorable lines. But if I was going to think of artists who might speak out on political matters or world events, he wouldn’t ...
Another week goes by in the Luxon government’s efforts to roll back the past 70 years of social progress. The school lunches programme is to be downgraded by $107 million, and women need bother their heads no longer about pay equity, let alone expect ACC to provide adequate sexual violence ...
Brrr, the first cold snap of the year. Hope you’re rugged up nice and warm. Here are some stories that caught our eye this week… This Week on Greater Auckland On Monday, we had a post from a new contributor, Connor Sharp, who dug into the public feedback ...
Almost all of the Wellington City Council’s recommended zoning changes to allow many more apartments and townhouses in its inner-suburbs have been approved.Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for subscribers features co-hosts and , along with regular guest on geopolitics, ...
Open access notablesA Global Increase in Nearshore Tropical Cyclone Intensification, Balaguru et al., Earth's Future:Tropical Cyclones (TCs) inflict substantial coastal damages, making it pertinent to understand changing storm characteristics in the important nearshore region. Past work examined several aspects of TCs relevant for impacts in coastal regions. However, ...
Do you believe New Zealand runs its general elections fairly and competently? As a voter, can you be confident that the votes on your ballot will be counted towards the final result? As a political scientist, I’ve been asked these questions many times and always answered “yes”, with very few ...
Thus far May has followed on from a quiet April in the blogging department, but in fairness, it has been another case of doing what I am supposed to be doing, namely writing original fiction. Plus reading. So don’t worry – I have been productive. But in order to reassure ...
Buzz from the Beehive A new government agency will open for business on July 1 – the Social Investment Agency. As a new standalone central agency effective from 1 July, it will lead the development of social investment across Government, helping ministers understand who they need to invest in, what ...
Bryce Edwards writes – “Follow the money” is the classic directive to journalists trying to understand where power and influence lie in society. In terms of uncovering who influences various New Zealand political parties and governments, it therefore pays to look at who is funding them. The ...
Alwyn Poole writes – After being elected to Parliament in 2008 the maiden speech of Hipkins was substantially around education policy. He was Labour’s spokesperson for education 2011 – 2017. He was Minister for Education from 2017 until February 2023. This is approximately 88% of the time Labour ...
Eric Crampton writes – A fashion industry group is lobbying for protections. They make the usual arguments and a newer one. None of it makes sense. An industry group says it pumped $7.8 billion into the economy last year – that’s 1.9 percent of New Zealand’s GDP. ...
In December 2006, Fiji's military leader Voreqe Bainimarama overthrew the elected government in a coup. He ruled Fiji for the next 16 years, first as dictator, then as "elected" Prime Minister. But now, he's finally been sent to jail where he belongs. Sadly, this isn't for his real crime of ...
Don't like National's corrupt Muldoonist "fast-track" law? Aotearoa's environmental NGO's - Greenpeace, Forest & Bird, WWF, Coromandel Watchdog, Coal Action Network Aotearoa, Kiwis Against Seabed Mining, and others - have announced a joint march against it in Auckland in June: When: 13:00, 8 June, 2024 Where: Aotea Square, Auckland You ...
Seymour describes sushi as too woke for school meals. There are no fish sushi meals recommended by the School Lunches programme. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / Getty ImagesTL;DR: The Government will swap out hot meals for packaged sandwiches to save $107 million on school lunches for poor kids. MSD has pulled ...
I don't mind stealin' bread from the mouths of decadenceBut I can't feed on the powerless when my cup's already overfilled, yeahBut it's on the table, the fire's cookin'And they're farmin' babies, while slaves are workin'The blood is on the table and the mouths are chokin'But I'm goin' hungry, yeahSome ...
The Ardern Government’s chickens came home to roost yesterday with the news that the country is short of natural gas. In 2018, Labour banned offshore petroleum exploration, and industry executives say that the attendant loss of confidence by the industry impacted overall investment in onshore gas fields. Energy Resources Minister ...
Hi,If you’ve been digging through the newly launched Webworm store (orders are being dispatched worldwide as I type!) you’ll have noticed the best model we had was Calvin.This is Calvin.Calvin.Calvin is 7, and is the son of my producer over on Flightless Bird, Rob — aka “Wobby Wob”. Rob also ...
This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Adam Levy. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). Climate change is everywhere. And when something's everywhere it can feel like it's nowhere. So how do we get our heads ...
Its a law like gravity: whenever a right-wing government is elected, they start attacking democracy. And now, after talking to their Republican and Tory and Fidesz chums at the International Democracy Union forum in Wellington, National is doing it here, announcing plans to remove election-day enrolment. Or, to put it ...
Yesterday Winston Peters focussed his attention on the important matter at hand. Tweeting. Like the former, and quite possibly next, orange POTUS, from whom he takes much of his political strategy, Winston is an avid X’er.His message didn’t resemble an historic address this time. In fact it was more reminiscent ...
Buzz from the Beehive A significant decline in natural gas production has given Resources Minister Shane Jones an opportunity to reiterate his enthusiasm for the mining and burning of coal. For good measure, he has praised an announcement from Genesis Energy that it will resume importing coal. He and Energy ...
“Follow the money” is the classic directive to journalists trying to understand where power and influence lie in society. In terms of uncovering who influences various New Zealand political parties and governments, it therefore pays to look at who is funding them. The political parties are legally obliged to make ...
Rob MacCullough writes – Here is my subjective ranking on a “most-left” to “most-right” scale of most of our major NZ Universities, with some anecdotal (and at times amusing) evidence to back up the claim.Extreme Left Auckland University of TechnologyEvidenceThe ...
Eric Crampton writes – I hadn’t thought about this one until a helpful email showed up in my inbox.It’s pretty obvious that income tax thresholds should automatically index with inflation – whether to anchor the thresholds in percentiles of the income distribution, or to anchor against a real ...
Jacqui Van Der Kaay writes – Parliament’s speaker had no option but to refer Green MP Julie Anne Genter to the Privileges Committee for her behaviour in the House last Wednesday evening. The incident, in which she crossed the floor to wave a book and yell at National ...
Gary Judd writes – The Dean of the law school at the Auckland University of Technology is someone called Khylee Quince. I have been sent her social media posting in which she has, over the LawNews headline “Senior King’s Counsel files complaint about compulsory tikanga Maori studies for ...
Cleo Paskal writes – WASHINGTON, D.C.: ‘Many of us have received phone calls from [the opposing camp] telling them if they join the camp they will be given projects for their wards and $300,000 [around US$35,000] each’, says former Malaita Premier Daniel Suidani. The elections in Solomon Islands aren’t ...
With hindsight, it was inevitable that (a) Hamas would agree to the ceasefire deal brokered by Egypt and Qatar and that ( b) Israel would then immediately launch attacks on Rafah, regardless. We might have hoped the concessions made by Hamas would cause Israel to desist from slaughtering thousands more ...
Placards and mourners outside the Kilbirnie Mosque following the Christchurch terror attack: MSD has terminated the Kaiwhakaoranga service, which has been used by 415 families since the attacks. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: The Government’s pledge to only cut ‘back office’ staff rather than ‘frontline’ services is on increasingly shaky ground, with ...
There’s been a few smaller public transport announcements over the last week or so that I thought I’d cover in a single post. Fareshare I’ve long called for Auckland Transport to offer a way to enable employer-subsidised public transport options. The need for this took on even more importance ...
Parliament’s speaker had no option but to refer Green MP Julie Anne Genter to the Privileges Committee for her behaviour in the House last Wednesday evening. The incident, in which she crossed the floor to wave a book and yell at National Minister Matt Doocey, reflects poorly on Genter and ...
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 ...
Who likes being sneered at? Nobody. Worse yet, when the sneerer has their facts all wrong, and might well be an idiot.The sneer in question is The adults are in charge now, and it is a sneer offered in retort to criticism of this new Government, no matter how well ...
When in government, Labour pushed to extend the Parliamentary term to four years, to reduce accountability and our ability to vote out a bad government. And now, they're trying to do it through the member's ballot, with a Four-Year Parliamentary Term Legislation Bill. The bill at least requires a referendum ...
A ballot for a single Member's Bill was held today, and the following bill was drawn: Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill (Hūhana Lyndon) The bill would prevent the government from stealing Māori land in breach of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. It ...
Simeon Brown, alongside Wayne Brown, is favouring a political figleaf now in exchange for loading up tens of millions in extra interest costs on Auckland ratepayers. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Ratings agency Standard & Poor’s is pushing back hard at suggestions from Local Government Minister Simeon Brown and Mayor Wayne Brown ...
Buzz from the Beehive One headline-grabber from the Beehive yesterday was the OECD’s advice that the government must bring the Budget deficit under control or face higher interest rates. Another was the announcement of a $1.9 billion “investment” in Corrections over the next four years. In the best interests of ...
Chris Trotter writes – Had Zheng He’s fleet sailed east, not west, in the early Fifteenth Century, how different our world would be. There is little reason to suppose that the sea-going junks of the Ming Dynasty, among the largest and most sophisticated sailing vessels ever constructed, would have failed ...
David Farrar writes – Two articles give a useful contrast in balance. Both seek to be neutral explainer articles. This one in the Herald on Social Investment covers the pros and cons nicely. It links to critical pieces and talks about aspects that failed and aspects that are more ...
The tikanga regulations will compel law students to be taught that a system which does not conform with the rule of law is nevertheless law which should be observed and applied…Gary Judd KC writes – I have made a complaint to Parliament’s Regulation ...
The future of Te Huia, the train between Hamilton and Auckland, has been getting a lot of attention recently as current funding for it is only in place till the end of June. The government initially agreed to a five year trial, through to April 2026, but that was subject ...
TL;DR: Hamas has just agreed to Israel’s ceasefire plan. Nelson hospital’s rebuild has been cut back to save money. The OECD suggests New Zealand break up network monopolies, including in electricity. PM Christopher Luxon’s news conference on a prison expansion announcement last night was his messiest yet.Here’s my top six ...
A homicide in Ponsonby, a manhunt with a killer on the run. The nation’s leader stands before a press conference reassuring a frightened nation that he’ll sort it out, he’ll keep them safe, he’ll build some new prison spaces.Sorry what? There’s a scary dude on the run with a gun ...
Hi,I know it’s been awhile since there’s been any Webworm merch — and today that all changes!Over the last four months, I’ve been working with New Zealand artist Jess Johnson to create a series of t-shirts, caps and stickers that are infused with Webworm DNA — and as of right ...
The OECD’s chief economist yesterday laid it on the line for the new Government: bring the deficit under control or face higher Reserve Bank interest rates for longer. And to bring the deficit under control, she meant not borrowing for tax cuts. But there was more. Without policy changes—introducing a ...
After a hiatus of over four months Selwyn Manning and I finally got it together to re-start the “A View from Afar” podcast series. We shall see how we go but aim to do 2 episodes per month if possible. … Continue reading → ...
In 2008, the UK Parliament passed the Climate Change Act 2008. The law established a system of targets, budgets, and plans, with inbuilt accountability mechanisms; the aim was to break the cycle of empty promises and replace it with actual progress towards emissions reduction. The law was passed with near-universal ...
Buzz from the Beehive Local Water Done Well – let’s be blunt – is a silly name, but the first big initiative to put it into practice has gone done well. This success is reflected in the headline on an RNZ report:District mayors welcome Auckland’s new water deal with ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate ConnectionsA farmworker cleans the solar panels of a solar water pump in the village of Jagadhri, Haryana Country, India. (Photo credit: Prashanth Vishwanathan/ IWMI) Decisions made in India over the next few years will play a key role in global ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – The Children’s Minister, Karen Chhour, intends to repeal Section 7AA from the Oranga Tamariki Act 1989 because it creates conflict between claimed Crown Treaty obligations and the child’s best interests. In her words, “Oranga Tamariki’s governing principles and its act should be colour ...
Geoffrey Miller writes – The gloves are off. That might seem to be the undertone of surprisingly tough talk from New Zealand’s foreign and trade ministers. Winston Peters, the foreign minister, may be facing legal action after making allegations about former Australian foreign minister Bob Carr on Radio New Zealand. ...
Brian Easton writes – This is about the time that the Treasury will be locking up its economic forecasts to be published in the 2024 Budget Economic and Fiscal Update (BEFU) on budget day, 30 May. I am not privy to what they will be (I will report on them ...
TL;DR:Winston Peters is reported to have won a budget increase for MFAT. David Seymour wanted his Ministry of Regulation to be three times bigger than the Productivity Commission. Simeon Brown is appointing a Crown Monitor to Watercare to protect the Claytons Crown Guarantee he had to give ratings agencies ...
The gloves are off. That might seem to be the undertone of surprisingly tough talk from New Zealand’s foreign and trade ministers. Winston Peters, the foreign minister, may be facing legal action after making allegations about former Australian foreign minister Bob Carr on Radio New Zealand. Carr had made highly ...
I could be a florist'Round the corner from Rye LaneI'll be giving daisies to craziesBut, baby, I'll wrap you up real safe Oh, I can give you flowers At the end of every dayFor the center of your table, a rainbowIn case you have people 'round to stay Depending on ...
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to May 12 include:PM Christopher Luxon is scheduled to hold a post-Cabinet news conference at 4 pm today. Finance Minister Nicola Willis will give a pre-budget speech on Thursday.Parliament sits from Question Time at 2pm on ...
The price of the foreign affairs “reset” is now becoming apparent, with Defence set to get a funding boost in the Budget. Finance Minister Nicola Willis has confirmed that it will be one of the few votes, apart from Health and Education and possibly Police, which will get an increase ...
Today New Zealand First will introduce a Member’s Bill that will protect women’s spaces. The ‘Fair Access to Bathrooms Bill’ will require, primarily in the interest and safety of women and girls, that all new non-domestic publicly accessible buildings provide separate, clearly demarcated, unisex and single sex bathrooms. This Bill ...
The Green Party is welcoming Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ continuation of Hon. James Shaw’s cross-party work on climate adaptation, now in the form of a Finance and Expenditure Committee Inquiry. ...
The National Government plans to cut 390 jobs at ACC, including roles in the areas of prevention of sexual violence, road safety and workplace safety. ...
The Government has been caught in opposition to evidence once again as it looks to usher in tried, tested and failed work seminar obligations for job-seeking beneficiaries. ...
The Green Party is welcoming the announcement by the Minister Responsible for RMA Reform Chris Bishop to approve most of the Wellington City Council’s District Plan recommendations. ...
David Seymour has failed to get the sweeping cuts he wanted to the free and healthy school lunch programme, Labour education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
Hon Willie Jackson has been invited by the Oxford Union to debate the motion “This House Believes British Museums are not Very British’ on May 23rd. ...
Green Party MP Hūhana Lyndon says her Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill is an opportunity to right some past wrongs around the alienation of Māori land. ...
A senior, highly respected King’s Counsel with decades of experience in our law courts, Gary Judd KC, has filed a complaint about compulsory tikanga Māori studies for law students - highlighting the utter depths of absurdity this woke cultural madness has taken our society. The tikanga regulations will compel law ...
The Government needs to be clear with the people of the Nelson Marlborough region about the changes it is considering for the Nelson Hospital rebuild, Labour health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall said. ...
Ministers must front up about which projects it will push through under its Fast Track Approvals legislation, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
The Government is again adding to New Zealand’s growing unemployment, this time cutting jobs at the agencies responsible for urban development and growing much needed housing stock. ...
With Minister Karen Chhour indicating in the House today that she either doesn’t know or care about the frontline cuts she’s making to Oranga Tamariki, we risk seeing more and more of our children falling through the cracks. ...
The Labour Party is saddened to learn of the death of Sir Robert Martin, a globally renowned disability advocate who led the way for disability rights both in New Zealand and internationally. ...
Labour is calling for the Government to urgently rethink its coalition commitment to restart live animal exports, Labour animal welfare spokesperson Rachel Boyack said. ...
Today’s Financial Stability Report has once again highlighted that poverty and deep inequality are political choices - and this Government is choosing to make them worse. ...
The Green Party is calling on the Government to do more for our households in most need as unemployment rises and the cost of living crisis endures. ...
Unemployment is on the rise and it’s only going to get worse under this Government, Labour finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds said. Stats NZ figures show the unemployment rate grew to 4.3 percent in the March quarter from 4 percent in the December quarter. “This is the second rise in unemployment ...
The New Zealand Labour Party welcomes the entering into force of the European Union and New Zealand free trade agreement. This agreement opens the door for a huge increase in trade opportunities with a market of 450 million people who are high value discerning consumers of New Zealand goods and ...
The National-led Government continues its fiscal jiggery pokery with its Pharmac announcement today, Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall says. “The government has increased Pharmac funding but conceded it will only make minimal increases in access to medicine”, said Ayesha Verrall “This is far from the bold promises made to fund ...
This afternoon’s interim Waitangi Tribunal report must be taken seriously as it affects our most vulnerable children, Labour children’s spokesperson Willow-Jean Prime. ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
New Zealand voted in favour of a resolution broadening Palestine’s participation at the United Nations General Assembly overnight, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The resolution enhances the rights of Palestine to participate in the work of the UN General Assembly while stopping short of admitting Palestine as a full ...
Introduction Good morning. It’s a great privilege to be here at the 2024 Infrastructure Symposium. I was extremely happy when the Prime Minister asked me to be his Minister for Infrastructure. It is one of the great barriers holding the New Zealand economy back from achieving its potential. Building high ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins today announced the upcoming Budget will include new funding of $571 million for Defence Force pay and projects. “Our servicemen and women do New Zealand proud throughout the world and this funding will help ensure we retain their services and expertise as we navigate an increasingly ...
New Zealand’s ability to cope with climate change will be strengthened as part of the Government’s focus to build resilience as we rebuild the economy, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “An enduring and long-term approach is needed to provide New Zealanders and the economy with certainty as the climate ...
Jobseeker beneficiaries who have work obligations must now meet with MSD within two weeks of their benefit starting to determine their next step towards finding a job, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “A key part of the coalition Government’s plan to have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker ...
A new standalone Social Investment Agency will power-up the social investment approach, driving positive change for our most vulnerable New Zealanders, Social Investment Minister Nicola Willis says. “Despite the Government currently investing more than $70 billion every year into social services, we are not seeing the outcomes we want for ...
Check against delivery Good morning. It is a pleasure to be with you to outline the Coalition Government’s approach to our first Budget. Thank you Mark Skelly, President of the Hutt Valley Chamber of Commerce, together with your Board and team, for hosting me. I’d like to acknowledge His Worship ...
Your Excellency Ambassador Meredith, Members of the Diplomatic Corps and Ambassadors from European Union Member States, Ministerial colleagues, Members of Parliament, and other distinguished guests, Thank you everyone for joining us. Ladies and gentlemen - In diplomacy, we often speak of ‘close’ and ‘long-standing’ relations. ...
The Therapeutic Products Act (TPA) will be repealed this year so that a better regime can be put in place to provide New Zealanders safe and timely access to medicines, medical devices and health products, Associate Health Minister Casey Costello announced today. “The medicines and products we are talking about ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop, today released his decision on twenty recommendations referred to him by the Wellington City Council relating to its Intensification Planning Instrument, after the Council rejected those recommendations of the Independent Hearings Panel and made alternative recommendations. “Wellington notified its District Plan on ...
Rape Awareness Week (6-10 May) is an important opportunity to acknowledge the continued effort required by government and communities to ensure that all New Zealanders can live free from violence, say Ministers Karen Chhour and Louise Upston. “With 1 in 3 women and 1 in 8 men experiencing sexual violence ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government will be delivering a more efficient Healthy School Lunches Programme, saving taxpayers approximately $107 million a year compared to how Labour funded it, by embracing innovation and commercial expertise. “We are delivering on our commitment to treat taxpayers’ money ...
New research on the impacts of extreme weather on coastal marine habitats in Tairāwhiti and Hawke’s Bay will help fishery managers plan for and respond to any future events, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. A report released today on research by Niwa on behalf of Fisheries New Zealand ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters will lead a broad political delegation on a five-stop Pacific tour next week to strengthen New Zealand’s engagement with the region. The delegation will visit Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, and Tuvalu. “New Zealand has deep and ...
There has been a material decline in gas production according to figures released today by the Gas Industry Co. Figures released by the Gas Industry Company show that there was a 12.5 per cent reduction in gas production during 2023, and a 27.8 per cent reduction in gas production in the ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins tonight announced the recipients of the Minister of Defence Awards of Excellence for Industry, saying they all contribute to New Zealanders’ security and wellbeing. “Congratulations to this year’s recipients, whose innovative products and services play a critical role in the delivery of New Zealand’s defence capabilities, ...
Welcome to you all - it is a pleasure to be here this evening.I would like to start by thanking Greg Lowe, Chair of the New Zealand Defence Industry Advisory Council, for co-hosting this reception with me. This evening is about recognising businesses from across New Zealand and overseas who in ...
It is a pleasure to be speaking to you as the Minister for Digitising Government. I would like to thank Akolade for the invitation to address this Summit, and to acknowledge the great effort you are making to grow New Zealand’s digital future. Today, we stand at the cusp of ...
New Zealand is urging both Israel and Hamas to agree to an immediate ceasefire to avoid the further humanitarian catastrophe that military action in Rafah would unleash, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The immense suffering in Gaza cannot be allowed to worsen further. Both sides have a responsibility to ...
A new online data dashboard released today as part of the Government’s school attendance action plan makes more timely daily attendance data available to the public and parents, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. The interactive dashboard will be updated once a week to show a national average of how ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced Rosemary Banks will be New Zealand’s next Ambassador to the United States of America. “Our relationship with the United States is crucial for New Zealand in strategic, security and economic terms,” Mr Peters says. “New Zealand and the United States have a ...
The Government is considering creating a new tier of minerals permitting that will make it easier for hobby miners to prospect for gold. “New Zealand was built on gold, it’s in our DNA. Our gold deposits, particularly in regions such as Otago and the West Coast have always attracted fortune-hunters. ...
Minister for Trade Todd McClay today announced that New Zealand and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will commence negotiations on a free trade agreement (FTA). Minister McClay met with his counterpart UAE Trade Minister Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi in Dubai, where they announced the launch of negotiations on a ...
New Zealand Sign Language Week is an excellent opportunity for all Kiwis to give the language a go, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. This week (May 6 to 12) is New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) Week. The theme is “an Aotearoa where anyone can sign anywhere” and aims to ...
Six tertiary students have been selected to work on NASA projects in the US through a New Zealand Space Scholarship, Space Minister Judith Collins announced today. “This is a fantastic opportunity for these talented students. They will undertake internships at NASA’s Ames Research Center or its Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), where ...
New Zealanders will be safer because of a $1.9 billion investment in more frontline Corrections officers, more support for offenders to turn away from crime, and more prison capacity, Corrections Minister Mark Mitchell says. “Our Government said we would crack down on crime. We promised to restore law and order, ...
The OECD’s latest report on New Zealand reinforces the importance of bringing Government spending under control, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The OECD conducts country surveys every two years to review its members’ economic policies. The 2024 New Zealand survey was presented in Wellington today by OECD Chief Economist Clare Lombardelli. ...
The Government has delivered on its election promise to provide a financially sustainable model for Auckland under its Local Water Done Well plan. The plan, which has been unanimously endorsed by Auckland Council’s Governing Body, will see Aucklanders avoid the previously projected 25.8 per cent water rates increases while retaining ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters discussed the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and enhanced cooperation in the Pacific with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock during her first official visit to New Zealand today. "New Zealand and Germany enjoy shared interests and values, including the rule of law, democracy, respect for the international system ...
The Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop today released his decision on four recommendations referred to him by the Western Bay of Plenty District Council, opening the door to housing growth in the area. The Council’s Plan Change 92 allows more homes to be built in existing and new ...
Thank you, John McKinnon and the New Zealand China Council for the invitation to speak to you today. Thank you too, all members of the China Council. Your effort has played an essential role in helping to build, shape, and grow a balanced and resilient relationship between our two ...
The Government is modernising insurance law to better protect Kiwis and provide security in the event of a disaster, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly announced today. “These reforms are long overdue. New Zealand’s insurance law is complicated and dated, some of which is more than 100 years old. ...
The coalition Government is refreshing its approach to supporting pay equity claims as time-limited funding for the Pay Equity Taskforce comes to an end, Public Service Minister Nicola Willis says. “Three years ago, the then-government introduced changes to the Equal Pay Act to support pay equity bargaining. The changes were ...
Structured literacy will change the way New Zealand children learn to read - improving achievement and setting students up for success, Education Minister Erica Stanford says. “Being able to read and write is a fundamental life skill that too many young people are missing out on. Recent data shows that ...
Trade Minister Todd McClay says Canada’s refusal to comply in full with a CPTPP trade dispute ruling in our favour over dairy trade is cynical and New Zealand has no intention of backing down. Mr McClay said he has asked for urgent legal advice in respect of our ‘next move’ ...
The rights of our children and young people will be enhanced by changes the coalition Government will make to strengthen oversight of the Oranga Tamariki system, including restoring a single Children’s Commissioner. “The Government is committed to delivering better public services that care for our most at-risk young people and ...
The Government is making it easier for minor changes to be made to a building consent so building a home is easier and more affordable, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on making it easier and cheaper to build homes so we can ...
New Zealand lost a true legend when internationally renowned disability advocate Sir Robert Martin (KNZM) passed away at his home in Whanganui last night, Disabilities Issues Minister Louise Upston says. “Our Government’s thoughts are with his wife Lynda, family and community, those he has worked with, the disability community in ...
Good evening – Before discussing the challenges and opportunities facing New Zealand’s foreign policy, we’d like to first acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs. You have contributed to debates about New Zealand foreign policy over a long period of time, and we thank you for hosting us. ...
From today, passengers travelling internationally from Auckland Airport will be able to keep laptops and liquids in their carry-on bags for security screening thanks to new technology, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Creating a more efficient and seamless travel experience is important for holidaymakers and businesses, enabling faster movement through ...
Asia Pacific Report Barangay New Zealand’s Rene Molina has interviewed the country’s first Filipino Green MP Francisco Hernandez who was sworn into Parliament yesterday as the party’s latest member. This is the first interview with Hernandez who replaces former Green Party co-leader James Shaw after his retirement from politics to ...
An Australian Strategic Policy Institute report says Pillar Two could raise the industry to state of the art capability - or "crush" it "under the weight of the globe's biggest player". ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Marlene Longbottom, Associate Professor, Indigenous Education & Research Centre, James Cook University ShutterstockThis article contains information on deaths in custody and the violence experienced by First Nations people in encounters with the Australian carceral system. It also contains references to ...
“Instead of following along countries that are investing in death and better ways of killing people faster, we need to invest in life and in making Aotearoa a fair, just and equitable place where everyone has what they need for a dignified life.” ...
MARIAMENO KAPA-KINGI, TPM MP FOR TAI TOKERAU This Government will not waver in its mission to exterminate Māori. CHRISTOPHER LUXON Oh well look you know I don’t think that hard-working Kiwis want to hear language like that. It’s just really unhelpful rhetoric. My Government is genuinely committed to advancing outcomes ...
The body positivity movement started with women confronting the unrealistic expectations and unrepresentative portrayals of them in media and advertising. Men weren’t part of it … their bodies hadn’t been sexualised to the same extremes and they didn’t really need it. But now that’s changed. And in a warped sort ...
The New Zealand comedy legend takes us through her life in television, including the time she hugged Elton John and the unshakeable legacy of a girl named Lyn. In 1981, Ginette McDonald stood on the stage of Auckland’s St James Theatre and directly addressed Queen Elizabeth II. It was a ...
An essay by Lily Duval from the just-released anthology Otherhood: Essays on being childless, childfree and child adjacent.I was 22 when my friend Alice gave birth in the living room of our pokey Addington flat. She laboured in the blow-up pool for hours. Garish fish swam along the inflated ...
Ella Borrie on the best books about motherhood she’s come across so far. Over the past few years I’ve been drawn to books about motherhood. I’m fascinated by the joys and horrors of becoming a parent. The question of children also feels more pressing than it used to. It’s like ...
Out of gift ideas for mum? You can’t go wrong with a bottle of toilet cleaner and a new squeegee. Emily Writes is the writer and editor of Emily Writes Weekly. This week marks five years since I published a post on The Spinoff about Mother’s Day marketing titled ‘A ...
My husband is posted overseas for 12 months and I’m armed with an expensive, newfangled vibrator. Will I miss him? The Sunday Essay is made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.A few days after my husband leaves, a new sex toy arrives at the front door. Nestled ...
Jaimie Baird’s new book Here Today Gone Tomorrow is a record of four decades of graffiti and street art in Wellington, told through more than 1,200 photographs. He spoke with Joel MacManus about what inspired the book. How did you first get interested in photographing street art? I remember ...
Editor Madeleine Chapman looks back at a busy week where food of all political leanings dominated. Sometimes you’re just going about your week thinking you’ve got a good handle on what might be coming as far as news topics and then someone (usually a politician) says something so ridiculous that ...
In a week of cold rain and frost, the climate in courtroom four upstairs at the Invercargill courthouse was simmering with restrained indignation. At times it felt like the famous Mexican standoff scene from Reservoir Dogs, or, as someone watching the proceedings described it, there was so much throwing of ...
A banner notification alerts me to the fact that I’ve received an Instagram message from @felicity.loves. She always comments on my posts. I shouldn’t have opened the message, but clicked on the notification before rationalising this. OMG! Are you in Wellys? X I debate not replying, but Instagram will inform ...
In Melbourne’s hardscrabble western suburbs where AFL – Aussie rules football – is a state religion, Callum Donaldson has been quietly grafting away, four months into an odyssey that he hopes will take him to another promised land: the NRL. It was a solid 2023 for the softly spoken 20-year-old ...
Pacific Media Watch Television New Zealand Pacific correspondent Barbara Dreaver has been made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to investigative journalism and Pacific communities in a ceremony at Government House, reports 1News. She has been the Pacific correspondent for 1News since 2002, breaking many ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Tuesday’s budget will respond to the deepening public agitation over Australia’s housing shortages by pouring new money into crisis accommodation for women and children, social housing and infrastructure. A specially-convened national cabinet late Friday ticked ...
By Kaneta Naimatu in Suva Journalists in the Pacific region play an important role as the “eyes and ears on the ground” when it comes to reporting the climate crisis, says the European Union’s Pacific Ambassador Barbara Plinkert. Speaking at The University of the South Pacific (USP) on World Press ...
Aldora Itunu is back in the Black Ferns squad after a three-year absence. The last of her 24 internationals was an underwhelming loss to France (7-29) in Castres to conclude the disastrous 2021 Northern Tour. The powerhouse prop won a Rugby World Cup in 2017 and thought she was done. ...
The fight to control major transport policy and projects in Auckland has burst into the open again, with councillors rejecting Mayor Wayne Brown’s latest attempt to steer things more under his influence. Councillors from the left and right broke ranks on the mayor’s bid to control Auckland Transport more directly ...
Exhausted by the general election campaign, horrified by the twilight zone of coalition negotiations, distracted by the silly season and waiting for the honeymoon to begin, Raw Politics has been in hibernation since October. From today, we’re back. Our weekly political video show and podcast returns for ...
By Patrick Decloitre, RNZ Pacific correspondent French Pacific desk Authorities in the small town of Boulouparis have commemorated Armistice Day on May 8 with a new memorial honouring New Zealand soldiers who were stationed in New Caledonia during World War II. The ceremony took place in the township on the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sara Dehm, Senior lecturer, international migration and refugee law, University of Technology Sydney The High Court unanimously ruled today that the Australian government can keep asylum seekers in immigration detention indefinitely in cases where they do not “voluntarily” cooperate with their own ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kim Munro, Lecturer, Creative Industries and Digital Media, University of South Australia Twenty-four hours after the release of Macklemore’s pro-Palestine protest song Hind’s Hall on social media on May 7, the video had already notched up over 24 million views. In ...
Failing to anticipate the complexity of the consenting system is being cited as the the current builder's shortcomings, an Infrastructure Commission review says. ...
Failing to anticipate the complexity of the consenting system is being cited as the the current builder's shortcomings, an Infrastructure Commission review says. ...
350 Aotearoa is calling the Environment Select Committee’s decision to allow oral submissions from just 40% of individual, unique submitters who asked to speak to the committee ‘a disgraceful blight to democracy’. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James Helal, Assistant Dean (Sustainability), The University of Melbourne Dubai skylineAleksandarPasaric/Pexels Since ancient times, people have built structures that reach for the skies – from the steep spires of medieval towers to the grand domes of ancient cathedrals and mosques. Today ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Edward Musole, PhD Law Student, University of New England Girts Ragelis/ShutterstockRecent trends show Australians are increasingly buying wearables such as smartwatches and fitness trackers. These electronics track our body movements or vital signs to provide data throughout the day, with ...
Papua New Guinea experienced a significant earthquake on 24 March in East Sepik and there has also been recent flooding there and in surrounding provinces. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Yousuf Mohammed, Dermatology researcher, The University of Queensland Maridav/Shutterstock You wake up, stagger to the bathroom and gaze into the mirror. No, you’re not imagining it. You’ve developed face wrinkles overnight. They’re sleep wrinkles. Sleep wrinkles are temporary. But as your ...
The Environment Select Committee has just announced that 60 percent of individuals who asked to speak at the hearings will not be heard. This equates to almost 700 people who made individual submissions and more than 1000 more who made a form submission. ...
The Royal New Zealand Ballet is performing Swan Lake around the country. What kind of dream does the ballet sell?Before going to see the Royal New Zealand Ballet perform Swan Lake, I had about as much familiarity with the plot of this ballet as could be expected from having ...
A new poem by Auckland poet Eamonn Tee. High Tide at Local Maxima It is only going to get worse. The streams will be narrow and fickle. The week will bend and buckle like a pot-bellied waist. You will make it to the weekend with one ...
The New Zealand entrepreneur behind beauty business Ethique is gearing up to launch a new eco-venture. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Our thirst for a tasty bevvy is insatiable, but it comes with a hefty plastic price for the planet: 580 billion ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 James by Percival Everett (Mantle, $38) A retelling of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from ...
By Kamna Kumar in Suva Pacific Islands Forum Secretary-General Henry Puna stressed the importance of media freedom and its link to the climate and environmental crisis at the 2024 World Press Freedom Day event organised by the University of the South Pacific’s journalism programme. Under the theme “A Planet for ...
Tara Ward previews a new local TV series offering alternative visions of motherhood. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. A woman is clambering up the side of her two-story house, clinging desperately to a drainpipe. Nearby, her child is perched on the ...
Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ) is supportive of the cross-party approach to climate adaptation announced by the Minister of Climate Change today. ...
The Sustainable Business Council (SBC) and Climate Leaders Coalition (CLC) welcome today’s announcement from Government around a bipartisan inquiry into an enduring climate adaptation framework for New Zealand. ...
The Free Speech Union welcomes the decision by the Department of Internal Affairs, and Minister Brooke Van Velden, to abandon proposals to further regulate online speech. ...
Its new building in Wellington will not be nearly big enough for all its records, and it has also run out of money to build its new storage facility in Levin. ...
BusinessNZ is congratulating the Minister of Climate Change for his work in achieving cross-party consensus for a way forward on climate adaptation. ...
Recent research reveals the repeal of smokefree measures is not only bad for our health, but also the economy. The Government has repealed various smokefree measures to ensure it keeps collecting $1.2 billion a year in tobacco taxes, in order to pay for tax cuts already being delivered to ...
The club’s surprisingly good season is built on the desire to prove a random A-League YouTuber wrong… and a few other factors.“There’s no way that Wellington Phoenix play finals this year. I can’t see it happening at all.” Those are the words of Lachlan Raeside, an Australian football content ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By César Albarrán-Torres, Senior Lecturer, Department of Media and Communication, Swinburne University of Technology Apple TV+ As one of billions of bilingual individuals in the world, it disappoints me when a film or TV show with characters of a non-English-speaking background is ...
The under-utilised course is a waste of space, and with a little political will, it could be turned into something better. For the duration of her stay in Wellington, my long-suffering cousin listened to me rant about golf courses. They’re bad for the environment: water intensive and pesticide heavy. They ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Leah Ruppanner, Professor of Sociology and Founding Director of The Future of Work Lab, Podcast at MissPerceived, The University of Melbourne Shutterstock A recent report from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows US fertility rates dropped 2% in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amy Corderoy, Medical doctor and PhD candidate studying involuntary psychiatric treatment, School of Psychiatry, UNSW Sydney shop_py/Shutterstock Picture two people, both suffering from a serious mental illness requiring hospital admission. One was born in Australia, the other in Asia. Hopefully, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sarah Treby, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, RMIT University P.j.Hickox, Shutterstock Peatlands store more carbon per square metre than any other ecosystem on Earth. These waterlogged, mossy bogs beat even dense rainforests for their ability to act as carbon reservoirs. Under the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Goss, Adjunct Associate Professor, Health Research Institute, University of Canberra Government spending on health has been growing so rapidly that a decade ago the then health minister Peter Dutton called it “unmanageable” and “unsustainable”. Health spending grew in real terms by ...
New Zealand's largest electricity distributor is warning the country to hurry up with controls around charging electric vehicles or face unnecessary bills running into the billions. ...
New Zealanders have been asked to conserve energy this morning to combat a possible electricity shortfall, writes Stewart Sowman-Lund in this extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. A call to conserve power New Zealand is facing a possible electricity shortfall, with people up ...
Writer Rebecca K Reilly breaks down the national book awards. What are the Ockhams?The Ockham New Zealand Book Awards are our annual national awards for books published for adults, and have existed in this form since 2016. There are four categories: Fiction, Poetry, General Non-fiction and Illustrated Non-fiction. There ...
Wellington City Council should keep its 34% ownership share in Wellington International Airport, argue Unions Wellington spokespeople Finn Cordwell and Ashok Jacob. Insanity, as the saying goes, is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Wellington City Council (WCC) is yet again proposing to dispose ...
New Zealand’s largest book publisher has undergone drastic changes this week, leaving its future role in local publishing uncertain. Two of the most recognisable local publishers in New Zealand are among those restructured out of Penguin Random House, it was announced this week. Head of publishing Claire Murdoch will leave ...
The Black Ferns Sevens appeared to be a mile behind Australia at the halfway point of the 2023-24 SVNS international circuit. Winless in three tournaments, a cup quarter-final exit in Perth was one of their worst results. To add insult to injury, talismanic skipper Sarah Hirini had been ruled out ...
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The TVNZ poll last night would have to be a concern for Labour. Sure, Labour only dropped 1%, well within the margin of error. However, of more concern will be the drop in support for the Greens.
The reason why this would be a concern, is that it is probably reasonable to assume that the drop in support for the Greens will have mainly resulted in those potential votes migrating to Labour.
Hence, the drop for the overall left vote is what is of main concern. So, a 5% drop for the combined left is quite a big drop. Contrast that with the 3% uptick for the right, and that is an 8% swing in favour of the right.
And DPF gives quite an interesting analysis of the leadership ratings:
https://www.kiwiblog.co.nz/2023/05/leaders_in_preferred_pm_ratings.html
Turns out that Luxon is the fourth most popular opposition leader for this time in the election cycle and Hipkins is the fourth most unpopular leader, according to the analysis.
Hence, comparisions of relative popularity are missing this point.
Get NZ Back on Track.
Your choice of a te reo alias is interesting, given you're quoting National lines, when their increase in support appears predicated on a platform of kicking Maori back down to a position of political non-representation.
[Please correct your e-mail address in your next comment, thanks – Incognito]
Mod note
Hold up, you realize loads more Maori vote National than vote fot the Maori party right?
Many, many Maori don't agree with Labour, The Greens or the Maori partys interpretation of the treaty or want co-governance.
Many Maori are farmers and vote National or NZ First . In fact it's a total mistake that the Tory's and NZ First don't run candidates in the Maori electorates anymore, because with the left splitting their votes between lab, tpm and the Greens National or NZf could sneak in, national have held Maori seats before and NZF once held all of them.
Golly, if lefties think all Maori are left wing, some people are going to be shook, especially if the right ever seriously goes after the Maori seats again.
If National managed to sneak a couple Maori seats by vote splitting, the meltdowns on election night from pakeha liberals would be entertaining af.
Ngungukai- rite tonu ki tenei ara?
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/opinion/132148491/christopher-luxon-worries-its-hard-to-understand-mori-names-what-bubble-is-he-in
National's underlying theme in this election year is not the cost of living or the supposed rise in crime – or indeed the climate crisis. It is all about racism.
The cost of living is rising. Blame it on the Labour government who are giving all our money to the 'Mowries'.
Ram raids and burglaries are increasing. Definitely the 'Mowries'.
All other problems as they arise – well if the 'Mowries' weren't being given special treatment we'd be okay.
Racism, racism and more racism. Middle income earners and old age pensioners are the primary culprits. Not all of them, but a substantial number are politically ignorant and feed off the likes of Hosking, HDPA and the rest of the ZB gang of Maori haters… along with the Hootons and Prebbles and that smarmy piece of work, David Seymour.
I don't know what you do about it, but you don't fall into the trap Michael Wood fell into the other day. Has he forgotten the outburst fanned by the Nats in 2008 when Helen Clark made a similar plea to voters?
Thanks, Anne.
Here's what was said in a very recent National newsletter. It seem that we are "driven by the influence of woke socialists who seek to advance their own agenda'. They are the problem, being racists……
"Infiltrating institutions and leveraging race-related issues in the current environment is a frighteningly easy path to take, as few are willing to risk being labelled a racist. It is crucial that we all oppose this agenda as those that hurl the racist label about are the racists. If we choose to look the other way New Zealand will be a racially divided nation which will undoubtedly bring on civil unrest."
I have a feeling I have somehow been side-shuffled into an Orwellian-style dystopian universe where newspeak replaces logic and facts.
And here is the racism cunningly disguised as a worry for elderly people who may not know the Govt Dept to expect because of the "Mowree' names…..
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/opinion/132148491/christopher-luxon-worries-its-hard-to-understand-mori-names-what-bubble-is-he-in
Following on from the NZ tour by this bloke
https://www.stopcogovernance.kiwi/
And Winston also promoting the same message according to your (and my) Stuff citation. It contains this quote "the NZ First leader took aim at bilingualism and “woke social engineering” to laughter and cheers from the Grey Power congregation."
Alleluia!
Hi Anne,
I think to blame racism for Labour being behind ignores a lot of other relevant factors that are contributing to the decline for Laboujr. For instance, the cost of living and the rampant crime at the moment.
Personally, I think the government has to take a lot of blame for any perceived racism in that they have handled the whole co-governance question really badly, and have not communicated at all well what is meant by that. This has meant a lot of the population have felt quite threatened.
Plus, the radical demands from TMP such as revoking full and final treaty settlements and establishing a Maori parliament are naturally going to cause a lot of resistance amongst the general population.
Note I said "underlying" theme tsmithfield. I don't deny other factors are at play but for many I believe it boils down to racism. I am mindful of family members whenever political subjects are introduced into a conversation… it always ends with a rant about 'mowries'.
When I throw it back in their faces I get left off the social calendar for a bit.
Hi Anne,
I think a lot of that sort of stuff is more down to ingroup-outgroup type biases rather than outright racism.
In any sort of area, not only race, we tend to view people in an outgroup negatively and with suspicion. We also tend to view them as very similar in their characteristics. That is because we tend to notice the common traits of members of outgroups, and not notice their differences so much. This is a fairly universal, almost subconscious effect that we find it hard to get away from.
I know a lot of my attitudes have been challenged being on the board of Crossroads Youth with a Future which works in one of the poorest areas of Christchurch which has a fairly high Maori and Polynesian population.
I realised, after becoming friends with a number of wonderful Maori people through my role in the trust that I could no longer justify holding general negative attitudes towards Maori people. That is, because I realised that if I was going to hold general negative attitudes towards Maori people, I was also holding those attitudes about people I very much liked.
So, I think that is a good way to overcome some of those negative attitudes. That is, to actually get to know some of the people in the group that might be an outgroup at the moment.
Unfortunately, a lot of people who hold these attitudes often are living in a completely different world, and have little contact with Maori people. Hence, they see Maori people as very much part of an outgroup.
Ts, yet Act want to stop the gun register and allow some awful weapons. They are a larger party than the Maori Party… why not target that proposition? rather than thinking 3 people have exaggerated influence? Surely the Act Party are at greater risk of shifting the norms?
Hi Patricia,
I am not an ACT voter personally. But, I think a lot of these sorts of policies arise from frustration a voting base feels due to the fact that the existing system doesn't function properly.
I know my son was wanting to get into hunting. He had an impeccable record, but had to wait several years before his gun licence came through.
Also, I guess there is frustration because, despite the changes the government made to gun laws that were supposed to make it harder for criminals to get guns, gun violence seemed to have been increasing.
And, also, it seemed that the changes made to gun laws were targeting people who weren't causing the problem.
So, I can understand why ACT might be pushing for relaxation of some of the gun laws. Though, it isn't something I have given a lot of thought to as it isn't really an area that affects me personally.
Hunters don't need assault weapons. So what is the problem with having a gun register and tighter gun control laws? If you are a law-abiding citizen, it should not be a problem, right?
Posted this before, but the Police are very keen on the gun registry. Since monitoring guns in crimes after Mosque shooting, they found that the guns come mostly from legal gun licence holders who onsell to middle-men servicing crims.
You can see how a gun registry would close down this lucrative legal-to-illegal movement of guns (and maybe ammo).
Herald headline of middleman who onsold to crims
I actually think a gun registry is a good idea.
So long as it doesn't take two years to get through the process, it should be good.
Labour never campaigned on the issue of co-governance, so it is little wonder many people are objecting to the government's efforts to implement it in the new water legislation and the revised RMA rules. It really amounts to a covert attack on democracy.
Some outside the government think they can see which way the wind is blowing. There is an attempt by someone in the NZ Law Society to subject lawyers to the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi.
That might make sense if we all agreed on what those principles are, but as far as I can see no-one can define them because there has been no open debate.
Ok but what about the many many Maori, pasifica, indian and asian voters who are angry with labour, the greens and find the idea of adding TPM to the mix toxic?
Because of the ethnic make up of NZ, a lot of brown people are voting for Nat/act/NZf, (more than vote for the Maori party and the greens combined) and I don't think they are voting for the right because they are racist.
More like they are sick of prices going out of control, noone being able to afford a house to rent and they live in the areas with all the crime and they are god damned sick of it.
A lot of maori are disgusted with the left atm, when watching the news with my whanau and hearing life long Maori labour voters shout "racist" and change the channel when Marama comes on was eye opening.
White people and may have appreciated Maramas comments but noone else did and considering they insulted about 30+% of their own voters …sheesh
A lot of maori support the lefts position on Maori issues, but just as many support nationals position on the treaty.
Heads would explode on the left if national actually ran in all the Maori seats, cos they'd win a couple.
When you and your bedfellows (as in allies) recover your memories and stop blaming the government for:
the pandemic.
the global financial crisis caused by the pandemic aftermath.
the domestic difficulties for many caused by the pandemic aftermath.
the racist attitudes which are on the increase in response to the pandemic aftermath.
and become rational beings again then I will engage with you.
No-one has blamed the government for the cyclones yet – or their aftermath – but no doubt it is coming.
The poll shows that Greens actually performing is critical to a left victory at the election.
Fortunately, the troublemaking Green faction that seems full of the same malcontents, defeatists and saboteurs that flocked to, and destroyed, the parties of the Alliance before decamping to Internet/Mana and then heading off to the mad hatter faction of the Green party appear to have been dealt a severe blow if the Green party list is anything to go by.
Having dealt with the distraction, the Green party is on notice to pull finger and get out there and do it's job. No more excuses.
It wouldn't surprise me if the Greens get their votes back. But, the point I was making, is that the votes they recover will likely be mainly at the expense of Labour. So, the overall left block may not be much better off as a result.
Saint Swarbrick will keep the Greens alive at worst.
The critical difference between this election campaign and the 2005 election when Labour were in a similar position, is that Dr Cullen was prepared to pull out a major populist policy deep into the campaign.
But there's no sign that Robertson has that in the tank.
The lesson of multiple post-2005 campaigns is that the Greens fuck up and Labour has to pull themselves up to win government.
What does Labour have left?
Ad, I have always thought that the Greens would be much stronger if they could move away from the far left stuff, and become more centrist economically, and focus more on environmental issues. And also more effective.
Given history shows that right wing parties have been in power the the majority of time since 1950., then they would be in a position to have a postive effect on Green outcomes, regardless of which of the major parties was in power. And, in my mind, the ability to achieve positive change for the environment trumps any ideological political stuff.
Heck, even I could be tempted to vote Greens in that situation. Probably not with my party vote, to be fair. But, I could well vote for a Greens electorate candidate.
Have NACT ever shown a willingness to place the environment before business interests/economy/-small government and tax cuts?
Perhaps they would more if they were relying on a Green vote to keep them in power.
That the point so many people don't understand.
Sharples and Turia showed what can be achieved if you jump into bed with you political opponents.
The way to make National do things they wouldn't ordinarily do, is make them rely on you for power.
You mean, "what's in it for me???" That kind reason?
Usually the best reason, in terms of getting results, anyway.
That is my view too. We need a party with an unabashed focus on the environment.
Hopefully the Greens have the time to pull away from 'weirdo', to me, causes aand focus on the environment, climate change, putting people in the equation for low cost housing/housing. This sector is crying out for new ideas, a focus etc.
Key led Clark 36-28 in 2008
Hipkins CS 27 lead Luxon Seymour 25
There has been a bit of hysteria on twitter with Russian trolls claiming that Commander in Chief of the Ukrainian Army, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, was killed or badly injured in a Russian missile strike, and that the Ukrainians have been covering it up for PR reasons. This has been fuelled by the fact that Zaluhnyi hasn't been seen in public for awhile.
Well today, the Ukrainians put out this video. Hilarious trolling of the Russians. Lol.
A story about a school setting the right sort of example on drugs because the safety of the pupils who go there is the most important thing.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/education/the-headline-grabbing-headmaster-in-charge-of-aucklands-mount-albert-grammar-school/WPY5BKDH7PVNZRBIGYOJWUWYTE/
Muldoon is a famous ex-old boy of Mt Albert Grammar, the school in the article. A friend said he was in sixth form there when Prime Minister Muldoon came to speak at his old school. This was a little after the Springbok tour. My friend stood up and threw a meat pie at Muldoon, hitting him square on. Boys being boys, the assembly burst out laughing.
While my friend wasn't expelled for his action, he was shunned, and left the school a little later.
I have a vague memory of that incident having grown up in Mt Albert.
Another facet of the Muldoon years was – and still is – under wraps. He was not averse to having anyone he perceived as an enemy (whether they were or not) being ostracised, covertly harassed and intimidated – and their careers destroyed.
He was the arsehole of arseholes and should have been publicly outed for his conduct but instead he was shielded by those who should have known better – but didn't.
I went to a school up the road from Parliament, and we certainly knew in fourth form that Muldoon slept around with women looking to add a notch to their bedposts.
Wellington was the sort of town where political gossip zipped round pretty quick. The mistresses goss came up when he rushed legislation for no-fault divorce, and back-dated it so that he was no longer cited as co-respondent in the architect Athfield's divorce. Blatant misuse of the legislature, although the end product was a plus to NZ society.
All this was local knowledge, but of course suppressed in the media. It's not so much the personal morality, it's the back-dating that made Muldoon a corrupt politician.
Hi tWiggle
You clearly know about some of Muldoon's nefarious activities so you will remember the Colin Moyle Affair.
In 1975 while working late in his ministerial office, Moyle received an anonymous phone call from someone claiming to possess documents that proved corruption of some sort occurring inside the Defence Force. The caller (male) arranged to meet Moyle on an inner city street corner to pass over the documents. Moyle went to the rendezvous but the caller never turned up. Instead along came a police patrol car and he was taken in for questioning for suspected homosexual activity. (Homosexuality as it was called then was illegal.)
While Muldoon was not involved in the original set-up, he got to hear about it and he used the information to destroy Moyle's political career. Moyle was being tipped as a future Labour leader. Moyle kept quiet about the phone call – presumably because he knew he would not be believed.
Years later I came to know the identity of the anonymous caller and that is another interesting story. He eventually fled to Australia in strange circumstances where he remained for the rest of his life. He and a close associate (whom I knew well) had been conducting all manner of political pranks and hoaxes – a few of them amusing which were boasted about – but others had a sinister aspect to them. The Moyle Affair was the latter.
It provides a little sunlight into what was going on behind the scenes throughout the Muldoon years in particular.
Hi Anne. How are you? Well, from the small amount you have put on The Standard over the time I have read…you have certainly had some "interesting" (right word? ) life experience. I hope you have come out of it all ok?
No book in a future time?
I rate your comments here pretty highly. FYI I stopped posting on The Standard for quite a while (you prob know why..the sad loss of some awesome posters : (
But there are a few still that make it worthwhile : )
Anway..all the best.
Thanks PLA.
Yes, I nearly parted company permanently with TS over the toxic atmosphere being created. I hope some of those driven away will eventually return.
The plight I found myself engulfed in left their mark. I suffered PTSD for a few years but that is in the past.
It still upsets me though that the culprits were never brought to justice. A lot of people were adversely affected by the appalling behaviour which included among them a few well known cases.
The latest poll showing Nat/ACT can just form a government should be seen in this context where the rolling average shows Lab/Gr/TMP could form a government.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opinion_polling_for_the_2023_New_Zealand_general_election#Subnational_polling
Have to say that the Horizon Poll is a bit of an outlier here though. It's all to play for.
I am not sure of all this so I am seeking information from those who might know.
The recent Horizon poll was a large one with 1500 respondents and a 10% don't know. Also, and most importantly (?), the respondents were those on the roll and practising voters. And again, was the Horizon poll comparable in its methodology- on-line, cell phones , land lines, etc?
Did you catch the Big Hairy News interview I posted yesterday?
BHN interviews Horizon pollster
I aplogise if you got the info from there already.
https://www.horizonpoll.co.nz/AboutUs
Gives info about political polling, which is independent and uncommissioned by any political party, and tries to balance across NZ geography and demography. However, they do solicit for survey members on their website (might sign up!), so they may be polling the same population of respondents. There is a contact email there, so you could always ask them directly.
Yes soliciting survey members creates bias. Horizon's results have usually been different to the main pollsters over many years. I mean while I would love to believe that National is polling 26% per their latest poll, I find this hard to believe.
Crammer's piece on the defunding of DoC is a fucker:
https://cranmer.substack.com/p/department-of-conservation-hit-by
Which in my mind confirms that Labour are complicit in the now obvious plan to privatise the Conservation Estate entirely into the hands of a tiny ticket clipping elite.
The idea of nefarious Maori is simply Cranmer on message. Part of the GA orbit towards The Platform and the Wright brothers circling over white children like crows on the cradle.
https://twitter.com/CranmerWrites/status/1520948214282678272
The solution being National's Massey cossacks riding to the rescue – once upon a tine a super fund was seen as a threat to private property ownership.
PS the real threat as to public access to the foreshore and seabed was and is private ownership (and not necessarily local ownership at that).
Do you have an argument? Or just a 'shoot the messenger'?
Is the quoted article wrong in any fashion? Is DoC funding actually increasing? And given the Maori caucus's obviously cosy relationship with TMP – is there any doubt that the plan to privatise the Conservation Estate is still shuffling forwards?
Because if that was the plan, then this relentless defunding of DoC would be an obvious step along the way.
As for the seabed and foreshore – what fraction of that was held by foreign overseas private owners? Compared to say the fraction of New Zealand that would be privatised if we lost public control of the Conservation Estate?
I'd simply point out that most budgets got limited increases (part from for wage increases to staff) for the year ahead. Conservation was/is no exception.
To try and connect that to some conspiracy theory with a bit of gossip is hardly a serious case. It's peddling a dubious narrative because it suits an agenda.
Some people are susceptible to that, some are not.
You made the claim of relentless defunding – on what basis?
Read the article.
All the evidence this is the end point of a process that has been going on for a lot longer than just this year:
A reality confirmed by my own connections with the hunting and tramping community who report an obvious rundown of many backcountry huts, especially those that do not have a local community looking after them.
And it is not a lack of money that seems to be the problem:
That raises an obvious question – if $1.2b is not enough to keep DoC's core functions going – exactly where is this money going? And into whose pockets?
To read the full article, I would have top pay "Cranmer" $100.
The article stating the "underfunding has been going on for years" – is not evidence.
A lot of ECE's also report a problem with lack of funding – some fund-raise to get around that.
It's likely a lot of the huts came from the community in the first place.
It is, if the Department cannot perform core functions because of a lack of it. But this appears to be a new problem for the year ahead.
The Jobs for Nature programme was for job creation in local communities to prevent unemployment from COVID. It has no connection to DOC core function funding.
It's likely a lot of the huts came from the community in the first place.
There are about 1880 backcountry huts in the NZ of which DoC manage 1073:
https://hutbagger.co.nz/?doc=true
They have a diverse history originating over time from within tramping and hunting clubs, the old NZFS, the National Park Service and so on. But they are now all legally owned by DoC. Some huts continue to be looked after by local clubs or in some cases just groups of individuals who put their own time and sometimes funds into looking after them. DoC will usually create some kind of 'management plan' with this group.
I cannot put an exact fraction that are maintained in this manner, but I would hazard a guess that it is less than 200 nationally.
You can see the contrast in the Tararua's. Huts such as Blue Range, Mitre Flats and Roaring Stag that are community maintained are doing well – even when they're 70yrs old like Blue Range. By contrast the DoC maintained Tarn Ridge which is just a few km deeper into the range and was built in 2003 is now listed as unsafe by DoC :
https://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-recreation/places-to-go/wellington-kapiti/places/tararua-forest-park/things-to-do/huts/tarn-ridge-hut/
Water damaged in a storm three years ago – recently I spotted a YT clip that briefly revealed serious mold and water damage. DoC clearly aren't able to fix this.
And this is just one representative glimpse of a much larger problem Anyone who has any knowledge of the situation on the ground recognises DoC has been underfunded for ages. But what we're seeing now is a government with senior Ministers expressing open hostility toward it – to the point where even it's core functions are under threat.
And yes why was Jobs for Nature separated out in the first place? $1.2b is a lot of money – and now COVID is over and NZ is running short on labour the justification has evaporated. Exactly where is this ‘ring-fenced’ four year funding going to?
There is a disconnect between
and the problem of historic lack of funding
The new hut in 2003 indicates an extension of provision while Clark was PM and United was a support partner.
The DOC budget pressure 2023-2024 appears to be a new development, unrelated to problems in maintaining DOC assets.
Presumably DOC focuses on maintaining assets used by tourists and the cost of this is going up (pressure of numbers) and the constant creation of new walks for such purposes and also locals adds new costs. It may be that consequent from that resources for existing huts (tramper and hunter use) are becoming more limited.
My bad – I misread an entry on Hutbagger – the actual date was 1993. By contrast similarly exposed Blue Range – the two huts are almost within sight of each other – was built in 1954 and is still in good nick having been looked after all that time by a local tramping club.
It doesn't take too much, just a couple of guys with basic building and handyman skills to fix leaks, broken doors, windows and fireplaces. Done it myself a few times. DoC being a govt dept does tend to overcook these things, but then that's govt for you.
Tarn Ridge was perfectly fine when I was last there in 2011 when I was stuck there on my own for three nights in relentlessly bad weather. But clearly storm damage in 2020 has not been fixed and the place is going downhill fast. This is a well used hut that sees thousands of people annually; three years later and still nothing. It's diagnostic of a problem under this govt.
Under this government? Historic underfunding did not occur 2008-2017?
There are two ways of managing the problem of funding maintenance of DOC assets
1 contract out the job to a an agency working for DOC – the contract specifies an obligation to fund the bill for the maintenance services (based on need, such as damage by weather). The work is then not dependent on there being available finance.
2 DOC actively seeks out "community" partners to assist in managing huts used by hunters and trampers.
Well at least we both agree DoC has been chronically underfunded by a series of govts – except I would say under Helen Clark whose well known love for our outdoors might well have made a difference.
But the evidence is there that under this Labour govt there is downright hostility toward DoC and that a chronically poor situation has now become critically bad.
And I have focused on hut maintenance because I am moderately familiar with this aspect – but DoC have a much wider remit than this. What other wheels are falling off the DoC machine that we are not seeing? What other programs are being quietly shelved or wound down in ways that are not obvious to the public?
All the while $1.2b of funding is being thrown at a temporary make work scheme, which might well be doing some short term good, but no-one can tell us whether it was good value or not.
I don't accept that there is downright, or any other, hostility to DOC.
Costs of maintenance are clearly going up (worker costs and regulatory) and weather events are worse, and in that environment budget constraint is problematic.
That then exposes long held concerns about resourcing to a new level – what is called a critical moment in time. That is either resolved by the public service doing an internal administration review or a political party does it for them.
At the moment, it would seem that isolated huts (or where there are two only one is kept up to standard) are being left to die on the vine because they cost more than the others to maintain.
Tarn Ridge is not 'isolated' – it has long been a well used, important point of safety for three decades. As I said when I was there in 2011 and it was 20yrs old it was perfectly fine – and was absolutely instrumental in saving my life on that occasion. Letting it 'die on the vine' makes no sense whatsoever to anyone slightly familiar with the context.
That after three years DoC have not been able to fix water leaks caused by a storm three years ago before they go on to cause serious and much more expensive damage, is diagnostic of a much wider problem. This is basic stuff any asset manager knows how to deal with in the normal course of events; there will be a R&M budget for exactly this work.
But now it seems there is not. And that is not normal at all.
It is hard to know, but it is likely there was no immediate response at Tarn Ridge because of the pandemic. That would have led to a subsequent greater cost. The budget would still be there, but if there is a budget under stress and if one can do 4 other huts for the major cost at one, guess what happens.
At some point someone will make the case that Tarn Ridge and X, Y and Z damaged in 2020 were not fixed because of the pandemic and make a case for extra funding. Or otherwise wait for community activism to help them out of a hole.
Well that is well and good, but senior public servants do not write emails saying this when things are normal:
It's obvious from this an already thin and stretched Department is going to be once again gutted of skilled and capable staff. Damage that might take a decade to recover from – if ever.
Given that we know the problem is not a lack of govt funding they're willing to spend in this area – the obvious question is why is this govt apparently determined to strangle DoC to the point of failure?
Nah – we've seen all of this before. Certain Ministers in this govt are laying the conditions for the Conservation Estate to be privatised.
The COVID spending was not evidence of that, if there had been previous under funding (no compensation for higher regulatory costs?) over decades – multiple administrations.
What is the connection between what we have seen before and certain Ministers in the current government – you've only named one and based your opinion on a singular meaning of what was reportedly said?
The last time a two term Labour administration went into an election, National under the leadership of the future ACT leader, Brash, ran the iwi or Kiwi campaign – to get into power and allocate surpluses out as tax cuts (and under invest in infrastructure – delayed to 2008 – and so here we are).
This time it's the threat of privatising the Conservation Estate or Maori co-governance of public assets – both cannot be true can they?
This time it's the threat of privatising the Conservation Estate or Maori co-governance of public assets – both cannot be true can they?
Co-governance is a trojan horse. The most cursory examination of what is being openly said is that the goal is to privatise the entire estate into the hands of the tribal elites.
The issue is then based on Labour preferring co-governance arrangements (as a convenience to balance sheet separation – which allows easier and cheaper finance and also plays its part in meeting indigenous rights obligations – UN Declaration) and ambition among Maori to recover public land assets to iwi.
And by linking one to the other, re-visit Iwi or Kiwi. Because TPM would prefer a co-governance partner in government to National.
However if National do get in, do not be surprised if they do a co-governance arrangement themselves – they signed the UN Declaration, they set up whanau ora, they reversed the F and S legislation.
The act was repealed and replaced by the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act in 2011.
As one involved a million years ago with the environmental restructuring in 1987 it was well known that back then DoC started out with a basic underfunding and has had to work with this and addtional underfunding since then.
DoC has been under constant watch/fear of losing more funding, of losing staff, etc etc. This has manifested itself in constant restructruings, pulling back from regular maintenance so that yearly plans become two yearly plans. DoC have had staff who have worked had and been nimble in their actions to get/keep a presence.
I would venture that the old settler mentality of using everything is alive and well in NZ. So the concept of national parks, of ecological reserves, empty spaces ete, the Conservation estate, the lungs of NZ's world, is not known or appreciated.
I think it would be instructive if we could get some of the old stagers to advise on the 1987 underfunding and bring it forward through to the present day.
I would agree with much of this. DoC have always been a bit of a Cinderella Dept.
So the concept of national parks, of ecological reserves, empty spaces ete, the Conservation estate, the lungs of NZ's world, is not known or appreciated.
The same cannot be said for the hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders and the even larger numbers of visitors to this country – who deeply and passionately value the Conservation Estate. I agree we could do so much better than we are.
So how galling would it have been for DoC watch $1.2b of funding get dished out – all over the place it seems – while the peak body responsible for conservation in this country seems to have gotten only crumbs?
No more galling than for health and education workers wanting a wage increase or those who wanted a house at income related rent.
Cranmer and National want to discredit the continuance of 4 year Jobs for Nature and other COVID spending programmes because they want the money to fund their tax cuts. They do not intend to place the money with DOC.
Why should this Jobs for Nature scheme be immune to scrutiny? It was a lot of ding that has clearly come at a cost to DoC who are in principle the long-term manager of the estate.
Or maybe some Ministers in this govt are happy to see them fail.
Clearly it's not possible to convince someone, who wants to believe in a conspiracy theory, that it is not true.
All I can do is identify the motives of those who created it, and what their purpose is.
The provision of COVID money was for temporary use, not the funding of longer term government programmes. It is either spent for that purpose, or not spent at all. It does not get re-allocated.
National understands that point, even if you do not.
Ring fencing funds is an entirely political decision. Clearly the original justification for the fund – a make work scheme under supposedly emergency conditions – is now well passed.
If the "Jobs for Nature" funds are not spent, no-one piles up a stack of $100 notes and sets fire to them. The funds might not be 're-allocated' in a direct sense, but the General Fund that is now better off can readily re-use the funds elsewhere.
You've never worked in government finance.
It's not even in the DOC orbit, it's in no departments orbit for their spending.
Timed out.
The money not used is for debt repayment or general economic purpose – such as post COVID inflation cost management. The chance of it being placed into department spending (funded out of annual finance resources) is zero. At best a capital project, or now to flood damage assistance.
I am quite aware that govt Budgets are subject to arcane, complex and intentionally confounding processes – but ultimately it is a political decision to starve DoC of funds.
"Messenger"???? "Stirrer in chief" is my view of your contributions, which often have a projected scare tactic. "Maori Elite" is sooo right wing.
Yes agree…..'Maori elite' to me means that they've well and truly quaffed the Koolaid from sources like Brash, Hide, Julian Batchelor….maybe the same ones that are having trouble finding Govt Depts to complain too because they have all got 'Mowree' names now.
Yes Shanreagh.
I'm reasonably certain I have spent more time on more marae than you have. Sly accusations of racism are pointless.
Not too sure what you are meaning RL. But the numbering seems to be a criticism of my view of the RW trope of the so-called Maori Elite. I view this as an attempt to be divisive/smearing.
Time at a marae, does not come into it.
Of course the Maori who want to use Treaty payouts to feed the family now and in the future are always going to get bad press from the ones who would rather have it now and spend it now……always have, always will.
Why not? If memory serves me it was about 9 different marae in very rural settings spread over the King Country, Urewera and the East Coast. Probably every third weekend or so over most of a decade in the 80's.
Usually stayed the Friday and Saturday night, longer if it was a tangi. Many important memories and experiences, and much of what I learned shaped the views I am expressing here.
Like being vehemently told off by a kaumatua for trying to pretend to be something I was not. A part of me still smarts a bit typing that out.
It is staggering that DoC hasn't absorbed the massive private sector efforts for conservation when private individuals of means are clearly able to put up serious money to do so.
There's the Tasti Products guy retoring 24,000 hectares:
https://www.forestlifeforce.org.nz/
There's the staggeringly large QE2 Trust which covers 190,000 hectares of private land by private landowners.
https://qeiinationaltrust.org.nz/
There's 136,000 hectares at Mahu Whenua between Wanaka and Arrowtown.
https://mahuwhenua.co.nz/
There's 2,300 hectares and thousands of volunteers at Ark in the Park in Auckland.
https://arkinthepark.org.nz/
And yes, the public don't have the right to walk all over them. Much of it is private land and some of it is super-highly managed.
The lack of coherence about conservation and the collective effort that could be organised and expressed as a whole is just …. sad.
DoC's engagement with conservation and maintenance oriented communities has been a bit hit and miss. For the most part local staff seem to have been very receptive – but Head Office syndrome seems to be the handbrake all too often.
So yes it makes sense that where they had the resources some groups have struck out on their own. But then again without the long-term backing and security of the state you have to wonder how many of these fine efforts will still be around in 100 yrs time?
The point you make about a lack of coordination is a good one, but this conversation goes back decades. Hell groups like Permolat were founded sometime in the early 2000's – the real question here is the evident hostility toward DoC from senior Ministers in this govt who seem quite happy for DoC to be seen to fail.
What senior Ministers?
Well if you had been reading the thread – the quote above mentions Kelvin Davis for one. Of course we could speculate on the context , but the underlying hostility seems plain enough.
The warning can be taken in more ways from one. PW has Cook Island ancestry and was informed that Maori electorate MP's worked with local iwi and their relationships with DOC made the Minister's position more complicated when Labour was in government, more so since TPM was around as competition.
One of the problems is the red tape. There are plenty of eager volunteers wanting to help, but because of Health and Safety they must be supervised and there must be RAMS for each job, the cost of staff to do this must be found out of budget.
Yes. This is a long standing challenge – the interface between well-meaning people wanting to do the right thing and a govt department that has legal and public accountability is naturally full of tensions.
I can have some understanding for DoC – imagine the horrendous blowback on them if as a result of some poorly controlled volunteer work something catastrophic happened. Think something like Cave Creek. Looking back that was a pivotal moment that forever swept away a lot of the old school – get in, get it done, she'll be right attitude that made the old NZFS such a legend for those of us old enough to remember them.
But then again govts never quite seem to be able to apply commonsense to these matters, which is why you get the ludicrous spectacle of prominent "Fire Exit" signs in tiny bivs with just two bunks and one door just a few paces away.
There are the occasional campaigns to preserve places, sometimes just beaches from being bought up by private owners.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/308359/publicly-bought-beach-officially-ours
Or campaigns to save holiday camps.
Maybe someone should form a national trust for the purposes of supporting various campaigns – information about the legal issues and red tape and access to legal and other support provided free of charge.
Perhaps RedLogix, you confuse the word 'privatise' with 'return to owners'.
Do you think Labour should take that policy into the election?
You have railed against the Urewera settlement as privatisation. But that was considered through the tribunal process to be a fair settlement for a much larger loss of traditional lands, and assorted skullduggery by Seddon's government in nabbing the Urewera estate in the first place.
"The Crown apologises to Tūhoe for past dealings that breached the Crown’s obligations under the Treaty of Waitangi. These include:
'Privatisation' or 'return to rightful owners'. My bet's on the second.
Back to the future!
Calls for 'apprentice' mental health workers to help ease staff shortages.
I recall the disappointment in the hospital system when the 'in house on the job' nursing training was replaced by tertiary institution trained staff.
40 years is long time to take to recognise an error
Yes. It took medicine about 300 years to properly recognise the impact of Vitamin C in eliminating scurvy. These days the pace seems only a little quicker.
Wasn't that Captain James Cook Reg Logix?
Royal Navy surgeon James Lind was the first westerner to join the dots.
Since antiquity in some parts of the world, and since the 17th century in England, it had been known that citrus fruit had an antiscorbutic effect. John Woodall (1570–1643), an English military surgeon of the British East India Company recommended them[7] but their use did not become widespread. John Fryer (1650–1733) too noted in 1698 the value of citrus fruits in curing sailors of scurvy.[8] Although Lind was not the first to suggest citrus as a cure for scurvy, he was the first to study its effect by a systematic experiment in 1747.[9] It was one of the first reported, controlled, clinical experiments in history, particularly because of its use of control groups.[2]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Lind#Prevention_and_cure_of_scurvy
At some point the return to apprenticeships will include public service worker training, if only to ensure the capability to deliver services.
In the meantime, I would end the requirement to repay TL to those working in Enzed health and education (this maintains the incentive to work here after training) – that with increasing wages to the Oz level (and keeping housing costs to no higher or less than that across the ditch).
In a global shortage environment we have to focus on maintaining first world society standards.
The shortage has been artificially accentuated by removing 4-5 years of productive working life from the future workforce…all based on some theoretical increase in our bodies ability to work to an ever expanding timeframe. That functional working life (for the overwhelming majority) is around 40 years…or 80,000 hours…and we chose to reduce it in many instances by around 10-12%.
Tertiary trainee nurses get a lot of in-hospital training especially in years 2 and 3, the main difference is that they dont get paid for it but the hospitals get money for having them there as it soaks up a bit of "buddy "time from full time nurses guiding them along. Young nurses used to be used as arse wipers and cleaner uppers but a lot of that appears to be done by nurse aids now. Year 1 is a lot of getting them up to speed on the maths and science. Nurses now do quite a bit of the care that doctors used to do hence the requirement for a high level of competency in the science etc.
The ability for those with the desire and ability to expand their 'qualifications' existed under the in house regime and senior nursing staff were able to lighten the load of more "qualified' medical professionals…as it ever was.
It did and does make sense to move to use nurse aides and cleaners rather than nurse interns. That said, it did allow the interns some paid work/free board in hostels during their training period.
100% Pat!
The petition against the Gore Council Chief Executive is nearly 5,000 people.
Gore has a total population of about 8,000.
Gore's council to consider petition asking for its chief executive to resign | Stuff.co.nz
The elected Mayor democractically elected must win this contest.
I guess the mayor has the moral victory here. But, can the council actually force the CE to resign? He might just decide to brazen it out.
The CEO has cost the council a lot of money getting rid of staff – so they could call the cost of his removal an investment to improve the council as place to work.
I've seen it done so it's not impossible, but you have to get the CE Performance Review Committee really lined up in advance.
CEO obviously looking for a healthy redundancy ?
A local government CE contract written 20 years ago like his was, will be gold plated. That will get its own story.
But that's the political price you pay for ousting them.
Probably easier to just not reappoint at the expiry of his fixed-term agreement.
And certainly a lot easier to than the Minister appointing a Commissioner.
If the current council has renewed his contract since the election that would be a story alright.
"One of the men at the centre of the stand-off at Gore District Council was given a two-year contract extension just two days before the new council was elected"
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/487413/questions-over-timing-of-gore-council-chief-executive-s-reappointment
Gore is intent on outing itself as an urban hovel run by incumbents who are incompetent.
A secret decision before the election to renew the contract that was not due for renewal until September this year … this is the sort of thing that occurs when corrupt things have been swept under the carpet and they do not want anyone to find out. That, or the CEO is a sociopath and has them all cowered.
Both?
"the council issued a statement to Newsroom in Parry's name confirming it had paid $413,000 in severance payments to around 20 staff between 2005 and 2022"
"in late 2007 Parry made a surprise visit to the London home of one of the complainants, former chief financial officer Doug Walker. It resulted in Walker seeking a restraining order against Parry for threatening behaviour"
https://www.newsroom.co.nz/gore-allegations-pre-date-new-mayor
Bad blood feud as well, in that small-town way. The new Mayor's mother was one of the senior council staff who left/was pushed out in the previous term. It is highly likely she encouraged her son to run, and past events possibly spoiled the chance for a professional working relationship from the start.
Sounds like a toxic environment to work at reading between the lines ?
So next question time in parliament about a resilient infrastructure is becoming predictable.
What does work to making our infrastructure look like if it does not include … communications?
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/government-rejected-sparks-offer-to-invest-millions-in-disaster-proofing-networks/T4FYH2DH2JFOHEVOKETSWKOE74/
Read a little further into the article you link to for the very reasonable reason why government did not agree to Spark's diversion of $24 mi from rapid 5G roll-out to weather-proofing existing plant.
"Digital Economy and Communications Minister Ginny Andersen said the Government did not want to upset the three linked contracts – with Spark, 2degrees and One NZ (formerly Vodafone) – to improve provincial and rural connectivity.
“To re-open negotiations with all three telcos to consider Spark’s proposal would have held up the acceleration of 5G rollout and other important rural connectivity initiatives,” she said in a statement on Thursday."
Perhaps Spark should cough up a little more of its own money for future-proofing equipment?
There is an expression walking and chewing gum at the same time – why not do both?
All they are seeking is a partner for some regional areas.
lol
@five15design
for every single fucking 'National accuses Labour of …' story, there's a graph to embarrass them.
https://twitter.com/five15design/status/1661908379667939328
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FxBI0a6agAAG7GY?format=jpg&name=large
SPC Yes !!!!
Waka Kotahi contract out local road maintenance, and clearly this contractual relationship is breaking down, in part probably due to increased rainfall in many regions.
Not our crimes.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/132137960/dunedin-alleyway-sex-attack-offenders-release-imminent
Ues for gods sake that rapist is no woman. I really feel for his victim, a man, who endured a sadistic rape. And now his attacker/rapist is referred to as a she.
#not our crimes.
The polls are so close and are constantly within the margin of error they could go either way but this feels like a throw the bums out election.
Its too close and the lefts voters, especially young people are notoriously bad at showing up to vote and Hipkins is not a popular, Luxon is actually doing ok as an opposition leader, they never poll well, but Hipkins as an incumbent? Awful.
If labour wanted an everyman working class bloke, they should have gone with Kieren McNulty, who is insanely likeable and real and doesn't seem like an ai robot calculating a response whenever asked a question like Chris.
And then you've got the fact labour has delivered bugger all in two terms, with a majority so noone young believes a damn thing will change if they get a third term so there's no passion at all in campaigning or turning out the vote.
Annnnd a labour/green govt having to rely on the votes of a separatist radical party like TPM is going to make people stay home, protest vote or hold their noses and privately vote for the Tory's while they publicly say they voted Lab/green.
I hope TOP and NZF both win and electorate, I hope National has to rely on them both to form a govt to moderate Act…and I think both have a place in parliament…
I also hope …one day…. We can get a party that represents workers and renters and the poor cos all we currently have a parties that represent upper middle class urban liberals and upper middle class rural moderate conservative liberals