Open mike 26/06/2012

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, June 26th, 2012 - 84 comments
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84 comments on “Open mike 26/06/2012 ”

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  2. BillODrees 2
    26 June 2012 at 6:53 am

    “Directors at state-owned Mighty River Power will get twice their current rates and collect up to $2400 a day when the business is privatised, according to Treasury papers.
    Treasury officials said the directors wanted the Government to bump up fees so they were not seen doing it themselves after the sale. Mighty River will be the first of four state-owned power firms to be part privatised.”

    Steven Joyce forgot to mention this.  There is no extra work for these directors:just loads more money.   I hope Clayton Cosgrave makes some mileage out of it.  

    [lprent: If you quote it then please link it. Either just drop the raw link in or see the FAQ. ]

    • Pete George 2.1
      26 June 2012 at 7:05 am

      And BillODrees forgot to mention this:

      Officials warned ministers they were losing quality directors for Crown-owned company boards because the pay was too low.

      They told State Owned Enterprises Minister Tony Ryall, who is overseeing the sale, there was a review under way into the fees paid to all directors of companies owned by the taxpayer.

      Mr Ryall was told by the Treasury in February the level was likely to be halfway between current levels of $1200 a day and markets rates, which were “up to double this amount”.

      It is not just the SOEs being part privatised that are being looked at.

      And Bill, some people grizzle if you don’t provide links.
      http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=10815503

      • Draco T Bastard 2.1.1
        26 June 2012 at 3:33 pm

        And I’m sure that we’ll just get other quality directors in even if we do keep the pay low.

    • DH 2.2
      26 June 2012 at 8:11 am

      Sometimes it’s hard not to avoid thinking the French had the right idea. They haven’t even started the floats and the pigs are at the trough already.

  3. Dv 3
    26 June 2012 at 8:19 am

    Did I just hear on NatRad that Peter Dunne is going to be away from Parliament for the vote on SOE sales today?
    And there was a comment that suggest he has been missing from some of the other votes too?

    • freedom 3.1
      26 June 2012 at 8:26 am

      from what i have seen of late, the National whip has been putting most votes forward.
      It takes a lot of spine to sit in the house when voting away the sovereignty of our Nation.

      • felix 3.1.1
        26 June 2012 at 8:40 am

        Yep, but as long as he’s letting National dictate his vote in return for stepping aside in Ohariu (hilariously without telling their own candidate) then they might as well do the actual voting too.

        • vto 3.1.1.1
          26 June 2012 at 8:44 am

          Hardly surprising. The weasel wanker wont even outline to the public what the upsides and downsides to the taxpayer are in selling the assets, yet he holds the pivotal vote. How does that work in a supposedly open democracy? Why won’t he explain the benefits and costs? Come on Dunne and PG, why wont Dunne outline the benefits and costs? Explain yourself!

          That he is a coward should not surprise.

    • Pete George 3.2
      26 June 2012 at 12:02 pm

      Peter Dunne: “I have not spoken to National Radio at all on this issue. However, as it happens, I have a family-related funeral this afternoon.” (by email)

      It won’t make any diffeence whether Dunne is in parliament for the vote or not. Proxy votes are common amongst all parties. The house was over half empty for most MOM debates I saw.

      I never saw Hone Harawira there to vote. I doubt that he will get Greens to proxy vote for him if marriage equality comes up.

      • McFlock 3.2.1
        26 June 2012 at 1:14 pm

        cat die?

        • Te Reo Putake 3.2.1.1
          26 June 2012 at 1:20 pm

          Family related funeral is probably Dunne’s super secret code for a haircut.

          • Pete George 3.2.1.1.1
            26 June 2012 at 1:40 pm

            Nastier than usual, it reflects badly on your connections.

            • Te Reo Putake 3.2.1.1.1.1
              26 June 2012 at 1:55 pm

              Dunno, Pete, I would have thought cynically using the funeral of someone you barely know to avoid the gaze of the NZ public as you allow your mates to sell them down the river is the real nasty here, don’t you?

              • Pete George …
                26 June 2012 at 2:03 pm

                You’ve dug yourself deeper with a smear allegation which presumably you have no facts to back it up.

                • Te Reo Putake …
                  26 June 2012 at 2:10 pm

                  “family-related funeral” Says it all, Pete. Not family. Not related. But family-related. Should have just been honest and said “butt covering-related”
                   
                  Gutless wonder.

                • vto …
                  26 June 2012 at 2:15 pm

                  Pete, the fact that Dunne cannot outline the benefits to the taxpayer in selling these assets casts enormous clouds of doubt over his already near-zero credibility.

                  Why would anyone believe him when he claims he has a funeral to attend?

                  It is the oldest trick in the book and given his consitent lack of credibility it is the only possible conclusion.

                  I know you don’t like these sorts of words but imo he is an arrogant wanker and a liar and a coward. Nothing but contempt. Fuck him.

                • vto …
                  26 June 2012 at 2:21 pm

                  Pete, this is not some be-nice-please thing going on here. It is the sale of electricity to foreign corporates and others which WILL result in rising power prices. As privatisation alreday has.

                  Old folk already struggling to pay for their winter-warming power will struggle even more. It is completely fucked. It is serious shit. Dunne is a c&#t. I make no apologies for the language and call on others to up the heat.

                  You think this is just politics as usual? It aint. These things directly impact people’s daily lives. FFS!

      • freedom 3.2.2
        26 June 2012 at 1:32 pm

        i send condolences Pete,
        and i would be confident no disrespect to a grieving family was intended by anyone

        but today is a rather significant vote for Dunne to be absent from,
        atop his handling of a matter that he has been neither direct nor responsible with in public life
        it reeks of cowardice and slavery

        • Pete George 3.2.2.1
          26 June 2012 at 1:38 pm

          Thanks freedom.

          I think his absence is inconsequential. It’s not his legislation, it’s National’s, so it’s up to them to front this.

          • McFlock 3.2.2.1.1
            26 June 2012 at 2:16 pm

            It’s his vote that’s enabling it.  

            • freedom 3.2.2.1.1.1
              26 June 2012 at 2:45 pm

              Peter Dunne, member in absentia
              enabling treason with the vote he whored

          • felix 3.2.2.1.2
            26 June 2012 at 6:19 pm

            If his absence is inconsequential, then why has he carefully avoided every debate on the bill?

            It appears as if he doesn’t actually wish to be associated with this treacherous act, although the scumbag is happy to vote for it in return for National helping him secure his seat.

            • felix 3.2.2.1.2.1
              26 June 2012 at 6:22 pm

              ps if he only need to be in the house when debating his own legislation, then what the fuck is he doing there at all?

          • prism 3.2.2.1.3
            26 June 2012 at 8:03 pm

            Peter Undunne from the UF Party (UnFrocked Party) originally the Commonsense Conscientious Objectors Church. Mission – To object to doing anything that might derail my (our) sweet deal in parliament.

            And this from acolyte Pete George who is one that believes we should sit and wait for the almighty to make things right for us.

            I think his absence is inconsequential. It’s not his legislation, it’s National’s, so it’s up to them to front this.

            He has not heard the saying ‘ The Lord helps those who help themselves.”

  4. mickysavage 4
    26 June 2012 at 8:33 am

    In a continuation of what seems to be an irreversible trend Fairfax has lost three senior editors from the Sydney Morning Herald and from the Melbourne Age.  Cost cutting measures mean that its journalist infrastructure is being slashed.

    Fairfax is apparently bleeding money and is attempting to become more digital. The only problem is that the slump in advertising income from print is greater than the increase in advertising income from digital.

    Either it will go broke or it will emerge as a much streamlined and dumber version of itself.

    This will mean the blogs will become even more important in the analysis and dissemination of information. 

    • Carol 4.1
      26 June 2012 at 8:40 am

      Meanwhile the BBC is also moving towards a much more commercial approach in response to the Cameron government freezing license fees. Are we seeing the death throes of the fourth estate, after a long illness?

      http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/tv-radio/shock-at-the-bbc-as-reporters-are-told-to-start-making-money-7879748.html

      BC bosses have told reporters to think of money-making schemes and present them to their line managers at forthcoming job appraisals – raising concerns that the organisation’s prized editorial standards will be compromised by commercial imperatives.

      The 2,400 staff working in the BBC’s Global News department, including the BBC World Service, have been told that they must now “exploit new commercial opportunities [and] maximise the value we create with our journalism”.

      But the editorial independence of the BBC had been deteriorating for a long time. So this looks likely to accelerate the trend.

    • chris73 4.2
      26 June 2012 at 10:24 am

      One of the things I (strangely) like about this and other blogs (whaleoil etc etc) is that theres no pretending to be neutral. You know what side the blogs are on unlike newspapers and their “neutrality”

      Makes for fairer (and more interesting) reporting/opinion

      • lprent 4.2.1
        26 June 2012 at 11:10 am

        We actually agree on something. Provided the comments section allows people with opposing viewpoints in who are willing to argue (ie not the idiot trolls bleating the same crap repetitively), then the whole thing encourages discussion because people are arguing about the opinion expressed in the post.

        It is also why I like reading The Economist. I know precisely where their biases is and they clearly distinguish between their facts and opinions.

        Of course there is one significant difference between Whaleoil’s site and here. He doesn’t exactly have interesting comments on his site (mostly consists of grunting how great Cameron is as far as I can tell) and arguing with his opinions is kind of pointless because all you get is the aforesaid grunting. The site should really be called Pigfat…

        • TheContrarian 4.2.1.1
          26 June 2012 at 11:22 am

          Now we agree with something also lprent.
          I read the Economist also and enjoy it but I very very rarely read Slater.

        • chris73 4.2.1.2
          26 June 2012 at 2:59 pm

          Isn’t it interesting that readers of whaleoils blog would probably say much the same thing about this site.

          • fender 4.2.1.2.1
            26 June 2012 at 4:46 pm

            Not that interesting, quite predictable those “grunts” can’t see past their snouts, and their ancient grey matter cant stray beyond their bigoted thoughts from centuries past.

          • lprent 4.2.1.2.2
            26 June 2012 at 4:54 pm

            I’ve seen them (I read the site periodically when something references this site).

            Of course I always get astonished when I see that they manage to write a comment that is more than a few lines long.

            In the posts that I usually wind up reading the comments for it about this site, it seems to wind up with a whinge by some idiot that I banned for lousy behaviour like trolling a year or so ago merely repeating the same behaviour there. Or Pete George doing his usual two faced commenting about this site. Or Whale wishing I had another heart attack because he has such a wide and generous heart….

            You know, nice people quietly discussing the issues of the day (not!)

        • felix 4.2.1.3
          26 June 2012 at 6:34 pm

          “He doesn’t exactly have interesting comments on his site (mostly consists of grunting how great Cameron is as far as I can tell)”

          That’s because he writes most of them himself.

        • Murray Olsen 4.2.1.4
          26 June 2012 at 7:59 pm

          The “Whale Army” tend to get more excited about prison rape than anything else. More than anything else, they seem to be mentally challenged. When Pete George posts there in favour of asset sales, this only gets worse.

  5. Carol 5
    26 June 2012 at 8:34 am

    Celia Wade Brown puts her/Wellington’s case against the government’s local government reform bill currently before parliament. Submissions close July 26:

    http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/wellington-central/7166286/Wade-Brown-slams-local-government-reforms

    Wellington mayor Celia Wade-Brown has slammed proposed legislation to rein in local government spending as “ill-considered” and undemocratic.

    Wellington City Council has released its draft submission on the Local Government Act 2002 Amendment Bill, which will be debated at the Strategy and Policy Committee meeting on Thursday.
    […]
    However, the proposed changes were ill-defined and would undermine the democratic process, she said. They also undermined the commonly accepted functions of local government to promote and enhance public good.
    […]
    Poor definitions in the bill would lead to uncertainty within local government, potentially increasing litigation, she said.

    The bill also allowed for local authorities to be amalgamated without a poll being held, limiting the opportunity for communities to have their say on local government.

    “What Wellington needs is community involvement in decisions, not hierarchical limitations from central government.”

    Just another way these bunch of charlatans currently in government, are undermining democracy.

  6. Campbell Larsen 6
    26 June 2012 at 8:35 am

    “From there we can go through the process of putting together a marketing campaign and all the fun on the first offering on Mighty River Power,” Mr Key told Newstalk ZB yesterday.

    So Shonky thinks it’s ‘fun’ pushing through a sale with unseemly haste that the majority of NZers oppose – says a lot about him really.

  7. vto 7
    26 June 2012 at 8:37 am

    Electricity.

    I see TrustPower is going to sell its Lake Coleridge hydro power water to farmers for irrigation over winter instead of generating electricity.

    Think about the implications …

    • freedom 7.1
      26 June 2012 at 8:50 am

      it’s a win win !!
      a win for the power companies ✓
      a win for Fonterra ✓

      for the rest of NZ, not so much

      • vto 7.1.1
        26 June 2012 at 9:02 am

        Ha.

        After the taxpayer has spent decades building up a system to provide electricity for the nation at cost, it now seems that we will have to compete with massive corporates for the electricity i.e. we will pay the absolute maximum that can possibly be achieved, by fair means or foul. And now that the companies are being privatised the social contract around power generation in this country is being stripped bare.

        What are the benefits to selling again Peter Dunne?

        rotten to the core

    • grumpy 7.2
      26 June 2012 at 12:03 pm

      “winter”……….really???

  8. Bored 8
    26 June 2012 at 9:01 am

    It would appear that the incoming Labour / Green government will have its hands full reversing the damage of this current government. Looking at the required agenda::

    * rebuilding the role of the “public servant” relationship with those he / she serves…which in effect means ridding the whole public sector of the language and practices of business.
    * reinstating public sector pay scales that keep the senior salaries in check, and rids the whole sector of bonuses.
    * repeal of the local government reforms started by Bassett in the 80s to reintroduce democracy at a local level, and remove the need for local bodies to serve the private sector (i.e remove LATEs etc).
    * buy back / heavily regulate infrastructural services that act as “rentiers” (telecommunications / power / transport), so that the productive economy does not have to pay rapacious sums to non productive sectors.
    * devolve the role of Treasury back to the individual departments with a rump body working on macro economic policy.
    * Reverse the Reserve Bank Act to heavily regulate financial activity.
    * restructure the tertiary education sector away from being a “business”……

    I could go on BUT what I am really driving at is that the incoming government has to be ruthlessly counter revolutionary. The Left has to commit to the total rolling back of 30 years of neo liberal nastiness, and create a secure state for the citizens, and a conducive environment for productive enterprise to flourish.

    • Kotahi Tane Huna 8.1
      26 June 2012 at 9:07 am

      +1

      • Descendant Of Smith 8.1.1
        26 June 2012 at 1:51 pm

        And also increase benefit rates, increase taxation, bring back the 8 hour working day and the 40 hour working week, allow more centralised wage bargaining, have a commitment for the public service to employ people with disabilities and young people…..

    • Vicky32 8.3
      26 June 2012 at 6:29 pm

      The Left has to commit to the total rolling back of 30 years of neo liberal nastiness, and create a secure state for the citizens, and a conducive environment for productive enterprise to flourish.

      Thirded!

  9. travellerev 9
    26 June 2012 at 9:22 am

    The thing is why are they in such a hurry to sell now. Even John Key knows that the financial system is collapsing at an alarming rate so selling will just net us soon to be worthless billions of fiat currency on our accounts. Oh wait, he’s not here to help us but to help his bankster mates dump their shite paper in exchange for our real world assets!

    • Uturn 10.1
      26 June 2012 at 10:30 am

      😆 Always an interesting read, that blogger’s work. In this one, the writer dances along the line of not offering opinion on guilt or innocence, but instead building a case of motive that could reasonably support an act of murder.

      Haven’t paid much attention to the case myself, but for what I hear in passing in soundbites from the radio etc. Had to laugh at one attempt to play up the gun issue; a mother saying her boy held guns from a young age. I bet he held a spade from a young age too, but holding a gun or a spade, or even just your own hands, doesn’t make you more likely to kill. It seems inconceivable that a family brought so close together by conflict would not know what really happened.

      • Vicky32 10.1.1
        26 June 2012 at 6:35 pm

        Haven’t paid much attention to the case myself, but for what I hear in passing in soundbites from the radio etc.

        I don’t get why the media are so completely obsessed with this case! I have not seen such blanket coverage of a murder since the (alleged) murder of the ‘Blenheim friends’ in 1998… which baffled me just as much.
        I always believed that no one could be charged with murder (much less convicted!) in the absence of a body, but it seems I was wrong. Then, we see that as her body has just been found, the poliss are going to investigate the murder of Jayne Furlong, and I ask myself, if the bodies of the ‘Blenheim friends’ have yet to be found, yet their ‘killer’ has been banged up for a decade, why wasn’t Jayne Furlong’s murder investigated?
        Is it a class thing?

        • millsy 10.1.1.1
          26 June 2012 at 11:48 pm

          Feel for the family of Scott Guy, having to have their personal business dragged through the media.

          I think we need to perhaps have another look at letting cameras in the courtroom…

          • Vicky32 10.1.1.1.1
            27 June 2012 at 4:31 pm

            I think we need to perhaps have another look at letting cameras in the courtroom…

            Seconded!

  11. Carol 11
    26 June 2012 at 9:56 am

    More cronyism from Joyce? This is what Phil Twyford was alleging in his interview with Kathryn Ryan on RNZ this morning (audio file not yet online)

    http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon/20120626

    Article on it here:

    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=10815481

    Auckland’s $98 million public transport ticketing project is in deep trouble, with an admission that a technology supplier to the Super City’s largest bus fleet expects to miss a crucial deadline.

    Concern about delays by Snapper Services, supplier of cards and machine readers to its sister company NZ Bus, in making the technology compliant with the Hop ticketing project on about 650 buses has exploded into a strong ultimatum from Auckland Transport lawyers.
    […]
    Labour’s transport spokesman, Phil Twyford, blames the “shambles” – disclosed by a letter sent to Snapper by Auckland Transport’s lawyers – on Government interference that let the company work on the scheme despite failing to win the main contract.

    “It was the National Government that insisted Snapper be allowed to roll out their card in Auckland well before the implementation of the integrated system,” he said yesterday.

    Twyford claimed he has heard via reliable word-of-mouth reports that it was Joyce who intervened to get Snapper the contract it now can’t fulfill because of problems with accessing the appropriate integrating technology.

    Twyford said he is submitting a raft of official information requests today, to get some documentation on this.

    • Draco T Bastard 11.1
      26 June 2012 at 4:09 pm

      There’s a number of points wrong with the roll-out of the money cards:
      1.) Government interference in the contracting out causing this particular ballsup
      2.) Failure by the government to set interoperable standards
      3.) Failure by the government to do it itself

      This is a money transfer system that really needs to be government owned. The same can be said of EFT-POS.

  12. Bored 12
    26 June 2012 at 12:54 pm

    Some fekker from the spin doctoring / “communications” game has been revving up the NACTs recently, the language has changed. The aim now is to blame the victim excessively, to emphasize help yourself or fekk off. NACT were never brave enough to risk the “nice guys John” image in the polls until recently. Now the veneer is gone their attitude has gone with it.

    So from now on its gloves off: you Mr Citizen had better look out for yourself because as far as NACT are concerned you are a target, an unemployed number to be targeted down, an ACC claimant to be targeted off, a public servant to be incented to break regulations to meet a number.. Be responsible and starve responsibly! And remember even if you are an “aspirational” NACT voter you too can fekk off.

  13. Uturn 13
    26 June 2012 at 1:01 pm

    Today I am reminded of a saying I heard from the character of a forty-four year old surfing instructor in a silly Hollywood movie:

    When life gives you lemons, just say “Fuck the lemons,” and bail.

    Look out world… here I bail!

    • Vicky32 13.1
      26 June 2012 at 6:39 pm

      just say “Fuck the lemons,” and bail.

      Great antidote to that twee saying…

  14. muzza 14
    26 June 2012 at 2:19 pm

    Wheeler was employed by the World Bank from 1997 to 2010, his most recent roles included managing director operations from 2006-2010, and vice-president and treasurer from 2001 to 2006.

    “He was previously at the New Zealand Treasury as deputy secretary and treasurer of the Debt Management Office”

    –So this guy understands perfectly about how NZ in being ripped off by not issuing its own currency for its own needs. Wheeler worked for the OoDM, so he knows the rip off intimately.
    The fact he worked at the WB, serves only to emphasise the depth of what he really knows!

  15. TheContrarian 15
    26 June 2012 at 4:53 pm

    Listening to Parliament live on the Radio.

    The Bill has been passed….Done……

    Fuck it.

  16. Frank Macskasy 16
    26 June 2012 at 5:17 pm

    Shame on Peter Dunne.

  17. muzza 17
    26 June 2012 at 5:19 pm

    “Directors at state-owned Mighty River Power will get twice their current rates and collect up to $2400 a day when the business is privatised, according to Treasury papers”

    “Treasury officials said the directors wanted the Government to bump up fees so they were not seen doing it themselves after the sale. Mighty River will be the first of four state-owned power firms to be part privatised”

  18. freedom 18
    26 June 2012 at 5:59 pm

    delete does not seem to be working

  19. ianmac 19
    26 June 2012 at 7:33 pm

    Campbell Live had a good interview with John Key over asset sale Act. Campbell held Key to account and Key got a bit sulky. Key accused Campbell of showing his Financial ignorance. Campbell challenged him to explain why. That was over selling Contact for $7billion but $20 billion has been paid out in dividends.
    Then there was Campbell asking 3 times to explain how the shares sold to NZers would stay in NZ. Key did not look happy to be challenged.
    Good one John Campbell!
    Not online yet.

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    There is a story I want to tell, but I'm not going to begin with it because it would be too abrupt. I'll start by telling you that I'm a big fan of the way Nicola Toki conveys her message. And Nicola Toki is a big fan of the way Jane ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago
  • Tax the rich!

    We already know that the rich people aren't paying their fair share. But it turns out its worse than that: we're a tax-haven! Our rich people pay lower taxes here than in any comparable country: Well-off New Zealanders are paying less tax than their peers in nine similar OECD ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    2 days ago
  • Worse and worse

    Cancer Minister Casey Costello is in trouble again over her secret, magically appearing tobacco policy document. The Ombudsman has already found that she acted contrary to law in refusing requests for it; now she has been referred to the Chief Archivist over a possible breach of the Public Records Act ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    2 days ago
  • NZ’s lack of a capital gains tax means the richest here pay vastly less than elsewhere

    The lack of a capital gains tax means the richest Kiwis are sitting pretty compared to taxpayers overseas. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāKia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Thursday, September 19:New Zealand’s richest ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • Verrall to Levy: “Health NZ NDAs are North Korean – Get rid of it.”

    Open article. Note the video of the Health Select Committee excerpts starts at 1:22 In watching the Health Select Committee yesterday, it became clear to me why Margie Apa remains Health NZ CEO.During Levy’s testimony, Apa sat like a rock next to her boss. She nodded supportively, scribbled notes to ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    2 days ago
  • The Show Must Go On

    Empty spaces, what are we living for?Abandoned places, I guess we know the score, on and onDoes anybody know what we are looking for?Another hero, another mindless crimeBehind the curtain, in the pantomimeHold the lineDoes anybody want to take it anymore?The show must go onSongwriters: Brian May / Freddie Mercury ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 days ago
  • Managing on-street parking for local benefit

    This guest post by Malcolm McCracken originally appeared on his blog Better Things Are Possible, and is republished here by kind permission. The case for Parking Benefit Districts: managing on-street parking for local benefit Parking is often the centre of debate in our cities; particularly on-street car parks, who gets ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    2 days ago
  • Doubling down?

    This is a re-post from And Then There's Physics I wrote a post a little while ago commenting on a Sabine Hossenfelder video suggesting that she was now worried about climate change because the Equilibrium Climate Sensitivity (ECS) could be much higher than most estimates have suggested. I wasn’t too taken with Sabine’s arguments, and there were others ...
    Skeptical Science
    2 days ago
  • Too much haste & waste in Simeon Brown’s need for speed

    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong story short, the Government’s myopia of only choosing transport policies that reduce travel times means we’re missing out on the health benefits of more cycling and walking, along with the health cost savings from fewer accidents, less pollution and mentally healthier ways of getting ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • What seemed so simple is now so complex

    The Health NZ rescue that seemed so simple back in July was presented to a Select Committee yesterday as a complex challenge that could take some years to sort out. In July, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said Health NZ was on track to record a deficit of $1.4 billion for ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    2 days ago
  • The utterances of Shane Jones

    Let us consider the utterances of Shane Jones.Let us consider the derogatory terms of abuseNow is not the time for Green Wombles, it's black and white decision making.We will stand with the energy industry and ensure they are not monstered by Green Termites nibbling away at our economic capital.The Green ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • Ukrainian militia receives defective shipment of pagers that just send and receive messages

    There’s been a major setback for one Ukrainian-backed militia on the Russian border, after the group ordered a large shipment of pagers to use as improvised explosive devices. The plan was to litter the pagers throughout abandoned homes and buildings in hopes of wounding Russian soldiers. But upon arrival of ...
    The CivilianBy Ben Uffindell
    3 days ago
  • A constitutional shitshow

    Last month, we learned that the government was half-arsing its anti-gang legislation, adding a significant, pre-planned, BORA-abusing amendment at the committee stage, avoiding all the usual scrutiny processes. But it gets worse. Because having done it once, they're now planning to recall the bill in order to add another such ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago
  • Political Round Up

    Note: An earlier version of this article noted Levy was a “party time Health NZ commissioner” - this has been updated - forgive my Freudian slip.Dr Lester Levy is charging $320,000 a year to be a part time Health NZ commissioner. Rachel Thomas reports that Levy is still teaching 2 ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    3 days ago
  • Postcard from Sydney: Southwest and City Metro extension

    This is a guest post from Sydney reader Nik Clement After 2 years in Auckland I moved back to Sydney just over a year ago. While in Auckland, I went to the opening of Puhinui station and used it a fair bit, living in Manukau Central and being able ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    3 days ago
  • Tolling revolt brewing in National heartland

    Kia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, September 18:Locals gathered in Woodville last night to protest at the National-ACT-NZ First Government’s decision to toll the new road linking the Manawatu and Hawkes Bay, saying ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • The doom spiral

    This is a re-post from The Climate Brink by Andrew Dessler In his last post, Zeke discussed incredible warmth of 2023 and 2024 and its implications for future warming. A few readers looked at it and freaked out: This is terrifying and This update really put me in a ...
    Skeptical Science
    3 days ago
  • Government directs Te Puni Kōkiri to conduct Māori Language Week in English

    The coalition government has issued a directive to Te Puni Kōkiri, the Ministry of Māori Development, instructing them that – in the interests of clear communication – they are to conduct this year’s Māori Language Week primarily or exclusively in English. The directive is in line with the Government’s policy ...
    The CivilianBy Ben Uffindell
    4 days ago
  • Government celebrates fact that New Zealand’s healthcare is so good people are queuing up for it a...

    At yesterday’s post-cabinet press conference, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, flanked by his Health Minister Shane Reti and someone we can’t independently verify was a real sign language interpreter, announced that he had some positive news for the country. “Alright team, I’m just going to hand over to uh, Dr. Shane, ...
    The CivilianBy Ben Uffindell
    4 days ago
  • Heartwarming: Thoughtful driver uses indicator to tell you what they’ve just done

    It’s 4:10pm in the morning, and you’re in the middle lane heading north on the great southern motorway of our nation’s capital, Auckland. There are no cars directly in front of you, but quite a few in the lane to your left. Suddenly, without warning, a black ute enters your ...
    The CivilianBy Ben Uffindell
    4 days ago
  • NPC teams will now be allowed to actually use the Ranfurly Shield in play

    Following decades of controversy, the governing body of New Zealand rugby, New Zealand Rugby, has ruled that the team currently holding the Ranfurly Shield may once again use it in play during the National Provincial Championship (NPC). The ruling restores the utility of a prize that for many years was ...
    The CivilianBy Ben Uffindell
    4 days ago
  • Climbing out of the hamster wheel

    I arrived home with a head full of fresh ideas about mindfulness and curbing impulsive aspects in my character.On the second night home I grabbed a piece of ginger and began swiftly slicing it on our industrial strength mandolin, the one I have learned through painful experience to treat with ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 days ago
  • More Notes From Stinky Town

    Good morning, folks. Another wee note from a chilly Rotorua morning that looks much clearer than yesterday. As I write, the pink glow in the east is slowly growing, and soon, the palest of blue skies should become a bit more royal.A couple of people mentioned yesterday that I should ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago
  • Make it make sense: why axe valuable local projects?

    Last week, Matt looked at how the government wants to pour a huge chunk of civic infrastructure funding for a generation  into one mega-road up North, at huge cost and huge opportunity cost. A smaller but no less important feature of the National Land Transport Plan devised by Minister of Transport ...
    Greater AucklandBy Jolisa
    4 days ago
  • Driving blind at higher speeds

    An open letter by experts about plans to raise speed limits warns the “tragic consequence will be more New Zealanders losing their lives or suffering severe injury, along with a substantial burden on the nation's healthcare and rehabilitation services”. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāKia ora. Long stories short, here’s ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • 2024’s unusually persistent warmth

    This is a re-post from The Climate Brink My inaugural post on The Climate Brink 18 months ago looked at the year 2024, and found that it was likely to be the warmest year on record on the back of a (than forecast) El Nino event. I suggested “there is a real chance ...
    Skeptical Science
    4 days ago
  • National plan for 2000 more Kiwis a year in prison

    Open for allYesterday, Luxon congratulated his government on a job well done with emergency housing numbers, but advocates have been saying it‘s likely many are on the streets and sleeping in cars.Q&A featured some of the folks this weekend - homeless and in cars. Yes.The government’s also confirmed they stopped ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    4 days ago
  • I Found a Note in a Tree

    Hi,On most days I try to go on a walk through nature to clear my head from the horrors of life. Because as much as I like people, I also think it’s incredibly important to get very far away from them. To be reminded that there are also birds, lizards, ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    4 days ago
  • Jacqui Van Der Kaay: Politicians need to lift their game

    Declining trust in New Zealand politicians should be a warning to them to lift their game. Results from the New Zealand Election Study for the 2023 election show that the level of trust in politicians has once again declined. Perhaps it is not surprising that the results, shared as part ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    4 days ago
  • Police say they won’t respond to bomb threats anymore as ‘it’s never anything’

    Police Commissioner Andrew Coster says that New Zealand’s police force will no longer respond to bomb threats, in an attempt to cut costs and redirect police resources to less boring activities. Coster said that threat response and bomb disposal was a “fairly obvious” area for downsizing, as bomb threats are ...
    The CivilianBy Ben Uffindell
    5 days ago
  • A dysfunctional watchdog

    The reality of any right depends on how well it is enforced. But as The Post points out this morning, our right to official information isn't being enforced very well at all: More than a quarter of complaints about access to official information languish for more than a year, ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Climate Change: The threat of a good example

    Since taking office, the climate-denier National government has gutted agricultural emissions pricing, ended the clean car discount, repealed water quality standards which would have reduced agricultural emissions, gutted the clean car standard, killed the GIDI scheme, and reversed efforts to reduce pollution subsidies in the ETS - basically every significant ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Vegas Baby

    Good morning, lovely people. Don’t worry. This isn’t really a newsletter, just a quick note. I’m sitting in our lounge, looking out over a gloomy sky. Although being Rotorua, the view is periodically interrupted by steam bursting from pipes and dispersing—like an Eastern European industrial hellscape during the Cold War.Drinking ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • Why Entrust Needs New Leadership

    I am part of a new team running in the Entrust election in October. Entrust is a community electricity trust representing a significant part of Auckland, set up to serve the community. It is governed by five trustees are elected every three years in an election the trust itself oversees. ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    5 days ago
  • London Bridge is falling down

    In the UK, London is the latest of council groups to signal potential bankruptcy.That’s after Birmingham, Britain’s second largest city, went bankrupt in June, resulting in reduced sanitation services, libraries cut, and dimmed streetlights.Some in the city described things as “Dickens” like.Please, Sir, Can I have some more?For families with ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    5 days ago
  • Govt may kick elderly out of hospitals

    The Government is considering how to shunt elderly people out of hospitals, and also how to cut their access to other support. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāKia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Monday, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Getting the nephs off the couch

    The so-called “Prince of the Provinces”, Shane Jones, went home last Friday. Perhaps not quite literally home, more like 20 kilometres down the road from his house on the outskirts of Kerikeri. With its airport, its rapidly growing (mostly retired) population, and a commercial centre with all the big retail ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago
  • De moralibus orcorum: Sargon of Akkad, Rings of Power, Evil, and George R.R. Martin

    I have noted before that The Rings of Power has attracted its unfortunate share of culture war obsessives. Essentially, for a certain type of individual, railing on about the Wokery of Modern Media is a means of making themselves a online livelihood. Clicks and views and advertising revenue, and all ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    5 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #37

    A listing of 31 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, September 8, 2024 thru Sat, September 14, 2024. Story of the week From time to time we like to make our Story of the Week all about us— and ...
    Skeptical Science
    5 days ago
  • Salvation For Us All

    Yesterday, I ruminated about the effects of being a political follower.And, within politics, David Seymour was smart enough on Friday to divert attention from “race blind” policies [what about gender blind I thought - thinking of maternity wards] and cutting school lunches by throwing meat to the media. Teachers were ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    6 days ago
  • A warm embrace

    Far, far away from here lives our King. Some of his subjects can be quite the forelock tuggers, but plenty of us are not like that, and why don't I wheel out my favourite old story once more about Kiwi soldiers in the North African desert?Field Marshal Montgomery takes offence ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago
  • Literal clowns are running the place, we must put a timeout on this stupidity… right Aotearoa?

    These people are inept on every level. They’re inept to the detriment of our internal politics, cohesion and increasingly our international reputation. And they are reveling in the fact they are getting away with it. We cannot even have “respectful debate” with a government that clearly rejects the very ...
    exhALANtBy exhalantblog
    6 days ago
  • Fact brief – Does manmade CO2 have any detectable fingerprint?

    Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. This fact brief was written by Sue Bin Park from the Gigafact team in collaboration with John Mason. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Does manmade CO2 have any ...
    Skeptical Science
    7 days ago
  • Judge Not.

    Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. Matthew 7:1-2FOUR HUNDRED AND FORTY men and women professing the Christian faith would appear to have imperilled their immortal souls. ...
    Bowalley Road
    7 days ago
  • Managed Democracy: Letting The People Decide, But Only When They Can Be Relied Upon To Give the Righ...

    Uh-uh! Not So Fast, Citizens! The power to initiate systemic change remains where it has always been in New Zealand’s representative democracy – in Parliament. To order a binding referendum, the House of Representatives must first to be persuaded that, on the question proposed, sharing its decision-making power with the people ...
    Bowalley Road
    7 days ago
  • Looking For Labour’s Vital Signs.

    Flatlining: With no evidence of a genuine policy disruptor at work in Labour’s ranks, New Zealand’s wealthiest citizens can sleep easy.PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN has walked a picket-line. Presidential candidate Kamala Harris has threatened “price-gauging” grocery retailers with price control. The Democratic Party’s 2024 platform situates it well to the left of Sir ...
    Bowalley Road
    7 days ago
  • Forty Years Of Remembering To Forget.

    The Beginning of the End: Rogernomics became the short-hand descriptor for all the radical changes that swept away New Zealand’s social-democratic economy and society between 1984 and 1990. In the bitterest of ironies, those changes were introduced by the very same party which had entrenched New Zealand social-democracy 50 years earlier. ...
    Bowalley Road
    7 days ago
  • Kōrero Mai – Speak to Me.

    Good morning all you lovely people. 🙂I woke up this morning, and it felt a bit like the last day of school. You might recall from earlier in the week that I’m heading home to Rotorua to see an old friend who doesn’t have much time. A sad journey, but ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    7 days ago
  • Winning ways

    Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on anything you may have missed. Street architecture adjustment, KolkataShare Read more ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    7 days ago
  • 48 seconds on a plan that would reverberate for a million years

    Despite fears that Trump presidency would be disastrous for progress on climate change, the topic barely rated a mention in the Presidential debate. Photo: Getty ImagesLong stories short, here’s the top six news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa-NZ this week, and a discussion above between Bernard Hickey ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Using blunt instruments and magical thinking to ignore evidence of harm

    The abrupt cancellations and suspensions of Government spending also caused private sector hiring, spending, and investment to freeze up for the first six months of the year. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāThis week we learned:The new National/ACT/NZ First Coalition Government ignored advice from Treasury that it didn’t have to ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Is This A Dagger Which I See Before Me: A Review and Analysis of The Rings of Power Episode 5 (Seaso...

    Another week of The Rings of Power, season two, and another confirmation that things are definitely coming together for the show. The fifth Episode of season one represented the nadir of the series. Now? Amid the firmer footing of 2024, Episode Five represents further a further step towards excellent Tolkien ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    1 week ago
  • In Open Seas; A Book

    The background to In Open Seas: How the New Zealand Labour Government Went Wrong:2017-2023Not in Narrow Seas: The Economic History of Aotearoa New Zealand, published in 2020, proved more successful than either I or the publisher (VUP, now Te Herenga Waka University Press) expected. I had expected that it would ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    1 week ago
  • The Hoon around the week to Sept 13

    The podcast above of the weekly ‘Hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers on Thursday night features co-hosts and talking about the week’s news with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent on the latest climate science on rising temperatures and the climate implications of the US Presidential elections; and special guests Janet ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Do or do not. There is no try

    1. Upon receiving evidence that school lunches were doing a marvellous job of improving outcomes for students, David Seymour did what?a. Declared we need much more of this sort of good news and poured extra resources and funding into them b. Emailed Atlas network to ask what to do next c. Cut ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 week ago
  • Dangerous ground

    The Waitangi Tribunal has reported back on National's proposed changes to gut the Marine and Coastal Area Act and steal the foreshore and seabed for its greedy fishing-industry donors, and declared it to be another huge violation of ti Tiriti: The Waitangi Tribunal has found government changes to the ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    1 week ago
  • Climate Change: National wants to cheat on Paris

    In 2016, the then-National government signed the Paris Agreement, committing Aotearoa to a 30 (later 50) percent reduction in emissions by 2030. When questioned about how they intended to meet that target with their complete absence of effective climate policy, they made a lot of noise about how it was ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    1 week ago
  • Treasury warned Govt lower debt limits meant less ‘productivity-enhancing investment’

    Treasury’s advice to Cabinet was that the new Government could actually prudently carry net core Crown debt of up to 50% of GDP. But Luxon and Willis instead chose to portray the Government’s finances as in such a mess they had no choice but to carve 6.5% to 7.5% off ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Is the Media Complicit?

    This is a long read. Open to all.SYNOPSIS: Traditional media is at a cross roads. There is a need for those in the media landscape, as it stands, to earn enough to stay afloat, but also come across as balanced and neutral to keep its audiences.In America, NYT’s liberal leaning ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    1 week ago
  • Black Friday

    It's Black Friday, the end of the weekYou take my hand and hold it gently up against your cheekIt's all in my head, it's all in my mindI see the darkness where you see the lightSong by Tom OdellFriday the 13th, don’t be afraid.No, really, don’t. Everything has felt a ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago

  • Tourism on the table for Pacific Ministers’ meet-up

    Tourism and Hospitality Minister Matt Doocey will meet with Trade and Tourism Minister of Australia Don Farrell and Fiji Deputy Prime Minister Manoa Kamikamica in Rotorua this weekend for a trilateral tourism discussion. “Like in New Zealand, tourism plays a significant role in Australia and Fiji’s economy, contributing massively to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    14 hours ago
  • Young people report on family and sexual violence

    The Te Puna Aonui Expert Advisory Group for Children and Young People has presented its report today on improving family and sexual violence outcomes for young people, to the Minister for the Prevention of Family and Sexual Violence, Karen Chhour.  The presentation at the Auckland event was an opportunity for ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    14 hours ago
  • $18 million being invested in the victims of crime

    The Government is putting more than $18 million towards improving the experience of the criminal justice system for victims, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith and Minister for Children Karen Chhour say. “No one should experience crime, but for those who through no fault of their own become victims, they need to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    15 hours ago
  • Landmark phonics check in te reo Māori

    For the first time, schools can use a purpose-built tool to check how a child is progressing in reading through te reo Māori. “Around 45 schools are trialling a New Zealand first te reo Māori phonics check, known as Hihira Weteoro. It will help kaiako (teachers) focus on what ākonga ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    16 hours ago
  • New sea walls safeguard Ōpōtiki’s transformation

    Two new breakwater walls at Pākihikura (Ōpōtiki) Harbour will provide boats with safe harbour access to support the continued growth of aquaculture in Bay of Plenty, Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters and Regional Development Minister Shane Jones say. The Ministers and leaders from Tē Tāwharau o Te Whakatōhea and other ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    18 hours ago
  • Kitmap to improve access to science infrastructure

    Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins today announced an online platform to optimise the use of New Zealand’s science and technology research infrastructure and to link the public and private sector. “This country is home to world-class science, technology, and engineering expertise. Kitmap is set to empower Kiwi innovators, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    18 hours ago
  • Driving the uptake of low emission heavy vehicles

    The Government has launched the Low Emissions Heavy Vehicle Fund (LEHVF) to promote innovation and offset the cost of hundreds of heavy vehicles powered by clean technologies, Energy Minister Simeon Brown and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts say. “Boosting economic growth and productivity is a key part of the Government’s plan ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    18 hours ago
  • Speech on replacing the Resource Management Act

    Replacing the RMA Hon Chris Bishop: Good morning, it is great to be with you. Can I first acknowledge the Resource Management Law Association for hosting us here today. Can I also acknowledge my Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Simon Court, who is on stage with me. He has assisted me in establishing the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    19 hours ago
  • Replacement for the Resource Management Act takes shape

    Two new laws will be developed to replace the Resource Management Act (RMA), with the enjoyment of property rights as their guiding principle, RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Parliamentary Under-Secretary Simon Court say. “The RMA was passed with good intentions in 1991 but has proved a failure in practice. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    20 hours ago
  • Tough laws pass to make gang life uncomfortable

    Legislation passed through Parliament today will provide police and the courts with additional tools to crack down on gangs that peddle misery and intimidation throughout New Zealand, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “From November 21, gang insignia will be banned in all public places, courts will be able to issue non-consorting orders, and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • New levy rates set to ensure continued funding of FENZ

    Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government has agreed to the rates for the redesigned levy that will fund Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) from July 2026.  “Earlier this year FENZ consulted publicly on a 5.2 percent increase to the levy. I was not convinced that ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Police allocate Officers to Beat and Gang Units

    The Coalition Government welcomes Police’s announcement today to deploy more police on the beat and staff to Gang Disruption Units.  An additional 70 officers will be allocated to Community Beat Teams across towns and regional centres.  This builds on the deployment of beat officers in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch CBDs ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Consultation begins on significant updates to the biosecurity system

    Proposals to strengthen the country’s vital biosecurity system, including higher fines for passengers bringing in undeclared high-risk goods, greater flexibility around importing requirements, and fairer cost sharing for biosecurity responses have been released today for public consultation. Biosecurity Minister Andrew Hoggard says “The future is about resilience and the 30-year-old ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Wānaka community to benefit from new overnight health service

    Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says an Overnight Acute Care Service opening in October will provide people in Wānaka and the surrounding area with the assurance of quality overnight care closer to home.  “When I was in Wānaka earlier this year, I announced funding for an overnight health service – ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Preventing potholes with data-driven technology

    The Government is rolling out data collection vans across the country to better understand the condition of our road network to prevent potholes from forming in the first place, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.  “Increasing productivity to help rebuild our economy is a key priority for the Government and increasing ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • GDP data shows effect of high interest rates

    Gross Domestic Product (GDP) data for the quarter to June 2024 reinforces how an extended period of high interest rates has meant tough times for families, businesses, and communities, but recent indications show the economy is starting to bounce back, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Stats NZ data released today ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • NZ to host first Fiji, Australia trilateral trade Ministers’ meeting in Rotorua

    Trade Minister Todd McClay will host Fijian Deputy Prime Minister Manoa Kamikamica and Australian Trade Minister Don Farrell for trilateral trade talks in Rotorua this weekend. “Fiji is one of the largest economies in the Pacific and is a respected partner for Australia and New Zealand,” Mr McClay says. Australia and New Zealand ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • NZ hosts Annual CER Trade Ministers’ meeting in Rotorua

    Trade Minister Todd McClay will meet with Australian Trade Minister Don Farrell for the annual Closer Economic Relations (CER) Trade Ministers’ meeting in Rotorua this weekend.  “CER is our most comprehensive agreement covering trade, labour mobility, harmonisation of standards and political cooperation. It underpins an important trading relationship worth $32 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Government proposing changes to jury trials

    The Government is seeking the public’s feedback on two major changes to jury trials in order to improve court timeliness, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “The first proposal would increase the offence threshold at which a defendant can decide to have their case heard by a jury. “The second is ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Business key to regional economic dialogue

    Local businesses and industries need to be front and centre in conversations about how regions plan to grow their economies, Regional Development Shane Jones says. The nationwide series of summits aims to facilitate conversations about regional economic growth and opportunities to drive productivity, prosperity and resilience through the Coalition Government’s Regional ...
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  • Tough targets for charter schools will raise achievement

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  • Honouring the legacy of New Zealand’s suffragists

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  • Prioritising victims with tougher sentences

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  • Asia Foundation Board appointments announced

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  • Endeavour Fund projects for economic growth

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  • Social Services Providers Whakamanawa National Conference 16 September 2024

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  • Parihaka infrastructure upgrades funded

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