Two right wing parties were expected to win a relatively victory after a year of setbacks for the ruling centre-left government. The large, traditional party of the centre right (the Peoples’s Party or PP) was led by a supremely confident but gaffe-prone individual who struggled to connect with the electorate. PP’s running mate was Vox, a neo-liberal party of the extreme right, which campaigned against an allegedly “woke” government unduly influenced by feminists and trans rights activists. Vox was also calling for lower taxation & employer-friendly labour laws.
Meanwhile, the centre-left government of Pedro Sanchez was accused even by its own running mate Sumar of (a) doing too little to address the country’s social problems, and (b) clinging to power for its own sake.
Sumar’s leader Yolanda Diaz happens to be Spain’s most popular politician, and she attracts support from across the political spectrum. As the Labour Minister in the Sanchez government, Diaz has also been widely praised for raising the minimum wage substantially, and for granting the workers in gig economy firms the full rights of employees, via a model piece of legislation that the European Union is widely expected to adopt next year.
He goes on to make the point that the media switched from focus on govt problems to focus on opposition credibility which produced a feeling of revulsion in the public enough to collapse the rightist support base relatively.
Relevance to here is indicative. The media focus will always be on controversy (sensation rules) but quiet days can switch their focus to future prospects, and the public mood often reflects that. Floating voters are always seeking a better option, so their collective shifts are relative to feeling averse to either or both left & right at the time. When left & right compete for centrists, their simulations tend to be transparent to floaters & you get a lack of gravitating towards those poles. Hung parliament in Spain resulting – maybe headed thataway here too…
He was paying people using Newscorp cash to covertly film gay and straight men having sex with them so he could use the tapes at a later date to extort and blackmail them.
This is the logical conclusion of the era of the Murdoch press, and shows how corrupt the UK right wing tabloid media is.
Your faith in the BBC is touching but misplaced. Novara have also covered the story, very carefully, professionally and with their usual intellectual honesty.
Actually I don't have a lot of faith in the BBC, I thought they would likely cover it if it was a verified story because they are in opposition to GB News.
I will look up Novara myself.
I am not saying he didn't do thes heinous crime, just due process and all that.
is a New Zealander, something that makes me deeply, deeply ashamed
Likewise here – and long before this story came to light.. Ashamed, but not surprised because this country has plenty of little Dan Woottens running around – heading I sense for a gleeful victory in October. He is definitely one of us.
Well this just keeps getting worse for Kiri Allan. You should not leave the scene of an accident. She wasn't that drunk as she was under the old 400 limit according to reports.
Why do you think that she can't leave the scene of an accident?
As far as I can see the only requirement, provided that no-one has been injured, is that you must notify the owner of the vehicle she damaged, or the police, within 60 hours.
There doesn't seem to be any requirement to stay there.
that's my understanding. Only issue I can see is that her car was apparently still in the middle of the road. I think there would be an expectation of making sure that wasn't a hazard to other motorists.
I guess if your in the middle of a break down and have just done something that's going to finish your career, your smashed car blocking a road is probably not even in your thoughts
yep. Her judgement seems majorly impaired, and I don't think she is being give good advice (or she is ignoring it). I read her FB post and it's about her and her feelings. This is understandable but it's appropriate for people close to her, not public announcements from an MP in government.
I have just had a look at the photo of the crash and there certainly is a major blockage. I wasn't thinking about that. The only way to get past would be to get your wheels onto the cycle lane as it blocks both vehicle lanes on the road.
"From the damage to the ute I doubt that her car could be driven though. I'm not sure what she is actually required to do in that case."
If you had an accident and your vehicle was blocking the road, normally you would call police and wait with the vehicle for it to be towed.
Unless of course, you were over the limit and should not have been driving, in that case people often abandon their vehicle and make a run for it, and deny they were the driver.
The legal requirement appears to be to notify the owner of any damaged vehicles or property "as soon as possible" [from your link, above]
If no one is hurt, you must give your name, address and plate number as soon as possible but no later than 48 hours after the crash to:
the owner or driver of any other vehicle that’s been damaged
the owner of any property that’s been damaged.
As soon as possible, with a parked car, would be door-knocking the adjacent houses, to find who it belonged to. The first door would have found them.
She seems to be in breach of the road code.
However, that's only a minor issue – and (all other things being equal) wouldn't have raised a ripple in the papers [e.g. if her car had lost traction in the rain (not speeding), or if she'd been distracted, and hit the parked car (all too common in our local supermarket carpark)]
I get the horrible feeling that the opposition and media will not be satisfied until they have hounded her to death. This is more than a lack of empathy its a complete lack of compassion. We are very lucky the only harm was to a couple of cars.
She has been through treatment for stage three cervical cancer, I surmise there is a medically induced menopause with its severe mood swings, a host of physical complications including cognitive changes. Forty percent of stage three cervical cancers do not survive beyond five years, try living with that threat every day.
Being moralistic does not suffice in these types of situations. While no medical expert, a friend of mine with lung cancer which spread, bought 5 years of life so far by paying for very effective Keytruda (now on Pharmac list for cancers other than just Melanomas).
Doctors warned her of “chemo brain” which sounded rather patronising, but they were right, mood swings, doing weird stuff and the constant existential overlay of “my time might be up”.
Kiritapu has multiple issues to deal with by the sounds of it, so while you do not have to applaud her for not calling a cab–at least don’t put the slipper in.
There's certainly no more room for doubt about the motivation of those who want to keep this going (like Jester, above).
If the motivation is the public interest (i.e. "holding to account") then all of the following would be legitimate …
1) Demanding the Minister go … but it's already happened.
2) Demanding the ex-Minister quit Parliament … but it's already happened.
3) Demanding that she be charged, and subject to the same judicial process as the rest of us … but it's already happening.
4, 5, 6 etc …) Demanding that the PM front up. Demanding a debate in Parliament. Demanding that Kiri Allan make a statement, including an apology. And so on.
All of which has already happened. Those are the facts, and all in the public domain.
So what exactly do they want now from Kiri Allan? Pitchforks? To achieve … what?
Morgan Godfery writes an excellent column ruing the relentless spotlight on Kiri. Obsever at 3.2.2 has summed it up so well and I take my hat off for Godfery too.
That sentence reduces a relentless, three-day news cycle to its essentials.
From Monday morning to Wednesday afternoon, journalists were fighting to break new angles on the most controversial political story of the year: what were the particulars of Kiri Allan’s mental distress at the moment of the crash? And did the Prime Minister know enough, in hindsight, to make a better decision for her wellbeing and her career?
On the morning of July 24, as the major media outlets were publishing live blogs, the frenzied coverage made constitutional and news sense. But stepping back from that initial coverage, it’s worth asking whether the punishing drive for new information and new angles made ethical sense…..
If that had been a National minister Labour would be rolling out similar criticisms
Labour's chances of regaining power now are Zero.Unless National have a high profile scandal hidden away.highly unlikely remember when Mike Williams shot over to Melbourne in the hope of digging some dirt and it backfired. Labour is going to be an opposition party for sometime.
"Labour's chances of regaining power now are Zero"
I don't think you should buy into this Nats/Act framing Tricle. A couple of ministers have made mistakes and another has a mental illness problem.
Meanwhile 17 other ministers are beavering away doing a lot of good stuff running the country. The economy has come through Covid and the Ukraine war induced contraction and two massive flood events in a reasonably healthy state. Inflation is now almost under control, the housing market has undertaken a much needed price-fall, state houses are being built, the minimum wage is moving towards a livable wage, many people have been taken out of poverty and more money is being spent on public transport and climate change. The health system has been reformed, RMA reforms are almost ready to go and the Affordable Water reforms are moving forward.
National's game, aided by the MSM, is to portray this a government as being in chaos, when it is anything but.
This is such a transparent beat-up. For example, Stuff has now hired Tova O'Brien to stick it to Labour.
Kiri made mistakes before the careless driving etc situation. The speech at Radio NZ. Alledged reports of bullying by two senior public servants, which is unusal. A suggestion of a badly handled conflict of interest over Mein Fong, Posting about her distress about her relationship on FB or twitter two weeks ago, was another sign of not being able to maintain boundaries.
Jan Tinetti, mislead the house and failed to correct and it went before privledges committee
Michael Wood conflict of interest and misleading PM about his shares being sold when they weren't.
Stuart Nash, say no more.
David Parker resigning from Revenue a clear FU to Chris Hipkins.
Meka Whiteri. Walked.
As a Labour/Green old chum of mine message me "the wheels are falling off".
I would be hard pressed to think of a cabinet that has had so many problems/resignations in such a short space of time…….happy for someone to provide other examples
I go along with most of what you say BG and I think it is a shame that Hipkins didn't take the opportunity to 'blood' a new minister. Especially with a view that they 'hit the ground running' post Oct 14th.
His excuses, close to an election etc can play into a narrative that the election is already lost, shallow talent pool etc.
That anyone, other than a journalist, sees government determined by the public appearance/reputation of the politicians, rather than the policies and governance is depressing.
It would mean gotcha journalism and character assassination dominate.
Thank you psych nurse. I had daymares. Nightmares with my eyes open, full panic sweats and shakes about "what might go wrong" with driving a car, flying, any trigger, until hormone treatment and then "I was back".
My aunt who had breast cancer could not have the treatment. She lived with bad nerves for years.
So yes, being on your own during one of those is terrifying, Kiri reached out to Willie, but he wasn't physically close enough to help, and it all just "piled up".
The mistakes she has made are being blown out of proportion to suit certain views and narratives. These reporters need to take a breath and show some humanity, but unfortunately some are like Seymore, opportunists.
This is more than just “mental health” issues. I think that she has been “found out” and those around her are no longer accepting some of her behaviour, so she’s got nowhere to go.
Ive seen this happen to bullies before, people start seeing them for what they really are, and stop putting up with their BS. So the bully has nowhere to go so they “collapse” in order to gain control and to not be held accountable for their actions.
There were allegations of previous unacceptable behaviour directed at public service employees, now it appears that she has been bullying junior MP’s.
she has been pulled up on her behaviour and is now having a hissy fit to avoid being held accountable.
The explanation of the impact of cancer treatment on someone is made and you remain fixated on the Inquisitor mode, about the character of the person … we can only now presume … political agenda and ignore the spam.
Wow!! So Terry, do you know who is complaining? Or do you jump at every rumour to add them to the actual mistakes?
So she has got nowhere to go. according to you.
That is not true. Her local people and many of us are rallying to help her to recover. Your senario is all guess work and glaring falsehoods. Kiri has been held accountable… but you seem to have a twisted view of things Terry.
The key measures are that Te Huia will be using its Electronic Train Protection (ETP) system in the Auckland area and its locomotive engineers are doing extra training and are getting support “to navigate the complexities of the Auckland metro rail network”.
This has assured Waka Kotahi that safety risks have been addressed and the prohibition notice can be lifted, director of land transport Neil Cook said.
….
“We are pleased that KiwiRail is taking the urgent action required to prevent further incidents.”
Kiwirail should have invested in the new safety equipment that NZTA asked for, right back at the business case for Te Huia. They were quite happy to shell out for new station and track in Hamilton.
I see Blinken has dropped in for a few hours and no doubt our pm will be fawning all over him personally i'd have sent a junior office clerk an maybe shouted him a cup of instant at the local pie cart similar to how the Chinese treated him recently !
Blinking Blinken, there have been a number of US officials and delegations roaming around the Pacific lately…what could they possibly want…
I recall during the sirKey years when the “Hobbit Act” and Kim Dot Com raid were on the go, non commercial American planes were spotted at Wellington Airport. They always come sniffing around.
The revelations were remarkable for two reasons. The first is that it marks the first chink in what has been an impenetrable unity of the Labour caucus since 2017. And second because it is an account of an MP unhappy about something that well predates Chris Hipkins’ prime ministership. In other words, unfixed problems under the leadership of former prime minister Jacinda Ardern. The fact that at least some caucus members are now feeling aggrieved enough about it to speak to media belies a greater tension that appears to be setting in among the Labour ranks over a number of issues.
Note the banal framing: Labour will be desperate to plug caucus leaks. One swallow don't make no summer, as an illiterate Englishman might say. Can anyone actually plug caucus leaks?? Experience tells us no: the tendency to leak under sufficient pressure is as likely in National as in Labour. Leaks happen regardless of witch-hunting endeavours if the motive is sufficient. Btw I wouldn't blame Luke for that banal framing – more likely blame his editor – a level up the media hierarchy.
The most significant dimension revealed by the leak seems to be the victim specifying abuse spanning two years, with implied tolerance by powers that be – yet with no mention of any victim complaint. Smoke without fire again.
Its not overly suprising really, youve got a whole bunch of mp's who have come to the stark realization that theyll be looking for a new job shortly. A fair portion of them will be feeling aggreived for real and imagined reasons. A small portion of them will have a big enough chip on the shoulder to try and do damage on the way out.
When Grant Robertson calls a press conference at Parliament, and calls Chris Hipkins a corrupt, criminal politician, and releases secret recordings of their phone conversations, and then marches off to the Wellington police station with the media in tow, to lay a complaint against his own leader …
then yes, Labour's internal "leaks" will be just as bad as National's.
So, a very long way to go. One dripping tap, and one dam bursting flood.
Yeah but Nationals implosion happened in opposition. They kept their shit together right up until Bill English left in 2018.
Labour has started imploding in government. After just 5 and a half years. It's unreal.
At first it looked like Jacindas retirement had created a post Helen Clark esque leadership vacuum in the party with Hipkins unable to fill it.
Increasingly, it looks the other way around:
Jacindas lack of leadership and discipline over her cabinet created a mountain of problems and a bunch of lazy, fast and loose, entitled ego driven MPs and bad behaviour to go unchecked.
All these problems were allowed to go unchecked under Ardern and as soon as a leader who tried to actually lead his caucus in a traditional style, the shit hit the fan.
The internal problems labour faces ATM is because Ardern was hands off. She was another Lange who let her cabinet run circles around her.
There is no defending Ardern, all of these problems should have been managed by her, years ago.
Now labour has an arrogant, divided caucus that can't focus on anything but themselves, two months out from an election.
If they are imploding this badly in government, god help us when they do the usual post government opposition implosion.
Nash leaked Woods lied plus two retirements and a defection.
Now a Minister in strife.
Face it 6 hard years have caused fall out. As Chris Hipkins is finding, managing in a constant state of crisis is very demanding.
I don't think we would do any better with Luxon's sorry lot, plus Seymore playing holier than thou with his no human rights no treaty, and probably a failing narrow benefit system falling apart as they tell us "there is no money", except what they find for tax cuts contracts for mates etc.
Stuff has noticeable lurched to the right since the soft coup that saw Caitlin Cherry jump before she was pushed. The opinion attacks on Labour from their political staff have become much more aggressive. That sort of thing only happens with an email about an editiorial direction change and warnings about job losses amongst the luke warm if they paper doesn't turn revenue falls around.
They've brought in Tova O'Brian who it seems is the angel of death who appears when a news organisation moves to the right and then inevitably fails.
Yet Tova's first for Stuff this morning seemed to lack pizzazz.
inevitably fails
Another Belfast cowboy along with Van Morrison?? Well, cowgirl presumably…
Boucher moved with her family from Belfast, Northern Ireland, to Christchurch, New Zealand, when she was about three years old… On 25 May 2020, Nine Entertainment agreed to sell Stuff to Boucher for NZ$1… In July 2023, Boucher stepped down as CEO and became executive chair and publisher. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinead_Boucher
So if Stuff has no stock exchange listing I assume she's sole owner still, more of a media baroness than cowgirl. In regard to chronic failure in capitalist enterprise, could be worth noting that the Post combined the mid-19th century Evening Post with the early 20th century Dominion about 20 years back. Evidence of continuity.
three power centers — Netanyahu, the far-right, and the ultra-Orthodox — align on the need to kneecap the courts to enact their agendas. It is the courts that could send Netanyahu to jail and that (on occasion) issues rulings constraining the settlement movement and protecting the rights of Arab citizens and more secular Jews.
The court system, in other words, is the barrier standing between Israel and a more authoritarian future. Without its oversight, “the government could … rig future elections, for example by banning Arab parties from participating — a step previously proposed by coalition members,” the Israeli public intellectual Yuval Noah Harari writes in theFinancial Times.
Here is a well balanced piece on the bogged down, and increasingly untenable Ukraine counter offensive… Did the US know the Ukraine offensive might fail, and if so, when?
This also begs the question of whether Washington will recognize when it must start pushing for an armistice.
"As the Quincy Institute’s Anatol Lieven has observed many times, Ukraine has already achieved a great victory that very few believed possible when the invasion occurred in February 2022. Russia has suffered staggering military losses, its international reputation is in tatters, and its forces have been stopped and pushed back far short of their original objectives."
"An armistice like the one that halted the fighting in Korea seventy years ago has been held up as a model for how the current war could be brought to an end. The Korean War also offers us a cautionary tale of the perils of overreaching, as the advance towards the Chinese border led to Chinese intervention and the prolonging of the war at great cost to all parties. Trying to recapture all territory held by Russian forces runs the risk of both Russian escalation and Ukrainian exhaustion, and Ukraine might end up with less than what it has today."
Of course with ultra war hawks and open Russia hawks like Blinkin and newly Biden appointed acting deputy secretary of state Victoria Nuland in the room, this only sane option seems tragically unrealistic…as these people are obviously insane.
Or maybe we could leave the definition of victory up to the Ukrainians rather than some random American think tank?
I'm pretty sure they're more than capable of defining their own military and foreign policy objectives without our help. And that when they do, it will not involve a half-assed truce that results in large chunks of their county being occupied by the Russians.
We have to remember that to the Ukrainian people, this isn't just a distant conflict that's going to end when the West gets bored of it: it's a struggle for national survival against a bellicose neighbor who has a grim historical record of straight-out mass murder.
And, on the subject of apt historical analogies, sitting around and letting autocracies gobble up their other nations in the 1930s while telling them they weren't worth fighting over turned out really well, right?
I don't understand how the progressive left has grown so soft, so cowardly, and so far up its own arse that it would support a morally bankrupt quasi-dictatorship for fear of soiling its own hands.
None of our values are worth anything if we aren't willing to fight for them.
As for the counteroffensive and it's purported failure: ces't la guerre
The Ukrainians will never take back any more significant land from the Russian now.
The progressive Left is mainly pro a negotiated end to this conflict because they are some of the few out side observers that seem to be willing to acknowledge/comprehend the awful and tragic series of events, that were heavily guided and funded by outside actors (we all know who they are) that finally led to this totally avoidable war.
No matter what you or I think, the fact of the matter is that all Super Powers demand boarder security…the USA, UK, France, China would have all done exactly what Russia is now doing had a hostile military alliance moved on to their boarder…that is just a fact.
So the question you should really be asking is why the USA/UK via NATO intentionally backed Russia into a corner when they all well knew that any Russian leader would have gone into the Ukraine with that provocation?
As the Head of the CIA warned of himself….
"The former US ambassador to Russia, William J. Burns, who is now director of the CIA, warned in a February 2008 embassy cable that Ukraine constituted a security “redline” for Moscow.
The confidential State Department cable was titled “Nyet Means Nyet: Russia’s NATO Enlargement Redlines” (“nyet” is Russian for “no”).
Burns cautioned that the issue of NATO membership for Ukraine “could potentially split the country in two, leading to violence or even, some claim, civil war, which would force Russia to decide whether to intervene.”
"What would have been the down side of Ukraine being a neutral country?"
Not what russia wants. Russia wants to build their empire and subjugating Ukraine is a non-negotiable part of the plan. Nonsense like trying to dictate the foreign policy of your independent neighbour, is merely a means of war and conquest by other means.
"An armistice like the one that halted the fighting in Korea seventy years ago has been held up as a model for how the current war could be brought to an end."
Worked out great for the population that remained trapped in North Korea. Mass starvation, utter poverty and absolute suppression and abuse by the state. Plus compulsory worship of a clown dictator. Sounds lovely for them! But the Ukrainians don't seem so keen to sign up for that.
Voters with a brain that would not be lonely if gifted another, will get exactly what is potentially on offer here. The key strategic political task in 2023 is surely to exclude Natzos and Act from office, so that there is opportunity to finally kick Rogernomics arse in 2026.
Turnout is King–and if the previously alienated young new gens climb on board the TPM & Green train there will be an upset Election result on October 14. The MMP negotiations will be interesting indeed.
"The key strategic political task in 2023 is surely to exclude Natzos and Act from office, so that there is opportunity to finally kick Rogernomics arse in 2026."
Dare to dream…I tautoko what you say but would add a severely diminished Labour too. A once in a lifetime opportunity with a majority MMP government and all we got was incremental tinkering.
Parker and Robertson are no-one's fools. Hipkins' Captain's Call (to not implement meaningful tax reform), to chase a few rich folk's votes to the detriment of thousands deserves to see Labour lumped in with the Nats and friends.
Will that position be cemented into Labours election Manifesto ?
Or do we wait until THIS leader is overthrown to allow for any changes and how does anyone then know what they are voting for as we see some policies are on the basis of a leaders call/whim ? and who knows who will be leading Labour in the future and what leaders calls they will make in opposition/government !!!
To be fair, the Labour party have had two leaders and no overthrows in the last six years, compared to seven Nat leaders – although a couple of those had very short tenures, possibly indicating "trouble at mill"
I hope the devout Luxon adopts Bill English's (2017) election campaign commitment to cut the number of Kiwi children living in poverty by 50,000 over the next three years, and another 50,000 in the three years following – that would be awesome.
Counting placeholders like Nikki Kaye (1 day) and Shane Reiti (5 days) – seems a little disingenuous.
The substantive total: English, Bridges, Muller, Collins, Luxon is pretty much equivalent to the last time Labour were in opposition: Goff, Shearer, Cunliffe, Little, Ardern.
All good B – knew you could be relied on to counter this inveterate lefty's view.
Yes, Kaye's 1-day stint was a stop-gap response to the trouble with Muller, while Reti's 5-day reign smoothed over the Collins/Bridges stouch/meltdown.
Kaye’s gone, but can’t rule out Reti having another go in future. He may only have been in parliament less than 9 years, but that's still more than three times the experience of the current leader of the opposition.
Trying to imagine more into it than that is bound to fail.
Yes, but our imaginations can sometimes be quite furious
I would say that if Labour loses the election, Hipkins will be rolled.
… If he [Hipkins] fails to do this [win the election], then there is no need for compromise, and he's out.
… Will Hipkins remain? Or will he be rolled by the left of the party…
… If so – who's the next leader?
Yes. I'm imagining what would happen to a defeated leader of a Government.
History is on my side…… More often than not, they are gone as leader within a year (in fact, the only exception that immediately comes to mind is Shipley – I think she lasted another 2-3 years)
What is interesting in this case, is whether Hipkins would be rolled, even if successful (success defined as in making a left coalition possible). His stated policies on tax are antithetical to TPM and GP – and there is clear division within his caucus, with a left-wing of the LP closer to the GP, than they are to Hipkins on some issues.
Yes, of course it's speculation – as is every other comment on TS about what might happen in October.
If you think the speculation is wrong – and Hipkins is safe as houses as leader of the LP – then make your case.
See the comment below.
If you don't like making a case for the respectful centrist – perhaps you'd like to make one for the unabashed leftist.
Or is it only fun challenging the centrist?
It always amazes me the way the hard-core left (and the hard-core right, for that matter) – seem to require their political heroes to be on pedestals – and decline to allow them any human reactions or emotions.
BTW – thanks for continuing to link to a very minor and rather incidental description of a natural human reaction – by my estimation, you've increased its circulation by 500%. Was that your intention?
And, still no reaction or challenge to exactly the same comments about the chances of Hipkins being rolled from the leftie…. Not very principled at all…..
And again, thanks for the continued promotion of my original comment.
You're welcome – always happy to highlight obvious fabrications, such as "Clark's fury", in this age of disinformation/misinformation – however “very minor and rather incidental“.
Disinformation
Information that is false and deliberately created to harm a person, social group, organization or country.
Misinformation
Information that is false, but not created with the intention of causing harm.
Malinformation
Information that is based on real facts, but manipulated to inflict harm on a person, organization or country.
It always amazes me the way the hard-core left (and the hard-core right, for that matter) – seem to require their political heroes to be on pedestals – and decline to allow them any human reactions or emotions.
Are you now suggesting I've declined to allow Helen Clark (my "hero"?) "any human reactions or emotions"? That would be a truly bizarre twist.
You, a self-described centrist, fabricated "Clark's fury". You've provided no objective evidence to support your odd (for a centrist) mischaracterisation.
Maybe one or both of us is/are mistaken about "fury" and/or "centrist", but (imho), with 'centrist' comments like yours, who needs NAct. Just the impression I get from some of your comments – I could be wrong.
Given parties make compromises in forming coalitions, a leaders word has more impact than the manifesto.
In this case it would seem to mean under Hipkins, Labour could only be a minority government with G and TPM providing little more than confidence and supply to keep NACT out.
Or Labour roll Hipkins immediately after the election (assuming that a left coalition has a mathematical chance), to allow a closer relationship with GP and TPM. Sounds pretty cynical…..
Meanwhile from Q2 in Parliament today it seems Labour maybe set to announce the removal of GST on fresh food as part of their last gasp attempt to regain the election initiative.
Anyone who’s ever been to the UK, ordered a sandwich and been presented with the eat in or take away question knows how fraught that policy is. Of course everyone says take away and the immediately takes a seat instead. 😂
It'll almost gaurentee I won't vote labour , it's just dumb policy, over complicated overly expensive, is chippy calling all the shots?? Wothout listening to his minister's?
The Ugly Australian brand originator, John Howard demonstrating he was not and is not shit-lite.
First stating the good fortune of Oz (those aboriginals) to have been settled by the British (white pride our voice is better keep their voice quiet – they should be grateful)
Mr Howard is one of the most influential conservative figures to throw his weight behind the No campaign, but his own legacy on Indigenous affairs remains controversial.
His government weakened First Nations land rights, suspended Australia's racial discrimination act, and refused to apologise to the Stolen Generations – tens of thousands of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children who were taken from their families by the government until the mid-1960s.
His pupil Dutton
warned that the vote would have an "Orwellian effect" on Australian society, by giving First Nations people greater rights and privileges.
It is a claim that has been further distorted online – and debunked – with social media users suggesting the vote would divide Australians into "settlers" and "original custodians" resulting in a "two-tier government".
Howard claimed it would prevent a repeat of his 2007 Intervention
Mr Howard defended the policy in his interview on Wednesday as "a good old-fashioned dose of proper governance".
He also claimed that if the Voice succeeds, it could prevent the government from intervening in Indigenous communities when it is deemed necessary.
If you want Terry to see and (possibly) reply. Then you should use the "Reply" feature (bottom right hand corner of the comment box).
S/he is most unlikely to see this stray comment 12 major comments later.
You can always (well, within 10 minutes) delete a stray comment and have another go.
I've found that refreshing the site, or exiting my browser and opening it up again seems to re-set the replies to go where they should.
Is this actually important though? I mean if the credit rating companies are not open to just buying a better rating (as they have shown previously they are open to). But ultimately if your a large financial firm then lending to the govt is the only place you can lend to which also itself issues the repayments. You can spend or invest that instead but then this adds risk (and presumably pays more return) and another large financial firm ends up with the same dilemma. Some central banks have even demonstrated negative interest rates don't inhibit govt borrowing (these result in lending at a nominal loss, and this lending still happens).
There are ways to manage debt without cost or with low cost, but whether one could sell that approach when running a high OCR because of inflation – it's a lot of change and the economic mainstream is conformist, except when something different is required to save the system.
I suspect your under a misapprehension here. If the govt spends without draining the excess reserves created, or creates surplus reserves via QE or similar, then the effective OCR falls to zero (financial institutions don't need to borrow reserves, the OCR is irrelevant). Govt borrowing serves the purpose of allowing the RBNZ to maintain a higher OCR. The follow on impacts on inflation are the sketchy part, with multiple countries implementing such policies without being able to even get inflation up to target bands over the course of a decade.
There are ways to manage debt without cost or with low cost,
but only if this is seen as necessary out of GFC, or the pandemic when
something different is required to save the system.
But generally this is opposed by the economic mainstream at other times, and more so if there is inflation – and the orthodoxy is to manage this with a higher OCR.
Inflations cause is very relevant to the question of if using the OCR to target inflation is a sensible policy. The evidence seems to suggest the high OCR policy has extended the inflation (regulated prices such as energy prices are often tied to base returns on investment) and shifted the burden to prices impacting low incomes (such as rents).
Lest we forget back in 2008 National campaigned on tax cuts, but because of the economic decline of the time (Bollards high OCR to stifle house inflation) and the looming GFC on top of it, this was found to be unaffordable.
So Key decided it could be still be done. if there was an increase in GST to 15% …
The audacity of Don Brash never ceases to amaze. The former National Party and Hobson’s Pledge mouthpiece has now sunk his claws into NZME, the media giant behind the New Zealand Herald and half of our commercial radio stations. Don Brash has snapped up shares in NZME, aligning himself with ...
A listing of 28 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 13, 2025 thru Sat, April 19, 2025. This week's roundup is again published by category and sorted by number of articles included in each. The formatting is a ...
“What I’d say to you is…” our Prime Minister might typically begin a sentence, when he’s about to obfuscate and attempt to derail the question you really, really want him to answer properly (even once would be okay, Christopher). Questions such as “Why is a literal election promise over ...
Ruth IrwinExponential Economic growth is the driver of Ecological degradation. It is driven by CO2 greenhouse gas emissions through fossil fuel extraction and burning for the plethora of polluting industries. Extreme weather disasters and Climate change will continue to get worse because governments subscribe to the current global economic system, ...
A man on telly tries to tell me what is realBut it's alright, I like the way that feelsAnd everybody singsWe are evolving from night to morningAnd I wanna believe in somethingWriter: Adam Duritz.The world is changing rapidly, over the last year or so, it has been out with the ...
MFB Co-Founder Cecilia Robinson runs Tend HealthcareSummary:Kieran McAnulty calls out National on healthcare lies and says Health Minister Simeon Brown is “dishonest and disingenuous”(video below)McAnulty says negotiation with doctors is standard practice, but this level of disrespect is not, especially when we need and want our valued doctors.National’s $20bn ...
Chris Luxon’s tenure as New Zealand’s Prime Minister has been a masterclass in incompetence, marked by coalition chaos, economic lethargy, verbal gaffes, and a moral compass that seems to point wherever political expediency lies. The former Air New Zealand CEO (how could we forget?) was sold as a steady hand, ...
Has anybody else noticed Cameron Slater still obsessing over Jacinda Ardern? The disgraced Whale Oil blogger seems to have made it his life’s mission to shadow the former Prime Minister of New Zealand like some unhinged stalker lurking in the digital bushes.The man’s obsession with Ardern isn't just unhealthy...it’s downright ...
Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Is climate change a net benefit for society? Human-caused climate change has been a net detriment to society as measured by loss of ...
When the National Party hastily announced its “Local Water Done Well” policy, they touted it as the great saviour of New Zealand’s crumbling water infrastructure. But as time goes by it's looking more and more like a planning and fiscal lame duck...and one that’s going to cost ratepayers far more ...
Donald Trump, the orange-hued oligarch, is back at it again, wielding tariffs like a mob boss swinging a lead pipe. His latest economic edict; slapping hefty tariffs on imports from China, Mexico, and Canada, has the stench of a protectionist shakedown, cooked up in the fevered minds of his sycophantic ...
In the week of Australia’s 3 May election, ASPI will release Agenda for Change 2025: preparedness and resilience in an uncertain world, a report promoting public debate and understanding on issues of strategic importance to ...
One pill makes you largerAnd one pill makes you smallAnd the ones that mother gives youDon't do anything at allGo ask AliceWhen she's ten feet tallSongwriter: Grace Wing Slick.Morena, all, and a happy Bicycle Day to you.Today is an unofficial celebration of the dawning of the psychedelic era, commemorating the ...
It’s only been a few months since the Hollywood fires tore through Los Angeles, leaving a trail of devastation, numerous deaths, over 10,000 homes reduced to rubble, and a once glorious film industry on its knees. The Palisades and Eaton fires, fueled by climate-driven dry winds, didn’t just burn houses; ...
Four eighty-year-old books which are still vitally relevant today. Between 1942 and 1945, four refugees from Vienna each published a ground-breaking – seminal – book.* They left their country after Austria was taken over by fascists in 1934 and by Nazi Germany in 1938. Previously they had lived in ‘Red ...
Good Friday, 18th April, 2025: I can at last unveil the Secret Non-Fiction Project. The first complete Latin-to-English translation of Giovanni Pico della Mirandola’s twelve-book Disputationes adversus astrologiam divinatricem (Disputations Against Divinatory Astrology). Amounting to some 174,000 words, total. Some context is probably in order. Giovanni Pico della Mirandola (1463-1494) ...
National MP Hamish Campbell's pathetic attempt to downplay his deep ties to and involvement in the Two by Twos...a secretive religious sect under FBI and NZ Police investigation for child sexual abuse...isn’t just a misstep; it’s a calculated lie that insults the intelligence of every Kiwi voter.Campbell’s claim of being ...
New Zealand First’s Shane Jones has long styled himself as the “Prince of the Provinces,” a champion of regional development and economic growth. But beneath the bluster lies a troubling pattern of behaviour that reeks of cronyism and corruption, undermining the very democracy he claims to serve. Recent revelations and ...
Give me one reason to stay hereAnd I'll turn right back aroundGive me one reason to stay hereAnd I'll turn right back aroundSaid I don't want to leave you lonelyYou got to make me change my mindSongwriters: Tracy Chapman.Morena, and Happy Easter, whether that means to you. Hot cross buns, ...
New Zealand’s housing crisis is a sad indictment on the failures of right wing neoliberalism, and the National Party, under Chris Luxon’s shaky leadership, is trying to simply ignore it. The numbers don’t lie: Census data from 2023 revealed 112,496 Kiwis were severely housing deprived...couch-surfing, car-sleeping, or roughing it on ...
The podcast above of the weekly ‘Hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers on Thursday night features co-hosts & talking about the week’s news with regular and special guests, including: on a global survey of over 3,000 economists and scientists showing a significant divide in views on green growth; and ...
Simeon Brown, the National Party’s poster child for hubris, consistently over-promises and under-delivers. His track record...marked by policy flip-flops and a dismissive attitude toward expert advice, reveals a politician driven by personal ambition rather than evidence. From transport to health, Brown’s focus seems fixed on protecting National's image, not addressing ...
Open access notables Recent intensified riverine CO2 emission across the Northern Hemisphere permafrost region, Mu et al., Nature Communications:Global warming causes permafrost thawing, transferring large amounts of soil carbon into rivers, which inevitably accelerates riverine CO2 release. However, temporally and spatially explicit variations of riverine CO2 emissions remain unclear, limiting the ...
Once a venomous thorn in New Zealand’s blogosphere, Cathy Odgers, aka Cactus Kate, has slunk into the shadows, her once-sharp quills dulled by the fallout of Dirty Politics.The dishonest attack-blogger, alongside her vile accomplices such as Cameron Slater, were key players in the National Party’s sordid smear campaigns, exposed by Nicky ...
Once upon a time, not so long ago, those who talked of Australian sovereign capability, especially in the technology sector, were generally considered an amusing group of eccentrics. After all, technology ecosystems are global and ...
The ACT Party leader’s latest pet project is bleeding taxpayers dry, with $10 million funneled into seven charter schools for just 215 students. That’s a jaw-dropping $46,500 per student, compared to roughly $9,000 per head in state schools.You’d think Seymour would’ve learned from the last charter school fiasco, but apparently, ...
India navigated relations with the United States quite skilfully during the first Trump administration, better than many other US allies did. Doing so a second time will be more difficult, but India’s strategic awareness and ...
The NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi is concerned for low-income workers given new data released by Stats NZ that shows inflation was 2.5% for the year to March 2025, rising from 2.2% in December last year. “The prices of things that people can’t avoid are rising – meaning inflation is rising ...
Last week, the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment recommended that forestry be removed from the Emissions Trading Scheme. Its an unfortunate but necessary move, required to prevent the ETS's total collapse in a decade or so. So naturally, National has told him to fuck off, and that they won't be ...
China’s recent naval circumnavigation of Australia has highlighted a pressing need to defend Australia’s air and sea approaches more effectively. Potent as nuclear submarines are, the first Australian boats under AUKUS are at least seven ...
In yesterday’s post I tried to present the Reserve Bank Funding Agreement for 2025-30, as approved by the Minister of Finance and the Bank’s Board, in the context of the previous agreement, and the variation to that agreement signed up to by Grant Robertson a few weeks before the last ...
Australia’s bid to co-host the 31st international climate negotiations (COP31) with Pacific island countries in late 2026 is directly in our national interest. But success will require consultation with the Pacific. For that reason, no ...
Old and outdated buildings being demolished at Wellington Hospital in 2018. The new infrastructure being funded today will not be sufficient for future population size and some will not be built by 2035. File photo: Lynn GrievesonLong stories short from our political economy on Thursday, April 17:Simeon Brown has unveiled ...
The introduction of AI in workplaces can create significant health and safety risks for workers (such as intensification of work, and extreme surveillance) which can significantly impact workers’ mental and physical wellbeing. It is critical that unions and workers are involved in any decision to introduce AI so that ...
Donald Trump’s return to the White House and aggressive posturing is undermining global diplomacy, and New Zealand must stand firm in rejecting his reckless, fascist-driven policies that are dragging the world toward chaos.As a nation with a proud history of peacekeeping and principled foreign policy, we should limit our role ...
Sunday marks three months since Donald Trump’s inauguration as US president. What a ride: the style rude, language raucous, and the results rogue. Beyond manners, rudeness matters because tone signals intent as well as personality. ...
There are any number of reasons why anyone thinking of heading to the United States for a holiday should think twice. They would be giving their money to a totalitarian state where political dissenters are being rounded up and imprisoned here and here, where universities are having their funds for ...
Taiwan has an inadvertent, rarely acknowledged role in global affairs: it’s a kind of sponge, soaking up much of China’s political, military and diplomatic efforts. Taiwan soaks up Chinese power of persuasion and coercion that ...
The Ukraine war has been called the bloodiest conflict since World War II. As of July 2024, 10,000 women were serving in frontline combat roles. Try telling them—from the safety of an Australian lounge room—they ...
Following Canadian authorities’ discovery of a Chinese information operation targeting their country’s election, Australians, too, should beware such risks. In fact, there are already signs that Beijing is interfering in campaigning for the Australian election ...
This video includes personal musings and 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). From "founder" of Tesla and the OG rocket man with SpaceX, and rebranding twitter as X, Musk has ...
Back in February 2024, a rat infestation attracted a fair few headlines in the South Dunedin Countdown supermarket. Today, the rats struck again. They took out the Otago-Southland region’s internet connection. https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/360656230/internet-outage-hits-otago-and-southland Strictly, it was just a coincidence – rats decided to gnaw through one fibre cable, while some hapless ...
I came in this morning after doing some chores and looked quickly at Twitter before unpacking the groceries. Someone was retweeting a Radio NZ story with the headline “Reserve Bank’s budget to be slashed by 25%”. Wow, I thought, the Minister of Finance has really delivered this time. And then ...
So, having teased it last week, Andrew Little has announced he will run for mayor of Wellington. On RNZ, he's saying its all about services - "fixing the pipes, making public transport cheaper, investing in parks, swimming pools and libraries, and developing more housing". Meanwhile, to the readers of the ...
And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?W.B. Yeats, The Second Coming, 1921ALL OVER THE WORLD, devout Christians will be reaching for their bibles, reading and re-reading Revelation 13:16-17. For the benefit of all you non-Christians out there, these are the verses describing ...
Give me what I want, what I really, really want: And what India really wants from New Zealand isn’t butter or cheese, but a radical relaxation of the rules controlling Indian immigration.WHAT DOES INDIA WANT from New Zealand? Not our dairy products, that’s for sure, it’s got plenty of those. ...
In the week of Australia’s 3 May election, ASPI will release Agenda for Change 2025: preparedness and resilience in an uncertain world, a report promoting public debate and understanding on issues of strategic importance to ...
Yesterday, 5,500 senior doctors across Aotearoa New Zealand voted overwhelmingly to strike for a day.This is the first time in New Zealand ASMS members have taken strike action for 24 hours.They are asking the government tofund them and account for resource shortfalls.Vacancies are critical - 45-50% in some regions.The ...
For years and years and years, David Seymour and his posse of deluded neoliberals have been preaching their “tough on crime” gospel to voters. Harsher sentences! More police! Lock ‘em up! Throw away the key. But when it comes to their own, namely former Act Party president Tim Jago, a ...
Judith Collins is a seasoned master at political hypocrisy. As New Zealand’s Defence Minister, she's recently been banging the war drum, announcing a jaw-dropping $12 billion boost to the defence budget over the next four years, all while the coalition of chaos cries poor over housing, health, and education.Apparently, there’s ...
I’m on the London Overground watching what the phones people are holding are doing to their faces: The man-bun guy who could not be less impressed by what he's seeing but cannot stop reading; the woman who's impatient for a response; the one who’s frowning; the one who’s puzzled; the ...
You don't have no prescriptionYou don't have to take no pillsYou don't have no prescriptionAnd baby don't have to take no pillsIf you come to see meDoctor Brown will cure your ills.Songwriters: Waymon Glasco.Dr Luxon. Image: David and Grok.First, they came for the Bottom FeedersAnd I did not speak outBecause ...
The Health Minister says the striking doctors already “well remunerated,” and are “walking away from” and “hurting” their patients. File photo: Lynn GrievesonLong stories short from our political economy on Wednesday, April 16:Simeon Brown has attacked1 doctors striking for more than a 1.5% pay rise as already “well remunerated,” even ...
The time is ripe for Australia and South Korea to strengthen cooperation in space, through embarking on joint projects and initiatives that offer practical outcomes for both countries. This is the finding of a new ...
Hi,When Trump raised tariffs against China to 145%, he destined many small businesses to annihilation. The Daily podcast captured the mass chaos by zooming in and talking to one person, Beth Benike, a small-business owner who will likely lose her home very soon.She pointed out that no, she wasn’t surprised ...
National’s handling of inflation and the cost-of-living crisis is an utter shambles and a gutless betrayal of every Kiwi scraping by. The Coalition of Chaos Ministers strut around preaching about how effective their policies are, but really all they're doing is perpetuating a cruel and sick joke of undelivered promises, ...
Most people wouldn't have heard of a little worm like Rhys Williams, a so-called businessman and former NZ First member, who has recently been unmasked as the venomous troll behind a relentless online campaign targeting Green Party MP Benjamin Doyle.According to reports, Williams has been slinging mud at Doyle under ...
Illustration credit: Jonathan McHugh (New Statesman)The other day, a subscriber said they were unsubscribing because they needed “some good news”.I empathised. Don’t we all.I skimmed a NZME article about the impacts of tariffs this morning with analysis from Kiwibank’s Jarrod Kerr. Kerr, their Chief Economist, suggested another recession is the ...
Let’s assume, as prudence demands we assume, that the United States will not at any predictable time go back to being its old, reliable self. This means its allies must be prepared indefinitely to lean ...
Over the last three rather tumultuous US trade policy weeks, I’ve read these four books. I started with Irwin (whose book had sat on my pile for years, consulted from time to time but not read) in a week of lots of flights and hanging around airports/hotels, and then one ...
Indonesia could do without an increase in military spending that the Ministry of Defence is proposing. The country has more pressing issues, including public welfare and human rights. Moreover, the transparency and accountability to justify ...
Former Hutt City councillor Chris Milne has slithered back into the spotlight, not as a principled dissenter, but as a vindictive puppeteer of digital venom. The revelations from a recent court case paint a damning portrait of a man whose departure from Hutt City Council in 2022 was merely the ...
That's the conclusion of a report into security risks against Green MP Benjamin Doyle, in the wake of Winston Peters' waging a homophobic hate-campaign against them: GRC’s report said a “hostility network” of politicians, commentators, conspiracy theorists, alternative media outlets and those opposed to the rainbow community had produced ...
That's the conclusion of a report into security risks against Green MP Benjamin Doyle, in the wake of Winston Peters' waging a homophobic hate-campaign against them: GRC’s report said a “hostility network” of politicians, commentators, conspiracy theorists, alternative media outlets and those opposed to the rainbow community had produced ...
National Party MP Hamish Campbell’s ties to the secretive Two By Twos "church" raises serious questions that are not being answered. This shadowy group, currently being investigated by the FBI for numerous cases of child abuse, hides behind a facade of faith while Campbell dodges scrutiny, claiming it’s a “private ...
National Party MP Hamish Campbell’s ties to the secretive Two By Twos "church" raises serious questions that are not being answered. This shadowy group, currently being investigated by the FBI for numerous cases of child abuse, hides behind a facade of faith while Campbell dodges scrutiny, claiming it’s a “private ...
The economy is not doing what it was supposed to when PM Christopher Luxon said in January it was ‘going for growth.’ Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong stories short from our political economy on Tuesday, April 15:New Zealand’s economic recovery is stalling, according to business surveys, retail spending and ...
This is a guest post by Lewis Creed, managing editor of the University of Auckland student publication Craccum, which is currently running a campaign for a safer Symonds Street in the wake of a horrific recent crash.The post has two parts: 1) Craccum’s original call for safety (6 ...
NZCTU President Richard Wagstaff has published an opinion piece which makes the case for a different approach to economic development, as proposed in the CTU’s Aotearoa Reimagined programme. The number of people studying to become teachers has jumped after several years of low enrolment. The coalition has directed Health New ...
The growth of China’s AI industry gives it great influence over emerging technologies. That creates security risks for countries using those technologies. So, Australia must foster its own domestic AI industry to protect its interests. ...
Unfortunately we have another National Party government in power at the moment, and as a consequence, another economic dumpster fire taking hold. Inflation’s hurting Kiwis, and instead of providing relief, National is fiddling while wallets burn.Prime Minister Chris Luxon's response is a tired remix of tax cuts for the rich ...
Girls who are boys who like boys to be girlsWho do boys like they're girls, who do girls like they're boysAlways should be someone you really loveSongwriters: Damon Albarn / Graham Leslie Coxon / Alexander Rowntree David / Alexander James Steven.Last month, I wrote about the Birds and Bees being ...
Australia needs to reevaluate its security priorities and establish a more dynamic regulatory framework for cybersecurity. To advance in this area, it can learn from Britain’s Cyber Security and Resilience Bill, which presents a compelling ...
Deputy PM Winston Peters likes nothing more than to portray himself as the only wise old head while everyone else is losing theirs. Yet this time, his “old master” routine isn’t working. What global trade is experiencing is more than the usual swings and roundabouts of market sentiment. President Donald ...
President Trump’s hopes of ending the war in Ukraine seemed more driven by ego than realistic analysis. Professor Vladimir Brovkin’s latest video above highlights the internal conflicts within the USA, Russia, Europe, and Ukraine, which are currently hindering peace talks and clarity. Brovkin pointed out major contradictions within ...
After stonewalling requests for information on boot camps, the Government has now offered up a blog post right before Easter weekend rather than provide clarity on the pilot. ...
More people could be harmed if Minister for Mental Health Matt Doocey does not guarantee to protect patients and workers as the Police withdraw from supporting mental health call outs. ...
The Green Party recognises the extension of visa allowances for our Pacific whānau as a step in the right direction but continues to call for a Pacific Visa Waiver. ...
The Government yesterday released its annual child poverty statistics, and by its own admission, more tamariki across Aotearoa are now living in material hardship. ...
Today, Te Pāti Māori join the motu in celebration as the Treaty Principles Bill is voted down at its second reading. “From the beginning, this Bill was never welcome in this House,” said Te Pāti Māori Co-Leader, Rawiri Waititi. “Our response to the first reading was one of protest: protesting ...
The Green Party is proud to have voted down the Coalition Government’s Treaty Principles Bill, an archaic piece of legislation that sought to attack the nation’s founding agreement. ...
A Member’s Bill in the name of Green Party MP Julie Anne Genter which aims to stop coal mining, the Crown Minerals (Prohibition of Mining) Amendment Bill, has been pulled from Parliament’s ‘biscuit tin’ today. ...
Labour MP Kieran McAnulty’s Members Bill to make the law simpler and fairer for businesses operating on Easter, Anzac and Christmas Days has passed its first reading after a conscience vote in Parliament. ...
Nicola Willis continues to sit on her hands amid a global economic crisis, leaving the Reserve Bank to act for New Zealanders who are worried about their jobs, mortgages, and KiwiSaver. ...
Today, the Oranga Tamariki (Repeal of Section 7AA) Amendment Bill has passed its third and final reading, but there is one more stage before it becomes law. The Governor-General must give their ‘Royal assent’ for any bill to become legally enforceable. This means that, even if a bill gets voted ...
Abortion care at Whakatāne Hospital has been quietly shelved, with patients told they will likely have to travel more than an hour to Tauranga to get the treatment they need. ...
Thousands of New Zealanders’ submissions are missing from the official parliamentary record because the National-dominated Justice Select Committee has rushed work on the Treaty Principles Bill. ...
Today’s announcement of 10 percent tariffs for New Zealand goods entering the United States is disappointing for exporters and consumers alike, with the long-lasting impact on prices and inflation still unknown. ...
The National Government’s choices have contributed to a slow-down in the building sector, as thousands of people have lost their jobs in construction. ...
Willie Apiata’s decision to hand over his Victoria Cross to the Minister for Veterans is a powerful and selfless act, made on behalf of all those who have served our country. ...
The Privileges Committee has denied fundamental rights to Debbie Ngarewa-Packer, Rawiri Waititi and Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke, breaching their own standing orders, breaching principles of natural justice, and highlighting systemic prejudice and discrimination within our parliamentary processes. The three MPs were summoned to the privileges committee following their performance of a haka ...
This Easter Sunday harassment of the victim’s family is part of a deliberate tactic to silence the victims, who were wrongfully duped of their money, efforts and hopes for a better future. ...
Māori own huge areas of land in Aotearoa but as climate change accelerates and carbon markets take hold, many are being backed into a corner.Māori connections to the whenua and ngahere run deep, rooted in whakapapa and sustained through generations. Today, that whenua is at a crossroads – squeezed ...
Comment: Two decades ago, I drove from Germany to Southern Belgium to visit the Commonwealth Memorial at Tyne Cot. The remains of my great grandmother’s brother, Private Robert Macalister, lay there. I didn’t know what to expect.Even in early summer, nine decades later, Passchendaele was blanketed in a thick, low ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra As it seeks to gain some momentum for its campaign, the Coalition on Monday will focus on law and order, announcing $355 million for a National Drug Enforcement and Organised Crime Strike Team to fight ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne With less than two weeks to go now until the federal election, the polls continue to favour the government being returned. ...
Report by Dr David Robie – Café Pacific. – COMMENTARY: By Caitlin Johnstone Israel assassinated a photojournalist in Gaza in an airstrike targeting her family’s home on Wednesday, the day after it was announced that a documentary she appears in would premier in Cannes next month. Her name was ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Whittaker, Senior Lecturer in Physics, Nottingham Trent University Darryl Fonseka/Shutterstocl What do you think of when it comes to extra terrestrial life? Most popular sci-fi books and TV shows suggest humanoid beings could live on other planets. But when astronomers ...
By Colin Peacock, RNZ Mediawatchpresenter In 1979, Sam Neill appeared in an Australian comedy movie about hacks on a Sydney newspaper. The Journalist was billed as “a saucy, sexy, funny look at a man with a nose for scandal and a weakness for women”. That would probably not fly ...
The governments blueprint of how it will invest $12 billion over the next four years into the New Zealand Defence Force mentions climate change twice. ...
Protesters are occupying the site of a proposed fast-tracked coal mine on the Denniston Plateau, near Westport. The 70-strong group, organised by climate activism group 350Aotearoa, says this is just the first of a series of protest actions they are prepared to take against the mining company, Bathurst Resources Ltd., if ...
In an art world context, photography has evolved significantly over the years pushing boundaries in both technique and concept. No longer the poor cousin of painting, but still much more affordable thanks to photographs being sold in numbered editions, an art photograph doesn’t merely capture a moment—artists use the medium ...
Last year, 20,000 observations of Christchurch species were made during the annual City Nature Challenge, a way for anyone to get involved in biodiversity. It’s back again this month. Even in suburbia, even on grey autumn weekends, there is biodiversity. You just need the time to look for it: to ...
Asia Pacific Report Peaceful protesters in Aotearoa New Zealand’s largest city Auckland held an Easter prayer vigil honouring Palestinian political prisoners and the sacrifice of thousands of innocent lives as relentless Israeli bombing of displaced Gazans in tents killed at least 92 people in two days. Organisers of the rally ...
ANALYSIS:By Ben Bohane This week Cambodia marks the 50th anniversary of the fall of Phnom Penh to the murderous Khmer Rouge, and Vietnam celebrates the fall of Saigon to North Vietnamese forces in April 1975. They are being commemorated very differently; after all, there’s nothing to celebrate in Cambodia. ...
By Gujari Singh in Washington The Trump administration has issued a new executive order opening up vast swathes of protected ocean to commercial exploitation, including areas within the Pacific Islands Heritage Marine National Monument. It allows commercial fishing in areas long considered off-limits due to their ecological significance — despite ...
New Zealand commemoration lead John McLeod said a small team, including members of the NZDF and the NZ Embassy, assisted in the covering up of remains that were exposed. ...
This Bill is a great opportunity to improve our system of government across all levels. Let’s make sure we get it right and give the public a say on a simple and enduring solution. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rob Nicholls, Senior Research Associate in Media and Communications, University of Sydney Tech giant Google has just suffered another legal blow in the United States, losing a landmark antitrust case. This follows on from the company’s loss in a similar case last ...
Paddy GowerAmanda Luxon. I mean what can you say. Easter is a good time to publish my latest reckons at Stuff because without exaggeration or making too much of things, Amanda Luxon walks among us like Jesus but probably with better shoes.Jesus healed. How good is that? It’s really good, ...
How can an afternoon be long when it starts at one o’clock and finishes at half past three? Beauden thought about that as he stood at the back of the classroom and looked through the large window to the upper grounds where his colleague Monty Spiers was taking a phys ed ...
Alex Casey delves into the enduring success of The Artist’s Way, a self-help book beloved by everyone from retirees to famous rappers. On the video call, my mum is gesticulating so wildly while recounting all her recent creative endeavours that she knocks her cup of tea over a work-in-progress jigsaw ...
Feijoa scholar Kate Evans reviews the dish everybody raves about at Metro’s 2024 restaurant of the year, Forest. People have been telling me I need to try the deep-fried feijoa dessert at Forest for about three years now. I’m embarrassed it took me this long, but it takes a lot ...
Chef, author and reality television judge Colin Fassnidge takes us through his life in television. Colin Fassnidge is a huge television fan. He watches every blockbuster TV series the moment it drops and scores every single show on his Instagram account. It’s a habit that recently caught the attention of ...
Why are shops on Parnell Road allowed to open on Easter Sunday? It’s all thanks to an obsolete rule from the 1970s that’s been ‘frozen in time’.Originally published in 2023.Under our current trading laws, most stores are required to stay closed on Good Friday and Easter Sunday (along ...
Yael Shochat, chef-owner of Auckland restaurant Ima Cuisine, shares the recipe for her hot cross buns – regularly voted among the best in the city.Originally published in 2019.HOT CROSS BUNSMakes 12You may use equal weights of pre-ground spices, but you’ll get a much better flavour if ...
Gràinne Moss knows she can’t tackle the final leg of one of the world’s toughest swimming challenges alone.In her quest to complete the Oceans Seven marathon challenge, 38 years after she began, she’s enlisted the help of two remarkable women – one barely out of her teens, and the other ...
By Susana Leiataua, RNZ National presenter There are calls for greater transparency about what the HMNZS Manawanui was doing before it sank in Samoa last October — including whether the New Zealand warship was performing specific security for King Charles and Queen Camilla. The Manawanui grounded on the reef off ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne Labor increased its lead again in a YouGov poll, but Freshwater put the party ahead by just 50.3–49.7. This article also covers ...
ER Report: Here is a summary of significant articles published on EveningReport.nz on April 18, 2025. Labor’s poll surge continues in YouGov, but they’re barely ahead in FreshwaterSource: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and ...
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 Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins (Scholastic, $30) Haymitch’s Hunger Games. 2 Careless People: A ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne Labor increased their lead again in a YouGov poll, but Freshwater put them ahead by just 50.3–49.7. This article also covers the ...
A new poem by Tusiata Avia. How to make a terrorist First make a whistling sound which is the sound of a bomb just before it lands on a house. Then make an exploding sound which is the sound of the bomb which kills a father, decapitates a mother, roasts ...
Gordon Campbell did an excellent analytical report on Spain's election outcome and the new lie of their political terrain: http://werewolf.co.nz/2023/07/gordon-campbell-on-the-lessons-from-spains-election/
He goes on to make the point that the media switched from focus on govt problems to focus on opposition credibility which produced a feeling of revulsion in the public enough to collapse the rightist support base relatively.
Relevance to here is indicative. The media focus will always be on controversy (sensation rules) but quiet days can switch their focus to future prospects, and the public mood often reflects that. Floating voters are always seeking a better option, so their collective shifts are relative to feeling averse to either or both left & right at the time. When left & right compete for centrists, their simulations tend to be transparent to floaters & you get a lack of gravitating towards those poles. Hung parliament in Spain resulting – maybe headed thataway here too…
Ain't happening here mate. They're too shallow, lazy poorly-educated and high on their imaginary celebrity.
Dan Wootten is a New Zealander, something that makes me deeply, deeply ashamed. This scandal could not be much worse.
https://bylinetimes.com/2023/07/24/martin-branning-his-first-victim/
He was paying people using Newscorp cash to covertly film gay and straight men having sex with them so he could use the tapes at a later date to extort and blackmail them.
This is the logical conclusion of the era of the Murdoch press, and shows how corrupt the UK right wing tabloid media is.
A completely heinous crime and the perpetrator of such acts should be in jail.
However where is the due process? Has Wooten been charged?
Do you realize he is crowd funding to sue the bylinetimes?
I checked the BBC website,no mention of this case there. I would have thought they would run with it if the story could be validated.
I am not saying he didn't do this. How would I know? But I would have more faith in the story if the police were involved, making statements.
I hope whoever did it (and it could be Dan) is found guilty and gets a very heavy sentence
Your faith in the BBC is touching but misplaced. Novara have also covered the story, very carefully, professionally and with their usual intellectual honesty.
Actually I don't have a lot of faith in the BBC, I thought they would likely cover it if it was a verified story because they are in opposition to GB News.
I will look up Novara myself.
I am not saying he didn't do thes heinous crime, just due process and all that.
Are the police investigating?
The BBC reported on the allegations last week.
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-66240304
Thanks Joe90 and as the BBC report they are allegations.
Very, very serious ones.
Very, very
seriousdetailed ones.https://bylinetimes.com/2023/07/26/dan-wootton-paid-porn-stars-with-suns-depp-money-for-covert-catfish-sex-videos/
Likewise here – and long before this story came to light.. Ashamed, but not surprised because this country has plenty of little Dan Woottens running around – heading I sense for a gleeful victory in October. He is definitely one of us.
Well this just keeps getting worse for Kiri Allan. You should not leave the scene of an accident. She wasn't that drunk as she was under the old 400 limit according to reports.
Kiri Allan car crash: Police dogs tracked MP, she was located 500 metres from scene – report – NZ Herald
Why do you think that she can't leave the scene of an accident?
As far as I can see the only requirement, provided that no-one has been injured, is that you must notify the owner of the vehicle she damaged, or the police, within 60 hours.
There doesn't seem to be any requirement to stay there.
https://www.nzta.govt.nz/roadcode/general-road-code/about-driver-responsibility/crashes/#:~:text=If%20you're%20involved%20in%20a%20crash%20while%20driving%2C%20and,24%20hours%20after%20the%20crash.
that's my understanding. Only issue I can see is that her car was apparently still in the middle of the road. I think there would be an expectation of making sure that wasn't a hazard to other motorists.
I guess if your in the middle of a break down and have just done something that's going to finish your career, your smashed car blocking a road is probably not even in your thoughts
yep. Her judgement seems majorly impaired, and I don't think she is being give good advice (or she is ignoring it). I read her FB post and it's about her and her feelings. This is understandable but it's appropriate for people close to her, not public announcements from an MP in government.
I have just had a look at the photo of the crash and there certainly is a major blockage. I wasn't thinking about that. The only way to get past would be to get your wheels onto the cycle lane as it blocks both vehicle lanes on the road.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/justice-minister-kiri-allans-arrest-and-resignation-photo-shows-crash-on-evans-bay-parade-wellington/PZLIGJ763VEMRODL44SKEFMQVU/
From the damage to the ute I doubt that her car could be driven though. I'm not sure what she is actually required to do in that case.
"From the damage to the ute I doubt that her car could be driven though. I'm not sure what she is actually required to do in that case."
If you had an accident and your vehicle was blocking the road, normally you would call police and wait with the vehicle for it to be towed.
Unless of course, you were over the limit and should not have been driving, in that case people often abandon their vehicle and make a run for it, and deny they were the driver.
The legal requirement appears to be to notify the owner of any damaged vehicles or property "as soon as possible" [from your link, above]
As soon as possible, with a parked car, would be door-knocking the adjacent houses, to find who it belonged to. The first door would have found them.
She seems to be in breach of the road code.
However, that's only a minor issue – and (all other things being equal) wouldn't have raised a ripple in the papers [e.g. if her car had lost traction in the rain (not speeding), or if she'd been distracted, and hit the parked car (all too common in our local supermarket carpark)]
I get the horrible feeling that the opposition and media will not be satisfied until they have hounded her to death. This is more than a lack of empathy its a complete lack of compassion. We are very lucky the only harm was to a couple of cars.
She has been through treatment for stage three cervical cancer, I surmise there is a medically induced menopause with its severe mood swings, a host of physical complications including cognitive changes. Forty percent of stage three cervical cancers do not survive beyond five years, try living with that threat every day.
Being moralistic does not suffice in these types of situations. While no medical expert, a friend of mine with lung cancer which spread, bought 5 years of life so far by paying for very effective Keytruda (now on Pharmac list for cancers other than just Melanomas).
Doctors warned her of “chemo brain” which sounded rather patronising, but they were right, mood swings, doing weird stuff and the constant existential overlay of “my time might be up”.
Kiritapu has multiple issues to deal with by the sounds of it, so while you do not have to applaud her for not calling a cab–at least don’t put the slipper in.
Or call for her to be crucified and/or otherwise hounded…as some on the Kiri comments section did.
Disgusting.
I am going to call this a little hypocritical.
Many of this site continue to bring up Sam U…….the National Party bloke who
horrendously beat up another student when he was 16 years.
The charges against Kiri given she was Justice Minister are quite severe.
We pay her a salary of over $300000 to do this job. I think it is in the public interest to know what happened.
And as I have already said, I think most of the commentary has been kind and reasonable.
Huh? Hypocritical? What… are you on about? In my comment…I said about some who wanted Kiri to be crucified or similar.
At NO stage have I talked about Mr..Sam Uffindell. Ever.
You can apologise..
A bit absent-minded there.
https://thestandard.org.nz/nationals-culture-problem-2/#comment-1904616
Aha the respectful centrist. Well you think you are quite the trawler aye? I meant in this Kiri should be crucified related commentary.
As Anker was alluding.
Nope. Just correcting your conveniently faulty memory. Didn't require trawling – just a simple search.
If you meant in this thread, then you should say in this thread.
Your beef with Anker, is your beef with Anker – nothing to do with me.
Yep. A trawler. Respectfully Centrist ..of course. Had you sussed quite a time back.
Don't start a flame war.
If you have nothing useful to contribute – and have to resort to name calling – stay silent.
What? No flame war from me. And this from the person who has to go back to a comment nearly a year old.
Sad…
There's certainly no more room for doubt about the motivation of those who want to keep this going (like Jester, above).
If the motivation is the public interest (i.e. "holding to account") then all of the following would be legitimate …
1) Demanding the Minister go … but it's already happened.
2) Demanding the ex-Minister quit Parliament … but it's already happened.
3) Demanding that she be charged, and subject to the same judicial process as the rest of us … but it's already happening.
4, 5, 6 etc …) Demanding that the PM front up. Demanding a debate in Parliament. Demanding that Kiri Allan make a statement, including an apology. And so on.
All of which has already happened. Those are the facts, and all in the public domain.
So what exactly do they want now from Kiri Allan? Pitchforks? To achieve … what?
Morgan Godfery writes an excellent column ruing the relentless spotlight on Kiri. Obsever at 3.2.2 has summed it up so well and I take my hat off for Godfery too.
https://www.thepress.co.nz/a/nz-news/350042701/morgan-godfery-defence-kiri-allan-and-maori-women
If that had been a National minister Labour would be rolling out similar criticisms
Labour's chances of regaining power now are Zero.Unless National have a high profile scandal hidden away.highly unlikely remember when Mike Williams shot over to Melbourne in the hope of digging some dirt and it backfired. Labour is going to be an opposition party for sometime.
"Labour's chances of regaining power now are Zero"
I don't think you should buy into this Nats/Act framing Tricle. A couple of ministers have made mistakes and another has a mental illness problem.
Meanwhile 17 other ministers are beavering away doing a lot of good stuff running the country. The economy has come through Covid and the Ukraine war induced contraction and two massive flood events in a reasonably healthy state. Inflation is now almost under control, the housing market has undertaken a much needed price-fall, state houses are being built, the minimum wage is moving towards a livable wage, many people have been taken out of poverty and more money is being spent on public transport and climate change. The health system has been reformed, RMA reforms are almost ready to go and the Affordable Water reforms are moving forward.
National's game, aided by the MSM, is to portray this a government as being in chaos, when it is anything but.
This is such a transparent beat-up. For example, Stuff has now hired Tova O'Brien to stick it to Labour.
Do you think having a health issue is justification for driving drunk and crashing a car?
If not then don't you consider Kiri to have made a mistake as well as the two ministers you have referred to?
Kiri made mistakes before the careless driving etc situation. The speech at Radio NZ. Alledged reports of bullying by two senior public servants, which is unusal. A suggestion of a badly handled conflict of interest over Mein Fong, Posting about her distress about her relationship on FB or twitter two weeks ago, was another sign of not being able to maintain boundaries.
Jan Tinetti, mislead the house and failed to correct and it went before privledges committee
Michael Wood conflict of interest and misleading PM about his shares being sold when they weren't.
Stuart Nash, say no more.
David Parker resigning from Revenue a clear FU to Chris Hipkins.
Meka Whiteri. Walked.
As a Labour/Green old chum of mine message me "the wheels are falling off".
I would be hard pressed to think of a cabinet that has had so many problems/resignations in such a short space of time…….happy for someone to provide other examples
None of this makes Luxon remotely electable.
I go along with most of what you say BG and I think it is a shame that Hipkins didn't take the opportunity to 'blood' a new minister. Especially with a view that they 'hit the ground running' post Oct 14th.
His excuses, close to an election etc can play into a narrative that the election is already lost, shallow talent pool etc.
That anyone, other than a journalist, sees government determined by the public appearance/reputation of the politicians, rather than the policies and governance is depressing.
It would mean gotcha journalism and character assassination dominate.
Thank you psych nurse. I had daymares. Nightmares with my eyes open, full panic sweats and shakes about "what might go wrong" with driving a car, flying, any trigger, until hormone treatment and then "I was back".
My aunt who had breast cancer could not have the treatment. She lived with bad nerves for years.
So yes, being on your own during one of those is terrifying, Kiri reached out to Willie, but he wasn't physically close enough to help, and it all just "piled up".
The mistakes she has made are being blown out of proportion to suit certain views and narratives. These reporters need to take a breath and show some humanity, but unfortunately some are like Seymore, opportunists.
This is more than just “mental health” issues. I think that she has been “found out” and those around her are no longer accepting some of her behaviour, so she’s got nowhere to go.
Ive seen this happen to bullies before, people start seeing them for what they really are, and stop putting up with their BS. So the bully has nowhere to go so they “collapse” in order to gain control and to not be held accountable for their actions.
There were allegations of previous unacceptable behaviour directed at public service employees, now it appears that she has been bullying junior MP’s.
she has been pulled up on her behaviour and is now having a hissy fit to avoid being held accountable.
Could you please link to this "hissy fit"?
And, in what way is she not "held accountable"? Do you follow the news, at all?
The explanation of the impact of cancer treatment on someone is made and you remain fixated on the Inquisitor mode, about the character of the person … we can only now presume … political agenda and ignore the spam.
But the unverified claims – back them up.
Wow!! So Terry, do you know who is complaining? Or do you jump at every rumour to add them to the actual mistakes?
There you go, regular as a clockwork bowel movement.
Shut up about this if you're serious, and go comment on something useful, like that post today about Labour's reneging…
Or are youactually just trolling?
Yes.
Yes here too Anne. Very concerning.
Te Huia is allowed back into central Auckland.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/waikato/132622712/te-huia-train-service-allowed-back-into-central-auckland
Kiwirail should have invested in the new safety equipment that NZTA asked for, right back at the business case for Te Huia. They were quite happy to shell out for new station and track in Hamilton.
But good patch for now.
Can't see why it was an issue. The chances of Te Huia encountering a working train on the Auckland network are next to zero.
I see Blinken has dropped in for a few hours and no doubt our pm will be fawning all over him personally i'd have sent a junior office clerk an maybe shouted him a cup of instant at the local pie cart similar to how the Chinese treated him recently !
Blinking Blinken, there have been a number of US officials and delegations roaming around the Pacific lately…what could they possibly want…
I recall during the sirKey years when the “Hobbit Act” and Kim Dot Com raid were on the go, non commercial American planes were spotted at Wellington Airport. They always come sniffing around.
Political diagnosis from Luke Malpass:
Note the banal framing: Labour will be desperate to plug caucus leaks. One swallow don't make no summer, as an illiterate Englishman might say. Can anyone actually plug caucus leaks?? Experience tells us no: the tendency to leak under sufficient pressure is as likely in National as in Labour. Leaks happen regardless of witch-hunting endeavours if the motive is sufficient. Btw I wouldn't blame Luke for that banal framing – more likely blame his editor – a level up the media hierarchy.
The most significant dimension revealed by the leak seems to be the victim specifying abuse spanning two years, with implied tolerance by powers that be – yet with no mention of any victim complaint. Smoke without fire again.
Its not overly suprising really, youve got a whole bunch of mp's who have come to the stark realization that theyll be looking for a new job shortly. A fair portion of them will be feeling aggreived for real and imagined reasons. A small portion of them will have a big enough chip on the shoulder to try and do damage on the way out.
When Grant Robertson calls a press conference at Parliament, and calls Chris Hipkins a corrupt, criminal politician, and releases secret recordings of their phone conversations, and then marches off to the Wellington police station with the media in tow, to lay a complaint against his own leader …
then yes, Labour's internal "leaks" will be just as bad as National's.
So, a very long way to go. One dripping tap, and one dam bursting flood.
Yeah but Nationals implosion happened in opposition. They kept their shit together right up until Bill English left in 2018.
Labour has started imploding in government. After just 5 and a half years. It's unreal.
At first it looked like Jacindas retirement had created a post Helen Clark esque leadership vacuum in the party with Hipkins unable to fill it.
Increasingly, it looks the other way around:
Jacindas lack of leadership and discipline over her cabinet created a mountain of problems and a bunch of lazy, fast and loose, entitled ego driven MPs and bad behaviour to go unchecked.
All these problems were allowed to go unchecked under Ardern and as soon as a leader who tried to actually lead his caucus in a traditional style, the shit hit the fan.
The internal problems labour faces ATM is because Ardern was hands off. She was another Lange who let her cabinet run circles around her.
There is no defending Ardern, all of these problems should have been managed by her, years ago.
Now labour has an arrogant, divided caucus that can't focus on anything but themselves, two months out from an election.
If they are imploding this badly in government, god help us when they do the usual post government opposition implosion.
Don't be naff Corey. Cut the hyperbole.
Nash leaked Woods lied plus two retirements and a defection.
Now a Minister in strife.
Face it 6 hard years have caused fall out. As Chris Hipkins is finding, managing in a constant state of crisis is very demanding.
I don't think we would do any better with Luxon's sorry lot, plus Seymore playing holier than thou with his no human rights no treaty, and probably a failing narrow benefit system falling apart as they tell us "there is no money", except what they find for tax cuts contracts for mates etc.
Why are you quoting their rubbish??
plugging non existent 'anonymous leaks' even harder. imo.
A bit like finding a “homeless man in MIQ”.
Stuff has noticeable lurched to the right since the soft coup that saw Caitlin Cherry jump before she was pushed. The opinion attacks on Labour from their political staff have become much more aggressive. That sort of thing only happens with an email about an editiorial direction change and warnings about job losses amongst the luke warm if they paper doesn't turn revenue falls around.
They've brought in Tova O'Brian who it seems is the angel of death who appears when a news organisation moves to the right and then inevitably fails.
Yet Tova's first for Stuff this morning seemed to lack pizzazz.
inevitably fails
Another Belfast cowboy along with Van Morrison?? Well, cowgirl presumably…
So if Stuff has no stock exchange listing I assume she's sole owner still, more of a media baroness than cowgirl. In regard to chronic failure in capitalist enterprise, could be worth noting that the Post combined the mid-19th century Evening Post with the early 20th century Dominion about 20 years back. Evidence of continuity.
.
https://archive.li/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/sinead-oconnor-dead-obituary-200764/
56!, Jeez, that's terrible. She def spoke her mind. Lion & Cobra is an exceptional album. Damn.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9HEn1pqq4g Sister Sinead by Kris Kristofferson
Sad. Too young
After tearing up the Pope's photo on Saturday Night Live in 1992, Joe Pesci threatened to "smack" her.
She responded along the lines of 'if you believe half the stuff said about him, I wouldn't be the first woman he abused'.
One of my all time favourite records is her album of reggae covers, Throw Down Your Arms.
Someone ridden by many demons – as well as making unforgettable music.
One never thought she'd make old bones.
Hopefully her family and those who loved her can find peace with this tragic loss.
The Israeli triad:
This is from a rather good in-depth look at their threat to the Supreme Court : https://www.vox.com/2023/7/24/23805532/israel-judicial-overhaul-reasonableness
Here is a well balanced piece on the bogged down, and increasingly untenable Ukraine counter offensive…
Did the US know the Ukraine offensive might fail, and if so, when?
This also begs the question of whether Washington will recognize when it must start pushing for an armistice.
"As the Quincy Institute’s Anatol Lieven has observed many times, Ukraine has already achieved a great victory that very few believed possible when the invasion occurred in February 2022. Russia has suffered staggering military losses, its international reputation is in tatters, and its forces have been stopped and pushed back far short of their original objectives."
"An armistice like the one that halted the fighting in Korea seventy years ago has been held up as a model for how the current war could be brought to an end. The Korean War also offers us a cautionary tale of the perils of overreaching, as the advance towards the Chinese border led to Chinese intervention and the prolonging of the war at great cost to all parties. Trying to recapture all territory held by Russian forces runs the risk of both Russian escalation and Ukrainian exhaustion, and Ukraine might end up with less than what it has today."
Of course with ultra war hawks and open Russia hawks like Blinkin and newly Biden appointed acting deputy secretary of state Victoria Nuland in the room, this only sane option seems tragically unrealistic…as these people are obviously insane.
Or maybe we could leave the definition of victory up to the Ukrainians rather than some random American think tank?
I'm pretty sure they're more than capable of defining their own military and foreign policy objectives without our help. And that when they do, it will not involve a half-assed truce that results in large chunks of their county being occupied by the Russians.
We have to remember that to the Ukrainian people, this isn't just a distant conflict that's going to end when the West gets bored of it: it's a struggle for national survival against a bellicose neighbor who has a grim historical record of straight-out mass murder.
And, on the subject of apt historical analogies, sitting around and letting autocracies gobble up their other nations in the 1930s while telling them they weren't worth fighting over turned out really well, right?
I don't understand how the progressive left has grown so soft, so cowardly, and so far up its own arse that it would support a morally bankrupt quasi-dictatorship for fear of soiling its own hands.
None of our values are worth anything if we aren't willing to fight for them.
As for the counteroffensive and it's purported failure: ces't la guerre
The Ukrainians will never take back any more significant land from the Russian now.
The progressive Left is mainly pro a negotiated end to this conflict because they are some of the few out side observers that seem to be willing to acknowledge/comprehend the awful and tragic series of events, that were heavily guided and funded by outside actors (we all know who they are) that finally led to this totally avoidable war.
No matter what you or I think, the fact of the matter is that all Super Powers demand boarder security…the USA, UK, France, China would have all done exactly what Russia is now doing had a hostile military alliance moved on to their boarder…that is just a fact.
So the question you should really be asking is why the USA/UK via NATO intentionally backed Russia into a corner when they all well knew that any Russian leader would have gone into the Ukraine with that provocation?
As the Head of the CIA warned of himself….
"The former US ambassador to Russia, William J. Burns, who is now director of the CIA, warned in a February 2008 embassy cable that Ukraine constituted a security “redline” for Moscow.
The confidential State Department cable was titled “Nyet Means Nyet: Russia’s NATO Enlargement Redlines” (“nyet” is Russian for “no”).
Burns cautioned that the issue of NATO membership for Ukraine “could potentially split the country in two, leading to violence or even, some claim, civil war, which would force Russia to decide whether to intervene.”
https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2022/02/27/us-nato-expansion-ukraine-russia-intervene/
What would have been the down side of Ukraine being a neutral country?
"What would have been the down side of Ukraine being a neutral country?"
Not what russia wants. Russia wants to build their empire and subjugating Ukraine is a non-negotiable part of the plan. Nonsense like trying to dictate the foreign policy of your independent neighbour, is merely a means of war and conquest by other means.
"An armistice like the one that halted the fighting in Korea seventy years ago has been held up as a model for how the current war could be brought to an end."
Worked out great for the population that remained trapped in North Korea. Mass starvation, utter poverty and absolute suppression and abuse by the state. Plus compulsory worship of a clown dictator. Sounds lovely for them! But the Ukrainians don't seem so keen to sign up for that.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/300936903/te-pti-mori-lobs-grenade-into-the-tax-debate
wow
Helps us align with Australia where first $18,000 is tax free.
Sensible policy from Maori Party.
Yes, but Chippy says no………, Grant and David say yes, but Chippy says no.
Well there's a good answer to that but it will take October 14th to precipitate.
Well done Te Pāti Māori!
Voters with a brain that would not be lonely if gifted another, will get exactly what is potentially on offer here. The key strategic political task in 2023 is surely to exclude Natzos and Act from office, so that there is opportunity to finally kick Rogernomics arse in 2026.
Turnout is King–and if the previously alienated young new gens climb on board the TPM & Green train there will be an upset Election result on October 14. The MMP negotiations will be interesting indeed.
Last one out please turn the lights off
"The key strategic political task in 2023 is surely to exclude Natzos and Act from office, so that there is opportunity to finally kick Rogernomics arse in 2026."
Dare to dream…I tautoko what you say but would add a severely diminished Labour too. A once in a lifetime opportunity with a majority MMP government and all we got was incremental tinkering.
Parker and Robertson are no-one's fools. Hipkins' Captain's Call (to not implement meaningful tax reform), to chase a few rich folk's votes to the detriment of thousands deserves to see Labour lumped in with the Nats and friends.
Here you go, cannot see details on the mechanisms of the wealth tax
https://www.1news.co.nz/2023/07/27/te-pati-maori-time-for-wealthy-to-pull-their-weight-on-tax/
When asked about the TPM tax announcements today, Chippy confirmed there will be no wealth tax is any Government he leads.
Bold of him to assume he has a choice. Unless he's happy being leader of the opposition, of course.
"Chippy confirmed there will be no wealth tax is any Government he leads."
I can see a win-win solution to that…
I can see Labour getting 20% if Chippy is rolled.
Less about rolling Hipkins but Labour may end up being grateful for 20%, Nats too.
HMS Neo-Liberalism is listing…
I admire your optimism
If the math works post-election…and it means being government or not being government…
..hipkins could be rolled during coalition negotiations…
Will that position be cemented into Labours election Manifesto ?
Or do we wait until THIS leader is overthrown to allow for any changes and how does anyone then know what they are voting for as we see some policies are on the basis of a leaders call/whim ? and who knows who will be leading Labour in the future and what leaders calls they will make in opposition/government !!!
To be fair, the Labour party have had two leaders and no overthrows in the last six years, compared to seven Nat leaders – although a couple of those had very short tenures, possibly indicating "trouble at mill"
I hope the devout Luxon adopts Bill English's (2017) election campaign commitment to cut the number of Kiwi children living in poverty by 50,000 over the next three years, and another 50,000 in the three years following – that would be awesome.
Counting placeholders like Nikki Kaye (1 day) and Shane Reiti (5 days) – seems a little disingenuous.
The substantive total: English, Bridges, Muller, Collins, Luxon is pretty much equivalent to the last time Labour were in opposition: Goff, Shearer, Cunliffe, Little, Ardern.
Or was that "trouble at 't mill" as well?
All good B – knew you could be relied on to counter this inveterate lefty's view.
Yes, Kaye's 1-day stint was a stop-gap response to the trouble with Muller, while Reti's 5-day reign smoothed over the Collins/Bridges stouch/meltdown.
Kaye’s gone, but can’t rule out Reti having another go in future. He may only have been in parliament less than 9 years, but that's still more than three times the experience of the current leader of the opposition.
Well, in that vein, you can't rule out Parker (after all he's only stated that he didn't want the leadership) or Robertson (likewise).
Opposition parties often go through leadership strife. They're trying to re-invent themselves, after a swinging electorate rebuff.
Trying to imagine more into it than that is bound to fail.
Yes, but our imaginations can sometimes be quite furious
Yes. I'm imagining what would happen to a defeated leader of a Government.
History is on my side…… More often than not, they are gone as leader within a year (in fact, the only exception that immediately comes to mind is Shipley – I think she lasted another 2-3 years)
What is interesting in this case, is whether Hipkins would be rolled, even if successful (success defined as in making a left coalition possible). His stated policies on tax are antithetical to TPM and GP – and there is clear division within his caucus, with a left-wing of the LP closer to the GP, than they are to Hipkins on some issues.
Yes, of course it's speculation – as is every other comment on TS about what might happen in October.
If you think the speculation is wrong – and Hipkins is safe as houses as leader of the LP – then make your case.
Imho it's pointless making an alternative case to a respectful centrist's imaginings – as pointless as expecting an explanation for "Clark's fury".
Not that one’s needed
See the comment below.
If you don't like making a case for the respectful centrist – perhaps you'd like to make one for the unabashed leftist.
Or is it only fun challenging the centrist?
Would that be "the centrist" who described Clark's reaction to Shipley being Aotearoa NZ's first woman PM as "Clark's fury"?
Imho, there's value in challenging regressive right comments* on TS. Misinformation and misrepresentation can also be a bit of a worry.
Your definition of 'centrist' may be broader than mine – time will tell.
So, not challenging the same comments from the Leftist.
Makes it clear just how principled you are.
Thanks, I do try to give an honest account of myself, and despise ACT.
Imho, "Clark's fury" makes it clear just how centrist you are.
This exchange began when you took exception to the way I took exception to Herodotus’ comment @13.3 – makes you think?
It always amazes me the way the hard-core left (and the hard-core right, for that matter) – seem to require their political heroes to be on pedestals – and decline to allow them any human reactions or emotions.
BTW – thanks for continuing to link to a very minor and rather incidental description of a natural human reaction – by my estimation, you've increased its circulation by 500%. Was that your intention?
And, still no reaction or challenge to exactly the same comments about the chances of Hipkins being rolled from the leftie…. Not very principled at all…..
And again, thanks for the continued promotion of my original comment.
You're welcome – always happy to highlight obvious fabrications, such as "Clark's fury", in this age of disinformation/misinformation – however “very minor and rather incidental“.
Information that is false and deliberately created to harm a person, social group, organization or country.
Information that is false, but not created with the intention of causing harm.
Information that is based on real facts, but manipulated to inflict harm on a person, organization or country.
https://www.undp.org/eurasia/dis/misinformation
When even the lefties are saying it …..
https://thestandard.org.nz/daily-review-27-07-2023/#comment-1961954
Are you now suggesting I've declined to allow Helen Clark (my "hero"?) "any human reactions or emotions"? That would be a truly bizarre twist.
You, a self-described centrist, fabricated "Clark's fury". You've provided no objective evidence to support your odd (for a centrist) mischaracterisation.
Maybe one or both of us is/are mistaken about "fury" and/or "centrist", but (imho), with 'centrist' comments like yours, who needs NAct. Just the impression I get from some of your comments – I could be wrong.
"..that's still more than three times the experience of the current leader of the opposition"
No,no,no,no…there was this airline. Here, let me tell you about it [deep breath in] …
Given parties make compromises in forming coalitions, a leaders word has more impact than the manifesto.
In this case it would seem to mean under Hipkins, Labour could only be a minority government with G and TPM providing little more than confidence and supply to keep NACT out.
Or Labour roll Hipkins immediately after the election (assuming that a left coalition has a mathematical chance), to allow a closer relationship with GP and TPM. Sounds pretty cynical…..
Meanwhile from Q2 in Parliament today it seems Labour maybe set to announce the removal of GST on fresh food as part of their last gasp attempt to regain the election initiative.
Anyone who’s ever been to the UK, ordered a sandwich and been presented with the eat in or take away question knows how fraught that policy is. Of course everyone says take away and the immediately takes a seat instead. 😂
https://i.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/300937166/nationals-nicola-willis-claims-shes-been-leaked-labours-tax-policy
If it's not just nat shit stirring,
It'll almost gaurentee I won't vote labour , it's just dumb policy, over complicated overly expensive, is chippy calling all the shots?? Wothout listening to his minister's?
Labour has a death wish.
I really hope they dont, it's such a stupid idea.
It adds huge amounts of admin to what is a broad and simple tax.
The wealthy reap by far the biggest benifit in dollar terms.
Also lets be honest the duopoly will turn it into extra profit margin.
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/nov/10/uk-retailers-not-passing-on-tampon-tax-savings-to-women-report-says
Have to wait and see if the policy eventuates – but if it does it's an indication that the leaks from the Labour caucus are not one-off.
Would it make me a bad person if I hoped labour was leaking bullshit stories to willis to make her look like a screech 🦉!!??
Only you can know 😉
“Bullshit stories”
Him indoors had that thought!!
The Ugly Australian brand originator, John Howard demonstrating he was not and is not shit-lite.
First stating the good fortune of Oz (those aboriginals) to have been settled by the British (white pride our voice is better keep their voice quiet – they should be grateful)
His pupil Dutton
Howard claimed it would prevent a repeat of his 2007 Intervention
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-66309637
Howard is, and always has been SHIT.
@ Terry (3.2.5) … and your factual evidence for your comment is …?
If you want Terry to see and (possibly) reply. Then you should use the "Reply" feature (bottom right hand corner of the comment box).
S/he is most unlikely to see this stray comment 12 major comments later.
Yes I know. But something went wrong when I first posted it. Second time posting it ended up here at 15!
You can always (well, within 10 minutes) delete a stray comment and have another go.
I've found that refreshing the site, or exiting my browser and opening it up again seems to re-set the replies to go where they should.
Why not just drop GST on everything from 15% to 10%? It's so much easier and requires far less admin that excluding some items but not others.
GST revenue is about $25B (2022) – 25% of total tax.
A reduction of a third, without a lot of new taxes, would have immediate impact on our credit rating.
The total for food is less than $3B of the GST revenues.
Is this actually important though? I mean if the credit rating companies are not open to just buying a better rating (as they have shown previously they are open to). But ultimately if your a large financial firm then lending to the govt is the only place you can lend to which also itself issues the repayments. You can spend or invest that instead but then this adds risk (and presumably pays more return) and another large financial firm ends up with the same dilemma. Some central banks have even demonstrated negative interest rates don't inhibit govt borrowing (these result in lending at a nominal loss, and this lending still happens).
There are ways to manage debt without cost or with low cost, but whether one could sell that approach when running a high OCR because of inflation – it's a lot of change and the economic mainstream is conformist, except when something different is required to save the system.
I suspect your under a misapprehension here. If the govt spends without draining the excess reserves created, or creates surplus reserves via QE or similar, then the effective OCR falls to zero (financial institutions don't need to borrow reserves, the OCR is irrelevant). Govt borrowing serves the purpose of allowing the RBNZ to maintain a higher OCR. The follow on impacts on inflation are the sketchy part, with multiple countries implementing such policies without being able to even get inflation up to target bands over the course of a decade.
As I said
but only if this is seen as necessary out of GFC, or the pandemic when
But generally this is opposed by the economic mainstream at other times, and more so if there is inflation – and the orthodoxy is to manage this with a higher OCR.
Inflation cause is a separate topic.
Inflations cause is very relevant to the question of if using the OCR to target inflation is a sensible policy. The evidence seems to suggest the high OCR policy has extended the inflation (regulated prices such as energy prices are often tied to base returns on investment) and shifted the burden to prices impacting low incomes (such as rents).
But,but how would you pay for tax …cuts!
That's a Key…issue.
Lest we forget back in 2008 National campaigned on tax cuts, but because of the economic decline of the time (Bollards high OCR to stifle house inflation) and the looming GFC on top of it, this was found to be unaffordable.
So Key decided it could be still be done. if there was an increase in GST to 15% …