“There is good reason to confine these elections to a party caucus. MPs are generally well briefed on policy issues and aware of the national interest. They also work closely with leadership contenders and are best-placed to assess their character and capabilities.”
Saarbo @ 1. This is great really. Granny showing the depth of her true colours. Perfect justification to scorn and lambast the meddlesome, clutching of the pearls hypocrisy she launches against democracy. Dismiss, dismiss, dismiss !
The Herald [of big money interests] refers to good governance:
“This carries risks not just for Labour but for the good government of New Zealand… ~ The Herald [Propaganda]
What good governance is that referring to?
This comment appears to entirely ignore the way that our legislation is being ‘rushed through’ at every turn and how we have recently incurred a massive lost to our democratic rights and principles.
It appears to ignore that there is an increasing yawning gap between the most wealthy and the least in this country.
These two issues alone prove that the governance in our country over, really, a very long time is a complete failure.
This carries risks not just for Labour but for the good government of New Zealand if the consensus between the two major parties on economic fundamentals is undermined by a leader’s public commitments in a campaign for the party’s vote.
The consensus? Does Granny mean selling New Zealand legislation to campaign donors? Or subsidising Rio Tinto?
There is no alternative? Really, Granny? Are you sure?
The NZ Herald is effectively stating that the wishes of the people of New Zealand must be subordinated to some other structure. The Herald is promoting some form of higher power than that of the people.
The Herald has lost the plot.
The Herald can go wander down to the local turgid creek and drown itself all alone.
Even Brian Edwards doesn’t want a democratic process to select the leader. No wonder National has managed to erode so many democratic rights, the media actually don’t much like democracy either.
perhaps its because many will have to leave wellington to cover the contest?
There were also rumours that Mr Cunliffe was offering positions to some MPs in return for their support. Mr Cunliffe has denied that but the rumours indicate the campaign might not be as clean as the party hierarchy is hoping.
So Labour’s own dirty tricks brigade is back in full swing? Where’s Trevor Mallard? Or could it be closer to Cunliffe’s home city this time?
Yesterday you were supporting Jones. To quote you said “Shane Jones should lead labour, he’s the only guy out of the three who has the goods.” and now you are supporting Robertson.
Provided the candidates in the contest behave like adults during the contest, the media will have no option but to write substance…
I switched from TV1 news some years ago but after Gowers “coverage” yesterday I may leave that channel too.
To my mind his job is to advise me what is going on and who is saying what. He sees his job as giving me his opinion not facts. Why do political jounos and politicians think we are all too stupid to make up our own minds.
They also havent caught on that selection via a party wide vote is how the greens have elected their leaders for ages. They talk as if its some new crazy thing
They are also heavily editing comments on John Armstrong’s piece this morning .. I wrote a fairly innocuous comment ( innocuous in terms of needing moderating) and it has failed to appear … in fact there are zero comments showing.
Just ban the printed Herald from our lives. I bought it in the 70s and 80s to see what the bosses were up to today. But have not plunked down loose change for two decades now, yes I admit scanning it online and if the paper version goes totally down the web version would be pay to read or disappear too. Yay.
The dirty filthy Eastern Suburbs toffs that kept the rag going all the 20th century lying, misleading and distorting reality for New Zealanders. Yay. Truth has gone too. Don’t buy the Herald and if there is one at work or a cafe–bin it, do us all a favour.
You can see the fear in granny and the other MSM outlets when the potential for genuine change to rock their isolated and priviledged world appears.
They are part of the problem and don’t want the solution.
Funny thing is if TVNZ hadn’t been so anti charter and waged war against it they could’ve been an outlet not so easy to flog as it stands now under the nats but then Ellis didn’t take over $1m p.a. to strengthen the nations voice but to bark it’s owners tune.
It seems odd how little coverage at stuff and herald brownlee’s loss in the High Court yesterday has taken.
Despite spending lots of time in the media and their original defence talking about the drawback to rewarding people who didn’t take out insurance according to Cameron (Lawyer for owners) it never came up in the case.
Brownlee says he will consider an Appeal.
The point is the High Court has found that Brownlee and CERA did not apply the law as stated.
Isn’t this just more bullying type behaviour by brownlee? 50% or nothing. Take it or leave it we are bigger than you. brownlee spending our money on trying to uphold his belief that Insurance companies will be harmed if the law is upheld.
Maybe he is drafting a bill under urgency to overturn the Court.
Thank God for the Courts. No wonder the nats don’t like the judiciary at the moment.
Note that key’s promise that no one would be worse off because of the govt’s offer for their land is currently a lie. It remains a lie until he can overturn the decision or bring in urgent legislation to make himself right.
LABOUR’S GOT TALENT: just love this little put down line from Key and Whaleoil about our selection process: that kind of smug sneer at something everyday NZers love and want to celebrate- good people getting up and having a go- is just what you’d expect from an elite so out of touch they dont recognise real emotion and public feeling: either pain or, in this case, determination and passion. Yep, damn right Labour’s got talent: and one way or another, you are going to feel it.
Nah too busy worshipping the National “talent” or lack of it in fools like N. Guy, H. Parata, P. Bennett, G. Brownlee, J. Collins, J. Keystroke et al, bottom of the barrel stuff.
Despite being a stone’s throw from the end of a main runway at Fiumicino, Europe’s sixth largest airport, which handles 37 million passengers a year, Mr Basili said there was no cause for fear over flight safety. “This is a limited phenomenon – it will not have created alarm at the airport,” he said.
Ye Gods. I just read Brian Edwards take on things regarding the Labour leadership contest. I wish he had never started a blog. Better to keep your mouth shut and the reputation forged in your youth intact than retiring, writing a blog, and presenting for all to see your sad descent into a bewildered old age. The poor old bugger is stuck in New Zealand circa 1973, he clearly has no idea of the dynamics of New Zealand in 2013.
Why are we so obsessed with people like Edwards. Yes of course he is getting old and wanders a bit but he is also allowed to have an opinion. So many on this forum seem to see him as some sort of enemy and I am sure that is not correct. He has expressed certain opinions and that should be end of it.
Can we not just accept differences and stop using these forums for personal attacks on people
The right/corporate media looks set to go full retard on Labour. It’ll be a rerun of the response that we got from the electricity policy announcement.
It would be best if the Cunliffe/Robertson/Jones camps coordinated their media to frustrate the likes of Paddy Gower et al.
And maybe gag Trev and throw him in a cupboard for a month would help too. (that’s a joke! not advocating violence!) 😀
….When the announcement was made, anticipating a move of this nature, it occurred to me briefly that I should go and download as many ‘Shearer pages’, as many speeches as I could. You never know when such documents might become useful, and I remembered how difficult it was for me to track down some of the things that John Key said when he was deputy leader of National, simply because as soon as he became leader his comms people decided that his record had to be reset, and all previous statements in service of another master deleted.
So: I knew about this, I fully expected this, and yet I was surprised at how quickly it happened, almost as if a measure of glee was being taken in scrubbing off the old leader’s likeness. Were I in the appropriate mood, I might reach for such historical precedents as the chiselling off of the symbols of a hated dictatorship or, more pointedly, the removal from the photographic record of the people who could no longer be seen to have been close to comrade Stalin. After all, with no hyperbole whatsoever, it’s the exact same logic at work: one that negates history, or rather that asserts the prerogative of power to continually write and re-write the past according to the needs of the present…
..they dance around the english language like constipated dogs trying to work it out..
..bridges totally over-masticates his words..and then sprays surrounding environs with the remains..
..and tremain and guy..(who i call heckle and jeckel..(old cartoon..look it up..and wonder at the spooky similarites..)
..both of them are glottal/strangled-word disasters..(tremain in particular..)
..and of course guy when on his own is called ‘clutch cargo’..(once again..old cartoon..look it up..be spooked again..(and be really spooked how guy has that whole clutch thing of just the lips moving when speaking down just so..
..and really..for everyones’ peace of mind..guy should be asked to disrobe..to prove there are no wires sticking out/plugged into him..
..and then of course there is jonathan ‘cigar-boy’ coleman..and his peculiar habit of tossing a handful of marbles into his mouth..before speaking..(so if you listen carefully…you can hear them rolling/bouncing off each other)
..and of course todd (‘pompadour’) mclay..doesn’t toss marbles into his mouth..
..he stuffs his full of plums…
..is it a basic requirement of being a young(er) tory male mp..?
..to talk weird..?
..(the evidence is overwhelming..)
..and i can hear you asking:..’but what about craig ‘the hapless one’ foss..?..you’ve left him out..’
..the thing is with foss..i am still so dazzled by his haplessness..
Is it true that when someone asked him about where he lives he said some malarkey about because his wife wanted to breastfeed?
If true (and I read it on “other” blogs so I’ll concede it may be wrong) he’ll have to watch comments like that because people can see right through things like that, if true of course.
Should have just said hes worked hard to get to where he is and wants to give everyone else the same opportunity for success or something similar
Crikey, when did you become concerned about political leaders lying? Or are you concerned for him that he doesn’t lie well enough to beat the current King (Key)?
All politicians lie, John Key lies, Helen Clark lied, whoever becomes the leader of Labour will lie, everyone lies especially politicians
What interests me is that there are some lies the voting public accept and some they don’t. It appears to me that the smaller the lie the less likely the voting public is to accept it.
In regards to the labour leadership I’m more the interested neutral party in that while I have opinions on who should lead I’m trying to see from the viewpoint of whats best for labour
Putting aside the obvious hilarity of your last paragraph (!!!), you’re onto something with this:
“the smaller the lie the less likely the voting public is to accept it.”
although I’d look at it through a slightly different lens. I don’t think it’s the size of the lie per se, but rather the point of it.
I’ve been thinking about corruption lately. I think as a society we’ve become accustomed to the idea that we’re all competing individuals seeking advantage over one another. Only a short while ago this would have been considered highly anti-social thinking, but now it’s the norm. A few decades of user-pays free-marketing has made selfishness acceptable, and greed admirable.
When someone is caught lying to further their own interests, instead of judging the behaviour as anti-social and corrupt we understand that that’s just what you do these days. You look after number one. And while we might not always openly praise someone for lying and scheming in their own interest, we grudgingly accept it. We say “who can blame them?” We say “they’d be silly not to”.
And in this selfish, individualistic, dog-eat-dog paradigm, it’s true. We’ve all become corrupt to one degree or another, we’ve done so simply by following the rules of the game. And the rules are look out for number one and never give a sucker an even break. And because we’ve all become corrupted to an extent, we accept the same corruption in others. We expect people to be trying to do us over at every turn.
So when John Key looks down the barrel of the camera and flat out lies about, for example, how many shares he owns, and then gets caught, and then immediately changes his story, we don’t even blink. Because he’s just doing exactly what we expect everyone to be doing, being dishonest in service of his own interests.
And I think that’s why we let these “big” lies go. Because it’s the norm. It’s what you’re meant to do according to the rules of the game. As long as it’s obvious that you’re lying to protect or advance yourself, it’s totally understandable.
Just don’t ever get caught lying for no good selfish greedy dog-eat-dog reason, or we’ll start wondering what flaw in your character you’re trying to cover up.
Yes I’d agree theres some truth to that but I’d go further and suggest it also depends on what has been said before
For instance we know National are for big business and we know Labour are for the battlers so when JK lies (maybe) about his shares thats no big deal but when Shearer “forgot” about his 50 000 plus that was a big deal
However if JK (whos portrayed himself as a good family man) had been cheating on his missus and tried to cover it up I think the public wouldn’t forgive him
For instance we know National are for big business and we know Labour are for the battlers
This by W Smith is a telling point, really the nub of our problem in NZ. Between NACT for Big Business and the battlers supposedly Labour’s congregation, there is a huge yawning gap where most NZs are. That’s those who are able and willing to build and create and contribute and support a vital economically sound NZ. Most of Big Business is looking over their heads to international interests, the battlers and strugglers are at their feet pecking over the trickle down droppings, and wondering what the hell is going on up there, because it sure is hell down here.
Most NZ is by Winston’s summary, unpolitically unrepresented. Who they gonna call – Ghostbusters? Now those fellas really stuck it to the green slime.
He’ll never fall on his sword. He’ll have to be hounded out of the village with pitchforks, torches and rough music.
We’ve accepted that he lies about money and business and that it’s normal. It’s now considered part of his charm. It’s part of his brand that he’s wiley and cunning and no-one gets one over him.
He can lie his lying arse off and we’re all ok with it because in the world we live in that’s no longer considered an undesirable trait.
Which is why Key is so happy to call Cunliffe a liar any chance he gets. If he and Winston Smith keep on spreading the meme that all politicians lie, then he can merrily carry on being a liar himself. If he gets caught out who’s gonna care except Blip and a few other lefties on the Standard?
“Steal a little and they throw you in jail. Steal a lot and they make you king.” Bob Dylan
“Is it true that when someone asked him about where he lives he said some malarkey about because his wife wanted to breastfeed?”
Only what I’ve read on ts, but he apparently said that his wife was breastfeeding and needed to live closer to her work. That is a completely valid reason for choosing where to live.
Sure it is *insert any vague reference to buying a bridge*
Look theres nothing wrong with being successful and having the money to choose where you live but don’t drag your family into it because now his familys fair game
ie Are your kids still brest feeding, when you will be moving back closer to the people you purport to represent and if not why not etc etc
I’m not commenting on Cunliffe’s choices. I’m stating that moving so you are closer to work while breastfeeding is a completely valid reason. Some people here seem to be saying it’s not.
Why he feels he doesn’t live near those he represents, the inference being that hes using the people to further his own ends but doesn’t want to live near the hoi-polloi
John Key reckons its fine to live and holiday far away from the electorate he represents; Cunliffe on the other hand is actually IN the electorate he represents all the time.
“Why he feels he doesn’t live near those he represents, the inference being that hes using the people to further his own ends but doesn’t want to live near the hoi-polloi”
Do you have any evidence that Cunliffe lives where he lives in order to avoid living next to some people in his electorate (as opposed to the ones he does live near of course)? Or any evidence that the reason Cunliffe gave (his wife’s breastfeeding needs) was a lie?
“A heavy shower sweeps across Auckland as the Herald heads towards the College Rifles Sports Club. It’s late June and the rain has been coming and going all day, and all month. It’s the sort of weather that’s killed off many a sports event, but there’s no need to worry on this occasion. In 2009 the club installed synthetic turf on its two rugby fields, rendering cancellations a thing of the past.
Located a couple of hundred metres off Remuera Rd in a flood-prone valley, the playing surfaces at the historical club have traditionally been terrible.
‘It was a s***hole,” says club manager Derek Rope.
Synthetic turf has come a long way. Up close it looks and almost feels like real grass, with little black rubber balls and flakes mimicking dirt. The lush carpet cost the club $2 million, $500,000 of which came from gaming trusts.
Synthetic turf also covers the scrum practice area and the netball and tennis courts. There’s a brand new pavilion, state-of-the-art gym and 32-bed accommodation block for touring sports teams.
The club’s bad days are well and truly behind it, thanks in part to its success in accessing gaming trust money. Seven trusts have kicked in over $1 million to help fund the redevelopment projects, and there is more to come. The club has already secured $300,000 of trust money to put towards the final phase of its development, a swimming pool complex, and is hoping to raise that figure by another $200,000.
Clubs like College Rifles in Remuera have developed programmes and facilities using gambling money. Photo / Richard RobinsonClubs like College Rifles in Remuera have developed programmes and facilities using gambling money. Photo / Richard Robinson
Given that just 23 of the country’s 17,534 pokies are situated in Remuera, it’s hardly a surprise that a club that began life in 1897 with a membership of military personnel drawn from Auckland’s schools has been held up as the poster child for the dubious wealth redistribution that accompanies the gaming trust model.
“Why should poor people in Mangere be supplying first-class facilities in Remuera?” Maori Party MP Te Ururoa Flavell asked when he launched his ill-fated Gambling Harm Reduction Bill.
It’s a fair question, and one Mr Rope doesn’t duck. “People say it’s a Remuera rich club – it’s not,” he says.
For something completely different Charter schools in the UK a complete failure after years: of trialing charter schools which have the advantage of new buildings and public and private funding have shown an initial burst of achievement all be it less than public schools then a continual decline the independent uk reported today.
Looking forward to seeing a front bench reshuffle under DC. Parker should keep finance, but I suspect the others will be up. Ardern for all her promise has allowed Bennet to sail on, Hipkiss a failure V Parata, and who does housing, and health??
Key looking desperate even as he claims Cunliffe will be desperate to be PM at all costs and take Norman on as deputy of finance minister. Typical rightie that Key – manages to project all his shortcomings on to the opposition.
PS: The comments below the article mostly say Key is the desperate liar.
I would prefer to see Gerry Brownlee as the next Natz leader in opposition. Even though they’re both vindictive snakes, big Ger is a bit better at hiding it. Whoever it is, Keys days are clearly numbered.
might want to send a memo to Collins about that. It’s all very well being personally popular, but that doesn’t help her keep her cabinet post if Nats only get 45% in 2014.
“Wellington Central MP Grant Robertson said he paid for taxis and accommodation himself, but his airfare was covered by taxpayers.
“As a parliamentarian I am able to use parliamentary resources to fly wherever I like in the country, that’s part of the arrangement we have.
“I think you should refer those inquiries about what we are allowed to do to Parliamentary Services because they set the rules.”
He said MPs’ salaries were reduced years ago on the basis that the ability to fly around the country was provided.
“My judgement is that I will not be using any other resources apart from that.” ”
Cool, more sense of entitlement.
” Deputy leaders
Each member of Parliament who is the deputy leader of a party whose members in the House of Representatives number not less than 25—
Base salary 179,300
plus
For each additional member of the party in the House of Representatives over 25 up to a maximum of 35 610
plus
For each additional member of the party in the House of Representatives over 35 up to a maximum of 45 340 ”
Love and hate – both emotional and highly excitable states. I guess that volatility could result in reversal. What would make the complacent hate Key? It would have to be something that would hurt them personally.
“Deputy leaders
Each member of Parliament who is the deputy leader of a party whose members in the House of Representatives number not less than 25—
Base salary 182,800
plus
For each additional member of the party in the House of Representatives over 25 up to a maximum of 35 630
plus
For each additional member of the party in the House of Representatives over 35 up to a maximum of 45 360 ”
That any of them cant pay for anything associated with their latest job application is beyond me.
CV, ‘Native Affairs’ my friend, i found that quite an enlightening interview of the 3, Native Affairs for some strange reason seems to always elicit a better view of the people it interviews than the mainstream,
Shane Jones didn’t say anything there which would raise my opinion of Him, the reverse in fact, Jone’s faux ‘one of the boys in the smoko room’ line is simply cringe worthy,
David Cunliffe scored best with His ‘governments have the right to change gambling legislation and SkyCity better be prepared’ line and while i am not a gushing groupy Cunliffe leads in my opinion of who should win this contest,
Jones seems haughty for all his common man claims: often with his head tilted back and looking down his nose. Robertson looks like he’s doing a job interview – too wordy and sounds more like a backroom worker than someone to front for the party. Cunliffe is composed, clear, and has some short sharp answers – looks like a leader.
“..bloody hell..!…ruth dyson is actually doing better than any of the three contenders..up against key..
..(dyson is expressing potent disgust at keys’ laughing/sneering at/saying that screwing vacant land owners out of 50% of their land values was ‘fun’..)
..and the strength of dysons’ performance is because of the fire in her belly..(and cunnliffe/robertson could do worse than take note of that..and spark up..!..)..”
+1 Dyson really kicked arse in the house today. The news at six even covered the story reasonably well so that the National voters with a few brain cells to rub together will be thinking twice about continuing their support.
It’s bad enough that the government is trying to force people in Christchurch to sell their land at half its value, but to say that it’s their fault because they didn’t have land insurance is despicable! There is no land insurance available, which is something a Prime Minister with even half a brain would comprehend.
What is the point in the current government appealing the courts ruling when they will surely lose? What a god damn waste of taxpayers money.
that these guys claim to champion the poor but think if parliamentary services says they can charge something to us they will… at least so far robertson will.
Bollocks. We live in a democracy and parliamentary representation is one of the guarantees of that. All parties get funded the same way from parliamentary services and the deal is that MP’s get free flights on our taxpayer owned airline. It’s been that way, or similar, for decades. Railways before that. A few weeks ago, the taxpayer paid for every Nat MP to fly to Nelson to have their conference. Did you complain then? Remember, the Tories also claim to champion the poor. Ask Appaller Bennett, she’s all about giving the poor a helping hand round the head and a loving boot up the arse.
The 3 candidates are flying around the country in an exercise in democracy. This is not only historic, it’s an entirely appropriate use of the Parliamentary budget. Don’t buy into the right’s meme ‘o’ the day, Tracey.
That’s a hopeless, contextless quote. This one is better:
Mr Cunliffe responded to Mr Key’s comments this morning, saying: “Mr Key probably ought not make statements about other people telling lies because his record might not be entirely clean.”
Mr Cunliffe again ruled out appointing Dr Norman as finance minister under a Labour government.
“But I have said that he is an able and senior politician with whom we would have a good relationship and there could be a place for him within our economic team. It would not be as minister of finance.”
War! more war!
US forces to strike Syria (pending).
If Key sends troops — he is nothing more than his ulta ego
Obama.
The Smiling Assassin and the Mass murderer.
What a combination.
Robert Reich is very good, but in my opinion he doesn’t go as deep as Chris Hedges and Richard Wolff in explaining how this has all come about.
Essentially, the civil movements which were crucial in pressuring and forcing the politicians to create the New Deal were, over decades, deliberately dismantled, co-opted, undermined and destroyed.
It pays to remember how much pressure was required to make Roosevelt and the corporate/banking elite agree to the New Deal. Hundreds of workers, unemployed, activitists were killed in the process, during the Great Depression.
Today the Democrats are just as much friends of big oil, big pharma and big banking, as the Republicans. The civil movements which used to pressure for political economic change for the working class and underclass are long dead.
And so, the corporate and banking elite have the whole playing field their way now.
“That voter, in my judgment,” he claims, “will be more likely to vote his economic interests than he will anything else. And that is the voter that I think through a fairly slow but very steady process, will go Republican.” Because race no longer matters: “In my judgment Karl Marx [is right]… the real issues ultimately will be the economic issues.” He continues, in words that uncannily echo the “47 percent tape” (nothing new under the wingnut sun), that “statistically, as the number of non-producers in the system moves toward fifty percent,” the conservative coalition cannot but expand. Voila: a new Republican majority. Racism won’t have anything to do with it.
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So now we know, beyond all doubt. The National party has no interest in joining the “team of five million” in our fight against the pandemic but its priority is to take every opportunity it can to damage the government. The cynicism is breathtaking. It was prepared to leak the ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Jeff Masters The massive dust storm that formed over the Sahara Desert in mid-June invaded the southeastern U.S. June 25-28, bringing dangerous levels of air pollution, low visibility, and colorful sunsets. The air pollution event over parts of Texas and the Gulf ...
In 1987, as a British Labour MP, I was elected to the Shadow Cabinet by my colleagues and was asked by the party leader to direct Labour’s campaign in the general election of that year. The election was to take place at the height of Mrs Thatcher’s dominance and we ...
National MP Nicola WillisHousing, which I would argue is a fundamental human right, has long been a problem in New Zealand. Not only do we have some of the most overpriced houses in the entire world, much of the housing stock is substandard and therefore affects not just people’s health ...
If the government has not lined up behind a "Yes" vote in this year's cannabis referendum the way some reformers would have liked, one entirely laudable thing it did do was commission some science around the public's choice.That science landed today, in the form of the report from an expert ...
Associate Professor Sara WaltonAt the heart of the discussion on opening up our borders is the dichotomy of health and the economy – both of which are actually intertwined, like many things with our economy, as this epidemic has shown.If we think about our country as a system, ...
This is a re-post from Carbon Brief by Josh Gabbatiss This year will see the largest ever drop globally in both investment and consumer spending on energy as the coronavirus pandemic hits every major sector, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). The crisis is accelerating the shutdown of older fossil-fuelled ...
A short opinion piece – Friday 26th June 2020 Whilst our Government has treated many financial victims of the current Covid-19 virus with appropriate generosity, the same cannot be said for those of the two earlier “epidemics” in NZ. The “Covid-84” virus (also called “Rogernomics”) spread systemic greed, with the ...
Everyone deserves a a decent life. We know this is possible with a fairer approach to income support and tax Read the Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand’s Poverty Action Plan here ...
After a long break, the government is back inserting secrecy clauses in legislation. This time its the Overseas Investment Amendment Bill (No 3), which in its clause allowing Ministers to exempt purchasers of farm land from the usual rules also allows them to exempt an exemption from the publication requirement: ...
Over the past two years the government has repeatedly delayed a scheme to put cameras on boats to monitor Mew Zealand's pervasively criminal fishing industry. But it turns out that the industry actually wants cameras: Three of the country's biggest seafood companies have broken ranks with the rest of the ...
Louise Delany (public health lawyer)Health and emergency laws have played a critical role in this country’s successful elimination of community transmission of the COVID-19 pandemic. This blog details key aspects of the legislation and comments on issues around testing, payments by incoming travellers for quarantine costs, and mask use. ...
I like Andrew Curry’s succinct and insightful futures blog The Next Wave. His most recent post is about social change. In particular, the decadal-long periods usually required for changes in values. He highlights a 2016 paper by Inglehart and Norris, who examined whether economic insecurity or a “cultural backlash” ...
Story of the Week... Toon of the Week... Coming Soon on SkS... Poster of the Week... SkS Week in Review... Story of the Week... Stop making sense: why it's time to get emotional about climate changeThe science has been settled to the highest degree, so now ...
MONDAY JULY 6Washington (History, Sky 073, 7.30pm). The brilliant Doris Kearns Goodwin is the executive producer of this six-part series about America's first president. It combines interviews with live action and is narrated by Jeff Daniels. It's engaging, said Salon.TUESDAY JULY 7The ABC Murders (Prime, 8.30pm). Sarah Phelps has done incredible things with ...
I think we can all agree that the mainstream media in New Zealand has a very different set of rules for the right wing compared to the left. While Labour and Green Party politicians don’t seem to be able to fart without it becoming a sackable offence, National and Act ...
A chronological listing of news articles linked to on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, June 28 through Sat, July 4, 2020Editor's Choice'2040': A funny, entertaining, upbeat climate documentaryA timely Australian documentary takes a 'solutions' approach, with the filmmaker inspired by visions of ...
Racist National MP Hamish WalkerEven before Todd Muller's coup ousted Simon Bridges by a single vote, it was patently obvious that the National Party promotes and stands for white privilege. In fact they’ve always worked to ensure the discriminatory status quo in New Zealand doesn’t change.So it’s no surprise that ...
Dave HeatleyZero community transmission. Just a handful of active cases, all in quarantine. New Zealand is in an attractive situation, at least compared to much of the world. The situation could be robust and enduring – or it might be fragile, just one border incursion away from a “second ...
Is the consequence of the Simpson Report proposals for restructuring the health system poorer accountability to people? When in doubt, centralise‘ has been a persistent theme in New Zealand public policy throughout our history. The current government is no exception. Here are some examples. - The regional polytechs have been ...
I wrote earlier in the week about the Scientology front organisations Drug Free World and Drug Free Ambassadors and their quite prominent role in anti-cannabis reform "coalition" assembled by Family First and a newloca branch of the American prohibitionist organisation SAM.It turns out Family First aren't the only ones helping ...
Nik GreenMuch of the public debate about the response to the COVID-19 pandemic has focused on the extent to which government regulations have restricted personal and business activity.Oxford University Blavatnik School of Government Here in New Zealand, the question of when to change Alert Levels dominated the ...
James Higham, University of OtagoUnprecedented border closures and the domestic lockdown have paralysed New Zealand’s $40.9 billion a year tourism industry. In the process, the vulnerability of the sector to external shocks and the tenuous nature of tourism employment have been exposed. While New Zealand’s handling of the pandemic ...
Raising The Bar: Would that the Prime Minister and her colleagues would listen as intently to what the people – as opposed to the power elites – are saying as the Greens. Were they so disposed, the popular clamour for a transformational post-Covid reset would be loud in their ears. ...
Climate Explained is a collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre to answer your questions about climate change.If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, please send it to climate.change@stuff.co.nzDo you think the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown will slow or ...
A bit like a letter home. I have now been full-time at the University of Melbourne since 2019. Before that, I was 20 years at the University of Otago, Wellington. Indeed, I set up this very Public Health Expert Blog with Nick Wilson ten years ago. Now I am your ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections House Democrats have released a comprehensive report showing how – if they control the White House and both the Senate and the House of Representatives – they might move forward on climate change. Their “Climate Crisis Action Plan,” released June 30 by the ...
A ballot for three Member's Bills was held today, and the following bills were drawn: Electoral (Integrity Repeal) Amendment Bill (David Carter) Harmful Digital Communications (Unauthorised Posting of Intimate Visual Recording) Amendment Bill (Louisa wall) Unit Titles (Strengthening Body Corporate Governance and Other Matters) Amendment Bill (Judith ...
Not Ready: Todd Muller’s lack-lustre and self-contradictory performances offer conclusive proof that a political leader cannot be managed into competence. National’s new boss has Janet Wilson handling his media and Matthew Hooton writing his speeches. Both are highly professional political and public relations specialists, and Muller is lucky to have ...
Unfortunately, due to a medical emergency, I have landed in hospital so am not able to do a current update on the NZ blog statistics. Let’s hope I can get back to this in good time. ...
It started as a family story, about a step-father who went out one night to break into an embassy in Wadestown, Wellington. John Daniell wanted to understand what his family had been part of when his mother and then step-father work for New Zealand’s Security Intelligence. He wanted to know ...
The Greens have shaken up the election campaign with the announcement of their radical poverty and action plan to reform welfare provision and introduce a new wealth tax for millionaires. It’s a big-thinking, controversial policy and has generated a lot of disagreement over how radical it is, whether it could ...
My house is currently supplied electricity by Meridian. As soon as I can change I will because Meridian spilled water to hike electricity prices. They got consumers to spend an extra $80 million on power unnecessarily. Clever them. The Electricity Authority has called their behaviour an “undesirable trading situation”, or ...
When Jacinda Ardern unexpectedly became the Labour Party leader shortly before the 2017 general election, she promised to lead a government of transformation. After nearly three years occupying the Treasury benches, health professionals working in public hospitals have been keenly waiting for transformational progress, including in the capacity and quality ...
Last night, One News ran a follow-up story to its Colmar Brunton poll results on the cannabis referendum, headed here as Government accuses big American anti-cannabis group of interfering in NZ politics.In truth it wasn't just the government: Justice minister Andrew Little, National's Shane Reti and the Greens' Chloe Swarbrick ...
When the government refused to put cameras on fishing boats to ensure fishers obeyed the law, Fisheries Minister Stuart Nash claimed that coalition partner NZ First (which has received large donations from the fishing industry) was not responsible for the decision. He has repeated that claim repeatedly since then. But ...
Heroic Evasions: Labour needs to be unequivocal in its communications with the electorate. Either it has a plan to prevent their fellow New Zealanders from falling off the economic cliff, or it doesn’t. Either it has a fiscal policy equal to the task of funding that plan, or it hasn’t. ...
Prof John Potter*Elimination has been an effective strategy for New Zealand in the management of the COVID-19 pandemic virus (SARS-CoV-2). Most other countries have not pursued this goal and are ignoring the opportunity even now. SARS-CoV-2 is not manageable by the influenza playbook; its longer incubation period makes tracing ...
Mark Patterson MP, Spokesperson for Primary Industry New Zealand First is supporting calls by hunters and the New Zealand Tahr Foundation (NZTF) to halt a large scale cull of Himalayan Tahr by the Department of Conservation in National Parks. The calls are supported by a 40,000 strong petition and the ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, Leader of New Zealand First New Zealand First leader Winston Peters today scoffed at suggestions that a team of six political operatives have been dispatched to New Zealand to assist his campaign. ‘As President Ronald Reagan once said, ‘there they go again.’ ‘The clickbait journos can’t ...
New Zealand First is pleased to announce Jenny Marcroft as the party’s election 2020 candidate for the Auckland Central electorate. Jenny spent years working in Auckland Central, having spent a vast proportion of her broadcasting career there. She says she, "knows the place and knows the people." Ms Marcroft says ...
New Zealanders deserve healthy rivers and lakes that are safe to swim in - but they have been getting worse for decades. That's why, with our latest announcement, we're investing in projects that will help clean up our rivers and lakes and restore them to health, within a generation. ...
This week we moved into the second half of 2020 - and our Government delivered another week of big changes and major progress for New Zealanders. Read below for a wrap of the key things moments from the week - from extending paid parental leave, to making major investments in ...
The Green Party has opposed the COVID-19 Recovery Fast-track Consenting Bill which shortcuts normal consenting processes under the Resource Management Act (RMA), reduces public participation and narrows environmental considerations. ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister of Regional Economic Development A regional freight hub for the lower North Island will be built just northeast of Palmerston North, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones has announced. The Government is investing $40 million through the Provincial Growth Fund to designate and buy land and design ...
Green Party Co-leader Marama Davidson is calling for the introduction of a Guaranteed Minimum Income to lift hundreds of thousands of people out of poverty and prevent more families entering into further debt with the Ministry of Social Development. ...
There has been renewed focus on New Zealand First acting as a handbrake on the Government after our decision to not support Auckland light rail. We are a handbrake for bad ideas, that istrue, but our track record since 2017 has seen New Zealand First constructively also serve as an ...
Mark Patterson MP, New Zealand First List MP New Zealand First’s Fair Residency for Superannuation Bill passed its First Reading in Parliament today. The Bill makes a significant change to NZ Super by raising the minimum residency requirement from 10 to 20 years, after age 20. “Currently, a migrant of ...
Darroch Ball MP, Spokesperson for Law and Order A New Zealand First member’s bill in the name of Darroch Ball introducing a six-month minimum prison sentence for assaults on first responders has passed its second reading in Parliament. The new offence of "injuring a first responder or corrections officer with ...
Fletcher Tabuteau MP, Deputy Leader of New Zealand First New Zealand First welcomes the launch of the new Criminal Cases Review Commission, gifted with the name from Waikato-Tainui - Te Kāhui Tātari Ture, announced in Hamilton today by Justice Minister Andrew Little. “New Zealand First has long believed in and ...
The Green Party is celebrating over $800m in new funding for green projects, which will get people into jobs while solving New Zealand’s long-term challenges. ...
Mark Patterson MP, Spokesperson for Primary Industries New Zealand First is appalled that Meridian seems to have been unnecessarily spilling water from its dams to drive up its profits."While New Zealanders have been coming together in some of our darkest hours, we don’t expect power gentailers to waste water and ...
We wrapped up the first half of 2020 with a busy month, taking additional steps to support New Zealanders as we continue with our economic recovery. We rolled out targeted packages to support key industries like tourism and construction, helped create jobs in the environmental and agriculture sectors, and set ...
Hon Shane Jones, Minister for Infrastructure Infrastructure Minister Shane Jones has welcomed the appointment of Maurice Davis and his deep infrastructure and construction experience to the board of the Infrastructure Commission. Mr Davis (Ngāti Maniapoto), is the seventh and final appointment to the board led by former Reserve Bank Governor ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, Leader of New Zealand First New Zealand’s click bait journalism is taking a turn for the worse, with yet another example of sensationalist, wilful-misrepresentation of the facts. “New Zealand First has worked constructively with its Coalition partner on hundreds of pieces of legislation and policy, and ...
The Green Party is today unveiling its Poverty Action Plan, which includes a Guaranteed Minimum Income to ensure people have enough to live with dignity. ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, Deputy Prime Minister Fletcher Tabuteau MP, Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development The Rotorua Museum redevelopment and Whakarewarewa and Tokorangi Forest projects will be accelerated thanks to a $2.09 million Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) boost, Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters and Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher ...
This week, we rolled out the next steps of our recovery plan, with new infrastructure investment, extra support for tourism operators, and a new programme to get Kiwis into agriculture careers. The global economic consequences of COVID-19 will continue to be a challenge, but we have a detailed plan to ...
Jenny Marcroft MP, Spokesperson for Health New Zealand First welcomes the passage of the Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission Bill through its final reading in Parliament today fulfilling a coalition agreement commitment. “This is an important step in saving the lives of New Zealanders and delivers a key coalition commitment ...
Whakatāne has been given a $2.5 million boost to speed up previously funded projects and create more than 450 jobs in the next decade. Of those, the equivalent of 160 full-time jobs could be delivered in the next six weeks. Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters is in town to make ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, Deputy Prime Minister Fletcher Tabuteau MP, Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) is investing $2.5 million to accelerate three infrastructure projects in Whakatāne, Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters and Under-Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau announced today. “This package is about ...
Infrastructure Minister Shane Jones is throwing his weight behind a bid by the Auckland Council to fast-track the more than doubling of the city's water allowance from the Waikato River. And he's coming out strongly against anyone who plans on getting in the way of this campaign. "It is my ...
The Green Party is thrilled to see changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that mean consents for large projects can be declined if they will have significant climate change implications that are inconsistent with the Zero Carbon Act and Aotearoa New Zealand’s Paris Agreement obligations. ...
Hon Ron Mark, Minister of Defence The Royal New Zealand Navy’s new ship, Aotearoa, set sail for New Zealand on 10 June from the Republic of Korea, and is due to arrive in Auckland tomorrow, announced Minister of Defence Ron Mark. “Aotearoa is the Royal New Zealand Navy’s new fleet ...
Rt Hon Winston Peters, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Racing Racing Minister Winston Peters has today welcomed the Racing Industry Bill passing its third reading, creating the legislative framework for revitalising the racing industry while limiting the need for future government intervention. “For too long our domestic racing industry has ...
The Green Party has today put forward an amendment to the Electoral (Registration of Sentenced Prisoners) Amendment Bill to ensure all people in prisons can vote in general elections. ...
The Green Party welcomes the decision to not proceed with Public Public Investment (PPI) delivery of Auckland’s light rail project and to instead run the process through the public service. ...
Hon Ron Mark, New Zealand First List MP based in the Wairarapa New Zealand First List MP Hon Ron Mark welcomes the announcement of Provincial Growth Funding investment of $1.4 million to help secure the Wairarapa’s water supply. The funding boost will allow the Greater Wellington Regional Council (GWRC), and ...
New Zealand First list MP Mark Patterson has been selected to represent the party in the newly formed Taieri electorate at the upcoming election. Mr Patterson, his wife Jude and two daughters farm sheep and beef at Lawrence and Waitahuna. He previously stood in the Clutha-Southland electorate however boundary changes ...
Hon Shane Jones, Associate Minister for State Owned Enterprises A new ‘super depot’ to be built for NZ Post in Wellington will create around 350 jobs during construction, Associate Minister for State Owned Enterprises Shane Jones says. Shane Jones today attended a ground-breaking and blessing ceremony for the parcel-processing depot ...
Our strong economic management prior to COVID-19 - with surpluses, low debt and near-record-low unemployment - put us in a good position to weather the impact of the virus and start to rebuild our economy much earlier than many other countries.Now we're putting our plan to recover and rebuild ...
Darroch Ball MP, New Zealand First Spokesperson for Law and Order Recently released Police fleeing driver statistics have shown yet another increase in incidents with another record-high in the latest quarter. “This new quarterly record-high is the latest in a string of record-high numbers since 2014. The data shows incidents ...
The Minister of Police says a major operation against the Mongrel Mob in Waikato will make a big dent in drug harm and violent offending linked to organised crime networks. “Senior leadership of the Waikato Mongrel Mob has been taken out as a result of Operation Kingsville, which resulted in ...
The Government is extending the border exception criteria to enable some offshore victims and support people of the Christchurch mosque attacks to attend the sentencing of the accused beginning on 24 August2020, says Immigration Minister Iain Lees-Galloway. “We want to support our valued Muslim brothers and sisters who were directly ...
A project to support volunteer efforts to look after streams and rivers is getting a boost thanks to support from DOC’s Community Conservation Fund announced Minister of Conservation Eugenie Sage today. “The government is backing efforts to look after waterways with $199,400 for the Mountains to Sea Conservation Trust from ...
Minister for Women Julie Anne Genter today announced that funding for the COVID-19 Community Fund for women and girls will be doubled, as the first successful funding applications for the initial $1million were revealed. “Women and girls across the country have suffered because of the effects of COVID-19, and I ...
The Government’s books were better than forecast with a higher GST take as the economy got moving again after lockdown, Finance Minister Grant Robertson says. The Crown Accounts for the 11 months to the end of May indicate the year end results for tax revenue will be stronger than forecast. ...
A plan to revitalise New Zealand’s strong wool sector and set it on a new, more sustainable and profitable path was unveiled today by Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor. The newly-released report - Vision and Action for New Zealand’s Wool Sector - was developed by the Wool Industry Project Action Group ...
Community efforts to create a Predator Free Whangārei will receive a $6 million boost, Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones and Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage announced today. The new funding, through Government company Predator Free 2050 Ltd, will create around 12 jobs while enabling the complete removal of possums over ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters has announced that the New Zealand Government is reviewing the settings of its relationship with Hong Kong. “China’s decision to pass a new national security law for Hong Kong has fundamentally changed the environment for international engagement there,” Mr Peters said. “New Zealand remains deeply ...
Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones has announced details of a multimillion-dollar investment in Whangārei for infrastructure projects that will help it recover from the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic. More than 200 jobs are expected to be created through the $26 million investment from the Government’s rejuvenation package ...
Following a second incident in which a person escaped from a managed isolation facility, security is being enhanced, including more police presence onsite, Minister Megan Woods said. “The actions of some individuals who choose to break the very clear rules to stay within the facilities means that more resourcing is ...
Waste reduction and recycling programmes in Kaipara are set to get a boost with Associate Environment Minister Eugenie Sage today announcing a $361,447 grant from the Ministry for the Environment’s Waste Minimisation Fund (WMF) Sustainable Kaipara. “The new funding will allow Sustainable Kaipara to partner with local schools, kura, community ...
The Government will support the Southland economy in the wake of multinational mining company Rio Tinto’s decision to follow through with its long signalled closure of the Tiwai Point aluminium smelter. “This day has unfortunately been on the cards for some time now, but nevertheless the final decision is a ...
New tools being developed to help boost Aotearoa’s Predator Free 2050 effort were unveiled today by Minister of Conservation Eugenie Sage and Under Secretary for Regional Economic Development Fletcher Tabuteau. A new rat poison, a camera with predator recognition software to detect and report predators, a new predator lure and a ...
The Coalition Government has approved the purchase of a fleet of Bushmaster vehicles to replace the New Zealand Army’s armoured Pinzgauers, Defence Minister Ron Mark has announced today. The new fleet of 43 Australian-designed and built Bushmaster NZ5.5 will provide better protection for personnel and improved carrying capacity. “The age ...
The Government’s three prevention frameworks to reduce family violence in Aotearoa were launched this week by Associate Minister for Social Development Poto Williams. The frameworks were developed in partnership with communities around New Zealand, and build on the work the Government has already begun with its new family violence prevention ...
The Government is pleased to confirm funding for improvements to radiology and surgical services at Hawke's Bay DHB, Health Minister Chris Hipkins says. "The Minister of Finance the Hon Grant Robertson and former Health Minister Dr David Clark approved funding for Hawke's Bay DHB’s redevelopment of their radiology facilities ...
• New funding for four beds at Napier’s Springhill Residential Addiction Centre • A new managed withdrawal home and community service, and peer support before and after residential care at Tairāwhiti DHB • A co-ordinated network of withdrawal management services throughout the South Island • Peer support in Rotorua and ...
Introduction, seafarers and POAL Good morning everyone, I am delighted to be online with you all today. Before I begin, I have to acknowledge that COVID-19 has disrupted the maritime sector on an unprecedented scale. The work of seafarers and the maritime industry is keeping many economies around the world ...
A $13 million investment from Government will create jobs and improve the resilience of the rail connection between Christchurch and the West Coast, Infrastructure Minister Shane Jones and Regional Economic Development Under-Secretary Fletcher Tabuteau say. The funding comes from the tagged contingency set aside in Budget 2020 for infrastructure projects ...
The Government is investing $761 million to assist local government upgrade under-pressure water services across the country, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Local Government Minister Nanaia Mahuta announced today. The announcement was made at the site of the water bore that was found to be the source of the fatal ...
Recognised Seasonal Employers and migrant seasonal workers stranded in New Zealand will be able to continue working and supporting themselves with more flexible hours and roles, says Immigration Minister Iain Lees-Galloway. The time-limited visa changes are: Stranded RSE workers will be able to work part-time (a minimum of 15 hours ...
The Government is making immediate short-term changes to visa settings to support temporary migrants already onshore in New Zealand and their employers, while also ensuring New Zealanders needing work are prioritised, Immigration Minister Iain Lees-Galloway says. We are: Extending temporary work visas due to expire by the end of 2020 ...
Professor Peter Skelton CNZM has been appointed as Chief Freshwater Commissioner and Alternate Environment Court Judge Craig James Thompson as Deputy Chief Freshwater Commissioner for the newly established Freshwater Planning Process (FPP). Environment Minister David Parker today also announced the appointment of Chief Environment Court Judge Laurie Newhook as the ...
Auckland Queen’s Counsel Neil Campbell has been appointed a Judge of the High Court, Attorney‑General David Parker announced today. Justice Campbell graduated with a BCom and LLB (Hons) from the University of Auckland in 1992. He spent two years with Bell Gully Buddle Weir in Auckland before travelling to the United ...
The Associate Minister for Greater Christchurch Regeneration, Poto Williams, is seeking feedback on a proposal to better enable the development and operation of commercial film and video facilities in Christchurch. The Proposal, developed by Regenerate Christchurch in response to a request from Christchurch City Council, asks that powers under section ...
The Government has launched a bold plan to boost primary sector export earnings by $44 billion over the next decade, while protecting the environment and growing jobs. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern today released Fit for a Better World – Accelerating our Economic Potential, a 10-year roadmap to unlock greater value ...
A new approach to prevent family harm that encourages greater collaboration across government and community groups is being celebrated at the opening of a new facility in Auckland. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern today opened the Multi-Disciplinary Family Harm Prevention Hub Te Taanga Manawa in Lambie Road in Manukau. The facility ...
The Government has released a major new report on the options for relocating the Port of Auckland’s freight operations while deferring any decision on the issue. “That decision needs to be informed by policy analysis that is still to be completed. As a result it will be up to a ...
The history of Rāpaki is being restored through the inclusion of te reo in thirteen official place names on Te Pātaka-o-Rākaihautū / Banks Peninsula and around Lyttelton Harbour/Whakaraupō, the Minister for Land Information, Eugenie Sage, announced today. “I am pleased to approve the proposals from Te Hapū o Ngāti ...
Bookings for seats on Air New Zealand flights into New Zealand will be managed in the short term to ensure the Government is able to safely place New Zealanders arriving home into a managed isolation or quarantine facility, says Housing Minister Megan Woods. “Last week Air Commodore Darryn Webb and I ...
Grant Robertson has today announced the first major release of funding from the $265 million Sport Recovery Package announced at Budget 2020. “Today we’re setting out how $80 million will be invested, with $54 million of that over the 2020/2021 financial year for organisations from community level through to elite ...
The Government is maintaining current levy rates for the next 2 years, as part of a set of changes to help ease the financial pressures of COVID-19 providing certainty for businesses and New Zealanders, ACC Minister Iain Lees-Galloway says. “New Zealanders and businesses are facing unprecedented financial pressures as a ...
Small businesses are getting greater certainty about access to finance with an extension to the interest-free cashflow loan scheme to the end of the year. The Small Business Cashflow Loan Scheme has already been extended once, to 24 July. Revenue and Small Business Minister Stuart Nash says it will be ...
A package of 23 projects across the country will clean up waterways and deliver over 2000 jobs Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Environment Minister David Parker announced today. The $162 million dollar package will see 22 water clean-up projects put forward by local councils receiving $62 million and the Kaipara ...
Tena koutou katoa Nga tangata whenua o tenei rohe o Pōneke, tena koutou Nau mai, haere mai ki te hui a tau mo te roopu reipa Ko tatou! Ko to tatou mana! Ko to tatou kaupapa kei te kokiri whakamua Tena koutou, tena koutou, tena tatou katoa Welcome. I ...
The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) is investing $1.5 million to ensure QE Health in Rotorua can proceed with its world class health service and save 75 existing jobs, Under Secretary for Regional Economic Development, Fletcher Tabuteau announced today. The PGF funding announced today is in addition to the $8 million ...
A new programme, which sets a firm course for the Building and Construction sector to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, has been announced by the Minister for Building and Construction Jenny Salesa. “A significant amount of New Zealand’s carbon emissions come from the building and construction sector. If we’re serious ...
The Provincial Growth Fund is investing more than $7.5 million in Northland ventures to combat the economic impact of the COVID-19 virus, Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters and Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones have announced. The Provincial Growth Fund (PGF) investment is going to the Northern Adventure Experience and ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Education Minister Chris Hipkins today announced significant funding for Auckland’s Northcote College as part of the first wave of a new nationwide school redevelopment programme to upgrade schools over the next 10 years. The $48.5 million project brings the total investment in Northcote College to ...
The Government has opened an urgent response fund to support schools and early learning services to get children and young people back on track after the Covid-19 lockdown. “While we are seeing improvements in attendance under Alert Level 1 Ministry of Education data shows that attendance rates in our schools ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Esterman, Professor of Biostatistics, University of South Australia Victoria has recorded 288 new COVID-19 cases since yesterday, the largest daily increase we’ve seen so far. This big jump must have the Victorian government and health authorities very concerned, especially since nearly ...
The controversial 101 East episode Locked Up in Malaysia’s Lockdown on 3 July 2020. Video: Al JazeeraPacific Media Watch Newsdesk Malaysian police summoned six Al Jazeera media workers today for questioning relating to an investigation for defamation and violation of Malaysia’s Communications and Multimedia Act (CMA), reports IFJ Asia-Pacific. ...
Analysis - A National MP destroys his career, the government explains how someone with Covid-19 could walk around a supermarket and the closure of Tiwai Point aluminium smelter is announced. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Abrar Ahmad Chughtai, Epidemiologist, UNSW Australia’s chief medical officer Paul Kelly today recommended people in Melbourne and the Mitchell Shire wear masks when leaving the house: […] If people have symptoms and they need to go for a test, for example, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rochelle Wynne, Director, Western Sydney Nursing & Midwifery Research Centre, Western Sydney University Over the past week, we’ve seen a spike in the number of COVID-19 infections among health-care workers in Victoria. This includes a doctor at Melbourne’s St Vincent’s Hospital, one ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra University of Canberra Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Paddy Nixon and Professorial Fellow Michelle Grattan discuss the week in politics including the return to lockdown in Victoria, National Cabinet setting to slow the flow of Australian’s ...
We prefer our heroes untarnished. And few match the heroism of Winston Churchill. But a recent report in the Times reminds us of the inevitability of human frailty and the consequences of keeping it under wraps.During the second world war, Britain’s greatest single loss of life at sea was the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ou Yang, Research Fellow, University of Melbourne Donald Trump has ordered US federal agencies to bypass environmental protection laws and fast-track pipeline, highway and other infrastructure projects. Signing the executive order last month, the US president declared regulatory delays would hinder “our ...
SAFE CEO Debra Ashton says "The NZDIA has done the right thing, and we’re glad to see Bertram has been held to account over his actions. He should take this as an opportunity to right his wrongs and show that he takes animal welfare seriously." ...
Takuta Ferris, Te Tai Tonga candidate for the Māori Party, is urging government to place whānau first in the wake of announcements around Tiwai Point. “The declaration that one of the region's major employers the Tiwai Point aluminium smelter is closing ...
Dietary Requirements is The Spinoff’s monthly podcast in which we eat, drink and talk about it too, with special thanks to Freedom Farms. This month, we’re joined by The Spinoff’s managing editor, mall rat and self-confessed food philistine Duncan Greive.On this month’s Dietary Requirements, the gang’s back in the studio, and ...
Analysis by Keith Rankin. Chart 1: United States and Australia rising. Chart by Keith Rankin. These charts look at Covid19 incidence in China (the most important first-wave country, with a limited second wave), Italy (the lead second-wave country), and USA and Australia (second-wave countries – drawing their caseload from Europe ...
The Government must listen to the Muslim community to rectify its failure to act in the past, says the Human Rights Commission. The Islamic Women’s Council of New Zealand (IWCNZ) submission to the Royal Commission of Inquiry was released this week. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Hugh Breakey, President, Australian Association for Professional & Applied Ethics. Senior Research Fellow, Moral philosophy, Institute for Ethics, Governance & Law, Law Futures Centre., Griffith University Earlier this week, 150 high-profile authors, commentators and scholars signed an open letter in Harper’s magazine ...
You can’t keep a good woman down and Helen Clark is no exception. Her new appointment, as co-chair of a review of how the World Health Organisation handled the coronavirus pandemic, will test her formidable political skills. Sitting with her is Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, former Liberian president, who handled the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jonathan Connor, Lecturer, James Cook University While many people may enjoy a game of backyard cricket, only a few go on to become elite professional batsmen in Australia. Cricket batting is example of what human skills can achieve. The fastest bowling delivery ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lee Baumgartner, Professor of Fisheries and River Management, Institute for Land, Water, and Society, Charles Sturt University This article is a preview of Flora, Fauna, Fire, a multimedia project launching on Monday July 13. The project tracks the recovery of Australia’s native ...
CEAC review of pre-election National’s “outline plan” just sent to us by Todd Muller 9/7/20 was actually his speech about his plan and was described as ‘an outline’. So in our review of National Party response to A Greener, Smarter Future; climate ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Podger, Honorary Professor of Public Policy, Australian National University In Hidden Hand, China scholars Clive Hamilton and Marieke Ohlberg examine the Chinese Communist Party’s influence in Europe and North America in a similar way to how Hamilton dissected the CCP’s influence ...
“I can see why people are fed up, many are wondering how to clothe and feed their kids, or how they are going to pay their rent next week and still others are wondering what has happened to our beautiful Kiwi Way of Life. Well no party in parliament ...
Pacific Media Watch Newsdesk Sixty press freedom groups and civil society organisations, journalism institutions, filmmakers, and other supporters have formed a coalition in support of Maria Ressa and independent media in the Philippines, united around the call to #HoldTheLine. Today the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), the International Center for ...
National MP Michael Woodhouse also received Covid-19 patient emails from Michelle Boag, and deleted them when he realised she was implicated in a separate email scandal. National Party leader Todd Muller says no further MPs in his party received confidential information from Michelle Boag, after revelations today that Michael Woodhouse also ...
The government is extending border exceptions to allow overseas victims of the Christchurch mosque attacks and their support people to attend the shooter's sentencing. ...
Ever wanted to be Iron Man? Sam Brooks prefers Pepper Potts, but he had a great time stepping into the iron suit anyway.The first few moments of Iron Man VR are where it plays its hand, confidently and assuredly. You hold your palms out in front of you, and Iron ...
SAP has released to the public a policy paper, “Helping Kiwis get back to work: How data and technology can drive a bigger, better, faster economic recovery.” ...
A new poem by Jordan Hamel.Mermaids When you lose grip and start to drift.The first thing you’re supposed to do issteer into it or steer away? Not all mermaids are royaltysomeone needs to audit the oceanprovide cashflow projectionssome mermaids are actuallymiddle-aged accountants named Stephendreaming of a land-view holiday home. I saw a ...
Want to work for The Spinoff? We’re looking for someone to fill an exciting new role based in our Auckland office. We’re looking for a video and podcast content manager: an experienced writer or sub-editor with a strong understanding of social media to manage our video and podcast content across various channels. ...
National Party leader Todd Muller says no further MPs in his party received confidential information from Michelle Boag, after revelations today that Michael Woodhouse also received four unsolicited emails. ...
By RNZ News Opposition National list MP Dr Jian Yang has announced his retirement from New Zealand politics and says he will not stand in the 2020 general election after three terms in the party caucus. He said politics was “demanding” and he wanted to spend more time with his ...
Bayer-Monsanto's June 24 announcement of a US$10.9 billion pay out (1) to people who have been harmed by Glyphosate, is effectively an admission of guilt. Spokesperson for The People’s Inquiry 2020 Asha Andersen says, “The Ministry of Health, The ...
The Taxpayers’ Union has filed a complaint with the Electoral Commission and the Parliamentary Speaker’s Office over Lawrence Yule’s new taxpayer funded billboards promoting Mr Yule as the ‘Voice in Tukituki’. Union spokesman, Louis Houlbrooke ...
Ten points, two plans. Which points are whose? With an election within spitting distance, Aotearoa’s two biggest political parties are all about the plans. “You don’t have a plan!” says one party to the other. “Yes we have a plan, or certainly a plan to have a plan, or a plan ...
Four months after he announced his re-selection, a National Party MP whose links to Chinese spy agencies attracted the interest of New Zealand’s Security Intelligence Service has announced he will not stand in the next election A three-term National Party MP who studied at an elite Chinese spy school before moving to ...
National list MP Dr Jian Yang announced his retirement from politics and said he would not stand in the 2020 general election after three terms in the party caucus. ...
A new political party, the New Zealand TEA Party, with headquarters in Auckland, has been established. The party aims to contest the queen- or kingmaker position to form a coalition with the largest parliamentary party as part of the general elections ...
A review has determined fish oils are non-hazardous and no longer require oversight by the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA). We regulate pesticides, household chemicals and other dangerous goods and substances under the Hazardous Substances ...
New Conservative calls on the government to join with our Five Eyes allies and add New Zealand's signature to a joint statement condemning the continued removal of freedoms in Hong Kong. New Conservative also calls on the government to give safe-haven ...
Latest from the Beehive – Hard on the heels of the government promising help for the Southland economy in the wake of Rio Tinto’s decision to close the Tiwai Point aluminium smelter, it was announcing the delivery of more money to the North, at the other end of the country. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Luciano Beheregaray, Professor in Biodiversity Genomics, Flinders University As the global climate shifts, it’s important to know which species have adaptations to survive. Our research published today in PNAS found it largely depends on where they evolved. We looked at the capacity ...
From eggplant emojis and twerking llamas to sweaty anthropomorphic butts, we present some of the most fascinating, hilarious and outrageous complaints dismissed by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) from 2019 to now.Avocadon’t (January 2019)The ad: In this ad from Specsavers, a man gets ready to join a cricket match, but ...
They might sound like the same thing, but light rail is quite different from light metro – the system that transport minister Phil Twyford now favours for Auckland. Katy Wakefield and Jessica Rose of Women in Urbanism explain why the metro option is a poor substitute for LRT. Transport is ...
Why isn't the Government spending $30m to extend Tiwai Point's 2,600 jobs until after the Covid-19 recession, after Manapouri's power can be transmitted elsewhere, and after there's a hydrogen plan for the smelter site, Bernard Hickey asks. The sense of shock and foreboding about the future was clear in Invercargill Mayor ...
An intensive care doctor is outraged health officials are giving helicopter rescue trusts a daily list of Covid-19 patients, saying it's completely unnecessary. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Seth Lazar, Professor, Australian National University In the US, tireless opposition to state use of facial recognition algorithms has recently won some victories. Some progressive cities have banned some uses of the technology. Threetechcompanies have pulled facial recognition products from ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rick Sarre, Adjunct Professor of Law and Criminal Justice, University of South Australia Facial recognition technology is increasingly being trialled and deployed around Australia. Queensland and Western Australia are reportedly already using real-time facial recognition through CCTV cameras. 7-Eleven Australia is also ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Carol T Kulik, Research Professor of Human Resource Management, University of South Australia The coronavirus pandemic has forced many of us to work from home, often in less than ideal circumstances. Many employees had little choice in the decision, limited time to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katja Hogendoorn, University of Adelaide This article is a preview of Flora, Fauna, Fire, a multimedia project launching on Monday July 13. The project tracks the recovery of Australia’s native plants and animals after last summer’s bushfire tragedy. Sign up to The ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By SriPallavi Nadimpalli, PhD Candidate, University of Melbourne Women manage many overlapping responsibilities in both public and private spheres. Their busy routines leave them with just a little time to take a break or a pause in their activity. These pauses are a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Naoise McDonagh, Lecturer in Political Economy, University of Adelaide The pandemic has changed the way we think about supply chains, in particular the chains that feed our need for food, medical supplies, and defence equipment. It has led Prime Minister Scott Morrison ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Richard Holden, Professor of Economics, UNSW As Victoria grapples with a second-wave outbreak of COVID-19, the importance of large-scale testing has again been highlighted. Without its “testing blitz” aiming at 10,000 tests a day, the extent of the outbreak would have been ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jean Burgess, Professor and Director, Digital Media Research Centre, Queensland University of Technology Perhaps no single character has been as iconic a symbol of Twitter as the now-ubiquitous hashtag. The syntax of the hashtag has a few simple rules: it consists of ...
For all The Spinoff’s latest coverage of Covid-19 see here. Read Siouxsie Wiles’s work here. New Zealand is currently in alert level one – read about what that means here. For official government advice, see here.The Spinoff’s coverage of the Covid-19 outbreak is made possible thanks to donations from Spinoff Members. To support this ...
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Major implications from Tiwai Pt closure, diplomatic rift over Hong Kong deepens, and grim new approach to managed isolation.The story of Rio Tinto pulling out of the Tiwai Point smelter is one that shows the deep connections between regional stories ...
How can Southland cope without its engine and biggest employer, the Tiwai Point smelter? Invercargill's deputy mayor Toni Biddle and Dee St businesswoman Anne Marie Thomas on what happens nowToni Biddle: "We've always known this could potentially happen. So, therefore, there has been a huge amount of work done in the background ...
This week's biggest-selling New Zealand books, as recorded by the Nielsen BookScan New Zealand bestseller list and described by Steve Braunias.NON-FICTION 1 Pull No Punches by Judith Collins (Allen & Unwin, $36.99) Junk. 2 Vegful by Nadia Lim (Nude Food, $55) 3 The Book of Overthinking by Gwendoline ...
Most Kiwis aren't aware that the end of life choice act is not a concept they'll be voting for, but specific, unmovable legislation. And if we make a mistake, death is a heavy penalty, writes Caralise Trayes. A new Colmar Brunton poll revealed last weekend doesn’t do any favours in helping people ...
Talented teenage shooter Khiarna Williams is committed to travelling 18 hours a week - after school - to realise her netball dreams. Three times a week, 17-year-old Khiarna Williams gets picked up from school to make a six-hour round trip, from Whakatāne to Hamilton, to train with the Magic. Her designated driver ...
Dr Michael SW Lee uses an Easter egg hunt analogy to explain wealth distribution and our innate sense of fairness Ten kids are at an Easter egg hunt searching for 100 eggs. Donald was fortunate, he inherited an Easter egg detector. He spends four hours looking and collects 40 eggs. Steve is a ...
In theory, the closure of Tiwai Point aluminium smelter should bring down electricity prices and help get New Zealand closer to its Carbon Zero 2050 goal. In practice, that isn’t so easy. The announcement Tiwai Point aluminium smelter will close by August next year is a massive blow for the ...
Today The Beths release Jump Rope Gazers, the follow-up to their beloved and acclaimed debut album Future Me Hates Me. Back in December, Side Eye cartoonist Toby Morris joined the band in the studio while they recorded ‘Just Shy of Sure’, which you can listen to here: ...
Three big announcements this week heralded our healthy and profitable future. Those standing in the way, argues Rod Oram, are as out of step as the Think Big world from which they hail. ...
Making the capital earthquake resilient involves billions of dollars, a tonne of anxiety and apartment owners who've had enough of the yellow-sticker nightmare. Time is running out for hundreds of apartment owners in Wellington who face big bills to fix their earthquake-risk buildings. About 1000 buildings in the capital ...
SPECIAL REPORT:By David Robie, who sailed on the original Rainbow Warrior to Rongelap and is author of the bookEyes of Fire. Thirty five years ago today the Greenpeace ship Rainbow Warrior was bombed in Auckland’s Waitematā Harbour by French secret agents in a blatant act of state terrorism, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Scott Morrison summoned his self-restraint and resisted temptation. Invited on Thursday to attack the Victorian government over its disastrous decision to use private security guards to monitor people in hotel quarantine, the prime minister was ...
A new EP from an unknown Auckland singer ignited a bidding war before she’d released a single. Today ‘Call You Out’ is released, with eerie parallels to Lorde’s rise. Duncan Greive meets the artist known as Deryk.Madeline Bradley wasn’t expecting a lot. She’d been to dozens of these meetings over ...
Open mike 27/08/2013 
...2 hours ago
Check out Speak Up For Women’s new podcasts: Episode 3 In this episode Speak Up For Women spokeswoman Ani O’Brien (@aniobrien) is joined by Beth Johnson (@beth_nosnhoj) to discuss the proposal from Statistics NZ to change standard data collection policy to “gender by default” rather than sex. They discuss why the ...5 hours ago
During a recent public consultation on the future of Archives New Zealand, a key report was suppressed. The Ombudsman has ruled that the refusal was unjustified. Sadly, the consultation was over by the time of the the decision has been made. However, the law on the use of the ...6 hours ago
National MP - Michael WoodhouseUnbelievable! Michelle Boag also sent National’s Michael Woodhouse confidential emails about COVD-19 patients, and he continued to publicly attack the Government over these very same breaches of privacy.This is the biggest political self-own since the Act Party’s David Garrett admitted in Parliament that he used a ...13 hours ago
Everyone is paying attention today to the Supreme Court ruling that the President is not above the law and that Trump's tax returns can be given to a New York grand jury investigating him. But the Supreme Court decided another, far more important case yesterday, and effectively restored Native American ...13 hours ago
Transcript: National Party policy announcement on roads – 8 July, 2020 Muller: Good afternoon everybody. Thank you for coming. Reporter 1: Is Hamish Walker a racist? Muller: Hang on… you haven’t even said good afternoon to me yet. Reporter 1: Good afternoon Mr Muller. Is Hamish Walker a racist? ...14 hours ago
Back in April, I wrote about trials in Iran of a fixed-dose combination of two existing anti-viral drugs used to treat hepatitis C – sofosbuvir and daclatasvir – that could point to an effective treatment for Covid-19 symptoms.At the time, data from those trials was not available outside the hospitals ...15 hours ago
Today’s content Tiwai Point to close Hamish Rutherford (Herald): Government subsidising practically everything plays hardball with Rio Tinto (paywalled) Tom Pullar-Strecker (Stuff): Sudden closure of aluminium smelter worst outcome for jobs, consumers and the environment Brian Fallow (Herald): Tiwai closure sad news – and an opportunity for the environment (paywalled) Heather du Plessis-Allan (Newstalk ZB): Rio ...16 hours ago
Prof Nick Wilson, Dr Anja Mizdrak, Dr Jennifer Summers, Prof Michael Baker The pandemic-related lockdown is possibly the most dramatic public health intervention in NZ history. It helped achieve the elimination of community transmission of the COVID-19 virus in NZ. But it was also associated with 548 fewer total ...16 hours ago
Reprehensible: There is much that could be said about Michael Woodhouse, but what would be the point? Any man who willingly involves himself in a situation as reprehensible as the one depicted in the above photograph has already vouchsafed all that decent people need to know about his character. That there have ...18 hours ago
79 Articles Observations & observational methods of global warming & effects Six hundred years of South American tree rings reveal an increase in severe hydroclimatic events since mid-20th century (open access) Late summer temperature variability for the Southern Rocky Mountains (USA) since 1735 CE: applying blue light intensity to low-latitude ...2 days ago
Some are surprised at this sudden brain implosion on the part of both Michelle Boag, former National Party President, and the National Party in general, in exposing the private, confidential details of COVID patients. Others…? Let’s be blunt: not so much. Too many of that Party have long operated with ...2 days ago
So now we know, beyond all doubt. The National party has no interest in joining the “team of five million” in our fight against the pandemic but its priority is to take every opportunity it can to damage the government. The cynicism is breathtaking. It was prepared to leak the ...3 days ago
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Mark Patterson MP, Spokesperson for Primary Industry New Zealand First is supporting calls by hunters and the New Zealand Tahr Foundation (NZTF) to halt a large scale cull of Himalayan Tahr by the Department of Conservation in National Parks. The calls are supported by a 40,000 strong petition and the ...3 days ago
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The Minister of Police says a major operation against the Mongrel Mob in Waikato will make a big dent in drug harm and violent offending linked to organised crime networks. “Senior leadership of the Waikato Mongrel Mob has been taken out as a result of Operation Kingsville, which resulted in ...10 hours ago
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Esterman, Professor of Biostatistics, University of South Australia Victoria has recorded 288 new COVID-19 cases since yesterday, the largest daily increase we’ve seen so far. This big jump must have the Victorian government and health authorities very concerned, especially since nearly ...3 hours ago
Analysis - A National MP destroys his career, the government explains how someone with Covid-19 could walk around a supermarket and the closure of Tiwai Point aluminium smelter is announced. ...5 hours ago
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National MP Michael Woodhouse also received Covid-19 patient emails from Michelle Boag, and deleted them when he realised she was implicated in a separate email scandal. National Party leader Todd Muller says no further MPs in his party received confidential information from Michelle Boag, after revelations today that Michael Woodhouse also ...10 hours ago
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Alan Brent looks at how NZ's solar resources can be used more effectively to address energy demand in our transitioning economy. ...13 hours ago
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Latest from the Beehive – Hard on the heels of the government promising help for the Southland economy in the wake of Rio Tinto’s decision to close the Tiwai Point aluminium smelter, it was announcing the delivery of more money to the North, at the other end of the country. ...14 hours ago
Why isn't the Government spending $30m to extend Tiwai Point's 2,600 jobs until after the Covid-19 recession, after Manapouri's power can be transmitted elsewhere, and after there's a hydrogen plan for the smelter site, Bernard Hickey asks. The sense of shock and foreboding about the future was clear in Invercargill Mayor ...16 hours ago
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How can Southland cope without its engine and biggest employer, the Tiwai Point smelter? Invercargill's deputy mayor Toni Biddle and Dee St businesswoman Anne Marie Thomas on what happens now Toni Biddle: "We've always known this could potentially happen. So, therefore, there has been a huge amount of work done in the background ...18 hours ago
This week's biggest-selling New Zealand books, as recorded by the Nielsen BookScan New Zealand bestseller list and described by Steve Braunias. NON-FICTION 1 Pull No Punches by Judith Collins (Allen & Unwin, $36.99) Junk. 2 Vegful by Nadia Lim (Nude Food, $55) 3 The Book of Overthinking by Gwendoline ...19 hours ago
Most Kiwis aren't aware that the end of life choice act is not a concept they'll be voting for, but specific, unmovable legislation. And if we make a mistake, death is a heavy penalty, writes Caralise Trayes. A new Colmar Brunton poll revealed last weekend doesn’t do any favours in helping people ...19 hours ago
Talented teenage shooter Khiarna Williams is committed to travelling 18 hours a week - after school - to realise her netball dreams. Three times a week, 17-year-old Khiarna Williams gets picked up from school to make a six-hour round trip, from Whakatāne to Hamilton, to train with the Magic. Her designated driver ...19 hours ago
Dr Michael SW Lee uses an Easter egg hunt analogy to explain wealth distribution and our innate sense of fairness Ten kids are at an Easter egg hunt searching for 100 eggs. Donald was fortunate, he inherited an Easter egg detector. He spends four hours looking and collects 40 eggs. Steve is a ...19 hours ago
In theory, the closure of Tiwai Point aluminium smelter should bring down electricity prices and help get New Zealand closer to its Carbon Zero 2050 goal. In practice, that isn’t so easy. The announcement Tiwai Point aluminium smelter will close by August next year is a massive blow for the ...19 hours ago
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Making the capital earthquake resilient involves billions of dollars, a tonne of anxiety and apartment owners who've had enough of the yellow-sticker nightmare. Time is running out for hundreds of apartment owners in Wellington who face big bills to fix their earthquake-risk buildings. About 1000 buildings in the capital ...20 hours ago
NZ Herald – Editorial today
Arguing the case AGAINST democracy.
“There is good reason to confine these elections to a party caucus. MPs are generally well briefed on policy issues and aware of the national interest. They also work closely with leadership contenders and are best-placed to assess their character and capabilities.”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/article.cfm?c_id=466&objectid=11114759
Jeeez…I guess the Herald just wants their BORN TO RULE beloved National Party to run things…unbelievable.
Also from granny herald:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11114788
So much for secret voting eh…
Saarbo @ 1. This is great really. Granny showing the depth of her true colours. Perfect justification to scorn and lambast the meddlesome, clutching of the pearls hypocrisy she launches against democracy. Dismiss, dismiss, dismiss !
True colours alright.
The Herald [of big money interests] refers to good governance:
What good governance is that referring to?
This comment appears to entirely ignore the way that our legislation is being ‘rushed through’ at every turn and how we have recently incurred a massive lost to our democratic rights and principles.
It appears to ignore that there is an increasing yawning gap between the most wealthy and the least in this country.
These two issues alone prove that the governance in our country over, really, a very long time is a complete failure.
Good governance – what utter rot.
The consensus? Does Granny mean selling New Zealand legislation to campaign donors? Or subsidising Rio Tinto?
There is no alternative? Really, Granny? Are you sure?
That is astounding.
The NZ Herald is effectively stating that the wishes of the people of New Zealand must be subordinated to some other structure. The Herald is promoting some form of higher power than that of the people.
The Herald has lost the plot.
The Herald can go wander down to the local turgid creek and drown itself all alone.
Even Brian Edwards doesn’t want a democratic process to select the leader. No wonder National has managed to erode so many democratic rights, the media actually don’t much like democracy either.
perhaps its because many will have to leave wellington to cover the contest?
Well clearly then, Brian Edwards and the Herald need to be put out to pasture and some fresh air blown through the place.
They have become stale, bereft of clarity, empty of history, …..
Brian
Edwards
is
a
classic
waste
of
space
.
.
.
It seems there’s been an “economic consensus” between National and Labour that we haven’t been told about until now. (But we’ve all seen operating…)
So Labour’s own dirty tricks brigade is back in full swing? Where’s Trevor Mallard? Or could it be closer to Cunliffe’s home city this time?
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11114788
Does that mean don’t tell the public what you will do, so you can do what you like when elected?
Looks like a win to Robertson.
Excellent.
Hey BM changed your mind?
Yesterday you were supporting Jones. To quote you said “Shane Jones should lead labour, he’s the only guy out of the three who has the goods.” and now you are supporting Robertson.
Changed your mind?
He is an unofficial member of the ABC
ABC -ftw
ftw?
For The Win
Hey BM, I think it’s really brave of you to talk so openly about your fear of Cunliffe.
Well done.
You are obviously talking about for a National win.
“For Tory Win”?
An internet mannerism…stuck next to a comment or quip which is supposed to seal the argument.
Eg. Cunliffe has the experience to lead the country. And he does a great beard, FTW!
Moderators hate the comment as it can turn into “pwned” style trolling/flaming pretty quick.
Provided the candidates in the contest behave like adults during the contest, the media will have no option but to write substance…
I switched from TV1 news some years ago but after Gowers “coverage” yesterday I may leave that channel too.
To my mind his job is to advise me what is going on and who is saying what. He sees his job as giving me his opinion not facts. Why do political jounos and politicians think we are all too stupid to make up our own minds.
You must really hate Campbell Live.
I don’t watch it. If someone posts a clip here or elsewhere I might watch but as a rule I don’t.
They also havent caught on that selection via a party wide vote is how the greens have elected their leaders for ages. They talk as if its some new crazy thing
They are also heavily editing comments on John Armstrong’s piece this morning .. I wrote a fairly innocuous comment ( innocuous in terms of needing moderating) and it has failed to appear … in fact there are zero comments showing.
Censorship stinks.
perhaps they have been swamped with comments?
They always take ages to show comments on the herald.
That’s also my experience ..
Just ban the printed Herald from our lives. I bought it in the 70s and 80s to see what the bosses were up to today. But have not plunked down loose change for two decades now, yes I admit scanning it online and if the paper version goes totally down the web version would be pay to read or disappear too. Yay.
The dirty filthy Eastern Suburbs toffs that kept the rag going all the 20th century lying, misleading and distorting reality for New Zealanders. Yay. Truth has gone too. Don’t buy the Herald and if there is one at work or a cafe–bin it, do us all a favour.
You can see the fear in granny and the other MSM outlets when the potential for genuine change to rock their isolated and priviledged world appears.
They are part of the problem and don’t want the solution.
Funny thing is if TVNZ hadn’t been so anti charter and waged war against it they could’ve been an outlet not so easy to flog as it stands now under the nats but then Ellis didn’t take over $1m p.a. to strengthen the nations voice but to bark it’s owners tune.
Sums it up nicely.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/article.cfm?c_id=466&objectid=11114755
It seems odd how little coverage at stuff and herald brownlee’s loss in the High Court yesterday has taken.
Despite spending lots of time in the media and their original defence talking about the drawback to rewarding people who didn’t take out insurance according to Cameron (Lawyer for owners) it never came up in the case.
Brownlee says he will consider an Appeal.
The point is the High Court has found that Brownlee and CERA did not apply the law as stated.
Isn’t this just more bullying type behaviour by brownlee? 50% or nothing. Take it or leave it we are bigger than you. brownlee spending our money on trying to uphold his belief that Insurance companies will be harmed if the law is upheld.
Maybe he is drafting a bill under urgency to overturn the Court.
Thank God for the Courts. No wonder the nats don’t like the judiciary at the moment.
finally
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11114975
Note that key’s promise that no one would be worse off because of the govt’s offer for their land is currently a lie. It remains a lie until he can overturn the decision or bring in urgent legislation to make himself right.
Yet another judge that will not be appearing in the honours list
Interesting piece about the role and power of political blogs ..
http://inside.org.au/the-war-the-bloggers-won/
Everybody knows that politicians don’t read blogs… 🙂
What do you mean by that, Winston?
I think it’s a joke! (referring to Shearer saying that voters don’t read blogs, and that he doesn’t read blogs).
Yup
some like Jones (takere) post on them!
JOKE
Very funny – I put ‘takere’ into a meta-search engine and found nothing by Jones.
… and another.
http://inside.org.au/winning-the-battle-of-ideas/
LABOUR’S GOT TALENT: just love this little put down line from Key and Whaleoil about our selection process: that kind of smug sneer at something everyday NZers love and want to celebrate- good people getting up and having a go- is just what you’d expect from an elite so out of touch they dont recognise real emotion and public feeling: either pain or, in this case, determination and passion. Yep, damn right Labour’s got talent: and one way or another, you are going to feel it.
“Yep, damn right Labour’s got talent: and one way or another, you are going to feel it.”
– lol! Cunliffe, Jones and Robertson sure but who else?
Open your eyes, Winny. Or actually go meet ’em!
Nah too busy worshipping the National “talent” or lack of it in fools like N. Guy, H. Parata, P. Bennett, G. Brownlee, J. Collins, J. Keystroke et al, bottom of the barrel stuff.
In news not covered by The Herald or Stuff….
Public told volcanic geyser’s sudden eruption on a public road 900m from Rome airport nothing to be concerned about:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/10265372/Volcanic-geyser-erupts-close-to-Rome-airport.html
Despite being a stone’s throw from the end of a main runway at Fiumicino, Europe’s sixth largest airport, which handles 37 million passengers a year, Mr Basili said there was no cause for fear over flight safety. “This is a limited phenomenon – it will not have created alarm at the airport,” he said.
Ye Gods. I just read Brian Edwards take on things regarding the Labour leadership contest. I wish he had never started a blog. Better to keep your mouth shut and the reputation forged in your youth intact than retiring, writing a blog, and presenting for all to see your sad descent into a bewildered old age. The poor old bugger is stuck in New Zealand circa 1973, he clearly has no idea of the dynamics of New Zealand in 2013.
Yeah true what was Dear Leader thinking keeping him on…
Eh? I don’t think he’s ever worked for the Nats has he?
I gave up on him when he posted something about the weather forecast always being different from what he could see out of his own window.
Why are we so obsessed with people like Edwards. Yes of course he is getting old and wanders a bit but he is also allowed to have an opinion. So many on this forum seem to see him as some sort of enemy and I am sure that is not correct. He has expressed certain opinions and that should be end of it.
Can we not just accept differences and stop using these forums for personal attacks on people
The right/corporate media looks set to go full retard on Labour. It’ll be a rerun of the response that we got from the electricity policy announcement.
It would be best if the Cunliffe/Robertson/Jones camps coordinated their media to frustrate the likes of Paddy Gower et al.
And maybe gag Trev and throw him in a cupboard for a month would help too. (that’s a joke! not advocating violence!) 😀
“And maybe gag Trev and throw him in a cupboard for a month would help too”
– That would probably help Labour gain a couple of percentage points
Giovani Tiso:
http://bat-bean-beam.blogspot.co.nz/2013/08/the-leader-vanishes.html
revisionism… sigh
it explains why key gets caught in lies, he has no access to his previous statements to try and be consistent.
Just like they did with Saddam…
http://image.guardian.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/gallery/2003/04/29/PD3282877.jpg
The National Library regularly archives NZ sites for posterity. Here’s its archive for Labour
i just heard bridges on nat-rad..
..what is it with those younger male tory mp’s..?
..and their issues with the spoken word..?
..they dance around the english language like constipated dogs trying to work it out..
..bridges totally over-masticates his words..and then sprays surrounding environs with the remains..
..and tremain and guy..(who i call heckle and jeckel..(old cartoon..look it up..and wonder at the spooky similarites..)
..both of them are glottal/strangled-word disasters..(tremain in particular..)
..and of course guy when on his own is called ‘clutch cargo’..(once again..old cartoon..look it up..be spooked again..(and be really spooked how guy has that whole clutch thing of just the lips moving when speaking down just so..
..and really..for everyones’ peace of mind..guy should be asked to disrobe..to prove there are no wires sticking out/plugged into him..
..and then of course there is jonathan ‘cigar-boy’ coleman..and his peculiar habit of tossing a handful of marbles into his mouth..before speaking..(so if you listen carefully…you can hear them rolling/bouncing off each other)
..and of course todd (‘pompadour’) mclay..doesn’t toss marbles into his mouth..
..he stuffs his full of plums…
..is it a basic requirement of being a young(er) tory male mp..?
..to talk weird..?
..(the evidence is overwhelming..)
..and i can hear you asking:..’but what about craig ‘the hapless one’ foss..?..you’ve left him out..’
..the thing is with foss..i am still so dazzled by his haplessness..
..i am yet to move on to his verbal-tics..
phillip ure..
It’s a result of being a thicko.
No doubt though, after 2014 – there’ll be “learnings” in all of this
Is it true that when someone asked him about where he lives he said some malarkey about because his wife wanted to breastfeed?
If true (and I read it on “other” blogs so I’ll concede it may be wrong) he’ll have to watch comments like that because people can see right through things like that, if true of course.
Should have just said hes worked hard to get to where he is and wants to give everyone else the same opportunity for success or something similar
Crikey, when did you become concerned about political leaders lying? Or are you concerned for him that he doesn’t lie well enough to beat the current King (Key)?
All politicians lie, John Key lies, Helen Clark lied, whoever becomes the leader of Labour will lie, everyone lies especially politicians
What interests me is that there are some lies the voting public accept and some they don’t. It appears to me that the smaller the lie the less likely the voting public is to accept it.
In regards to the labour leadership I’m more the interested neutral party in that while I have opinions on who should lead I’m trying to see from the viewpoint of whats best for labour
good laugh for the day
You should try it some time, impartiality can give you a different viewpoint
are you claiming impartiality now?
Only for the leadership battle and thats because it doesn’t impact on me, once the leader is decided its back to full-on impartiality
So yeah I’m thinking that the best chance for Labour winning the next election is Cunliffe leading but personally speaking I’d vote for shane Jones
I’ll let you handle it, Solomon the Wise
Putting aside the obvious hilarity of your last paragraph (!!!), you’re onto something with this:
“the smaller the lie the less likely the voting public is to accept it.”
although I’d look at it through a slightly different lens. I don’t think it’s the size of the lie per se, but rather the point of it.
I’ve been thinking about corruption lately. I think as a society we’ve become accustomed to the idea that we’re all competing individuals seeking advantage over one another. Only a short while ago this would have been considered highly anti-social thinking, but now it’s the norm. A few decades of user-pays free-marketing has made selfishness acceptable, and greed admirable.
When someone is caught lying to further their own interests, instead of judging the behaviour as anti-social and corrupt we understand that that’s just what you do these days. You look after number one. And while we might not always openly praise someone for lying and scheming in their own interest, we grudgingly accept it. We say “who can blame them?” We say “they’d be silly not to”.
And in this selfish, individualistic, dog-eat-dog paradigm, it’s true. We’ve all become corrupt to one degree or another, we’ve done so simply by following the rules of the game. And the rules are look out for number one and never give a sucker an even break. And because we’ve all become corrupted to an extent, we accept the same corruption in others. We expect people to be trying to do us over at every turn.
So when John Key looks down the barrel of the camera and flat out lies about, for example, how many shares he owns, and then gets caught, and then immediately changes his story, we don’t even blink. Because he’s just doing exactly what we expect everyone to be doing, being dishonest in service of his own interests.
And I think that’s why we let these “big” lies go. Because it’s the norm. It’s what you’re meant to do according to the rules of the game. As long as it’s obvious that you’re lying to protect or advance yourself, it’s totally understandable.
Just don’t ever get caught lying for no good selfish greedy dog-eat-dog reason, or we’ll start wondering what flaw in your character you’re trying to cover up.
Yes I’d agree theres some truth to that but I’d go further and suggest it also depends on what has been said before
For instance we know National are for big business and we know Labour are for the battlers so when JK lies (maybe) about his shares thats no big deal but when Shearer “forgot” about his 50 000 plus that was a big deal
However if JK (whos portrayed himself as a good family man) had been cheating on his missus and tried to cover it up I think the public wouldn’t forgive him
Thank you for the admission that National are for Big Business and not for the little people.
Not many of your lot admit that obvious truth anymore.
This by W Smith is a telling point, really the nub of our problem in NZ. Between NACT for Big Business and the battlers supposedly Labour’s congregation, there is a huge yawning gap where most NZs are. That’s those who are able and willing to build and create and contribute and support a vital economically sound NZ. Most of Big Business is looking over their heads to international interests, the battlers and strugglers are at their feet pecking over the trickle down droppings, and wondering what the hell is going on up there, because it sure is hell down here.
Most NZ is by Winston’s summary, unpolitically unrepresented. Who they gonna call – Ghostbusters? Now those fellas really stuck it to the green slime.
Which of Key’s lies or which kind of lies are the ones that if exposed will force Key to fall on his sword?
He’ll never fall on his sword. He’ll have to be hounded out of the village with pitchforks, torches and rough music.
We’ve accepted that he lies about money and business and that it’s normal. It’s now considered part of his charm. It’s part of his brand that he’s wiley and cunning and no-one gets one over him.
He can lie his lying arse off and we’re all ok with it because in the world we live in that’s no longer considered an undesirable trait.
Which is why Key is so happy to call Cunliffe a liar any chance he gets. If he and Winston Smith keep on spreading the meme that all politicians lie, then he can merrily carry on being a liar himself. If he gets caught out who’s gonna care except Blip and a few other lefties on the Standard?
“Steal a little and they throw you in jail. Steal a lot and they make you king.” Bob Dylan
but wait, weren’t the national and ACT parties absolutely against lies by govt MPs when they were in opposition???? OH, I see, they were lying.
haha bingo
“Is it true that when someone asked him about where he lives he said some malarkey about because his wife wanted to breastfeed?”
Only what I’ve read on ts, but he apparently said that his wife was breastfeeding and needed to live closer to her work. That is a completely valid reason for choosing where to live.
Sure it is *insert any vague reference to buying a bridge*
Look theres nothing wrong with being successful and having the money to choose where you live but don’t drag your family into it because now his familys fair game
ie Are your kids still brest feeding, when you will be moving back closer to the people you purport to represent and if not why not etc etc
I’m not commenting on Cunliffe’s choices. I’m stating that moving so you are closer to work while breastfeeding is a completely valid reason. Some people here seem to be saying it’s not.
Well its something he might want to watch out for…he might not want to give Robertson any ammunition
“but don’t drag your family into it because now his familys fair game”
Really Winston? Are you applying that principle across the board to any mp who ever mentions their family?
Bill English’s family are fair game, are they? And John Key’s family?
(neither of whom live in their electorates either btw)
“but don’t drag your family into it because now his familys fair game”
Daft. Are you saying that he should lie?
I think he is telling him he needs to learn to lie better if he wants to be PM.
It’s the new standard our current PM has set..
If they use them as a defence as Cunliffe did then yes by all means
so, Key’s mum and sister are up for grabs… he used them as a defence of himself and his ability to l know how it is for the low income in NZ?
A defence against what? Being asked why he lives in a certain part of town?
Why he feels he doesn’t live near those he represents, the inference being that hes using the people to further his own ends but doesn’t want to live near the hoi-polloi
Not a good look for a labour MP
John Key reckons its fine to live and holiday far away from the electorate he represents; Cunliffe on the other hand is actually IN the electorate he represents all the time.
Desperate righties must be desperate.
I doubt John Key has even driven through his electorate. Flown over it, maybe.
Pretty sure that photo of him with the prince at a BBQ was in the electorate
I thought that was at his Omaha beach house.
Does he “holiday”in New Lynn as well ?
Key? Are you having a laugh?
Nothing wrong with holidaying in New Lynn – do it myself.
“Why he feels he doesn’t live near those he represents, the inference being that hes using the people to further his own ends but doesn’t want to live near the hoi-polloi”
Do you have any evidence that Cunliffe lives where he lives in order to avoid living next to some people in his electorate (as opposed to the ones he does live near of course)? Or any evidence that the reason Cunliffe gave (his wife’s breastfeeding needs) was a lie?
isn’t having them on the hustings with you and so on “dragging” them into it. You are drawing a pretty long bow
“A heavy shower sweeps across Auckland as the Herald heads towards the College Rifles Sports Club. It’s late June and the rain has been coming and going all day, and all month. It’s the sort of weather that’s killed off many a sports event, but there’s no need to worry on this occasion. In 2009 the club installed synthetic turf on its two rugby fields, rendering cancellations a thing of the past.
Located a couple of hundred metres off Remuera Rd in a flood-prone valley, the playing surfaces at the historical club have traditionally been terrible.
‘It was a s***hole,” says club manager Derek Rope.
Synthetic turf has come a long way. Up close it looks and almost feels like real grass, with little black rubber balls and flakes mimicking dirt. The lush carpet cost the club $2 million, $500,000 of which came from gaming trusts.
Synthetic turf also covers the scrum practice area and the netball and tennis courts. There’s a brand new pavilion, state-of-the-art gym and 32-bed accommodation block for touring sports teams.
The club’s bad days are well and truly behind it, thanks in part to its success in accessing gaming trust money. Seven trusts have kicked in over $1 million to help fund the redevelopment projects, and there is more to come. The club has already secured $300,000 of trust money to put towards the final phase of its development, a swimming pool complex, and is hoping to raise that figure by another $200,000.
Clubs like College Rifles in Remuera have developed programmes and facilities using gambling money. Photo / Richard RobinsonClubs like College Rifles in Remuera have developed programmes and facilities using gambling money. Photo / Richard Robinson
Given that just 23 of the country’s 17,534 pokies are situated in Remuera, it’s hardly a surprise that a club that began life in 1897 with a membership of military personnel drawn from Auckland’s schools has been held up as the poster child for the dubious wealth redistribution that accompanies the gaming trust model.
“Why should poor people in Mangere be supplying first-class facilities in Remuera?” Maori Party MP Te Ururoa Flavell asked when he launched his ill-fated Gambling Harm Reduction Bill.
It’s a fair question, and one Mr Rope doesn’t duck. “People say it’s a Remuera rich club – it’s not,” he says.
Only 25 per cent of the club’s 5000 members across a sports portfolio that ranges from badminton to lacrosse are Remuera locals.”
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11114737
For something completely different Charter schools in the UK a complete failure after years: of trialing charter schools which have the advantage of new buildings and public and private funding have shown an initial burst of achievement all be it less than public schools then a continual decline the independent uk reported today.
link?
tricledown
This education in UK thing sounds interesting – where did you hear/see it?
Looking forward to seeing a front bench reshuffle under DC. Parker should keep finance, but I suspect the others will be up. Ardern for all her promise has allowed Bennet to sail on, Hipkiss a failure V Parata, and who does housing, and health??
Today, 3 News reports:
LOL!
Key looking desperate even as he claims Cunliffe will be desperate to be PM at all costs and take Norman on as deputy of finance minister. Typical rightie that Key – manages to project all his shortcomings on to the opposition.
PS: The comments below the article mostly say Key is the desperate liar.
typical transference karol? He thinks other are behaving how he behaves???
I chuckled… how quickly he sinks to the personality politics he claims to never sink to.
We’ll see who’s truly desperate when Key is forced to make a deal with Winston Peters, despite constantly dismissing him.
Judith Collins for Leader of the Opposition?
I would prefer to see Gerry Brownlee as the next Natz leader in opposition. Even though they’re both vindictive snakes, big Ger is a bit better at hiding it. Whoever it is, Keys days are clearly numbered.
Brownlee as NACT leader…. at least that would swing the Chch vote to the left again.
“Whoever it is, Keys days are clearly numbered”
– Why, has his popularity dropped below 40% or something?
So <40% is the trigger point for a coup. Good to know, thanks for that.
Patrick Gower’s seen a letter, I’ve heard…
More like suggesting that the chances of Key getting rolled is highly unlikely based on how popular he is
might want to send a memo to Collins about that. It’s all very well being personally popular, but that doesn’t help her keep her cabinet post if Nats only get 45% in 2014.
That’ll explain Why Shearers gone then.
“Wellington Central MP Grant Robertson said he paid for taxis and accommodation himself, but his airfare was covered by taxpayers.
“As a parliamentarian I am able to use parliamentary resources to fly wherever I like in the country, that’s part of the arrangement we have.
“I think you should refer those inquiries about what we are allowed to do to Parliamentary Services because they set the rules.”
He said MPs’ salaries were reduced years ago on the basis that the ability to fly around the country was provided.
“My judgement is that I will not be using any other resources apart from that.” ”
Cool, more sense of entitlement.
” Deputy leaders
Each member of Parliament who is the deputy leader of a party whose members in the House of Representatives number not less than 25—
Base salary 179,300
plus
For each additional member of the party in the House of Representatives over 25 up to a maximum of 35 610
plus
For each additional member of the party in the House of Representatives over 35 up to a maximum of 45 340 ”
plus expenses.
Why have you quoted from an expired document Tracey?
because I didn’t know it was expired????
I went here
and followed the links
http://www.parliament.nz/en-nz/MPP/MPs/Pay/
This is what happened when I tried to get 2012 one
http://www.parliament.nz/en-nz/pb/presented/papers/50DBHOH_PAP24127_1/parliamentary-salaries-and-allowances-determination-2012
Love and hate – both emotional and highly excitable states. I guess that volatility could result in reversal. What would make the complacent hate Key? It would have to be something that would hurt them personally.
Keep cool, if the MP is entitled then he is entitled to a sense of entitlement.
here we go
“Deputy leaders
Each member of Parliament who is the deputy leader of a party whose members in the House of Representatives number not less than 25—
Base salary 182,800
plus
For each additional member of the party in the House of Representatives over 25 up to a maximum of 35 630
plus
For each additional member of the party in the House of Representatives over 35 up to a maximum of 45 360 ”
That any of them cant pay for anything associated with their latest job application is beyond me.
I think you’ve quoted from an expired document again Tracey. The Parliamentary Salaries and Allowances Determination 2012 expired on 30 June 2013.
bugger.
Nonetheless my guess is the latest one wont be lower, so my point, I hope is made.
What point, Tracey?
“plus
For each additional member of the party in the House of Representatives over 25 up to a maximum of 35 630”
What does that mean?
John Key and MPs perks
http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/9026069/MPs-cling-on-to-a-free-ride
Maori affairs interview with the candidates
Not sure if someone has already posted this. Very interesting and good viewpoints from all 3. The interviewer doesn’t hold back!
https://www.maoritelevision.com/news/politics/native-affairs–labour-panel
CV, ‘Native Affairs’ my friend, i found that quite an enlightening interview of the 3, Native Affairs for some strange reason seems to always elicit a better view of the people it interviews than the mainstream,
Shane Jones didn’t say anything there which would raise my opinion of Him, the reverse in fact, Jone’s faux ‘one of the boys in the smoko room’ line is simply cringe worthy,
David Cunliffe scored best with His ‘governments have the right to change gambling legislation and SkyCity better be prepared’ line and while i am not a gushing groupy Cunliffe leads in my opinion of who should win this contest,
Grant Robertson, disappointed me, full stop…
ahhhh yes Native Affairs it is.
Thanks, CV for the link.
Jones seems haughty for all his common man claims: often with his head tilted back and looking down his nose. Robertson looks like he’s doing a job interview – too wordy and sounds more like a backroom worker than someone to front for the party. Cunliffe is composed, clear, and has some short sharp answers – looks like a leader.
funny story!!..
if questiontime today was a talent-contest for labour…dyson got the gong..
http://whoar.co.nz/2013/new-zealand-parliament-list-of-questions-for-oral-answer-tuesday-27-august-2013/
(excerpt..)
“..bloody hell..!…ruth dyson is actually doing better than any of the three contenders..up against key..
..(dyson is expressing potent disgust at keys’ laughing/sneering at/saying that screwing vacant land owners out of 50% of their land values was ‘fun’..)
..and the strength of dysons’ performance is because of the fire in her belly..(and cunnliffe/robertson could do worse than take note of that..and spark up..!..)..”
phillip ure..
+1 Dyson really kicked arse in the house today. The news at six even covered the story reasonably well so that the National voters with a few brain cells to rub together will be thinking twice about continuing their support.
It’s bad enough that the government is trying to force people in Christchurch to sell their land at half its value, but to say that it’s their fault because they didn’t have land insurance is despicable! There is no land insurance available, which is something a Prime Minister with even half a brain would comprehend.
What is the point in the current government appealing the courts ruling when they will surely lose? What a god damn waste of taxpayers money.
Te reo putake
that these guys claim to champion the poor but think if parliamentary services says they can charge something to us they will… at least so far robertson will.
For once this is a cross-party rort with each party as bad as each other
not just on this issue WS
Bollocks. We live in a democracy and parliamentary representation is one of the guarantees of that. All parties get funded the same way from parliamentary services and the deal is that MP’s get free flights on our taxpayer owned airline. It’s been that way, or similar, for decades. Railways before that. A few weeks ago, the taxpayer paid for every Nat MP to fly to Nelson to have their conference. Did you complain then? Remember, the Tories also claim to champion the poor. Ask Appaller Bennett, she’s all about giving the poor a helping hand round the head and a loving boot up the arse.
The 3 candidates are flying around the country in an exercise in democracy. This is not only historic, it’s an entirely appropriate use of the Parliamentary budget. Don’t buy into the right’s meme ‘o’ the day, Tracey.
+1
So much for unifying the left.
Cunliffe rules out Norman as potential Finance Minister
http://www.newstalkzb.co.nz/auckland/news/nbpol/2086420229-cunliffe-rules-out-norman-as-potential-finance-minister
Greens co-leader Russel Norman won’t be the Finance Minister under a David Cunliffe or Grant Robertson-led Labour Government.
That’s a hopeless, contextless quote. This one is better:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11115155
It’s not entirely an open door invite to unite, but at least he didn’t completely shut the door in their face.
2 out of 10 for effort?
War! more war!
US forces to strike Syria (pending).
If Key sends troops — he is nothing more than his ulta ego
Obama.
The Smiling Assassin and the Mass murderer.
What a combination.
Sheeeezus.
Egyptian solders shoot and kill hundreds of unarmed protestors. Result: US continues billions in military aid.
Unknown, unproven party uses chemical weapons on Syrian civilians, killing hundreds. Result: war to take down Assad’s government.
“Unproven” bang bang.
Dann vs Gower-
Gower asks how Cunliffe is going to go man-to-man with Key, Dann asks if he would raise taxes on the rich-
Dann gets my vote…breath of fresh air
Links?
NZ GCSB Bill being covered on Al Jazeera tomorrow morning (19,30 GMT) I make that 6.30am NZ time, not around 7.30am as Selwyn Manning is tweeting.
Yes, 6:30 am Wednesday NZ time.
Robert Reich.
http://www.businessinsider.com/heres-why-america-stopped-caring-about-the-public-good-2013-8?IR=T
Robert Reich is very good, but in my opinion he doesn’t go as deep as Chris Hedges and Richard Wolff in explaining how this has all come about.
Essentially, the civil movements which were crucial in pressuring and forcing the politicians to create the New Deal were, over decades, deliberately dismantled, co-opted, undermined and destroyed.
It pays to remember how much pressure was required to make Roosevelt and the corporate/banking elite agree to the New Deal. Hundreds of workers, unemployed, activitists were killed in the process, during the Great Depression.
Today the Democrats are just as much friends of big oil, big pharma and big banking, as the Republicans. The civil movements which used to pressure for political economic change for the working class and underclass are long dead.
And so, the corporate and banking elite have the whole playing field their way now.
Atwater.
“That voter, in my judgment,” he claims, “will be more likely to vote his economic interests than he will anything else. And that is the voter that I think through a fairly slow but very steady process, will go Republican.” Because race no longer matters: “In my judgment Karl Marx [is right]… the real issues ultimately will be the economic issues.” He continues, in words that uncannily echo the “47 percent tape” (nothing new under the wingnut sun), that “statistically, as the number of non-producers in the system moves toward fifty percent,” the conservative coalition cannot but expand. Voila: a new Republican majority. Racism won’t have anything to do with it.
http://www.thenation.com/article/170841/exclusive-lee-atwaters-infamous-1981-interview-southern-strategy#axzz2d8Jra8tt
Cheers. 🙂 I believe that as usual, the next election will be one or lost on the Economy.
Sorry about the shutdown. Was setting up a new cdn system.
Didn’t seem to last too long.
Seemed to last an eternity from my perspective. But then again, time is hardly a constant 😈
Episodes of The Good Wife to watch, makes time pass easily.
The Hustle followed by Stargate Atlantis.
Testing the updates. They look ok so far.
The re-edit still seems to be working.
Drat the nzonscreen images are not there. Odd.