Now I get it – commercial property is almost entirely valued on the amount of rent you can charge. Whatever building O'Connell street bistro was in was worth whatever the rent says it is worth – $250,000 PA apparently was the ground rent for just that restaurant. Cut the rent by 20% and the building value drops the same. So I get that these fat cat commercial landlords would rather sit on an empty, increasingly tatty building theoretically worth one price than drop rents and take a bath on their assets.
Queen street was dying before COVID. These landlords still can't even organise a continuous veranda along the entire length of the street, for crying out loud. What we are seeing here is a bunch of entitled bastards grumpy that capitalism, for once, is not a one way street.
When a property can fetch 250.000 in annual lease why bother with having a nice downtown. Auckland downtown has looked like rubbish since 98 and the black out there. Gosh, have a look at the Facade of St. James Theater, which once you get inside is a beautiful gem in an oasis of rubbish building and greed induced tackiness.
But yeah, these guys are not there to help. And fwiw, people will still not go to AKL down town, car or not, who can afford to a. shop there and b. park there? Fairly few.
In 2004 a boss of mine – quite a succesfull pastry business in town – was thinking of moving down town.
He came back to the shop and laughed and laughed and laughed and laughed, and when he got his breath again he told me that the rent on Queen Street is equal to the Rive Gauche of the Seine in Paris. That is where Chanel, Hermes etc have their shops.
Deluded, arrogant and the worst people to complain about hte uglyness of a City. The City got ugly because of them in the first place. But hey they are landlords, architects (must have more empty towers to build) etc. This is simply a joke among many.
Without any support from the landlord, it was just impossible.”
So you’re saying the building’s landlord didn’t support his tenants during lockdown?
“Yeah. He just refused any support at all. Unfortunately … there was absolutely no way to force him to help support us. He didn’t have to. It was that simple. He chose not to. He chose to pass on a 10 per cent rent increase. He chose to pass on penalty interest. He chose to pass on his legal costs. We’re up to $18,000-$20,000 of his legal costs – not even our own. Every time we were officially in default of the lease, it entitled him to pass his costs onto us. It was a very tough position he took on everyone.”
And this is what i and many other 'leaseholders' have asked, begged even for. A government that legislates to the best of all its citizens at the beginning of the fucking plague. Legislate that they at the very lest can not increase rent during lockdown – any level – currently we are in Level 1 just as a reminder. They did not. We asked, begged that they put responsabilities to the landlords when they got their defferred mortgage payemnts etc last year so that the lease holders could manange during full lockdown. WE – the small and larger businesses got f uck all.
All the businesses got – and i exclude the very big ones as they are treated differently to any of us micro, small and medium sized businesses, was the money to pass on to their staff and a payment for ourself. Not enough to pay rent or lease, but hey its not as if anyone really cared. If we fail cause we don't have several years of rent and rates and insurance and GST tucked away we should just die silently.
This government has done nothing for commercial leaseholder to make sure they a. can survive or manage to nurse their business through, or .b get out of a lease they can not service without being punished by the Landlord for a fucking plague they had not hand in creating in the first place.
And this government, like any of the previous ones have never held commercial landlords to account, have a look at Rotorua where empty shop fronts are an eyesore, empty for 10s of years, dirty and filthy and nothing can be done, it appears.
So essentially the country gets what the government allows. And currently the biggest hinderniss to small business creation is the lack of affordable business spaces – and that has been so for a while. And the government is asleep at the wheel.
Amazing that piece you have linked to Sabine. The owners of many commercial buildings are sucking the life out of the small businesses that rent them. A maker of great German sausages had a small shop in central Nelson but was forced out by the rental cost. That lost him his wee rented space and us his excellent product. I have forgotten what is now where he used to be – probably selling jewellery.
This problem of rising rents happens in inflationary bubbles – the big landlords can get their properties revalued monthly, six-monthly, annually and push up the rent accordingly. The rent is not based on a percentage calculated using the value of the property when the lease began, no it is just usury using the inflation of values in the area to maintain a set percentage income from the inflated value of the rented space. And the values see-saw up as surrounding landlords do the same.
Centrepoint in the 1970's in a prime area of London stayed vacant for a year? while rents shot up and it was being revalued constantly. The empty building stood as a golden piece of collateral enabling further borrowing for other mendacious bits of business acumen.
Constructed from 1963 to 1966, it was one of the first skyscrapers in London, and as of 2009 was the city's joint 27th-tallest building. It stood empty from the time of its completion until 1975, and was briefly occupied by housing activists in 1974. Since 1995 it has been a Grade II listed building. Architecture firm: R. Seifert and Partners Town or city: London, WC1
(Mod – Sorry about the image – cleared that away. Forgot the horrendous amount of code required.)
Not a commercial building. But part of the building commerce which seems to throw up shysters to the point one wonders who is reliable, legal, has probity etc. There needs to be a record of companies and people who are involved in shonky and shoddy dealings that people can do a credit check on before committing themselves to anything. Leopards don't change their spots, and short of being imprisoned, the cunning so.s will just find a way to repeat their crimes.
Twenty-one homes were eventually declared dangerous or not up to scratch and had to be abandoned.
Bella Vista Homes director Danny Cancian has been ordered to pay $60,000 for breaches of the Building Act, with the judge describing him as a bully by nature who was arrogant and entitled. His failed company was also convicted in a reserved decision last year but has not been fined.
(Cancian is on a jobseeker benefit for now, so unlikely to be paying anything to anybody and just waiting to slip, slide away.)
Anyone remember the film The Money Pit which played up all the things that can go wrong with building work.
Today on The Detail, professor of construction management at AUT, John Tookey breaks down the cost of building a house from buying the land, gaining resource consent, and putting in sewerage to fitting the windows. He also explains the complexities of fixing the sector, and here's one clue: we have to lower our expectations of the house we want to build…
But Tookey also says the government has to be the major player in the mass house building plan by putting in large scale orders to build ahead of the market place… "We're dealing with a small economy. The costs associated with supplying a small economy are substantial compared to anywhere else." Take two comparable economies, with roughly the same population, New Zealand and Sydney. The similarity ends there.
"They have about 13,000 square kilometres for Sydney and the district around. We have a couple of hundred thousand (square kilometres) we're spread over multiple islands, multiple locations, we expect to be able to build at the same price everywhere." The "little island of Sydney" can be supplied through about 400 builders' merchants, New Zealand needs 850…
well that is actually interesting, and for what its worth, also makes sense.
from the article linked
NZ First is understood to be blocking Labour's plans to intervene in the commercial property market to force rent negotiations due to Covid-19 disruption.
The Government's initial response to Covid-19 included a swift promise to lengthen the time period that landlords needed to wait before giving notice to evict tenants of commercial properties who had not paid rent from 10 to 30 days.
Sources say Little took a plan to Cabinet on Monday which would have forced landlords and tenants to negotiate for lower rents if the tenants could demonstrate losses related to Covid-19.
With its ministers having failed to agree to the proposal in the Cabinet meeting, NZ First considered the issue at caucus this week and voted not to support the proposal.
NZ First's chief of staff, Jon Johansson, is said to have communicated to Labour chief of staff Raj Nahna on Wednesday that the proposal should not be brought back to Cabinet.
The reasons for NZ First's reluctance to support were two-fold, the Herald was told by people familiar with the party's position.
It would represent an intervention in contract law in an area where many leases agreed since 2012 include provisions for "emergencies" which appear to cover the disruption.
Since 2012, the most commonly used standard format lease, which originated from the Auckland District Law Society, includes a clause which spells out what happens when tenants have "no access in an emergency".
Known as "clause 27.5", it was developed with the experience of tenants who were unable to access undamaged buildings in the red zone following the Christchurch Earthquake in mind.
The Auckland District Law Society issued a statement on April 7 cautioning that the meaning of the clause had not been tested in court, and which some lawyers interpreted as a warning that the clause may not be the solution some imagined.
However, the Government has acknowledged the clause is leading to negotiations.
NZ First is also believed to have taken the position that intervening in the leasing market could allow large foreign owned companies to game negotiations with building owners, which were largely New Zealanders.
This week Labour has maintained that negotiations within Government were ongoing.
Asked for an update on his plans to address commercial rent concerns, a spokeswoman for Little said "the issue is still under active consideration".
so since then the government has changed, Winston has retired and we still have no plan nor law in place to deal with landlords like the above mentioned.
I get it its easy to blame NZFirst but i don't think that the points raised in this article put shame on NZ first, but rather on the government having done nothing at all in regards to this since they won a majority and a 'man -date' to change all sorts of things.
but maybet he truth really just lies in here
During his speech to the Wellington Chamber of Commerce on Thursday, Finance Minister Grant Robertson said tenants with leases using the standard Auckland District Law Society leases "are in a position" to negotiate with landlords over the impact of Covid-19.
"We've certainly had good feedback from right around the country on where many tenants and landlords have come to an acceptable arrangement," Robertson said.
"But we're aware that that hasn't worked in every single case and, yes, the Government is still considering that matter and we hope to have something to say about that in the very near future."
Labour has not directly responded to questions about whether NZ First was blocking its plans.
On Friday, the Prime Minister's office provided a short statement which simply confirmed parts of Little's earlier statement. Later a spokesman for the Prime Minister's office clarified that it did not comment on ongoing discussions.
Its always easiest to blame those that have left the building. But this again, seems to be where Labour came up with a solution that would not have stood the test, and then well, did nothing at all, and here we are a year later, and businesses still closing down because Landlords still don't have to work with their tenants. And next lockdown – and there will be another one for sure – people will again pay rent to a business they are not allowed to access and that clause 27.5 will still be unusable.
so very kind, so very gentle, and so very callous towards to fellow Kiwis who sacrificed their businesses to people who don't care and a government who can't get things done.
Gosh Sabine yours at 29/4 7.03pm is sure a gobstopper.
I can see why the mods are trying to limit the cut and paste you put up. I think it is useful to have some detail that illustrates concerns and make a point. But this one is more than what Morrissey and I have had cut down to anorexic size.
In hindsight Peters was correct. Once government starts messing around with commercial contracts all sorts of unintended things start happening. Some of the ideas being floated at the time would have helped some tenants, but would have allowed other tenants to try and have one over their landlord. For every arsehole landlord there's probably three shyster tenants and plenty were trying it on.
The bluff of implied clauses and subsidised arbitration worked for most people, us included, and the arbitration subsidy was hardly taken up.
this is a significant piece of legislation. My understanding is it was not presented as a remit for party members (although I will stand corrected on this).
vote compass at the time of our last election showed only 29% supported this. Stand up for women also commissioned a poll, which showed a similar level of support.
I hope to post a comment soon about the disgrace that was Wellington pride this year, due to the trans gender radical exclusionary practices against a group of older/elderly lesbians. Weka, if you read it when I post it, feel free to post it as an article.
Anker, i doubt the current ruling class gives a piece of fudge about having a 'man – date' or not. And support or lack there of has never stopped a party from doing what it believes will 'benefit' them.
When there's a will there's a way for some, but for most people needing change that benefits all, there is little done as slowly as possible. But hey there's moral outrage that has created comment and disturbance attracting attention to an area of malaise. So some pollies have picked on that one area of life and elevated it to VIP status to the point of changing integral legal provisions for us all.
I note urgent requests for concern, support and action for other areas of human need that are eternal yet have slid down the priorities; not a 'today' thing, 'sorry you've had your day we're moving on' seems the response.
Hi Anker. It's interesting that this move pushes beyond self identification of gender to 'sex', which is widely recognised as (in almost all humans) biologically binary. This does seem an extreme position.
KSayshi, I can't say what is behind the Pride Day issues, but what happened was disgusting.
A group of older lesbians, some of whom are elderly were banned from Pride because they amongst other things weren't prepared to go along with the line that "Trans Women are Real Women". They protested outside the Michael Fowler Centre where the event was held as part of the resirected group the Larvas. Another women who is not a member of the Larvas, was inside staffing a stall. During her break she went out to offer support to the Larvas and took them some tape and scissors to mend their placard. She tried to get back into the centre, but was accosted by four Pride people, one a "big burly man'. They man handled her and accused her of carrying an offensive weapon (the scissors) and then when she refused to leave they called the police, who came. This woman is very frail and actually has terminal cancer.
Next thing there was a counter protest to the Larvas. A group of young people which grew to about 100 started chanting "fucking terfs". I find this completely disgusting.
so they knew the name of the guy, did not stop him from leaving the airport to travel on his merry ways. But its all good, eventually someone thought that might not be a good look so now the guys is in MIQ and may even get a fine, err prison time, or something.
IT actually does not matter if he is a low, casual, or flashing siren red case, the fact is he could do what he did and thus showed that others can do that too. Feel safer already?
…they knew the name of the guy, did not stop him from leaving the airport to travel on his merry ways.
Read that early this morning. Added it to our list of 'shit that simply does not add up/make sense' regarding Te Virus. I'm betting he's a 'noter' of some ilk. Fact that he's now in MIQ is immaterial. The lack of consistency has been appalling.
Those lucky enough to survive this shit show will look back in wonder at the amount of bull the general population have swallowed.
The Immigration Dept has been incompetent for years so theres no reason to expect them to become become competent overnight because Covid.
Hopefully it remains only incompetence and hasnt descended to corruption.
Agree there are some worrying signs (and an odd reluctance to inquire) but I hope that is not the case as if so then we are really in the shit….corruption is harder to unwind than incompetence
"he fact is he could do what he did and thus showed that others can do that too. Feel safer already"
They were able to identify around 70 people from Perth who were stopped from boarding ( they would have flown first to Sydney or Melbourne as 1 stop flights are cheaper than non stop and give more options)
This one person had unusual travel arrangements as his trans tasman flight was cancelled and he re-booked at last minute so was missed during the plane boarding. Only knew about after he arrived in Auckland and had left the terminal before the cross checking was complete. Of course they knew his name as they do for every passenger on every flight.
he was coming from Perth with about 2 community cases in 2 mill people , not Mumbai
Well then, its all good and then they can release him from quarantine and also from any eventual charges. Cause why not. j
oh, btw, the Indian mutation has been found in the UK
But Dr Susan Hopkins of Public Health England said cases had been found in the UK that were not linked to travel, with their origin being investigated.
More than 70 cases have been identified in England and Scotland.
and the US and other places
A variant of the coronavirus first spotted in India has been detected in the U.S. and 18 other countries and territories, adding to a growing roster of evolutionary spinoffs of the virus that scientists and health authorities are keeping under close observation.
So you might just want to think about how glib you want to be about these lax rule enforcers and the idiots that can break rules and get away with it as really that is a good way to get killed in these plague times.
Yep, 16 billion dollars later and we are ok with having infected people in the country. We could have had this without having debt to the eyeballs for the next 2 generations. I would like to have the rule breakers named and shown on the news. I think this would reduce the behavior significantly. Also, it seems that iwi groups can call the government out and justify those checkpoints.
the rules were clear, they were broken, and thus…..we again got lucky that that person was not a carrier, and did not infect anyone he came in contact with on his way to Northland once out of the airport.
Grey Power Central Otago president Margaret Hill said older locals are already working out what to give up so they can pay their power bills over winter.
Auckland Action Against Poverty co-ordinator Brooke Pao Stanley said the standard rate was not enough.
"I know people are quite conscious about the power that they do use. People won't put the heaters on or the heat pumps because they know that at the end of the month they are going to be just too much. So people do often go cold, get sick over winter because of that."
But Hill thought permanently doubling the payment for pensioners would discourage them from getting out and about.
"With just the single rate they feel free to go to the library which is heated, to the card afternoons where there is heat on and to other social places where they meet other people and there is heat there they are not paying for."
well if we take that comment from Hill to the extreme, we don't need any heating assistance as the poor old ones can just go to the heated library, or the card afternoons, and heck, why not open these places for the night too, add a few cods and the dear oldies can sleep in a warm place.
My annual power kW is around 4500 thats for 2 people, with 2 heat pumps, one of which is used a lot in summer for night time cooling. Theres auto dishwasher and washing machine. We are both home a lot.
I only turn the hotwater on for about 1 hr per day as thats enough for 2 ( the top half of cylinder is where hottest water is) and heat pumps are mostly used at lowest settings during day and a bit higher at night. Dehumidify is the low setting for cooling.
Heating costs have gone up considerably. But then hey, just don't use electricty and you won't have a big bill. Fixed, you are so awesome!!!!!! Between you and that lady from the grey power that is worried about olds not going to the heated library they sure have it good.
You mean a special needs grant, which has to be paid back. Plus Work and Income has a limit to what they will lend so tough shit if it's been a bad year and you've needed other things like emergency dental care, clothing, repairs etc which also need paying back.
Not everyone has the good credit rating needed to access cheaper power too. It's costly to be poor.
Would be good if we could get back to having really cheap electricity for the hot water system at night-time off-peak rates. On my bill there doesn't seem to be a great difference from the 24 hour rate. I'm with Trustpower – I'm reluctant to be changing power suppliers, forced to shop around, a power bargain-hunter. But fair dos for fair systems is what I expect.
I sometimes read about huge spikes for business and it underlines that our small country must be being screwed to keep so many profit hungry businesses going. Are we being milked?
Powershop peak rates 36c kWhr, off peak 27c which includes fixed charges ( but not daily charge) they also have 'specials' about 1 a week which are lesser price via an app.
off peak is 11am-5 pm , and 9pm- 7am and all weekend. My hotwater comes on at between 5 and 6 am for 1 hr ( using timer)
Does Hill seriously believe the winter allowance comes close to covering winter power bill increases? Surely live pensioners are way more likely to head down to the library of a morning than dead ones.
Just wondering, if that person has a disability and/or looks after their spouse etc…
Perhaps some solar power panels connected to central heating/hot water should be considered and funded by need instead of doubling payments. It would keep homes warm and dry and increases the value, being an alternative to power grid supply (renewable). Win win win all around….
Washington is not stopping at the destruction of journalists
Now the fury of this outlaw regime is being directed at businesspeople….
…. Washington uses sanctions as a tool to destabilize governments that refuse to kow-tow to it. Sanctions are a weapon of war on civilians. Richard Nixon made this clear when, with Chile’s 1970 election of socialist Salvador Allende, the US president ordered the CIA to “make the economy scream,” to “prevent Allende from coming to power or to unseat him.”
Sanctions can destroy the economy of a country by causing hyperinflation and unemployment and preventing the import of necessities such as food, medicine, and equipment to keep infrastructure and industries running. Sanctions drive capital flight from targeted nations, as corporations and financial institutions seek to avoid being hurt themselves. This results in deadly consequences for the civilian population.
According to the United Nations, US sanctions are unilateral coercive measures that violate international laws. The UN General Assembly has repeatedly called on all states not to recognize or apply unilateral coercive measures, such as those employed by the US. Every year since 1992 it has condemned the US blockade of Cuba; Washington’s response has been to worsen it. The 120 member Non-Aligned Movement has condemned sanctions on Venezuela. ….
something wrong with american cops !!how can they be this stupid ?? ive seen so many vids like this they seem to have their own form of dementia i guess too many cheesy movies ?rotted their brains ?
Biden makes a good speech. Calling out the 1%'s deliberate non-contribution to society was a nice touch. Probably put a target on his back, but there'd already be a line, it being Murica and all.
Don't know if this has already been covered, but this is the latest that I have seen on the fight for Julian Assange. Fight the good fight Jennifer Robinson – she has that special interest in progression of all people which is so admirable.
"These publications are immensely important, and he faces 175 years in prison in the United States for those publications. The injustice of it could not be more stark so I think it’s really important people remember this.”
One of the accusations levelled at Assange and WikiLeaks is that publishing the documents unredacted risked harm for people, but Robinson says that has never been backed up by evidence and, thus far, no harm came to anyone as a result of the publication.
“That material had already been published online by other publications as a result of a security breach by the Guardian newspaper. The decision by WikiLeaks to publish that material unredacted was because it was already circulating online.”…
On the 4 January, Robinson won the case against extradition for Assange, but she says it was the right outcome for the wrong reasons.
Her latest mission is to improve educational opportunities for public school children. She recently founded the Acacia Awards, in association with the Public Education Foundation in Australia, in which prominent people who were educated in the public system will sponsor a student from their former school or area, providing mentorship and a small scholarship…
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Gaming laptops represent a significant investment for passionate gamers, offering portability and powerful performance for immersive gaming experiences. However, a common concern among potential buyers is their lifespan. Unlike desktop PCs, which allow for easier component upgrades, gaming laptops have inherent limitations due to their compact and integrated design. This ...
The annual inventory report of New Zealand's greenhouse gas emissions has been released, showing that gross emissions have dropped for the third year in a row, to 78.4 million tons: All-told gross emissions have decreased by over 6 million tons since the Zero Carbon Act was passed in 2019. ...
Experiencing a locked computer can be frustrating, especially when you need access to your files and applications urgently. The methods to unlock your computer will vary depending on the specific situation and the type of lock you encounter. This guide will explore various scenarios and provide step-by-step instructions on how ...
While the world has largely transitioned to digital communication, faxing still holds relevance in certain industries and situations. Fortunately, gone are the days of bulky fax machines and dedicated phone lines. Today, you can easily send and receive faxes directly from your computer, offering a convenient and efficient way to ...
In our increasingly digital world, home computers have become essential tools for work, communication, entertainment, and more. However, this increased reliance on technology also exposes us to various cyber threats. Understanding these threats and taking proactive steps to protect your home computer is crucial for safeguarding your personal information, finances, ...
In the ever-evolving world of technology, server-based computing has emerged as a cornerstone of modern digital infrastructure. This article delves into the concept of server-based computing, exploring its various forms, benefits, challenges, and its impact on the way we work and interact with technology. Understanding Server-Based Computing: At its core, ...
The absolute brass neck of this guy.We want more medical doctors, not more spin doctors, Luxon was saying a couple of weeks ago, and now we’re told the guy has seven salaried adults on TikTok duty. Sorry, doing social media. The absolute brass neck of it. The irony that the ...
Buzz from the Beehive Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones relishes spatting and eagerly takes issue with environmentalists who criticise his enthusiasm for resource development. He relishes helping the fishing industry too. And so today, while the media are making much of the latest culling in the public service to ...
Having written, taught and worked for the US government on issues involving unconventional warfare and terrorism for 30-odd years, two things irritate me the most when the subject is discussed in public. The first is the Johnny-come-lately academics-turned-media commentators who … Continue reading → ...
Eric Crampton writes – Kainga Ora is the government’s house building agency. It’s been building a lot of social housing. Kainga Ora has its own (but independent) consenting authority, Consentium. It’s a neat idea. Rather than have to deal with building consents across each different territorial authority, Kainga Ora ...
Muriel Newman writes – The Coalition Government says it is moving with speed to deliver campaign promises and reverse the damage done by Labour. One of their key commitments is to “defend the principle that New Zealanders are equal before the law.” To achieve this, they have pledged they “will not advance ...
Chris Trotter writes – The absence of anything resembling a fightback from the public servants currently losing their jobs is interesting. State-sector workers’ collective fatalism in the face of Coalition cutbacks indicates a surprisingly broad acceptance of impermanence in the workplace. Fifty years ago, lay-offs in the thousands ...
Mariupol, on the Azov Sea coast, was one of the first cities to suffer almost complete destruction after the start of the Ukraine War started in late February 2022. We remember the scenes of absolute destruction of the houses and city structures. The deaths of innocent civilians – many of ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – Ten years ago, I wrote the following in a Listener column: Every year around one in five new-born babies will be reliant on their caregivers benefit by Christmas. This pattern has persisted from at least 1993. For Maori the number jumps to over one in three. ...
Climate change is expected to generate more and more extreme events, delivering a sort of structural shock to inflation that central banks will have to react to as if they were short-term cyclical issues. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMy pick of the six newsey things to know from Aotearoa’s ...
It’s a simple deal. We pay taxes in order to finance the social services we want and need. The carnage now occurring across the public sector though, is breaking that contract. Over 3,000 jobs have been lost so far. Many are in crucial areas like Education where the impact of ...
Hi,A friend had their 40th over the weekend and decided to theme it after Curb Your Enthusiasm fashion icon Susie Greene. Captured in my tiny kitchen before I left the house, I ending up evoking a mix of old lesbian and Hillary Clinton — both unintentional.Me vs Hillary ClintonIf you’re ...
This is a re-post from Andrew Dessler at the Climate Brink blogIn 2023, the Earth reached temperature levels unprecedented in modern times. Given that, it’s reasonable to ask: What’s going on? There’s been lots of discussions by scientists about whether this is just the normal progression of global warming or if something ...
The schools are on holiday and the sun is shining in the seaside village and all day long I have been seeing bunches of bikes; Mums, Dads, teens and toddlers chattering, laughing, happy, having a bloody great time together. Cheers, AT, for the bits of lane you’ve added lately around the ...
Today in our National-led authoritarian nightmare: Shane Jones thinks Ministers should be above the law: New Zealand First MP Shane Jones is accusing the Waitangi Tribunal of over-stepping its mandate by subpoenaing a minister for its urgent hearing on the Oranga Tamariki claim. The tribunal is looking into the ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Politicians across the political spectrum are implicated in the New Zealand media’s failing health. Either through neglect or incompetent interventions, successive governments have failed to regulate, foster, and allow a healthy Fourth Estate that can adequately hold politicians and the powerful to account. ...
Citizen Science writes – Last week saw two significant developments in the debate over the treatment of trans-identifying children and young people – the release in Britain of the final report of Dr Hilary Cass’s review into gender healthcare, and here in New Zealand, the news that the ...
One night while sleeping in my bed I had a beautiful dreamThat all the people of the world got together on the same wavelengthAnd began helping one anotherNow in this dream, universal love was the theme of the dayPeace and understanding and it happened this wayAfter such an eventful day ...
This is a guest post by Oscar Simms who is a housing activist, volunteer for the Coalition for More Homes, and was the Labour Party candidate for Auckland Central at the last election. ...
Turning what Labour called the “holiday highway” into a four-lane expressway from Auckland to Whangarei could bring at least an economic benefit of nearly two billion a year for Northland each year. And it could help bring an end to poverty in one of New Zealand’s most deprived regions. The ...
Tonight’s six-stack includes: launching his substack with a bunch of his previous documentaries, including this 1992 interview with Dame Whina Cooper. and here crew give climate activists plenty to do, including this call to submit against the Fast Track Approvals bill. writes brilliantly here on his substack ...
On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
You're in the mall when you hear it: some kind of popping sound in the distance, kids with fireworks, maybe. But then a moment of eerie stillness is followed by more of the fireworks sound and there’s also screaming and shrieking and now here come people running for their lives.Does ...
Karl du Fresne writes – There’s a crisis in the news media and the media are blaming it on everyone except themselves. Culpability is being deflected elsewhere – mainly to the hapless Minister of Communications, Melissa Lee, and the big social media platforms that are accused of hoovering ...
I don’t normally send out two newsletters in a day but I figured I’d say something about… the news. If two newsletters is a bit much then maybe just skip one, I don’t want to overload people. Alternatively if you’d be interested in sometimes receiving multiple, smaller updates from me, ...
Buzz from the Beehive David Seymour and Winston Peters today signalled that at least two ministers of the Crown might be in Wellington today. Seymour (as Associate Minister of Education) announced the removal of more red tape, this time to make it easier for new early learning services to be ...
Politicians across the political spectrum are implicated in the New Zealand media’s failing health. Either through neglect or incompetent interventions, successive governments have failed to regulate, foster, and allow a healthy Fourth Estate that can adequately hold politicians and the powerful to account. Our political system is suffering from the ...
David Farrar writes – The Broadcasting Standards Authority ruled: Comments by radio host Kate Hawkesby suggesting Māori and Pacific patients were being prioritised for surgery due to their ethnicity were misleading and discriminatory, the Broadcasting Standards Authority has found. It is a fact such patients are prioritised. ...
PRC and its proxies in Solomons have been preparing for these elections for a long time.A lot of money, effort and intelligence have gone into ensuring an outcome that won’t compromise Beijing’s plans. Cleo Paskall writes – On April 17th the Solomon Islands, a country of ...
Is speeding up the trip to and from Wellington airport by 12 minutes worth spending up more than $10 billion? Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The six news items that stood out to me in the last day to 8:26 am today are:The Lead: Transport Minister Simeon Brownannounced ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
The Government’s newly announced review of methane emissions reduction targets hints at its desire to delay Aotearoa New Zealand’s urgent transition to a climate safe future, the Green Party said. ...
The Government must commit to the Maitai School building project for students with high and complex needs, to ensure disabled students from the top of the South Island have somewhere to learn. ...
Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey and his Government colleagues have made a meal of their mental health commitments, showing how flimsy their efforts to champion the issue truly are, says Labour Mental Health spokesperson Ingrid Leary. ...
Māori are yet to see anything from this Government except cuts, reversals and taking our people backwards, Māori Development spokesperson Willie Jackson said. ...
The Coalition Government’s refusal to commit to ongoing funding for social housing is seeing the sector pull back on developments and families watch their dreams of securing a home fade away, says Labour Housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty. ...
Changes to minimum wage and benefit indexation means many New Zealanders will get less this year, as the Government gives a big tax break to landlords instead. ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
Refreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...
Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson is speaking at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide, promoting New Zealand wool, and outlining the coalition Government’s support for the revitalisation the sector. "New Zealand’s wool exports reached $400 million in the year to 30 June 2023, and the coalition Government ...
The Government is making legislative changes to make it easier for new early learning services to be established, and for existing services to operate, Associate Education Minister David Seymour says. The changes involve repealing the network approval provisions that apply when someone wants to establish a new early learning service, ...
Changes to the Resource Management Act will align consenting for coal mining to other forms of mining to reduce barriers that are holding back economic development, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The inconsistent treatment of coal mining compared with other extractive activities is burdensome red tape that fails to acknowledge ...
Trade, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Todd McClay has concluded productive discussions with ministerial counterparts in Beijing today, in support of the New Zealand-China trade and economic relationship. “My meeting with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao reaffirmed the complementary nature of the bilateral trade relationship, with our Free Trade Agreement at its ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today paid tribute to Singapore’s outgoing Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. Meeting in Singapore today immediately before Prime Minister Lee announced he was stepping down, Prime Minister Luxon warmly acknowledged his counterpart’s almost twenty years as leader, and the enduring legacy he has left for Singapore and South East ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. While in Singapore as part of his visit to South East Asia this week, Prime Minister Luxon also met with Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and will meet with Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has made further appointments to the Board of Antarctica New Zealand as part of a continued effort to ensure the Scott Base Redevelopment project is delivered in a cost-effective and efficient manner. The Minister has appointed Neville Harris as a new member of the Board. Mr ...
Finance Minister Nicola Willis will travel to the United States on Tuesday to attend a meeting of the Five Finance Ministers group, with counterparts from Australia, the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. “I am looking forward to meeting with our Five Finance partners on how we can work ...
The coalition Government has today announced purrfect and pawsitive changes to the Residential Tenancies Act to give tenants with pets greater choice when looking for a rental property, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Pets are important members of many Kiwi families. It’s estimated that around 64 per cent of New ...
State Highway 1 (SH1) through Wellington City is heavily congested at peak times and while planning continues on the duplicate Mt Victoria Tunnel and Basin Reserve project, the Government has also asked NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) to consider and provide advice on a Long Tunnel option, Transport Minister Simeon Brown ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Foreign Minister Winston Peters have condemned Iran’s shocking and illegal strikes against Israel. “These attacks are a major challenge to peace and stability in a region already under enormous pressure," Mr Luxon says. "We are deeply concerned that miscalculation on any side could ...
Hundreds of people in little over a week have turned out in Northland to hear Regional Development Minister Shane Jones speak about plans for boosting the regional economy through infrastructure. About 200 people from the infrastructure and associated sectors attended an event headlined by Mr Jones in Whangarei today. Last ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti has today thanked outgoing Health New Zealand – Te Whatu Ora Chair Dame Karen Poutasi for her service on the Board. “Dame Karen tendered her resignation as Chair and as a member of the Board today,” says Dr Reti. “I have asked her to ...
The NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has signalled their proposed delivery approach for the Government’s 15 Roads of National Significance (RoNS), with the release of the State Highway Investment Proposal (SHIP) today, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Boosting economic growth and productivity is a key part of the Government’s plan to ...
New Zealand is renewing its connections with a world facing urgent challenges by pursuing an active, energetic foreign policy, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “Our country faces the most unstable global environment in decades,” Mr Peters says at the conclusion of two weeks of engagements in Egypt, Europe and the United States. “We cannot afford to sit back in splendid ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced the Australian Governor-General, His Excellency General The Honourable David Hurley and his wife Her Excellency Mrs Linda Hurley, will make a State visit to New Zealand from Tuesday 16 April to Thursday 18 April. The visit reciprocates the State visit of former Governor-General Dame Patsy Reddy ...
Associate Health Minister David Seymour has announced that Medsafe has approved 11 cold and flu medicines containing pseudoephedrine. Pharmaceutical suppliers have indicated they may be able to supply the first products in June. “This is much earlier than the original expectation of medicines being available by 2025. The Government recognised ...
New Zealand and the United States have recommitted to their strategic partnership in Washington DC today, pledging to work ever more closely together in support of shared values and interests, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The strategic environment that New Zealand and the United States face is considerably more ...
April 11, 2024 Joint Declaration by United States Secretary of State the Honorable Antony J. Blinken and New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs the Right Honourable Winston Peters We met today in Washington, D.C. to recommit to the historic partnership between our two countries and the principles that underpin it—rule ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Duckett, Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne iamharin/Shutterstock For many people, the term “bulk billed” refers to a GP visit they don’t have to pay ...
Emmas Hislop, Sidnam and Wehipeihana discuss what’s in a name. Emma Sidnam: Hello Emmas! Thank you so much for agreeing to do this with me. My first question for you is related to what’s been on my mind for a while. It’s very important. You see we’ve recently had some ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Sievers, Research Fellow, Global Wetlands Project, Australia Rivers Institute, Griffith University Chris Brown Humans love the coast. But we love it to death, so much so we’ve destroyed valuable coastal habitat – in the case of some types of habitat, ...
Josh Thomson on the 80s milk ad jingle he can’t stop singing, the beauty of The Simpsons, why Jersey Shore is as good as Shakespeare and more. For someone who spends a lot of time on our screens, popping up in everything from 7 Days to Taskmaster, Educators to Good ...
In apparent defiance of the Biden administration, the Netanyahu government has now initiated missile strikes against Iran. Last Saturday night (Sunday morning in New Zealand) Iran launched more than 300 drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles against Israeli military targets. With the assistance of US, UK and possibly French forces, ...
Māori representation brings a perspective that encompasses not only the interests of Māori communities but also a broader, holistic approach to environmental stewardship and community well-being, principles deeply embedded in Te Ao Māori (the Māori ...
This week in Auckland, a group of young people took over the microphone at a ministerial press conference, to explain why they oppose the Fast-Track Approvals Bill. One young woman said, ‘We’re here because we love Aotearoa New Zealand. We want to raise our children in an environment that’s thriving, ...
The summer was wonderful. Evie was wonderful, too; finally a teenager, finally worthy of long, hot days. She shaved her legs for the first time and bought cut-off shorts from the op-shop that made them look long. She got a Warehouse singlet so tight on her new shape that her ...
When Thomas James was on his solo camp as part of Outward Bound, the keen outdoorsman didn’t find it too challenging, as others often do. In what might just be the perfect illustration of his character, he saw it as a great opportunity to solve a few problems. “I thought, ...
From the unstable and drippy to the hi-tech and pretty, here’s our ranking of all the tunnels you can drive through in this country. The first tunnel seems to have been built in 2200BC in Babylonia, kicking off a global phenomenon for digging holes in order to get places more ...
Lucinda Bennett on the art of being greedy but resourceful. This is an excerpt from our weekly food newsletter, The Boil Up. When I picture the market, it is always this time of year. Crisp air, dripping nose, counting coins with cold fingers. Sunlight pale, filtered through specks of dew still ...
Zoë Colling’s favourite piece in the ‘That’s So Last Century’ collection is a lubrication chart for a sewing machine from the ’60s. It’s about the size of a postcard, and carefully maintained. “I like it that this piece of ephemera highlights that manual and technical side of the skill involved ...
Kia Ora Gaza A passionate haka reverberated through Auckland International Airport as a medical team of three New Zealand doctors received an emotional farewell from a big crowd of supporters before flying to Turkey to join the international Freedom Flotilla to Gaza. The doctors, who left Auckland yesterday, hope to ...
With submissions closing today, Macassey-Pickard says groups around the country have been supporting a huge range of people to make their submissions. ...
Our response to the new legislation is informed by targeted conversations with practitioners working in the system and through an implementation lens. ...
The new ‘Fast-track Approvals Bill’ would give just three Ministers the power to approve or deny development projects. They would avoid the usual checks and balances that are in place to protect rivers, land, the ocean, and communities. ...
COMMENTARY:By Eugene Doyle Helen Clark, how I miss you. The former New Zealand Prime Minister — the safest pair of hands this country has had in living memory — gave a masterclass on the importance of maintaining an independent foreign policy when she spoke at an AUKUS symposium held ...
The government's released the list of organisations provided with information on how to apply - just hours before public submissions on the bill close. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Milton Speer, Visiting Fellow, School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, University of Technology Sydney Before climate change really got going, eastern Australia’s flash floods tended to concentrate on our coastal regions, east of the Great Dividing Range. But that’s changing. Now ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Elizabeth Finkel, Vice-Chancellor’s Fellow, La Trobe University Sia Duff / South Australian Museum In February, the South Australian Museum “re-imagined” itself. In the face of rising costs and inadequate government funds, CEO David Gaimster, who took the reins last June, declared ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alan Pearce, Professor, School of Allied Heath, Human Services & Sport, La Trobe University, La Trobe University This week, Collingwood AFL player Nathan Murphy announced his retirement, brought on by his concussion history and ongoing issues. The 24-year-old’s seemingly sudden retirement, ...
The Mental Health Foundation provides support and resources for those facing the loss of their job, so it’s wrong in the very week the Government adds another 1000 jobs to its tally of cuts, that this is happening. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexander Howard, Senior Lecturer, Discipline of English and Writing, University of Sydney Daniel Boud/Sydney Theatre Company Decay, terror, revulsion. These are three of the central themes of Thomas Bernhard’s rarely performed play The President. The Austrian is one of the greatest ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ye In (Jane) Hwang, Postdoctoral Research Associate at School of Population Health, UNSW Sydney Shutterstock You’d be hard pressed to find any aspect of daily life that doesn’t require some form of digital literacy. We need only to look back ten ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says threats by ministers Shane Jones and David Seymour to reform or close down the Waitangi Tribunal were “ill-considered”, as legal experts say the ministers may have breached Cabinet Manual conventions. “I think those comments are ill-considered and we expect all ministers to actually exercise good ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rob Newton, Professor of Exercise Medicine, Edith Cowan University Pexels/RDNE stock project You’re not in your 20s or 30s anymore and you know regular health checks are important. So you go to your GP. During the appointment they measure your waist. ...
A new poem by Evangeline Riddiford Graham. Mitochondrial Problem I. It was long drive to Kansas for the man and his dog but you have to understand he said She doesn’t fly. Which calls to mind not carsick shitting barking or whining but a dog who chooses not to as ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Hemingway’s Goblet by Dermot Ross (Mary Egan Publishing, $38)Hot off the press, this debut ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Laura Wajnryb McDonald, PhD candidate in Criminology, University of Sydney Less than 24 hours after Ashlee Good was murdered in Bondi Junction, her family released a statement requesting the media take down photographs they had reproduced of Ashlee and her family without ...
Chief executive Shaun Robinson said it has not had any government funding cut, but government-funded contracts have not kept pace with rising costs. ...
The Ministry of Health has delayed the release of its evidence brief on the safety, reversibility and mental health and wellbeing outcomes for puberty blockers. While we wait, Julia de Bres speaks to those with firsthand experience. Best practice gender-affirming healthcare is based on trans people’s self-determination and agency. The ...
Barcelona’s city streets have gone from traffic-clogged to pedestrian-friendly. How? Superblocks. Ellen Rykers explains. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week I read a great interview with renowned urbanist Janette Sadik-Khan by The Spinoff’s Wellington editor Joel MacManus: “You can reimagine streets, ...
Student groups ‘Climate Action VUW’, Schools Strike 4 Climate and VUWSA will be on the street in Wellington today, the last day for submissions on the Fast-track Approvals Bill, with a message that the fight against the Government’s ‘War on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sofia Ammassari, Research Fellow, Griffith University Since 2014, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popularity has grown exponentially – and so has the formidable organisational machine of his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). These two factors will be key to delivering the BJP a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brendon Hyndman, Associate Professor of Education (Adjunct) & Senior Manager (BCE), Charles Sturt University During COVID almost all Australian students and their families experienced online learning. But while schools have long since gone back to in-person teaching, online learning has not gone ...
Yes, they’re better for the environment. No, that’s not a good enough reason for me to use them. Once every 26 days or so, my period arrives, and if struck by an act of God, I am caught red-crotched without products. How, after 17 years of this, do I still ...
“It will cause significant harm to our environment and communities. It is completely at odds with New Zealanders’ relationship with nature and our need for a low-carbon, sustainable economic future." ...
The Chair of the National Maori Authority, Matthew Tukaki, has warned a Parliamentary Select Committee that fast-tracking legislation is a perilous practice that undermines the core tenets of democracy, transparency, and accountability. ...
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Landlords have really been covering themselves in glory lately, haven't they?
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/aucklands-main-street-is-a-disgrace-auckland-council-official-sued-over-queen-st-pedestrian-trial-saga/ZHUA6Y6JOIWDRTS6EODA5I27VQ/
Now I get it – commercial property is almost entirely valued on the amount of rent you can charge. Whatever building O'Connell street bistro was in was worth whatever the rent says it is worth – $250,000 PA apparently was the ground rent for just that restaurant. Cut the rent by 20% and the building value drops the same. So I get that these fat cat commercial landlords would rather sit on an empty, increasingly tatty building theoretically worth one price than drop rents and take a bath on their assets.
Queen street was dying before COVID. These landlords still can't even organise a continuous veranda along the entire length of the street, for crying out loud. What we are seeing here is a bunch of entitled bastards grumpy that capitalism, for once, is not a one way street.
A different Herald writer is unamused (and his story is not behind the firewall this time):
https://twitter.com/simonbwilson/status/1387493789195857921
When a property can fetch 250.000 in annual lease why bother with having a nice downtown. Auckland downtown has looked like rubbish since 98 and the black out there. Gosh, have a look at the Facade of St. James Theater, which once you get inside is a beautiful gem in an oasis of rubbish building and greed induced tackiness.
But yeah, these guys are not there to help. And fwiw, people will still not go to AKL down town, car or not, who can afford to a. shop there and b. park there? Fairly few.
Yes, the centre of gravity in Ak's city centre had already moved down the hill before Covid took away Q St's cruise passengers and students.
In 2004 a boss of mine – quite a succesfull pastry business in town – was thinking of moving down town.
He came back to the shop and laughed and laughed and laughed and laughed, and when he got his breath again he told me that the rent on Queen Street is equal to the Rive Gauche of the Seine in Paris. That is where Chanel, Hermes etc have their shops.
Deluded, arrogant and the worst people to complain about hte uglyness of a City. The City got ugly because of them in the first place. But hey they are landlords, architects (must have more empty towers to build) etc. This is simply a joke among many.
This is an eye opener as to the state of much of mid to upper Queen street –
https://boilerroom.substack.com/p/whats-going-on-with-aucklands-imax
https://boilerroom.substack.com/p/an-imax-update-its-much-worse-than
You can only hope the CRL will see an improvement around Aotea.
from your second link
And this is what i and many other 'leaseholders' have asked, begged even for. A government that legislates to the best of all its citizens at the beginning of the fucking plague. Legislate that they at the very lest can not increase rent during lockdown – any level – currently we are in Level 1 just as a reminder. They did not. We asked, begged that they put responsabilities to the landlords when they got their defferred mortgage payemnts etc last year so that the lease holders could manange during full lockdown. WE – the small and larger businesses got f uck all.
All the businesses got – and i exclude the very big ones as they are treated differently to any of us micro, small and medium sized businesses, was the money to pass on to their staff and a payment for ourself. Not enough to pay rent or lease, but hey its not as if anyone really cared. If we fail cause we don't have several years of rent and rates and insurance and GST tucked away we should just die silently.
This government has done nothing for commercial leaseholder to make sure they a. can survive or manage to nurse their business through, or .b get out of a lease they can not service without being punished by the Landlord for a fucking plague they had not hand in creating in the first place.
And this government, like any of the previous ones have never held commercial landlords to account, have a look at Rotorua where empty shop fronts are an eyesore, empty for 10s of years, dirty and filthy and nothing can be done, it appears.
So essentially the country gets what the government allows. And currently the biggest hinderniss to small business creation is the lack of affordable business spaces – and that has been so for a while. And the government is asleep at the wheel.
Amazing that piece you have linked to Sabine. The owners of many commercial buildings are sucking the life out of the small businesses that rent them. A maker of great German sausages had a small shop in central Nelson but was forced out by the rental cost. That lost him his wee rented space and us his excellent product. I have forgotten what is now where he used to be – probably selling jewellery.
This problem of rising rents happens in inflationary bubbles – the big landlords can get their properties revalued monthly, six-monthly, annually and push up the rent accordingly. The rent is not based on a percentage calculated using the value of the property when the lease began, no it is just usury using the inflation of values in the area to maintain a set percentage income from the inflated value of the rented space. And the values see-saw up as surrounding landlords do the same.
Centrepoint in the 1970's in a prime area of London stayed vacant for a year? while rents shot up and it was being revalued constantly. The empty building stood as a golden piece of collateral enabling further borrowing for other mendacious bits of business acumen.
Centre Point – Wikipedia
Constructed from 1963 to 1966, it was one of the first skyscrapers in London, and as of 2009 was the city's joint 27th-tallest building. It stood empty from the time of its completion until 1975, and was briefly occupied by housing activists in 1974. Since 1995 it has been a Grade II listed building.
Architecture firm: R. Seifert and Partners
Town or city: London, WC1
(Mod – Sorry about the image – cleared that away. Forgot the horrendous amount of code required.)
You recall it was Winston who blocked planned govt action on leases on the grounds that commercial contracts were sacred. Proud lazy fool.
Not a commercial building. But part of the building commerce which seems to throw up shysters to the point one wonders who is reliable, legal, has probity etc. There needs to be a record of companies and people who are involved in shonky and shoddy dealings that people can do a credit check on before committing themselves to anything. Leopards don't change their spots, and short of being imprisoned, the cunning so.s will just find a way to repeat their crimes.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/441406/fines-handed-down-to-those-convicted-over-bella-vista-housing-development
A judge has handed out $165,000 in fines to three Tauranga men and a company convicted over the botched Bella Vista housing development.
Twenty-one homes were eventually declared dangerous or not up to scratch and had to be abandoned.
Bella Vista Homes director Danny Cancian has been ordered to pay $60,000 for breaches of the Building Act, with the judge describing him as a bully by nature who was arrogant and entitled.
His failed company was also convicted in a reserved decision last year but has not been fined.
(Cancian is on a jobseeker benefit for now, so unlikely to be paying anything to anybody and just waiting to slip, slide away.)
Anyone remember the film The Money Pit which played up all the things that can go wrong with building work.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOM6rvU9xN4
This from The Detail on Radionz at 5 am. Some practical informed talk which I haven't come across much.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/programmes/the-detail/story/2018793290/why-it-costs-so-much-to-build-a-house
Before work even starts on laying the foundations and nailing up the timber framing, a new home has already cost hundreds of thousands of dollars…
Today on The Detail, professor of construction management at AUT, John Tookey breaks down the cost of building a house from buying the land, gaining resource consent, and putting in sewerage to fitting the windows. He also explains the complexities of fixing the sector, and here's one clue: we have to lower our expectations of the house we want to build…
But Tookey also says the government has to be the major player in the mass house building plan by putting in large scale orders to build ahead of the market place…
"We're dealing with a small economy. The costs associated with supplying a small economy are substantial compared to anywhere else."
Take two comparable economies, with roughly the same population, New Zealand and Sydney. The similarity ends there.
"They have about 13,000 square kilometres for Sydney and the district around. We have a couple of hundred thousand (square kilometres) we're spread over multiple islands, multiple locations, we expect to be able to build at the same price everywhere."
The "little island of Sydney" can be supplied through about 400 builders' merchants, New Zealand needs 850…
He forgot ticket clipping
Care to support that comment with a link ?
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/labours-plan-to-force-rent-negotiations-said-to-be-blocked-by-nz-first/ZNVEE6RPLKHKSAAYRABPORQCNY/
well that is actually interesting, and for what its worth, also makes sense.
from the article linked
so since then the government has changed, Winston has retired and we still have no plan nor law in place to deal with landlords like the above mentioned.
I get it its easy to blame NZFirst but i don't think that the points raised in this article put shame on NZ first, but rather on the government having done nothing at all in regards to this since they won a majority and a 'man -date' to change all sorts of things.
but maybet he truth really just lies in here
Its always easiest to blame those that have left the building. But this again, seems to be where Labour came up with a solution that would not have stood the test, and then well, did nothing at all, and here we are a year later, and businesses still closing down because Landlords still don't have to work with their tenants. And next lockdown – and there will be another one for sure – people will again pay rent to a business they are not allowed to access and that clause 27.5 will still be unusable.
Horses have left the stables, Sabine. Action was needed at the time.
@ Sacha,
horses have left the stables….
so very kind, so very gentle, and so very callous towards to fellow Kiwis who sacrificed their businesses to people who don't care and a government who can't get things done.
Horses have left the stables indeed.
I hope you find your own kindness.
Gosh Sabine yours at 29/4 7.03pm is sure a gobstopper.
I can see why the mods are trying to limit the cut and paste you put up. I think it is useful to have some detail that illustrates concerns and make a point. But this one is more than what Morrissey and I have had cut down to anorexic size.
Don’t give the Mods any ideas 😉 They’d be accused of censorship, shutting down, cancelling, or being party poopers and spoil sports 🙂
In hindsight Peters was correct. Once government starts messing around with commercial contracts all sorts of unintended things start happening. Some of the ideas being floated at the time would have helped some tenants, but would have allowed other tenants to try and have one over their landlord. For every arsehole landlord there's probably three shyster tenants and plenty were trying it on.
The bluff of implied clauses and subsidised arbitration worked for most people, us included, and the arbitration subsidy was hardly taken up.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/the-government-will-roll-out-changes-to-make-birth-certificate-sex-changes-easier/VFJDXW3B7PRF4JTBYMUKBAUKEE/
Tinetti and Labour have no mandate for this.
this is a significant piece of legislation. My understanding is it was not presented as a remit for party members (although I will stand corrected on this).
vote compass at the time of our last election showed only 29% supported this. Stand up for women also commissioned a poll, which showed a similar level of support.
I hope to post a comment soon about the disgrace that was Wellington pride this year, due to the trans gender radical exclusionary practices against a group of older/elderly lesbians. Weka, if you read it when I post it, feel free to post it as an article.
Anker, i doubt the current ruling class gives a piece of fudge about having a 'man – date' or not. And support or lack there of has never stopped a party from doing what it believes will 'benefit' them.
Thanks for calling out attention to this Anker.
When there's a will there's a way for some, but for most people needing change that benefits all, there is little done as slowly as possible. But hey there's moral outrage that has created comment and disturbance attracting attention to an area of malaise. So some pollies have picked on that one area of life and elevated it to VIP status to the point of changing integral legal provisions for us all.
I note urgent requests for concern, support and action for other areas of human need that are eternal yet have slid down the priorities; not a 'today' thing, 'sorry you've had your day we're moving on' seems the response.
Hi Anker. It's interesting that this move pushes beyond self identification of gender to 'sex', which is widely recognised as (in almost all humans) biologically binary. This does seem an extreme position.
Sorry to hear about the Pride Parade stuff. I'd love to know what is behind this shift.
KSayshi, I can't say what is behind the Pride Day issues, but what happened was disgusting.
A group of older lesbians, some of whom are elderly were banned from Pride because they amongst other things weren't prepared to go along with the line that "Trans Women are Real Women". They protested outside the Michael Fowler Centre where the event was held as part of the resirected group the Larvas. Another women who is not a member of the Larvas, was inside staffing a stall. During her break she went out to offer support to the Larvas and took them some tape and scissors to mend their placard. She tried to get back into the centre, but was accosted by four Pride people, one a "big burly man'. They man handled her and accused her of carrying an offensive weapon (the scissors) and then when she refused to leave they called the police, who came. This woman is very frail and actually has terminal cancer.
Next thing there was a counter protest to the Larvas. A group of young people which grew to about 100 started chanting "fucking terfs". I find this completely disgusting.
and i guess we can file this too under
'we don't know how lucky we are / were / and please to godess, god, minor deities etc will be/
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/covid-19-coronavirus-border-officials-had-name-of-traveller-from-perth-before-he-landed-in-nz/P25JR4WZHVHRR4R752KKVY6E3E/
so they knew the name of the guy, did not stop him from leaving the airport to travel on his merry ways. But its all good, eventually someone thought that might not be a good look so now the guys is in MIQ and may even get a fine, err prison time, or something.
IT actually does not matter if he is a low, casual, or flashing siren red case, the fact is he could do what he did and thus showed that others can do that too. Feel safer already?
…they knew the name of the guy, did not stop him from leaving the airport to travel on his merry ways.
Read that early this morning. Added it to our list of 'shit that simply does not add up/make sense' regarding Te Virus. I'm betting he's a 'noter' of some ilk. Fact that he's now in MIQ is immaterial. The lack of consistency has been appalling.
Those lucky enough to survive this shit show will look back in wonder at the amount of bull the general population have swallowed.
The Immigration Dept has been incompetent for years so theres no reason to expect them to become become competent overnight because Covid.
Hopefully it remains only incompetence and hasnt descended to corruption.
What about the border guards? Incompetent to? IS that now the excuse, oh they are incompetent? Do we feel saver now?
No, not safer…but not surprised.
ditto.
Given that folk with accounting diplomas are getting working visas for skilled migrants, and working as cleaners, the corruption is clearly already here.
Agree there are some worrying signs (and an odd reluctance to inquire) but I hope that is not the case as if so then we are really in the shit….corruption is harder to unwind than incompetence
Hanlon's razor has been getting some use lately…
In its application or in its misuse?
should only work for the first few times……
"he fact is he could do what he did and thus showed that others can do that too. Feel safer already"
They were able to identify around 70 people from Perth who were stopped from boarding ( they would have flown first to Sydney or Melbourne as 1 stop flights are cheaper than non stop and give more options)
This one person had unusual travel arrangements as his trans tasman flight was cancelled and he re-booked at last minute so was missed during the plane boarding. Only knew about after he arrived in Auckland and had left the terminal before the cross checking was complete. Of course they knew his name as they do for every passenger on every flight.
he was coming from Perth with about 2 community cases in 2 mill people , not Mumbai
Well then, its all good and then they can release him from quarantine and also from any eventual charges. Cause why not. j
oh, btw, the Indian mutation has been found in the UK
and the US and other places
So you might just want to think about how glib you want to be about these lax rule enforcers and the idiots that can break rules and get away with it as really that is a good way to get killed in these plague times.
Yep, 16 billion dollars later and we are ok with having infected people in the country. We could have had this without having debt to the eyeballs for the next 2 generations. I would like to have the rule breakers named and shown on the news. I think this would reduce the behavior significantly. Also, it seems that iwi groups can call the government out and justify those checkpoints.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/northern-advocate/news/covid-19-coronavirus-checkpoints-to-return-iwi-group-says/DRINS54PIY4IGTVLEPUZ22HR54/
Were he Australian would that have made a difference?
would it make any difference?
the rules were clear, they were broken, and thus…..we again got lucky that that person was not a carrier, and did not infect anyone he came in contact with on his way to Northland once out of the airport.
would it make any difference?
Not to being a carrier, but when it came to immigration here.
i think flight manifests go to migration irrespective of the planeload being kiwis or ozzies or a whole bunch of mixed peas.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/governments-winter-energy-payment-not-enough-some-say/5Z5RKPE6TUZO3HKF7PXV36UDJM/
well if we take that comment from Hill to the extreme, we don't need any heating assistance as the poor old ones can just go to the heated library, or the card afternoons, and heck, why not open these places for the night too, add a few cods and the dear oldies can sleep in a warm place.
https://www.workandincome.govt.nz/eligibility/living-expenses/heating-and-power-bills.html#null
My annual power kW is around 4500 thats for 2 people, with 2 heat pumps, one of which is used a lot in summer for night time cooling. Theres auto dishwasher and washing machine. We are both home a lot.
I only turn the hotwater on for about 1 hr per day as thats enough for 2 ( the top half of cylinder is where hottest water is) and heat pumps are mostly used at lowest settings during day and a bit higher at night. Dehumidify is the low setting for cooling.
Heating costs have gone up considerably. But then hey, just don't use electricty and you won't have a big bill. Fixed, you are so awesome!!!!!! Between you and that lady from the grey power that is worried about olds not going to the heated library they sure have it good.
Sure , Ive been on a power saving thing for around 15 years
But the link for Work and Income specifically mentions 'help with power costs'
You mean a special needs grant, which has to be paid back. Plus Work and Income has a limit to what they will lend so tough shit if it's been a bad year and you've needed other things like emergency dental care, clothing, repairs etc which also need paying back.
Not everyone has the good credit rating needed to access cheaper power too. It's costly to be poor.
Using less power is the cheapest way
Other wise Globug is a prepaid method
https://www.globug.co.nz/pricing-calculator/
Would be good if we could get back to having really cheap electricity for the hot water system at night-time off-peak rates. On my bill there doesn't seem to be a great difference from the 24 hour rate. I'm with Trustpower – I'm reluctant to be changing power suppliers, forced to shop around, a power bargain-hunter. But fair dos for fair systems is what I expect.
I sometimes read about huge spikes for business and it underlines that our small country must be being screwed to keep so many profit hungry businesses going. Are we being milked?
Powershop peak rates 36c kWhr, off peak 27c which includes fixed charges ( but not daily charge) they also have 'specials' about 1 a week which are lesser price via an app.
off peak is 11am-5 pm , and 9pm- 7am and all weekend. My hotwater comes on at between 5 and 6 am for 1 hr ( using timer)
Thanks for that gww I may have to bring this up with my power company. They do react to concerns that consumers bring up.
i put my water on gas just for that reason.
Does Hill seriously believe the winter allowance comes close to covering winter power bill increases? Surely live pensioners are way more likely to head down to the library of a morning than dead ones.
Just wondering, if that person has a disability and/or looks after their spouse etc…
Perhaps some solar power panels connected to central heating/hot water should be considered and funded by need instead of doubling payments. It would keep homes warm and dry and increases the value, being an alternative to power grid supply (renewable). Win win win all around….
Washington is not stopping at the destruction of journalists
Now the fury of this outlaw regime is being directed at businesspeople….
Policewoman: [chortling] "Bodycams are my favorite thing to watch!"
These monsters need to be not "defunded", but abolished and replaced.
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=5563273463744867
something wrong with american cops !!how can they be this stupid ?? ive seen so many vids like this they seem to have their own form of dementia i guess too many cheesy movies ?rotted their brains ?
Thank you Morrissey.
I really enjoy your contributions to this site.
Ed, thank you.
Agreed.
Biden makes a good speech. Calling out the 1%'s deliberate non-contribution to society was a nice touch. Probably put a target on his back, but there'd already be a line, it being Murica and all.
A most unusual tone with such an empty House: no declaiming, almost conversational in tone.
And full to the brim with full-throated public policy goals and utterly massive public interventions:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5qYs4mVFo0
Don't know if this has already been covered, but this is the latest that I have seen on the fight for Julian Assange. Fight the good fight Jennifer Robinson – she has that special interest in progression of all people which is so admirable.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/saturday/audio/2018792915/jennifer-robinson-fighting-for-assange-west-papua-and-public-education
…Standing by her clients Julian Assange and Amber Heard in the full glare of international media, she is based at a top London law firm Doughty Street Chambers…
"These publications are immensely important, and he faces 175 years in prison in the United States for those publications. The injustice of it could not be more stark so I think it’s really important people remember this.”
One of the accusations levelled at Assange and WikiLeaks is that publishing the documents unredacted risked harm for people, but Robinson says that has never been backed up by evidence and, thus far, no harm came to anyone as a result of the publication.
“That material had already been published online by other publications as a result of a security breach by the Guardian newspaper. The decision by WikiLeaks to publish that material unredacted was because it was already circulating online.”…
On the 4 January, Robinson won the case against extradition for Assange, but she says it was the right outcome for the wrong reasons.
Her latest mission is to improve educational opportunities for public school children. She recently founded the Acacia Awards, in association with the Public Education Foundation in Australia, in which prominent people who were educated in the public system will sponsor a student from their former school or area, providing mentorship and a small scholarship…