When it comes to breach of copyright, Trump seems to have established a track record as serial offender.
"Tom Petty family united last weekend to release a statement objecting to the use of I Won't Back Down at the President's contentious campaign rally in Tulsa. Brendon Urie soon followed with a strongly worded statement condemning Trump's use of the Panic! at the Disco song High Hopes at the same rally. Both Neil Young and REM's Michael Stipe have previously publicly objected to Trump campaign song use.
What an arrogant little view of life from someone who has joined 'The Currrent Correctness and Infinite Fount of All Wisdom Cult'. I haven't registered this anywhere so offer it to anyone who has been looking for a group to start or a name for one they have joined. Be quick, grab it before someone else gets off with it.
My piece of wisdom is that we all contain the potential for all the faults we apprehend in others now and from the past; our job is to keep thinking, forgive ourselves with big efforts to do better, and when we come across perpetrators don't waste time hating them. Instead insist ask them to atone by attempting to change what they have done, and get the water of life running in a different direction so that everyone can access it.
Well sounds like bull-kaka to me. Not helped by the emphasis on strange words that the would not normally be emphasised in the narration. So what if you have to give the benefit of the doubt or, heavens, be kind to someone older who may imperfect recall, wrong recall or who you think might actually be wrong. It does not mean that their whole life has been lived imperfectly or wrongly.
In the 70s there was an almost slavish following by some of the idea that you had to let people know their faults, that it was better for them to know their faults and for you to let them know…..a crock that I called the 'Goodness and Honesty policy' (sarc) as it was nothing of the sort. This sounds a bit like that.
The government’s review of managed isolation facilities paints a picture of an under-resourced, uncoordinated and ad hoc system.
The review points to a “misalignment between different agencies’ perceived responsibilities, their policies, and operational realities”. Which basically means it was all a bit of a mess.
So those folk now must face the fact that the govt's review confirms the existence of the shambles. Well, they could persist in denial by claiming that a mess is not as bad as a shambles, perhaps. But better to get real instead!
Do we have community spread, Dennis, and if so, was this caused or compounded by the ‘shambles’ that you you’re so focussed on? It is simple big-picture-small-picture stuff but many folks, you included, seem to fret & sweat over the small stuff. Please notice that I haven’t mentioned one official or political party, as they are irrelevant to this question.
Well, I do agree that the folks who would rather call a spade an excavation implement have made relevant points.
My concern is that the PM seems to have lost the plot re political management. Public confidence in the govt is essential for re-election. She can't afford to maintain the ebb-tide effect in the polls. Chris Trotter gets it, I noticed this morning that he posted this on Friday: http://bowalleyroad.blogspot.com/2020/06/sack-him-jacinda-sack-him-now.html
If David Clark hasn’t been sacked by the time you read this, then Jacinda isn’t doing her job. His point-blank refusal to accept responsibility for the multiple institutional failures of his Health portfolio more than justifies Clark’s dismissal.
Ministers of the Crown only have one job: to be responsible. As members of both the legislature and the executive they are a living bridge between citizen and state. A ministerial refusal to accept responsibility for failures occurring on his watch is also a refusal to uphold the essence of our Westminster-style representative democracy. If Jacinda doesn’t get this, then she should be given a swift tutorial by someone who does.
Keeping David Clark operating in his role as the Nats' secret weapon is loony. It just reinforces Muller as a viable alternative in the public mind. Why do that??
I put a comment here supporting someone who made the point re lack of community spread last week. That's not the issue.
And re those using Woodhouse as a red herring, he's just beating up. But when you use spin on the basis of a valid point you get traction, right? To me he's just like one of those wee yap yap yap dogs. Even someone with average intelligence gets it right half the time. David Clark has been ramping up his yap.
That odious little man Woodhouse is clinging to the hope there is community spread. He also clings to that canard about the homeless man, and doubles down by saying he has lots and lots of other anecdotes about errors in the system. Do tell, Michael, why hold back? in for one, in for all? after all, you have proved you have no interest in the public health response being successful.
____________________________________________
I think it's fair to say the system became 'unfit for purpose' owing to the rapid growth in numbers. It's clear the problems with isolating and quarantining people grow exponentially as numbers grow, and this has exposed the insane demands from opposition politicians to open up more quickly.
It’s also clear these issue were either not anticipated, or overwhelmed the ability to adapt to greater numbers. But I note that in the last two weeks in particular there is not an inch to be given to the overworked people involved in the covid response at all levels. They are expected to be perfect. Anything else is not good enough. So easy to be a sideline expert, all wind and no responsibility.
Fair enough, and something else worth considering is the conflation of testing and quarantine in the public mind. In retrospect, seems like reassurance from the specialists that two weeks quarantine removes the risk became questionable at some point.
So then we got a rush to try & test all those released without testing. I'm not clear on why and I expect many others aren't either…
What is the primary goal of the border quarantine measures? Arguably, the secondary one is to make the public feel safer AKA “spin”. Has the primary objective been met, so far? If not, what was the impact? If you only focus on the spin then the ‘issue’ is about spin on spin AKA yap yap doggies yelping at every passing car.
Sacking Clark now would be another mess in the making.
The reason for the quarantine shambles was not obvious, but SPC over the weekend has put up a clear case the PM can take to the country. The reasoning was really only obvious in hindsight, but it goes like this:
While the whole country was at Level 3, effectively everyone and everywhere was in quarantine, so while the border procedures were useful they were not essential. Cases could slip through, but they would be contained very quickly.
But when the country dropped to Level 1 it became essential to first increase the border process security. The mistake was in yielding to political pressure to go down from Level 3 to Level 1 so quickly, which meant that the border process, which is a two week process, did not have time to ramp up in an orderly fashion.
Take that to the country, explain that in the understandable desire to get back to Level 1, the subtle implications for border quarantine were not properly understood and managed. It was an honest mistake I believe, and an honest mea culpa will be accepted.
The the Ministry can get on with more important reforms that are in the pipeline. Sacrificing goats for mere public spectacle is medieval.
Yes – and funnily enough, it's exactly what I was shouting at the telly and at everyone at home when it became apparent that we were moving to Level 1 so quickly – "make sure the border is secure first!" Leakage from the border into a community operating at level 1 being so much more potentially dangerous.
I disagree on the basis of traditional morality: the doctrine of ministerial responsibility ought to be enforced. I believe the case you make, while seeming reasonable, would fail as a political strategy.
I think it will fly. Most voters are reasonable people and when the mistake is explained to them they will understand.
After all how many people here anticipated this peculiar problem at the time? I certainly didn't. And none of the clever media types calling for Clark’s resignation did either.
I think the government has been busy dealing with the real world issues being thrown at them as this pandemic and it's consequences escalate.
Too busy to deal with spot fires being deliberately lit by the media and national party, although Adern took early steps to to address these with her interview earlier this morning. She also sounded tired, like a parent who has been up 5 times during night with a restless infant….
Dennis Frank You remind me sometimes of a needle stuck in the groove of an old vinyl record. You may call me old-fashioned, but then so are you. Events are moving so fast requiring regular adjustments of opinions, policies, practices and implementation, to try to ensure practical and high-minded results. To carry on an argument that we should stop and get an exact record of outcomes during fast-changing events under our Covid-19 regs is futile time-wasting not helpful to the government or the left. Are you thinking at all? Do you want a Right-Wing government?
I would scorn you personally if you do. It would show that you are a democracy-destroyer, and not worthy of space on any realistic left-wing blog that has integrity and objectivity. We are in crisis in the world, let's think about it all not get stuck on the potty obstinately wailing. Life happens while we are planning (and commenting repetitively) other things!
Issuing feeble excuses in an attempt to justify evasion of moral responsibility isn't a good idea. All that happens is that you reinforce the view of centrists that the political left is just as bad as the political right.
Ministerial responsibility was put into the system of representative democracy for a very good reason. You and Ian ought to reflect on that reason. It doesn't help Aotearoa when the left side of politics is just as keen to break the rules as the right.
I think you will find that Dr Ashley Bloomfield answers directly to Government and not the MoH because he has more power than the MoH in an emergency. That was my understanding way back in the mists of time when he was elevated, so yes responsibility bypasses Ministers all the way to Parliament.
I will repeat part of Jacinda Ardern's comments this morning to the 'one size fits all' idiot who goes by the name of Mike Hosking:
Hosking: "Did you look at the pictures last week of Ashley Bloomfield when your Minister of Heath threw him under the bus so publicly?"
Ardern: "I did. I did see that interview but I also know the full transcript of what happened in the interview and the elements that weren't included. That included Dr Clark talking about what an exceptional public servant Ashley was."
Hosking: "What did you see in Ashley's face?"
Ardern: "Well, the same that I've seen across people who are working in health generally. A group of people who have worked exceptionally hard across a number of months and we do have to give some respite to. They have been working incredibly hard. We have been criticised for not directly blaming any individual person because this is a failure of our system and we have taken collective responsibility for that."
Hosking: "Did he deserve what we got?"
Ardern: "What Dr Clark said was no different to what Dr Bloomfield said only 48 hours before. No one here is placing blame at any individual's foot for something that was a systems failure and that we are all working really well collectively together to resolve."
Hosking: "You don't think it was galling that the most inept minister going was the one handing out the criticism?"
Ardern: "Again, you'll see that I have kind of disputed the framing that you have put around this whole thing, Mike. None of us are placing blame on individuals here because that wouldn't be right. We have had a system failure and we have worked hard to fix it. The report yesterday shows the efforts being made. Both Dr Bloomfield and Dr Clark have worked together exceptionally well. I have sat in meetings with these individuals frequently. I know the collaborative, collegial working relationship they have. Those individuals are part of a bigger team who have managed to get New Zealand into an uneviable position. We are doing better than most of the world right now, and it is because in no small part to their work they are doing alongside New Zealanders."
I watched the press conference live and Jacinda is right. Clark was fulsome in his praise of Bloomfield but how extraordinary that the media apparently missed it – not.
What utter bollocks Denis. I read the transcript of Ardern's interview with Hoskings this morning about why she hasn't sacked Clark……..as Ardern said earlier Clark is part of the solution.
A shambles is the United States, the UK, Brazil. Not NZ. The system here is/was under extreme stress.
A shambles is "a state of total disorder"….. Its just bollocks that you describe isolation facilities as total disorder.
BTW Denis you are starting to sound like those pathetic Nats saying “We’d do it better”
The govt review has confirmed that my view is correct. The fact that it is widely shared in the public mind is hurting Labour. Persisting in denial of the facts will not help their re-election prospects.
As for Nats doing better, not a chance. Obviously David Clark got set up by the officials who failed to do their job properly, and any Nat minister would have been set up similarly. Unless those officials did it deliberately to undermine the govt, due to being Nat supporters. Incompetence is the more likely explanation.
Denis, I don't think it is accurate to characterise isolation facilities as a shambles (dictionary definition of a shambles is state of total disorder).
Its very clear that any disorder in isolation facilities was not pervasive. Of course it has hurt Labour's polling. That is undeniable and the opposition has played politics with the system failures to score votes. You are buying into the oppositions memes.
The system of quarantining returnees has achieved what it set out to achieve i.e keeping Covid out of the community. To do that by definition the system was functional despite the issues.
Okay, put like that it is all reasoning I can accept as valid. Lots of folks nowadays lose words loosely in disregard of the dictionary meaning (racism for instance).
I'm not buying into Nat memes – I independently reached the same view in accord with widespread public perception of the consequences of the operational dysfunction. Did so before Woodhouse began bleating.
Assuming the public dance to the Nats' tune is a leftist syndrome. Sometimes it seems that way, but really it's a mistake to assume people can't form their own opinions from what happens…
At the risk of introducing too much nuance; my primary issue is immoral protection of public service wrong-doers. 😇
There's a convention around this: Nat/Lab agreement that enforcement can only proceed via employment contract. I don't agree with this left/right weasel dance unison sham. It's immoral, because it is used to cover up wrong-doing.
To do so, David Clark had to disregard the parliamentary doctrine of ministerial responsibility. His leader has condoned that. So far.
So as regards culpability, DC is merely the secondary offender. Yet parliamentary democracy is supposed to make him take the rap. On that basis, my take on the stances adopted by Linda Clark & Richard Harman is as follows: LC is correct on the basis of how parliament is supposed to operate, RH is correct on the basis of natural justice.
Exactly, every country in the world is having huge fuckups on a scale far, far larger than this on an hourly basis. One in 5 months is a pretty good record which is why we are the safest place in the world being managed by the best and hardest working group on the planet. And I thank them every day. i have also along with many others have had a complete gutsful of whiner and finger pointers.
Better to fix it Frank. Which they have, smartly with no excuses. As to "get real instead" Instead of what? Lying like Woodhouse? scaremongering about "Community transmission?"
Prime Minister Ardern said we would get cases coming in at the border. No one then thought the numbers returning would become a flood. Very quickly the system was almost overwhelmed by returnees from areas where the pandemic is raging.
"Shambles" means no parts of the border controls were working. That is patently untrue, as we would have community transmission.
I hope some one doesn't sneak the virus through somehow, as was done with the rabbit Khaleesi virus, because politically they believe they would be better off.
We need to stop navel gazing and start working at how to maximise health and future opportunities. Scare mongering is another road to austerity and a loss of confidence.
Fisher and Paykel Health saw a 37% growth and 5000 employees is a case in point.
Rather than getting the so-called 'real oil' from an article complete with 'spin,' the actual press release and the report itself and project plan present a clear and sober picture. ( I thought we had all had it confirmed/learned during the lockdown 1.00pm pressers and seeing the articles that resulted that journos often don't get the slant correct or even the facts.)
The June poll continues a trend among the Helius cannabis surveys, which have found increasing support cannabis legalisation since August last year, when only 39 per cent of Kiwis were in favour. However, a November 2018 Helius cannabis survey registered the highest support for legalising cannabis for personal use at 60 per cent.
The intra-party breakdowns are fascinating too, with only Nat dinosaurs holding the line against progress:
Notably, New Zealand First voters have now shifted to support reform – 53 per cent are in favour. Seventy per cent of ACT voters now plan to tick yes at the referendum – up significantly from 45 per cent in February. And 72 per cent of Labour voters support the bill.
Yeah I'll be voting to legalise even though I know that it's bad for the body. However, we have spent millions through the cops and justice system for about zero result. Give a fraction of that money to the health system and I reckon they will have nagged most people into submission within the decade. They did a basically good job on the fags- much more cost effective than the cops.
Heck I'd even run an ad asking if people wanted to be arrested or nagged.
neither, some will simply bake cookies, or make a tincture, tea, gummi bears (with or without permission form the Greens) and will never smoke a single leave.
But yes, i will vote for it as i am sick and tired of seing lives fucked over for a joint, or 'possesion with intend to sell' even tho its literally just an ounce for private use.
And thus i will also be voting for new businesses, new agricultural projects, jobs and increased tax revenue.
I was actually thinking of things like short term memory loss ? not the actual smoke which I assume is as bad as fag smoke. But is this an issue with non smoke forms of delivery?
Hmmm, Kate Hawkesby, the paragon of personal freedom and responsibility, seems to advocate for forced COVID-19 tests for people coming into the country. Nek minit, she will call for forced vaccination too.
Every time he's interviewed he embarrasses himself, he simply has no idea what's real and what's not, perfect for a finace minister of the National Party, basically full of shite
John Cambell interviewd him this morning, he kept reiterating the story came from a reliable source but would not name the source or state that the story was TRUE.
They suffer from Dunning Kruger syndrome which, in a nutshell, means that stupid people who don't know they are stupid like to believe that everyone else is stupid.
And just prior to Goldsmith’s shambles of an interview Woodhouse was still pushing the Nat’s line that there was likely to be community transmission of Covid in Aotearoa although (like the fabled Homeless Man) there is absolutely no evidence to support the claim.
True, no evidence. However risk management is the underlying rationale. One would not expect Woodhouse to be able to explain that sophisticated concept, eh?
Greens warning of climate change in the nineties used that as the basis of their advocacy. I'm not saying they did it well – it seems in retrospect to have been tacit rather than made explicit. However since it is the basis of the insurance industry, and used even more widely throughout capitalism, it does deserve articulation.
Don’t just go Paula–piss off! You will be remembered as a revolting Rebstock trained, ladder pulling, beneficiary bashing, woman undermining, confidence breaking mockery of what MPs should aspire to.
While I'm normally in favour of error or mistake as the default assumption for political screw-ups, I'd caution that there is a LONG history of malicious misinterpretation of other parties' more progressive policies from National finance spokespeople, so let's not be TOO charitable to Goldsmith and rule out entirely the idea that he knows damn well how marginal taxes work and what the language that describes them looks like, but he's mischievously trying to muddy the waters.
Maybe Luxon will join the people driving a fleet of Motorhomes for the new ONE Party that I talked to in the Far North today. They believe they are the only true Christian Party, along with some seriously dubious claims about other partys. Oh PS, miss you already Pulya. lololol.
It's winter. The wood is wet and produces too much smoke. Illegal. Keep the wood drying out before using so it's fit for purpose. Shut the door on the Woodhouse, for a number of months and then maybe the winter of our discontent will be over.
Croaking Cassandra has an interesting piece on the Chinese Communist Party spy-trainer politician in the National Government. He has been able to get in on the National List. It would be hard for this man to be objective. Apparently he refuses any English-speaking media contact to explain how he does this herculean task. I wonder if he unburdens himself to the NZ Chinese language newspaper – I think it is published in Auckland, home-away-from-home for many Chinese housing investors.
We live in interesting times – too late to say 'May you'. (Wikipedia – Despite being so common in English as to be known as the "Chinese curse", the saying is apocryphal – doubtful origin.)
…he’d lied about his past in his application for New Zealand residency and citizenship. In fact, challenged on the point he was quite open about it: he’d actively misrepresented his past because his CCP bosses had insisted on it when he first left the PRC.
Faux news backed the mayor of Amity when he said the town had to get those tourists back in the water…
The data is in: Fox News may have kept millions from taking the coronavirus threat seriously
It’s another one of those Trump Era realities best described as unsurprising but nevertheless shocking.
Three serious research efforts have put numerical weight — yes, data-driven evidence — behind what many suspected all along: Americans who relied on Fox News, or similar right-wing sources, were duped as the coronavirus began its deadly spread.
Dangerously duped.
The studies “paint a picture of a media ecosystem that amplifies misinformation, entertains conspiracy theories and discourages audiences from taking concrete steps to protect themselves and others,” wrote my colleague Christopher Ingraham in an analysis last week.
A choir of more than 100 people performed without masks at a robustly attended event in Texas at the First Baptist Church on Sunday that featured a speech by Vice President Mike Pence.
Nearly 2,200 people attended the "Celebrate Freedom Rally," in the Lone Star State, according to rally organizers, which has seen a severe surge in coronavirus cases since easing restrictions. The venue capacity for the indoor event was close to 3,000 attendees, organizers say.
Throughout the service, the members of the choir sang at full volume, behind an orchestra. Between songs, the choir members put their masks back on when they sat down, according to pool reports from the event. The members of the choir had space between them, but it was not clear if it was the recommended six feet.
The data is in: Fox News may have kept millions from taking the coronavirus threat seriously.
Rewrite, "The data is in: Woodhouse may have kept thousands from believing that the coronavirus threat in NZ is under better control than anywhere else in the World.
Jack Vowles has done it again. He must be the sane one in a country of the insane Media.
On the one hand, if mistakes and errors are made, there is a responsibility to expose them, and those who are responsible. On the other, in a crisis there is always a danger of making things worse by exaggeration or generating misunderstanding, particularly if this destroys confidence in those who are in charge, making it harder for them to do their jobs. This is a particularly acute dilemma with an election looming in less than three months.
Most people probably understand the distinction between hard news, often based on careful investigative reporting, and so-called tabloid coverage that is shrill, emotional, and unbalanced.
I'd really love the news media to stop hounding the government over the pressure on the border and go and get stuck into the airline CEO's and scorch them. They hide behind press releases. They seem to be not erring on the side of caution instead just chasing the every last dollar. And it appears that American airlines are just going to start flying here (unilateral decision ?) as have other airlines. This puts pressure on us to provide extra quarantine regardless. According to the stories we don't even know who is coming until the plane is in the air athough I thought immigration had warning before boarding. We need to start charging for it and I' d start with the permanent residents who haven't been here for the last two years before Jan 2020. They have not contributed and are just using us as a bolthole or welfare backup.
So after the whole SNAFU around my managed isolation and being set free without any testing (which I have mentioned) I got my results back from MoH and, unsurprisingly, I am COVID free. Still no community transmission which is a great result even after the problems regarding managed isolation.
And please the next time if/when you are in quarantine again (lets hope this will never be the case) with requirements of 2 m distance to others and isolation ,, don't use a public elevator to go get a cigarette in a public smoke cubicle.
Be upfront and askhow you can safely leave the building, go to a balcony, smoking room, roof top etc in order to have your cigarette.And if you can't ask for Champix or Nicotine patches if getting through the day without a fix is too hard.
You using an elevator to go the smokers cubicle to get your fix was not the governments fault that is all on you and if you had been a carrier you could have infected people.
The elevator wasn’t an issue as you were only allowed in there with others from your room – by myself in my case. I did ask them about smoking outside but weirdly you couldn't smoke AND social distant. So what I did after the 4th day I’d only go for cigarettes after 10pm when you could smoke outside
Maybe all on me and others but everyone was just doing as we were told.
Today's presser. I got the feeling the media teeth were not so sharp. As usual he is very clear, and when he addresses the question of over 360 people they are trying to contact, and have not responded to calls, texts, and emails he absolutely nails it.
Precis: He is disappointed and expects them to play their part.
What on earth are these people thinking by not responding – they are part of the problem, not part of the solution.
It is well worth listening to this, it provides sanity from the scaremongering by the media and opposition politicians.
Yes there are still 367 people who the Ministry of Health is having trouble getting in touch with. Director-general of health Dr Ashley Bloomfield made a fresh appeal for these people to get in touch with authorities.
Maybe some are to be found at National Party electorate meetings, by not getting tested they are keeping Mullers belief that there might be community spread alive.
Muller is trying to expolit the might be to open up borders – he believes in zombie economics. Money before lives, and he has the gall to claim to oppose euthansia from a moral position.
what a shambles! my kids mum got her test results back, negative, so she can go back to work. Such a shambles, to live in a country without community transmission, to be able to go to the Drs and get tested if you need to get one, bloody shambles,, no one has died from Covid in weeks, ICU beds empty, toilet paper for everyone, the Health Minister should resign!!! (sarc)
It is such a shambles that the Main Shambolic Media have to manufacture a shambles so they can ‘report’ on it and please the shareholders of the Main Shambles Manufacturers.
The day the pandemic total passes ten million might not be the best time to say you want NZ's borders to open up, but Todd Muller has done it anyway (Wellington business meeting).
To be fair, it is one kind of solution: there definitely won't be any quarantine bungles if there's no quarantine.
Is there method in Muller's madness? He suspects community transmission where there is none, and wants to open up our borders. If NZ's Covid elimination strategy had been less successful (say NZ now had the U.K.'s mortality rate of 642 deaths per million population, rather than the current 4.4 per million, then we'd have ~3,200 Covid-19 deaths), then would that have made it easier to open our borders?
Muller's been talking to the-man-in-the-street who wants everything easy and magic beans as well, and on quickly mulling it over, in about a second, has repeated it all as gospel. Being community driven and populist, he of course, bows down to the public. The country pays him to make judgments on vox pop; nice job if you can get it, and you can get it if you try. But maybe not just now Gnats, you imported, important pests.
It is clear that we are simultaneously doing too little (border bungles) and too much (border restrictions). For his next conjuring trick, Muller will disappear up his own fundament while simultaneously re-appearing at the other end.
The French Greens have made sweeping gains across the country as France shifts left in local body elections. Also (to my great delight) Anne Hidalgo the Socialist Mayor of Paris has had a big victory. Her bold plans to reinvent and regreen the capital will have repercussions for urban planning everywhere.
I swear, if you were a script writer for political satire, and you put these words in the mouth of a character who was only there for cheap laughs, you'd be told to go back and try again …
"Muller said there were several permutations of how some kind of border opening could work, particularly if passengers were able to prove they were Covid-19 free from overseas.
He said he didn't know exactly how this would work but he wanted some sort of clarity from the Government about their plan to open up."
Huh Observer? But, but, but Woodhouse said that the process is very simple. Anyone could do it and just get a competent (National) Government to run it all. Is Muller not speaking to Woodhouse?
Just got round to watching Campbell challenging Woodhouse on his homeless man myth. Pretty amazing. Note the "dry mouth" of Woodhouse and his failure to regain any credibility. (Sorry if this has already been covered.)
What's the background to this murder? Is this a young chap who should have been in enclosed, managed care because he was too erratically behaved when stressed. Has he shown signs of violence before?
Is this a result from people being out in the community, because it sounds nice. There was a great outcry in the UK in late 1980s about conditions in mental hospitals. So the only option was to close them all, not to really staff them well, and maintain the community standards to a high level, including those in institutions.
This process began with a wholescale transformation process known as deinstitutionalisation – that is, shifting care and support of people with mental health problems from psychiatric institutions into community based settings. At the start of the process, these institutions housed approximately 100,000 people; by the end, all had closed….
Politically, there was consensus among parties about hospital reconstruction, and further legislation set a vision for the provision of mental health services as part of this. Alongside this, Enoch Powell, then Minister for Health, announced the intention to halve the number of hospital beds for people with mental health problems.
Although there was little overt financial impetus for deinstitutionalisation, it was generally acknowledged that institutions were financially unsustainable and, in many cases, represented prime estate.
There were moral and medial reasons for looking at how many people could be treated in the community and perhaps better than in institutions. But note the above:
the right wing politician Powell was limiting mental health beds in hospital, and they were being regarded as financially unsustainable which is majorly a bean counter decision, and the last item they represented ‘prime; real estate.
TL;DR: Here’s the top six news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa-NZ this week, and a discussion above that was recorded yesterday afternoon above between and The Kākā’s climate correspondent : An independent review panel into the emergency response to Cyclone Gabrielle in Hawkes Bayconcluded “that ...
There are now only a few days left to give feedback on the Draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) on Land Transport 2024-34 (see our earlier post this week on GPS submission guides). As we’ve reported, the GPS is a disaster for Local Government, so we were particularly interested to hear ...
Willis has pledged to go ahead with the debt-funded tax cuts, despite growing opposition from her own supporters worried about appearing fiscally irresponsible. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for ...
Open access notables A survey of interventions to actively conserve the frozen North, van Wijngaarden et al., Climatic Change:The frozen elements of the high North are thawing as the region warms much faster than the global mean. The dangers of sea level rise due to melting glacier ice, increased ...
Bryce Edwards writes – New Zealand’s biggest-ever political donations scandal is finally at an end. But what is the conclusion? No one can really be sure. The Court of Appeal released its judgement on Tuesday about the Serious Fraud Office case against the NZ First Foundation. On ...
In 2015, then-Prime Minister John Key announced plans for a huge ocean sanctuary around the Kermadec Islands, banning fishing and mining from 15% of Aotearoa's EEZ. It was bold, it was ambitious, and it suggested that National might actually care about the environment. Except they fucked it up: Key failed ...
1. Who has just been given the accolade New Zealander of the Year?a. The Kokakob. The Cook Strait Ferryc. Fair God. Dr Jim Salinger 2. Which of these is an affront to decent society?a. Dame Edna Everageb. Mrs Doubtfire c. Dr. Frank-N-Furterd. Brian 3. Who is Penny Simmonds?a. The aspiring actress in Big ...
New Zealand’s biggest-ever political donations scandal is finally at an end. But what is the conclusion? No one can really be sure.The Court of Appeal released its judgement on Tuesday about the Serious Fraud Office case against the NZ First Foundation. On the face of it, the court found ...
Buzz from the Beehive Waves of rain are set to lash much of the North Island during Easter Weekend as a low-pressure system forms east of New Zealand, according to a weather forecast published in the past day or so. Niwa was warning of a “moisture-laden” long weekend, with rain expected ...
Look around us…Nicola Willis’ promises of balancing the books, of cutting spending without reducing services, and of delivering game changing tax cuts are disappearing before her eyes.Everyday we see stories of violent crime ending in horrific injuries, or worse. The cost of living worsens, whereas the PM claimed renters would ...
TL;DR: My top six news of note on the morning of Thursday, March 28 include:The Government will have to borrow between $10 billion to $15 billion more than previously expected in order to make up for a slowing economy and to pay for $14.9 billion of tax cuts, according to ...
This story by Naveena Sadasivam and Kate Yoder was originally published by Grist and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. The long-awaited jobs board for the American Climate Corps, promised early in the Biden administration, will open next month, according to details shared exclusively ...
Should landlords be able to deduct the interest on the loans they take out to bankroll their property speculation? The US Senate Budget Committee and Bloomberg News don’t think this is a good idea, for reasons set out below. Regardless, our coalition government has been burning through a ton of ...
Treasury’s first report on the economy since the change of government presents a damning indictment of Labour’s economic management. The problem for National is that it is so damning that logically, coupled with a rapidly slowing economy, Finance Minister Nicola Willis should respond to it by postponing or even cancelling ...
Budget tensions are becoming evident within the Coalition Government. Winston Peters made numerous political points in his speech to the NZF annual conference. But the attack on his own government’s fiscal policies raised issues of substance. ‘Today in the Sunday Star Times, journalist and former advisor to the Labour ...
Buzz from the Beehive The media – sure enough – have been binging on Finance Minister Nicola Willis’ release of the Budget Policy Statement and a statement headed Government announces Budget priorities This assures us – or rather, this parrots the Luxon team mantra – that the Budget “will deliver ...
The Ides of March brought me COVID followed by a bereavement. No wonder they tell you to be careful of them.I’m home now and have resumed the interrupted recuperation. Very much looking forward to getting back to regular things. Meanwhile, some thoughts…OneThis new Prime Minister guy just keeps getting more dire. ...
News that the Chinese ATP 40 cyber-hacking unit penetrated parliamentary internet networks in 2021 has renewed concerns about the PRC’s malign intentions in Aotearoa. But is the hack that significant given the length of time that has passed since its … Continue reading → ...
When Parliament passed the Intelligence and security Act in 2017, they assured us all that it was full of safeguards. Any intrusive surveillance of New Zealanders would be subject to a "triple lock", requiring the approval of the Minister and (supposedly independent) Commissioner of Intelligence Warrants, as well as post-facto ...
Eric Crampton writes – Richard Harman’s Politik newsletter provides a bit of the context that ought to have been showing up in other media reports on potential reductions in public service staffing. Media has been reporting on staffing cuts on the order of about 7%. Is that ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – It’s becoming increasingly apparent that many perceive free speech to have become the preserve of the politically right wing, the religiously conservative, the libertarian fringe, the anti-trans, the anti-Māori and…. well, just fill in with whatever groups or individuals you don’t like and don’t ...
Don Brash writes – As everybody who is not blind and deaf is aware, there is a huge political preoccupation with climate change at the moment, a widespread (though by no means unanimous) belief that global temperatures are rising mainly as a result of the greenhouse gases created ...
TL;DR: My six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy on Wednesday, March 27 include:Chris Bishop laid out his vision for filling Aotearoa-NZ’s $100 billion infrastructure deficit in a speech yesterday, emphasising user pays and private funding, but failed to say how to achieve bipartisanship on population, public borrowing and ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Former Finance Minister Grant Robertson and former Prime Minister Chris Hipkins have been conveying how unhappy they are with the tax system. Last week in his valedictory speech, Robertson called for the introduction of a wealth or capital gains tax. And this week Hipkins ...
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 ...
Buzz from the Beehive China has loomed large in Beehive considerations over the past 24 hours, largely because of that country’s mischief-making in the cyber espionage department. Two media statements emerged on that subject hard on the heels of the PM baulking at questions put to him on RNZ’s Morning ...
Chris Trotter writes – WHY IS THE NATIONAL PARTY doing so much for landlords, property developers, trucking, and construction companies, and so little for everybody who isn’t already pretty well-off? It’s as if protecting landlords’ investments and building apartments and roads now constitute the whole of National’s ...
Bryce Edwards writes – When she was campaigning to be Minister of Finance last year, Nicola Willis pledged that she would resign from the job if she failed to deliver tax cuts in her first Budget. Now, it’s that pledge, along with Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s ...
Robert MacCulloch writes – The Reserve Bank has doubled staff numbers in five years to 510, with personnel costs rising to $80 million in 2023 from $32 million in 2018 – up by a whopping 150%. I guess when you print $50 billion and flood markets with liquidity, ...
The furore. In case you didn’t notice there was a controversy in the weekend involving dolphins in a little town off the South Island. Don’t panic, they haven’t declared independence and resumed whaling, this was simply a sailing event.The problem began when racing was cancelled on the opening day of ...
For 20 years or more, the case for a meaningful capital tax gains has been mulled over and analysed to death, including by the tax working group chaired by Sir Michael Cullen. More than once, the International Monetary Fund has said a CGT would be a good idea for New ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read: The Public Health Communications Centre (PHCC) call for urgent preventive action and a risk assessment survey of long covid in this briefing noteLocal scoop: NZ road deaths surpass OECD rates, so why is the govt reversing safety plans? ...
This story was originally published by Grist and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. This story is part of a collaboration with Grist and WABE to demystify the Georgia Public Service Commission, the small but powerful state-elected board that makes critical decisions about everything from raising ...
This is a guest post from Robert McLachlan Global warming is accelerating; 2023 was off the charts. We need to stop burning fossil fuels. In New Zealand, transport accounts for half of all fossil fuels burnt. In the Emissions Reduction Plan, transport emissions fall 41% by 2035. As the ...
Labour productivity has been receding rapidly over the past two years, reversing a post-lockdown rise. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy as at 6:26am on Tuesday, March 26 include:Workers have been treading water in output per hour worked for 12 years, ...
TL;DR: The key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to April 2 include:Today, Parliament resumes sitting at 2pm for the second week of a two-week session. Officials for SIS and GCSB report their annual reviews in public to the Intelligence and Security Select Committee from 5.10pm.Tomorrow, ...
Faced with a barrage of criticism over the promised tax cuts from usually supportive commentators, Finance Minister Nicola Willis yesterday reaffirmed her intention to include them in this year’s Budget. The Government is up against it over the cuts just about every way it turns. Commentators like Fran O’Sullivan, Matthew ...
Here’s my pick of today’s substack posts as of 6:26pm on Monday, March 25: writes via his substack that Market-rate housing will make your city cheaper writes via his substack about the problems talking to double-cab ute (truck) drivers about their vehicles. today about moments of radicalisation in ...
Buzz from the Beehive Just before Christmas, Finance Minister Nicola Willis delivered something that was pitched as a mini-budget and brayed about the decisive action being taken to repair the Government books and support income tax relief in Budget 2024. In a statement headed Fiscal repair job underway. she introduced ...
My sister Belinda asked Dad yesterday what one word would describe Mum best. He said: vivacious.If you only knew her from the photos on the slideshow we've made for today,you might wonder about that, because the camera tended to lie with Mum.If ever she saw a camera pointed at her, she ...
There are two major public consultations closing in the next week, Auckland Council’s Long Term Plan (LTP), and the draft Government Policy Statement on Land Transport (GPS). Closing dates and times: LTP closes Thursday 28 February, at 11.59pm – a minute to midnight! GPS closes Tuesday 2 April, at 12pm noon – note that’s ...
From Kiwiblog’s David Farrar – Bryce Wilkinson writes: Senior Fellow Bryce Wilkinson’s analysis reveals that since March 2009, New Zealand has spent $158 billion more overseas than it has earned, but its NIIP has only fallen by $32 billion.Statistics New Zealand shows that receipts from overseas reinsurers have ...
Is she hinting that the Coalition Government will have to back down on key promises it made in Opposition? Brian Easton writes – The Minister of Finance, Nicola Willis, is telling an evolving story about her fiscal challenges. In Opposition she was confident that she could ...
Dear Nicola Willis,Right now you’ve probably got lots of competing demands coming at you. Ministers who’ve inherited quite a mess, or so you’ve told us, looking for money in the budget to improve things. I imagine that’s why they came to parliament - to make things better.You’ll have to make ...
The Local Government, Transport and Auckland Minister hasthreatened councils with intervention if they don’t merge water assets to take them off balance sheet, just as the now-repealed Three Waters plan directed. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: My six things of note this morning for Monday, March 25 include:Simeon ...
A listing of 36 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, March 17, 2024 thru Sat, March 23, 2024. Story of the week Thanks to John Mason having the stamina to sit down to watch "Climate - the Movie" ...
This morning the Q&A programme had Simeon Brown on to talk about National’s replacement for Three Waters. In case anyone’s forgotten the three are - drinking water, waste water, and sewerage. It’s quite important not to get them mixed up. In much the same way that you wouldn’t want to ...
Today’s newsletter comes with a mini-podcast conversation between me and my buddy Liv Tennet, talking about her time as a child actor in Lord of the Rings. It’s a conversation with a lot of giggles as she talks about falling off a horse, and becoming a meme. Read ...
The Desmog Climate Disinformation Database documents, "individuals and organisations that have helped to delay and distract the public and our elected leaders from taking needed action to reduce greenhouse gas pollution and fight global warming." It's a who's who of the organised climate change denial movement, in other words. In ...
Bob Edlin writes – A High Court judge has decided miscreants who have mana – or who claim to have mana – should be treated differently from miscreants who have none. It’s a ruling that suggests indigenous law-breakers have a better chance of securing a discharge without conviction ...
Welcome to the first, and possibly last, edition of Brickbats, Bouquets and Bull’s Wool. In which I’ll take a look at the events of the last week or so, and rate them.In such ratings the numbers usually have more to do with the opinions of the reviewer, than the actual ...
Roger Partridge writes – My earlier column this month, New Zealand’s highest court could be facing a turning point, prompted a flood of feedback from business readers and lawyers alike. A common query was what Parliament can do to restrain an overreaching judiciary. This week I discuss two steps Parliament ...
TL;DR: In today’s ‘six-stack’ of substacks at 6.16pm on Friday, March 22: writes about New Zealand's Building Boom—And What the World Must Learn From It over at his substack. challenges the Auckland Council’s use of a 3.8 degrees of warming forecast to oppose a wave-park and data centre project ...
Is she hinting that the Coalition Government will have to back down on key promises it made in Opposition?The Minister of Finance, Nicola Willis, is telling an evolving story about her fiscal challenges. In Opposition she was confident that she could deliver her promised income tax cuts. Appointed minister, she ...
Buzz from the Beehive Ministers of the Crown have drawn attention to one sector of the science sector which is unlikely to be subjected to heavy spending cuts, a state-funded broadcaster which is doing nicely, thank you, and a sporting event that had $5.4 million from the public purse puffed ...
Abbott’s Freestyle Libre sensors allow continuous glucose monitoring (CGM). The sensor is applied to the back of the patient’s arm, with a thin filament under the skin measuring glucose levels constantly. But it costs around $100 per sensor and must be replaced once every 14 days. Photo by BSIP/Universal Images ...
The Inspector General of Intelligence and Security (IGIS) recently released a report in which he exposes the existence of a foreign intelligence partner-controlled technological “capability” inside the headquarters of the GCSB, NZ’s 5 Eyes-affiliated signals intelligence collection and analysis agency. … Continue reading → ...
Peter Dunne writes – Nearly three decades after the introduction of MMP and multiparty governments there should be a greater level of understanding about their finer points than often appears to be the case. The reaction to the despicable outburst from the Deputy Prime Minister at the weekend highlights ...
The sweet kisses from fruit of summerHave slowly been turning dullerYou say, "those times"And "remember the daysWhen we went outside and there still was the shade?"Taking no reason into play…Autumn. Clear, blue days shortening to longer nights, growing colder. Aotearoa.That’s us. The temperature dropping, the looming car crash - so ...
Bryce Edwards writes – “It is often said that behind every great man is a great woman”. This is the pitch by the National Party Botany electorate branch to attend their “Ladies Afternoon Tea with Amanda Luxon”. For $110 including GST, you can turn up on Saturday 20 April ...
David Farrar writes – The Electoral Commission has published the expense returns for political parties for the 2023 election. I’ve put them in a table with how many votes a party got so we can see the spend per vote. National only spent $3.34 for every vote they got, almost ...
Winston Peters’ headline-making actions over the past week may have been a show of political power intended to strengthen his hand in Budget negotiations. It was no accident that his State of the Nation speech was as it was. He made it as New Zealand First Leader, not as Deputy ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:Former Labour Finance Minister Grant Robertson bowed out of politics this week, giving a series of exit ...
Graham Adams writes — If you love the law or sausages, as the saying goes, best not to look too closely at how they are made. And after watching the orgy of self-pity when Newshub’s closure was announced on February 28, television journalism should definitely be added to the list of those ...
Venerable New Zealand political commentator, Chris Trotter (https://bowalleyroad.blogspot.com/), is a sad creature these days. Once one of the most reliable Leftist writers out there – Economic Left at that – Trotter seems to have absorbed the worldview of Auckland culture-war obsessives. It is not for me to categorise what he ...
The cruelty of short-term memory loss is that each time you ask where she is, you get the fresh shock and grief of the news. That was Dad's day yesterday.Comfortingly, it seems to be less so today. Last night he looked crumpled, today he seems more settled. There's a card ...
Photo by Alvan Nee on UnsplashIt’s that new day of the week (Thursday rather than Friday) when and I co-host our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kākā for an hour at 5 pm. Jump on this link on YouTube Livestream for our chat about the week’s news ...
Buzz from the Beehive One minister is talking tough while a colleague – whose ministry had acted tough and drawn a barrage of flak – has shown an official softening. Some ministers are doing what Labour was good at, which is distributing public funds to causes regarded as worthy or ...
The Coalition Government’s plan to ‘get Auckland moving’ is a cuts cover-up that will ultimately cost Aucklanders more to move around the city, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Slashing the Ministry of Pacific Peoples by 40% will have a devastating impact on pacific communities and further highlights how little this government cares about anything other than cutting taxes for the wealthiest few. ...
Labour has proposed an urgent inquiry to investigate the ever-increasing profits of supermarkets, aiming to lower costs for shoppers and food producers alike, says Labour Spokesperson for Commerce and Consumer Affairs Arena Williams and Primary Production Spokesperson Cushla Tangaere-Manuel. ...
With 14% of jobs on the line at the Ministry for Ethnic Communities, the responsible Minister Melissa Lee is failing to stand up for the very communities she’s meant to be representing. ...
COURT OF APPEAL: TRIFECTA OF VICTORY FOR NZ FIRST, TRIFECTA OF FAILURE FOR OPPONENTS For the third time since April 2020, New Zealand First has defeated the Serious Fraud Office and all those complicit in a malicious attack against a political party going about its lawful business in a lawful ...
The Green Party stands with people who live in public housing, people in dire housing need, experts and advocates in demanding better than the Government’s archaic approach to housing those who need our support the most. ...
New Zealand has recently lost the hosting rights of some major international sporting events including the America’s Cup, the Rugby Championship, Netball World Cup, and the Wellington Sevens. We are now at a huge risk of losing SailGP as well. And it won’t stop there. The recent issues with SailGP ...
A Member’s Bill drawn this week would modernise insurance law and make things fairer and more transparent for consumers, Christchurch Central MP Duncan Webb said. ...
The Minister for Disability Issues has confirmed she was aware of funding issues in mid-December and did nothing to stop it. On 14 March, she signed off on changes that were announced and implemented on 18 March without any consultation with disability communities. ...
Green Party MP Julie Anne Genter says her members' bill is an opportunity for the coalition government to plug the gap in electric vehicle incentives. ...
The National Government continues to talk about irresponsible tax cuts that will only drive up inflation, despite the country entering a technical recession. ...
The Minister for Disability Issues must act urgently to reinstate flexibility around the funding for disability support and apologise to disabled carers. ...
This story has been initiated by a leftie shill reporter who proactively sought to call a member of a former band, which disbanded twelve years ago, give their biased appraisal of what was said in my speech, and concocted a ham-fisted attempt at a story that does nothing but show ...
The Government has accepted Labour’s change to the Road User Charge (RUC) discount for hybrid vehicles, meaning there will still be some incentive for people to buy greener vehicles. ...
Many in the mainstream media have taken what was said in New Zealand First’s State of the Nation Speech in Palmerston North on Sunday and deliberately, deceitfully, and ignorantly misrepresented what I said and why I said it. The headlines and commentary on the news stated that I compared ‘co-governance ...
Kicking the most vulnerable people out of state housing and pushing them towards homelessness will result in a proliferation of poverty and trauma across our most vulnerable communities. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader and MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi has penned a letter asking MPs to support his members bill to remove GST from all food. The bill is expected to go through its first reading in parliament this Wednesday. “I’m calling on all political parties to support my ...
Good afternoon. Thank you for, in your very busy lives, turning up to this meeting today. On October 14th last year New Zealanders overwhelmingly voted for change. That is exactly what this new government is bringing. New Zealand First campaigned to ‘take back our country’ and stop the disastrous economic ...
This year is about getting real with Kiwis and discussing the tough issues, as the National Government exacerbates inequality and divides New Zealand, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said ...
The Government adding Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) to its already roaring environmental policy bonfire is an assault on the future of wildlife that makes Aotearoa unique. ...
After 12 years of fighting to protect our moana we are finding ourselves back at square one and back at court. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is sitting in Hawera to reconsider an application from Trans-Tasman Resources to dig up 50 million tonnes of the seabed in South Taranaki. This ...
Minister Shane Jones’ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Government’s fast-track legislation. ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Government’s miscalculation saga continues as it has forgotten an eyewatering $90 million gap in its interest deductibility cost figures, say Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds and Revenue Spokesperson Deborah Russell. ...
He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission has today released advice that says if the Government doesn’t act now New Zealand is at risk of not meeting its climate goals. ...
The Coalition Government has today confirmed it is abandoning first home buyers who are struggling to get ahead, says Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds. ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed the passing of legislation to move light electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) into the road user charges system from 1 April. “It was always intended that EVs and PHEVs would be exempt from road user charges until they reached two ...
New Zealand is strengthening its ability to combat illegal fishing outside its domestic waters and beef up regulation for its own commercial fishers in international waters through a Bill which had its first reading in Parliament today. The Fisheries (International Fishing and Other Matters) Amendment Bill 2023 sets out stronger ...
Economists Carl Hansen and Professor Prasanna Gai have been appointed to the Reserve Bank Monetary Policy Committee, Finance Minister Nicola Willis announced today. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is the independent decision-making body that sets the Official Cash Rate which determines interest rates. Carl Hansen, the executive director of Capital ...
Apartment owners and buyers will soon have greater protections as further changes to the law on unit titles come into effect, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “The Unit Titles (Strengthening Body Corporate Governance and Other Matters) Amendment Act had already introduced some changes in December 2022 and May 2023, and ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters will travel to Egypt and Europe from this weekend. “This travel will focus on a range of New Zealand’s traditional diplomatic and security partnerships while enabling broad engagement on the urgent situation in Gaza,” Mr Peters says. Mr Peters will attend the NATO Foreign ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown is encouraging all road users to stay safe, plan their journeys ahead of time, and be patient with other drivers while travelling around this Easter long weekend. “Road safety is a responsibility we all share, and with increased traffic on our roads expected this Easter we ...
About 1.4 million New Zealanders will receive cost of living relief through increased government assistance from April 1 909,000 pensioners get a boost to Superannuation, including 5000 veterans 371,000 working-age beneficiaries will get higher payments 45,000 students will see an increase in their allowance Over a quarter of New Zealanders ...
Ensuring social housing is being provided to those with the greatest needs is front of mind as the Government restarts social housing tenancy reviews, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka says. “Our relentless focus on building a strong economy is to ensure we can deliver better public services such as social ...
The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary will not go ahead, with Cabinet deciding to stop work on the proposed reserve and remove the Bill that would have established it from Parliament’s order paper. “The Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary Bill would have created a 620,000 sq km economic no-go zone,” Oceans and Fisheries Minister ...
Dam safety regulations are being amended so that smaller dams won’t be subject to excessive compliance costs, Minister for Building and Construction Chris Penk says. “The coalition Government is focused on reducing costs and removing unnecessary red tape so we can get the economy back on track. “Dam safety regulations ...
The coalition Government is expanding the medium-scale adverse event classification to parts of the North Island as dry weather conditions persist, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced today. “I have made the decision to expand the medium-scale adverse event classification already in place for parts of the South Island to also cover the ...
The passing of legislation giving effect to coalition Government tax commitments has been welcomed by Finance Minister Nicola Willis. “The Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill will help place New Zealand on a more secure economic footing, improve outcomes for New Zealanders, and make our tax system ...
Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins and Tertiary Education and Skills Minister Penny Simmonds today announced plans to transform our science and university sectors to boost the economy. Two advisory groups, chaired by Professor Sir Peter Gluckman, will advise the Government on how these sectors can play a greater ...
The Budget will deliver urgently-needed tax relief to hard-working New Zealanders while putting the government’s finances back on a sustainable track, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The Finance Minister made the comments at the release of the Budget Policy Statement setting out the Government’s Budget objectives. “The coalition Government intends ...
The coalition Government will look at options to address a zoning issue that limits how much financial support Queenstown residents can get for accommodation. Cabinet has agreed on a response to the Petitions Committee, which had recommended the geographic information MSD uses to determine how much accommodation supplement can be ...
Cabinet has agreed to a short extension to the final reporting timeframe for the Royal Commission into Abuse in Care from 28 March 2024 to 26 June 2024, Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden says. “The Royal Commission wrote to me on 16 February 2024, requesting that I consider an ...
The coalition Government is delivering an $18 million boost to New Zealanders needing to travel for specialist health treatment, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says. “These changes are long overdue – the National Travel Assistance (NTA) scheme saw its last increase to mileage and accommodation rates way back in 2009. ...
The Government is recognising the innovative and rising talent in New Zealand’s growing space sector, with the Prime Minister and Space Minister Judith Collins announcing the new Prime Minister’s Prizes for Space today. “New Zealand has a growing reputation as a high-value partner for space missions and research. I am ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has confirmed New Zealand’s concerns about cyber activity have been conveyed directly to the Chinese Government. “The Prime Minister and Minister Collins have expressed concerns today about malicious cyber activity, attributed to groups sponsored by the Chinese Government, targeting democratic institutions in both New ...
Independent Reviewers appointed for School Property Inquiry Education Minister Erica Stanford today announced the appointment of three independent reviewers to lead the Ministerial Inquiry into the Ministry of Education’s School Property Function. The Inquiry will be led by former Minister of Foreign Affairs Murray McCully. “There is a clear need ...
State Highway 1 across the Brynderwyns will be open for Easter weekend, with work currently underway to ensure the resilience of this critical route being paused for Easter Weekend to allow holiday makers to travel north, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Today I visited the Brynderwyn Hills construction site, where ...
Introduction Good morning to you all, and thanks for having me bright and early today. I am absolutely delighted to be the Minister for Infrastructure alongside the Minister of Housing and Resource Management Reform. I know the Prime Minister sees the three roles as closely connected and he wants me ...
New Zealand stands with the United Kingdom in its condemnation of People’s Republic of China (PRC) state-backed malicious cyber activity impacting its Electoral Commission and targeting Members of the UK Parliament. “The use of cyber-enabled espionage operations to interfere with democratic institutions and processes anywhere is unacceptable,” Minister Responsible for ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Defence Minister Judith Collins today announced New Zealand will provide logistics support for the upcoming Solomon Islands election. “We’re sending a team of New Zealand Defence Force personnel and two NH90 helicopters to provide logistics support for the election on 17 April, at the request ...
The European Union Free Trade Agreement Legislation Amendment Bill received Royal Assent today, completing the process for New Zealand’s ratification of its free trade agreement with the European Union. “I am pleased to announce that today, in a small ceremony at the Beehive, New Zealand notified the European Union ...
Public consultation on the terms of reference for the Royal Commission into COVID-19 Lessons has concluded, Internal Affairs Minister Hon Brooke van Velden says. “I have been advised that there were over 11,000 submissions made through the Royal Commission’s online consultation portal.” Expanding the scope of the Royal Commission of ...
Hardworking families are set to benefit from a new credit to help them meet their early childcare education (ECE) costs, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. From 1 July, parents and caregivers of young children will be supported to manage the rising cost of living with a partial reimbursement of their ...
A specialised Independent Technical Advisory Group (ITAG) tasked with preparing and publishing independent non-binding advice on the design of a "green" (sustainable finance) taxonomy rulebook is being established, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “Comprising experts and market participants, the ITAG's primary goal is to deliver comprehensive recommendations to the ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins has thanked the Chief of Army, Major General John Boswell, DSD, for his service as he leaves the Army after 40 years. “I would like to thank Major General Boswell for his contribution to the Army and the wider New Zealand Defence Force, undertaking many different ...
25 March 2024 Minister to meet Australian counterparts and Manufacturing Industry Leaders Small Business, Manufacturing, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly will travel to Australia for a series of bi-lateral meetings and manufacturing visits. During the visit, Minister Bayly will meet with his Australian counterparts, Senator Tim Ayres, Ed ...
Government commits almost $3 million for period products in schools The Coalition Government has committed $2.9 million to ensure intermediate and secondary schools continue providing period products to those who need them, Minister of Education Erica Stanford announced today. “This is an issue of dignity and ensuring young women don’t ...
Good morning, it’s great to be here. First, I would like to acknowledge the New Zealand Institute of Building Surveyors and thank you for the opportunity to be here this morning. I would like to use this opportunity to outline the Government’s ambitious plan and what we hope to ...
Minister for Pacific Peoples Dr Shane Reti has announced the Government’s commitment to the Auckland Secondary Schools Māori and Pacific Islands Cultural Festival, more commonly known as Polyfest. “The Ministry for Pacific Peoples is a longtime supporter of Polyfest and, as it celebrates 49 years in 2024, I’m proud to ...
Before moving onto the substance of today’s address, I want to recognise the very significant and ongoing contribution the Breast Cancer Foundation makes to support the lives of New Zealand women and their families living with breast cancer. I very much enjoy working with you. I also want to recognise ...
New Zealand has notched up a first with the launch of University of Canterbury research to the International Space Station, Science, Innovation and Technology and Space Minister Judith Collins says. The hardware, developed by Dr Sarah Kessans, is designed to operate autonomously in orbit, allowing scientists on Earth to study ...
Introduction Thank you for inviting me to speak with you today and I’m sorry I can’t be there in person. Yesterday I started in Wellington for Breakfast TV, spoke to a property conference in Auckland, and finished the day speaking to local government in Christchurch, so it would have been ...
The Coalition Government is contributing more than $1 million to support the establishment of an emergency multi-agency coordination centre in Northland. Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell announced the contribution today during a visit of the Whangārei site where the facility will be constructed. “Northland has faced a number ...
New Zealanders have enjoyed a broader range of voices telling the story of Aotearoa thanks to the creation of Whakaata Māori 20 years ago, says Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka. The minister spoke at a celebration marking the national indigenous media organisation’s 20th anniversary at their studio in Auckland on ...
Commercial catch limits for some fisheries have been increased following a review showing stocks are healthy and abundant, Ocean and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The changes, along with some other catch limit changes and management settings, begin coming into effect from 1 April 2024. "Regular biannual reviews of fish ...
Analysis by Keith Rankin. Keith Rankin, trained as an economic historian, is a retired lecturer in Economics and Statistics. He lives in Auckland, New Zealand. My earlier article – Can ‘Good’ be the Greater Evil? – looked at the issue of how wars should end, and how Good versus Evil ...
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 AMMA by Saraid de Silva (Moa Press, $38)A stunning debut novel reviewed by Brannavan ...
From Steve Martin to Ricky Stanicky, a pick’n’mix of things worth watching and listening to this long weekend. This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. If you’re at a loss for something to occupy yourself with this Easter, don’t panic: The Spinoff’s got ...
Jesus had dinner with his 12 disciples right before he died. Noted historian Madeleine Chapman finds out who really deserved to be there.First published in 2018 but let’s be honest, the subject is timeless. As you sit on your couch this Easter Sunday, eating a chocolate egg you know ...
The newly-promoted Northern League club is on a mission to return to the National League for the first time in two decades. Plenty about domestic football in New Zealand has changed in that time – but the sense that this amateur competition is not an entirely level playing field remains. ...
Comment: Every year on February 2, a dozen men in tuxedos and top hats approach the burrow of a groundhog in Gobbler’s Knob, Pennsylvania and entice the beaver-like rodent to emerge and predict the weather. If the groundhog, named Punxsutawney Phil, sees its own shadow when it is summoned, legend ...
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[quiz],DIV[quiz],A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp'); Got a good quiz question?Send Newsroom your questions. The post Newsroom daily quiz, Friday 29 March appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Auckland Council has put a deadline on new weather-impacted property owners applying for categorisation as government funding looks set to run out. Councillors have voted to support a deadline of September 30 for property owners who haven’t accessed support to come forward and engage with the council’s recovery office. It ...
NONFICTION 1 BBQ Economics by Liam Dann (Penguin Random House, $40) “It’s official,” wrote Dann nine days ago in the Herald, where he works as business editor at large, “we’re in recession.” Yeah, great. He delivered the bad stats: “GDP fell 0.1 percent in the December 2023 quarter, compared with ...
By Anneke Smith, RNZ News political reporter A petition urging the New Zealand government to provide urgent humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian people has been tabled in the House. More than 200 people gathered on Parliament’s forecourt today and they were met by MPs from Labour, the Greens and Te ...
Pacific Media Watch The Paris-based global media freedom watchdog RSF (Reporters Without Borders) has appealed for information about the “disappearance” of Palestinian journalist Bayan Abusultan. She was reportedly last seen on March 19 among people “sequestered” in this week’s raid and siege of Al Shifa hospital by Israeli troops in ...
EDITORIAL:The Jakarta Post It happens again and again; indigenous Papuans fall victim to Indonesian soldiers. This time, we have photographic evidence for the brutality, with videos on social media showing a Papuan man being tortured by a group of plainclothes men alleged to be the Indonesian Military (TNI) members. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robyn J. Whitaker, Director of the Wesley Centre for Theology, Ethics, and Public Policy & Associate Professor, New Testament, Pilgrim Theological College, University of Divinity A strange and eclectic range of activities takes place across these few weeks of the year. Some ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Panizza Allmark, Professor Visual & Cultural Studies, Edith Cowan University It’s Easter weekend, which means many of us will be kicking back with the greatest hits on repeat. But whether you’re a boomer, or an ‘80s or ’90s kid, you might be ...
RNZ Pacific Fiji’s Acting Public Prosecutor has filed an appeal against the sentences of former prime minister Voreqe Bainimarama and suspended police chief Sitiveni Qiliho in their corruption case. Bainimarama was granted an absolute discharge for attempting to pervert the course of justice while Qiliho received a conditional discharge with ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Arosha Weerakoon, Senior Lecturer and General Dentist, School of Dentistry, The University of Queensland Casezy idea/Shutterstock How does toothpaste work? What did people use before toothpaste was invented? – Amelia, age 7, Meanjin (Brisbane) Thanks for your ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Brett Hallam, Associate professor, UNSW Sydney IM Imagery/Shutterstock Solar SunShot is well named. The Australian government announced today it would plough A$1 billion into bringing back solar manufacturing to Australia, boosting energy security, swapping coal and gas jobs for those ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Clare Dix, Research Fellow in Nutrition & Dietetics, The University of Queensland Easter is the time for chocolate. The shops are full of fantastically packaged and shiny chocolates in all shapes and sizes, making trips to the supermarket with children more challenging ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Emma Felton, Adjunct Senior Researcher, University of South Australia Even in a stubborn cost-of-living crisis, it seems there’s one luxury most Australians won’t sacrifice – their daily cup of coffee. Coffee sales have largely remained stable, even as financial pressures have ...
Mining company Trans-Tasman Resources has unexpectedly withdrawn its application for a consent to suck the valuable metals vanadium and titanium from the Taranaki seafloor, as it apparently wagers on the Government’s new fast-track process. It had spent two-and-a-half days putting its case to the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision-making committee, at ...
Contrary to the Associate Minister of Education’s claims, analysis of Healthy School Lunches Programme - Ka Ora, Ka Ako assessments has revealed it provides excellent value for the taxpayer dollar, as a groundswell of public opposition to Government ...
Greenpeace says wannabe Taranaki seabed miner Trans-Tasman Resources is likely banking on Christopher Luxon’s fast-track process to side-step proper scrutiny of its Taranaki seabed mining proposal by bailing out of the Environmental Protection Agency hearing ...
Kiwis Against Seabed mining today slammed Australian owned would-be seabed miner Trans Tasman Resources (TTR) for abandoning its application to the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) to mine the seabed of the South Taranaki Bight. The company ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Katie Attwell, Associate Professor, School of Social Sciences, The University of Western Australia Ground Picture/Shutterstock Months after COVID vaccines were introduced in 2021, governments and private organisations mandated them for various groups. Health and aged care workers were among the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Dzurak, Scientia Professor Andrew Dzurak, CEO and Founder of Diraq, UNSW Sydney Diraq For decades, the pursuit of quantum computing has struggled with the need for extremely low temperatures, mere fractions of a degree above absolute zero (0 Kelvin or ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adrian Beaumont, Election Analyst (Psephologist) at The Conversation; and Honorary Associate, School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Melbourne A national Essential poll, conducted March 20–24 from a sample of 1,150, gave the Coalition a 50–44 lead including undecided, a reversal ...
The Taxpayers’ Union has today made a formal request under the Regulations of the People’s Republic of China on Open Government Information () for information held about how New Zealand Members of Parliament are spending taxpayer ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robert Nelson, Honorary Principal Fellow, The University of Melbourne A Byzantine depiction of the Eucharist in Saint Sophia Cathedral, Kyiv.Jacek555/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA A nasty quarrel arose in the 11th century over what kind of bread should be used in holy ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Patrick Hesp, Professor, Flinders University Patrick Hesp In some parts of Australia, coastal dunes are retreating from the ocean at an alarming rate, as waves carve up the beach and wind blows the sand inland. But coastal communities are largely ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Luke Heemsbergen, Senior Lecturer, Digital, Political, Media, Deakin University With an impressive 60% of the US smartphone market, Apple is undeniably big, but not a clear monopoly. Yet, years of innovation by Apple have effectively given the company its own exclusive ...
Whether you’re facing layoffs or are just an emotional junior staffer, it’s always a good idea to scout out a good crying place before you need it. It’s an incredibly hard time for Wellington. Across the city, thousands of public servants are hearing tough news about redundancies and layoffs. Government ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By James Miller-Jones, Professor, Curtin University Nuclear explosions on a neutron star feed its jets. Danielle Futselaar and Nathalie Degenaar, Anton Pannekoek Institute, University of Amsterdam, CC BY-SA How fast can a neutron star drive powerful jets into space? The answer, it ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Daryl Adair, Associate Professor of Sport Management, University of Technology Sydney Earlier this week, independent MP Andrew Wilkie accused the AFL of conducting “off the books” illicit drug testing to identify players using substances of abuse, then inappropriately withdrawing them from matches ...
The Government’s announcement that it will scrap plans for a vast marine sanctuary around the Kermadec Islands is ‘shameful’ and will make it impossible for Aotearoa New Zealand to meet its international commitments, says the World Wide Fund for Nature ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By John Quiggin, Professor, School of Economics, The University of Queensland Shutterstock The federal government has bowed to pressure from the car industry, announcing it will relax proposed emissions rules for utes and vans and delay enforcement of the new standards ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Suzanne Rutland, Professor Emerita, University of Sydney In his latest book, Jewish Life in Medieval Spain, Jonathan Ray focuses on the tumult of the 14th century in Spain – a time of the plague, civil strife and war between the two largest ...
While creating a slate of world-class shows, Whakaata Māori also developed a generation of world-class creatives. Television is an odd word. It mixes the Ancient Greek and Latin languages, and its most literal meaning is “far-off sight”. In the contemporary and living language of te reo Māori, “whakaata” as a ...
Yesterday the UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Israel’s war on Gaza. This significant step and the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza prompted an urgent debate in the New Zealand Parliament. Leader ...
The Government’s decision to reduce access to continuous glucose monitors (CGM) not only threatens the lives of children with type 1 diabetes and increases the potential for ‘Dead in Bed’ syndrome, but also threatens the health of their parents an ...
Apples are available year-round, but the wide variety on offer involves intensive scientific research – and large-scale commercialisation. What’s beautiful, red, sweet and crunchy? Tony Martin’s favourite kind of apple: Sassy. The CEO of apple and pear breeding organisation Prevar, Martin’s fondness for Sassy represents professional success as well as ...
Family violence specialist service Shine is calling on employers to stop asking for proof of domestic violence in order for employees to access domestic violence leave. The call comes five years after the introduction of the Domestic Violence ...
The Deputy Chairperson of the Finance and Expenditure Committee is calling for public submissions on the Budget Policy Statement 2024. The Budget Policy Statement 2024 (BPS) sets out the Government's priorities for the 2024 Budget. It explains the approach ...
Brutal government spending cuts that will see the size of the Ministry for Pacific Peoples slashed by 40% will hit Pasifika communities hard, the PSA says. The Ministry has told staff that it is seeking voluntary redundancies, and to redeploy and reassign ...
I live with five people I mostly love, but our different ideas about generosity are starting to really irk me.Want Hera’s help? Email your problem to helpme@thespinoff.co.nzDear Hera,This is a bit of a random one but here goes. I’m 22 and work an OK job (OK meaning I get paid ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Maria Nicholas, Senior Lecturer in Language and Literacy Education, Deakin University Earlier this month, the New South Wales government announced it would roll out programs for gifted students in every public school in the state. This comes amid concerns gifted school ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christopher Rudge, Law lecturer, University of Sydney Massachusetts General Hospital In a world first, we heard last week that US surgeons had transplanted a kidney from a gene-edited pig into a living human. News reports said the procedure was a ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By David Tombs, Howard Paterson Chair of Theology and Public Issues, University of Otago The 5th-century Maskell panel showing Jesus in a loincloth.British Museum, CC BY-NC-SA When Jesus is shown on the cross, he is almost always depicted wearing a loincloth around ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Panizza Allmark, Professor Visual & Cultural Studies, Edith Cowan University Shutterstock When you think about a red object, you might picture a red carpet, or the massive ruby in the Queen’s crown. Indeed, Western monarchies and marketing from brands such ...
COMMENTARY:Jewish Voice for Peace The UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza on Monday — and for the first time since the beginning of the Israeli military’s genocide of Palestinians, the United States abstained rather than vetoing it. Security Council resolutions are legally binding, ...
Asia Pacific Report A New Zealand investigative journalist and author says the US spy system hosted by the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) appears to be a controversial intelligence system used in global capture-kill operations. Writing a commentary for RNZ News today, Nicky Hager, author of Secret Power, a 1996 ...
While Nicola Willis wouldn’t give any details on its size, she said a package of tax cuts is definitely still coming in this year’s budget, writes Catherine McGregor in this excerpt from The Bulletin, The Spinoff’s morning news round-up. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. ...
The Taxpayers’ Union is welcoming the investigation into the Department of Internal Affairs after it was revealed that the Department’s Chief Executive personally reached out to expedite a DJs passport application. Taxpayers’ Union Campaigns ...
Finance minister Nicola Willis delivers her first budget statement, and unwittingly helps Joel MacManus save his relationship. Nicola Willis strode into the Beehive Theatrette. Around me, on the green foldout seats, were the country’s top business and political journalists. They were all here to see her announce the Budget Policy ...
Twenty years ago today, Māori Television launched after much controversy. Jamie Tahana looks back on its survival and impact across two decades. Chad Chambers stepped onto the stage, the brim of his cap casting a shadow across his face. His smile beamed as bright as his white freezing works gumboots, ...
Loading…(function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){var ql=document.querySelectorAll('A[quiz],DIV[quiz],A[data-quiz],DIV[data-quiz]'); if(ql){if(ql.length){for(var k=0;k<ql.length;k++){ql[k].id='quiz-embed-'+k;ql[k].href="javascript:var i=document.getElementById('quiz-embed-"+k+"');try{qz.startQuiz(i)}catch(e){i.start=1;i.style.cursor='wait';i.style.opacity='0.5'};void(0);"}}};i['QP']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){(i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o),m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m)})(window,document,'script','https://take.quiz-maker.com/3012/CDN/quiz-embed-v1.js','qp'); Got a good quiz question?Send Newsroom your questions. The post Newsroom daily quiz, Thursday 28 March appeared first on Newsroom. ...
A lengthy response to the recently released draft Government policy statement on transport will soon be delivered from Auckland Council to Minister of Transport Simeon Brown. A submission raising concerns about funding distribution and the plan’s treatment of Auckland passed through the council’s transport committee on Wednesday, despite some councillors ...
The unidentified foreign intelligence operation discussed in a scathing report by New Zealand’s Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security (IGIS) last week appears to be a controversial United States intelligence system. The IGIS report said the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) decision to host a foreign system from 2012-2020 was “improper” ...
Stones vs Trump: https://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/music/300044352/rolling-stones-issue-cease-and-desist-notice-against-donald-trump
When it comes to breach of copyright, Trump seems to have established a track record as serial offender.
On kindness, by Charles Bukowski:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdV-T6FheVo
That is a narrow bitter view of kindness and far more about id.
What an arrogant little view of life from someone who has joined 'The Currrent Correctness and Infinite Fount of All Wisdom Cult'. I haven't registered this anywhere so offer it to anyone who has been looking for a group to start or a name for one they have joined. Be quick, grab it before someone else gets off with it.
My piece of wisdom is that we all contain the potential for all the faults we apprehend in others now and from the past; our job is to keep thinking, forgive ourselves with big efforts to do better, and when we come across perpetrators don't waste time hating them. Instead insist ask them to atone by attempting to change what they have done, and get the water of life running in a different direction so that everyone can access it.
I wonder if 'The Currrent Correctness and Infinite Font of All Wisdom Cult' is available
"Splitters!"
Well sounds like bull-kaka to me. Not helped by the emphasis on strange words that the would not normally be emphasised in the narration. So what if you have to give the benefit of the doubt or, heavens, be kind to someone older who may imperfect recall, wrong recall or who you think might actually be wrong. It does not mean that their whole life has been lived imperfectly or wrongly.
In the 70s there was an almost slavish following by some of the idea that you had to let people know their faults, that it was better for them to know their faults and for you to let them know…..a crock that I called the 'Goodness and Honesty policy' (sarc) as it was nothing of the sort. This sounds a bit like that.
This name is also up for grabs.
[Fixed error in user name again]
I see some folks last night disagreed with me about the existence of the quarantine shambles, and then this morning I encountered this: https://thespinoff.co.nz/politics/28-06-2020/review-of-managed-isolation-reveals-system-under-extreme-stress/
So those folk now must face the fact that the govt's review confirms the existence of the shambles. Well, they could persist in denial by claiming that a mess is not as bad as a shambles, perhaps. But better to get real instead!
But they are right. I didn't see the word 'shambles' in that report … I don't think anyone denied there were no problems with the system.
Do we have community spread, Dennis, and if so, was this caused or compounded by the ‘shambles’ that you you’re so focussed on? It is simple big-picture-small-picture stuff but many folks, you included, seem to fret & sweat over the small stuff. Please notice that I haven’t mentioned one official or political party, as they are irrelevant to this question.
Well, I do agree that the folks who would rather call a spade an excavation implement have made relevant points.
My concern is that the PM seems to have lost the plot re political management. Public confidence in the govt is essential for re-election. She can't afford to maintain the ebb-tide effect in the polls. Chris Trotter gets it, I noticed this morning that he posted this on Friday: http://bowalleyroad.blogspot.com/2020/06/sack-him-jacinda-sack-him-now.html
Keeping David Clark operating in his role as the Nats' secret weapon is loony. It just reinforces Muller as a viable alternative in the public mind. Why do that??
Sorry, Dennis, I seem to have somehow missed your answer. Was it a Yes or a No to community spread?
I put a comment here supporting someone who made the point re lack of community spread last week. That's not the issue.
And re those using Woodhouse as a red herring, he's just beating up. But when you use spin on the basis of a valid point you get traction, right? To me he's just like one of those wee yap yap yap dogs. Even someone with average intelligence gets it right half the time. David Clark has been ramping up his yap.
That odious little man Woodhouse is clinging to the hope there is community spread. He also clings to that canard about the homeless man, and doubles down by saying he has lots and lots of other anecdotes about errors in the system. Do tell, Michael, why hold back? in for one, in for all? after all, you have proved you have no interest in the public health response being successful.
____________________________________________
I think it's fair to say the system became 'unfit for purpose' owing to the rapid growth in numbers. It's clear the problems with isolating and quarantining people grow exponentially as numbers grow, and this has exposed the insane demands from opposition politicians to open up more quickly.
It’s also clear these issue were either not anticipated, or overwhelmed the ability to adapt to greater numbers. But I note that in the last two weeks in particular there is not an inch to be given to the overworked people involved in the covid response at all levels. They are expected to be perfect. Anything else is not good enough. So easy to be a sideline expert, all wind and no responsibility.
Fair enough, and something else worth considering is the conflation of testing and quarantine in the public mind. In retrospect, seems like reassurance from the specialists that two weeks quarantine removes the risk became questionable at some point.
So then we got a rush to try & test all those released without testing. I'm not clear on why and I expect many others aren't either…
What is the primary goal of the border quarantine measures? Arguably, the secondary one is to make the public feel safer AKA “spin”. Has the primary objective been met, so far? If not, what was the impact? If you only focus on the spin then the ‘issue’ is about spin on spin AKA yap yap doggies yelping at every passing car.
the real shambles here,is dennis dancing around the fact that he wouldnt know a shambles if he fell over one.
Sacking Clark now would be another mess in the making.
The reason for the quarantine shambles was not obvious, but SPC over the weekend has put up a clear case the PM can take to the country. The reasoning was really only obvious in hindsight, but it goes like this:
While the whole country was at Level 3, effectively everyone and everywhere was in quarantine, so while the border procedures were useful they were not essential. Cases could slip through, but they would be contained very quickly.
But when the country dropped to Level 1 it became essential to first increase the border process security. The mistake was in yielding to political pressure to go down from Level 3 to Level 1 so quickly, which meant that the border process, which is a two week process, did not have time to ramp up in an orderly fashion.
Take that to the country, explain that in the understandable desire to get back to Level 1, the subtle implications for border quarantine were not properly understood and managed. It was an honest mistake I believe, and an honest mea culpa will be accepted.
The the Ministry can get on with more important reforms that are in the pipeline. Sacrificing goats for mere public spectacle is medieval.
Nicely put RL.
Yes – and funnily enough, it's exactly what I was shouting at the telly and at everyone at home when it became apparent that we were moving to Level 1 so quickly – "make sure the border is secure first!" Leakage from the border into a community operating at level 1 being so much more potentially dangerous.
I disagree on the basis of traditional morality: the doctrine of ministerial responsibility ought to be enforced. I believe the case you make, while seeming reasonable, would fail as a political strategy.
I think it will fly. Most voters are reasonable people and when the mistake is explained to them they will understand.
After all how many people here anticipated this peculiar problem at the time? I certainly didn't. And none of the clever media types calling for Clark’s resignation did either.
I think the government has been busy dealing with the real world issues being thrown at them as this pandemic and it's consequences escalate.
Too busy to deal with spot fires being deliberately lit by the media and national party, although Adern took early steps to to address these with her interview earlier this morning. She also sounded tired, like a parent who has been up 5 times during night with a restless infant….
Dennis Frank You remind me sometimes of a needle stuck in the groove of an old vinyl record. You may call me old-fashioned, but then so are you. Events are moving so fast requiring regular adjustments of opinions, policies, practices and implementation, to try to ensure practical and high-minded results. To carry on an argument that we should stop and get an exact record of outcomes during fast-changing events under our Covid-19 regs is futile time-wasting not helpful to the government or the left. Are you thinking at all? Do you want a Right-Wing government?
I would scorn you personally if you do. It would show that you are a democracy-destroyer, and not worthy of space on any realistic left-wing blog that has integrity and objectivity. We are in crisis in the world, let's think about it all not get stuck on the potty obstinately wailing. Life happens while we are planning (and commenting repetitively) other things!
Hear hear grey.
Issuing feeble excuses in an attempt to justify evasion of moral responsibility isn't a good idea. All that happens is that you reinforce the view of centrists that the political left is just as bad as the political right.
Ministerial responsibility was put into the system of representative democracy for a very good reason. You and Ian ought to reflect on that reason. It doesn't help Aotearoa when the left side of politics is just as keen to break the rules as the right.
I think you will find that Dr Ashley Bloomfield answers directly to Government and not the MoH because he has more power than the MoH in an emergency. That was my understanding way back in the mists of time when he was elevated, so yes responsibility bypasses Ministers all the way to Parliament.
Well said. Thanks RL.
I will repeat part of Jacinda Ardern's comments this morning to the 'one size fits all' idiot who goes by the name of Mike Hosking:
I watched the press conference live and Jacinda is right. Clark was fulsome in his praise of Bloomfield but how extraordinary that the media apparently missed it – not.
What utter bollocks Denis. I read the transcript of Ardern's interview with Hoskings this morning about why she hasn't sacked Clark……..as Ardern said earlier Clark is part of the solution.
A shambles is the United States, the UK, Brazil. Not NZ. The system here is/was under extreme stress.
A shambles is "a state of total disorder"….. Its just bollocks that you describe isolation facilities as total disorder.
BTW Denis you are starting to sound like those pathetic Nats saying “We’d do it better”
The govt review has confirmed that my view is correct. The fact that it is widely shared in the public mind is hurting Labour. Persisting in denial of the facts will not help their re-election prospects.
As for Nats doing better, not a chance. Obviously David Clark got set up by the officials who failed to do their job properly, and any Nat minister would have been set up similarly. Unless those officials did it deliberately to undermine the govt, due to being Nat supporters. Incompetence is the more likely explanation.
Denis, I don't think it is accurate to characterise isolation facilities as a shambles (dictionary definition of a shambles is state of total disorder).
Its very clear that any disorder in isolation facilities was not pervasive. Of course it has hurt Labour's polling. That is undeniable and the opposition has played politics with the system failures to score votes. You are buying into the oppositions memes.
The system of quarantining returnees has achieved what it set out to achieve i.e keeping Covid out of the community. To do that by definition the system was functional despite the issues.
Okay, put like that it is all reasoning I can accept as valid. Lots of folks nowadays lose words loosely in disregard of the dictionary meaning (racism for instance).
I'm not buying into Nat memes – I independently reached the same view in accord with widespread public perception of the consequences of the operational dysfunction. Did so before Woodhouse began bleating.
Assuming the public dance to the Nats' tune is a leftist syndrome. Sometimes it seems that way, but really it's a mistake to assume people can't form their own opinions from what happens…
When this story first broke I was just as angry at the apparent fuck up as anyone. I really wanted some heads to roll.
Now a few weeks later when the rather non-obvious reason why it happened is clear to me, I've changed my mind.
At the risk of introducing too much nuance; my primary issue is immoral protection of public service wrong-doers. 😇
There's a convention around this: Nat/Lab agreement that enforcement can only proceed via employment contract. I don't agree with this left/right weasel dance unison sham. It's immoral, because it is used to cover up wrong-doing.
To do so, David Clark had to disregard the parliamentary doctrine of ministerial responsibility. His leader has condoned that. So far.
So as regards culpability, DC is merely the secondary offender. Yet parliamentary democracy is supposed to make him take the rap. On that basis, my take on the stances adopted by Linda Clark & Richard Harman is as follows: LC is correct on the basis of how parliament is supposed to operate, RH is correct on the basis of natural justice.
Exactly, every country in the world is having huge fuckups on a scale far, far larger than this on an hourly basis. One in 5 months is a pretty good record which is why we are the safest place in the world being managed by the best and hardest working group on the planet. And I thank them every day. i have also along with many others have had a complete gutsful of whiner and finger pointers.
If by 'shambles' you mean 'not up to the Woodlouse/Munter seal of approval', well you're still wrong.
Better to fix it Frank. Which they have, smartly with no excuses. As to "get real instead" Instead of what? Lying like Woodhouse? scaremongering about "Community transmission?"
Prime Minister Ardern said we would get cases coming in at the border. No one then thought the numbers returning would become a flood. Very quickly the system was almost overwhelmed by returnees from areas where the pandemic is raging.
"Shambles" means no parts of the border controls were working. That is patently untrue, as we would have community transmission.
I hope some one doesn't sneak the virus through somehow, as was done with the rabbit Khaleesi virus, because politically they believe they would be better off.
We need to stop navel gazing and start working at how to maximise health and future opportunities. Scare mongering is another road to austerity and a loss of confidence.
Fisher and Paykel Health saw a 37% growth and 5000 employees is a case in point.
I agree on the need to "start working at how to maximise health and future opportunities". FPH as you point out is a great example.
https://www.fphcare.com/nz/our-company/investor/news/fy21/fph-fy20-annual-results/
And schools educating young people for the higher wage jobs such companies offer. More companies like FPH and more school leavers fit to work in them.
Rather than getting the so-called 'real oil' from an article complete with 'spin,' the actual press release and the report itself and project plan present a clear and sober picture. ( I thought we had all had it confirmed/learned during the lockdown 1.00pm pressers and seeing the articles that resulted that journos often don't get the slant correct or even the facts.)
Here is a link to the press release from Hon Megan Woods
https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/government-strengthens-managed-isolation-system
On this there are links to the report and to the action plan.
Good news from the "Horizon Research survey of nearly 1600 Kiwis. It found 56 per cent of respondents plan to vote for legalising cannabis for personal use on September 19." https://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=12343541
There's been a 60/40 yoyo effect:
The intra-party breakdowns are fascinating too, with only Nat dinosaurs holding the line against progress:
Yeah I'll be voting to legalise even though I know that it's bad for the body. However, we have spent millions through the cops and justice system for about zero result. Give a fraction of that money to the health system and I reckon they will have nagged most people into submission within the decade. They did a basically good job on the fags- much more cost effective than the cops.
Heck I'd even run an ad asking if people wanted to be arrested or nagged.
neither, some will simply bake cookies, or make a tincture, tea, gummi bears (with or without permission form the Greens) and will never smoke a single leave.
But yes, i will vote for it as i am sick and tired of seing lives fucked over for a joint, or 'possesion with intend to sell' even tho its literally just an ounce for private use.
And thus i will also be voting for new businesses, new agricultural projects, jobs and increased tax revenue.
Take that naggers.
same here, voting for it, not a drug taker & barely drink alcohol (the odd beer), but I hate the hypocrisy.
I was actually thinking of things like short term memory loss ? not the actual smoke which I assume is as bad as fag smoke. But is this an issue with non smoke forms of delivery?
Well that all depends, if sometimes the main…., a lot of time you will find that when the.., sorry, what was the question again?
Chuckle great reply
Hmmm, Kate Hawkesby, the paragon of personal freedom and responsibility, seems to advocate for forced COVID-19 tests for people coming into the country. Nek minit, she will call for forced vaccination too.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/news/article.cfm?c_id=6&objectid=12343734
And sterilisation can't be far away!
Gee Goldsmith is getting himself into all sorts of trouble on Morning Report.
Every time he's interviewed he embarrasses himself, he simply has no idea what's real and what's not, perfect for a finace minister of the National Party, basically full of shite
Yes Suzie nailing Goldsmith to the post. He sounded ridiculous.
Woodlouse has admitted he has no proof of homeless person jumping into the cue at isolation hotel.
He has admitted it was anecdotal and is still looking.
A lie by any other name …
John Cambell interviewd him this morning, he kept reiterating the story came from a reliable source but would not name the source or state that the story was TRUE.
Why do Nat MPs think Kiwis are stupid
“Why do Nat MPs think Kiwis are stupid”
They suffer from Dunning Kruger syndrome which, in a nutshell, means that stupid people who don't know they are stupid like to believe that everyone else is stupid.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
It's a belief that has served them well.
And just prior to Goldsmith’s shambles of an interview Woodhouse was still pushing the Nat’s line that there was likely to be community transmission of Covid in Aotearoa although (like the fabled Homeless Man) there is absolutely no evidence to support the claim.
True, no evidence. However risk management is the underlying rationale. One would not expect Woodhouse to be able to explain that sophisticated concept, eh?
Greens warning of climate change in the nineties used that as the basis of their advocacy. I'm not saying they did it well – it seems in retrospect to have been tacit rather than made explicit. However since it is the basis of the insurance industry, and used even more widely throughout capitalism, it does deserve articulation.
Yeah, but the Greens have a basis in reality where as the assumption of potential community spread doesn't, just an exaggerated lie.
Woodhouse the boy who cried Wolf but the Wolf blew his house down for telling Porkies
RNZ reporting Paula Bennett is standing down at the election.
Press conference live now. I feel sick listening to her. Gloating how she did wonders reforming the welfare system.
Good riddance
Past the lifeboats, over the rail (fur flying!) and into the drink; Paula's abandoned ship!
Check out Tom Sainsbury doing Bennett on her resignation .He was quick off the mark!
Or Paula tipped him off
The piece ends with Tom and Paula outrageously dancing in real life
I have to confess this is the one time I'll admit to Bennett being a good sport and she deserves credit for it
Na walked the plank more like . Good riddance to the scurvy dog.
More evidence of party spread of ‘resignovirus‘ – yet another Nat MP Toddles off.
https://thestandard.org.nz/will-the-last-remaining-national-mp-please-turn-off-the-lights/
They have lights?? Won't those sear their palid skin and blind their pinky eyes?
(Said in jest).
Lets hope its got an R.O of about 50.4.
Don’t just go Paula–piss off! You will be remembered as a revolting Rebstock trained, ladder pulling, beneficiary bashing, woman undermining, confidence breaking mockery of what MPs should aspire to.
Wow! Praise indeed!
Pullya Benefit quiting politics .National looking like a ragtag bunch of misfits.
Goldsmith lacks knowledge of economics or basic maths.
Woodhouse cries wolf
Muddler has a caucus of incompetents .
Collins tries to sterilize her dodgy past and dumps on everyone.
Luxton will be Nationals new leader in January.
[TheStandard: A moderator moved this comment to Open Mike as being off topic or irrelevant in the post it was made in. Be more careful in future.]
While I'm normally in favour of error or mistake as the default assumption for political screw-ups, I'd caution that there is a LONG history of malicious misinterpretation of other parties' more progressive policies from National finance spokespeople, so let's not be TOO charitable to Goldsmith and rule out entirely the idea that he knows damn well how marginal taxes work and what the language that describes them looks like, but he's mischievously trying to muddy the waters.
Luxon might be looking at National's sorry bunch of no-hopers and grifters and having second thoughts.
Maybe Luxon will join the people driving a fleet of Motorhomes for the new ONE Party that I talked to in the Far North today. They believe they are the only true Christian Party, along with some seriously dubious claims about other partys. Oh PS, miss you already Pulya. lololol.
Nostradamus (Tr-down) we salute you.
lol !
https://twitter.com/antihobbes/status/1277393808766824451?s=20
I guess this has been put up before but good to get reminder;
https://thedailyblog.co.nz/2020/06/29/alternative-aotearoa-election-2020-seminar-update/
Alternative Aotearoa – a one-day seminar to provide solutions for the environmental, social and economic transformation of Aotearoa.
Saturday 25 July, 8.30am Pipitea Marae, Wellington…
Registration is free but people need to register for catering purposes. A koha will apply for lunch. Register via email to bronwensummers@gmail.com…
The Social Solutions section has been extended by half an hour due to the wide range of groups keen to contribute.
The seminar will be live-streamed on The Daily Blog…
Keynote speakers:
Laura O’Connell Rapira – Director of Action Station
Efeso Collins – Pasifika community activist and Auckland City Councillor
Co-chairs:
Julia Whaipooti – Justice Advocate
Martyn Bradbury – Editor of The Daily Blog
Recorders/Collators/Final presenters
Tamatha Paul – Wellington City Councillor
Jane Kelsey – Law Professor University of Auckland
"Who needs facts? Who needs evidence? Who needs logic. That's for leftie academic woosses.
I believe. I have an opinion and I am entitled to it, even if I'm wrong, and I'm not.
I'm saying there must be community cases out there. I was right a month ago. It's just that you haven't found them. You're at fault.
Just like you never found the homeless man….. You wasted all that money looking for him, and never found him.
Look, if the President of the US is allowed to be sarcastic, then I'm allowed to be anecdotal and not reveal my sources.
No, I'm not going to ask questions in Parliament tomorrow because all those leftie academic woosses will make fun of me.
Oh, look. Paula’s leaving. You should be talking to her because Judith was nasty to her when she laughed at Nikki’s opinion that Paul was Maori.
What? Of course, he’s Maori. You just haven’t found the evidence!”
The Woodhouse Reports.
Well observed – Woodhouse sounding more presidential by the day.
It's winter. The wood is wet and produces too much smoke. Illegal. Keep the wood drying out before using so it's fit for purpose. Shut the door on the Woodhouse, for a number of months and then maybe the winter of our discontent will be over.
A tick for each of your points mac 1.
Bennett gripped it, blipped it, flipped it, lipped it and has finally zipped it. Good bloody riddance.
A Winston Peters' tribute in Parliament would be a treat.
Snappy – nailed it.
Nailed it! More than John Key could….
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11414883
What is it with Nats and billboards?
P B will probably get a job on Newshub. Suit her down to the ground.
Croaking Cassandra has an interesting piece on the Chinese Communist Party spy-trainer politician in the National Government. He has been able to get in on the National List. It would be hard for this man to be objective. Apparently he refuses any English-speaking media contact to explain how he does this herculean task. I wonder if he unburdens himself to the NZ Chinese language newspaper – I think it is published in Auckland, home-away-from-home for many Chinese housing investors.
We live in interesting times – too late to say 'May you'. (Wikipedia – Despite being so common in English as to be known as the "Chinese curse", the saying is apocryphal – doubtful origin.)
…he’d lied about his past in his application for New Zealand residency and citizenship. In fact, challenged on the point he was quite open about it: he’d actively misrepresented his past because his CCP bosses had insisted on it when he first left the PRC.
https://croakingcassandra.com/author/mhreddell/
That baby on Marama's knee looks like Tova just asked a question.
Faux news backed the mayor of Amity when he said the town had to get those tourists back in the water…
The data is in: Fox News may have kept millions from taking the coronavirus threat seriously
It’s another one of those Trump Era realities best described as unsurprising but nevertheless shocking.
Three serious research efforts have put numerical weight — yes, data-driven evidence — behind what many suspected all along: Americans who relied on Fox News, or similar right-wing sources, were duped as the coronavirus began its deadly spread.
Dangerously duped.
The studies “paint a picture of a media ecosystem that amplifies misinformation, entertains conspiracy theories and discourages audiences from taking concrete steps to protect themselves and others,” wrote my colleague Christopher Ingraham in an analysis last week.
Here’s the reality, now backed by numbers:
http://archive.li/FZTf2 (wapo)
Fast tracking the rapture.
A choir of more than 100 people performed without masks at a robustly attended event in Texas at the First Baptist Church on Sunday that featured a speech by Vice President Mike Pence.
Nearly 2,200 people attended the "Celebrate Freedom Rally," in the Lone Star State, according to rally organizers, which has seen a severe surge in coronavirus cases since easing restrictions. The venue capacity for the indoor event was close to 3,000 attendees, organizers say.
Throughout the service, the members of the choir sang at full volume, behind an orchestra. Between songs, the choir members put their masks back on when they sat down, according to pool reports from the event. The members of the choir had space between them, but it was not clear if it was the recommended six feet.
https://edition.cnn.com/2020/06/28/politics/mike-pence-dallas-choir-no-masks-church-event/index.html
The data is in: Fox News may have kept millions from taking the coronavirus threat seriously.
Rewrite, "The data is in: Woodhouse may have kept thousands from believing that the coronavirus threat in NZ is under better control than anywhere else in the World.
Jack Vowles has done it again. He must be the sane one in a country of the insane Media.
https://www.newsroom.co.nz/1255825/in-the-absence-of-calm
(I put Jack up because he says what I think but he can say it so much better than I.)
I'd really love the news media to stop hounding the government over the pressure on the border and go and get stuck into the airline CEO's and scorch them. They hide behind press releases. They seem to be not erring on the side of caution instead just chasing the every last dollar. And it appears that American airlines are just going to start flying here (unilateral decision ?) as have other airlines. This puts pressure on us to provide extra quarantine regardless. According to the stories we don't even know who is coming until the plane is in the air athough I thought immigration had warning before boarding. We need to start charging for it and I' d start with the permanent residents who haven't been here for the last two years before Jan 2020. They have not contributed and are just using us as a bolthole or welfare backup.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/news/121973624/coronavirus-questions-raised-over-international-aircrew-rules
I tidied up your link; the question mark and anything behind it can usually be deleted.
Another good read by Vowles.
So after the whole SNAFU around my managed isolation and being set free without any testing (which I have mentioned) I got my results back from MoH and, unsurprisingly, I am COVID free. Still no community transmission which is a great result even after the problems regarding managed isolation.
Long may it continue
So John I take it that you are very pleased to be free of infection after being cared for by the people who run the system?
The nurses at the hotel were wonderful. Very kind and dedicated
And please the next time if/when you are in quarantine again (lets hope this will never be the case) with requirements of 2 m distance to others and isolation ,, don't use a public elevator to go get a cigarette in a public smoke cubicle.
Be upfront and askhow you can safely leave the building, go to a balcony, smoking room, roof top etc in order to have your cigarette.And if you can't ask for Champix or Nicotine patches if getting through the day without a fix is too hard.
You using an elevator to go the smokers cubicle to get your fix was not the governments fault that is all on you and if you had been a carrier you could have infected people.
Welcome home.
The elevator wasn’t an issue as you were only allowed in there with others from your room – by myself in my case. I did ask them about smoking outside but weirdly you couldn't smoke AND social distant. So what I did after the 4th day I’d only go for cigarettes after 10pm when you could smoke outside
Maybe all on me and others but everyone was just doing as we were told.
Today's presser. I got the feeling the media teeth were not so sharp. As usual he is very clear, and when he addresses the question of over 360 people they are trying to contact, and have not responded to calls, texts, and emails he absolutely nails it.
Precis: He is disappointed and expects them to play their part.
What on earth are these people thinking by not responding – they are part of the problem, not part of the solution.
It is well worth listening to this, it provides sanity from the scaremongering by the media and opposition politicians.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/coronavirus/300044724/live-ashley-bloomfield-announces-latest-coronavirus-figures
Yes there are still 367 people who the Ministry of Health is having trouble getting in touch with. Director-general of health Dr Ashley Bloomfield made a fresh appeal for these people to get in touch with authorities.
NAME them the team of 5 mil will deliver them.
Maybe some are to be found at National Party electorate meetings, by not getting tested they are keeping Mullers belief that there might be community spread alive.
Muller is trying to expolit the might be to open up borders – he believes in zombie economics. Money before lives, and he has the gall to claim to oppose euthansia from a moral position.
75 new cases in Victoria today.
https://www.twitter.com/covidliveau/status/1277410745630638080
what a shambles! my kids mum got her test results back, negative, so she can go back to work. Such a shambles, to live in a country without community transmission, to be able to go to the Drs and get tested if you need to get one, bloody shambles,, no one has died from Covid in weeks, ICU beds empty, toilet paper for everyone, the Health Minister should resign!!! (sarc)
It is such a shambles that the Main Shambolic Media have to manufacture a shambles so they can ‘report’ on it and please the shareholders of the Main Shambles Manufacturers.
The day the pandemic total passes ten million might not be the best time to say you want NZ's borders to open up, but Todd Muller has done it anyway (Wellington business meeting).
To be fair, it is one kind of solution: there definitely won't be any quarantine bungles if there's no quarantine.
Is there method in Muller's madness? He suspects community transmission where there is none, and wants to open up our borders. If NZ's Covid elimination strategy had been less successful (say NZ now had the U.K.'s mortality rate of 642 deaths per million population, rather than the current 4.4 per million, then we'd have ~3,200 Covid-19 deaths), then would that have made it easier to open our borders?
Coronavirus: How lockdown is being lifted across Europe
https://www.bbc.com/news/explainers-52575313
So many reasons for National party supporters to hope that our Government's border controls fail (but please keep the agricultural pests out.)
Natsys have a bit of a track record of 'accidentally' letting nasties in, so if they were doing more than hope, it wouldn't be a massive surprise.
Muller's been talking to the-man-in-the-street who wants everything easy and magic beans as well, and on quickly mulling it over, in about a second, has repeated it all as gospel. Being community driven and populist, he of course, bows down to the public. The country pays him to make judgments on vox pop; nice job if you can get it, and you can get it if you try. But maybe not just now Gnats, you imported, important pests.
It is clear that we are simultaneously doing too little (border bungles) and too much (border restrictions). For his next conjuring trick, Muller will disappear up his own fundament while simultaneously re-appearing at the other end.
Another imported pest. Tomato spider mite.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/420088/tomato-red-spider-mite-pest-discovered-in-new-zealand-for-first-time
The French Greens have made sweeping gains across the country as France shifts left in local body elections. Also (to my great delight) Anne Hidalgo the Socialist Mayor of Paris has had a big victory. Her bold plans to reinvent and regreen the capital will have repercussions for urban planning everywhere.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jun/28/voters-stay-away-from-second-round-french-local-elections
I swear, if you were a script writer for political satire, and you put these words in the mouth of a character who was only there for cheap laughs, you'd be told to go back and try again …
"Muller said there were several permutations of how some kind of border opening could work, particularly if passengers were able to prove they were Covid-19 free from overseas.
He said he didn't know exactly how this would work but he wanted some sort of clarity from the Government about their plan to open up."
Huh Observer? But, but, but Woodhouse said that the process is very simple. Anyone could do it and just get a competent (National) Government to run it all. Is Muller not speaking to Woodhouse?
Just got round to watching Campbell challenging Woodhouse on his homeless man myth. Pretty amazing. Note the "dry mouth" of Woodhouse and his failure to regain any credibility. (Sorry if this has already been covered.)
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/300044663/national-mp-michael-woodhouse-wont-say-homeless-man-tale-was-true
Stürmer, the King of Nothing, is about to be hoist by his own petard.
At least his fellow shills for apartheid Sacha Baron Cohen and Maureen Lipman have the redeeming quality of being funny occasionally.
https://skwawkbox.org/2020/06/27/skwawkbox-editor-lodges-formal-antisemitism-complaint-against-keir-starmer-for-conflation-of-jewish-people-with-actions-of-israeli-government-in-breach-of-ihra-code/
Tied up in knots.
Edit
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/420094/otautau-teen-jailed-at-least-11-years-for-murder-of-9yo
What's the background to this murder? Is this a young chap who should have been in enclosed, managed care because he was too erratically behaved when stressed. Has he shown signs of violence before?
Is this a result from people being out in the community, because it sounds nice. There was a great outcry in the UK in late 1980s about conditions in mental hospitals. So the only option was to close them all, not to really staff them well, and maintain the community standards to a high level, including those in institutions.
https://www.kingsfund.org.uk/publications/making-change-possible/mental-health-services
This process began with a wholescale transformation process known as deinstitutionalisation – that is, shifting care and support of people with mental health problems from psychiatric institutions into community based settings. At the start of the process, these institutions housed approximately 100,000 people; by the end, all had closed….
Politically, there was consensus among parties about hospital reconstruction, and further legislation set a vision for the provision of mental health services as part of this. Alongside this, Enoch Powell, then Minister for Health, announced the intention to halve the number of hospital beds for people with mental health problems.
Although there was little overt financial impetus for deinstitutionalisation, it was generally acknowledged that institutions were financially unsustainable and, in many cases, represented prime estate.
There were moral and medial reasons for looking at how many people could be treated in the community and perhaps better than in institutions. But note the above:
the right wing politician Powell was limiting mental health beds in hospital, and they were being regarded as financially unsustainable which is majorly a bean counter decision, and the last item they represented ‘prime; real estate.