The authors report a variety of reasons for the generational shift, with a selection of personal views sampled: 16, of which three quarters were brought up in a religious household but have evolved a more independent stance. Default to atheism is what the media do normally as the result of indoctrination into trad binary thinking.
Reluctance to acknowledge the general trend of western civilisation toward the personal spirituality option during the past half-century seems evident in the subtext, though that could be due to the RNZ editor being a slow learner rather than the authors. Census questions usually recycle the antiquated conventional religious framing, and Labour failed to shift them in the direction of reality, which would be evidenced by inclusion of a personal spirituality option in both the census questioning and resultant bar graphs!
Forgiving Behavior among Emerging Adults: The Influence of Religiosity and Spirituality and Personality Traits [15 March 2023]
Forgiveness is multifaceted in nature and therefore there is no consensus among researchers regarding its definition. However, most scholars agree on one aspect that forgiveness is an important psychological asset and is highly beneficial to self and others and promotes mental health and well-being. Increasing empirical literature states that those high in forgiveness experience greater self-rated health, recovery abilities, personal healing, and psychological well-being and decreased negative emotions, the risk for substance use, somatic symptoms and risk for mental illness.
Not really a good idea to forgive media pros for their incompetence &/or failure to provide suitable public service. However implying that discrimination against spiritual folk is a desirable leftist attribute seems rather uncouth. We ought to encourage both groups to do better.
Not really a good idea to forgive media pros for their incompetence &/or failure to provide suitable public service.
Would your 'suitable' suit everyone? Split a piece of wood; perceived incompetence is there. Lift up the stone, and you will find failure there.
We can all "do better" (I know I can) – to err is human, to forgive divine.
Elsewhere in his essay, Pope stresses the many human factors that lead to bad outcomes: overconfidence, tunnel vision, bias, prejudice and inconsistency, among others, and exhorts us to combine “good nature and good sense” in our judgment. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/An_Essay_on_Criticism
Yes, I do agree that goodwill is crucial in politics. A basis for ongoing relevance of the teachings of Jesus around that, huh? Also relevant is the Dalai Lama's focus on compassion.
If you've ever seen a hospital ward, engineering company, aid organisation, or local charity, know that they are all chock full of Christians doing the work for you.
Default atheism is so useful in understanding the politics of south Auckland, west Auckland, Pacific Island states, the Middle East, South and middle America, all of Africa, southern and eastern Asia, Turkey, Ukraine, all post-soviet states, and Russia.
Go right ahead figuring them without all that "antiquated framing" you so loathe.
Analysis like yours is the reason the west is increasingly out of step with the rest of the world.
Hipkins seems to believe Peters ought to be silenced by Luxon. You know, in accord with the logic that leaders of political parties ought to be unable to express political opinions. If he's serious, he ought to advocate a law change to enforce such censorship.
If he's merely posturing, is the posture more impressive than the one Peters adopted? They both seem equally amusing.
It's as if he believes that potentially breaking a law is a serious matter. Like red-light runners, when they decide to brake instead. Election bribes are a typical product of democracy, yet somehow nobody told Hipkins.
Still, Tova & Jenna feel the bribery framing is naughty and ought to be punished, so maybe the Peters posture is somewhat effective. I dunno, looks like politics as usual: both left & right playing the fool. What's wrong with govt giving taxpayer money to media anyway?? They serve the public interest by explaining what's going on – most people can't figure it out for themselves.
You've built yourself one heck of a straw man there. Of course leaders of parties can express opinions, it's nonsense to suggest Hipkins is saying otherwise.
It is however blindingly obvious that in a government, the PM should be in charge, not the Deputy PM. Peters has lied, and Luxon has not corrected his lies (in public … privately he has no doubt been fuming).
False accusations of corruption and bribery are NOT an acceptable part of our democracy, and they do not end well. Ask Jami-Lee Ross.
luxon was on the verge of tears last night on te news when questioned about winston ,cause jeez we've got more important things then the dp being a dishonest shit.
The dead cat has been thrown and Nationals promise of changing working for families increase the top bracket from $42'000 to $50'000 giving a $25 increase in working for families is no longer going ahead.The poorest paying for wealthy landlords tax cuts.
Yes but hilariously Luxon commented that whether the journalism bribe was true or not, and he believes the jury is still out on that, is not the main point because it's really about perception…………ah yes the old smoke and mirrors perception trick…….
Could be right, Robert. So his tacit signal is Peters `ought not to express a different view to mine on the issue'. I suspect he even believes such virtue-signalling works.
It's also entirely feasible that he feels the need to exhibit a simulation of a strong moral stance, since a measurable portion of voters are easily impressed by such exhibitions. Perhaps Labour's focus groups indicate that?? If so, fair enough, but the unimpressed would have too many to easily number.
Oh, you mean the assumption that folks will default to a lawyer's definition of bribery, due to Peters being a lawyer? Would not be widely shared in my opinion – too many know about metaphor.
I think electoral bribery could usefully be parked in economic policy, so that the $55 million appears as a line item in the budget. Chomsky 1.01 is all a political party need tell the media. Manufacturing consent is how commercial democracy operates, so it's an appropriate test to use on media pros.
When the eyes glaze over, watch carefully to see if the penny drops. If it doesn't, suggest that they tell their employer they need a remedial course in standard methods of using political influence in a democracy.
Every 3 years the word "bribe" is used as a political metaphor, and in all directions. A tax cut "bribe", a fees-free "bribe", a dental care "bribe", and so on. It means (as you well know) a party offers a policy that they hope will win votes.
What Peters has alleged is nothing whatsoever to do with that. If you haven't read what he said, please do. If you have, maybe read it again. He lied. It is as simple as that.
Dirty farmer Mr Crawford said on RNZ this morning that the NRC was now aligned with the new Government!
This piece again shows the value of Local Democracy Reporting, some local papers dropped their Council and Court “beats” long ago and LDR has done some sterling work.
Herein lies the Left's/progressives vulnerability. The ideological ruthlessness of the Right shows no mercy.
I feel for those councillors battered by those blunt instruments. It will have been a hideous feeling, though they knew it was coming.
Once they've recovered, those for-now-disheartened councillors will find that there are avenues and opportunities to sustain what they achieved when they were more influential. The victors likewise, will discover that smashing stuff down is not so easy as they expect. Plus, climate change.
The ousted Councillors–Craw and Robinson in particular have long positive records in the community and will keep on keeping on.
There are strong GE and organic strands in the North, and it is up to all of us really, not just Councils. The right are eternally at it when it comes to their ability to ladle nitrates into waterways.
What an excellent resource for raising awareness – well worth a donation to Greenpeace. Hope they can keep it up to date and record/show nitrate trends.
There's been a constant caterwauling about terrible Northland roading in recent years.
The fact is that for 70 odd years Northland almost totally elected National MPs.
The fact is that the Regional Councils and industry bodies like Federated Farmers in the region have basically sat on their hands and backed the neglect. Excuses were always made with local 'leaders,' it was always 'softly softly.'
Of course in 2017 the tone changed. Aligning with the National Government got the region jack shit.
I expect the next thing we'll hear about is the NRC putting its oar into the debate about Government funding for the Whangarei Hospital redevelopment. You know, the "Please hurry, this is urgent, we've been promised, this is critical for the region" sort of thing. The "National whinged the money Labour had labelled wasn't enough, we demand more," type of message.
Reckon that'll happen? Along with "We're happy with your Tobacco decisions since we're aligned with you even though they will affect the region to the extent of scores of millions."
Winnie certainly has a point in his assertions that the media was bribed by the media grants.These were given to maintain media friendliness and therefore exert some influence upon the multitude at a time of high media frenzy,of which he personally gained some benefit and recognition.Reality.
If you mean in 2020, it was when Covid had devastated business in so many ways, not least advertising revenue. Were wage subsidies "bribes" too?
If you mean after 2020, which is when the vast majority of the fund was allocated, it was so successful in manipulating the media coverage that … er, Labour's vote slumped from 50% to half that. Oops.
The Google archive has hundreds of relevant pages on this, so it's easy to inform yourself if you care.
“The Public Interest Journalism Fund was introduced during Covid because it was a disastrous time in terms of media and we were pressured by good people out there to say, ‘hey, you support financial institutions so how about supporting local media that’s struggling’.
“It was aimed at supporting New Zealand media to keep producing stories and was not just for RNZ and for TVNZ.
“We never ever had any editorial control over anything anyone wrote, and that’s the truth. For Winston to insinuate some conspiracy is absolute disinformation and falsehoods."
No editorial control is true to say but the dispersement of funds was conditional (as it should be) and that itself provides a level of control…the question that arises is whether you think the conditions were reasonable or had a political slant.
A good guide to the reliability of any accusations like this is whether the accuser gives any examples of this "corruption" or only hides behind vague language without any specifics. We all wait for Winston to cite chapter and verse (but don't bother, he won't).
NZ on Air have funded shows like Q & A for many years, long before Ardern's government. They still do and will continue (the coalition agreement says nothing about scrapping NZ on Air or RNZ or TVNZ). So, there is no good faith here, at all.
Of course many (most?) of the public aren't going to delve into the details. Peters knows that, and anyway his target is 5%, not 50.
The public have the choice whether to allow their opinion to be formed for them by others or to seek the information and form their own.
In this instance the public is unlikely to be provided with a unbiased appraisal when the party accused of being subject undue influence (the media organisations) investigates itself.
As the fund ceased to operate in June this year it is now history in any event, but as with most things political various parties will make use of its existence for political purposes and the implications are likely to impact for some time to come.
Same old, same old and an affliction of all political hues.
Sadly positions will continue upon tribal lines for most, to the detriment of progress.
bring back Kim Hill and she can interview Winston Peters aka imafwit and ask a few pointed questions tho i doubt if we would accept an interview with a person of her calibre.
Sandra Le Cron's naive and simplistic comments mark "them" as an easy-pick for the Right – their vote would have been a certainty and their willingness to troll this Left-wing site, taken as read. Bothering to respond to their shallow provocations, or not, gives us control, but yes, they are a pest 🙂
you are correct robert. I havent been here for weeks , but instantly picked her/his comments as coming from a fisherman/woman. so shallow as to virtual signal their trolling ability/inability.
It has come to pass that this new gummint has an obvious trouble with telling the truth, pretty much everything they say is lies. A few days ago both Luxon and Willis defended the smoke free cancellation because of the threat of robberies saying that there would only be ONE outlet in Northland, Alesha Verrall had to correct them and say the proposed refs would have 14. Neither Nat can obviously read and just lie as a default setting.
Had to laugh listening to morning retort today, Luxon says the new govt is going to fix the economy, which is in a really really bad state, after the worst financial vandalism in NZ history by the former Labour govt. Shortly afterward Adrian Orr is on saying the NZ economy is in great shape, there never was a recession and agreed his comments yesterday on potential OCR rise is a warning shot across the banks and financial lending institutions bows. The old too much money by too many people chasing too few goods problem…….apparently….
But then wait….really really really big news…..the Wellington mayor has a drinking problem….
S and P, Moody's and Fitch would have criticised the NZ economy and downgraded their ratings if the NZ economy was in a bad state, but they haven't. It follows that Luxon is talking rubbish. The question is why does the MSM let him get away with talking rubbish like this?
Meanwhile on RadioNZ last night I heard that the bar owner where Tory Whanau was drinking said that there was no problem and that he would be glad to have the group of people back any time.
Anything that involves in-depth investigative journalism is way beyond the skills of most in the MSM these days. The editorial directive, or above, is to focus on sound bites, catchy headlines, opinionated commentary articles, anything scandalous involving public or sporting figures, and if it bleeds it leads……..
New Regional Infrastructure Fund: Chris Bishop says it's all good.
Provincial Growth Fund? Chris Bishop said it was all bad.
"Shane Jones has an appalling track record of inappropriate behaviour, conflicts of interest and lack of accountability – traits that have become a stain on the Provincial Growth Fund.
“The PGF was Labour’s reward to NZ First for supporting the coalition. The result is a slush fund that lacks transparency and is being treated as NZ First’s campaign chest for 2020.”
Can't see how this relationship can possibly go wrong!
Chris Bishop has a habit of inserting the wrong memory stick when making comments……….could be he can’t see the right one for all the smoke………and all the mirrors really confuse things…….
Trump is saying the same BS the US economy is in serious trouble because of Biden yet low unemployment and a massive increase in manufacturing .Luxon just keeps repeating the lies Trumpish like.Nationals policy will start another round of house price inflation, then the Tax cuts in July will dump a large sum of money into the retail sector causing more inflation just as Adrian Orr will have inflation nearly under control.Here we go back to the 1990's yo yo economy small bursts of growth followed by recessions and Austerity increasing the OCR to bring down the inflation caused by tax cuts.PWC warned everybody before the election about these election bribes which damage the longterm economy.
Aotearoa seems set to balance relations with China & USA:
The Chinese Communist Party newspaper, “Global Times”, has already noted that Luxon has been clear about his interest in collaboration with China under the Belt and Road Initiative framework. Pressed during the election campaign on whether a National government would take money from China to pay for new roads, Luxon said: “Yeah, absolutely.” https://www.politik.co.nz/national-takes-over-infrastructure/ | Politik
I wonder if Lux will retain it or reconfigure it. Will he issue instructions to see how soon they secure suitable results? Asian-ethnicity ministers could be useful in view of our current ethnicity numbers: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_New_Zealand
Parity of asians with maori is a fact of life, in any ethnicity-voter framing. Folks will notice it. Media may even report it, with a gosh of surprise at the time lapse since last reported. May even connect the dots to the treaty relevance, huh? Lux may notice a useful lever here. Too thick?
I have quite often seen russian propaganda regarding russia's attacks on East Ukraine and Crimea, parroted on this site.
Russian investigative journalist, Andrey Zakharov, and others, have compiled the history of how putin planned, propagandised and executed his attack on Ukraine:
'His War' is Andrey Zakharov's historical investigation into Vladimir Putin and the war he unleashed in Ukraine back in 2014. For ten years now, journalists from around the world have been gathering evidence on how exactly this war began. In this film, we have compiled all the evidence together. This includes wiretaps of conversations among Russian officials and separatists, email leaks, and most importantly, confessions from the participants of the 'Russian Spring.' Why did Putin specifically provoke the Euromaidan? How did the Kremlin prepare for the annexation of Crimea? And why did Russia's intervention in Ukraine's internal affairs become the main cause of the war that started in 2014?
It is detailed and an hour and a half long. But better to actually learn about this, than to repeat kremlin nonsense from RT. Has good English subtitles.
Chippie really hasn't got it through yet that he in Opposition now rather than being on the Government benches and part of the Executive.
He is complaining that "He said he thought it was an “interesting decision” that National had chosen Greens climate spokesman James Shaw over the official Opposition climate change spokeswoman in Megan Woods".
There is no such thing as an "Official Opposition spokeswomen". The Greens are an Opposition Party on exactly the same level as are Labour. The only Opposition role that is recognised is the Leader of the Opposition. There is no such thing as "Deputy Leader of the Opposition" as Chippie appears to be labelling Sepuloni.
As well he seems to think that members of his party have "portfolios". They have no such thing. They may be Labour Party spokespersons but that is all.
Come on Hipkins. At least you should have begun to understand the greatly reduced position you and your mates now occupy.
"He seems to think that members of his party have "portfolios". They have no such thing. They may be Labour Party spokespersons but that is all."
Alwyn, it takes only 5 seconds to check before you submit. Less time than it does to type your egg-on-face rants.
In 2023 the Leader of the Opposition announces:
"Louise Upston adds Family Violence Prevention to her portfolios … Todd Muller is confirmed as the Agriculture spokesperson, and also takes on the Climate Change portfolio … Todd McClay picks up the new Hunting and Fishing portfolio… Penny Simmonds takes on the new portfolio of Workforce Planning … Tama Potaka picks up the Māori Development and Associate Housing portfolios" …
I'm surprised that you, of all people take what Luxon says as gospel. Can we now assume that you will accept anything he says as being absolutely correct because he said it?
No There is no such position as deputy-leader of the Opposition. Whoever used that wording was simply wrong. If it was Luxon he was just as wrong as Hipkins currently is.
Have a look at this. You will see that they have positions of PM, and deputy PM as well as Leader of the Opposition. They then have leaders and deputy leaders of parties but there is no position of deputy leader of the Opposition. Why would there be? The other Opposition parties are not somehow automatically subservient to the Opposition Party that got the most votes are they?
There is no such position and no such link. There are references to he phrase Deputy leader but no such position is recognised, even to having a Wiki entry. You will note that there is a Wiki entry to Leader of the Opposition but not Deputy.
If my link to all the roles in the New Zealand Parliament from the official source doesn't persuade you, what will?
Wellington, Wellington Region, New Zealand · Deputy Leader of the Opposition · New Zealand Parliament
Experience · Deputy Leader of the Opposition · MP, Housing & Urban Development; Early Childhood Education Spokesperson · Candidate for Wellington Central.
I'll never learn to speak more than a few words and my country hick accent murders te reo, but I recall sitting in a greasy spoon in wairoa once in a stall next to to older gents speaking fluently in Maori, magic!
Because it was definitely te reo and it was atleast 10 minutes of muted conversation, fuck you rightness are despite to attack anything Maori, ain't you
You'd think since Labour only holds 17 electorates, all 17 successful electorate mps would be in shadow cabinet, nope, insetead FIFTEEN are List mps, most who lost safe seats and should have retired by now.
WTF are Rino and Deborah Russell still doing in politics, do they have no shame? You could have ran pot plants in their seats and they would have got more votes.
And for a party that is facing an existential crisis (whether the left wants to admit it or not) by totally being rejected by male voters of ALL ages and classes, you'd think theyd atleast gender ballance the shadow cabinet so it doesn't look like a radical feminist party (whether it's true or not is irrelevant, voters think it is and perception is ALL that matters) but nah… 6/10 are women and 12/20 are bland robot female politicians.
So you can bet your arse in opposition Labour is going to continue to be as obsessed with unpopular, alienating gender and social policy and everytime it opens its mouth working and middle class people will continue to groan.
Honestly I'd get rid of the lot of labour's caucus except Kieren (the future of Labour) , Rachel (how the hell is she at the bottom when she's the only Labour mp in decades to hold Nelson, twice?!) Duncan, Cushla (labour's ONE Maori electorate mp) and Carmel (because she's good in the house)
The rest of them should be sent packing.
However, after taking a beating this bad, you'd think they'd do some soul searching… Na carry on as if this lot weren't utterly rejected.
15 list mps in shadow cabinet… Unbelievable.
The caucus should be 11 out of the ten females who won electorates (all but Helen white who should be retiring before 2026) and the 6 male electorate mps + Kieren Grant etc
Your reckons are in need of a makeover. It’s a fresh line-up. Just what the political doctor ordered. Electorate MPs do not take precedence over list MPs. They are all equal. It is the person deemed best for each individual portfolio, taking into account geographical and other important considerations.
Please look and listen to Hipkin’s press conference. It has its humorous moments which is more than you get with the other lot. Hopefully you will also recognise he knows his MPs better than we do:
Just wow, you'd have been at home at Roehm's SA gatherings, your reactionary working class man thing against social liberal women would have been popular.
Dad and I get our 4th anti-COVID booster vaccinations later today. Better safe than sorry – masks to protect against infection, and vaccines to protect against symptoms.
She was born 25 years ago today in North Shore hospital. Her eyes were closed tightly shut, her mouth was silently moving. The whole theatre was all quiet intensity as they marked her a 2 on the APGAR test. A one-minute eternity later, she was an 8. The universe was ...
Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. This fact brief was written by Sue Bin Park in collaboration with members from our Skeptical Science team. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Is Antarctica gaining land ice? ...
Images of US students (and others) protesting and setting up tent cities on US university campuses have been broadcast world wide and clearly demonstrate the growing rifts in US society caused by US policy toward Israel and Israel’s prosecution of … Continue reading → ...
Barrie Saunders writes – Dear Paul As the new Minister of Media and Communications, you will be inundated with heaps of free advice and special pleading, all in the national interest of course. For what it’s worth here is my assessment: Traditional broadcasting free to air content through ...
Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government is trying to achieve and its arguments for such a bold reform. ...
Peter Dunne writes – The great nineteenth British Prime Minister, William Gladstone, once observed that “the first essential for a Prime Minister is to be a good butcher.” When a later British Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan, sacked a third of his Cabinet in July 1962, in what became ...
Ele Ludemann writes – New Zealanders had the OECD’s second highest tax increase last year: New Zealanders faced the second-biggest tax raises in the developed world last year, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) says. The intergovernmental agency said the average change in personal income tax ...
We all know something’s not right with our elections. The spread of misinformation, people being targeted with soundbites and emotional triggers that ignore the facts, even the truth, and influence their votes.The use of technology to produce deep fakes. How can you tell if something is real or not? Can ...
This video includes conclusions of the creator climate scientist Dr. Simon Clark. It is presented to our readers as an informed perspective. Please see video description for references (if any). This year you will be lied to! Simon Clark helps prebunk some misleading statements you'll hear about climate. The video includes ...
It is all very well cutting the backrooms of public agencies but it may compromise the frontlines. One of the frustrations of the Productivity Commission’s 2017 review of universities is that while it observed that their non-academic staff were increasing faster than their academic staff, it did not bother to ...
Buzz from the Beehive Two speeches delivered by Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters at Anzac Day ceremonies in Turkey are the only new posts on the government’s official website since the PM announced his Cabinet shake-up. In one of the speeches, Peters stated the obvious: we live in a troubled ...
1. Which of these would you not expect to read in The Waikato Invader?a. Luxon is here to do business, don’t you worry about thatb. Mr KPI expects results, and you better believe itc. This decisive man of action is getting me all hot and excitedd. Melissa Lee is how ...
…it has a restricted jurisdiction which must not be abused: it is not an inquisitionNOTE – this article was published before the High Court ruled that Karen Chhour does not have to appear before the Waitangi Tribunal Gary Judd writes – The High Court ...
Lindsay Mitchell writes – One of reasons Oranga Tamariki exists is to prevent child neglect. But could the organisation itself be guilty of the same?Oranga Tamariki’s statistics show a decrease in the number and age of children in care. “There are less children ...
David Farrar writes: Graeme Edgeler wrote in 2017: In the first five years after three strikes came into effect 5248 offenders received a ‘first strike’ (that is, a “stage-1 conviction” under the three strikes sentencing regime), and 68 offenders received a ‘second strike’. In the five years prior to ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has surprised everyone with his ruthlessness in sacking two of his ministers from their crucial portfolios. Removing ministers for poor performance after only five months in the job just doesn’t normally happen in politics. That’s refreshing and will be extremely ...
TL;DR: These are the six things that stood out to me in news and commentary on Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the two days to 6:06am on Thursday, April 25:Politics: PM Christopher Luxon has set up a dual standard for ministerial competence by demoting two National Cabinet ministers while leaving also-struggling ...
Hi,Today I mainly want to share some of your thoughts about the recent piece I wrote about success and failure, and the forces that seemingly guide our lives. But first, a quick bit of housekeeping: I am doing a Webworm popup in Los Angeles on Saturday May 11 at 2pm. ...
It is hard to see what Melissa Lee might have done to “save” the media. National went into the election with no public media policy and appears not to have developed one subsequently. Lee claimed that she had prepared a policy paper before the election but it had been decided ...
Open access notablesIce acceleration and rotation in the Greenland Ice Sheet interior in recent decades, Løkkegaard et al., Communications Earth & Environment:In the past two decades, mass loss from the Greenland ice sheet has accelerated, partly due to the speedup of glaciers. However, uncertainty in speed derived from satellite products ...
Buzz from the Beehive A statement from Children’s Minister Karen Chhour – yet to be posted on the Government’s official website – arrived in Point of Order’s email in-tray last night. It welcomes the High Court ruling on whether the Waitangi Tribunal can demand she appear before it. It does ...
Mr Bombastic:Ironically, the media the academic experts wanted is, in many ways, the media they got. In place of the tyrannical editors of yesteryear, advancing without fear or favour the interests of the ruling class; the New Zealand news media of today boasts a troop of enlightened journalists dedicated to ...
It's hard times try to make a livingYou wake up every morning in the unforgivingOut there somewhere in the cityThere's people living lives without mercy or pityI feel good, yeah I'm feeling fineI feel better then I have for the longest timeI think these pills have been good for meI ...
In 1974, the US Supreme Court issued its decision in United States v. Nixon, finding that the President was not a King, but was subject to the law and was required to turn over the evidence of his wrongdoing to the courts. It was a landmark decision for the rule ...
Every day now just seems to bring in more fresh meat for the grinder.In their relentlessly ideological drive to cut back on the “excessive bloat” (as they see it) of the previous Labour-led government, on the mountains of evidence accumulated in such a short period of time do not ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Megan Valére SosouMarket gardening site of the Itchèléré de Itagui agricultural cooperative in Dassa-Zoumè (Image credit: Megan Valère Sossou) For the residents of Dassa-Zoumè, a city in the West African country of Benin, choosing between drinking water and having enough ...
Buzz from the Beehive Melissa Lee – as may be discerned from the screenshot above – has not been demoted for doing something seriously wrong as Minister of ...
Morning in London Mother hugs beloved daughter outside the converted shoe factory in which she is living.Afternoon in London Travelling writer takes himself and his wrist down to A&E, just to be sure. Read more ...
Mike Grimshaw writes – The recent announcement of the University Advisory Group, chaired by Sir Peter Gluckman, makes very clear where the Government’s focus and priorities lie. The remit of the Advisory Group is that Group members will consider challenges and opportunities for improvement in the university sector including: ...
Eric Crampton writes – The Reserve Bank of New Zealand desperately wants to find reasons to have workstreams in climate change. It makes little sense. They’ve run another stress test on the banks looking to see if they could find a prudential regulation case. They couldn’t. They ...
Rob MacCullough writes – Pundits from the left and the right are arguing that National’s Fast Track Bill that is designed to speed up infrastructure decisions could end up becoming mired in a cesspool of corruption. Political commentator ...
Looking at the headlines this morning it’s hard to feel anything other than pessimistic about the future of humanity.Note that I’m not speaking about the future of mankind, but the survival of our humanity. The values that we believe in seem to be ebbing away, by the day.Perhaps every generation ...
Swabbing mixed breed baby chicks to test for avian influenzaUh oh. Bird flu – often deadly to humans – is not only being transmitted from infected birds to dairy cows, but is now travelling between dairy cows. As of last Friday, Bloomberg News reports, there were 32 American dairy herds ...
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 ...
What is it with the mining industry? Its not enough for them to pillage the earth - they apparently can't even be bothered getting resource consent to do so: The proponent behind a major mine near the Clutha River had already been undertaking activity in the area without a ...
Photo # 1 I am a huge fan of Singapore’s approach to housing, as described here two years ago by copying and pasting from The ConversationWhat Singapore has that Australia does not is a public housing developer, the Housing Development Board, which puts new dwellings on public and reclaimed land, ...
Buzz from the Beehive Reactions to news of the government’s readiness to make urgent changes to “the resource management system” through a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) suggest a balanced approach is being taken. The Taxpayers’ Union says the proposed changes don’t go far enough. Greenpeace says ...
I’m starting to wonder if Anna Burns-Francis might be the best political interviewer we’ve got. That might sound unlikely to you, it came as a bit of a surprise to me.Jack Tame can be excellent, but has some pretty average days. I like Rebecca Wright on Newshub, she asks good ...
Chris Trotter writes – Willie Jackson is said to be planning a “media summit” to discuss “the state of the media and how to protect Fourth Estate Journalism”. Not only does the Editor of The Daily Blog, Martyn Bradbury, think this is a good idea, but he has also ...
Graeme Edgeler writes – This morning [April 21], the Wellington High Court is hearing a judicial review brought by Hon. Karen Chhour, the Minister for Children, against a decision of the Waitangi Tribunal. This is unusual, judicial reviews are much more likely to brought against ministers, rather than ...
Both of Parliament’s watchdogs have now ripped into the Government’s Fast-track Approvals Bill. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMy pick of the six newsey things to know from Aotearoa’s political economy and beyond on the morning of Tuesday, April 23 are:The Lead: The Auditor General,John Ryan, has joined the ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Sarah SpengemanPeople wait to board an electric bus in Pune, India. (Image credit: courtesy of ITDP) Public transportation riders in Pune, India, love the city’s new electric buses so much they will actually skip an older diesel bus that ...
The infrastructure industry yesterday issued a “hurry up” message to the Government, telling it to get cracking on developing a pipeline of infrastructure projects.The hiatus around the change of Government has seen some major projects cancelled and others delayed, and there is uncertainty about what will happen with the new ...
Hi,Over the weekend I revisited a podcast I really adore, Dead Eyes. It’s about a guy who got fired from Band of Brothers over two decades ago because Tom Hanks said he had “dead eyes”.If you don’t recall — 2001’s Band of Brothers was part of the emerging trend of ...
Buzz from the Beehive The 180 or so recipients of letters from the Government telling them how to submit infrastructure projects for “fast track” consideration includes some whose project applications previously have been rejected by the courts. News media were quick to feature these in their reports after RMA Reform Minister Chris ...
It would not be a desirable way to start your holiday by breaking your back, your head, or your wrist, but on our first hour in Singapore I gave it a try.We were chatting, last week, before we started a meeting of Hazel’s Enviro Trust, about the things that can ...
Calling all journalists, academics, planners, lawyers, political activists, environmentalists, and other members of the public who believe that the relationships between vested interests and politicians need to be scrutinised. We need to work together to make sure that the new Fast-Track Approvals Bill – currently being pushed through by the ...
Feel worried. Shane Jones and a couple of his Cabinet colleagues are about to be granted the power to override any and all objections to projects like dams, mines, roads etc even if: said projects will harm biodiversity, increase global warming and cause other environmental harms, and even if ...
Bryce Edwards writes- The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. ...
Michael Bassett writes – If you think there is a move afoot by the radical Maori fringe of New Zealand society to create a parallel system of government to the one that we elect at our triennial elections, you aren’t wrong. Over the last few days we have ...
Without a corresponding drop in interest rates, it’s doubtful any changes to the CCCFA will unleash a massive rush of home buyers. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: The six things that stood out to me in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, poverty and climate on Monday, April 22 included:The Government making a ...
Sunday was a lazy day. I started watching Jack Tame on Q&A, the interviews are usually good for something to write about. Saying the things that the politicians won’t, but are quite possibly thinking. Things that are true and need to be extracted from between the lines.As you might know ...
In our Weekly Roundup last week we covered news from Auckland Transport that the WX1 Western Express is going to get an upgrade next year with double decker electric buses. As part of the announcement, AT also said “Since we introduced the WX1 Western Express last November we have seen ...
TL;DR: The six key events to watch in Aotearoa-NZ’s political economy in the week to April 29 include:PM Christopher Luxon is scheduled to hold a post-Cabinet news conference at 4 pm today. Stats NZ releases its statutory report on Census 2023 tomorrow.Finance Minister Nicola Willis delivers a pre-Budget speech at ...
A listing of 29 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, April 14, 2024 thru Sat, April 20, 2024. Story of the week Our story of the week hinges on these words from the abstract of a fresh academic ...
The ability of the private sector to quickly establish major new projects making use of the urban and natural environment is to be supercharged by the new National-led Government. Yesterday it introduced to Parliament one of its most significant reforms, the Fast Track Approvals Bill. The Government says this will ...
This is a column to say thank you. So many of have been in touch since Mum died to say so many kind and thoughtful things. You’re wonderful, all of you. You’ve asked how we’re doing, how Dad’s doing. A little more realisation each day, of the irretrievable finality of ...
Identifying the engine type in your car is crucial for various reasons, including maintenance, repairs, and performance upgrades. Knowing the specific engine model allows you to access detailed technical information, locate compatible parts, and make informed decisions about modifications. This comprehensive guide will provide you with a step-by-step approach to ...
Introduction: The allure of racing is undeniable. The thrill of speed, the roar of engines, and the exhilaration of competition all contribute to the allure of this adrenaline-driven sport. For those who yearn to experience the pinnacle of racing, becoming a race car driver is the ultimate dream. However, the ...
Introduction Automobiles have become ubiquitous in modern society, serving as a primary mode of transportation and a symbol of economic growth and personal mobility. With countless vehicles traversing roads and highways worldwide, it begs the question: how many cars are there in the world? Determining the precise number is a ...
Maintaining a safe and reliable vehicle requires regular inspections. Whether it’s a routine maintenance checkup or a safety inspection, knowing how long the process will take can help you plan your day accordingly. This article delves into the factors that influence the duration of a car inspection and provides an ...
Mazda Motor Corporation, commonly known as Mazda, is a Japanese multinational automaker headquartered in Fuchu, Aki District, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. The company was founded in 1920 as the Toyo Cork Kogyo Co., Ltd., and began producing vehicles in 1931. Mazda is primarily known for its production of passenger cars, but ...
Your car battery is an essential component that provides power to start your engine, operate your electrical systems, and store energy. Over time, batteries can weaken and lose their ability to hold a charge, which can lead to starting problems, power failures, and other issues. Replacing your battery before it ...
In most states, you cannot register a car without a valid driver’s license. However, there are a few exceptions to this rule. Exceptions to the RuleIf you are under 18 years old: In some states, you can register a car in your name even if you do not ...
Mazda, a Japanese automotive manufacturer with a rich history of innovation and engineering excellence, has emerged as a formidable player in the global car market. Known for its reputation of producing high-quality, fuel-efficient, and driver-oriented vehicles, Mazda has consistently garnered praise from industry experts and consumers alike. In this article, ...
Struts are an essential part of a car’s suspension system. They are responsible for supporting the weight of the car and damping the oscillations of the springs. Struts are typically made of steel or aluminum and are filled with hydraulic fluid. How Do Struts Work? Struts work by transferring the ...
Car registration is a mandatory process that all vehicle owners must complete annually. This process involves registering your car with the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and paying an associated fee. The registration process ensures that your vehicle is properly licensed and insured, and helps law enforcement and other authorities ...
Zoom is a video conferencing service that allows you to share your screen, webcam, and audio with other participants. In addition to sharing your own audio, you can also share the audio from your computer with other participants. This can be useful for playing music, sharing presentations with audio, or ...
Te Pāti Māori are demanding the New Zealand Government support an international independent investigation into mass graves that have been uncovered at two hospitals on the Gaza strip, following weeks of assault by Israeli troops. Among the 392 bodies that have been recovered, are children and elderly civilians. Many of ...
Our two-tiered system for veterans’ support is out of step with our closest partners, and all parties in Parliament should work together to fix it, Labour veterans’ affairs spokesperson Greg O’Connor said. ...
Stripping two Ministers of their portfolios just six months into the job shows Christopher Luxon’s management style is lacking, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said. ...
Tonight’s court decision to overturn the summons of the Children’s Minister has enabled the Crown to continue making decisions about Māori without evidence, says Te Pāti Māori spokesperson for Children, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “The judicial system has this evening told the nation that this government can do whatever they want when ...
It appears Nicola Willis is about to pull the rug out from under the feet of local communities still dealing with the aftermath of last year’s severe weather, and local councils relying on funding to build back from these disasters. ...
The Government is making short-sighted changes to the Resource Management Act (RMA) that will take away environmental protection in favour of short-term profits, Labour’s environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
Labour welcomes the release of the report into the North Island weather events and looks forward to working with the Government to ensure that New Zealand is as prepared as it can be for the next natural disaster. ...
The Labour Party has called for the New Zealand Government to recognise Palestine, as a material step towards progressing the two-State solution needed to achieve a lasting peace in the region. ...
Some of our country’s most important work, stopping the sexual exploitation of children and violent extremism could go along with staff on the frontline at ports and airports. ...
The Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill will give projects such as new coal mines a ‘get out of jail free’ card to wreak havoc on the environment, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The government's decision to reintroduce Three Strikes is a destructive and ineffective piece of law-making that will only exacerbate an inherently biased and racist criminal justice system, said Te Pāti Māori Justice Spokesperson, Tākuta Ferris, today. During the time Three Strikes was in place in Aotearoa, Māori and Pasifika received ...
Cuts to frontline hospital staff are not only a broken election promise, it shows the reckless tax cuts have well and truly hit the frontline of the health system, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
The Green Party has joined the call for public submissions on the fast-track legislation to be extended after the Ombudsman forced the Government to release the list of organisations invited to apply just hours before submissions close. ...
New Zealand’s good work at reducing climate emissions for three years in a row will be undone by the National government’s lack of ambition and scrapping programmes that were making a difference, Labour Party climate spokesperson Megan Woods said today. ...
More essential jobs could be on the chopping block, this time Ministry of Education staff on the school lunches team are set to find out whether they're in line to lose their jobs. ...
Te Pāti Māori is disgusted at the confirmation that hundreds are set to lose their jobs at Oranga Tamariki, and the disestablishment of the Treaty Response Unit. “This act of absolute carelessness and out of touch decision making is committing tamariki to state abuse.” Said Te Pāti Māori Oranga Tamariki ...
The Government is trying to bring in a law that will allow Ministers to cut corners and kill off native species, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said. ...
Cancelling urgently needed new Cook Strait ferries and hiking the cost of public transport for many Kiwis so that National can announce the prospect of another tunnel for Wellington is not making good choices, Labour Transport Spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...
A laundry list of additional costs for Tāmaki Makarau Auckland shows the Minister for the city is not delivering for the people who live there, says Labour Auckland Issues spokesperson Shanan Halbert. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi, and Mema Paremata mō Tāmaki-Makaurau, Takutai Tarsh Kemp, will travel to the Gold Coast to strengthen ties with Māori in Australia next week (15-21 April). The visit, in the lead-up to the 9th Australian National Kapa haka Festival, will be an opportunity for both ...
The Green Party has today launched a step-by-step guide to help New Zealanders make their voice heard on the Government’s democracy dodging and anti-environment fast track legislation. ...
The National Government’s proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act will mean tenants can be turfed from their homes by landlords with little notice, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson is calling on all parties to support a common-sense change that’s great for the planet and great for consumers after her member’s bill was drawn from the ballot today. ...
A significant milestone has been reached in the fight to strike an anti-Pasifika and unfair law from the country’s books after Teanau Tuiono’s members’ bill passed its first reading. ...
New Zealand has today missed the opportunity to uphold the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment, says James Shaw after his member’s bill was voted down in its first reading. ...
Today’s advice from the Climate Change Commission paints a sobering reality of the challenge we face in combating climate change, especially in light of recent Government policy announcements. ...
Minister for Disability Issues Penny Simmonds appears to have delayed a report back to Cabinet on the progress New Zealand is making against international obligations for disabled New Zealanders. ...
Hundreds of New Zealand families affected by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) will benefit from a new Government focus on prevention and treatment, says Health Minister Dr Shane Reti. “We know FASD is a leading cause of preventable intellectual and neurodevelopmental disability in New Zealand,” Dr Reti says. “Every day, ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones today attended the official opening of Kaikohe’s new $14.7 million sports complex. “The completion of the Kaikohe Multi Sports Complex is a fantastic achievement for the Far North,” Mr Jones says. “This facility not only fulfils a long-held dream for local athletes, but also creates ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters’ engagements in Türkiye this week underlined the importance of diplomacy to meet growing global challenges. “Returning to the Gallipoli Peninsula to represent New Zealand at Anzac commemorations was a sombre reminder of the critical importance of diplomacy for de-escalating conflicts and easing tensions,” Mr Peters ...
Ambassador Millar, Burgemeester, Vandepitte, Excellencies, military representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – good morning and welcome to this sacred Anzac Day dawn service. It is an honour to be here on behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand at Buttes New British Cemetery, Polygon Wood – a deeply ...
Distinguished guests - It is an honour to return once again to this site which, as the resting place for so many of our war-dead, has become a sacred place for generations of New Zealanders. Our presence here and at the other special spaces of Gallipoli is made ...
Mai ia tawhiti pamamao, te moana nui a Kiwa, kua tae whakaiti mai matou, ki to koutou papa whenua. No koutou te tapuwae, no matou te tapuwae, kua honoa pumautia. Ko nga toa kua hinga nei, o te Waipounamu, o te Ika a Maui, he okioki tahi me o ...
Paul Goldsmith will take on responsibility for the Media and Communications portfolio, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today. “Our Government is relentlessly focused on getting New Zealand back on track. As issues change in prominence, I plan to adjust Ministerial ...
Recreational catch limits will be reduced in areas of Fiordland and the Chatham Islands to help keep those fisheries healthy and sustainable, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says. The lower recreational daily catch limits for a range of finfish and shellfish species caught in the Fiordland Marine Area and ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has welcomed an important milestone in New Zealand’s hydrogen future, with the opening of the country’s first network of hydrogen refuelling stations in Wiri. “I want to congratulate the team at Hiringa Energy and its partners K one W one (K1W1), Mitsui & Co New Zealand ...
The coalition Government is delivering on its commitment to improve resource management laws and give greater certainty to consent applicants, with a Bill to amend the Resource Management Act (RMA) expected to be introduced to Parliament next month. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has today outlined the first RMA Amendment ...
Overseas models for regulating the oil and gas sector, including their decommissioning regimes, are being carefully scrutinised as a potential template for New Zealand’s own sector, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. The Coalition Government is focused on rebuilding investor confidence in New Zealand’s energy sector as it looks to strengthen ...
Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell has today released the Report of the Government Inquiry into the response to the North Island Severe Weather Events. “The report shows that New Zealand’s emergency management system is not fit-for-purpose and there are some significant gaps we need to address,” Mr Mitchell ...
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is today travelling to Europe where he’ll update the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s work to restore law and order. “Attending the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva provides us with an opportunity to present New Zealand’s human rights progress, priorities, and challenges, while ...
Associate Agriculture Minister, Mark Patterson, formally reopened the world’s largest wool processing facility today in Awatoto, Napier, following a $50 million rebuild and refurbishment project. “The reopening of this facility will significantly lift the economic opportunities available to New Zealand’s wool sector, which already accounts for 20 per cent of ...
Hon Andrew Bayly, Minister for Small Business and Manufacturing At the Southland Otago Regional Engineering Collective (SOREC) Summit, 18 April, Dunedin Ngā mihi nui, Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Ko Whanganui aho Good Afternoon and thank you for inviting me to open your summit today. I am delighted ...
The Government is delivering on its commitment to bring back the Three Strikes legislation, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee announced today. “Our Government is committed to restoring law and order and enforcing appropriate consequences on criminals. We are making it clear that repeat serious violent or sexual offending is not ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today announced four new diplomatic appointments for New Zealand’s overseas missions. “Our diplomats have a vital role in maintaining and protecting New Zealand’s interests around the world,” Mr Peters says. “I am pleased to announce the appointment of these senior diplomats from the ...
New Zealand is contributing NZ$7 million to support communities affected by severe food insecurity and other urgent humanitarian needs in Ethiopia and Somalia, Foreign Minister Rt Hon Winston Peters announced today. “Over 21 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance across Ethiopia, with a further 6.9 million people ...
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Paul Goldsmith is congratulating Mataaho Collective for winning the Golden Lion for best participant in the main exhibition at the Venice Biennale. "Congratulations to the Mataaho Collective for winning one of the world's most prestigious art prizes at the Venice Biennale. “It is good ...
The Government is reforming financial services to improve access to home loans and other lending, and strengthen customer protections, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly and Housing Minister Chris Bishop announced today. “Our coalition Government is committed to rebuilding the economy and making life simpler by cutting red tape. We are ...
“China remains a strong commercial opportunity for Kiwi exporters as Chinese businesses and consumers continue to value our high-quality safe produce,” Trade and Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says. Mr McClay has returned to New Zealand following visits to Beijing, Harbin and Shanghai where he met ministers, governors and mayors and engaged in trade and agricultural events with the New ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa. The summit is co-hosted ...
A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul. “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners. “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
The pair opened their first fully collaborative exhibition, Nina for Flowers, last Saturday. Gabi Lardies visited their studio to find out who Nina is and what working together was like.‘It didn’t start out like, ‘This is a show about Nina,’” says Josephine Jelicich, gripping a thermos of peppermint tea. ...
Thank you, Dr Maximilian Oskar Bircher-Benner, for your brilliant invention. I’m another mid-20s Kiwi who had an OE last year. I hopped on my bicycle where France meets the Atlantic and cycled east. I pedalled through the Loire Valley, down rivers lined with willows and ancient wisteria-draped chateaus. I relished ...
Asia Pacific Report From France to Australia, university pro-Palestine protests in the United States have now spread to several countries with students pitching on-campus camps. And students at Columbia and other US universities remain defiant as campuses have witnessed the biggest protests since the anti-Vietnam war and anti-apartheid eras in ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards, Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)New Zealand Government’s Fast Track legislation. Many criticisms are being made of the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill, including by this writer. But as with everything in politics, every story has two sides, and both deserve attention. It’s important to understand what the Government ...
Tara Ward talks to presenter Naomi Toilalo about the new TV show that turns food waste into a three course feast. Naomi Toilalo is standing in the warehouse at Good Neighbour Tauranga, helping unpack the two-and-a-half tonnes of rejected food that will arrive at the community support hub that day. ...
Scout is our latest Dog of the Month. This feature was offered as a reward during our What’s Eating Aotearoa PledgeMe campaign. Thank you to Scout’s human, Avril, for her support. Dog name: Scout (named after the little girl in To Kill a Mockingbird – she inherited the independent spirit ...
Megan Alatini takes us through her life in TV, including ‘terrible’ daytime TV, the class of Carol Hirschfeld and her most embarrassing TrueBliss moment. When she responded to a vague newspaper ad asking “do you have what it takes to be a popstar?” 25 years ago, Megan Alatini never guessed ...
A new exhibition in Wellington showcases the faces behind your local goods and services. Back in 1977, when I was a fine arts student at the University of Canterbury, I took a series of photographs of Christchurch shopkeepers. The photos were for a calendar – a project for my end ...
Toomaj and his resistance to tyranny through his songs have become an icon for the youth of Iran, so his sentence has hit the nation hard. Toomaj Salehi is not the first artist to pay the price for standing with the people. ...
My cousin Dylan and I spotted these big eels under the bridge that summer. We watched them lounging under the dark weed, facing into the flow of water, their mouths frozen open. Dylan and I couldn’t stop thinking about those eels. The night we went down to the creek, we ...
Newsroom, home of satire. My long-running weekly satirical series The Secret Diary has moved to Newsroom and will appear every Saturday, with Victor Billot’s wildly popular satirical Odes continuing to appear every Sunday. Diaries, Odes – while serious political columnists toil at meaningful opinions and stroke their chins to an ...
Tara Ward unravels the many nuanced layers of a cartoon about talking dogs.This is an excerpt from our weekly pop culture newsletter Rec Room. Sign up here. It’s not often an episode of a children’s cartoon has adults sobbing into their sleeves, but that’s exactly what happened this week when ...
Working as a doctor in developing countries to help communities achieve better health outcomes is nothing short of a life goal for Jessica Tater. The University of Otago medical student has her sights firmly set on joining the international humanitarian organisation Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) when she qualifies ...
There’s an island in the far reaches of Auckland’s territory, sitting off the tip of the Coromandel Peninsula, 30 minutes by air from the city or four hours on the slow boat. Aotea Great Barrier is off-grid, it has a population of fewer than a thousand people … and most ...
Asia Pacific Report An Australian author and advocate, Jim Aubrey, today led a national symbolic one minute’s silence to mark the “blood debt” owed to Papuan allies during the Second World War indigenous resistance against the invading Japanese forces. “A promise to most people is a promise,” Aubrey said in ...
Asia Pacific Report The Freedom Flotilla is ready to sail to Gaza, reports Kia Ora Gaza. All the required paperwork has been submitted to the port authority, and the cargo has been loaded and prepared for the humanitarian trip to the besieged enclave. However, organisers received word of an “administrative ...
Pacific Media Watch Palestine solidarity protesters today demonstrated at the Auckland headquarters of Television New Zealand, accusing the country’s major TV network of broadcasting “propaganda” backing Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza. About 50 protesters targeted the main entrance to the TVNZ building near Sky Tower and also picketed a side ...
Opinion by Lynley Hood. Forty years on from my 1985 Fulbright Grant, my disquiet over the war in Gaza evoked some troubling questions. The answer to my first question – What is the primary purpose of the Fulbright Programme? – was on the Fulbright NZ website. It says: US Senator, ...
The ministers responsible for green-lighting major projects need to be open about potential conflicts of interest, says Transparency International. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anastasia Powell, Professor, Family and Sexual Violence, RMIT University It has been a particularly distressing start to the year. There is little that can ease the current grief of individuals, families and communities who have needlessly lost a loved one to men’s ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gregory Moore, Senior Research Associate, School of Ecosystem and Forest Sciences, The University of Melbourne Lichen, the first described example of symbiosis.AdeJ Artventure/Shutterstock Once known only to those studying biology, the word symbiosis is now widely used. Symbiosis is the intimate ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Kim Hemsley, Head, Childhood Dementia Research Group, Flinders Health and Medical Research Institute, College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University Olena Ivanova/Shutterstock “Childhood” and “dementia” are two words we wish we didn’t have to use together. But sadly, around 1,400 ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Whiteford, Professor, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University The government’s Economic Inclusion Advisory Committee has just published its second report. It was set up by Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Minister for Social Services Amanda Rishworth in 2022 to provide: ...
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 The Queensland state election will be held in October. A YouGov poll for The Courier Mail, conducted April 9–17 from a sample ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Amin Naeni, PhD candidate at Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation, Deakin University There’s been much talk in recent months about what a possible second Donald Trump presidency in the United States could mean for Europe, Russia’s war in Ukraine, the ...
A brief round-up of submissions on the controversial proposed law. This is an excerpt from our weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. Sign up here. Last week, submissions on the controversial Fast-track Approvals Bill closed just hours after the government released a list of stakeholder organisations who were sent letters advising how they could ...
A poem from Robin Peace’s new collection Detritus of Empire: feather / grass / rock. Cereal giving I see a woman’s hands, see her curious hands break a stalk as she walks through the tall prairie, the savannah, the steppe, wherever it was. See her idly bite the grass that ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 Hemingway’s Goblet by Dermot Ross (Mary Egan Publishing, $38)A handsomely produced (debossed cover, lovely ...
The Commissioner's decision validates the longstanding efforts of the local community and ensures that Awataha Marae will be managed to serve the needs of the local community, particularly for hosting tangihanga. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tristan Salles, Associate professor, University of Sydney Examples of Australian landscapes.Unsplash Seventy thousand years ago, the sea level was much lower than today. Australia, along with New Guinea and Tasmania, formed a connected landmass known as Sahul. Around this time – ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Felicity Castagna, Lecturer, Creative Writing, Western Sydney University Day Day Market, ParramattaPhoto: Garry Trinh I live on the edge of Parramatta, Australia’s fastest-growing city, on the kind of old-fashioned suburban street that has 1950s fibros constructed in the post-war housing boom, ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Ryan, Teaching Fellow in Economics, University of Waikato GettyImagesfatido/Getty Images There is an ongoing global debate over whether the high inflation seen in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic can be lowered without a recession. New Zealand is not ...
The ‘Wicked Game’ heartthrob is in his late 60s now. That didn’t stop him putting on a lively, goofy and very sparkly show. Apart from ‘Wicked Game’, which graces a sultry playlist of mine simply called 💋, my last sustained Chris Isaak listening session took place when I was about ...
Analysis - Two ministers were stripped of portfolios in a warning to Cabinet, drama broke out at the Waitangi Tribunal, and the gang patch ban bill ran into opposition. ...
Tara Ward makes an impassioned plea for some vital pop culture merch. In April 1999, I became obsessed with a new reality television show called Popstars. Every Tuesday night, five strangers transformed into music royalty before my very eyes as Joe, Keri, Carly, Erika and Megan were chosen to form ...
PNG Post-Courier In the early hours of ANZAC Day, aerial photographs captured an impressive gathering of Australians and Papua New Guineans at Isurava in the Northern (Oro) Province. The solemn dawn service yesterday was held at a site steeped in history, where some of the fiercest battles of World War ...
The PSA is shocked that Oranga Tamariki has used the cost cutting drive to downgrade its commitment to Te Ao Māori and remove many specialist Māori roles. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Ian Kemish, Adjunct Professor, School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry, The University of Queensland There can be no more powerful symbol of the relationship between Australia and Papua New Guinea than the prime ministers of these neighbouring countries walking together on the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sharon Robinson, Distinguished Professor and Deputy Director of ARC Securing Antarctica’s Environmental Future (SAEF), University of Wollongong, University of Wollongong Andrew Netherwood Over the last 25 years, the ozone hole which forming over Antarctica each spring has started to shrink. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Viktoria Kahui, Senior Lecturer in Environmental Economics, University of Otago Getty Images/Amy Toensing Biodiversity is declining at rates unprecedented in human history. This suggests the ways we currently use to manage our natural environment are failing. One emerging concept focuses on ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Timothy Colin Bednall, Associate Professor in Management, Swinburne University of Technology marvent/Shutterstock Finding the best person to fill a position can be tough, from drafting a job ad to producing a shortlist of top interview candidates. Employers typically consider information from ...
Wondering where to host your next BYO? Whether its a small gathering or a massive party, we’ve got some recommendations. I was first introduced to the concept of BYOs at Dunedin’s India Gardens, a legendary but sadly defunct establishment, which purveyed enormous quantities of mango chicken to Aotearoa’s drunkest future ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Julien Cooper, Honorary Lecturer, Department of History and Archaeology, Macquarie University Julien Cooper The hyper-arid desert of Eastern Sudan, the Atbai Desert, seems like an unlikely place to find evidence of ancient cattle herders. But in this dry environment, my new ...
The sector says it’s hopeful her replacement Paul Goldsmith will be able to throw it a lifeline, after six months with a minister deemed missing in action, 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 ...
The government can't just rely on axing public sector jobs and has to do more to cut spending, says the chief economist at a free market think tank. ...
Rock The Vote NZ, known for its advocacy for minor party unity and its role within the Freedoms NZ Coalition during the 2023 General Election, celebrates this merger as a strategic enhancement of its operational strength and outreach. ...
Nearly everyone has experienced the frustration of something you use breaking and being difficult or expensive to fix. Proposed legislation could change that. It’s been raining on and off all Sunday afternoon but people are lining up outside a building in a corner of Gribblehirst Park in Sandringham, Auckland. In ...
What does a forever relationship look like when you don’t believe in marriage? And how do you celebrate it? This essay is part of our Sunday Essay series, made possible thanks to the support of Creative New Zealand.I’m going to do it, right now. I’m going to say ...
The Prime Minister has committed to resuming direct flights to Thailand. But it’s not a promise he will be able to deliver on anytime soon. The post Prime Minister jumps the gun in Thailand appeared first on Newsroom. ...
It’s not that long ago Eliza McCartney was seriously wondering if the Paris Olympics would be her pole vaulting swansong. After years of being hounded by injury after injury, the Rio Olympics bronze medallist was still confident she would compete at her second Olympics in Paris in July, unless something ...
FICTION 1 Take Two by Danielle Hawkins (Allen & Unwin, $36.99) There’s commercial fiction, like this book, and then there’s quality fiction, quality writers, quality literature; the forthcoming Auckland Writers Festival is full of quality, and ReadingRoom has two tickets to give away to the following events: Paul Lynch (Dublin ...
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 26 April appeared first on Newsroom. ...
You can’t have missed the Gallipoli story as the movies, documentaries, essays and books capture what it was like for New Zealand troops in their eight-month campaign on the Peninsula. But this Anzac Day the Auckland War Memorial Museum has published a book that sheds light on a little-known aspect of the ...
Māori affiliation with Christianity has fallen from 46.2 percent to 29.9 percent.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/on-the-inside/503554/maori-atheism-on-the-rise-legacy-of-colonisation-driving-decline-in-traditional-christian-beliefs
The authors report a variety of reasons for the generational shift, with a selection of personal views sampled: 16, of which three quarters were brought up in a religious household but have evolved a more independent stance. Default to atheism is what the media do normally as the result of indoctrination into trad binary thinking.
Reluctance to acknowledge the general trend of western civilisation toward the personal spirituality option during the past half-century seems evident in the subtext, though that could be due to the RNZ editor being a slow learner rather than the authors. Census questions usually recycle the antiquated conventional religious framing, and Labour failed to shift them in the direction of reality, which would be evidenced by inclusion of a personal spirituality option in both the census questioning and resultant bar graphs!
Wonderful that The Standard gives you opportunities to pass on the wisdom and experience you have gathered across numerous life lessons in order to help empower or support others – forgive them, for they are slow/binary, and know not what they do.
Not really a good idea to forgive media pros for their incompetence &/or failure to provide suitable public service. However implying that discrimination against spiritual folk is a desirable leftist attribute seems rather uncouth. We ought to encourage both groups to do better.
Would your 'suitable' suit everyone? Split a piece of wood; perceived incompetence is there. Lift up the stone, and you will find failure there.
We can all "do better" (I know I can) – to err is human, to forgive divine.
Let your good nature shine through
Yes, I do agree that goodwill is crucial in politics. A basis for ongoing relevance of the teachings of Jesus around that, huh? Also relevant is the Dalai Lama's focus on compassion.
I dunno, I read a lot of Dennis Frank's posts as billboards for the Dunning-Kruger institute.
In other words, he’s spamming this site?
Oh Lord, it's hard to be humble, but (imho) Dennis is doin’ the best that he can!
TbF, I'm suprised he has time to grace TS with his presence and ‘pearls’.
If you've ever seen a hospital ward, engineering company, aid organisation, or local charity, know that they are all chock full of Christians doing the work for you.
Default atheism is so useful in understanding the politics of south Auckland, west Auckland, Pacific Island states, the Middle East, South and middle America, all of Africa, southern and eastern Asia, Turkey, Ukraine, all post-soviet states, and Russia.
Go right ahead figuring them without all that "antiquated framing" you so loathe.
Analysis like yours is the reason the west is increasingly out of step with the rest of the world.
Hipkins seems to believe Peters ought to be silenced by Luxon. You know, in accord with the logic that leaders of political parties ought to be unable to express political opinions. If he's serious, he ought to advocate a law change to enforce such censorship.
If he's merely posturing, is the posture more impressive than the one Peters adopted? They both seem equally amusing.
It's as if he believes that potentially breaking a law is a serious matter. Like red-light runners, when they decide to brake instead. Election bribes are a typical product of democracy, yet somehow nobody told Hipkins.
Still, Tova & Jenna feel the bribery framing is naughty and ought to be punished, so maybe the Peters posture is somewhat effective. I dunno, looks like politics as usual: both left & right playing the fool. What's wrong with govt giving taxpayer money to media anyway?? They serve the public interest by explaining what's going on – most people can't figure it out for themselves.
You've built yourself one heck of a straw man there. Of course leaders of parties can express opinions, it's nonsense to suggest Hipkins is saying otherwise.
It is however blindingly obvious that in a government, the PM should be in charge, not the Deputy PM. Peters has lied, and Luxon has not corrected his lies (in public … privately he has no doubt been fuming).
False accusations of corruption and bribery are NOT an acceptable part of our democracy, and they do not end well. Ask Jami-Lee Ross.
luxon was on the verge of tears last night on te news when questioned about winston ,cause jeez we've got more important things then the dp being a dishonest shit.
The dead cat has been thrown and Nationals promise of changing working for families increase the top bracket from $42'000 to $50'000 giving a $25 increase in working for families is no longer going ahead.The poorest paying for wealthy landlords tax cuts.
"Hipkins seems to believe Peters ought to be silenced by Luxon."
You're misreading the situation.
Hipkins believes Luxon should publicly admonish Peter's inflammatory, untrue statements, not demand silence, imo.
Yes but hilariously Luxon commented that whether the journalism bribe was true or not, and he believes the jury is still out on that, is not the main point because it's really about perception…………ah yes the old smoke and mirrors perception trick…….
Could be right, Robert. So his tacit signal is Peters `ought not to express a different view to mine on the issue'. I suspect he even believes such virtue-signalling works.
It's also entirely feasible that he feels the need to exhibit a simulation of a strong moral stance, since a measurable portion of voters are easily impressed by such exhibitions. Perhaps Labour's focus groups indicate that?? If so, fair enough, but the unimpressed would have too many to easily number.
Again, no, Dennis.
Hipkins is saying Peters shouldn’t lie and Luxon ought to express that view also.
Oh, you mean the assumption that folks will default to a lawyer's definition of bribery, due to Peters being a lawyer? Would not be widely shared in my opinion – too many know about metaphor.
I think electoral bribery could usefully be parked in economic policy, so that the $55 million appears as a line item in the budget. Chomsky 1.01 is all a political party need tell the media. Manufacturing consent is how commercial democracy operates, so it's an appropriate test to use on media pros.
When the eyes glaze over, watch carefully to see if the penny drops. If it doesn't, suggest that they tell their employer they need a remedial course in standard methods of using political influence in a democracy.
Sure, clever, if you support "being misleading" as a valid political strategy.
The implications of "misleading" are interesting to ruminate upon.
You're being remarkably obtuse on this.
Every 3 years the word "bribe" is used as a political metaphor, and in all directions. A tax cut "bribe", a fees-free "bribe", a dental care "bribe", and so on. It means (as you well know) a party offers a policy that they hope will win votes.
What Peters has alleged is nothing whatsoever to do with that. If you haven't read what he said, please do. If you have, maybe read it again. He lied. It is as simple as that.
yes observer, I observe that frank dennis is trying to have a bob each way , much like peter winston. hard to spot the difference.
Tory take over at NRC in Whangārei…
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/ldr/503478/new-northland-regional-council-chair-geoff-crawford-elected-at-explosive-meeting
Dirty farmer Mr Crawford said on RNZ this morning that the NRC was now aligned with the new Government!
This piece again shows the value of Local Democracy Reporting, some local papers dropped their Council and Court “beats” long ago and LDR has done some sterling work.
No, we must not have reporting on local councils! Ratepayers and voters must not be told what is going on, in their name, with their money!
That is Winston Peters' view, and it seems, Luxon's as well. Money is spent on reporting, therefore it is a bribe. Idiotic.
NZ On Air and RNZ launch new Local Democracy Reporting service with NPA | NZ On Air
Herein lies the Left's/progressives vulnerability. The ideological ruthlessness of the Right shows no mercy.
I feel for those councillors battered by those blunt instruments. It will have been a hideous feeling, though they knew it was coming.
Once they've recovered, those for-now-disheartened councillors will find that there are avenues and opportunities to sustain what they achieved when they were more influential. The victors likewise, will discover that smashing stuff down is not so easy as they expect. Plus, climate change.
The ousted Councillors–Craw and Robinson in particular have long positive records in the community and will keep on keeping on.
There are strong GE and organic strands in the North, and it is up to all of us really, not just Councils. The right are eternally at it when it comes to their ability to ladle nitrates into waterways.
Mike Joy continues to alert us to the ongoing harm of nitrates in our water, while the agricultural industry smothers such thinking everywhere it can.
Nitrate "pollution" in New Zealand is a far greater issue than is widely recognised, imo.
Greenpeace has launched a “know your nitrate” map…
https://maps.greenpeace.org/maps/aotearoa/know-your-nitrate/?_ga=2.201959633.1727071562.1701287528-1794156884.1701193947
Takes a minute to learn the navigation then away you go…
Thanks, Tiger Mountain. I'll circulate that amongst my colleagues 🙂
What an excellent resource for raising awareness – well worth a donation to Greenpeace. Hope they can keep it up to date and record/show nitrate trends.
thank you…reposted on our community page
These guys belong in a Faulkner novel – maybe minor members of the Snopes clan.
There's been a constant caterwauling about terrible Northland roading in recent years.
The fact is that for 70 odd years Northland almost totally elected National MPs.
The fact is that the Regional Councils and industry bodies like Federated Farmers in the region have basically sat on their hands and backed the neglect. Excuses were always made with local 'leaders,' it was always 'softly softly.'
Of course in 2017 the tone changed. Aligning with the National Government got the region jack shit.
I expect the next thing we'll hear about is the NRC putting its oar into the debate about Government funding for the Whangarei Hospital redevelopment. You know, the "Please hurry, this is urgent, we've been promised, this is critical for the region" sort of thing. The "National whinged the money Labour had labelled wasn't enough, we demand more," type of message.
Reckon that'll happen? Along with "We're happy with your Tobacco decisions since we're aligned with you even though they will affect the region to the extent of scores of millions."
Winnie certainly has a point in his assertions that the media was bribed by the media grants.These were given to maintain media friendliness and therefore exert some influence upon the multitude at a time of high media frenzy,of which he personally gained some benefit and recognition.Reality.
when will be rid of this tedious troll?
There's a few of them around at the moment.
But they are getting easier to spot Anne…….difficulties with reasoning, logic and problems with judgment and critical thinking are sure give aways….
If you mean in 2020, it was when Covid had devastated business in so many ways, not least advertising revenue. Were wage subsidies "bribes" too?
If you mean after 2020, which is when the vast majority of the fund was allocated, it was so successful in manipulating the media coverage that … er, Labour's vote slumped from 50% to half that. Oops.
The Google archive has hundreds of relevant pages on this, so it's easy to inform yourself if you care.
Willie on Winnie:
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/kahu/willie-jackson-describes-winston-peters-behaviour-as-worrying/S3AF6DZFTVBORNLU4E3ZWDMMMY/
“The Public Interest Journalism Fund was introduced during Covid because it was a disastrous time in terms of media and we were pressured by good people out there to say, ‘hey, you support financial institutions so how about supporting local media that’s struggling’.
“It was aimed at supporting New Zealand media to keep producing stories and was not just for RNZ and for TVNZ.
“We never ever had any editorial control over anything anyone wrote, and that’s the truth. For Winston to insinuate some conspiracy is absolute disinformation and falsehoods."
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/kahu/willie-jackson-describes-winston-peters-behaviour-as-worrying/S3AF6DZFTVBORNLU4E3ZWDMMMY/
No editorial control is true to say but the dispersement of funds was conditional (as it should be) and that itself provides a level of control…the question that arises is whether you think the conditions were reasonable or had a political slant.
https://d3r9t6niqlb7tz.cloudfront.net/media/documents/220221_PIJF_General_Guidelines_updated.pdf
Decide for yourself.
A good guide to the reliability of any accusations like this is whether the accuser gives any examples of this "corruption" or only hides behind vague language without any specifics. We all wait for Winston to cite chapter and verse (but don't bother, he won't).
NZ on Air have funded shows like Q & A for many years, long before Ardern's government. They still do and will continue (the coalition agreement says nothing about scrapping NZ on Air or RNZ or TVNZ). So, there is no good faith here, at all.
Of course many (most?) of the public aren't going to delve into the details. Peters knows that, and anyway his target is 5%, not 50.
The public have the choice whether to allow their opinion to be formed for them by others or to seek the information and form their own.
In this instance the public is unlikely to be provided with a unbiased appraisal when the party accused of being subject undue influence (the media organisations) investigates itself.
As the fund ceased to operate in June this year it is now history in any event, but as with most things political various parties will make use of its existence for political purposes and the implications are likely to impact for some time to come.
Same old, same old and an affliction of all political hues.
Sadly positions will continue upon tribal lines for most, to the detriment of progress.
bring back Kim Hill and she can interview Winston Peters aka imafwit and ask a few pointed questions tho i doubt if we would accept an interview with a person of her calibre.
Sandra Le Cron's naive and simplistic comments mark "them" as an easy-pick for the Right – their vote would have been a certainty and their willingness to troll this Left-wing site, taken as read. Bothering to respond to their shallow provocations, or not, gives us control, but yes, they are a pest 🙂
you are correct robert. I havent been here for weeks , but instantly picked her/his comments as coming from a fisherman/woman. so shallow as to virtual signal their trolling ability/inability.
It has come to pass that this new gummint has an obvious trouble with telling the truth, pretty much everything they say is lies. A few days ago both Luxon and Willis defended the smoke free cancellation because of the threat of robberies saying that there would only be ONE outlet in Northland, Alesha Verrall had to correct them and say the proposed refs would have 14. Neither Nat can obviously read and just lie as a default setting.
Had to laugh listening to morning retort today, Luxon says the new govt is going to fix the economy, which is in a really really bad state, after the worst financial vandalism in NZ history by the former Labour govt. Shortly afterward Adrian Orr is on saying the NZ economy is in great shape, there never was a recession and agreed his comments yesterday on potential OCR rise is a warning shot across the banks and financial lending institutions bows. The old too much money by too many people chasing too few goods problem…….apparently….
But then wait….really really really big news…..the Wellington mayor has a drinking problem….
S and P, Moody's and Fitch would have criticised the NZ economy and downgraded their ratings if the NZ economy was in a bad state, but they haven't. It follows that Luxon is talking rubbish. The question is why does the MSM let him get away with talking rubbish like this?
Meanwhile on RadioNZ last night I heard that the bar owner where Tory Whanau was drinking said that there was no problem and that he would be glad to have the group of people back any time.
Anything that involves in-depth investigative journalism is way beyond the skills of most in the MSM these days. The editorial directive, or above, is to focus on sound bites, catchy headlines, opinionated commentary articles, anything scandalous involving public or sporting figures, and if it bleeds it leads……..
Of course the bar owner said Tipsy and her friends were no problem. Likely to be some of their most profitable customers.
Here's one Anne……
So, it's a jack up?
Never done anything wrong Jack-off, does your Halo match your Jack-boots?
New Regional Infrastructure Fund: Chris Bishop says it's all good.
Provincial Growth Fund? Chris Bishop said it was all bad.
"Shane Jones has an appalling track record of inappropriate behaviour, conflicts of interest and lack of accountability – traits that have become a stain on the Provincial Growth Fund.
“The PGF was Labour’s reward to NZ First for supporting the coalition. The result is a slush fund that lacks transparency and is being treated as NZ First’s campaign chest for 2020.”
Can't see how this relationship can possibly go wrong!
Shane Jones’ PGF answers don’t pass the sniff test | Scoop News
Chris Bishop has a habit of inserting the wrong memory stick when making comments……….could be he can’t see the right one for all the smoke………and all the mirrors really confuse things…….
Bishop is as trustworthy as his former employers are about the health impacts of their products.
With the likes of him, Shane Jones etc the integrity bar is set rather low.
Trump is saying the same BS the US economy is in serious trouble because of Biden yet low unemployment and a massive increase in manufacturing .Luxon just keeps repeating the lies Trumpish like.Nationals policy will start another round of house price inflation, then the Tax cuts in July will dump a large sum of money into the retail sector causing more inflation just as Adrian Orr will have inflation nearly under control.Here we go back to the 1990's yo yo economy small bursts of growth followed by recessions and Austerity increasing the OCR to bring down the inflation caused by tax cuts.PWC warned everybody before the election about these election bribes which damage the longterm economy.
Aotearoa seems set to balance relations with China & USA:
No reason spare money ought not to be used to strengthen relations between nations, right? Depends how you do it though. We're currently deploying this triad in China: https://www.mfat.govt.nz/en/countries-and-regions/asia/china/new-zealand-embassy/our-people-in-china/
I wonder if Lux will retain it or reconfigure it. Will he issue instructions to see how soon they secure suitable results? Asian-ethnicity ministers could be useful in view of our current ethnicity numbers: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_New_Zealand
Parity of asians with maori is a fact of life, in any ethnicity-voter framing. Folks will notice it. Media may even report it, with a gosh of surprise at the time lapse since last reported. May even connect the dots to the treaty relevance, huh? Lux may notice a useful lever here. Too thick?
I have quite often seen russian propaganda regarding russia's attacks on East Ukraine and Crimea, parroted on this site.
Russian investigative journalist, Andrey Zakharov, and others, have compiled the history of how putin planned, propagandised and executed his attack on Ukraine:
It is detailed and an hour and a half long. But better to actually learn about this, than to repeat kremlin nonsense from RT. Has good English subtitles.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fHbJL_mZUc
Grant Robertson has been assigned the shadow roles of…drum roll… finance and racing!
Racing!
Wahoo!
Entertaining times ahead!
I bet there was some jockeying around for that role.
You can bet on it!
Given Grant's no thoroughbred to look at, we can surmise he nagged his way into the role and now he's saddled with it.
Apologies all round for the dreadful puns.
He'll do more reigning in of the Co-Deputy PM than CLuxon will.
You just get punnier and punnier. So many you must be a little hoarse…..
I'm just surprised Ed hasn't spoken up!
Wouldn't that be pony-er and pony-er?
DonKey was bad enough, now we have Whinny!
Just wait til he gets the bit between his teeth!
Grant will have fun giving Winston a stir-rup!
But misses out on Sport, to Peeni Henare.
Chippie really hasn't got it through yet that he in Opposition now rather than being on the Government benches and part of the Executive.
He is complaining that "He said he thought it was an “interesting decision” that National had chosen Greens climate spokesman James Shaw over the official Opposition climate change spokeswoman in Megan Woods".
There is no such thing as an "Official Opposition spokeswomen". The Greens are an Opposition Party on exactly the same level as are Labour. The only Opposition role that is recognised is the Leader of the Opposition. There is no such thing as "Deputy Leader of the Opposition" as Chippie appears to be labelling Sepuloni.
As well he seems to think that members of his party have "portfolios". They have no such thing. They may be Labour Party spokespersons but that is all.
Come on Hipkins. At least you should have begun to understand the greatly reduced position you and your mates now occupy.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/labour-to-unveil-opposition-line-up-as-it-ramps-up-attacks-on-national-led-government/TQ6XLSQCOJGS7EX4RGUIQQBDVU/
Very smart move by the Government to effectively sideline Labour who, in 6 years did bugger all with their “nuclear moment”
Same one again Anne…..
If labour did nothing why is clutson,and tweddle dum and tweedledee spending the rest of the year undoing instead of doing??
bwaghorn
Good point, alwyn.
Shaw was chosen because his depth of knowledge is far greater than anyone else Luxon could have chosen – in particular, Matty.
"He seems to think that members of his party have "portfolios". They have no such thing. They may be Labour Party spokespersons but that is all."
Alwyn, it takes only 5 seconds to check before you submit. Less time than it does to type your egg-on-face rants.
In 2023 the Leader of the Opposition announces:
"Louise Upston adds Family Violence Prevention to her portfolios … Todd Muller is confirmed as the Agriculture spokesperson, and also takes on the Climate Change portfolio … Todd McClay picks up the new Hunting and Fishing portfolio … Penny Simmonds takes on the new portfolio of Workforce Planning … Tama Potaka picks up the Māori Development and Associate Housing portfolios" …
Luxon Sets Out Team To Contest The 2023 Election | Scoop News
I'm surprised that you, of all people take what Luxon says as gospel. Can we now assume that you will accept anything he says as being absolutely correct because he said it?
Looks like you do not know what you are talking about, alwyn.
Nicola Willis Deputy leader of the opposition.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shadow_Cabinet_of_Christopher_Luxon
No There is no such position as deputy-leader of the Opposition. Whoever used that wording was simply wrong. If it was Luxon he was just as wrong as Hipkins currently is.
Have a look at this. You will see that they have positions of PM, and deputy PM as well as Leader of the Opposition. They then have leaders and deputy leaders of parties but there is no position of deputy leader of the Opposition. Why would there be? The other Opposition parties are not somehow automatically subservient to the Opposition Party that got the most votes are they?
https://www.legislation.govt.nz/regulation/public/2020/0327/latest/LMS438252.html
There is a position of Deputy leader of the opposition, as the link @ 11.4.4 shows. Your denials do not change that fact.
There is no such position and no such link. There are references to he phrase Deputy leader but no such position is recognised, even to having a Wiki entry. You will note that there is a Wiki entry to Leader of the Opposition but not Deputy.
If my link to all the roles in the New Zealand Parliament from the official source doesn't persuade you, what will?
Nicola telling porkie-pies – again! What's new, eh Alwhinge?
But will she resign?
Drowsy M. Kram
Yay, new Kiwis in Wellington:
Guardian – Kiwi chicks born in Wellington for first time in a century
https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/new-zealands-central-bank-defends-maori-language-use-2023-11-29/
The idiots in charge getting more world wide headlines for taking us in the wrong direction!!
I feel so embarrassed for Aotearoa/Aotearoa (in New Zealand Sign Language)/New Zealand right now that N/ACT/NZF are tarnishing our whenua's good name and taonga by quarrelling with The Reserve Bank of Aotearoa/NZ (Te Putea Matua) for no reason except to turn the RBNZ (Te Putea Matua) into an institution that will do its bidding and to perpetuate arrant nonsense.
This is our land and we are all part of it, whatever language we use and write/sign in.
We need to be better than this.
I'll never learn to speak more than a few words and my country hick accent murders te reo, but I recall sitting in a greasy spoon in wairoa once in a stall next to to older gents speaking fluently in Maori, magic!
If "I'll never learn to speak more than a few words" is true how do you know they were "speaking fluently in Maori"?
Because authenticity rings true, alwyn – gtfu.
Elementary, my dear Watson
“Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters praises US engagement in the Pacific”
So Winnie’s now Deputy Sherriff to Albanese?
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/503591/foreign-affairs-minister-winston-peters-praises-us-engagement-in-the-pacific
So how is Nact1 going to square the circle with snuggling up to both USA, and China’s Belt and Road?
Henry Kissinger is dead.
On hearing that Kissinger had been awarded the Nobel Prize, the comedian Tom Lehrer famously declared that "political satire is obsolete".
"Once you’ve been to Cambodia, you’ll never stop wanting to beat Henry Kissinger to death with your bare hands. You will never again be able to open a newspaper and read about that treacherous, prevaricating, murderous scumbag sitting down for a nice chat with Charlie Rose or attending some black-tie affair for a new glossy magazine without choking. Witness what Henry did in Cambodia – the fruits of his genius for statesmanship – and you will never understand why he’s not sitting in the dock at The Hague next to Milošević." – Anthony Bourdain
Oh. No.
I am dumbfounded at labour's Shadow cabinet announced today.
You'd think since Labour only holds 17 electorates, all 17 successful electorate mps would be in shadow cabinet, nope, insetead FIFTEEN are List mps, most who lost safe seats and should have retired by now.
WTF are Rino and Deborah Russell still doing in politics, do they have no shame? You could have ran pot plants in their seats and they would have got more votes.
And for a party that is facing an existential crisis (whether the left wants to admit it or not) by totally being rejected by male voters of ALL ages and classes, you'd think theyd atleast gender ballance the shadow cabinet so it doesn't look like a radical feminist party (whether it's true or not is irrelevant, voters think it is and perception is ALL that matters) but nah… 6/10 are women and 12/20 are bland robot female politicians.
So you can bet your arse in opposition Labour is going to continue to be as obsessed with unpopular, alienating gender and social policy and everytime it opens its mouth working and middle class people will continue to groan.
Honestly I'd get rid of the lot of labour's caucus except Kieren (the future of Labour) , Rachel (how the hell is she at the bottom when she's the only Labour mp in decades to hold Nelson, twice?!) Duncan, Cushla (labour's ONE Maori electorate mp) and Carmel (because she's good in the house)
The rest of them should be sent packing.
However, after taking a beating this bad, you'd think they'd do some soul searching… Na carry on as if this lot weren't utterly rejected.
15 list mps in shadow cabinet… Unbelievable.
The caucus should be 11 out of the ten females who won electorates (all but Helen white who should be retiring before 2026) and the 6 male electorate mps + Kieren Grant etc
It's shameful Debra and Rino haven't reaigned.
Your reckons are in need of a makeover. It’s a fresh line-up. Just what the political doctor ordered. Electorate MPs do not take precedence over list MPs. They are all equal. It is the person deemed best for each individual portfolio, taking into account geographical and other important considerations.
Please look and listen to Hipkin’s press conference. It has its humorous moments which is more than you get with the other lot. Hopefully you will also recognise he knows his MPs better than we do:
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/503581/labour-party-leader-chris-hipkins-reveals-new-shadow-cabinet
NB. the entire caucus has been given shadow portfolio responsibilities. Good practice.
it’s a fresh line up.
Pull the other on Anne. It’s the same tired old hacks booted out of government less than 2 months ago.
I don't wear socks in the summer time.
Helen White won her seat, and she has every right to be there.
Just wow, you'd have been at home at Roehm's SA gatherings, your reactionary working class man thing against social liberal women would have been popular.
The Cookers LOVE LOVE LOVE Winston!
https://rumble.com/v3ynskd-operation-m.o.a.r-mother-of-all-revelations.html
Help us, Jesus!
The newly self-appointed Minister for self funded media? Of course they do!
https://interactives.stuff.co.nz/2022/covid-19-cases-new-zealand/
https://covid19.govt.nz/covid-19-vaccines/covid-19-vaccine-boosters/
Dad and I get our 4th anti-COVID booster vaccinations later today. Better safe than sorry – masks to protect against infection, and vaccines to protect against symptoms.
Tory dumb asses economics 101:
We have rampant inflation – the cause of majority of said inflation – corporate greed. (google Australian Tax department)
Yeap the corporations have decided working people are dumb enough to buy the lies and propaganda they spin – so they look at something else. Winston
The have their special elects in Government now.
So how will inflation be under Tory dumb ass economics – you silly – They will force down wages saying it's the only way to fix inflation.
Corporations laugh in your face – must be having a good giggle they were able to elect Winston back to be such a distraction.
Good luck, thank God I'm disabled and will be dead before the bring back open slavery – on your dumb wage slave ass.