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Open mike 30/04/2011

Written By: - Date published: 6:00 am, April 30th, 2011 - 40 comments
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40 comments on “Open mike 30/04/2011 ”

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  1. Carol 1
    30 April 2011 at 7:22 am

    Some interesting comments from Tim Watkin over at Pundit on Brash and Act:

    http://www.pundit.co.nz/content/is-brash-really-the-saviour-of-the-right

    Watkin tends to think that Brash will create more problems for National and Key than he solves, opening up questions about contentious issues that Key thought he’d laid to rest. I tend to see National as benefitting from a Brash-led Act, though.

    And Watkin provides this link to an animated reminded of Brash of yesteryear:

    http://www.labour.net.nz/gonebylunchtime/

    • Armchair Critic 1.1
      30 April 2011 at 9:35 am

      Watkin is right – Brash gives Labour someone to discredit, whereas Rodney had already done the job (on) himself. It adds a measure of uncertainty that Brash’s opponents can use to drive their vote up.
      A couple of other things that Brash has that Rodney doesn’t – (a) he has policy to frighten people with, and he doesn’t resile from it, and (b) there’s plenty of dirt on Brash that hasn’t come out, yet.
      Having said that, Labour have had plenty of opportunities over the last 2.5 years and have missed more than they have hit. It seems like they forgot how to be the opposition, because they were in government for so long.
      Stuff has an interesting poll on what people think of Brash as a minister. Keeping in mind that Stuff polls are not particularly reliable, it’s 20% for and 80% against. The results, as presented, indicate that it’s only the miniscule percent of the population that support ACT and less than half of National’s support that would like to see Brash as a minister. Food for thought for National.

  3. Robert Atack 3
    30 April 2011 at 7:58 am

    Is John Banks peak oil aware?
    Well in 2002 (ish) when he had his radio show I faxed him a 2 page version of this – http://oilcrash.com/articles/running.htm I know he at least read some of it because he read a few lines out over the air.
    Not that it mattered back then or now, as the pig ignorant public don’t give a toss )

  4. joe90 4
    30 April 2011 at 8:38 am

    Other than giving me the opportunity to laugh at the local loons as they make goats of themselves I’ve not paid much attention to the birther issue but this bloke calls it like it is.

    So, tears in my eyes, pain in my heart and rage in my soul, I composed this video message. More than written text, it comes close to expressing my full pain at witnessing a white man who was handed everything call the President of the United States (and me) a nigger.

  5. ianmac 5
    30 April 2011 at 10:09 am

    Even the experts have no agreement.
    Fran O’Sullivan: “…..Don Brash has already staked a claim for a top finance role in John Key’s next Government.”
    But John Armstrong says “Key’s ruling out of any likelihood of Brash becoming the finance minister is an important signal…….”

    Armstrong again: “Brash also wants Key to strip Hide of his ministerial portfolios – an option which Key has now conveniently told Brash is within the Act leader’s discretion.”
    After all Hide and Brash have been friends for more than 15 years.

  6. Deadly_NZ 6
    30 April 2011 at 11:27 am

    And just to make us feel better we have the Herald running this nice little gem on the Bosses wage increases.

    http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=10722406

    I see the workers got 1.7%

    You could’nt spend 5 million every year.
    But you HAVE to spend 50k a year to survive
    And then there’s the other 70 odd% that dont even get 20k a year.

    But then again no Politician seems to care, we don’t hear of them decrying these increases, and ol’ Shonkey and Blinglish will love this as it will add more fuel to their AVERAGE wages have increased by X% Bullshit.

    All grist to the spin mill.

    • Herodotus 6.1
      30 April 2011 at 12:54 pm

      This to me is the real gem within the article “…But John McGill, chairman of remuneration consultants Strategic Pay, says the chief executives of New Zealand’s largest firms are not overpaid, especially when compared with their counterparts overseas..” Why then do we not do the same analysis for those below the CEO level. So the CEO deserves remuneration on a international scale yet the rest of us should be paid on a domestic scale. Something is not as consistenant as it should be.
      Pity many political parties will base there tax system on these few but capture so many more who are just above the waterline in maintaining the household budget.

  7. Pascal's bookie 7
    30 April 2011 at 1:30 pm

    The gilded grifter, Donald Trump, got his little waterloo this week, Joe90 linked to a great piece above that folks should check out with regard to apart of what it all means on a human level.

    Johann Hari writes about what it means for the GOP, and he gets much of it dead right:

    It has long claimed that evolution is a myth believed in only by whiny liberals – and it turns out it was on to something. Every six months, the party venerates a new hero, and each time it is somebody further back on the evolutionary scale.

    Sarah Palin told cheering rallies that her message to the world was: “We’ll put a boot in your ass, it’s the American way!” – but that wasn’t enough. So the party found Michele Bachmann, who said darkly it was an “interesting coincidence” that swine flu only breaks out under Democratic presidents, claims the message of The Lion King is “I’m better at what I do because I’m gay”, and argues “there isn’t even one study that can be produced that shows carbon dioxide is a harmful gas.”

    That wasn’t enough. I half-expected the next contender to be a lung-fish draped in the Stars and Stripes. But it wasn’t anything so sophisticated. Enter stage (far) right Donald Trump, the bewigged billionaire who has filled America with phallic symbols and plastered his name across more surfaces than the average Central Asian dictator. CNN’s polling suggests he is the most popular candidate among Republican voters. It’s not hard to see why. Trump is every trend in Republican politics over the past 35 years taken to its logical conclusion. He is the Republican id, finally entirely unleashed from all restraint and all reality.

    As an intro to the grotesque that is the decaying corpse of the Party of Lincoln, that’s pretty much it. He goes on to describe the disease, again, pretty accurately in my view.

    Naked imperialism.

    Dog-whistled prejudice.

    The raw worship of wealth as an end in itself.

    The insistence that “any fact inconvenient to your world view simply doesn’t exist, or can be overcome by pure willpower”

    There are a few symptoms I would be tempted to add to that list, but they are mostly subsets of those already listed. Those four are the core.

    Where he goes wrong, I suspect, is in his conclusion:

    Trump probably won’t become the Republican nominee, but not because most Republicans reject his premisses. No: it will be because he states these arguments too crudely for mass public consumption. He takes the whispered dogmas of the Reagan, Bush and Tea Party years and shrieks them through a megaphone. The nominee will share similar ideas, but express them more subtly. In case you think these ideas are marginal to the party, remember – it has united behind the budget plan of Wisconsin Representative Paul Ryan. It’s simple: it halves taxes on the richest 1 percent and ends all taxes on corporate income, dividends, and inheritance. It pays for it by slashing spending on food stamps, healthcare for the poor and the elderly, and basic services. It aims to return the US to the spending levels of the 1920s – and while Ryan frames it as a response to the deficit, it would actually increase it according to the independent Center for Budget and Policy Priorities

    I agree that Trump won’t be the nominee, but I think that whoever it is will either be just as crude, or fatally weak in support from the GOP electorate. The crudeness of Trump’s campaign is itself an expression of the fourth pillar. To be less in denial with reality is to compromise with the enemy. They are are party defined and refined into walking shibboleths. The extent to say these things is the extent to which a candidate is prepared to stick with the tribe of real ‘murkins. The extent to which they are one of ‘us’ rather than than one of ‘them’.

    The reason Trump won’t get the candidacy is that, ironically enough, he won’t release his own documents, because if he did the gig would be up on his claim to be an exemplar of the third pillar.

  9. ianmac 9
    30 April 2011 at 4:06 pm

    Pity that Rodney didn’t do the same. Then there would be two fires raging. Actually I think that this close to an election the Parliament has the right to block such a by-election if 70% (?) vote to block it. After about the 20 May you can’t anyway.
    However if Hone resigns on Monday and next week MPs vote to block the by-election where will Hone be afterwards? Unprecedented?

    • Herodotus 9.1
      30 April 2011 at 5:16 pm

      Would “then this new party then lose out on funding for Nov’s general election- As they would not have a current party rep in parliament?

      • Pascal's bookie 9.1.1
        30 April 2011 at 5:35 pm

        Here’s what the electoral commission says:

        http://www.elections.org.nz/elections/by-elections/by-elections.html

        When a vacancy arises, the Speaker of the House of Representatives publishes a notice of the vacancy in the New Zealand Gazette. Within 21 days of that notice, the Governor-General must issue the writ directing the Chief Electoral Officer to conduct an election in the electorate. The writ sets out the key dates for the by-election: namely, the last day for the lodging of nominations of candidates, election day, and the last day for the return of the writ with the name of the elected candidate endorsed on its back….

        …A by-election is not required if –

        (a)The vacancy arises within 6 months of the date on which Parliament would expire (the six month period for the 49th Parliament begins on 28 May 2011); or

        (b)The Prime Minister informs the House of Representatives in writing that a general election will be held witin 6 months of the vacancy –

        and 75% or more members of the House of Representatives resolve that a writ for a by-election not be issued.

        As I understand that because he is resigning slightly more than 6 months out, then the by-election must be held. That can change only if Key brings the general election forward and 75% of the house vote to leave the seat empty.

        • MrSmith 9.1.1.1
          30 April 2011 at 6:54 pm

          Interesting , Hone is basically calling the Nacts out on an election date or the Nacts risk a vote that they need Labours support for. Am I reading this right?

  10. ianmac 10
    30 April 2011 at 6:07 pm

    Will it mean that once Hone resigns he would no longer enjoy the benefits of being an MP?
    Will his by-election be funded given that it is a new Party and will have been long gone after the registration date in March?
    Graeme Edgeler on Public Address” The process by which this money is allocated is convoluted. It starts many months before the election when parties (or prospective parties) are required to advise the Commission in writing that they wish to be considered. ………
    …..And on 17 March this year, just before the 5pm deadline, I asked the Electoral Commission who had applied……….. The Maori Party has applied, but Hone Harawira’s Mana Party has not (Hone the candidate will be allowed radio and tv advertising as part of his $25k spending limit, but it won’t be able to push a party vote and it won’t be publicly funded).”
    http://publicaddress.net/legalbeagle/adventures-in-the-oia-or-why-don-brash-wanted/

    • Pascal's bookie 10.1
      30 April 2011 at 6:24 pm

      Yeah, he’s already missed the publicly funded tv stuff, so this won’t change that. He’ll still get his parliamentary funding, and I’m not sure what, if any, the effect of re-testing his mandate will be.

    • Carol 10.2
      30 April 2011 at 6:54 pm

      But if Hone is elected as a Mana Party candidate in a by-election, doesn’t that mean his Mana Party will get funding for the general election …. as he would be the sitting member for the Mana Party?

      • ianmac 10.2.1
        30 April 2011 at 7:25 pm

        Not by my reading of the Edgeler post. If you haven’t applied by March 17 Hone misses out – I think.
        Maybe it hasn’t arisen before Carol.

  11. higherstandard 11
    30 April 2011 at 6:24 pm

    people I would like to punch in the face at the mo.

    Wendy Petrie
    John Key
    Hone Hariwira
    Don Brash

    • ianmac 11.1
      30 April 2011 at 6:37 pm

      Just go easy with Don. He’s an old frail man.

      • higherstandard 11.1.1
        30 April 2011 at 7:26 pm

        Can I kick him in the butt ?

      • Colonial Viper 11.1.2
        30 April 2011 at 7:37 pm

        Who wears glasses.

        But, he is willing to sell off both your children and their assets.

        So, close call, surely.

        • higherstandard 11.1.2.1
          30 April 2011 at 7:40 pm

          The only reason more politicians aren’t on my list is none of the others were stinking up the TV news this evening………. if they piss me off this much now I expect to be homicidal in another few months.

          • Colonial Viper 11.1.2.1.1
            30 April 2011 at 7:45 pm

            I’ve always found Rescue Remedy good for times like this 🙂

            • felix 11.1.2.1.1.1
              30 April 2011 at 10:23 pm

              If by “rescue remedy” you mean “pharmaceutical grade morphine” then yes, it is.

              • ak …
                30 April 2011 at 10:37 pm

                higherstandard: straddling the centre like a galoshes. Still, it’s progress…(the curse of a good memory, eh liarstan?)

  12. gobsmacked 12
    30 April 2011 at 6:55 pm

    I was going to write a long rant about all the reasons this by-election is a gift to the Right.

    But it’s Saturday night and I can’t be bothered wasting time on such stupidity. All you need to do is ask yourselves what the media/country should be focusing on instead, and who doesn’t want to focus on those things. Yep, John Key owes Hone a big bunch of flowers.

    Nuff said.

    • alexanderossipon 12.1
      30 April 2011 at 7:53 pm

      I think more of a gift to the Right, is Phil Goff ruling out working with the Mana Party.
      The Mana Party is essentially the old Alliance remember them?

      Mana Motuhake
      New Labour
      The Democrats
      The Greens

      They are probably capable of taking 5% of the vote and collecting 7/8 MP’s
      They will most certainly take the hard lefties from the Green with them.. Which is great for the environmentally focused Greens.
      Interestingly The Greens have been moving more to the centre in recent times and now have a party to the left of them [Mana]which is very interesting in terms of perception.
      It could be argued that Greens now freed up to be a more environmental party will surely mop more then a few Blue/Greens votes The Greens list for example, has more environmentalists on it then lefties, the first in a long time.

      If we had a resurgent Labour Party National may well be on the ropes in November.
      If..

      • gobsmacked 12.1.1
        30 April 2011 at 9:16 pm

        “I think more of a gift to the Right, is Phil Goff ruling out working with the Mana Party.”

        The Mana Party’s first decision was to call an expensive, pointless, distracting, self-indulgent by-election that nobody needs. This will be opposed by 99% of the voters.

        If that’s the level of stupidity that the party aspires to, Phil Goff – or any other Labour leader – should treat them with the contempt they deserve.

    • rosy 12.2
      30 April 2011 at 8:26 pm

      “Yep, John Key owes Hone a big bunch of flowers.”

      Agreed.

  13. Lanthanide 13
    30 April 2011 at 8:46 pm

    Lynn – if you click on an authors name, it’ll take you to a listing of all of their posts.

    But if their name has a space in it, eg Marty G or Mike Smith, then it just takes you to the main page. This is quite irritating, since search is broken at the moment.

  14. ak 14
    30 April 2011 at 10:52 pm

    Apropos of very little, Pagani’s blogging is not too bad a read since the recent fox pass – certainly prolific and arguably terriffic, worthy of a comment I thought but beggared if I can manage one, any techspurts able to enlighten a relic as to how to log in when it keeps telling you you haven’t logged in so cant log in so email but sorry havent got ur email so you cant email or something?

  15. ak 15
    30 April 2011 at 11:40 pm

    …same applies to TUMEKE, yet i can slip into dimpost like a suppository smeared with Key-juice….barriers, tech brothers an sisters, break em down for us ole felks

  16. M 16
    1 May 2011 at 2:28 am

    Helen gives it to you straight:

    Don’t eat food from Europe and don’t eat Turkish apricots:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TMXvpWoHzeE

  17. Peter 17
    2 May 2011 at 9:59 pm

    In Australia the Government actually has plans to create jobs … !!!!!!!

    NZ Govt aware of Aussie jobs threat

    Australian Treasurer Wayne Swan said government’s budget would help create half a million jobs over the next two years to deal with a skills shortage in sectors such as mining, and to replace retiring baby boomers.

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    Wealthy vested interests have an oversized influence on political decisions in New Zealand. Partly that’s due to their use of corporate lobbyists. Fortunately, the influence lobbyists can have on decisions made by politicians is currently under scrutiny in Guyon Espiner’s in-depth series published by RNZ. Two of Espiner’s research exposés ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    3 days ago

  • It’s Raining Congestion
    Yesterday afternoon it rained and traffic around the region ground to a halt, once again highlighting why it is so important that our city gets on with improving the alternatives to driving. For additional irony, this happened on the same day the IPCC synthesis report landed, putting the focus on ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    3 days ago

  • Checking The Left: The Dreadful Logic Of Fascism.
    The Beginning: Anti-Co-Governance agitator, Julian Batchelor, addresses the Dargaville stop of his travelling roadshow across New Zealand . Fascism almost always starts small. Sadly, it doesn’t always stay that way. Especially when the Left helps it to grow.THERE IS A DREADFUL LOGIC to the growth of fascism. To begin with, it ...
    Bowalley Road
    3 days ago

  • Good Friends and Terrible Food
    Hi,From an incredibly rainy day in Los Angeles, I just wanted to check in. I guess this is the day Trump may or may not end up in cuffs? I’m attempting a somewhat slower, less frenzied week. I’ve had Unknown Mortal Orchestra’s new record on non-stop, and it’s been a ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    3 days ago

  • At a glance – What evidence is there for the hockey stick?
    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 ...
    Skeptical Science
    4 days ago

  • Carry right on up there, Corporal Espiner
    RNZ has been shining their torch into corners where lobbyists lurk and asking such questions as: Do we like the look of this?and Is this as democratic as it could be?These are most certainly questions worth asking, and every bit as valid as, say:Are we shortchanged democratically by the way ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 days ago

  • This smells
    RNZ has continued its look at the role of lobbyists by taking a closer look at the Prime Minister's Chief of Staff Andrew Kirton. He used to work for liquor companies, opposing (among other things) a container refund scheme which would have required them to take responsibility for their own ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago

  • Major issues on the table in Mahuta’s  talks in Beijing with China’s new Foreign Minister
    Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta has left for Beijing for the first ministerial visit to China since 2019. Mahuta is  to  meet China’s new foreign minister Qin Gang  where she  might have to call on all the  diplomatic skills  at  her  command. Almost certainly she  will  face  questions  on what  role ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    4 days ago

  • Inside TOP's Teal Card and political strategy
    TL;DR: The Opportunities Party’s Leader Raf Manji is hopeful the party’s new Teal Card, a type of Gold card for under 30s, will be popular with students, and not just in his Ilam electorate where students make up more than a quarter of the voters and where Manji is confident ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago

  • Make Your Empties Go Another Round.
    When I was a kid New Zealand was actually pretty green. We didn’t really have plastic. The fruit and veges came in a cardboard box, the meat was wrapped in paper, milk came in a glass bottle, and even rubbish sacks were made of paper. Today if you sit down ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago

  • Gordon Campbell on how similar Vladimir Putin is to George W. Bush
    Looking back through the names of our Police Ministers down the years, the job has either been done by once or future party Bigfoots – Syd Holland, Richard Prebble, Juduth Collins, Chris Hipkins – or by far lesser lights like Keith Allen, Frank Gill, Ben Couch, Allen McCready, Clem Simich, ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    4 days ago

  • CHRIS TROTTER:  Te Pāti Māori’s uncompromising threat to the status quo
    Chris Trotter writes – The Crown is a fickle friend. Any political movement deemed to be colourful but inconsequential is generally permitted to go about its business unmolested. The Crown’s media, RNZ and TVNZ, may even “celebrate” its existence (presumably as proof of Democracy’s broad-minded acceptance of diversity). ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    4 days ago

  • Bryce Edwards: Shining a bright light on lobbyists in politics
    Four out of the five people who have held the top role of Prime Minister’s Chief of Staff since 2017 have been lobbyists. That’s a fact that should worry anyone who believes vested interests shouldn’t have a place at the centre of decision making. Chris Hipkins’ newly appointed Chief of ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    4 days ago

  • Auckland Council Draft Budget – an unnecessary backwards step
    Feedback on Auckland Council’s draft 2023/24 budget closes on March 28th. You can read the consultation document here, and provide feedback here. Auckland Council is currently consulting on what is one of its most important ever Annual Plans – the ‘budget’ of what it will spend money on between July ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    4 days ago

  • Talking’ Posey Parker Blues
    by Molten Moira from Motueka If you want to be a woman let me tell you what to do Get a piece of paper and a biro tooWrite down your new identification And boom! You’re now a woman of this nationSpelled W O M A Na real trans woman that isAs opposed ...
    RedlineBy Admin
    5 days ago

  • More Māori words make it into the OED, and polytech boss (with rules on words like “students”) ...
    Buzz from the Beehive   New Zealand Education Minister Jan Tinetti is hosting the inaugural Conference of Pacific Education Ministers for three days from today, welcoming Education Ministers and senior officials from 18 Pacific Island countries and territories, and from Australia. Here’s hoping they have brought translators with them – or ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago

  • Social intercourse with haters and Nazis: an etiquette guide
    Let’s say you’ve come all the way from His Majesty’s United Kingdom to share with the folk of Australia and New Zealand your antipathy towards certain other human beings. And let’s say you call yourself a women’s rights activist.And let’s say 99 out of 100 people who listen to you ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 days ago

  • The Greens, Labour, and coalition enforcement
    James Shaw gave the Green party's annual "state of the planet" address over the weekend, in which he expressed frustration with Labour for not doing enough on climate change. His solution is to elect more Green MPs, so they have more power within any government arrangement, and can hold Labour ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago

  • This sounds familiar…
    RNZ this morning has the first story another investigative series by Guyon Espiner, this time into political lobbying. The first story focuses on lobbying by government agencies, specifically transpower, Pharmac, and assorted universities, and how they use lobbyists to manipulate public opinion and gather intelligence on the Ministers who oversee ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago

  • Letter to the NZ Herald: NCEA pseudoscience – “Mauri is present in all matter”
    Nick Matzke writes –   Dear NZ Herald, I am a Senior Lecturer in the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Auckland. I teach evolutionary biology, but I also have long experience in science education and (especially) political attempts to insert pseudoscience into science curricula in ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago

  • So what would be the point of a Green vote again?
    James Shaw has again said the Greens would be better ‘in the tent’ with Labour than out, despite Labour’s policy bonfire last week torching much of what the Government was doing to reduce emissions. File Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTL;DR: The Green Party has never been more popular than in some ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago

  • Gas stoves pose health risks. Are gas furnaces and other appliances safe to use?
    This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Sarah Wesseler Poor air quality is a long-standing problem in Los Angeles, where the first major outbreak of smog during World War II was so intense that some residents thought the city had been attacked by chemical weapons. Cars were eventually discovered ...
    Skeptical Science
    5 days ago

  • Genetic Heritage and Co Governance
    Yesterday I was reading an excellent newsletter from David Slack, and I started writing a comment “Sounds like some excellent genetic heritage…” and then I stopped.There was something about the phrase genetic heritage that stopped me in tracks. Is that a phrase I want to be saying? It’s kind of ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago

  • BRIAN EASTON: Radical Uncertainty
    Brian Easton writes – Two senior economists challenge some of the foundations of current economics. It is easy to criticise economic science by misrepresenting it, by selective quotations, and by ignoring that it progresses, like all sciences, by improving and abandoning old theories. The critics may go ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago

  • Geoffrey Miller: New Zealand’s Middle East strategy, 20 years after the Iraq War
    This week marks the twentieth anniversary of the Iraq War. While it strongly opposed the US-led invasion, New Zealand’s then Labour-led government led by Prime Minister Helen Clark did deploy military engineers to try to help rebuild Iraq in mid-2003. With violence soaring, their 12-month deployment ended without being renewed ...
    Democracy ProjectBy Geoffrey Miller
    5 days ago

  • The motorways are finished
    After seventy years, Auckland’s motorway network is finally finished. In July 1953 the first section of motorway in Auckland was opened between Ellerslie-Panmure Highway and Mt Wellington Highway. The final stage opens to traffic this week with the completion of the motorway part of the Northern Corridor Improvements project. Aucklanders ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    5 days ago

  • Kicking National’s tyres
    National’s appointment of Todd McClay as Agriculture spokesperson clearly signals that the party is in trouble with the farming vote. McClay was not an obvious choice, but he does have a record as a political scrapper. The party needs that because sources say it has been shedding farming votes ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago

  • As long as there is cricket, the world is somehow okay.
    Rays of white light come flooding into my lounge, into my face from over the top of my neighbour’s hedge. I have to look away as the window of the conservatory is awash in light, as if you were driving towards the sun after a rain shower and suddenly blinded. ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    6 days ago

  • So much of what was there remains
    The columnists in Private Eye take pen names, so I have not the least idea who any of them are. But I greatly appreciate their expert insight, especially MD, who writes the medical column, offering informed and often damning critique of the UK health system and the politicians who keep ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago

  • 2023 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #11
    A chronological listing of news articles posted on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Mar 12, 2023 thru Sat, Mar 18, 2023. Story of the Week Guest post: What 13,500 citations reveal about the IPCC’s climate science report   IPCC WG1 AR6 SPM Report Cover - Changing ...
    Skeptical Science
    6 days ago

  • Financial capability services are being bucked up, but Stuart Nash shouldn’t have to see if they c...
    Buzz from the Beehive  The building of financial capability was brought into our considerations when Social Development and Employment Minister Carmel Sepuloni announced she had dipped into the government’s coffers for $3 million for “providers” to help people and families access community-based Building Financial Capability services. That wording suggests some ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    7 days ago

  • Things that make you go Hmmmm.
    Do you ever come across something that makes you go Hmmmm?You mean like the song?No, I wasn’t thinking of the song, but I am now - thanks for that. I was thinking of things you read or hear that make you stop and go Hmmmm.Yeah, I know what you mean, ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    7 days ago

  • The hoon for the week that was to March 19
    By the end of the week, the dramas over Stuart Nash overshadowed Hipkins’ policy bonfire. File photo: Lynn GrieveasonTLDR: This week’s news in geopolitics and the political economy covered on The Kākā included:PM Chris Hipkins’ announcement of the rest of a policy bonfire to save a combined $1.7 billion, but ...
    The KakaBy Peter Bale
    1 week ago

  • Saving Stuart Nash: Explaining Chris Hipkins' unexpected political calculation
    When word went out that Prime Minister Chris Hipkins would be making an announcement about Stuart Nash on the tiles at parliament at 2:45pm yesterday, the assumption was that it was over. That we had reached tipping point for Nash’s time as minister. But by 3pm - when, coincidentally, the ...
    PunditBy Tim Watkin
    1 week ago

  • Radical Uncertainty
    Two senior economists challenge some of the foundations of current economics. It is easy to criticise economic science by misrepresenting it, by selective quotations, and by ignoring that it progresses, like all sciences, by improving and abandoning old theories. The critics may go on to attack physics by citing Newton.So ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    1 week ago

  • Jump onto the weekly hoon on Riverside at 5pm
    Photo by Walker Fenton on UnsplashIt’s that time of the week again when and I co-host our ‘hoon’ webinar with paying subscribers to The Kaka for an hour at 5 pm. Jump on this link on Riverside (we’ve moved from Zoom) for our chat about the week’s news with ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago

  • The Dream of Florian Neame: Accepted
    In a nice bit of news, my 2550-word deindustrial science-fiction piece, The Dream of Florian Neame, has been accepted for publication at New Maps Magazine (https://www.new-maps.com/). I have published there before, of course, with Of Tin and Tintagel coming out last year. While I still await the ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    1 week ago

  • Snakes and leaders
    And so this is Friday, and what have we learned?It was a week with all the usual luggage: minister brags and then he quits, Hollywood red carpet is full of twits. And all the while, hanging over the trivial stuff: existential dread, and portents of doom.Depending on who you read ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 week ago

  • This station is Karanga-a-Hape, Chur!
    When I changed the name of this newsletter from The Daily Read to Nick’s Kōrero I was a bit worried whether people would know what Kōrero meant or not. I added a definition when I announced the change and kind of assumed people who weren’t familiar with it would get ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago

  • Greens don’t shy from promoting a candidate’s queerness but are quiet about govt announcement on...
    There was a time when a political party’s publicity people would counsel against promoting a candidate as queer. No matter which of two dictionary meanings the voting public might choose to apply – the old meaning of odd, strange, weird, or aberrant, or the more recent meaning of gay, homosexual ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 week ago

  • Ask Me Anything about the week to March 17
    Photo by Joakim Honkasalo on UnsplashIt’s that time of the week for an ‘Ask Me Anything’ session for paying subscribers about the week that was for the next hour, including:PM Chris Hipkins announcement of the rest of a policy bonfire to save a combined $1.7 billion, but which blew up ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago

  • Slow consenting could create $16b climate liability by 2050
    Even though concern over the climate change threat is becoming more mainstream, our governments continue to opt out of the difficult decisions at the expense of time, and cost for future generations. Photo: Lynn Grieveson/Getty ImagesTLDR: Now we have a climate liability number to measure the potential failure of the ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago

  • District Court Judges appointed
    Attorney-General David Parker has announced the appointment of Christopher John Dellabarca of Wellington, Dr Katie Jane Elkin of Wellington, Caroline Mary Hickman of Napier, Ngaroma Tahana of Rotorua, Tania Rose Williams Blyth of Hamilton and Nicola Jan Wills of Wellington as District Court Judges.  Chris Dellabarca Mr Dellabarca commenced his ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    19 hours ago

  • New project set to supercharge ocean economy in Nelson Tasman
    A new Government-backed project will help ocean-related businesses in the Nelson Tasman region to accelerate their growth and boost jobs. “The Nelson Tasman region is home to more than 400 blue economy businesses, accounting for more than 30 percent of New Zealand’s economic activity in fishing, aquaculture, and seafood processing,” ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • National’s education policy: where’s the funding?
    After three years of COVID-19 disruptions schools are finally settling down and National want to throw that all in the air with major disruption to learning and underinvestment.  “National’s education policy lacks the very thing teachers, parents and students need after a tough couple of years, certainty and stability,” Education ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Free programme to help older entrepreneurs and inventors
    People aged over 50 with innovative business ideas will now be able to receive support to advance their ideas to the next stage of development, Minister for Seniors Ginny Andersen said today. “Seniors have some great entrepreneurial ideas, and this programme will give them the support to take that next ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Government target increased to keep powering up the Māori economy
    A cross government target for relevant government procurement contracts for goods and services to be awarded to Māori businesses annually will increase to 8%, after the initial 5% target was exceeded. The progressive procurement policy was introduced in 2020 to increase supplier diversity, starting with Māori businesses, for the estimated ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Continued progress on reducing poverty in challenging times
    77,000 fewer children living in low income households on the after-housing-costs primary measure since Labour took office Eight of the nine child poverty measures have seen a statistically significant reduction since 2018. All nine have reduced 28,700 fewer children experiencing material hardship since 2018 Measures taken by the Government during ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Speech at Fiji Investment and Trade Business Forum
    Deputy Prime Minister Kamikamica; distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen. Tēnā koutou katoa, ni sa bula vinaka saka, namaste. Deputy Prime Minister, a very warm welcome to Aotearoa. I trust you have been enjoying your time here and thank you for joining us here today. To all delegates who have travelled to be ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Government investments boost and diversify local economies in lower South Island
    $2.9 million convertible loan for Scapegrace Distillery to meet growing national and international demand $4.5m underwrite to support Silverlight Studios’ project to establish a film studio in Wanaka Gore’s James Cumming Community Centre and Library to be official opened tomorrow with support of $3m from the COVID-19 Response and Recovery ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Government future-proofs EV charging
    Transport Minister Michael Wood has today launched the first national EV (electric vehicle) charging strategy, Charging Our Future, which includes plans to provide EV charging stations in almost every town in New Zealand. “Our vision is for Aotearoa New Zealand to have world-class EV charging infrastructure that is accessible, affordable, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • World-leading family harm prevention campaign supports young NZers
    Associate Minister for Social Development and Employment Priyanca Radhakrishnan has today launched the Love Better campaign in a world-leading approach to family harm prevention. Love Better will initially support young people through their experience of break-ups, developing positive and life-long attitudes to dealing with hurt. “Over 1,200 young kiwis told ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • First Chief Clinical Advisor welcomed into Coroners Court
    Hon Rino Tirikatene, Minister for Courts, welcomes the Ministry of Justice’s appointment of Dr Garry Clearwater as New Zealand’s first Chief Clinical Advisor working with the Coroners Court. “This appointment is significant for the Coroners Court and New Zealand’s wider coronial system.” Minister Tirikatene said. Through Budget 2022, the Government ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Next steps for affected properties post Cyclone and floods
    The Government via the Cyclone Taskforce is working with local government and insurance companies to build a picture of high-risk areas following Cyclone Gabrielle and January floods. “The Taskforce, led by Sir Brian Roche, has been working with insurance companies to undertake an assessment of high-risk areas so we can ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • New appointment to Māori Land Court bench
    E te huia kaimanawa, ko Ngāpuhi e whakahari ana i tau aupikinga ki te tihi o te maunga. Ko te Ao Māori hoki e whakanui ana i a koe te whakaihu waka o te reo Māori i roto i te Ao Ture. (To the prized treasure, it is Ngāpuhi who ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Government focus on jobs sees record number of New Zealanders move from Benefits into work
    113,400 exits into work in the year to June 2022 Young people are moving off Benefit faster than after the Global Financial Crisis Two reports released today by the Ministry of Social Development show the Government’s investment in the COVID-19 response helped drive record numbers of people off Benefits and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Vertical farming partnership has upward momentum
    The Government’s priority to keep New Zealand at the cutting edge of food production and lift our sustainability credentials continues by backing the next steps of a hi-tech vertical farming venture that uses up to 95 per cent less water, is climate resilient, and pesticide-free. Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor visited ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Conference of Pacific Education Ministers – Keynote Address
    E nga mana, e nga iwi, e nga reo, e nga hau e wha, tena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou kātoa. Warm Pacific greetings to all. It is an honour to host the inaugural Conference of Pacific Education Ministers here in Tāmaki Makaurau. Aotearoa is delighted to be hosting you ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • New $13m renal unit supports Taranaki patients
    The new renal unit at Taranaki Base Hospital has been officially opened by the Minister of Health Dr Ayesha Verrall this afternoon. Te Huhi Raupō received around $13 million in government funding as part of Project Maunga Stage 2, the redevelopment of the Taranaki Base Hospital campus. “It’s an honour ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Second Poseidon aircraft on home soil
    Defence Minister Andrew Little has marked the arrival of the country’s second P-8A Poseidon aircraft alongside personnel at the Royal New Zealand Air Force’s Base at Ohakea today. “With two of the four P-8A Poseidons now on home soil this marks another significant milestone in the Government’s historic investment in ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Further humanitarian aid for Türkiye and Syria
    Aotearoa New Zealand will provide further humanitarian support to those seriously affected by last month’s deadly earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria, says Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta. “The 6 February earthquakes have had devastating consequences, with almost 18 million people affected. More than 53,000 people have died and tens of thousands more ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Community voice to help shape immigration policy
    Migrant communities across New Zealand are represented in the new Migrant Community Reference Group that will help shape immigration policy going forward, Immigration Minister Michael Wood announced today.  “Since becoming Minister, a reoccurring message I have heard from migrants is the feeling their voice has often been missing around policy ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • State Highway 3 project to deliver safer journeys, better travel connections for Taranaki
    Construction has begun on major works that will deliver significant safety improvements on State Highway 3 from Waitara to Bell Block, Associate Minister of Transport Kiri Allan announced today. “This is an important route for communities, freight and visitors to Taranaki but too many people have lost their lives or ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Ginny Andersen appointed as Minister of Police
    Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has today appointed Ginny Andersen as Minister of Police. “Ginny Andersen has a strong and relevant background in this important portfolio,” Chris Hipkins said. “Ginny Andersen worked for the Police as a non-sworn staff member for around 10 years and has more recently been chair of ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Government confirms vital roading reconnections
    Six further bailey bridge sites confirmed Four additional bridge sites under consideration 91 per cent of damaged state highways reopened Recovery Dashboards for impacted regions released The Government has responded quickly to restore lifeline routes after Cyclone Gabrielle and can today confirm that an additional six bailey bridges will ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Foreign Minister Mahuta to meet with China’s new Foreign Minister
    Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta departs for China tomorrow, where she will meet with her counterpart, State Councillor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang, in Beijing. This will be the first visit by a New Zealand Minister to China since 2019, and follows the easing of COVID-19 travel restrictions between New Zealand and China. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Education Ministers from across the Pacific gather in Aotearoa
    Education Ministers from across the Pacific will gather in Tāmaki Makaurau this week to share their collective knowledge and strategic vision, for the benefit of ākonga across the region. New Zealand Education Minister Jan Tinetti will host the inaugural Conference of Pacific Education Ministers (CPEM) for three days from today, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • State Highway 5 reopens between Napier and Taupō following Cyclone Gabrielle
    A vital transport link for communities and local businesses has been restored following Cyclone Gabrielle with the reopening of State Highway 5 (SH5) between Napier and Taupō, Associate Minister of Transport Kiri Allan says. SH5 reopened to all traffic between 7am and 7pm from today, with closure points at SH2 (Kaimata ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Special Lotto draw raises $11.7 million for Cyclone Gabrielle recovery
    Internal Affairs Minister Barbara Edmonds has thanked generous New Zealanders who took part in the special Lotto draw for communities affected by Cyclone Gabrielle. Held on Saturday night, the draw raised $11.7 million with half of all ticket sales going towards recovery efforts. “In a time of need, New Zealanders ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago

  • Government delivers a $3 million funding boost for Building Financial Capability services
    The Government has announced funding of $3 million for providers to help people, and whānau access community-based Building Financial Capability services. “Demand for Financial Capability Services is growing as people face cost of living pressures. Those pressures are increasing further in areas affected by flooding and Cyclone Gabrielle,” Minister for ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Education New Zealand | Manapou ki te Ao – new Chair and member
    Minister of Education, Hon Jan Tinetti, has announced appointments to the Board of Education New Zealand | Manapou ki te Ao. Tracey Bridges is joining the Board as the new Chair and Dr Therese Arseneau will be a new member. Current members Dr Linda Sissons CNZM and Daniel Wilson have ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Scholarships honouring Ngarimu VC and the 28th (Māori) Battalion announced
    Fifteen ākonga Māori from across Aotearoa have been awarded the prestigious Ngarimu VC and 28th (Māori) Battalion Memorial Scholarships and Awards for 2023, Associate Education Minister and Ngarimu Board Chair, Kelvin Davis announced today.  The recipients include doctoral, masters’ and undergraduate students. Three vocational training students and five wharekura students, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Appointment of Judge of the Court of Appeal and Judge of the High Court
    High Court Judge Jillian Maree Mallon has been appointed a Judge of the Court of Appeal, and District Court Judge Andrew John Becroft QSO has been appointed a Judge of the High Court, Attorney‑General David Parker announced today. Justice Mallon graduated from Otago University in 1988 with an LLB (Hons), and with ...
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    1 week ago

  • NZ still well placed to meet global challenges
    The economy has continued to show its resilience despite today’s GDP figures showing a modest decline in the December quarter, leaving the Government well positioned to help New Zealanders face cost of living pressures in a challenging global environment. “The economy had grown strongly in the two quarters before this ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Western Ring Route Complete
    Aucklanders now have more ways to get around as Transport Minister Michael Wood opened the direct State Highway 1 (SH1) to State Highway 18 (SH18) underpass today, marking the completion of the 48-kilometre Western Ring Route (WRR). “The Government is upgrading New Zealand’s transport system to make it safer, more ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Briefings to Incoming Ministers
    This section contains briefings received by incoming ministers following changes to Cabinet in January. Some information may have been withheld in accordance with the Official Information Act 1982. Where information has been withheld that is indicated within the document. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Teaming up for a stronger, more resilient Fiji
    Aotearoa New Zealand Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta reaffirmed her commitment to working together with the new Government of Fiji on issues of shared importance, including on the prioritisation of climate change and sustainability, at a meeting today, in Nadi. Fiji and Aotearoa New Zealand’s close relationship is underpinned by the Duavata ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
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  • Investment in blue highway a lifeline for regional economies and cyclone recovery
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