My best wishes to all in the North. Been through fires and floods so have some idea of our need for communal, kindly and timely responses. My vege gardens help stave off famines…….. possibly a reason why my ancestors came to NZ, that land of school milk and honey, meat and three vegs.
Anyone who has any opinion on gender identity and trans politics, needs to read this thread. This is not an outlier, there are many people, men and women, in Ritchie's situation. Some people have medical/surgical transition, it works (to the extent it can) and they're happy. Others end up with lifelong impairment, pain, depression.
The left in its No Debate position has marginalised and tried to render invisible the latter group. Detrans people struggle to get the medical care they are now dependent on, pro-transition doctors and medical systems either ignore them or don't know what to do. It's a massive medical scandal happening on the left's watch.
Ritchie is a man who transitioned medically and surgically, then later regretted this and is trying to find a way to live with his intensely altered body and biochemistry. Please read the whole thread,
When Police released their consultation document on the proposed increased gun licence and other related fees, gun owners were quick to realise they provided no explanation as to how the new fees were derived.
An Official Information Act (OIA) requesting that this information be provided, so that they could assess whether the new fees were fair and reasonable
With only just three weeks remaining of the consultation period they have received a reply from Police refusing the request.
The reason given for the refusal is that the Police will be making this information publicly available in the future.
"In the next few weeks, as part of the consultation on options for changes in firearmslicence fees, Police will be proactively releasing information on the costing methodology used, and the breakdown of how various options for the licence fees have been calculated. This will cover the information that you have sought in your request."
Too late no doubt to influence submissions on these exorbitant fee increases, which close on 16 February.
How can this consultation be described as meaningful, when vital data is held back to the last minute.
Also
New PM Hipkins is making noise about both inflation and cost of living.
The more seen of the 'inflation'/'cost of living' approach to the new fees resonates as a viable parallel consideration.
The questions to be asked are
1) are these massive fee increases wildly inflationary?
2) How do they affect the cost of living of the people that Police propose to inflicted these increased fees upon upon
3) Is this Government Policy or are Police out of control?
Bluntly: Does the Finance Minister and the Prime Minister support these punitive fee increases?
seems cheap. my sport of choice asks $350 a yr for license, and it isnt dangerous for users or non-users.nobody has ever stolen my sports equipment for criminal purposes, and my sporting equipment doesnt effect my insurance premiums, or need to be locked away.. what are they whinging about?never thought that gun lovers would sound like entitled snow flakes, hah!
Surely if the cost of a licence has not been increased for 20 years some increase is necessary.
Many of us have hobbies. The membership costs look very different when multiplied by five. One of my hobbies costs $75.00pa. When you multiply it by 5 you get $375.00. I belong to a food 'circle' costing $12.00 pw $624pa.
And we don't work with a potential deadly weapon where there are reguistration costs that involve scrutinising bona fides.
While it is an argument that to increase the costs of a licence may drive shooters underground perhaps this has been overstated? In my studies of criminology I don't think that fees increases is a precursor to becoming a criminal. I think the die is cast by other things.
Wouldn't gun licensing authorities investigate to see why a licence has not been renewed?
Perhaps one way of doing it could be to allow time period of 2 years, 3 year 5 years and 10 years.
The 2 & 3 year licences could be a proportion of the 5 year licence but not a straight mathematical division as costs lessen per annum with a longer term.
$500 for five years sounds reasonable to be honest but its too steep, and for many it will be, perhaps allow annual licences ie $100 a year.
Although I'm still angry with Helen Clarks government for increasing the price of passports and decreasing the length they were eligible. That's was gross revenue gathering at it's worst.
Police have now released some documents which show that $727.50 is 75% recovery so the proposed 100% recovery fee is $970.00 as the present fee is $126.50 the proposed 100% recovery increase is 767%
If the present fee is so much different then why have no incremental increases been made in line with inflation as the Canadian fees are? [their fees are limited to that level of increase by legislation] – do we need something similar here?
As a farming person, a firearm is a necessary tool for rabbits and disposing of animals. There is no other pest control, if we don't keep rabbits down, we suffer the consequences. A larger firearms licensing fee would be a (sigh) further farming cost. Could the fee not be scaled somehow so those who have more workaday firearms needs pay less than those with bristling armouries who stalk out after large game animals…?
Tax-deductible expense on the farm, surely? I'd be keen on both gun-owners' registration cost, plus a lower fee per firearm, to discourage weapons stockpiling.
"weapons stockpiling" For goodness sake Police, Army and Criminals have "weapons" Licence holders have sporting equipment.
To fully engage in the large number of shooting sports, with spare firearms to cover breakdowns, from 20 to 40 firearms may be required as each particular practice of the sport requires differing types of firearms. Then there is historical collecting with collections of firearms sometimes numbering in the hundreds. You want to make it prohibitively expensive for sports persons to participate in their chosen sporting pursuits to "discourage weapons stockpiling."?
“Surely if the cost of a licence has not been increased for 20 years some increase is necessary.”
The corollary of that is if it has not been increased for 20 years that is because it has not been necessary.
In 2015 Police set about destroying the Mountain Safety Council volunteer system which had about 500 persons assisting the relicencing/firearms training/vetting procedures at very little cost to Police.
Now there is a huge new empire being built within Police employing 400 plus highly paid persons with a large headquarters building and masses of bureaucrats.
“Wouldn't gun licensing authorities investigate to see why a licence has not been renewed?
Another Police failure when the “lifetime licence” was replaced with a ten year licence in the 1990’s when somewhere near 30,000 licences were not renewed and still to this day not completely followed up. One problem being that a licence person must notify changes of address but as soon a becoming unlicenced this requirement disappears and follow up in our mobile society becomes extremely problematic. At present Police are swamped with Licence reissue with long delays tying up resources so that there is simply not the ability – or will – to follow up those who simply drift away from the Licencing system.
Police cannot cope with 10 year relicencing let alone shorter terms. The first issue of a licence is now for 5 years but that simply adds to the backlog when relicencing arrives.
The Licence fee is just the beginning of the proposed charges Endorsements (pistol club/collector/pest control etc) up to $1,500ish. Range inspections, permission for gun shows, etc. etc. Even more fees of eye watering proportions. Dealer licences (one year term) up to $2,500ish. ALL eventually falling back upon the Licence holder.
The cost of ALL this should be on the Community requesting the regime and that isn’t the Firearms Community. It appears to largely be a box ticking exercise by Police in reaction to their apparent failures prior to the Mosque Shooting.
"The cost of ALL this should be on the Community requesting the regime and that isn’t the Firearms Community."
Why?
It doesn't work that way for car or dog licencing. Why should firearms owners have the cost of fixing the mess, which is mostly the result of their lobbying over decades, inflicted on everyone else.
There is an argument for reduced fees for pest controllers etc that are a community benefit.
Driver’s Licence – required to permit use of vehicle on Public Roads and places accessible to the Public. No Driver’s Licence is required for ownership of vehicles nor for use on Private property. There is no requirement fo ar fit & proper test (other than for public conveyance) Administered by NZTA The fee for a Full Licence (class 2 to 5) is $49.60 with a test fee of $59.90 Total $109.50
A Firearms Licence enables lawful possession of firearms; requires a fit & proper test and firearms are largely used privately and only transported in public. The purpose of the licence is to show fit & proper status for the safety of the Public. It is a public good. The price of a 10-year gun licence could increase from the present $126.50 to $727.50 application fee
The “mess” you speak of has not been made by Firearms Owners lobbying it is almost entirely down to convoluted much amended law and Police administration which creates excessive bureaucratic processes that do not increase public safety in my considered opinion.
Of course it was. the dogs breakfast of ineffective gun laws we had until recently, was entirely the result of firearms owners lobbying for ineffectual gun laws.
The argument for public good applies even more to dog licencing as it is almost entirely paid by 'responsible dog owners' to meet the public cost of strays and irresponsible dog owners. However guns in the hands of 'irresponsible owners' are obtained from, so called 'responsible owners' since individual gun registration was discontinued. Without the gun lobby we would not have our current problem with so many unregistered guns out there, which will take many years to fix.
The present firearms law is even MORE of a dogs breakfast as it is another amendment tacked on top of previous amendments right back to 1983 Arms Act – which BTW cancelled the ineffective 'registration' system which had been in use since 1926. Shotgun registration was abandoned very soon after 1926 as unworkable and impossible – so for the last 90 years shotguns have not been registered and for 40 years rifles have not been recorded either.
The Gun Lobby did not exist then as it sprung in to being with the 1991 Amendments so they had nothing to do with the abandonment of registration.
Registration is no panacea for in Australia only about 20% of firearms have been registered since 1996 – the rest just 'disappeared' on to the Grey market. The lesson has been well and truly taught in New Zealand with the MSSA buy back which was only possible because those firearms were recorded. Indeed one 'gun lobby' now has "Registration leads to confiscation" as its catch cry.
It is an unfortunate fact that Police have lost the trust of many in the firearms community. Even more so with the present proposed escalation of Fees!
Nope – not twenty. Hell! I wuz there … just a disparate group of concerned firearms licence holders till 1990
As to Australia coincidence is not causation. The alternate view is that no one has emerged who wants to kill five or more people with a firearm. The British in testing the single shot Martini found that lining up victims allowed 7 to 11 deaths with ONE shot – depending upon how robust the bodies were (their words).
This tends to indicate that rapid fire is not a prerequisite – how ever horrible that example is – they did do it when testing their new military rifle way back then.
In 1996 Australia implemented arguably the most ambitious gun control effort ever attempted, banning all semiauto rifles and shotguns and all pump-action rifles and shotguns, and buying the banned guns already in circulation. Chapman, Alpers, and Jones (2016) produced what is arguably the most extensive evaluation, concluding that the measure was a success. In fact, their own data indicated that the effort failed to reduce homicides, suicides, or unintentional firearms deaths. It is even questionable whether the effort reduced mass shootings, the problem that had triggered the gun control effort in the first place.
I am a research nut and look as clearly as possible at both sides.
There are plenty of refutations in BOTH directions finding exactly that which the researchers set out to find – the result before the research in many instances with sound bites from that research used in argument. The World is full of nuts of both pro and anti anything.
The manipulation of statistics is an art form and remember: “There are three kinds of lies: Lies, Damned Lies, and Statistics” — has been attributed to Mark Twain, who himself attributed it to British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli, who might never have said it in the first place.
Keep some balance and please do not resort to name calling!
Most licences are for private non-commercial sporting use and voluntary pest control. Over half of pest control is done by itinerant unpaid volunteers. THAT is a public good in and of itself. No costs tax deductible.
The thing is used to be complimentary, it needn't cost. The Mountain Safety Council used to administer it. Plus they ran the firearms courses.
But (scuse me while I struggle up on my hobby horse), what else can you expect from a neo-liberal police force? They can sub-contract the work while clipping the ticket.
There is also an issue of trust. We have to trust who they trust, recently that hasn't been so flash…
Don't think it's much to do with 'neo-liberal' cops. Twenty-five years ago we were a high-trust society with strong community policing.Those community police had time to check out individuals applying for licenses. Each one probably took a half day's work at least, unless the person was well known to the constable. All part of the community policing service, helping to keep an eye out.
Police funding cut-backs, by guess-which governments, drained police out of rural areas and community policing. Meantime, we've had half a million migrants, at least, pour into NZ, many from low-trust societies. Or, very occasionally, with a hidden agenda, as in our own mosque shooter.
Consider the fee as the cost, in real terms, of the previous community police vetting process, when it was fully-funded and working properly. Nothing 'neo-lib', more like bracing 'user-pays'.
The supposed purpose of this bureaucratic nonsense is to promote Public safety for all, as that is the case then the government should pay the lions share from the public purse. The licence holders are NOT the user of this system it has been imposed upon them to promote Public Safety. Indeed bona fide licence holders do not threaten public safety – the criminal missusers of firearms do that!
Numerous associates also have been issued licences AFTER being "rigorously" vetted by Police!
Very few people shoot others in New Zealand – an even smaller number of those can in any way be called fit and proper licence holders. Most of the shootings are gang/drug related. It often takes a great deal of research to find out what licence status the offender was – then mostly NOT licenced.
Will search for links to data to post here much came from a yet unpublished Doctoral Thesis
“An unprecedented Stuff investigation has identified every homicide in New Zealand in the past 15 years, revealing the vast majority of those who kill with guns are unlicensed and their weapon of choice is often a .22 calibre rifle or shotgun.”
“Of the 84 cases where we identified the killer’s licensing status, only 12 were legally permitted to own a gun.” [there were 105 cases over 15 years – so the status of 21 are unknown]
So LESS than one a year attributable to licence firearms owners.
Funny, before the 4th Labour government and their 'reforms' I hadn't heard the term user pays. It's neo-liberal as. As is sub-contracting the work needed to be done.
"The state of emergency in Auckland should have been called earlier", and our Govt shouldn't have taken "a one-size-fits-all approach" – what were they thinking?!!!
National has never renounced Dirty Politics and, until it does, it will not be able to draw a line under the past and move to a more constructive future.
…
Current leader Todd Muller said when he assumed the helm of the party that he was not "interested in opposition for opposition's sake. We're all tired of that kind of politics." Those were laudable words, but in the six weeks since then, Muller has rapidly reverted to Bridges' barking-at-every-passing-car criticism of the government.
…
He [Muller] has also relentlessly criticised the government's pandemic response as "shambolic."
Government’s Covid confusion the new virus variant – Collins
[15 November 2021]
“This is shambolic, incompetent governance by a Government that has never had a backup plan for if, and when, elimination failed."
Luxon says government becoming a ‘version of The Office’
[3 August 2022]
The quip was dropped by the opposition leader across his morning media run today (at least on both RNZ and Newshub), with Luxon also calling the cost of living payment rollout a “joke” and an “utter shambles”.
'A mistake has been made': PM on Three Waters backdown
[5 December 2022]
Luxon, speaking to media from Parliament’s forecourt, described the situation as an “utter shambles” that suggested incompetence on Labour’s behalf.
On and on – like a drain
Perhaps, in the not too distant future, more Kiwis will realise just how lucky they are.
Drowsy, I just got a secret message from someone from the Nats to say that a secret power has offered a prize for the most number times the word 'shambolic/shambles' can be used during the term of a leader of the Opposition.
So far they are hoping that Luxon will lead the pack.
I couldn't catch the name of the person though the word 'speechwriter' was mentioned & the prize seemed to be a word like 'Te Puke' or 'Hawaii' ( you know how those two words sound the same. )
love it. the shambles party is sounding more and more like an echo chamber. like a tv ad that has long outlived its appeal, the cry of "shambles" is only heard by the already converted. "enough is enough" hah!
It's indicative of a form of religious thought language – a godly order out of chaos, and condemnation of any other regime as shameful (shame and guilt etc).
Yes its the main route between the East and West coasts of the peninsula. SH25A is closed for the foreseeable future and travel from one side to the other will mean taking the long way round via SH2 through the Karangahake Gorge.
Depending on where you are heading – if you were travelling from Thames to Whangamata it would be about 20 mins longer – but if going further north it would add at least and hour to the journey
a songbird with glossy black plumage and typically a long forked tail and a crest
1. 2.
RAAF term for a raw recruit. It first appeared in the early 1940s
An Australian racehorse named Drongo, (foaled 1920, retired 1925) never won a race, and by transference anyone slow became a drongo.
The Drongos
Their music includes Leave me Alone and Eye of the Hurricane. They were notably successful on the street corners of New York and developed a club following, including someone from Red Mole.
The new connection between Local Government and Emergency Management (and Rural Communities) – to solidify the connection between water management and community well-being/safety.
Chris Hipkins: Prime Minister, Minister for National Security and Intelligence Minister Responsible for Ministerial Services
Carmel Sepuloni: Deputy Prime Minister Minister for Social Development and Employment Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Associate Minister of Foreign Affairs (Pacific Region)
Kelvin Davis: Minister for Māori Crown Relations: Te Arawhiti Minister for Children Minister of Corrections Associate Minister of Education (Māori Education)
Grant Robertson: Minister of Finance Minister for Sport and Recreation Leader of the House
Jan Tinetti: Minister of Education Minister for Women Minister for Child Poverty Reduction
Michael Wood: Minister of Immigration Minister of Transport Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety Minister for Auckland Associate Minister of Finance
Ayesha Verrall: Minister of Health Minister of Research, Science and Innovation
Willie Jackson: Minister for Broadcasting and Media Minister for Māori Development Associate Minister for ACC Associate Minister for Social Development and Employment (Māori Employment)
Kiri Allan: Minister of Justice Minister for Regional Development Associate Minister of Transport
Megan Woods: Minister of Housing Minister for Infrastructure Minister of Energy and Resources Minister for Building and Construction Associate Minister of Finance
Stuart Nash: Minister for Economic Development Minister of Forestry Minister of Police Minister for Oceans and Fisheries
Damien O’Connor: Minister of Agriculture Minister for Biosecurity Minister for Land Information Minister for Trade and Export Growth
Peeni Henare: Minister for ACC Minister of Tourism Associate Minister for the Environment Associate Minister of Health (Māori Health)
Andrew Little: Minister of Defence Minister Responsible for the GCSB Minister Responsible for the NZSIS Minister for the Public Service Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations Lead Coordination Minister for the Government’s Response to the Royal Commission’s Report into the Terrorist Attack on the Christchurch Mosques
David Parker: Attorney-General Minister for the Environment Minister of Revenue Associate Minister of FinanceMinister for Whānau Ora
Priyanca Radhakrishnan: Minister for the Community and Voluntary Sector Minister for Disability Issues Minister for Diversity, Inclusion and Ethnic Communities Associate Minister for Social Development and Employment Associate Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety
Kieran McAnulty: Minister for Emergency Management Minister of Local Government Minister for Racing Minister for Rural Communities Deputy Leader of the House
Barbara Edmonds: Minister of Internal Affairs Minister for Pacific Peoples Associate Minister of Health (Pacific Peoples) Associate Minister of Housing
Tough break Mahuta. Parker as AG and Environment inherits the 3 Waters legislation.
Also tough break Little for shouldering the Health reforms this far. Verrall takes it to the Promised Land where she will avenge every Wellington health bureaucrat that wronged her.
No succession plan for Robertson, when we know he's leaving.
Wood for Auckland is a natural. Ex Auckland Councillor and wife on local board means they can easily corral that fuck-knuckle mayor.
Congrats to Deborah Russel for getting her own little bunch of portfolios finally. Jesus Parker give Revenue up already!
Nash with Police but no alignment to Justice is silly.
I reckon Robertson will quit after the election. Keep the ship looking stable for one more run. But agree his time is done. A good communicator but hopeless at economics, just another neoliberal corporate lackey. Not the reformer we desperately needed 5 years ago.
Little and Mahuta were way too left-reformist for Hipkins. They have done their dash a- likely wait another term out until some of the younger ministers complete their apprenticeships and then just leave.
Twyford has been Walking Undead since 2019 after getting fucked over by NZSuperfund. and never recovered.
NZSuperfund are now playing both sides of the House using bankers to front their Taranakai offshore wind farm proposals, and proposing that this is a replacement for NZBattery. No one has control of them, no one. They are waiting for Labour to get chucked so they can truly kill NZBattery and show National how private equity ought to run the country.
NZ Battery is not just the Onslow proposal, it is also the look at larger scale alternatives to it (geothermal and hydrogen). There are already a few BESS (Tesla power pack) small scale battery reserve systems.
How would an offshore wind farm replace the development of the capacity to manage a dry hydro year?
Parker as AG and Environment inherits the 3 Waters legislation.
Not the government? Mahuta was lead Minister during its path through parliament. Whatever government now decides, Hipkins will lead the public messaging, with McAnulty (and or Parker?) taking it from there.
My bet is Hipkins and Parker will stall implementation of parts of the Act until after the election, if at all.
Hipkins have a golden opportunity to wait until Auckland Council begs them for storm rebuild funding, and Hipkins says to Mayor Brown: sure thing sign here you will accept this 3 Waters arrangement.
There's also a chance he could strangle the programme at birth by defunding it at Budget.
They could even go to the election proposing to re-do the legislation with one single central state owned entity, with Maori representation on that.
Few expect it to survive other than in diminished form.
A single entity providing expertise (and capital investment) to provincial councils is a possibility – this to give effect to clean water, effective waste and stormwater in the iwi heartlands outside the major settler cities such as Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin.
It would be very helpful to see an old fashioned debate with the Labour Front Bench on one side, and the National Front Bench on the other. Kim Hill as moderator.
The motion being; “That this house believes neoliberalism is dead”
"an independent advisor"…
"acting as a sounding board"…
"providing a fresh perspective"…
"An accomplished businessman and politician"…
"Steven’s experience allows him to provide fresh and objective advice" https://www.rcp.co.nz/people/steven-joyce/
Why isn't this guy in Parliament? The Nats could sure use his 'fresh' advice
On RNZ live feeds there's a permanent link button in the top right corner of each item. Looks kind of like this (-). If you click on that, you can then copy the URL from the main address bar in your browser.
then please cut and paste the time stamp with the quote (and then feed link). eg
Jan 31, 2023 8:49 PM
RNZ Live
Officials work to ensure healthcare access in Coromandel
Coromandel health officials are putting resources in place so patients do not miss out on vital care during the bad weather.
Hauraki Primary Health Organisation chief executive, Taima Campbell, told RNZ she had asked for extra support from Waikato Hospital registrars or specialists, in case local staff need advice.
She said they had also been checking on pregnant women, the elderly, and people isolating with Covid-19 in the Coromandel.
St John has already bolstered the number of ambulance crews in Whitianga and Whangamata, with many roads closed in the region.
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“I’ve been internalising a really complicated situation in my head.”When they kept telling us we should wait until we get to know him, were they taking the piss? Was it a case of, if you think this is bad, wait till you get to know the real Christopher, after the ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
Happy fourth anniversary, Pandemic That Upended Bloody Everything. I have been observing it by enjoying my second bout of COVID. It’s 5.30 on Sunday morning and only now are lights turning back on for me.Allow me to copy and paste what I told reader Sara yesterday:Depleted, fogged and crappy. Resting, ...
.“$10 and a target that bleeds” - Bleeding Targets for Under $10!.Thanks for reading Frankly Speaking ! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.This government appears hell-bent on either scrapping life-saving legislation or reintroducing things that - frustrated critics insist - will be dangerous and likely ...
“It hardly strikes me as fair to criticise a government for doing exactly what it said it was going to do. For actually keeping its promises.”THUNDER WAS PLAYING TAG with lightning flashes amongst the distant peaks. Its rolling cadences interrupted by the here-I-come-here-I-go Doppler effect of the occasional passing car. ...
Subversive & Disruptive Technologies: Just as happened with that other great regulator of the masses, the Medieval Church, the advent of a new and hard-to-control technology – the Internet – is weakening the ties that bind. Then, and now, those who enjoy a monopoly on the dissemination of lies, cannot and will ...
Been Here Before: To find the precedents for what this Coalition Government is proposing, it is necessary to return to the “glory days” of Muldoonism.THE COALITION GOVERNMENT has celebrated its first 100 days in office by checking-off the last of its listed commitments. It remains, however, an angry government. It ...
Bob Edlin writes – And what is the world watching today…? The email newsletter from Associated Press which landed in our mailbox early this morning advised: In the news today: The father of a school shooter has been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter; prosecutors in Trump’s hush-money case ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Is another Green MP on their way out? And are the Greens severely tarnished by another integrity scandal? For the second time in three months, the Green Party has secretly suspended an MP over integrity issues. Mystery is surrounding the party’s decision to ...
For the last few years, the Green Party has been the party that has managed to avoid the plague of multiple scandals that have beleaguered other political parties. It appears that their luck has run out with a second scandal which, unfortunately for them, coincided with Golraz Ghahraman, the focus ...
TL;DR: The six newsey things that stood out to me as of 6:46am on Saturday, March 16.Andy Foster has accidentally allowed a Labour/Green amendment to cut road user chargers for plug-in hybrid vehicles, which the Government might accept; NZ HeraldThomas CoughlanSimeon Brown has rejected a plea from Westport ...
What seemed a booming success a couple of years ago has collapsed into fraud convictions.I looked at the crash of FTX (short for ‘Futures Exchange’) in November 2022 to see whether it would impact on the financial system as a whole. Fortunately there was barely a ripple, probably because it ...
Anybody following the situation in Ukraine and Russia would probably have been amused by a recent Tweet on X NATO seems to be putting in an awful lot of effort to influence what is, at least according to them, a sham election in an autocracy.When do the Ukrainians go to ...
TL;DR:Shaun Baker on Wynyard Quarter's transformation. Magdalene Taylor on the problem with smart phones. How private equity are now all over reinsurance. Dylan Cleaver on rugby and CTE. Emily Atkin on ‘Big Meat’ looking like ‘Big Oil’.Bernard’s six-stack of substacks at 6pm on March 15Photo by Jeppe Hove Jensen ...
Buzz from the Beehive Finance Minister Nicola Willis had plenty to say when addressing the Auckland Business Chamber on the economic growth that (she tells us) is flagging more than we thought. But the government intends to put new life into it: We want our country to be a ...
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee has reported back on the Road User Charges (Light Electric RUC Vehicles) Amendment Bill, basicly rubberstamping it. While there was widespread support among submitters for the principle that EV and PHEV drivers should pay their fair share for the roads, they also overwhelmingly disagreed with ...
Peter Dunne writes – This week’s government bailout – the fifth in the last eighteen months – of the financially troubled Ruapehu Alpine Lifts company would have pleased many in the central North Island ski industry. The government’s stated rationale for the $7 million funding was that it ...
See if you can spot the difference. An Iranian born female MP from a progressive party is accused of serial shoplifting. Her name is leaked to the media, which goes into a pack frenzy even before the Police launch an … Continue reading → ...
Ele Ludemann writes – The government is omitting general Treaty references from legislation : The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last Government in a bid to get greater coherence in the public service on Treaty ...
What was that judge thinking?Peter Williams writes – That Golriz Ghahraman and District Court Judge Maria Pecotic were once lawyer colleagues is incontrovertible. There is published evidence that they took at least one case to the Court of Appeal together. There was a report on ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Climate Scorpion – the sting is in the tail. Introducing planetary solvency. A paper via the University of Exeter’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.Local scoop:Kāinga Ora starts pulling out of its Auckland projects and selling land RNZ ...
Wellington’s massively upzoned District Plan adds the opportunity for tens of thousands of new homes not just in the central city (such as these Webb St new builds) but also close to the CBD and public transport links. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: Wellington gave itself the chance of ...
It’s Friday and we’re halfway through March Madness. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week in Greater Auckland On Monday Matt asked how we can get better event trains and an option for grade separating Morningside Dr. On Tuesday Matt looked into ...
Something you might not know about me is that I’m quite a stubborn person. No, really. I don’t much care for criticism I think’s unfair or that I disagree with. Few of us do I suppose.Back when I was a drinker I’d sometimes respond defensively, even angrily. There are things ...
Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:PM Christopher Luxon said the reversal of interest deductibility for landlords was done to help renters, who ...
It was not so much the Labour Party but really the Chris Hipkins party yesterday at Labour’s caucus retreat in Martinborough. The former Prime Minister was more or less consistent on wealth tax, which he was at best equivocal about, and social insurance, which he was not willing to revisit. ...
Buzz from the BeehiveThe text reproduced above appears on a page which records all the media statements and speeches posted on the government’s official website by Melissa Lee as Minister of Media and Communications and/or by Jenny Marcroft, her Parliamentary Under-secretary. It can be quickly analysed ...
For forty years, Robert Muldoon has been a dirty word in our politics. His style of government was so repulsive and authoritarian that the backlash to it helped set and entrench our constitutional norms. His pig-headedness over forcing through Think Big eventually gave us the RMA, with its participation and ...
Bryce Edwards writes – Is the new government reducing tax on rental properties to benefit landlords or to cut the cost of rents? That’s the big question this week, after Associate Finance Minister David Seymour announced on Sunday that the Government would be reversing the Labour Government’s removal ...
Saudi Arabia is rarely far from the international spotlight. The war in Gaza has brought new scrutiny to Saudi plans to normalise relations with Israel, while the fifth anniversary of the controversial killing of Jamal Khashoggi was marked shortly before the war began on October 7. And as the home ...
Questions need to be asked on both sides of the worldPeter Williams writes – The NRL Judiciary hands down an eight week suspension to Sydney Roosters forward Spencer Leniu , an Auckland-born Samoan, after he calls Ezra Mam, Sydney-orn but of Aboriginal and Torres Strait ...
Ele Ludemann writes – Contrary to what many headlines and news stories are saying, residential landlords are not getting a tax break. The government is simply restoring to them the tax deductibility of interest they had until the previous government removed it. There is no logical reason ...
I can't remember when it was goodMoments of happiness in bloomMaybe I just misunderstoodAll of the love we left behindWatching our flashbacks intertwineMemories I will never findIn spite of whatever you becomeForget that reckless thing turned onI think our lives have just begunI think our lives have just begunDoes anyone ...
Michael Bassett writes – At first reading, a front-page story in the New Zealand Herald on 13 March was bizarre. A group of severely intellectually limited teenagers, with little understanding of the law, have been pleading to the Justice Select Committee not to pass a bill dealing with ram ...
How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) unable to cost the policy accurately. As Anna Burns-Francis pointed out to him on Breakfast TV, the original ”rock solid” $2.1 billion cost he was ...
TL;DR: My top 10 news and analysis links this morning include:Today’s must-read:Jonathon Porritt calling bullshit in his own blog post on mainstream climate science as ‘The New Denialism’.Local scoop:The Wellington City Council’s list of proposed changes to the IHP recommendations to be debated later today was leaked this ...
TL;DR:Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said yesterday tenants should be grateful for the reinstatement of interest deductibility because landlords would pass on their lower tax costs in the form of lower rents. That would be true if landlords were regulated monopolies such as Transpower or Auckland Airport1, but they’re not, ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Tom Toro Tom Toro is a cartoonist and author. He has published over 200 cartoons in The New Yorker since 2010. His cartoons appear in Playboy, the Paris Review, the New York Times, American Bystander, and elsewhere. Related: What 10 EV lovers ...
The business section of the NZ Herald is full of opinion. Among the more opinionated of all is the ex-Minister of Transport, ex-Minister of Railways, ex MP for Auckland Central (1975-93, Labour), Wellington Central (1996-99, ACT, then list-2005), ex-leader of the ACT Party, uncle to actor Antonia, the veritable granddaddy ...
Hi,Just quickly — I’m blown away by the stories you’ve shared with me over the last week since I put out the ‘Gary’ podcast, where I told you about the time my friend’s flatmate killed the neighbour.And you keep telling me stories — in the comments section, and in my ...
The first season of Rings of Power was not awful. It was thoroughly underwhelming, yes, and left a lingering sense of disappointment, but it was more expensive mediocrity than catastrophe. I wrote at length about the series as it came out (see the Review section of the blog, and go ...
Buzz from the Beehive Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden told Auckland Business Chamber members they were the first audience to hear her priorities as a minister in a government committed to cutting red tape and regulations. She brandished her liberalising credentials, saying Flexible labour markets are the ...
Chris Trotter writes – TO UNDERSTAND WHY NEWSHUB FAILED, it is necessary to understand how TVNZ changed. Up until 1989, the state broadcaster had been funded by a broadcasting licence fee, collected from every citizen in possession of a television set, supplemented by a relatively modest (compared ...
Bob Edlin writes – The Māori Party has been busy issuing a mix of warnings and threats as its expresses its opposition to interest deductibility for landlords and the plans of seabed miners. It remains to be seen whether they follow the example of indigenous litigants in Australia, ...
The Government has accepted Labour’s change to the Road User Charge (RUC) discount for hybrid vehicles, meaning there will still be some incentive for people to buy greener vehicles. ...
Kicking the most vulnerable people out of state housing and pushing them towards homelessness will result in a proliferation of poverty and trauma across our most vulnerable communities. ...
Te Pāti Māori co-leader and MP for Waiariki, Rawiri Waititi has penned a letter asking MPs to support his members bill to remove GST from all food. The bill is expected to go through its first reading in parliament this Wednesday. “I’m calling on all political parties to support my ...
This year is about getting real with Kiwis and discussing the tough issues, as the National Government exacerbates inequality and divides New Zealand, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said ...
The Government adding Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) to its already roaring environmental policy bonfire is an assault on the future of wildlife that makes Aotearoa unique. ...
After 12 years of fighting to protect our moana we are finding ourselves back at square one and back at court. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is sitting in Hawera to reconsider an application from Trans-Tasman Resources to dig up 50 million tonnes of the seabed in South Taranaki. This ...
Minister Shane Jones’ decision to step away from a seabed mining project is evidence of the murky waters surrounding the Government’s fast-track legislation. ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The growth of Treaty of Waitangi clauses in legislation caused so much worry that a special oversight group was set up by the last government in a bid to get greater coherence in the publicservice on Treaty matters. When ministers first considered the need for tighter oversight in 2021, there ...
The Coalition Government’s miscalculation saga continues as it has forgotten an eyewatering $90 million gap in its interest deductibility cost figures, say Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds and Revenue Spokesperson Deborah Russell. ...
He Pou a Rangi Climate Change Commission has today released advice that says if the Government doesn’t act now New Zealand is at risk of not meeting its climate goals. ...
The Coalition Government has today confirmed it is abandoning first home buyers who are struggling to get ahead, says Labour Finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds. ...
The New Zealand public voted for a change in direction at the 2023 general election and that is exactly what this coalition government has been delivering in its first 100 days. There was an immediate focus on the economy, easing the cost of living, cracking down on law and order ...
The Government has left the health system as an afterthought, announcing half-baked targets at the last minute of their 100-day plan, says Labour Health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall. ...
Kiwis are still waiting for their promised cost of living support after 100 days of a National Government that is taking us backwards, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said today. ...
The National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
100 days of National taking NZ backwardsThe National Government has spent its first 100 days stopping, cutting and reversing. They have scrapped stuff for stuff for the sake of it, without putting up any solutions of their own – and it’s hardworking New Zealanders who will pay for it. ...
The Government must commit to funding free and healthy school lunches, as thousands of people sign the petition to keep them, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti says. ...
If the Government was serious about moving families into public housing, they would build more houses so there is actually somewhere for people to go. ...
The free and healthy school lunches programme feeds our kids, helps them to learn, and saves families money – but it is at risk under this Government, education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
The Government’s proposed changes to Firearms Prohibition Orders (FPO) add almost nothing new and are merely an attempt to distract from its plans to loosen gun laws, police spokesperson Ginny Andersen and justice spokesperson Dr Duncan Webb said. ...
The great Victorian era English politician Lord Macauley stood in the British House of Parliament and said, "The gallery in which the reporters sit has become a fourth estate of the realm".He understood and outlined even way back then, the significant role and influence media have in a democracy. ...
The government’s attack on Māori health this week is committing tangata-whenua to a premature death, says Te Pāti Māori. “The government have begun their onslaught on Māori health with the abolishment of the Māori Health Authority and smokefree laws in the same day” said health spokesperson and co-leader, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. ...
"The Government is moving quickly to realise an additional $46 million in tariff savings in the EU market this season for Kiwi exporters,” Minister for Trade and Agriculture, Todd McClay says. Parliament is set, this week, to complete the final legislative processes required to bring the New Zealand – European ...
New Zealand’s social workers are qualified, experienced, and more representative of the communities they serve, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “I want to acknowledge and applaud New Zealand’s social workers for the hard work they do, providing invaluable support for our most vulnerable. “To coincide with World ...
Cabinet has agreed to a reduced road user charge (RUC) rate for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. Owners of PHEVs will be eligible for a reduced rate of $38 per 1,000km once all light electric vehicles (EVs) move into the RUC system from 1 April. ...
Minister of Agriculture and Trade, Todd McClay, says that today’s opening of Riverland Foods manufacturing plant in Christchurch is a great example of how trade access to overseas markets creates jobs in New Zealand. Speaking at the official opening of this state-of-the-art pet food factory the Minister noted that exports ...
Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Wellington today. “It was a pleasure to host Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his first official visit to New Zealand since 2017. Our discussions were wide-ranging and enabled engagement on many facets of New Zealand’s relationship with China, including trade, ...
Kāinga Ora – Homes & Communities has been instructed to end the Sustaining Tenancies Framework and take stronger measures against persistent antisocial behaviour by tenants, says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “Earlier today Finance Minister Nicola Willis and I sent an interim Letter of Expectations to the Board of Kāinga Ora. ...
Tēna koutou katoa. Greetings everyone. Thank you to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce and the Honourable Simon Bridges for hosting this address today. I acknowledge the business leaders in this room, the leaders and governors, the employers, the entrepreneurs, the investors, and the wealth creators. The coalition Government shares your ...
Minister Winston Peters completed the final leg of his visit to South and South East Asia in Singapore today, where he focused on enhancing one of New Zealand’s indispensable strategic partnerships. “Singapore is our most important defence partner in South East Asia, our fourth-largest trading partner and a ...
Minister of Internal Affairs and Workplace Relations and Safety, Hon. Brooke van Velden, will travel to the Republic of Korea to represent New Zealand at the Third Summit for Democracy on 18 March. The summit, hosted by the Republic of Korea, was first convened by the United States in 2021, ...
ICNZ Speech 7 March 2024, Auckland Acknowledgements and opening Mōrena, ngā mihi nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Good morning, it’s a privilege to be here to open the ICNZ annual conference, thank you to Mark for the Mihi Whakatau My thanks to Tim Grafton for inviting me ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Lead Coordination Minister Judith Collins have expressed their deepest sympathy on the five-year anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks. “March 15, 2019, was a day when families, communities and the country came together both in sorrow and solidarity,” Mr Luxon says. “Today we pay our respects to the 51 shuhada ...
Speech for Financial Advice NZ Conference 5 March 2024 Acknowledgements and opening Morena, Nga Mihi Nui. Ko Andrew Bayly aho, Nor Whanganui aho. Thanks Nate for your Mihi Whakatau Good morning. It’s a pleasure to formally open your conference this morning. What a lovely day in Wellington, What a great ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters held discussions in Jakarta today about the future of relations between New Zealand and South East Asia’s most populous country. “We are in Jakarta so early in our new government’s term to reflect the huge importance we place on our relationship with Indonesia and South ...
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has announced that the Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, will visit New Zealand next week. “We look forward to re-engaging with Foreign Minister Wang Yi and discussing the full breadth of the bilateral relationship, which is one of New Zealand’s ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has today opened the new Auckland Rail Operations Centre, which will bring together KiwiRail, Auckland Transport, and Auckland One Rail to improve service reliability for Aucklanders. “The recent train disruptions in Auckland have highlighted how important it is KiwiRail and Auckland’s rail agencies work together to ...
The Government is proud to support the 10th edition of Crankworx Rotorua as the Crankworx World Tour returns to Rotorua from 16-24 March 2024, says Minister for Economic Development Melissa Lee. “Over the past 10 years as Crankworx Rotorua has grown, so too have the economic and social benefits that ...
Legislation implementing coalition Government tax commitments and addressing long-standing tax anomalies will be progressed in Parliament next week, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The legislation is contained in an Amendment Paper to the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill issued today. “The Amendment Paper represents ...
Associate Environment Minister Andrew Hoggard has today announced that the Government has agreed to suspend the requirement for councils to comply with the Significant Natural Areas (SNA) provisions of the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity for three years, while it replaces the Resource Management Act (RMA).“As it stands, SNAs ...
Agriculture Minister Todd McClay has classified the drought conditions in the Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts as a medium-scale adverse event, acknowledging the challenging conditions facing farmers and growers in the district. “Parts of Marlborough, Tasman, and Nelson districts are in the grip of an intense dry spell. I know ...
The Government is helping farmers eradicate the significant impact of facial eczema (FE) in pastoral animals, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “A $20 million partnership jointly funded by Beef + Lamb NZ, the Government, and the primary sector will save farmers an estimated NZD$332 million per year, and aims to ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has completed a successful visit to India, saying it was an important step in taking the relationship between the two countries to the next level. “We have laid a strong foundation for the Coalition Government’s priority of enhancing New Zealand-India relations to generate significant future benefit for both countries,” says Mr Peters, ...
Cabinet has agreed to provide $7 million to ensure the 2024 ski season can go ahead on the Whakapapa ski field in the central North Island but has told the operator Ruapehu Alpine Lifts it is the last financial support it will receive from taxpayers. Cabinet also agreed to provide ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says the launch of a new mobile breast screening unit in Counties Manukau reinforces the coalition Government’s commitment to drive better cancer services for all New Zealanders. Speaking at the launch of the new mobile clinic, Dr Reti says it’s a great example of taking ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Unlocking economic growth and land for housing are critical elements of the Government’s plan for our transport network, and planned upgrades to State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko will deliver strongly on those priorities, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “The SH29 upgrades near Tauriko will improve safety at the intersections ...
Lower fruit and vegetable prices are welcome news for New Zealanders who have been doing it tough at the supermarket, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Stats NZ reported today the price of fruit and vegetables has dropped 9.3 percent in the 12 months to February 2024. “Lower fruit and vege ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the sixty-eighth session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
Tēnā koutou katoa and greetings to you all. Chair, I am honoured to address the 68th session of the Commission on the Status of Women. I acknowledge the many crises impacting the rights of women and girls. Heightened global tensions, war, climate related and humanitarian disasters, and price inflation all ...
The coalition Government is supporting farmers to enhance land management practices by investing $3.3 million in locally led catchment groups, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay announced. “Farmers and growers deliver significant prosperity for New Zealand and it’s vital their ongoing efforts to improve land management practices and water quality are supported,” ...
Good evening everyone and thank you for that lovely introduction. Thank you also to the Honourable Simon Bridges for the invitation to address your members. Since being sworn in, this coalition Government has hit the ground running with our 100-day plan, delivering the changes that New Zealanders expect of us. ...
Recommendations from the Climate Change Commission for New Zealand on the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) auction and unit limit settings for the next five years have been tabled in Parliament, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. “The Commission provides advice on the ETS annually. This is the third time the ...
The coalition Government is beginning its fight to lower building costs and reduce red tape by exempting minor building work from paying the building levy, says Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk. “Currently, any building project worth $20,444 including GST or more is subject to the building levy which is ...
Proposed changes to tax legislation to prevent the over-taxation of low-earning trusts are welcome, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. The changes have been recommended by Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee following consideration of submissions on the Taxation (Annual Rates for 2023–24, Multinational Tax, and Remedial Matters) Bill. “One of the ...
Assalaamu alaikum. السَّلَام عليكم In light of the holy month of Ramadan, I want to extend my warmest wishes to our Muslim community in New Zealand. Ramadan is a time for spiritual reflection, renewed devotion, perseverance, generosity, and forgiveness. It’s a time to strengthen our bonds and appreciate the diversity ...
Former Transport Minister and CEO of the Auckland Business Chamber Hon Simon Bridges has been appointed as the new Board Chair of the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) for a three-year term, Transport Minister Simeon Brown announced today. “Simon brings extensive experience and knowledge in transport policy and governance to the role. He will ...
Good morning all, it is a pleasure to be here as Minister of Science, Innovation and Technology. It is fantastic to see how connected and collaborative the life science and biotechnology industry is here in New Zealand. I would like to thank BioTechNZ and NZTech for the invitation to address ...
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says he is looking forward to the day when three key water projects in Northland are up and running, unlocking the full potential of land in the region. Mr Jones attended a community event at the site of the Otawere reservoir near Kerikeri on Friday. ...
Associate Finance Minister David Seymour has today announced that the Government has agreed to restore deductibility for mortgage interest on residential investment properties. “Help is on the way for landlords and renters alike. The Government’s restoration of interest deductibility will ease pressure on rents and simplify the tax code,” says ...
Sport and Recreation Minister Chris Bishop will travel to Switzerland today to attend an Executive Committee meeting and Symposium of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Mr Bishop will then travel on to London where he will attend a series of meetings in his capacity as Infrastructure Minister. “New Zealanders believe ...
Pacific Media Watch Ismail al-Ghoul, an Al Jazeera Arabic correspondent who was held for 12 hours at Gaza’s al-Shifa hospital, says Israeli forces rounded up Palestinian journalists at the facility and made them kneel on the ground for hours, while naked and blindfolded. “The occupation forces handcuffed and blindfolded us ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tony Wood, Program Director, Energy, Grattan Institute chinasong, Shutterstock Electricity customers in four Australian states can breathe a sigh of relief. After two years in a row of 20% price increases, power prices have finally stabilised. In many places they’re ...
Chumbawamba have reportedly issued the deputy PM a cease-and-desist notice after he used their song 'Tubthumping' before his state of the nation speech. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Deborah Lupton, SHARP Professor, Vitalities Lab, Centre for Social Research in Health and Social Policy Centre, and the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society, UNSW Sydney kitzcorner/Shutterstock The assertion from Queensland’s chief health officer John Gerrard that ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Peter Martin, Visiting Fellow, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University Shutterstock Why are musicians so keen to get played on the radio? It can’t be because of the money. In Australia they are paid at rates so low they ...
"Farmers make a point not to tell our urban cousins how to live, yet Chlöe from central Auckland is hell-bent on having her say about farmers," says ACT Rural Communities spokesman Mark Cameron. “On her first day in the House as Green ...
Analysis by Dr Bryce Edwards – Democracy Project (https://democracyproject.nz)Political scientist, Dr Bryce Edwards. It’s been a tumultuous time in politics in recent months, as the new National-led Government has driven through its “First 100 Day programme”. During this period there’s been a handful of opinion polls, which overall just ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Curran, Associate Professor of Ecology, Lincoln University, New Zealand Getty Images/Gerald Corsi In the latest move to reform environmental laws in New Zealand, the coalition government has introduced a bill to fast-track consenting processes for projects deemed to ...
Uber has argued it does not have as much control over drivers as the unions suggest, and wants a judgment ruling that drivers are employees and not contractors set aside and sent back to the Employment Court. The 2022 ruling followed a three-week hearing in which four drivers sought to ...
What can and can’t be purchased by disabled people or their carers has been slashed in an effort by the Ministry of Disabled People Whaikaha to save money. The purchasing guidelines, a set of rules that sets out what can be purchased using the various streams of Government disability funding, ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Tod Wright and Hien Nguyen, Fiscal incidence in New Zealand: The effects of taxes and benefits on household incomes in tax year 2018/19 . Analyses of the distributional impact of taxation and government ...
The Treasury has published today a new Analytical Note by Cory Davis, Boston Hart and Benjamin Stubbing, Household cost-of-living impacts from the Emissions Trading Scheme and using transfers to mitigate regressive outcomes . This Analytical Note ...
A coalition of public transport and climate organisations, united as ‘Transport for All’, is actively opposing the government’s transport proposals. The draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) includes plans for higher fares for public transport, ...
Greater Wellington is inviting feedback on proposed changes to its Revenue and Financing Policy. The Revenue and Financing Policy covers the Council’s various sources of funding, and how the cost of services is shared across the region. This includes ...
Labour has conceded it could have done more to deal with disruptive state housing tenants while in government but says the current coalition is going too far. ...
The band has asked their record label to issue a cease and desist to stop the NZ First leader using their 1997 hit to support his ‘misguided political views’. “I get knocked down, but I get up again,” blared through the speakers on Sunday as Winston Peters took the stage ...
By Lydia Lewis, RNZ Pacific journalist Food rationing is underway in remote areas in Papua New Guinea’s Highlands following torrential rain and flash flooding. More than 20 people have been reported dead in Chimbu Province. In nearby Enga Province, the centre of last month’s massacre, a 15-year-old boy has been ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Andrew Hughes, Lecturer, Research School of Management, Australian National University After months of debate and intrigue, the AFL’s 19th and newest team, the Tasmania Devils, finally launched its jumper, logo and colours in Devonport this week. The Devils will wear green, ...
Brannavan Gnanalingam reviews the debut novel by Saraid de Silva.One of the most baffling things for children who move to a new country is what their parents’ (or grandparents’) lives were like prior to moving – for kids in particular, they’re too busy trying to fit in in their ...
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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, Tuesday 19 March appeared first on Newsroom. ...
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I was going to do a post on the reshuffle and redirection. Hopefully someone posts on it.
Still thinking of you, Ad, & hoping things are edging towards water and access for you and others out west.
Water restored, power restored, broadband restored.
Street still fully bisected by slips.
Stay-at-home orders from work.
Harbour Bridge likely to shut soon.
what's happening with the bridge?
RNZ said high winds. Also this. https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2023/01/nz-weather-transport-agency-warns-auckland-harbour-bridge-could-close-as-city-prepares-for-high-winds.html
Fairly standard closure in high winds – ever since the truck toppled and damaged the structure.
But, not closed yet (winds pretty gusty on the Shore, though) – apparantly anticiating greater wind strength from 6pm this evening
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2023/01/nz-weather-transport-agency-warns-auckland-harbour-bridge-could-close-as-city-prepares-for-high-winds.html
My best wishes to all in the North. Been through fires and floods so have some idea of our need for communal, kindly and timely responses. My vege gardens help stave off famines…….. possibly a reason why my ancestors came to NZ, that land of school milk and honey, meat and three vegs.
Anyone who has any opinion on gender identity and trans politics, needs to read this thread. This is not an outlier, there are many people, men and women, in Ritchie's situation. Some people have medical/surgical transition, it works (to the extent it can) and they're happy. Others end up with lifelong impairment, pain, depression.
The left in its No Debate position has marginalised and tried to render invisible the latter group. Detrans people struggle to get the medical care they are now dependent on, pro-transition doctors and medical systems either ignore them or don't know what to do. It's a massive medical scandal happening on the left's watch.
Ritchie is a man who transitioned medically and surgically, then later regretted this and is trying to find a way to live with his intensely altered body and biochemistry. Please read the whole thread,
https://twitter.com/TullipR/status/1620145374639050754
https://twitter.com/TullipR/status/1620145380259409921
https://twitter.com/TullipR/status/1620145386051747841
Article came through on Twitter feed from a previous member of the XR Media and Messaging Team. I found it interesting, posting link for others.
(Comes from a place where genuine concerns were ignored.)
https://www.thefp.com/p/climate-activism-has-a-cult-problem
Interesting perspective. Thanks Molly
https://i.stuff.co.nz/national/131100221/firearms-licence-fee-could-rise-by-almost-500
I would suggest that it's far better to have all gun owners in the fire arms license system than try have licensing cover the cost.
A 500% raise in costs will surely drive guns underground
When Police released their consultation document on the proposed increased gun licence and other related fees, gun owners were quick to realise they provided no explanation as to how the new fees were derived.
An Official Information Act (OIA) requesting that this information be provided, so that they could assess whether the new fees were fair and reasonable
With only just three weeks remaining of the consultation period they have received a reply from Police refusing the request.
The reason given for the refusal is that the Police will be making this information publicly available in the future.
"In the next few weeks, as part of the consultation on options for changes in firearmslicence fees, Police will be proactively releasing information on the costing methodology used, and the breakdown of how various options for the licence fees have been calculated. This will cover the information that you have sought in your request."
Too late no doubt to influence submissions on these exorbitant fee increases, which close on 16 February.
How can this consultation be described as meaningful, when vital data is held back to the last minute.
Also
New PM Hipkins is making noise about both inflation and cost of living.
The more seen of the 'inflation'/'cost of living' approach to the new fees resonates as a viable parallel consideration.
The questions to be asked are
1) are these massive fee increases wildly inflationary?
2) How do they affect the cost of living of the people that Police propose to inflicted these increased fees upon upon
3) Is this Government Policy or are Police out of control?
Bluntly: Does the Finance Minister and the Prime Minister support these punitive fee increases?
During his first post-Cabinet press conference as prime minister, PM Hipkins reiterated that his focus would be set firmly on inflation and the cost of living.
The huge firearms fees are most certainly tied to both.
The economic effects of such HUGE increases are grave and they were proposed when Hipkins was Minister of Police
Questions in the House are warranted along the lines
"Does he condone or support such massive cost increases?"
"What was his involvement in this proposed increase?"
"Does he think this is 'fair'?"
seems cheap. my sport of choice asks $350 a yr for license, and it isnt dangerous for users or non-users.nobody has ever stolen my sports equipment for criminal purposes, and my sporting equipment doesnt effect my insurance premiums, or need to be locked away.. what are they whinging about?never thought that gun lovers would sound like entitled snow flakes, hah!
Surely if the cost of a licence has not been increased for 20 years some increase is necessary.
Many of us have hobbies. The membership costs look very different when multiplied by five. One of my hobbies costs $75.00pa. When you multiply it by 5 you get $375.00. I belong to a food 'circle' costing $12.00 pw $624pa.
And we don't work with a potential deadly weapon where there are reguistration costs that involve scrutinising bona fides.
While it is an argument that to increase the costs of a licence may drive shooters underground perhaps this has been overstated? In my studies of criminology I don't think that fees increases is a precursor to becoming a criminal. I think the die is cast by other things.
Wouldn't gun licensing authorities investigate to see why a licence has not been renewed?
Perhaps one way of doing it could be to allow time period of 2 years, 3 year 5 years and 10 years.
The 2 & 3 year licences could be a proportion of the 5 year licence but not a straight mathematical division as costs lessen per annum with a longer term.
$500 for five years sounds reasonable to be honest but its too steep, and for many it will be, perhaps allow annual licences ie $100 a year.
Although I'm still angry with Helen Clarks government for increasing the price of passports and decreasing the length they were eligible. That's was gross revenue gathering at it's worst.
I 'reckon' no one yearly licences but two, three yearly ones
2 yearly $225
3 yearly $335
5 yearly 527
Often this will persuade a person to opt for the 5 yearly one with a bit of a push.
you should have been more pissed about jenny shipley converting lifetime passports back to five years.
The new $500 fees are compared to Australia which have been similarly driven higher but compared to other similar countries ours are very much higher.
The proposed fee is increased to massively more than comparable with UK and Canada with similar history
Here is the UK fee structure: https://www.met.police.uk/advice/advice-and-information/fi/af/firearms-licensing/firearms-licensing-fees/
90 pounds for firearms certificate with shotgun certificate ($NZ171.60)
62 pounds for renewal ($NZ118.21)
Canadian fees here: https://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/en/firearms/changes-service-fees
PAL $CAN 62.42 ($NZ 72.65) for ordinary firearms
RPAL $CAN 83.23 ($NZ 96.87) for restricted firearms
Erratum: 500% increase [not $500 but $727.50]
Police have now released some documents which show that $727.50 is 75% recovery so the proposed 100% recovery fee is $970.00 as the present fee is $126.50 the proposed 100% recovery increase is 767%
If the present fee is so much different then why have no incremental increases been made in line with inflation as the Canadian fees are? [their fees are limited to that level of increase by legislation] – do we need something similar here?
As a farming person, a firearm is a necessary tool for rabbits and disposing of animals. There is no other pest control, if we don't keep rabbits down, we suffer the consequences. A larger firearms licensing fee would be a (sigh) further farming cost. Could the fee not be scaled somehow so those who have more workaday firearms needs pay less than those with bristling armouries who stalk out after large game animals…?
Tax-deductible expense on the farm, surely? I'd be keen on both gun-owners' registration cost, plus a lower fee per firearm, to discourage weapons stockpiling.
"weapons stockpiling" For goodness sake Police, Army and Criminals have "weapons" Licence holders have sporting equipment.
To fully engage in the large number of shooting sports, with spare firearms to cover breakdowns, from 20 to 40 firearms may be required as each particular practice of the sport requires differing types of firearms. Then there is historical collecting with collections of firearms sometimes numbering in the hundreds. You want to make it prohibitively expensive for sports persons to participate in their chosen sporting pursuits to "discourage weapons stockpiling."?
“Surely if the cost of a licence has not been increased for 20 years some increase is necessary.”
The corollary of that is if it has not been increased for 20 years that is because it has not been necessary.
In 2015 Police set about destroying the Mountain Safety Council volunteer system which had about 500 persons assisting the relicencing/firearms training/vetting procedures at very little cost to Police.
Now there is a huge new empire being built within Police employing 400 plus highly paid persons with a large headquarters building and masses of bureaucrats.
“Wouldn't gun licensing authorities investigate to see why a licence has not been renewed?
Another Police failure when the “lifetime licence” was replaced with a ten year licence in the 1990’s when somewhere near 30,000 licences were not renewed and still to this day not completely followed up. One problem being that a licence person must notify changes of address but as soon a becoming unlicenced this requirement disappears and follow up in our mobile society becomes extremely problematic. At present Police are swamped with Licence reissue with long delays tying up resources so that there is simply not the ability – or will – to follow up those who simply drift away from the Licencing system.
Police cannot cope with 10 year relicencing let alone shorter terms. The first issue of a licence is now for 5 years but that simply adds to the backlog when relicencing arrives.
The Licence fee is just the beginning of the proposed charges Endorsements (pistol club/collector/pest control etc) up to $1,500ish. Range inspections, permission for gun shows, etc. etc. Even more fees of eye watering proportions. Dealer licences (one year term) up to $2,500ish. ALL eventually falling back upon the Licence holder.
The cost of ALL this should be on the Community requesting the regime and that isn’t the Firearms Community. It appears to largely be a box ticking exercise by Police in reaction to their apparent failures prior to the Mosque Shooting.
"The cost of ALL this should be on the Community requesting the regime and that isn’t the Firearms Community."
Why?
It doesn't work that way for car or dog licencing. Why should firearms owners have the cost of fixing the mess, which is mostly the result of their lobbying over decades, inflicted on everyone else.
There is an argument for reduced fees for pest controllers etc that are a community benefit.
Driver’s Licence – required to permit use of vehicle on Public Roads and places accessible to the Public. No Driver’s Licence is required for ownership of vehicles nor for use on Private property. There is no requirement fo ar fit & proper test (other than for public conveyance) Administered by NZTA The fee for a Full Licence (class 2 to 5) is $49.60 with a test fee of $59.90 Total $109.50
Dog Registration (NOT licencing) is a function of individual Councils. A Responsible Dog Owner License is issued without charge (it allows a discount on registration) to those who qualify as a responsible dog owner. A further permit is required for having two or more dogs on an urban property but not for rural with a fee of up to $81. The fees vary between Councils and type of dog https://ccc.govt.nz/the-council/plans-strategies-policies-and-bylaws/plans/long-term-plan-and-annual-plans/fees-and-charges/fees-animal-management/
A Firearms Licence enables lawful possession of firearms; requires a fit & proper test and firearms are largely used privately and only transported in public. The purpose of the licence is to show fit & proper status for the safety of the Public. It is a public good. The price of a 10-year gun licence could increase from the present $126.50 to $727.50 application fee
The “mess” you speak of has not been made by Firearms Owners lobbying it is almost entirely down to convoluted much amended law and Police administration which creates excessive bureaucratic processes that do not increase public safety in my considered opinion.
Of course it was. the dogs breakfast of ineffective gun laws we had until recently, was entirely the result of firearms owners lobbying for ineffectual gun laws.
The argument for public good applies even more to dog licencing as it is almost entirely paid by 'responsible dog owners' to meet the public cost of strays and irresponsible dog owners. However guns in the hands of 'irresponsible owners' are obtained from, so called 'responsible owners' since individual gun registration was discontinued. Without the gun lobby we would not have our current problem with so many unregistered guns out there, which will take many years to fix.
NONSENSE!
The present firearms law is even MORE of a dogs breakfast as it is another amendment tacked on top of previous amendments right back to 1983 Arms Act – which BTW cancelled the ineffective 'registration' system which had been in use since 1926. Shotgun registration was abandoned very soon after 1926 as unworkable and impossible – so for the last 90 years shotguns have not been registered and for 40 years rifles have not been recorded either.
The Gun Lobby did not exist then as it sprung in to being with the 1991 Amendments so they had nothing to do with the abandonment of registration.
Registration is no panacea for in Australia only about 20% of firearms have been registered since 1996 – the rest just 'disappeared' on to the Grey market. The lesson has been well and truly taught in New Zealand with the MSSA buy back which was only possible because those firearms were recorded. Indeed one 'gun lobby' now has "Registration leads to confiscation" as its catch cry.
It is an unfortunate fact that Police have lost the trust of many in the firearms community. Even more so with the present proposed escalation of Fees!
Nonsense.
How old are you? Twenty!
As for Australian gun laws being “ineffective”.
https://www.sydney.edu.au/news-opinion/news/2018/03/13/gun-laws-stopped-mass-shootings-in-australia.html
“In the 18 years up to and including the Port Arthur massacre in 1996, there were 13-gun homicides in which five or more people died, not including the perpetrator. In the 22 years since, there have been no such incidents.”
Nope – not twenty. Hell! I wuz there … just a disparate group of concerned firearms licence holders till 1990
As to Australia coincidence is not causation. The alternate view is that no one has emerged who wants to kill five or more people with a firearm. The British in testing the single shot Martini found that lining up victims allowed 7 to 11 deaths with ONE shot – depending upon how robust the bodies were (their words).
This tends to indicate that rapid fire is not a prerequisite – how ever horrible that example is – they did do it when testing their new military rifle way back then.
Mighty big coincidence. Most of the researchers disagree with you.
Australia’s 1996 gun law reforms: faster falls in firearm deaths, firearm suicides, and a decade without mass shootings | Injury Prevention (bmj.com)
” to 11 deaths with ONE shot”
How to blow your credibility even more.
How many mass shooting victims co-operatively line up to be shot with a High powered rifle. FIFY.
Then again – quoting that paper has been problematic
https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3086324
Abstract
In 1996 Australia implemented arguably the most ambitious gun control effort ever attempted, banning all semiauto rifles and shotguns and all pump-action rifles and shotguns, and buying the banned guns already in circulation. Chapman, Alpers, and Jones (2016) produced what is arguably the most extensive evaluation, concluding that the measure was a success. In fact, their own data indicated that the effort failed to reduce homicides, suicides, or unintentional firearms deaths. It is even questionable whether the effort reduced mass shootings, the problem that had triggered the gun control effort in the first place.
Will leave you to read the rest of the critique
Except it wasn't the only piece of research.
Unlike you I didn't cherry pick when looking at the research.
The stats are conclusive. Along with the many research papers world wide on gun control.
Unless you are a gun nut?
Care to list all this "research" you tout?
I am a research nut and look as clearly as possible at both sides.
There are plenty of refutations in BOTH directions finding exactly that which the researchers set out to find – the result before the research in many instances with sound bites from that research used in argument. The World is full of nuts of both pro and anti anything.
The manipulation of statistics is an art form and remember: “There are three kinds of lies: Lies, Damned Lies, and Statistics” — has been attributed to Mark Twain, who himself attributed it to British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli, who might never have said it in the first place.
Keep some balance and please do not resort to name calling!
Again, if a gunholder's license is needed for your work, it is arguably a tax-deductible business expense.
Most licences are for private non-commercial sporting use and voluntary pest control. Over half of pest control is done by itinerant unpaid volunteers. THAT is a public good in and of itself. No costs tax deductible.
That is a fact.
The thing is used to be complimentary, it needn't cost. The Mountain Safety Council used to administer it. Plus they ran the firearms courses.
But (scuse me while I struggle up on my hobby horse), what else can you expect from a neo-liberal police force? They can sub-contract the work while clipping the ticket.
There is also an issue of trust. We have to trust who they trust, recently that hasn't been so flash…
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/130968941/police-officers-surprised-at-appointment-of-former-top-cop-to-new-role
Don't think it's much to do with 'neo-liberal' cops. Twenty-five years ago we were a high-trust society with strong community policing.Those community police had time to check out individuals applying for licenses. Each one probably took a half day's work at least, unless the person was well known to the constable. All part of the community policing service, helping to keep an eye out.
Police funding cut-backs, by guess-which governments, drained police out of rural areas and community policing. Meantime, we've had half a million migrants, at least, pour into NZ, many from low-trust societies. Or, very occasionally, with a hidden agenda, as in our own mosque shooter.
Consider the fee as the cost, in real terms, of the previous community police vetting process, when it was fully-funded and working properly. Nothing 'neo-lib', more like bracing 'user-pays'.
"more like bracing 'user-pays'"
The supposed purpose of this bureaucratic nonsense is to promote Public safety for all, as that is the case then the government should pay the lions share from the public purse. The licence holders are NOT the user of this system it has been imposed upon them to promote Public Safety. Indeed bona fide licence holders do not threaten public safety – the criminal missusers of firearms do that!
Where do the 'criminal users' get their guns? how many sold by 'responsible licenced gun owners since individual gun registration ceased?
not to mention the 'responsible licenced gun owners' who were, until they started shooting people!
Gangs do not get firearms from responsible firearms licence holders because back in 2016 it was revealed:
In April 2016, the Police identified 29 firearm licence holders who were members of a New Zealand adult gang.
https://kiwigunblog.wordpress.com/2017/04/12/police-aware-that-29-gang-members-have-gun-licenses/#:~:text=In%20April%202016%2C%20the%20Police,since%20been%20revoked%20or%20surrendered.
Still some had them in 2021
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/436709/act-questions-why-more-gang-members-getting-firearms-licence
Numerous associates also have been issued licences AFTER being "rigorously" vetted by Police!
Very few people shoot others in New Zealand – an even smaller number of those can in any way be called fit and proper licence holders. Most of the shootings are gang/drug related. It often takes a great deal of research to find out what licence status the offender was – then mostly NOT licenced.
Will search for links to data to post here much came from a yet unpublished Doctoral Thesis
For now see this: https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/112559564/the-homicide-report-gives-a-detailed-account-of-gun-violence-in-new-zealand
“An unprecedented Stuff investigation has identified every homicide in New Zealand in the past 15 years, revealing the vast majority of those who kill with guns are unlicensed and their weapon of choice is often a .22 calibre rifle or shotgun.”
“Of the 84 cases where we identified the killer’s licensing status, only 12 were legally permitted to own a gun.” [there were 105 cases over 15 years – so the status of 21 are unknown]
So LESS than one a year attributable to licence firearms owners.
Funny, before the 4th Labour government and their 'reforms' I hadn't heard the term user pays. It's neo-liberal as. As is sub-contracting the work needed to be done.
All roads across the Coromandel are now impassable. Latest image of SH 25A the Kopu – Hikuai Road.
When is VFF going to get in on the Act of bemoaning the loss of freedums during the current state of emergency. C'mon guys, here's how you do it.
"The state of emergency in Auckland should have been called earlier", and our Govt shouldn't have taken "a one-size-fits-all approach" – what were they thinking?!!!
As for "shambolic", that sounds awfully familiar.
On and on – like a drain
Perhaps, in the not too distant future, more Kiwis will realise just how lucky they are.
Drowsy, I just got a secret message from someone from the Nats to say that a secret power has offered a prize for the most number times the word 'shambolic/shambles' can be used during the term of a leader of the Opposition.
So far they are hoping that Luxon will lead the pack.
I couldn't catch the name of the person though the word 'speechwriter' was mentioned & the prize seemed to be a word like 'Te Puke' or 'Hawaii' ( you know how those two words sound the same. )
love it. the shambles party is sounding more and more like an echo chamber. like a tv ad that has long outlived its appeal, the cry of "shambles" is only heard by the already converted. "enough is enough" hah!
It's indicative of a form of religious thought language – a godly order out of chaos, and condemnation of any other regime as shameful (shame and guilt etc).
lol VFF.
that's a decent sized slip that's going to take some fixing.
Yes its the main route between the East and West coasts of the peninsula. SH25A is closed for the foreseeable future and travel from one side to the other will mean taking the long way round via SH2 through the Karangahake Gorge.
how much longer does that take?
Depending on where you are heading – if you were travelling from Thames to Whangamata it would be about 20 mins longer – but if going further north it would add at least and hour to the journey
Decoding language of old people.
An Australian racehorse named Drongo, (foaled 1920, retired 1925) never won a race, and by transference anyone slow became a drongo.
The Drongos
Their music includes Leave me Alone and Eye of the Hurricane. They were notably successful on the street corners of New York and developed a club following, including someone from Red Mole.
https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-d&q=the+drongos+songs
The drongo is rather a beautiful bird but in flight it very amusing. The long forked tail allows for some amazing stunts.
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/kSl_qwU_0gk
Hovering like a Harrier.
Hipkins giving presser now, announcing reshuffle (links: all media).
Hipkins says the health reforms now move to the delivery phase, thus the change of Minister. The deputy PM is also deputy Foreign Affairs.
https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2023/01/politics-live-updates-chris-hipkins-to-hold-press-conference-with-caucus-reshuffle-expected-christopher-luxon-to-speak-in-auckland.html
On an emotional level I am sad that Nanaia loses 3 Waters. It is as though the racists won.
However it is expediency for the good of the Party.
The new connection between Local Government and Emergency Management (and Rural Communities) – to solidify the connection between water management and community well-being/safety.
Full list here:
The new Cabinet
That’s not the full full list, which can be found here: https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/new-cabinet-focused-bread-and-butter-issues
Tough break Mahuta. Parker as AG and Environment inherits the 3 Waters legislation.
Also tough break Little for shouldering the Health reforms this far. Verrall takes it to the Promised Land where she will avenge every Wellington health bureaucrat that wronged her.
No succession plan for Robertson, when we know he's leaving.
Wood for Auckland is a natural. Ex Auckland Councillor and wife on local board means they can easily corral that fuck-knuckle mayor.
Congrats to Deborah Russel for getting her own little bunch of portfolios finally. Jesus Parker give Revenue up already!
Nash with Police but no alignment to Justice is silly.
Wood is Associate Finance, and Robertson is available to remain Minister if Labour wins in 2023.
OMG you are fooling yourself if you think Robertson is staying. Robertson is as spent as Ardern, and his policies such as they are, are dead.
Wood has not a jot of financial experience on his CV. Associate Finance without a delegation. Best of luck with that.
Myself, really? It's Hipkins who has only Parker as a potential replacement next year (and it's not Parker who has signalled he is staying on).
Wood with 4 years as Associate Minister could be spokesperson from 2026.
Robertson was appointed to Finance Spokesperson in 2014.
I reckon Robertson will quit after the election. Keep the ship looking stable for one more run. But agree his time is done. A good communicator but hopeless at economics, just another neoliberal corporate lackey. Not the reformer we desperately needed 5 years ago.
Do you think that the drop down the ranks of Little, and the elimination of Twyford – should be taken as an indication that these 2 may retire?
Little is list – so could basically make the call at any time.
Twyford is MP for Te Atatu – a solid, safe Labour seat – so, if change is mooted, the party should be reviewing options fairly quickly.
Little and Mahuta were way too left-reformist for Hipkins. They have done their dash a- likely wait another term out until some of the younger ministers complete their apprenticeships and then just leave.
Twyford has been Walking Undead since 2019 after getting fucked over by NZSuperfund. and never recovered.
NZSuperfund are now playing both sides of the House using bankers to front their Taranakai offshore wind farm proposals, and proposing that this is a replacement for NZBattery. No one has control of them, no one. They are waiting for Labour to get chucked so they can truly kill NZBattery and show National how private equity ought to run the country.
NZ Battery is not just the Onslow proposal, it is also the look at larger scale alternatives to it (geothermal and hydrogen). There are already a few BESS (Tesla power pack) small scale battery reserve systems.
How would an offshore wind farm replace the development of the capacity to manage a dry hydro year?
Not the government? Mahuta was lead Minister during its path through parliament. Whatever government now decides, Hipkins will lead the public messaging, with McAnulty (and or Parker?) taking it from there.
My bet is Hipkins and Parker will stall implementation of parts of the Act until after the election, if at all.
Hipkins have a golden opportunity to wait until Auckland Council begs them for storm rebuild funding, and Hipkins says to Mayor Brown: sure thing sign here you will accept this 3 Waters arrangement.
There's also a chance he could strangle the programme at birth by defunding it at Budget.
They could even go to the election proposing to re-do the legislation with one single central state owned entity, with Maori representation on that.
Few expect it to survive other than in diminished form.
A single entity providing expertise (and capital investment) to provincial councils is a possibility – this to give effect to clean water, effective waste and stormwater in the iwi heartlands outside the major settler cities such as Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin.
It would be very helpful to see an old fashioned debate with the Labour Front Bench on one side, and the National Front Bench on the other. Kim Hill as moderator.
The motion being; “That this house believes neoliberalism is dead”
I can't think of a current Minister who would agree with that statement.
The Labour Front Bench against Luxon, Willis, Bishop, Mumble, Mumble.
Lay down misere.
Lay down misery.
Oh dear, I presume they can be fixed. 😮
There really are some dicks around!
If they are … ahem … electrical items – the perpetrators may be making a visit to A&E.
Seriously, just how stupid do you have to be to steal 'intimate' material which has been thrown away because of health and safety risks.
Belladonna – they are intending to sell them on to others, in the back of a pub somewhere.
Profitable, probably, with no nasty consequences to sellers.
Perhaps they are just saving them up to throw at Cabinet Ministers at Waitangi.
Great fun of course and entirely innocent behavior. Well that was the claim when Steven Joyce was assaulted.
Wasn't enough to put him off politics though – that man had (a) nerve.
Apparently it was all downhill only after Bridges took away his favourite toy and he had to go digging for holes elsewhere.
Why isn't this guy in Parliament? The Nats could sure use his 'fresh' advice
I've deleted the quote without a link. Repost with link if you want.
On RNZ live feeds there's a permanent link button in the top right corner of each item. Looks kind of like this (-). If you click on that, you can then copy the URL from the main address bar in your browser.
Same in the RNZ app, although in my iphone I had to press and hold the (-), and then copy the link and paste it.
My browser won’t link to item.
"Sex toys stolen from flooded store
Looters have stolen discarded sex toys and lingerie from a flooded store in North Auckland overnight.
Peaches & Cream chief executive Sandra Walters said they lost $200 worth of stock in Friday's flood.
After filling a skip with the ruined items, Walters said she returned this morning to find it half empty.
She had even chased looters away from the Wairau store."
https://rnz.liveblog.pro/lb-rnz/blogs/63d7ef1c0da853c07b12baac/index.html?liveblog._id=urn:newsml:localhost:2023-01-31T03:58:09.225605:2ca2a689-249b-4401-81e6-f540bd636a13-%3Eeditorial
then please cut and paste the time stamp with the quote (and then feed link). eg
Ok. Got that.
thanks Anne, much appreciated. It will matter most when important events are unfolding.
Given the amount of mis and disinformation reported on a daily basis in the media and else where, I can see it has become a necessity.