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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On Thursday 17 May, the Mayoral Proposal for Auckland’s Long Term Plan 2024-2034 was passed by Auckland Council, 20 to 1. It is set to be formally adopted by the Governing Body at its June 27th meeting. The entire process took 8 hours, with the vast majority of that time ...
Pakanga o muaTukua, ka ngaroPuritia taku ringaNgaro ana te ara ki pae rauThere's a battle aheadMany battles are lostBut you'll never see the end of the roadWhile you're travelling with meLate yesterday morning I headed to Wynyard Quarter to see Marama Davidson and Chlöe Swarbrick give their pre-budget State of ...
Maybe the Prime Minister and his Finance Minister expected the worst, so they mounted a stout defence of the Budget tax cuts to their party faithful at a party conference over the weekend. In turn, they were greeted with applause, which, though it may have been less than wildly enthusiastic, ...
A listing of 34 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, May 12, 2024 thru Sat, May 18, 2024. Story of the week “The legislation I signed today [will] keep windmills off our beaches, gas in our tanks, and ...
TL;DR: Here’s six links that stood out to me in the last day in Aotearoa’s political economy to 6:06am on Sunday, May 19:Aotearoa-NZ is the seventh worst in the OECD’s homelessness rankings, just behind the United States and just ahead of Australia. BlackRock thinks rate hikes actually worsen inflation because ...
Halfway up a historic tower in York, we are neither up nor down. At the top you will have views of a city steeped in antiquity, made and remade by Romans, Normans, Vikings, Tescos. Below, you will find a retired minister happy to tell you all about this most astonishing ...
Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. This fact brief was written by Sue Bin Park in collaboration with members from our Skeptical Science team. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Does breathing contribute to CO2 ...
David Farrar writes – The Herald reports: KiwiRail’s seemingly endless requests for more money is damning. At one point, KiwiRail assured Robertson when he was the Finance Minister that the worst-case scenario would be an extra $300 million before requesting $1.2 billion a few months later. Not what most people ...
No one knows what it's likeTo be the bad manTo be the sad manBehind blue eyesNo one knows what it's likeTo be hatedTo be fatedTo telling only liesHave you ever wondered what life must be like for Mike Hosking? Seeing things in black and white through blue tinted specs? In ...
Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past two week’s editions.Share More Than A FeildingBike bling, London Read more ...
Hi,I think we all made it through another week — congratulations. I’ve been digesting the new Arab Strap record, which is astonishing. In other news, I’m going to be doing a Webworm popup in Auckland, New Zealand on Saturday July 13. I’ll bring a bunch of merch, and some other ...
The Fast-Track Approvals Bill enables cabinet ministers to circumvent key environmental planning and protection processes for infrastructure projects. Its difficulties have been well canvassed. This column suggests a different way of thinking about the proposal. I am going to explore the Bill from the perspective of its proponents with their ...
New Zealand First Cabinet Minister Shane Jones has become the best advertisement against the Government’s Fast Track Approvals Bill. In selling the radical new resource consenting processes, in which ministers can green light any mine, dam, or other major development, Jones seems to be shooting the proposal in the foot. ...
Buzz from the Beehive Associate Education Minister David Seymour is urging the PostPrimary Teachers Association to put learning ahead of ideology. He wants the union leaders to call off their teachers meetings around the country where they hope to muster the strength to undo the government’s plans to establish several ...
What are police for? "Fighting crime" is the obvious answer. If there's a burglary, they should show up and investigate. Ditto if there's a murder or sexual assault. Speeding or drunk or dangerous driving is a crime, so obviously they should respond to that. And obviously, they should respond to ...
Michael Reddell writes – I got curious yesterday about how the Australia/New Zealand real exchange rate had changed over the last decade, and so dug out the data on the changes in the two countries’ CPIs. Over the 10 years from March 2014 to March 2024, New Zealand’s ...
Graham Adams writes that 20 years after the land march, judges are quietly awarding a swathe of coastal rights to iwi. Early this month, an hour-long documentary was released by TVNZ to mark the 20th anniversary of the land-rights march to oppose Helen Clark’s Foreshore and Seabed Act. The account ...
David Farrar writes – The Herald reports: Suspended Green MP Darleen Tana has passed an unpleasant milestone: she has now been absent for as many parliamentary sitting days as she has been present for this year. Tana is on full pay while she is suspended, and will benefit from a ...
Peter Dunne writes – It is no coincidence that two Labour should-have-been MPs are making the most noise about public sector cuts. As assistant general secretary of the Public Service Association, Fleur Fitzsimons has been at the forefront of revealing where the next round of state sector job ...
Bryce Edwards writes – It’s becoming a classic case study for why lobbying deals with politicians need greater scrutiny. Former National Minister Steven Joyce runs a lobbying company with a major client – the University of Waikato. The University desperately wants $300m+ of taxpayer funding to establish a ...
This is one of the (extra) weekly columns on music or movies. Plenty of solid analyses of Possession exist online and most of them – inevitably – contain spoilers. This column is more in the way of a first-timer’s aid to getting your initial bearings. You don’t need to have ...
I am painting in oil, a portrait of a manWho has taken all the heart aches,And all the pain he can stand.I am using all the colors of blue,I have here on my stand.I am painting in oil, a portrait of a man.This has been an interesting week for me. ...
Helen Clark joins the Hoon as a special guest talking whether Aotearoa should join Aukus II, and her views on the fast track legislation and how Luxon and the new Government are performing. File Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for subscribers features co-hosts ...
With an election due in less than nine months, Britain’s embattled PM, Rishi Sunak, gave a useful speech earlier this week. He made a substantial case for his government, perhaps as compelling as is possible in the current environment. Quite an achievement. His overall theme was security, first pulling ...
Open access notablesPublicly expressed climate scepticism is greatest in regions with high CO2 emissions, Pearson et al., Climatic Change:We analysed a recently released corpus of climate-related tweets to examine the macro-level factors associated with public declarations of climate change scepticism. Analyses of over 2 million geo-located tweets in the U.S. showed that climate ...
You can be all negative about these charter schools if you want, but I’m here to accentuate the positive. You can get all worked up, if you want to, by the contradiction of Luxon saying We’re going to make sure that every school in the country is teaching exactly the same ...
Losing The Room: One can only speculate about what has persuaded the Coalition Government that it will pay no electoral price for unreasonably pushing ahead with policies that are so clearly against the national interest. They seem quite oblivious to the risk that by doing so they will convince an increasing ...
Name suppression decisions can be tough sometimes. No matter your views on free speech, you have to be hard-hearted not to be torn by the tug of the competing arguments. I think you can feel the Supreme Court wrestling with that in M v The King. The case for ...
The Merchants of Menace: The Coalition Government has convinced itself that the “Brahmins’” emollient functions have become much too irksome and expensive. Those who see themselves as the best hope of rebuilding New Zealand’s ailing capitalist system, appear to have convinced themselves that a little bit of blunt trauma is what their mollycoddled ...
When National first proposed its Muldoonist "fast-track" law, they were warned that it would inevitably lead to corruption. And that is exactly what has happened, with Resources Minister Shane Jones taking secret meetings with potential applicants:On Tuesday, in a Newsroom story, questions were raised about a dinner Jones ...
Buzz from the Beehive One day – hopefully – we will push that Russian rascal, Vladimir Putin, beyond breaking point. Perhaps it will happen today, when he learns that Foreign Minister Winston Peters is again tightening the thumbscrews. Peters announced further sanctions, this time on 28 individuals and 14 entities ...
How Labour’s and National’s failure to move beyond neoliberalism has brought New Zealand to the brink of economic and cultural chaos.TO START LOSING, so soon after you won, requires a special kind of political incompetence. At the heart of this Coalition Government’s failure to retain, and build upon, the public ...
“Members of Parliament don’t work for us, they represent us, an entirely different thing. As with so much that has turned out badly, the re-organising of MPs’ responsibilities began with the Fourth Labour Government. That’s when they began to be treated like employees – public servants – whose diaries had ...
It’s becoming a classic case study for why lobbying deals with politicians need greater scrutiny. Former National Minister Steven Joyce runs a lobbying company with a major client – the University of Waikato. The University desperately wants $300m+ of taxpayer funding to establish a third medical school in New Zealand, ...
Time To Choose: Like it or not, the Kiwis are either going into AUKUS’s “Pillar 2” – or they are going to China.HAD ZHENG HE’S FLEET sailed east, not west, in the early Fifteenth Century, how different our world would be. There is little reason to suppose that the sea-going junks ...
Henry Ergas writes – When in Randall Jarrell’s Pictures from an Institution, a college president is accused of being a hypocrite, the novel’s narrator retorts that the description is grossly unfair. After all, the man is still far from the stage of moral development at which the charge ...
David Farrar writes – Radio NZ reports: The Education Review Office says too many new teachers feel poorly prepared for their jobs. In a report published on Monday, the review office said 60 percent of the principals it interviewed said their new teachers were not ready. ...
New Zealand’s economic performance and the PM’s vision Michael Reddell writes – When I wrote yesterday morning’s post, highlighting how poorly both New Zealand and its Anglo peer countries have been doing in respect of productivity in recent times (ie, in the case of New ...
Hi all,Firstly - thank you! You guys are awesome. The response I’ve received to last night’s mail has been quite overwhelming. It’s a ghastly day outside, but there are no clouds in here.In case you didn’t read my email and are wondering what on earth I’m talking about you can ...
If there was still any doubt as to who is actually running this government – and it isn’t the buffoon from Botany – then this week’s announcement of a huge spend up on charter schools has settled the matter. While jobs and public services continue to be cut in the ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Gaye Taylor As widespread drought raises expectations for a repeat of last year’s ferocious wildfire season, response teams across Canada are grappling with the rapidly changing face of fire in a warming climate. No longer quenched by winter, nor quelled by the ...
Te Pāti Māori have launched a petition to stop the repeal of Section 7AA from the Oranga Tamariki Act. This announcement comes prior to the first reading of the Section 7AA repeal bill in Parliament today. “Section 7AA forces the Government to adhere to Te Tiriti o Waitangi with respect ...
The Government has yet again failed to do the one thing that needs to happen to ensure houses can be built – commit to ongoing funding, Labour housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. ...
Treasury officials have outlined many ways in which the Fast Track Approvals Bill is deeply flawed, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking says. ...
Green Party co-leaders Marama Davidson and Chlöe Swarbrick used this year's State of the Planet to call on the Government to prioritise people and planet as the delivery of the Budget approaches. A full transcript of their speeches can be found below. ...
Green Party co-leaders Marama Davidson and Chlöe Swarbrick have used their State of the Planet speeches to challenge the Government to prioritise people and planet over profit as the delivery of the Budget approaches. ...
The Government’s introduction of legislation that would enable landlords to end tenancies with no reason marks a dark day for the 1.4 million people who rent their home in Aotearoa. ...
The Minister for Mental Health has found the Suicide Prevention Office and mental health support for 111 calls slipping through his fingers, says Labour spokesperson for Mental Health Ingrid Leary. ...
Today’s justification from the Minister for Children for scrapping protections for our tamariki was either a case of ignorance or deliberate deception. ...
The Green Party says the Government’s misguided policy on gangs will fail, following the announcement of the establishment of a national gang unit and district gang disruption units to target gang activities. ...
“With Police pay negotiations still unresolved after six months in Government, Mark Mitchell has today rolled the Commissioner out for a rebrand of their approach to gang crime,” Labour police spokesperson Ginny Andersen said. ...
The Government bringing back 50 charter schools will not increase achievement and is a distraction from the core mission of the education system, Labour education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
Te Pāti Māori is showing extreme concern over the Environment Select Committees adoption of a lucky dip draw to determine hearings for the Fast Track Approvals bill. Of the 27,000 submissions, 2,900 requested to present. All organisations will be heard; however, the remaining 2,350 submitters will be subject to a ...
Today New Zealand First will introduce a Member’s Bill that will protect women’s spaces. The ‘Fair Access to Bathrooms Bill’ will require, primarily in the interest and safety of women and girls, that all new non-domestic publicly accessible buildings provide separate, clearly demarcated, unisex and single sex bathrooms. This Bill ...
The Green Party is welcoming Climate Change Minister Simon Watts’ continuation of Hon. James Shaw’s cross-party work on climate adaptation, now in the form of a Finance and Expenditure Committee Inquiry. ...
The National Government plans to cut 390 jobs at ACC, including roles in the areas of prevention of sexual violence, road safety and workplace safety. ...
The Government has been caught in opposition to evidence once again as it looks to usher in tried, tested and failed work seminar obligations for job-seeking beneficiaries. ...
The Green Party is welcoming the announcement by the Minister Responsible for RMA Reform Chris Bishop to approve most of the Wellington City Council’s District Plan recommendations. ...
David Seymour has failed to get the sweeping cuts he wanted to the free and healthy school lunch programme, Labour education spokesperson Jan Tinetti said. ...
Hon Willie Jackson has been invited by the Oxford Union to debate the motion “This House Believes British Museums are not Very British’ on May 23rd. ...
Green Party MP Hūhana Lyndon says her Public Works (Prohibition of Compulsory Acquisition of Māori Land) Amendment Bill is an opportunity to right some past wrongs around the alienation of Māori land. ...
A senior, highly respected King’s Counsel with decades of experience in our law courts, Gary Judd KC, has filed a complaint about compulsory tikanga Māori studies for law students - highlighting the utter depths of absurdity this woke cultural madness has taken our society. The tikanga regulations will compel law ...
The Government needs to be clear with the people of the Nelson Marlborough region about the changes it is considering for the Nelson Hospital rebuild, Labour health spokesperson Ayesha Verrall said. ...
Ministers must front up about which projects it will push through under its Fast Track Approvals legislation, Labour environment spokesperson Rachel Brooking said today. ...
The Government is again adding to New Zealand’s growing unemployment, this time cutting jobs at the agencies responsible for urban development and growing much needed housing stock. ...
With Minister Karen Chhour indicating in the House today that she either doesn’t know or care about the frontline cuts she’s making to Oranga Tamariki, we risk seeing more and more of our children falling through the cracks. ...
The coalition Government is investing in social housing for New Zealanders who are most in need of a warm dry home, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. Budget 2024 will allocate $140 million in new funding for 1,500 new social housing places to be provided by Community Housing Providers (CHPs), not ...
Thousands more young New Zealanders will have better access to mental health services as the Government delivers on its commitment to fund the Gumboot Friday initiative, says Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters and Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey. “Budget 2024 will provide $24 million over four years to contract the ...
The Coalition Government’s Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill, which will improve tenancy laws and help increase the supply of rental properties, has passed its first reading in Parliament says Housing Minister Chris Bishop. “The Bill proposes much-needed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 that will remove barriers to increasing private ...
Standing here in Cassino War Cemetery, among the graves looking up at the beautiful Abbey of Montecassino, it is hard to imagine the utter devastation left behind by the battles which ended here in May 1944. Hundreds of thousands of shells and bombs of every description left nothing but piled ...
I present a legislative statement on the Oranga Tamariki (Repeal of Section 7AA) Amendment Bill Mr. Speaker, I move that the Oranga Tamariki (Repeal of Section 7AA) Amendment Bill be now read a first time. I nominate the Social Services and Community Committee to consider the Bill. Thank you, Mr. ...
The Bill to repeal Section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act has had its first reading in Parliament today. The Bill reaffirms the Coalition Government’s commitment to the care and safety of children in care, says Minister for Children Karen Chhour. “When I became the Minister for Children, I made ...
Kia ora koutou, good morning, and zao shang hao. Thank you Fran for the opportunity to speak at the 2024 China Business Summit – it’s great to be here today. I’d also like to acknowledge: Simon Bridges - CEO of the Auckland Chamber of Commerce. His Excellency Ambassador - Wang ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has confirmed a New Zealand Government plane will head to New Caledonia in the next hour in the first in a series of proposed flights to begin bringing New Zealanders home. “New Zealanders in New Caledonia have faced a challenging few days - and bringing ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has confirmed a New Zealand Government plane will head to New Caledonia in the next hour in the first in a series of proposed flights to begin bringing New Zealanders home. “New Zealanders in New Caledonia have faced a challenging few days - and bringing them ...
The Coalition Government will introduce legislation this year that will enable roadside drug testing as part of our commitment to improve road safety and restore law and order, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Alcohol and drugs are the number one contributing factor in fatal road crashes in New Zealand. In ...
The Government has announced a series of immediate actions in response to the independent review of Kāinga Ora – Homes and Communities, Housing Minister Chris Bishop says. “Kāinga Ora is a large and important Crown entity, with assets of $45 billion and over $2.5 billion of expenditure each year. It ...
Associate Health Minister David Seymour is pleased that Pseudoephedrine can now be purchased by the general public to protect them from winter illness, after the coalition government worked swiftly to change the law and oversaw a fast approval process by Medsafe. “Pharmacies are now putting the medicines back on their ...
Tēnā koutou katoa. Da jia hao. Good morning everyone. Prime Minister Luxon, your excellency, a great friend of New Zealand and my friend Ambassador Wang, Mayor of what he tells me is the best city in New Zealand, Wayne Brown, the highly respected Fran O’Sullivan, Champion of the Auckland business ...
Energy Minister Simeon Brown has announced that the Government will make it easier for lines firms to take action to remove vegetation from obstructing local powerlines. The change will ensure greater security of electricity supply in local communities, particularly during severe weather events. “Trees or parts of trees falling on ...
Wairarapa Moana ki Pouakani were the top winners at this year’s Ahuwhenua Trophy awards recognising the best in Māori dairy farming. Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka announced the winners and congratulated runners-up, Whakatōhea Māori Trust Board, at an awards celebration also attended by Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Finance Minister ...
"On the 27th of March, I sought assurances from the Chief Executive, Department of Internal Affairs, that the Department’s correct processes and policies had been followed in regards to a passport application which received media attention,” says Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden. “I raised my concerns after being ...
Attorney-General Judith Collins has announced the appointment of three new District Court Judges, to replace Judges who have recently retired. Peter James Davey of Auckland has been appointed a District Court Judge with a jury jurisdiction to be based at Whangarei. Mr Davey initially started work as a law clerk/solicitor with ...
Associate Education Minister David Seymour is calling on the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) to put ideology to the side and focus on students’ learning, in reaction to the union holding paid teacher meetings across New Zealand about charter schools. “The PPTA is disrupting schools up and down the ...
Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly today announced the appointment of Craig Stobo as the new chair of the Financial Markets Authority (FMA). Mr Stobo takes over from Mark Todd, whose term expired at the end of April. Mr Stobo’s appointment is for a five-year term. “The FMA plays ...
Surf Life Saving New Zealand and Coastguard New Zealand will continue to be able to keep people safe in, on, and around the water following a funding boost of $63.644 million over four years, Transport Minister Simeon Brown and Associate Transport Minister Matt Doocey say. “Heading to the beach for ...
New Zealand and Tuvalu have reaffirmed their close relationship, Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters says. “New Zealand is committed to working with Tuvalu on a shared vision of resilience, prosperity and security, in close concert with Australia,” says Mr Peters, who last visited Tuvalu in 2019. “It is my pleasure ...
New Zealand is gravely concerned about the situation in New Caledonia, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “The escalating situation and violent protests in Nouméa are of serious concern across the Pacific Islands region,” Mr Peters says. “The immediate priority must be for all sides to take steps to de-escalate the ...
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon met today with Samoa’s O le Ao o le Malo, Afioga Tuimalealiifano Vaaletoa Sualauvi II, who is making a State Visit to New Zealand. “His Highness and I reflected on our two countries’ extensive community links, with Samoan–New Zealanders contributing to all areas of our national ...
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has announced that he has approved Waiheke Island ferry operator Island Direct to be eligible for SuperGold Card funding, paving the way for a commercial agreement to bring the operator into the scheme. “Island Direct started operating in November 2023, offering an additional option for people ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters today announced further sanctions on 28 individuals and 14 entities providing military and strategic support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. “Russia is directly supported by its military-industrial complex in its illegal aggression against Ukraine, attacking its sovereignty and territorial integrity. New Zealand condemns all entities and ...
A year on from the tragedy at Loafers Lodge, the Government is working hard to improve building fire safety, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “I want to share my sincere condolences with the families and friends of the victims on the anniversary of the tragic fire at Loafers ...
Ka nui te mihi kia koutou. Kia ora and good afternoon, everyone. Thank you so much for having me here in the lead up to my Government’s first Budget. Before I get started can I acknowledge: Simon Bridges – Auckland Business Chamber CEO. Steve Jurkovich – Kiwibank CEO. Kids born ...
New Zealand and Vanuatu will enhance collaboration on issues of mutual interest, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “It is important to return to Port Vila this week with a broad, high-level political delegation which demonstrates our deep commitment to New Zealand’s relationship with Vanuatu,” Mr Peters says. “This ...
Minister for Land Information, Chris Penk will travel to Peru this week to represent New Zealand at a meeting of trade ministers from the Asia-Pacific region on behalf of Trade Minister Todd McClay. The annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Ministers Responsible for Trade meeting will be held on 17-18 May ...
Minister of Education Erica Stanford will head to the United Kingdom this week to participate in the 22nd Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers (CCEM) and the 2024 Education World Forum (EWF). “I am looking forward to sharing this Government’s education priorities, such as introducing a knowledge-rich curriculum, implementing an evidence-based ...
Minister of Education Erica Stanford has today thanked outgoing New Zealand Qualifications Authority Chair, Hon Tracey Martin. “Tracey Martin tendered her resignation late last month in order to take up a new role,” Ms Stanford says. Ms Martin will relinquish the role of Chair on 10 May and current Deputy ...
New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and President Emmanuel Macron of France today announced a new non-governmental organisation, the Christchurch Call Foundation, to coordinate the Christchurch Call’s work to eliminate terrorist and violent extremist content online. This change gives effect to the outcomes of the November 2023 Call Leaders’ Summit, ...
Distinguished public servant and former diplomat Sir Maarten Wevers will lead the independent review into the disability support services administered by the Ministry of Disabled People – Whaikaha. The review was announced by Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston a fortnight ago to examine what could be done to strengthen the ...
Today’s announcement by Police Commissioner Andrew Coster of a National Gang Unit and district Gang Disruption Units will help deliver on the coalition Government’s pledge to restore law and order and crack down on criminal gangs, Police Minister Mark Mitchell says. “The National Gang Unit and Gang Disruption Units will ...
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has today expressed regret at North Korea’s aggressive rhetoric towards New Zealand and its international partners. “New Zealand proudly stands with the international community in upholding the rules-based order through its monitoring and surveillance deployments, which it has been regularly doing alongside partners since 2018,” Mr ...
Air Vice-Marshal Tony Davies MNZM is the new Chief of Defence Force, Defence Minister Judith Collins announced today. The Chief of Defence Force commands the Navy, Army and Air Force and is the principal military advisor to the Defence Minister and other Ministers with relevant portfolio responsibilities in the defence ...
Legislation to repeal section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act has been introduced to Parliament. The Bill’s introduction reaffirms the Coalition Government’s commitment to the safety of children in care, says Minister for Children, Karen Chhour. “While section 7AA was introduced with good intentions, it creates a conflict for Oranga ...
Defence Minister Judith Collins will this week travel to the UK and Italy to meet with her defence counterparts, and to attend Battles of Cassino commemorations. “I am humbled to be able to represent the New Zealand Government in Italy at the commemorations for the 80th anniversary of what was ...
The upcoming Budget will include funding for up to 50 charter schools to help lift declining educational performance, Associate Education Minister David Seymour announced today. $153 million in new funding will be provided over four years to establish and operate up to 15 new charter schools and convert 35 state ...
“The results of the public consultation on the terms of reference for the Royal Commission into COVID-19 Lessons has now been received, with results indicating over 13,000 submissions were made from members of the public,” Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden says. “We heard feedback about the extended lockdowns in ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stephen Sherlock, Visiting Fellow, Department of Political and Social Change, Coral Bell School of Asia Pacific Affairs, Australian National University Indonesia’s president-elect, Prabowo Subianto, won February’s presidential election in a landslide victory of nearly 59% of the nationwide vote, more than double ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Timothy Byron, Lecturer in Psychology, University of Wollongong “I’m looking for a man in finance,” the TikTok user, @girl_on_couch, says blandly, looking around the room and then into the camera. “Trust fund. 6’5. Blue eyes. Finance.” In the caption, she urges someone ...
Welcome to The Spinoff Bookseller Confessional, in which we get to know Aotearoa’s booksellers. This week: Jo Pearson, illustrator of Five Wee Pūteketeke (written by Nicola Toki) and owner of children’s bookshop and studio Pictura in Port Chalmers, Ōtepoti.The book I wish I’d writtenI Want my Hat Back by ...
What happens when contaminated food accidentally makes it onto consumers’ shelves? Shanti Mathias explains the process of food recalls. A small sign at the supermarket announcing a problem with a product you’ve never heard of in your life might be all you ever hear of a food recall. Or maybe, ...
Pacific Media WatchThe Paris-based global media freedom watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has called for guaranteed safety for journalists in the French Pacific territory of Kanaky New Capedonia after an increase in intimidation, threats, obstruction and attacks against them. After a week of violence that broke out in the capital ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Catherine Strong, Associate Professor, Music Industry, RMIT University The perennial question of what to do with musicians and their work when they are found to have been abusive has arisen again this week, as distressing video footage of rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs ...
WHAT: Prison abolitionist community group People Against Prisons Aotearoa has called for a demonstration to protest the Government’s announcement of a $1.9 billion megaprison in Waikeria. The protest will call for the Government to cancel the prison ...
Social media stars are being targeted by a campaign aimed at drawing attention to the bombing of Palestinian civilians. Gabi Lardies looks at what the ‘blockout’ hopes to achieve, and the alternative way to boycott. On May 6, celebrities flocked to the Met Gala wearing tulle, crystals, lace and lamé. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Melanie Ashe, PhD Candidate, School of Media, Film & Journalism, Monash University Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures The Mad Max films are set in an arid, barren, post-apocalyptic world known in the movies as “the wasteland”. This is a world of ...
New Zealand police have a lot of guns, and every year one or two are briefly misplaced. Oscar Francis reports on an official investigation into a singularly striking case, that of a helicopter-borne constable who dropped their pistol into an illegal cannabis plantation. You know how sometimes you find yourself ...
An alliance of mental health organisations is urging the Minister for Mental Health, Matt Doocey and the Coalition Government to invest in the Aotearoa New Zealand’s mental health system in an open letter. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Adam Bartley, Postdoctoral Fellow, RMIT Centre for Cyber Security Research and Innovation, RMIT University In the occupied far east of Ukraine, Russian forces are aiming waves of missiles against Ukrainian civilian targets. Each of Russia’s state-of-the-art missile launch systems costs more than ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anna DeMello, Research Fellow, University of Otago Getty Images Despite measures to reduce young people’s access to vapes, many countries are recording rising use by underage adolescents, especially since refillable “pod mods” and disposable devices have become widely available. In ...
The Education Ministry has taken back the job of financing, designing and building several school expansions, after companies said the public-private-partnership approach was too difficult. ...
Barring an unplanned byelection, the July 20 council election will be our only major election of the year, explains Stewart Sowman-Lund in this extract from The Bulletin. To receive The Bulletin in full each weekday, sign up here. ...
The National Party insists there has been no conflict of interest in David Macleod's chairing the committee considering the contentious fast-track bill. ...
Joel MacManus endures five hours of fear and hatred as some of New Zealand’s most controversial figures – and a sitting MP – gather to fight against trans rights. Note: This article contains quotes that may offend. They have been included to present an accurate report of what was said ...
It raises valid concerns about Kāinga Ora, but there’s little to suggest the new direction for state housing charted in Sir Bill English’s report will address Aotearoa’s chronic shortage of affordable rental housing, argues Alan Johnson.Given previous National governments’ indifference or even hostility toward the idea of state housing, ...
Comment: NZ’s main political parties need to reach a consensus on how to adjust to China’s dominance and coercion The post Bridging the Aukus chasm appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Opinion: Jacinda Ardern’s leadership significantly enhanced New Zealand’s profile on the global stage. In the first five months of her second term of government, between December 2020 and April 2021, her name appeared 24 times in the Washington Post, 10 in the New York Times, 27 in the Times and ...
Comment: The public has seen the PM’s ruthless side, but it’s hard to imagine a scenario where a member of the coalition faces the same punishment The post Christopher Luxon the disciplinarian appeared first on Newsroom. ...
Education is facing a bunch of changes, but the important ones are not banned cell phones or ‘woke’ foods. The Government has ordered teachers to adopt ‘structured literacy’ to get children reading. That means Reading Recovery, a system New Zealand pioneered and spread to the world, along with ‘whole language’, ...
What a difference a year has made for Caroline Powell. After coming last at the Badminton Horse Trials in 2023, Powell triumphed at this year’s event earlier this month, on board her sometimes-feisty Irish-bred mare Greenacres Special Cavalier – much to her astonishment. Now she hopes to succeed at the ...
The publishing sensation of 2024 is wartime memoir The Last Secret Agent by Pippa Latour and Jude Dobson, which tells the amazing story of a woman who operated behind enemy lines in Nazi-occupied France. Sales went through the roof as soon as it was published: in its first week it became ...
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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.